Last Thursday marked the 10th anniversary of the Jewish Community Center in Tallinn, Estonia, celebrating ten years of the first Jewish establishment built in the country since the Holocaust and a decade since Estonia became the last European country to finally get its own synagogue.

The center, which was dedicated by businessman and philanthropist Alexander Bronstein in memory of his mother Bella, houses the local Chabad branch which is co-directed by Estonias chief Rabbi Shmuel Kot and his wife Chana. Dedicated in May of 2007, the $4-million building can seat 180 people, with additional seating for up to 230 for concerts and other public events.

The Tallinn synagogue tells the story of the fate of its Jewish community, said Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid, who was present at the event. Estonia is proud of the fact that our country today has a flourishing and vibrant Jewish life.

The history of the local community, noted Kaljulaid, is much like the history of Estonia itselfone of tragedy and revival, spanning the terrible years of the Holocaust but ultimately ending in triumph with a free, democratic, and independent Estonia. Today, Kaljulaid declared, the synagogue is a beautiful and clear symbol of freedom.

Our two nations shared both the joyous and difficult times which we endured together Both nations have needed to fight for their existence, the president added, recalling the 178 Jewish women and men who participated in the Estonian War of Independence. Both our nations know what it means to maintain our identity and freedom even under the threat of foreign powers, and we can be proud of our achievements.

Seventy-five years ago, Estonia was the first country to be declared Judenfrei (free of Jews), after most of Estonias 4,000 Jews were wither deported, killed, or scared into fleeing in search of safety. The countrys synagogues were razed during WWII, leaving no trace of Jewish life in what had once been a bustling Jewish center. After the war, the communist regime strictly forbade the returning survivors to rebuild a Jewish community, and until just a decade ago, Estonia was the only country in Europe without a synagogue.

That changed in 2007, on the 40th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem, when a synagogue and Jewish community center finally opened in the capital city of Tallinn. At the time, former Israeli president Shimon Peres, who was then a government minister, represented Israel at the landmark event.

Over the past decade, Jewish activity and life in Tallinn have flourished, and many Jews who were cut off from their Jewish heritage have returned to identify themselves as Jews. Today, the Jewish community of Estonia numbers approximately 2,500.

This year, Estonia and Israel mark 25 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Chief Rabbi of Israel David Lau and Israeli minister of social equality Gila Gamliel flew in from Israel for the event, where they were joined by Israeli ambassador to Estonia, Dov Segev-Steinberg.

Speaker of Estonian parliament Eiki Nestor, vice president of the European Commission Andrus Ansip, and director of the European Jewish Association Rabbi Menachem Margolin were also present at the celebration.

Learn more about the Jewish community of Estonia by visiting www.ejc.ee.
This week marks the 50th anniversary since The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, launched the global tefillin campaign in the days before the Six-Day War, when he publicly called for every Jew to fulfill the mitzvah of donning phylacteries. In the half century thats passed since then, tefillin has become synonymous with Chabad on a global scaleand they aim to keep it that way.

In 2005, The Shluchim Office, a global Chabad resource center, established the International Tefillin Bank with the help of Rabbi Sholom Ber Lipskar, founder of The Shul of Bal Harbor, Florida, and the generosity of Charles Kushner and Holocaust survivors Yaakov and Chana Weinbaum.

The Tefillin Banks commitment was to ensure that nothing held back any Jewish man from putting on tefillin every day. Through the bank, The Shluchim Office distributed thousands of tefillin sets to Jewish men in 35 different countries who committed to fulfilling the daily mitzvah.

The Shluchim Office is pleased to announce that the Ichikowitz Family Foundation, sponsors of the South Africa-based Ichikowitz Family Tefillin Bank of Africa, are joining in as partners in a unique global initiative.

Thanks to their generosity, the Tefillin Bank is readying for a summer reopening in ten countries: Africa, Azerbaijan, Brazil, the Caribbean Islands and Puerto Rico, China, Hungary, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, and Portugal.

The bank will use a new, sustainable distribution model conceived by Tefillin Bank of Africa founder Rabbi Dovid Wineberg of Cape Town, who operates the local bank under the auspices of Lubavitch Foundation of Southern Africa. Local sponsors will be involved as partners in the initiative, working together with the Ichikowitz Family Foundation and The Shluchim Office to distribute tefillin in their regions.

The Tefillin Banks Brazil branch will be operating thanks to the local partnership of Mr. Arnaldo Pasmanik in loving memory of his parents Henrique and Beatriz Pasmanik.

The Ichikowitz Family International Tefillin Bank will be reopening this upcoming summer and expects to expand to include new countries within the year.
Flailing in yet another political crisis, Brazil is once more looking to its judges for salvation. This time, they could determine the fate of its president, Michel Temer.

On June 6, Brazils top electoral court, the TSE, is due to resume its judgment of the 2014 election campaign that could see Temer ousted from office. Aides say the president is determined to resist such an outcome. After playing a key role throughout last years impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff, Brazils judiciary finds itself in the eye of the storm once more, caught between the opposing demands of the public and the government.

Allies of the Temer administration would consider an adverse court ruling as an honorable exit for a president sinking in a quagmire of corruption allegations, preferable to either impeachment or trial by the Supreme Court. But the president himself is working to avoid defeat at the TSE, according to three aides  including two cabinet ministers  who were not authorized to speak on the record because of the delicate subject matter. The presidential press office declined to comment for this story.

The TSE will judge whether the 2014 election campaign, won by Rousseff with Temer as her vice-president, benefited from illegal donations. If the court rules that it did, Temer may be stripped of the presidency. Even though he could appeal, prominent government allies have hinted that an unfavorable ruling could prompt them to jump ship.

We think that the judgment of the TSE will be an important date, said Tasso Jereissati, the leader of the PSDB to the O Globo newspaper on Thursday. Lets see what happens on the 6th.

Temers team is working on a scenario whereby one of the judges would request more time to analyze the case, or else hold Rousseff solely responsible for any wrongdoing while exonerating Temer, according to one presidential aide. If, however, the court appears minded to condemn them both as June 6 approaches, the president will try to have the judgement postponed, the aide said.

But thats not going to be straightforward due to a lack of effective communication between the presidential palace and the court, said two people with direct knowledge of the TSE. Over the past few days there has been no dialogue between Temers team and Gilmar Mendes, the president of the TSE, according to one of the two people, who is linked to the presidents defense lawyers. Mendes usually converses frequently with politicians.

Oscar Vilhena, a legal scholar and director of Sao Paulos FGV law school, said that there is pressure on the judges to push back the date of the ruling.

Its unacceptable that judges should be pressured, but that doesnt stop legal arguments from the defense being presented in a robust way, he said. It appears that these two things are happening at the same time. Simone Iglesias, Bloomberg
Hundreds of women were brought from Thailand to the U.S. and forced to be modern day sex slaves, according to an indictment unsealed last week that charges high-level members of what authorities called a sophisticated sex-trafficking ring that concealed millions of dollars in earnings.

The indictment brings the total number of people charged to 38, making it one of the largest sex-trafficking prosecutions in the U.S., said Acting U.S. Attorney Gregory Brooker. Authorities say the operation lured Thai women to the U.S. with promises of a better life, then forced them to work as prostitutes until they could pay off often insurmountable bondage debts.

Women were rotated through several prostitution houses around the U.S., forced to work long hours, and forced to have sex with strangers, even if the men were abusive, Brooker said.

The latest indictment goes after the money  estimated in the tens of millions of dollars  as well as high-level members of the organization, such as house bosses. It charges 21 people with various counts, including conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, sex trafficking by use of force or threats, conspiracy to engage in money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. It builds upon an indictment unsealed in October that charged 17 people, some of whom have pleaded guilty.

Alex Khu, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Minneapolis, said going after the enterprises finances was important.

We hit them hard, Khu said. It was a gut punch.

Khus agency discovered the international ring after it began looking into a sex-trafficking case in the Twin Cities in 2014. Former Minnesota U.S. Attorney Andy Luger had made sex trafficking a priority and traveled to Thailand as part of the investigation. Luger was among the U.S. attorneys forced to resign in March, but prosecutors in the office have continued working this case, approaching it as they would an organized crime network.

The conspiracy began in 2009, according to the indictment, with organizers bringing poor women who spoke little English from Bangkok to several U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Minneapolis, Washington, Houston and Dallas. The organization threatened to harm the womens families in Thailand if they escaped.

The victims were isolated. They typically did not have the ability to choose who they have sex with, what sex transactions they would engage in, or when they would have sex, the indictment said.

The women were forced to turn over most of the money they earned, plus pay for rent, food and personal items, making it almost impossible to repay their debts, the indictments say. They also were often encouraged to get breast implants, and the surgery costs were added to their debt.

Panida Rzonca, directing attorney with the Thai Community Development Center in Los Angeles, told the story of one victim who left her family in Thailand to get a massage job in the U.S. Upon arrival, her passport was taken away and she was told she would have to pay USD35,000. It wasnt until her trafficker took her to buy lingerie that she discovered she was really brought to the U.S. for commercial sex. The woman eventually escaped, Rzonca said.

Twenty of the people charged in the latest indictment were arrested Wednesday, with one person remaining at-large. Authorities said active prostitution houses were shut down, and some additional victims were found.

Those arrested include house bosses who allegedly ran day-to-day operations, including advertising, scheduling sex buyers, and ensuring that a portion of cash made by victims was routed back to traffickers to pay down bondage debts. The arrested also included alleged money launderers.

As part of the money laundering scheme, the women were forced to open bank accounts in the U.S. that the organization controlled and used to hide proceeds. The organization also recruited people to bring large sums of cash to Thailand or hid cash in items sent to Thailand, such as clothing or dolls. Cash was also sent to Thailand through international wire transfers and hawala-based systems, the indictment said.

One of the bosses of the organization was arrested in the first phase of the investigation and is in custody in Belgium. Authorities are working to extradite her to the U.S., Khu said.

The leaders of the ring based in Bangkok  who are identified in the indictment as Individual A and Individual B  are believed to be in Thailand and are at-large. Amy Forlity, AP
In China, a bicycle-sharing phenomenon is changing the way urban dwellers get around  and forcing listed manufacturers to scramble to get a slice of the profits.

Across major cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, sidewalks are filling up with parked bikes that anyone with an app can unlock with a swipe of their phone. The cost is a few U.S. cents a hour, and users can dump the vehicle wherever they want, unlike rental schemes in Western cities where bicycles typically have to be returned to docking stations.

As competition grows more aggressive  with at least seven companies offering such services in Beijing alone  the biggest bicycle-makers are trying to get a slice of the boom. Their stocks have been in retreat as the emergence of bike sharing risks eroding sales already hit by Chinas economic slowdown and competition from smaller manufacturers.

Taiwans Giant Manufacturing Co., the worlds largest cycle maker by market value, will deliver 600,000 bikes by the end of the year to Ofo Inc., a rental firm whose yellow two-wheelers command over half of the market in China. Shanghai Phoenix Enterprise Group Co., which has been making bikes in China since the 1950s, said this month that it will also supply Beijing-

based Ofo with at least 5 million bicycles.

Bike manufacturers are are now at a crossroads, said Rui Shi, a Beijing-based analyst at Internet consulting firm iResearch Consulting Group. Its inevitable that big bicycle manufacturers will seek cooperation with rental companies because the rise of ride-sharing will undermine their retail sales of low-end models.

So far, the rental companies have relied on smaller manufacturers to supply basic models at a low cost. Tianjin Flying Pigeon Cycle Development Co. and Tianjin Fuji-ta Bicycle Co., both privately held, are among Ofos suppliers. Ofos chief rival Mobike built its signature orange-colored bikes, which use a GPS locking system, with the help of Foxconn Technology Group and Tianjin Aima Sport Goods Co., according to the Beijing Morning Post.

Some listed bike manufacturers have been latecomers in joining the bike- sharing business, said Wang Chenxi, an analyst with Analysys International, an Internet research firm in Beijing. They are more cautious than small, private makers and take a much longer time to make decisions.

While Chinas bike-sharing startups are raking in venture capital, its not translating into stock gains for the larger manufacturers. Giants shares have fallen more than 30 percent over the past two years as the company reshuffled management amid falling profits. Bloomberg
The University of Macau (UM) held an inauguration ceremony for the Chinese-Portuguese Bilingual Teaching and Training Centre on Friday. The center is under the Department of Portuguese of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, and includes a language and culture exhibition room, a reception room and a general office.

During his inauguration speech, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture Alexis Tam remarked that higher education institutions in Macau are better suited to offering Portuguese language courses than universities in mainland China.

He expressed his high expectations for the two centers, as well as his hope that the centers will aid the region in fostering Macaus cooperation with mainland China.

UM rector Wei Zhao also pointed out that in addition to being the largest Portuguese teaching institution in Asia, the UM Department of Portuguese also boasts a culturally diverse faculty whose members include professors from renowned universities in Portuguese-speaking countries.

With the facultys support, the center will initiate various projects, such as the implementation of innovative teaching methods to improve the Department of Portugueses current course delivery.

The university stated in a press release that the center intends to carry out targeted academic research in the teaching and learning of the Portuguese language, as well as Chinese and Portuguese cultures generally.

The center will also offer module-based training courses for Portuguese language teachers from Macau and mainland China. It will develop Portuguese teaching materials and multimedia teaching materials tailor-

made for local students.

The centers future plans also include compiling and publishing a guidebook of cultures of Portuguese-

speaking countries, and collaborating with mainland Chinese publishing houses to translate and publish Chinese and Portuguese classics.

Separatly, UM also held its Congregation 2017 on Saturday, which was attended by Chief Executive Chui Sai On, who is also chancellor of UM.

Chui said at the ceremony that he hopes that UM and other institutions will seize the opportunity and continue to improve their hardware and software in order to train students to become the pillars of society.

Rector Wei Zhao said in his speech that the UM implements a 4-in-1 education model, which has produced a positive effect on the students: their academic performance, soft skills and employability have all significantly improved.

This year, more than 1,400 students graduated from UM with a bachelors degree. 44 of the graduates have also completed programs offered by the Honours College.
Moodys Investors Services decision to downgrade Hong Kongs debt rating last week was based on shallow evidence, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan wrote in a blog yesterday.

The evidence on which the ratings company mechanically downgraded Hong Kongs debt rating based on the very close economic relationship between Hong Kong and the mainland is shallow, Chan wrote in a blog on the official website of the financial secretary. Enhancing cooperation with the mainland cannot be considered negative as China is the main growth engine for the global economy, he added.

Moodys cut its rating on Chinas debt for the first time since 1989 last week, a challenge to the view that the countrys leaders can rein in leverage while maintaining the pace of economic growth. Hours later, the company cut the rating on Hong Kongs local- and foreign-currency issuances to Aa2 from Aa1, and changed the outlook to stable from negative. It was the territorys first cut in ranking by Moodys since the Asian financial crisis in 1998.

Credit trends in China will continue to have a significant impact on Hong Kongs credit profile due to close and tightening economic, financial and political linkages with the mainland, Moodys said in its statement. Closer financial ties risk introducing more direct contagion channels between Chinas and Hong Kongs financial markets.

Hong Kongs government said in a statement on its website shortly afterward that it disagreed with the decision by Moodys, citing Chan. The ratings company overlooked Hong Kongs sound economic fundamentals, robust financial regulatory regime, resilient banking sector and strong fiscal position, the government said.

Chan, who was appointed Hong Kongs financial secretary in January, expanded on that argument with his blog post yesterday. He said Moodys concern for Chinas economy lacked objective evidence because growth and exports this year have improved, while steel and coal oversupply have eased. In response to Moodys contagion channels worry, Chan said Hong Kongs financial system is very stable and it has policies in place to improve risk management for mainland-related loans.

The rating firms outlook cut in March 2016 has proven to be exaggerated based on economic growth since then, Chan also wrote. Moodys cut Hong Kongs outlook to negative from stable last year because it said the citys credit profile tracked Chinas. Days earlier, it lowered Chinas credit-rating outlook, highlighting the countrys surging debt burden and questioning the governments ability to enact reforms.

Chinas currency and stocks rallied despite last weeks debt-rating downgrade. The onshore yuan strengthened 0.5 percent, the biggest weekly gain since July 2016. Shanghais benchmark gauge climbed 0.6 percent last week, the most since the week ended April 7. Daniela Wei, Bloomberg
Government forces enforced a strict curfew in parts of Indian-controlled Kashmir yesterday, a day after the killing of a prominent rebel commander by Indian soldiers sparked massive protests in the disputed region.

Armed police and paramilitary soldiers patrolled deserted streets and ordered residents indoors in the regions main city of Srinagar and other towns to stop the anti-

India demonstrations.

Still, thousands of people assembled in the southern Tral area to take part in the funeral of the rebel leader, Sabzar Ahmed Bhat, chanting slogans calling for Kashmirs freedom from Indian rule.

There were no reports of any protests yesterday, which marked the beginning of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

After Bhat and another militant were killed in a gunbattle with soldiers on Saturday, large-scale protests and clashes erupted across the region, leaving one civilian dead and dozens of others injured.

Anti-India sentiment runs deep among Kashmirs mostly Muslim population, and most people there support the rebels cause against Indian rule despite a decades-long military crackdown to fight the armed rebellion.

Separatist leaders who challenge Indias sovereignty over Kashmir called for a general strike yesterday and today.

India and Pakistan administer part of Kashmir, but both claim the territory in its entirety.

Rebel groups have been fighting since 1989 for Kashmirs independence or merger with neighboring Pakistan. Nearly 70,000 people have been killed in the fighting and the ensuing Indian crackdown. India has accused Pakistan of arming and training the rebels, which Pakistan denies.

Rebel groups have largely been suppressed by Indian forces in recent years. However, public opposition to Indian rule remains deep and is now principally expressed through street protests marked by youths hurling stones at government forces. AP
British Airways flights in and out of Londons Heathrow airport, the third busiest in the world, were disrupted for a second day as the carrier struggled to return to normal service after a massive computer failure paralyzed its operations, stranding thousands of travelers.

A total of 95 British Airways flights, or 10 percent of services, were canceled by midday yesterday while 210 flights, or 24 percent, were delayed, according to Flight Aware, a Houston-based airline tracking service. Flight Aware said 418 flights were scrapped at Heathrow airport and Gatwick, south of London, on Saturday and 568 were delayed.

The airline yesterday urged passengers without rebooked flights to stay home and check the carriers website for status updates.

British Airways had to scrap all Saturday afternoon and evening departures from Heathrow and Gatwick airports following what it called a very severe disruption worldwide. It ordered passengers to leave the terminals and urged other travelers to stay home.

The airline is aiming to operate the majority of its Heathrow departures on yesterday and a near normal schedule from Gatwick, although aircraft and crews are out of position and have to be relocated during the night, it said in a website posting Saturday. Portions of the system had been restored Saturday.

We are extremely sorry for the huge inconvenience this is causing our customers, and we understand how frustrating this must be, British Airways Chief Executive Officer Alex Cruz said in a video message filmed at the carriers operations center near Heathrow.

We believe the root cause was a power supply issue, and we have no evidence of any cyber attack, Cruz said in the message distributed on Saturday night.

The breakdown, which also affected call centers, prevented passengers from rebooking or from retrieving luggage that had already been loaded onto their planes.

Heathrow, in a tweet yesterday, said further delays and cancellations of BA flights are expected and urged travelers to check websites or BAs Twitter feed before heading for the airport.

Travelers took to Twitter on Saturday in Europe to complain of flight postponements, long lines to check in, and waiting for long periods on the tarmac after boarding planes. Once services were canceled, passengers from grounded planes or at gates at Heathrow endured large crowds at passport control desks to re-enter the country.

British Airways staff told customers to find hotels on their own for reimbursement later by the airline. Payments will include 200 pounds (USD260) per night for lodging, 50 pounds round trip between the airport and the hotel, and as much as 25 pounds for refreshments, according to leaflets from the company.

I would estimate, given the timing of the bank holiday weekend, that this has affected a hundred flights and a thousand passengers already, said John Strickland, director of aviation at analysts JLS Consulting, Considering the reimbursements for canceled flights and the costs of lodging stranded passengers, this will have an impact on revenue and the magnitude of the cost will depend on how long the outage lasts and how long it takes to resolve.

Hotels surrounding the airports were reportedly charging as much as 1,000 pounds ($1,280) to 2,500 pounds for rooms for a night, according to the Sunday Telegraph.

The airline said it would seek to rebook customers over the course off the rest of the weekend, or offer full refunds if a passenger is unable to fly.

The disruption coincides with the start of the annual end-of-

May Bank Holiday weekend in the U.K., as well as the three-day Memorial Day weekend regarded as the unofficial start of summer in the U.S.

Last September, a computer network failure brought down British Airways check-in system, causing worldwide service delays, while earlier this week, London Gatwick airport reported problems with its baggage-sorting system. Bloomberg
The recent French presidential elections were discussed last week at the France Macau Business Association (FMBA) breakfast meeting held at Sofitel Macau at Ponte 16. French political scientist, Eric Sautede, was invited to review the elections consequences for both Europe and China.

Speaking to the Times, Sautede said, [The election of Emmanuel Macron] is both a continuation and a development; a further integration of Europe.

The political scientist explained that on this occasion, Europe invited herself into the debate over the presidential election, when traditionally the candidates used Europe as a kind of scapegoat for failures or policies gone wrong. This time around, we saw a clear division of pro and cons regarding [the idea of the European project], noting that most of the election candidates opposed  or at least had significant reservations  about such a project.

By contrast, Macron defended the European project and had a precise strategy for how this project should be furthered, by protecting and integrating keys areas such as finance, budgeting and other national policies concerning the environment and taxation.

In Sautedes opinion, one of Macrons biggest challenges for his presidency is the fact that his political program is black and white, and when you dont have the support of a party you can not fail. Sautede noted that Macron will be held directly accountable for any failures as he is subject to the very high expectations of those who voted for him.

Questioned on whether the idea of a European project led to his election, Sautede remarked, not all people who voted for him agree with all these ideas. Especially during the second round, a lot of people voted against Marine Le Pen.

As to the extent to which this result will have implications on relations between France and China, the guest speaker remarked that a lot of deals were called off last year [between China and European countries] because Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the USA seemed more attractive to Chinese investors than in Europe. He added, of course, with [Donald] Trump [in the US presidency] we will see what happens this year.

Nevertheless, he still thinks the election outcome was very positive  not just for France but for all European Union countries. China has a lot of fund reserves, not just in USD but also in EUR and other currencies, and if people vote against the European project and for a Frexit [as Le Pen was advocating], China would have a lot to lose.

China was very supportive toward Macron, especially as he supported their own interests, he said, noting that Macron had also already given clear signs of being a great supporter of the One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative, which put China and France on the same page.

While China [through OBOR] wants to play an important role in the globalization process, the idea of globalization is also present in Macrons call for greater integration of Europe, Sautede explained, noting that values such as equality and solidarity are said by political scientists to have been somehow lost, especially after the [economic] crises of 2008. [] We cant forget that there are many European countries that are seeing the OBOR as a very important initiative in terms of creating infrastructures that they need.

He suggests that the potential impact for Macau is similar, and that although the discourse has a kind of propaganda form with a lot of empty words, it does make sense for Macau. There is a wish [pushed by the Central government] for Macau to play a role with the Portuguese-speaking countries, and this initiative might be the channel for this bridge to materialize.

Macau is better suited than Hong Kong for such a task, especially because Hong Kong is now very suspicious about everything that comes from the central authorities, Sautede said. This is an opportunity that foreign [owned] businesses have seen and the casino industry has seen too  it is only now the local businesses are realizing it because they lacked the imagination to perceive it before. They were very narrow minded and finally now they seem to have discovered something [that was there all along]; namely, that Macau has a Portuguese heritage and this can be used for profit.

During the talk, Sautede also addressed the fact that many members of the new French government led by Macron, currently have or formerly had close connections with China. He anticipates that the historical relations between the two countries are likely to be back on the right track. He also remarked that France needs to further develop areas that are targeted by Chinese investment. Two important fields for investment are technology-based industries and the energy industry.

Bilateral relations between France and India are also expected to be fostered under Macrons leadership.
The respective monetary authorities of Macau and Hong Kong have joined hands with mainland financial organizations to draft and implement new tactics in the fight against money laundering, financial crime and terrorist funding.

The Monetary Authority of Macau (AMCM) said in a statement that representatives from Macau, Hong Kong and the Peoples Bank of China met in the MSAR on Friday to deliberate methods to tackle money laundering.

Both the AMCM and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) agreed during the meeting to establish a Financial Security Expert Alliance for experts to promote the security and stability of financial markets in the region.

Following the meeting, the two authorities published similar but separate statements reaffirming their determination to fight financial crime.

The AMCM statement said that the alliance will make good use of Macaus unique environment to accumulate practical experience in regard to financial security.

The alliance effectively maintains and continuously promotes the security and stability of financial markets through relevant regulatory arrangements, including the application of technology and organizing forums, the department continued.

All parties at the meeting reached a consensus and agreed to publish Fridays outcome, the AMCM statement added. The HKMA additionally proposed the establishment of a Fraud and Money Laundering Intelligence Taskforce (FMLIT), according to a report by the South China Morning Post.

A spokesperson from the Hong Kong authorities told the SCMP that the initiative, led by the Hong Kong police, aims to promote a more effective partnership among the financial sector, law enforcement and regulator.

The joint statements of intent reflect the concerns over capital flight among political and regulatory decision-makers in Beijing. To highlight this, the AMCM statement noted that the issue of financial security has been elevated to the level of national governance.

An unidentified security insider told the SCMP that the move had probably been coordinated by Beijing and that it is a sign that the mainland is seeking a more holistic solution to the problem in the two Special Administrative Regions.

Macau has a notorious reputation as a money laundering haven, which some speculate is linked to the citys gambling industry.

Last week, however, a new group of anti-money laundering specialists denied that Macaus reputation was an accurate depiction of the city.

The Macau Anti-Money Laundering Specialists Association blamed foreign media for perpetuating the image and called on local media to help unravel the citys reputation. DB
Myanmar was supposed to turn away from China and toward the West when the United States helped the Southeast Asian country make the transition to a civilian government after five decades of military rule.

The opposite is happening: The new government is failing to attract Western investment and Beijing is on a charm offensive. China is offering economic and political support and a relationship free of the human rights concerns straining Myanmars ties elsewhere.

Myanmar, also known as Burma, was a foreign policy success for President Barack Obama. He helped coax its powerful generals into ceding power by normalizing diplomatic relations and rolling back years of economic penalties, paving the way for Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to take power after winning elections.

Suu Kyis historic struggle for democracy still evokes deep respect in Washington and Europe, but running a civilian government for the past 14 months has exposed her inability to bring peace to a country riven by ethnic conflict. She also has struggled to produce economic growth, hobbled by a lack of control over the nations still powerful military and a rigid management style.

Finding less love among the Western democracies, Suu Kyi is cautiously embracing closer ties to China.

Amid the unpredictable challenges of this democratic transition, Western influence on Burma is waning, while Beijing is becoming more assertive, Myanmars Irrawaddy news website said in an editorial.

Recent weeks have seen a flurry of China-Myanmar engagement. Suu Kyi met Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a Beijing summit in mid-May, her second visit there in the past year. Earlier, Myanmars titular president, Htin Kyaw, received a six-day state visit. Suu Kyis trip ended with an agreement with China to create an economic cooperation zone as part of the Asian giants Belt and Road initiative to connect with Asian and European markets.

Last weekend, Myanmars Navy held drills with Chinese warships. Chinas state-run Global Times said the military cooperation demonstrated political trust.

That trust was expected to develop between Suu Kyi and the U.S.-led West.

Myanmars enduring fear of being dominated by its much larger neighbor, China, was one reason it improved ties with the United States in the first place. The Obama administration seized the opportunity while trying to pivot American foreign policy focus to Asia, hoping deeper relationships with its booming economies would provide the U.S. long-term strategic and economic advantages.

Derek Mitchell, the former U.S. ambassador who spearheaded Obamas Myanmar rapprochement, said China was stunned when the country reached out to the West between 2011 and 2015. China is now making up for lost time, and capitalizing on President Donald Trumps reduced attention for Myanmar, he said.

It gave an opportunity for China to say, See were on your border and were here to stay. You cant count on the Americans, Mitchell said.

Katina Adams, a State Department spokeswoman for East Asia, said the U.S. remains committed to consolidating democracy in Myanmar and is helping the government address many inherited challenges, including the disproportionate role of the military in the economy and the need for responsible investment.

Trump has started to reach out to Southeast Asian leaders, praising Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte for his deadly war on drugs and inviting him and Thailands prime minister, who took power in a coup, to the White House. In the coming week, Trump is hosting communist Vietnams prime minister.

Trump has yet to speak with Suu Kyi.

For two decades, while Myanmar was under military rule, U.S. administrations and influential lawmakers adored Suu Kyi. Obama helped her transformation from political prisoner to national leader, fostering democracy on Chinas doorstep. Republicans and Democrats promoted the change as a victory for U.S. interests and values.

China, which sees Myanmar as a land bridge to the Indian Ocean, saw a strategic setback. Yun Sun, a China expert at the Stimson Center in Washington, said Chinese policy experts even characterized it with a proverb: The cooked duck flew out of the window.

She said the proverbs meaning is clear: Myanmar was already in our pockets but somehow the Americans stole it from us.

But Trump may have little political incentive now to prioritize U.S. ties with Myanmar. What are left now are the problems, Sun added. Those problems include:

Sluggish economic growth Washington has increased foreign aid and encouraged American investors last September by lifting the remaining economic sanctions other than on arms sales. But the moves havent spurred economic activity in one of Asias last untapped markets.

Myanmar ranks 170th out of 190 nations in the World Banks ease-of-doing-business rankings, and third-

worst globally for contract enforcement. Foreign investment dropped almost a third between April 2016 and April 2017, according to Myanmar government figures, with no new U.S. projects.

Human rights  Western nations in March backed a U.N. fact-finding mission on reported atrocities against Myanmars downtrodden Rohingya Muslims. Suu Kyi opposed the idea, tarnishing her international reputation.

Ethnic conflict  Suu Kyi has prioritized resolving Myanmars decades-long wars between the army and ethnic rebels, with little success. She tried again this week, bringing rebel groups together for talks with the government and military. China has leverage with rebels near its border and says it supports peace. Resolution, however, hinges on Myanmars willingness to cede power to minorities and facilitate greater federalism.

On economic development, China faces wary Burmese citizens. Chinese projects have uprooted villagers and hurt the environment, factors that led Myanmar in 2011 to suspend a USD3.6 billion dam primarily funded by Chinese energy interests. The suspension remains a sore point.

Mitchell, the former Obama envoy, warned of a larger strategic setback for the U.S.

Failing to consolidate Myanmars transition would tell the regions autocratic governments they were right, he said, that democracy doesnt work in Asia. By Mattew Pennington, in Washington, AP
Philippine forces found the bodies of what appeared to be eight executed civilians as authorities launched fresh airstrikes yesterday to drive militants linked to the Islamic State group out of a besieged southern city. The death toll from six days of fighting neared 100.

The crisis in Marawi, home to some 200,000 people, has grown increasingly dire as the militants show unexpected tenacity, fending off a military that has unleashed attack helicopters, armored vehicles and scores of soldiers.

The violence prompted President Rodrigo Duterte last week to declare 60 days of martial law in the southern Philippines, where a Muslim separatist rebellion has raged for decades. But the recent bloodshed in Marawi has raised fears that extremism is growing as smaller militant groups unify and align themselves with the Islamic State group.

Much of the city is a no-go zone, but as the military advances and more civilians escape, the scope of the battle is becoming clear.

Thousands of civilians have streamed out of Marawi and more than 2,000 were still trapped inside the city. Many sent desperate text messages begging to be rescued and reporting that their homes had been destroyed, said Zia Alonto Adiong, an official in Lanao del Sur, one of the countrys poorest provinces.

Have mercy on us, we dont have any more water to drink, read one of the messages, sent to a hotline set up for trapped residents.

The Associated Press was shown the messages by relief workers at a provincial government complex in Marawi. Another message asked authorities to retrieve three bodies that were rotting near a residents home.

Speaking at the evacuation center on yesterday, Saddat Liong said his house was hit by mortar fire and burned to the ground. Liong, his wife and eight children lost everything, he said  even their cooking pots. I feel that weve lost our city, he said.

Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said that combat operations were still going on, but that the militants were weakening. We believe theyre now low on ammunition and food, he said, speaking by phone from Manila, the capital. Compared to the initial days, there has been increasingly less resistance from the militants within Marawi.

Padilla said the bodies of four men, three women and a child were found near a road close to Mindanao State University in Marawi. Eight other men were found gunned down and thrown into a shallow ravine yesterday in Marawis Emi village, said police officer Jamail Mangadang. A paper sign attached to one of the men indicated that the victims had betrayed their faith, he said, identifying the men as civilians.

Marawi is a mostly Muslim city. Mangadang said the eight men were bakers and carpenters who were evacuating to Iligan, a city near Marawi, but were intercepted by the militants. When they couldnt recite verses of the Quran because they were Christians, they were brought to the top of a ravine and shot to death, Mangadang said, citing the chief of a village where the victims lived.

In addition to the civilian deaths, Padilla said 61 militants, 11 soldiers and four police were among the dead.

The violence erupted Tuesday night when the government launched a raid to capture Isnilon Hapilon, who is on Washingtons list of most-wanted terrorists. But the operation went awry and militants rampaged through the city, torching buildings and battling government forces in the streets.

A priest and several worshippers were taken hostage. There was no word on their condition.

Hapilon, an Islamic preacher, is a commander of the Abu Sayyaf militant group who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group in 2014. He also heads an alliance of at least 10 smaller militant groups, including the Maute, which has a heavy presence in Marawi and has been instrumental in fighting off government forces in the current battles.

All of the groups are inspired by the Islamic State group. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana told reporters that Hapilon has received funds from the Islamic State group.

Washington has offered a USD5 million reward for information leading to Hapilons capture. Jim Gomez, Marawi, AP
President Donald Trump on Saturday said his maiden trip abroad was a home run and he vowed to overcome the threat of terrorism, concluding a grueling five-stop sprint that ended with the promise of an imminent decision on the much-discussed Paris climate accord.

Trump ended his nine-day trip with a speech to U.S. troops in Sicily, where he recounted his visits to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Belgium and Italy and his work to counter terrorism. The president said recent terrorist attacks in Manchester, England and Egypt underscored the need for the U.S. to defeat terrorism and protect civilization.

Terrorism is a threat, bad threat to all of humanity, Trump said, standing in front of a massive American flag at Naval Air Station Sigonella. And together we will overcome this threat. We will win.

Trump tweeted earlier in the day that he would make a final decision next week on whether to withdraw from the climate pact. European leaders he met with at the Group of 7 summit in Sicily have been pressuring Trump to stay in the accord, arguing that Americas leadership on climate is crucial.

Besides reaching a decision on the climate agreement once back in Washington, Trump will also face a new crush of Russia-related controversies. On Friday, the Washington Post reported that Trumps son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner spoke with Russias ambassador to the U.S. about setting up secret communications with Moscow.

Trump held no news conferences during the nine-day trip, which allowed him to avoid questions about the Russia investigations. His top economic and national security advisers refused to answer questions about Kushner during a press briefing Saturday.

The White House had hoped to use Trumps five-stop trip as a moment to reset. The president was warmly received on his opening stops in Saudi Arabia and Israel, though he has come under more pressure in Europe, particularly over the Paris accord.

Trump was cajoled for three days  first in Brussels at meetings of NATO and the European Union, then in Sicily for G-7  but will leave Italy without making clear where he stands.

As the G-7 summit came to a close Saturday, the six other members  Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan  renewed their commitment to the accord. The summits communique noted that the Trump administration would take more time to consider whether it will remain committed to the 2015 Paris deal to rein in greenhouse gas emissions.

Backing out of the climate accord had been a central plank of Trumps campaign and aides have been exploring whether they can adjust the framework of the deal even if they dont opt out entirely. Other G-7 nations leaned heavily on Trump to stay in the climate deal, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel saying we put forward very many arguments.

The presidents trip has largely gone off without a major misstep, with the administration touting the presidents efforts to birth a new coalition to fight terrorism, while admonishing partners in an old alliance to pay their fair share.

I think we hit a home run no matter where we are, Trump told the soldiers. He also touted his meetings with NATO members, adding, Were behind NATO all the way. He reiterated a renewed commitment by NATO members to spend more on defense.

Trump was referring to a vow by NATO countries to move toward spending 2 percent of their gross domestic product on defense by 2024. Only five of NATOs 28 members meet the target: Britain, Estonia, debt-laden Greece, Poland and the United States, which spends more on defense than all the other allies combined.

The U.S. is currently paying much more than any other nation and that is not fair to the United States or the United States taxpayer. So were working on it and I will tell you, a big difference over the last year, money is actually starting to pour into NATO from countries that would not have been doing what theyre doing now had I not been elected, I can tell you that. Money is starting to pour in, Trump said, echoing a tweet earlier Saturday on the subject.

There is no evidence that money has begun to pour in and countries do not pay the U.S. or NATO directly. But Germany, for instance, has been increasing its defense spending with the goal of reaching the 2 percent target by 2024.

After the pomp of presidential travel overseas, Trump will return to Washington and many of the problems he left behind.

As a newly appointed special counsel is beginning to investigate links between the Trump campaign and Russian officials, Kushner has become a focus of the probe. Kushners lawyer said he will cooperate with investigators.

James Comey, the former FBI director who led the Russian probe until Trump abruptly fired him, is still expected to testify before Congress about memos he kept on conversations with the president that involved the investigation. Meanwhile, the search for a new FBI director continues.

And Trumps policy agenda has run into problems. The GOP health care bill that passed the House faces uncertain prospects in the Senate after a Congressional Budget Office analysis that it would leave 23 million more Americans uninsured by 2026. The presidents budget was widely criticized for deep cuts to safety net programs. And some are starting to question the chances for Trumps pledge to overhaul the U.S. tax code. Jonathan Lemire, Julie Pace, AP
Two Chinese aircraft conducted an unprofessional intercept of a U.S. Navy surveillance aircraft over the South China Sea, the Pentagon said Friday, marking the second time in about a week that the U.S. has complained about unsafe Chinese operations in the region.

A defense official said one of the Chinese J-10 fighter jets flew about 200 yards in front of the U.S. P-3 aircraft and about 100 feet above it, doing slow turns. The second Chinese fighter remained about 750 yards off the P-3s right wing. The official wasnt authorized to discuss the issue publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Navy Cdr. Gary Ross said the Navy P-3 Orion was operating in international airspace. He said the U.S. is reviewing the incident and will convey concerns to the Chinese.

Last week, U.S. defense officials said two Chinese SU-30 jets conducted an unprofessional intercept of an American radiation-

sniffing surveillance plane in the East China Sea.

Pacific Air Forces spokeswoman Lt. Col. Lori Hodge said at the time that the Chinese aircraft approached a WC-135 Constant Phoenix aircraft  a modified Boeing C-135  conducting a routine mission in international airspace in accordance with international law.

The WC-135 crew characterized the intercept as unprofessional due to the maneuvers by the Chinese pilot, as well as the speeds and proximity of both aircraft, Hodge said.

China denied U.S. accusations about last weeks intercept, saying its aircraft conducted a safe and professional operation.

Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian said the American plane was conducting surveillance over the Yellow Sea  the northern part of the East China Sea  and that the Chinese jets moved to identify and verify the plane in accordance with laws and regulations. AP
IRAQ The advance of government troops slowed yesterday in the last push to drive Islamic State group militants from the remaining pockets of Mosul. The citys wide-scale military operation was launched in October last year and its eastern half was declared liberated in January. The United Nations has warned that civilians will be hardest hit in the final phase of the assault.

AUSTRALIAN drug smuggler Schapelle Corby, whose trial and imprisonment on Indonesias tourist island of Bali mesmerized her country for more than a decade, returned home yesterday.

INDONESIA Lawmakers should expedite the passage of revised anti-terrorism laws that give police more power, President Joko Widodo said after twin suicide attacks in the capital last week killed three policemen.

MYANMAR was supposed to turn away from China and toward the West when the United States helped the Southeast Asian country make the transition to a civilian government after five decades of military rule. Instead, the opposite is happening.

SRI LANKA Rescuers yesterday pulled out more bodies that were buried by enormous mudslides as the death toll in the disaster climbed to 151, with 111 others missing. Although the weather has cleared, more rains are forecast for today, threatening to bring further misery to over 100,000 people displaced in western and southern regions of the island nation that were lashed by two days of torrential rains.

INDIA Government forces enforced a strict curfew in parts of Indian-controlled Kashmir yesterday, a day after the killing of a prominent rebel commander by Indian soldiers sparked massive protests in the disputed region.

POLANDs popular pro-democracy movement has elected a new leader amid signs of waning and controversies surrounding the finances of its previous chairman.

SPAINs minority government has cobbled together enough support from opposition parties in Parliament to pass its 2017 budget. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy required just one additional vote to obtain a majority of 176 and that was granted by Nueva Canarias, a regional party of Spains Canary Islands.

BRAZIL Key leaders in the governing coalition of embattled Brazilian President Michel Temer are now speculating about who might replace him if he is forced from office by a corruption scandal  frank talk that underscores his fragile grasp on power.
When they want Donald Trump to grasp a topic, his advisers have learned to keep things simple. Visual aids help.

Unfortunately, global economic imbalances  the massive trade deficits of the U.S. and U.K. and surpluses of Germany and China  are complicated and intractable. No matter, Trump has found a simplistic way to frame the problem: Americans buy lots of German cars, whereas mean Germans dont buy many from the U.S. Ergo, the overall U.S. trade deficit with Germany was about USD65 billion last year. And deficits are bad.

Germanys auto industry makes an odd target for several reasons, as Ill explain below. Regardless, on Thursday Trump warmed to his theme: Look at the millions of cars that they sell in the U.S. Terrible. Were going to stop that, he said, according to German media. The Germans are bad, very bad.

Lets leave aside basic economics for a second, which is pretty clear about the advantages for a country in specializing in an industry. If selling lots of cars is somehow a hallmark of low morals, the Germans are unquestionably evil. Last year German manufacturers sold 1.3 million cars in the U.S., whereas U.S. brands sold about half a million in Germany (the latter is of course a much smaller market).

Trumps Manichean view of global auto sales doesnt withstand much further probing though. Nowadays, cars are often made where theyre sold. German carmakers have quadrupled yearly production in the U.S. to 850,000 units since 2009. About 40 percent are sold locally.

Similarly, many American vehicles sold in Germany are built there by Ford and General Motors Cos Opel brand. So a more pertinent question might be to ask GMs CEO Mary Barra why shes having to retreat from Europe by selling Opel.

GM has suffered about $9 billion in losses in Europe in just seven years. So an American manufacturer has had unfettered access to Germanys car market, and failed. As the German foreign minister says, U.S. carmakers should build better cars.

Trumps own buying choices have reflected this reality. His timing is also odd. Volkswagen AGs U.S. sales plummeted 8 percent last year after the dieselgate scandal. BMW AG is doing even worse. Its U.S. sales fell 10 percent last year, as consumers stopped buying sedans and started buying trucks and SUVs.

Plus BMW is a net exporter of cars from the U.S. If Trump were consistent, he would be a BMW fan. Mercedes and VW remain net importers to the U.S., according to Barclays, but both are investing heavily in American production.

Which brings me to my final point. You cant have a big trade surplus unless youre a net exporter of capital. Years of wage restraint, coupled with an aging society, have led to a huge surplus of German savings, some of which flow to the U.S.

Rather than targeting German autos with tariffs, Trump would have a far stronger case in urging the miserly Germans to cut taxes and boost investment. That might encourage more domestic purchases of U.S. goods.

There are limits, though. Even if you gave Germans a raise, its doubtful many would rush out to buy a Ford, Jeep or Buick. Like trade deficits, buying habits die hard. Chris Bryant
Chinas third-most senior leader has warned the people of Hong Kong not to challenge the high degree of autonomy the city has enjoyed since it was handed over to Beijing by Britain 20 years ago.

Outlining plans to consolidate Beijings power over Hong Kong, National Peoples Congress Chairman Zhang Dejiang in a speech on Saturday also called on the city to enact controversial national security legislation that has been on hold since half a million people flooded the streets in opposition in 2003. The sweeping legislation would outlaw treason, sedition and other national threats.

The relationship between the central government and Hong Kong is that of delegation of power, not power-sharing, Zhang said at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on the upcoming 20th anniversary of Hong Kongs handover from Britain. Calls for self-determination or independence for Hong Kong were attempts to shun the sovereignty enshrined in the Basic Law that China has over the city. One cannot turn a blind eye to such acts, he said.

Zhang mentioned areas in which the central government would go into further detail to consolidate its hold over Hong Kong, including the pace of political reform, Beijings power over the citys chief executive and its ability to appoint and dismiss key officials.

The Hong Kong special administrative region should steadfastly implement the constitutional obligation of national security under the Basic Law, he said.

China promised to give Hong Kong a high degree of autonomy before the U.K. relinquished control in 1997. On July 1, Xi Jinping is expected to visit the city for the first time as president to mark the anniversary of the exchange.

The commemoration comes against a backdrop of elevated political tension in Hong Kong. So-called Occupy protests paralyzed parts of the city in 2014 sparked by Chinas insistence that it would vet candidates for the chief executive post. Many residents of the city are still angry over the lack of a direct election for their chief executive, who is selected by a 1,194-member committee dominated by China loyalists.

Zhang defined the role of the citys chief executive as core in his speech. Hong Kongs former No. 2 official, Carrie Lam, was elected chief executive in March. She won a resounding victory among the business and political elites who picked the citys leader, and dispatched an opponent more popular with the general public. Lams inauguration ceremony will take place on July 1.

The NPC chairman said Hong Kongs judges and government officials should take the lead to understand the Basic Law.

The timing of Zhangs comments are interesting because they come as Lam is finalizing the list of people she wants in her cabinet, Willy Lam, an adjunct professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said by phone Saturday.

The speech means Beijing has overall jurisdiction and whatever privileges Hong Kong people enjoy are granted by Beijing, Lam said. The hard-line language is laying the groundwork for July 1 when Xi Jinping is expected to visit the city. Annie Lee, Bloomberg
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP)  The Homestead farm is governed by a set of distinct ecosystems.

Like many other acreages across Iowa, the symbiotic relationships between soil, weather, farmers, seeds and pollinators produce the foods that make up our dinners.

But unlike so many other farms, the most important ecosystem at the Homestead is the one happening above ground, between people. Its the strength and expansion of the estates emotional ecosystem that will be used to determine whether 2017s yield was up to par. And its smiles and fist bumps, not acres planted or crops harvested, that will dictate a successful day.

Because on this particular acreage, most employees have autism spectrum disorder, which can severely impair communication and social skills. So while the men of the Homestead and the specifically trained associates who work alongside them harvest veggies for a Community Supported Agriculture program, their mission is more than farming. The Homestead is training these men for life.

On this farm, what really matters is how a person grows  not what they grow, said Angela Book-Glynn, a director at the Homestead, a Des Moines-based nonprofit focused on improving autistic Iowans lives.

Located just east of Southeast Polk High School, the farm currently employs four men who have autism  Thomas Kroska, Tony Hunter, Lloyd Williams and James Holaday.

Monday through Friday, they are tasked with all that goes into keeping up a working farm. They plant fields, harvest fruits and veggies, box them up for the Homesteads CSA  which runs until the end of September and is still accepting members  and deliver those packages to specified pickup locations. They also create hanging baskets, prepare bedding plants, cultivate poinsettias and construct live wreathes.

In doing so, the men are bucking the upsetting trend of adults on the spectrum lacking opportunities for meaningful, paid employment, Book-Glynn said. Even though advocates have pushed organizations big and small to employ differently abled people, many autistic adults remain unemployed or underemployed, experts say.

The farms goal is to give their employees an opportunity to dip their toes into the workforce, eventually growing their skills and confidence enough to find a job in the greater community just as their regularly developing peers do.

For us, this is so much bigger than just getting a box of produce, said Book-Glynn. I strongly believe that if you can contribute to your income, you can contribute to society. And thats what we want for the (employees) here, to be contributing members of society who are proud of their work and themselves.

Thats what everyone  no matter their ability  deserves.

Farmhands and autistic adults harvest and bundle radishes at the Homestead farm in Pleasant Hill on Monday, April 17, 2017. The program provides meaningful paid employment for autistic adults to earn wages in an environment that understands and responds to their conditions very specific needs.

Breakfast at Kroskas apartment, where he lives with two other autistic men, used to be a silent affair, said Don Cochran, Kroskas longtime aide. Like hear-a-pin-drop silent, he said, and youd be hard pressed to get him to look you in the eye.

Youd be lucky to get two words out of him the whole day, Cochran said.

But after seven years of working on the farm, the mornings at Kroskas apartment are louder. Kroska has a full menu that he asks for at breakfast, Cochran said, and hell throw out questions about Cochrans family or what theyre going to do that day.

While seemingly small, the ability to hold eye contact, start conversations and respond to questions or remarks in the moment was a major milestone for Kroska, Cochran and Book-Glynn agreed. Those are entry-level skills to interacting as an independent individual, they said.

His interaction with others is so much greater than it was before because of working on the farm, Cochran said. I see a lot more confidence in him. I think, in general, he is a shy person, but now hes glowing and brimming with spirit and assurance.

Both attribute that development to his time on the farm, where he has to interact with colleagues, problem solve and articulate issues and desires.

To understand how programs like the Homestead farm impact people with autism, one has to redefine the words big and small, Book-Glynn said. Its really that seemingly small changes make a huge impact in these mens lives, she said.

In our society, work defines who you are, Book-Glynn said. It gives you self-esteem. You hear that all the time, What do you do? With this job, they can say, I work on a farm. Or I plant potatoes.

Or maybe for someone who is working on life skills in general it is, I got to get up, she continued. I got to set an alarm. I have to know how to get to work on time. I have to know how to focus. Whatever it is, they have a purpose now.

In addition to communication difficulties, autistic people often also have sensory issues. Certain sounds or lights can be extremely distracting, Book-Glynn said, as can tasks that dont have specific beginnings or endings.

But so many of the pitfalls an autistic person might experience in an office environment arent an issue at the farm, she added. Fluorescent lights are replaced by the suns rays. Endless tasks are interchanged with structured requirements. And whenever an employee needs a break or to switch assignments, the answer is undoubtedly OK.

While both big businesses like Walgreens are making hiring employees with disabilities a part of corporate culture and smaller startups like Chicago-based Aspiritech are pushing innovative solutions to create a more welcoming workplace, 90 percent of autistic adults are unemployed or underemployed, according to Advancing Futures for Adults with Autism, a consortium of autism advocacy organizations.

More specifically, only 36 percent of adults ages 18 to 25 and 58 percent of adults ages 26 or older had paid employment, showed data collected in 2009 by the Kennedy Krieger Institute, an institution dedicated to studying brain disorders and developmental disabilities.

Of those who did not currently have paid employment, 42 percent said they wanted to work but couldnt find work, the study reported. . Whatever their other reasons for not working, two-thirds said they also feared the workplace would be too challenging for them because of their autism.

When the planning for the Homestead farm started back in the early 1990s, local sustainable farming was in vogue, said Book-Glynn. But using farming as a tool for autistic adults was then and remains a fairly unique model in the field.

If you think about that time frame, the farm started not long after the period when people with disabilities were just put into institutions, she said. There were not a lot of options or creative approaches then and there certainly were no options for people with autism.

And although the Homestead isnt the only farm working with autism or otherwise differently abled people, using farming to be therapeutic is still a unique model, she said.

Not too many other organizations can say, Oh, you like being outside? We have the place for you! she said. Or, Oh, you have difficulty with noise and people and too much simulation? We have a job for you! Or, You like to finish things beginning to end? We have the perfect thing for you.

The farm offering opportunities for the men to excel is just one part of the ecosystem, the other important part is how the mens excitement and pride with their own progress rubs off on all the other employees.

Honestly, I probably learn more about the intangible qualities of happiness and fulfillment from these men than I teach them, Book-Glynn said. Thomas, for example, is so positive that he puts my life back into perspective when he greets me. I know he is going to ask me the same question and we have our little moment together and it just reminds me about what is really important in this world. You know here is an individual who struggles with the symptoms of autism and can come in here and smile every day and go out there and work.

Its like, what the heck am I complaining about? she continued. I just need to go out there and work, too.

Ashley Bonnell, an autism associate who works alongside the men, said this job has allowed her to work on herself as she helps the men gain skills for their own independence.

Each one of these guys is really special to me, she said. Before I started here, I used to be really passive, but now I can say, OK, this is what we are doing, so theyve made me a stronger person.

That might not seem like a big deal, but it is a big deal to me, she said. Its priceless.

While that newfound purpose may be priceless on one hand, it is costly on the other. The men are paid through Medicaid and minimal funding from a few vocational programs, Book-Glynn said, but the farming equipment is maintained and restored by hand. Rarely is there money left in the budget for new supplies.

And attracting funding for work with autistic adults can be difficult.

Children are the focus now, Book-Glynn said. Research on children is the focus right now. Everything is about funding the children and, gosh, that is wonderful, but dont forget that those kids grow up and they become adults who need a job and want to live their life.

But thats why we are here, she said. And thats why will always have the farm.
DENVER (AP)  Significantly more immigrants were arrested and deported from Colorado and Wyoming in the first few months of Donald Trump's presidency than during the same period in 2016.

The biggest surge was in arrests of immigrants suspected of residing illegally in the country without a criminal record.

One hundred thirty-four individuals were detained between President Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20 and the end of his first 100 days in office, April 29.

That figure is more than four times the number a year ago, when 28 non-criminal immigrants were arrested.

Arrests of immigrants suspected of residing illegally in the country with criminal histories were up just slightly, from 678 in 2017 compared with 642 in the same period last year.

One of those arrests included one of Immigration and Customs Enforcement's "most wanted" fugitives: an Aurora man convicted of sexual assault and other felonies.

Deportations more than doubled for both criminals and non-criminals in Colorado and Wyoming, according to ICE.

ICE didn't provide data by state but rather by an "area of responsibility" that encompasses Colorado and Wyoming.

The figures reflect national data ICE released to mark the first 100 days of the administration. President Trump has targeted more immigrants who simply come in contact with federal authorities, or who previously got a final deportation order but were allowed to stay under the Barack Obama administration.

In a news release, ICE acting director Thomas Homan said that "agents and officers have been given clear direction to focus on threats to public safety and national security, which has resulted in a substantial increase in the arrest of convicted criminal aliens.

"However, when we encounter others who are in the country unlawfully, we will execute our sworn duty and enforce the law," Homan said.
BOZEMAN, Mont.  The sun was shining brightly on Claire Vlases, an eighth-grade girl who led a student campaign to raise $118,000 so that solar panels can be installed at Sacajawea Middle School in Bozeman.

Claire, 14, started a year ago by asking the Bozeman School Board to put up solar panels as part of the schools $16 million expansion. She argued it makes sense, environmentally and financially.

Trustees and architects commended her, but the districts building chief said solar didnt yet work economically.

Someday, he said.

Undeterred, Claire set about raising money and organizing help from students and adults. It was her project for independent studies class, intended to let kids work on something theyre passionate about. Some kids build cars.

My idea was to get solar panels, Claire said, to connect the nature around us with the school.

Bozeman school administrators pledged $25,000 in school district funds.

Principal Gordon Grissom and Facilities Director Todd Swinehart said Claire had raised the issue early enough that Sacajaweas new electives wing could be designed to be structurally strong enough to support solar panels in the future and to have the right electrical setup to connect to the power grid.

Sacajawea students held a Pennies for Power fundraiser, with classes competing to collect the most pennies and win a pizza party.

I thought we were only going to raise $500, Claire said, but we blew it out of the water.

Between the pennies campaign and the student talent show, which donated its earnings to the solar project, Sacajawea kids and teachers raised $8,500.

For Halloween, Claire made a black solar panel costume that said Solar Makes Sense and went door-to-door asking for donations.

Her younger sister Ursula, a sixth-grader, wrote a grant to the Bozeman Area Community Foundation, which gave $3,000.

Kids formed a Solar Makes Sense group and collected donations at every school fundraiser, from the Adult Spelling Bee to the Santa Run. They set up a web page and sought donations through the Bozeman Schools Foundation.

Meanwhile, Grissom said, the estimated cost of solar panels came down, from $130,000 to $115,000.

Last week, while Claire was competing at a track meet in Belgrade, her parents got a message from the Bozeman Schools Foundation that the Kendeda Fund had agreed to donate $80,000. That put the project over the top.

I was so happy, Claire said. I started crying.

Her dad, Dr. Michael Vlases, said her mom, Katy, had to tell Claire through the chain-link fence separating athletes and parents, so they couldnt hug each other.

That donation marked an amazing milestone, Principal Grissom said.

Claire and the principal had met last fall with Diana Blank, first wife of Home Depots founder and the philanthropist who started the Kendeda Fund, named for her children. The fund, created to support efforts to create a just world and use resources wisely, reports donating $500 million since its start in 1993.

Claire said after learning about the Kendeda Fund from School Board Trustee Douglas Fischer, she had set up the meeting.

The fund managers wanted to see more details, like a budget, a fundraising plan and school-wide support, Grissom said.

By the second meeting with fund officials this spring, Claire had done everything asked of her, and brought the sixth-grade Solar Makes Sense committee, Fischer and other supporters.

Superintendent Rob Watson recognized Claire and the Sacajawea students achievement at a recent School Board meeting.

Once the Kendeda Fund check arrives, Swinehart said, school officials plan to seek bids from contractors. In the best-case scenario, Grissom said, theyd be able to install the panels this summer.

Claire won a community champion award from the U.S. Green Building Council of Montana in February and was recently invited to the governors SMART School Symposium.

I feel really humble that I could be part of it, Claire said. Im really proud of the success weve had.

She admitted feeling nervous the night she spoke in front of the School Board. Now, she said, shes better at public speaking.

Grissom praised her quiet leadership. He also said they hope Sacajaweas experience inspires other schools.

Solar is under consideration in the planning thats just starting for Bozemans second high school, Swinehart said. The cost savings will have to be weighed against the extra cost, he said. Nothing is off the table.

We want this to be a launching pad for other green energy for schools, Claire said, and for students to follow their own passions.
Its important for us all to remember with gratitude all those who made the ultimate sacrifice to protect our nation, our people and our way of life, said Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter, who made the announcement so as to coincide with the upcoming Memorial Day observances on Monday. Communities throughout Idaho pay homage to the courageous men and women who laid down their lives for us. We want to celebrate those local tributes to patriotism and valor that help us never forget the great legacy of our heroes.
Whats the standard line on President Donald Trump these days? That hes an erratic creature of no fixed commitments and no stable policy objectives? Not so fast. In fact, Trumps entire administration can be understood through the lens of his weird, consistent, unwavering adherence to a 1980s concept of the War on Drugs.

This adherence unifies his policy actions: not only the appointment of drug-war hard-liner Jeff Sessions as attorney general but also his approach to immigration and the wall, his calls for a revival of stop and frisk and law and order policies, key features of the Republican House health-care bill, the bromances with Rodrigo Duterte and Vladimir Putin, and even the initial proposal to defund the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

After descending that Trump Tower escalator in July 2015, Trump made headlines when he kicked off his campaign by proclaiming that Mexico was sending us rapists. Less noted has been that he began his list of woes coming from the South by castigating Mexican immigrants for bringing drugs. Already in that speech the solution he offered to this caricatured problem was the wall. Almost two years later, the wall is still meant to solve the problem of drugs, as in this tweet from April: If the wall is not built, which it will be, the drug situation will NEVER be fixed the way it should be!

Trumps well-received joint address to Congress in February also explained his desire to limit immigration by focusing on drugs: Weve defended the borders of other nations while leaving our own borders wide open for anyone to cross and for drugs to pour in at a now unprecedented rate.

No surprise, then, that Sessions has been working steadily, since his confirmation, to restore the building blocks of the War on Drugs that political leaders from both parties have been quietly removing for the past five years. He has ordered a review of federal policies on state legalization of marijuana and appears to be seeking an end to the policy of federal non-interference with the cascade of legalization efforts. He has ordered a review of consent decrees, whose purpose is to spur police reform, and sought to delay the implementation of Baltimores. He has recently handed down guidance requiring federal prosecutors to seek the stiffest possible sentences available for drug offenses.

To support these efforts, Trump has proposed hiring 10,000 immigration officersand 5,000 Border Patrol agents and beefing up support for police departments. According to the White House website, The Trump Administration will be a law and order administration for a country that needs more law enforcement.

The Obama administration had begun to drive toward replacing criminal-justice strategies for drug control with public-health strategies. It wasnt whistling in the dark but following, at least in part, the innovative model of drug control pioneered by Portugal. Marijuana has been legalized there. Use and modest possession of other drugs have been decriminalized, but large-scale trafficking is still criminal. The criminal-justice system focuses on those large-scale traffickers, while public-health strategies and harm-reduction techniques pinpoint users and low-level participants in the drug economy. Adolescent drug use is down, the percentage of users seeking treatment is up, and Portugal is interdicting increased quantities of illegal narcotics.

Countries across Central and South America would like to follow Portugal and transition from a criminal-justice paradigm to an individual and public-health paradigm for drug control. They have advocated for this change at the United Nations but have been blocked by Putins Russia. Indeed, Putin is one of the worlds most steadfast advocates for the 1980s War on Drugs concept.

Of course, Trump has expressed a strange affinity for Putin and also for Duterte, the president of the Philippines. Duterte has called for the slaughter of the Philippines estimated 3 million addicts. The death toll from extrajudicial killings that he seems to have sparked has already reached into the thousands. The response from the United States? Trump praised Duterte for doing an unbelievable job on the drug problem and invited him to the White House.

Yet Trumps initial budget plan involved proposing nearly complete defunding of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, which was founded by congressional legislation in 1988. How does that square?

The Obama administration deployed that office to restore balance to U.S. drug-control efforts, increasing emphasis on treatment, prevention and diversion programs, and fostering a move toward a health-based strategy. The expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act and requirements that insurers support mental-health and addiction treatment undergirded this effort, supporting the emergence of programs designed to divert low-level drug offenders out of the criminal-justice system and into treatment. This has made for the very promising beginnings of a health-based approach to drug control.

The Trump administration has painted a bullseye on this new policy strategy and is firing away. While the White House has backed off defunding the Office of National Drug Control Policy, it continues to pursue the reversal of the Medicaid expansion. The administration appears to think narcotics control can be achieved entirely through the tools of criminal justice.

But we tried that in the 1980s, the decade of Miami Vice, the era when the Los Angeles police chief, Daryl Gates, could testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee that casual drug users ought to be taken out and shot. We know where that story ends: with increased incarceration, further degradation of urban neighborhoods, no durable change in rates of drug use and a failure to address addiction.

So, yes, Trump has a vision, and hes moving steadily toward it, wrongheaded though it is, dragging us along with him, as if into a wall.
The regular election day of mid-May passed barely noticed across most of Idaho, as it often does. And low attention often means low turnouts.

And what do low turnouts mean for election results? Whats the difference, in other words, between that and higher turnout elections?

One particular result from May 16 deserves a close look for just this point. It is the ballot issue in Bonneville County over whether to create a community college taxing district, the prerequisite to creating a new community college at Idaho Falls. (Theres currently an Eastern Idaho Technical College, but its much more limited in scope; it will be supplanted by the new community college.)

The issue was hotly debated locally, though the debate was not really partisan. It did sharply split local Republicans. The Bonneville Republican committee took a stance against it, and threw in campaign money as well. But a Republican womens organization argued in favor, and a number of local Republican officials, along with Governor C.L. Butch Otter, supported the measure.

The ballot issue passed with 71.4 percent of the vote; a two-thirds vote had been needed. The two-thirds mark often is a tough barrier to overcome. Are there any clues to tell us more specifically how it was done?

The college issue was prominent in the area, and it drew a significant voter turnoutsignificant, at least, by comparison with the norm. A year ago, in a presidential election year, the May election pulled only 19 percent of the electorate. This year (again, in Bonneville) it drew 28 percent; a significant increase.

The turnout was not uniform across all precincts. But some voting patterns did stick out.

Turnout was higher than 25 percent in eight precincts; in all but one of them, the college proposal won by more than two-thirds. Turnout was generally strong on the southern and western sides of Idaho Falls, and that is where the college proposal was strongest.

As you might expect with such a lopsided result, just a few precincts outright opposed the districtthree out of 51and in two of those the turnout was well below average. (It was 22.9 percent and 20.9 percent in precincts 41 and 44, respectively.)

The Idaho Falls Post Register noted, Of the 14 precincts with over 33.3 percent opposition to the creation of the community college, just one had a turnout over 25 percent  Precinct 54, generally speaking, the Ririe area. That Ririe precinct opposed the district by a close vote, 86-80, and its worth recalling that this precinct in November voted 81.3 percent for Donald Trump. If you translated that percentage to the Ririe vote in May, it would have an anti-district vote of 134-32.

The top turnout precinct was 56 (at 45 percent), but that was an aberration since it was the mail-in precinct. (Take that as another argument in favor of mail-in voting.) Of the next four high-turnout regular precincts, three (the exception being Ririe) passed the district not just by the county-wide average of a little more than two to one, but by more than three to one.

As the Post Register added, clearly just getting voters to the polls is what matters.

Voting counts.
Lets vote by mail





An excellent way to better serve postal customers would be to implement a nation-wide vote-by-mail system. Idaho currently has an absentee ballot system to make it more convenient for voters although not everyone uses it.

Voting by mail has many advantages over traditional polling: It is cost-effective, it has increased in participation of voters, it is easier for election officials to conduct, allows for a more accurate picture of eligible voters by keeping voting lists up to date and it gives voters a longer opportunity to study ballots to find answers to questions. It also makes voting more accessible for working, disabled Americans and senior citizens.

Oregon currently has a tried and true vote-by-mail system where voters may drop off their ballots without paying postage, if they desire. In an Oregon all-mail 1996 Senate special election, even though 1.8 million ballots were cast in this hard-fought, highly partisan contest, not a single complaint (of fraud) surfaced. In fact, during the 15 years Oregon has held mail elections, only one case of fraud has been prosecuted.

Lets make voting represent the voice of more Americans.

John Paige

President, Idaho State | Association of Letter Carriers
LOGAN, Utah (AP)  A prom for gay, lesbian and transgender students was held in Logan in an attempt to provide an event for students who might not have felt comfortable attending traditional proms at their high schools.

The Standard-Examiner reported Wednesday that the Cache Youth Resource Center hosted a LGBTQ prom May 13.

Logan Pride Chairwoman and Outreach Coordinator for Resource Center Jess Zamora arranged the dance and said its the towns first such event.

The event was open to anyone regardless of sexual orientation or identity.

Zamora said the point is for members of the LGBTQ community to have a safe place to dress up and have fun.
Irans supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Saturday indicated that the Saudi Throne is edging toward collapse for siding with the United States in response to the declared strengthening of US-Saudi alliance.

The Iranian leader known for his phosphorous animosity towards the Kingdom and the US told a religious gathering that Riyadh has chosen the enemy of Islam in favor of brother Muslims in Bahrain and Yemen.

They (Saudi leaders) act cordially towards the enemies of Islam while having the opposite behavior towards the Muslim people of Bahrain and YemenThey will face certain downfall he said on his Twitter account.

Riyadh neared closer to Washington during US President Donald Trump visit early last week. Trump vowed Washingtons support to Saudi efforts to keep Iran at bay. Trump accused Teheran of funding terrorism in the region.

Washington and Riyadh struck an arms and defense system deal worth $110 billion. Washington argued that the defense equipment will enable Riyadh to contain Teherans growing threats and influence in the region.

Last week, Teheran defense minister Hossein Dehghan also warned Saudi Arabia. We say to the Arab leaders to accept the wishes of their people and not collude with foreign forces, Dehghan said.

Dehghan pointed out that foreign forces are led by interest and only tie themselves to a country when they have an interest in sight.
Qatar and Iran are slowly bridging their differences but the move is receiving strong objections from other Gulf States as they accuse Doha of distancing itself from their common position. Qatars ruler, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, had a telephone discussion with President Rouhani over the weekend and it was considered as a strong signal of Dohas plans to change its policy towards Tehran.

This comes after the controversial statements posted by the Qatari News Agency, which attributed them to hackers before removing them.

The Gulf Cooperation Council members seek to isolate Iran. They often accuse Tehran of trying to destabilize them and interfering in their domestic affairs.

During the telephone conversation between the two leaders, Rouhani lamented that the world of Islam is suffering from divisions and wants it to advance toward peace and brotherhood and to this effect we are ready to negotiate to get a real agreement. Sheikh Tamim called for dialogue and negotiations to promote regional integration and encouraged the mediation process spearheaded by Kuwait.

Rouhani acknowledged that regional countries need more convergence and consultation to solve regional crises. He hopes that existing obstacles will be removed through cooperation in order to strengthen brotherly bonds through firm determination.

United Arab Emirates minister of state for foreign affairs, Anwar Gargash, pointed out that the GCC is going through a severe crisis that poses a grave danger to its members. His comments seem to be directed at the standoff between Doha and the GCC members as he warned that fending off strife needs a change in behavior, building confidence and restoring credibility.

Kuwait has apparently embarked on a mediating between Doha and other regional states as its foreign minister met with Sheikh Tamim last week.
The Egyptian military has continued its airstrikes targeting extremist groups in Libya for three consecutive days and the spokesman for the army, Tamer al-Rifai, stressed that they will continue to target all camps where terrorist members are being trained and which could threaten Egypts national security.

Three airstrikes struck the city of Derna on Monday, according to press reports.

Egyptian authorities have been tight-lipped about their military operations in Libya but the latest airstrikes were triggered by the killing of at least 29 Christian Copts on Friday in the province of Minya. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack. Egypt began striking Derna with missiles shortly after the attack and al-Rifai has warned that the scope of their target could increase to anywhere terrorists are trained to shake Egypts stability.

After the deadly attack on Friday, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said the air raids targeted militants responsible for plotting the attack, and that Egypt would not hesitate to carry out additional strikes inside and outside the country.

Egypt is coordinating with the Libyan National Army (LNA) led by Field Marshall Khalifa Haftar. The LNA is loyal to the Tobruk-based House of Representatives. The strikes have so far been targeting ammunition stores and operation camps of extremist groups.

It is unclear when Egypt intends to stop its aggression amid concerns that Christian Copts are increasingly becoming targets of the extremist groups.

A military source told Asharq Al-Awsat by telephone that Cairo is not expected to reveal its plan because if the armed forces decide to conduct any air, ground or naval operation, they would not announce it. The operations have been considered successful by the military.

President Sisis tenure in office has been challenged by terrorist attacks that have targeted senior government officials and military personnel. The government has launched a crackdown on groups in the Sinai Peninsula and close to its border with Libya.
South Africas President Jacob Zuma has survived another vote of no confidence this weekend despite a spate of recent corruption scandals, cabinet sackings and his handling of the economy.

President Zuma has been under increasing pressure to step down from party veterans and members of the African National Congresss communist and union alliance partners in recent months.

However, Jacob Zuma defeated the opposition motion on Sunday. The 70-year old leader was backed by more than 50 of the 70 members of the National Executive Committee that debated removing him, South Africas News24 reported.

According to the news portal, Zuma continues to dominate the highest levels of the ANC despite growing internal challenges.

Similar attempts by the opposition to push through the motion against Zuma have failed in the past as the ANC used its majority in the National Assembly to block such moves.

The ANC is due to elect Zumas successor in December before general elections in 2019.

Zumas allies say he will remain in office until his term ends in 2019, but evidence of his unpopularity seems to be growing, The BBC reported.

E-mails published in South African media revealed that the president has been planning to set up home in Dubai, deepening ties between him and the controversial Gupta business family.
The official campaigns for Kenyas presidential and general elections kicked off last weekend in the East African nation.

Kenyans go to the polls on August 8 to elect a president, lawmakers and local officials. Besides the outgoing President Uhuru Kenyatta who is seeking a second term, at least eight other candidates are vying for the presidency.

Raila Odinga and his running mate Kalonzo Musyoka from Kenyas most powerful opposition party will try to unseat President Kenyatta.

Human Rights Watch has asked the countrys authorities to ensure a level playing field, free from abuse for voters and candidates during the General Election.

Rallies and protests have usually taken place during primaries and in the lead up to, during and after elections in the country.

The December 2007 elections left an estimated 1,100 people dead and another 650,000 internally displaced.

The British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the US State Department have issued a travel alert in respect of Kenya, warning citizens against travel to the East African country during the elections.
Sudanese foreign minister, Ibrahim Ghandour, on Sunday cancelled a trip to Egypt as President Omar al-Bashirs declarations last week triggered a major diplomatic row between the two countries.

We told our brothers in Egypt about the postponement of the visit due to internal issues and it would take place later, Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ghandour said in a statement on Sunday ahead of the May 31 trip.

The trip to the North African nation was meant to ease tensions between the neighboring states.

The purpose of the visit was to convene meetings of the joint Sudanese-Egyptian political consultations committee and its agenda has been agreed already, the statement said.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on Tuesday accused Egypt of arming rebel groups in the troubled Darfur region.

Speaking to top army brass, Bashir said Sudanese forces have captured Egyptian weapons during clashes with rebels in the East Darfur state.

Tensions first emerged in mid-March after the Sudanese authorities banned the import of certain Egyptian products.

Shortly afterward, Sudans Defence minister accused Egypts military of provoking the Sudanese army in the disputed Halaib Triangle area, located on the border between the two countries.
Georgia strives to diversify wine export markets

Georgian wine is continuing to make an impression around the United States, Baltic States, the Great Britain and Japan.Agriculture Minister Levan Davitashvili believes the export of Georgian wine to Japan will start in about five years.In his words interest in Georgian wine is high on the Asian market, and this year Georgian wine will be actively represented in a marketing campaign in Japan.Despite all difficulties we have big potential and good results in terms of market diversification. We experience quite significant results on Chinese market. This year we expect to export 10 million bottles of wine in China. This country has become the second-third country in terms of wine export, said Davitashvili.Southern-Eastern markets, such as Japan, are included in this years action plan. Last year we have tasted [this market] during number of exhibitions. Today one of the wines masters of Japan who creates the market there is an ambassador of Georgian wine in Japan. We can suppose that Georgian wine will be exported to Japan in about five years, the Minister added.The next target market for Georgian wine will be South Korea.
Macedonia reiterates interest in joining TAP

The Republic of Macedonia is very interested in connecting with the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project, CEO of Macedonian Energy Resources Skopje company Krste Miladinov told Trend."Regarding the connection to TAP, a request was sent to TAP AG Greece, but no final response has been received so far," he added.Miladinov pointed out that the benefits for Macedonia from the realization of this project are enormous, because it will provide additional quantities of natural gas from other sources to Macedonia and further through Serbia to Central Europe."This will ensure the diversification and security of supply for the entire region," he added.TAP is a part of the Southern Gas Corridor, which is one of the priority energy projects for the European Union. The project envisages transportation of gas from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz Stage 2 to the EU countries.The pipeline will connect to the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) on the Turkish-Greek border, run through Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea, before coming ashore in Italys south.TAP will be 878 kilometers in length (Greece 550 kilometers, Albania 215 kilometers, Adriatic Sea 105 kilometers, and Italy 8 kilometers).TAPs shareholding is comprised of BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam S.p.A. (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagas (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).
Tbilisi Mayor doesnt exclude possibility of candidacy as audit agency head

By Messenger Staff

Current Tbilisi Mayor David Narmania, who was elected to the post in 2014, has confirmed that he may be appointed as the new head of the State Audit Office, the body which provides findings regarding state institutions to Parliament.Narmania also didnt deny that the Georgian Dream ruling team may name current Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze as its nominee for Tbilisi Mayor in this years local elections.Narmania joined the Georgian Dream (GD) coalition led by the tycoon Bidzina Ivanishvili in 2012 and took part in devising the coalition's pre-election economic program.After GD's victory in the October 2012 parliamentary election, Narmania assumed the office of Minister of Regional Development and Infrastructure.At that time, the incoming cabinet planned to dissolve the ministry; Narmania's portfolio was considered to be temporary and it was planned to move him to the position of First Deputy Minister of Finances.However, Narmania served as Minister Regional Development and Infrastructure until his resignation on 14 April 2014, the occasion of his nomination as GD's candidate for Mayor of Tbilisi in the June 2014 local elections.Before coming to politics, he was mainly engaged with educational activities and making analyses about economic issues.His activities in infrastructure were positively assessed.Narmania was Ivanishvilis pick for the mayoral post, and many thought that he would be a good mayor of the capital city, having taken his knowledge and experience of economics into account,.It is up to people to decide how good or bad a mayor he was; however, it could be said that there was an impression that he was not entirely free in making decisions.Appointing Narmania as the new head of the audit agency may trigger questions in the future, as if the body comes across any violations in the Mayors Office activities carried out during Narmania's own tenure, he could face an uncomfortable conflict of interest.
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Ambassador Mahiga flagged with SADC Secretariat together with members of SADC Organ with all SADC Elections Observation Mission in a group photo. SADC has deployed about 40 observers from 9 member states in this year's election.

Ambassador Mahiga in conversation with the United States Ambassador to the Kingdom of Lesotho H.E. Matthew T. Harrington after launching SEOM at AVANI Hotel in Maseru Lesotho.

Head of SADC Elections Observation Mission in Lesotho and Chairperson of the Ministerial Committee of the Organ Amb. Dr. Augustine Mahiga, delivering his statement during the launch of the mission recently in Maseru Lesotho.













INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY APPLAUDS TANZANIAs LEADERSHIP OF SADC ORGAN AND EFFORTS TO STABILIZE POLITICAL SITUATION IN LESOTHO





Tanzanias President Dr. John Pombe Magufuli has been applauded by the international community for his impeccable leadership of the SADC organ on politics, defense and security cooperation at this juncture when the community is ushering Lesotho into yet another National Parliamentary Election, the third within five years.





Representatives from international organizations operating within SADC region and Lesotho in particular including the United Nations and European Union have commended SADC urgent call to the incoming government for serious structural and constitutional reforms.





During the recent launch of SADC Electoral Observation Mission (SEOM) in Lesotho held in Maseru, Hon. Dr. Augustine Mahiga, Tanzanias foreign Minister, Chairperson of the Ministerial Committee of the Organ and mission head reiterated SADC s earlier mandate to the current government to undertake reforms in order to stabilize its political system and avoid a repeat of previous political crises.





While commending political parties for signing pledges to accept election results and Independent Electoral Commission of Lesotho (IEC) for its preparedness for the upcoming national elections, Ambassador Mahiga sends a strong message to Lesotho,





After three elections within less than five years the fatigued voters deserve a different and durable outcome. SADC will definitely take these pledges and commitments seriously in supporting the reform process in the Kingdom of Lesotho by the next government said Ambassador Mahiga





Briefing members of SADC Secretariat before the launch, Amb. Mahiga said that it is upon SADC that leaders of the next government of Lesotho be held accountable to carry out the reforms.





Presedent Magufuli, our Chair of the Organ has given me clear instructions that we must work hard, together, and to make sure that this time around we are successful. The people of Lesotho have great expectations on us as SADC, let us not disappoint them he remarked.





Similar message was shared at the launch with all stakeholders about the commitment of President Magufuli, to stabilize political situation in the Mountain Kingdom as well as in the SADC region. He said that the work of SADC mission in the country was mandated by President Magufuli and that several groups have been working tirelessly since April 2017 in Lesotho. Based on their observation and preliminary work, SADC is still of the view that major reforms are needed in the country and not just national elections.





It is evident from our extended presence on the ground in the Kingdom of Lesotho that the resolution of the political and security problems is not entirely predicated upon the elections and its outcomes, Clearly, there has to be stronger and time-bound commitment to broader reforms in the political, security and public sectors in order to stabilize the country he added.





As Tanzania is about to finish its term as the head of this important organ of the community, Ambassador Mahiga said he is simply executing President Magufulis vision in Tanzanias engagements in regional integration bodies. He said that Tanzania is of the view that SADC is stronger when there is integration and cooperation. But SADC cannot make full progress if one member is in political crisis. Three elections within five years do not just bring fatigue to voters, it disorient the badly-needed work force, preventing them to contribute effectively to daily economic activities but it also dwindle much-needed resources for the government.





In his speech, Ambassador Mahiga reminded the audience that as the continent celebrates fifty plus years of the African Unity, it is mind-boggling for Lesotho to still be pre-occupied with the basics of forming a stable government.





Allow me to add that it is strange paradox indeed that on this 25th day of May, 2017 marking the historical occasion of the Commemoration of the founding of the Organisation of African Unity; when we should ordinarily be celebrating milestones in the advancement of our societies and the consolidation of our democratic institutions; we are still locked in protracted debates on the basic requirements of forming and stabilizing governments.





Commenting on SADC engagement in Lesotho, United Nations Development Program Deputy Resident Representative in Lesotho Ms. Christy Ahenkora said SADC intervention and follow up was badly needed for Lesotho to carry out reforms which will stabilize its political set up focusing on how coalition government should operate.





Similarly, the Head of the European Union Delegation in Lesotho noted with keen interest the strong message from Ambassador Mahiga during the lunch of the mission and commended the organization for playing its part in Lesotho. The delegation has not brought in observers this time around, but it will deploy EUPlus Diplomatic Watch of 42 officials.




A course titled Gun Safety Class for Personal Protection and Concealed Weapon Permits will be hosted in Missoula by NRA-certified instructors Nate Martin and Scott Giesick on Saturday, June 3, at the Deer Creek Shooting Range.

This one-day course will concentrate on the safe handling, storage and use of handguns suitable for personal protection. The class will also cover selecting a personal firearm, concealed weapon permits, gun safety and shooting skills. The class will include both classroom and shooting range sessions.

Graduates will receive a certification qualifying them to apply for concealed weapon permits under Montana law. The class will begin at 8:30 a.m. and finish about 4:30 p.m.

Class size is limited to the first 14 registrants. Pre-registration is required. Tuition is $100 per student. Students should be 16 years or older  with the proviso that concealed weapons permits are not issued to people under 18 years of age.

For further information or to register, call Nate at 406-207-4160 or Scott at 406-493-2302. Or register on the website at practicalshootinginstruction.com or email at shootingMT@yahoo.com.

Further class information will be supplied by phone or return email.
The University of Minnesota Press has published a wonderful new collection of bee poems, If Bees Are Few, which may in some small way help the bees and will certainly offer some honey to poetry lovers. Here's just one poem, by Heid Erdrich, who lives in Minnesota. Her most recent book is Cell Traffic: New and Selected Poems from the University of Arizona Press.

***

She couldn't help but sting my finger,

clinging a moment before I flung her

to the ground. Her gold is true, not the trick

evening light plays on my roses.

She curls into herself, stinger twitching,

gilt wings folded. Her whole life just a few weeks,

and my pain subsided in a moment.

In the cold, she hardly had her wits to buzz.

No warning from either of us:

she sleeping in the richness of those petals,

then the hand, my hand, cupping the bloom

in devastating force, crushing the petals for the scent.

And she mortally threatened, wholly unaware

that I do this daily, alone with the gold last light,

in what seems to me an act of love.
His excitement is that of a young boy going on a great adventure. Come August, thats what Marvin Strombo will be doing.

The 93-year-old Marine from Missoula will fly with friends, family and facilitators to Japan to deliver to its rightful owners a hinomaru yosegaki, the good-luck flag he took off a dead Japanese officer on Saipan in 1944.

I never really thought of it as mine, Strombo said last week.

Through the efforts of the Obon Society of Oregon, he now knows the story of the officer who lay dead on the outskirts of Garapan, the largest town on the small South Pacific island, as U.S. forces mounted a successful, bloody July offensive in World War II.

The officer, Sadao Yasue, was the oldest of six children in a farming family from Higashi Shirakawa, in the south-central prefecture of Gifu. The entire village assembled to see Yasue off to war. His sister accompanied him to either a dispatch location or the coastline, said Rex Ziak of the Obon Society.

Just before he says goodbye to his sister he tells her, Im being sent to the South Pacific, and Ill probably never come back. Look after the family,  Ziak said.

The family and the village never heard from him again. They made a grave for Yasue and every year on July 18  the day the government erroneously told them he perished  the family gathers there to pray for him, Ziak said.

Ziak created the Obon Society with his wife, Keiko, in 2009 to help repatriate war souvenirs with their Japanese families. Since then theyve handled between 400 and 500 Japanese flags and personally returned more than 100 of them.

"This is the first occasion we've encountered where we have a World War II veteran who still has the item he personally took and where the veteran has the physical ability to make the trip, and we've found the family on the other side that's receptive to foreigners coming at a very sensitive occasion," he said.

Joseph Tachovsky, son of Strombos commander in the South Pacific and a successful restaurateur based in Minnesota, is author of the upcoming book, Forty Thieves of Saipan, of which Strombo is one of three survivors. Tachovsky has become good friends with Strombo and his family, and in early March he picked up the flag in Missoula and delivered it to the Obon Society in Astoria, Oregon.

Hinomaru means "sun's circle" and it's what the Japanese call their nations flag with the distinctive red circle on a white field. Long before but especially during World War II, Japanese servicemen were presented good luck flags bearing signatures and messages from family and friends to carry into battle. Yosegaki translates into sideways-writing.

Since it came from a living veteran, the Obon Society gave it top priority, Rex Ziak said. Photos were sent to associates in Japan and within a week they traced the place of origin to Gifu Prefecture and located Yasues younger brother, 89-year-old Tatsuya Yasue.

Of the more than 140 signatures that Keiko Ziak counted on the flag, 43 have matching last names of one family, and there are several dozen of another.

Our scholars looked at that and fortunately one of them is from that area of Japan," Rex Ziak said. "He said those are very common names in the south of the prefecture.

Strombo was amazed to hear that not only a brother but two sisters are alive. Tatsuya Yasue lives in the family home thats more than 300 years old. He and his sisters Sayoko Furuta, 94, and Miyako Yasue, 82, are anticipating Strombos visit as much or more than he is.

News came from the Obon Society on March 28 that the flags origins had been found.

If I could have had a camera on him when I read him the email about them finding a brother  Strombos daughter Sandra Williamson said. There was such a peace that came over him. You could just see this weight lift up off of him. Just an incredible moment.

I thought if they found anybody itd be a grand-nephew or something, Strombo said. But sisters and a brother  Thats really something.

Williamson, her daughter Emily, and her sister Brenda Strombo of Portland will accompany Marvin to Japan, along with the Ziaks and Tachovsky.

The trip might have already occurred had not Tatsuya Yasue been busy in May planting rice. June was the next option, Rex Ziak said, but Tatsuya pointed out thats when the tea harvest begins.

At 89 hes an active farmer, Ziak said. Were not talking about standing back and watching and having others do it for him. Hes there in the mud and water planting the rice, harvesting the tea.

***

A city of more than 10,000 people before World War II, Garapan was nicknamed the Tokyo of the South Seas. But it sat in ruin, virtually unpopulated, after U.S. forces overran it on July 3, 1944.

Strombo thinks it was roughly a week earlier when he and four other sniper-scouts from a 6th Marine Regiment platoon hatched a daring plan.

We wanted to be the first ones into Garapan, he said. We asked Lt. Tachovsky, Joes dad, and he went and checked with the Second Marine Regiment down on the beach, where the road led to Garapan.

Those Marines tried to talk the five out of it.

They said, 'You know, when you leave this line here youre in no-mans land. If you get in trouble or anything, we wont be able to help you,' Strombo recalled. We went ahead anyhow.

Walking at the end of the line behind fellow private Ira Causey of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Strombo saw Causey suddenly turn.

He saw the glint off a rifle, Strombo said. The guy was aiming it, probably right at me.

Four Japanese soldiers were killed in the foiled ambush, and the five Marines continued on. They reached a silent and apparently deserted Japanese front line on the outskirts of Garapan.

Strombo remembers stoppoing to investigate a two-wheeled miniature cannon that looked kind of quaint. When he looked up, he was alone. The others had continued into town. He was ready to follow when he noticed the body of the Japanese officer, lying face-up, chin-down and turned slightly to the left.

It was almost like he was sleeping, Strombo said.

The captain, who turned out to be Sadao Yasue, bore no shrapnel or bullet marks. Strombo surmised hed died in a mortar attack the night before.

I looked close and saw on his breast there, he had a Japanese flag folded next to his body, inside his coat or whatever, he said. I just about didnt take it because there was something about it that is so special and sacred. But then I figured if I didnt, somebody else would and it would probably be lost forever. So I took it and kind of made a vow to him that Id return it some day.

So it was meant to be, I guess, huh? Strombo said with a smile last week.

He had a couple of offers to buy the flag.

Flags like that with all the lettering on them were worth quite a bit of money, he allowed.

Tachovsky said most of the good-luck flags taken during the war ended up with rear echelon troops who bartered to buy them.

You could fit 14 of them into a combat pack, and 14 of them represented a years pay, the author said. Thats what makes this situation so unique.

Strombo also kept the fallen mans saber, which identified Yasue as an officer. To his dismay, it was stolen from his Missoula home years ago and sold to a pawnshop in Seattle. A chip three-quarters of the way up the blade identified it. Strombo would very much like to track it down and return it to the family as well, though the Ziaks said the flag's much more important.

***

Tatsuya Yasue, the 89-year-old farmer, is a very open, very kind gentleman, Rex Ziak said.

An associate in Japan also found him understandably curious and described in an email to the Ziaks the initial phone contact.

He asked me, 'The person who has this item of my brothers, this flag, is he the person that brought it back from war?'  the associate said.

When told it was, there was a long pause on the other end.

Then he asked, 'Do you think he might know how my brother died?'  the associate reported.

That, Rex Ziak said, is when the notion of Strombo returning the flag and telling its story himself began to percolate.

We realized that the family has wondered about this all these years, Ziak said. So we asked Marvin, 'Would you ever consider possibly risking life and limb and your health and all and making the journey?'

Williamson said her father didnt hesitate. At 93, hes had health setbacks but is doing well now.

I think Im ready. Ive been walking quite a bit, Strombo said.

Its given him a whole new lease on life, Williamson said. He goes out walking with me in the evening with my dogs. This whole thing has just lit a fire under him.

The entourage leaves for Tokyo on Aug. 10 and will be in the village of Higashi Sirakawa for the special flag exchange five days later. Rex Ziak said Marvin will receive VIP treatment wherever he goes.

The timing isnt coincidental. August is a time of rest between harvests and, for much of Japan, Aug. 15 is the peak of Obon, which Ziak said is approximately Memorial Day.

Over centuries the Buddhist-Confucian custom has become a festival during which families return to their ancestral homes, celebrate with song, dance and foods, and visit and clean gravesites. Its believed that the spirits of ancestors also return and are very much physical parts of the ceremonies.

When that flag comes back to Japan, its not just a piece of cloth, Ziak said. When it comes to that village it will be viewed by people as alive and as spiritual as if the person had returned.

Tachovsky has launched a Go Fund Me site to pay expenses for the Strombos and Williamsons that the nonprofit Obon Society cant cover. He said while the final ceremony in the remote riverside village is still months away, more than 300 World War II widows and orphans are already planning to be there.

They said to expect a lot of interviews, Marvin noted with a smile.

The Ziaks make it clear the trip won't be a vacation or a family outing.

"This is the Obon Society's mission of healing the families who were brought together in war," Rex Ziak said.

From Banzai charges to atomic bombs, no two enemies fought harder or with more brutality than America and Japan in World War II, he said.

"For these two sides to come together completely in peace, even down to the level of the individuals who actually pulled the triggers and lost the big brothers, that fulfills our mission of creating an example of conflict transformation for all the world to see and to learn from."
Hayes Otoupalik never knew John Babcock, but something drew him over snowy Lookout Pass to the funeral.

Born in Ontario, Babcock was the last Canadian veteran of World War I when he died an American citizen in Spokane on Feb. 18, 2010. He was 109.

That left Frank Buckles of West Virginia as the lone American survivor of the war to end all wars that ended in 1918. Buckles passed away a year later at age 110.

I figured Im probably not going to get to Frank Buckles funeral when he passes, but 200 miles is no big deal, Otoupalik said last week. Ill get to see how a country handles the services of its last veteran, and in that sense I can look into the window of how all countries might handle their last veterans of a war.

Otoupalik is one of the Pacific Northwests foremost private collectors and dealers of military memorabilia. He has been intrigued with the first World War since his boyhood days in Orchard Homes. His grandfather died in 1954, he said, and as 6-year-olds Hayes and his twin brother Joe discovered among his things a couple of army helmets and a big old atlas of the Great War.

They were enthralled. In those days youd see doughboy helmets nailed on wooden fence posts to keep the rain off, he said.

There was a neighbor guy who had a bunch of helmets on the fencepost," Otoupalik said. "My brother and I talked him out of them.

More than 60 years later, and 55 after his brother Joe died in a tragic car wreck, Otoupalik has received a bit of unsolicited recognition for his expertise.

Earlier this month he got a letter from military historian Robert Dalessandro, a retired U.S. Army colonel who chairs the United State World War One Centennial Commission that kicked into high gear this year to mark the 100th year of Americas entrance into the war.

Dalessandro invited Otoupalik to join with the commission as a special military historical advisor with an emphasis on military material culture of the World War I era. Otoupalik said he was honored to accept.

Its more like a consultant appointment for them to get information from me, he said. Thats how I would look at it. In other words, my job is to help sort out any lost knowledge and help preserve the knowledge of military weapons and equipment from World War I. It comes with no pay, but Im happy to do it. Ive been at it all my life.

***

The Centennial Commission, established by Congress in 2013, is charged with developing and executing projects and activities to commemorate a war that dominated the news 100 years ago. Later conflicts, especially WWII, pushed the Great War onto the back stage of history, though Otoupalik said if you want to talk about Americas truly forgotten war, look no further than the early 1950s and Korea.

He wasnt yet in his teens in the early 1960s when Otoupalik first rode the wave of the Civil War centennial craze. Later in the decade, for his 19th birthday, he received a complete set  all 128 books  of the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion.

So many historical researchers turn to the internet these days, he said, but I believe in the power of books.

Studying all the Civil War publications in the '60s, Otoupalik realized that so many of the writers he admired were historians whod been at it for half a century.

I got to thinking, you know, if I start doing my research about the Great War in the 1960s, half a century would flip by and Id be in the same position those men were in, he said.

Otoupalik doesnt consider himself a student of battles but rather a "three-dimensional historian."

Central to his collection is the World War I armored tank, one of 950 American tanks manufactured and one of the 940 that never made it overseas. A Hollywood movie studio acquired it from the California National Guard in 1920 and had it until the late 1960s, when John Furrer bought it his World War I museum in Arizona.

The museum grew for almost 20 years before Furrer lost it in a dispute with the state. Otoupalik bought the tank and brought it to Missoula in 1985.

Its been an eye-catcher in once-a-decade appearances at the Rocky Mountain Museum of Military History at Fort Missoula, where Otoupalik will take it for the fourth time this Fourth of July to help commemorate World War I.

In 1993 Otoupalik featured the tank in a professionally produced video, Americas First Battle Tank, that is still shown at the National World War I Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, and can be purchased on Otoupalik's website.

In 2009 he drove the tank to a field across Highway 93 from his home at the bottom of Evaro Hill, where it played a starring and firing role in a History Channel episode of Locked and Loaded with R. Lee Ermey, aka The Gunny.

***

The tank contrasts sharply with another of Otoupaliks most prized World War I possessions. He paid $100 for a paper file box full of letters that Montana Rep. Jeannette Rankin received in the aftermath of the vote she cast in April 1917 against the U.S. entrance into the war.

Shes got all these letters from other people in the womens movement in the U.S., people telling her she made the worst mistake of her life or that she was their hero, said Otoupalik. Given my interest in World War I, Ill never get rid of it. I still think it was one of my greatest finds.

Otoupalik said he was surprised, and disappointed, when he got to Spokane in 2010 for Babcock's service.

"Knowing military people all through the years and having been to a lot of historical events in Seattle and Spokane, I thought I might see a familiar face. But I didn't see anybody I knew," he said. "Regardless, I did what I knew I had to do in my heart."

As the nation focuses, if tentatively, on the centennial year of the "Great War," Otoupalik is resolved to help out.
The feeling of graduating high school is a good one for 18-year-old Giovanni Duran  good to surpass his mother, accomplishing something she never had.

Duran spent his childhood moving between Colorado and Montana. When he was 11, his mother left him with his grandparents in Seeley Lake. "I've grown used to it," Duran said. "I didn't care after a couple years."

Since then, he has considered his grandparents his family. They'll watch him walk across the stage this weekend.

Duran doesn't look back on that time in his life. He is looking forward to the next two years and is headed to Missoula College to learn more about programming. He has aspirations of being in the gaming industry, according to his favorite teacher, Leo Dougherty.

"He will be successful," said Dougherty, who teaches math and history. "He works hard, in the areas that he likes, and he is focused."

Duran spent two years at Flathead High School, which has a much larger student population than Seeley-Swan High School. Duran didn't like it there. Too many kids were too "cocky," he said.

"Everybody is nicer here," Duran said. "And the teachers help you out more and give you a break if you need it."

Duran came a long way in less than two years, Dougherty said. He had to play catch-up when he first transferred, but Duran has improved his reading skills and is an excellent writer, Dougherty said.

Still, Dougherty hopes there will be someone to keep him on track when he gets to college. That goes for all of Dougherty's students, who can get lost when they leave high school, he said.

Duran just views college as a more fun version of high school. He has a scholarship to Missoula College and will spend the first year commuting from Seeley Lake to Missoula for classes, he said. He wants to spend the summer saving so he doesn't have to work as many hours during the school year.

Duran has already moved out of his grandparents' house and is living with his cousin. He hopes to one day move to Washington. He wants to live somewhere rainy, he said.

Besides being funny and having a "great personality," Duran couldn't name something that made him different from the other students in his class.

But Dougherty has seen Duran succeed in making tough adjustments during a time when many kids have stability.

"He's come a long way," Dougherty said. "I expect he will continue to grow as he gets through college."
The somber notes of a bugle playing taps hung in the air Monday as a crowd gathered near the bright white marble gravestones, under an equally bright blue sky at the Western Montana State Veterans Cemetery, as part of the 90th annual Memorial Day wreath-laying services in Missoula.

We are gathered here to pay tribute to all our soldiers, Marines, airmen and sailors who gave their lives while serving our country, said Susan Campbell Reneau, who has organized the tribute every year for two decades. She also made sure to recognize firefighters and police officers as well.

Reneau and other veterans took a charter bus to 11 different locations across town and laid three dozen different wreaths at veterans memorials, including at the Fort Missoula Military Cemetery and the University of Montanas Fallen Soldier Memorial for those who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Each service is very special to us, Reneau explained. We kind of make every one very meaningful. The people who come have loved ones that have died, and so it gives me chills every time that we do them.

Each presentation Monday included a prayer of dedication, a 21-gun salute and the singing of the National Anthem or a recital of the Pledge of Allegiance. Reneau takes her role very seriously because she knows how much the day means to those who have lost friends or family members in the line of duty.

Memorial Day for my father who was a Marine for 26 years was a very difficult day, she said. He lost his very best friend at the Battle of Iwo Jima. I would have been named Peter for him if I would have been a boy. He sobbed every single time. Memorial Day was always a very difficult day. We always try very hard to make Memorial Day very special.

It was a sad but meaningful day for Nathan Hogan of Missoula as well. His brother, James Alan Gill, enlisted in the Montana National Guard and took his own life just before he was to start a third tour of duty as a member of the 260th Engineer Support Company during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

He was born to be a soldier, Hogan said of his brother, as he stood over his grave looking at the small American flag carefully resting against it. He taught me a lot about life.

Hogan said Gill was already his best friend when their parents started dating.

He was my best friend and then he became my brother, Hogan said. He loved the outdoors and all Montana had to offer.

The Western Montana State Veterans Cemetery was busy all day with families dressing up and bringing flowers to the graves of loved ones. Some, like Hogan, sat quietly in the grass and reflected.

The annual Memorial Day services become increasingly more important, Reneau said, because so many veterans are getting older and fewer and fewer are around every year.

I think Ive done it 20 years, but I dont really remember, she said. We started with a lot of services and they were usually very long. We would usually go 12 hours [among the various sites], but now our people are getting older and its really hard. In fact we had one guy that called this morning who was too sick to come. So weve shortened it. But we still make them special.

Organized by the United Veterans Council of both Missoula and Ravalli Counties, the procession began at Ole Beck VFW Post 209 in downtown Missoula and ended at the University of Montana. Reneau said the event is supported by the VFW Post 209 Honor Guard, the local American Legion Color Guard, the Missoula Civil Air Patrol, the Knights of Columbus Patriotic Order 4th Degree, the Boy Scouts of America and other volunteers and veterans.
BUTTE  A man described by police as having a mental disorder jumped the fence at Montana Resources and waded into the Berkeley Pit.

Butte-Silver Bow Police Captain Mark St. Pierre said a man who was mentally ill jumped MR's protective fence around 1 p.m. Sunday, found his way through the active mining operation and ran down the ramp leading to the Berkeley Pit. Police apprehended the man, but not until he got waist deep into the pit's toxic waters.

BSB officer Brandon Robinson said a person on the viewing stand saw the man and called police. Robinson said MR shut down all internal traffic around the Berkeley Pit. Two officers got to the edge of the pit and coaxed the man to come out of the deadly water.

The Berkeley Pit contains sulfuric acid and a host of heavy metals. St. Pierre said the officers showered the man off really well and charged him with criminal trespass.
HELENA  It was a perfect home for their growing family. James and Josephine Slack had purchased a small house in a rural neighborhood on Mill Road just north of Helena. The home had a big yard surrounded by mountains in the distance, ideal for the Slacks two young daughters and soon-to-be born son.

They also had no idea it was toxic.

It was 2005, the same year methamphetamine use and manufacture pushed states like Montana to enact the first series of laws regarding the cleanup of meth-contaminated properties.

It was also the year the federal government adopted the Combat the Methamphetamine Epidemic Act, which regulated retail over-the-counter sales of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, and other similar products vital to the production of meth. The bill was enacted in March 2006.

The following year, almost exactly two years after moving into their home at 1050 Mill Road, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality informed the family the home had been the site of a meth lab busted by police in 2002.

It also had never been cleaned up.

The Slacks, according to court documents, immediately hired a certified meth cleanup contractor, who found the levels of meth contamination in their home to be hundreds of times higher than the legal standard. The company reportedly found many of their personal belongings were also contaminated.

The Slacks were advised to leave their home and its contents behind, and they did so immediately.

Although the Methamphetamine Cleanup Act was meant to protect the health of innocent members of the public who may be harmed when they are unknowingly exposed to dangerous residues left by the production or heavy use of meth. But experts and others worry the laws voluntary nature and haphazard enforcement have left Montanans, including the Slacks, unprotected.

Lee Yelin, president of Water Rights Inc. and certified meth cleanup contractor, has been sampling and cleaning meth-contaminated properties for years. His results have helped many families successfully sue agencies that failed to disclose the presence of meth contaminants in court.

Montanas meth decontamination regulations have major problems, Yelin said. He said when law enforcement becomes aware of a meth lab, the property is not necessarily boarded up and cleaned as it would be in many other states.

Instead, according to the Methamphetamine Cleanup Act, the property must be reported as a meth-contaminated site to the DEQ, which then lists the property on a website until it is cleaned. Homeowners are legally allowed to rent, sell and lease the contaminated property, so long as tenants are informed of the contamination in writing.

But if the house was never busted by law enforcement, or even if it was but before 2005, its not on the DEQ list. Once a listed home has been cleaned, it is removed from the DEQ site.

Yelin said that because meth must be absorbed into the skin or ingested to be truly harmful, many adults rent or buy meth-contaminated homes and never develop health issues.

A lot of these properties are rented and everything is fine. Its been 12 years since the bust, five different renters and everything is going along fine, Yelin said. Then somebody comes in with a toddler and the toddler gets sick. Everything goes in their mouths. Thats the only time we start hearing about these good lawsuits.

The Slacks, according to court documents, sued Lewis and Clark County in 2008 for failure to provide proper notice under the Methamphetamine Cleanup Act.

Although the county argued it wasnt obligated to put the Slacks home on DEQ website because it was busted before 2005, the jury ruled in favor of the family, awarding them almost $600,000 in restitution and damages, and the decision was upheld by the Montana Supreme Court in 2011.

But Yelin said the timing question isnt even the worst part of Montanas law. His biggest complaint is that homes where meth has been smoked, rather than manufactured, are not reported to the DEQ or listed on its website.

Homeowners can also legally rent, sell and lease those homes without notifying the tenants or buyers of the homes possible contamination.

Those homes, Yelin said, are some of the most toxic.

Until we start putting the properties where people smoke on the list, were never going to get a handle on this, Yelin said. We dont see as many labs in Montana because most people are buying [meth] and bringing it into the state as opposed to making it.

***

Deb Grimm, program manager of the DEQs meth cleanup program, agreed that smoking meth contaminates a home just as much, if not more than manufacturing the drug. When those homes arent cleaned, Grimm said, it could be seriously dangerous for future tenants.

Grimm also said the voluntary nature of Montanas laws can be troublesome.

Its like this because legislatures havent brought forth a mandatory bill, Grimm said, adding that the original draft of the Methamphetamine Cleanup Act was mandatory until homeowners and landlords lobbied against it.

Although landlords must inform tenants and buyers of the propertys past as a meth lab, many landlords hold open houses before the property is sold, in which people unknowingly run their hands along meth-contaminated surfaces.

Forcing homeowners to inform buyers or tenants of the propertys contamination is also problematic, Grimm said, because the DEQ lacks the authority to track and punish homeowners who refuse to do so. If a tenant were not informed of the meth contamination, he would have to seek legal justice through a civil lawsuit.

The Legislature has considered modifying the law, but that move has largely failed to gain traction.
To Gallatin County Attorney Marty Lambert:

Montanas newly elected Congressman, Greg Gianforte, already faces a misdemeanor assault charge as a result of his May 24 attack on Guardian journalist Ben Jacobs. I write to urge that Gallatin County Attorney Marty Lambert consider charging Gianforte with the additional offense of civil rights harassment, a felony.

Like the sheriff who made the initial charge, Lambert is friendly with Gianforte and may be inclined to treat his behavior as Montana justice warranting a mere slap on the wrist. In so doing, Lambert would put the imprimatur of his office on the single most disturbing episode in an escalating pattern of violence against journalists.

This is a phenomenon without precedent in American history, and the danger it poses cannot be overstated. Our nations sudden coziness with brutal dictators like Erdogan, Duterte and Putin casts the matter in a particularly sinister light. Gianfortes unrestrained act of violence is the crossing of the Rubicon. It cannot be normalized.

Fortunately, the law of most states provides a remedy for such shockingly anti-democratic behavior, and Montana is no exception. Montana Code Section 45-5-221 makes it a felony, punishable by up to five years imprisonment, to assault a person because of [that] persons  involvement in civil rights  activities.

Gianfortes verbal statements made during and after the assault suggest he was punishing the victim for being a liberal journalist  and, specifically, for his affiliation with the Guardian, which had run stories critical of the candidate. Is reporting on an election a civil rights activity as contemplated by Section 45-5-221? I believe so.

While it is up to state courts to interpret their criminal statutes, it would seem to be a minimum requirement that any definition of civil rights encompass those enshrined in the Bill of Rights. Chief among these is political speech, which, according to our Supreme Court, occupies the highest rung in the hierarchy of expression protected under the First Amendment.

A Tennessee court embraced an even more expansive reading of its own civil rights harassment statute, requiring only intent to unlawfully intimidate another because that other exercised any right or privilege secured by the constitution or laws of the United States.

As an elected official, I hope Lambert will use his prosecutorial authority to charge Gianforte to the fullest extent of the law. History is replete with examples of authority figures quelling dissent through spectacular displays of violence; but not our history. Until recently, this was the stuff of third-world banana republics and forgotten monarchies. It is now at our doorstep, and it falls to law enforcement officers like Lambert to do something about it.
The term Pyrrhic victory is defined as a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat. Someone who wins a Pyrrhic victory has been victorious in some way, though the heavy toll negates a true sense of achievement or profit.

Its a fitting description of the election victory just achieved by Republican Greg Gianforte over his Democrat rival, Rob Quist. Gianforte may have won the vote, but he lost much more when, on the night before Election Day at a campaign BBQ, he snapped, grabbed a reporter for the Guardian, threw him to the ground and punched him. The news went viral around the globe and Gianforte will forever be tarnished by his actions.

For those who may doubt that Gianforte has been severely damaged on the way to winning Montanas lone Congressional seat, a short review will quickly dispel those doubts.

First, in an unprecedented action in Montanas history, three of the states major papers who had endorsed Gianforte retracted those endorsements on Election Day. The Missoulian, Billings Gazette and Helena Independent Record had all given the nod to Gianforte, albeit the editorials doing so were, at best, lukewarm and cautious rather than strongly supportive.

There were and are many good reasons for Montanas major media outlets to be wary of Gianforte. He has followed the path of President Donald Trump in attacking the press, whom Trump infamously called the enemy of the people simply because, despite his billions, he cant buy good coverage given the nearly endless series of gaffes, lies, and leaks coming out of Trumps own mouth, tweets, and administration.

The Helena IRs editorial rescinding its endorsement of Gianforte said the paper was sick and tired of Gianfortes incessant attacks on the free press noting that in the past, he has encouraged his supporters to boycott certain newspapers, singled out a reporter in a room to point out that he was outnumbered, and even made a joke out of the notion of choking a news writer, and these are not things we can continue to brush off. Indeed, for those who believe a free press is essential to democracy, the attacks on the press by Trump and Gianforte bode ill for both Montanas and the nations future.

Moreover, Gianforte, like Trump, seems inclined to the use of alternative facts. While Gianforte claimed he was grabbed and pulled to the floor, a Fox News reporter who witnessed the event refuted that account, as did the Guardians reporter, who said the only thing Gianforte got right was his name and for whom he worked.

Given that Gianforte has already been cited for misdemeanor assault over the incident, its apparent there was enough evidence of his physical aggression to warrant the citation. Interestingly, the Gallatin County Sheriff who issued the citation had donated $250 to Gianfortes campaign  a fact he did not disclose on the evening of the incident. Now the Gallatin County Attorney is opening his own review to determine why a misdemeanor was issued instead of a felony.

After spending about $8 million of his own money, Gianforte finally managed to buy his way into political office on his second try. Now hell go to the swamp of Washington, which Trump promised to drain but has only filled with ever more vile creatures. Its embarrassing to have Gianforte representing Montanans, who are known for our civility, especially when he arrives already marked as an individual who cannot even control himself, let alone the future of our state and nation.
Willie Dickerson wrote a letter to the editor recently published about implications of the American Health Care Act. That at least 23 million will lose health care insurance will harm many people. The most vulnerable populations, children, the elderly, disabled and those with pre-existing health conditions will be harmed.

Although the AHCA proposes high-risk pools, how will they work? I and many others cannot afford a health care savings plan for a high deductible.

I think an insurance company, if everyone would use a great number of doctor visits, prescriptions drugs and diagnostic tests, would withdraw. They would lose money without raising rates very high. Even reasonable Republicans do not want that to happen.

Making Medicaid a block grant to the states, or per capita caps would not respond to a downturn in the economy. If a state were to pay the needed expenses, they must make cuts in the budget elsewhere.

I urge constituents to be in touch with their members of Congress, and write more letters to the editor about this very important issue.

Leslie Weinberg,

Stamford, Connecticut
Nurse Gail Trenfields letter provides an inside look at the positive difference the Affordable Care Act has made in the lives of people finally receiving health care. (" We deserve better health care " by Gail Trenfield, Missoulian, May 26.)

Unfortunately, 23 million Americans will lose this lifesaving health care if the bill that just passed the House becomes law.

Currently, the health care bill is being rewritten in the Senate. This gives us the time to call, write or visit U.S. Sens. Jon Tester and Steve Daines, and ask them to create an affordable health care plan that covers all Americans. In this way the senators can look out for the(ir) common interests.
Rob Quist is a talented musician and a charming gentleman, but was he really the very best and qualified candidate Montana Democrats had to offer the voters? Surely there are talented Democrats with governmental experience who could have brought a high degree of knowledge and competence to the campaign.
A man described by police as having a mental disorder jumped the fence at Montana Resources and waded into the Berkeley Pit, according to police.

Butte-Silver Bow Police Captain Mark St. Pierre said a man who was mentally ill jumped MR's protective fence around 1 p.m. Sunday, found his way through the active mining operation, and ran down the ramp leading to the Berkeley Pit. Police apprehended the man, but not before he got his pants wet from going into the pit's toxic waters, said St. Pierre.

St. Pierre said that according to the police report, the man's pants got wet and the officer's gloves got wet. The officer on duty requested new gloves. St. Pierre said the man was showered off really well. BSB officer Brandon Robinson told The Montana Standard from the county jail that a person on the viewing stand saw the man and called police. Robinson said MR shut down all internal traffic around the pit and that two officers got to the edge of the pit and coaxed the man to come out of the water.

However, officials with Montana Resources disagree with the report. MR's spokesperson Mike McGivern said an employee eyewitness reported that the man squatted down at the water's edge to wash his hands off and that "his shoes, his pants, he was totally dry."

McGivern said that when the officers led the man back up the ramp, they asked the mine foreman if the man should wash his hands, and the mine foreman reportedly said yes and allowed them to wash the man's hands at MR.

The Berkeley Pit contains sulfuric acid and a host of heavy metals. St. Pierre said the officers charged the man with criminal trespass.
BILLINGS  During an active shooter training scenario, someone roleplaying a student stood up and shot former Saco school superintendent Gordon Hahn. He never had a chance, weapon or not.

Hahn carried a gun for about five years at Saco, one of the few schools in gun-loving Montana to have an armed staffer despite a state law allowing it.

My perception of my weapon changed. I really didnt feel like that was the key anymore, he said.

Hahn has traveled to about a dozen school districts for training sessions about how to respond to an active shooter in school.

After the 1999 Columbine school shooting, police departments around the country changed how they respond to active shooters. They no longer wait for specialized personnel like SWAT teams. The first BPD officer on the scene makes a judgement call about whether to enter a building or wait for a second officer; but once multiple officers are on the scene, they go in.

Police also offer training to local businesses and schools, focusing on three words  run, hide, fight.

The first thing to do is get out, said Billings police spokesman Lt. Neil Lawrence. Sometimes thats not able to happen. Then we tell them to lock the door, hide, try to protect yourself the best you can. Once you lock yourself into a room or a closet because you cant escape the building, you prepare to fight.

The department doesnt have a stance on guns in schools, leaving that up to districts, Lawrence said. Billings is large enough that the school district has six school resource officers between middle and high schools. But most schools in Montana dont have a resource officer; statistics arent easily available on resource officers around the state.

Thompson Falls, with fewer than 500 students enrolled, might be the smallest school district in the state with a full-time cop. After Sandy Hook, the school district, city, and a private donor came together to pay the salary of a school resource officer who works in school during the school year and for the city during the summer.

You have a uniformed person who was trained. Theres an expectation there, said superintendent Jason Slater, who doesnt like the idea of arming school employees. He specifically liked the potential of a cop to act as a deterrent to violence.

How many times have you driven into a town with an empty cop car and hit the brakes? he said.

But without the partner funding, could Thompson Falls pull that off?

Itd be very difficult for a school our size, Slater said. Youd have to look at the impact on other positions, and it becomes a judgement call.

"Thatd have to be a priority set by the board.

Billings schools focused on implementing a buzz-in system to admit visitors to schools, keeping all exterior doors locked, early in superintendent Terry Boucks tenure. Its widely considered a best practice for schools, though its imperfect; in the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, a gunman blasted through locked doors before killing 26 children and staff members.

And some measures, like metal detectors, have been shown to have a negative effect on academic performance and worsen students' perception of school.

Several administrators in small districts told The Billings Gazette in responses to a statewide public records request on guns in schools that a lack of state support for school infrastructure makes it difficult to implement safety systems with competing budget priorities.

Mental health

Mental health support is often framed in terms of preventing student self-harm, but it also plays a role in preventing violent actions by students against others.

Mental health is a serious issue, and its something that traditionally educators didnt get a lot of training in, said Slater, who said Columbia Falls has focused on adding supports.

According to the National Association of School Psychologists, "only a fraction of students in need actually receive mental health services, and among those who do, the majority access those services in school."

The group argues that "schools cannot be barricaded against all possible harm," and that physical barriers should be implemented alongside targeted clinical supports and general efforts to improve school climate.

School District 2 in Billings partners with other agencies to provide specialized counselors, and plans to roll out a new mental health screening initiative next year. But like SROs, those resources are more scant in rural areas.

School violence is rare in those areas, but not unheard of.

Were fortunate, Slater said. At the same time, youd be foolish to think an emergency cant happen here. It can happen anywhere.
A recent shooting at the Hickory, North Carolina, residence of GOP congressional candidate Pat Harrigans parents and young children caused no injuries but has placed tremendous stress on the family in the final weeks of his campaign, Harrigans mother said. The firearms manufacturer and U.S. Army Special Forces veteran is running against Democratic state Sen. Jeff Jackson for an open U.S. House seat in North Carolinas new 14th District based in western Charlotte. A Hickory Police Department spokesperson said the department has not made arrests related to the incident and that the investigation is ongoing.
MUSCATINE  More than 75 Muscatine residents visited Greenwood Cemetery on Memorial Day to honor the ultimate sacrifice made by family members, friends and neighbors who served in the military.

American Legion Post 27 and VFW Post 1565 hosted the annual ceremony Monday, which began with the national anthem, performed by Muscatine High School student Kaleb Drawbaugh, and ending with "Taps," played by Janet Clark.

Brooke Bower from Girl Scout Troop 2042 read the poem "In Flanders Field" and Alex Klein, of Boy Scout Troop 167, recited the Gettysburg Address, reminding everyone in the crowd to remember those who had sacrificed their lives for freedom.

Muscatine Community College President Naomi DeWinter gave the memorial address, honoring fallen soldiers from Muscatine. DeWinter recounted the story of Douglas King, a Muscatine veteran whose name is remembered as residents drive along the U.S. 61 bypass, now called the Douglas King Memorial Expressway.

On Christmas Day 1968, DeWinter said, King, 22, volunteered for a mission to rescue a downed pilot in Laos during the Vietnam War. Despite threat of an enemy ambush, King went on the mission and eventually freed the pilot.

Once free, both men were attacked by enemy forces and eventually reported as missing in action. DeWinter said for his bravery, King was awarded the Air Force Cross, the nation's second highest honor after the Medal of Honor.

"From the sparkling waters of this beautiful Pearl City, our precious Muscatine, we will remember and honor," DeWinter said.

DeWinter also spoke about Muscatine Community College's history and how it has been changed by war since it opened as Muscatine Junior College in 1929.

That year, the college was able to open after enrolling 50 students. DeWinter said there were 26 women and 25 men enrolled the first year.

"Don't those numbers say quite a lot for Muscatine's men and women who recognized 88 years ago, that our future lies in lifting ourselves up through education and service to our community?" she asked.

When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, MCC adapted its curriculum and began allowing students to earn pilot licenses, she said. After the U.S. entered World War II, college enrollment plummeted while students turned to military service rather than education.

But when the war ended, and after the GI bill was passed, enrollment hit record levels. And since the 1960s, community colleges have continued to grow, she said.

DeWinter thanked the American Legion for helping community college enrollment to reach the level it is today.

"Like the American Legion, we honor our military veterans and their family members, and take great pride in being a military-friendly college," DeWinter said. "We work hard to help them transition to a college environment."

After DeWinter's speech, members of the American Legion Auxiliary read the names of Muscatine veterans who have died this year. President Dianne Fuller and VFW Auxiliary Vice President Teresa Chatfield placed wreaths in honor of two veterans, John Kemble and Edward Bitzer, who died in World War I and were buried in a veterans' cemetery in France, before being returned home to Iowa and buried at Greenwood Cemetery.
If you ever wondered why Americans celebrate Memorial Day, take a look at these four facts that dive into the holidays long history.

1) It began with the Civil War. Memorial Day was a response to the 620,000 soldiers who died during the Civil War.

2) Gen. John Logan, the commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, issued General Orders No. 11 on May 30, 1868, which made Memorial Day official.

3) Decoration Day. It was originally called Decoration Day for the purpose of decorating the gravestones of American veterans.

4) 1971. It didn't become a federal holiday until 1971, when the United States was deep into the Vietnam War.
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 []
Tibim song composer Joseph Onyango Ochieng alias Onyi Jalamo has come out to clarify social media reports that he was killed after the unveiling of Raila Odinga as the NASA flag bearer.

According to Jalamo, the false reports have affected him.

I am not the first person to be killed on social media. The only step I took was to report the matter to the police. Investigations are still in process, he said, adding that he has forgiven the writer.

I started receiving calls that I was dead, in fact I exchanged bitter words with some people who were calling and sending condolences. Someone could call and ask are you alive? And I have picked the call already, he said, adding, When I reached home from Nairobi where I had gone to perform, I met with sad faces of relatives and friends mourning my death until now they are not sure if I am dead or alive this has really affected me physiologically.

Onyi, from Jera village in Ugenya, also lamented over the piracy of his yet-to-be-released Tibim album.

My song is trending in the entire country. People are benefiting from it but I am suffering, he said.

He added that has not received a penny from either Raila or NASA as alleged.

I have not received cash from those who are using my song, none of the NASA principals has even called to give me something, he said.

There were also claims that Raila gave me five million shillings after producing the NASA Tibim hit. Raila does not even know me contrary to claims.

Jalamo said he will go ahead and release another hit Teargas soon, adding that he has already composed eight songs.

Tibim is just the first song, I have eight more that I will be releasing soon. The video of the Tibim song will also be out soon, he added.
Having recently launched her beauty brand, Veetox Herbal Tea, Vera Sidika is taking on a new path as a luxurious business brand and leaving behind the socialite brand that propelled her to stardom.

In a recent candid interview, the former Video Vixen spoke about her new business venture, plans to have a baby befre 30, and changing her image, including getting her breasts redone for a bigger size.

Many celebrities are all about beauty brands. Why did you think of coming up with a tea brand?

Vera Sidika: The Veetox tea brand is actually a beauty brand as it is an herbal detox product that helps burn extra stomach fat helping ladies to get a flat tummy. It contains agents that increase metabolism leading to the loss of fat. It is going for Sh3,000.

You had another brand to do with hair. What happened to that? Did you close down the shop?

I had to put that on hold because of my busy schedules but I shall get it back on line.

What have you been up toI mean, you have been out of the limelight?

A lot of stuff has changed in my life. Like I stopped the whole video vixen thing. I am changing my image and I feel that its time to advance to other things in life.

That too has to do with social media and the kind of crazy photos you used to post

The point is that I was just a girl doing the kind of things girls do. Like you know I did a lot of traveling across the world and that is what life offered then. The videos I did and the appearances I did got me a name and big numbers on social media and it is these numbers that I am turning into business. People like me for different reasons. Some just want to talk about my hips and boobs. Others just want to know how I maintain my looks. Others are about business.

Are you saying we will not see Vera the socialite anymore?

Vera is a luxurious business brand and it is all about high-end customers. I mean, the club appearance thing here does not pay as much as it is in other places where I get paid up to half a million shillings. Im simply saying that I can no longer be that hyper girl flying to three cities every week. I am now 27 years old and taking life more seriously.

Besides making appearances, how do you make your money?

People have all kind of ideas on how I make money. I do consult for interior design and I have big clients in Nigeria and Europe as well as back here at home.

Do you have any regrets about the path you took?

Not really. People are still talking about my boob job and all. I am in fact getting them redone as I feel that they are small.

Are you saying you want bigger boobs?

It has been three years now and I feel that I should get 800cc implants. These ones are 450cc. I am going to Miami to get them fixed. I mean, they are not cheap like those the other girl got and then they started falling. I want to keep this sexy thing going on way past 30 years.

You are talking about age a lot is there anything else you could be having in mind?

I am getting a baby before I turn 30. Now, that is your scoop. I want to get a baby before I am too old then get my sexy body back.

Does that mean there is a man in your life?

I am not the kind that believes in marriage. Honestly, I dont need a man to get a baby. I dont think relationships are made for people like me. I have been proposed to twice, once by a very prominent personality but that is not my thing. Every time I try to date I stay like three months and it doesnt work so I kind of stopped going that emotional way. I mean, I dont want to have 100 divorces and be branded heartbreaker.

Are you saying you will get a sperm donor?

Sperm banks are here with us and there is nothing wrong with taking that route.
After experiencing my first ever mud bath at Indian Springs, the site of Calistogas very first mud baths, I couldnt help but wonder how the curative qualities of this magical and mysterious material might have first been discovered.

No one is quite sure how long the mud baths were popular with the Native Americans of the area, the Wappo tribe. They were certainly a fact of life when the Spanish arrived in the 1800s, and may go back as far as hundreds or even thousands of years, according to widely varying historical accounts.

Its said by some Native American experts that mud baths and hot springs were known as neutral and sometimes holy ground, to which warriors could come to rest and recuperate unmolested by other tribes.

Mud baths have come a long way since then. Calistoga has become famous for its mud baths, with more than a dozen spas offering experiences of all types.

In 1988, entrepreneurs John and Pat Merchant, bought what was then known as Pacheteau Baths and renamed it Indian Springs Resort, to honor the first inhabitants of the area. In 2004, they bought the neighboring resort, known as Nances, and incorporated it into Indian Springs. Ten years later, they expanded again, adding a restaurant and new guest rooms.

In the 29 years since they bought it, they have transformed the property from a 17-cottage enterprise that was languishing in bankruptcy to the largest spa/resort in Calistoga, with 115 first-class rooms and a large, new restaurant called Sams Social Club. Again honoring local tradition, the Merchants named the restaurant after Calistogas original entrepreneur: This is the original Sam Brannan spa, said John Merchant, his intention was to recreate Saratoga Springs, NY here in Calistoga. 

He said Indian Springs mud baths are the only ones in Calistoga using 100 percent volcanic ash, mined from a rich, 25-foot vein right on the property. Thats what makes ours unique, Merchant noted.

Our geyser water is highly mineral, he added. The minerals come out of suspension when the water comes up as steam. It coats the pipes and we have to change them out every eight months because of the mineral deposits. After we cut the old pipe out, its actually sold as art.

Spa Director Yalda Teranchi says most of their business is from repeat customers traveling up from the Bay Area or over from the Sacramento area: They are going to drive up for the day or stay overnight or longer. Our clientele is heavily dominated by women but I have noticed in the three years Ive been here more men are coming, she noted. Weve done a lot of bachelorette parties but now there are guy groups also doing this as their getaway thing. They go wine tasting, and then they come here for a mud bath. And, of course, we get a lot of husbands and wives.

As the Native Americans discovered, the mud has many curative qualities that have been widely praised and documented. Obviously, its very hot, which I can attest to helping with various aches and pains. But Teranchi also pointed out : Its great for de-toxing and sweating out those impurities. Its excellent for eczema, and even for insect bites and burns. Not surprising as many sources say the mud has impressive anti-inflammatory qualities.

Two questions everyone asks: 1) Am I getting into the same mud that everyone else has been in? And, 2) Does the mud go, putting it delicately, everywhere?

The answers are no and yes, respectively.

When you have the mud bath and you get out, said Teranchi, you take about half of it with you when you step into the shower. We then flip the remaining mud and bring it from the bottom to the top. We then hit it with the 230 F. mineral water which sterilizes it, and then put fresh new mud on top. You sink a little bit when you get in, but you are always on top of fresh mud, she promised.

Ive never experienced anything quite like it, I must admit. I did expect to sink down in when I got in the large, mud-filled tub but it was more like I had laid on a big, thick, gravelly and very hot pile of mud. Now, its true, boys do like to play in the mud so I wasnt as frightened by the proposition as some.

Once you are in, or on, the attendant (men for men, and women for women, in separate areas) layers the mud on top of you from neck to toe. You are immediately struck by the weight of it, its much heavier than I imagined. It doesnt burn or sting, but you are immediately struck by the heat of the steaming material being scooped over you. I dont recall smelling anything, but some say it has a smell of sorts.

Then the clock starts followed closely by sweat, youre in 10 minutes tops which, trust me, is more than enough. At the halfway point, the attendant places a cool towel over your forehead which felt heavenly. Finally, your time is up and you are asked to shower off before heading for the mineral bath and then on to the steam room.

Teranchi wasnt wrong about taking a lot of mud with me. I took one of the longer showers of my life, trying to rinse off the gravelly mud which, indeed, had invaded places I didnt even know I had. At last, it was off to the natural mineral water bath which I was pleased to discover had cooled down considerably from the steam which exits the nearby volcanic vent.

At the end of it all, after 20 minutes or so of recovery time wrapped in hot towels with cucumber slices over my eyes, I will say with all honesty I really did feel great. Some guests come for a week, said Teranchi, and take a mud bath every day.

I think Ill have to work up to that.
YOUNTVILLE  More than 250 champions of children and individuals with special education needs came to the Napa Valley Performing Arts Center in the Lincoln Theater in Yountville for a Special Education Law and Advocacy Conference by the Supreme Court attorney Pete Wright.

With law books in hand and a winning sense of humor, Wright shepherded attendees along an insightful journey through the history, impact and future of the educational rights of children with disabilities.

Wright has been involved with special education since his childhood when, according to Wright, in 1954 he was diagnosed with strephosymbolia  a form of word blindness today known as dyslexia  and severe hyperkinesis  the precursor term for Attention Deficit Hyper Activity (ADHD). These learning abnormalities at that time would have permitted the Washington, D.C. school system, Wright said, to legally classify him as uneducable, removing all school district responsibility from providing him with access to an education.

Wrights parents nonetheless persevered in seeking special schools and training to ultimately enable him to earn a law degree from the University of Virginia.

This was the period before federal laws established the rights of children with special education needs, a federal statute that today is known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA2004). That statute identifies todays educational rights of children with disabilities, and the legal responsibilities of school districts, states, and federal institutions to provide a free and appropriate education under the least restrictive environment.

In 1993, Wright successfully argued a landmark case titled Florence County School District Four vs. Carter before the U.S. Supreme Court. The court, in a unanimous decision, found in favor of Wrights client. The case confirmed the right of parents to sue a school district for the reimbursement of the cost of educating their child with disabilities as defined by the parents (not the school).

Wright has since written a series of books about the rights spelled out in IDEA 2004 and has created a website called Wrightslaw.org that has propelled him into the role of one of the most respected legal advocates for the education of children with disabilities.

Step by step during the conference, he created a conceptual and practical framework by which the details of the IDEA statute and the rights of families were brought into cohesive and actionable focus.

For instance, one parent during the session asked, What if the school doesnt follow through with their promises? Wrights answer: Did you get those promises in writing? No? Then those promises  legally  never were made!

In the practiced mode of a friendly country lawyer, he also schooled the audience of parents in how to win over a hostile school district during the crucial Individual Educational Plan (IEP) meetings.

Always bring at least two trays of food to the IEP team meetings, he said with a smile. And if they tell you something that you know isnt legal, pretend to be confused and then gently lead them to law regs. Remember that in an IEP meeting, you are in control of the outcome. But if you fall into a hostile role, you cant achieve your goal as a parent, which is to build the best team to achieve the best educational outcome for your child.

But parents werent the only members of the audience at the May 19 program. According to Joanne Gouaux, who organized the conference, of the 264 tickets sold, 80 percent of attendees were from outside of Napa Valley. Those included school district officials, psychologists, special education teachers, and attorneys from as far away as Idaho, Arizona, Los Angeles, Oregon, Nevada and even the Philippines.

Wright conducts numerous conferences throughout the U.S. about special education for parents, educational professionals and advocates throughout the year, and also authors free and regular newsletters about the topic. For more information about future Wrightslaw conferences, to learn more about the IDEA 2004 federal statute or to ask questions of Wright and his staff, visit wrightslaw.com.
Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller outlined the decisions taken by Allied leaders last week in a keynote speech to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Tbilisi on Monday (29 May 2017). She highlighted that the Alliance is stepping up in the fight against terrorism and making progress on fairer burden-sharing across NATO.

The Deputy Secretary General welcomed that NATO is now a full member of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS  a strong symbol of the Alliances commitment to the fight against terrorism. NATO AWACS surveillance aircraft will also support the Coalition with airspace management, and a new terrorism intelligence cell at NATO headquarters will improve the sharing of information among Allies. Ms. Gottemoeller stressed that NATO leaders also agreed to do more to ensure fairer burden sharing across the Alliance, with national plans setting out how Allies intend to meet their defence commitments. She highlighted that Montenegro will soon become the 29th member of the Alliance  a clear sign that the door to NATO membership remains open.

The Deputy Secretary General also thanked Georgia for its contributions to NATO, including in Afghanistan. She noted that NATO continues to support Georgia, helping to boost its defence capabilities and to prepare the country for NATO membership. Ms. Gottemoeller added that NPA members play an important role in representing constituents and holding political leaders to account for the decisions they take.

During her visit to Georgia, Ms. Gottemoeller will meet with Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili, Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidzem, Defence Minister Levan Izoria and the Chairman of the Parliament Irakli Kobakhidze.
Austal Chief Executive Officer David Singleton said the delivery confirmed Austals position as Australias preeminent patrol vessel builder, with 32 deliveries in total to the Commonwealth since 1998.



Austal is proud to have delivered Australias entire border patrol capability over the past 19 years, through the Bay, Armidale and Cape-class patrol vessels. This work has enabled us develop an unrivalled local shipbuilding capability  we have a highly motivated and competent workforce and a comprehensive supply chain from across Australia.  Mr Singleton said.



With the delivery of Cape Inscription and construction of 19 steel Pacific Patrol Boats underway, we are now preparing for both the Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) and Future Frigate projects, which are due to commence next year, he added.



Austal has partnered with German shipbuilder and designer, Fassmer for the Australian Governments OPV contract and recently announced a new design office in Adelaide, South Australia to support this project. This joint-venture partnership is dedicated to providing the best capability and build solution for the Australian Government.



Since 1998, Austal has delivered 74 patrol vessels, including 24 exported to 5 countries. The company continues to pursue export opportunities for platforms, such as the Cape-class and new markets for vessels like the Pacific Patrol Boat.
The new Metal Shark patrol boats will be employed by the Vietnam Coast Guard on law enforcement missions focused on smuggling, illicit trafficking, piracy and armed robbery against ships, and illegal fishing, according to a statement by the US Embassy.



Vietnams future prosperity depends upon a stable and peaceful maritime environment, Ambassador Osius stated at the handover ceremony. The United States and the rest of the international community also benefit from regional stability, which is why we are here today, and it is why we are very pleased to be working together with the Vietnam Coast Guard.



Metal Shark was honored to be selected for this historic opportunity to provide state-of-the-art American-made defense articles to Vietnam, stated Henry Irizarry, Metal Sharks vice president of international business development. Our team worked closely over an extended period, in concert with US officials and also directly with the Vietnam Coast Guard, to design, build, and deliver a fleet of specialized patrol craft that will increase the Vietnam Coast Guards capabilityto maintain stability in Southeast Asia. We look forward to continuing our relationship with the Vietnam Coast Guard for years to come.



The vessels, which were built at Metal Sharks Franklin, Louisiana waterfront shipyard complex, are powered with twin Cat C-9 diesel engines mated to Hamilton water jets. Urethane-sheathed, closed-cell foam collars by Wing provide impact protection during alongside maneuvers or while docking.Metal Sharks Defiant-class design has been extensively proven among military operators, with parent craft vessels in service with the US Coast Guard, US Navy, and the militaries of US partner nations worldwide.
14:25

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's four-nation began on Monday, and he will land in Germany for the first leg of his six-day tour.



Here is the breakup of PM Modi's engagements during his four-nation tour:



May 29, 2017, Germany



Upon landing in Berlin, the Prime Minister will directly depart for Schloss Meseberg, the official State Guest House of the Germany.

The Prime Minister will sign Visitor's Book.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will host a dinner for PM Modi at Schloss Meseberg.



May 30, 2017, Germany



Germany will host ceremonial welcome for PM Modi.

Thereafter, the Prime Minister and German Chancellor will attend fourth biennial Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) plenary meeting at International Conference Room at Chancellery.

After the meeting, both the leaders will address the media.

Later, both the countries will sign MoUs. Chancellor Merkel will host lunch for PM Modi and Indian delegation.

Then the Prime Minister will depart for Hotel Adlon Kempinski at Palaisaal to attend Indo-German Business Summit 2017.

PM Modi is expected to invite the German investment in India under Make in India.

From the summit, the Prime Minister will depart for Castle Bellevue to meet German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

After meeting with the German President, the Prime Minister will depart for Berlin Tegel Airport to start his Spain tour. He will rest at Hotel Intercontinental.



May 31, 2017, Spain



In the morning, PM Modi will sign Book of Honour at Sala Tapies, La Moncola Palace.

After the signing ceremony, PM Modi will have a meeting with Spanish President Mariano Rajoy.

After the meeting, President Rajoy will host breakfast for PM Modi and Indian delegation.

Thereafter, bilateral agreements will be exchanged and conclusion of the CEOs Forum will be presented at Antechamber of Building of Council of Ministers at La Moncloa Palace.

PM Modi will then depart for Palacio de la Zarzuela to call on Spanish King Felipe VI.

After the meeting, the Prime Minister will depart for Hotel Intercontinental where he will participate in Roundtable interactions at Granados Hall with Spanish CEOs and business tycoons.

Once the PM completes interactions with the Spanish businessmen, he will depart for St. Petersburg to start his Russia visit.

PM Modi will stay at Grand Hotel Europe at St. Petersburg.



June 1, 2017, Russia



In Russia, the first engagement of the Prime Minister is to pay homage at the Piskarovskoye Cemetery.

He will then depart for Konstantin Palace where he is scheduled to address the CEOs Forum after lunch. Both the countries will issue press statement after signing bilateral agreements.

Russian President Vladmir Putin will host dinner for PM Modi.



June 2, 2017, Russia



This will be probably the busiest day for the Prime Minister in his trip.

In the morning, the Prime Minister will take part in presentation of Urga Kanjur to Jampa Donod.

Then the PM is scheduled to meet Tigran Sargasyan, chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission and former Prime Minister of Armenia.

PM Modi will next visit the State Hermitage Museum and Institute of Oriental Manuscripts.

In the afternoon, the Prime Minister will attend the plenary session of St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

Thereafter, he will interact with Governors and visit 'Make in India' Pavillion.

PM Modi will also meet Prime Minister of Manogila J. Erdenebat, Federal Chancellor of Austria Christian Kern, and United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres.

In the evening, PM Modi will depart for France to start his last leg of four-nation tour. He will be staying at Hotel Plaza Athene in Paris.



June 3, 2017, Paris



In the morning, the Prime Minister will meet newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

After the meeting, Macron will host lunch for PM Modi.

Thereafter, the Prime Minister will leave for India and is expected to reach Palam Airport early morning on June 4.



A file pic of PM Narendra Modi with German chancellor Angela Merkel


SAN FRANCISCO: US tech giant Apple is reportedly developing a dedicated artificial intelligence (AI) chip, called the Apple Neural Engine, that would power AI-related tasks on mobile devices.

"The chip would be used to offload tasks that require sophisticated algorithms related to facial and speech recognition and augmented reality tasks that rely heavily on computer vision," technology website theverge.com reported on Saturday.

The chip is also said to improve battery life and the overall performance of Apple devices.

With the new chip, Apple seeks to separate the computationally intensive tasks from the iPhone's processor and graphics chip.

The company is experimenting with wireless charging technologies that could see users charge their iPhones with a Wi-Fi router.

"Apple's patent application for 'Wireless Charging and Communications Systems With Dual-Frequency Patch Antennas' is a method for transferring power to electronic devices over frequencies normally dedicated to data communications," appleinsider.com reported earlier.

The patch antennas may be used for wireless power transfer at microwave frequencies or other frequencies and may be used to support millimetre wave communications.

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"We hope India adopts a cautious and restrained attitude on the issue before the final settlement of the border issue with China to jointly control disputes, safeguard peace and tranquility in the border areas," the Chinese Foreign Ministry told IANS.

"China's position on the eastern section of the Sino-Indian border areas is consistent and clear," a statement in Chinese said.

Modi last week opened the country's longest bridge over Brahmaputra river that connects Assam's easternmost region with Arunachal Pradesh, claimed and dubbed by China as South Tibet.

"China and India should resolve territorial disputes through negotiations and consultations between the two countries," the Foreign Ministry said.

China and India have a dragging border dispute.

The 9.2 km Dhola-Sadiya bridge will cut the distance and travel time between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by 165 km and five hours.

Analysts say the bridge will ensure swift movement of Indian troops in Arunachal Pradesh, which, therefore, will bolster India's defence along the China border.

China and India fought a brief war in 1962 when the Chinese entered Arunachal Pradesh and unilaterally declared a ceasefire after withdrawing to the McMahon Line.

Since then Indian and Chinese troops have had several skirmishes.

China has long been building infrastructure along the border unlike India, which, experts say, avoided building roads in the region, fearing a repeat of the 1962 war when the People's Liberation Army troops entered Assam.

--IANS gsh/mr

( 282 Words)

2017-05-29-16:56:11 (IANS)
Three alleged members of a gang, including two Kashmir residents, have been arrested from West Bengal's South 24-Parganas district, the state police said on Sunday. The police busted a gang of around 10 criminal elements from the forests South 24-Pargana district's Joynagar and seized several arms and ammunition on Saturday. "We raided the forest area and arrested three, including two youths from Kashmir's Uri town, while the other gang members managed to escape. Seven to eight bombs and several other arms were seized from them," a senior officer of Joynagar police station said. The officer said they have identified a local goon named Halim Seikh, but declined to give out the names of the two arrested Kashmiris in view of pending investigation. "We cannot divulge much details about the two Kashmiri youths for the sake of further investigation. We are trying to find out why they have come this far all the way from Kashmir. It is certain that the gang gathered in the forest of Sundarbans with some anti-social motive," the officer said. --IANS mgr/ssp/ahm/vt ( 188 Words) 2017-05-28-18:30:15 (IANS)
Main accused in the Rampur molestation case has been arrested and a four member committee was formed to nab others, the police said on Sunday. "A case registered and the main accused has been arrested. Four teams have been constituted to nab others. Statements of victims are not registered yet," Superintendent of Police, Rampur, Vipin Tanda said. One of the victims stated that despite her outcry nobody came to rescue and demanded justice from the police. "We stopped at a nearby petrol punk to refill. Later my sister and I went to toilet in a nearby area when we were molested by 10-12 people. We screamed for help, but no one came to our rescue. I demand justice," said the victim. A video of atleast 12 to 14 boys molesting two girls in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur district, set the social media on fire The incident occurred on May 22. Yogi Adityanath was flayed by the woman activists over the incident, blaming the government for inefficient maintenance of law and order in the state. Woman activist Shamina Shafiq said, "Perpetrators are emboldened. The procedure after filing a chargesheet is so time consuming and lenient that rapists know they stand a chance to go scot free on bails. No protection is provided to the victims. Uttar Pradesh is epitome of lawlessness, where, criminals roam free." Brinda Adige, a woman activist told ANI, "It is very shameful and unfortunate that such incidents are occurring pan India frequently. On one hand all the politicians, especially Prime Minister Narendra Modi, talks about 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' and on other hand, such hideous episodes take place. (ANI)
A day after Youth Congress activists publically butchered a calf in Kerala's Kannur to protest against the Centre's ban on sale of cattle for slaughtering, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi condemned the 'barbaric' incident while dubbing it as 'thoughtless and unacceptable.' "What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric & completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party. I strongly condemn the incident," Rahul said in a tweet. Kannur police earlier in the day registered a case against district president of Youth Congress and other Congress workers under Section 120 (A) of the Kerala Police Act, for slaughtering calf in public view. The police filed the case on the basis of a video where the president of Youth Congress, Rigil Pookkutty and other Youth Congress workers could be seen slaughtering the calf. The incident comes amid hue and cry over Centre's new rule prohibiting sale of animals for slaughter or religious sacrifice at livestock markets and animal fairs. Students' Federation of India (SFI) earlier staged a protest in Kerala against the ban by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum. Similar fest was also organised at different locations across Kerala. The Centre's move also drew flak from various political leaders. The Communist Party of India (Marxist) earlier stated that by issuing this order, the government is imposing greater burdens on farmers. "It is an absurd decision because this prohibition which the Centre has now announced includes buffaloes also. By issuing this order, the Centre is imposing greater burdens on farmers. It is very unfair to India's 'annadaata'," CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury told ANI. The decision did not go down well with Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Isaac, who termed the move as 'illogical'. "The government cannot decide the choice of our food. The decision seems illogical. The state government will look into it and see if anything can be done legally," Isaac told media. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the Centre's decision was surprising which was unsuitable for a democratic nation. However, welcoming the Centre's decision, Union Minister Maneka Gandhi said the step is laudable and has been taken 'in the interest of farmers.' Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan earlier ordered that the ministry has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes. "Aim of the rules is very specific. It is only to regulate the animal market and the sale of cattle in these markets, and ensuring welfare of cattle dealt in market. And the rule provides for a strict animal monitoring committee and an animal market committee at the local level," Vardhan told ANI. He said the seller and buyer both have to ensure that the cattle is not being bought or sold in the market for slaughter purposes. (ANI)
Three activists of the Kerala Youth Congress, including Youth Congress leader Rijil Makkutty, were today suspended for alleged slaughter of an ox on Saturday.A spokesperson of the Indian youth Congress said the suspension of the three activists came on the instruction of the party high command.The three Kerala Youth Congress activists had on Saturday slaughtered an ox in full public view to protest against the Centre banning sales of cattle for slaughter.This had evoked widespread protests with the BJP State president Kummanam Rajasekharan terming it as a 'barbaric act'.In a tweet yesterday, Congress Vice-president described the incident as "thoughtless and barbaric"."What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric and completely unacceptable to me and the Congress party. I strongly condemn the incident," he tweeted. UNI AR SNU 1335 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-912871.Xml
The major Opposition parties - Congress and Left Front constituent parties -continued their boycott decision of the West Bengal Assembly as they today also refrained fromattending the session and held " street drama" inside the premises of the legislative campus. The Left parties and Congress currently voicing their resentment against the ruling Trinamool Congress headed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Thursday last had jointly decided to boycott the ongoing assembly session after Speaker Biman Banerjee had refused to allow them to bring a "no-confidence motion" against the government. The opposition parties had described the Speaker's decision as 'unprecedented'. The Congress legislators were today seen involved themselves in a mock drama " Abijan" lampooning the government on many current issues.UNI PC AKM 1315 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-912865.Xml
After a lull, the anti talk faction of United Liberation front of Assam ULFA (I), a thirty year old rebel outfit is trying to make its presence felt again with series of strikes in Assam in past one week. In a statement emailed to media on Sunday, the proscribed outfit fighting for sovereignty in Assam said they will keep striking oil and gas installations until and unless sovereignty is restored on the indigenous people. The insurgent outfit has claimed responsibility for a series strikes at oil pipelines in Upper Assam coinciding with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the state on May 26. The latest one was on Saturday when powerful bomb blew up a portion of the state-owned ONGC pipeline at Teok Ghat in Sonari district in Upper Assam. It took place two days after an ULFA rebel died when he was planting a bomb at an OIL pipeline in Dibrugarh district which suddenly exploded. "For the last several years we have been receiving these threats. Our security forces are equipped to firmly deal with the situation," a senior police officer said in Guwahati. Formed in 1979, ULFA has been indulging in arms struggle for an independence alleging exploitation of the state's resources depriving the indigenous people of their due rights over their resources. UNI ABI AKM 1453 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-913030.Xml
The Against Corruption and Unabated Taxation (ACAUT) Nagaland has submitted a petition to the Nagaland Chief Minister appealing for implementation of the Nagaland Lokayukta Bill and its introduction during the Monsoon Session of the Nagaland Legislative Assembly of the current year. In a statement, the ACAUT informed that its consultative member Niketu Iralu met the Chief Minister upon hiss invitation on May 26 at Chief Minister's office and submitted the petition for implementation of the Lokayukta Bill. The ACAUT said that the time period of the standing committee is only six months, extendable by six months at a time and since its term had expired, the Chief Minister revived it and had asked the standing committee to submit its report within six months. Since the committee report is ready, the ACAUT saw no reason why it cannot be tabled in the month of July this year. In the petition, the ACAUT said to the CM, "That a statesman of your stature has taken the reins of the state is an assurance to the beleaguered people groaning under the weight of corruption and mis-governance that good leadership will prevail, and therefore the ACAUT requests that, as time now permits, you institute the Lokayukta in the State of Nagaland." The petition reminded that ACAUT has been insisting on such an anti-corruption ombudsman since 2014, and during the tenure of the former CM, a Standing Committee on Lokayukta headed by Er. Levi Rengma, parliamentary secretary, was formed in 2015, and yet the Government of the Day did not deem it fit to pass the anti-corruption bill in the state assembly despite the numerous available opportunities. The introduction of this bill will be historic and transformative, in tune with our Christian ethos, it affirmed. It further appealed to the CM's "sense of consciousness to help in building institutional mechanisms whereby the Naga nation is eventually structured upon merit, hard work and dedication, as advocated by our ancestors and the Lokayukta is but means to such an end." "It is on Behalf of the Naga people that our demand has been placed before you, and the ACAUT Nagaland along with the rest of the Nagas anticipated that this very crucial piece of legislation will be passed during the Monsoon Session of the State Legislative Assembly, 2017," ACAUT hoped. UNI AS 1537 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-913101.Xml
Demanding extension of the date of Teachers Eligibility Test for filling up 14,142 vacant posts of teachers, the students pursuing BEd, staged demonstration in front of Education Minister House in the morning. They alleged that the exam schedule was announced without considering the practicability. "Tripura doesn't have sufficient number of BEd qualified candidates and as per apex court order the state government cannot appoint teachers without specific qualification. A few hundred of students will pass out with BEd degree by July but the state government wants the test to be over by June next," Mohua Choudhury, a demonstrator alleged. Even though 10,323 prospectively sacked teachers and their families continue to be torn by existential fear, the union ministry of human resource development (HRD) is sitting on the plea made by the state government for relaxation on the matter of BEd degree and mark, alleged education minister Tapan Chakraborty. He said, the advertisement has been issued under the direction of Supreme Court and the state government doesn't have scope to extend the date abruptly. After the Supreme Court verdict on March 28 last dispensing with the services of 10,323 school teachers of all categories prospectively from January 1 2018, the state government had declared its support to the teachers and determination to protect their jobs within the parameters set by the apex court. A file making a plea for relaxation in eligibility bar including BEd degree had been put forward to MHRD. The minister for school education Tapan Chakraborty met the union minister for HRD Prakash Javedakar twice and apprised him of the realities of Tripura including the non-availability of candidates but the state yet to receive the decision. UNI BB AKM 1558 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0213-913121.Xml
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday strongly objected to the use of red beacon by West Bengal Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Arup Biswas despite the Centre's ban on it. Biswas was seen using the red beacon atop his vehicle in Siliguri on Monday. When media questioned him, he replied, "Our government has not yet banned red beacon. So, we are not bound to follow the instructions of others." National Secretary of the BJP Rahul Sinha lambasted the Mamata Banerjee Government over it and alleged that the West Bengal Government was running on the policies of Imams like Barkati. "Imams like Barkati are inner soul of the Trinamool Congress. Look at the language. Arup Biswas also took stand like Barkati that the Mamata Banerjee Government hasn't banned use of red beacon so why should he stop using it," said Sinha. He said ministers like Biswas don't deserve to be minister in any state and he should resign. Noor-ur-Rehman Barkati, the imam of Kolkata's Tipu Sultan mosque, had earlier this month was embroiled in controversy when he had refused to remove red beacon from his car. However, he had to remove it after various Muslim bodies opposed his defiant stand. Another BJP leader Zafar Islam also launched a scathing attack on West Bengal government over Biswas' use of red beacon. He said the Mamata Banerjee Government is only interested in power and not people. "The Mamata Banerjee Government is only interested in power and not in serving people. They want to lead a life of VIP (Very Important Person) whereas Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clearly said that the people of this country are real VIPs," said Islam. He said the use of red beacons by the ministers of Mamata Banerjee shows that power, VIP culture are important for them and not the aspirations of the common man. Seeking to end the VIP culture, the Union Cabinet last month had decided that beacon lights will be removed from all vehicles from May 1, except emergency vehicles, like ambulances and fire brigade. The notification mentioned that every year, the transport department of the state or union territory administration, as the case may be, shall issue a public notice bringing to the notice of the general public the list of authorities to whom the permission to use the vehicles specified. The ban applies to union ministers, chief ministers, state cabinet ministers, bureaucrats and judges of the High Court and Supreme Court while President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and the Lok Sabha Speaker are exempted from the ban. (ANI)
The seven accused were produced before Special TADA Court Judge G. A. Sanap here for an ongoing hearing on the judgement date.

Besides Abu Salem, who was extradited from Portugal in 2005, the other accused are Mustafa Dossa, Mohammed Tahir Merchant alias Tahir Takla, Abdul Qayyum, Karimullah Khan, and Riyaz Siddiqui.

Abu Salem, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2005 for the 1995 murder of builder Pradeep Jain, is currently lodged in Taloja Central Jail in Raigad.

Earlier, in the same case, the special court had convicted 100 accused, including Yakub Abdul Razak Memon who was hanged on July 30, 2015 and Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt, who was let off the terrorism charges and tried under the Arms Act, served his full sentence and released from jail February 2016.

On the afternoon of March 12, 1993, a series of 13 blasts in quick succession were carried at various locations in Mumbai city and suburbs killing 257 people and injuring another 700 plus.

The blasts were master-minded by absconder mafia don Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar and carried out by his henchmen, absconder Tiger Memon and others.

Some of the targeted locations included the Air India Building, Bombay Stock Exchange, Zaveri Bazar, then existing five star hotels, Hotel SeaRock and Hotel Juhu Centaur, and others, leading to public and private property worth Rs 27 crore damaged.

--IANS qn/vd

( 271 Words)

2017-05-29-16:54:14 (IANS)
Manipur Governor Najma Heptulla has been unanimously elected as Chancellor (Amir-e-Jamia) of Jamia Millia Islamia for five years by the university's court in a special meeting held on May 25, a varsity statement said on Monday. "Heptulla succeeds Lt. Gen. M.A. Zaki (retd.) who has completed his five-year term. Heptulla's tenure begins with effect from May 26," Jamia Millia Islamia said in a press release. After her new appointment, Heptulla will have to resign as Governor. Vice Chancellor Talat Ahmad expressed his happiness over Heptulla's appointment. "The university will be greatly benefited from her rich experience in both political and public life. It will be our privilege to work with her and to learn from her distinguished career in parliament and internationally," he said, also thanking Zaki for his support and guidance. Grand-niece of India's first Education Minister, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Heptulla has been a five time member of the Rajya Sabha between 1986 and 2012 and was Deputy Chairman of the upper house of the Indian parliament for 16 years. Heptulla also served as the Minister of Minority Affairs in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet before resigning on age grounds as the BJP in an unwritten code had fixed the maximum age for ministers at 75. She was subsequently appointed as Governor of Manipur. Heptulla has had the distinction of presiding over the women's parliamentarians' group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in 1993 and was went on to be IPU's President from 1999 to 2002. She was also nominated by the United Nations Development Programme as its human development ambassador. --IANS bns/vd ( 275 Words) 2017-05-29-16:58:13 (IANS)
The 77-year-old will replace Lt Gen (retd) MA Zaki on completion of his a five-year term.

The university's court unanimously appointed Dr Heptulla as Chancellor in a meeting on May 25. Her tenure is effective from May 26.

Dr Heptulla has been a five-time member of the Rajya Sabha and has been deputy chairperson for 16 years.

Prior to becoming the Governor of the Northeastern state, she was Minister of State for Minority Affairs in the Modi Government.

University Vice-Chancellor Professor Talat Ahmad, while expressing happiness at the appointment of Dr Heptulla, said the university will benefit from her vast political and public experience.UNI SD RSA 1828

-- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0005-913448.Xml
Jat pujyantey nari tat tisthanti devata (The divine are extremely happy where women are respected/worshiped) - goes the adage, symbolizing the age-old rich socio-cultural heritage of India. But with the passage of time, women were suppressed, oppressed and unthinkable atrocities were committed on them. Ma Mati Manush (Mother, Motherland & People), a Bengali political slogan, coined by All India Trinamool Congress chief and present Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee became very popular in West Bengal during 2009 General election and 2011 state assembly election. She later wrote a Bengali book, worked in multiple Bengali theatre groups, produced dramas and a song focused on communal harmony. The song composed reads: Eta Ma Mati Manusher din. Eta Ma Mati Manusher gaan (This is the day of Ma Mati Manush. It is the song of Ma Mati Manush). Media in June 2011 reported it to be one of the six most popular political slogans in India. Mamata's slogan glorifying women empowerment, while all governments, including the Centre, have been consistently advocating policies for women empowerment. I coincidently identified a glittering example of women empowerment during a morning walk in Munshipara in Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal recently. A young girl drew my attention while directing labourers to load boulders and sand on trucks on Torsa river bed. Little enquiry left me dumfounded. She was a local girl Rupa Roy, a class-XII student of nearby Salkumar Government HS School. Her father, a boulder-sand contractor for 15 years passed away in 2011, leaving his wife, daughter (Rupa) and son to fend for themselves. "It was too difficult for my mother to nurture us. I initially assessed the pros and cons of the vocation and stepped into my father's shoes as it was a question of our survival," she said with twinkling eyes. Besides supplying to all government departments, she gets a call from any local resident intending to build an RCC house. She has engaged 20 labourers, half of them women, while about 100 others - quarry, sand depot and truck owners indirectly benefit from her occupation. She moves around on her scooty from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. to meet everyone's demand. She has endeared her to government officers concerned by diligently paying royalty per truck load. When asked: "Don't you get scarred while moving alone till late night?", she quipped: "I have enough self-confidence that none would dare to touch me as I am known to one and all for my job." On her life's ambition, she said, "I wish to pursue higher education up to graduation before looking for a government job. I cannot study more because of the need for resources and situation. I shall try for any government job, but continue in present occupation in case of failure." Asked to send a louder message to young women of her age who very often face a tough life, she said, "It is social responsibility for the society and the government to shoulder. West Bengal is the best example as such criminals are never spared". "Can you call yourself a manush (human being), if you commit any heinous crime against a maa (mother)?" - her question was a befitting reply that left me speechless. It is difficult to trace the history of Munshipapra, whose original residents had migrated from Bardhaman but made it the vegetable hub that supplies about 50 metric tons vegetable annually to Kolkata, Bihar, North East, Nepal and Bhutan. They were ruled for long by the Cooch Behar King, being part of his kingdom. Had the kingdom continued and Cooch Behar King been alive, Puja, an example for others to emulate, would have been honoured. The West Bengal Chief Minister is no exception in recognising such unique personalities and Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always been advocating dignity for women and 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' scheme is the best example. Hopefully those who matter would draw the attention of West Bengal and the government of India for young prodigy Puja to be honoured. She deserves not only kudos but recognition too as an unparallel example to set a milestone for young Indian girls to emulate. There cannot be greater feat than Puja's triumph against all odds, that too by struggling hard without any support. If state and national awards are given in recognition for some great achievement, why not her? "Government of India's various initiatives seek to facilitate economic empowerment, self-reliance and social equality as far as Nari Shakti is concerned," Prime Minister Modi, while saluting the indomitable spirit, determination and dedication of Nari Shakti on International Women's Day this year, had said on Twitter. Despite Constitution of India provisions and UNO policy to ensure rights of women to recognise their basic human rights and creating an environment to treat them equals to men, alas.... rising woman crimes had earned New Delhi an obnoxious sobriquet - rape capital of the world from China's state-run news agency Xinhua in 2013. Statistically Delhi, among India's major cities, has highest number of reported rape cases by far to draw media attention. But these crimes take place in large numbers in other major cities, which mostly go unreported. Thus, Bhaskar Chawla wrote- Delhi can no longer be called India's 'rape capital,' - in VAGABOMB on May 14, 2016. Where lies the fault? Are media persons not Indians? All crimes should be reported but media should not resort to extra judicial trails as was seen during trial of a 23-year-old medical student, Nirbhaya, who was brutally gang-raped by six men in a private bus in New Delhi on December 16, 2016. (ANI)
Chief Ministers from the North-eastern states today complained to the Centre about the lack of funds and also about the delay in the disbursal of funds. They expressed their view candidly at the 66th plenary meeting of the North Eastern Council (NEC) held here today. The representatives said they needed a fast process for final disbursal of funds so that their infrastructure projects could be completed fast. Almost all the chief ministers were one in demanding increase in the financial powers of the Secretary of the NEC. Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh said that adequate funds were a must for the state to combat insurgency, as the menace could be countered only through development. Arunachal Chief Minister Pema Khandu stressed on increasing digital connectivity in the state. Assam,which was represented by finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, pressed for the Centre going for big projects instead of giving funds for just small ones. Nagland Chief Minister Shurhozelie Liezietsu also demanded more big-ticket deals for the state,while pointing out that there was only one iconic project in the state. He said population should not be the only area for awarding a project, as maintaining regional balance in development was also important. Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar batted for decentralising the implementation of central scheme to enhance the role of stakeholder states. He also demanded increase in the quantity of food grains under PDS for north-eastern states. Later, talking to reporters about the meeting, Minister for Development of North Eastern Region, Dr Jitendra Singh said many positive suggestion were made at the meeting, including ones on the restructuring of the body, so that it could play an effective role in the development of the region. He pointed out that the NEC had been set up in 1972,when there was no separate ministry for the development of the region, and it was now time to reorient its role. When asked about the complaints of chief minister about lack of funds, Dr Singh said, ''It is logical for a chief ministers to seek more funds for their states.'' He, however, pointed that spending on the the northeastern states had been substantially raised during the last three yearsfrom a meager Rs 770 cr to the present Rs 50,000 crore as provided in the budget this year. The Minister said the Government had also simplified the DPR process. When asked about the chief ministers' demand for dispersal of funds through NEC, he said,'' For this, views of the Finance Ministry would have to be taken.UNI NAZ SB 2016 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0091-913720.Xml
Terming 'preposterous' the charges levelled against his son Karthi Chidambaram of having hatched a conspiracy involving public officials to secure a approval from the FIPB for INX media, senior Congress leader and former Finance Minister P Chidambaram today said that the allegation was "a despicable slur on the six Secretaries of the government who constituted the FIPB at the relevant time". In a statement here, Mr CHidambaram, responding to an FIR against his son Karthi Chidambaram in connection with granting of FIPB approval to INX media, said his son had no connection with the applicant company (INX Media/INX News) nor did he meet any officer connected with the FIPB. He also clarified that Karti Chidambaram was never a director or shareholder of M/s Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt Ltd. "Anyone familiar with the working of the FIPB knows that no single officer can take a decision on any proposal. It is a collective decision of six Secretaries. Anyone who has worked with me knows that no one would dare to influence my decisions. I had never allowed any family member to speak to me or to any officer of my ministry on any official matter. It is therefore preposterous to suggest that a member of my family, with or without my knowledge, influenced, by corrupt or illegal means, the six Secretaries who constituted the FIPB," Mr Chidambaram said in his statement."As far as FIPB cases were concerned, I approved only those cases that were recommended by the FIPB and put up to me by Secretary, Economic Affairs," he added. Clarifying that said his son had no connection with the applicant company (INX Media/INX News) nor did he meet any officer connected with the FIPB, Mr Chidambaram said,''I can say with absolute certainty that Karti Chidambaram had never met any officer connected with the FIPB. Besides, he had no connection with the applicant company (INX Media/INX News).''''Further, Karti Chidambaram was never a director or shareholder of M/s Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt Ltd. The promoters/directors of ASCPL have, on more than one occasion, made it clear that ASCPL is their company and they alone are responsible for the business of that company. They are business friends of Karti Chidambaram and have normal relations that are common among business friends,''Mr Chidambaram added.Alleging that the FIR against his son was aimed at targetting him, Mr Chidambaram said, ''The subject matter of the FIR is an approval granted by the FIPB. It is clear that I am the target, yet the FIR does not name me. The FIR alleges that there was a conspiracy involving public officials who were induced by corrupt and illegal means to grant the approval, yet the FIR does not name a single public official. ''The most ridiculous allegation is that the so-called gratification was a cheque for Rs 10 lakhs -- I repeat, a cheque for Rs 10 lakhs. (The cheque was in favour of a consulting company that had raised an invoice for work done, accounted for the income, and paid income tax on the amount.)''The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had filed an FIR against Karthi Chidambaram for hatching a conspiracy involving public officials who were induced by corrupt and illegal means to grant the FIPB approval to INX media.On May 19, Enforcement Directorate (ED), taking cognisance of the CBI FIR, slapped a money laundering case against Karti and others.Mr Chidambaram said he has asked his son to fully co-operate with the investigation and he would do so.''I feel sad that my son and his business friends are being targeted. I am indignant that some of the most distinguished civil servants of the country have been humiliated by the FIR. In the instant case, it is not one Secretary but six Secretaries (and the FIPB secretariat) who are being humiliated on a ridiculous charge of being induced by an alleged gratification of Rs 10 lakh.''I make this statement so that the misinformation emanating from Chennai is exposed. Ultimately, the course of law will expose the mischief makers. I have advised my son to fully co-operate with the investigation and he will do so,''Mr Chidambaram said.UNI AR RSA SHK 2005 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-913645.Xml
While terming the incident of cow slaughter in Kerala 'reprehensible' and 'absolutely condemnable', the Congress today accused the BJP of trying to regressively play politics of polarisation to shamelessly divert attention from its Anti Dalit atrocities and practice of untouchability by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.In a statement here, AICC media in charge Randeep Surjewala said, ''India's ethos and Congress party's culture abjures any kind of violence or barbarism against every living being much less the 'cow', which has a special place in the hearts and mind of people of India. The horrific incident in Kerala is reprehensible and absolutely condemnable. Such action is alien to our way of life. Such elements have no place in the Congress party. The Youth Congress has, therefore, suspended the so called activists. None less than Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has conclusively condemned this cruel incident.''He, however, charged the BJP with trying to regressively play politics of polarization to shamelessly divert attention from its Anti Dalit atrocities and practice of untouchability by the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath.''The BJP, however, is trying to regressively play politics of polarization to shamelessly divert attention from its Anti Dalit atrocities and practice of untouchability by UP CM. It is tragic that UP CM Adityanath's administration forced the poorest of the poor of Dalit community of 'Musahar' to first bathe with soap, sprinkle perfume so as to allegedly avoid the odor emanating from their 'dirty clothes', as the UP CM visited them,'' he said. Posing several questions to the BJP, he asked for the party's stand on the slaughterhouses run in Goa jointly by the Union Government and Goa BJP government. He also asked for BJP's stand on the statement by Minister of state for Home Kiren Rijiju in support of beef eating and that by BJP presidents of Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram reiterating their commitment to sale of beef at subsidised rates. Claiming that Sangeet Som, a senior cabinet minister in the UP government, founded Al-Dua Food Processing Private Ltd along with others in 2005 to deal in meat and meat products, Mr Surjewala asked for the UP CM's opinion on the issue. He also wanted to know the opinion of the BJP president on the fact that under BJP government's watch, bovine/beef exports have jumped nearly 70 per cent. Earlier, addressing a press conference, AICC spokesperson Manish Tewari, reacting to the statement by Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad condemning the incident of cow slaughter by alleged youth Congress activists, said, ''Before the former spokesperson of the BJP starts pointing fingers at the people, he should understand that when you point one finger at somebody, three gets pointed back towards you and therefore, I think the BJP needs to introspect what has been happening in UP is extremely reprehensible, it is extremely disturbing. Not only do you have the specter of caste violence engulfing the state but more importantly the incident which has come to light today where two young women were allegedly molested by a gang of 14 men. It just goes to underscore and underline the complete 'Jungle Raj' which is prevailing in Uttar Pradesh. Therefore, I think it is important for the BJP both at the national level and at the state level to see what is going on in UP and how BJP-ruled state is drifting into chaos, into lawlessness and descending into anarchy.''At the same time, he said that the Congress vice-president, in a tweet yesterday, had said that the incident is "thoughtless, barbaric and completely unacceptable" to him and the Congress party.UNI AR SB 2117 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-913772.Xml
Stressing that a holistic education system help put values at the forefront of the educational enterprise in schools and colleges, President Pranab Mukherjee today said teachers share an onerous responsibility of instilling in the minds of students, rich cultural ethos, tolerance and innovation for the well being of society.Speaking after presenting the Malti Gyan Peeth Puraskars for the year 2017 at a function held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the President said,''A holistic education system enables us to put values at the forefront of the educational enterprise in schools and colleges. Such a system is conducive to the ideal development of society.'' He saw a pivotal role for teachers in this endeavour. ''The teachers share an onerous responsibility of instilling in the minds of students, rich cultural ethos, tolerance and innovation for the well being of society,''he said.The President said that development, to his mind, is not merely the installation of more industrial units; construction of high rise buildings; dams; roads etc. ''The connotation of development incorporates culmination of people's adherence to values and their faithfulness to their spiritual and cultural heritage,'' he said.The President congratulated the 15 distinguished teachers who were bestowed with the Malti Gyan Peeth Puraskar. The President said that he was delighted to confer the award instituted in the name of Ms Malti Mohinder Singh Syngle, an eminent educationist and crusader for promoting education for girls . He also complimented Mr Manoj Singhal, President of Mohinder Singh Syngle Education and Research Society for his commitment to the cause of promoting education and for instituting this award.The President said that development, to his mind, is not merely the installation of more industrial units; construction of high rise buildings; dams; roads etc. The connotation of development incorporates culmination of people's adherence to values and their faithfulness to their spiritual and cultural heritage. The President said that the teachers who have been awarded today represent the dedicated teachers of the nation. ''They are the ones who are educating and extending learning opportunities to students. From the Vedic era to modern times, we have had 'gurus' who nourished the minds and intellect of our people. Such teachers are there even today. I call them inspired teachers. They encourage students to be inquisitive about extant knowledge. They prompt them to question the established facts in their disciplines. They do not seek only answers from students; rather they want students to raise questions. Inspired teachers themselves have deep knowledge of their subject areas. They are able to assist students in understanding and appreciating the subject from different perspectives, and in fact, help them in constructing the frontiers of knowledge. The competent and motivated pool of teachers, through their collective efforts, can create a society full of strong minds and courageous hearts, and through them alter the history of a nation. Education is the true alchemy that can bring India to its next golden age,''he said.Among the dignitaries present on the occasion were Union Minister of Women and Child Development Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Jawadekar, Uttarakhand Governor K K Paul and Ms Aruna Chaudhary, Education Minister, Govt. of Punjab. UNI AR SB 2127 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-913797.Xml
A week after a Sukhoi-30 fighter jet went missing and days after its wreckage was found, there is still no clarity on the fate of its two pilots though a search for them is on, said an IAF official on Monday. The black box of the jet was found on Sunday, when the ground search teams reached the accident site on the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border. The official said the black box will be brought back and it will take some time before the data can be analysed. "The cause of the accident will be known only after the information is extracted from the black box. We are looking for signs of the crew," the official said, but termed sabotage or foul play was unlikely. "It may be a case of 'controlled flight into terrain' (an accident in which a aircraft is unintentionally flown into the ground, or water), but anything final would be known only from the black box. The court of inquiry will establish the cause" the official said. Asked if it could be a case of an advanced cyber attack which manipulated the flight, the official said it would not be possible as the aircraft had an option where the pilot can switch to manual mode in case the computer system appeared faulty. The wreckage of the Sukhoi-30 fighter jet, which went missing on May 23, was found on Friday through aerial recce, in a thick forest around 60 km from Assam's Tezpur. The Su-30 had taken off from the Tezpur air bas, around 10.30 a.m. on a routine training mission on May 23 but lost radar and radio contact with the controlling station around 11.10 a.m. near Arunachal Pradesh's Doulasang area, adjoining China, 60 km north of Tezpur. Tezpur has one of the three IAF air bases in the country that host the Sukhois. --IANS ao-vd ( 322 Words) 2017-05-29-22:54:20 (IANS)
U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis on Sunday said that civilian casualties in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) are inevitable even as the U.S. forces "do everything humanly possible" to prevent them. "Civilian casualties are a fact of life in this sort of situation. We do everything humanly possible consistent with military necessity, taking many chances to avoid civilian casualties at all costs," Mattis told CBS. His statement came after reports suggesting that a recent U.S. lead coalition airstrike killed at least 20 civilians in the city of Raqqa, Syria. Last week it was reported that at least 106 civilians, including 42 children, were killed in a series of air strikes by the US-led coalition on an ISIS-held town in eastern Syria. The U.S. released an estimate last month of the number of civilian deaths in the fight against ISIS, pegging the figure at 352 while non-profit groups have said that the figure is likely much higher. Mattis added President Donald Trump's administration is "accelerating the tempo" of the fight against the ISIS. (ANI)
"North Korea launched an unidentified projectile from the vicinity of Wonsan, Gangwon Province, early this morning," Yonhap news agency quoted the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) as saying.

Pyongyang's action was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who ordered related government officials to convene a National Security Council meeting at 7:30 a.m., the JCS added.

If the projectile is confirmed to be a ballistic missile, it would be the communist nation's ninth missile test this year.

North Korea has carried out a series of successful ballistic missile launches, with the recent being on May 21.

Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada said the missile hit the water about 350 kilometers (217 miles) from the east coast of North Korea. She said the missile did not go higher than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles), according to preliminary data.

On May 14, the test missile by Pyongyang reportedly reached an altitude of more than 2,100 kilometers (1,300 miles).

According to analysts the test gave North Korea critical information on developing a re-entry vehicle for nuclear warheads and showed Pyongyang had a missile capable of striking the U.S. territory of Guam.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had earlier vowed to field a nuclear-armed missile capable of reaching American territory. (ANI)
The U.S. administration is considering a blanket ban on laptops in passenger cabins of all international flights to and from the United States. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary John Kelly told Fox News on Sunday that he was considering the laptop ban as "there's a real threat". "That's really the thing that they are obsessed with, the terrorists, the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if it's a U.S. carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly U.S. folks, people," he said. If implemented, the ban would expand from some 10 international airports in the Middle East and Africa to airports worldwide. The DHS announced, earlier in March, ban on all gadgets larger than a smartphone, which include laptops and iPads, on direct flights between the United States and 10 international airports in the Middle East and Africa. Kelly, however, did not provide a timeline for when a decision could happen. "There's new technologies down the road, not too far down the road that we will rely on. But it is a real sophisticated threat and I will reserve that decision until we see where it's going," he said. The current ban applies to non-stop US-bound flights from international airports in Amman, Jordan; Kuwait City, Kuwait; Cairo; Istanbul; Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Casablanca, Morocco; Doha, Qatar; and Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. About 50 flights a day, all on foreign airlines, are affected. Authorities at the time said that the initial ban was put considering a previously undisclosed terrorists' plot, involving explosives hidden in an electronic device. Following the U.S., Britain also imposed a similar ban, applying to inbound flights from six countries that are Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Turkey. (ANI)
The Venezuelan opposition has called to scale up the ongoing protests against President Nicolas Maduro's government, claiming that June will be a definitive month, and announced that the fundamental objective will be to block the Constituent Assembly. "It is very important that the country knows that the Democratic Unity will take up June as a definitive month," the vice-president of the National Assembly, Freddy Guevara, said on Sunday on behalf of the opposition alliance, Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD), and stressed that the Venezuelan people "have already spent 58 days on the streets". "June is a key month in which the Venezuelan people will demonstrate their organisation, their conviction and their commitment to a free Venezuela through a process of increasing the pressure against the dictatorship significantly," he added. Guevara questioned the Constituent Assembly, which Maduro's government promotes as a way out of the country's crisis, and warned that if "this fraud is allowed to be established, Venezuela will be lost." "Therefore, we have decided to take this up as a fundamental objective, not only of the Unity but of all the people of Venezuela, to prevent that fraudulent process in the country," he said. He urged the people to stay in the streets "despite repression, tiredness or hopelessness". Venezuela has been facing protests by both the government and the opposition for two months, some of which have resulted in violence, leaving at least 59 dead, according to figures from the Prosecutor's Office. --IANS ksk ( 253 Words) 2017-05-29-08:34:15 (IANS)
North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile from its eastern coast on Monday morning, its third test in a little over three weeks. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement that the missile, presumed to be a Scud-type, was launched from an area near Wonsan, in Gangwon Province, towards the eastern part of the Korean Peninsula. South Korea and Japan immediately issued strong protests, with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promising "concrete action" in response to the test, and South Korean Defence Chiefs saying the North would face "strong punishment from our military". The missile travelled an estimated 248 miles (approx 400 km), splashing down within Japan's exclusive economic zone, Yonhap news agency reported. "The launch landed within 200 nautical miles of the Japanese coast and was an 'extremely problematic' act for the safety of airplanes and ships," said Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga. The launch is clearly violating the UN resolution. The repeated provocative acts by North Korea is absolutely not acceptable", said the statement by the Japanese government. Abe said a "firm protest" was lodged with North Korea and the country would take action with "together with the US". The government of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who took office early May and had advocated dialogue with the North, condemned Monday's launch. "It is a severe threat to the peace and stability of not only the Korean Peninsula, but also the international community," a statement from South Korea's Foreign Affairs Ministry said. "Since our new government took office, North Korea has been frequently and repeatedly conducting provocation in such manner. This is in direct opposition to our demands in regards to the denuclearization and peace of the Korean Peninsula." The US Pacific Command said the missile was tracked for six minutes until it landed in the East Sea. US President Donald Trump was also briefed on the North's provocation, a White House official said. Monday's launch marked North Korea's ninth missile test this year and the third since the launch of the Moon administration on May 10. The North fired a mid-range missile, known as the Pukguksong-2, on May 21 and conducted a KN-06 surface-to-air guided missile test last week. The international community has intensified pressure on the defiant North and the leaders of Group of Seven (G-7) member countries during a meeting in Italy last week urged Pyongyang to "fully comply with all UNSC resolutions and abandon all nuclear and ballistic missile programmes". --IANS soni/dg ( 423 Words) 2017-05-29-14:44:23 (IANS)
Li will travel to Germany and Belgium and along with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk will preside over the 19th China-EU leaders' meeting on Thursday and Friday, Efe news reported.

"We will send a common message of jointly working to build an open world economy, supporting the globalization of trade and investment," said Vice Minister of Foreign Affair Wang Chao at a press conference here.

Li's visit comes at a time of rising uncertainty among Western economies over the fallouts of Brexit and disagreements between the EU and the US over various issues, including climate change.

With this in mind, China is preparing to present itself as a stable political and economic partner of the EU.

"China and Europe, by working together, will become a stabilising force in the current situation and inject positive energy to the recovery of the global economy," added Wang.

In Belgium, Li will meet Prime Minister Charles Michel and finalise key agreements.

In Germany, Li will meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel for an annual meeting, in place since 2004. He is likely to sign an agreement with German automation firms to increase the number of electric vehicles on China's roads.

--IANS ksk/mr

( 239 Words)

2017-05-29-15:28:15 (IANS)
Here is the breakup of Prime Minister Modi's engagements during his Germany visit:

May 29, 2017:

Upon landing in Berlin, the Prime Minister will directly depart for Schloss Meseberg, the official State Guest House of the Germany.

. The Prime Minister will sign Visitor's Book.

. German Chancellor Angela Merkel will host a dinner for Prime Minister Modi at Schloss Meseberg.

May 30, 2017:

. Germany will host ceremonial welcome for Prime Minister Modi.

. Thereafter, the Prime Minister and German Chancellor will attend fourth biennial Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) plenary meeting at International Conference Room at Chancellery.

. After the meeting, both the leaders will address the media.

. Later, both the countries will sign Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs). Chancellor Merkel will host lunch for Prime Minister Modi and Indian delegation.

. Then the Prime Minister will depart for Hotel Adlon Kempinski at Palaisaal to attend Indo-German Business Summit 2017.

. Prime Minister Modi is expected to invite the German investment in India under Make in India.

. From the summit, the Prime Minister will depart for Castle Bellevue to meet German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

. After meeting with the German President, the Prime Minister will depart for Berlin Tegel Airport to start his Spain tour. He will rest at Hotel Intercontinental. (ANI)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today arrived to a warm welcome in Germany on the first leg of his four-nation, six-day trip to three European countries and Russia.The Prime Minister will dinner German Chancellor Angela Merkel and tomorrow there will be delegation level talks. PM Modi posted on Facebook while announcing his programme that apart from bilateral talks, the day-long visit will include the Fourth India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations and interaction with top business leaders of both countries.''Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation," the PM wrote ahead of his visit. The two nations will "chart a roadmap" focussing on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, technology, skill development, infrastructure, railways, civil aviation and clean energy, the Prime Minister said.While Germany is India's most important trading partner in Europe. The PM will depart for Spain tomorrow. He will also visit France and Russia.UNI XC-SD RSA SHK 1954 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0005-913678.Xml
TRIPOLI, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Libya's Benghazi-based extremist group known as Ansar Al-Sharia on Saturday announced that it was officially dissolving.

The group is accused by Washington of carrying out the 2012 Benghazi attack on the U.S. consulate that killed the ambassador Christopher Stevens.

Armed forces of General Khalifa Haftar has launched a military campaign three years ago on militant groups in Benghazi, including Ansar Al-Sharia.

In its Saturday online statement, the group called on other armed groups to unite. "Thus, we have given way to the other honest sons of this nation to carry the message after us," the statement added.

Haftar's forces take control of most of Benghazi, except for two areas where the remaining militants are stationed.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 00:16:33|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WASHINGTON, May 28 (Xinhua) -- A conflict on the Korean Peninsula would be "the worst kind of fighting" in most people's lifetimes, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said in an interview aired on Sunday.

"We are working with the international community to deal with this issue," said Mattis in the interview with CBS News. "But the bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if we're not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means."

Calling the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) a threat to Asian region, Mattis said the DPRK is also "a direct threat to the United States."

However, Mattis said that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump does not draw red lines on the DPRK nuclear issue "unless we intend to carry them out."

"The President needs political maneuver room on this issue," said Mattis.

Tension has remained high on the Korean Peninsula over the past months between the United States and the DPRK over the U.S. threat to stage military attacks against Pyongyang in response to its nuclear and missile programs.

The United States and South Korea also held their largest-ever joint military exercises in the past two months. At the end of April, the USS Carl Vinson nuclear aircraft carrier task group arrived in the waters off the Korean Peninsula for a separate joint naval exercise with South Korea.

However, a joint statement by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Mattis and National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said last month that Trump aims to use economic sanctions and diplomatic measures to pressure the DPRK to dismantle its nuclear and missile programs.

The statement also said that the United States remained "open to negotiations" toward peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula while staying "prepared to defend ourselves and our allies."
DAR ES SALAAM, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian President John Magufuli on Sunday sacked Ernest Mangu, the east African nation's inspector general of police (IGP).

A terse statement by the Directorate of Presidential Communication said Mangu will be assigned other duties.

Magufuli has appointed Dar es Salaam Police Special Zone Police Commander Simon Sirro as the new IGP, the statement said.

Sirro will be sworn in on Monday by Magufuli who doubles as the commander-in-chief of the country's armed forces.

Mangu's ouster came two days after Tanzania's ruling party -- Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) -- tasked the government to do all it can to end alarming killings of innocent people in the southern districts of Rufiji, Kibiti, and Mkuranga in Coast region.

CCM Ideology and Publicity Secretary Humphrey Polepole said the government should end the killings in order to quash fear and uncertainty among residents in the three neighboring districts, located about 131 km from the commercial capital, Dar es Salaam.

The chilling killings by armed gangs in the three districts began in 2015, claiming the lives of 31 people, including police officers and local politicians, especially members of the governing party.

"We have keenly been following up on the grisly killings in the three districts. It is high time the ruling party intervened to stop losing more innocent people," he said.

Police have tightened security in the three districts but they have apparently failed to stop the killers.

In April this year, seven police officers were gunned down as they were returning to camp after a day-long patrol.

Minister for Home Affairs Mwigulu Nchemba told parliament in Dodoma, the political capital, recently that the government planned to establish a special police zone in Kibiti to arrest the wave of brutal killings in the area.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 04:39:01|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BERLIN, May 28 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday cast doubts on EU's alignment with the United States and Britain, saying Europeans should determine their own destiny.

Merkel, addressing a election campaign at a beer tent in Germany's southern state of Bavaria, said following the election of U.S. President Donald Trump and Brexit, Europeans "really have to take destiny into their own hands."

"The times when we could fully rely on others are to some extent over." Merkel said.

She said Germany and Europe would strive to have good ties with the United States, Britain as well as other countries, "even with Russia". But she emphasized that "We have to know that we must fight for our future on our own."

Although Merkel did not further elaborate the reason on her unexpected remarks, many German media speculated Merkel was referring her frustrating experience at the G7 meeting earlier this week in Italy's Sicily.

The German leader described the summit as "very difficult, not to say very unsatisfactory".

Some of the agendas were especially tough for Merkel, among them was the rise of protectionism and the discussion about the Paris agreement on climate change.

Six of the seven nations agreed to stick with their commitment to implement 2015 deal to tackle global warming. However, Trump in the end refused to endorse it, saying he needed more time to decide.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 04:44:04|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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LONDON, May 28 (Xinhua) -- British police confirmed on Sunday that they have arrested a man in Gorton, Manchester, on suspicion of terrorism offences in connection with the Manchester bombing attack.

The 19-year-old man was arrested during searches carried out by officers at addresses in the city, according to a police statement.

15 people in total have been arrested in connection with the investigation, and 13 of them remain in custody for questioning, police said.
MADRID, May 29 (Xinhua) -- A man drove a car over several people on Sunday night in the area of Puerto Banus in the municipality of Marbella, south Spain, after jumping over a stop of a Civil Guard patrol, Spanish news agency EFE quoted the regional government as reporting.

According to sources, this event took place at about 9:00 p.m. local time, and is not related to terrorism in principle. Several people were injured, but there are no fatalities.

RT news reported that seven people were wounded in the incident.

EFE reported that the vehicle involved was an SUV or a similar car. The driver and occupants inside have been detained by local police and the Civil Guard.

The driver apparently had symptoms of intoxication, added the sources.
KIGALI, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Rwandan university students on Sunday joined a Chinese proficiency competition for foreign college students in the capital city of Kigali.

The competition, hosted by the Confucius Institute Headquarters in China, is the Rwanda regional final and is also a preliminary competition of the 16th "Chinese Bridge" to be held in China. Twelve students participating in the competition won out of more than 400 contestants.

The competition held at the University of Rwanda-College of Education was jointly undertaken by Chinese Embassy in Rwanda and Confucius Institute at the University of Rwanda-College of Education(CIUR-CE) .

The students gave speeches in Chinese and were tested knowledge about China. They also demonstrated their talents -- Chinese songs, Chinese cross talk, clapper talk and a two-man comic show.

After three rounds of competition, Maombi Olivier won the first prize and will represent his Rwanda fellows to China to compete with contestants from other countries.

Niyomukiza Jurdas, who won the second prize, will be sponsored by the Chinese side to China and witness the competition.

"I was deeply impressed by their enthusiasm and high standard of Chinese proficiency," said Rao Hongwei, Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda. China promotes the study of Chinese in Rwanda not only because of the beauty of Chinese language, Chinese is a bridge that will connect the two countries and the two peoples more closely with each other, he said.

"I'm grateful to the Confucius Institute, University of Rwanda, the Chinese embassy, and all of Chinese friends who are supporting the students during this great period of learning," said Philip Cotton, Vice-Chancellor of University of Rwanda.

Since the first competition in 2002, the "Chinese Bridge" competition has become a platform for young people around the world to learn Chinese, exchange ideas and build friendship.

Founded in 2009, CIUR-CE now has 13 teaching points with 15 teachers and volunteers from China.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 06:55:16|Editor: xuxin

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CARACAS, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela's troubles call for a political, "not military," solution, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said on Sunday.

In an interview with privately-owned TV channel Televen, Padrino addressed the recent spate of violent anti-government protests, saying the clashes "could end today if there were the political will" to do so.

Padrino also reiterated President Nicolas Maduro's call for dialogue to overcome the bitter power struggle between the ruling socialist party (PSUV) and the opposition coalition of conservative parties (MUD).

The problem is made even more "complex" by the involvement of foreign interests in the oil-rich country's internal affairs, said Padrino, adding there was "an unprecedented campaign of intervention ... being directed by the U.S. government," the Washington, D.C.-based Organization of American States (OAS) and "right-wing" countries in Latin America.

The South American nation is also gripped by an economic crisis that has led to shortages of basic goods, further fueling widespread discontent, Padrino acknowledged.

Venezuela's "complex economic situation," he said, was sparked by plummeting oil prices, "on top of which there is an economic war ... that has really upset the Venezuelan people."

The government maintains that business owners aligned with the conservatives have worked to sabotage the economy, by idling factories, hoarding goods and price gouging.

Recently, the opposition addressed letters to the different components of the armed forces and the National Guard, asking them to stop serving as "bodyguards to a putrid and corrupt dictatorship."

The country's armed forces are not immune to the deep divisions roiling the country, admitted Padrino, saying "several (military) cadres are working to have a (coup-style) adventure."

However, "they are not going to succeed," he said, due to the "democratic character" of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB).

Venezuelan Attorney General Luisa Ortega Diaz has criticized security forces for their "excessive use" of force against anti-government demonstrators, blaming the death of one protester, Juan Pablo Pernalete, on the National Guard.

Pernalete died after being hit by tear gas bomb on April 26.

The latest wave of protests began in early April, after the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) moved to temporarily take on the legislative powers of the opposition-controlled National Assembly (Congress) in a bid to break the political deadlock that has stymied government.

While the TSJ revoked that decision two days later, the measure reignited anti-government sentiment, sparking almost daily protests calling for early general elections.
French President Emmanuel Macron (L) talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at a family photo session during a one-day NATO Summit, in Brussels, Belgium, May 25, 2017. (Xinhua/Alexey Vitvitsky)

BERLIN, May 29 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday cast doubts on EU's alignment with the United States and Britain, saying Europeans should determine their own destiny.

Merkel, addressing a election campaign at a beer tent in Germany's southern state of Bavaria, said following the election of U.S. President Donald Trump and Brexit, Europeans "really have to take destiny into their own hands."

"The times when we could fully rely on others are to some extent over." Merkel said.

She said Germany and Europe would strive to have good ties with the United States, Britain as well as other countries, "even with Russia". But she emphasized that "We have to know that we must fight for our future on our own."

Although Merkel did not further elaborate the reason on her unexpected remarks, many German media speculated Merkel was referring her frustrating experience at the G7 meeting earlier this week in Italy's Sicily.

The German leader described the summit as "very difficult, not to say very unsatisfactory".

Some of the agendas were especially tough for Merkel, among them was the rise of protectionism and the discussion about the Paris agreement on climate change.

Six of the seven nations agreed to stick with their commitment to implement 2015 deal to tackle global warming. However, Trump in the end refused to endorse it, saying he needed more time to decide.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 07:14:32|Editor: xuxin

U.S. motorcyclists participate in the annual Rolling Thunder motorcycle ride near Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., capital of the United States, on May 28, 2017. Tens of thousands of U.S. motorcyclists on Sunday joined the Rolling Thunder motorcycle ride to commemorate the Memorial Day. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 07:20:23|Editor: xuxin

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RIO DE JANEIRO, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Brazil's embattled President Michel Temer on Sunday announced he was replacing his Justice Minister, a key post that oversees the country's judicial branch as myriad corruption probes target top government officials, including the head of state.

A statement from the president's office said Torquato Jardim will fill the post, with the outgoing Osmar Serraglio occupying the Ministry of Transparency that Jardim is vacating.

Serraglio, a member of the main ruling PMDB party, has been implicated in one of the investigations, Operation Weak Flesh, which has uncovered graft in Brazil's multi-billion-dollar meatpacking industry, where exporters have been bribing officials to overlook violations.

In a phone conversation that was intercepted by the Federal Police -- one of the branches under the Justice Ministry's supervision -- a suspect can be head referring to Serraglio as the "big boss."

In recent days, four parties allied with the PMDB-led government have abandoned the ruling coalition, following revelations that meatpacking giant JBS has been paying bribes to the party and Temer since 2010.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 08:01:01|Editor: xuxin

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SEOUL, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) launched what is believed to be a ballistic missile early Monday morning, local media quoted South Korea's military as saying.

The projectile was launched in the eastern direction at around 5:39 a.m. from a site near the city of Wonsan in the Gangwon Province, reported the Yonhap news agency, citing South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

The JCS claimed that the projectile appears to be a Scud type, flying some 450 km.

The development prompted the South Korean government to convene a National Security Council meeting.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 08:16:11|Editor: Hou Qiang

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PARIS, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Wang Qiang was eliminated by 10th-seeded Venus Williams 6-4, 7-6 (3) in the first round of 2017 French Open, while world No. 1 Angelique Kerber of Germany continued her lackluster performance on clay, losing to Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-2, 6-2.

The 25-year-old Wang built a 4-2 lead in the first set, before the seven-time Grand Slam singles winner used her experience to seal the set at 6-4.

Trailing 3-5 and 15-40 in the ninth game, Williams put on another comeback to turn around at 6-5.

Wang forced a tiebreak, but still could not get the upper hand. Her poor backhand attack earned Williams a 7-3 victory in the tiebreak.

Williams showed her dominance with 37 winners against Wang's 15.

"She (Williams) is much more experienced than me, and she knows how to handle some crucial points well," said Wang, adding she would play better on clay next year.

Kerber, who only had a personal best record of a last 16 in this clay season, failed to withstand the strong forehand and backhand attacks from her opponent as she lost the first set 6-2 in 38 minutes.

Makarova nailed three games in a row in the second set, before Kerber broke in the fourth game in an unfamiliar manner. Leading 5-2 into her service, Makarova sealed the victory with a powerful forehand to deny Kerber's quest for the Suzanne Lenglen trophy.

Kerber blamed her bad movement on clay to her early exit in the tournament.

"On clay I'm not feeling so good especially on my movement. Normally I can move well, but on clay, it's always different and difficult for me. I think that's the most important (for my loss)," she said.

Petra Kvitova celebrated her comeback from being sidelined for five months with a hand injury, beating Julia Boserup of the United States 6-3, 6-2.

"I feel great about the win. This match is special to me," said Kvitova.

Elsewhere, men's seeded players Dominic Thiem and Grigor Dimitrov swept their opponents, while local favorite Lucas Pouille had to come back from 2-1 down to edge compatriot Julien Benneteau in full sets.

In women's singles, sixth-seeded Dominika Cibulkova and eighth-seded Svetlana Kuznetsova also eased into the second round.

Title favorites Garbine Muguruza, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will kick off their campaign at Roland Garros on Monday. China's top-ranked woman Zhang Shuai is set to meet Donna Vekic of Croatia.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 08:21:13|Editor: xuxin

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SAN FRANCISCO, May 28 (Xinhua) -- An analysis of the relationship between top predators on three different continents and the next-in-line predators they eat and compete with indicates that wolves and other top predators need large ranges to be able to control smaller predators whose populations have expanded to the detriment of a balanced ecosystem.

The findings, published in Nature Communications, were similar across continents, showing that as top predators' ranges were cut back and fragmented, they were no longer able to control smaller predators.

"Our paper suggests it will require managing for top predator persistence across large landscapes, rather than just in protected areas, in order to restore natural predator-predator interactions," co-author Aaron Wirsing, an associate professor at the University of Washington's School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, was quoted as saying in a news release from the university.

The researchers used bounty hunting data from all three continents to map the top predators' historical ranges, then mapped the range over time for the three smaller predators, looking to see where they overlapped. They found that top predators such as wolves and dingoes could suppress coyotes, red foxes and jackals only when the top predators lived at high densities and over large areas.

In addition, wolves and dingoes exert the most control closest to the core of their geographic range.

In places like Yellowstone and eastern Washington and Oregon in the United States, smaller wolf populations are too far removed from the remaining core of the species' distribution to really make a difference in controlling coyote numbers. Fewer wolves aren't the only reason coyotes have proliferated everywhere in North America. Coyotes are generalists that can live almost anywhere and have basically followed humans, eating human food and, in some cases, household pets.

"Coyotes have essentially hitched a ride with people," Wirsing noted. "Not only do we subsidize coyotes, but we also helped them by wiping out their predators -- wolves."

Gray wolves historically lived across vast swaths of North America, particularly in the western U.S. states and Canadian provinces. Coyotes, a smaller predator kept in check by wolves, appear to have been scarce in areas once dominated by wolves. As human development shrank territories for wolves, however, the wolf populations became fragmented and wolves no longer had the numbers or space to control coyotes, whose populations in turn grew.

The same story is at play in Europe and Australia, where the researchers examined the relationship between gray wolves and golden jackals, and dingoes and red foxes, respectively. As with America, when the top predator's range was slashed, the second-tier predators ballooned and ecosystems became imbalanced.

"This research shows that apex predators like dingoes and wolves need large, continuous territories in order to effectively control the balance of their ecosystems," said lead author Thomas Newsome of Deakin University and the University of Sydney in Australia. "Humans need a greater tolerance of apex predators if we want to enjoy the environmental benefits they can provide."

The researchers plan to test whether similar patterns occur for other species pairs that compete strongly.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 08:21:15|Editor: xuxin

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SEOUL, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) test-launched a ballistic missile early Monday from the country's east coast, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The ballistic missile, which was believed to be of Scud type, was fired at about 5:39 a.m. local time (2039 GMT on Sunday) from the DPRK's Wonsan vicinity, the JCS said in a statement.

The missile flew some 450 km into eastern waters. The Scud missile is a short-range ballistic missile with a range of 300-500 km, which is known to target the South Korean territory.

The JCS said South Korea and the United States were analyzing details on the missile launch.

It noted that South Korea's military was closely watching any possible provocation of the DPRK, while maintaining a full preparedness.

The Monday missile launch marked the third provocation of the DPRK since the new South Korean administration was launched earlier this month. It also logged the DPRK's ninth missile test-firing this year.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in ordered a meeting of national security council to be held. The meeting was presided over by Moon's top national security advisor Chung Eui-yong.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 09:01:41|Editor: xuxin

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TOKYO, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) fired a ballistic missile Monday that may have fallen into Japan's exclusive economic zone in the Sea of Japan, the Japanese government said.

"We cannot tolerate North Korea's repeated provocations in defiance of warnings from the international society," Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters at a briefing on the matter in his office.

Abe said he would closely cooperate with the international community on the latest provocation, including the United States and South Korea.

Japan's top government spokesperson Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told a press conference the launch is a "clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions prohibiting North Korea from such activities."

"The missile was fired from North Korea's eastern coast around 5:40 a.m.," Suga said, adding there were no reports of damage to aircraft or ships in the area.

The Japanese government convened its National Security Council meeting following the launch.

Abe called for the gathering of information on the missile launch and steps to be taken to ensure the safety of airplanes and vessels in the area.

Japan would remain on alert for any unexpected contingencies, Suga said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 09:47:02|Editor: xuxin

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SKOPJE, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Macedonian Prime Minister-designate Zoran Zaev Sunday evening announced his choices for ministers for the new government he has been mandated to form.

The lineup features 25 ministerial nominees from the three coalition partners -- Zaev's Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), the Democratic Union for Integration (DUI) and the Alliance for the Albanians, which respectively have 17, six and two nominees.

Among the nominees for key positions are Radmila Shekerinska as defense minister, Nikola Dimitrov as foreign minister, Oliver Spasovski as interior minister, Dragan Tevdovski as finance minister, and Bujar Osmani as vice prime minister in charge of European integration.

"I will forward the proposed composition of the future government together with its program to the parliament as soon as possible," Zaev said after a meeting at his party headquarters.

The new government needs to be approved by the parliament, where the tripartite coalition has a slim majority of 62 seats out of the 120 in total. Negotiations on drawing another party, the Besa Movement, into the alliance have failed.

Parliament Speaker Talat Xhaferi has signaled that he will schedule a session to ponder the lineup in the coming days.

Macedonia has not had a new government since the Dec. 11 parliamentary elections.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 10:17:16|Editor: Yurou Liang

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SYDNEY, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The state government of New South Wales (NSW) announced Monday that it will be removing the shark nets from popular tourist beaches along Australia's east coast, in a bid to save whales and other sea animals from being caught unintentionally.

The nets were placed under the North Coast Shark Net Trial, and have been in place for six months at Shelly Beach, Seven Mile Beach, among others, and the NSW Minister for Primary Industry Niall Blair told Xinhua Monday that the program will be ended two weeks early due to increased whale sightings.

"While we are ending the trial slightly earlier, we now have almost six months' worth of data for our shark scientists to analyse," Blair said.

Instead of the nets, the government will utilise drumlines, which are aquatic traps with a baited hook to catch large sea animals like sharks, which Blair said have been successful in the trails they have conducted.

"Over the past five months, drumlines have caught 29 target sharks, with all but one being tagged and released alive - that compares to only six target sharks caught in the nets," Blair said.

This coincided with events over the weekend on the NSW North Coast that saw a great white shark jump into a man's boat as he sailed at Evans Head, south of Brisbane, late on Saturday.

The 73-year-old man, Terry Selwood, was fishing in his boat at the time, and told local media that the shark came completely surprising him, coming out of nowhere in the brazen attack.

"I caught a blur of something coming over the boat - and the pectoral fin of the shark hit me on the forearm and knocked me down on the ground to my hands and knees," Selwood said.

"He just bounced around in there and he struck my arm a couple of time and I thought he'd broke my arm to be honest, but it has just torn the skin off it," he added.

"I was losing a fair amount of blood, I was stunned, I couldn't register what had happened and then I thought, oh my God, I have to get out of here."

Selwood was subsequently saved by local marine rescue volunteers and taken to a local hospital for treatment of his wounds.

This weekend's attack is one of many to befall the region, and the president of the Byron Bay boardriders club which is in the affected area, Neil Cameron, said that the decision will put surfers and swimmers' lives at risk.

"A tag is not going to stop a great white from killing anyone, it doesn't make sense," Cameron said.

"It's a really tough one. Being surfers, you don't want to see any turtles or stingrays being victims of bycatch. But at the same time you don't want to see people's lives being ruined or ended."

According to figures released by the NSW Department of Primary Industries, the shark nets had a 4.3 success rate in the first two months of the trial, with five of the 153 sea creatures that were caught being sharks.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 10:32:29|Editor: Yurou Liang

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by Will Koulouris

SYDNEY, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Australian experts have lauded the move by the Chinese government to begin the process of easing the laws for foreign investment into China, after a meeting of the Central Leading Group for Deepening Overall Reform took place on Tuesday.

China's Ministry of Commerce figures outlined that during the first four months of the year, foreign capital utilized in China was 41.6 billion U.S. dollars, with that number constituting a tiny dip of 0.1 percent over the corresponding period.

The key party meeting revised the guidance catalogue for foreign investment in China, in order to ensure that more opportunities were created for overseas investment to make its way into China.

This is a very positive move towards improving many vital sectors in China's economy, according to James Laurenceson, deputy director of the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney.

"Greatly reducing the number of sectors in which foreigners are barred from participating would be viewed extremely positively by foreign investors," Laurenceson told Xinhua.

Dr Alice de Jonge, senior lecturer in Business Law and Taxation at Monash University agreed, saying that this move is part of a process to open and expand China, in a number of key sectors.

"It will be a great thing for global economies, like Australia," said Alice de Jonge.

The field of education is one area in which these reforms will be crucial, according to Professor Jiang Fuming, head of the School of Management at Curtin University, who explained to Xinhua that the impact of increased foreign investment in that particular sector will be immense.

"It will have a huge impact on people and organizations to become more innovative, efficient, and effective," Jiang said.

Jiang said that the leadership decision was pivotal, as it also indicated a strong message that will reverberate at all levels of the Chinese economy.

"It is a signal of change, from quantity to quality, substantial development," Jiang said.

Aside from the clear and defined benefits to the domestic economy in China, the reforms will play a complementary role in enhancing the Belt and Road Initiative, and Jiang said this will lead to mutually beneficial partnerships across the globe.

The furthering of the successful strides towards globalization that will result from the investment reform is, according to Jiang, tied into the Belt and Road Initiative.

Globalization is the true crux of the reforms, and Laurenceson said that he hopes the outcomes of the key meeting are able to be achieved on the widest scale possible.

"Countries like Australia that support open markets would come out in loud support of Chinese moves in this direction," Laurenceson said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 10:47:34|Editor: Xiang Bo

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BEIJING, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Chinese government will offer humanitarian aid worth 15 million yuan (about 2.2 million U.S. dollars) to Sri Lanka for its flood relief efforts.

The relief supplies include tents, blankets and others which Sri Lanka is in urgent need of, and will be sent to the country in the shortest time, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement.

Death toll from the recent flood and landslides in Sri Lanka had reached 146 by Sunday noon, according to the country's Disaster Management Center.
Panel discussion at the forum "Women and China: How Women Are Shaping the Rising Global Power" at the China Institute in New York City on May 18, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Johanna Lin and Jia Guo)

by Tamara Treichel

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A forum recently held in New York City has offered a platform for women to discuss how women are shaping China as a rising global power and opportunities for U.S. women leaders to communicate with their Chinese counterparts.

More than 300 women gathered at China Institute in New York on May 18 for the forum "Women and China: How Women Are Shaping the Rising Global Power" at which the speakers were women movers and shakers in industries such as finance, technology and culture. Xinhua reached out to the organizers and speakers via email to learn more about the event.

POSITIVE RESPONSE TO FORUM

Rebecca Liao, Asia head at Globality, a startup which focuses on international trade, moderated the forum's technology panel.

"I was absolutely honored to spend time with this group of highly accomplished, warm and dynamic women," she said. "I was especially inspired to see that a lot of young women came to the forum, and I hope we will have the opportunity to mentor more and form a community to help women grow."

Jeannette Wing, corporate vice president at Microsoft Research, was one of the speakers. She told Xinhua that she enjoyed the event because it gave her the opportunity to meet accomplished Asian women whom she would otherwise not encounter in her circle of colleagues.

"I talked primarily about how technology trends, especially in Artificial Intelligence, data science and cloud computing, are affecting all sectors and professions, not just the tech sector," Wing said.

"We are witnessing a rapid growth and adoption of technology where every company in every sector is undergoing a digital transformation.Participants learned about what these trends are and how they will affect people's lives at work and at home," she said.

Audience enjoying the forum "Women and China: How Women Are Shaping the Rising Global Power" at the China Institute in New York City on May 18, 2017. ( Photo courtesy of Johanna Lin and Jia Guo)

Wing said China's rise had affected her career path in a positive way as it has opened up new opportunities for her to meet her Chinese counterparts in academia, government and industry.

"I have been asked to advise Chinese universities and Chinese funding agencies on strategic directions in research and education in computer science. I helped advocate the importance of basic research for industrial research labs and the importance of working closely with academic partners to elevate the overall quality of research in computer science in China," she said.

Virginia Kamsky, CEO of the strategic advisory firm Kamsky Associates, also had good memories of the forum. "It was exciting for me to meet other women who have been dedicated to working in China, both Chinese and Western, and in building constructive bridges between Chinese women and the rest of the world," she said.

"I spoke about my experience of working in China since 1978 at the beginning of the reform and opening-up and the changes between then and now," Kamsky said.

"I also discussed the fact that women in China at the leadership level have, throughout the years, had a passion to help and support other women, even those just starting out like myself in my twenties at the time," Kamsky said, adding that she mentioned two of her female mentors as examples: Wu Yi, former vice premier of China and health minister during the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) crisis, and Xie Xide, former president of Fudan University.

"Female leaders in China have always provided guidance to women in the work force in China. I said that I thought working in China was an advantage because you were not limited in China as to how much you could accomplish based on your gender, as compared to both the United States and Japan and that there is still a 'glass ceiling' for women in America and that that does not exist in China. I encouraged the women in the audience to pursue careers in China," Kamsky said.

"The rise of China has affected my career path personally because in the early days, when China did not have reserves, I would need to structure transactions on a barter basis as compared with today where I have the opportunity to participate in China's outbound investment activity," Kamsky said, adding that now, there is both inbound and outbound work to be done, which she finds "exhilarating and very exciting."

"WOMEN CAN DO ANYTHING"

Anla Cheng, a Wall Street veteran with banking and private equity experience, was the mastermind behind the event. After years of attending China-related events where the majority of panelists were men, she wondered why so many women in influential positions were underrepresented at such events, so she decided to organize a forum especially for women.

The forum "Women and China: How Women Are Shaping the Rising Global Power" in action at the China Institute in New York City on May 18, 2017. (Photo courtesy of Johanna Lin and Jia Guo)

When asked what was the most rewarding part of organizing the forum, Cheng said: "Being able to bring such incredibly talented leaders and minds and accomplished women under one roof -- it was very inspirational. Their words of advice resonated with our future women leaders."

Cheng described the atmosphere at the forum as "upbeat, optimistic" and as creating a "feeling of empowerment for women." She cited one participant as saying, "Now I know, women can do anything."

Cheng said studies by Deloitte, MSCI, Credit Suisse and Catalyst (which cover up to 6,000 - 10,000 companies) found that women in the United States held 12 percent of board seats; but only 4 percent of board chair positions.

"That companies with more women on boards had better financial results from all over the world confirms the benefits of gender-balanced boards," she said, citing 16 percent higher Return on Sales and 26 percent higher Return on Invested Capital as numbers that support this. Cheng said that companies with fewer women on boards had more governance-related controversies.

"As we get more women in senior positions, women are making decisions, they are opinion-makers and leaders. With those positions, they are making decisions on how to treat others, what deals are to be made and are paving the way for future trends for both China and the United States."P In fact, she did see a new trend in China. "More women are in Private Equity (PE) and Venture Capital (VC) in China and making acquisitions with better corporate governance, for instance," Cheng said, adding that more women in China are also becoming involved in the movie business and the Internet sector.

"Women understand on-line retailing and the consumer psyche very well as we transition away from shopping malls and stores. Women are more interested in impact investing and social means to make money and help society, is another example. Women are much more interested in the environment as they care more about health for their children and parents. They care more about food safety as well," Cheng said.

On whether women's influence will change if more countries turn toward protectionism and isolationism, she said so long as the economic divide exists, "we will have a society polarized which will favor protectionism." Cheng said it was important for world leaders to come up with solutions to the economic divide in different countries.

"We need to solve this widening gap in order to have a stable and robust middle class. I think women can help influence these changes and come up with solutions to bridge this gap," she said.

(Xinhua writer Xiong Maoling in Beijing also contributed to the report.)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 11:22:47|Editor: Yurou Liang

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WASHINGTON, May 28 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Pacific Command said Sunday it has found that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) had launched a short-range ballistic missile.

In a statement, the command said it had detected the launch at 10:40 a.m. Hawaii time on Sunday (2040 GMT) and tracked the missile for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan. It added that the launch occurred near Wonsan on the east coast of the DPRK.

"We are working with our Interagency partners on a more detailed assessment," the statement said, adding that the command continues to monitor the DPRK's actions closely.

The South Korean military also said the DPRK had test-launched a ballistic missile early Monday local time from the country's east coast.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile flew some 450 km and was believed to be of the Scud type, which has a range of 300-500 km.

The DPRK has not made any announcement about the alleged launch.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 12:33:07|Editor: ZD

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NEW DELHI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Naxals in India's eastern state of Jharkhand blew up a railway track by detonating it with a bomb, thereby affecting train services, India's state-run broadcaster - All India Radio said Monday.

The railway track was damaged due to an explosion between Chichaki and Karmabaand railway stations under Dhanbad railway division.

"The explosion occurred around 12:40 a.m. (local time) in the night," the broadcaster said.

AIR quoted a railway official at Dhanbad Manoj Kumar Akhouri as saying that the route has been disturbed and trains were being halted at different stations.

"Track repair work is being done," the official said. "The major trains affected due to this incident are Kalka Express, Hatia Patna express, Howrah Dehradun Express, Kolkata Rajdhani Express, Bhubaneswar Rajdhani Express, Ranchi Rajdhani Express."

The disruption in the train services has also affected various goods trains on the route.

Reports said the Naxals also torched a vehicle in Giridih district.

Naxal insurgency has its genesis in the violent left-wing rebellion that began in 1967 at village Naxalbari in Indian state of West Bengal.

Currently, they are active in more than a third of India's 600-odd districts across central and eastern India.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 13:23:25|Editor: xuxin

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by Raul Menchaca

HAVANA, May 28 (Xinhua) -- If any one person can embody Cuba's efforts to improve healthcare around the world, it is Dr. Felix Baez Sarria, who contracted and overcame the deadly Ebola virus to help lead the global fight against the scourge.

As part of Cuba's Henry Reeve International Medical Brigade, which was at the frontlines of the Ebola fight in West Africa in 2014, Baez received the 2017 Dr. Lee Jong-wook Memorial Prize for Public Health, during a ceremony at the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland earlier this week.

Baez, a specialist in internal medicine, was part of the first contingent of the brigade to be posted to Sierra Leone, where he contracted the virus a month later, in November 2014. He was evacuated to Switzerland, and treated at a Geneva University Hospital, where, he said, "they saved my life."

"I was humbled and enriched by my whole experience, both as a professional and as an individual. I am much more sensitive to the risks facing our patients -- the possibility of death in such situations, and the need to die with dignity," he said.

"My attitude to the disease also changed -- Ebola is not a death sentence. With a rapid response, confidence in the protocols and in our equipment, Ebola can be beaten," Baez said.

Once recovered, Baez returned to Sierra Leone in January 2015 to continue his mission.

That dedication, more than anything, reflects the philosophy of Cuba's medical missions and merits the award, which according to the WHO is presented to individuals or groups, governmental or otherwise, "who have made an outstanding contribution to public health and extended far beyond the call of normal duties."

"For the Henry Reeve Medical Brigade, the award ... is an invaluable recognition of our work and an incentive to continue to extend our solidarity and assistance to all people facing emergencies or natural disasters," said Baez.

Cuba's Health Minister Roberto Morales was also on hand to receive the recognition, which comes with a 100,000 U.S.-dollar prize.

Cuba's history of health cooperation dates as far back as 1960, when its then leader Fidel Castro dispatched doctors and nurses "trained in disaster medicine and infectious diseases containment" to Chile following a catastrophic earthquake, said the WHO.

The Cuban brigades have attended to more than 3.5 million people in 21 countries around the globe, including in Latin America and Asia.

The more than 7,400 Cuban healthcare workers who volunteer in the brigades have faced some of the worst natural disasters and epidemics of the past 10 years, with the WHO estimating they have saved some 80,000 lives.

Castro was moved to create the Henry Reeve emergency response contingent following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed much of the U.S. city of New Orleans in August 2005, killing more than 1,800 residents.

The brigade was named after a young U.S. doctor who died in the 19th century fighting for Cuba's independence from Spanish colonial rule.

Castro offered to send the brigade to help the victims of Katrina, but the then U.S. president George W. Bush refused the offer.

Later that same year, in October, 688 brigade volunteers headed to flood-ravaged Guatemala, and just weeks later, the brigade was sent to Pakistan, after a powerful 7.6-magnitude earthquake killed 70,000 people and injured over 100,000.

Since then, the brigade has consistently aided victims of natural disasters, including the 2015 Nepal quake and 2016 Hurricane Matthew in Haiti.

To date, the brigade's biggest challenge has been the fight to contain the Ebola epidemic in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, saving some 7,000 lives.

Today, more than 40,000 Cuban doctors and nurses are working to improve healthcare in 62 countries, and the Henry Reeve Brigade stands ready to attend to the victims of any natural disaster or serious epidemic.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 13:38:31|Editor: xuxin

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SEOUL, May 29 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in had agreed on the need for a summit meeting with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) during his presidential election campaign, the spy agency chief nominee said Monday.

National Intelligence Service (NIS) director-nominee Suh Hoon told a parliamentary confirmation hearing that he talked with Moon, when Moon was a presidential candidate, about the need for an inter-Korean summit meeting.

Though they failed to discuss details, they agreed on the need for such a meeting, Suh said.

Moon was sworn in as president on May 10 after winning a landslide victory in the presidential by-election.

Right after his inauguration, Moon named Suh as NIS director, together with the appointments of the presidential chief of staff and the prime minister.

Suh, 63, is known to have played a key role in preparing for the past two inter-Korean summit meetings that were held in June 2000 and October 2007.

He entered the NIS in 1980 and served as a deputy NIS director from 2006 to 2008 under the late president Roh Moo-hyun.

President Moon was widely forecast to inherit the so-called "Sunshine Policy" of seeking to improve relations with the DPRK through economic cooperation.

However, Moon said he would sternly deal with any DPRK provocations.

The DPRK test-launched at least one ballistic missile, which was believed to be of a Scud type, early Monday from the country's east coast, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

The South Korean government strongly denounced the DPRK's missile test-firing as it violates UN Security Council resolutions, urging Pyongyang to immediately stop any further provocations.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 13:43:35|Editor: xuxin

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CANBERRA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- A loophole in Australian import regulations is allowing imported, pre-cooked pig meat to flood the local market and send local pig prices diving, in a development which suppliers say is posing a risk to the Australian pork industry.

Pig prices have fallen by over a third in the last 12 months, and producers such as David Miles have raised concerns that local farmers may be priced out of business by cheaper imported meat if it is allowed to continue.

"(The price of pork) has dropped virtually a dollar per kilo in two months. It means (a loss of) 80 to 85 Australian dollars (63 U.S. dollars) per pig, it's massive. So the more pigs you sell, the more money you actually lose," Miles told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Monday.

The downturn has come after overseas suppliers noticed a loophole in Australian regulations. Currently, overseas pig suppliers can export pork into Australia so long as it is pre-cooked. Importers mostly use this to bring in ham and bacon products, but cheap pork belly and pork ribs are now being allowed in because they are also being pre-cooked.

Farmer John Bourke said the issue was becoming a problem for local producers, who may get to the point where they are unable to sell their pigs at market.

"We're in a state of depression. We just have a sea of meat in the country and we can't sell it - at any price," John Bourke.

Meanwhile Australian Pork Limited's Andrew Spencer said that cheaper pork products were being allowed into Australia in the same shipments as Spam and pre-cooked bacon and ham, and the challenge for local producers is to now raise awareness and inform consumers that they may not be eating fresh, Australian pork.

"There are now ribs coming in which have been cooked in packaging from North America and Europe where they can sit on the shelf for 12-24 months. They've basically been sterilized in the pack," Spencer said.

"Clearly we have a new challenge to somehow connect with consumers and ask them if they know what they're actually eating."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 14:03:41|Editor: xuxin

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CANBERRA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Australian government has agreed to a request from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the United States to send additional personnel to Afghanistan, with the 30 additional troops to bring Australia's total commitment in the region to 300.

Defense Minister Marise Payne confirmed the commitment at a Senate Estimates hearing in Canberra on Monday, saying the troops would not be used in combat; instead they will serve in an advisory and training role only, for local forces which are in the fight against the Taliban and other rebels in the region.

"These additional ADF (Australian Defense Force) members will allow Australia to commit additional advisors to further develop the long term capabilities of the Afghan security forces as part of our current train, advise and assist mission," Payne told the Senate.

"Given the centrality of Afghanistan and the global fight against terrorism, enhanced contribution to the support mission is both timely and appropriate."

Payne said the government had carefully "considered" the NATO request for some time before agreeing to send the further 30 troops - a request which was publicly backed by the United States.

"These adjustments have been considered by the government in light of broader Australian Defence Force commitments across the globe and in view of the extremely dynamic strategic environment in which we currently find ourselves, not least in our own region," Payne said.

Despite the "modest" commitment, not all in Canberra have applauded the move, with independent MP Andrew Wilkie saying the government should be withdrawing from the region - not increasing Australia's presence.

"If you want to diminish the risk of terrorism in Australia, we should focus on our national interest, we should pull the 300 soldiers in Afghanistan and the further 1,000 further west in the Middle East. That would be good foreign policy," he said on Monday.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 14:03:42|Editor: xuxin

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SUVA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and HFC Bank signed a trade finance agreement on Monday, enabling ADB's Trade Finance Program to provide a credit guarantee facility and revolving credit facility that can support up to 4 million U.S. dollars of trade annually in Fiji.

The agreement was signed by ADB Regional Director for the Pacific Robert Jauncey, and HFC Bank's Deputy Chairman Vilash Chand.

"ADB is delighted to be partnering with HFC Bank, Fiji's only local bank, through the Trade Finance Program," said Steven Beck, head of Trade Finance at ADB.

"Through this facility, HFC Bank will be able to grow its trade finance operations and finance more importers and exporters, including small and medium-sized enterprises, to expand trade, growth and jobs in Fiji."

HFC Bank is the first bank in Fiji to join ADB's Trade Finance Program, and the fourth bank in the Pacific to join the program.

HFC Bank is a fully fledged commercial bank serving corporate customers, small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as consumer segment.
On 11/04/2017 2:13 PM, wrote "esther love" <esther09love@gmail.com>:





How are you? hope fine, for me i am well with all hope to meet you after the transfer.

My dearest, i prayed and fasted when i got your contact before it was revealed to me by God that you are the right man for me, which I love and appreciate our baring, without difference, and I know you will not disappoint me. God will bless and reward you for every effort you are making to help me come out from this prison called refugee camp as we are many here in this refugee camp. My love, i want you to help me to transfer my late fathers money to your account and in it you will be able to send me some money so that i will use it to secure my traveling documents and my air ticket to come over to your country and to live with you for a better life.



Please my love, I want you to contact bank so that they can advise us the possibility to transfer my money to your position from there you will be able to send me some money so that i will use it to secure my traveling documents and my air ticket to come over to your country and to meet with you for the rest of my life.



My dear i want to come over to meet with you for the rest of my life as i have seen that you are the right man for me and i will like you to help me and the transfer of my (3.8 million dollars), so that you can send me some money to prepare my traveling document to come over to meet you for a better life. Honey, I love you so much, and i can wait to meet with you for the rest of my life, and i am looking towards that lovely day when i will be meeting with you for the rest of my life after the transfer of my money to your position so that

from there you can send me some money to prepare my travel documents to meet with you for a better life.



My dear, I would like you to send an e-mail to the bank today about the possibility of transfer of my 3.8 million dollars deposited in ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND, which my name appears as the next of kin due to my refugee status here in Senegal. I have informed the bank about you and they are waiting for your e-mail address, so that they can use this money in their position for our meeting.



Here are the contact details of the bank in Scotland, where the money was deposited by my late father.

The contact information of the bank are as follows,

roya.lbankes@aol.co.uk

royalbanksemail@scotlandmail.c om <royalbanksemail@scotlandmail.com>



The name of the transfer officer is Mr. Ron Teerlink

Telephone contact numbers +447031882113

Fax contact number +447031880876



The account information are as follows:

ACCOUNT NAME DR KIPKALYA KONES

AMOUNT 3.8 MILLION DOLLARS

ACCOUNT NUMBER 87423006

NEXT OF KIN Esther KIPKALYA KONES



Already, I have informed the bank about my intention to claim my late fathers deposit of which my name appears as the next of kin. The only thing the bank told me is to look for a foreign partner who will assist me in the transfer due to my refugee status here in Senegal, as a refugee i am not allowed direct claim on the money, but through an appointed representative as the united refugee law governing refugee all over the world state. Based on this information, i will like you to send an e-mail to the transfer department of the bank today with this.



Attentioned Mr. Mr. Ron Teerlink the transfer of the foreign officer of the bank telling him that you are my representative and that you want to assist me transfer my (3.8 million) dollars deposited by my late father of which i am the next of kin.



Darling i will keep in touch to hear from you immediately you contacted the Bank so that we can know the possibility to help transfer my money to your own account, please try and let me know immediately after you contact the Bank for transfer.

Miss Esther

My Dearest.How are you? hope fine, for me i am well with all hope to meet you after the transfer.My dearest, i prayed and fasted when i got your contact before it was revealed to me by God that you are the right man for me, which I love and appreciate our baring, without difference, and I know you will not disappoint me. God will bless and reward you for every effort you are making to help me come out from this prison called refugee camp as we are many here in this refugee camp. My love, i want you to help me to transfer my late fathers money to your account and in it you will be able to send me some money so that i will use it to secure my traveling documents and my air ticket to come over to your country and to live with you for a better life.Please my love, I want you to contact bank so that they can advise us the possibility to transfer my money to your position from there you will be able to send me some money so that i will use it to secure my traveling documents and my air ticket to come over to your country and to meet with you for the rest of my life.My dear i want to come over to meet with you for the rest of my life as i have seen that you are the right man for me and i will like you to help me and the transfer of my (3.8 million dollars), so that you can send me some money to prepare my traveling document to come over to meet you for a better life. Honey, I love you so much, and i can wait to meet with you for the rest of my life, and i am looking towards that lovely day when i will be meeting with you for the rest of my life after the transfer of my money to your position so thatfrom there you can send me some money to prepare my travel documents to meet with you for a better life.My dear, I would like you to send an e-mail to the bank today about the possibility of transfer of my 3.8 million dollars deposited in ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND, which my name appears as the next of kin due to my refugee status here in Senegal. I have informed the bank about you and they are waiting for your e-mail address, so that they can use this money in their position for our meeting.Here are the contact details of the bank in Scotland, where the money was deposited by my late father.The contact information of the bank are as follows,The name of the transfer officer is Mr. Ron TeerlinkTelephone contact numbers +447031882113Fax contact number +447031880876The account information are as follows:ACCOUNT NAME DR KIPKALYA KONESAMOUNT 3.8 MILLION DOLLARSACCOUNT NUMBER 87423006NEXT OF KIN Esther KIPKALYA KONESAlready, I have informed the bank about my intention to claim my late fathers deposit of which my name appears as the next of kin. The only thing the bank told me is to look for a foreign partner who will assist me in the transfer due to my refugee status here in Senegal, as a refugee i am not allowed direct claim on the money, but through an appointed representative as the united refugee law governing refugee all over the world state. Based on this information, i will like you to send an e-mail to the transfer department of the bank today with this.Attentioned Mr. Mr. Ron Teerlink the transfer of the foreign officer of the bank telling him that you are my representative and that you want to assist me transfer my (3.8 million) dollars deposited by my late father of which i am the next of kin.Darling i will keep in touch to hear from you immediately you contacted the Bank so that we can know the possibility to help transfer my money to your own account, please try and let me know immediately after you contact the Bank for transfer.Miss Esther

From: "esther love" <esther09love@gmail.com>

Date: 17/05/2017 8:00 pm

Subject: CONGRATULATION







I am happy to report that your hearing that my husband and I live in Holland that the transfer is complete . For his part , I get the sum of ($ 500,000,00 ) five hundred thousand U.S. dollars showing concern. Please, I want you to accept this as a gift from my heart , I would have sent this message before , but because of how fast my next trip with my husband went to Holland and since then he mornitoring my motion, I drew a check of $ 500,000,00 . dollars in his name , when I succeed with this transfer.



I like you , please contact Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this offer. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity , in order to get compensation came from my true heart.



Contact him through his e - mail address below.

Name: Rev. Chris Johnson



Email:



Phone: +221767536965



My dear, I can not take the chance to send mail again as my husband watching my movement.All contact should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson.You can send me an email to tell us what he said when you contact him .



Thank you again and God bless you and the whole family.

Sincerely,

Mrs Esther



This is the Esther that contacted you some time on the transfer of funds to your account , as mentioned earlier, in my proposal , I send this message to remind you of how I concluded that the transfer of money , know that you showed concern by providing the necessary help you could. I thank you very much for the smallest help that you gave me , and so I intend to pay well for good. I am very successful, with the transfer of the funds that I contact you for help, which is now complete.I am happy to report that your hearing that my husband and I live in Holland that the transfer is complete . For his part , I get the sum of ($ 500,000,00 ) five hundred thousand U.S. dollars showing concern. Please, I want you to accept this as a gift from my heart , I would have sent this message before , but because of how fast my next trip with my husband went to Holland and since then he mornitoring my motion, I drew a check of $ 500,000,00 . dollars in his name , when I succeed with this transfer.I like you , please contact Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this offer. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity , in order to get compensation came from my true heart.Contact him through his e - mail address below.Name: Rev. Chris JohnsonEmail: revchris29@gmail.com Phone: +221767536965My dear, I can not take the chance to send mail again as my husband watching my movement.All contact should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson.You can send me an email to tell us what he said when you contact him .Thank you again and God bless you and the whole family.Sincerely,Mrs Esther

From: "esther love" <esther09love@gmail.com>

Date: 19/05/2017 8:50 p

Thread: HAVE YOU RECEIVE THE CHECK







I want you to contact the Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this cheque. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity, so take this compensation that came from my true heart.



Contact him through his e - mail below.

Name : Rev. Chris Johnson



Email :



Phone : +221767536965



My dear I can not take the chance of sending you mail again as my husband is watching my movement. All should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson.You can send me an email to tell me what he said when you contact him for the cheque.



Thanking you once again and God bless you and the whole family.

Sincerely,





Mrs Esther

Have you receive the chequeI want you to contact the Rev. Chris Johnson for the collection of this cheque. It is my desire to fulfill my dreams in life and for humanity, so take this compensation that came from my true heart.Contact him through his e - mail below.Name : Rev. Chris JohnsonEmail : revchris29@gmail.com Phone : +221767536965My dear I can not take the chance of sending you mail again as my husband is watching my movement. All should be between you and the Reverend Chris Johnson.You can send me an email to tell me what he said when you contact him for the cheque.Thanking you once again and God bless you and the whole family.Sincerely,Mrs Esther

From: "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>

Date: 19/05/2017 11:04 p

Subject: SEND YOUR INFORMATION



May the peace of God Almighty be with you.How are you today i hope you are very fine over there. If so glory be to Almight God. My brother in Christ my name is Rev Chris Johnson of Christ The King Church Dakar Senegal.One Miss Kones once living in the refugee told me about you and how she saw your profile and liked you to help her to come out from the camp and you tried very well to help her but you did not meet up . later contacted another person who give her the kind help she needed and now is no more living in the refugee camp.The person that helped her take her to his country . Before .traveled .she droped a massage for you.She told me to give you some amount of money and the money is in our care now .The amount of the money is usd$ 500.000.00. I will send the money to you.But you will send all your information to me including your address and your full name to avoid mistake. Once you send this information i will definitely send the money to you immediately.You can also call me with this phone number. . . +221767536965 for more information.

God bless you as i wait for your mail. Yours in Chris

Dated 21/05/2017 7:49 AM, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

sir you have to try and send the money so that i will go and send your check to you

From: "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>

Date: 22/05/2017 5:45 p

Subject: INFORMATION



Use this information and send the money .

Address No 265 Parcel Dakar Senegal.

First Name. . . . .Chris Last Name. . . . . .Johnson. Question. . . . . ok Answer. . . . . ok





On 22/05/2017 6:00 pm, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

My dear i am still waiting

On 22/05/2017 9:23 PM, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

Dear brother,,

I have already received the money for the courier services and i went to the office of DHL courier services after i receive the money to send the check but they refused to accept it and they demanded for insurance coverage before the shipment can be made to you in a case of lost in transit.



They directed me to the Senegal insurance company and there the insurance company told me that a fees of 820 euro must be paid for the insurance coverage of the bank draft.You are therefore adviced to send this amount immediately through same information so that i can secure the insurance coverage to ship the draft to you immediately.I am waiting so that i can go back there now.





As i am waiting so that i will go and pay them.





Yours faithfully

On 22/05/2017 9:30 pm, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

Don' t be offended sir ,Is that i went to send the check before they demand money for insurance so try and understand and i promised you as soon as you send the money now i will go and send your check without any delay .

On 22/05/2017 11:10 PM, wrote "esther love" <esther09love@gmail.com>:

Hello my dear how are you.i went to know if you have receive the cheque.waiting to hear from you



On 23/05/2017 2:14 AM, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

My dear i will never cause you or get angry because you never know me i can not lie to you because of money try all your best try

From: "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>

Date: 23/05/2017 9:42 p

Subject: REV



MY DEAR AS YOU SURE YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND DID YOU REALLY KNOW THAT YOU ARE DOING WITH MAN OF GOD A PASTOR AN OLD MAN I SWEAR IF I CAUSE YOU YOU WILL FIND IT HARD BUT I WILL NOT BECAUSE I BELIEVE YOU DON' T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING .SO TRY ALL YOUR BEST AND SEND THIS MONEY SO THAT WE CAN DO THIS ONCE AND FOR ALL.

Dated 24/05/2017 8:40 AM, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

How are you today .My dear they are calling me for the money so that they can send your check to your house try and send the money today

On 24/05/2017 8:39 pm, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

My dear because of the link you saw and is why you want to change your mind and talking this way , I want you to know that even the president of united state if you Google his name it will appear and shows as scam which we all know that it is not a scammer, People do stay through the internet and do work all this link so we have to be very careful.i can not lie to you i am old man and a pastor

On 24/05/2017 8:42 PM, wrote "revchris johnson" <revchris29@gmail.com>:

ok there is no problem and if you makes me to be angry i will change my mind for you even to write to you i will stop it .if you still saying i will not write to you and this check will be here with me If you received a similar letter, please ignore it. Do not answer it. If you do, you will end up on more of the mailing lists used by the criminals behind this fraud. Read more....
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 14:08:45|Editor: xuxin

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HANOI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Police in Vietnam's central Thanh Hoa province have cracked down on an online gambling ring with related transactions worth nearly 62 million U.S. dollars, reported local media on Monday.

Ten local people, including four ring leaders, have been detained by the provincial police, and their two cars, four computers, 16 cell phones, and 461 million Vietnamese dong (20,400 U.S. dollars) in cash confiscated, according to daily newspaper Tien Phong (Pioneer).

According to the police, from the beginning of 2017 till their arrest, the ring handled online betting transactions totaling over 1.4 trillion Vietnamese dong (nearly 62 million U.S. dollars).

Gambling, except in government licensed casinos, is illegal in Vietnam. Anyone found to be in violation of this law is subject to steep fines and/or a severe prison sentence.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 15:04:06|Editor: Hou Qiang

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NEW DELHI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Monday embarked on a six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, a visit aimed at pitching the country as a favorable destination for foreign investors.

"My visits to these nations are aimed at boosting India's economic engagement with them & to invite more investment to India," Modi tweeted before his departure.

His first stop will be Germany, where he will meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel and discuss various issues of mutual interest. He will also call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier during his visit.

In the second leg of his tour, the Indian prime minister will go to Spain, where he is slated to meet President Mariano Rajoy on Wednesday and discuss bilateral and other issues of mutual interest, including economy and counter-terrorism.

The Indian prime minister's next destination will be Russia. Modi will go to St Petersburg on Thursday, where he will hold the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit along with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

During the last leg of his tour, Modi will go to French capital Paris on the same day, where he is scheduled to hold talks with that country's new President Emmanuel Macron on various issues of mutual interest with a view to bolstering India-France strategic ties.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 15:09:09|Editor: Lu Hui

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BEIJING, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Belt and Road is starting a new journey, with an international gathering earlier this month charting its future course. As a priority for the next stage, financial cooperation and connectivity are seen as a key to success.

Looking into the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, there is much waiting to be explored to facilitate development along the route.

LARGE INVESTMENT DEMAND

A joint communique was issued at the forum, vowing to work on a long-term, stable and sustainable financing system, as well as to enhance financial infrastructure connectivity, by exploring new finance models, platforms and services.

The investment needs will be large due to the initiative's sheer size, according to World Bank President Jim Yong Kim at the forum, who said that the benefits of the initiative were broader than one project or country.

The projects will require innovative financing mechanisms -- a mix of public and concessional finance and commercial capital, Kim said.

One of the eye-catching outcomes of the forum was China's hefty financial support to advance the initiative, including an additional 100 billion yuan (14.5 billion U.S. dollars) to the Silk Road Fund.

Yi Gang, vice governor of Chinese central bank, said that the expansion of the Silk Road Fund was necessary and that he believed the funding would further attract resources and funds from Belt and Road countries and international organizations.

Cao Honghui, a renowned economist, said the additional funding would help improve the investment environment along the Belt and Road and be a good example to attract other funds.

STRONGER CONNECTIVITY

Meanwhile, besides the actual fund injection, economists said future cooperation would gradually extend from the building of hardware such as roads and ports to softer sectors such as management and services.

Zhao Jinping, from the Development Research Center of the State Council, said funding services and financial support would be one of the service and institutional improvements that would take more shares in the next round of Belt and Road construction.

Nine Chinese-funded banks have set up 62 direct branches and representative offices in 26 countries along the Belt and Road as of the end of 2016, offering tailored services to local clients.

At the same time, 54 commercial banks from 20 countries and regions along the Belt and Road have established branches, financial companies or representative offices in China, seeking opportunities with the initiative.

According to the Guiding Principles on Financing the Development of the Belt and Road, governments along the Belt and Road should coordinate to provide favorable policy environments for financing.

The guiding principles also suggest letting the private sector play a larger role in the initiative, and encouraging financial innovation while enhancing cooperation on financial regulation.

INNOVATION DRIVE

To help the construction of financial arteries along the Belt and Road, a new financing model should be created to support strong investment and financing demand, according to a research note from Bank of China (Hong Kong).

The bank suggested ways of leveraging public-private partnerships, syndicated loans and infrastructure bonds, as well as creating integrated financial services for industrial parks and economic corridors along the Belt and Road.

Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, has stressed the power of financial technology in promoting the initiative, such as mobile banking and cross-border payments based on virtual currencies.

In a recent move, an additional 11 Chinese commercial banks joined a payments innovation initiative launched by SWIFT, a global financial messaging service provider, to offer faster, more transparent and traceable cross-border payments.

This brings the number of Chinese banks taking part to 13, joining 110 banks operating across more than 200 countries and regions, including almost all Belt and Road countries.

However, Lagarde also noted significant challenges in financial innovation, including the risk of money laundering and terrorist financing.

"Fintech providers, financial regulators, central bankers, and international organizations will need to work together to ensure that financial systems are safe and inclusive," she said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 15:34:20|Editor: Xiang Bo

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XI'AN, May 29 (Xinhua) -- From supplying KFC hamburger buns to a household brand in Xi'an, Yupinxuan is one of the inspirational stories of Taiwan business success on the mainland.

Nineteen year ago, 23-year-old Yang Hongpeng, founder of Yupinxuan, came to Xi'an, Shaanxi Province to learn business from his uncle, who was farming fish.

It was never occurred to him that the visit would bring him a pastry empire and a Shaanxi wife.

"It was 1999, and I got the opportunity to provide hamburger buns for local KFC stores. Thinking that my older brother was a western pastry chief, I persuaded him to come to Xi'an and began a baking career in the yellow earth [the nickname of Shaanxi]," Yang said.

They started from a small factory and five employees, and swiftly found their place in the city's food industry. With the accumulation of experience and capital, they transplanted the baking style and flavor of Taiwan pastries to Xi'an.

The first Yupinxuan pastry store opened in Xi'an in 2001 and was named after his uncle's bakery in Taichung city, Taiwan. His store highlighted delicate "Taiwan style" pastries and cakes, which were unique and soon gained fame.

Now the Yupinxuan franchise has 60 stores across Shaanxi offering about 200 products.

For Yang, Yupinxuan's success, on one hand, lies in "quality and innovation." Over the past 17 years, Yang has tried to introduce various Taiwan style pastries, including the island's pineapple cake and natural food cream, while constantly innovating his products to cater to local people. He insists on using high-level materials and ensuring the food quality and safety.

On the other hand, a key factor was development opportunities based on the huge markets in the mainland's western areas.

"A small Taiwan bakery met a vast sky and earth," he said.

In the 1990s, entrepreneurs from Taiwan began investing in the mainland's west. At that time the western areas were less developed and were missing many industries, presenting Taiwan businessmen with a burgeoning market.

Since 2005, more Taiwan entrepreneurs have joined to tap the market in the western areas. This time, they wanted a share of the high-speed development in the mainland economy, especially the fast upgrading of infrastructure in the western areas, according to Yang.

Today the western areas are providing more and better opportunities with the advancement of the Belt and Road Initiative, attracting younger and smarter Taiwan businessmen, according to Yang.

He hopes his brand can go further to the west and gain success in other regions and countries along the Belt and Road Initiative routes.

"We are considering building bases in Central Asia and developing products that suit the taste and customs of local people," he said. "We want to develop pastries with Muslim standards, and expand our stores to regions along the routes."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 16:29:40|Editor: Xiang Bo

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BEIJING, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Dragon Boat Festival holiday from Sunday to Tuesday is putting pressure on China's railway system, as more and more people choose to travel by train.

Some 12.1 million passenger trips were made Sunday, up 8.8 percent year on year, China Railway, a state-owned company, said Monday.

The company will add 253 trains Monday, when about 9.1 million passenger trips are expected.

It forecast that total railway passenger trips would reach 44.6 million between Saturday and Tuesday, up 10.5 percent year on year.

The Dragon Boat Festival, also called the Duanwu Festival, is traditionally celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month on Chinese lunar calendar. It falls on Tuesday this year.

The festival commemorates ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan. Chinese people eat zongzi, a type of rice dumpling, and race dragon boats during the festival.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 16:47:08|Editor: MJ

Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha addresses the opening ceremony of Thailand Rice Convention 2017 in Bangkok, Thailand, May 29, 2017. Beginning on Monday, the three-day event aims to set the stage for world rice consumers and producers to brainstorm about new visions for sustainable industrial development. (Xinhua/Thai Government House)
MELBOURNE, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Premature and preventable deaths in Australia's aged care system have soared 400 percent in a decade, a study has found.

The study, published by Monash University on Monday, found that the deaths of 3,300 elderly in Australian nursing homes from 2000 to 2013 were preventable.

Researchers found that choking, falls and suicide were the most common cause of preventable deaths among the elderly in care facilities.

Joseph Ibrahim, the lead author of the study, said that of 21,672 deaths of nursing home residents that were referred to a coroner in the period researched, 3,289, or 15.2 percent, were found to be caused by external or preventable causes.

He said that 81.5 percent of those deaths were from falls while 7.9 percent were due to choking and almost 5 percent of preventable deaths were suicides.

Ibrahim called for a national strategy to reduce unnecessary harm and deaths in nursing homes.

"Professionals from governments and the nursing home sector should develop strategies for preventing these deaths and establish a lead authority, responsible for reducing harm by improving practice in nursing homes," Ibrahim said in a media release on Monday.

"Currently no one entity is responsible for reducing harm by improving practice.

"Improving the quality of care for nursing home residents requires a better understanding of how, why, where and when they die. The global population is ageing rapidly, and the need for aged care services is consequently increasing."

Researchers said that improved reporting and greater scrutiny of deaths was partly responsible for the 400 percent spike but they still believe the number was an understatement of the real extent of the problem.

"With this study we have our first real understanding of how many deaths are occurring in nursing homes that shouldn't be happening," Ibrahim said.

"However, there is a paucity of information about the cause and manner of premature deaths of nursing home residents from which we can review how these operations are run."
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 19:51:14|Editor: Xiang Bo

A visitor attends an intangible cultural heritage exhibition in Beijing, capital of China, May 29, 2017. More than 100 pieces of art created by over 40 intangible cultural heritage inheritors were displayed at the exhibition in Bird's Nest Culture Center in Beijing ahead of the traditional Duanwu Festival, or Dragon Boat Festival. (Xinhua/Zhang Chenlin)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 16:55:02|Editor: MJ

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SEOUL, May 29 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Monday asked for understanding of people and opposition lawmakers over controversy surrounding the prime minister-nominee.

President Moon named Lee Nak-yon, governor of South Jeolla province, as his government's first prime minister on May 10, just a day after winning a sweeping victory in the presidential by-election.

In the course of a parliamentary confirmation hearing, allegations were revealed that Lee's wife falsely registered her address decades of years ago.

The prime minister is required to get a green light from the National Assembly to take office. Other cabinet posts are not subject to the parliamentary approval though they are required to undergo a hearing.

The ruling Democratic Party sought in vain to gain a parliamentary approval for Lee's nomination amid objections from opposition lawmakers.

Moon's chief of staff Im Jong-seok offered an apology last week, but the opposition parties demanded a direct apology from the president as the nomination broke Moon's campaign pledges.

On his campaign trail, Moon pledged to exclude anyone who is involved in the five major wrongdoings from the public posts. The five misdeeds include the fake resident registration, draft dodging, tax evasion, paper plagiarism and speculative investment in real estate.

Two other nominees as the foreign minister and the anti-trust watchdog chief were suspected of the false address registrations, causing objections from the rival parties.

During a regular meeting with senior secretaries, Moon said the controversy was mainly caused by the absence of a transition committee, which led to skip the process of drawing up a detailed standard for personnel affairs.

The president asked for an understanding of people and opposition lawmakers as it came from a lack of time for preparations, calling on his secretaries to come up with detailed personnel standards that can meet expectations of people.

After the president's comments were made public, the centrist People's Party said it would cooperate from a wide perspective to help approve the appointment of the prime minister nominee through the parliament.

Lee, the prime minister nominee, was widely expected to come into office in the near future as the centrist party has 40 lawmakers in the 299-seat parliament.

The Democratic Party controls 120 seats in the assembly, while the main opposition Liberty Korea Party owns 107 seats. The approval requires at least half of the 299 votes in favor.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 16:55:04|Editor: MJ

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HOUSTON, May 29 (Xinhua) -- A Texas nurse jailed for killing a baby more than three decades ago was charged with the murder of another infant, and could be responsible for the deaths of 60 babies, AFP reported Friday.

On Thursday, Genene Jones was accused by a grand jury of killing 11-month-old Joshua Sawyer by injecting a lethal dose of Dilantin, an anti-epileptic drug in 1981, when she was working as a nurse in the pediatric intensive care unit in what was formally known as the Bexar County Hospital in Texas.

The 66-year-old nurse, dubbed "angel of death" , was sentenced to 99 years for killing 15-month-old Chelsea McClellan in 1984. Later that year, Jones was sentenced to 60 years in prison for injecting then 4-week-old Rolando Santos with Heparin, an anti-coagulant drug.

She is now serving her concurrent sentences in a prison in Gatesville in the southern U.S. State of Texas. Due to a law in effect at the time Jones was sentenced, she will be released from prison in March 2018.

"Jones is suspected of killing up to 60 infants," said a statement issued by the district attorney's office of Bexar County.

"She is pure evil and justice warrants that she be held accountable for the crimes she committed," said District Attorney Nico LaHood in the statement. "Our Office will attempt to account for every child whose life was stolen by the actions of Jones. Our only focus is justice."

Prior to her mandatory release, she will be extradited back to Bexar County where she will await trial for the new charges, the statement said. The Grand Jury set Jones' bond at 1 million U.S. dollars.
Photo taken on Sept. 2, 2009 shows a resident resting in front of a store in Zanzibar Stone Town in Tanzania. The Stone Town, which used to be a trading center in East Africa, is a seashore city with winding alleys, bustling bazaars, mosques and grand Arab houses. Most of the houses are well preserved and constructions built in the 19th century still can be seen in the town. (Xinhua/Xu Suhui)

ARUSHA, Tanzania, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania's semi-autonomous Zanzibar archipelago has banned street food vendors following a fresh outbreak of cholera.

Acting Minister of Health and Social Welfare in Zanzibar Riziki Pemba Juma blamed poor sanitation on floods caused by heavy rains hitting the archipelago for the last month.

She said apart from banning street food vendors, the Zanzibar government has also restricted people from inviting and sharing the iftar -- the evening meal when Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset.

During the holy month, it is common for people to invite and share food with those less fortunate.

Riziki said that the ban came after the discovery of 23 new cases of cholera in Muslim-majority Zanzibar.

The new cholera outbreak has compelled the Zanzibar government to establish special camps to deal with cholera victims, the minister said.

"We are encouraging people in their localities to observe hygiene and take precautions on the disease as well as ensuring that once they diagnose someone with symptoms of cholera to take him/her to the nearby health facility for treatment," she said, adding that the government has all the medication needed to cope with a possible epidemic.

Mohammed Dahoma, director of hospital services in Zanzibar, said among the 23 patients, there is a three-month-old infant.

In 2016, at least 68 people died out of 4,330 who were infected with the disease.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 18:30:35|Editor: Xiang Bo

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SINGAPORE, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Singapore shares closed 0.15 percent lower on Monday, given the lack of fresh catalysts and muted performance on Wall Street last Friday.

The U.S. and China markets are closed for holiday on Monday. The week's focus will be on U.S. economic data, which include personal spending as well as employment. China's Caixin manufacturing purchasing mangers' index (PMI) and official manufacturing PMI for May will also be closely watched.

Maybank Kim Eng Research said "technically, the Straits Times Index has dipped below its 20-day moving average amid deteriorating momentum and appears headed towards its near term support at 3,190 points, while upside resistance remains at 3,275 points."

Singapore benchmark Straits Times Index fell 4.87 points to 3,214.55 points. Trading volume was 1.76 billion shares worth 669 million Singapore dollars. Decliners slightly outnumbered advancers 222 to 213.

StarHub Limited rose 0.4 percent to 2.71 Singapore dollars. It announced it is acquiring 51 percent stake in cyber security systems integrator Accel Systems and Technologies for 19.4 million Singapore dollars. This will complement Starhub's in-house capabilities to provide end-to-end cyber security solutions and services.

China Sunsine fell 1.3 percent to 76 Singapore cents. It disclosed that Chinese Ministry of Environmental Protection inspection team has identified some lapses at its Shandong Sunsine factory. The Shanxian Environmental Protection Department has been directed to ensure that the group carries out rectification works. The management of China Sunsine stressed that no environmental laws were breached, and no stop or suspension order were issued, nor was production affected in any way.

Among top gainers, Jardine Strategic rose 0.7 percent to 41.78 U.S. dollars, while Jardine Cycle and Carriage became one of the top losers by falling 0.5 percent to 44.16 Singapore dollars. (1 U.S. dollar equals to 1.38 Singapore dollars)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 18:45:36|Editor: Hou Qiang

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by Elias Shilangwa

LUSAKA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- A long-practiced tradition in Zambia where a man pays bride price for a woman he wants to marry is under threat as calls for its abolishment intensify.

The bride price, which is known as Lobola in many parts of the country, is paid by the family of the man to the family of the woman before the two are married off.

According to the tradition, this is done to compensate the woman's family for their daughter and to show gratitude on how they raised her.

But over the years, its intended purpose is being lost. For some men, paying a bride price equals "buying" the woman, who becomes their property that can be treated in whatever ways they want, including beating.

On the other hand, there is a growing concern of the commercialization of the bride price where parents see it as a source of income, a move that is fueling early marriages, especially in rural parts of the country.

The size of the dowry price now depends on how affluent the man is and how far the woman went in her education, which led to an increase in the amount of money charged.

Questions are now being asked on whether it is necessary to continue with the practice.

In February, the Zambian government was forced to dismiss media reports that it intends to pass a law to abolish the payment of bride price.

Meanwhile, the women movement has reignited calls for the abolishment of the practice.

The Non-Governmental Organizations' Coordinating Council (NGOCC), an umbrella body of women organizations in the country, said the practice puts women in bondage.

Sarah Longwe, the organization's chairperson, said the practice should be abolished as it contributed to an increase in gender-based violence cases, early and forced marriages.

She said it was unfortunate that even tribes that previously never involved in the practice have started doing so and demanding for money just for financial gain.

"Let Lobola be abolished just as we abolished the practice of sexual cleansing and other bad practices in order to safeguard women. Society has started viewing women and girls as goats, chickens and cows that they can easily exchange with money," she said in a statement.

She added that a number of women were being unjustly treated as men boasted of having bought them and that they had a right to treat them in the manner they wanted.

The practice was introduced by ancestors and worked well in their time but now it was exploiting and working against women in this generation, she said.

The proposal has since received widespread reactions from a cross section of society.

For Salome Mwaba, a 29-year-old public worker and a resident of Lusaka, the country's capital, the practice should be abolished as it commercialized and degraded women.

"It's Lobola that makes men think marrying a woman is doing her a favor. Marriage is two people in love settling down. No one does the other a favor," she said.

Her views have been supported by Oliver Sakanyi who feels that the decision to ban the practice was long overdue, adding that although the original concept of paying bride price was good, it has now lost its intended purpose.

"What most Africans should realize is that dowry is an ancient practice that many people around the world once practiced, Europe included. However, in the course of time they realize that it was not a very useful practice and so they did away with it," he said on Facebook.

"The problem with us Africans and others is that we like to hold on to some archaic practices in the name of culture, forgetting that culture is dynamic," he added.

For Iress Phiri, director of the Zambia National Traditions Councilors, an organization that teaches young girls about marriage and womanhood, the commercialization of the bride price has eroded the idea for which bride price was intended for.

While acknowledging that the practice was sacred and still holds value to the country's traditions, she said it was unfortunate that it is now being used as a business to raise money.

She noted that the exorbitant prices being charged raise questions on whether the tradition aspect was still attached to it.

Others however believe that the tradition needs to be preserved due to the significance it attaches to the formalization of a marriage.

"Why abolish it? It is part of our customs and we need to preserve it. It wrong for people to attach gender-based violence to Lobola," said Senior Headman Chitembe, a traditional leader from central Zambia's Mumbwa district.

According to him, men who were using Lobola as a reason to mistreat their wives do not really understand the purpose of paying the bride price, adding that they just wanted to hide their brutality behind a noble tradition.

The payment, he said, was used as a symbol for the man to show how serious he was about marrying the woman and to give assurance to her family that he was ready to take care of her.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 18:45:38|Editor: Xiang Bo

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HANOI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam's handicraft export averages 1.7 billion U.S. dollars a year, the Vietnam Association of Craft Villages said on Monday.

Vietnamese handicrafts made from bamboo, rattan and leaves, pottery and woodwork products are now available in many countries, including the United States, Germany, France, Britain, Sweden, South Korea and Japan.

The number of handicraft-making households in Vietnam's rural areas has grown 8.8-9.8 percent, and production value has increased 15 percent per annul in recent years.

However, many kinds of handicrafts are no longer available or have their brands stolen due to little attention paid to branding, marketing and intellectual property protection.

Vietnam is now home to 5,411 craft villages, including 1,864 traditional ones, with 115 recognized traditional products, and a total workforce of approximately 1.5 million.

The National Office of Intellectual Property of Vietnam is actively guiding craft villages to register for a collective brand and build geographical indications.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 18:45:39|Editor: Xiang Bo

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JAKARTA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The government of Indonesia has attempted to evacuate 11 of the country's nationals who have fled from the Philippines' city of Marawi, where fighting between IS militants and the Philippine army is taking place.

National Police Spokesman Inspector General Setyo Wasisto said on Monday that the 11 people entered the Philippines legally to conduct sermon, but do not have linkages with the IS group.

"Now we are attempting to evacuate them and provide safe a passage back to Indonesia," he said at the national police headquarters.

"They own licenses for carrying out sermon and have no affiliation with the group (IS) who is fighting now," said Wasisto.

All of the Indonesian citizens are on healthy condition, he added.

The government of the Philippines has declared martial law in Marawi city following intensified fighting between the government army and the IS members.
Women take part in the International Women's Day celebration in Lusaka, Zambia, March 8, 2016. (Xinhua/Peng Lijun)

by Elias Shilangwa

LUSAKA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- A long-practiced tradition in Zambia where a man pays bride price for a woman he wants to marry is under threat as calls for its abolishment intensify.

The bride price, which is known as Lobola in many parts of the country, is paid by the family of the man to the family of the woman before the two are married off.

According to the tradition, this is done to compensate the woman's family for their daughter and to show gratitude on how they raised her.

But over the years, its intended purpose is being lost. For some men, paying a bride price equals "buying" the woman, who becomes their property that can be treated in whatever ways they want, including beating.

On the other hand, there is a growing concern of the commercialization of the bride price where parents see it as a source of income, a move that is fueling early marriages, especially in rural parts of the country.

The size of the dowry price now depends on how affluent the man is and how far the woman went in her education, which led to an increase in the amount of money charged.

Questions are now being asked on whether it is necessary to continue with the practice.

In February, the Zambian government was forced to dismiss media reports that it intends to pass a law to abolish the payment of bride price.

Meanwhile, the women movement has reignited calls for the abolishment of the practice.

The Non-Governmental Organizations' Coordinating Council (NGOCC), an umbrella body of women organizations in the country, said the practice puts women in bondage.

Sarah Longwe, the organization's chairperson, said the practice should be abolished as it contributed to an increase in gender-based violence cases, early and forced marriages.

She said it was unfortunate that even tribes that previously never involved in the practice have started doing so and demanding for money just for financial gain.

"Let Lobola be abolished just as we abolished the practice of sexual cleansing and other bad practices in order to safeguard women. Society has started viewing women and girls as goats, chickens and cows that they can easily exchange with money," she said in a statement.

She added that a number of women were being unjustly treated as men boasted of having bought them and that they had a right to treat them in the manner they wanted.

The practice was introduced by ancestors and worked well in their time but now it was exploiting and working against women in this generation, she said.

The proposal has since received widespread reactions from a cross section of society.

For Salome Mwaba, a 29-year-old public worker and a resident of Lusaka, the country's capital, the practice should be abolished as it commercialized and degraded women.

"It's Lobola that makes men think marrying a woman is doing her a favor. Marriage is two people in love settling down. No one does the other a favor," she said.

Her views have been supported by Oliver Sakanyi who feels that the decision to ban the practice was long overdue, adding that although the original concept of paying bride price was good, it has now lost its intended purpose.

"What most Africans should realize is that dowry is an ancient practice that many people around the world once practiced, Europe included. However, in the course of time they realize that it was not a very useful practice and so they did away with it," he said on Facebook.

"The problem with us Africans and others is that we like to hold on to some archaic practices in the name of culture, forgetting that culture is dynamic," he added.

For Iress Phiri, director of the Zambia National Traditions Councilors, an organization that teaches young girls about marriage and womanhood, the commercialization of the bride price has eroded the idea for which bride price was intended for.

While acknowledging that the practice was sacred and still holds value to the country's traditions, she said it was unfortunate that it is now being used as a business to raise money.

She noted that the exorbitant prices being charged raise questions on whether the tradition aspect was still attached to it.

Others however believe that the tradition needs to be preserved due to the significance it attaches to the formalization of a marriage.

"Why abolish it? It is part of our customs and we need to preserve it. It wrong for people to attach gender-based violence to Lobola," said Senior Headman Chitembe, a traditional leader from central Zambia's Mumbwa district.

According to him, men who were using Lobola as a reason to mistreat their wives do not really understand the purpose of paying the bride price, adding that they just wanted to hide their brutality behind a noble tradition.

The payment, he said, was used as a symbol for the man to show how serious he was about marrying the woman and to give assurance to her family that he was ready to take care of her.
Xinhua| 2017-05-29 19:42:07|Editor: Lu Hui

Combined photo taken on May 29, 2017 shows children playing at an aquatic park in Nantong, east China's Jiangsu Province, to greet the upcoming International Children's Day. (Xinhua/Xu Peiqin)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 19:30:49|Editor: MJ

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BANGKOK, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Thai government will clear all of the rice stockpile, some 5 million tons to increase rice prices for the long term, Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said on Monday.

Delivering a speech during Thailand Rice Convention 2017, Prayut said some 13 million of a total 18 million tons of rice in government stock has been released to the markets, securing some 112 billion baht (3.29 billion U.S. dollars) in sales over the last two to three years.

The Thai government, according to the prime minister, has had to bear the storage cost of more than 1 billion (29 million dollars) per month.

"We will clear all of the remaining stock in this administration in order to increase rice prices for the long term," Prayut said, adding they have made a five-year rice strategy plan to improve the quality of Thai rice.

He said large volumes of the rice have been traded in government-to-government dealings with major buying countries such as China, Iran, Iraq, the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia.

"Now we export 10 million tons of rice and earn some 150 billion baht (4.41 billion dollars) yearly as more than 4 million families in the country are growing rice," Prayut said.

Meanwhile, he reiterated that farmers have been strongly suggested to do large-scale rice farming in order to reduce producing costs, raise bargaining powers in dealing with traders and secure an increased price in their own favor.

According to him, a large-scale rice farm cover no less than 400 acres of land.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 19:45:55|Editor: MJ

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BARCELONA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Spain has led over the last 25 years organ donation in the world, with 43.4 individual donors per million people in 2016, Dr. Chloe Balleste, international development director at the Donation and Transplantation Institute (DTI), told Xinhua in an interview.

"Spain leads thanks to the professionalization of the activity," she explained.

According to the Spanish Ministry of Health, in 2016 a total of 4,818 organ transplants were carried out with a total of 2,018 donors.

Organ donations depend on society and need citizen involvement. "In Spain, we started with the professionals. If we do not have a culture of donation within hospital, we will not be able to raise awareness among our societies," Balleste said.

Her comments came on the sidelines of an event hosting 20 Chinese professors and doctors with the aim of exchanging ideas and receiving training and information.

The visit is part of the Knowledge Transfer and Leadership in Organ Donation from Europe to China (KeTLOD), which aims to create a postgraduate course on organ donation in seven Chinese universities.

The project is co-funded by the European Commission, European partners and Chinese universities.

Specialists from three universities in France, Italy and Spain will offer training in accordance with Eurropean guidelines.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 20:06:15|Editor: MJ

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TEHRAN, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Russia are holding talks to remove obstacles for the exports of Iran's handwoven carpets to Russia, semi-official Fars news agency reported on Monday.

Head of Iran's National Carpet Center Hamid Kargar and Head of Russia-Iran Joint Chamber of Commerce Vladimir Obidnov held a meeting here to discuss the matter on Sunday.

During the meeting, Obidnov referred to the Russian's interest in the Iranian handwoven carpets, and said that the two sides will discuss ways to remove the problems of the carpet exports to Russia.

He expressed the hope that the first exhibition of Iranian handwoven carpet would be held in Russia later this year.

On Wednesday, the Financial Tribune daily reported that nearly 350 million U.S. dollars worth of Iranian handwoven carpets were exported in the past Iranian year ending on March 20, up 27 percent year on year.

More than 84 million dollars' worth of carpets were exported to the United States, up from 2.7 million dollars the year before, according to Hamid Kargar.

Iran's carpet exports were hit hard by sanctions imposed on the country over its nuclear program over the past years, as the United States, the biggest importer of Iran's carpets, banned the import of them, among other products, in September 2010.
Red Carpet Arrivals - Cannes, France on May 26. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

TEHRAN, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Russia are holding talks to remove obstacles for the exports of Iran's handwoven carpets to Russia, semi-official Fars news agency reported on Monday.

Head of Iran's National Carpet Center Hamid Kargar and Head of Russia-Iran Joint Chamber of Commerce Vladimir Obidnov held a meeting here to discuss the matter on Sunday.

During the meeting, Obidnov referred to the Russian's interest in the Iranian handwoven carpets, and said that the two sides will discuss ways to remove the problems of the carpet exports to Russia.

He expressed the hope that the first exhibition of Iranian handwoven carpet would be held in Russia later this year.

On Wednesday, the Financial Tribune daily reported that nearly 350 million U.S. dollars worth of Iranian handwoven carpets were exported in the past Iranian year ending on March 20, up 27 percent year on year.

More than 84 million dollars' worth of carpets were exported to the United States, up from 2.7 million dollars the year before, according to Hamid Kargar.

Iran's carpet exports were hit hard by sanctions imposed on the country over its nuclear program over the past years, as the United States, the biggest importer of Iran's carpets, banned the import of them, among other products, in September 2010.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 20:31:21|Editor: MJ

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SOFIA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The 40th World Congress of Vine and Wine kicked off here on Monday, bringing together more than 1,000 delegates from 46 countries and regions.

"Vine and Wine: Science and Economy, Culture and Education" is the general theme of the five-day event, which also offers a rich scientific program.

Climate change challenge, renewable energy and new market prospects are among a slew of other topics dominating the scheduled presentations.

Rumen Porodzanov, Bulgaria's Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, said at the opening ceremony that the congress would contribute to shaping the policies in the sector over the coming years.

Meanwhile, the event would boost the global interest in Bulgarian wines, Porodzanov said.

Bulgarian Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelova, who also participated in the opening ceremony, said that her country has all the prerequisites to become one of the most preferred destinations for wine tourism.

According to Angelkova, Bulgaria now has more than 230 wine cellars, which help the development of wine tourism.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 21:01:35|Editor: MJ

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DAMASCUS, May 29 (Xinhua) -- As many as 2,000 militants with the Islamic State (IS) group have been killed and wounded during recent military operations in the countryside of the northern province of Aleppo, state news agency SANA reported on Monday.

The Syrian army captured around 20 villages in the eastern countryside of Aleppo province on Monday, following battles with the IS militants, which led to the high casualty toll.

The progress is the latest in a string of military operations against the terror-designated group in Aleppo countryside and the countryside of the central province of Homs.

Last Wednesday, SANA said the army killed and wounded 3,000 IS militants in Aleppo countryside, after capturing 28 villages in that area.

During the operations in eastern Aleppo, the army said it had killed IS commanders of several nationalities, including Iraqis, Tunisians, Saudis and Egyptians.

The Syrian army started its operations in eastern Aleppo countryside earlier this year, following the recapture of eastern part of Aleppo city in December 2016.

The army has also unleashed a wide military campaign against IS in the southeastern countryside of Homs, mainly in the Syrian desert with the aim to secure a triangle of border areas between Syria, Jordan and Iraq.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 21:06:37|Editor: MJ

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KIEV, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine will continue its participation in international peacekeeping missions despite the conflict in eastern Lugansk and Donetsk regions, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday.

"Our country is very proud that Ukrainian servicemen continue to adequately perform peacekeeping tasks and remain a worthy and integral part of international peacekeeping forces," Leonid Holopatyuk, the chief of the ministry's main directorate of military cooperation and peacekeeping operations, said in the statement.

Currently, a total of 448 Ukrainian peacekeepers are serving overseas on nine peacekeeping operations under the leadership of the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Joint Peacekeeping Forces in Moldova's breakaway region of Transnistria, the statement said.

Since 1992, about 42,000 Ukrainian servicemen have participated in 25 international peacekeeping missions and 54 of them lost their lives in service.

On Monday, Ukraine marks the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, which is observed annually on May 29.

The armed conflict in eastern Ukraine has been underway since April 2014, claiming some 10,000 lives.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 21:06:38|Editor: MJ

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by Alex Osei-Boateng

ACCRA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Ghana will continue to cooperate with the United Nations to assist in maintaining world peace, a senior official said on Monday.

Ambrose Dery, Minister for the Interior, said Ghana's contributions to peacekeeping over the years demonstrated its commitment to peace and better future for those in the conflict-ridden parts of the world.

He was speaking at a flag-raising and wreath-laying ceremony to mark the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers in Accra.

"We can succeed in building a vibrant and stable democracy underpinned by a prosperous economy, only if we work relentlessly to maintain the peace and security that we have enjoyed for decades," he said.

The UN Resident Coordinator, Christine Evans-Klock, expressed the UN's gratitude for the contributions that Ghana makes to UN peacekeeping operations.

Ghana is noted for its role in peace building in many countries and has served in over 65 UN peacekeeping missions around the world.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 21:11:43|Editor: MJ

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BEIJING, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Germany is mostly known for its wide array of beers while Belgium is famous for its delicious chocolates. However, the two European countries are more than just that.

Here is a list of famous things in Germany and Belgium that may give you some insights into the two countries.

OKTOBERFEST

Oktoberfest is a famous festival in Germany that celebrates German heritage through local music, food and drinks.

Held in the southern German city of Munich, the festival lasts about 16 days, running from mid- or late September to the first weekend in October. The main highlight of the Oktoberfest is the costume and riflemen's parade among other festivities.

Around 6 million people from around the world would attend the event every year. In 2015, the festival officially served 7.3 million liters of beer, which is enough to fill nearly three Olympic-size swimming pools, according to data provided by the official website of the festival.

BERLIN WALL

Berlin is the capital city of Germany. The Berlin Wall enclosed West Berlin from Aug. 13, 1961 to Nov. 9, 1989, cutting a line through the entire city center, according to information provided by the Berlin Wall Memorial.

It was supposed to prevent East Berliners and citizens of East Germany from fleeing to the West. With the downfall of East Germany in 1989, the Berlin Wall also fell, it added.

Today, the Berlin Wall attracts numerous tourists to come and visit, and learn that period of history.

FAMOUS GERMAN FIGURES

Germany is famous for producing some of the greatest figures of the world. Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of relativity, one of the two pillars of modern physics.

Karl Marx, the great philosopher, economist and revolutionary socialist who came up with the idea of communism, was also an important historical figure from Germany.

Also, Germany was home to two of the most famous music composers of all time - Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven.

GERMAN CARS

German cars are renowned throughout the world. Brands such as Audi, Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche all have had their origins in Germany and are synonyms of high quality and innovation.

GERMAN CASTLES

Germany is famous for some of the most beautiful castles in the world. Each castle is rich in history and beauty.

Sitting atop mountains, most of these castles are furnished with numerous towers, ornamental turrets, gables, balconies and sculptures.

Built hundreds of years ago, these castles have been well maintained, with many of them serving as museums, restaurants and even hotels. A few are still occupied by descendants of families that once built them.

Owing to their ancient look and beauty, German castles have inspired a number of Disney movies, such as Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty.

INTERNATIONAL PRESENCE OF BELGIUM

Despite being a tiny country, Belgium's long neutrality in history and its strategic location at the crossroads of Europe made it the seat of many international institutions, such as the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Brussels, the capital city of Belgium, is home to a total of 20 EU organizations and 42 intergovernmental organizations, and has some 300 regional and local representations, according to the latest "Brussels-Europe, the figures" report released by the Brussels tourist agency last year.

In addition, the Brussels-Capital Region houses 979 foreign journalists and 5,400 diplomats, the report added.

KINGDOM OF COMICS

With more than 700 professional comic strip authors, Belgium has more comic strip artists per square kilometer than any other country in the world, according to a report published by FNF Europe, the European and Transatlantic Dialogue Office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, in December 2016.

The most famous Belgium comics include Adventures of Tintin and the Smurfs.

DIAMOND CAPITAL@ Antwerp, a major city in northern Belgium, is known as the diamond capital of the world, with a vast majority of diamonds sold globally pass through the city.

WORLD'S LONGEST TRAMWAY

Stretching 68 km in length, the Belgium Coast Tram is the longest tramway line in the world. Opened in 1885, the tramway is a public transport service connecting cities and towns along the entire Belgian coast between De Panne near the French border and Knokke-Heist near the Dutch border.
The photo shows a group of SGR train stewards at Nairobi's new railway station. (Xinhua/Sun Ruibo)

by Christine Lagat and Wang Xiaopeng

NAIROBI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Wednesday launch of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) linking Nairobi to the port city of Mombasa has sent ripples of excitement among Kenyans from all walks of life.

Faster and safer trips, better business and prospects of more investment inflow are among the reasons for them to be excited about the railway, deemed as a flagship project of China-Kenya practical cooperation.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and Chinese State Councilor Wang Yong are scheduled to attend a ceremony marking the completion of the about 480-km railway project that is expected to boost economy with improved connectivity.

Kenyans drawn from different shades of opinion and socio-economic status who spoke to Xinhua said the launch of the Mombasa-Nairobi line will be a defining moment for their country and the wider East African region.

Boniface Gitau, a 36-year-old small business owner, said he was eager to ride on the SGR train with his family to enjoy the scenic attractions that dot lower eastern parts of Kenya and the coastal region.

"I have only travelled to Mombasa by bus and the journey is usually tiresome and financially draining. The launch of SGR heralds good tidings to regular Kenyans whose dream of a transformed country will be realized on that day," Gitau said.

As for Betty Kilonzo, a hair stylist, the SGR will ease end of the month travels to her hometown in lower eastern Kenya where her ageing parents live.

"What I have gathered is that the SGR train is very different from the old wagons I have always used to commute to my ancestral village. Now we have a modern railway track that will benefit people in my place of birth immensely," said Kilonzo.

The Kenyan government has put elaborate measures in place to ensure the historic launch of the SGR project does not experience hitches.

The launch of SGR will pave way for hassle-free and cheaper transport from Nairobi to Mombasa while positioning Kenya as an unrivalled manufacturing, trade and investments hub.

Gitau and his fellow retailers were optimistic the modern railway line will usher in an era of faster movement of goods from Mombasa to the hinterland.

"What I am impressed most about the SGR is the drastic reduction of hours taken to travel from Nairobi to Mombasa. I am aware it will take an average of five hours to commute from Nairobi to Mombasa compared to eight hours by bus," said Gitau.

He has plans to travel to Mombasa frequently using the SGR train and purchase additional merchandise to expand his business located on the eastern fringes of the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

Kenyan officials are looking forward to a future of unprecedented transformation upon the launch of the Mombasa-Nairobi railway on Wednesday.

Cabinet Secretary for transport and infrastructure James Macharia said at a television interview on Sunday evening that besides revolutionizing the transport sector, the SGR is also expected to stimulate investments in advanced manufacturing in Kenya and the region.

"In terms of industrialization and job creation, the impacts of SGR will be massive," Macharia said, adding that the modern railway line has already boosted Kenya's prestige and attractiveness to investors.

His sentiments were shared by Munene Mungai, a senior assistant director for infrastructure at the Presidential Delivery Unit, who hailed the launch of SGR project for setting a precedent for other Africa countries aspiring to achieve middle-income status.

"As a country, we have entered a critical milestone in our history now that the first modern railway is about to commence operations," Mungai told Xinhua during a recent interview.

"This is a new dispensation in our transport sector and the country will experience rapid transformation as the SGR becomes operational from the first day of June," he added.

The East African nation is banking on the SGR to ease congestion at the port of Mombasa and reduce cost of transporting bulk cargo and passengers to the hinterlands.

Managing Director of Kenya Railways Corporation Atanus Maina struck a positive note when he termed the SGR a game changer in regional transport.

"I am sure many Kenyans are keen to witness the huge benefits that will be accompanied by launch of the SGR project. This is a legacy project for this country and its citizens," Maina said.
Xinhua| 2017-05-29 22:00:42|Editor: Hou Qiang

Guests attend a handover ceremony of Chinese-funded boreholes in Chisamba district, Central Province, Zambia on May 28, 2017. The Chinese government on Sunday handed over about 420 boreholes to rural communities to help improve their access to clean water in Zambia's Central province. (Xinhua/Peng Lijun)
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 22:12:06|Editor: MJ

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PYONGYANG, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Monday called on South Korea to abolish its presidential preparatory committee for reunification set up by the former government.

The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a commentary that the Preparatory Committee for Unification "has served as a means for executing the policy of confrontation with the fellow countrymen."

The committee worked on "unification through absorption" while scrapping the North-South agreement to set up a special zone for peace and cooperation in the West Sea, to end the current armistice system and build a lasting peace mechanism, said the KCNA.

"As differing ideologies and systems have existed for long in the north and the south, attempt at achieving 'unification of social systems' and 'unification through absorption' by way of extending the system of one party into the other party will only bring conflict," said the commentary.

The official daily Rodong Sinmun also said in an article that the committee hurt the nation's reconciliation and unity and escalated distrust and confrontation.

South Korea launched the 50-member presidential committee for preparing to reunify with the DPRK in July 2014.

Seoul also made a so-called "Dresden Initiative" in the same year, including infrastructure development, natural resources exploration, as well as broader inter-Korean exchanges in non-political areas such as history, culture and sports.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 22:17:07|Editor: MJ

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LUSAKA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Rwandan President Paul Kagame will visit Zambia next month as part of efforts to enhance ties, the foreign affairs minister said on Monday.

Kagame will visit Zambia from June 18 to 19 following an invitation by President Edgar Lungu, Zambian Minister of Foreign Affairs Harry Kalaba said.

During the visit, the two leaders will hold bilateral talks on how to deepen bilateral ties, he said.

The Zambian minister told reporters during a press briefing that Rwanda is one of the fastest growing economics on the African continent and has made strides in its socio-economic development hence the meeting will enable the two leaders to exchange experiences.

The Zambian government, he said, recognizes the importance of enhancing cooperation with other African countries in achieving sustainable development.

Other leaders expected to visit the country includes President Rajaonarimam Pianina of Madagascar and Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo.

The Madagascan leader will be in Zambia from June 7 to 8 while the Ghanaian leader will be in Zambia from June 26 to 29, he added.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 22:32:13|Editor: MJ

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ISTANBUL, May 29 (Xinhua) -- A total of 1,453 trucks on Monday went on parade to mark the 564th anniversary of Istanbul's conquest as well as seek a Guinness world record.

These trucks joined for a parade at a special ceremony organized at the construction site of Istanbul's third international airport, with a view to setting a new Guinness record in the "Longest Truck Lane" category, the Hurriyet daily reported.

The parade, organized by the airports construction company IGA, lasted for nearly two hours as the trucks went 3.2 km non-stop following seven-hour preparations, the daily said, noting around 3,000 people were involved in the event.

The previous record was set in 2004 with the involvement of 416 trucks in a project in the Netherlands, according to press reports.

Istanbul, then capital of the Byzantine Empire and known as Constantinople, fell after two months of siege by the Ottoman army in 1453.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 22:32:14|Editor: MJ

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by Chris Mgidu

NAIROBI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's electoral body on Monday cleared President Uhuru Kenyatta to run for a second term in office after he presented his nomination papers with his deputy William Ruto as his running mate.

Kenyatta, who was accompanied by thousands of his supporters after a day-long tour of the city, said his Jubilee Party will conduct a peaceful campaign free of insults.

At the rallies, Kenyatta who defeated the main opposition leader Raila Odinga in 2013 said he was humbly asking Kenyans to vote for him for a second term so that the Jubilee administration can continue with the development programs it has been implementing to transform the country.

"We are not people who rely on propaganda and we do not incite Kenyans against each other. All we want is for Kenyans to be together and enjoy the prosperity of our nation," he said.

Kenyatta said the Jubilee administration has delivered on its promise to expand the country's road networks.

He urged Kenyans to remain peaceful during the electioneering period, adding that the Jubilee administration stands for unity and peace.

He said Kenyans should be allowed to choose the leaders they want without being forced, calling on politicians to be civil as they seek for votes.

Kenyatta, the son of Kenya's founding president, is facing stiff challenge from Odinga, the son of Kenya's first vice-president, and who has already assembled a sophisticated team of professionals to manage his campaign.

Kenyans will go to the polling booths on August 8 to elect a president, lawmakers and ward representatives.

Pundits contend that August general elections will be hotly contested and their outcomes will have far-reaching implications on Kenya's stability and economic health.

As part of election preparedness, Kenyan agencies charged with security, law enforcement and war against graft have developed a set of guidelines to be adhered by aspirants in order to ensure the polls are peaceful and transparent.
LONDON, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Almost 6,000 drivers were caught by British police using cell phones in March as penalties were doubled, figures published Monday revealed.

A change in the law on March 1 doubled the fine to 200 pounds (257 U.S. dollars), with six points added to a driving license.

Motorists holding a driving license for less than two years also have to retake their driving test if caught using their phones.

In the four weeks after March 1, police forces were catching an average 200 drivers every day phoning and driving. A third of those caught were in London.

The figures prompted the road safety charity Brake to call for even tougher penalties. Its spokesman Jack Kushner said Monday: "Driver distraction is a growing menace and it's worrying that drivers don't seem to be getting the message."

Edmund King, president of the motoring organization, the AA, said: "We know we can't change the attitudes and actions of all drivers overnight. We now have stricter penalties so need to continue with education campaigns plus more police enforcement."

The higher penalties follow a number of tragic cases which left people dead or injured in accidents caused by people being distracted while driving because of using mobile devices, usually making phone calls or texting.

Motorists are allowed to make phone calls if they are using hands-free devices, and are not otherwise distracted.
by Bosun Awoniyi

LAGOS, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria's economy is no longer helplessly dependent on the price of crude oil, said the country's Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday.

Osinbajo, in a nationwide broadcast to commemorate the second anniversary of President Muhammadu Buhari's administration, acknowledged that the economy had proven to be the biggest challenge of all since 2015.

"Let me first express just how concerned we have been since this administration took office, about the impact of the economic difficulties on our citizens," he said.

He told the nation that some companies shut down their operations, others downsized, people lost jobs and had to endure rising food prices.

"We have been extremely mindful of the many sacrifices that you have had to make over the last few years," he said.

Osinbajo however assured Nigerians that the government had passed the difficult phase of its program, urging them not to despair but to look ahead.

"I firmly believe that we have put the most difficult phase behind us; and we are witnesses to the ever-increasing intensity of the light at the end of the tunnel," he added.

Osinbajo said the administration's work on the economic front has been targeted at a combination of short-term interventions to cushion the pain, as well as medium to long term efforts aimed at rebuilding an economy.

According to him, the short-term interventions include putting together a series of bailout packages for state governments to enable them to bridge salary shortfalls, an issue Buhari has consistently expressed concerns about.

Osinbajo revealed that the government had also begun the laying of a framework for its Social Intervention Program, which he described as "the most ambitious in the history of the country.

TARGETING YOUTHS

Osinbajo reaffirmed that policies and programs of the present administration were deliberately targeted at the youth population in the country.

The acting president said Nigeria was a nation of young people, and that the government would ensure that its policies and programs reflected that.

"Several of our initiatives are targeted at our young people, who make up most of our population," he added.

He said the scheme was to resolve the financing bottlenecks that had until now constrained the operations of gas suppliers and generation companies in the energy sector.

He assured that the nation would soon begin to see the positive impact of the steps already taken.

SECURITY

Osinbajo attributed successes by the military against the Boko Haram insurgency to the restoration of cordial relations with Nigeria's neighbors, including Chad, Cameroon and Niger.

He said in addition to mending broken relations with the country's allies, the Buhari administration had also revitalized the regional Multi-national Joint Task Force, by providing the required funding and leadership.

He added that the terrorist group, which openly challenged the sovereignty and continued existence of Nigeria through killing, maiming, and abduction, causing massive displacement, had now been routed.

DIVERTED FUNDS

The acting president said that accounting for the funds had become imperative in view of the determination of the government to bring persons accused of corruption to justice.

According to him, funds appropriated to build roads, railway lines, power plants, and to equip the military, that have been stolen or diverted into private pockets, must be retrieved and the culprits brought to justice.

He stated that the government had also started re-equipping the prosecution teams, and that part of the expected judicial reforms was to dedicate some specific courts to the trial of corruption cases.

The acting president disclosed that the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government was also institutionalizing safeguards and deterrents in the process.
by Julius Gale

JUBA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The UN Mission in South Sudan on Monday applauded Chinese peacekeepers for their efforts to protect civilians and UN staff in the war-torn country despite the harsh working environment.

The 700-member Chinese infantry battalion is serving under a force of 12,000 blue helmets in the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), tasked with protection of civilians, humanitarian workers and providing security escorts and as well as patrols.

Speaking during an event to mark the International Day of UN Peacekeepers in the capital Juba, head of UNMISS David Shearer said despite working under difficult conditions, the Chinese peacekeepers with their colleagues from other countries have sacrificed their lives and time in the service of the people of South Sudan.

"Sadly, some of our colleagues have paid the ultimate price in the line of duty," Shearer said. "Last year, we lost two Chinese soldiers in the July fighting. I acknowledge them and their families for their sacrifice."

In July 2016, two Chinese peacekeepers Li Lei and Yang Shupeng died and five others injured after their vehicle was struck with a rocket-propelled grenade while guarding a refugee camp near a UN compound for displaced people.

"To our peacekeepers, I wish to express my immense gratitude to you for your professionalism, your commitment and sacrifice in the service of the people of South Sudan. You can be rightly proud of your contribution," he added.

The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is marked annually to honor and memorize people who lost their lives in service for peace.

Since UNMISS was established in 2011, 49 staff members have lost their lives while serving the Mission. In 2016, eight UNMISS staff members died in the service of peace.

South Sudan has been embroiled in more than three years of conflict that has have taken a devastating toll on the people.

A peace deal signed in August 2015 between the rival leaders under UN pressure led to the establishment of a transitional unity government in April, but was shattered by renewed fighting in July 2016.

The UN estimates that 1.5 million people have been forced into neighboring countries and another 7.5 million people across the country are in need of humanitarian assistance and protection. A localized famine was declared in February in parts of northern unity state.
NEW DELHI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Two Indian states, Kerala in the south and West Bengal in the east, on Monday strongly objected to the central government's recent ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter at animal markets.

Both Kerala's Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and West Bengal's Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee called the central government's ban as an infringement on state powers and asserted that they would challenge it in a court of law.

"What we eat cannot be decided by Delhi or Nagpur", the Kerala chief minister said in state capital Thiruvananthapuram, referring to India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and its ideological mentor, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which is headquartered in the western city of Nagpur.

Echoeing similar sentiments, the West Bengal chief minister tore into the central government for the ban, saying it was intruding into state's powers. "We won't accept the Indian government's decision, it is unconstitutional; we will challenge it legally," she told the media in state capital Kolkata.

The Indian Environment Ministry last week imposed a ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter, saying that cattle for slaughter will have to be bought from farmers directly, defining cattle as bulls, cows, buffalo, steers, heifers, calves and camels.

The regulation was meant to protect "animals from cruelty and not to regulate the existing trade in cattle for slaughter houses", the ministry said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-29 23:07:34|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MOSUL, Iraq, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units on Monday reached the Iraqi-Syrian border after they dislodged Islamic State (IS) militants from towns and villages during their push to the border line, the units said in a statement.

The Hashd Shaabi units pushed in the early morning to border line from the newly-freed town of al-Qahtaniyah, which itself located some 18 km east of the Syrian border, making their first arrival to the border line in south of Sinjar mountain, the statement said.

On Sunday, the units freed al-Qahtaniyah and nearby residential complex in north of the IS-held town of Baaj, some 25 km west of the newly-freed town of al-Qairwan.

Baaj and al-Qairwan are located in the rugged sprawling area in south of the town of Sinjar, some 100 km west of Mosul, and extend further to the Iraqi-Syrian border in the west.

The predominantly Shiite Hashd Shaabi units, backed by army's helicopter gunships, also freed the villages of Wadi al-Miedar and Taro while they were advancing from al-Qahtaniyah to the Syrian border, the statement said.

The units fought sporadic clashes against IS militants during the day and killed some 21 extremist militants, along with destroying four IS headquarters in the two villages, the statement added.

Other Hashd Shaabi units are taking positions near the IS-held Baaj and took control of IS supply routes around the town in order to isolate it and liberate the town later.

The latest advance is part of a major offensive designed to secure the border areas with neighboring Syria and cut off IS supply routes between Mosul and the Syrian city of Raqqa, the capital of the IS self-declared caliphate.

Meanwhile, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who is also the Commander-in-Chief of Iraqi forces, arrived to the Hashd Shaabi's Operations Command headquarters in west of Mosul and held a meeting with Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of Hashd Shaabi units, the units said in a brief statement.

The operations near the Syrian border came as Iraqi security forces, backed by the anti-IS international coalition, were simultaneously conducting a major offensive to dislodge IS militants from their major stronghold in western Mosul.

Mosul, 400 km north of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to control parts of Iraq's northern and western regions.
KATHMANDU, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Nepalese government said on Monday that the second round of local body elections scheduled for June 14 in the Southern Terai plains of the country was rescheduled and will be held on June 23.

A meeting of the Council of ministers held in the capital made such a decision to bring on board the agitating Madhes-based parties in the elections which had skipped the first round of elections earlier this month, Minister for Poverty Alleviation Ridayaram Thani told the media.

In the second round, elections will be held in 1, 2, 5 and 7 provinces of the Himalayan country that borders India.

The first round of elections were held in 3, 4 and 6 provinces on May 14, mostly the hilly areas.

The minister said that the government will initiate process to bring a new bill to amend the Political Parties' Registration Act so that the Madhes-based six parties could register their newly-formed Rashtriya Janata Party in the Election Commission.

The government's decision to postpone the second round of elections by 10 days came two days after the agitating ethnic Madhes-based parties launched fresh round of protests to boycott and disrupt the second round of local body elections.

The fundamental demand of the Madhes-based parties is to change demarcation of the provincial boundaries which the government has failed to fulfill, the leaders of the Madhes-based parties said.

A key leader of the agitating alliance, Rajendra Mahato, told the media that the revised constitutional amendment tabled by the government at the House did not meet their demands, forcing them to launch the fresh protests to disrupt the polls.

The Madhes-based parties, which represent Nepal's southern Terai plains, announced their unification and the launch of a new group called Rashtriya Janata Party earlier last month.

Negotiations between the Madhes-based parties and the government have failed to yield positive results so far to resolve disputes over the constitution.

The government has registered the new constitution amendment bill at the House in a bid to persuade the Madhes-based parties to participate in all three tiers of elections, local, provincial and central.

As many as 50 people including security personnel were killed in violent clashes in Nepal's southern Terai plains during the protests in 2015 following the promulgation of new national charter.
ADDIS ABABA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) has hailed the achievements by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in different areas, including among others in promotion of regional integration.

The sub-regional bloc on Monday held an event in connection with its 42nd anniversary on the premises of the AU Headquarters in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa, under the theme, "ECOWAS at 42: Reflections and Expectations."

In her remarks on the occasion, Amira Al-Fadil, AU Commissioner for Social Affairs, has reiterated that ECOWAS has gained achievements in different areas.

Regional integration, democracy and political process, and peacekeeping are among the areas, which the Commissioner mentioned as the key achievements of the bloc.

Established on the 28th May 1975, the 15-member sub-regional bloc adopted its protocol of free movements of persons, right of residence and establishment in 1979.

All the 15 member states issue a common ECOWAS Community Biometric International Passport to their citizens adopted since 2000.

ECOWAS also abolished visas for all ECOWAS citizens since 2000, and abolished residence permit in all member states since July 2014.

The AU Commissioner has noted that ECOWAS is a beacon to many of regional economic communities (RECs) on the African continent.

It established Community Levy (0.5 percent) of member states Import Duty from non-ECOWAS countries as the main source funding integration in the region since 1996.

"ECOWAS is indeed a beacon to many of the RECs (regional economic communities) as its integration agenda is well on course. The protocol on the free movements of persons has been in existence for nearly three decades, which suggests that the integration of the continent is possible," said the Commissioner.

The Commissioner has also highlighted ECOWAS's role in peacekeeping missions, mentioning the cases in Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Recalling that the sub-region has recently seen two successful elections in the Gambia and Ghana, the Commissioner has commended the leadership of the sub-regional bloc for addressing the difficulties in the Gambia, which has successfully ended the problem.

"When we talk about democracy and peaceful transition of power, ECOWAS has again led in this area, and even producing the first elected female president on the continent. Recent elections in the Gambia and Ghana were manifestations of the level of maturity of the democratic political process in the sub-region," noted the Commissioner.

"As we reflect on these achievements, we should also consider duplicating the best practices of ECOWAS in the areas already mentioned, including the biometric international passport; the community levy of member states import duty from non-ECOWAS countries; the visa free regimes for ECOWAS citizens; free movement of persons, goods and services, and the right of establishment; abolishment of resident permit to ECOWAS citizens," said the Commissioner.

"As we look to the future, we expect the sub-region to demonstrate that leadership and political maturity not only in the sub-region but on the continent," she said, adding, "We look forward to a better and brighter future for the sub-region and for the whole continent, implementing together in collaboration, the agenda 2063 and for that we can have the Africa we want."

Chairing the event at the AU headquarters, George S.W. Patten, Liberian Ambassador to Ethiopia and AU, recalled that ECOWAS was born about 42 years ago to address the multifaceted problems of poverty and underdevelopment in the sub-region, and also to promote cooperation and integration.

In these 42 years ECOWAS has made tremendous progress in breaking down economic, social and political barriers, has reiterated the Ambassador.

For ECOWAS to consolidate progress towards realizing ECOWAS vision 2020 of borderless, peaceful, prosperous and cohesive region, the Ambassador has pointed out four priorities including, peace and security, enhanced trade integration, agriculture and infrastructure, and improving financial stability.

ECOWAS has 15 member states, including Benin, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Gambia and Togo.
A Sumatran Tiger walks through its enclosure during the ZSL London Zoo's annual stocktake of animals in London, Britain, on Jan. 5, 2015. The zoo's annual stocktake requires keepers to check on the numbers of each one of over 750 species of animals living in the zoo. (Xinhua/Han Yan)

LONDON, May 29 (Xinhua) -- A man has been attacked by a tiger Monday according to news reports after a zoo in Britain's Cambridgeshire was evacuated.

Emergency services, including police, paramedics and an air ambulance raced to Hamerton Zoo Park in what Cambridgeshire Police described as a "serious incident".

The zoo park was evacuated just before noon and was then closed for the rest of the day.

Media in Britain reported people running, with scenes of chaos after staff evacuated the public.

The Daily Mirror in London said it understood a man was attacked by a tiger within an enclosure. The report said, however, it was not known if he was a member of staff or a visitor.

Police in Cambridgeshire had earlier issued a public bulletin, saying no animals were loose after rumours spread that a tiger had escaped.

The zoo park opened in June 1990 and covers some 25 acres. It is home to around 500 animals including Malaysian tigers, Bengal tigers, cheetahs, wolves, kangaroos as well as a variety of birds, reptiles and domestic animals.

A full statement is due to be issued later by Cambridgeshire Police.
CAPE TOWN, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Growing calls for South African President Jacob Zuma to resign, especially those made by the opposition, are not so much about removing the president by rather dislodging the ruling African National Congress (ANC) itself from power, the party said on Monday.

The ANC should focus on the task at hand -- eliminating poverty, inequality and unemployment, the party said in a statement after the ANC's National Executive Committee (NEC) concluded its three-day meeting in Pretoria.

"We must also focus on ensuring unity and stability of the organization as part of leadership transition at the 54th National Conference", scheduled for December this year to discuss the succession to Zuma, the party said in a statement emailed to Xinhua.

The NEC meeting received the Political Overview from the president, the National Working Committee (NWC) report, and reports on the ANC's engagements with traditional leadership and preparations towards the National Conference.

There was a call made in the NEC for Zuma to consider stepping down as president, ANC Secretary General Gwete Mantashe acknowledged in the statement.

A motion to recall Zuma was defeated at the NEC meeting, sources close to the meeting disclosed.

The NEC meeting considered calls for Zuma to resign to be part of a broader discussion characterized by the restlessness manifesting itself in society, where certain sections have made similar calls, Mantashe said.

A number of NEC members were of the view that the ANC should listen to this call, he said.

Various contributions in support of and against the appeal to the president to step down were raised, according to Mantashe.

"Many more were neither in favor nor against the appeal but emphasized the need for unity within the organization," he said.

"Flowing from this difficult discussion, our branches are now directed to focus on their primary tasks, work together and ensure the ANC impacts positively on society," Mantashe added. Speaking of the motion of no confidence against Zuma proposed in Parliament, Mantashe said the NEC reaffirmed its confidence in ANC MPs, trusting that they would continue to conduct themselves in line with Constitution, prescripts and norms of the ANC.

The opposition has fielded an application to the Constitutional Court, seeking a ruling for a secret ballot.

"Regardless of whether a secret ballot is granted by the court or not, ANC MPs, as always, are expected to vote in line with the decision of the Caucus of the ANC," Mantashe said.

Failure to do so is in violation of the party line and would be defined an act of misconduct, acting on behalf of or in collaboration with counter-revolutionary forces, Mantashe said.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 00:58:17|Editor: An

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Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi (L) shakes hands with Japan's National Security Advisor Shotaro Yachi as they co-chair the fourth round of China-Japan high-level political dialogue near Tokyo, Japan, May 29, 2017. (Xinhua)

TOKYO, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and Japanese National Security Advisor Shotaro Yachi co-chaired the fourth round of high-level political dialogue between the two countries on Monday.

Yang said at the meeting that China-Japan relations are currently at an important juncture with both new opportunities and outstanding challenges as this year marks the 45th anniversary of the normalization of China-Japan diplomatic relations.

The two sides should remind themselves of their original intention for normalizing ties, take history as a mirror while facing to the future, and push for the continuous enhancement of bilateral relations based on the spirit of four important political documents between China and Japan and the four-point principled agreement reached in November 2014, Yang said.

Yang also said that China attaches importance to developing its relationship with Japan and this stance has not changed. He called on the Japanese side to conform to the trend of times and implement, with specific policies and concrete actions, the consensus that the two countries are each other's cooperative partner rather than threats, and that China's development is an opportunity for Japan.

Yang also urged Japan to honor its words and abide by relevant rules regarding the historical and Taiwan issues and make joint efforts with China to safeguard the peace and stability in the East China Sea.

He also called upon Japan to speak and act cautiously regarding the South China Sea issue and to play a constructive role as relevant countries in the region are making their efforts to solve the issue properly.

Welcoming Japan to discuss cooperation with China under the framework of the "Belt and Road" initiative, Yang said the two sides should speed up transformation and upgrade of bilateral economic and trade cooperation and to expand cooperation in new areas.

He also urged the two sides to further enhance communication between local governments and the young people, among others, so as to promote mutual understanding between the two peoples and lay solid foundation for the development of bilateral ties.

For his part, Yachi said that cooperation between China and Japan, two major countries in Asia, is vital to the region and the two sides shall fully implement the consensus that they are each other's cooperative partner rather than threats.

He said that Japan's stance on the Taiwan and historical issues has not changed and Japan is dedicated to improving its relationship with China and is willing to make joint efforts with China to enhance exchanges at all levels, expand positive aspects and properly manage disputes in bilateral relations.

The two sides also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concerns.
ISLAMABAD, May 29 (Xinhua) -- At least four people were killed and three others including a police officer were injured in two separate firing incidents in Pakistan Monday night, local Urdu media reported.

Unknown gunmen sprayed bullets at a vehicle in the capital city of Peshawar of the country's northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, leaving four people killed and one injured, Geo news reported.

Police said that the killed included a leader of a pro-government peace militia in the area.

The attackers fled the scene following the incident.

In a separate attack in Quetta, capital of the country's southwest Balochistan Province, two people, including a police officer, were injured in firing by unknown gunmen.

No groups have claimed either of the attacks yet.

Police cordoned off the attack sites and kicked off investigations.
SKOPJE, May 29 (Xinhua) -- It is necessary that the European Union (EU) makes a step forward and determines a date to open accession talks with Macedonia, Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov said Monday at a meeting with EU countries' ambassadors to Macedonia.

While calling for the opening of EU accession talks, Ivanov said that the EU should start such process with the opening of Chapter 23 and 24, the cabinet said in a press release after meeting.

Ivanov noted that opening these chapters which cover the judiciary, basic human rights, justice, freedom and security would give the necessary impetus to intensify the reform process.

"We need the transformative power of the negotiating process and the unifying power of this process to confront the deep political polarization, "Ivanov told the ambassadors.

On domestic political situation, the Macedonian president asked the political parties here to show their commitment to European integration and to prioritize reforms that will drive the EU accession.

In this regard, EU members' diplomats said that they highly valued Ivanov's open approach and gave their assurances that the EU would put Macedonia and the region general high at its agenda.

They also expressed an expectation that the next government will push a pro-EU agenda of reforms to integrate Macedonia closer to EU.
ISLAMABAD, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Afghanistan will hold an international conference on peace, security and reconciliation next week at a time when Taliban insurgents have intensified attacks and killed dozens of policemen over the past few days, a senior Afghan diplomat said here on Monday.

Zardasht Shams, deputy head of the Mission at the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad, said over 20 countries have been invited to the conference in Kabul on June 6.

"The Kabul Process meeting will be held by the instructions of President (Ashraf Ghani) to bring various processes or meetings on Afghanistan under one umbrella," Shams told Xinhua.

He said that anti-terrorism cooperation is also one of the key issues to be discussed by senior diplomats and officials from these countries.

A Pakistani official said Pakistan will participate in line with "policy to go on all Afghan meetings" to contribute in peace and reconciliation in the war-ravaged country.

Besides, almost all Afghanistan's neighbors, the United States, India, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Britain, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey, Germany, France and China have been invited to participate and explore ways to help Kabul promote peace and security, Shams said.

He said the United Nations and the European Union will also attend the meeting and that is an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned initiative.

Shams said that Ghani had floated the idea to start the "Kabul Process" to keep other countries on board about the situation in Afghanistan.
VILNIUS, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Lithuania's Ministry of Foreign Affairs introduced on Monday an app for travelers offering the most relevant consular information and aid in unforeseen situations.

According to the ministry's statement, the app named Travel Safely offers all necessary consular information offline, thus gives an opportunity to avoid a number of problems while travelling.

"The ministry, as well as our diplomatic representative offices abroad, receive numerous calls concerning consular aid; therefore, there was an idea to employ technologies in order to ensure better access to this kind of information to travelers and Lithuanian citizens living abroad," Ausra Cerneviciene, deputy director of the ministry's consular department, said in an interview with a local broadcaster Lrt.lt.

"Information regarding travelling to various countries, visa requirements, availability of consular services, including necessary steps in case of loss of personal documents, could be checked using the app," Cerneviciene added.

As the app does not require internet connection, it can be used in the airplanes, remote areas and in cases of internet failure.

The app offers the information on the Foreign Ministry's recommendations and arrival requirements in all countries of the world, consular data and contacts of diplomatic representative offices, travel planning opportunity. In case the traveler needs to find the closest consular office, automatic search for the office can be employed, the ministry explained in its statement.

In case of a crisis in the country which is being visited at the moment, the ministry has the possibility to send direct push notifications to the users of the app.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 01:38:37|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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PARIS, May 29 (Xinhua) -- French President Emmanuel Macron met Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Versailles, wherein they discussed the fight against terrorism, as well as the Ukrainian and Syrian conflicts, the two leaders said during a joint press conference held at the end of their exchange.

"On Syria, I remind you...our priority is the fight against terrorism, in particular Daesh or the Islamic State (IS)," Macron said, underling that France must "reinforce" its partnership with Russia in order to "assure stability, democratic transition with a red line: the use of chemical weapons by whoever it may be."

For his part, Putin affirmed that where Syria was concerned "we have judged that we cannot fight against the terrorist threat in destroying the (Syrian) state."

"What is more important is the fight against terrorism. The French president proposed to put in place a working group that the experts can go to Moscow as they can to Paris," he added.

Concerning the conflict in Ukraine, Macron reasserted his will to reach a de-escalation of the conflict.

"Our wish is that an exchange with Germany and Ukraine can be held as soon as possible, and that a full report can be established," he indicated.

He confirmed that "at this stage, the G7 had discussions which didn't exclude an escalation if necessary. My wish is that there would not be an escalation. We will have a Normandy format discussion in the coming days."

The French president also spoke about the persecutions of homosexuals in Chechnya.

"I reminded President Putin of the importance for France of the respect of all people. We have evoked the case of LGBT people in Chechnya and NGOs in Russia. We have agreed to have extremely regular monitoring," he said.

Putin affirmed for his part that the two had tried to find common ground.

"I am persuaded that the first interests of France and Russia go beyond these points of friction. Economic relations are growing," he said.
HARARE, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Harare International Carnival, which was shelved last year due to funding challenges, will be held this year, Zimbabwean Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi said on Monday.

He told a press conference that the carnival will be part of a series of events that are lined up to celebrate the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.

Zimbabwe will launch the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development (IYSTD) on June 2 after the United Nations General Assembly declared 2017 as the year for sustainable tourism.

"I can confirm that the Harare International Carnival will take place on September 9, preceded by other events," the minister said.

The Harare International Carnival, in its fourth year running, is an annual festival that encompasses a series of events and festivities and is aimed at advancing the arts, culture and heritage of Zimbabwe.

According to the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, the carnival is about celebrating diversity, getting communities together, getting to know one another in the love and harmony that builds Zimbabwe into a peaceful and promising place for everyone.

In the past, countries such as Brazil, India, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, the United Kingdom and Zambia have participated in the carnival.

Mzembi said in celebrating IYSTD, Zimbabwe seeks to promote the role of tourism in five key areas namely inclusive and sustainable economic growth; social inclusiveness, employment and poverty reduction; resource efficiency, environmental protection and climate change; cultural values, diversity and heritage and mutual understanding, peace and security.

Several events lined up to celebrate the IYSTD include a clean-up campaign, sustainable tourism symposium and World Tourism Day celebrations.

The minister said the commemorations were expected to foster a change in policies, business practices and consumer behavior towards a more sustainable approach that can contribute to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals.

"Through the activities that have been put in place across the country, we are hoping to bring awareness and education to all stakeholders and the general public on tourism's contribution to the development agenda, peace, equality, partnerships, prosperity and culture, moving towards a more sustainable and prosperous nation," Mzembi said.

Tourism, considered by government as a low hanging fruit, contributes 10.9 percent to Zimbabwe's Gross Domestic Product, 7.3 percent to total employment, 18.8 percent to export earnings and over a billion U.S. dollars in annual revenue.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 01:43:43|Editor: Tian Shaohui

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U.S. President Donald Trump walks down from the Air Force One at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, the United States , May 4, 2017. (Xinhua/Wang Ying)

BERLIN, May 29(Xinhua) -- Germany's top diplomat Sigmar Gabriel on Monday released harsh words on the United States, saying U.S. President Donald Trump's policies have weakened the West.

"The short-sighted policies of the American government stand against the interests of the European Union. The West has become smaller, at least it has become weaker," Gabriel said.

The German foreign minister referred to the G7 meeting and the NATO summit last week, noting that Trump's performance were unsatisfactory since he refused to endorse NATO's collective defense principles or the Paris agreement on climate change.

"Anyone who speeds up climate change by weakening environmental protection, who sells more weapons in conflict areas and who does not want to politically resolve religious conflicts is putting Europe's peace at risk," Gabriel said.

Gabriel made the remarks on the sidelines of a round-table discussion on migrant crisis in Berlin.

His words also echoed German Chancellor Angela Merkel's "beer tent speech" a day before, when Merkel also cast doubts on Europe's alignment with the United States and Britain.

Merkel, during a campaign in Germany's southern state of Bavaria, said following the election of Trump and Brexit, Europeans "really have to take destiny into their own hands."

Spiegel Online, an influential German news hub, dubbed the words of the two politicians as "a trans-Atlantic turning point," saying their speech clearly want to distance Germany from Trump.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 02:24:01|Editor: Zhang Dongmiao

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras (R) holds talks with his Estonian counterpart Juri Ratas in Athens, Greece, on May 29, 2017. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras welcomed his Estonian counterpart Juri Ratas in Athens on Monday, where they discussed the challenges of the upcoming Estonia's Presidency of the Council of the European Union. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos)

ATHENS, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras welcomed his Estonian counterpart Juri Ratas in Athens on Monday, where they discussed the challenges of the upcoming Estonia's Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

"We had an opportunity to discuss the Estonian presidency's priorities with the Greek prime minister. The bilateral relations between Greece and Estonia as EU member-states and NATO allies are very good," Ratas said in an e-mailed press release issued by the Greek PM's office.

The Estonian leader expressed his certainty that the role of the presidency was to seek a common denominator and the optimum balance between the various sides and forces in the EU.

"We have many challenges ahead of us, the refugee crisis, the recovery from economic instability, but also terrorism," Ratas said, asking the support of Greece and all EU member states to join forces for a better, safer and more prosperous common future.

On his part, Tsipras said that Estonia was taking over the EU presidency at a time presenting serious challenges, including the need to build a new vision.

"This new vision can only be built on a stable Eurozone," Tsipras highlighted in order that Europe and especially Greece that was affected dramatically the past years to exit from the economic crisis.

"We hope for a solution within June, before Estonia takes over the presidency for a final settlement on a reduction of the Greek debt," Tsipras said during a joint press conference with Ratas, according to Greek national news agency AMNA.

Both leaders also expressed their concern over the Cyprus issue and the refugee crisis.

"We agreed that the Cyprus issue is not a bilateral issue, but it is a European issue," Tsipras said.

"This means that European leaders must be fully informed and ensure over the next period that we have the best possible developments -- that dialogue is still open for substantive steps to be taken," he added.
ARUSHA, Tanzania, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) will carry out a massive campaign to address Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in northern Tanzania.

The UN agency will conduct the campaign in Ngorongoro District, which is inhabited by Maasai pastoralists, in collaboration with the Ngorongoro District Council and the Council of Masaai traditional leaders.

Zulmira Rodrigues, Head of UNESCO in Tanzania said in a statement that the exercise will be held during the FGM high season of June 2017 when girls go home from school and parents take the opportunity to circumcise them.

According to him, the campaign, which is expected to reach around 70,000 people, has kicked off with a two-day orientation workshop in Wasso on May 29 and 30. The workshop will bring together 65 campaigners and facilitators composed by district and ward officials, Maasai spiritual and Maasai leaders to guide them on how best to deliver key messages to the targeted populations well as organize for sheltering girls in need.

He said that in the Maasai community, the practice of female genital mutilation is deeply rooted in cultural practices and customary beliefs, part of the ritual passing from childhood to adulthood.

According to district health statistics, in 2015, 90 percent (1,375) of the 1,693 Maasai women who gave birth at health facilities were circumcised.

The Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey 2015/16 indicates that Arusha ranks third nationally on the regions where FGMis practised, with a 41 percent prevalence, right after Manyara and Dodoma.

Since 2015, UNESCO has been collaborating with government and traditional leaders in Ngorongoro district to strengthen the capacities of community-based structures to address sexual and reproductive health related issues including FGM & early marriage, facing girls and young women, as well as promoting girls education with a particular focus on school retention.

Using the socio-cultural approach, UNESCO's initiatives has gained community support and achieved notable impact including change of mindset of some traditional leaders and more than 30 Ngaribas who are now strong advocates against the practice.

Rodrigues said that the campaign starts on the June 1 and will last for one month and will cover 29 villages and 28 schools within the Loliondo Division in Ngorongoro District.
BUCHAREST, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Five Russian diplomats in Moldova were declared persona non grata on Monday, according to news reaching here from Moldova's capital city of Chisinau.

The diplomats have 72 hours to leave the territory of Moldova, local media reported, citing Artur Sarbu, adviser to Foreign Minister Andrei Galbur.

The Chisinau authorities did not explain the reasons for the sudden expulsion.

The action took place less than a week after Estonia last Friday expelled Russian Consul General in Narva Dmitry Kazennov and Consul Andrey Surgaev under similar unexplained circumstances.

Moldova's President Igor Dodon categorically condemned the steps taken by the government, saying the move was "most likely made on an order from the West."

"I want to state that I am deeply indignant at this unfriendly step on the part of representatives of Moldovan diplomacy and categorically condemn it," said the president.

"I understand that the Euro-unionists are irritated by the President's successes achieved in recent months and decided to go on direct provocations that carry the risk of a significant deterioration in Moldovan-Russian relations," Dodon was quoted by local Accent TV as saying.

"I also understand that this is most likely done on an order from the West, maybe even from across the ocean, from those who are concerned that a constructive and effective dialogue has been reached between the Presidency and the Kremlin," he added.

Dodon was elected president last November and has visited Moscow three times already in his first half of year of presidency.

According to him, many problems were solved especially regarding the export of Moldovan products and migrants during his visits to Russia.

He stressed that restoring full-fledged ties with Russia, his "priority goal as head of state," will have a positive impact on the economy of Moldova, and hundreds of thousands of farmers and migrant workers.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 04:09:39|Editor: An

A train carries out a test run on Kenya's Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) on May 24, 2017. (Xinhua/Chen Cheng)

By Bedah Mengo and Wang Xiaopeng

NAIROBI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The first two parts of "My Railway, My Story," a three-part documentary produced by Xinhua News Agency on the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) linking Nairobi to the port city of Mombasa was debuted on a Kenyan broadcaster on Sunday and Monday respectively, with favorable reviews.

The major public broadcaster KBC in the East African nation of Kenya showed the two parts, "Bridges," and "Stations," which revolve around the 79 bridges and 33 stations along the 480-kilometer-long railway respectively, with stories of people dedicated to its construction, during its prime time.

Kenyan observers on Monday lauded the initial two parts of the documentary, which will be 90 minutes long in total.

Stephen Ndegwa, a communication consultant and public policy analyst, noted that the film, "My Railway, My Story" aired Sunday showcased marvelous Chinese artwork in the construction of SGR.

"The documentary is an invaluable record captured at a momentous occasion when Kenya makes another milestone in national development," he said.

"The legacy of this line lives on. In the same case, SGR will inform the country's socio-economic discourse for many years to come, and this is well captured in the documentary."

Henry Wandera, an economics lecturer in Nairobi, believed the documentary was not only informative but also educative on many aspects of the project, after he watched the first part.

"It offers a glimpse of the standard gauge railway and its impact in Kenya. Close to five year's work is frozen in just 30 minutes as one travels from the Kenya to China and back as he interacts with professionals from the two countries."

Through it, he noted that Kenyans were able to learn the impact of the project on the lives of citizens, in particular the female engineers.

"Watching it, one realizes that the SGR is building a new crop of young female professionals in a fashion never seen before. Engineering was a male dominated field but I could not believe seeing a young, beautiful woman operating an earthmover just like a toy. This is a kind of story you do not see in Kenyan media, but this documentary has brought it forth," he said.

In addition to showing the life changing impact of the railway, the documentary further explained the value of the project to Kenya and its neighboring countries, Wandera said.

Many observers noted through the documentary that the railway, a flagship project of China-Kenya practical cooperation, embraces the design of wildlife corridors.

Through the documentary, Kenyans can see that the Chinese have ensured that they build high bridges and fence off sensitive areas to avoid conflicts with human beings and wildlife, Denise Kodhe, the Director General of the Institute for Democracy and Leadership in Africa (IDEA), said.

People in broadcasting services said they can not wait for the last part of the documentary, which is due to be aired in June, after the completion of the modern railway project on Wednesday, calling it a masterpiece.

The influence of the documentary went beyond Kenya, since it was also shown on social network services like Facebook and Twitter, and YouTube, after its premiere on KBC.

Just hours after the release of the first part online, at least 800,000 Internet users on these platforms had watched it, with more than 7,000 "likes" and 1,000 retweets. More than 500 of them commented on the documentary, praising China's efforts in helping other developing countries through infrastructure.

"China is truly transforming Africa," an Internet user named Robin Chetter wrote.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi (C) walks during his visit to Mosul, Iraq May 29, 2017. (Reuter photo)

MOSUL, Iraq, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Monday that Iraqi forces are in the last stages of defeating Islamic State (IS) militants in the remaining neighborhoods of the western side of Mosul.

Abadi made his comments during a visit to the battleground in western Mosul, where he met with the commanders of the Iraqi security forces and the leaders of the paramilitary Hashd Shaabi units.

"The enemy (IS group) is in a state of collapse and cannot achieve any of its goals in Mosul, which once they considered their capital," Abadi said in a televised speech during his meeting with the commanders and fighters of the Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS).

According to Abadi, the security forces have freed about 95 percent of Mosul.

"The life is returning normal on the left bank of Mosul (eastern side of Mosul) and on the right bank (western side) most of it has been freed. We will soon declare full liberation of the city," he said.

Abadi also hailed the latest advance of the Hashd Shaabi units to the border with Syria and their liberation of many towns and villages, including villages of Yazidi minority who were brutally attacked by the extremist IS militants.

"These days, the Hashd Shaabi freed large areas, including areas of Iraqi Yazidis seized by the criminal Daesh (IS group), who killed the citizens and kidnapped their women," Abadi said.

"It is a matter of time and we will return those Yazidi families to their places," he promised.

Abadi, who is also the commander-in-chief of Iraqi forces, arrived in Mosul in the afternoon and held meetings with top commanders of the Iraqi army, federal police and CTS.

Abadi also visited the Hashd Shaabi's Operations Command headquarters in west of Mosul and held a meeting with Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of Hashd Shaabi units.

Earlier in the day, a statement by the Hashd Shaabi units said the units pushed in the early morning to the border line from the newly-freed town of al-Qahtaniyah, some 18 km east of the Syrian border, making their first arrival to the border line in south of Sinjar mountain.

The latest advance is part of a major offensive designed to secure the border areas with neighboring Syria and cut off IS supply routes between Mosul and the Syrian city of Raqqa, the capital of the IS self-declared caliphate.

Also on Monday, Maan al-Saadi, commander of CTS special operations, told Xinhua that the CTS forces have taken control of 70 percent of al-Saha neighborhood in north of the IS-held old city center and killed some 70 IS militants, most of them foreigners and non-Iraqi Arabs, in the battles during the past two days.

The operations near the Syrian border came as Iraqi security forces, backed by the anti-IS international coalition, were conducting a major offensive to dislodge IS militants from their major stronghold in western Mosul.

Mosul, 400 km north of Baghdad, has been under IS control since June 2014, when government forces abandoned their weapons and fled, enabling IS militants to control parts of Iraq's northern and western regions.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 05:30:15|Editor: Zhang Dongmiao

Argentina's President Mauricio Macri (C) speaks while Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra (L) looks on during a news conference in Buenos Aires May 29, 2017. Mauricio Macri said Susana Malcorra has submitted resignation and would leave her office for "personal reasons." (Xinhua/Manuel Fernandez/TELAM)

BUENOS AIRES, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Argentina's President Mauricio Macri said here on Monday Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra would leave her office for "personal reasons."

At a press conference, Macri hailed the immense respect she had gathered in her role.

Malcorra, 62, has been in the position since the start of Macri's administration in December 2015, and she will be replaced on June 12 by Jorge Faurie, Argentina's current ambassador to France.

Malcorra recently accompanied Macri on his tour of Asia to visit the United Arab Emirates, China and Japan.

Malcorra said her work as foreign minister was "the greatest professional challenge I have had and the highest honor to represent Argentineans in the world."

In an interview with Xinhua in January, Malcorra had highlighted Argentina's bilateral ties with China.

She said that the relationship was "at a very good stage" and expressed "a great interest" to maintain the links.

"China has become one of the investors most interested in Argentina and have been winners of various awards that have been made in renewable energies," she added.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 05:40:18|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ANKARA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) announced its newly-elected Central Executive Board list on Monday, local daily Hurriyet reported.

AKP's 50-seat Central Decision Making and Executive Council held its first meeting in Ankara under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's leadership as the party's new chairman after less than three years.

Three new names were introduced to new central executive body, the 15-seat Central Executive Board, which members will assist Erdogan as party's deputy chairmen.

Binali Yildirim, the Prime Minister and the former party Chairman, will serve as the Deputy Chairman of the party. Mahir Unal has been appointed as the spokesman of the party.

According to local daily Hurriyet, Erdogan is expected to reshuffle his cabinet after he completes renewing his A-team in the party.

Earlier Erdogan demanded the ministers to prepare a 180-day roadmap including practical suggestions to outline their priorities and programs.

President Erdogan was reelected as the ruling party chairman at an extraordinary congress on May 21, less than three years since his giving up the post.

A revised Constitution passed in last month's referendum pave the way for Erdogan to return to the party helm.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 05:45:21|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WASHINGTON, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Rice, one of the world's most important staple foods sustaining more than half of the global population, was first domesticated in China about 10,000 years ago, a new study suggested Monday.

"Such an age for the beginnings of rice cultivation and domestication would agree with the parallel beginnings of agriculture in other regions of the world during a period of profound environmental change when the Pleistocene was transitioning into the Holocene," Lu Houyuan, professor of the Institute of Geology and Geophysics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, who led the study, said.

The research, published in the U.S. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was done in collaboration with Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Relics and Archaeology and the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Questions surrounding the origin and domestication of rice have led to a lot of debate in the last decade.

Rice remains have previously been recovered from the Shangshan site in the Lower Yangtze of China and recognized as the earliest examples of rice cultivation.

However, the age of the rice fossils was derived through radiocarbon dating of organic matter in pottery shards, which can be contaminated with older carbon sources, Lu said.

To constrain the age of the phytoliths, the researchers developed new ways of isolating rice phytoliths from carbon sources, such as clays and carbonate, and dated the samples directly using radiocarbon dating.

It turned out that phytoliths retrieved from the early stage of the Shangshan site are about 9,400 years old.

Further studies showed that approximately 36 percent of rice phytoliths at Shangshan had more than nine fish-scale decorations, less than the approximately 67 percent counted from modern domesticated rice, but larger than the approximately 17 percent found in modern wild rice.

That means that rice domestication may have begun at Shangshan at about 10,000 years ago during the beginning of the Holocene, when taking into account the distance between phytolith samples and the lowest bottom of cultural strata of the site as well as a slow rate of rice domestication, Lu said.

The time coincided with the domestication of wheat in the Near East and maize in northern South America, both of which are also believed to have occurred at about 10,000 years ago, when the global climate experienced dramatic changes from cold glacial to warm interglacial.
RABAT, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The second Climate Chance World Summit will be held in Morocco's southern city of Agadir on September 11-13 with the aim to assess climate efforts by non-state actors.

The summit will provide a unique opportunity for the whole community of non-state actors to review the global climate action agenda set at the UN climate conferences and to assess the progress made by non-state actors across the world, the authorities of Souss-Massa region, the capital city of which is Agadir, said in a statement on Monday.

It will also encourage the pooling of experience and innovations, pinpoint more effective solutions and seek new initiatives from climate action, the statement added.

The summit will bring into sharper focus the issues facing the African continent and tackle various challeges of African cities, it noted.
RABAT, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Moroccan police arrested on Monday the leader of the protest movement, Nasser Zefzafi, who had been on the run since Friday.

Zefzafi was detained along with other individuals for "undermining the security of the state" and other criminal acts, the Public Prosecutor of the city Court of Appeal said in a statement.

Prosecutors said the arrest was ordered after Zefzafi "obstructed, in the company of a group of individuals, freedom of worship" at the mosque in Al-Hoceima.

After his arrest warrant, violent clashes erupted between protesters and police in the city and Moroccan authorities announced on Saturday the arrest of some 20 people following these clashes.

Hundreds of Moroccans protested late on Sunday in several cities in support of over 20 demonstrators who were arrested Saturday in the northeastern part of the country.

The situation in the city of Al Hoceima has been tense since the death of the fish vendor Mouhcine Fikri in October after climbing into a rubbish lorry to retrieve his swordfish confiscated by police.
Farmers transplant riceseedlings into paddy field in Dawa District of Panjin, northeast China's Liaoning Province, May 18, 2017. (Xinhua/Long Lei)

WASHINGTON, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Rice, one of the world's most important staple foods sustaining more than half of the global population, was first domesticated in China about 10,000 years ago, a new study suggested Monday.

"Such an age for the beginnings of rice cultivation and domestication would agree with the parallel beginnings of agriculture in other regions of the world during a period of profound environmental change when the Pleistocene was transitioning into the Holocene," Lu Houyuan, professor of the Institute of Geology and Geophysics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, who led the study, said.

The research, published in the U.S. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was done in collaboration with Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Relics and Archaeology and the Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Questions surrounding the origin and domestication of rice have led to a lot of debate in the last decade.

Rice remains have previously been recovered from the Shangshan site in the Lower Yangtze of China and recognized as the earliest examples of rice cultivation.

However, the age of the rice fossils was derived through radiocarbon dating of organic matter in pottery shards, which can be contaminated with older carbon sources, Lu said.

To constrain the age of the phytoliths, the researchers developed new ways of isolating rice phytoliths from carbon sources, such as clays and carbonate, and dated the samples directly using radiocarbon dating.

It turned out that phytoliths retrieved from the early stage of the Shangshan site are about 9,400 years old.

Further studies showed that approximately 36 percent of rice phytoliths at Shangshan had more than nine fish-scale decorations, less than the approximately 67 percent counted from modern domesticated rice, but larger than the approximately 17 percent found in modern wild rice.

That means that rice domestication may have begun at Shangshan at about 10,000 years ago during the beginning of the Holocene, when taking into account the distance between phytolith samples and the lowest bottom of cultural strata of the site as well as a slow rate of rice domestication, Lu said.

The time coincided with the domestication of wheat in the Near East and maize in northern South America, both of which are also believed to have occurred at about 10,000 years ago, when the global climate experienced dramatic changes from cold glacial to warm interglacial.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 06:10:38|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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QUITO, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Ecuadoran President Lenin Moreno on Monday urged WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange not to intervene in Ecuadorian politics.

Assange has been sheltered by the Ecuadorian embassy in London since he sought asylum there in 2012.

"He must respect the condition in which he is, not to intervene in Ecuadorian politics and not intervene in the politics of friendly countries either," Moreno told a press conference in capital Quito.

Moreno, who took over as president on May 24, responded after Assange wrote on Twitter last week that "Ecuadorians can feel confident that, if WikiLeaks obtains proof of corruption in Ecuador, it will publish them."

The asylum was granted to Assange by Ecuador's former President Rafael Correa as the WikiLeaks founder faced potential extradition to the U.S., and Moreno stated he would maintain the same policy.

"Ecuador is extremely respectful...with the lives of human beings. That is why it granted him asylum in its embassy," said Moreno.

The U.S. is seeking to try Assange for espionage after WikiLeaks published thousands of confidential American documents in 2010.

He was also being sought by Sweden for allegations of sexual assault but the Swedish prosecutor-general abandoned the case on May 19.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 06:25:43|Editor: Zhang Dongmiao

Guests from China and Kenya attend the launching ceremony of the 2016 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, May 29, 2017. Robust involvement in activities that promote social and ecological sustainability has become the defining feature of Chinese firms that have invested in Kenya, the 2016 CSR report said on Monday. (Xinhua/Li Baishun)

NAIROBI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Robust involvement in activities that promote social good and ecological sustainability has become the defining feature of Chinese firms that have invested in Kenya, a report said on Monday.

The 2016 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report, launched by the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), revealed great enthusiasm by Chinese firms to advance the welfare of Kenyan communities.

Kenyan officials, Chinese Ambassador to Kenya Liu Xianfa and senior executives from the CCCC, attended the launch of the CSR reports that gave a positive score on the activities of Chinese firms.

Principal Secretary of Kenya's Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure, Paul Maringa Mwangi, lauded Chinese firms for prioritizing community welfare and ecological protection during implementation of mega infrastructure projects in the country.

"Social and environmental consciousness has become the defining feature of modern businesses and Chinese firms have embraced this concept whose impact is being felt in the country," Mwangi remarked

Mwangi noted that over 34,000 Kenyans have benefited from skills development provided by CRBC as part of its corporate social responsibility.

Liu said Beijing supports social and environmental consciousness in overseas investments to help improve living standards of local people.

He noted that corporate social responsibility has improved the image of Chinese firms abroad while enhancing their competitiveness in the global market.

Kenya is keen to strengthen partnership with Chinese firms to modernize its infrastructure, foster environmental protection and skills upgrade for the country's youth.
KHARTOUM, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Sudan said on Monday that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on cooperation in fighting violent extremism.

"The deal intends to address at-risk youth and vulnerable people potential to be affected by extremism and build national, state and civil society's capacities to prevent and address violent extremism in Sudan," Sudan's National Commission for Counter-Terrorism (SNCCT) said in a statement.

The implementation period will last three years, it added.

According to the MoU, the two parties will work to support the development of a national anti-extremism strategy that addresses capacity development, continuation of in-depth research, strategic communications and advocacy.

The SNCCT was established in 2004 with the aim to combat the danger of extremism inside Sudan.

The UNDP, in partnership with the SNCCT, conducted earlier a comprehensive study on the trend of violent extremism in Sudan in 2016-17, in which a total of 380 people were interviewed, including former members of the Islamic State and former prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 06:25:46|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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By Grandesso Federico

CANNES, France, May 29 (Xinhua) -- U.S. awarded actress Elisabeth Moss said she was optimistic on the role of women in cinema nowadays in an interview with Xinhua in Cannes, France.

Present at the Cannes Film Festival with the TV series "Top of the Lake-China Girl" by Jane Campion and with the Sunday's awarded Golden Palm winner film "The Square" by Ruben Ostsund, Moss said "I have been lucky in the sense I worked with some great men who were very secure of themselves and don't feel the need to suppress other women voices."

"Sometimes I entered a room where I felt I was considered the actress and maybe nothing more," Moss told Xinhua.

Moss successfully starred "The Square" by Ruben Ostsund, at the moment she is busy with "The Handmaid's Tale", another critically-acclaimed series. Moss for her work on TV got a Golden Globe for "Top of the Lake" and six Emmy Awards nominations for "Mad Men".

On the role of women in cinema nowadays, Moss said that it is getting better and definitely improving. There are women that are taking it upon themselves as filmmaker, producers, studio staff or even as actresses. There are also women who are taking care that other women can get hired behind the camera but in general this positive process of inclusion has to continue to happen until this is no longer an issue.

Moss then commented "I'm positive but it was shocking to see that during the 70th celebrations here in Cannes that Jane Campion was the only female director to have won the Golden Palm. I think you have to constantly do something and not only say just few words something, it is key to hire women behind the camera and not just talk about it."

She continues "I have seen a change so much in the past 10-15 years, the field is so competitive and there are so many incredible female performances and I have seen women win and other lose."

Moss then spoke about a positive female model for her. "Jodie Foster was for me a huge inspiration for the first season of this TV series and I had the opportunity to tell her that a couple of years later, which was very cool."

"When I got the part in season one. The hardest thing for me was just how am I going to look tough? Then I thought Jodie Foster in "The Silence of the Lambs" did it so, maybe I could try to do it. She has a certain fragility and vulnerability, but she is so smart, her power lies in her intelligence".

After Jodie, Moss was also inspired by Mireille Enos as well in the TV series "The Killings". "She made an incredible performance,"the U.S. actress said.

Talking always about inspiring women, Moss was very happy with the collaboration with Jane Campion.

"It feels like she is supporting you, making you feel safe, Jane makes you feel this is your stage, she tells you that you just need to play around and try things, that incredibly makes you feel confident," Moss explained.

Asked about her work on set, Moss said that the character she played here was probably the most different from her she ever played in the past me, "she so closed off and so shut down sometimes, I can tell you that I'm not like that and I'm a little bit the worst poker face and it is hard for me not to show my emotions," she added.

For Moss the long format TV is very rewarding as an actor because you get to spend much more time with the character and you really get to try to find so many different elements during the shooting. That's a challenge. But she prefers also to vary her characters rather than playing a repetitive roles.

On her role as detective, Moss said she tried to seem to have some experience of being a cop. "I was very lucky to have a great detective consultant in Sydney, she taught me everything, she was wonderful," she stressed.

Finally questioned on what makes a TV series successful nowadays, Moss answered without hesitation, "have a good writing".
Source: Xinhua| 2017-05-30 07:00:56|Editor: An

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SANTIAGO, May 29 (Xinhua) -- China's wine company, Yantai Changyu Pioneer Wine, has signed an agreement with Chile's Bethia group to buy three vineyards in the South American country for over 50 million U.S. dollars.

According to the Chilean El Mercurio daily, the operation will be concluded at the end of June, once the relevant authorizations have been obtained from China.

"Through these acquisitions, Changyu, which has operations in China, France, Italy and New Zealand, wants to increase its presence in the Latin American market through Chile," the report said.

In a statement, Bethia said that it entered the industry in the middle of 2006. "By the end of 2016, the group reached sales of 1.5 million boxes, reaching seventh place on the national level."

Changyu is a large wine company in China, with its origins going back to 1892.
Scotiabank launches $50M development fund

At that same event, the bank also launched the 2017 edition of the Scotiabank Vision Achiever Programme (SVAP).

Addressing SME owners at the launch, General Manager, Small Business and Self-Service Channels, Scotiabank Trinidad and Tobago, Gregory Hines, said SMEs are an important customer segment for us. SMEs play an important role in the growth and development of economies globally. They play an even more important role in creating employment, generating wealth and supporting sustained economic growth in smaller economies...

Here in TT, there are more than 20,000 registered SME, employing over 200,000 people and contributing more than a third of our countrys GDP (gross domestic product). When we consider the challenges associated with the current economic climate, SMEs now more than any other time in our history, have the potential to play a greater role in our economy. Hines said there are however several impediments in the way of SME growth in TT. Two impediments that we have identified and which we have decided to address directly are access to affordable financing and availability of practical, hands-on, relevant business training. (Scotiabank) is pleased to officially launch two initiative which are geared at addressing these challenges. The first, is our SME Development Credit Fund, which provides low cost financing options for qualified businesses. The second is Vision Achievers 2017, which provide practical, hands-on, and relevant business training to entrepreneurs, Hines said.

Speaking about SVAP, Vice-President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrative Officer of Scotiabanks South and East Caribbean operations, Reshard Mohammed, said the programme was developed with the entrepreneur in mind - to help build capacity - so that they can manage their operations more efficiently and effectively.
Dialysis nurses, patients concerned about sanitation

Workers from a cleaning company have refused to empty bins and clean the area where dialysis treatment takes place six days a week.

Nurses have been complaining to management that due to the poor sanitation patients continue to be at risk of contracting infections.

Up until Saturday the situation was not rectified. A nurse told Newsday, There is no magic needed to clear up this mess.

All workers have to do is bear in mind that they are dealing with a special type of patient who needs an extremely clean environment when they are dialysing. Nurses said that in the dialysis ward they use needles, syringes, tubes and other equipment and if the ward is not kept clean and sanitized patients could become infected. Workers from the cleaning company told Newsday they are refusing to clean the ward because they are not receiving their salaries on time. Calls yesterday to Health Minister Terrence Deyalsinghs cellular phone went unanswered.
iStock/Thinkstock(TAMPA, Fla.) -- Dozens were hospitalized amid blazing temperatures during an electronic dance music festival in Florida, despite efforts by organizers to keep people cool and hydrated.



Tampa Fire Rescue Department Public Information Officer Jason Penny told ABC News that a total of 32 people were transported to hospitals on Saturday from the 2017 Sunset Music Festival at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, nearly 10 more people than last year.



Another 65 patients were treated on site Saturday, Penny said. Those who ended up at the hospital were treated for non-life-threatening issues, including dehydration and intoxication, he added.



Authorities are awaiting final numbers of those hospitalized on Sunday.



This year, organizers offered free water bottles and set up water stations, canopies and a cooling area at the two-day event, where more than 50,000 people were expected to attend. The additions were made after two people died last year from apparent overdoses while dozens of others were hospitalized, according to according to ABC affiliate WFTS-TV in Tampa.



Temperatures in Tampa reached a high of 91 degrees Fahrenheit over Memorial Day weekend, a few degrees hotter than last year, according to forecasters.



In addition to hospitalizations, there were 30 felony arrests and 16 misdemeanor arrests at the festival, Tampa Police Department Public Information Officer Stephen Hegarty told ABC News.



Thats 13 more arrests than last year, WFTS-TV reported.



There were also 47 ejections from the festival and five citations for possession of marijuana.



But overall, there were no major criminal incidents on either day of the festival, Hegarty said.



The lineup for this years Sunset Music Festival included electronic musical trios Major Lazer and Above & Beyond.



"Obviously this is a rave scene, but not everybody does drugs," Rashad Arjomand, who attended the festival, told WFTS-TV. "Some of us like to come out here and party."



Festival organizers did not immediately return ABC News' request for comment.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Sweet deal with Brasso Seco farmers

Speaking at the launch of Digicel (TT) Foundations Honey Seco brand at Digicel West Mall branch, project manager and secretary for the Brasso Seco/Morne La Croix Farmers Association Winston Maraj said that from last July to date, it has been a good time for the farmers as they saw their dreams, Finally come to pass. Maraj said the association applied for funding from the Digicel Foundation and received $65,000 to invest in their project. He said with the funding they were able to purchase bees, hives and equipment along with other items to start an apiary. After a group of us completed a course at the Governments Apiary Division, I asked numerous people to help us do something with our talent. But no one helped.

We reach out to the Ministry of Agriculture and other businesses to invest in us. But no one was interested. Now today we are seeing a dream come through with the help from the Digicel Foundation. Maraj explained that following the course at the Apiary Division they were told that the group did not qualify to get equipment to start up the business via the government.

He said despite the delayed honey season (because of the heavy rain fall late last year) they were able to harvest their first batch of honey, and decided to call the product, Honey Seco. Due to the fact climate change can adversely affect the bee business, we have engineered a rain water harvesting system, and have included the use of solar energy to guarantee the bees are comfortable and productive, Maraj said. Maraj said they have also applied to the Canadian High Commission for funding and CANARI has also been assisting with technical advice to strengthen the business. We plan to use the income from the honey sales to re-invest in small enterprises in our community, and also go into other communities to help others with similar initiatives. Digicel Foundation Chairman Garvin Medera announced the foundation will be partnering with the community for another year with funding to further develop the enterprise.

We will market the product as best as possible to the wider Trinidad and Tobago community.

For us we have invested US$10,000 and what we are now pledging to do is to continue supporting and provide $100,000 for the association. Medera said they partnered with the association to implement a community bee Apiary, and they were very pleased to see a lot of positive change within the community, and it proved to be very successful which provided the premium honey today.
Dance action at the Hyatt

At the ballroom, the highly competitive day-long event got off to a quick pace with solo and dual performances in the energetic hip hop category.

This was followed by funky jazz dances among other categories in group performances.

The pieces were well received by a hyped up crowd that included parents and other supporters. Jason Charles, spokesman for the Trinidad and Tobago Allstar Association told Newsday that 15 teams from clubs, dance studios, gyms and schools had registered to take part in the event which was doubled from last year when the first edition was held.

While the initial objective focussed on female dancers, to give them an opportunity to be part of a sport that embraced their femininity, it was obvious from the performances that males were very much in contention for winning in some dance categories. The meet, Charles said, is designed to allow athletes to put into practice the skills they would have acquired while instilling confidence, and exposing them to an international standard of competition.

Among the 15 teams represented were Sepos (South East Port of Spain) dance group, Spirit Academy, Anaige Dance Company, Angel Dance Collective, Parvati Hindu Girls College, Phoenix All Stars, and Rebel Elite. The judging panel included two international judges - Casey Rosenberg, teacher and choreographer at Miamis Focal Point Dance Studio and a former Miami Heat Dancer and University of Miami alumnae, and Tricia Brown, choreographer/artistic director for International Megastar Flo Rida.
Quarrels within NCC, long after Carnival

Commission maintenance supervisor Marrius Gorking is claiming the organisation and more specifically, his department, is under siege at the hands of one of its commissioners. This place should not be operating like this, said an irate Gorking. I want to know who is in charge! Who is in charge, Mr (Kenny) De Silva or Mr Darian Marcelle, because Marcelle is moving like he is the Chairman and not De Silva, Gorking said.

According to Gorking, a number of issues are plaguing his department and he is blaming Marcelle.

Tradesmen are being paid as labourers because they have no certification but yet they are doing tradesmen work. Gorking is also claiming that a take-it-or-leaveit policy is being applied to these workers.

Another issue that has been festering is a lack of staff for the maintenance department. This according to Gorking stems from a lack of fairness. A number of persons in the department can do anything they want. Come when they want, leave work when they want and this is causing a shortage in the staff. You ask for six workers but this doesnt make sense because the workers are called away from their duties to do this mans bidding. Gorking said staff who are not in the good graces of certain commissioners are feeling tense and the work environment is less than comfortable. Just imagine, I was verbally abused by a woman. I wrote a report as the Department Supervisor but nothing ever came out of it, Gorking said.

But contacted for a response, Marcelle who is a radio talk show host flatly denied all of Gorkings claims. I have no direct authority in the National Carnival Commission regarding the daily running of operations. I do policy and not day to day operations. Except for the Carnival season, where I have to expedite work, I am not there for the day to day running of the organisation.

Furthermore, I dont have to defend myself against these allegations because I have nothing to defend. Marcelle said if people would stop ranting and raving and get on with their work, the NCC would be a far better place. Talk to others. There is a Human Resource Manger and there is also a head for Mr Gorkings department who is Owen Serrette. Talk to them but this has nothing to do with me, Marcelle said.

NCC chairman De Silva, when contacted, said he had no knowledge of the claims of victimisation being made by Gorking. De Silva also confirmed that commissioner Marcelle has no in put in day to day operations but deals with policies.
Mayor: Homelessness a top priority

Martinez made the statements while responding to questions from reporters at an event commemorating the 100th anniversary of Woodford squares renaming last week.

He said while he understands the issue of homeless people is one that requires special care, he is prepared to meet the challenge and pick up where his predeccesor Keron Valentine, left off.

The matter as it is right now is currently before the magistrates court, but I will say that I have been working closely with the Ministry of Social Development in drafting a document that will be presented to Cabinet within the next few days and whose intention will be to seek some long-term solution with respect to the homeless, Martinez said.

Last year, then mayor Valentine, in an attempt to crack down on homeless people sleeping in Tamarind Square locked the gates to the square. In addition to homelessness, Martinez said he was also prepared to work closely with engineers of the city corporation and the Ministry of Works and Transport to help reduce flooding in downtown Port-of-Spain during the Rainy Season.

At the event last week, guide and historian Joseph Bertram was on hand to explain the Squares importance in Port-of-Spains historical timeline.

The square has been here for a while needless to say, it originally came about when the Spanish governor Chacon rerouted the St Annes river that once flowed through here to transform the port into the city we now know as Portof- Spain.

Then when the British took control, the governor Sir Ralph Woodford, transformed this plot of land into a park area where he brought in trees from Venezuela giving it the name, The Green Heart of Port-of-Spain. Valery Taylor, CEO of the National Heritage Trust said plans are underway to provide tours on a more regular basis to visitors and bring greater insight into the history behind Woodford Square.
Cabinet approves US$11M for fund

This sum represents 4.98 percent of the total programme for the SDF, a Ministry of Planning and Development release said.

The ninth cycle covers the period 2017 to 2020, and the payment will be made in instalments over the period of the cycle.

The Special Development Fund is a partnership among CDB members where borrowing and non-borrowing members contribute to the fund financially.

Trinidad and Tobago is one of the major contributors to the fund as a member country.

In 2013, for the eight cycle, Cabinet had agreed through the Ministry of Planning and Development, to the sum of US$10 million or 4.25 percent of the total amount of US$348 million of the funds value. The eighth cycle covers 2013 to December 31, 2016. In 2012, TTs contribution to the seventh cycle was US$3.5 million.

The SDF provides loan funding as well as grant financing for sustainable development initiatives in developing states of the Region.

This SDF, the release said, plays a critical role in the international effort to reduce poverty in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of which Trinidad and Tobagos National Development Strategy  Vision 2030 is tied to  and assists with economic transformation and major economic adjustments within the CDBs borrowing member countries.

Trinidad and Tobago has benefitted from the CDB through loans for energy sector support in 2014, establishment of the Caribbean Court of Justice in 2003, establishment of the National Energy Skills Centre in 2000 and southern roads development programme in 1995. Meanwhile Minister of Planning and Development Camille Robinson-Regis was TTs representative at the CDBs Board of Governors 47th Annual Meeting in the Turks and Caicos. The three-day meeting ended last Friday.
Free nursery school and kindergarten for families nationwide as well as tighter control of ballooning medical costs highlight Japan's newest strategies to achieve growth, The Nikkei learned Monday.

The government's policy and reform draft prioritizes investment in human capital, a more efficient social safety net, and research and development spending. The draft will be tweaked based on discussions by Japan's Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy and the ruling coalition, then approved by the cabinet as early as June 9. The budget for next fiscal year will be based on this framework.
Japan's potato chip fans recently went on a panicked buying spree as the country's snack food companies were forced to partially halt production of the favorite crisps.

But while this episode of food scarcity is not a food crisis, its cause - an unprecedented series of typhoons that destroyed domestic potato crops - is an attention-grabbing indicator of the need to improve food system resilience in the face of increasing climate change.

In August 2016, Hokkaido, the nation's northernmost island prefecture, was lashed by four typhoons. The resulting floods drastically reduced agricultural harvests, including the autumn harvest of a particular variety of potato used to make chips. Although potato chip production is slowly recovering with the help of other potato sources, this incident highlights one example of precarious risk management in Japan's agricultural supply chains.

Historically, Hokkaido has rarely experienced typhoons, but this is changing with new weather patterns including higher average temperatures, longer summer days, more rain and less snowfall. Because Hokkaido is home to nearly one fourth of Japan's arable land and is the country's leading producer of major agricultural products - including wheat, soybeans and potatoes - the prefecture exemplifies how the impacts of climate change could have profound consequences for domestic crop security.

So how is Japan's agricultural sector responding to the threat of climate change? The Agriculture, Forestry and the Fisheries Ministry set out its strategies in a "Climate Change Adaptation Plan" announced in August 2015. Recognizing that agriculture, forestry and fisheries in Japan "have been put at risk a due to large-scale disasters caused by record high temperatures, torrential rain and heavy snow," the ministry aims to implement several adaptation plans. Some of these tactics will expand research on, and dissemination of, adaptive technologies and new plant breeds that can cope with the impacts of climate change.

The agriculture ministry and other government-scale efforts are a crucial part of climate change adaptation in the agricultural sector, but through our research on "agrodiversity" at the United Nations University in Tokyo, we are finding that traditional wisdom also offers vital solutions.
The British Labour party vying for a majority in the British Parliament during next month election has pledged to recognize officially the State of Palestine, while backing the two-state solution as a means to end the decades-long conflict. The party, in its manifesto for the 2017 election to take place in June, has indicated that it will give a new course for UKs policy in the conflict pointing out that there is no military solution to end the antagonism between Palestine and Israel, Middle East Monitor (MEMO) reported.

The manifesto calls on both sides to take peace-friendly actions but also urges Israel to end its settlement development policies as well as the decade-long blockade on the Gaza Strip ruled by the Hamas movement.

The Labour party also urges Hamas to end attacks and rockets and to enter negotiations for peace.

That means both an end to the blockade, occupation and settlements, and an end to rocket and terror attacks. Labour will continue to press for an immediate return to meaningful negotiations leading to a diplomatic resolution, the manifesto says.

Activists and experts of the conflict have pointed out that UKs stance on conflict has shifted in favour of Israel under Prime Minister Theresa May. Her administration slammed early this year the UN Human Rights Councils criticism on Israels settlement policies and continued violation of Palestinian rights. UK accused the council of bias.

While the former US administration condemned Israels unlawful occupation, which was leading to one-state solution, the May government has sided with Israel arguing that it was proud of its role in the creating of the state of Israel.
Ansar al-Sharia, a group that became famous in 2012 after the US held it responsible for killing its Ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens together with three other Americans has disbanded.

The group explained in a statement that it has been weakened by the latest round of fighting with the Libyan National Army led by Khalifa Haftar and has also lost most of its leadership. Its manpower is believed to have been reduced as some of its members have joined the Islamic State group.

While admitting that its existence has come to an end, Ansar al-Sharia called on its militants and all other factions to unite themselves and pursue the fight against anti-revolution parties in the country. The group has close ties with the Al-Qaeda network. Formed in Benghazi after the end of Colonel Muammar Ghadafis regime in 2011, the group is urging Islamist groups to form a united front in the city to fend Western control.

Ansar al-Sharias hay days were in 2014 when it took control of Benghazi, the countrys second largest city. Its fall is believed to have started at the end of 2014 when its leader Mohammed Azahawi was killed in clashes with the LNA. The group at its prime was present in Benghazi and Derna, eastern Libya, with offshoots in Sirte and Sabratha, western Libya.

The dissolution of the Ansar al-Sharia could be a morale booster to the LNA that its offensive against extremist groups is yielding fruits. However, the Revolutionary Shura Council of Benghazi, a local alliance of Islamist militias, is still operating in the city and is expected to challenge the progress of the forces under Haftars command. Haftar earlier this month launched an offensive to oust militant fighters from their two remaining strongholds in Benghazi.
Moroccan authorities arrested, on Monday morning, Nasser Zefzafi, the fugitive leader of the protests that have been shaking the northern town of Alhoceima for more than six months.

Zefzafi, 39, was on the run since Friday when the General Prosecutor ordered his arrest after his interruption of a Friday sermon at a local mosque.

Zefzafi will stand trial for hindering religious rites, an offense punishable under Article 221 of the penal code with prison terms ranging from 6 months to 3 years.

On May 26, Zefzafi created enormous disorder by interrupting a Friday sermon while criticizing the Imam for likening the protests in the Rif to sedation (Fitna). Zefzafi, who was surrounded by protesters, spoke with an ultra-conservative religious rhetoric against the Imam and the establishment and vowed to continue protests.

Clashes erupted when Zefzafis supporters throw stones at law enforcement officials who were about to arrest Zefzafi in his neighbourhood. The outbreak of clashes marked a turning point in the peacefulness that characterised the protests in the last six months.

Following this violent event in which several policemen were injured and one handicapped for life, the Public Prosecutor ordered the arrest of some 28 individuals involved in the protests on charges, inter alia, of receiving funds from abroad with a view to undermining public order and defaming the symbols of the nation.

Several sit-ins were staged in different Moroccan cities, with the largest taking place in Tangier, Casablanca and Rabat calling for meeting the social and economic demands of the Rif protesters. A coalition of mostly leftist intellectuals and organizations signed a petition calling for dialogue between authorities and protesters.

Tensions have been simmering in Al Hoceima since the death of Mohsin Fkri who was crushed in a garbage truck while he jumped in, in an attempt to retrieve his fish that was confiscated by the police last October.

Since then, protests have been building up in the city characterized by peacefulness. Protesters call for more jobs, hospitals, a university and social justice.

Upon directives from King Mohammed VI, a Ministerial delegation visited the city last week and inspected the progress made in a set of projects in fields including infrastructure, health, education, fisheries and agriculture. In this regards, 20 billion dirhams have been allocated to carry out social and economic projects within the upcoming five years in the city and its region.
States are beginning to remove registration as a separate bureaucratic step in exercising the right to vote. Photo: Jeff Swensen/2016 Getty Images

With the unanimous passage in both the Illinois House and Senate of automatic voter registration (AVR) legislation, it is safe to say this particular reform is moving along rapidly with bipartisan support.

To make a long story short, AVR takes the 1993 Motor Voter concept  giving people an opportunity to register to vote when they engage in common interactions with state agencies like obtaining a drivers license  and takes it up a notch. While Motor Voter was an opt-in system, AVR is opt-out  eligible voters are registered unless they choose not to let their names go onto the voting rolls.

The reform was first enacted in 2015 in Oregon and California. Oregon was the first state to fully implement the system, and it produced nearly 100,000 new voting participants (out of 225,000 eligible voters automatically registered) in the 2016 general election. The District of Columbia, Vermont, and West Virginia approved AVR legislatively in 2016; Connecticut and Georgia instituted similar systems administratively the same year. Alaska voters approved AVR in the November 2016 elections. Colorado joined the movement in 2017, and now (once some House and Senate differences are worked out) it seems Illinois will as well.

The sheer logic of the idea has caught stealth advocates of voter suppression more than a bit off-guard. Yes, there have been specious complaints that AVR would make it easier for non-citizens obtaining drivers licenses to register to vote. But the new systems typically screen out people who obtain drivers licenses with documents that do not establish their eligibility to vote. So its really just a matter of removing voter-registration requirements as a weapon for voter suppression, and exposing those who just want to make it harder for eligible voters to participate in elections.
The presidential son-in-law is acting as a shadow Secretary of State even as he becomes the focus of investigations into Russia-Trump contacts and perhaps some underlying business deals. Photo: Andrew Harrer - Pool/Getty Images

It has been something of a running joke that presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner has been given a portfolio as broad as, well, the president himself. Taking it more seriously, former Reagan advisor Bruce Bartlett commented last month that youd have to go back to Harry Hopkins, one of Franklin D. Roosevelts closest advisers, to find someone similar.

Mr. Kushner has been charged with at least three major tasks, any one of which would be a full-time job: working on Middle East peace, preparing for a state visit by President Xi Jinping of China and overseeing a broad effort to reorganize the federal government utilizing business techniques.

Well, now we know that Kushner was basically in charge of a large portion of the presidents first overseas tripto the point that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had to split up responsibilities with him. Heres how Stef Kight at Axios put it in a piece entitled The Shadow Secretary of State.

A White House official told Axios that Kushner was the one who helped plan and oversee the first part of the trip  to Saudi Arabia, Israel and Italy  with the theme of speaking to 3 of the worlds biggest religions. During the Saudi Arabia stop, an arms deal Kushner reportedly helped negotiate was finalized.

Tillerson lets Kushner take the lead on Mexico, the Middle East and even China, while Tillerson handles Russia, meets with other world leaders, participates in foreign councils and forums and gives the public briefings.

Kushners increasingly evident authority over foreign policy is all the more interesting given new, multiple reports that put him squarely in the perilous story of contacts between Team Trump and Russia, before and potentially after the Inauguration. Both the Washington Post and New York Times have reported that Kushner met with Russian ambassador Sergei Kislyakthe man already made so famous via interactions with Attorney General Jeff Sessions and with Trump himselfto try (unsuccessfully, as it happens) to set up a secure back channel for communications between the nascent US administration and the Kremlin.

The Times account suggested an innocent motivethe desire to accelerate discussions over the nightmare in Syriabut the incident is clearly investigation-bait. Thats in part because the central figure of interest in the Russia-Trump saga, former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, was also in the meeting with Kushner and Kislyak. And both the Times and Post stories on the back-channel request mention a separate, later Kushner get-together with Russian banker Sergey Gorkov, a Putin crony. The Post reports this meeting is now of investigative interest to the FBI. And this is why, as Reuters reports:

FBI investigators are examining whether Russians suggested to Kushner or other Trump aides that relaxing economic sanctions would allow Russian banks to offer financing to people with ties to Trump, said the current U.S. law enforcement official.

This is where the story becomes potentially toxic for Kushner and the White House generally: where money and Russia get into the same sentences. Congressional Democrats are certainly interested to find out more, as Adam Schiff, the House Intelligence Committees ranking minority member, indicated on a Sunday show yesterday:

Schiff said that he expects Kushner to be asked to testify before the House Intelligence Committee. The House Intelligence Committees top Democrat called for a review of Jared Kushners security clearance over questions of whether he was truthful in his application about his contacts with Russia.

And even though Kushners status in the White House is presumably sky-high thanks to the relatively successful first half of Trumps overseas trip, the Times now reports an underlying source of tension:

The most serious point of contention between the president and his son-in-law, two people familiar with the interactions said, was a video clip this month of Mr. Kushners sister Nicole Meyer pitching potential investors in Beijing on a Kushner Companies condominium project in Jersey City. At one point, Ms. Meyer  who remains close to Mr. Kushner  dangled the availability of EB-5 visas to the United States as an enticement for Chinese financiers willing to spend $500,000 or more.

In the following days during routine West Wing meetings, the president made several snarky, disparaging comments about Mr. Kushners family and the visas that were clearly intended to express his annoyance, two aides said. Mr. Kushner did not respond, at least not in earshot.

Russia and money, China and money. the interplay of personal international business interests and people handling the United States international business keeps popping up with this administration, doesnt it? If there continues to be a whiff of underlying corruption at play, Jared Kushner and his father-in-law had better hope the many people in a position to know what lies beneath the headlinesperhaps, people loyal to Rex Tillerson and traditional ways of conducting foreign relationsdont start feeding a real frenzy of speculation.

In the event that Jared Kushner becomes too hot to maintain anything like his current role in the White House, the consequences could be widespread and hard to predict. If Donald Trump cannot lean heavily on family in dealing with what he considers a vipers nest of leakers, deep state subversives and bureaucratic infighters, how can he function?
For it before he was against it. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Central to the White Houses strategy for weathering scandal is the notion that leaks, information, and quotations from anonymous sources are not credible and shouldnt be taken seriously. But like so many aspects of the White House public-relations approach, this is undermined by President Donald Trump himself  an avid consumer of and distributor of mysterious rumors and innuendo.

Just this morning, in a classic series of stream-of-consciousness tweets, Trump said, It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media. He added, Whenever you see the words sources say in the fake news media, and they dont mention names  it is very possible that those sources dont exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!

This has become a familiar refrain for the president. In August, he attacked the failing New York Times for quoting non-existent unnamed sources. In September, he said any reporting about him or his campaign using the phrase sources said should be dismissed. DO NOT believe it. There are no sources, they are just made up lies! he said. Hes repeated the same line over and over since.

Never mind that the Trump White House  and previously the Trump campaign  frequently provides reporters with blind quotes and background information or briefings, meaning we can divulge what they tell us, but we cant divulge who told us. This practice is not unusual for a political or government entity, but it is hypocritical.

Moreover, when it comes to things he wants to be true, Trumps favorite sources have historically been people whom he never identifies. Many people are saying is a common phrase he uses.

In October 2012, amid his crusade to prove Barack Obama was not born in America and thus was not a credible president, he claimed, in a tweet: Many people are saying that my challenge to Obama is having a huge negative effect on his poll numbers  I agree. (Nobody was saying this, and Obama won reelection).

In November of that year, he used similar sourcing to promote his own Twitter account. Thanks  many are saying Im the best 140 character writer in the world. Its easy when its fun, he said.

And in December, he claimed that people are calling in saying Alan Sugar, an English businessman and politician whom he dubbed dopey, was being beaten badly w/ the tweets.

The following year, he reported that sources inside the office of New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, with whom he clashed over Trump University, are saying that they are very concerned with the allegations against their lightweight boss.

In 2014, he said: Crazy  Election officials saying that there is nothing stopping illegal immigrants from voting. This is very bad (unfair) for Republicans!

The next year, he offered, Everyone is saying the bad news is that Donald Trump is going to take credit & they are right  Mitt wouldnt have won anyway.

Another time, he said, Now that the Mexican drug lord escaped from prison, everyone is saying that most of the cocaine etc. coming into the U.S. comes over the border!

And then, he claimed, Great, everyone is saying I did much better on @60Minutes last week than President Obama did tonight. I agree!

When he was scheduled to appear on Saturday Night Live in 2015, he had this assertion: They are saying that tickets to tonights Saturday Night Live are the hardest to get in the history of this great show! Off to a good start! (His love affair with the sketch-comedy program would not last long).

Not long after, he used a similar construction to add credibility to his ideas about restricting immigration: Everyone is now saying how right I was with illegal immigration & the wall. After Paris, theyre all on the bandwagon.

The presidential election brought yet more dubiously sourced assertions.

Following his defeat in the Iowa caucuses, he claimed that experts had been saying he couldnt do well there, but he defied them by coming in second behind Ted Cruz. (They had been saying he might not win, which he didnt.)

And after a presidential debate, he said, Well, now theyre saying that I not only won the NBC Presidential Forum, but last night the big debate. Nice!

Another time he alleged, Many people are saying that the Iranians killed the scientist who helped the U.S. because of Hillary Clintons hacked emails. (Clinton discussed the case of Shahram Amiri on her private server, which was never hacked; there was never any evidence that her emails, which were publicly released, in any way contributed to his execution.)

You get the sense, reading his various claims over the years, that perhaps he thinks so little of anonymously sourced information because the anonymously sourced information he uses is in fact sourced from his imagination. At least, thats what many people are saying.
COPYRIGHT NZCIVAIR

All information and photographs used on this blog are copyright to NZCIVAIR.


Better (ft. Justin Timberlake)



PLZKTHX

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the fact that they let that bop not be a single is a tragedy.

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SHE LOOKS SO GOOD

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i think some of it is bc Britney doesn't do anything with her albums. No visuals, 2 singles, and she never performs her new stuff.

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Cant wait to see ha on June!!



Also, she looks like a pop star from Jumanji in that outfit.



Edited at 2017-05-29 03:39 pm (UTC)

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why is japan always getting these exclusives

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But it's available on Amazon worldwide.

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japan is the second largest music market in the world

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glory is such a thoro album so many bops

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I still listen to glory all the time, she really did that

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It completes the perfect Britney album trinity along with In the Zone and Blackout

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you mean in the zone and circus



crotchout is cool but overrated.

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you're forgetting oops

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Shame I can't have that album cover on my vinyl :(

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My queen Lana hates America for sure. I'd die in surprise if she decides to do a regular American tour for her next album.

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she probably will since this album is "for the fans" and shit.

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Britney Jean was her best album

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I love alternative facts

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a second disc which "reproduces an almost exact setlist from her latest tour"



Lol she doesn't even bother to call it a live tracklist. Honest Queen!

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lol why? makes no sense

her career is dead



ugly lobotomized loser

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ugly lobotomized loser



Stop talking to yourself. It's weird.

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is ugly lobotomized loser yout sign bc everytime.mp3 a see a comment from you it ends with this sentence

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Call me when she re-releases Circus tbh!!!!!

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Glory is like a mature version of Oops. I love it.

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that's sweet

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Norman fans as usual are in a meltdown. This doesn't fit their narrative.

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That Diane cheated on Joshua and is disliked by all of Hollywood for being difficult. And that Norman is being preyed upon and that his co-stars and friends hate her. The usual reaction when a fan fave gets a new girlfriend

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The comments on his instagram post about her win are hilarious. It's pandemonium over there. His fans are insane.

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tell me more i don't know too much about twd fandom

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there's blind item how norman is always constantly cheating on diane

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Are they even exclusive?

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they were pap like back in the winter in new york together dancing in the street

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Issa lie

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That's sweet.



In general I find it funny how some people don't seem to be able to grasp how exes can still be on good terms/friends. If anything I think it's weirder when someone loathes every ex like, all that does is speak to your shitty taste lol.

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If it's an amicable breakup sure, but if you cheat on me or do something really shitty then I just wanna go separate ways.

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Well yea, but every relationship you've ever been in shouldn't end with cheating or the person being horrible and if it does I feel like it's time for some self reflection bc your picker is way off.

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yeah, this would apply if the ex didn't cheat tho...

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i totally disagree, men can act out in fucking crazy ways you never expected during a break up and that doesn't reflect on the other person

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Ive had amicable breakups, but none of them involved cheating and still took at least some work from both parties.



On the other hand, two of my good friends just broke up after almost 10 years together, and while they always seemed like good, supportive partners to each other, one of them clearly cheated (swears he didnt, but his story just doesnt add up) and has undergone a total personality change, while the other is in complete shock. I wouldn't be surprised if they never speak to each other again; it's been really disheartening to watch this unfold.



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Everyone hates my ex, but I have been able to humanize how he cheated on me, he was messed up. Doesnt mean we will ever be together again but we still support and help eachother. It can happen, just depends if each party still feels hurt or not

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Aww, amiable exes

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this was very sweet of him. i had no idea they were together 10 years though. i thought maybe like 3-4 or something.

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That's really sweet!!! I think that pun is adorable.

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he has more class than me because if that was my ex, i would cut her out of every photo and post shady ass shit all damn day. but i'm petty!

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I'll have him for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

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Josh is a much better person than I am. If I was involved with someone for 10 years, and they cheated on me, it would take me more than a few months to be this gracious.

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highly agree.

i just signed up an ex for spam porn; i'm doin' pettihanna's good work.

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he's the sweetest <3

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that's sweet, she doesn't deserve the kindness if she cheated on him tho, fuck her





also what a downgrade for her

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Norman Reedus is such a dirty looking downgrade. If it was a case of her cheating, but saying it was a mistake and wanting to be back together, I'd be hella nice to her too. Just to twist the knife. I don't understand people all over his dick on TWD. His character looks like he smells like one of the zombies.

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he is just sooooo ugly, i seriously do not understand people finding him attractive lmfao

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I'm screaming at him writing this eloquent, sweet post and she's just "thank you" and Norman Reedus just posts "YESS" and she's all "OMG BABE!!!"



Joshua deserves so much better, omw. Like, damn.

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That's very sweet.

Who knows if she really cheated on him. Maybe they broke up before she got with Reedus and they just announced it way after they broke up.

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They def announced their split way after it happened, idk if she cheated or not though.

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90210- dawsons creek doesnt hold up at all

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90210

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seasons 2 and 3 of dawsons creek are still AMAZING but everything else is garbage

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Agreed. I rewatched a few years ago and tbh once Pacey and Joey break up it's a shitshow.

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I loved Dawson's Creek, great show. Watch few early seasons tbh. So definitely 90210. I would watch it on my cable if it happen to rerun.

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90210, at least through the Brenda years.

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Watch the first seasons of both, 90210 also gets really bad after a while

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This seems decent. I hate horror movies unless there is something to it, like Ginger Snaps using lycanthropy as a metaphor for puberty

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i love ginger snaps so much

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Same, Ginger Fitzgerald was everything to me when I was a young teen. I was obsessed with her, and Ginger Snaps' recognition after the Jennifer's Body comparisons is the only thing I like about JB lol

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Ginger Snaps was such a fucking good ass movie.

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not sure if its still on Netflix or not, but watched MAN IN THE WALL and it was sooooo good. its more of a psychological drama than straight forward horror but I highly recommend it

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LOL that murder house one looks fun.

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Oh imma check this, and with Channel Zero i couldnt finish it. i was so confused the entire 5 episodes i saw i gave up

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Channel Zero is so bad all around.

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saw this couple of months ago. it's good but suffers from annoying child side effect a la babadook.

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boo :(

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we must've watched diff movies

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dammit

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the thought of being a mother to a kid like the one in the babadook was scarier to me than the actual babdook

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ha the kids nowhere near as annoying as the one in the babdook. the mum was more annoying

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lol the whole point of babadook is the child...wtf...

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that sucks...that kid almost made babadook unwatchable

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I only know what a djinn is from supernatural

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I always get bible answers on jeopardy right bc of supernatural

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Guess I'll be checking this out today!



ughh the movie I want to watch again used to be on netflix, but it's gone. It's not on amazon, hulu or iTunes. I can't even find it on eBay. I can get 50 minutes of it on YT, but it's dubbed over. so boo



I watched Viral the other day, and that was pretty good. The scene where the guy & the girl are in the tub is me whenever I'm with someone I like lol

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i'm so mad at netflix. i KNOW i had seen Wolf Cop listed under the horror movies, b/c I put it on our FFAF movie polls back when we were first starting to watch movies together and then it got taken down!!! I NEVER GOT TO SEE IT!!!



I want to watch Viral!

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oh man, I haven't seen Wolf Cop in years! I had no idea it was on Netflix (at one point!) oops I was thinking teen wolf with Michael J Fox. I've never seen Wolf Cop!



Watch Viral! It was so much better than I thought it'd be! Just like the movie Kristy, which is also on netflix!



Edited at 2017-05-29 07:19 pm (UTC)

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what movie was it?

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already all these flop opinions in here, it was one of the best along with Green Room last yr

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anton :(

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Green Room was so good

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I still need to see green room

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What is you icon from...it's creepy

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Noroi, a Japanese found footage masterpiece

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Oooh this looks good!

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It's ok

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I'm so craving a good new horror movie, I started watching Dig Two Graves the other day but it just didn't keep my interest :/



The last semi-good one I saw was Autopsy of Jane Doe

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OT but I am CONSTANTLY getting this error message in every single post:



Error running style: S2TIMEOUT: Timeout: 4, URL: ohnotheydidnt.livejournal.com/106387684.h tml at /home/lj/src/s2/S2.pm line 531.



I can't scroll down to the bottom of the page or read all the comments. it's really annoying. is anyone else getting it?

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everybody is

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yeah, it's frustrating. sometimes refreshing helps, sometimes not :(

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yup just keeps happening

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funny you'd ask

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lol perfect timing

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yes, but it only seems to be doing it when i use chrome. i comment from chrome, but when i use firefox it never mucks up.

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Yes, we all are...I'm assuming the mods know? I don't talk to them but I'm sure someone messaged them I hope

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We should watch this movie for our FFAF night one time!

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That's a great idea



Oh, looks like comedy is winning btw.

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Iran signed an agreement with Russia under which it has broken free from the petrodollar, and will "sell", or rather barter crude oil to Russia in exchange for products. The announcement was made by Irans Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh, as reported by Russias RIA and TASS news agencies.

"The deal has been concluded. We are just waiting for the implementation from the Russian side. We have no difficulties; we signed the contract, everything is coordinated between the parties. We are waiting for Russian oil companies to send tankers, he said, as quoted by Russian news agencies. While sanctions against Iran have been lifted, restrictions on trade in US dollars for the country's banks remain, making it difficult to sell oil on the open market.

As reported here just over three years ago, the $20 billion agreement was initially signed in April 2014 when Iran was under Western sanctions over its nuclear program. Russian traders were to participate in the selling of Iranian oil. In exchange, Iran wanted essential goods and technology from Russia.

This is what Reuters reported in April 2014 when the deal was first announced:

Iran and Russia have made progress towards an oil-for-goods deal sources said would be worth up to $20 billion, which would enable Tehran to boost vital energy exports in defiance of Western sanctions, people familiar with the negotiations told Reuters.



In January Reuters reported Moscow and Tehran were discussing a barter deal that would see Moscow buy up to 500,000 barrels a day of Iranian oil in exchange for Russian equipment and goods.

Related : Private Equity Is Jumping Into This Reemerging Oil Hotspot



The White House has said such a deal would raise "serious concerns" and would be inconsistent with the nuclear talks between world powers and Iran.

Little did the US know back in 2014 that less than three years later, Russia would also be running the US, courtesy of wholesale manipulation of tens of millions of Americans, whom it hacked and convinced to vote for Trump.

Sarcasm aside, when the sanctions against Tehran were lifted in 2016, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said the deal was no longer necessary. However, Novak said in March 2017 that the plan was back on the table with Russia buying 100,000 barrels per day from Iran and selling the country $45 billion worth of goods, Russia Today reported.

Russia and Iran discussed energy, electricity, nuclear energy, gas and oil, as well as cooperation in the field of railways, industry, and agriculture.

Novak had announced in February that Russias state trading enterprise Promsirieimport has been authorized by the government to carry out the purchase of Irans oil through the oil-for-goods program under study by both countries. Meanwhile, Zanganeh had been quoted by the media as saying that Iran would be paid in cash for half of the oil that would be sold to Russia. The due payments for the remaining half would be made in goods and services, the Iranian minister had said.

A February report by the International Monetary Fund said that while Iran has been reconnected to SWIFT, significant challenges prevent Iranian banks fully-reconnecting to global banks still exist mostly due to remaining US sanctions.

US primary sanctions apply to US financial institutions and companies, including their non-US branches (but not their subsidiaries). Moreover, with very limited exceptions, businesses and individuals related to the US continue to be generally prohibited from dealing with Iran, including with the government, the IMF said.

US dollar clearing restrictions have not been lifted and pose a significant challenge for non-US banks who may do business with Iran, but may not be paid in US dollars, it added.

And since necessity is the mother of invention, what better way to bypass the world's reserve currency than to go back to the way commerce was conducted before currencies were even created: through barter.

By Zerohedge.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Greece will start opening new onshore oil and gas blocks for exploration in 2018, the head of the Hellenic Hydrocarbons Resources Management (HHRM), Yannis Bassias, told Reuters in an interview published on Monday.



One of the first areas slated for opening is the region of Grevena in northern Greece, close to the route of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), Bassias said.

As of next year, and perhaps earlier, we will begin announcing that we are opening the door to whoever is interested in onshore sites, according to the head of Greeces oil and gas resource management body.

HHRM will begin compiling data packages for the Grevena region and for central regions, Bassias told Reuters.

Greece, which has been struggling with a severe debt crisis in the past few years and has received billions of euros of EU- and IMF-backed bailout support, is trying to resume efforts to search for hydrocarbons both onshore and offshore and possibly lessen its dependence on energy imports in the future.

In October last year, Greeces energy ministry named a consortium led by Frances Total SA and comprised of Italys Edison and Greeces largest refiner, Hellenic Petroleum, as the preferred bidder to drill for gas in an offshore block in the Ionian Sea west of the country.

Just last week, Greek company Energean signed a lease agreement with the Greek government for the exploration and exploitation of oil and gas at the Aitoloakarnania block, onshore Western Greece.

Related : Private Equity Is Jumping Into This Reemerging Oil Hotspot



According to Bassias, the first new onshore and offshore drilling would start in two years if the parties overcome all bureaucratic obstacles.

Higher oil prices and a more stable political landscape in Greece would also attract companies to sign up to explore the remaining 17 blocks, out of 20, in the Ionian Sea and south of the island of Crete, for which no bidders competed in a 2014 offering, Bassias told Reuters.



By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Islamabad does not want heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan: US intelligence 29 May, 2017



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Hand Wash and Toiletries in Pakistan And the Role of DUPAS in Reshaping the Industry

Woke Bingo WASHINGTON: The US intelligence community, in a rare acknowledgement of Pakistans concerns, has informed Congress that Islamabad does not want heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan and will likely turn to China to offset New Delhis sway on its western borders.



The discussion on Pakistans interests in Afghanistan was part of a recent congressional hearing on the Afghan war and is linked to a general debate in Washington on the issue. The Trump administration is finalising a new policy for Afghanistan and the ongoing consultations in the White House have generated much interest in the US media and think tanks.



Earlier this week, a Republican congressman, Adam Kinzinger, suggested resuming air strikes on alleged terrorist targets in Pakistan, and observers in Washington said the Trump administration might do so if terrorists targeted US military personnel and installations in Afghanistan.



During a recent hearing on Afghanistan at the Senate Armed Services Committee, US intelligence chiefs gave a candid assessment of the situation in the war-torn country. And a transcript, released this weekend, showed that much of the debate focused on Pakistan.



Pakistan is concerned about international isolation and sees its position through the prism of Indias rising international status, including Indias expanded foreign outreach and deepening ties to the United States, said Dan Coats, who, as National Intelligence director, leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI. Pakistan will likely turn to China to offset its isolation, empowering a relationship that will help Beijing to project influence in the Indian Ocean, he added.



Director Coats claimed that Islamabad had failed to curb militants and terrorists in Pakistan and because of this failure, these groups will present a sustained threat to the US interests in the region and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan.



Pakistan views Afghanistan  or desires for Afghanistan some of the same things we want: a safe, secure, stable Afghanistan. One addition  one that does not have heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan, said Defence Intelligence director Lt Gen Vincent Stewart.



They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to the state of Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations so that  if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan interests, the general added.



Director Coats also told the Senate committee that despite increased military efforts to defeat them, the Taliban militants had and would continue to make gains, especially in rural areas.



Afghan security forces performance will probably worsen due to a combination of Taliban operations, combat casualties, desertions, poor logistics support and weak leadership, he warned.



Senator Joni Kay Ernst, an Illinois Republican, asked the intelligence chiefs to spell out the measures that the United States would like Afghanistans neighbours to take to help stabilise the region.



I think certainly an evaluation of how we work with Pakistan to address the situation of the harbouring of terrorist groups would be essential to a strategy that affects Afghanistan, Mr Coats replied.



Because that is potentially a very disrupting situation, putting our own troops at risk and undermining the strategy of dealing with the Taliban and local groups that are trying to undermine the (Afghan) government. So its a very clear link that I think would have to be addressed in conjunction with whatevers done in Afghanistan.



Besides more troops, which I anticipate might be part of the plan that we see, do we need to implement a different strategy on the ground in Afghanistan? Senator Ernst asked Gen Stewart.



Weve got to get a couple of things. One, very clear that Afghanistans security and stability is in the interest of all of the parties in the region and does not pose a risk to Pakistan, the general replied.



Weve got to convince Pakistan that if theyre harbouring any of the Haqqani network members that it is not in their interest to continue to host Haqqani network.



The general also urged the Trump administration to work with Afghanistans neighbours to go after the 20 terrorist organisations that were still active in the region. They undermine not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but all of the region, he added.



Gen Stewart also suggested pushing Pakistan to do more against the Haqqani network and urged US policymakers to separate the Taliban from the Pashtun, because Pakistan wanted a Pashtun-dominated Afghanistan.



So weve got to get the conversation going again with Pakistan about their role in not harbouring any of these terrorists, helping to stabilise Afghanistan and I think maybe well have some progress, he said.



Gen Stewart said he believed Pakistan still had some influence in bringing Taliban to the table. So weve got to get them to think about reconciliation, that the status quo is not in their best interest, he said.



Do you think that we can frame the intelligence in a way that would state that we need Pakistan to be a good friend to not only Afghanistan and the United States, in order for the United States to be a good friend to Pakistan? Senator Ernst asked. I am hoping to do just that in the weeks ahead, maam, the general replied, referring to his role in making the new policy for Afghanistan.
Pakistan reopened Chaman border after 22 days

After 22 days, Pakistan reopened the Friendship Gate at Chaman border crossing on May 27 on humanitarian grounds coinciding with the Ramazan in Afghanistan. At least 12, including two FC personnel, five children and three women were killed when Afghan forces attacked Pakistan civilian and military officials during a census enumeration in two villages on the Chaman border on May 5.



In June 2016, the border remained closed after a Pakistan Army major and three others fell victim to the fire from across the Durand Line.



In August 2016, Pakistan shut down the Spin Boldak and Chaman, border for nearly two weeks following protests and torching of the Pakistani flag at a rally on the Afghan side.



In February 2017, TTP/Jamaatul Ahrar attacks from their reported sanctuaries across the border enforced another closure for 32 days at Chaman and Torkham.



And in May this year, a deadly ambush by Afghan forces of Pakistani enumerators near Spin Boldak, Chaman cost as many as 15 Pakistan lives. It led to another closure of border for nearly 20 days.



This cumulative 65 day closure at Chaman  between August 2016 and May 2017 alone  entailed a huge cost for traders and thousands of daily wage workers between Karachi and Kandahar.



The daily average losses just to the truckers, traders and government, according to officials come to at least $3 million. No surprise the bilateral trade with Afghanistan has been on the wane.



Zubair Motiwala, president of the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry, reckons the Pakistan-Afghanistan trade has dropped by nearly 40 percent decline in recent years since early 2016.



In a formal complaint on the suspension of traffic in February and March to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) 6 April, Dr Suraya Dalil, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the UN office at Geneva spoke of damages of up to $90 million to Afghan traders.



Afghan traders had voiced similar concerns in February and March, urging both governments to keep politics and trade separate as much as possible. This demand makes perfect sense because of a) the colossal economic costs to traders/ and all those associated with the trade on this route,



b) the humanitarian crisis that abrupt border closures entail such as preventing ailing Afghans from treatment in hospitals, or leaving family members stranded on either side of the border, students



c) loss of Afghanistan-focused businesses and diminishing trading volumes from Pakistan



d) the birth of countless anti-Pakistan stories that have gradually poisoned public perceptions which keep magnifying even smallest of Pakistans administrative measures such border management.



As a whole, all these factors work to the disadvantage of both Afghanistan and Pakistan; have both legitimate and perceived reasons for a hostile narrative and denying human and material cargo across the border respectively.



But can these reasons trump or amend the security establishments argument on national security?



Given the burden of current geo-politics involving India, Afghanistan and Pakistan, it is difficult to imagine human and cargo traffic could flow as usual despite soaring violence in Afghanistan and persistent tensions between the two countries because of their conflicting views on the situation and the different nature of their relations with India.



And this translates in to huge security costs for both Kabul and Islamabad. The latest way of violence mounted by the Taliban i.e. Mansoori Operation and the ISIS-led terror campaign do reflect partially, if not entirely, the proxy war that these three countries are caught in. Afghanistan remains at the receiving end; the Pakistani security establishment views it as the second fiddle to India, and often peddling and reflecting New Delhis narrative. Islamabad/Rawalpindi look at this alliance  also endorsed by Washington  as a hostile ganging-up and the source of violence in Pakistan.



The former continue to look at the latter as the life-line to the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan and hence consider it as the main contributor to the bloodshed there.



But the big question begging a dispassionate answer is whether cross border movement can continue despite acrimonious positions on political issues?



Theoretically, separating business from politics is certainly not impossible. Following into Chinas footsteps, Pakistan too can chart a new path that keeps it connected with all the countries of the region, including Afghanistan even in worst political times.
From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As...
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GLENS FALLS  A late 19th-century Glens Falls newspaper industry legend tells of the time a foreman with The Morning Star goaded Merch Bradt Stewart, a young paper carrier, to lug a 100-pound roller from Glens Falls across the Hudson River bridge to the International Paper Co. mill in South Glens Falls for repairs.

The veracity of the tale, related in a March 25, 1918 Post-Star profile of Stewart, cannot be documented.

But its a fact that the young newspaper carrier, an adopted son of Glens Falls, had a distinguished military career, rising to the rank of major general in the U.S. Army.

Stewart returned to his hometown on Memorial Day 1927 to deliver the keynote address at the dedication ceremony of the Victory and Peace Monument at Crandall Park.

Please believe that I sincerely appreciate the privilege of participating with the friends of my boyhood in these exercises here this morning in memory of the gallant young souls of this community, who, at one time or another, have given their all to the services of our country, said Stewart, who at the time was superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

These men who we honor today are immortal, he said. No words of mine can add to the honor and glory that is already theirs, nor enhance the rich regard we have for them.

Stewart said the monument is an honor to the community as well as the men who died in wars.

Nothing reveals more clearly or conclusively the spirit of a community than the regard in which they hold the memory of those who have suffered and died on our behalf, he said.

Occasions such as this serve a double purpose, he continued. They turn our thoughts from the petty concerns and ambitions of everyday existence to the nobler things in life and recall to it vividly the duty that we owe to our fellow men and to our country.

Stewart said that occasions such as Memorial Day are a time to mourn the deaths of those who sacrificed, but also to rejoice at their bravery.

However, in the midst of our mourning we shall also rejoice  rejoice that youth has never failed to respond to the call of ideals, he said.

Stewart was born June 24, 1875 in Virginia, but lived most of his childhood and teen years with his uncle, Merch Bradt, on Warren Street in Glens Falls.

His uncle was a conductor on the Fort Edward branch of the Delaware and Hudson Railroad.

Stewart graduated from Glens Falls Academy with high honors and scored the highest score in the nation on the entrance exam to West Point.

He graduated from West Point in 1896.

Stewart won a silver star citation for gallantry in action at El Caney, Cuba in the Spanish American War, and received the Distinguished Service Medal, Victory Medal with Two Corps and the Croix de Querre with palm for service in World War I.

Stewart was editor of Infantry Journal magazine and wrote or co-wrote more than a half-dozen books about military tactics and strategy, including Self Help for the Citizen Soldier.

He died July 3, 1934 in St. Augustine, Florida at age 59 after a short illness.

This report was compiled from information in historic issues of The Post-Star and Glens Falls Times, on file at Crandall Public Library and at the New York State Historical Newspapers website, a project of public libraries.
MOREAU  A Fort Edward woman was arrested on grand larceny and identity theft charges late Saturday at White Birch Estates on 3rd Street in the Town of Moreau, according to New York State Police.

Lisa M. Barbone, 27, was apprehended at 11:20 p.m., following an incident reported two hours earlier, police said.

Charged with fourth-degree grand larceny related to a credit card, Barbone, if convicted, could serve up to four years in state prison, according to New York law.

Additionally, the Fort Edward woman was charged with two misdemeanor counts of identity theft and one misdemeanor count of falsely entering a building, police reported.

Barbone is slated to appear in court regarding the charges at a later date.
GLENS FALLS  With heavy rain tapping at the roof and the notes of the Queensbury High School band bouncing off the ceiling, hundreds of people celebrated Memorial Day at the ice rink on Fire Road.

The Glens Falls & Queensbury Memorial Day Parade went off on schedule Monday morning, despite rainy weather that dictated that an umbrella be as much of a requirement as tiny American flags.

The ceremony, which usually takes place in front of the Victory and Peace Monument on Glen Street, was held inside for only the second time in almost two decades, according to Queensbury Supervisor John Strough, who co-hosted the event with city Mayor Jack Diamond.

The focus of the ceremony was on World War II. All five grand marshals were World War II veterans, and behind them, in a place of honor, sat three women who survived German-occupied Europe.

In addition, keynote speakers Bill and Beverly Osborn, whose son Ben was killed in Afghanistan, spoke about World War II.

It was called the Big One, and thats because it was, said Bill Osborn, who then noted that all three women  Pia Baldwin, who was in France during the war, Susanna Canavan, who was in Germany, and Gunta Krasts Voutyras, who was in Latvia  were liberated by elements of Gen. George S. Pattons Third Army.

Gen. Patton once said, We are not here to mourn those who died, but we are here to be proud that they lived, and thats why we are here today, Osborn said.

The grand marshals were Richard Lee, Harold McAfee, Rowland Robillard, Philip Santasiero and Edmund Sipowicz.

Post-Star reporter Maury Thompson spoke at length about the 90th anniversary of the Victory and Peace Monument in Crandall Park, the men who raised the money to build it and their stories.

Luke Ely of Queensbury High School, who is a Boys State representative, read Abraham Lincolns Gettysburg Address.

The parade committee held an essay contest for Glens Falls and Queensbury high school students, and the winners read their essays at the ceremony. Emily Derrick was the winner from Glens Falls High School. Ashley McCormick was the winner from Queensbury High School.

While Memorial Day is focused on those who gave their lives in war, Diamond also took a moment to thank the living veterans in the audience.

We appreciate your service, he said.

Another highlight of the ceremony was the performance of the Queensbury band, under the direction of David Margison.

The band played a variety of patriotic and marching songs, including a series with soloist Alex Cooke. She sang several songs and did the first verse of The Battle Hymn of the Republic a capella before the band joined in.

Representations of all the veterans groups from Glens Falls and Queensbury and their color guards were on hand, and two Queensbury students, Ethan Carey and Linus Sante, played Taps to bring the ceremony to a close.
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has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which is sometimes called attention-deficit disorder (ADD) in people like my sister who don't exhibit many hyperactive symptoms.

Eliana's is not the sometimes-loses-track-of-her-keys kind of ADD, and not the "oh, isn't that over-diagnosed?" kind either. My younger sister describes the condition as a "brain fog" that comes and goes over the course of a day.

It's a disability that's shaped the course of her life.

Defining ADHD

ADHD isn't really one thing  there's no ADHD spot in the brain, and the disability doesn't look the same in every person.

Lenard Adler, who directs the Adult ADHD Program at New York University's Langone Medical Center, describes ADHD as a set of symptoms that tend to travel together. These include struggles with organization, detail-oriented work, and focusing on a task.

ADHD's hyperactive symptoms make it difficult for some people to stop moving or speaking  as if there were a motor running inside their skulls. People with strong hyperactive symptoms can talk and talk, or jump in when other people are speaking  unaware that they've cut someone else off or unable to help themselves. They might fidget, unable to control the urge to move their bodies. Kids with ADHD will often jump from one game to another when playing, unable to focus as long as their friends.

Plenty of people experience distraction and hyperactivity at points in their lives, which is partially why there's a widespread assumption that the condition has been over-diagnosed. That critique has some merit, but according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a person has to have six attention-deficit symptoms and six hyperactive symptoms for more than six months in order to be diagnosed with ADHD. And those symptoms can't be traced to another mental illness like depression or schizophrenia.

That means a person with ADHD likely experiences their symptoms as overwhelming and consistent enough to disrupt their lives. Spacing out occasionally doesn't cut it.

Engaging with the world when you cant focus

The thing you have to know about Eliana is that she is smart as hell.

Make an argument that she disagrees with and she'll peel it open, reach inside, and find the flaw at its center. Ask her for an opinion on the rare subject she hasn't studied, and she'll come back hours or days later with a fully-formed, deeply-sourced theory of the case.

But her symptoms make it difficult for her to engage with the world in the way people expect.

"People will be talking to me, and I'll stop hearing what they're saying," she said. "And it's the same sort of thing [as with reading]. I'll go through the motions, nod my head, mirror their body language and stuff. But the information isn't coming through."

Because of this, Eliana can sometimes come off as standoffish.

"Sometimes I'll take my phone out and read my text messages or something. It's not because I'm trying to be rude. I'm just not cognizant of what I'm doing."

Like many kids with ADHD, Eliana spent her school years in a state of almost constant struggle  with homework, with teachers, and with our parents. In elementary school, she'd sit for hours with a book report or set of math problems, straining to focus her attention on the page. When she couldn't, she would cry, or fight with our parents. After these episodes she would go into her room and stab holes in the wall or beat herself around the head with her hands. Sometimes she hurt herself.

By high school, Eliana had given up on the idea that she'd ever be a good student. She felt dumber than her classmates, she said.

"I could see my classmates finishing the assignments in 10 to 30 minutes," she said, "But they'd take me hours and hours and hours and sometimes I couldn't complete them."

To describe the experience, she said to imagine someone putting a heavy weight in front of you, one you know you can't pick up. You grab and pull on it anyway, but it won't budge.

"The processes that needed to go on simultaneously to complete the tasks just wouldn't line up," she said.

ADHD isn't always this debilitating. Nate Bartlett, a video producer in Chicago (who was, full disclosure, briefly my boss in 2015), says he's been able to successfully manage his case of ADHD case with coping strategies and medicine.

When his focus slips, he said, he can get stuck in a loop performing some other, meaningless task  losing time and energy he hoped to devote to work. Nate was diagnosed in early high school, so he was allowed extra time on tests and the SATs  enough to account for the time he lost to his wandering mind.

"I remember thinking [after my diagnosis], 'Oh, I wish I'd done this a few years ago,'" he said.

Nate managed his symptoms without medication until college, where he struggled to find places in which he could focus on his studies. Even the library was too distracting, he said  he'd find himself scanning book titles rather than preparing for a test. So, for the first time, he got a prescription for Adderall, an amphetamine and stimulant that can help people with ADHD regulate their attention.

Adderall stimulates cells in the brain to produce more chemicals called neurotransmitters  chemical messengers that help nerves pass information around in the brain. Psychiatrists think those extra neurotransmitters can help people with ADHD focus, though the exact mechanisms aren't entirely understood.

There are also several classes of non-stimulant medications for ADHD, the most common of which is known by its brand name Strattera. Rather than stimulate more neurotransmitter production, Strattera prevents a patient's brain from clearing out neurotransmitters it has already produced. Clonidine is also a fairly common non-stimulant treatment that has been found to help patients.

According to Adler, doctors don't prescribe Adderall and other stimulants lightly, since they can have harmful side effects and come with the risk of patients abusing them as recreational drugs.

Nate said that aside from a somewhat unpleasant rapid heartbeat (a common side-effect), Adderall was a positive force in his life. He learned to use it as a tool to get through his work, rather than as a crutch. Now that working full time, he doesn't take the drug anymore  instead, he relies on coping mechanisms like playing loud music in his headphones while he works and isolating himself in a private office.

Eliana's experience with medication wasn't as smooth. Throughout middle school, doctors prescribed her a range of pills  Strattera, Adderal, and others  with limited success.

"I'd given up." she said. "Just the idea of being competent in school was, like, so far-fetched."

Eliana stopped taking medication by the time she got to high school, and sought out other ways to cope.

"I turned to marijuana, really heavy marijuana use. Obviously it doesn't treat the symptoms but it sort of mutes them and dampens them," she said.

After high school, she went on a gap year program where a few other people also had ADHD. She began getting a prescribed medication, Vyvanse (another amphetamine), from a roommate in exchange for doing his homework.

"He would give me a Vyvanse, and I would write his essay for him," she said.

It was enough to suck her in  uncontrolled by a doctor or limited by a prescription, Eliana started to overuse the drug.

She became addicted. Although we spoke all the time back then, I didn't notice anything wrong. She sounded better, happier, and more sure of herself than she had in high school.

"To a large extent what I became addicted to was the ability to write, she said. "I would take [pills] in order to be able to write for extended periods, or read things. But because I wasn't in a healthy environment and I wasn't in a healthy mental state, it got real bad."

Eventually, she got her own amphetamine prescription, but continued abusing the pills. Eliana experienced multiple bouts of stimulant psychosis  a condition marked by disordered thoughts and delusions. The same medicines that cleared her brain fog could act as poisons, mixing her head up in a different way.

Navigating a world that doesnt accommodate your symptoms

Eliana has since kicked the pill habit and made a few stabs at community college, but none of them have stuck. Her disability and lack of college degree make it hard for her to get regular work. Instead, she devotes a lot of time to volunteering, organizing, and protesting with activist groups. Not being able to read still frustrates her constantly.

"I'll find myself reading something, then not knowing what I read. My eyes will scan the words, and some part of my brain is playing them in my head, but the information isn't actually penetrating," she said.

Her current doctor won't prescribe her stimulants, fearing her history of addiction. According to Adler, that's one of the biggest concerns for doctors treating ADHD. Nonetheless, Eliana wishes there were a doctor willing to work with her to find a safe medication regimen.

Right now, her doctor is pushing her toward a common treatment for severe ADHD that doesn't involve medication: cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT. The goal is to get patients to confront situations that trigger their symptoms, and slowly retrain their brains to respond more productively. Psychiatrists also use CBT to manage other mental illnesses, including depression and obsessive compulsive disorder.

But Eliana doesn't want to try it. To her, CBT feels more like an effort to make her into a productive member of the workforce than to alleviate the symptoms she finds most painful.
The shortlisted firm is expected to advise government for six months.

Governments indebtedness to the energy sector has been cited as one major threat to its growth.

The issuance of an energy bond they believe will rescue the country from its power crisis.

Such debts, including others owed by BDC, has almost pushed some banks to the verge of collapse.

One of the affected institutions is Cal Bank.

The Executive Director, Philip Owiredu told Accra-based Starr FM, the debt servicing process must be effective to reduce the impact of the debt on banks and economy at large.

The energy sector debt does not impact on the bank but the economy as a whole, so the earlier it is resolved the better, he said.
Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Elizabeth Afoley Quaye, who commissioned the Raphael Spectrum Company Limited, said the government has also planned to build a fishing harbour, cold storage facilities and landing sites, as well as Anomabo Fisheries College.

She stated that government would improve the well-being of fishing communities by creating the enabling environment that would create jobs and wealth for residents and their dependents.

She was hopeful the management team would put in place sound management systems to effectively manage the facilities.

Paramount Chief of Edina Traditional Area, Nana Kodwo Conduah, underscored the importance of the facility to the people of the area.

Nana Conduah added that the facility would provide adequate iced blocks for the fishermen in the area to store their fish on the high seas.

He underscored the need for the people in the area not to politicize the operations of facility since it belongs to all Ghanaians and not a particular political party.

READ ALSO: Fishing banned for two months

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Raphael Spectrum Company Limited, Raphael Tackie Antiaye, said the facility would be managed properly to improve the lives of all.

He said measures had been put in place by the management to ensure that the facility stores enough fish after the fishing season.
The donation was presented to the National Hajj Board by the marketing director of Twellium Industrial Company Limited Ali Ajami.

The company also donated 300 assorted products to the office the chief Imman as well as GHC 5000 to support his orphange.

READ ALSO: Otumfuo Osei Tutu shows support for Verna Changing Lives at Kumasi launch

Chairman of the National Hajj Board, Sheikh I.C Quaye underscored the relevance of the first day of the Ramadan period as well as the role Islam plays in the construction of the world.

He also expressed appreciations to the management of Twellium Industries for their unflinching support and commitment to giving the Hajj village infrastructure assistance

This he believes has bestowed a high level of trust his outfit has in Twellium Industries.

Sheik I.C. Quaye, has pledged to take the necessary steps to prevent any hitches in the organisation of this year's Hajj.

He said unlike past years when all pilgrims converged on one venue to be airlifted, creating chaos and confusion, his administration would find alternatives to ensure the process becomes stress-free.

READ ALSO: Chief Imam announces May 26 as start of Ramadan

Twellium Industrial Company begun operation in Ghana on February 28 2014. Twellium is a proudly Ghanaian registered producing company with a multinational management team.

Twellium brings to the Ghanaian market beverages that have been on the American and European markets for over 30 years as a franchise from the Monarch Beverage Company of Atlanta, USA.

The company has the franchise to produce and market the products in the West African Sub-region. Twellium Industrial uses pure and natural mineral water, employing Italian and European technology and International standards in our manufacturing processes.
He explained that after registering for the BECE most of the final year students no longer report to school but rather engage in vices that only land them in trouble.

He said the students mainly engage in hooliganism, watching of pornographic films, internet fraud popularly known as sakawa, sexual immorality and all manner of indiscipline.

READ ALSO: Students to rewrite exams on June 5

He must also take part of the blame due to the rate at which they absent themselves from school. The Regional Director also said that another thing teachers do is come to school but fail to teach the students.

The Director said it is very appalling for the three regions of the north to be competing for the bottom positions while the other seven regions compete for the top positions after BECE.

He together with other stakeholders therefore called for an immediate solution to this phenomenon.

He was speaking at the first ever Regional Education Forum organized by the Northern Regional League of Youth Association in collaboration with Youth Empowerment for Live (YEfL) in Tamale.

He appealed to Chiefs, opinion leaders and other stakeholders to support the Ghana Education Service in ensuring proper monitoring and supervision to prevent teachers from toying with the future of the students.
Mr. Jude Arthur, Board Chairman of the Bank also confirmed that the dividend rate was carefully assessed and accepted per the cash dividend practice of the Bank.

Having recorded a net profit of GH318 million, the bank made a 25% increase in profit margins compared to that of 2015.

According to the Chairman, the Bank generated a total operating income of GH1.1 billion in 2016 compared to GH863 million recorded in 2015. Total assets of the Bank grew by 30 per cent (GH1.4 billion) in 2016 to close at GH6.1 billion from GH4.7 billion recorded in 2015.The Chairman expressed his confidence in the staff to taking the performance of the company a notch higher this fiscal year.

READ ALSO: Jude Arthur is new chair of GCB Board

As part of giving back to the society, the company invested in its corporate social responsibility GH2.8 million in bettering the lives of people in Ghana.We should be encouraged by the progress made in recent years and be hopeful that the Bank would remain competitive and viable, he said.
Born in Catalonia in 1767, Domingo Badia y Leblich posed as an exiled Arab prince and became one of the first Europeans to set foot in Mecca.

Yet despite mixing with the Spanish royal family, Napoleon's top officials and some of the most notable European intellectuals of his age, he has been all but forgotten since he died in 1818.

"It's surprising that no film has yet been made on Ali Bey," Moroccan filmmaker Souheil Ben Barka said during a break on set.

The Spaniard "was a seducer. No one could resist him," he said.

With a budget of $17 million (15 million euros), the veteran director's dramatisation of the explorer's life is set for release in five languages and 40 countries in late 2018.

After learning Arabic and serving in the Spanish army, Ali Bey was charged by Spain's King Charles IV with overthrowing the Sultan of Morocco.

On the suggestion of Napoleon's great diplomat and foreign minister Talleyrand, he posed as an exiled Abbasid prince, born in Syria, raised in Europe, his father persecuted by the Ottomans.

The explorer spent two years in Morocco, but he was exposed and had to flee. He set out across North Africa, posing as a Muslim on pilgrimage.

After meeting Romantic-era French writer Chateaubriand in Cairo, in 1807 he reached Mecca, some half a century before British explorer Richard Burton's famous journey there.

'Courageous, enterprising, cunning'

Ali Bey spent time in the Holy Land and Constantinople before heading back to Spain, where he worked for Napoleon.

But he was seen as a traitor and forced to take refuge in France.

He published a French memoir of his travels before setting off for Mecca again, apparently as a spy working for French King Louis XVIII.

He only made it as far as Syria, where he died suddenly in 1818.

Historian Christian Feucher said dysentery was probably to blame, with a remedy based on roasted rhubarb prescribed by a French doctor in Damascus having little effect.

But others believe he was poisoned by his mistress, Lady Hester Stanhope, a British aristocrat who had converted to Islam.

"She could not cope with learning that her hero was a spy, not a descendant of the caliph and the prophet as he claimed to be," said Ben Barka.

There is little doubt, however, that Ali Bey was "courageous, enterprising, cunning and adventurous", Feucher wrote in a 2012 book on the explorer.

"He captivated the great scholars of the time in Paris and London," Feucher told AFP.

Yet despite his extraordinary life and mysterious death, Ali Bey has received little recognition apart from a street in Barcelona bearing his name.

Ben Barka hopes to change that with his film starring Spanish actor Rodolfo Sancho.

Writing the screenplay for his film took more than three years, he said.

Shooting started in Italy in February, but much of the film was shot in May in Morocco -- in the desert dunes of Merzouga, the Roman ruins of Volubilis and the sumptuous houses of Rabat and Casablanca.
The Head of Corporate Communications at the Ghana Water Company Limited, Stanley Martey told Accra-based Citi FM that they hope the campaign is sustained.

Weve seen some improvement and we are happy about the campaign against galamsey activities. I hope that it will all be sustainedIf it is not sustained and this galamsey activity continues or start again, we are going to face the same challenge.

He said the quality will keep improving if the fight is continued.

Before the campaign against galamsey started, the production plants of the GWCL had been shut down due to difficulties in treating the heavily polluted water for subsequent distribution to homes.

However, the Kyebi, Dabuasi and the Odaso water treatment plants which were shut down due to galamsey activities have been reopened to serve their various catchment areas.
Their arrest followed a swoop by the Western Regional Office of the Pharmacy Council with the support of the Police.

The five were arrested in the Prestea Huni Valley District. However, one Ghanaian woman who escaped had her products worth thousands of Cedis seized.

Reports suggest that the drugs found with them are meant for penis and buttocks enlargement.

The District Crime Officer at Huni-Valley, ASP Simon Deta who confirmed this to the media said five foreigners will be investigated and arraigned.

He added that all Ghanaians, as well as foreigners engaging in such activities, will be arrested and dealt with.

READ ALSO: Police officers arrested for robbery

The Pharmacy Council, the body mandated to regulate the sale of medicines in the country had observed with grave concern the increase in itinerant drug peddling business across the country and vowed to clamp down on their operations.
Men of God are well noted for their pastoral collar, elaborate robes and grasp of the scripture.

READ MORE: Couple have six kids at once after trying to get pregnant for 17 years

They are revered and considered integral to the moral fibre of society, yet some Ghanaian clergymen seem unfulfilled with this recognition.

It appears that titles and accolades that resonate with their status in society are what would make for their rightful place in Gods vineyard.

Some people who belong to the Christian fraternity believe pastors who use nicknames do not belong to any of the conventional Christian associations and so they are not responsible to anybody and they carry themselves in ways that tarnish the image of God.

Besides using nicknames, some of these prophets also put up practices on public television, which have raised eye brows on several occasions with some making millions from the 'fake' miracles they perform.

READ ALSO: Three women rape man for 3 days

Nicknames such as Computer Man, Apae Live, Jesus Abrantie, Kumchacha, Prophet One, Dito Dito, Obonsam Last stop and Jesus Onetouch are men of God that have taken over TV stations.

Pastor Boateng, aka Apae Live

Pastor Boateng, aka Apae Live, is the Head Pastor of Great Light Worship Centre and he performs wonders at church.

Prophet Lawrence Agyepong aka Dito Dito

You might not know the General Overseer and Bishop of the Zion Home Chapel International, Prophet Lawrence Agyepong also known as Prophet Dito Dito well but he does a lot of bizarre things that will baffle your sense of imagination. This pastor is capable of telling you all your lifes story hence his name Dito Dito.

Rev. Chris Asante a.k.a Abruku Abruka

Only God knows what that name means but this man is well known for his miracles and what tops it all is his Solution Water which can apparently solve any problem on this earth.

Prophet Eric Amponsah aka Computer Man

Prophet Eric Amponsah aka Computer Man, has won the hearts of many Christians in the country. He went on break to do a research work on the teachings of Christ.

Although Computer Man is not new on the scene, he appears determined to make it to the top.

He is the leader of Hope Generation Ministry International, located at Oblogo Manchester in Accra, and is seen as an inspiration to a number of music fans.

He has indeed, proven beyond all reasonable doubt to his numerous fans that he really has come to stay.

Prophet Ebenezer Adarkwa Opambour Yiadom aka Prophet One

Prophet Ebenezer Adarkwa Opambour Yiadom, leader of the Ebenezer Miracle Worship Center in Kumasi popularly known as Prophet One is on record to have the largest church building and largest congregation at Ahenema Kokoben of Atwima-Kwawomang District in the Ashanti Region.

Opambour is the owner of Radio Mercury, a Kumasi-based private radio station and Prophet One Television.

Nana Kofi Yirenkyi, aka Jesus Onetouch

Nana Kofi Yirenkyi, a.k.a Jesus Onetouch, who was jailed for 10 years for defiling his 10-year-old daughter, regained his freedom after spending 24 months, 21 days in lawful custody.

Jesus Onetouch, who is the General Overseer of Jesus Blood Prophetic Ministry, has been in custody since March 9, 2010, after being convicted on two counts of defilement and incest on January 20, 2011.

Nicholas Osei aka Prophet Kumchacha
According to the President, he was very proud of his wife for spearheading the initiative to support maternal health in the country and asked Ghanaians to support her cause.

In a tweet on Twitter, the president wrote: I am proud of what @rakufoaddo is doing to assist Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital. Let us all support her to #SaveAChildSaveAMother.

The First Lady also replied her hubby in a PDA (Public Display of Affection) style, pledging to help him achieve his campaign promises.

Thank you my Monsieur @NAkufoAddo. It's the least I can do to bring about the change we promised. #SaveAChildSaveAMother

Mrs Akufo-Addo on Sunday joined the Asantehene, Lady Julia, Second Lady Samira Bawumia, KATH officials and other prominent people in the region at a fundraising ceremony in Kumasi following a similar event in Accra.
The irate youth burned the police car in the process.

READ MORE: Somanya residents clash with ECG over high electricity bills

On Friday, May 26, hundreds of residents stormed the office of the ECG over what they described as anomalies with their billing.

According to the angry residents, they are being cheated by the service provider as they have over the last few months experienced a huge jump in their bills.

READ ALSO: Fire guts six bedroom at Somanya
In a widely circulated audio on social media, the Member of Parliament for Kwadaso is heard criticising a journalist for asking him if he was incompetent as purported by former MP for the Kwadaso Constituency, Madam Hilda Addo.

The voice in the audio which many have ascribed to be that of the 59-year-old farmer interjected the journalist in his quest to get the Ministers response to the accusations being hailed on him.

Thats very disrespectful the word incompetence and I dont want you to use that word on me. If shes crazy to use those words I dont want you to repeat it on me, you know that is very offensive the minister advised.

According to Hilda Addo, members of the constituency had contacted her to lament over the Ministers inefficiency as their Member of Parliament.

I dont want you to talk to me in these times Do you know who I am, do you know what I have created in this life of mine for a journalist like you to tell me that I am incompetent. If youre repeating somebodys words its your words as well. You shouldnt be that insubordinate he said.

A very peeved Dr Afriyie Akoto continues to rebuke the journalist in the audio by adding that I dont know how old you are but my son will be older than you, you understand, even the owner of your station does not come anywhere near my standard in terms of life achievement so you have to learn to be respectful, dont use those words on me

A son of the late Bafuor Osei Akoto, the Chief Linguist to the Asantehene and founder of the National Liberation Movement during the 1950s, Dr Afriyie Akoto first contested the Kwadaso seat in 2000 when it was still part of the Bantama constituency but lost his partys parliamentary primaries.

In 2004, after Bantama constituency (Florida) was divided into three  Nhyiaeso, Kwadaso and Bantama he attempted to enter into parliament via the Kwadaso Constituency but lost to Hilda Josephine Addo. He, however, won on his third attempt in 2008 beating his fiercest rival Hilda Addo and again in 2012 as well as 2016.
She was speaking at a gathering of Ashanti Regional Queen mothers Association.

She said that Nana Addo has competent Ministers to help him fulfill his campaign promises but they have to fix a lot of problems caused by the John Mahama-led government.

When you go home tell your husbands to exercise patience because I know my husband will deliver and transform the lives of Ghanaians. There are some potholes and problems caused by NDC government which needs to be fixed first before implementing of campaign promises she added.

She said President Akufo Addo is committed to creating a favourable economy for all Ghanaians.

READ ALSO: NDC group threatens to curse executives over campaign money

She therefore urged Queen mothers to support Nana Addos government to deliver.
According to the Ahmed Kuru, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AMCON, the process is only being delayed by the required approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which is the supervisory agency for AMCON.

We have concluded all processes on the bids since about two months ago, all we are waiting for (now) is the approval of the central bank, Ahmed noted.

According to information from Reuters, the acquisition is to be made by a consortium of Dangote, Kaduna and Kebbi state governments and Bank of Industry (BOI).

Mr Nasir Elrufia, the Governor of Kaduna state in March 2016 during the Kaduna International Trade Fair hinted that the state government is considering acquiring the automobile company towards repositioning and achieving a full optimal capacity of the plant.

Our hope is that when we acquire the majority share of the company, we will restructure it to operate to full capacity of assembling between 90,000 and 100,000 cars yearly.

We have the support of PAN as well as the government of France in this drive.

We are determined to bring back all industries related to Peugeot established in Kaduna as part of plans to ensure that every youth in Kaduna State has something doing, Nasir stated.

The latest move by African richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote shows he is expanding his business empire to the automobile industry.

In 2005, the Dangote group acquire the Osogbo Steel Rolling Mill from the Federal Government. Earlier this year, the group commenced tyre manufacturing.

In April 2017, Dangote Group, in conjunction with a Chinese truck maker, SinoTruck, commenced assembling of trucks in Nigeria.

Industry experts contacted on this acquisition noted that there is a high possibility that the acquisition will scale through, considering the Buy Nigeria Initiative of the Federal government.
The fact sheet released noted key areas of improvement in the Nigerian economy and general governance of the country. These achievements were highlighted under four major categories; economy, transparency and anti-corruption, security and diplomacy and international relations.

From the report, 14 economic and 11 anti-corruption and transparency achievements while achievements in other categories revolve around decimation of Boko Haram, reduction in Niger Delta Militancy activities and restoration of Nigeria's pride among comity of nations.

Similar reports and assessments from other corporate agencies and prominent Nigerians have shown a mixture of poor to fair rating performance.

SB Morgen, a business advisory and research agency in Lagos, in its report assessing the two-year performance of the Buharis administration, rated the government to have performed fairly poor and stated that Clearly, Nigeria cannot afford the same dismal performance in the second half of the Buhari administration.

SB Morgen further noted that among the 171 campaign promises of the current administration, only 6% of it has been achieved within the last two years  mainly around security, anti-corruption and foreign relations.

Mr Muda Yusuf, the Director General of Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) also expressed concerned about the huge debts profile of the country, stating that it is not sustainable considering the level of oil revenue being generated by the country and the slow pace of economic recovery from recession.

Also commenting on the administrations performance, Mr Ayo Adebanjo, a public policy commentator and activist, noted that it seems this current government have little or nothing to offer as solution to the current problems bedevilling the country.

Most Nigerians have also expressed concern over the slow pace of actions and policy implementation by the current administration.

It would be recalled that the government had no minister in its first six months of administration, while just two days ago the government had just announced appointments into some important agencies whose activities directly impact the economy.
Her comments came after German chancellor Angela Merkel distanced herself from the US and UK on Sunday. Merkel said the EU had to "fight for its own destiny" following the election of US President Donald Trump and Brexit.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Monday, Rudd said that Britain would continue to work closely with the EU once it leaves the bloc.

She said: "As we begin the negotiations about leaving the EU, we will be able to reassure Germany and other European countries that we are going to be a strong partner to them in defence and security, and, we hope, in trade.

"This is going to be the most important negotiation that this country has embarked on for many decades. Making sure that we get this right is going to be absolutely critical, and we don't underestimate the difficulty.

"We can reassure Mrs Merkel that we want to have a deep and special partnership so that we can continue to maintain European-wide security to keep us all safe from the terrorists abroad and those that are trying to be nurtured in our country," she said.

Merkel, who is on the campaign trail ahead of German elections in September, told a crowd in Munich on Sunday that "the times in which we could completely depend on others are on the way out."
Courtesy of GWS Auctions, Inc.A jet formally owned by Elvis Presley and his father, Vernon, sold for the whopping price of $430,000 at an auction held Saturday in Agoura Hills, California, according to LiveAuctioneers.com. The 1962 Lockheed Jetstar jet has been a popular tourist attraction at an airport in Roswell, New Mexico, where it has sat on a runway for more than 30 years.

The jet features an interior with a variety of custom-designed alterations specified by the late King of Rock 'n' Roll, including red-velvet seats, red carpeting, and gold-tone hardware and woodwork. The plane has no engine, and has not been restored since Presley owned it. The jet was the only plane that had belonged to Elvis not currently housed at Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
But there is drama playing out in marginal constituencies, and none is more unusual than Bristol West. This section of the city is a straight fight between Labour and the Green Party. The Tories and the Liberal Democrats are very unlikely to win here. Going by the election result from 2015, Green Party candidate Molly Scott Cato only needs to peel 2,837 votes from Labour to win.

That makes Bristol West the constituency that the Green Party most believes will give it its second-ever MP, after Brightons Caroline Lucas.

The drama is heightened by the fact that Bristol Wests voters are incredibly fluid in their voting allegiances. In 2010, Lib Dem candidate Stephen Williams won the constituency and the Greens polled less than 4%.

But in 2015, Labour won, and the Greens ran a decent second place. The results looked like this:

Labour

Green

Lib Dem

Conservative

Only half of that 5,673 gap between Labour and the Greens needs to switch, which is why Bristol West is the Green Party's No.1 priority this year.

Until last month, the Greens were actually favourites to take the seat, according to bookmakers. That changed after the local elections on May 5, in which the Green candidate did poorly, coming fourth in Bristol overall and third specifically in the Bristol West boundary.

Now bookmaker Paddy Power has the Greens at 15/8 odds to win, and Labours Thangam Debbonaire at 8/11.

"I would say 30 to 40% [of voters] are still mulling over their choice," Scott Cato told Business Insider. "A quarter of people will vote by post."

Bristol  like Brighton  is not like other British towns. It is a hive of liberalism, pro-European in its outlook, and full of avowedly leftist students. The Green Party has 1,400 members here. About 50 of them are working on Scott Catos campaign.

"Behind every door there is a highly educated person wanting to talk about politics.  I've never seen anything like it. It's an amazing electorate here, really well-informed, and theyre polite and charming too," she says.

Unsurprisingly, Bristol is also a strong Remain area. Seventy-nine percent of people voted to Remain in the EU Referendum last year. With the Labour Party officially supporting Brexit, and the Lib Dems unable to win, that makes Scott Cato the only place to go for angry Remain voters. The Green Partys official policy is to hold a second "ratification referendum" to give people a choice between either approving the Article 50 deal or remaining in the EU.

Scott Cato is the sitting member of the European Parliament for the South West of England, and is positioning herself as the only candidate in the race who actually knows what she is talking about when it comes to the EU.

"The Labour candidate has accepted that Brexit is a done deal and they are not offering a referendum on the terms of the deal, they are just saying there should be a parliamentary vote, thats Labours position. Since this parliament will be dominated by Conservatives, a parliamentary vote will be lost. So theyve effectively surrendered over Brexit," she says.

She is also part of a new generation of Green politicians who are determined to take politics  and actually winning power  seriously. The class includes Brighton's Caroline Lucas, the Isle of White's Vix Lowthion, and London Camden councillor Sian Berry  all women, and all often more eager to talk about housing, the NHS, and economics than they are about climate change or pollution. The Greens have stopped campaigning in neighbouring Bristol North West in order to give the Labour candidate a better shot at winning there  that's how serious they are about yanking the few levers of power within their grasp.

To win in Bristol, a lot of things have to go right for the Greens. The Lib Dem vote has to fail, even though its candidate came second to Labour in the mayoral election in Bristol West. The national trend of pro-Brexit Labour voters drifting off to the Conservatives, mistrustful of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, has to continue. And Debbonaires local popularity has to wane.

Thats a big ask.

So what about that weakness at the local elections? "Our focus was aways the parliamentary seat. Also, its a very small turnout, about 35%, so I really dont think you can draw strong conclusions," Scott Cato says.
The State Government in a letter written through the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, DPP, May 22, 2017, indicated its interest in prosecuting the alleged case of assault.

It was learned that aside from writing to the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the State Criminal Investigative Department, SCID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos Mainland Local Government, DPP also copied other relevant agencies, to alert them of its plan.

The State Government argued that the assault contravenes sections 171, 243 and 244 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The Coordinator of the State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team, DSVRT, Mrs. Titilola Vivour- Adeniyi, explained that if anyone is beaten or suffered abused, the State is also being abused, noting, we must begin to renew our mindsets and treat Domestic Violence for what it is; a crime against the State.

Gentry has since been arrested, arraigned and remanded in jail for the charge of domestic violence.
The mother of the accused, Zainab Lawal, 47, was also arraigned alongside her son for instigating him to commit the offence.

They were both charged for the death of one Abdullahi Aziz, who they beat severely, following a fight.

The prosecution said that Zainab had alleged that Aziz was rude to her and ordered her son to beat him up.

She swore not to forgive her son, if he failed to carry out her order in the episode that transpired on May 2.

Aziz was beaten to a pulp and he sustained various degrees of injuries and was admitted in the hospital, before he eventually died on May 8 as a result of head injury.

The prosecution said the offence was punishable under Section 85 and 247 of the Penal Code of Northern Nigeria.
The Prosecutor, Insp. Romanus Unuigbe, told the court that the accused committed the offences sometime in December 2016 in Surulere, Lagos.

Unuigbe said that the accused collected N1.8 million from one Kayode Adenuga, N280,000 from one Shittu Babatunde and N170,000 from one Omoyemi Muyiwa with a promise to procure Republic of Bahamas visas for them.

He said that Alawode, however, collected the money and failed to get the visas as promised.

According to Unuigbe, the offences contravene Sections 287 (a) (e) and 314 (1) (a) (b) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015 (Revised).

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Sections 287 and 314 prescribe 14 years and 15 years imprisonment respectively for offenders.

The Chief Magistrate, Mr P. A. Ojo, granted the accused person bail in the sum of N500, 000 with two sureties in like sum.

He said the sureties must be gainfully employed and should also show evidence of tax payment to the Lagos State Government.
The Judge, Justice I.A. Ashom, handed down the sentence after finding the two guilty of the crime.

Due to the evidence before this court presented by the prosecution and your admittance to committing the crime, the court has found you guilty.

You are hereby sentenced to death by hanging for criminal conspiracy and robbery.

Each of you shall be hanged by the neck till you are dead, may God have mercy on your souls, he ruled.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the two men were first arraigned on Nov. 25, 2015, accused of criminal conspiracy and armed robbery.

The Police Prosecutor, Mr M.I. Mantu, had told court that the duo committed the crime on May 2, 2015, at Lashin Dungep Village, Qua-apan LGA in Plateau, when they attacked one Wilfred Mankat with a cutlass and other dangerous weapons.

The prosecutor said that the duo had told police in a confessional statement that they committed the crime.

The first accused in his statement, read by the prosecutor stated that they armed themselves with a cutlass and went to the victims house and found him sleeping.

Mantu said that the first accused, Saidu, in the statement said they woke him up with beatings and demanded for the key and particulars of his motorcycle after which they collected N20, 000 and zoomed off.

The prosecutor further quoted the accused as saying that the second accused took the motorcycle to his house but the victim and the police trailed the tyre marks, leading to their arrest.
The Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, stated this during the 24th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference of the Guild of Medical Directors (GMD) in Abuja.

The News Agency pf Nigeria(NAN)reports that the minister was represented at the occasion by the Director, Hospital Services , Dr Joseph Amedu.

The theme of 2017 conference is 'Let Make Nigeria Hepatitis Free'.

According to the minister,"Hepatitis is important as it affects the liver, without presentation with any weighty symptoms until it has caused severe damage and chronic liver disease, liver cancer and untimely death."

He said the conference was appropriate, as it would create the necessary awareness on the menace of viral Hepatitis.

"This will in no small measure reduce the dangers associated with lack of knowledge of the disease and prevent it from reaching epidemic levels like meningitis and the Ebola virus."

Adewole said as operators of private hospitals in country, the guild was an indispensable partner in contributing 60 to 70 per cent stake in achieving the healthcare delivery in the country.

"I therefore urge you all to reciprocate governments gesture of Public Private Partnership with dedication and commitment to your duty of care and shun situation that will make you abandon your responsibilities.

"Let us work together in peace and harmony to give the health sector the change the President Muhammadu Buhari Administration intends for the health sector."

In a keynote address, Dr Chukwuma Anyaike, a Consultant Public Health Physician, called for increased awareness of hepatitis and provision of safe and effective vaccines in the country.

"The key intervention to make the country free from hepatitis is to prevent mother to child transmission of the disease.

"Others are safe injection practices and safe blood as well as safer sex which include the use of condoms to prevent the disease," he said.

Anyaike called for partnership with government, Civil Society Organisations and the private sector to reduce the menace of the disease.

He said that such partnership must be tailored with concrete action and national plan.
Sadique said there is also a need for the military to develop innovative defence systems to protect their facilities.

The Airforce chief said this while speaking at retreat on Base Defence Planning at the Air Force Institute of Technology, Kaduna State.

He also said that new Airforce units were created to counter threats from Boko Haram.

According to Daily Post, Sadique said Given the importance of military bases in the air power delivery matrix, it is not inconceivable to expect our adversaries to target our bases.

As a matter of fact, we have had an attack on one of our air bases in the recent past, and current intelligence reports keep highlighting the possibility of attacks on our bases.

All these reinforce the need to emplace a robust base defence concept that is capable of providing guidance for responding to a wide range of situations that may threaten our bases.

The retreat is aimed at educating relevant stakeholders on the new base defence concept, which is premised on the deployment of air-minded ground defence force.

"These men are trained as a special light infantry and capable of operating both inside and outside the base perimeter against contemporary threats. They will leverage on intelligence and available modern technology, he added.
According to Daily Post, Afeniferes Secretary-General, Chief Sehinde Arogbofa called for the restricting of Nigeria.

Arogbofa As a matter of fact, we have not seen enough changes to justify the change mantra. The government might have planned for certain things but there are so many factors militating against its success so far.

The change mantra on corruption is a laudable idea but unfortunately, there has not been fairness on many issues. For example, there is unfairness in the issue of appointments; there is nepotism, among others. All the money recovered, we dont know what happened to it.

ALSO READ: Osinbajo says Buhari has boosted the confidence of the military

This government is tackling corruption, but moral corruption is there unattended to. Although we hear some slogans on the air, Change begins with me, we are yet to see the change, even from the people at the top.

We all applauded the government when they said they wanted to fight corruption but unfortunately, some of the aides of the President are allegedly very corrupt and yet nothing has been done.
Mr Ikechukwu Anyene, the President of the Nigerian community in that country from Pretoria, made this suggestion in a telephone chat with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

NAN reports that Diaspora Voting is all about external voting, which may be part of a countrys electoral process based on the principle of universality of franchise.

Anyene, who said he was proud of the nations democracy and would always associate with it, posited that one the ways of deepening democracy in the country was to introduce Diaspora Voting.

He said that many Nigerians abroad were eager to be part of the electoral process and that Diaspora Voting would give them the opportunity to vote for the candidates of their choice.

As we celebrate Democracy Day with other Nigerians, it has become pertinent to appeal to the Federal Government to introduce Diaspora Voting."

Nigerians in the diaspora are contributing to the development of the country in various ways and we feel disenfranchised, if we do not vote during elections."

We appeal to the Federal Government, the National Assembly and to introduce Diaspora Voting; it will give us a sense of belonging, Anyene said.

The Nigerian community leader in South Africa also expressed the wish of Nigerians both at home and abroad for elections to be free and fair.

We want more improvements; we want more of our elections to be credible, free and fair and acceptable to all parties; this process will deepen our democracy and we believe it is achievable, he said.

According to Anyene, the celebration of Democracy Day is a thing of joy, considering many years of military rule and the resultant effects on the people.

We are happy to be part of this great occasion and we wish the country many more years of fruitful democracy."
The Acting Secretary-General of the union, Dr Mike Ike-Ene, gave the commendation on Monday while assessing the administration second anniversary on occasion of 2017 Democracy Day celebration.

He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja that there had been relative peace in the education sector since administration assumed office in 2015.

Although I will not say that we have gotten it correctly, but when there is relative peace to an extent, we can say that there is progress."

At least one thing this administration has done is being a little proactive to issues concerning education and other areas."

This government is more open to dialogue, negotiation and discussion and when these things are involved in any issue, parties concerned understand themselves better, he said.

Ike-Ene, however, appealed to the president to intervene in teachers unpaid salary in some states, bemoaning the rate at which some state governments were owing teachers.

According to him, Benue, Bayelsa, Osun and Imo governors, among others, are owing primary school teachers several months salary.

As I talk to you now our primary school teachers in Benue are owed 10 months salary arrears and they are still working; 10 good months and people cannot put food on their tables."

There are cases whereby the father and the mother are teachers; are they going to rob bank before they put food on their table?"

It is not only Benue, Bayelsa is also owing for eight months. It is also in Osun and many other states, including Imo, where our teachers are paid in percentages."

Primary school teachers are owed various sums of money in various states, he said.
The acting President, while listing the achievements of the Buhari-led administration, said the government has boosted the confidence of the Nigerian Army.

Osinbajo went ahead to paint the sorry state of the Army under the dreaded terror group, Boko Haram.

He said Our administration outlined three specific areas for our immediate intervention on assumption of office: these were Security, Corruption and the Economy.

 In the Northeast of our country, the terrorist group Boko Haram openly challenged the sovereignty and continued existence of the state, killing, maiming,and abducting, causing the displacement of the largest number of our citizens in recent history. Beyond the North East they extended their mindless killings, as far away as Abuja, Kano And Kaduna.

But with new leadership and renewed confidence our gallant military immediately began to put Boko Haram on the back foot. We have restored broken-down relations with our neighbours, Chad, Cameroon and Niger  allies without whom the war against terror would have been extremely difficult to win.

We have re-organized and equipped our Armed Forces, and inspired them to heroic feats; we have also revitalized the regional Multinational Joint Task Force, by providing the required funding and leadership.

The positive results are clear for all to see. In the last two years close to one million displaced persons have returned home. 106 of our daughters from Chibok have regained their freedom, after more than two years in captivity, in addition to the thousands of other captives who have since tasted freedom.

ALSO READ: Osinbajo warns Biafra agitators
Most parts of the region, especially Borno state, was devastated as a result of attacks by the dreaded terror group, Boko Haram.

According to Osinbajo, schools, hospitals and businesses are springing back to life across the North-East.

He said this while highlighting the result of the Federal Governments war on terror.

Osinbajo also said The positive results are clear for all to see. In the last two years close to one million displaced persons have returned home. 106 of our daughters from Chibok have regained their freedom, after more than two years in captivity, in addition to the thousands of other captives who have since tasted freedom.

Schools, hospitals and businesses are springing back to life across the Northeast, especially in Borno State, the epicentre of the crisis. Farmers are returning to the farms from which they fled in the wake of Boko Haram. Finally, our people are getting a chance to begin the urgent task of rebuilding their lives.

In the Northeast of our country, the terrorist group Boko Haram openly challenged the sovereignty and continued existence of the state, killing, maiming,and abducting, causing the displacement of the largest number of our citizens in recent history. Beyond the North East they extended their mindless killings, as far away as Abuja, Kano And Kaduna.

But with new leadership and renewed confidence our gallant military immediately began to put Boko Haram on the back foot. We have restored broken-down relations with our neighbours, Chad, Cameroon and Niger  allies without whom the war against terror would have been extremely difficult to win.

We have re-organized and equipped our Armed Forces, and inspired them to heroic feats; we have also revitalized the regional Multinational Joint Task Force, by providing the required funding and leadership, he added.

It is the custom for the President to deliver the Democracy Day speech, as it has been since inception.
Dear Nigerians, I bring you good wishes from President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, who as we all know is away from the country on medical vacation.

1. Today marks the second anniversary of our assumption of office. We must thank the Almighty God not only for preserving our lives to celebrate this second anniversary, but for giving us hope, strength and confidence as we faced the challenges of the past two years.

2. Our administration outlined three specific areas for our immediate intervention on assumption of office: these were Security, Corruption and the Economy.

3. In the Northeast of our country, the terrorist group Boko Haram openly challenged the sovereignty and continued existence of the state, killing, maiming,and abducting, causing the displacement of the largest number of our citizens in recent history. Beyond the North East they extended their mindless killings, as far away as Abuja, Kano And Kaduna.

4. But with new leadership and renewed confidence our gallant military immediately began to put Boko Haram on the back foot. We have restored broken-down relations with our neighbours, Chad, Cameroon and Niger  allies without whom the war against terror would have been extremely difficult to win.

We have re-organized and equipped our Armed Forces, and inspired them to heroic feats; we have also revitalized the regional Multinational Joint Task Force, by providing the required funding and leadership.

The positive results are clear for all to see. In the last two years close to one million displaced persons have returned home. 106 of our daughters from Chibok have regained their freedom, after more than two years in captivity, in addition to the thousands of other captives who have since tasted freedom.

Schools, hospitals and businesses are springing back to life across the Northeast, especially in Borno State, the epicentre of the crisis. Farmers are returning to the farms from which they fled in the wake of Boko Haram. Finally, our people are getting a chance to begin the urgent task of rebuilding their lives.

Across the country, in the Niger Delta, and in parts of the North Central region, we are engaging with local communities, to understand their grievances, and to create solutions that respond to these grievances adequately and enduringly.

5. President Buharis New Vision for the Niger Delta is a comprehensive peace, security and development plan that will ensure that the people benefit fully from the wealth of the region, and we have seen to it that it is the product of deep and extensive consultations, and that it has now moved from idea to execution. Included in that New Vision is the long-overdue environmental clean-up of the Niger Delta beginning with Ogoni-land, which we launched last year.

6. More recent threats to security such as the herdsmen clashes with farmers in many parts of the country sometimes leading to fatalities and loss of livelihoods and property have also preoccupied our security structures. We are working with State governments, and tasking our security agencies with designing effective strategies and interventions that will bring this menace to an end. We are determined to ensure that anyone who uses violence, or carries arms without legal authority is apprehended and sanctioned.

7. In the fight against corruption, we have focused on bringing persons accused of corruption to justice. We believe that the looting of public resources that took place in the past few years has to be accounted for. Funds appropriated to build roads, railway lines, and power plants, and to equip the military, that had been stolen or diverted into private pockets, must be retrieved and the culprits brought to justice.

Many have said that the process is slow, and that is true, corruption has fought back with tremendous resources and our system of administration of justice has been quite slow. But the good news for justice is that our law does not recognize a time bar for the prosecution of corruption and other crimes, and we will not relent in our efforts to apprehend and bring corruption suspects to justice.

We are also re-equipping our prosecution teams, and part of the expected judicial reforms is to dedicate some specific courts to the trial of corruption cases.

8. We are also institutionalizing safeguards and deterrents. We have expanded the coverage of the Treasury Single Account (TSA). We have introduced more efficient accounting and budgeting systems across the Federal Government. We have also launched an extremely successful Whistleblower Policy.

The Efficiency Unit of the Federal Ministry of Finance has succeeded in plugging leakages amounting to billions of naira, over the last two years. We have ended expensive and much-abused fertilizer and petrol subsidy regimes.

9. We have taken very seriously our promise to save and invest for the future, even against the backdrop of our revenue challenges, and we have in the last two years added US$500m to our Sovereign Wealth Fund and US$87m to the Excess Crude Account. This is the very opposite of the situation before now, when rising oil prices failed to translate to rising levels of savings and investment.

10. Admittedly, the economy has proven to be the biggest challenge of all. Let me first express just how concerned we have been, since this administration took office, about the impact of the economic difficulties on our citizens.

Through no fault of theirs, some companies shut down their operations, others downsized; people lost jobs, had to endure rising food prices. In some States civil servants worked months on end without the guarantee of a salary, even as rents and school fees and other expenses continued to show up like clockwork.

11. We have been extremely mindful of the many sacrifices that you have had to make over the last few years. And for this reason this administrations work on the economic front has been targeted at a combination of short-term interventions to cushion the pain, as well as medium to long term efforts aimed at rebuilding an economy that is no longer helplessly dependent on the price of crude oil.

12. Those short-term interventions include putting together a series of bailout packages for our State Governments, to enable them bridge their salary shortfalls  an issue the President has consistently expressed his concerns about. We also began the hard work of laying out a framework for our Social Intervention Programme, the most ambitious in the history of the country.

13. One of the first tasks of the Cabinet and the Economic Management Team was to put together a Strategic Implementation Plan for the 2016 budget, targeting initiatives that would create speedy yet lasting impact on the lives of Nigerians.

Indeed, much of 2016 was spent clearing the mess we inherited and putting the building blocks together for the future of our dreams; laying a solid foundation for the kind of future that you deserve as citizens of Nigeria.

14. In his Budget Presentation Speech to the National Assembly last December, President Buhari outlined our Economic Agenda in detail, and assured that 2017 -would be the year in which you would begin to see tangible benefits of all the planning and preparation work. It is my pleasure to note that in the five months since he delivered that speech, we have seen tremendous progress, as promised.

15. Take the example of our Social Investment Programme, which kicked off at the end of 2016. Its Home Grown School Feeding component is now feeding more than 1 million primary school children across seven states and would be feeding three million by the end of the year.

16. N-Power, another component has engaged 200,000 unemployed graduates  none of whom needed any connections to be selected. Beneficiaries are already telling the stories of how these initiatives have given them a fresh start in their lives.

Micro credit to a million artisans, traders and market men and women has begun. While conditional cash transfers to eventually reach a million of the poorest and most vulnerable households has also begun.

17. Road and power projects are ongoing in every part of the country. In rail, we are making progress with our plans to attract hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to upgrade the existing 3,500km narrow-gauge network.

We have also in 2017 flagged-off construction work on the Lagos-Ibadan leg of our standard-gauge network, and are close to completing the first phase of Abujas Mass Transit Rail System.

18. In that Budget speech in December, the President announced the take-off of the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative. Today, five months on, that Initiative  the product of an unprecedented bilateral cooperation with the Government of Morocco  has resulted in the revitalisation of 11 blending plants across the country, the creation of 50,000 direct and indirect jobs so far, and in the production of 300,000 metric tonnes of NPK fertilizer, which is being sold to farmers at prices significantly lower than what they paid last year.

By the end of 2017, that Fertilizer Initiative would have led to foreign exchange savings of US$200 million; and subsidy savings of 60 billion naira.

The Initiative is building on the solid gains of the Anchor Borrowers Programme, launched in 2015 to support our rice and wheat farmers, as part of our move towards guaranteeing food security for Nigeria.

All of this is evidence that we are taking very seriously our ambition of agricultural self-sufficiency. I am delighted to note that since 2015 our imports of rice have dropped by 90 percent, while domestic production has almost tripled. Our goal is to produce enough rice to meet local demand by 2019.

19. In April, the President launched our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan which built on the foundations laid by the Strategic implementation Plan of 2016. The plan has set forth a clear vision for the economic development of Nigeria. I will come back to this point presently.

20. Another highlight of the Presidents Budget Speech was our work around the Ease of Doing Business reforms. As promised we have since followed up with implementation and execution. I am pleased to note that we are now seeing verifiable progress across several areas, ranging from new Visa on Arrival scheme, to reforms at our ports and regulatory agencies.

21. The President also promised that 2017 would see the rollout of Executive Orders to facilitate government approvals, support procurement of locally made goods, and improve fiscal responsibility. We have kept that promise.

This month we issued three Executive Orders to make it easier for citizens to get the permits and licenses they require for their businesses, to mandate Government agencies to spend more of their budgets on locally produced goods, and to promote budget transparency and efficiency. The overarching idea is to make Government Agencies and Government budgets work more efficiently for the people.

The impact of our Ease of Doing Business work is gradually being felt by businesses small and large; its successful take-off has allowed us to follow up with the MSME Clinics -our Small Business support programme, which has taken us so far to Aba, Sokoto, Jos, Katsina, and we expect to be in all other states in due course.

ALSO READ: Acting president urges Muslims to reflect on national challenges during Ramadan

22. Let me note, at this point, that several of our Initiatives are targeted at our young people, who make up most of our population. From N-Power, to the Technology Hubs being developed nationwide, to innovation competitions such as the Aso Villa Demo Day, and our various MSME support schemes, we will do everything to nurture the immense innovative and entrepreneurial potential of our young people. We are a nation of young people, and we will ensure that our policies and programmes reflect this.

23. One of the highlights of our Power Sector Recovery Programme, which we launched in March, is a N701 billion Naira Payment Assurance Scheme that will resolve the financing bottlenecks that have until now constrained the operations of our gas suppliers and generation companies. Let me assure that you will soon begin to see the positive impact of these steps.

24. Our Solid Minerals Development Fund has also now taken off, in line with our commitment to developing the sector. Because of our unerring focus on Solid Minerals development over the last two years, the sector has, alongside Agriculture, seen impressive levels of growth  in spite of the recession.

25. On the whole, just as the President promised in the Budget Speech, these early months of 2017 have seen the flowering of the early fruit of all the hard work of our first eighteen months.

We opened the year with an overwhelmingly successful Eurobond Offer  evidence of continuing investor interest in Nigeria. We have also launched the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) 2017-2020, to build on the gains of last years Strategic Implementation Plan.

And the implementation of our 2017 Budget, which will soon be signed into law, will bring added impetus to our ongoing economic recovery. In the 2016 Budget we spent 1.2 Trillion Naira on infrastructure projects, another milestone in the history of this country. Our 2017 Budget will double that investment.

26. That budget also provides for substantial investment to implement the rollout of Industrial Parks and Special Economic Zones (SEZs), as well as our Social Housing Programme. The Industrial Parks and Economic Zones will fulfill our ambition of making Nigeria a manufacturing hub, while the Family Home Fund of our Social Housing Programme will provide inexpensive mortgages for low-income individuals and families across the country.

27. These plans offer yet more evidence that we are ramping up the pace of work; the work of fulfilling all that we promised. In the next two years we will build on the successes of the last two. We have demonstrated a willingness to learn from our mistakes and to improve on our successes.

28. The critical points that we must address fully in the next two years are : Agriculture and food security, Energy, (power and Petroleum,) Industrialization and Transport infrastructure. Every step of the way we will be working with the private sector, giving them the necessary incentives and creating an environment to invest and do business.

29. Our vision is for a country that grows what it eats and produces what it consumes. It is for a country that no longer has to import petroleum products, and develops a lucrative petrochemical industry. Very importantly it is for a country whose fortunes are no longer tied to the price of a barrel of crude, but instead to the boundless talent and energy of its people, young and old, male and female as they invest in diverse areas of the economy.

30. And that vision is also for a country where the wealth of the many will no longer be stolen by or reserved for a few; and where the impunity of corruption  whether in the public or private sectors  will no longer be standard operating practice; a land rid of bandits and terrorists.

31. As citizens you all deserve a country that works, not merely for the rich or connected, but for everyone. And our promise to you is that we will, with your support and cooperation, take every step needed to create that country of our dreams.

32. We also know that this journey will of necessity take time. But we will not succumb to the temptation to take short-cuts that ultimately complicate the journey. We did not find ourselves in crises overnight, and we simply do not expect overnight solutions to our challenges.

33. The most important thing is that we are on the right path, and we will not deviate from it, even in the face of strong temptation to choose temporary gain over long-term benefit. As the President has summed it up: The old Nigeria is slowly but surely disappearing, and a new era is rising.

34. And so we commemorate this second anniversary of our administration with confidence and optimism. I firmly believe that we have put the most difficult phase behind us; and we are witnesses to the ever-increasing intensity of the light at the end of the tunnel.

We ask for your continued cooperation and support, to enable us realise all our best intentions and ambitions for Nigeria. On our part We will continue to carry you along on this journey, speak to you, explain the challenges, and share our Vision.

35. And while we all daily pre-occupy ourselves with pursuing the Nigerian Dream  which is the desire to better our lives and circumstances vigorously and honestly  it is inevitable that grievances and frustrations will arise from time to time.

36. This is normal. What is not normal, or acceptable, is employing these frustrations as justification for indulging in discrimination or hate speech or hateful conduct of any kind, or for seeking to undermine by violent or other illegal means the very existence of the sovereign entity that has brought us all together as brothers and sisters and citizens.

37. Nigeria belongs to all of us. No one person or group of persons is more important or more entitled than the other in this space that we all call home.

38. And we have a responsibility to live in peace and harmony with one another, to seek peaceful and constitutional means of expressing our wishes and desires, and to resist all who might seek to sow confusion and hatred for their own selfish interests.

39. Before I end this speech, let me ask for your continued prayers for the restoration to full health and strength and the safe return of our President.

40. I congratulate all of you on todays commemoration of this important day in the democratic calendar of our country. Nigeria is on a journey of greatness, and together we shall arrive at the destination of our dreams.
Ugwuanyi disclosed this on Monday in Enugu during the 2017 Democracy Day celebration at the Michael Okpara Square.

He said that the local government system had noticeable lapses which needed to be addressed, adding that he set out to address such challenges on assumption of office.

The governor said that stakeholders in the state met on Nov. 28, 2015 to assess the problems of local government administration in the state.

To make the local government system more effective, we set up the Local Government Audit and other Reforms Committee to look into the problems of local government administration and management."

This effort to reposition the system accounted for the delay in conducting council elections, he said.

Ugwuanyi said that the committee headed by the Speaker of the states House of Assembly, Chief Edward Obosi, made useful findings and recommendations.

For instance, the panel uncovered the existence of over 3,000 ghost workers across the 17 local government areas and this was a major drain to the resources of local councils in the state."

We have substantially implemented the recommendations of the committee and also addressed the issue of salaries arrears in the system."

We have also reconstituted the and today I can confidently say local councils in the state are ready to fly, he said.

Ugwuanyi said that his administration would soon approach the state assembly for the appropriation of funds for the conduct of council elections later in the year.

I want to promise you that it is going to be the most transparent local council election in recent history, he said.

The governor said that the state had become one united family after the two years of his administration.
Pastor Glory Akhimie, a Pastor at the Winners Chapel in Lagos, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the fight against corruption was a fight in the right direction.

The present administration is fighting corruption, they are fighting insurgency and they have ensured that there is peace and security of lives in the nation, they have done very well.

He, however, urged the Federal Government to improve on human capacity toward good governance.

If you say you are fighting corruption, there are things to put in place, there are principal problems and also peripheral problems; you cannot fight corruption when the people are hungry."

For you to able solve the peripheral problems, you have to first solve the principal problems, which is poverty."

When a man is sure of his three square meal and good shelter, he cannot think of embezzlement, he said.

The Chief Executive Officer of Zakat and Sadaqat Foundation, Imam Abdullahi Shuaib also commended the Federal Governments effort in the fight against corruption, saying it was a major factor hindering development.

It is a welcome development, especially in war against corruption, which has been primarily the major factor hindering our speedy transition from a primordial democratic dispensation to a liberal democratic dispensation."

Nigerian democracy is still growing gradually but it has not actually gotten to a stage where you can say that our democratic experience has become automated and sustainable."

There are still many rooms for improvement, if you look at where we are coming from, since 1999 till date, we have transited from one civilian government to another, thats a plus for Nigeria."

Even though in the process of transition we encountered many electoral frauds and electoral malpractices, be that as it may be, we still have to commend Nigerians and all stakeholders, Shuaib said.

The Director of Social Communication, Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, Monsignor Gabriel Osu, urged Nigerians to exercise patience and pray so that true democracy would be attained.

We are still in the process to perfect democracy, we need patience, we need prayers, and we need good will."

So its a process that we are in and we pray and hope that at the end of it all we will see Nigeria of our dream, he said.

Imam Luqman AbdurRaheem, the Amir of the Muslim Congress (TMC) urged the three arms of government to imbibe the principal of sustainability, accountability and transparency.

We must ensure that the three arms of government follow what I called SAT principles  Sustainability, Accountability and Transparency."

Most of the projects the executives are putting forward are not sustainable, and those that are sustainable for which we voted money are not accountable."

You can see our budget, look at 2015, 2016 budget, even the states claim they make budgets but the contents are not implemented to the letter so they are not accountable."

Then transparency too, we dont know what they are doing, they will announce budget but what are the projects for which these funds were used, we dont know."
Ubani told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the speech clearly showed that there was a sense of purpose and direction in the nations polity.

But we want more actions than speeches."

With all the message of hope in that speech, if this government is given that cooperation and they themselves can make some level of sacrifice, we will get to the promised land."

I strongly believe that things will turn around for good in this country; it is only a matter of time,  Ubani said.

Also speaking to NAN, a Professor of Political Science, Sunny Akpotor urged the present government to spend the next two years getting back democracy to the people by using recovered loot to provide infrastructure that would improve citizens standard of living.

Akpotor, who works with the Delta State University, Abraka, said that many people had yet to get the dividends of democracy.

The democracy speech this morning is filled with more promises; all we are appealing is that the government should translate the talks to action by using recovered loot to improve infrastructure, agriculture and energy sector,  he said.

In his views, Mr Wale Ogunade, a human rights lawyer told NAN that President Buharis fight against corruption in the last two years had opened the eyes of Nigerians to the level of rot in the polity.

He said that President Buhari was poised to serve the nation, strengthen democracy and make life better for the citizens by implementing his campaign promises, but for his health challenges.

This government met a lot of problems and it can not be easy to address the problems overnight or even in two years. That is why it seems like nothing is happening in terms of governance and other sectors of the economy."

Government has been trying to lay foundations by putting a lot of reforms in place to address our many challenges and strengthen our democracy, but the Presidents ill health has been a challenge."

All we need to do as a people is to pray that God will grant our President good health, I believe strongly that when he is okay, things will turn around for good in this country,  Ogunade said.

Another human rights lawyer, Mr Justice Uhuegbu, said that Nigerias democracy at 18 could be better.

Uhuegbu urged President Buhari to strengthen the nations democracy by ensuring obedience to the rule of law, infrastructural development, economic agenda that would impact on the grassroots and security of lives and properties.

We can only move forward when security, improved infrastructure and economic policies that will make life meaningful for the people are in place."

We need to also stop using positions to settle political loyalism by putting the right people to drive our ministries, parastatals and agencies."
Senator Melaye and some members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi State recently called on Governor Bello to resign over the accusation that he registered twice for the Permanent Voter Card (PVC).

Melaye had claimed that the people of Kogi state and the party were dissociating themselves from the act and called on Bello to resign immediately or risk impeachment.

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Coordinator of the group, Timothy Charles however, described the call for Bellos resignation as laughable and unnecessary.

He noted that it was unfortunate that some mischievous people who parade themselves as APC leaders have chosen to feast on irrelevant issues.

His words: Some eager Nigerians are yet to understand the part that has to do with transfer of voting centers but have gone ahead to register again when they find themselves in new locations as was applicable under the old system.

This was apparently what happened to Bello hence the circumstance is devoid of any untoward intention.

But these few Kogi APC leaders prefer to expose their ignorance by acting beyond their limits and assuming a position that is way beyond their powers.

One way of gauging the seriousness of an enterprise is to look at the profile of those championing it and that is the crux of the matter.

One of the prominent leaders of the group is Dino Melaye, a man who has continued to bring shame and ridicule to Kogi state by his alarmingly illogical comments on the floor of the Senate and elsewhere.

This is a man who is struggling with an identity crisis that even his real name is not known as it keeps changing and his credentials are so fake that they cannot withstand the slightest scrutiny as seen recently.

ALSO READ: 9 Times Dino Melaye completely lost it

To put the records straight, Governor Bello is discharging his duties responsibly as governor and cannot resign because he has not done anything unconstitutional to warrant that.
In a statement by its publicity spokesman, Dayo Adeyeye, the PDP said the APC has left Nigerians with nothing to celebrate two years after taking over power.

The PDP accused the APC of 'suppressing and denying it' the political space to provide credible opposition in the country.

The PDP accused the APC of selectively fighting corruption adding that the ruling party has become a shield for corrupt politicians.

The Question is what has the APC done to fight corruption? Nothing! Yes, indeed nothing except noise, hounding, torturing, flouting of court orders and vilification of opposition leaders and members in and out of courts/incarcerations without proving anything; harassments, intimidation, indiscriminate arrests and detention of Judges in order to cow them to desecrate the Judiciary and deny the people justice; promote gestapo state and by extension, kill democracy.

On the much celebrated anti-corruption fight of the APC therefore, it must be noted that it was previous PDP governments that created and sustained all the institutions for fighting corruption such as the EFCC and the ICPC. Under the PDP administrations most of those who were tried by these agencies were PDP members.

ALSO READ: Osinbajo: We have seen tremendous progress as promised

"The PDP never made any effort to shield PDP members from prosecution and investigation as is the case with the APC government which has made it a policy to sweep all the dirt of its members under the carpet. Instead of entrenching transparency and accountability in governance processes, the APCs recent Whistle Blowing Policy for instance, appears to be a mockery of the System given the reprehensible and comic actions so far under it by finding 'orphaned monies' in all nooks and cranny of the country by the EFCC.

The PDP further blamed Nigerias current economic recession in the incompetence of the APC.

Two years into the APCs governance, as a result of incompetence and President Buharis de-marketing of Nigeria while globetrotting; investors (both local & foreign) have withdrawn their monies from the System thereby creating economic inactivity and consequent depression that we are being faced with alarming rate of suicide. No doubt, economic activities and an enabling environment is the basic response to recession but experience and requisite skills are alien to the APC in this regard.

On security, the PDP said security situation in Nigeria has worsened owning to the increasing case of Fulani herdsmen attacks in different party of the country.
The students were said to have taken to the streets of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, demanding the management to lift the ban on the use of cooking appliances in halls of residence.

At a congress on Saturday, May 27, the students had passed a resolution to disrupt the forthcoming examinations if students were not provided with identity cards.

They also asked the authorities to constitute the Students' Welfare Board.

Announcing the closure of the institution, the University's spokesman, Olatunji Oladejo, said it became necessary in order to avert crisis.

ALSO READ: Mystery as UI student jumps to her death in school hostel

He said the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Idowu Olayinka, has convened an emergency meeting of the university Senate to review the circumstances surrounding the development.

"The University of Ibadan, in its wisdom, has decided to shift the examination earlier scheduled for June to July 2017," Oladejo told NAN.
Of course, there's been nothing but sweet, endearing words from the wife to her husband on the ocassion.

Toolz on her Instagram page shares a pic from that amazing, all-star wedding ceremony in Dubai [remember that?]. And alongside the pic she writes the following words:

"Happy One Year Anniversary to us baby!!! Thank you for making me a better person, a better business person, a better cook, (I call him Onje Simpson) and most importantly a better Christian.

Thank you for learning to handle my crazy, and always trying to get me to see the lighter side of life... even at the most inappropriate times lol.

My rock, my ever-smiling Captain (unless I vex you) our journey hasn't been perfect but I know God has been with us every step of the way, and has a lot of great things in store for us, and I'm so thankful that He picked you for me!!Love you fiercely."

Toolz and her Captain also recently had the first anniversary of their traditional wedding ceremony and are also expecting their first baby at the time of publishing this article.
The Supreme Court has never answered that question, either. It heard arguments on the issue in 1974 in a case in which it ordered President Richard M. Nixon to turn over tape recordings, but it did not resolve it.

Reports that President Donald Trump asked James Comey, then the FBI director, to shut down an investigation into his former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, prompted accusations that the president may have obstructed justice. Robert Mueller, the former FBI director who has been appointed special counsel to look into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia, will presumably investigate the matter.

But would the Constitution allow Mueller to indict Trump if he finds evidence of criminal conduct?

The prevailing view among most legal experts is no. They say the president is immune from prosecution so long as he is in office.

The framers implicitly immunized a sitting president from ordinary criminal prosecution, said Akhil Reed Amar, a law professor at Yale.

Note the word implicitly. Amar acknowledged that the text of the Constitution did not directly answer the question. It has to be, he said, a structural inference about the uniqueness of the president himself.

The closest the Constitution comes to addressing the issue is in this passage, from Article I, Section 3: Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States: but the party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment and punishment, according to law.

This much seems clear: The president and other federal officials may be prosecuted after they leave office, and there is no double jeopardy protection from prosecution if they are removed following impeachment.

However, whether the Constitution allows indictment of a sitting president is debatable, Brett M. Kavanaugh, who served on the staff of Ken Starr, the independent counsel who investigated President Bill Clinton, wrote in a 1998 law review article. Kavanaugh, who is now a federal appeals court judge, also concluded that impeachment, not prosecution, was the right way to address a sitting presidents crimes.

The most prominent dissenter from the prevailing view is Eric M. Freedman, a law professor at Hofstra University and the author of a 1999 law review article that made the case for allowing criminal prosecution of incumbent presidents.

Freedman demonstrated that the issue had divided the founding generation and argued that granting sitting presidents immunity from prosecution was inconsistent with the history, structure and underlying philosophy of our government, at odds with precedent and unjustified by practical considerations.

He pointed out that other federal officials who are subject to impeachment, including judges, have been indicted while in office. Courts have rejected the argument that impeachment is the sole remedy for such officials.

But Amar said that presidents were different.

If youre going to undo a national election, the body that does that should have a national mandate, he said. Even a federal prosecution would follow only from an indictment from a grand jury sitting in one locality.

Vice President Spiro T. Agnew, facing a grand jury investigation that would lead to his resignation in 1973, argued that he was immune from prosecution while in office. Impeachment, he said, was the only remedy.

The Justice Department, in a brief signed by Solicitor General Robert Bork, disagreed. But, though the question was not before the court, Bork added that structural features of the Constitution barred prosecutions of sitting presidents.

Since the president has the power to control federal prosecutions and to pardon federal offenses, Bork wrote, it would make no sense to allow the president to be prosecuted until after he is removed from office and forfeits those powers. (Bork would go on to become a federal appeals court judge and an unsuccessful nominee to the Supreme Court.)

A year later, Leon Jaworski, the Watergate special prosecutor, took a less categorical position.

It is an open and substantial question whether an incumbent president is subject to indictment, he told the Supreme Court during his successful quest to obtain the White House recordings that contributed to Nixons resignation.

In a series of memorandums, the Justice Departments Office of Legal Counsel concluded that indicting a sitting president would violate the Constitution by undermining his ability to do his job. Those memos, too, though, said the answer was a matter of structure and inference.

Neither the text nor the history of the Constitution ultimately provided dispositive guidance in determining whether a president is amenable to indictment or criminal prosecution while in office, a 2000 memo said, summarizing an earlier one. It therefore based its analysis on more general considerations of constitutional structure.

The Justice Departments regulations require Mueller, the special counsel, to follow the departments rules, regulations, procedures, practices and policies. If the memos bind Mueller, it would seem he could not indict Trump, no matter what he uncovered.

But Andrew Manuel Crespo, a law professor at Harvard, has questioned whether the special-counsel regulations should be read that broadly. The regulations, he wrote on Take Care, a law blog, focus more on administrative protocols and procedures than on legal analyses, arguments or judgments.

Even if Mueller has a measure of discretion, Amar said, the right process for assessing Trumps conduct, should it come to that, is the one described in detail in the Constitution: impeachment.
It was forced on me, she recalls. She had become pregnant, she says, and child welfare authorities were investigating  so her family and church officials decided the simplest way to avoid a messy criminal case was to organize a wedding.

My mom asked me if I wanted to get married, and I said, I dont know, what is marriage, how do I act like a wife?' Johnson remembers today, many years later. She said, Well, I guess youre just going to get married.'

So she was. A government clerk in Tampa, Florida, refused to marry an 11-year-old, even though this was legal in the state, so the wedding party went to nearby Pinellas County, where the clerk issued a marriage license. The license (which Ive examined) lists her birth date, so officials were aware of her age.

Not surprisingly, the marriage didnt work out  two-thirds of marriages of underage girls dont last, one study found  but it did interrupt Johnsons attendance at elementary school. Today she is campaigning for a state law to curb underage marriages, part of a nationwide movement to end child marriage in America. Meanwhile, children 16 and under are still being married in Florida at a rate of one every few days.

In fact, more than 167,000 young people age 17 and under married in 38 states between 2000 and 2010, according to a search of available marriage license data by a group called Unchained at Last, which aims to ban child marriage. The search turned up cases of 12-year-old girls married in Alaska, Louisiana and South Carolina, while other states simply had categories of 14 and younger.

Unchained at Last was not able to get data for the other states. But it extrapolated that in the entire country, there were almost 250,000 child marriages between 2000 and 2010. Some backing for that estimate comes from the U.S. Census Bureau, which says that at least 57,800 Americans age 15 to 17 reported being in marriages in 2014.

Among the states with the highest rates of child marriages were Arkansas, Idaho and Kentucky. The number of child marriages has been falling, but every state in America still allows underage girls to marry, typically with the consent of parents, a judge or both. Twenty-seven states do not even set a minimum age by statute, according to the Tahirih Justice Centers Forced Marriage Initiative.

A great majority of the child marriages involve girls and adult men. Such a sexual relationship would often violate statutory rape laws, but marriage sometimes makes it legal.

In New Hampshire, a Girl Scout named Cassandra Levesque learned that girls in her state could marry at 13. So she set out to change the law.

A legislator sponsored Cassandras bill to raise the age to 18, and researchers found that two 15-year-olds had recently married in New Hampshire, along with one 13-year-old. But politicians resisted the initiative.

Were asking the Legislature to repeal a law thats been on the books for over a century, thats been working without difficulty, on the basis of a request from a minor doing a Girl Scout project, scoffed one state representative, David Bates. In March the Republican-led House voted to kill the bill, leaving the minimum age at 13. (Legislators seem willing to marry off girls like Cassandra, but not to listen to them!)

New Jersey lawmakers passed a bill that would make their state the first in the country to ban marriages of people under 18, but Gov. Chris Christie this month blocked the legislation. New York legislators are considering a bill backed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to raise the age to 17, from the current minimum, 14.

Opponents worry that raising the age will lead to out-of-wedlock births, and they note that many underage marriages are consensual.

Globally, a girl marries before the age of 15 every seven seconds, according to estimates by Save the Children. As in Africa and Asia, the reasons for such marriages in the U.S. are often cultural or religious; the American families follow conservative Christian, Muslim or Jewish traditions, and judges sometimes feel that they shouldnt intrude on other cultures.

Johnson, the former 11-year-old unwitting bride who is now fighting for Florida to set a minimum marriage age (there is none now), says that her family attended a conservative Pentecostal church and that other girls of a similar age periodically also married. Often, she says, this was to hide rapes by church elders.

She says she was raped by both a minister and a parishioner and gave birth to a daughter when she was just 10 (the birth certificate confirms that). A judge approved the marriage to end the rape investigation, she says, telling her, What we want is for you to get married.

It was a terrible life, Johnson recalls, recounting her years as a child raising children. She missed school and remembers spending her days changing diapers, arguing with her husband and struggling to pay expenses. She ended up with pregnancy after pregnancy  nine children in all  while her husband periodically abandoned her.

They took the handcuffs from handcuffing him, she says, referring to the risk he faced of arrest for rape, to handcuffing me, by marrying me without me knowing what I was doing.

You cant get a job, you cant get a car, you cant get a license, you cant sign a lease, she adds, so why allow someone to marry when theyre still so young?

Those are precisely the reasons marriages for even 17-year-olds are problematic, according to Fraidy Reiss, who founded Unchained at Last to fight forced marriage and child marriage. Bullied by their parents into marriage, she says, girls may feel powerless to object  and fearful of telling a judge that they dont want to wed. If they try to flee an abusive marriage, they are turned away from shelters and may be treated as simple runaways.

Some judges and clerks intervene on behalf of young girls; others do not. Reiss says one clerk told a 16-year-old bride: Dont cry. This is supposed to be the happiest day of your life.

For almost all of them, says Reiss, marriage means rape on their wedding night and thereafter. Reiss, now 42, says she was forced into a marriage at age 19 by her ultra-Orthodox Jewish family.

Lyndsy Duet, now a school counselor in Texas, told me that she was forced into a marriage at 17 after enduring a series of rapes beginning when she was 14, by a young man her conservative Christian family had taken into the house. Confused, shamed and helpless, she didnt speak up  but her rapist did.

He asked my parents if he could marry me, Duet remembers. My mom was crying, she was so happy.

Duet felt powerless to resist her parents pressure  and it was eight years before she could flee what she says was a violent marriage. Once, she says, her husband threatened her with a chain saw, and it was only when she went to college on her own and proved a brilliant student (she graduated first in her class) that she was able to escape.

Most girls who reach out to us love their families, Reiss says, and their primary concern is that they dont want their families to get into trouble.

The United States has denounced child marriage in other countries as a human rights abuse that contributes to economic hardship, in the words of a State Department document published last year.
Officials had told AFP on May 17 that the couple had been stoned to death in public the previous day in the Taghlit valley, in the remote Kidal region.

It would have been the first such incident since jihadist groups were driven out of the region in 2013 by a French-led military intervention.

The report was queried on social media but could not be checked independently as the area is difficult to access and a haven for smugglers, drug-traffickers and other criminal gangs and militia fighters.

"Finally they weren't lapidated," said a local official who asked not to be identified. "They were arrested and threatened and then some people pretended to lapidate them."

"There was no lapidation," he added. "People went to see but there was no stoning."

A Malian security source confirmed the report, saying the execution by stoning had been cancelled.

Last week, the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM), a fusion of several jihadist groups with previous Al-Qaeda links, issued a statement denying any involvement in the stoning and questioning whether it ever took place.

Jihadists seized key northern cities in Mali in March 2012, and though they were driven out the next year, Islamist groups continue to make their presence felt with frequent attacks on domestic and foreign forces.
An AFP journalist saw several hundred mainly young demonstrators gathered in two neighbourhoods of the city on Sunday night, chanting "The state is corrupt!" and "Dignity!".

They also shouted "We are all Zefzafi!" in reference to protest leader Nasser Zefzafi, who is on the run after authorities last week ordered his arrest.

The protesters attempted to make their way to the city's central square but were blocked by security forces. After an hour-long face-off with police the youths dispersed without incident.

"We cannot take a single step, the police are everywhere," an activist in the city told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The activist said a solidarity rally had taken place in the nearby city of Imzouren.

Protests were also reported in two other northern cities, Nador and Tanger, as well as in Casablanca and the capital Rabat, where some 300 people took part.

Morocco's northern Rif region has been shaken by more than six months of social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, soon evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement".

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he on Friday allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque and called for further demonstrations.

Evening protests followed on Friday and Saturday, with demonstrators clashing with police.

As of late Sunday police had arrested 22 people in connection with the disturbances, according to officials.

Local sources have reported significantly more arrests and said many of those detained have been transferred to Casablanca.

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Morocco's central authorities and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.
"It is essential to talk to Russia because there are many international issues that will not be resolved without a tough exchange with the Russians," Macron said at the G7 summit in Sicily which wound up on Saturday.

The 39-year-old centrist leader's meeting with Putin, 64, caps a whirlwind of diplomacy including the G7 talks as well as last week's NATO summit in Brussels.

He told a French weekly that he was not "bothered" by leaders who "think in terms of power ratios", citing Putin as an example along with US President Donald Trump.

But Macron, who became France's youngest president just three weeks ago, said he does not believe in "the diplomacy of public invective but in bilateral dialogue".

As a candidate, Macron had tough words for Russia, accusing it of following a "hybrid strategy combining military intimidation and an information war".

Since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2014, Russia has flexed its muscles with a series of war games involving tens of thousands of troops in areas bordering NATO Baltic states.

'Not a single concession'

In Sicily on Saturday, Macron said he would make "not a single concession" to Russia on Ukraine as he and his G7 counterparts said they were prepared to strengthen sanctions against Moscow.

Western powers charge Russia with failing to honour its commitments under the Minsk accords framework for establishing a cessation of hostilities between Kiev forces and Moscow-backed separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

France helped spearhead the sanctions, which have seriously dented EU-Russia trade, with a retaliatory Russian embargo on European agricultural products hurting French farmers.

The Syrian conflict will also be high on the agenda, with Macron saying he was in favour of "building an inclusive political solution in a much more collective way".

He regretted that none of the G7 states is party to Syria peace talks under way in the Kazakh capital Astana initiated by Russia, Iran and Turkey, although there are US observers.

Separate UN-backed negotiations have become down in Geneva over the six-year-old Syrian conflict.

Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov told a Moscow news briefing that he expected an "interesting and frank" discussion on Syria.

"France is among the countries with a very severe stance towards the regime of (Syrian President) Bashar al-Assad," he said.

Coming so soon after an election in which the Kremlin was widely seen as backing Macron's far-right rival Marine Le Pen -- with Putin hosting her during a surprise visit to Moscow -- the encounter in Versailles, near Paris, will have an added personal edge.

Putin was quick to congratulate Macron on his election, urging him to "overcome mutual distrust" and "join forces to ensure international stability and security".

'Pragmatic'

The visit comes seven months after the Russian leader cancelled a trip to Paris for the opening of a Russian cathedral complex near the Eiffel Tower in a spat over Syria with then president Francois Hollande, who had said Russia's bombing of Aleppo could amount to war crimes.

The venue will be the sumptuous palace of Versailles, where the pair will inaugurate an exhibition marking 300 years of Franco-Russian ties since the visit of Russia's modernising tsar Peter the Great to France in 1717.

After the talks and a joint news conference, Putin will visit the Paris Orthodox cathedral complex on his own.

On the eve of Putin's visit, central and eastern European activists staged a small anti-Putin demonstration in Paris.
DES MOINES  Census Day, which comes but once every 10 years, is nearly three years off, but the groundwork for counting American residents is underway.

Its early for us, but not early for the Census Bureau, according to Gary Krob, director of the State Data Center and Iowas point of contact with the federal agency charged with the decennial head count.

Census counts have gone smoothly in Iowa in the past  a top five response rate  and Krob expects a high response rate again in 2020. Thats important, he said, because theres a lot at stake.

The more accurate our count, the better it is for our state because representation in the United States House and millions of dollars of federal funding is riding on the census data, Krob said.

Iowa lost one of its five House seats after the 2010 census because its population wasnt keeping up with faster growing areas, primarily in the South and West. Krob doesnt expect that to happen after 2020.

However, Iowas population numbers could affect the flow of federal dollars to the state. Thats no small thing. About 32 percent of Iowas general fund budget, or $2.3 billion, comes from federal funds.

Thats just the start. More than 200 federal programs rely on census numbers to appropriate nearly $450 billion in Medicaid, Social Security, highway construction, special education grants, the Childrens Health Insurance Program and others.

Census-taking has come a long way from 1790 when 600 federal marshals counted 3.9 million American residents. In 2010, the Census Bureau employed 635,000 staffers to count more than 308 million people.

In 2020, Americans will be able to submit responses via phone and the internet, Krob said.

The goal is to have fewer people on the ground in an effort to contain the costs, he said. The Census has been testing its internet response system for the past four years and will conduct end-to-end tests in three states for two years.

While the federal government is expected to appropriate about $1.5 billion for the 2020 census  about the same as in 2010, Krob said his budget is unlikely to see much change.

In 2000, we got more  about $500 or $1,000, Krob said. Given Iowas high response rate, more money may not yield markedly better results, he said.

Krob said the count may be harder in 2020 than in the past because of anti-government sentiment among some Americans as well as reluctance by immigrants  legal and illegal  to respond.

My guess is that it will be harder to count next time, that Iowa will have issues because it may be hard to convince people that when the government asks questions the answers wont be shared with Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other law enforcement agencies, Krob explained.

The census, he emphasized, counts residents, not citizens.

Krobs work to prepare for Census Day, April 1, 2020, will pick up next year when he starts working with local officials on the Local Update of Census Addresses. It gives cities, counties and tribal governments the opportunity to update address lists to include newly developed areas and make sure boundary lines include expansions and annexations.

Just as the census numbers are important for the state, the head count affects local representation in the Iowa Legislature, on city councils and county boards where officials are elected by districts or wards. It also affects state and federal money flowing into those communities.

Some larger communities have Complete Count Committees that help promote census participation. Leaders of ethnic and religious communities are invited to help spread the word, Krob said.

Cities with hard-to-reach populations and those that are growing readily understand the importance of participation, Krob said.

Smaller cities where there has been little population change may not see it the same way, said Krob, who noted that population in 73 Iowa counties has fallen since 2010.
Young people in 4-H across Iowa will have countless opportunities to learn life skills this summer, thanks to more than $825,000 donated by Tractor Supply Co. customers earlier this year.

Between April 26 and May 7, Davenport-area Tractor Supply stores hosted a paper clover fundraiser to help send thousands of 4-H youth to county-level development programs, camps and leadership conferences. Awarded as scholarships, the money will enable individual 4-H members to learn a variety of skills, from science and technology to fishing and horseback riding.

The value of our partnership with National 4-H Council is never more clear than during the Paper Clover Campaign, said Christi Korzekwa, senior vice president of marketing at Tractor Supply Co. Our dedicated team members and loyal customers continue to show outstanding support for 4-H programs that teach children life skills in science, healthy living and citizenship empowering them to thrive today and tomorrow.

The partnership between Tractor Supply and National 4-H Council has generated more than $11 million in essential funding over its history, in large part because of the commitment of 4-H groups. This year, members of individual 4-H clubs greeted customers at stores and held their own promotions, including greenhouse sales, 4-H alumni events and social-media challenges.

The Paper Clover Campaign will return to Iowa Tractor Supply Co. stores Oct. 4-15. Customers can participate by purchasing paper clovers for $1 or more at checkouts.

For more information, visit http://www.tractorsupply.com/4h.

Founded in 1938, Tractor Supply Company is the largest rural-lifestyle retail store chain in the United States.
Tormenting tales linger this Memorial Day weekend about the death of Tech. Sgt. Harold Peaner Ripslinger, whose death remains a classic World War II mystery.

The answer may rest in the scorching sands of a Libyan desert, where his U.S. Air Force B-24D  dubbed "Lady Be Good"  disappeared for 15 years.

The aircraft's crew parachuted into the night darkness in 1943 when fuel ran short. The pilot-less plane then pancake landed" in the sand, smashed. Days later, Ripslinger and others in the crew regrouped, only to ultimately meet agonizing death in the sands about 20 miles from where the plane slid into the sand, like a storied ship deserted at sea.

The story of Ripslinger, lost at the age of 22, and The Lady lingers on, mysterious because the plane and the bodies of all but one of the nine-man crew were found 15 years after they set out in search of help. The plane's radio was operable, water and coffee on board was drinkable, and intact candy bars were edible.

One of the searchers is quoted, Theres more to this than we know.

While Ripslinger was from Saginaw, Michigan, he was a regular visitor to Davenport, where he had relatives. His nephew, Jon Ripslinger, a retired school teacher, lives in the west end of Davenport.

God was the pilot of that plane, his nephew said last week.

Jon Ripslinger was given the rosary that was found on his uncle's desert-mummified body.

I held it in my hands and found the beads to be shiny, intact. A metal medallion of Jesus was attached to the rosary. It was scarred, apparently from the sands.

Books have been written about the flight, and stories occasionally show up in national magazines. A stained-glass window at the U.S. Air Force Base in Libya contains a tribute to his ordeal. He was the last of the mummified crew to be found; the final one to have struggled to live.

The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force has the four propellers recovered from the Lady Be Good. The US. Air Force Academy in Colorado also honors Ripslinger and his crewmates.

Doomed mission

The bomber was on a mission from North Africa to Italy in 1943. It was the crews first mission. The pilot became hopelessly lost and returned to Africa, heading into 60,000 square miles of desert. It was the dead of night when the plane, sputtering out of fuel, was about to crash into the desert. The crew of nine took a vote and parachuted into deep sand.

They began to walk toward what they hoped would be salvation. The nearest city was Benghazi, 450 miles away.

They walked in unforgiving sands that were 130 degrees by day and freezing at night. One by one they dropped, dead from heat and thirst. They limited themselves to two drops of water a day. Ripslinger, a serious young man, had kept a diary since he was a child. On this mission of certain death, he still wrote in his diary. One short note:

Tired. We can hardly walk.

"Our 4th day out.

"A few drops of water each.

"Cant hold out much longer without aid.

The rest of the planes crew died in the scorching heat that blistered their lips and bodies.

Ripslinger and two crew members struggled on hopefully. Others staggered off, alone. It came to be that Ripslinger was the last to survive; he had walked 45 miles. The heat was deadly; the thirst was maddening, but as unbearable was the silence of the desert. It was as if Ripslinger were sealed in a big box  a soundproof room of maddening heat.

Finally, his body could stand no more. After five or six days, on Palm Sunday 1943, his diary entry was:

"Palm Sun. Still struggling to get out of dunes to find water."

Then, the diary was blank. No more entries.

Holding out hope

For members of the Ripslinger family in Saginaw and Davenport, the years have been filled with anxiety and sorrow.

First, the plane was missing. Then, the crew was missing. Then, irregular messages of both hope and despair.

It was like a miracle when the Lady Be Good, was found by a team of British explorers in search of oil. Apparently, the plane had been repeatedly covered with sand, then uncovered by winds. It was battered. There was no sign of the crew.

Searchers discovered that the coffee remained drinkable. Air Force personnel sipped from a jug of water and found it pure. Jackets of the crew held candy bars, not melted after those 15 years in the desert heat.

Air Force technicians checked the radio. It crackled, but it was operable after 15 years. This has continued to mystify. If the crew had stayed with the Lady Be Good after it came to rest into the desert sands, they could have made radio contact with a base and, quite likely, would have survived.

Bodies were found within miles of the plane and returned to their home cities. Because of the heat and the sand that alternately covered them, morticians described the condition of the bodies as practically mummies.

A military mortician reported that the only evidence of the torment on Ripslingers body was his hair. It had been bleached white by exposure to the blazing sun all those days.
A new statewide poll finds that strong opposition to an income tax hike to solve the state's budget problems significantly eases when the tax increase is coupled with a property tax freeze.

Thats important because Gov. Bruce Rauner has insisted that he wont approve any tax hikes or a budget without a four-year property tax freeze. Democrats in the General Assembly, however, have resisted the governors freeze proposal. And the Senate Democrats last week went ahead and passed a budget with tax hikes without including Rauners freeze.

The poll of 500 likely Illinois voters was taken May 23rd by Fabrizio, Lee & Associates, a Republican firm. The poll's questions that we're going to look at today weren't horribly biased, even though the poll was paid for by the Illinois Policy Institute (which for whatever reason didn't include the property tax freeze numbers in its press release). The poll's margin of error was +/-4.4 percent and 40 percent were reached via their mobile phones.

One of the elements of a proposed solution for the Illinois state budget impasse involves raising the state income tax," the pollster told respondents. "Do you favor or oppose a state budget that includes raising the state income tax?"

Just 31 percent favored an income tax hike, while 64 percent were opposed and 51 percent strongly opposed it. No surprise there. Every poll Ive ever seen had numbers similar to those.

"One of the elements of a proposed solution for the Illinois state budget impasse involves raising the state income tax but at the same time enacting a property tax freeze," respondents were told. "Do you favor or oppose a state budget that includes raising the state income tax but also includes a property tax freeze?"

The percent of those favoring the hybrid solution involving a freeze jumped 8 points to 39 percent. That's still far from a majority, but not too bad, considering more money would be coming out of their pockets to fund a supremely dysfunctional state government.

The more dramatic movement came from the opposition. A slim majority of 51 percent were still opposed to the hybrid solution, but that's down 13 points from the income tax-only question. And those who were strongly opposed, which indicates that they might cast their vote based on the topic, dropped 17 points, from 51 down to a mere 34.

So, it's not difficult to see why Gov. Rauner has been talking about almost nothing but a property tax freeze lately. He did a bunch of TV and radio interviews last week saying he absolutely won't sign a budget unless it includes the freeze. Simply put, the issue moves numbers.

The freeze is like that old Mary Poppins song, "A Spoonful of Sugar." It helps the medicine go down, although definitely not in a most delightful way. There are undoubtedly other issues which could help make a tax hike more palatable, but we're stuck with this one because the governor is so adamant about a win on this topic.

If you look at the crosstabs, you'll find that 79 percent of Republicans are opposed to raising the income tax, but that opposition drops 20 points to 59 percent when coupled with a property tax freeze. Opposition by independents drops from 66 to 53. And opposition by Democrats falls from 52 to just 45.

Now, look at those who are strongly opposed to the hybrid plan that Rauner is pushing and the results are even more dramatic.

Seventy-two percent of Republicans were strongly opposed to an income tax hike, but that falls 28 points to 44 percent who were strongly opposed when the tax hike is coupled with a property tax freeze. 54 percent of independent voters strongly opposed an income tax increase, but just 39 percent opposed it when attached to a property tax freeze. And strong opposition dropped from 34 percent to 25 percent among Democrats.

Also, when respondents were given a choice, 45 percent said only cut spending and dont raise taxes, while 41 percent said the state should cut some spending and raise some taxes. Thats exactly what the Senate Democrats did last week, but most people dont know that.

However, when it was pointed out that Illinois already pays the highest property taxes in the country and has the fifth highest overall tax burden, and that some believe another tax hike would drive more people out of the state, 54 percent said only cut spending and dont raise taxes, while just 36 favored a mix of cuts and tax hikes.

Property taxes are a killer issue. The Democrats need to come to terms with that.
The South Dakota Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that a citizen's arrest at Wal-Mart was grounds for a police officer to search and ultimately arrest a woman on drug charges.

The state Supreme Court ruling reverses a previous circuit court ruling that allowed the woman to suppress the evidence found during that search.

According to court documents, Ashley Lee was shopping at Wal-Mart in Rapid City in May 2015 when an employee noticed Lee was concealing items in her purse. The documents say Lee had paid for some other items but failed to pay for merchandise totaling $36.63.

Before she left the store, the employee detained Lee, recovered the stolen merchandise and contacted law enforcement.

When Rapid City Police officer Duane Baker arrived he performed a search of Lee's purse without a warrant and found a glass pipe with residue on it that tested positive for methamphetamine.

Four days after the incident, Lee was charged with petty theft and possession of a controlled substance.

During a July 2016 court date, Lee moved to suppress the evidence obtained as a result of the search, claiming that law enforcement arrested her without a warrant for a Class 2 misdemeanor that was committed outside an officers presence.

The circuit court agreed and concluded that a citizens arrest merely permits detention of a suspect until he (or she) may be taken before a magistrate or delivered to the nearest available law enforcement officer."

"A citizens arrest does not entitle a police officer to make a custodial arrest when he otherwise would not have that authority, Circuit Court Judge Wally Eklund wrote.

The state Supreme Court disagreed with Eklund's interpretation after the state appealed in the form of non-oral arguments last month. The state argued that the circuit court erred and that law enforcement may validly search, without a warrant, a person incident to a citizens arrest.

In its written opinion, the supreme court said that Lee was validly placed under citizens arrest and that the responding law enforcement officer who took her into custody properly performed a search.

"Accordingly, the circuit court erred when it suppressed evidence obtained from the search of Lee."

Now that a ruling has been made on the suppression of evidence, the South Dakota Attorney General's Office said it will proceed with a criminal trial against Lee for the drug charges.
SIOUX FALLS | When Scott Sandal is talking to potential clients, he seems to always get the same question about the speed and bandwidth of the internet he relies on for his business.

"They're like, 'in South Dakota?'" he said.

Sandal is Sunbird Software's director of service and support. From Sioux Falls, Sandal runs a team monitoring the power needs of data centers all over the globe.

It's a job that requires a lot of bandwidth. But in Sioux Falls, Sandal's got it. Same in Lennox, where he lives, connected online via a fiber optic line.

The quality internet connection helps Sandal recruit South Dakotans who might otherwise look for information technology jobs elsewhere but find themselves seriously considering a big-bandwidth job here.

"Just the idea of being able to work from home to support this global customer base," Sandal told the Argus Leader.

The future of broadband in South Dakota is increasingly the future of business here, and the challenges are many, especially in a largely rural state.

Next step

While South Dakota is relatively well equipped with broadband internet access and an expanding network of fiber optic lines, the next step is close on the horizon.

Wireless providers are working now to build out dense-network, small-footprint cell technology that will prove crucial for what's next: fifth-generation mobile data, or 5G. South Dakota's senior U.S. senator, John Thune, is spearheading federal legislation to speed up 5G deployment before 2020.

"I think 5G really does represent the not-too-distant future, it's not just an incremental step in mobile speed," Thune said.

Business' hunger for bandwidth is growing. Remote IT assistance, data backup and cloud storage are no longer new, and their growing importance for firms large and small has expanded business demand for bandwidth.

High-speed mobile data is the future for many business sectors, including agriculture, telemedicine, virtual reality, internet-connected appliances and driver-free vehicles.

Mobile data is increasingly how we live. Increasingly, it's how business gets done.

"The devices have changed, the bandwidth has changed, and how we use it in our lives have changed," said Mark Shlanta, CEO of Sioux Falls-based SDN Communications.

South Dakota isn't entirely connected by fiber optic cable that allows for speedier broadband, but it is surprisingly good at a problem in many parts of the United States: the rural-urban digital divide. This could prove a crucial key to unlocking the future of 5G wireless data access.

Cities, with their concentration of customers, are natural targets for communications companies in terms of the biggest and best broadband access, and any maps of broadband access will show South Dakota's cities are well served by one or more broadband providers with strong speeds.

So how about the rural areas? Broadband is, for the most part, carried by wires. And just as with electrification and paved roads, rural, less-populated parts of the country are sometimes last in line to connect to the rest of the world.

But not in South Dakota. There might even be room to brag a little bit.

"In other states, and you might hear a little bit of that in the national discourse, there's a 'rural digital divide,'" said Shlanta, whose SDN Communications was founded by independent telephone companies in the state that interconnected their networks in 1989. "I would argue (in South Dakota) it might be the inverse. That parts of our more urban communities may be lagging than some of the rural deployments."

About 80 percent of South Dakota's geography is served by independent telecommunications providers, many of whom have strong fiber networks in place even in rural areas and smaller cities. In a quick survey, SDN's Vernon Brown heard from 10 member companies. Six are 100 percent fiber networks and another four were at 50 percent or better.

Advantages for business

The advantages for business in the state are clear. Like Sandal in Lennox, being able to do business from outside the state's largest cities pays dividends.

"It's advantageous for business to establish businesses anywhere in the state," said Denny Law, CEO and general manager of Golden West Telecommunications in Wall, which serves customers across western South Dakota and parts of the eastern side of the state.

"Certainly the populated areas are good," he said. "But the possibility of a 4-6 person shop in Phillip or Springfield or Dell Rapids is a potential game changer for them, I think."

If South Dakota is to fully harness the future roll-out of 5G wireless data, with its dense network and blazing speed, it will require a strong backbone in both urban and rural areas.

"For 5G to be successful it will require a pretty phenomenal network to transport all of that data," Law said. "And I think that's the role a company like Golden West plays in that, to help facilitate 5G."

And, a little legislative help.

Thune took his 5G sales pitch to Dakota State University last month, and he didn't pull any punches.

"We're very interested in getting to 5G first," he said. "We're competing with the Europeans, with the Asians, everybody wants to get to fifth-generation technology when it comes to mobile first, and we have to win that race."

Thune heads the powerful Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, with oversight of the national telecommunications laws and regulations. In March, Thune introduced the Mobile NOW Act, a bill to open up spectrum to telecommunications companies and smooth the path for 5G technology, and moved it through his committee to the Senate floor. The generally accepted target date for 5G is 2020. Thune wants to beat it.

In an April 24 interview, Thune said he had talked to the Trump administration only informally about his bill. But he said the bill should get bipartisan support and gain Trump's support as legislation that could add jobs and boost economy productivity.

"If they're looking for victories, legislative accomplishments they can point to that are transformative for our economy and have bipartisan support, this is something that can accomplish that," he said.

'Densification' to boost capacity

While the legislation awaits congressional approval and a Trump signature, others are fighting smaller, more local battles.

"I use the word 'densification,'" said SDN's Shlanta. "Wireless carriers, 20-25 years ago, were trying to establish coverage so people could complete phone calls. Today their bigger needs aren't coverage, they're capacity, and the way to accomplish that is greater densification of the networks."

Verizon Wireless is working to build out what are known as small cells, mounting essentially mini cell units atop kiosks and light and power poles. The denser network adds capacity to Verizon's 4G LTE service and is a key stepping stone for 5G, which will require a fiber-connected, small-cell backbone.

Thune's legislation, in part, is meant to address permitting concerns for small cells, which often face the same permitting hurdles as their much, much larger cell tower predecessors.

"Every South Dakota city is different, and many local codes treat small cells the same as a larger traditional cell site," said Meagan Dorsch, a Verizon spokeswoman. "This result can be lengthy and costly permitting that discourages new investment."

"Providing a streamlined process that treats small cells as a permitted use and allowing the attachment of small cells to existing structures in the public right of way will allow companies to build the next generation of 4G LTE for its customers," she said.

While 5G may be the future, and South Dakota's networks are better positioned than some states to handle it, Law struck a cautionary note. Look for the rollout to follow the more traditional path from urban to rural, he said.

"It's going to be an interesting urban application, but it's going to take a while before neighborhoods have it, and before small communities have it and certainly before rural areas have it," he said. "But I also think it will be cool when it gets here."

In terms of 5G and South Dakota business, "cool" means game-changing.
Guwahati : Two students hailing from Mizoram were found dead along a railway track in Assam's capital city Guwahati on Sunday morning.

Local people had found the bodies of the students found near the railway track at Panikhaiti, outskirts of Guwahati.

Guwahati city police said that, the victims were identified as Lalhmangaihsanga and Lalmalsawma and they were studying two years diploma course in technician and physiotherapy at Assam Downtown University.

According to the reports, the victims were studying at the university under the sponsorship of NERLP.

Local people believed that, both students have struck to death by train last night.

On the other hand, a youth had committed suicide in the city on Sunday.

The youth, worked at a private company in North Guwahati had jumped to the Brahmaputra river from the newly constructed Saraighat bridge.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)
Kathmandu, Nepal : political parties have vertically divided over the stalled votes counting process in Bharatpur metropolitan citi.

The ruling Nepali Congress has demanded re-election in Bharatpur Metropolitan City-19 while CPNUML has demanded promote resumption of the vote counting process.

NC Chitwan District Working Committee has demanded re-election and stern action against those involved in tearing the ballot papers on Sunday night.

Issuing a press statement on Monday the NC has demr so while cpn Uml has demanded promote resumption of the vote counting process.
Chitwan, Nepal: Vote count in Bharatpur Metropolitan City has been suspended from Sunday midnight. The counting of vote was suspended after representatives of the CPN Maoist Center tear the ballot papers when the vote count of ward number 19 was going on at midnight.

As mayor candidates- Devi Gyawali of CPN-UML and Renu Dahal of CPN Maoist Center are competing with slim margin, not only the supporters of both the sides but also the people in general have cautiously been watching the elections result.

The UML has alleged that representatives of Maoist Center tear the stamped ballot papers during the vote count after YCL District Chairperson Madhu Neupane and another Maoist Center cadre Drona Siwakoti forcefully entered in the vote counting venue.

As the tension taken a nasty turn at the midnight, addition police force was mobilized to control the untoward incidents. The police have taken control Neupane and Siwakoti for creating the tension in the vote counting venue.

Returning officers in Bharatpur have kept even the damaged ballot papers before suspending the vote count process. Consensus attempts are underway to resume the vote counting process.
The Indian Express - May 10, 2017

The concept behind aNew Indiaa is that EPI should replace VIP. EPI means Every Person is Important. We should accept the importance of 125 crore Indians.a Thus spoke Prime Minister Narendra Modi. EPI is a compelling formulation and because it sounds like a statement of conviction, not just intent, it needs to be used as an index to measure the importance of every Indian as they go about their normal lives, plying a trade, commuting, cooking, eating.

How important, if we are to go by this index, was Pehlu Khan, pulverised to death on the Alwar road a month ago for transporting legitimately acquired cattle; or Abu Hanifa and Riyazuddin Ali, lynched in a Jorhat village of Assam the other day, on suspicion of being cow thieves? When Ramesh, Ashok, Vashram, Bechar and three others were publicly flogged for skinning dead cattle in Gujaratas Una block last July, were they important? Should we consider as EPIs cattle trader Mohammed Mazlum Ansari and his 14-year-old nephew, Mohammed Imteyaz Khan, found hanging on a tree in Jharkhandas Balumath block last July? Or Rizwan and Mukhtiar, forced to eat cow dung cake for atransporting cattlea a few weeks earlier on a Haryana highway?

What of Mohammed Akhlaq of Uttar Pradeshas Dadri, who was killed in September 2015 after being attacked by bricks and staffs because of the meat in his fridge? Or Salma, whose was brutally thrashed for her bag of buffalo meat at Mandsaur railway station in Madhya Pradesh last year? How important is Manish Mandal, beaten so badly that he could lose an eye for daring to honk loudly to clear cattle on a Bihar road?

Names are important in these stories from the primeval wilderness of the religio-political landscape, although there may be thousands of unnamed people who suffered similarly but havenat figured in a journalistas report or a police FIR. A timeline of these incidents indicate how closely they follow shifts in political power. Incidents of cow vigilantism in coastal Karnataka, linked directly to local Sangh affiliates, began to get reported shortly after the NDA assumed power in 2014. The years 2015 and 2016 witnessed an escalation of these attacks in number, scale and intensity, but it is in the brief period right after the appointment of Yogi Adityanath as Uttar Pradesh chief minister this March that there seems to have been a conspicuous spurt.

The newly appointed police chief of the state, in his first public statement, had vowed to crack down on agau rakshaksa . But his words do not matter when his chief minister expresses impatience, not at the deliberately slow pace of the criminal justice machinery in stymieing such random brutality, but at the lethargy of cow protectors. The yogi has just warned: Mouthing slogans is not enough, ahonest effortsa are needed for cow protection. What does this statement mean: More honest bludgeons, more honestly plied?

His words indicate why cow protection has emerged as such a profitable enterprise, with the yogi projecting himself as the first gau rakshak of his state through strategic photo-ops. In all the states where the BJP is now in power, there is a smoothly functioning patronage system for cow protection, not just in terms of large outlays for cow shelters and the like, but through a lower bureaucracy and police that extend all possible assistance for such activities, from issuing licences to cow protectees to ensuring that criminal action is largely reserved for the alleged acow smugglers/thievesa rather than their murderous, extortionist assaulters.

The monetisation of cow protection encourages the emergence of criminalised gau raksha gangs, but it is the spiritual and moral affirmation bringing them together that allows them to perpetrate brutalities that ordinary people would find repugnant. The ensuing bonding that takes place, at least for the duration of the assault, creates a common purpose, an instant imagined community, as it were. This is also probably why there is a performative dimension to such acts. Young gau rakshas delight in uploading videos of their assaults as trophies on their Facebook page, unmindful of the trail they thus leave behind, or perhaps so overwhelmed by a sense of impunity because of their new connectedness with institutions of power and political benefactors.

Many of those who participate in such actions may be members of politically powerful outfits, but they are also, for the most part, youth a mostly male a with no real future. A cohort that Craig Jeffrey describes well in his book Timepass as young men left in a void, waiting interminably for the non-existent adecent joba to come their way. Feted momentarily as aBhagat Singha by their political handlers, a few ride the blood-speckled tide and assume leadership roles in their respective mafia. For the majority, however, it is oblivion that awaits them, if not terms in jail.

This then is a tragedy in many parts.

The writer Pamela Philipose is a senior journalist
Dawn, May 24, 2017

IN a recent address, Chaudhry Nisar hit out at political opponents by classifying them as aseculara and equating the term with anon-believinga. Clearly, the interior minister needs tuition in history and political philosophy.

There is no simple thing, place or peoples called the aseculara, the areligiousa, the aWesta, agooda or aevila. Each carries multiple, contradictory meanings and is subject to historical interpretation. Only political manipulators use these as fixed and oppositional categories in order to create divisions and distrust. Debates around secularism often follow religious wars or conflict and, like many countries, Pakistan also faces this dilemma.

Secularism is a philosophy rooted in the 16th century, when European Protestants struggled against the rule of the exploitative Catholic Church. These dissenters were not without religion, or la-deen a they simply wanted social, political and economic freedoms from the tyranny of the Holy See. Secularisation is the result of the social and political processes that followed, influenced by rising capitalism and scientific discoveries. The tumults of secularisation spanned a century, up until the Treaty of Westphalia (1648). Still, this bottom-up history does not mean that all Western societies are unimpeachably or completely secular today. One visit by the Pope to any European country will confirm the secular paradox.

Much confusion still surrounds this political philosophy.

Secularism a the distancing of state from religion a does not mean la-deeniyat, absence of religion or anti-religion. It means reAarranging state laws and policies so that they are neutral (ghair janibdaar) and treat citizens of all faiths without prejudice. Secularity a the principles of secularism a means that religion should have no influence on public institutions and services, and religious privilege must not influence government. It limits moral issues to the private, personal sphere. Secularisation a the transfer of socio-political power away from religious governance a does not force people to become atheists or stop observers from going to church or mosque. It does prevent using places of worship for practising politics.

The worst myth is that secularism is always aliberala and aWesterna. Several secular regimes have, far from being committed to liberalism, been fascistic, non-democratic and conservative. Any philosophy can be practised militantly, including Buddhism. Non-Western secular states a such as Cuba and China a host people of faith who practise their religions.

The encounter with secularism for Muslim societies in the 20th century has not been a happy meeting for many reasons, but not necessarily due to perceived philosophical incompatibility. Some Arab secular regimes created state Islamic orthodoxies as part of their brand of aArab secularisma to persecute resisting Islamic dissenters and groups a pitting religion against religion under the guise of secular governance.

Regardless of its origins, secularism (like modernity and technology) has many different models. In France, secularity aims to protect the republic and public space from religion. In the US, secularity means protecting religion from being exploited in public institutions. Secularity in India means pluralism, where multiple faiths are officially recognised and may practise in public. In all three countries, secularism continues to be a subject of political debate.

All these different aspects of secularity mean that to be aseculara is not a one-dimensional experience. Many Muslims may be philosophically and socially non-secular because they are committed to religious activity and institutions, but may also be politically secular by not voting for religious parties or policies. So even Nisaras voters may be (politically) secuAAAlar, but it doesnat follow that they are la-deen.

Take the example of Abdul SatAtar Edhi. Despite beAAing a practising MusAlim, some Islamists accused his social services of being neutral, non-discriminating or a secular. Edhi did not exploit religion for power, profit or politics, but he represented a secular contrast to those who did. Many local NGOs, meanwhile, would not claim to be secular. However, many of Pakistanas economic partners and donor organisations, including CPEC sponsors, represent secular or atheistic traditions. Would Nisar jettison efficacy on the basis of their secular credentials?

But he is not alone. Some agrass-roota leaders reject secular ideals as futile fantasies of the aelitea but, ironically, think that socialism and Marxism are pragmatic, electable options for the masses. Condemning secularism as elitist falsely validates religious politics as inherently proletarian.

It is not a utopian fantasy to want governance that is free of state orthodoxy and gender, class and racial bias. The imperfect or unfinished project of secularism does not mean that it has failed or is anti-religious. Religious politics, like capitalism, is an unregulated, unaccountable industry that often exploits with impunity. Secular resistance is a necessary component of political discourse to counter the tyranny of the majority.

The writer is a sociologist based in Karachi.
DAWN, May 20, 2017

I RECENTLY received an extraordinary email from a troubled young Kashmiri in Srinagar. Days before the Indian authorities turned off the internet, Saif (not his real name) had watched on YouTube the 45-minute video documentary Crossing the Lines a Kashmir, Pakistan, India that I had helped make in 2004 and mostly agreed with its non-partisan narrative. A nationalist boy turned stone thrower, Saif is outraged by the brutality of Indian occupation. He is fortunate, he says. His 14-year-old second cousin lost his left eye to pellets.

Saif continues to fight India but is worried. Protesters of his fatheras generation were largely nationalist, but todayas are a mixed bunch. IS and Pakistani flags are often unfurled after Friday prayers, azadi demonstrations resound with calls for an Islamic state in Kashmir, and Nasim Hijazias cartoon history of Muslim rule in India Aur Talwar Toot Gayee is serialised by local Urdu papers. Significantly, Burhan Wani was laid in the grave by a crowd of thousands, wrapped in a Pakistani flag, and celebrated as a martyr rather than Kashmiri freedom fighter.

Why this change? The present government a Narendra Modias a surely stands guilty. By reducing space for democratic discourse, it promotes radicalisation. Unlike Vajpayeeas accommodative politics, India offers little beyond the iron fist and draconian laws such as AFSPA. The BJP-PDP alliance a shaky to start with a is almost over as each blames the other for the two per cent voter turnout in last monthas by-elections. Hindutvaas religiosity is displacing Nehruas secularism all across India, and Indian democracy is yielding to Hindu majoritarian rule.

Kashmiri nationalists must realise the grave dangers of giving more space to religious extremists.

But blaming Modi is half an explanation, perhaps even less. In Palestine, after decades of struggle against Israeli occupation, the secular PLO lost out to the religious radicalism of Hamas. In Arab countries, young Muslims dream of fighting infidels and dying as martyrs. In Pakistan, the celebrated army operations Raddul Fasaad and Zarb-i-Azb target armed militants fighting for a Sharia state. Last week, the Higher Education Commission showed its concern by convening a meeting of 60 university vice chancellors in Islamabad on rising extremism in Pakistani campuses.

Extremism has further complicated an already complicated Kashmir situation. What now? For long, Kashmiris, Pakistanis, and Indians have wagged fingers at the other for the 100,000 lives lost over three decades. Where lies the future? Does any solution exist?

A short retreat into mathematics: some equations indeed have solutions even if they need much effort. But other equations can logically be shown to have no solution a nothing will ever work for them. There is still a third type: that where solutions are possible but only under very specific conditions.

Kashmir is not of the first category. Everything has been tried. Delhi and Islamabad have created clients among the Valleyas leaders and political parties, and subversion is a widely used instrument. But they too have turned out to be useless. Elections and inducements have also failed to produce a decisive outcome, as have three Pakistan-India wars. A fourth war would likely be nuclear.

All parties stand guilty. India, under various Congress governments, had once projected itself as a secularist democracy distinct from an Islamic, military-dominated Pakistan. It appeared for that reason to be preferable, but in practice its unconscionable manipulation of Kashmiri politics led to the 1989 popular uprising, sparking an insurgency lasting into the early 2000s. When it ended 90,000 civilians, militants, police, and soldiers had been killed. Remembered by Kashmiri Muslims for his role in the 1990 Gawkadal bridge massacre, Governor Jagmohan received the Padma Vibhushan last year.

Pakistan tried to translate Indiaas losses into its gains but failed. It soon hijacked the indigenous uprising but the excesses committed by Pakistan-based mujahideen eclipsed those of Indian security forces. The massacres of Kashmiri Pandits, targeting of civilians accused of collaborating with India, destruction of cinema houses and liquor shops, forcing of women into the veil, and revival of Shia-Sunni disputes, severely undermined the legitimacy of the Kashmiri freedom movement.

Pakistanas ableed India with a thousand cutsa policy is in a shambles today and jihad is an ugly word in the worldas political lexicon. Say what you will about aDawn Leaksa, but Pakistani diplomats who represent Pakistanas position in the worldas capitals know the world doesnat care about Kashmir. How else to explain Prime Minister Modi receiving Saudi Arabiaas highest civilian award from King Salman bin Abdul Aziz?

If Kashmir is ever to have a solution a ie belong to the third type of math problem a then all three contenders will need to rethink their present positions.

Thoughtful Indians must understand that cooling Kashmir lies in Indiaas hands, not Pakistanas. By formally acknowledging Kashmir as a problem that needs a political solution, using humane methods of crowd control, and releasing political prisoners from Kashmiri jails, India could move sensibly towards a lessening of internal tensions. Surely, if India considers Kashmiris to be its citizens then it must treat them as such, not as traitors deserving bullets. Else it should hand Kashmir over to Kashmiris a or Pakistan.

Thoughtful Pakistanis must realise that their countryas Kashmir-first policy has brought nothing but misery all around. Using proxies has proven disastrous. A partial realisation has led to detaining of LeT and JeM leaders, but Pakistanas army must crack down upon all Kashmir-oriented militant groups that still have a presence on Pakistani soil. Such groups are a menace to Pakistanas society and armed forces, apart from taking legitimacy away from those fighting Indian rule.

Thoughtful Kashmiri nationalists a like Saif a must recognise the grave dangers of giving more space to religious extremists. Their struggle should be for some form of pluralistic entity a whether independent or under nominal Indian or Pakistani control. That entity must assure personal and religious freedoms. An ISIS type state with its cruel practices makes mockery of the very idea of azadi and would pave the way for Kashmiras descent into hell.

Such rethinking would clear the road to peace through negotiations which, though narrowed, still remains open. Every conflict in history, no matter how bitter, has ultimately been resolved. In Kashmiras case whether this happens peacefully, or after some apocalypse, cannot be predicted.

The author teaches mathematics and physics in Lahore and Islamabad.
The Polisario Front and its Algerian mentor have tried every manoeuver in an attempt to score even the least points in their struggle against Morocco around its Sahara, but they only gleaned a succession of failures.

After they conceded with bitterness their failures on the diplomatic level in the UN, Africa and Europe, not to speak of the Arab world, which ignores their illegitimate claims, the Polisario leaders, at the order of their Algerian sponsors, resorted to alleged violation of human rights in Western Sahara, but it was to no avail. Their allegations were quickly revealed as groundless.

Likewise, their plots to incite the pro-Polisario separatists living in the Moroccan Sahara to multiply their provocations of the law enforcement agents in these southern provinces proved a fiasco, as did their recent manoeuvers in the buffer strip of Guerguerat. The Moroccans knew how to avoid biting the hook.

The latest discovery of the Algerian mentor was to incite the Polisario to denounce the so-called looting by Morocco of the natural resources (fish, phosphate, and vegetables and fruits) of the Western Sahara.

To support the Polisario on this new battlefield, Algerian leaders have bribed lavishly NGOs, lawyers and Western experts to follow the course of the merchant ships from the moment they leave the ports of the Moroccan southern provinces until they reach their destination.

Thus, the justice of South Africa, one of Moroccos fierce opponents, was convinced to order the seizure of the Cherry Blossom, a ship flying the flag of the Marshall Islands, which was conveying a cargo of 55,000 tons of Moroccan phosphate worth $5 million dollars from the port of Laayoune to New Zealand. The boat was immobilized in Port Elizabeth in South Africa.

On Tuesday (May 23), Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, who was addressing the Upper House of the Parliament, warned South Africa against any political exploitation of the seizure of the Cherry Blossom, recalling that Universal legal jurisdiction is generally limited to cases of crimes against humanity, torture. Morocco will never accept this unhealthy political exploitation that aims to undermine its legitimate interests, Bourita said.

The Polisario also tried to convince Panama authorities to hail Ultra Innovation, a ship that was transporting Moroccan phosphate to Vancouver in Canada, but their plan failed. After verifying that the shipment was consistent with the rules of international law and international trade, Panamanian authorities authorized the ship to continue its journey, much to the dismay of the Polisario and its Algerian sponsor.
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May 28, 2017

DC sniper Lee Malvo to get resentencing thanks to Miller Eighth Amendment rule

As reported in this AP piece, a "federal judge on Friday tossed out two life sentences for one of Virginia's most notorious criminals, sniper Lee Boyd Malvo, and ordered Virginia courts to hold new sentencing hearings." Here is why:

In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson in Norfolk said Malvo is entitled to new sentencing hearings after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that mandatory life sentences for juveniles are unconstitutional. Malvo was 17 when he was arrested in 2002 for a series of shootings that killed 10 people and wounded three over a three-week span in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia, causing widespread fear throughout the region. His accomplice, John Allen Muhammad, was executed in 2009. Malvo also was sentenced to life in prison in Maryland for the murders that occurred there. But his lawyers have made an appeal on similar grounds in that state. A hearing is scheduled in June. Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Ray Morrogh, who helped prosecute Malvo in 2003, said the Virginia attorney general can appeal Jackson's ruling. If not, Morrogh said he would pursue another life sentence, saying he believes Malvo meets the criteria for a harsh sentence.... Michael Kelly, spokesman for Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, said Friday evening that the office is "reviewing the decision and will do everything possible, including a possible appeal, to make sure this convicted mass murderer serves the life sentences that were originally imposed." He also noted that the convictions themselves stand and emphasized that, even if Malvo gets a new sentencing hearing, he could still be resentenced to a life term.... Jackson, in his ruling, wrote that Malvo was entitled to a new sentencing hearing because the Supreme Court's ruling grants new rights to juveniles that Malvo didn't know he had when he agreed to the plea bargain.

The full 25-page opinion resolving Malvo's habeas petition is available at this link.

May 28, 2017 at 05:50 PM | Permalink

Comments

There are plenty of child and teen serial killers. The Supreme Court has taken their side, and has moved against their hundreds of victims a year.

The entire Supreme Court should be impeached by Congress, for its legal opinions, and not for any collateral corruption lawyer gotcha. Its wrongful and anti-victim bias is its greatest crime.

Posted by: David Behar | May 28, 2017 10:45:02 PM

The killer accepted a plea deal, and waived his Miller right.

Posted by: David Behar | May 28, 2017 10:47:30 PM

Disgusting.

Posted by: federalist | May 29, 2017 8:24:50 AM

Bruce. Where have you been?

How would you defend Salvo's legal rights? Maybe he was being "impetuous" when he helped shoot and kill all those people. His frontal lobes needed just 5% more myelination. Maybe he can learn a skill, one day be a productive member of our society. Maybe he can move next door to your house.

The Congress should immediately impeach U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson in Norfolk, not for any collateral corruption,but for this decision of pure evil. This judge is pure rent seeking evil. He is allowing extended, expensive, pointless hearings, taking years and employing dozens of lawyers. He is stealing tax money. Impeach this thieving lawyer immediately.



Posted by: David Behar | May 29, 2017 1:48:14 PM

Makes sense under the circumstances. I do think there is significant mitigation (which is why the jury recommended life instead of death in the case) and it makes sense for the Judge to have been able to consider that information. That being said, since he was 17 and given the nature of the offenses, a life sentence is still likely.

Posted by: Erik M | May 30, 2017 8:32:14 AM

Erik M's comment is telling -- all this amounts to is new sentencing that makes sense per precedent. The precedent doesn't say life imprisonment cannot be provided. It even says that there are limited number of cases where it can be.

And, even there, noting the mitigation recognized at the time, the possibility he might get out in 50 years or something instead of dying in prison underlines the limits of the protection of the opinion.



Posted by: Joe | May 30, 2017 9:54:59 AM

In 50 years time, the technology may be around to give him youth or what have you. What an affront to the victims if that comes to pass.

Posted by: federalist | May 30, 2017 10:35:32 AM

Joe. You are in the business. Give us an estimate of the total cost of both sides of this rehearing, including all subsequent likely appeals.

Posted by: David Behar | May 30, 2017 6:37:56 PM

Post a comment
SPENCER, Iowa | A real estate developer who owns several commercial properties in Spencer said he recently had to say no when a Nebraska-based fireworks vendor asked to lease a vacant 5,000-square-foot store.

Bill Muller says he had a serious offer for the former Dollar Tree location in the Pine Tree Plaza from a Nebraska vendor who has been in the fireworks business for decades.

He was prepared to rent the space monthly, and sign a long-term lease in order to sell fireworks in there for one month out of the year, developer Bill Muller said of the Nebraska vendor, which he did not identify other than to say he has been in the fireworks business for decades. He would have paid rent year-round.

The building does have a sprinkler system that would meet national code with an extra sensor that could be added at minimal cost, Muller added. But he couldnt do the deal after his insurance company denied coverage, even though the vendor promised insurance that would cover up to $5 million in damages if fireworks caused a fire.

The vendor was even willing to move out into the parking lot and into a tent. But the city wouldnt allow that, Muller said.

Muller said that while it is common to see tents or small shacks selling fireworks in neighboring states, those facilities need to be restocked every day -- or twice or more each day during the busiest times before the July 4 holiday.

In anything smaller than 5,000 square feet you couldnt get the entire selection out there, he said.

Muller said the vendor would have the same problem wherever else he might go in Spencer.

Ive had probably at least a dozen different companies looking to rent different spaces around town. But I dont think there will be any fireworks sold legally inside Spencer city limits. At least I seriously doubt it.

After talking with several other landlords who have faced similar problems, Muller said, A few thought they had deals worked out. But I have to think they are having the same problem.
WAKEFIELD, Neb. | A small pot of artificial flowers rests in front of the black granite marker that stands by itself in the Wakefield Cemetery.

The marker features three bronze plaques, each bearing the name of a young man who served his country and never returned home.

Wakefield makes sure they'll never be forgotten.

"Every once in a while I see fresh flowers out there," said Gary Salmon, who, along with fellow Vietnam War veteran Jim Clark, helped make sure that John Paul Hart, Allen Keagle and Willie Stark will be remembered.

Salmon and Clark spearheaded a fundraising effort nearly 20 years ago to memorialize two native sons and one the town has adopted who remain missing in action.

The memorial was dedicated in 2000, on the edge of what's known as the dedication area, where Wakefield's annual Memorial Day service is conducted. The memorial was placed there purposely, in an area that will never be filled in with other graves and stones. Clark said the seating arrangement during the Memorial Day service ensures that nearly everyone attending can see the monument.

"We wanted it near the program," Clark said. "We didn't want it in the middle (of the cemetery). You can't miss it."

Family members live with the memories of those who have been lost in military service every day.

Each year at Memorial Day, the rest of us are reminded of those sacrifices. We see cemeteries filled with flowers and decorations placed lovingly at graves.

Wakefield's memorial reminds us that not everyone who gave the ultimate sacrifice has a grave that families and friends can visit.

"They really don't have anything. It's just something to recognize them where they're at," Salmon said of the memorial.

It seems unlikely that remains of any of the three will ever make it home.

Hart, a 25-year-old Navy pilot, was killed Jan. 30, 1942, when his plane crashed during a training flight in the Pacific Ocean during World War II.

Keagle, also a Navy pilot, was killed at age 26 on April 2, 1945, when he crashed in a training flight off the coast of Hawaii.

Stark was 36 when he went missing Dec. 2, 1966. A green beret on a reconnaissance mission with his team, Stark was mistakenly dropped just across the Vietnamese border in Laos and immediately came under fire. Witnesses saw him wounded and being led away with a fellow team member by Vietnamese troops.

Sometime in 1998, Salmon was reading "Six Silent Men," a book about special forces groups in Vietnam. A paragraph in the book mentioned Stark.

For years, Salmon and Clark have read the names of Wakefield's veterans at Memorial Day. The final names read are always Hart, Keagle and Stark.

The circumstances of Stark's disappearance had always been unknown, so Salmon wondered if the Willie Stark mentioned in the book was the same man whose name he read at Memorial Day each year. He and Clark called the book's author, who didn't know much about Stark. They were referred to another veteran. It led to more phone calls before Clark and Salmon were put in touch with John Flanagan, a forward air controller who had been flying above the short battle in a spotter plane and witnessed the failed attempt to rescue Stark. He wrote about it in his book, "Vietnam Above the Treetops."

Stark grew up in nearby Martinsburg, Nebraska, but his mother and sisters were living in Wakefield when he went missing. With that family connection, members of the American Legion Anton Bokemper Post 81 considered Stark one of their own who they would honor each year.

During their research on Stark, Clark and Salmon decided there should be a memorial to him.

"Then we thought, wait a minute, there are three names we read every year as missing, so we should incorporate all of them," Clark said. "Gary and I thought it would be good to honor the three that have no resting place. It seemed like the right thing to do."

It was the right thing to do, of course, and money was raised for the memorial. Family members present at the dedication 17 years ago expressed their gratitude for it. Salmon suspects the flowers that appear at the site are placed by relatives who still live in the area.

Then again, those flowers could be placed by anyone who takes notice of the memorial.

"People missing, you forget about them," Clark said.

Not here.

It's a safe assumption that their families never forgot them. Thanks to a solemn block of granite, no one else who enters the cemetery here will, either.
SIOUX CITY | West High School students plan to participate in a "Red Sand Project" Tuesday as a form of protest against human trafficking.

Red Sand projects have participants spread red sand in cracks on sidewalks, parking lots, etc. to call attention to overlooked populations who are most at risk of being enslaved in human trafficking. Those who pass the areas are encouraged to remember these people and not let them slip through the cracks.

The public is welcome to attend the event, which will last from 9:30 a.m.-10:00 a.m., in front of the schools main entrance, 2001 Casselman St.

This event has been planned and arranged by Sarah Waldner, a West High student.

For more information on Red Sand Projects visit https://redsandproject.org.
DES MOINES | Iowa Republicans, jealously protective of their first-in-the-nation precinct caucuses, are showing little concern about Californias plans to move up its presidential primary in order to be a factor in the presidential nomination process.

More and more people want to be more relevant, Republican National Committee member Steve Scheffler said.

Scheffler, who is from Iowa, doubts moving the California primary from June to March will detract from the importance of the Iowa caucuses. Iowans, both Democrats and Republicans, caucused Feb. 1, 2016, and have caucused as early as Jan. 3 in previous election cycles to stay ahead of other states trying to be more relevant.

The California Senate and Assembly have approved separate bills to move the states primary from June to either the first or the third Tuesday in March. Theyll need to agree on one date or the other in order to get a bill signed by the governor.

California lawmakers say the June primary gives voters there little say in choosing presidential nominees. In 2016, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton were the presumptive nominees before the California primary occurred.

California has largely been a non-factor when it comes to selecting candidates, Democratic Assemblyman Kevin Mullin told the Associated Press. Moving the primary would enable more Californians to be politically relevant in presidential election cycles.

strong case for iowa

Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann, who recently returned from a meeting of swing-state GOP leaders, said the move by the California Legislature has reached the point of getting attention.

However, he has little concern about Iowa losing its pole position.

Republican National Committee officials, he said, are aware of what it takes to successfully host the first-in-the-nation caucuses.

They knew exactly what we had done, the money we raised, Kaufmann said. They seem to understand that even though a lot of states think they want to be first-in-the-nation, it took us a million dollars.

Likewise, Iowa Democratic Party Vice Chairwoman Andrea Phillips said there doesnt seem to be widespread support among Democratic National Committee members for California moving up.

The case for Iowa is pretty strong, she said. In 2016, Phillips said Iowa was a bellwether for what was happening across the country.

Im skeptical (California) will move, she said.

bandwagon effect

Attention from the parties national committees might not be favorable for California. Scheffler noted the Republican National Committee has punished states for arbitrarily moving their primaries and caucuses. In some cases, they havent been able to seat all of their delegates at the national convention.

I dont see it as a threat to Iowa. Maybe more of an enhancement for Iowa, he said.

Thats because the attention given to Iowa is based on the assumption of a bandwagon effect, said Chris Larimer, associate professor of political science at University of Northern Iowa.

If candidates see Iowa as a place to build early and needed momentum, as well as a place where viability can be established, then Californias move shouldnt make much of a difference for Iowa, he said.

iowa more important?

It could make doing well in the Iowa caucuses more important, in the sense that a candidate would need an early lead or momentum to hit a big state like California, said Tim Hagle, University of Iowa associate political science professor.

Or, he said, it might force candidates to spend more time and resources in California because of the number of delegates at stake  551 Democrats and 172 Republicans compared to 51 and 30 for the Iowa parties.

That could limit the amount of effort they put into Iowa and other early states, he said.

the limelight

Hagle agrees with Scheffler that the impact of moving up the California primary may depend on the reaction from the national parties.

A lot of negotiating goes into the caucus and primary schedule and certainly more states would like to be in the limelight, he said. I can see that a lot of states wouldnt want California to be too determinative very early as it would make their primaries less relevant.

California isnt the first state to try to become more relevant by scheduling its primary or caucus earlier in the election cycle.

Michigan, Arizona and Florida are among those that have moved or considered moving up their primaries to lessen the impact of the Iowa caucuses on the nomination process, according to Drake University political science Professor Dennis Goldford.

But attempting to do so by holding their own events earlier and earlier actually makes Iowa more important, Goldford said.

The compressed schedule gives candidates failing to meet expectations in Iowa and New Hampshire less time to recover, while the compression makes it easier for candidates doing better than expected early on to hide or postpone revelation of any hidden weaknesses they may have, he said.

In the end, it might not be the parties or legislators who determine the impact of Californias potential move on Iowa, Goldford said.

Theres a symbiotic relationship between the press and the candidates, he said. As long as the press thinks the Iowa caucuses are important, the candidates will think theyre important. And as long as the candidates think the caucuses are important, the press will think theyre important.
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.
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Alberta Sires Stakes eliminations continued on Sunday afternoon (May 28) at Century Downs Racetrack and Casino with the three-year-old pacing colts vying for a spot in the next weekend's Alberta Plainsman final.

Lightly raced Outlaw Blue Ice ($14.40) circled the first elimination field to win in a career-best time of 1:54.2 for the father and son, training and driving team of Rod and Mike Hennessy.

The Blue Burner-Billie J Blue Chip gelding was ninth and last at the :55.2 half-mile mark before fanning widest of all on the backstretch and then sweeping by the reigning divisional champion Senga Nitro (Ryan Grundy), who had to go four-wide to make the lead early on. Rod Starkewski trainees Getup Gideon (Phil Giesbrecht) and Retros Mystery (Bill Tainsh Jr.) finished second and third ahead of the 3-5 favourite.

Outlaw Blue Ice winning an Alberta Plainsman elimination on May 28 at Century Downs. (Kyle Meller/Coady Photo)

Unraced at age two, Outlaw Blue Ice has won two of his six starts for Rod Hennessy, who shares ownership with Lorne Duffield of Edmonton, Alta.

Mateo ($2.70) dominated the fastest $7,500 elimination of the day, winning in wire-to-wire fashion in a new lifetime mark of 1:54.1 for driver Phil Giesbretch and trainer Jim Marino.

Mateo took the lead off the gate from post four and carved out fractions of :27, :56 and 1:25.4 before drawing off by more than five lengths with a :28.2 final frame. Ima Dude (Mike Hennessy) chased the 3-5 favourite home from the pocket spot while Mr Peterman (Bill Tainsh Jr.) rallied four-wide down the backstretch to improve his position and finish third. Coz And Effect (Gary Clark) was fourth.

Mateo winning an Alberta Plainsman elimination on May 28 at Century Downs. (Kyle Meller/Coady Photo

Mateo earned his first Sires Stakes win after hitting the board in all of his freshman starts, including a runner-up effort in the Super Final. The Blue Burner-Mater Deo gelding won four of nine races overall last year and is two-for-five this year. His total earnings are approaching the $100,000 mark. Mateo is owned by Christine Cutting of Airdrie, Alta. and Marino, who bought into the gelding at the start of the year and took over the training duties this month.

Both Outlaw Blue Ice and Mateo posted winning times just shy of the track record for sophomore geldings.

The Alberta Plainsman final will be contested next Sunday, June 4 at Century Downs.

To view Sunday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Sunday Results - Century Downs.
The Sunday night, May 28 Running Aces harness racing card featured the $12,000 Open Handicap Pace with a talented field of nine squaring off, and it was Allmyxsliventexas who stole the show.

Driven confidently by Mooney Svendsen for trainer Bob Johnson, Allmyxsliventexas /a> posted a sharp front-running score in 1:51.4, just one tick off of the track record for four-year-oldold pacing geldings.

Sent hard from post six, the impressive son of Hi Ho Silverheels battled to clear the lead past the opening quarter-mile (26.4), then repelled a strong challenge from race favourite SF Donttellonme (J. Casagranda) through the middle fractions of the race (:55.4, 1:22.3) and had enough left in the tank to hold the rest of the field at bay and pick up his sixth win in 16 starts this year. Easy Again (R. Magee) picked up second, with SF Donttellonme home in third.

With tonights triumph Allmyxsliventexas expanded his seasonal bankroll to $28,778 for owners Wayne & Rodney Knittel.

The $10,000 Open Trot was also part of the Sunday card, which marked the return of Banker Volo to the Running Aces winners circle, a familiar place for this talented eight-year-old stallion by Yankee Glide who was runner-up in this event last week and was making just his second start of the year.

Driver Luke Plano guided Banker Volo out to an easy lead from post five and was never in doubt, controlling the affair and strolling through moderate fractions of :28.2, :58.4 and 1:27.1 before coasting home in :29.3 to hold off Leave Your Mark (N. Roland) by three-quarters of a length in 1:56.4.

Banker Volo is owned by Daniel Roland and trained by Jenni King.

The $13,000 Minnesota-Sired three-year-old trotters also squared off this evening, with a full gate of 10 contestants. Imapixieatmidnight (N. Roland) set all the fractions in the affair, but was gunned down late by pocket-sitter Al Mar Foxyeclipse (Joe Casagranda), with Al Mar Money Glide (T. Maier) home in third in the 2:02.1 mile.

Tonights win was the third lifetime tally for Al Mar Foxyeclipse in 18 starts, and boosted his bankroll to $22,910 for owner Mark Holtan with Joel Mc Danel doing the conditioning.

Drivers Nick Roland, Steve Wiseman, and Mooney Svendsen all picked up driving doubles on the program.

Live racing returns to Running Aces this coming Tuesday, May 30 with a first post of 7 p.m. CDT.

(With files from Running Aces)
Driver Stephane Bouchard isnt sure when he last raced in Quebec, his home province.

I believe it was to drive On The Attack for Mark Ford (in the first Prix de Montreal, a short-lived stakes event for three-year-old pacers at Hippodrome de Montreal, which they won in 2001). I know its been a long time... too long.

The long absence will end June 4 when Bouchard, 50, joins an elite group of eight for an all-star drivers` tournament at Hippodrome 3R in Trois-Rivieres.

Bouchard never raced much in Trois-Rivieres even when he started his driving career in Quebec in the late 1980s, competing mostly in Montreal and Quebec City, but his proficiency on a half-mile track isnt in doubt.

He has more than 8,500 career victories, most of them at Yonkers Raceway, where he was a prominent driver for 15 years and achieved career-high totals of 814 wins and $7.6 million in earnings in 2007. Since 2013, hes been based at another half-mile track in the U.S., Saratoga. Without fanfare, the native of Saint-Urbain-de-Charlevoix (north of Quebec City) has won 168 or more races for 19 consecutive years after relocating to the U.S. in the late 1990s at the suggestion of another driving ace from Quebec, Daniel Dube.

Bouchard, who also had driving stints in Italy and Germany, has been invited before for drivers tournaments in Quebec, but had to decline because they conflicted with stakes commitments. This time, hell make the trip from his home in Malta, N.Y., about a four-hour drive from Trois-Rivieres, to lock horns with Dube, Sylvain Filion, Louis-Philippe Roy, Yannick Gingras, David Miller, Jody Jamieson and Scott Zeron.

Itll be fun going back, seeing people I havent seen in such a long time, he said.

(A Trot Insider Exclusive by Paul Delean)
Across the country, events and celebrations will take place on June 3 to allow Canadians of all ages and experience levels to honour, discover and explore the equestrian world.

New for 2017 is a Horse Photo contest! Be sure to break out your camera on Horse Day 2017 to capture all the fun for the chance to win great prizes.

Heres how to enter:

1  Find and attend a Horse Day 2017 event. (there are nine Standardbred tracks across the country racing on horse day. Click here to check them out)

In addition, there is afternoon Thoroughbred racing at Hastings Park in Vancouver, BC, Rocky Mountatin in Lethbridge, AB, Northlands Park in Edmonton, AB, Assiniboia Downs in Winnipeg, MB and Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario.

2  Take a photo at the event that showcases how you celebrated Horse Day 2017.

Post your photo to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram on June 3, 2017 and be sure to include the hashtags #HorseDayPhotoContest #cdnhorseracing250 (all those photos tagged with #cdnhorseracing250 will be eligible to also win 250 swag, compliments of The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, in addition to the prizing offered by EC: Two winners per province/territory will be selected to receive an exclusive, limited edition Asmar Equestrian polo shirt from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games).

This years Horse Day will be a special year for the celebration of the horse, as 2017 also marks Canadas 150th anniversary, as well as the 250th anniversary of horse racing in Canada.

Learn more about Horse Day 2017 here.

Find a Horse Day 2017 event near you here.

Youth between the ages of three and 16 can enter the Horse Day 2017 National Drawing Contest for the chance to win exciting prizes! Learn more about the drawing contest here.

(Equestrian Canada)
Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images via ABCAs America celebrates its military men and women this Memorial Day weekend, its a holiday that makes Sam Hunt feel particularly close to his grandfather.

My granddad was in World World II, he reveals. He was on the USS Texas battleship, and he was over at Normandy and over near Japan and he spent a lot of time right in the thick of World War II.

For the Georgia native, his grandfather became a living example of what it means to truly appreciate the freedoms we enjoy as Americans.

He really took pride in what that meant, Sam reflects, and it was something I got to see firsthand, as somebody who experienced that, and somebody who had that galvanized American trait Somebody whos been through that, and seen that really appreciates what it means to be free.

Its a characteristic the Body Like a Back Road hitmaker has worked to cultivate himself.

I've tried to channel that into my own life, Sam says, because I havent fought in any war, but I really, really have a ton of respect for folks who have, and folks who have sacrificed, families whove lost lives and just sacrificed years of their own lives and time and effort to maintain those freedoms.

On Thursday, Sam kicks off his 15 in a 30 Tour with Maren Morris and Chris Janson in Cleveland, Ohio.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The Time to Plan Participation in the Eighth Global Rosary Relay for Priests on 23 June 2017 Starts Now

Contact: Marion Mulhall, Worldpriest, 646 355-4106, info.worldpriest@gmail.com

NEW YORK, May 29, 2017 /Standard Newswire/ -- The Global Rosary Relay for Priests begins at the stroke of midnight on 23 June (the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus) this year, commencing in East Asia as it begins its journey around the world. We thank you for making this worldwide prayer event a success in the past as we now look forward to sharing in a greatly enhanced event for 2017, when over 125 lead shrines in more than 60 countries around the world will pray the rosary in their local language at their allocated time.

Now more than ever  as the world faces into a period of great uncertainly  we need to call on the wonderful power of prayer. Participants in your region can attend their nearest shrine in person or simply join up with their lead location by praying the rosary as Saint John Paul recommended 'as you walk along the streets to school, to the university or to work, or as you commute by public transport.' In other words, people can just join in where they are and know they are making a difference.

We urge you to spread the word about this eighth Rosary Relay for Priests that continues to gain in strength and popularity with each passing year. Please contact all the religious and lay groups in your area and tell them how everybody can add their voices to this unique global event that once again will encircle the world to support the work and ministry of our devoted priests. Remember without priests we do not have the Eucharist and without the Eucharist we have no Church.

The Annual Global Rosary for Priests has the full support of the Worldpriest Episcopal Adviser Archbishop Michael Neary, and the Apostolic Blessing of Pope Francis has added further significance to this remarkable event. Last year, on Global Rosary Relay Day, history was made when Pope Francis greeted Worldpriest founder Marion Mulhall during a visit to Rome for Rosary Relay Day.



So here is the perfect opportunity for you to play your part in this immediate call to action as the Global Rosary for Priests prepares to go local in your area.

This event is the perfect way for the laity all over the world to recognize the blessings bestowed on all of us by those thousands of priests working tirelessly on behalf of millions of Catholics and to thank Our Lady for the gift of these priests. Every voice added to this chorus of prayer makes a difference to each of our priests in their daily lives.

Please visit for full details www.worldpriest.com

Worldpriest INC

600 Third Avenue,

2nd Floor,

New York,

New York 10016

USA

Tel: 646 355 4106

E-mail info.worldpriest@gmail.com

W: www.worldpriest.com

Worldpriest Inc. is a not-for-profit organization under

Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Service Code.

Listed in the Official Catholic Directory (Kenedy Directory) USA.
On November 20, 2015, two jihadi militants attacked the Radisson Blu hotel in Bamako, Mali, seizing about 100 hostages and leaving bodies strewed across the building. When it was over, 22 people (including the attackers) had been killed. As the New York Times reported:

Mali has been crippled by instability since January, 2012, when rebels and Al Qaeda-linked militants  armed with the remnants of late Libyan leader Col. Muammar el-Qaddafis arsenal  began advancing through the countrys vast desert in the north and capturing towns.

Not much has been made in American and Western media of this attack. Most of the dead were Malians, Russians, and Chineseand, hey, it was in Africa; Shit happens. Especially there. How many people reading this even remember that it happened? Follow-up analysis? It was Africa. That kind of coverage. (I did post about it at the time, making many points that unfortunately bear repeating here.)

Last Monday, jihadi suicide bomber Salman Abedi blew himself up at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, killing 22 people. Salman grew up in an anit-Qaddafi Libyan immigrant family. In 2011, his father, Ramadan Abedi, along with other British Libyans (including one who was under house arrest), was allowed to go [to Libya], no questions asked, to join the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), an al-Qaeda-affiliate, to help overthrow Qaddafi. In Manchester, as Max Blumenthal puts it, in his excellent Alternet piece , it was all part of the rat line operated by the MI5, which hustled anti-Qaddafi Libyan exiles to the front lines of the war. In Manchester, Salman lived near a number of LIFG militants, including an expert bomb maker. This was a tough bunch, and everybodyincluding the cops and Salmans Muslim neighborsknew they werent the Jets and the Sharks. As Middle East Eye reports, he was known to security services, and some of his acquaintances had reported him to the police via an anti-terrorism hotline.

Could it be any clearer? The Abedi family was part of a protected cohort of Salafist proxy soldiers that have been used by the West to destroy the Libyan state. There are a number of such cohorts around the world that have been used for decades to overthrow relatively prosperous and secular, but insufficiently compliant, governments in the Arab and Muslim worldand members of those groups have perpetrated several blowback attacks in Western countries, via various winding roads. In this case, the direct line from Libya to Mali to Manchester is particularly easy to trace.

Too bad more people in Britain and the West hadnt paid attention to what happened in Mali two years ago. Too bad they hadnt thought too much about the chain of jihadi proxy interventions that the United States and its allies, or about the connection with the chain of jihadi attacks in Western countries. Too bad they hadnt recognized the continuing arrogance of the Western (U.S./NATO) and Middle Eastern (Gulf, Israel) powers who think they can unleash and re-leash these jihadi fighters at will. Too bad they dont understand the contradiction between mourning the bombing of Manchester and crying for the bombing of Syria.

Too bad the Western (i.e., American-directed) media dont provide what would be necessary to understand these things: ongoing coverage and analysis of the obvious relation between the continuing series of horrors perpetrated by jihadi militants and the continuing series of horrors perpetrated by Western and allied governments. Its a good bet nobody will have forgotten the Manchester bombing two years from now. It was in merry old England, after all and many of the victims were beautiful British girls. Its also a good bet that the media analysis will continue to have everyone scratching their heads about why these death-loving Muslims hate us so much. That kind of coverage.

The jihadi attackers in Mali and the jihadi bomber in Manchester were direct productsnot accidental by-products, but deliberately incubated protegesof American-British-French-NATO regime change in Libya, a project that was executed by the Obama administration and spearheaded by Hillary Clinton.

Before the glorious revolution, Libya under Ghaddafi had the highest standard of living of any country in Africa, according to the UN Human Development Index. Before the jihadi onslaught backed by NATO bombing campaign, Ghaddafis Libya was an anchor of stability in North Africa, as even the U.S. and British governments knew and acknowledged, per a 2008 cable from American foreign service officer Christopher Stevens, published by Wikileaks:

Libya has been a strong partner in the war against terrorism and cooperation in liaison channels is excellentMuammar al-Qadhafis criticism of Saudi Arabia for perceived support of Wahabi extremism, a source of continuing Libya-Saudi tension, reflects broader Libyan concern about the threat of extremism. Worried that fighters returning from Afghanistan and Iraq could destabilize the regime, the [government of Libya] has aggressive pursued operations to disrupt foreign fighter flows, including more stringent monitoring of air/land ports of entry, and blunt the ideological appeal of radical Islam.

The US-British-French-NATO humanitarian intervention put an end to that by overthrowing the Libyan government under entirely phony pretexts, in contravention of fundamental international law, and in violation of the UN resolution they claimed as a justification. The executioners and beneficiaries of that aggression where the jihadis who have been rampaging from Mali to Manchester. Its a bright, clear line.

Ghaddafi himself warned Tony Blair that an organization [the LIFG].has laid down sleeper cells in North Africa called the Al Qaeda organization in North Africa. Ghaddafis son, Saif, warned that overthrowing Libyas would make the country the Somalia of North Africa, of the Mediterranean and You will see millions of illegal immigrants. The terror will be next door.

Thanks to Blair and Obama and Clinton and Sarkozy, thats exactly what happened. Libya was destroyed as a functioning state, and the terror is now inside every Western door.

Westerners and Americans transfixed by Ghaddafis garish posturing may have, and may still, find it hard to accept, but it needs to be said aloud: In 2011, Ghaddafi was right about what was going in in Libya, and all best and brightest militaristic conservatives and humanitarian liberals, in and out of government, were wrong. A lot of radical lefties, too, myself included; though I always vehemently opposed the US-NATO intervention, I, too, took Ghaddafis complaints for excuses. But lesson learned (by some): What was going on in Libya was the same thing that went on in Afghanistan in the 80s, and the same thing that is going on in Syria today, supercharged by the intervening war in Iraq

Throughout this nefarious chain of destruction, nobody in the world has committed worse crimes than all the humanitarian liberals in and out of government who have enacted and/or gone along with the imperialist chaos program of destroying relatively prosperous and secular societies in the Arab and Muslim world, and replacing them with sectarian jihadi playgrounds. And no force in the world is more responsible for the rampaging jihadi wolves, lone and in packs, than the United States and its compliant allies, including Great Britain.

Whether any American liberal wants to or not, anyone who is mourning Manchester needs to hear it said: Were crying over the horror in Manchester today because yesterday Hillary Clinton was laughing about the horror she inflicted on Libya including the killing of Ghaddafi by those protected Salafist proxies who sodomized him with a bayonet: We came. We saw. He died. [big smile, joyous laugther] Yes, exactly that.

Ha, Ha. Maybe she can get a gig in a comedy club in Manchester.

Really, knowing what we do about Libya through to Manchester, does any of the outrageous things weve from Trump equal the despicableness of Hillarys perverse glee in this video? Its an image not to be forgotten.

Im sure that our current president, if hes given the timeand, if hes not, some other Republican or Democratwill meet or exceed the high standards that have been set, but Donald Trump has not yet come near committing the series of crimes for which Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama (following the precedent of five previous American administrations) are responsible. These crimes produced the twin horrors of imperialist and jihadi chaos, of which the destruction of the Libyan state was one egregious example, and the killing of young concertgoers in Manchester another. This represents a deep, persistent bipartisan policy that is much more important and difficult to confront than the question of which front man or woman will be selling it.

Manchester is the latest iteration of a scenario weve gone through so many times now, like some groundhog-day dream. At the end of my post two years ago, I was urging and hoping that Americans would wake up. But a lot of American liberals and lefties, including Berniebots, still like to imagine theres a political space they can inhabit called Progressive Except Imperialism. There isnt. Imperialism with Social Security and Medicare and Obamacareeven single-payer healthcareis imperialism, and its reactionary and supremacist. Equal-opportunity imperialism is imperialism. African-American, women, Latinx, or LGBTQ presidents, generals, and drone operators do not make it any less criminal, or dangerous, or any less inevitably erosive of all those cherished progressive domestic programs.

Ignoring or putting aside what the U.S. does in Libya, or Iraq, or Syria, or Palestine becauseTrump! The Republicans! is ignoring a fundamental element of a progressive politics as well as an immediate danger to the country. One can do it, but those who do, cant claim to be seriously confronting the horrors of a tragedy like Manchester, no matter how many tears they shed.

Im afraid that is where were stuck. The absurdity of Trump is drawing more well-meaning people into the flames of nostalgia for an imaginary Democratic copasetic state that disappeared on January 20th. The #Resistance cant even get its act together for single-payer healthcarethe easiest sell imaginable; its not only avoiding the more contentious issues regarding American aggression in places like Libya and Syria, its succumbing to the dangerous, war-mongering, Russophobic program of the military-intelligence complex.

Its still dream on, and I fear it will take a shock much greater than Manchester before Americans finally get the news.
My crystal ball CB said that the war in Ukraine will end by March 2023. Why? - Ukraine does not want to continue fighting, as most of thei...
By Olivia Rose

COUNTRIES across the region must adapt to changes in the tourism industry in order to tap into emerging economic development opportunities.





Thats according to newly released Tourism industry reform, strategies for enhanced economic impact study released by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) on Wednesday (May 24).





The study was presented during a seminar at CDBs 47th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors, which was held in the Turks and Caicos Islands.





The study puts forward recommendations and strategies to enhance the economic impact of tourism in the banks borrowing member countries (BMCs).





The findings of this research will provide countries in the region with insights, data and information that could guide policymaking and action to facilitate sustainable growth.





The study characterises the causal relationship between tourism activity and GDP growth in the region, drawing on data from each of the BMCs between 1989 and 2014.





Two major trends that are particularly significant were identified in the evolution of the tourism industry.





The study took into account the slowdown in the growth rate for long-stay tourism arrivals in BMCs, with an average rate of 2.5 percent, compared to 4.5 percent globally.





As well as the dramatic increase in the number of cruise arrivals in the BMCs, with the number of cruise visitors more than tripling over the period under review.





According to the CDB this is noteworthy, as the impact of tourism on GDP growth varies significantly by arrival type.





Five broad recommendations were presented for consideration by regional stakeholders.





These included "leveraging tourism as a tool for economic development, diversification and stimulating growth and linkages in other sectors such as agriculture and creative industries.





"Organising the tourism industry through coordination among stakeholders,





"Conversion of more cruise ship visitors to long stay visitors, exploring further opportunities for regional collaboration; and preparing for the tourism industry of the future by staying aware of new trends and adapting accordingly, such as the shared economy and greater use of technology through the entire visitor experience and tourism value chain.





CDBs president Dr William Warren Smith emphasised that tourism is the Caribbean regions engine of growth and a major foreign exchange earner in many Caribbean countries.





He said: "During the last two decades, we have witnessed a distinct shift in the profile of visitors to the Caribbean and as a result, in the industrys structure.





"These changes in the industry have signalled a need for policy-makers and key industry players to rethink their strategies for improving the competitiveness and safeguarding the medium to long-term development prospects of the industry in this region.





CDBs director of economics Dr Justin Ram noted that the study is significant, as it provides much-needed empirical analysis focused on the economic impact of the industry.





"This research provides the opportunity for broader, critical, evidence-based policy-making in the tourism industry where business strategies have clearly evolved over the decades.





"These strategies are continuing to evolve, forcing the need for more frequent and timely analysis on which to base changes in policy and strategy so as to maximise economic impacts, he said.





According to a study published by ECLAC, tourism in the Caribbean accounts for over 30 percent of the regions gross domestic product as of 2011.




By Olivia Rose

A WHOPPING $110 million will be injected into climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience projects across the region.





This comes as European Investment Bank (EIB) and Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) signed a financing agreement in Providenciales on Wednesday (May 24).





The cash will support investment projects in the Caribbean under CDBs climate action policy.





The EUR 100 million climate action initiative is EIBs biggest loan to the Caribbean to date.





Climate Action Framework Loan II builds on the first $65 million Climate Action Line of Credit signed between EIB and CDB in 2011.





It supports nine projects in seven countries across the Caribbean including the Turks and Caicos Islands.





CDBs president Dr William Warren Smith and EIB vice president responsible for the Caribbean, Pim Van Ballekom signed the new agreement during the 47th Annual Meeting of CDBs Board of Governors.





Van Ballekom said that the signing of the new climate action loan with CDB is the result of a fruitful partnership that has lasted for almost four decades.





He said: "This partnership is currently supporting CDBs efforts to mainstream climate action to help its borrowing member countries (BMCs), which are all considered small island developing states, to adequately tackle risks related to climate change.





"Caribbean countries face economic and social challenges which must be addressed whilst ensuring resilience to climate change. 





Smith pointed out that through this new line of credit CDB will be able to provide to its borrowing member countries much needed low cost financing to address the climate impacts already affecting these countries.





He said: "The line supports our ongoing work to build climate resilience and the adaptive capacities of BMCs, as they work towards their goal of achieving sustainable development.





"The signing of this agreement reinforces the longstanding partnership between EIB and CDB, and signals strengthened cooperation between our two institutions.





Under the Climate Action Framework Loan II appropriate investments will be made in climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience projects in renewable energy, energy efficiency, road transport, water infrastructure and community level physical and social infrastructure that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve resilience to the impacts of climate change.





According to CDBs website, a healthy pipeline of climate action projects amounting to more than $300 million for this new loan have been developed with support of an EIB-funded technical assistance programme.





To date CDB has committed the total resources under the ongoing Climate Action Line of Credit (EUR 50 million), for nine projects.





This co-financing is associated with total project financing of approximately $191 million (from CDB loans and grants, EIB CALC, counterpart and other sources of financing).





Since the approval of CDBs Climate Resilience Strategy in 2012, 58 percent of projects financed have included climate change adaptation or mitigation elements.





These projects were mainly in the sectors of water, education, physical infrastructure such as sea defences, drainage, and roads, and agriculture.





Using the Joint Multilateral Development Bank Methodology, climate financing represented 13 percent of total CDB project financing in 2015.





In 2016, CDB approved $50 million for projects with explicit climate resilience and sustainable energy actions.





EIB has supported development and economic activity in the Caribbean with loans and equity investment worth EUR 1.6 billion.




By Daisy Handfield

NONE of the scores of TCI students living in Manchester, England, were harmed during this weeks horrific attack, it has been announced.





Twenty-two people were killed and 64 injured after suspected suicide bomber, 22-year-old Salman Abedi, ignited a home-made bomb in a Britains Manchester Arena.





Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson issued a statement following the incident.





"With scores of Turks and Caicos Islanders living and studying in the Manchester area, we immediately sought ways to ensure their safety, she said.





"We are not in receipt of any report that suggests that any Turks and Caicos Islanders was harmed in any way during the incident and remain grateful and hopeful until the reports are complete.





"Let us continue to pray for our students and citizens living and studying abroad.





The attack happened following an Ariana Grande concert on Monday (May 22).





One victim was only eight-years-old, others were teenagers and some were parents waiting to pick up their children from the concert.





According to a BBC news report, more than 240 emergency calls were made; 60 ambulances and 400 police officers attended.





A video released by NBC shows inside the 21,000-capacity venue where terrified teenagers scream as they make their way out, amid a sea of pink balloons.





The accused, Abedi, was killed when igniting the explosive device near one of the exits at about 10.33pm.





The BBC reported that Abedi was born in Manchester on New Years Eve in 1994.





It is believed that he has at least three siblings; an elder brother who was born in London, and a younger brother and sister who were born in Manchester.





The family, believed to be of Libyan origin, has lived at several addresses in Manchester, according to a BBC report.





Manchester Arena, which opened in 1995, is one of the largest indoor venues in Europe.





More than one million people fill its seats every year. It is located near the Manchester Victoria train station.





Cartwright Robinson offered condolences to the families and loved ones of those killed in the tragic incident.





She said: "The Government and people of the Turks and Caicos Islands wish to extend its sincerest sympathy to the UK government and its people in particular the residents of

Manchester.





"Our thoughts and prayers are with the surviving victims and the families of those who lost their lives in such a senseless act.





Premier Cartwright Robinson said that her Government has communicated these sentiments to Governor Dr John Freeman so that he can forward them on their behalf.




By Delana Isles

IT HAS now been several months since the Court of Appeal delivered its decision in the case of 12 storey developments being allowed in the Turks and Caicos Islands, dismissing Strata Corporations appeal.





The next step for Strata, operators of The Tuscany and The Venetian resorts, would be to take the case to Her Majestys Privy Council.





This week, the Weekly News reached out the hotels lead counsel, Conrad Griffiths, about his clients next step in the process and whether the matter is being dropped.





While not clearly stating that his clients are moving to the Privy Council, the lawyer stated that they are following certain steps.





"We are following procedural steps at present and do not wish to comment further, Griffiths responded.





The long running fight between Strata Corporation and the TCI Government came to what some thought was end back in February when the court of appeal dismissed the hotels appeal, and affirmed the order made by the Chief Justice Margaret Ramsay-Hale which saw her ruling in favour of the Government last year.





However, when asked in March, if they will be moving forward with the proposals for the construction of 12 storey hotels in the TCI, now that the matter is resolved, Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson was not as enthusiastic about the proposals as her predecessor, the PNP government.





She had revealed that her Government is being more cautious and taking a reasoned approach to allowing taller buildings with increased density in the country.





While Cartwright Robinson was careful to emphasise that her Government "is anxious to go forward with development in the country she was firm about them ensuring that these developments are ones from which the people of the country will benefit.





So far, the only known developer that has expressed an interest - and even signed an agreement with the former Government - to construct a 12-storey hotel in the TCI is the Desarrollos Hotel Group.





They are seeking to construct a massive luxury resort branded by the world renown Ritz Carlton group.





The Premier had at the time stated that since assuming office, her Government has met with the Dessarrollos developers to find out exactly the direction they would like to go.





She had said that they are eager to go forward, but that there was still a lot of groundwork to be done, as a lot of it had been halted due to the court action.





In April 2015, the Rufus Ewing government signed a development agreement with the Desarrollos Hotel Group to build a $224 million Ritz Carlton hotel, resort, casino and spa in the Grace Bay area.





The development is expected to consist of 124 luxury hotel guest rooms, penthouses, resort residences and associated facilities.





However, the possibility of the hotel ever seeing the light of day in the TCI, seems to be in jeopardy, as all parties involved are refusing to comment on its progress and when or if construction will ever start.




By Olivia Rose

THE GOVERNMENT is making significant headway in strengthening the child protection sector in the Turks and Caicos Islands.





As part of its efforts the Ministry of Home Affairs, Transportation and Communication welcomed UNICEF consultant Dr Debra Willoughby to the Islands last Thursday for a one week stay.





Dr Willoughby is expected to conduct a capacity assessment and prepare an enhancement plan for child safeguarding in the TCI.





According to the ministry the TCI, like other UK overseas territories, has made significant strides in creating a protective environment for and strengthening of the child protection sector, however, there are still many areas of weakness to be addressed.





Dr Willoughby has since met with the senior executive and management team of the ministry at the Office of the Premier in Providenciales.





Present at that meeting was the Minister Vaden D Williams, Permanent Secretary Clara Gardiner and Deputy Secretaries Bridgette Newman and Russell Cox.





The meeting provided an opportunity for the team to discuss the progress made in the area of child safeguarding since the passage of the Family Law Legislation and to highlight some of the challenges currently being experienced.





It is expected that Dr Willoughby will meet with a number of key stakeholders around the Islands and will present her draft plan to the ministry before her departure on June 1.





The Department of Social Development within the ministry has placed increased focus this year on educating the public on the signs of child abuse.





The Turks and Caicos Islands joins the rest of the world this April in observing Child Abuse Prevention Month, under the theme, Nurture and protect me. Do not abuse and neglect me.

Child abuse is a worldwide epidemic; gruesome and heinous crimes are perpetrated against children on a daily basis.





Children suffer all forms of abuse, physical, verbal, psychological and emotional as well as neglect and abandonment.





Some of these cases of abuse are brought to the attention of the authorities and are brought to justice.





However, most cases are under-reported as they are shrouded in secrecy and shame.





According to a press release, the Department of Social Development is planning to embark on a rigorous awareness programme to educate the public on the available reporting mechanisms in an effort to empower more people to report these instances.





It stated: "These children suffer in silence as these situations are either not spoken of or not revealed outside the walls of where the abuse has occurred.





"Some victims cannot speak to reveal the abuse or some are so afraid of identifying their perpetrators or revealing their loved ones or close family member(s).





"One case is too many. We need to end the vicious cycle of abuse.





The Turks and Caicos Islands Government has partnered with UNICEF in eliminating all forms of child abuse and child sexual abuse by educating individuals on the role they play in preventing and ending child abuse.





The Department of Social Development has also collaborated with the Domestic Violence and Sexual Offense Unit of the Royal Turks and Caicos Police Force which continues to investigate cases regarding sexual violence against children under the Juvenile Ordinance.




After a really long slumber, Mitsubishi is now said to be bringing its 2017 Outlander SUV to India. A rival of the Ford Endeavour and the Toyota Fortuner, Mitsubishi will be offering the third-generation model that went global in 2012 with a facelift. The 2017 Outlander will be imported from Japan and will be sold by around 50 dealerships across India, reports Autocar India. A few of those dealerships have already begun to accept bookings for the new Mitsubishi SUV.

The five-year old Mitsubishi Outlander features the company's new design language. The aggressive-looking font grille dominates with its intricate design and there's plenty of brushed aluminium and chrome bits all over (front to the rear) and the 18-inch alloy wheels complete the premium look. The new Outlander features a footprint that is similar to the Pajero Sport, but sits lower and is longer.

According to Autocar, this 2017 Outlander model will sell in just one variant and that would be the one with seven seats.

Coming to the powertrain, we get a 2.4-litre four-cylinder petrol motor that churns out 169 hp and 225 Nm of torque. The engine is coupled to a six-speed CVT transmission and it get the latest Super-All Wheel Control AWD system as well, which gets you an active front differential and driving modes.

The price tag is expected to be in the range of Rs 29 lakh which should get the SUV in line with five-seaters from Honda and Hyundai along with the Jeep Compass, making India's SUV market really competitive.
tech2 News Staff

Apple Inc wants to expand its contract manufacturer's facility in the southern Indian tech hub of Bengaluru, as the iPhone maker seeks a bigger share in one of the world's biggest smartphone markets. Ravi Shankar Prasad, the federal minister for Electronics and IT said, government officials were in touch with Apple and other mobile phone manufacturers for expanding facilities and setting up new plants.

Cupertino, California-based Apple last week started making iPhone SE at its Taiwanese contract manufacturer Wistron's plant in Bengaluru. A small batch of locally made iPhones was rolled out initially, meant as a test for the manufacturing facility. A select few local shops were stocking the "Made in India" iPhones since 2 May, and the manufacturing of the devices had been completed in April itself.

The Indian government has agreed to provide Apple with tax concessions on the import of components to be used in the locally made iPhones. Apple had sought a 15 year tax holiday for all imported components, a demand which was rejected. A panel of ministries instead offered concessions on the components that could not be manufactured in India. Today, almost all the big companies of the world are coming to India because of the sheer pull of Indias market, Prasad has said.

With inputs from Agencies
IANS

British Airways (BA) warned of further delays and cancellations as it resumed flights on Sunday following a major IT failure that saw most services cancelled from London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports on Saturday. The unions blamed the airline's decision last year of outsourcing IT jobs to India as causing the disruptions.

Between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m., 91 British Airways flights were scheduled to depart from both the airports, the BBC reported. So far, 42 flights have left Heathrow and 29 have been cancelled. At Gatwick, 19 planes have departed and one flight to Amsterdam was cancelled.

More than 1,000 flights were affected. The IT failure affected check-in and operational systems, including customer service phone lines. BA said although some of its IT systems were back on line, "there will be some knock-on disruption to our schedules as aircraft and crews are out of position around the world".

Meanwhile, the Guardian newspaper reported here that British Airways GMB union has said the airline's decision to outsource hundreds of IT jobs to India last year was behind the flight disruptions. The GMB union, which had cautioned last year against outsourcing jobs, said BA laid off hundreds of IT staff outsourcing the work to India, and blamed cost cutting for the travel chaos.

"We are repositioning some aircraft during the night to enable us to operate as much of our schedule as possible throughout Sunday," the BBC quoted the airlines as saying. A BA spokesman said: "We are extremely sorry for the huge disruption caused to customers throughout Saturday and understand how frustrating their experiences will have been."

"We are refunding or rebooking customers who suffered cancellations on to new services as quickly as possible and have also introduced more flexible rebooking policies for anyone due to travel on Sunday and Monday who no longer wishes to fly to or from Heathrow or Gatwick," he added. The airline also said that most long-haul flights due to land in London on Sunday were expected to arrive as normal.

Delays were also reported in Rome, Prague, Milan, Stockholm and Malaga due to the system failure, which coincided with a bank holiday weekend and the start of the half-term holiday for many people in the UK. Customers have been advised to continue checking the status of their flight on the airline's website www.ba.com before leaving for the airport.
PTI

State-run BSNL is planning to extend satellite phone services for all citizens in two years that can work at any corner of the country and remain immune to breakdown of mobile services during natural calamities. We have applied to International Maritime Organisation. It will take some time to complete the process. In 18-24 months, we will be in a position to open satellite phones service for citizens in a phased manner, BSNL Chairman and Managing Director Anupam Shrivastava told PTI.

Satellite phones will able to work in any part of the country, even inside flights and ships, as they depend on signals directly from satellites located about 35,700 kms above the earth. Traditional mobile networks cover around 25-30 kms around towers and can transmit signals to phones placed equal to or below the height of the tower. BSNL has started satellite phone service using INMARSAT service which will be initially offered to government agencies and later extended to citizens in a phased manner.

The service will cover areas where no networks are present and be provided by INMARSAT which has 14 satellites. Agencies handling disasters, state police, railways, Border Security Force and other government agencies will be given the phones in the first phase. The number of satellite phone connections in India is very little but once we open it for citizens, the whole dynamics in the market will change. The volumes will bring down the cost of service. We are charging only Re 1 over the cost that satellite firm will bill to us, Shrivastava said. Call rates on satellite phones are expected to be in the range of Rs 30-35 in the first phase when there are only about 4,600 connections in the country.

Satellite phones also cost Rs 40,000 and more. All the satellite phones are imported at present. Once we open it for citizens, the volumes will drive down the cost of calls as well as handset. Even, huge volume can attract satellite phone manufacturers to set-up their unit in India. We expect it to create a new ecosystem of satellite services in the country, Shrivastava said. Satellite phones in India are presently provided by Tata Communications, which inherited the licence from Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (now Tata Communications Ltd). The services of TCL will be phased out by June 30, 2017 and all the connections will be transferred to BSNL.

There are 1,532 authorised satellite phone connections that can operate within the country and a majority of them are used by security forces. TCL has also issued 4,143 permits to maritime community for use of such phones at ships. There have been security concerns on use of satellite phones in India. Telecom regulator Trai has said there is a possibility that communication through such phones can be monitored by foreign agencies as their gateways are located outside India, it added.

Defence forces did not opt for satellite phones from the foreign operators because of security and espionage concerns. Other security agencies have been demanding for a long time for establishment of a new gateway in the country which can support new generation handsets for land mobile connections. Shrivastava said that now satellite phone gateway has been set-up in India with legal interception and monitoring system (LIMS).

BSNL has set-up gateway with INMARSAT to address security concerns among government agencies. Now, there are no more issued related to security. We will start providing satellite services once our registration process is complete and necessary approvals are in place, Shrivastava said.
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The mother of the CEO of the ride-hailing company Uber died in a boat accident in a California lake, the company said. Bonnie Kalanick, 71, died after the boat she and her husband, Donald, 78, were riding in hit a rock in Pine Flat Lake and sank, Fresno County authorities said.

They are the parents of Travis Kalanick, 40, who founded Uber in 2009. The company has since grown to become an international operation with a market value of nearly $70 billion. The Kalanicks, from the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, have been longtime boaters.

In a memo to Uber staff, Liane Hornsey, the chief human resources officer, called the Friday evening accident an "unthinkable tragedy." She wrote that "everyone in the Uber family knows how incredibly close Travis is to his parents." Officers were called to the scene and found the couple on a shore of the lake, the Sheriff's office said in a statement.

Bonnie Kalanick died at the scene, and her husband suffered moderate injuries, the sheriff's office said. An autopsy of Bonnie Kalanick is planned, the office said. Donald Kalanick is being treated at a hospital and is in stable condition, the company said. The couple's other son, Cory Kalanick, is a firefighter with the Fresno Fire Department.
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Britain is looking at a range of options to put pressure on internet companies to do more to take down extremist material, Security Minister Ben Wallace said on Sunday. The government has previously complained technology companies are not doing enough to tackle the use of their networks both to promote extremist ideology and for communication between militant suspects.

"We are going to look at the range of options. We have seen the Germans have proposed perhaps a fine, we are not sure whether that is going to work but there are range of pressures we can put on to some of these companies," Wallace told BBC Television. "We think they have the technology and the capability to change the algorithms they use," he said, adding that one issue was the way the companies linked posts to other similar material online.

Wallace said some companies were "being difficult" but there was evidence that others were trying to improve their work on the issue. This comes in the wake of the suicide bombing on 24 May 2017 in Manchester at Ariana Grande's concert which killed 22 people and left 59 injured.

With inputs from Reuters
IANS

The Donald Trump administration is considering banning laptops from the passenger cabins of all international flights to and from the US, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly has said. Kelly, a retired general, was asked on Fox News on Sunday if he would expand an existing ban to cover laptops on all international flights into and out of the US, The Guardian reported.

"I might," he said. Such a move would dramatically expand the ban, announced in March, that affects about 50 flights per day from 10 cities, mostly in the Middle East. The ban prevents travellers from bringing laptops, tablets and certain other devices on board in carry-on bags. All electronics bigger than a smartphone must be checked in.

The measure applies to nonstop US-bound flights from 10 international airports in Amman, Jordan; Kuwait City, Kuwait; Cairo; Istanbul; Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Casablanca, Morocco; Doha, Qatar; and Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. About 50 flights a day, all on foreign airlines, are affected.

Earlier this month, reports said the Trump administration would broaden the ban to include planes from the European Union, affecting trans-Atlantic routes that carry as many as 65 million people a year. US officials have said that initial ban was not based on any specific threat but on longstanding concerns about extremists targeting jetliners. Speaking on Fox and Friends on Friday, Kelly said some people would "never leave the house" if they knew what he knew about terrorist activity.

"There's a real threat," Kelly said on Sunday, adding that terrorists are "obsessed" with the idea of downing a plane in flight, "particularly if it's a US carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly US folks. It's real."
tech2 News Staff

In mid May this year, WannaCry ransomware attacks affected computer systems in over a hundred and fifty countries around the world, exposing the risks lingering in unpatched operating systems.

The attack was good business for cyber security companies, with investors actually rushing to buy stock in them. Affected organisations scrambled to secure their systems and used innovative ways to recover losses, including using kidnap insurance policies. There are some bizarre aspects to the attack, we have listed ten of the strangest ones.

10. Security researchers noticed odd network activity before the attacks

The actual ransomware attack on an infected machine is the end of a long chain of events. First, the malware has to scan the computers for possible vulnerabilities, it then has to spread through the system, install a backdoor and allow for the malicious code for encrypting the data to be loaded by communicating with command and control servers. All of this activity, especially the communication to command and control servers, can be detected before the attack itself.

Martin Korec, Lead Analyst at GreyCortex says, detection of WannaCry and other similar ransomware is easy and fast through the use of advanced behavioral methods. In the case of the WannaCry infection, detailed visibility into network traffic is absolutely crucial. From there, it is possible to quickly analyze the extent of the infection, to isolate infected devices, and to keep critical systems running.

GreyCortex uses a combination of network traffic analysis along with artificial intelligence and machine learning to keep enterprises secure from malware attacks. Although the actual attacks showed up in May, the backdoor, DoublePulsar was appearing on systems since April 2017, according to a report by Check Point.

09. The National Security Agency of the United States is the source of the exploits

One of the major problems with the whole episode is that the National Security Agency (NSA) of the United States chose to hoard security holes in major operating systems. The right thing to do in the interest of the security of systems around the world, was to have informed Microsoft of the security holes, so that they could be patched. The NSA has been criticized for such activity.

Microsoft Corp President Brad Smith wrote in a blog post that This attack provides yet another example of why the stockpiling of vulnerabilities by governments is such a problem. This is an emerging pattern in 2017. We have seen vulnerabilities stored by the CIA show up on WikiLeaks, and now this vulnerability stolen from the NSA has affected customers around the world. Repeatedly, exploits in the hands of governments have leaked into the public domain and caused widespread damage.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also criticized the approach used by the United States and NSA in collecting security holes to develop their own offensive cyber capabilities. As regards the source of these threats, I believe that the leadership of Microsoft have announced this plainly, that the initial source of the virus is the intelligence services of the US. Once they are let out of the lamp, genies of this kind, especially those created by intelligence services, can later do damage to their authors and creators, Putin said.

08. Microsoft had patched the security hole a month before the exploits were leaked, two months before the attacks

When the Shadow Brokers dumped the tools publicly, Microsoft announced that a number of vulnerabilities used by the exploits to compromise the systems had already been patched. The earliest of these patches took place in 2009, while the latest was in March, just a month prior to the public release of the tools. The zero-days are security holes in systems that are not disclosed, and the NSA could make the tools because it did not disclose the vulnerabilities in the operating system to Microsoft.

The question here is how Microsoft managed to get hold of the exploits. Did some kind of back channel communication between the NSA and Microsoft take place, so that Microsoft could issue patches before the tools were leaked publicly?

07. The attack used a combination of publicly available tools

There was nothing new in what the attackers who created the ransomware did. Analysis of the code shows that the ransomware was created using code copied from other software, and included mistakes made by amateur software engineers. The manner in which the bitcoin was demanded from the victims of the attack was not sophisticated, according to a report in NPR.

It is likely that the attackers partially used ransomware kits peddled on the dark web. The exploit used was an NSA tool known as EternalBlue, the backdoor to gain access to the system was known as DoublePulsar, both of which were sophisticated. However, the actual ransom component of the malware was shoddily executed, according to a report in Wired.

06. The ransomware was stopped in its tracks after the most basic steps to understand it

A 22 year old security researcher and blogger, Marcus Hutchins, was tracking the spread of the ransomware. A standard part of his job procedure was to capture malicious traffic from expired or unregistered domains, gather evidence on the scale of the infection, and take down the malware. All three of these steps were accomplished by just pointing the traffic generated by the malware to a sinkhole server. It took him less than $10 to accidentally stop the spread of the malware in its tracks.

05. The Shadow Brokers have leaked sophisticated tools, but appear to be amateurs

The cache of tools leaked by the Shadow Brokers are pretty sophisticated. However, the group uses horrible English in their communication. This is a sample of the language they used, while the group initially introduced a selection of the hacked NSA exploits.

How much you pay for enemies cyber weapons? Not malware you find in networks. Both sides, RAT + LP, full state sponsor tool set? We find cyber weapons made by creators of stuxnet, duqu, flame. Kaspersky calls Equation Group. We follow Equation Group traffic. We find Equation Group source range. We hack Equation Group. We find many many Equation Group cyber weapons. You see pictures. We give you some Equation Group files free, you see. This is good proof no? You enjoy!!!

Even more confusing is their political motives. The group claims to be from the United States, does not appreciate the elites, are supporters of Donald Trump, but have criticized him for a number of decisions and called him a betrayer of the American people. The group could not have done a better job if they wanted to deliberately cloak their intentions and motives.

04. Nobody really knows who the Shadow Brokers are and what motive they had to leak the exploits.

Unlike the leaks by Snowden or WikiLeaks, there does not seem to be an obvious political motive behind the leaks by the Shadow Brokers. There is no care taken to mask sensitive information.

According to a report in The Atlantic, the timing of the leaks does not make sense if the leaks were politically or ethically motivated. A whistleblower would not sit on the tools for three years before publicly releasing them. Cybercriminals could stand to benefit more by using the exploits themselves, instead of selling them. The clues point to a state sponsored actor. There are few countries with the capability to hack the NSA, as well as publishing the tools. According to The Atlantic, these two countries are Russia and China, with the latter being more possible.

In the wake of the WannaCry ransomware attacks, the Shadow Brokers announced a subscription based Data Dump of the Month club. In June, TheShadowBrokers is announcing "TheShadowBrokers Data Dump of the Month" service. TheShadowBrokers is launching a new monthly subscription model. Is being like wine of month club. Each month peoples can be paying membership fee, then getting members only data dump each month. What members doing with data after is up to members.

03. There is speculation of a second, hidden Snowden

Another unanswered question leading to a lot of speculation is how the Shadow Brokers got access to the cache of tools developed by the NSA. Taken at face value, the explanation of the Shadow Brokers is that they tracked the servers used by a secretive NSA related threat actor known as the Equation Group, which is known for using a number of hi-tech approaches for spying in countries around the world.

One of the secret servers around the world used by the NSA apparently was hacked by the Shadow Brokers. Other theories suggest that an insider leaked the tools to the cyber criminals, a second, hidden Snowden. According to a report in The Daily Beast, there could be a mole in the NSA, or the CIA, or both, providing sensitive information to both the US and Russia.

Another possibility is an NSA employee who illegally collected and stored the tools on private computer systems, which were then subsequently hacked by the Shadow Brokers. An NSA contractor was in fact arrested in Boston, according to a report in The Washington Post. The arrest took place almost as soon as the Shadow Brokers listed some of the tools for auction, and leaked a sample of the tools. However, no direct and obvious connection was made between the contractor and the Shadow Brokers.

02. North Korea is suspected to be behind the ransomware attacks

According to security researchers who have analysed the code of the ransomware, there are some similarities with code previously known to be used by Unit 180, a part of the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), the main overseas intelligence agency of North Korea. Unit 180 is believed to be behind the SWIFT banking attack in Bangladesh, as well as the Sony Pictures hack.

The code used in WannaCry is similar to code used by a group known as Lazarus, according to a blog post by Symantec. Lazarus is a group believed to be based in North Korea, but the operatives travel to locations with reliable internet connections to execute attacks, and to be able to deny its own involvement in the attacks. However, Symantec goes on to note that Despite the links to Lazarus, the WannaCry attacks do not bear the hallmarks of a nation-state campaign but are more typical of a cybercrime campaign.

North Korea has denied that it is linked to the ransomware attack, and has called the allegations, a dirty and despicable smear campaign.

01. The intent appeared to be business disruption rather than collecting the ransom

The ransomware affected telecom operators in Spain, train services in Germany, health services in the United Kingdom and a car manufacturer in France. Schools, factories, and organizations were targeted instead of individuals.

Further, the attack exploited old, unpatched systems. As previously pointed out, the ransomware used a combination of publicly available tools and amateurishly written code. The parts of the malware responsible for ransom and collection of bitcoin were the components with amateur mistakes.

Additionally, the malware did not have the sophistication usually associated with such attacks. The malware did not try to encrypt backup systems, or infect network drives, two approaches typically used by ransomware. All these clues point to the possibility that the actual intention of the attackers was to disrupt regular activity, and not to actually profit from the attack.

Samil Neino, 32, chief executive of Los Angeles-based Kryptos Logic told Reuters that What really makes the magnitude of this attack so much greater than any other is that the intent has changed from information stealing to business disruption

Zero Day

There is a complex chain of actors that resulted in the attack, and there are denials or confusing claims made at each link in that chain. The NSA has not admitted that tools it has developed have been stolen. The Shadow Brokers are claiming responsibility, and that they are based in the US. The attackers behind WannaCry do not have a public presence beyond easily traceable Bitcoin wallets. North Korea has denied being associated with the attack.

Security experts warn of more attacks similar to WannaCry. The old, unpatched operating systems are being attacked by other malware, including a cryptocurrency miner known as Adylkuss, and another ransomware known as UIWIX. EternalRocks is a malware with unknown intent that is using seven of the leaked NSA exploits, while WannaCry used only two.

Recently, a vulnerability similar to the one used by WannaCry in Windows was found in the commonly used networking software for Linux systems, known as Samba.

Ransomware attacks emerged as the biggest cyber security threat this year because of the WannaCry attack.
Norway on Sunday demanded that the Palestinian Authority reimburse it for funds donated to a women's center on the West Bank because the center was named after a female terrorist who took part in an attack that killed 37 Israelis.



The Norwegian Foreign Ministry said the country "will not allow itself to be associated with institutions that take the names of terrorists."



The women's center in Burka, northwest of Nablus, was named for Dalal Mughrabi, a Fatah operative who died participating in the 1978 Coastal Road massacre, in which a group of 11 Palestinian terrorists hijacked a civilian bus carrying Israeli families on an outing. Thirteen children were among those killed.



Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende issued a harsh statement saying the center had received funding from Norway via the Palestinian Election Commission and U.N. Women to promote participation of women in elections.



"The glorification of terrorist attacks is completely unacceptable, and I deplore this decision in the strongest possible terms. Norway will not allow itself to be associated with institutions that take the names of terrorists in this way. We will not accept the use of Norwegian aid funding for such purposes," Brende said.

As many familiar with the time Yitzhak Rabin capitulated to the PLO know, Norway was one of the main supporters of the pact. But now, after nearly a quarter century, it looks like the politicians in Norway are waking up and recognizing reality This is incredible. Years before, they were most hostile to Israel. This is a significant turn around on Norway's part, and a good sign from Europe. There's more on the subject here Update: and in case I didn't mention, the UN's also withdrawing their support for the center . Even so, they still have a lot of repairs to make, if they truly must still function, and have to start removing countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran from their human rights councils, since they still violate human dignity on a daily basis.

Labels: anti-semitism, islam, Israel, jihad, Scandanavia, terrorism, war on terror
36 held including Jamaat activists in Dinajpur

BSS, Dinajpur :

Police, in special drives from Sunday night to yesterday morning, arrested 36 persons including four activists of Jamaat-e-Islami, three drug traders and recovered 200 bottles of Phensidyl syrup and 750 liters of locally made liquor from 10 upazilas of the district.

Sources with the district police said they were picked up from different areas of the district.

Police said, during the drives, Dinajpur Sadar police arrested eight persons including three drug traders with 750 liters of locally made liquor, Khansama Thana police arrested three, Kaharole Thana police two, Hakimpur Thana police arrested three, Birampur police arrested two, Ghoraghat police arrested five, Birganj Thana police arrested three accused, Chirirbandar Thana police arrested four activists of Jamaat-e-Islami, Phulbari Thana police three and Parbatipur Thana police arrested three accused.

Meanwhile, members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in a drive recovered 200 bottles of Phensidyl syrup from Hili railway station in Hakimpur upazila in an abandoned condition during the period.

Several cases, including charges of subversive activities, are pending with different police stations against the arrested persons, the sources added.

The arrested people were sent to jail.


CUB holds orientation, cultural ceremony for summer-2017

Prof William H Darrenger, Vice Chancellor, Canadian University of Bangladesh inaugurating a daylong orientation and cultural program for the freshers\' of Summer Semester -2017 at its Banani Campus in the capital recently.

Campus Report :



Canadian University of Bangladesh (CUB) has arranged a daylong orientation and cultural program for the freshers' of Summer Semester -2017 recently at its Banani Campus in the capital.

Prof William H Darrenger, Vice Chancellor, CUB inaugurated the program. SM Arifuzzaman, Head, School of Business gave vote of thanks at the event. At the second session of the daylong program, students of the University presented a stunning cultural ceremony.

Prof MA Arafat, Chief Advisor to the Board of Trustees and Hanif Mahtab, Associate Professor of Business School, Canadian University of Bangladesh spoke in the discussion session as special guests while Amreen Mahmood Islam, Lecturer, English Program, Canadian University of Bangladesh conducted the program.

Among others, Md. Latiful Khabir, Associate Professor of Business School, Abdullah-Al-Monzur Hussain, Assistant Professor and Coordinator, School of Law, Tusher Nabi Khan, Lecturer and Coordinator, Film and TV and Walid Bin Kader, Lecturer, School of Science and Engineering were also present in the program.

In the cultural ceremony, students of Canadian University of Bangladesh presented songs, drama, dance and ramp show, recitation of poem and students fun session. Moreover, University Band 'Pincode' has performed a concert.


Milestone College celebrates Rabindra-Nazrul Jayanti

Campus Report :



Milestone College celebrated Rabindra-Nazrul Jayanti. To mark the programme, the College authority has recently arranged a special discussion, cultural programme of music and dance at the College Central auditorium.

Principal of the Milestone College Prof Md. Shahidul Islam was present in the ceremony as chief guest. Administrative Principal Lt Colonel M Kamaluddin Bhuiyan (retd), Administrative Director Md. Masud Alam and Academic Director Commander F Karim (retd.), Mohammad Shahjahan Hosen were present in the eye catching programme as special guest. Lecturer of Bangla Department Najvin Akhter present the significance of celebrating birth anniversaries of two prominent figures of Bengali literature  Rabindranath Tagore and Kazi Nazrul Islam.

Senior Lecturer of English Department Jainul Abedin and Assistant Professor of Bangla Department Mahmudun Nabi gave a dignified discussion on poet Rabindranath Tagore and National Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.

All teacher, a large number of students and stuffs are attended the discussion and cultural programme.

Prof Md. Shahidul Islam said, we remember these two great men because they were true and beautiful messengers of our culture.




DIUDC Natl Debate Fest-1424 ends at DIU

Prof Dr Yousuf Mahbubul Islam, Vice Chancellor of Daffodil International University along with the winners and distinguished guests at the prize distribution ceremony of \'BISK Club-DIUDC National Debate Fest-1424a powered by BRB Cables organized b

Campus Report :



A week-long 'BISK Club-DIUDC National Debate Fest-1424 powered by BRB Cables' ended at Daffodil International University (DIU) on Saturday. Jahangirnagar University Debating Society (JUDS)-1 team became champion in University category while JUDS-2 team of the same university became Runner up. Viqarunnisa Noon School and College became champion in college category while SOS Hermann Gmeiner College became Runner up. Motijheel Government Boys' High School became Champion in school category and Adamjee Cantonment College became Runner up. In English debate category Team from IBA, Dhaka University became champion and BRAC University became Runner up.

Prof Dr Yousuf Mahbubul Islam, Vice Chancellor, DIU was present at the closing and award giving ceremony as chief guest and distributed prizes among the winners.

Md. Rafiqul Islam Rony, Head of Marketing, BRB Cables Ltd was present in the program as the special guest.

Presided over by Hamidul Haque Khan, Treasurer of DIU, the closing and prize giving ceremony was also addressed by Mahbub Parvez, Head, Dept of Tourism and Hospitality Management and Moderator, DIUDC and Md. Rashedul Islam, President, DIUDC.

16 schools, 16 colleges and 32 universities participated in this week long national debate festival.
Trump dismisses 'fabricated' report of son-in-law's outreach to Russia

US President Donald Trump and White House Senior Adviser Jared Kushner. AP file photo

A White House in crisis scrambled to allay public concern over reports that Donald Trump's son-in-law sought a secret communications link to Russia-a bombshell allegation the US president swatted down as "fabricated."

After returning late Saturday from his first foreign trip as president, Trump geared up to combat concerns over his advisers' ties to Russia, including explosive reports about Jared Kushner, his indispensable aide-de-camp.

Trump was meeting with attorneys at the White House on Sunday, presumably over the latest development in the long-running Russia intelligence saga, news reports said.

US media said the White House is creating a new rapid-fire communications unit to respond to the controversy, led by Kushner, senior presidential adviser Steve Bannon and White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus.

Trump, who had been uncharacteristically quiet on Twitter during his nine-day trip abroad, resumed his favorite past-time with fury on Sunday, dismissing allegations of Russia ties as "fake news" and "fabricated lies."

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," he wrote.

"Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names it is very possible that those sources don't exsist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!" the US leader wrote, spelling errors and all.

The administration had hoped Trump's nine-day turn in the international spotlight would offer a respite from relentless coverage-marked by an endless barrage of explosive revelations-of an ever-widening probe into Russian meddling in last year's election and possible collusion by the Trump campaign.

However, the eve of his return brought the biggest story to date: A Washington Post report about Kushner's alleged proposal to the Russians to create a secret channel out of the reach of US spymasters.

The talks between Kushner and the Russians, if confirmed, would raise new questions about the Trump team's relationship with Moscow, which US intelligence agencies say tried to sway the November election in Trump's favor.

Meanwhile, a parade of senior administration officials tried to downplay the story, saying it was not all that unusual to establish "back-channel" ties with a foreign government.

Trump's National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster refused to talk about the allegations, but said that generally speaking, "we have back-channel communication with a number of countries... I would not be concerned about it."

His comments were echoed by Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly.

"It's both normal in my opinion and acceptable," he told ABC News on Sunday.

"Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organizations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us, is a good thing and, again, it comes back to whatever the communication is, comes back into the government and shared across the government so it's not a bad thing to have multiple communication lines to any government," he said.

But the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, which is investigating the Russian election meddling, was dubious about those assertions.

"You have to ask, well, who are they hiding the conversations from?" Representative Adam Schiff said in an interview with ABC News.




Mattis says conflict with North Korea would be 'catastrophic'

The Independent :

Donald Trump's Defence Secretary has said that any military conflict with North Korea would be "catastrophic".

The US has stepped up its threats and sabre-rattling against North Korea since Mr Trump assumed the presidency. At the same time, the East Asian nation has stepped up its programme of missile tests. Reports suggest it has attempted seven tests in 2017, including two recent tests in one week alone.

Former general James Mattis claimed North Korea was a threat to the surrounding region, including Japan, China and Russia. He also claimed it was a direct threat to the US.

"A conflict in North Korea, would be probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes," Mr Mattis told CBS News.

"The bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if we're not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means."

He added: "They have been very clear in their rhetoric - we don't have to wait until they have an intercontinental ballistic missile with a nuclear weapon on it to say that now it's manifested completely,"

Preparing for North Korea's growing threat, the Pentagon will attempt to shoot down an intercontinental-range missile for the first time in a test this week, the network said.

The American interceptor has succeeded in nine of 17 attempts since 1999. The most recent test in June 2014 was a success, but that was only after three failures.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has vowed to possess a missile capable of reaching the US, though he has not done so yet.

Last week, the Defence Intelligence Agency said it was "inevitable" that a nuclear weapon launched from North Korea would hit the US mainland.

Lieutenant General Vincent Stewart told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the possibility of an attack was very real after a recent missile test conducted by Pyongyang.

He claimed that if the country and its leader were left on the "current trajectory the regime will ultimately succeed".




President asks peacekeepers to work with professionalism

President M Abdul Hamid has asked Bangladesh peacekeepers to continue their work in the UN peacekeeping mission with utmost professionalism, integrity, devotion and sincerity.

"I expect, you (members from army, navy, air force and police forces working in the United Nations peacekeeping missions) would work to establish Bangladesh as a peace-loving country by upholding country's national flag in the global arena," he said this while addressing a programme on the occasion of the International Day of UN Peacekeepers here on Monday.

At the outset of his speech, the President paid rich tribute to the memory of Bangladesh peacekeepers who embraced martyrdom while working in UN peacekeeping mission and prayed for salvation of their departed souls and also showed due respects to those who received injuries at different peacekeeping missions in different times.

Referring to the historic address of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the UN General Assembly on September 25 in 1974 where he expressed his firm desire to establish global peace, Abdul Hamid said, "Since then Bangladesh has been playing an important role in maintaining good relations with different peace loving and friendly countries in the world by taking part in the UN peacekeeping mission."

The President categorically said Bangladesh has emerged as a country of peace and communal harmony around the world and Bangladesh peacekeepers have been able to attain credibility by dint of their highest standard of professionalism, devotion and bravery since the very beginning.
BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia at an Iftar Mahfil organised in honour of diplomats at Hotel Westin in the city on Monday.
German leaders step up attacks on Trump

Germany's top politicians have stepped up criticism of US President Donald Trump, a day after Chancellor Angela Merkel said the US and UK were no longer reliable partners.

On Monday Mrs Merkel said it was right not to gloss over differences with the US, while her foreign minister said Mr Trump's actions "weakened the West".

It comes days after the G7 summit, where Mr Trump refused to commit to the 2015 Paris climate deal. Germany goes to the polls in September.

German opposition leader Martin Schulz accused Mr Trump of having tried to "humiliate" Mrs Merkel in Brussels.

It was unclear exactly what incident a furious Mr Schulz was referring to, but he accused the US president of "acting like an autocratic leader".

Speaking at a conference on sustainable development in Berlin, Mrs Merkel reiterated her call for Europeans to take their fate into their own hands.

The debate at the G7 meeting in Italy had shown it would be difficult to make the 2015 Paris climate deal work, she said.

Those putting on "national blinkers" on matters of international sustainability were going about things the wrong way, she said.

Mr Trump has said he will make a decision on the Paris agreement this week.

He has previously pledged to abandon the Paris deal and expressed doubts about climate change.

However, Mrs Merkel also said at the conference that she remained a "convinced Trans-Atlanticist". On Sunday she said Germany and Europe wanted friendly relations with the US and UK as well as with other regional powers, such as Russia.

Germans loathe Donald Trump - they dislike his rhetoric and his politics. And politicians of every hue are disgusted by his refusal to co-operate with the rest of the G7 on climate change and migration.

Angela Merkel's uncharacteristically candid tone has gone down well with the electorate and, given the general election is four months away, perhaps the public support of her main rival Martin Schulz should not come as a surprise. "It's Merkel versus Trump", exclaimed one headline.

But it is unlikely that Mrs Merkel expects - as some commentators would have it - to re-set the transatlantic relationship. Behind the scenes in Berlin, there is a grudging acceptance that, like him or not, Germany has to do business with Mr Trump.

The US is a vital trade partner and, as Germany's interior minister admitted on Monday afternoon, co-operation on security and defence is of immense importance and will be intensified.

Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel meanwhile accused the US of "short-sighted policies" that he said were against EU interests.

"Anyone who accelerates climate change by weakening environmental protection, who sells more weapons in conflict zones and who does not want to politically resolve religious conflicts is putting peace in Europe at risk," Mr Gabriel said.

Mrs Merkel is on the campaign trail ahead of elections in September. Polls suggest she is on course to be re-elected for a fourth term.
Slow-moving vehicles on highways often cause fatal mishaps

Police extortion alleged

Md Joynal Abedin Khan :

The long-distance transports now ply as many as 22 national highways countrywide at a speed much lower than the average rate fixed by the government because of the movement of some slow-moving vehicles on these roads, leading to fatal accidents.

The high speed allowed for the vehicles on these roads is 80 killometres per hour (KPM) but the transports move at a speed not beyond 40 KPM.

A total of 1.08 lakh unregistered converted utility vehicles ply the highways, according to a recent survey conducted by Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), the regulatory body for the road transport sector.

However, the Passengers' Welfare Association said there are 3 lakh unfit vehicles and 10 lakh converted utility vehicles and easy-bikes across the country, which are mainly liable for accidents on highways.

Media reports suggest 56 per cent of the traffic accidents take place every year on highways. At least 6,055 people were killed and 15,914 injured in 4,312 accidents in 2016.

The plying of unstable battery-run vehicles, including easy-bikes, auto-rickshaws nasimon and karimon on the highways is also a major reason for the accidents, police say.

Passengers allege that these illegal vehicles ply the highways by paying money to police and ruling party men

These illegal vehicles also create tailback on these roads. Taking traffic congestions to their advantage, bus owners and conductors are charging the commuters extra fare, they said.

The government banned movement of such vehicles on highways in 2010 while the High Court on January 25 this year directed the Home Secretary to prohibit movement of unauthorised locally made three wheelers, popularly known as Nasiman or Kariman or Bhatbhati, on highways to prevent road accident. The court also directed the Deputy Inspector General of Police (highway) and superintendents of police not to allow plying unfit vehicles on highways.

Many pointed out that they often remain stuck on roads as buses are forced to slow speed because of the illegal slow-moving vehicles.

Santosh Ray, a private service holder in Panchagarh, said, "Now I work at an NGO from where I draw a poor salary. I could not take part in the preliminary examination for a Senior Officer post at Agrani Bank due to traffic jam on the Panchagarh-Dhaka highway, which was scheduled to be held at Dhunia College in the capital's Jatrabari at 10:00am on May 19. Unfortunately, I also lost my job as I failed to reach my office the following day.

Monwara Begum Fensi, a private school teacher from Nilphamari, alleged about extra bus fare, She said Tk 600 was charged for one ticket to Rangpur showing excuse of traffic jam which otherwise would cost Tk 500.

The counter manager of TR Travels at Kalyanpur, Shahedur Rahman, admitted that passengers are being cheated extra fare. He, however claimed that the genuine fare is Tk 600 as per the rate fixed by the government.

On extortion by police, driver Aminul Islam said he has to pay Tk 25 to police on duty at each check post to get clearance to move forward to reach the city's kitchen maarket.

Sabbir, a 10-year old street child at Khulna's Sonadanga Bypass Road, said that he got Tk 100 per day from the police for collecting money for them from the human hauler drivers.

Hridoy Khan, a driver of human hauler in Gazipur, said the Highway Police take TK 10,000 from each driver illegally and give permission to ply the vehicles on the Dhaka-Mymensing highways.

Rumana Akter, haling from Kurigram district, said, "Her 60-year-old mother lost her life as their ambulance got 'stuck' in a traffic jam due to a road accident in Tangail last month."

BRTA fixed the fare for long-route buses at Tk 1.42 per kilometer across the country except Dhaka, its adjacent areas and Chittagong metropolitan cities.The new rate of fare came into effect on May 15 last year.

Khandaker Rafiqul Hossain Kajal, President of Association of Bus Companies (ABC), said, "Many human hauliers and some small three-and four-wheelers are plying illegally, which is a threat for long distance buses."

Inspector General of Police AKM Shahidul Hoque said police have been instructed to free the highways from the illegal vehicles for smooth movement of all other vehicles. The IGP also talked tough on police extortion during Ramzan and Eid.

Additional Deputy Inspector General (Highway Range) of Police M A Maleq warned that any policeman found engaged in extortion would be sacked on the spot.

BRTA should be alert to give driving licenses to reduce road accident, he suggested.
Judges` tours: CJ angry over ministry`s `misinterpretation`

Staff Reporter :

Expressing resentment over the Law Ministry's explanation about sending judges abroad without consultation with the apex court, Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha said the ministry has misinterpreted it without having the clear idea about the law.

"If the ministry thinks it can order the Supreme Court, then it'll be a mistake. Without having the clear idea about law, they've been creating gaps one after another. Don't infuriate the judiciary," he said.

He said while presiding over a bench of the Appellate Division for hearing the Mazdar Hossain case, popularly known as the Judiciary Separation case.

"A little learning is a dangerous thing...it'll be a great mistake if it (Law ministry) gives the clarification of a law and claims it to be correct," he said.

A Supreme Court bench, led by the Chief Justice, gave the government two weeks more to publish the gazette notification on the rules determining discipline and conduct of lower court judges.

On May 9, the Supreme Court issued a circular restricting foreign tour of 17 lower court judges. The circular said the Supreme Court was not consulted before sending them abroad.

Under the Supreme Court directives in the judgment of the Masdar Hossain case, it is mandatory for the government to take Supreme Court advice before sending lower court judges abroad.

Later, the Law Ministry issued a circular saying this was not applicable for the judges who are on deputation and the President has approved their tours.

However, a Supreme Court Bench, led by the Chief Justice, gave the government two weeks more to publish the gazette notification on the rules determining discipline and conduct of lower court judges.

On May 9, the Supreme Court issued a circular restricting foreign tour of 17 lower court judges. The circular said the Supreme Court was not consulted before sending them abroad.

Under the Supreme Court directives in the judgment of the Masdar Hossain case, it is mandatory for the government to take Supreme Court advice before sending lower court judges abroad.

Later, the Law Ministry issued a circular saying this was not applicable for the judges who are on deputation and the President has approved their tours.
16th amendment created scope to undermine judiciary: Dr Kamal

Eminent jurist Dr Kamal Hossain on Monday said the 16th amendment to the Constitution has created a scope to undermine the independence of judiciary and made it a vulnerable to interference.

"I support the High Court order that declared illegal the 16th amendment to the Constitution as it en dangered the rule of law and created a chance to undermine the independence of the judiciary," he said.

Dr Kamal made the observations while placing his deposition as amicus curiae on the 9th day of hearing on the 16th Amendment to the Constitution with a seven-member Appellate Division bench, led by Chief Justice SK Sinha.

Four other amici curiae-Barrister MI Farooqui, Abdul Wadud Bhuiyan, former Attorney General AFM Hasan Arif and Barrister Ajmalul Hossain-also placed their depositions before the SC on Monday.

With this, eight of the 12 amici curiae appointed by the SC have so far submitted their statements before the apex court.

Earlier, former Justice TH Khan, Barrister M Amir-ul Islam and Barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud made the observations.

However, all the amici curiae, except Ajmalul Hossain, opposed the 16th amendment to the Constitution.

In his statement, Dr Kamal also urged the apex court to reject the 16th amendment as illegal and unconstitutional.

He said there is a Supreme Judicial Council in many countries, including the USA, Canada, the UK, Hong Kong, Germany, Sweden, Pakistan, Malaysia and Singapore, like Bangladesh to remove the Supreme Court judges.

On February 8, the SC appointed 12 senior jurists as amici curiae seeking their opinions over the legality of the amendment.

The four others include Barrister Rafiqul Haque, Barrister Shafique Ahmed, AJ Mohammad Ali and Fida M Kamal.

On September 17, 2014, the Jatiya Sangsad passed the 'Constitution (16th Amendment) Bill, 2014' without any opposition, empowering Parliament to impeach judges of the Supreme Court for their 'incapacity' or 'misconduct'.

Nine Supreme Court lawyers filed a writ petition with the High Court on November 5, 2014, questioning the validity of the amendment.

On May 5 last year, the HC declared the 16th Amendment to the Constitution illegal. The government on January 4 last filed an appeal challenging the HC decision.

The Constitution drafted in 1972 had given the MPs the power to impeach judges and decide their term in office. But after the Fourth Amendment in 1975, the power was vested with the President.
SSF rejects food supplied for PM without security tag

The Special Security Force rejected some "untagged food," served the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina while she was about to start for Austria boarding on an international flight of Bangladesh Biman (Boeing -777) on Monday, officials said.

The foods were served by the Biman Flight Catering Centre (BFCC) which is now under scanner for the "fault" or "negligence in duty" while serving food for the VVIP passenger.

The PM is now in Vienna on a two-day visit to attend an international conference organised by the UN's organisation International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to mark its 60th anniversary. Contacted, Managing Director of Bangladesh Biman A M Mosaddique Ahmed told The New Nation last night that they were investigating whether it was anybody's negligence or it was done deliberately.

"Two fluxes containing soup were served for the PM where security tags were not attached. The investigators are screening the PM's food menu to see what kinds of foods were served in the flight.At present, nothing can be told without proper inquiry," the MD said.

Officials said the PM started for Austria at 9:00 am on Monday with an entourage of over 100 persons. As per procedure, the members of SSF examined the food of the PM sent by the BFCC and kept those in a sealed room at about 3:00am.

Later, the foods were delivered to the flight loading a cart just before the plane took off. At that time, the SSF members observed that there were two fluxes in a polythene bag but there was no security tag. The fluxes contained soup. The SSF instantly returned the fluxes to the BFCC, officials said.

In the food menu of PM, there were also chicken soup and vegetable soup. The fluxes were containing the same soup. But why the fluxes did not go through the regular check of the SSF has poised a question to the security agencies.

Earlier, a VVIP flight of Bangladesh Bimam carrying Sheikh Hasina had made an emergency landing in Ashgabat, the capital of central Asian country Turkmenistan, on November 27 last year for technical glitch, while she was going to Hungary.




Great Danger Signal No 10

Evacuation begins as coastal areas face cyclonic storm 'Mora' early today: Shelter with dry food, medicine and control room set up to avert disaster: Low-lying areas in Cox's Bazar already inundated: Operation at Ctg port halted

The Bay of Bengal remains rough as the cyclonic storm \'Mora\' over North-Bay and adjoining east Central-Bay moved slightly northwards further and likely to hit the coastal belts of Chittagong and Cox\'s Bazar today.

Staff Reporter :

Under the influence of the cyclonic storm "Mora" atmost all low-lying areas have been inundated in Cox's Bazar as waters have already breached five kilometers embankment of Bangladesh Water Development Board.



The low-lying areas in Cox's Bazar have gone under water with an unusually high tide pounding the shore as the cyclone Mora is approaching and likely to hit the country's coastal districts today (Tuesday) morning, according to special weather bulletin issued by the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) on Monday evening.



People of the coastal districts are experiencing heavy down pour since Monday noon.



In its special bulletin, the weather office advised the maritime ports of Chittagong and Cox's Bazar to keep hoisted danger signal number 10 while Mongla and Payra ports signal number eight.



Meanwhile, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) issued cautionary signal No. 2 for all river ports across the country. It also suspended all river transports still further notice.



BIWTA Joint Director Joynal Abedin said that cautionary signal No. 2 means vessel with lengths over 65 feet can operate. "But adverse weather conditions have prompted us to suspend all river transports," he added.



According to the special weather bulletin, the low-lying areas of the coastal districts of Cox's Bazar, Chittagong, Noakhali, Laxmipur, Feni, Chandpur, Borguna, Bhola, Patuakhali, Barisal, Pirojpur, Jhalokathi, Bagherhat, Khulna, Satkhira and their offshore islands and chars are likely to be inundated by storm surge of 4-5 feet height above normal astronomical tide. The cyclonic storm 'Mora' over the North Bay and adjoining East Central Bay moved slightly northwards further over the same area, intensified into a severe cyclonic storm and was centred at 6:00pm on Monday about 385 kms south of Chittagong port, 305 kms south of Cox's Bazar port, 450 kms south-southeast of Mongla Port and 370 kms south-southeast of Payra Port.



It is likely to intensify further, move in a northerly direction and may cross Chittagong - Cox's Bazar coast by this morning, said the special weather bulletin.



Under the peripheral influence of severe cyclonic storm 'Mora' gusty/squally wind with rain/thunder showers is likely to continue over North Bay and the coastal districts and maritime ports of Bangladesh.



Maximum sustained wind speed within 62 kms of the cyclone centre is about 89 kph rising to 117 kph in gusts/squalls. Sea will remain high near the system.



Coastal districts of chittagong, cox's bazar, noakhali, laxmipur, feni, chandpur and their offshore islands and chars will come under danger signal number ten.



Coastal districts of bhola, borguna, patuakhali, barisal, pirozpur, jhalokathi, bagherhat, khulna, satkhira and their offshore islands and chars will come under danger signal number eight.



Under the influence of the severe cyclonic storm 'mora' the low-lying areas of the coastal districts of Cox's Bazar, Chittagong, Noakhali, Laxmipur, Feni, Chandpur, Borguna, Bhola, Patuakhali, Barisal, Pirozpur, Jhalokathi, Bagherhat, Khulna, Satkhira and their offshore islands and chars are likely to be inundated by storm surge of 4-5 feet height above normal astronomical tide.



All fishing boats and trawlers over North Bay and deep sea have been advised to remain in shelter till further notice.



Meanwhile, the government has undertaken all out preparatory measures to provide support to cyclone affected people at coastal areas.



"We have already allocated Tk 5 lakh and 100 metric tonnes of rice for each coastal district, where probable cyclone might hit," Additional Secretary of Disaster Management and Relief Ministry M Golam Mostafa said yesterday after emerging from a meeting in the conference room.



He said the deputy commissioners and upazila nirbahi officers concerned would have to prepare shelter centers, drinking water, safe places for domestic animals, medical teams, due to the probable cyclone hit the coastal areas.



Besides, Cyclone Preparedness Programme (CPP) volunteers and Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) units will remain ready in the areas, Mostafa said.



He added that apart from coastal zone, deputy commissioners at Rangamati, Bardarban and Khagrachhari would take cautionary measures amid landsides and heavy rain.



Meanwhile, Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) has already stopped loading and unloading of goods from the vessels anchored both port jetties and its outer anchorage from 10:00am yesterday in the backdrop of the cyclonic storm.



The vessels, anchored at the jetties are being taken to the safer places, especially in outer anchorage, with a view to protecting the jetties from any impending destruction likely to be caused by the cyclone, CPA Secretary Omar Farook said.



Meanwhile, Chittagong district administration in an emergency meeting has taken up brisk preparations comprising all public utility departments and concerned agencies to cope with any eventuality of the cyclonic storm Mora.



The meeting, chaired by Deputy commissioner Mohammad Zillur Rahman, decided to standby medical teams, with adequate relief materials including drinking water and dry foods in all shelter centres during pre and post cyclone situation .



Cyclone shelter centres have been opened in all coastal upazilas of the district.



Leaves of all officials, employees, doctors and nurses have been cancelled and kept standby to face any eventuality of the Mora, said Zillur, also chairman of the district's disaster management committee.



Cox's Bazar Deputy Commissioner Md Ali Hossain held a meeting with the local disaster management committee asking educational institutions to shut temporarily.



Some 538 shelters were ready to accommodate more than 500,000 people and provide dry food, he said. A total of 88 medical units, 6,010 volunteers and 15,000 volunteers of the Red Crescent were on the alert.



A control room led by Executive Magistrate Saiful Islam would monitor the activities.



The Patuakhali administration held an emergency meeting earlier in the day when the district witnessed medium rainfall and drizzling intermittently.



DC Masumur Rahman said control rooms were set up and awareness campaigns were ongoing in different areas.



There were 351 cyclone shelters with storage of dry food and medicines. People in the offshore islands and lowlands have been asked to move there, he said.



Lakshmipur DC Homayra Begum issued an order to shift people to shelters, store food for consumption during and after disaster, and form a medical team and six control rooms.



Similar arrangements were in place in Chandpur for char dwellers, said DC Md Abdus Sobur Mondol.



Around 31,000 people of the coastal upazilas including Sandwip, Banskhali, Anowara, Sitakunda and Mirsari were expected to be evacuated before sunset. One hundred medical teams with 5,000 health workers, adequate number of volunteers of the Red Crescent society have been kept ready and district administration is monitoring round the clock in this regard.



CPA, district administration, Chittagong civil surgeon, Chittagong City Corporation and Red Crescent society have separately opened up control rooms to monitor the pre and post cyclonic storm Mora.



All the vehicles of Chittagong City Corporation are prepared to respond to any emergency call, CCC sources said.



Local administrations in coastal areas are evacuating people from the path of Cyclone Mora, which is expected to make landfall early today.



Mayors, deputy commissioners, NGOs, local wings of the ruling Awami League and journalists held meetings in the areas on Monday to prepare for the evacuation.



They discussed ways and means to mitigate the possible loss of lives and property.
Two more public varsities on cards

M M Jasim :

The government plans setting up of two more public universities for expansion of higher education in the country, Education Ministry officials said.

The two universities are Lakshmipur University of Science and Technology and Aviation University. The first one will be set up in Lakshmipur, while the location of other university is yet to be decided by the ministry.

The Aviation University will be a specialised one, according to the University Grants Commission (UGC).

The UGC officials said many students now study aviation related subjects at different universities. Degrees on aviation have high demand at home and abroad, so the government has taken the decision to set up the university to build skilled manpower who can lead the country's aviation sector.

The ministry on April 17 and April 22 asked the UGC to prepare two draft laws and submit those as early as possible.

Following the direction of the ministry the UGC formed a six-member committee headed by its Member Dr Shahnaj Ali. The UGC is working on drafting two laws for the public universities. The UGC will send the draft laws to the ministry in a month.

The ministry will submit those to the Cabinet meeting for approval. After getting nod from the Cabinet the draft laws will be sent to the Law Ministry and finally a bill will be placed to the Parliament for enacting the laws.

On completion of the entire process of making laws, the ministry will decide on the location of Aviation University.

However, the ministry hinted that the Aviation University would be set up on the outskirts of the capital city Dhaka.

Abu Hasan Chowdhury, Additional Secretary (Secondary and Higher Education Division) of the Education Ministry, said the government has a plan to set up at least a public university in each district.

With the approval of two public universities in January this year, the number of public universities now rises to 40. The names of the universities that got the government's nod on January 30 are Bangamata Fazilatunnesa Mujib Science and Technology University in Jamalpur and Sheikh Hasina University in Netrakona.


Attain Taqwa

Abdul Muqit Chowdhury :

What more a Muslim can seek from Allah, while this month with immense mercy has offered us His blessings, forgiveness and salvation ? Nothing more is necessary for a human being for his/her life in this world and the world

hereafter. So, these golden days should be utilised to the utmost. The verse of the Holy Quran on 'self-restraint' of fasting runs ; "O ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you, even as it was prescribed for those before you, that ye may ward off (evil);" (Sura Baqarah 2:183, The Meanings of the Glorious Qur'an by Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall) Allama Yusuf Ali in 'The Holy Qur'an Translation and Commentary' comments on 'as it was prescribed': "This does not mean that the Muslim fast is like the other fasts previously observed, in the number of days, in the time and manner of the fast, or in other incidents; it only means that the principle of self-denial by fasting is not a new one." Here, the great legacy of earlier believers in faith is referred. This sanctified duty was enjoined on the believing nations before. The name of fasting is 'Hatva' in the Tawrat, 'Qurbat' in the Zaboor and 'Tar' in the Inzil. 'Hatva' means 'destroying of sins', 'Qurbat' means 'attaining nearness' and 'Tar' means 'free from moral offence'.

The goal of fasting is to attain Taqwa - "that ye may ward (off) evil" as revealed in the verse 183, Sura Baqarah. Fasting is a month-long continuous process of training to bring revolutionary change in the lives of the Muslims. Allah fearing and self-restraint is Taqwa. One who is virtuous of Taqwa is a muttaqi. A muttaqi maintains high moral standard to avoid all evils and thus contributes to the welfare and peaceful co-existence in the society. So, merit and virtue of fasting is great from both the point of view - material and spiritual. Allah Rabbul 'Aalameen is pleased with those muttaqis who ensure human brotherhood and peaceful society.

We can achieve Rahmat, Maghfirat and Nazat by performing fasting and refraining from 'evil'. We are not having meal, not taking water or responding to sexual urge in the fasting time. These are physical practices. But, the 'restraint' in 'self' is inward-moral. The ultimate goal of this physical performance is to manifest a positive humanitic change in ones 'self'. The observance of fasting is the manifestation of the devotees of obedience to the Will of Allah. The self-control and overcoming carnal pleasure leads Muslims to build character, rectifies 'self' and prepare them for humanitarian activities.

Imam Gazzali(R) said, "Effectively following the inner self-restraint along with the outward physical restraint, is the best Siyam."

So, self-restraint is the core message and significance of fasting. Without it outward fasting bears no value. Character should reflect self-earned purification and it should prepare itself for the welfare of self as well as of the society.


Tragedies in Libyan coast

THE tragedy in Libyan coast in the Mediterranean Sea continues non-stop. Over 10,000 migrants were rescued alone during the past four days while 54 were dead but the cruelty of war-lords in some Muddle East countries such as Syria, Iraq, Yemen and abject poverty in Sub-Saharan countries sees no end to end the stream of displaced people from their home to reach the Italian coast for safety. Europe is the most secured place but most migrants are drowning in the sea while trying to reach Italy. The nightmare continues over the past several years and unpopular Arab leaders and their Western backers who are using all brutalities to achieve their own political objectives are not letting the situation to change. The specter of war is causing the biggest refugee migration since the Second World War.

The death and rescue operation from the sea over the past several days show the desperate search of the ill-fated migrants to find shelter. Reports said Tunisian army rescued 126 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa hoping to reach Italian shores. They were aboard a flimsy inflatable boat off the Tunisian coastal near the Libyan border. In another incidents more than 1,200 migrants were rescued by Libyan ships on Friday and taken to the shore for safety while the Italian Coastguard and commercial boats rescued 2,200 others and took them to Italy. Italian coastguard also recovered at least 10 bodies on that drive. In the same week ending Sunday, another 6,400 migrants were picked up between Tuesday and Thursday with at least 44 died. Some of these people were killed when a powerful wave struck their vessel. Officials expressed fears that many more people were still missing at sea.

More than 50,000 migrants have reached the Italian coast since the start of the year -- not counting those rescued in recent days, while more than 1,400 have drowned or are missing, according to UN figures. More than 181,000 migrants entered Italy last year and over 90 percent arrived via Libya. The North African country has long been a stepping stone for migrants seeking to reach Europe for safety.

It is clear that migrant crisis will exit, as long there are places where war continues non-stop or where there is tremendous economic plight in a situation where war-lords and wealthy oligarchs are controlling nations' resources. Migrants are now both war refugees as well as economic refugees because much of their distinction has disappeared as people have become homeless from long-term war in their countries.

We must say it is the Western nations, which have their hands behind the plight of the refugees leaving their countries and trying to take shelter in the West. It is now equally incumbent upon them to stop war and violence in war ravage Middle East countries to create situation for migrants to return home. Nobody is safe so long such war and violence will continue in the Middle East and African countries.


Too profligate and too wasteful a govt is too much of a burden

BANGLADESH Economic Association (BEA) has suggested, more reasonably that the government should more rely on income tax instead of entirely focusing on Value Added Tax (VAT) which the Finance Minister has vowed to fix at 15 percent from July 1 under the new VAT Law. The government has been realizing 7 percent VAT with variable rates and in some cases under certain package system for the benefits of small business. But the Finance Minister made it almost clear this time that the rates under the new VAT Law will be flat to all -- no matter it may prove discriminatory to treat big and small business on the same footing. They will have to pay similar rates ignoring that a small business has lower capacity than a bigger business to pay.

The National Board of Revenue (NBR) is opposed to variable VAT rates on the ground that multi-layer VAT system is problematic to realize. It appears that the government is determined to increase its revenue collection target for over Tk 400,267 crore budget for 2017-18. It is a very big budget as the government ever becoming bigger every year with many mega projects in the list of many luxury and wasteful expenses for helping the corruption for politics. Then profligate life style of the government and wasteful expenses are too open not to look too shameless.

But the biggest part of the revenue budget is going to pay higher salaries and allowances to maintain a rich government. To the people in power, there is every opportunity for big corruption. The people are subjected to pay heavy taxes, VAT. There is no public accountability of the government so the people pay tax, VAT for no service. Services have to be obtained in most cases by bribing.

Extortions and corruptions are at every level of the government and big project means bigger corruption and more misuse of taxpayers fund. Frankly speaking, our people can't afford to maintain such a luxurious profligate government and its rich life style. So we must say the quality of public expenditure must be ensured before the government is going to take every extra revenue from tax-payers.


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Bobby Jindal is no longer governor, but the policies imposed during his eight years in office continue to dominate Louisiana's budget debates.

Photo by Robin May

Bobby Jindal has left the building, but his fiscal priorities continue to shape the budget debate in the Capitol.

Two weeks of hearings on HB1 by the Senate Finance Committee provided a level of detail in the budget debate that was not available earlier in the session due to the way the House Appropriations Committee handled the state budget bill. The hearings revealed that Jindal's budget priorities are now Republican orthodoxy (at least in the House). The hearings also revealed the extent to which Gov. John Bel Edwards has been unable to challenge those assumptions 17 months and five legislative sessions into his term.

There is some irony here as the leading players in the 2017 budget fight  Edwards, House GOP Caucus leader Rep. Lance Harris and House Appropriations Committee chair Rep. Cameron Henry  were once allies in the fight against Jindal's budget practices, particularly the use of one-time money to finance state operations. Edwards led the House Democratic Caucus. Harris was a leader of the Fiscal Hawks, along with Henry whom Jindal had removed from the House Appropriations Committee when he opposed the then-governor's plan to privatize the Office of Group Benefits.

What the budget fights of the Edwards term have revealed is that Harris, Henry and the majority of House Republicans objected to Jindal's methods but shared his priorities. Edwards, on the other hand, objected to Jindal's methods and priorities but has been unable to produce a budget strategy that would enable the state to shift its priorities. In order to do that, Edwards would need revenue, and House Republicans share Jindal's aversion to tax increases this session (as well as the former governor's love of tax exemptions).

The House Appropriations Committee hid the impact of their approach to the budget by focusing on the formula they used to create it  97.5 percent of the Revenue Estimating Committee's revenue forecast for the fiscal year starting July 1  rather than the impact of what committee chair Rep. Cameron Henry and GOP Caucus leader Lance Harris called "a standstill budget."

House GOP leader Lance Harris Photo by Sarah Gamard

Henry and Harris probably had an idea of the kind of cuts that HB1 would force on programs, but they didn't know the details because, as two weeks of testimony before Sen. Eric Lafleur's Senate Finance Committee revealed, House Appropriations did not ask department heads about them.

A parade of department heads from Attorney General Jeff Landry to Louisiana Department of Health Secretary Rebekah Gee to Department of Children and Family Services Secretary Marketa Garner Walters testified that they were not given the opportunity to provide House Appropriations input on the cuts before HB1 was approved by the committee on May 1, then debated on the floor of the House three days later.

The Republican majority approach to HB1 in the House was Jindal-like in its focus on the numbers and not the impact of those numbers on services and people.

The carnage would be staggering.

LDH Secretary Gee told Senate Finance that because of the areas of the department's budget that were kept off limits from cuts in HB1  funding for waivers for families of children with disabilities and the state's public-private partnerships operating the former LSU hospitals  the $234 million cut imposed on LDH would translate into a $920 million loss of revenue and health care services. The multiplier is the fact that most of LDH's funding comes through the federal government ($12 billion out of the department's $14 billion budget is federally funded) and that those dollars are drawn down using state dollars.

Between the services the federal government mandates the state to provide and the areas of state funding the House protected from cuts, Gee told the committee that the only way she could achieve the savings directed by the House would be to eliminate Medicaid behavioral health services. She also testified that the state's graduate medical education programs that trains doctors and other health professionals would be threatened by other cuts she would be required to make.

Other LDH-run programs that would be cut would include pediatric day care programs for children with disabilities, school-based health programs and the state's nursing home partnership program.

DCFS's Walters told Senate Finance that her department could not even afford the cuts that Edwards' own budget had imposed much less the draconian cuts imposed on her department by HB1.

HB1 focused on eliminating 128 vacant positions at DCFS. Walters told the committee that she doesn't have positions that are vacant year round but that her department is constantly grappling with high turnover because of the large case loads and small salaries paid to case workers.

"We pay beginning case workers just over $27,000 a year to go into people's homes where they are not welcome  because they are usually there to possibly remove a child from that home  and they have the heaviest case loads in the country," Walters told the committee. "And, if they lose a child, the burden is just too great."

She said the bulk of her department's auto fleet is worn out  "every vehicle we have was in the shop for repairs of some sort this year," she testified  and that she feared that at some point a tragedy related to the aging fleet would occur.

"And of course you'll say, 'Why didn't someone tell us,'" Walters said. "Today, I'm telling you."

Given the elimination of positions ordered in HB1, Walters told the committee that she would be forced to terminate the state's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) formerly known as the food stamp program.

"We shouldn't even be having this conversation," Walters told the committee. "But if I am forced to choose between protecting children from harm or ensuring that they are properly fed, I'm going to have to choose protecting them."

Walters warned that closing SNAP would have dire consequences in Louisiana where 51 parishes were included in three disaster declarations in 2016. "We provided food assistance to 423,491 households in three disaster events in 2016," Walters testified. "If we are forced to close SNAP we will not be able to provide that assistance when the next disaster hits."

Walters explained to the committee that DSNAP (Disaster Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program) can only be run in states that have SNAP programs. If DCFS closes SNAP, state residents will not be able to get DSNAP benefits when the next disaster strikes. "States must have the SNAP program in place in order to be eligible to receive DSNAP relief," Walters said.

Department of Corrections Secretary Jimmy Leblanc said his department fights high turnover due to low pay, particularly for prison guards. "We start our security people at $11 per hour," Leblanc testified. Because of high turnover, which he attributes to low pay and high stress, Leblanc testified that DoC overtime pay runs high. He pointed out that the state is spending more on overtime.

"We spent $11 million on overtime this year while it would have cost us $7.5 million to fill the vacancies we have," Leblanc told the committee.

Leblanc told senators that the $9 million cut imposed on his department in HB1 would force him to use his authority to furlough prisoners  that is, give them early release.

"We would look to release 4,691 prisoners over the next 12 months," Leblanc said, "starting with 1,340 initially then about 200 per month thereafter."

Leblanc said these would be non-violent offenders within six months of completing their sentences. He said the department would not have the resources to provide the kind of education, training and treatment that lead to successful re-entry by inmates into society. Leblanc is a proponent of the Justice Reinvestment Task Force reforms, which focus on providing inmates the tools they need to make successful returns to life outside of jails.

Leblanc, like Gee and Walters, said he was not given the opportunity to testify before House Appropriations on the impact of the cuts ordered in HB1.

Sen. Eric Lafleur Photo by Robin May

On Saturday, Sen. Lafleur told The Independent that his committee will not complete its work on HB1 until Wednesday of this week. That work will include a reworking of the bill that will likely include basing its projections on a higher percentage of the REC revenue forecast.

They're going to need the money because even as Senate Finance was learning about the impact of HB1, new tax exemption bills were advancing through the House.

HB264 by Rep. Stuart Bishop would exclude certain types of construction contracts from new sales and use taxes if the projects were started within 90 days of the new levy taking effect. According to the fiscal note accompanying the bill, the Department of Revenue says state and local governments could lose tens of millions of dollars under the bill, which has passed the House and now awaits consideration by the Senate Committee on Revenue and Fiscal Affairs.

HB364 by Rep. Barry Ivey of Baton Rouge would lengthen the state's horizontal drilling severance tax exemption to five years and cost the state an estimated $500 million over the next five years. The bill won approval from the House Ways & Means Committee and is scheduled for House debate on Tuesday.

Tax exemptions for business and industry became the hallmark of the Jindal years and have fundamentally altered the state's revenue base.

The Department of Revenue's annual Tax Exemption Budget publications describe tax exemptions this way:

Tax exemptions are tax dollars that are not collected and result in a loss of state tax revenues available for appropriation. In this sense, the fiscal effect of tax exemptions is the same as a direct fund expenditure.

In Gov. Kathleen Blanco's final year in office, according to the 2007-2008 Tax Exemption Budget, the state exempted 57.4 percent of corporate income taxes owed the state. The state collected $721 million in corporate income taxes while it exempted $972 million (page 6 of the document).

The 2015-2016 Tax Exemption Budget (the one covering Jindal's last year in office) shows that the state exempted 86 percent of corporate income taxes. That fiscal year, the state collected $373 million in corporate income taxes while exempting $2.29 billion in those taxes (page 5 of the document).

The 2016-2017 Tax Exemption Budget reports that the state exempted 90.6 percent of corporate income taxes in the current fiscal year. The state collected $145 million in corporate income taxes while it exempted $1.4 billion in taxes (page 9 of the document).

The absolute decline in corporate income tax revenue as well as the sharp increase in the percentage of revenue exempted helped produce the fiscal crisis that Jindal presided over during his tenure and which continues in the first half of the Edwards term.

Preventing any increase in corporate income taxes or even addressing the exemptions has now become established Republican orthodoxy in Louisiana backed by the power of the state's largest business lobby, the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry. That LABI backs this tenet of Jindalism should not come as a real surprise as the organization is now led by former Jindal administration official Steve Waguespack.

LSU President King Alexander, when testifying before Senate Finance, told the senators that state support for higher education over the past 10 years has fallen from 80 percent of total funding to 20 percent of total funding. The difference has been made up by tuition and fee increases borne by students and their families, as well as some TOPS funding.

Where did the state support dollars go? The case can be made that it was eaten up by corporate income tax exemptions and by corporate incentive programs  tax breaks and incentives that LABI and its allies are determined to keep, regardless of the impact on state programs.

It became too much to bear for Rep. Kenny Havard, a Republican from Jackson, who authored HB648 as a means to get Louisiana businesses to pay a larger share of the cost of financing state government. Havard's Louisiana Business Tax would have eliminated the corporate franchise and income taxes and replace those with a hybrid tax that was projected to raise an additional $230 million in business taxes. It was rejected by the House Ways & Means Committee on May 9 with the committee room filled with various business lobbyists.

After the defeat of his bill, Havard exploded, according to The Advocate.

"If we don't have the courage to make change now," Havard said, "for God's sake because we might upset some of the people sitting behind us? Let's just keep doing what we've been doing for the past 20 years. Isn't that the definition of insanity? Keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results? We're not going to get different results."

Susan Nelson is a lobbyist for the Louisiana Partnership for Children and Families, a Baton Rouge-based non-profit. Nelson testified before the Senate Finance Committee on Saturday, urging senators to restore funding that would eliminate cuts to programs in LDH and DCFS.

In an interview after her testimony, Nelson told The Independent that the state is gutting effective programs while gambling on business propositions that have not paid off for the state in terms of jobs and revenue.

"I think the core of this issue is that we spend this money on incentives and tax breaks in the hope that they will create jobs," Nelson said outside the committee room. "But, we've been giving these tax cuts for more than 10 years now, and we still have the same rate of unemployment. We've lured some companies here but not to the extent that we've been giving out these tax breaks."

"Everyone says, 'Oh, we need better education, we need all those things' yet we spend the money on the other side of the equation," Nelson added. "We know that when we invest in children and their health and wellbeing it's going to give lifelong payouts to us. We know that when we help some kids bridge the gap from foster care to some form of higher education that it's going to keep them out of the judicial system, and yet we cut that program."

Nelson compared the state's love of tax breaks to a family with a gambling habit.

"We're gambling over here when we know that we could spend the money in ways that would save us money later," Nelson declared. "If any parents did that with their family  where they took the rent money and went to the casino because they might be able to make enough money to do more than just pay the rent  we'd say, 'No, just pay the rent!' We're always taking the gamble."

Nelson, like Havard, lamented the lack of political courage in the Capitol that is preventing legislators from taking the steps to right the state's fiscal ship.

Speaker Taylor Barras, a Republican from New Iberia, last week conceded that a special session would be needed at some point between the current session and the 2018 regular session to address the state's finances. Edwards has let it be known that he's working on a call for one now, although it is not clear when it would be held.

The problem Edwards faces is that in budget terms he has continued to operate within the framework Jindal created and which he fought against while a member of the House. His tax proposals have been either regressive (sales taxes) or incomplete (the commercial activity tax). Henry, Edwards' former House ally and now his foe, told The Independent that the governor "didn't submit a plan so much as make a suggestion on taxes. I mean, the revenue from the CAT tax went from $1 billion to $280 million before it even got to us."

A rushed special session won't likely improve Edwards' chances of success on tax reform, although even Barras says it is likely that an extension of sales taxes passed in 2016 can win House approval. Even then, what that will do is allow the state to continue to limp along, robbing Peter one year to pay Paul the next.

Edwards needs to reframe the fiscal conversation if he's going to have any chance of getting tax reform and, most likely, saving his governorship. That conversation can't be limited to the halls of the Capitol. It's going to take an investment of time and energy to explain the issues and the proposed solution. He hasn't done that yet as the state has careened from natural disaster to fiscal crisis in his 17 months in office.
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iStock/Thinkstock(JACKSON, Miss.) -- Investigators have yet to determine what triggered a 35-year-old man to allegedly kill a sheriff's deputy and seven other people in a shooting rampage in rural Mississippi over Memorial Day weekend.



The suspect, Willie Corey Godbolt, was apprehended Sunday after the shootings, which took place overnight Saturday. The preliminary investigation indicates that Godbolt was either related to or an acquaintance of the victims, police said.



Godbolt remains hospitalized at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson, where he's receiving treatment for a gunshot wound, Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain told ABC News.



Godbolt reportedly told The Clarion-Ledger at the scene of his arrest that he had attempted to commit "suicide by cop."



"I ain't fit to live, not after what I done," Godbolt told the paper while handcuffed.



Godbolt faces preliminary charges, including one count of capital murder and seven counts of first-degree murder, but those charges could evolve in the coming days. He has yet to be formally charged, as he remains in the hospital. Strain told ABC News that he didn't anticipate that Godbolt would leave the hospital Monday.



It's unclear whether Godbolt has obtained a lawyer.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Valedictorian Zaria Dash delivered her address at Bethune-Bowman High Schools commencement on Saturday. Following is the text of her speech:

To Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five Board of Trustees; Dr. Jesse Washington, our superintendent; Mrs. Lakekia Lewis, our principal; faculty and staff; family, friends, and class of 2017. Today is a marvelous day for us because we are finally graduating. Graduating really didnt click in my head until Senior Night.

Being able to graduate is a blessing. Its a blessing because I was born a preemie. I stayed in the hospital for two months because I had many complications. When I finally came home, I had a life-support device attached to me. When I was 6 years old, my mom died, so I was without a mother and without a live-in father.

Thank God, I still had my grandparents, aunts, uncles and older cousins to take the spots of my parents. All of them really molded me into the young lady I am today. If it werent for them, who knows where I would be today. I probably could have been in jail, homeless or even dead. So, for the rest of my life I will always make them proud because all of them helped influenced me.

To graduate you have to go through at least 12 years of trials and tribulations. Graduating is a process where you have successfully completed a course of study. As graduates, we should look forward to a new chapter in our lives. A new chapter in our lives brings new challenges, new people, new environments and a new mindset filled with determination. We should also look at how we will survive in the real world. The real world will try to distract us from our goal, but we are smarter than that and will fight the fight. Being a student at Bethune-Bowman High has really shaped and prepared my classmates and me for the future. Yes, people say that were the little ole school in the country, but dont let this little school fool you.

The teachers may have annoyed us by assigning work that may have given us nightmares, but they did that because they wanted us to excel in everything that we did. The administrators are always on our backs because they know that college is not going to put up with our negative behavior and attitudes. Bethune-Bowman is where we grew to become strong, independent and smart young adults.

Now, here are some words of inspiration to everyone in the audience and the underclassmen. As in the words of Taraji P. Henson, Humans have a light side and a dark side, and its up to us to choose which way were going to live our lives. Even if you start out on the dark side, it doesnt mean you have to continue your journey that way. You always have time to turn it around. Always be interested in challenging yourself and pushing and seeing how far you can go.

To the class of 2017, face your insecurities, dont get distracted, and dont be afraid to create your own opportunities. I want to leave you with this final poem by Marianne Williamson, Our Deepest Fear."

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness

That most frightens us.

We ask ourselves

Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small

Does not serve the world.

There's nothing enlightened about shrinking

So that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine,

As children do.

We were born to make manifest

The glory of God that is within us.

It's not just in some of us;

It's in everyone.

And as we let our own light shine,

We unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we're liberated from our own fear,

Our presence automatically liberates others."

To the class of 2017, I say to never give up and believe in yourself. Our new chapter begins today, but remember what we have been taught. If you haven't already begun making plans for the future, please do so now. Planning ahead makes it easier for reaching goals.

Yes, there will be obstacles but we will overcome them. Its our time to change the future and the next generation. Congratulations and good luck Class of 2017!
Retired U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Dr. Corinthea Stack issued a call Sunday to area veterans to continue serving others in their community no matter the cost or struggle.

"We grew into the men and women that were fighting people so that the values and vision of this country could remain intact and that no enemy, either foreign or domestic, would ever cause those particularities to come to a halt," Stack told those gathered for the annual Orangeburg County Memorial Day observance.

Veterans service did not stop after soldiers put up their weapons, Stack said.

"It was only the new beginning of what we were called to do," Stack said. "Our service began when we got back to our communities. We became that model or we became that authority that others would look at and take a view that they too might become who they are supposed to be."

Stack challenged veterans to continue showing love and that peace despite many in the country not appreciating veterans or veterans not always receiving adequate health care services.

"You are still overcoming obstacles and you are still a trendsetter," Stack said. "They admire you from a distance many times and not up close. You have overcome the excuses and you have overcome the obstacles of life. You have become somebody that others might become somebody."

Orangeburg Mayor Michael Butler said the Memorial Day is a day to pause and say thank you

"We will always remember your sacrifice," Butler said. "Some made it back home but some did not. We will always remember those who did not make it back home as well.

May God continue to bless the families and keep you and may the city always remember our veterans."

Butler also read a Memorial Day proclamation signed by Gov. Henry McMaster.

U.S. Army veteran Ronald Deloach, 68, came to Sundays service to remember the people who gave their lives for their country. He served in 1969-1971 as a medic and had additional training to become a psychiatric technician.

"My job was to go out to the airports and to unload the aircrafts with wounded," Deloach said. "My job was to help battle-fatigued young men. We would load them on big ambulances and then we went down to the big hospital."

After he got out of the Army, Deloach got his degree in nursing and worked in geriatrics and psychiatric institutions for a time.

"I carried a lot of wounded off of aircraft and sometimes those guys were still in country and didn't make it back," Deloach said. "I had friends of mine die overseas in Vietnam. I feel personally they should be honored today. They sacrificed their lives for their country. That is the reason we have freedom today."

Orangeburg resident Delores Kemmerlin's father Roy was a World War II veteran who was shot in Germany. He later came home and served in the Orangeburg police department for more than 25 years as a lieutenant.

"From my heart and being in Orangeburg for all my life, I felt it important to represent him and Orangeburg," Kemmerlin said. She worries that young people have lost a lot of what it means to come forward for our veterans.

In addition to Stack, the program included prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, the recognition of the prisoners of war/missing in action, recognition of Gold Star Mothers and Blue Star Families and veterans organizations.

Libby Dunn Dempsey performed the National Anthem and musical selections, such as "God Bless America, My Country, 'Tis of Thee and How Great Thou Art."

Widows and widowers of fallen soldiers in attendance were each given roses. A wreath was laid and Taps was played.

The Rev. Charles Bennett, a 90-year-old World War II veteran, was recognized for his outstanding service to Orangeburg County veteran organizations and to the country by the Orangeburg Veterans Council and the Orangeburg County Veterans Affairs Office.

The event's sponsors included the Orangeburg County Veterans Council, Orangeburg County Veterans Affairs, American Legion Post No. 4, Greater Orangeburg Leathernecks Marine Corps League Detachment 1259, Military Order of the Purple Heart No. 932, Veterans of Foreign Wars Posts 2779 and 8166 and Quilts of Valor.

The service was also made possible by the Orangeburg Department of Parks and Recreation, the City of Orangeburg, Hospice Care of South Carolina and Agape Hospice.
A veteran Regional Medical Center administrator is retiring.

Brenda Williams, vice president of strategy and compliance at the hospital, will retire Aug. 1 after 38 years of service.

"She has been phenomenal for the years she has worked at the RMC," hospital board Chairman Melvin Seabrooks said. "Her retirement comes to be a shocker after so many years. I wish her well."

Seabrooks said Williams was often the driving force behind any project at RMC.

"She has worked on many, many projects and seen so many different things go through," he said. "I personally am going to miss her."

Williams' position likely will not be filled until the hospital hires a permanent CEO, said Seabrooks, referring to interim CEO Bert Whitaker for confirmation.

Whitaker could not be reached for immediate comment but hospital attorney Bob Horger did confirm Seabrooks' assessment.

"It is my understanding that the duties would be filled by someone internally until a new CEO is hired," Horger said.

At RMC, Williams manages engineering, marketing, grant writing, switchboard, volunteers, telecommunications, laboratory, Joint Commission review, planning, risk management, insurance, environment of care, environmental services, cardiology, cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation, the Healthy Living Center, Vein Clinic, Vascular Center, Breast Health Center, the Dialysis Access Institute and the Mabry Center for Cancer Care.

Over the years, Williams has seen many improvements at RMC, including expansion of the Mabry Center, construction of the hospital's Dialysis Access Institute and implementation of the healthy living center.

Her retirement comes as the hospital begins its search for a new chief executive officer. Former CEO Tom Dandridge was removed by a divided board at the end of January after 24 years at the hospital.

The national search for a new CEO could take between four and six months, although it may take longer, hospital officials say.

Williams is a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and a graduate of the Diversity Leadership Institute, which addresses disparities in educational achievement and health care access for underserved communities.

Williams is a founding member of the Orangeburg Family YMCA and the Orangeburg-Calhoun Free Medical Clinic.

She holds the position of board chairperson for the Orangeburg-Calhoun-Allendale-Bamberg Community Action Agency and is vice president of the Regional Economic and Educational Community Development Corporation. She is also a member of the Denmark Technical College Area Commission.

Among numerous recognitions, Williams was named the 2016 Rotarian of the Year by the Orangeburg Morning Rotary Club. She is also recipient of the 2017 Distinguished Alumna Award, which was presented to her during S.C. States 2017 Founders Day Program.

Williams received the Spencer C. Disher MD Award from the Palmetto Medical, Dental and Pharmaceutical Association in 2015.

The award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated exceptional concern for the health and well-being of the community, participated on committees and organizational structures related to the health of the community, and shown good will to all.

Williams is a member of the Association of Healthcare Accreditation Professionals, the Association of Healthcare Risk Management and the Orangeburg School District Five Foundation Board. She has also been involved with the Orangeburg County Chamber of Commerce board.

A native of Orangeburg, she received a masters degree in hospital administration from the Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, in 1976 and a bachelors degree in biology and chemistry from S.C. State in 1974.

She is also a life member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church.
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By Trend





The Turkish president marked the 564th anniversary of Istanbul's conquest by an Ottoman sultan on Sunday, Anadolu reported.

In a statement to mark the anniversary of the conquest by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said: Istanbul, which had been a capital for different states and cultures since its foundation, has become the center of peaceful coexistence and tolerance under the fair rule of Fatih Sultan Mehmed [also known as Mehmed the Conqueror].

The conquest of Istanbul, which is regarded as one of the most important milestones of world history in terms of its social, cultural and political consequences, is a victory full of lessons for us and for all humanity, Erdogan said.

In addition, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim issued a statement to mark the anniversary of Istanbul's conquest.

The conquest of Istanbul has set a new direction for the world history in terms of political, social and cultural consequences, Yildirim said.

Speaking at the 564th anniversary event of Istanbul's conquest by an Ottoman sultan on Sunday in Istanbul, Erdogan said Istanbul was the outline of Turkey.

"Istanbul is the outline of Turkey. All of Turkey's 80 provinces have human and physical connections with Istanbul. In this sense, to speak about Istanbul means to speak about Turkey. To serve Istanbul means to serve Turkey," the president said.

"Now it is a fact that while Ankara is the capital of Turkey, ?zmir is the capital of the Aegean, and cities like Antalya and Mugla are tourism brands, Istanbul is the showcase of our country. The more beautiful this showcase is, the more glamorous it becomes, the more profitable Turkey becomes," he added.

"When I speak about Istanbul I am actually talking about Turkey. If people come for trade or visit, Istanbul is the first contact for those who come to our country," he said.

"I hope that in the coming period we will endeavor to take important steps towards important projects. We will do all of this together with you," he added.

"We will quickly complete the efforts that will prevent terrorist organizations, especially FETO, Daesh and PKK, from extending the damages they did to this city," he said.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim also spoke at the event.

"All elements of the Ottoman Empire that lived in friendship in this territory live in the same peacefulness today in the Republic of Turkey. As it was seen in history, those who want to ruin this peaceful climate will face disappointment," he said.

On May 29, 1453, Sultan Mehmed II conquered Istanbul, then called Constantinople, from where the Byzantines had ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for more than 1,000 years.

The conquest transformed the city, once the heart of the Byzantine realm, into the capital of the new Ottoman Empire.
Abu Dhabi government has unveiled major plans to develop a 30-km waterfront community on the 3,000-hectare Hudayriat Island located southwest of Abu Dhabi island.



Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (UPC) held a workshop with stakeholders on Monday to discuss approaches that will help transform Hudayriat Island into vibrant and sustainable community.



In line with the Abu Dhabi Plan, Hudayriat Island masterplan comprises a diverse range of facilities including those for recreational activities, a public shoreline, green mobility network and rich natural environment.



The UPC said under this ambitious project, several plots will be allocated for the UAE nationals, who will benefit from the Emirati Housing Programme.



An accessible waterfront spanning an impressive 30 km will be at the heart of the mixed-use development. It will take up to 10 minutes to walk from the waterfront to any point on the island, said the statement from UPC.



Abdulla Al Sahi, planning and infrastructure executive director of the UPC, said: "We will take an integrated approach to the planning and design of the island, while balancing social, cultural, environmental and economic factors within a robust stakeholder engagement process."



"By utilising and enhancing the environmental features in this unique area of Abu Dhabi, this development will raise the standard of living, restore Emirati culture, promote healthy lifestyles and create a variety of coastal activities and attractions," noted Al Sahi.



"We will ensure the masterplan complies with the UPCs full suite of planning frameworks and manuals so that every step is taken to lay the groundwork for safe and sustainable communities in the future," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Cerner Middle East & Africa, a provider of intelligent solutions for the health care industry, today announced the launch of the Cerner Masouliya (meaning responsibility in Arabic) programme in the Middle East.

The programme is aimed at developing local talent in the region and support nationalization programmes.

It is designed to provide nationals with knowledge in health care and information technology, as well as to develop skills to help their respective health care organisations transform the medical system in their countries, said a statement.

Masouliya is aligned with the initiatives of multiple governments in the Middle East to create employment opportunities for nationals and to prepare them to deal with operational and strategic decisions across the private and public sectors, it said.

Were proud to help develop the talents of local individuals who want to improve health care in their countries and become future leaders, said Michael Pomerance, vice president and general manager of Cerner Middle East & Africa. Cerner Middle East will provide training and experience for various projects, depending on the participants area of expertise and future career aspirations in the public or private sectors.

Masouliya began on April 2 with three trainees from Childrens Cancer Hospital Egypt.

The Masouliya programme provides trainees an opportunity to gain valuable informatics knowledge that is in high demand and important for their organisations ability to manage and support their health care IT system, said Karim Abd Elhay, strategic business executive, Cerner Middle East.

Our relationship with Cerner has been much more than a supplier-client relationship. The Masouliya programme reflects the spirit of collaboration between Childrens Cancer Hospital and Cerner, said Dr Sherif Abouelnaga, CEO, Childrens Cancer Hospital Egypt 57357 Group.  TradeArabia News Service


Steelcase, a leading office furniture solutions provider, was awarded the Best Commercial Product Design for its Brody WorkLounge at the recent Index Architecture and Design Awards (IADA) 2017.



Held as part of the Index Design Series  a leading and most comprehensive commercial interior design event  IADA celebrates the regions leading architects, designers, projects and products.



The high performance and supportive WorkLounge features patented LiveLumbar technology, bringing thoughtful ergonomic design to the lounge posture, said a statement from the company.



Providing privacy screens and an enhanced sense of psychological security for workers, Brody WorkLounge offers the ideal microenvironment for people who need a place to get away without going away, it said.



Transforming underutilised, in-between spaces into coveted destinations, its adjustable Personal WorkSurface also holds technology at eye level, reducing neck and shoulder strain while supporting todays varied working styles and ample device usage, it added.



John Small, director of design at Steelcase, said: We are delighted to receive this accolade, celebrating exceptional creativity, innovation and passion in design.



Maintaining focus is a costly problem in todays fast paced and connected world but the Brody WorkLounge creates a comfortable microenvironment by thoughtfully integrating power, ergonomic comfort, personal storage and lightingso employees can focus their attention and get work done, he said.



Adaptive bolstering also enables the WorkLounges cushion to adapt to the unique size of each user, while a footrest with nonslip surface provides additional support for legs and feet to maintain exceptional seat comfort, it stated.  TradeArabia News Service
Sharjah-based Beeah, a leader in environmental management, has launched a digitally-focused company that will employ technological solutions to address logistical, educational, healthcare and other complex issues faced by the region.



Under the umbrella of the new company EvoTeq, two new business initiatives, Evogulf and SmartTrack, were also announced during Beeahs participation in the SAP Innovation Day, taking place at the Al Jawaher Reception and Convention Centre in Sharjah, UAE.



The growth of a digitalised society has inspired Beeah to diversify its offerings and utilise its role as a catalyst for change in driving the process of digital transformation, in an ethical and sustainable manner.



Salim bin Mohamed Al Owais, chairman of Beeah, said: "The launch of EvoTeq is a proud day in the evolution of Bee'ah. We have always been believers in technology and innovation and pride ourselves on being the most advanced company in our industry. With that focus on innovation and on quality of life, we knew that technology has to play a big role in the future of Beeah. The time is perfect to diversify into the digital economy and launch EvoTeq which will help improve the lives of the people we serve."



Khaled Al Huraimel, group CEO of Beeah, said: Signifying a new venture for Beeah, EvoTeq will focus its efforts on the digital transformation of the public and private sectors here in the Gulf region, seeking to improve peoples lives by applying digital technology to everyday situations. In practice, this means we will strive to enhance existing digital platforms, create new e-commerce services and act as an enabler and facilitator for the rapid, ongoing process of digitalisation within the Gulf.



The day began with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the newly formed EvoTeq and SAP, the German software giant whose products seamlessly connect people and technology in real-time. The agreement will be conducive to ensuring the smooth launch of the company and in establishing its operational efficiency. It will also develop its digital business on the latest computing architecture including mobile, cloud, Big Data and analytics.



The ceremony was followed by the signing of a second agreement between EOH, a leading consulting, technology and outsourcing business from South Africa, and EvoTeq to from Evogulf, which will function as the implementation arm of EvoTeq. Operating under EvoTeq, Evogulf will utilise the expertise of EOH, to ensure the smooth implementation of digital solutions developed by the company.



Tayfun Topkoc, managing director, of SAP UAE, said, We are delighted to sign this agreement with EvoTeq to co-innovate and develop citizen-centric digital services to improve the lives of people across the region using SAP latest technology innovations. EvoTeq is embarking on an exciting digital journey that will provide easy access to real-time insight to support better citizen services.



EOH provides high-value, end-to-end solutions in technology, knowledge, skills and organisational ability, to its clients in all industry verticals. Their vision for sustainable transformation is in alignment with EvoTeqs targets for the future, thus maximising the efficiency of this partnership.



EOH's global utilities head Ertan Yorganci said: This is an exciting partnership which will see us collaborating closely with EvoTeq across a range of challenges and spheres of operation. We are looking forward to the partnership being both a successful and a fruitful one in the weeks, months and years to come. Director Middle East



EvoTeqs preliminary offering will be a unique digital platform called SmartTrack, which will tackle the challenges of drug counterfeiting, within the pharmaceutical industry. This innovative solution will support governments in the pursuit of a secure healthcare system and ensure the authenticity of pharmaceutical products at all touch points of the supply chain.



Powered by SAP, SmartTrack follows a live tracking system that starts with ensuring that all government-authorized drug manufacturers receive an internationally certified GS1 barcode. Emanating from an encrypted digital platform, these barcodes are insusceptible to counterfeiting and will provide details of the production date, location, batch number, and manufacturer of the pharmaceutical product. When the product is scanned, SmartTrack will inspect it against its secure database to ensure legitimacy.



As the application is implemented at all strategic points of distribution, the entire supply chain can benefit from identical verification services. This holistic approach also makes it easier to analyse the chain for points of weakness which can be duly dealt with by law enforcement officials.



Through the provision of a mobile app, SmartTrack can also be used by patients directly, to ensure the authenticity of the drugs they purchase.



The range of benefits that SmartTrack offers are undeniable, said Al Huraimel, The supply of counterfeit drugs by illegal agencies have contaminated the legitimate supply chain for too long, and put countless lives at risk. Through the application of SmartTrack, the pharmaceutical industry will finally be able to acquire actionable data and curb these activities to ensure the well-being of people. This platform can also help to identify shortages and over-supply in the supply chain to ensure that drugs are available when and where they are most needed.



The first of many disruptive solutions being designed by EvoTeq, SmartTrack will reform the healthcare industry through close monitoring, and by ensuring higher standards, to create a better healthcare ecosystem.  TradeArabia News Service
Worldwide sales of smartphones to end users totalled 380 million units in the first quarter of 2017, a 9.1 per cent increase over the first quarter of 2016, according to a new report from Gartner, a global research and advisory company.



Mobile phone buyers are spending more to get a better phone, resulting in the rise in average selling prices of types of phone, said the report titled "Market Share Alert: Preliminary, Mobile Phones, Worldwide, 1Q17".



The shift in buyer preference is positively affecting Chinese manufacturers such as Huawei, Oppo and Vivo in their strategy to build desirable features at affordable prices. Their combined market share in the first quarter of 2017 accounted for 24 per cent, up 7 percentage points year on year.



"The top three Chinese smartphone manufacturers are driving sales with their competitively priced, high quality smartphones equipped with innovative features," said Anshul Gupta, research director at Gartner.



"Furthermore, aggressive marketing and sales promotion have further helped these brands to take share from other brands in markets such as India, Indonesia and Thailand."



Samsung's smartphone sales declined 3.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2017.



"Although Samsung announced that preorders for the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus are up 30 per cent year over year, the absence of an alternative to Note 7 and the fierce competition in the basic smartphone segment are leading Samsung to continuously lose market share," said Gupta.



"Sales of iPhones were flat, which led to a drop in market share year over year. Similar to Samsung, Apple is increasingly facing fierce competition from Chinese brands Oppo and Vivo, among others, and its performance in China is under attack."



Huawei edged closer to Apple with smartphone sales amounting to 34 million units in the first quarter of 2017. Despite its P9 and P9 Plus being available for more than a year now, both smartphones continued to sell well, positioning Huawei as a dominant brand in the consumer market.



"Huawei has now steadily held the third spot in the worldwide ranking of smartphone vendors," said Gupta. "However, pressure is mounting as its counterparts in China are catching up."



Oppo is continuing to catch up with Huawei. With a 94.6 per cent increase in worldwide smartphone sales in the first quarter of 2017, Oppo achieved the best performance of the quarter and retained the No. 1 position in China.



"Oppo continued to rally sales through a large network of brick-and-mortar retailers, beating market incumbents such as Samsung and Huawei," said Gupta. Oppo's strategy  centered on the camera, fast charging and offline retail  has helped it grow smartphone sales in the international market, he added.



Meanwhile, Vivo sold almost 26 million smartphones and achieved a market share of 6.8 per cent, which helped it achieve growth of 84.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2017. "Vivo saw growing demand of its smartphones from the emerging markets in Asia/Pacific, including India, where sales grew over 220 per cent thanks to its increased brand appeal and high-quality smartphones," said Gupta.



In the smartphone operating system (OS) market, the battle is now clearly between Android and iOS. With other OSs struggling for momentum, Android grew its share by 2 per cent. Growing acceptance of Chinese brands in the global markets, led by high-quality smartphones, is driving Android OS dominance.



Moreover, with Google's announcement of Android Go  targeted at the entry-level smartphone market  the OS is heading for continued growth, the Gartner report said.  TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Duty Free took home the Middle East Travel Retailer of the Year award for the 17th consecutive time at the recent Duty Free News International (DFNI) Asia/Pacific Awards for Travel-Retail Excellence, which was held in Singapore.



Commenting on the award, Colm McLoughlin, executive vice chairman and CEO of Dubai Duty Free, said: "The DFNI awards recognise excellence in service, innovation and quality within the airport retail sector and as such it is fantastic to receive this recognition for the 17th time. We never grow complacent when it comes to our retail offer and our overall service and I would like to join our chairman, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum in thanking our team of staff and all of those who voted for Dubai Duty Free.



Representing Dubai Duty Free in Singapore, Saba Tahir, senior vice president for purchasing received the award on the night from Kapila Gohel, DFNI editor.

The DFNI awards are a celebration of the very best in the duty free industry in the Asia/Pacific Region and are based on votes received from industry partners. The awards ceremony was held to coincide with the Tax Free World Association (TFWA) exhibition and conference.



Online voting forms for the DFNI Asia/Pacific awards were sent to a special industry academy of retailers, suppliers, agents and distributors serving the region. Forms were also distributed through the DFNI magazines International database. - TradeArabia News Service
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) $49.80, Brent (ICE) $52.30

Natural gas weekly averages: Henry Hub $3.21, Wyoming Pool $2.9, Opal $2.83

Baker Hughes rig count: U.S. 908, Wyoming 25

Brook fight drags on

A proposed coal mine in Sheridan County, the first in the state in decades, will be delayed again, after the week-long hearing fell behind schedule.

State regulators decided the company's mine plan was "technically accurate." But Ramaco Resources' Brook Mine is contested by local landowners.

The Environmental Quality Council is reviewing the plan and the protests. It can ask the DEQ to go back and review raised concerns, request that the state put qualifiers on mining until certain issues are resolved, or side with the state on the plan's technical viability.

Impact of B.C. coal ban weighed by Wyoming

Wyoming coal goes far and wide in the U.S., but sending it to Asian markets has long been a consideration by companies and at times state leaders.

Only one Powder River Basin company currently exports, and they do so through a Canadian port.

Recently, a politician in Canada suggested the country ban U.S. coal from passing through its ports, retaliation for a proposed tariff on lumber. Though not a direct hit to the Wyoming coal sector, it's a disconcerting possibility that could hurt the bottom line of Cloud Peak Energy.

Trends in population

Wyoming lost workers after the downturn in coal, oil and gas, but it appears Casper, a hub for the oil and gas industry, lost the most last year, according to recent state data.

The rise in unemployment since the bust has tapered off recently, but part of that is down to lost workers, not more employees on the payrolls.

Coal closures

Coal plants have been closing for a while, and the trend is expected to continue. But that's not news. Everyone knows that the smaller, older coal plants were reaching the end of their shelf-lives.

But a spate of planned closures at large plants may be upsetting the more optimistic assumptions about coal's future.

Wyoming produces the lion's share of the country's coal, but it only burns a little bit. Most of the state's coal is shipped out by rail to plants across the country. If they close, Wyoming companies lose clients, and the state loses revenue.

The contraction of the coal sector is not a vain worry, but a likelihood. What role the large plant closures will have in the industry are yet to be seen.

In other news
The Wyoming Attorney Generals office has declined to consider the state Republican Partys complaints against a progressive organization that sent voters mail praising Democratic legislative candidates and criticizing their GOP opponents, according to recent letters sent to people involved in the grievances.

The Attorney Generals office will not investigate the complaints because they came from the Wyoming Republican Party, Senior Assistant Attorney General Michael Robinson wrote.

State law specifies complaints must come from qualified electors. And a political party is not a qualified elector under state law, he wrote.

Robinson sent letters on May 10 to GOP attorney Mitch Edwards and May 16 to ELLA LLC attorney Margaret White.

The state GOP had complained that Wyoming Hunters and Anglers Alliance and Women Lead Wyoming were supposed to be sending mail independently of the Democratic candidates campaigns. But many of the Democrats had hired a sister organization called ELLA WY LLC to manage their campaigns or provide them data about potential voters.

The GOP maintained that those organizations werent separate enough and that there was coordination among them and the candidates.

ELLA and the candidates have argued that they did everything they could to comply with the law. They said that the law wasnt explicit on organizations such as theirs. They said they hired an attorney who told the organizations to rent separate office space to create what they described as a firewall between the groups. The attorney gave them advice based on Colorado election laws, which are clearer, they said.

In the letter, Robinson stressed that his decision to not pursue the matter wasnt a decision on the merits of the complaint. His decision was based on the GOP not following the law to complain, he wrote.

The GOPs complaints came days before the Nov. 8 general election.

Chris Bell, director of ELLA, said the grievances were likely was a political stunt.

Its really hard to get away from that, he said. I really believe they should have stuck to the substance of their complaint if they believed if it was a legitimate issue.

Edwards, the Wyoming GOP attorney, said the party disagrees with the AG, believing it is twisting the law.

The party is considering its options on how to proceed, he said.
Casper experienced the largest population drop in Wyoming during last years energy bust, losing nearly 1,000 residents, new figures show.

The city, a hub for the oil and gas fields, lost about 1.6 percent of its population. At the same time, two nearby communities  Mills and Evansville  experienced small increases.

In total, Wyomings population fell by 1,054 residents in 2016, the first year more people moved out of the Cowboy State than moved in since 1990, the tail end of a depression that drained the states workforce.

The population decline is linked to the energy downturn. The three key industries that prop up the states labor force and economy have been in decline. Oil, natural gas and coal suffered from falling prices, and though some say the state has reached the bottom of the drop, prices have not strengthened significantly for oil or gas. Meanwhile, coal continues to struggle because of the cheap price of natural gas.

The figures show that the states metropolitan area, Cheyenne, gained the largest number of people in 2016. The capital city grew by 1 percent, or 615 people. Its likely that some of the workers who lost jobs in other areas of the state moved to Cheyenne during the bust, said Wenlin Liu, chief economist for the state.

Cheyenne, with its proximity to Colorado and high number of government jobs, was relatively immune to the economic downturn, Liu said.

Neighboring states like Montana and Idaho likely stole some of Wyomings labor force as well, as their economies have strengthened even as Wyoming fell into decline, he said.

In total, nine cities and towns declined in population across the state, with regions of mineral extraction hit the hardest, including Gillette, Green River and Glenrock.

For cities with populations of 2,000 or more, only Cheyenne and Kemmerer experienced growth.

The ebb and flow of residents in Wyoming takes place every year, but since 1990, there have always been more people coming than going out, said Liu, the state economist.

Though the downturn in extractive industries has been significant, it hasnt had the same affect as the dramatic population changes of the 1980s, when the state experienced a net loss between 2 and 4 percent on a yearly basis, he said. The state had a very slow recovery rate extending throughout the 1990s and into the early 2000s, when coal-bed methane started another boom, he said.
An anonymous $2.27 million donation to the University of Wyomings art museum will create the Susan B. Moldenhauer Fund for Contemporary Art.

The newly created fund will support the museums national and international contemporary art program, according to a university news release, as well as visiting artists, exhibitions, publications, scholars and more. Officials hope the fund will support the museums goal of introducing art not otherwise available in Wyoming.

This gift is extraordinary, as it will transform the future of contemporary art at the University of Wyoming, President Laurie Nichols said in a release.

Moldenhauer, the director of the art museum and the funds namesake, said the gift ensures that the museums contemporary art programming will remain strong in the future. Contemporary art is generally defined as work created by living artists, according to the release.

Moldenhauer is a friend of the anonymous donor. Shes been director and curator of the museum since 2002. The museum is home to nearly 8,000 original art objects and hosts an average of 18 exhibitions a year, according to the university.

The donation is the latest in a recent spate of giving to the university. The UW Foundation reported earlier this year that it raised a record $63 million in 2016. The money comes as the university has faced tens of millions in cuts in the wake of the states economic downturn.
Most of Wyoming, including the heavily forested northwest part of the state, is predicted to have a slightly below average to average large wildfire season this year, state forester Bill Crapser said.

Their best long-term trends right now are kind of on the low end of average, Crapser said. They are predicting quite a bit of lightning. So their prediction right now is that were probably going to have ... a lot of starts, but probably a lower than average large fire development.

The predictions come from the Rocky Mountain Area Coordination Center in Denver. The center consists of various government agencies, including the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters, that provide information on wildfires in the Rocky Mountain region.

But Crapser, who briefed Gov. Matt Mead about the wildfire season predictions on Thursday, noted that fire conditions can quickly change in Wyoming with a few hot, windy days.

The caution that I have on this is that its almost identical to the prediction they had last year at this time, and then it dried out and quit raining and we had a pretty active fire season, he said.

In 2016, there were about 700 wildfires in Wyoming, including several large ones in Yellowstone and Grand Teton. The state averages about 600 a year.

Wyoming has 11.8 million of acres of forested land, most of it on federal land, including Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks.

Crapser said county firefighting resources were in good shape heading into the fire season.

Our state resources, both our crews and our helitack, are going to be staffed this summer and be able to deal with the normal type of stuff we have, he said.

With the Aug. 21 total solar eclipse passing directly through Wyoming, Crapser said his office has already been in touch with other states in the region about possibly bolstering Wyomings firefighting resources. Large wildfires put up huge plumes of smoke that can obscure the view of the sky from the ground.

So if it looks like were going to have a lot of activity during that time then well start gearing up some stuff, he said.
Learn about cloud storage

The Natrona County Library will offer a Cloud Storage class from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Learn how to securely back up data on computers and mobile devices using a variety of programs that help with local backups as well as online services such as iCloud, OneDrive, Google Drive, and Dropbox. Call 577-READ x2 or email reference@natronacountylibrary.org for more information.

Practical livestock evacuation workshop

A FEMA emergency management institute training exercise, co-hosted by UW Extension, is 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., on June 14, 2017, at UW Casper, room 420, 125 College Dr. The seminar includes FEMA-certified exercises for emergency responders and POST credits are pending. Learn how counties can respond to a need for livestock evacuation in the face of wildfires, floods, blizzards and other disasters. Emergency responders, producers, volunteers, veterinarians and others are encouraged to work with each other to enhance local plans. Register by June 9 at eventbrite.com or call Scott Cotton at 235-9400, Scotton1@uwyo.edu.

Buddhists meet

David Vaughn is a Buddhist living in Casper who finds himself feeling more and more isolated and wishing that he had someone to share his Buddhist interests with. But there are no Buddhist temples here, no place for people who wish to share stories of Dharma or Karma, no place to learn and exchange meditational techniques, no place to meet people of like minds for friendship, conversation, companionship, or even romantic interest.

So Vaughn has decided to take matters into his own hands and do something about it. He proposes to establish a Casper Buddhist Fellowship, and set up a common meeting place where the Buddhists of Casper can congregate at regular intervals to practice our Buddhist customs; where Buddhists can go to and feel safe, mingle with other Buddhists, and experience all of those most wonderful things that the Buddhist religion has to offer.

Vaughn invites all who are interested to contact him at davidvaughn991@yahoo.com so that a dialogue might begin.

Saturday watercolor sessions

The schedule for the Saturday Morning Watercolor Sessions from 10 a.m. to noon for June at Art 321 is below. These are coordinated by Ellen Black, 265-6783. $10 per session. June 3, practice session; June 10, Oriental Painting, Claudette Mowery; June 17, practice session; June 24, Big Brush Landscape.

Shady Lady lampshade design

Join in the fun while producing a beautiful custom lampshade for your home or cabin from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., on June 3 and 4 at Art 321. This class combines fine art with the ancient art of decoupage to produce jewel like colors and textures. Instructor Misty Plott will help you design a shade focusing on design, color and technique. No artistic background required! Students will have clear instructions and patterns or can venture out on their own design ideas. Warning, this class is addicting! Students need to do a bit of work before the class to be able to complete their project in two days. Fee is $130 for members and $170 for non-members. BEFORE CLASS, buy a white polyester lampshade. Coat the outside with a layer of Matt Mod Podge and dry it before class. Bring sharp scissors, a large jar of Matt Mod Podge, and your imagination. For more information, call Art 321 at 265-2655.

Tai Chi for arthritis June 5

Tai Chi for Arthritis Part 1, it is not just for those with arthritis. Tai Chi is an ancient practice proven to reduce pain and improve your mental and physical well-being. This series of Tai Chi for Arthritis was developed by Dr. Paul Lam. The form uses gentle Sun style Tai Chi postures that are safe, easy to learn, and suitable for every fitness level. This form can be done standing or seated. The practice of Tai Chi will help you to reduce stress, increase balance and flexibility, and improve your overall feeling of wellness.

Preregistration for the workshop is required. The cost is $100 for 16 consecutive sessions, meeting Mondays and Wednesdays from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., starting June 5 and ending July 26. This workshop class will be located at the Healthy Life Studio in the Sunrise Shopping Center on South Poplar Street. You can register for this workshop online at www.healthylifestudio.com or drop in 10 minutes before the first class on June 5th to sign up.

Vendors for Caspar Collins Day

Fort Caspar Museum is looking for craft and food vendors for Caspar Collins Day 2017 which will be held on Saturday, July 22. Join us as we commemorate the city of Caspers namesake on the 152nd anniversary of the Battle of Platte Bridge.

This family-friendly event will include living history demonstrations, games, and hands-on activities. We will also have an area for contemporary craft vendors, nonprofits, and food concessions near the fort activities.

The cost for a space (10- by 10 feet) is $30 for vendors and free for nonprofits. The vendor application deadline is July 19, 2017. For an application form or questions, please contact Anne Holman by phone, 235-8462 or by email at aholman@casperwy.gov. Forms may also be downloaded from our website: www.fortcasparwyoming.com.

Caspar Collins Day will be held on the grounds of Fort Caspar Museum from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 22, 2017, rain or shine. Admission is free, and all are welcome.

Deer Creek Days craft fair

Crafters wanted for the Deer Creek Days Craft Fair in Glenrock Aug. 4-6. For more information, including fees, call 436-5652 or email info@glenrockchamber.org.

Dementia caregiver support

Wyoming Dementia Care offers five Alzheimers Caregiver Support groups each month. Caregivers of those with dementia-related illnesses and the loved ones they care for are welcome at any of the group sessions. Professional staff from Intermountain Home Companions will be on hand to offer separate activities and snacks for those who need care. There is no charge for Wyoming Dementia Cares support groups or for the respite care provided during the approximately one-hour sessions.

The morning support group sessions meet on the first and third Thursday of each month at 10 a.m. at Central Wyoming Senior Services, 1831 E. Fourth St. The afternoon support groups meet at 1 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month at Life Care Center of Casper, 4041 S. Poplar. The evening groups meet on the second and fourth Wednesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. at Meadow Wind Assisted Living, 3955 E. 12th St.

For information, email wyodementia@casperseniorcenter.com or call Dani Guerttman at 265-4678.

Bag book sale June 10

Stop by the Public Library during Nic Fest 2017 and grab yourself a bag of books! The Friends will hold a Bag Sale from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., on Saturday, June 10. Bags of books are $3 if you use a Friends bag or $5 if you bring you own bag. The sale includes used books at great prices, in all genres and for all age groups. Other items for sale include movies, music, puzzles, and magazines. The Friends accept cash, local checks, and PayPal, as well as credit and debit cards.

Family continues suicide support

Good Grief, Support will continue at 5:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month at the 12-24 Club, 500 S. Wolcott, by request of attendees. Anyone who is grieving a suicide or death or considering suicide is encouraged to attend. Attendance, as well as the content, will be strictly confidential. The Fresh Start Cafe will be open, and you can eat during the meetings. This meeting place was offered by Dan Cantine of the 12-24 Club. You need not be a member to attend. For more information, email jlh35@hotmailcom.

New depression group begins

J.R.s Hunt for Life is offering See it Clearly, a free peer support group for people suffering from depression and other mental conditions that lead to suicidal thoughts and actions. The group is led by like-minded peers wishing to offer support. Anonymity and confidentiality is offered to all attending. Meetings are at 6:45 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month at 500 South Wolcott in the conference room on the second floor, (12-24 Club). Those who have considered or attempted taking their life or are struggling are welcome. For more information, email jlh35@hotmailcom.

Parkinsons exercise

Rocky Mountain Therapy is offering a Parkinsons exercise program. Join us from noon to 1 p.m. Thursdays at Rocky Mountain Therapy, 2546 E. Second St., Building 500. These classes are open to anyone with Parkinsons or caring for someone with Parkinsons.

Thursdays class is tailored for the individual with more advanced Parkinsons and focuses on improving endurance, safety and managing symptoms. We are open to all ages and can tailor the class to meet varying exercise needs. The cost of the class is $5. To RSVP, call 577-5204 and ask for Jerri or Shannon.

Celebrate Recovery every Friday

Celebrate Recovery meets at 5:30 p.m. every Friday at Highland Park Community Church, just south of Elkhorn Valley Rehabilitation Hospital on East Second Street. A family meal starts the evening, followed by praise and worship. At 7 p.m., theres either a lesson from Celebrate Recoverys planned curriculum or a testimony by a person who has found recovery through Christ. Then, people go to gender-specific small groups until 8:30 p.m., when dessert and fellowship conclude the evening. Child care is available at no cost. For more information, contact Chris at 265-4073.

Here and Now: Dementia-focused monthly art class

Classes are every third Tuesday of the month from 1 to 3 p.m. There is no charge. Here and Now is a program made possible through a collaboration between Wyoming Dementia Care and the Nicolaysen Art Museum. It is designed to provide a supportive environment for people with dementia and Alzheimers and their loved ones.

To register, contact Dani with Wyoming Dementia Care 265-4678, ext. 106, or at wyodementia@casperseniorcenter.com or Zhanna Gallegos at 235-5247 or at zgallegos@thenic.org.
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Food for Fines

The Natrona County Library will hold its semiannual Food for Fines drive June 1 through June 15. Bring nonperishable food to any library branch, including the Bookmobile, between June 1 and 15 to clear your late fees. The promotion applies to late fees on books and other library items, and does not include fees for lost or damaged items or collection accounts. All collected food will be donated to Joshuas Storehouse to benefit our local community.

Hospice needs volunteers

Would you like the opportunity to truly make a difference in someones life? Choose how you would like to give back, whether being a companion to our patients, helping run the Memory Lane Boutique, or sit vigil through patients last hours. Join us for our next Volunteer Training Program beginning June 6 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Please call Tammy at 577-4832 or go to cwhp.org and fill out an application. We would love to have you on our team.

Hospice boutique accepting donations

Memory Lane Boutique at Central Wyoming Hospice and Transitions is in need of donations for its inventory. Items accepted include furniture, jewelry, household goods, knickknacks, craft supplies, toys and sporting goods. Donations may be dropped off from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 319 S. Wilson. The public is invited to shop during the same hours.

Would you host a hockey player?

The Casper Coyotes are preparing for the next season already and that means finding loving families to host young men, ages 17 to 20 years old from across America and foreign countries. The boys arrive in August and stay until March or April. They should have a room of their own and become a part of your family. Their expenses are paid. Team rules are simple and you add family rules. If you raised a young man this age, then you know that it takes love, but the love and cultural experience that comes back is many times greater. Interested? Call a veteran of hosting and lets talk, Joe at 315-1987.

Volunteer for family event

Its time for the 5th annual HUD Fathers Day event. Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies is in search of volunteers to help with set up, distribution, and clean up for our mobile pantry assisting single fathers in Natrona County. Come join us in Washington Park on June 17 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information or to sign up as a volunteer, contact Ashley Nickolai at 265-4016 or anickolai@foodbankrockies.org.

Quilts of Valor every Wednesday

The Central Wyoming Chapter of Quilts of Valor meets from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesdays to sew at the Central Wyoming Senior Services Center, 1831 E. Fourth St. Quilts of Valor are made by volunteers. Donated fabrics, supplies or monetary donations are appreciated. The group makes all quilts for service men and women who have been touched by war. Our chapter awards quilts to veterans who reside in the Central Wyoming region. Dues are $5 per year and new members are always welcome. If you have any questions, please contact Yung Hui Torske at 258-5578, Sandy Elliott at 307-5540331 or any chapter member.

Theater appreciates donation

Casper Theater Company would like to send a huge thank you to Karen and Jims Restaurant (soon opening as The Office Bar and Grill) for donating all of their tableware and flatware. As the theater proceeds through its season, it will have all of our own table settings for its dinner theater. The theater wants Karen and Jim to know how very grateful it is to be the recipient of their generous donation. Karen and Jim have a history of donating to the community and without generous people like them in our community, a huge contingent of nonprofit organizations would not be where they are today. So thank you Karen and Jim, you are so very much appreciated!

Donate blood, win a Harley

Blood donations tend to drop as the school year winds down and summer vacation season kicks into high gear, but every day patients need blood in hospitals across Wyoming and beyond. Donors who make time to give blood at United Blood Services (UBS) community donor centers in Cheyenne or Casper or a UBS blood drive in Wyoming during May and June are automatically entered to win prizes, including a Harley-Davidson motorcycle as a special thank you for helping ensure patient needs continue to be met.

In all, five names will be drawn during a Facebook live event on Wednesday, July 12. The grand prize is a Harley-Davidson Fat Boy. Four finalists will receive a $100 gas gift card.

Donors must be age 18 or older by the drawing date to be eligible to win. Donors who are 16 or 17 will instead be entered to win an iPad mini 4 tablet. Twenty will be awarded to donors who give in May and another 20 for those who come in during June.

Official entry rules are available at unitedbloodservices.org/wy.

Whole blood donors are eligible to give blood every eight weeks and are encouraged to donate at least three times each year to help UBS meet the needs of patients.

Donors can save time and fill out their Fast Track Health History Questionnaire online at unitedbloodservices.org the day of their donation. To donate blood, volunteers must be at least 16 years old (16 and 17-year-old donors need a minor donor permit which is available online) and be in good health.

Find the hero in you. To make an appointment call 877-827-4376 or visit unitedbloodservices.org. Walk-ins are also welcome.

Scarves for Special Olympics

Special Olympics Wyoming invites those who knit and crochet to make scarves for the Wyoming Special Olympics athletes to wear at State Winter Games in February 2018. Please use black, gray and white in the scarves, which should measure approximately 6 by 60 inches in any pattern. The deadline to receive the scarves is January 2018. Please send scarves to Special Olympics Wyoming, attn. Scarf Project 2017, P.O. Box 624, Jackson, WY 83001. There is more information available at www.sowy.org/other-fundraisers.

Support team hosts reception

J.R.s Hunt For Life is having a reception at Metro Coffee from 6 to 8 p.m. June 5. Many of J.R.s professional outdoor photos will be on display for the month of June and for sale by ordering. There will be free bracelets, decals to purchase, free signup for J.R.s Hunt, a hunting giveaway and other things. This is all for suicide prevention and awareness.

Food of the month

Wyoming Food for Thought Project has announced its food of the month suggestions for the nearly 1,000 weekend food bags its volunteers prepare for food-insecure school students in Natrona County each week. Often, schools, churches and other groups designate certain collection days for a specific type of food as a donation.

The suggested food items may be taken to program headquarters at 900 St. John, but its best to call ahead to make certain someone is there to receive it.

May, tuna; June, peanut butter; July, pork n beans; August, mac n cheese; September, Chef Boyardee products; October, cereal; November, soup; December, chili.

For more information, call Cassandra at 337-1703.

Disabled vets need volunteer drivers

The Disabled American Veterans need volunteer drivers to take veterans to their medical appointment at the VA hospital in Cheyenne. The volunteer driver will transport them in a VA vehicle. If you are interested, please call the DAV transportation office in Cheyenne at 307-778-7577 for further information.
For more than three decades, Cecil Barnes has stood at attention at the caskets of veterans.

Hundreds of times, he's heard the cracks from the three-volley salute ring across the quiet fields of the state veterans cemetery. He's watched as the flag is tightly folded, each crease made with great care. Countless times he's bowed his head in prayer with the other members of the county veterans council.

During each ceremony, he's listened as a customary statement is read:

"When the call of our country was heard, he answered, and self was forgotten for the cause of a greater good. As a brave man he marched away with the abiding faith in his God, his country and his flag."

But there are times when nobody comes to say goodbye. He's looked up into a room of vacant pews.

"Weve talked to an empty room a few times, he recounted. "But we do the same thing no matter what."

It's hard to know how many veterans are buried at the Oregon Trail State Veterans Cemetery whose family couldn't be contacted. Often, those veterans were homeless when they died, said Darrin Brahaney, interim director of the cemetery.

"Indigent veterans usually show up  the funeral home brings them out  in a wood box at best," he said.

Hundreds are expected to travel to the state veterans cemetery outside Evansville on Memorial Day to honor their loved ones who have died. They will walk among the green fields, leaving flowers on the graves.

Some burial sites won't receive any visitors, however. Some have never been visited.

The problem

The exact number of homeless veterans in Wyoming is hard to pin down.

According to the 2016 point-in-time count, workers tallied 87 homeless veterans statewide in one night. Of those veterans, 31 did not have shelter and were sleeping outdoors or in places not meant for overnight sleeping, like vehicles or abandoned buildings.

But the point-in-time count is only a snapshot of the problem and can be influenced by a number of factors, experts say. The number is calculated by a team of volunteers and professionals in each community who spend one night each January counting the number of homeless people who are living on the streets or in emergency shelters or temporary housing. The count can be affected by the number of available shelter beds, the weather and the ability of workers to locate those who are homeless.

The data from Wyoming, collected by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, varies widely over the past 10 years. The number of homeless veterans counted remained under 100 between 2007 and 2001 before spiking to 311 in 2012. The number then hovered around 120 until 2016, when it dipped to 87.

Tatum Webb, who coordinates the homeless program at the Cheyenne Veterans Affairs Medical Center, said that the point-in-time numbers aren't perfect but do serve as a starting point. Other sets of numbers also provide further perspective.

Webb said that workers with the Cheyenne VA, which serves southeastern Wyoming and northern Colorado, have made contact with 73 unsheltered veterans in the area since October. In that same time frame, the Cheyenne VA and other programs have moved 49 veterans who were previously homeless into permanent housing.

Available programs

It's difficult to characterize the veterans who utilize the VA's programs, Webb said. While some are from the area, others have traveled from elsewhere.

There are veterans, mostly the elderly, who become homeless for the first time when their limited incomes can no longer meet rising rents. Some clients were knocked off their feet by a specific financial setback  a layoff or an unexpected expense. Others have long-term issues with their mental or physical health that makes it difficult to pay the bills.

Each veteran has unique needs, Webb said, and the VA, along with a coalition of other organizations, attempts to meet them.

"We really work hard to be collaborative with our community partners, recognizing that this is not an issue that can be solved by one agency or one entity," she said. "We really have got to work together."

Both the VA in Cheyenne and Sheridan offer a variety of housing programs for both the short and long term. The idea, Webb said, is to help veterans find a safe place to live  even if just for a few months  so they can begin planning and saving for the future.

"Its an opportunity to get off the streets, have a safe place to stay and plan whats the next step in getting permanent housing," she said.

Combined, the two agencies also have 202 vouchers to subsidize rent for homeless veterans in Wyoming and northern Colorado. Of those vouchers, almost all are being used or are in the hands of veterans looking for permanent housing. Webb said that there are currently 13 more veterans waiting for one of the Cheyenne VA vouchers to become available.

Eventually the goal  for some folks but not all  is to graduate from the program and not need us, she said.

Through all of the programs, veterans have access to a case manager who is also a trained counselor. Those managers help connect veterans to other services in their area and throughout the VA, assist in planning and developing life skills and help treat any mental or emotional health issues.

One of the difficulties is finding help for veterans who don't live in an area with a VA clinic, said Curtis Merriam, who coordinates the Sheridan VA housing voucher program. While the VA attempts to connect them to services through partnering organizations, sometimes veterans are compelled to move to a town where a VA center exists that can meet their needs.

Another important factor for helping previously homeless veterans become independent is integrating them socially with their community, Merriam said. Many of the clients he sees in the programs haven't had easy lives and become socially isolated.

A lot of them sit in their apartments all day," he said.

Merriam hopes that in the future his program will be able to provide more social opportunities for veterans, like taking a trip to Yellowstone National Park. He's currently organizing a grant-funded trip for veterans to travel to the National Ability Center in Park City, Utah, for two days of relationship-building activities, therapy and relaxation.

Ultimately, helping veterans leave the streets takes a coalition of dedicated workers and volunteers, both Webb and Merriam said. It's an impossible job for any one agency or organization.

"You cant do this work without caring," she said.

Slipping through the cracks

And yet, despite those efforts, some veterans will inevitably slip through the cracks.

That was almost the case with Stephen Reiman, a Vietnam veteran who died in Casper in the fall. Reiman had been transient and had arrived in Wyoming shortly before falling ill. When the county coroner initially couldn't locate his family, the community answered the call.

Hundreds packed the state cemetery's chapel and stood on the snowy grounds to honor the stranger.

"He was a man who lived a solitary life for many, many years, but at his final goodbye there is a room full of community," the pastor said at the service.

That's not the case for all, however.

Brahaney, the interim cemetery director, said that he doesn't track the number of indigent veterans who are buried at the cemetery without family.

Thats one thing I dont keep track of  everyone that is interred out here gets treated with the same respect and dignity, he said.

However, he knows that two or three such veterans have been buried at the cemetery so far this year. Larry Barttelbort, director of the Wyoming Veterans Commission, also didn't know the exact number but said that it happens several times a year.

"Its very unfortunate when someone  either a veteran or member of the public  when they pass that theres nobody to say goodbye, Barttelbort said.

That's where groups like the Natrona County United Veterans Council step in. The nonprofit will conduct military honors for any veteran who has died, even if they have to play taps to an empty chapel.

And almost all veterans, regardless of the amount of money in their bank account, have the right to a burial at the veterans cemetery. They have a right to be buried among their brothers and sisters in arms  a family, though not by blood.

We honor them as if their family was right there with them," Barttelbort said.
Governments across the country are faced with a host of issues including the need to provide a safe secure correctional environment for both staff and offenders. Recently, Americans across the county celebrated Correctional Professionals Day to thank and support the hard and extremely important work done by thousands of individuals every day. While correctional systems face many challenges, a crumbling infrastructure is a growing national problem that many jurisdictions are realizing has been too long ignored and threatens safety.

Wyoming policy makers are wrestling with this very issue at the Wyoming State Penitentiary. State leaders need options when deciding how best to address this significant challenge. Our business offering, CoreCivic Properties  which designs, builds, finances and maintains facilities  is one available option. To be very clear, CoreCivic Properties is a real estate-only solution. Our services are strictly related to the ownership and upkeep of building assets, including maintenance, utilities, insurance and property tax management. CoreCivic Properties government partners provide their own staffing and management of the leased facility.

CoreCivic Properties is not built upon a one-size fits all philosophy. Our facilities are built to suit to each governmental jurisdictions wants and needs. The state of Wyomings correctional system priorities of safe, secure and humane management would be built into any CoreCivic Properties design.

Wyoming can look to other governments that have faced similar challenges and have found a lease solution to be extremely beneficial to government employees and offenders in their care. For example, in 2013 CoreCivic leased our California City Correctional Facility to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to help ease overcrowding in the state and address federal court oversight. The arrangement stands today with our company ensuring a well-maintained environment for CDCR employees to work and inmates to prepare to rejoin their communities.

We entered a similar agreement with Oklahoma last year to lease our North Fork Correctional Facility. At the time, the Oklahoma Department of Corrections (DOC) stated that only seven of its 17 major prisons were designed to house inmates. The other 10 were retrofitted boys homes, hospitals or armories. Some of the facilities were built when Oklahoma was still a territory. The states corrections director remarked that leasing North Fork would allow [them] to put money to good use on a modern facility built for the purpose of housing inmates, which will provide a safer environment for staff and those in [their] custody. In other words, it created the opportunity for Oklahoma DOC employees to do their jobs effectively and with peace of mind and for inmates to serve their time in an appropriate environment.

Of course, there are many options for constructing a new correctional facility, and the public should have the chance to weigh the merits of each. CoreCivic has been an expert in corrections real estate for more than 30 years. Weve built or expanded more than 60 facilities and have over 17.5 million square feet under management. This unmatched expertise helps us deliver value for jurisdictions that infrequently build these types of specialized, complex facilities.

Because we provide the financing for our projects, the CoreCivic Properties model enables governments to use their existing financial resources for other priorities like schools and roads. Further, because CoreCivic Properties owns the asset, we are incentivized to protect our investment and properly maintain the facility for the long run. This means no deferred maintenance, which can often be a challenge, as the need to make critical repairs is put off to devote budget to operations and other priorities.

Building a new correctional center in Wyoming is important for the safety of the states communities. Understanding all the available options is critical for making the wisest choice.
Last week, our Biz Tip suggested if people trust you they will probably do business with you. This week, lets spend some time talking about the power of a testimonial.

There are many studies that show consumers place significant trust in testimonials. Some studies report that 92 percent of consumers trust a recommendation from someone they know. Just because someone is recommended does not mean they will do a good job. Lets look at two examples.

I had lunch with a business consultant friend of mine. He mentioned one of his clients owned a bathroom remodeling company. He was impressed with their commitment to delivering quality service, at virtually any cost. He shared several examples which clearly illustrated this commitment.

During the next six months, a few friends needed recommendations for their bathroom remodel projects. I highly recommended the company my friend told me about. The feedback I received after the service was performed has been fantastic. I will continue to recommend this company to everyone I know.

When you have a sense of trust about a company, feel free to recommend them. Sometimes people make a recommendation just because they know someone. Unfortunately, these cases do not always end well.

Imagine a friend of yours needs a residential cleaning company. You recommend a company you recently met at a networking mixer. Three weeks later, your friend tells you the cleaning company stole thousands of dollars worth of jewelry. It turns out the company is not licensed, bonded or insured. Your friend is obviously upset and has no recourse. You probably regret making the recommendation.
Tucson Electric Power Co. has for now stopped offering rebates to commercial customers under its state-mandated energy-efficiency programs, after running out of money for the incentive programs.

The programs are mandated by the Arizona Corporation Commission as part of its energy-efficiency goals designed to help customers save money and, over the long term, reduce the need for new power generation.

But facing a shortfall in 2017 program funds, TEP recently decided to halt the program for commercial customers, including apartment customers  who can reap big cost savings by using rebates for such things as replacing existing lighting with low-use LEDs  until new funding is available next year.

Instead, TEP had decided to allocate the remaining 2017 funds to residential rebate programs.

The issue surfaced after TEP realized its current collections under a customer-paid surcharge would fall short of the programs overall $23 million budget for this year.

The program and its budget were carried over as the same as 2016, but collections have fallen since TEP reduced the surcharge rate in 2016 to avoid overcollections that occurred in previous years.

In March, TEP petitioned the Corporation Commission to increase its energy-efficiency surcharge, estimating that collections for 2017 would total no more than about $17 million.

But TEP later reconsidered and withdrew the filing, reasoning that the potential increase of about $2 in the monthly demand-side management surcharge that pays for the efficiency programs would be too much for customers to bear after a general rate increase added about $8 to the average TEP home bill.

We didnt want to add to customers bills so soon after the rate increase, TEP spokesman Joe Barrios said.

For now, TEP is not accepting any new applications for commercial or multi-housing energy-efficiency incentives, though applications already accepted will be honored.

TEP has no plans to ask for more incentive money for this years program, Barrios said. TEP is to file for Corporation Commission approval of its 2018 energy-efficiency plan by Aug. 1.

TEP will continue to offer residential energy-efficiency rebates for such things as discounted LED light bulbs and efficient pool pumps, through the end of the year or until those funds run out, Barrios said.

But TEP commercial customers will have to wait until next year to apply for incentives for lighting and other improvements like upgrades to heating and air conditioning and motor drives.

That doesnt sit well with the Southwest Energy Efficiency project, or SWEEP, which has championed the efficiency programs.

Customers who have been paying into the program for years are not able to get service now, so theres a problem there, said Jeff Schlegel, Arizona representative for SWEEP.

Theres little doubt demand is there  TEP in its message to customers said the suspension of the commercial programs was due to strong customer interest.

This is a sign that the programs are essential and effective, Schlegel said.

Schlegel said contractors have contacted his group, reporting that suspension of the commercial program has left some customers in the lurch with planned energy-efficiency projects.

SWEEP plans to file a request with the Corporation Commission, seeking additional funding for the TEP energy-efficiency programs, Schlegel said, saying TEPs action has the effect of a 26 percent program cut.

Barrios said TEP doesnt see it that way.

If this was a home budget, you could say it was en effort to live within our means, Barrios said.
We've collected a few front pages from newspapers.com to give you a look at some May 29 papers in history. With a subscription to newspapers.com you can search the Arizona Daily Star and many other newspapers using keywords or dates, and download articles or pages.
The Nogales and Willcox Border Patrol stations will be under new leadership, federal authorities recently announced.

Sabri Dikman, who began working with Border Patrol in 1998, will lead the Nogales station as the patrol agent in charge starting June 11, according to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release.

I look forward to working with the members of the community as we build upon the strong existing relationship and work toward our shared goal of a safer community as a result of a secure border, Dikman said.

The Nogales station is one of the largest and historically among the busiest stations in the United States, officials said. Dikmans career started at the Nogales station and in 2003 he was promoted to the Sonoita station as a supervisor agent.

He climbed the ranks and returned to Nogales in 2010 to serve as the deputy patrol agent in charge. In 2011, he left the Tucson Sector to work as assistant chief patrol agent for operations at Arizonas then Joint Field Command. Dikman also worked as executive officer for operations at the Tucson Sector in 2012, and a year later headed the Willcox station.

John Scanlon, who also started his career with Border Patrol in 1998, was promoted to patrol agent in charge at the Willcox station. He was serving as the deputy patrol agent there, officials said.

Scanlon will lead agents in border security in southeastern Arizona. The station operates three immigration checkpoints in Cochise County.

I am honored to lead such a motivated and dedicated group of law enforcement professionals that put life and safety on the line every day to ensure that the country they serve is secure, Scanlon said.

He has worked at the Douglas station, in various positions within the Tucson Sector and also at Border Patrol headquarters in Washington, D.C., in the offices of congressional affairs and policy planning, and the operations division.
An essay written by a graduate of The Gregory School has been published in the New York Times.

Caitlin McCormicks college essay was one of four selected for the Times Your Money section. Each year, the section solicits entries about money, work or social class from high school seniors.

McCormick, who will be attending Barnard College at Columbia University, previously served as the editor of The Gregory School newspaper, The Gregorian Chant. She is also a board member of the Womens Foundation of Southern Arizona.

Her essay was published in print on May 13.

Amphi School District has free summer meals

Amphitheater School District will serve free meals to children 18 and younger during summer break.

Amphitheater Middle, 315 E. Prince Road, Keeling Elementary, 2837 N. Los Altos Ave., and Prince Elementary, 125 E. Prince Road, will serve breakfast from 8 to 8:30 a.m. and lunch from 12:30 to 1 p.m. between June 5 and 29.

Amphitheater High School, 125 W. Yavapai Road, will serve breakfast from 7:30 to 8 a.m. and lunch from 11:30 to 12 p.m. between June 5 and July 14.

Children do not need to be enrolled in Amphi schools to receive meals.

Leman educator picked as Teacher of the Year

A Leman Academy of Excellence teacher has been named Teacher of the Year by the Inter-State Studio & Publishing Co.

Steve Jones was chosen out of more than 500 entries submitted to the company by peers. He was nominated by colleagues, who said Jones has the ability to talk to students in a way that impacts their hearts.

Jones teaches fourth grade at the schools Marana campus.

Marana PR director Crawley is honored

Marana schools public relations director has received an award from the Arizona Education Association.

Tamara Crawley is the winner of the 2017 School Public Relations Partnership Award. She was recognized during a banquet on May 13.

The award recognizes a school public relations professional who has demonstrated a strong partnership between the district, the local education association and the community.

Walden Grove team takes 3rd in contest

A team of students from Walden Grove High School in Sahuarita has won third place in the video category of the 2017 Ninth Circuit Civics Contest.

The civics contest is put on by the federal courts each year. This years theme was focused on U.S. Supreme Court decisions related to the incarceration of Japanese-American citizens during World War II.

Anthony Jaber, Frederick Lewis and Joshua Crest were honored at an award reception on May 22.
The Road Runner is no doubt not the only one to notice that frequent red lights are a part of the Oracle Road experience.

That contrasts sharply with some other local corridors, where the lights are timed so well you could almost put your car in cruise control for long stretches.

That corridor we know has been pretty problematic, its often overloaded and there are not a lot of good alternatives for access up into the northwest, said Paul Casertano, transportation program manager at the Pima Association of Governments. Both the public and traffic engineers alike recognize that there are some deficiencies in its operation.

But things are about to change on Oracle, which serves as a key connection between Tucson and Oro Valley. This week, crews are set to start installing new signal cabinets and controllers to replace the aging equipment now in place and re-phase and retime intersections, eventually including all signalized crossings between River and Tangerine roads. The Arizona Department of Transportation, which manages Arizona 77, says the improvements will provide better traffic flow through the corridor.

By the fall, the situation is likely to improve even more when ADOT networks the traffic signal boxes, so that they can be controlled remotely and centrally by engineers. As it stands, timing changes have to be done manually, making real-time, on-the-fly signal timing modifications all but impossible.

Whatever the issue is, whatever adjustments we need to make, we can make them remotely, we can make them at that moment, ADOT spokesman Tom Herrmann said of the technology, which is being installed at only one other site in the state  Arizona 69 outside Prescott.

Though the corridor is controlled by ADOT, equipment costs for the project  roughly $298,000  will be covered by the Regional Transportation Authority, though ADOT personnel will oversee installation, according to a 2014 RTA document.

What we like to say, the public doesnt really care who owns the signals, they dont really care who owns the roadway, they just want it to operate better, Casertano said of the reason the RTA stepped in to pay.

To evaluate the effectiveness of the technology, a before-and-after traffic movement study using Bluetooth technology and paid drivers is already underway. ADOT declined to provide the before data until the after all data is collected, but Herrmann said the agency is very confident ... it will work very well.

DOWN THE ROAD

Work on the above-mentioned signal project will begin Tuesday evening between Rudasill Road and La Reserve Drive. Working in overnight shifts from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. Tuesday through Thursday over the summer, crews will have to disconnect signals as they progress. Law enforcement will be on-site to direct motorists.

A city contractor will start work on a Pima Road improvement project on Tuesday, with electrical work scheduled at the roadways intersections with Dodge and Columbus boulevards.

The first stage is expected to be complete by June 16, and weekday shifts will last from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Travel restrictions will be in place.
A Pima County Superior Court judge has ruled that ballot images produced by local voting equipment are exempt from disclosure by Arizona election law.

In August 2016, county resident Richard Hernandez filed a complaint asking that digital ballot images from the upcoming primary election be preserved. It was then the county election departments policy to delete those images, which are used to tally votes by the new system.

A judge soon granted a temporary injunction mandating that the county cease deleting the images. In his May 24 ruling, Judge Richard Gordon made that injunction permanent, but also  citing the Arizona Constitutions requirement of secrecy in voting and recent legislation  ruled that both ballots and images of them are exempt from public disclosure.

Senate Bill 1094, which was signed into law in March, states that digital images of ballots are protected from physical and electronic access  and that all security measures are at least as protective as those prescribed for paper ballots.

While the wisdom of such laws might be legitimately questioned given the absence of transparency in the technology being used, that debate is for the legislature rather than this court, Gordon wrote.

Brad Nelson, county elections director,

pointed out that until this legislative session, Arizona law was silent on digital ballot images. Per the ruling, Nelson said his office will be saving the ballot images, but they will be treated exactly the same as physical ballots.

In his ruling, Gordon notes that Arizona law protects ballots both before and after an election from disclosure.

John Brakey, whose organization AUDIT-AZ hired the attorney who filed the original suit, said an appeal was likely. He also disputed that releasing ballot images would compromise voter secrecy, arguing that a filled ballot does not have personally identifying information. Having access to those records, Brakey argued, would allow residents to independently verify election results.

In a December filing, the county argued that independent tabulations are likely to undermine public confidence in election results because different efforts could come up with different results due to human error or intentional manipulation of digital images.

In a November 2016 memo, County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry wrote that the county has desired to scan and post scanned ballots as public records so any interested citizen can count ballots to verify the electronic results, but the county attorney has indicated the County lacks the authority to scan ballots and post the scanned images on the internet.
A Pima County law that prohibits motorists from using cellphones and other electronic devices without hands-free technology goes into effect Thursday, June 1.

However, there will be a 60-day grace period for motorists to learn about the law.

During the grace period, violators will receive a written warning, said Deputy Ryan Inglett, a Pima County sheriffs spokesman.

The Board of Supervisors passed the law May 2  joining the city of Tucson and Oro Valley in restricting the use of electronic devices while driving on a street or highway. There are a few exemptions. The laws in all three jurisdictions are similar.

Oro Valleys law went into effect in January, and Tucsons went into effect May 1.

Supervisors made violations of the law a primary offense, meaning deputies can stop drivers once they see the offense committed. Oro Valleys law is the same.

Tucsons law makes it a secondary offense, meaning officers need to see another violation first before stopping motorists.

It is a civil traffic offense to violate the law. County fines will be fixed at $100, unless a driver is involved in a crash. Then fines rise to $250, according to officials. In Oro Valley and Tucson, motorists face tiered fines.

The law will help make county roads safer because it will cut down on distracted driving, said Inglett. He said distracted driving is one of the most dangerous activities motorists can do.

The county law reads: A person may not use a handheld electronic device while operating a motor vehicle on a street or highway unless that device is specifically designed or configured to allow hands-free use and is used in that manner.

According to a 2015 Arizona Department of Transportation report, Motor Vehicle Crash Facts, statistics on distracted-driving behavior show:

Talking on hands-free devices resulted in 165 crashes. Of those crashes, two were fatalities and 53 resulted in injuries.

Talking on hand-held devices resulted in 374 crashes. Of those crashes, two were fatalities and 124 were crashes with injuries.

Involvement in other activity with an electronic device resulted in 1,086 crashes. Of those crashes, eight were fatalities and 397 resulted in injuries.

Manually operating an electronic device resulted in 587 crashes. Of those crashes, three were fatalities and 219 were crashes with injuries.

The data in the state report are provided by law enforcement agencies, and the results are compiled from Arizona Traffic Crash Reports submitted to ADOT.
A University of Arizona program to return military dog tags and other personal effects to Vietnam War veterans is helping to heal the wounds of a war that ended more than 40 years ago.

About a year into the effort, the UAs Veterans Education and Transition Services (VETS) has returned the first of some 2,300 dog tags it obtained after taking over a program started by a veterans organization.

Vietnam vet Thomas Lee Ryhner of Shofield, Wisconsin, recently received one of his old tags from his Air Force service in Vietnam in 1970 and 1971.

I never realized I had left a dog tag in Vietnam until I received an email from the University of Arizona, Rhyner, also a retired Army National Guard member, said in a UA news article. I am very grateful to be reunited with my dog tag, as it brings back a lot of memories.

Last summer, the UAs Veterans Education and Transition Services department agreed to take over the personal effects program of Tours of Peace Vietnam Veterans, an Arizona-based program started by Vietnam vet Jess DeVaney.

DeVaney, who served as a Marine Corps rifleman, regularly made visits to Vietnam and began collecting dog tags before starting the nonprofit Tours of Peace, which organized tours for vets to help them come to terms with their war experiences.

Amid scarce funding and a dwindling number of Vietnam vets able to take the tours, Tours of Peace dissolved last year, and the UA VETS office agreed to take over the dog-tag return program last summer.

The Tours of Peace program had returned 360 dog tags, along with some other personal effects, but it hadnt sent any new queries since before 2000.

Duan Copeland, a UA student veteran, graduate assistant and leader of the VETS dog-tag program, said he was elated to get the programs first response via an email from Rhyner.

We finally had a potential hit, Copeland said. Its been a long time for us, so to get a response from a letter we had sent was awesome.

On May 22, Copeland and Cody Nicholls, the UAs assistant dean of students for Military and Veteran Engagement, attended a benefit dinner honoring DeVaney for his decades of service and broke the news to him of the programs first return.

Copeland said the tags of another Vietnam veteran, a Marine Corps vet from Walnut Creek, California, were recently identified after his son spotted his fathers name on the list of service members on the VETS website.

The UA team began by sending an initial 40 letters to veterans using addresses Tours of Peace members were able to identify and others the UA found. Last week, the team planned to send an additional 60 letters.

The tags initially were authenticated by a number of methods, including the use of military documents, military database data, information generated from official memorials and personal-identification documents.

Volunteers also have verified that a number of dog tags belong to service members who have died.

With each passing year, more Vietnam veterans are passing away, said Nicholls, a veteran of the Army Reserves and the Wyoming National Guard.

A number of UA staffers, students and student veterans have worked on the project, including Anna Williams, who served as the initial project coordinator and now works for the UAs BIO5 Institute.

At the VETS center, we push the idea of service and have found that a lot of our students still want to serve in some way  in this case, to those who came before us, said Copeland, a UA graduate student studying applied biosciences and microbiology.

Staffers in the office of U.S. Sen. John McCain originally presented the program to the team.

Copeland says he hopes word of Rhyners match will encourage other veterans and their family members to come forward.

When we send these letters, who knows if these people are still alive? But this work is meaningful, Copeland said. Its a way for our students and employees to connect with someone from the past to say, You are not forgotten. You are important.
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TCN News

Aligarh : Aligarh Muslim University Alumnus, Dr Mohammad Abbas Khan has brought laurels to his Alma mater after graduating, among the top of his class at the Boston University School of Dental Medicine, USA for Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD).

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Khan has scored a 100 percent in Pharmacology besides scoring the highest marks in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology in his exams at the Boston University School of Dental Medicine. He has also been felicitated during the award ceremony of the Dental School. Meanwhile, he has also been awarded by the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, USA for being among the top of the Dental Schools merit list.

Khan, who has been in the Boston University for over two years, has made remarkable contributions to the student bodies. As the elected President of American Association of Public Health Dentistry for the Boston University, he generated awareness about Public Health and spearheaded new initiatives. Due to his good academic record and passion to contribute to the students, he was appointed as the teaching assistant for the subjects of Pharmacology, Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, Endodontics and Removable Prosthodontics.

Before beginning his journey at Boston University for his DMD, he did his MPH from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH) and graduated in 2015. Even at JHSPH, he was among toppers and contributed to the student community as the elected Vice-President for Johns Hopkins Student Assembly and Student representative for Committee on Academic Standards.

Khans mother, Dr Zebun Nisa Khan teaches at the Department of Education, AMU while his father Professor Huzoor H Khan teaches at the Department of Mathematics, AMU.
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TCN News

Governor of Manipur and former Union Minister for Minority Affairs Najma A. Heptulla has been unanimously elected as Chancellor (Amir-e-Jamia) of Jamia Millia Islamia for five years by the Universitys Court (Anjuman) in a special meeting held on May 25, 2017.

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77-year old Heptulla succeeds Lt. Gen. (Retd.) M. A. Zaki who has completed his five-year term. Heptullas tenure begins with effect from May 26, 2017.

Grand niece of independent Indias first Education Minister, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Heptulla has been a five time member of the Rajya Sabha between 1986 and 2012 and Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha for sixteen years.

Expressing his happiness over her election as Chancellor, Prof Talat Ahmad, Vice Chancellor, JMI said, the university will be greatly benefited from her rich experience in both political and public life. It will be our privilege to work with her and to learn from her distinguished career in Parliament and internationally.

Prof Ahmad added that the university would also like to thank the outgoing Chancellor for his unstinting support and guidance.

Dr Heptulla has had the distinction of presiding over the womens parliamentarians group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in 1993. She was elected President of Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), a Geneva-based international organization from 1999 to 2002. She was nominated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as its human development ambassador.

Najma Heptulla served as the Minister of Minority Affairs in Narendra Modis cabinet before being appointed as Governor of Manipur.
Help India!

Nagpur, (IANS): A group of cow vigilantes attacked two youths of Malegaon town in Maharashtras Washim district last week after suspecting them of possessing banned beef, police said on Monday.

Washims Superintendent of Police Mokshada Patil told media persons that at least seven gau rakshaks have been booked as also the two youths who allegedly were found in possession of beef.

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In the incident that occurred last Friday, the cow vigilantes brutally hammered the two youths before taking them to police.

Patil said samples of the meat collected from the duo have been sent to a government lab in Nagpur for analysis and ascertain whether it was beef or not.

Nine persons have been arrested in connection with the incident. We have lodged two different complaints. The seven who attacked the two men have been charged and the other is against the due from whom the meat was recovered, Patil said.

Earlier over the weekend, a video clip of the alleged cow vigilants assaulting the two persons and accusing them of possessing cow meat, went viral on social media networks.

They were seen shouting slogans and forcing the duo to chant Jai Shri Ram, slapping, punching and kicking them repeatedly, and ordering them to come to the police station with them.

Last year, Maharashtra imposed a complete ban on the slaughter and sale of meat from bulls, bullocks and buffaloes  except water buffaloes.

However, as per a Bombay High Court ruling later, it is not illegal to eat or possess the meat of these animals here if brought from outside the the state.
Help India!

By Shafeeq Hudawi, Twocircles.net

Malappuram: With its majority Muslim population and less vulnerability to communal violence, Malappuram has been the prime target of Sangh Parivar in South India. The district was on the brink of a possible riot. But the timely intervention of Kerala police has foiled the bid to evoke riots in Malappuram following the desecration of a temple at Pookkottumpadam in Malappuram district. The incident, which happened on Friday night, followed concerted attempts by Sangh Parivar to spread communal hatred.

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Extreme Hindu outfits like Hindu Aikya Vedi declared local hartal and blocked roads. In addition to social media campaigns, which said Hindus were facing threat in Malappuram, the state witnessed protests by Hindu organizations. The protesters tried to block the way of Aryadan Muhammed , former Congress MLA and former minister of electricity, who tried to visit the place.



On Friday night, Vilwath Shiva temple in Pookkottumpadam near Nilambur in the district was vandalised and idols were destroyed.



On Sunday, Malappuram Police arrested Mohanakumar S S in connection with the attack on a temple in Pookottumpadam near Nilambur in the district native. A native of Kilimanoor in Thiruvananthapuram, Mohankumar has a criminal background and has been involved in several cases including murder.



According to police, the culprit entered the temple after removing roof tiles of Chuttampalam. And he destroyed idols of Shiva and Vishnu in two sanctum sanctorums (Sree Kovils).

The temple staff noticed that the idols in Sree Kovils were destroyed and the roof tiles of Chuttampalam were removed when the temple staff arrived to open the temple on Saturday morning.

Social media campaigns, which stated Muslim involvement, urged Hindus to be ready to open refugee camps across southern districts of Kerala. Last year, following the fireworks tragedy at Puttingal temple in Kollam district, Sangh Parivar had unleashed social media campaign saying Communists and Muslim fundamental groups were behind the accident.

But, the entire script to unleash the model of violence which has worked well for BJP in North India was spoilt when Mohanakumar was taken into custody. According to the police, Mohanakumar vandalised the temple in a protest against bad customs in Hindu religion. Few days back, he did the same with a temple at Vaniyambalam near Nilambur in the district.



The accused has been booked under IPC section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion) and section 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class).



However, taking note of the organised attempts in social media to spread communal hatred in the wake of temple attack, the police have started closely watching social media. Malappuram DySP M P Mohanachandran told media persons that the police was on a vigil and keenly watching the social media. There are organised attempts social media platforms taking advantage of the temple attack to spread communal enmity. Actions will taken against those who found involved in such activities, he said.
A Netflix documentary series has unravelled the unsolved killing of a nun in 1969, with hopes that victims and witnesses of sexual abuse come forward to testify.

The Keepers, a seven-part series, released late this month by Netflix explores the cold case murder of Sister Cathy Cesnik who taught at Archbishop Keough High School.

The TV programme poses the theory that she was killed as she was about to turn whistleblower on a paedophile network organised by two priests.

The 26-year-old nun's car was found abandoned a day after she vanished while out on a shopping trip.

Her battered and mutilated body was found on a remote hillside eight weeks later. Police believe the cause of death was blunt-force trauma. The killer was never caught.

Paedophile network

The Netflix true-crime series focuses on allegations of sexual abuse by Father Joseph Maskell and Father Neil Magnus at the Baltimore Catholic school. There are detailed interviews with former pupils who say they were victims of group rapes. Police officers are also alleged to have taken part.

The priests are said to have chosen their victims when they heard their confessions, selecting vulnerable children who were being abused at home.

One former pupil of the school, Jean Hargadon Wehner, alleged she was raped at 14, and told it would cleanse her soul.

On film, Wehner says Sister Cathy Cesnik was the only teacher who had tried to stop the sexual abuse.

Wehner tells of how Father Maskell brought her to see Cesnik's corpse, before it was discovered by police, and warned her: You see what happens when you say bad things about people?

Detectives involved in the 1970 investigation told The Baltimore Sun that their efforts were impeded due to lack of cooperation from the Archdiocese Of Baltimore.

Catholic cover up?

After a visit to the police commissioner by archdiocesan representatives, detectives said they were forced to curtail the questioning of a priest over Cesnik's death. One official claimed he was ordered to destroy investigative documents because of church sensitivity.

Spokesman for the archdiocese, William Blaul, denied that any interference took place.

Father Maskell was chaplain to the Baltimore county police, the Maryland state police and also the local National Guard. He had close connections with the city's Catholic network.

In 1995, Maskell was defrocked after police discovered documents which included psychological profiles of his victims. He died in 2001 without having been charged.

More than 30 women revealed that they had been sexually abused at Archbishop Keough High School. Settlements of around $50,000 were paid out to 13 former students of the school by the archdiocese of Baltimore.

The documentary also suggests that the murder of Joyce Malecki, an office worker with links to the parish, could have connections with Cesnik's killing.

The FBI said in a statement: The Keepers is rightly bringing attention to the senseless and unsolved murders of Sister Cathy Cesnik and Joyce Malecki.
When the Second World War was being fought the lines of battle were clear. One side was Germany and the other the UK. The war ended in Germany's defeat and the UK emerged as the dominant power in Europe. Then came Maasterchit and the European Union. It was an excellent dream but as Harold Robbins has written " dreams die first". The EU over the decades became a power train for Germany. It began to dominate Europe relegating all other nations to a secondary role. The UK also suffered as it faced German clout based on its economy. The once global power was reduced to being subservient to Germany.

In fact, Germany had achieved dominant power status in the Continent without firing a shot. If one is not sanguine it was the fulfillment of Hitler's dream. There were other problems as well. The Open Borders concept mitigated against the UK ethos. With Germany calling the shots and open borders the UK would have fast lost its identity. This was the issue and if the UK were to survive as a significant power on its own leaving the EU was the only way out. Millions of Muslims would have also made their way to the UK, which older Britons could not stomach.

UK and EU

In a way the UK leaving the EU Is good because the UK will get back control of its destiny. Ultimately the EU will also disintegrate as the French and Belgians realize that they will just become appendages of a resurgent Germany.

Perhaps things would then be too late as Germany would control everything. The question is how long will Germany subsidize the poor economies of East Europe? Maybe they will do it as it will give the German identity a big power boost. But others will rebel and this will manifest in the rise of leaders like Le Pen and Gert Wilder. They may not win now but over the years their views will have a cascading effect.

They can only continue in the EU in case they forget their national identity. This is alarming and with Brexit, the far right has got a fillip. One can't wish it away.

Germany the pivot

Germany is the pivot in Europe. it will control EU through its economic muscle. One has only to see the plight of countries like Greece and Italy.

For such nations, the EU is a haven. They get food and sustenance and they won't mind German overlordship.

Last word

Those nations who remain in the EU were never great powers. For them the issues are different. The UK was a world power once and in case it aspires for an independent path Brexit was essential. In the future, a resurgent Germany is sure to call the shots. It will be interesting to see how things pan out in the future.
Ten years ago, the SNP under the leadership of Alex Salmond soar to power on the back of New Labour's gradual erosion of support in scotland. The irony was that the Additional Member System used to elect Members of the Scottish Parliament through a combination of First-Past-the-Post and Proportional Representation was meant to stop the Nationalists from achieving an overall majority. Yet in 2011, they did just that. Despite an independence defeat in 2014, they seemed invincible after the next year's General Election. But like with every government that has been in power for ten years, people are growing tired of the Nationalists.

It is fair to say that one day we will be discussing the strange death of SNP Scotland.

'Nicola Sturgeon is contaminating the SNP brand'

Nicola Sturgeon fails to realise she is slowly contaminating her party's brand, despite once being one of its greatest assets. She seems to have consistently ignored opinion polls suggesting the majority of SNP voters supported leaving the EU last year. Driven by her bid for independence, she has disregarded polls showing the majority of voters oppose another referendum. If she loses 12 seats to the Scottish Tories, this should send a message to the First Minister that Scots used the ballot to protest against a second independence poll.

Yet the Nationalists' defeat greatly depends upon the ability of the unionist parties to improve their own images.

Ruth Davidson is performing tremendously well as the Scottish Tories' leader. However if the Conservatives in Westminster embarrass themselves and poison their own national brand, this could hamper a Scottish Tory revival.

'Strange death of SNP Scotland is imminent'

Labour and the Liberal Democrats in Scotland need to get their act together also.

Their dithering over Ms Sturgeon's strength has caused her to dominate the Scottish landscape for too long. Where is the same pride in the Union the Scottish Tories have?

If they fail to retract huge swathes of support lost since 2007, it all falls down to Ms Davidson to rescue Scotland from the Nationalists. She is finally onto something here, and if the Scottish Conservatives increase their support, the strange death of SNP Scotland is imminent.
diane abbott's media performances are a worry for many Labour supporters. Somehow, she manages to look and sound incompetent. Viewers and commentators have, however, pointed out that Andrew Marr's pressing treatment of her was in stark contrast to his rather soft approach to Amber Rudd during the same programme.

#Marr has a nice cosy chat with Amber Rudd after spending 20 minutes trying to smear Dianne Abbott. pic.twitter.com/toa3DdwY3n  Curious (@myviewontopic) May 28, 2017

Much like Andrew Neil repeatedly questioning Jeremy Corbyn about his views on the IRA, Andrew Marr took the opportunity to read out a statement Diane Abbott made no less than 35 years ago.

In her usual, rather clumsy fashion, #Diane Abbott referred to her change of hairstyle, which undoubtedly, will gain her more ridicule from her many adversaries. In fact, if you take a look at #Diane Abbot's Twitter page, many contributors seem to dread the thought of her becoming the future Home Secretary.

#marr the problem is not Jeremy corbyn becoming PM that worries me,it's dianne Abbott becoming UK home sec & why I won't be voting Labour!  Steve Stemidd (@stemidd2) May 28, 2017

While many wonder why the Labour Party keeps allowing Diane Abbott to go on various TV and radio interviews and underperform, the general media appear to relish the opportunity to make her look incompetent. Yesterday morning, Andrew Marr also managed to continuously interrupt and attempt to throw her off course.

The IRA question

Many commentator's obsession with the IRA question is slightly questionable. No doubt, prominent figures like Andrew Neil and Andrew Marr would emphasise the need to ask such questions for the purpose of painting a complete picture of candidates for the voters. While this may indeed be necessary, the relevance of views held such a long time ago must be questioned.

In the case of the IRA, "talking to terrorists" ultimately lead to the cease-fire in 1994 and kick-started the peace process. If people like John Hume, and even Bill Clinton, had not been willing to sit across a table with representatives of the then much-maligned Sinn Fein party, the peace process would never have come about and peace in Northern Ireland would probably be as elusive as ever.

The importance of impartiality in the media

The media can play a decisive role in swaying public mood. Depending on the interviewer, candidates receive a softer or harsher treatment. It is doubtful whether the members of the media as a whole are doing the public a favour by purposely colouring interviews rather than remaining impartial.

Surely, regardless of party allegiance, candidates should be allowed to make their voice heard without interruptions. Similarly, it would make sense to question candidates on current policies and plans for a future government instead of referring back to often irrelevant positions held a long time ago.
scotland's First Minister is threatening to use Labour to lock the Tories out of power, after an opinion poll shows support for her party dropping.

Speaking during a BBC interview, Nicola Sturgeon has called for a 'progressive alliance' with Labour in the likely event of a hung parliament after the General Election on June 8th.

Despite her demand for a coalition of progressive policies, she doubts Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's credibility as a future prime minister.

Yet a Panelbase survey, commissioned by The Sunday Times, discovered the Scottish Conservatives' support has soared ahead to 33 per cent.

This represents an increase of a significant 18 points from the 2015 General Election.

The results of this poll, if translated into votes, would enable the Scottish Tories to gain 10 seats at the expense of the Scottish National Party.

That would represent a huge blow to the nationalists, who gained 56 seats at the last general election at the expense of the main parties.

It would also weaken Ms Sturgeon's independence bid and help to increase the Conservatives' majority, paralysing her of the chance of choosing the next UK government in the midst of a hung parliament.

'Ensure Scotland's voice is heard in Westminster'

But the First Minister said that the reality is the Conservatives will win with an enormous majority.

She said she wants to ensure Scotland's voice is heard in Westminster by persuading Scots to vote for the SNP.

The Conservatives' campaign has warned of a 'coalition of chaos' between Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Nationalists should they fail to achieve an overall majority.

Ms Sturgeon said there are 10 days left before polling day to alert Scotland to the threat Tory policies pose to jobs and struggling households, and to stop Tory values.

'Work, work and work some more'

Despite her pleasure at the Scottish Tories' triumph in this recent opinion poll, their party leader, Ruth Davidson, warned against complacency, especially with Ms Sturgeon's threats of blocking a Conservative government.

She urged party members to 'work, work and work some more' after other surveys suggested her party are on course to land substantial gains in the Scottish countryside, particularly Westminster SNP leader Angus Robertson's Moray constituency.

The Scottish Conservatives are likely to achieve their best electoral result since the 1970 General Election, where the then Tory leader Edward Heath became prime minister.

The only MP they have for now is David Mundell, who is also the Government's Scottish Secretary.

He has been a Member of Parliament for Dumfriesshire, Cyldesdale and Tweeddale since 2005.

But this Sunday Times' survey demonstrates the Scottish Tories would gain 12 seats, 10 from the SNP and one from Labour.

The recent poll indicates only 44 per cent of people may be willing to vote for the nationalists, which represents a 6 per cent drop from the 2015 General Election.

But the SNP would still manage to secure 45 out of 59 Scottish seats, leaving them in a powerful position to decide upon the next British government should there be a hung parliament, as the party's leader anticipates.

Equally, it would also strengthen Prime Minister Theresa May's claims that a second independence referendum is not necessary as the Brexit negotiations commence soon.

'We said no, we meant it'

The results were produced after Ms Davidson launched her recent election poster, with the slogan: 'We said no, we meant it.'

Polling expert Professor John Curtice said the Panelbase poll showed the Tories deprived the SNP of five percentage points.

He said No voters from the 2014 Scottish Referendum and Scottish Leave voters were backing Ms Davidson's party, with the latter's support for the Tories increasing from 33 per cent to 55 per cent since September last year.

Derek Mackay, the SNP's business representative, said only his party has the strength to oppose a 'hard' Brexit, oppose austerity and guard Scotland's best interests.

He added he will not let the Conservatives get away with destroying Scotland.
Tragedy struck in a rural area of Mississippi after a shooting took the lives of eight people  including a sheriffs deputy on Saturday night.

The suspect is in custody

The suspect of the Mississippi shooing is in custody but as of a few hours ago charges have yet to be filed against him. Warren Strain, a spokesperson of the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation  also noted it was too early to discuss the motive behind the shooting.

According to investigators, police responded to a phone call regarding a domestic dispute. The shooting took place at three homes.

Two were located in Brookhaven and the third was in Bogue Chitto.

William Durr

William Durr was the name of the 36-year-old Sheriff Deputy who fell victim to the shooter. Durr had been serving the Sheriffs Office of Lincoln County for two years. The names of the other seven victims have yet to be released. Warren Strain, however, did confirm that two boys are among the victims of the shooting.

The suspect

Willie Cory Godbolt has been arrested and named as the suspect of the shooting. A reporter named Therese Apel of the Clarion-Ledger was able to capture a video of the handcuffed suspect on the side of the road. In the video, the suspect of the shooting was talking about custody issues between his wife and other members of his family.

He claimed that his neighbors intervened and called the cops.

Godbolt claimed his intention was suicide by cop, but he ran out of bullets. He said he wasnt fit to live after what he did. He was transported to a hospital for a gunshot wound. Details regarding how serious the gunshot wound on the shooting victim was has not been released.

The crime scenes

The shootings are believed to have begun around 11:30 P.M. last night. It was at the first crime scene that three women and the deputy were found dead. The second crime scene contained the body of two boys. And the third crime scene contained the bodies of a woman and a man.

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant took to Facebook to call the shootings a senseless tragedy. He said, too often we lose our finest, and then he thanked the law enforcements for continuing to serve the people of Mississippi.

At this time, investigators are still trying to piece together what happened. How did an argument about children result in a man who wanted death by suicide to start shooting people at three different houses? The names of the victims will be released after the next of kin have been contacted.
Ever since Donald Trump was sworn into office last January, he's been dealing with constant scandals that have plagued his administration. While the controversies continue to hover over the White House, the president and many of his supporters appear more interested in the person leaking the information rather than the details.

Fox News on Trump

Over the last two years, Donald Trump has dominated the political headlines with his controversial campaign style and rhetoric. The former host of "The Apprentice" and his candidacy helped further widen the political divide in the United States, as liberals and those on the left were vocal in their opposition to his agenda, while conservatives and many right-wing Americans have stood by his side ever since.

One of the biggest issues to linger in the White House is the constant leak of information, most notably pertaining to the president's relationship with Russia. As seen in various speeches, interviews, and tweets, Trump has continued to deny any wrongdoing, with members of the right-wing media doing their best to back him. During the Saturday night edition of "Justice with Judge Jeanine" on Fox News, Jeanie Pirro went off on a controversial rant in her defense of the billionaire real estate mogul.

There is a leaker in the White House.There is a traitor inside the peoples house.A traitor who must be taken out.My #OpeningStatement: pic.twitter.com/cyD4Kyap9X  Jeanine Pirro (@JudgeJeanine) May 28, 2017

(Pirro goes off about the "leaker" at 3:35 in the above video.)

Kicking off her program on Saturday night, Fox News host Jeanine Pirro lashed out over the alleged "leaker" in the White House, claiming she might know exactly who it is, before calling for the person to be taken out.

After giving a brief recap of Donald Trump's recent foreign trip, praising it as a "home run," the host made a strong allegation.

On "Justice," @JudgeJeanine said federal authorities must identify the "traitorous" leaker inside the Trump WH. https://t.co/WIYgBxnoxK pic.twitter.com/yVsAAXpYsp  Fox News (@FoxNews) May 28, 2017

"There is a leaker in the White House," Jeanine Pirro said, before adding, "There is a traitor inside the people's house.

A traitor who must be taken out." "This leaker needs to be found immediately, no holds barred," Pirro noted. Not stopping there, Pirro went on to say, "I have my own ideas, but I'm not ready to share them." "That person is an enemy of the United States," she added, before blasting the "media" for ignoring the story.

Report: President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner proposed secret communications with Russia https://t.co/D7HrFrCXQ4 pic.twitter.com/ZRYZw7knZC  CBS News (@CBSNews) May 28, 2017

Moving forward

With Jeanine Pirro and others in the conservative media defending Donald Trump ad nauseam from the growing scandals against him, media outlets have provided facts and evidence to contradict with what the White House has used in their defense. The latest headlines involve Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, reportedly trying to set up a secret "back channel" communication with Russia.
Whatever one thinks about the man in the Oval Office, and opinions widely vary on that subject, most can agree that the United States Military is in good hands with Secretary of Defense James Mattis. The tough-talking Marine has a keen grasp on strategic reality and has the ability to penetrate them fog to get at what needs to be done. He proved this when he sat down for an interview on Face the Nation.

America still supports NATO

German Chancellor Angela Merkel snarkily suggested that American is no longer a reliable ally, by which she means that Trump disagrees with her on climate change and immigration.

Mattis was pleased to disagree when it comes to things that matter, ranging from terrorism from ISIS, to a possible insurgency in Turkey, to the developing threat from Russia. Despite what some commentators have suggested, we are not in a post-NATO world yet despite the presidents view that certain allies should pay more for their own defense.

A Second Korean War would be a catastrophe

When Mattis said that any conflict in Korea would be a catastrophe he was not saying anything anyone did not know. North Korea is not only refining its nuclear arsenal but is hell bent on getting missiles capable of delivering mushroom clouds as far as way as The United States. The problem is that North Korea has Seoul, the capital of South Korea, under an impressive force of artillery and missiles and could level the place at will.

At the same time, North Korea cannot be permitted to have a nuclear arsenal that it can strike an enemy with.

Annihilation tactics against ISIS

Mattis was a little bit more optimistic where it came to the war against ISIS. The United States and her allies have abandoned the strategy embarked upon by the Obama administration of degrading and defeating the terrorist army.

Now the coalition means to surround ISIS forces and annihilate them. No one is going to escape the Middle Eastern battlefields to slither into Europe and North America to wreck revenge and mayhem. The new strategy has some risks, but it may avoid more massacres such as what recently happened in Manchester.

What keeps Mattis awake at night

Of course the above is a trick question. Nothing keeps Mad Dog James Mattis awake at night. It is his job to keep the enemies of our Republic awake at night. To the extent that the secretary of defense does so, Mattis will have begun to repair the tattered strategic position of the United States.
In a fresh development, that would send shock waves across the US intelligence community and the White House, reports have surfaced that US President Donald Trump's son-in-law and key adviser jared kushner had been hand in glove with Russia's ambassador in Washington. Kushner spoke to Kislyak about the possibility of setting up a secret hotline with the Kremlin prior to President Trump's inauguration.

Extremely damaging revelations

As reported in several sections of the US media yesterday, Jared Kushner was going to be investigated for his links to Russian bankers and the meetings he had with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

The esteemed Washington Post has now unearthed some more disturbing details about the true nature of the relationship between Kushner and Kislyak.

US officials who are aware of the developments in this investigation have revealed that the President's son-in-law asked Kislyak to speak to the Kremlin so that a secure communication channel could be set up with the Russians. During those meetings, that took place in first week of December, Kushner wanted to use Russian diplomatic premises for all discussions with the Russians prior to the inauguration.

It is believed that the reason behind using Russian diplomatic facilities was to ensure that no communication that took place prior to the inauguration could be intercepted by US intelligence agencies.

However, the US officials were actually able to get hold of the communications between Kislyak and his bosses, which revealed that he had taken Kushner's proposals to Kremlin.

Flynn attended the meetings too

The report also stated that Michael Flynn, the President's former National Security adviser who quit following revelations about his links to Russia, was also present at the meetings.

The Russian connections in the Presidential elections is something that the President has simply not been able to shrug off despite repeated denials. The revelations about Jared Kushner would add further fuel to the theory that Kremlin heavily influenced the election process in favour of Donald Trump. It is however important to point out that two months ago, the White House had in fact revealed that the Russian Ambassador Kislyak had had meetings with Jared Kushner. The contents of the meeting however has made it a part of the FBI investigation that is looking into Russian influence on one of the most dramatic Presidential elections in recent memory.
Republican party Former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour airlifted to hospital following road accident Barbour's SUV is thought to have been the only vehicle involved in the crash Samantha Spencer

Space Famed astronaut James McDivitt passes away at 93 Samantha Spencer

Democratic Party West Virginia Governor Jim Justice considering running for the Senate Justice was initially elected as governor while a Democrat, but changed affiliations and would be re-elected as a Republican Samantha Spencer

Republican party Indiana Representative Victoria Spartz reportedly making plans for a Senate run Samantha Spencer

Republican party Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson reportedly considering challenging Senator John Cornyn in primary Samantha Spencer

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Republican party Former U.S. Representative Matt Salmon drops Arizona gubernatorial bid Samantha Spencer

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Republican party Arkansas U.S. Senator Tom Cotton assembling major donors for a 2024 Presidential run Samantha Spencer

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War in Ukraine Justin Trudeau and Jill Biden make surprise appearances in Ukraine Trudeau reopened the Canadian embassy in Kyiv and Jill Biden met Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska near the border with Slovakia D.J. Eaton

War in Ukraine Biden has 'nearly exhausted' available funds for helping Ukraine, wants more from Congress D.J. Eaton

Democratic Party Former Texas U.S. Senator, Representative Bob Krueger dies of congestive heart failure Samantha Spencer

War in Ukraine Jill Biden to spend Mother's Day with Ukrainian refugees in Slovakia D.J. Eaton

Joe Biden Biden to visit South Korea and Japan in his first visit to Asia as president He will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders of the Quad in Tokyo D.J. Eaton

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Republican party Former WH Chief of Staff US Rep. Mark Meadows accused of voter fraud Samantha Spencer

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Republican party Longtime Michigan U.S. Representative Fred Upton says he will retire Samantha Spencer

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NFL Jalen Ramsey and Julian Edelman offer hilarious takes on Tom Bradys comeback ZeeGee Cecilio

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world news The U.S. wants its citizens in Ukraine to leave because of a possible Russian invasion Embassy officials told American expats in Ukraine to leave; despite the stark warnings, many expats plan to ignore the guidance and remain Prabir Ghose

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Two were killed and one wounded in a recent stabbing on a train in Portland, Oregon on Friday afternoon. The suspect was Jeremy Joseph Christian, a person who has a background of expressing hate against minorities. The incident is being classified as an instance of hate crime.

From hate speech and racial insult to stabbing

According to a report, a teenager by the name of Destinee Mangum and her friend was being shouted at by the suspect who was throwing insults and racial slurs at the two women. Mangum, 16, said that the suspect frightened her and her friend enough that they were forced to move to the back of the train to get away from the man.

"He told us to go back to Saudi Arabia and he told us we shouldn't be here, to get out of his country," Mangum said in an interview. The teenager added that the suspect was not content with these words; that the man also implied the two did not amount to anything and should just "kill themselves."

The two teenagers were ready to leave at the next stop. At this point, three strangers on the train confronted the suspect, saying that the hate speech was "no way to treat the ladies." An argument ensued.

By the time they got to the next station, the two women saw that the suspect "just started stabbing people." They ran for their lives, and some people called 911 to report the location of the suspect as he fled the scene.

However, it was too late for two of the three men.

Ricky John Best died at the scene. He was a 53-year-old war veteran and city technician who, as reports say, was planning to pursue public service. Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, also from Portland, was a 23-year-old graduate of Economics from Portland's Reed College.

The third person who tried to help Destinee Mangum is Micah Fletcher.

The 21-year-old fortunately survived and is recovering at a hospital. For those wanting to help, a GoFundMe account was set up to help people donate for his medical bills.

Hate speech victim: 'they died because of me'

A teary-eyed Destinee Mangum looked at the camera in her interviews and expressed her gratitude for the men that helped them.

Her mother was just as thankful.

Although it was not her fault, the teenager cannot help but think that two of the men died because of her and her friend. The suspect was charged with aggravated murder (two counts) and attempted murder. It should be noted that the aggravated murder charge could result in a possible death penalty for Jeremy Christian.
Kailyn Lowry is one of the "Teen Mom 2" stars. She was once one of the most-liked stars in the franchise but when her marriage to Javi Marroquin fell apart, things spiraled downhill fast. Lowry had some plastic surgery done with Dr. miami shortly after she suffered a miscarriage and her husband was deployed to Qatar. Many dubbed it a mid-life crisis, and it was the beginning of the end of her life with Javi.

Kailyn's procedures

When Kailyn Lowry debuted the work she had done by Dr. Miami, it was a huge deal. She looked better than she had before, and while critics hollered at her for being vain, Javi Marroquin supported her from Qatar.

"Teen Mom 2" fans questioned her reasoning behind having the plastic surgery done, especially if she had planned more children. Lowry insisted she was done with kids, and shortly thereafter announced she was getting a divorce from Marroquin.

There has been a lot of talk of how much Kailyn Lowry changed since she suffered her miscarriage in December 2015. The situation was tough and she felt like Javi Marroquin blamed her for the loss. Kailyn wanted to feel better about herself and Dr. Miami helped her. Less than a year after surgery, Lowry discovered she was pregnant with her third child. The scandalous part of all of this was that the baby was not her ex-husband's. While Kailyn announced she is indeed pregnant, she did not share the identity of her third baby daddy.

Dr. Miami to do more work on Kailyn Lowry

According to Radar Online, Kailyn Lowry has already booked Dr. Miami for more work. Plastic surgery is a big thing among the "Teen Mom" girls. Several from the franchise have had work done including Farrah Abraham, Briana DeJesus, and Amber Portwood. The appointment was confirmed with Dr.

Miami but he did not detail what Lowry was looking to have done. There is speculation it will be a tummy tuck at a minimum. Her vanity isn't shocking to fans who have watched her morph into someone who is almost unrecognizable.

The next few months will be telling about Kailyn Lowry. She is due at some point this summer but hasn't announced an actual due date.

Speculation is that Lowry is having another boy. She has made it clear that her unborn baby will be mixed, using it as an attention grabber for weeks now. The idea that Lowry has already scheduled plastic surgery for after her child is born is unsettling to some. Will this be her new and improved body and attitude, or will she spiral further out of control?
As Donald Trump completed his first 100 days in office, there have been many changes over that time. While many of those changes have happened in the White House, the landscape of the media has also been altered.

Colbert on O'Reilly

During the 2016 presidential election, it was made clear that Donald Trump was not going to be on the same page as most of the mainstream media. From the moment he referred to illegal immigrants from Mexico as "rapists" and "murderers," Trump received heavy backlash from the press, which only increased throughout the rest of his campaign for president.

Since his inauguration, Trump's relationship with the press has only gotten worse, with the exception of a safe space on Fox News and a few other right-wing outlets. However, one of Trump's biggest supporters, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly, was fired earlier this month following the much talked about sexual harassment scandal, despite the president coming to his defense on the issue. As seen during the April 29 edition of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," O'Reilly was the target during a discussion about the commander in chief.

Tonight: Despite a wild ride in Trump's first 100 days, Stephen thinks America is doing better than ever. #LSSC pic.twitter.com/NIIPYWjjB5  The Late Show (@colbertlateshow) April 29, 2017

Kicking off his opening monologue during CBS's "The Late Show" on Friday night was host Stephen Colbert who didn't hold back his thoughts on the issue at hand.

"This brings us to the end of Donald Trump's first 100 days in office," Colbert said, before noting, "after this, we can't take him back to the store without a receipt."

When it comes to avoiding conflicts of interest, #Trump has ripped up playbook in first 100 days. @BernardFCondon: https://t.co/NkPx5nH7DP  The Associated Press (@AP) April 29, 2017

"America's never been better in my opinion," Stephen Colbert noted.

"La La Land and Moonlight won best picture," Colbert said, mocking the infamous Oscar's blunder by adding "that's twice the best picture in one year." Not stopping there, Colbert then turned his attention to Bill O'Reilly for not surviving Trump's first 100 days in office. "Bill OReilly got fired and now has to sexually harass people freelance," he said to the laughter of those in the audience.

He then shifted back to the former host of "The Apprentice," trolling Trump for recently complaining about how difficult the job of president is, and that he didn't realize it would be as tough when he was campaigning during the election.

Next up

While Stephen Colbert and others like him continue to use Donald Trump as the ultimate punching line, the president and the White House are doing their best to regroup and move forward. Despite this, the latest polls show Trump with a favorability rating of just 40 percent, which is a historic low for this soon in a presidency.
The European authorities have fined Facebook with 110 million Euros for misleading information during an analysis for the purchase of WhatsApp messaging service in 2014, according to Reuters. The investigations by the european union about Facebook resulted in the company being fined with a huge amount of money.

Fined for linking Facebook's and WhatsApp's users' identities

The European Commission  which acts as an arbitrator for competition in the European Union  claims it has applied a proportionate and discouraging fine, given Facebook's actions.

Facebook stated it would not link its users' accounts to WhatsApp's accounts, but they did this two years after they took over WhatsApp.

The European Commission found that the technical possibility of linking the Facebook and WhatsApp users' identities existed since 2014, and the company's employees were aware of this possibility. This contradicts the company's statements made in 2014.

Facebook provided a press release where they showed that the errors from 2014 were not intentional. The company also said the European Commission confirmed that this issue didn't affect the process of taking over the company WhatsApp.

The fine doesn't affect Facebook's takeover of WhatsApp

The fine given by the European Commission to Facebook is a large one.

The social network has to pay 110 million Euros. However, this fine does not affect the European Commission's decisions related to the purchase of WhatsApp by Facebook. Moreover, it has nothing to do with other ongoing investigations. According to the European Commission, there are also some separate investigations about Facebook regarding some data protection issues.

The Commission had the right to fine Facebook with up to 1% of the company's 2016 turnover, which means $276 million. However, the fine was reduced because Facebook cooperated in the investigation and admitted the mistakes they made.

The last fine received by Facebook was $150,000

The European Union sanction comes just two days after Facebook received a $150,000 fine in France because they did not prevent advertisers who use the website from accessing users' personal data.

Also, the antitrust authorities in Italy fined WhatsApp 3 million Euros a week ago on the grounds that they forced their users to accept the fact that their personal data will be distributed to Facebook, according to Reuters.
The passing of Zbigniew Brzezinski on Friday came as a shock because he was still making public appearances a few months ago, commenting on the Korean Peninsula situation.

In the past week, many of my Chinese journalist friends who had interviewed him or listened to his speeches recalled their fond memories of the great strategist on WeChat Moments.

To many of them, myself included, Brzezinski was a man of great wisdom and a man who had a great understanding of the world and China.

As then-US national security advisor to president Jimmy Carter, Brzezinski played a key role in the normalization of diplomatic relations between the United States and the People's Republic of China in 1979.

The close contact he had then with Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping helped build a deep friendship between the two men.

I had heard Brzezinski mention that friendship several times, including at a film showing last November at the Meridian International Center in Washington. The event featured the documentary Mr. Deng Goes to Washington, which chronicled Deng's visit to the US in January 1979.

While most people may clearly remember the image of Deng donning a 10-gallon cowboy hat at a rodeo show in Texas, Brzezinski had fond memories of Deng having dinner at his home, one prepared by his wife Emilie and waited on by his three children.

To my generation, Brzezinski was one of several smart American politicians known to Chinese.

I first saw Brzezinski in 2004 when he gave a speech at the Oksenberg conference room at Stanford University. After Brzezinski retired from the job of national security advisor in 1981, Deng told him that he was welcome to travel anywhere in China. Brzezinski expressed his desire to travel with his children along the Long March route of the Red Army in the 1930s. Deng agreed.

However, Chinese Foreign Ministry officials did some homework and found that it would be too difficult to make the trip, given that much of the Long March route was still not accessible then by vehicles.

When I posted this anecdote on my WeChat Moments on Saturday, friends praised Brzezinski for his charisma.

I had attended quite a few speeches by Brzezinski in the past four years in Washington. While I did not always agree with him, I always admired his wisdom and insight.

Brzezinski was not shy in criticizing people in his own Democratic Party. For example, he had blasted then-US ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice as lacking in diplomacy when she used words "disgusting and shameful" after China and Russia vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on Syria.

That, of course, came after the US and its NATO allies abused a UN Security Council resolution in 2011 to pursue regime change in Libya.

Brzezinski was also blunt about the US surveillance near China's coast.

"We do something to the Chinese every week that we wouldn't like them to do us," Brzezinski told a seminar in October 2015.

"Every week we fly air missions right on the edge of Chinese territory," he said. "Would we like it if the Chinese planes flew right next to San Francisco or Los Angeles? This is a serious problem," he said.

To this day, China has continued to protest the close-in surveillance by US planes and ships near China's coast.

While fully aware of the differences between China and the US, Brzezinski always believed it was essential for China and the US to cooperate on regional and global issues.

"My sense is that at least those who shape policies in both countries now realize there is a kind of de facto partnership between China and America and that it is in our mutual interest for the disagreement not to get out of hand," he said in 2015.

The brilliant strategist expressed his concern about a lack of understanding of world affairs by many Americans.

"The vast majority of Americans don't have a clue of what's happening in the world scene," he said.

I had tried to attend every speech by Brzezinski over the years. And it's hard to believe that when I return to Washington on June 1 after weeks of vacation, Brzezinski will no longer be there.

Contact the writer at chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com
A man who got into an argument with his estranged wife over their children was arrested in a house-to-house shooting rampage in rural Mississippi that left eight people dead, including his mother-in-law and a sheriff's deputy.

"I ain't fit to live, not after what I done," a handcuffed Willie Corey Godbolt, 35, told The Clarion-Ledger (http://on.thec-l.com/2rbQIq5 ).

The gunfire erupted Saturday night at a home in Bogue Chitto after the deputy arrived in response to a domestic disturbance call, and spread to two houses in nearby Brookhaven, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) south of Jackson.

The dead included two boys, investigators said. Godbolt was hospitalized in good condition with a gunshot wound, though it wasn't clear who shot him.

No immediate charges were filed, and Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said it was too soon to say what the motive was. Authorities gave no details on the relationship between Godbolt and the victims.

However, a witness and Godbolt himself shed some light on what happened, with Godbolt giving an interview to the newspaper as he sat with his hands cuffed behind his back on the side of a road.

Godbolt said he was talking with his wife and in-laws when somebody called authorities.

"I was having a conversation with her stepdaddy and her mama and her, my wife, about me taking my children home," he said. "Somebody called the officer, people that didn't even live at the house. That's what they do. They intervene.""They cost him his life," he said, apparently referring to the deputy. "I'm sorry."The stepfather-in-law, Vincent Mitchell, told The Associated Press that Godbolt's wife and their two children had been staying at his Bogue Chitto home for about three weeks after she left her husband.

After the sheriff's deputy arrived at the house, Godbolt looked as if he was about to leave, then reached into his back pocket, pulled a gun and opened fire, Mitchell said.

Mitchell said he escaped along with Godbolt's wife. But he said three family members were killed in his home: his wife, her sister and one of the wife's daughters.

"I'm devastated. It don't seem like it's real," Mitchell said.

The slain deputy was identified as William Durr, 36.

After fleeing his in-laws' house, Godbolt killed four more people at two other homes, authorities said. At least seven hours elapsed between the first shootings and Godbolt's arrest near the third and final crime scene, Strain said.

Godbolt said he did not intend for police to capture him alive.

"My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets," he said. "Suicide by cop was my intention."This story has been corrected to fix the spelling of the suspect's middle name.

Reuters
Yangzhou, a major city in Jiangsu province on China's southeast coast, is looking to expand business with New York.

"Compared with New York, a young, dynamic, open and innovative city, Yangzhou is an oriental city both with a long history and a new prospect, a city that best represents the Chinese characteristics and boasts international features," said Zhang Aijun, mayor of Yangzhou, at a Yangzhou city promotion and overseas capital-matchmaking symposium at Bank of China New York on Thursday.

The event was held with the aim of building a bridge of economic cooperation between Yangzhou and New York.

"Jiangsu province has always played a leading role in developing foreign trade compared with the other provinces, and Yangzhou stands out as a shining pearl of this abundant land," Zhang said.

"As an important component of Jiangsu's economy, Yangzhou's economy is growing rapidly, and it has gradually received attention from investors around the world," said He Changyun, representative of the Jiangsu Provincial Economic and Trade Office in East America.

Yangzhou's GDP has reached $6.45 billion, 38th among more than 300 cities in China. The city's competitiveness has ranked in the top 50 for many years, according to Zhang.

So far, more than 1,400 enterprises from 88 countries and regions are investing and developing in Yangzhou. Eighty-five of those enterprises are from the US, He said.

Zhang said the city's growing competitiveness has attracted financial capital.

"The scale and activity of finance is a decisive factor of the economic power and development level of a city; and those who have more financial resources hold the initiative of economic development," Zhang said.

He said Jiangsu province is an important hub of the Belt and Road initiative and the Yangtze River Economic Zone. Zhang believes that Yangzhou will exploit its advantages to provide more development opportunities for US enterprises.

"The driving force of economic exchanges between China and the United States can be truly felt," said Fang Wenjian, vice-president of the Bank of China New York.

Fang said that new aspects of China-US trade will include more and faster-moving investment.

Loop Capital, PwC and Mayer Brown attended the symposium and discussed products for cross-border investment.

The Yangzhou Municipal Government also signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the China General Chamber of Commerce-USA and Bank of China New York branch.

xiaohong@chinadailyusa.com
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Courtesy Jennifer Tilson (GRANITE CITY, Ill.) -- A 19-year-old U.S. Army soldier was reunited with his family thanks to a good Samaritan who paid for him to travel home.



Keaton Tilson returned to Granite City, Illinois, for the first time since Christmas after Josh Rainey of St. Louis, Missouri, shelled out the $350 for his plane ticket.



"I needed to personally and publicly thank him," mom Jennifer Tilson said of Rainey. "You don't hear of that all the time of a complete stranger willing to spend all that money. We needed to find out who he was.



"We are super appreciative that Josh did this so Keaton could come home," she added. "I know it was short, but it was better than nothing."



Keaton Tilson is stationed in Fort Worth, Texas.



On May 25, Keaton Tilson received approval to return home for Memorial Day weekend, but because it was such short notice, he was on standby to get on a flight home to Illinois. When a stranger, Josh Rainey, noticed Keaton Tilson wasn't having much luck with his standby ticket, he bought him a one-way ticket home so the soldier could return home immediately, Jennifer Tilson said.



"He missed a couple of flights because they were full," she added. "He called back a few minutes later all choked up and said, 'Somebody just bought my ticket.'"



Josh Rainey, 35, told ABC News that he first walked over to Keaton Tilson to try to trade airline tickets with him, but was informed by staff that Keaton Tilson was not next in line on standby. Rainey said he then paid for a new ticket instead.



"I didn't go over there thinking I was going to buy a ticket, but it didn't look like he just wanted to go home, it looked like it was for a reason," Rainey recalled. "He shook my hand and walked away and then came back and asked if he could give me a hug. Getting a hug from him was the most payment I could've gotten.



"This is so much more about him," Rainey added. "He has chosen to give up at least the next four years of his life. He got the week off. Instead of choosing to travel or see another country, he had to get home to his family."



Keaton Tilson returned home just in time for Memorial Day weekend. His mother captured the emotional moment when he surprised his younger siblings on camera.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
The draft law on public debt management is expected to change the public debt management method in a stricter and more eficient manner__Photo: Internet

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The Ministry of Finance (MOF) recently revealed a draft law on public debt management, which is expected to change the public debt management method in a stricter and more efficient manner, and enhance borrowers responsibilities.The draft law keeps unchanged the governing scope of the 2009 law, covering governmental debts, government-guaranteed debts and debts of local administrations. It adds a provision that public debts do not include debts of state enterprises, public non-business units and state economic groups as well as debts of the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) for implementing monetary policies.Under the draft, the State would act as the focal point for the uniform and comprehensive management of public debts.Meanwhile, the Ministry of Planning and Investment would be in charge of negotiating and signing framework agreements, mobilizing and managing ODA and preferential loans. The SBV would negotiate and conclude ODA agreements with international financial institutions such as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank) while the MOF would negotiate specific loan agreements except those assigned by the SBV.The draft also assigns more tasks to the National Assembly Standing Committee, President, Ministry of Justice and State Audit Office, and changes the competence and tasks of some other related agencies, organizations and individuals to conform with the 2013 Constitution and the current laws.Other contents of the draft law include debt safety norms and strategies, public debt management including programs and plans on controlling public debts, risk management, public debt supervision, management of government guarantee, management of debts of local administrations, accounting, auditing, evaluation and announcement of information on public debts and rights and tasks of agencies, organizations and individuals involved in the public debt management and use.At a recent workshop to discuss on the draft law which was jointly held by the MOF, National Assemblys Finance-Budget Committee and Asian Development Bank, most experts agreed with amendments in the draft law, in the context that relevant laws including the Law on State Budget, the Law on Public Investment, the Law on Treaties, have been revised.However, some shared other ideas. Jean-Luc Steylaers, representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Vietnam proposed unifying the debt management function in the sole agency, instead of three separate agencies as proposed in the draft law.Public debt management should be on the hand of the Ministry of Finance only because it is assigned to manage the Governments loans and take the accountability to the Government, he added.-
HA NOI  Vietnam Airlines (VNA) has announced that it will add around 4,700 flights one-way on domestic routes during the peak travel season this summer.

From now to August 20, the carrier will operate additional flights between Ha Noi and a Nang/Chu Lai/Pleiku/Nha Trang/HCM City/Phu Quoc, and between HCM City and a Nang/Nha Trang/Phu Quoc.

With this addition, the national carrier will be offering around 4.6 million seats this summer, which is 14 per cent higher than the same period last year, and 13.5 per cent higher than its usual numbers.

At the same time, VNA is also offering discounted tickets on domestic routes. The one-way ticket for Ha Noi-Chu Lai and HCM City-a Lat is priced at VN399,000; Ha Noi-a Nang and HCM City-Hue/a Nang/Nha Trang/Quy Nhon/Phu Quoc cost VN499,000; and Ha Noi-Hue/Vinh/Quy Nhon and HCM City-ong Hoi cost VN599,000.

These rates dont include taxes and fees, and are valid for passengers who buy tickets and complete their travel by August 31.  VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam had to spend more than US$1.5 billion to import animal feed and raw material in the first five months of this year, up 27.5 per cent compared with 2016, despite market difficulties for meat, especially pork.

The information was released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD).

Viet Nam imported nearly 650,000 tonnes of soybeans worth $280 million in the first five months of this year, increasing by 8 per cent in volume and 19 per cent in value year-on-year.

Especially, corn imported from Thailand to Viet Nam in the first four months of this year increased sharply, up 48 times in volume and 4.5 times in value over the same period last year.

The largest import market for Viet Nams animal feed was Argentina, accounting 45 per cent of the market share, followed by the United States, India and China.

Recently, MARDs Department of Animal Husbandry has submitted to MARD its plan to temporarily stop building new feed mills. According to the department, the animal feed industry has to promote internal resources, use feed more effectively, control diseases and reduce costs to compete with imported products.  VNS
HA NOI  Industry leaders have called on distraught and anxious pepper farmers to remain calm and refrain from selling their produce at low prices, saying the current price plunge is most likely a fleeting phenomenon.

o Ha Nam, Chairman of the Viet Nam Pepper Association, said farmers should break their impulse to mass sell their produce immediately after harvest.

Vietnamese pepper exports now account for nearly 50 per cent of global output, so we are actually in a position to control the market. Farmers should be calm and not sell at lower price, and the market will revert to its equilibrium, Nam said.

In the Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands), the price for whole peppercorns on the domestic market has dropped from VN180,000 (US$8.04) since last August to around VN80,000 ($3.57) per kilogramme as of May 28 to reach the lowest point in seven years, and many pepper farmers are in dire straits, with some pushed to the point of having to sell their land to settle debts.

Authorities, meanwhile, are struggling to manage what they say is the consequence of unplanned farming and poor quality crops, which is dragging the whole industry down.

According to the Standing Committee of the Tay Nguyen Steering Board, farmers were misled by pepper price surges in recent years to plant the crop on a large scale, ignoring warnings from local authorities. Subsequently, gluts have led to the sharp decline in prices, the committee has said.

Nguyen Thi o, a pepper farmer in ak Nong Province, said her family had taken a bank loan of VN4 billion ($178,770) to plant pepper on a 10ha plot. At her initial calculation of VN200,000 ($8.93) per kilogramme of whole pepper, profits were certain, but the drastic drop in prices could force her to sell her land to repay the bank.

Pepper rush

Originally, Central Highlands provinces like ak Lak, ak Nong and Gia Lai had planned to expand the farming area for pepper to a maximum of 6,000ha by 2020. But all these provinces have surpassed this limit by far. ak Lak has nearly 28,000ha of pepper farms, ak Nong, 25,000ha, and Gia Lai, over 15,000ha.

The national total is about 150,000ha, set to produce about 300,000 tonnes of pepper in the next two to three years, so, going by supply and demand function alone, prices could drop as long as supply exceeds demand, said Hoang Phuoc Binh, Deputy Chairman of the Chu Se District Pepper Growers Association in Gia Lai Province.

To compound matters, even with farming on such a large scale, many farmers have experienced crop failures due to poor preparation and misuse of chemical inputs.

Huynh Van Lan of Gia Lai Province, along with his peers, is increasingly worried about drops in both production and prices as his crop nears harvesting. Of more than 2,000 vines on his farm, 250 have died while the rest are producing just half their normal yield.

Bad habits

Tay Nguyen authorities have recorded a common practice among local pepper farmers of planting a new crop directly on malnourished, acidic and depressed soil without taking any step to replenish the soil with nutrients. This is causing slow growth and increased vulnerability to diseases.

To make matters worse, a number of farmers have been using seeds of dubious quality, affecting the rest of the harvest. The use of toxic pesticides and growth accelerators has further exacerbated the situation.

As if all this werent enough, the irregular drizzling since February 2017 has continued to dampen the pepper vines roots, exposing them to pests and affecting production.

Experts say that the combination of market glut and poor quality crop threatens sustainable development of the domestic pepper industry, most particularly its export potential. High non tariff barriers are another challenge for Vietnamese pepper, which has to contend with markets already familiar with exports from Indonesia, Malaysia and India, they say.

Sustainable solutions

To prevent spontaneous and inefficient farming, the Tay Nguyen Steering Board has asked provincial authorities to adjust and firmly implement their provincial pepper cultivation plans. They should also organise comprehensive training programmes for local farmers in order to synchronise production in the region, the board has said.

It has noted that the need for sustainability stretches across all crops and agricultural products, requiring farmers to work closely with other stakeholders in the supply chain to obtain technical support and suitable farming inputs.

In Chu Puh District, Gia Lai Province, a key pepper producing area, a farming model that saves water, uses organic fertilisers and pesticides is showing encouraging results. More importantly, farmers are being advised to plant exclusively on suitable soils with high drainage to allow maximum growth and minimum soil damage.

So far, the district has implemented this model on more than 100ha, and aim to expand this to 500ha by 2020.

The Steering Board also advised local governments to focus on brand building and vertical integration to promote exports. Clean, ecologically sound cropping is the ideal long term solution to the problems faced by the domestic pepper industry, experts agree.

The rosier side

o Huong Duong, vice chairman of the Phu Nhuan Service Joint Stock, notes that despite the ongoing problems in quality, output and prices, export turnover has continued to rise.

According to the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development, Viet Nam exported about 75,000 tonnes of pepper worth $456 million in the first four months of 2017.

Vietnamese pepper has been a stable import in the US, United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Indian and German markets in the first three months. There are signs of improvement in other markets like Thailand, where import of Vietnamese pepper has registered a year-on-year increase of 49.6 per cent.

These numbers prove that Vietnamese pepper is able to meet quality criteria in the strictest markets in the world, Nam said. Farmers have to be encouraged and helped to focus on improving their produce while the Government keeps an eye on mass production and quality control, he said, adding that that this would ensure market stability as well as sustained profits from this key crop.  VNS
HA NOI  Agricultural, forestry and fishery exports in May hit an estimated value of US$2.8 billion, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The value of the first five months of this year now equal $13.7 billion, up 9.5 per cent year-on-year, the ministry said.

During the review period, farm produce export earnings have experienced a yearly rise of 12.6 per cent to an estimated $7.3 billion.

After a long decline, rice exports increased both in volume and value. Up to 538,000 tonnes of rice, worth $245 million, were shipped abroad in May, raising the five-month volume to 1.3 million tonnes and value to $1 billion, up 1.6 per cent and 1.2 per cent year on year, respectively. China and Philippines were the two leading importers of Vietnamese rice.

Despite a slight drop of 1.5 per cent in five-month quantity, rubber exports saw a significant rise of 61.5 per cent in value. In the period, the country exported more than 350,000 tonnes of rubber, generating a turnover of $708 million.

Similar to rubber, coffee exports also recorded a decrease of 15.9 per cent in volume, but an increase of 11 per cent in value in the January-May period to 693,000 tonnes and $1.57 billion. In May alone, some 100,000 tonnes of coffee were exported for $233 million.

The five-month period also witnessed a strong growth in vegetable and fruit exports, which surged 38 per cent year on year to $1.38 billion, with $344 million earned in May.

According to the ministry, the export value of seafood products surged 10.4 per cent to $2.8 billion from January to May, including $618 million in May. The US, Japan, China and South Korea were major import markets of Vietnamese seafood, accounting for 53.5 per cent of the sectors total export value.

Meanwhile, timber and timber product exports brought home $2.9 billion, 10 per cent higher than same period last year.

Among markets which saw remarkable surges in the export value of Vietnamese wood and wooden products were China (35.6 per cent), the US (16.1 per cent), South Korea (14.7 per cent) and Germany (11.2 per cent).

The ministry previoulsy forecast that the countrys ago-forestry-fisheries export would likely reach $32.5-32.8 billion this year.  VNS
HA NOI  Hoa Lac High-tech Park (HHTP)s management board has sent a report to the Ministry of Planning and Investment requesting nearly VN8.3 trillion (US$364 million) for land clearance and infrastructure construction.

According to approved plans, total investment capital from the State budget for land clearance and infrastructure construction of the park is VN15.6 trillion, of which some VN5.94 trillion is for residential resettlement and the rest is for infrastructure construction.

However, by the end of 2016, only VN7.33 trillion was disbursed for land clearance and VN3.03 trillion for residential settlement.

Of the remaining VN8.3 trillion needed, VN4.138 trillion is expected to come from foreign loans.

According to a report of the parks management board, by March this year, HHTP had 79 investment projects being implemented with total investment capital of some VN61.34 trillion on an area of 347.5ha. The total import-export turnover of the park in 2016 reached more than $2.4 billion with exports accounting for nearly $1.3 billion.

HHTP is located in the two districts of Thach That and Quoc Oai in suburban Ha Noi, spanning a total area of 1,586ha. It is set to become a city of science, attracting investors in the field of R&D, training and incubating, and manufacturing high-tech products in the fields of biotechnology, ICT, new materials and automation. To create an attractive environment in the complex, modern infrastructure is being built with capital from the State budget and ODA provided by the Japanese government.

The biggest difficulty and also the longest standing problem for the park is that 243ha of land has not been released for construction over the last 15 years, causing a lot of problems during infrastructure development and attracting investment.

On a working visit to the park in March this year, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc urged Ha Nois authorities to complete land clearance for the parks development within 2017, noting that the park is not merely a technological area but also a miniature model for Viet Nams economy in the future.

The parks management board said after the PMs direction, it worked with the Ha Noi Peoples Committee on the issue, asking the committee for providing the capital in advance, however, the committee responded that it had no capital to meet the proposal.

The park, therefore, had to ask the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning and Investment to consider and disburse the capital for the park as planned.  VNS
BAC GIANG  Northern Bac Giang Province, a lychee farming hub of Viet Nam, plans to export some 50,000 tonnes of thieu lychee, or 50 per cent of its total output, in 2017.

This was stated by local officials at a meeting on Saturday.

The event, aimed to promote lychee sales, was attended by Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Quoc Doanh, representatives of the northern border provinces of Lang Son and Lao Cai, officials of Chinese localities importing lychees, and domestic and foreign lychee traders.

Vice chairman of Bac Giang Peoples Committee Duong Van Thai said this year, the province continues to focus on lychee export to traditional markets, especially China. It will increase export volume to the United States, the European Union, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Australia while expanding shipments to the Middle East, Thailand and Canada.

In the domestic market, the fruit will be sold mainly in Ha Noi, HCM City and nearby provinces.

However, he noted, abnormal weather conditions such as prolonged heat waves and late cold spells had affected the growth of lychee trees, making the rate of fruits fall by about 40 per cent from 2016 to some 100,000 tonnes.

The output of lychees under VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards in the province is currently some 40,000 tonnes and 1,600 tonnes, respectively. Notably, 218ha of lychee trees have been granted codes by the United States, Thai added.

At the meeting, officials of Lang Son and Lao Cai provinces, which border China, pledged the best possible conditions for Bac Giangs lychee export to China. They promised customs clearance time would be within 20 minutes.

Fang Dong, deputy head of Hekou County in Chinas Yunnan Province, spoke highly of the quality and appearance of Bac Giangs lychees, which have become popular among Chinese consumers.

Bac Giang officials also vowed to provide favourable conditions and ensure security for traders to purchase and process local lychees.  VNS
HCM CITY A series of Vietnamese books that debuted this week to celebrate Childrens Day on June 1 are now available in bookstores around the country.

Young writer Nguyen Le Chis first book, Bung Phe Nhanh Chan (Chubby Girl Runs), features lively pictures by talented artists from the Kim ong Publishing House.

The 122-page work, for children aged five to 10, is about a little girl named Bung Phe and her mother.

Written in a simple but meaningful style, the book is about childhood, friendship and dreams.

On online forums, more than 15,000 readers, mostly teachers and parents, have commented about the book.

On June 3, the writer will meet her fans at a signing ceremony at HCM City Book Street in District 1.

For summer, Kim ongs website, www.nxbkimdong.com.vn, has introduced 20 new Vietnamese childrens books in literature, history and arts.

Featured books include Susu va Gogo Buoc Ra The Gioi (Susu and Gogo Reach the World), a collection of three books by female writer Duong Thuy.

The collection, for children aged six to 13, features two characters, named Susu and Gogo, and their adventures in Paris, Singapore and Tokyo.

It includes stories about friendship, love and dreams, written with the authors typical flair and imagination.

More than 7,000 copies of each book have been printed.

The General Publishing House, in co-operation with its partner, First News, a well-known publisher for children, have also released a book collection for children and teenagers by Vietnamese writers.

One of its featured books is Tu Rung Tham Amazon en Que Huong Bolero (From the Amazon Rainforest to the Country of Bolero), a work for readers aged eight to 14, by Nguyen Tap.

The book has four chapters that feature the writers adventures in the Amazon, Mexico, Peru and Cuba.

The work is about the authors love for the natural world, animals, countries and people. It includes information and lessons about ethnic minority groups and their history, culture and lifestyle.

I wanted to capture the world through my writing for children, said Tap, the books writer.

Another collection is Kho Tang Truyen Co Tich Viet Nam (Treasure of Vietnamese Fairytales), which was first released in 2015 by the Tre (Youth) Publishing House.

The work includes five books of Vietnamese fairytales collected and rewritten by late professor Nguyen ong Chi, winner of the Ho Chi Minh Prize for literature awarded by the Government in 1996, and one of the countrys most popular cultural researchers.

The book was reprinted to meet childrens demand this summer, after more than 105,000 copies of each book were released for the first time.

The collection includes five books and lively images featuring 150 stories about friendship, love and dreams, and the countrys history, culture and lifestyles.

Chi was born in 1915 in Ha Tinh Province. From 1977 to 1981, he worked at and later was named the director of the Institute of Han Nom (vernacular logographic Vietnamese script) Studies in Ha Noi.

He has published 26 books and research collections in different fields of history, folk literature and culture.

Chi spent nearly 25 years collecting, rewriting and translating 2,000 fairytales originating from ethnic minority groups and others at home and abroad.  VNS
HA NOI  After a five-year break Miss Teen Viet Nam will return, featuring Viet Nams talented and beautiful teenagers.

Themed Dream to be a Star, the pageant will be held from June to November to find the most talented and beautiful girl who will be crowned Miss Teen Viet Nam at the November 11 final.

"Miss Teen Viet Nam 2017 will be held on the largest scale ever," said Nguyen Thanh Hung, head of the organising board. "This year, the organisers want to bring the contest closer to contestants in distant areas who can register online for the qualifying rounds."

Girls from 16 to 19 years old and at least 1.55m tall, including Vietnamese living abroad can enter, excluding those who have undergone plastic surgery and transgender people.

Contestants can register at website https://missteen.vn. The 200 highest vote getters and an additional 100 contestants selected by a jury will enter the second round which will take place in Ha Noi, the central city of a Nang and HCM City from July 30 to August 26.

The second round will also be held in South Korea to choose three contestants among Vietnamese students in the country for the third round, held in South Korea along with the top 15 contestants from the second round held in Viet Nam.

The third round will be a reality programme featuring the contestants, broadcast on Viet Nam Television Corporation (VTC)s channel 1 and channel 2 at 8pm every Saturday from September 9 to October 14.

The final 12 contestants will take part in three categories including evening gown; an ao dai (traditional long dress) performance and question and answer in the final. Prizes up for grabs are Miss Teen 2017 which is worth VN300 million (nearly US$14,000), and VN50 million for Miss Talent, Miss Beauty and favourite contestant title, respectively.

Miss Teen Viet Nam was held in 2006 for the first time. The pageant is held by the Ministry of Information and Communications VTC with support from the Ministry of Education and Training.

"Taking part in Miss Teen Viet Nam is an experiment for all young girls," said Miss Teen Viet Nam 2006 Bao Thy at the contest launching ceremony last Friday. "It is a chance for contestants to show off their abilities, not only their beauty.

Bao Thy is regarded as one of Viet Nams first online stars to crossover to the mainstream successfully. She won the Promising Actress prize at Golden Kite Award by Viet Nam Cinematography Association in 2009.  VNS
Increasing numbers of mutual visits between Viet Nam and the US illustrate growing bilateral ties, Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh said on the threshold of an official visit to the US by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.  VNA/VNS Photo

HA NOI  Increasing numbers of mutual visits between Viet Nam and the US illustrate growing bilateral ties, Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh said on the threshold of an official visit to the US by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

The May 29-31 trip, made at the invitation of US President Donald Trump, follows a series of visits by the two countries leaders including trips to the US by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in 2015 and President Truong Tan Sang in 2013, and a visit to Viet Nam by President Barack Obama last year.

Vinh told Vietnam News Agency that the visits also demonstrate Viet Nams rising stature in the region and the two countries efforts to deepen mutual understanding and seek new co-operation opportunities.

This visit is the first US trip by a Vietnamese leader since President Donald Trump took office.

The Trump administration affirmed that it values Viet Nams role in the region and wishes to tighten bilateral connections, which will develop the Viet Nam-US comprehensive partnership, Vinh added.

He noted that politicians, entrepreneurs and scholars in the US are all interested in Viet Nam-US relations and assess the ties as mutually beneficial.

In his invitation to visit the US sent to PM Phuc, President Trump emphasised that the US wants to foster bilateral co-operation and considers Viet Nam an important partner in Southeast Asia and Asia-Pacific.

He said he had met with US congressmen who expressed their hope that the trip will create momentum for the countries ties.

Meanwhile, researchers also commented that as Viet Nam is the first Southeast Asian nation to have a leader touring the US since Trump took office, PM Phucs trip may clarify the new US administrations policy towards the region.

Regarding the visits main focus, the diplomat said it is of utmost importance to continue the development of bilateral ties, including in politics, from the last 22 years.

Economic and trade relations are a pillar in the partnership, surging about 100 times over the last two decades to more than US$50 billion at present. Room remains for economic and trade ties to grow, areas which are a big interest of the Trump administration, Vinh noted.

In terms of security-defence co-operation, Viet Nam and the US have frameworks in plce such as the Joint Vision Statement on Defence Relations in 2015 and a protocol on defence co-operation. Co-operation in this field will be reinforced, especially in peacekeeping, humanitarian aid, and navigation security and safety.

During his visit, PM Phuc is set to have talks with President Trump at the White House, meet with parliamentarians of both the Democratic Party and Republican Party, and talk to scholars. He will also meet US entrepreneurs.

Vinh expressed his belief that the two leaders will have useful discussions, reach common perceptions and set up development orientations for the bilateral relations.

The ambassador also expected a number of contracts worth billions of dollars will be signed between Vietnamese and US businesses, serving as evidence of the win-win co-operation between the two countries.  VNS
HA NOI  Social services need to improve to help curb child labour in Viet Nam and reduce its negative impacts on the countrys youth.

Statistics from Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affiars (MoLISA) showed that nationwide there are more than 1.75 million children doing tough labour or working in an unhealthy environment.

Some 67 per cent of the children work in agriculture, 16.6 per cent work in services and 15.8 per cent work in the industry-construction sector.

Under current regulations, child labourers are defined as having specially disadvantaged circumstances but few of them have been received social support. They receive little support in education and healthcare, Nhan dan (People) newspaper reported.

The newspapers reporters went to U Market  one of the biggest cow/buffalo markets in the central region in ai Son Commune, o Luong District, Nghe An Province.

The market is open six times a month, starting from sunrise and ending around mid-day.

Besides adults who come to buy or sell cattle, school-aged children can be seen at the crowded market. They come to seek jobs, with the most common towing bought cattle to their new home.

Most of them are in old torn clothes, bare feet, sunburnt and spattered with mud.

Some do a little work and leave the market early so they can go to school, while others work all day to make more money..

Nguyen Canh Hung, 12 years old from Nghi Van Commune of neighbouring Nghi Loc District said that he has worked as a buffalo tower for two years to earn money for his family.

Buffalo towers were usually paid VN 5,000 VN 10,000 to take a cow/buffalo from the market to the buyers house in the same commune. If they have to go farther, they charge more, Hung said.

On good days, I can earn up to VN 50,000 -60,000, he said.

The boy said he went to work early, without breakfast and with just a bottle of water along to quench his thirst.

In Quynh Van and Quynh Thach - two other communes of Nghe An Province, children work at a brick making establishment.

They work with no safety equipment, carrying bricks and loading them on trucks.

An owner of a brick establishment told Nhan dan that he knew the work was too hard for children but they wanted a job and he wanted labourers.

In the central province of Ha Tinhs salt fields, children and the elderly make up the majority of the workforce, as most healthy adults have moved to cities for work.

A man said that he reluctantly let his son work in the salt fields.

What else can he do? Im not often at home. He works there with his mother so that she can keep an eye on him, he said.

ang Hoa Nam, director of Child Care and Protection Department under Ministry of Labour, said that child labour was common among poor families in disadvantaged areas.

Parents, care givers and children do not have proper awareness of the problems of child labour and nor do they care about the long-term impacts, Nam claimed.

Child labour is accompanied with dropping out of school, resulted in a low education level, few skills and fewer job opportunities, making it hard to escape from poverty, he said.

Employers, especially in the informal sector, often hired children without knowing they are breaking the law.

Last year, the National Assembly approved the Child Law which takes effect next month, with child abuse defined clearly.

Forcing children to work in harmful, dangerous conditions that affect to their development is a form of child abuse, Nam said.

The law also identified the responsibilities of agencies in controlling child abuse, Nam said.

However, experts recommended that besides a legal framework, strong law enforcement is needed to ensure that offenders are punished.

They also called for an improved system of social services for child labourers and their families so that negative impacts are reduced.

Child labourers need care to re-integrate into normal life in terms of their physical and mental health.

According to the International Labour Organisation, the fight against child labour requires coherent policies to back child labour legislation  quality education, social protection and decent jobs for parents.

 VNS
HA NOI  Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has requested country leaders to heighten their focus on preventing Vietnamese fishermen from illegally harvesting seafood in foreign waters.

In official order No 732 issued on Sunday, the Prime Minister acknowledged that the situation is ongoing and has been getting more serious since the end of 2015 in the central provinces of Quang Ngai, Binh inh, and Binh Thuan, as well as southern provinces of Kien Giang, Ca Mau, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ben Tre and Tien Giang.

He requested the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to launch a national action plan on preventing, reducing and eliminating illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, as well as making amendments to current regulations and adding terms of punishment to better regulate fishing vessels owners, captains, organisations and individuals that conduct IUU fishing.

He also requested the ministry to increase international collaboration on seafood harvesting, establish an international illegal fishing prevention hotline, carry out maritime patrols with concerned countries and popularise Viet Nams and international regulations on seafood harvesting among fishermen in areas where illegal fishing often takes place.

The Ministry of Defence, meanwhile, is responsible for regulating activities of fishing vessels by ensuring they have completed necessary procedures, as well as checking relevant documents before allowing them to sail and return to land.

The ministry is also responsible for patrolling the border line waters and overlapping waters between countries, with a focus on detecting and tackling cases of connecting and investing for fishermen to fish illegally in foreign waters.

The Ministry of Information and Communication is responsible for popularising the delimitation of waters between Viet Nam and some neighbouring countries among citizens, as well as the Vietnamese and international regulations on seafood harvesting.

The chairmen of peoples committees of localities and leaders of local sectors where illegal fishing often takes place are responsible for reviewing, investigating and imposing penalties on authorities that perpetuate illegal fishing. They must also report their investigation results to the Prime Minister before August 15.  VNS
BEN TRE  Forty-two workers of JY Vina Company, who were hospitalised at two large hospitals in the Mekong Deltas Ben Tre Province over the weekend for alleged food poisoning, are recovering well.

On Sunday afternoon, about half of the patients left hospital for home.

A doctor of Minh uc Hospital said these patients were first reported to experience symptoms such as dizziness, headache, nausea, breathlessness and weakness in their legs and arms.

The symptoms surfaced some 30 minutes after they ate lunch, consisting of meat-mixed sour soup, stewed pork and egg and fried green beans, at the company on Saturday.

Among the patients was a pregnant woman who was under threat of premature delivery and treated at Nguyen inh Chieu Hospital.

Ben Tre Provinces Department of Food Hygiene and Safety has taken samples of the food suspected to be poisonous from the company canteen for examination at a Ho Chi Minh City laboratory to investigate the cause.

On May 19, 39 workers of SIGMA Co Ltd in Giao Long industrial zone in the provinces Chau Thanh District, were also hospitalised for suspected food poisoning. The cause of the poisoning was still unclear.  VNS
HOA BINH  Six out of 18 kidney patients who were receiving dialysis at Hoa Binh Province General Hospital died on Monday morning with suspected anaphylactic shock.

As soon as the deaths were reported, the hospital turned off its dialysis machines and transferred the living patients to Hoa Binh Citys General Hospital for emergency aid.

Director of the provinces Department of Health Tran Quang Khanh said that patients were given intensive care and doctors from Ha Noi-based Bach Mai Hospital were summoned to the northern province for further medical assessment.

The doctors will also help detect the cause of the incident, Khanh said, adding that the investigation would require time.

Luong Ngoc Khue, director general of the Medical Examination and Treatment Department under Ministry of Health said that when informed of the case, Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien assigned him to lead a ministrys group to Hoa Binh on the same day to deliver assistance and detect the incidents causes.  VNS
SEOUL  North Korea on Monday test-fired a ballistic missile, the latest in a series of launches that have ratcheted up tensions over its quest to develop weapons capable of hitting the United States.

The short-range missile flew for six minutes before landing in the Sea of Japan, the US Pacific Command said, adding it was working on a more detailed assessment.

The launch comes in fresh defiance of tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised on Friday that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved".

Trumps comments came at the G7 summit in a meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan, which along with South Korea is most immediately threatened by North Korean belligerence.

Abe swiftly condemned Mondays launch and vowed "concrete action" with the US.

"We will never tolerate North Koreas continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community," Abe told reporters.

"As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international communitys top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States," he said.

In Washington, a National Security Council spokesman said Trump had been briefed on the launch.

South Koreas new president, Moon Jae-In, ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said leader Kim Jong-Un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.

ICBM goal

The North Korea has been stepping up efforts to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental United States.

The missile launches, and Pyongyangs threat to stage its sixth nuclear test, have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention was an option under consideration.

South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said Mondays missile had a flight range of about 450km.

Japans chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, told reporters the missile appeared to have fallen into the countrys exclusive economic zone (EEZ) -- waters extending 200 nautical miles from its coast.

The regime has carried out two atomic tests and dozens of missile launches since the beginning of last year, with multiple sets of UN sanctions failing to halt its weapons push.

Following North Koreas test-firing of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet earlier this month, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China has made it clear that the push for diplomatic talks -- not imposing more sanctions -- was the priority.

The United States has said it is willing to enter into talks with North Korea -- but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.

Kim Jong-Un has sought to ramp up North Koreas nuclear programme under his rule, saying the country needs atomic weapons to defend itself against the threat of invasion.  AFP
NOORDWIJK AAN ZEE, Netherlands  The Philippine government on Sunday formally called off the latest round of peace talks with leftist insurgents, after the parties failed to resolve a dispute over a rebel order for fighters to step up attacks.

"We are maintaining the decision made not to participate in the fifth round of talks," chief government negotiator Jesus Dureza told journalists after almost 10 hours of closed-door consultations.

"There are no compelling reasons for us to change the decision... which we announced yesterday," he said, adding that Manila was "formally" withdrawing from the round.

It was the fifth scheduled round of talks since the resumption of formal negotiations between Manila and the leftist in August.

They were meant to address such issues as a joint interim ceasefire, social and economic reforms and human rights issues.

Just and sustainable peace

The breakdown of the talks, held in a scenic Dutch seaside resort, came as fighting flared on Sunday between Philippine government forces and Islamist militants in the south, with the death toll nearing 100 after almost a week of fighting.

Talks stalled on Saturday when Dureza objected to the leftist forces telling guerrillas to intensify attacks in response to President Rodrigo Dutertes declaration of martial law in parts of the country.

Dureza said on Sunday that the talks would not resume until there were indications of an "environment conducive to achieving just and sustainable peace".

Asked whether this included the leftists order to escalate attacks, Dureza said: "It is a factor."

But Dureza, who is also Dutertes chief advisor, emphasised that the withdrawal from this round of talks was not a formal withdrawal from the peace process initiated in August 2016.

"The peace talks have not been cancelled and the peace process remains intact," added Elisabeth Slattum, special envoy of Norway, which has been facilitating the peace talks.

Duterte declared martial law on Tuesday across the southern third of the Philippines to quell what he called a fast-growing threat from terrorists linked to the Islamic State group.

Leftist insurgents, who are active in wide areas of the archipelago, including the south, responded to Dutertes declaration by ordering their own forces to "carry out more tactical offensives".

Deep regret

Chief rebel negotiator Fidel Agcaoili said the leftist negotiators had "recommended to our leadership to reconsider the order, but that takes time".

He said the NDFP, a coalition of several groups of which the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) is among the most prominent, "deeply regretted" Manilas decision to shelve the talks.

In a statement the NDFP lashed out at Durezas comments on the order, saying it "totally obscures the fact that the government has been waging an all-out-war against" the New Peoples Army (NPA), the CPPs armed wing.

Peace talks have been conducted on and off for 30 years, and were revived after Duterte was elected president last year.

Norway had coaxed the two sides back to the negotiating table in August, but little progress has been made since then.  AFP
PARIS  Frances new President Emmanuel Macron was to host Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday in the latest test of his diplomatic mettle after vowing firm stands on Ukraine and Syria.

"It is essential to talk to Russia because there are many international issues that will not be resolved without a tough exchange with the Russians," Macron said at the G7 summit in Sicily which wound up on Saturday.

The 39-year-old centrist leaders meeting with Putin, 64, caps a whirlwind of diplomacy including the G7 talks as well as last weeks NATO summit in Brussels.

He told a French weekly that he was not "bothered" by leaders who "think in terms of power ratios", citing Putin as an example along with US President Donald Trump.

But Macron, who became Frances youngest president just three weeks ago, said he does not believe in "the diplomacy of public invective but in bilateral dialogue".

Not a single concession

In Sicily on Saturday, Macron said he would make "not a single concession" to Russia on Ukraine as he and his G7 counterparts said they were prepared to strengthen sanctions against Moscow.

Western powers charge Russia with failing to honour its commitments under the Minsk accords framework for establishing a cessation of hostilities between Kiev forces and Moscow-backed separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

France helped spearhead the sanctions, which have seriously dented EU-Russia trade, with a retaliatory Russian embargo on European agricultural products hurting French farmers.

The Syrian conflict will also be high on the agenda, with Macron saying he was in favour of "building an inclusive political solution in a much more collective way".

He regretted that none of the G7 states is party to Syria peace talks under way in the Kazakh capital Astana initiated by Russia, Iran and Turkey, although there are US observers.

Separate UN-backed negotiations have become down in Geneva over the six-year-old Syrian conflict.

Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov told a Moscow news briefing that he expected an "interesting and frank" discussion on Syria.

"France is among the countries with a very severe stance towards the regime of (Syrian President) Bashar al-Assad," he said.

Coming so soon after an election in which the Kremlin was widely seen as backing Macrons far-right rival Marine Le Pen -- with Putin hosting her during a surprise visit to Moscow -- the encounter in Versailles, near Paris, will have an added personal edge.

Putin was quick to congratulate Macron on his election, urging him to "overcome mutual distrust" and "join forces to ensure international stability and security"  AFP
Despite being just 33 years old, Masahiro Kikuno makes wristwatches by hand in a rigorously traditional manner, inspired by the craftsmen who built wadokei, or traditional Japanese clocks, in the 19th century.

Based in the small city of Matsudo, an hours drive from Tokyo in Chiba prefecture, Kikuno crafts his timepieces inside his home, working in a converted bedroom, while the garage is the machine shop and the spare toilet a metal treatment facility. Shared with his wife, Kikunos house is compact, clean and comfortable, like many Japanese homes.

Despite its modest size, Kikunos workshop is almost entirely vertically integrated. Kikuno has equipment for turning wheels, bluing and tempering steel, and even a roller for making flattening steel bars to make mokume-gane (literally translating as woodgrain metal) dials.

He makes nearly the entire watch himself, even the case, an unusual accomplishment for a one-man operation. In fact, Kikunos dedication to crafting components is so uncompromising he even produces his own mokume-gane  hammering, rolling and heating copper, gold and silver to produce a woodgrain gold alloy.

The hairspring, mainspring, jewels, crystal and leather strap are bought from suppliers, primarily Seiko subsidiaries.

The converted garage

Like the houses, garages in Japan are fairly compact, built to accommodate practically sized cars. Yet Kikuno has managed to equip it with everything necessary. Much of the heavy lifting  fabricating main plates and bridges, polishing, metalworking  is done in the garage.

His machine shop also includes an old school milling machine. Its operated manually: Kikuno traces the hand-drawn plan for the baseplate with a stylus, while the cutter simultaneously mills out the part.

Kikuno also has to do his own quality control to ensure all the parts he produces are up to spec. He does this with an optical comparator, a device that projects a magnified image of a part against an overlay chart.

The genesis of an idea

Kikunos path to watchmaking was an unusual one, having been a small arms technician in the Japanese Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) for four years starting at age 18. It was in the military that Kikuno found his calling, when he met a senior officer who was a watch enthusiast.

Kikuno then left the JSDF, enrolling in a four-year course at the Hiko Mizuno College of Jewelry in Shibuya, a Tokyo district better known for its fashion stores. It was there that he produced his first timepiece, a time-only wristwatch with a retrograde display.

The college, however, taught watch repair, rather than watchmaking, leading Kikuno to embark on a journey of self education. Like many other self-taught independent watchmakers, Kikuno studied the craft primarily via George Daniels seminal Watchmaking, which instructs the reader on how to produce a tourbillon. That led Kikuno to build his first tourbillon wristwatch in 2010.

For a spell after graduation Kikuno continued as an instructor at the college, but in 2012 set up shop on his own as an independent watchmaker. A year later he became a member of the AHCI.

Five years on, Kikuno is still in the process of developing a house style, explaining the diverse aesthetic of the watches he has made. The fact that he makes nearly everything himself also means limitations in certain areas, like the shape of the watch case for instance.

Uncompromisingly traditional

Kikuno has built only a handful of watches in the seven years since he started, averaging one watch a year. Thats a consequence of his uncompromising adherence to traditional techniques of production.

In fact, he briefly attempted to produce timepieces without electricity, neither for lighting nor equipment, because it was how it was done in the 19th century. He somewhat sheepishly admits the effort was quickly abandoned due to sheer impracticality.

Consequently it is fitting that his signature timepiece is the wadokei wristwatch, the first time a traditional Japanese timekeeper has been produced in wristwatch form.

The wadokei keeps seasonal time  meaning days are longer in summer and shorter in winter  a system of time-telling that was replaced by conventional 24-hour days when Japan modernised after the Meiji Restoration. Kikunos wadokei wristwatch is essentially a miniaturised version of the original clocks, but it tells both traditional and modern time.

Not only are the production methods similar, Kikuno also points out that his approach to producing the wadokei is historically correct, for the clocks were typically produced by a single craftsman, rather than a series of contractors as it was in Switzerland during the same period.

The watches

Kikunos watches start at approximately 5m, about US$45,000, for the Sakubou wristwatch that features a moon phase and a hand-cut, kuro-shibuichi dial. Made of a copper, gold and silver alloy, the dial takes Kikuno two days to complete, first having to cut the floral motif by hand with a tiny saw then treating it to create a matte black finish.

The Sakubou is powered by an in-house movement naturally, one designed and built from scratch by Kikuno. The moon phase display at six oclock is accurate to a day in 122 years, the standard in modern watchmaking.

While Sakubou is Kikunos latest creation, having just been unveiled at Baselworld 2017, his most distinctive wristwatch, however, is undoubtedly the Wadokei wristwatch. This starts at 18m (about US$160,000) for the basic version, rising to 25m (US$225,000) for the fully engraved model.

His tourbillon, on the other hand, costs approximately 10m (US$90,000), indicating how much more complex the wadokei is.

Kikuno also has a handful of prototypes sitting around the workshop, movements he works on when he has the time. Amongst the works in progress is an intriguing, pocket watch sized double balance wheel prototype that is similar to the F.P. Journe Resonance. He does not know if it will ever be turned into a commercially available timepiece.

Masahiro Kikunos watches are available direct from the watchmaker, who can be reached via his website.
WATERLOO  Memorial Day observances were conducted throughout the weekend in the Cedar Valley and Northeast Iowa.

Waterloo held a Memorial Day parade in downtown Waterloo, followed by an 11 a.m. observance at Veterans Memorial Hall. Grand marshals were retired U.S. Army Reserve Maj. Gen. Evan Curly Hultman and World War II Womens Army Corps Marcia Courbat.

Names were read of 230 veterans deceased since last Memorial Day. About 120 new U.S. flags were put up on downtown streets thanks to local volunteers. Volunteers also put up more than 9,000 smaller grave flags on veterans graves at local cemeteries. The Sullivan Brothers Iowa Veterans Museum was open and served lunch to the first 100 visitors with paid admission.

Cedar Falls AMVETS Post 49, 1934 Irving St., kicked off its Memorial Day observance with a 7 p.m. Sunday sunset service at Veterans Park on Waterloo Road. A program was held Monday at the flag park at Post 49, which included a performance by the Brass Quintet of the Cedar Falls Municipal Band, formal ceremonies including remarks by Jennifer Stevenson, of Hicks Place Cedar Falls Mayor Jim Brown; and Iowa State Sen. Jeff Danielson, a Cedar Falls firefighter and U.S. Navy veteran. About 250 flags were displayed.

On Saturday, the Robert Hibbs Post 3896, Veterans of Foreign Wars, in Cedar Falls conducted a Memorial Day observance at The German Burial Ground (Pioneer Cemetery) in rural Bennington Township east of U.S. Highway 63 on Gresham Road. Kevin Dill, Black Hawk County Veteran Affairs Commission executive director, was the the guest speaker, at the restored Bennington No. 4 school house located at the intersection of Sage and East Bennington roads.

Evansdale AMVETS Post 31 hosted a Memorial Day observance at the post, 706 Colleen Ave. Post members who passed away over the past year were remembered, followed by a reading of the symbolism of the 13 folds in the American flag, a flag retirement ceremony and the playing of Taps.
JESUP  An 8-year-old Jesup girl was in the intensive care unit at University Hospitals & Clinics on Monday after suffering injuries in a fall Sunday.

Marta Wehrspann, the youngest child of Ben and Becky Wehrspann, suffered a head injury in the fall. She just finished second grade at Community Lutheran School in Readyn.

Alex Murphy, spokesman for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said the incident was reported about 1:30 p.m. Sunday at Backbone State Park near Dundee.

He said the girl was hiking with her family on Backbone Trail and she slipped and fell backwards near the start of the trail. Murphy said she fell about 60 feet.

She was initially taken to Regional Medical Center in Manchester and then flown to Iowa City.

Becky Wehrspann said the family doesnt really know what happened. They have been to the park and trails many times and the children were taught to be respectful and careful on the trails, but Marta somehow slipped while standing on a rock.
It was another rough week for political reporters. Well, one in particular.

I know Ben Jacobs. Some of you may as well. He was here in Iowa a lot during the 2016 caucuses.

For those who may not know, Jacobs is a reporter who covers U.S. politics for the U.K. newspaper The Guardian. On Wednesday night, on the eve of a special congressional election in Montana, Jacobs was body-slammed, he said, by Republican candidate Greg Gianforte after Jacobs tried to ask Gianforte about the estimated impact of U.S. House Republicans health-care reform bill. An audio recording seemed to confirm his account, as did a Fox News TV crew that witnessed the incident.

Gianforte was charged with assaulting Jacobs, a misdemeanor.

The next day, Gianforte won the election.

He never did answer that question about the health care reform bill.

Its the latest  and certainly most violent  incident in what has become, for this reporter at least, an unsettling trend of increasing hazards for political journalists.

In recent months other journalists also trying to ask questions of people in positions of government power have been arrested and pinned against a wall by security guards.

Jacobs handled his incident with aplomb, even joking with a New York Times reporter who called for a story on the incident. While still in the hospital, Jacobs asked the New York Times not post its story online before Jacobs had a chance to post his story because he did not want to be scooped on an incident in which he was involved.

I am pleased to report Jacobs has emerged from his brief stint as professional wrestling heel relatively unscathed.

Equally upsetting as journalists being physically attacked and arrested for nothing more than doing their jobs, perhaps even more so, is the disinterest with which so many people reacted.

Heck, some conservative commentators darn near celebrated the incident involving Jacobs. One Fox News personality called it a bit of Montana justice.

Many folks on the ground level, in Montana and across the country, doubted the story (even though it was confirmed in small part by the audio recording and in large part by the local Fox News television crew that witnessed it), said they were unfazed by it or even cheered it, according to various media reports.

Steve Thomma, executive director of the White House Correspondents Association, listened to Rush Limbaughs radio show and tweeted one quote from a caller who said, If enough of this happens, those reporters are gonna learn to back off a little bit.

Fortunately, with only a few rare exceptions of which I am aware, I have not experienced or witnessed similar hostility toward the press in Iowa in the past couple of years. Maybe there really is something to that Iowa nice thing. It would be better if that was the case everywhere else, too.

We need less anger toward and more trust of the press in this country. Thats not a lecture, and its not laying blame at anyones feet. Im not smart enough to know how we repair the publics trust in the press; I just know we need to, because our democracy will not function as well as it should without that relationship.

The best thing I know to do is maintain an open dialogue with readers. If someone calls or emails me, even in passionate anger, I try to respond. It may not always sway an upset readers viewpoint, but I hope it at least helps develop a trust Im just trying to do a job, not promote an agenda.

We need more trust in that relationship between the press and the people. Fewer gas lighters would help, too.

Speaking of which, Im sorry to disappoint that caller to Limbaughs program who expects a few more assaults would teach reporters to back off a little bit. Unfortunately for him or her, we reporters dont learn very quickly. Pin us to the wall, arrest us, body-slam us ... were going to keep doing our job, keep asking questions.

That reminds me, I have a quick question for Rep.-elect Gianforte: Could you give us your reaction to the CBOs impact analysis of the American Health Care Act?
Eleven soldiers were killed and seven others injured in what the Philippines government has described as a "friendly fire incident" in Marawi, on the southern island of Mindanao.


Sharwanands upcoming film in Maruthis direction is making brisk progress. The film titled, Mahanubhavudu, is currently being shot in Europe, where songs are being shot on the films lead pair Sharwanand and Mehreen.

Recently, the film unit spent quite sometime in Croatia, where the film was shot in cities like Zadar, Zagreb and Split. Now, the unit has moved to Austria where the film will be shot in stunning locales in the European country. In fact, director Maruthi has been posting quite a few amazing pictures on his Twitter account documenting the journey.

Thaman is scoring the music for the film and UV Creations is producing it.

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May 29, 2017 | By Benedict

Anisoprint, a Russian 3D printing company, is using its continuous fiber 3D printing technique to create reinforced plastic parts that are 15-20 times stronger and stiffer than FDM printed parts. The company will host a conference in Moscow this week with a consortium of business partners.

3D printing plastics with reinforcing fibers is seen by many as the most cost-effective way of printing strong, metal-like parts. Generally much cheaper than true metal 3D printing processes like selective laser sintering (SLS) or selective laser melting (SLM), fiber reinforcement adds unprecedented strength to the familiar (and affordable) process of fused deposition modeling (FDM).

Massachusetts-based company Markforged has, to date, been the most successful proponent of such 3D printing technology, releasing its history-making Mark One and similarly popular Mark Two 3D printers to critical acclaim. Both printers effectively iron carbon fiber or other reinforcing materials into the plastic as it prints.

But when a U.S. company comes up with an innovation, its never long before a Russian equivalent comes along with a competing product. Hence the appearance of Anisoprint, an additive manufacturing company plugging its new continuous fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) 3D printing technique as an even better solution than Markforgeds.

Based at the Skolkovo Foundation, a scientific and technological center near Moscow with ties to the Russian government, MIT, and elsewhere, Anisoprint says its new CFRP 3D printing process produces printed parts that are 15-20 times stronger and stiffer than their FDM equivalentsstronger even than aerospace-grade aluminum.

Existing 3D printing technologies are rather expensive or not applicable for functional parts production, Anisoprint says. Our technology is a revolutionary solution combining [the] low equipment price typical for personal plastic printers with [the] capability of producing high performance structural elements.

Advantages of Anisoprint CFRP parts:

15 times stronger than neat plastic

7 times stronger than plastic compounds

4 times lighter than titanium

This week, Anisoprint will get the chance to prove once and for all that its technology is no mere Markforged copy. During a two-day English-language conference that will take place over May 30-31, the company will spell out a roadmap for its future plans, inviting a consortium of nine partnering international organizations to discuss the future of this Russian-made 3D printing tech.

The international consortium, coordinated by Austria's Johannes Kepler University Linz, consists of nine scientific and manufacturing organizations from Austria, Lithuania, and Russia. It was formed after Anisoprint showcased its printer at the JEC World event in Paris last year.

We met representatives of the Johannes Kepler University Linz [in Paris], said Fyodor Antonov, director of Anisoprint. One of their areas of activity is lightweight design, i.e. they design light and durable constructions, mainly from composites. The Austrians were interested in our technology and suggested that we take part in a grant application.

The consortium will now attempt to introduce Anisoprints fiber-printing CFRP process to the industry, targeting specific sectors such as aerospace, automotive, and wind energy. One member of the consortium, Austrian company PRIME Aerostructures, says it could use Anisoprints continuous fiber 3D printing technology to fabricate the legs of its aircraft seats.

A week after the conference, Anisoprint take part in Skolkovos two-day Startup Village outdoor conference. The company will bring a prototype of its 3D printer to the Startup Bazaar, an exhibition of 150 new technologies.

Anisoprint has previously worked on a space-ready 3D printer that could be more flexible than the Made In Space Additive Manufacturing Facility, the International Space Stations current 3D printer.

Posted in 3D Printer

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Frederick Adrian Murillo wrote at 6/6/2017 8:01:40 PM:Amazing, How Do I get one?




While the pay could be better, benefits of teaching out of this world
Republic Gold Limited (ASX:RAU) are pleased to announce that the Company has appointed Mr Victor Barua to the position of General Manager of Operations for the Amayapampa Gold Project in Bolivia. This critical and significant appointment flags the beginning of the transition from exploration into development at Amayapampa.
Revised Information Memorandum



Announces Offer To Sophisticated Investors To Raise AU$860,000

Sydney, May 29, 2017 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Revolution Metals Ltd today announces an update to a capital raising and offer to Sophisticated Investors to raise AU$860,000 to facilitate the Dalmorton Goldfields project. The revised Information Memorandum now closes for sophisticated investors on 31 July 2017.



The purpose of the Offer is to raise $860,000 to enable the Company to:



- complete a 3 hole drilling program to further delineate the Mt Remarkable gold resource;



- preparation of trial mining (bulk sample) of 20,000 tonnes of surface ore for 3,000 ounces of gold;



- fund the working capital requirements associated with the Company continuing with the commercialisation of the mineral assets associated with the company's two exploration tenements, EL8118 and EL8723;



- fund preparation for an initial public offer (IPO); and



- underwrite general working capital requirements and establishment costs.



The Directors are of the view that the full subscription of $860,000 will provide the Company with sufficient working capital to carry out its objectives as detailed in the Information Memorandum.



Details of the Offer



Pursuant to this Information Memorandum, the Company invites investors to apply for 8,600,000 Shares, at an issue price of 10 cents each to raise $860,000.



The Shares offered under this Information Memorandum will rank pari passu with the existing fully paid Shares on issue.



The minimum individual subscription is 50,000 Shares or $5,000.



This Offer is being made to targeted investors known to the founding shareholders and executive management, or who qualify as Sophisticated Investors or Professional Investors.



No offer of securities is made on the basis of the electronic version of the Information Memorandum accessible through this website. An application for securities can be made by completing the Application Form attached to or accompanied by a paper form of the Information Memorandum and then lodging the form and the application monies in accordance with the details set out in the Information Memorandum and the relevant Application Form.



No Advice



Nothing contained on this website or in the Information Memorandum constitutes investment, legal, business, tax or other advice. In particular, the information on this website and in the Information Memorandum does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or particular needs. In making an investment decision, you must rely on your own examination of the Company and the securities and terms of the offering, including the merits and risks involved. You should consult your professional adviser for legal, business or tax advice.



To register interest in investing in Revolution Metals Ltd, please visit:

http://www.revolutionmetals.com/investor-form.asp



To view the Information Memorandum to Sophisticated Investors, please visit:

http://abnnewswire.net/lnk/3QE1Y3A8



For complete project overview, please visit:

http://www.revolutionmetals.com





About Revolution Metals Ltd





Revolution Metals Ltd is an Australian public company and developer of mineral resources. The focus of the company is to develop mineral assets of economic grade to production, providing investors with rapid return on investment. Revolution's current tenement holding comprises 40 square kilometres of mineralized gold, silver, nickel, cobalt and lead bearing structures in northern New South Wales, Australia.

The primary gold bearing ironstone and quartz deposits of Mt Remarkable, Pine Creek and Alice Cornwall, are part of a field of numerous reefs and historical artisanal workings with over sixty identified as producing gold over a century ago.
In this issue: key stocks are providing outperformance, gold demand remains robust, and we talk about the mixed results in the gold sector. Read this latest Dawes Points to better understand the global forces that drive resources sector investment. Key Points - US gold price up 10.3% in 2017 to US$1268/oz - A$ Gold price back above A$1700. - Asian gold demand remaining robust - Australian Gold production forecast up 16% to 345t for FY20 - MPS Gold Producers Universe 17 stocks FY18 PER 7.1x, FY19 6.6x - Universe gold production to rise 15% to 5.2moz (excluding Newcrest) by FY19 - Excellent opportunities in Australian Gold Stocks - North American stocks picking up, royalty companies leading Preferred stocks: - Northern Star Resources Ltd ( ASX:NST )

- Tribune Resources Ltd ( ASX:TBR )

- St Barbara Ltd ( ASX:SBM )

- Evolution Mining Ltd ( ASX:EVN )

- Newcrest Mining Limited ( ASX:NCM )

- Gold Road Resources Ltd ( ASX:GOR )

- OceanaGold Corporation ( ASX:OGC )

- Cardinal Resources Ltd ( ASX:CDV )

- Eastern Goldfields Ltd ( ASX:EGS )

- Blackham Resources Ltd ( ASX:BLK )

- Perseus Mining Limited ( ASX:PRU )

- ARK Mines Ltd ( ASX:AHK )

- Torian Resources Ltd ( ASX:TNR )

- Pantoro Ltd ( ASX:PNR )

- STONEWALL FPO ( ASX:SWJ )

- Catalyst Metals Ltd ( ASX:CYL )

- WPG Resources Ltd ( ASX:WPG )



US$ gold has continued its unseasonal May rally and is again testing the 2011 downtrend. The US$ has been weaker against the major currencies Euro, Yen, Swiss Franc, Rupee and Sterling. Gold in other currencies has remained firm and technically constructive. Gold in A$ is above A$1,700/oz. Gold stocks have had a bumpy and volatile ride over the past six months with the better stocks strong and technically very constructive whilst much of the emerging sector has been weak and friendless. Many of the fallen are now outstanding value opportunities. The strength of the global equity markets is reinforcing a better outlook for commodities and gold will continue to benefit from rising wealth in Asia and Africa. The Australian Gold Sector has been a leading indicator of the expanding global economic boom. The A$ gold price has provided a strong incentive for the Australian entrepreneurial mining sector to do what it does best, and gold production in Australia has again exceeded 300 tonnes and is on its way to grow at least another 15% to 345t by 2020. The majors and mid caps are reporting production growth and a slew of merging companies are carrying out a repeat of the 1983-1990 gold production explosion when Australia went from 30tpa to 244tpa on the way to 314t by 1997. This graphic has just been updated to include newly-indentified gold mining projects and you can rest assured that many more will emerge over the next year. The growth in gold production with a A$1,700 gold price will be wonderfully profitable for existing producers and will also allow numerous smaller players to bring profitable new mines on stream and often to just deliver ore to existing nearby mills so requiring only small pre mining capital expenditure. The MPS Universe of Major Gold Producers (excluding Newcrest) of 17 stocks should have gross gold production of about 4.6moz in FY17 and this should grow to 5.2moz for FY19. The 17 stocks have a market cap of about A$17bn and should report earnings of around A$2,000m in FY18 and FY19 at A$1,700/oz. The PER is 7.1x for FY18 and 6.6x FY19. MPS has a second universe of more than 40 emerging companies and from this data it is clear that Australian gold production will be up by almost another 1moz (34t). Do note this history from one of my reports in Jan 1989 where I forecast almost 200 tonnes for 1990. The actual outcome was 244 tonnes and it just kept growing. Earlier reports in 1986 and 1987 were only forecasting up to 150 tonnes. Australian Gold Production peaked in 1997 at 314t. Source: Bain Matrix of Australian Gold Producers Jan 1989. And to reflect this, the ASX Gold Index of the time (established in about 1986 and backdated) rose from 400 in mid 1985 to its peak at 4413 in 1987. 1,000% in just 18 months!

Source: Bain Matrix of Australian Gold Producers Jan 1989 The performance of the ( ASX:XGD ) was strong over 2000-2011 but Australian gold production declined 27% during that boom that was strongly influenced by companies with African gold projects. This boom will be more about the growth in Australian gold production and the +226% first leg up from late 2014 was just the beginning. The performance of the gold sector in 2017 has been volatile and the ( ASX:XGD ) is up only 7.3%. It has produced some very mixed results with some strong performances and some awful declines. It is clear that the larger producers and the dividend payers have outperformed in the ( ASX:XGD ). SBM, NST, EVN and WGX are the senior players and did well with CDV and NSTs EKJV partners TBR and RND also performing. CDV has been outstanding and seems destined for even better things. NCM is OK but is acting like the big North American gold companies. In the smaller players, KIN with some outstanding drill results performed strongly and SWJ has been a MPS favourite as has PNR. WGP is starting to hit its straps and CYL is an emerging star. Many more new gold players are emerging and will be added to the MPS lists. Amongst the awful performers in 2017 there has certainly been some value created in SLR, BLK, PRU and DRM amongst the bigger stocks and AHK, HAV and TNR seem extremely cheap. Gold stocks are still improving their market share with some weeks in April 2017 exceeding 5% again. Dawes Points considers that this can only rise further. In terms of technical performance the ( ASX:XGD ) is showing signs of moving higher. But some individual stocks are looking very strong and seem ready for a robust breakout very soon. ( ASX:NST ) (Northern Star) is one of my preferred plays and a break above A$5.00 should see a big move. ( ASX:SBM ) (St Barbara) is showing the same pattern. As does ( ASX:EVN ) (Evolution). ( ASX:CDV ) (Cardinal) looks very powerful. As does ( ASX:WGX ). And late bloomer ( ASX:EGS ). ( ASX:BLK ) (Blackham) seems to have been most unfairly treated after reporting that unusually heavy rains had reduced mining and processing activities. Observers commenting on the history of Wiluna might like to read this from my Feb 2015 Report on BLK. The Biox plant ran successfully at about 80-100kozpa for almost nine years and the time under Apex was clearly a matter of poor management as the mine output was well under the mill capacity and the ore was under the mine reserve grade. Gold production for BLK in FY18 should be 90-100koz and the expansion to >200kozpa should be done without resort to additional equity. At 80kozpa with cash costs ~A$1200 and a A$1700 gold price this is A$40m cashflow and at 200kozpa this is A$100m cashflow. Market cap is only A$106m. At A$0.31 this is very cheap. Gold Price Outlook It is always helpful to look at the long term for US$ gold and to keep in mind that all the reasons for holding gold are still with us:- rising living standards for over 3,300m in Asia

immense growth in money supply.

sovereign debt The power of the twelve year first leg up from US$246 up to US$1923 was truly impressive. The pullback and consolidation over the next six years is also impressive in that gold has held up so well. The time intervals between the various moves have been trying the patience of the bulls but we are slowly but surely getting there. Dont despair. The power of this bull market in gold does look majestic in the time frame here. This Elliot Wave interpretation is also of great significance showing the strength into Sept 2011 and the subsequent shallow retracement. US$ Gold is pushing up against the downtrend line for a third test. A break here could be just as powerful as the earlier moves in gold. The flow of gold into China and India is absorbing all mine production and the flow is one way. Nothing is coming back. This is the main driver. The gold held by the Bank of England has declined. And the flow is one way only. At the same time this flow of gold is taking place it seems that the US$ is softening as shown by the US$ Index and reinforced by the above-noted weakness against the major currencies Euro, Yen, Swiss Franc, Rupee and Sterling North American Gold Stocks The lack of leadership and market interest in the Australian Gold Sector at present forces attention on the North American markets. The best indicators have been the ETFs for the larger stocks (GDX) and the next level of stocks in the GDXJ. However, it is notable that amongst the best performing stocks have been the gold royalty companies Royal Gold ( NASDAQ:RGLD ) and Franco-Nevada ( NYSE:FNV ). (I am looking at building a gold royalty company here so if anyone is interested you might like to give me a call.) Both of these look very constructive. The royalty companies are leading:- Franco-Nevada ( NYSE:FNV ) And Royal Gold ( NASDAQ:RGLD ) Top North American-listed performers include:- Agnico Eagle Mines ( NYSE:AEM ) And Kinross Gold Corp ( NYSE:KGC ) Randgold ( NASDAQ:GOLD ) The really big US companies Barrick and Newmont have tended to perform with the various indices but both seem capable of strong moves soon. Barrick Gold Corp ( NYSE:ABX ) Newmont Mining Corp ( NYSE:NEM ) The US$ Gold Price action seems constructive and its strength is matched by gold in many other currencies so that the world will be looking at a bull market for gold in all currencies. The gold stocks are also proving some good leading indicators with key stocks providing outperformance while the general market and the smaller stocks have been soft and engendering a mood of pessimism. These market sentiment characteristics generally provide a sound base for an upward move in any market. Contact me to participate. Dawes Points #65

29 May 2017



I own NST, BLK, AHK, EVN, CYL, TNR, TBR, CDV,SWJ


Good News for Kiwis, Continued Job Ad Growth

Sydney, May 29, 2017 AEST (ABN Newswire) - The latest SEEK ( ASX:SEK ) ( SKLTY:OTCMKTS ) data has revealed there were 9.7 per cent new job ads on SEEK this April than the same period last year.



The industries across New Zealand offering the most job opportunities on SEEK, and their average advertised annual salaries this April were:



--------------------------------------------------------------------- Information & Communication Technology [ICT] $93,111 Trades & Services $59,444 Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics $65,426 ---------------------------------------------------------------------

Across all industries this April, the average advertised annual salary on SEEK for New Zealand was $75,889.



AUCKLAND



"Of the major regions, Auckland enjoyed the largest job ad growth on SEEK this April, up 9.7 per cent y/y," said Janet Faulding, General Manager for SEEK New Zealand.



Fuelling this growth were the following industries, which offered the subsequent average advertised annual salaries on SEEK:



--------------------------------------------------------------------- Information & Communication Technology [ICT] $93,172 Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics $64,744 Administration & Office Support $52,191 ---------------------------------------------------------------------

"Across Auckland this April, the ICT industry again boasted the largest number of job opportunities on SEEK. The ICT fields with the greatest demand for workers were Development/Programming, Business System Analysts and Programme & Project Management," Faulding said.



"The need for highly skilled ICT professionals is ever increasing to keep Kiwi's digitally connected and competitive, and this demand is not isolated to just the IT sector. Currently on SEEK, ICT jobs are being advertised across many sectors, including Banking & Financial Services, Government and Retail," Faulding continued.



While off a low base, strong job ad growth on SEEK was seen in Auckland's Advertising, Arts & Media industry this April, up 25 per cent y/y. The fields with greatest demand for workers throughout the industry were Agency Account Management [up 18 per cent y/y] and Journalism & Writing [up 16 per cent y/y].



"This is very encouraging news for people looking at working in the Advertising, Arts & Media industry, or those looking to develop their career in this sector. Opportunities on SEEK for this sector are a mix of internal and agency roles that require varying levels of experience, therefore appealing to a broad range of job seekers," revealed Faulding.



CANTERBURY



"In the South Island, advertising on SEEK for Canterbury increased y/y for a second consecutive month, up 2.4 per cent y/y.



"This welcomed uplift across the region comes after job ad growth on SEEK was subdued since March 2015, which coincided with the earthquake rebuild slowing," Faulding said.



The top industries for job opportunities across Canterbury this April, and their average annual advertised salaries were:



--------------------------------------------------------------------- Trades & Services $60,141 Construction $95,867 Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics $61,030 ---------------------------------------------------------------------

"The most sought after Trades & Services professional across Canterbury this April were electricians, automotive mechanics & technicians, and builders. This reflects the skills the Canterbury population needs personally, such as getting their car serviced, or for residential and commercial projects, like construction," said Faulding.



Despite being a small advertising industry on SEEK for Canterbury, strong job ad growth was recorded for the Community, Services & Development sector this April, up 39 per cent y/y. The fields across the industry offering the largest number of employment prospects were;



o Child Welfare, Youth & Family Services

o Aged & Disability Services



"We don't expect demand on SEEK to slow any time soon across for these frontline service roles, because as our population grows and ages so will our need for professionals in these fields," Faulding said.



WELLINGTON



"In Wellington, new job ads on SEEK remained relatively flat this April [down 0.9 per cent y/y] after strong y/y growth in March [up 10.7 per cent y/y]. Fewer trading day in April, due to the timing of Easter and ANZAC Day, is a likely reason why the Wellington jobs market y/y growth stabilised. However, month on month advertising on SEEK for the region rose slightly, up 0.9 per cent," explained Faulding.



The top advertising industries on SEEK for Wellington this April, and their average advertised annual salaries were:

--------------------------------------------------------------------- Information & Communication Technology $100,787 Administration & Office Support $51,203 Trades & Services $60,434 ---------------------------------------------------------------------

The ICT fields offering the most job opportunities throughout the Wellington region this April were Business and System Analysts, Developers and Programmers and Programme & Project Management, which mirrors the ICT talent demand in Auckland.



One of the fastest growing industries across Wellington this April was Real Estate & Property, up 33 per cent y/y. Across our nation's capital, this is a small advertising industry on SEEK in comparison to other sectors, however the fields with greatest demand for workers and driving this growth across Real Estate & Property were:



o Body Corporate & Facilities Management

o Commercial Sales, Leasing & Property Management



CANDIDATE AVAILABILITY



"Relative to 12 months ago, competition conditions were tougher for jobseekers in Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury this April, this means there has been a slight increase in the number of people applying for jobs on SEEK. However, it was still a candidate's market this April, meaning candidates still had the upper hand over hirer's when applying for jobs," explained Faulding.



"At a national level, applications per ad remain high across the Engineering, ICT, Accounting and Marketing & Communications industries, which suggests tougher conditions for job seekers and an easier task for employers to source suitable candidates.



"High candidate availability remains in Human Resources, Legal and Mining, Resources & Energy sectors, however conditions are beginning to tighten," revealed Faulding.



"Conditions remain tight for employers and relatively favourable for candidates [low applications per ad] in housing-related markets such as Real Estate & Property, Trades & Services, and Design & Architecture. Service based industries are also favourable for candidates, such as Hospitality & Tourism and Retail & Customer Products," Faulding concluded.



About the SEEK Employment Report



The SEEK Employment Report provides a comprehensive overview of the New Zealand Employment Marketplace. The report includes the SEEK Employment Index (SEI), which is the first New Zealand aggregate indicator to measure the interaction between labour market supply and labour market demand.



It also includes the SEEK New Job Ad Index which measures only new job ads posted within the reported month to provide a clean measure of demand for labour across all classifications. SEEK's total job ad volume (not disclosed in this report) includes duplicated job advertisements and refreshed job ads. As a result, the SEEK New Job Ad Index does not always match the movement in SEEK's total job ad volume.





About SEEK Limited





SEEK Limited (ASX:SEK) (OTCMKTS:SKLTY) is a diverse group of companies, comprised of a strong portfolio of online employment, educational, commercial and volunteer businesses. SEEK operates across 18 countries with exposure to over 2.9 billion people and approximately 26 per cent of GDP. SEEK makes a positive contribution to people's lives on a global scale. SEEK is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, where it is a top 100 company with a market capitalisation close to A$6billion and has been listed in the Top 20 Most Innovative Companies Globally by Forbes, and Number One in Australia.








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The truth remains that all terrorisms are the creation of the states that behave irrationally and attack minorities on the strength of their majority and military power. Israel invented terrorism and USA used it a perfect tool to advance its imperialist goals. USA and Israel jointly launched many Islamic terrorist organizations by giving them suitable Arabic and English names to confuse and terrorize the humanity, invade energy rich Arab nations and to defame Islam as a terrorist religion. They have jointly destabilized Arab world after looting their resources, murdering them in millions.

Sri Lanka is one of those weak nations that terrorized the minority community with military force and also claim to be innocent and victims. They almost succeeded in committing a holocaust of Tamils in their nation. They dont bother about international legal system or punishment for their state crimes.

Sri Lanka first used the Tamils as their servants and Tamils obliged them. Sri Lanka refused to give them human status even after several decades of residency and denied many basis rights to them.

Tamils protested. The LTTE came much later to serve their causes. Tamils got several rights. The majority Singhalese were annoyed about giving any status of to Tamils from Southern India who had come to the island nation to work for them and strengthen their economy. It was during the British era. Then Singhalese community began hating Tamils for sharing their jobs in government.

In the face of credible allegations that his forces had slaughtered tens of thousands of Tamil civilians, the claim was jaw-droopingly brazen. Yet, as the evidence mounted, the Rajapaksa government and its representatives continued to dispute not only its culpability, but also the very fact of mass civilian death.

The Sirisena regime promised action against Rajapaksha and the military bosses for their collective crimes against Tamils and proposed reconciliation with Tamils but he did not begin that effort. He asked Indian government to save the Tamils with economic assistance.

.Hatred for Tamils in Sri Lanka has grown too much that now it attacks the Tamil fishermen who traditionally fish for their supporting their livelihood, loot their boats, arrest them and put them in jails, expecting Indian government to plead and (even beg) with Sirisena to do the favor of releasing the Indians and returning their belongings. Indian government did all this because of the pressure from Tamil nadu government.

Sri Lankan regime feels happy and even proud of its strategic advantages over India and wants the USA to co-opt Colombo as a reliable strategic partner.

Tamil Nadu and Ceylon were historically not separated as they are now. Even in 1970s before the start of Civil war and consequent loss of freedom in Sri Lanka, fishermen communities from either side frequently visited each others places. It is told that people from Lanka would take a boat and come to present day Nagapattinam District, watch a movie in talkies and will get back same day. Then fishermen did not have any problem with fishing boundaries since all the problem areas are traditional fishing grounds. The present problem had its origin in formation of India and Sri Lanka as two sovereign countries. Now fishermen from both sides had to follow boundaries. The problem was compounded by Katchatheevu island settlement in 1974(this agreement is not constitutionally valid since it is not ratified by parliament). Fishermen from Indian side lost additional areas due to loss of Katchatheevu.

India-Sri Lanka fishing issue. Relation between two countries comes under pressure due to fishermen straying into each other's waters. Every month dozens of fishermen from each country get arrested for illegal poaching. The fishing controversy is due to the unclear demarcation over the Palk Strait, a narrow strip of sea between the two countries. As for Sri Lankan fishermen, they do not know where Sri Lankan waters end and the Indian waters begin. They also lack GPS in boats.

The Palk Strait is a strip of ocean that separates Tamil Nadu in India from the Mannar district in Sri Lanka. Its width is between 53 and 80 km, the narrow division between the two countries has resulted in confusion over who holds ownership over the waters. In the case of the Palk Strait, both Sri Lanka's and India's EEZ overlap each other. This has now resulted in the conflict that has arisen between the two nation's fishing communities.

Both Indian and Sri Lankan prefer to go towards the Katchatheevu Island area in the strait, where fish reserves are said to be abundant due to presence of deep waters and the rocky formation. For Sri Lankan fishermen it is within their maritime boundary. Sri Lanka doesn't agree with Indian Fisherman's practice of doing bottom trawling which not only captures fishes but also disturbs their habitat. This leads to less fishes coming to those areas because of lack of nutrients. Bottom trawling is banned in many countries

The issue of fishermen came to the fore only with emergence of violent ethnic conflict between the Tamil militants and the Sri Lankan government in the mid 1980s. Increased vigilance by the Sri Lankan Navy to check intermittent flow of Tamil refugees into India and flow of arms and supplies to Tamil militant groups made fishing difficult and risky.

World powers, especially those that claim that democracy and rule of law are central to global governance, have not taken the mass murder of minority Tamils by Sri Lankan regime under President Rajapaksha to be a serious crime. They seem to suggest that all state crimes are a part of democracy and rule of law and hence they are lawful and no need to punish the rulers for their crimes against humanity.

Then President Mahinda Rajapaksa defends Sri Lankas military offensive against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the mass murder of the Tamils because he does not distinguish between Tamil community and LTTE. What exactly he and his military had tried was a holocaust of Tamil community on the Island land. Although Rajapaksha could achieve full holocaust, he succeeded in perpetrating genocides of Tamils and terrorizing them to leave the Sri Lanka.

Not only Rajapaksha but even Sirisena who defeated him in the poll to become the President seems to support the military crimes against humanity. Yes, not only Sri Lankan leaders even the USA also seems to support the crimes of Sri Lanka against minority community.

.Lankan regime justified the genocides of Tamils in Lanka as war terror and hence very much humane act as it had to fight the LTTE. Much has been made of the example set by Sri Lankas ruthless strategy as an alternative to hearts and minds counterinsurgency efforts.

Governments battling stubborn militant movements continue to seek advice from Colombo on employing the Rajapaksa model. But the successful elimination of the LTTE in 2009 wasnt the only unexpected feat Sri Lanka accomplished. Sri Lanka managed to preempt international action long enough to conclude its brutal campaign, despite state-perpetrated civilian casualties on a massive scale.

Sirisenas reaction to accusations of war crimes is very cool as if nothing bad had happened in his country when he was a loyal minister in Rajapaksha government. Although Sirisena has not rejected all allegations of atrocities as pure imagination of the world, he has refused legal action against Rajapaksha. There plays the Sinhala politics where all Singhalese leaders have ganged up to defend both Rajapaksha and Lankan from punishment for their heinous crimes.

The Sirisena government, therefore, doesnt allow the UN to investigate the war crimes committed by his predecessor Rajapaksha he still maintain cordial al relations with him. .And importantly, the Rajapaksa government then enjoyed much greater international support than any other despot on earth.

Sirisena would argue that the LTTE had significant popular support and hence their genocides are logical and apr to rule of law. USA and other so-called democracies refused to discuss the pattern of human right violations in Sri Lanka where the Tamils were cornered by the military, police. The government justifies all custodial torture and extrajudicial killings of suspected regime opponents, attacks on civilian targets including hospitals and aid conveys, and the use of prohibited weapons. And in both cases international audiences raised the alarm about mass atrocities.. In addition to forbidding foreign correspondents and human rights organizations access to the conflict zone, the Sri Lankan government terrorized the domestic press. Under Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka became one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist.

The delivery of humanitarian aid was also severely restricted. In September 2008, the government ordered all aid workers out of the conflict zone in northern Sri Lanka. While foreign journalists are not officially banned from the country, access to regime-held territory is limited to pre-approved journalists, often accompanied by a minder. Today, it tops the list of deadliest countries for journalists, in large part due to regime attacks on the domestic press. Humanitarian aid delivery has been restricted since the conflict began. In Sri Lanka these measures cut off nearly all sources of independent information.

The second tactic out of Colombos playbook is to vehemently contest the limited information that does trickle out of the war zone. The Sri Lankan government challenged all casualty reports as Tiger propaganda. In late April 2009, as thousands were dying from government shelling, the Sri Lankan Air Force denied that it was carrying out any operations. Both during and after the war, the Rajapaksa regime also challenged the veracity of all photographic and video evidence. The regime disputed the authenticity of photo and video evidence of weapons attacks, barrel bombs, torture, and extrajudicial killings. Sri Lanka boldly claims that video evidence of extrajudicial killing was faked by Tamil rebels in army uniform.

Despite the implausibility of the claim, Sri Lanka insisted that any shelling of civilian targets had been committed not by his military boys but by the terrorists. The government also repeatedly accused the LTTE of employing civilians as human shields, arguing that this exonerated the military of any responsibility for their deaths.

Any criminal regime would try to justify its crimes just like any street criminal does. On first look, these tactics  all of which amount to contesting empirically verifiable facts  appear deluded. Against reams of physical and testimonial evidence of war crimes, who would believe a self-interested denial?

But sometimes it works and the strategy paid off for Sri Lanka. In fact, immediately following its victory, the Rajapaksa regime was commended by the U.N. Human Rights Council for its efforts to ensure the safety and security of all Sri Lankans. And as impunity for war crimes was compounded by a litany of human rights abuses in the aftermath of the war, the most significant sanctions the government faced were reductions in aid and trade. The war ended eight years ago this week, and to this day no member of the civilian or military leadership has faced justice for war crimes.

But now Sri Lanka wages a regular war on Tamil fishing community.

Sri Lankas apparent success in influencing international community not act on SL state terror operations did not depend on actually convincing anyone that it hadnt committed war crimes. It simply relied on muddying the waters enough to prevent international action. Two structural features of the situation enabled this strategy: First, Sri Lanka was mostly insulated from action at the UN Security Council or at the International Criminal Court. Consequently, there was no straightforward path to halting the violations or ensuring justice for them.

Any intervention (military, judicial, or otherwise) would have been costly and challenging to coordinate. And the final phase of the conflict played out against the backdrop of the Global War on Terror, allowing Sri Lanka to emphasize the LTTEs use of terrorist tactics and characterize their eradication as an international necessity. There was widespread support (both overt and tacit) for the fight against the LTTE as a terror group. If the first dynamic meant that the bar for international action was set higher than it would have been otherwise, the second meant that Sri Lankas actions, seen through the more permissive lens of a fight against terrorism, were less likely to clear that bar.

War crimes are thus justified.

International action on mass atrocities is the exception rather than the rule and Sri Lanka is eager to escape punishment. . The Sri Lankan experience shows that obfuscation and denial can be enough to exploit this inertia and prevent intervention from international community, especially India, which shamelessly kills Kashmiris in their own nation Kashmir which is under Indian military occupation - and alas, UN and UNSC do not intervene to stop the Indian state crimes in Kashmir, does not press for UN investigation and punishing the guilty.

For Sri Lanka, Israel and India are the models in perpetrating crimes against minorities and terrorizing nations under their illegal occupation - Kashmir and Palestine, respectively.Can USA, ICC and UNSC let Sri Lankan regime get away with mass murder, giving precedence for other criminal regimes to emulate it?

Since Sri Lanka is in denial of mass crimes by its military-police, it is time the UNSC stepped in to initiate punitive measures!








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One gets the impression that US President Donald Trump could lead his nation and world at large to a new world without conflicts. However, if he misleads the world by his mischief as a usual US leader, then, like his predecessors have done before him, would betray the humanity beyond Mideast and the humanity would be the silent victim to war mongers and looters.

US President Donald Trump has met Pope Francis on May 24 morning at the Vatican for a short private audience on the third leg of his overseas trip before going to Europe to conclude his madden tour as the custodian of White House. Trump is now due to meet Italy's president and prime minister. He will then fly to Brussels for a NATO summit.

The US President arrived for the meeting along with his wife Melania, daughter Ivanka and Jewish son-in-law Jared Kushner after their visit to Israel. The meeting was keenly awaited as the two men have already clashed at a distance on issues including migration and climate change.

Trump and his entourage arrived at the Vatican n the morning just before 08:30 local time; the meeting was arranged last minute which resulted in the early start time. The US president was greeted by Archbishop Georg Ganswein, the head of the papal household, and escorted by the Swiss Guard from the Vatican courtyard to the offices of Pope Francis. Journalists who covered the initial greeting said the pair were cordial with each other. Trump told the Pope "it is a great honour". The two men spoke privately for about 20 minutes before returning to a public arena to exchange gifts.

Though this is their first meeting, they've already sparred. During the election the Pope on a visit to the Mexico-US border said that people who only think of building walls instead of bridges were not Christians. Donald Trump described those comments as disgraceful, and accused the pontiff of being a pawn of the Mexican government. But on Wednesday both men were seeking to find common ground.

It is hard to think of two more contrasting characters than Pope Francis and President Trump. On one hand, the Jesuit who has made his mission the championing of the poor and dispossessed; on the other the property developer who has championed getting rich, and surrounded himself with billionaires in his cabinet. Interestingly, Trump gave the Pope a boxed set of writings by the black civil rights leader Martin Luther King. The Pope gave Trump a signed copy of a message he delivered for World Peace Day, along with some of his writings about the need to protect the environment. "Well, I'll be reading them," Trump told him.

Trump seemed subdued during their initial meeting, while Pope Francis was not as jovial as he sometimes is with world leaders. The two men appeared much more relaxed at the end of their 30-minute private meeting. He was granted a short private audience with the head of the Catholic Church on the latest leg of his overseas trip. The two men have in the past clashed on issues such as migration, climate change and a Mexico-US wall. On international affairs, their "exchange of views" covered the "promotion of peace in the world through political negotiation and interreligious dialogue", and highlighted the need to protect Christian communities in the Middle East.

The Vatican said later that they shared a commitment to "life, and freedom of worship and conscience" and expressed hope that they can collaborate "in service to the people in the fields of healthcare, education and assistance to migrants".

Saudi Arabia and Iran

Trump vowed to help Israelis and Palestinians achieve durable peace, as he ended the Middle East leg of his tour. The US leader began his foreign trip with a two-day stop in Saudi Arabia over the weekend, urging Muslim countries to take the lead in combating radicalization.

Western powers make maximum benefits of the illogical Saudi-Iran rift.

After the first leg of his trip in Saudi Arabia, President Trump seems to hope that Sunni Arab countries might be part of any solution between Israel and the Palestinians. Without doubt the Saudis and the Israelis are talking, because Iran is their shared enemy. But the Saudis have had their own Arab peace plan on the table for the last 15 years, offering full peace and recognition of Israel in return for the establishment of a Palestinian state on the entire territory of the West Bank and Gaza with its capital in East Jerusalem. That is something the current Israeli government is not prepared to concede.

Antipathy towards Iran is the one thing that Washington's disparate allies in the region agree upon. So, bashing of Tehran has been a prominent theme for Trump both in Saudi Arabia and now in Israel. Hostility to Iran is the glue that binds what some would like to believe is an emerging coalition between Israel, Saudi Arabia and the smaller Gulf States together. But how far it really promises to shake up the sterile politics of the region is unclear.

A common purpose to contain Iran is one thing but can it really extend to bringing a new diplomatic dawn to the region? For Trump, criticising Tehran performs multiple functions. It allows him to sound tough on the world stage. Tougher than his predecessor, Barack Obama, who, he believes, signed one of the worst deals in history in reaching the nuclear accord with Iran.

It enables him to reassure both the Gulf Arabs and Israel at one and the same time. And it underscores the narrative of a common front emerging in the region that - at least according to the Trump administration - holds the enticing promise of a new dynamic in the log-jammed struggle between Israel and the Palestinians. And, of course, it also sends a warning signal to Tehran about aspects of its policy in the region that Washington sees as contrary to US interests.

It is also not a policy of nuance or one that contends with complex reality. How does it look providing ringing endorsements to the Saudis and selling them a fortune of weaponry, when they are engaged in a brutal war in Yemen?

The Trump government's almost brash belief in the possibilities of a wider Middle East peace seems to be at variance with most experts who know the region well. They argue neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians are ready to make the hard compromises necessary to achieve a lasting peace.

Some have argued that rather than focusing on a comprehensive deal that would have to resolve the hard questions like Jerusalem and refugees, the goal should be less ambitious; an interim deal that might mark the re-starting of a longer term diplomatic process. But it is not clear yet if the new US administration has the patience for this kind of worthy diplomacy. And this brings us back to Iran. Just what is the Trump administration's policy towards Tehran?

Indeed the re-election of Iran's President Hassan Rouhani may complicate matters further. He was perceived as the more moderate candidate after all, even if the Supreme Leader and the Revolutionary Guard still retain a key grip on foreign policy.

President Rouhani is already encouraging some European politicians to talk of the search for an opening to Tehran. That may not go down well in Washington. But then there is the very complexity of the region that Trumps rhetoric often overlooks.

Interestingly, the Iraqi government is now one of Washington's main allies against so-called Islamic State. But Iran too is a strong supporter of Baghdad and has deployed militia forces and advisers on the ground to aid the war effort.

Dealmakers hopes

President George W Bush sponsored a peace conference in Annapolis in 2007, which for a while was hailed, in vain, as a major step towards the establishment of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel. President Bill Clinton presided over the moment in 1993 at the White House when Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin exchanged a historic handshake and signed the Oslo peace agreement. At the end of his presidency in 2000, a make or break summit failed and was followed by years of violence and unrest. In recent times every American president also brings with him new hopes and fears for Israelis and Palestinians. In 2009 President Barack Obama trying to re-set relations with Arabs and Muslims. In the process he alienated Israelis and its leaders never forgave him. His first act as president was to appoint a Middle East envoy whose peace mission, in the end, failed.

Nobel foundations have played mischief by offering Obama the coveted Nobel Peace prize even before he could do nay thing meaningful in his presidency in the proper way. Nobel committee denied any chance for Middle East peace by almost imposing on him Peace Award that made him ineffective in solving the Mideast puzzle by establishing Palestine. Perhaps had he not got the Nobel Peace Award, Palestine would have become a sure reality as he supported the Palestine cause towards the end of tenure at White House. .

Now President Trump, who sees himself as the world's best dealmaker, says he would like to pull off the world's toughest deal. How quickly Trump would be able to get Israeli leadership on board to settle the worlds deadliest conflict in the name of Israel war on Palestine would determine the success of his efforts to end the blood bath in Palestine where Palestinians have been facing cruelty form Zionist military. .

The US leader began his foreign trip with a two-day stop in Saudi Arabia over the weekend, urging Muslim countries to take the lead in combating radicalization. In his final speech, at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, President Trump also identified himself, his government and the USA four-square with Israel. He repeated, to lots of applause, that he would never let Iran have nuclear weapons. Israel has a substantial -illegally obtained from USA - and officially undeclared nuclear arsenal.

Trump became the first serving American president to visit the Western Wall in Jerusalem, the holiest place where Jews can pray. That is being taken by Jews as his support for Israel. Trump became the first serving American president to visit the Western Wall in Jerusalem, the holiest place where Jews can pray. That is being taken as support for Israel. The wall is in East Jerusalem, which Israel annexed after it was captured 50 years ago and which most of the world outside Israel regards as occupied land. Some will interpret the fact that the president declined the Israeli prime minister's request to accompany him as a sign of support for the status quo view that it is occupied territory.

President Trump, in his speech, did not pick up the cue. After making many warm remarks about Israel, which earned him standing ovations, he said he believed that the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, was serious about making peace.

One pointer to a potential difference with Israel's hawkish PM Netanyahu came at the museum. In his opening remarks, Netanyahu said that if the bomber in Manchester was Palestinian, and his victims were Israelis, the Palestinian Authority would be paying a stipend to his family. He was referring to a Palestinian Martyrs' fund. It pays pensions to people it regards as victims of the occupation, including the families of individuals who have been killed attacking Israelis. There is also a fund to support Palestinians who have been imprisoned by Israel. The Palestinians have compared the payments to the salaries Israel pays to soldiers.

Senior Israeli politicians and officials in the room disagree. Netanyahu said earlier this year that President Abbas lied to Donald Trump when they met in the White House. That is an important disagreement. If President Trump's hopes ever become negotiations about substance he will find that there are many others. The two sides are far apart on the main issues, like the future of east Jerusalem, the borders of a Palestinian state and the fate of Palestinian refugees.

President Trump brought with him to Jerusalem most of his top advisers, dozens of vehicles and his own helicopters. The White House booked the entire King David Hotel for the president and his entourage. The Israeli and Palestinian authorities cleared the main roads of Jerusalem and Bethlehem for the movements of his armed and mighty motorcade.

NATO

President Donald Trump has arrived in Brussels ahead of a NATO summit where he will push the security alliances 28 members to meet their spending obligations and do more to combat terrorism. The fight against terrorism will be top of the agenda at the May 25 meeting in the Belgian capital, a stop on Trumps first trip abroad since he took office in January.

It is believed that the bombing in Britain that killed 22 people has been engineered to further strengthen the NATO and its brand state terrorism encompassing Islamic world. The whole idea for all this is to brand Islam a terrorist religion and to force Islamic regimes to kill Muslims as terrorists in order to reduce Islamic populations and loot their resources, valuable assets. . . . .

This is Trumps first visit to Europe since taking office in January. Security has been stepped up across Rome, with the areas around the Vatican City, the Italian presidential palace and the American ambassador's residence, where Trump is staying, temporarily closed to traffic.

Trump called NATO obsolete during the US presidential campaign last year, saying it was not doing enough to fight terrorism. He has also chided some members for not following NATO guidelines on spending. This visit will be about damage limitation with the fervent hope of establishing some kind of transatlantic chemistry. The tone in Brussels has gone from off-the-record sneering when the erratic and unpredictable Trump first won the November elections, to outright concern now that the implications of his presidency have begun to sink in.

Despite the heavy police presence, about 100 anti-Trump protesters held a rally in one of Rome's squares on Tuesday evening. Significant protests are also expected in Brussels where he will meet EU and NATO officials.

Trump is now in Brussels for talks with NATO and EU officials. He will also hold meetings with Belgium's King Philippe and Prime Minister Charles Michel. Later on Wednesday, Trump flew to Brussels, where significant protests are expected. For the EU and for NATO, this visit is about damage limitation with the fervent hope of establishing some kind of transatlantic chemistry, the BBC's Europe editor Katya Adler says. She adds that the tone in Brussels has gone from off-the-record sneering when the erratic and unpredictable Trump first won the November elections, to outright concern now that the implications of his presidency have begun to sink in.

After his visit to Saudi Arabia, home to Islam's holiest sites, and to Israel, this is the final leg of the tour of three of the world's major religions. President Trump's commitment to fighting extremism and intolerance will win approval from the Pope, as will his determination to bring peace to the Middle East. And the president thinks there's another reason why they will get on. Back in 2013 he tweeted: "The new Pope is a humble man, very much like me."

Trump was joined not only by his wife, daughter and son-in-law but also Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and National Security Adviser HR McMaster. Both Melania and Ivanka Trump were dressed in black with their heads partially covered, in keeping with a traditional Vatican protocol that is no longer expected to be rigorously observed. Melania, a Catholic, asked the Pope to bless her rosary beads.

Following his visit to the Vatican, Trump was moving on for talks with Italian President Sergio Mattarella and Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni in what is his first visit to Europe since taking office in January. Security has been stepped up across Rome, with the areas around the Vatican City, the Italian presidential palace and the American ambassador's residence, where Trump is staying, temporarily closed to traffic. Despite the heavy police presence, about 100 anti-Trump protesters held a rally in one of Rome's squares.

After the meeting between President Trump and the Pope, the Vatican said there had been an "exchange of views" on international issues, while Trump said they had had a "fantastic meeting". Trump also tweeted: "Honor of a lifetime to meet His Holiness Pope Francis. I leave the Vatican more determined than ever to pursue PEACE in our world." He arrived in Europe from Israel and the Palestinian territories, where he vowed to try to achieve peace in the region.

Observation

Today the world is at a cross roads. Palestinians and Kashmiris like other oppressed nations, brutally occupied colonist and imperialist regimes, continue to be strangled to death by democracy militaries aided by high precision terror equipment. President Trump has given a new hope for the survival of occupied masses with some dignity. . Whether or not he could be trusted remains a trillion dollar question.

Enemies of Islam have succeeded creating a solid wedge between Saudi Arabia and Iran and through that a vertical split in Islamic world. That trend may not end any soon because Saudi led Sunni Arab states view Iran as their worst foe- even worse than Israel and all anti-Islamic rogue states operating in coalition to destroy Islam. Interestingly, a few Muslim regimes also led support to the destructive format of anti-Islamic forces globally.

Absolute foolishness and fatal ignorance are not a part of Islamic faith. Nor reluctance to mold the mindset of Arab leaders could be an excuse to let the enemies of Islam invade energy rich Arab world.

Donald Trump deserves global appreciation as he has said he is "more determined than ever" to pursue peace in the world after meeting Pope Francis at the Vatican.

The main problem is Israel does not want to resolve the conflict. Trump is right on one point. This is a conflict that badly needs settling. If that is not possible, there needs to be political progress. History shows that bloodshed tends to fill the void left by the absence of hope.

Well, for all the rhetoric the practical reality of Trump's foreign policy is more guarded. So beyond a raft of trade deals in Saudi Arabia what have we really learnt so far. All the indications are, for example, that the move of the US embassy to Jerusalem has been put on hold.

US Presidents have never talked about Zionist nukes and their danger posed to the humanity. Trump also never questioned the validity of Isabel possessing nukes illegally. For all of the president's repeated condemnation of the Iran nuclear deal, is he really capable of walking away from it?

A Trump foreign policy is still very much a work in progress. Much of Trump's world view is now coming into a jarring contact with reality. This current trip is in large part ceremonial, it is very early in his presidency to be putting a toe into Middle Eastern waters.

In all the speeches President Trump made during the trip there was no detail about how he might succeed when so many others have failed. So signs and symbols and implicit messages are being pored over for meaning.

This is President Donald Trump's first foray to the Middle East and of course it will not be his last. He has already got one thing clear. Adversity really does make strange bedfellows.

Trump will end his tour on the Italian island of Sicily at the G7 summit on Friday.
Aiken, SC (29801)

Today

Cloudy with rain developing this afternoon. High 66F. Winds NE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall around a quarter of an inch. Higher wind gusts possible..

Tonight

Rain likely. Potential for heavy rainfall. Low around 65F. Winds ESE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Rainfall around a half an inch.
Olivier Douliery - Pool/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump offered a solemn tribute to America's soldiers during a Memorial Day speech at Arlington National Cemetery Monday, honoring those who gave their lives in war and those currently serving in defense of the country.



"Here at this hallowed shrine, we honor the noblest among us, the men and women who paid the ultimate price for victory and for freedom," said Trump. "We pay tribute to those brave souls who raced into gunfire, roared into battle, and ran into hell to face down evil. They made their sacrifice not for fame, or for money, or even for glory, but for country."



From the podium of the cemetery's Memorial Amphitheater, the commander-in-chief relayed stories of those who served and urged Americans to continue with the day's theme of remembrance.



We can never replace them. We cannot repay them. But we can always remember. And today, that is what we are doing, Trump said.



In the speech, Trump paid tribute to Army Spc. Christopher Horton; Special Forces Capt. Andrew Byers; and Marine First Lt. Robert Kelly, the son of Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, whose family members were in attendance.



And while we cannot know the extent of your pain, what we do know is that our gratitude to them and to you is boundless and undying, Trump said to the Gold Star families.



He also made special mention of former Kansas Sen. Bob Dole, who sat in the audience at Mondays ceremony, thanking him for his service in World War II.



Earlier in the morning, the president visited the cemetery's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier where he placed a wreath and had a moment of silence as a bugle player performed "Taps."



Trumps remarks at the Memorial Day ceremony was his first public appearance since returning from a nine-day foreign trip.

Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
H135 final assembly line: a significant step in the companys internationalisation and partnership with China

Qingdao, Airbus Helicopters is moving forward with the expansion of its global footprint and its strategic partnership with China, as construction is now underway for its H135 Final Assembly Line (FAL)  the first of its kind not only for Airbus Helicopters, but also for the Western helicopter industry in China.



The FAL will be located in Qingdao, Shandong Province, eastern China, and construction is expected to be completed by 2018. A framework agreement signed in June 2016 calls for 100 H135s to be assembled over the next 10 years, and the first aircraft roll-out from Qingdao is planned for mid-2019. The FAL will have a total annual capacity of 18 H135 helicopters, which could be extended for future growth.



This ground breaking is a remarkable milestone for Airbus Helicopters global footprint and demonstrates our commitment to further enhancing our industrial cooperation with Chinas rapidly growing aviation industry, said Guillaume Faury, CEO of Airbus Helicopters. We are confident that this project will achieve a win-win solution to fulfil the requirements of local customers while supporting the development of crucial helicopter services for the benefit of Chinese citizens.



The new facility, located in Jimo Provincial Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone, will be jointly operated by Airbus Helicopters and Qingdao United General Aviation Company Limited (UGAC), a joint venture between China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS) and Qingdao United General Aviation Industrial Development Company Limited (UGA). Following the joint venture agreement signed in April of this year, Airbus Helicopters holds a majority share of 51%.



The H135 Final Assembly Line is another strong example of Sino-European cooperation and will play an important role in further promoting the development of Chinas general aviation industry, said Mr. Li Hai, President of CAS. We believe in this partnership and are looking forward to seeing the first Airbus helicopter assembled in China to fly in the skies.



The H135 is one of the most popular light twin-engine helicopters in China, mainly operating in helicopter emergency medical services (HEMS), search and rescue, law enforcement, firefighting and tourism. To date, more than 1,200 helicopters of the H135 family are in operation around the globe with more than 4 million flight hours.



For the first time in 2016, China became Airbus Helicopters largest civil market in terms of annual bookings. Given the rapid development of the HEMS, public services and offshore wind industry in the country, a potential demand of 600 light twin-engine helicopters is expected over the next two decades.





About Airbus

Airbus is a global leader in aeronautics, space and related services. In 2016, it generated revenues of 67 billion and employed a workforce of around 134,000. Airbus offers the most comprehensive range of passenger airliners from 100 to more than 600 seats. Airbus is also a European leader providing tanker, combat, transport and mission aircraft, as well as Europes number one space enterprise and the worlds second largest space business. In helicopters, Airbus provides the most efficient civil and military rotorcraft solutions worldwide.

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May 26, 2017

A Hamas-Russia rapprochement has recently started to take shape despite the decline in Hamas regional and international relations, especially after the outbreak of the Arab Spring revolutions in early 2011.

On May 18, the Russian Foreign Ministry praised Hamas new policy document, issued on May 1, which it considered a step in the right direction. It also welcomed the election of Ismail Haniyeh as the head of the movement's political bureau on May 6, replacing Khaled Meshaal.

On May 19, Haniyeh phoned Mikhail Bogdanov, Russia's deputy foreign minister and special presidential representative for the Middle East, and discussed bilateral relations as well as the Palestinian prisoners hunger strike in Israeli prisons that was happening at the time, the Russian role in achieving national reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas, and the new policy document.

Speaking about this rapprochement, Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem told Al-Monitor, Hamas considers Russia a superpower with great influence on international politics, and the movement is ready to open up to Russia if it serves the Palestinian interests without conflicting with its principles. The two have been in contact over the years, especially since Hamas welcomes any party  except the Israeli occupation  that tries to communicate with it, to achieve Palestinian aspirations for independence.

Russia might as well be the only superpower to have had positive relations with Hamas since it won the 2006 legislative elections in the Gaza Strip. A Hamas delegation headed by Meshaal had visited Moscow in March 2006, and Meshaal met with former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on a different occasion in Damascus in May 2010.

On Aug. 3, 2015, Meshaal hosted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Qatar, and Lavrov invited him to visit Moscow  but Meshaal is yet to do so.

Bogdanov met Meshaal in Doha on Aug. 17, 2016. On April 4, Hamas condemned the bombing of the St. Petersburg metro. Before that, on Jan. 15, a Hamas delegation arrived in Moscow to discuss the Palestinian situation and met with Lavrov.

A Hamas official who has attended several meetings between Hamas and Russian officials over the past year told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, During the meetings with Russian officials, Hamas was able to convey its vision of the conflict with the Israeli occupation and its desire to mobilize international positions in support of the Palestinian cause, as well as negate all Israeli attempts to link the Palestinian resistance to terrorism.

Hussam al-Dajani, a political science professor at Al-Ummah University in Gaza, told Al-Monitor, Hamas' relationship with Russia could pave the way for the movement to regain its position as part of the political process in the region. Russia is a member of the International Quartet [on the Middle East], and I expect Haniyeh to visit Moscow on his next tour, although no date has been set yet.

The mutual interests between Hamas and Russia may lie with the latter's desire to form regional alliances to serve its interests and to improve the Russian image vis-a-vis the Muslim world by linking itself to a large Islamic movement such as Hamas. Meanwhile, during the meetings held between 2006 and 2016, it seems Hamas wanted Russia to break the siege imposed on Gaza since 2006. In addition, this helps Hamas become more open to the world in order to ease international pressure.

In this context, Ahmed Yousef, a former political adviser to Haniyeh, told Al-Monitor, Hamas is going to strengthen its relations with Russia to face the pressures that may come from international and regional forces, such as the United States and Israel. However, for the Russian-Hamas relationship to work, the movement needs to show flexibility in its political positions in a way that does not contradict its national principles.

Meanwhile, a Palestinian official close to President Mahmoud Abbas told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, Hamas should not get its hopes up regarding the future of its relationship with Moscow. The latter is part of an international system and any link it wants to have with the movement depends on Hamas response to the requirements of the peace process, such as recognizing the agreements between the PLO and Israel. So long as Hamas is turning its back on these commitments, all it is going to get out of this relationship with Russia are commemorative photos with its officials.

The rapprochement between Hamas and Russia coincides with US hostility toward the movement, especially between September 2015 and April 2017, when the United States added a number of Hamas leaders on its list of terrorists. The latest US position was announced by US President Donald Trump in Saudi Arabia on May 21, when he placed Hamas, Hezbollah and the Islamic State in the same category, as terrorist groups, which angered Hamas.

Al-Monitor obtained an unpublished internal Hamas document that states, Hamas relationship with Russia defeats the Israeli approach to isolate the movement internationally. The Russian position shocked the Israeli occupation that is currently leading a diplomatic campaign against Hamas in an attempt to shut it out. The fact that Hamas and Russia continue to meet indicates that the movement is breaking free from the blockade imposed on it [by Israel] with a shot in the arm from the United States.

Adel Sattar Qassem, a professor of political science at An-Najah National University in Nablus, told Al-Monitor, Hamas' road is not paved toward Russia. The latter is a superpower whose political considerations will not allow it to welcome Hamas with arms wide open without expecting something in return. Russia may be cautious about its rapprochement with Hamas, which is now keeping Iran at an arms length after their dispute over the Syrian crisis. Meanwhile, Iran is keeping itself in the loop when it comes to the rapprochement between Moscow and Hamas because it wants to bring the movement back to its axis. This was made clear when Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif congratulated Hamas on May 9 for electing Haniyeh.

In the midst of the Russian rapprochement with Hamas, the Palestinian Information Center reported May 18 that the movement had made its way into modern Russian literature, by being mentioned in a recent novel by Russian writer Alexander Prokhanov called The Orientalist  released in 2016. The novel narrates the story of a Russian intelligence officer who arrived in Gaza through the tunnels and met with Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas military wing.

Developing a relationship with a superpower such as Russia bodes well for Hamas security situation; the movement can use this rapprochement to protect itself against any international pressure. However, Moscow is not a charity and Hamas will undoubtedly have to show some flexible political positions regarding the conflict with Israel in return. Although Russia has already seen this intention in Hamas new policy document, the movement will have to take action to prove its flexibility.
May 29, 2017

MOSUL, Iraq  Iraqi joint forces launched an operation to liberate the last Islamic State (IS) pockets of resistance in the Old City of Mosul on May 27. After roughly two months of scant movement on the southern front lines of west Mosul, a push from the northwestern axis in early May had steadily gained ground against the remaining IS-held areas, paving the way for the latest moves.

Loudspeakers and flyers dropped over the city have at various points called on civilians to use corridors created by the Iraqi forces, which Iraqi security analyst Hisham al-Hashimi told Al-Monitor marks a turnaround from the coalition strategy when operations began in October to retake the largest city held by IS in Iraq.

The coalition initially encouraged civilians to remain in their homes, but IS forced them to change their strategy to corridors and scorched earth tactics after the civilians have come out, he said.

The armys Ninth Armored Division and the Emergency Response Division (ERD), which answers to the Interior Ministry, continued clearing areas inward from the outlying homes into residential areas on this northern axis throughout much of May.

The more densely populated urban areas farther south vary starkly from the mostly low-slung homes and villas in the northwestern reaches, but both have streets and neighborhoods utterly destroyed by the fighting.

Many civilians were seen streaming out of the recently retaken areas during Al-Monitors visit to the July 17 district in late May.

Dozens of women mostly dressed in black had flipped the face-covering part of their niqabs on top of their heads, revealing pasty white faces that had long not seen the sun and were now burned red in an hour of walking. Their exposed faces served at least partially as a precaution against security forces mistaking them for being in an alliance with IS.

A few still wore their niqabs and turned their faces when photographers tried to take pictures of them. Some small boys were seen carrying makeshift white flags.

Many infants born in a city that had been entirely besieged for months were seen in tired womens arms, the tiny bodies listless under the hot sun, red-faced and barely moving.

Wheelbarrows and half-broken wheelchairs were being used to transport the injured and the elderly.

At a field hospital in the July 17 district, Maj. Mohammad, the commander of the medical section of the Iraqi armys Ninth Division, told Al-Monitor that the vast majority of those leaving the recently liberated areas were suffering from hypotension and dehydration.

He cited sniper wounds, mortar wounds and many dehydrated babies when asked what he had seen the most of in previous days.

Soldiers carried in a disheveled man with a bushy black beard and a metal brace on one leg. He said his leg had been broken a month ago by a mortar and he had been treated within IS territory. He pulled up his shirt to reveal several other wounds, including a ragged line of black stitches.

Muthana Salah Ali, who said he was 31 and had seven children and two wives, denied strenuously that he had been treated by IS medical facilities, stressing that the hospital in the besieged area had been run entirely by civilians. The concern was presumably that the soldiers might think he had had anything to do with the transnational terrorist group under which the city had been living since June 2014.

Mohammad then pulled Al-Monitor away and said that he did not know whether the man was telling the truth, but that he would be treated and then have his identity ascertained.

This girl, instead, is someone you should talk to, he said. Nada, 21, had just had her laptop searched by the medical coordinator. She has only good things on it, like songs, such as the Titanic theme song, he said.

The girl was carrying an English textbook and several photos of her fiance, who she said was still stuck in IS-held areas.

Just outside, near a position from which ERD officers piloted white reconnaissance drones from a roof, graffiti scrawled in large red letters stated that lovers of Hussein have been here in reference to the Muslim Prophet Muhammads grandson, revered by Shiites.

Red spray paint is used throughout the city by the various Iraqi forces to indicate safe ways using arrows on corners of homes, walls and rubble to direct to roads that have been cleared.

The following day, Al-Monitor came across the corpse of an alleged IS fighter in the gutter, face down, clothes shredded by some sort of blast and head covered by dirty white cloth.

The home he seemed to have been running from still had weapons and remnants thereof strewn around it, with metal packaging that had contained former USSR-produced blank cartridges and Serbian-made projectiles, a camouflage rifle holder and a list of code numbers used by IS fighters on their walkie-talkies to refer to areas of the city and the various divisions of Iraqi forces.

US Col. Patrick Work, an officer in charge of about 1,800 soldiers helping to advise and assist the Iraqi forces around Mosul, told The Washington Post recently that the last few IS-held neighborhoods will likely be the most difficult to retake despite nearly eight months of street-by-street fighting and that it will be extremely violent.

Hashimi told Al-Monitor that there is still no safe passage for civilians.

The Old City, he noted, has seven entrances to it, but the civilian corridors mapped out are all problematic in that there are 50 IS fighters stationed at each of the two gates leading to the north, Bab al-Sinjar and Bab al-Masjid, and the eastern reaches of the part still under IS control is basically a minefield.

He added that Ahmad Khalaf al-Jabouri, the IS military commander for Mosul, is a former special forces officer who had shown his prowess in keeping Iraqi forces at bay for months.

The federal police, he noted, were unable to advance more than 150 meters [164 yards] from March 7 until late May.

He said, Three senior Iraqi leaders [Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, Lt. Gen. Abdel-Wahab al-Saadi from the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service, and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Othman al-Ghanmi] all set dates for Old Mosul to be retaken, but all these have come and gone, affecting troop morale.

The fight will not be easy even for the last remaining sections of the besieged, severely damaged Old Mosul, he stressed, and the vast destruction left in its wake may lead to a political crisis.
May 28, 2017

Theres talk on the Israeli political right of a done deal between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump. According to senior members of the HaBayit HaYehudi party, one of Netanyahus main coalition partners, the deal has been clinched. Netanyahu realized that he has no choice but to go along with the presidents grand quest for Israeli-Palestinian peace, or at least to play along and hope that the Palestinians are the ones who derail it.

To that end, the prime minister will have to change the makeup of his coalition. The current government, the most right-wing government in Israeli history, will not survive a significant diplomatic process entailing difficult concessions on Israels part. In recent days, the heads of HaBayit HaYehudi, Education Minister Naftali Bennett and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, have begun preparations for the day they are forced to pull out of the government and cross over to the opposition benches.

The question is whether the center-left Zionist Camp can cross from the opposition to replace HaBayit HaYehudi in the coalition after the endless failed negotiations conducted since 2015 by Zionist Camp leader Isaac Herzog on joining Netanyahus government. The Labor Party, the main component of the Zionist Camp, will hold primaries in July. The answer, a senior party source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, will be provided by the primaries. If Herzog is re-elected, his path to the government will be short and smooth. If, on the other hand, Knesset member Amir Peretz ousts him, things will be far more complicated.

The other contenders, such as Knesset member Erel Margalit and former Netanyahu government minister Avi Gabai, have categorically ruled out joining the Netanyahu government. They all talk of providing external support for the government if it embarks on peace talks. This means serving as a safety net for Netanyahu by voting from outside of the coalition against any nonconfidence Knesset motion aimed at toppling the government. But Netanyahu is unlikely to base his political future on such support, which has no substantive meaning. This is where Trump comes in. Trump is the only one who can demand that the Zionist Camp join the government and enforce his demand, said a Labor Party source, speaking on the condition of anonymity. It was fear of Trump that made Netanyahu and [Palestinian President Mahmoud] Abbas aspire for peace, and fear of Trump is what should drag Labor into the government.

On May 27, some 15,000 left-wing Israelis held a rally at Tel Avivs Rabin Square to demand a resumption of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and adoption of the two-state solution. Herzog was the keynote speaker, followed by a surprise message from Abbas to the demonstrators: Our hand is extended in peace that is created between those who are brave.

A day earlier, Channel 2 television reported on a poll indicating that Netanyahu and the right had picked up significant political mileage from Trumps visit to Israel last week. Nonetheless, the poll also included an amazing and significant finding according to which 47% of Israelis still support the two-state solution. After eight consecutive years of Netanyahu rule, the number of Israelis who favor this solution is significantly greater than the number who reject it (39%). The only possible interpretation of these findings is that Israelis would be willing to buy into such an arrangement if it were adopted by someone from the political right. Right now, that someone is Netanyahu. In the dilemma between clashing head-on with Trump or embarking on a diplomatic process with the Palestinians, Netanyahu is highly likely to opt for the latter.

A popular conspiracy theory making the rounds on the right has it that the deal between Netanyahu and Trump has been finalized. All that remains is to place its ingredients in a pot and start cooking. Zero hour is supposed to occur after the Labor Party primaries in July. Netanyahu is supposed to push through his Cabinet controversial measures, such as handing over some West Bank territory that is now wholly under Israeli control (known as Area C) to Area B, administered by the Palestinian Authority under Israeli security control. This move, along with a declaration by Netanyahu of the resumption of talks with the Palestinians on a two-state solution, is expected to result in Bennett pulling out of the coalition. When he does, the Zionist Camp will immediately take his partys place, based on an arrangement worked out during various negotiations between the sides in the past (as reported extensively by Al-Monitor). Knesset member Tzipi Livni, Herzogs partner at the helm of the Zionist Camp, will be named justice minister and tasked with responsibility for the negotiations with the Palestinians. Herzog will be appointed foreign minister, and other senior members of his party will be given enticing ministerial positions.

Is Netanyahu really capable of swerving to the left in Trumps wake? His main problem will be with his own Likud party. A long list of senior party members, such as ministers Yariv Levin, Zeev Elkin and perhaps even Israel Katz, could stand in his way. Unlike the prime minister, most Likud ministers and Knesset members oppose a two-state solution, even as a hollow figure of speech. Will Netanyahu succeed in bringing them to heel and forcing a diplomatic process on them after he successfully buried that exact same process as proposed by former President Barack Obama? Netanyahu is deemed capable of such a maneuver. The police investigations piling up against him and a recommendation to prosecute him expected soon could also encourage him to embark on a diplomatic road. He might want to follow the example of late Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who proceeded with the controversial 2005 Israeli pullout from Gaza even as he was mired in police investigations.

Another option under discussion is for Livni and her Knesset faction Hatnua Party (the smaller partner within Zionist Camp) to join the Netanyahu government, perhaps very soon, before Labor does. Anyone listening to Livnis rhetoric in recent weeks understands that something is brewing. The anger, deadly criticism and derogatory remarks against Netanyahu have all but disappeared. She talks about Netanyahu with a measure of respect and focuses on her agenda: the diplomatic process. When asked, Livni said theres nothing going on in the diplomatic arena. If anything comes up in the future, she will react.

The question is one of chronology. When Livni says in the future, is she referring to several weeks or years? Given the pace at which special Trump envoy Jason Greenblatt is moving, the future is very near. Greenblatt returned to the region on May 25, some 48 hours after Trump left Israel, and conducted a round of meetings here. According to sources close to the negotiations, the involvement of the US administration through Greenblatt is what brought about the speedy and quiet conclusion of the hunger strike by Palestinian inmates in Israeli jails on May 26. As of now, on the Israeli-Palestinian front, everyone is marching to Trumps drum beat.
May 26, 2017

CAIRO  In an interview with Al-Monitor, Kamal Amer, the head of the Egyptian parliament's National Defense and Security Committee, said that the introduction of a system granting residency to foreigners in return for bank deposits in hard currency is in line with the Egyptian national security regulations. This system was introduced earlier this month through amendments to the law on the entry, residency and exit of foreigners and the Egyptian Nationality Law.

Amer stressed that any person or foreign national posing a threat to Egyptian national security will not be allowed to enter the country.

Under the residence-for-deposits law, foreigners apply for residency permits in return for depositing money in Egyptian banks in foreign currency. After five years of residency in Egypt, they can apply for citizenship.

Commenting on the maritime border demarcation agreement under which Egypt ceded the Red Sea islands of Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia, he said that not an inch will be taken unduly or ceded unrightly by Egypt, and explained that President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is being very clear in this regard.

The text of the interview follows.

Al-Monitor: The National Defense and Security Committee approved in early May a draft law amending the Egyptian Nationality Law and entitling non-Egyptians to apply for citizenship after living and investing in Egypt for five years. Whats your take on the draft law?

Amer: The introduction of the new residency-for-deposits system  by amending Law No. 89 of 1960 on the entry, residency and exit of foreigners and the Egyptian Nationality Law No. 26 of 1975  came in response to foreigners applying for residency permits in Egypt, which I am not against.

Al-Monitor: What would be the implications of such a draft law? To what extent would it affect investments?

Amer: There is a huge difference between the residency-for-deposits system, which grants residency to non-Egyptians in return for bank deposits, as stipulated in the draft law, and between the citizenship-by-investment system. The latter is designed to entitle [investors] to apply for citizenship in exchange for investments, whether through the purchase of particular assets or payment of specific amounts. There are other countries resorting to this system that focuses on foreign businessmen in some investment fields.

The residency-for-deposits system, which does not require foreigners to invest, entitles [non-Egyptian] residents living in Egypt for five years to apply for citizenship. This citizenship could be obtained depending on an assessment of the situation and whether or not the requirements for becoming an Egyptian citizen are met. This means that they may be denied the citizenship if they did not meet the requirements. The draft law encourages investments in Egypt and does not contradict the Egyptian national security regulations.

Al-Monitor: Will the draft law affect Egyptian national security?

Amer: Any person of a particular nationality posing a threat to Egyptian national security will not be allowed to enter the country. Following consultations in the presence of government representatives and other experts, the committee concluded that the draft law does not contradict Egypt's national security regulations. Rather, it would boost the Egyptian economy.

Al-Monitor: Does the draft law exclude nationals of any particular country?

Amer: Citizenship will be granted in a way that is in line with the Egyptian national security. Any prejudice to Egyptian national security is rejected. The entry of any person who would prejudice national security is rejected regardless of his or her nationality.

Al-Monitor: Will the issue related to the islands of Tiran and Sanafir be resolved once and for all during the current parliament session?

Amer: I am not vested to determine whether or not it will be raised in the current session. President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi convened a meeting in this regard, in the presence of all segments of the Egyptian people, and gave a statement that would be an introduction to a resolution of the issue. He said, "It is impossible for Egypt  a country of great history  to have the ambition of seizing even 1 inch of the other countries territories. In addition, no Egyptian has the ability to cede not even an inch of Egypts territory." This statement ends the controversy and it is up to parliament to decide.

Al-Monitor: Was the agreement submitted to the parliamentary National Defense and Security Committee, as stipulated in the bylaws, in preparation for consideration in the General Assembly?

Amer: No, it was not submitted [to the committee]. I would like to note that some malicious parties turned the issue into a controversy among the people. This is although, originally, it is about a maritime border demarcation between Egypt and Saudi Arabia, similar to the Taba village. Following the 1982 Israeli withdrawal, [Israel] tried to seize Taba with force, where the Egyptian flag flies over at present. The Egyptian government refused to cede Taba and managed after seven years to obtain an international court ruling in its favor.

Al-Monitor: Do you expect the maritime border demarcation agreement to drag on for years?

Amer: No, it is an unequivocal case. [Back in the day], Israel resorted to all sorts of tricks to seize Taba. We, for sure, are not going to do the same with our Saudi friends. The issue is crystal clear.

Al-Monitor: Did the Egyptian president make the right decision of backing US President Donald Trump in countering terrorism in the Middle East? Are there any bilateral measures in this regard?

Amer: Sisi is Gods gift to Egypt. He has the experience on all levels, and we need to be confident that his actions would serve the Egyptian interests. This decision  as well as others  are in the advantage of Egypt. I support his countering terrorism efforts on a larger scale via a unified global force against terrorism, in cooperation with the United States. Sisi has not announced any [bilateral] measures in this regard.

Al-Monitor: Following its recent visit to prisons and police departments, parliamentary Committee on Human Rights demanded further allocations toward armament of the Interior Ministry. Do you support these demands in light of the governments austerity measures?

Amer: I am in favor of the Interior Ministrys and armed forces budget increase, provided that this increase is purposeful and that it is in line with a determined plan focusing on better combat efficiency.
May 29, 2017

Kremlin officials have adopted a remarkably benign public attitude toward US President Donald Trumps recent visit to Saudi Arabia, which included a speech at an Arab Islamic American Summit denouncing Iran, meetings with Saudi and other regional leaders, and an agreement to sell $110 billion in advanced weapons to the kingdom. Nevertheless, their private views may be less sanguine.

Referring to the arms deal, Russian President Vladimir Putins press spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, I will leave this without comment. Neither Putin nor Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have mentioned Trumps trip, although Putin highlighted Moscows cooperation with Riyadh in maintaining stable global oil prices shortly beforehand. Notably, however, Russias Security Council met a few days later, while Trump was in Europe, and discussed the ongoing operation of the Russian Aerospace Forces in Syria in the context of international developments. This bland phrasing appears to refer to a conversation about the implications for Moscow of Trumps visit.

Andrey Sushentsov, the head of the Moscow-based consulting agency Foreign Policy Advisory Group and a program director at the Valdai Discussion Club, explained Russian officials outwardly calm attitude by highlighting the continuity in US policy toward Saudi Arabia and its neighbors. As Sushentsov told Al-Monitor, Moscow does not see the Trump visit to Saudi Arabia as a deviation from the previous course on support of Gulf monarchies against Iran in regional affairs. Perhaps more important, Sushentsov added, Moscow sees limited prospects for Trumps outreach to Riyadh and others, predicting that the Trump administration would refrain from embedding itself in a large-scale confrontation with Tehran that would imply anything other than supply of weapons. From this perspective, he concluded, observers in Moscow believe that the Trump administration needs a few good deals abroad to project its image as a winner inside the country, where opposition has effectively paralyzed the current administration.

Still, the fact that senior officials have avoided public comments about Trumps highly visible effort to engage with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf monarchies does not mean that Moscow has been silent on the matter. Russias internationally-oriented state media  especially Sputnik News  have expressed wide-ranging skepticism about the trip. In a spate of articles published shortly after Trump left Saudi Arabia, Sputnik quoted a former European Union consultant who argued that the trip was a major public relations success but was unlikely to produce meaningful new cooperation against terrorism. Sputnik also cited other European academics and experts arguing that the effort would backfire because Saudi Arabia is despised and isolated among Arabs and Muslims, and it quoted a US expert predicting that Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps could now become more aggressive than ever in response to Trumps outreach to Riyadh. On top of this, Sputnik reported on US Sen. Rand Pauls introduction of a resolution disapproving of the arms sale, describing Pauls concerns over Saudi Arabias war in Yemen and repeating Amnesty International charges that US weapons are contributing to Saudi human rights violations.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova reinforced this final point when questioned during a press briefing. Deals between countries, she said, if they are made legally, is a matter of bilateral relations provided that international law is complied with while reiterating Moscows call for the most serious measures to avoid further degradation of the situation in Yemen. She further noted that Moscow has already identified who is responsible for conditions in Yemen but declined to name Riyadh.

In view of Moscows own long-standing position on the global arms trade  namely, that no one should criticize Russia for pursuing deals permissible under international law  Russian officials have only a very slim basis on which to express disapproval of the US-Saudi announcement. Thus, while Zakharova went on to say that signing "this type of contract requires the understanding of the situation in the region, an implicit assertion that the United States either did not understand the situation or chose to ignore it, she handled the matter rather gently, without naming the United States or Trump and without leveling any direct accusations. Needless to say, after supplying weapons to Syrias Bashar al-Assad regime for several years during a civil war far more destructive than Yemens (at least so far), Russias representatives are probably wise to avoid pointing fingers in this regard.

Yet it is perhaps more important that the Kremlin remains interested in exploring whether and how Russia and the United States may be able to work together not only in Syria, but in their wider bilateral relations. Officials and analysts in Moscow see Washingtons ongoing political turmoil as a considerable constraint on US-Russia relations, and they have curtailed many of their earlier aspirations, but they continue to hope that the Trump administration may present new opportunities. In that context, Russias leaders are prepared to temper their reactions to US policies that might otherwise provoke harsher rhetoric. From this perspective, Zakharovas comments and the Sputnik reports preview lines of attack on US-Saudi cooperation that Russia might pursue in the future, should US-Russia ties stall or deteriorate.

Even then, of course, Sushentsov is right to note that the arms deal falls well within the parameters of Americas pre-September 11 policies in the Middle East (especially under Republican administrations), when exchanging weapons for oil formed the core of the US-Saudi relationship. Indeed, while Moscow would not especially welcome Americas return to that approach  strong support for Riyadh and other Gulf states to contain and balance Iran  Russian officials would likely prefer it to more recent US efforts to democratize the region, which the Kremlin has seen as profoundly destabilizing.

Still, a US effort at empowering Saudi Arabia as a regional balancer raises some interesting questions for Moscow, particularly in defining the limits of Russias relations with Iran. In the past, Russia has not typically exercised self-restraint in its arms sales, with one notable exception: former President Dmitry Medvedevs decision to block implementation of a contract to sell S-300 missiles to Iran. Of course, Medvedev did so at the high point of the Barack Obama administrations reset policy, as part of an attempt to press Iran to negotiate on its nuclear program  conditions that are lacking today. Conversely, Russia regularly defended Tehran in the United Nations Security Council, where its veto continuously prevented tougher UN sanctions or other measures.

Today, there are few reasons for Moscow to forgo selling Iran any weapons that its government may want to buy. However, now that the United States, Russia, Iran and others are parties to a nuclear deal  and Iran no longer faces a focused Western attempt to enforce international isolation  Tehran is less likely to face pressure in the UN Security Council; indeed, the Trump administration would need to win over British and French representatives for any new pressure before worrying about Russias support or opposition. Beyond selling arms and technology and pressing for Tehrans inclusion in Syria talks, what else is Moscow prepared to do for Iran?
May 26, 2017

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogans favorite slogan when defending Operation Euphrates Shield and other cross-border actions in Syria is, If you are not in the field, then you will be on the menu.

To be in the field, to get a place at the table, is his way of summarizing Turkeys interventionist foreign policy that relies on hard power. Nowadays, Turkeys activities in the Syrian turf it controls between Jarablus-Azaz and al-Bab signals it has more on its mind than combating the Islamic State (IS).

Turkey launched Operation Euphrates Shield on Aug. 24 with a green light from Russia, and it officially concluded it March 29 under Russian pressure. Now Ankara has resumed the operation with actions against the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG), in addition to its missions of restoring security and rebuilding a civilian administration. The area cleared of IS is now controlled by militias recruited by Turkey's national intelligence service (MIT) from various opposition groups. The Turkish military supports the militias in this area, where Turkey's presence looks more permanent each day.

According to Turkeys pro-government news media, almost a million people so far have returned to their homes in the area cleared of IS, or have been relocated there from other areas. At least 200,000 of these people live in Jarablus, in the midst of myriad projects Turkey is implementing. Some 500 police trained and paid by Turkey are now on the job in that area. Turkey also has hired some Syrian legal professionals, selected in coordination with Turkeys Ministry of Justice, to work as judges and prosecutors. Turkeys Ministry of Education employs 500 teachers there, and its Ministry of Health has hired 20 doctors. Turkey has even involved itself in religious matters through the Turkish Religious Affairs Foundation, which has opened an office near the Azaz border crossing.

Syrian Kurdish sources say the Turkish army has activated 10 bases and outposts in the areas of Akhtarin, Marea and al-Rai.

After peace talks in Astana, Kazakhstan, the press in May reported clues of what Turkey intends to accomplish in the Jarablus and al-Rai pocket: Turkey is getting ready to send troops to Idlib to implement the four deconfliction zones and is now in the process of creating a Syrian task force. Turkey, in addition to ensuring security, will spearhead setting up local councils and residential, hospital, schools and other construction projects. Turkish soldiers based in the area will train about 10,000 Free Syrian Army [FSA] militants who had participated in the Euphrates Shield operation in a step to transform the FSA to a regular army.

Some see Turkey's aggressive presence as an "occupation," and others call it a "humanitarian intervention." But aspects of it are not reported by the pro-government media, such as:

Turkish-trained militias are accused of behaving like warlords in the areas they control.

The Turkish army and the militias are continuing their attacks against the area controlled by the YPG.

Turkey is accused of manipulating the demographic composition in the area against Kurds.

Hajj Ahmed is the commander of Jaish al-Thuwar operating west of the Euphrates, in the area the Kurds call Sheba. According to Ahmed, who cooperates with the US-supported Syrian Democratic Forces, the umbrella organization to which the YPG belongs, the Turkish army has emptied 70 Kurdish villages, repopulating them with opposition members and their families brought in from other regions by Turkey. This demographic intervention, as Ahmed calls it, took place in villages attached to Kabbasin, al-Rai, Jarablus and Azaz.

Two local sources confirmed to Al-Monitor the demographic intervention activities. According to them, the new settlers are Turkmens who fled Iraqs Tal Afar and Syrian opposition militants and their families who were evacuated from the Waer district of Homs.

According to Turkeys state-owned Anadolu News Agency, the evacuation from Waer was carried out in nine convoys. Two convoys settled in refugee tenements at Idlib, and seven others were accommodated at Jarablus camps.

According to the pro-Kurdish Firat News Agency, opposition fighters and their families that were evacuated from Hama and Homs were settled in the villages of Kabbasin, Susinbat, Numan, Kubbe Sheikh, Shedud, Keiba, Bilih and Sheikh Jarrah. The key locations targeted as part of the plan to change the demography are Sheikh Sisal, Hasakah, Tel Medic, Seed Sheba, Aim Deane, Minning and Meraanaz.

Kurdish sources claim it was the Turkmen Muwahhid Army that forced the people of Numan to abandon their homes and that settled 200 Turkmen families transferred from Homs. The Sultan Murad Brigade and Jaish al-Islam expelled residents from several other villages.

Some of the people who sought refuge in Kurdish-controlled Afrin are from these villages. As of April 2, 460 people from al-Bab, Jarablus, Tabqa and Raqqa took refuge in Afrin. Kurds say these villages were identified as key points to control the envisaged corridors between the Kurdish cantons. Of course, for Turkey, the most vital goal of Operation Euphrates Shield was to foil attempts to set up a corridor between the autonomous Kurdish areas of Kobani and Afrin.

According to Kurdish sources, some Turkish-supported organizations seized the homes of people the groups accused of colluding with Jaish al-Thuwar at al-Rai. The organizations, the sources said, included Ahrar al-Sham, Mutasim Billah, Ahrar al-Sharqiya, Sultan Murad, Suleiman Shah and Failaq al-Sham, all supported by Turkey.

Areas controlled by the YPG and allies are frequently shelled. For example, on May 13 the villages of al-Midyek, Hesiye and Semuga came under fire. Mehmet Helawi of the Sheba Administration Council said the Turkish army razed 25 Kurdish villages and set up military posts in many others.

The Kurds' problems aren't the only problems in the region. Police trained and employed by Turkey are not very effective in controlling the area. After IS was expelled, it didnt take long for the organizations working with Turkey to start fighting among themselves to control the area and its resources.

On Feb. 22, near the Sico Camp, nearly a mile north of Azaz, clashes took place between the Sultan Murad Brigade and Ahrar al-Sham. On May 5, Ahrar al-Sharqiya and the Hamza Brigade clashed. Seven people were killed.

On May 14, Ahrar-al Sharqiya and the Sultan Murad Brigade clashed at Gandura over smuggling privileges. On the same day at Jarablus, Ahrar al-Sharqiya and Failaq al-Sham went after each other. Turkish soldiers contained both clashes.

It is not really clear who controls what in the area, or how. Nevertheless, propaganda that says Turkey is bringing state law and order to the region is in full swing.
May 26, 2017

The Iraqi government is committed to keeping the Mesopotamian Marshes on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Located in the southern part of the country, the marshes were added to UNESCO's list in July 2016. Previously listed Iraqi World Heritage sites are the city of Ashur, the city of Hatra, the Erbil Citadel and the city of Samarra.

Although the Iraqi parliament voted to put an end to encroachments against the marshes May 14, many fear the possibility of Iraq's losing its position on the World Heritage List and being denied the international recognition that would have been of great benefit for the country, especially since previously agreed-upon service and construction programs were not established.

First off, there are concerns about the Water Resources Ministry's continuing to build settlement islands in the Chibayish marshes, south of Dhi Qar, which UNESCO considers to be a clear violation of the conditions the marshes need to meet in order to stay on the World Heritage List.

In this context, Ajial al-Musawi, the chairman of the Committee on Tourism and Antiquities in Dhi Qars provincial council, told Al-Monitor over the phone that UNESCOs objection is to the nature of the mechanisms used in building these islands in the marshes since they pose a direct threat to biodiversity in the area. Musawi said, The governments reluctance to implement the programs it promised worries us, and we fear the marshes would lose the chance to join the World Heritage List for good, especially since a UNESCO delegation is scheduled to visit us in the coming months.

Musawi said financial transfers within ministries could be a solution to avoid the financial deficit we are experiencing and a quick fix to what may happen.

The Mesopotamian Marshes represent a unique ecosystem in the Middle East. The 20,000 square kilometers (7,722 square miles) of freshwater surfaces extend over three Iraqi provinces  Maysan, Dhi Qar and Basra  and stretch between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

This ecosystem provides life for nearly 80 species of birds, including the reed cane bird of Basra and the sacred ibis, as well as rare species of freshwater fish, wild animals, cows and buffaloes.

Fluctuating water levels, poverty, lack of job opportunities, illiteracy, ignorance and lack of education, health services and energy services are all prevailing phenomena in the regions around the marshes.

The concerns expressed by local officials in Dhi Qar were not the first; similar concerns were conveyed by the Water Resources Minister Hassan al-Janabi, who is also in charge of efforts to add Iraqi sites to the World Heritage List. Two days before the UNESCO decision to add the marshes to the World Heritage List last summer, Janabi said the ministry was concerned that Iraqi archaeological sites could be removed from the World Heritage List because of Iraq's failure to implement an administrative program to manage the sites in accordance with international standards.

Janabi said at the time, The process of adding the marshes and archaeological sites [to the World Heritage List] imposes significant obligations on the state more than on any other party. The government should abide by the plan it presented to the UNESCO negotiating committee, to implement a program to manage those areas, in accordance with international standards. He added, Iraqs responsibility today lies in preserving those marshes and sites and maintaining the international ranking they receive.

Iyad al-Shammari, a member of the parliamentary Committee on Tourism and Antiquities, told Al-Monitor that there were problems involving overfishing and the absence of a suitable environment for rare birds to reproduce, amid a lack of job opportunities" that lead residents to fish and tamper "with the natural environment of the marshes. He said, These phenomena are a major worry for those concerned with the marshes.

He added, We have no choice but to abide by our commitments to international organizations, even if this requires imposing the law by force in order to protect the aquatic wealth and birds.

Shammari also stressed the importance of intensifying efforts during the trial period granted to Iraq, which will end in July 2017.

The failure to implement programs and build a proper infrastructure in the marshes prompted those concerned at the Ministry of Water Resources to admit their inability to implement them because of the financial crisis plaguing the country.

With our ministry's available resources, we have been able to establish 42 housing units to meet the needs of the local population and build a school and a veterinary department with a grant from the French Consulate, said Samira Abdel Shabib, the director general of the Marshes Rehabilitation Center at the Water Resources Ministry. We are still waiting for the funds allocated to the marshes to be released, estimated at 80 billion Iraqi dinars [$68.5 million].

On May 18, the Canadian Embassy in Iraq launched programs to develop administrative capabilities in the transfer of powers and the development of marshes in Dhi Qar, pointing out that the security stability in the province is a great motivation for joint action.

Although Shabib does not believe that the marshes will be removed from the World Heritage List, she said, Preserving biodiversity and stability, in addition to answering to residents needs and refraining from grazing and overfishing, is more important to UNESCO than the establishment of infrastructure. She added, We have been working for quite a while on providing the families living in the marshes with electricity and alternative sources of power.
Gov. Kay Ivey, U.S. Sen. Luther Strange and other dignitaries paid homage to Alabama's war dead on Monday in a Memorial Day ceremony at the Alabama National Cemetery in Montevallo.

"Those men and women paid the ultimate price to give us the freedom we enjoy today," said Gov. Kay Ivey, one of the featured speakers. "We all know freedom isn't free."

"There is no greater honor than to give one's life for our country," said U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell. "It is an honor and noble duty to serve one's country."

Strange mentioned that his only uncle, Stephen R. Batson Jr., a Birmingham native born on July 4, a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1937, was killed in action in 1943 during World War II. Batson's wife was pregnant, so Strange's cousin never met his father.

"There is no state in the union that has done more for this country, that has dedicated more in blood, sweat and tears, than the State of Alabama," said Strange, who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee. "Every family represented here has sacrificed."

Strange also visited the Alabama Veterans Memorial Park at Liberty Park on Sunday, where he saw his uncle's name engraved on the memorial wall along with 11,000 other names of Alabamians killed in action.

Relatives of Alabama's war dead placed 3,000 roses on graves at the Alabama National Cemetery in Montevallo on Monday.

"Each of the stone markers around us signifies the cost of freedom," said Paula Stokes, relationship manager of the Southeast District Veterans Experience Office.
UPDATE AT 2 P.M.: Alabama State Troopers have identified the father who drowned in the Tallapoosa River on Sunday along with his 3-year-old son after their kayak flipped.

Troopers said 34-year-old Jason Smith, of Heflin, was kayaking with his 3-year-old and 4-year-old sons on Sunday afternoon. Authorities said a 12-year-old was kayaking beside them.

Cleburne County Coroner Tracey Lambert said Smith's vessel flipped over when Smith tried to grab a tree limb to slow down the kayak. The 12-year-old was able to get out of his kayak and rescue the 4-year-old, Lambert said.

"The dad tried to save the 3-year-old, but was unable to," Lambert said.

Father's body was recovered at 10 a.m. Monday. The child's body was recovered around noon.

Lambert said the father and son were not wearing life jackets.

"Any time you are in the water, always wear a life jacket," Lambert said.

Randolph County and Clay County water rescues helped in the recovery. ALEA, Cleburne Search and Rescue, Cleburne County Sheriff's Office, Heflin Fire Department and Hollis Fire Department helped as well.
A man sought in a Friday-night shooting death at an Irondale home is now behind bars.

Broderick Lewayne Morgan, 32, was booked into the Jefferson County Jail at 1:28 p.m. Sunday, jail records show. He is charged with murder in the slaying of 26-year-old Drakkar Fontez Avery Christian.

The shooting happened about 9:15 p.m. Friday outside of a home in the 1500 block of Monticello Road on a report of someone shot. Irondale Det. Sgt. Michael Mangina said when they arrived on the scene, they found Christian wounded in the back yard. He had been shot with a rifle.

Christian was rushed to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 9:50 p.m. Mangina said a dispute erupted at a house where two sisters live with their mother. Detectives learned that Morgan is the father of a baby belonging to one of the sisters. He went to the home upset because he thought that Christian was seeing the mother of his child. Authorities said the victim was not romantically involved with the woman.

"This was just absolutely senseless,'' Mangina said.

An argument ensued and Christian was shot. Authorities said the two men didn't know each other.

Morgan turned himself in at the Jefferson County Jail. His bond is set at $150,000.
Mohamed al-Azawi and his wife describe how Ramadan traditions have been affected by the ongoing conflict in Iraq.

Before the US-led invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq in 2003, Mohamed al-Azawi worked as a university professor in Baghdad. For security reasons, he was forced to leave his wife and children during the war. He relocated to Jordan, Syria, Bahrain and finally Doha, Qatar, where he has lived since 2010.

Doha  So you want to know about Ramadan in Iraq? Mohamed says with a grin as he opens the door.

The house is quiet. Mohamed lives on his own for most of the year, but his wife, Hayfaa, is here today on a rare visit from Baghdad. She smiles at her husbands enthusiasm.

I can only tell you about Ramadan up until the war, and I wont really be able to give you details about the food, Mohamed adds. My wife will be much better at that part.

Mohamed reaches for the remote control to lower the volume on the television, so we wont get distracted. Hayfaa points out that he could turn it off entirely, but he jokes: Its Iraqi tradition to leave the television on in the background.

Mohamed spent his childhood in Baghdad, where the whole family would gather around the iftar dishes spread out on the floor of the familys home: kubbab (stuffed savoury dough), threed (a special rice dish) and mahalabiya (pudding).

When I was a little kid, we would take empty jars of jam, place candles inside them and carry them around like lanterns, Mohamed tells Al Jazeera. He also recalls children knocking on doors of local homes, asking for candy and sweets.

Towards the end of the month, the children would excitedly wait for Eid. We would prepare our Eid clothes during Ramadan and lay them out to wear the night before Eid, Mohamed says. All of the kids went to carnivals, with rides and games, and of course we got our eidiyahs [money given to children during Eid].

While Mohamed left Iraq shortly after the 2003 invasion, his wife and four children remained in the country.

I left Baghdad right after the invasion started, so my memories are frozen in time, he says, noting he left amid death threats and targeted killings of hundreds of Iraqi intellectuals and academics during the war.

EXPLAINER: Ramadan 2017  Why is it so important for Muslims?

Ramadan traditions in Iraq are barely surviving the ongoing conflict, Hayfaa tells Al Jazeera.

I could tell you about how families used to come together, how the neighbourhood wives used to prepare their maamoul (sweets stuffed with dates) and kubbab together, she says.

Hayfaa recalls how her family used to prepare so much food that they had to borrow large pots and pans from the bakeries down the street: It was food that was meant to be shared.

During the war, electricity was frequently cut for several hours a day, preventing families from cooking many of the traditional dishes. The Iraqi government also started to cut down on basic food rations given to families, removing everything but a low-quality rice that smells like plastic when cooked, Hayfaa says.

Families could not afford to invite guests anymore, because many of their breadwinners were either in jail or dead.

After the US invasion, you cannot really feel the happiness of Ramadan when you have family members missing, and most families cannot afford to invite others for iftar when their breadwinners are gone, Mohamed says. [Family members] still unite for iftar, though. A spread would be laid out on the ground in the main sitting room and the family, young and old, men and women, eat together.

One of the main dishes Hayfaa prepares in advance is kibbeh (a ball of dough stuffed with minced meat). It is placed in the freezer, so a little can be taken out and fried each day.

You know it is Ramadan in Baghdad 10 minutes before iftar, when you see the kids running from door to door with plates in their hands, Hayfaa says, smiling at the memory. It was an endless stream of plates from different houses, that when it was time to send plates back, you could not tell which plate belonged to whom. Now, people can no longer afford to be so generous.

Due to the lack of electricity, few people could see the announcement of the start of Ramadan on television, she says; instead, volunteers drove around neighbourhoods calling out, Ramadan is tomorrow. Mosques also broadcast the phrase Allahu Akbar (God is great) from their loudspeakers to welcome the start of the holy month.





With a lack of power and unreliable freezers, families have been forced to frantically prepare the kibbeh and cook it on the same day  an exhausting process, Hayfaa confirms.

It is still Ramadan and we had to cook, she says quietly.

But many other Ramadan traditions have died out amid the countrys economic plight and unstable security situation, Mohamed says. You could be on your way to a mosque or someones house for iftar and a car bomb would go off, he notes. There are constant disappearances too, so people are preoccupied with survival.

Ramadan dishes require expensive ingredients, so many Iraqi families, impoverished by the war, can only afford to fry tomatoes and eggplants for iftar.

Mohamed recalls a local Iraqi programme called Your Iftar Is On Us, in which the television crew would knock on the door of one of Baghdads poorest families.

They take them to shop for food and other essentials. They would also bring over new household appliances. Then they end the episode by giving the family money to celebrate Eid and buy new clothes, Mohamed says with a smile. Its a nice thing to see, especially with everything thats going on.

READ MORE: Ramadan in the shadows  Fasting while poor

Other Iraqis with disposable income also prepare food necessities to give to the poor during Ramadan.

Another tradition that has survived is the muhabis (ring) game, in which men congregate in teams inside local cafes. A person from one team hides a ring in one of his palms, while the other team has to guess who has it.

Adult men play this, and it is an integral Ramadan tradition, Hayfaa says. Several rounds are played, and the winning team is awarded a tower of sweets, either jalebi or baklava.

Before Eid, the women of the neighbourhood used to gather in one house to cook traditional klecha or kaak (circular sweets made of sesame and usually stuffed with date paste). Each woman would bring plates and different ingredients.

After its prepared, we would take it to a baker down the street, so it could bake in one of their big ovens, Hayfaa recalls.

There was a time during the siege imposed after the first Gulf War when sugar was severely rationed and almost all of the sweet shops had to shut down, Hayfaa says. I took my sugar rations to bakers and traded them for lokum [Turkish delights] and other things in order to have something sweet during Ramadan.

Back in Doha, Hayfaa goes into the kitchen and reemerges moments later, carrying a plate of kaak. Her husband absentmindedly picks one up and sets it on the table. He leans back on the couch and rubs his eyes.

Iraqis never really want to leave their country. It was unfathomable to migrate because there is no real settling outside of Iraq, he says.

I was in Bahrain for some time, and they have this dish that is similar to ours in Iraq. It is called harees [meat porridge], but we sprinkle some cinnamon and sugar on top.

Mohamed laughs, looks around, and then sighs. During one of the iftars, I asked my Bahraini host if I could have some cinnamon with the harees and he laughed, he recalls.

It is strange living so long outside of Baghdad.
There is a link between the woeful Manchester attack and the dubious methods the UK used to help Libyans topple Gaddafi.

There have been few decisions by the British government this century as damaging as those that laid the groundwork for the Manchester bombings. No, you cannot boil the causes of this terrorist attack down to one single cause. Yes, Salman Abedi was an evil loser, as Donald Trump put it with rare accuracy. Yes, it is unforgivable that Salman Abedi chose to target children.





Yet what was in the British governments clear purview was to limit the possibility of Abedi being radicalised; to prevent a young man travelling abroad as a foreign fighter alongside a group that had previously been proscribed as a terrorist organisation. It is there that the British government failed.

This is not only about former Prime Minister David Camerons decision to partake in removing Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi in 2011, egged on by neoconservatives in his cabinet, nor the subsequent creation of a failed state which has as much to do with Libyan failures as it does Britains fire-and-forget foreign policy. It was also about the methods British security services were prepared to use to depose Gaddafi, the lengths they would go to, and the risks they would take.

All this should put an above-average level of scrutiny on the conduct of the security services. MI6 appear to have funnelled foreign fighters with suspected links to al-Qaeda from the streets of Britain to Libya. Salman Abedi and members of his close family, who are now arrested, were among these people. Abedi would go on, it is alleged, to join the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS).

READ MORE: Manchesters Libyans react to killer in their midst

During Gaddafis reign, Britains foreign intelligence agency, MI6, sponsored a group of mujahideen who had recently fought in Afghanistan against the Soviets. They were to assassinate Gaddafi himself. The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG) was allegedly given $160,000 for a failed assassination attempt in February 1996, in which several bodyguards were killed. MI6 had strange bedfellows while they propped up the group  Osama bin Laden was also reportedly financing the group at the time.

The British people are wiser than the elites that rule over them, who remain a deluded minority who still think sending teenage foreign fighters abroad, or toppling Gaddafi, was ever good for Britain. by

When the so-called war on terror began, however, the LIFG was swiftly proscribed. The fact that they denied any formal alliance with Osama bin Laden was irrelevant to British authorities. In 2004 MI6 arranged for an exiled LIFG leader, Abdel Hakim Belhaj, to be transferred into Gaddafis torture dungeons, with Mark Allen, the head of MI6s counterterrorism unit, saying, This was the least [the UK] could do for you and for Libya to demonstrate the remarkable relationship we have built in recent years.

In 2011, however, following the Arab Spring, the LIFG was suddenly back inside the British tent.

Before the Arab Spring, some Libyan exiles in Manchester, the city that hosts the UKs largest Libyan community, were believed to be linked to the LIFG. Due to the groups proscribed status and alleged links to al-Qaeda, these exiles movements were severely restricted by the UK authorities, including passport confiscations.

But the situation was reversed once Libyan regime change was in motion. Passports were returned. Intelligence officers are even said to have sorted exit for these exiles, so long as they were prepared to fight, produce propaganda or otherwise assist in removing Gaddafi.

As a result, numerous Libyan exiles in Britain and Brits of Libyan extraction went abroad  many who were brave and had good intentions. Among these is said to have been Salman Abedi, who was only sixteen at the time, and his father, who was a member of the LIFG and had sought refuge in Britain in the nineties.

Some Libyans say Salman Abedi would not have been allowed to join the fighting because of his age, but because the British government appear to have allowed such a young and impressionable man to travel to Libya with his father, who had been a prominent member of the LIFG, obvious questions have to be asked about the wisdom of this policy.

READ MORE: Corbyn: We have to admit war on terror is not working

The overall decision to topple Gaddafi in 2011 is one matter  the way in which it was done is another.

It remains official government policy to topple Bashar al-Assad in Syria. Yet foreign fighters are forbidden from travelling to Syria from the UK, precisely because the British government fears they may join extreme Islamist groups, and one-day return to the UK to bomb, stab or otherwise attack British civilians.





But for Libya, British authorities applied an entirely different policy it seems, and actively encouraged people like Abedi to go abroad. Three quarters of all foreign fighters in Libya came from Manchester. Now that one of their number has returned to bomb the same city, apparently under the influence of ISIL, remarkably few are questioning the British foreign policy decisions David Cameron took while in power.

The exception to this is opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn, who gave a truly landmark speech this week in which he said: The blame is with the terrorists, but if we are to protect our people we must be honest about what threatens our security.

Corbyn was then lampooned by most of the press who misreported his comments by saying he had apportioned blame to Britain. Instead, he had simply pointed out that the war on terror was a failed strategy. Home Secretary Amber Rudd still countered it was outrageous for Corbyn to make such a statement, while the Defence Secretary, Michael Fallon, said Corbyn was wrong to link foreign policy to terror.

Thankfully, the British people are wiser than the elites that rule over them, who remain a deluded minority who still think sending teenage foreign fighters abroad, or toppling Gaddafi, was ever good for Britain. 66 percent of the population however, according to pollsters YouGov, agreed that wars the UK has supported or fought are in part responsible for terror attacks against the UK. When will the elites start listening to them? They did with Brexit  perhaps Middle East policy should be next.

Alastair Sloan covers international affairs, politics and human rights for a variety of British newspapers and magazines.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy.
Muslims among those raising funds as solidarity soars, but fears simmer over planned anti-Sharia march after attack.

Muslims in Portland thanked the community for its support as they raised money for the victims of a deadly attack on a train by an Islamophobic white supremacist.

On Friday, Jeremy Joseph Christian  a 35-year-old who was known to authorities  fatally slit the throats of 53-year-old Ricky John Best and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23, after they stepped in to defend two girls Christian was bullying.

One of the girls is Muslim and was wearing the hijab.

A third victim, 21-year-old Micah David-Cole Fletcher, was also stabbed in the attack.

Fletcher  who in 2013 performed a poem condemning Islamophobia  is in serious condition in hospital, but expected to survive.

Friends of Micah Fletcher, who survived knife attack on MAX train Friday , posted this on a gofundme site to raise money for his recovery: pic.twitter.com/FL2trDw0hX  Maxine Bernstein (@maxoregonian) May 29, 2017

I am very thankful as a Muslim, I am very thankful as a Portlander  that we stand together here as one, Muhammad Najieb, an imam at the Muslim Community Centre, told the AP news agency.

The two young women could have been the victims, but three heroes jumped in and supported them, he said.

Destinee Mangum, one of the girls Christian was abusing, told Fox 12 Oregon KPTV: I just want to say thank you to the people that put their life on the line for me. They lost their lives because of me and my friend, and the way we looked.

Destinee Mangum, one of the targets of hate speech on a MAX train, thanks strangers for saving her life. pic.twitter.com/sefmOAyIVt  Fox12Oregon (@fox12oregon) May 28, 2017

Crying as her voice shook, she added: I appreciate them. Without them, we probably would be dead right now.

A fundraising page launched by Najiebs group for the families of the victims, including the two young women, had raised $50,000 in its first hours.

In total, various pages have raised almost one million dollars for the victims and their families.

By the time of publishing on Monday, Muslims Unite for Portland Heroes had raised $326,593; Tri Met Hero Recovery (for the surviving victim) gathered $133,635; Girls who survived Portlands MAX attack raised $13,084 and Tri Met Heroes received $365,056.

Anti-Muslim march to go ahead

On April 29, local reporter Mike Bivins filmed Christian at a march by the far right.

In the footage, Christian was draped in an American Revolutionary War flag and could be seen performing a Nazi salute and heard shouting Die Muslims. Die fake Christians. Die Jews, as police watched on.

Joey Gibson, who organised that rally, is behind two marches planned for June 4 and 10. The former is a free speech rally and the latter an anti-Sharia march.

OPINION: How Muslim Ban incites vigilante Islamophobic violence

While there was solidarity in the Oregon city, there were concerns of more unrest ahead of Gibsons Portland march against Sharia.

Similar rallies, held under the guise of free speech, are widely believed to be fascist in nature.

We gotta come together, said organiser Joey Gibson, in a video posted to his Facebook page, of the June 4 event. We need to stand up for what we believe in.

Gibson distanced himself from Christian in the clip, but urged his followers to pray for the suspect.

Extremist ideology

Police said they will examine what appears to be the extremist ideology of Christian, whose social media postings indicate an affinity for Nazis and political violence.

The attack occurred on a light-rail train on the first day of Ramadan, the holiest time of the year for Muslims.

Christian was being held on suspicion of aggravated murder, attempted murder, intimidation and being a felon in possession of a weapon.

READ MORE: Portland victims of white supremacist killer identified

He was arrested a short time after the attack when he was confronted by other men, and will face court on Tuesday.

The FBI said it is too early to say whether the slayings qualify as a federal hate crime. However, Christian faces intimidation charges, the state equivalent of a hate crime.

Court records show Christian served prison time for first-degree robbery and second-degree kidnapping after a crime committed 15 years ago, when he was 20, and theft and weapons charges were dismissed in 2010.

Trumps silence

Several social media users questioned why Donald Trump, US president, and other Republicans had not addressed events in Portland. Here are some examples:

.@realDonaldTrump I'm a reporter in Portland. Do you have a comment about what happened here Friday night? Thanks.  Rob Davis (@robwdavis) May 29, 2017

Call me crazy but had a Muslim killed two white Christians in Portland I suspect our president would have said something  Peter Beinart (@PeterBeinart) May 29, 2017

Trump tweeted 2x today celebrating a candidate that assaulted a journalist but has said nothing yet about the 2 heroes murdered in Portland.  Brian Klaas (@brianklaas) May 28, 2017

Dan Rather's open letter to POTUS urging him to take notice of the two heroes that were killed by a racist/Islamaphobic man in Portland. pic.twitter.com/jUXUHn7fen  Yashar Ali  (@yashar) May 28, 2017

Trump's tweets today 4 About Fake News

1 Congratulating a man who assaulted a reporter

1 About Europe trip 0 Denouncing Portland attack  Tony Posnanski (@tonyposnanski) May 28, 2017

The Portland killer violently harangued Muslims and threatened Hillary Clinton's life. So did Donald Trump. Wake up, America.  Tom Watson (@tomwatson) May 28, 2017

White supremacists killed #RichardCollins. Now two men killed in Portland. Trump has done NOTHING to stop them. Instead, he's enabling them.  Samuel Sinyangwe (@samswey) May 27, 2017
Qatar said the deportation took place on May 24 and was based on legal procedures and regional agreements.

Amnesty International has condemned Qatars deportation of Saudi human rights activist to Saudi Arabia.

Qatari authorities confirmed the deportation of Mohammed Abdullah al-Otaibi, 49, but said it had taken place on Wednesday May 24.

The official Qatar News Agency (QNA) quoted a foreign ministry source as saying that the extradition was based on legal procedures and regional and international agreements relating to the extradition of accused persons and criminals.

The Norwegian justice ministry confirmed that a Saudi human rights activist had received a travel permit to Norway as a (UN) quota refugee.

The ministry said that al-Otaibi and his wife  who was not deported to Saudi Arabia  were not seeking asylum in Norway but have been processed as United Nations refugees.
Meeting Putin in Paris, Macron also said France and Russia should cooperate to eradicate terrorist groups in Syria

The use of chemical weapons in Syria is a red line for France and would result in reprisals, President Emmanuel Macron said after meeting his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday.

Meeting Putin for the first time, Macron told a news conference that France and Russia must cooperate to eradicate terrorist groups in Syria and did not directly criticise Moscows role there.

France and Russia back different sides in the Syrian conflict, with Putin supporting President Bashar al-Assad and Macron part of a western coalition that supports rebel groups and has accused Assad of using chemical weapons in the past.





Our two countries will cooperate on Syria, this is essential, Macron said. We need strong cooperation because we have a joint priority, which is the fight against terrorism.

Macron said he wanted Paris and Moscow to bolster intelligence sharing on Syria and to work together on finding a political solution to the conflict, but gave no details on what a political deal might look like.

Sounding less forthcoming, Putin said he wasnt sure if Frances Syria policy was independent because it was part of a US-lead alliance, adding that Paris and Moscow had points of disagreement and agreement over Syria.

Putin said he and Macron had agreed the fight against terrorism was their top priority, but stressed that he hadnt changed his views on Syria.

Macrons warning of French retaliation in the event that chemical weapons are used echo the line taken by US President Donald Trump, who in April ordered cruise missile strikes in retaliation for a chemical weapons attack that Washington blamed on Damascus.

Any use of chemical weapons would result in reprisals and an immediate riposte, at least where France is concerned, Macron said, standing next to Putin in the Versailles palace outside of Paris.

Ukraine summit

Both leaders called for an informal summit on Ukraine in the so-called Normandy Format  a diplomatic group to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine made up of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine.

A February 2017 ceasefire brokered between the government in Kiev and Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine is being violated almost every day, with heavy weapons not withdrawn and other provisions not enacted.

READ MORE: Ukraine  Traumatised by war and PTSD

Putin declared that the sanctions imposed on his country after the annexation of the Crimean peninsula  considered illegal by the UN  were in no way helping to end the fighting between government forces and Kremlin-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine.

But Macron said he would make not a single concession to Russia on the long-running conflict in Ukraine, with him and his G7 counterparts saying they were prepared to strengthen sanctions against Moscow.

Human rights, rule of law

The Russian president tried to shrug off allegations that Russian hackers infiltrated Macrons presidential campaign. Maybe they were Russian hackers, maybe they were not, he said, dismissing the claims as unsubstantiated.

Macron, for his part, expressed anger at reports by pro-Kremlin media during the election questioning his sexuality and links to high finance. He took aim at the Russia Today broadcaster and Sputnik agency, calling them organs of influence and propaganda.

The French president also referred to the repressive situation for gay people in Chechnya and that of NGOs in Russia. Macron told the media that Putin assured him multiple steps had been made to investigate claims of violence against gay people in Chechnya.

I have made President Putin very well aware of what Frances expectations are, Macron said.
Deadly air strikes continue to target Raqqa city, monitoring group says, as thousands continue to flee the fighting.

At least 13 people have been killed in suspected US-led coalition air strikes on the ISIL-held city of Raqqa and suspected rocket attacks fired by a Kurdish group fighting ISIL, a monitoring group has said.

Some of the deaths in the northern city on Sunday evening resulted from air strikes blamed on the US-led coalition, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Monday.

The death toll also included civilians killed in rocket attacks by the Ghadab al-Furat group (dubbed Wrath of the Euphrates) on Sunday, the Observatory said.





Ghadab al-Furat is a Kurdish group fighting under the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). They launched a campaign in October 2016 to retake Raqqa, the de facto capital of ISIL in northern Syria.

The SDF, which includes the powerful Kurdish YPG armed group, said last week it plans to launch the final assault on Raqqa city in early summer.

US Central Command said in a press release on Sunday that it conducted 17 air strikes targeting ISIL in Syria, destroying two ISIL bases in Deir Az Zor and three ISIL headquarters near Raqqa.

It did not mention civilian casualties in its report.

READ MORE: Civilian toll rises in deadliest month in US-led raids

Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently, an activist group in Raqqa, said on Sunday that a school was targeted by the US-led coalition in Mansoura, west of Raqqa city.

The school was destroyed in the attack, the group said.

The activists said on Thursday that Raqqa city was targeted with at least 30 coalition air strikes and 80 rocket attacks by the SDF, killing at least 35 civilians in the past 24 hours.

4- Photos show the destruction because of the artillery shelling by #YPG on #Raqqa city"Almror-Alnoor-Alqwatli"neighborhoods yesterday night pic.twitter.com/aaf8qF1fCS     (@Raqqa_SL) May 29, 2017

The SDF has been encircling Raqqa since November.

Earlier this month, its fighters captured Tabqa, a previously ISIL-held town some 50km west of Raqqa, and a strategic dam nearby.

The UN said in a report that on May 14, at least 23 farm workers, including 17 women, were reportedly killed when air strikes hit al-Akershi village in a rural area of eastern Raqqa province.

Other air strikes on two residential areas of the ISIL-controlled city of Abo Kamal in eastern Deir Az Zor province the following day (May 15), reportedly killed at least 59 civilians (including 16 children and 12 women) and injured another 70.

READ MORE: Syrians suffering persists after returning to former ISIL-held town

The day after that, ISIL fighters are said to have cut the throats of eight men at the sites of the air strikes,

after accusing them of providing coordinates for the strikes.





Earlier in May, the Observatory reported the highest monthly civilian death toll for the coalitions campaign in Syria.

Between April 23 and May 23, 2017, coalition air strikes killed at least 225 civilians in Syria, including dozens of children.

The US military had said coalition air strikes in Iraq and Syria had unintentionally killed a total of 352 civilians since 2014.

At least 23,544 civilians have been displaced on May 18-22, the UN said in a press release last week.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad al- Hussein last week urged all states air forces operating in the country to take much greater care to distinguish between legitimate military targets and civilians.

The same civilians who are suffering indiscriminate shelling and summary executions by ISIL, are also falling victim to the escalating air strikes, particularly in the northeastern governorates of Raqqa and Deir Az Zor, Zeid said.
Prime Minister Abe says Japan will take concrete action with the US after Scud missile crashes into Japanese waters.

Japans Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says his country will join the United States in taking concrete action against North Korea after its latest ballistic missile test.

On Monday, North Korea test-fired a Scud missile into Japanese waters, the third test in as many weeks and the 12th this year  carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

We will never tolerate North Koreas continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community, Abe told reporters shortly after the test.

As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international communitys top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States.

READ MORE: North Korea fires missile in third test in three weeks

Isolated but nuclear-armed, North Korea has test-fired a missile almost every week for the past three weeks.

The latest, a short-range Scud, flew about 450km before landing in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, the US Pacific Command said.

Mondays test also marked the second time this year that a North Korean missile fell close to its neighbour Japan.

Michael Penn, president of the Tokyo-based Shingetsu news agency, told Al Jazeera that the latest test was part of a North Korean effort to strengthen its military against any possible threats from the US.

The missile technology tests themselves do seem to be the priority of the North Korean regime, to get their technology as strong as possible, as quickly as possible.

They feel this is their best way forward  to show their own ability to defend themselves against a Trump administration they cannot predict, Penn said.

US: Conflict would be catastrophic

Despite Trumps strident warnings, James Mattis, the US secretary of defence, said in an interview that aired on Sunday before the launch that a war with North Korea would be catastrophic.

The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea, he told CBS News.

This regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea. In the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well.

READ MORE: North Koreas nuclear weapons  Here is all we know

But the bottom line is, it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat, if were not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means.

Mattis declined to say what kind of action from Pyongyang would constitute a red line for Washington, saying the administration needs political manoeuvre room.

Direct challenge

South Koreas new president, Moon Jae-In, ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said its leader Kim Jong-un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.

South Korea condemned the test as a grave threat and a challenge to the new leader who advocates dialogue with North Korea in a break from his conservative predecessors.

OPINION: Is war coming to North Korea?

That the North repeated such provocations after the inauguration of our new leadership is a direct challenge to our demand for peace and denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, the foreign ministry said.

The missile launches, and Pyongyangs threat to stage its sixth nuclear test, have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention was an option under consideration.
The storm occurred as temperatures soar across many states before the monsoon season.

Lightning and thunderstorms have killed 29 people and injured dozens of others in Indias eastern state of Bihar, disaster management officials said.

The deaths took place in villages across the districts of Jamui, Champaran, Vaishali and Samastipur on Sunday.

Twenty-six people died due to being struck by the lightning and six more casualties occurred due to the collapsing of walls and homes, Anirudh Kumar, of Bihars Disaster Management Authority, told Al Jazeera.

Kumar said that the fierce winds and uprooted trees damaged about 250 homes in the ten districts of Bihar, according to a preliminary assessment.

The victims were mainly farmers and homeless people, he added. The wounded were given medical treatment at hospitals and were discharged, Kumar said.

READ MORE: India  Lightning kills more than 50 people in Bihar

Strong winds also damaged crops and property, as state agencies were assessing the damage, he added.

The storm occurred during the height of summer in India, which has seen soaring temperatures across many states in advance of the monsoon season.

The region was hit by similar storms earlier this month, claiming 22 lives.

Kumar said that a warning about possible thunderstorms in Bihar had been issued in 38 districts on Monday and that the people were advised to protect themselves inside safe shelters.

The six additional casualties occurred because people left their homes for work despite warnings. There is still a possibility of thunderstorms and lightning, the official said, adding that the electricity had been disrupted by uprooted trees falling on power cables.

We are trying to reach out to people and make them aware.

In similar fierce storms in April 2015, 56 people lost their lives. Kumar said that the winds in Bihar are common from April 20 to June 30 until the monsoon starts.

The state government in Bihar has ordered the compensation of almost $6,200 for the kins of the persons killed in the storms and also a small amount of compensation for the farmers who lost their crops.
The Russian ambassador to Moldova confirms the expulsions, but neither side gives reasons behind the move.

Moldovas foreign ministry has expelled five Russian diplomats, ordering Moscow to remove them in a move that outraged the countrys pro-Russian president.

The note about the decision was given to the Russian ambassador to Moldova Farit Mukhametshin on Monday afternoon, according to Artur Sarbu, Moldovas foreign ministry aide, who did not explain the reason behind the expulsion.

Mukhametshin confirmed that he received the note, but declined to elaborate.





The move comes amid tensions between the countrys pro-Russian president and his West-leaning government.

It follows allegations that former Moldovan legislator Yury Bolbochan passed state secrets to the military attache of the Russian embassy, Alexander Grudin.

Bolbochan was arrested in March and charged with treason after a video was published of him meeting Grudin.

President condemns decision

The unnamed diplomats were given 72 hours to leave the country, according to Moldovas President Igor Dodon, who condemned the decision.

The government has taken an outrageous act toward the Russian Embassy, he wrote on Facebook.

I am deeply outraged of this unfriendly step by the representatives of the Moldovan diplomatic corps and I categorically condemn it.

This was done most likely on orders from the West, he said. This crude step will not be left without negative consequences.

Moldova has an East-West cultural, linguistic and political split, with Dodon, who was elected in November.

Dodon this year declared that he would be keen to cancel Moldovas EU association agreement and reestablish a relationship with Moscow, a move condemned by the countrys pro-Western politicians.
Police probes detained Nasser Zefzafi for undermining the security of the state and other criminal acts.

The fugitive leader of a protest movement that has shaken Moroccos northern Rif region for months was arrested on Monday.

Nasser Zefzafi, 39, who had been on the run since Friday, had been taken into custody along with other individuals and transferred to Casablanca, according to the general prosecutor of the northern city of Al-Hoceima.

The prosecutors statement said on Monday that those detained would be investigated for undermining the security of the state and other criminal acts.

The Rif region has been shaken by social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

READ MORE: Moroccos Al-Hoceima remains tense over protest arrests

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi, himself unemployed, emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or Popular Movement, based largely in Al-Hoceima.

Zefzafis arrest was ordered after he allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque on Friday and called for further demonstrations.

Prosecutors said the arrest was ordered after Zefzafi obstructed, in the company of a group of individuals, freedom of worship at the mosque in Al-Hoceima.

The protest leader later appeared in footage broadcast on social media saying he was safe and sound and calling for further demonstrations.

Arab Spring-inspired

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Moroccos central authorities and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.

The protests subsided following a series of political reforms, including constitutional changes that saw King Mohamed VI give up some of his wide-ranging powers.

Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit led a large delegation to Al-Hoceima last week, the latest in a series of government trips to the region.

Officials have promised increased support for the local economy, in particular the crucial fishing industry.

Zefzafi emerged as the leader of the movement by broadcasting passionate speeches online in the local Tarifit dialect from his home or the street, denouncing corruption and dictatorship.

Zefzafi and other activists insist the movement is not seeking independence for the region, despite its long history of resistance to central rule.
Short-range ballistic Scud missile landed in the Sea of Japan and was the third successful test in as many weeks.

North Korea has test-fired a missile into Japanese waters, the latest in a series of launches that have ratcheted up tensions over its nuclear weapons programme.

It was North Koreas third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year  carried out in fresh defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

US military monitors said the short-range missile flew for six minutes, while Japan said it fell into the countrys exclusive economic zone (EEZ)  waters extending 370km from its coast.

The launch comes despite tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised last week at the G7 summit that the big problem of North Korea will be solved.

OPINION: Is war coming to North Korea?

Japans Prime Minister Shinzo Abe swiftly condemned the test and vowed concerted action along with its US ally.

We will never tolerate North Koreas continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community, Abe told reporters.

As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international communitys top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States.

Mondays test, a short-range Scud, marks the second time this year that a North Korean missile fell provocatively close to its neighbour Japan.

It flew about 450 kilometres before landing in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) between the Korean peninsula and Japan, the US Pacific Command said.

Conflict catastrophic

North Korea has been stepping up efforts towards its ultimate goal  developing an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental US.

The isolated but nuclear-armed North Korea has test-fired a missile almost every week for the past three weeks.

Michael Penn, president of the Tokyo-based Shingetsu news agency, said the latest test was part of a North Korean effort to strengthen its military against any possible threats from the US.

The missile technology tests themselves do seem to be the priority of the North Korean regime, to get their technology as strong as possible, as quickly as possible, because they feel this is their best way forward  to show their own ability to defend themselves against a Trump administration they cannot predict, Penn told Al Jazeera.

READ MORE: North Koreas nuclear weapons  Here is all we know

James Mattis, the US secretary of defence, in an interview that aired on Sunday before the launch, said the US favoured diplomacy over war with North Korea, which he said would be catastrophic.

The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea, he told CBS News.

This regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea. And in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well.

But the bottom line is, it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat, if were not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means.

Mattis declined to say what kind of action from Pyongyang would constitute a red line for Washington, saying the administration needs political manoeuvre room.

Direct challenge

South Koreas new president, Moon Jae-In, ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said its leader Kim Jong-un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.

South Korea condemned the test as a grave threat and a challenge to the new leader who advocates dialogue with North Korea in a break from his conservative predecessors.

READ MORE: North Korea  Whatever comes, we will handle it

That the North repeated such provocations after the inauguration of our new leadership  is a direct challenge to our demand for peace and denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, the foreign ministry said.

The missile launches, and Pyongyangs threat to stage its sixth nuclear test, have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention is an option under consideration.
Philippine army makes gains as alarm grows over fate of up to 2,000 people stranded amid street battles and air strikes.

Philippine forces say they now control most of a southern city where fighters linked to ISIL launched a bloody siege a week ago, as fears grow for hundreds of people unable to escape the violence.

Reports on Monday said that 24 civilians were among the 105 killed in the fighting between the military and fighters of the Maute armed group.

Most of Marawis 200,000 people have left the city but up to 2,000 people were stranded in areas controlled by Maute fighters, according to Zia Alonto Adiong, a politician coordinating efforts to evacuate civilians.

They are texting us and calling us for help, he said.

They cant leave because they are afraid of running into checkpoints put up by the gunmen.

READ MORE: Mindanao crisis  A city on fire

The trapped civilians were without food, and wanted the military to stop air strikes, he said, urging the military to do a different approach.

Street-to-street battles and a relentless bombing campaign has so far failed to end the crisis in Marawi, one of the biggest Muslim cities in the Philippines, where President Rodrigo Duterte claims Muslim fighters were involved in an ISIL-inspired effort to set up a separate state.

Duterte has imposed martial law across the southern third of the Philippines to end the uprising.

Pockets of resistance

Only small areas were under the control of fighters on Monday, military spokesman Brigadier-General Restituto Padilla said.

We can control who comes in and who comes out, who moves around and who doesnt, and we are trying to isolate these pockets of resistance that have remained, he told the AP news agency.

When asked about fears of civilians being bombed, Padilla told reporters that air strikes would be done with precision, but said bombings would continue in whichever areas the fighters were hiding.

Philippine National Police Chief Ronald de la Rosa said the operation was taking time because Marawi is urban, allowing gunmen to move quickly from building to building to evade capture.

I cannot give operational details, but I am sure they are also human, they will get tired, he said.

READ MORE: Duterte makes rape joke for martial law troops

According to the latest government figures, 24 civilians, 61 fighters and 20 soldiers have been killed since violence broke out on Tuesday.

Myrna Bandung, a Catholic woman, told reporters at a checkpoint on Monday that she had been with a group of eight men when they were gunned down on Sunday.

They did not kill me because I was able to recite a Muslim prayer. The others were not so lucky, Bandung, who was visibly shocked, said.

A paper sign attached to one of the men indicated that the victims had betrayed their faith, the police said. Their bodies were found in a ravine outside Marawi.

Bodies of four men, three women and a child were also found near a road close to the Mindanao State University in Marawi.





Lockdown

The city of Illigan, some 38 km away from Marawi, was meanwhile overflowing with evacuees and on lockdown, with authorities saying they were worried that Maute fighters were blending in with the displaced and could launch attacks.

We dont want whats happening in Marawi to spill over in Iligan, Colonel Alex Aduca told a local radio station.

We want to ensure the safety of people here, to prevent elements from entering and conducting terroristic activities.

He said some rebels had been caught trying to get into Iligan, but did not give details.

The violence erupted last Tuesday night when the government launched a raid to capture Isnilon Hapilon, a veteran Filipino fighter regarded as the local leader of ISIL.

But the operation went awry and fighters rampaged through the city, torching buildings and battling government forces in the streets.

A priest and several worshippers were taken hostage. There was no word on their fate.

Hapilon, an Islamic preacher, was once a commander of the armed group Abu Sayyaf that pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) in 2014.

He now heads an alliance of at least 10 smaller armed groups, including the Maute, which has a heavy presence in Marawi.
At least 164 killed as rescuers rush to evacuate people marooned by floods and mudslides before rains resume on Monday.

Helicopters are searching for people marooned four days after the worst floods and mudslides to hit Sri Lanka in 14 years overcame parts of the countrys southwest, killing at least 164 people.

With more rain expected on Monday, rescuers were racing to evacuate villagers from the most vulnerable areas as emergency teams rushed to distribute aid to nearly half a million people driven from their homes by the islands worst flooding in a decade.

Some 104 people were still listed as missing, the countrys Disaster Management Centre said on Monday, while another 88 remained in hospital.

The army said it does not expect to find any more survivors.

With bad weather set to continue, there are concerns that the situation will worsen, said a spokesman with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, adding that according to the government, at least 470,000 people are affected.

The army has deployed a dozen aircraft for the evacuation effort and to carry food and other essentials to affected areas.

Al Jazeeras Minelle Fernandez, reporting from one of the worst hit areas  Kalutara, south of the capital, Colombo  said some villages in the hilly interior were still inaccessible, while others were yet to receive any aid.

READ MORE: The seasonal climate of Sri Lanka

The water levels are still quite high, she said. There are villages that are still locked by water  with people desperately trying to get out and get supplies.

People in better situations have been coming together, cooking food in community kitchens.

Much more needed

The government has appealed for bottled water, new clothes and dry rations for those displaced.

India sent two naval ships laden with supplies over the weekend, while the UN said it would donate water containers, water purification tablets and tarpaulin sheets.

The World Health Organization said it would support medical teams in affected areas.

Al Jazeeras Charles Stratford, reporting from an airbase in Colombo where relief efforts are continuing, said: We flew over some of the worst affected areas today. Families are trapped, whole villages are completely cut off and in need of medical support, food, clothing and shelter.

Many people were swept away when the sides of mountains collapsed on their homes.

Bojan Kolundzija, Oxfams country director in Sri Lanka, said much more support was needed.

At present, the most immediate needs are water, food, and sanitation and hygiene kits. It should be noted that women and children are particularly affected by this disaster, he told Al Jazeera.

As soon as the water starts receding, an immediate cleaning operation needs to take place to prevent mosquito breeding and the spread of dengue.

Rajitha Senaratne, Sri Lankas health minister, said medical teams have been dispatched to the worst affected areas to prevent an outbreak of waterborne diseases.

He said cholera and diarrhoea had been successfully prevented in past floods.

We have the expertise to deal with this situation, he told the AFP news agency.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful monsoon, officials said.

Monsoon rains last year caused flooding and landslides, killing more than 100 people.
The ruling ANC party sticks with the South African president, but admits support is drifting away from their movement.

South African President Jacob Zuma survived fresh calls within the ruling African National Congress party for him to resign, party officials said on Monday, as they acknowledged support was drifting away from the movement.

Senior figures in the ANC met over the weekend after Zuma endured months of criticism over his sacking of respected finance minister Pravin Gordhan.

There was a call made in the national executive committee for the president to consider stepping down, said ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe.

A number of members  were of the view that the ANC should listen to this call.

READ MORE: ANC icons demand Jacob Zumas resignation

Mantashe said that the meeting had not backed the resignation demands, and had instead discussed the need to reconnect with sectors of society that are drifting away from the movement.

A string of ANC allies have also urged Zuma to go; including the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), the South African Communist Party (SACP), and the South African Council of Churches (SACC).





Zuma has faced widespread public anger over a series of corruption scandals, record unemployment and a sluggish economy.

The crisis has seen two ratings agencies downgrade South Africa and brought tens of thousands of people onto the streets calling for Zumas ousting.

The ANC is due to elect Zumas successor as party leader in December, ahead of general elections in 2019.

The party  which Nelson Mandela led to power in the 1994 post-apartheid elections  has recently lost popularity, taking just 55 percent of the vote in last years local elections, its worst ever result.

A campaign group of anti-apartheid veterans said that Zuma loyalists had shown they clearly place their own narrow political and financial self-interests above  the best interests of the country.

Zuma retains support from ANC members in many rural areas and has been able to rely on party lawmakers to survive votes of no confidence in parliament.
Emirates National Oil Company has paid dues as part of its debts owed to Iran for pre-sanction oil and gas purchases.

Iran has said it had received more than $4bn from Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), as part of the UAE retailers settlement of its debts owed to Iran for pre-sanction oil and gas purchases, reported Iranian news website Al Alam.

Irans Supreme Audit Court, which monitors the Oil Ministrys deposits into the state treasury, said that the Central Bank of Iran had received the total amount of $4,105,219,136 as part of Enoc debts over the purchase of gas condensate, the agency said on Sunday.

Last year Irans Ministry of Petroleum confirmed that international oil companies (IOCs) had started paying the amounts owed to Iran for pre-sanction oil purchases.

READ MORE: Dawn of a new era as Iran sanctions lifted

Debtors include the UAEs Enoc, Anglo Dutch energy giant Shell, Greeces Hellenic Petroleum, Italys Saras.

Banking restrictions had previously prevented the companies from transferring payments to Iran.

Iran re-entered the global economy in January 2016 following years of crippling international sanctions, after the UN announced the country had complied with the terms of a landmark deal in July 2015 aimed at scaling down its nuclear programme.

The landmark deal Tehran finalised with six world powers allowed it to have immediate access to more than $50bn in long-frozen assets and freedom to sell its oil and purchase goods in the international marketplace.
Fresh strikes come days after Egypt attacked camps in city of Derna, in response to killing of Egyptian Christians.

Warplanes have launched three air strikes on the Libyan city of Derna, a witness said, days after Egypt attacked camps there, saying it was targetting fighters responsible for killing Egyptian Christians.

There was no immediate confirmation of Mondays strikes from officials in Libya or neighbouring Egypt, nor any claim of responsibility for the raid on the city at the eastern end of Libyas Mediterranean coast.

The witness said one attack hit the western entrance to Derna and the other two hit Dahr al-Hamar in the south.

READ MORE: Egypt launches strikes in Libya after Minya attack

Egyptian jets attacked Derna on Friday, just hours after masked men boarded vehicles en route to a monastery in the southern Egyptian province of Minya and opened fire at close range, killing 29 and wounding 24.

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) claimed responsibility for that attack in Egypt, the latest targetting Christian minority there  two church bombings also claimed by ISIL killed more than 45 last month.

Egypt, which attacked Derna again on Saturday, has carried out a number of air strikes on its neighbour since Libya descended into factional fighting in the years following the 2011 civil war that ousted Muammar Gaddafi.

Several armed groups, including ISIL, have gained ground in the chaos.

Egypt has been backing eastern commander Khalifa Haftar, whose Libyan National Army has been fighting armed goups in Benghazi and Derna for more than two years.

Speaking to Al Jazeera from Boston, Tarek Masoud of Harvard University said Egypt cannot solve its security problem by striking Libya.

Are the people who perpetrated the latest attack in Egypt based in Libya? he said.

I dont know. But the fact that this happened so deep within Egypt suggests to me that the bases of operations of these kinds of attacks are not over the border in Libya, but are actually within Egypt.

That of course means this is a much bigger problem, one that may not be solved by striking some terrorist bases in faraway Libya.

READ MORE: Whats happening in Libya today?

Libyan National Army spokesman Colonel Ahmad Messmari told reporters in Benghazi late on Sunday that Haftars forces were coordinating with Egypts military in air strikes and the weekend raids targeted ammunition stores and operations camps.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said on Friday the air raids targeted fighters responsible for plotting the attack, and that Egypt would not hesitate to carry out additional strikes inside and outside the country.
Lusail Stadium, which will host 10 matches, including the final, is set to be completed by the end of the year.
The Australian Government is appalled by the brutal attack on a group of Coptic Christians in Egypt on 26 May, killing many including children. This follows the deeply troubling Palm Sunday bombings of churches and other attacks on Egyptian civilians and security forces. Our sympathies at this time are with the victims and their families []http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric...
The headline should have been "Medicaid budget increased by $25 billion for 2018." In the attached budget document on page 17, it shows Medicaid at $403 billion for 2018 vs. $378 billion in 2017.

For anyone who can read a balance sheet, (and plenty of journalism majors cannot), the $880 billion "cut" that was plastered all over the news comes from the previous administration's ten-year projections vs. the Trump administration's ten-year projections. But the only actual number is the $25 billion increase. I bet if the American people were told the actual number, it would be tough to protest -- or generate such an exciting headline for the left. The obvious reason for the headline is to push an agenda. One of the main reasons we are broke is because the government not only does not cut much, but a cut in a projected increase is always portrayed as a disaster. The media is a major culprit in pushing this agenda.

Maybe the media could point out that all of Obamas budgets were dead on arrival and that there were years during the Obama administration when the Democrat-led Senate didnt pass a budget at all. Sort of like Illinois.

On May 25, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who sits on the intelligence committee, was asked about Obamas illegal spying, where the Obama Administration was cited for continually violating the law since 2011 and she said she hadnt been briefed on the subject yet. Yet somehow, Pelosi was able to critique Trumps budget within a few days of its issuance. My guess is she read as much of the budget as she did the ObamaCare bill before she passed it.

On May 25, headlines were splashed all over the place following a Congressional Budget Office report claiming that the replacement for Obamacare would cause 23 million people to lose health care coverage by 2026. For one thing, th CBO is notoriously inaccurate in its projections. Among other things, it's on record as claiming ObamaCare would be a runaway success with high enrollment numbers and lowered costs. It stands to reason that if there is no law forcing people to buy ObamaCare, some will obviously choose not to buy it, given its limited choices and high price tag. Why does the media post a headline implying that the number is accurate instead of a wild guess at best? Why doesn't the media tell people how far off the ObamaCare projections have been?

Let's look at the balance sheet specifics: In 2010, CBO predicted that by 2016 twenty three million would be covered by ObamaCare exchanges. The actual number was 10.6 million. In 2010 CBO predicted that the cost of ObamaCare would be $948 billion in its first ten years. By 2014 they had raised the projected costs to over $2 trillion.

Not once have I seen any reporter ask Obama, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Pelosi, or any other Democrat how the massive cost overruns in ObamaCare have been paid for. What did they cut or what taxes did they use to pay for the near-$1 trillion shortfall? After all, they say they insist all programs must be paid for. Why do the media and Democrats pretend that they all of a sudden care about the deficit when they havent for at least eight years?

I focus on health care headlines because they are so egregious right now, but they are part of an extended pattern of misleading headlines and inaccurate readings.

Something you rarely or ever see in a climate change article showing temperature changes are actual temperatures. They generally just show differences from the average. I would love to see what the actual average temperature in the U.S was in 1880, 1934, and 2016. I believe there is less than a one degree change over 150 years which would certainly be within the margin of error and therefore normal. Of course those numbers are sort of irrelevant if the weather stations werent all in the same place. Obviously if the weathering station is placed near cement it is warmer than in grass but that is not evidence that fossil fuels or CO2 cause warming. .

I also dont recall ever seeing any actual sea levels in articles, only that it is rising. Did they actually measure all the seas in 1880, 1930 and today or are they estimates. I believe the research shows minor rises the last 150 years and the measurements have to be questionable.

The obvious reason that most headlines and articles are written as they are is to influence instead of inform. Almost all reporting today is to push an agenda instead of report facts. It would be much easier and cheaper if the AP, Washington Post and New York Times along with the networks plastered Democratic talking points and liberal think tanks propaganda onto their screens and broadsheets instead of pretending they are actual reporters doing research.
The city of New Orleans recently removed three memorials to Confederate leaders (and a fourth marking an obscure clash during Reconstruction.) Why did they do this? Because someone today was offended by a time in American history that they would prefer to obliterate. I believe they chose to demonize these men by viewing them solely through a 21st-century prism.

Revisionist history is a trait of autocracies, not democracies.

A willingness to reduce historical events to a sound bite is worse: North good. South bad. Destroy anything causing offense today to people who werent there and dont care to learn. Story at 11.

We need to be clear-eyed about this: the American Civil War was about slavery, not states rights. That argument is mostly postbellum revisionism, creating a myth of nobility where none existed. Treating any human being as bereft of intellect, emotion, or soul to be bought and sold as property is a heinous and loathsome assault on all of us. 5000 years of world history in which it occurred on every continent and by nearly every culture does not make it right.

But let us also remember a bit more of our history, a subject seemingly under-taught in U.S. schools today.

The U.S. abolished the Atlantic slave trade in 1807 under President Thomas Jefferson, but it took the Civil War to abolish slavery itself. During these years from 1807-1861, the United States had grown to become a transcontinental power, but one based upon very different regional economies. It should be no surprise that the more industrial, more urban, more economically diversified North would have less in common with the more agrarian, more rural, and more economically commodity-driven South.

There is nothing civil about civil war. It is a terrible thing when a father turns against his own son or a brother against his only brother. More than once, I imagine, both died on the same battlefield, each willing to give his life for his beliefs. To suggest today that such a decision is taken lightly is to belittle the anguish of a time we can only view but not experience.

With this history as context, were the three men whose statues were removed traitors or some sort of heinous monsters? Only if you believe the U.S. Military Academy at West Point turns out heinous monsters.

All three, Jefferson Davis, P.G.T. Beauregard, and Robert E. Lee attended West Point and prior to the divisiveness that created the war, served with bravery and distinction as officers in the army of the United States of America. In addition, Jefferson Davis served as the U.S. Secretary of War in President Franklin Pierces cabinet. General Beauregard was appointed superintendent of West Point, but left that position as war clouds gathered. General Lee did serve as superintendent and, when the war began, was offered a leadership position as a Major General in the U.S., or Union, Army.

Yet in 2017 the mayor of New Orleans decreed, It is self-evident that these men did not fight for the United States of America. They fought against it. How easy it must be for some to believe there is no gray in this world and how cavalierly a decision can be made to resign your commission and end your lifes work because you also hold another disparate belief.

These men did, of course, choose the path of secession, as did most of the six million residents of the South and between 750,000 and 1 million men who served in the Confederate Army. Davis, Beauregard, and Lee lost. The South lost. The idea that one man could be the slave of another lost.

Some became embittered and refused to accept the outcome. But not the three men whose statues were toppled. Robert E. Lee became president of Washington College (since renamed Washington and Lee University), P.G.T. Beauregard became president of the New Orleans and Carrollton Street Railway, and Jefferson Davis the president of a life insurance company (having turned down the presidency of Texas A&M.) All contributed once again -- as Americans. As Americans, they deserve our remembrance and respect.

What does this have to do with our remembrances on Memorial Day? Everything. We fought with and killed each other during a terrible time in our nations history. We can either stupidly pretend the war is still ongoing, as the KKK does; we can be embittered as some descendants, both black and white, are; or we can be thankful that out of such devastation and such hostility and bitterness, we have forged a better nation, a more tolerant society, and a more enlightened people.

It isnt about a stone or marble statue or memorial. To raise a statue is a decision for each individual on their own property or each city or state on its public land to make. But it is about remembering the sacrifice of all Americans who served and fought, including all soldiers of the Confederacy whose advice to their children and grandchildren must have been to defend the renewed American nation that arose from the ashes of the Civil War, and they have done so all out of proportion to their population.

I choose to honor even those I would have fought as my enemy in that most catastrophic of wars. The men represented by these statues were born Americans and died Americans, buried on American soil.

There are those who would disenfranchise our fathers, sons, and brothers as venal traitors rather than conflicted human beings fighting for a cause who, after losing to loftier ideals, rejoined mainstream American society.

If you are among those who cannot bring yourself to forgive and show respect this day of remembrance for the men in gray, the men in blue, and the millions of men and women who have followed them in some variation of blue, gray or olive drab, may I suggest you visit Robert E. Lees former plantation.

You may know it by a different name. It is the final resting place for numerous men and women dating from the Civil War, Confederate and Union, black and white, native-born or once an immigrant. They are Americans one and all. Today it is called Arlington National Cemetery.
Wolves are not born in a vacuum, they are born in packs. In fact, the term 'lone wolf,' is a misnomer--self-radicalization does not exist. Radical Islamists recruit in social environments such as radical mosques, social media chat rooms and radical schools and neighborhoods, just to name a few. Sophisticated groupthink and manipulation techniques are used to brainwash recruits into believing that killing infidels, or non-believers, is honorable.

Promises such as 72 virgins, forgiveness for family members, along with payment for martyrs, provide incentives for terrorism. But the most effective inducement is the radical Islamist ideology that most terrorists espouse. Packs of new recruits are trained together by using social processes that create a competitive environment. Ego plays a part in trying to one-up one another, thereby escalating the violence and hatred towards the infidel, the unbeliever. Social psychologist Albert Bandura reported that violence is "socially determined." Radicalization occurs in this type of environment, not in secluded basements of a parents' home.

Immediately following a terrorist attack, one of the first queries is whether a terrorist acted alone. According to Fox News, it is estimated that there are 23,000 jihadists, and 20,000 people who are a residual risk in the U.K. today. The current Manchester murder investigation is uncovering the fact that recruits are embedded in a jihadi network, plotting terror attacks, even though it may seem as though they are acting alone. As the Manchester investigation proceeds, it has been reported that after seventeen raids, eleven suspects have been arrested. Perhaps some of those raids have uncovered underground social groups in addition to links to Libya and other networks.

The web of Islamist terrorism is connected worldwide, radicalizing foot soldiers much faster than law enforcement can keep up. In this case, the terrorist Salman Abedi, was on New Scotland Yard's radar screen before his attack at the Ariana Grande concert, but could not be arrested without probable cause. Until Abedi targeted and killed the young teens as they exited the Manchester arena, (seats up to 21,000 fans), no crime had been committed. To arrest a known wolf, clear evidence of an attack must be found--and clearly, jihadis are taking advantage of this freedom. Author Patrick Poole coined the phrase, 'known wolves,' to describe these jihadis.

The tangled web of jihad is not always visible underneath the mask of "known wolves." Dozens of websites teach prospective jihadis how to build sophisticated explosive devices. Al-Qaeda created Inspire, an online magazine which describes in gruesome detail how to build suicide bombs. The Anarchist Cookbook, is another site with chat rooms where prospective jihadis can share information in a social setting and learn how to build an IED, (Improvised Explosive Device,) using household items such as pressure cookers.

Violence is the primary vehicle for communication in radical Islamism. The more death, the stronger the message. The jihadists' ultimate goal is to enforce Sharia law worldwide. The brutal attack in Manchester tacitly spoke of the Islamist disdain for loud music, unescorted young girls, and forbidden dress, displaying non-compliance with Sharia law.

Islamist terrorists are fond of symbolism and this heartbreaking and brutal attack occurred on May 22, two months to the day after British terrorist Khalid Masood attacked the reins of power in the United Kingdom. Dozens of young teens' lives were cut short and over 63 innocent youths wounded in the jihadi-martyrdom bombing claimed by ISIS. We should prepare for more attacks along the horizon, especially on national holidays.

Islamic radicalization is an extreme political doctrine submitting to the tenets of jihad through the socialization from an archaic interpretation of Sharia law. When innocent bystanders and children are savagely attacked, as they were in Manchester, we are reminded that we are in a battle to defend our civilization against barbarism. The justification for these attacks stems from the extreme jihadi ideology that uses references from the Qu'ran, as a political tool. Extremist fundamentalists reminded us once again, that Salafi-jihadism is not compatible with freedom and democracy. Terror, as an instrument for political change, attacks the very foundations of our democracies and Western values. We are all victims of a subversive radical Salafist ideology, from Manchester to London, to New York to Tel Aviv to Paris and beyond.

We must stand together to eradicate our common enemy that rejects freedom in favor of a militant totalitarian belief system. Radical Islamists are masters of manipulation by using a recruiter, a plan, and a radical ideology to indoctrinate their followers. This must be stopped. There must be a way to stop known wolves, before they act.

What Can Be Done?

With all due respect to Prime Minister Theresa May, vigilance and more security services will not be enough to keep Britons safe. Terrorists must be acknowledged, delegitimized, and demonized.

President Donald Trump on his recent Middle East tour stated, "drive them out." Every country, including the Arab and Muslim countries, must be a part of the solution, especially because the victims of Islamism are often Muslims themselves. President Trump called for NATO countries to attack the terrorist hubs and "drive them out of this world."

If the Islamist soldiers come to realize that they are pawns in a violent game, dying as collateral damage for radical Sharia, would they continue to steal young lives, including their own? What if the media demonized, discredited and disregarded terrorist acts? Or if anti-Islamist Muslims discouraged violent extremism as a farce with fools-gold rewards after death?

The U.S. must learn from Europe's mistakes and create stronger border control, tighten immigration laws, stand strong against radical Islamic lobbies, and protect our Constitutional freedoms. That is only the beginning. The number one job of the British Prime Minister and the President of the United States is to keep our countries safe and secure. Citizens must demand answers about what our leaders are doing to make it so.

Valerie Greenfeld is the author of Backyard Caliphate: Radicalization in our Neighborhood. Visit her blog at backyardcaliphate.weebly.com.
The decline and lurch to the left of the Fox News Network provides an opening for any astute conservative billionaire: create a news network specifically intended to provide news from the viewpoint of most of America, which is to say the seventy-five percent of Americans who live in Flyover Country. While the geographic concentration of political power in America is appalling, the geographic concentration of media power is much worse.

Because the media defy elections and, in fact, determine elections, having almost all national news pass through the tiny channel of the New York-to-Washington Beltway is toxic to our national life.

This is not an ideological monopoly, but rather a geographical monopoly. But because the environment between Washington and New York is so utterly artificial and so completely leftist, what has happened to Fox News  a constant drift to the left  is an unrelenting and corrosive force that isolates the media and the government of America from the overwhelming majority who live in Middle America.

Consider a neutral and fair political site like RealClearPolitics. It is not uncommon to have one third of the stories from New York media outlets and one third of the stories from Washington media outlets and the rest from national outlets without a particular geographical designation but situated in the Beltway. On those rare instances in which another city's media has stories in RealClearPolitics, the city is usually Boston or Los Angeles.

What that means is that the vast majority of Americans are utterly disenfranchised politically in the only area that really counts in a nation as large and media-driven as America. What this also means is that as Fox News declines into irrelevance, as it will, there is a gaping hole for those with the money, the guts, and the vision to create a television network specifically focused on Middle America.

This network should include a news network located in the center of America and dedicated to presenting stories that inform Americans what is happening in this majority of our nation. There is vast ignorance within the Beltway media about how the energy industry works or how wheat and cotton are grown and cattle raised and ores mined.

While Fox News periodically had stories presented from its Beltway offices about the plight of the timber industry in Washington State or the small oil producers in Oklahoma, stories from the Middle America News Network would be produced by those who actually live in these areas and presented to Americans by newscasters whose home is in Omaha or Knoxville or Salt Lake City or Little Rock. This new network would also have a much easier time breaking into the cable news lineup than Fox News did because it would overtly be representing the perspective of local listeners in cities around the nation.

Fox News rightly picked the target audience to make it grow: those millions of Americans disgusted by the ideological monopoly of the leftist establishment media. The Middle America News Network would represent not just the ideologically disempowered, but the culturally disempowered, who find their beliefs and lives treated as weird curiosities. The market share for this news network could skyrocket fast, particularly among the tens of millions of Americans who simply never watch network news any longer.

This new network could also introduce a whole new way of interviewing members of Congress. Instead of having these members show up at a studio in Washington or New York, the network could invite them to be interviewed for national television in their home states. Those who decline an interview might find their likely rivals in the next election interviewed instead with the tag "The Middle America News Network invited Senator Mugwump to discuss the impact of environmental regulations on business here, but he was too busy in Washington to come here for the interview."

The idea would be to shift always, always, always the focus of attention and interest away from that micron of America that is the Beltway and back to the huge expanse from Alaska to Minnesota to Florida to Arizona that is America. The idea would also be to force both political parties, which is to say Washington Party A and Washington Party B, to actually notice forty or so states that may be called "Flyover Country" if they wish their political parties to have a chance at gaining or holding power.

This network could transform politics in America by forcing the parties to turn from Washington ("The Swamp") and back to the American people spread all across this land.
The movie Hacksaw Ridge was snubbed by Hollywood in favor of La La Land, but it's the perfect way to contemplate what Memorial Day is really about. Unless you're a snowflake, that is.

Recently, my wife and I were watching Hacksaw Ridge with two of our twenty-something daughters. Already it sounds weird, right? Millennial girls watching a war movie with Mom and Dad? Anyway, this was a great, great movie. When it ended, all four of us sat silently staring at the screen as the credits scrolled, stopped, and went to the title screen. With things still completely silent in the darkened room for another minute that seemed like forever, my 21-year-old broke the silence and said, "That was a great movie."

The acting was incredible, yes, but every message in this movie, produced by Mel Gibson, was completely anti-Hollywood. My daughter said she could not believe that La La Land, which they loved, beat it out.

One reason (apart from the obvious fact of Gibson's public anti-Semitic outburst several years ago) is that this movie is not for snowflakes. Not because of the violence  snowflakes are always blowing up people on computers in their dorm rooms. No, they could never handle a main character who is so committed to his Christian beliefs that he would suffer torture, psychological testing, and reconditioning and only be more resolute. A guy who holds his Bible close to his chest and his soul. A guy who waits until he is married to have sex. A man who runs toward danger repeatedly and prays to God for protection every time he does. No superpowers or special effects. Just his faith shielding him.

Snowflakes could never handle the fact that there was a time and a place in America when people their ages considered a foxhole a safe place while they were out fighting for America, not protesting against it.

The silence in our living room at the end of the movie was followed by another 15 minutes of conversation about the movie. The snowflakes of the world, if they made it through the entire movie, would have been heading for their safe places to watch outtakes of Ryan Gosling dancing, for sure. Not my daughters. They wanted to watch it again.

This is Memorial Day weekend. If I took a poll, I bet most of the snowflakes would think it's a time to celebrate the opening of their cottage, the end of the school year, the beginning of summer. Maybe they should Google "What is Memorial Day?" or ask Siri.

And then watch Hacksaw Ridge all the way through.
Following the Group of Seven meeting in Europe, which saw German chancellor Angela Merkel sighing that the U.S. is no longer a reliable partner, France's new president is opting for another tack: openly courting Russia's Vladmir Putin.

What we are seeing is classic European power politics, where France aligns with Russia to check Germany and possibly the U.K. and U.S. It's high school, but this is how Europe has always done it. With no European Union of any credibility around, it's easy to see the new outlines of the power structure. And as the Napoleonic Wars demonstrate, the power alliances can be shifted around at the drop of a hat.

It shows the unexpected strength Macron has in playing power games, perhaps something he learned from his days as an investment banker with one of the storied Rothschild banks. Macron in general has shown himself to be a fairly strong entity, not at all the idiot his youth and inexperience would suggest. A Justin Trudeau he is not.

But here's the intriguing thing that shows how badly he wants to court Putin. From RT News:

The new French president, who in the past has been critical of Moscow's policies, is due to host President Vladimir Putin for the first time at the Chateau de Versailles. The meeting comes less than a month after Emmanuel Macron assumed office. Macron invited Putin to participate in the inauguration of a major exhibition celebrating the 300th anniversary of Peter the Great's diplomatic visit to France in 1717. "I have respect for Russia, and I invite Vladimir Putin in the framework of a three hundred year diplomatic relationship," Macron said this weekend.

Clearly, Macron is making an extensive effort to go all out to please Putin. He obviously knows that Putin is obsessed with Peter the Great and would do anything to match the great Russian hero's achievements. It's a sign he knows how to flatter Putin  in a way that Putin likes, to put a La Rochefoucauldian touch on it. Though there have been several impressive 19th-century tsars, Peter the Great really is Russia's best hero. Putin knows that. Macron knows that. Macron knows that Putin knows that. And now we see the rather unprecedented red-carpet treatment honoring the anniversary of a tiny event at Versailles a couple centuries ago as a sign of a continuing logical alliance.

Macron clearly is seeing his opportunities in the wake of the G-7 and taking them. It will take astute strategizing on the part of the U.S. to counter it, and that probably means ending the continuous sanctions on Russia. In any case, the great power politics of the 19th century do seem to be taking hold as President Trump rattles the world order.
It's been so long since we've seen what leadership looks like that its arrival can only come with a jolt.

President Trump's defense secretary, Gen. James Mattis, delivered the goods with his dazzling quote advising America's adversaries that he was their problem, not their worrywart.

"What keeps you awake at night?" CBS "Face the Nation" host John Dickerson asked Mattis. "Nothing," a stonefaced Mattis responded. "I keep other people awake at night."

Simple, spontaneous, and effective. It's strong evidence that the U.S. is back as a leader on the world stage. The words are the antithesis of passive, and indicate an active orientation. The U.S. no longer waits for problems to occur; it seeks them out and hunts them down before our enemies know that the U.S. is looking for them.

It's also reminiscent of General George Patton's smart statement that the purpose of war isn't to die for one's country, but to get the other SOB to die for his. This isn't surprising, given Mattis's known interest in military history.

In any case, it signals the end of the Obama era's "leading from behind" policy. This is clearly leading from the front.
The pro bono lawyer for Eric Clanton, the former Diablo Valley College professor who has been criminally charged with using a heavy bike lock to viciously beat three Trump supporters in the head during a rally for the president in Berkeley, Calif. last month, has himself espoused the use of violence in the cause of social justice.

Dan Siegel of Bay Area law firm Siegel & Yee is an aging '60s radical still fighting The System. So it makes perfect sense that he would take on Clanton's defense free of charge, for his left-wing activism from almost 50 years ago was also grounded in the use of violence and destruction of property.

A 1972 article in the Long Beach Independent notes that Siegel was denied a license to practice law after passing the bar exam due to his political agitation.

"The California State Bar refused to certify Siegel on grounds he was not 'of good moral character' and 'not prepared to support the laws of the United States or the Stale of California,'" the Independent reported. "It said this was because he allegedly advocated violence and the seizure of property and lied when he denied advocating these things."

Siegel had to appeal the ruling all the way to the California Supreme Court. In October 1973, the case was presented. The evidence against him was damning.

Siegel's leading role in the infamous 1969 "People's Park" riot that saw one person killed and hundreds arrested was outlined, as well as his incendiary speechmaking before the Bank of America building was burned down on the campus of UC Santa Barbara in 1970.

Most interesting are the quotes of Siegel ruminating on the appropriateness of using violence to "reverse the power structure in this country," with him concluding that it would be necessary.

According to the evidence listed for the record before the state Supreme Court, Siegel on March 6, 1970 "addressed a large group of people in Provo Park, an open space across the street from the Berkeley City Hall."

Apparently expletives were deleted in the official record, accounting for the use of bracketed ellipses.

Referencing the burning down of the Bank of America building, Siegel spoke of "getting into a new stage in the movement. I like to call this stage 'give them a little [...] for the [...] they are giving us.' That's what's been going on. "That's what started in Berkeley when we had our first insurrection in the summer of 1968. That's what happened down in Santa Barbara in the last couple of weeks. It's called the 'give them a little [...] for the [...] they give us.'"

From there, Siegel pulled no punches.

"And, brothers and sisters, I am not going to get up here and tell you that in this society nonviolence is the way, because that's [...], we know that. But just at the same time I am not going to tell you that nonviolence is the way and we should avoid violence because it is bad or something like that. "I am going to tell you this, that we have to be, as time goes on, as the [...] comes down heavier and heavier in Babylon, we have to be a lot heavier about the kind of violence that we're going to perpetrate. "We are going to have to talk about violence, if it's violence, the question is not nonviolence vs. violence, the question is when violence, and how violence and what violence, because, that is to say that to some of the people, some people think that any kind of violence is groovy and that goes along with the philosophy, give them [...] for giving us [...], which is the only philosophy we have. "But I will say this, that the kind of oppression that is coming down in this country right now, we will have to do a little bit more thinking, a little bit more getting ourselves together."

Siegel then bluntly stated that he "can see very little objection theoretically, politically, or morally, or anything else, with burning down the Bank of America and all its 500 branches."

Stressing the need to target large corporations and not small businesses owned by working-class people, Siegel said, "If we're going to think about using violence, I think we have to direct it carefully."

In his testimony in response to these damning quotes, Siegel ludicrously explained that "remarks made in the course of the speech indicating that violence was a permissible (albeit ineffective) alternative mode of action were made purely for the purpose of establishing rapport with the audience in order to render them amenable to persuasion."

The shocking quotes and the blatant lie in the face of them resulted in the state bar deeming him unfit to hold a license to practice law.

Yet despite the presentation of all this evidence, the state Supreme Court bizarrely concluded that "we are satisfied that there is a reasonable basis for concluding that none of petitioner's speeches in fact advocated unlawful violence."

Make sense of this if you can:

It bears emphasis that, under the principles we have enunciated, we need not and do not decide whether the speeches or any one of them actually did or did not advocate unlawful violence  rather our inquiry extends only to the questions whether it could be reasonably maintained that they did not.

In other words, Siegel openly declared in speeches that it was time for the radical movement to discuss which forms of violence it was going to use to achieve its goals.

But according to the California state Supreme Court at the time, this could "reasonably" be interpreted as meaning he was quite possibly not advocating the very thing he was openly advocating.

And so the radical lawyer was licensed.

This is the man now volunteering to defend today's (masked) face of Violent Leftism.

Joe Schaeffer is a freelance writer based in Florida.
German-born and Amsterdam-based artist Katrin Korfmann loves taking photos of human life, from a height. But unlike many aerial photographers who fly on small planes, Korfmanns techniques are modest. She shoots from cranes, and when cranes are not possible, she sends her camera up in a remote-controlled helicopter.

Katrin Korfmann takes multiple images and then blends them together to produce the final image, a task that can take two to three months working with 500 to 2,000 shots. Since the pictures are often taken at different times, Korfmann has to manipulate the shadows and exposure to create an image that appears to have been taken at one point in time.

In the birds-eye view people look alike, Korfmann said in an interview to Slate. The idea is to create two dimensions: one when you see it from far away and another when you zoom in and see it from very close. Then you see all the differences: in the clothes they wear, the things they carry.
The Royal Anguilla Police Force on Saturday 27th May, 2017 at about 11:40pm responded to a report of shots being fired in the area of Best Buy Supermarket on the Long Road.

On arrival at the scene; the parking lot of Best Buy Supermarket, preliminary investigations revealed that while the security for the business was attempting to transport the days cash for to the bank unsuspecting assailants started shooting at the security officers.

As a result of the incident several shots were fired causing damage to vehicles in the area and injuring one of the security officers in the process who was transported to the hospital.

As the Police continue its investigation into this accident they are appealing to members of the public who may have been on the Long Path Main Road at the time of the accident and may have witnessed the accident or have any information regarding the accident to contact the Valley Police Station with such information. The telephone number is 497-2333 and asks for the Major Crime Unit or to speak to any Police Officer of their choice.

Additionally information can be sent via the RAPF Tips Website by logging on to www.gov.ai/911 which is a secure website.
May 25, 2017, PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos Islands  The tourism industry is changing, and Caribbean countries must adapt in order to make the most of the emerging economic development opportunities. Tourism Industry Reform, Strategies for Enhanced Economic Impact, a study by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and released today, puts forward recommendations and strategies to enhance the economic impact of tourism in the Banks Borrowing Member Countries (BMCs).

Dr. Wm. Warren Smith, President, CDB, noted Tourism is the engine of growth and a major foreign exchange earner in many Caribbean countries. During the last two decades, we have witnessed a distinct shift in the profile of visitors to the Caribbean and as a result, in the industrys structure. These changes in the industry have signalled a need for policy-makers and key industry players to rethink their strategies for improving the competitiveness and safeguarding the medium to long-term development prospects of the industry in this Region.

Dr. Justin Ram, Director of Economics, CDB, said that the study is significant, as it provides much-needed empirical analysis focused on the economic impact of the industry. This research provides the opportunity for broader, critical, evidence-based policy-making in the tourism industry where business strategies have clearly evolved over the decades. These strategies are continuing to evolve, forcing the need for more frequent and timely analysis on which to base changes in policy and strategy so as to maximise economic impacts, he said.

The study characterises the causal relationship between tourism activity and GDP growth in the Region, drawing on data from each of the BMCs between 1989 and 2014. Two major trends that are particularly significant were identified in the evolution of the tourism industry.

First, there has been a slowdown in the growth rate for long-stay tourism arrivals in BMCs, with an average rate of 2.5 percent, compared to 4.5 percent globally. Second, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of cruise arrivals in the BMCs, with the number of cruise visitors more than tripling over the period under review. This is noteworthy, as the impact of tourism on GDP growth varies significantly by arrival type.

Five broad recommendations are presented for consideration by regional stakeholders:

Leveraging tourism as a tool for economic development, diversification and stimulating growth and linkages in other sectors such as agriculture and creative industries;

Organising the tourism industry through coordination among stakeholders;

Conversion of more cruise ship visitors to long stay visitors ;

Exploring further opportunities for regional collaboration; and

Preparing for the tourism industry of the future by staying aware of new trends and adapting accordingly, such as the shared economy and greater use of technology through the entire visitor experience and tourism value chain

The study was presented during a seminar at CDBs 47th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors, which is being held in the Turks and Caicos Island and ends today. Panellists included: Honourable Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism, Government of Jamaica; Stacy Cox, Executive Director, Turks and Caicos Hotel and Tourism Association; Hugh Riley, Secretary General and Chief Executive Officer, Caribbean Tourism Organisation; and Dr. Amos Peters, Economist, CDB. The study can be viewed and downloaded on CDBs website.
ABC News(MANCHESTER, England) -- Another man has been arrested in connection with the Manchester bombing on Monday, according to police, bringing the total number of men held in custody following the attack to 14.



Greater Manchester Police said that a 23-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of terrorist activity.



The police noted that 16 people have been arrested since a suspected suicide bombing killed 22 people at an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena last Monday. Two of those people have been released without charge. The suspected bomber who also died in the attack is Salman Abedi.

UPDATE: Man arrested in Shoreham by Sea in connection with Manchester Arena attack pic.twitter.com/bgxH38u63W  G M Police (@gmpolice) May 29, 2017



Britain's top counterterrorism police officer, Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley, said in a statement Friday that police have made "significant arrests and finds" in the investigation of the attack, claiming they had gotten "hold of a large part" of an alleged network of Abedi's.



"We are focusing on understanding Abedi's life; forensically examining a number of scenes, reviewing hours of CCTV from the night itself and the hours and before, financial work, communication, digital exhibits, the accounts from hundreds of witnesses and of course enquiries internationally," Rowley said in the statement.



Copyright  2017, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
(ANSA) - Rome, May 29 - Italian police on Monday said they had identified two Roma suspects in the May 10 deaths in a fire in their camper van of three Roma sisters. The pair have been placed under investigation for multiple homicide, attempted murder and carrying incendiary objects, police said. Police said they thought the fire in the camper van, in a carpark in Rome's Centocelle district, was part of a vendetta. Elizabeth, Angelica and Francesca Halilovic were caught by the flames in their sleep and burned alive as they were unable to get out of the torched vehicle, an autopsy said. Police had combed Roma camps for suspects in the fire that killed the girls as part of a suspected feud between Roma families.

The girls, aged 4, 8 and 20, were burned alive while their eight brothers and parents escaped the blaze.

The homicide probe was opened after shards of glass and traces of flammable liquid were found outside the vehicle and video footage caught a man with a Molotov cocktail.

Survivors of the blaze in the camper, which was home to a family from Bosnia made up of 11 children plus the parents, told investigators that they had recently received threats.

Another camper was reportedly torched in the area recently.

The camper was in a shopping centre car park, with the Halilovic family having recently moved from a Roma camp, reportedly amid tensions.

The incident shocked Italy and moved Pope Francis to send a message to the family.

The Sant'Egidio lay Catholic charity, which does a lot of work with Roma, said the incident showed "the Roma have been the victims of unprecedented violence".

Former premier and centre-left Democratic Party (PD) leader Matteo Renzi called for "harsher punishment than normally envisaged for whoever caused the fire" while the Codacons consumer group said "the camper should not have been there, it is a sign of urban decay".

Amnesty International Italia said the "tragic deaths...repropose the issue of the right to proper housing" on the part of Roma families.

President Sergio Mattarella said the incident was "a horrendous crime, whoever committed it".

He said "when you kill children you are below the level of a human being".

Mattarella said "the culprits must be found and severely punished".

Lower House Speaker Laura Boldrini tweeted "three sisters burned alive in the camper in which they lived. An aberrant act, full of hate and violence." Pope Francis sent a "message of comfort" to the family.

It was taken to the Halilovic family by Papal Almoner Msgr Konrad Krajewski who went there to "bring a greeting and concrete aid to the parents and eight children", the Vatican press office said.


LECCE - Italy is undergoing a migrant invasion funded by the European Union, anti-immigrant and anti-euro Northern League leader Matteo Salvini said Monday.



"You can't any longer speak about immigration but about an invasion organised, funded and planned by Brussels with the complicity of Rome, he said.



Salvini said the ruling Democratic Party (PD) as "an accomplice to this invasion along with the (leftwing) cooperatives and the pseudo-aid associations".



"The calls from Brussels and Strasbourg for respecting the migrant programme are ridiculous.



"I'm waiting fo elections so that Italy can defend its borders again. Give me the interior ministry for three months and you'll see what order and cleanliness I bring back from north to south all over Italy.



"I won't wait for Strasbourg, nor Brussels or Merkel".
Serbian president-elect Vucic takes leave of government Gifts books to ministers, Dacic to serve as interim premier

(ANSAmed) - Belgrade, May 29 - Serbian Premier and President-elect Aleksandar Vucic took leave of his executive on Monday by presenting each of his ministers with a book chosen from his personal library.



It was his last cabinet meeting before he is sworn in as president on May 31.



Vucic replaces Tomislav Nikolic, who is to head up a special council for collaboration with Russia and China.



On Tuesday the outgoing premier, who won the April 2 presidential elections on the first round, is expected to give parliament an evaluation of his three years of government, during which his stated priority has been to maintain peace and stability in the Balkan region. He said he has not yet decided who he will appoint to take his place as premier. An announcement is expected on June 12.



Until then the government will be led provisionally by foreign minister and first deputy premier Ivica Dacic.



Vucic also said that the leaders of all the countries in the region, Austria and Greece are due to attend his formal installation as president on June 23. (ANSAmed)
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The multi-million Dollar five-year deal, with the option of a five year extension, includes component support and the leasing of the Main Base Kit, for the airlines fleet of 20 new A320s. Five aircraft are due to be delivered in the first year, with the contract to take effect in June.

Nick Ward, director of sales at AJW China, said: Winning this highly competitive contract is a testament to AJWs capabilities from one of the regions growing airlines.



AJW has the knowledge and experience to support JC (Cambodia) International Airlines as it continues to expand its operations and we are looking forward to working in partnership with them in the years ahead.



Li He, Director of Engineering and Maintenance Department at JC (Cambodia) International Airlines, said: We are pleased to have selected AJW as our partner. AJW has the technical expertise and customer service track record we are seeking for the component support requirements of our new fleet.
The initiative aims to improve traveller experience at the airlines Dubai International airport hub, focussing on innovative and practical solutions that will be based on the 6s - Smart, Speed, Saving, Service, Safety, Security. The first two meetings, held at Emirates Headquarters, have successfully concluded, where representatives from each partner organisation reviewed field data on travellers key touch points and evaluated a suite of recommendations for implementation in the short and medium term. Matters discussed ranged from simplifying passenger check-in processes, simplifying baggage drop-off and tracking, to using advanced technology throughout the passenger journey within the terminal.

Using a collaborative and action-oriented approach, the team comprising of senior representatives from each partner organisation will now conduct a series of workshops to agree priorities and a working plan, geared towards incremental implementation in four-week sprints. In parallel, the working group will also look at goal posts further into the future, in line with Dubais 10X programme to generate innovations that will put the city 10 years ahead of other global cities.

Adel Al Redha, Emirates executive vice president and chief operations officer said: Last year, over 57 million passengers flew on Emirates, to Dubai or through Dubai, and that number continues to grow. To us, the hub experience and sustaining our growth is very important. Making use of technology and bringing new initiatives to life is key to building our future and staying ahead of competition. By working together we have a great opportunity to fast-track these initiatives and overcome challenges to improve the Emirates customer journey at our Dubai hub. We are fortunate and thankful to have very supportive partners who are fully engaged with us on this mission, and share the same vision to ensure the Dubai experience remains leading-edge and world-class. We look forward to working closely with them on the agreed initiatives.

Major General Mohammed Ahmed Almarri, Dubai General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) said: Our team at the airport is often the first experience that a visitor would have with brand Dubai. Being on the customer frontline, we actively seek ways to improve on our operations and service delivery. For us, the potential impact on customers, and speed of implementation and the warm welcome are our key considerations when we evaluate new solutions for implementation.
Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates airline, received the awards at the ceremony held in London.

Hosted at the Savoy hotel, this years ceremony was attended by key members of the travel industry, well-known British personalities and notable special guest, Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, accompanied by her daughters Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
As a part of the Etihad Aviation Group and the airline MRO of Etihad Airways, Etihad Airways Engineering continues to expand a formidable capability to design, certify, install and maintain the finest cabins in the sky for Etihad Airways, its equity partners and third-party customers around the world.

Strategically located in one of the most prominent hubs of VIP operators, Etihad Airways Engineering has developed a strong capability to offer VIP operators value-added heavy maintenance services along with full cabin removal, refurbishment and reinstallation.

The company is currently carrying out heavy maintenance on a VIP Airbus A320 aircraft project in collaboration with French cabin interior specialist Aircraft Interior Products (AIP), a Finaero company, and its newly Dubai based entity AIP-Greenline, Aviation Interiors. More VIP aircraft projects are on the cards in the coming months.



Jeff Wilkinson, chief executive officer, Etihad Airways Engineering, said: We will leverage our long-standing experience in maintenance, repair and overhaul of aircraft from the Airbus A300 to the latest platforms like the A380 and the Boeing 787, along with our expertise and exponentially growing cabin capability to perform heavy checks for Airbus Corporate Jets and Boeing Business Jets.



We already maintain the entire fleet of Etihad Airways, an airline known for the highest cabin standards. Now, our industry leading aircraft maintenance and engineering solutions, which we offer to commercial, cargo, charter, low-cost and leisure operators, are being extended to corporate and VIP operators. Our intent is not to become a VIP completion centre, but the one-stop destination for heavy checks for VIP aircraft in the region and beyond, he added.
In the kick-off workshop, Al Suwaidi has stated, we would like our manpower to bring their expertise and innovative ideas to find ways for us to tackle issues and come up with creative solutions for the aviation industry to increase our quality of services, productivity and excellence.

Laila Hareb Al Muhairi, assistant director strategy and international affairs said, The first workshop, which includes employees from all levels and department across the organisation, will tackle the criterions of the SKGEP awards that are applicable for the GCAA in order to find ways to be more efficient and productive in the aviation sector. It is also to identify improvement areas and opportunities, which helps the GCAA to achieve its ambitious objectives and strategy.

During such sessions and workshops, topics are discussed within work teams. The workshops offer a new experience and practical methodology while providing ample activities, which allow participants to think according to a solution-based perspective through conducting intensive discussions and open dialogues.
Jazeera Airways will provide a frequency of two weekly flights scheduled on Mondays and Fridays with departure at 9:00 am and arrival at 12:10 pm and 13:10 pm with arrival at 14:25 pm respectively.

We are determined to break new grounds staying true to our brand essence of creating a seamless link to inspiration for our customers, who are always on the hunt for new adventures. The flight to Baku, en route to becoming a leading tourist destination, is only the beginning to setting course to new lands beyond the Middle East, as we continue to identify trends brought forth by our customers, said Rohit Ramachandran, CEO of Jazeera Airways.

As a progressive service-oriented airline that anticipates customer needs, we remain committed to enriching lives by opening up new horizons and trade routes and building bridges for individuals and businesses. Travel is a unifying force that brings countries and different cultures together and Jazeera Airways, as a proud Kuwaiti airline with global ambitions, is leading the way to bolstering cultural exchange and trade relations with countries that share our values, added Ramachandran.
The airline was awarded the Best Airline Innovation of the Year category of the ULTRAS (Ultimate Luxury Travel Related Awards) for the launch of Qsuite, which was first revealed by Qatar Airways at ITB Berlin in March.

Morena Bronzetti, Qatar Airways Country Manager UK & Ireland, said: Qatar Airways is delighted to accept this highly reputed award as recognition of our ongoing commitment to our passengers through a premium product and service philosophy.

The UK will be the first of all our markets in the world to feature the Qsuite, further cementing our dedication to the region and showcasing our commitment to providing UK passengers the best product and service. We are constantly evolving our on-board experience to ensure customers flying to and from the UK enjoy the best product and travel in unrivalled comfort.

Morena Bronzetti, received the award on behalf of Qatar Airways from HRH Princess Beatrice of York at the annual ULTRAS dinner and reception Monday evening (22nd May) at The Savoy hotel in London. The event was also attended by Sarah, Duchess of York, HRH Princess Eugenie of York, and Mark Tindall, along with senior representatives from world-leading airlines, hotels, tour operators and cruise companies.

The Qsuite features the industrys first-ever double bed available in Business Class, with privacy panels that stow away, allowing passengers in adjoining seats to create their own private room. Adjustable panels and movable TV monitors on the centre four seats allows colleagues, friends or families travelling together to transform their space into a private suite, allowing them to work, dine and socialise together. These new features provide the ultimate customisable travel experience that enables passengers to create an environment that suits their own unique needs.

The new Qsuite will be installed on Qatar Airways current fleet from next month, at an estimated rate of one aircraft a month. It comes as the airline celebrates its 20th year of operations marking two decades of growth, industry leadership and innovation.


It is the first Russian-made narrowbody commercial passenger aircraft designed in the post-Soviet era.

Manufacturer Irkut confirmed details of yesterdays first flight, saying the aircraft was flown for 30min at an altitude of 1,000m and speed of 300km/h (162kt).

In a statement Irkit said the mission included checking of in-flight stability and controllability, as well as monitoring the performance of the Pratt & Whitney PW1400G engines.

"During the flight, a simulated landing approach was performed, followed by a flight over the runway, climbing and turning," said Irkut. "This technique is typical for the maiden flight of new types of aircraft."

Test pilot Oleg Kononenko commanded the flight, while Roman Taskayev served as co-pilot.

The programme was launched in 2007, The MC-21-300 prototype was rolled out almost a year ago, in early June 2016. The MC-21-300 variant has maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 79,250 kg (174,713 lb.) and can carry up to 211 passengers for a distance of up to 6,000 km (3,240 nm).

MC-21 certification in Russia is now planned for 2018 with the European Aviation Safety Agency approval expected to be obtained a year later.

The MC-21 backlog stands at 175 firm orders, mostly from government-owned Russian leasing companies, and more than 100 commitments. Aeroflot, Russias largest carrier, is expected to become the launch operator with first airframes to be delivered in 2019.


YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Vice-Speaker of the Parliament Eduard Sharmazanov on May 29 held a meeting with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Armenia Igor Nazaruk, press service of the Parliament told Armenpress.

During the meeting issues related to the development of inter-parliamentary ties, the cooperation at various international platforms, political and economic relations between the two states were discussed.

Mr. Sharmazanov attached importance to joint work and assisting each other at international platforms, including at the CSTO PA, OSCE PA. The Vice-Speaker highlighted that the Armenian parliamentary delegation in CSTO responsibility zone supports exclusively the peaceful settlement of conflicts, in particular, concerning the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. In this context Sharmazanov expressed confidence that the parliamentarians of the CSTO member states must be committed to the CSTOs official stance on this issue.

If we want to solve the issue, we need to understand the reason, and the reason is that Azerbaijan doesnt recognize the exercise of Artsakh peoples right to self-determination. The people of Artsakh must fully exercise their right to self-determination for the peaceful settlement of the conflict, Sharmazanov said.

According to him, deepening the inter-parliamentary ties will enable to expand the development of economic relations between Armenia and Belarus, stating that in this sense the membership to the EAEU provides broader opportunities.

In his turn the Belarusian Ambassador congratulated the newly-elected Parliament on the parliamentary elections and assured that the cooperation between the parliaments of both states will continue to develop. Mr. Nazaruk also attached importance to the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict within the frames of the OSCE Minsk Group.

At the meeting agreement was reached to hold the session of inter-parliamentary cooperation commission between the parliaments of both countries in Minsk in summer.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Yerevan Police Department (YPD) received a bomb threat report on May 29.

Police were notified that there is a bomb in the capitals Hrazdan stadium.

YPD told ARMENPRESS the report was false.

An investigation has been launched into the incident, the YPD said.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenia will establish Trust Fund with NATO in the upcoming two months, Mher Israyelyan  Deputy Head of Defense Policy Department at the Ministry of Defense, told reporters on May 29, reports Armenpress.

It is expected to carry out two projects within the frames of the Fund. Under the first project, elimination of over 130 unusable armored vehicles is expected. They will be eliminated within the frames of NATO: 1.3 million Euro will be invested for that, Israyelyan said.

The second part deals with humanitarian demining and improving awareness methods for people in bordering communities.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in France to meet new French leader Emmanuel Macron. Macron, who in the past has been critical of Moscow, is hosting Putin at the Chateau de Versailles, just outside Paris, RT reports.

Macron invited Putin to participate in the inauguration of a major exhibition celebrating the 300th anniversary of Peter the Greats diplomatic visit to France in 1717.

I have respect for Russia, and I invite Vladimir Putin in the framework of a three hundred year diplomatic relationship, Macron said this weekend.

Macron has also acknowledged the importance of dialogue with Russia in resolving certain international problems, such as Syria and Ukraine, which he plans to discuss during his meeting with Putin.

Many international problems cannot be resolved without Russia, Macron said at a news conference after the two-day meeting of G7 leaders in Sicily, which wrapped up Saturday.

Putins visit will also afford an opportunity for the two leaders to discuss the state and the prospects of development of Russo-French relations in political, trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian spheres, the Kremlin said in a statement.

The presidents will discuss the state of political contacts, which do not satisfy the Russian side, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov added on Friday.

Answering questions from journalists, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the issue of fighting terrorism will be the main focus of Putin and Macrons meeting.

The subject of combatting terrorism will occupy a very important [place], it is an integral part of the negotiations, he added.
YEREVAN, 29 MAY, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 29 May, USD exchange rate up by 0.02 drams to 481.79 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 1.33 drams to 538.93 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.03 drams to 8.53 drams. GBP exchange rate down by 1.27 drams to 618.62 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price up by 126.28 drams to 19595.51 drams. Silver price up by 2.18 drams to 267.82 drams. Platinum price up by 171.00 drams to 14885.8 drams.
China sticks to its core competencies in growth area they understand deeply and implement them here.

Chinese investors in India are here to both share the knowledge about scaling up businesses and to understand Indias market in various verticals.

Mumbai: Chinese investors like Alibaba and Ten Cent have made inroads into the Indian startup space and have invested upwards of $3-4 billion in the new age IT sector firms alone.

Tej Kapoor of Fosun Kinzon Capital with multiple funds, said in the one and half years that Chinese firms have been here they have made three major investments in travel portal Ixigo, Make my Trip and Forsun, who with Washington-based Carlyle raised $130 million, has invested equity in Delhivery, the largest third-party supply chain services company.

However, the Chinese investors in India are here to both share the knowledge about scaling up businesses and to understand Indias market in various verticals.

Mr Kapoor, whose fund has invested upwards of $5 million said India is 10 years behind China in infrastructure, GDP etc, and the Chinese model of growth is getting established in India like in PayTM in which Ali Baba has invested.

China sticks to its core competencies in growth area they understand deeply and implement them here. So they have trading funds presently and the pure financial funds have yet to come, he says.

Talking about the Chinese interests Aloke Bajpai, co-founder, Ixigo, the fastest growing online travel app with more than 10 million monthly active users, said senior Chinese executives of Forsun flew down and we pitched through interpreters.

Sequoia was an earlier investor and Forsun moved in quickly. We are the first growth company they invested in. They are looking at space with a large market size and the online travel market size is $15 billion gross and projected to be $20 billion in three years. It is the largest market place model.

We learnt from them how to monetise the large data available on the behaviour of mobile users. The US and Europe are not mobile savvy as the Chinese, he said.

Shubh Bansal, co-founder, Truebil, Indias only curated, authentic and verified marketplace for pre-owned cars successfully concluded its follow-on Series A funding round with an investment of $3 million from Chinas leading Venture Capital Fund Shunwei Capital in January this year.

He said the Chinese investors are scouting for companies which are in the early stage of growth in India but with a potential to grow so that they can capture the market. There is a lot in common between the Indian and Chinese consumers as both are price conscious and conservative. India has been a battle ground for multinational companies since it is an open economy and China sees advantage through investments in Indian firms.

China which has the 17th largest in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into India, up from the 28th in 2014 and 35th in 2011, according to Indias official ranking of FDI inflows.

There has been a gradual shift from strategic to pure financial and returns-focused investments from Chinese firms.

Chinese entrepreneurs are ahead of their Indian counterparts and therefore Indian entrepreneurs have an opportunity to leverage their experiences in a big way.

Indian founders with big international dreams are banking on Chinese investors for both learning and growth.

For Chinese investors, Indian startups present a range of opportunities with a burgeoning startup culture, particularly since their own markets are saturated and their economy is experiencing slow growth.
China turned on the credit taps in late 2008 to shield from recession.

There are doubts about Beijings willingness to clean house given its heavy reliance on freewheeling credit to drive economic growth.

Beijing: When Wu Qi and her husband traded in their Mazda 3 for a more expensive Mercedes Benz sedan, they applied for a 200,000 yuan ($29,000) bank loan to help pay for it. They got the money within minutes.

Quick and easy access to credit has encouraged many young Chinese to go into the red to buy cars and apartments they could not otherwise afford.

They are the faces of Chinas growing addiction to debt, which along with government and corporate borrowing, has raised fears of a looming crisis and prompted Moodys to slash the countrys credit score last week for the first time in nearly three decades.

It is very easy  the car company encourages you to borrow the money and enjoy the car, said Wu, 39, adding the couple is also paying off a one million yuan mortgage for a three-bedroom flat in Beijing.

Since Chinese leaders turned on the credit taps in late 2008 to shield the country from the global recession, household borrowing has soared and pushed Chinas overall debt liabilities above 260 per cent of GDP  compared with about 140 per cent before the crisis hit.

But slowing growth has raised concerns that years of risky lending could lead to a disaster worse than the US sub-prime collapse.

While such debt levels are not uncommon in highly rated countries, they tend to be seen in countries which have much higher per capita incomes, deeper financial markets and stronger institutions than Chinas, Moodys said.

Household debt has become the major driver of Chinas credit growth, expanding by an average of 19 percent a year since 2011, said Chen Long, an economist at Gavekal Dragonomics.

If it continues to grow at this pace, household debt would reach roughly 66 trillion yuan by 2020  more than double the current level  and potentially 70 percent of GDP versus 30 percent back in 2013.

Other countries have usually taken decades to complete such an increase, said Chen.

For bank lending to households to rise very rapidly usually means lending standards are loosened so credit is extended to both more and less creditworthy consumers.

Chinese have long favoured putting their savings into bricks and mortar due to the low bank deposit rates on offer, volatility in the stock market and strict rules to invest money abroad. But as apartment prices have soared  often doubling within a few years, particularly in major cities  fears of a real estate bubble have mounted.
This assertion comes amid Congresss criticism of the Narendra Modi government over creating lesser jobs.

Contrary to some assertions that Indias growth has been jobless, the Employment Unemployment surveys of the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) have consistently reported low and stable rates of unemployment over more than three decades.

New Delhi: Severe underemployment and not unemployment is a more serious problem as a job that needs to be done by one person is often performed by two or more workers, says the governments policy think tank Niti Aayog.

This assertion comes amid Congresss criticism of the Narendra Modi government over creating lesser jobs.

In its draft three-year action agenda report for 2017-18 to 2019-20, the Niti Aayog stressed on the need for creation of high-productivity and high-wage jobs. Indeed, unemployment is the lesser of India's problems. The more serious problem, instead, is severe underemployment. A job that one worker can perform is often performed by two or more workers, it said.

The draft report was circulated among the Governing Council members (consisting of chief ministers of all states and others) of the Niti Aayog on April 23.

Contrary to some assertions that Indias growth has been jobless, the Employment Unemployment surveys of the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), which till date remain the most reliable sources of information on the countrys employment situation, have consistently reported low and stable rates of unemployment over more than three decades, it said.

Citing examples, the Niti Aayog said as per NSSO survey, in 2011-12, 49 per cent of the work force was employed in agriculture but the sector contributed only 17 per cent of Indias GDP at current prices.

Second in 2010-11, firms with less than 20 workers employed 72 per cent of Indias manufacturing workforce but contributed only 12 per cent of manufacturing output, it said.

According to 2006-07 survey of service firms, the 650 largest enterprises accounted for 38 per cent of services output but only employed two per cent of service workers. Put another way, the remaining service firms employed 98 per cent of the work force but produced only 62 per cent of the outcome, the report said.

Citing the example of Chinas ageing work force, the Niti Aayog stressed on attracting big firms working in that country to India which has availability of large workers at competitive wages.

The experience of countries that managed to transform rapidly, such as South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and China, shows that the manufacturing sector and the ability to compete in the vast global marketplace hold the key to the creation of well-paid jobs for low and semi-skilled workers, it said.
Assocham said, if there is a merit in shifting to the Jan-Dec fiscal, then, it should not be difficult for the states to come to a consensus.

Assocham said Niti Aayog should work towards building a consensus and then, let the entire country shift towards the calendar year becoming the financial year in one go.

New Delhi: Centre and states need to evolve a consensus on the lines of the GST for shifting to January-December financial year in one go instead of just some states choosing to do so, creating practical difficulties for trade and industry, Assocham said on Monday.

For pan-India businesses, the accounting standards and the financial year of all the government organisations should be uniform. We should not have a situation where the industry and trade has one set of books for Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and the other for Uttar Pradesh and yet another for the Central government, said the industry chamber.

It said if all the states and the Centre agree to a shift of the financial year from current April-March to Jan-Dec, Niti Aayog should work towards building a consensus and then, let the entire country shift towards the calendar year becoming the financial year in one go.

This is even more important in the wake of roll out of the Goods and Services Tax from July 1, which will unite the entire country into a single market. The businesses are all busy and working overtime to meet this deadline in terms of putting their IT infrastructure in place and in sync with the GSTN. At this point in time, if some select states choose to shift their fiscal year to a new system, it could be quite a task for the trade and industry; first to comply with the GST, then to align with the financial years of different states. Uniformity is the key, whatever is the financial year, that is critical, it said.

Assocham said, if there is a merit in shifting to the Jan-Dec fiscal, then, it should not be difficult for the states to come to a consensus. Although , states have their own Constitutional right to have their accounting methods, for the sake of ease of doing business and ease of convenience to the common citizens, uniformity is essential. In any case, under the impending GST regime, there is a dual registration with the Centre and the states. Ideally, both must have a uniform financial year, it added.
An official of a top clerical body said although the group might trigger a culture clash in a conservative area.

Garut (Indonesia): With their heads covered with Islamic headscarves, the three members of the Indonesian band VoB (Voice of Baceprot or Noisy Voice) do not look like your typical heavy metal group.

Formed in 2014, the band of teenagers met at school in Indonesias most populous province of West Java, and use their music to combat the stereotype of Muslim women as submissive or voiceless.

Wearing a hijab, or Islamic head scarf, should not be a barrier to the groups pursuit of its dream of being heavy metal stars, said Firdda Kurnia, 16, who plays guitar and sings.

I think gender equality should be supported, because I feel I am still exploring my creativity, while at the same time, not diminishing my obligations as a Muslim woman, she added.

Invited to perform at a recent graduation ceremony at another school, the trio quickly had fans dancing and head-banging at the front of the stage.

I dont see anything wrong with it, said one fan who attended, Teti Putriwulandari Sari. Theres no law that bars hijab-wearing women from playing hardcore music.

This also relates to human rights. If a Muslim girl has a talent to play the drums or a guitar, should she not be allowed?

Besides covering classics by groups such as Metallica and Slipknot, the band perform their own songs on issues such as the state of education in Indonesia.

Muslims make up nearly 90 per cent of a population of 250 million, the vast majority practising a moderate form of Islam, although there are some conservative strongholds.

Not everyone in the town of Garut, where the band was formed, and which is home to several Islamic schools, feels the community is ready for them, or that their music is appropriate for performance by young Muslim women. It is unusual to see a group of hijab-wearing girls playing metal music or even women shouting, said Muhammad Sholeh, a teacher at the towns Cipari Islamic boarding school, adding that religious pop music was popular with many young Muslims.

But were talking about metal here, which is loud.
The action came a day after party vice president Rahul Gandhi condemned the public slaughter of the animal.

Thiruvananthapuram: Three Youth Congress activists were suspended on Sunday in connection with the public butchering of a calf in Kannur district as part of a protest

against the Centre's ban on sale of cattle for slaughter.

YC Kannur district president Rijil Makkutty and activists Joshi Kandathil and Sharafuddin were suspended both from the YC and the Congress, party sources here said.

The action came a day after party vice president Rahul Gandhi condemned the public slaughter of the animal.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president M M Hassan said here that the action had dented the Youth Congress' protest and the activists were suspended from the party.

"The public slaughter of the calf by the YC activists is against the Congress' culture. The party condemns the incident," Hassan told reporters here.

Triggering a widespread row, the Youth Congress workers had allegedly butchered the 18-month-old animal in full public view in an open vehicle two days ago and raised slogans against the Centre's decision to ban sale of cattle for slaughter.

The meat was later distributed free of cost to onlookers.

Cutting across party barriers, a number of political leaders and cultural activists had come out against the gory protest.

On the basis of a complaint from a Yuva Morcha worker, the police registered a case against the YC activists under Section 120 A of the Kerala Police Act.

The offence deals with slaughter of any animal in a way that causes annoyance or inconvenience to the public and is punishable with imprisonment up to one year or a fine of up to Rs 5,000 or both.

Hassan also demanded that the government convene a special Assembly session and formulate a new legislation to overcome the Union government's notification.

Congress workers would stage a protest march before the Raj Bhavan here on June 1, demanding withdrawal of the Centre's notification, he said.

The KPCC president also alleged that the Centre was trying to snatch away the fundamental rights of the people to eat food of their choice through its latest decision.
Singh has to furnish Rs. 1 lakh personal bond and surety of same amount and he cannot leave the country without the court's permission.

New Delhi: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh were on Monday granted bail by a special court here in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case.

Special Judge Virender Kumar Goyal granted the relief to all the accused on a personal bond of Rs one lakh each and one surety of the like amount.

The court, however, asked them not to leave the country without its prior permission.

Earlier in the day, the CBI had opposed the bail plea of the Chief Minister saying they may influence the witnesses and the ongoing probe in a disproportionate assets case against them.

The public prosecutor said Singh was the "King of the state" and if granted bail, no one will dare to come forward to depose before the court.

In their bail plea, Virbhadra Singh, who has not been arrested so far, and the other accused submitted that the investigation was complete as the CBI has already filed the charge sheet.

But the CBI said the investigation in the case was still on and granting of bail might hamper it.

The 82-year-old politician had also cited several medical reports, saying he was suffering from serious ailments.

The accused persons also claimed that they will be able to look after their case in a better manner if they are out on bail.

Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh on May 22 appeared as accused in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case and sought bail.

The CBI has charge sheeted Virbhadra Singh, his wife, Universal Apple Associate owner Chunni Lal Chauhan, stamp paper vendor Joginder Singh Ghalta, Managing Director of Tarani Infrastructure Vakamulla Chandrasekhar and co-accused Lawan Kumar Roach, Prem Raj and Ram Prakash Bhatia for the alleged offences including criminal conspiracy, forgery and corruption.

The charge sheet also names as accused LIC agent Anand Chauhan, who was arrested in the case and is currently in judicial custody.

The court had on May 8 summoned them after taking cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the CBI.

The CBI charge sheet, running into over 500 pages having the statements of around 225 witnesses and containing 442 documents, has claimed that Singh had amassed assets worth around Rs 10 crore which were disproportionate to his total income during his tenure as a Union minister.

Chauhan was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on July 9 last year in a separate money laundering case related to the DA case.

The matter was transferred by the Supreme Court to the Delhi High Court, which on April 6, 2016 had asked the CBI not to arrest Singh and directed him to join the probe.

On November 5 last year, the apex court had transferred Singh's plea from the Himachal Pradesh High Court to the Delhi High Court, saying it was not expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, but "simply" transferring the petition "in interest of justice and to save the institution (judiciary) from any embarrassment".
Sources said, the separatist leaders were summoned on Monday in the national capital over the same.

Earlier this month, the NIA had questioned them in the national capital for four consecutive days. (Representational Image)

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has found strong evidence against Kashmiri separatists Farooq Ahmad Dar, Javed Ahmad Baba and Nayeem Khan, who have been alleged to have received funds from Pakistan-based terrorist groups to create tensions in the valley.

Sources said, the separatist leaders were summoned on Monday in the national capital over the same.

Earlier this month, the NIA had questioned them in the national capital for four consecutive days.

The NIA went to Srinagar to probe into the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir.

The agency continued questioning the separatist leaders regarding their involvement in raising, collecting and transferring funds through Hawala and other channels for terror funding in Kashmir.

The agency has collected details of 13 accused who have been chargesheeted so far in the cases in the Valley in the recent past, pertaining to the damage caused to schools and public property as part of the larger conspiracy to perpetuate violence and chaos in Kashmir.

The development came after the Hurriyat Conference suspended Nayeem Khan from the organisation after he allegedly confessed to receiving money from Pakistan and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) for Kashmir unrest.

Khan was allegedly heard admitting in a TV sting operation that he had received money from Pakistan to create unrest in the Valley.

He, however, claimed that the sting operation was fake and doctored.

After the video surfaced, the NIA registered a preliminary probe against Khan, Tehreek-e- Hurriyat leader Gazi Javed Baba and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (R) chairman Farooq Ahmed Dar.
Placed under house arrest, separatist leaders say forces given free hand to kill innocent Kashmiris.

Srinagar: The security forces in riot gear are enforcing a lockdown in summer capital Srinagar and other major towns of Kashmir Valley as part of tough measures taken by the authorities to contain widespread protests and violence triggered by the killing of Hizbul-Mujahideen commander Subzar Ahmed Bhat in an encounter in Tral area of southern Pulwama district on Saturday.

Elsewhere in the Muslim-majority Valley, life has been brought to a standstill due to a two-day strike from Sunday called by an alliance of key separatist leaders-Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik. It has also asked the people to march on Tral on Tuesday to show solidarity with the families of Bhat and his accomplice Faizan Muzaffar, who was also killed during the 16-hour-long gun battle in Soimoh village of Tral.

While most of the separatist leaders and prominent activists have been placed under house arrest, Malik was on Sunday picked up from his Maisuma residence here and taken to Srinagars central prison. While being arrested, he told reporters, We are not even allowed to mourn killings of martyrs. The Indian (security) forces have been given free hand to kill innocent Kashmiris.

Malik had on Saturday relocated to Tral where he, while addressing the mourners, paid homage to slain militants.

The 30-year-old Bhat had succeeded Burhan Wani, the popular Internet-savvy commander of Kashmirs frontline indigenous militant outfit, whose killing by security forces on July 8 last year had pushed the Kashmir Valley into worst turmoil in decades. In the five-month long turbulence more than eighty civilians and two policemen had died and thousands injured, mainly in security forces firings and other actions, besides leaving behind a trail of destruction of infrastructure. Also, over 4,000 security personnel were injured in stone-pelting incidents and mob violence.

On Sunday, thousands of people attended the funeral of Bhat near his native village Rathsuna in Tral, 36-km south of here, despite security restrictions. The people from dozens of neighbouring villages defied restrictions to relocate to Tral, reports said, adding that in view of the swelling crowds Namaz-e-Jinaza or funeral prayer was held seven times. Bhat was laid to rest at a local martyrs cemetery amid chanting of pro-aazadi and pro-Islam slogans, the witnesses said.

Earlier on Saturday, at least, one person was killed and scores others were injured in clashes with security forces as many parts of the Valley erupted following Bhats killing.

In view of heightened tensions and widespread disturbances, the authorities immediately imposed curfew or curfew-like restrictions in seven police stations areas of Srinagar and other major towns. Also mobile telephony on both pre-paid and post-paid phones and outgoing call facility on pre-paid mobile phones have been suspended to restrain the spread of rumours and use of social media to provoke violence.

The suspension of the Internet came a day after the state government lifted a month-long ban on atleast 22 social networking websites.

Bhat along with three other militants was trapped in two residential houses when the security forces launched an operation on Friday evening after a patrol party of the Armys 42 Rashtriya Rifles came under fire at Hurdimir outside Soimoh village of Tral. While Bhat and Faizan, a 15-year-old local youth who had joined the Hizb ranks recently, were killed in the encounter during which two residential houses were torched or blown up by the security forces, the two other militants fled the village after they succeeded in breaking the security dragnet, the locals said.

Spontaneous clashes erupted in several parts of the Valley after the news of Bhats killing broke. In Tral itself, one person identified as Moulvi Aaqib was killed and 19 others were injured in security forces firing on violent protesters near the encounter site. The police, however, said that the slain civilian was caught in crossfire between militants and security forces. The protests later spread to various parts of the Valley, including summer capital Srinagar, leaving scores injured.

The police on Sunday said that six incidents of stone pelting were reported from Pulwama, Kulgam, Shopian and Sopore till the afternoon whereas the situation elsewhere in the Valley remained peaceful and under control. It also said, In order to create disturbances, miscreants at these places assembled on roads and pelted stones on police and security forces deployment and also on the vehicular traffic.

It added that in Pulwama, a group of miscreants pelted stones also on 182 CRPF camp at Tahab. The police and security forces used maximum restraint while dealing with the situation at these places and miscreants were chased away.
Ayodhya is also the focal point of the ministrys much-publicised Ramayana Circuit.

New Delhi: In a tacit move to boost the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, the Centre has put Ayodhya on Indias tourism map. With the tourism ministry putting it on the list of cities for promoting tourism, plush hotels, a high-tech railway station and a state-of-the-art campus will come up to woo tourists. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad, flag-bearer of the mandir movement of the early 1990s, has been raising the pitch for early construction of the mandir at the disputed site ever since the Narendra Modi government came to power at the Centre in May 2014. It has urged the government to pass a law in Parliament at the earliest. It was the Ram Janmabhoomi movement that led to the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, that is credited for bringing the BJP to the national centrestage.

After the BJP formed its government in Uttar Pradesh under chief minister Yogi Adityanath, the state has been inundated with sops from the Centre, including clearance of the long-delayed plot for the `225-crore Ramayana museum. Ayodhya is also the focal point of the ministrys much-publicised Ramayana Circuit.

We want to build a tourist campus in these cities. A tourist should want to stay there and not make it a day trip. The idea is to promote local trade and industry, a senior ministry official told PTI. The other cities on the list are Gaya, Mathura, Varanasi, Sarnath, Gorakhpur, Agra, Amritsar, Kanyakumari and Guwahati.

These places will all get a five-star hotel, an airport if needed, a railway station with wi-fi and other facilities and a smooth network of roads and communication lines that will lure a tourist to spend a night or two there.

The idea is to build a whole new experience around the present site. For example, if a tourist goes to Agra, he shouldnt come back to Delhi at the end of the day, the official said.

The cities, ministry sources said, were chosen because these are existing tourist areas. The effort will now be to develop the regions around the tourist site to increase footfalls. We are going to develop tourist spots in and around the city to keep tourists engaged. This plan is to be followed in each city, the official added.

The ministry formed a panel of senior officials to draw up blueprints for each city along with cost estimates.
Dalits are equally upset with the BJP, and believe the Yogi Adityanath government is soft on the Thakurs.

Lucknow: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh is now walking on a double-edged sword.

The casteist violence in Saharanpur has led to a deep divide between Thakurs and dalits in western part of the state and the party is now placed in the proverbial Catch 22 situation since both the communities had voted for the saffron party in the recent Assembly elections.

Thakurs are in an angry mood over recent developments. The maximum numbers of our boys  five from one of my relatives family members  are in jail, and yet everyone seems to be blaming the Thakurs. Are we wrong simply because we belong to an upper caste? We voted in full measure for the BJP but we are not even getting justice, said Ravindra Pundhir, a local businessman over phone. Five people from the house of his relative Mangeram Pundhir are in jail.

The local BJP leaders are not doing anything about this injustice and the senior leaders are maintaining a safe distance. Apparently, the BJP does not wish to lose out on the dalit votes, and is trying to keep them (dalits) in good humour but this attitude is unacceptable, said Raj Keshwar, a young graduate.

Dalits are equally upset with the BJP, and believe the Yogi Adityanath government is soft on the Thakurs.

The dalits voted in large numbers for the BJP but the incidents in Saharanpur have forced us to consider our options again. My own house was set on fire, and the police has arrested my brother and uncle  is this justice? asks one Prema.

Acutely aware of the fragility of the situation in Saharanpur and also the rippling effect it could have across the state, the BJP has restricted themselves to blaming the Opposition parties for the worsening situation. It has not done enough to directly address the reasons that led to recurrent clashes.

It is a very sensitive situation. The CM belongs to the Thakur community and the local people want Union home minister Rajnath Singh to visit them. The party is avoiding this as it would only intensify polarisation, a BJP functionary said, requesting anonymity.

The BJP had started wooing Dalits a year before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and as a result, the party won 71 seats, while the BSP could not win even a single seat. The BJPs pro-Dalit policies paid rich dividends in 2017 as well and the party got an overwhelming majority in the state assembly elections. Any disturbance in its Dalit vote base could spell trouble for the party in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

We are doing tight rope walking at the moment because we cannot afford to face any depletion in our vote base at this time. We hope to resolve the issues amicably and make sure that the opposition is not allowed to complicate matters, the functionary said.
After the discussion, students served beef, which was brought from outside, as a token of protest.

Chennai: Amid a nationwide debate over the Central government rule that bans the sale of cows for slaughter at animal markets, a section of students from IIT-Madras on Sunday held a beef festival on the campus to protest the ban.

The spontaneous protest on campus saw around 70-80 students gather to discuss the notification. After the discussion, students served beef, which was brought from outside, as a token of protest.

Stating that the beef festival was not a planned one, final year student Abhinav Surya said, The progressive students of IIT-Madras participated in the event to condemn the recent legislation which bans cattle for slaughter in markets.

The government is interfering in the personal food habits of the people. This is a clear move by the central government to further its communal agenda, he added.

Apart from the right to consume food, there is economy and production involved in it. Its a directive against the people who rear cattle, trade in cattle and people involved in the leather industry. Tamil Nadu farmers are protesting for drought relief and many farmers committing suicide due to crop failure. The government is unwilling and unable to support the farmers, he said.

This move is anti-farmer, anti-dalit and anti-Muslim, he added.

Though the IIT-Madras administration does not take any view on the protest, other section of students belonging to the right wing student body criticised it.
The government has, however, thrown its lot behind Gen. Rawat over his assertion the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation.

Srinagar: Kashmirs chief Muslim cleric and separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Monday alleged that Indias military leadership and supporting government at the Centre are openly encouraging the security forces to commit genocide in the Valley. If you go by the statements of the Indian Army Chief and those from the ruling dispensation in New Delhi, you will know they are brazenly asking more than 700,000 troops deployed in Jammu and Kashmir to commit genocide of its Muslim population, the Mirwaiz alleged.

Referring to Army Chief General Bipin Rawats latest statement in which he had said that he wished the Kashmiri youth instead of hurling stones were firing weapons at the security forces and then I would have been happy...then I could do what I (want to do), the Mirwaiz said the remarks were aimed at inciting them to pick up arms and get killed. This anti-Kashmiri statement of the Army Chief of India is appalling, to say the least, he said.

The Mirwaiz said that the statements coming out of New Delhi show that the government has decided to openly admit that it has handed Kashmir and its people over to the Army.

It has granted them absolute authority but no accountability to deal with Kashmiris. The Army, with the sole objective to keep Kashmir with India, can go to any extent no matter even if all the Kashmiris have to be repressed, killed or humiliated for that, he alleged.

He said that Arun Jaitley as Defence Minister also defended the action of Major Leetul Gogoi in which he tied a Kashmiri shawl weaver to the bonnet of an Army jeep during the April 9 by-poll to the Srinagar Lok Sabha seat by saying that in war-like zones tackling the situation should be left to the Military as it requires military solutions which also makes it clear that the Army can commit worst human rights violations with impunity.

The level of arrogance of power and contempt exhibited towards the people of Kashmir, through such insensitive statements, no longer shocks the people of Kashmir as we have come to realize that we are no longer considered human beings by the Indian state. Also New Delhi is only interested in a military solution to a political and human issue, he said.

I would like to ask the government in Delhi that if the dispute could not be resolved through a military solution over the last 70 years, when wars have been fought externally and severe repression unleashed internally upon Kashmiris in which lakhs of Kashmiris and thousands of Indians and Pakistanis have perished and continue to do so, as a means of dispute resolution ,how can it produce a different result now, when the next generation of Kashmiris raised under occupation is all the more determined to achieve their fundamental right to exercise their will?, the Mirwaiz asked.

Referring to reports that two persons killed by the Army in Uri sector of the Line of Control (LoC) last week and who, as per its claim, were members of Pakistan Armys Border Action Team (BAT) were actually very old persons possibly septuagenarian or octogenarian who could hardly be militants or soldiers, the Mirwaiz said it is the sad story of one-upmanship and tit-for-tat between India and Pakistan that is played out each day in Jammu and Kashmir and along the LoC and in which civilians get caught and suffer.

He asserted that maturity and goodwill demand that all accept the reality of the problem at hand which is essentially political and human in nature, and resolve it as such that is politically and in keeping with human values and principles. No amount of military might can solve the dispute.



Other separatist leaders and various Kashmiri political and social groups have also criticised the Army Chiefs I wish stone-pelters had guns in their hands remark.

On Monday, Kenneth Roth, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch alleged that the Indian Army chief has showcased criminal leadership by backing the use of Kashmiri civilian as a human shield. In a tweet, Roth wrote: Indian army chief shows criminal leadership, backing as innovative troops use of Kashmir man as a human shield.

The government has, however, thrown its lot behind Gen. Rawat over his assertion the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation. Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Monday took to Twitter to express the Centres backing on the issue. Totally agree with #IndianArmy chiefs statement that the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation, Naidu tweeted while quoting a news daily article.
Sources said the three separatists were asked to bring documents related to their financial transactions, including bank records and property.

Kashmiri separatist leaders Nayeem Khan appear before the NIA officials in a terror funding case, in New Delhi. (Photo: Pritam Bandyopadhyay)

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency on Monday questioned three Kashmiri separatist leaders in connection with a case it has registered regarding funding for terror operations in Kashmir Valley. NIA had summoned Farooq Ahmad Dar alias Bitta Karat, Javed Ahmed Baba alias Gazi and Nayeem Khan to its headquarters in the Capital for interrogation.

Sources said the three separatists were asked to bring documents related to their financial transactions, including bank records and property. In addition we had sought some more documents which are being examined though these details cannot be revealed at this stage as it would compromise with the ongoing probe, an investigating officer said.

This is the second round of questioning. Earlier, a joint team of NIA and intelligence agencies had questioned the three separatists for four days in connection with terror funding.

Initial investigations by NIA and intelligence agencies have revealed that Lashkar-e-Tayeeba founder Hafiz Saeed was pumping money into the Valley to fund violence, particularly after the killing of top Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in July last year.

Investigating sources said the three separatists were also questioned about their possible links with the Lashkar founder and whether they received money through hawala channels from subversive elements operating from Pakistan. Intelligence agencies suspect that money has also allegedly been routed to Kashmiri hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani as well chief of J&K National Front Nayeem Khan, who has been suspended from Hurriyat, in the past one year.

Farrokh Ahmad Dar alias Bitta Karate appear before the NIA officials in a terror funding case, in New Delhi. (Photo: Pritam Bandyopadhyay)

NIA had registered a case following a sting by a news channel in which some separatists were allegedly shown admitting having received money from terror groups in Pakistan through the hawala network.

Sources said the NIA is working hard to put together the money trail and the three separatists were questioned following some new information received by the investigating agency.

We want to be absolutely certain that we have strong evidence which would also be admissible in court before we proceed against top separatist leaders, including some members of the Hurriyat. So we are conducting a thorough investigation and questioning some other separatist leaders as of now to build a foolproof case, an official said.

Sources claimed that ever since intelligence agencies along with NIA launched an investigation into funds being pumped into the Valley for terror activities, the flow of money had shown a sharp decline.

The spate of bank robberies carried out over the last few days is also being attributed to this as terror groups in the Valley are said to be facing severe cash crunch. Earlier, the governments demonetisation move had also impacted terror activities in the Kashmir Valley.
Vasundhara Raje told this newspaper that by the end of next MJSA, 3,000 more conservation tanks will be constructed in the same number of villages.

Jaipur/Alwar: By the year-end, over 4,000 villages in Rajasthan will start water harvesting to meet its daily and agricultural requirement in the second phase of Makhyamantri Jal Swavalamban Abhiyan (MJSA). In its first phase of MJSA launched last year, about 3,600 villages will conserve rainwater.

Chief minister Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje told this newspaper that by the end of next MJSA, 3,000 more conservation tanks will be constructed in the same number of villages. The MJSA was started in 2016 to make villages self-sufficient in water through public participation. Ms Raje said the programme has been sourced through crowdfunding to make state villages self-water reliant, increase ground water levels and reduce water depletion. Through the MJSA, state government is able to increase availability of drinking water and increase irrigated and cultivated areas. The scheme also helped to increase crop production and change crop patterns, Ms Raje added. The state governments ambitious plan, which includes administration, individuals, corporates, social, religious and caste organisations is aimed at making 21,000 villages self sufficient in water in the next fours years. In first phase, 3, 529 villages were made self-sufficient. During first phase last year, 3,526 villages were under taken for construction of conservation tanks. In second phase this year, the construction of water conservation tanks is going on in 4,012 villages. In the third phase, 3,000 villages will be added by the next year. By 2020, water conservation tanks or structures will be constructed across 21,000 villages, the chief minister said.

The scheme received overwhelming response from the villagers, who claimed it has changed their day-to-day life. Twenty-two year old Sumit Sharma, a civil service aspirant and resident of Kokila Joga village in Alwar district, said that her family earning has increased from agriculture and he is now able to devote more time to prepare for his examination.

With availability of water, crop cycle has been doubled to two from one and lots of time is available which earlier lost in managing water from far away areas. Now I am able to devote more time to study which saved due to availability of water in village, added Mr Sharma.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had earlier termed the public slaughter as barbaric and unacceptable.

Members of SFI, DYFI shout slogans against the ban on sale of cows for slaughter at animal markets in Bengaluru on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Hours after party vice-president Rahul Gandhi condemned partys youth unit workers slaughtering a cow in Kerala, the Congress on Monday suspended three Youth Congress members for organising the event. Three Youth Congress workers  Kannur Youth Congress district president Rijil Makkutty and activists Joshi Kandathil and Sharafuddin  were suspended from the Youth Congress. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had earlier termed the public slaughter as barbaric and unacceptable.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said such an action by Congress workers was completely unacceptable and was alien to the civil society, our culture and founding principles.

Anybody who has done so will have no place in the party and thats why the workers have been already suspended by the Youth Congress, he added.

The Congress leader also accused the BJP of doublespeak. Mr Surjewala, asked whether the BJP would give a similar advice to BJP-ruled Goa and to its chief minister Manohar Parrikar, to Union minister Kiren Rijiju who has been gloating over similar incidents, or to other BJP-ruled states where such incidents are common.

We should rise above partisan politics and comprehensively condemn such incidents, he said.

Releasing pictures of the slaughterhouse in Goa, the Congress leader said why does the BJP government in the state runs a slaughterhouse?

Mr Surjewala also questioned the silence of the BJP leadership on the statement of Union minister Kiren Rijiju where he had said that he belongs to Arunachal Pradesh and he eats beef.

After the public slaughter, the Congress is on the back foot as it feels that the pictures of the slaughter will be used against it in the coming elections. Since Sunday night, the Congress is in damage control mode with Mr Gandhi tweeting against the slaughter in Kerala. Early Monday morning, the Congress also suspended the workers involved.

Now the Congress alleges that BJP is raking up the issue to divert attention to Dalit atrocities happening in Uttar Pradesh. With two assembly elections slated for the end of this year the Congress certainly wary of getting an anti Hindu tag.
One of the accused in the case is a 63-year-old man who used the wheelchair to dodge the customs authority.

The 3.5 kgs gold, which has been seized, is assessed to be worth Rs 92.87 lakh. Both the accused have been arrested, Garg said. (Representational Image)

New Delhi: Two men including a wheelchair-bound senior citizen have been arrested by the customs for allegedly trying to smuggle into the country gold valuing about Rs 93 lakh at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport here.

One of the accused in the case is a 63-year-old man who used the wheelchair to dodge the customs authority.

Acting on intelligence, the duo were intercepted after their arrival from Dubai on Saturday.

"Out of the two, the gold was recovered from one passenger who had concealed it in the specially designed pocket of his shorts worn under the trouser. He had crossed the green-channel on wheelchair," said Govind Garg, Deputy Commissioner of customs at the IGI airport.

He said the person did not require wheelchair but used it to avoid any suspicion.

Another person was assisting the senior citizen, also the main accused in the case, by carrying checked-in baggage and travelling in the same flight, the official said.

The 3.5 kgs gold, which has been seized, is assessed to be worth Rs 92.87 lakh. Both the accused have been arrested, Garg said.

"It is a unique case as rarely does the involvement of a senior citizen is noticed in gold smuggling. The accused senior citizen is a native of Puducherry," he said.
The HRD minister also congratulated all the candidates for their successful results.

New Delhi: Union HRD minister Prakash Javadekar on Sunday called and congratulated the four toppers soon after CBSE results for Class 12 were declared in the morning. He said that their aspirations are high and such diligent individuals are crucial to the countrys future.

I spoke to the four frontrunners, Raksha Gopal, Bhumi Sawant, Mannat Luthra and Aditya Jain. They expressed their passion to be an economist, a politician, an IAS officer and engineer respectively. It is good to see such palpable passion at this age, and such aspirants will surely add to the countrys growth, Mr Javadekar said.

The HRD minister also congratulated all the candidates for their successful results while lauding them for their hard work and determination to achieve their goal.

I would like to congratulate all the students who have emerged successfully. This is purely because of their hard work and dedication. Being such an important stage in ones educational career, it will be fruitful for the progress of the country as well, the Union HRD minister said.

Stressing on the importance of keeping the educational stride going, Mr Javadekar also pointed out that those who were unable to achieve desired results must work harder in their next attempt and must not give up midway.

Meanwhile, PM Narendra Modi also tweeted and congratulated his young friends and wished them the best in their future endeavours. Congratulations to all my young friends who have successfully passed the CBSE class XII exams & best wishes for future endeavours, he posted on Twitter.
The officials sent a pregnant woman as a decoy with over Rs 8,000 cash to trap the offenders.

The officials sent a pregnant woman as a decoy with over Rs 8,000 cash to trap the offenders.

New Delhi: A doctor and two others were caught performing sex determination tests at a diagnostic centre in South Delhi by a team from Delhis Pre Conception and Pre-Natal Diag-nostic Technique (PC-PNDT) cell on Saturday.

The government, with the help from officials in Haryanas Sonepat district, caught an MBBS sonologist, identified as Meenu Singh, and receptionist Santosh while conducting the ultrasound on a patient.

The officials in Delhi PC-PNDT received a tip-off on Friday about sex determination tests being performed at the family clinic in Jangpura, from their counterparts in Sonepat, following which a joint raid was conducted.

The officials sent a pregnant woman as a decoy with over Rs 8,000 cash to trap the offenders.

We had sent her with cash to be given to the tout. Normal ultrasound costs around Rs 800-1,000 but they collected Rs 8,800 from the patient for determining the sex of the foetus. When we raided the clinic, the cash was found both on the tout and the receptionist. Moreover, the receptionist was conducting the ultrasound after the doctor had done it once, which is against the rules as only a certified doctor is allowed to touch the ultrasound mac-hines, said Dr Shailaja Suri, a PC-PNDT official.

The owner of the clinic, radiologist Charu Kohli, is travelling abroad but has been booked by the police for the offence.

The ultrasound machine in the clinic has been sealed and the license of the clinic has been cancelled.

An FIR has been registered under the PC-PNDT Act against four persons. We have taken photographs and submitted an inspection report to the district magistrate, citing the violations committed by the clinic for further action, said the official.
The boy, whose family stays at Royal Palms, has received two minor stitches on his chest.

According to the police, the family has requested privacy and hence no names were disclosed.

Mumbai: Aarey Colony witnessed yet another case of human-wildlife conflict on Saturday evening when a leopard pounced on a four-year-old boy who was returning home after a walk with his father.

The leopard had dragged the child for a few feet when his father, Ashok Shah (name changed), started screaming in terror  which scared the wild cat away.

The boy, whose family stays at Royal Palms, has received two minor stitches on his chest.

According to the police, Shah was walking ahead of his son when the leopard got hold of the child and tried to drag him away. He started screaming then, and the animal bolted back to the forest, said a police officer.

According to experts, leopards do not usually attack human beings unless they mistake them for prey. Biologist and researcher Dr Vidya Athreya, who has studied leopards extensively, said, Leopards have better vision at night as compared to the daytime. When one is out for a walk in an area populated by the big cats, utmost care should be taken. However, leopards do not attack humans, and the animal in questions behaviour does not seem to be normal.

According to the police, the family has requested privacy and hence no names were disclosed. Senior police inspector Vijay Oulkar said the boy was rushed to a Malad-based hospital immediately after the incident.

People living in adivasi padas and Royal Palms aware the presence of leopards in their vicinity, and the forest department and NGO Mumbaikars for SGNP have been organising awareness programmes in order to prevent human-wildlife conflicts.

Jitendra Ramgaonkar, deputy chief conservator of forest (DCF) of the Thane forest (Territorial) said, The incident has happened at a distance of barely 20 metres away from the society premises. We have placed camera traps all around to trace the leopard. However, Royal Palms is private property and hence there are some restrictions in installing them.

Aarey had witnessed a similar incident earlier this month, when a three-year-old child playing in the Aarey hamlet of Khadapada fell prey to a leopard.
Mangru Verma, the taxi driver involved in the Eastern Freeway accident, was depressed.

Mumbai: The taxi driver, who was driving the Santro car which was involved in a tragic accident on the Eastern Freeway last November, killing six of the nine people travelling, has committed suicide. The Wadala police have now registered a case of suicide and will be investigating if it was a case of abetment of suicide

Mangru Verma, the deceased, who was one of the three survivors, was believed to be suffering from depression after he lost his family in the accident. Even though he did not leave behind any suicide note, it is believed he was unable to put the tragedy behind him due to his sense of guilt. He was unemployed and living alone since the accident, according to the police.

The deceased who hung himself, had a case registered against him under section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code for causing the accident as he was driving the car and was also chargesheeted. We recorded the statements of all the survivors and of the accused. The chargesheet had been submitted and the case was awaiting trial. We will inform the court about the suicide soon, said a source from Dongri police station.

According to sources from the Wadala police, Mangru (35) lost his wife - Anara (35) and two children  Asha and Rajkumar. His sister Rajshri, who was visting from Surat, also died along with her husband Harkesh and daughter Ragini. But her two sons  Vinay and Ravi, survived along with Verma.

An officer from the Wadala police station said neighbours discovered Vermas body on Friday night.

He stayed in the Deenbandhu chawl near Antop Hill and had been unemployed since the accident.

Mangru had been a taxi driver for 17-18 years before the accident, which occurred on November 5, 2016. He lost his only source of livelihood in the accident along with his family and sister. He was very upset and would remain locked in his room for days, according to the neighbours, said the officer. He had been ostracised by his family, who blamed him for the accident.

The body was discovered after neighbours alerted the policemen that the door had been locked since evening. We broke into the house and found him hanging from the ceiling fan. He left behind no suicide note, said the officer.
Sources also said that a driver, Surendra Rajan Kumar, who was driving the truck has been detained.

The electric pole that was found across the track near Kings Circle.

Mumbai: An accident was averted early on Monday when a motorman observed an electric pole that had fallen on the tracks near Kings Circle after being uprooted in an accident. According to sources, a truck had smashed into the electrical pole next to the track, causing it to fall over.

According to sources the train was travelling from Bandra to CST at 4.20 am on Monday, when the motorman S.H. Adke spotted the electric pole and informed the Railway Police Force (RPF).

Government Railway Police (GRP) personnel then picked up the pole. An official said, It was not a case of sabotage but negligence. But yes, one never knows what would have happened if the train would have gone over the rods.

Sources also said that a driver, Surendra Rajan Kumar, who was driving the truck has been detained.

The driver seemed to not have realised that this had happened, the spot is close to Eastern Freeway and seemed to be using it when the incident occurred.

Central Railway senior divisional security commissioner, Sachin Bhalode, confirmed the incident.
Right next door in India, the admin of a WhatsApp group was jailed for sharing an ugly and obscene morphed picture of PM Modi.

Crackdowns on social media are typically justified as being in the defence of the universally sacred unicorns known as national security, values and (in our case) ideological frontiers. (Photo: Pixabay)

In the 1970s, Deng Xiaoping opened China to the world, ending decades of isolation. As inevitable foreign influences flowed in, Deng famously responded to criticism by saying, If you open the window for fresh air, you have to expect some flies to blow in.

He may as well have been talking about social media because years later, China, along with a host of other states, has decided that it has had enough of the flies, fresh air be damned.

The Chinese approached this in typical megaproject style, instituting The Great Firewall of China, a massive combination of legislative and technological actions to regulate the internet. In effect, China didnt like the actual internet and decided to create its own. While this regularly and rightly draws the ire of rights campaigners, its a model that is looked at with envy by other states who can only dream of the resources required to put such a project into effect.

In its 2016 report, Freedom House states that internet freedoms have been steeply declining across the world over the last six years, a trend that is expected to continue. Currently, some 27 per cent of all internet users live in countries where people have been arrested for publishing, sharing, or merely liking content on Facebook. In 2016 alone, authorities in 38 countries made arrests based on social media posts.

States have also gone beyond blocking sites to blocking messaging services like WhatsApp and Telegram, and have extended their reach to target sites that people can use to initiate and sign digital petitions or call for protests. Power to the people may be a useful slogan, but its not something many states actually want, as the side-effects of such empowerment can be rather unpredictable. Also, bashing social media is fun to do and a convenient distraction from the real problems that plague the land.

Its a favourite pastime of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has labelled Twitter a scourge, blasted Facebook for being immoral and denounced YouTube as a devouring force, leading one to believe that Erdogan really doesnt like trolls, emotional status updates and funny cat videos.

Crackdowns on social media are typically justified as being in the defence of the universally sacred unicorns known as national security, values and (in our case) ideological frontiers.

But the beauty of ideological frontiers is that they are, by definition, invisible and can be drawn and redrawn at the whim of whoever happens to hold the ideological pencil in his hands at the time. The result is that rather innocuous activity can and has led to the prosecution and incarceration of netizens across the world. Take Turkish physician and civil servant Bilgin Ciftci, who was put on trial for posting memes comparing Mr Erdogan with Gollum from the Lord of the Rings. So surreal was this trial that Peter Jackson, the director of Lord of the Rings, offered a defence for Ciftci, saying the pictures were of Smeagol, who is a sweet character, and not his evil alter-ego Gollum.

Seeking expert advice, the court appointed two academics, two psychologists and an expert on cinema and television productions to assess the true nature of this fictional character. Ciftci was eventually given a suspended sentence of one year, in what was undeniably Middle Earths trial of the century.

He was lucky when compared to Amr Nohan, an Egyptian student who got sentenced to three years when he threatened national security by photoshopping Mickey Mouse ears on a picture of Egyptian president Sisi. Similarly, a Thai man was arrested for liking a morphed photo of the Thai king.

Right next door in India, the admin of a WhatsApp group was jailed for sharing an ugly and obscene morphed picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

So it shouldnt come as a surprise that Pakistan (always a latecomer) has joined in the grand crusade to muzzle social media, with none other than Chaudhry Nisar leading the charge. The spin is familiar, with the usual straw men being used to justify what is in fact an ill-concealed and ill-conceived attack on free speech and expression.

One wishes the powers that be would realise that muzzling voices does not translate into changing minds, or that social media has the inherent value of acting as a societal safety valve in a country where other avenues of expression are limited.

Instead, our State seems to be annoyed by the chirping of this canary in the coal mine and would prefer to not be warned when the level of toxicity is approaching fatal levels. Perhaps it would be instructive for our government to note that when the Turkish coup plotters took control of State media, it was social media that came to Mr Erdogans rescue, but why would they remember this, when the once-embattled Turkish President himself has forgotten?

By arrangement with the Dawn
The Chinese never liked the presence of foreigner in their midst.

Historically, the Hans of mainland China are known for clear thinking, intelligence, ingenuity, the art of war, the craft of diplomacy and their indifference to outsiders. They still do, specially when it comes to contemporary issues  like South Asian (read Indian). They suddenly become alert, yet inert (or unreactive). Is that a contradiction? Perhaps. Because what spurts is a rigid, inflexible, aggressive containment of India policy that results in Indias counter-rigid posture and thus the Beijing regimes inability to get a firm commitment on its grandiose dream project called Silk Route.

Also known by the fancy name of One Belt, One Road (OBOR), its meant to be the reincarnation of an exotic economic empire of the Hans of the Tang era (618-908 CE), passing through the sparsely populated, vast swathe of barren, deserted, remote land routes of the great Euro-Asian heartland. While as a student of history, one learns of the Silk Route going through both land and sea lanes, its also a fact that as two opposite civilisations, each stood unchangeably firm in itself, with no possibility of fruitful exchanges, interaction and socio-religious exchanges between India and China notwithstanding. Indeed, there once existed three lines of communication  across Central Asia, via Bamiyan and Bactria, via Kashgar across the Tarim Valley and via Kashmir, Gilgit and Yasin across the Pamirs. These routes became important after the 2nd century BCE, and till the end of 9th century CE, when Islam interposed an effective barrier, they were the most important highways of communication.

Strangely, today too, its once again Islam in the form of the terror-sponsoring Islamic Republic of Pakistan that is a stumbling block between two great ancient civilisations of Hwang Ho-Yangtze Kiang and Ganga-Godavari.

No doubt historically the Chinese hardly ever extended or expanded beyond the Kunlun Mountains and rarely controlled areas around the lofty mountains and desert terrain of Gobi, which again is surrounded by Altai, Yablonai, Stenovai, Altyn Tagh, Nan Shan chain of mountains, not to speak of extending their power across the Pamir, Karakoram or Himalayas. Thus, Xinjiang and Tibet, even in the best of times, did exist, but more in theory in the pages of Chinese atlases and maps than under the direct military rule of Chinese monarchs.

One thing remains constant: the Chinese psyche. China has always considered itself the centre of the globe  hence the name, since times immemorial, as Chung Kuo/Guo, or Middle Kingdom. China, in its own perception, is in the middle, with the world revolving around it, and with all countries on its periphery. If one goes by the pictographic script of Chinese alphabets or words, it shows two drawings: the first denoting a small quadrangle penetrated by a vertical line symbolising the centrality of China; and the second a bigger quadrangle, signifying the state boundary Kingdom/Kuo, with its sword sign, so essential for its very existence.

The second most important and constant feature of Chinese history is that foreigners are always regarded as inferior. The Chinese never liked the presence of foreigner in their midst. Hence, cross-border movements of people have usually been less than what could have been. The Chinese could go out with ease, but foreigners entry was always an anathema  a virtual no-no zone. It is this single characteristic of the Chinese that must be appreciated by all those who deal with Chinas rulers, or have through the ages.

Today, however, this has turned into a single-point obsession  to make Indias 1.25 billion-strong market join OBOR/CPEC/BRI. Whether this is good or bad is, of course, a matter of conflicting, contradictory and competing opinions, but one thing is clear. There is a tinge of desperation on Chinas part  or else how does one explain a scholar at Chinas top think tank offering unsolicited blow hot, blow cold advice to India? That Pakistani-dominated Kashmir is not Indias? The use of words is significant  Pakistan-dominated, and not, as is reality, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Avoiding the truth is deliberate. Obviously, if someone illegally occupies a part of J&K, it does not have Indias footprint. But does Pakistans illegal occupation imply that China could have a legal presence? Is he trying to suggest that Indias physical absence from PoK gives China the right to fill the vacuum?

Then comes more absurd logic: India says it will resolutely oppose the corridor as it is a matter of sovereignty. However, in the 1960s, the Chinese government began to build the Karakoram Highway linking Xinjiang with Karachi. The Indian government was not against (it) then. Look at this voluntary self-confession of guilt! This means China fully knew it was entering a territory that it should not have entered. Yet the Sino-Pakistan Karakoram Highway was conceived in 1959. The Chinese scholar missed the vital point: Sino-Indian relations till China attacked India in October 1962 was still guided by the Indian hallucination of Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai. Thus to suggest that the Indian government was not against the highway then has little meaning. Whether India was against the highway or not, China was definitely against India as it deliberately trampled on the sovereignty of what it then claimed was one of Chinas closest friends! In the words of B.N. Mullick, former Intelligence Bureau director, this was a part of the Chinese Betrayal. Thus, instead of pointing finger at India, Chinas erudite and wise scholars need to focus on the role of their own leaders  Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai  for brazenly stabbing Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai in the back.

Again, look on it this way. If I, P, C (does this sound like the Indian Penal Code?) are neighbours, and I and C are just like brothers, despite some irritants, but one morning C conspires with P, who (P) does not enjoy cordial ties with I, and clandestinely and maliciously gangs up to harm I. I, a gentleman par excellence, and taking Cs behaviour at face value to be true, being a trustworthy friend, either does not come to know the diabolical game being played by C and P behind Is back, or decides to feign ignorance out of sheer trust, faith and confidence in C. How then do the Chinese defend the indefensible? Sardar Vallabhbhai Patels November 1950 letter to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru comes to mind. Sardar Patel had seen through the Chinese perfidy and malevolence much before any of his wise Indian contemporaries could even imagine the looming disaster on the horizon. Now the wheel has turned full circle again as OBOR or BRI (that includes CPEC) is all set to harm Hindustan.
The failure, caused by a power supply problem, disrupted BA's flight operations worldwide.

British Airways cancelled all its flights from London's two biggest airports on Saturday after a global computer system failure caused confusion and chaos, with thousands of passengers queuing for hours and planes left stuck on runways.

The failure, caused by a power supply problem, disrupted BA's flight operations worldwide and also hit its call centres and website, said Alex Cruz, the chairman and chief executive of BA, part of Europe's largest airline group IAG.

"All of our check-in and operational systems have been affected and we have cancelled all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick for today," Cruz said in a video message on Twitter.

"We are extremely sorry for the huge inconvenience this is causing our customers and we understand how frustrating this must be, especially for families hoping to get away on holiday." He said the airline's IT teams were working "tirelessly" to fix the problem and there was no evidence of any cyber attack.

The problems, which passengers said had affected flights across Britain, came on a particularly busy weekend with a public holiday on Monday and many children starting their school half-term breaks. Terminals at Heathrow and Gatwick became jammed with angry passengers, with confused BA staff unable to help as they had no access to their computers.

"It's a complete nightmare. There's just hundreds and thousands of people accumulating in the departures bit," Roshni Burt, who was flying from Heathrow to Bahrain with her young son, told Reuters. She arrived at the airport at 0730 GMT, queued for hours at the check-in, where the baggage drop-off system stopped working, and then waited at the departure gate for two hours until passengers were told the flight was cancelled.

All the affected passengers were corralled through a single gate so they could go back through border checks and then re-book flights.

MASSIVE SCRUM

"We are now in a massive scrum trying to get to this gate. BA staff didn't know what's going on," Burt said. "Border control isnt going to be able to deal with all these people. I don't know what's going to happen."

BA is the latest airline to be hit by computer problems. Last month Germany's Lufthansa and Air France suffered a global system outage which prevented them from boarding passengers. In September last year BA apologized to passengers for check-in delays caused by operational glitches that delayed flights at Gatwick and Heathrow, in a repeat of a similar incident that affected London-area flights for the airline last July.

In August a power surge near U.S. airline Delta's Atlanta headquarters caused computers to crash and led to widespread delays across Delta's entire network. BA said it would try to get affected customers onto the next available flight although the re-booking process was being hindered by the system problems. Those unable to fly would get a full refund, Cruz said.

"We hope to be able to operate some long-haul inbound flights tonight, which will land in London tomorrow," he said. "We are extremely sorry for the inconvenience this is causing our customers during this busy holiday period."

Some passengers said they had boarded flights but were then left stuck on the runway. "Still on the tarmac at Leeds. #britishairways reckon Heathrow is so backed up we can't set off. No way we'll make our Vegas flight," one passenger David Raine wrote on Twitter.

Another, journalist Martyn Kent, wrote: "Sat on plane at Heathrow for hour and a half now. @British_Airways Captain describes IT problem as 'catastrophic'."

Heathrow, one of the world's busiest airports, said in a statement: "We are working closely with the airline to assist passengers who have been affected by the British Airways issue and have extra customer service colleagues in terminals to assist those passengers already at Heathrow,"

In February IAG reported its annual operating profit rose 8.6 per cent to 2.5 billion Euros and said its British Airways transatlantic business, based at Heathrow, had held up well compared with Europe's highly competitive budget market.
A US-led international coalition has been carrying out air strikes against the IS group in Iraq and Syria since 2014.

Washington: Civilian casualties are inevitable in the war against the Islamic State group but the United states is doing "everything humanly possible" to avoid them, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said in an interview aired Sunday.

A US-led international coalition has been carrying out air strikes against the IS group in Iraq and Syria since 2014, and nongovernmental organizations say the attacks are claiming ever more civilian lives.

Interviewed on CBS's "Face the Nation" program, Mattis said that "civilian casualties are a fact of life in this sort of situation."

But he quickly added that "we do everything humanly possible, consistent with military necessity, taking many chances to avoid civilian casualties -- at all costs."

Some NGOs have blamed the rising civilian death toll on a push by President Donald Trump's administration to accelerate the pace of combat in an effort to "annihilate" the jihadists.

But the Pentagon contests both the NGOs' death counts and the charge that a new sense of urgency under Trump is to blame.

"We have not changed the rules of engagement," Mattis said. "There is no relaxation of our intention to protect the innocent."

The coalition has officially acknowledged responsibility for more than 450 civilian deaths since its bombing campaign began in 2014, including 105 in the Iraqi city of Mosul on March 17.

However, Airwars -- a London-based collective of journalists and researchers that tracks civilian deaths in Iraq and Syria -- reports that coalition strikes have killed at least 3,681 people.

Although the Pentagon on Thursday acknowledged that an American bombing attack in Mosul on March 17 claimed at least 105 civilian lives, it blamed munitions stored by the jihadists in the houses targeted.

That, Mattis said Sunday, showed "once again the callous disregard that is characterized by every operation they have run."
Countries affected by that rule are Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco.

Washington: US Homeland Security John Kelly said on Sunday that he was considering banning laptop computers on international flights into and out of the country, amid signs of a real threat.

Mr Kelly made his remarks during the Memorial Day weekend, one of the busiest travel periods in the US, and at a time when the bombing at a concert in Manchester, England has raised concerns that further attacks, possibly involving explosives packed in electronic devices, might be planned.

There's a real threat, numerous threats against aviation, Mr Kelly told the Fox New Sunday programme, when asked about the likelihood that a wide-reaching ban on large electronics in airplane cabins could be imposed.The US homeland security chief said that terrorists are obsessed with the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly a US carrier, if it's full of mostly US folks.

A ban could disrupt flights between Europe and the US. Some 3,250 a week are expected this summer between EU countries and the US, according to aviation industry figures. If laptop ban that Mr Kelly discussed is put in place, it would greatly expand on a rule that he announced on March 21, banning electronic devices larger than a smartphone from the cabins of flights from 10 airports in the Middle East and North Africa.

Countries affected by that rule are Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco.

In March, Britain took similar measures targeting a smaller list of countries: Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia. In Europe last week, during President Donald Trump's nine-day foreign trip, Kelly met with European Commission officials in Brussels to discuss a possible laptop ban in airplane cabins.
Naveed Yasin was returning to Salford Royal Hospital when a middle-aged man pulled up beside him and abused him.

Yasin also said that treating the seriously injured victims was incredibly distressing. (Photo: LinkedIn)

London: A 37-year-old Pakistani-origin doctor, who spent 48 hours saving the lives of victims of Manchester terror attack, was racially abused and called a terrorist after being told to "go back to your country", media reports said on Monday.

Naveed Yasin, a trauma and orthopaedic surgeon, was on his way back to Salford Royal Hospital to continue to help the victims when a middle-aged man pulled up beside him and hurled abuse at him.

He was called a "brown, P*** b******" and a "terrorist" by a thug in a van after spending two days operating on people injured in the blast, the Manchester Evening News reported. "Go back to your country, you terrorist. We don't want you people here!," the man said.

"I can't take away the hatred he had for me because of my skin colour...and the prejudices he had associated with this," Yasin said. Yasin was born and brought up in Keighley, West Yorkshire. He lives in Trafford with his wife and two daughters.

His great-grandfather moved to Yorkshire from Pakistan in the 1960s. "Terror attacks don't discriminate against race or religion but this [the racial abuse] didn't discriminate either," he said.

Yasin also said that treating the seriously injured victims was incredibly distressing. "The injuries patients have had include horrific [damage] to limbs, typical bomb-blast injuries," he said.

Yasin added that his daughter could have been among the victims. His eldest daughter Amelia, 11, had wanted to go to the targeted Ariana Grande concert, but he and his wife Firdaus ruled against it because it was on a school night.

Yasin said that he and his colleagues had found working on the victims of last week's suicide bombing at Ariana Grande concert in Manchester Arena that killed 22 people, to be an "extremely profound and traumatising experience".

British police yesterday conducted fresh raids in Manchester and arrested a 19-year-old man in connection with the concert bombing, taking the total number of those in custody over the attack to 13.
The Kremlin hails the visit as a chance for Putin and Macron to get to know each other and understand their views on some disputed issues.

The meeting comes in the wake of the Group of Seven's summit over the weekend where relations with Russia were part of the agenda, making Macron the first Western leader to speak to Putin after the talks. (Photo: AP)

Moscow: On a trip that will likely shape Russia-France ties for years to come, President Vladimir Putin is set to visit France for talks on Monday with newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron after expressing sympathy for his rivals during the campaign.

After Moscow lost its bets in the French vote, the visit offers the Russian leader a chance to turn the page and try to establish ties with Macron as the Kremlin has struggled to mend a bitter rift in relations with the West.

The meeting comes in the wake of the Group of Seven's summit over the weekend where relations with Russia were part of the agenda, making Macron the first Western leader to speak to Putin after the talks.

The Kremlin has hailed the visit as a chance for Putin and Macron to get to know each other and better understand their views on a range of disputed issues, including the Ukrainian crisis, the war in Syria and Russia's ties with the European Union.

Macron's invitation for Putin was a surprise after his tough stance on Russia during the presidential campaign that contrasted with the platforms of some of his rivals, including far-right candidate Marine Le Pen and conservative Francois Fillon, who both have spoken for ending Western sanctions against Moscow over the Ukrainian crisis.

Amid the Congressional and FBI investigation into Russia's alleged meddling in the US presidential vote, Macron's aides claimed in February that Russian groups were interfering with his campaign. Moscow has strongly denied all allegations of election meddling.

Putin, however, made his preferences in the French presidential election clear by hosting Le Pen at the Kremlin in March - part of Russia's efforts to reach out to nationalist and anti-globalist forces in a hope of boosting their influence in the West.

Over the years, Putin also has frequently met with Fillon, the French prime minister in 2007-2012, and praised him as an experienced statesman.

Analysts say the visit to Paris offers Putin an opportunity to improve ties with France that had steadily deteriorated in the closing months of Francois Hollande's presidency. "As a person who pays utmost attention to personal contacts, Putin believes that only a one-on-one meeting could give answers to many questions about Macron as a person and president of France, as well as his future foreign policy course and his stance on Russia," Tatyana Stanovaya of the Center for Political Technologies, an independent Moscow-based think-tank, wrote in a commentary.

"Putin understands quite well that just one productive meeting could lead to a radical revamping of ties. It would be silly not to use that chance, she added.

In October, Putin abruptly shelved a trip to Paris after Hollande alleged that Russia could face war crime charges over Syria. Hollande declared that he wouldn't take part in the opening of the newly built Russian Orthodox Spiritual and Cultural Center in the heart of the French capital and was only interested in talking about Syria.

As part of his trip on Monday, Putin is scheduled to visit the centre near the Seine River that includes the Holy Trinity Cathedral along with a school and a book shop. The site was sold to Russia under former President Nicolas Sarkozy amid criticism from rights groups about France's outreach to Putin.

Prior to that, Putin and Macron are set to have talks at Versailles and then tour an exhibition there marking the 300th anniversary of Russian Czar Peter the Great's trip to Paris that was prepared by St. Petersburg's Hermitage Museum.

With Peter the Great widely seen as a ruler who modernized Russia and sought to open it up to the West, the exhibition offers a symbolic backdrop for both parties to talk about the importance of Russia-France ties, and, more broadly, rapport between Russia and the West.

Putin's foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said Russia is dissatisfied with the current level of political contacts, adding that the talks will offer a chance to review them. "The meeting is very important for both Russia and France," he told reporters.

Ushakov noted that he expects an "interesting discussion" on ways to implement a 2015 Minsk deal for eastern Ukraine, which was brokered by Germany and France.

The US and the EU have made the prospect of lifting economic and financial sanctions against Moscow contingent on fulfilling the peace agreement.

The deal has helped reduce the scale of fighting between Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, but clashes have continued and political elements of the agreement have stalled. Ukraine and Russia have blamed one another for the lack of progress.

Ushakov said that the two leaders will also have a "frank" discussion on Syria, where Russia has backed President Bashar Assad and France has pushed strongly for his removal. He added that last week's suicide attack on Manchester Arena emphasized the need to pool efforts in the fight against international terrorism, so the talks will also touch on that.
Besides connecting Assam with Arunachal Pradesh the bridge can facilitate movement of heavy military equipment.

A view of the country's longest Dhola-Sadia bridge over Lohit river in Assam that was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (Photo: AP)

Beijing: China on Monday asked India to maintain a "restrained and measured" approach to resolve the boundary dispute through negotiations, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a strategic bridge linking Assam with Arunachal Pradesh, claimed by Beijing as South Tibet.

Asked for its reaction to the inauguration of India's longest bridge, the first major infrastructure project in Arunachal Pradesh, the Foreign Ministry said China's position on the eastern part of the China-India boundary is consistent and clear.

"We hope that the Indian side on the relevant issues will take a restrained and measured attitude on the boundary issue before the final solution, and work together with the Chinese side to control disputes, safeguard regional peace and tranquillity along the border," the ministry said.

"China and India should resolve the territorial dispute through negotiation and consultation," it said, without directly referring to the bridge. Over the years, China has been ramping up infrastructure including massive construction of rail, road and airports in Tibet, sparking concerns in India as it could enable speedier and easier movement of troops.

India in recent years has stepped up its infrastructure in border areas. The 9.5-km long bridge inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi on May 26 is India's longest bridge. Besides connecting Assam with Arunachal Pradesh it can facilitate movement of heavy military equipment including battle tanks to frontier areas.

While China has so far claimed Arunachal Pradesh as South Tibet, India asserts that the dispute covers Aksai Chin area which was occupied by China during the 1962 war. The two sides have so far held 19 rounds of talks with Special Representatives to resolve the boundary dispute.
The Chinese foreign ministry urged Pyongyang to refrain from activities that go against UNSC resolutions.

It was the Norths third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year. (Photo: Representational/AP)

Beijing: China pleaded again for dialogue on Monday to ease regional tensions after North Korea launched its latest missile test in defiance of UN sanctions. The Chinese foreign ministry urged Pyongyang in a statement to refrain from activities that go against United Nations Security Council resolutions.

We hope that related parties can remain calm and restrained, ease the tension on the peninsula, and bring the peninsula issue into the right track of peaceful dialogue again, it said.

It was the Norths third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year  carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

Following North Koreas test-firing earlier this month of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the Norths main trade partner and ally, has repeatedly called for a resumption of six-party talks that have been dormant since North Korea walked out on the negotiations in 2009.

Washington says it is willing to enter into talks with Pyongyang, but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.
Sri Lanka has sought international assistance, with India sending two naval ships laden with supplies over the weekend.

Sri Lanka has appealed for outside help as the death toll from floods and mudslides on Saturday rose to 100 with 99 others missing. (Photo: AP)

Colombo: Sri Lanka's monsoon toll climbed to 164 with the discovery of more bodies of people buried in landslides triggered by intense rains, the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) said Monday.

Friday's deluge also caused the island's worst flooding in 14 years and drove nearly half a million people out of their inundated homes in the southern and western regions.

The DMC said 104 people were still listed as missing while another 88 remained in hospital.

Police said an air force Mi-17 transport helicopter crashed in the southern Baddegama area Monday while transporting relief supplies to flood victims.

"The helicopter crashed onto a house, but fortunately there were no casualties," a police official in the area told AFP by telephone.

The air force has deployed a dozen aircraft for mercy missions to evacuate marooned villagers as well as carry food and other essentials to the affected areas.

The government said relief operations had intensified over the weekend following a break in the monsoon rains.

However, the meteorological department said it expected more rain on Monday and Tuesday that could hamper relief operations.

Flood waters were receding in the worst affected districts of Ratnapura and Kalutara but the authorities said cleaning up operations could take weeks.

Nearly 2,000 houses were damaged or destroyed. Sri Lanka has sought international assistance, with India sending two naval ships laden with supplies over the weekend.

The United Nations said it would donate water containers, water purification tablets and tarpaulin sheets while the World Health Organization will support medical teams in affected areas.

Pakistan was in talks with Colombo to send relief supplies. Islamabad recently gave 10,000 tonnes of rice to Sri Lanka to help drought victims.

The meteorological department said the rains ended a prolonged drought that had threatened agriculture as well as hydropower generation.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful monsoon, officials said.

Monsoon rains last year caused flooding and landslides, killing more than 100 people.
Fajjar Noor, a class-IX girl student, is battling for her life at Ghurki Hospital, Lahore with multiple fractures and a broken spinal cord.

The incident took place at the City District Government Girls School, Kot Shahabdin, Shahdara and the teachers, have been booked for attempted murder case. (Photo: Representational/Pixabay)

Lahore: A 14-year-old Pakistani girl was allegedly pushed by two of her teachers from the rooftop of a school building in the Punjab province for refusing to "clean the classroom", a media report said.

Fajjar Noor, a class-IX girl student, is battling for her life at Ghurki Hospital, Lahore. She has got multiple fractures and her spinal cord is also broken.

"My class teachers Bushra and Rehana ordered me to clean the classroom as today (May 23) was my turn to do so. I told them that I was not feeling well and she would do it some other day. On this they took me to another room and started slapping me. Then they took me to the rooftop and ordered me to clean it (roof). When I argued, they pushed me from the rooftop," Noor was quoted as saying by Dawn News, after she regained consciousness.

The incident took place at the City District Government Girls School, Kot Shahabdin, Shahdara and the teachers, have been booked for attempted murder case.

Two senior teachers - Rehana Kausar and Bushra Tufail - first inflicted corporal punishment on Fajjar Noor and then took her to top (third) floor of the school building and pushed her down, Punjab Secretary Education (schools) Allah

Bakhsh Malik said.

"The incident took place on May 23 but the school administration and some other officials kept it secret from the education department," Malik said.

"We came to know about (the incident) on Saturday evening. A departmental inquiry has been launched and the matter has also been referred to the Chief Minister Inspection Team for a thorough probe," he added.

"The chief minister has immediately placed District Education Authority Chief Executive Officer Ehsan Malik, Deputy DEO Tayyaba Butt and Headmistress Naghmana Irshad under suspension for hiding the incident. Both teachers have also been suspended and they will be proceeded under the Punjab Employees Efficiency and Disciplinary Act," he said.

"Although Malik visited us and tried to allay our concerns. The CM should come and see my daughter's condition...she is in extreme pain," said Rukhsana Bibi,

Noor's mother.

Shahdara Town police have registered FIR against the teachers under section 324 (attempted murder). "Police teams are raiding their residences, however, no arrest has been made so far," a police official said.
Hussain visited the JIT office at National Judicial Academy in Islamabad after he was Sunday summoned for questioning.

Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's son Hussain Nawaz was today interrogated by a Supreme Court-appointed joint investigation team probing his family's business dealings abroad, in the high-profile Panama Papers case.

Hussain was accompanied by his lawyer for the proceedings but the JIT objected to his presence and said Hussain can get help from the lawyer after securing permission from the Supreme Court.

According to officials, Hussain later faced the JIT alone and his questioning went on for about two hours.

Hussain visited the JIT office at National Judicial Academy in Islamabad after he was yesterday summoned for questioning.

He appeared before the JIT despite his petition in the Supreme Court in which he raised objection about two members of the JIT whom he termed as biased.

According to a source, one of the JIT members is considered a close friend of former president Gen Pervez Musharraf. The other is said to be a relative of former Punjab governor Mian Azhar, a founding member of the Pakistan Muslim League and currently aligned with the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

The court would hear the petition tomorrow and Hussain will personally appear before the three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan.

The JIT had submitted an initial report before the Supreme Court on May 22 and was asked to complete its probe in 60 days.

The JIT was set up following a decision by the Supreme Court on April 20 regarding Panama Paper case. The JIT has to submit fortnightly progress reports to the court.

Sharif had got a temporary breather from the Supreme Court which said there was "insufficient evidence" to remove him from office but ordered setting up of a JIT to probe the graft allegations against his family.

The high-profile graft case is about alleged money laundering by Sharif in 1990s when he twice served as the Prime Minister to purchase assets in London.

Information about the assets surfaced when Panama Papers last year showed that they were managed through offshore companies owned by Sharif's children.

Prime Minister Sharif has denied any wrongdoing since the scandal first surfaced.
Strong reactions from South Korea, Japan and the United States. The test aims to undermine the President Moon Jae-ins push for inter-Korean dialogue. And it is a provocation to the G7's conclusions in Italy demanding Pyongyangs immediate disarmament.

Seoul (AsiaNews) - This morning North Korea launched a short ballistic missile from its east coast according to South Korean military intelligence. The missile was launched eastward near Wonsan, Gangwon province, at 5.39 am. "The flight distance is about 450 kilometers," said Army spokesperson Colonel Roh Jae-cheon. Japan confirmed that the missile fell in its territorial waters and Did not rule out that North Korea fired more missiles in its latest provocation.

President Moon Jae-in has convened the National Security Council who sent out a warning: "Continued provocative acts of North Korea only accelerate its isolation and provoke the strong reactions of our military and International community ".

The Seoul Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that "the government does not tolerate any kind of provocation and will have a tough reaction". "The North should immediately stop all provocations and choose the path of denuclearization as quickly as possible," he says.

The North American aerospace defense (Norad) based in Hawaii believes that these launches are not a threat to North America. " The US Pacific Command has secured its commitment to security with allies in the Republic of Korea and Japan.

A White House official said US President Donald Trump was also informed of the North's provocation. "This launch of ballistic missiles by North Korea is extremely problematic for air transport security and is a clear violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions," said Japanese government secretary Yoshihide Suga.

The missile in question is Scud type, with liquid fuel and a range from 300 to 500 kilometers. But a variation, called Scud-ER (extended range), is being developed, capable of traveling up to a thousand kilometers. That would mean that Japan is in its reach.

The Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe has promised to act with other nations to discourage repeated Pyongyang provocations. "As we agreed in the recent G7, the question of North Korea is a top priority for the international community," he explained.

Last week, the South Korean Unification Ministry announced that it wanted to contact the North to supply mosquito nets and insect repellents. A move considered a reflection of Moon's will to reopen dialogue with Pyongyang despite the increased military tensions.

"The government will respond strongly to all North Korean provocations, but at the same time we are looking for ways to allow humanitarian and civilian exchanges without compromising the validity of international sanctions," a ministry official said last week.

After the G7 in Italy this weekend, group leaders found that North Korea "always poses new levels of serious threat to peace and international stability." They have called on the North to "immediately and fully comply with all UN Security Council resolutions, and to abandon all nuclear, ballistic missile programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner."

But North Korea has repeatedly challenged United Nations resolutions banning nuclear and missile activity and has intensified its tests in recent months. Pyongyang says it sweapons program is needed to counteract US aggression. North Korea has a large stock of short-range missiles originally developed by the Soviet Union. US Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said that the military conflict with North Korea, if diplomacy failed, would be the worst ever seen: "The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery guns and grenades pointed in one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea."
The archdiocese comes up a programme of spiritual activities ending on 9 June with a ritual of purification of the vandalised place. "We got to know from the concerned officials that [. . .] some religious fundamentalists and anti-social elements [. . .] instigated the people, said Archbishop Bala.

Secunderabad (AsiaNews)  "I call upon all the clergy, religious and faithful in the Archdiocese to [. . .] participate in the spiritual activities to repair the desecration of Our Lady of Fatima Church in Keesara, Medchal district (Telangana), said Mgr Thumma Bala, archbishop of Hyderabad.

In his appeal, the prelate urges local Catholics, men and women of faith, to respond with prayers to the vandalism of "about 100 people instigated by some religious fundamentalists and anti-social elements."

The archdiocese issued two statements following the serious incident on Sunday, 21 May, which came just a few days after the inauguration of the Christian place of worship. The second lists planned activities, and calls on the dioceses parish priests to inform the congregations as widely as possible about the initiatives.

Tomorrow, an Eucharistic worship will be held in St Mary High School in Secunderabad, followed by a Mass presided by the archbishop. Net Friday, two hours of Eucharistic adoration will be held in all the parishes of the diocese, followed the next day by the Rosary.

On 9 June, all Catholics  clergy, religious and laity  are called to observe a day of fasting and prayer. On the same day a group of Catholics will travel to the church hall to celebrate a ritual of purification.

The first statement describes how the church was attacked. The building is on land that belongs to U. George Reddy, a Catholic. It states that the local Church reported "the unfortunate incident" to the police inspector "seeking stern action against the culprits."

The archdiocese sought "protection for the churches and the Catholic minority community" with Telangana Home Minister. He assured us that he would do full justice to us and would tell the concerned authorities to give permission for the Church. We got to know from the concerned officials that there were some religious fundamentalists and anti-social elements who instigated the people in this regard. Among the people arrested, they were also included.

The statement goes on to say that the destruction inside the church was a deliberate act, without apparent reason on private land. Archbishop Bala notes that Mr Reddy "donated 500 sq. yards and the archdiocese purchased from him about 700 sq yards (altogether 1,200 sq yards).

Mr Reddy obtained a permit to build a multipurpose hall. Three months earlier, the parish priest [had] applied to the Collector for permission [to build] a church, which is in the process of being finalised.

In signing off the statement, the archbishop says, "I wish you all the best, the special blessings of the Risen Lord and the loving care and maternal protection of our Blessed Mother, Fatima Mata."

(Nirmala Carvalho contributed to this article)
Only a few small areas of the city remain under jihadi control. The Filipino air force carried out its first air strikes yesterday. About 2,200 people are still trapped in the combat zone. So far, 97 people have been killed. The fate of Fr Chito and 13 other hostages remains unknown. President Dutertes imposition of martial law has generated fear of authoritarian rule.

Marawi (AsiaNews/Agencies)  The Armed Forces of the Philippines say they are now in control of most of Marawi, a mostly Muslim populated city of 200,000 on the island of Mindanao.

Almost a week ago, gunmen linked to the Islamic State group launched a bloody attack against the city. On 23 May they burnt the Catholic cathedral and abducted some people.

Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said Monday that only small areas of Marawi are held by Maute fighters and Abu Sayyaf jihadists.

Fighting in Marawi intensified as the militants showed unexpected strength, fending off the military, which has unleashed attack helicopters, armoured vehicles and scores of soldiers.

The military yesterday launched air strikes against terrorists, as hundreds of civilians hoisted white flags on their homes to avoid being targeted by the planes.

The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanaos Humanitarian Emergency Action Response Team reported that 42,142 people had been evacuated as of 5 pm Saturday.

Some 30,600 people found refuge in various evacuation centres, whilst 11,500 others are staying with relatives outside Marawi City. However, about 2,200 residents are still trapped in the combat zone.

Meanwhile, soldiers continue their door-to-door operations to find jihadists. The authorities announced yesterday that 19 bodies were found in the streets of the city, eight of them civilians  four men, three women and a child  executed by terrorists.

At least 97 people have died since fighting broke out, including 19 civilians, 61 members of the Maute and Abu Sayyaf groups, 13 soldiers and four policemen. Some of terrorists were foreigners, including Malaysians and Indonesians.

Fighting in Marawi broke out on 23 May, when the Filipino forces tried to capture Isnilon Hapilon, an extremist Islamic leader. Under attack from government troops, Hapilon and more than a dozen of his men summoned reinforcement from the Maute militant group. Almost 50 gunmen managed to enter the city.

Hapilon managed to escape. Some of his fighters seized parts of Marawi, burning buildings, including the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Help of Christians. They also took 14 hostages, including a priest, Fr Teresito "Chito" Suganob. Their fate is unknown at the time.

Unconfirmed reports say that the clergyman might have been released. News from Marawi is very confused, but Fr Chitos release is credible since he is known and respected by local Muslims, a source told AsiaNews. " As for the three employees and ten worshippers, the militants plan to use them as human shields in negotiations with the government."

Hapilon heads the Abu Sayyaf group. In 2014 he pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group and its leader al Baghdadi, and was later appointed "emir of all Islamic State forces in the Philippines.

The Maute group is one of the new Filipino Islamist armed groups who adopted the ideology of the Caliphate and formed an alliance with other Filipino groups ostensibly under Hapilon's leadership.

The violence prompted President Rodrigo Duterte to declare martial law for 60 days in the south of the country, scene of fighting for decades, and home to the countrys Muslim minority (20 per cent of the Filipino population).

In the past few months, President Duterte had warned that he could impose it if rebels carried out violent actions. The government has tried to carry out peace talks with Islamic rebels, but has also sent the army to destroy the smaller armed groups linked to the Islamic State.

In view of the presidents decision, civil rights groups and opposition have expressed fear that martial law might tip the country towards authoritarian rule.

"Critics believe that the violence is just a pretext, another source told AsiaNews. However, most people back Duterte. In the past year, Mindanao has become a training ground for Filipino and foreign Islamists, and people are scared. Intolerance against Christians is growing, even though the government does not speak about it."

Still, the presidents statements are fuelling fears. Yesterday, he said that he would ignore the Supreme Court and the Congress if any extension of the martial law was not granted.

Until the police and the Armed Forces say the Philippines is safe, this martial law will continue. I will not listen to others. The Supreme Court justices, the congressmen, they are not here, Duterte told soldiers on Saturday.

The 1987 Constitution imposes limits on martial law to prevent a repeat of the abuses carried out under the regime of dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who was deposed in 1986 by the People Power revolution.

The Constitution requires Congress to approve the presidents declaration of martial law and limits military rule to 60 days.

If the President wants to extend the duration of martial law, he or she must again get congressional endorsement.
by Sumon Corraya

Mgr Gervas Rozario, bishop of Rajshahi, led the ordination Mass. Probal Rozario and Ashis Runia, attracted to priests and nuns from childhood, tell their stories. Overall male vocations are up but female vocations are down.

Dhaka (AsiaNews)  Bangladesh has ten new deacons, ready to serve the Church in the priesthood.

A group of young men, from various dioceses, were ordained last Saturday in the presence of Mgr Gervas Rozario, bishop of Rajshahi, and vice-president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Bangladesh (CBCB).

In his homily the bishop noted: "Your goal as deacons is not to be served, but to serve. Do not expect to receive honours, but honour others as servants of God. "

Four of the ten deacons hail from the Rajshahi diocese. One of them is Probal Rozario. "During my childhood I saw priests and sisters visit my home, he told AsiaNews. Their lifestyle greatly attracted me. My dream of becoming a priest was born from this."

At home, "We always recited the Rosary, he added. My parents and grandparents encouraged me to follow the vocation. "

Deacon Ashis Runia, from Dinajpur diocese, remembers his on experience. "I attended church regularly. The sacred and ideal model of life of priests inspired me.

"I know that religious life is not always comfortable, he added, but I love Jesus Christ. From the Almighty God I received the call to the priestly life, which I have put into practice during my seminary training. I thank God for blessing me with this 'religious calling.' Although there are many temptations in today's world, I will overcome them with the love for Jesus Christ as his follower. Preaching the Gospel is the main goal in my religious life."

Before the end of the year, the deacons will receive their priestly ordination. Across the country, there will 16 new priests, including five Holy Cross seminarians and one Oblate of the Immaculate Conception who are getting ready for their consecration.

In predominantly Muslim Bangladesh, Catholics number nearly 400,000 (out of a total population of 160 million). Recently, the number of male vocations increased, whilst that of female vocations decreased.

Overall, the country has 380 priests, 107 men religious and 1,070 nuns led by Card Patrick D'Rozario, an archbishop and eight bishops.
A nearly $ 300 million project that will affect the waters of the South and East China Sea. For China it will favor "advanced scientific research" and will help experts in natural disaster prevention. For experts it is a control system that will cause additional alarms between the governments of the area. High tension between Beijing and Washington on the seas.

Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Chinese experts are studying the implementation of a "National Science and Security" submarine monitoring system, which will be deployed in the waters of the eastern and southern China Sea, which has long been the subject of longstanding territorial disputes. A high-tech complex systemthat will favor "advanced scientific research" and will help experts in the "natural disaster prevention" in the region.

The system will cost 2 billion yuan (about $ 290 million). It will provide real-time information about environmental conditions and sea bed activities, increasing the presence and activity of both Beijing and the military in Asia Pacific even more.

The project recently received approval and will take five years before it is fully operational. In the context of the work, a database will be set up in Shanghai to monitor and store the chemical, biological and geological information gathered from the systems under the seas.

Chinese sources say the project will not only contribute to scientific research and disaster prevention, but will also be essential in national security. Analysts and international policy experts say the Beijing decision is likely to create a further alert among the nations in the area, even at short notice for military and civil presence on controversial atolls.

The Chinese government claims most of the sea (almost 85 per cent), including sovereignty over the disputed Spratly and Paracel islands, in opposition to Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia. The Philippines  which is seeking a non-binding international ruling at the UN court  together with Vietnam, is increasingly worried about Beijing's imperialism in the South China and East China seas.

For the United States, which backs the claims of Southeast Asia nations, Beijing's so-called 'cow tongue' line  which covers 80% of the 3.5 km2 - is both "illegal" and "irrational".

Meanwhile, the tension with Washington, which last week accused China of "dangerous interception" after a US warship had entered the controversial waters of the South China Sea. Beijing accused the US of territorial violations and of representing a danger to the seas of the region.

Washington and Beijing had seemed to temporarily cool tensions in an attempt to find a common solution to the North Korean threat. However, their conflicting ambitions soon re-emerged, confirming that in the long run, the lack of a shared and lasting solution could lead to a full-fledged conflict.

"Recently - stated Beijing - the US has been sent military vessels and aircraft to Chinas maritime and air space, infringing upon Chinas territorial sovereignty and posing a threat to the lives of people from both sides. Such operations [by the US] are the root of Sino-US military maritime and air safety incidents.
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by Samir Youssef

Mr Samir talks about the worsening humanitarian emergency. For this reason, the work of helping refugees is important. The Christian world is united against the reality of death of the Islamic state. The love of those who give is source of joy for Mosul refugees. "We are not alone." The appeal to continue supporting the AsiaNews campaign continues.

Erbil (AsiaNews) - In a very hot" geopolitical context in which Iraqi troops continue their advance inside Mosuls Old City, and the humanitarian emergency gets worse, helping refugees becomes ever more important.

The Islamic state is a reality of death, destruction, and shame against which the Christian world becomes united in a shared initiative of solidarity, Fr Samir Youssef, parish priest of the Diocese of Amadiya (Kurdistan), told AsiaNews. The clergyman is responsible for the well-being of 3,500 Christian, Muslim, and Yazidi refugee families who fled their homes and land to escape the Jihadists.

The clergyman has been helping out since summer of 2014, when the emergency began, and wants to thank our agency not only for the aid campaign, but also for "its work of culture and information on behalf of the Iraqi people, including refugees.

"Thanks to you, the word of truth and the reality of the Church can be seen everywhere," Fr Samir said. In his letter of thanks, he provides a financial report, including the last donations received in March before Easter."

Donations can be made to the Adopt a Christian of Mosul campaign. The photo gallery shows how campaign donations have been used. Fr Samirs letter follows:

Dearest Fr Bernardo Cervellera, my dear friends at AsiaNews,

First of all, I pray to the Lord that you are well. I want to continue to thank you Fr Bernardo, and through you all of our AsiaNews friends, for the help you sent us during the Nawroz holiday and Paschal period (almost US$ 22,000) to help Christian, Muslim, and Yazidi refugees who are in trouble.

You, with your tangible love, make us feel great joy and make us understand that we are not alone, that we are a single body. Without your support, the local Church could not have gone forward. You have really helped us to move on in our work for the displaced.

The Catholic Church in general, and the Italian Church in particular, have done a lot for the Church of Iraq, and this historical fact will be remembered forever. The terrorism that sadly strikes all over the world today makes us think and ask: Where are we? Where is the freedom that frees us from this evil?

I believe that a response comes from our Father, because when we believe we have a Heavenly Father, and work to sanctify his name with our faith and charity, we make his kingdom visible.

Through his love, we try to accomplish the mission that he points to us. Only this way we shall not lack of daily bread, and his paternal love will not leave us and he will always forgive us. We receive a lot in exchange, in giving this daily bread and this forgiveness to others, to those whom the Lord will put in our lives and on our path.

I wanted to share these thoughts with you because you, with your affection, have made me find and live deeply the greatness of this "daily bread", which for me and all mankind is the true Jesus Christ, the true daily bread.

If humanity does not feed on the word of Jesus as it eats bread, it will never find peace. Only when we live as the children of our Father, shall we have true peace. When we are not this way, we could fall into temptation.

Finally, I pray to the Lord to bless all of you.

Below you will see how the donation money was used and a photo gallery showing the distribution of food and aid.

Fr Samir Youssef

(parish priest in the diocese of Zakho and Amadiya)

Financial Report:

US$ 11,400 for groceries distributed to 250 families

US$ 5,000 cash for 50 families

US$ 2,750 clothing, shoes

US$ 1,450 in furniture

US$ 600 for a generator

US$ 9,200 in medicine

Total: US$ 21,400
A person who does not "disturb" the Spirit "is a person who has a cold faith, an ideological faith. His faith is an ideology, thats it. " "Why do I ask for the grace to distinguish the lesser good? Because the good from evil is immediately distinguished. But there is the hidden evil that is the lesser good, but it has hidden evil. "

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Before making a decision ask and listen to what the Holy Spirit asks us as people, as a community, as a Church. Learning to listen to the Holy Spirit was the subject of Pope Francis homily at Mass at Casa Santa Martha this morning, in view of the Sunday celebration of Pentecost.

The Pope began with First Reading which - he said - we could call "the Pentecost of Ephesus". The community of Ephesus had in fact received the faith but did not even know that the Holy Spirit existed. They were "good people, people of faith" but they did not know this gift of the Father. When Paul laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit descended on them and they began to speak in tongues.

In fact, the Holy Spirit moves the heart, as it is read in the Gospels, where so many people - Nicodemus, the Samaritan, the sinner - are moved to approach Jesus by the Holy Spirit. Francis then invited us to wonder what place the Holy Spirit has in our lives. "Am I able to hear? Am I able to ask for inspiration before making a decision or saying a word or doing something? Or is my heart calm, without emotion, a fixed heart? But certain hearts, if we carried out a spiritual electrocardiogram the result would be linear, without emotion. Even in the Gospels there are these, we think of the doctors of the law: they were believers in God, they knew all the commandments, but their heart was closed, firm, they were not disturbed. "

Instead, Francis urged us, "to be disturbed by the Holy Spirit: 'Eh, I heard this ... But father, that is sentimentality?' - 'No, it may be, but no. If you're on the right track, you're not sentimental. ' 'I felt the urge to do this, to go to visit that sick person or change life or leave this ...'. Feeling and discerning: discern what my heart feels, for the Holy Ghost is the master of discernment. A person who does not have these movements of the heart, who does not discern what is happening, is a person who has a cold faith, an ideological faith. His faith is an ideology, thats it. " This was the "drama" of those doctors of the law who took it with Jesus.

And I? "Do I ask you to guide me on the path I must choose in my life and also every day? Do I ask you to give me the grace of distinguishing the good from the lesser good? Because the good from evil is immediately distinguished. But there is the hidden evil that is the lesser good, but it has hidden evil. Do I ask for that grace? I would like you to ask this question today. "

One must then wonder if when "the desire to do something" comes to the Holy Spirit who inspires us, that "yes or no," or just "calculating with the mind." In Apocalypse, the apostle John begins by inviting the "Seven Churches" - the seven dioceses of that time - to listen to what the Holy Ghost tells him. "We also ask for this grace to listen to what the Spirit says to our Church, our community, our parish, our family," and "each one of us," concluded the Pope, "the grace of learning this language to listen to the Holy Ghost ".
by Melani Manel Perera

At least 500,000 displaced, many more missing and 88 injured. Heavy rainfall is expected over next few hours. Alert for crocodiles as Nilwala River breaks its banks. The president allocates over 263,000 euros for relief operations.

Colombo (AsiaNews) - The dramatic toll from violent floods that have hit the southern districts of Sri Lanka on the weekend is 166 dead. According to the latest data from the Disaster Management Center (Dmc), at least 102 people are missing and 88 wounded, but the numbers are constantly updated. The authorities report that about 500,000 people are displaced without food and water. Apart from the precipitation expected in today's day, what concerns the rescuers is the difficulty of reaching the flooded areas, isolated by numerous landslides. The overflow of the Nilwala River in the Matara district then pushed the Information Department to issue an alert for the presence of crocodiles.

Since May 26, the Asian island has been flagged by rains, typical of the monsoon season. The latest weather report predicts that at least 100 millimeters of rain will fall today, particularly in the western area of the Central Hills.

The government has warned of the possible proliferation of diseases and epidemics, linked to the shortage of drinking water and medicines. Sahan Fernando of the Matara District portrays the extent of the devastation: "The properties of our village are underwater. Luckily there were no casualties, but all we owned was destroyed. The school, the houses, are covered with water to the roof. There is no hope of recovering something from within. "

Rescue operations are in full swing, supported by two Indian ships. The Sri Lankan Navy has deployed 28 vessels, the Air Force seven helicopters, the Army six tanks. There is an ambulance service on the territory, with 84 vehicles in total. President Maithripala Sirisena expressed his closeness to people affected by the disaster and allocated 45 million rupees [over 263,000 euros] for emergency operations.
by Fr Peter

The Letter expresses "the love of the Holy Father for our Church". The "tragedy" for the Church in China: bishops who become "state officials", "do not listen to the Letter" and are afraid of "giving their life to the flock". But there are "bishops and priests [who] safeguard the true faith of the Catholic Church." Profound thanks to the universal Church.

Beijing (AsiaNews) - On the occasion of the World Day of Prayer for the Church in China, wanted by Benedict XVI and backed by Pope Francis, there have been many comments about the emeritus Pope's Letter to Chinese Catholics. The document, published on June 30, 2007, carries the official date of Pentecost 2007, May 27.

Comments - like the one we publish below, by a priest of the official church in the north of the country - express appreciation for the pontiffs paternal affection, his theological precision and relevance even 10 years on. At the same time these considerations also point to the weakness of the Church's life in China: some bishops have become "state officials" and have stopped giving their life to the flock. In particular their adherence to the Patriotic Association and the Council of Chinese Bishops, both defined by Benedict XVI as "incompatible with Catholic doctrine." On the other hand, the author of the comment recalls the many "witnesses" who remain faithful to Benedict XVI's indications also at risk of imprisonment, indoctrination, and detention. Curiously, all the bishops mentioned are part of the unofficial Church.

The great Pope Benedict XVI published a pastoral letter to the Catholic Church in China on 30 June 2007 of historical value. The Letter indicates not only the direction for the Church in China, but it also describes, from a theological point of view, the special nature of the Catholic Church and at the same time, it expresses the concern of the Supreme Authority for the Chinese Church. Pope Benedict XVI wrote: " As universal Pastor of the Church, I wish to manifest sincere gratitude to the Lord for the deeply-felt witness of faithfulness offered by the Chinese Catholic community in truly difficult circumstances. At the same time, I sense the urgent need, as my deep and compelling duty and as an expression of my paternal love, to confirm the faith of Chinese Catholics and favour their unity with the means proper to the Church. I am also following with particular interest the events of the entire Chinese People, whom I regard with sincere admiration and sentiments of friendship, to the point where I express the hope "that concrete forms of communication and cooperation between the Holy See and the People's Republic of China may soon be established"(No. 4).

These words of Pope Benedict XVI's letter, help us Catholics who live in China feel the Holy Father's love for our Church.

Because of the special cultural context of China, and above all because of the weight of the legacy that its history has transmitted, our Church in China lives under political influence, and maintaining communion with the universal Church becomes problematic. Therefore, Pope Benedict XVI clearly explains: " As far as relations between the political community and the Church in China are concerned, it is worth calling to mind the enlightening teaching of the Second Vatican Council, which states: "The Church, by reason of her role and competence, is not identified with any political community nor is she tied to any political system. She is at once the sign and the safeguard of the transcendental dimension of the human person"(ibidem). Unfortunately, however, in the concrete circumstances, the Catholic Patriotic Association and the Episcopal Conference of Chinese Catholic Bishops are sustained and controlled by the government, and they play an embarrassing role. Bishops who accept government orders as matters of faith, become state officials, do not listen to the letter expressing the Holy Father's concern for the Church in China and avoid talking about it: this is the real tragedy of the Church in China. Jesus teaches us: "The shepherd must lay down his life for his flock". But today's bishops do not even have the courage to proclaim the Letter of the Holy Father. So how can they become pastors as Christ wants them?

The Holy Father in the Letter emphasizes in a special way: "Catholic doctrine teaches that the Bishop is the visible source and foundation of unity in the particular Church entrusted to his pastoral ministry . But in every particular Church, in order that she may be fully Church, there must be present the supreme authority of the Church, that is to say, the episcopal College together with its Head, the Roman Pontiff, and never apart from him. Therefore the ministry of the Successor of Peter belongs to the essence of every particular Church "from within". Moreover, the communion of all the particular Churches in the one Catholic Church, and hence the ordered hierarchical communion of all the Bishops, successors of the Apostles, with the Successor of Peter, are a guarantee of the unity of the faith and life of all Catholics. It is therefore indispensable, for the unity of the Church in individual nations, that every Bishop should be in communion with the other Bishops, and that all should be in visible and concrete communion with the Pope. "(No. 5).

The clear explanation and the teaching of the Holy Father are not a new theory, but they are the dogma of the Catholic Church. This fundamental doctrine of the Catholic Church is attacked and challenged. The bishops, in view of their own personal advantages, for fear of being held and attacked because of their loyalty to the Orthodox doctrine of the Church, continue to maintain so-called "principles of autonomy and independence". There is a void between the spirit of Pope Benedict XVI's Letter and its practical implementation.

Napoleon once said, "If the Lord does not to destroy His Church, no one else can!" What is consoling and encouraging is the fact that some bishops and priests safeguard the true faith of the Catholic Church. Although they run the risk and the danger of 'being put to jail', or 'disappearing' or being subjected to 'indoctrination', they are the heroes of the Church, who deserve admiration and respect: such as, for example, the bishops Shi Enxiang, Su Zhimin, Cui Tai, Shao Zhumin, Guo Xijin, etc. They have not transgressed the Constitution of the country, they have done nothing but remain faithful to their Catholic faith. But that group of opportunistic bishops who adapted to the demands of the government have billed these faithful bishops as 'closed brains', 'hard heads. Although the Church is facing so many difficulties, what is comforting today is that the secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Archbishop Hon Tai-Fai, during the recent symposium organized by AsiaNews agency clearly indicated that 'we must eliminate Gray pragmatism'. He also pointed out that "in the most difficult times, wonderful examples of witness and even martyrdom always appear." Pope Benedict XVVI in the Letter stated: " Keep in mind, moreover, that your path of reconciliation is supported by the example and the prayer of so many "witnesses of the faith" who have suffered and have forgiven, offering their lives for the future of the Catholic Church in China. Their very existence represents a permanent blessing for you in the presence of our Heavenly Father, and their memory will not fail to produce abundant fruit."(No. 6).

From the contents of the Letter we see that the Holy Father understands the difficulties of the Church in China: he says: " Notwithstanding many grave difficulties, the Catholic Church in China, by a particular grace of the Holy Spirit, has never been deprived of the ministry of legitimate Pastors who have preserved the apostolic succession intact. We must thank the Lord for this constant presence, not without suffering, of Bishops who have received episcopal ordination in conformity with Catholic tradition, that is to say, in communion with the Bishop of Rome, Successor of Peter, and at the hands of validly and legitimately ordained Bishops in observance of the rite of the Catholic Church. "(n. 8).

From the Holy Father's Letter, we can see his strong commitment to the Church in China and also understand his expectations. For these expectations we have to pray. Pope Benedict specifically set May 24, each year, as the Day of Prayer for the Church in China: this initiative urges the profound gratitude of Chinese Catholics to the whole Church for its interest in the faithful of China. In it, we must remember what Pope Benedict has entrusted to us and what he expects from us and do our best to not frustrate the plans of this elderly father for the future of the Catholic Church in China.
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Breakthrough restaurants on the Gold Coast





Given that over 12 million tourists flock to Australias Gold Coast each year, its no surprise that this stunning location in Queensland has developed an impressive array of food outlets.

From deluxe restaurants offering a thought-provoking take on fine dining, to some quick and easy food options to take on the beach, there have been a handful of food outlets that have managed to edge just ahead of the competition.

Its been great to see how old favourites like Marios in Broadbeach have reemerged with a fresh new look to fit in with the developments at the nearby mall. But their loyal customers will be reassured to find that the menu has stayed faithful to the one thats provided classic Italian tastes for the past 27 years  with the addition of new favourites like a burrata entree and mouthwatering osso bucco veal shanks.

One of the more striking new additions in the Broadbeach is the incredible Kiyomi restaurant. This delicious eatery has employed one of Australias best sushi chefs to ensure that the complex tastes of Japanese cuisine are faithfully rendered in this stylish restaurant thats already become a big hit since it opened its doors in 2014.

Further up the coast in Surfers Paradise theres an equally impressive selection of outlets ranging from the acclaimed Thai eatery, Chaopraya, to the excellent Shiraz Persian restaurant. Whats great is that many of the restaurants have teamed up with Deliveroo to ensure that we can enjoy a fine dining at home, in our hotel rooms, or even on the beach.

Mermaid Beach has also been welcoming food tastes from around the world with the likes of Bonita Bonita becoming one of the best places on the Gold Coast to try Mexican food. And dont miss out on the Little Truffle Dining Room for an old-school take on fine dining complete with candelabras and chandeliers to accompany the delicious fusion of Australian and Europe cuisines.

And finally, seeing as the Gold Coast is exceptionally positioned to try out the freshest in seafood produce, we couldnt miss The Fish House out of the shortlist. This sophisticated yet relaxed place in Burleigh Heads is a real treat for seafood fans as it keeps things simple so that you can focus on the delights of coral trout, blue eye trevalla and swordfish.

So with a range of fine dining and food delivery options to try out, its clear why the Gold Coast has become such a foodie hotspot.
Coke remains the worlds most chosen brand

Posted by Andrea Hogan on 29th May 2017





Coca-Cola remains the worlds most chosen brand according to the 2016 Kantar Worldpanel Global Top 50 rankings.

It is the fifth year in a row Coca-Cola has taken out the top spot.

The Kantar Worldpanel Global Top 50 rankings are calculated each year by London- based data consultancy firm, Kantar.

The next highest food and beverage company on the list was Nestles Maggi which was named the fourth most chosen brand.

Pepsi came in fifth, Nescafe Coffee sixth and Lays chips seventh.

Unilever featured heavily in the 2016 list with 13 of its brands being named.

Kantar said their study found spending on fast moving consumer goods grew by $34 billion in emerging markets in 2016, an increase by 6 per cent on 2015.

How a brand grows

Global Chief Executive Officer of the Kantar Worldpanel, Josep Montserrat, said being chosen by more people, more often, is how brands grow.

Understanding where to find the most valuable opportunities  whether from an emerging region with a growing population, or innovating to meet untapped needs in a more developed market  is critical for all brands, he said.

Kantar Worldpanel Global Top 50 2016

The complete top 50 list is as follows:

Coca-Cola Colgate Lifebuoy Maggi Pepsi Nescafe Lays Indomie Nestle Sunsilk Knorr Dove Lux Sunlight Downy Danone Palmolive Pepsodent Tide Sprite Pantene Heinz Kraft Head and Shoulders Oreo Ajinomoto Surf Rexona Vim Milo Tang Bimbo Fanta Brooke Bond Nivea Cheetos Quaker McCormick Kinder Doritos Activia Closeup Safeguard Hersheys Yakult Barilla Dettol Lipton Del Monte Dr Oetker

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Ikea invites food innovators to apply for global boot camp

Posted by Andrea Hogan on 29th May 2017





Ikea wants to help start-ups looking to innovate within the food industry.

In announcing the first Ikea Boot Camp to support start-up businesses, Ikea said it is looking for those start-ups focused on different areas of food innovation such as urban farming, healthy eating, new ingredients, food conservation, virtual reality food tasting and sustainable sourcing.

Any company from across the world can apply for the boot camp so Australian start-ups are encouraged to apply. The boot camp will be held in Almhult, Sweden from September  December 2017.

Those accepted into the camp will provided with a 20, 000 EUR grant, free housing, office space, mentorship and start-up classes.

Ikea will not take any stake in the businesses involved in the program, but may invest in them or become a customer if interested.

Start-ups interested should be able to help solve Ikeas Big Problems through their work which involves providing affordable, accessible and sustainable product.

Companies can apply for the program through the Ikea Boot Camp website by 6 August 2017.

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The Nissan Juke, a subcompact crossover, won't likely be getting a second-generation release and could be on its way out of the North American market. Touted to replace the vehicle is the Nissan Kicks, which was previously released in Latin America.

A couple of sources revealed Nissan's plans to The Truth About Cars. The Nissan Juke, which rolled out in the U.S. market over seven years, has the same body type as the Nissan Kicks. American consumers, however, received the car with mixed reactions as it paled in comparison to the Kia Sportage, Jeep Cherokee, Honda HR-V or the Mazda CX-3.

The Nissan Juke has a 1.6-liter turbo four cylinder engine and goes for 188 horsepower. Its design is a mix between an SUV and a small coupe. In comparison, its competitors stuck with a classic SUV design. It appears consumers prefer the latter choice over the Juke's different look.

Compact SUVs are in demand but there hasn't been a lot for the Nissan Juke. According to Carscoops, the company sold only 986 units in the U.S. last year and it's 47.8 percent less than the sales in 2015. Its peak sales reached 38,184 units in 2014.

Meanwhile, the Nissan Kicks coming to North America will also carry a 1.6-liter turbo four cylinder engine but with a CVT or six-speed manual transmission options. It will also come with a front-wheel drive, which the Nissan Juke doesn't have, as per Left Lane News.

Nissan refused to confirm the speculations about its Juke or the coming of the Kicks stateside. When asked about this back in January, Vice President for Product Planning Michael Bunce said, "Certainly we see the opportunity for more mainstream crossovers that are less niche, and we see Honda and others in that space and are taking it very seriously," as per Wards Auto. Learn more about the Nissan Juke in the video below.
German automaker BMW has recently announced that it will recall more than 45,000 units of older BMW 7 Series models manufactured between 2005 and 2008 in the United States. The reason for the recall is because the doors of the said cars may appear closed and locked, but may open due to driving or road conditions or occupant contact with the door. BMW said that an immediate opening might cause someone to be ejected or increase the risk of injury in a crash.

According to Motor1, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said that the automaker would inspect the BMW 745i, 750i, 745Li, 750Li, 760i, 760Li and B7 Alpina models, which comes with a Soft Close Automatic feature. In April, BMW met with NHTSA Agent to discuss the complaints received from many customers and resulted in issuing a recall in May.

The NHTSA also tackled about a 2012 recall of about 7,500 BMW 7 Series sedans manufactured between 2005 to 2007 model years that suffered the same problem. But BMW isn't taking any chances now. The automaker is currently in the works of figuring out the cause and will fix the problem as soon as possible. However, the recall of more than 45,000 affected cars probably won't begin before the end of the month, as the automaker still hasn't yet found out a solution for the problem.

A BMW spokesperson said in a statement, "We are working as efficiently as possible to determine a fix, and we will be sending out letters asking customers of affected vehicles to contact an authorized BMW center and schedule an appointment once the remedy is available." Fortunately, there are no reports yet on an injury that is related to the defect.

Owners of the affected BMW 7 Series models are expecting for an immediate solution from the automaker. Owners with questions can call BMW at (800) 525-7417.
Harold Pierce covers education and health for The Californian. He can be reached at 661-395-7404. Follow him on Twitter @RoldyPierce
President Uhuru Kenyatta was morning cleared by IEBC to vie for the Presidency in the August polls. The IEBC issued him with a certificate for his presidential bid to secure his seat. He was accompanied by his wife, first lady Margaret Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto.The Duos are expected to attend a major rally expected to have at Uhuru park as stipulated earlier. Jubilee supporters camped outside KICC waiting for the President. The supporters will accompany the president to the Uhuru Park where is expected to official launch his bid for the presidential race.The president arrived yesterday from Italy, where he attended the G7 summit with G7 presidents across the world.At the Airport to receive the President, Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph Nkaissery and Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Samson Mwathethe, among other senior Government officials were present.In his address to the summit, President Kenyatta asked the Group of Seven (G7) most industrialised countries in the world to enhance its collaboration with Africa to address global challenges including poverty, immigration, climate change and terrorism.The President said Africa is a vital partner in solving the worlds most pressing challenges.This is the time to put Africa's aspirations at the heart of your plans. A freer, more prosperous Africa is a vital partner in solving some of the world's most pressing problems: poverty, immigration, climate change, terrorism, President Kenyatta told the G7.He pointed out that Africas transformation is driven by innovation in which Kenya is a celebrated pioneer in the continent, especially in ICT.That's why we have strengthened connectivity through the Smart Africa initiative, putting ICT at the centre of our development agenda. That's why the continent is developing an ICT policy and infrastructure to support one seamless digital market, to serve a billion people, President Kenyatta said.The President also held talks with G7 leaders, focusing on forging a closer cooperation in trade, investment, security, technology-sharing and development.The President held separate meetings on the margins of the G7 Summit in Taormina, Italy, with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, host Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and newly elected President Emmanuel Macron of France.During his meeting with President Kenyatta, Japanese Prime Minister Abe thanked Kenya for hosting a successful TICAD conference in 2016.Prime Minister Abe informed President Kenyatta of Japans intention to support South Sudan through its official development aid. He expressed a desire to continue working with Kenya at the multilateral level including on the threat from North Korea.The meeting between President Kenyatta and Italian Prime Minister Gentiloni discussed cooperation in security, fighting terror and maritime matters.They also discussed increasing the volume of Kenyan exports to Italy, which currently include coffee, tea, hides and skins, fish, leather, fruits and vegetables, and cut flowers.With Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau, President Kenyatta discussed support for health care  an area in which Canada has great interest, democracy, investments and innovation. President Kenyatta extended an invite to the Canadian Prime Minister to visit Kenya.At the meeting with Chancellor Merkel, President Kenyatta emphasised strengthening ties between Kenya and Germany. Chancellor Merkel took the opportunity to officially invite President Kenyatta to attend the G20 Summit in July.President Kenyatta speech at the Uhuru Park is the only long waited before all aspirants go to the field hunting for votes. Yesterday the Opposition Leader gave out his statement on how the Canan claimed will be and described it in details.
A 10-year-old boy is expected to recover after what police are calling an accidental shooting Monday morning in St. Petersburg.

Boy, 10, shot Monday morning at a home in St. Pete

St. Pete Police said the shooting is being ruled accidental

Victim listed in stable condition, expected to recover

The shooting happened at about 10:30 a.m. at a house on 17th Avenue South. St. Pete Police said the boy was playing with a group of children under the supervision of a 17-year-old.

According to officers, the children were playing with a gun and an 11-year-old boy fired the weapon, hitting the other boy.

The child was struck in the arm and the shoulder, police said. He was taken to All Children's Hospital and listed in stable condition.

"Everyone involved is cooperative," said Maj. Shannon Halstead, of the St. Petersburg Police Department. "All of the juveniles, all of their parents are cooperating. The firearm was recovered, so at this point, everyone is cooperating."

Detectives haven't said how the children got the gun. The victim's family members said it could be a lesson for all gun owners.

"Obviously, it became clear for our family today  it's a matter of life and death on locking up your guns," said Tricinia Rucker, who said she was a cousin of the boy who was shot. "It only takes a few seconds or a few minutes and it can make the difference between life and death."

St. Pete Police will work with the State Attorney's Office to determine if any charges will be filed.
Business is booming for realtors selling condos in downtown St. Petersburg.

With two high rises just completed, the city's tallest skyscraper more than halfway done and other high rises in the planning, downtown is trying to keep up with the demand.

Developers say it's an exciting time to build downtown

High-dollar high rise buyers cross generation gap

Locations like the Salvador are filling up fast



It's a seller's market right now. As the buildings go up, the number of condos and apartments available seems to keep going down.

Developer Bowen Arnold of DDA Development said it's an exciting time to build downtown.

"Just over the last three to four or five years, it just seems like it's really exploding, and we're really excited about the opportunities here. And we're looking for more," Arnold said.

Places like the Salvador are filling up just as fast as it's built.

"Now that the building's finished, we've sold four units in the last 30 days," Arnold said.

Construction isn't even completed on another St. Petersburg development, and it's sold more than 70 percent of its units. These are high-dollar high rises that are attracting buyers that cross the generation gap.

"We have people in their 30s, people in their 70s, single people, couples," Arnold said. "I think they're excited about downtown St. Pete and about living 15 minutes from the beach and and all the restaurants and the exciting things that are going on."

Debbie Ritschel and her husband are certainly excited about their new condo and new town.

"I found a website, walkable downtowns in Florida. We read them all and we zeroed in on Sarasota and St. Petersburg," she said. "And then found the Salvador online and said, 'This is it.'"

They're making the move from the Chicago area and say finding a lot of what they have up there down here makes the move perfect for them.

"We like the fact there are young people around," Ritschel said. "And we just think that to be able to bike instead of drive to a lot of places is something that we're looking forward to. And to just be able to get out and walk in the winter time, I think it going to be pretty special."

As fast as the condos are filling up, they'll have a lot of company to do those things with.

Arnold said his company hopes to build more living space in downtown St. Petersburg as soon it can.


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The value of aircraft production to the UK has reached 8bn this year, new figures reveal.

Companies delivered 406 aircraft in the first four months of the year, just one fewer than the same period of 2016, according to figures from ADS Group.

It's understood that included three planes from Bombardier - Northern Ireland's biggest firm in the sector - which were part-made in Belfast.

And one of the three was a CS100 jet delivered to Swiss Air in April.

ADS chief executive Paul Everitt said: "Aerospace industry production continues to closely match the record figures achieved in 2016 and deliveries of completed aircraft are already worth 8bn to the UK economy this year.

"It is vital that to achieve further increases in production rates, we see investment in new technologies and processes to support a real boost in productivity, improving the ability of supply chains to meet high global demand.

"There are important choices to be made by the next government on developing industrial strategy, supporting innovation and creating a world-leading business environment that could help the UK aerospace industry play an even greater role in this global market."

Meanwhile, earlier this month the Belfast Telegraph revealed there are concerns over further job losses at Bombardier here amid a major plan to outsource IT. The Canadian aerospace giant announced this month that it had secured a six-year $700m deal with IBM.

The outsourcing contract is believed to be a cost-saving measure within the company's IT infrastructure globally. While up to 140 IT staff based in Belfast could be affected, union sources say they believe job losses could be mitigated through workers transferring to other roles or leaving the company voluntarily.

Bombardier employs around 4,500 workers across Northern Ireland. The majority are based in Belfast and, among other work, produce the wings and parts of the fuselage for its C Series passenger planes.

It comes after Bombardier slashed more than 1,000 jobs here over the past year.
Co Antrim firm McCue Crafted Fit has carried out a major refurbishment of Danske Bank's headquarters in Belfast in a project worth a six-figure sum.

The bank is adapting its listed Donegall Square West headquarters for the future, and earlier this year announced that it had let its third floor to accountancy firm Grant Thornton.

McCue worked with Todd Architects and design company 1080 to transform the rest of the property still in use by the bank.

The four-month project included a new front entrance.

McCue Crafted Fit managing director Les McCracken said: "This project is particularly significant for the company as it highlights McCue's cross-sector capabilities. It draws upon both our office and retail fit out experience as well as highlighting our ability to fit out in a live environment, ensuring minimal disruption whilst works were carried out."

And he said the company had sought to respect the building's history as an early example of 1970s brutalist architecture, while bringing the inside up to date.

"McCue provided a complete office fit-out of the ground, mezzanine, first and fifth floors in the building."
Hollywood actor George Clooney has said the world needs to become more engaged in doing good for humanity.

He chairs the selection committee for the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity, awarded in Armenia to an outstanding humanitarian worker.

The accolade marks the memory of survivors of what citizens of the mountainous Caucasus region country describe as a genocide on their land a century ago.

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George said: We all have a role in addressing these global challenges.

We all have a responsibility, each of us individually.

We have to be engaged.

The ceremony was attended by the countrys president and named after one of the survivors of the First World War era eight-year slaughter and alleged ethnic cleansing suffered by Armenians as the Ottoman Empire disintegrated.

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Armenia estimates that 1.5 million countrymen died in the pogroms. Turkey does not recognise it as genocide and estimates the number of deaths in the thousands. George is an outspoken human rights advocate.

Dr Tom Catena, who has worked in Sudans war-ravaged Nuba Mountains for more than a decade, was awarded the prize.

George said the Aurora finalists were modern day heroes who had put themselves at risk.
A victims' group in Northern Ireland has called on Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott to apologise after comparing her past support for the IRA to her changing hairstyle.

Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, Ms Abbott continually refused to confirm that she regretted calling for the IRA to "defeat the British State".

Mr Marr also asked Ms Abbott: "You yourself said a defeat for the British State would be a great liberation, a great move forward, at that period of time. Do you regret your support for the IRA back in the Eighties?"

Ms Abbott replied: "That particular quote you're referring to comes from a now defunct Left newspaper.

"It was 34 years ago. I had a rather splendid afro at the time. I don't have the same hairstyle and I don't have the same views.

"It is 34 years on. The hairstyle has gone, and some of the views have gone."

Mr Marr was discussing Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's comments about never having met with the IRA, despite having been pictured with members of the IRA throughout his political career.

However, Kenny Donaldson, spokesman for Innocent Victims United, said: "The reality is that the Labour Party's key personnel, its leader, shadow chancellor and shadow home secretary are all highly suspect on the PIRA.

"Their record down the years has spoken for itself and comments over the weekend from Jeremy Corbyn and Diane Abbott prove that they remain unable and unwilling to condemn the totality of PIRA's insurrectionist campaign which saw the wholesale murder of its neighbours - Protestant, Roman Catholic and Dissenter.

"We need to remember that these are the individuals who have their sights on leadership positions with a future Government. Yet their leader refuses to condemn the murder and injury of, and to, his fellow citizens, members of the security forces who sought to thwart terrorism and to serve their entire community.

"In essence, Jeremy Corbyn subscribes to Provo policy that members of the RUC/PSNI, Army, Prison Service, Met Police and others were 'legitimate targets'. "His shadow home secretary's comments this weekend about her political views having changed over the last 34 years like her hairstyle is nothing short of crass and disgraceful.

"How does Diane Abbott believe these comments are heard by the innocent victims and survivors of terrorism?

"She must account for, and make apology for, these comments and she must state very clearly how her views on PIRA have changed, in plain speaking. No more riddle talking Ms Abbott."

Mr Corbyn was later asked on ITV's Peston On Sunday if Ms Abbott's hairstyle comments trivialised the IRA. "Diane's hairstyle is a matter for Diane," he replied.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (right) with Sky News political editor Faisal Islam during a joint Channel 4 and Sky News general election programme recorded at Sky studios in Osterley, west London. PA

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has insisted he would not "soften" the UK's foreign policy if he became prime minister, after Conservative claims that he would be soft on terrorism.

Mr Corbyn's attempt, in the wake of last week's Manchester bombing, to draw a link between British involvement in military interventions overseas and terrorism at home led to Tory accusations that he was making excuses for extremists.

But on the Sky News/Channel 4 "Battle for Number Ten" general election TV special, Mr Corbyn condemned the bomber for his "appalling, abominable and atrocious act".

Mr Corbyn and Theresa May were being questioned separately by studio audiences and interviewed by Jeremy Paxman, after the Prime Minister refused to go head-to-head with other party leaders in a debate.

Challenged over whether he would "soften" the UK's foreign policy, Mr Corbyn said: "It's not about softening our foreign policy. It's about absolutely condemning what happened in Manchester."

He added: "We have to have a foreign policy around the world that doesn't leave large areas without any effective government - such as in Libya at the present time - which can become a breeding ground for enormous danger for all of us.

"My point was absolute condemnation. My point was that we need more police not less - that's why we've pledged to provide 10,000 more police on our streets - and we need a foreign policy that doesn't leave large areas of the world ungoverned so that we have a more secure future for all of us.

"Do not allow this to become an attack on our multicultural society or the wonderful faith of Islam. This was a perversion of Islam, what was done in Manchester."

Asked whether he would provide backing for fighters taking on the Islamic State terror group in Syria, Mr Corbyn said that the anti-IS forces on the ground were "complex and sometimes fighting each other".

He said: "We have to cut off the funds for IS, cut off the arms for IS, cut off their publicity as well, but also bring about a peace process in Syria by reconvening the Geneva talks, including all the neighbouring countries as well as Iran, but also bring about a constructive dialogue in Libya, so we don't have huge areas of that country, with all its oil wealth, ungoverned and a prey for this kind of thing."

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Mr Corbyn was challenged by an audience member who claimed the Labour leader had "openly supported the IRA in the past" by attending a commemoration for eight IRA members killed by the SAS in Loughgall.

Mr Corbyn said there was a period of silence for "everyone who died in Northern Ireland" at the 1987 event.

When pressed further, Mr Corbyn said: "The contribution I made to that meeting was to call for a peace and dialogue process in Northern Ireland.

"It's only by dialogue and process we brought about peace in Northern Ireland and I think that's a good thing. And I think going forward, we need to make sure in the Brexit negotiations there is no return to any kind of hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic."
Sinn Fein's John O'Dowd has said there was a difference between the IRA's bombing of Manchester and the suicide attack carried out by Salman Abedi.

Sinn Fein's John O'Dowd has said the conflict in Ireland was the difference between the IRA's bombing of Manchester in 1996 and last week's suicide bombing by Salman Abedi

The former Education Minister also refused to condemn the planting of a 3,300lb truck bomb in the city centre one Saturday morning 21 years ago.

The republican party spokesman was interviewed on the BBC Stephen Nolan show on Monday morning on his party's Westminster General Election campaign.

He was asked about an article in the Belfast Telegraph which asked Sinn Fein leader Michelle O'Neill " when it became unacceptable to bomb Manchester?".

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Asked if he would condemn the IRA's attack in Manchester in 1996, the Upper Bann MLA said: "I'm not getting into that."

The political context of the conflict on the island of Ireland is the difference - that's the difference. The political context of the peace process of the past 20 years - that's the difference. John O'Dowd

He said it was "disgraceful" that the horror of last week was being used as a "political battering ram on this island and in the rest of the UK" against his party and Labour.

Asked what the difference was between the two attacks that he could condemn one and not the other, he said: "There is a difference, there was a conflict going on at the time that included many different players.

"If Sinn Fein can't condemn Manchester last week. No one can."

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Wendy Fawell AFP/Getty Images Chloe Rutherford and Liam Curry [Photo Press Association] Press Association Images Sorrell Leczkowski Press Association Images Elaine McIver AFP/Getty Images John Atkinson Eilidh MacLeod PA Courtney Boyle AFP/Getty Images Saffie Rose Roussos Press Association Images Megan Hurley Press Association Images Martyn Hett Press Association Images Philip Tron PA Olivia Campbell Kelly Brewster  Kelly Brewster / Facebook Michelle Kliss Press Association Images Marcin and Angelika Klis  Facebook / Facebook

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Mr O'Dowd added: "Theresa May launched attacks in recent weeks and months killing men women and children. Donald Trump launched attacks in recent weeks and months killing men women and children - have they the right to condemn Manchester?"

Because you have political drive to do something - doesn't make it right. John O'Dowd

He went on: "The IRA put forward an argument for their campaign. I'm not a spokesperson for the IRA. I wasn't a spokesperson for the IRA when they were active and I am not a spokesperson for the IRA now."

"I am putting it in context. The IRA's bombing of Manchester did not happen in isolation. There are political parties using Manchester bombing as opportunity to attack Sinn Fein and the Labour party in some way to divert political attention from other elements of the election campaign.

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The MLA said it was an "uncomfortable reality" for every political leader in Western Europe to come up with a difference between Abedi's suicide attack on a music concert filled with young girls and the planting of a bomb in a shopping centre on a Saturday morning.

"None of them can stand back and say 'let he who is without sin thrown the first stone'."

Targeting of innocent men, women and children is disgusting. It is the definition of terrorism. John O'Dowd

On why he would condemn the last week's Manchester bomb, he added: "The deliberate targeting of innocent men, women and children is disgusting. It is the definition of terrorism and I have no sympathy with or allegiance to, or understanding of so-called ISIS, its predecessors Al-Qaeda or anyone else that goes out and deliberately targets men women and children"

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham lays flowers after a minute's silence in St Ann's Square, Manchester, to remember the victims of the terror attack in the city earlier this week. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Thursday May 25, 2017. See PA story POLICE Explosion. Photo credit should read: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire PA MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn observes a minute's silence with members of Islington Fire Brigade in London. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Thursday May 25, 2017. See PA story POLICE Explosion. Photo credit should read: Yui Mok/PA Wire PA MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 25: People observe a minute silence in memory of the victims of the Manchester attack, on May 25, 2017 in in Parliament Square, London, England. People around the country stopped at eleven o'clock to observe one minute of silence to remember the 22 people killed by the attack at an Ariana Grande concert on Monday. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) Getty Images MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 25: People sit in Parliament Square as a minute silence is held in memory of the victims of the Manchester attack, on May 25, 2017 in in Parliament Square, London, England. People around the country stopped at eleven o'clock to observe one minute of silence to remember the 22 people killed by the attack at an Ariana Grande concert on Monday. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images) Getty Images People observe a minute's silence in St Ann's Square, Manchester, to remember the victims of the terror attack in the city earlier this week. Owen Humphreys/PA Wire PA People stop to observe a minute's silence in St Ann's Square gathered around the tributes, in central Manchester, northwest England, on May 25, 2017, as a mark of respect to the victims of the May 22 terror attack at the Manchester Arena. Police said they arrested two men Thursday in the Manchester area in connection with the deadly bombing of an Ariana Grande pop concert, while a detained woman was released without charges. Britain has raised its terror alert to the maximum level and ordered troops to protect strategic sites after 22 people were killed in a suicide bomb attack on a Manchester pop concert. / AFP PHOTO / Ben STANSALLBEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images People observe a minute's silence in St Ann's Square, Manchester, to remember the victims of the terror attack in the city earlier this week. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Thursday May 25, 2017. See PA story POLICE Explosion. Photo credit should read: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire PA MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack, on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images) Getty Images LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Visitors to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show pause to observe a minute silence for the victims of the Manchester Arena terror attack on May 25, 2017 in London, England. 22 people, including children were killed and dozens injured in an suicide bomb attack during an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena on May 22nd. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images) Getty Images LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Visitors to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show pause to observe a minute silence for the victims of the Manchester Arena terror attack on May 25, 2017 in London, England. 22 people, including children were killed and dozens injured in an suicide bomb attack during an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena on May 22nd. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images) Getty Images LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Visitors to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show pause to observe a minute silence for the victims of the Manchester Arena terror attack on May 25, 2017 in London, England. 22 people, including children were killed and dozens injured in an suicide bomb attack during an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena on May 22nd. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images) Getty Images MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - MAY 25: Residents of Lindum Stree, Moss Side observe a minutes silence in memory of the victims of the Manchester bomb attack on May 25, 2017 in Manchester, England. An explosion occurred at Manchester Arena on the evening of May 22 as concert goers were leaving the venue after Ariana Grande had performed. Greater Manchester Police are treating the explosion as a terrorist attack and have confirmed 22 fatalities and 59 injured. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images) Getty Images Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (third right back) joins fire fighters at Islington Fire Station, north London, as he observes a minute's silence to remember the victims of the Manchester terror attack. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Thursday May 25, 2017. See PA story POLICE Explosion. Photo credit should read: Yui Mok/PA Wire PA A moments silence is held at Belfast City Hall in memory of those who died at the Manchester Arena bombing. May 25th 2017 (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph A moments silence is held at Belfast City Hall in memory of those who died at the Manchester Arena bombing. May 25th 2017 (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph A moments silence is held at Belfast City Hall in memory of those who died at the Manchester Arena bombing. May 25th 2017 (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph A moments silence is held at Belfast City Hall in memory of those who died at the Manchester Arena bombing. May 25th 2017 (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph A moments silence is held at Belfast City Hall in memory of those who died at the Manchester Arena bombing. May 25th 2017 (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph A moments silence is held at Belfast City Hall in memory of those who died at the Manchester Arena bombing. May 25th 2017 (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph A moments silence is held at Belfast City Hall in memory of those who died at the Manchester Arena bombing. May 25th 2017 (Photo - Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph / Facebook

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Whatsapp Members of the public observe a national minute's silence in remembrance of all those who lost their lives in the Manchester Arena attack. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

He said just because those that carry out the bombing thought they were trying to achieve a political objective "did not make it right".

Asked if he thought violence for a political means was justified he added: "The circumstances which create violence for political means should never happen and when it does happen, it is the role of people like me, not combatants, to work a political way through those things.

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During the wide-ranging interview, Mr O'Dowd also ruled out his party going into government with Arlene Foster as First Minister while the RHI inquiry continues its work and said that Donald Tump's presidency and Brexit had meant he could not put a date on the devolution of corporation tax.

"So many different factors in play, so many unknowns no one can answer that question," he said.

"The key question is, is it affordable? And we have to go through all those other factors that have come into play since Martin McGuinness and Arlene Foster first announced it."
Police in Northern Ireland have appealed for information from anyone who may have seen murder victim Colin Horner in the final moments of his life before he was gunned down in a supermarket car park in front of his three-year-old son.

Mr Horner was shot at least three times by a single gun man in Sainsbury's supermarket car park in front of a "large number" of Sunday shoppers.

Police said the man's young son was immediately beside him when he was shot dead.

"It's a hugely barbaric act that will live long in this young boy's memory," said the officer leading the murder investigation Detective Superintendent Richard Campbell.

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He said the attack had a "huge degree of recklessness" with one stray bullet found to have hit another car in the shooting.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, the police officer said the victim was "known to police" and one line of investigation was the ongoing loyalist tensions in Carrickfergus although they were in the early stages of a major investigation.

"But that should not take away from the fact a man with his three-year-old son was gunned down in a supermarket car park," the officer said.

He said that he could not comment on if there was a threat against the 35-year-old's life, other than to say that police act accordingly when they are aware of a threat against anyone.

Mr Campbell outlined what police knew of the final few hours of Mr Horner's life. He said the victim had been living with his partner and son in the Rathgael area "for some time".

Expand Expand Previous Next Close Loyalist Colin Horner who was shot dead in Bangor Loyalist Colin Horner who was shot dead in Bangor pictured at the funeral of Geordie Gilmore in Carrickfergus in March this year Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph / Facebook

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At around 1pm he left the house in his black Nissan Pulsar car registration XFZ 4706 before arriving at Sainsbury's around 2.30pm. He then went into the supermarket with his son for about 10 minutes.

As he got into his car, he was then approached by a single gunman who fired, it's thought, a handgun. He was said to be wearing a dark hoodie with it covering his head and either a builder's dust mask or scarf covering his face.

The police officer said officers were scouring CCTV footage from around the car park and inside the store but appealed to the public's help to fill in the blanks of the murdered man's final movements.

"Where was he in the hour before the attack?" said the officer appealing for the public's help.

Detectives believe the gunman made his escape, with at least one other accomplice in a red Ford Mondeo registration GKZ 7996, although this was a false plate, police said. It was parked across from Sainsbury's car park and had a missing rear driver's side hub cap.

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It is thought to have driven off in the direction of Six Road Ends before it was found burnt out on Kerrs Road between Newtownards and Bangor.

Mr Campbell said the vehicle may have been following Mr Horner in the run up to the shooting.

"There was the gunman and at least one other associate. So they must have had another vehicle on the Kerrs Road to take them away, so someone must have saw them, or them burning the car," the officer continued.

"There were a number of people we are yet to speak to and urge them to come forward and speak to police in Bangor.

"I am conscious this happened in a busy car park on a Sunday afternoon and there may be people with footage on mobile phones and I would urge those people to come forward.

The detective also encouraged anyone with dashboard camera footage that was in the area at the time to contact police as it may hold vital clues in the pursuit of the gunman."

Police can be contacted on the non-emergency number 101.
Police thanked the public for their help.

Police have said missing girl Corrina Gorman has been found safe and well.

The 13-year-old was last seen on Friday sparking concern.

Police confirmed she had been located safe and well on Monday.

They thanked the public for their help in their appeal.
The DUP has hit back at Sinn Fein's John O'Dowd after he claimed the party "played footsie" with the UDA.

Upper Bann MLA O'Dowd made the claim on the BBC Stephen Nolan Radio Ulster show on Monday morning.

Asked about Sinn Fein's red lines in terms of returning to government, the former education minister reiterated his party's stance that it would not go into government with Arlene Foster as first minister as long as the inquiry into the Renewable Heating Incentive scheme was ongoing.

He said if she were to take up the office while the inquiry was carrying out its work then it would "not be stable for government".

Broadcaster Stephen Nolan reminded the MLA of the PSNI's assessment that the IRA Army council was involved in overseeing Sinn Fein's strategy in the wake of the 2015 Kevin McGuigan murder in Belfast. And despite this the DUP did not bring down the government.

Referring to the fatal shooting of Colin Horner in Bangor, believed to be linked to a loyalist feud, Mr O'Dowd said: "There was a murder last night and it wasn't carried out by the IRA. It was carried out by the Ulster Defence Association who the DUP are playing footsie with under the table on a daily basis.

"They may well deny it, but it is well recorded that the DUP are playing footsie with the UDA. We all have challenges in our society that we need to live up to."

A DUP spokesman said: "The DUP condemns all terrorism. There can be no place for any paramilitary organisation in our society and anyone involved in illegal activity must face the full weight of the law.

"This stance is in sharp contrast with John O'Dowd's justification of the Provisional IRA bombing Manchester. Attempts by Sinn Fein to distract from their hypocrisy will fool no one."

Last year there was outrage after then First Minister Arlene Foster posed alongside Dee Stitt, chief executive of ex-prisoners' organisation Charter NI who has in the past bragged of his involvement in the UDA. Although he says his paramilitary history is now in his past.
Yanna the deer with owner Kenny Gracey from Tandragee before the attack

Yanna the deer after patches of her fur were removed by some sort of chemical and (right)

An horrific scene met a Co Armagh farmer when he went to check on his animals yesterday morning at the Northern Ireland Countrysports Fair in Scarva.

The event, held at Scarvagh House, ran over the weekend. Tandragee farmer Kenny Gracey had set up an exhibition of his animals, which are used on film sets such as Game of Thrones.

Mr Gracey arrived at 7.30am on Sunday to check his animals before the event reopened and was shocked by what he found.

One of his animals, his beloved three-year-old red doe deer, Yanna, had patches of fur missing from her hide.

The distraught owner found a gate pinion had been removed and the gate was partially open, proving that someone had been in the animal's pen. His donkey Joey was in the pen with the deer, but was unharmed.

Mr Gracey said that a vet who checked the animal over thinks that some kind of chemical had been poured over the deer's hide.

He has offered a 'substantial reward' for information leading to those responsible for the attack being brought to justice.

Mr Gracey said: "It seems someone had removed the gate pinion and had been in the pen with the animals.

"I don't know exactly what they did, but the deer's hide is all patchy where fur has been removed.

"A vet checked Yanna over and thinks that some kind of chemical has been poured on her.

"I informed the animal welfare officer and the show authorities.

"There was security present on the site overnight but someone, for whatever reason, has decided to attack my defenceless deer.

"I keep a number of animals that are used on film sets and take some of them around events to show the kids.

"This is the first time any of my animals have been attacked," he said.

Mr Gracey is offering a reward for information about the attack. He said: "If anyone can make me aware of exactly who did this, there is a substantial reward waiting for them.

"I am in no doubt that this was a deliberate attack on a defenceless animal and whoever is responsible needs to be brought to justice. The hair will grow back in the affected areas, but that is not the point.

"Some thug who thinks it is okay to attack an animal like this must be punished," he added.

The Northern Ireland Countrysports Fair is organised by Countrysports Fairs, based in Portadown.

Organiser Derek Lutton said: "People are making a mountain out of a molehill here. We think the donkey and the deer had a disagreement and the donkey bit the deer, removing hair in the process. The vet checked the deer over and was quite happy.

"There was a pin missing from the bottom of the temporary pen the animals were in."

However, Mr Gracey refutes those claims and says Joey is very protective of Yanna and would never harm her. "That's nonsense," said Mr Gracey. "The vet said he suspects some kind of chemical was poured over Yanna. She and Joey spend all the shows together in the same pen. She is like a child to me.

"People have reported seeing some drunken youths near the show lying on the grass early on Sunday morning. My reward offer stands," he stressed.
Kate Walmsley is returning to Glasgow where she lived before her father placed her in a church-run home

A victim of historic child abuse at a Catholic Church children's home is to make an emotional return to her hometown in a bid to trace her long lost family.

Kate Walmsley, 60, was seven years old when she was taken from her home in Glasgow and placed in the care of the Sisters of Nazareth in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, following the break-up of her parents' marriage.

While there she was regularly sexually assaulted by a priest and beaten by the nuns.

After more than five decades away from home Ms Walmsley is to make her first trip back to Scotland on Wednesday where she hopes to trace some family members.

"I have always wanted to go back to the place where I remember being happy, before all the abuse. I finally feel it is time," said Ms Walmsley.

"I just want to stand on the street I used to live with my parents. I have so many happy memories of there.

"Even still, when I close my eyes, I can feel my mummy's hand holding mine walking me to school.

"That is the last time I remember being truly happy."

Ms Walmsley said from around the age of three to seven she lived on Garscube Road in Glasgow and some of her relatives owned a fruit and vegetable shop on the corner.

Following the break-up of her parents' relationship her father took her to Northern Ireland and placed her in Nazareth Lodge in Derry.

"I am both excited and anxious about going back to Scotland. I just want to stand where I was when I was happy with my mummy.

"The memories are very special to me.

"I feel like I was stripped of my identity after I was put in Nazareth House in Derry.

"I just want to have a sense of belonging and I am hoping that going back to Glasgow to try and find my family will give me that," she said.

Before travelling to Glasgow Ms Walmsley and Margaret McGuckin, of the campaign group Survivors & Victims of Institutional Abuse (Savia), are to join other victims at a vigil in Edinburgh on the opening day of the Scottish child abuse inquiry.

The Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry was set up on October 1 2015 and public hearings are to begin on Wednesday.

The Northern Ireland Child Abuse Inquiry found children's homes run by some churches, charities and state institutions in Northern Ireland were the scene of widespread abuse and mistreatment of young residents.

Ms Walmsley, who gave evidence to the Northern Ireland inquiry, said she wanted to encourage victims in Scotland to come forward and have their voices heard.

"Before the inquiry in Northern Ireland, I thought I would bring all that I went through to the grave.

"But I now have peace within because I was able to talk about it.

"Before the inquiry I was giving up on my life.

"I just didn't want to go on.

"It was very hard and emotional taking part in the inquiry, but the support of Savia and all the other victims helped me through.

"I feel I am now an open book," said Ms Walmsley

Ms McGuckin added: "We have been through the inquiry process and can give advice.

"Y ou can free yourself by putting it back on the shoulders of those who perpetrated the abuse.

"You have to go back to come forward. I would encourage all survivors to come forward."
The tweet was deleted not long after it was posted.

There has been anger over a tweet from a Democratic Unionist which stated Sinn Fein was not welcome to canvass a "unionist town" in Northern Ireland.

On Monday morning Jim Wells took to Twitter, stating: "Many complaints about Sinn Fein canvassing in Rathfriland yesterday. They are not welcome in this unionist town - particularly on a Sunday."

The former Health Minister quickly removed the tweet but not before it was screen-grabbed and shared across social media.

Contacted by the Belfast Telegraph to explain the tweet and its removal, the DUP man responded: "No comment" and referred us to the party's press office.

"The main role of the press is to set bear traps for politicians and I have no intention of falling into them. No comment," he added.

Responding to the post on Facebook some claimed the post was "anti-democratic".

One person wrote: "You can disagree with them, argue against them, but you can't object to them campaigning. That's democracy."

On Twitter users pointed out there couldn't be "no-go zones" for political parties campaigning for election, while another pointed out how the "last census revealed Rathfriland to be 40% Catholic.

"So it's hardly an exclusively unionist town," he said.

Another added: "Who does Jim Wells think he is? Enjoy your own bubble Jim, the rest of us will practice loving our neighbours!"

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Sinn Fein MLA Chris Hazzard who is running for the South Down Westminster seat, added: Sinn Fein has widely canvassed the South Down area over the course of this election.

Our message of equality, rights and Irish unity was well received during our canvas yesterday in Rathfriland.

Sinn Fein will not be deterred by Jim Wells or anyone else from bringing that message to the electorate of South Down.

A DUP spokesman said: "All parties have a right to canvass for votes. We recognise however that many people value the special nature of Sunday and do not wish to have this intruded upon by political canvassers from any party.

"The tweet in question was deleted shortly after it was posted.

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A lawyer and three politicians have dropped their legal challenge in Ireland on whether Brexit is permanent.

Papers were lodged in the High Court in Dublin earlier this year in a bid to seek a ruling on the issue from the European Court of Justice.

But Jolyon Maugham QC, director of the Good Law Project, said the length of time the challenge will take and the costs involved have forced them to ditch it.

Some 70,000 raised through crowd-funding for the case will be spent on legal fees already incurred with whatever is left over going to other Brexit challenges or charity, he said.

"Along with the other plaintiffs, Jonathan Bartley, Keith Taylor and Steven Agnew, I have taken stock of progress made on the Dublin case, its prospects going forward and changes in the wider political setting," he said.

"With regret, we have agreed between us and with Ireland that the litigation should be discontinued."

Mr Bartley is co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, Mr Agnew is outgoing Stormont Green MLA and Mr Taylor is a Green MEP for South-East England.

They had hoped the case would establish that the Article 50 notification to start Brexit negotiations, which Prime Minister Theresa May triggered in March, can be revoked.

Mr Maugham said their decision to drop the legal challenge did not mean Brexit is inevitable.

"Each of the (European) Council, (European) Commission and European Parliament has said the United Kingdom could withdraw the Article 50 notice with agreement," he said.

"There is no doubt this is so."
Hundreds of people last night gathered in support of the young Tipperary parents who lost their only child in a freak accident.

Mourners queued outside the Tipperary town home of Paul and Louise Fogarty to offer their sympathies and solidarity after the death of seven-month-old Chloe.

Chloe died after being found unresponsive in a parked car in Dundrum last Thursday - the hottest day of the year to date.

Despite being rushed to University Hospital Limerick by air ambulance, doctors were unable to save the infant.

A post-mortem examination was conducted last Saturday by the Republic's State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy.

It involved a number of detailed clinical tests, the full results of which will not be available for some time.

However, sources said that the preliminary indications are that Chloe's death, as initially feared, was consistent with the effects of overheating or heat stroke. It is suspected the child may have been in the car, parked not far from where her father Paul works at O'Dwyer Steel, for between four and five hours.

She was discovered by her horrified father shortly after 1pm.

Chloe had been scheduled to be dropped to a local creche at 8.30am.

Mr Fogarty is understood to have been distracted by a phone call and didn't realise his little girl, who was asleep, was still in the parked car.

Chloe's mother Louise had only recently returned to work from maternity leave and their creche arrangements had just been in place for a matter of days.

Both Paul and Louise are very well-known in the west Tipperary area.

Both families are hugely respected and have strong connections to the worlds of GAA, horse-racing, community development and healthcare.

Mourners gathered at the family's Tipperary town home where Chloe rested in repose from 5pm to 7pm last night.

Her Mass of the Angels will be held today at 11.30am in the Church of St Nicholas in Solohead.

Locals said the community was doing everything possible to support the devastated parents.

"Everyone is heartbroken - the whole community is shocked by it," one local said.

Kilfeacle parish priest Fr Pat Coffey said the community was left totally devastated by the tragedy.

"It is just a case of being shell-shocked.

"Everybody is feeling for the family," he said.
An order of nuns have said they are to give up any ownership rights to the new National Maternity Hospital.

After deep concern that the Religious Sisters of Charity would dictate medical care at the 300 million euro facility on the St Vincent's Hospital campus in Dublin, the sisters confirmed they were completely relinquishing involvement in the site.

The shares held by the nuns will be transferred to a new company called St Vincent's.

The Sisters of Charity said they had spent the last two years trying to find the best way to give up their ownership of the St Vincent's Healthcare Group (SVHG), which includes St Vincent's University Hospital, St. Vincent's Private Hospital and St Michael's Hospital, Dun Laoghaire.

"Just as our Founder Mary Aikenhead saw the need in 1834 to establish a hospital to meet the needs of the sick and poor, we believe that it is in the best interests of the patients and children born in the National Maternity Hospital today that they be provided with modern maternity and neonatal services that are women and infant centred and integrated within the Elm Park campus," Sr Mary Christian, the leader of the order said.

"It is now time for us to relinquish completely our involvement in SVHG.

"We are confident that the board, management and staff of SVHG will continue to maintain a steadfast dedication to providing the best possible acute healthcare to patients and their families in line with the values espoused by Mary Aikenhead."

The potential involvement of nuns in the running and governance of a maternity hospital had caused deep unease in some medical circles and among the public.

The controversy arose after details of a confidential deal emerged between the Sisters of Charity, the St Vincent's Healthcare Group, medics and management at the National Maternity Hospital and the Department of Health to build the new maternity hospital at St Vincent's.

It would have seen the nuns give land at Elm Park for the new hospital but retain ultimate ownership under a complex corporate structure.

It prompted leading obstetrician Dr Peter Boylan, a former Master of Holles Street, to resign from the board of the current National Maternity Hospital.

The St Vincent's Healthcare Group (SVHG) said the decision was a major development and reflected the wonderful legacy to healthcare that the Sisters of Charity have left.

Chairman James Menton said: "The Sisters have always held the highest ambitions for the provision of world class healthcare services in Ireland and have successfully achieved and sustained this.

"They also see the need for the proposed development of the new National Maternity Hospital integrated within the Elm Park campus and want to do everything possible to ensure this vital facility for mothers and babies is developed as quickly as possible."

Mr Menton said the healthcare group was absolutely committed to upholding the vision and values of Mary Aikenhead, dignity, compassion, justice, quality and advocacy.

The Sisters of Charity said St Vincent's, the new charity being created, will replace the order as the shareholders in SVHG.

The nuns will receive a "nominal or peppercorn" payment for transferring ownership to the new company and t he two nuns who are currently on the SVHG board will resign.

T hey also said St Vincent's will not be subject to undue influence by individuals or from any source and it will not seek to generate any profit or surplus or remunerate directors for their work.

As part of the transfer of ownership the Sisters of Charity outlined the ethos of the new National Maternity Hospital.

"Upon completion of this proposed transaction, the requirement set out in the SVHG Constitution, to conduct and maintain the SVHG facilities in accordance with The Religious Sisters of Charity Health Service Philosophy and Ethical Code, will be amended and replaced to reflect compliance with national and international best practice guidelines on medical ethics and the laws of the Republic of Ireland," the nuns said.

At the heart of the controversy over the Sisters of Charity involvement in maternity services were concerns that nuns or the Catholic Church hierarchy could dictate what medical treatments or procedures were carried out.

Dr Boylan questioned whether they could influence whether women could have terminations if their life is at risk, seek IVF treatment, sterilisation or contraceptive care.

Ambiguity deepened when Bishop Kevin Doran said the Sisters would have to obey church law as owners of the hospital, regardless of how the facility is funded, and that governance rests with the pope.

One section of land on the Elm Park Campus, where the St Vincent's Private Hospital originally stood, is to be bought by the St Vincent's Hospital Group as part of the deal.

In a statement, Dr Rhona Mahony, Master of Holles Street, and Judge Nicholas Kearns, deputy chairman of the National Maternity Hospital, said they believed the Sisters never intended to influence medical care.

"It was our clear understanding that the nuns never sought to exercise clinical control over the hospital and that the independent ethos of the new National Maternity Hospital would be preserved on relocation," they said.

"We have worked closely with St Vincent's University Hospital for generations and we would like to acknowledge the outstanding contribution of the Sisters of Charity to Irish Healthcare over so many years."

Health Minister Simon Harris said the nuns' decision was historic.

"It directly addresses concerns regarding the question of religious influence in the new National Maternity Hospital and further illustrates the constructive role of the Sisters to facilitate this landmark project," he said.

Dr Boylan told the RTE Radio's Today with Sean O'Rourke that the Sisters of Charity had taken a brave decision.

He said it was "noble and honest and a genuine contribution to the care of women".

"A lot of credit needs to be spread around. I certainly feel vindicated in my views, but I don't feel personally responsible for the decision made by the Sisters of Charity," he said.
A Muslim who was a police chief in London at the time of the 7/7 attacks has called for extremists to be held in internment camps in the wake of the Manchester Arena bombing.

Tarique Ghaffur, the Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police at the time of the 2005 bombings, suggested specialist centres should be set up to house some 3,000 extremists.

Writing in the Mail on Sunday, he said the task of monitoring would-be terrorists exceeded the capabilities of police and security services who are grappling with around 500 investigations.

"These would be community-based centres where the extremists would be risk-assessed," he said. "Then the extremists would be made to go through a deradicalisation programme, using the expertise of imams, charity workers and counter-terrorism officers."

He added: "These centres would have oversight from vetted Muslim and other community leaders, who would ensure they stayed within the law."

His call came days after security sources confirmed as many as 23,000 people have appeared on the radar of counter-terror agencies, laying bare the scale of the potential threat.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump has said Theresa May was "very angry" about leaks to the US media of sensitive information about the Manchester Arena bombing. The US President tweeted that Mrs May gave him "full details" during talks while he attended summits in Europe. The Prime Minister said Mr Trump acknowledged the leaks were "unacceptable" when she challenged him about them.

Mr Trump said: "British Prime Minister May was very angry that the info the UK gave to US about Manchester was leaked. Gave me full details!"

Mrs May raised the issue with Mr Trump at the Nato summit in Brussels on Thursday after British police temporarily suspended information-sharing with counterparts across the Atlantic because the US media was repeatedly briefed about sensitive evidence.
A trainee pilot has reportedly been arrested in West Sussex in connection with the inquiry into the Manchester bombing.

The 23-year-old was held on suspicion of terror offences at an address in Shorehan-by-Sea, Greater Manchester Police said.

He is the 16th person to be arrested in connection with the attack, which killed 22 people and injured more than 100.

Violet Mainda, who owns a hairdresser's salon beneath the flat where he was arrested, said she believed the man who lives there was training or had trained to be a pilot,

She added: "He was a normal bloke, very jovial."

Ms Mainda told the Daily Mail: "He was a young Libyan guy who was always very jovial and nice.

"He said he was training to be a pilot at Shoreham Airfield and he had just completed doing that. I am really, really shocked by this. I can't believe he had been arrested.

"He had a few friends and a girlfriend and always seemed very nice. I don't know if he worked, I think he just studied to be a pilot. He said he was studying to become a pilot at Shoreham."

She added: "He told me he came from Libya. He must have been here more than a year and he was always jovial."

Shoreham Airfield, also known as Brighton City Airport, said they did not have anyone available for comment.

Expand Close Salman Abedi on the night he carried out the Manchester Arena terror attack (Greater Manchester Police/PA) Press Association Images / Facebook

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Early morning raids were also carried out at a house in Manchester, along with searches carried out in Chester.

The Bank Holiday raids followed a flurry of police activity in Manchester over the weekend, with the arrest of a 25-year-old man in Old Trafford and a 19-year-old man in Gorton.

MI5 has reportedly launched two urgent inquiries into whether it missed the danger posed by Abedi, 22, amid allegations it was warned of his deadly intent.

The domestic security service is said to be investigating whether any glaring errors were made in the handling of intelligence before the attack last Monday night.

Spy chiefs are believed to have held an emergency review in the days after the atrocity, while a separate in-depth inquiry is being conducted to look at the decision making surrounding his case before the massacre, the Guardian reports.

A senior Whitehall source previously has said Abedi was a "former subject of interest" to the security services whose risk "remained subject to review".

In the wake of the attack it emerged British counter-terror authorities were grappling with 500 investigations into 3,000 individuals.

Security sources later confirmed to the Press Association that a further 20,000 individuals were said to have been considered "subjects of interest" in the past, meaning as many as 23,000 people have appeared on the radar of counter-terror agencies, although the period the figures cover is unclear.
President Bashar Assad's forces are in control of most of the capital, Damascus

More airstrikes and artillery shelling on Monday hit the northern Syrian city of Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State group, as US-backed fighters pushed closer to the extremists' stronghold, activists said.

The developments come ahead of what is expected to be a major battle for Raqqa in the coming weeks.

Airstrikes have intensified over the past days as US-backed fighters have pushed on toward the city, getting closer to it from all sides.

The Kurdish-led Syria Democratic Forces captured dozens of towns and villages under the cover of airstrikes by the US-led coalition since November, when the group began an operation entitled Euphrates Wrath, aiming to eventually surround and capture Raqqa.

SDF fighters have surrounded Raqqa from the north, west and east.

The extremists still have an exit from the south, even though the US-led coalition destroyed two bridges on the Euphrates River south of Raqqa.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the city was pounded by warplanes and artillery since early morning.

The activist group had no immediate word on casualties from the new airstrikes, adding that about 38 people have been killed in Raqqa and its suburbs over the past three days.

The activist-operated Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently said that since Sunday, the US-led coalition carried out more than 30 airstrikes on the city, killing 35 people and destroying a school on Raqqa's northern outskirts.

On Sunday, opposition activists said the US-led coalition dropped leaflets in Arabic on Raqqa, urging residents to leave the city.

Some leaflets gave instructions of how to leave Raqqa, calling on people to keep their plans secret from IS and to leave without any weapons and waving a white banner.

"This is your last chance. Failing to leave could lead to death. Raqqa will fall. Don't be there when it happens," read one of the leaflets.

IS has been preventing people from leaving Raqqa and many fear that residents will be used as human shields when SDF, the most effective force fighting the extremists in Syria, begin marching in the city that has been held by IS since January 2014.

In the capital, Damascus, preparations were under way for the last group of opposition fighters and their families to start leaving the northeastern neighbourhood of Barzeh.

The Observatory said those who will leave later on Monday are the ones who rejected an amnesty from the government.

Anas a-Dimashqi, an opposition activist based near Damascus, said the fighters and their families will head to the town of Jarablous on the border with Turkey and the rebel-held northwestern province of Idlib.

He said those who stay have up to six months to settle their conditions with the government.

Once Barzeh is emptied out of opposition fighters, President Bashar Assad's forces will be in full control of the capital for the first time in more than five years.

AP
As the campaigning for the general election quickens from today after the suspension in the wake of the Manchester bombing, both main party leaders will need to clarify their strategy.

Prime Minister Theresa May will have to overcome the Tory wobble after the ill-conceived social care plans outlined in the manifesto, but Jeremy Corbyn will have a much bigger task to convince the electorate that he is fit to lead the country.

In his speech last Friday he seemed to infer that the cause of the Manchester bombing, and other militant Islamic atrocities, could be traced to British foreign policy and our involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria.

That is a view that will cut little ice with the British victims of those conflicts and the relatives, and the electorate will make up its own mind about Mr Corbyn's views.

The Labour leader is also unconvincing about his apparent condemnation of the Provisional IRA campaign of bombing and other extreme violence, particularly as this view had to be dragged out of him after a long political speech during which he failed to speak out against the men and women of violence.

Corbyn has further trapped himself in the mire in relation to his signing of a parliamentary motion in 1987 in the wake of the Poppy Day massacre that appeared to claim the bombing was due to the British occupation of Northern Ireland.

Such views are outrageous, and extremely hurtful to the victims of the Enniskillen bombing and their relatives and friends.

It beggars belief that the leader of a major British party is so biased he cannot find any grounds to blame those ruthless republican paramilitaries who killed and maimed innocent people who were remembering the war dead at the town's cenotaph.

All of this underlines that Mr Corbyn does not have the depth, even-handedness and breadth of mind to lead a major political party, never mind a country.

The Labour leader is not helped by senior members of the shadow cabinet, including Diane Abbott, who already made a fool of herself in her media interview about policing. Ms Abbott has once again underlined her lack of fitness for office by her crass remarks when confronted about her support for the IRA, saying her views on the Provos had changed over the years, just like her hairstyle.

This showed a lack of concern for what happened in Enniskillen and elsewhere, and her inability to handle a serious question that deserved a measured answer, not something trite and dismissive.

The whole question of the suffering caused by the Troubles remains a painful and sensitive issue for people on all sides, and people need to speak about this with sensitivity and human understanding.

In today's paper Declan Kearney of Sinn Fein shows a much a more measured approach to this subject.

He acknowledges the pain and hurt which has been felt and caused, and this will strike a chord with people on all sides.

He writes: "There is no distinction between the carnage and suffering which results from all wars. In Ireland, hurt was caused on all sides. There was and is no hierarchy of victimhood or humanity. The Irish peace process is the most important political project in Ireland. Our peace process is proof that another world is possible."

These are welcome words from a senior Sinn Fein figure, but we also cannot overlook the actions of militant republicanism - and also militant loyalism - over a long period, and much of the damage caused in human terms will never be overcome.

However, we must all look to the future and keep on trying to work together to make a lasting peace a reality.

There are many issues still to be hammered out during the last weeks of the general election campaign, but it is also important to remember that major problems for the people of Northern Ireland continue to pile up.

The waiting lists in the NHS are getting longer, education remains badly in need of resources, and the RHI scandal continues to burn away our money.

All these issues are really what matter, and not the outdated views of the Labour hierarchy, which are an insult to the people of Northern Ireland.
Google revealed it paid 36.4 million in UK corporation tax on pre-tax profits of 148.8 million in the year to June 30 2016

Google has launched a new feature that could make its search box even more popular than it already is.

The company has added a new Personal tab to its search page, which is designed to make it easier for you to track down your own content.

Personal is only available when youre logged in to your Google account, and results are taken from other Google services, like Gmail and Google Photos.

If you search for Belfast, for instance, Google will show you its regular list of relevant links. At the top of the results page, you can select Maps, News, Images or Video results too.

Immediately to the right of these options is More, which is where the Personal tab lives.

Selecting Personal will take you to another page, which looks very similar to Googles standard search page, but shows a list of items in your agenda that are related to London, any of your own Google Photos pictures that were taken in Belfast, and Gmail messages containing the word Belfast.

These items are split between separate cards, each of which repeats the message, Only you can see these results.

A number of Google ads sit at the bottom of the Personal page.

Much of Googles latest developer conference focused on Lens, a new service thats designed to encourage users to feed a lot more data to the company and give it much greater insight into our daily lives than ever before.

While Personal is certainly useful, it could stoke existing privacy fears.

However, it doesnt appear to be available to all users at the moment, and is instead rolling out gradually.

Personal hasnt yet made it to the Google app either, and lacks support for Google Drive files, though its possible that this will be added in the future.
Security personnel present Amiraj Basumatry (center), a suspected militant with the National Democratic Front of Bodoland, to media after his arrest in Chirang, in northeast Indias Assam state, Aug. 6, 2016.

Indian human rights activists are demanding an independent probe into allegations levelled by a top paramilitary officer that government forces killed two innocent tribesmen in a staged encounter in the northeast state of Assam two months ago.

In a recent letter to the Home Ministry, the inspector general of Indias Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) accused members of a joint security task force of picking up two Bodo tribesmen and killing them before labeling them as militants in insurgency-ravaged Chirang district on March 30. The slain men were identified as Lukash Narzary, 30, and Eyob Islary, 23.

In his stunning revelation, CRPF Inspector General Rajnesh Rai said that allegations made by members of his own department who had described the two men as belonging to the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB), an armed Christian separatist group fighting Indian forces for a sovereign state for its 1.2 million Bodo people, were false. Bodos are an ethnic aboriginal group, with a significant population in Assam and West Bengal.

The CRPFs official report present(s) a fictitious account of the joint operation by the security forces to conceal pre-planned murders of two persons in custody and present it as some brave act of professional achievement, Rai wrote in his letter that was publicized last week, terming the killings as one of the cruelest forms of human rights abuse.

Security forces do not have the right to kill them in cold blood under the cloak of larger societal good. Therefore, it is crucial to strike a balance between the individual human rights and societal interests while combating insurgency," he added.

'A blot' on security forces

Although the Assam government has launched an investigation into Rais allegations, human rights activists urged Indias rights watchdog, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), to conduct an independent probe into the killings.

Fake encounters are a blot on the records of security forces. The NHRC should intervene so as to ensure that human rights are not violated, Hasina Kharbih of Impulse, a Meghalaya-based rights group, told BenarNews.

If the allegations are true, this is a brutal act of murder that creates terror. Everyone has the right to face trial and to be heard, rights activist Agnes Kharshiang told Benar, adding that security forces routinely stage encounters in the militancy-torn northeast states.

Rais allegations have come even as the Supreme Court is hearing a set of petitions that seek to punish security officials who have allegedly killed hundreds of innocent people in fake encounters in Manipur, another state in the northeast, where more than 35 militant groups are active.

There have been at least 1,528 incidents of staged encounters in the past 20 years in Manipur alone, according to the Extra Judicial Execution Victim Families Association (EEVFAM).

The proliferation of armed groups and presence of arms have allowed a free run for all involved in counter-insurgency operations. The chaos provides the smokescreen for encounters, Kishala Bhattacharjee, author of Blood on my hands: Confessions of Staged Encounters, wrote on his blog.

The Assam government said it was conducting a magisterial probe into the allegations under guidelines issued by the NHRC.

The government of Assam views the matter very seriously and is committed to taking appropriate action on receipt of the enquiry report, the Times of India quoted an unnamed government spokesman as saying.
In a prior post (see here), I announced a new blog series designed to address problematic passage in the Bible. This new series will feature guest posts from other evangelical scholars and is largely a response to the one by Peter Enns entitled, Aha moments: biblical scholars tell their stories.

The contributor for this installment is Craig Blomberg (Ph.D., University of Aberdeen). Craig is the Distinguished Professor of New Testament at Denver Seminary, and the author of numerous books. A few notables are The Historical Reliability of the Gospels, Jesus and the Gospels: An Introduction and Survey, and Can We Still Believe the Bible? (the latter of which I reviewed here).



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In a recent post on his blog, Old Testament scholar Peter Enns invited New Testament scholar John Byron, professor at Ashland Theological Seminary, to write about an aha moment that changed his understanding of the Bible. Byron chose the same passage that Bart Ehrman described in the introduction to his Misquoting Jesus, which led to his reneging on his Christian commitment altogether in favor of agnosticism: Mark 2:26.

Now clearly Byron and Ehrman are a far cry from each other theologically. Ehrman teaches at a state university (the University of North Carolina) and tells classes regularly he wants to disabuse them of any form of Christian faith. Byron teaches at a theologically centrist United Methodist Seminary, helping to train people for professional ministry, and still considers himself a devout Christian. But both appeal to this same passage as one reason they reject the inerrancy of the Scriptures.

Its too bad Byron actually says so little about the passage itself in his blog. Here is the sum total of his exegetical remarks: Jesus got it wrong. The story in 1 Samuel 21 relates how David fled from Saul alone. When he stops at the tabernacle and asks Ahimelek for help the priest enquires why David is alone. David seems to lie when saying that his men well meet him later (v. 2). Moreover, Mark has the wrong priest. In 2:26 Jesus states that the priest was Abiather [sic], but 1 Samuel 21 clearly states that it was Ahimelek.

Lets look at each of these two claims one at a time. Byron first claims that Jesus was wrong in saying that David gave some of the consecrated bread he received from the priests at Nob to his companions, because he traveled to Nob alone. He also takes Davids words that he has told his men to meet him at a certain place to be a lie, probably because the first part of 1 Samuel 21:2, that David was on a mission for King Saul, is clearly a lie. That also means that everything David says in verses 45 about his men being ritually pure would also have to be made up. But why then would David ask for enough bread for himself and others? The story in 1 Samuel makes no sense if everything David says is untrue. Just because he is trying to deceive the priest on one matter hardly means everything he says is false. Indeed, the most convincing deceptions in general tend to be based on half-truths.

On any interpretation, however, nothing here suggests that Jesus got it wrong, as Byron claims. Jesus tells the story exactly as he would have learned it from the reading of the Hebrew Scriptures year after year in the synagogue. He is recounting the story perfectly accurately. We can debate to what extent David might have been lying, but Jesus has made no mistake in excerpting from the narrative precisely in the form he and his countrymen believed it to have been inspired.

The more significant claim that Byron makes is that Jesus has the wrong priest. There is no doubt that 1 Samuel 21:1 explicitly says that the priest David spoke with at Nob was Abimelek. But the wording of Mark 2:26 in the Greek is very unusual. It uses none of the several standard ways of expressing when something occurred. Instead it says these events happened epi Abiathar. Epi is a preposition that commonly mean upon, on, in, over, at, by, before, and numerous other things, but only very rarely, when. Why did Mark use such a strange construction to translate Jesus Aramaic words, unless he recognized that Jesus meant something a little different than when Abiathar was high priest?

In Mark 12:26, the same unusual construction reappears when Jesus is appealing to the story in Exodus 3 about Moses and the burning bush. He asks the Sadducees if they have not read epi tou batouliterally upon the bush. But that makes no sense. Translators recognize, therefore, that Mark is using epi in the sense of in the passage about [the bush]. This is exactly how the Revised Standard Version of the Bible translated it; the New Revised Standard modified that to in the story about [the bush].

Because ancient synagogues developed the practice of reading through the entire Law once a year and the rest of the Jewish Scriptures once every three years, they divided what Christians call the Old Testament into specific sections so rabbis knew exactly every Sabbath how much was to be read and expounded. They would often give a two-to-three chapter segment of text a simple one or two-word name, often based on a key character in that segment. Unfortunately, we have no comprehensive list of what these names were, if one ever even existed.

John Wenham, a British biblical scholar, as far back as 1950 published a short note in the Journal of Theological Studies suggesting that Abiathar was the name of the larger multi-chapter segment of text in which this specific story about David and Ahimelek was found. Abiathar is, after all, the more important of these two characters for the Samuel narrative overall. Because this interpretation is somewhat speculative, several Bible translations settle for the well attested but vaguer translation, in the time of Abiathar or in the days of Abiathar, which equally leaves Jesus free from having made any mistake.

I can understand why some scholars may not be convinced by this solution. But I am consistently amazed at how few ever even acknowledge knowing about it, much less interacting with it. I have cited it in several of my books, as have other leading evangelical commentators, who have found it completely satisfactory. Its unfortunate that Ehrman, Byron, and Enns never once disclose if they are familiar with it and, if they are, what objections (if any) they have to it. Until they do, it really is inappropriate for them to claim with such confidence that they know Jesus or Mark got it wrong!

For more, visit Dr. Kruger's website: Canon Fodder.
What her criticism of Trump means

Von: RALF SCHULER

Angela Merkel (62, CDU) just took a stand against US-President Donald Trump (70) after all. Following the G7 summit in Taormina, Sicily, she already expressed her disappointment at Americas obstruction of almost all relevant issues. She called the talks highly unsatisfactory.

She didnt mention Trump explicitly, even though she had tried to convince him of the importance of climate protection and free trade in a one-on-one conversation at the margins of the summit.

By the time she arrived at her beer tent talk in the Munich district of Trudering on Sunday, however, Merkel had had enough and went one step further: The times in which we could completely rely on others are, to a certain degree, over, as I have experienced in the last few days.

We Europeans must truly take our fate into our own hands.

Lesen Sie auch

In plain terms, this means that America is no longer a reliable partner  a clear slap in the face of Donald, as she calls him in her inner circle. We Europeans must truly take our fate into our own hands.

Auch interessant

The party is over, but is the longstanding friendship between Germany and America over too?

Merkel referred not only to Trump, but also to Brexit. Of course, the friendship with the US and the UK has to be maintained, she said. But we must know that we have to fight for our fate on our own.

The head of the Munich Security Conference, Wolfgang Ischinger, agrees. The Chancellor is right, of course. Europe has to increasingly take its fate into its own hands, he told BILD.

However: This means two things: on the one hand, we must no longer simply delegate Europes security to the US. We must spend more on security and defence and develop the EU into a security provider. On the other hand, it would be completely wrong to follow those who would prefer to immediately cut the transatlantic umbilical cord. Even if it will be troublesome  it will be easier for us Europeans to implement our global aims if we cooperate with the US in achieving them. We therefore need the strategic patience to keep showing Trump that, far and wide, we Europeans are his best partners.

Trump against the rest of the G7

Trump obstructed almost every important issue of the Group of 7 (G7) summit in Taormina:

 Concerning the Paris Agreement on climate protection, Trump would have preferred for there to be no mention of it in the final document.

 Concerning free trade, the US delegation could only be convinced by a very broad compromise. Trade barriers (protectionism) were rejected, but at the same time, trade is supposed to be fair and for mutual benefit. Who would object to that?

Concerning the chapter on refugees (entitled human mobility), in addition to sections on issues like fighting the causes of flight, Trump insisted on a section on border security.

The German delegations judgement after the summit was: Trump only knows one mission  his own.

If there were any doubts before  after Taormina it is clear that Trumps only goal is to make America great again and to create jobs for the US.

Internal analysis by the Chancellors aides says that the motivation to spread democracy across the world  which was still very strong under George W. Bush  has been replaced by a sober pragmatism of interests.

Consequently, Trump is not interested in the contributions of international allies and insists primarily on a fair distribution of costs  for instance, with respect to NATO.

It was obvious that Angela Merkel would draw her own conclusions from all of this. What was surprising, however, was how quickly she would make her statement following her return from Taormina  only one day later, in the Trudering beer tent.

PS: Sind Sie bei Facebook? Werden Sie Fan von BILD.de-Politik!
It can be tough to be a vegetarian. You have to work harder than everyone else to make sure youre getting all the nutrients your body needs. So, when its time to take a
Nearly 51,000 people expected to participate in the main event at Ramabhai Ambedkar Sabha Sthal

The capital of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, will host the main mega event of this years International Day of Yoga on 21st June and the event will be led by the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. This was formally announced by the Shripad Yesso Naik , Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH

Shripad said, Ministers of the Government of India, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and several Yoga Gurus are also expected to take part in the event at Lucknow. The venue for IDY-2017 is Ramabhai Ambedkar Sabha Sthal in Lucknow and nearly 51,000 people are expected to demonstrate common yoga protocol along with the dignitaries in this event.

Besides the main event in Lucknow, Delhi will also hold events in seven places. These events are being planned in association with NDMC, DDA and different Yoga Organisations. The leading Yoga Organisations are planning several other programmes on the occasion of IDY  2017 in Delhi as well as other parts of the country and also outside the country., he added

The AYUSH Minister also said that the Central Council for Research in Yoga & Naturopathy (CCRYN) is conducting One Month free Yoga camp in almost all the districts of the country through Govt. and Private Organisations. He said that the training programme has already started from 21st May, 2017.

Giving further details, Naik said that Ministry of AYUSH is planning to have a few Yoga Parks across the country, specially meant for Yoga activities throughout the year, which will be managed voluntarily by the Yoga or other organisations. He said that it is expected that nearly 100 such Yoga parks will come up within this year, which will be further expanded subsequently.

In his welcome address C.K Mishra, Secretary, Health and Family Welfare and AYUSH said, A sustainable Yoga atmosphere should be created throughout the year by organising Yoga activities even after the International Day of Yoga is over. The Yoga institutions/organisations in and around Lucknow will be actively involved in the main event this year
The Prime Minister spoke of his vision of doubling farmers' incomes by 2022, the 75th anniversary of independence.

The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi recently laid the foundation stone of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute at Gogamukh in Assam.

Addressing a large public meeting on the occasion, the Prime Minister congratulated the State Government in Assam and chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal, for the work done by them in the State.

He said that, agriculture needs to be developed in line with the requirements of the 21st century. He added that farmers must benefit from the changing technology.

He also stressed on the need of modern agriculture and technological interventions, keeping in mind the specific needs of the region.

The Prime Minister spoke of his vision of doubling farmers' incomes by 2022, the 75th anniversary of independence.

The Prime Minister said the Union Government had taken a number of steps for farmers' welfare in the last three years. In this context he mentioned the soil health cards, the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, and the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. He spoke of the vast network of soil health laboratories being set up across the country, and the popularity of the Fasal Bima Yojana among farmers.

The Prime Minister mentioned the "SAMPADA" Yojana, to boost value addition in agriculture.

The Prime Minister spoke of "Panch Tatva" - five elements to boost connectivity in the North-East: Railways, Highways, Airways, Waterways, and i-ways. He said his Government is working towards boosting prosperity and welfare of the people in the North-East through this "panch-tatva."
Wunderman Cerebra is to manage the entire social media community management function of SAB's brand portfolio in South Africa. SAB has partnered with Wunderman to establish a social engagement centre that will centralise the social media of Castle Lager, Carling Black Label, Castle Lite, Flying Fish, Corona, and Stella Artois.

SAB's former model involved multiple agencies running individual brands' social media accounts independently.
The 64th International Festival of Creativity may only last a week, from 17-24 June 2017 in Cannes, France, but the inspiration and value provided by the event and exclusive Biz coverage lasts a whole year.

In 2016 our editors published over 150 Cannes-related articles on our front pages to be archived in the Cannes Lions Special Section.

For the third year in a row, Ann Nurock has been invited to attend Cannes as the industry media correspondent. In 2016 Anns coverage included a total of nine exclusive interviews and articles and received unanimously positive feedback from industry, sponsors and partners, and were feeling privileged to have Nurock on the ground at Cannes again in 2017. This years coverage will be on trends that emerge such as industry revenue models, purpose-led marketing, stand-out individuals and brands and other key 2017 themes.

June also happens to be Youth Month on Bizcommunity and well be tying in interviews and images from the award-winning SA Cinemark/Cannes Young Lions from 99C, who will also be attending the event, with a daisy-fresh perspective on Cannes.

Standby for Case studies from Cannes 2017

As exclusive online media partner in collaboration with Cinemark, Bizcommunity and Ann Nurock will once again present a post-Cannes round up of key industry themes, winners and trends in Cape Town and Gauteng centres.

This year promises to be even more exciting with three South African jury chairs having been invited to give their feedback at the presentations.

Cannes action starts now

Align your brand with Cannes on Bizcommunity and receive a year round presence with a permanent banner in the Biz Cannes Special Section, pre-Cannes jury interviews and opinion pieces, and the opportunity to co-brand with the 'Case Studies from Cannes' live events.

To get involved with Cannes Lions 2017/2018 call Allison on 0860 812 000 or email moc.ytinummoczib@selas for a chat.

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BRUSSELS - The Belgian royal family on Saturday rapped Burger King over an online advertising campaign suggesting a new "king" for the European nation.

"Who's the king?" Burger King's advertising campaign has not been well received by the family of King Philippe of Belgium |  Yves Herman

The offending advert, found on the whoistheking.be website in French and Dutch, asks users to pick between "King Philippe" on the left and "Burger King" on the right.

Those who choose Philippe  represented by a cartoon image that doesn't seem to resemble the real monarch  are then asked: "Are you sure you want to elect King Philippe? He won't be the one to cook your fries".

But the Belgian royal family was not amused.

"We disapprove of this approach," royal spokesman Pierre Emmanuel de Bauw told AFP, saying the monarchy had contacted the burger chain over the ad.

"The use of the King's image is subject to authorisation," he said.

"In this particular case, we received no requests. Since it is for commercial purposes, we would not have given our authorisation."

Burger King's majority shareholder the Bertrand group bought French fast-food rival Quick in 2015 and has steadily re-branded Quick outlets in France.

But the deal maintained the Quick brand in Belgium, Luxembourg and outside of Europe, which is now being partially phased out with Burger King set to open its first Belgian outlet in June in the northern port city of Antwerp.
Tiger Brands is refining its rest of Africa strategy, saying it will adopt a more focused approach when entering new territories. This comes after the disposal of operations in East Africa and Nigeria.

Image credit: All Gold

Speaking on Thursday, new CEO Lawrence Mac Dougall said, historically, the pursuit of geographic diversification had led to a loss of focus and thinly spread resources. "The intention is to reverse this cycle of underperformance by creating fuel for growth through focusing the portfolio and distorting investment where appropriate. Defining the core is therefore critical to building portfolio strength and performance."

Mac Dougall stressed that Africa and emerging markets remained a key part of Tiger Brands growth strategy but that a new refined approach would be taken with regards to these territories. "Looking ahead, we will prioritise core category opportunities based on market attractiveness, strategic fit and our right to win. Similarly, the role of associates will be reviewed continuously," he said.

Mergence portfolio manager Peter Takaendesa said the company had published key performance indicators with a five-year target as part of the review that looked at aspects such as gaining market share, improving profitability and lifting the group's return on investment.

"We prefer management teams that provide clearly defined and measurable targets aimed at improving return on investment," he said.

What was concerning, said Takaendesa, was the group's outlook statement for the rest of its financial year. "It points to challenging volumes in the South African business for the remainder of the year as volumes have slowed significantly in the second quarter to March 2017 and a recovery in exports and the international business is not imminent. This appears to be a general theme in the food producers sector based on the recent results reported by their peers," said Takaendesa.

In the six months to March, Tiger Brands reported a 25% decline in operating income in exports to R194m. Overall volumes in the domestic business declined by 4% due, in part, to the Easter period falling in March 2016 compared with April in the current year, said Tiger Brands.

Takaendesa said in line with many other companies exposed to the South African consumer, Tiger Brands would be affected by weaker consumer spend.

"However, we expect the company to be relatively defensive compared to other consumer-focused firms and could outperform their peers over the next two to three years if they execute well to achieve their published five-year targets,"

Source: Business Day
SustainPower, a new player in the renewable energy sector, hosted its official gas to power product launch at African Utility Week 2017 in Cape Town earlier this month.

Founded in 2016, and based in Cape Town, SustainPower specialises in containerised renewable energy generation. The company focuses on containerised gas to power and solar solutions, with the integration of technologies such as water purification and desalination.

African Utility Week was the first official public showcasing of SustainPowers concept and products. The team used the opportunity to display their MAN Engines gas to power generators, combined heat and power plants (CHP) and solar solutions.

We have achieved a huge amount in a short space of time. It was wonderful to see it all come together so successfully. African Utility Week allowed us to demonstrate that, despite being new, we are already serious players in the renewable energy sector, says Tobias Hobbach, founder and managing director of SustainPower.

Tranportable, safe, durable

By placing its generators, combined heat and power plants and solar solutions in 20- and 40-foot sea containers, SustainPower has developed a concept that it believes is easily transportable, safe and durable. The containers can be placed wherever there is a reliable energy source, regardless of terrain.

We can produce up to 1100kW in a 40-foot sea container using natural gas, biogas, landfill gas or LPG. We spec our generators per customer requirements and, as a result, we offer a range of neighbouring technologies, maintenance plans, equipment rental and rent-to-own financing options, says Hobbach.
Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille prayed for an answer to the city's water crisis recently - and immediately got one.

Water Minister Nomvula Mokonyane said a plan to access the last 10% of the water in the city's dwindling dams would soon take effect. The deputy director-general of water affairs and sanitation, Trevor Balzer, said the last 10% of stored water would guarantee a supply for the city of 4-million people for another 11 to 14 weeks.

Speaking at Theewaterskloof Dam, Cape Town's biggest, Balzer said work would start this week on a diversion weir and a canal at the dam.

This would move the remaining water in the dam to the intake tower.

The construction would cost R3m to R5m, and the weir and canal could be used in the event of future dry spells.

"We are going to have to bring in emergency pumps at some stage," Balzer said.

He disagreed with those who blamed government management of the drought for the water shortage.

"I think that we managed the situation very well - it's 40 years since our dams have been so low; this is an unusual event."

De Lille hosted an interfaith prayer meeting last week at Table Mountain's lower cableway station.

"This week, our dam storage is at 20.7%.

"With most of the last 10% of the water being unusable, dam levels are effectively at 10.7%," she told the religious leaders.

The city council was spending R315m on emergency drought-relief schemes, and "as I have called on residents and businesses to work with us, I am also calling on religious leaders to help us and pray for rain.

"I ask that the prayers for rain continue each day and every time you gather your congregants."

Source: The Times
From a total of 23 entries, five more than 2016, the top Muskadel producers in SA was awarded at the 15th annual Muskadel SA Awards function, sponsored by Enartis SA, on 25 May 2017.

Platinum and Gold winners group. Front L to R: Ian Sieg (GWK Landzicht), Crystal Loggerenberg (GWK Landzicht), Mathilda Viljoen (Du Toitskloof), Marli Brink (Boplaas), Alvi van der Merwe (Alvis Drift), Chris Venter (Orange River Cellars). Back L to R: Henri Swiegers (Muskadel SA), Andre Scriven (Rooiberg), Tiaan Loubser (Du Toitskloof) and Paul Burger (Nuy).

Tasted blind, the wines are judged and scored according to a tried and tested points system. The uniqueness of the packaging also contributes to the final points tally and often means the difference between a gold or platinum award. Consumers can identify winning Muscats by the Gold or Platinum Muskadel SA stickers on the bottle.

The five judges for this year were Dave Biggs (wine writer and founder member of the Wine-of-the-month Club), Hans Losch (previously Monis, now Columbit South Africa), Cerina van Niekerk (winemaker), Raymond Noppe (Cape Wine Master) and Nina Mari Bruwer (Cape Wine Master).

Henri Swiegers, chairperson of Muskadel SA, says the quality of entries was exceptionally high this year, seeing that four platinum and four gold awards were awarded. During my ten years as chairperson of Muskadel SA we have recently started seeing a lot more delicate and lighter styled wines opposed to the traditional raisin-heavy muscats. Packaging has evolved from the traditional sweet wine bottle to more elegant packaging. There are cellars that put a lot of effort into their labels which add to the face of muscadel wine in South Africa, says Swiegers.

Platinum awards

Orange River Cellars from the Northern Cape was triumphant for the third consecutive year winning two platinum awards. Orange River Cellars White Muskadel 2016, as well as their Red Muscadel 2016, received platinum awards - Muskadel SA Awards highest accolade adding to ORCs already stocked Muskadel SA Awards cabinet having previously won five platinum and two gold awards since 2013.

Our muscadel are not made in the old traditional way anymore, we make use of modern technology like red and white winemakers, to ensure that the balance and quality are perfect before we bottle, says Chris Venter, production manager at ORC. We take part in this competition annually because the feedback we have received from the judges helped us better our product. The sticker on the bottle draws the attention of the consumer which leads to better sales, says Venter.

Venter also explained that the 2016 harvest was a good one for ORC because it was a hot, dry season which led to a more concentrated flavour profile  perfect conditions for muscadel wine.

The Breederivier Valley was well represented by Du Toitskloof Cellar with their Du Toitskloof Cellar Red Muscadel 2014 being awarded platinum a second year running. This 100% Muscat de Frontignan with a plain, yet striking label and excellent aging potential is a definite must for the cold winter nights ahead. The secret is top quality grapes from a top region. This wine is made with passion and great aging potential, crafted to a product close to the consumers heart, says Shawn Thomson, chief winemaker at Du Toitskloof Cellar.

Alvis Drift Wines from Worcester was the fourth wine to be awarded platinum at this years awards for their Alvis Drift Premium 2014. This muscadel along with our Verreaux Pinotage is part of the Alvis Drift Ultra-Premium range, this wine was carefully made with a lot of passion and we are happy to share it with the consumer, says Alvi van der Merwe from Alvis Drift.

Gold awards

Two cellars situated on the R60 between Worcester and Robertson was awarded gold: Nuy Winery for their Nuy Rooi Muskadel 2012 and Rooiberg Cellar for their Rooiberg Red Muscadel 2014.

Another winner from the Northern Cape is Landzicht GWK Wines who took home gold for their Landzicht Rooi Muskadel 2016.

Boplaas from Calitzdorp in the Klein Karoo rounds up the top performers with gold for the third consecutive year, this time for their Boplaas Heritage Collection 2014.
While consumers are set to benefit from the bumper maize harvest, it does not mean all maize producers will make profits. The Crop Estimates Committee said on Friday it forecast the 2017 commercial maize crop to be the biggest in the country's history at 15,631 million tonnes. That is 101% bigger than the 2016 crop, which was the smallest crop since 2007.

gillpoh via pixabay

Maize prices have plummeted since then. The spot price for white maize was R1,713 a tonne on Friday. In May 2015, it was R2,717 a tonne and R5,035 in February 2016.

Most farmers unlikely to make a profit at current prices

Independent economist Fanie Brink said farmers were grateful for the high yield, but most would still be unable to compete with international producers mainly due to lower yields, higher production costs, and financial support.

Maize is produced throughout the country, with the Free State being the largest producer followed by the North West and Mpumalanga.

Brink said at current prices, most farmers were unlikely to make a profit this season, though it depended on variable input and production costs. Farmers had to rely on reserves or, in many cases, on debt to stay in business, he said.

GrainSA CEO Jannie de Villiers said current prices were below the cost of production, which would affect dry land and irrigation farmers differently.

Agbiz head of economic and agribusiness research Wandile Sihlobo said farmers who did not hedge their prices during the dry season would struggle to break even at the lower maize prices. "They faced higher input costs, which posed a challenge." Sihlobo, however, said the benefits of the bumper crop were that consumers would see lower food prices, seasonal labour participation during the harvest would increase and that more maize being exported would result in increased export earnings.

Brink said for the industry to be able to compete, "there should at least be tariffs in place to protect it against highly subsidised imports".

Source: Business Day
Employers that incorporate disciplinary codes and procedures into employment contracts will then have to comply with them.

In the case of Steven Motale v The Citizen and Others in the Labour Court, the employee, a newspaper editor, was suspended after allegedly breaching the employers policy by publishing a potentially sensitive article as an exclusive story, without receiving prior approval from the employers lawyers before publication. The employer alleged in the suspension letter that the employee failed to act in a trustworthy manner and failed to implement agreed procedures and that this conduct ultimately led to the breakdown of the employment relationship.

A few days after the employee was suspended, the employer addressed a second letter to the employee formulating the alleged misconduct committed by the employee and calling him to make representations in respect thereto.

In response, the employee wrote a letter to the effect that he regarded himself innocent until proven guilty and that he wished to exercise his right to have the matter determined through a disciplinary enquiry before an independent chairperson as prescribed by the employers own disciplinary code and procedure. The employee was insistent that in terms of his employment contract, he was entitled to have a disciplinary enquiry in accordance with the employers disciplinary code since that code was incorporated into his employment contract. The code entitled the employee to have his dispute heard where witnesses could be called and cross-examined.

The employer responded with a third letter stating that the employees letter was factually incorrect. In this letter, it appeared as though the employer was no longer relying on the allegation of misconduct on the part of the employee, but rather on the fact that the employment relationship has broken down between the parties. It was apparent from this letter that the employer had already decided that the employee was guilty of misconduct, but what was left to be determined was the impact of the misconduct on the employment relationship, namely the breakdown of trust.

The employer insisted that the employment relationship had been broken and gave the employee a deadline to make written submissions as to why he thought the employment relationship had not broken down. The employee refused to make written submissions and insisted on his right to be heard at a disciplinary enquiry. The employer served the employee with a notice of dismissal after he failed to present written submissions.

Labour Court decision

The employee approached the Labour Court on an urgent basis and sought an order declaring his suspension null and void and declaring the termination of his employment a breach of his employment contract.

The employer argued that the termination of the employment relationship was not based on misconduct, but rather based on the employers view that the employment relationship had broken down, while the employer argued that it was not obliged to follow the disciplinary code but to dismiss the employee summarily.

The Court held that it was clear that in the absence of an enquiry, the employer had already decided that the employee was guilty of misconduct, resulting in the break of the trust relationship between the parties. The Court held that it appears as though the employer has conveniently ignored the fact that what led to the alleged breakdown of trust relationship was the alleged misconduct of the employee and that the employee disputed being guilty of misconduct and requested a hearing, which request the employer ignored and unjustifiably considered the employment relationship irretrievably broken. The employer, the Court held, denied the employee his contractual right to have his misconduct dispute heard at an enquiry.

Disciplinary code part of contract

The Court concluded that the disciplinary code was incorporated into the contract of employment, which mandated that disciplinary enquiries be held in cases of alleged misconduct. In this case, it was clear that the employer failed to comply with the disciplinary code when it terminated the employees contract without affording him an opportunity to be heard at a disciplinary enquiry. The Court concluded that this constituted a breach of the employees employment contract entitling the employee to be reinstated. The Court ordered the employer to comply with its disciplinary code.

This case confirms the position that employers must follow their disciplinary code and procedures, particularly where they form part of an employees employment contract. A failure to do so may result in a breach of the employment contract, which may have significant financial implications for the employer.
Illegal gamblers have forfeited over R1 million of their winnings to the State, says Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies.

Unprecedented court proceedings led to the gamblers unlawful winnings of about R1.25 million being confiscated and forfeited to the State.

Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies said online gambling is illegal and that should South African citizens participate in online gambling and they win, their winnings are the proceeds of an illegal activity and they will therefore be confiscated and forfeited to the State.

The Minister had previously cautioned that online gambling is illegal.

National Gambling Board

The National Gambling Board (NGB), which is an agency of the Department of Trade and Industry (dti), is the national regulator in the gambling industry in South Africa.

In terms of Section 16 of the National Gambling Act, 2004, the NGB is obliged to investigate the circumstances of illegal gambling activities including illegal online gambling.

Upon determination of such illegal gambling activity, it applies to the high court for an order declaring that the unlawful winnings be forfeited to the state.

Meanwhile, Minister Davies has also expressed concern that online gambling could be used to launder money. It is on this basis that the banks continue to collaborate with the National Gambling Board to confiscate the unlawful winnings.

Accounting Authority of the National Gambling Board, Caroline Kongwa, emphasised that besides the forfeiture of unlawful winnings in favour of the State, the punters, who partake in illegal gambling activities, are liable for criminal prosecution.

The public is hereby cautioned to be weary of online gambling offerings, as online gambling is illegal in South Africa, and thus anyone participating in any illegal online gambling activity would be unable to receive any winnings and would expose themselves to criminal prosecution, she said.

She added that citizens caught gambling illegally or running an illegal gambling establishment like internet cafes that provide illegal online gambling will be targeted and they will face criminal charges or a fine to the maximum of R10 million or both.

The NGB is encouraged by the judiciary system in considering gambling related matters and in a related matter, the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, granted a court judgement in favour of a licenced gambling operator prohibiting an illegal gambling operator from offering illegal online gambling, said Kongwa.

She emphasises that the NGBs role and mandate is to protect the public. She also appealed to the public to report websites which advertise online gambling and establishments (especially those disguised as internet cafes) in South Africa which offer online gambling and other illegal gambling activities to the public.

The public was also encouraged to be vigilant and to distinguish between licensed and unlicensed gambling operators in addition to being aware of what constitutes an unlawful gambling activity.

The NGB can be contacted on +27 (0)10 003 3475 and for any further information at www.ngb.org.za. Information relating to any suspected illegal gambling activity in South Africa can be provided to the NGB at az.gro.bgn@treladuarf.
The University of Johannesburg has raised R147m to fund students in the missing middle.

Missing-middle students - those too poor to fund their studies fully but too rich to qualify for National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) grants - form a significant part of the debate on free education.

The university identified about 5,000 of its academically talented students who fall into that category.

Vice-chancellor Ihron Rensburg, whose term ends in 2018, said the university exceeded its R120m target because of contributions from business and industry, the public sector, suppliers and the university's Future Walk, which had generated R2m.

"It is encouraging to see the extraordinary goodwill that business and industry, the public sector and the general public have shown to the university and its students," Rensburg said.

"I do, though, still appeal for further contributions to this honourable cause," he said.

The average cost of studying at the university for a year is R85,000, which includes tuition, accommodation, books, transport and a living allowance.

NSFAS funding for a student is capped at R76,000, including accommodation, tuition, meals (if catered for), books and devices if required.

In the 2017 academic year, the NSFAS rejected the funding appeal applications of more than 2,000 students. The scheme initially turned down more than 9,000 prospective students, 5,615 of whom lodged appeals.

NSFAS spokesman Kagisho Mamabolo said on Sunday that the highest numbers of appeals were lodged by students registered to study at the University of Johannesburg.

The university was among the institutions that were awarded the highest proportion of NSFAS funding, as well as the University of SA, Tshwane University of Technology, the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Walter Sisulu University and the University of Limpopo.

Source: Business Day
The Temba Driver License and Testing Centre (DLTC) has been officially opened to members of the public after an official ceremony hosted by the Gauteng provincial government's department of roads and transport.

The opening of the DLTC is a result of a resolved petition by the Gauteng provincial legislature's standing committee on petitions. The Temba DLTC was unofficially opened on 30 January 2017 to provide services to the Hammanskraal and surrounding communities as per the written request/petition to the Legislature to intervene towards reopening of the DLTC.

Led by the chairperson, honourable Refilwe Mogale, the standing committee on petitions received a petition in October 2016 from members of the Temba Driving School Association and community members in Hammanskraal, requesting for intervention with regards to the temporary closure of Temba DLTC, as a result of the upgrades and improvements in August 2014.

The standing committee intervened and facilitated a resolution process through convening a stakeholders forum that included petitioners, the Gauteng department of roads and transport, as well as TASIMA.

Addressing all challenges

The engagements that ensued over a period of more than three months resulted in the conclusion of the processes and addressing all challenges towards the reopening of the DLTC, which at some point was frustrated by the legal tussle between the national department of transport and TASIMA during the landmark case involving the eNATIS system used to process the various license registrations and renewals.

The standing committee has commended the petitioners for their efforts and patience towards a peaceful resolution of their written grievance and stated that it appreciates the responsiveness and dedication by the department of roads and transport in engaging the petitioners to resolve the petition.

The upgraded facility is a legacy of engagement and public participation which the broader community of Hammanskraal and surrounding areas are proud of after a long and challenging process. This was achieved through the petitioning process, and Mogale reminds the people of Gauteng to reach out to the committee on service delivery challenges, without resorting to violent and destructive protests.
Bigger and better than ever before, with growing international status, the 25th edition of the Icon Comic and Games Convention (Icon CGC), home of the superhero, returns to Johannesburg's Gallagher Convention Centre from Friday, 16 June 2017 - Sunday, 18 June 2017 over the Youth Day long weekend.

It is South Africas longest running and largest pop culture event  the destination for leading gaming and pop culture experts and anyone looking to celebrate their fantasy world while being immersed in a compelling and exciting storyline. This celebration of gaming, storytelling, role-playing and tech positions Icon CGC as the ideal introduction to gaming for people of all ages and interests. SAs most important gathering of geeks, it is seen by industry insiders as being on a par with the best hobby gaming conventions in the world.

This year Icon raises its game substantially, showcasing international guests, local thought leaders, over 40 speaker panels, expert player showdowns, a comedy event and innovative activations including multinational tech giants such as Canon Gigabyte and MakerBot, amongst others. Media partners, student brands and Nickelodeon will ensure that the best moments of this 25th edition live on beyond the boundaries of the convention.

Les Allen, ICONs director says, What weve learnt from a quarter century convening Icon is that geeks are no longer on the fringe. Mainstream media exposure has made their expertise, enthusiasm and points of obsession with hobbies and intellectual pursuits accessible. Gaming and storytelling releases a part of everyones being, we just facilitate access to it in a myriad of ways.

Vampy Bit Me and Valerian panels

International Cosplay guest of honour for #ICON2017 is the sensational Linda Le, aka. Vampy Bit Me, rated as one of the ten most popular cosplayers in the world and an inspiration to all those who invest in building characters for fantasy world. Gaming industry insider James Stutter, a published author and the co-creator of the fantasy Pathfinder Roleplaying Game and Creative Director of the new space version Starfinder also joins the convention. Both will participate in the convention for all three days.

Those looking forward to the much anticipated movie, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets can win double passes to the films first screening in South Africa on Friday, 21 July 2017 by attending either of two Valerian panels at Icon2017. The panel titled Create an Alien will see James designing an alien species from the ground up, based on a world from the Valerian cosmos. Partnering James is Sean Izaakse, current artist on Marvel's Avengers comic book - he'll be drawing the monster as James designs it.

Local thought leaders included in the line-up of panellists include tech analyst and commentator Arthur Goldstuck, and Nikki Bush, well know columnist and specialist in the field of child play and development matters.

Donate blood and win

Visitors to the convention have an opportunity to be real superheroes by visiting the South African National Blood Service (SANBS) drive and donate to help save lives. One lucky donor stands the chance of winning a 3D printed replica of themselves as a superhero  sponsored by MakerBot, the global leader in the 3D printing industry.

As with previous years, Saturday (17th June) sees six of SAs funniest comedians take to the stage at the Icon Comedy Evening. With limited seats and tickets only available to weekend ticket holders, or those attending Icon on the Saturday, this extremely popular evening will have those attending rolling in the aisles with laughter as the comedians make light of geek culture.

Ticketing Information

Tickets are on sale now and start at R120 for a one day pass. Weekend passes and limited VIP tickets available.

Visit the Icon Facebook page or thewww.iconcgc.co.za website to purchase tickets. Follow Icon on Twitter and Instagram.
The 23rd annual South African Music Awards (Samas) was held at the Sun City Superbowl on Saturday (27 May), honouring a string of local artists. Cementing his place as a hip-hop force to be reckoned with, Kwesta started his winning streak at the event when he won the Best Collaboration Album' at the industry awards. He collected five - Samro Highest Airplay of the Year', Sampra Highest Airplay of the Year', Best Rap Album', Best Male Artist of the Year' and Best Album of the Year' for his Dakar II album and hit single Ngud. His trophy haul stands at six in one year.

Kwesta

Other wins of the evening included, newcomer Amanda Black, who had an impressive run, picking up two of the top 5 awards  Best Newcomer of the Year and Best Female Artist of the Year, adding to her silverware the Best R&B/Soul/Reggae Album award that she won last night, making her a three time Sama winner on her debut album. Nasty C secured the much coveted and public voted Record of the Year award with his song Hell Naw. Dance pair Black Motion won the Best Duo/Group of the Year and Best Dance Album. The high kicking Dr Malinga snapped the Best Kwaito Album award while crooner Vusi Nova secured the Best Afro Pop Album trophy.

On the traditional front, Khuzani with his album Inyoni Yomthakathi won Best Maskandi Album. Spirit of Praise won Best Traditional Faith Music Album while the African Indigenous Gospel Album went to Living in Christ Legends.

The star-studded award show, hosted by television and radio personality, Somizi Mhlongo and comedian extraordinaire, Tumi Morake also saw the industry pay respects to its own legends. Rebecca Malope, Don Laka and Babsy Mlangeni were honoured with Lifetime Achievement awards. International soprano Pretty Yende received the International Recognition Award for her work in opera around the world.

Spectacular live performances

The Sama 23 stage exploded with performances that featured collaborations between rock star Kurt Darren and hip-hop royalty Khuli Chana, Stogie T (featuring Yanga and Emtee) plus Kwesta (featuring TLT). The Afro Pop segment produced magic as vocal powerhouses Kelly Khumalo, Jaziel Brothers, Robbie Malinga and Musa banded together for a distinctly African flavour. Amadodana ase Wesile gave a pleasant surprise as they teamed up with exciting new talents Soul Kulture and Thee Legacy as well as rock veteran Arno Carstens for harmonies and melodies we wont forget in a hurry.

Bongani Radebe, the new and skilful sax genius accompanied the moving In Memoriam tribute. Gospel stars Lebo Sekgobela, Dr Tumi, Neyi Zimu and Jerusalema E Ncha delivered a powerful and spirited gospel medley. The urban maskandi, Afro pop and hip hop acts Mma Ausi, Thokozani Langa, Sjava and Ms Pru (featuring Mtee, Amanda/LaSauce) delivered a mesh up of sounds, beats and influences.

The nights performances were closed with a spectacular collaboration by dance stars Naakmusiq, DBN Finest (DJ Tira & Sox Feat. Professor), Babes Wodumo (featuring Mampintsha, Cassper and Dancers) and OkMalumKoolKat who got together for a pulsating and energetic finale.

Comments Nhlanhla Sibisi, CEO of Risa: By all accounts this has been a successful Sama 23. We applaud all the winners and nominees, and the music loving South Africans who have supported these awards. We are encouraged by the generosity of our sponsors and all stakeholders, media included in this great project. South African music can only grow from here. See you at Sama 24.

You kept us entertained and laughing!Thank you for making #SAMA23 a Master Class for the rest!! pic.twitter.com/3luigIrRgt  The SA Music Awards (@TheSAMAs) May 27, 2017

Complete list of winners:

 Best Newcomer of the Year  Amanda Black  Amazulu

 Best Duo-Group of the Year  Black Motion  Ya Badimo

 Best Female Artist of the Year  Amanda Black  Amazulu

 Best Male Artist of the Year  Kwesta  Dakar II

 Best Album of the Year  Kwesta - Dakar II

 Record of the Year  Nasty C  Hell Naw

 Best Maskandi Album  Khuzani  Inyoni yomthakathi

 Classical Instrumental Album  Charl du Pleassis Trio  Baroqueswing Vol.II

 Best Afro Pop Album  Vusi Nova  Vusi Nova

 African Indigenous Gospel Album  Living In Christ Legends  Living In Christ Legends

 Best Rock Album  Albert Frost  The Wakeup

 Best Pop Album  GoodLuck  The Nature Within

 Beste Kontemporere Musiek Album  Joshua na die Reen  Die Wereld Binne My

 Best Rap Album  Kwesta  Darak II

 Best Kwaito Album  Dr Malinga  Goodwill

 Best Dance Album  Black Motion  Ya Badimo

 Best Traditional Faith Music Album  Sprit of Praise  Spirit of Praise Vol.6

 Samro Highest Airplay of the Year  Ngud  Kwesta

 Sampra Highest Airplay of the Year  Ngud - Kwesta

samusicawards.co.za
The Alfa Romeo Giulia, recently launched in South Africa, has been named a 'Game Changer' at the UK Autocar Awards as it has signalled 'a transformation for one of the most loved names in motoring'.

Developed by top engineers, designers and stylists within FCA, the new Giulia embodies the core elements of the Alfa Romeo automotive brand: Distinctive Italian design; innovative powertrains, perfect weight distribution, unique technical solutions and the best power to weight ratio.

Autocar says that its 'Game Changers' are cars that 'bring new, higher standards to their classes, or because they defy conventions to benefit buyers.'

Of the Giulia, Autocar says: "The Giulia is a riveting, idiosyncratic and striking entrant into a class usually defined by an understated brand of superiority."
A new report from FAO indicates that harnessing the vast but informal cross-border trade in Africa can contribute to improving livelihoods and increasing regional integration across the continent.

Miroslav Liska via 123RF

The FAO study, Formalisation of informal trade in Africa, offers policy guidance for linking half of all cross-border trade to development goals. It was released as part of its conference in Kigali.

Africa's informal cross-border trading (ICBT), in which transactions are not compliant with local tax and other rules, accounts for between 20-70% of employment in sub-Saharan Africa and putting it on a regular footing can lift sustainable prosperity and markedly improve prospects for women.

Around half of all intra-African cross-border trade is classified as informal, indicating its large if officially invisible role. Proactive policies that recognise such activity, tapping its potential with the aim of steering it towards proper regulatory status, are to be preferred over heavy-handed approaches to eradicate or seek rents from entrepreneurs.

Facilitating formalisation is the only viable policy option for Africa's transformation agenda to realise its objectives, says Suffyan Koroma, FAO senior economist and lead author of the report.

Despite the significant contribution of the informal sector to African economies, the policy makers quite often have no information on ICBT due to lack of quality data, which has hampered the development of supporting policies to the sector, said Clement Onyango from the Nairobi chapter of Consumer Unity and Trust Society, a NGO, co-hosting the conference with FAO.

Huge role for women

Informal cross-border trade activity is largely a second-choice option taken by people in the absence of clearly defined formal alternatives. It consists of trade in goods and services, often agricultural in nature and, in times of food crises and other shocks, has proven to be more responsible than legal channels.

Off-the-radar economic activity, not all of it involving international trade, accounts for around 40% of GDP in Africa, higher than in Latin America or Asia.

The trade is rarely illegal. In most cases, it is informal because practitioners have poor access to all the appropriate business licenses, administrative skills and knowledge of import and custom-tax laws to act otherwise. While such activity is an important source of household income, practitioners are often prey to corruption and their weak access to credit means their activities are rarely stable or sustainable.

Women constitute the largest share of such informal traders, comprising more than half in Western and Central Africa and about 70% in Southern Africa, the FAO report found.

Patterns differ by region: In Tanzania, women dominate trade in manufactured products while men handle mostly raw or semi-processed agricultural products, whereas the opposite is the case in Cameroon. Women and men tend to differ in which foodstuffs - fresh produce or commodity staples - they trade as well. Appropriate policies must consider such facts.

The Kigali conference is part of ongoing FAO-supported work in the country, along with UN Women and other development partners, aimed at enabling women to benefit more from agri-food chains, a project geared to allowing women small traders access useful information as well as start-up capital.

Local agricultural produce and livestock account for two-thirds of Rwanda's exports, most of which are informally traded, with the bulk going to neighbouring countries, notably the DRC. Rwanda encourages informal small traders to form cooperatives as a step towards regularisation.

Women trading between the border posts of Kenya and Uganda and between Rwanda and Burundi prefer to use brokers who appear to shield them from what they perceive as unprofessional behavior of customs officials, the report notes.

FAO, working with Catholic Relief Service, has also organised open-door events on the Rwanda-Congo border where women cooperatives were invited to learn more about the cross-border tax regime directly from custom officials and government representatives.

Rwanda has emerged as a model of best practice for cross-border trade through its efforts to integrate the informal economy by easing trade channels for small-scale agricultural traders, said Attaher Maiga, FAO's representative in Rwanda.

Policy recommendations

Aware that ICBT-blindness in national and regional trade policies and poverty reduction strategies may be hampering progress, African governments are increasingly making efforts to identify dynamics in the sector. In Uganda, both the Bureau of Statistics and the central bank monitor such flows and the government is discussing whether an approach focusing on quality control and value-added potential, so that traders can earn more, should take priority over a laisser-faire approach or actions aimed at suppression.

Key priorities to facilitate the formalisation of informal cross-border trading according to FAO include the simplification of licensing requirements, tax incentives, fostering partnerships, radio, television and town hall outreach to participants in the informal economy and intensifying efforts to tackle official corruption.
Edelman and Chain Reactions Nigeria have launched the Edelman Trust Barometer Survey Report on trust and credibility in the public relations industry.

Founder, Consumer Advocacy Forum Nigeria, Sola Salako; managing director, Edelman South Africa, Jordan Rittenberry; managing director, Chain Reactions Nigeria, Israel Opayemi; and founder & chief executive officer, Proshare Nigeria Limited, Femi Awoyemi, at the presentation of 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer Annual Global Study organised by Chain Reactions Nigeria, in partnership with Edelman in Lagos.

Edelman, the worlds largest global communications marketing firm with presence in 65 countries across the globe in partnership with its Nigeria affiliate, Chain Reactions Nigeria, has buoyed the public relations landscape in the country with the launch of the 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer Survey Report.

The public presentation of the survey report, which was the 17th edition of the annual global trust and credibility survey by Edelman, was launched for the first time in Nigeria at an event held at the prestigious Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The global survey carried out by Edelman Intelligence consisted of online interviews conducted between October 13 and November 16, 2016, in which more than 33,000 respondents across 28 countries were sampled on how much they trust four institutions, namely government, business, media and non-governmental organisations, to do what is right.

Organisational reputation

Managing director/chief strategist, Chain Reactions Nigeria, Israel Jaiye Opayemi, revealed that one of the key insights in the survey was the widening trust gap in the four key institutions. He said this should challenge practitioners in proffering innovative solutions for managing the reputation assets of their clients.

The survey report is significant because it documents insights and knowledge to help governments, businesses, media and non-governmental organisations to proactively build and raise their trust equity as a major factor that impacts organisational reputation.

Opayemi further stated that the launch of the report was a significant milestone for Nigeria because it underscored the strategic importance of the Nigerian market to Edelman.

Chain Reactions and Edelman will be helping interested Nigerian businesses to build their asset of trust and reputation around this. It is our hope that those of you here today saddled with the responsibility of managing the reputation of different corporate brands will do the same for your respective brands. We intend to use this as a foundational step to help Nigeria establish the Nigerian Trust Index which is the average of a countrys trust in the institutions of government, business, media and non-governmental organizations, he stated.

In his presentation of the annual report, managing director of Edelman South Africa, Jordan Rittenberry, said: The growth of populism has seen the mass population reject established authorities. The informed public consists of people who are educated and economically better, while the mass population is made up of people who are illiterate or semi-literate and fall under the low-income earners strata. Currently greater influence lies with the growing mass population.

Fake news

In the case of Brexit and the last American election, we saw the media combating fake news and this was witnessed all over the world with businesses being rocked by scandal after scandal. All these factors combine to show that trust is in crisis in 2017.

What we used to see as the pyramid of influence is gone; no longer are the days when the better source of information is presumed to be held by the elite as there is a democratisation of information and communication. What we are seeing is an emerging new model that is populist. Edelman is working with Chain Reactions to ensure Nigeria is covered in the next Edelman Trust Barometer statistics, added Rittenberry.

Even though the survey has not been done in Nigeria and some other countries yet, the results are instructive for a country like Nigeria as the world becomes a global village with trends travelling across borders and time zones.
The developers of Hotel Verde Cape Town, Africa's greenest hotel, and the soon to be launched Verde Zanzibar, Verde Hotels has further plans for the continent. We chat to, Samantha Annandale, CEO of Verde Hotels to find out more.

Verde Zanzibar main entrance

What are Verde Hotels expansion plans for Africa?

Verde Hotels' management model suits the African continent and it speaks to the goals and vision as set out by African leaders with regard to growth, poverty alleviation, tourism growth, job creation and most of all, their impact on global warming as the African continent has experienced the impact of this more so than most countries. The support and commitment by local governments on the UNDP SDGs allow the opportunity for a hotel management company like Verde Hotels to advocate their commitment to these goals and contribute to the sustainable growth within the African continent.

We are currently in the negotiating phase with two projects within Africa for new hotel construction developments, and our next hotel opening will be in Zanzibar towards the end of this year, where the five-star resort will showcase that luxury and sustainability is not mutually exclusive and with the aim of achieving a five-star GBCSA certification we will proudly showcase Zanzibars Greenest Hotel.

Why expand into Africa?

With our pilot project and now successful showcase hotel, Hotel Verde Cape Town, we managed to achieve many firsts for Africa within the building and operations of a sustainable hotel, often referred to as Africas greenest hotel  for now. We would obviously want to continue on this success and expand into Africa.

For the socially, conscious investor, developer and hotelier, only Verde Hotels offers the sustainable solution that is not just responsible and sustainable, but thrivable, incorporating people, profit, and planet.

Verde Hotels is expanding the brand not only within Africa but certainly also globally, but being an African established company, this is certainly where we feel we can add the most value.

What does the hotel market in Africa look like at the moment and how does this influence Verde Hotels expansion plans?

It is a known fact that the most trajectory economic growth is currently within Africa, however, one needs to ensure that you minimise economic risk within your business and adapt to the change on a global level. Building or retrofitting and operating a thrivable hotel embeds certain principles in the business model that will future-proof the hotel and mitigate these risks. Verde Hotels is set on retrofitting and building only sustainable hotels as this fits in with our vision. Although each hotel will adapt in its design to its own environment, the DNA of the hotel will encapsulate all elements of sustainability and be certified independently to showcase and demonstrate its thrivability.

Samantha Annandale, CEO of Verde Hotels

What challenges and opportunities does Africa present in building a sustainable hotel such as Hotel Verde?

Challenge: As the need for change in how we build and manage hotels has certainly been identified, it is still unfortunately slow in the uptake of this concept. We continuously advocate the above average IRR, saving of natural resources, unique and powerful marketing case, greater bottom line profit, all whilst ensuring a greater social economic impact. We can only trust that this reality becomes more prevalent and takes higher focus within the investor and tourism sectors and that there is definitely no other alternative but to partner with a company that takes sustainability to the next level.

Opportunity: The opportunity is now to showcase that Africa can lead in sustainability, minimising carbon footprint and set the example globally on slowing down global warming, whilst continuing economic growth. One of our most important values is how we, as a green sustainable management company, focus on the wellbeing of our employees by not only creating opportunity but working with them to reach their full development potential as individuals. Our employees, after all, are the brand ambassadors of the Verde brand and making a difference in peoples lives transcends into their own homes and families where the benefits are dynamically felt.

Mario and Annemarie Delicio of Dematech are the owners behind Hotel Verde. Dedicated and passionate about sustainability, they have transformed what was initially just a sensible business proposition into a showcase for some of the most advanced, environmentally conscious design features, technological installations and operational practices in the world. The Delicio family is German, but has made Cape Town their home for the last 20 years. Mario Delicio has various business interests throughout Africa. Hotel Verde at Cape Town Airport is his first fully owned hotel.

What are your wishes for Verde Hotels in the year(s) to come in terms of developing in Africa?

Simple, to make a positive difference to our planet, resources, and people whilst achieving greater sustainability and profitability for our investors. And making the African continent greener than ever before, one property at a time.
Digital migration will allow a broader spread of television content throughout Africa, the NexTV CEO conference held mid-May in Mauritius, heard.

 alphaspirit via 123RF

Boris Bachorz, director of Africa at AFP global news agency, elaborates further on the digital migration process and implementation in this Q&A:

Q: The digital migration process is still on going in Africa, how is AFP taking advantage of this opportunity?

A: The on going digital migration process will boost our activities as we provide content in various form such as text, audio and video which is our biggest asset. The digital migration will allow a wide spread of the content as TV represents one quarter of our turnover in Africa and we are eager for the migration to be completed. Nowadays, African TV is looking for local content such as hard news and stories and that is what we are providing them with.

Q: We have seen that local content is gaining more and more momentum in Africa, what is AFP doing in term of investment in local content?

A: We are currently investing in local content via two channels. First, we hired local reporters and journalists to get closer to the sources of the news. We are investigating a different type of environment such as new African entrepreneurs; African slums to get a global picture of Africa in all its diversity. Secondly, we are teaming up with local producers, to share our resources with them to promote their original content internationally and this helps to create a positive image of Africa.

Q: What are the major setbacks you have encountered on the African continent?

A: We have two major problems and the first is from an editorial standpoint. We cover all countries in Africa including Somalia, Burundi, South Soudan. These countries present a real danger for our reporters who must travel in these countries to get news. That is why we need to have experienced people for these jobs. The second setback is from a commercial point of view, we need to find reliable customers. Before, the only clients we could hope for were the states and they were not that reliable, but nowadays it is much easier to work with the private sector.

Q: In some African countries, freedom of the press is not always allowed, how do you tackle this problem?

A: Its true, for instance, in Burundi, it was impossible to get any news since the country was not willing to have a safe working environment for the journalists. We had to get the reporters to France and Kenya to keep them out of danger. South Sudan is also a big problem, tragedies are going on and visas are extremely difficult to get as the government does not want to expose the real situation that prevails and travelling in these countries is also very difficult.

Full interview:
ADDIS ABABA - Ethiopian journalist Getachew Shiferaw was sentenced to 18 months in prison Friday for speaking to a dissident, capping a case that rights groups have called an assault on press freedom.

 Nigel Spooner via 123RF

Getachew has been in jail since his arrest in December 2015, meaning he could be released from custody as soon as next week, his lawyer Ameha Mekonnen told AFP. "He shouldn't be convicted at all," Ameha said.

Getachew was found guilty earlier this week of encouraging revolt for sending a Facebook message to an Ethiopian dissident who had been convicted in absentia of being involved with Ginbot 7, an Eritrea-linked opposition group which has called for the violent overthrow of the ruling party.

Ethiopia's government considers the outlawed group a terrorist organisation.

Rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said the charges were groundless and merely an excuse to put Getachew, who edited a newspaper linked to the opposition Blue Party, in jail.

"He was just exercising his constitutional right to freedom of expression," Belay Manaye, his deputy editor at the publication, said after the sentencing.

The decision by a court in the capital Addis Ababa comes the same week as a former spokesman for the Blue Party Yonatan Tesfaye was sentenced to more than six years in prison for encouraging terrorism.

Both men were arrested shortly after anti-government protests began in 2015, which raged on for months until the government imposed a nationwide state of emergency last October.

The emergency declaration is scheduled to expire in July.

Source: AFP.
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Times Media has appointed Reardon Sanderson as GM: sales and marketing and Eben Gewers as deputy GM: sales and marketing.



Sanderson joined Times Media in 2000, gaining experience at the company's various online platforms, viz. BusinessLive, TimesLive, WantedOnline and RDM, and was appointed deputy GM in 2014.



Gewers boasts more than 20 years' experiences in the media advertising industry and was previously media director for Vizeum. Gewers was also previously the head of sales for the Business Day and the Financial Mail when he initially joined Times Media in 2004.
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A file photo.

NEW DELHI (PTI): Private sector players can now apply to commerce ministry for licences to manufacture tanks, fighter planes, warships and other defence equipment, a step which the government feels will promote ease of doing business and give impetus to 'Make In India' initiative.



In a gazette notification, the home ministry said the secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) can now issue licences for manufacturing of defence items.



However, the licences will be issued to the prospective manufacturers by the DIPP under the home ministry's "supervision and control", the notification said. The power of issuing licences was exclusively with the home ministry earlier.



The decision has been taken to expedite the 'Make In India' initiative, a pet project of the Narendra Modi government, and to invite private sector in the defence manufacturing sector, an official said.



The DIPP comes under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and mainly deals with promotion of investment and industries. The private sector can now apply to the DIPP for the licences.



The categories which will come under the new arrangement are: tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, military vehicles fitted with mountings for arms or equipment for mine lying, all tracked and wheeled self propelled armoured and non-armoured weapon systems and all-wheel drive vehicles capable of off-road use.



Defence aircraft, spacecraft and their parts, helicopters, lighter-than-air vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicles, remotely piloted vehicles, warships of all kinds, vessels fitted with automatic weapons, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear protect, special naval equipment, anti-submarines or torpedo nets will also come under its purview.



The home ministry has given security clearance to nearly 3,300 fresh investment proposals in the last three years after conducting national risk assessment.



It issued policy guidelines for assessment of proposals for national security clearance on July 1, 2015 with the objective of ensuring a balance between requirements of national security and the imperatives of rapid economic growth.



The objective of the national security clearance is to evaluate potential threats, visible or embedded, in proposals received by the home ministry and to provide a national risk assessment, an official said.



The national security clearance policy was drawn up by the home ministry to fast-track the security clearance process within 4-6 weeks as part of ease of business mantra under the 'Make In India' initiative.



According to the policy, the promoters, owners and directors of a company are mandated to give self declarations regarding any criminal history on their part, which reduced the period required to give security clearance from 2-3 months earlier to to just 4-6 weeks now.



Security inputs from the Intelligence Bureau, the CBI, the Enforcement Directorate and other agencies are sought only in serious crimes and not in case of minor offences.



A total of 14-15 parameters have been set out in eight to nine sensitive areas like telecom, ports, civil aviation, uplinking/downlinking of TV channels or FM stations.



The home ministry has also spelt out locations where foreign investment is not welcome such as those close to border and vital installations.




A file photo.

HYDERABAD (PTI): The government is taking many steps, with an emphasis on 'Make in India', to make the country advance technologically and to achieve self-sufficiency in the defence sector, G Sateesh Reddy, Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri, said here on Saturday.



"Lot of developments have taken place and lot of initiatives have been taken. Lot more initiatives are going to come. Many of these things, missiles..., the government is looking for fast reaching self-sufficiency in these areas; in the country we are able to, we will not be importing," he said.



Reddy was speaking at the National Technology Day celebration organised jointly by the Andhra Pradesh Akademi of Sciences and Telangana Academy of Sciences here.



Reddy said a top priority is given to buying Indian Designed, Developed and Manufactured (IDDM) items as per the new Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP).



Under the Strategic Partnership model announced by the Centre two days ago, tie-ups can be formed between Indian and foreign firms for defence manufacturing within the country, he said.



Fighter jets, helicopters, armoured vehicles and submarines are the four areas under the model.



In another decision, the government has formed a committee to go into the strategic materials policy towards achieving self-sufficiency in the area, he said.



The panel has submitted its report to the government which is being looked into. The government is likely to come out with a policy in strategic materials, Reddy said.



The government is also permitting exports in the defence area as the industry may not be able to survive merely on Indian market alone, he said, adding that many more steps would be taken towards 'Make in India'.




The wreckage of IAF's Su-30 MKI jet that went missing with two pilots onboard, has been found in the thick forest around 60 Kms from Tezpur, Assam where it lost radar contact with the base. Photo: PTI.

TEZPUR/NEW DELHI (PTI): The black box of the Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet that went missing with two pilots on board has been recovered from a dense forest in Arunachal Pradesh, two days after wreckage of the plane was sighted.



However, the fate of the crew was not yet known.



"A ground search and rescue party has reached the crash site. The black box of the aircraft has been recovered.



Further search is in progress," IAF spokesperson Wing Commander Anupam Banerjee said in Delhi.



The identity of the missing pilots has not been disclosed and the worst is feared.



The jet had gone missing shortly after taking off from Tezpur Air Force station on Tuesday on a routine training sortie and its wreckage was found on Friday in a dense forest, 60 km from Tezpur airbase.



The Indian Air Force has already ordered a court of inquiry into the crash.



The wreckage was spotted from air, and search teams reached the crash site on Sunday only. The rescue teams could not reach the spot earlier due to inclement weather and because the area had dense foliage.



The plane was part of a two-aircraft formation when it went missing.



The first batch of the Russia-made fighter jet was inducted by the IAF in the late 1990s. Since their induction, seven crashes have taken place.



A frontline fighter jet, SU-30 MKI aircraft were deployed in the Tezpur airbase on June 15, 2009 for guarding the Sino- India frontier in Arunachal Pradesh.



At present, two squadrons comprising around 36 aircraft are deployed at Tezpur.




A file photo.

MUMBAI (PTI): Guided Missile Frigate INS Ganga entered the Mumbai harbour under own steam for the last time yesterday and was placed in the non-operational category on Sunday.



After 32 years of glorious service, the ship is likely to be decommissioned before the year-end, an official release said.



The ship, commissioned on December 30, 1985, at Mumbai, and presently in her 24th Commission, is commanded by Captain NP Pradeep.



Despite the long service, she still retains her capabilities in all three dimensions of naval warfare.



It is a testimony to the resilience of the ship and her crew that she sailed into Mumbai flying the flag of Rear Admiral RB Pandit, Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet straight from a 45-day long active patrol in the Northern Arabian Sea, guarding the nation's maritime borders till her last operational day, it said.



'INS Ganga' is also affiliated to the Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) of the Indian Army.




Defence Minister Arun Jaitley with Vice-Chancellor, DIAT, Surendra Pal during the 9th Convocation of Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune on Sunday. Photo: PTI.

PUNE (PTI): Defence Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday batted for making India a defence manufacturing hub, saying it is essential to deal with various security challenges like insurgency effectively.



No country can secure itself by depending on others for its defence supplies, the minister said amid steps by the government to bring in private players in the sector.



"We cannot change our neighbours. And our neighbourhood has thrown up security challenges. We are facing insurgency and war for the last 70 years. Therefore, India needs to become an important defence manufacturing hub," he said at the 9th convocation of the Defence Institute of Advance Technology (DIAT).



"If the economy requires us to become a manufacturing hub, then security requires us to become a hub for defence manufacturing. This is the area where the country will have to use the vast resources it possesses.



"We will have to use the large number of academic institutions we have for training minds and cover up the critical gap that still exists," Jaitley said.



The country has institutions like IITs, DRDO labs and a large number of private institutes which can help it achieve the goal, the minister said.



In a veiled attack on the previous UPA government, he said the "conservative policies" of the past have hindered progress in the field of defence manufacturing.



"But the new India is a more confident India, it is not the defensive India. It is India, which is willing to globally integrate, share knowledge, get knowledge from outside," he said.



The government has broken away from the restrictive past to achieve the goal of self-reliance in defence, he said.



A total of 134 graduating students of the DIAT, an autonomous organisation under the DRDO, were awarded degrees on the occasion.




A file photo.

TEZPUR, ASSAM (PTI): The wreckage of the IAF Sukhoi fighter jet that went missing with two crew members on board was found on Friday after three days of search operations.



The Sukhoi jet had gone missing after taking off from the Tezpur Salonibari Air Force station in Assam at 10:30 AM on Tuesday on a routine training sortie.



Defence spokesperson, Tezpur 4 Corps, Lt Col Sombit Ghosh told PTI that the wreckage of the missing SU-30 jet was found close to the last known position of the aircraft, which was 60 km north-west of Tezpur in Assam's Sonitpur district.



"As of now, weather is bad and the place has dense foliage and members of the search operation are yet to reach the spot", he said.



The two-seater SU-30 MKI aircraft had gone missing after taking off from Tezpur airbase of Salonibari and lost radar and radio contact on May 23 at around 11.10 am.



Unconfirmed reports said the fighter plane had on board one squadron leader and a crew member but the IAF has not yet released any name or rank of the two members in the missing plane.



The country s front line aircraft SU-30 MKI was inducted in Tezpur air base during the tenure of former IAF Vice Chief Air Marshal P K Barbora on June 15, 2009.



At present Tezpur has a strength of two squadrons of SU-30 aircraft with one squadron comprising 12 to 16 aircraft.


Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Brandon University is where Franchesca Hebert-Spence, disconnected from her indigenous heritage growing up, became engaged with the culture of her people.

To cap off her undergraduate degree then with a powwow honouring graduates like herself is a fitting conclusion.

Its a learning experience, Hebert-Spence, who was raised in foster care, said on Saturday, a day after she wore a cap and gown to graduate with a bachelor of fine arts.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Travis Brandon, centre, from Waywayseecappo First Nation takes part in the opening grand entry at the seventh annual Brandon University All Nations Powwow, which was held on campus at the Healthy Living Centre on Saturday.

She took part in the opening grand entry at the seventh annual BU All Nations Powwow, which took place Saturday at the campus Healthy Living Centre.

I know that if I do something silly or if I dont get the protocol, people will teach me, she said before the ceremony, and thats something that Im really open to. Thats kind of why Im here and kind of why I was in the fine arts program, because its a visual and an aboriginal arts program.

Approximately 200 dancers and drummers turned the gym floor into a mixture of sounds and colourful regalia, a party that stretched from the morning pipe ceremony to dances while the sun set.

It is an occasion to acknowledge BUs Class of 2017, where each of the 13 graduates who attended were brought out for the grand entry and honouring ceremony, where they received a beaded wallet case and Metis graduates were gifted a sash.

Hebert-Spence became acquainted with her culture about four years ago when a campus group needed someone who could sew.

I was like, I took sewing lessons, and then all of a sudden I was making star pillows.

She became part of a bead-working group, making star pillows and lanyards given to graduates at the powwow.

This is the year that I wasnt helping with grad gifts  I was receiving them. Its kind of weird, Hebert-Spence said with a smile.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Dancers in full regalia perform Saturday afternoon as part of the seventh annual BU All Nations Powwow at the Healthy Living Centre.

Wearing a skirt made for her by an elder, Hebert-Spence said Saturday she was more a maker than a dancer, and likely wouldnt take part in the various styles of dance scheduled. However, she was still thrilled to be part of the powwow in any capacity.

Hebert-Spences journey of discovering her heritage will lead this summer to Sagkeeng First Nation, where her birth parents are from. She has never visited the community before.

Its about sense of place, she explained as to her reasoning. Theres family, theres land, theres community and Ive had the opportunity to engage in two of those things and then the next step is engaging with that last one.

Jill Creasor, who previously served on the Brandon University Students Union, was excited to participate in her first BU powwow after four years of helping organize it.

Creasor, who identifies as Metis, said the convocation served as the formal occasion where graduates received their degree, but the powwow is an acknowledgement from people whove watched you grow up.

Here its like the community is recognizing your graduation and your hard work, said Creasor, a bachelor of science graduate wholl enter BUs education faculty in the fall.

Today everybody is celebrating everybodys piece in your success, because its their success, too.

Belinda Sutherland, a dancer from Peguis First Nation, described the powwow as lifting up the spirits of graduates.

Ian Froese/The Brandon Sun Dignitaries and Brandon University graduates are surrounded by dancers during a portion of Saturday afternoons grand entry at the seventh annual BU All Nations Powwow in the Healthy Living Centre.

It gives them the guidance to move forward, she said.

The powwow serves as another way to bring the culture of indigenous, Metis and Inuit peoples into the fabric of the university, explained Julia Sinclair, indigenous student success officer.

It gives the students a way to celebrate themselves in our traditional way, she said. We can bring our culture into the university, and feel that its a part of their education.

 ifroese@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ianfroese
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

He wasnt their first choice, but Westmans MPs said Sunday theyre happy to work for their new party leader, Andrew Scheer.

Scheer, a Saskatchewan MP, managed to upset front-runner Maxime Bernier to become the permanent leader of the Conservative party at the party convention Saturday, in spite a subdued campaign that didnt garner the name recognition or headlines of Bernier or Kevin OLeary.

Both Larry Maguire (Brandon-Souris) and Robert Sopuck (Dauphin-Swan River-Neepawa) endorsed Erin OToole for leadership, but each said Scheer was near the top of their ranked ballot.

Sopuck said the former speaker of the House of Commons has the smarts, a strong grasp of the French language and a deep understanding of the country, both due to his Prairie home and earlier upbringing in Ontario.

All in all, Im not unhappy with the outcome, Sopuck said.

He said he values Scheers demeanour, recalling a telling remark from a commentator who said theyve never seen a frown on Scheers face.

A leader has to project a positive image, a positive attitude, very much a can-do attitude that we can make this country better, we can do well, Sopuck said, and Andrew does all of that.

The mild-mannered Scheer also has a deep understanding of parliamentary procedure, as former speaker, and thus nobody will pull the wool over his eyes in terms of parliamentary tricks, Sopuck said, referencing previous attempts at reforming the electoral system.

OTooles backers essentially became kingmaker on Saturday. When the leadership contender was whittled out of the lengthy field of candidates by the 12th ballot, enough OToole supporters placed Scheer high among their down-vote selections to give the leader-to-be the narrow nod.

That fact wasnt lost on Maguire. Like Sopuck, he wouldnt say where Scheer fell on his ballot, only to say he was in the upper echelon. Scheers victory demonstrates that many OToole supporters were impressed with him, Maguire explained.

He has really good experience from his years in Parliament already. He has a family of five, he knows what it takes to raise a family in this country and I think hell do very well.

Maguire was impressed all candidates and Conservative MPs got on stage with Scheer after his victory speech, an exceptional show of unification and co-operation, he said.

For the next election in 2019, Maguire said Conservatives must show were in touch with Canadians, since we got out of touch with them, which likely involves a certain approach to communication Maguire wouldnt speculate on.

Provencher MP Ted Falk was the only Manitoba Tory in the House of Commons to endorse Scheer for party leadership. The other three Tory MPs in Manitoba able to endorse someone  Maguire, Sopuck and James Bezan  backed OToole.

 ifroese@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ianfroese
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 27/05/2017 (1993 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A significant portion of ongoing Shoppers Mall development activities are expected to cap off throughout July, including the opening of Sobeys Extra Brandon South and GoodLife Fitness.

Morguard, the company that manages Shoppers Mall, offered an update on their progress this week, which included the following highlights:

 Sobeys Extra Brandon South is on track to open by mid-July. The 62,500-square-foot location will offer many amenities that are not currently offered in the companys current nearby market space.

 GoodLife Fitness is scheduled to open on July 7. Operating out of a temporary space at Shoppers Mall for the past few months, the companys sales team has already sold more than 700 memberships.

 Construction of Dollarama began earlier this month  a process that is expected to take seven weeks, bringing the expected opening date to early July.

 A restaurant pad site construction will begin in June, with a turnover date of August slated for tenants to begin their work on standalone restaurants, which include a Harveys/Swiss Chalet combo, a Fionn McCools Irish Pub and an East Side Marios.

 Environmental remediation remains ongoing at a former liquor store space and is expected to be ready for a future tenant this autumn.

 The next phase of development, which consists of the mall expanding into the 40,000 square foot former Target space next to the Sobeys Extra, will commence in August and is scheduled to be completed late next year.

 The Brandon Sun
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Humanity has a problem. More than one billion people are Muslims who follow the religion of Islam and its holy book, the Quran. But parts of the Quran are outdated and inappropriate for the 21st century.

Yet criticizing the Quran is itself a problem.

In Muslim-majority countries, someone guilty of criticizing the Quran can be subject to imprisonment, torture or the death penalty. Even in Western countries, a Muslim questioning the Quran can be ostracized from their family and community. And a non-Muslim criticizing the Quran can be labelled as bigoted, racist or Islamophobic.

Fortunately, a new book does a great job of tackling these issues and presenting optimistic, positive approaches for the future. The book, by Pakistani-Canadian writer Ali A. Rizvi, is The Atheist Muslim: A Journey from Religion to Reason.

Author Rizvi writes clearly and forcefully about the challenges facing the worlds Muslims. These challenges were put into stark focus by the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. But even aside from links to terrorism, Islam is in need of big changes. Muslims are held back because Islam is unfriendly towards women, science and progress in general.

Rizvi knows what he writes about. Born in Pakistan, he was raised in a Muslim family. His parents were teachers who sought better opportunities abroad. The family lived for years in Libya and Saudi Arabia before eventually settling in Canada.

As a teenager, Rizvi began to ask why the Quran was so out of synch with modern society. When he studied to become a physician, science led him to a greater appreciation of the natural world than the Quran could offer. Yet even as he rejected some aspects of Islam, he wished to keep a close connection with his Muslim family and heritage.

Rizvi draws an important distinction between Muslim and Islam. Muslims are people. They should be given the same respect as people from any ethnic or cultural background.

Islam is a religion. Everyone should be free to accept, to criticize or even to mock that religion as they might any set of ideas.

In other words, people have rights and are entitled to respect. But beliefs and books do not have rights and are not entitled to the same respect.

Rizvi says that Muslims must move beyond their belief that the Quran is the perfect, timeless word of a deity. Instead, the Quran can be seen as an imperfect, human creation of a particular time in history.

For example, he notes that the Quran (like the Bible) approves of polygamy and slavery. Perhaps such practices were appropriate in the past. But morality has progressed.

Can you be an atheist while also a Muslim? Yes, the author says. Rizvi points out that even deeply religious people pick and choose from their religious texts.

Rizvi recommends that Muslims do as Jews and Christians do: honour their ancient scriptures, but adapt them for today. Look at a passage like Exodus 35:2. Even Christians who follow the Bible literally do not really think that people who work on the Sabbath should be put to death!

Because of the authors vast knowledge, this book could be used as a primer on Islam today. Among the topics he covers are the life and teachings of the prophet Muhammad; the origins of Islam in Judaism and Christianity; the splitting of Islam into Sunni, Shiite and other groups; and interpreting the Quran in a modern context.

I see two groups who would benefit most from reading The Atheist Muslim. One group would be non-Muslims who want to learn more about Islam and how the religion could adjust to the modern world. The other group would be young Muslims who want to set aside out-dated parts of Islam, but who still consider themselves Muslims and want to have good relationships with members of their family and their community.

The authors message to other Muslims is about finding a good balance today between the Muslim and Islam parts of their identity.

Imagine if, as a Muslim, Rizvi concludes, you could keep your family and community traditions, enjoy those Ramadan iftar parties, and celebrate Eid holidays with your family and friends as always  but without the burden of belief, or having to defend every line in your scripture.

 David McConkey is an active citizen. Contact him and read previous columns at davidmcconkey.com.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

No help from our MLAs

The lack of the provincial support of $500,000 toward the improvements at the Keystone Centre is a disgrace. Obviously our local MLAs have done and said nothing in this regard since they have been elected. The City of Brandon has come forth to provide the support that is needed for such an important asset in this community, and yet the provincial government and our local MLAs do nothing.

Do your part and cut that grass

In regards to all the dandelions around  in 2007, Brandon changed the bylaw No. 6825 and that is why we have so many wonderful dandelions in town  because they will not spray for them anymore. But what irks me that people leave their grass growing so tall that they all go to seed.

Remember this come election time

Reading the concerns in Sound Off about the excessive salary increases received by the firefighters and the police and for the excessive spending by the local school board, we can only hope that the taxpayers remember this when these councillors and school board trustees are up for re-election.

Need better solution for carbon tax

A carbon tax is a scheme of wealth transfers from the poor to the rich. We occupy a planet that has gone through many cycles of climate change, some without humans and some with. To penalize Canadas economy over less than a two per cent contribution of worldwide carbon is not well thought out. You cant solve a problem with tax; you solve it with science and alternatives. Give us reasonable choices. Sending our tax money to the banksters doesnt spur invention, it just pays dividends to shareholders.

Dangerous parking lot drivers

To the speeding motorists who feel that its more than OK to speed in parking lots, please slow down before you hurt someone or your family.
The head of the European Central Bank has given his backing to the Government's plans to sell part of its stake in AIB.

Mario Draghi says it is entirely a matter for the Irish Government - but he would welcome any move to lower the taxpayer's risks.
Michael Noonan could give the green light to the flotation of AIB during his final days as Minister for Finance this week.

The sale of existing shares in the bank, is set to be the biggest flotation on the Dublin and London stock markets this year.
The tribunal investigating an alleged smear campaign against Garda whistleblower Sergeant Maurice McCabe has encountered a setback.

It has emerged that a mobile phone belonging to Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan has gone missing.

Opposition TDs last night demanded an explanation from Ms O'Sullivan as to how crucial evidence is no longer in existence.

Mick Clifford is a Special Correspondent with the Irish Examiner and outlines what the tribunal is looking for.

"They're looking for a mobile phone that was in the Commissioner's possession around the period 2013 to 2014, which is really the period when there was an alleged campaign, smear campaign against Sergeant Maurice McCabe.

"This phone is not available. This is very unfortunate as you can imagine because quite obviously the Tribunal believes, I'd imagine with some justification, that there might be some evidence on there that might be relevant to the tribunal," he said.

Labour TD Alan Kelly has said: "The reported fact that the mobile phone that was used by Commissioner O'Sullivan during the period that the Charleton Enquiry are investigating is lost is quite frankly incredible.

"It raises so many questions about the behaviour of senior management in the Gardai. It also raises serious questions over what level of co-operation Garda Management will give to the Charleton Enquiry. It raises even further questions about the competence of Garda Management," he said.
A teenage girl with severe anorexia who travelled from here to England to be assessed for treatment was found to be close to experiencing renal failure, the High Court has heard, writes Ann O'Loughlin.

Peter Finlay SC, for the HSE, mentioned the case to the President of the High Court, Mr Justice Peter Kelly, today for the purpose of making an emergency application to have the girl made a ward of court.

After counsel said he required a short time to produce the necessary legal documents, the judge said he would hear the application on Thursday.

Mr Finlay mentioned the case shortly after the judge was told a young man with treatment resistant anorexia, while still very ill, appears to be making some progress after being placed recently in a specialist eating disorder facility in the UK.

The young man's case is the first involving a male with anorexia to come before the court.

All other cases before the High Court in recent years related to young women who, as with the young man, all appeared to be high achievers, the judge previously observed.

Because there is no specialist clinic for eating disorders here, several of those cases involved the making of orders for treatment in the UK.

The court previously heard treatment resistant anorexia carries a mortality rate of one in five.

The young man has suffered from the illness for years and doctors believe it is directly related to having been assaulted as a teenager.

He was made a ward of court last January arising from findings, due to his illness, he lacks capacity to appreciate the severity of it and to make appropriate decisions in the best interests of his health and welfare.

Orders were made last January for his transfer to the specialist unit in the UK but a bed only became available earlier this month.
Update 5.30pm:A member of the board of St Vincent's Healthcare Group says they found out the Sisters of Charity is divesting its interests in the organisation through the media.

Cllr. Micheal MacDonncha says they have been given no information on how St Vincent's and the new National Maternity Hospital will be governed in future.

Cllr MacDonncha (pictured below) says the State now needs to buy the land to ensure it stays in public ownership.

"We received the news the same way as everybody else, which was through the media," he said.

"I haven't had any communication from the board or other members but I do welcome this development.

"I think it's a vindication of everybody who raised the red flag as the issue of clinical governance was a serious cause of concern."

Update 16.10pm: The new National Maternity Hospital is set to be given charitable status.

It comes after the Sisters of Charity announced it is giving up ownership of the St Vincent's Hospital Group and will instead sell its land at Elm Park in Dublin to a newly-formed organisation called St Vincent's for the new facility.

Health Minister Simon Harris is describing the announcement as a significant development.

Fergus Finlay (pictured below), who sits on the board of the newly-established Charities Regulator, says the new organisation will have to adhere to stringent regulations.

"Nobody can set up a charity in Ireland for nefarious purposes anymore," he said.

"If you set up a charity you have to establish, to the satisfaction of the regulator, that your object is charitable. If you're setting it up to hide profit, for example, you will not be allowed to get away with that."

Update 11.51am: Simon Harris has welcomed this mornings statement in relation to the change of ownership of the St Vincents Healthcare Group He noted that it was a very significant development for the healthcare sector.

Commenting on the announcement by the Religious Sisters of Charity that they intend ending their involvement with St. Vincents Healthcare Group, the Minister said the timing of this historic decision is very welcome.

"It directly addresses concerns regarding the question of religious influence in the new National Maternity Hospital and further illustrates the constructive role of the Sisters to facilitate this landmark project," he said.

The Department of Health is continuing to engage with St Vincents Healthcare Group and the National Maternity Hospital in relation to the project. The Minister will update Government on the project next week.

Update 11.21am: The Sisters of Charity said they had spent the last two years trying to find the best way to give up their ownership of the St Vincents Healthcare Group (SVHG).

"Just as our Founder Mary Aikenhead saw the need in 1834 to establish a hospital to meet the needs of the sick and poor, we believe that it is in the best interests of the patients and children born in the National Maternity Hospital today that they be provided with modern maternity and neonatal services that are women and infant centred and integrated within the Elm Park campus," Sr Mary Christian, the leader of the order said.

"It is now time for us to relinquish completely our involvement in SVHG.

"We are confident that the board, management and staff of SVHG will continue to maintain a steadfast dedication to providing the best possible acute healthcare to patients and their families in line with the values espoused by Mary Aikenhead."

The potential involvement of nuns in the running and governance of a maternity hospital had caused deep unease in some medical circles and among the public. The controversy arose after details of a confidential deal emerged between the Sisters of Charity, the St Vincents Healthcare Group, medics and management at the National Maternity Hospital and the Department of Health to build the new maternity hospital at St Vincents.

It would have seen the nuns give land at Elm Park for the new hospital but retain ultimate ownership under a complex corporate structure.

It prompted leading obstetrician Dr Peter Boylan, a former Master of Holles Street, to resign from the board of the current National Maternity Hospital. The St Vincents Healthcare Group (SVHG) said the decision was a major development and reflected the wonderful legacy to healthcare that the Sisters of Charity have left.

Chairman James Menton said: "The Sisters have always held the highest ambitions for the provision of world class healthcare services in Ireland and have successfully achieved and sustained this.

"They also see the need for the proposed development of the new National Maternity Hospital integrated within the Elm Park campus and want to do everything possible to ensure this vital facility for mothers and babies is developed as quickly as possible."

Mr Menton said the healthcare group was absolutely committed to upholding the vision and values of Mary Aikenhead, dignity, compassion, justice, quality and advocacy.

The Sisters of Charity said St Vincents, the new charity being created, will replace the order as the shareholders in SVHG. The nuns will receive a "nominal or peppercorn" payment for transferring ownership to the new company and the two nuns who are currently on the SVHG board will resign.

They also said St Vincents will not be subject to undue influence by individuals or from any source and it will not seek to generate any profit or surplus or remunerate directors for their work. The National Maternity Hospital have released the following statement:

"The National Maternity Hospital warmly welcomes the Statement from The Sisters of Charity and the Board of SVHG this morning. At all stages during the Kieran Mulvey mediation it was our clear understanding that the nuns never sought to exercise clinical control over the Hospital and that the independent ethos of the new National Maternity Hospital would be preserved on relocation to the SVHG campus.

We have worked closely with St. Vincents University Hospital for generations and we would like to acknowledge the outstanding contribution of the Sisters of Charity to Irish Healthcare over so many years. We would also like to acknowledge the support of the Minister, Simon Harris and the Department of Health and our own Board and staff in being so steadfast during this process."

Update 10.16am: The Religious Sisters of Charity have announced they will give up ownership of the St Vincents Healthcare Group, including any stake in the new National Maternity Hospital. T

he nuns have confirmed they will give up their stake in the group and transfer it to a new charity, simply known as St Vincents. The charity will be run in the short term by a new board of directors drawn from the St Vincents Hospital Group, but a new independent board is to be appointed within 12 months.

The sisters have said the new charitys board "will not be subject to undue influence by individuals or from any source". The news comes a day after the Health Minister Simon Harris said he would bring proposals to Cabinet about the ownership of the new maternity hospital this week.

Protestors holding up a petition in Dublin on May 5. Pic: Derek Speirs

Earlier: There are renewed calls for the Health Minister to outline the progress he has made regarding the ownership of the new National Maternity Hospital. Simon Harris asked for a month on April 28 to allow him to talk to the relevant stakeholders and review the agreement, which would see the facility built on land owned by the Sisters of Charity.

AIMS Ireland, which represents maternity service users, says that this month is now up and is demanding to know the outcome of the talks. Chairperson Krysia Lynch says they need to know whether the agreement will be acceptable to the public.

"When the Minister half makes a promise and says that after the month the situation will be reviewed, I think he owes the taxpayers, the people who are going to pay for this brand new maternity hospital, that answer once the month is up.
Today marks the beginning of Nursing Homes Week, an initiative that highlights the positivity of nursing home care in Ireland.

Dubbed 'Gran-National', the week-long celebration aims to connect grandparents with their grandchildren and encourage them to share memories and stories.
A man who is accused of killing eight people in Mississippi apparently told police he wasn't 'fit to live' as he was arrested.

The murders took place in three separate locations on Saturday night, before 35-year old Willie Corey Godbolt was detained.
North Korea has fired an apparent ballistic missile that flew almost 300 miles and landed in the waters of Japan's economic zone.

It was the latest in a string of launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can reach the US mainland.

The suspected Scud-type missile launched from the coastal town of Wonsan on Monday flew about 280 miles, the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

It landed in western waters that are Japan's exclusive maritime economic zone, Japanese chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga said.

He said there was no immediate report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.

North Korea is still thought to be several years away from its goal of being able to target US mainland cities with a nuclear ICBM, but each new test puts it closer to success.

The North has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that target Japan and South Korea and US forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.

There was no immediate comment from North Korea's state controlled media.

But the launch followed a report from the North that said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. It was not clear from the report when the test happened.

After the test, Mr Kim said the weapon system's ability to detect and track targets had "remarkably" improved and its accuracy also increased, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.

KCNA cited him as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system all over the country so as to "completely spoil the enemy's wild dream to command the air".

The North's nuclear and missile programmes are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in allies Washington and Seoul.

President Donald Trump has alternated in his public statements between bellicosity and flattery. But his administration is still working to solidify a policy to deal with North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

A new liberal president in Seoul, Moon Jae-in, has signalled he will be flexible in expanding civilian exchange with North Korea.

Here's everything you need to know about North Korea's nukes https://t.co/BIg31RdllO pic.twitter.com/gzIaolsoAl  Bloomberg (@business) May 29, 2017

But many analysts say Mr Moon will probably not push for any major rapprochement projects because North Korea has gone too far on its nuclear programme.

Monday's missile launch was the third one by North Korea since Mr Moon's inauguration on May 10.

Mr Moon called a National Security Council meeting to discuss the North's launch.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had just returned from a G7 meeting in Italy, told reporters: "North Korea's provocation by ignoring repeated warning from the international society is absolutely unacceptable."

He said Japan will "take concrete steps with the US in order to deter North Korea," although he did not elaborate on specific actions.

"We will also co-operate with South Korea and other members of the international society and maintain high levels of caution in order to do utmost for the protection of our people's safety."

Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, the North carried out two nuclear tests last year, in January and September.

Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of the North's secretive weapons program is unknown.

Mr Moon has made tentative steps toward engaging the North by restarting stalled civilian aid and exchange programmes as a way to improve strained ties.

South Korea said recently that it will allow a civic group to contact North Korea about potentially offering help in treating malaria, the first government approval on cross-border civilian exchanges since January 2016.

AP
The ACT government is shutting the community out of discussions about how the territory will phase out the greyhound racing industry, the Canberra Liberals claim.

Shadow Gaming and Racing Minister Mark Parton said the government was unreasonably delaying the release of a report led by former health services commissioner Mary Durkin into how the transition should work.

The Canberra Liberals have urged the ACT government to publicly release a report detailing transition options for the greyhound industry.

"I think it's important that we see evidence of the conversations going on in the industry," Mr Parton said.

"For a minister that prides himself on acting according to community values, I find it ironic that Minister Ramsay has not allowed the community to view the report much less take part in the discussion."
The Commonwealth Bank branch in Kingston ACT will close on June 30 but the ATM will remain.

The bank advised customers of its decision recently and confirmed details with Fairfax Media.

The Commonwealth Bank branch in Kingston will close on June 30. Credit:Dion Georgopoulos

It's understood the BSB number will remain and staff will be redeployed.

Customers are being encouraged to make transactions at the neighbouring Australia Post office.
British Airways (BA) said it would take steps to ensure there was no repeat of a computer system failure that stranded 75,000 passengers over a holiday weekend and turned into a public relations disaster.

BA had been forced to cancel all its flights from Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport, and Gatwick on Saturday after a power supply problem disrupted its operations worldwide and also hit its call centres and website.

The airline was returning to normal on Monday, planning to run more than 95 per cent of flights from London Heathrow and Gatwick, with only a handful of short-haul flights cancelled.

Spanish-listed shares of parent company IAG, which also owns carriers Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling, dropped 2.8 per cent on Monday after the outage, wiping 410m ($620m) off the market value of the company. The company also faces a hefty compensation bill
Conglomerate Wesfarmers will pay its new chief executive up to $4 million less than his predecessor, acknowledging "downward pressure" on CEO pay levels in the broader market.

The $48 billion Perth-based company, the owner of hardware chain Bunnings and supermarket Coles, also announced a shake-up of its executive ranks, including the departure of veteran chief financial officer Terry Bowen.

Wesfarmers' incoming chief executive Rob Scott will receive maximum annual pay of $10 million. Credit:Trevor Collens

Wesfarmers said Rob Scott, who will take over as Wesfarmers' managing director in November from long-serving boss Richard Goyder, will receive $1 million less in fixed pay and up to $3 million less in bonuses than Mr Goyder.
Australian building giant John Holland has been hit with a $280,000 fine for major safety violations after a terrifying crash between a crane and an elevated work platform on a large roadway construction site.

The Commonwealth's Director of Public Prosecutions launched the prosecution against the national builder following a lengthy investigation by federal work safety regulator Comcare.

John Holland was charged with three counts of workplace safety violations over the 2013 crane crash.

A worker narrowly evaded being crushed to death in the accident on John Holland's road construction project in Adelaide, in July 2013.

"This was an accident waiting to happen, with inadequate communication and isolation measures in place and shortfalls in supervision, instruction and training," Comcare chief executive Jennifer Taylor said.



"It was only through quick thinking and a degree of luck that the worker was not seriously injured or killed."
Saturday marked the 50th anniversary of the referendum vote that gave the Commonwealth the power, as well as an obligation and a mandate, to implement laws to benefit Aboriginal people.

That referendum also resulted in our first peoples being counted in the national census for the first time.

Until then only the states could enact legislation directly affecting Aboriginals. This manifested itself in racially discriminatory legislation not far removed from laws in apartheid South Africa and parts of the American South.

Racist laws included, but were not limited to, restrictions on travel, prohibitions on alcohol consumption, controls over cultural observances and unfair labour regulations that saw Aboriginal workers paid much less for the same labour than a white worker would receive.
US President Donald Trump talks to German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the G7 summit. Credit:AP Der Spiegel has reported that in a trade meeting he expressed his displeasure at the export success of the German car industry by telling EU leaders, "The Germans are bad, very bad." European leaders were frustrated that Trump failed to endorse the Paris climate treaty, saying instead he would announce his position on it after his return to the US. (Macron said in response that it was "essential for international equilibrium and the reputation of America that it remains engaged with the Paris treaty. The G7 had shown issues such as climate change are not side issues that can be left to others.") And then there was his speech at the NATO mini-summit in Brussels, a meeting held in part to reaffirm the significance of the organisation in the Trump era, after Trump himself had declared it obsolete while campaigning for the White House.

During his speech Trump spent two minutes castigating his fellow leaders as they stood alongside him for their failure to maintain military spending levels. This was not a new gripe. For years the US has been badgering its treaty partners to increase their spending, though normally the approach has been more diplomatic. But what really shocked the Europeans was not what Trump said, but what he failed to say. Trump conspicuously failed to specifically affirm his support for the keystone of the NATO Treaty, the obligation of mutual defence described in Article Five of the North Atlantic Treaty. This was unexpected. Trump's Defence Secretary Jim Mattis and Vice-President Mike Pence had endorsed Article Five. Trump was speaking before a memorial to Article Five that included wreckage from the World Trade Centre and which noted that the only time it had been invoked was in support of the US after the September 11 attacks. Trump's failure to do so was what Merkel was referring to when she said that the time when Europe could rely upon others was "somewhat over".

The typically supportive commentator Charles Krauthammer told the always supportive Fox News after the speech that, "The world was waiting for Trump to say, 'I support Article Five'. That was the purpose of the visit, and he wouldn't say it." "It's really hard to understand why he didn't say it. The omission was a statement." The statement, says Krauthammer, has already served to undermine NATO, the treaty upon which European peace and stability have been built since the end of World War II. The beneficiary of weakening of the transAtlantic alliance is, of course, Vladimir Putin. As David Frum, the neo-conservative former speechwriter for George W. Bush, has observed, the single most significant goal of Soviet Union and subsequently Russian foreign policy since the 1940s has been to undermine the alliance between Germany and US that provides for western European strength and stability.
The Turnbull government has doubled down on its support for private health insurers after rejecting a radical health department hospital funding proposal that would have dismantled the $6 billion taxpayer-funded rebate.

Labor accused the Coalition of staging another attack on Medicare after Fairfax Media revelations the government's top health bureaucrats were part of a secretive taskforce developing a plan for a "Commonwealth Hospital Benefit".

But Health Minister Greg Hunt immediately ruled out adopting the policy, declaring his "love" for private health insurance.

"I've rejected it once. If it ever comes forward I'll reject it again," he said.
End of the day. What happened?

the government has poured cold water on the suggestion it is considering a radical restructure of hospital funding ;

has on the suggestion it is considering a ; the opposition pursued the matter in budget estimates hearings and question time ;

pursued the matter in and ; it wants to know why the departmental committee considering the issue continued to meet after the government said it had rejected the idea;

the government also announced an additional 30 Australian troops would be sent to Afghanistan ;

also announced an would be sent to ; and senior US Republican senator John McCain was in Canberra for security talks.

My thanks to Alex Ellinghausen and Andrew Meares for their beautiful work and to you for reading and commenting.

You can follow me on Facebook.

Alex, Andrew and I will be back in the morning. We hope to see you then. Good night.
Elle Australia has unveiled a new issue with a cover and fashion spread shot entirely on an iPhone.

In a world-first for a fashion publication, Australian photographer Georges Antoni captured digital disruptor Margaret Zhang using an iPhone 7 for the June issue, on stands on Monday.

Fashion consultant Margaret Zhang as she appears in the new issue of Elle Australia, on stands Monday, May 29. Credit:Georges Antoni/Elle Australia

The 24-year-old who established her popular blog Shine By Three in her teens now has an online following of close to 1 million on her social media channels.

Her skills in creative direction, photography and styling are now sought after by some of the world's biggest brands, like Louis Vuitton, and personalities like Kanye West.
The family of slain Lindt Cafe hostage Katrina Dawson have said a psychiatrist who played a pivotal role in the fatal siege response should never be allowed to influence police again.

Ms Dawson's grieving family also believe two senior police officers responsible for calling the shots on December 15 and 16, 2014, should have attracted harsher criticism.

Almost a week after state coroner Michael Barnes handed down his findings into the deadly Martin Place siege, submissions from those intrinsically involved or severely impacted have been released.

Echoing one of the coroner's key findings, the Dawson family was scathing of the psychiatrist who advised the police commanders and negotiators throughout the 18-hour siege.
Three teenagers have been killed in a horrific crash between two trucks and a car in northern NSW, paramedics say.

The collision occurred on the Newell Highway, about 30 kilometres south of the NSW town of Boggabilla, near the NSW-Queensland border, about 6am on Monday.

It's understood one of the trucks, a fuel tanker, caught alight following the crash.
LNP Queensland president Gary Spence said the party believed the commission did a good job. "The commission has a very difficult job to do and I think the LNP is of the view that they did a very good job in difficult circumstances," Mr Spence said. However, others were very disappointed by the changes. Katter's Australian Party MP Shane Knuth's seat of Dalrymple will be effectively abolished under the redrawn boundaries and he did not rule out an appeal against the decision. Mr Knuth's seat would be divided up between the Traeger, Hill and Burdekin electorates.

"We're bitterly disappointed and we had a submission that was able to reveal how we could keep all seats in rural and regional Queensland," he said. Mr Knuth said his constituents were "ropeable". "They can accept voting an elected member out, but not see them redistributed out," he said. When asked where he would run instead, Mr Knuth said he was keeping his options open, but there was no chance he would run against KAP colleague Robbie Katter in the large seat of Traeger. "It's business as usual," he said.

"I'll still be the member for Dalrymple up until the next election." But Mr Knuth pointed out he had an electorate office in the Atherton Tablelands. Atherton would be within the new electorate of Hill. Hill takes in the northern part of the old electorate of Dalrymple and extends east to take in parts of the existing Mulgrave and Hinchinbrook. The KAP MPs had advocated for the increase in seats from 89 to 93 in the hopes of increasing representation in the bush. "We got four extra seats, so they didn't have to chop up seats from our area and take them away and put them in Brisbane," Mr Knuth said.

The commissioners said the four new electorates were needed in the growth areas of the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Ipswich and the area between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast. Mr Katter said the commission's plan reinforced the need for a separate state in Queensland's north. "The most significant thing to come out of this change is that representation of rural and remote areas is further diluted," Mr Katter said. "The real solution here is to create a separate state for north Queensland." Queensland Redistribution Commission chairman Hugh Botting said there were some changes to the original proposal made based on suggestions received during consultation.

Mr Botting said the QRC was confident in its placement of the new electorates and other changes, such as the removal of Dalrymple and expansion of Traegar. "The commission's number one priority was the number of voters in each electorate because that's quite simply the law," he said. "Every district must contain relatively the same number of electors so that each vote carries equal weight at the ballot box." Some seats had decisions to change their names reversed; Burdekin will not become McMaster, Glass House will not become Tibrogargan and Pine Rivers will not become D'Aguilar. "Some residents feared changing Pine Rivers to D'Aguilar could see them earn the unfortunate nickname of 'dags' - but of course there were other more pressing reasons," Mr Botting said.

Member for Brisbane Central Grace Grace, who unsuccessfully advocated to prevent her electorate's name changing to McConnel, saidshe was disappointed. "They've decided to stick with it and of course they made the decision, I respect the decision," she said. "I'm running for McConnel." Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation chief executive officer Cameron Costello said it was wonderful the Cleveland electorate would be renamed Oodgeroo. "Oodgeroo Noonuccal, Kath Walker, was a great poet, educator and leading light of Australian and Indigenous literature and education," Mr Costello said.
"From its establishment, the HSU failed to undertake any actual health surveillance. It served as nothing more than a storage unit for miners' chest X-rays and health records," the report reads. "The responsibility for identifying problems, errors or trends in coal miners' health assessments was left entirely to the relevant mine operator, its NMA, and the individual mine worker." The HSU was also understaffed, had 10 years of health records to process by 2015, and many records were stored in a janitor's cupboard next to the toilets and in shipping containers, causing many to become unreadable. The committee was also frustrated with the cooperation from some officers of DNRM  it recommended the transcripts of public and private hearings involving public servants be reviewed by the Public Service Commissioner to consider whether they misled the committee or breached the code of practice. "Frequently senior officers have been unprepared and unable to answer important questions relevant to the committee's inquiry and where answers were given, often the officers were argumentative and resistant to acknowledging the wide-ranging failings of their department," the report read.

"This appears to be a reflection of a culture and attitude that has built up over 30 years." It also recommended a Committee on Public Administration be set up to investigate matters of public administration, after it said there were "widespread administrative failings". The committee also heard evidence there were significant failings in the workers' compensation scheme for workers diagnosed with or concerned about the disease. In open cut environments, dust risks appeared to be neglected because of a false assumption that only underground workers could contract CWP. Some mine workers told the Coal Workers' Pneumoconiosis Select Committee about coughing up black mucus for years after working in the coal industry.

Early detection of asymptomatic CWP is vital so they can be removed from exposure to dust and their possibility of developing complex CWP is reduced. "Tragically, many sufferers of CWP continued to work in dusty conditions while their condition remained unidentified," the report reads. "A diagnosis may be easily missed, or assumptions made that the loss of function associated with CWP is due to reduced fitness, age or lifestyle factors such [as] smoking. "It remains unknown how many deaths have been wrongly attributed to lung diseases other than CWP." The report made 68 recommendations to raise the level of oversight, compliance and transparency including the establishment of a new independent authority, the Mine Safety and Health Authority.

The report also recommended a portion of coal and mineral royalties be provided to the state to fund the authority and its health and safety activities and called for the immediate reduction of the current Queensland occupational exposure limit for respirable coal dust and silica, to become the lowest in Australia. The committee's work exposed "catastrophic failings in public administration in Queensland", chair Jo-Ann Miller and deputy chair Lawrence Springborg wrote in the report. "The committee received harrowing evidence from workers and their families resulting in tears from some of the toughest of coal miners and their partners, workmates, neighbours and friends," they wrote. "As a committee, we too shed tears of sorrow, disbelief and anger, because the system let down these men and women of The Deep." Natural Resources Minister Anthony Lynham said the government would respond to the committee's report within the 90-day time frame.

Dr Lynham said the government did not wait to act until the report was tabled, with work including double reading of chest X-rays and training programs for doctors. He said his department had been "absolutely solid" in eliminating CWP from the workforce. "The committee doesn't see my department as I see my department. I see hardworking public servants absolutely committed to eliminating this insidious disorder," he said. In March, the committee was granted additional terms of reference to examine other work forces and gave it the power to draft legislation.
Two men who escaped from a low-security Queensland jail over the weekend have been recaptured and charged.

The inmates, Ryan William Miller and Aaron Lee Woods, had been serving sentences for assault offences at the low-security Capricornia Correctional Centre Farm north of Rockhampton when they escaped on Saturday morning.

Police arrested the pair in Brisbane's north on Sunday afternoon and they will appear in the Pine Rivers Magistrates Court on Monday, charged with one count each of escape lawful custody.

AAP
Police were negotiating with a gunman into Tuesday morning, after Senior Constable Brett Forte was killed during a traffic stop west of Brisbane Monday afternoon.

Queensland police high command said they could not reveal details about the Lockyer Valley incident as it was an "active investigation", but the police force would throw "whatever resources" needed at the operation.

"We have a person contained at the scene and at my advice we are negotiating with that person," Commissioner Ian Stewart said.
Rosleigh Rose reckons she doesn't know where her convicted drug smuggler daughter Schapelle is, and doesn't think she should sell her story to the media.

With tongue seemingly planted in cheek, the Corby family matriarch returned to her Loganlea home, south of Brisbane, from a trip to Beenleigh Shopping Centre to tell waiting media the 39-year-old was actually in Cairns.

"Didn't you know? She caught a flight yesterday to Cairns," Ms Rose said.

Ms Corby has posted an Instagram clip of her watching live television footage of two black vans on a motorway leading media on a false trail after she flew in from Bali.
It adds to the growing news flow suggesting Samsung is recovering well, with consumers lured by its cool bezel-less design and whizzbang features. But I'd posit an alternative reason: habit.

Admittedly, that is Samsung's home market, so you'd expect its compatriots to return to the brand more readily than elsewhere after last year's battery disaster . But a doubling of the sales pace is quite a feat.

The latest tidbit has its Galaxy S8 smartphone hitting 1 million unit sales in South Korea since its April 21 release, twice as quickly as the previous S7 and S6 models, Yonhap News reported.

The latest tidbit has its Galaxy S8 smartphone hitting 1 million unit sales in South Korea since its April 21 release. Credit:Bloomberg

While there are dozens of smartphone makers globally, only Samsung has the geographical reach to make it the default Android option almost everywhere. Much has been said about the rise of Chinese brands such as Huawei, Oppo and Vivo. Yet those three combined don't equal the shipment volumes of Samsung.

More significantly, each of them barely exists outside their home market.

Even Huawei, a global brand in its own right, sells 61 per cent of its devices within China, according to data from Bloomberg Intelligence and IDC. For all manner of political and nationalistic reasons, Chinese prefer not to buy Samsung phones. Many other countries also have local heroes that patriots turn to.

But that hasn't stopped the world, in general, from choosing Samsung. Latin America consistently gives it a 30 per cent share while Asia ex-Japan remains loyal quarter after quarter. It's still No. 1 in central and eastern Europe, despite a strong advance from Huawei, and in western Europe, Samsung is second behind only Apple.
When Gregory Keith Davies, 74, finally confessed that he was an opportunistic child killer he did so not because of one shred of remorse but because he knew he had been trapped by a combination of new-age science and old-fashioned policing.

For decades, the quiet everyman must have been confident that he would take his secret to the grave.

On Melbourne Cup Day 1984, Davies saw a little girl called Kylie Maybury heading to her home in Gregory Grove, Preston after buying some sugar for her mother from a Food Plus convenience store.

At 5.30 pm the streets were relatively quiet and Davies, then 42, would have thought no one would have seen him take the six year old.
A man has pleaded guilty to murdering six-year-old Kylie Maybury more than 30 years ago.

Gregory Davies appeared briefly in Melbourne Magistrate's Court on Monday to plead guilty to one charge or murder and one of rape.

A charge of false imprisonment was withdrawn by prosecutors.

Davies was remanded in custody to appear before the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
It's been a hellish morning commute in Melbourne with signal faults and wayward boom gates causing delays of up to 90 minutes on multiple train lines.

Tempers flared as commuters complained of being stranded on Monday morning as the network ground to a halt.

A crowded train carriage on Monday morning. Credit:Twitter/@danielbowen

One Age reader said his journey from Cranbourne to Melbourne Central took 2 hours and 40 minutes.

Many others complained of being trapped on stationary trains for up to an hour.
Metro Trains has taken the rare step of issuing a public apology to all commuters after a shambolic performance Monday morning - but that has done little to quell passengers' fury.

Travellers endured delays of up to 90 minutes on their ride into work as Metro dealt with a range of faults across the network.

A crowded train carriage on Monday morning. Credit:Twitter/@danielbowen

On the way home, Metro's control centre used train PA systems to issue an apology for the morning's performance.

But commuters continue to barrage social media with calls for compensation.
John O'Conner has never had it easy, but sometimes it feels like he's been set up to fail.

When John was young he fell off a milk truck and landed on his head.

When John O'Conner left prison, with only the clothes on his back, he became homeless Credit:Eddie Jim

His dad used his fists on his son, and later encouraged him to box.

John ended up with quicksilver reflexes but also an acquired brain injury, a disability that now affects his cognitive function.
Mr Mackenzie, who lived in the area, died in hospital later that night.

The crossing is at a set of lights opposite the Peters Boulevard Ice Creamery Kiosk, between Luna Park and Fitzroy Street.

Norman Mackenzie died after being hit by a cyclist while crossing Jacka Boulevard in St Kilda.

Norman Mackenzie, 85, was crossing Jacka Boulevard at a pedestrian crossing that had signals when he was struck by a cyclist travelling in the road's bike lane on April 18.

VicRoads will review a St Kilda pedestrian crossing after a fatal collision involving an elderly man and a cyclist last month.

Police have completed their report for the Coroner, but would not comment on the circumstances of the collision.

However, they have confirmed the cyclist, a 30-year-old Port Melbourne man who was taken to hospital after the crash with non-life threatening injuries, will not face charges.

A police spokesman told Fairfax Media: "This incident has been investigated and the cyclist will not be charged. No further action will be taken."

It could be the case that Mr Mackenzie began crossing the road on a green pedestrian signal, but did not reach the other side before the lights changed.

He had been walking his blue Staffordshire bull terrier puppy along Jacka Boulevard, as he did twice a day every day, his son Alistair said.
John Patterson, a nephew of Alexander Nininger, at his home in North Kingstown, Rhode Island. Credit:New York Times The target of the suit is the Defence POW/MIA Accounting Agency, an arm of the Pentagon with a $US115 million ($154 million) annual budget that is tasked with accounting for the roughly 45,000 recoverable lost service members dating to World War II. For years, the agency and a group of agencies that preceded it have been plagued by reports of waste and dysfunction. Despite its hefty budget, the recovery effort has averaged fewer than 90 bodies annually in the past five years. Congress, frustrated by the low numbers, mandated that the agency increase the number to at least 200 per year by 2015, but it has yet to meet that total. 'It's not as straightforward as pointing to a grave,' says Greg Gardner, chief of the Army's Past Conflicts Repatriations Branch. Credit:New York Times The agency said connecting remains with lost fighters was a meticulous process that often took years. It has tried to streamline the effort, and identified a record 164 remains in 2016, but staff members warned in recent interviews that extracting usable DNA from 70-year-old remains damaged by the chaos of battle would continue to be a plodding endeavour.

"We completely understand there is frustration and pain of families," said John Byrd, director of the agency's lab. "We are going to do the best we can to ramp up the most robust capability while trying to do the work properly." A white marble cross at grave J-7-20 bears the words: "Here rests in honored glory a comrade in arms known only to God." Credit:New York Times But many families have run out of patience. Nininger's family has been rebuffed by the agency for decades, even though the family claims it can literally draw a map to his grave site and has provided DNA to make a match. "We're not talking Sherlock Holmes here. We're not even talking Murder, She Wrote. Many of these cases are eminently solvable," said Rick Stone, a former police chief and forensics professor who was deputy of the agency's World War II branch from 2011 to 2012. "But the system is so dysfunctional that they resist all efforts." During his year at the agency, he said, he found 179 cases where the identity of a body could be narrowed to a few names and easily identified through DNA. The agency acted on none, and he soon quit.

Nininger was an unlikely war hero. At West Point, the soft-spoken cadet from Florida gravitated to theatre and liked listening to Tchaikovsky. But when the Japanese stormed the Philippines shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbour, it was as if a switch flipped, his nephew said. Nininger volunteered to go to a spot on the front lines that had splintered under the pounding of a larger Japanese force. With a satchel of grenades and a gun in each hand, he crept through a grove of mango trees and surprised the enemy at close range. He was wounded three times but kept going. After he ran out of ammunition, witnesses said, he killed three more men with his bayonet, then collapsed. He was wrapped in tent canvas and buried in a hasty grave in a churchyard. A few months later, Americans on the island surrendered. Ever since, his resting place has been in dispute. After the war, the Army assigned unidentified bones found in a churchyard grave the number X-4685 and re-buried them, along with thousands of others, in the American Cemetery in Manila. Veterans from the lieutenant's battalion told the family that the grave held the fallen hero, and Army grave technicians sorting remains at the time concurred. The workers concluded twice that X-4685 was Nininger, citing matching dental records and other details. But the central office overruled the identification, saying the bones appeared to be a few centimetres too short.

In 1951, the agency closed the case, labelling him "non-recoverable", and sent a letter to his parents saying: "It is regretted that there is no grave at which to pay homage." "I don't think my mother ever got over it," said Patterson, a former Rhode Island state senator. In the decades since, his beard has grown white as he has tried to bring his uncle home. In the 1960s, at the urging of his mother, Patterson wrote letters to the Defence Department asking about the grave, but got only stock responses that the body was lost. In the 1970s, he began rooting through historical accounts of the battle for clues. In the 1980s, he tracked down witnesses the Army had never spoken to: a scout who had conveyed the body to the churchyard, an intelligence officer who drew a map showing an ancient mango tree 50 paces south-west of the church, next to the spot where the lieutenant was buried.

"It became my vocation," Patterson said. "Some in my family would say my obsession." In the 1990s, he made a pilgrimage to the churchyard, then tracked the remains to the Manila American Cemetery, where a white marble cross at grave J-7-20 bears the words: "Here rests in honoured glory a comrade in arms known only to God." He asked the Defence Department again to exhume the grave in 1993. The request was denied. He asked in 2015. It was denied again. He requested instructions on how to appeal the denial. He never got a response. Agency anthropologists warn that the messy confusion of combat is often preserved in World War II's many graves. Single coffins can hold multiple skeletons. Bones are often broken and commingled. And burned and degraded remains can make extracting DNA unlikely. "It's not as straightforward as pointing to a grave," said Greg Gardner, chief of the Army's Past Conflicts Repatriations Branch, "We still have a lot of unknowns." He added that he was not sure who is in grave J-7-20.
London: A week after the Manchester bombing, six children are still fighting for their future, and Manchester Children's Hospital has found itself at the heart of the tragedy, dealing with demands greater than most of its staff can remember.

As of Monday, six of the hospital's 12 patients from the bombing were still in intensive care. Doctors are treating injuries many of them have only read about in textbooks, Dr Peter-Marc Fortune, the hospital's associate head and an intensive care consultant, said.

If the children pull through, some may have long, potentially life-changing injuries.

Some of the children are "still in a very difficult place (and) it's not clear what the outcome will be", Dr Fortune, who is also president of the Paediatric Intensive Care Society, told Fairfax Media on Monday.
Bucks Democrats expect to have majority in state House

Democrats expect to gain one more seat in state Senate, but still be in minority there.
Git Gone, episode four of American Gods, was the best, most thoroughly developed episode of the series thus far. This episode has massive shoes to fill, following one that provides focus and depth to a singular character. Lemon Scented You has teased another appearance by Gillian Anderson, so its safe to say were expanding back into the full-blown god universe.

Another side story takes us to a frigid winter in ancient Siberia, where a burial takes place for an infant. This heavily animated sequence follows a clan who ventures to a desolate badlands, so the leader prays to an old god for answers and receives guidance that also means death. The lesson of this tale is that gods are great, but people are greater. Over time, all gods can be forgotten.

Why 2017 is a Great Year for Wonderfully Weird TV >>>

The Walking Undead

Were back with Laura awaiting Shadows return in a hotel room, with a makeshift fly trap snatching up the pests. Shadow walks in and sees her on the bed in one of her best dresses and casually greets her with, Hey, baby. What you doin here? He throws a pillow at her to see if shes real. After everything Shadow has seen and done, its no wonder hes slightly underwhelmed at his late wifes undead appearance.

Laura plays off her martial indiscretions with her remarkable resurrection, but Shadow isnt having it. He asks her how long she waited for him, and she tells Shadow that she began sleeping with Robbie 13 months after Shadow went to prison, after the cats death. Visibly vibrating with agitation, Shadow continues to calmly ask Laura questions about what happened to her and gets a play-by-play of the blow job car accident. If I were Shadow, Id divorce Laura simply on the merit of her incessant insistence on calling him Puppy.

At the Starbrite Hotel, Shadow fulfills Lauras request for cigarettes, all while being observed by someone in an unknown black car. When he returns to his room, Laura is in the bathtub in the hopes that she will be warm in case he wants to touch her. In response, Shadow places her wedding ring on the counter and tells her that he had a feeling he would never see her again the last time they talked on the phone. Autopsy stitches and all, Laura makes a move on Shadow. Her chest glows as they kiss, and its apparent that her connection with him is tied to her life force.

Laura thanks Shadow for the coin and asks him if he still belongs to her, and he surprisingly says no. A raven shows up at Mr. Wednesdays door to deliver some surprising news. Mr. Wednesday shows up at Shadows hotel room and asks him out for a drink. When Shadow turns him down, Mr. Wednesday gets the hint that Shadow has seen something shocking, but the two are interrupted by police officers. The cops arrest Shadow for bank robbery and take them both away.

A Slave to Technology

The god of technology heads through a parking lot when the lights shut down one by one, and he is taken by a device similar to his own. It turns out hes grabbed by the goddess of media, who chastises him like a child for picking fights and instructs him to apologize to Mr. Wednesday and Shadow. She insists that his interrogation strategies have fueled the fire of the old gods instead of dampening it.

At the precinct, Shadow requests a lawyer since hes starting to be questioned about his boss. Mr. Wednesday pretends to be an elderly man suffering from dementia in the meantime. When asked what hes doing in Chicago, Mr. Wednesday actually tells the truth, that hes attempting to recruit the god of death for a war with the new gods.

A fax machine that hasnt functioned in years sent the Chicago police Shadows whereabouts, which the cop finds suspicious. Meanwhile, Laura continues to soak in the tub but is interrupted by the Leprechaun, who wants his coin back. It turns out said coin is the source of Lauras resurrection  her beating heart, if you will. The Leprechaun reveals that he mistakenly gave Shadow the wrong coin, but Laura is not impressed. She begins to question him about the job Shadow is performing.

Quiz: Which TV Sidekick Are You? >>>

The Lucky Unlucky

Laura realizes that the Leprechaun can only get his coin back when she gives it to him freely, but he seems confident that her reanimated body will soon fail her. Right as the Leprechaun is attempting to drown her in the tub, the cops bust in and arrest him.

The lady cop reunites Shadow and Mr. Wednesday, and Shadow confronts him about the fear he sees in Wednesdays eyes. The lights dim, and the media goddess saunters in as Marilyn Monroe. Suddenly, the televisions shut off as the creepiest man in the universe approaches and addresses Mr. Wednesday and apologizes for not reaching out to him sooner. The mystery man confronts Shadow Moon and begins to recite detailed information about Shadows being before being interrupted by Media again.

The Technical Boy is called in to apologize to Shadow for the lynching. Mystery Man offers up Technical Boy to be punished. And when Shadow turns him down, he then approaches Mr. Wednesday to offer up his assistance. The new gods offer up a coexisting merger to Mr. Wednesday, and the Mystery Man reveals himself as Mr. World. Media presents a colorful, unicorn-laden proposal for the collaboration, but Mr. Wednesday shuts them down. He insists that the new gods only serve to occupy their time, but the old gods gave people meaning.

When Technical Boy confronts Mr. World about apprehending Mr. Wednesday while they have him, Media and Mr. World give Techno Boy a nice slap in the mouth after he rebukes Mr. Worlds explanation that Wednesday is full of age and wisdom and deserves their respect. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, right?

After the new gods leave, Wednesday and Shadow make their move to escape, but its not difficult to manage since every cop in the precinct has been killed. Just as another cop pulls up with Leprechaun in the back seat, Shadow appears to be suffering from sharp pains as a growing, animated tree chases them. The Leprechaun breaks out of the cop car and escapes.

A worker at the morgue investigates a disturbance, only to witness Laura breaking out of where her dead body is being stored yet again. She gazes at her reflection in the mirror and gives it a kiss before examining another dead womans body and stealing a bag of blood.

Each episode of American Gods still serves up more questions than it answers, but the dish is delightful enough to keep getting hungry for more.

How long do you think Laura will be able to keep herself alive? Will she be able to get Shadow to forgive her? Do you think Techno Boy will keep following the rules or go rogue? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

American Gods season 1 airs Sunday nights at 9/8c on Starz. Want more news? Like BuddyTVs Facebook page.

(Image courtesy of Starz)
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October 31, 2022

Buddy TV

In November, there are hundreds of new and returning TV showsit can be overwhelming to try and choose what to watch. That's why we've selected some of the best options...
NJ Weedman got a license to sell NJ legal weed. He almost said no.
Advertising watchdog has introduced an 'Independent Review Process' which will look into the recommendations made by Consumer Complaints Council functioning under it, in case the advertiser or complainant is dissatisfied with the recommendations.

The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has appointed retired Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana  Justice Mukul Mudgal  as the Chairman of Independent Review Process.

The move is aimed at strengthening the consumer complaint process in the advertising industry and ensure responsible advertising to protect the interests of the consumers, said in a statement.

also announced the appointment of retired IAS officer CBS Venkataramana as the Chief Complaints Officer (CCO), who will be responsible for managing complaint lodging, investigation and redressal, among others.

ASCI Chairman Srinivasan K Swamy said: "The inclusion of the Independent Review Process mechanism creates transparency for both advertiser and complainant in further facilitating fair judgement of complaints".

ASCI has been taking various initiatives for upholding self-regulation in advertising, safeguarding consumer interest and partnering with various government bodies in restraining misleading advertisements.

The Independent Review Process meeting will be convened once a fortnight, or month, wherein both parties will be represented by their company officials.

The chairman, after hearing both parties, will give his/her recommendations within two business days thereafter.
Over 800,000 chemists across the country have decided to shut shop on Tuesday to protest against the government's e-platform plan to regulate the sale of drugs.
Led by a steep fall in the Sun Pharmaceutical stock, which was down over 10 per cent, the BSE Healthcare Index fell about 2.5 per cent on Monday. With this correction, the index has shed 21.6 per cent since its 52-week high, while Sun Pharma, the largest constituent of the index, has dipped 41 per cent from its one-year high of Rs 854. Mondays correction is due to a muted revenue outlook from the Sun Pharma management. The company expects a single-digit decline in FY18 revenues, which took the Street by surprise.
The roll-out of the goods and services tax (GST) scheduled from July 1, will allow Tata Steel to sell finished products manufactured at its Kalinganagar steel mill, in Odisha, outside the state.
After a $1-billion commercial property deal between developer Hiranandani and Canadian investor Brookfield in Mumbai last year, another mega one is in the works. This time the Mumbai-based property developer is trying to build a Rs 3,000-crore equity partnership for its three-million square feet (sq ft) project in Thane, said sources.
Nearly two decades ago, low-cost airlines barely existed. Today, they account for more than half of total capacity in Southeast Asia, allowing many people to fly for the first time. This boom can be traced back to one charismatic businessman: Anthony Fernandes, better known as Tony.
Indias information technology (IT) services is hiring engineers with skills in cloud computing, analytics and digital -- the segments that clients are spending money on  even as tighten performance appraisals of employees working on legacy services where budgets are shrinking.
On May 1, the annual workers march in Bengaluru to mark the Labour Day saw for the first time a group representing employees of the information technology (IT) industry. It was probably an ominous sign of things to come.

The past few weeks have seen several hundred people let go of by IT services firms joining the Forum for IT employees (FITE) or the New Democratic Labour Front (NDLF) IT Employees Wing, two unions claiming to represent tech workers fighting for their rights.

FITE has led the charge by filing cases with the labour departments in Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai against firms such as Wipro, Tech Mahindra and Cognizant, saying engineers were wrongly terminated by these .

Nitin Sharma (name changed to protect identity), for example, was one such worker who reached out to FITE after being let go.

Sharma, an employee of a large IT services firm, got a promotion last year after four years. When a set of new employees joined his team at a lower pay scale, a senior informed him about his imminent exit. A few days later, he was asked to resign. I have documents to prove I showed consistent performance. Suddenly, I was given the lowest performance rating available. They said the HR (human resources) department gave me this rating, said Sharma.

More such people are reaching out to trade unions for help. The have said people were let go because of weak performance as part of the annual review exercise. But this has attracted attention this year as the sector faces its worst crisis in a decade  primarily because of rising protectionism overseas and increasing automation.

For nearly two decades, Indias export-focused software industry saw rapid double-digit growth as western clients outsourced work to cut costs and improve profitability. The sector logged exports of $110 billion last year and employed 3.9 million people.

As the industry matured, grew in single digits. Costs rose, too. But clients started cutting outsourcing budgets on traditional services and spending more on digital and cloud technologies. Lower-end work such as testing and maintenance, which employed a huge number, saw major automation. Then came the blow from abroad. Governments in the US, the UK, Australia and Singapore started restricting movement of inbound labour to protect local jobs. Indian IT firms then started looking at ways to cut costs. Non-performers or those who did not have the skills to migrate to new areas were let go. The companies started hiring residents in the country of operation to get around the governments labour blockade.

While the industry remains a net hirer, said lobby group Nasscom, workforce realignment linked to performance appraisal processes is a regular feature every year. Skilling and workforce realignment are essential to remain competitive in international markets. It needs to be appreciated that such workforce realignment is a normal part of the internal process of companies based on their own operational imperatives.

Usually, employees let go during the annual appraisal cycles would be absorbed by other firms looking for such skill-sets. This year, however, people being laid off are not getting jobs. Engineers laid off in 2016 are still struggling to get jobs in the new environment. This has led to such engineers getting into unions or forming groups.

For more than a decade, IT employees have largely stayed away from such groupings. High-paying salaries, opportunities to travel to client locations abroad and retention efforts by companies kept these people glued to the job.

In 2014, Tamil Nadu saw efforts to unionise IT employees after Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) allegedly laid off a large number. The company had denied any such move. Three unions  FITE, a platform formed by the Young Tamil Nadu Movement (YTNM); NDLF IT Employees Wing and Knowledge Professionals Forum  emerged and started taking up the cases of those who approached them.

Their fight got a shot in the arm in January 2015, when a woman employee got an interim injunction against a termination order issued by TCS. The employee, who was pregnant, was later reinstated by TCS, as an exceptional case, in line with its practice of not relieving any employee during pregnancy.

Other employees, too, started petitioning the labour department. In June 2016, the Tamil Nadu government allowed employees of IT firms to form a trade union, saying labour legislations did not exempt companies in the IT and IT-enabled services verticals. Maharashtra, too, said the IT sector would get no exemption in this regard.

Maharashtras Commissioner of Labour Yeshawant Kerure said, As there is no special Act governing IT, we can only try to protect labour interests based on acts like the Industrial Disputes Act. We try to resolve disputes by inviting both parties to mediate. If that fails, then we advise them to approach the respective labour court. IT sector needs special attention, which is something we will be looking at. There is very little representation in terms of employee rights and that too from a single group.

Industry response

The industry has played the survival card. When the going was good for companies, employees benefitted. But during tough times, they need to evolve to survive. Firms also say they spend millions of dollars to train and upgrade skills of employees.

C Prabhakar, president of Karnataka Employers Association, and a labour law expert, said it could become a question of survival for IT companies if they retain surplus people who cannot hone new skills. The quantum of employees let go of is normal, like before. In IT companies, unlike manufacturing, individual contribution of software engineers is important and there is scope for enhancing skills, too. Even if the management cannot oppose formation of unions, encouraging such unions may turn out to be detrimental, said Prabhakar, a former board member at Wipro. IT companies provide better service conditions than, say, a factory, he said. IT employees should realise the importance of re-skilling themselves, he added.

Saurabh Govil, head of human resources for Wipro, said in a recent interview: "Unions come as a consequence of an economic reason. Here we are dealing with knowledge workers. They understand it is about being transparent, and fair. You can take a tough call. If you treat people with respect transparency and perceived fairness, then there would not be an issue.




The Indian car market has approximately 100 models, manufactured by about 15 . But only one-tenth of these have sales worth Rs 6,500 crore ($1 billion) or more as they clock large volumes and have been more successful.

The list of top 10 vehicles, value-wise, is dominated by the top two players in the market  Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai. However, Toyota, the third player on this list, scores and stands ahead of the two with its Innova Crysta.

The vehicle with the highest domestic sales in terms of value is the Crysta, the new Innova model launched a year ago by Toyota. The multipurpose vehicle is estimated to be worth more than Rs 14,200 crore last year to the Japanese automobile maker, a back-of-the-envelope calculation shows.

The Crysta value of over Rs 14,000 crore is the largest single model contribution for any manufacturer in India, based on a back-of-the-envelope calculation, said N Raja, director and senior vice-president (sales & marketing), Toyota. The new Crysta is Rs 2 lakh more expensive, on average, than the earlier model of the Innova. The Crysta is still on a waiting period of over a month after a year of the launch.

Maruti Suzukis Dzire is not far behind. The countrys most-sold sedan is estimated to be worth Rs 14,000 crore, the highest in the portfolio of the company. Last year, Maruti sold close to 200,000 units of the Dzire, including the Tour variant, which is sold for taxis. With the launch of the new Dzire early this month, overall Dzire sales are estimated to inch up and make it an even bigger revenue generator for the firm.

The third-largest value-generating car in India, the Creta, comes from the second-largest player, Hyundai. Launched in the middle of the 2015 calendar year, this SUV is estimated to be worth over Rs 13,500 crore. The Creta is definitely the largest contributor to our business in value terms. Even though lower in volumes to the Elite i20 and Grand i10, its average price of Rs 14 lakh makes it the top revenue generator for us, said Rakesh Srivastava, director (sales & marketing), Hyundai.

The amount being discussed here is not equal to the revenue that these models generate for the . The revenue generated would be lower since the calculation is based on ex-showroom price, which also includes various central and state taxes and dealer margins. Companies do not disclose the model-wise revenue realisation.



Besides these three vehicles, seven others are also worth a billion dollars or more. Besides the Dzire, Maruti Suzuki has five vehicles on that list. Other Maruti models that bring in revenues of more than a billion dollars are the Swift (Rs 10,000 crore), Baleno (Rs 8,400 crore), Brezza (Rs 8,400 crore), WagonR (Rs 7,800 crore), and Alto (Rs 7,700 crore). Two of these models  the Baleno and Brezza  continue to command a waiting period.

Korean car maker Hyundai has two more products worth over a billion dollars. The companys Elite i20 is estimated to be worth Rs 10,100 crore, based on last years domestic volume of 126,304 units. The Grand i10 of Hyundai is estimated to be worth Rs 8,700 crore. Hyundais Srivastava says the numbers reflect the popularity of these models, helping in creating a strong brand image for the firm.
Japanese auto major, Toyota, plans to make India a larger export base by shipping left-hand drive cars from the country. Currently, the Indian subsidiary of the world's second-largest vehicle maker produces only right-hand drive cars and exports some of these.

"We just produce right-hand drive cars in Indian plants. We would want to be an export hub for left-hand drive vehicles in the future," Akito Tachibana, managing director at Toyota Kirloskar Motor told Business Standard in an interaction. For Toyota's India-made right-hand drive cars the international market is limited, as cars in most countries have steering on the left hand side. Two of Toyota's big markets -- Thailand and Indonesia -- are right-hand drive but the company has large manufacturing capacities in both these countries.
Three Kashmiri separatists today appeared before the Investigation Agency (NIA) for questioning in connection with a case related to the funding of terror and subversive activities in Jammu and .

Agency sources said Farooq Ahmad Dar alias 'Bitta Karate', Nayeem Khan and Javed Ahmed Baba alias 'Gazi' of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat have arrived here for questioning by NIA sleuths.

Dar, Ahmed and Khan were asked to bring certain bank and property documents, besides other papers, before the NIA team that had questioned them here for four consecutive days earlier this month.

The questioning comes after the central probe agency, formed in the wake of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, named Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Taiba chief Hafeez Saeed, hardline Kashmiri separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Jammu and Front Chairman Nayeem Khan in a Preliminary Enquiry (PE).

Khan has since been suspended from the Geelani-led Hurriyat Conference.

The case is based on a sting operation, aired on a news channel, in which Khan was purportedly shown confessing to receiving money from Pakistan-based terror groups through hawala channels.
The Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), an affiliate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, has decided to protest against the Union Cabinets decision to shut down in the capital.
The compulsion of using a magnifying glass for reading did not deter Dharshana M V from putting in her best efforts, as she scored 96.6 per cent and secured the third rank in CBSE class XII examination in the differently-abled category.

Aditya R Raj from Trivandrum, Lakshmi PV from Palakkad, (both in Kerala) and Dharshana M V from Krishnagiri of Tamil Nadu are top three scorers in CBSE class XII examinations in the category, results of which were announced on Sunday.

"I am very happy," Dharshana, from Nalanda International Public School in Krishnagiri, told PTI over the phone.

Dharshana suffers from microcornea which has caused her right eye to have almost 'nil vision' and the left one to have only partial vision.

Dharshana said despite the physical challenge she was motivated to put in her best and expressed gratitude to her parents and teachers for not putting pressure on her.

"My general principle is that I like to do my best in whatever I do. So when I started preparing for class XII examination, I decided I should do my best, whatever I could. Keeping that in my mind I started preparing," she said.

"For reading, I used a magnifying glass. I got good support from my school and my parents. They did not create any fear in my mind about the exam and motivated me and instilled confidence that I could do well," she added.

Dharshana, a commerce stream student who scored 483 marks out of 500, said she needs to use a magnifying glass to read small texts.

She now wants to study commerce and become an entrepreneur, while also developing her music skills.

"I want to pursue B Com in Chennai and after that become an entrepreneur. I also want to develop my music talent," Dharshana, who is honing her skills in Carnatic music, told PTI.
The Gujarat government on Sunday clarified all reported cases of the are old and had been cured, with no new case in the state.
Applauding Army chief General Bipin Rawat for defending over the human shield controversy, Defence experts on Monday said such felicitations give morale boost to the Indian Army.



Defence expert Major General (Retd.) P.K. Sehgal told ANI that he totally stands by the Army Chief's statement, where the latter said his men need such innovative ways to fight the "dirty war".



"The situation there was very different and may be this was the only way. He came out with an out of the box innovative solution. He thankfully succeeded. With this decision, many people lives has been saved. It was very important for the Army Chief to say this because it increases the morale and motivation of the Army. And it send as very strong message to the society. I totally stand by it," he said.



Echoing similar views, Defence expert Wing Commander (Retd.) Praful Bakshi told ANI that such extraordinary situation requires an extraordinary solution and Major Gogoi carried it out beautifully.



"He (Army Chief) has made a correct statement. It is true that extraordinary situation requires an extraordinary solution. What Major Gogoi has done is extraordinary solution, a normal officer could not have thought of it. He had carried it out beautifully and has done absolutely clean action without firing any bullet. I personally feel he must have got a bigger award than what he got," he said.



Army chief Rawat yesterday came to the rescue of Major Gogoi, and said such "innovative ways are required to counter the dirty war" underway in Kashmir.



Indicating his firm approach to counter the insurgency, Gen Rawat said Army would take steps, which would break the clutches of militancy in South Kashmir.



Rawat added that the situation prevalent in Kashmir makes it mandatory for the Army to resort to tough measures.



Major Gogoi was in the spotlight after a video shot during the April 9 Srinagar Lok Sabha by-polls, posted on the social media, showed a man tied on the bonnet of an Army jeep in Jammu and Kashmir's Badgam.



The video went viral and sparked a major controversy, with one faction condemning the Army's action while the other commended their ingenuity.



The Court of Inquiry regarding April 9 incident is under finalisation.


Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's troubles are from over as sacked Delhi minister Kapil Mishra has said that he will hold an "exhibition" of documents pertaining to the "scams" in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi on June 3.
With both the main political fronts in Kerala opposing the ban on cattle slaughter, the state cabinet on Wednesday will announce a date for an all-party meeting to discuss the issue, Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunilkumar said on Monday.

"This is a question of livelihood for thousands of farmers in the state and has been in practice for ages. We will take up this issue in the cabinet meeting and don't be surprised if Kerala initiates legal steps against the new law," he told the media.

There have been widespread protests against the new law. Youth Congress workers have taken to the streets in the state but caused outrage by publicly slashing the head of an ox during one such protest.

The ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist held over 300 "beef festivals" across Kerala where cooked beef was freely served.

Forest and Animal Husbandry Minister P. Raju said the new law cannot come into effect in Kerala.

"This is a ridiculous law. Kerala cannot implement it. We will look into all angles on how to tackle this," Raju said on Monday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears to be the only party in Kerala which has accepted the central government's directive on .

"The new law has been misunderstood by the other parties," BJP state General Secretary K. Surendran said.

For the Congress, what has come as a dampener was the manner in which their activists in Kannur slashed the head of an ox.

The police on Sunday night registered a case against the Youth Congress activists, whose action has been strongly condemned by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

Youth Congress leader Regil Makutty and three others were suspended on Monday by the leadership and the state Congress followed suit.

State Congress President M.M. Hassan told reporters that the state government should call a special session of the assembly to override the central law.

"Today we are observing a black day to protest against the anti-people law of the Centre. But we do not approve of what happened in Kannur. Hence we have suspended them from the party," said Hassan.
This past week, the Indian Army honoured with a Commendation Card for his sustained efforts in counter-insurgency operations in Jammu & Kashmir. The recognition comes barely a month after he tied a supposed stone-pelter to his jeep, using him as a human shield to prevent violent protesters from attacking his vehicle. Major Gogoi was responding to a call from an officer who had informed him that around 1,200 people had cornered his polling booth and were trying to burn it with petrol bombs during a by-election in Budgam on April 9. Defence and strategic affairs expert MAROOF RAZA talks to Dhruv Munjal about the armys decision to award the officer amid a public outcry, and if the force has let itself down with the handling of this situation. Edited excerpts:

How do you view the Indian Armys decision to felicitate Major Gogoi with the Chief of Army Staffs Commendation Card? An inquiry into the incident is still on.

It hasnt been often in recent memory that the army has formally encouraged an officer to take such a step. Mostly, senior generals have been cautious while taking on the political establishment. This is a drastic change and I see it as a good one. As far as the timing of the award is concerned, yes the inquiry is underway, but Im sure the broad contours of the inquiry findings must have been conveyed to Bipin Rawat, the Chief of Army Staff. Perhaps that is why they went ahead with the announcement of the award.

There are many who feel that there was a clear violation of human rights in this whole episode.

Those posing such concerns should question the pretext of human rights. The soldiers were cornered and there were several lives at stake; this was clearly an act of self-defence. And those raising worries about human rights should come out and offer alternative solutions to what Major Gogoi couldve possibly done. Keeping the situation and the sensitivity of the place in mind, the right thing was done. Moreover, no one is bothered about the human rights of the soldier, or the difficulties he endures. In the US, cases of conflict trauma have been found in more than 50 per cent of the personnel returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The Indian soldiers go through something similar.

Others believe that the army has let itself down in the handling of the human shield incident, and also lost the moral upper hand that it always held in Kashmir.

No one  the Kashmiri politicians in particular  has the right to question the morality of the Indian Army. These politicians are ungrateful people who have never supported the army in anything it has done. If they feel that the army showed restraint all these years, did they acknowledge its efforts even once? You never hear them saying a word against Pakistan, either.

More importantly, people blaming the army for this moral letdown have an extremely superficial understanding of conflict. Most of them have very little idea about national security. If the army has indeed held the moral high ground in Kashmir for the past so many decades, then that hasnt really solved the problems that afflict the state.

Defence Minister Arun Jaitley has stated that Indian forces must be allowed to take calls in war-like zones such as Kashmir, and not be dictated by what politicians say. Isnt that dangerous?

There was much need for what the defence minister has said. What the army needs is clear instructions in such precarious areas and that cannot come from politicians. Also, this will help boost the morale of the troops stationed in Kashmir, and offer great encouragement.

This past week, the Indian Army released footage of it destroying Pakistani bunkers in Nowshera along the Line of Control. Are such publicised assaults the new normal now?

There is a clear plan being followed by the Indian government. It wants to take on Pakistan by going public with all the information and evidence it possesses, which is the right way forward. This also shows that the Indian Army has been given a free hand. And, the people who are questioning the government and the army for publicised attacks had a problem when no evidence was released for the surgical strikes conducted against Pakistan last year. Im certain that video evidence of that assault exists as well, but is being held back for strategic reasons. With these attacks, we are trying to dispel the myth that the Pakistani army can actually cause some problems. They are, in fact, quite inept.
Gazette No. 396, issued by the Government of India on May 23 and titled the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017, promises to be the final death knell of cattle and buffaloes in India, and along with them, the destruction of what little remains of a dignified life and livelihood for farmers.
Curfew-like restrictions continued in parts of Kashmir for the second consecutive day on Monday as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Bhat in an encounter with security forces.

The restrictions were in place in seven police station areas of Srinagar  Khanyar, Nowhatta, Safakadal, M R Gunj, Rainawari, Kralkhud and Maisuma, officials said.

Strict restrictions also continued in Anantnag and Shopian districts and Pulwama town in south Kashmir and in the township of Sopore in Baramulla district of north Kashmir, the officials said.

In all, restrictions were in place in four out of the 10 districts in the valley.

They said Section 144 of CrPc continued in the districts of Budgam and Ganderbal in central Kashmir.

The officials said the curbs in these areas continued for the second day as a pre-emptive measure to prevent the spread of violent protests which took place on Saturday immediately after Bhat was killed along with his colleague in an encounter in the Soimoh area of Tral in south Kashmir's Pulwama district.

A civilian was also killed allegedly in cross firing between militants and security forces during the encounter.

Though there were few stone-pelting incidents in some areas of the Valley on Sunday, the situation remained under control.

A police spokesman said on Sunday that there were six incidents of stone pelting in Pulwama, Kulgam, Shopian and Sopore, but the situation across the Valley remained peaceful and under control.

He said that police and security forces used maximum restraint while dealing with the situation at these places and miscreants were chased away.

Meanwhile, normal life remained affected in the rest of the Valley for the second day due to a two-day strike called by separatists to protest the killing of the two militants and the use of "brute force" against protestors.

The separatist trio  chairmen of both factions of the Hurriyat Conference, Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, and JKLF chief Yasin Malik  have also called for a march to Tral on Tuesday to pay tributes to the slain militants.

While Malik was arrested from his residence here on Sunday, Geelani and Mirwaiz are under house detention.

The authorities have suspended mobile internet services in the Valley, while the outgoing call facility on prepaid numbers has also been snapped as a precautionary measure.

Kashmir University has postponed all examinations scheduled to be held on Monday and Tuesday.

A spokesman for the university said fresh dates for the deferred examinations shall be notified later.

Islamic University of Science and Technology, Awantipora, on Sunday also postponed the examination scheduled for Monday.

The university also suspended the class work on Monday in view of the prevailing situation.

Schools and colleges have also been closed for Monday in Srinagar and for two days in Pulwama.
Liaquat Ali, of Meerut, had a flourishing business as a cattle trader, supplying animals to local slaughterhouses, including some prominent meat exporters. But, for the last few months, his business has dwindled.

If the crackdown on illegal abattoirs by the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh (UP) was not enough, Fridays notification on the sale and purchase of animals from markets might leave Ali with hardly any option but to shut up shop.

An old, infirm animal, be it a bull or a buffalo (called kanda in local parlance) fetches somewhere around Rs 30,000-50,000 in local markets. Who will buy them now? he asks.

The Union ministry of environment and forest has banned the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter, and those purchasing animals from these markets would have to provide an undertaking that they would not be slaughtered.

After criticism from various quarters, the government on Saturday clarified that the new law was to protect beasts and not to regulate cattle trade for slaughterhouses, and said it would examine representations. However, the governments statements have not helped soothe frayed nerves.

D B Sabharwal, secretary general, All India Meat and Livestock Exporters Association, told Business Standard: We want the government to remove buffalo from the definition of cattle under the new rules. The associations other major recommendation is not to include lairage in the definition of mandi. A lairage is a place where animals are laid for resting before slaughter.

Indias buffalo meat export in the financial year 2016-17 was worth $3.5 billion, and domestic consumption of buffalo meat is estimated at $2 billion.

Some of the provisions in the notification are not practical, say industry experts. Aspi Dinshaw, vice president, All India Meat and Livestock Exporters Association, said, One provision says animals that have irreparable, severe injury or are terminally ill or have even died naturally cant be sold for leather or flayed but such carcasses should be incinerated. Incinerations are costly and consume high-voltage power which most villages dont have.

The UP leather industry, estimated at Rs 20,000 crore, was already reeling under pressure due to a supply shortage of raw hide following stringent action and subsequent closure of illegal abattoirs in the state under the new political regime. UP has 50% share in the $5.3 billion leather exports. The new law will hurt the leather trade further. For example, the Kanpur cluster depends 80% on buffalo hides.

Agri-economy expert Sudhir Panwar said, The direct fallout of the notification would mean the closure of unlicensed tanneries and slaughterhouses. It could also result in increased instances of stray animals as farmers and dairy owners would abandon their animals if they are unable to sell them.

Rafeeque Ahmed, president of All India Skin and Hide Tanners and Merchants Association, said the move would disrupt an established system where all cattle, including productive and working draft animals and those meant for slaughter, were traded.

The ban also comes at a time when the Centre has set a target of $20 billion revenue for leather industry in the next three years.

An industry official said, If the new law is implemented both in letter and spirit, within three months, the leather business will go to countries like Bangladesh and Vietnam, where all kinds of new leather clusters are coming up, and to Pakistan and China. No buyer is going to wait even for a month; they will go to another country.

Tamil Nadu, another key exporting state, does not depend on buffalo hide, which accounts for only five% of the total hide used by the leather industry in the state. It sources hides locally, mostly goat and sheep, and also imports.

Kerala and some other states are exploring legal options as animal mandis are state subjects. However, legal experts say the new rules are issued by the environment ministry to stop cruelty on animals, making states case complex.

Meanwhile, Kerala-based slaughterhouse Meat Products of India (MPI) will be inaugurating the countrys largest meat-processing unit in Ernakulam, with central government funding, in a couple of days. The new facility would require around 6,000 cattle a month, and the company is worried about how to procure cattle after the new rules.

R S Sodhi, managing director, Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, which sells Amul brand dairy products, said there was no ban on farmers selling old cattle or even buying new ones for dairying purposes. However, slaughterhouses have to approach the farms directly. This rules out the middlemen. Farmers can always buy and sell cattle for dairy and agricultural purposes, he said.





But, there is a catch here. There are around 5,000 animal mandis in the country where auctions take place and its easy for farmers to go get the best price. Dinshaw said, There are 50 odd conditions for maintaining mandis including building sheds, ensuring fodder and other facilities including water and lights. Who will make these investments now?

And, if a farmer approaches slaughterhouses directly to sell unproductive cattle or milch bovines to dairies, buyers are expected to provide documents establishing his or her identity and also farmland ownership, pointed out executives of private dairies from Tamil Nadu and Punjab.

Dairy farmers, too, will face the problem of selling old cattle for new. Usually, milch animals have seven to eight milk cycles and they are not very productive towards the end of their life. Farmers dont usually wait to get them unproductive as during the last few cycles, animals productivity falls and they sell them to buy new. That might not happen now.





The immediate impact would be more availability of milk as farmers will keep cattle till they are productive. However, in the long run, the cost of production would increase for the dairy farmer as he would be forced to maintain less-productive cattle," said the head a leading dairy cooperative who did not wish to be quoted.



Rajesh Bhayani, Sanjeeb Mukherjee, Sohini Das, Virendra Singh Rawat and TE Narasimhan contributed to this story
HP India, in collaboration with KPMG, on Monday launched a secure and affordable invoicing platform called "GST Solution" to help millions of traders and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) move seamlessly to the new goods and services tax (GST) regime.

"GST Solution" has the capability to support users to file all their transactions, according to the new tax norms, in a convenient manner and also reduce the invoice reconciliation requirements of large companies.

"HP has participated in every significant milestone of central and state government's digital journey, starting from printing the first computerised railway ticket to enabling several 'Digital India' initiatives," Sumeer Chandra, Managing Director, HP Inc. India, told reporters in New Delhi.

The end-to-end solution has hardware from HP, GST invoicing software by KPMG, Cloud storage for storing invoice data, uninterrupted GST Suvidha Provider (GSP) access, e-sign, GST registration and migration services.

It facilitates the entire process from inputting purchase invoices, generating sales invoices, managing the input credit ledger and generating reverse charges.

The solution also helps businesses receive the tax credit through automatic reconciliation of purchase invoices to ensure a seamless transition to the new taxation structure.

"KPMG is proud to assist in advancing the adoption of GST and, in fact, to be associated with all of the signature initiatives of the Indian government," said Arun Kumar, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), KPMG India.

In addition to empowering MSMEs, the solution can also support large organisations enforce a regime wherein their vendors, distributors and dealers are on the GST system, complying with the process and filing their GST returns accurately.

The solution can help indicate loopholes in the ecosystem in the form of a tax credit leak at any nodal point.

HP also announced to enable specialised help desk support having tax experts for GST-related queries and operational assistance via calls, emails and chats.
The Union government on Sunday started a new twitter handle to answer industry queries related to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) proposed to be implemented from July 1.

"The Department of Revenue has opened a new Twitter Handle @askGST_GoI to invite queries from all taxpayers on GST," a Finance Ministry statement here said.

"All taxpayers and other stakeholders are welcome to direct their queries related to on the said twitter handle for early resolution and clarification," it added.

Earlier this month, the Council at its meeting in Srinagar decided on the fitment of over 1,211 commodities and 500 services in four tax slabs of 5, 12, 18 and 28 per cent.

The Council, comprising of states' Finance Ministers and headed by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, will take up the fitment of the remaining six goods, including gold and precious metals, textiles, bidis and branded commodities at its next meeting here slated for June 3.

Meanwhile, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said in a statement on Sunday that the various tax slabs under the proposed pan-India indirect tax regime of the has created an environment of anxiety and concern among the trading community across the country

"Various verticals of retail trade demanding lower tax on the items being dealt by them since they have been categorised under higher tax slab in comparison to tax slab of current VAT tax regime," a CAIT release here said.

"As per an analysis, 1,211 goods and 36 services have been so far classified under GST out of which nearly 50 per cent goods have been placed under 18 per cent rate, 14 per cent under 5 per cent rate, 17 per cent under 12 per cent rate and 19 per cent under 28 per cent rate," it said.

"The wider impact of the classification of items under different tax slabs needs to be gauged very cautiously since under GST not only the taxes paid on goods but even the taxes paid on the services will be eligible for input tax credit," CAIT added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France will commence on Monday. The tour, which comes less than a week after Modi completed three years in office, is aimed at boosting India's economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investment.



The tour will see PM Modi's first tete-a-tete France's new President, Emmanuel Macron. According to reports, ahead of the prime minister's visit, Germany has urged India to resume negotiations on the European Union-India free trade agreement, especially in the context of India not taking part in the One Belt One Road summit that China hosted earlier this month. (Read more)



On Sunday, PM Modi tweeted out the commencement of his tour from Monday.





Tomorrow I will begin a four nation visit to Germany, Spain, Russia & France, where I will join various programmes.
Major oil and gas players in the country have sought intervention from the petroleum ministry to include crude oil, petrol, diesel, aviation turbine fuel and natural gas under the ambit of the goods and service tax (GST).
The United States might ban laptops from aircraft cabins on all flights into and out of the country as part of a ramped-up effort to protect against potential security threats, US Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said on Sunday.
Trade in general and FTAs in particular are increasingly playing an important role in Indias diplomatic landscape at a time when its benefits are being questioned in several capitals. Prime Minister Modi has displayed a clear inclination for leveraging external sector for domestic economic growth.

Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal. They do not reflect the view/s of Business Standard.
The Minister of State for Labour & Employment (IC), Shri Bandaru Dattatreya has announced that the 40 crore workers from unorganized sector will be covered under social security schemes such as ESIC & EPFO. The Minister said that the Government is committed to ensure wage, jobs and social security for all workers including unorganized sector. Shri Dattatreya was addressing a function on the 3 years achievements of the his ministry in New Delhi today. He said that the Ministry is implementing reforms and new ways and means for employment generation. India is the only country which has launched Shram Suvidha Portal for effective compliance and ease of doing business. The Ministry is implementing the National Career Service (NCS) project as a vibrant platform for transforming and strengthening the public employment services in the country. .

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Shri Dattatreya said that the Ministry got the following Acts passed by the Parliament during last 3 years. .

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1- The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 which ensures complete prohibition on employment of children below 14 years and also prohibited the adolescents (14-18 years ) to work in hazardous occupation/processes.

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2- The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017 under which maternity benefit to woman has been increased from 12 weeks to 26 weeks for two surviving children and 12 weeks for more than two children.

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3- The Payment of Wages(Amendment) Act,2017 enables the employers to pay the wages to their employees by cash or cheque or crediting it to their bank account. .

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4- The Employees Compensation (Amendment) Act, 2017 has the provision to increase the penalty for contravention of Act from present Rs.5000/- to Rs. 50,000/- extendable to Rs.1 Lakh. .

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5- Payment of Bonus Amendment Act, 2015 has enhanced the eligibility limit under section 2(13) from Rs. 10,000/- to Rs.21,000/- per month. .

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6- The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 has been amended by notification to include fixed term employment" for textile (apparel) sector as a part of textile package to enhance employment. .

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The Labour & Employment Minister said that the Ministry is working on the proposed codification of existing Labour Laws into 4 Labour Codes. .

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(i) Labour Code on Wages.

(ii) Labour Code on Industrial Relations.

(iii) Labour Code on Social Security and Welfare.

(iv) Labour Code on Occupational Safety and Working Conditions.

The Group of Ministers has approved the Labour Code on Wages and it will be sent to cabinet for approval. .

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The Minister said that the Minimum wage (per day) for non-agricultural worker in the C area category increased from Rs.246/- to Rs.350/-, Rs437/- in B Area category and Rs.523/- in A area category. He also informed that the Shram Suvidha Portal is a single unified web portal for submissions of common Annual Return under 9 Central Acts and monthly common Electronic Challan Cum Return (ECR) for EPFO and ESIC. He also informed that Unique Labour Identification Number (LIN) is allotted to Units and 19,23,162 Lakhs LIN allotted as on on 22nd May, 2017. Total 2,95,423 inspections have been assigned and out of that 2,76,931 inspections have been uploaded as on 22nd May, 2017. Common registration under EPFO and ESIC has been facilitated on the Shram Suvidha Portal since 30th April, 2017. .

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Shri Dattatreya said that Registers/Forms to be maintained under various labour laws are simplified. 56 Registers/- Forms under 9 Central Labour Laws and Rules made thereunder have been replaced with 5 common Registers/Forms. The notification has been issued on 28th March, 2017 for reducing Forms under certain Labour Law Rules from 36 to 12. It is applicable to the establishments under the jurisdiction of Central as well as State Governments. .

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He said that employers can apply for EPF code number online by uploading of digitally signed documents. As on 06th December, 2016 around 1.52 Lakhs establishments have been obtained online registration on OLRE portal. Universal Account Number(UAN) has been made compulsory and online credit system introduced. Minimum pension under Employees Pension Scheme, 1995 has been revised to Rs. 1000/- in perpetuity per month w.e.f. April 2015. Time limit for claim settlement has been reduced to 10 days from 20 days. No documents required and only self-certification is necessary for withdrawal under the EPF scheme for the accounts linked with Aadhaar. .

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The Minister informed that ESIC is now covering complete districts instead of targeted industrial clusters. Coverage expanded to all 393 districts where these clusters are located. 301 districts have been fully covered. In the second phase, the target is to cover all the remaining districts of the country. One IP-Two Dispensaries" scheme has been launched for the benefit of migrant workers. Now Insured Persons can choose two dispensaries, one for self and another for family through an employer. .

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Shri Bandaru Dattatreya said that over 3.87 crore candidates, 14.8 lakh establishments are registered on the National Career Service (NCS) Portal and it has mobilized over 6 lakh vacancies. Around 540 job fair were organised in 2016-17. The NCS project also involves setting up of 100 Model Career Centre to deliver quality employment services and these centres are being set up in collaboration with States and Institutions. NCS has partnered with Department of Posts and common services centre to extend registration of job seekers through the Post Offices. .

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Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana (PMRPY) scheme has been announced to incentivize employers for new employment. Government will be paying the 8.33% EPS contribution for these new employment for the period of 3 years. For the textile (Apparel & made up) sector, Government will also pay the 3.67% EPF contribution of employers for these new employees. Till now benefit have been transferred to 1,954 establishments covering 75,848 beneficiaries under the scheme with an expenditure of Rs. 6 crores (approx.). .

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Rehabilitation of Bonded Labour Scheme has been revised with effect from 17th May, 2016 where financial assistance has been increased from Rs.20,000/- Rs.1,00,000/- per adult male beneficiary, Rs 2 Lakh for special category beneficiaries such as children including orphans or those rescued from organized & forced begging rings or other forms of forced child labour and women. Rs 3 Lakh in cases of bonded or forced labour involving extreme cases of deprivation or marginalization. .

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The Secretary, Ministry of Labour & Employment, Ms. M. Sathiyavathy in her welcoming address said that the Government is creating environment to facilitate employment with quality and fair wages. For this number of initiatives and programmes have been undertaken. .

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On this occasion, Shri Dattatreya inaugurated Centre of Excellence (Ophthalmology) of ESI PGIMSR & Model Hospital and Physiotherapy & X-ray units of ESIC on PPP model for beneficiaries for Delhi region. He also inaugurated EPFO Regional Office, Delhi (West) and Regional Office, Delhi (Central). The Minister Felicitated six model employers and also released a book on 3 years achievements and initiatives of the Ministry of Labour & Employment. .

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A workshop on CSCs as GST Suvidha Provider" to train the top performing VLEs and the State level representatives of CSC SPV for enabling implementation of GST scheme especially in rural India through CSC was organized here today. Common Services Centers are proposed to act as a GST Suvidha Provider. CSCs have been identified to facilitate the roll out of GST especially in rural India. CSCs will help merchants registration, filing returns and support them in fulfilling various requirements under GST. They will mobilize, conduct training and create advocacy of GST implementation across the country. .

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The Union Minister for Electronics & IT and Law Justice, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad inaugurated the event, appreciated the efforts of the enterprising VLEs in providing key services to the grassroots. He Said the Village Level Entrepreneurs are Rapid Action Force for Digital India and hoped they will truly be the harbingers of digital revolution in India and enable us to create digitally and financially inclusive society. India does not want to miss the digital revolution and, in fact, aims to become the leader of the revolution and CSCs will lead us in this endeavor. .

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He said VLEs are important component of Governments strategy to provide all services at village level and the day is not far off when even private entrepreneurs would approach CSCs for reaching the unreached customers. Talking about employment potential of the initiative he said at present 2,50,000 CSCs are employing nearly 10 lac persons. The number is likely to touch 25 lac mark in the near future as more services from both private and public sectors are put in their basket. .

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The Hon Minister said, GST means one nation, one tax. He said that GST Suvidha Provider service that is being rolled out today is a big opportunity for VLEs." He hoped that the VLEs would rise to the occasion and help the government in reaching out to the merchants. .

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He said, CSC is a big army in this country. In Prime Minister housing scheme, Government has received 4.5 lakh applications for housing through CSC. I have suggested to Smt. Sushma Swaraj, Honble Minister of External Affairs that CSCs should do the work of verification of e-Sanad certificates. Apart from this, CSCs will help to provide legal services to the poor." He added, I always say that companies should use the vast network of CSCs. In the Digital era, the role of CSCs is tremendous. Today, 2 crore people have downloaded BHIM App. CSCs should make it popular in their community. In the digital economy, the demand of CSCs services will become tremendous. Every VLEs should train one woman from tribal and backward communities." .

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Honble Minister also inaugurated the Bharat Bill Payment Operating Unit service through CSCs. Bharat Bill Payment Operating Unit is an authorized operational unit working as per the standards set by BBPS. BBPOUs will onboard billers, aggregators and payment gateways to handle bill payments through different delivery channels. .

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The Hon Minister was addressing around 100 VLEs and 70 CSC representatives from across India. The workshop organised at the India Habitat Centre has also brought together Government Officials, Private Players, Civil Society Organizations, and GST experts. .

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While welcoming the participants to the workshop Shri Dinesh Tyagi, CEO, CSC SPV said, GST is a revolutionary reform in this country. The role of GST Service Provider is to mobilse merchants, advocacy, capacity building and solving the problems through CSCs. GST is a challenging task. This work is on the shoulders of our VLEs. GST is very important as well as a great business for our VLEs. It will also enhance the credibility of VLEs in their community." .

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On the occasion, a book on GST was also launched by the Hon Minister and other dignitaries. .

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The event was also attended by Sh. Sanjeev Mittal, Joint Secretary-MeitY, Krishnan Dharamarajan, ED- CDFI, Navneet Khurana, Dy Commissioner GST and Col. Pankaj from GSTN among others. .

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NNK/MD
The Chairman, North Eastern Council (NEC) and 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 chaired the 66th Plenary of North Eastern Council here today. .

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During the occasion, Dr. Jitendra Singh said that the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had attended the last plenary meeting at Shillong in May, 2016 and set in motion a new development agenda for the North Eastern Region. He said that, we are all committed to implement the Prime Ministers vision for the North East. .

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Dr. Jitendra Singh highlighted some of the major achievements of the NEC. He said, NEC has put maximum emphasis on the Transport and Communication Sector with the construction of 10,500 kms of roads including inter-state and roads of economic importance. He said that a new scheme named, North East Road Sector Development Scheme (NERSDS) has been launched to take up all strategically important but hitherto neglected roads/ bridges. Three (3) projects under the scheme (Doimukh-Harmuti; Tura-Mankachar & Wokha-Merapani,-Golaghat) for 85 kms has been already awarded to National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHIDCL) for implementation at an estimated cost of Rs 213.97 crores, he added. Dr. Jitendra Singh said that 14 projects have been identified to be taken up under NERSDS during 2017-18. .

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He said that, to promote air connectivity in the region, NEC has supported Airports Authority of India (AAI) for upgrdation of infrastructure in 12 operational airports. He said that the construction of Tezu airport in Arunachal Pradesh is supported by NEC and is likely to be operational within the current financial year. He said that NEC is also taking up the runway extension in the Umroi (Shillong) airport to enable bigger aircrafts to land and three (3) numbers of hangars at LGBI Airport in Guwahati has been completed under NEC funding. .

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The Minister said that NEC has also contributed to the development of Power Sector. He said that during 2016-17, NEC has funded construction of 198 circuit km long transmission lines of 165 MVA capacity in the NER and eleven (11) power sector projects (Manipur-2; Meghalaya-1; Mizoram-1; Nagaland-2; Sikkim-4; Tripura-1) were completed and commissioned. .

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Dr. Jitendra Singh said that, for promoting livelihoods, NEC has been a pioneer in implementing community resource management with a bottoms-up approach. He said that the North Eastern Regional Community Resource Management Projects (NERCORMP), is being implemented in 11 most difficult and remote hill districts of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Meghalaya through participating planning. There is proposal for extending the projects into more districts in the region in the Phase-IV of the project, he added. .

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The Minister said that NEC has supported another noteworthy initiative of construction of wayside amenities as part of Prime Minister Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) on approved Tourist circuit falling under NERCORMP projects area in Ukhrul, Chandel and Senapati districts of Manipur. .

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Dr. Jitendra Singh said that, to promote tourism in NER, North East Tourism Development Council (NETDC) has been formed by the NEC with the initial subscription from the private sector. He said that NEC would continue to support creation of tourism infrastructure, especially in areas not being covered by Ministry of Tourism. .

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The Minister said that, NEC has contributed immensely to the Agriculture Sector, Irrigation and Flood Control. He said that, NEC would be providing assistance to Aggregator Agencies for Agri-Horti Produce to help Farmers in the North East Region by extending finance to them as grants-in-aid. NEC is also supporting NERAMAC for obtaining Geographical Indication (GI) registration of various unique and indigenous horticulture products of the region, he added. .

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Under the Health Sector, Dr. Jitendra Singh said that NEC is providing support for Dr. B. Borooah Cancer Institute in Guwahati, which is in the process of being taken over by the Department of Atomic Energy, through which this hospital would be developed on the model of Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, as a Premier Post Graduate level institute for cancer treatment in the country. .

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Under Science & Technology Sector, he said that a special thrust has been given towards establishment of North Eastern Spatial Data Repository (NESDR) by the North East Space Application Centre (NESAC) for facilitating communication linkage, data cataloguing between Regional node of NESAC and State nodes of different State Remote Sensing and Application Centres (SRACs) of NER. He said that, for proper monitoring of all projects sponsored by North Eastern Council Secretariat, Geo-tagging and uploading of projects' images in the public domain has been proposed in collaboration with NESAC. .

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The Minister said that, during the year 2016-17, NEC was allotted Rs. 800 crore at BE stage and at the RE stage it was enhanced to Rs. 968.79 crore plus Rs. 150 crore for NERSDS making a total of Rs. 1118.79 crore. Depending on the legitimate demand of the North Eastern States based on the Regional Plans approved by the Council, NEC would strive to allocate more liberal grant of resources in the coming years, he added. .

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During the day, the members discussed the NEC budget for the current financial year, conversion of NEC schemes to Central Sector schemes, issues concerning tourism in the North East, promotion of textiles with special emphasis on handlooms, handicrafts and apparel, agricultural marketing, organic farming, horticulture and bamboo mission, food processing activities and documentation, preservation and promotion of medicinal plants in the NER. .

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The Minister for State for Home Affairs Shri Kiren Rijiju, Governor of Manipur Dr. Najma Heptulla, Governor of Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh Shri Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya, Governor of Assam and Meghalaya (I/C) Shri Banwarilal Purohit, Governor of Mizoram Lt. General (Retd.) Nirbhay Sharma, Governor of Sikkim Shri Shriniwas Patil, Governor of Tripura Shri Tathagata Roy, Chief Minister of Mizoram Shri Pu Lalthanhawla, Chief Minister of Meghalaya Dr. Mukul Sangma, Chief Minister of Tripura Shri Manik Sarkar, Chief Minister of Manipur Shri Nongthobam Biren Singh, Chief Minister of Nagaland Dr. Shurhozelie Liezietsu, Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Shri Pema Khandu, Assams Minister of Finance Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma, Member, NEC Shri Chandra Kanta Das, Secretary DoNER Shri Naveen Verma, Secretary, NEC Shri Ram Muivah and other senior officers of DoNER Ministry, NEC and State Governments were also present on the occasion. .

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The Minister of Defence and National Security of Fiji, Honourable Ratu Inoke Kubuabola accompanied by his delegation met the Minister of Defence, Finance and Corporate Affairs, Shri Arun Jaitley in New Delhi today. .

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The Ministers discussed expanded defence partnership in maritime security between both the countries, and naval cooperation was identified as an area of promise. .

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An MoU on defence cooperation envisaging several areas of cooperation including in defence industry, military training and humanitarian assistance & disaster management was signed. .

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The visiting Minister was received by a Tri-Services Guard of Honour at the lawns of South Block. He also laid a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate. Earlier in the day before his arrival in New Delhi, Honourable Ratu Inoke Kubuabola visited the Western Naval Command in Mumbai today. .

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NW/DK
Indian Army Celebrates Peacekeeping Day Honours Blue Berets

Lieutenant General Sarath Chand, Vice Chief of Army Staff delivered the Key Note Address on the International UN Peacekeeper's Day which is celebrated world over on 29 May to honour the fallen peacekeepers and to pay tribute to those who served or are still serving in UN peacekeeping missions. The theme for the 2017 International Day of UN Peacekeepers is Investing in Peace Around the World.

Mr Yuri Afanasiev, United Nations Resident Coordinator in India read out the UN Secretary General's message. He mentioned that, last year 117 peacekeepers laid their life in peacekeeping missions which includes two from India. The two fallen peacekeepers from India were Rifleman Brijesh Thapa who served with the United Nations Organization Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and Sepoy Ravi Kumar who was deployed with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) this year.

A two minutes silence was observed to pay homage to the fallen peacekeepers.

India is the largest cumulative troop contributor, having provided almost 200,000 troops in nearly 50 of the 71 peacekeeping missions mandated over the past six decades, including 13 of the current 16 missions. Speaking on the occasion the Vice Chief applauded the Indian UN Peacekeeping Contingents for their dedication, conduct and competence. He also spoke on the changing dynamics in peacekeeping in the present UN missions and the way forward to overcome the challenges.

The event saw participation by diplomatic community, officers from ministries, veteran peacekeepers, UN Country Teams, students from prominent universities and Indian Army contingents earmarked for UN deployment which was supported by UN Information Centre in India (UNIC).

To mark the occasion, Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS) and Centre for United Nations Peacekeeping (CUNPK) along with United Nations Resident Coordinators Office organised a joint seminar on 21st Century Roadmap for Conflict Resolution by the United Nations. The seminar focused on the nature and character of emerging conflicts of the 21st century and measures in preventing & dealing with such conflicts under universal norms of justice & fair play and its impact on various aspects of conflict resolution such as preventive diplomacy, peace-making, peacekeeping and peace building.

Col Aman Anand

PRO (Army)
Kargil Martyrs Day is observed all across the country to honour the martyrs who had laid down their lives in defence of our country. In keeping with the glorious traditions of the IAF, four air warriors of Air Force Sarsawa too had attained Martyrdom on 28 May 99 during Kargil Operations. On that day, one MI-17 Helicopter of the base took off for a mission with Squadron Leader Rajiv Pundir as pilot, Flight Lieutenant S Muhilan as co-pilot, Sergeant PVNR Prasad as Flight gunner and Sergeant RK Sahu as Flight Engineer. While carrying out a rocket attack on Tiger Hill in the Kargil Sector, the helicopter was shot down by the enemy and these air warriors made the supreme sacrifice in keeping with the highest traditions of service. Since then, 28th May is observed as Martyrs Day every year at this Station to honour these brave air warriors. This year, on 28 May the Air Officer Commanding and all air warriors of Air Force Station Sarsawa paid tribute to these brave air warriors by placing floral tributes at the War Memorial to commemorate the 18th anniversary of their supreme sacrifice. At the same time, four helicopters of the base took off for Missing Man Formation in the sky, thereby, remembering the martyrs and showing gratitude towards them. Further, in the evening, a candle lighting ceremony was also organized where all families of the Station gathered and paid homage to the war heroes by lighting candles at the Station War Memorial. .

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SKM/DKS/BBS
Prakash Javadekar launches UGC App to fight Ragging The App Streamlines the process of registering complaints and concerns

Union Human Resource Development Minister Shri Prakash Javadekar today launched an Anti-Ragging Mobile App introduced by the University Grants Commission (UGC) here in New Delhi. Speaking on this occasion Shri Javadekar said this mobile app will help students register complaints to counter the menace of ragging.

The Minister said earlier one had to visit the website for registering a complaint of ragging and our record shows that timely action was taken which in turn had resulted in the decrease of such instances. But still this ill has to be eliminated completely, he said.

Shri Javadekar said as per his knowledge in campuses majority of senior students actually help guide their juniors and properly mentor them, but in few cases ragging happens which needs to be completely eliminated from campuses. He said physical or mental torture of a new student is ragging which we wont allow, this is unacceptable and therefore this app will become a handy tool to any student who goes through such experience."

The Minister said this app will work on android system on which students can log in and register their complaints immediately.

Accordingly all concerned will be informed immediately and action will start immediately.

He said it is a good step for protection and will give a feeling of security to students. The Minister categorically cautioned that those who are involved in ragging will not be tolerated and they will not be allowed to continue their education in that institution. At the same time they will meet severe penalty and punishment as per the law. However the Minister expressed hope that good senior students will act as mentors for their juniors.
Prime Minister announces ex gratia relief of Rs. 1 lakh to the next of the kin of E-rickshaw driver beaten to death for espousing the social cause of Swachha Bharat .

The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi who is on a visit abroad has sanctioned Rs. one lakh from the prime Minister's National Relief fund to the next of kin of the E-rickshaw driver Ravindra Kumar who was beaten to death for stopping two people from urinating in the public in New Delhi. The prime Minister condemned the incident and directed the authorities to bring to book and punish the culprits for committing such inhuman act. .

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Earlier in the day Urban Development and Information & Broadcasting Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu visited the family of the e-rickshaw driver at GTB Nagar in New Delhi. He also handed over a cheque of Rs. 50,000 from his salary to the family terming the act as condemnable. Shri Naidu said that the culprits must be punished. .

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AK/YSK
Swachh Bharat Mission to go all out for Darwaza Band Amitabh Bachchan led Toilet Usage Campaign set for national launch

For promotion of toilet usage across the countrys villages, the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation has come out with an aggressive new campaign called Darwaza Band starting tomorrow, May 30th, 2017.

Iconic actor, Shri Amitabh Bachchan, who leads the campaign, is proposed to be joined by Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Devendra Fadnavis, Secretary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Shri Parameswaran Iyer, and other dignitaries at the formal launch event in Mumbai tomorrow. Champion functionaries from the State will also be awarded on the occasion.

The campaign has been supported by the World Bank and is being rolled out countrywide immediately after the launch. It is designed to encourage behaviour change in men who have toilets but are not using them.

The campaign also features actor, Ms Anushka Sharma, who will be seen encouraging women to stand up for this issue in their villages and assume a leadership role.

Shri Bachchan has been a major supporter and ambassador for the Swachh Bharat Mission and is already associated with its ongoing campaigns. Behaviour change has been the focus of Swachh Bharat Mission, which is being pursued through a countrywide comprehensive IEC(Information-Education-Communication) programme. Communication campaigns have been taken up both, at the central and State levels, for promoting sustained use of toilets and for sustaining the Open Defecation Free status achieved.

The Union Minister and the State Chief Minister will also review the working of the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) programme in Maharashtra ahead of the event.

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SNC
Union Home Minister addresses the 30th Convocation of Kurukshetra University Youth have a great role to make India Vishwa Guru: Shri Rajnath Singh

The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has called upon the youth to abide by the values in all situations of life, which will make them winner and help them achieve anything in life. Delivering the Convocation Address at the 30th Convocation of Kurukshetra University at Kurukshetra, Haryana today, Shri Rajnath Singh said that convocation connotes the completion of study for a degree, but not the completion of education, which is a lifelong process. In the Indian context, the convocation purports qualification of an individual to serve the society through the knowledge and skills imbibed through education. World remembers the people for their values and their service to the society and not because of their wealth, might or even knowledge, he added.

Shri Rajnath Singh said that India aspires to be a vishwa guru and not a super-power because a nation becomes a super-power by might, dominance and even coercion and the nations come to it because of fear. As a vishwa guru, people will join with India because they would see their well being. He acknowledged the contribution of the youth in making India a vishwa guru and called upon them to draw inspiration from the rich heritage and feel proud of belonging to a great nation.

Speaking on the occasion, Governor of Haryana and Chancellor of Kurukshetra University, Prof.

Kaptan Singh Solanki said that education should imply using the knowledge to establish a change in life. Chief Minister of Haryana, Shri Manohar Lal congratulated Kurukshetra University for being ranked as No. One University in Haryana and among top 100 institutions of higher education in the country in the NIRF survey.

About 2,000 students were conferred with the Masters, M. Phil and Ph. D degrees at the Convocation. On this occasion, Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh and Shri Manohar Lal were conferred with Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) in Science and Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa) in Social Science degrees for their contribution to the knowledge domain and their service to the society.
Minister of State (I/C) for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan reviewed the impact of GST on the Oil & Gas Sector. A workshop was organized by the Ministry after various public and private sector stakeholders from upstream, downstream and midstream segment raised several concerns on the likely impact of GST on the Oil and Gas Industry. Secretary for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri K D Tripathi was also present during the review. .

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While welcoming GST as a progressive form of taxation, the Industry representatives referred to several provisions in the GST which could have adverse impact on upstream, midstream and downstream sectors. Several petroleum products namely Crude Oil, Petrol, Diesel, ATF and Natural Gas have been kept out of the GST. It was brought to the notice of the Ministry by the Industry representatives during the workshop, that, this exclusion will result in huge stranded taxes in the hands of oil industry due to non-availability of Input Tax Credit towards non-GST products. .

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The Industry representatives highlighted that GST in its present form needs few amendments and clarifications as it may have negative impact on the Domestic Oil and Gas production, manufacturing, capital investment, pipeline expansion plans etc. It was also brought to the notice of the Ministry that exclusion of pipeline network from the definition of Plant & Machinery may adversely affect long term capital investment in the pipeline infrastructure projects. A suggestion was made that Green fuels like Natural Gas, CNG, Bio-Diesel and Ethanol Blended Petrol should be zero rated to promote environment friendly fuels. .

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The Petroleum Minister, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan noted the concerns raised by the Industry and assured them to convey this to Honble Finance Minister for agreeable resolution of the issues involved. Minister also asked the representatives of the industry to raise their concerns with respective state governments particularly oil and gas producing states to agree to make changes in those provisions pertaining to Oil & Gas Sector which may affect the new investments and employment generation. .

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British Airways passengers are facing a third day of disruption at Heathrow after an IT glitch blamed on outsourcing to India that grounded scores of planes, leaving thousands of travellers stranded over the weekend.

The airline said it intends to run a full schedule at Gatwick today and to operate a full long-haul schedule and a "high proportion" of its short-haul programme at Heathrow.

BA passengers have been told to check the status of their flights before travelling to the airports where scenes of chaos unfolded over the weekend.

The airline claimed it was making "good progress" in recovering from the worldwide IT glitch.

"We operated a full schedule at Gatwick on Sunday. At Heathrow, we operated virtually all our scheduled long-haul flights, though the knock-on effects of Saturday's disruption resulted in a reduced short-haul programme," Sky news quoted a BA spokeswoman said:



"We apologise again to customers for the frustration and inconvenience they are experiencing and thank them for their continued patience."





Thousands of passengers had their travel plans disrupted as a result of the problem, with one workers' union blaming the outsourcing of IT jobs to India for the chaos, a claim denied by the airline.

The company said there was no evidence the failure was the result of a cyber attack.

Experts predict the knock-on effect could continue for several days and BA is facing huge compensation costs, with reports suggesting the bill could top 100 million pound.

Passengers faced hours-long lines to check in, reclaim lost luggage or rebook flights at Terminal 5, BA's hub at Heathrow.

Alex Cruz, the airline's chairman and CEO, issued a video message on Twitter to reassure passengers about their lost luggage and apologise.

Alex Cruz, BA chairman and CEO, apologised to customers in a video message on Twitter and said, "I know this has been a horrible time for customers. Some of you have missed holidays, some of you have been stranded on aircraft, some of you have been separated from your bags. Many of you have been stuck in long queues whilst you waited for information.

"On behalf of everyone at BA I want to apologise for the fact that you had to go through these very trying experiences."



BA operates hundreds of flights from Heathrow and Gatwick on a typical day - and both are major hubs for worldwide travel.
British Airways (BA) was operating most of its flights from Londons two largest airports on Monday after a computer system failure stranded thousands of passengers over a holiday weekend and turned into a public relations disaster.

The airline planned to run more than 95 per cent of flights from London Heathrow and Gatwick on Monday, Chief Executive Alex Cruz told Sky News.

BA had been forced to cancel all its flights from Heathrow, Europes busiest airport, and Gatwick on Saturday after a power supply problem disrupted its operations worldwide and also hit its call centres and website.

The disruption had continued on Sunday. Some stranded passengers curled up under blankets on the floor or slumped on luggage trolleys, images that played prominently in the media at the start of a week when schools were on holiday.

Apologies all well and good but not enough. BA has lost another loyal customer #disgraceful, tweeted Tom Callway, who had been due to fly to Budapest.

Cruz said the origins of the problem, which also hit passengers trying to fly into Britain, had been a power surge on Saturday morning which affected messaging across BAs systems.

He said there was no evidence of a cyber-attack and denied a union claim that the outsourcing of IT work to India had played a part in the failure.

The company was left counting the cost of the disruption, both in terms of a one-off impact to its profit and the longer term damage to its reputation.

Spanish-listed shares of parent company IAG, which also owns carriers Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling, dropped 2.5 per cent on Monday after the outage. The London-listed shares did not trade because of a public holiday.

Flight compensation website Flightright.com said that with around 800 flights cancelled at Gatwick and Heathrow on Saturday and Sunday, BA was looking at having to pay around 61 million euros ($68 million) in compensation under EU rules. That does not include the cost of reimbursing customers for hotel stays.

BA has been cutting costs to respond to competition on short-haul routes from Ryanair and easyJet and recently faced criticism for starting to charge passengers for their in-flight snacks.

Irelands Ryanair was quick to seize on the marketing opportunity, tweeting Should have flown Ryanair with a picture of the Computer says no sketch from the TV series Little Britain to poke fun at BA.

Ryanair said it had seen a spike in bookings over the weekend but gave no further details.

The GMB union said that BAs IT systems had shortcomings after they made a number of staff redundant and shifted their work to India in 2016.

This could have all been avoided. BA in 2016 made hundreds of dedicated and loyal IT staff redundant and outsourced the work to India, Mick Rix, GMB National Officer for Aviation, said.
With each passing day, the long-term prospects for life on Earth grow increasingly dim. As human activity continues to warm the planet at an alarming rate, the leaders of the United States are failing to confront one of the greatest challenges the human species has ever faced: human-caused climate change.
President expressed the nation's "boundless" gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice paid by Americans defending the United States, dedicating his first Memorial Day address as commander in chief to a top Cabinet secretary and two other families who lost loved ones.

Participating in the somber, annual observance at Arlington National Cemetery yesterday, Trump recounted the stories of Green Beret Capt Andrew D Byers of Colorado Springs and Christopher D Horton of the Oklahoma National Guard as Byers' tearful parents and Horton's emotional widow looked on. Trump also singled out for special mention Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired Marine four-star general whose son, Marine 2nd Lt. Robert M Kelly, was killed in November 2010 after he stepped on a land mine while on patrol in southern Afghanistan.

To all Gold Star families, Trump said of their lost service members: "They each had their own names, their own stories, their own beautiful dreams. But they were all angels sent to us by God and they all share one title in common and that is the title of hero, real heroes."

"Though they were here only a brief time before God called them home, their legacy will endure forever," Trump said.

Horton, a sniper sent to Afghanistan in 2011, died in a gun battle with the Taliban near the Pakistan border three months into his deployment. Byers was on his third combat tour and, Trump said, ran through smoke and a hail of bullets to rescue an Afghan soldier when he was killed last November.

Secretary Kelly's other son, Johnny, is getting ready for his fifth military deployment. A son-in-law, Jake, is a wounded warrior.

Trump also recognized former US senator and GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole, 93, who suffered lifelong injuries during World War II. He attended the ceremony along with his wife, Elizabeth Dole, also a former US senator.

"As we honor the brave warriors who gave their lives for ours, spending their last moments on this earth in defense of this country and of its people, words cannot measure the depth of their devotion, the purity of their love or the totality of their courage," Trump said.

"We only hope that every day we can prove worthy not only of their sacrifice and service, but of the sacrifice made by the families and loved ones they left behind. Special, special people," he said.

Before the remarks, Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, touching it for a long moment before stepping away. He then rested his hand on his heart as a bugler played "Taps."

Stepping to the microphone to deliver the address, Trump seemed to relish the warm welcome from the audience gathered in the sun-splashed amphitheater. Trump has been feeling particularly aggrieved in recent weeks by federal and congressional investigations into contacts between his associates and Russian government officials, including news reports that Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and top White House adviser, proposed establishing secret back-channel communications with Russia during the presidential transition.

The president was accompanied to Arlington cemetery by Vice President Mike Pence, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as a slew of advisers and Cabinet members, including veterans' secretary David Shulkin and housing secretary Ben Carson.

After the address, Trump visited a section of the cemetery for US service members killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
has not blamed any Indian information technology (IT) firm for the massive flight disruption over the last weekend that hit more than 1,000 flights.

Reacting to the incident that saw most services cancelled from London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports on May 27, told The Registrar that the problem occurred due to "power failure" and not because of any IT company.

"We would never compromise the integrity and security of our IT systems. IT services are now provided globally by a range of suppliers and this is very common practice across all industries," Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Alex Cruz told The Registrar.

The unions had blamed the airline's decision last year to outsource IT jobs to India for the mass disruptions.

The GMB union, which had cautioned against outsourcing jobs, said BA laid off hundreds of IT staff and gave away the work to India. The union blamed cost cutting for the travel chaos.

According to Cruz, many of the airline's IT systems were back on Sunday "and my colleagues across the airline are working very hard to build back our flight programme and get as many of our customers as possible away on their travels.

"The airline's IT teams are working 'tirelessly' to fix the problems," Cruz added.

According to The Guardian, British Airways could face a bill of at least 100 million pounds in compensation, additional customer care and lost business resulting from the incident.
President is considering overhauling his White House staff and bringing back top campaign strategists, frustrated by what he views as his team's inability to contain the burgeoning crisis involving alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Expanding teams of lawyers and experienced public relations hands are being recruited to deal with the drumbeat of new revelations about Moscow's interference and possible improper dealings with the Trump campaign and associates.

The disclosures dogged the president during his first trip abroad since taking office and threaten to overwhelm and stall the agenda for his young administration.

As he mulls outside reinforcements to his operation, Trump returned late yesterday from his nine-day journey to a White House seemingly in crisis mode, with a barrage of reports hitting close to the Oval Office and involving Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and influential adviser.

White House aides prepared for potential changes ahead, with the president dismayed by what he perceives to be his communication team's failures to push back against the allegations.

A rally planned Thursday in Iowa was postponed due to "an unforeseen change" in Trump's schedule.

The latest reports in the Russia matter said Kushner spoke with Russia's ambassador to the United States about setting up secret communications with Moscow during the presidential transition.

While overseas, Trump's longtime lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, joined a still-forming legal team to help the president shoulder the intensifying investigations into Russian interference in the election and his associates' potential involvement.

More attorneys with deep experience in Washington investigations are expected to be added, along with crisis communication experts, to help the White House in the weeks ahead.

"They need to quarantine this stuff and put the investigations in a separate communications operation," said Jack Quinn, who served as White House counsel for President Bill Clinton.

During the Monica Lewinsky investigation, the Clinton White House brought on a dedicated group of lawyers and a created a separate media operation to handle investigation- related inquiries so they didn't completely subsume the president's agenda. "I think that was enormously helpful," Quinn said.

Trump, according to one person familiar with his thinking, believed he was facing more of a communications problem than a legal one, despite the intensifying inquiries. The person, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss private conversations.

As he mulls new additions and outside reinforcements, Trump has entertained bringing his former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and former deputy campaign manager, David Bossie, formally back into the fold. Both Lewandowski and Bossie discussed the prospect with the president before his trip, according to one person told of the conversations.

Lewandowski's return would be a particularly notable development, given the fact that he was fired by Trump after clashing with other staff as well as Trump's adult children. Nonetheless, Lewandowski, who led the small team that steered Trump's primary victory, has the trust of the president, an advantage that many of Trump's aides lack.

Trump called his maiden trip abroad a "home run," but while the White House had hoped it would serve as a reset, attention on the Russia probe has only increased.
A knife-wielding man, believed to be mentally ill, killed two persons and injured 18 in China's Guizhou Province, the latest such attack in the country.

The attacker, aged 30, is in police custody after the assault and the case is under investigation.

Twenty injured people were rushed to the hospital, but two later died, state-run Xinhua news agency reported on Monday.

The attacker's father said his son has a history of mental illness, the report said.

Violent crime is rare in China compared with many other countries, but there have been a series of knife and axe attacks in recent years, many targeting children.

In January, a man wounded 11 children with a blade at their kindergarten in the Guangxi region. Seven children were wounded in a November attack by a man with a knife outside in another area.

Social revenge attacks by disgruntled people have become common in China to highlight the grievances.
The Manchester bomb attack, in which 22 people died, took place last Tuesday Australian time, and was a major front-page story for The Age, The Australian and the Herald Sun on the Wednesday and Thursday mornings.
Just a few hours after the British home secretary, Amber Rudd, issued a stern warning to the US government and intelligence officials about leaking sensitive information, they were at it again.
North Korea fired at least one short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast, the latest in a fast-paced series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions.
Pakistan's Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the objections raised by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's son against members of a team investigating the Sharif family's overseas businesses in connection with the .

Hussain Nawaz had pleaded the apex court urging it to remove two members of the six-member Joint Investigation Team (JIT) the court had appointed in April to investigate corruption allegations against members of the Sharif family.

A three-member special bench heard the Hussain's plea in which he had said that two members  Bilal Rasool of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and Amer Aziz of the State Bank of Pakistan  should be removed as members of the JIT, alleging that they were not impartial.

He had said the presence of these two members may affect the fairness and impartiality of the JIT and its findings.

Hussain's counsel, Khawaja Haris, had alleged before the bench that the two members have been "abusive", Dawn reported.

Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, who headed the bench, dismissed the accusation and ordered the JIT to continue its probe. Khan also said the two members were experts in white-collar crime.

"We will not change any member of the JIT, nor will we prevent someone from doing their work," the judge remarked, drawing attention to the fact that a special bench of the Supreme Court has appointed the six members of the JIT.

"Whether it is the prime minister or an ordinary citizen, nobody is above the law," he added.

The JIT has submitted an initial report before the apex court on May 22 and was told to complete the probe in 60 days. It has to submit a fortnightly progress report to the court.

The case against the Sharifs is for alleged money laundering in the 90s when he twice served as prime minister. The JIT was formed as a result of the case filed last year after the names of his children appeared in the leaked Panama Papers, which documented the offshore dealings of many of the world's rich and powerful.

Prime Minister Sharif has denied any wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, at the hearing on Monday, Federal Investigation Agency's Additional Director Gen Wajid Zia, who heads the JIT, told the Supreme Court that Qatari royal Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al-Thani has not appeared before the investigating team.

Two letters signed by the Qatari royal have been presented before the court by the Sharifs to establish the legitimate money trail for the London apartments, that are at the heart of the corruption allegation.

Justice Khan said that if the Qatari royal did not appear before the JIT, his letters would be thrown out.
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Donald Trumps electoral campaign was notable for his abrasive statements and blunt assessments about a variety of issues. Among his more unforgettable claims was his suggestion that NATO was obsolete.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Monday protested against pro-ISIS slogans allegedly seen in Delhi University' Delhi School of Economics (DSE).

The ABVP protestors were seen holding placards like 'Deshdrohi savdhan, jaag utha hai Navjawan' and 'Rashtravirodhi gatividhiyan nahi sahenge'.

They ceaselessly passed slogans like, 'campus chodo' and 'sabse upar rashtravad'.

ABVP activist Sonia told ANI, " Earlier as well anti-nationalist sloganeering took place at JNU, Ramjas College and now DU's Delhi School of Economics is being targeted. The walls of the campus have been etched with 'I support IS' . I believe few mischievous elements want to engender anti- environment in the universities and we (ABVP) will eradicate it from the grassroots. We want stern action against such acts. We want the administration to ensure that such anti-nationalist activities be forbidden from the universities."

Another ABVP activist Jyoti highlighted how brutally the endeavours of the anti-nationals failed in the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) where an enormous sizeable amount of communist and Marxist ideologue pursue their studies.

Jyoti said, "Certain elements will try expanding Naxalism, terrorism, anti-nationalism but how can they forget if their efforts meet a dead point at the JNU which constitutes major chunk of Marxists and communists, how can they expect their efforts to be triumphant at DU which has a majority of nationalists?"

One of the ABVP protestors, Arjun Khajuria urged not to target the educational institutes for the personal ulterior motives.

"Do not convert educational campuses into a rendezvous for anti- activities and as far as ABVP is existent, we will ensure that none gets to fan the flames of anti-nationalism," Khajuria added.

Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) Secretary Ankit Sangwan said that a memorandum in this regard has been sent to the administration.

He further said that the administration is constantly monitoring the situation and is also investigating the matter and as soon as the culprits are identified, a First Information Report (FIR) would be lodged against the culprits.

Meanwhile, heavy police force has been deployed outside the Delhi School of Economics.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Monday dubbed the Centre's new notification prohibiting sale of cattle for slaughter purpose a 'promotion of Hindutva ideology' , while saying that it was an assault on the fundamental rights of people of the country.

"No one can dictate to anybody what they should eat and what they shouldn't eat. Particularly if it comes from a political persuasion then it is worse because there is a political agenda.What is this government doing?" CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury told ANI.

Asserting that the Centre's move aims to promote their 'Hindutva ideology', Yechury said that the former is not concerned about other important issues like job, health and education.

"They are ruining the future of Indian youth. Our concern is to provide our youth with a better future and giving them job, health, education. That is not this government's concern. That is why we are saying this is absurd. India meat exports are worth 8.8 billion USD every year so this move will create a great deal of economic problems for the future of Indian youth," he added.

Echoing the same, Communist Party of India (CPI) leader D. Raja termed the Centre's decision 'illogical and irrational', while saying that it would create civil war- like situation in the country.

"The recent notification issued by the central government on the sale of cattle for meat is absolutely illogical and irrational. It is not in accordance to the constitution of the country. It is an assault on the fundamental rights of people of this country. The government cannot dictate what people should eat or not eat. This is an assault on the power of the state governments," Raja told ANI.

Stating that the Parliament's role was bypassed and undermined by central government's new rule, he further said that the notification would be used by the fundamentalist aggressive organizations to attack Dalits and minorities.

Earlier, criticizing the Centre's order, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that he didn't need a "lesson in food habits from New Delhi or Nagpur."

"Those sitting in Nagpur and Delhi cannot decide the food habits of Malayalis," he said.

Protesting against Centre's new norm, Students' Federation of India (SFI) organized a beef festival earlier on May 27 in Kerala by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum.

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan had on Friday ordered that the ministry has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes.

He said the seller and buyer both have to ensure that the cattle is not being bought or sold in the market for slaughter purposes.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After the support lent by Army Chief General Bipin Rawat for Major Leetul Gogoi, the Centre on Monday concurred with the former's statement that 'the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation'.

Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu took to Twitter to express the Centre's backing on the issue.

"Totally agree with #IndianArmy chief's statement that the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation," Naidu tweeted while quoting a news daily article.

Meanwhile, defence experts have also opined that such felicitations would give morale boost to the Indian Army.

Army chief Rawat yesterday came to the rescue of Major Gogoi, and said such "innovative ways are required to counter the dirty war" underway in Kashmir.

Indicating his firm approach to counter the insurgency, Gen Rawat said Army would take steps, which would break the clutches of militancy in South Kashmir.

Rawat added that the situation prevalent in Kashmir makes it mandatory for the Army to resort to tough measures.

Major Gogoi was in the spotlight after a video shot during the April 9 Srinagar Lok Sabha by-polls, posted on the social media, showed a man tied on the bonnet of an Army jeep in Jammu and Kashmir's Badgam.

The video went viral and sparked a major controversy, with one faction condemning the Army's action while the other commended their ingenuity.

The Court of Inquiry regarding April 9 incident is under finalisation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Condemning the Kerala incident where the youth Congress workers butchered a calf publically, the Congress Party on Monday dubbed the misconduct as 'reprehensible', while stating that the party does not support any kind of violence and barbarism.

"India's ethos and Congress Party's culture abjures any kind of violence or barbarism against every living being much less the 'Cow', which has a special place in the hearts and mind of people of India," Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said in a statement.

Dubbing the incident as 'reprehensible and condemnable', Surjewala said that such action and activists have no place in the Congress Party.

"The horrific incident in Kerala is reprehensible and absolutely condemnable. Such action is alien to our way of life. Such elements have no place in the Congress party. The Youth Congress has therefore suspended the so called activists," he said.

Earlier, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi conclusively condemned this cruel incident

"What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric & completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party. I strongly condemn the incident," Rahul said in a tweet.

The Kannur Police yesterday registered a case against district president of Youth Congress and other Congress workers under Section 120 (A) of the Kerala Police Act, for slaughtering calf in public view.

The police filed the case on the basis of a video where the president of Youth Congress, Rigil Pookkutty and other Youth Congress workers could be seen slaughtering the calf.

The incident comes amid hue and cry over Centre's new rule prohibiting sale of animals for slaughter or religious sacrifice at livestock markets and animal fairs.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Condemning the incident where Youth Congress activists publically butchered a calf in Kerala's Kannur to protest against the Centre's cattle ban, the Congress on Monday assured that the party is committed to bring people together, adding they will ensure that nobody's sentiments are hurt.

"Already a formal statement has been given by the Congress leadership. Let us be clear that this is not the time to further divide people in our country. I think as far as the Congress party is concerned, we are committed to bring people together. We must ensure that nobody's sentiments are hurt," Congress leader Salman Khurshid told media here.

He added that now is the time when all should take a balanced position on the matter, instead of looking for ways to attack.

"We have a responsibility to bring people together and for that sometimes you have to be careful, you have to be willing to sacrifice, willing to accommodate and adjust," Khurshid said.

Kannur Police yesterday registered a case against district president of Youth Congress and other Congress workers under Section 120 (A) of the Kerala Police Act, for slaughtering calf in public view.

The police filed the case on the basis of a video where the president of Youth Congress, Rigil Pookkutty and other Youth Congress workers could be seen slaughtering the calf.

The incident comes amid hue and cry over Centre's new rule prohibiting sale of animals for slaughter or religious sacrifice at livestock markets and animal fairs.

Students' Federation of India (SFI) earlier staged a protest in Kerala against the ban by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum.

Similar fest was also organised at different locations across Kerala.

The Centre's move also drew flak from various political leaders.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) earlier stated that by issuing this order, the government is imposing greater burdens on farmers.

"It is an absurd decision because this prohibition which the Centre has now announced includes buffaloes also. By issuing this order, the Centre is imposing greater burdens on farmers. It is very unfair to India's 'annadaata'," CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury told ANI.

The decision did not go down well with Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Isaac, who termed the move as 'illogical'.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the Centre's decision was surprising which was unsuitable for a democratic nation.

However, welcoming the Centre's decision, Union Minister Maneka Gandhi said the step is laudable and has been taken 'in the interest of farmers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) granted bail to all the accused including Virbhadra Singh in the disproportionate assets case, the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister welcomed the decision saying that 'truth would win'.

Reacting to the bail Singh said, "The case against me is political vendetta. It's a long battle and I will fight and win the case. I know truth will win.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Digvijaya Singh hailed the CBI court's decision saying that the party is grateful to it.

"We are grateful to the court that it pronounced the verdict in his favour and has not charged him with single allegation despite CBI's rigorous effort," Digvijaya told media.

Expressing faith on the court's decision, Congress leader Salman Kurshid said that they respect the former's orders.

"We have faith in our country's Courts. We need to respectfully accept all their orders," Khurshid told media.

A CBI court earlier in the day granted bail to all accused including Virbhadra Singh and his wife in the disproportionate assets matter.

Singh has to furnish Rs. one lakh personal bond and surety of same amount.

He has also been directed to submit his passport and not to leave the country without the CBI court's permission.

The next hearing in the matter is on July 27.

A Delhi Court earlier in the day had reserved its order on the bail plea of all the accused in the DA case, including Singh whereas the CBI opposed the bail plea.

Opposing the bail the CBI said, "Singh cannot be spared as he is the king of the state and is involved in such corrupt practices."

CBI counsel further said that the Virbhadra's medical issues are common for an old aged man and should not be considered.

Earlier on May 22, Singh and the other accused in the DA case, moved the special CBI court for bail.

The Special CBI Court issued a notice to the CBI to reply on the bail plea of all the accused including Virbhadra and his wife Pratibha.

Earlier on May 8, Virbhadra and other accused were summoned by the court in regard to the same case.

Pratibha Singh withdrew her plea, which had alleged that the CBI hadn't obtained permission from the state government to procure documents used to prepare the chargesheet.

Pratibha's counsel had earlier on April 24 argued whether witnesses and documents that were collected during the investigation could be part of the chargesheet and if the court could read them for the purpose of taking cognizance.

The counsel also moved an application seeking consideration of these terms, while also requesting not to take cognizance of the chargesheet.

A day after being booked by the CBI special court, the Chief Minister accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of conspiring against him and asserted that all charges levied against him were fabricated.

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North Eastern Council (NEC) chairman and Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) Jitendra Singh on Monday assured all members at the 66th Plenary of North Eastern Council that development of the region is amongst foremost priorities of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.

Singh asserted that the Union Government is in the process of reinventing NEC as an effective regional body.

Singh also averred that earnest measures should be taken to deploy the 10 percent resources under the non-lapsable pool of resources.

Singh said that in the meeting he highlighted some of the major achievements of the NEC.

"NEC has put maximum emphasis on the Transport and Communication Sector with the construction of 10,500 kms of roads including inter-state and roads of economic importance," Singh said.

"He said that a new scheme named, North East Road Sector Development Scheme (NERSDS) has been launched to take up all strategically important but hitherto neglected roads and bridges. Three projects under the scheme (Doimukh-Harmuti; Tura-Mankachar & Wokha-Merapani,-Golaghat) for 85 kms has been already awarded to Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHIDCL) for implementation at an estimated cost of Rs 213.97 crores. 14 projects have been identified to be taken up under NERSDS during 2017-18," he added.

Highlighting the endeavours of the NEC in connection with improvising the air connectivity in the region Singh said, "to promote air connectivity in the region, NEC has supported Airports Authority of India (AAI) for upgradation of infrastructure in 12 operational airports."

"Construction of Tezu airport in Arunachal Pradesh is supported by NEC and is likely to be operational within the current financial year. He said that NEC is also taking up the runway extension in the Umroi (Shillong) airport to enable bigger aircrafts to land and three (3) numbers of hangars at LGBI Airport in Guwahati has been completed under NEC funding," he added.

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Looks like, Dwayne Johnson won't let those bad 'Baywatch' reviews bring him down.

The 45-year-old-actor, who is usually very positive and diplomatic, recently took to his Twitter page to share his views on the negative reviews for his latest film, Baywatch.

The 'San Andreas' star wrote, "Yay positive upticks. Fans LOVE the movie. Critics HATE it. What a glaring disconnect. People just want to laugh & have fun. #Baywatch."

Yay positive upticks ??

Fans LOVE the movie. Critics HATE it. What a glaring disconnect. People just want to laugh & have fun. #Baywatch?????? https://t.co/GrPgdevRuz  Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) May 25, 2017

But, he did not stop there and later showed his displeasure with the critics.

He shared, "Oh boy, critics had their venom & knives ready ??. Fans LOVE the movie. Huge positive scores. Big disconnect w/ critics & people. #Baywatch."

Oh boy, critics had their venom & knives ready ??. Fans LOVE the movie. Huge positive scores. Big disconnect w/ critics & people. #Baywatch?? https://t.co/K0AQPf6F0S  Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) May 26, 2017

Johnson followed it up with a video showing various fans talking about how much they loved the film, adding, "Fans across the country havin' a BLAST & LOVING #Batwatch. Veryyy happy audience = best part of my job."

Fans across the country havin' a BLAST & LOVING #Batwatch??. Veryyy happy audience = best part of my job.

(B+ CinemaScore ????????) pic.twitter.com/iTFV2NdutR  Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) May 26, 2017

The film has fared very poorly with critics, currently standing at a 19% rating on Rotten Tomatoes amidst judgements that the film is "shallow" and "misguided".

Johnson stars alongside Zac Efron, Alexandra Daddario, and Priyanka Chopra in the big-screen remake of the popular '90s television series, where lifeguards attempt to uncover a criminal plot that threatens all that is good and pure in the world of beach life.

The flick is scheduled to hit the theatres on June 2 in India.

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Condemning the brutal murder of an e-rickshaw driver in the capital, who was beaten to death for opposing public urination, Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday assured that he was personally looking into the matter and the culprits will not be spared.

Taking to Twitter, Naidu said it was sad indeed that the driver lost his life while he was promoting Swachh Bharat.

Sad that an e rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping 2 people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting #SwachhBharat /1  M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) May 29, 2017

Spoke to police commissioner & asked him to take strongest action possible against the culprits. /2https://t.co/1OfW21hOT3  M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) May 29, 2017

An E-rickshaw driver was allegedly beaten to death on Saturday evening in GTB Nagar after he prevented two students from urinating near the Metro station.

As per the locals, two boys were drinking alcohol and were urinating near the Metro station, which was opposed by the E-rickshaw driver.

In order to take revenge, the boys later returned in the night to carry out the shocking act.

"14-15 men came together and started beating the man. Nobody came to help him. The man was beaten to death as the boys filled towels with stones and brutally thrashed him. They even started beating me. Somehow I was able to run away from here to ask for help," said one of the E-rickshaw drivers, also an eye witness.

According to another witness, the boys were possibly from Delhi University's Kirori Mal College, as one of the E-rickshaw drivers, Pramod dropped them in front of that college in the evening.

"The boys who did this, later in the evening went to Kirori Mal College, we can identify them. We even asked the police to search the CCTV footage, but they are not even ready to do so," said Pramod.

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Upset with the U.S. intervention in the Saudi-led military alliance of Islamic nations, Pakistan's former army chief General (Retd) Raheel Sharif is mulling over leaving the Islamic Military Alliance's command, according to a news report.

Daily Pakistan reported that a private TV news channel, Neo TV, claimed that due to American intervention General Sharif feels his role is being limited by the Saudi government.

Therefore, he is considering leaving the command of the military alliance.

The former army chief took over the role to head the 41-nation military alliance last month.

The 41-nation armed coalition was initially proposed as a platform for security cooperation among Muslim countries and included provisions for training, equipment and troops, and the involvement of religious scholars for devising a counter-terrorism narrative.

Reports of General Sharif thinking of quitting the alliance come after the debate over Saudi not providing Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif the time to deliver a speech at the recent U.S.-Arab Islamic summit on counter-terrorism in Riyadh.

Many Pakistani media outlets called it 'national humiliation,' saying no opportunity was given to Pakistan to present its case within the context of the country being one of the biggest victims of terrorism.

What angered Islamabad further was the fact that U.S. President Donald Trump, in his speech at the event, said, "India was one of the countries which had suffered due to terrorism," while ignoring Pakistan.

However, later, clearing the air on the controversy, Pakistan Foreign Office said in a statement that the Prime Minister could not deliver the speech due to shortage of time.

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Soon after meeting German Chancelor Angela Merkel at Schloss Meseberg, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he had a "very good interaction" with the former at her country retreat ,near Berlin, over a private dinner.

Prime Minister Modi took to Twitter to post some pictures of the meeting and wrote alongside, "Had a very good interaction with Chancellor Merkel."

Prime Minister Modi arrived on the first leg of his four-nation tour to Germany yesterday.

Germany will host ceremonial welcome for Prime Minister Modi today.

Prime Minister Modi and the German Chancellor will attend the fourth biennial Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) plenary meeting at International Conference Room at Chancellery.

Later in the day, both the countries are expected to sign Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs).

Chancellor Merkel will host lunch for Prime Minister Modi and Indian delegation today.

Prime Minister Modi will depart for Hotel Adlon Kempinski at Palaisaal to attend the Indo-German Business Summit 2017.

He is also expected to invite the German investors in India under the 'Make in India'.

From the summit, the Prime Minister will depart for Castle Bellevue to meet German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

After meeting with the German President, the Prime Minister will depart for Berlin Tegel Airport to start his Spain tour.

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Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina on Monday left for Austrian capital Vienna to attend an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) conference.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali said, "Various global issues, including bilateral cooperation in implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), migration, refugee crisis, climate change and the situation in the Europe after Brexit will come up for discussions during the two-day visit."

The two countries are likely to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) during the visit.

During her two-day visit, Sheikh Hasina will hold talks with Austrian Federal Chancellor Christian Kern and meet Austrian Federal President Alexander Van Der Bellen. She will also hold a meeting with IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano.

The Prime Minister will return home on May 31.

Marking the 60th anniversary of the IAEA's Technical Cooperation programme, the international conference on the 'IAEA Technical Cooperation Programme: Sixty Years and Beyond' will take place in Vienna from May 30 to June 1.

The conference will bring together representatives from member states and other partners to further develop partnership to enhance the delivery of the technical cooperation, said the organisers.

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Zlatan Ibrahimovic's agent has admitted that he doesn't know whether the striker will be back at Manchester United next season.

Ibrahimovic's agent, Mino Raiola, did, however, insist that Ibrahimovic will continue playing in Europe as he looks to resume his career once he recovers from a serious knee injury.

Ibrahimovic earlier this month had undergone a successful knee surgery and began the rehabilitation process.

He sustained the injury when he landed awkwardly after jumping for a header during the final seconds of United's 2-1 win over Anderlecht in the first leg of their Europa League clash at Old Trafford last month.

United have been expected to trigger an option to extend Ibrahimovic's contract at Old Trafford, yet that was before the 35-year-old sustained the injury.

"Will he continue at United? I don't know, we will talk soon to sort out the future," Raiola was quoted as saying by the Independent.

"He will play for one more year, maybe two."

"There have been offers from clubs from many leagues, but he will remain in Europe 100 per cent," he added.

Ibrahimovic, who joined United last summer from Paris Saint-Germain, has scored 28 goals in 46 appearances in his debut season.

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On the occasion of International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, Vice Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Sarath Chand remembered 168 soldiers on Monday who died in various corners of the world for the cause of peace.

Speaking to ANI, Sarath Chand said, "India is contributing around 6,900 military personnel among 1, 15,000 peacekeepers in various missions. 168 Indian peacekeepers lost their lives since UN operations began. In 2016,117 peacekeepers from around the world lost their lives".

The theme for the 2017 International Day of UN Peacekeepers is "Investing in Peace Around the World".

As dated, a total of 3,576 peacekeepers have sacrificed their lives in the UN mission.

168 Indian Peacekeepers have sacrificed their lives while serving under the UN flag.

Last year in 2016, 117 of 43 nation's peacekeepers laid their life for peace in peacekeeping mission which includes two from India.

Two fallen peacekeepers from India received the Dag Hammarskjold medal- Rifleman Brijesh Thapa who served with the United Organisation Stabilization mission in the Democratic republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and Sepoy Ravi Kumar who was deployed with the united Nations interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) this year.

A total of 13 peacekeepers have sacrificed their life in the year 2017.

Currently, more than 96,000 uniformed personnel from the 124 troop and police-contributing countries serve under the blue flag, alongside more than 15,000 international and civilian staff and nearly 1, 600 United Nation Volunteers.

India is the largest cumulative troop contributor, having provided almost 2, 00,000 troops in nearly 50 of the 71 peacekeeping mission mandated over the past six decades, including 13 of the current 16 mission.

So far, about 168 Indian troops have made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty under the UN flag.

India currently deploys more than 7,600 military and police personnel to UN peace operations.

As per Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS), matters of sexual exploitation and abuse are counted by reports received.

A report of sexual exploitation and abuse may relate to one or more alleged perpetrators, and may involve one or more victims.

When a report is received, a process of ensuring accountability starts.

If a report received refers to alleged perpetrators of more than one category of personnel (for example, civilian and military), or personnel from more than one troop-contributing country, the report would be counted individually for each separate track of accountability: one for civilian personnel, and one for each troop-contributing country whose personnel may be involved.

On December 11, 2002, the UN General assembly designated May 29 as the International Day of UN Peacekeepers. The day was first observed on May 29, 2003.

Over time, peacekeeping has grown from simply monitoring ceasefires to protecting civilians, disarming ex-combatants, protecting human rights, promoting the rule of law, supporting free and fair elections, minimizing the risk of land-mines and so much more.

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The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) on Monday issued an order of doing away with stamping hand baggage tags with immediate effect at six major airports- Lucknow, Guwahati, Patna, Trivandrum, Jaipur and Chennai from June 1.

The CISF took the decision after a week-long trial in April.

Earlier, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) issued an order of doing away with stamping hand bag tags at seven major airports- Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Cochin.

The government, however, withdrew the decision later on, after security agencies raised concerns.

A joint meeting was attended by Minister of Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State for Home Affairs Jayant Sinha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation R.N. Choubey, Secretary Civil Aviation O. P. Singh, Director General CISF, Dharmendra Kumar, Additional Director General Airport Sector/CISF and senior officers of MHA, Minister of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and BCAS at Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan to discuss the modalities of implementation of this order.

"It was decided that committees comprising of BCAS, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and Airport Operators would examine the security architecture & CCTV systems of these seven airports notified by BCAS and assess their suitability for doing away with the baggage tags as suggested by CISF earlier," Deputy Commandant Manjit Singh said.

"The scheme would be implemented at these airports after ratification by these committees. A similar exercise would be conducted simultaneously at the remaining 52 airports under CISF cover for recommending modifications in the security architecture & CCTV systems so that this scheme could be implemented at those airports as well," he added.

The BCAS and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) had carried out non-stamping exercise at several airports for domestic flyers last year.

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In a viral video circulating on the social media, cow vigilantes can be seen shouting slogans and assaulting two youth for allegedly possessing beef in Malegaon tehsil of Maharashtra's Washim.

The cow vigilantes or 'Gau Rakshaks', in the video can be seen beating up the young men, and accusing the duo of being in possession of cow meat.

The vigilantes can also be heard asking the two men to accompany them to Malegaon Police Station.

Nine people have been arrested in connection with the incident, the police officials informed.

Seven of them who attacked the two men were booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The two youth, too, have been booked under section 295a of the IPC.

Superintendent of Police of Washim said the situation was under control as immediate action had been taken.

The samples of the seized meat from the spot had been dispatched to a state laboratory in Nagpur for verification.

Malegaon is investigating the matter.

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The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the Rajasthan Government over removing mobile towers within a distance of 500 metres of prison centers.

The state government has been asked to reply within four weeks.

The Rajasthan Government had directed to remove all mobile towers within a distance of 500 metres of prison offices from June 8.

The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the association of the telecom body, had knocked the doors of the apex court challenging the order which had sought removal of many mobile towers located within 500 metre distance of jails in the state.

The High Court passed this order citing a notification issued by the state government which had allowed such towers to function.

Earlier in 2015, the top court stayed the operation of the interim order of the Rajasthan High Court asking for the uninstalling of several ground-based towers installed by Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd in Jaipur.

After which the Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd then moved the apex court against the state High Court, which also banned new installations.

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The Delhi High Court on Monday granted bail to Kolkata-based businessman Paras Mal Lodha, in connection with a money laundering case.

Earlier on May 5, the bail plea of Rohit Tandon, the other accused in the case, was rejected by the High Court.

The High Court had also issued notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking a report Lodha's bail plea.

Earlier in February, the ED had issued a provisional attachment order attaching movable and immovable properties worth Rs. 6,84,26,500 of Lodha, Tandon and others in a money laundering case post demonetisation.

Investigation conducted so far has revealed that post demonetisation, Lodha along with others illegally exchanged demonetised currency of Rohit Tandon and others into monetized form on commission basis with the help of Suman, Amranjay Kumar, Atul Kumar Aggarwal, Manoj Kumar Aggarwal and others including Hawala operators.

In this process of illegal exchange, Amranjay Kumar, Atul Kumar Aggarwal and Manoj Kumar Aggarwal have been the direct beneficiaries and knowingly assisted in the offence of money laundering by the possession and acquisition of the properties involved in money laundering.

Since the active role of Lodha surfaced during the investigation, he was arrested under section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 on December 2 last year. He is now under judicial custody.

Lodha was held in Mumbai by the Enforcement Directorate after they recovered huge cache of new currency notes of Rs. 500 and Rs. 2,000 from a Delhi law firm which belonged to advocate Rohit Tandon and Chennai based businessman Sekhar Reddy.

Income Tax officials also claimed that they seized Rs. 132 crore in currency notes including Rs. 34 crore in 2,000 notes, and 177 kilograms gold from fourteen of Reddy's premises.

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United States President Donald Trump has said that North Korea has shown 'great disrespect' for China after firing a ballistic missile from its eastern coast on Monday.

"North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbour, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile.but China is trying hard!" Trump tweeted.

North Korea on Monday fired what appears to be a ballistic missile from its eastern coast, according to the South Korean military.

"North Korea launched an unidentified projectile from the vicinity of Wonsan, Gangwon Province, early this morning," Yonhap news agency quoted the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) as saying.

Pyongyang's action was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who ordered related government officials to convene a National Security Council meeting at 7:30 a.m. local time, the JCS added.

If the projectile is confirmed to be a ballistic missile, it would be the communist nation's ninth missile test this year.

North Korea has carried out a series of successful ballistic missile launches, with the recent being on May 21.

Japanese Defense Minister Tomomi Inada said the missile hit the water about 350 kilometers (217 miles) from the east coast of North Korea. She said the missile did not go higher than 1,000 kilometers (620 miles), according to preliminary data.

On May 14, the test missile by Pyongyang reportedly reached an altitude of more than 2,100 kilometers (1,300 miles).

According to analysts the test gave North Korea critical information on developing a re-entry vehicle for nuclear warheads and showed Pyongyang had a missile capable of striking the U.S. territory of Guam.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had earlier vowed to field a nuclear-armed missile capable of reaching American territory.

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At least thirty to forty Naxals set ablaze a mobile tower, three kilometers away from a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in Bihar's Jamui district.

The Naxals, under Laxmipur police station area, torched the cell phone tower, situated in Anandpur village.

According to reports, tower, generator set and other instruments were damaged completely in the attack.

Further details are awaited.

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Nepal on Monday celebrated its 10th Republic Day with fervor and enthusiasm by organising various programmes on Monday.

A grand procession was organized at "Tundikhel" where various cultural activities as well as parade by security forces and different organizations were showcased.

The event was observed by Nepal President Vidhya Devi Bhandari, Vice- President Nanda Bahadur Pun, Prime Minister of caretaker government Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Chief Justice Sushila Karki and House Speaker Onsari Gharti Magar.

The head of Republic Day event organizing committee and prime minister of caretaker government Pushpa Kumar Dahal wished everyone on the occasion.

Dahal also expressed his confidence that the government will complete the responsibility of holding remaining two-tier election by first month of next year.

"The constitutional provision of holding the elections of local level, province and federal assembly by first week of January, 2018 will be completed by the new government. I also am confident that all the political parties, governmental officials, security bodies, Election Commission and people will take the second phase election as an occasion completing their responsibility sincerely like that of first phase election," Dahal said addressing the procession.

After the success of people's movement succeeding to overthrow over two century old monarchy system, Nepal re-established the democracy on 2006.

The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly on 28th May, 2008 declared Nepal a Federal Democratic Republic.

Though the parliament at that time was dissolved after failing to promulgate new constitution which it was destined to Nepal got its' first republic constitution with federalism on 2015 but the constitution which was promulgated on September, 2015 fragmented the country into section pushing Madhesh based parties to go for protest.

Dahal after his resignation last week accepted that the people have not been able to experience the true essence of republic governance.

"The republic achieved on the base of democracy indeed has resulted mentionable change in the political level but the political changes has failed to bring significant change in the life of people," Prime Minister Dahal said.

Every year Nepal has been marking the day with great fervor as it was announced without any bloodshed and marked a new start with the adaptation of new concept of federalism for overall development of the nation.

It is also regarded as a milestone to formally end a decade long Maoist insurgency.

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Three more ONGC employees - Santosh Kumar, Nirmal Kumar and Prabhat Gaurav have added on to the historic feat of scaling the Mount Everest.

With this, six ONGC employees have successfully accomplished Mission Everest .

Earlier, three ONGC employees Yogendar Garbiyal, N Jagoi and Rahul Jarngal had summited the Everest under the leadership of Padma Shri Loveraj Singh Dharamshaktu, Assistant Commandant, Border Security Force (BSF), representing Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF).

Santosh, Nirmal and Prabhat along with accompanying sherpas summited the Everest today.

All members of the expedition are in good health condition. The three ONGC employees have returned to South Col (Camp 4), while the other team, that summited the Everest yesterday are back to the Everest Base Camp.

Congratulating the achievement of the ONGC employees, CMD ONGC tweeted, "Filled with pride to know that three more ONGCians have scaled the Everest. Proud of Nirmal, Santosh and Prabhat on this achievement. Kudos!"

The ONGC Everest Expedition is a phenomenal employee engagement initiative taken by ONGC - a world leader in oil and gas Exploration and Production.

This is a unique HR initiative of ONGC to instill values of adventure, camaraderie, team spirit and bravado within the organization.

The idea of Mission Everest was borne out of the team's successful completion of the Everest Base Camp Trek in October 2015. From then on, there has been no looking back. ONGC CMD has then exhorted all team members on their return to target Mt Everest.

The IMF has been instrumental in the success of this expedition by not only providing training to the employees, but also preparing them for all the adverse conditions, under the mentorship of IMF president, Col H. S. Chauhan.

With this achievement, ONGC has become one of the first corporates in the world to successfully scale the Everest.

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The intelligence community in the United States is believed to have informed the U.S. Congress that Pakistan has by and large failed to curb militants and terrorists operating from its soil.

It added that because of this failure, "these (terror) groups will (continue to) present a sustained threat to American interests in the region, and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan.

According to the Dawn, during a Congressional hearing on Afghanistan and the ongoing war against terror elements there, the intelligence chiefs reportedly gave a candid assessment of the situation in war-torn Afghanistan to the Senate Armed Services Committee.

A transcript, released this weekend, shows that though much of the debate focused on Pakistan, there was a concern expressed that despite increased military efforts to defeat the Taliban, these militants would continue to make gains, especially in the rural areas of Afghanistan.

"Afghan security forces' performance will probably worsen due to a combination of Taliban operations, combat casualties, desertions, poor logistics support and weak leadership," warned National Intelligence Director Dan Coats.

Coats leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI.

Illinois Republican Senator Joni Kay Ernst asked the intelligence chiefs to spell out the measures that Washington would like Kabul's neighbours to take to help stabilise the region.

"I think certainly an evaluation of how we work with Pakistan to address the situation of the harbouring of terrorist groups would be essential to a strategy that affects Afghanistan," Coats replied.

"Because that is potentially a very disrupting situation, putting our own troops at risk and undermining the strategy of dealing with the Taliban and local groups that are trying to undermine the (Afghan) government. So it's a very clear link that I think would have to be addressed in conjunction with whatever's done in Afghanistan."

"Besides more troops, which I anticipate might be part of the plan that we see, we need to implement a different strategy on the ground in Afghanistan?" Senator Ernst asked Defence Intelligence director Lt. Gen. Vincent Stewart

"We've got to get a couple of things. One, very clear that Afghanistan's security and stability is in the interest of all of the parties in the region and does not pose a risk to Pakistan," Lt. Gen. Stewart replied.

"We've got to convince Pakistan that if they're harbouring any of the Haqqani network members that it is not in their interest to continue to host the Haqqani network."

Lt, Gen. Stewart also urged the Trump administration to work with Afghanistan's neighbours to go after the 20 terrorist organisations that were still active in the region.

"They undermine not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but all of the region," he added.

Lt. Gen. Stewart also suggested "pushing" Pakistan to do more against the Haqqani network and urged US policymakers to "separate the Taliban from the Pashtun", because Pakistan wanted a Pashtun-dominated Afghanistan.

"So we've got to get the conversation going again with Pakistan about their role in not harbouring any of these terrorists, helping to stabilise Afghanistan and, I think, maybe, we'll have some progress," he said.

Lt. Gen. Stewart said he believed Pakistan still had some influence in bringing Taliban to the table. "So we've got to get them to think about reconciliation, that the status quo is not in their best interest," he said.

The intelligence chiefs also flagged the issue of Pakistan's concern over India's influence in Afghanistan, and cautioned that the latter could look to China to offset this perceived imbalance in regional geo-politics and end its so-called global isolation.

"They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to the state of Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations. so that - if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan interests," he said.

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Pressure seems to building up on U.S. President Donald Trump to speak up on the recent racist attack in Oregon's Portland, leading to the killing of two men.

Veteran American journalist Dan Rather, took to Facebook and urged Trump to acknowledge the "brave Americans who died at the hands of someone who, when all the facts are collected, we may have every right to call a terrorist".

"I wish we would hear you say these names, or even just tweet them," Rather wrote.

Similar sentiments were echoed by Twitterati, showing their displeasure over Trump's failure to comment on the murder.

Two men were stabbed to death and one injured on a light-rail train in Portland, after they tried to intervene when another passenger began "ranting and raving" and shouting anti-Muslim hate speech at two young women.

The Portland Police yesterday identified the two slain victims as 53-year-old Ricky John Best and 23-year-old Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche.

A third victim, 21-year-old Micah David-Cole Fletcher, is being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

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Newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday welcomed his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin in Paris for their first face-to-face talks, during which, they discussed a gamut of issues.

The two leaders discussed the relationship between their nations, the situation in Syria, LGBT rights in Chechnya among other issues for three hours in the Palace of Versailles, reports the DW.

The meeting took place on the 300th anniversary of Russian Tsar Peter the Great's visit to Versailles.

During a joint press conference post the talks, Putin said the discussions were intense but Franco-Russian ties withstood "all points of friction". Macron also agreed to the same, adding, "we disagree on a number of things but at least we discussed them."

On the issue of Syria, Macron, whose nation supports removal of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said he would work with Putin to determine the best course of action in the country. Putin, who is a long time ally of Assad, said he believes the stability of the Syrian state is crucial to combat terrorism.

The two leaders agreed on the need of a new round of talks on the violence in eastern Ukraine.

Macron also brought up LGBT rights in Chechnya, saying he would be "constantly vigilant on these issues."

"President Putin told me . he had undertaken several initiatives on the subject of LGBT people in Chechnya with measures aimed at establishing the whole truth about the activities of local authorities," said Macron.

Chechen officials have been accused of arresting and torturing at least 100 gay men in the region.

Relations between the European Union and Russia have been fraught since Moscow's annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the subsequent insurgency in eastern Ukraine. France was one the main proponents of sanctions that have significantly damaged trade between the EU and Russia.

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Jihadist group al-Shabaab reportedly stoned to death a 44-year-old man in Somalia for alleged adultery.

The killing took place on Sunday in the Ramo Adey village and was witnessed by hundreds, reports Sputnik news agency.

According to witnesses, the man was married with two wives and also had a third woman, whom he did not have according to the Sharia law.

Meanwhile, Somali religious scholar Sheikh Abdirahman Sharif, imam of the Darul Hijra mosque in Minneapolis, Minnesota, criticized the execution and called it illegal and al-Shabaab "religious bandits."

He also suggested that the victim might have been tortured into confessing, and that al-Shabaab does not give those it accuses the right to contest accusations against them.

Al-Shabaab has been trying to overthrow the Somalian government for years and in 2012 allied itself with al-Qaeda.

It has lost ground in recent years, but remains strong enough to stage public executions in remote regions of the country.

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President Pranab Mukherjee presented the Malti Gyan Peeth Puraskars for the year 2017 today at a function held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Speaking on the occasion, the President congratulated the 15 distinguished teachers who were bestowed with the Malti Gyan Peeth Puraskars.

The President said that he was delighted to confer the award instituted in the name of Malti Mohinder Singh Syngle, an eminent educationist and crusader for promoting education for girls whose 96th birthday was today.

He also complimented Manoj Singhal, President of Mohinder Singh Syngle Education and Research Society for his commitment to the cause of promoting education and for instituting this award.

The President said that development, to his mind, is not merely the installation of more industrial units; construction of high rise buildings; dams; roads etc.

"The connotation of development incorporates culmination of people's adherence to values and their faithfulness to their spiritual and cultural heritage. A holistic education system enables us to put values at the forefront of the educational enterprise in schools and colleges. Such a system is conducive to the ideal development of society. He saw a pivotal role for teachers in this endeavour. The teachers share an onerous responsibility of instilling in the minds of students, rich cultural ethos, tolerance and innovation for the wellbeing of society," he said.

The President said that the teachers who have been awarded today represent the dedicated teachers of our nation.

"They are the ones who are educating and extending learning opportunities to students. From the Vedic era to modern times, we have had 'gurus' who nourished the minds and intellect of our people. Such teachers are there even today. They encourage students to be inquisitive about extant knowledge. They prompt them to question the established facts in their disciplines. They do not seek only answers from students; rather they want students to raise questions. Inspired teachers themselves have deep knowledge of their subject areas," he added.

"They are able to assist students in understanding and appreciating the subject from different perspectives, and in fact, help them in constructing the frontiers of knowledge. The competent and motivated pool of teachers, through their collective efforts, can create a society full of strong minds and courageous hearts, and through them alter the history of a nation. Education is the true alchemy that can bring India to its next golden age," President Mukherjee said.

Among the dignitaries present on the occasion were Maneka Sanjay Gandhi, Union Minister of Women and Child Development; Prakash Jawdekar, Union Minister of Human Resource and Development; Dr. K. K. Paul, Governor of Uttarakhand and Aruna Chaudhary, Education Minister, Govt. of Punjab.

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Two students met their fatal end as an Omani van carrying four students and three adults met with an accident here in Jutogh.

Soon after reports were received of the accident, the local police authorities arranged for the injured to be shifted to a military hospital in the vicinity, where two out of the four students succumbed to their injuries.

The rest have been referred to Indira Gandhi Medical College for immediate treatment.

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Hitting out at the burgeoning law and order crisis in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Monday said that the Yogi Adityanath led-government is unable to control the ongoing crisis, adding the state government is also ignorant about the Dalits and minorities.

"Since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government has come in power in the state, the law and order seems out of control. If the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister thinks that whatever he is doing is right and he knows everything, then he is wrong. The law and order in the state is becoming worse by every passing day. They are ignorant towards the development of minorities and Dalits," Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge told ANI.

He further said that Uttar Pradesh is a large constituency and the situation at in the state affects the rest of the country as well.

"They are unable to meet the demands of the public. The BJP has a powerful publicity and only that is helping them," he asserted.

Echoing similar sentiment, another Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that there were no communal clashes and molestation cases during the rule of Congress party.

"Whatever happened in Kushinagar was not at all acceptable. Nobody from the Congress Party has ever said that you have to smell good if you want to meet the Chief Minister," Singhvi added.

Earlier, the District Administration in Uttar Pradesh's Kushinagar asked the residents to have a bath before attending a meeting with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, so that they 'smell good'.

To ensure the instructions were followed, soaps, shampoo and perfumes were distributed among the villagers.

The members of the Mushahar community were called to attend a vaccination program for the eradication of Encephalitis, a campaign started by the Chief Minister in Kushinagar's Kasiya division.

Five children from the community were to be vaccinated under the campaign from the area.

Ahead of the event, local officials distributed the soaps and shampoos to those attending the event, in order to make them "look clean and smell good."

Ahead of the event that the Chief Minister was going to attend, roads were paved, toilets were fixed overnight and streets were cleaned up in the village.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched Encephalitis vaccination campaign in the state from Mainpur village in Kushinagar.

Earlier, the administration in Deoria had received much flak for placing air conditioners, sofas and carpets at the house of a Border Security Force (BSF) martyr when Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath went to his place to give the compensation cheque.

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Labour Code on Wages to be sent to cabinet for approval: Labour & Employment Minister

The Minister of State for Labour & Employment (IC), Shri Bandaru Dattatreya has announced that the 40 crore workers from unorganized sector will be covered under social security schemes such as ESIC & EPFO. The Minister said that the Government is committed to ensure wage, jobs and social security for all workers including unorganized sector. Shri Dattatreya was addressing a function on the 3 years achievements of the his ministry in New Delhi today. He said that the Ministry is implementing reforms and new ways and means for employment generation. India is the only country which has launched Shram Suvidha Portal for effective compliance and ease of doing business. The Ministry is implementing the National Career Service (NCS) project as a vibrant platform for transforming and strengthening the public employment services in the country.

Shri Dattatreya said that the Ministry got the following Acts passed by the Parliament during last 3 years.

1- The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 which ensures complete prohibition on employment of children below 14 years and also prohibited the adolescents (14-18 years ) to work in hazardous occupation/processes

2- The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017 under which maternity benefit to woman has been increased from 12 weeks to 26 weeks for two surviving children and 12 weeks for more than two children

3- The Payment of Wages(Amendment) Act,2017 enables the employers to pay the wages to their employees by cash or cheque or crediting it to their bank account.

4- The Employees' Compensation (Amendment) Act, 2017 has the provision to increase the penalty for contravention of Act from present Rs.5000/- to Rs. 50,000/- extendable to Rs.1 Lakh.

5- Payment of Bonus Amendment Act, 2015 has enhanced the eligibility limit under section 2(13) from Rs. 10,000/- to Rs.21,000/- per month.

6- The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 has been amended by notification to include fixed term employment for textile (apparel) sector as a part of textile package to enhance employment.

The Labour & Employment Minister said that the Ministry is working on the proposed codification of existing Labour Laws into 4 Labour Codes.

(i) Labour Code on Wages

(ii) Labour Code on Industrial Relations

(iii) Labour Code on Social Security and Welfare

(iv) Labour Code on Occupational Safety and Working Conditions

The Group of Ministers has approved the Labour Code on Wages and it will be sent to cabinet for approval.

The Minister said that the Minimum wage (per day) for non-agricultural worker in the 'C' area category increased from Rs 246 to Rs 350, Rs 437 in 'B' Area category and Rs 523 in 'A' area category. He also informed that the Shram Suvidha Portal is a single unified web portal for submissions of common Annual Return under 9 Central Acts and monthly common Electronic Challan Cum Return (ECR) for EPFO and ESIC. He also informed that Unique Labour Identification Number (LIN) is allotted to Units and 19,23,162 Lakhs LIN allotted as on on 22nd May, 2017. Total 2,95,423 inspections have been assigned and out of that 2,76,931 inspections have been uploaded as on 22nd May, 2017. Common registration under EPFO and ESIC has been facilitated on the Shram Suvidha Portal since 30th April, 2017.

Shri Dattatreya said that Registers/Forms to be maintained under various labour laws are simplified. 56 Registers/- Forms under 9 Central Labour Laws and Rules made thereunder have been replaced with 5 common Registers/Forms. The notification has been issued on 28th March, 2017 for reducing Forms under certain Labour Law Rules from 36 to 12. It is applicable to the establishments under the jurisdiction of Central as well as State Governments.

He said that employers can apply for EPF code number online by uploading of digitally signed documents. As on 06th December, 2016 around 1.52 Lakhs establishments have been obtained online registration on OLRE portal. Universal Account Number(UAN) has been made compulsory and online credit system introduced. Minimum pension under Employees' Pension Scheme, 1995 has been revised to Rs. 1000/- in perpetuity per month w.e.f. April 2015. Time limit for claim settlement has been reduced to 10 days from 20 days. No documents required and only self-certification is necessary for withdrawal under the EPF scheme for the accounts linked with Aadhaar.

The Minister informed that ESIC is now covering complete districts instead of targeted industrial clusters. Coverage expanded to all 393 districts where these clusters are located. 301 districts have been fully covered. In the second phase, the target is to cover all the remaining districts of the country. One IP-Two Dispensaries scheme has been launched for the benefit of migrant workers. Now Insured Persons can choose two dispensaries, one for self and another for family through an employer.

Shri Bandaru Dattatreya said that over 3.87 crore candidates, 14.8 lakh establishments are registered on the National Career Service (NCS) Portal and it has mobilized over 6 lakh vacancies. Around 540 job fair were organised in 2016-17. The NCS project also involves setting up of 100 Model Career Centre to deliver quality employment services and these centres are being set up in collaboration with States and Institutions. NCS has partnered with Department of Posts and common services centre to extend registration of job seekers through the Post Offices.

Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana (PMRPY) scheme has been announced to incentivize employers for new employment. Government will be paying the 8.33% EPS contribution for these new employment for the period of 3 years. For the textile (Apparel & made up) sector, Government will also pay the 3.67% EPF contribution of employers for these new employees. Till now benefit have been transferred to 1,954 establishments covering 75,848 beneficiaries under the scheme with an expenditure of Rs. 6 crores (approx.).

Rehabilitation of Bonded Labour Scheme has been revised with effect from 17th May, 2016 where financial assistance has been increased from Rs.20,000/- Rs.1,00,000/- per adult male beneficiary, Rs 2 Lakh for special category beneficiaries such as children including orphans or those rescued from organized & forced begging rings or other forms of forced child labour and women. Rs 3 Lakh in cases of bonded or forced labour involving extreme cases of deprivation or marginalization.

The Secretary, Ministry of Labour & Employment, Ms. M. Sathiyavathy in her welcoming address said that the Government is creating environment to facilitate employment with quality and fair wages. For this number of initiatives and programmes have been undertaken.

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Of Rs 3 per share

Ingersoll-Rand (India) announced that the Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on 23 May 2017, inter alia, have recommended the final dividend of Rs 3 per equity Share (i.e. 30%) , subject to the approval of the shareholders.

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Of Rs 1.46 per share

Orissa Minerals Development Company announced that the Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on 26 May 2017, inter alia, have recommended the final dividend of Rs 1.46 per equity Share (i.e. 146%) , subject to the approval of the shareholders.

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At meeting held on 27 May 2017

The Board of Directors of Phoenix Lamps at its board meeting held on 27 May 2017 has appointed the following -

Appointed Medappa Gowda.J as Chief Financial Officer of the Company.

Appointed Gourish Hegde as Company Secretary & Compliance Officer of the Company.

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Under Rashtriya Gokul Mission, on the lines of Gokul Gram, ' Gir Cow sanctuary' has been Approved

Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Radha Mohan Singh said that the Government of India has undertaken several new initiatives in the field of animal husbandry in Gujarat. Under Rashtriya Gokul Mission, on the lines of Gokul Gram 'Gir, Cow Sanctuary' has been approved. This will be established in Dharampur, Porbandar under Livestock insurance coverage. Earlier only two milk animals were included , now 5 milk animals and 50 small animals are included. This scheme has been implemented in all the districts of the state, whereas earlier only 15 districts were included. During the year 2014-16, about 26,000 animals have been insured in the state. To fulfil the shortage of veterinarians, a veterinary college has been established in Junagadh. The Agriculture Minister was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of polytechnic at Kamdhenu University, Sabarkantha.

The Agriculture Minister said that it is a matter of immense pride that our country is number one in milk production in the world. In the year 2015-16, the growth rate of milk production has been 6.28 per cent due to which total production has reached 156 million tonnes. And now, per person milk availability is 337 gram on an average, while on the world level it is 229 gram. It is worth mentioning that in comparison to the years 2011-14, the growth in milk production during the years 2014-17 has been 16.9 per cent.

He said that the standard of living of urban and rural families is rising, therefore, the demand for the animal protein is increasing. So, it is necessary that we constantly make effort to increase the production of our livestock, poultry and fish so that the country's citizens are well-nourished and healthy. That is why it is the responsibility of veterinarians to contribute in keeping the nation healthy by increasing availability of animal protein.

He said that the Government is committed to double farmers' income by 2022 and veterinaries play a significant role in fulfilling the Government's resolution to double the farmers' income. A healthy animal will result in greater production which will automatically enhance the farmer's income and the country will proceed on the path of economic prosperity.

Agriculture Minister said that India is world's highest livestock owner at about 512.05 million out of which 199.1 million are bovines, 105.3 million buffaloes, 71.6 million sheep and 140.5 million goats. In the case of goats, India is at the second position in the world and it is approximately 25 % of the livestock. India is second largest poultry market in the world and it includes the production of 63 billion eggs and 649 million poultry meat. India's marine and fish industry are growing at around 7 percent compound annual growth rate. Overall, India's livestock sector is growing fast and emerging as a major contributor in the global market.

The Agriculture Minister said that the Government of India is ensuring the quality of education in universities is of international standards. In this direction, ICAR's Fifth Deans Committee Report has been approved. Schemes like 'Student' and 'Arya' have been started with scholarships. Students' scholarship amount has been increased.

In the end, the Minister said that to see our nation prosper and agriculture sector and farmers flourish, we need to work together. When the agriculture will grow, the farmer will be happy and the country will move forward.

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Market registered small gains on hopes of timely arrival of southwest monsoon rains. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 82.84 points or 0.27% at 31,111.05, as per the provisional closing data. The Nifty 50 index rose 7 points or 0.07% at 9,602.10, as per the provisional closing data. Both the Sensex, and the Nifty, hit record high.

The Sensex settled above the psychological 31,000 level after alternately moving above and below that level till early afternoon trade.

Market sentiment was boosted by hopes of timely arrival of southwest monsoon rains after India Meteorological Department (IMD) in a press release dated 29 May 2017 said that conditions are becoming favorable for further advance of southwest monsoon and its setting over Kerala and parts of northeastern states around 30th to 31st May 2017.

The June-September southwest monsoon is critical for the country's agriculture because a considerable part of the country's farmland is dependent on the rains for irrigation.

The Sensex rose 186.18 points or 0.6% at the day's high of 31,214.39 in mid-afternoon trade, a record high for the index. It lost 158.31 points or 0.51% at the day's low of 30,869.90 in early trade.

The Nifty rose 42.65 points or 0.44% at the day's high of 9,637.75 in mid-afternoon trade, a record high for the index. It lost 47.40 points or 0.49% at the day's low of 9,547.70 in early trade.

Among other indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was down 1.03%. The BSE Small-Cap index declined 1.53%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.

The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On the BSE, 1,809 shares declined and 869 shares rose. A total of 173 shares were unchanged.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 3813.86 crore, slightly less than turnover of Rs 3835.84 crore registered during the previous trading session.

Realty stocks dropped. Godrej Properties (down 3.42%), HDIL (down 3.14%), D B Realty (down 4.78%), Sobha (down 2.77%), Unitech (down 4.68%), Indiabulls Real Estates (down 4.11%) and Prestige Estates Projects (down 1.91%) fell. Oberoi Realty (up 0.84%) edged higher.

DLF tumbled 9.65%. The company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 142.66 crore in Q4 March 2017, compared with net loss of Rs 211.11 crore in Q4 March 2016. Net sales declined 12.6% to Rs 2225.18 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 26 May 2017.

NTPC rose 0.54%. The company's net profit declined 25.54% to Rs 2079.40 crore on 11.5% rise in total revenue to Rs 20886.85 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. The result was announced during market hours today, 29 May 2017.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries slumped 11.98% after consolidated net profit fell 14% to Rs 1223 crore on 8% fall in sales to Rs 6825 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 26 May 2017.

Dilip Shanghvi, Managing Director of the company said that Q4 performance reflects the impact of the challenging generic pricing environment in the US. Despite this, the company continued to invest strong cash flows in enhancing specialty pipeline.

Tech Mahindra tumbled 11.49% after consolidated net profit dropped 31.2% to Rs 588 crore on 0.8% fall in revenue to Rs 7495 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q3 December 2016. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 26 May 2017.

Managing Director and CEO of the company CP Gurnani, said that the IT industry is going through a paradigm shift amid changing demand pattern from the clients, technological changes and requirement for significant skill enhancement.

The company has responded to these changes proactively by reimagining the business, imbibing a culture of innovation, encouraging reskilling and retraining workforce wherever necessary, he added.

ONGC fell 0.46% after net profit declined 6.14% to Rs 4340.18 crore on 26.81% rise in total income to Rs 26233.56 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 26 May 2017.

Overseas, European stocks were mixed. UK market was shut for a public holiday. Asian stocks edged lower amid decline in oil prices and geopolitical tensions. China and Taiwan stock markets were closed for public holidays.

Reports suggested that North Korea today, 29 May 2017, fired off its third ballistic missile test in just over three weeks, a short-range ballistic missile that Japan said fell in the ocean within 200 miles of its coastline.

US stocks closed mixed on Friday, 26 May 2017, ahead of the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

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Sales decline 11.18% to Rs 285.86 crore

Net profit of Nava Bharat Ventures declined 61.94% to Rs 21.33 crore in the quarter ended March 2017 as against Rs 56.04 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2016. Sales declined 11.18% to Rs 285.86 crore in the quarter ended March 2017 as against Rs 321.84 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2016.

For the full year,net profit declined 29.41% to Rs 82.98 crore in the year ended March 2017 as against Rs 117.56 crore during the previous year ended March 2016. Sales declined 4.58% to Rs 979.34 crore in the year ended March 2017 as against Rs 1026.34 crore during the previous year ended March 2016. ParticularsQuarter EndedYear EndedMar. 2017Mar. 2016% Var.Mar. 2017Mar. 2016% Var.Sales285.86321.84 -11 979.341026.34 -5 OPM %18.8020.87 -15.0812.22 - PBDT39.4262.82 -37 162.23156.12 4 PBT26.9351.61 -48 125.15122.20 2 NP21.3356.04 -62 82.98117.56 -29

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ONGC fell 0.63% to Rs 174.70 at 09:21 IST on BSE after net profit declined 6.14% to Rs 4340.18 crore on 26.81% rise in total income to Rs 26233.56 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016.

The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 26 May 2017.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 39.63 points or 0.13% at 30,988.58

On the BSE, 38,000 shares were traded on the counter so far as against the average daily volumes of 6 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock had hit a high of Rs 175.55 and a low of Rs 173.30 so far during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 212 on 31 January 2017 and a 52-week low of Rs 138.10 on 24 June 2016.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 6416.62 crore. Face value per share is Rs 5.

ONGC's net profit rose 10.9% to Rs 17899.97 crore on 0.83% rise in total income to Rs 85455.85 crore in the year ended 31 March 2017 (FY 2017) over FY 2016.

On a consolidated basis, ONGC's net profit rose 63.94% to Rs 21478.34 crore on 5.57% rise in total income to Rs 152731.39 crore in FY 2017 over FY 2016.

In exploration segment, ONGC has achieved 35% rise in exploration performance in FY 2017 by making 23 discoveries, as against 17 discoveries in FY 2016. Of the 23 discoveries, 13 discoveries were made in onland (Nominaton-12, NELP-1) and 10 in offshore. (Nomination-7, NELP- 3). Out of 13 onland discoveries, 9 were monetized during the year itself having a potential of 0.218 million metric ton of oil equivalent (MMTOE) per year.

ONGC's overseas arm, ONGC Videsh production of oil and gas rose 44% to 12.803 MMTOE in FY 2017 over FY 2016. This increase in production was mainly contributed from the newly acquired stake in Vankor field in Russia which contributed 4.545 MMTOE during the year.

ONGC Videsh completed acquisition of 15% stake in Vankor Field located in East Siberia of the Russian Federation on 31 May 2016 from Rosneft Oil Company and subsequently acquired additional 11% stake on 28 October 2016. Vankor is Russia's second largest field by production and accounts for 4% of Russian production. The daily production from the field is around 400,000 barrels per day of crude oil (bopd) and 19.76 Million Metric Standard Cubic Meter Per Day (MMSCMD) of gas on an average and ONGC Videsh's share of daily production from Vankor (considering both the acquisitions) will be about 104,000 bopd of crude oil, and 5.138 MMSCMD of gas, totaling to 6.936 MMTOE per annum.

ONGC is India's largest oil and gas exploration firm by sales. The Government of India held 68.07% stake in ONGC as per the shareholding pattern as on 31 March 2017.

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Reliance Communications tanked 12.98% to Rs 22.45 at 11:25 IST on BSE after the company reported consolidated net loss of Rs 948 crore in Q4 March 2017 compared with net profit of Rs 79 crore in Q4 March 2016.

The result was announced on Saturday, 27 May 2017.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 51.25 points, or 0.17% to 31,079.46. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was down 113.43 points, or 0.78% to 14,406.47.

Spurt in volumes was witnessed on the counter. On the BSE, 45.58 lakh shares were traded in the counter so far, compared with average daily volumes of 24.65 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock had hit a low of Rs 21.95 so far during the day, which is a record low for the stock. The stock had hit a high of Rs 25.65 in intraday trade.

The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 55.40 on 31 August 2016. The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 26 May 2017, sliding 24.67% compared with 2.97% rise in the Sensex. The scrip had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, declining 30.08% as against Sensex's 7.39% gains.

The mid-cap company has equity capital of Rs 1244.49 crore. Face value per share is Rs 5.

Reliance Communications (RCom)'s consolidated total income fell 24.34% to Rs 4524 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. Revenues in Q4 fell in line with industry trends, and led by the impact of free offers, disruptive pricing and unprecedented competitive intensity in the industry.

The proposed merger of SSTL's wireless operations with RCom, marking the 1st in-country consolidation in the Indian telecom industry, has received all approvals, and is expected to be completed in June, 2017. The merger will add highly valuable 30 MHz of 850 band spectrum in 8 key circles, and will extend validity of spectrum in these circles for an additional period of 12 years, till 2033.

The proposed transaction for sale of the tower infrastructure owned by RCom to Brookfield has received requisite approvals from Competition Commission of India (CCI). The business demerger and transfer scheme has been filed with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). Shareholders' approvals have been received in the NCLT convened meeting during April 2017, and lenders' and other consents are expected in the next few months.

Upon completion of the Aircel merger with the company and sale of the tower business, RCom's debt will stand reduced by around Rs 25000 crore. Upon completion, the company will hold highly valuable stakes of 50% in the Aircel joint venture and 49% economic upside in the towers business, providing future monetisation opportunities for significant further deleveraging.

RCom will also continue to own and operate its existing high growth and higher margin businesses in the domestic enterprise segment, data centers, optical fibre and international business in GCX.

RCom said that the telecom sector in India has been very adversely impacted during the financial year ended 31 March 2017 (FY 2017) by competitive intensity on a scale never witnessed before in the country.

For the first time in over 20 years, the telecom sector registered de-growth in revenues, leading to a reduction in the Government's share in revenues, sharp drop in operating margins, accompanied by increased interest costs arising from a staggering industry debt burden, and higher depreciation and amortisation charges as a result of higher spectrum purchase costs.

Steep declines in profitability and/or net losses have been reported for the past two quarters by all telecom operators in the country without exception, and a couple of operators have shut down their entire operations in the country, company added.

RCom is an integrated telecommunications service provider.

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Key benchmark indices displayed divergent trend in afternoon trade. At 13:18 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 39.50 points or 0.13% at 31,067.71. The Nifty 50 index was down 1.10 points or 0.01% at 9,594. The market sentiment was subdued amid lack of cues from global markets.

The Sensex was hovering above the psychological 31,000 level after alternately moving above and below that level in intraday trade so far. It had settled above that level during the previous trading session.

Among other indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was down 0.50%. The BSE Small-Cap index declined 0.98%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex.

The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was weak. On the BSE, 1,613 shares declined and 904 shares rose. A total of 158 shares were unchanged.

Most metal shares declined. Hindustan Copper (down 1.85%), Bhushan Steel (down 1.76%), Jindal Steel & Power (down 1.44%), JSW Steel (down 1.43%), NMDC (down 0.77%), Hindustan Zinc (down 0.5%), Tata Steel (down 0.38%) and Hindalco Industries (down 0.03%), edged lower. Vedanta (up 0.23%) and Steel Authority of India (up 0.42%), edged higher.

National Aluminium Company (Nalco) rose 0.29% to Rs 68.50 after net profit increased 25.37% to Rs 268.37 crore on 20.22% rise in total income to Rs 2485.22 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. The result was announced on Saturday, 27 May 2017.

Meanwhile, copper price edged lower in the global commodities markets. High Grade Copper for July 2017 delivery was currently down 0.39% at $2.5555 per pound on the COMEX.

Power generation stocks slipped. Reliance Infrastructure (down 7.7%), Reliance Power (down 6.31%), Adani Power (down 5.36%), GMR Infrastructure (down 5.02%), Jaiprakash Power Ventures (down 3.82%), JSW Energy (down 2.87%), Torrent Power (down 2.7%), CESC (down 0.87%), Tata Power (down 0.25%) and NTPC (down 0.22%), edged lower.

State-run Coal India was up 0.56%. State-run Power Grid Corporation of India was up 0.91%.

Vivimed Labs rose 2.88% to Rs 114.25 after consolidated net profit spurted 810% to Rs 114.75 crore on 25.4% increase in total revenue to Rs 438.96 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. The result was announced on Saturday, 27 May 2017.

Among domestic developments, the arrival of monsoon rains and its progress will be closely watched. India Meteorological Department (IMD) in a press release dated 29 May 2017 said that conditions are becoming favorable for further advance of southwest monsoon and its setting over Kerala and parts of northeastern states around 30th to 31st May 2017.

The June-September southwest monsoon is critical for the country's agriculture because a considerable part of the country's farmland is dependent on the rains for irrigation.

Overseas, European stocks opened lower following lackluster trade in Asian equities and decline in the oil price. UK market was shut for a public holiday.

Asian stocks were trading mixed after the latest ballistic missile test by North Korea. China and Taiwan stock markets are closed for public holidays.

Reports suggested that North Korea today, 29 May 2017, fired off its third ballistic missile test in just over three weeks, a short-range ballistic missile that Japan said fell in the ocean within 200 miles of its coastline.

US stocks closed mixed on Friday, 26 May 2017, ahead of the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

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The Election Commission of India has decided to launch a Special Drive from 1st June this year for maximization of registration of eligible electors and removing the impurities in the rolls. In tune with the theme of 'No voters to be left behind' the ECI has decided to utilise the period of continuous updation for maximisation of enrolment of young electors particularly 18-19 age group by launching a special drive in all States.

During the campaign, which will be completed by 31st July 2017, following activities will be undertaken by election official in all States.

Submission of Forms shall be available to electors in following modes:-

Submission of Form 6 at EROs Office

Sending of Form 6 by Post

Online Submission of Form 6 at National Voters' Service Portal (NVSP)

Submission of online Form 6 at Common Service Centers (CSCs)

Following additional services for the purpose shall also be provided during special drive:-

Door to Door visit of BLOs: BLO shall visit door to door of the households to collect Form 6 from the applicants, particularly 18-19 age group (extendable to 21years of age) from 1st July 2017 and 31st July 2017 (except the Special Campaign Dates).

Mobile App.: A user can also fill the Form using mobile app "The Voter Services mobile application', available only on the Commission's website.

National Call Centre (NCC): The ECI has also provided facility of National Call Centre for extending Citizen Services. At the State level, CEO will provide State Call Centre (SCC) and District Contact Centre (DCC) at district level by upgrading '1950' on the same line of National Contact Centre. A citizen making a call at NCC/SCC/DCC will be informed about procedure of Form submission through the above modes. If a differently abled person making call at any of these centres, expresses his inability to utilize any of the above services, then a visit by BLO concerned will be arranged at his/her address for getting the Form filled and receiving it back from that person for further processing. This service will be provided free of cost.

Paid Services: CSCs will provide services of making online filling and hard copy Form digitization on payment basis.

i. Special Campaign Dates: Special Campaigns will be organized on two dates in the month of July 2017, which will be publicised through media by the Chief Electoral Officer. On these dates, Camps will be held in each polling station where Booth Level Officer will sit with adequate number of Forms 6, to receive Forms from the applicants.

On the day of camp, entire final electoral roll, 2017 along with its supplements, if any, shall be pasted on the wall of the polling stations. The roll shall also be read out publically by the BLO on that date. The left out eligible citizens will fill Forms 6 and give the same to the BLO at the polling station itself, or submit through any other available means during the Special Drive. Special camps will also be conducted in all Government and Private Educational Institutions (colleges and Schools)/Vocational Training Institutes on at least any two different days between 1st July 2017 and 31st July 2017.

ii. Removal of names of dead electors: During the Special Drive, removal of names of dead electors will also be taken up. For identification of such dead electors, data on registered deaths shall be collected from the Registrar of Deaths and all registered death entries should be removed during the Special Drive.

iii. Disposal of Forms: Disposal of Forms 6 and Forms 7 (death cases), received during Special Drive will be done by 31st August 2017. However, Forms 7 (other than death cases), Form 8 and 8A received during the period will be done only after the Special Drive.

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Sun Pharmaceutical Industries slumped 12.01% to Rs 500.25 at 10:35 IST on BSE after consolidated net profit fell 14% to Rs 1223 crore on 8% fall in sales to Rs 6825 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016.

The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 26 May 2017.

The stock has skidded 23.49% in seven sessions to its ruling price of Rs 500.25, from a close of Rs 653.90 on 18 May 2017.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was almost unchanged at 31,027.26.

Spurt in volume was witnessed on the counter. On the BSE, 27.24 lakh shares were traded on the counter so far as against the average daily volumes of 3.89 lakh shares in the past one quarter. The stock had hit a low of Rs 493 so far during the day, its lowest level since 28 August 2013. The stock had hit a high of Rs 532.80 in intraday trade.

The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 854.50 on 5 August 2016. The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 26 May 2017, sliding 11.53% compared with 2.97% rise in the Sensex. The scrip had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, declining 15.82% as against Sensex's 7.39% gains.

The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 239.93 crore. Face value per share is Rs 1.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries' board of directors recommended dividend of Rs 3.5 per share for the year ended 31 March 2017 (FY 2017).

India sales rose 10% at Rs 1916 crore in Q4 March 2017 over Q4 March 2016. Other operating income for the quarter stood at Rs 312 crore which includes a milestone payment from Almirall S.A (Spain) as part of the licensing agreement for the development and commercialization of Tildrakizumab for psoriasis in Europe.

Dilip Shanghvi, Managing Director of the company said that Q4 performance reflects the impact of the challenging generic pricing environment in the US. Despite this, the company continued to invest strong cash flows in enhancing specialty pipeline.

In Q4, the company announced the acceptance of Tildrakizumab filing by EMA for European markets and for US market in May 2017. The company will be gradually filing Tildrakizumab in all key markets in the next few quarters. The company recently had a pre-new drug application (NDA) meeting with the United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) for Seciera and the company is on track to file this NDA by Q3 December 2017. The company continues to evaluate filing Seciera in other markets.

During the quarter, the USFDA lifted the import alert on the Mohali facility while remediation efforts are on-going to bring back the Halol facility into full cGMP compliance, he added.

Sun Pharma is a specialty generic pharmaceutical company and India's top pharmaceutical company.

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Security agencies and the Punjab Police were on alert on Monday in Pathankot district following the recovery of a suspicious bag that contained an army uniform.

A search operation was launched early on Monday by the Punjab Police and other security agencies in the district, especially near the Indian Air Force base at Pathankot.

The abandoned bag was found late on Sunday night.

Police officials told IANS that the recovery was being investigated.

Security agencies remained on alert in border districts of Gurdaspur and Pathankot following the terrorist attack on the IAF base at Pathankot in January 2016 and the terror attack in Dinanagar town in Gurdaspur district in July 2015.

Both districts share an international border with Pakistan. Both districts are also close to the troubled state of Jammu and Kashmir.

--IANS

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In a first, police in Alwar district of Rajasthan have commissioned a pilot programme with Gurugram-based artificial Intelligence (AI) research startup Staqu where an app is assisting the personnel expedite criminal identity registration, tracking and missing persons' search.

Called ABHED (artificial-intelligence based human efface detection), the app will enable police to opt for criminal registration, including biometric information, via mobile phones.

"Not only the ABHED app will assist the patrolling forces, it will also make the entire process seamless and digital," Rahul Prakash, Superintendent of Police, Alwar Police, Rajasthan, said in a statement.

Optimised for 2G or 3G networks, ABHED is equipped to handle thousands of queries per seconds and supports unlimited search and criminal profiles' indexing.

"Our officers are really excited to have such a tool at their disposal. With its ease of searching, our investigation process will become extremely effective," added Paras Jain, Additional SP, Alwar Police.

Every police personnel will have their own login password to use the app for both registration and search.

The access with OTP-based logins can be controlled at different levels with mobile phones.

With a simplified user-interface, police personnel can automatically profile criminals or missing people, including biometric information like fingerprints, voice and face pictures and can be integrated with the current Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS).

ABHED provides matching details from the criminal database within seconds, offering better accuracy than any other criminal recognition system, the company claimed.

Criminal search can be performed through FIR, available face images or fingerprints.

The app is available in both Hindi and English and can be extended to other languages as well.

"With the launch of ABHED, we are utilising our AI prowess, especially in machine learning, for enabling police forces to digitalise and automate profiling and search for criminals and missing people," said Atul Rai, CEO and Co-Founder of Staqu.

Staqu initiated the ABHED pilot project on May 27.

--IANS

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After he was caught on camera using a red beacon on his vehicle on Monday, West Bengal Minister Arup Biswas justified it the state government had not banned it yet.

"Unless and until the state government bans it, how can we do it (stop using red beacon)," Biswas told the media in Siliguri.

In April, the Centre announced a ban on red beacons atop official vehicles of VVIPs, effective from May 1. Ambulances, fire services, police and Army can still use blue flashing beacons.

--IANS

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In a relief to liquor companies in Bihar, the Supreme Court on Monday gave them another two months' time till July 31 to dispose of their unsold stocks.

A vacation bench of Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Deepak Gupta gave the extension to the liquor firms, as senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the bench that they needed more time to dispose of their stocks.

The earlier two months' time given on March 31 was coming to an end on May 31.

The liquor companies had moved the top court on May 24, seeking time for destroying their unsold liquor stocks worth Rs 200 crore lying in warehouses in Bihar.

However, the plea was opposed by Bihar government counsel, who alleged that illegal trade of liquor going on in the state was causing a law and order problem.

Rejecting the government's plea, the bench said that once the stocks of liquor were over, there would be no illegal trade.

The counsel for Bihar government also urged the court that no more further extension be given to the liquor firms after July 31.

In the wake of the prohibition policy of the Nitish Kumar government, the top court had on March 31 ordered the liquor companies to export their old stocks that were lying in the warehouses of the Bihar State Beverage Corporation (BSBCL) by May 31.

--IANS

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West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday termed as "unconstitutional" the Central government's amended rule forbidding cattle trade for slaughter and said the decision would be challenged legally by her government.

"This is a destructive attitude to federal structure, unnecessary bulldozing, encroaching and interference to federal structure," she said.

"The law is very clear. According to the Article 246 of Indian Constitution, the legislature of any state has exclusive power to make laws with respect to any of the matter enumerated in Seventh Schedule. The law is clear, still the decision is being forced down our throats. We are not accepting that. We will challenge it legally and constitutionally for interference in state power.

"This is a deliberate attempt to encroach the state power. This is absolutely unconstitutional, unethical and undemocratic," said Banerjee, also the Trinamool Congress supremo.

Stating that market, trade and commerce fall within the jurisdiction of the states, Banerjee said such laws are deliberate attempts to encroach on their powers and that the state governments should have been consulted before taking the decision.

Referring to the new regulations in the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, she claimed some sections of the law are contradictory and requested the central government not to come up with such laws in future.

"The law says that the sale and purchase of cattle in any market for the purpose of slaughter has been prohibited. However it also says that the animals for slaughter would have to be bought from the farmers at the farms. This itself is contradictory," she claimed.

"How to distinguish between a cow to be used in farming purposes and a cow taken out for slaughter," she asked.

She urged the Centre to stop interfering in the "state matters".

"Let good sense prevail. We will consult the Advocate General and lawyers. We will fight the case as there is a constitutional breach. I will request the central government not to come up with laws like this. Also do not interfere in the states' matters," she added.

--IANS

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The CBI on Monday registered three cases against unnamed Civil Aviation Ministry and Air India officials in the issue of purchase of 111 Boeing aircraft worth Rs 70,000 crore and alleged corruption in handing over international airline routes to private airlines during the UPA regime.

Apart from Civil Aviation Ministry and Air India officials, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has booked some private unnamed companies in its FIRs lodged under sections of criminal conspiracy and cheating of Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The FIRs do not mention any public official by name but are built around a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) submitted to Parliament in 2011 and a subsequent report by the Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC).

Both reports pointed out glaring gaps in the acquisition process which caused to the national air carrier to face a financial crunch, a CBI official said.

The cases come on the heels of the CBI raiding former Finance Minister P. Chidamabram's son Karti in a money laundering case.

The agency took the step on Supreme Court's January 5 order pertaining to the affairs of the Civil Aviation ministry under the previous United Progressive Alliance government.

The court has reportedly asked the CBI to complete the probe by June while hearing a public interest litigation filed by activist-lawyer Prashant Bhushan on the purchase of the Boeing aircraft.

The first FIR related to purchase of 111 aircraft for Air India costing about Rs 70,000 crore to benefit foreign aircraft manufactures while the second mentions leasing of large number of aircraft without due consideration, proper route study and marketing or price strategy.

A CBI official said the aircraft were leased even while aircraft acquisition programme was going on.

The official said the agency in its third FIR will probe the cause of giving up profit making routes and profit making timings of Air India in favour of national and international private airlines causing a huge loss to the national carrier.

The agency also registered a preliminary enquiry to enquire into the allegations relating to the issue of merger of two national carriers - Air India and Indian Airlines - causing loss to the national exchequer, the official said.

--IANS

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A team of health officials raided a clinic conducting sex determination tests here, police said on Monday.

The team of officials first sent a decoy customer to check the sex of her baby at the clinic in Jangpura area of south Delhi, police said.

Once the sex determination was done, the team raided the clinic and also found Rs 8,800 paid by the woman at the clinic.

The ultra sound machine used for sex determination has been sealed and district health officials are in the process of sealing the clinic, police said.

"No arrest has been made in the case and we are investigating," said Deputy Commissioner of Police Romil Baaniya.

--IANS

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Condemning the act of its four youth wing members in publicly killing an ox in Kerala as part of protest against new cattle slaughter rules, the Congress on Monday slammed the BJP for trying to "regressively play of polarisation" and indulging in "doublespeak and deception".

Congress, which has suspended the members in question, said it has also initiated an inquiry into the incident.

"India's ethos and Congress party's culture abjures any kind of violence or barbarism against every living being much less the cow, which has a special place in the hearts and mind of people of India," said Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala in a statement.

"The horrific incident in Kerala is reprehensible and absolutely condemnable. Such action is alien to our way of life. Such elements have no place in the Congress party. The Youth Congress has therefore suspended the so-called activists," he added.

Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi had earlier tweeted: "What happened in Kerala yesterday (Saturday) is thoughtless, barbaric and completely unacceptable to me and the Congress party. I strongly condemn the incident."

Congress, however, hit out at he BJP is trying to regressively play of polarisation to shamelessly divert attention from its anti-Dalit atrocities and practice of untouchability by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

"It is tragic that UP CM Adityanath's administration forced the poorest of the poor of Dalit community of 'Musahar' to first bathe with soap, sprinkle perfume so as to allegedly avoid the bad odour emanating from their 'dirty clothes', as the UP CM visited them," said Surjewala.

--IANS

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Goa should not lag behind in providing protection to women and children, Governor Mridula Sinha said in her address on Monday, on the eve of Goa Statehood Day.

"The government should not lag behind in its responsibility of providing protection to women and children, who have always been the pride of the country. We should focus our attention on providing them a respectful life. They need our sympathies, understanding, love, and a safe and respectful environment," Sinha said.

Goa was liberated from Portuguese rule in 1961, and remained a Union Territory for more than two decades along with Daman and Diu, which too were liberated from Portugal by the Indian armed forces.

Goa became a full-fledged Indian state, albeit the country's smallest, on May 30, 1987.

Sinha said the coastal state had largely benefited from the Uniform Civil Code, which has been in force here since the colonial era, and it was representative of social and national unity.

--IANS

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Dubbing Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh's use of the words "permanent solution" to the Kashmir issue as a disturbing and enigmatic formulation, the Congress on Monday asked him to explain the contours and calculations of the phraseology.

"The Minister has been making curious statements. He said 'we have come up with a permanent solution for Kashmir and that the initiative has begun'.

"This is an extremely enigmatic formulation. Will the Home Minister care to explain to the people what the contours and calculations of the phraseology are," said Congress Spokesperson Manish Tewari.

Rajnath Singh on Sunday asserted that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government has found a "permanent solution" to the vexed Kashmir issue but there would be no compromise on the territorial integrity of India.

"The phraseology 'permanent solution' has extremely disturbing implications. History has been witness to the rather disastrous consequences of this permanent solution/final solution in action," said Tewari.

Tewari said: "Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has been giving interviews wherein she has been passionately advocating that the central government needs to engage with the Hurriyat and Pakistan."

"She went on to say that both these engagements are a part of the Agenda of Alliance between the Peoples Democratic Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party. On the other hand, the BJP has been hell-bent on playing the jingoistic national card," he added.

The Congress leader said this ideologically incompatible alliance (between PDP and BJP) has driven Jammu and Kashmir to the edge.

"We would like to ask both parties that if there is so much of an ideological dissonance, if there is no agreement on the Agenda of Alliance, then why are they continuing in government together?" said Tewari.

"Why is the BJP not pulling out of the government if it doesn't want to listen to its own Chief Minister in Jammu and Kashmir? And conversely, why is the PDP continuing in the state government when the Centre doesn't pay any heed and is not interested in listening to what the Chief Minister has to say?" asked Tewari.

--IANS

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Five persons were injured, one seriously, in a crude bomb attack at a chemist shop in Nagaland's commercial hub Dimapur on Monday, police said.

"Five persons were injured, including one critically. They have been admitted in hospital," Commissioner of Police Alimasunep Jamir told IANS.

"Investigation is on to ascertain the identity of those behind the attack," Jamir said.

Intelligence officials said the bomb attack could be a fallout of non-payment of extortion money.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

--IANS

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A modest slowdown is likely in India's growth with the GDP expected to fall to 6.8 per cent in 2016-17 as a result of temporary disruption caused by the government's demonetisation initiative, the World Bank said on Monday.

"India's economy was slowing down in early 2016-17, until the favourable monsoon started lifting the economy, but the recovery was temporarily disrupted by the government's demonetisation initiative. As a result, a modest slowdown is expected in the GDP growth in 2016-2017 to 6.8 per cent," World Bank said in its bi-annual India Development Update released here.

"Demonetisation caused an immediate cash crunch, and activity in cash reliant sectors was affected. GDP growth slowed to 7.0 per cent year-on-year during the third quarter of 2016-2017 from 7.3 per cent in the first quarter," it said.

While limited data is available, demonetisation may have had a disproportionate impact on poorer households, which are more likely to work in construction and informal retail, the report noted.

"Greater data availability, especially on labour markets, is needed to better gauge the social impact of policies in the future," it said.

"Despite this, there was a relatively modest slowdown in the economy."

The report attributes it to coping mechanisms, including greater usage of digital transactions, higher rural incomes, and robust public consumption. The pick-up in rural wages in November and December, 2016, and the growth of agricultural output suggests the positive impact of the monsoons substantially dampened the disruption from demonetisation.

The report said that demonetisation has the potential to accelerate the formalisation of the economy in the long-term leading to higher tax collections and greater digital financial inclusion.

It also said that the country's growth is expected to recover in 2017-2018 to 7.2 per cent and is projected to gradually increase to 7.7 per cent in 2019-2020.

The World Bank also noted that India remained the fastest growing economy in the world with strong economic fundamentals and ongoing reform momentum.

"India remains the fastest growing economy in the world and it will get a big boost from its approach to GST which will reduce the cost of doing business for firms, reduce logistics costs of moving goods across states, while ensuring no loss in equity," said Junaid Ahmad, World Bank Country Director in India.

The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) could also be a complementary reform that will support formalisation, as firms have a strong incentive to register with GST to obtain input tax credits, the report said.

"GST is on track for implementation in the second quarter of the fiscal year, and is expected to yield substantial growth dividends from higher efficiencies and raise more revenues in the long term.

"Timely and smooth implementation of landmark reforms such as the GST and a new code to deal with bankruptcies, as well as decisive action to resolve the non-performing assets (NPAs) challenge of public sector banks, is crucial to enhance the economy's potential growth," the report said.

"Private investment growth continues to face several impediments in the form of excess capacity, regulatory and policy challenges, and corporate debt overhang. However, the recent push to increase infrastructure spending and to accelerate structural reforms will eventually drive a sustained rebound of private investments," said Frederico Gil Sander, Senior Country Economist and the main author of the India Development Update.

While agriculture growth delivered in 2016-2017, the report notes that investment growth remains subdued, partly because of banking sector stress.

The report also highlights the low and falling participation of women in the labour market. "For India to achieve higher growth, it needs to create safe, flexible and well paying jobs for a large number of women who are currently not in the labour market."

Currently, India has one of the lowest female participation rates in the world, ranking 120th among 131 countries, with less than a third or only 27 percent of women who are 15 years or older working or actively looking for a job.

"This is a cause for concern since higher labour earnings are the primary driver of poverty reduction," Ahmad added.

"It is often argued that declining female participation is due to rising incomes that allow more women to stay at home. The evidence, however, shows that fewer jobs in agriculture have not been replaced by alternative jobs considered suitable for women."

--IANS

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal arrived here on Monday on a one-day visit and offered prayers at the Golden Temple.

This is Kejriwal's first visit to Punjab after the results of the Punjab assembly elections were declared in March.

Kejriwal was accompanied by senior Aam Aadmi Party leaders from Punjab, including state Convenor and Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann and Co-convenor Aman Arora.

Kejriwal told the media outside the Golden Temple complex that he had come to pay obeisance on the martyrdom day of fifth Sikh guru, Arjan Dev.

A group of journalists alleged manhandling by Kejriwal's security outside the complex as they tried to speak to the AAP National Convenor.

Kejriwal later left for a venue near the airport to meet party leaders and activists.

Some activists showed black flags to Kejriwal en route to the venue.

The AAP won 20 seats in the 117-member assembly, becoming the main opposition to the state government formed by the Congress, which won 77 seats.

The AAP leadership is preparing for by-election to the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat, which fell vacant following the death of Bharatiya Janata Party MP and actor Vinod Khanna on April 27.

--IANS

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President Donald Trump's son-in-law and senior advisor was "more than willing to answer any and all questions" following reports of his meetings with Russian officials, according to a top US official.

Tennessee Senator and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Bob Corker told USA Today on Sunday night that he felt no urgency in posing those questions and Kushner would speak "when the time is right".

"He seems to me to be a very open person and again, I'd let him speak for himself when the time is right on all these issues and at that time we can actually render judgement on the reality of what did or didn't take place."

Corker said it appears to him that Kushner is "not a target, so I think I would just wait".

The Washington Post reported last week that Kushner and Russian Ambassador Surgey Kislyak met at Trump Tower in December to discuss the possibility of setting up secret, back-channel communications between the President's transition team and officials in Moscow.

Corker also told USA Today that Russia would be sanctioned for its interference in the elections  and its military intervention in Syria.

Corker said that at the request of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who is in negotiations with Russian officials, Congress would wait for several weeks to take action on sanctions against Russia for its involvement in the Syrian conflict.

"Russia is going to be punished for what it did, in interfering in our elections," he said.

But, "to wait a few weeks at the request of the Secretary of State to see if he can change things in Syria seems to me to be an appropriate thing to do. That's what we've done. But next work period we plan to take it up".

Congress will reconvene on June 5.
French President confirmed that there was indeed a deeper significance to the prolonged handshake he shared with his US counterpart Donald Trump in Brussels.

"My handshake with him, it's not innocent," Macron told the Journal du Dimanche in an interview published on Sunday.

"It's not the alpha and the omega of politics, but a moment of truth," CNN quoted the French President as saying in the interview.

The two newly-minted leaders met in Brussels on May 25 on the sidelines for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Summit and shook hands in full view of the press.

In the interview, Macron compared his own handshake to his leadership posture.

"One must show that we won't make little concessions, even symbolic ones," Macron said.

The centrist European leader also likened Trump's diplomatic approach to those of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Donald Trump, the President of Turkey or the President of Russia are of a mindset of power relations, which doesn't bother me," Macron said, adding: "I don't believe in diplomacy of the public invective but in bilateral dialogues. I don't let anything go. That's how one makes oneself respected."

Macron concluded the interview by saying that he believed he could establish a "cordial relationship" with Trump.

The tense moment during Trump's first trip abroad as President became the latest of his handshakes to draw attention online, reports CNN.

In February, Trump's lengthy handshake with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe went viral.

In addition to the awkward Abe shake, Trump has foisted his unusual tug-and-pull style on other high-profile figures, including Vice-President Mike Pence and Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch.
French President Emmanuel Macron met his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin for talks near Paris on Monday, amid tensions over the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine.

Both leaders met at the ornate Grand Trianon Palace at the Palace of Versailles and will hold a joint news conference after their talks. Macron said he expected some tough words as both countries back opposing sides in the Syrian civil war and are at odds over the Ukraine conflict.

Putin arrived at the Charles De Gaulle Airport and attended a welcoming ceremony and a joint photo-op at the palace entrance. The guard of honour with the orchestra took part in the ceremony, Russian news agency Tass reported.

The two leaders were expected to discuss bilateral and international issues, including the situation in Libya and on the Korean Peninsula and Russia's relations with the European Union.

After the high-level private meeting, the two leaders will be joined by other members of their delegations during a working breakfast.

The Russian and French leaders will also attend a large exhibition in the Royal Palace devoted to the 300th anniversary of Russian Czar Peter the Great's first trip to France.

At the conclusion of his visit, Putin will leave Versailles for Paris to attend the Russian Cultural and Spiritual Center opened in October last year.

Macron, at the G7 summit in Sicily at the weekend said: "It is essential to talk to Russia because there are a number of international issues that will not be resolved without a tough dialogue with them."

During the French election campaign, the Macron camp accused Russian agents of launching cyber attacks against them. However, Moscow rejected the allegations of meddling in the election.

Putin supported Macron's nationalist rival Marine Le Pen and hosted her in the Kremlin a month before the election's first round.

Meanwhile, , Russia's ambassador to Paris, Alexander Orlov told Europe 1 radio on Monday that he expected this first meeting between the two men to be full of "smiles" and marking the beginning of "a very good and long relationship".

--IANS

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here from Britain here on Friday on the third and last leg of his three-nation tour of Europe.

Modi will meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel in what will be the first meeting between the two leaders after the latter began her fourth term on March 14 this year.

Modi and Merkel are expected to exchange views on a number of bilateral, regional and global issues.

Earlier on Friday, Modi attended the concluding ceremony of this year's Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) and participated in the leaders' retreat, becoming the first Indian Prime Minister since 2009 to attend this biannual summit of the 53-nation grouping of former British colonies.

Prior to Britain, he visited Sweden where he attended the first ever India-Nordic Summit which also saw the participation of the leaders of Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway.

--IANS

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for Germany on a six-day four-nation tour of Europe that will also take him to Spain, Russia and France.

"A week of vigorous diplomacy as PM departs," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay tweeted.

Modi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will on Tuesday hold the fourth biannual Inter-Governmental Consultations following which a number of agreements across different sectors are expected to be signed.

Modi will address the Indo-German Business Forum that will see the participation of top German CEOs.

He will leave for Spain on May 30 evening in what would be the first Indian Prime Ministerial visit to that country in nearly 30 years after Rajiv Gandhi's in 1988.

Modi will hold a bilateral summit with his Spanish counterpart Mariano Rajoy on May 31 in Madrid and also call on King Felipe VI.

Thereafter, he will leave for Russia where he will hold the 18th annual India-Russia bilateral summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg on June 1 and attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, a business event, the next day.

The Prime Minister will reach Paris on June 2 evening and hold a bilateral summit with newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron the following day before returning to India.

--IANS

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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Germany, attended a private dinner hosted by German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday, soon after he arrived in Berlin.

"The bonds of a fruitful partnership. Chancellor Merkel receives PM @narendramodi at Schloss Meseberg before a private dinner," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay tweeted along with pictures of the two leaders.

Schloss Meseberg, around 65 km from Berlin, is the country retreat of the German Chancellor and the official state guest house of the German government.

Earlier on Monday, Modi arrived in Berlin on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Europe.

Modi is accompanied by Minister for Science and Technology Harsh Vardhan, Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Seetharaman and Minister of State for External Affairs M.J. Akbar.

On Tuesday, Modi and Merkel will head the fourth round of the . Germany is the only country with which India has such an arrangement. Both the leaders will then address the India-Germany Business Summit.

Later, Modi will call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

From Germany, Modi will travel to Spain, Russia and France.
Despite massive volatility, the Indian equity markets on Monday closed on a flat-to-positive note after scaling fresh highs on the back of the government's announcement of the timely arrival of the southwest monsoon rains.

Market observers pointed out that FMCG heavyweights such as Hindustan Unilever and ITC got a boost after the India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted the timely arrival of the southwest monsoon rains.

Both the key indices, however, closed on a flat note as investors booked profits, along with outflow of foreign funds and heavy selling pressure in healthcare stocks.

The wider 51-scrip NSE Nifty closed above the 9,600 points-level. It rose by 9.80 points or 0.10 per cent to close at a new high of 9,604.90 points, after touching a fresh intra-day high of 9,637.75 points.

The 30-scrip Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the BSE closed at 31,109.28 points -- up 81.07 points or 0.26 per cent, after scaling a new intra-day high of 31,214.39 points.

The BSE market breadth was bearish -- with 1,820 declines and 843 advances.

"Markets inched higher to yet another new life high on Monday. Market sentiment was boosted by hopes of timely arrival of southwest monsoon rains after the latest press release from India Meteorological Department (IMD)," Deepak Jasani, Head - Retail Research, HDFC Securities, told IANS.

"Broad market indices like the BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices fell and underperformed the main indices. Major Asian markets have ended on a mixed note, whereas European indices like CAC 40 and DAX traded flat."

The S&P BSE mid-cap index fell by 1.03 per cent and the small-cap index by 1.53 per cent.

Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said: "Markets were off to rough start, owing to disappointing earnings figures from index heavy weights and with the US markets off today, there were few global cues either."

"Sell-off averted by the FMCG sector in anticipation of early monsoons, while jewellery stocks soared as the GST (Goods and Services Tax) Council decided to impose lesser than expected tax rates on gold and jewellery. GST positivity however was limited, as confusion regarding final rates for certain rates (GST sub-rates) held markets back," he added.

On the currency front, the rupee weakened by 4-5 paise to 64.49 per US dollar from its previous close of 64.44-45.

In investments, provisional data with the exchanges showed that foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold stocks worth Rs 709.97 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought scrips worth Rs 290.53 crore.

According to Dhruv Desai, Director and Chief Operating Officer of Tradebulls, both the indices witnessed volatile trade tracking mixed global cues, profit booking and rupee appreciation against the US dollar.

"Healthy buying momentum was seen in FMCG sector stocks led by Dabur and Hindustan Unilever with more than three percent intra-day gains. ITC and HDFC registered fresh all-time high levels," Desai told IANS.

"Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries' shares fell around 11 per cent after the company reported a 13.6 per cent year-on-year drop in its consolidated net profit to Rs 1,223.71 crore in the quarter ended March. Realty sector stocks traded with bearish sentiments led by DLF and Unitech."

Sector wise, the S&P BSE FMCG index surged by 154.76 points, the automobile index was up by 70.87 points and the consumer durables index by 15.62 points.

On the other hand, the S&P healthcare index plunged by 374.31 points, the banking index by 248.70 points, and the capital goods index was down by 154.11 points.

Major Sensex gainers on Friday were: HDFC, up 3.29 per cent at Rs 1,598.80; Hindustan Unilever, up 3.07 per cent at Rs 1,072.70; Power Grid, up 2.76 per cent at Rs 208.45; Cipla, up 2.55 per cent at Rs 504.15; and ITC, up 2.38 per cent at Rs 7.35.

Major Sensex losers were: Sun Pharma, down 11.56 per cent at Rs 502.85; Adani Ports, down 5.38 per cent at Rs 328.30; ICICI Bank, down 2.16 per cent at Rs 314.70; State Bank of India, down 1.40 per cent at Rs 284.40; and Infosys, down 1.09 per cent at Rs 985.30.

--IANS

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North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile from its eastern coast on Monday morning, its third test in a little over three weeks.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement that the missile, presumed to be a Scud-type, was launched from an area near Wonsan, in Gangwon Province, towards the eastern part of the Korean Peninsula.

South Korea and Japan immediately issued strong protests, with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promising "concrete action" in response to the test, and South Korean Defence Chiefs saying the North would face "strong punishment from our military".

The missile travelled an estimated 248 miles (approx 400 km), splashing down within Japan's exclusive economic zone, Yonhap news agency reported.

"The launch landed within 200 nautical miles of the Japanese coast and was an 'extremely problematic' act for the safety of airplanes and ships," said Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga.

The launch is clearly violating the UN resolution. The repeated provocative acts by North Korea is absolutely not acceptable", said the statement by the Japanese government.

Abe said a "firm protest" was lodged with North Korea and the country would take action with "together with the US".

The government of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who took office early May and had advocated dialogue with the North, condemned Monday's launch.

"It is a severe threat to the peace and stability of not only the Korean Peninsula, but also the international community," a statement from South Korea's Foreign Affairs Ministry said.

"Since our new government took office, North Korea has been frequently and repeatedly conducting provocation in such manner. This is in direct opposition to our demands in regards to the denuclearization and peace of the Korean Peninsula."

The US Pacific Command said the missile was tracked for six minutes until it landed in the East Sea. US President Donald Trump was also briefed on the North's provocation, a White House official said.

Monday's launch marked North Korea's ninth missile test this year and the third since the launch of the Moon administration on May 10.

The North fired a mid-range missile, known as the Pukguksong-2, on May 21 and conducted a KN-06 surface-to-air guided missile test last week.

The international community has intensified pressure on the defiant North and the leaders of Group of Seven (G-7) member countries during a meeting in Italy last week urged Pyongyang to "fully comply with all UNSC resolutions and abandon all nuclear and ballistic missile programmes".

--IANS

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In a bid to ensure participation of agitating Madhes-based parties in the second phase of the local polls, the Nepal government on Monday postponed the polling date from June 14 to June 23.

A Cabinet meeting decided to defer the polls to ensure participation of those left out in the first phase of voting on May 14, Nepal government spokesperson Surendra Kari said.

As per the Cabinet decision, some provisions in the electoral provisions will be amended to fast-track registration of Madhes-based parties and allot election symbols.

However, the government is silent over the two key demands of the these parties -- amendment in the new Constitution to make it more Madhes-friendly and inclusive and also to increase the number of local units in Terai/Madhes region.

After repeatedly failing to amend the Constitution, the government had decided to increase the numbers of local units in Terai/Madhes by 22, which was stayed by the Supreme Court.

In the absence of any development on the two demands, it is not clear whether the Madhes political parties will participate in the June 23 polls.

The Cabinet has also decided to request the Supreme Court to vacate its interim order against increasing the number of local units in Terai/Madhes region.

The polls are taking place after two decade.

On Sunday, at a meeting between ruling, opposition and Madhes parties, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda proposed to defer the polls.

--IANS

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As the world was still recovering from the "WannaCrypt" ransomware attack, a malware called "Judy" hit over 36.5 million Android-based phones, making its way through Google Play Store.

According to cyber security firm Check Point, dozens of malicious apps have been downloaded between 4.5 million to 18.5 million times. Some of the malware-affected apps have been discovered residing on Google Play for several years.

"Judy" is one such case of how an open and free mobile operating system (OS) can be exploited by malicious app developers.

"The entire ecosystem of free mobile OS is built around generating advertising revenues, and the operating systems grants apps with certain privileges to display these ads," Amit Jaju, Executive Director, Fraud Investigation and Dispute Services, EY India, said in a statement.

According to Jaju, they noticed certain Indian apps with a potentially malicious code when displaying ads.

"Therefore, users should review all installed apps to have proper security settings and tools in place. One should avoid installing free apps and those from unknown sources," he suggested.

After the malware-affected apps were discovered by Check Point, Google removed them from the Play Store.

The malicious apps primarily included a series of casual cooking and fashion games under the "Judy" brand, a name borrowed for the malware itself.

"Judy" is an auto-clicking adware which was found on 41 apps developed by a Korean company that uses infected devices to generate large amounts of fraudulent clicks on advertisements, generating revenues for the perpetrators behind it.

The nefarious nature of the programmes went unnoticed in large part because its malware payload was downloaded from a non-Google server after the programmes were installed.

The code would then use the infected phone to click on Google ads, generating fraudulent revenue for the attacker.

It is unclear how long the malicious code existed inside the apps, hence the actual spread of the malware remains unknown.

Previously, Android-based devices were hit by similar malwares like "FalseGuide" and "Skinner" that also infiltrated through Google Play.

--IANS

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Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's son Hussain Nawaz appeared before the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) in connection with the Panama Papers probe into the familys assets, the media reported on Monday.

Headed by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Additional Director General Wajid Zia, the JIT grilled Hussain Nawaz on Sunday for about two-and-half hours at the Federal Judicial Academy (FJA) here, Dawn news reported.

Though he has raised objections against two of the six JIT members, which will be taken up by the Supreme Court on Monday, Hussain Nawaz told the media that since the court had not issued a restraining order, he had complied with the team's directions and preferred to appear before it in person.

"I received a notice from the JIT yesterday (Saturday) and was asked to appear on May 28," he said.

The JIT was formed by the Pakistan Supreme Court last month for the implementation of the Panama leaks verdict which said there was not enough evidence to disqualify Prime Minister Sharif.

But in a 3-2 judgement, the apex court ordered a fresh probe into allegations of financial irregularities and money laundering against the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister's son had said earlier that he wanted to appear before the JIT in the presence of his lawyer.

But sources told Dawn news that the JIT did not allow counsel to assist Hussain Nawaz during his interview and asked him to first seek permission from the Supreme Court.

Along with the Prime Minister, the apex court also cleared his daughter Maryam Nawaz in the Panama Papers case.

Last year's Panama Papers leaks, which documented the offshore dealings of many of the world's rich and powerful, alleged that Maryam was the beneficiary owner of the London properties owned jointly by her brothers as well.

--IANS

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Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo has called for a black feminist festival in the city to be banned on the grounds that it excludes white people, the media reported.

The Nyansapo Festival is slated to be held in July. Billed as "blackfeminist", 80 per cent of the venue will be reserved for black women, the BBC reported.

Black people of any gender will be allowed in another area, while a third area will be open to all.

Hidalgo tweeted on Sunday that she reserved the right "to prosecute the organisers for discrimination".

Some French anti-racism organisations have condemned the festival, reports the BBC.

SOS Racisme called it "an abomination" and said it "wallows in ethnic separation", while Licra, the International League against Racism and Antisemitism, said: "Rosa Parks (American civil rights activist) would be turning in her grave."

Last week, the regional head of the far-right National Front party had challenged Hidalgo to explain the "blatantly racist" event.

The organisers said in a statement that they had been "the target of a campaign of disinformation and fake news orchestrated by the extreme right" and they were "saddened to see some anti-racist associations let themselves be manipulated".

They added that many had "no problem" with women-only feminist groups when race was not stipulated.

--IANS

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Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday ordered a probe by a one-man judicial commission of Justice J.S. Narang (retd) into impropriety and other charges against a senior Minister after a media report on sand/gravel mining contracts.

The commission will probe the charges against Irrigation and Power Minister Rana Gurjit Singh in the multi-crore mining auctions in Punjab and submit the report within a month.

The terms of reference for the inquiry commission, formed under the Commission of Inquiry Act, will be notified soon, a spokesman for the Chief Minister said here on Monday.

"The Minister has, meanwhile, offered to resign to ensure free and fair investigation. The Chief Minister has, however, asked Rana Gurjit to continue till the outcome of the judicial probe," the spokesman said.

Rana Gurjit, a billionaire Minister with business interests in sugar, liquor and other sectors, found himself in the middle of a major controversy last week after it was revealed that three employees of his private company, including his cook, had bagged multi-crore contracts in the mining auctions.

"Amit Bahadur, a cook allegedly working with the firm, successfully bid for one of the most expensive sand and gravel mines in the state. He outdid 32 bigwigs to bag a quarry at Saidpur Khurd village in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr) for a whopping Rs 26.51 crore," a Tribune newspaper report said.

The Minister defended himself, saying the three persons were formerly with his company and that he had no association with them now.

"Though Rana Gurjit denied any links of his company, Rana Sugars Limited, with the auctions, and categorically said his company has no stake, direct or indirect, in the sand mining business, the Chief Minister decided, in the interest of ethics and propriety, to get the matter probed at the highest level to ensure total transparency," the spokesperson added.

Rana Gurjeet Singh welcomed the setting up of the judicial commission but the main opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) termed the proposed probe a "farce".

"The belated inquiry appears to be a tailor-made exercise to absolve the Minister. If Rana Gurjit continues to be in the Cabinet, the inquiry can never be free and fair. He must resign or should be dismissed, pending the inquiry, or else the entire exercise will appear to be meaningless and a farce," AAP leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira said.

The Shiromani Akali Dal dubbed the judicial inquiry as "too little, too late" and demanded the Minister's immediate sacking.

"Rana Gurjit has admitted that his Nepalese cook, who earns a few thousand of rupees, made a successful bid for a Rs 26 crore sand and gravel mining site. Other employees of Rana have also bagged mining sites, taking the total amount of investment by the employees to Rs 50 crore.

"The Minister has agreed to all this but has come out with a lame excuse that the employees left his service recently. This is unbelievable," former Education Minister and SAD spokesman Daljeet Singh Cheema said in a statement.

He said the charges against Rana Gurjit were "as good as proved".

"It is a clear case of corruption, benami deals, and possibly even hawala transactions. It would have been in the fitness of things if the Chief Minister had handed over the case to the Enforcement Directorate, besides involving the Income Tax authorities."

--IANS

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The Supreme Court on Monday put on hold a Rajasthan governments order directing mobile phone operators to remove their cell towers from within 500 metres of jail premises across the state.

A vacation bench of Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Deepak Gupta stayed the order as senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the bench that removal of cell towers would affect 80 lakh people and would have a cascading effect.

The Rajasthan government on May 9 ordered telecom operators to decommission their cell towers located within 500 metres of jails.

This followed a Rajasthan High Court order of April 6.

The state government had given service providers 30 days time to remove their towers, a period which was ending in early June.

Sibal told the court that even the Department of Telecommunications and the government had earlier supported the telecom service providers.

The apex court bench said no coercive steps would be taken by the authorities.

The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) told the top court that the high court, when it passed its order, was not told that the August 31, 2012 policy which barred installation of cell towers within 500 metres of jail premises was superseded by a February 6, 2017 policy.

The February 6 policy of the State government permitted setting up cell towers not only within 500 metres of jails but also on public and private locations including parks, playgrounds, hospitals, schools and government-owned or -controlled buildings and lands under cultivation.

However, this policy was amended saying that the permission for setting up cell towers should not be given in these areas/premises if barred by a competent court.

This condition was included through an amendment made on February 9.

The mobile service providers had sought direction that they should not be asked to remove the towers nor would the government take steps to seal them or take any coercive steps against the cellular service providers.

It had said that the order would impact 80 lakh subscribers as the entire exercise would involve removal of 400 Base Transceiver Towers (BTSs) including Base Station Controllers sites which are further catering to 2,500 BTSs.

--IANS

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A Samajwadi Party legislator was briefly detained by the Income Tax department at the Varanasi airport on Monday when he was found to be carrying a large sum of cash, officials said.

Subhash Pasi, the legislator from Saidpur, was intercepted by IT sleuths at the Lal Bahadur Shastri international airport as he was found carrying Rs 10.45 lakh cash.

A full statement was taken from the MLA who also disclosed the details of the cash he was carrying and was subsequently allowed to go.

Pasi later alleged that his political opponents were trying to harass him through such acts.

--IANS

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Director Ruben Ostlund walked away with the Cannes Film Festival's highest honour as his "The Square", an art world satire that stars Claes Bang, Elisabeth Moss and Dominic West, won this year's Palme d'Or here.

When Ostlund did not get an Oscar nomination in 2015, he good-naturedly released a video that included what he called a "worst man cry".

On Sunday night, the Swedish director took a different tack as he rejoiced in his Cannes win. He asked photographers in the pit below the stage at the Lumiere Theatre to turn their cameras on the audience and led all attendees in a primal scream "of happiness".

He said: "I can direct you now, after all I won the Palme d'Or."

Other winners included Diane Kruger as Best Actress for her first German-language turn in Fatih Akin's "In the Fade", a timely story of the aftermath of a terrorist bombing, reports deadline.com.

The actress, who works largely in French and American cinema, gave a shout-out to those affected by terrorism, particularly the folks left behind.

To those "who have to go on living" after losing someone, she said, "please know you are not forgotten".

Joaquin Phoenix was named Best Actor for "You Were Never Really Here". He sported Converse sneakers, apologising that his proper shoes already had been sent home.

Jury member and presenter Jessica Chastain, with Actor Joaquin Phoenix who won the Best Actor award for his role in the film You Were Never Really Here, gestures as photographers ask for Phoenix to hold the trophy during the awards ceremony at the 70

The Amazon Studios title also won Best Screenplay for writer-director Lynne Ramsay, who shared that nod in a tie with Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthymis Filippou for "The Killing of a Sacred Deer".

Actress Nicole Kidman was awarded a special 70th anniversary award. She sent a video message from Nashville saying she was "devastated" for not being present at the event.

"Last week was like a dream. This is a lovely way to come back to the dream," Kidman said.

Among her acknowledgements was Sofia Coppola, in whose movie "The Beguiled" Kidman starred.

Coppola, also absent from the Palais gala, was named Best Director for the film. She sent a message honouring, among others, her mother and father, director Francis Ford Coppola who made "The Godfather" trilogy.

This is the second time in the festival's history that a woman has won this prize, following Yuliya Solntseva for "The Story of the Flaming Years" back in 1961.

In other big wins, Andrey Zvyagintsev's "Loveless", won the Jury Prize. And, Robin Campillo's AIDS activist drama "120 Beats Per Minute" picked up the Grand Prize.
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar on Monday urged the Centre for increased railway connectivity of India's northeast, including through Bangladesh and Myanmar, for the region's development.

"Early completion of the proposed 15-km Agartala-Akhaura rail link and rail connectivity with Bangladesh needs to be expedited," Sarkar said at the 66th plenary meeting of the North Eastern Council (NEC) in New Delhi.

He said: "Access to Chittagong port in Bangladesh via Tripura's border town of Sabroom -- a distance of only 75 km -- needs to be ensured as early as possible. The survey and execution of rail link between Agartala and Kalay in Myanmar also needs to be taken up with all seriousness."

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu and his Bangladeshi counterpart Mazibul Hoque jointly laid the foundation stone for the Agartala (India)-Akhaura (Bangladesh) railway project here on July 31 last year.

The project was finalised in January 2010 during Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's meeting with her Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh in New Delhi. Land acquisition is now underway in Tripura for the project.

The Tripura Chief Minister said that the per-capita income in the northeastern states is low as compared to the national level. There is low production and productivity in agriculture and allied sectors, which are the primary source of income and occupation in the region.

Sarkar said the NEC, while preparing the regional plan, should suggest suitable strategies to overcome constraints faced by the northeast, including low industrialisation, limited presence of public sector undertakings, constraints on road, rail, air and telecommunication connectivity, underutilisation of power generation capacity, transmission and distribution, and insurgency.

Instead of adopting a piecemeal approach, the Chief Minister said, the council should prepare a realisable long-term comprehensive developmental plan.

Demanding more budget for the regional body, the Chief Minister said the NEC has proposed an outlay of Rs 925 crore for 2017-18.

"This allocation is too small to take care of the ongoing incomplete projects, leaving hardly any amount for projects in the pipeline."

"In order to address regional disparity, the NEC should be adequately funded and its budget during the current fiscal be substantially enhanced to at least partly compensate for the discontinued Special Plan Assistance that was provided through the Planning Commission to Special Category States," Sarkar added.

Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and eight northeastern states are categorised as Special Category States.

All the Governors and Chief Ministers of the eight northeastern states are members of the NEC, responsible for regional planning and undertaking developmental and infrastructural projects.

--IANS

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Germany's top diplomat Sigmar Gabriel had harsh words for the US as he said President Donald Trump's policies have weakened the West.

"The short-sighted policies of the American government stand against the interests of the European Union. The West has become smaller, at least it has become weaker," Gabriel said on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The German Foreign Minister referred to the G7 meeting and the NATO summit last week, noting Trump's performance were unsatisfactory since he refused to endorse NATO's collective defense principles or the Paris agreement on climate change.

"Anyone who speeds up climate change by weakening environmental protection, who sells more weapons in conflict areas and who does not want to politically resolve religious conflicts is putting Europe's peace at risk," Gabriel said.

Gabriel made the remarks on the sidelines of a round-table discussion on migrant crisis in Berlin.

His words also echoed German Chancellor Angela Merkel's "beer tent speech" a day before, when Merkel also cast doubts on Europe's alignment with the US and Britain.

Merkel, during a campaign in Germany's southern state of Bavaria, said following the election of Trump and Brexit, Europeans "really have to take destiny into their own hands".

Spiegel Online, an influential German news hub, dubbed the words of the two politicians as "a trans-Atlantic turning point," saying their speech clearly want to distance Germany from Trump.

--IANS

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Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday evening sought an explanation from a woman minister in his government after her pictures inaugurating a beer bar in the state capital went viral in the social media.

Pictures show Minister of State for Women Welfare Swati Singh -- accompanied by two senior IPS officers Gaurav Pandey (SSP, Rae Bareli) and his wife Neha Pandey (SP, Unnao) -- inaugurating the beer bar by the name of 'Be the Beer' in Gomtinagar on Saturday.

The political circles were taken by surprise, as that there has been no such precedence and that the bar she inaugurated does not even have a valid licence so far.

Swati Singh is a new entrant to politics and came into the limelight last year after she launched a blistering campaign against BSP chief Mayawati, who in retaliation to her husband Daya Shankar Singh's objectionable remarks made similar comments about Swati and her daughter.

She won from the Sarojini Nagar assembly constituency in Lucknow and went on to become a minister.

Explanation has also been sought from the IPS couple as to how they left headquarters without the permission of their reporting authorities. Both officers were marked present on duty when they were attending the bar inauguration.

Inspector General of Police, Lucknow J N Singh has sought an explanation from the two police officers.

While BJP spokespersons refused to comment on the matter, some even saying they were not aware of it, opposition parties have blasted the minister for her conduct.

Ajay Kumar Lallu, the Leader of the Congress Legislature Party in the state assembly, said the incident had further exposed the "double character of the BJP leaders".
A woman minister in the Yogi Adityanath government courted controversy on Monday after her pictures inaugurating a beer bar in the state capital went viral in the social media.

Minister of State for Women Welfare Swati Singh inaugurated the beer bar by the name of 'Be the Beer' in Gomtinagar on Saturday.

What has taken the political circles by surprise is that there has been no precedence of this sort and that the bar she inaugurated does not even have a valid licence so far.

Swati Singh is a new entrant to and came into the limelight last year after she launched a blistering campaign against BSP chief Mayawati, who in retaliation to her husband Daya Shankar Singh's objectionable remarks made similar comments about Swati and her daughter.

She won from the Sarojini Nagar assembly constituency in Lucknow and went on to become a minister. What has added fuel to the controversy is the fact that two senior IPS officers -- Gaurav Pandey (SSP, Rae Bareli) and his wife Neha Pandey, posted as Unnao SP, were also present at the beer bar opening ceremony.

An explanation has been sought from these police officers as to how they left headquarters without the permission of their immediate bosses. Both officers were marked present on duty when they were attending the bar inauguration.

Inspector General of Police - Lucknow J.N. Singh has sought an explanation from the officer couple.

While BJP spokespersons refused to comment on the matter, some even saying they were not aware of it, opposition parties have blasted the minister for her conduct.

Ajay Kumar Lallu, the Leader of the Congress Legislature Party in the state assembly, said the incident had further exposed the "double character of the BJP leaders".

--IANS

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Mobile messaging service WhatsApp helps teenagers communicate better and to openly express themselves with their peers than in their classrooms, a study has claimed.

The findings showed that WhatsApp groups allow teenagers to express themselves in ways that they cannot at school, helping them develop closer and more open relationships with their classmates.

"The group chats are based on trust among the members of the group, and this enhances the possibility to be in contact," Arie Kizel from University of Haifa in Israel, was quoted as saying to nocamels.com -- an Israeli Innovation news website on Sunday.

"The discussions on Whatsapp enable the development of a social environment that is warm and human," Kizel added.

In order to examine the way teenagers experience this virtual space, the team included two groups of eight youths aged 16-17 and two groups of eight youths aged 14 to 15.

The teengers perceived the WhatsApp group as a space that breaks down the hierarchical division created at school.

One student described WhatsApp as "a place where there is respect for language and where all those involved share common terms and signs."

"On WhatsApp, I usually feel that I am not being judged, particularly because there isn't any eye contact or physical contact, only words and signs. So I feel more intimacy and security," explained another participant.

The school domain often divides the class into fixed groups and friendships, created on the basis of socioeconomic status, common activities or study tracks, and so forth.

However, the WhatsApp groups break down these divisions and make the class a single, homogeneous group.

"In the WhatsApp group, everyone can talk to everyone else. WhatsApp breaks down the walls we put up between us in class. The WhatsApp group is like a class team-building day," one participant commented.

--IANS

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In a tragic incident in Tripura, a woman and her two minor children were burnt to death when their thatched home went up in flames following an LPG cylinder blast, police said here on Monday.

The incident took place on Sunday night at Hrishyamukh, in south Tripura, about 110 kms from here.

Police said Jhunu Debnath, a small trader, had illegally stored petrol in his home. While he was trying to fill some fuel in a container for sale, the inflammable liquid caught fire from a lamp near by, a police official said.

Debnath's home was engulfed in flames as a cooking gas cylinder exploded in the fire.

"Jhunu Debnath somehow managed to flee the blaze, but his wife and their two minor children were burnt to death," a police official said.

--IANS

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India's first three cases of Zika virus infection were reported from Ahmedabad between February 2016 and January 2017, but the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), which takes preventive and curative measures in the city, was unaware of this till a World Health Organisation (WHO) report became public on May 26.

What is more, as it has turned out, it was the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare that reported to the WHO of three cases having been found to be Zika-positive in Ahmedabad, but neither the central nor the Gujarat government informed the city's municipal corporation about it.

Since this did not happen, even the medical fraternity in Ahmedabad and in Gujarat at large was completely unaware of the presence of the Zika virus in Ahmedabad until now.

The mosquito-borne virus was detected in one man and two women of the industrial suburb of Bapunagar area in Ahmedabad. First, it was detected in a 64-year-old man in February 2016, next in a 34-year-old new mother in November and the last in a 22-year-old pregnant mother in January 2017.

On May 26, the WHO published a report which said: "On May 15, 2017, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, reported three laboratory-confirmed cases of Zika virus disease in Bapunagar area, Ahmedabad district, Gujarat. The routine laboratory surveillance detected a laboratory-confirmed case of Zika virus disease through RT-PCR test at (state government-run) B.J. Medical College."

Despite the discovery, the state government did not alert the city municipal corporation.

Bhavin Joshi, Medical Officer of Health at the AMC, told IANS: "We do not have any intimation from the ministry or the state government in this matter. No new cases or abnormalities have been reported in the recent past."

Joshi added, "The state government had ordered the AMC to take preventive actions against mosquito-borne diseases in the first week of January 2017 and from January 7 onwards, we began following the order." However, the AMC was told nothing about Zika.

Dr Yogendra Modi, Superintendent at the municipal corporation-run Shardaben Hospital as well as President of Indian Medical Association, said: "We were not informed about the presence of Zika virus in the city, though usually they notify us (in all such vector-borne viruses)."

"These are old cases. They were confirmed in January. We shared the information with the WHO then, and the WHO has now decided to go public. These are not fresh cases," said a union health ministry official.

Gujarat Chief Secretary J.N. Singh, who convened an urgent press briefing on Sunday in the wake of the scare created by the WHO report, said: "There is nothing to worry about, these are isolated cases and there is no epidemic situation."

Singh, however, parried questions by the media about why the community at large was not alerted.

--IANS

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On Friday, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah held a press conference to talk about the achievements of the three years of Narendra Modi government. It was a well attended press conference, and had its share of print, digital and electronic media journalists, as also dozens of photographers. Midway into the press conference, Shah paused to take off his glasses and wipe the sweat off his face with his handkerchief. The shutterbugs went berserk and the hall was filled with sound of vigorous clicks of still cameras. Not one to miss a chance for a repartee, Shah quipped that his party was unlikely to give media the opportunity to use the photograph as its unlikely to lose any elections in the near future. Since the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP has lost only two assembly polls in what is considered its traditionally strong area of northern India. These were in Delhi and Bihar in 2015. The other losses have come in states like West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu where the BJP has been a marginal player.
And then the party hosted a lunch for journalists over the weekend. This was to mark three years of the Narendra Modi government and give an opportunity to journalists to interact with party chief Amit Shah, senior Union cabinet ministers and party leaders. If television and digital media journalists were invited on Saturday afternoon, print journalists were hosted on Sunday. Party spokesman G V L Narasimha Rao gave an exhaustive presentation on the achievements of the Modi government. The venue was the government-run Hotel Ashok, and the food was vegetarian. The decoration suited the occasion. The pillars of the banquet hall wore lotus embossed wallpaper. The lotus is BJPs poll symbol. Organisers took care to decorate each table with roses. The roses were pale yellow and blushing pink, which party minders said came closer to the BJPs saffron flag.
Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi on Monday accused Lalu Prasad's wife Rabri Devi of acquiring valuable land alloted to minister Abdul Bari Siddiqui and former minister Sudha Shrivastava when she was the Chief Minister of the state.

"By misusing her position as chief minister, Rabri Devi had acquired land worth Rs 10 lakh each allotted to Siddiqui and Sudha Shrivastaa by MLA Cooperative," alleged in a statement issued here in this regard.

"Its astonishing that in 1992-93, the MLA Cooperative had alloted 5.59 decimal land to the two at a price of Rs 37,000 and after 10-years Rabri Devi acquired it from them at the same price," alleged.

The price of land today is in crore, he said.

Rabri Devi headed RJD government in Bihar from 1997 to 2005.

"What so special that while RJD leaders Raghunath Jha and Kanti Singh gifted their valuable lands to Tejaswi Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav and similarly Siddiqui and Sudha Shrivastava parted their valuable land for a paltry sum to Rabri Devi?" he asked.

Sushil Modi, who is former Deputy Chief Minister of the state, asked why chairman of the MLA cooperative Jaiprakash Narayan Yadav and its secretary Bhola Yadav, both close aides of Lalu Prasad, have not made the list of allottees of plot of the cooperative public.

Sushil Modi, who is presently leader of opposition in state Legislative Council, also questioned the silence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over the irregularities in MLA Cooperative instead of dissolving the committee immediately.

Starting from allegations of dumping soil of a upcoming Mall in the state capital in which Lalu's ministerial sons have stake in Patna zoo last month, has regularly come up with series of allegations of corruption and acquiring benami properties against Lalu Prasad's family.

Lalu Prasad and his party leaders have dismissed the allegations and levelled counter-allegation against Sushil Modi of patronising his businessman brother R K Modi in "dubious" deals.
In a veiled attack on the Congress party, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister on Sunday questioned the silence of the grand old party over the Kannur incident where a Youth Congress worker slaughtered a cattle in public.

Yogi, while addressing a public gathering in Lucknow said, "Many organisations, in name of secularism, demand respect for each other's sentiments. I don't understand why are they silent on Kerala incident."

Kannur Police, earlier in the day, registered a case against the district president of Youth Congress and other Congress workers under Section 120 (A) of the Kerala Police Act for slaughtering a calf in public.

The police filed the case on the basis of a video where the president of Youth Congress, Rigil Pookkutty and other Youth Congress workers could be seen indulging in the act.

The incident comes amid hue and cry over Centre's new rule prohibiting sale of animals for slaughter or religious sacrifice at livestock markets and animal fairs.
Police have arrested four persons, including a Nigerian national, for their alleged involvement in two separate cases of drug trafficking, and recovered drugs worth Rs one crore.

The Crime Branch has busted two networks of drug peddlers supplying narcotic drugs in Delhi and Punjab, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rajesh Deo.

On May 24, police received information about a man engaged in supply of heroin in Punjab and Delhi coming to Mata Chanan Devi Hospital, Janakpuri.

The accused, Brijesh Kumar Garg, was supposed to receive a huge consignment of heroin from an African national Ejime David.

A trap was laid and Garg and David were arrested. Police recovered 260 grams of heroin from the duo.

During interrogation, it was found that the heroin supply network was being operated from Punjab, said the officer.

In another case, two men Hemraj and his associate Nitu were arrested on May 25 near Guru Nanaksar Gurdwara and 700 grams of heroin was recovered from them.

During interrogation, the accused told police that they worked for a man by the name of "Shera of Punjab".

They revealed that the recovered contraband was procured from one 'Bhaijaan' of Faridpur, Bareilly in UP, who was in regular contact with Shera.

The accused used to travel by roadways buses plying between Delhi and Bareilly to avoid police raids.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A section of students and teachers today said the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) was "unnecessarily targeting" Delhi University by drawing attention to unclaimed "pro-ISIS" slogans in the North Campus area.

They alleged that the ABVP was repeating history by filing a police complaint just like it did in JNU and Hyderabad University.

"Just as they did in the case of JNU, Hyderabad University and other central varsities, the ABVP has lodged a complaint to bring down educational institutions and to polarise the students," Abha Dev Habib, Assistant Professor at Miranda House and a former DU EC member, alleged.

Ankit Sangwan, DUSU secretary and a member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), had on Saturday filed a police complaint against "pro-ISIS" slogans that purportedly appeared on a wall in the North Campus area, demanding a probe.

"Amid unemployment, farmer suicides, the ruling party through its arms is trying to polarise the society. It is time for people to refuse hate politics, and stand united against mob mentality and vigilantism," she said.

The Left students wing - All India Students Association - too alleged that the Delhi University was the ABVP's next target.

"After JNU, Hyderabad Central varsity, the ABVP and the BJP government have found its new target which is DU. This fake propaganda only helps them in diverting the underlying issues," AISA said in a release.

The students union also accused media houses for "profiling" students and teachers of DU as "anti-nationals".

"Why did the media which is running shows on the same chose to stay silent on Dhruv Saxena and other BJP members whose links with the ISI were discovered? the release questioned.

The union demanded that the investigation into the issue should also involve the role of media.

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BJP president Amit Shah met RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat today against the backdrop of the saffron party's expansion plans across the country.

The closed-door meeting lasted two-and-half hours but what transpired was not known.

Both Shah and Bhagwat arrived here from New Delhi by the same flight earlier in the day.

After his arrival, Shah drove straight to Ravi Bhavan for a meeting with members of the BJP's state core committee.

MLAs and other members of the panel were present at the meeting where Shah asked them to reach out to the masses.

"During the meeting, Shah talked about booth-level expansion strategy of the party. He asked the office bearers and party leaders to strengthen booth-level functioning of the party and reach out to the last person in the society," BJP city president Sudhakar Kohale told PTI.

Shah, party sources said, spoke about the Modi government's intention of holding all elections-- from Lok Sabha to local bodies-- simultaneously from 2024.

"This will help save the expenses related to elections. The government expenditure in conducting the recent Uttar Pradesh election was about Rs 1,900 crore. This indicates how much money is spent in conducting elections," they said, quoting Shah.

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Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu has congratulated the state police for arresting four miscreants who were involved in an extortion attempt on the Director of Audit and Pension.

Appreciating the police for arresting all the culprits within three days, Khandu said that it exemplified the efficiency and commitment of the police in maintaining law and order.

"I congratulate and appreciate all the police officials and personnel involved, particularly DIG (West) Tussar Taba and city SP Dr A Koan, for their promptness and arresting the culprits in record time," he said.

Armed miscreants in an extortion bid had forcefully entered the office chamber of Audit and Pension Director A Basit in on May 25 last.

However, they fled leaving the arms after the director started shouting.

The chief minister also appreciated Basit for his courage and presence of mind.

"Despite being threatened with an assault rifle, Basit displayed exemplary courage and presence of mind and single-handedly tackled the culprit.

His action not only saved his life but also helped the police get a lead from the arms left behind by the fleeing assailant," Khandu added.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister, who is in the national capital to attend the 66th Plenary Session of the North East Council (NEC), expressed serious concern over the fact that all the four miscreants are aged between 24 to 35 years.

He called for introspection by parents and elders and asked them to aptly guide them so that they do not stray away from the mainstream.

Khandu also appealed to the young men to utilize their time and energy in constructive ways and assured them of the government's support.

"The state government has launched several new schemes and programmes for the benefit of unemployed young people.

Please take advantage of these and make a decent livelihood instead of opting for unlawful means that would only land you in trouble," the chief minister added.

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India's beef exports and leather sector is likely to be affected due to the government's ban on the trade of cattle for slaughter and industry will seek revocation of the decision.

The country exported buffalo meat worth Rs 26,000 crore and Rs 35,000 crore leather and leather products in 2016-17 fiscal. About 35 lakh people are engaged in these industries.

Last week, the Environment Ministry had notified ban on sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter and also prohibited any cruel practices on them.

"The decision will have implications on meat exports as well as on the availability of raw material for the domestic industry. We will ask the government to reconsider the decision," Council for Leather Exports former chairman Rafeeq Ahmed told PTI.

However, apex exporters body Federation of Indian Exports Organisation (FIEO) Director General Ajay Sahai said, "There will be slight impact on exports as cattles are normally purchased directly from farmers and not from animal markets."



FIEO is studying the complete impact of the decision, he added.

Stating that the decision will hit farmers badly, All India Meat and Livestock Exporters Association Spokesperson Fauzan Alavi had last week said that a large number of farmers bring their "unproductive" cattle to the markets for sale.

"It is the unproductive cattle, which arrives in large number for sale in these markets, as their feasibility virtually cease to exist, while the per day maintenance cost goes up.

"The high yielding milching animals rarely arrive at the cattle market for sale. The per day cost incurred on a buffalo ranges from Rs 125 to Rs 150, while the general price of the milk sold is Rs 40 per litre. If the per day milk production dips, then gradually the cattle becomes unproductive," he had said.

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They have failed to establish a class-less society and their rousing slogan "China's chairman is our chairman" is no longer heard, but the ideals and the struggle of the Naxalites are still relevant, prominent Naxalite leaders say.

Only the character of the enemy has changed - from feudal lords to BJP-RSS, so insist former Naxalites like Vervara Rao and Santosh Rana as well as present-day leaders like Dipankar Bhattacharya.

They said that 50 years might have passed since the uprising began, but their ideals still remained relevant today when the BJP-RSS government was bent on "dividing the country and society on religious lines".

"We had fought against feudal lords and a bourgeois system to create a class-less society. We did not achieve success, but our objectives are more relevant in the present context when a BJP-RSS government is trying to divide the country and society on religious lines," former Naxal leader Vervara Rao told PTI.

They were the "real enemies of class struggle" and they should be fought unitedly, Rao said.

Santosh Rana, also a former Naxalite, said that when 'Modi-RSS' was trying to take India backwards through its policies of 'Gorakhsa' and 'Gharwapsi', the ideals and teachings of the Naxalbari Movement were never more relevant than now.

"They are very important in today's perspective to create a unity among masses," Rana said.

The Naxalbari uprising began on May 25, 1967 at the village of Naxalbari in north Bengal's Darjeeling district after 11 villagers, mostly share-croppers, including eight women and two children, were killed by the police.

Led by Charu Mazumdar, Kanu Sanyal, Khokhan Majumdar and Jangal Santhal, all former CPI-M leaders who broke away from the party to set up CPI(ML), the movement spread like wildfire with their slogan "Land belongs to him who tills it" catching fancy of the farmers.

The campuses of hallowed institutions like Calcutta University and Presidency College became the hotbeds of Marxist-Leninist revolutionaries who advocated an armed struggle against the Indian state.

The romanticism of armed revolution led many bright and young minds from noted educational institutions to join the movement.

The uprising, which was described by Peking Radio as "front paw of Indian revolution" and the People's Daily of China as "spring thunder over India", was eventually suppressed by the United Front and the Congress government through ruthless police action, leading to the disintegration of the CPI(ML) into many splinter groups.

Although the movement failed in its objective, many subsequent pro-poor policies adopted by the state and central governments like the Operation Barga (distribution of land among landless peasants), the Panchayat system and the Public Distribution System were a direct result of it.

"No one can deny that Naxalbari movement changed India's socio-political system. But today the very idea of a class-less society is under threat under the Modi government," CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya said.

"From the class struggle of 1960's, the focus has shifted to the RSS-BJP combine. If we have to fight against the communal divide, we have to widen the class struggle," Abhijit Majumdar, Central Committee member of the CPI(ML) Liberation and son of Charu Majumdar, said.

Ironically, it is the Naxalbari village and other areas in north Bengal where the saffron brigade is fast gaining ground, a fact acknowledged by Bhattacharya.

"The BJP is creating a mass base in Naxalbari which is a reflection of entire society where they are gaining ground through divisive politics and communal polarisation," he pointed out.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The bodies of two students found dead near Panikhaiti Rail gate in Guwahati yesterday, arrived in Aizawl this afternoon.

Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP), the apex Mizo student body, said the bodies would be taken to south Mizoram's Lunglei town for funeral scheduled to be held tomorrow at 10 am.

R Lalmalsawma, a student of Physiotherapy and C. Lalhmangaihsanga, a student of Dialysis course at the Downtown University, Assam, were reportedly found dead yesterday morning and their bodies were being brought to Mizoram.

Police suspect homicide and investigation was launched into the gory incidence.

Tension gripped the state though no reports of untoward incidence have been received from any parts of the state, police said.

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The body of an Indian climber, who died last week after falling into a crevice after conquering Mt Everest, has been handed over to the Indian embassy here.

Ravi Kumar, 27, was lying stranded at a 200-metre-deep crevasse near the summit of the world's tallest mountain since May 22. He went missing from the balcony located at 8,400 metres on Everest last Saturday.

"The body was handed over to the Indian embassy on Sunday," Mingma Sherpa, Managing Director of Seven Summit Treks, the company overseeing the operation, was quoted as saying by the Himalayan Times.

A team of high-altitude climbing experts has pulled out Kumar's body from the perilous zone in the mountain on Saturday evening.

"High-altitude climbing experts flew to Camp II (6,400m) by helicopter and then climbed to the balcony," he said, adding, it took more than three hours to pull out Ravi's body from the crevasse at the "death zone" where there is short- supply of oxygen. The bodies have been flown to Kathmandu.

Ten people were deployed for the mission, he said. The cost of the operation that also included recovery of the dead bodies of other two Indians is expected to touch USD 200,000.

"The Indian government will bear the cost of the operation," said Sherpa.

Kumar had reached the summit with his guide at 1:28pm last Saturday. The Indian climber collapsed during the descent due to low energy and oxygen levels.

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Journalist Arnab Goswami and his news channel were today asked by the Delhi High Court to "bring down the rhetoric" against Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who has filed a Rs two crore defamation suit against them for alleged slanderous remarks relating to the death of his wife .

Justice Manmohan said the journalist and his news channel can put out stories by stating the facts related to the investigation into the death of Pushkar, but cannot call the Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram a "criminal".

The court also said that just because Tharoor was not coming to their show or not giving an interview, cannot be a reason to say that he was "running away", as was said on the news channel.

A person has a "right to be silent", it said with regard to the lack of response from Tharoor and added that "someone has not understood how our law operates".

The observations by the court came as it issued a notice to the journalist and his channel seeking their response to Tharoor's plea claiming Rs two crore damages from them for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him while airing news relating to the death of his wife.

The court did not pass any interim order injuncting the channel from airing its news but said "whatever be the provocation, you (Goswami) cannot call him a criminal masquerading as a politician. That is uncalled for and it is presumptive".

"You cannot use language like this. You cannot call him names. Bring down the rhetoric," the court said.

Thereafter, senior advocate Sandeep Sethi, appearing for the journalist and the channel, said he will advise his clients accordingly.

Sethi also said that his clients will place on record the justification for the statements made against Tharoor and therefore, no interim order should be passed.

The court, thereafter, listed the matter for hearing on August 16.

During the arguments, senior advocate Salman Khurshid, appearing for Tharoor, said that since May 6, when the channel was launched, it has been airing 3-5 hours long news shows every day entirely on the case of Sunanda's death and making defamatory statements against the MP.

The lawyer said the channel and the journalist have condemned Tharoor as guilty and he should be arrested.

The court said a journalist has a right to investigate which cannot be curbed, but added that it has to be tempered and balanced.

To this, Tharoor's lawyer said that the balance has been "skewed" in this case as the reporting was "one-sided".

The channel on the other hand said that it has only aired facts regarding the investigation.

It told the court that it had reports of senior police officers associated with the probe who have said that evidence was not gathered properly and was allowed to be tampered with.

The channel claimed it also has audio tapes of Pushkar's conversation with a reporter just a day prior to her death.

Tharoor's lawyer opposed the contentions saying the police, which was probing the case, had not said anything, but the channel's statements have harmed his reputation apart from causing emotional hurt and pain.

According to Tharoor, Goswami earlier as the editor-in- chief with another news channel had aired such news, which was restrained by the Broadcasting Standards Authority.

In the lawsuit, he has claimed to have suffered humiliation and severe loss of reputation in the eyes of the public and "he has baselessly been declared by the defendants as the alleged murderer of his late wife".

Sunanda was found dead in a suite of a five-star hotel in South Delhi on the night of January 17, 2014.
Thousands of passengers of the beleaguered British Airways faced a third day of disruption at Heathrow today after a global computer crash that unions blamed on outsourcing of IT services to India that grounded planes, causing millions of pounds to the airline.

The airline is "closer to full operational capacity" after an IT power cut resulted in mass flight cancellations at Heathrow and Gatwick.

Thousands of passengers remain displaced, with large numbers sleeping overnight in terminals.

The British Airways has not explained the cause of the power problem. So far today, 13 short-haul flights at Heathrow, Europe's busiest, have been cancelled.

Some British media reports today suggested that BA could be hit with a bill for compensation costs of more than 100 million.

The BA is liable to reimburse thousands of passengers for refreshments and hotel expenses, and travel industry commentators have suggested the cost to the company - part of Europe's largest airline group IAG - could run into tens of millions of pounds.

Customers displaced by flight cancellations can claim up to 200 pounds a day for a room, 50 pounds for transport between the hotel and airport, and 25 pounds a day per adult for meals and refreshments, the BBC reported.

Heathrow advised affected BA passengers not to travel to the airport unless their flights had been rebooked, or were scheduled to take off today.

Passengers on cancelled flights have been told to use the BA website to rebook.

Chief executive Alex Cruz has posted videos on Twitter apologising for what he called a "horrible time for passengers".

But no-one from the airline has been made available to answer questions about the system crash, and it has not explained why there was no back-up system in place, the BBC reported.

Heathrow advised affected BA passengers not to travel to the airport unless their flights had been rebooked, or were scheduled to take off today.

The airline has claimed it was making "good progress" in recovering from the worldwide IT glitch.

Thousands of passengers had their travel plans disrupted as a result of the problem, with one workers' union blaming the outsourcing of IT jobs to India for the chaos, a claim denied by the airline.

BA's GMB union has said outsourcing IT jobs to India could have made the problems worse.

The union spokesperson said it could have been avoided had "hundreds of dedicated and loyal" not been replaced by cheaper Indian staff in 2016.

The Sun newspaper, quoting one source close to the airline said the problems could have been limited had IT staff outsourced to India known how to get its back-up system online quickly.

The source said the system "failed to take over when the primary [IT system] failed due to a power cut."



They added: "The third-party support providers are generally quite inexperienced meaning it makes a situation like this difficult to recover."



Meanwhile, the BA said there was no evidence the failure was the result of a cyber attack.

Experts predict the knock-on effect on the BA could continue for several days.

Passengers faced hours-long lines to check in, reclaim lost luggage or rebook flights at Terminal 5, BA's hub at Heathrow.

BA operates hundreds of flights from Heathrow and Gatwick on a typical day - and both are major hubs for worldwide travel.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Border Security Force has foiled a cattle smuggling bid in Meghalaya's West Garo Hills district and apprehended five persons, including two Bangladesh nationals, BSF officials said today.

At first, a Bangladesh national identified as Md Majanur Rahman of Bangladesh's Sherpur district, was apprehended at Fokachindi area in the district while they were trying to cross the border from Bangladesh and Rs 27,000 in cash was seized from his possession yesterday, a BSF spokesperson said.

On his revelation, a joint operation was undertaken with the state police at Hatimara village in Dalu area where Rinzing M Sangma was taken into custody along with three others including another Bangladeshi national while planning to smuggle cattle, he said.

They were identified as Saftan N Sangma, Pal Marak and the Bangladesh national was identified as Mona Miya of Banglades's Sherpur district.

The BSF believed that the gang were planning a huge bid of cattle smuggling days after the Centre has taken a decision to ban cattle sale and slaughter of cattle near the International border.

As per the new rules, both buyers and sellers would also have to prove that they are agriculturists and provide a clutch of paperwork including their identity and identity of their cattle.

No animal markets will be allowed within 50 km from state borders and within 100 km from international borders.

Acting as per provisions of the notification, 169 cattle have been seized and other contraband items worth more than 68 lakh were also seized preventing smuggling bid to Bangladesh in the last four days and in more than 34 incidents, the BSF official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BJP stalwarts L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti will appear before a special CBI court here tomorrow for framing of charges in the Babri Masjid demolition case.

Besides them, Special CBI judge S K Yadav had asked BJP leader Vinay Katiyar, VHP's Vishnu Hari Dalmia and a one-time firebrand Hindutva preacher Sadhvi Ritambara to present themselves before the court in person.

While directing the accused to present themselves in person, the judge had said no application for adjournment or exemption from personal appearance shall be entertained.

The court, which is hearing two separate cases relating to the demolition of the Babri masjid, would also frame charges against Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, Mahant Ram Vilas Vedanti, Baikunth Lal Sharma alias Prem Ji, Champat Rai Bansal, Mahant Dharma Das and Satish Pradhan in the second matter.

The Supreme Court had on April 19 ordered prosecution of Advani (89), Joshi (83), 58-year-old Bharti, and other accused for criminal conspiracy in the politically sensitive case. It had also ordered day-to-day trial to be concluded in two years.

The top court had called the destruction of the medieval-era monument a "crime" which shook the "secular fabric of the Constitution" while allowing the CBI's plea seeking restoration of criminal conspiracy charge against the four BJP leaders, including Katiyar (62), and others.

However, the Supreme Court had said BJP leader Kalyan Singh, who is the Rajasthan Governor and during whose tenure as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh the disputed structure was razed, is entitled to immunity under the Constitution as long as he holds the gubernatorial office.

It had transferred the case against Advani, Joshi, Bharti and three other accused from a Raebareli court to Lucknow for a joint trial in the demolition case.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board today said that 5,28,870 or 68.24 per cent of students have passed the Class 10th examination.

The results, announced today, show a wide gap in the performance of students from English-medium and Gujarati-medium schools.

A total of 7,75,013 students had appeared for the examination held between March 15 and 25, 2017.

Last year the pass percentage was 67.06.

Students from English-medium schools registered pass percentage of 92.72, while 65.93 per cent of Gujarati-medium students passed.

Surat district registered the highest pass percentage at 79.27 which was marginally lower than its last year's performance (80.91 per cent), GSHSEB said in the result details published on its website, www.Gseb.Org.

Tribal-dominated Narmada district registered the lowest pass percentage of 46.90.

Women surpassed men. As much as 73.33 per cent of women candidates passed, against 64.69 per cent of men.

As many as 3,750 students scored 91 per cent or above marks, while 1,81,817 -- a majority -- scored between 51-60 per cent.

The topper from Ahmedabad district, Kathan Sanghvi, scored 99.94 per cent marks, while Princy Christian, daughter of an auto-rickshaw driver, scored 97.84 per cent.

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Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today ordered a judicial probe into the mining contracts allegedly bagged by four former employees of state minister Rana Gurjit Singh.

The Income Tax Department has also initiated a probe into the mining contracts.

An official statement said Rana has offered to resign in order to ensure a free and fair investigation into the matter, however the chief minister asked him to continue till the outcome of the judicial probe.

A one man judicial commission has been set up to probe the allegations of impropriety against the state irrigation and power minister in the multi-crore sand mining auctions held recently by the state government, an official spokesman said.

The inquiry would be conducted by Justice (Retd) J S Narang and he would submit his report within one month.

The terms of reference for the inquiry commission, formed under the Commission of Inquiry Act, would be notified soon, the release said.

Amarinder announced his decision to set up the commission after taking suo motu cognisance of media reports accusing the minister of acquiring certain mines in the names of his company's staff, it said.

Rana has denied any links of his company, Rana Sugars Limited, with the auctions and has said his company has no stake, direct or indirect, in the sand mining business.

"There was no question of allowing any deviation from the government's policy of clean governance," Amarinder said, adding that he would take all steps to ensure that there was no violation of the trust reposed by the people in his government and the Congress.

Opposition parties, the AAP, the SAD and the BJP, have been demanding immediate sacking of Rana for allegedly acquiring sand and gravel mines through "benaami transactions in the name of his former cook and staff".

The political parties have also been questioning the "silence" of Amarinder on the matter. They have dared him to remove Rana, describing it as the his "biggest test" as the chief minister has been claiming that his government was tough against corrupt practices.

The two-day sand auctions related to 50 mines and they have generated a revenue of nearly Rs 300 crore, leading to the highest ever earnings from the mining sector for the state government, the spokesman said.

Another 56 mines would be put to auction on June 11 and the government is expecting to generate another Rs 300 crore from them. The state government's revenue from the mine auction last year was merely Rs 40 crore.

The opposition had also raised questions over the allotment of mining contracts to Amit Bahadur at Saidpur Khurd village in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar for Rs 26.51 crore, Kulvinder Paul Singh at Mehadipur in SBS Nagar for Rs 9.21 crore, Gurinder Singh at Rampur Kalan village in Mohali district for Rs 4.11 crore and Balraj Singh at Bairsal village for Rs 10.58 crore.

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Stressing that credibility is core to journalism, Himachal Pradesh Governor Acharya Devvrat today asked media persons to fight for the truth and give a new direction to the society.

"Any development or event that might lead to degeneration or disintegration of the society should be stalled by the media through the power of the pen," he said in a seminar organised by the Haryana Patarkar Kalyan Manch here.

Haryana Food and Supplies Minister Karan Dev Kamboj said positive journalism has increased the confidence of the common man in the media and based on facts will always benefit the society.

Senior editor Mukesh Bhardwaj said consumerism is dominating every sector, inclduing the media.

He said journalists should accept challenges for the betterment of the society.

Acting vice-chancellor of H P University Prof Rajender Chauhan asked media persons to create awareness in the society regarding prevailing issues and forthcoming challenges before it.

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Russian security forces have raided a Jehovah's Witnesses service and arrested a Danish citizen in the latest move against the Christian group since Moscow banned it as an "extremist organisation".

"Armed officers from the FSB" detained some 50 worshippers during a service Thursday in the town of Oryol, some 350 kilometres south of Moscow, a senior Jehovah's Witnesses official, Yaroslav Sivulsky, told AFP today.

Dennis Christensen of Denmark was then arraigned before a judge on Friday and arrested on charges of "participating in extremist activities," Sivulsky said.

The other worshippers were released without charge, he said.

The raid and arrest came after Russia's Supreme Court banned the Jehovah's Witnesses in April over alleged extremism and seized the organisation's property in the country.

The ruling sparked fears of a crackdown on religious freedom in Russia, where there are an estimated 175,000 Jehovah's Witnesses.

"This is the first time that a Jehovah's Witness has been jailed since the Soviet Union," Sivulsky said.

Members of the group -- a Christian evangelical movement that was born in the United States in the 19th century -- consider modern churches to have deviated from the Bible's true teachings.

They reject modern evolutionary theory and refuse blood transfusions.

The powerful Russian Orthodox Church spoke out against the group ahead of the Supreme Court ruling, with one church official branding it a "destructive sect".

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Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al- Sisi today held talks in Cairo with Russia's foreign and defence ministers on ways to battle "terrorism", his office said.

A statement said the talks with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu focused on "the struggle against terrorism" and bilateral cooperation.

Lavrov earlier discussed the situation in chaos-riddled Libya with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, the foreign ministry in Cairo said.

Rival administrations and militias have been fighting for control of oil-rich Libya since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed veteran dictator Moamer Gaddafi.

Egypt's neighbour has also been a breeding and training ground for jihadists, including the Islamic State group.

The Cairo talks came after Egypt's air force on Friday bombed jihadist training camps in eastern Libya.

The air strikes were launched hours after masked gunmen shot dead 29 Coptic Christians in central Egypt, in an attack later claimed by the Islamic State group.

Forces loyal to east Libya military strongman Khalifa Haftar, which also took part in the strikes, said yesterday's raids hit a pro-Al-Qaeda group in the Libyan city of Derna.

Sisi and his Russian visitors "agreed on the importance of uniting efforts in the battle against terrorism" and to step up their cooperation to meet that goal, the Egyptian presidency said.

A statement said Sisi told the Russian ministers that Cairo wants to bolster "economic, commercial and industrial ties" with Moscow.

Today's talks also focused on the conflict in Syria.

Shoukry praised "Russia's role in the success of the Astana process" -- the talks in Kazakhstan trying to bring about peace in Syria -- and said he hoped it would lead to "a total ceasefire", his office said.

Earlier this month, Damascus allies Russia and Iran as well as rebel supporter Turkey signed a landmark deal to create four "de-escalation" zones across some of Syria's bloodiest battlegrounds.

Lavrov also met Arab League head Ahmed Aboul Gheit, with both men stressing the importance of "working seriously to find political solutions to the crises and armed conflicts in the Arab world", the 22-member bloc said in a statement.

The Russian ministers' visit to Cairo had been planned for weeks as part of regular meetings between the allied countries.
Narendra Modi. Photo: TwitterPrime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday described terrorism as the gravest challenge facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nation (UN) to deal with this menace.

Modi arrived here on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France. In an interview to the German newspaper Handelsblatt he said, Europe has been hit hard by terrorism.

To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace, he said.

Modis remarks come in the wake of a spate of terrorist attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently.

The latest terrorrist attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.

Speaking to the countrys leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people.

We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti- immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed, Modi said. We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation, he said.

Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was as among the most open and fastest growing major economies in the world. The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities, rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.

India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time...There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council, he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.

He said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Startup India, Clean India and Smart Cities. The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security. India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach, he added.

On the German side, Merkel had recently said, The times when we could rely on the other have passed ... We Europeans, we must really take destiny into their own hands. In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, Handelsblatt claimed.

The prime ministers visit to Germany has been described as a new chapter in the bilateral relations between the two countries.

I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership, Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit.

Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for Indias transformation, he said.

The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine.

Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to 9.54 billion dollars. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.
Industry body Assocham today urged the Centre, states and all union territories to evolve a consensus on the lines of the Goods and Services Tax for shifting the financial year to January-December period.

The chamber noted that all states and union territories should switch to the new financial year uniformly once a broad-based consensus is evolved on the issue to reduce the hassles of trade and industry.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month had pitched for shifting to a January-December fiscal year. Addressing the Niti Aayog Governing Council's third meeting, which was attended by several state chief ministers, Modi said for long, India had suffered from economic and political mismanagement.

The prime minister asked the states to take the initiative in this regard.

Earlier this month, Madhya Pradesh became the first state to shift to the January-December financial year from the present April-March cycle.

"For pan-India businesses, the accounting standards and the financial year of all the government organisations should be uniform. We should not have a situation where the industry and trade has one set of books for Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and the other for Uttar Pradesh and yet another for the Central government," Assocham said.

It said if all the states and the Centre agree to a shift of the financial year from April-March to January-December, NITI Aayog should work towards building a consensus and then, "let the entire country shift towards the calendar year becoming the financial year in one go".

The Goods and Services Tax, which will subsume central excise, service tax, Value Added Tax (VAT) and other local levies, is scheduled to be rolled out from July 1.

"At this point in time, if some select states choose to shift their fiscal year to a new system, it could be quite a task for the trade and industry; first to comply with the GST, then to align with the financial years of different states. Uniformity is the key, whatever is the financial year, that is critical," Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat said.

He argued that although states have constitutional right to have their accounting methods, for the sake of ease of doing business and ease of convenience to the common citizens, uniformity is essential.

The government had appointed a four-member panel headed by former chief economic adviser Shankar Acharya to examine the feasibility of changing India's financial year.

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The Congress today asked Home Minister Rajnath Singh to explain the contours of a "permanent solution" to solve Kashmir that he talked about and accused the PDP-BJP alliance of driving Jammu and Kashmir to the edge.

The Congress also asked the BJP-led NDA government to open its eyes and realise the extreme damage that the "ideologically incompatible alliance" as well as their continued dithering is doing to the national security of India.

"The Home Minister of India Rajnath Singh has been making rather curious statements to say the least. Would the Home Minister of India care to explain to the people of this country what are the contours and calculations of the phraseology 'permanent solution'," Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said.

He said anybody who has a nodding acquaintance with history understands that the phrases 'permanent solution' and 'final solution' have had some extremely disturbing implications and history has been witness to the consequences of such an action.

Tewari said historically it has "very disturbing connotations" and if the home minister has chosen to use such a phraseology, he needs to elaborate what it means and what its contours and calculations are.

"What does the government really mean by a 'permanent solution'?" he asked.

The Congress leader said the home minister is a very serious job in India and when he makes a statement "you do not take it lightly, you do believe that there must have been some sort of serious thinking which must have gone into this formulation because the formulation ultimately only articulates or disseminates what is the underlying strategy".

The Congress leader said Kashmir is in an extremely sensitive situation which has been consistently deteriorating since this government came to power and requires careful handling.

"They need to open their eyes and realise extreme damage which both their ideologically incompatible alliance as well as their continued dithering is doing to the national security of India...The manner in which the government is going about, it all appears very cavalier," he said.

Taking on the PDP-BJP government in Kashmir, he said the home minister needs to clarify what he means as a formulation only articulates both intent and the underlying strategy of the government.

Tewari said Singh's statement comes at a time when the PDP-BJP alliance has been "playing Tweedledum and Tweedledee" on an extremely sensitive issue of security in Kashmir.

He said while on one hand Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti has been passionately advocating that the central government needs to engage with both the Hurriyat and with Pakistan and that this is part of the 'Agenda of Alliance', on the other hand, "the BJP is hellbent upon playing the very jingoistic card".

"This ideologically incompatible alliance between the PDP on one hand and the BJP on the other hand has driven Jammu & Kashmir absolutely to an edge.

"We would like to ask both these parties that if there is so much of ideologically dissonance, if there is no agreement on the agenda of alliance, if the agenda of alliance is not worth the paper it is written on, then why are they continuing in the government together?" he said.

He asked the BJP why it was not pulling out of the alliance and conversely why the PDP continues to be in government when the central government does not pay heed and is not interested in listening to what the chief minister says?



Tewari alleged that this government last year came out with "Insaaniyat, Kashmiriyat and Jamhooriyat" and this year it is "permanent solution", but it is high time the government wakes up to the security situation in Jammu & Kashmir which continues to deteriorate very rapidly.

Asked if the government was trying to derive political mileage out of the Kashmir situation, he said, "We fail to understand that something which undermines the nation, something which damages national security, something which pushes Kashmir to the edge, how could it be politically beneficial to anybody?"



He said the objective of governance is to govern and that is the remit which has been given by the people of India and if one is coming up short on that fundamental tenet of governance and things seem to be chaotic and out of control, Kashmir being just one manifestation, then "I fail to understand how they think they can derive political benefit".

He said, "You can fool some of the people sometimes but you cannot fool all the people all the time and if you think that is a strategy, I am afraid you are deluding yourself".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Manohar Parrikar-led Goa government will re-introduce the scheme to screen newborn babies for detecting metabolic disorders.

The scheme, started by the erstwhile Congress-led government in the state, was discontinued in 2012 when Manohar Parrikar was Chief Minister.

The health programme is now being resurrected when Parrikar is once again holding the top post.

"The baby screening programme will be reintroduced with necessary controls and safety measures under financing from Government of India," Health Minister Vishwajit Rane told PTI today.

Details of the scheme in its new avatar would be worked out in the coming days, he said.

The scheme, introduced by Rane during his tenure as Health Minister in the Digambar Kamat-led government, was discontinued in July 2012 when the BJP-led dispensation came to power.

The then health minister, Laxmikant Parsekar, had told the Assembly the scheme was scrapped so that the money spent on it could be utilised for other purposes.

Parsekar had then said the state was spending Rs 8.33 crore on the scheme, launched in 2008, and the amount could be used to improve rural healthcare facilities.

Bengaluru-based Neo-Gen lab was given the contract to screen the babies at the Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) for metabolic disorders.

Metabolic disorders refer to condition that disrupt normal metabolism, the process of converting food to energy on a cellular level.

Metabolic diseases affect the ability of the cell to perform critical biochemical reactions that involve the processing or transport of proteins (amino acids), carbohydrates (sugars and starches), or lipids (fatty acids).

These ailments are typically hereditary.

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The on Monday sought the response of the and his newly-launched news channel Republic TV on Congress MP Shashi Tharoor's defamation plea against them.

In his plea, Tharoor has claimed damages and compensation of Rs 2 crore from the journalist and his channel for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him while airing news relating to the death of his wife .

"Bring down the rhetoric. You can put out your story, you can put out the facts. You cannot call him names. That is uncalled for," Justice Manmohan said while issuing notice to Goswami and the channel and seeking their replies by August 16, the next date of hearing.

Bring down the rhetoric; You (Goswami and Republic) can show facts, but can't call him (Tharoor) names: #DelhiHC.  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) May 29, 2017

Senior advocate Salman Khurshid, appearing for Tharoor, said he should be protected and the channel and the journalist directed to justify the statements made against him.

Senior advocate Sandeep Sethi, appearing for Goswami and the channel, said they would justify each and every statement made by them and therefore, there was no need for any interim order injuncting them.

Tharoor had on May 26 filed a civil defamation suit against and Republic TV in the claiming damages and compensation of Rs 2 crore for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him while airing news relating to the death of his wife .

The MP from Thiruvananthapuram has also sought a direction from the high court to restrain the TV channel from broadcasting any show relating to the death of his wife till the investigation is completed by the Delhi Police.

He has referred to the broadcasting of news items from May 8 to 13 when the TV channel claimed to air an expose connected to the death of his wife.
Actress-turned-parliamentarian Hema Malini has given Rs 25 lakh from her MPLAD fund for improving passenger amenities at Mathura Railway Junction.

Malini, who represents Mathura in the Lok Sabha, has been making efforts to make the junction a "world class station", a plan conceived about 14 years ago.

According to station director N P Singh, the junction handles about 40,000 passengers daily, majority of whom are pilgrims.

Malini has released Rs 25 lakh from the Members of Parliament Local Area Development (MPLAD) fund and it is being utilised to install steel benches at different platforms, Singh said.

Malini, during a recent visit to Mathura, had said that she would request Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu to sanction more funds for development of the station.

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Chartered accountants' apex body ICAI has set up desks to help small businessmen and traders on Goods and Services Tax (GST), which is set to be rolled out from July 1.

ICAI GST Sahayata Desks have been made operational, without any charge, at all major cities to facilitate small businessmen, traders, shopkeepers and public at large.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) said these desks would be made operational at around 200 locations in different part of the country.

Among others, these desks would create basic awareness on GST, inform individuals about the benefits and help them in migration to the new system.

"The GST Sahayata Desks would be operational w.E.F May 28, 2017 till September 30, 2017 at pan India level," it said in a release today.

The GST would replace multiple taxes system from July 1, and it would also boost economic growth in the country because of development of common market, ICAI President Nilesh S Vikamsey said.

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JK Lakshmi Cement is targeting double digit sales growth this fiscal with the cement industry likely to benefit from increased demand from infrastructure projects and housing sector.

The company, which is currently investing Rs 150 crore to set up a new grinding unit at Odisha, also expects allied products like readymade concrete, plaster of paris and mortars to pick up.

"We are looking at reversal of demand consumption...I would not be satisfied with the single digit growth of the company. I would definitely target a double digit growth for this fiscal," JK Lakshmi Cement whole-time director Shailendra Chouksey told PTI.

In FY 2016-17, JK Laxmi Cement has a consolidated income of Rs 3,413.69 crore with a net profit of Rs 87.30 crore. In the last fiscal, the company sold around 7 MT cement.

In terms of production capacity, he said with the commissioning of a new cement plant of Udaipur Cement Ltd, in which the company holds around 75 per cent stake, total capacity has gone up to 13 million tonnes (MT) per annum.

JK Lakshmi Cement's two other plants are at Durg in Chhattisgarh and Sirohi in Rajasthan.

The company's production has grown at a CAGR of 16 per cent from FY12 to FY16, Chouksey said.

"Now, our capacity is 13 MT, we need to scale up. It's very early to talk about expectations but I am looking for good growth this year," he said.

Although the cement industry had recorded a decline of 1 per cent last fiscal and only single digit growth since FY12, there is optimism that demand will bounce back this fiscal.

The government's push for infrastructure projects and spending on highways, roads and affordable housing for all are likely to help the cement industry, he said.

"There has been a pent-up demand of last few years," he said, adding "we are also certainly looking forward to good time and GST would help in that".

Besides cement, JK Lakshmi Cement is also pushing for its value added business -- readymade concrete, autoclaved aerated concrete (AAC) blocks used in place of conventional bricks, plaster of paris and mortars as highway and housing sector are expected to pick up.

"These are small businesses and many not add much to the bottomline of the company but we are into these lines with view to help the customer and remain a preferred supplier of construction material," Chouksey said.

When asked if the company would invest further to add more capacity, he said: "No. Now, most of our projects are completed. Barring one grinding unit which has to come in Odisha, rest everything is complete."



The 1 MT grinding unit at Orissa would be completed in the next financial year.

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Three cops, who were posted with a Police Response Vehicle (PRV), were suspended today for "delayed" response in the death of a Karnataka-cadre IAS officer, Lucknow Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Deepak Kumar said.

The policemen were suspended after an internal inquiry, he said.

Eyewitnesses had alleged that the PRV despite being informed at 5:33 AM on May 17 did not reach the spot outside the Meera Bai Marg guest house from where Tiwari's body was found.

The response team, which operates under Uttar Pradesh Police's Dial-100 scheme, reached half-an-hour late, they had claimed.

"The three policemen posted with PRV-467 have been suspended for delayed response in the Anurag Tiwari death incident," Kumar said.

The development comes a week after the state government recommended a CBI probe into the incident on May 22.

Though the investigation agency is yet take over the probe, the state police's SIT has already quizzed Tiwari's friend IAS Prabhu Narain Singh and others.

Tiwari, 36, was found dead on May 17, his birthday, under mysterious circumstances near the guest house, where he was staying, in the high-security Hazratganj area here.

His family had alleged that he was murdered at the behest of corrupt officers as he was a whistle-blower and was about to expose a "scam" in the food, civil supplies and consumer affairs department in Bengaluru where he was posted as commissioner.

The police have registered a murder case in the matter, five days after Tiwari's body was found.

Tiwari, a 2007-batch officer, was staying at the guest house with a batch mate after attending a mid-career training programme in Mussoorie.

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Top Congress leaders from Karnataka today met Rahul Gandhi here to discuss the party's strategy ahead of next year's assembly election in the state.

Sources said all senior party leaders from the state including Chief Minister Siddharamaiah and Karnataka PCC chief G Parameswara were present during the meeting.

The issue of strengthening the organisation ahead of 2018 assembly polls was also discussed but no decision could be taken to replace the PCC chief.

Karnataka is likely to go to polls in May next year.

Sources said around 18 leaders met Gandhi at his residence. Party general secretary in-charge of Karnataka K C Venugopal said during the meeting the assembly election strategy and organisational issues were discussed.

Among others who attended the meeting include senior party leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, B K Hari Prasad, M Veerappa Moily and KPCC working president Dinesh Gundu Rao.

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More than a century after a colonial railway gave birth to modern Kenya, the country is betting on a new Chinese-built route to cement its position as the gateway to East Africa.

The USD 3.2 billion (2.8 billion euro) railway linking Nairobi with the port city of Mombasa will Wednesday take its first passengers on the 472 kilometre (293 mile) journey, allowing them to skip a hair-raising drive on one of Kenya's most dangerous highways.

The railway is the country's biggest infrastructure project since independence, and while it has courted controversy, it is a key selling point for the ruling Jubilee party ahead of August elections.

It is also part of a "master plan" by east African leaders to connect their nations by rail, with the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) planned to eventually link Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi and Ethiopia.

"There is no country which has ever developed without having a very robust railway system. It was long overdue," Kenya's Transport Minister James Macharia told AFP.

He said not upgrading the railway in over 100 years "has dragged us backwards in terms of development."



It was on May 30, 1896, that colonial Britain began building a railway from what is today Kenya's coast to improve access to the riches of Uganda, showing little interest in the wild land in between.

The railway, steeped in tales of swashbuckling colonial adventure and beloved by tourists up until its last, creaking journey in April, is credited with shaping Kenya into its current form.

The capital Nairobi, today a regional hub, was a swampy outpost with no particular attraction until it became the headquarters of Kenya Railways.

The construction of the railway is the stuff of legend, with British and Indian workers terrorised by a pair of lions said to have devoured some 135 men.

The train was later dubbed the "Lunatic Express".

Some see a touch of folly in its successor too.

In as much as the old line traced the development of colonial Kenya, the new railway has proven a mirror for modern Kenya: dogged by corruption accusations, battling environmental concerns while trying to position itself as the gateway to east Africa.

The World Bank, and others, warned that building a new railway, instead of refurbishing the old one, was by far the most expensive option.

However, the government went ahead with the project, skipping an open tender to make a direct deal with China -- whose Export?Import Bank has loaned Kenya 90 percent of the venture's cost.

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Several hundred people attended a concert by top Brazilian musicians in Rio de Janeiro in the latest protest demanding the resignation of President Michel Temer and calling for new elections.

Caught up in serious corruption allegations, Temer is refusing to step down, hanging onto his office in the face of mounting popular pressure and the risk his all-important parliamentary support base may collapse.

"If we push him, Temer will fall!" protesters yesterday shouted between two performances.

Caetano Veloso -- who helped revolutionize popular Brazilian music in the 1970s -- headlined the event on Copacabana beach, together with Milton Nascimento, another star of the same generation.

The diverse performances ranged from the samba of Teresa Cristina and Martnalia to the rap of Mano Brown and Criolo.

Temer vowed to stay in the fight yesterday.

"Brazil has not stopped and is not going to stop despite the political crisis, which I acknowledge and we are navigating," he said in a column published in the newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo.

A year after replacing leftist president Dilma Rousseff last year -- when she was impeached for illegally manipulating government accounts on charges she said were politically trumped up -- Temer is facing requests for his own impeachment after the emergence of a recording appearing to show he approved payment of hush money to a jailed ally.

The concert was organized by leftist movements that have revived the slogan "Directas ya" -- meaning direct elections now -- used by the democratic movement of the early 1980s calling for an end to a military dictatorship that lasted from 1964 to 1985.

"Temer is a putschist. He forced a legitimately elected president from power," said Sirlei Oliveira, a 52-year-old sociologist. "Just like thirty years ago, we want the return of democracy and direct elections now."



According to the constitution, if Temer is dismissed or resigns, Congress must pick a successor to govern until the next scheduled election in October 2018.

However, a growing number of Brazilians are calling for an early vote, saying they mistrust a legislature riddled with its own corruption scandals. That would require Congress to approve a constitutional amendment.

As the concert was underway, the president's office announced that the controversial Justice Minister Osmar Serraglio would step down after a major tainted-meat scandal in March.

Indigenous groups also accuse him of links to the country's influential pro-agriculture political wing, which they accuse of seeking to displace them from their land.

Some 49 protesters were injured during a large protest on Wednesday in which demonstrators smashed their way into ministries and fought with riot police in some of the most violent scenes yet in a year of political turbulence thanks to corruption allegations against much of Temer's government and Congress.

Temer briefly called troops onto the streets, raising a public outcry after prompting memories of the old military dictatorship.

Weighed down by the crisis and unemployment of more than 14 per cent, a growing number of Brazilians also want an end to Temer's austerity reforms.

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A 19-year-old degree student of a college here was today arrested from Musheerabad area on the charge of raping a teenage girl and blackmailing her after taking pictures of the act, police said.

Accused M Pavan Kumar developed friendship with the 17-year-old girl, an intermediate student, around two years ago and called her to his house under the pretext of introducing her to his parents on January 28 this year and when she went there he allegedly sexually assaulted her, according to police.

"From his mobile phone, the accused photographed her while sexually assaulting her and since then he had been blackmailing her that he will post the photos on social media if she did not agree to come with him whenever he wants to," a release from Hyderabad Police said.

On March 13, the accused took her to a vacant house in Uppal area and again sexually assaulted her, police said.

A complaint was lodged by the minor girl and a case was registered against Pavan, the release said.

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The Shiv Sena, a key ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on Monday said the Narendra Modi government only "inaugurated and renamed" the projects started by the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) dispensation and nothing new, barring demonetisation, has been achieved in its three years in office.

The Sena, a constituent of the NDA government, also asked if the common man and farmers, who were among the worst hit by demonetisation, were part of its third anniversary celebrations.

Apart from the note ban, nothing new has been done by the government, the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

"Some important and big projects were started by the previous government and they were just being inaugurated and renamed with vigour," it said, citing the examples of the Bhupen Hazarika Dhola-Sadiya bridge in Assam and the Chenani-Nashri tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Modi government's "bold and ambitious" decision to scrap high-value notes led to a lull in industrial activities and large-scale job cuts in the information technology (IT) segment, the party said.

The note ban came as a blow to farmers, who are finding it hard to get agriculture loans ahead of the kharif season, the Marathi daily said.

It has been over six months since demonetisation was announced. The decision badly affected the district co-operative banks, which are a key source of farm loans.

The government is happy over the bull run in the stock market, but appears unperturbed about distressed farmers and "destruction" of district co-operative banks, it said.

The Sena mouthpiece also hit out at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) over the scrapping of the high value notes.

"Who gave the RBI the right to throw into dustbin the hard earned money of farmers?" it asked.
Moldova's foreign ministry today expelled five Russian diplomats, ordering Moscow to remove them in a move that outraged the country's pro-Russian president.

The foreign ministry declared the five personae non grata, giving the relevant note to the Russian ambassador to Moldova Farit Mukhametshin on Monday afternoon, a foreign ministry aide, Artur Sarbu, told AFP, without explaining why they were being expelled.

Mukhametshin confirmed that he received the note, but declined to comment further.

The move comes amid tensions between the country's pro- Russian president and his West-leaning government, and follows allegations that a Moldovan diplomat passed state secrets to an attache of the Russian embassy.

The foreign ministry's note gives the five Russian diplomats 72 hours to leave the country, Moldova's President Igor Dodon said, condemning the move by the country's EU- leaning government.

"The government has taken an outrageous act toward the Russian Embassy," he wrote on Facebook. "I am deeply outraged of this unfriendly step by the representatives of the Moldovan diplomatic corps and I categorically condemn it."



"This was done most likely on orders from the West," he added. "This crude step will not be left without negative consequences."



The five names have not been public however the follows accusations in March that an aide to the military attache of the Russian embassy, Alexander Grudin, received secret information from former Moldovan lawmaker Yury Bolbochan.

Bolbochan was arrested in March and charged with treason after a video was published of him meeting Grudin.

Moldova, a small country wedged between Ukraine and Romania has an East-West cultural, linguistic and political split, with Dodon, elected in November, calling for closer relations with Moscow.

Dodon this year declared that he would be keen to cancel Moldova's EU association agreement and re-establish a relationship with Moscow, a move condemned by the country's pro-Western politicians.

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Nepal today postponed the second phase of local-level election to ensure the participation of agitating Madhes-based parties, days after Madhesis threatened to launch a fresh agitation to block the polls which are being held for the first time in two decades.

The polls would now be held on June 23 instead of June 14, Energy Minister Janardan Sharma said.

Minister of Information and Communications and government's spokesperson Surendra Kumar Karki said the decision was taken also considering Ramzan.

The proposal would be tabled at the Parliament for discussions, he said.

The announcement came after a cabinet meeting of top leaders of three major parties and agitating Rastriya Janata Party Nepal (RJP-N) in caretaker Prime Minister Prachanda's residence in Baluwatar, Kathmandu Post reported.

The parties unanimously agreed to push the date of the second phase of local-level polls.

On May 26, the newly-formed alliance of six Madhes-based parties -- the Sanghiya Gathabandhan led by RJP-N -- announced that it will boycott the second phase of local elections and launch a fresh agitation to block the first local-level polls held in the country in two decades.

Prachanda had proposed to postpone the date to ensure the participation of RJP-N as the alliance was pressing the government to defer the date.

The final phase would now be held on June 23, when the restive southern Terai region which is home to the ethnic Madhesi population, will head to the ballot box.

The second phase of elections to be held in 41 districts of Provinces 1, 2, 5 and 7.

The first phase of the local polls was held on May 14 with a 71 per cent voter turnout.

It was a major step in Nepal's difficult transition to democracy as local polls could not be held in the country after 1997 largely as a result of the decade-long Maoist insurgency that claimed more than 16,000 lives in Nepal.

Local bodies remained ignored during the long transitional period even after the signing of a peace deal between the government and the Maoists in November 2006.

The elections should be held in every five years but due to the political instability, they were halted since May 1997.

Political parties representing Madhesi people had been opposing the polls until the Constitution is amended to address their key demands. They seek more political representation in the parliament and redrawing of provincial boundaries.

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North Korea today test-fired a ballistic missile, the latest in a series of launches that have ratcheted up tensions over its quest to develop weapons capable of hitting the United States.

The short-range missile flew for six minutes before landing in the Sea of Japan, the US Pacific Command said, adding it was working on a more detailed assessment.

The launch comes in fresh defiance of tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised Friday that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved".

Trump's comments came at the G7 summit in a meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan, which along with South Korea is most immediately threatened by North Korean belligerence.

Abe swiftly condemned today's launch and vowed "concrete action" with the US.

"We will never tolerate North Korea's continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the community," Abe told reporters.

"As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the community's top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States," he said.

In Washington, a National Security Council spokesman said Trump had been briefed on the launch.

South Korea's President, Moon Jae-In, ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said leader Kim Jong-Un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.

The isolated regime has been stepping up efforts to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental United States.

The missile launches, and Pyongyang's threat to stage its sixth nuclear test, have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention was an option under consideration.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said today's missile had a flight range of about 450 kilometres.

Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, told reporters the missile appeared to have fallen into the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ)  waters extending 200 nautical miles from its coast.

The regime has carried out two atomic tests and dozens of missile launches since the beginning of last year, with multiple sets of UN sanctions failing to halt its weapons push.

Following North Korea's test-firing of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet earlier this month, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the North's main trade partner and ally, has made it clear that the push for diplomatic talks  not imposing more sanctions  was the priority.

The United States has said it is willing to enter into talks with North Korea  but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.

Kim Jong-Un has sought to ramp up North Korea's nuclear programme under his rule, saying the regime needs atomic weapons to defend itself against the threat of invasion.

The UN Security Council adopted two sanctions resolutions last year to pile pressure on Pyongyang and deny the regime the hard currency needed to fund its military programmes.

In all, six sets of sanctions have been imposed on North Korea since it first tested an atomic device in 2006.
A man was killed and two others suffered serious burns after fire engulfed the ground and first floor of a popular restaurant in Jessore road near here.

According to the district police sources, the incident took place following leakage in the gas cylinder. Both the ground and first floors of the eatery were gutted, while three persons received serious burn injuries.

The injured were immediately rushed to the state-run R G Kar Medical College Hospital, where one of them succumbed, the police said.

A case in this connection has already been registered in the North 24-Parganas district, the sources said.

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Pakistan is taking a relook at its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance to be led by its former Army chief Gen Raheel Sharif to avoid further straining its relationship with neighbouring Iran, according to a media report today.

The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan has decided to follow clear redlines in joining the alliance first announced by Saudi Arabia in 2015.

Its decision comes after statements by Saudi authorities at the Arab Islamic-US summit in Riyadh on May 20-21 suggested that the military alliance was meant primarily to counter Iran - a regional rival of Saudi Arabia.

The Riyadh summit focused on isolating Iran - which was kept out of the summit - and countering terrorism in the Middle East.

Pakistani officials insisted that the Pakistan government in-principle agreed to be a part of the initiative if its sole purpose was to fight terrorism. It was believed that the government had joined the alliance when in April it green- lighted Gen Sharif to leave Pakistan to lead the alliance.

But the officials said a final decision will be made once the terms of reference (ToRs) of the alliance are finalised. The ToRs would be finalised during a meeting of the defence ministers of the participating countries in Saudi Arabia soon.

A senior official familiar with the development told the daily that Pakistan would present its set of proposals during the meeting.

Pakistan, according to the official, would recommend that the military alliance should have clear objective, that is to fight terrorism. Any deviation from this goal, he added, will not only undermine the alliance but lead to more divisions in the Muslim world.

"We are very clear that we will join this alliance only to fight terrorism," the official emphasised.

Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria has also indicated that Pakistan was yet to take a final decision.

"What we need to understand is that the Terms of Reference of the alliance are yet to be finalised. The defence ministers of the participating countries will meet and discuss the modalities of the coalition. We must wait until we have all the information to comment on its outcome. We shouldn't indulge in speculations," Zakaria said in one of his briefings.

The Pakistan government has already given a public commitment that it would not become part of any initiative whose aim is to target any other Islamic country, including Iran.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on the floor of the National Assembly has said that Pakistan would withdraw from the alliance if it turns out to be sectarian in nature.

Even Gen Sharif had reportedly told the Saudis that he would lead the grouping only if its main purpose was to fight terrorism and not aimed at any other Islamic country.

To avoid any strain in its ties with Iran, Pakistan had pushed for mediation between Tehran and Riyadh. Islamabad even mooted the idea of inclusion of Iran in the military alliance.

However, those efforts could not succeed since Saudi Arabia and Iran have serious differences on regional disputes, particularly the current hotspots in the Middle East.

Pakistan's main opposition parties - Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Peoples Party - have been calling for maintaining "neutrality" in the Arab-Iran rivalry. But given the longstanding strategic ties with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is unlikely to completely withdraw from the alliance.

Nonetheless, officials stressed, Pakistan's participation would remain confined to counter-terrorism efforts.

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Pakistan's Punjab Assembly today unanimously adopted a resolution demanding the federal government to immediately take up the issue of violence in Kashmir to the UN andrequest the world body to intervene.

The resolution was tabled by Opposition Leader Mian Mahmoodur Rashid in the Punjab Assembly's today session.

The resolution condemned the killing of Hizbul Mujaheedin commander Sabzar Bhatt and other militants last week.

"This House shares thegrief ofthe victim families, expresses solidarity with the Kashmiris," the resolution said.

It said: "The House demands the federal government to immediately take up the recent killings of Kashmiris at the hands of the India forces to the UN requesting it to intervene and stop the bloodshed in the valley.

"Besides, the Pakistani government mustraise this issue at other international forums to provide relief to the Kashmiris who are struggling for their freedom."



The assembly passed the resolution unanimously.

The opposition leader also demanded removal of Pakistan Kashmir Committee chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman for doing no service to the Kashmir cause.

"The federal government is spending Rs 2 billion annually on the Kashmir Committee which has completelyfailed to deliver as its performance is zero," he said.

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Government-run Prasar Bharati has got into an agreement with Morocco's Societe Nationale de Radiodiffusion et de Television (SNRT) to step up cooperation in the broadcasting sector.

The MoU was signed last week during the the fifth India Morocco Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) in Rabat, Morocco's capital.

Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was there to attend that meeting.

"The MoU was signed by Kheya Bhattacharya, Ambassador of India, on behalf of Prasar Bharati and Faycal Laraichi, Chief Executive Officer of SNRT," the commerce ministry said in a statement.

It said JCM has ramped up the strong bilateral ties and provided an impetus for closer cooperation in political, commercial, cultural, and trade sectors.

The bilateral trade between the countries stood at USD 1.42 billion in 2015-16.

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Kagiso Rabada sparked a dramatic England collapse as South Africa went in search of a consolation win in the third one-day international at Lord's on Monday.

England slumped to 20 for six in five overs after losing the toss before recovering to 153 all out.

Fast bowler Rabada took four wickets for 12 runs in his first three overs, before eventually finishing with four for 39 in nine.

New ball colleague Wayne Parnell took three for 43 in eight.

Jonny Bairstow, recalled for this match, kept the Proteas at bay with a fine 51.

His was one of just three double-figure scores by batsmen in the innings, with David Willey (26) and number nine Toby Roland-Jones, who made an impressive 37 not out on his ODI debut, helping the Yorkshireman compile stands of 62 and 52 respectively.

Nevertheless, there were still nearly 20 overs of the innings left when Keshav Maharaj dismissed last man Steven Finn.

Left-arm spinner Maharaj took three for 25 in 6.1 overs.

The consolations for England were that they were already an unassailable 2-0 up in this three-match series and that the collapse had not come during the Champions Trophy ODI tournament, which they launch across London with a match against Bangladesh at The Oval on Thursday.

An overcast morning and a green-tinged pitch meant it was no surprise when South Africa captain AB de Villiers opted to field first upon winning the toss.

"The stats show there's something in it for the first 15 overs, and that's when we want to do some damage," said de Villiers after the coin fell his way for the third time this series.

As it turned out, the Proteas only needed a mere five overs to have England six down.

The fifth ball of the match saw Rabada strike when Jason Roy edged a good length ball to Hashim Amla at first slip.

Next over, Joe Root (two) was lbw to a swinging delivery from left-armer Parnbell



England then lost their next two wickets on 15.

Eoin Morgan, the England captain, fell for eight on his Middlesex home ground, was caught behind off Parnell for eight.

That was the end of the fourth over and next ball Alex Hales, trying to drive Rabada, got an outside edge to Amla and England were 15 for four.

It was the start of a brilliant over that yielded three wickets in five balls for Rabada.

His fifth ball that over saw Jos Buttler,going for a big drive, well caught by Faf du Plessis at second slip.

Next ball, England's 20 for five became 20 for six when Adil Rashid, even more recklessly, attempted a huge drive and edged to du Plessis for a golden duck.

Bairstow, England's Test wicket-keeper who many believe should be in England's first-choice ODI side purely as a batsman, stopped the rot.

He showed his class by cover-driving Rabada and cutting fast bowler Morne Morkel for fours.

Bairstow received good support from Yorkshire team- mate Willey before the all-rounder was caught drove Parnell to cover.

Bairstow then gave his wicket away when he charged at Maharaj only to be stumped by de Kock to end a 67-ball knock featuring eight fours.

Roland-Jones struck five fours but the damage had long since been done.

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Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Monday raised concerns over real estate and liquor industry being left out of ambit and suggested it was done because they were being run by "influential people".

"Liquor and real estate lobbies have succeeded to intervene in the . Without any hesitation, I can say that these two sectors have been kept out of the because political leadership and influential people are conventionally indulged in real estate," Sisodia said.

He said many politicians "invest their black money" in real estate business.

"We are the only one country in the world which has kept the land and liquor out of the GST ambit. Even a child knows black money is invested in real estate sector.

"I also wrote to all finance ministers on this issue, but my opinion was actually rejected by Council meeting of GST," Sisodia said.

Meanwhile, addressing MLAs on the premises of the Delhi Assembly on the GST, Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian said he completely agreed on the principle of bringing liquor and land under the GST and all states should come together to make it happen.

He also said Delhi's revenue will increase as it is servicing and producing state.

Sisodia also said the national capital will benefit after the GST is implemented.

A senior government official said that as per rough estimate, there will be an increase of Rs 5,000 crore in tax collection by the city administration once the new tax regime is in place.

The Deputy Chief Minister said there was still a lot of problems in the GST implementation, but not in its concept.

On his part, the Chief Economic Advisor also supported the views of Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel who expressed apprehension of "conspiracy" by keeping liquor and real estate sectors out of GST and said it will only lead to huge corruption in the country.

"There has been some improvement in real estate sector...You (states) have the power to change it. All state should come together. The power is with you, but I completely agree on this issue in-principle," Subramanian said.

Subramanian said that due to implementation, the tax collection of states will be increased significantly as compliance rate will rise.

He also ruled out any burden on manufacturers due to the GST and said that there will be no increase in the existing tax rates.
The All Manipur Bar Association today rejected allegations that the lawyer fraternity in the state had steered clear of a case involving the son of Chief Minister N Biren Singh as its members "fear for their lives".

Advocate L Roshmani of the association told reporters that the charges made by lawyer Utsav Bains, representing the victim's family, had "tarnished" the image of the judicial system of Manipur.

"The entire judicial process stands the risk of being jeopardised by such irresponsible and reckless statements. I wish he (Bains) had some evidence to back his allegations. This matter needs to be dealt with appropriately," he said.

The association has also approached the Bar Council of India urging it to initiate disciplinary action against Bains and has also threatened to take legal recourse against him.

Ajay Meetai, son of the chief minister, has been awarded a five-year jail term by a sessions court under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the IPC for firing at Irom Roger on March 20, 2011, and killing him.

The incident had occurred after Roger had allegedly not allowed Meetai to overtake him in his SUV which had irked the chief minister's son.

Irom Chitra Devi, mother of the victim, have moved the Supreme Court alleging that they are being threatened and that lawyers in the state have refused to challenge the order of the sessions judge due to the clout of the chief minister.

"It is indeed very disheartening to note that the allegation against lawyers in Manipur is totally baseless. It has been hurled to tarnish and demean the advocates practising in the state," Khaidem Mani, former president of the association, said.

Meanwhile, the apex court today asked the Centre to consider giving security cover to the parents of Roger, observing that without any reason nobody has the courage to make allegations against the chief minister.

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Photographs of Uttar Pradesh minister Swati Singh purportedly inaugurating a beer bar have gone viral on social media stirring a controversy with the opposition parties today questioning if this is the true face of the BJP government.

In the pictures, she is seen cutting a ribbon with a group of people, including some bureaucrats, standing alongside her.

Swati, wife of Dayashankar Singh who was suspended for allegedly making derogatory remarks against BSP supremo Mayawati, is said to have 'inaugurated' the bar on May 20.

She was not immediately available for a comment.

Taking the opportunity to attack the Yogi Aditynath government, opposition parties questioned if this is the real face of the new dispensation.

"This aptly shows the contradictions in the ruling BJP... They say one thing, but practice something else," Samajwadi Party spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary said.

This comes at a time when women in Uttar Pradesh are at the forefront of protests against liquor, he said.

Congress leader Dwijendra Tripathi said this incident shows the real "chaal (action), charitra (character) and chehra (face)" of the BJP government.

"They speak about things only to woo the public... Their leaders talk about prohibition while a minister of their's goes to inaugurate a beer bar," he said, adding it is also not clear if the bar is licenced or not.

BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi came out in her defence, saying since liquor is not banned in the state, her action is not illegal.

"It has to be known under what circumstances she had taken part in the inauguration... It is said that a woman is the owner of the outlet and the minister was there to promote entrepreneurship among women," Tripathi said.

Swati is Minister of State of Women Welfare, Family Welfare, Maternity and Child Welfare in the UP government.

Women groups in the state have been demanding a ban on sale and consumption of liquor.

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South African President Jacob Zuma survived fresh calls within the ruling ANC party for him to resign, party officials said today, as they acknowledged support was "drifting away" from the movement.

Senior figures in the African National Congress met over the weekend after Zuma endured months of criticism over his sacking of respected finance minister Pravin Gordhan.

"There was a call made in the national executive committee for the president to consider stepping down," said ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe.

"A number of members... Were of the view that the ANC should listen to this call."



Mantashe said that the meeting had not backed the resignation demands, and had instead discussed "the need to reconnect with sectors of society that are drifting away from the movement."



A string of ANC allies have also urged Zuma to go, among them the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), the South African Communist Party (SACP) and the South African Council of Churches (SACC).

Zuma has faced widespread public anger over a series of corruption scandals, record unemployment and a sluggish economy.

The crisis has seen two ratings agencies downgrade South Africa and brought tens of thousands of people onto the streets calling for Zuma's ousting.

The ANC is due to elect Zuma's successor as party leader in December, ahead of general elections in 2019.

The party -- which Nelson Mandela led to power in the 1994 post-apartheid elections -- has recently lost popularity, taking just 55 per cent of the vote in last year's local elections, its worst ever result.

A campaign group of anti-apartheid veterans said that Zuma loyalists had "shown they clearly place their own narrow political and financial self-interests above... The best interests of the country."



Zuma retains support from ANC members in many rural areas and has been able to rely on party lawmakers to survive votes of no confidence in parliament.

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Security have been beefed up in the Meghalaya capital here after sporadic attacks were carried out against government properties, a senior police officer said today.

"Additional forces have been called in to ensure law and order situation is under control in the state capital," East Khasi Hills district SP Davis Marak said.

He said Police are also on the job to identify those behind the recent crude petrol bomb attacks in the city following the May 27 violent protest against the on-going construction of a railway project in Ri Bhoi District.

"We are yet to establish the identities of the perpetrators. However we have got some inputs and we are on the lookout for those who are behind the incidents and in due course we will be arresting them," he said.

The SP said peace meetings were also convened with the various stakeholders apart from strict instructions issued to all petrol pumps not to sell loose petrol.

At least two vehicles, including a government vehicle, were burnt in the city on May 27 night and petrol bomb attacks were reported at Rynjah police station and at the office of the Superintendent Training for Self Employment of Women at Laban.

"Two platoons of additional forces have been deployed in the state capital and we have requested the CRPF to put their quick reaction team (QRT) on stand-by in case of emergency," he said.

Sporadic attacks were also reported in Ri-Bhoi last night and section 144 CrPC have been imposed in the entire district preventing assembly of five or more persons in public places, according to the Ri-Bhoi district deputy commissioner C P Gotmare.

At least two KSU leaders have been arrested in connection with the incident at Byrnihat and three FIRs have been filed in Ri-Bhoi district and they were booked under the Meghalaya Maintenance Public Order (MMPO) after they were arrested on Saturday.

Three other KSU leaders were arrested today including two KSU leaders from their Byrnihat circle.

Meanwhile, the Khasi Students' Union (KSU) today demanded the state government to stop the on-going railway construction in Byrnihat to release all its leaders and members with immediate effect.

"The state government is demanded to ensure the construction of the railway project is put on hold," KSU president Lambokstarwell Marngar told reporters at a conference here.

"We had all along maintained a strong stand that it is only when such laws are in place, we will be ready to talk on whether to welcome the railway project," he said.

"We demand that the arrested leaders and members should be released immediately if the government wants to ensure peace and tranquility is maintained in the state," he said.

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Shiv Sena leader and Maharashtra Industries Minister Subhash Desai today kicked off a row by equating Bal Thackeray with Mahatma Gandhi over construction of a memorial for the late party supremo.

A memorial for Thackeray, who died in November 2012, is proposed at the current residence of Mumbai Mayor at Shivaji Park in Dadar.

The new residence of mayor will come up at Byculla zoo.

"A memorial was built for Mahatma Gandhi though he did not hold any constitutional post, then why not for Balasaheb?" Desai questioned while speaking to reporters here.

The Sena leader said whenever the issue of constructing a memorial for any great leader came up someone has raised an objection.

"In our democracy we all have rights. Balasaheb was a great leader and Shiv sainiks, along with ordinary people, have a desire that a memorial be built in Balasaheb's honour. The government has decided to do it and there is nothing wrong in it," he said.

Desai, however, said the personality of the Sena founder cannot be measured on the basis of certain parameters.

"It is being asked whether he (Balasaheb) held any post. To this, I will say did Mahatma Gandhi hold any post? Though (Mahatma Gandhi) did not hold any administrative post, yet his memorials were built by various governments. Never heard anyone raising objections (to Gandhi memorials) and no one should raise objections. It is not proper," he said.

Desai said the state government will respond to the objections raised in some quarters in connection with the construction of Thackeray's proposed memorial.

The minister's statement drew flak from the Congress, with the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) secretary Al-Nasser Zakaria terming it as an "outrageous comparison".

"What else can be expected from the Shiv Sena leaders apart from hooliganism, making outrageous comments and being a part of the Maharashtra government just to ensure the party does not disintegrate and become a part of history.

"Gandhiji is called the Mahatma and the father of our nation because, it is due to him that we got freedom. While Balasaheb is a highly respected figure, it would be outrageous to compare him with Gandhiji," he said.

Earlier this year, the BJP-led state government paved the way for a grand memorial of Thackeray by issuing an ordinance that will enable the plot to be leased out at nominal rates to the 'Balasaheb Thackeray Rashtriya Smarak' society, headed by Sena president Uddhav Thackeray.

In March, the proposal for converting the Mayor's bungalow into the Thackeray memorial received its final nod from the Sena-ruled BMC house of corporators.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Separatists today lashed out at Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat for his comments on the role of the armed forces in Kashmir, saying it amounted to granting them "absolute authority and no accountability".

They decried Rawat's defence for Major Leetul Gogoi who had tied a man to a jeep as a human shield against stone pelters.

Rawat had told PTI that the main objective of awarding Gogoi, when a Court of Inquiry was finalising its probe into the incident, was to boost the morale of young officers of the force who are operating in a very difficult environment in the militancy-infested state.

"The statements coming out of New Delhi show that the government of India has decided to openly admit that it has handed over Kashmir and the people of Kashmir to its army, granting them absolute authority and no accountability, to deal with Kashmiris," moderate Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said in a statement.

He said this was being done "with the sole objective that Kashmir remains part of India, no matter if all Kashmiris have to be repressed, killed or humiliated for that".

Mirwaiz said Army Chief General Bipin Rawat's remarks about stone-pelting youth was an incitement to the youth of Kashmir to take to arms.

He said, "the level of arrogance of power and contempt exhibited towards the people of Kashmir through such insensitive statements, no longer shocks the people of Kashmir."



The Hurriyat chairman said several wars on external front and prolonged "internal repression" have not resolved Kashmir issue for past 70 years.

JKLF chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik said, "The height of shamelessness is such that human shielding of an unarmed young man is termed as bravery and innovation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Snapdeal has raised over Rs 113 crore from early investor Nexus Venture Partners and founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, amid talks of a potential sale of the e-commerce firm to larger rival Flipkart.

NVP pumped in Rs 96.26 crore in the round, while Bahl and Bansal contributed Rs 8.45 crore each, according to regulatory filing with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

The shares were allotted on March 10, 2017, it added.

Bahl and Bansal were allotted 1,300 Series J preference shares, while Nexus was given 14,810 preference shares, the filings showed.

It is not clear how long the fresh financing round will help Snapdeal in continuing operations as it faces intense competition from rivals Flipkart and Amazon.

E-mails sent to NVP and Snapdeal remained unanswered.

The cash-strapped firm, over the past few months, has trimmed workforce and shut down non-core operations in a bid to control costs.

Also, the development gains importance as Snapdeal's largest investor SoftBank has been proactively mediating a potential sale of Snapdeal to Flipkart for the last few weeks.

The Japanese investment firm, according to sources, has succeeded in getting Board members to agree to the said sale but a term sheet for due diligence with Flipkart is yet to be signed.

SoftBank has already written off over USD 1 billion on valuation of its investment in Snapdeal.

One of the leading contenders in the Indian e-commerce space, Snapdeal has seen its fortunes failing amid strong competition from Amazon and Flipkart.

Compared to a valuation of about USD 6.5 billion in February 2016, the sale to Flipkart could see Snapdeal being valued at about USD 1 billion.

The deal between Snapdeal and Flipkart, if completed, would mark the biggest acquisition in the Indian e-commerce space.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prominent social activist Linkan Subudhi has today filed a complaint at a local police station here after her picture allegedly appeared on a pornographic site.

"I have lodged a complaint and the police has taken up the matter promptly," Linkan told PTI after lodging the complaint at the Chandrasekharpur police station in the state capital.

Linkan, known for her crusade against child marriage, said the she had also requested the police to ensure that her picture was removed immediately.

The software engineer turned social activist demanded action against the website and the people responsible for posting her picture.

"Linkan Subudhi has lodged the complaint and we are taking appropriate steps," said a police officer at the Chandrasekharpur police station.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
West Bengal Speaker Biman Banerjee today urged Trinamool Congress members to not only praise the government, but also question it during an Assembly session for effective functioning of the government.

In his thanksgiving speech at the concluding day of the session, Banerjee said that he was particularly happy at the Trinamool members questioning ministers and making them uncomfortable.

Banerjee said that this was required for the effective functioning of government and added that their job is not just praising the government.

As the Opposition Left Front and the Congress MLAs boycotted the House since morning today, Banerjee said it was their duty to stay present in the Assembly as they have been sent as people's representatives.

Banerjee said that the Opposition has a role to play in preserving the democratic character of the Assembly and staying outside the House was not desired, so they should return.

He also said that the number of questions raised by the Opposition should increase.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Runaya, a metals start-up founded by the sons of Vedanta Ltd Chairman Navin Agarwal, has signed two JV pacts worth USD 75 million with Russia's UC Rusal and Bahrain's Taha International Corporation (TIC).

The pacts relate to production of high technology aluminium paste and powder in India and sustainable waste management solutions to aluminium industry.

The start-up has been founded by brothers and budding entrepreneurs, Naivedya & Annanya Agarwal.

"Runaya, one of the fastest growing manufacturing start- up in the metals space, has signed two joint venture agreements with leading global companies for providing sustainable and high-end solutions to the Indian aluminium industry," Runaya Metsource LLP (RML) said in a statement.

"Aligned with the Government of India's 'Make in India' mission, both the JVs will be set up entailing investments worth USD 75 million," it said.

RML has signed a 50:50 JV with Russia's UC Rusal to set up state-of-the-art aluminium pastes and powders production unit in India, while its affiliate RRL has tied up with Bahrain's TIC for its patented technology on aluminium dross processing.

"Along with ramping up dross processing capacity in phases, we plan to provide other innovative sustainability solutions for Aluminium industry. It is an important strategic initiative for Runaya in becoming a specialty innovative- solution company, which will provide value-add products for regional and global markets using sustainable technology," said Annanya Agarwal, CEO RRL.

Naivedya Agarwal, CEO Runaya Metsource, said, "Runaya's strategy is to identify businesses focusing broadly on material sciences and deliver products with high technology applications, through alliances and partnerships with global leaders."



Naivedya is also Managing Director-designate of the JV for the aluminium pastes and powders.

Runaya claimed that the facility is first of its kind in India with a production capacity of 10,000 metric tonnes per annum and is aiming to commence commercial production in 2018.

The products of the proposed unit will find usage in several high end applications, including additive technologies and solar energy. Currently the demand for these products in India is being met through global sources.

The project launched by RRL will set up a dross processing facility in Jharsuguda, with an initial capacity of 30,000 MT. RRL expects to commission Phase 1 by end of 2017 and commence commercial production in 2018.

As per the agreement, Runaya will obtain TIC technology for exclusive operations in India and receive value added product distribution rights on a world-wide basis.

"Our technology is the most advanced both in its ability to recover metal from dross and process the residues into products that have tremendous market potential in India," said Frank Pollmann, CEO, Taha International Corporation.

Alexey Arnautov, UC RUSAL's Director for new projects said, "RUSAL's long lasting experience in production of aluminium powders and pastes as well as Runaya Metsource's strong position as a local player create solid competitive advantages for the JV.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Cyberabad police have arrested a sub-registrar and two directors of different real estate firms for allegedly transferring government land to private companies and causing losses to the state exchequer.

Government land measuring 693 acres was transferred to private companies leading to a loss of Rs 587 crore to the state exchequer.

R Srinivasa Rao, sub-registrar of Kukatpally besides PS Parthasarathi and PVS Sharma, two directors, were arrested yesterday in connection with the "illegal" transfer of government land in Miyapur village on city outskirts, a release from Cyberabad Police said.

A police complaint said, Trinity Infra Ventures Ltd represented by its authorised signatory PS Parthasarathi (director) registered four documents in favour of Suvishal Power Gen Ltd, represented by its signatory PVS Sharma (director) by transferring the government lands to an extent of 693 acres which were registered at Sub Registrar Office (SRO), Kukatpally.

"During the course of investigation, it was found that the four documents were registered at SRO, Kukatpally, in violation of Registration Act-1908 provisions and thereby causing loss of Rs 587.11 crore to the state," it said.

According to police, PS Parthasarathi and others prepared a general power of attorney (GPA) from one Ameerunnisha Begum and seven others on January 15, 2016 to show that the land belonged to these persons, it said.

Later Parthasarathi executed a deed infavour of Suvishal Power Gen Ltd on January 21, 2016, it said.

"Thus Parthasarathi and Sharma in collusion with Srinivasa Rao, got registered government lands and caused major revenue loss to the government," the release added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Protesters have rallied for a third night running in Morocco's city of Al-Hoceima, in a northern region of the country where there has been growing social unrest.

An AFP journalist saw several hundred mainly young demonstrators gathered in two neighbourhoods of the city yesterday, chanting "The state is corrupt!" and "Dignity!".

They also shouted "We are all Zefzafi!" in reference to protest leader Nasser Zefzafi, who is on the run after authorities last week ordered his arrest.

The protesters attempted to make their way to the city's central square but were blocked by security forces. After an hour-long face-off with police the youths dispersed without incident.

"We cannot take a single step, the police are everywhere," an activist in the city told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The activist said a solidarity rally had taken place in the nearby city of Imzouren.

Protests were also reported in two other northern cities, Nador and Tanger, as well as in Casablanca and the capital Rabat, where some 300 people took part.

Morocco's northern Rif region has been shaken by more than six months of social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, soon evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi emerging as the leader of the Al- Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement".

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he on Friday allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque and called for further demonstrations.

Evening protests followed on Friday and Saturday, with demonstrators clashing with police.

As of late Sunday police had arrested 22 people in connection with the disturbances, according to officials.

Local sources have reported significantly more arrests and said many of those detained have been transferred to Casablanca.

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Morocco's central authorities and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.

The protests subsided following a series of political reforms including constitutional changes that saw King Mohamed VI give up some of his wide-ranging powers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A violent storm swept through Moscow area today, leaving 13 people dead and dozens injured as freak winds toppled hundreds of trees, officials said.

"Due to storm winds hitting Moscow, 50 people have asked for medical attention up to now," a spokesperson for the City Hall's health department told AFP in a statement.

"Eleven were fatally injured," the statement said.

Two more deaths were reported when the investigative committee of the Moscow region said that an 11-year-old girl and a 57-year-old man were killed, one by a falling tree and the other a flying fence.

Earlier investigators said that the victims were mostly killed by falling trees and various structures, such as a bus stop. Investigators were looking at scenes of the accidents and questioning witnesses.

Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin expressed condolences for those who died.

"Several hundred trees were felled," he wrote on his official Twitter. "We are taking necessary measures to deal with the consequences."



Moscow emergencies services dispatched units to remove the felled trees but had no information about any serious material damages, a spokesman told AFP by phone.

The weather caused delays at Moscow's airports and the express train to Vnukovo airport had to halt service as workers removed a tree from the line.

The director of the Russia's Gidromedtsentr weather service Roman Vilfand told Russian agencies that wind speed reached 22 metres (yards) per second during the hurricane and that another storm could hit the capital overnight.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 19-year-old Sri Lankan woman today gave birth to a stillborn baby on board a helicopter minutes after being rescued in the flood-hit southwestern region.

The mother was rushed to a nearby hospital where her condition was under control, rescue officials said.

The woman went into labour minutes after being airlifted to safety from Ratnapura district, which is one of the worst flood-hit areas in the country.

At least 177 people have been killed and 104 others missing in the island nation's worst torrential rains in 14 years. The death toll is expected to rise further, according to the Disaster Management Centre.

Some 412 houses were fully damaged with over 4,200 houses suffering partial damage. Some 471,000 people remain displaced while over 75,000 people are currently being housed in over 330 temporary relief accommodation.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful Southwest monsoon, officials had said.

Sri Lanka, which has been heavily deforested for cash crops, often witnesses landslides during the monsoon season.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
State-run Oil India posted a 96 per cent fall in fourth-quarter profit, hurt by a one-time charge realised on the pre-discount and post-discount price of crude oil paid to a state government.

Net profit was Rs 19.31 crore ($2.99 million) in the fourth quarter of the financial year (FY) 2016-17, compared with Rs 470 crore a year earlier, the company said on Monday.

Analysts on average had expected the oil and gas explorer, which also owns assets in the United States and Africa, to post a profit of 5.70 billion rupees, according to Thomson Reuters data.

The company said it recognised a differential royalty of Rs 1,152 crore in the March quarter which had been paid earlier to the State Government of Assam.
By Dmitry Zhdannikov, Rania El Gamal and Ernest Scheyder

VIENNA (Reuters) - As OPEC's latest meeting wrapped up in Vienna on Thursday night, ministers congratulated each other on its rare spirit of amity and consensus. The talks were, without a doubt, a success.

But two hours later, one veteran delegate was staring in despair at the numbers flashing red on his smartphone showing crude down some 5 percent to $51 a barrel.

"That is a disaster," he said.

While OPEC has worked hard in recent years on improving communication to ensure the right message is delivered to financial markets, Thursday's experience showed the 14-member group and its non-OPEC allies still have a long way to go.

The problem was not what was delivered, but what appeared to have been promised beforehand, industry analysts said.

OPEC agreed on Thursday to extend its existing production cuts by nine months - more than the initially suggested six months - in tandem with non-OPEC producers, including Russia.

But hints from the group that it could deepen supply cuts, extend them by as long as 12 months, curtail exports and tell the market how exactly it would terminate supply curbs in 2018 had raised market expectations much higher.

"OPEC oversold the meeting to the market way too early," Amrita Sen, from the consultancy Energy Aspects, told in Vienna.

The market reaction was all the more disappointing given that from OPEC's perspective, the meeting went very well.

"I have been in OPEC close to 20 years. It's the first time that I witness 100 percent compliance (with cuts) from OPEC and close to 100 percent from non-OPEC," Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh told afterward.

OPEC's No.3 producer, Iran has repeatedly clashed in past meetings with OPEC's de-facto leader, its political arch-rival Saudi Arabia.

Russia, which effectively is fighting a proxy war with Saudi Arabia in Syria, said on Thursday its energy cooperation with Riyadh would last well into the future.

In its statement, OPEC said it could extend curbs further or cut more.

Normally, all this would be more than enough to trigger a bull rally.

"It's strange. I don't know why (the market crashed)" Zanganeh said.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers first agreed to cut output in December 2016 - the first joint deal in 15 years - and said the curbs could be extended by a further six months.

The extraordinary move was aimed at battling a global glut of crude that halved prices from 2014, forcing Russia and Saudi Arabia to tighten their belts and leading to unrest in Venezuela and Nigeria.

The cuts helped push oil prices back above $50 per barrel but also spurred growth in the U.S. shale industry, which does not participate in the output deal. That slowed a rebalancing of supply and demand, with global inventories still near record highs.

As the price fell back towards $47 in early May, near a six-month low, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said OPEC would do "whatever it takes" to rebalance the market, including a longer extension for the output cuts.

"If you declare nine months in advance, people are bound to expect more," Sen said. Russia also added to the expectations by saying this week that cuts could be prolonged by 12 months.

The market was also disappointed OPEC did not mention its previously stated plan to bring stocks down from a record high of 3 billion barrels to their five-year average of 2.7 billion, said Olivier Jakob from the Petromatrix consultancy.

"The December meeting was a breakthrough," he said. "The meeting yesterday gives us, however, a feeling that OPEC is fatigued by the lack of results so far and does not have a consensus anymore to have the five-year average in stocks as a policy target."

The fact that Iran, Libya and Nigeria remain exempt from cuts suggested OPEC was not yet ready to take additional measures, Jakob added.

Dave Pursell, managing director at Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co, a Houston-based bank working with U.S. shale producers, predicted markets would rebalance within six months.

"The market was hoping for deeper cuts," he said. "But I do think oil prices, three months from now, will be higher than they are now."

(Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov; Editing by Dale Hudson and Sonya Hepinstall)

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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It was a tough weekend for British Airways, and some made India a party in the chaos. The largest airline in the United Kingdom was forced to cancel flights from Heathrow and Gatwick airports on Saturday following a worldwide IT outage. The effects continued to show for the third day, as the largest airline service resumed flights earlier today.

Meanwhile, an employee union blamed British Airways outsourcing its IT jobs to Indian firm for the crisis. The airline has not pulled up the IT firm for discrepancies yet.

What happened at British airports?



British Airways cancelled outgoing flights from Heathrow and Gatwick airports on Saturday after its IT systems failed across the world. Check-ins and baggage reclaim were hard hit in addition to the flight programmes.

The passengers were stranded at the two London airports, and some lost their luggage in the commotion. BA flights to and from three Indian metro cities were also cancelled after the computer system broke down.

British Airways customers flying from Heathrow had to face delays yet again on Sunday, whereas British Airways ran its normal schedule at the Gatwick. Disruptions continued on Monday too, but flights resumed after mid-day as per Indian Standard Time.

Who is dragging India's name?



India came into the scene after aviation workers' union GMB blamed British Airways of driving itself into this quagmire by outsourcing IT jobs to an Indian firm. As seen on the union's website, its national officer Mick Rix said, "This could have all been avoided. BA in 2016 made hundreds of dedicated and loyal IT staff redundant and outsourced the work to India."

What does British Airways have to say?



The British airline cited a power supply issue as the reason behind the IT system malfunction, and not the professionals working on it. "We would never compromise the integrity and security of our IT systems. IT services are now provided globally by a range of suppliers and this is very common practice across all industries," Alex Cruz, Chief Executive of the airlines was quoted by The Registrar.

Also watch:




The United States might ban laptops from aircraft cabins on all flights into and out of the country as part of a ramped-up effort to protect against potential security threats, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said on Sunday.

In an interview on "Fox News Sunday," Kelly said the United States planned to "raise the bar" on airline security, including tightening screening of carry-on items.

"That's the thing that they are obsessed with, the terrorists, the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if it's a U.S. carrier, particularly if it's full of U.S. people."

In March, the government imposed restrictions on large electronic devices in aircraft cabins on flights from 10 airports, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Turkey.

Kelly said the move would be part of a broader airline security effort to combat what he called "a real sophisticated threat." He said no decision had been made as to the timing of any ban.

"We are still following the intelligence," he said, "and are in the process of defining this, but we're going to raise the bar generally speaking for aviation much higher than it is now."

Airlines are concerned that a broad ban on laptops may erode customer demand. But none wants an incident aboard one of its airplanes.

"Whatever comes out, we'll have to comply with," Oscar Munoz, chief executive officer of United Airlines, told the company's annual meeting last week.

Airlines were blindsided in January when President Donald Trump issued an executive order banning entry for 90 days to citizens from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, sending airlines scrambling to determine who could board and who could not. The order was later blocked in the courts.

In the case of laptops, the administration is keeping the industry in the loop. Delta Air Lines said in a statement it "continues to be in close contact with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security," while Munoz applauded the administration for giving the company a "heads up."

"We've had constant updates on the subject," he said. "We know more than most. And again, if there's a credible threat out there, we need to make sure we take the appropriate measures."

MORE SCRUTINY OF CARRY-ONS

Among the enhanced security measures will likely be tighter screening of carry-on items to allow Transport Security Administration agents to discern problematic items in tightly stuffed bags.

Kelly said that in order to avoid paying fees for checking bags, people were stuffing them to the point where it was difficult to see through the clutter.

"The more stuff is in there, the less the TSA professionals that are looking at what's in those bags through the monitors can tell what's in them."

The TSA has begun testing certain new procedures at a limited number of airports, requiring people to remove additional items from carry-on bags for separate screenings.

Asked whether the government would expand such measures nationwide, Kelly said: "We might, and likely will."
'Judy' an Android based malware has infected over 36.5 million users across the globe. One major reason why the malware could spread to such monstrous proportions is that it jumped Google's own security feature called 'bouncer'.

A dozen apps had the infected bug but Google had consistently removed most of them. However, one of these applications stayed in the hiding for a good one year before it was discovered by Google's security net.

According to Checkpoint, a security firm, the malware Judy attacked most devices in the form of simple fashion and cooking games. The malware went unnoticed because the infected payload was downloaded externally from a non-Google server, after the applications were installed. Once installed, the software used the infected phone to click on certain Google Ads to increase the revenue of the attacker.

The Checkpoint blog post stated, "the malware, dubbed "Judy", is an auto-clicking adware which was found on 41 apps developed by a Korean company. The malware uses infected devices to generate large amounts of fraudulent clicks on advertisements, generating revenues for the perpetrators behind it."

Considering that there are loopholes in Google's operating system, users should be careful with their own downloads from the Play Store. The security firm has launched a list of applications that had been infected by the malware. If your device is one of them, the only option left for you would be to back up your essential data and format the device.

The security firm claims that spread of the malware is still not confirmed as the 'Judy' has an extensive list of applications which hasn't entirely been covered in Checkpoint's analysis.

Google Play Store has taken down most of the concerned applications which were published under a Korean developer Enistudio. However, the malware was also found in a few other applications published under the name of different developers.

The report stated, "We also found several apps containing the malware, which were developed by other developers on Google Play. The connection between the two campaigns remains unclear, and it is possible that one borrowed code from the other, knowingly or unknowingly."

Though the app made it to more than 36.5 million android devices, so far there has been no evidence of any data being compromised on the infected devices. There have been previous instances where malwares like these have successfully cleared Google's screening process; one of the downsides of operating on an open operating system.
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An Allerton artist, who has created everything from fine art to crafts for decades, is at it again.

Marion Hughes, an 89-year-old artist has 32 space objects and robots that she built over three months on display at the Allerton Library through Monday, June 5.

The objects are made of discarded objects, painted disposable containers for the most part, combined with other everyday trash like corks, lipstick and drinking straws added for effect, said Hughes.

The display, which is on the second floor of the branch at 2740 Barnes Avenue near the childrens section, contains 16 spacecrafts and 16 robots.

They are designed to inspire and encourage young people to use their imaginations, she said.

Rather than use the whole palate of colors, Hughes chose to limit the colors to black and silver paint in hopes of enticing questions about the objects used in the minds of youngsters.

I wanted the items to be uniform so that the children could better see the materials that were used and the shapes of the objects, said Hughes.

The artist, a mother of three adult children, said that she is concerned because she believes that children today are having their childhoods stolen from them by electronics.

I want them to use their imaginations, said Hughes. Thats my most important message.

The theme of the artwork, which is creativity from everyday objects, is evident in the containers and other materials used.

The artist also used empty ketchup bottles and peanut butter jars, toothpaste tubes, bottle caps, lint remover, wire, thumb tacks and bubble wrap to build her space objects.

In the past two years, she has had two other exhibits at the Allerton Library, including an exhibit called A Paper House of Furniture in 2016, which portrayed rooms in a house made almost entirely from paper.

Another showcase of her work at the Allerton branch, in 2015, portrayed women from around the world signing in an international womens choir.

For that project, bottles were used, painted and clothed to look like women from Pakistan, China, the West Indies, Sweden, Mexico, Africa and India.

On this latest exhibit now, feedback has been positive, said Hughes, adding that an NYPL manager came to view the display and told her that children were descriptive in describing how much they admired the exhibit.

Hughes said that she became interested in art when she worked as a freelance textile designer.

She took professional art classes after entering Lehman College at the age of 54-years-old, she said.

A previous Bronx Times article from 1988 described her as a consummate professional artist.

She is a studio painter who works in oils, pastels and watercolors, as well as her personal favorite, pencil.
Kathy Sherman, English as a Second Language Teacher at Ellis Elementary School, Logan City School District

Two educators from Cache Valley recently received a Utah Education Association Excellence in Teaching Award during the KeyBank Superstars in Education banquet on May 19. The awards are given annually to teachers whose efforts in the classroom significantly impact the life of an individual child or group of children.

Andy Lund, Vice Principal at South Cache Middle School in the Cache County School District, and Kathy Sherman, English as a Second Language teacher at Ellis Elementary in the Logan City School District, received the awards, a poster to display at their school and each received a check for $1,500, courtesy of award sponsor doTERRA.

Lund was recognized for his efforts to work with students who struggle with behavior challenges and, at times, even law enforcement. In a <a href=http://www.kued.org/uea-excellence-teaching-awards-2017#paragraphs-item-2076 target=_blank>produced video</a> by the UEA and KUED television, Lund says he is hoping to treat students and teachers like he would like to be treated.

To be excellent in education, Lund says, I think youre taking the heritage, youre taking what other people, roll models, other influences in your life have done and then you apply them to yourself. You take the talents and gifts that you have and make an investment in the future.

Hes like a perfect example of what a service professional is, Rodney Buttars says in the video. He sees a need for something that could help students be more successful, then the goes for that need and to better himself as an educator or an administrator.

Buttars is a science teacher at South Cache Middle School and nominated Lund for the award.

I remember he went and got his math endorsement, Buttars continues, so he could teach math because he saw a need there for kids to have more help and assistance with math.

In addition to working through changing boundaries, age dynamics and staff at the middle school this past year, Lund worked closely with juvenile and adult community members who needed to serve probation hours.

He helped these individuals experience service opportunities at the school to meet the needs of their probation by working right alongside them under the direction of their supervising deputies, the award site states.

Kathy Sherman was recognized for her ability to not only effectively teach English as a Second Language, but also for how she cares deeply and individually about each of her students.

This past year she developed a Newcomers Summer School program to help students who were new to the area. The program ran throughout the summer for 19 students, primarily from Ethiopia and Mexico. Two aides and 54 volunteers amassed 219 volunteer hours running the program, providing one-on-one assistance to the students.

The thing in my job, that maybe makes it a little different, is I am a lot of peoples connection to the English-speaking world, Sherman explains in <a href=http://www.kued.org/uea-excellence-teaching-awards-2017#paragraphs-item-2087 target=_blank>her award video</a>. Thats probably one of the fun parts of my job. I do get to know not only the kids but their families.

If they have any needs theres opportunities to help them out with different things that may not have to do with school. I love that part. I love the families, and that is a very rewarding part of my job.

Sherman was nominated by Annette Peterson, a Kindergarten teacher at Ellis Elemenatry School. Peterson praises Shermans ability to connect with the students and care about them outside of the classroom.

Their families oftentimes cannot help them with their homework, Peterson explains. Oftentimes education isnt their top priority. Getting food on the table is their top priority, getting their kids clothed, paying the bills. They have obstacles to overcome and, boy, Kathy is so aware of that and so wants to help them.

Peterson explains that when students and parents dont show up for parent conferences, Sherman calls to offer rides to those without transportation. She also goes further by providing transportation to some of these families who need to go to the grocery store or to a doctor visit, and then translates for them. She helps parents understand their utility bills and legal documents, find housing and arrange for dental care.

We call her St. Kathy at our school because she is such a wonderful person, adds Peterson.

To learn more about the other award recipients, and the award program, <a href=http://www.myuea.org/for_professional_educators/recognition_awards/excellence_in_teaching/2017_excellence_in_teaching.aspx#Profiles target=_blank>click here</a>.
Understanding Cannes through 7 movies

Published on May 29, 2017

Story by Matthieu Amare Translation by: Lara Bullens

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If Cannes is synonymous for a red carpet, short dresses and glitter, the films that are screened take on a different mood: sombre, long and sometimes extremely annoying. They embody a type of cinema that lies somewhere between artistic genius and intellectual masturbation. Here is our small subjective selection, sans Michael Haneke.

The day after the opening ceremony for the 70th year of the Cannes film festival, as many people are talking about Monica Belluci's dress as they are talking about what she had to say. In the creases of her ocean-blue dress, the Italian actress paid hommage to one of the biggest cinema fetivals in the world by linking paraboles and cryptic breezes. The festival is a flavourful mix of glamour and the depths of a very unique cinema.

Is it possible to define a festival that encompasses the realness of social issues and the red carpet? That hosts Pedro Almodovar but also Emily Ratajkowski? Nipples and metatheater? It's definitely not easy to do so. That being said, after years of fame, the Cannes Film Festival always delivers one certainty to the world of cinema: one-of-a-kind films that some find genius, and others find unbearable. What if there was an algorithm we could use to create the perfect Cannes-esque film, using codes like #auteur #social #long #weird? For better or worse, Cafebabel decided to list films that - though they never won the Palme D'Or - embody what Cannes stands for.

The Lobster by Yorgos Lanthimos (2015)

A string of famous actors (John C Reilly, Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz and Lea Seydoux), a Greek director, and a dystopian scenario lay the foundations for this film. But the most Cannes-esque thing about The Lobster is the insanely crazy storyline: a solitary, modern man will be re-incarnated into an animal if he doesn't find love in 45 days. And if that's too vague, well... the title speaks for itself. Somehow, we start to understand how a man can justify that being re-incarnated into a lobster is actually beneficial. Or not.

Mustang by Deniz Gamze Erguven (2015)

It's hot outside, stuffy inside, and the girls are sprawled on the floor. Not unlike The Virgin Suicides, Mustang follows the life of five orphaned sisters living in a small village in the north of Turkey. Once school is out (for summer), they spend their afternoon at the beach playing chicken fights on the shoulders of boys. This carefree attitude is quickly questioned, leaving space for the director Deniz Gamze Erguyen to make a case for freedom, sexuality and female emancipation. The festival algorithm starts to unfold as the girls find themselves stuck between rebellion and a conservative universe. Each scene is like a Botticelli painting where, one at a time, the girls pose like an apathetic Venus. So Cannes.

Venus in Furs by Roman Polanski (2013)

A concentric mirror game, bourgeois ribaldry, metatheater... all of the Cannes stereotypes can be found between the lines of Venus in Furs' script. Pair this with the Emmanuelle Seigner / Mathieu Amalric duo and you get the perfect recipe for a Palme D'Or. Although the film was one of the finalists in 2013, it lost against Abdellatif Kechiche's Blue is the Warmest Colour. Regardless, Roman Polanski avenged his loss at the Cesars when he won the prize for best director, and his film will forever be a movie within a movie, an adaptation of a theater piece within a novel, a certain look within a look, an inception within an inception.

45 years by Andrew Haigh (2016)

Coming out of the blue, 45 years could have been a movie on a mid-life crisis, or even about forty-somethings in the middle of a teenage crisis deciding to give themselves one last rodeo between sex, drama and adventures. But no. 45 years marks the anniversary of a British couple that let life pass them by quietly in a small cottage in an even smaller port town. The protagonists (Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courteney) are reaching their 80s and, while walking their dog Max, think that they have left the oven turned on. Life is quiet until suddenly, Geoff (Courteney) finds out that the Swiss authorities have found the body of his ex-girlfriend frozen in ice. Will Geoff go looking for her? Do anything to find out everything? Scramble to the top of mountains to find out the truth? Nope. He will stay sulking at the soup pot, while Kate (Rampling) sorts through the attic of memories. Cannes I kick it?

Wild Grass by Alain Resnais (2008)

Any movie by Alain Resnais.

The Skin I Live In by Pedro Almodovar (2011)

This film had everything it needed to win: esoteric sex, a plot-twist, Pedro Almodovar and solitude. So. Much. Solitude. Regardless of all the unexpected moments in the film, its entirety passes by very quickly in two hours, between silence and noise. Although it was nominated for the Palme d'Or in 2011, The Skin I Live In didn't win. But Pedro Almodovar was president of the jury this year, so there was bound to be blood and revenge.

Mia Madre by Nani Moretti (2015)

A neurotic director tries to film the daily life of a group of factory workers before their factory is set to close. At the same time, her mother is in agony at the hospital. At the same time, the actor she chose to play the role of the factory boss is a huge ass. And what's more, she just got divorced and is worried about her teenage daughter who is starting to fail at school. Luckily her brother is there to help her, but with his checkered shirts tucked under his polite sweaters, and the fact that Nanni Moretti has influenced him makes him an extremely depressing character. Basically, it's a meh film. But a kind of bourgeois meh that makes us drink Burgundy wine because, as the protagonist does, we are obsessed with kitchen-sink dramas and being a mother. Modern sadness, existential crises, wealthy and neglect: a perfect recipe for Cannes.

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Story by Matthieu Amare Je viens du sud de la France. J'aime les traditions. Mon pere a ete traumatise par Seville 82 contre les Allemands au foot. J'ai du mal avec les Anglais au rugby. J'adore le jambon-beurre. Je n'ai jamais fait Erasmus. Autant vous dire que c'etait mal barre. Et pourtant, je suis redacteur en chef du meilleur magazine sur l'Europe du monde.

Translated from 7 films pour comprendre le festival de Cannes
CAMEROUN :: Cameroon: Two Ivory Tusks Seized in Yaounde and Man Arrested.

A team comprising wildlife and police officers arrested a suspected trafficker who was traveling in a dark blue car with two carved ivory tusks. The man was arrested after the car was stopped and searched, at an entrance to the Bastos neighourhood in Yaounde.

The operation that was carried out by the Centre Regional Delegation for Forestry and Wildlife in collaboration with the police was technically assisted by The Last Great Ape Organistion (LAGA) and is part of governments initiative to track and prosecute wildlife traffickers.,

According to preliminary investigations that was revealed by a source close to the case, the man left Kribi early Monday May 22 to Yaounde. When he arrived the motor park at the Mvan neighbourhood, he boarded another car and made for the north of the town but because he had been under investigations for a while, he was quietly tracked and arrested as he climbed a short drive into the Bastos neighbourhood.

When police stopped the car, the alarmed man fidgeted and pushed the bag he was carrying in between his legs. He was asked to pull open the bag and two ivory tusks were recovered among underwear which he had used to wrap the ivory, with the intention to repel anyone who was keen on seeing what was bulging from the bundle. Traffickers are used to various concealment techniques and many say this is the first time they are uncovering the use of underwear to hide ivory.

The same unnamed sources said the 37-year old Kribi resident intended to travel to Meiganga for to get more wildlife products but needed to conduct business here in Yaounde so that he could have sufficient money for the trip to Meiganga  a town which seems to be turning out into a trafficking hub in the Adamawa region. An operation was carried out there in April and three people were arrested for lion and leopard skin trafficking.

The trafficker was pulled out of the car and taken to the police station, where could be heard denying that it was not ivory but bones which he had carved to trick clients into buying them. This is a new defence strategy used by ivory traffickers who pretend that what they have is not ivory but carved bones, presumably from cattle, when they are arrested. Prices for illegal ivory has been up for quite a few decades now and this is sustaining the black market for ivory where huge profits may be made and for this reason, some even try to sell bones when they cant get ivory but when they equally use trick to trick wildlife officials that what they have are bones not ivory when arrested with ivory. Officials are generally not fooled by this maneuver because they very well know the difference between the two and a technique using the Schreger lines are used when in doubt.

The 1994 wildlife law prohibits the trade in protected wildlife species and traffickers arrested breaking the law may face up to 3 years imprisonment and a fine of up to10 million CFA Francs. Wildlife officials are presently doing preliminary work for prosecution proper to begin and charges including unlawful possession, circulation of and commercialization of ivory and killing of a protected species, in this instance an elephant are expected to be brought against the suspect who is presently behind bars. He was presented to the state counsel two days after his arrest.
| BY Lynchy |

Nigel Marsh, chief executive of Y&R Brands has confirmed publicly for the first time that Matt McGrath, executive chairman of Y&R Brands, has left George Patterson Y&R.

Marsh (pictured) told CB: Matt has been a total gentleman during the process of handing over the business. Hes welcome to stay as long as he likes. However, he has decided to take a break from the business before pursuing fresh opportunities in the New Year.
| BY Lynchy |

TENs new chief executive Hamish McLennan, the former worldwide CEO of Y&R, has lured former Y&R Australia colleague Matt McGrath to the new position of chief brand officer.

McGrath joins fellow Y&R executive Russell Howcroft, who was appointed general manager of TEN Melbourne last year.

In more recent times, McGrath was a marketing adviser to Lasoo, and was a board member of Opus Group.
| BY Ricki Green |

Armchair Productions director Stefan Wernik has just finished his second film for Australia for UNHCR. A charity that raises money for the UNs refugee programmes.

The film tells the true story of Adut who spent two years alone in a war zone after being separated from her parents. Through her story the project highlights the sad fact that thousands of children are left alone and in danger each year and asks you to donate to help protect them.

It was decided with the client early on to make the film a story of courage and success to inspire people to donate rather than guilt them into it. The client also wanted to use animation to differentiate the appeal from other charities and produce something unique.

To this end the film uses bold colour and design to leap off the page on social media. It is also inspired by the dazzling colour combinations of Sudanese art and textiles. Dark Blues and angry reds were used in the early stages of her Journey with the palette turning golden as she finds help. Using a combination of 2D and After Effects the film takes the approach of showing the strength and resilience of Adut while lost in huge landscapes. She is purposefully small in fame at the start of her journey while close ups at the end convey her happiness.

Says Wernik: We never wanted to portray the refugees as victims but show a success story for both Adut and the UN. The Armchair team did a fantastic job of conveying that.

The film will be sent to donors and used on social media in the coming weeks.
| BY Ricki Green |

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity has today announced new networking opportunities to enhance the Festival experience for its global attendees.

Cannes Lions has joined forces with Accenture Interactive as its Connections Partner to launch new initiatives that combine digital technology with real-world networking, creating innovative ways for festival goers to connect throughout the week.

Braindates is a new, highly innovative networking and peer-learning platform to support the Cannes Lions global community to meet and learn from each other. Taking place at the new Connections Beach, Braindates, powered by e180, allows attendees to connect with the right people and book one-on-one networking sessions based on shared passion and knowledge, regardless of career level. All official Cannes Lions delegates can log in to the Braindates website to book and Offer their experience, or Request knowledge on subjects of interest. The Cannes Lions Connections Beach will have onsite Matchmakers to help facilitate 1-on-1 connections between 10am to 3pm daily throughout the Festival.

New this year, the Connect Band is a piece of wearable technology to make networking easier. Attendees can pick up their Connect Band throughout the festival to facilitate digital data exchange. Once a delegate registers their wristband, they simply bump bands with other wearers to swap contact information, and download it through a smartphone app.

Says Jose Papa, managing director of Cannes Lions: Cannes Lions is all about driving ideas and fostering new partnerships and were delighted to be able to blend digital and real world connections with both Braindates and the Connect Band this year. Its an opportunity for our global community to learn from each, be challenged and inspired  we cant wait to get started.

Says Anatoly Roytman, head of EALA, Accenture Interactive: Cannes Lions welcomes thousands of the industrys best and brightest and while many cite networking as a major reason for coming, the process can be overwhelming. Through the Connect Band and Braindates, were helping to remove barriers and connect people for meaningful conversations in a fun, easy to use way. Were excited to be the Cannes Lions Connections Partner, helping to bring the industry together.
| BY Ricki Green |

Experience design agency, Imagination Australia has unveiled a landmark, multisensory installation for Ford Australia at Vivid Sydney 2017.

Designed to bring Fords global brand strategy to life, the experience in the heart of Sydney Harbour is the centrepiece of Ford Australias partnership with Vivid Sydney. The partnership also includes two future-facing innovation panels presented by Ford at the Vivid Ideas Exchange.

Vivid Sydney and Ford have created a spectacular state-of-the-art, interactive light and motion installation opposite the iconic Sydney Opera House.

The interactive light installation has engaged Australias finest lighting designers, motion specialists, structural engineers, music composers and programming wizards. The breathtaking result is five giant illuminated swings that create a spectacular sound and light show, that is sure to be a highlight of Vivid Sydney 2017.

With both interactive and autonomous modes, the kinetic light show allows Vivid Sydney guests to engage with the installation and create their own art, or stand back and enjoy a breathtaking display where each swing is suspended at its limit before they all orbit together in a choreographed performance.

Aptly named Freedom of Movement, the interactive kinetic light installation draws inspiration from Henry Fords vision to change the way the world moves by fusing colour, light, sound and motion to showcase Fords ongoing commitment to go further and inspire the future of mobility.

Ford Australia will also take centre stage in two Vivid Ideas sessions, further exploring the Freedom of Movement narrative, focusing on the global mobility revolution and examining the innovation imperative. Both Vivid Ideas and Vivid Light perfectly articulate Fords invigorated Australian innovation focus. The creative activity highlights Fords ongoing commitment to Australia, employing a 2,000-strong team at their global product development centre in Victoria.

Says Martin Gunsberg, director of communications, Ford Australia: Engaging with both Vivid Light and Vivid Ideas created the perfect opportunity for Ford to showcase its ambitions to the nation. Both the installation and panel sessions will let the people of Sydney explore the direction Ford is taking in to the future and engage with our vision of the Freedom of Movement.

It has been wonderful working with Vivid Sydney and Imagination to bring our ideas to life. The innovation mind-set of both organisations has helped us create a spectacular kinetic light show that combines the wonder of motion with our focus on mobility, taking the humble swing beyond anything we could ever have imagined.

Says Georgina Crichton, business manager, Imagination: Vivid Sydney was the perfect platform to share Fords vision for the future. Ford has an innovative approach to meet the rapid pace of change in the world and Vivid Sydney has a reputation for showcasing creativity, innovation and progressive design, so its the perfect partnership.

We wanted to harness the synergy between Fords fresh brand identity and Vivid Sydneys vibrant buzz by creating an experience that pushes the boundaries of public engagement. Everyone working on the project has been swept up in the vibe, which speaks wonders for the work Ford and Vivid Sydney do to inspire the public and start meaningful conversations. Mobility is one of the most exciting areas of human innovation, and Fords presence at Vivid Sydney underscores their enduring leadership in the space, she continued.

Says Ignatius Jones, creative director, Vivid Sydney: At Vivid Sydney we explore the creative space where art and technology intersect and Fords Freedom of Movement installation encapsulates this concept. With the spectacular backdrop of Sydneys most iconic landmarks, its set to be a real highlight of this years festival.

The Freedom of Movement installation will be displayed every evening from 18:00-23:00 at Hickson Reserve as part of the Vivid Sydney Light Walk until the 17 June 2017.

Ford Australias Vivid Ideas:

Session 1: Mobility Revolution  29th May, 18:00-20:00 at the MCA
Police said McLeod lost about $73,000 on pokie machines at clubs throughout the ACT in 2013 and 2014, although he later told officers: "There's no way, it's not possible for me to spend that amount of money."
Sponsored contentQ. SWIFTEL International has recently established its Carrier Services Division (SWIFTEL ICS). Can you tell us more about this entity?

SWIFTEL International was founded in Kuwait in 1995 and was providing since then several telecom services for all local operators in Kuwait  be it ZAIN, Ooredoo & VIVA.

Over the years, SWIFTEL International has built a history of performance and foresight in the telecommunications industry, and we, as SWIFTEL ICS, do enjoy the advantages of this successful track.

Also, we do leverage on the distinguished and influential presence our mother company Al Wazzan Group had sustained through its portfolio of businesses devoted to serve the worldwide community.

SWIFTEL ICS is an evolving carrier that is being engaged in revolutionary business practices in the voice industry, through handling a competitive portfolio of direct routes and international destinations, strategic partnerships, in addition to offering an array of voice turnkey services and solutions.

Q. What do you perceive from your participation in ITW 2017 as a main sponsor?

ITW hosts the biggest wholesale community worldwide, and hence participating in such a key event is particularly crucial to us.

In fact, we aim at creating awareness, raising our profile, and introducing SWIFTEL ICS to a broader base of clients and suppliers from the industry.

In parallel, we are looking into possible promising collaboration with operators and carriers across the world, and to strengthen our strategic alliances.

As a main sponsor, we perceive a fruitful and prosperous partnership with ITW to make this event a truly beneficial platform for the wholesale community, and to pave the way for international partnerships and growth.

Q. What about SWIFTEL ICSs future plans and next steps?

2017 seems an exciting year so far; yet very challenging!

Facing the challenges in the industry, carriers are still urged to provide high-quality, reliable and affordable voice services, while remaining competitive!

SWIFTEL ICS is being inspired by its mother company to employ its full potential for developing several emerging markets, pursue a profitable business model, and demonstrate growth rates in the very near future.

SWIFTEL ICS is also accompanying the trend of providing e-services, data services, IOT and servicing MVNOs.
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 ...
Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact.

Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. If you find yourself aligning with any of those folks, you can move along, nothing to see here.

Care2 Stands With: humanitarians, animal lovers, feminists, rabble-rousers, nature-buffs, creatives, the naturally curious, and people who really love to do the right thing.

You are our people. You Care. We Care2.
EU Ministers have agreed on new draft rules for approving cars as a response to VWs Dieselgate, giving the European Commission the power to fine cheating car companies directly.



The new rules, which still have to be discussed with the European Parliament before they become law, will allow more national authorities to review licenses for the whole European Union as well as revoke them.

Under the current system, national bodies such as Germanys KBA, have the authority to clear or ban new vehicles for the EU region.

According to Reuters, European diplomats have said that Germany was reluctant hand greater surveillance powers to the European Commission, despite the recent VW Dieselgate scandal.

During the ministers meeting, German junior economy minister Matthias Machnig said that Germany is in favor of strengthening oversight but his country wants more assurances on how to avoid a conflict between different agencies.

PHOTO GALLERY
Theres no shortage of classic car concours or their accompanying auctions on the calendar each year, but few can compete with the Concorso dEleganza Villa dEste for the sheer beauty of the vehicles displayed and changing hands. And this years event was no exception, with RM Sothebys setting several new records.



Though some pre-war French classics fetched the highest prices, the one we were most keenly watching was this vintage Porsche 911.

Though it may look a little battered, this very rare 93 Carrera RSR 3.8 is actually brand-spanking-new. That discoloration you see on the bodywork is actually a film originally applied at the factory to protect it in transit, and it was never removed. One of only 51 made, this example was special-ordered with a full red leather interior, and with just six miles on the odometer, it sold for an astounding 2,016,000  equivalent to over $2.25 million, setting a new record for the 964 model.

The Porsche wasnt even the top lot of the day, though. That 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C went for 3,360,000 ($3.76m), and the Bugatti Type 57 Atalante prototype for 3,024,000 ($3.8m)  the latter setting a record of its own for non-S models.

Eight vehicles broke into seven digits, including a 1965 Ferrari 275 GTS (1.8m), a Weissach-kitted 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder (1.5m), a 64 Ferrari 250 GT Lusso (1.4m), a 48 Talbot-Lago T26 (1.1m), and a 1990 Ferrari F40 (1m). Other notable lots included an early 1975 Lamborghini Countach LP400 (817k), a 2016 Porsche 911 R (358k), an 85 Lancia Delta S4 Stradale (492k), and a pair of late-80s Aston Martin V8 Vantage Zagatos  coupe and convertible  that brought in 380k and 459k, respectively.

All told, the auction saw over 25 million in sales. Noticeably missing from the auction results, however, were a concours-winning 1928 Mercedes 680 S Torpedo, a 2016 McLaren P1 GTR, a 2014 LaFerrari, a 2004 Ferrari Enzo, and a 1930 Alfa Romeo 6C 1950  each of which was expected to sell for millions, but evidently failed to reach their reserve prices and therefor remain in their consigning owners hands.

Photo Gallery
Takuma Sato has become the first Japanese driver to claim victory at the Indianapolis 500 after overtaking three-time winner Helio Castroneves with just six laps remaining.

Takuma Sato has become the first Japanese driver to claim victory at the Indianapolis 500 after overtaking three-time winner Helio Castroneves with just six laps remaining.



The race started at a frantic pace with Will Power from Team Penske screaming off the line to jump from ninth all the way to second place behind pole sitter Scott Dixon. Power soon dropped back down the field and by lap 10 was pushed down to 10th following a series of overtakes from the likes of Carpenter, Kanaan, Rossi, Hildebrand, Andretti, Sato, Hunter-Reay and Alonso.

As the race progressed, the top drivers shuffled and switched positions until the first pitstop was taken by Kanaan on lap 28. Just nine laps later, IndyCar rookie Fernando Alonso slipped into first place for a number of laps.

A huge crash involving Jay Howard and Scott Dixon on lap 53 (video below) led to the race being red flagged due to the damage Dixons car caused to the fencing.

In the ensuing laps, drivers continued to trade places and by the time the half way point of the race had been reached, it was looking as though the Chevrolet and Honda-powered cars would continue to fight it out until the very end. However, on lap 136, the Honda engine of Ryan Hunter-Reay blew up and shortly after, Rossi fell to 21st position after stalling in the pits.

On lap 179, after looking to grab sixth from Hildebrand, the engine of Fernando Alonsos car gave up the ghost, spelling an end to what had been a memorable Indy 500 debut for the Spaniard.

In the closing dozen laps, ex-Formula 1 driver Max Chilton led the way and was closely followed by Castroneves. Shortly after, the Brazilian overtook Chilton for the lead but before long, Sato passed Chilton and soon made the winning move on Castroneves.

Speaking to the media after the race, Sato said Unbelievable! Its the best feeling. Its beautiful. I cant thank enough this team. Hopefully the crowd enjoyed it! With three laps to go I really didnt know but I just knew I had to go for it!

Videos courtesy of IndyCar/YouTube

VIDEO
Ever wonder how it is that the alien robots from Transformers ended up looking like cars and trucks from our own planet? As any dedicated fan could tell you, its because they adopted the forms of the vehicles they saw when they arrived. Or so the story goes.



But what if they hadnt landed in America? What if the shape-shifting creatures from another planet had landed, in say, Russia? Well theyd probably have ended up looking something like this.

This Russian version of Optimus Prime was created by a a father and son who were inspired by the movies, but based their creation on a Lada instead of a Freightliner truck or a Chevy Camaro. It even features (hopefully simulated) firing guns and flashing lights.

Check it out in the video below, filmed at a demonstration event in Oryol in southwestern Russia near the border with Belarus and Ukraine. Who knows, maybe if thered been a few of these around when the Bolsheviks took over, the country (and much of the rest of the world) wouldnt have fallen under the yoke of Communism for the better (or worse) part of a century.

Video
Photo: Toronto Star

Helens face may have launched a thousand ships, but honour drew the cream of Greece to man them.

Honour to self, enemies, country, family and society shaped civilizations and literature, but we dont hear much about it any more, at least not outside a courtroom. And if were in one, its a good idea to call the judge your honour.

But it wasnt just Greek hoplites, Japanese samurai and English knights who demanded adherence to a strict code of honour.

Religions and philosophical traditions expected its followers to honour their parents, to keep a holy day, and to live an exemplary life. But as we distance ourselves from our roots, from the source of our being, from the nature that formed us, we forget the wonder in our life.

We dont have the rituals and myths to remind us of lifes changes and our connection to all things.

While we dont dance around campfires much any more, or paint our bodies, except when we have a big interview or bigger date, we can still live with honour.

The fourth commandment suggested keeping the Sabbath holy and the fifth recommended honouring our parents. Of course, to Jews  and later to Christians  they were laws not suggestions. They were supposed to be written on hearts and not just on stone.

Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you a holy day, a Sabbath of rest to the Lord; whosoever does work therein shall be put to death, is the way the King James Version of the Bible records it.

No matter what our faith or lack thereof, it wouldnt hurt to stick the other commandments on the fridge door. By practising them, we honour ourselves and everyone we meet.

Even if we lust for a new car or a new house, we know we shouldnt worship idols, whether theyre money, fame or movie stars.

Not lying, cheating, killing or coveting our neighbours wife or husband  and his new boat make us better people and keep us out of trouble and out of jail.

We should treat every day and each moment as holy because that long string of moments makes a life, our life, the only one we have, or might ever have.

The quality of these moments  even those spent in long lines in banks, government offices, traffic and airports  determines the quality of our life.

Not only should we honour our parents, but our spouse, our children, our boss, our co-workers and the person who cheats us.

We can learn to see the wonder in the person who cuts us off in traffic and appreciate the boss who orders us to stay late to make up for a co-worker who left early.

The beauty we saw in our newborn child still shines in the grown one even when s/he doesnt bring the car home on time and uses our debit card more liberally than s/he should.

Our goal should be to treat everything with honour especially the moments when we least feel like it; when were tired and that three-hour airport layover has turned into four and most people on the flight seem to be under five and tired and cranky.

Even when its the last place we want to be, we must have the courage and discipline to be exactly where we are and not where we wish to be.

Beatrice now understood that whatever crossed her path  each creature, person, even weather conditions  had a unique purpose for existing, Marlo Morgan wrote in Mutant Message From Forever, her second novel about Australian aborigines.

Her goal was to honour by acceptance, not necessarily understanding what was taking place.

Oh, but we have a need to understand, to intellectually rip apart everything that crosses the screen of our mind, no matter how much time it takes and turmoil it creates. Were afraid not to know because that means we arent in control.

Yet, if we let go and honour the moment, we shift from the need to control to acceptance, and break the chains that bind us to a restricting belief system.

Every day brings gifts that you have ordered and each day you place more orders, Gary Zukav wrote in Soul Stories.

You do this by setting your intentions and acting on them. The universe takes your orders and delivers. Everyone gets what she or he ordered. If you order fear, you get it. If you order love, you get it.

Were always creating our own reality, but we pretend that life is something that just happens, that thoughts just pop into our heads, that emotions just erupt from nowhere, that we are victims of a cosmic jokester.

The only time that matters is now, each moment, each dot, Morgan wrote. If we live each day to the best of our ability, doing everything with the highest level of integrity, we will be successful on this journey as a human.

We all face a variation of the same stress, the same physical and psychic pain, but how we process them shapes who we become. The wise change what they can and accept what they cant, which reduces the wear and tear on body and mind.

You are the product of your own thought, Claude Bristol wrote in The Magic of Believing. What you believe yourself to be, you are.

Socrates had a similar thought:

The shortest and surest way to live with honour in the world is to be, in reality, what we would appear to be; all human virtues increase and strengthen themselves by the practice and experience of them.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.
Photo: VSAR Vernon Search and Rescue retrieves yet another injured dirt biker.

A Vernon Search and Rescue team successfully retrieved an injured dirt biker out of backcountry on the west side of Okanagan Lake, in the Sugarloaf Mountain area, on Saturday night, but it wasn't easy.

Volunteers were called out around 9:30 p.m. by BC Ambulance and had to inch along a system of trails to reach the injured man.

"He broke his femur. It was a serious break," said Leigh Pearson, Vernon's search manager.

"He was in ugly country. There were no roads of course, just trails. We went most of the way by road and then one of our team had a small Toyota truck. He literally scraped the bushes along the trail to reach the injured person. We carried the fellow in a stretcher along the trail and put him in the back of the truck. He was driven slowly for about one-and-a-half kilometres to our bigger SAR truck that has a patient bay and then driven another four or five kilometres to a waiting BC Ambulance crew."

Pearson said members of the North Westside Fire Department also took part in the rescue.

When asked how many dirt bikers VSAR had rescued in the last eight days, Pearson said: "Four or five, I've lost count."
Photo: Contributed

A fatal crash in Surrey's Cloverdale area on Sunday has police asking for the public's help to determine how the crash occurred.

Police responded to the crash at around 11:40 a.m. on Sunday at the 18000 block of Highway 10, where a westbound vehicle struck a utility pole off the road.

The male 48-year-old driver was taken to a local hospital in critical condition, where he was declared dead upon arrival, according to Surrey RCMP.

Police are still investigating the crash, including whether a medical emergency was involved in the crash.

Witnesses and people who have any further information on the incident are asked to call Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502. Those who wish to remain anonymous can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or www.solvecrime.ca, quoting file number 2017-71176.
Photo: B.C. Wildfire Service

The B.C. Wildfire Service is battling a nine-hectare blaze eight kilometres outside of Lillooet, according to its Facebook page.

Two homes have reportedly been placed on evacuation alert, however officials don't believe there is imminent danger to anyone at this time.

Five personnel were on scene as of 8 p.m., however it's not clear if that number will remain overnight.

Along with those five personnel, airtanker support Sunday afternoon, two helicopters, two tenders and a 10-pack crew have been deployed, while the local First Nations fire department provides assistance.

The BCWS active fires map indicates that the fire is believed to have been caused by a person.

Castanet will update as more information becomes available.
Photo: CTV

Several pedestrians were struck by a vehicle at the entrance to Granville Island in Vancouver, Sunday evening.

The area was behind police tape as officers investigated at West 4th Avenue, underneath the overpass.

A blue Mazda was seen with a shattered windshield, and a man was taken away in handcuffs.

The condition of the victims is not known.

 with files from CTV Vancouver
Photo: CTV

Police are investigating reports of a man exposing himself to children near a Victoria-area elementary school.

A man allegedly exposed himself to children near Macaulay Elementary School, at approximately 3 p.m.

A few minutes later, another incident was reported not far away.

In both instances, he approached the children and lifted his shirt, showing his pants were open and his genitals exposed, police say.

The second child said the same man had exposed himself earlier this year, but the incident was not reported.

The suspect is described as Caucasian, 25 to 30 years old, with a medium build, five foot seven to five foot nine inches tall, with short, dirty blond or brown hair.

Police say the description is similar to that in an April 28 incident.

Police are urging parents to speak to their children to help keep them safe.

 with files from CTV Vancouver Island
Photo: CTV

Hundreds of people have completed a 75-kilometre march in protest of the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

The four-day trek called Walk For the Salish Sea ended with a rally in Burnaby Sunday afternoon with speeches scheduled from federal Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan and Grand Chief Stewart Phillip.

Texas-based Kinder Morgan recently gave a conditional financial go-ahead for the expansion, which would triple the amount of Alberta oil that flows to B.C.'s coast and increase tanker traffic by seven-fold.

Rally organizer Joel Ornoy says the pipeline poses a serious risk for the environment, nearby residents and economy if a spill were to occur.

In addition to putting a spotlight on the issue, Ornoy says the march raised thousands of dollars for indigenous groups fighting the pipeline proposal in the courts.

Kinder Morgan has said the company received the necessary approvals from the federal government for the project and is aiming to begin construction this fall.
Photo: The Canadian Press B.C. Green party leader Andrew Weaver and B.C. NDP leader John Horgan at Sunday rugby match.

Two British Columbia political leaders at the centre of negotiations to set the direction for the province's immediate political future sat together Sunday at an international rugby match at Westhills Stadium near Victoria.

John Horgan, leader of the New Democratic Party, and Andrew Weaver, Green party leader, said politics was far from the agenda as they cheered on Canada's rugby squad in a final game against New Zealand.

Canada's women's rugby sevens team ended up losing to New Zealand in the finals of the HSBC World Rugby Women's Sevens Series event at Langford, just west of Victoria.

Weaver said he saw Horgan in the crowd and the two decided to sit together.

Both Horgan and Weaver have played rugby in the past and are fans of the sport.

The two leaders said they were cheering on Canada and not talking politics. Though Weaver said he was meeting with the Liberal party later in the evening.

Weaver said the parties have looked at a range of examples of minority governments in Canada and overseas to determine how to proceed, and he isnt interested in a coalition government because that would undermine the Greens ability to defend their platform.

Weaver suggested Sunday he might be prepared to announce a deal with either the NDP or Liberals on Tuesday.
Photo: Contributed

UPDATE: 11:10 a.m.

A man reported missing this morning in the area of Okanagan Lake Resort has been located.

West Kelowna RCMP confirm that 59-year-old Kevin Larson is safe and sound.



"RCMP wish to thank all those involved in the initial ground search in rural West Kelowna," said Cpl. Jesse O'Donaghey. "We'd also like to extend our gratitude to those who participated in the extended search efforts led by the dedicated volunteers of Central Okanagan Search and Rescue."

ORIGINAL: 9 a.m.

West Kelowna RCMP are seeking the publics help in locating a missing Ontario man.

Kevin Larson of Thunder Bay was last seen at Lake Okanagan Resort Sunday morning.

Central Okanagan Search and Rescue crews were called when the man's vehicle and personal belongings were left behind, said Cpl. Jesse ODonaghey.

Search and rescue crews searched for hours, before suspending search efforts late in the evening.

A friend of Larson's said he was last seen about 1:45 a.m. on Sunday and he has been visiting the Okanagan since early May.

There is nothing to indicate foul play at this time.

Larson is described as 59, five feet 10 inches tall, with grey hair and a beard. He was last seen wearing black pants, a black shirt and black crocs.

Anyone with information is asked to call police or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Photo: wikimedia commons Foreigner's Kelly Hansen

The South Okanagan Events Centre is announcing they will be hosting Foreigner and Honeymoon Suite on Saturday, Oct. 21.

Behind songs like Cold as Ice and Hot Blooded, Foreigner is touring Canada to support their 40th anniversary album, which will feature 40 hits from 40 years.

I never could have imagined when I set out to create Foreigner forty years ago, that wed still be touring around the world and performing the music we love all these years later, said founding member and lead guitarist Mick Jones in a news release.

Iconic Canadian rock band Honeymoon Suite will open all ten tour dates across Western Canada.

Tickets go on sale Friday for $45, $65, $75 and $89.50.
Photo: Deborah Pfeiffer A damaged window at Ginza Japanese on Monday morning

Ginza Japanese Restaurant will be closed for some time, following a kitchen fire Sunday evening on Pentictons Front Street.

"All the kitchen is burned badly, so it will take us awhile to re-open," said the distressed owners, as they waited to speak with the fire inspector on Monday morning.

Other businesses that share the building, including Burger 55, Front Street Gallery, 30 Minute Hit and Front Street Brasserie, are open, or working to reopen after the scare.

Donny Jones, an employee at Burger 55, said it was worrying when they initially heard about it, but they were able to open Monday.

"I got a phone call at home and came down and Burger 55 had been evacuated," he said. "I went out and looked at what was going on and the firefighters then gave us the OK to close the restaurant.

"It was a little scary getting a frantic call from your kitchen manager saying the building is on fire, but we're fine and we've been given the OK to open today."

Next door at 30 Minute Hit, there is a sign up saying they are closed Monday due to the fire, with plans to reopen at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

John Burke, who owns Front Street Brasserie with his wife Lisa, said they are dealing with smoke damage. They hope to reopen later in the week.

"It's worrying and we've contacted the insurance and restoration companies," he said. "And I feel bad for the restaurant owners ."

Partners at Front Street Gallery said they were awaiting word from the fire inspector on any smoke damage.
Photo: Thinkstock.com

The District of Hope is set to defend its title as having the best water in B.C.

Judges will sip and swirl at the B.C. Water & Waste Association's fourth annual Tap Water Taste Test in Victoria, Tuesday.

Hope will defend its title against other municipal and regional district water purveyors for bragging rights and water utility glory.

A panel of selected aqualiers or judges will sample and judge water at the BCWWA's annual conference, which is attended by more than 1,200 professionals from across B.C. and the Yukon. The aqualiers will evaluate the entries based on appearance, aroma, taste, mouth feel, aftertaste, and overall impression.

The event takes place at the Victoria Conference Centre.

Judges include: Robert Haller, executive director, Canadian Water and Wastewater Association, Jon Eaton, vice-president, American Water Works Association, Rick Warner, president, Water Environment Federation, and Kim Pullen, owner or Church & State Wines.

Okanagan entrants include Big White Water Utility and the City of Penticton.
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This image captures the spread of radioactivity from a hypothetical fire in a high-density spent-fuel pool at the Peach Bottom Nuclear Power Plant in Pennsylvania. In this scenario, several major cities would be affected by contamination. Based on the guidance from the US Environmental Protection Agency and the experience from the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents, populations in the red and orange areas would have to be relocated for many years, and many in the yellow area would relocate voluntarily. The projection is based on actual weather patterns that occurred in April 2015.

This image captures the spread of radioactivity from a hypothetical fire in a high-density spent-fuel pool at the Peach Bottom Nuclear Power Plant in Pennsylvania. Based on the guidance from the US Environmental Protection Agency and the experience from the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents, populations in the red and orange areas would have to be relocated for many years, and many in the yellow area would relocate voluntarily. In this scenario, which is based on real weather patterns that occurred in July 2015, four major cities would be contaminated (New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C.), resulting in the displacement of millions of people.

This image captures the spread of radioactivity from a hypothetical fire in a high-density spent-fuel pool at the Peach Bottom Nuclear Power Plant in Pennsylvania. In this scenario, which is based on real weather patterns that occurred in January 2015, New York City and Philadelphia would be highly contaminated, forcing millions of people to evacuate. Based on guidance from the US Environmental Protection Agency and the experience from the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents, populations in the red and orange areas would have to be relocated for many years, and many in the yellow area would relocate voluntarily.

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) relied on faulty analysis to justify its refusal to adopt a critical measure for protecting Americans from the occurrence of a catastrophic nuclear-waste fire at any one of dozens of reactor sites around the country, according to an article in the May 26 issue of Science magazine. Fallout from such a fire could be considerably larger than the radioactive emissions from the 2011 Fukushima accident in Japan.

Published by researchers from Princeton University and the Union of Concerned Scientists, the article argues that NRC inaction leaves the public at high risk from fires in spent-nuclear-fuel cooling pools at reactor sites. The pools -- water-filled basins that store and cool used radioactive fuel rods -- are so densely packed with nuclear waste that a fire could release enough radioactive material to contaminate an area twice the size of New Jersey. On average, radioactivity from such an accident could force approximately 8 million people to relocate and result in $2 trillion in damages.

These catastrophic consequences, which could be triggered by a large earthquake or a terrorist attack, could be largely avoided by regulatory measures that the NRC refuses to implement. Using a biased regulatory analysis, the agency excluded the possibility of an act of terrorism as well as the potential for damage from a fire beyond 50 miles of a plant. Failing to account for these and other factors led the NRC to significantly underestimate the destruction such a disaster could cause.

"The NRC has been pressured by the nuclear industry, directly and through Congress, to low-ball the potential consequences of a fire because of concerns that increased costs could result in shutting down more nuclear power plants," said paper co-author Frank von Hippel, a senior research physicist at Princeton's Program on Science and Global Security (SGS), based at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. "Unfortunately, if there is no public outcry about this dangerous situation, the NRC will continue to bend to the industry's wishes."

Von Hippel's co-authors are Michael Schoeppner, a former postdoctoral researcher at Princeton's SGS, and Edwin Lyman, a senior scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Spent-fuel pools were brought into the spotlight following the March 2011 nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan. A 9.0-magnitude earthquake caused a tsunami that struck the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, disabling the electrical systems necessary for cooling the reactor cores. This led to core meltdowns at three of the six reactors at the facility, hydrogen explosions, and a release of radioactive material.

"The Fukushima accident could have been a hundred times worse had there been a loss of the water covering the spent fuel in pools associated with each reactor," von Hippel said. "That almost happened at Fukushima in Unit 4."

In the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster, the NRC considered proposals for new safety requirements at U.S. plants. One was a measure prohibiting plant owners from densely packing spent-fuel pools, requiring them to expedite transfer of all spent fuel that has cooled in pools for at least five years to dry storage casks, which are inherently safer. Densely packed pools are highly vulnerable to catching fire and releasing huge amounts of radioactive material into the atmosphere.

The NRC analysis found that a fire in a spent-fuel pool at an average nuclear reactor site would cause $125 billion in damages, while expedited transfer of spent fuel to dry casks could reduce radioactive releases from pool fires by 99 percent. However, the agency decided the possibility of such a fire is so unlikely that it could not justify requiring plant owners to pay the estimated cost of $50 million per pool.

The NRC cost-benefit analysis assumed there would be no consequences from radioactive contamination beyond 50 miles from a fire. It also assumed that all contaminated areas could be effectively cleaned up within a year. Both of these assumptions are inconsistent with experience after the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents.

In two previous articles, von Hippel and Schoeppner released figures that correct for these and other errors and omissions. They found that millions of residents in surrounding communities would have to relocate for years, resulting in total damages of $2 trillion -- nearly 20 times the NRC's result. Considering the nuclear industry is only legally liable for $13.6 billion, thanks to the Price Anderson Act of 1957, U.S. taxpayers would have to cover the remaining costs.

The authors point out that if the NRC does not take action to reduce this danger, Congress has the authority to fix the problem. Moreover, the authors suggest that states that provide subsidies to uneconomical nuclear reactors within their borders could also play a constructive role by making those subsidies available only for plants that agreed to carry out expedited transfer of spent fuel.

"In far too many instances, the NRC has used flawed analysis to justify inaction, leaving millions of Americans at risk of a radiological release that could contaminate their homes and destroy their livelihoods," said Lyman. "It is time for the NRC to employ sound science and common-sense policy judgments in its decision-making process."
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Tampere University of Technology (TUT) and Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK) are creating an extensive research infrastructure in Finland. This alliance will provide new business opportunities for Finnish industry, as manufacturing begins to benefit from research environments and machines. Automation and robotics, 3D printing and digital product development are the focus areas of the infrastructures.

Sharing will multiply the use of separate infrastructures, when a range of research environments are available to companies, and to VTT, TUT and TAMK which are providing the research infrastructure. The idea is to facilitate and accelerate demos, prototypes, piloting and product development without major investments. This will create new volumes for large project preparation activities, which will increase the chances of involvement in major, international programmes. The result will be new expertise, and improved competitiveness and productivity in Finnish manufacturing.

High-quality, international cooperation requires strong centres of expertise of the kind appearing here, stresses Professor Kari T. Koskinen of TUT.

One-stop shop at SMACC

The Smart Machines and Manufacturing Centre SMACC, which was founded by VTT and TUT in 2015, serves as a platform for combining infrastructures. Such infrastructures will be made available to Finnish manufacturers via SMACCs website in stages from 29 May. Agile practices will be adapted to meet companies needs as experience of such needs is gained. The SMACC expert network will help clients to find and benefit from the right kind of infrastructure.

Practical cooperation will create more opportunities to help companies on a one-stop-shop basis, says Risto Kuivanen, Business Development Manager at VTT.

VTT, TUT and TAMKs research infrastructures are categorised on the website into digital systems, smart machines, robots and material development. Each of these includes several modules in support of challenging manufacturing, such as the latest measuring devices for creating experimental prototypes. For example, digital systems include industrial 3D printers for materials such as plastic, ceramics and metal printers.

This infra-alliance will also provide excellent support for Tampere3s development, says Mika Ijas, Principal Lecturer at TAMK.
In this Thursday, May 11, 2017, photo, Penelope Daversa, 4, plays with a fidget spinner at the Funky Monkey Toys store, in Oxford, Mich. Stores can't keep them in stock and parents are going crazy trying to find them. (Carlos Osorio / AP)

I have a couple things to say about Mrs. Eilhauer's fourth-grade class at Wescott School in Northbrook.

First, I will be hiring the students to write most if not all of my future columns, because they seem quite good at this writing thing and, frankly, I could use a break. I'm hoping they don't charge too much.

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Second, from this day forward, I will screen all the letters and email I receive and only read messages written by members of Mrs. Eilhauer's fourth-grade class. These students are polite and good spellers, and they don't call me mean names or suggest that my face looks like the butt of some type of farm animal.

You're probably wondering why I'm talking so much about Mrs. Eilhauer's fourth-graders. It's because they responded, en masse, to a recent column I wrote about fidget spinners, those spinny aroundy plastic thingys that every kid has 15 of and every school wants to ban like asbestos.

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I suggested that these spinners are a threat to America, as many of them are made in China and the Chinese want us all so distracted by spinners that they can effortlessly invade and take over the country.

Seemed like a pretty reasonable conclusion. The column struck a chord with people here and across the country, leading to all manner of feedback.

Jane Eilhauer  the aforementioned Mrs. Eilhauer  sent me a collection of essays she had her students write in response to my highly intelligent spinner conspiracy theory. And I have to say, I was overwhelmed. Some agreed, some disagreed, some agreed and disagreed, and some cooked up conspiracy theories of their own.

Nate, for example, wrote: "You see, with fidgets China has taken over our brains. Soon when they have taken over our brains they will try to get our country too! This is why we should have fidget spinners banned."

And Grant started his piece with: "I agree that fidget spinners will (drumroll please) THREATEN THE WORLD! (Play dramatic music)."

Good to see I'm helping mold young minds.

Dennis countered Nate's thoughts, writing: "Also if China makes most of these fidget spinners, wouldn't they have the threat to their own children? It isn't just a threat to America!"

He will likely grow up to be a fact-checker.

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Kaylee took a more rules-oriented approach, saying the spinners are fine, but only if they're held even with the chest or lower: "Also if it is below their chest, their attention goes to the front where the teachers are teaching."

She also cited the cosmetic advantages of spinners: "If the people who pick their nails didn't have fidgets, imagine how weird their hands would look!"

Connor wrote: "Fidget spinners are really annoying. This kid in my class (I'm not giving names) takes his fidget apart and spins the middle part and makes an annoying sound." He's not giving names, people. Connor knows what happens to snitches.

Yael, who is decidedly pro-fidget, offered a modest proposal to separate spinners from non-spinners: " how about you move the people with the spinners to a separate row and then at the end of the day, scrape out a bit of time for the students to play with their spinners."

And Alex based his stand on economics: "After all, the companies that make fidget spinners make money, pay taxes and hire employees. Isn't that good?"

Shiri, who we will all be working for someday, wrote: "I don't bring my fidget spinner to school because I come to school for learning, not playing with toys."

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And Dylan preached moderation in his essay: "I will admit, I have one myself, but I don't spin it obsessively."

Ava, who knows how to draw the reader in, started with: "I hope that you are going to get mind boggled with my amazing essay." My mind was mega-boggled, particularly when she wrote: "People should be able to have fidgets or then they will not like school and will want to switch to a better school that allows fidget devices."

Many recognized the inherent dangers of fidget spinners.

Lucas, who used very stylish colors and font, wrote of the fate that awaits distracted fidgeters: "They might even walk into the street without looking. They might not even look for cars and get hit and die and that's the end of you."

Kai wrote: "I have heard that spinners sometimes start conflicts because when kids trade them, they might want it back. If the other kid says, 'No!' then they fight which can end up hurting them both."

Spinner trading is a rough business.

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Daniel, whose text appeared in purple, yellow and light blue on an all-black background (totally rock 'n' roll), defiantly stood up for the youth of America who don't find spinners annoying: "Maybe annoying for teachers and some parents, but not for kids."

Jonathon disagreed with me and shared a personal experience that has made him pro-spinner: "Some people pick their nails, while I also pick my nails, the fidget spinner helps me not have this bad habit."

And Marisa will never have to worry about a spinner because she's not getting one: "After school, my mom and I looked up fidget spinners and we saw that some fidgets cost over 100 dollars! That's bonkers! And that's when my mom decided I am not getting a spinner."

Good call, Mom.

Lastly, Maya started her essay in the style I wish every person who writes me would embrace: "Hi! I am writing this essay to tell you (nicely) that I don't think fidgets should be banned." Thank you for telling me nicely, Maya. Hardly anyone ever does that. You're a good person.

In fact, I'd say these are all good people. And I thank Mrs. Eilhauer for sharing their fine writing.

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Now get to work, fourth-graders. I expect you to write my next column by Wednesday morning.

If you need me, I'll be playing with my fidget spinner.

rhuppke@chicagotribune.com

Twitter @RexHuppke
In a digital age where "communities" can be defined by any group of like-minded people, local municipalities are working to remind residents of Northwest Indiana that each week there's a space fit for gathering right in their own back yard.

Whether it be a nostalgic Thursday night car show in Crown Point's historic downtown square, Chesterton's European Market on Saturday or a Sunday farmer's market in Munster's Centennial Park, the weekly sentiment for the Region's signature events remains the same: if people have a reason to celebrate their hometown, the community flourishes as a result.

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Summer weather brings these signature events to the forefront of calendars and schedules, allowing patrons to step outside and mingle with their neighbors in ways the cold winter months tend to discourage.

While annual events like the town festivals and fairs have a way of bringing people together by means of cotton candy and carnival rides, it's the weekly gatherings that have emotional as well as economic benefits, according to community organizers.

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For the director of Chesterton's popular European Market, these consistent weekly events bring local communities together in dependable ways annual events cannot. In Deanna Kasch's case, market visitors and vendors come from Indiana, Michigan and Illinois to support the Duneland community.

"The market is important to the community because it does give visitors a reason to come and see the town, which in turn helps our downtown businesses," Kasch said. "Something about this area, whether it is location, the park or the quaintness of it all makes this market like no other."

The European Market was started 14 years ago, when Duneland Chamber of Commerce executive Bonnie Trout started the market in an effort to bring people to the downtown Chesterton area and, consequentially, help local businesses prosper.

The Saturday market has since taken on a more "European feel," Kasch said, and expanded to selling handmade goods of all sorts, including fine wines, boutique cheeses, jewelry, farm-to-table produce and even rare books and clothing. Visitors also enjoy tastings from local food trucks and the stylings of local musicians.

At first, the market had roughly 15 vendors, but has since grown to nearly 90. The nostalgic European flair and history of Chesterton's downtown brings more merchants to set up shop each year, expanding the market's offerings as time has gone by, Kasch said.

"Every Saturday as the market goes on, it gets busier," she said. "Some visitors come looking for their favorite vendor, but overall, people just love to come out and spend the day here."

In Crown Point, a different type of nostalgia lures hundreds to its historic square for a weekly car show that allows local motor buffs to show off their rides to hundreds of interested onlookers.

The Crown Point Car Cruise can accommodate up to 200 vintage cars, and draws not only car enthusiasts, but food vendors, local sponsors and families looking for kid-friendly fun.

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"It takes them back to a time when things were different," said Diana Bosse, director of the city's special events. "It's a really relaxed environment. Everyone comes out to enjoy the weather and each other's company."

Down the more traditional farmer's market path is the St. John Farmer's Market, which has been a staple of the community since 2005 for local customers to purchase produce, as well as ready-to-eat foods and home products. But, like the Region's other signature events, the weekly market serves a public purpose as well.

"The market is a social event  a place to meet up with friends, bring your children and enjoy friendly interactions with our vendors," said market manager Melissa Stefanko.

The Munster Farmer's Market offers a similar experience in a larger environment, providing locals with weekly doses of fresh produce, homemade goods and live music. Although the dog-friendly Centennial Park environment sets the market apart, it's the locals who really make the market a popular attraction, according to recreation superintendent Barb Holajter.

Holajter said that six years ago, residents, not the town, generated the idea for the market. Seeing similar markets around the area inspired residents to go to the town with the suggestion that Munster hold a weekly event of its own. So far, it has been successful in its goal of achieving public unity, Holajter said.

"It has a lot of foot traffic," she said. "It's a lovely place to walk around. You get to leave the hustle and bustle of your life. It promotes the area and nearby communities."

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The live music, fresh produce and dependable vendors make the market a place repeat customers return to each Sunday, Holajter said.

According to market managers from around the area, the sentiment rings true for all weekly events, which provide a weekly escape from routine. Whether it be a cup of coffee and breakfast from a local food truck in Munster, an outdoor movie in the park in Hobart or, most recently, a handmade gift from the brand-new student-run outdoor market in Lowell, it's the fidelity of the weekly event that brings communities together as one.

"They like coming to the park and having something there they can count on," Holajter said.

Samantha Gross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Cranky is a condition best met with afternoon tea. That's why the tradition was devised. So when our team of travelers got testy, we split up; the boys stomped one way, the girls to tea.

When my girl was little, we used to take tea at The Drake in Chicago. We steeped in the fancy fantasy  the harp music, the tiny sandwiches, the massive urns of flowers. Once, when her place-setting lacked a knife, the waiter rushed her a replacement. No scone should forgo cream and jam. Back home, at the bottom of a shopping bag, we found a knife, all silver curlicues and blunt buttering edge. For years it lounged in the cutlery drawer, reminder of tea-stained afternoons. Eventually we returned it.

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So when we met up in London, we couldn't forgo tea. My little girl is now a big girl. We ordered Champagne, we admired the tiny sandwiches and tall scones. She told me about her studies, her travels, her friends. She told me about her adventures, her ideas, her plans. For three bubbly hours, I did nothing but smile. No need to slide a memento off the linen; that tea soaked in, deep and indelible.

leahreskin@aol.com

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Classic scones

Prep: 15 minutes

Bake: 10 minutes

Makes: About 10 2-inch scones

1 3/4 cup flour (plus more for shaping and cutting)

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

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1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut up

1/2 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup heavy cream

Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. >

1. Rub: Tip the flour into a mixing bowl; whisk in the sugar, baking powder, soda and salt. Shoot in the butter, then rub together with your fingers to make a reasonably fine crumbed mixture, lifting to aerate the mixture as you go. Try not to overrub, as the mixture will be lighter if it's a little bit flaky.

2. Mix: Measure the buttermilk, then mix in the cream to slacken it. Make a bit of a well in the middle of the flour mixture with a soft spatula, then pour in most of this buttermilk mixture, holding a little bit back in case it's not needed. Using the spatula, gently work the mixture together until it forms a soft, almost sticky, dough. Work in any loose dry bits of mixture with the rest of the buttermilk. Don't overwork at this point or you will toughen the dough.

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3. Knead: Lift the ball of soft dough out of the bowl and put it on to a very lightly floured surface. Knead the mixture just 3-4 times to get rid of the cracks.

4. Cut: Pat the dough gently with your hands to a thickness of 1 inch. Dip a 2-inch round fluted cutter into a bowl of flour; cut out the scones by pushing cutter down quickly and firmly into the dough with the palm of your hand  don't twist it. You will hear the dough give a big sigh as the cutter goes in. Gather the trimmings lightly; pat and cut out a couple more scones (these last won't be as pretty).

5. Bake: Set scones on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees until risen and golden, 10-12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, uncovered if you prefer crisp tops, or covered loosely with a cloth for soft ones.

6. Serve: Enjoy warm with strawberry jam and a generous mound of clotted cream. Cornish people put jam first, then cream, Devonians the other way round. Americans are permitted to substitute whipped cream or creme fraiche.

Provenance: Adapted in all its Briticism, from BBC Food.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Trump at the Group of 7 summit in Taormina, Italy, on Friday. Merkel has since said that her experience left her feeling that Germany could not "rely completely on others." (Sean Gallup / Getty Images)

Reporting from Washington  Whatever respite President Trump may have received from his nine-day overseas trip came to an abrupt end Sunday as administration allies sought to beat back allegations about his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, while the leader of Europe's most powerful nation suggested the U.S. was no longer a reliable ally.

"The era in which we could rely completely on others is gone, at least partially," Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel said during a campaign speech in Munich. "I have experienced that over the last several days."

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"It is now time that we really take our own fate into our own hands," she added.

Trump, who had been on a Twitter fast during much of his trip, returned to his favorite social media platform Sunday morning, voicing frustration over the widening investigation into ties between people in his inner circle and Russia.

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"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," he wrote.

It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017

Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017

....it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017

The latest turn in the leak-driven narrative came Friday with a Washington Post report that during the transition, Kushner had talked with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about using Russian equipment and diplomatic facilities to set up a communications channel between Trump emissaries and Moscow that U.S. intelligence would not be able to monitor.

Despite Trump's broadside about fake news, administration officials Sunday did not deny the report. Instead, Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly  echoing a position taken a day before by national security advisor H.R. McMaster  said there was nothing inherently wrong with an incoming presidential administration establishing "back channel" communications with a foreign power such as Russia.

Appearing on "Fox News Sunday," Kelly said the principle of establishing such contacts during a presidential transition "doesn't bother me," describing it as a legitimate means of building relationships.

"I think that any channel of communication, back or otherwise, with a country like Russia is a good thing," he said.

Kelly did not address the question of using Russian communications channels from a Russian diplomatic outpost to shield those discussions.

In a separate interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," Kelly defended the integrity of Kushner, whose involvement in communications with Russia has brought the investigation closer than ever to Trump personally.

Calling Kushner "a great guy, a decent guy," the Homeland Security secretary said the president's son-in-law's "No. 1 interest, really, is the nation."

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Democrats, not surprisingly, had a less forgiving view. A leader of the congressional investigation into Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election said Kushner should perhaps be denied access to the nation's most closely held secrets.

Back-channel communications might be harmless "in the abstract," Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Burbank) said on ABC's "This Week," but not in the context of serious concerns about Russia's meddling in the U.S. presidential campaign.

Enough questions have been raised about Kushner's contact with Russian officials  and whether he had been forthcoming about them  that his access to classified intelligence should be reviewed, said Schiff, a former prosecutor.

"I think we need to get to the bottom of these allegations," he said. "But I do think there ought to be a review of his security clearance to find out whether he was truthful, whether he was candid. If not, then there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance."

"I think that was the case with all of us in the intelligence community  very concerned about the nature of these approaches to the Russians."

Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), for whose campaigns Kushner once held a fundraiser, said the president's son-in-law "needs to answer" for his actions. Speaking on CNN's "State of the Union," Booker cited a "continuous drumbeat of inappropriate contacts with the Russians" by members of Trump's team.

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Former Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper also said any such contacts were viewed at the time as worrisome, especially what had already come to light about Russian election interference.

"I will tell you that my dashboard warning light was clearly on," he said without addressing the specific allegations about Kushner's encounters with Kremlin-linked figures.

The FBI, a special counsel and congressional committees are investigating Russian interference in the presidential campaign and whether the Trump camp colluded in it. The U.S. intelligence community says Russian cyberattacks were meant to boost Trump and harm his opponent, Hillary Clinton.

The sense of a White House under intensified siege was heightened by the sobering comments from Merkel, Europe's most powerful politician.

"Naturally, we'll maintain our friendship with the United States  wherever possible," Merkel said. "But we have to realize that we Europeans are going to have to fight on our own behalf."

Although Trump touted "big results" in a tweet Sunday about his European trip, Merkel's comments were a potentially far-reaching negative assessment of his meetings with European Union officials and NATO heads of state in Brussels and the leaders of major industrialized nations at the Group of 7 summit in Sicily, Italy.

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In Brussels, Trump had rattled allies by declining to explicitly endorse the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's bedrock common defense pledge. At both meetings, he also disagreed with the Europeans over efforts to combat global warming.

Merkel did not mention Trump by name. But in remarks earlier in the weekend, before leaving Sicily, she told reporters that the discussion with him on climate change, in particular, had been "extremely difficult, indeed unsatisfying. It's a situation where there are six countries lined up against one."

Trump had delayed until after the G-7 meeting in making a decision about whether the U.S. should withdraw from the landmark Paris climate accord. He faces a choice of breaking with major U.S. allies and abandoning the agreement, or sticking with it and risking alienating some his of most ardent supporters.

Defense Secretary James N. Mattis, interviewed on CBS' "Face the Nation," said Trump remained "wide open" on the issue. The president said in a tweet that he would make a decision this week.

Special correspondent Erik Kirschbaum in Berlin contributed to this report.

laura.king@latimes.com

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@laurakingLAT

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Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer of N.Y., center, flanked by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., left, and Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., meets with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington on May 23, 2017, following a Democratic policy luncheon. (Jacquelyn Martin / AP)

It is not too soon for Democrats to start thinking about the day after President Donald Trump. For now, they have a jim-dandy campaign theme: "We told you so!" But it has a limited shelf life.

Many Americans will thank the Democrats whenever Trump vacates the Oval Office. Some will express their gratitude with wild-eyed enthusiasm, others grudgingly. Even his voters must be troubled by an American president  accused of playing footsie with the Russians  telling Moscow's ambassador and foreign minister that by axing the FBI's director he "relieved the pressure."

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It's the kind of damming admission that would lead my criminal-attorney brother to scream at a client: "You told the cops, what?"

But how long can a post-Trump euphoria last? Soon voters will ask what the Democratic Party has to offer. It can't just keep repeating that Trump is a bad guy. That didn't work in 2016. Trump campaigned on specifics  a border wall, Chinese job-poaching, extreme visa vetting. You knew what he was for. Hillary Clinton told you what she was against: The Donald.

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He won the White House, and it's risky to keep underscoring the broken promises that got him there. Clearly Trump has betrayed the trust of blue-collar Americans  but the Democrats beat him to that sucker punch.

The Democratic Party once was the champion of folks who carried a lunch box, not a briefcase, to work. It was the party of Catholics and Jews, who were shunned by Protestants, and African-Americans, who were unable to vote in the South and live where they pleased in the North.

In common, they were looked down upon by the nation's ruling elite. Then President Franklin Roosevelt transformed the outsiders into insiders by bringing them all into the Democratic Party. That ended the long Republican dominance of Washington.

Blue-collar voters were rewarded with legislation enabling unions to form and workers to demand a bigger share of the economic pie. Catholics and Jews got social respectability. The Democrats elected the first Catholic president, John F. Kennedy, and nominated the first Jew for vice president, Joe Lieberman.

African-Americans got the first civil-rights legislation since the Reconstruction Era. That made the Democrats the party that other groups facing discrimination looked to. Democrats took up the cause of women, transgender people and a new generation of immigrants.

Laudable as that was, it set up a cultural conflict between party activists and traditional Democratic voters. Their vocabularies were different. One side spoke of "undocumented immigrants." The other side called them "illegal immigrants."

And with each new cause, the gap widened. College-educated Democrats looked down on blue-collar workers as racist and reactionary. Blue-collar ex-Democrats felt that they didn't leave the party, their party left them.

In the midst of that, the tsunami of globalization struck, and the gap became a chasm. Manufacturing moved abroad, and the job loss hit blue-collar workers hard. Economists and pundits argued that nothing could be done.

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Maybe so, but that didn't mean that Democrats had to become cheerleaders for globalization. Had they any respect for their party's history, they would have commiserated with those steamrolled by the "post-industrial economy"  the euphemism of choice for white-collar, financially secure Democrats.

Instead President Bill Clinton signed the North American Free Trade Agreement, and President Barack Obama touted the Trans-Pacific Partnership. To workaday folks, those international trade deals looked like their exit slips from the middle class.

On the morrow of Trump's victory, Democrats said they needed to advertise their candidates better. If so, they ought to hire Trump's Madison Avenue wizards. They won with a foul-mouth candidate with zilch for political credentials, while Democrats couldn't concoct a salable message for a former U.S. senator and U.S. secretary of state.

Maybe they weren't looking in the right place. Next time, they should forgo endorsements from Hollywood celebrities and fundraising bashes headlined by Barbra Streisand. Is a worker likely to be motivated to vote for a candidate whose supporters are whooping it up while he fears that his job will be outsourced?

Instead, party strategists ought to read up on the battles their predecessors fought for the little guy. They'd find words that can resonate way beyond the ranks of the glitterati.

When the Democrats held their 1896 convention, Americans were bitterly divided over money. Times were tough, and farmers wanted cheaper dollars with which to pay their creditors. That would mean coining silver. Bankers insisted on sticking with the gold standard.

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Finally William Jennings Bryan put the argument into a few simple words. They won him the presidential nomination, and a passion like his might work wonders for a present-day Democratic candidate.

"You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns," Bryan told the delegates. "You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold."

rgrossman@chicagotribune.com
Brandelia Nunez sits with her husband, J. Adan Acosta, at their home in Chicago on April 17, 2017. Attorney General Lisa Madigan has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Nunez, alleging she and her family were scammed out of more than $10,000 for unlicensed immigration-related services. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune )

For months, Brandelia Nunez's dining room table has been buried underneath neat piles of receipts, phone logs and court records  evidence she believes will prove her family was scammed out of more than $10,000 while applying for immigration protections they weren't even qualified to receive.

Even though Nunez, 43, is living in the country illegally, she contacted police and filed a complaint with the Illinois attorney general's office, which is now pursuing a civil lawsuit on her behalf.

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The fact that she formally complained makes her an anomaly. Advocates and lawyers say that people who are in the country illegally rarely report suspected consumer fraud, especially if they're concerned about being penalized for their immigration status.

That can make them easy targets. Some scam artists are taking advantage of heightened fears in the immigrant community by promising immigration benefits they can't deliver and offering legal services they aren't qualified to provide at low costs  a crime commonly referred to as "notario fraud."

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"There are few of us who dare to speak up. I'm not scared. I'm not doing anything wrong, I'm not a criminal. I have no reason to hide," Nunez said.

Immigration fraud comes in many forms but often includes people who illegally pose as lawyers, then demand excessive upfront fees for assistance, according to Karolyn Calbert, a managing attorney with the National Immigrant Justice Center.

"We use the term 'notary fraud' just to refer to any non-immigration attorney providing legal advice," Calbert said. "And the term is really taken because of the translation of 'notary' in Spanish."

The title "notario publico" in Latin American countries can mean "prestigious lawyer," which is very different from the meaning of "notary public" in the United States. Here, a notary public is limited to witnessing signatures, taking proof of ID and administering stamps. Some people take advantage of the different meaning in this country to defraud immigrants, she said.

In Illinois, it's illegal for anyone who isn't an attorney to give advice or provide any service that requires the use of a legal skill or knowledge  such as preparing legal documents.

Any person who offers immigration services in Illinois must be either a licensed lawyer or a not-for-profit entity recognized by the Board of Immigration Appeals. They must also register as an Immigration Services Provider with the attorney general's office.

The law also sets standards for the fees non-immigration attorneys can charge if, for example, they are helping someone fill out a form.

"But still, we continue to see non-immigration attorneys come forward and offer immigration services and tell people that they can qualify for certain immigration benefits, and charge them fees  when in fact, they do not qualify for the relief that they're seeking," Calbert said.

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In April, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed a lawsuit against Joliet resident Norma Bonilla alleging she defrauded Nunez and her family out of more than $10,000 for unlicensed immigration counseling.

The suit alleges that Bonilla operated a scam to get the family to pay her more than $1,000 to obtain immigration records that only cost $35 from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and charged an additional $1,000 for her efforts.

Nunez said she moved to Chicago after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in 1996. She was hoping to obtain immigration benefits for her parents, who have illegally lived in the country since 1992.

She said she first contacted Bonilla in June 2015 on behalf of her parents, who did not want to be named in this story. Bonilla advised Nunez's parents to apply for legal residency permits even though they were ineligible for them. The suit claims Bonilla added false information to the applications, overcharged for her services and submitted paperwork on the family's behalf.

Bonilla is not a licensed attorney or employed by an immigration attorney or any agency authorized to provide immigration services, according to the state. She has never registered with the attorney general's office, as required by state law.

Nunez's dad was granted a work permit, but her mom remained in limbo for months until she received a voluntary deportation order from federal immigration authorities.

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"I tried calling (Bonilla) to see what was going on with my mom's application. She kept saying it would come but then she stopped answering my phone calls," Nunez said.

Nunez turned to the Frida Kahlo Community Organization, a nonprofit immigration advocacy organization based in Pilsen. She said she was horrified to learn that her parents weren't eligible to live or work here legally. The advocacy group advised her mother to stop the application process and skip immigration court because she would surely be deported, Nunez said.

In December 2015, Nunez filed a police report and contacted the attorney general's office, which is now seeking more than $50,000 in damages.

Bonilla has not responded to the lawsuit, according to the attorney general's office, and did not respond to Tribune requests for comment.

"People want help. They hear they can get it fast and that they're eligible for it," said Julie Pellerite, an immigration attorney with the Pilsen-based Resurrection Project. "They're looking for safety and security anywhere they can get it."

Immigrants who have been misled sometimes spend hundreds and thousands of dollars on legal and application fees only to be denied. What's more, their applications reveal their information to immigration officials  and the consequences can be very serious.

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"I think everyone is on heightened alert right now," Pellerite said. "The community is so scared and they just want answers. But unfortunately the wrong help can really hurt people."

Reporting fraud

There is no central agency that collects immigration-related consumer fraud complaints. Several agencies, including the attorney general's office, state's attorney's offices, the city's Business Affairs and Consumer Protection department and the Federal Trade Commission, collect and investigate immigration-related consumer complaints.

Immigrants are often wary of reporting crimes committed against them. In many instances, people who are living in the country illegally would rather cut their losses than turn to a government agency for assistance.

As a result, most complaints come from immigration attorneys, judges and immigration organizations  not the victims themselves.

The attorney general's office has received 23 complaints so far in 2017, compared with 32 complaints in 2016, according to spokeswoman Eileen Boyce.

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The Federal Trade Commission has collected at least 18 immigration-related consumer complaints in Illinois through May, compared with 25 in 2016, according to Joannie Wei, an attorney with the commission.

Steve Bernas, president and CEO of the Better Business Bureau of Chicago and Northern Illinois, said the agency has received at least 16 immigration-related consumer fraud complaints this year, compared with 9 in 2016.

He said people sometimes take advantage of language barriers to prey on those who live in the country illegally.

"Your caller ID will say something like 'IRS'  scam artists have the ability to change the caller ID through a program," he said. "They'll call you and threaten you and say you owe back taxes to the IRS  if you don't pay you'll go to jail and get deported. It's fake, obviously, but they want you to pay up."

Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx established an anonymous immigration fraud hotline in February. The hotline had received at least 13 complaints as of May 1, according to spokeswoman Tandra Simonton. As a result, four people are being investigated and another three were turned over to the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission because they are licensed attorneys.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services department encourages people to report scams to the Federal Trade Commission and local agencies. In Illinois, they recommend contacting the attorney general's office and the Illinois State Bar Association's Task Force on Unauthorized Practice of Law.

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"We get at least one of these complaints per meeting  and it's not limited to the Hispanic community or Asian community. It really spans the scope of the immigrant population," Task Force chairman Timothy Moran said.

Moran said some notarios exaggerate their legal knowledge and market themselves as being cheaper and easier to work with than a licensed attorney.

"By the time they come to us the allegation is (the victim) paid so and so amount of money and they did nothing. Or 'They're not returning my calls,'" he said.

"Obviously, they're scared, they probably have limited income," Moran said. "To think that there are people out there who are preying on them and taking money up front and promising things that they can never deliver is very troubling."

The Task Force can review allegations and forward complaints to local agencies, but its power to police such complaints is limited to sending cease and desist letters, Moran said.

The Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission has the authority to bring actions against licensed attorneys and people who are practicing law without a license. In 2016, it investigated 116 complaints about attorneys from the immigration field, according to deputy administrator James Grogin.

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Advocates recommend that people seeking help check on the qualifications before hiring anyone, as there are plenty of legitimate services.

Samuel Flores, 60, of Little Village, has worked as a notary public for more than 20 years. His business, Servicios Flores, is certified with the attorney general's office as an accredited Immigration Services Provider.

Flores is legally allowed to help people fill out immigration forms, like work permit applications and petitions for family members abroad. He said he encourages clients to consult with an attorney before seeking help from a notary public.

"When you do notary services, you just pay less because you're only paying for filling out the forms. A notary is not authorized to give you advice," he said. "We are not attorneys, but we can recommend you an attorney."

In Back of the Yards, Nunez and her husband, J. Adan Acosta, 42, are still in the process of applying for legal residency. They are hopeful that "justice will be served" in their legal case, and that more victims will come forward to report immigration scams.

"These people think we're vulnerable because we're undocumented," Nunez said. "But they're wrong. The resources are there, we just have to go out and find them."

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nmoreno@chicagotribune.com
Family and friends of victims clash with police at the scene where three were shot, one fatally, on the 6900 block of S. Harvard Avenue, in the Englewood neighborhood, late on May 29, 2017. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)

Shootings on Monday into Tuesday during the long Memorial Day weekend left six people dead, three of whom were involved in domestic-related incidents, and left 18 others wounded in separate attacks.

The most recent fatal shooting left a 21-year-old man dead in the Washington Park neighborhood about 2:50 a.m. Tuesday, Chicago police said. He was in a four-door car in the 5700 block of South Prairie Avenue when someone fired toward the car, hitting the man. He was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital.

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Just before 9:50 p.m. Monday on the South Side, a 17-year-old boy was shot dead and two others were wounded in the 6900 block of South Harvard Avenue in the Englewood neighborhood.

The teen and the two other people were standing outside when the shooter approached and opened fire. The 17-year-old boy was shot in the head, and he was pronounced dead at 12 a.m. the scene.

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He was identified as Jaywan Freeman, of the 7900 block of S. South Chicago Avenue, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Another 17-year-old boy was shot in the left shoulder, and his condition was stabilized at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. A 20-year-old man was shot in the abdomen, and his condition was stabilized at Stroger Hospital.

About 5:40 p.m. on the Far South Side, an 18-year-old man was shot to death in the 9800 block of South Wallace Street near Euclid Park in the Longwood Manor neighborhood, according to police. Earlier, Chicago fire officials said he was in his 20s.

Witnesses told police that the gunman fired multiple shots but he was not in custody. The man was pronounced dead at 5:58 p.m. on the scene, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. Police said he was shot in the head.

About 1:35 p.m. on the Northwest Side, a 52-year-old man was fatally shot in the 1700 block of North Narragansett Avenue in the Galewood neighborhood, police said. Oscar Clay, 52, and a 27-year-old man were arguing in a residence when the younger man shot Clay in the head and body, officials said. Clay, of the same block where the incident took place, was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:45 p.m., according to police and the medical examiner's office. No arrests have been made, and Area North detectives are investigating.

Shortly before 11 a.m. on the South Side, a man and a woman were found dead in an apartment building in an apparent domestic-related murder-suicide, officials said Monday afternoon. Emergency responders from police and fire agencies were sent to the 2900 block of South State Street in the Dearborn Homes neighborhood for a report of two people shot, according to officials.

Investigators found a 25-year-old woman and a 32-year-old man in the hallway of an apartment building, each with a gunshot wound to the head, authorities said. Both were subsequently pronounced dead. Police said a weapon was found nearby, and investigators are not searching for anyone else in the killings.

The woman was identified as Tiara Goodman, 25, who lived in the same building where she was found killed. An autopsy Tuesday determined she died from a gunshot wound to the head in a homicide, while the man, Marcel P. Davis, died from a gunshot wound to the head in a suicide.

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Other shootings:

About 1:45 a.m. Tuesday on the Northwest Side, police responded to a call about gunfire near Diversey and Narragansett avenues. Nothing was found, but about three hours later, police learned that someone had walked into Lutheran General seeking treatment for at least one gunshot wound.

Police later released updated information, saying the 43-year-old man who was shot said he got out of his vehicle in the 6400 block of West Diversey because he "was involved in an altercation with another unknown male motorist while in traffic." As the two argued, the man he didn't know pulled a gun and shot him in the hip, the victim told police.

About 1:30 a.m. on the Southwest Side, two people were seriously injured in an attempted carjacking in the Ashburn neighborhood. A 26-year-old man and an 18-year-old woman were in a car in the 7700 block of South Sawyer Avenue when a man approached and demanded they get out of the car. The robber shot at the vehicle as the driver tried to get away. The man was wounded in the back, and the woman was shot in the leg. Both were in serious condition at Mount Sinai Hospital. They had walked into Holy Cross Hospital and were transferred to Sinai.

About 11:30 p.m. on the South Side, three people were shot Monday while they were standing in the 1500 block of East 74th Street in the Grand Crossing neighborhood, police said. All three people went to Jackson Park Hospital. A 19-year-old man was shot in the head, and he was transferred in critical condition to Stroger Hospital. A 20-year-old woman was shot in the right elbow, and her condition was stabilized. A 21-year-old man was shot in the left shoulder, and her condition was stabilized.

About 9:55 p.m. on the West Side, three people were shot while standing in the 5500 block of West Lake Street in the South Austin neighborhood The shooter was in a silver sedan. A 30-year-old woman was shot in the chest, and she was taken in critical condition to Mount Sinai Hospital. A 36-year-old man was shot in the left leg, and he was listed in critical condition at the same hospital. A 24-year-old woman was grazed on the hand, and she later sought medical help at Mount Sinai Hospital.

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About 9:25 p.m. on the South Side, a 21-year-old man was critically injured while he was walking in the 5000 block of South Drexel Boulevard in the Bronzeville neighborhood, police said. He was shot multiple times in the abdomen. He took himself to the University of Chicago Medical Center, and he was transferred in critical condition to Mount Sinai Hospital.

About 9:15 p.m. in the South Side's Back of the Yards neighborhood, a 45-year-old man was shot in the lower back while he was in an alley in the 4900 block of South Seeley Avenue, police said. His condition was stabilized at Mount Sinai Hospital.

About 9:10 p.m. farther south, a 28-year-old man was shot in the right elbow during an attempted robbery, police said. He was walking in an alley in the 7700 block of South East End Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood when two men approached him and tried to rob him. His condition was stabilized at Jackson Park Hospital.

About 8:15 p.m. on the West Side, a 30-year-old man was grazed in the head when a man shot at him while he was driving in the 900 block of North Cicero Avenue in South Austin. His condition was stabilized at Mount Sinai Hospital.

About 5 p.m. on the South Side, a 24-year-old woman was shot in the buttocks in the 6200 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue, police said. Witnesses told police two gunmen had jumped from a vehicle which pulled up near a group of people standing at the back of the Cottage Grove address. The woman was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, but police did not say her condition.

About 2:45 p.m. on the South Side, a 41-year-old man was shot in the left arm in the 4300 block of South Parnell Avenue, police said. He got himself to University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was in good condition.

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About 1:25 p.m. on the Near West Side, a 42-year-old man was shot in the leg in the 1900 block of West Maypole Avenue, police said. The man took a private vehicle to Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in good condition, police said.
A 23-year-old man has been charged with robbing a couple in their 80s during a home invasion in the Cragin neighborhood over the weekend.

Authorities say Christopher Perez broke into the couple's house around 1:15 a.m. Saturday morning by climbing in through a back window. He encountered one of the homeowners  an 84-year-old man who was awake in the living room  and demanded the man's wedding ring and wallet, prosecutors said during a brief bond hearing Monday.

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The two made enough noise to awaken the man's 81-year-old wife, who then came into the living room and confronted Perez, prosecutors said. Perez then ordered the couple back to their bedroom, where he took a pillow case and filled it with the woman's jewelry, a checkbook and the rings from her hand, they said.

He threatened to shoot the couple at one point, according to prosecutors.

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Police spotted Perez "acting suspiciously'' and ducking behind a car before he hurled an object to the ground about 9:30 a.m. Saturday in the 4700 block of West Barry Avenue, police said. The object turned out to be the pillow case with several pieces of jewelry that were taken during the home invasion in the 5100 block of West Wellington Avenue, police said.

The couple later identified both Perez and their jewelry, prosecutors said.

Perez is charged with two counts of felony home invasion with a dangerous weapon, as well as misdemeanor charges in connection with resisting or obstructing a peace officer and theft of lost or mislaid property. He is being held in Cook County jail without bail.

Additionally, Perez, of the 4800 block of West Fletcher Street, was wanted on a warrant for parole violation involving the aggravated possession of stolen firearms, prosecutors said.
Denise Racky visits the grave of her long-ago fiance Lance Cpl. John A. Guldan, who was killed in Vietnam in 1970. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune )

The woman wiped tears from her eyes as she gazed at the grave of a young Marine at Mount Olivet Catholic Cemetery, recalling a love lost more than four decades ago to the Vietnam War.

Denise Racky was 18 when her boyfriend asked her to marry him on the curb of 106th Street and Maplewood Avenue in Beverly during the summer of 1969, just before he left for boot camp. They exchanged high school rings. She told him they would wed when he returned.

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But Lance Cpl. John Anthony Guldan was killed in action on Aug. 3, 1970, at age 20.

Racky never married him, or anyone else.

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"I keep thinking, what if?" said Racky, 66, of Oak Lawn. "I don't think he's gone. It's like arrested development, in a sense. I miss him every day."

People gather May 29, 2017, at Mount Olivet Cemetery for a Memorial Day service to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune) (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune)

She was among the crowd of around 150 folks who came to pay their respects at the Memorial Day Mass at the Southwest Side cemetery on Monday. They sang "America the Beautiful" together and crossed themselves in unison, seated in lawn chairs sprinkled among the headstones of strangers. It was one of the dozens of memorial services held at cemeteries across Chicagoland over the holiday weekend.

"We do something very holy when we pray for the dead," particularly those who lost their lives serving their country, the priest told them. Afterward, the crowd scattered to pull weeds and plant fresh flowers at the graves of their loved ones. Many placed American flags at the headstones of their own departed veterans.

Before the service, Racky already had left a crisp new flag at Guldan's grave. A small group of his family and friends joined her at the gray headstone, which reads "Rest Easy Marine."

Jim Bansley, Guldan's uncle and godfather, said he's come to Mount Olivet on Memorial Day every year since Guldan was laid to rest.

"I think about him all the time, all the good times together," said Bansley, who's from Beverly. "He was a good kid. That's all you can say."

Childhood friend Neal Beatty called the fallen Marine charismatic and a born leader, referring to an old photograph of a handsome, serious looking man in uniform.

Terri Guldan, left, and Neal Beatty stand near the graves of family and friends after a Memorial Day ceremony at Mount Olivet Catholic Cemetery in Chicago on May 29, 2017. (Phil Velasquez / Chicago Tribune )

Much of John Guldan's story was captured by younger sister Terri Guldan of Elmhurst in a book she wrote last year, "The Letter: A Family's Tale Unplugged." She was just 11 when her brother was killed, so she pieced together letters he wrote home along with present-day interviews with loved ones. She traveled to Vietnam and brought home dirt from the place he died.

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At the cemetery on Memorial Day, Terri Guldan said her brother  a former cross-country star at Marist High School  enlisted because "he really believed in what he fought for."

She said she wrote the book in part to help her family heal.

"1970, a turbulent time for all Americans, was especially tumultuous for my family," she said in the book's introduction. "While war waged in the combat zones, our family suffered in the noncombat zones and continued after the war ended. Johnny's death nearly tore my family apart and yet, we never talked about it. We never talked about our feelings about his death, implying to each of us that our feelings were not important."

He left for boot camp in August 1969.

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"Tell me not to and I won't go," he said to Racky, according to the book and her recollection.

"I could not tell him not to go," Racky said Monday, tearing up again. "How do you tell someone not to do something they believe in?"

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In one of his letters to Racky from overseas, he tells her that if they have a son together some day, he would like to name the baby David Anthony.

"I am afraid and life is so precious because of you Denise, just you," he wrote. "I still keep staring at death & tempting fate."

Racky said she too hopes to be buried at Mount Olivet one day, next to the fiance she never stopped loving.

"It's an honor," she said.

eleventis@chicagotribune.com
Police on Monday released a sketch of a man who sexually assaulted a woman at knifepoint this spring in the Chatham neighborhood. (Chicago Police Department)

Police on Monday released a sketch of a man who sexually assaulted a woman at knifepoint this spring in the Chatham neighborhood.

About 4:30 a.m. on April 24, a 28-year-old woman was walking east in the 7900 block between South Michigan Avenue and South Wabash Avenue when someone she didn't know grabbed her from behind and forced her into an alley. The man then pulled out a knife and dragged her to the rear of the 7800 block of South Michigan Avenue, where he sexually assaulted and robbed her, according to a news release.

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The rapist is described as a man in his early 20s, from 20 to 25 years old, standing about 5 feet, 7 inches to 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighing about 130 pounds. He was described as a black man with a medium complexion, with brown hair and brown eyes, according to a police report.

At the time of the incident, he was wearing dark clothing and his hair appeared to be in short dreads.

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Police said they want people in the area to be aware of the crime and to alert neighbors. They also warned residents not to walk, jog or bike alone, to stay in well-lit areas and to call 911 to report any suspicious people, vehicles or activity in your neighborhood.
A 2-year-old girl was critically injured late Sunday after a car ran her over in the Englewood neighborhood on the city's South Side, police said.

About 8:55 p.m., the toddler ran between two parked cars and onto the street just as a 19-year-old woman was driving south in the 6000 block of South Carpenter Street, police said.

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The woman, who was driving a Dodge Charger, ran the girl over and then crashed into a parked car, police said.

The child was taken to Comer Children's Hospital in critical condition. There were no other reported injuries.

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The driver was cited by officers for not having a driver's license and for not having insurance, according to Chicago police.

Check back for updates.
SPRINGFIELD  The Illinois House was back in session Sunday as doubts remain about whether Democrats who control the chamber can unite behind a budget to pay for schools, universities and social service programs.

There is much to figure out between now and Wednesday's scheduled adjournment, and at the top of that list is whether there's enough support among House Democrats for the tax hikes needed to help balance the books. It's a politically risky move many are reluctant to take amid opposition from Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, whose vast wealth is already being tapped by the Illinois Republican Party to fund advertisements and robocalls targeting potentially vulnerable Democrats.

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That has raised the specter that lawmakers for the second year in a row will blow past their deadline without sending a spending plan to Rauner, leaving both sides to try to scrape together some sort of funding agreement before the new budget year begins July 1.

"It is a hard, grueling process to do this," said Rep. Greg Harris, a Chicago Democrat who serves as a key budget negotiator for House Speaker Michael Madigan. "It is the proverbial herding of the cats to get all these folks to a consensus."

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House Democrats began the day with a series of hearings to delve into the nitty-gritty of a budget plan passed by Senate Democrats a week earlier. That proposal relies on more than $5 billion in new revenue from a combination of income tax hikes, expansion of the sales tax and new levies on satellite and streaming television services.

Later, House Democrats spent nearly two hours in a closed-door meeting debating various alternative revenue plans, but emerged without a consensus on how to proceed. Madigan has long insisted Republicans must share in the blame for any potential tax hikes.

Rank-and-file members were divided: Some were reluctant to vote to raise taxes, knowing Rauner is likely to veto the plan and try to score political points ahead of his 2018 re-election bid, while others wanted to vote for a budget plan given that they expect to be attacked either way.

"We could potentially do the right thing, have the governor veto it, potentially try to push it past him, and have him still come out and say, 'Well, I still didn't want this. I get all the benefits of having a budget, but none of the political pain,'" said Rep. Christian Mitchell, D-Chicago. "I think there's real reluctance to do that."

Mitchell said House Democrats also were spooked by what they saw happen in the Senate, where Democrats decided to go on their own following months of negotiations with Republicans.

"So mimicking that experience in the House, I don't think appeals to a lot of people," Mitchell said.

As Democrats were behind closed doors, Rauner budget director Scott Harry sent a letter to House members warning the governor would veto the Senate plan should it make it to his desk. Harry estimated the budget and tax plan was at least $435 million out of balance, and said it does nothing to pay down the bill backlog or put in place economic changes the governor has pushed such as a property tax freeze.

"In sum, the House is considering a broken budget contingent on a large tax hike without any meaningful property tax relief or job creating reforms, which even if enacted would not even balance the budget," Harry wrote, calling the proposal a "lose-lose for taxpayers."

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Indeed, House Democrats also suggested the Senate plan is not balanced, and many members are opposed to making the taxes in the plan retroactive to Jan. 1, which would take a bigger chunk of out paychecks.

During Sunday's budget hearings, Democrats also zeroed in on spending cuts within the plan, including a 5 percent cut for most state agencies, and a 10 percent cut for universities that have been hit particularly hard as the state has stumbled along without a full budget for nearly two years.

"What kind of message are we sending to our universities  and our future generations?" said Rep. Laura Fine, D-Glenview. "I am a mom who wants my kids to stay in Illinois, but as you are telling me right now, this is getting more and more difficult."

Also weighing in on the Senate budget was the Ounce of Prevention Fund, an early childhood nonprofit agency headed by Diana Rauner, the governor's wife.

Ireta Gasner, assistant director at Ounce, told lawmakers that the nonprofit was supportive of the extra early childhood education funding in the Senate budget but urged them to increase the amount from $35 million to $50 million, which is what Rauner requested in February.

She also warned that because of the backlog of bills caused by the nearly two-year budget impasse, simply appropriating money for schools wouldn't be enough this time around.

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"The longer this impasse goes on and with the cash flow problems the state is experiencing, early childhood programs funded through the state board didn't see any payments for the school year that started last fall until January," Gasner said. "Whether you have an appropriation or not, at this point, it kind of doesn't matter because this impasse is having lasting and significant damage to early childhood programs across the state."

Chicago Tribune's Haley BeMiller contributed.

mcgarcia@chicagotribune.com

kgeiger@chicagotribune.com
The voice is that of a soft-spoken 28-year-old, but the message is vintage Osama bin Laden, giving orders to kill. When the audio recording began turning up on jihadist websites two weeks ago, it was as if the dead terrorist was channeling himself through his favorite son.

"Prepare diligently to inflict crippling losses on those who have disbelieved," Hamza bin Laden, scion of the Sept. 11, 2001, mastermind, says in a thin baritone that eerily echoes his father. "Follow in the footsteps of martyrdom-seekers before you."

The recording, first aired May 13, is one in a string of recent pronouncements by the man who many terrorism experts regard as the crown prince of al-Qaida's global network. Posted just two weeks before Monday's suicide bombing in Manchester, England, the message includes a specific call for attacks on European and North American cities to avenge the deaths of Syrian children killed in airstrikes.

The recording provides fresh evidence of ominous changes underway within the embattled organization that declared war against the West nearly two decades ago, according to U.S., European and Middle Eastern intelligence officials and terrorism experts. Decimated by U.S. military strikes and overshadowed for years by its terrorist rival, the Islamic State, al-Qaida appears to be signaling the start of a violent new chapter in the group's history, led by a new bin Laden - one who has vowed to seek revenge for his father's death.

Encouraged by the Islamic State's setbacks in Iraq and Syria, al-Qaida is making a play for the allegiance of the Islamic State's disaffected followers as well as legions of sympathizers around the world, analysts say. The promotion of a youthful figurehead with an iconic family name appears to be a key element in a rebranding effort that includes a shift to Islamic State-style terrorist attacks against adversaries across the Middle East, Europe and North America.

"Al-Qaida is trying to use the moment - [with] Daesh being under attack - to offer jihadists a new alternative," said a Middle Eastern security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss counterterrorism assessments and using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State. "And what could be more effective than a bin Laden?"

Hamza bin Laden is hardly new to the Islamist militant world. His coronation as a terrorist figurehead has been underway since at least 2015, when longtime al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri introduced him in a video message as a "lion from the den" of bin Laden's terrorist network. But in recent months, he has been promoted as a rising star on pro-al-Qaida websites, with audio recordings from him urging followers to carry out attacks or commenting on current events. Longtime terrorism analysts say the promotion of Hamza bin Laden appears calculated to appeal to young Islamist militants who still admire Osama bin Laden but see al-Qaida as outdated or irrelevant.

"Hamza is the most charismatic and potent individual in the next generation of jihadis simply because of his lineage and history," said Bruce Riedel, who spent 30 years in the CIA and is now director of the Brookings Institution's Intelligence Project. "At a time when Zawahiri and al-Baghdadi seem to be fading, Hamza is the heir apparent." Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is the Islamic State's leader.

But Hamza bin Laden is not advocating his father's style of jihad. Osama bin Laden was notorious for his ambitious, carefully planned terrorist operations, directed by al-Qaida's generals and aimed at strategic targets. His son, by contrast, urges followers to seize any opportunity to strike at Jewish interests, Americans, Europeans and pro-Western Muslims, using whatever weapon happens to be available.

"It is not necessary that it should be a military tool," he says in the May 13 recording. "If you are able to pick a firearm, well and good; if not, the options are many."

The faceless man

Strikingly, for a man who aspires to be the jihadist world's next rock star, Hamza bin Laden insists on keeping most of his personal details hidden from public view. Even his face.

No confirmed photographs exist of the young terrorist since his boyhood, when he was portrayed multiple times as an adoring son posing with his famous father. He is believed to be married, with at least two children, and he lived for a time in the tribal region of northwestern Pakistan, although his whereabouts are unknown.

His refusal to allow his image to be published may reflect a well-founded concern about his personal safety, but it complicates the militants' task of making him a terrorist icon, said Steven Stalinsky, executive director of the Middle East Media Research Institute, a Washington-based nonprofit organization that monitors Islamist militancy on social media.

"People loyal to al-Qaida and against the Islamic State are looking for inspiration, and they realize that he can provide it," Stalinsky said. "But for today's youth, you need more than audio and an old photograph."

What is known about Hamza bin Laden comes from his numerous recordings as well as intelligence reports and scores of documents seized during the 2011 raid by U.S. Navy SEALS on Osama bin Laden's safe house in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Included in the document trove were personal letters from Hamza to his father, as well as written instructions from the elder bin Laden to his aides on how Hamza was to be educated and provided for.

The documents reveal a special bond between Hamza bin Laden and his father that persisted despite long periods of separation. The 15th of Osama bin Laden's estimated 20 children, Hamza was the only son born to the terrorist's third wife, and by some accounts his favorite, Khairiah Sabar, a Saudi woman whose family traces its lineage to the prophet Muhammad.

He spent his early childhood years with his parents, first in Saudi Arabia and later in Sudan and Afghanistan, where his father began to assemble the pieces of his worldwide terrorism network. A family friend who knew Hamza bin Laden as a child said he showed both promise and early flashes of ambition.

"He was a very intelligent and smart boy, very fond of horseback riding, like his father," said the friend, a longtime associate of the al-Qaida network, contacted through a social-media chat service. "While his parents wanted him to stay away from battlefields, he had arguments with them about it."

Then came the 9/11 attacks, which brought the bin Ladens international notoriety and made Hamza's father the world's most wanted man. As U.S.-backed Afghan militias closed in on al-Qaida's mountain redoubt at Tora Bora in eastern Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden dispatched several of his wives and children to Iran, believing that the Islamic republic's leaders could offer protection from U.S. airstrikes.

Hamza rarely, if ever, saw his father after that. He was still in Iran in his early 20s, living under a kind of house arrest, when he wrote a long missive to his father complaining about his life "behind iron bars" and expressing a longing to join his father as a mujahid, or holy warrior, in his fight against the West, according to a copy of the letter found in bin Laden's safe house.

"What truly makes me sad," he wrote in 2009, "is the mujahideen legions have marched and I have not joined them."

Iran allowed the bin Laden clan to leave the country the following year, and by the time of the 2011 Navy SEAL raid, Hamza's mother and other family members were living at the elder terrorist's Pakistan hideout. Notably absent from the Abbottabad compound was Hamza. On Osama bin Laden's orders, aides had kept him in a separate hideout with the intention of sending him to Qatar to be educated, according to U.S. and Pakistani counterterrorism officials. Already, the patriarch was beginning to see his son as a future al-Qaida leader, judging from the letters he wrote to his aides shortly before his death.

"Hamza is one of the mujahideen, and he bears their thoughts and worries," Osama bin Laden wrote in one such letter. "And at the same time, he can interact with the [Muslim] nation."

Jihadist royalty

Hamza bin Laden's sense of personal destiny only deepened with the death of his father and half brother Khalid at the hands of U.S. commandos.

By 2015, when Zawahiri introduced Hamza to the world as an al-Qaida "lion," the then-26-year-old already had the voice of a veteran Islamist militant, urging followers in an audio recording to inflict the "highest number of painful attacks" on Western cities, from Washington to Paris.

A year later, he delivered a more personal message intended as a tribute to his dead father. Titled "We are all Osama," the 21-minute spoken essay included a vow for vengeance.

"If you think that the crime you perpetrated in Abbottabad has gone by with no reckoning, you are wrong," he said. "Yours will be a harsh reckoning. We are a nation that does not rest over injustice."

Terrorism analysts have noted several recurring themes in Hamza bin Laden's audio postings that distinguish his Islamist militant philosophy from the views expressed by both his father and putative al-Qaida leader Zawahiri. One difference: Unlike Zawahiri, Hamza bin Laden has eschewed overt criticism of the Islamic State, perhaps to avoid antagonizing any followers of that terrorist group who might be inclined to shift to al-Qaida.

The bin Laden family friend suggested that the omission is deliberate, part of an effort to position Hamza bin Laden as a unifying figure for Islamist militants. The associate, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to comment freely, noted that Hamza bin Laden enjoys multiple advantages in this regard, as he can claim to be both a descendant of the prophet as well a son of jihadist royalty.

"The calculation is that it will be very difficult for the Daesh leadership to denounce Hamza, given who he is," the family friend said.

The other distinction is Hamza bin Laden's persistent calls for self-directed, lone-wolf attacks against a wide array of targets. Here, he appears to be borrowing directly from the playbook of the Islamic State, which has fostered a kind of Everyman's jihad that does not depend on instructions or permission from higher-ups. His Internet postings have lauded Army psychiatrist and convicted Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan, who murdered 13 people in a rampage on the base in Texas in 2009; as well as the two Britons of Nigerian descent who hacked British soldier Lee Rigby to death on a street outside his London barracks in 2013.

None of those assailants were known al-Qaida members. Yet, by applauding such attacks, Hamza bin Laden appears to associate himself with a more aggressive style of terrorism that appeals to young Islamist militants, analysts and experts said. Such messages also convey an impression of a terrorist network that, while battered, is far from defeated, said Bruce Hoffman, a former U.S. adviser on counterterrorism and director of Georgetown University's Center for Security Studies.

"He brings assurance that, even though al-Qaida has been hammered in recent years, it's still in good hands, with a junior bin Laden who is ideally situated to carry on the struggle," Hoffman said. "Since a very young age, Hamza bin Laden wanted to follow in his father's footsteps. And from al-Qaida's perspective, now is the critical time for him to come of age and assume the reins of authority."
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Anthony Ellis with the 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), grabs a flag to place at a headstone for "Flags In," at Arlington National Cemetery, Thursday, May 25, 2017, in Arlington, Va. The soldiers are placing nearly a quarter of a million American flags at the headstones in the cemetery in a Memorial Day tradition. (Alex Brandon / AP)

The primary purpose of Memorial Day is to honor those who have sacrificed their lives to defend this country.

There have, though, been many millions of others who gave portions of their lives to warfare but survived. This day is theirs too.

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Most, like a former Chicagoan named Red Madsen, have come home from wars to lead ordinary lives. Not that their lives are the same as they would have been if they hadn't seen the bloodshed, the shattered lives, the lonely deaths. Many carry to the grave more unspoken memories than they would like. Those memories help shape, often profoundly, who they are and what they believe.

Yet when the time comes to write their obituaries, their military service and all it meant to them get reduced to a few lines.

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Not so with Red. When he died, his daughter, Patricia, wrote an obit that wove Red's military experience into the rest of his life. She knew he had advanced, island by island, with U.S. troops approaching Japan in the weeks before two atomic bombs ended World War II.

Not until after Red's death, though, did she learn he had earned a Bronze Star for combat heroism. He'd never mentioned it.

The obit was submitted to The Des Moines Register, where it charmed a young reporter who came across it. He shared it with a few friends. Since then, ever-fainter photocopies have quietly circulated throughout the Midwest.

Here, with Patricia Anne Madsen's permission, is an excerpt from her celebration of her father's life:

Harry N. "Red" Madsen, 76, retired railroad brakeman, died Sept. 15, 1996, in Audubon, Iowa, 13 miles from where he was born.

After graduating from Audubon High School, he moved to Chicago. Shortly after Pearl Harbor, he enlisted in the Army, which put him in the Signal Corps. During training, he met Betty Kaplan, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and married her in Stuart, Fla., before he was shipped to the Pacific. When the Army finally let Red go in 1946, he and Betty settled in Chicago. He returned to Audubon and Westphalia, Iowa, working as a custom butcher. He later worked the railroad, most of the time for the Chicago & North Western. He married three times, with two of his spouses passing away.

Red Madsen loved his wives, his kids, everybody else's kids, his family, dogs, fishing, whittling, doodling, reading (especially Mark Twain), Cord automobiles, hoisting a few with friends and telling stories. It pleased him that mischief might break out at any time, but it distressed him if anyone got hurt by it, unless maybe it was some powerful S.O.B. who deserved it.

He hated hypocrisy, racial injustice (or any other kind), war and giving orders. He worked hard, played hard, loved hard, and there was not much in the world that didn't interest him. If he knew you could use $20 and he had it to give, you'd have it. He despised locks and rarely used them  liked to say that if some poor so-and-so needed something that badly, he shouldn't have to break in too.

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He left very little behind except exasperated commanders, bemused bosses, charmed waitresses and a special place in the heart of nearly everyone who ever met him, all of whom are happy he has been released from pain and sorry as hell to lose him.

Contributions may be made as follows: Hoist one in Red's memory and overtip the waitress by a fair factor. If you can't stop at one, just overtip the waitress  she needs it more than you. Give a bum a dollar, maybe five, and for once, don't worry about what he'll do with it. Learn something new. Make a fool of yourself so a child will laugh. Help get food to the hungry and don't worry about whether they deserve it. Don't worry about being safe.

In fact, don't waste much energy worrying at all. Let life break your heart, and not just once. Love your neighbor and yourself and your God, if you're lucky enough to have one, with your whole heart. Every now and then, when no one is looking, go ahead and pick a flower you're not supposed to pick, but quick as you can, give it to someone.

Remember, the second year the same person plants sweet corn next to where you work, they must mean for you to have some, because they know what happened last year.

And if someone uses a racial epithet around you, let 'em know that you'd just as soon they didn't, because Red Madsen and a lot of other guys got shot at by people who thought that way, and you don't want to be on the same side as anybody who would take a shot at Red.

This editorial first appeared in the Tribune on Memorial Day 2001.
Americans love their national parks. Last year, for the third year in a row, the parks had a record number of visitors  331 million of them, which exceeds the U.S. population. More than 11 million saw Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most popular park, and the Grand Canyon drew 6 million. Overall, attendance was up 7.7 percent over 2015.

In spite of their popularity  and partly because of it  the national parks are hurting, with facilities that are often outdated, overstretched and falling apart. All those visitors put more strain on the infrastructure, but funding has not kept up.

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We're talking shortfalls the size of Half Dome. The maintenance backlog at Yellowstone is close to $640 million, according to Trust, a publication of the Pew Charitable Trusts. Yosemite has $555 million worth of work waiting to be done. The National Park Service's deferred upkeep totals almost $12 billion.

At the same time, it keeps adding worthy new sites, such the Pullman National Monument in Chicago, which was designated in 2015. U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, who chairs the Natural Resources Committee, has explained the paradox: "It's fun and sexy to add a new unit to the Park Service. It's not fun or sexy to talk about fixing a sewer system."

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But unless we find ways to conscientiously attend to the park sites we already have, each addition merely stretches the inadequate maintenance budget even thinner.

Back in the 1950s, when the same problem emerged, historian Bernard DeVoto proposed a drastic remedy. "Let us, as a beginning, close Yellowstone, Yosemite, Rocky Mountain and Grand Canyon National Parks  close and seal them, assign the Army to patrol them, and so hold them secure till they can be reopened. They have the largest staffs in the system but neither those staffs nor the budgets allotted them are large enough to maintain the areas at a proper level of safety, attractiveness, comfort or efficiency."

Instead, the federal government under President Dwight Eisenhower acted to do its job. It decided to provide 10 years of guaranteed funding "to free the program from the burden of yearly appropriations," notes Trust. Within a few years, visitors could enjoy cleaner, spiffier, better-equipped sites.

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is thinking along similar lines. He supports an expansion of oil and gas drilling in federal offshore areas, 94 percent of which are currently off-limits. So does President Donald Trump, unlike his immediate predecessor. Environmentalists don't like the idea, particularly in Alaska's Arctic waters, but they could take some consolation from Zinke's proposal to funnel offshore royalties into park maintenance.

"If you go back to 2008, the department made $15.5 billion more a year, just in offshore, than we do today," he said in an April speech. That, he noted, would be more than enough to cover the existing maintenance deficit.

Earmarking a portion of all these royalties to maintenance of Park Service sites would help assure this necessary obligation doesn't get short-changed in favor of other, politically more alluring outlays. And there is something to be said for using funds derived from operations that pose a risk to the environment to do some real good for the environment.

Zinke's idea would serve a useful short-term goal, boosting domestic energy production, along with an invaluable and timeless one, preserving America's greatest natural treasures. Americans love the national parks. But those same Americans also should be taking better care of them.

Join the discussion on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook.

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The court and panel of judges could show a bit of mercy in reducing his sentence. Surely, there have been others before him who have committed similar or worse deeds with lesser consequences to pay. Our system appears to be making Blagojevich the poster boy of political crime. He is not a dangerous criminal or a threat to our society. He is a husband and father whose family is being punished by his absence. Let the man go home to his family. That would be a larger, more positive contribution to society than keeping him incarcerated. There are alternatives to completing a sentence, such as home monitoring or probation that could effectively be put into place, while allowing him to be at home with his wife and children.

Chicago is overwrought by violent crime being committed in many instances by children who grew up without a father. His daughters are victims of an overly harsh and unrelenting legal system. It is time to show some compassion rather than continue the pain and punishment this family is enduring. I do not know this family personally, but am appalled by the consistently cruel treatment of this case.

 Barbara Eubeler, Hinsdale
Neighbors place their hands over their hearts as Ralph Brian, left, and Jon Wullbrandt raise a flag on a newly installed pole. (David Sharos / The Beacon-News )

Neighbors living around Sexton Street near Bardwell Elementary School on the east side of Aurora were feeling a sense of pride and patriotism Monday morning as the stars and stripes returned to their block.

"This is something that is exciting to have back, and in our culture, it represents something spiritual as well as something about our freedom and a representation of those who have fallen from Aurora," said Isabel Chavez, who has lived on Sexton since 2012.

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More than a dozen people gathered at 10 a.m. Monday for a short prayer service and the saying of the Pledge of Allegiance as a new lighted flagpole was formally reintroduced into the neighborhood.

About 15 months ago, the city removed a deteriorated flagpole on the site, which was finally replaced after money was raised during a block party last year and a neighbor paid the remainder for its replacement.

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About a week ago, the city dug a hole for a concrete base, which was poured in the last 72 hours. On Monday, a flag was added and raised as part of the ceremony.

"The neighbors all missed having it as it was something that was taken down and never put back," said project coordinator Nancy Brian. "I regard it as a patriotism sort of thing to see the flag again, as it was something people there always had. We actually live around the block, and I'm kind of jealous of those living here because we don't get to see it out our window in the morning."

Nancy's husband, Ralph Brian, called the flag "a part of the neighborhood" and said having it back "adds to the patriotic spirit of the neighborhood."

"When you look up and down the street, you can see all the people that have flags on their porches today," he said. "I think this is a reminder of what our nation stands for."

The Rev. Deborah Tinsley Taylor, of the Fourth Street Methodist Church in Aurora, offered a short prayer and spoke about the importance of neighbors before the new flag was raised.

"It's important when neighbors in a neighborhood come together towards a common goal that benefits all," Taylor said. "It gives people a sense of pride doing this together."

Janet Stephens of Aurora said she has lived in the neighborhood more than 20 years and having the flagpole and flag return "was a good reminder regarding our freedom."

"This reminds us to appreciate what others have done and is sort of an amenity we have here in the neighborhood in its own way," she said.

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Neighbor Annette Olson said she has lived for 50 years in the area and remembers the project being talked about "during a PTA block party."

"I knew that the flagpole was damaged, but I always hoped it would come back someday," she said. "The city wasn't going to do it, evidently, and it took a neighborhood to bring it back."

Jon Wullbrandt, who lives in the 600 block of Sexton Street, said he gave $450 to complete the project and admitted part of his motivation came from being an Army veteran, having served from 1960 to 1963.

"We've always had a flag here, but it was located on the other end of the grassy area here that divides the street," Wullbrandt said. "Having it where it is now  it's a perfect place."

David Sharos is a freelance reporter for the Beacon-News.
Members of the Aurora Fire Department march Monday in the Memorial Day parade in downtown Aurora. (Linda Girardi / Chicago Tribune)

Thousands of spectators gathered to honor and remember fallen soldiers during a Memorial Day ceremony and parade Monday in downtown Aurora.

The event began with a presentation by the East Aurora Naval Junior ROTC Color Guard. The Sweet Reminders vocal group performed the national anthem and a collection of military songs.

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Newly elected Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, remembered those who gave their lives, took up arms and selflessly stepped into harm's way knowing they might not return home.

"Today we take pause to remember our fallen," Irvin said. "There is truly no way to express our gratitude to those who have given their lives defending our freedom. All we can say is thank you."

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Among the military officers at the reviewing stand was a group from the U.S. Army.

Leading the parade as grand marshals were World War II veterans Bill Moore, Ray Moore and William Wallbaum.

Bill Moore earned a commission with the U.S. Navy, rising to the rank of senior lieutenant in the British West Indies. He was stationed at a Navy base in Norfolk, Va., for 26 months, where he ran the ship service store. He was then sent to Trinidad.

"I was one of the fortunate ones during the service. I didn't have a rough duty," he said.

At 100 years old, he was the senior veteran among the group.

"It's nice to be with my comrades," he said. "I generally don't get to associate with people my age anymore. So many have already passed on. These fellows are my age.

Ray Moore, 94, was a tail gunner on a B-17 Flying Fortress for the Army Air Corps. He was stationed in England.

"It's sad to think about how many young men didn't return home," he said.

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Wallbaum, 92, served as a member of the 1271 Combat Engineers Battalion in France, Germany and Austria.

"I was in intelligence and recognizance. In order to keep the tanks rolling, we had to build bridges," Wallbaum said.

His greatest hope for today is for a united country. "I remember coming home and seeing the Statue of Liberty in the New York harbor. It was a great thrill," he said.

Gold Star sister Karon Grzywa, of Aurora, clutches a photograph of her brother during the Memorial Day program Monday in Aurora. Her brother Jesse Willoughby was killed by a mortar April 10, 1968 in Vietnam. (Linda Girardi / The Beacon-News)

Gold Star sister Karon Grzywa, of Aurora, clutched a photograph during a program before the parade. Tears welled in her eyes during the singing of Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the U.S.A."

"This is my brother," Grzywa said. She said her brother Jesse Willoughby was killed April 10, 1968, in Vietnam when he was hit by mortar. He was 21 and had been in Vietnam for two months.

"It's been a hard day. I lost another brother to cancer on Saturday," she said.

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Among the first units in the parade were members of the Aurora Police Department, including the APD Honor Guard and Special Response Team. The Aurora Fire Department and Honor Guard marched in the parade as well.

Veterans groups represented included Roosevelt Aurora Post 84, Amvets Post 103, Waidley VFW 468 and the Fox Valley Marines.

There were marching bands from East Aurora, West Aurora and Metea Valley high schools as well as Granger and Hill middle schools.

World War II veteran Richard Miller caught up with his comrades prior to the parade stepping off. They know one another from the Fox Valley Veterans Breakfast Club.

Miller, 91, served on the USS Drexler, a vessel that was hit by two planes and sunk off Okinawa May 28, 1945.

"We lost 157 sailors and dozens were wounded. I was in the water for nearly two hours before they picked us up," he said.

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Miller, a lifelong Auroran, enlisted in the Navy in 1944 at age 17 after graduating from East Aurora High School.

"We had 122 survivors. About eight or nine destroyers were sunk by the Japanese planes. They just kept coming in," Miller said.

Aurora's Memorial Day ceremony began with a presentation by the East Aurora Navy Junior ROTC Color Guard. Among the reviewing stand military officers was a group from the U.S. Army. (Linda Girardi / The Beacon-News)

Vietnam veteran Tom Lentz was among the parade-watchers. Lentz, a lifelong Auroran, was in Chu Lai, Vietnam in 1968.

"We lost a few. I still think of them," he said. "I was fortunate for having been assigned to a recognizance company that was about 24 strong. We were able to move around the jungle a lot quieter and safer. The larger units with 100 soldiers were like an elephant moving through the jungle."

Lentz said he was impressed with the size of the crowd at the parade.

"I feel residents of Aurora are country-loving people," the veteran said.

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August Bathje, 15, an officer in the East Aurora Naval Junior ROTC, said he had more than 600,000 reasons to participate in the Memorial Day parade. "That's the number of people who have fallen in past wars. That's a large number of people who decided to fight for our country in order for us to be safe. This is the least we can do," he said.

Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for the Beacon-News.
Authorities investigate the fatal shooting of 16-year-old Damon Phillips in the 100 block of Madison Street in Oak Park on May 27, 2017. (Al Lagattolla / Pioneer Press )

Anthony Clark said when he got a text alerting him to a shooting that occurred Saturday in the parking lot of a bank in Oak Park, he rushed to the area.

Clark, a community activist and an Oak Park and River Forest High School teacher, spoke Sunday at a community gathering he organized in the parking lot of the bank, in the 100 block of Madison Street in Oak Park. He said when he was told of the shooting, he didn't know at that time that a 16-year-old from Chicago had been shot and killed.

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Police said the teen allegedly attempted to rob a 24-year-old man who was legally carrying a concealed firearm.

What impacted Clark most, he said, were the neon placards police officers were in the process of placing beside each bullet casing at the scene. A news release from the Oak Park police on Saturday stated the two had, "apparently exchanged gunfire before the alleged robber reportedly entered a waiting car and fled into Chicago."

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The teen who was shot and killed has been identified by the Cook County medical examiner's office as Damon Phillips. According to the medical examiner's office, Phillips was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital about 11:50 a.m. Saturday.

Police said the shooting happened in the parking lot of a U.S. Bank on the corner of Madison Street and South Humphrey Avenue. The group convened Sunday in a parking lot across from the bank building.

"Bullets have no names; bullets don't recognize faces," Clark told a little more than a dozen people gathered on Sunday. He added that one of the bullets "could have hit any one of us, no matter our age, no matter our backgrounds."

Community members gather May 28, 2017,at the scene of a fatal shooting that took place the day priorin Oak Park. Damon Phillips, 16, was fatally shot by a 24-year-old man according to police. (Lee V. Gaines / Pioneer Press )

Oak Park resident Charity Anne Caldwell, 36, suggested that people talk to each other if they're worried or concerned about a situation.

"You could go outside and talk to somebody if you're not sure," she said. "That's the thing I don't get. Why is it call the police or don't call the police? Surely there is an in between."

Cate Readling, a 47-year-old Oak Park resident, said she had heard the word "justified" to describe the shooting. She said the only reason someone would shoot a gun is to kill someone.

A retired police officer, Brian Slowiak, 65, responded with: "Once you've been shot at, once you've heard a shot fired in anger, your position in the world and life changes dramatically, and that's a thing to remember."

Slowiak, who lives in Westchester, said he was motivated to come out to discuss what can be done to mitigate the violence because "something has to be done."

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"We've tried, and we've failed. And it's time to go back and figure out what we're doing wrong," he said.

Iesha Oliver-Hollins, president of Root2Fruit Youth Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works with youth in the Austin neighborhood, said the way children she serves are portrayed by the media "is so messed up. And it's not really who they are, but they are only expressing what they've seen and what they've been through."

She said the neighborhood "is the most damaged community" in Chicago and the children who live there fear for their safety. She said many suffer from post-traumatic stress disorders, have sick parents who can't afford health care and face myriad other challenges in their lives.

Clark, the activist, said he convened the gathering, which included residents from Oak Park, Chicago and other communities, to brainstorm ideas to combat what he expects to be a tragically violent summer.

"This is not normal. This is not acceptable," he said. "We're going to respond, and we're going to address the issue and try to determine ways to curtail it."

Clark recently announced he is running for the 7th District seat against U.S. Rep. Danny J. Davis next year.

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Oliver-Hollins said the community can't wait for politicians to step in to fix the problem. The solutions, she said, have to come from community members.

She encouraged Oak Park residents and children to get involved in the Austin community, whether through hosting block parties or starting a program through Chicago's park district. Oliver-Hollins said it doesn't take a lot of money to make a difference in these kids' lives.

"All you have to have is time, the passion and commitment to do it, and I can guarantee you, you will see a change in those kids,"she said.

Lee V. Gaines is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
Paradegoers wait on the square for the Crown Point Memorial Day parade to begin on Monday, May 29, 2017. (Suzanne Tennant / Post Tribune )

Branch by branch, members of military stood up to be acknowledged Monday as their service song was played in a medley by the Crown Point High School band.

The medley of "Anchors Aweigh" for the U.S. Navy, "The Caissons Go Rolling Along" for the U.S. Army, "The Wild Blue Yonder" for the U.S. Air Force, "The Marines' Hymn" for the U.S. Marine Corps and "Semper Paratus" for the U.S. Coast Guard has become a tradition at the annual Memorial Day ceremony co-hosted by the city and American Legion Post 20 at the city's historic Maplewood Cemetery.

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John Landahl, of Crown Point, stood up slowly as the notes of "The Wild Blue Yonder" began to play and the crowd applauded. It was the first time the World War II Air Force veteran has attended the Memorial Day service after moving to the city six years ago.

"This is wonderful," said Landahl, who was accompanied by his wife Adeline. He was impressed by the number of people who had come out to pay tribute to those who lost their lives serving the country.

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"This is something all towns should do," he said.

Adeline Landahl said as a former band director she appreciated seeing the high school band.

"I loved what the band does for the ceremony," she said.

She was not alone. Master of ceremonies and former Mayor James Forsythe, a member of Post 20, lauded the band and the various scouting groups who participated in the event.

Crown Point Mayor David Uran said Memorial Day reawakens a spirit of patriotism in all Americans.

"Our military service personnel we honor here today are from all walks of life, a melting pot of sorts," Uran said. Once those men and women put on their uniforms, it no longer mattered who they were or what president they were serving. They bonded on core fundamentals like serving their country with honor, he said.

"It is a way to say we remember," Uran said.

Keynote speaker Ron Gains, a Vietnam veteran and a Post 20 member, said Vietnam vets fought a different kind of war.

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"The front lines were everywhere," Gains said. The war is not unlike the battles facing the military today and that we must resolve to remain and stay free, he said.

The Rev. Tony Suitor, of Hillside Community Church, said people must remember to give thanks for the those who have served and paid the ultimate price.

"We are thankful that they are willing to preserve our freedom, to fight for our freedom, even at the cost of their own lives," Suitor said.

Carrie Napoleon is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Ming Ling existed as a restaurant in the Miller Beach section of Gary for more than a half century. Architects say the roof needs repairs and some water damage has occurred, but the structureas foundation remains sound. (Gregory Tejeda / Post-Tribune)

At first glance, Ming Ling restaurant in Gary's Miller section has its sign posted outside giving its business hours as if it's still prepared to serve food.

Closed since 2010, the Miller Historical Society is interested in preserving the 106-year-old structure because it is one of the oldest retail structures existing anywhere in Gary, officials said.

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The society recently paid a Chicago-based architecture firm to do a condition assessment study of the building, which said the structure's foundation and outer walls remain solid despite a roof that leaks and damage to the structure's drywall and plaster.

"It's structurally sound, it's salvageable," said Cullen Ben-Daniel, president of the Miller Historical Society, which said the building is significant because it dates to 1910  only four years after Gary was incorporated as a city.

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The historical society used $2,500 from an Indiana Landmarks grant, along with a $500 local match, to hire the architecture firm to perform an analysis of the building in the 500 block of South Lake Street. That study was completed in May.

"The building would need a new roof and some interior work to repair the water damage that has been caused by the leaks," Ben-Daniel said. "But it isn't beyond repair."

The structure that became Ming Ling restaurant originally served as Doc Bowers Drugs, which was the first pharmacy at Miller Beach. It later became the restaurant that was owned and operated by the Yao family for more than a half-century until the building was closed due to its deteriorating physical condition.

There also is a building adjacent to the restaurant proper that served as a connected lounge and bar; a building that once served as a Bart's Shoes store. Ben-Daniel said the Yao family at one point expanded its business by knocking out a wall separating the two storefronts.

He also said officials are regarding the entire complex as a single project and would want to preserve the entire structure, although they might end up focusing on saving the two-story restaurant that it regards as more historic.

Details from when the restaurant was open for business; note they were closed on major holidays, including Christmas. (Gregory Tejeda / Post-Tribune)

Miller Business Association President George Rogge said he was unsure of the benefits of doing so. While he sees the historic value in preserving one of the Miller neighborhood's, and Gary's, oldest-surviving retail structures, he fears the cost of a restoration.

Rogge said restoration could cost as much as $250,000, which the architecture firm's study determined was a worst-case scenario as to how much the project could cost.

Ben-Daniel said that figure would include a complete restoration of the interior and exterior of the entire complex, including new roofs, tuckpointing, and new plumbing and mechanical systems, among other things.

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Rogge said he's not sure who would have that much money, and also said he thinks there are other Miller-area projects  such as a renovation of the old Miller school building  that would be more worthwhile.

But Ben-Daniel said the project could wind up costing much less money, and also said a proper renovation would benefit Gary by potentially returning two retail spaces that could be used by new businesses, along with three apartments located above the restaurant.

The Yao family continues to own the structure, but ownership is the subject of a pending probate court case.

Ben-Daniel, who said he knew one of the Yao children from his school days, said he is reaching out to the family to determine how long it will take to resolve the court case, then to figure out a purchase price for the property. Family members were not available to comment.

Depending on how much the asking price is, he said the Landmarks Indiana organization may be able to help the local historical society raise money and definitely is willing to help with a preservation project that returns the structure back to private ownership.

Ben-Daniel said the historical society is prepared to pay the cost of immediately boarding up the building's broken windows.

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"We don't want to see the damage become worse," he said. "We'll have to wait and see how things develop, because we'd like to try to save it."

Gregory Tejeda is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Reiterating a point they made a year ago, representatives from Norfolk Southern Railway Company said in a recent letter to the federal board that will determine the fate of a proposed freight train line that they would not use the line if it comes to fruition.

Another nationally based business, meanwhile, is supporting the plan.

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Last May, Norfolk Southern notified the Surface Transportation Board, which will determine whether Great Lakes Basin Transportation can proceed with a 261-mile freight train line from Milton, Wis., into LaPorte County that would cut through southern Lake and Porter counties, that they were "not inclined" to think the proposed line would work well with their system or that they would use the route.

That filing came two months after officials at Union Pacific, another Class 1 railroad and intended user of the freight train line, publicly stated that they were not interested in the proposal.

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The new letter from Norfolk Southern, filed May 19, notes that the railroad wants to participate in the proceedings as a party of record, and states that the railroad does not object to the request to extend the comment deadline.

"The requested extensions would promote greater public participation in this proceeding, preserving the integrity of the STB's decision making process," wrote an attorney for Norfolk Southern.

Great Lakes filed its formal application with the federal transportation board on May 1. Officials there have said the proposed freight train line would serve as a bypass for the six Class 1 railroads that go through Chicago and alleviate congested rail yards there. None of the railroads have publicly committed to the project so far.

The package delivery service UPS, meanwhile, sent a letter to the transportation board supporting the proposed freight train line. The letter, dated April 28, went online earlier this month.

Officials with the delivery service said the proposal was of "keen interest," because UPS uses truck-rail transportation to serve its customers throughout the United States.

"Although in its infancy, any effort to build new rail capacity and bypass the notorious Chicago rail bottleneck would have a material positive impact on the fluidity and velocity of the freight rail network, and a direct benefit to UPS and our customers," the letter states.

Opponents of the freight train line have said they were concerned about safety, drainage woes, the loss of farmland and other worries along the route.

The federal board set a June 5 deadline for public comments on the Great Lakes application, though Thomas McFarland, a Chicago attorney representing opposition groups in all three states along the proposed freight line's path, has asked for an extension of that deadline.

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The transportation board has not yet made a decision on that extension, nor has the board made a decision on a request by Great Lakes for a protective order to maintain the confidentiality of its investors and other related information, which was filed with its application.

Also weighing in as a party of record and asking for the extension on the comment period is the Environmental Law and Policy Center, which filed a May 18 letter with the transportation board. The center challenged the proposed Illiana toll road in court on behalf of three area environmental groups.

"ELPC advocates for smart and sustainable land use and transportation planning and continues to have serious concerns about the proposal," officials there wrote. "ELPC has members whose financial, recreational, and aesthetic interests may be harmed if GLBT's application is granted."

Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
An annual commemoration of Porter County's role in the Civil War framed the remembrance of how Memorial Day's predecessor Decoration Day came to be Monday at the Porter County Memorial Opera House.

Read from newspaper articles, a Union major's letter and the 1868 proclamation that created what was known as Decoration Day, those words shared the morning with a string quintet playing music of the era, speeches about history and a flag folding ceremony that had the significance of each of its 12 steps explained.

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Rylan James, 9, of Valparaiso, was one of about 50 people who attended, and he said he talked grandma Jennifer Golenia, of DeMotte, into taking him "to show people respect," including the eight veterans from his family.

It was also so he could do something different this year that he would remember, he said.

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For 40 years, the David D. Porter Camp No. 116 chapter of Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War has held its Memorial Day Commemoration, the descendants of Union soldiers wearing replicas of their ancestor's blue uniforms.

"It's remembering Civil War veterans, but its in honor of all who gave their lives," said Steve Mockler, the Camp's Vice Commander.

The order creating Memorial Day's forerunner, Decoration Day, came from Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic John A. Logan on May 5, 1868, Mockler said.

May 30 "is designated for the purpose of strewing flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion," Camp Commander Bernard Doyle read from the proclamation.

Porter County's has always had a strong connection with the Civil War as 130 volunteers made the county the first in Indiana to raise a company for the preservation of the Union, said County Historian Kevin Pazour.

The best reports show at least 110 died of disease, 24 were killed in action, 13 died of wounds, one drowned in the Mississippi and one was accidentally shot, and more than 500 Civil War veterans are buried in Porter County, Pazour said.

James D. Wolf Jr. is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
Frisch maintains razor-thin lead in CD-3 after new data reported in Pueblo County

Frisch's lead over Boebert has been in decline as more counties in CD-3 continue to report results after election day
Investors may need to send personnel to China on business trips for a variety of reasons, even if there is an existing entity and staff on-site in China. The most common examples are for negotiations, completing temporary projects, quality control, engineering, training, or consulting purposes.

Travel may consist of visits to attend ceremonies or other types of functions, or longer or more frequent stays. However, there are many factors involved when sending personnel on business trips to China.

Proper management and preparation can help your business trip to China run as smoothly as possible. This article addresses issues for both travelers and HR departments to consider when conducting business trips to China.

Visas and arrival in China

All personnel entering China for business purposes must hold a passport valid for at least another six months.

In addition to this, a Chinese visa is also required. There are two types of visas suitable for business travel: an F visa or an M visa.

An F type visa is specified for non-commercial exchanges, investigations, and for scientific-technological, education, and cultural exchanges. This visa allows for multiple entry visits of up to six or 12 months depending on the purpose of stay. An M type visa is specified for business or trade purposes.

Both types of visa require supporting documentation, such as an invitation letter specifying the purpose of the visit, and relationship from a legitimate entity in China.

Once in China, travelers must register with authorities. Registration is automatically done when checking into a hotel, but travelers who do not visit a hotel must check-in at the local police bureau within 24 hours of arrival, or 72 hours in rural areas.

Registration requires a passport and information about accommodation. If travelers fail to register, they are considered non-compliant, and may be subject to fines and deportation.

Border crossing into mainland China

For regular visitors crossing the border into mainland China, such as those residing in Hong Kong or Macau, an automated passenger clearance system has been in place since 2002. This service was extended to all ports of entry into China for foreigners in 2016.

Travelers in possession of an e-passport (the type with an inbuilt microchip) and a visa with at least six months of validity and a corresponding residence permit are eligible to register for the e-channel border crossing service.

Application requires filling out a form, taking a photo, and providing thumbprints, as the e-channel scans faces and thumbprints as a means to admit travelers.

For regular business travelers, this means a faster and smoother experience when crossing the border, where previously the ordeal was much more taxing and time consuming.

Chinese New Year and other observed holidays

Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is the biggest national holiday in the Chinese calendar. Its date is dictated by the lunar calendar, and so falls between January 21 to February 20 depending on the year.

During this period, most people journey back to their hometowns to be with their family: commerce shuts down and transport is overwhelmed, making business travel and arduous and expensive task.

Businesses can close up for anything from a couple of days to a week, and usually reopen on the eighth day of the holiday. Though the streets may be empty during the main holiday, the effects of the holiday will be felt in the lead up as well. Even when the holiday ends, not everyone immediately returns back to work, and the ease back into business as normal will be slow.

Flights will also be several times more expensive than usual during this period, and trains fully booked months in advance.

Business travel during the period is therefore strongly discouraged. However, if a visit is imperative, due precautions should be made far in advance for travel and accommodation.

Other holidays, such as Tomb Sweeping Day, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Golden Week, are also subject to irregular dates, and should also be considered when making a business trip to China.

Tax liabilities

For companies who regularly dispatch personnel to China, there may be some tax liabilities incurred.

This depends on whether the originating entity dispatching employees to China already has a permanent establishment in China.

Those which have a business venue or construction site in China, is represented in China by an agent, dispatches personnel to China to provide services, or renders services to the local subsidiary count as permanent establishment.

In many cases, where a country has an operational double taxation agreement (DTA) with China, if a foreign employee has not been dispatched to China within a standard of 183 days, it is not classed as having a permanent establishment.

If permanent establishment is determined under a DTA, a foreign entity will be subject to tax on income deriving from China.

Where an entity has a subsidiary in China manned with staff, but sends personnel on projects to China from abroad, salary and reimbursement of the dispatched personnel will be taxed by the Chinese tax authorities on the subsidiary in China.

If the subsidiary requests personnel to come and direct their work, this is not classed as permanent establishment.

However, permanent establishment will apply if the overseas company manages the dispatched employees work, determines how many people are sent, bears the cost of the dispatched employees salary, and/or obtains profit from the Chinese subsidiary for the assigned employees activities. In this case, income derived in China will also be taxed.

Management solutions

It is important for HR teams to properly manage dispatched employees, so as to not incur hidden tax liabilities, even though this is a tax issue.

It is in the best interest of a company to make sure that dispatched employees activities are regarded as hailing from the subsidiary in China, as opposed to that of the overseas parent company. An HR department is in the best position to ensure this is so.

On top of dealing with tax liabilities, HR teams should also brief employees traveling to China for business to make sure they are sufficiently prepared, and ensure that all visa issues are correctly processed in order to avoid complications upon arrival to China.

Given the importance of these issues, HR teams should consider working with local partners when planning travel to China for their personnel.
A miniature painting on display at the inauguration of Inner Mongolian artworks by Contemporary China in Beijing on May 28, 2017. [Photo by Chen Boyuan/China.org.cn]

Some 130 miniature artworks collected in China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region were officially included in the collection of Contemporary China in Beijing on May 28, the first anniversary of the Sino-Italian joint project.

They were selected from more than 400 submissions. These palm-sized artworks on 10*12-centimeter canvases represent the first batch of collection that will eventually feature artworks of all 56 ethnic groups in China.

The miniature artworks of Inner Mongolian artists include oil paintings, sculptures, photographs, even small gadgets, resembling those in the collection of Imago Mundi, the project operated by Italian artist Luciano Benetton, with whom Contemporary China is cooperating.

Themes naturally center on life in Inner Mongolia, a region with a large nomad population.

Yan Zhijie, the CEO of Beijing Kingsight Company and chief artistic director of Contemporary China, shared the same view with Benetton that "an exhibition of miniature artworks allows viewers to see more in a given limited space and time."

He went on: "It's a chance for Chinese artists to speak to the world in a limited space, so that the world can hear our unique voice," explaining how exhibitions of miniature artworks could attract more public participation and therefore "extract the essence of folk art in China."

Miniature art was "more inclusive" because ordinary people with a heart for art creation normally find a smaller canvas "less daunting" than a big frame in the same way that the public will consider palm-sized artworks "more approachable," he said.

Over the past year, 689 artists of 21 ethnic groups across China have submitted a total of 1,247 artworks. Yan expected this number would grow exponentially and reach 5,000  enough for his planned national and world tours  in 2019, the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Yan said that "inviting in" and "going global" are equally important for the development of Chinese art.

The effort to hold China's own Imago Mundi-style miniature artworks was recognized by Benetton. Adriano Madaro, Benetton's special supervisor for the China exhibitions, praised Contemporary China for its "very special" effort to display the cultures and art of different ethnic groups in China.

"Art is like a window of life through which the world gets to know China better," said Madaro at the inauguration ceremony.

Apart from organizing the national and world tour of Contemporary China, the same organization is also handling the China tours of Imago Mundi artworks. So far, Benetton's collection have been viewed by the public in Lincang, Kunming and Dali, all cities in southwest China's Yunnan Province.
From lip reading to foldable phones and smart electricity networks, Chinese technology companies are showcasing the latest high-tech products at an ongoing expo in southwest China.

Liu Jian's electricity network received a "Black Technology" award at a ceremony in the 2017 China International Big Data Expo in Guiyang, capital of Guizhou Province. Black technology refers to the latest products such as hardware, software and materials that are seen as innovative and unbelievable.

"I have been looking for breakthroughs in the electricity industry," said Liu, 42.

The Fengneng (Bee power in English) smart electricity network was a big breakthrough for him. It started in 2014, when he met a group from Tsinghua University at a competition in Guizhou. There, they embarked on a journey towards developing an efficient electricity network, which is now known as Fengneng.

"The network can control the use of electricity smartly. Once you switch it on, a cloud computing system starts to analyze the users' habits of using electricity," Liu said. "It can save electricity by an average 20 percent."

A mobile application allows users to switch on or turn off domestic appliances with a few clicks on a phone display.

"The domestic appliances are just like bees collecting the honey of data for the cloud computing system network," Liu said. "With the statistics collected and analyzed, users save energy."

Another award recipient at the show is Hydata, which has developed lip reading technology that knows what you are talking about without hearing your voice.

According to Liu Qiuwen, who works with Hydata, during speaking there are multiple shapes made by the lips that relate to different sounds and various meanings. The technology works out the most likely connection between the lip shapes and words.

"The company's lip language reading technology currently has an accuracy of 71 percent and 80 percent in Chinese and English, respectively," Liu Qiuwen said.

In addition to the top ten Black Technologies, more than 300 exhibitors at the big data expo displayed a variety of innovative high-tech products.

"Every Black Tech product can reshape an industry, or even become an industry model of tomorrow," said Wang Hongan, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Sciences. "These products will definitely benefit the public."

China is encouraging innovation in science and technology, with a national conference last year laying out a strategic road-map for technological innovation. According to the conference, science and technology should be given a more important position.
Hong Kong should uphold its executive-led political system with the chief executive at its core, as set out in the Basic Law, the nation's top legislator said on Saturday.

Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said that the development and improvement of the Hong Kong special administrative region's political system must also be compatible with this basic principle.

Zhang also stressed that the Hong Kong team of public officers formed in accordance with the Basic Law must be composed of patriots who respect the Chinese nation, wholeheartedly support the motherland's resumption of exercise of its sovereignty over Hong Kong and will not do things that undermine Hong Kong's prosperity and stability.

Zhang made the remarks at a high-ranking symposium in Beijing commemorating the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

He said Hong Kong must adhere to the comprehensive and precise implementation of the Basic Lawthe city's constitutional document that has proved a success since 1997 and has provided a fundamental guarantee for the "one country, two systems" principle to maintain Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability.

Enacted in accordance with China's Constitution, the Basic Law specifies the guidelines of "one country, two systems" and "Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong with a high degree of autonomy".

The power exercised by the special administrative region is "delegated by" but "not separated from" the central government, and under no circumstances should anyone be allowed to challenge the power of the central government in the name of a high degree of autonomy, Zhang added.

He called on Hong Kong to rigorously perform its constitutional duty of safeguarding national security through legislation prescribed in the Basic Law, and stop any behaviors or activities that undermine national unity.

The central government has committed itself to upholding the "one country, two systems" policy and the Basic Law, actively supported development in all fields in Hong Kong and faithfully protected the lawful rights and interests of Hong Kong people, Zhang said.

Hong Kong's Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, who also attended the symposium, said the "one country, two systems" policy and the Basic Law are "the best constitutional arrangements" for both Hong Kong and the country.

With the combined advantages of "one country, two systems", Hong Kong can participate in the country's major development strategies while serving as a "super-connector" between the mainland and the rest of the world, Leung said.

Chairwoman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong Starry Lee Wai-king urged those from the opposition camp to see the interaction between Hong Kong and the mainland from the positive light of serving the city's, as well as the country's, long-term development interests.

Vice-president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies Lau Siu-kai believed that people's opinions may vary because of different political affiliations, but loving the country and the city should be the basic consensus among Hong Kong people.
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Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's upcoming visit to Europe from May 31 to June 2 is expected to further deepen and enrich China's relations with the European Union (EU) at a time of increasing global uncertainty.

During the three-day visit, Li will travel to Germany and Belgium, where he will meet with European leaders in an effort to enhance mutual political trust and expand pragmatic cooperation between the two sides, to inject fresh impetus into China's relations with the two countries.

Root for a multipolar world

This will be Li's ninth visit to Europe and third to Germany since he took office as the premier in 2013. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is a frequent visitor to China. Both European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel visited China last year.

Such frequent high-level exchanges between China and the EU testify the common grounds and interests shared by the two sides despite an ever-changing international landscape, and showcase their common desire for cooperation and development.

One of the most prominent features of China-EU interaction is their regular meetings, which have served as an important platform for Chinese and European leaders to work together and steadily promote the China-EU ties, noted Mei Zhaorong, former Chinese ambassador to Germany.

In Berlin, Li is scheduled to attend an annual meeting between the Chinese premier and the German chancellor, a mechanism that has been in place since 2004. In Brussels, the Chinese premier will attend the 19th China-EU leaders' meeting.

"These regular meetings have played a very positive role in strengthening mutual political trust and deepening practical cooperation between the two sides, and have kept pushing forward the China-EU relationship," said Mei.

Currently, Europe is facing a multitude of challenges such as the debt crisis, terror threats and the refugee crisis. With the isolationism signaled by U.S President Donald Trump, the United States has yet been clear on its policy towards Europe.

Despite these challenges, China has been pursuing a consistent and positive policy towards the EU, and has remained confident in its cooperation with the bloc, noted Ruan Zongze, executive vice president of China Institute of International Studies.

China is a supporter of European integration -- the basis for a united, prosperous and stable EU and a strong euro -- which is conducive to the development of a multipolar world featuring economic globalization and cultural diversification.

Championing free trade

Against the backdrop of a rising anti-globalization wave, the need for China and the EU to join hands in opposing trade protectionism and safeguarding an open world economy is more urgent now than ever, experts say.

China and the EU share broad common interests and a similar stand on free trade, investment and global economic governance, according to Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wang Chao.

With Premier Li's visit, said Ruan, China will strive to work with the EU and send a positive signal to the world that the two large economies are committed to free trade and economic globalization. With such efforts, China and the EU could serve as stabilizers of world economy.

However, the development of China-EU economic ties has not always been a smooth sail. The EU has yet implemented its obligations under Article 15 of the protocol on China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), seen as a "stumbling block" in their economic cooperation, as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi put it.

In accordance with Article 15, WTO members should cease the surrogate country approach in anti-dumping investigations on China after Dec. 11, 2016, which expires exactly 15 years after China's admission.

The surrogate country approach allows an importing WTO member state to refer to prices or costs of the like product in a third country to calculate the value of Chinese products and determine whether it constitutes an act of dumping.

"As a member of the WTO, the EU has been refraining from fulfilling its international obligations, which is in fact a form of protectionism, and which goes against the notion of free trade advocated by the bloc," said Mei.

"Cooperation and competition coexist in the China-EU relations, yet cooperation and win-win is the theme," said Ruan, calling on the EU to abandon trade protectionism and fulfill its due obligations, so as to join hands with China in advancing free trade and globalization.

Unleash potential for cooperation

Economic and trade ties between China and the EU, deemed as the cornerstone of their relations, are expected to top the agenda of Li's Europe tour.

In Brussels, the Chinese premier will attend a China-EU business summit and a signing ceremony of cooperation documents between small and medium-sized enterprises.

The EU is China's largest trading partner and China is the EU's second largest. In 2016, China overtook the United States and became Germany's largest trading partner, according to Germany's Federal Statistics Office.

With Li's visit, China and the EU seek to further unleash their potential for cooperation, with innovation cooperation being a new highlight, according to Ruan.

As the powerhouse of European economy, Germany is one of the most innovative countries in the world. Though being a small country, Belgium has unique advantages in fields such as the chemical industry, nuclear energy and biological medicine. By cooperating with the EU, China is poised to enhance its capacity for innovation.

"China needs Europe's advanced technology, while Europe needs China's vast market," said Ruan, adding that innovation cooperation would broaden the areas and enhance the level of the China-EU cooperation.

In Europe, Li will attend several innovation-themed activities and witness the signing of a series of cooperative deals covering areas such as new energy, inter-connectivity, banking, tourism and education.
 Flash

President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolence to his Sri Lankan counterpart Maithripala Sirisena on Sunday after flooding and a landslide left more than 150 people dead.

Xi expressed deep sorrow for the people who lost their lives and extended his sympathy to those affected by the disaster as well as the family members of those killed.

He also highlighted the friendly relationship between the countries and offered all-out support to the Sri Lankan government and help with the disaster relief effort.

Xi said he was confident the Sri Lankan government and the people will overcome the disaster and rebuild their country.

Premier Li Keqiang also sent a message of condolence to Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Sunday.

The message of support came as emergency teams rushed to distribute aid to half a million people who have been displaced by the flooding, as authorities upgraded the death toll to 151.

The official Disaster Management Centre said 111 people were still missing, with 95 injured in hospital, since torrential rain and landslides swept away entire villages.

Floodwaters were receding in some areas after a break in the rain, giving authorities a chance to deliver much-needed supplies to victims who lost everything in the deluge.

Heavy rains on Friday triggered the worst flooding and landslides in 14 years in the southern and western parts of the island.

Many villages were still underwater on Sunday, officials said.

Nearly 2,000 houses were damaged or completely destroyed. Almost half a million Sri Lankans had been forced from their homes, with most moving into temporary shelters.

The charity Save the Children said about a tenth of those displaced were children below the age of five years.

It said that the stagnant floodwaters provide the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and could exacerbate the dengue crisis that has seen an almost 150 percent increase in cases compared to the same period last year.

"The humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka right now is alarming. The impact of these early monsoon season downpours has been far more devastating than what we'd normally expect this time of the year," Save the Children's Chris McIvor said.

Medical teams have been dispatched to the worst-affected areas to help prevent an outbreak of waterborne diseases.

"We have the expertise to deal with this situation," Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne said, adding that cholera and diarrhea had been successfully prevented in past floods.

The government, meanwhile, has withdrawn an evacuation order for thousands of residents in the southern district of Matara as water levels subsided.

The United Nations said it will provide water containers, water purification tablets and tarpaulin sheets while the World Health Organization will support medical teams in affected areas.
Governments at all levels should step up efforts to cut red tape for companies by combining separate business licenses into one, according to Premier Li Keqiang.

Integrating business certifications and licenses into one consolidated business license should be accomplished on schedule to reduce costs and develop an international and accommodating business environment, Li said in a note to a meeting held on Friday.

China will continue to promote entrepreneurship and innovation to develop new growth engines for sustainable and healthy economic and social development, Li added.

Governments should speed up implementation of the reform to ensure it will be finished by Oct 1, so that it can provide streamlined approval, better service and stronger supervision, according to State Councilor Wang Yong, who addressed the meeting.

The State Council urged a quicker pace of reform earlier this month.

Wang urged governments to cut unnecessary approval procedures and avoid repetition caused by submitting identical registration information.

Meanwhile, supervision of registration procedures will be strengthened, and integration of the internet with government services will be boosted to improve efficiency, Wang added.
NPC Standing Committee chairman says public officers in special administrative region must be patriots who respect nation

Hong Kong should uphold its executive-led political system with the chief executive at its core, as set out in the Basic Law, the nation's top legislator said on Saturday.

Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said that the development and improvement of the Hong Kong special administrative region's political system must also be compatible with this basic principle.

Zhang also stressed that the Hong Kong team of public officers formed in accordance with the Basic Law must be composed of patriots who respect the Chinese nation, wholeheartedly support the motherland's resumption of exercise of its sovereignty over Hong Kong and will not do things that undermine Hong Kong's prosperity and stability.

Zhang made the remarks at a high-ranking symposium in Beijing commemorating the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

He said Hong Kong must adhere to the comprehensive and precise implementation of the Basic Lawthe city's constitutional document that has proved a success since 1997 and has provided a fundamental guarantee for the "one country, two systems" principle to maintain Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability.

Enacted in accordance with China's Constitution, the Basic Law specifies the guidelines of "one country, two systems" and "Hong Kong people administering Hong Kong with a high degree of autonomy".

The power exercised by the special administrative region is "delegated by" but "not separated from" the central government, and under no circumstances should anyone be allowed to challenge the power of the central government in the name of a high degree of autonomy, Zhang added.

He called on Hong Kong to rigorously perform its constitutional duty of safeguarding national security through legislation prescribed in the Basic Law, and stop any behaviors or activities that undermine national unity.

The central government has committed itself to upholding the "one country, two systems" policy and the Basic Law, actively supported development in all fields in Hong Kong and faithfully protected the lawful rights and interests of Hong Kong people, Zhang said.

Hong Kong's Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, who also attended the symposium, said the "one country, two systems" policy and the Basic Law are "the best constitutional arrangements" for both Hong Kong and the country.

With the combined advantages of "one country, two systems", Hong Kong can participate in the country's major development strategies while serving as a "super-connector" between the mainland and the rest of the world, Leung said.

Chairwoman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong Starry Lee Wai-king urged those from the opposition camp to see the interaction between Hong Kong and the mainland from the positive light of serving the city's, as well as the country's, long-term development interests.

Vice-president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies Lau Siu-kai believed that people's opinions may vary because of different political affiliations, but loving the country and the city should be the basic consensus among Hong Kong people.
Nation 'clear and consistent' on regional sea issues, is 'strongly dissatisfied' with summit statement

Beijing expressed strong disapproval with the G7 Summit statement's comments on the East and South China seas, and it has asked the group to "stop making irresponsible remarks".

Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang expressed dissatisfaction with the leaders' statement, which said they "remain concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas". The two-day summit in southern Italy ended on Saturday.

"We are strongly dissatisfied at the G7 Summit gesticulating over the issues of the East and South China seas under the guise of international law," Lu said in a statement issued on Sunday.

He said China's position over the East and South China seas issues is "clear and consistent". It has always been committed to properly managing and solving disputes through negotiations with countries directly involved, and to promoting cooperation with them in various fields, he said.

It is also committed to working with these countries to maintain peace and stability in the East and South China seas and freedom of navigation and overflight in these regions, as well as the safety of regional seaways, he said.

"We hope the G7 and countries outside the regions will clearly understand the situation, observe their promises of not taking positions on the disputes, fully respect regional countries' efforts to manage disputes, stop making irresponsible remarks and play a constructive role for regional peace and stability."

The G7 Summit, in Taormina, Sicily, drew the leaders of the seven most industrialized countries as well as of the European Union.

The seven countries are the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.

Earlier in the week, the US Navy guided missile destroyer Dewey entered the waters adjacent to the islands and reefs of China's Nansha Islands without the permission of the Chinese government.

China dispatched two missile frigates to identify and warn the US naval ship to leave, and it condemned the incursion, reiterating its "indisputable sovereignty" over the Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters.

Jia Duqiang, a Southeast Asian studies researcher at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' National Institute of International Strategy, said the situation in the South China Sea has "cooled off greatly", and China and ASEAN countries are working on a code of conduct in the region.

The remarks in the G7 statement reflect that some G7 members are intent on placing China in check by interfering in the East and South China seas, Jia said.
Yang Siyu crafts a structure using skills and knowledge passed down from generations before. Gong Pukang / For China Daily

Listed as one of the four most famous historical bridges in the world, Chengyang Shelter Bridge (Fengyu Qiao) in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region has an elaborate timber design and structure, remarkably without any screws or metal bolts.

Yang Siyu, the designated rebuilder of the bridge, is the heir to this national intangible cultural heritage style of construction synonymous with the Dong ethnic group. It is called a shelter bridge because traditional dwellings are built on it.

"It's true in Sanjiang Dong autonomous county that when there is river there is a shelter bridge, as our Dong people believe that the timber bridge not only provides a shelter but also keeps bad luck away and brings wind and rain on time," said Yang.

Born into a carpenter family, he was soon exposed to a world of wood and craftsmanship.

Yang's grandfather was one of the key constructors when the bridge was built in the 1920s.

"I picked up woodworking skills under my father's watchful eye when I was just 12 years old", said Yang.

His routine and schedule was extremely strict and Yang started with the very first step, chopping wood. Gradually he mastered the basic skills and soon started making the buckets which Dong brides carry as their dowry.

"I visited villages to make numerous buckets for brides, that is how I came to know the structure of a shelter bridge," he said. "Woodworking provides the first basic principles."

In 1983 when Chengyang bridge was destroyed by floods, a group of experts was sent to help restore it.

However, the restoration soon faced problems as no one knew how to reorganize the thousands of wooden parts that were torn down even though each part was carefully marked.

The bridge team then turned to Yang and his father for help.

The father and son managed to collect the materials for reconstruction and relocate the beam and poles by mental calculation over a period of weeks.

The experts were stunned both by their efficiency and accuracy, and Yang's fame began to spread.

"The key lies in the mortise-tenon joint, where one piece of wood is inserted into another. Get that right and the rest will follow. Restoration is just like piling up the building blocks once the joints are secure and accurate," explained Yang.

Without calculators or blueprints, the 62-year-old craftsman has helped build 100 pillar-supported dwelling bridges, 12 shelter bridges, and more than 300 models.

"I went to primary school for one year and then dropped out," a regret he still harbors but he is now an honored Master of China Arts and Crafts.

However, he would rather call himself a craftsman, able to construct an intricate bridge from the simplest first steps.

"Buildings with steel and concrete are no doubt solid but the timber building of the Dong is more inspiring and beautiful because it's much closer to nature," said Yang. "I have a responsibility to pass the wisdom of our ancestors to the younger generations."

He offers training to young people and more than 100 apprentices are ready to inherit the skills.

He has raised money to start a customs and crafts museum which teaches local customs free of charge. The bridge builder is spanning the generations.
Zhang Tianwei displays his elaborate and delicate works of art depicting people and creatures. Huo Yan / China Daily

Kite maker sees his creations soar as he dazzles spectators with the colors and vision of his imagination

Can humans think in their dreams? Zhang Tianwei has no doubts about the answer. "Yes, I do."

The 79-year-old industrial artist and a retired technician has "thought out" solutions in his dreams to difficult aeronautical engineering problems at least twice in the past three decades. The results are plain to see as his "dynamic kites" in various shapes and sizes astound spectators as they seem to dance and frolic in the sky.

Zhang's kites can make nine movements simultaneously, propelled just by the wind, through built-in gearing systems, which are all handmade from simple raw materials like bamboo, wood and thread.

"The most useful metal pieces come from soft-drink cans, because the aluminum alloy is strong, corrosion resistant and malleable," said Zhang, pointing to a can on his table-turned workbench at home in Xi'an, Shaanxi province.

He cuts the can into 2-millimeter wide strips to make the "teeth" of the gear with a pliers, and a wheel is made from thick bamboo skin strips.

The wind wheel's axle is made from a pencil. He drills small holes into it and inserts thin wooden sticks, 1.5 millimeters in diameter, to fasten cloth or paper, which form the blades of a propeller.

"The diameter of the hole must not be wider than that, otherwise the stick would not be fastened properly," said Zhang. "Any minor errors would end in failure after days of hard work."

With a gust of wind to the wheels of one of his creations, a horse-and-cart frame made up of more than 1,500 pieces of bamboo skin strips tied together with nearly 5,000 knots, the "four-horses" can appear to gallop, shake their heads and swing their tails, and a "rider" can also move his arms to rein in the horses.

To raise the 2-kilogram structure into the air, it takes a 40-meter long kite combination, made up of 192 life-size Terrecotta Warrior kites in eight square formations.

Born into an industrial artist's family, Zhang learned how to make conventional kites from his father and grandfather from the tender age of 10. In the 1930s, his father was famous for making big kites "like small planes" in Xi'an.

But what motivated him to innovate the designs of a traditional kite was his participation in the 1986 First National Kite Competition in Weifang, Shandong province, as a representative of Shaanxi.

Although Zhang won a silver medal, the only medal the Shaanxi delegation obtained in that year's contest, he felt he had to improve.

"Weifang is the most famous place in China for its kite history and techniques. It was an eye-opening experience," he said. "They have reached such a height in applying conventional kite making skills that if I do not have my own unique strength and style it is almost impossible to win."

A book about a kite master, Wei Yuantai from Tianjin, which caught his attention in the 1950s when he was in junior middle school, proved inspirational. Wei was good at making kites that can seem to transform into various "creatures", such as a cock fighting in the sky. But this particular skill had largely vanished in the 1940s.

Graduating from a vocational school where he learned about machinery, Zhang believes his expertise in mechanics was a foundation for him to study Wei's works, and recover and revive the old-kite making techniques and improve them.

He started designing and making the elaborate kites in his own style after coming back from Weifang. "Conceiving the structure and the gearing system is the first difficult step, and then making the parts takes much longer and patience," Zhang said.

To make a crane kite open its mouth, swing its head, flap its wings and move its legs in the sky simultaneously, he must conduct a number of experiments to adjust his design and the parts to reach the "perfect" match.

His wife has been supportive but admits it was hard to understand at first. "I really could not understand his mania in making kites," Zhang Xiuzhen, 74, said. "But when I saw his happiness after making even a small breakthrough over these years. I gradually realized that making kites is a family heritage and part of his life."

Xiuzhen is now a skillful and experienced kite flyer in her own right, and "an important partner" to her husband in doing many kinds of experiments.

Zhang Tianwei appreciates her support and understanding.

He made fewer than 50 of his "dynamic kites" in 31 years, and every one is unique. "I always want to try new ideas in the next," Zhang said.

His works were shown in the Shanghai Expo in 2010 and appeared on Canada Post stamps in the 1990s. Foreign collectors bought his works. One of Zhang's concerns is that the craft may be lost after he passes away, as it is almost impossible to copy the kite, let alone learn the techniques, by just studying the blueprints.

Zhang is meticulous in drawing detailed blueprints for each of his works to help maintain the knowledge for future generations.

However, neither of Zhang's three sons are interested in learning his skills.

As a provincial intangible cultural heritage, Zhang hopes the government can digitalize his kite-making process in a more reader-friendly 3D format on computer to let young people experience the "mentally absorbing and brain-burning" tricks.
A boy tests a Lego robot at a robot contest at the Women and Children's Activity Center in Anyang, Henan province. Bi Xingshi / For China Daily

Danish international toy group Lego says that its robot education program - which teaches children from the ages of 3 up the basics of coding - is doing really well in China.

The program was launched by the group nearly 20 years ago and is offered by the company to schools.

Robot software is the set of coded commands or instructions that tell a robot what tasks to perform.

Hao Hongji, the director of Lego Education's R&D center in Beijing said coding - a highly regarded skills nowadays that can cost a fortunate to master - is slowly becoming a part of mainstream educational courses, starting as early as the pre-school stage.

"Of course we don't teach 3 years-old coding, but to build up their cognitive abilities through playing around with Lego toys," he said.

"It's necessary preparation for learning code when they are older."

In Lego's robot education program, kids models with the tiny bricks from the age three and then move on to construct simple devices at the first grade of primary school, using "coding graphical language" and then progressing to learning more advanced coding in the third grade.

Hao said his company believes such activities help stimulate and cultivate children's creativity and encourage them to create.

Educational planners in China appear to share the same line of thinking.

Experts say Chinese education is increasingly focusing on robot programing and Lego believes its coding classes can make a major contribution.

With the solution provided by the Danish toy company, teachers are fully trained to encourage students' creativity and evaluate their performance and cognitive progress in unconventional ways.

In 2014, the Ministry of Education and Lego signed an agreement to provide its robot coding curriculum to selected schools from 2015 to 2019.

Under the program schools are equipped with Lego toys and robots.

"We started the robot programming education 18 years ago in China," Hao said.

"More schools, institutions and parents are accepting the idea and think robot building is an useful activity," he added. "Some schools even list it as compulsory course."

With people's mindsets changing over the years, Lego says it has recognized the huge potential in China for supplying the education programing market.

"Not only first tier cities, but many less developed places also have great potential, given the large number of schools in China," he added.
BEIJING - The Dragon Boat Festival holiday from Sunday to Tuesday is putting pressure on China's railway system, as more and more people choose to travel by train.

Some 12.1 million passenger trips were made Sunday, up 8.8 percent year on year, China Railway, a state-owned company, said Monday.

The company will add 253 trains Monday, when about 9.1 million passenger trips are expected.

It forecast that total railway passenger trips would reach 44.6 million between Saturday and Tuesday, up 10.5 percent year on year.

The Dragon Boat Festival, also called the Duanwu Festival, is traditionally celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month on Chinese lunar calendar. It falls on Tuesday this year.

The festival commemorates ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan. Chinese people eat zongzi, a type of rice dumpling, and race dragon boats during the festival.
Editor's note: In the run-up to the 19th Communist Party of China National Congress, China Daily sent six reporters to villages nationwide to live for a month and take a look at how people are working to ensure that China's poverty eradication plan succeeds.

Yang Yuqiang, who had left his hometown to work as a cook for seven years, never imagined that one day he could return to open his own restaurant in his home village, which has been transformed into a tourist site.

"During the three-day Labor Day holiday, my wife and I were kept busy catering to tourists," Yang, a 26-year-old from Huaqiao, Gansu province, said excitedly. "I am planning to employ five or six people to help me and my wife if the business remains good."
Uruguay can provide the best gateway for Chinese enterprises entering Latin American market, said Fernando Lugris, Uruguayan ambassador to China.

Uruguay is a country in southeastern South America, which borders Argentina to its west and Brazil to its north and east. And it is regarded as a high-income country in the continent by the UN.

When it comes to Uruguay, the first word that comes to people's mind is often "natural", which is well illustrated by their local foods.

The ambassador said that Uruguay is the only country in the world where the origin of meat products can be traced back to the exact animals.

And their cattle and sheep are raised free-range.

"The prospects for the agricultural and food industries in Uruguay is robust, but we want everyone to know that Uruguay is also a major service exporter whose advantages are manifested in its geographical location, tourism, logistics and communication technology," the ambassador said.

Uruguay has two major ports - the Port of Montevideo and Nueva Palmira - which have occupied strategic positions in the common market of Latin America.

The country's tourism industry is also fruitful thanks to its diverse landscapes, excellent infrastructure and multi-level accommodation options for travelers.

Tourists can travel to dunes, live in farmers' houses, roam along the beaches and enjoy the hot springs.

The local people are pleased to provide natural and beautiful delicacies and cozy accommodations, the ambassador said.

"In addition to the service industry, we are looking forward to launching all-round cooperation with China in various fields such as agriculture, food, aviation, infrastructure, recyclable energy and other aspects," the ambassador said.

As Uruguay has signed free trade agreements with many countries in South America, it can act as a bridge to connect China and those countries.

In addition, Uruguay has a high level of development in transportation, logistics, education, networking and talent. These are important factors to attract foreign investment in Uruguay, said the ambassador.

2018 is the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Uruguay, and Uruguay understands the importance and value of cooperation with China, the ambassador said.

The trade volume between China and Uruguay reached $3.72 billion in 2016. China is Uruguay's largest meat export destination. At the 2017 China Beijing International Fair for Trade in Services, Uruguay will focus on promoting high-quality projects to Chinese investors, hoping to deepen cooperation in global trade and services exports, giving full play to the role of Uruguay's bridge effect.

In May, Uruguay's agriculture minister arrived in Beijing to participate in the 2017 China Beijing International Fair for Trade in Services and to show Uruguay's resolution to stand by China's Belt and Road Initiative.

"The Belt and Road Initiative is not only about a road of silk, it is also a road of beef, dairy, wool and also a road carrying precious opportunities to develop tourism, banking and trade," the ambassador said.

"We fully support the Belt and Road, especially the 21-Century Maritime Silk Road, because this is a very important opportunity to build up deep strategic partnerships with China," he added.

(China Daily 05/29/2017 page12)
People watch a folk fair in Yangjiang township of Fenyi county, East China's Jiangxi province, May 28, 2017. A series of folk activities, such as dragon boat race, dragon dance and so on, were held during the fair in Fenyi on Sunday to celebrate the upcoming Chinese traditional Duanwu Festival, or Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on May 30 this year. [Photo/Xinhua]
Paper cutouts made by 91-year-old Qin Naishiqing [Photo/CGTN]

"Dong" is one of China's 55 ethnic minorities, with a population less than three million, mainly living in south China.

The ethnic group is renowned for its traditional embroidery, which has long been passed down from one generation to another.

Qin Naishiqing is the reigning master of Dong embroidery in Sanjiang Dong autonomous county in the southern part of Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region. At the age of 91, she is still capable of cutting paper patterns, which she says is the soul of this handmade art.

You should be very skillful in embroidery to become good at paper cutting. When you get a piece of paper, you should visualize the patterns in your mind without actually drawing them, Qin told.

Teaching the craft is a family affair, and Qins two daughters-in-law usually join her in guiding youngsters. Phoenixes, dragons and flowers are common motifs featured in folk art, which are reproduced on embroidered products.

Spiders are at the heart of Dong people's religious beliefs, hence spider flowers, regarded as a symbol of blessing, take up center stage in their embroidery patterns.

Every Dong girl is encouraged to learn the skill at an early age, around 9 or 10 years old. When she ties the knot, she will traditionally receive a whole set of clothes, including a wedding dress, made by her mother.

There are now thousands of women in the county engaged in embroidery -- an art form that has remained virtually unchanged over the years. Qin hopes she can help ensure the tradition continues for future generations.
Dengue fears grow as death toll is raised and aid drive begins

President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolence to his Sri Lankan counterpart Maithripala Sirisena on Sunday after flooding and a landslide left more than 150 people dead.

Xi expressed deep sorrow for the people who lost their lives and extended his sympathy to those affected by the disaster as well as the family members of those killed.

He also highlighted the friendly relationship between the countries and offered all-out support to the Sri Lankan government and help with the disaster relief effort.

Xi said he was confident the Sri Lankan government and the people will overcome the disaster and rebuild their country.

Premier Li Keqiang also sent a message of condolence to Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Sunday.

The message of support came as emergency teams rushed to distribute aid to half a million people who have been displaced by the flooding, as authorities upgraded the death toll to 151.

The official Disaster Management Centre said 111 people were still missing, with 95 injured in hospital, since torrential rain and landslides swept away entire villages.

Floodwaters were receding in some areas after a break in the rain, giving authorities a chance to deliver much-needed supplies to victims who lost everything in the deluge.

Heavy rains on Friday triggered the worst flooding and landslides in 14 years in the southern and western parts of the island.

Many villages were still underwater on Sunday, officials said.

Nearly 2,000 houses were damaged or completely destroyed. Almost half a million Sri Lankans had been forced from their homes, with most moving into temporary shelters.

The charity Save the Children said about a tenth of those displaced were children below the age of five years.

It said that the stagnant floodwaters provide the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and could exacerbate the dengue crisis that has seen an almost 150 percent increase in cases compared to the same period last year.

"The humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka right now is alarming. The impact of these early monsoon season downpours has been far more devastating than what we'd normally expect this time of the year," Save the Children's Chris McIvor said.

Medical teams have been dispatched to the worst-affected areas to help prevent an outbreak of waterborne diseases.

"We have the expertise to deal with this situation," Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne said, adding that cholera and diarrhea had been successfully prevented in past floods.

The government, meanwhile, has withdrawn an evacuation order for thousands of residents in the southern district of Matara as water levels subsided.

The United Nations said it will provide water containers, water purification tablets and tarpaulin sheets while the World Health Organization will support medical teams in affected areas.

Xinhua and AFP contributed to this story
SEOUL -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) test-launched at least one ballistic missile early Monday from the country's east coast, the Republic of Korea (ROK)'s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The ballistic missile, which was believed to be of Scud type, was fired at about 5:39 am local time (2039 GMT on Sunday) from the DPRK's Wonsan vicinity, the JCS said in a statement.

The missile flew some 450 km into eastern waters.

An official with the JCS told a regular press briefing later that the exact number of launched missiles was currently under analysis though Pyongyang was assessed to have fired at least one missile.

The missile was lofted to the maximum altitude of some 120 km, indicating a launch at a normal angle. The DPRK often fired a missile at a steep angle to test a technology for the long-range missile development.

The JCS said the ROK and the United States were analyzing details on the missile launch.

It noted that ROK's military was closely watching any possible provocation of the DPRK, while maintaining a full preparedness.

The Monday missile launch marked the third provocation of the DPRK since the new ROK administration was launched earlier this month. It also logged the DPRK's ninth missile test-firing this year.

ROK President Moon Jae-in ordered a meeting of national security council to be held. The meeting was presided over by Moon's top national security advisor Chung Eui-yong.

Meanwhile, the JCS said in a separate statement that the DPRK's repeated provocative acts would cause isolation and make the country face strong punitive actions from the international community.

The statement said that Pyongyang's continued launch of ballistic missiles was in violation of UN Security Council resolutions and was a clear provocation against the ROK, the ROK-US alliance and the international society.

It urged the DPRK to immediately stop any acts that raise tensions in the region, issuing a strong warning against the country.
BUCHAREST -- Five Russian diplomats in Moldova were declared persona non grata on Monday, according to news reaching here from Moldova's capital city of Chisinau.

The diplomats have 72 hours to leave the territory of Moldova, local media reported, citing Artur Sarbu, adviser to Foreign Minister Andrei Galbur.

The Chisinau authorities did not explain the reasons for the sudden expulsion.

The action took place less than a week after Estonia last Friday expelled Russian Consul General in Narva Dmitry Kazennov and Consul Andrey Surgaev under similar unexplained circumstances.

Moldova's President Igor Dodon categorically condemned the steps taken by the government, saying the move was "most likely made on an order from the West."

"I want to state that I am deeply indignant at this unfriendly step on the part of representatives of Moldovan diplomacy and categorically condemn it," said the president.

"I understand that the Euro-unionists are irritated by the President's successes achieved in recent months and decided to go on direct provocations that carry the risk of a significant deterioration in Moldovan-Russian relations," Dodon was quoted by local Accent TV as saying.

"I also understand that this is most likely done on an order from the West, maybe even from across the ocean, from those who are concerned that a constructive and effective dialogue has been reached between the Presidency and the Kremlin," he added.

Dodon was elected president last November and has visited Moscow three times already in his first half of year of presidency.

According to him, many problems were solved especially regarding the export of Moldovan products and migrants during his visits to Russia.

He stressed that restoring full-fledged ties with Russia, his "priority goal as head of state," will have a positive impact on the economy of Moldova, and hundreds of thousands of farmers and migrant workers.
Making a biopic  a biographical movie about real people is complicated. And one of the biggest concerns is liability for defamation. In an ideal world, filmmakers would get everyone depicted in the movie to sign a release. But thats often impractical: people want too much money, too much control over how they are depicted, or both. And that assumes filmmakers can even find the people in question. Its understandable; nobody wants to see the embarrassing things theyve done memorialized onscreen. But a movie without conflict isnt much of a movie.

In the United States, filmmakers have two main legal tools at their disposal when countering allegations of defamation. First, the truth is a defense to defamation. Even if Ike Turner didnt like how he was depicted in Whats Love Got To Do With It, that he did in fact beat his wife insulated the filmmakers from liability. Second, you cant defame someone who is dead. Which (in part) explains The Brittany Murphy Story and many of the other biopics on Lifetime.

But in China, the law on defamation is markedly different. Truth is not a defense, and you can defame someone even if theyre dead. That can (and does) have a chilling effect on biopics in China.

Chinese defamation law is not specifically spelled out as such, but has been developed from Articles 101 and 102 of the General Principles of the Civil Law (enacted in 1987), and several subsequent supporting documents: the Supreme Peoples Courts Answers to Certain Issues Concerning Trials of Cases Involving the Right to Reputation (released in 1993), nterpretation of Certain Issues Concerning Trials of Cases Involving the Right to Reputation (released in 1998), and Understanding and Application of the 1998 Interpretation [link no longer exists]

As explained in the 1993 Answers, defamation exists if (i) the defendant has committed an illegal act, (ii) the plaintiffs reputation has been damaged, and (iii) the illegal act caused the damage. Such defamation exists in three circumstances:

Written or oral insults or libel that damage a persons reputation; Unauthorized disclosure of personal information that damages a persons reputation; or A news report containing gross error that damages a persons reputation.

In Understanding and Application of the 1993 Answers, the SPC clarified that truth was NOT a defense to defamation. If a work insults and damages a persons reputation, it is defamatory regardless of whether it is true.

The 1993 Answers state that either the allegedly defamed person or their close relatives (defined as spouses, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, and grandchildren) have standing to sue. That rules out almost anyone alive from 1950 onward as a character that can be included without fear of liability.

To be sure, the difficulty in securing effective injunctive relief in China does not create the same sense of urgency to get releases as in the United States. But the existence of the defamation laws, along with the often heavy hand of the Chinese government overseeing content, no doubt explains why so many biopics in China are either hagiographies or set in ancient times. Why take the risk of depicting real people unless the Chinese government has specifically asked you to do so?

Perhaps emboldened by the not particularly artist-friendly laws, a recent lawsuit attempted to extend the protection against defamation to an absurd conclusion. A woman with the same name as a character referenced in Feng Xiaogangs 2016 movie I Am Not Madame Bovary sued the filmmakers for defamation, alleging that her reputation and health had suffered because a character with her name was described as a slatternly woman of low morals. The character in question, Pan Jinlian, isnt even in the movie per se  shes a femme fatale from the classic Chinese novel, Water Margin, who is merely mentioned as a counterpoint to the films lead character. This would be like someone named Mata Hari suing a film that mentioned the World War I temptress/spy. If Ms. Pan has a complaint against anyone, its her parents for naming her after the character in the novel.

Its one of the more ridiculous arguments Ive heard, but at the same time its oddly encouraging for two reasons. First, its encouraging because the case was dismissed quickly; the judge noted that the character in the movie refers to the character in the book, not to anyone in China that happens to have the same name. Second, its encouraging to see that people in China feel confident enough in their legal system to bring a lawsuit when they have been aggrieved, even for something as nonsensical as this.

But if the characterization had been a little closer to the truth, the outcome might have been different.

Another recent Chinese movie, Dearest, was based on a true story about a couple whose child was kidnapped. The woman who was the basis for the lead character alleged the movie made things up about her life and suggested she was unchaste. She threatened to sue for defamation, but the director managed to resolve the dispute with a personal apology. Its not always going to be that simple.

Even if a movie is not considered defamatory in the United States, it still might be considered defamatory in China. And the Chinese distributor/exhibitor would be held liable. As the Chinese media market continues to grow, and as the Chinese court system continues to gain strength and credibility, I wouldnt be surprised to see many more defamation lawsuits in China, especially as US studios launch more partnerships with Chinese film companies to create Chinese-language content for the local market.

The bottom line for filmmakers is that getting releases has become all but mandatory. Especially for movies likely to be shown in China.
(Photo : USAF) U.S. B-52 strategic heavy bomber and its murderous bomb load.

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Talking peace while preparing for war, U. S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis said a war against North Korea will be immediately "catastrophic" for both North and South Korea.



More ominously, Mattis labeled North Korea a direct threat to the U.S. on account of this country's twin efforts to develop intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) capable of striking Alaska first and the U.S. mainland later on, and a nuclear warhead to be delivered by these ICBMs.



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"A conflict in North Korea would be probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes," said Mattis.



"The bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if we're not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means."



He noted that North Korea has been "very clear in their rhetoric (about developing an ICBM). We don't have to wait until they have an intercontinental ballistic missile with a nuclear weapon on it to say that now it's manifested completely."



His remarks reinforce a similar statement made last week by Lt. Gen. Vincent Stewart, Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), who told the Senate Armed Services Committee the possibility of North Korea launching an ICBM with a nuclear warhead at the U.S. was very real after recent missile tests.



North Korea has tested and launched one ballistic missile every week for the past three weeks.



Gen. Stewart claimed that if North Korea were left on the "current trajectory, the regime will ultimately succeed (in developing a nuclear armed ICBM)."



Despite the chilling rhetoric, Mattis' statements hold out the hope that North Korea has arrived at the same calculus, and might prove more willing to negotiate rather than risk being engulfed by this catastrophe.



Other respected U.S. leaders have pointed out the futility of a war against North Korea. Only last week, retired U.S. Navy Admiral Dennis Blair, former Director of National Intelligence (DNI) under President Barack Obama, argued that because a nuclear war on the Korean Peninsula will be "tragic on an unbelievable scale," the best and only option for the U.S. is to accept North Korea as a nuclear-armed state.



Adm. Blair's startling comments came as the U.S. is accelerating obvious preparations for a punitive precision strike on North Korea's nuclear facilities.



Only yesterday, the Pentagon said it had ordered a third U.S. Navy nuclear powered supercarrier -- the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) -- to sail for Asia to reinforce two other aircraft carriers already deployed there.



The Nimitz; her Carrier Strike Group Eleven (CSG-11); her Carrier Air Wing Eleven (CVW-11) and Destroyer Squadron 23 are expected to set sail for Asia as soon as possible. Preparations are being accelerated for the departure of this powerful naval force from its homeport at Naval Base Kitsap on the Kitsap Peninsula in Washington State.



The arrival of the Nimitz in Asia will result in the largest single gathering of U.S. aircraft carriers in one place since the Gulf War or Operation Desert Shield in 1991. It will also be the largest assembly of U.S. aircraft carriers in Asia since the Vietnam War



This powerful naval force sends what might be an unmistakable signal the U.S. is seriously considering a punitive strike to destroy North Korea's nuclear production facilities.



There will be over 250 aircraft combined aboard the Nimitz; the USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) now patrolling off Korea and the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76) that recently departed its homeport in Japan to join the Vinson.



"Si vis pacem, para bellum." ("If you want peace, prepare for war.")



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TagsJames Mattis, intercontinental ballistic missiles, ICBM, North Korea, nuclear warhead, Lt. Gen. Vincent Stewart
Today, thousands of men and women carrying the names of fallen soldiers will conclude a thirty-one-day relay across a total of 6,200 miles. Organized by the nonprofit Carry The Load, the two routes began in Seattle, Washington and West Point, New York. They will meet in Dallas today for a Memorial Day March.

Last year, their event raised more than $2 million to build homes for veterans, provide adaptive training for injured soldiers, and support mental health programs. Their goal this year is to raise $2.5 million.

Their commitment is what Memorial Day in America should be all about.

Known as Americas most solemn occasion, this day has been set aside to remember the 1.3 million men and women who died in the service of our nation. This is the very least we can do for those who died for us and for those who grieve their loss. I am frankly concerned that in recent years Memorial Day seems to have become less about our fallen heroes and more about a three-day weekend to start the summer.

Contrast our holiday with the way Israel commemorates Yom HaZikaron, its Memorial Day, each year on April 30. Candles are lit in homes, schools, and synagogues. A siren is heard all over the country. When they hear it, Israelis stop everything. Those driving on roads and highways stop, get out of their cars, and stand in silence as they remember those who have died for their country.

I have been in Israel during Yom HaZikaron and was deeply moved. Why should we follow their example?

One: Memorial Day deepens our commitment to the cause for which our heroes died.

It is easy to take our nation for granted. Memorial Day reminds us that freedom is not free. Without our soldiers sacrifice, we could still be a colony of England or live in a world dominated by Nazism, Communism, or radical jihadism. If America was worth their sacrifice, she is worth ours.

Two: Memorial Day calls us to serve those who serve us.

More than 2.5 million Americans are serving in our military on active duty or in the reserves. They deserve to know that if they give their lives for our nation, we will never forget their sacrifice. Consider also the spouses and children of soldiers who died for our country. Their loss and their service to our nation continue.

It is therefore appropriate that all Americans are asked to stop whatever we are doing today at 3:00 PM local time for a moment of silence, remembrance, and gratitude. I have set my phone alarm and encourage you to do the same. While our citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20), Christians are called to be Jesus ambassadors on earth (2 Corinthians 5:20). Lets show our nation the compassion of our Father.

Army Capt. Mark Resh was killed in Iraq a decade ago. His mother was asked to speak to high school students about the meaning of Memorial Day. She explained, Its not about the picnics. Its about the men and women who have given their lives for this country.

Then she added, Every day is Memorial Day for us. As it should be for us all.

NOTE: For more on this very important day, please see Ryan Denisons How to honor the dead this Memorial Day.

Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com

Publication date: May 29, 2017

For more from the Denison Forum on Truth and Culture, please visit www.denisonforum.org.

Do you want to live a life in whole-hearted pursuit of loving God and others?

Read today's First15 at www.first15.org.
This Memorial Day Ill make whats become an annual pilgrimage, to a place made sacred by the struggles of people like my cousin Mike. Nestled in between the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Fort Snelling National Cemetery is the final resting place for more than 220,000 American military veterans and their spouses. Most of them died at a ripe old age, but a few of the headstones bear birth and death dates that are far closer than they ought to be. One of those belongs to Mike, a Navy corpsman traumatized by his experience of the Iraq War. He died in 2014 at the age of 33, leaving behind a wife and three young children.

Some of the visitors who had preceded me last year to Mikes graveside left behind tokens of remembrance. Flowers and a small American flag rested peacefully in the grass. Two of his comrades-in-arms had placed quarters on the headstone.

Nothing remained of my visit but fallen tears, fleeting evidence of the complicated mix of emotions I felt: grief at Mikes suffering and death, pride for his courage and sacrifice, dismay at humanitys propensity for violence, anger at the circumstances that led to his death, and uncertainty about how I should participate in the rituals of Memorial Day.

More of the hurt will have healed when I visit this year, but the other emotions have already started to bubble up. So as a Christian, as a historian, and as someone who loved and was loved by a fallen veteran, let me share what Ive been contemplating as we approach Memorial Day.

We need reminders to remember.

In a sense, every day is a memorial day for Christians, heirs of Moses exhortation to the assembly of Israel: Remember the days of old; consider the generations ...

1
The Time to Plan Participation in the Eighth Global Rosary Relay for Priests on 23 June 2017 Starts Now

Contact: Marion Mulhall, Worldpriest, 646 355-4106, info.worldpriest@gmail.com

NEW YORK, May 29, 2017 /Christian Newswire/ -- The Global Rosary Relay for Priests begins at the stroke of midnight on 23 June (the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus) this year, commencing in East Asia as it begins its journey around the world. We thank you for making this worldwide prayer event a success in the past as we now look forward to sharing in a greatly enhanced event for 2017, when over 125 lead shrines in more than 60 countries around the world will pray the rosary in their local language at their allocated time.

Now more than ever  as the world faces into a period of great uncertainly  we need to call on the wonderful power of prayer. Participants in your region can attend their nearest shrine in person or simply join up with their lead location by praying the rosary as Saint John Paul recommended 'as you walk along the streets to school, to the university or to work, or as you commute by public transport.' In other words, people can just join in where they are and know they are making a difference.

We urge you to spread the word about this eighth Rosary Relay for Priests that continues to gain in strength and popularity with each passing year. Please contact all the religious and lay groups in your area and tell them how everybody can add their voices to this unique global event that once again will encircle the world to support the work and ministry of our devoted priests. Remember without priests we do not have the Eucharist and without the Eucharist we have no Church.

The Annual Global Rosary for Priests has the full support of the Worldpriest Episcopal Adviser Archbishop Michael Neary, and the Apostolic Blessing of Pope Francis has added further significance to this remarkable event. Last year, on Global Rosary Relay Day, history was made when Pope Francis greeted Worldpriest founder Marion Mulhall during a visit to Rome for Rosary Relay Day.



So here is the perfect opportunity for you to play your part in this immediate call to action as the Global Rosary for Priests prepares to go local in your area.

This event is the perfect way for the laity all over the world to recognize the blessings bestowed on all of us by those thousands of priests working tirelessly on behalf of millions of Catholics and to thank Our Lady for the gift of these priests. Every voice added to this chorus of prayer makes a difference to each of our priests in their daily lives.

Please visit for full details www.worldpriest.com

Worldpriest INC

600 Third Avenue,

2nd Floor,

New York,

New York 10016

USA

Tel: 646 355 4106

E-mail info.worldpriest@gmail.com

W: www.worldpriest.com

Worldpriest Inc. is a not-for-profit organization under

Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Service Code.

Listed in the Official Catholic Directory (Kenedy Directory) USA.
5 must-have mini bags for 2017

Small is most definitely beautiful, as these five superb and highly sought-after mini bags demonstrate  all offered in our Spring 2017 Hong Kong sales

1

The Constance, Hermes

The Constance  originally designed in the 1950s and named for the designer's daughter  has always been a classic, but it has only reached top-collector level in the past few seasons. This limited-edition, tri-colour version is very difficult to find, especially in this small size. Classic, distinctive and rare, this is a very special item.

2

The Ombre Lizard Collection, Hermes

Pieces from the Ombre Lizard collection are highly sought-after and, as Lizard pieces become less common and more desirable, the Ombre pieces continue to gain value. Nearly every season a Birkin 25 is available, but it is extremely difficult to find the Kelly  it has been five years since one has come to auction at Christies. In this condition, this bag is a top-level collector piece.

3

A movie camera bag, Chanel

For the Metiers d'Art Paris-Rome collection, aptly held at Cinecitta film studios in Rome, Chanel created this imaginative movie camera evening bag for the runway. The ingenious creation  inspired by Italys long cinematic history  immediately became the star of the collection, and its extremely limited production meant that it sold out immediately.

4

A shiny pink 5P Salvator Lizard Constance Elan, Hermes

The Constance continues to be one of the most collectible Hermes models. This newer version in the Elan size  a long, rectangular version of the classic design  is done in lizard, which is extremely difficult to find. Pink 5P is arguably the most sought-after colour and is very rare in lizard. The bag is paired with gold hardware, and likely to be very popular at auction.

5

A Bleu Marine ribbed satin Mini Sellier Kelly 20, Hermes
Iconic  Magnificent Jewels by acclaimed contemporary Asian designers

Christies Magnificent Jewels auction on 30 May in Hong Kong brings together masterpieces created by world-renowned jewellery designers. Here, Cindy Chao, Edmond Chin and Michelle Ong discuss their work and inspirations

Cindy Chao

Open a larger version of this image Coming from an artistic family, Cindy fills her works with architectural and sculptural elements, creating exceptional three-dimensional designs

Cindy Chao was born into an artistic family  her grandfather is a renowned Taiwanese temple architect and her father is a sculptor. It was her mother, however, who encouraged her to become a jewellery designer. My father passed on to me the ability to sculpt pieces with my hands, while my grandfather passed on his architectural perspective,' explains Chao. This allows me to use three-dimensional perspective to view pieces as miniature sculptures and architecture. For Chao, travel, architecture and culture are a constant source of inspiration. During the creative process, I make sure all the individual details will present the jewellery as a piece of art. I do not rush to complete a piece. Rather than sketching her designs, she prefers a hand-sculpted wax mould that allows her to explore her design freely and infuse it with life and energy. This technique ensures that her creations are flexible and free-flowing. Her feather-inspired, unique coloured diamond and diamond brooch, a highlight of the Spring Sale, is encrusted with 1,000 sparkling diamonds that were meticulously selected from 6,000 stones. Equally stunning are the Snow Peas ear pendants showcasing two majestic Colombian emeralds of 29.49 and 26.81 carats respectively. Edmond Chin

Open a larger version of this image Edmond Chins creative process begins with observing the gemstones, from which point he strives to marry tradition, modernity and avant-garde style

Edmond Chin remembers accompanying his father to jewellery stores to pick out exquisite pieces for his mother. I think I have always been destined to be a jewellery designer, he confesses. Chin always includes galleries and museums in his itinerary when travelling. 'Art is an inspiration, he explains. You live with art, like the colour balance of a painting or subtle details about decorative pattern. All these things can inform my own design work. The jeweller, who is known for mixing different stones in his collections, says that the creative process begins with looking carefully at the gemstone. Certain stones look better floating in the air; certain stones look better on the skin, he says. Certain stones look better mounted in different ways or with other stones of different colours  it's almost like a painting, but slightly more complicated. Chin finds two types of gemstones particularly captivating. One has a very cold beauty. It is beautiful in many ways, no matter who is wearing it, he says. The other kind has a lot of personality. It looks different every day and is absolutely changeable. The designers creations fuse tradition, modernity and the avant garde. His experience of collecting ancient jewellery from Southeast Asia also serves as a source of inspiration. Being a collector, I realised that designing could be really free and full of possibilities. It taught me that jewellery doesnt have to be only one thing; you have to think outside of the box. This season, Chin presents three spectacular pieces that embody his distinctive style, including a pair of ruby and diamond ear pendants, a 3.37 carat Fancy Intense Blue diamond ring, as well as the greatly anticipated highlight, a magnificent Colombian emerald and diamond Palmette necklace, set with 11 perfectly matched natural emeralds  unprecedented in the auction market. Michelle Ong

Open a larger version of this image Michelle Ong says Carnet is for confident, beautiful and memorable women
A disturbing memo from a Pentagon official alleges that an Air Force mortuary employee twice offered to show the deceased body of John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth.

According to Pentagon documents obtained by Military Times, a senior mortuary worker at the Dover Air Force Base in Delaware offered a "horrified" defense department official "to view the deceased."

The memo, written by the Defense Department's director of casualty and mortuary affairs Deborah Skillman, said the offer concerned her. She immediately told a ranking commander of the incident.

FOR SALE: Apollo 11 lunar bag up for auction; price pegged at $2M-$4M

The accused employee, mortuary branch chief William Zwicharowski, "was counseled by his chain of command" but "repeated it," according to Skillman.

John Glenn, a fighter pilot in World War II and Korea, was part of the Mercury Seven, the first NASA astronauts ever chosen. Glenn died in December of last year.

A defense official who spoke to Military Times on condition of anonymity said, "If he did that with our inspection team, who else did he make that offer to?"

STUNNING VIEW: NASA is closer to Saturn than ever before and the images are incredible

In a text message to the Associated Press, Zwicharowski said he was proud of the work he and his staff did on Glenn and that his remains were treated with "impeccable care."

Click through above to see little-know facts about John Glenn's historic space mission.
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In the heated politics of today, fueled by endless, non-spot coverage, satire and a plague of memes, the lead photo in this week's World News Photos is worth a second look. At first glance, it seems quite obvious that everyone other than President Trump is having a dreadful time.

However, as SFGate.com wrote:

... it was also misleading. Many social media users focused on the supposed difference in the pope's mood when former President Barack Obama or other heads of state visited the pontiff. Photos showing the pope grinning and obviously enjoying himself with Obama or Angela Merkel were juxtaposed with the smiley Trump-frowny Francis picture. In fact, the pope did not appear in a bad mood during the photo-op, according to the photographer, Evan Vucci of Associated Press.

Read the rest of his analysis.

Meanwhile, there were lots of people taking to the streets around the world to battle over policy, politics and justice.

Check out the news of the world in our unique collection above.

Jake Ellison can be reached at jakeellisonjournalism@gmail.com. Follow Jake on Twitter at twitter.com/Jake_News. Also, swing by and *LIKE* his page on Facebook. If Google Plus is your thing, check out our science coverage here.
Woodlands Township Director Laura Fillault is spearheading an effort to have an event in the community to honor first responders on Sept. 11.

Fillault first asked about an event during the township's May 18 meeting.

John Powers, assistant general manager for the township, gave the board four options before Fillault announced she had recently learned House Bill 1937, signed into law in 2003, designated Sept. 11 of every year of Texas First Responders Day.

Powers suggested several options for an event including a day of remembrance at Town Green Park, a proclamation by the board, a national day of service that would organize community service projects on that day and coordinate students to write letters to those serving in the military.

He added the cost with a potential event would be about $3,800.

"I want to do an event, but that's me," Fillault said specifying the event should be in coordination with Texas First Responders Day and recognize local first responders.

Board member Bruce Rieser agrees adding the township should do more than a proclamation since it "doesn't pay enough attention to it."

The event, Rieser said, should be done the morning of Sept. 11.

"It needs to be in the morning," he said. "It was that time in the morning that so many first responders lost their lives when the towers came down."

Fillault asked the staff to bring the issue back at the board's next meeting.
Four students at the Tomball Junior High School rallied together to support one of their favorite teachers achieve her bucket list after she shared news of her cancer diagnosis with the class.

Kay Wistrand is an English language arts teacher at the school and has an uncommon tumor in her back that doctors cannot remove. Doctors estimate that she has between 2-5 years to live now that the tumor has spread to her lungs. Story continues below.

LOCAL LOVE: Woodlands 5-year-old with down syndrome gets life-saving bone marrow donation from teen

After receiving the diagnosis, Wistrand told her students of the news, as well as her dream bucket list. The list included seeing the redwood trees in California and stepping into the Pacific Ocean. Hearing about her bucket list, four 8th grade students, Mickey Nolan, Alana Lee, Amanda Skivington and Colton Richard, teamed up to create a GoFundMe page to raise funds for their teacher to complete her bucket list.

"Mrs. Wistrand has loved all of her students so much for many years. We just want to return the favor for all of the hard work she has put in to teach the youth of our community," Nolan wrote on the GoFundMe page. "Please find it in your heart to help out our amazing teacher, she deserves it more than anyone I know."

In three months, the fundraising goal was passed and the children were able to pull together $10,763 for their teacher's bucket list.

"$11,000! Who does that for a teacher?" Wistrand told KHOU. "The fact that 8th-grade students would look beyond themselves... these kids are awesome."

According to KHOU, the money raised by the students will not only allow Wistrand to go to California for the redwoods, but she will travel to the Midwest to see the leaves change colors in the fall and Florida to witness the sea turtles for the first time.

REALITY HEARTBREAK: Grieving mother shares photo of her son, 4, after he dies from cancer
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An American Airlines passenger is in federal lockup in North Carolina, accused of attacking a flight attendant and leaping from the jet as it prepared to take off from Charlotte Douglas International Airport on Thursday.

Flight 5242 had just pulled away from the gate and the seat belt lights had flashed on when Tun Lon Sein, 22, got out of his seat and tried to force the main door open, according to a federal air marshal's affidavit.

A flight attendant and two passengers got up to stop Sein -- much like what happened on another American flight this month, when crew and passengers restrained a man whose bizarre behavior in the air prompted a bomb threat alert and caused military jets to scramble.

In this case, Sein couldn't be restrained. He "tried to bite" the crew member trying to get him back in his seat, according to the affidavit, and went looking for another door to get off the plane.

He found one in the galley and managed to get it open, authorities say. Then, for unknown reasons, he jumped from the plane, a regional CRJ-200 jet.

Sein's alleged actions are the latest in a string of strange and disturbing flight incidents.

Before the other American Airlines incident this month, there was the bloody deplaning of David Dao. Before that, in February, a United pilot gave a preflight rant about divorce, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton -- causing her passengers to flee the plane. Not to mention the many viral fits of rage or politics that have been recorded in the aisles and cramped seat space of commercial jets.

And routine flight experience may soon become even less pleasant, if recent security threats prompt U.S. authorities to ban laptops on all flights from Europe.

After most news-making flight disruptions, the airlines have issued brief statements and said little about what took place on the plane. So too with Thursday's "security incident with a passenger," as an American Airline statement described Sein's sprint across the tarmac.

The air marshal's affidavit said Sein ran toward the taxiway, where jets were coming and going from one of the nation's busiest airports.

Two airport workers intercepted him before he could reach it, and shortly before midnight he was booked into federal lockup.

The other passengers got to New Bern, North Carolina, about 1 1/2 hours late, according to the airline.

Sein's public defender didn't immediately respond to questions about the charge: interfering with a flight crew, which carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.

According to the affidavit, he was midway through a journey that began overseas and spoke "little or no English" during the incident.
Two men are dead after a murder and suicide that may be connected, according to authorities.

Authorities made the first tragic discovery on Saturday around 3 a.m., when 34-year-old Matt Franks was found dead in the 11600 block of Katy Freeway.

The medical examiner has not ruled on cause of death, but KTRK reported it as an apparent suicide.

Then Monday morning, around 7 a.m, a friend discovered a bullet-riddled body inside the bedroom of an Elmview Place townhome. It's not clear when the shooting occurred, but police said Monday that it's being investigated as a murder.

Local news reports identified the second victim as Franks' boyfriend, Rafael "Ralfie" Reyes, though police only confirmed that the two were roommates.

There are no known witnesses, but a police spokesman said that investigators are looking into the possibility that the roommate may have played a role in slaying.

As word of the deaths spread online, friends took to social media to grieve.

"My beautiful friend gone too soon," wrote one woman. "My heart is broken and my mind confused. RIP Ralfie Reyes. I will remember you always."
Some 1,500 people gathered at the Houston National Cemetery on Monday morning to honor those who died in the military, assembling amid the flag-adorned graves of 74,000 service members.

The formal ceremony lasted about an hour and a half and featured cannon salutes, helicopter fly-overs, the presentation of colors and a bagpipe rendition of "Amazing Grace," among other traditions and speeches.
AUSTIN -- Gov. Greg Abbott, expressing disappointment at the Legislature's failure to continue in business the agency regulating doctors, said Monday he will announce his plans for a special legislation later this week.

It is widely expected that Abbott will call lawmakers back into session for a short-turnaround meeting -- possibly just a few days in duration -- to pass a bill continuing the operations of the Texas Medical Board and four related regulatory agencies.

Special sessions can run for up to 30 days. Most governors have waited until they finish signing bills in late June to avoid having the Legislature in session to override a veto.

The 140-day, every-other-year regular legislative session adjourns Monday.

"I'll be making announcements later this week about a special session," Abbott told reporters in a South Austin parking lot, where he signed into law a bill on ridesharing, blocking cities from enacting "a patchwork" of their own regulations in favor of a statewide policy.

"When it gets to a special session, the time and topics are solely up to the governor of State of Texas, and, if we have a special session, convening only on the topics that I choose at the time of my choosing," Abbott said.

Asked whether he felt pressure from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to add the bathroom bill and property-tax reform to a special session agenda, Abbott emphatic. "None," he said.

Abbott said his biggest disappointment of the concluding session was that lawmakers failed to pass a bill to keep the Texas Medical Board and related agencies open. Under state law, the operations of agencies periodically are reviewed and reauthorized -- and the medical agencies were on the list this year.

If not reauthorized, they begin a shutdown process to go out of business.

"This is something that is incredibly to easy achieve that members could have very easily gotten together and agreed upon (that) specifically was not done," he said.

As Abbott was making his comments about a special session, lawmakers and advocacy groups were calling on him to add tax reform, the bathroom bill and the restoration of budget cuts for disabled children's therapy to the agenda for that session.

Despite criticism of ethics-reform legislation that was approved by lawmakers this year as not tough enough, Abbott appeared satisfied with what was passed and site on his desk waiting to be signed into law. Ethics was declared a emergency topic -- a priority -- for fast action in January.

"It's highly unusual that a governor has called as a emergency item without there being an ethics scandal to be addressed," he said, reflecting in reforms in past decades that sputtered or failed without the pressure of a public scandal.

"I'm very proud of the Texas Legislature to step up and pass what I consider to be very robust, very meaningful, substantial ethics reforms making sure Texas and our representatives and our senators and those who work in the Capitol will be reflecting the highest standards."

In signing the ride sharing bill into law, Abbott said its goal is to encourage free-market competition and more freedom for customers. He specifically criticized Austin officials for enacting local regulations that forced Uber and Lyft -- the two leading national ride share companies -- from the market.

"In Texas we don't believe in top-down, one-side regulatory barriers," he said, asserting that allowing every community to establish their own rules situation where drivers amounted to a "chaotic scheme" that would only drive up costs to business and customers.

"Unacceptable," he said.

Austin and other cities had fought the legislation, arguing that local officials should be able to adopt ordinances to regulate local businesses. They have complained bitterly that state officials this session have passed a number of bills overruling local decisions in favor of state control.
AUSTIN -- The Texas Legislature's most tumultuous session in years ended Monday much as it began 140 days ago, with angry protests, partisan accusations and death threats, even as Gov. Greg Abbott was considering plans to call them back to Austin to fix a misstep: Keeping open the agency that licenses doctors.

While Abbott remained tight-lipped on details, he said at a morning bill-signing ceremony that he would announce his plans for a special session later this week. It is widely expected that Abbott might call lawmakers back to Austin for a short-turnaround session -- likely just a few days in duration -- sometime in June.

Special sessions can last up to 30 days. Most governors have waited until they finish signing bills in late June to avoid having the Legislature in session, which puts them position to override a veto.

"I'll be making announcements later this week about a special session," Abbott said Monday, just hours before the House adjourned for the final time about 1:15 p.m. and the Senate followed suit just over an hour later.

"When it gets to a special session, the time and topics are solely up to the governor of state of Texas, and, if we have a special session, convening only on the topics that I choose at the time of my choosing," Abbott said.

Asked whether he felt pressure from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to add the bathroom bill and property-tax reform to a special session agenda, Abbott was emphatic. "None," he said.

In what legislative leaders quickly read as a signal for an upcoming special session, Abbott said his biggest disappointment of the regular session was that lawmakers failed to pass a bill to keep the Texas Medical Board and related agencies open. Under state law, the operations of agencies periodically are reviewed and reauthorized -- and the medical agencies were on the list this year. If not reauthorized, they begin a shutdown process to go out of business.

"This is something that is incredibly easy to achieve that members could have very easily gotten together and agreed upon (that) specifically was not done," he said.

As Abbott was making his comments about a special session, lawmakers and advocacy groups were calling on him to add tax reform, the bathroom bill and the restoration of budget cuts for disabled children's therapy to the agenda for that session.

While Abbott and aides have steadfastly declined to discuss his plans, legislative leaders in both houses said Monday they increasingly do not expect Abbott to call a special session over the bathroom bill or property-tax reform, mostly because there is no consensus between the two legislative chambers currently on those issues. A special session would likely end in an impasse just as the regular session did, they said.

Patrick declined comment. But before in gaveling the Senate to adjourn for the final time, he told senators that while he might "normally say we'd see you in 18 months, we'll see you before that."

State officials have said the cost of a 30-day special session runs upwards of $800,000.

Sen. John Whitmire, a Houston Democrat who has been in the Legislature since 1973, said he can't predict what Abbott may do. "But over the years, I've been to a lot of special sessions and the key to it is communication and compromise," he said, noting that previous governors have empaneled back-to-back special sessions on school, finance and workers compensation reform where lawmakers were forced to come to a consensus.

"Right now, I don't know how anything will be different at the end of a special, except on the medical board sunset," he said. "Property tax reform is complex, and the bathroom bill is pretty partisan within the Republican Party, If those issues are in a call, right now, I don't see any consensus after 30 days to get a bill out."

State Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, said he sees the potential for multiple special sessions, not just within the next few months but potentially leading to the 2019 session.

In addition to the sunset bill and property tax changes, he cited the possibility of Abbott calling a special session over redistricting.

Capriglione said he anticipated a short special session on the sunset bill, but a longer one on property tax reform.

"That's one of the bills that received a significant amount of testimony and we'd have to, and we should, allow the public to weigh in on that again," he said. "I think what all of us want as homeowners is to get a reduction in taxes. A lot of us think that local government can change the tax rate Tuesday and I'm not 100 percent sure that anything we've done this session would actually lower that."

State Rep. Jim Murphy, R-Houston, said he didn't have any expectations about what would happen if Abbott calls one or more special sessions.

"We had a good session; not a perfect session. But I don't know if compelling us to return is going to compel a different result," he said.

Murphy said he heard that a special session on the sunset bill possibly could be avoided if the governor can use an executive order to extend the life of agencies involved in "health and safety" issues.

In a legislative session that proved one of the most chaotic in years, from its highly controversial bills to a skin-tight budget to public animosity between Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Joe Straus, Monday final actions were punctuated with drama and tension.

Hundreds of red-shirted protestors flooded the statehouse throughout the day calling for repeal of the controversial ban on sanctuary cities. Some donned red capes reminiscent of characters in the dystopian 1985 novel "The Handmaid's Tale" to object to the Legislature's omnibus anti-abortion bill that Republicans also passed this session.

At one point, pro-immigration protestors packed the House gallery chanting "SB 4 has got to go" and the cacophony brought business to a standstill before House officials escorted them out. The Senate locked its gallery doors to avoid a similar disruption.

State Rep. Matt Rinaldi, R-Irving, and several Hispanic lawmakers -- all Democrats -- scuffled briefly on the House floor after Rinaldi announced during the shoutdown that he was calling federal immigration authorities to detain several protestors who said they were undocumented.

Several of the Democrats later accused Rinaldi of threatening to shoot them during the scuffle, but Rinaldi said later that the Democrats instigated the threats, and he told them he would shoot them in self-defense if attacked him. Rinaldi said he was placed under state police protection as a precaution.

In the Senate, the tone was ceremonial. Members elected Republican colleague Robert Nichols of Jacksonville -- a former mayor and state transportation commissioner -- as Senate pro tem, a post that will put him third in line of succession. He will serve as governor when Abbott and Patrick are out of state.

Despite his view that ethics-reform legislation approved by lawmakers this year is not tough enough, Abbott appeared satisfied with what was passed and sitting on his desk waiting to be signed into law. Ethics was declared a emergency topic -- a priority -- for fast action in January.

"It's highly unusual that a governor has called that as a emergency item without there being an ethics scandal to be addressed," he said, reflecting on reforms in past decades that sputtered or failed without the pressure of a public scandal. "I'm very proud of the Texas Legislature to step up and pass what I consider to be very robust, very meaningful, substantial ethics reforms making sure Texas and our representatives and our senators and those who work in the Capitol will be reflecting the highest standards."

Abbott was asked about his plans for a special session when he appeared Monday morning in a South Austin parking lot to sign a ride-share bill into law, a change he said will encourage free-market competition and more freedom for customers. He specifically criticized Austin officials for enacting local regulations that forced Uber and Lyft -- the two leading national ride-share companies -- from the market.

Allowing every community to establish their own rules amounted to a "chaotic scheme" that would only drive up costs to business and customers.

"Unacceptable," he said.

Austin and other cities had fought the legislation, arguing that local officials should be able to adopt ordinances to regulate local businesses. They have complained bitterly that state officials this session have passed a number of bills overruling local decisions in favor of state control.
AUSTIN -- The last day is here.

After 140 days, the biennial session of the Texas Legislature will end today with the presiding officer of the Senate and House gaveling out with the words: "We are adjourned sine die."

Translated, that means the proceedings have been ended with no appointed date for resumption.

After five months of arguing and lawmaking and celebrating, Texas' 181 legislators will go home. But the quiet at the State Capitol could be short-lived.

Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to call the Legislature back for a special session, perhaps as soon as this week, to take care of unfinished business -- most certainly to pass legislation to keep the Texas Medical Board and four related agencies in business and, perhaps, to take action on property tax reform and a bathroom bill.

No dates have been set for when that may happen. Abbott could make an announcement later today.

So special

Only the governor can call the Legislature back into session after their every-two-years' meeting ends. He determines when and he sets the agenda, either one issue or several.

Special sessions can run no more than 30 days. If the issue the governor wanted taken care of is not solved, he can call them back again and again.

Generally, lawmakers are tired and cranky after spending 140 days in Austin and they want to go home. So governors in the past have often let them take a break and return in June, after he is finished signing bills and after the period ends when they can override his veto on bills.

Abbott wasn't discussing his plans on Sunday, but legislative leaders speculated that he might move quickly to fix the medical board issue -- a solution that probably would take just a few days -- and then bring them back for another special session on another issue in June.

If Abbott decides he wants them back in Austin.

Another governor

Texas has a governor who runs the state on a daily basis, and a lieutenant governor who fills in when the governor is out of state. When both of them are gone, an obscure and largely ceremonial official called the Senate president pro tempore -- someone who acts in the absence of a superior -- stands in.

On Monday before the Senate adjourns, it will elect a new president pro tem based on seniority.

This time it will be Sen. Robert Nichols, a Jacksonville Republican and former Texas transportation commissioner who is known for his efficiency at getting things done.

Nichols will be elected by the Senate, probably before lunch, and will be sworn in with the required speeches and congratulatory messages that are Senate tradition.

When Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick are out of state, he will serve as governor -- and there will be a Governor for a Day celebration for him at the statehouse.

Bills, bills, bills

For the the record, during the 140 days they were in Austin, lawmakers filed a total of 10,5673 bills, including 7,264 in the 150-member House and 3,309 in the 31-member Senate.

Quite a number of those bills were identical -- companions, they are called.

Of the total, 4,123 were passed.

Seventy-eight of the proposed new laws would take effect immediately and 121 will take effect on Sept. 1, if Abbott lets them become law.

Of those, Abbott by Monday had signed signed 227 into law and let another 16 become law without his signature. He has not yet filed any vetoes.

Final note

In decades past, the standing joke was that no one in Texas was safe as long as the Legislature was in session, since they are able to pass laws that change Texans' lives.

Under that reasoning, Texas will become safe again today -- at least until a special session is convened.

The next time the Legislature will meet in regular session will be in January 2019.
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AUSTIN - With a special legislative session all but certain, Senate and House leaders on Sunday battled publicly over who is to blame for the meltdown that left the Legislature with unfinished business after five months of deliberations.

Gov. Greg Abbott spent much of the day signing and vetoing bills in his Capitol office as an angry verbal firefight between the two legislative chambers continued down the hall. He was considering a special session. That could begin either immediately or in June -- after the veto period for bills ends.

To convene lawmakers before then might invite an attempt to override a veto, a rarity in Texas because the governor generally handles those matters after the Legislature leaves town.

Legislative leaders said they expect he will call them back into session to address a measure to keep five state agencies open, because bills to do so were not approved. A final bill to do that died Sunday.

As speculation mounted Sunday about a special session, lawmakers said privately they were hearing that "the governor is not happy, and we expect he's going make it as painful on us as he can." Abbott aides had no comment.

The focus of the Sunday squabbling was a bill that would have continued the operations of the Texas Medical Board, the agency that licenses Texas' 85,000 doctors. If the legislation does not pass, the board could go out of business within a year.

House leaders blamed the Senate, insisting that Patrick had held the bill hostage until the House relented on passing Senate versions of the bathroom bill and property-tax reform - an allegation that Patrick has denied.

In dueling press conferences for the second day in a row, the House and Senate attacked each other with an intensity rarely seen at the Capitol.

Flanked by Republicans and Democrats in the House who served on the sunset commission that handled agency reviews, Rep. Larry Gonzales, R-Round Rock, blasted the Senate for not passing the measure and for removing key wording without any explanation.

"It's on them. The ball is in their court," Gonzales said "They stripped out our language. They can fix this today by concurring with Senate Bill 1929."

Patrick and Senate leaders fired back an hour later, accusing the House of not passing their version of the medical-board bill - and four others needed to keep other key agencies open.

Sen. Van Taylor, vice chair of the Texas Sunset Commission, said the House "created the crisis you see in front of you today." A fix proposed by the House was flawed and would not continue the operation of the agencies, he said.

"The only way to fix this is with a special session," he insisted.

Patrick blasted away, as well: "The gap between what the real truth is and what was said is about as wide as the Grand Canyon."

Taylor and Patrick said that of 10 sunset bills the House was to have passed, only seven got through -- with the others lost in parliamentary and scheduling miscues. The Senate passed all 10.

They said Gonzales, overseeing sunset legislation in the House, had passed only one of his three. Gonzales denied that he or the House dropped the ball, and said the blame for the medical board mistake was on the Senate.

"The House under the speaker's leadership has been slow," Patrick said, continuing his criticism of Straus' leadership after months of acrimony between them. "Whether it was just not managing the calendar or whether it was purposefully done to kill legislation, I'm not sure."

He insisted his comments were not personal.

Immediately before the Senate press conference, the entire Senate met in a closed-door session in which Patrick briefed members on the details of his contention that the House had failed to act on sunset bills. Participants said they stood by him taking on the House over the issue.

After Patrick's press conference, where he was flanked by nearly two dozen Republican and Democrat members, the Senate returned to the chamber and passed several final sunset bills for other state agencies, an action that senators said was intended to underscore their point about inaction in the House.

While only Abbott can call a special session and determine the agenda, lawmakers quickly started lining up Sunday with suggestions on when and what to include.

House and Senate members they will ask Abbott to call a special session to continue the medical board and the other agencies. Patrick and Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, said they want a special session to pass a bathroom bill and property-tax reform.

"The leadership of the Texas House has chosen to ignore the taxpayers from around the state who have overwhelmingly called for property tax relief," Bettencourt said. "I will ask Governor Abbott to include property tax relief in any call for a special session to get Texans the property tax relief that they deserve."

As lawmakers criticized each other Sunday, more than 50 leaders of a grassroots conservative movement delivered a letter to Abbott and legislative leaders demanding substantive policy changes before the session ends on Monday.

The letter questions why significant ethics reform and comprehensive property-tax reform have not been passed. Plus, it noted, "not one substantial election integrity or ballot security bill has passed this session."

"If meaningful action is not taken before Sine Die, we therefore call on Gov. Abbott to respect the people of Texas, make good on his priorities, and make plans to call a special session of the Texas Legislature to complete this important unfinished business for the people. Anything less is unacceptable," the letter concludes.

The Legislature did manage to take care of some business on bills Sunday.

The House voted 145-1 to approve the conference committee report on HB 5, aimed at fixing longstanding problems to better protect abused and neglected children. Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls, said it will make the Department of Family and Protective Services a standalone agency, spun off from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, to allow it to make decisions faster.

By a 92-56 vote, the House also approved the compromise bill to overhaul the state's 2011 voter ID law, among the strictest in the nation. A legal challenge from Democrats is likely if the bill is signed into law by Abbott, as expected.

SB 5 would allow a person to cast a ballot if they present alternate identification, such as a current utility bill or bank statement showing their name and address, but they must sign a declaration stating they faced a reasonable impediment to obtaining an approved ID.

A short time later, House members moved to delay consideration of the final version of Senate Bill 11, the session's key child-protection reform bill, until late Sunday, a move that could derail it.

Asked whether the objection could be withdrawn if the Senate agreed to vote out the medical board sunset bill, Rep. Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie, responded: "It would help. It's a legislative process."

The Senate quickly approved the final bill unanimously.

As the Senate unanimously approved the final version of the bill, its Senate author, Georgetown Republican Charles Schwertner, labeled the move "extremely disappointing ... Even with everything going on right now, I have a hard time believing the House would play politics with the lives of abused children."

Within two hours, the House approved it 107-41.
AUSTIN  A brief but intense scuffle broke out on the Texas House floor just before the close of the legislative session Monday after a Dallas-area Republican enraged Democrats by telling them he called U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement when he saw signs from protesters that read, "I am illegal and here to stay."

During the melee, Rep. Matt Rinaldi of Irving and Democratic Rep. Alfonso "Poncho" Nevarez threatened each other. Rinaldi said he would shoot Nevarez in self-defense after Nevarez said he would confront Rinaldi in the parking lot.

"He picked the wrong group of people to do that to on the wrong day," said Nevarez, of Eagle Pass, before apologizing for the scuffle. "I'm sorry it happened, but the fact is, he's asking for it."

One Democratic lawmaker said Rinaldi threatened to "put a bullet in (Nevarez's) head." Rinaldi, a lawyer, said he is now under protection by the Department of Public Safety and would not confirm that's what he said, but added, "I made it clear that if (Nevarez) attempted to, in his words, 'get me, ' I would shoot him in self-defense."

While Rinaldi said he called ICE as a response to protesters carrying signs identifying themselves as undocumented, some Democrats accused him of racial profiling.

"Matt Rinaldi looked into a House gallery full of Americans exercising their first amendment rights against SB 4  Americans of all ages and all ethnicities  and he only saw 'illegals,'" Rep. Ramon Romero, D-Fort Worth, said in a statement. "Let me be clear, this was a personal attack on me as a son of Mexican immigrants."

The day is normally reserved for technical corrections and ceremonial good-byes, but the morning was interrupted by hundreds of protesters who denounced one of the GOP-controlled Legislature's passage of a law already signed by Gov. Greg Abbott to allow law enforcement to ask people for their immigration status if detained.

Tensions have run high on the issue all year, as Democrats have decried Senate Bill 4 as a discriminatory attempt to target and instill fear in the state's Latino communities. The mostly Latino demonstrators, who came from all over the country, promised to make Texas the next battleground in the national immigration debate and work to unseat legislators in 2018 who supported the law.

In a day-long show of force, protesters promised to oust Republican lawmakers who voted for Senate Bill 4, which allows for the jailing of sheriffs and police chiefs who refuse federal requests to hold undocumented immigrants who are detained for other crimes.

Donning red shirts that read, "no to SB 4," protesters filled the House gallery in the opening hours of the final day's proceedings before erupting into chants and unfurling banners reading, "see you in court" and "see you at the polls."

As a group of Latino representatives chanted along and raised their fists in solidarity as the protestors were ejected from the gallery, Rinaldi taunted the Democrats, several of them said. The taunts included profanity-laced insults about calling ICE, according to Democratic Rep. Cesar Blanco of El Paso who reminded Rinaldi his own Italian ancestors were once immigrants.

"'Well, at least my people love this country,'" Rinaldi responded, according to Blanco's recollection.

Blanco said he said he reminded Rinaldi on Memorial Day that the first U.S. soldier to die in Iraq, Army Pfc. Diego Rincon, was not a citizen when he was killed by a suicide bomber in 2003. The two sides then began shoving each other, and the scuffle was broken up by several House members and the parliamentarian.

When asked about the confrontation in the final minutes before the House adjourned, House Speaker Joe Straus said it was possible to investigate members for an altercation on the floor, although it is unclear whether lawmakers would do that.

"There is no excuse for members making insensitive and disparaging remarks on the floor of the Texas House," Straus said later in a statement.

Throughout the day, shouts echoed down the Capitol's marble halls as over 1,000 people lined four floors of the building's rotunda shouting "SB 4 is hate," and "si se puede," which loosely translates to, "yes we can." Protesters were apparently unfazed by the threats to call ICE agents and rallied on the steps of the capitol for hours afterward.

Gov. Greg Abbott signed SB 4 into law this month, although it has already been challenged in court by the ACLU of Texas, alleging the law is discriminatory and could lead to racial profiling.

The House and Senate adjourned the legislative session without passing a property tax reform bill Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wanted passed. Lawmakers also failed to pass a bill that would license and regulate doctors, which will likely spur the governor to call lawmakers back for a special session to resolve.

Patrick had also wanted the Legislature to pass a bill regulating which bathrooms transgender people can use in state buildings, colleges and schools. The House passed a watered-down version of the bill that would require schools to make single stall and empty multi-stall bathrooms available to students who are uncomfortable using the rest room the correlates with his or her birth sex.

It is unclear whether the governor will call lawmakers back into session to pass a so-called bathroom bill.

As the dust settled on the final legislative day, Nevarez promised to help oust Rinaldi from his House District 115 seat in northwest Dallas County, where he won by a margin of 2 percentage points in last year's race against Democrat Dorotha Ocker.

"I have no use for Matt Rinaldi," Nevarez said. "If I have to walk every day in his neighborhoods and knock on doors and tell (voters) want a waste of space that guy is, I'll do that."
AUSTIN - The 85th session of the Texas Legislature gavels to a close Monday, and the threat of disagreements forcing a special session remained Sunday. Here's a look at some of the winners and losers of the 140-day session, along with a special category of "too early to tell" section for the "big three": Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Joe Straus. They earn that special distinction because of the potential for public backlash and blame if lawmakers are called back for a costly special session

WINNERS

Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, and Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond: The Legislature's chief budget-writers smoothly negotiated a $216.7 budget from a multibillion-dollar revenue shortfall and successfully refereed a nasty fight between the two chambers over the method of finance.

State Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston: He set a trap for the Senate by filing a catch-all bill that he anticipated Senate Republicans might amend at the session's end to push through measures the House opposed, which they did. Coleman then killed the bill, to the joy of House members.

Sen. Joan Huffman: As chair of powerful State Affairs Committee, the former Houston judge elevated her profile and clout significantly by authoring several high-profile and controversial bills or overseeing their passage through her committee.

Texting while driving: After a decade of unsuccessful tries, a ban on texting while driving finally passed, pushed ahead by several tragic vehicle accidents including the March 29 deaths of 13 people on a church bus near Leakey.

Abortion restrictions: Within a year after the U.S. Supreme Court tossed Texas' abortion rules, tough new ones were enacted to ban dismemberment abortions and the sale of fetal tissue and to require fetal tissue to be buried or cremated.

Sandra Bland Act: Legislation to increase mental health training and safeguards in Texas jails passed at the last minute, though it was watered down considerably. Even so, supporters say it's a big first step.

Republicans: Die-hard conservatives got much of what they wanted this session, from abortion restrictions to voter ID to sanctuary cities, flexing their muscle over Democrats repeatedly, especially in the Senate.

LOSERS

Property tax reform: The Senate wanted to thwart skyrocketing local taxes with rollback elections and reforms, but the House was good with just reforms and notices of tax hikes. Result: Texas taxpayers can expect relatively little in way of real cuts.

Bathroom bill: The must-pass issue for Patrick and the Senate was not-so-much in the House, which passed a limited version covering schools. Negotiations for a compromise version failed. Special session topic, possibly?

Democrats: In a Red State Capitol, their issues shouldn't have been expected to fare too well - and they didn't. In the House, they worked with conservative GOPers to give Straus heartburn and block some bills.

Ethics reform: Only two of the six reform bills proposed were approved, on one of Abbott's top priorities. But the Legislature was never much interested in getting tough on itself from the start.

School vouchers: Despite Senate support - members called it school choice or Educational Savings Accounts - the House was a no-go from Day 1, even though the measure was amended to cover only special-needs kids.

School finance: With a nudge for reform from the Texas Supreme Court, the House took a first shot at changing the controversial and complex system. However, vouchers were added in the Senate, and that doomed a final deal.

Raise the age: Raising the age of adulthood from 17 to 18 passed the House but hit a wall in the Senate over the cost in a tight budget year. Even so, a special study on the issue could portend passage in 2019.

Bail reform: Reforms to bail bond procedures designed to ensure Texans aren't kept behind bars if they don't need to be, just because they're poor, hit a wall of opposition amid complaints it would bankrupt the bond industry.

Paycheck union dues: A bill passed the Senate despite strong opposition from unions but failed to get a final vote in the House. Split along party lines means it will likely be an issue in upcoming campaigns.

TOO EARLY TO TELL

Gov. Greg Abbott: He maintained a low profile for much of the session, so that lawmakers could work through issues themselves, but engaged in recent weeks to ensure his priorities were adopted. Final rating will be determined in vetoes and whether a special session is necessary to finish business.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick: He ruled the Senate without question with an ultra-conservative agenda that proved controversial in the House and beyond. His ongoing test of wills with Straus left several of his priorities undone - a prelude to the next political campaign.

House Speaker Joe Straus: He weathered a contentious session with Freedom Caucus and Democrats and was able to one-up Patrick several times by standing his ground for the House on numerous controversial issues. With continued support from a bi-artisan coalition, he has announced he will run for reelection to a record sixth term as speaker in 2019.
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.
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Milkie White's Tamanna started shooting her new Telugu film. Tamanna is playing the lead role in the movie directed by Bollywood director Kunal Kohli and Sandeep Kishan is the hero. The shooting of the film began in London. Tamanna posted this photo in a social media and posted a photo with the director. Akshay Puri and Sachin Joshi are jointly producing this film. It is a romantic comedy entertainer. Other related features will be announced shortly.
Allu Arjun's latest movie DJ-Duvvada Jagannatham is getting close to date. In the next four weeks, on June 23, Duvvada Jagannatham is coming to theaters. The unit is already implementing the hype for the release of songs in the film. First tittle song 'Sharanam Bhaje Bhaje' released by Duvvada Jagannatham unit and atracted the people. Now next song is going to be released in 'Gudilo Badilo Madilo'. The poster of this lyric was released. Bunny with Pooja Hegde left the poster of combine the bunny rotating twists. Pooja charms, poster is attractive. The heroine is also aware of the fact that she has dancing inadequately. The song was featured in various locations in Dubai. There are predictions that the song will be one of the songs in the school in the movie highlights. Talk about the music from Devisree for this song.
BNM anunta concurs pentru postul vacant de expert principal, pe durata determinata, responsabil de elaborarea/actualizarea cerintelor metodologice de reglementare a procesului de raportare la BNM
AKRON, Ohio - Detectives are investigating a drive-by shooting that wounded a man Saturday afternoon in Akron.

The 26-year-old man was shot in the abdomen just after 3 p.m. on Copley Road near South Hawkins Avenue. His injuries were not life-threatening, police said.

Witnesses said three cars were involved in the shooting. The cars appeared to be a red Chevrolet Camaro, a silver Dodge Magnum with blue trim and a dark blue Chrysler 300, witnesses said.

Cash Net and Boost Mobile, both located on Copley Road, had their windows shot out, police said.

Investigators recovered multiple shell casings at the scene.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the Akron Police Department's detective bureau at 330- -375-2490.

If you'd like to comment on this story, visit Monday's crime and courts comments section.

Please take a moment and click here to help the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, a cleveland.com partner. Every dollar you give buys four meals for the hungry.
COVENTRY TOWNSHIP, Ohio -- Two children were killed and a third is in critical condition after they were struck by a car Sunday in Coventry Township.

Investigators have not yet released the names and ages of the children involved in the crash that happened on South Main Street.

The children, as well as a fourth child who was uninjured, are students at Coventry Middle School, Principal Tina Norris said in a Facebook post.

The school district's crisis team will provide more information when it is available, Norris said.

The Summit County Sheriff's Office is investigating the crash, the Summit County Medical Examiner's Office said.

Info from a Coventry Schools All Call (for those who do not receive all calls): This is Mrs. Norris, Principal of... Posted by Coventry Crossing Community Association on Sunday, May 28, 2017

If you'd like to comment on this story, visit Monday's crime and courts comments section.

Please take a moment and click here to help the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, a cleveland.com partner. Every dollar you give buys four meals for the hungry.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Sunday's episode of "American Gods" on STARZ gave us our first real glimpse of the enemy that the enigmatic Mr. Wednesday is raising an army to battle.

And for the first time, we understand the war that will drive the plot as the series goes forward (although it will become more complicated as the show progresses).

Meet Mr. World, an impeccably well-dressed, uniquely modern, and perhaps a little unstable deity who makes square tiles on the floor glow as he steps on them.

Played thrillingly by Crispin Glover, Mr. World is the de facto leader of the new gods, and a man who's history with Wednesday goes back longer than you may realize.

World and Wednesday represent two empirically opposite states that are in a constant state of conflict. Wednesday, with his glass eye and medieval weapons, represents the old. World, with his spy satellites and impossibly advanced tech, represents the new.

It's an ongoing struggle we're all familiar with. The young seek the new and exciting and thrive as the world changes, while the old fight with all their power to maintain the status quo, fearing a brave new world will have no place for them.

The conflicts as the heart of this series will continue to look familiar, especially if showrunners Michael Green and Bryan Fuller stay true to the source material, which was portrayed a fictional, yet eerily faithful representation of America.

The fight is just as intricate and convoluted in the series as it is in the real world.

As the new gods insisted that they were there not to fight, but to offer an olive branch, you might have been thinking, "These guys don't seem that threatening."

That's by design.

Neil Gaiman's dark and twisted vision of America is complex and opaque, with few true villains and few true heroes. The showrunners are dedicated to Gaiman's celebrated novel, in both the oddity of the story and the complexity of its characters.

So while new gods Mr. World and Media force the much younger Technical Boy to apologize for lynching Shadow -- a poor decision given the country's racial strife -- don't forget that they brutally murdered two small town detectives first.

And while we're on this topic, let's also remember that the mysterious Mr. Wednesday is hardly the kind-hearted old man he makes himself out to be.

Remember he and Shadow's bank robbery? How many hard working men and women did they defraud?

Wednesday and Shadow might be easier to cheer for, but their hands are hardly clean.

The series is certain to get more complicated as it continues.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland police are investigating after a man was shot and killed Monday in the city's Mt. Pleasant neighborhood.

The 54-year-old man was shot in the face on East 140th Street near Kinsman Road, police said.

The man died after paramedics took him to University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center.

The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office has not released the man's identity.

Investigators have not reported any arrests in connection with the fatal shooting.

If you'd like to comment on this story, visit Monday's crime and courts comments section.

Please take a moment and click here to help the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, a cleveland.com partner. Every dollar you give buys four meals for the hungry.
Today is not just Memorial Day, it's National 529 College Savings Plan Day. The problem is that more than two-thirds of investors don't know what those plans can do. Only 32 percent of people could correctly identify a 529 plan as an option for saving for college expenses, according to a new survey by the investment firm Edward Jones. The 1,009 people polled in mid-May did better than last year's group, which had just 28 percent who understood what these state-sponsored plans did. These 529 plans offer many tax benefits that are better than using a savings account or, worse, tapping your retirement savings. Investment earnings in a 529 plan are not subject to federal capital gains tax and generally not taxed by state governments when used for qualified education expenses, such as tuition, fees, books, and room and board, of the designated beneficiary.

The most important thing is to start saving and not wait for a rainy day. Andrea Feirstein founder, AKF Consulting Group

In addition, 33 states and the District of Columbia sweeten the deal by giving residents a tax break if they invest in their state's 529 plan. Five states  Arizona, Kansas, Missouri, Montana and Pennsylvania  offer a state income tax deduction to residents for any 529 plan contributions. "The most important thing is to start saving and not wait for a rainy day," said Andrea Feirstein, founder of AKF Consulting Group, an advisor to 529 plan administrators in 33 states. "If you're grandparents, the day your grandchild gets a Social Security number, put whatever you can in a 529 plan. The tax-deferred compounding is more powerful than most people understand."

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Despite the tax advantages, Sallie Mae, the largest private student lender, found that only 16 percent of parents used 529 plans or other college savings options for the 2015-16 academic year, down from 17 percent a year earlier. Investors have opened 12.2 million 529 plan accounts with $266 billion in assets as of March 31, according to financial research firm Strategic Insight, up from 12 million accounts and $252 billion in assets at the end of last year. "529 saving plans continue to reach year-over-year highs," said Paul Curley, director of college-savings research at Strategic Insight. "It's a relatively new product, started in 1996, and awareness is slowly growing among parents and grandparents."

Beyond the tax benefits, investors should know about the two types of 529 college savings plans: those sold directly by the states and those sold through financial advisors. (To make matters more confusing, there are also 529 prepaid plans that allow account holders to buy tomorrow's tuition at today's prices at in-state public colleges and certain private schools.) Direct-sold 529 plans generally have lower investment fees than advisor-sold ones. However, advisor-sold plans tend to offer more investment options than direct-sold plans. "Fees matter, and we are seeing fees continue to come down for direct-sold 529 plans," Feirstein said. Roughly 60 percent of assets invested in 529 plans are in age-based portfolios, which automatically increase their bond holdings to become more conservative as your child reaches college age.

The 2K rule
As he waded in the Bronx River to pick up trash from the polluted waters with other volunteers, Stewart added, "It just seemed like The Mission Continues was this perfect mashup of individuals who are driven to problem-solve."

Comedy icon and TV personality Jon Stewart, a supporter of veterans, told CNBC recently that returning service members "are looking to be re-energized, to regain that identity that they had when they were serving the country."

Despite the litany of problems many encounter when they return from abroad, the post-9/11 contingent of veterans has consistently proven to be particularly oriented toward community service.

These larger organizations are supported by a network of much smaller veterans service organizations with their own unique histories and missions. One group, Chicago's Urban Warriors program, hosted by the YMCA, is populated by combat vets who signed up to work with kids exposed to the city's wrenching violence. One of its members, a Mission Continues alumnus named Abner Garcia , died of a gunshot wound in 2016.

In recent years, a trio of nonprofit organizations sent numerous postwar veterans into a different sort of battle. Dozens of veterans that work for Team Rubicon USA, The Mission Continues, and Team Red White and Blue deployed battalions of former service members across the country. They collectively donated 350,000 hours of community service  the equivalent of $9 million in payroll hours  to projects such as disaster relief, preserving national landmarks, building homes for the homeless, and landscaping.

Veterans of grueling and bloody conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan are gravitating to a new mission: one that involves them laying down their weapons and picking up plowshares.

Vu Nguyen, a city impact manager for The Mission Continues, said most of the veterans he talks to want to make a meaningful impact and translate their experiences into an opportunity to serve.

"We don't just do Thanksgiving Day community service," Joe Quinn, Team RWB's director of leadership development, told CNBC. "That's just selfish, something to do to make ourselves feel better about going home to stuff our face full of turkey. We do service on a regular basis to make a real difference in the community."

Mike Abrams  a Marine Corps veteran who founded the FourBlock Foundation, which educates transitioning veterans for business careers, and who also works in a similar capacity at Columbia University  said volunteering helped him find a sense of purpose.

Service work "gives that little bit of meaning to get going in the right direction and to meet the right people. Having worked with about 1,000 vets who have transitioned through our program, I can say that those who are more apt to volunteer are likely to figure out what it is they want to do a little bit quicker," Abrams said.

The need to serve may have something to do with the fact that post-9/11 veterans have the distinction of being the first all-volunteer force to fight in conflicts that are more regional in scale, said Nicholas Armstrong, senior director at the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University.

Co-founder and current Team Rubicon CEO William McNulty explained to CNBC that he has been involved with service-oriented groups since his youth. Military service ran in his family, with his father and grandfathers having served.

For McNulty, Team Rubicon's formation was one of circumstance, having been founded in the wake of the massive earthquake that decimated Haiti in 2010 when he and other veterans rallied to help the island's victims.

"We had no intention of starting a disaster-response organization. Haiti was supposed to be a one-and-done mission. But that first mission convinced us that we had a model and that we needed to focus on developing it," he said. The organization has now branched out both domestically and internationally.

"As we look to replicate the TR model in coalition countries around the world, a new global veteran service organization emerges. It's a first for the global veteran community," McNulty added.
President Donald Trump returned home from his first trip abroad to face a new series of allegations against his administration  and he hit the ground tweeting with a series of posts slamming "leaks" and so-called "fake news," while stating his recent trip was a "great success."

More from NBC News:

Jared Kushner Under Scrutiny in Russia Probe, Officials Say

After Summits With Trump, Merkel Says Europe Must Take Fate Into Own Hands

Trump on Message During Overseas Trip, but Now He's Home



Trump began his series of tweets Sunday morning acknowledging the contentious Montana special congressional race, in which Republican Greg Gianforte declared victory on Friday despite being charged with misdemeanor assault following allegations that he "body slammed" a reporter on the day before Election Day.

Tweet 1

The president then declared his nine-day trip abroad "a great success for America" before launching into a number of posts criticizing leaks and anonymous sourcing, following another week of bombshell Russia-related reports.

Tweet 2

Trump had stayed silent on the reports during his trip abroad, including after NBC News reported on Thursday that his son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, is under scrutiny in the FBI's Russia probe.

The president went on the offensive Sunday morning without pointing to any of the specific reports, but he told his 30.8 million Twitter followers that it was his "opinion" that many of the "leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media."

Tweet 3

Trump then criticized the media's use of unnamed sources saying that it was "possible that those sources don't exist."

"#FakeNews is the enemy!" he said.

Tweet 4

Trump routinely criticized the media during his presidential campaign and after taking office, as well as the sources within the White House providing that information.

But his relationship with the media and leaked information has been complicated. A Washington Post report during the campaign detailed how Trump the businessman was often the source of his own leaks, posing as spokesman "John Miller" or "John Barron" to tell reporters positive stories about himself or to float dating rumors.

Trump has denied the report.

And earlier this month, The Washington Post and The New York Times reported that Trump had revealed highly classified ISIS-related information to Russian officials during a meeting at the White House.

The president has since said he had the "absolute right" to share certain information with Russia.

Trump capped his tweetstorm about leaks stating that British Prime Minister Theresa May was "very angry" that information the United Kingdom had given the United States about the suicide attack in Manchester last week "was leaked."

Tweet 5

And then Sunday night, the president returned to Twitter, pushing the Republican-proposed health care and tax measures before making it clear that he'd seen the reaction to his flurry of tweets Sunday.

"The Fake News Media works hard at disparaging & demeaning my use of social media because they don't want America to hear the real story!" he tweeted.

Tweet 6
SINGAPORE, 29 May 2017  CNBC, the world's leading business and financial news network, today announced the return of 'Lasting Legacy' for a second season.



The new series will premiere on Thursday, 1 June 2017 and see CNBC's Martin Soong and Karen Tso meet successful family businesses across Europe and Asia.

The returning season, sponsored by UOB Private Bank, will showcase the stages of a family business lifecycle, including the challenges and opportunities they face. The series will also look at how these unique businesses are navigating new technologies and a rapidly changing economic landscape while ensuring a smooth succession.

In addition to European businesses like Swiss watchmaker Chopard and menswear brand Zegna, Asian titans like Indonesian tycoon Sukanto Tanoto of RGE Group and China's Chu siblings of the Mission Hills empire will be featured.

John Casey, Senior Vice President of News and Programming for CNBC International said: "Following a successful first season, Lasting Legacy is returning with a more global footprint, as we uncover what makes these family-owned European and Asian businesses successful."

Lasting Legacy first premiered in August 2016, taking viewers behind the scenes of some of Europe's most successful family businesses such as German stationery pioneers, Faber-Castell, and Savile Row tailors, Henry Poole & Co.

For more information, visit CNBC.com or CNBCCatalyst.com.

Note to Editors:

The transmission times for Lasting Legacy are as follows.

CNBC Asia

Premiere: Every Thursday, 1730 SIN/HK time

1, 8, 15, 22, 29 June

Repeats: Every Sat 1830, Sun 1930 SIN/HK

CNBC EMEA

Premiere: Every Thursday, 2300 CET time

1, 8, 15, 22, 29 June

Repeat: Every Sat 1930 CET

Contact Information:



Mike Cheong

Communications Manager, CNBC Asia Pacific

Mike.Cheong@nbcuni.com

D: +65 6326 1123

M: +65 9852 8630

About CNBC

CNBC is the leading global broadcaster of live business and financial news and information, reporting directly from the major financial markets around the globe with three regional networks including CNBC in Asia, CNBC in EMEA and CNBC in the US. CNBC.com is the preeminent financial news source on the web, featuring an unprecedented amount of video, real-time market analysis, web-exclusive live video and analytical financial tools. The channel is available in 385 million homes worldwide. CNBC is a division of NBCUniversal.
Gold Coins and Credit Suisse gold bar Getty Images

Gold held near its highest in a month on Monday in thin holiday trade, with a softer dollar and a retreat in stock markets helping the metal cling on to the previous session's gains. Gold hit its highest since May 1 on Friday at $1,269.50 an ounce, as nervousness over U.S. President Donald Trump's negotiations with other world leaders at the G7 summit prompted

investors to buy bullion as an alternative to nominally higher-risk assets such as shares. Spot gold was up 0.1 percent at $1,267.74 an ounce at 1005 GMT, with U.S. gold futures for June delivery down 0.1 percent at $1,267.30. A 0.1 percent retreat in the dollar index underpinned prices, but moves were muted, with traders in the United States, London and China all out for national holidays.

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"Potential for prices is limited right now, but with the news from the G7 meeting and the weaker dollar, the gold price has gone up," said LBBW analyst Thorsten Proettel. Under pressure from Group of Seven allies, Trump on Saturday backed a pledge to fight protectionism but refused to endorse a global accord on climate change, saying he needed more time to decide. After a nine-day overseas tour, the president returned to Washington to face more questions about alleged communications between his son-in-law Jared Kushner and Russia's ambassador to Washington. The market is also awaiting next month's Federal Open Market Committee meeting for any clues on the U.S. Federal Reserve's stance on interest rate increases. Gold is highly sensitive to rising U.S. rates, which increase the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion while boosting the dollar, in which it is priced.

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San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President John C. Williams said on Monday in Singapore that the U.S. economy was performing well and didn't need a fiscal package to get on track.

"It's not like we need fiscal policy in the short run to help the economy get back on track. We're actually in a good place in terms of where the economy is even without thinking about fiscal stimulus," Williams said on the sidelines of the Symposium on Asian Banking and Finance.

U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) growth rose 1.2 percent annualized in the first quarter, according to updated data, faster than the 0.7 percent preliminary estimate released last month. The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 4.4 percent in April.

Noting the Fed's dual mandate, or twin goals, of maximum employment and price stability, the text of his speech at the symposium read, "the U.S. economy is about as close to the Fed's dual mandate goals as we've ever been."

But in his remarks prior to the speech, he also pointed to uncertainty over what form the Trump administration's fiscal policies might take.

"There's a lot of uncertainty about fiscal policy. I'm not sure what's going to happen in terms of tax policy, spending policy, healthcare reform, trade immigration, all those policies. There's not a lot of clarity around that," he said, noting the Fed was studying various scenarios.

Williams, who is currently a non-voting member of the Federal Open Market Committee, pointed to four big policies with the potential for dramatic impact on the U.S. economic outlook, both in the short and long term: Tax reforms, health care, immigration and trade, including the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta).

"Right now, looking at what are the more likely scenarios, I don't see any of them having a big effect on growth in the next few years. Maybe there are some scenarios that are slightly positive, and what I mean by slightly, pushing up U.S. GDP growth by a tenth of a percent or a couple of tenths of a percent," he said.

He added that he saw "a little net positive due to the tax cuts," but he had some words of caution.

"I think a lot of people, maybe stock market investors and others, have counted up all the positives and kind of ignored how do you pay for that and the negatives. I think there may be some excessive optimism in the U.S. around how this will affect the economy," he said.

Williams also pointed to potentially negative scenarios, particularly if spending were to be cut dramatically in the short term.

He said that if the proposed changes to the Affordable Care Act were passed, "that could have a short-run significant negative impact in terms of spending."

Williams reiterated that he still believed a total of three rate hikes by the central bank this year, including the one in March, were appropriate.

"Unemployment is at 4 percent. We're adding 180,000 jobs a month, That's roughly twice as much as the U.S. economy needs in a sustainable way. My worry there is if we keep that going, in another couple of years, unemployment will go down in the 3 percents, below 4 percent, and inflationary pressures will build," he said.

Even with interest-rate increases and normalization of the balance sheet, Williams said he expected economic growth of slightly below 2 percent.

On a longer term view, Williams pointed to other challenges for the U.S. economy.

"I personally view that the biggest challenges the U.S. faces are really longer run challenges, not about next month, next year. They're about the fact that productivity growth is very slow, we have a shortfall of infrastructure in the U.S.," he said.

"We have a lot of longer term challenges that really revolve around needing more investments in education, job training, infrastructure, research and development, all the things that propel an economy over the longer term."

Williams also said he was concerned about the move away from globalization.

"Globalization and trade have been hugely beneficial to people around the planet," he said. "I agree that we need to figure out ways to create more modern approaches to that, but what worries me is if countries around the world pull back from integration and trade, I think that would be pretty negative, not only for the global economy, but for the U.S. economy."

On China, Williams said he wasn't worried about a hard-landing for the mainland's economy, at least for the next few years as policymakers were unlikely to allow sharp moves amid a leadership decision this year.

But he added that he was more concerned about the five-year view for China, noting that the short-term economic fixes were creating a high debt load.

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European stocks closed slightly lower on Monday following lackluster trade in Asian equities overnight and a decline in the oil price.

Investors appear to have shrugged off any geopolitical worries stemming from a missile test carried out by North Korea on Monday.

Spain's IBEX also closed in the red as well despite seasonally-adjusted retail sales rising 1.8 percent year-on-year in April.

The German DAX closed up 0.21 percent, while the French CAC fell 0.08 percent. The FTSE 100 did not trade on Monday due to a public holiday in the U.K.

The auto sector was among the worst performers this Monday, down by 0.3 percent. According to the Russian standards agency, Peugeot voluntarily recalled 30,000 cars sold in Russia between 2011 and 2016. Its shares dropped slightly.

Italian banks were also in focus for investors. Intesa Sanpaolo is close to completing a plan to boost its insurance and asset management businesses while cutting costs and closing branches, the Financial Times reported on Monday. Shares in the Italian lender fell 2 percent. Other Italian names such as Banco BPM and Unicredit were also more than 4 percent lower.

Weekend reports indicating that a general election could take place as early as September has got investors concerned over the chances that the anti-establishment and euroscpetic five star movement could have in boosting its parliamentary presence.

BA-owner IAG hit

In the U.K., British Airways (BA) resumed flights from London after a major IT outage created havoc over the weekend, with thousands of passengers affected. BA owner is listed in London, so there won't be any trade of the stock. However, the company's Spanish-listed shares were down over 2.5 percent.

In politics, Britain's Conservative Party has a 14 percentage point lead over the opposition Labour Party ahead of a June 8 election, according to an ICM opinion poll published in the Sun newspaper on Sunday.

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"Omotenashi" is a Japanese term signifying the traditionally correct way to treat a guest, and it's the guiding principle for much of the country's hospitality industry.

That sector has seen increased interest in recent years among domestic and international investors, according to a 2016 report by real estate firm CBRE, and new hotel developments are accelerating against the growing number of inbound tourists.

For one hospitality provider, Hoshino Resorts, the traditional Omotenashi ethic is still an important part of the experience. The company  a family business that has been around for more than 100 years and runs a total of 35 resorts in Japan  operates brands Hoshinoya, Kai and Risonaire, and it stands out for requiring all employees to be versed in each facet of hospitality.

That is, Hoshino Resorts employees aren't specialized in one role  reception, housekeeping or kitchen duty, for example  and they are instead trained to perform across all duties. That practice allows the staff to deliver "the ultimate experience" for guests, according to Yoshiharu Hoshino, CEO of Hoshino Resorts.

Hoshino told CNBC's "Squawk Box" on Monday that the driving demand for luxury resorts in Japan is the curiosity of the Japanese culture and nature. In fact, CBRE's 2016 report on the Japanese hotel market said foreign tourists in Japan tend to visit gateway cities that are well-known overseas.

In 2015, Tokyo topped all other regions with the highest number of foreign visitor nights, followed by Osaka.

Japan is also opening its doors wide to foreign travelers, with the goal of welcoming 40 million international tourists annually by 2020 when Tokyo hosts the Olympics and Paralympics. In efforts to support its goal, the Japanese cabinet had recently cleared the way for full legalization of Airbnb-style short-term accommodations in Japan.
CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. >> In a continuing effort to be more culturally inclusive and in recognition of its growing diversity, Shenendehowa High Schools East building and West building will each have a room available during Ramadan so high school students can fulfill their religious obligations without leaving the school.

The decision to open two vacant rooms at the high school was undertaken by Shen High School Principal Donald Flynt. Though not a district-wide policy, Shen spokeswoman Kelly DeFeciani said the district supports the effort.

The decision to offer the rooms in the two high schools for the month of Ramadan, May 27 to June 24, came after Flynt, the school administration and faculty invited a local Imam to one of the High School Associations meetings to learn more about the Muslim religion.

Use of the rooms is not limited to any students faith.

A local Imam from a mosque that is planned for our area was invited to speak at an Association meeting and one of the topics discussed was Ramadan, DeFeciani said. Its a month long and there are certain obligations that must be done in addition to praying. Principal Flynt wanted those students who observe Ramadan to be able to stay in school and also fulfill their religious obligations.

DeFeciani said the district has many days off for other religious observances like Christmas, Yom Kippur, and Good Friday, and if students need to take days off in addition to those that are listed for religious observances they can do so with an excused absence. She gave Ash Wednesday as a day where an excused absence may be used by students.

However, at a month long, Ramadan was different, she said.

Making the rooms available is part of our effort with cultural proficiency, she said. We are trying to get people to understand all different cultures. We want to make the school conducive, so all students can learn, can feel accepted, and feel understood. With this effort, this group can meet both their educational and religious obligations. In this case, its the principals decision. Hes doing it to meet the needs of his students.

Because the school does not identify students by religion, Flynt sent an email out to the homes of all high school students explaining what was being done.

The school district, Flynt stated in his message, recognizes the diverse religious backgrounds and values represented in the school community and the importance of being sensitive to the needs of all students and personnel. In an attempt to make reasonable accommodations for students and employees to meet their personal religious obligations, room 65 in High School West and room 109 in High School East have been set aside so students can incorporate this important aspect of their religion into their daily activities while at school.

In addition to the invitation for the Imam to speak at the Association meeting, DeFeciani said, the high school held a Day of Dialogue earlier this spring where students, teachers and administrators were invited to discuss any topic on which they wanted to comment.

All races, religions, and sexual orientations were represented at the Day of Dialogue, DeFeciani said. The school is trying to do a lot more to be culturally inclusive and so is the district.

She added that students have always had the right to pray in school.

In an email providing additional information on the issue, DeFeciani cited sections from the New York State Education Law Book which referenced a link on the U.S. Department of Education website. Part of the information provided states:

not all religious speech that takes place in the public schools or at school-sponsored events is governmental speech. For example, nothing in the Constitution  prohibits any public school student from voluntarily praying at any time before, during, or after the school day, and students may pray with fellow students during the school day on the same terms and conditions that they may engage in other conversation or speech.

Imam Abdul-Rahman Yaki of the Islamic Center of the Capital District said having the rooms available for students to use during Ramadan is very important for the students to fulfill their obligations, especially noontime prayers.

Ramadan is much more than fasting, he said. Its one part of the package. There is the obligation of prayer, there are five, and recitation of the Quran is encouraged at this time because thats when it was first revealed. There are other obligations also.

Yaki added that allowing high school students a space to observe Ramadan during school is very important for those Muslims who are teenagers because it is at this time of ones life where the teaching of the Quran becomes serious.

These are the years when they are taught to take responsibility, Yaki said.
The Compromise of 1867 is one of the most important events in the history of modern Hungary.

The Hungarian Mint is marking the 150th anniversary of the important occasion in the nations history by issuing the largest diameter Hungarian coins ever issued.

Gold coin resistance at U.S. Mint and a deceptive but detectable counterfeit Indian Head cent: Another column in the June 12 Coin World details the discovery of what seemed to be a rare 1917 French Indo-China 10-cent piece.

The Compromise of 1867 is a catch-all term referring to the agreements that re-established the political, legal and economic relations between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary at the beginning of 1867.

It was negotiated between the head of the house of Hapsburg, King Franz Joseph I, and a Hungarian delegation headed by Ferenc Deak and Gyula Andrassy.

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To mark 150th anniversary of the compromise, the National Bank of Hungary is issuing an Uncirculated copper-nickel 2,000-forint piece and a Proof .925 fine silver 20,000-forint coin.

Both commemorative coins are 52.5 millimeters in diameter and share the same design, except for denominational inscription.

The obverse bears a portrait of Ferenc Deak inspired by the work of Ede Telcs, linking a partially covered Hapsburg coat of arms with the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Hungary. Ferenc Deaks name in small letters forms the lower border of the portrait, with his famous quote I am more able to love my homeland, than to hate my enemies around the bottom.

The reverse has portraits of Queen Elizabeth and Franz Joseph I with the coat of arms of the house of Hapsburg connecting the portraits to the Austrian coat of arms. Their names are below, with the script KIEGYEZES (Compromise) around the bottom.

On the upper half of the reverse, the year of the compromise and the year of minting are located one above the other, with the same digit 7 serving as the last digit of both dates, denoting the commemorative nature of the coin.

The coin was designed by Istvan Kosa.

The silver coin weighs 77.76 grams and is limited to 5,000 pieces. It costs $97.75 per coin.

The copper-nickel coin weighs 66.9 grams, and costs $22.75 each.

Shipping and handling are an additional $5.75, and Vermont residents must include 6 percent sales tax.

To order, contact the Hungarian Mints North American representative, the Coin & Currency Institute, at its website.
The US might ban laptops from the cabin of all international flights into and out of the US and likely will require air travelers to unpack carry-on bags for TSA inspections.

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly told Fox News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace that the US might ban laptops from the cabin of all international flights into and out of the US.

Pressed to reveal more, Kelly added, Theres a real threat. Numerous threats against aviation, thats really the thing that they are obsessed with, the terrorists, the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if its a U.S. carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly U.S. folks, people. Its real.

We are going to raise the bar for, generally speaking, aviation security much higher than it is now, Kelly added when talking about the potential of extending the ban of laptops to all international flights. Theres new technologies down the road, not too far down the road, that we will rely on. But it is a real sophisticated threat and I will reserve that decision until we see where it's going.

You know your carry-on bag stuffed with items to avoid paying airline fees for checked bags? Hopefully you dont have anything too personal packed as you might have to pull it out and place it in a bin for TSA agents and nearby travelers to see as part of the increase to aviation security.

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Unpack carry-ons for TSA inspections

As if there isnt enough indignity associated with the TSAs enhanced pat-down searches, air travelers should brace themselves for more privacy invasive searches since they may have to start unpacking their carry-on bags in screening lines to help the TSA determine exactly what they packed.

Despite carry-ons going through x-ray and other screening machines, DHS Secretary John Kelly told Wallace that the TSA cant tell what packed items are or are not a threat. Therefore, the TSA might and likely will roll out increased security screenings for carry-on bags.

X-ray machines capture top-down and side views of scanned carry-ons, even color-codes whats inside for screeners, but the TSA allegedly cant tell whats what in stuffed carry-ons. Common sense says that having to unpack crammed carry-ons and sort items into specific bins will take longer, but the TSA maintains that since screeners wont have to perform manual bag checks, it will ultimately speed up the screening process.

The TSA is currently testing various carry-on inspection screenings in 10 airports. One failed test in the pilot program required travelers to unpack their carry-ons and place all electronics in one bin, food in one bin and paper in another bin.

Kelly said the TSA likely will roll out increased carry-on bag inspections nationwide. The reason for the increased security screenings, Kelly said, is because people trying to avoid the $25 or $50, or whatever it is to check a bag, are now stuffing your carry-on bags to the point of, you know  well, they can't get any more in there. So, the more you stuff in there, the less the TSA professionals that are looking at whats in those bags through the monitors, they cant tell what's in the bags anymore.

When Wallace asked if the TSA intends to roll out increased carry-on bag inspections nationwide soon, Kelly added, Well, what were doing now is working out the tactics, techniques and procedures, if you will, in a few airports to find out exactly how to do that with the least amount of inconvenience to the traveler.
Hari Raya Bazaar at Our Tampines Hub brings diversity

Our Tampines Hub launched the Tampines Hari Raya Bazaar on May 27, which contained traditional and modern products, mouth-watering goodies, and the like. With performances by popular artists from Southeast Asia, Hari Raya Bazaar will be open until June 23 from 10 am to 10 pm daily.

The Hari Raya Bazaar is off to a roaring start! Come join us daily 10am-10pm from now to 23 June. See you there! #ourtampineshub #bazaar2017  Our Tampines Hub (@OurTampinesHub) May 29, 2017

The Manchester attack last Monday is a grim reminder of the uncertain times we live in, and drives home the importance of understanding, respect and peace between different groups of people, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat said yesterday.Keat said yesterday.

Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat. Photo courtesy: parliament.gov.sg

Speaking at the launch of the Tampines Hari Raya Bazaar at Our Tampines Hub  one of his first major community events since he suffered a stroke a year ago  Minister Heng said the integrated facility can play a key role in forging a community of diverse cultures and beliefs.

Our Tampines Hub is a place where families can come together, regardless of race, religion and background, said Heng, who is also a Member of Parliament for Tampines. We hope that the bazaar would be a celebration of Singapores multicultural community.

This years bazaar features 120 stalls and, for the first time, participants from other parts of the world, including Brunei, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Morocco and Uzbekistan. The hub, which opened in November, will also host bazaars for the mid-autumn festival and Deepavali later this year.

I hope that, in our small way, we are helping to spread the message of understanding, respect and peace by bringing people of different customs and nationalities together, said Heng.

Photo courtesy: Twitter

The minister had collapsed during a Cabinet meeting last May and was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where he underwent surgery to relieve pressure in his brain.

Speaking to reporters after the launch, Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli, who is also an MP for Tampines, said Heng was slowly transitioning back into the community.

I believe he is healthy, but as usual, when you are recovering from such a heavy illness as he had gone through, it is important for him to make sure that he must not, in the process, suffer from new ailments, said Masagos.

So let us give him time. I am sure he is happy to come back.

Last month, Heng had posted pictures on Facebook of his interactions with Tampines residents and thanked them for their concern about his health.

Earlier this month, Heng was also in Japan for the Asean+3 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting, as well as the Asian Development Bank meeting in Yokohama.
Mauritius tops Indias FDI charts, overtakes Singapore in 2016-17

Island nation Mauritius dislodged Singapore to emerge as the top source of foreign direct investment (FDI) into India in 2016-17.

The foreign inflow from Mauritius in 2016 -17 stood at USD 15.72 billion whereas that of Singapore read USD 8.71 billion, showed data of the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP).

Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, who was in India, stated that a comprehensive economic cooperation pact with India is being negotiated that will boost bilateral trade and investments.

Prime Minister of the Republic of Mauritius, Pravind Kumar Jugnauth calls on #PresidentMukherjee at @RashtrapatiBhvn in New Delhi on May 27 pic.twitter.com/FgjCF2dQG9  PIB India (@PIB_India) May 28, 2017

The drop in FDI from Singapore last fiscal may be on account of revision of the tax treaty with an aim to check round-tripping of funds, according to experts. The revised treaty came into force from February this year.

Although Singapore, which was numero uno in 2015-16, has slid to the second slot, foreign capital from that country into India is on the upswing. The FDI inflow of USD 13.7 billion in 2015-16 was the highest ever received from Singapore since 2006-07.

Taken together, Mauritius and Singapore account for 50% of total capital inflows into the country. An official said a series of steps to liberalise the FDI policy and to improve ease of doing business have helped attract more and more foreign investors.

During the last three years, India has relaxed norms in as many as 21 sectors covering 87 areas. In 2016-17, the total FDI in India grew by 9% to USD 43.5 billion.

Other nations from where foreign inflows recorded healthy growth last fiscal include Japan, the Netherlands, the US, Germany, France and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) during the last financial year.

Mauritius dislodges Singapore to top FDI charts in 2016-17 - Island nation Mauritius elbowed out Singapore to e... https://t.co/JxhcC51mHW  India Business NW (@ENIN_NW_Busines) May 28, 2017

Foreign investments are crucial for India, which needs around USD 1 trillion (about INR 6.4 lakh crore) to overhaul its infrastructure such as ports, airports and highways to push growth. It helps improve the countrys balance of payments situation and strengthen the rupee value against other global currencies, especially the US dollar.
Cllr Paul Mercer is a member of Charnwood Borough Council. He is a member of its cabinet with responsibility for Strategic and Private Sector Housing.

One of the early discoveries I made on returning as a local councillor after an absence was that we no longer had so much access to council documents and there appeared to be a tendency to cite the Data Protection Act (DPA) as the reason.

The DPA is a solid piece of legislation which, properly used, protects the rights of an individual and as such should be applauded. The problem appears to be that on occasions its provisions are over interpreted and councillors are denied information that legitimately they should be allowed to see.

The DPA is overseen by the Information Commissions Office (ICO) and its guidance is relatively straightforward. An elected member does not have a right to see personal information unless it relates to somebody in their ward, that they are representing that individual, and that information is necessary to respond to their complaint. This is called implied consent. The ICO further recognises that there may be occasions when it is necessary to get a signed consent of the individual but it stresses that this only relates to sensitive personal data which it defines as race, political opinion, religious beliefs, trade union membership, health, sexual life, criminal activity or court proceedings. However, on every single occasion that I have requested personal information I have been asked to obtain written authorisation even though it may not have anything to do with these sensitive issues.

Identifying tenants

On one occasion, a group of residents complained about a new council tenant whose boyfriend was a prolific shoplifter and regularly visited neighbours to sell them his latest acquisitions. Several other complaints were made including allegations about mistreating their young child, anti-social behaviour, and owning a potentially dangerous dog.

When I complained to the respective bodies (social services, ASB officers, police etc) I was, understandably, asked for his name. Neither of them were on the electoral register and I was told by officers that I could not be given their names because of the DPA. It was only through some lateral thinking by one of the neighbours, and a search on Google for people convicted of similar offences from the area where the couple originally came from, that it was possible to work out his name. Only then could a complaint be made to the appropriate authorities.

A few weeks later, I was contacted by a local police sergeant who was investigating a case in my ward. He asked whether it was possible for me to find out someones name. I suggested that he could contact Charnwood directly and he responded that it was so bureaucratic to do so that by the time he had the information it would be too late to act.

Dangerous residents

Most councils maintain warning registers to identify residents who may be prone to violence or other aggressive behaviour. The Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 provides sufficient lawful purpose under the DPA. Although elected members are not employees they do come into contact with such individuals and the Health & Safety at Work Act includes a duty to assist any other person who may be affected by the employers work. Members take part in the work of the council and may be affected by it  and be brought into contact with dangerous people, or exposed to other risks. They should therefore be extended the same protection that is available to council employees. Members also have a common law right of access to any information they reasonably need to carry out their duties and clearly this should include information that would keep them safe.

During the May local election campaign, I requested access to our corporate warning register for my ward but was told that this would not be possible because I was engaged in party political activity and therefore it broke the rules on purdah. Only when I pointed out that during the process of canvassing I was also engaging with residents in my capacity as a borough councillor that all members were told that they could be given access to the register for their respective wards.

I duly made this request and received a redacted version which only identified the addresses and not the people. One of the entries was for a very pleasant Conservative-voting couple and when I enquired as to whether this was accurate, I was informed that the entry was because of an unidentified person who was associated in some way with that address. For all I knew they could have been the victims.

In contrast, council officers who are visiting residents are given the full information including their names and it remains unclear why councillors are only given partial information. According to the ICO, local authorities can disclose personal information to a councillor if they need to access and use the information to carry out official duties. For this purpose, it recognises that councillors are in the same position as an employee. Of course, it rightly stipulates they should only be given information that they need to carry out the duties, that it should be done on a case-by-case basis and that they should take care to ensure that the information is protected.

The ICO gives an example of a member of the housing committee who attends a meeting to decide whether or not to seek the eviction of a council tenant. The local authority can under the DPA provide the member with all the relevant personal information about the tenant and the circumstances giving rise to the possible eviction. It is clear that some councils are not prepared to go this far despite this guidance.

Empty homes

Charnwood has recently introduced a strategy for dealing with the problem of empty homes. In any one year, we estimated that the number of empty homes in the borough was equivalent to the number of new homes that we were required to build. Some of the empty properties were attracting anti-social behaviour and in many cases anecdotal evidence suggested that the owners simply did not know what to do with the properties and merely needed a little bit of encouragement.

In the process of devising this strategy we requested a list of empty properties in the borough that had been empty for more than six months. We were told that this would not be possible because it would be a breach of the DPA. This was on the basis that for each property we could identify the owner through the Land Registry and therefore it infringed on his or her rights. When I requested a list of properties that were owned by companies that had been empty for more than six months I was told that this was not practical to collate this data. Officers cited the Bexley FOI case which established that the release by councils of lists of empty properties owned by private individuals would be a breach of data protection principles. This ruling by the ICO, of course, made total sense because it would be foolish to release because it would provide a shopping list for local burglars and squatters.

In our case, we only asked to be given sight of the list without it being published in order for us to get a better understanding of what properties were remaining empty so that we could better formulate our policy. This was again refused and we were forced to go ahead without any proper understanding of what we were dealing with. It is only now, after we have employed a full-time empty homes officer, that he has discovered that many of these properties were not in fact unoccupied and had been erroneously listed on the council tax database.

It may be the case that the ICO would still argue that councillors meeting in private and not disclosing the data had a legitimate reason to see this list but, so far as I can ascertain, there has never been a ruling and it seems that officers were merely extrapolating a case which did not have a direct bearing on the issue.

Filming meetings

A similar battle has occurred with one of our local parish councils which has decreed that if anyone wants to make a recording of one of its public meetings they need to inform councillors. The law is unambiguous on this point. Since 2014 The Local Government Act has permitted anyone to record the meeting.

The parish council seemed convinced that Section 36 of the DPA would enable them to prevent such activities. It has claimed that its view is supported by the ICO although it has not revealed what it has been told claiming that it is confidential. I therefore approached the ICO for clarification and was told that the DPA would not prevent the recording of council meetings but it added the council could still prohibit the filming of meetings.

When I challenged the ICO on this point only then did it concede that it only had the authority to oversee the DPA and was unable to provide advice on any other functions conferred on a local authority under any other enactment  which is precisely is what they had done.

The parish council has meanwhile discussed the issue and, according to the agenda, it received legal advice from the ICO and, bizarrely, from Leicestershire Constabulary. However, members of the public are not allowed to know what this advice was or what was decided because they also ruled they should be excluded on the basis of the Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960. Ironically, when the Government changed the law in 2014 specifically to permit the absolute right to record public council meetings Section 6 of this act was amended to explicitly permit filming, photographing or making an audio recording of proceedings at a meeting.

Need for guidance

The problem for councillors is that they do not have the time or energy to seek out the precise statute or guidance to ascertain whether they are entitled to see something or do something. Rather like the Little Britain character, Carol Beer, the receptionist who always replies Computer says no (followed by a strong cough in the customers face), there is an instinctive tendency of local government officers to err on the side of caution and deny all access to information.

The ICO already provides a considerable amount of assistance on its website but the feeling of many councillors who have come up against this computer says no attitude is that it is simply too much effort to make a formal challenge and they merely accept the advice of the officers. What would be very useful is for the ICO to provide more guidance on how the DPA should be implemented when councillors are making requests for data as part of their job  either as representatives of residents in their ward or as members of a cabinet.
Overview:

There are 75 Parliamentary constituencies in the North West. Currently Labour hold 51 of them, the Conservatives 22, and the Liberal Democrats two.

Last time the Conservatives were disappointed here, picking off two Lib Dems and one Labour MP but losing three seats to Labour in exchange, as a combination of the UKIP surge and Lib Dem collapse denied them prize after prize. But assuming the great poll wobble stabilises this is a target-rich region, with Tory candidates facing plenty of seats with surmountable majorities.

Talk of Labour gains may no longer seem quite so utterly outlandish as it did when we started this series, but with the average Conservative lead still hovering around double figures they still dont have too many likely prospects here. There are three seats with Tory majorities of under 1,000, however, which we list below.

As hope of a Remain-fuelled surge fade, the Lib Dems seem even less likely to make a breakthrough here than Labour. Theyll be fighting hard to defend Southport, where their incumbent is standing down, and keeping half an eye on Tim Farrons seat where the local Tories are apparetly making a go of it. If theyd had a good campaign Burnley might have been a plausible attack seat, but they havent and it isnt.

Method:

Welcome back to our series on the election battlegrounds! As in 2015, well be taking a region-by-region look at the seats which could change hands and offering our suggested lists of target seats for each party.

These lists arent predictions of gains: rather, theyre just seats which we think could be competitive. They might be official party targets, have a small majority, or be subject to other factors which could leave them open to change.

Amongst the resources well be using to steer us through these murky waters are Electoral Calculus, UK Polling Report, Number Cruncher Politics, and Election Polling, whilst all Leave vote share estimations are from Chris Hanrettys very helpful constituency-by-constituency charts. Were also keeping an eye on the work of many other pollsters, psephologists, and analysts, some of whom our assistant editor has collated onto a Twitter list.

Battleground Rating: 7/10

Targets by party:

(NB These are our own suggestions of potential attack seats for each party  including those officially designated as targets and others where the incumbent has a relatively small majority, or local factors are at play which may open the seat to change.)

Conservatives:

Barrow and Furness: This seat has been Labour since 1992, and since 2010 by John Woodcock, a high-profile critic of Jeremy Corbyn. Nonetheless at the last election the Conservatives cut his majority from over 5,000 to just under 800, and with the constituency estimated to have voted Leave by 57 per cent they must be confident of ousting him. Electoral Calculus gives them an almost two-in-three chance of a gain.

Blackpool South: Reliably Conservative until 1997, this is one of the seats where the party slipped back in 2015, with the LAbour incumbent bolstering his majority from 1,852 to a still-competitive 2,585. This time the Tory candidate will be trying to win over enough of UKIPs 5,600 voters (in a seat estimated to have gone 68 per cent Leave) to put them over the line. Electoral Calculus tips a Conservative gain.

Bolton North East: A longer shot, the Labour incumbent has held this seat since 1997 and his majority stands at almost 4,400. But UKIP did very well here in 2015, racking up over 8,000 votes, so if about half of the Peoples Armys vote really has migrated to the Conservatives then this could be a competitive race in a seat which went almost 60 per cent Leave (est.). Electoral Calculus predict a narrow Labour hold, but a lot may come down to on-the-ground campaigning.

Bury South: Another seat held by Labour since the first of Tony Blairs landslides, and another where the Lib Dem collapse and UKIP surge saw Labour extend their majority from a competitive 3,200 to almost 5,000. It would take the great majority of UKIPs 6,000 voters from last time and more to get the Tories over the line, even in this pro-Leave seat, and Electoral Calculus predict a Labour hold  albeit with a 44 per cent chance of an upset.

Chorley: Lindsay Hoyle had probably hoped to be Speaker by the time the next election rolled around, in which case he would almost certainly not have faced a Tory opponent. As it is hes in for a tough fight: his majority may be just over 4,500 but after 2010 it was a just 2,500, so it may be vulnerable if the Tories can win over enough of UKIPs 7,000 voters and some Labour switchers. Electoral Calculus thinks itll be a Conservative gain, albeit by the narrowest of margins.

City of Chester: This one is slightly vexing: it was Labour from 1997 until 2010, when the Tories won it, only to lose it again in 2015. Stephen Mosley isnt standing again, but his successor faces a Labour majority of just 93 votes so had better be confident. UKIP picked up more than 4,000 votes last time whilst the Lib Dem shed 13.5 points, but the seat leans Remain so the fortunes of those parties could both change again, likely to Labours disadvantage. Electoral Calculus predicts a relatively comfortable recapture for the Conservatives.

Hyndburn: Yet another seat where the Tories fell back last time, with the Labour majority growing from just under 3,100 to 4,400 as UKIP and the Lib Dems repeated their pattern of surge and collapse. The Tories could just about do this seat with half of UKIPs 9,000 2015 voters  about the share estimated to have made the switch nationally  but would need either Labour switchers or a Lib Dem recovery (in a very Leave seat) to be confident. Electoral Calculus tips a very narrow Labour hold.

Lancaster and Fleetwood: Eric Ollerenshaw won this seat for the Tories by just 333 votes in 2010, and lost it again by just 1,265 two years ago. Hes back for another round and hoping to unseat Cat Smith, a key Corbynite MP. The seat is estimated to have voted Leave by about the same margin as the country overall, so UKIPs 2015 showing isnt huge, but nonetheless there may be support to be mined there. Electoral Calculus put Ollerenshaws odds of returning to Parliament at over 60 per cent.

Southport: A nice break from all the Labour facing seats, this was one of a handful of Lib Dem seats to survive the harrowing of two years ago. But John Pughs majority was only 1,322, and now hes stepped down the Tories must be hopeful of recapturing a seat thats been Liberal, with a short break from 1992-97, since 1987. Although Southport leans Remain UKIP put on almost 12 points to win almost 7,500 votes last time, but the Conservatives will need to try to find a way to mine that support without alienating Remainers. In light of the dire Lib Dem campaign Electoral Calculus are confident of a Tory gain.

Westmorland and Lonsdale: This is almost certainly not an actual target. Most likely the reportedly strong Conservative ground game here is to try to tie Tim Farron down in the constituency, with an outside chance of a shock result if he neglects it in service to the national Lib Dem campaign. But Business Insider reports that the local Tories are confident of pulling off a remarkable victory, and Electoral Calculus only has them narrowly behind. The reasoning seems to be that with 47 per cent of voters in the constituency estimated to have backed Leave, and many more likely falling into the Re-Leaver category alienated by the Lib Dems demand to resist the result, it might be possible to cobble together a majority against hard Remain in a seat the Tories held until 2005. Unlikely, but you never know.

Wirral South: Labour spiced up the usual gained-in-1997 formula here by winning it in a by-election. It was previously a safe Conservative seat, and in 2010 the party fell just 531 votes short of retaking it  but in 2015 Labour extended their lead by more than 4,000 votes. The seat voted Remain and UKIP picked up just 3,700 votes last time, so absent a Lib Dem revival at Labours expense this may be a long shot based on current numbers. Electoral Calculus tips a Labour hold, but with a four-in-ten chance of a Tory upset.

Wirral West: Yet another seat lost in 1997, prior to which the Tory majority was in five figures, Esther McVey won it back by just over 2,400 votes in 2010 before losing it by 417 two years ago after being very heavily targeted by Labour. This seat voted Remain and has a rather low UKIP vote, but the margin is so narrow that this must be a nailed-on certainty unless something goes very, very wrong for the party. Electoral Calculus predicts a Conservative gain.

Worsley and Eccles South: Iain Lindley has fought the last two elections for the Conservatives here, and hes back for another go. As per usual for this region the Tories slipped back a bit two years ago and the Labour majority now stands just shy of 6,000, making this a reach. But six in ten voters here backed Leave, there are almost 7,700 UKIP voters to woo, and Electoral Calculus predicts only the very narrowest of Labour holds. If the polls recover or the party runs a good ground game it could go right on the night.

Labour:

Bolton West: This seat was quite important to this site during the Coalition, when we called our benchmark for broadening the partys appeal A Conservatism for Bolton West. Then Chris Green won it by just 801 votes, which was gratifying. With a margin that thin Labour must be picking up seats like this if theyre making any sort of advance, although with a strong Leave vote and a large 2015 UKIP share to target Green is probably safe: Electoral Calculus foresees a comfortable hold.

Bury North: Another seat with a razor-thin majority, this time of just 378, but this one was picked up by a more comfortable 2,243 in 2010 before David Nuttall had his majority slashed last time. Hes a Brexiteer, which will do him no harm in a Leave-leaning seat where UKIP took 5,500 votes last time, and Electoral Calculus put Labours odds of finishing what they started two years ago at just one in three.

Weaver Vale: Graham Evans took this seat from Labour in 2010 by just 991 votes and held it last time by just 806, so in recent times this has been a very marginal seat indeed. He must surely be hoping that the Tories much-improved poll ratings have put a more comfortable majority in reach at last. Electoral Calculus predict a solid Tory hold, perhaps based on part on winning over a big chunk of UKIPs 4,500 voters from the last election, and again give Labour just a one-in-three chance of cracking it.
According to todays Sun on Sunday, the Scottish National Party have just passed a new campaigning milestone: theyve just dropped before 40 per cent for the first time in the general election.

This is the latest instalment in the slow-burning story of how the Conservatives seem to be doing remarkably well in Scotland, building off their second-placed Holyrood finish last year.

If this poll is right, then not only are the Conservatives on 29 per cent  almost double their share at the last election  but they may be on the way to their best seats result since 1992, when they won 11 seats. Labour will be delighted to be on 25 per cent, not far short of second and well up on their mid-teens showing of recent times.

In terms of seats such figures would, the article claims, put the Tories on 12, Labour on 2, and the Liberal Democrats (polling at 4 per cent) on three. These 14 losses would take the Nationalist contingent down from 56 MPs to 42.

Some caveats: these seat figures are likely over-stating how bad a night the SNP will have, especially if theyre using Uniform National Swing. Polls can also be wrong, as we pointed out on Saturday. Nonetheless, there is a clear trend in Scottish polling and it is not to the SNPs advantage.

Nicola Sturgeon clearly believed, along with many (although not this site) that the Brexit vote would trigger a surge of separatist sentiment and the imminent break-up of the UK. Hence her decision in the hours after the result to declare that a second independence referendum was highly likely.

Since then support for independence hasnt slumped  it remains about where it previously was  but the SNPs fortunes seem to have slipped. They won the most seats in the latest round of local elections but didnt make any dramatic advances, and lost control of both of the councils they controlled outright as the Tories doubled their representation, taking first place across a swath of target seats.

The interesting fact at the heart of this is that the Scottish Nationalists are now under-polling independence. Where previously they took the 45 per cent who voted Yes in 2014 and bolted on a section of the unionist vote that liked good government, there now seem to be independence-minded voters opting to support someone else  quite possibly Labour, judging by those figures.

Some may have been antagonised by Sturgeons timing, wanting an opportunity to see the outcome of the Brexit negotiations before being asked to decide again on independence. Others may have been deterred by the Scottish Governments poor domestic record, which after ten years of SNP rule can scarcely be blamed on anyone else.

In their own ways both Sturgeon and Davidson are now bedevilled by the sort of expectation problems that Theresa May is struggling with. Winning more than two thirds of Scotlands seats would be a huge achievement in ordinary circumstances, but a disappointment for the SNP.

Meanwhile the Conservatives are caught between the need to talk up their prospects (to encourage people to back them as the most viable anti-Nationalist force) and inflating expectations to an extent that would sour a perfectly good result, such as five or six seats.

It also remains to be seen whether the Scottish Tories are caught up in the struggles of the national campaign, which seems to have helped Labour to overtake the Conservatives in Wales.

But one thing is clear: with the Scottish Greens only standing in three seats, pushing the SNP below 40 per cent will give the Prime Minister all the room she needs to keep saying not yet to another referendum.
CORNWALL, Ontario  The Cornwall Kinsmen Farmers Market kicked off their soft opening this Sunday, May 28 at the St. Lawrence College parking lot.

The brainchild of Cornwall Kinsmen Club House Director, Monte Yancey, who is a massage therapist. Being in the healthcare industry, Yancey says that he hopes the market helps change peoples buying patterns.

You tell your clients they need to eat healthy , and there hasnt been the venue for them to have access to this healthy food, said Yancey.

The market is producer-only, meaning that everything for sale is grown or produced by the people selling it. It also boasts an all-local assortment of vendors, with the bulk of them being from SD&G.

Kinsmen Club Secretary, Neil Benjamin was also instrumental in the planning of the Kinsmen Market and says that hes absolutely overwhelmed by the community response.

We didnt know what to expect, or how well wed reached everybody, but apparently word of mouth and social media has brought us a really busy market today, said Benjamin.

Benjamin says that he thinks that the citys changing focus on health is partly to thank for the excellent turnout.

Its something that Cornwall has been building on for a while now, said Benjamin.

Yancey says that when they first started reaching out to vendors, they wanted to accommodate the vendors needs first.

They were really struck by that, said Yancey. Were really looking to service both sides. Were a service organization, so were always trying to find out how can we help?

With the market already receiving a tremendous amount of support, the Official Grand Opening is set to take place Sunday, June 11.
Two-time Formula 1 world champion Fernando Alonso made no secret of his disappointment after a strong run in Sunday's 101st Indianapolis 500 was brought to an early end following an engine failure.

Alonso qualified fifth at Indianapolis and spent the first half of the race battling at the front of the pack, only for a couple of cautions to play against the McLaren-Honda-Andretti driver and push him back into the midfield.

Alonso was geared up for a final 30-lap sprint to the line from ninth, but made it just nine more laps before he suffered a loss of power on his car after a failure on his Honda engine, resigning him to a DNF.

Despite failing to finish, Alonso said he felt proud of his performance throughout May at Indianapolis Motor Speedway and prove that he could compete at the front of the pack in IndyCar.

"Obviously disappointed not to finish the race because obviously every race you compete, you want to be at the chequered flag. Today it was not possible," Alonso said.

"Anyway, it was a great experience, the last two weeks. I came here basically to prove myself, to challenge myself. I know that I can be as quick as anyone in an F1 car. I didn't know if I can be as quick as anyone in an IndyCar.

"It was nice to have this competitive feeling, even leading the Indy 500, you know. One lap you put on the lead there, it was already a nice feeling. I was passing, watching the tower, saw the 29 on top of it. I was thinking at that moment if Zak [Brown] or someone from the team was taking a picture, because I want that picture at home.

"Thanks to IndyCar, amazing experience. Thanks to Indianapolis. Thanks to the fans. I felt at home. I'm not American, but I felt really proud to race here."

Alonso's entry to the '500 came as part of his bid to win the Triple Crown of Motorsport which also features the Monaco Grand Prix (a race he has won twice) and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

While the Spaniard would not commit to a comeback, he said that a second attempt would be easier now he knows what to expect.

"Obviously if I come back here, at least I know how everything is," Alonso said. "It will not be the first time I do restarts, pit stops, all these kind of things. So will be an easier, let's say, adaptation.

"Let's see what happen in the following years. I need to keep pursuing this challenge because winning the Indy 500 is not completed. It holds a new challenge if I can find a car that slow me down somehow."
Convertibility Is King

As Microsoft introduces its newest update to the Surface Pro series of devices, the company will find the 2-in-1 field a bit more crowded than it was when the previous model, the Surface Pro 4, came out 18 months ago. Among the latest entrants to the convertible fray is a 2-in-1 version of the XPS 13, Dell's popular notebook. Which Windows 10 device might be a better fit for you? In the following slides, we've compared the new Microsoft Surface Pro vs. the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 on specs and price.
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BRIDGEPORT  On a rainy day, on his way to Hartford to fight for a pension bill, Mayor Joseph Ganim slipped into the kitchen of the new Beardsley Zoo commissary, where students from Trumbull High School were cooking up a feast.

Ganim reached for a bite, then looked over his shoulder in search of Democratic Party Chairman Mario Testa, part of his entourage, before cutting the ribbon.

Its kind of cool, Ganim declared, of the latest zoo expansion. He told a television camera he hoped more kids would visit the zoo.

Ganim ran on a platform of support for education.

Give Our Children a Chance reads one of his glossy Democratic Primary mailers from 2015. On the flipside are pictures of the three Democratic candidates for Board of Education who ran with him: Dennis Bradley, Ben Walker and Maria Pereira.

All won the primary and then the general election. For Ganim, it was a second chance as mayor, after having served seven years in prison for corruption in office.

For Pereira, is was a return to the board after a two-year hiatus. She is now a staunch opponent of the mayor, saying he has done nothing to help the worst-funded school district in the state.

He has broken every single campaign promise, Pereira said. He promised me he was going to fund our schools. He promised me he would never interfere with the governance of the board.

Calls for more support

Last year, Pereira filed suit against Ganim for filling vacancies on the school board when the board failed to do so. And the entire Board of Education is exploring a suit against the city for its school funding practices.

Other board members complain Ganim has been missing in action when it comes to lobbying for desperately needed funding in Hartford.

We have mayor who went up to the state to talk about extreme fighting not education, Howard Gardner, another board member said at a recent meeting.

Sauda Baraka, the boards longest-serving member and vice chairman, said the city hasnt had a mayor who supported city schools in decades. Ganim is no different, she said

Ganim disagrees.

I continue to be as supportive as I can on a local, state, and even federal level, said Ganim. When we go up to Hartford today, we will be talking on a lot of stuff, but certainly if we get the opportunity to push the education agenda, we will do what we can do.

Ganim, who is now exploring a bid for governor, concedes the district is underfunded in comparison to other school districts, but he pleads ignorance as to how the district spends its money.

I dont know if (the school board is) spending poorly or wisely, he said. I hope they are spending it wisely.

Last year, Ganim said, 100 positions were cut on the city side. He questioned how much was cut on the school side, disputing the $15 million cut widely quoted.

The school board cuts included kindergarten classroom aides, home school coordinators and middle school counselors.

Ganim, however, suggests the school district missed an opportunity to implement an early retirement plan like the city did. He also maintains unwise choices have been made.

You cant try to tank one of the best after-school programs in the country, Ganim said of the citys Lighthouse Program.

Lighthouses future unclear

The board voted to kick the program out of city schools on June 30 for not paying a $500,000 fee for expenses and building use. That essentially could put a program that services 2,600 children out of business.

I started that program; it was one of the first in the country, Ganim said. We are not going to let the Lighthouse program go down.

It is unclear what will happen on July 1. Lighthouse Director Tammy Papa confirmed last week that registration for the summer program continues.

The board also cut school police out of its budget last year. The mayors budget tried to put them back in.

Ganim said he did not know all the details of the situation.

I know I am committed to safe schools ... but I am never tempted and dont want to run the school district, he said. I just want to be supportive.

Ganim said he tries to get to school events and classrooms when he can; students remember meeting the mayor, he said.

Last week, in addition to the zoo visit, he attended a topping off ceremony at the new Harding High School, raced back from Hartford to attend the Housatonic Community College graduation. On Friday he attended International Day at Tisdale School and on Sunday helped make a presentation at Bassick High School.

Ganim said the city is not the answer to the school boards challenges.

It never has (been), he said. The over-reliance on property taxes to fund public education or even local government is ridiculous.

The answer, he said, lies with the state.

Under some of the scenarios (the school board) could be looking at tens of millions of dollars more, which is great, Ganim said. At the same time, the city could be looking at getting cut by tens of millions of dollars. As we stand here talking today, nothing is settled.
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STRATFORD  A 24-year-old Stratford man has been arrested in connection with the homicide of Andre Pettway on Saturday.

Brandyn Ford was arrested after members of the Stratford Police Department Special Response Team served a warrant at his residence.
There are so many reasons why a Jeremy Corbyn-led government would be a calamity for this country that its hard to know where to start in listing them.

The remarkable economic recovery achieved under Tory stewardship since 2010 would be demolished at a stroke, as business was crushed by draconian corporation tax rises and the unions effectively handed control of industrial policy.

Key industries would be renationalised at vast public expense and Britain would embark on a truly reckless programme of State spending that could be funded only by huge extra borrowing and punitive levels of personal taxation.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and shadow home secretary Diane Abbott

Brexit negotiations  if they happened at all  would be a farce. Labour claims it would honour the referendum result but remains committed to staying in the single market, even if that means a shabby deal on free movement and UK legislation still being subject to the European Court.

And needless to say, there would be no attempt to limit migration.

But if the first responsibility of any democratic government is the security of its people, its Mr Corbyns attitude to terrorism that should ultimately disqualify him from ever being prime minister.

This staunch Marxist has made a career out of cosying up to bloodstained men of violence and his glib attempts to deny it over recent days have been grotesque. He has taken tea with IRA bombers, laid a wreath at the grave of a Palestinian militant involved in the Munich massacre and welcomed agents of the Hamas terror group as friends.

He blames British foreign policy for attacks on innocent men, women and children, has voted 56 times in the Commons against strengthening anti-terror legislation and has described Nato  which has protected the West for some 70 years  as a very dangerous Frankenstein of an organisation.

'Mr Corbyns attitude to terrorism that should ultimately disqualify him from ever being prime minister'

Then of course theres Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott, who also championed the IRA in the 1980s, saying: Every defeat of the British State is a victory for us all. She made light of her extremist past yesterday, saying she had changed her afro hairstyle since then and also some of her views. We have all moved on, she said.

But many victims and their families have been unable to move on. These are not trivial issues to be brushed aside  they are central to our national security.

Ms Abbott aspires to be Home Secretary and take charge of the anti-terror brief, yet makes no apology for siding with Britains enemies in a brutal 30-year campaign of insurrection. It simply beggars belief.

There can be no doubt that this country would be an infinitely more dangerous place  as well as a deeply impoverished one  with her and Mr Corbyn at the helm.

A cut-price flagship

So what is British Airways concealing about the computer meltdown that brought chaos to airports and misery to thousands of families  many of whom received scant information as they languished in terminals over the Bank Holiday weekend?

The company blames the crash on a power failure but  mysteriously  wont say what caused it or where it happened.

'What is British Airways concealing about the computer meltdown that brought chaos to airports and misery to thousands of families?'

Former staff have taken to the internet suggesting the disaster is the result of outsourcing the airlines computer systems to India as part of a savage cost-cutting exercise by chief executive Alex Cruz, which has also seen an end to free food on short-haul flights and threatens more cramped space.

BA remains Britains flagship carrier and charges premium rates for the privilege.

But how long will passengers continue to pay through the nose if they are receiving a service the cheapest budget airline would be ashamed of?
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A high school yearbook photo normally consists of a grinning snap in your uniform that you'd probably be happy to swiftly forget.

But now there's a new trend for teenagers staging elaborate photoshoots to capture the perfect shot for the yearbook - or simply to keep as a memento of the milestone of leaving school.

Rather than a boring studio shot, students are now looking for something that reflects their personality and interests, which can involve anything from dressing as a mermaid to a circus performers.

Husband and wife team Christine and Jeff run the Texas-based studio DigiSmiles, specialising in shoots for graduating high school seniors, and focusing on the interests, hobbies, and pursuits of the client.

'Our studio is gaining popularity amongst graduating seniors. They want their portraits to be different than their classmates and be true to who they really are,' Christine told Femail.

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Students are now arranging elaborate photoshoots for their high school yearbooks and to mark graduating from school, as they want something more unique than the standard uniform headshot

Texas-based studio DigiSmiles offers a service exclusively to graduating high school seniors who want something unique, such as a circus-themed shoot, as a memento of the occasion

Giving Ariel a run for her money: The 'Splash Week' project captured the interests of students in an underwater environment

Hot off the press: Friends jump for joy in a shoot inspired by the Disney musical Newsies

Christine and her husband said they sit down with the student and their parents ahead of a shoot to discuss their expectations.

'We figure out how they can give them an experience that brings out their 'true beauty, personality, and sparkle'.

'An example of how we tailor our session to the interests of the client is a student who loved anything related to Phantom of the Opera,' she said.

'While not wanting to be too gimmicky, we wanted to create an image that was inspired by, but not blatantly copied from the stage production.

On the hunt: Photographers sit down with students and their parents ahead of every shoot to figure out how they can best pay tribute to their unique personalities

The bear necessities! No ordinary photo would do for this student who opted for a circus theme complete with a bear cub

Holding out for a hero! A student posed underwater as Batman projected on to a city backdrop

Beneath the opera house! Adding dry ice to photoshoots came up after a student requested overtones of Phantom Of The Opera

Roll up, roll up! This student ditched her uniform in favour of a ringmaster's outfit

These friends opted for an alternative fashion theme, in clothes made from recycled paper and plastic bags

'This is when we first began to experiment with dry ice fog as an added element to a senior photoshoot.

'So the client was thrilled that we incorporated such a significant part of the show that connected her emotionally to the portraits we captured.

'This emotional connection to her portrait experience and the uniqueness of each creative element are why our studio is referred by many of our clients.'

It's a bit late for that umbrella! Students are now seeking more personal portraits that reflect their personalities, hobbies and spirit instead of the standard graduation photo

Under the sea! Dreamy aquatic shoots are extremely popular with students looking to stand out from the crowd

Rocking out! This girl wanted her underwater shoot to reflect her interest in music

Bun in the oven: One student avoided elaborate theatrics and opted for a cutesy home baking theme for her shoot

A whimsical portrait of a young music fan, who lay on the grass while resting her head on her guitar

Other unusual shoots include an 'Alternative Couture' theme, where students modelled dresses made from re-purposed black plastic bags, newspapers and window screens.

'Our circus themed shoot included vintage circus decor and a few exotic animals that added an extra sense of awe to the experience,' Christine explained.

'Most recently, our Newsies themed shoot brought a fun vibe that was enhanced by the popularity of the recent touring show on Broadway.

Sweet as sugar! This girl looked a real treat as she posed with a delicious pink candy floss

Floral fantasy: This ethereal portrait of a girl plucking flowers from the water will surely get pride of place on the wall

Pretty as a picture! This girl chose a unique way to represent her interest in art and painting

The DigiSmiles team, from Texas, on one of their underwater shoots with a student client

Students opt for costumes, elaborate make-up and sometimes props to ensure their graduations are unforgettable

Catch it if you can! A student takes a dip in the pool and has a go at playing with a frisbee underwater in another of DigiSmiles aquatic offerings

School's out for the summer! Luckily this student won't be needing her textbooks any longer

At least it's a soft landing! A teen attempts a spot of submerged skateboarding (left) while another shows off her passion for baseball (right)

Feeling magical: A stunning underwater shot make the most of light and contrast
Even beauty bloggers aren't immune from bad haircuts, a lesson Chloe Morello has had to learn the hard way.

The YouTube star is devastated after she requested a long curtain fringe from a London salon and was left with an uneven mess.

Chloe, 26, was holding back tears as she showed off the new hairstyle to her followers on social media over the weekend.

The Sydney-based blogger said she didn't realise what had been done at the Toni&Guy salon until she did her hair at home.

YouTube Star Chloe Morello held back tears as she showed off her new haircut on Instagram

The Sydney-based blogger said she didn't realise the damage that had been done at the Toni&Guy salon until she straightened her hair at home

'I just straightened my hair and I can see what they did,' she said in a Twitter video as she flicked through her hair.

'It's not even, I don't know what this is meant to be.'

'Why is the fringe that far back in my head? I told him I like little pieces on the side, like a curtain fringe, and this is what he gives me,' she continues.

'My fringe is literally shorter in the back then in the front...what the f***? I don't know what to say about this.'

Chloe also called out the salon on her Instagram story, her first picture showing the blogger's uneven bangs and her less than pleased face.

Thanks for my hair @toniguybrentx she wrote in the caption, adding the facepalm emoji to make sure her disappointment was clear.

Chloe was in shock when she realised that her fringe was shorter in the back then in the front, asking: 'What the f***?'

Chloe posted a picture of the 'curtain fringe' look she had been hoping for, and the result she got instead

Another picture showed the profile of Chloe's face, putting on full display how her bangs had been chopped at vastly different lengths.

What is this she wrote in the caption, admitting she was 'devastated' and thought she looked 'disgusting'.

On Twitter, one user asked if Chloe had let the salon know she was unhappy.

'What could be done?' she said. 'I won't let them near my hair. I don't even wanna see them.'

Another user told Chloe she should go so far as to sue the salon.

'I wish I could sue because it's my career,' she replied. 'But I don't think you can.'

Chloe then added the crying from laughter emoji, indicating that she was still in good spirits.

The blogger, who has more than two million followers on YouTube, has already taken steps to try and mitigate the situation.

The choppy fringe was a vast cry from the long layers Chloe used to wear her hair with (right)

The devastated beauty blogger posted this throwback picture after receiving the haircut, as she thanked her followers for their support

The blogger, who has more than two million followers on YouTube, has already taken steps to try and mitigate the damage on her hair

Chloe revealed on Twitter she had already booked an appointment with London salon Clo&Flo to see if they could 'disguise the mess that T&G did for awhile'.

She has also begun taking the popular vitamin Hairburst and doing inversion therapy, which involves hanging the head down and massaging the scalp with natural oils.

Inversion therapy claims it can stimulate up to an inch of hair growth in a week by increasing the blood supply to the head.

Chloe's followers were also on hand offering a number of suggestions and tips, which ranged from the easy to the wacky.

Many told Chloe to take the supplement Biotin, known for stimulating hair and nail growth, while one woman recommended she sleep with a beanie and rub peppermint oil in her hair.

Others suggested Chloe hide the cut with a top knot, as one hilarious user told her to simply wear more low-cut tops to 'take the focus off her hair'.
An Australian make up artist who used to 'contour' her 'stubborn double chin' with make up has spoken about a groundbreaking treatment she underwent in a bid to remove it for good.

Nicola Beverley, 34, told Daily Mail Australia that whilst she's always been a 'size 8 or 10' and active, 'underneath my chin I've always had a fuller face'.

'If I was to put on any weight it would always go around my face area. This didn't happen as much in my 20s but started as I got in my 30s,' she said.

But after undergoing a revolutionary fat-dissolving injection treatment, she said 'now when I look in the mirror I love what I see'.

Before: Nicola used to always have long hair and refused to wear her hair up to help hide her chin but since the procedure has cut her hair and worn it up

Before and after: Nicola assumed there was nothing she could do to get rid of her double chin if she didn't want to use plastic surgery until she came across Belkyra

In February a drug called Belkyra - a synthetic version of bile which occurs naturally in the body - was approved for use in Australia.

When injected it breaks down fat cells in the area being treated.

What is Belkyra? It is a synthetic version of the molecule bile, which occurs naturally in the body

When injected it breaks down the fat cells in the area being treated

Once broken down, the cells can no longer store or accumulate fat

It is a prescription only treatment to be administered by a registered health professional

Because of the disruption, the body recognises the fat removal as an injury

It then inflames and repairs, causing collagen formation and that creates elasticity Advertisement

'I assumed that there was nothing that I could do. An operation as drastic as liposuction is scary. Most women just put up with it and find out ways to hide it, I used to contour it,' the make up artist said.

'I do train every day - it's just an area of stubborn fat. It could also be hereditary as both my mum and nan have had the same issue. I guess it's how we age in my family,' she said.

Nicola has previously had Botox and a couple of years ago got fillers under her eyes.

However she was left deeply unhappy after having the procedure.

'They retained water and made my under eyes puffy,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

After: Ms Beverley had two series of injections that were six weeks apart with minimal pain and a small amount of swelling

Ms Beverley was referred to Dr. Steven Liew, the founder and medical director of Shape Clinic, which performs surgical and non-surgical cosmetic treatments for the face, breast and body, and he suggested she be treated with Belkyra for her chin.

The procedure takes approximately 15 minutes and people may see results within 30 days after their sessions.

Ms Beverley had two series of injections that were six weeks apart and said she had minimal pain and a small amount of swelling.

To make it look better aesthetically Dr. Liew offered some fillers to strengthen the jaw line and chin

How many women suffer from chin fat? Research by So What Research found that 34 per cent of women report to having a double chin and so do 24 per cent of men. 59 per cent of women with an extra pillow of fat under their chins avoid selfies and 52 per cent avoid photos all together. Advertisement

'To make it look better aesthetically he offered some fillers to strengthen the jaw line and chin,' she said, of her experience.

'He filled out the jaw line bringing it down from my ear and made my chin protrude a little more to make my profile stronger'.

'Dr Liew also explained that double chins have to do with your neck plates and where they sit. if they're further back you have a stronger jaw line - if it sits further forward then you're more likely to have a double chin'.

Unlike liposuction, which people may have to get done again in the future, most patients only need two injections of Belkyra which it claims dissolves fat forever.

It could also be hereditary as both my mum and nan have had the same issue. I guess it's how we age in my family,' Ms Beverley said

The injections work in a similar way to that in which bile breaks down fatty foods in our stomach, destroying the fat cells.

Nicola has a new sense of confidence and has shared pictures on Instagram to help other women who may be feeling the way she used to feel.

'As women and as a make up artist, seeing other women all the time you compare yourself an awful lot.

34% of women report to having a double chin and so do 24% of men, according to research

'I'm always striving to be the best that I can possibly be and this area has always been on my mind. I've always been conscious of it and now when I look in the mirror I love what I see,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

This hadn't always been the case for Nicola who used to always have long hair and refused to wear her hair up to help hide her chin. Recently not only has she had her hair cut, which she would have never done previously, but also had her hair up.

'It felt really nice, I felt really confident. Now I don't look straight at my chin in photos.

'Plastic surgery can make people look fake and not like themselves, but these injections don't have that affect - you still look the same.'
There are few things more painful than seeing an adored ex settling down with a new love. The humiliation of another woman succeeding where you have failed can be thoroughly emotionally bruising.

So spare a thought for Princess Beatrice, whose ex Dave Clark has just proposed to his beautiful new American girlfriend, Lynn Anderson.

The romance between Mr Clark and Miss Anderson has been something of a whirlwind, with Dave popping the question only three or four months after they got together.

The romance between Mr Clark and Miss Anderson (right) has been something of a whirlwind, with Dave popping the question only three or four months after they got together

Yet his relationship with Beatrice lasted a decade, ending last year after she reportedly gave him an ultimatum to marry her or go his own way.

Under such circumstances, the 28-year-old Princess would have needed a heart of steel to attend a wedding the day after news of Dave and Lynns engagement was made public  especially as the nuptials in question were those of Pippa Middleton and James Matthews, the most hyped social occasion since the 2011 Royal Wedding.

Beatrice must have been hugely relieved that, rather than walking to the church beside her loved-up younger sister Eugenie and her boyfriend, 30-year-old Jack Brooksbank, she was instead halfway across the world, networking at the World Economic Forum in Jordan.

When Pippas stiffy dropped on Beatrices doormat, the Princess had already accepted an invitation to the Forum and so had regretfully to decline joining the Middleton party.

You might wonder why Beatrice was in Jordan at all. The Forum says it engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. The conflict in Syria and President Trump were among subjects that came under discussion.

A clue to Beatrices burgeoning interest in such global agendas could, perhaps, be found in the woman her ex has chosen to make his wife.

Former flame Dave Clark has just proposed to his beautiful new American girlfriend, Lynn Anderson. Pictured above, the Princess with her former beau

Willowy, elegant and bearing a passing resemblance to the actress Cameron Diaz, Lynn, 31, is ferociously ambitious.

An advertising executive, she is director of partnerships and portfolio products at NBC television in New York, where she met Dave, 32, who moved to Manhattan last year to become head of external affairs at smartphone taxi company Uber.

It is easy to see how ultra-driven Lynn wowed business-minded Dave, who spent a decade working for the space tourism division of Virgin Galactic, and you can certainly imagine her attending the World Economic Forum, networking to her hearts content.

Go-getter Lynn is also socially ambitious, naming the self-help tome How To Win Friends And Influence People as her favourite book, and claims she reads something called The Intellectual Devotional, by David Kidder and Noah Oppenheim, daily.

The book gives a different digest of wisdom for every day of the year, in subjects from philosophy to physics, and promises to revive your mind, complete your education and [allow you to] roam confidently within the cultured class.

Add to this that Lynn is at ease with the jetset crowd beloved by her fiance and is often spotted, champagne in hand, at art exhibitions, fashion shows and fundraisers in Manhattan, and you get a notion of how the tenacious blonde succeeded where warm and sensitive Beatrice did not.

According to one friend, while the Princess was devastated by the split last summer, she is super happy for her ex, whom she dated from the age of 18.

But another friend says the latest turn of events has been hard for her. Beatrice was heartbroken when they split, says the friend.

While the relationship had definitely lost its spark, they were still close and they were together for a long time. She didnt think they would break up. Dave met this American girl very soon after the split and now theyre getting married, while Beatrice is still single.

What perhaps makes it even harder to bear is that Beatrice, Dave and Lynn all work in New York and are likely to run into each other socially.

Daves fiancee has an apartment in the fashionable Tribeca quarter of Lower Manhattan  just up the road from the offices of Afiniti, a tech start-up company where Beatrice has been working for the past seven months.

She joined around the time Dave began dating Lynn, and seems to have found work a balm during this tumultuous time.

No doubt the example of the thrusting blonde who took her place has given Beatrice food for thought. Lynn has already climbed some way up the greasy pole of corporate life while, until she joined Afiniti, Beatrice had struggled to find her feet. The longest she had lasted in any position was a year and seven months and she had attracted criticism for bouncing from job to job, while seemingly taking endless holidays  18 breaks in 2015 alone.

But there are signs that Beatrice  who is devoted to her grandmother the Queen, and her family  is knuckling down. While her ex pursued his romance, she ploughed her energies into her new role and continued her charity work (this month she campaigned for the Edinburgh Childrens Hospital Charity, of which she is a patron, for instance).

According to her LinkedIn online business profile, where she is listed as Bea York, she now has the impressive-sounding title of Vice President, Partnerships & Strategy at Afiniti, which provides software for call centres and is believed to be seeking backers as it prepares for a reported 1.6 billion flotation on the New York Stock Exchange.

Afiniti was set up by a friend of Beatrices, businessman Zia Chishti, who accompanied her to the World Economic Forum in Davos in January.

Earlier this year, Chishti, who works from an office in Washington DC, was an usher at the wedding of Prince Harrys best friend, Tom Inskip, in Jamaica. Inskip also works at Afiniti, where he is head of sales. Its all rather cosy  but there is clearly big money at stake.

Beatrices wardrobe has become increasingly grown-up over the past year.

Navy and neutral tones are in favour, while her evening wear is more fashionable. Rather like Lynns, in fact, who is often sleek in black or beige.

As well as work, there has been another, more predictable source of comfort for Bea since her break-up  her mother. No man has graced her arm since she split from Dave, but the Duchess of York, to whom she is very close, has become even more of a prop.

Princess Beatrice pictured in the Hamptons in New York with friend American oil heir Michael Hess

Just a day after the opening of the World Economic Forum, Bea joined Fergie, arm in arm, on more familiar turf: the red carpet in Cannes, for the Fashion For Relief charity gala.

While her mother opted for a vivid emerald green fishtail gown with a decollete top, Bea cut a confident figure in a blue satin skirt and black silk blouse.

One can only wonder whether Bea was aware that, just an hour along the coast, Dave and his fiancee had just checked into the

Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes. The couple looked blissfully happy with Lynn, clad in chic wide-cut white trousers, sporting a large diamond on her ring finger.

Beatrice didnt linger in France, jetting back to London on Monday to visit the Chelsea Flower Show alongside her grandmother and the Duchess of Cambridge.

Its fair to say the loss of Dave Clark hit all the Yorks hard: Fergie reportedly felt shed lost a son and there was a feeling that the couple might get back together.

But Dave  the son of Michael Clark, a wealthy businessman, and his wife Carol  obviously soon found solace elsewhere.

Part of bubbly Lynns attraction may be that she mingles in rather connected circles. Last summer she spent time in the Hamptons, holiday destination of the Clintons and New Yorks moneyed elite. But she also has a thoroughly unstarry background.

Her father Sterling, 62, is in the U.S. Air Force while her mother Shelley, 60, works for the sheriffs department in Yorktown, Virginia, where Lynn grew up.

She certainly enjoys champagne parties but has a social conscience too, possibly sharpened by the tragic events at her old university, Virginia Tech, when she was a student there.

On April 16, 2007, she was two months from completing her degree in finance when a fellow student, Seung-Hui Cho, 23, went on a killing spree on campus, shooting dead 32 people and wounding 17 others before killing himself. Today, Lynn continues to help mentor young students at her alma mater.

According to a friend, she recently spent a month or so in Tanzania doing voluntary work with a womens group to promote economic and social independence.

Lynn has a big heart, says the friend.

She is also clearly smitten with Dave, who proposed while the pair were on holiday by Lake Como. She called it the best day of my life.

And the ever-gracious Beatrice does hope, says one friend, to make it to the wedding of her former boyfriend. Dave and his beautiful fiancee can only hope the nuptials dont clash with the next meeting of the World Economic Forum . . .

Additional reporting by Annette Witheridge in New York
One of Britains most promising young fashion designers, whose dresses have been worn by the Duchess of Cambridge, has won more than 200,000 from iconic acting school Rada after falling 20ft down the drama academys lift shaft and shattering his legs.

I can reveal that designer and former model Hector Maclean, 26, who made dresses for Beulah, an ethical fashion brand loved by the Duchess, launched legal action against Rada after suffering the life-changing accident three years ago in the Central London building.

Fearing he might never walk again, London-born Maclean was preparing himself for a gruelling legal battle as his lawyers revealed agreement could not be reached on how much compensation he should receive.

Hector Maclean, 26, launched legal action against Rada after suffering the life-changing accident three years ago in the Central London building

Now Rada  alma mater of generations of thespians from Sir John Gielgud to Sir Kenneth Branagh, its current president  confirms it has agreed to an out-of-court settlement, shortly after Macleans lawyer issued a writ demanding damages of more than 200,000.

The new development comes after Rada was fined 12,000 in June 2015 after admitting breaching health and safety regulations at the building in Fitzrovia.

Maclean said at the time that his career, which was off to a successful start as he was already designing for royalty and collaborating with Dame Vivienne Westwood, had been left in tatters after he leaned against a set of metal double doors and plunged on to the concrete floor, breaking his legs.

He made dresses for Beulah, an ethical fashion brand loved by the Duchess of Cambridge (pictured above wearing one of their dresses on a trip)

He spent 17 days in hospital, where titanium implants were inserted in his legs.

Significant physiotherapy and rehabilitative treatment followed.

While Rada admitted breaching health-and-safety regulations, as well as liability for the accident, it did not accept Macleans claim for damages initially.

Maclean was forced to point out he suffers pain when walking or standing for protracted periods, and had been unable to take a masters degree in fashion at Central Saint Martins College, as he had planned in the year of the accident.

At least now, the battle has finally ended. Rada wishes Mr Maclean all the best in his future endeavours, an academy spokesperson tells me.
Something as simple as a soak in the tub has now become a 'luxury' for Connie Johnson as she continues her battle with terminal breast cancer.

The sister of actor Samuel Johnson posted a picture of herself in the bath on after revealing she had to be hospitalised for an infection.

Connie's arms were peacefully crossed across her chest as she closed her eyes and enjoyed the warm water, which she called 'nature's answer to morphine'.

The Love Your Sister founder kept her post light despite the scary experience, joking about how her body had turned into a party for 'cheeky microbes'.

Connie Johnson shared a picture of herself laying peacefully in the tub after she had to be hospitalised for an infection. The philanthropist is currently battling breast cancer

Connie revealed in recent interviews that she is struggling to come to terms with the fact she would have to soon say goodbye to her sons Willoughby, 10, and nine-year-old Hamilton

'Glad to be home from the hospital after my engine had a 4 hour express overhaul at the Canberra Cancer Centre,' she wrote in the caption.

'It turns out I have a bunch of cheeky microbes who think that this week's party is at chez moi!'

Connie, 40, said she was enjoying the 'unexpected luxury' of simply soaking in her tub, savouring the fact that she got to be in her own home.

'There are thousands of people in hospital today with cancer,' she added in her post.

'I'm thinking of you and hope you get to go home to your loved ones and a few of your favourite things very soon.'

Earlier this month Connie revealed that she was 'terrified' of dying as her seven-year battle against cancer neared its end.

Connie does not believe Christmas is 'on her radar' and said it was the Big Heart Project that has kept her going through these difficult times

Connie and her brother, actor Samuel Johnson, raised $2.2million with the project as they asked Australians to help them make a giant heart out of 5 cent coins earlier in May

Connie told Carrie Bickmore that she had at first expected doctors to give her alternative treatments.

But they revealed her body could no longer handle chemotherapy.

'They told me I couldn't continue on the chemo because my organs were struggling too much,' she told The Project host.

The mum-of-two also revealed she was struggling to come to terms with the fact she would have to soon say goodbye to her sons Willoughby, 10, and Hamilton, 9.

'I have this thought all the time where one day I'll be holding the children's hands...then I'll be gone.'

Connie became emotional as she told The Project host Carrie Bickmore that she is 'terrified' of dying after battling breast cancer for seven years earlier this month

'My pain will be over, and theirs will just be beginning.'

Connie has said in previous interviews that she does not believe Christmas is 'on her radar' and revealed it was the Big Heart Project that had kept her going.

Samuel and Connie raised $2.2million with the project as they asked Australians to help them make a giant heart out of 5 cent coins in Caberra earlier in May.

Thousands of people donated to the fund and Connie called it an 'incredible' experience that was 'out of this world'.

Connie and her brother have already helped raise more than $4.5million through their Love Your Sister foundation.

Connie was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010 and only given six months to live. She then underwent a double mastectomy, as well as chemotherapy and radiation

Connie and Samuel have raised $4.5 million for cancer through their Love Your Sister charity

Samuel paid tribute to his brave sister's lengthy battle with the disease during his Logie acceptance speech just days before their record-breaking fundraiser.

Connie's cancer battle began when she was just 11 and diagnosed with bone cancer, undergoing four years of treatment.

She also had a tumour in her womb when she was 22.

Connie was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010 and only given six months to live. She then underwent a double mastectomy, as well as chemotherapy and radiation.

The philanthropist revealed in April she was halting all cancer treatment to spend more time with her two sons.

Samuel paid tribute to his brave sister's lengthy battle with the disease during his Logie acceptance speech (pictured) just days before their record-breaking fundraiser
At age 40, Elsa Pataky is not shy of showcasing her naturally-glowing complexion.

In April, the mother-of-three and wife of Chris Hemsworth shared a stunning make up-free selfie to Instagram while holidaying in Spain.

And now, Woman's Day has reported that one of the secrets to the The Fate Of The Furious-actor's flawless skin is a AUD $242 moisturiser which she and Chris both use.

'I... moisturise every day, especially after showering, with La Mer Creme De La Mer, which Chris and I share,' the actress was reported as saying. 'If it's missing I know he has it!'

Stunning: Elsa Pataky, 40, showcased her naturally glowing complexion when she shared a make up-free snap while holidaying in Spain. She is seen right fully made up at the Golden Globes

Woman's Day reported that one of the secrets to the The Fate Of The Furious-actor's flawless skin is a $242 moisturiser which she and Chris both use

WHAT IS LE MER FACE CREAM? Le Mer face cream has a cult celebrity following that includes Angelina Jolie, Brat Pitt and Cara Delevingne. On their website, La Mer said its gel moisturiser is infused with a 'nutrient rich miracle broth' that leaves skin hydrated and refreshed. The man behind the moisturiser, Dr Max Huber, created the broth using sea kelp that is hand-harvested and fermented with pure ingredients. He developed the cream after burning his skin in a laboratory incident. However, last year results from a Consumer NZ test revealed, when anonymously trialed across four weeks, that consumers rated Nivea Pure & Natural Moisturising Day Cream four out of five stars, while La Mer Moisturising Gel Cream received three stars. Advertisement

La Mer - a face cream with a cult celebrity following - is infused with a 'miracle broth' according to its website and retails for AUD $242 for 30ml or AUD $445 for 60ml.

Elsa also told Woman's Day that she keeps strong fragrances for date night because 'I spend most of my time with animals and my kids' and hasn't had a pedicure 'for two years'.

'Being in nature with wildlife is where my heart is, it's totally more me than the glamour,' the publication reported the star as saying.

'People don't see me like that, they see me all dressed up in make up with my hair done, but when I feel most happy is the total opposite.'

It's not the first time Elsa has spoken of her love of a more natural look.

Last year, the Spanish stunner told Who magazine that Chris prefers her more natural.

It's not the first time Elsa has spoken of her love of a more natural look

'Like most men, he likes me with no makeup,' the 40-year-old has said about husband Chris Hemsworth

'Like most men, he likes me with no makeup,' the 40-year-old told the publication.

The blonde beauty added that it's 'nice' that Chris accepts her in her less than glamorous moments.

Last month, blonde beauty told Husskie her lifelong dream was to be a farmer and she cleans out her horses' stables barefoot everyday.

The blonde beauty previously said that it's 'nice' that Chris accepts her in her less than glamorous moments

Last month, blonde beauty told Husskie her lifelong dream was to be a farmer and she cleans out her horses' stables barefoot everyday

'I dont mind the wild, people are like You have a snake in your bedroom! And Im like, I know! I love it!' she revealed

The self-confessed animal lover also keeps horses on their sprawling Byron Bay property, revealing she feels lucky to raise her three children in touch with nature

Elsa gushed about her isolated country life in Byron Bay - 'I always dreamt of being a farmer'.

'I dont mind the wild, people are like You have a snake in your bedroom! And Im like, I know! I love it!' she revealed.

The self-confessed animal lover also keeps horses on their sprawling Byron Bay property, revealing she feels lucky to raise her three children in touch with nature.

'Every morning I go to my horse barefoot and I clean out the stalls. My daughter asked me Mumma, are we farmers now? And I was like, Yes! We are farmers! She doesnt admire anything about the movies, shes just excited to be at home and being with the horses  giving them hay,' Elsa said.
Mummy bloggers have been praised for disrobing on social media in celebration of their post-pregnancy bodies.

Giovanna Fletcher, the 32-year-old wife of McFly star Tom Fletcher, shared an 'empowering' image of herself splashing in the sea in a black swimsuit with her young sons Buzz, 3, and Buddy, 1.

An emotive caption accompanied Fletcher's Italian beach shot, in which she said she doubted her boys would remember her 'cellulite or stretchmarks' but that they would notice if she didn't take time to have fun with them.

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Author and mummy blogger Giovanna Fletcher posted this image of herself in her swimsuit on holiday with her two sons, Buzz, 3, and Buddy, 1. Fletcher, who's married to McFly star Tom Fletcher, said she didn't want worrying about her post-pregnancy body to stop her having fun with her boys

Fletcher with husband Tom; the couple were married in 2012 and have since had two children together

The parenting author said she'd been inspired to post the body positive pictures of herself in her costume after another blogger, Mother of Daughters aka Clemmie Hooper, posted a defiant bikini snap in which she is seen showing her middle finger to the camera.

Fletcher's honest post, which received a slew of supportive comments, said: 'At times it does bother me how much my body has changed, but I know I don't ever want it to stop me having fun with the boys.

'They aren't going to look back and think "Gosh, Mum had terrible cellulite, stretch marks and wobbled a lot", but they would notice if I sat out of games and didn't make the most of my time with them.'

Fletcher also revealed that even as a slender size 8 she hadn't been happy with the way she looked, saying: 'It's not a weight thing. It's an inner feeling thing.'

'Let's normalise our bodies': Mother of Daughters blogger Clemmie Hooper shared this image pre-holiday of herself wearing a green leaf bikin

Clemmie Hooper, aka Mother of Daughters, added this body positive note to the image

Earlier in the week, blogger Mother of Daughters had snapped herself in a glamorous green leaf bikini, while offering a one-fingered salute to the camera.

The parenting writer wrote: 'I haven't done any exercise since I've had the twins, I drink wine, I eat chocolate, my stomach isn't what it use to be but who cares?

'My husband said he doesn't. I grew and pushed out 4 babies from this body of COURSE I don't look how I use to be that's ok. Spread the love people and let's normalise our bodies.'

Blogger: Style Me Sunday aka Natalie Lee said that every time she showed her body, it 'feels less important', explaining: 'My stretch marks, my cellulite, my big wobbly tummy (that my daughter said it looks like there's a baby in there yesterday) all of it matters a little less every day'

Elsewhere, newmumonline posted a shot with her son next to a paddling pool and urged her followers: 'Girls get in your cossies. Life is too short. Even if I do have some flesh falling out of my arm pit. It's mine all mine.'

And fellow parenting blogger Clemmie Telford donned a black and white bikini saying: 'My bod isn't perfect and I can't even pretend it'd be better if I exercised more, because I already work-out quite a bit. But I'm trying to be ok with it even when it's curvier, wobblier and paler than i'd like, because THIS is what real women look like.'

Blogger newmumonline, a 44-year-old mother of two, posted this snap of herself and her son on her Instagram account, adding my daughter: 'will grow up knowing that beauty comes from within'

Peace out: Blogger Clemmie Telford also shared a snap of herself in a bikini, saying: 'This is what real women look like'

Fletcher's post has been viewed more than 75,000 times, with many leaving comments about how inspiring the 'body positive' image is.

One user, AndiebullockI, wrote: 'love this so much! It's honestly soooo soooo very true! And you're still beautiful no matter what.'

Melissa_colhoun_mlc added: 'Brilliant role model @mrsgifletcher! Beautiful inside and out!'

Lauren.pettet penned: 'I feel there's so much pressure these days and I don't feel social media helps. Thank you for being real and I'm now going to embrace my mummy tummy and curves and not care what anyone else thinks! X'
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A yoga-obsessed couple has showcased their passion for yoga and free running in an impressive array of photos from exotic locations around the globe.

The incredible pictures show the husband and wife team balancing on each other to pull some impressive shapes on the beach and in the park.

Other gravity-defying shots show Amor Armitage balancing on a piece of driftwood whilst her husband, Chase, performs an impressive flip through the air.

Amor Armitage and her husband Chase show off their free running and yoga skills in a collection of striking images from their travels around the world

Speaking about their passion, Amor said: 'I am always doing yoga and my husband is always training or doing free running.

'When we travel, we spend so much time exploring that we don't get to train and do yoga as we would at home, so I thought that practicing both our passions would be a good idea to stay active and have fun together while visiting different places.'

Amor says that the images represent different forms of expressions. 'To us, the photos reflect the potential all of us have mentally, physically and spiritually,' she explained.

Chase trains different styles of movement every day focussing on body weight exercises, a mixture of rock climbing, parkour, slack lining, calisthenics, trampolining, and traditional weight training and I do different forms of yoga every day.

The couple met over Facebook and bonded online for over a year before meeting in real life and falling in love

The yoga-obsessed couple has showcased their passion for yoga and free running in an impressive array of photos from exotic locations around the globe

In one photo Amor balances on a piece of driftwood whilst her husband, Chase, performs an impressive flip through the air

The pictures show the athletic duo team balancing on each other to pull some impressive shapes on the beach and in the park

Amor says she's always doing yoga and her husband is always training or doing free running so they like to keep it up when they go abroad

'Chase has the strength and I have the flexibility so we are currently working on developing each other's strengths and helping each other achieve it,' said Amor.

Amor met her husband through Facebook after seeing one of his free running videos. Despite being able to achieve such ambitious poses, Amor explained the hardest thing about the photos is being able get into position before the self-timer fires.

'It was the first time I saw someone doing free running and I was astounded by it and him, I cheekily added him on Facebook, not knowing whether he would accept my request as he had thousands of friends and quite a few girls checking him,' added Amor.

'He accepted my request and sent me a nice message, from that moment we started talking and connected deeply, we continued talking for a whole year before he visited me in Chile.

'We fell in love before our bodies met but when we finally met face to face, we knew we were made for each other.

She explained that when they travel they don't get to train and do yoga as they would at home, so thought that practicing both passions would be a good idea to stay active and have fun together while visiting different places

Amor says that the images represent different forms of expressions and believes the snaps show what they can achieve 'mentally, physically and spiritually'

Chase trains different styles of movement every day focussing on body weight exercises, a mixture of rock climbing, parkour, slack lining, calisthenics, trampolining, and traditional weight training

Amor does yoga every day, whilst her husband trains in free running and can often be seen leaping over his wife

The loved-up duo can even be seen smooching in some of the gravity-defying snaps in stunning exotic locations on their travels around the globe

The couple admit that pulling the pose in time for the self-timer is the biggest challenge, explaining: 'We use a mixture of self-timer photography and remote trigger and 4K video stills'

The couple don't have a photographer at hand so Chase sets up the shot and they have to jump in the frame and get into the posture really quickly

The couple say they hope people will look at their photos and realise that everyone 'looks at the world differently'. Amor said: 'The message is that we all have different unique skills, talents, passions, gifts and tools that we can use to build our reality. We all live in the same world yet we all see it in different ways'

Amor explained: 'The biggest problem is trying to get into a complicated posture when the timer is ticking when you only have ten seconds to make it work'

'We use a mixture of self-timer photography and remote trigger and 4K video stills, because we never have a photographer at hand so Chase sets up the shot and we have to jump in the frame and get into the posture really quickly.

'The biggest problem is trying to get into a complicated posture when the timer is ticking when you only have ten seconds to make it work.

'The message is that we all have different unique skills, talents, passions, gifts and tools that we can use to build our reality. We all live in the same world yet we all see it in different ways.

'In our experience, I might see a rock, a bridge or a tree and use it as support or enhancement for a yoga posture while my husband Chase might see it as an obstacle to overcome.'
She's famously fond of a fashion forward look, but occasionally Queen Letizia likes to keep things classic.

After visiting Madrid's National Science Museum in a pair of tight leather trousers and a sleeveless jacket last week, the Spanish monarch returned to more familiar sartorial territory, opting for a slim-fitting pencil skirt with coordinating clutch and heels.

Queen Letizia teamed her statement skirt with a white blouse with dramatic lace detail at the sleeves, and added a simple pair of pearl drop earrings.

Queen Letizia wore a red pencil skirt and matching heels with a white blouse in Madrid today

The Spanish Queen carried a red snakeskin clutch that perfectly matched her skirt and shoes

Queen Letizia was visiting BBVA bank in Madrid, to deliver a speech at a ceremony to mark the 10th anniversary of the BBVA Bank Foundation.

The foundation was established to create opportunities for vulnerable people, and to facilitate access to financial services in a responsible way.

Queen Letizia, who joined her husband King Felipe VI to watch the annual Armed Forces Day military parade in Guadalajara on Saturday, was back in the capital on Monday to speak at the event.

Despite her hectic schedule, the Queen appeared relaxed as she smiled for the cameras while making her way into the bank on Monday.

The Spanish monarch and mother-of-two looked relaxed as she arrived at the BBVA Bank Foundation in the Spanish capital on Monday

Queen Letizia, who is a former journalist and news anchor, delivered a speech at the ceremony for Microfinanzas BBVA, which was established to create opportunities for the vulnerable

Queen Letizia's white blouse featured dramatic lace detailing at the billowing sleeves

The Spanish monarch posed for a photograph with the president of BBVA Bank, Francisco Gonzalez, in Madrid on Monday

Last Wednesday the 44-year-old mother-of-two looked slick in black leather skinnies, sky-high stilettos, and a tailored white sleeveless jacket to visit the National Museum of Science and Technology for a prize-giving ceremony.

She was snapped congratulating the young male winner of the 2017 Famelab, a science and communication competition, as she handed over his first prize certificate.

The winner will now go on to participate in the international competition in the UK in June.

Letizia delivered a speech at the event to mark the 10th anniversary of BBVA MicroFinanzas
When you're visiting a fellow Crown Princess, the style stakes are always going to be high, and tonight Victoria of Sweden ensured she stole the limelight in an unusual floral dress featuring an elegant swan print.

The Swedish royal, 39, and her husband Prince Daniel as on a two day official visit with Crown Princess Mary and her husband Frederick.

Tonight, the two couples attended a welcome dinner at the Eric Ericsonhallen concert hall with Mary, 45, opting for a simpler, but equally elegant blue lace dress.

Mother-of-four Mary let her hair down after rocking a chic updo earlier in the day, while Victoria stuck with her signature scraped back bun.

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, 39, looked striking in a floral and swan print dress while her Danish counterpart Mary, 45, opted for a simpler look in blue lace

The Danish royals welcomed Crown Princess Victoria and her husband Princess Daniel for a dinner at Eric Ericsonhallen at Skeppsholmen in Stockholm

Earlier in the day, both women opted for sharp suits as they kicked off the official visit in suitably smart fashion.

The Scandinavian royals put on a smart display as they joined forces at Stockholm harbour on Monday.

Princess Mary opted for an elegant loose fitting two piece in cream adding a touch of bling in the form of a bejeweled brooch.

Rarely choosing to shun heels the Danish royal opted for a pair of stylish snake skin heels as she met with the neighbouring royals.

The ladies were joined by Crown Prince Daniel and Crown Prince Frederik (right) who both looked dapper in dark blue suits

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark were twinning in sharp tailoring today as they visited the Danish jewellery boutique Olen Lynggaard, in Stockholm

Both Crown Princess Mary of Denmark and Victoria of Sweden opted for sharp suits as they were joined by husbands Frederik of Denmark and Daniel of Sweden in Stockholm today

Both royals were delighted to be presented with bouquets by a little girl in a summery floral dress and rose gold sandals

Victoria of Sweden opted for a more traditional suit in navy with a fitted jacket with gold button detailing and figure hugging trousers.

She added a flash of colour to her ensemble in the form of floral shirt with red hues perfectly complementing her scarlet stilettos.

The Swedish royal, 39, rarely chooses to wear her hair down and today could be seen sporting her signature scraped back low bun.

A vision in white: Princess Mary was her typical glamorous self in a cream trouser suit and snakeskin heels

The two princesses were almost a mirror images of one another as they chatted at a reception on Monday morning

Mary opted for a cream loose fitting two piece while Victoria chose a traditional navy suit showcasing flashes of scarlet in the form of her accessories

Mary also chose to wear her hair up opting for a twisted chignon style for her engagement on Friday.

The two women could be seen chatting together at a reception before making their way outside to pose by Stockholm's waters.

Joining them today were their husbands Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark and Daniel of Sweden.

Mother-of-two Crown Princess Victoria has welcomed the Danish royals to Sweden

Crown Princess Mary shares a close bond with her Swedish counterpart and attended the christening of her son Oscar last year

The princes also opted for matching ensembles in the form of navy suit. But while Frederik chose a burgundy tie Daniel opted for a sky blue one.

The Danish royals made the short journey to the Swedish capital on Sunday for Business Promotional Campaign to Sweden.

They were greeted by Victoria and Daniel but also by Victoria's brother Carl Philip who is the Duke of Varmland.

The Scandinavian foursome stepped out onto the balcony to pose before Stockholm harbour

Mary and her husband Federik made the short journey to the Swedish capital on Sunday

The royal couples are thought to be close with Frederik acting as godfather to Victoria and Daniel's youngest child Prince Oscar

The fivesome made the most of the good weather and were seen enjoying a ride aboard the Dannebrog Royal Yacht at the Skeppsholmen harbour.

Later Mary and Victoria went their separate ways from their husbands to visit the Danish jewellery boutique Olen Lynggaard.

The two royal couples share a close bond with both Mary and Frederik attending the christening of Victoria and Daniel's youngest Oscar a year ago.

Prince Frederik, who has four children with Crown Princess Mary, acts as godfather to the one-year-old prince.
Scientists have made a breakthrough in the treatment of female incontinence by identifying genes that trigger the condition.

Their discovery brings hope that the problem, which affects millions of women at some time in their lives, could eventually be cured by adapting existing drugs.

With 25 per cent of women experiencing incontinence bad enough to spoil their quality of life, the need for treatment is urgent, experts say.

Some 25 per cent of women experience incontinence bad enough to spoil their quality of life

At the moment therapies include pelvic floor exercises and bladder training with advice to drink less fluid and lose weight. In some cases it is treated surgically.

The condition, which occasionally afflicts half of all women in varying degrees, is often brought on by natural childbirth, and the menopause, although some suffer from childhood. In more than half of all cases, the problem appears to be inherited.

One in four women suffer stress incontinence associated with laughing, sneezing, coughing, exercising or movements that put pressure on the bladder.

The breakthrough has come about because the genes linked to urinary incontinence are already associated with two other conditions for which there are tested drug treatments.

It is hoped those drugs, which are already available, could be adapted. Dr Rufus Cartwright, a visiting researcher in the Department of Epidemiology at Imperial College London will address the European Society of Human Genetics today.

Dr Cartwright said: Twenty-five per cent of adult women will experience incontinence severe enough to impact on their quality of life.

Finding a genetic cause and a potential treatment route is therefore a priority.

The discovery brings hope that the problem could eventually be cured by adapting existing drugs (stock image)

Researchers studied 9,000 women from three groups in Finland and the UK. They found that the genes affecting incontinence were in a similar area to those connected with pulmonary hypertension and Raynauds syndrome  where spasms of the arteries reduce blood flow. Dr Cartwright said: Previous studies had failed to confirm any genetic causes for incontinence.

Although I was always hopeful that we would find something significant, there were major challenges involved in finding enough women to participate, and then collecting the information about incontinence. It has taken more than five years of work.

He added: We know that a caesarean section offers substantial protection from incontinence. However, across Europe there are efforts to reduce caesarean section rates, and establishing such a screening programme during pregnancy may run against current political objectives in many maternity care systems.
When Dr Amy Reed was diagnosed with precancerous fibroids in 2013, she did the obvious: got routine surgery to remove them.

She was told the operation would eliminate her risk of cancer, using a surgical power tool called a morcellator to slice up the dangerous tissue and remove it bit-by-bit.

But it did the opposite.

The FDA-approved tool sprayed cancerous cells inside her body, elevating her to a stage 4 cancer within moments.

Devastated, Dr Reed, an anesthesiologist and mother-of-six, started an aggressive treatment plan.

Simultaneously, she successfully campaigned the FDA to revise its position on morcellation - and forced Johnson & Johnson to take it off the market.

Dr Reed died on May 24 at her Philadelphia home at the age of 44.

Her husband Dr Hooman Noorchashm, a cardiothoracic surgeon, remarked in an email to her coworkers and friends: 'She is a mother, a doctor, and a warrior the likes of whom the world does not often see.'

Dr Amy Reed, 44, (left with husband Dr Noorchashm in 2014 and right on April 28) died of cancer on May 24 in Philadelphia. The anesthesiologist and mother-of-six had a hysterectomy to remove fibroids in her uterus in 2013. A morcellator helped upstage a hidden cancer to stage 4 during the procedure

MORCELLATORS EXPLAINED A morcellator is a surgical instrument used in laparoscopic surgery. The device was approved by the FDA in 1995. The power tool has tiny blades to mince tissue. It is used to remove large masses of tissue with small incisions for a minimally invasive surgery. They are used in hysterectomies to shred uterus tissue so it can be removed easily. A morcellator was often used to remove fibroids in the uterus. Although usually benign, fibroids have a chance of being cancerous. During the removal, the morcellator can drop bits of tissue, spreading cells in the abdomen. A problem arises if the fibroids were cancerous, meaning infected cells were spread throughout the body cavity. Advertisement

Dr Reed's cancer is believed to have only been in stage 1 until the hysterectomy procedure seeded the cells in other parts of her body.

When the leiomyosarcoma is confined to the uterus, the five year survival rate is 50 percent, and when it breaches the uterus the prognosis is very poor.

Days after Dr Reed's fibroid removal operation, a biopsy revealed she had a leiomyosarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancerous soft tissue tumor.

Her treatment plan included chemotherapy radiation, immunotherapy and experimental treatments.

But the cancer kept popping up in Dr Reed's lungs, spine and in abdomen.

While Dr Reed battled her cancer, Dr Noorchashm began his crusade to ban morcellators, which were approved by the FDA in 1995.

In 2014, a year after Dr Reed's operation, the FDA changed its position and warned against the device, estimating the chance of spreading undetected cancer at one in 350.

Previously, that estimate was at one in 10,000.

The FDA also suggested manufacturers add a warning to boxes that says the morcellator 'may spread cancer and decrease the long-term survival of patients.'

Dr Reed and Dr Noorchashm achieved another huge milestone in their fight against morcellation when leading manufacturer Johnson & Johnson pulled its device off the market in 2014.

Before Dr Reed and Dr Noorchashm campaigned against morcellation, the tool was prominently used to remove fibroid growths in a hysterectomy, which removes part or all of the uterus.

Dr Reed and Dr Noorchashm worked to warn of the dangers of morcellation and had the FDA revise its position on the tool and having a major company pull its device off the market. Pictured: Dr Reed with her six children in a photo her husband posted on May 27

Fibroids are the most frequently seen tumors in the female reproductive system and it is estimated that up to 77 percent of women will develop fibroids in their childbearing years.

However, more than 99 percent of these cases are non-cancerous, according to UCLA Health.

The morcellator is used to slice fibroid and uterine tissue into small pieces inside the body, allowing it to be removed through a small opening.

The procedure is designed to shorten recovery time and reduce wound-site infections.

As in Dr Reed's case, the technique can cause injury to local tissues and organs and spread unsuspected malignant tissue to places outside the uterus.
Thousands of heart attack patients are unnecessarily prescribed beta blocker tablets every year, research suggests.

A major study examining six years of NHS records found 95 per cent of patients who had suffered a heart attack were given the pills, which reduce stress on the heart.

But the research team, from the University of Leeds, found they made absolutely no difference to people's chances of surviving the next 12 months.

Experts said the pills are being over-prescribed, and called for a full-blown randomised trial into the drugs to see whether they should continue to be given out for heart attacks.

British guidelines recommend all people who have a heart attack should receive beta blockers.

A major study examining six years of NHS records found 95 per cent of patients who had suffered a heart attack were given beta-blockers, which reduce stress on the heart (stock)

The pills work by blocking stress hormones, which is thought to reduce pressure on the heart and lower blood pressure.

They are known to be a useful medication for people with heart failure - a condition which often follows a heart attack, in which the muscle of the heart has become damaged and the ability to pump blood around the body is lowered.

But the research team found that for people who had suffered a heart attack but did not have heart failure, beta blockers made no difference.

Beta blockers also come with side effects including dizziness and tiredness, which suggests if there is no benefit they may be doing more harm than good.

Professor Chris Gale, a cardiologist at the University of Leeds, said: 'There is uncertainty in the evidence as to the benefit of beta-blockers for patients with heart attack and who do not have heart failure.

'This study suggests that there may be no mortality advantage associated with the prescription of beta blockers for patients with heart attack and no heart failure.'

The team, whose work was published last night in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, examined records from the UK's national heart attack register, dating between 2007 and 2013.

They found 179,810 people who were hospitalised with a heart attack, but did not suffer heart failure, 95 per cent of whom were prescribed beta blockers.

But the research team, from the University of Leeds, found they made absolutely no difference to people's chances of surviving the next 12 months

The researchers found no statistical difference in death rates within a year of the patients suffering their heart attack between those who had been prescribed beta blockers and those who had not.

WHAT ARE BETA-BLOCKERS? Beta-blockers work mainly by decreasing the activity of the heart by blocking the action of hormones like adrenaline. They are prescription-only medicines, which means they can only be prescribed by a GP or another suitably qualified healthcare professional. Examples of commonly used beta-blockers include: atenolol (Tenormin)

bisoprolol (Cardicor, Emcor)

carvedilol

metoprolol (Betaloc, Lopresor)

nebivolol (Nebilet)

propranolol (Inderal) Beta-blockers may be used to treat angina, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, heart attack and high blood pressure. Most people taking the drugs have either no or very mild side effects that become less troublesome with time. Source: NHS Choices Advertisement

It could mean the drugs are being over-prescribed and burdening patients and the NHS with unnecessary medicine costs, the scientists said.

Dr Marlous Hall, lead investigator and senior epidemiologist at the Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Medicine, said: 'If you look at the patients who had a heart attack but not heart failure, there was no difference in survival rates between those who had been prescribed beta blockers and those that had not.'

She said large-scale patient trials are needed to back up the findings and examine other issues, such as whether beta blockers prevent future heart attacks, to help 'personalise' medications after a heart attack.

'This was an observational study based on robust statistical analysis of large scale patient data,' Dr Hall said.

'What we need now is a randomised patient trial.

'We were investigating one outcome - did beta blockers increase a patient's chances of survival? A trial would allow researchers to substantiate these findings and also look at other outcomes, such as whether beta blockers prevent future heart attacks. This work would have implications for personalising medications after a heart attack.'

The British Heart Foundation, which funded the research, says there are around 950,000 people in the UK who have survived a heart attack.
A potent mix of chemicals found in cigarette smoke destroys the livers of unborn children, new research shows.

The findings are yet further damning evidence of just how dangerous smoking is for pregnant women.

Scientists made the new discovery after looking at stem cells - non-specialised ones that have the ability to be able to transform into other types.

The toxic compounds in smoke were shown to damage those crafted into foetal liver tissue, mimicking that of babies'.

But to the surprise of the Edinburgh University scientists, the effects were different for boys and girls.

However, both genders can suffer lasting harm by being exposed to the 7,000 chemicals in smoke, experts say.

The new findings back-up an array of evidence which shows how dangerous smoking cigarettes is for pregnant women

Boys showed signs of liver scarring, which leaves them prone to cirrhosis in later life - which can cause liver failure and be deadly if left untreated.

While the cells regulating metabolism in the liver were found to be targeted in girls.

Any changes to the development of the organ of this kind could leave girls vulnerable to becoming overweight as they grow older, research suggests.

Professor Paul Fowler, director of the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University of Aberdeen, commented on the findings. He said: 'This work is part of an ongoing project to understand how cigarette smoking by pregnant mothers has harmful effects on the developing foetus.

'These findings shed light on fundamental differences in damage between male and female foetuses.'

THE DANGERS OF SMOKING Cigarettes can restrict the essential oxygen supply to the baby. As a result, their heart has to beat harder every time the mother smokes Dangers include: Increased risk of complications in pregnancy and birth

Less likely to have a healthier pregnancy and a healthier baby

Increased risk of stillbirth

Baby more likely to be born too early and have to face the additional breathing, feeding and health problems that often go with being premature.

Baby more likely to be born underweight: babies of women who smoke are, on average about 8oz lighter than other babies. This means they're more likely to struggle keeping warm and are more prone to infection

Increased risk of cot death Each year, smoking during pregnancy in the UK causes an estimated: 2,200 premature births

5,000 miscarriages

300 stillbirths Source: NHS Advertisement

The researchers conducted a study into the effects of cigarettes on developing stem cells.

This enabled them to create a way to monitor the long-term effects caused to liver tissue by pregnant smokers.

Liver cells were exposed to harmful chemicals found in cigarettes, including specific substances known to circulate in foetuses when mothers smoke.

The study showed that a chemical cocktail  similar to that found in cigarettes  harmed foetal liver health more than individual components.

Study author Dr David Hay said: 'Cigarette smoke is known to have damaging effects on the foetus, yet we lack appropriate tools to study this in a very detailed way.

'This new approach means that we now have sources of renewable tissue that will enable us to understand the cellular effect of cigarettes on the unborn foetus.'

The study was carried out in collaboration with the Universities of Aberdeen and Glasgow and is published in the journal Archives of Toxicology.

Expectant women are encouraged to give up tobacco use due to the known links it has to a range of medical conditions.

While children face a higher risk of being stillborn or miscarried if their mother smoked during pregnancy.

But it is not illegal for a pregnant woman to harm her unborn child by smoking and drinking.

Some think it should be but others say banning pregnant women from smoking would be a gross intervention by the 'nanny state'.

More than ten per cent of British women smoke while pregnant and this figure is as high as 27 per cent in some northern cities such as Blackpool.
Air pollution has become a major health problem in Britain

Taking a breath of fresh air may not be quite as healthy as you thought. Air pollution has become a major health problem in Britain, claiming more lives here than in most Western European countries, an alarming UN report revealed last week.

This followed research published last year that blamed air pollution for at least 40,000 deaths a year in the UK.

It is well known that pollution can aggravate and possibly trigger health conditions such as asthma.

Over short periods, high pollution levels can cause damage to the lining of our lungs, explains Stephen Spiro, honorary professor of respiratory medicine at University College Hospital, London. This can lead to coughing, wheeziness and breathlessness, particularly among people with a pre-existing lung condition.

But other conditions, from stroke to cancer, are increasingly being linked to air pollution.

One of the major culprits is traffic fumes  about a third of our air pollution is from transport, explains Alastair Lewis, a professor of atmospheric chemistry at the University of York.

This pollution consists largely of nitrogen dioxide  most of which comes from diesel engines  and fine particles known as particulates, released from exhausts and by the wearing down of brakes and tyres.

Official figures show that 37 out of 43 areas across the UK breach legal European Union limits for nitrogen dioxide, which is linked mainly to breathing problems.

Almost every combustion process  such as functioning power stations  produces particulates, adds Professor Lewis.

The difference with cars is that unlike power stations, they are everywhere and close to where most people live. So the pollution they cause is disproportionately more important for public health.

Polluting particles of soot, carbon and from aerosols are categorised by size and typically divided into two groups: coarse particles less than ten micrometres wide, known as PM10, and fine particles less than 2.5 micrometres wide (PM2.5).

Last week diesel vehicles were described as one of the worst offenders for PM2.5 by researchers who found that even PM2.5 levels well within the EU maximum can cause inflammation in the body and raise blood pressure.

Last week diesel vehicles were described as one of the worst offenders for PM2.5

In a study funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and the Wellcome Trust, the researchers found that the greater the exposure to this size of particulate, the larger the heart becomes and the worse it performs, raising the risk of death from heart disease.

This adds to the growing evidence that air pollution, particularly from small particles in diesel fumes, is dangerous for your heart and health, said Professor Jeremy Pearson, the BHFs associate medical director.

And the smaller the particulate, the more harmful, it seems.

Ultra-fine particles even smaller than PM2.5 can penetrate the skin and enter the lungs much more easily, says Prashant Kumar, a professor in air quality and health at the University of Surrey.

This month researchers at Imperial College London revealed that tiny diesel particles just 0.1 micrometres in diameter can directly affect the lungs and cause tighter airways and coughing.

Here, with the help of leading experts, we reveal the latest evidence on what traffic pollution could be doing to your health . . .

How they can hurt your heart

Almost one stroke in three is triggered by air pollution, according to a worldwide study by Auckland University of Technology, in New Zealand.

The research, published last year, found air pollution was among the top ten causes of stroke, along with better-known risks such as smoking.

One theory is that over the long term, air pollution makes blood thicker and this in turn raises blood pressure, so boosting the risk of clots in the brain.

But even short-term exposure to air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide and particulates increased the risk of hospital admission or death from stroke in the following seven days, according to a review of studies involving six million people published in 2015 by Edinburgh University.

There is a strong link between pollution and heart problems

The evidence suggesting air pollution as a risk factor for stroke is very strong, says Pippa Tyrrell, a professor of stroke medicine at the University of Manchester. Its vital this issue is addressed by the Government. But in the meantime it is even more important to avoid other stroke risk factors and take more exercise.

There is also a strong link between pollution and heart problems, says Professor David Newby, BHF John Wheatley Chair of Cardiology at Edinburgh University  as an acute trigger causing a heart attack, for example, or associated with long-term heart disease.

The mechanism isnt exactly clear but these tiny particles may get deep into the lungs, then into the bloodstream, says Professor Newby. This affects the blood cells, causing blood to become stickier and more likely to clot.

He adds that compounds on the surface of particles of pollution are associated with processes that could lead to the build-up of fatty material inside the arteries.

Bad news for your sleep

Air pollution could be to blame for bad sleep, too. A study presented to the American Thoracic Society conference this month measured how long participants spent asleep and found their quality of sleep was affected by air pollution: the more exposure someone had to nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5, the worse their chances of a good nights sleep.

Your nose, sinuses and the back of your throat can all be irritated by those pollutants, so that can cause some sleep disruption, says Martha Billings, a professor at the University of Washington, who led the research.

Study volunteers with raised nitrogen dioxide in their bodies were up to 60 per cent more likely to suffer from sleep deprivation than those living in areas with lower pollution levels.

A study found the more exposure someone has to nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5, the worse their chances of a good nights sleep

They can make your eyes acidic

High levels of air pollution can raise the risk of dry eye syndrome as well as allergic conjunctivitis  inflammation of the eye.

Particulates from diesel emissions can act as an irritant to the surface of the eye, causing dryness and irritation, says Marsel Bregu, a consultant ophthalmologist at Warrington Hospital and the Spire Cheshire.

Contact lenses may make matters worse, as particulates can lodge between the contact lens and the surface of the eye.

We have been seeing more cases of dry eyes in the past few years, as well as the inflammatory condition red eye. There must be a correlation between this and air pollution, says Mr Bregu.

There is a direct correlation between pollution levels and various eye infections, according to a study by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in 2002.

The researchers also suggested that high levels of air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide make the tear film of the eyes more acidic.

This could cause a burning, stinging discomfort to the eyes, says Dr Jeff Kwartz, a consultant ophthalmologist at the Royal Bolton Hospital.

There is a direct correlation between pollution levels and various eye infections

A worrying link to cancer

Pollution has contributed to a 10 per cent rise in cancer diagnoses, according to a study by the University of Illinois, published this month  equivalent to more than 28,600 cancer diagnoses in Britain.

While someones chance of developing the disease may be partly down to genetics, the reports authors say it could also be that pollution damages DNA and the way hormones function, leading to cancer.

Air pollution caused by traffic and industry may increase the risk of lung cancer independently of factors such as smoking and age, according to research by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.

Analysing data from more than 16,000 men between 1971 and 1998, the researchers estimated that the risk of developing lung cancer was 8 per cent higher for men living where levels of nitrogen dioxide, mainly produced by traffic, were higher.

It could be that inhaled pollutants damage DNA in the lung cells. Or soot particles may get lodged deep in the lungs, causing long-term inflammation. This could increase the rate at which cells divide and the chance of random mutations growing and spreading.

Why they can trigger eczema and age spots

Air pollution is a particular issue for those with eczema. This condition occurs when the skin barrier  the outermost protective layer of skin  does not work, explains Daniel Glass, a consultant dermatologist at the Harley Street Dermatology Clinic.

So those who are genetically predisposed to eczema may find it is triggered by air pollution.

He adds that as eczema is associated with the subsequent development of asthma, pollution increases the likelihood of both.

Air pollution is a particular issue for those who suffer from eczema

Pollution also damages skin cells, speeding up breakdown of the collagen that keeps our skin supple and eventually leading to problems with pigmentation and wrinkles.

Particulates have been linked to signs of ageing in the skin, especially pigment spots and more pronounced nasolabial folds (the lines that run from each side of the nose to the corners of the mouth), according to a 2010 study published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology.

The researchers looked at the skin of 400 women living either in rural areas or near busy roads in Germany and marked out signs of ageing such as pigmentation and wrinkles. Almost all had remained at the same address for the previous 30 years.

The study concluded that pollution may have caused skin ageing by triggering oxidative stress.

The study suggests that because of exposure to pollution, the skin is hindered from repairing itself, leading to signs of ageing, says Andrew Wright, a professor of dermatology at the University of Bradford.

Risk of problems in pregnancy

Expectant mothers living close to busy roads are at greater risk of serious complications because of their exposure to air pollution, research suggests.

This year, a study led by the University of Copenhagen of 73,000 women found that pre-eclampsia  a form of high blood pressure that affects 42,000 pregnant women in Britain each year  is made more likely by noise and pollution from roads.

Researchers believe the toxins may raise stress levels and cause inflammation leading to rising blood pressure. In severe cases, pre-eclampsia can lead to stillbirth or be fatal to the mother.

There is robust evidence to link low birth weight with exposure to pollution such as diesel, says Jonathan Grigg, a professor of paediatric respiratory and environmental medicine at Queen Mary University of London.

Research suggests expectant mothers living close to busy roads are at greater risk of serious complications because of their exposure to air pollution

The theory is that the particles of pollution may produce inflammation in the mothers lungs which then triggers mediators  substances released from cells  that leach into the blood and affect development of the child.

This year, researchers from the Stockholm Environment Institute also found that particulates under 2.5 micrometres could be to blame for millions of premature births globally each year.

Could they cause diabetes?...

Researchers in Munich found that children living in polluted areas were more likely to develop insulin resistance  a precursor to type 2 diabetes  by the age of ten. They suggest the link is due to inflammation in the body caused by cells reacting to air pollution particles.

Meanwhile, a 2012 study of 4,000 women living in Los Angeles by Boston University found that those living in polluted areas were more likely to have high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.

Jim Zhang, professor of global and environmental health at Duke University in the U.S, who has researched links between diabetes and pollution, told Good Health: The evidence is mounting to support the link between air pollution and risk factors for diabetes.

... And make bones CRUMBLE faster

Air pollution has been shown to accelerate the development of osteoporosis, according to Amit Amin, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at St Georges Hospital in South West London.

Advanced age, menopause, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and a sedentary lifestyle are the most common risk factors but pollution is likely to contribute to the breakdown of bone cells, raising the chance of developing osteoporosis, he says

Will wearing a face mask protect you? JINAN HARB investigates

The easiest way to avoid pollution is to keep away from busy roads, says Alastair Lewis, a professor of atmospheric chemistry at the University of York.

But what else may help protect you? We asked the experts.

Respro City mask

29.99, respro.com

This moulded mask blocks airborne particles (or particulates) as small as 10 micrometres (PM10), such as those linked with vehicle exhaust emissions.

EXPERT VERDICT: Good masks can stop us inhaling pollutants, says Roy Harrison, a professor of environmental health at the University of Birmingham. This mask will filter out many harmful particles, such as diesel particles, efficiently.

However, it wouldnt block all harmful gases in vehicle emissions such as nitrogen dioxide, as these can pass through the weave. The only way to keep them out is through an activated carbon filter, similar to those in World War II gas masks.

A mask must not leak air from the sides, which can occur if you have a beard. This mask is a good tight fit.

8/10

Clarins UV+ Anti-Pollution Cream

30ml, 32, Boots

This contains cantaloupe melon extract, which has antioxidant properties; blackcurrant extract to limit inflammation; and an anti-pollution complex with white tea and succory to neutralise free radicals.

EXPERT VERDICT: Pollution can damage the skin barrier, leaving it vulnerable to inflammation and irritation, says Justine Hextall, a consultant dermatologist at Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Damaged cells release free radicals that raise levels of the enzyme MMP-1, which breaks down collagen and elastin, our skins scaffolding.

While there may be some, albeit limited, evidence for blackcurrant and white tea to protect cells from free radical damage, this is a topical application and it is unclear how much you would absorb.

4/10

Health Plus Detox Pack supplement

28 sachets, 15.45, healthplus.co.uk

This advanced anti-pollutant formula, with antioxidants such as glutathione, helps remove toxins and heavy metals from the body.

EXPERT VERDICT: The theory is that oxidant molecules and free radicals released in the body as a result of pollution are associated with inflammation and a range of diseases, says Professor Harrison. In response, your body produces antioxidants  and this product helps to supplement these. But I know of no trials showing that antioxidants in supplement form help protect you from diseases or pollution.

Glutathione is a strong antioxidant but its broken down in the digestive tract and may not get to the cells, where it is needed, adds Dr Hextall.

3/10

Dyson Pure Cool Link Tower filter

449.99, John Lewis

Air is drawn into a filter that traps particles as small as 0.1 micrometre (PM 0.1). It has pollution sensors to monitor and adjust the airflow.

EXPERT VERDICT: The use of a HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filter means it will catch a range of particles and sizes, says Professor Harrison. The filter may need replacing after a time. Gases such as nitrogen dioxide  released when diesel is burnt  are so small, they may pass through the filter.

9/10

London Air app

Free for iPhone and Android, see londonair.org.uk

This displays the latest air pollution levels in your area of London.

EXPERT VERDICT: The information is reliable, says Professor Harrison, and there is explicit health advice for people with illnesses such as asthma.

Some local authorities around the country are developing similar apps, but you can also access this information at uk-air.defra.gov.uk.

9/10

Awair device

179.99, getawair.co.uk

This tracks volatile organic compounds (chemicals released by cleaning products, burning fuel and cooking), dust and carbon dioxide. It sends this data via an app to your smartphone.

EXPERT VERDICT: This claims to measure five key factors of air quality but how it can sense all the known pollutants at once I dont know, says Professor Harrison. To do this reliably I would expect it to be much more expensive.

4/10

REN Flash Defence Anti-Pollution Mist

60ml, 24, escentual.com

A mist that forms a barrier against free radicals and pollution, with quercetin.

EXPERT VERDICT: How can this claim to shield the skin from external free radicals when free radicals, by definition, come from within the skin? says Dr Hextall. Whether quercetin has any antioxidant effect in spray form is unknown.

2/10
Women Who Work: Rewriting The Rules For Success

Ivanka Trump Portfolio 16.99

Rating:

A decade ago, British manufacturers of everything from saveloys to sofas felt obliged to claim that they were passionate about what they did. Signs appeared in shop windows saying Passionate About Olive Oil or Passionate About Tents. Rymans even claimed to be Passionate About Stationery.

But after a year or two, passion took a back seat and gave way to fanaticism. Frozen fishfinger merchants were Fanatical About Fish and every coffee outlet was Fanatical About Great Coffee. A sign above the Upper Crust buffet on Ipswich railway station even read Fanatical About Hot And Cold Baguettes.

Clearly, America is lagging behind the UK. Donald Trumps daughter Ivanka remains passionate, or, more often, deeply passionate about anything and everything. In the preface to her new self-help book, she says she is deeply passionate about levelling the playing field for women. Chapter One  Dream Big  is subtitled Identify Your Passions To Create A Life Youll Love. Its first sentence is Passion to me, and to many of the women I know, is our purpose, our reason for being.

Donald Trumps daughter Ivanka (above in 2014) shows she is passionate, or, more often, deeply passionate about anything and everything in her self-help book, Women Who Work

On the same page, Ivanka reveals that my greatest passion is being a wife and a mother and also that she is deeply passionate about being an entrepreneur. And so it goes on: shes passionate about inspiring communities, passionate about her career, passionate about success, passionate about developing passions. Passion Equals Happiness reads one subheading, and Prioritize Your Passions By Being Proactive reads another.

All the CEOs she interviews are similarly fired up with passion. Someone called Michelle Kohanzo, now managing director of the Land of Nod, states that the Land of Nod is truly my passion. The senior vice president of human resources at the Trump Organisation advises: Hire for passion... You cannot teach passion. Passion is what you bring to the party. Tina Wells (CEO of Buzz Marketing Group) advises writing a personal brand statement which not only says what you do, it also says what youre passionate about. To create one for yourself, she suggests writing out the following sentence and then filling in the blanks: Im passionate about ___, and this is what I do with that passion ___.

By now, you may have gathered that Ivanka Trumps Women Who Work is yet another how-to-succeed manual, destined to join many others, including her fathers, on the front tables of Americas bookshops. These manuals hold out the promise of untold wealth, success and happiness in a few easy steps. Follow my advice, they suggest, and you, too, could end up as rich and smiley as me.

Though each of them claims to have found a unique formula for success, they all copy each other, and devote an inordinate amount of space to quoting from their fellow snake-oil salesmen. In line with this successful formula, Ivanka, or more probably an assistant, has passionately copied-and-pasted passages from books such as The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, How Remarkable Women Lead and Grit: The Power Of Passion And Perseverance, and then larded the rest of her book with passionate coatings of cliches and truisms.

Ivanka pays tribute to her father (pictured together in 1991) in her lengthy gushing acknowledgments at the back of the book but her world comes across as peculiarly joyless

One easy way to judge the worth of any given statement is to ask yourself if anyone would ever suggest its opposite. I know lots of people who are outwardly successful and inwardly miserable  to me thats not success, writes Ivanka. Well, fancy that! But has anyone ever argued that inward misery is a sure sign of success? Every page arrives piled high with platitudes: be bold, follow your dreams, embrace challenges, lead with a purpose, its all about teamwork, be inspired and inspiring, every problem is an opportunity, blah, blah, blah.

I believe that we each get one life and its up to us to live it to the fullest, she writes on page 8. This concept is central to our mission. She clearly believes this nugget deserves repetition, because on page 145, she is still saying it. I believe that we each get one life  and its up to us to live it to the fullest, she writes. Perhaps she thought that by inserting that dash in the middle she would make it sound new and exciting.

Under the heading Master The Art Of Conversation, she asks: One of the best ways to master communication? and then answers her own question: Ask questions and listen well. Whod have thought it? And there was me thinking that Block your ears and dont let anyone else get a word in edgeways was the best way to communicate. Another way to foster your curiosity, she advises, is to talk to people. Whatever next? Drinking water is a great way to quench your thirst? Swimming is the best way to avoid drowning?

IT'S A FACT America's 'Daughter In Chief' Ivanka Trump has an unlikely best friend... Chelsea, the daughter of defeated presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Advertisement

After leaving university, Ivanka worked for a year in a Brooklyn real-estate company (Im passionate about real estate) before deciding to take the leap and join her fathers business. As the big day approached, her mind swam with questions prompted by the unknown. But  youll never guess  joining the Trump Organisation turned out to be a canny move. Soon, she was shooting up the hierarchy. Today, Im an executive vice president at the Trump Organisation, co-founder of Trump Hotels and Scion, and founder of my own eponymous fashion brand, she says, proudly, before modestly acknowledging that my familys name has undeniably been one factor in my success.

After joining her daddys organisation in early 2005, Ivanka discovered early on that I had an intuitive understanding of marketing as well as an eye for design and a strong aesthetic point of view. Quite how a command of aesthetics would have helped her succeed in the hideous world of Trump Hotels, she fails to say.

I wonder if President Trump has grabbed a moment to absorb his daughters advice? Know that you can be kind and still be effective. Be nice, no matter what. Be gracious, no matter the outcome. Its crucial not to burn bridges. If only Daddy had known all this before he started dealing with his fellow Republican leadership contenders, the Clintons, Barack Obama, the head of the FBI, the Chinese, the Mexicans and the worlds media, the world might now be a very different place. The only piece of Ivankas advice Donald has definitely taken to heart is: As leaders, we need to create and cultivate a culture that truly embraces women. Though not, perhaps, in quite the right way.

She pays tribute to her father in her lengthy gushing acknowledgments at the back. Dad, you never cease to amaze me! she coos. You have taught me to dream big and then surpass these goals  and to never, ever give up. Her sense of drive seems almost manic. Winning a deal is exciting, she says, but I always joke that thats when the real work begins. The operative phrase in that sentence is I always joke. Its all a far cry from Tommy Cooper.

Ivankas world is peculiarly joyless, ruled by work and achievement. She schedules quality time for her children into her calendar as I would a meeting  its just as important to me. She also schedules a date night for her husband, which takes place every other week. Every New Years Day she takes time off from her family holiday to brainstorm a long list of high-level objectives And I write a list for connecting with each of my kids.

Her advice is written with all the grim, manic zeal of someone who believes that the world is about to come to an end. Does she know something we dont know?
The Indian Army killed 10 alleged terrorists including Hizbul Mujhaideen commander Sabzar Ahmad Bhat in the last 36 hours. Sabzar is the man believed to be the successor of Burhan Wani (right)

Sabzar Ahmad Bhat, the slain Hizbul commander who routinely released his photographs in combat gear for social media, was no braveheart.

Details emerging about the alleged terrorist's last moments point at him being more adept at shooting from a smartphone than the Kalashnikov on his shoulder.

He was killed on Saturday as part of India's new aggressive counter-strategy on both the Line of Control and Kashmir Valley against Pakistan-backed jihadis.

Senior Army sources, privy to the operation in which Bhat was cornered and neutralised in Tral area of Kashmir's Pulwama district on Saturday, told Mail Today that the 27-year-old remained in hiding for nearly 10 hours, without firing a single bullet at the troops.

Bhat, the man believed to be the successor of Burhan Wani, also frantically sent text messages from his handset to gather a crowd of stone-pelters at the encounter site to provide him cover, the sources said.

Security forces had tracked down Bhat's location using technical intelligence provided to the troops on ground by the Jammu and Kashmir police cells, which have been successful in nailing a large number of terrorists in recent years.

'The intelligence provided by the police confirmed that Sabzar and Faizan were in a cluster of houses in Saimoo village in Tral area and we laid a cordon on Friday evening around his house,' senior Army sources said.

The completely damaged house where two militants including a top commander of Hizbul Mujahideen Sabzar Ahmad Bhat were killed in an encounter with security forces at Soimoh village of Tral in Pulwama district of south Kashmir

The raiding party included Army, Special Operations Groups and state police troops.

After laying the cordon, the troops tried to establish contact with Sabzar and his category A accomplice Faizan.

There was no retaliation or firing from the terrorists in hiding as forces suspect the two did not want to give away their positions.

A large number of weapons including an AK-47 and INSAS assault rifles along with a huge cache of ammunition and other warlike stores, were recovered from the hideout after the operation was over.

Details have now emerged of Bhat's final moments in which he remained in hiding for nearly 10 hours and didn't fire a single bullet despite being heavily armed

After failing to establish contact with terrorists, the raiding team decided to 'smoke out the rats' and called for fire tenders filled with petrol instead of water.

Meanwhile, Bhat and his accomplice were trying to gather a crowd of stonepelters to be able to escape from the encounter location but the late hours did not get them much help. Sources said their messages portrayed desperation and fear.

'Petrol was poured inside the first house using hose pipes and it was set on fire but the two did not react. The result in the second house was also the same. But when the troops poured in petrol in the third house around 8.15 am, the two ran out of the house and tried to breach the cordon,' the sources said.

Army personnel returning after a fierce encounter with militants at Soimoh village of Tral in Pulwama district of south Kashmir on Saturday

Before Bhat could open fire, the troops fired a hail of bullets. Within a few seconds, the two 'propagandist terrorists' were lying dead on the ground.

Army sources said Sabzar, a Class 7 dropout, was a known womaniser and drug addict at the time of his joining the Hizbul Mujahidden two years back. He replaced Burhan Wani who was killed last year by the Army in South Kashmir.

Both the terrorists were tracked by technical intelligence sleuths and killed in similar brief encounters.

Sources said in Burhan's case too, the terrorist was trapped when the technical cells of Jammu and Kashmir police had followed a terrorist named Sartaj and did not know about Burhan's presence there. However, in Sabzar's case, they were tracking him directly and were sure about his presence in the Tral area.

A Policeman in action against stone pelters during violent clashes which erupted following the killing of Bhat and his associate at Tral

Sources said the recent crop of local terrorists is high on propaganda and try to conjure up a hero-like status by spreading their pictures on social media in full combat gear.

'Little do they know that this act of theirs is of big help for security forces in identifying them and locating them,' the sources said.

After Bhat and another militant were killed in a gunbattle with soldiers on Saturday, large-scale protests and clashes erupted across the region, leaving one civilian dead and dozens of others injured.

Anti-India sentiment runs deep among Kashmir's mostly Muslim population, and most people there support the rebels' cause against Indian rule despite a decades-long military crackdown to fight the armed rebellion.

India and Pakistan administer part of Kashmir, but both claim the territory in its entirety.

Rebel groups have been fighting since 1989 for Kashmir's independence or merger with neighboring Pakistan.

Nearly 70,000 people have been killed in the fighting and the ensuing Indian crackdown. India has accused Pakistan of arming and training the rebels, which Pakistan denies.

Rebel groups have largely been suppressed by Indian forces in recent years.

However, public opposition to Indian rule remains deep and is now principally expressed through street protests marked by youths hurling stones at government forces.
Model-turned-actress Ruhi Singh has hit out at an airline after a lizard gave her a fright during a flight to Mumbai.

Singh, who starred in Madhur Bhandarkar's Calendar Girls, claimed that she spotted the small reptile run out from underneath her plane seat, onto the window and into the overhead luggage cabin on the Spicejet flight over the weekend.

The actress, who was in Chennai for the promotion of her upcoming Tamil movie, was on her way back to Mumbai when the incident took place and posted a video of the event on her Facebook page.

Former Miss India said she was 'shocked' to see lizard on board Spicejet flight as she travelled back to Mumbai after promoting her latest film in Chennai

'I am not scared of lizards but the sight is also not welcoming. I was astonished to spot a lizard in the plane and immediately informed the cabin crew but they were not of much help,' Singh told Mail Today.

Sharing the video she wrote: 'I booked myself a spicemax seat (for which I paid extra money) to be seated next to a lizard! I'm extremely worried about your hygiene standards now, and the fact that the cabin crew laughed it off as it's a common occurrence got me quite shocked.'

Singh, who also took a swipe at the airline's tea in the Facebook post, said she was not a grumpy passenger but changed her seat on the request of cabin crew who could not shoo away the reptile.

She posted a video of the reptile to Facebook and questioned hygeine standards

'Not only I was shocked but even other passengers were petrified as reptile kept moving in the plane. It created a small ruckus. Cabin crew laughed on the issue and said they can't do much till the time plane lands,' she said.

She continued: 'The reptile could have fell into someone's food making them sick or could have made other passengers extremely scared but it doesn't seem that the airlines is bothered about it as there is no explanation from them. Passengers should not be taken for granted and they should get the service for which they have paid for.'

Mail Today contacted the airline for their comment but no record of the incident could be established. Senior official claims that it is unlikely that a lizard would go inside a plane as a thorough check is done before the plane takes off.

According to sources, the actress could not be contacted by the airlines so that her case can be verified.
India and Russia will once again try to resuscitate a partnership which is badly in need of repair.

It is often said that India and Russia share longstanding ties which are durable. The end of the Cold War has not been able to dent this relationship, but there are signs that this relationship needs some repair urgently.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Russia on June 1 for the annual India-Russia summit wherein he is expected to unveil, along with Russian President Vladimir Putin, an ambitious vision document to outline the agenda for economic cooperation in the coming decades.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Russia on June 1 for the annual India-Russia summit

Bilateral

Earlier this month, the two nations took stock of the bilateral relationship in a range of sectors, including civil nuclear, trade and investments during the meeting of India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC), a key forum to address major issues concerning bilateral ties.

There is an urgent need to prioritise economic ties which have been going downhill for some time.

Though the two nations have set a target for their bilateral trade of $30 billion (Rs 3,000 crore) by 2025, it was a measly $7.8 billion (Rs 780 crore) in 2015.

So there is now talk of targeting pharmaceuticals, agriculture and food processing, and energy with a new focus.

The two nations are yet to conclude the General Framework Agreement (GFA) for units 5 and 6 of the Kudankulam nuclear plant (pictured)

The two nations are yet to conclude the General Framework Agreement (GFA) for units 5 and 6 of the Kudankulam nuclear plant and two deadlines have been missed since last year.

The pact is now likely to be signed during the 18th annual India-Russia summit next month. The much delayed International North South Transport Corridor will also be fast tracked in a fresh attempt to give a boost to regional connectivity.

It remains to be seen if this fresh attempt will be enough to alleviate political tensions in the India-Russia bilateral relationship.

There is concern in New Delhi at Moscow's decision to side with China in ensuring that Pakistan does not get isolated globally. At the 2016 BRICS summit in Goa, Russia did not back India's demand to name two Pakistan-based terror groups as perpetrators of terrorism against India, thereby shielding Pakistan from censure.

There is an urgent need to prioritise economic ties between the nations which have been going downhill for some time

This shift in Russian stance is also evident in the role that it envisions for itself in Afghanistan, coming almost four decades after the 1979 Soviet invasion of the country.

Russia hosted a February six-nation conference in Moscow on Afghanistan's future with participation from India, Iran, Pakistan, China and Afghanistan. This was Russia's second initiative after the first trilateral conference in December, including only China and Pakistan.

The December conference agreed upon 'a flexible approach to remove certain (Taliban) figures from (United Nations) sanctions lists as part of efforts to foster a peaceful dialogue between Kabul and the Taliban movement.'

Concern

The three states underscored their concern 'about the rising activity in the country (Afghanistan) of extremist groups, including the Afghan branch of ISIS (the Islamic State)' and underlined that the Taliban is a necessary bulwark in the global fight against the Islamic State.

It is through this turbulence that Modi will be hoping to navigate India-Russia ties when he meets Putin next month

Kabul and other partners like New Delhi were surprised, while the Taliban was ecstatic.

'It is joyous to see that the regional countries have also understood that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is a political and military force,' noted a statement issued on the Taliban's behalf.

'The proposal forwarded in the Moscow tripartite of delisting members of the Islamic Emirate is a positive step forward in bringing peace and security to Afghanistan.'

So Moscow was more careful for the February meeting, broadening outreach by inviting India, Iran, Afghanistan and most regional stakeholders while pointedly excluding the United States and NATO.

It was left to Afghanistan to underscore American centrality in the country's unfolding dynamic and to push for inclusion of the United States as one of its most important partners to 'end war and usher in sustainable peace in Afghanistan.'

Prism

Vladimir Putin, intent on viewing South Asia through the prism of Russia's geopolitical competition with the West, may have decided that the time was right for tilting towards Pakistan.

The US-Pakistan ties may have hit their nadir and the Trump administration, expressing isolationist tendencies, remains consumed by multiple domestic crises.

The global arms market has become more difficult for Russia to navigate, with China deciding to produce its own weapons rather than procuring them from Russia.

Moscow needs new buyers. Moscow and Islamabad held their first joint military exercise in September 2016 and their first bilateral consultation on regional issues in December.

Russia lifted an arms embargo against Pakistan in 2014 and will send four Mi-35M attack helicopters this year.

Russian troops participated in this year's Pakistan Day military parade.

And the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor linking Xinjiang to the Pakistani port of Gwadar could be merged with the Russia-backed Eurasian Economic Union.

This at a time when India became one of the few countries to boycott the One Belt One Road Summit organised by China earlier this month.

It is through this turbulence that Modi will be hoping to navigate India-Russia ties when he meets Putin next month.

Whether he will succeed, of course, remains far from clear.
Willie Walsh's stewardship of British Airways has seen the flag carrier fight back against union power and stealthily expand by swallowing other European national carriers.

The group transmogrified from BA to International Airlines Group and in the process increased its stranglehold at Heathrow, where it controls an astonishing 54 per cent of the arrival and departure slots.

It is unsurprising that this domination at one of the world's busiest hub airports may have allowed complacency to creep in.

BA's investment in new long-haul aircraft has been slow and it still operates Boeing 747s which are now more than 20 years old.

Criticism: BA boss Willie Walsh is in the firing line following the Bank Holiday IT failure that brought misery and delays to thousands of passengers worldwide

As the bank holiday weekend misery demonstrates, its IT systems are simply not robust enough.

A power surge knocked out 200 critical applications and some 2,000 separate servers, including critical back-up systems.

The power surge may have been a once in a blue moon event but that does not excuse the lack of back-up systems capable of minimising disruption.

The chaos over the weekend would be understandable if it were down to a cyber hack, but simply blaming power sources is unacceptable.

Alex Cruz, BA's chief executive, an import from Iberia's no-frills carrier Vueling, is shouldering most of the blame.

He must take responsibility for appalling customer service, sloppy attention to needs and failure to properly look after the young, old and infirm caught up in the havoc.

Not getting away on a half-term holiday may be considered a 'first world' problem, but when you pay for BA's fine service you deserve to receive it.

Among BA's cost-cutting measures has been to shift some IT off to India. That may not have been part of the weekend's problems, but it is unwise.

BT is among those service providers now recognising that moving systems to India was a mistake and are reshoring them to the UK.

BA is also having to knit British Midland, Iberia, Aer Lingus et al into one carrier and accommodate code-sharing with American Airlines. As a result it has far more complex digital needs.

Legacy systems are extraordinarily high risk. There is a big difference between replacing free refreshments on short-haul routes with M&S sandwiches and failing to invest enough in fool-proof computer systems.

BA's supremacy at Heathrow is a privilege it has been allowed to buy despite the vociferous criticism of, among others, Virgin.

It is among the reasons, along with gold-plated costs, that Walsh has been a noisy critic of a third runway. Keeping rivals out of Heathrow has been a big plus for BA, although Dubai, the Emirates hub, is now busier than London's main airport.

It is important for Britain that it keeps faith with strategic industries. But that does not mean that regulators  in this case the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)  should give BA an easy ride.

Passengers must be fully compensated and the CAA needs to conduct a transparent probe into the events of the weekend, publish the findings and punish IAG as necessary.

IAG shares were down 3 per cent in latest trading in Madrid. There may be worse to come when London reopens.

Fred's escape

The decision by the Royal Bank of Scotland Shareholders Action Group to throw in the towel will be disappointing to all who wanted to see Fred Goodwin, architect of the bank's downfall, in court.

In many ways it was likely to be underwhelming, since the case was narrowly focused on the 12billion rights issue in the spring of 2008 and unlikely to touch directly on the ghastly takeover of ABN Amro or delve into Goodwin's peculiar stewardship and the conflicts in his personal life.

Allowing the case to go ahead would only have raised legal costs, already expected to wipe out around half of RBS's 82p a share offer, and if appeals were lodged it would have drawn out the process of repairing the bank.

There is also the question of whether investors (including this writer) deserve an extra bung from the courts.

After all, without the 45billion plus of taxpayer bailout, shareholders would have lost all residual value in their stock and been last in the queue among creditors.

Sad and cruel, but that's the risk that people take when they buy shares.

A public tribunal where former directors were forced to answer for their actions would be far preferable.
Fashion takeover: Jack Wills is launching a new shop in Sylt, northern Germany

British fashion label Jack Wills is opening shops in Europe to offset the impact of a fall in the pound.

The retailer, known for its tweed blazers and hoodies, is launching a new shop in Sylt, northern Germany, amid plans to roll out 11 more international stores in the coming months.

Jack Wills, which was founded in 1999 in the seaside town of Salcombe, has 90 stores across the UK, US, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Middle East.

Its move into Europe comes as firms grapple with rising import prices as a result of sterling's slump since the referendum, with some having to pass the costs to consumers.

Founder and chief executive Peter Williams said: 'Our increasingly international store portfolio provides a natural hedge as we look to reap the benefits of a diversified currency base in the face of a prolonged weakening of sterling.'
The American giant demanding takeover talks with the owners of Dulux could be poised to make a hostile bid after suffering a critical court defeat last night.

PPG will hold a board meeting today to decide how to proceed with its swoop on Dutch chemicals firm Akzo Nobel following weeks of stalemate since its third raised offer, of 22billion, was also rejected.

Yesterday a Dutch court dealt a major blow to the Pittsburgh-based firm and its backers at US vulture hedge fund Elliott when it ruled that Akzo had been within its rights to reject takeover talks.

PPG will hold a board meeting today to decide how to proceed with its swoop on Duluz owner Akzo Nobel following weeks of stalemate since its third raised offer, of 22bn, was rejected

It also dismissed calls by Elliott for the chairman of Akzo, Antony Burgmans, to be ousted.

However, the judge told Akzo to better explain its position on the offer to shareholders.

Akzo has rejected three bids from PPG since March, which it claims undervalue the business and would threaten 4,000 British jobs at Dulux's UK sites.

TWO MONTH FIGHT March 20: US giant PPG makes 18.9billion bid for Dulux owner Akzo Nobel March 22: PPG makes second offer of 19.5billion March 23: US hedge fund Elliott  which owns Akzo shares  wades in and demands takeover talks March 28: Akzo chairman Antony Burgmans fights off attempt to kick him out April 24: A third offer from PPG, this time of 22billion May 22: Elliott takes Akzo to court to get Burgmans fired from board

Akzo Nobel spokesman Leslie McGibbon said the company was 'very pleased' with yesterday's decision.

He added: 'We have been conducting a high level of shareholder engagement in the past several months and that will continue.'

Elliott, which has 3 per cent of shares in Akzo and is known for its aggressive campaigns to influence boardrooms, took the fight to the Dutch courts after declaring a 'crisis of confidence' at the firm.

Last night Elliott said it was 'surprised and disappointed' by the ruling. PPG boss Michael McGarry said: 'The era of elitism and the board knows best is over. The shareholder needs to be heard.'

Following the court defeat, PPG has to decide whether to walk away or make a hostile offer. It is thought that shareholders with around 25 per cent of Akzo stock already support a takeover.

Under Dutch takeover rules it must submit formal bidding papers along with evidence of financing by Thursday, otherwise it faces a six-month cooling-off period.
The number of English wine makers entering the market hit a record high last year as the growing success of existing producers attracts more players to the market.

Some 64 new vineyards and wineries started trading in 2016, marking a 73 per cent increase from the 37 new companies launched in 2015, government figures have showed.

There are now just over than 500 vineyards in England spreading across almost 5,000 acres of land as English wines are taken more seriously and the weaker pound makes exports cheaper, boosting demand.

New record: Some 64 new vineyards and wineries started trading in 2016

English wine production, in particular English sparkling wine, is now being taken seriously on both a local and global platform which has enabled the industry to thrive, said James Simmonds of UHY Hacker Young.

The English wine sector has been growing over the past decade and industry body English Wine Producers expects wine production to double over the next five years from its current 5million bottles a year.

Kent-based wine maker Chapel Down, which supplied wine to the Royal Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, posted a 22 per cent rise in wine sales to 6.8million last year.

Chief executive Frazer Thompson hailed 'another excellent year of growth' as the firm delivered profits of 765,126 for 2016 having made a loss of 278,881 the previous year.

The company has also won a string of awards for both its still and sparkling wines, which are attracting interest from around the world, with French champagne producer Taittinger buying land in Kent in 2015.

Meanwhile, Winbirri Vineyards recently won the prestigious 2017 Decanter World Wine Awards for the best white wine made from a single grape variety with its wine Bacchus 2015, which costs 13.95.

Simmonds added: As the cost of exporting to Europe falls and with imports rising, English sparkling wine has an opportunity to become a real contender for Prosecco and Champagne in the global market.

With Brexit now on the horizon, it is more important than ever to support local industry and to cement the UK as a globally recognised exporter of high quality goods.
The summer solstice may be more closely associated with ancient pagan ritual and Stonehenge, but one New York City photographer enjoys a unique sun alignment view twice a year, too  from the window of his upper West Side apartment.

Its a phenomenon Scott Matthews dubbed Cathedralhenge, as the sun perfectly frames the Cathedral of St John the Divine and the magnificent Archangel Gabriel statue atop it. He noticed the photographic opportunity while taking pictures pointing northeast from the window of his building on the Upper West Side.

For me, the Cathedralhenge happens in mid-May or late July, says Matthews, 48. So the sun is gradually rising a little bit more and more towards the north every single day, and as its rising more and more towards the north, in mid-May it hits the statue and then it keeps going north, north, north. Then it hits the summer equinox and it starts heading back south, south, south, and then it hits the Cathedral again in late July. Then it turns out that those two dates are easy to remember, because my sister and my mothers birthdays are respectively mid-May and late July, pretty much on the exact same day it happens.

So I can think of my sister and my moms birthdays and that helps me to remember when to pay attention to Cathedralhenge.

He says he has about a day of grace for capturing the stunning images; his target date this month was May 18, but the best pictures were taken May 19.

He says it was a fun observation when he realized he could perfectly align the sun and the cathedral about six years ago.
Mother Tori Lee Castillo, 39, was charged with child abuse after allegedly locking her two young kids in a trunk while she shopped

A Utah mother has been jailed on suspicion of child abuse after cops say she locked her two young children in her car's trunk while she went inside a Walmart store to shop.

Tori Lee Castillo, 39, remains jailed on suspicion of child abuse after being arrested Thursday around 6pm in Riverdale, Utah when she returned to the car.

Witnesses in the parking lot heard two children, ages two and five, making noise from inside the trunk and saw the Chevrolet sedan shaking, according to ABC 4.

Stunned onlookers talked the five-year-old through how to open the trunk by using the emergency latch. They also called 911.

Castillo was reportedly driving this Chevrolet sedan (above) and allegedly locked her two kids in its trunk

The shocking incident happened in the parking lot of the Riverdale, Utah Walmart

According to Castillo's Facebook page, the older child is a boy, the youngest a girl.

'Several Good Samaritans observed this and came to the aid of the children,' said Police Lt. Casey Warren, according to the Deseret News.

One of the witnesses, Charity Maw, said she was in the parking lot when she heard crying and pounding coming from the trunk.

'I was shocked, I was shaken, and I was mad,' she told ABC 4. 'And there's two kids there, tears coming down their face. Bawling. They were scared. The little girl's voice. Just screaming, 'Let me out! Im scared.''

Witness Charity Maw said when the trunk was opened, the two children were 'bawling' and 'scared'

'I wouldn't lock a dog in a trunk, let alone a kid,' said Maw.

Another witness told KSTU that when Castillo returned to the scene, she said her babysitter had failed to show.

'Its never right to lock a child inside of a vehicle, let alone a trunk of a vehicle. Obviously theres a lot of things that could go wrong,' Warren told the outlet. 'The fumes from the cars passing by, they could suffer carbon monoxide poisoning.

Warren says the state child welfare was contacted.

ABC 4 reports that the children are in the custody of their father.

Castillo has not yet been officially charged.
President Donald Trump said late Sunday that he had 'total confidence' in his embattled son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, it was reported.

'Jared is doing a great job for the country,' the president was quoted as saying by The New York Times.

'I have total confidence in him. He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programs that will save our country billions of dollars.

'In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person.' the president said.

Trump's vote of confidence came in the wake of reports that senior officials close to the president are urging Kushner to take a leave of absence.

Jared Kushner, senior advisor and son-in-law to President Donald Trump, is being urged by White House officials to take a leave of absence, according to a new report. Kushner is seen above taking a helicopter ride over Baghdad, Iraq on April 3, 2017

White House officials believe Kushner (seen left with Trump on January 31 in the White House) should step aside temporarily amid reports that he is being scrutinized by the FBI

Trump said on Sunday that many of the leaks from the White House were 'fake news,' following reports his son-in-law tried to set up a secret channel of communications with Moscow before Trump took office

'Whenever you see the words "sources say" in the fake news media, and they don't mention names...' Trump tweeted on Sunday

'...it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!'

White House officials believe Kushner should step aside temporarily amid reports that he is being scrutinized by the FBI, according to ABC News.

The FBI is investigating associates of the president and their alleged contacts with the Russian government during the recent election campaign.

Trump said on Sunday that many of the leaks from the White House were 'fake news,' following reports his son-in-law tried to set up a secret channel of communications with Moscow before Trump took office.

Trump returned to the White House after a nine-day trip to the Middle East and Europe that ended on Saturday to face more questions about alleged communications between Kushner and Russia's ambassador to Washington.

'It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media,' Trump wrote in a series of Twitter posts on Sunday.

Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, had contacts with Moscow in December about opening a secret back channel of communications, according to news reports published while Trump was away on his trip.

Bob Corker (above), the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he was informed by people in Kushner's camp that he would be willing to talk 'when the time is right'

Kushner had at least three previously undisclosed contacts with the Russian ambassador to the United States during and after the 2016 presidential campaign, seven current and former US officials told Reuters.

'Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names ... it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!' Trump wrote.

Indeed, White House insiders, some of whom are said to be furious with Kushner for the latest debacle in the never-ending Russia-saga, say that despite his apparent folly, he is going nowhere.

'He is a made man,' one insider said to the Daily Beast, comparing Kushner to a fully-fledged member of the Mafia, who is under the protection of his Boss, in this case the president.

'Jared is not going anywhere [and] it doesn't matter what regrettable mistakes he's made,' said the source.

Rep. Adam Schiff, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee on Sunday called for a review into Kushner's security clearance in the wake of reports he wanted to set up a secret back-channel with Russia

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly insisted Sunday that a secret back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team was perfectly 'normal' and 'acceptable'

Trump's tweets came as the media reported that the White House was preparing to establish a 'war room' to combat mounting questions about ties between Russia and his presidential campaign.

Contacts between Trump associates and Russian officials during the campaign coincided with what US intelligence agencies concluded was a Kremlin effort through computer hacking, fake news and propaganda to boost Trump's chances of winning the White House.

Kushner, for his part, is said to be 'more than willing to answer any and all questions' about his alleged contacts with Russia, a senior Republican senator told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday.

Bob Corker, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he was informed by people in Kushner's camp that he would be willing to talk.

'They reached out to us yesterday to make sure we knew that was the case,' Corker said.

But the senator from Tennessee added that Kushner would speak publicly when he felt the time was right.

'Look, let's let this unfold,' he said.

'He seems to me to be a very open person and again, I'd let him speak for himself when the time is right on all these issues and at that time we can actually render judgement on the reality of what did or didn't take place.'

Corker said he believed that Kushner is 'not a target, so I think I would just wait.'

The ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee on Sunday called for a review into Kushner's security clearance in the wake of reports he wanted to set up a secret back-channel with Russia.

California Democrat Adam Schiff made the comment during an interview with ABC's This Week on Sunday morning.

'There is another question about his security clearance and whether he was forthcoming about his contacts on that,' Schiff said.

'If these allegations are true and he had discussions with the Russians about establishing a back-channel and didn't reveal that, that's a real problem in terms of whether he should maintain that kind of a security clearance.'

White House officials may not need to wait long for Kushner to leave. According to a report which appeared Saturday in Politico, his wife, Ivanka Trump (seen right with her husband at the Vatican on Wednesday), is open to the possibility of moving back to New York

He was then pressed on whether the president's son-in-law should immediately lose his clearance, and stopped short of calling for it to be revoked.

'I think we need to get to the bottom of these allegations, but I do think there ought to be a review of his security clearance to find out whether he was truthful and candid, if not, there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance.'

One senior member of the Trump administration, however, doesn't see what all the fuss is about.

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly insisted Sunday that a secret back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team was perfectly 'normal' and 'acceptable'.

Kelly defended Kushner, telling ABC News that 'any communication to a country, particularly a country like Russia, is a good thing.'

The Homeland Security secretary told co-anchor Martha Raddatz on Sunday that all communications gathered through a back channel would be 'shared across the government, so it's not a bad thing to have multiple communication lines' with any country.

However, he did concede that communications conducted using Russian diplomatic facilities - as the Washington Post reports that Kushner sought - 'would be considered to be  somewhat compromised.'

White House officials may not need to wait long for Kushner to leave.

According to a report which appeared Saturday in Politico, his wife, Ivanka Trump, is open to the possibility of moving back to New York and returning to private life.

Ivanka Trump is reportedly 'not sold' on staying in Washington for the long haul, according to Politico.

The Kushners have reportedly rented - rather than purchased - their home in an exclusive Washington, DC, area so that they could re-evaluate their future every six months.
Watch out for the 'Mad Dog' when the sun goes down.

That was the message on Sunday from James Mattis, the US Defense Secretary.

The battle-hardened, tough-talking retired Marine Corps general was asked during CBS's Face the Nation what keeps him awake at night.

But Mattis, who was entrusted with some of the most challenging commands in the military, simply replied: 'Nothing.'

'I keep other people awake at night.'

When Defense Secretary Jim Mattis (seen walking past saluting cadets at commencement ceremonies at the US Military Academy in West Point, New York, on Saturday) was asked what keeps him awake at night, he said: 'Nothing. I keep other people awake at night'

When asked about the situation on the Korean peninsula, Mattis said war with North Korea would be 'catastrophic' - if tensions between the US and Kim Jong Un ever reached that point.

'A conflict in North Korea, John, would be probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes,' he told host John Dickerson.

'Why do I say this? The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely-populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea.

'We are working with the international community to deal with this issue, this regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea, and in the event of war they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well.

When asked about the situation on the Korean peninsula, Mattis told CBS on Sunday that war with North Korea would be 'catastrophic' - if tensions between the US and Kim Jong Un ever reached that point

'But the bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into combat, if we're not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means.'

Dickerson then asked Mattis, who was giving his first official interview as Defense Secretary, if North Korea's military abilities had improved with recent tests.

'We always assume that with a testing program they get better with each test,' he said.

North Korea on Sunday has fired a ballistic missile from its east coast.

The missile was fired from the region of Wonsan in an easterly direction into the Sea of Japan, South Korea's military said.

The launch was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who called a meeting of the National Security Council, the South Korean office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday condemned North Korea's latest missile launch and vowed action along with other nations to deter Pyongyang's repeated provocations.

'As we agreed at the recent G7, the issue of North Korea is a top priority for the international community,' Abe told reporters in brief televised remarks.

'Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea.'

North Korea on Sunday has fired a ballistic missile from its east coast. The missile was fired from the region of Wonsan in an easterly direction into the Sea of Japan, South Korea's military said. South Koreans in Seoul watch a news broadcast reporting on the missile launch Sunday

Mattis said he believed that North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un (seen above in this April 26, 2017 file photo) posed 'a direct threat to the United States'

Mattis then went on to explain the potential danger Kim Jong Un's country poses to the US.

'It is a direct threat to the United States,'he said.

'They have been very clear in their rhetoric, we don't have to wait until they have an intercontinental ballistic missile with a nuclear weapon on it to say that now it has manifested completely.'

But he would not be drawn on whether there was a 'line' North Korea could cross that would force the US to intervene.

'I'd prefer not to answer that we do not draw red lines unless we intend to carry them out,' he said.

Mattis then reiterated the belief North Korea is a 'direct threat', adding: 'As far as that specific threat, I don't want to put a timeline on it. At this time, what we know, I'd prefer to keep silent about because we may actually know some things the North Koreans don't even know.'

In this Thursday, May 11, 2017 file photo, a girl sleeps in her father's arms in western Mosul, Iraq, after fleeing from fighting between Iraqi forces and the Islamic State group

The US will take further steps this week as it ramps up defense against a potential attack, with the Pentagon set to try to shoot down an intercontinental-range missile this week.

Mattis was also asked about the American strategy in defeating ISIS.

The Pentagon chief replied that the US was now interested in employing 'annihilation tactics.'

'The bottom line is we are going to move in an accelerated and reinforced manner, throw them on their back foot,' Mattis said.

'We have already shifted from attrition tactics where we shove them from one position to another in Iraq and Syria, to annihilation tactics where we surround them.'

Mattis said it was imperative for the US-led coalition to deny foreign fighters who enlisted with ISIS to return to their home countries, where they would seek to possibly carry out terror attacks.

'Our intention is that the foreign fighters do not survive the fight to return home to North Africa, to Europe, to America, to Asia, to Africa. Were not going to allow them to do so. Were going to stop them there and take apart the caliphate,' he said.
Terrorists in Somalia have stoned a man to death in front of hundreds of onlookers for allegedly cheating on his two wives.

Dayow Mohamed Hassan, 44, was killed in the southern village of Ramo Adey by Al-Shabaab militants.

Moalim Geedow, the regional governor representing the al Qaeda-linked insurgency, said Hassan was buried neck-deep in a hole then pelted with stones.

The Al-Shabaab militants allegedly buried the man in a hole before pelting him with stones

He said: 'The man was married with two wives and children. He was publicly stoned to death today for committing adultery according to the Islamic sharia.

'The man had a third woman who was a divorcee. He did not have her according to sharia. He deceived her, saying that he went to a sheikh (local leader) and that he married her.

'However, when the woman got pregnant, the two families debated and there was no trace of valid matrimony.

'The court ruled he did not marry her legally and he was stoned to death.'

The victim was married with two wives before he took on a third woman who was a divorcee

Al-Shabaab has been fighting a violent insurgency to overthrow the weak U.N.-backed Somali government and impose its own strict interpretation of Islamic law.

In recent years the terrorist group has lost control of many towns and cities to a 22,000-strong force of African Union peacekeepers.

However the group retains a presence in the countryside and many villages and remains capable of launching deadly attacks.

Al-Shabaab has been fighting a violent insurgency to overthrow the weak Somali government

Last Thursday a convoy of eight Kenyan security officers were killed in two separate roadside bombings, AfricaNews reported.

Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the cross-border attack.

Somali religious scholar Sheikh Abdirahman Sharif said the stoning was unlawful and Al-Shabaab were illegitimate.

The militants have lost ground in recent years to an African Union peacekeeping force

He told VOA News: 'First of all, who gave them the authority to carry out this [stoning]? Are they legitimate? They do not have legitimacy.

'They were born out of aggression, they are an unjust group and did not come through the right path.'
A top New York City high school will not be moving its prom date even though it falls during Ramadan.

Brooklyn Technical seniors are set to gather at Pier Sixty, billed as the largest waterfront venue in Manhattan, on June 3 for their big bash.

This year, the party falls during Ramadan, a month-long period of religious fasting and prayer for observant Muslims.

Practicing students petitioned the administration to change the date, but the request was denied.

Brooklyn Technical High School (pictured) says it will not be changing the date of its June 3 prom even though it falls during the month-long period of Ramadan

The annual holy month requires that observers consume no food or drink between sunrise and sunset, and observant Muslim students petitioned the school (pictured), asking for a date change

The annual holy month requires that observers consume no food or drink between sunrise and sunset.

The Brooklyn Tech prom starts at 7pm - while the sun is still out.

A Department of Education spokesperson told CBS2 that because the dance was planned months in advance, it couldn't be rescheduled.

Some accommodations are being made for observant students, such as dinner being served at 9pm - well after sunset - so all students can eat.

However, Muslim seniors said its not just about food but other religious rules as well.

'Obviously the date wasn't the best date,' senior Pakeza Sahbbir, who will be not attending, told ABC7.

'You're not supposed to listen to music during Ramadan, so that's why it's not really allowed.'

A Change.org petition garnered more than 250 signatures, asking that the date be moved up by a week.

School officials say the prom at Pier Sixty in Manhattan (pictured) was scheduled months in advance and therefor couldn't be changed. But Principal David Newman said he met with the Muslim Student Association Tuesday to make sure this never happens again

Senior Pakeza Sahbbir (pictured) said the problem with the prom date is not just the food, but other religious rules. She said: 'You're not supposed to listen to music during Ramadan, so that's why it's not really allowed'

'A change to the date, even a week and a half earlier, would allow so many more people to partake. If no action is taken, Senior Prom truly wouldn't be open to every senior who wants to go,' it was written.

'I know how it feels to fast,' another student, Saima Afrin, said.

'I feel very tired throughout the day, so I won't want to go out. I'd sleep and stuff.'

The principal, David Newman, said he met with the Muslim Student Association Tuesday to make sure this never happens again.

Approximately 1,300 students go to Brooklyn Tech, but the school does not track religious affiliation.
A man who suffered 'extreme mental illness' fatally shot his father and then killed himself in front of his mother in North Carolina.

Benny 'Buddy' Burney, Jr, 33, shot his father twice in Morehead City, North Carolina, before turning the gun on himself.

Morehead City Police said officers found 67-year-old Benny Burney Sr dead when they were called to the home around 10:30pm Friday.

Benny 'Buddy' Burney, Jr, 33, shot his father twice, then killed himself in the house pictured in Morehead City, North Carolina, on Friday

When police arrived, Burney, Jr had barricaded himself inside the house and was making threats.

Before officers could safely make their way inside the home, he shot himself, according to a police statement.

Carteret County Sheriff's Office said Burney Jr used a 38-caliber handgun, according to the Jacksonville Daily News.

Chief Detective Major Jason Wank said both the victim and the shooter lived in the house, according to WITN.

Wank said Burney Sr's wife saw the shootings but was unhurt, according to the Carteret County News-Times.

'The horrific events unfolded in front of the wife and mother of the two men, and she was able to leave the residence physically unharmed,' Wank said.

'Buddy Burney Jr was suffering from extreme mental illness and detectives are unable to provide a specific motive for the assault.'

Neighbors told WCTI they overheard Burney Jr's mother telling police her son had not been taking his medicine.

'The Carteret County Sheriffs office extends our deepest sympathy to the Burney family as they cope with this tragedy,' Wank continued in the statement.

For readers seeking support, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 1-800-273-8255 or by clicking here.

When police arrived, Burney, Jr had barricaded himself inside the house and was making threats. Before officers could safely make their way inside the home, he shot himself, according to a police statement
The beleaguered boss of British Airways has finally apologised in person for the global IT crash which caused chaos for more than 300,000 passengers over the weekend.

But chief executive Alex Cruz has denied the outsourcing of British Airways jobs was not to blame for the 'catastrophic' IT failure that brought the airline's operations to a halt, its chief executive said.

BA was accused of greed after the GMB union suggested the disruption could have been prevented if the beleaguered airline had not cut 'hundreds of dedicated and loyal' IT staff and contracted the work to India in 2016.

Mr Cruz added that a full investigation would be conducted into the failure which affected 75,000 passengers.

The chief executive also said he would not resign following the travel chaos.

British Airways boss Alex Cruz has personally apologised for the 'catastrophic' IT failure that saw flights cancelled and delayed for more than 300,000 passengers but said cutbacks and outsourcing of jobs was 'not to blame'

Passengers have been spotted setting up temporary shelters at Heathrow today as more flights were cancelled and delayed

Huge queues were building up at the airport, with British Airways apologising for problems

He told Sky News: 'I can confirm that all the parties involved around this particular event have not been involved in any type of outsourcing in any foreign country.

'They have all been local issues around a local data centre who has been managed and fixed by local resources.'

Mr Cruz said: 'On Saturday morning at around 9.30 there was indeed a power surge that had a catastrophic effect over some communications hardware which eventually affected all the messaging across our systems.'

He added: 'We will have completed an exhaustive investigation on exactly the reasons of why this happened. We will, of course, share those conclusions once we have actually finished them.

'We have no evidence whatsoever that there was any cyber attack of any sort.'

It comes after Mr Cruz tried to gag staff from commenting on the computer meltdown that has plunged hundreds of thousands of passengers into chaos.

Before speaking today, the Spanish businessman has chosen to record a series of video messages issued via BA's Twitter account.

Mr Cruz's email asking his workers not to comment British Airways boss Alex Cruz (pictured) Guys, either you are part of the team working to fix this or you aren't. We are not in the mode of 'debriefing on what happened' but rather 'let's fix this mode'. I have been answering some emails from colleagues (thank you for the support) and I just finished a video for media and another for all of us. I suppose you will have seen our Twitter account and BA.com. Now, your interest on today's events is well noted. I am wondering if you would like to help out? Either LHR or LGW or anyone of our stations could use you, now. If you indeed can, drop me a message and I will connect you or go straight to the airport and make yourself available. I am sure they will appreciate your involvement. In the meantime, if you do not want to get involved or cannot get involved, I would kindly ask you to refrain from live commentary, unless it is a message of support to the thousands of colleagues that love BA as much as you do. Thanks. Advertisement

The airline was unable to rebook flights yesterday after all of its IT systems went down, meaning the work had to be started afresh on Sunday (pictured, people asleep at Heathrow)

Mr Cruz has been bombarded by messages from staff seeking an explanation for the chaos to pass on to passengers.

But instead of coming clean, he issued an email for BA staff urging them not to speak publicly about the crisis.

In a message seen by many staff as a veiled threat, he wrote: 'Guys, either you are part of the team trying to fix this or you aren't. We are not in the mode of 'debriefing on what happened', but rather 'let's fix this mode'.'

He asked employees to volunteer to come in to work at Heathrow and Gatwick to tackle the backlog of flights and passengers but added: 'If you don't want to get involved or you cannot get involved, I would kindly ask you to refrain from live commentary.'

The airline has confirmed the email is genuine and said the intention is to encourage staff to volunteer to deal with the problems.

A source at BA said: 'There was no intention to silence people. While we welcome open discussion our focus now is to help our customers and get our operation back to normal.'

While British Airways IT systems are now running again, the airline has not said how long disruption will last for (pictured, people asleep on the floor at Heathrow on Sunday)

Mr Cruz made a controversial decision last year to shut down the airline's British computer department with the loss of 700 jobs around the country.

He is thought to have been paid 830,000 last year.

The tasks of designing and managing the firm's IT systems were contracted out to the Indian firm Tata Consultancy Services.

The 5billion Spanish merger It is the UK's flag carrier, and was once known as 'the world's favourite airline'. But in 2010, British Airways joined forces with Spanish airline Iberia in a 5 billion merger to create IAG, Europe's third largest scheduled airline. British shareholders took 55 per cent of the business and the firm based its operational headquarters in London, although the parent company is officially registered in Madrid. Willie Walsh, who first went to BA as chief executive after turning around Aer Lingus, is chief executive of IAG and saw his salary rise from 735,000 to 825,000 following the merger. With its roots in the pioneers of commercial flight soon after the First World War, British Airways came from a merger of British European Airways and BOAC in 1974. Advertisement

One of those made redundant said yesterday: 'The failure of their website doesn't surprise me at all.

'When I was still working there, all the BA-employed IT people still had some pride in what they did.'

The comments echo those of the GMB union's national aviation officer, Mick Rix, who said: 'This could have all been avoided. BA in 2016 made hundreds of dedicated and loyal IT staff redundant and outsourced the work to India.'

Mr Cruz, 51, has long had a reputation for ruthlessness. As boss of the no-frills airline Vuelling, he outlawed colour printing, banned paper towels from washrooms and offered visitors to business meetings only tap water.

The married father-of-four's penny-pinching talents were rewarded with the top job at British Airways 18 months ago. Out went free meals on every flight and in came extra seats to cram more passengers on to flights, severely reducing legroom.

Such moves provoked a backlash from customers who felt the airline  which once claimed to be the world's favourite  was selling its elegant image for swift profits.

But Mr Cruz breezily denied there was a problem. 'Consumers value what they get from BA,' he said in February. 'If they didn't, you wouldn't have customers or see the numbers growing.'

Mr Cruz was born in Spain but went to university in Michigan and Ohio in the US before joining American Airlines in 1990.

The businessman, who is thought to live in London, went on to become the founding chief executive of start-up budget airline Clickair and took over rival Vueling when the two firms merged.

There was steady growth during his time in charge, delighting the board at parent firm International Airlines Group, which also owns BA.

People attempt to keep themselves occupied on phones and with a nap at Heathrow on Sunday as the BA travel chaos spilled over into a second day

But his tenure was marred by customer complaints, with embittered travellers even launching a Facebook page. In an interview soon after taking over at BA, Mr Cruz scornfully dismissed BA's heritage as 'legacy practices'.

He said the company was 'very slow' and it was time to 'take decisions quickly and take them to market quickly'.

He was obsessed with technology, frequently citing Google, Facebook and Uber, and stressed that he thought airlines could thrive only if they mastered IT.

'We're prisoners, in a way, of really old technology which is very difficult to change,' he said.

Mr Cruz initially promised he was going to introduce new computer systems that would speed everything up  words that might be coming back to haunt him.

'There's new technology coming in that makes operations safer and faster,' he said. 'Lots of customers want to use this sort of technology to access the plane.'

While some BA flights have been departing on time from Heathrow, dozens more were cancelled on Sunday as the IT glitch left the airline's fleet out of position
A woman, 45, is fighting for her life after being stabbed in the neck in a town in western Queensland.

The unidentified woman was reported to have sustained a large wound on the right side of her neck early Sunday morning.

Police say she was stabbed at a property located in Goondiwindi on the Queensland, New South Wales border.

Queensland woman left fighting for her life after being stabbed in the right side of neck

Initial investigations revealed that emergency services were called to the McLean Street address at 6.10 am after reports emerged that a woman had received a knife wound.

She was then airlifted to the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane where she remains in serious but stable condition.

Police forensic officers have attended the scene and investigations are ongoing.
A make-up artist has died and her boyfriend is in hospital after the pair were involved in a horrific boating accident just minutes from reaching the shore.

Jess Murray, 33, was travelling with her partner Bryce Semple, 41, to an idyllic island resort on the Gold Coast on Saturday afternoon for a romantic weekend getaway.

But less than a kilometre away from Couran Cove, their 3.5metre tinnie slammed into a larger, seven-metre boat at about 5.30pm, the Gold Coast Bulletin reported.

The force of the collision knocked Ms Murray unconscious and into the water.

Make-up artist Jess Murray, 33, (pictured) was killed in a boat collision at Broadwater in Queensland on Saturday afternoon

Ms Murray was less than a kilometre from reaching the idyllic Couran Cove island resort with her new boyfriend Bryce Semple, when their tinnie crashed into a larger boat

Mr Semple, who sustained multiple broken bones and a serious head injury himself, heroically jumped into the water with others and pulled Ms Murray to safety.

The occupants of the other boat and Mr Semple worked hard to to revive her, alongside Volunteer Marine Rescue officers, water police and paramedics.

Despite everyone's best efforts, Ms Murray was pronounced dead at the scene as a result of her injuries.

Water Police Sergeant Mitchell Gray told the Gold Coast Bulletin the fatal collision was an 'absolute tragedy'.

The force of the collision knocked Ms Murray unconscious and into the water. Mr Semple (pictured after collision), suffered multiple broken bones and a head injury

Mr Semple heroically jumped into the water with others and pulled Ms Murray to safety

'It's a tragic event for someone so young to have lost a life ... it's left three good Australian families traumatised,' Mr Gray said.

'They were girlfriend and boyfriend... they were heading to the resort to spend the weekend together.'

Mr Semple, who worked as a contractor at Couran Cove, was transported to Gold Coast University Hospital in a stable condition, with a head injury and broken bones.

'Bryce had gone to get her and bring her back here for the weekend ... he has been a contractor for us for some time,' Couran Cove CEO Matt Parsons said.

No one on board the larger vessel was injured, and resort staff are being offered counselling for the traumatic incident.

The forensic crash unit is investigating the crash.

The pair were heading to the Gold Coast resort to spend the weekend together
An indignant Karl Stefanovic has slammed the 'circus' around Schapelle Corby, saying everyone has been 'made to look like idiots.'

The Today Show host on Monday morning urged everyone to 'move on', saying 'there are far more important things in life than pursuing, and losing, Schapelle Corby.'

'Maybe she wants mayhem, whatever, I do not care.'

The Today Show host's comments come after a bizarre series of events that saw Corby switch flights, use a 12-vehicle convoy to divert the media and family members don horror masks to hide their identities.

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Karl Stefanovic (pictured) has slammed the 'circus' around Schapelle Corby's return to Australia

Stefanovic (pictured) urged everyone to 'move on', saying 'she ain't that interesting'

Corby (pictured) made a dramatic return to Australia after spending nearly 10 years behind bars and three more on parole in Bali

A man wearing a freakish horror mask has been spotted at Schapelle Corby's mother's house following the drug smuggler's extraordinary return to Australia

Stefanovic's co-host Lisa Wilkinson disagreed with Stefanovic's proclamation that 'she ain't that interesting', saying Australia had only heard her story through the family.

'For 13 years, we've all followed the ups and downs of this young woman's story, and had our thoughts on her guilty and innocence, but we've never really heard from the woman directly,' she said.

'I want to hear what she says actually happened, how the whole saga unfolded, how she coped inside, and what her plans are from here.'

Wilkinson said the public have only seen her life 'through the prism of her family...and they haven't done her any favours.'

The family employed an ex-army officer to create an elaborate escape system for Corby upon her return to Brisbane on Saturday.

Wearing a headscarf over her head as she disembarked the jet, Corby is thought to have boarded one of 12 vehicles that left the airport.

The group of black SUVs departed in two convoys, apparently designed to throw the media scrum her off her scent.

Eleanor 'Elle' Whitman was employed by the Corby family to create an elaborate escape system following her return to Australia

While the convicted drug smuggler is yet to be seen, friends and family members were spotted at her mother's home in Brisbane's Loganlea shortly after her arrival, including the masked man

It is believed the 39-year-old left the airport in one of 12 black vehicles which sped off from the international terminal in separate directions - sending media on a wild goose-chase

The convoys, followed by the media, left the airport, and took separate routes.

One ended at the Sofitel Hotel in the city, while the other stopped at the KFC store at Ormeau, en route to the Gold Coast. Corby was not seen in either.

At 7.30am, Corby's sister Mercedes arrived at her Gold Coast home. She was quickly ushered inside by security.

In another decoy tactic seemingly planned by Ms Whitman, a woman bearing a striking resemblance to Corby appeared at Mercedes' home just after 9am.

A man wearing a freakish horror mask was then spotted at Schapelle Corby's mother's house following the drug smuggler's extraordinary return to Australia.

Corby's sister Mercedes arrived at the house shortly after the pair touched down in Brisbane, but there was no sign of 39-year-old Schapelle.

Shortly after, the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland was called to the two-storey home after a male acquaintance's car battery went flat.

Once the car was revved up about 15 minutes later, four friends - seemingly amused by the media pack - drove off in the blue Ford Territory. The masked man peeked his head out of the door as they left.

The masked man was one of Corby's friends and family who drive off in a car after it to be jumped started after its battery went flat
A survivor of the 7/7 London bombings was found dead hours after the Manchester Arena attack  amid fears he took his own life after being overwhelmed by the horror.

Tony Walter, 52, was discovered dead at his home after failing to turn up to work the day after suicide bomber Salman Abedi murdered 22 people and injured a further 116 at the Manchester Arena.

A friend has claimed he is the 23rd victim of the bombing and killed himself because he didnt want to live in a world where these terror attacks continue.

Tony Walter, pictured, who survived the London 7/7 2005 terror attack, was found dead hours after the Manchester bombing with fears raised he took his own life 'after being overwhelmed by the horror'

Mr Walter was on the Edgware Road train that was bombed (pictured) and was just yards from the device when it detonated

Fifty-two people were killed and 700 injured in the attacks on three underground trains and one double-decker bus, pictured

Friends of Mr Walter said he did not turn up for work following the Manchester attack, pictured, and they fear it may have caused him to take his own life

On July 7, 2005, Mr Walter was yards from fanatic Mohammad Sidique Khan when he detonated a device on a Tube train after it left Edgware Road station.

Seven people, including Khan, died. Mr Walter was showered with shrapnel but survived.

Friends believe that the Manchester bombing, coupled with the Westminster attack in March when four people were killed by Khalid Masood, brought back traumatic memories for Mr Walter.

Staff at the London legal firm where he worked were told by a boss on Thursday morning that he had taken his own life.

A friend told the Sun: Everyone is distraught by Tony taking his life. After the Westminster attack he really struggled.

He was off work for a few days saying he couldnt cope with how it brought back the memories of 7/7.

Mr Walter eventually turned to work but seemed withdrawn. When he didnt appear at work following the Manchester Arena attack his colleagues began to get worried.

Manchester Arena: A friend has claimed Mr Walter killed himself because he didnt want to live in a world where these terror attacks continue

Mr Walter was discovered dead at his home after failing to turn up to work the day after suicide bomber Salman Abedi murdered 22 people and injured a further 116 at the Manchester Arena

They feared the worse and contacted the police, who then discovered him dead at his home.

His friend added: Everyone that knew Tony believes he is the 23rd victim of the Manchester Arena attack. Suicide bomber Salman Abedi is responsible for Tony taking his life as well as those he killed.

Mr Walters sister-in-law Sheila Walter said the family are devastated and described him as a lovely man.

He was found in his flat at 2.10pm on Wednesday  40 hours after the Manchester bombing.

John Pritchard, his boss at Legal 500, told devastated colleagues of the suspected suicide on Thursday. He said the loss of Mr Walter, who had worked at the firm for 17 years, was felt particularly hard.

On July 7, 2005, Mr Walter was yards from fanatic Mohammad Sidique Khan when he detonated a device on a Tube train after it left Edgware Road station (pictured)

Scotland Yard said: Police were called on Wednesday 24 May shortly after 14.10 hours to an address following a concern for the welfare of the occupant.

Officers forced entry to the property and found a 52-year-old man who was unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The mans next of kin have been informed.

The death is not being treated as suspicious. The matter has been referred to the coroner.

Mr Walter, from Tottenham, told a public inquiry into 7/7 that when Khan detonated the bomb it felt as if he was being electrocuted from the feet up.

The bomb was one of four detonated by terrorists across London in a co-ordinated attack that killed 52 and injured more than 700.
A Melbourne autistic teenager who was allegedly bashed by five Sudanese teenagers on a bus last month has been targeted again.

Security cameras show Jayden D'Abaco, who lives with autism, outside his Tarneit home on Friday when a gang walked past.

According to 7 News the 17-year-old recognised the approaching men as the same ones who bashed him on board the bus seven weeks ago.

According to 7 News the 17-year-old recognised the approaching men as the same ones who bashed him on board the bus seven weeks ago (pictured Jayden walking outside his home and noticing the gang)

He also said that last weekend the same group of teenagers had threatened him again.

Jayden's mother Tess remembers receiving a text message from her son that weekend which read 'they're on the bus again.'

'My fear that night was we're not going to see our son again,' Tess D'Abaco told 7 News.

Tess D'Abaco (right) and her husband are considering moving interstate because they no longer feel safe in their Melbourne residence

The family's car has also been found damaged, with key marks and deep scratchings, outside their home.

While it is not clear if the same teenagers are involved the D'Abaco's are considering moving interstate.

Seven weeks ago video footage was released showing Jayden being assaulted in a vicious attack on a Melbourne bus.

Seven weeks ago video footage was released showing Jayden being assaulted in a vicious attack on a Melbourne bus

He was travelling alone on the bus at Tarneit when five boys approached him and told him to hand over his mobile phone and new Nike shoes.

When he refused, the group allegedly attacked him, kicking him in the head so hard he suffered a concussion and required a CT scan to check for permanent damage, his mother Tess said.

CCTV footage from inside the bus obtained by 9 News shows the group of boys surrounding Josh and taunting him before one allegedly launches a flying kick.

Jayden (pictured), 17, was travelling alone on the bus at Tarneit when five Sudanese boys allegedly approached him and told him to hand over his new Nike shoes and wallet

When he refused, the group allegedly attacked him, kicking him in the head so hard he suffered a concussion (pictured is CCTV footage from inside the Melbourne bus)

'The kid who bullied me at my school, he said to me, 'Do I know you?' [And] I'm like, 'Well yeah you're the kid who bullied me',' Jayden told 9 News at the time.

'As soon as we turned the corner I got one kick to the face straight across from me, and then one kick to the face from in front of me.'

Jayden's mother Tess told 3AW on Tuesday her distressed son called him in tears.

'He said, 'Mum I'm scared',' Tess said.

'It has taken a lot out of him because he doesn't want to go on public transport again.'

Jayden claims one of the boys involved in the alleged attack was a classmate of his. A 16-year-old boy has since been charged over the incident and Victoria Police are investigating

When Jayden's mother drove to meet him at Tarneit McDonald's, she claims the group of five Sudanese men grew to a group of about 30 within minutes

Tess said she immediately drove to meet her injured son where the bus pulled over at Tarneit McDonald's.

Within minutes, she said the group of five Sudanese men grew to a group of about 30.

'When we drove past the McDonald's, they spotted my son in the car. They [five offenders] chased the car so I drove off and waited for police on the side of the road,' she told 9 News.

Tess said Tarneit was 'overrun by Sudanese' people and claimed they often gathered at the local McDonald's.

She said reports of violent behaviour from young Sudanese men in the area left her feeling scared for her son and the larger Melbourne community.

A spate of criminal activity has swept across Melbourne in the past 18 months, with a series of car-jackings, armed robberies and home invasions, blamed largely on the notorious Apex gang

Apex gang members are primarily from a Sudanese refugee background (two members pictured)

'It's not safe for anyone, let alone for someone with a disability, they put so much trust in everybody,' she said.

A spate of criminal activity has swept across Melbourne in the past 18 months, with a series of carjackings, armed robberies and home invasions, blamed largely on the notorious Apex gang.

Apex gang members are primarily from a Sudanese refugee background.

Tess called on the Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews to take action.

'For Christ's sake, just open your eyes and see what's going on around you, there will be more than one life taken soon,' she said.

'My son was lucky he got out of it the way he did.

'When is the Government going to wake up? I'm very angry, very very angry.'

Wyndham North police have charged a 16-year-old boy with attempted robbery and assault over the incident.

Police arrested the teen at the scene and he's been bailed to appear at a Children's Court at a later date.

The police investigation to identify others involved in the incident is continuing.
The families of Lindt Cafe siege victims say senior police still need to address the mistakes they made during the deadly terror incident.

NSW Coroner Michael Barnes last week handed down his findings into the 2014 siege by terrorist Man Haron Monis, who was also killed at the end of the 17-hour ordeal that found police acted too late.

Katrina Dawson was fatally wounded by police bullet fragments, while Monis 'maliciously executed' cafe manager Tori Johnson.

The family of Tori Johnson have called on the NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller to review the current positions of the two most senior commanders in charge at the end of the Lindt Cafe siege.

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Katrina Dawson (pictured left) and Tori Johnson (right) were killed in the Lindt chocolate cafe siege

Sandy Dawson Jnr (right) has claimed 'the entire management of the siege was a disaster' after NSW Coroner Michael Barnes handed down his findings last week

Tori Johnson's parents Rosie Connellan (left) and Ken Johnson (right) and his former partner Thomas Zin (centre) have expressed their views since the coroner's findings were revealed

Katrina Dawson's family have also condemned the mistakes made as her brother Sandy Dawson Jnr insisted to ABC TV's Four Corners program on Monday night that future proceedings cannot unfold in the same manner.

'The coroner has revealed so many errors, so many failures that you can conclude that the entire management of the siege was a disaster and it cannot happen again that way ever,' he said.

Both families have however welcomed Mr Fuller's admission that he thought police should have launched a pre-emptive rescue earlier in the day.

'That is why Commissioner Fuller saying what he said is encouraging. It is the first ray of light we have seen from the police through this entire saga,' Sandy Dawson added.

Tori Johnson's mother, Rosie Connellan, said Mr Fuller's statement gave her hope.

'It's amazing isn't it? That just that little acknowledgement from Fuller that they should have gone in, to me has been probably the most hopeful,' Ms Connellan said.

When hearing the heartbreaking news their loved ones were dead family members of the Lindt siege victims were able to hear each other's agony, after being put in neighbouring rooms by police.

Additionally, by the time those closest to slain Tori Johnson and Katrina Dawson were officially informed by police of their deaths they had already suspected the worst.

New information has revealed their families could hear each other when they were informed of their deaths

Ms Dawson's parent's (pictured) were never informed of the temporary centre setup in the Supreme Court and found out about it on the news

In new information coming to light following submissions from the family and partners of the Lindt victims police handling of the 2014 tragedy continues to draw criticism.

The information comes as NSW Coroner Michael Barnes revealed that family members were not given proper privacy when notified of their deaths.

The next of kin were not told each victim had died until three hours after police raided the cafe and 'could hear sounds of distress issuing from the other family's room,' the Daily Telegraph reported.

They were also made to wait inside the Supreme Court, located two minutes from the Lindt cafe, in a temporary centre, where gunshots and explosions could be heard from when police stormed in.

The families were not given access to television and police officers only offered 'little information'.

In submissions from the victim's families and partners, released on Sunday, further criticism of the police handling of the tragedy was bought to light

In a statement shared by Tori Johnson's partner of 14 years, Thomas Zin, he stated 'they assumed the worse' when the explosions went off.

'I thought the sounds meant that everyone was being shot,' Mr Zin said.

Ms Dawson's family were never informed of the centre but instead found out about it on the news.

Calls from Ms Dawson's mother and brother to an emergency hotline were never returned.

In his coroner's report Mr Barnes slammed the time it took to identify the bodies.

'No single officer appears to been responsible for co-ordinating the identification efforts,' the report said.

It was reported in the findings that the two families were able to conclude their respective loved one had not made it because all the other hostage's families were informed they had survived.

The two families told Four Corners last week of their anger after learning police had only planned to storm the Lindt Cafe if gunman Man Haron Monis killed or seriously injured.
Schapelle Corby has celebrated her first morning back on Australian soil with a bizarre social media post.

The convicted drug smuggler wrote the word 'freedom' under a shot of a colourful oil painting appearing to show her riding a fantastical beast.

Corby added 'hashtagoiloncanvas' to the portrait she shared with her 147,000 Instagram followers on Monday morning.

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Schapelle Corby has celebrated her first morning back on Australian soil with a bizarre social media post

The convicted drug smuggler (pictured as she is deported from Indonesia) posted the word 'freedom' under a shot a colourful oil painting appearing to show her riding a fantastical beast

'Awesome. No other words need to be said,' one follower commented, while another said: 'That is beautiful.'

The 39-year-old wasted no time in getting up-to-date with the outside world via social media ahead of her arrival to Australia.

She created the Instagram account from Bali and a Snapchat profile to share her homecoming with the world.

Her debut post, a photo of her two dogs Luna and May, was shared from her Kuta home only hours before she was picked up by a police convoy.

The 39-year-old (pictured in 2008) wasted no time in getting up-to-date with the outside world via social media ahead of her arrival to Australia

She created the Instagram account from Bali and a Snapchat profile to share her homecoming with the world

Her debut post, a photo of her two dogs Luna and May, was shared from her Kuta home only hours before she was picked up by a police convoy

Corby's mother Rosleigh Rose emerged from her home in Loganlea in Brisbane's south on Monday

The convicted smuggler's mother is seen jumping behind the wheel on Monday morning

'Going to miss these two. My puppies #Luna&May,' she captioned the snap.

Corby has not been seen in public since arriving in Brisbane on Sunday morning to a media frenzy.

She was deported from Indonesia almost 13 years after being after being caught with 4.1kg of marijuana in her boogie board bag at Bali's Denpasar Airport.

Meanwhile, Corby's mother Rosleigh Rose emerged from her home in Loganlea in Brisbane's south on Monday for the first time since her daughter arrived home.

Wearing an orange blouse and clutching a red handbag, Ms Rose flashed a smile for waiting reporters as she got into her car.

She didn't comment on the whereabouts of her daughter after she avoided reporters on Sunday.

It was the first time Ms Rose has been spotted since her daughter arrived back to Australia

Ms Rose wore an orange blouse and designer shades as she stepped out of her Loganlea home

She flashed a smile for waiting reporters as she headed to her vehicle parked in the driveway
A 'local celebrity' and convenience store owner who was allegedly assaulted during a violent brawl outside his shop has been overwhelmed by the support of his concerned customers.

Hazem Sedda, 31, was allegedly punched in the side of the head by a customer who refused to put out a cigarette, before a fight broke out and spilled onto a Redfern street.

Mr Sedda - who runs an Instagram for his Redern Convenience Store in Sydney with over 8000 followers - says he was flooded with messages, calls and visits from worried friends who heard about the incident.

Popular store owner Hazem Sedda (pictured) was hurt in the violent incident outside his store

Police were called to intervene as the fight spilled out onto the street (pictured) and were forced to use OC spray

'I would like to thank all of you for your support and standing with me, thanks for the texts, calls, Instagram messages, Facebook messages and visiting our store to check on me,' he wrote on his famous Instagram account.

'Every one of you had some idea about the story but not the full one, I will post the full story later on, all I want to say that Redfern is amazing and I love Redfern (Australia) as much as I love my born country Palestine.'

His loyal customers took to Instagram to check on Mr Sedda and let him know the community stands behind him after he was targeted in the vicious fracas.

'Hazem as long as you are safe very angry about what these animals did you will always have our support,' one person wrote.

'Mate I'm sure the community of Redfern supports you, they all know you and appreciate what you do for the area,' he said.

Even television presenter and radio host Ben Fordham is a fan of the much-loved convenience store, commenting on Mr Sedda's post: 'Love ya mate'.

His loyal customers took to Instagram to check on Mr Sedda and let him know the community stands behind him after he was targeted in the vicious fracas

'I would like to thank all of you for your support and standing with me, thanks for the texts, calls, Instagram messages, Facebook messages and visiting our store to check on me,' Mr Sedda (pictured) wrote on his famous Instagram account

His loyal customers took to Instagram to check on Mr Sedda and let him know the community stands behind him after he was targeted in the vicious fracas

The brawl, which erupted on Friday, ended in police using capsicum spray to disperse the group of men.

Two of the men were arrested and three hospitalised during the incident.

Mr Sedda - who has owned the popular store for 15 years - is well known in the Redfern area for operating 'the greatest convenience store in the world'.

Despite working gruelling long hours, the Palestinian-born shop owner says he adores his customers and uses Instagram to thank them for stopping by his convenience store.

He regularly posts images of his beloved customers to his thousands of followers and even gives out awards for 'customer of the day'.

The Redfern favorite is a fixture in his local community and he has seen customers grow up, move out of the area and come back to visit him and the store.

'What I love is that they trust me so much...they always know what I'm doing is right,' he has previously told Daily Mail Australia.

Mr Sedda - who has owned the popular store for 15 years - is well known in the Redfern area for operating 'the greatest convenience store in the world'
Two-thirds of Britons give up halfway through a DIY project - after realising they are making a mess of it.

A new survey has found that 62 per cent of us have given up on a task when it becomes clear too much has been taken on.

The poll of 2,000 people found that the average Brit takes three shots at a DIY project before downing tools.

Two-thirds of Britons give up halfway through a DIY project - after realising they are making a mess of it (picture posed by a model)

On average it takes just 37 minutes before giving up.

The poll, by BuyMetalOnline.co.uk, found that the most popular task to give up was building flat-pack furniture (68pc).

This was closely followed by painting (56pc), putting up a shelf (38pc) and wiring a socket (31pc).

More than a quarter (26pc) also gave up on fixing a leaking tap.

The survey found that Brits aged between 25 and 34 called a tradesperson on average five times a year, compared to those aged between 55 and 64, who called on help from an expert just once a year.

Craig Taylor, 36, of Hastings, East Sussex, said he had 'given up on DIY' since he broke his ankle when he fell off a ladder as he painted his home in 2015.

On average it takes just 37 minutes before giving up (picture posed by model)

The supermarket worker said: 'I decided the house needed a lick of paint, but didn't realise how much hard work it actually was.

'I ended up falling off a ladder as I painted my living room and breaking my ankle and ever since I've always got someone in instead - DIY is just too dangerous for me.'

Sara Halman, managing director at BuyMetalOnline.co.uk said: 'It seems the art of DIY is dying out among the British population, with more recent generations being able to turn their hand to technical computer-based problems as opposed to hands-on DIY tasks.

'Attempting to fix the problem yourself is one way to save money however if the job is hazardous or beyond your skill set, it is best handled by a trained and qualified professional.

'There is no shame in turning to a professional to ensure the job is done properly and to the highest safety standards.'
Cheeky Clegg's crowdfunding his campaign

As the architect of the Lib Dems' election disaster in 2015, Nick Clegg was expected to stand down as an MP if the General Election had been held in 2020.

But after Theresa May's snap election announcement he decided, reluctantly, to run again in Sheffield Hallam, where his majority has shrunk to 2,300 from 15,000 in 2010.

Clegg, the former deputy prime minister, is clearly not willing to risk any financial hardship from the election campaign.

Nick Clegg, the former deputy prime minister, was set to stand down as MP at 2020 election but will un again in Sheffield Hallam in June

On his website, there is a section which appeals for 'crowdfunding' to help bankroll the publication of thousands of Lib Dem leaflets. He's appealing for 25 donations.

Yet Clegg, who has taken part in under a third of votes in Parliament in the past year, has earned almost 300,000 in fewer than two years on the backbenches.

On top of his MP's salary, he's cashed in on the lecture circuit, earning 99,540 in 2015-16 and 181,000 in the past financial year.

It hardly sounds as if he needs to go cap in hand to supporters after leading the Lib Dems to their worst result in almost 50 years.

Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner tweeted: 'Tories admit they don't know how much school breakfasts will cost, another manifesto pledge falling apart.' Pot, kettle, black. Announcing Labour would outlaw classes with more than 30 pupils, she was unable to say how many are in 30-plus classes today.

A top tip from ex-postie Alan

Even before he became a Labour MP, Alan Johnson, who is standing down, was aware of the perils of doorstep canvassing.

Johnson, a former Home Secretary, used to be a postman. 'I became aware of how cynical householders could be when, as a young postman, I heard of a colleague who, one Christmas, saw a note pinned to the door of a house,' he recalls in The Oldie magazine. 'It read: 'Postman  please knock for your tip.' He complied expectantly, and was confronted by the master of the house.

'Without an ounce of Yuletide cheer, he pressed his face close to the postman's and said: 'Here's your tip  shut the f****** gate behind you.' '

Labour MP, Alan Johnson, was aware of the perils of doorstep canvassing when seeking election

In the Yorkshire constituency of Skipton & Ripon, where the Tories are defending a 20,000 majority, the Lib Dem candidate Pete Flynn has stood down. He wants to forge a 'progressive alliance' to enable the Greens to fight the Tories.

The deal with the Greens is tied in with the fact that they have stood down next door in Harrogate & Knaresborough, where the Lib Dems are fighting to recapture the seat which they lost to the Tories in 2010  and where the party's candidate is Flynn's wife, Helen. Talk about keeping it in the family!

Is great-granny Doris Osen, 87, who is standing as an independent in Ilford North, the oldest election candidate? The ex-teacher stood in 2015 and polled 87 votes. She's a sucker for punishment.

Labour MP for Hampstead & Kilburn Tulip Siddiq nominated Jeremy Corbyn for the party's leadership

Tulip's Corbyn Regret

In an interview, Glenda Jackson poured scorn on Comrade Corbyn and his ability as a leader, saying we couldn't afford his fantasy manifesto.

Now Tulip Siddiq, her successor as Labour MP for Hampstead & Kilburn, has joined in. She was one of the MPs who nominated Corbyn for the leadership, and explains: 'We were in a Westminster tea room when Jeremy himself told me: 'I don't want to be leader  I just want to broaden the debate.' '

Siddiq will regret this if, with a majority of only 1,138, she loses the seat this time.

Haringey, one of London's most deprived boroughs, has little in common with Cannes. Yet the Labour-dominated council has lavished 44,000 on a five-strong group attending a property conference there. What warped priorities from a council wanting 20 million of cuts.
Major powers to ban British jihadists from returning to the country after fighting with Islamic State have been used for first time.

Last week the Daily Mail revealed that Temporary Exclusion Orders (TEOs), introduced by David Cameron two years ago, had never been used by the Government.

He introduced them amid concerns that UK extremists were coming back from the Syrian war zone. The Home Office said that none had been issued  prompting criticism that ministers were not being tough enough on terrorists.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd confirmed in an interview with the BBC that we have started to use them but it is understood the power has only been used just once

But yesterday incumbent Home Secretary Amber Rudd confirmed in an interview with the BBC that we have started to use them. It is understood just one has been imposed.

Mr Cameron acted amid fears that battle-hardened terrorists with British passports were heading home intending to bring bloodshed to the streets.

Initially, the then Prime Minister wanted to ban them from returning. But the plan was watered down after being savaged by MPs and legal experts for being unlawful, as it would effectively leave British citizens stateless.

Instead, he introduced the exclusion orders, which last a maximum of two years.

A TEO, which is approved by a judge before being issued by the Home Secretary, makes it illegal for a fanatic to return to the UK without informing the authorities and agreeing to be monitored.

A TEO, which is approved by a judge before being issued by the Home Secretary, makes it illegal for a fanatic to return to the UK without informing the authorities and agreeing to be monitored

It is supported by cancelling their passport and adding their names to terrorist and criminal watchlists against which every person arriving in Britain is checked.

Introduced in February 2015, it addressed a gap in the powers which meant British jihadis could not be prevented from coming home under international law after fighting overseas.

Ms Rudd also admitted the authorities did not know how many Britons had returned from fighting with Islamic State or other extremists in Syria.

Security sources say about half of the 850 Britons who are thought to have gone to fight have come back  trained in the use of explosives and firearms as they took part in the groups murderous rampage.

Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi is reported to have travelled to Syria from his parents home in Libya before flying back to the UK to commit the atrocity.

Ms Rudd said: We dont know the exact number [who have returned]. What we do know, in engaging with the intelligence services and with the police and with the Border Force, we make sure that they have the tools to track them and to keep them out where we can.

Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi is reported to have travelled to Syria from his parents home in Libya before flying back to the UK to commit the atrocity. Picture above, police raiding a home in the northern city last week following the attack at Manchester Arena

Meanwhile, a Muslim former police chief said thousands of extremists should be locked up in new internment camps to protect Britain from the unprecedented terror threat it faces.

Tarique Ghaffur, an Assistant Commissioner at Scotland Yard when the July 7 bombings took place, warned there were too many fanatics on the streets for police and MI5 officers to monitor.

He proposed that special centres be set up to detain as many as 3,000 jihadists  where they can be kept from launching attacks and made to go through a deradicalisation programme.

He said taking dangerous individuals off the streets would ensure they could not murder and maim innocent citizens.

Mr Ghaffur, once Britains most senior Asian officer, said: These would be community-based centres where the extremists would be risk-assessed. Then the extremists would be made to go through a deradicalisation programme, using the expertise of imams, charity workers and counterterrorism officers.

These centres would have oversight from vetted Muslim and other community leaders, who would ensure they stayed within the law.

The policy of internment in Northern Ireland lasted from August 1971 until December 1975.

During that time 1,981 people were locked up, the vast majority of them young Roman Catholic men. The tough action was taken on the grounds that the terror threat justified it.

But the legislation allowing it undermined civil liberties, causing uproar and making things worse by sparking a violent backlash.

Last week Lord Blair, the ex-Scotland Yard chief, said internment for potential Islamic jihadists could fuel anger and grievance among the countrys Muslims, whose co-operation is needed to root out terrorists.

Former Security Minister Lord West warned: Internment would be bad for our standing in the world, and also our position would not be good in fighting terrorists. Like as in war, we have to be whiter than white, and so we would not look good against the terrorists we are fighting. Secondly, I dont think it will work at a practical level, as I dont want these extremely dangerous, drug-taking jihadis put in the same place as more vulnerable ones.
Amid all the hurly-burly of a general election campaign, it is sometimes easy to forget that for the men and women who lead Her Majestys Government, one responsibility dwarfs all others.

As last weeks atrocity in Manchester reminded us, the first job of any government must be to keep the British people safe.

We expect that our leaders will be on our side, will always do their best to fight the extremists, and  at the very least  will never support those who want to kill us. All other considerations pale by comparison.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and shadow home secretary Diane Abbott

All this may sound blindingly obvious. But it speaks volumes about the state of todays Labour Party that even by these most basic standards, the man who would be Prime Minister, Jeremy Corbyn, and his Shadow Home Secretary, Diane Abbott, fall shockingly, insultingly and frighteningly short.

Both Mr Corbyn and Ms Abbott were on television yesterday morning. Both were questioned about national security and the terrorist threat. And in both cases, I was frankly horrified by what I heard.

As the Mail reported on Saturday, Mr Corbyn has form, to put it mildly. All his life, dating back to his days as a young activist in the late 1970s, he has unwaveringly backed Britains enemies against their victims.

A few examples. In the early 1980s, the London Labour Briefing, which Mr Corbyn co-founded, gloried in the news of IRA attacks on British soldiers and joked that the 1984 Brighton bombing was just a start.

In 1996, after the IRA had bombed the London Docklands, the West End and  with grim irony  Manchester, Mr Corbyn invited their political godfather, Gerry Adams, to the House of Commons to launch his autobiography, despite the fact that both the Speaker and the Labour leadership begged him to reconsider.

'Both Mr Corbyn and Ms Abbott were on television yesterday morning. Both were questioned about national security and the terrorist threat. And in both cases, I was frankly horrified by what I heard'

In 2001 he blamed the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center (which had, he said admiringly, taken an enormous amount of skill) on US support for Israel.

In 2002, he blamed the Islamist nightclub bombing on Bali, which killed 202 people, mostly Australian holidaymakers, on the CIAs interventions in Indonesia four decades earlier.

In 2011, he boasted to a Stop the War rally that he had opposed every single major piece of anti-terrorist legislation since he entered Parliament. Seventeen times various governments tried to strengthen our national security, and 17 times Jeremy Corbyn tried to stop them.

Perhaps most appallingly, it emerged yesterday that in 2014, Mr Corbyn told a Stop the War rally that the death of Alan Henning, beheaded by Jihadi John, was the price of war, the price of intervention, the price of jingoism.

For the avoidance of doubt, let me remind you that Alan Henning was not a soldier but an aid worker, a cab driver who had volunteered to drive humanitarian supplies to the victims of the Syrian Civil War. Yet Mr Corbyn blamed his death on jingoism.

'To be honest, I am not sure which is worse: Jeremy Corbyns unctuous dishonesty, or Diane Abbotts attempt to laugh off her support for terrorism as a lifestyle choice'

It was Britains fault, in other words. It always is.

Even when Robert Peston asked him about these comments yesterday, Mr Corbyn refused to apologise. And when asked about his support for the IRA, he repeated that he was talking to all sides in a valiant effort to bring peace to Northern Ireland.

I am sorry to sound harsh, but this is a lie. There is no other word for it. Mr Corbyn did not talk to all sides. He never talked to loyalists, to the British Army or to people who wanted the IRA to stop.

And he is also lying when he says he wanted peace. The record of history shows that he did not. He wanted the IRA to win, and Britain to be defeated.

All of this brings us to Diane Abbott, who is, I think, the single least competent and least trustworthy senior political figure in my lifetime. Even now I still cannot quite believe that Ms Abbott is Labours candidate to become Home Secretary.

There is probably no politician in the country with such a long record of hostility to the police, support for extremists or hostility to the British state. Not content with opposing a ban on Al Qaeda, she has even called for the security service, MI5, to be shut down.

'Seventeen times various governments tried to strengthen our national security, and 17 times Jeremy Corbyn tried to stop them'

Interviewed by Andrew Marr yesterday, she was asked whether she stood by her declaration in 1984 that Northern Ireland was our struggle  every defeat of the British state is a victory for all of us. A defeat in Northern Ireland would be a defeat indeed.

Just read those words again. Ms Abbott wanted an IRA victory. She wanted Britain to be defeated.

This is the woman that Mr Corbyn intends to put in charge of our police, the woman he trusts to protect us from the bombers. And what was Ms Abbotts reaction? She tried to laugh it off. I had an Afro, she said. It was 34 years ago. The hairstyle has gone and some of the views have gone. We have all moved on.

'Diane Abbott is, I think, the single least competent and least trustworthy senior political figure in my lifetime'

Yes, Diane Abbott equated her support for the IRA with her hairstyle. She treats the issue of terrorism with precisely the same seriousness that she brings to her personal grooming.

To be honest, I am not sure which is worse: Jeremy Corbyns unctuous dishonesty, or Diane Abbotts attempt to laugh off her support for terrorism as a lifestyle choice.

But both are essentially smokescreens for the same thing: their frankly contemptible record of justifying terror, opposing attempts to strengthen our national security and glorying in defeats for Britain and the Western world.

Since there is often far too much overheated rhetoric in election campaigns, I am reluctant to go overboard. Most politicians, of whatever party, are patriotic, well-meaning people. I didnt rate Ed Miliband. But I never doubted that he would do his best to defend our national interests and to keep the British people safe.

Yesterday, however, Mr Corbyn and Ms Abbott showed once again that they are utterly unworthy of public trust. I dont believe they would fight for Britain, I dont believe that they would stand up against terrorism, and I dont believe they would keep us safe. There can be no greater disqualification for office than that.
Manchester terror attack victim Caroline Davies, 39, with Charlotte Fawell, 15

A Manchester bomb survivor backed the Daily Mails Mobiles for Manchester appeal yesterday as generous readers began donating their phones.

Caroline Davis was seriously injured and her best friend Wendy Fawell was among the 22 killed in the atrocity, which targeted children as they left a pop concert.

The two mothers were waiting to collect their children from the Ariana Grande concert and separated just moments before the blast.

Mrs Davis, 39, was left unconscious and has been warned it could take years for her to recover fully from her multiple injuries, including a shattered elbow, a shrapnel wound to her leg, a hole in her heel and a cut to her head.

Despite her injuries, she has vowed to act as a second mother to Mrs Fawells 15-year-old daughter Charlotte, who was at the concert and has been devastated by her own mothers death.

Mother-of-three Mrs Davis said: Im happy to back the Daily Mails Mobiles for Manchester appeal.

Victims and their families will need a lot of help in the coming days and months, and if you have an old phone not being used, then donating that can help.

Community leaders have rallied behind the Mails appeal to help those affected by the terror attack by asking readers to donate their unwanted mobile phones to be reused or recycled.

The Bishop of Manchester David Walker, who has met victims families and survivors in the aftermath of the attack, said many of them would need support for years to come.

He said: There will be many young people whose lives will now be very different from how they had imagined just one week ago.

It is important that we all do whatever we can for the injured, and for those whose scars are mental, not physical.

If this appeal can get people to dig out their old phones to donate to support those people then it is an imaginative idea which could help to make a difference.

Research has found that more than a third of UK households have at least one unwanted phone gathering dust in a drawer or cupboard.

They are almost all worth money, from a few pounds to hundreds for more up-to-date smartphones.

The Mail has teamed up with Carphone Warehouse, which has agreed to accept mobiles in its 1,000 stores across the country and to donate all the money raised to the Mails appeal.

The bulk of the money raised by Mail readers will go to the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund to support the injured and bereaved.

The rest of the money raised will be sent to interfaith charities to help communities unite against terror and tackle prejudice and hatred.

Anyone who wants to donate their mobile phone can take it to any branch of Carphone Warehouse.

Caroline Davis was seriously injured and her best friend Wendy Fawell was among the 22 killed in the atrocity, which targeted children as they left a pop concert

You should tell staff you want to donate it to the Mobiles for Manchester appeal and  if you have not cleared the data from it at home (see the 6 Steps panel for an explanation) then you should ask them for help.

Carphone Warehouse has generously donated 1,000 phones, with a value of 25,000, and all money generated from donated phones will go to the Mails appeal.

Thanks to public support, more than 5.5 million has already been donated to the We Love Manchester fund, run by Manchester City Council in conjunction with the British Red Cross.

Greater Manchesters new mayor Andy Burnham has said: Our hearts go out to those who have lost loved ones, so I would encourage everyone to support this fund in any way they can.

Carphone Warehouse managing director Jeremy Fennell said: Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the events in Manchester.

'Mobiles for Manchester is a great way of showing solidarity and helping the families and community affected, so we are proud to be able to play our part.

Millions of people have old mobile phones. Bring them into our stores and we will turn them into cash to go directly to those affected by the bombing.
Tory MP for Fylde in Lancashire, Mark Menzies

Shamed Tory MP Mark Menzies allegedly 'poisoned' a friend's dog by 'giving it alcohol'.

The MP for Fylde in Lancashire was reported to have 'locked himself' in a friend's house before giving her pet dog alcohol.

However Mr Menzies has strongly denied the allegations, claiming he was the victim of an 'unprovoked assault' with sources adding he is the 'victim of a smear campaign'.

According to The Mirror, Mr Menzies became embroiled in an argument in Langford, Oxfordshire on August 6, 2015.

The dog owner claimed to have spent some 500 on vets' bills, The Mirror reported.

Thames Valley Police said officers responded to reports of a verbal argument and there had been no arrests but a 45-year-old man was voluntarily interviewed.

However Mr Menzies said the claims were 'false and malicious', adding he co-operated with a police investigation and was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Mr Menzies said the claims were 'false and malicious', adding he co-operated with a police investigation and was cleared of any wrongdoing

In 2014 Mr Menzies left his role as a ministers aide shortly after being asked about his relationship with 19-year-old Rogerio dos Santos Pinto  who told reporters that the MP had been paying him for sex.

The Brazilian said they met on a gay escort website and claimed the politician had given him a tour of the Houses of Parliament before allegedly offering to pay him 250 for a two-hour session.

Mr Menzies resigned from his post as aide to International Development Minister Alan Duncan after Santos got in touch with the Press. However the MP strongly denied the allegations.
The parents of a teenager killed while attending her first pop concert at Manchester Arena have told of their heartbreak, but insisted children cannot be wrapped in cotton wool.

Nell Jones, 14, was leaving the Ariana Grande concert with her friend Freya Lewis when suicide bomber Salman Abedi committed his act of mass-murder.

In a statement, her family described her as top-class, clever and fun  adding our hearts have been shattered.

But they said: We cant wrap our children in cotton wool. She was so excited to go to her first pop concert. She was singing in the car all the way there.

Nell Jones, 14, was leaving the Ariana Grande concert with her friend Freya Lewis when suicide bomber Salman Abedi committed his act of mass-murder

Nells parents, from Goostrey, Cheshire, added: Even though she has been taken from us, weve had 14 lovely years with her and that makes us so happy. They were the best years. We were so lucky to have her.

The family of another victim, Georgina Callander, 18, urged the Government to open its eyes to the terror threat  before more parents lost children.

Lesley and Simon Callander said their daughters life had been cut short by evil, evil men prepared to ruin lives and destroy families.

They added: I wish I could say that Georgina is one of the last to die in this way but unless our Government opens its eyes we know we are only another in a long line of parents on a list that continues to grow.

Miss Callander, from Chorley, Lancashire, was in her second year of studying health and social care at Runshaw College in Leyland, Lancashire.

Mrs Callander described finding her daughter on a stretcher as paramedics fought to save her life. She told ITV News: I was just screaming and shouting at her. I was rubbing her hands, I was rubbing her tummy, I was rubbing her face.

Nells parents, from Goostrey, Cheshire, added: Even though she has been taken from us, weve had 14 lovely years with her and that makes us so happy. They were the best years. We were so lucky to have her'

An off-duty policewoman who died in the bombing was described as the glue that held us all together yesterday.

Elaine McIver, 43, was standing in the foyer with partner Paul Price, 49, while waiting for his daughter and a friend to emerge from the concert hall at the end of the show. Mr Price is still in hospital, and is not thought to be aware that the Cheshire Police officer has died.

Georgina Callendar's parents said the government needs to open its eyes or they will just be another name on a long list of parents that continues to grow

Miss McIvers family paid tribute to a woman who would have wanted us all to continue to laugh, despite the tears in our eyes and pain in our hearts.

She had a huge heart, was thoughtful beyond belief and would do anything for anyone, they said.

It emerged last night that a hero mother saved the life of a stranger after the bombing by driving him to hospital at 100mph.

Lianna Shutt, a trained nurse, bundled the heavily bleeding man and his daughter, who was also injured, into her car and rushed them to Accident & Emergency.

The speed at which Mrs Shutt, 29, drove the man to hospital has been credited with saving his life.

Mrs Shutt said: I knew he was bleeding to death. I drove at 100mph to get them to hospital and I was weaving in and out of cars. The police have told me they will cancel all my speeding tickets as it was a matter of life and death.

The surgeon came up to me outside and said I was the first person to arrive. Even the ambulances hadnt got there.
William Tyrrell's grandmother was left 'shocked and confused' when she saw a photograph of the missing toddler stuck to Schapelle Corby's handbag on Sunday but now thinks the attention-grabbing ploy was a 'good idea'.

Natalie Collins, 57, spoke with Daily Mail Australia on Monday just hours after Ms Corby's dramatic exit from Indonesia where she was seen holding a black handbag decorated with a picture of William in his Spiderman outfit.

'When I first saw it I was a bit shocked and confused and upset about it  I was thinking ''why is she doing this'',' Mrs Collins told Daily Mail Australia.

William Tyrrell's family have been left divided over the use of his photograph by Schapelle Corby on Sunday

Ms Corby, pictured left, held a bag with a sticker of the boy plastered to the front as she left Indonesia after being released by authorities after serving time for drug smuggling

Natalie Collins, William's grandmother, said other members of William's family had 'no right' to be angry over the publicity

But she 'came around' to the idea after being bombarded with texts from concerned friends and family who had seen Ms Corby's controversial Indonesian departure.

'I was woken up with texts asking how I felt about it - but I think it is probably a good thing,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

'She probably thought she is back in Australia  and instead of having all of the media attention on her she would put attention on a cause that matters, like William.

'We haven't heard much about him for a while so I think it is good for people to see the picture so they can keep looking for him.'

Other members of William's family, however, were immediately defensive after seeing the convicted drug smuggler's handbag.

'We are not happy,' they wrote on Facebook.

'Williams family and their campaign to support the NSW Police in their investigation in the search for William have absolutely no association with Schapelle Corby, her supporters or her family and had no prior knowledge of Miss Corbys intention to use Williams image in this way.

William went missing from the yard of his other grandmother's home in September 2014

'While the Wheres William Campaign aims to increase awareness where possible, this situation regarding Miss Corby has no association whatsoever to William, his loved ones or their campaign to find their little boy.'

But Mrs Collins immediately dismissed the family's anger over the use of her grandson's picture.

'They don't deserve to be angry about it,' the grandmother said.

'The publicity could help us find him,' she said.

William's parents took the toddler and his sister to visit another grandmother in Kendall on the NSW Mid North Coast on September 12, 2014 when he went missing.

Mrs Collins believes Ms Corby was trying to 'divert attention' to a worthy cause

William was three when he disappeared without a trace from Kendall in the Mid North Coast

The then three-year-old boy was playing in the yard when police believe he was abducted  no body has been found since.

'We were talking about him last night and we still don't understand how it can happen,' Mrs Collins said.

'My life has been shot to pieces since he went missing, I am practically homeless.

'While they (William's parents) keep going on holidays and renovate their house.

'If I lost a child I wouldn't leave the area until I found them.'

'My life has been shot to pieces since he went missing, I am practically homeless while they (William's parents) keep going on holidays and renovate their house,' she said

'If I lost a child I wouldn't leave the area until I found them,' she said

The grandmother revealed the emotional turmoil of William's disappearance had a 'huge effect' on the toddler's father, who she says 'he adored'.

'William was always happy to see him, I remember once he bounced out of the elevator like a kangaroo and straight into his dad's arms.

The grandmother claims William's parents are 'pouring everything they have into being strong for their other children' but want him to be found.

'Their youngest who is four now talks about William, he has been forced to grow up faster than he should because he knows his big brother went missing,' she said.

Mrs Collins said she hoped Schapelle's use of the bag will once again put the spotlight on finding the little boy in the Spiderman costume.

'I have met a lot of people over Facebook who adore William and they all need closure as well.'

There is currently a $1 million reward for information leading to William being found.
An elderly man has ended a decades-long mystery by pleading guilty to the rape and murder of a six-year-old girl on Melbourne Cup Day in 1984.

Kylie Maybury was found dead in a Preston gutter in Melbourne's north the day after she disappeared more than 30 years ago.

Gregory Keith Davies, 73, pleaded guilty to her rape and murder on the first day of his pre-trial committal hearing on Monday.

Gregory Keith Davies has ended a decades-long mystery by pleading guilty to the rape and murder of six-year-old girl Kylie Maybury on Melbourne Cup Day in 1984

Gregory Keith Davies, 73, pleaded guilty to the heinous crime on the first day of his pre-trial committal hearing on Monday

The court previously heard that the six-year-old died from suffocation and a toxicology report indicated she had valium in her system.

Kylie and her mother had visited their Preston neighbour on November 6, 1984 when she was sent out to buy sugar. She never returned.

Davies was arrested and charged in June last year with abducting and murdering Kylie.

At the time, Detective Inspector Mick Hughes said Kylie's mother Julie Maybury had 'been a pillar of strength' following her daughter's death, according to the ABC.

'A child should be allowed to go to the street and buy a packet of sugar and go home safely, unfortunately this little girl didn't,' he said.

Ms Maybury said when she heard Davies' plea of guilty, she felt shocked and numb inside.

'I just broke down,' she said outside the Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Monday.

'I'm so totally over the moon that he's done it. It's been 33 years and he's put me through hell.'

Detective Inspector Mick Hughes said Kylie's mother Julie Maybury (pictured leaving court on Monday) had 'been a pillar of strength' following her daughter's death

Davies (pictured) was arrested and charged in June last year with abducting and murdering Kylie

His admission brings a sense of long-awaited relief, she said.

'It's just made life so much easier and all the victims out there who've lost their children, I can understand exactly where they stand,' she said.

'We all can move on. The dark is nearly over.'

Magistrate Duncan Reynolds remanded Davies in custody for a directions hearing in the Supreme Court on Tuesday.
A man whose body was found decomposing in a stormwater drain was last seen trying to take a swim at a beach while high on drugs.

Michael Peter Ceremuga, 37, was stopped by police at Barney Point Beach in Gladstone, Queensland, on May 11 as he appeared to be on drugs.

Two weeks later recovery workers had the grim task of hauling his body out of the drain about four kilometres south on Benaraby Road.

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The body of Michael Peter Ceremuga, 34, was found decomposing in a stormwater drain in Gladstone, Queensland, last week and was last seen high on drugs on a beach on May 11

Emergency crew eventually had to crawl into the man hole to retrieve the body which was lodged in the stormwater drain

An elderly couple discovered his body last Thursday when they investigated a bad smell that had been wafting over their property for several days.

Detective Acting Inspector Luke Peachey said police believed Mr Ceremuga was not seen alive since he was on the beach and a post-mortem examination indicated he may have died around that date.

Police were still trying to piece together his final movements and appealed to the public for anyone who may have seen him after he left the beach.

Forensic officers search his house on Toolooa Street two kilometres from the stormwater drain and found dried blood inside and on the back door, along with drug-related items inside.

The man, aged in his 30s, was found after residents noticed a foul smell drifting from the drain

Inspector Peachey said he did not have any wounds on his body and his cause of death was likely to be revised to non-suspicious.

'We are still keeping open mind but no evidence of third party involvement,' he said.

He said police spoke to his family who were 'distressed and wanting answers'.

It took more than a day after the discovery for dozens of emergency services to work out how to retrieve the body from the tight space, eventually deciding someone would need to crawl in to drag it out.

'In some stages the officers had to crawl through... it wouldn't have been a pleasant site or job and I take my hat off to those who did it,' Inspector Peachey said.

Emergency crew initially considered excavating the road to retrieve the man's body, however it was recovered by Queensland Fire and Emergency Service workers who entered the manhole 24 hours after it was first discovered

The granddaughter of the couple who investigated the foul smell near their Gladstone property says crew initially believed it was a woman's body.

'The body was discovered in the drain which is practically on their property. Granddad has been complaining about a bad smell the past couple of days, so he went to investigate,' the woman, named Tegan, said.

'[They thought] he was a young woman. Probably 25. He was described as very pretty.'

Tegan said her grandparents were coping 'surprisingly well' after the grisly discovery.
The stabbing death of a Bandidos associate on the Gold Coast was 'about a girl' and had nothing to do with motorcycle gangs, according to a lawyer defending two men involved.

Max Waller, 28, died outside a Broadbeach apartment complex on June 23, 2013 after being stabbed repeatedly in the chest.

Wade Yates-Taui, Cohen Andrew Smith and Benjamin Thomas Mortimer were originally charged with murder, but pleaded guilty in the Brisbane Supreme Court on Monday to a downgraded offence of manslaughter.

The stabbing death of a Bandidos associate Max Waller (pictured) was 'about a girl' and had nothing to do with motorcycle gangs, according to a lawyer defending two men involved

Wade Yates-Taui (pictured with girlfriend Raquel Petit) pleaded guilty on Monday to a downgraded offence of manslaughter

Solicitor Michael Gatenby - who represented Yates-Taui and Mortimer - told reporters outside court the incident had 'nothing to do with any motorcycle club'.

'It seems to have been a relationship, it's always about a girl,' Mr Gatenby said.

'The irony of the whole thing is that these were a group of friends.

'It's a tragedy for all four families, someone lost their life and these people were unfortunately involved in it.'

All three men were remanded in custody and will face court again on June 9 for a sentencing date to be set.
A light-footed man has captured on camera the moment he released his inner Russell Coight as his desire to dance boiled over at a remote spot in New South Wales.

Nathan McManus can be seen walking along a dirt track in Milparinka at night after pulling up in his car to open a gate on the path.

After opening the gate, his feet suddenly burst into action, as the 18-year-old took centre stage in front of his car's shining headlights.

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The clip shows Nathan McManus opens the dirt track gate before erupting into his dance

The 18-year-old struts his stuff throughout the 45 second clip filmed in Milparinka, NSW

The showman struts his stuff as a dance version of The Fray's How To Save A Life blares out from the car's stereo.

The 45 second clip showcases his tap dancing talents as he jives back and forth along the track, while donning an Akubra hat and cowboy boots.

After posting the video to Facebook, it has amassed over 470,000 views and its popularity has even surprised the budding boogie star.

'I've been overwhelmed with the response I got from my out of time dancing,' Mr McManus told Daily Mail Australia.

'I never expected to go over 1000 views, and was over the moon at even 10,000.'

The farm apprentice, originally from Geelong, has his friends to thank for his new found fame after inspiring him to film the viral clip.

'It was a spur of the moment thing on the night. I'd been missing my friends back home and all of our times out clubbing, so I took my music and then put an Outback spin on the moves.'

'Although I must admit I have popped the Russell Coight dance out a couple of times at the local,' he did admit.

The farm apprentice, originally from Geelong, says his friends and Russell Coight inspired him to film the viral clip
One of the torpedo boats John F Kennedy heroically commanded during World War Two could be at the bottom of the Harlem River, according to one expert.

Author William Doyle believes Kennedy's little-known PT 59 is stuck at the bottom of New York City's Harlem River near 208th Street and a rail yard.

Doyle had heard rumors online of the boat's location, so in January 2016 he started trying to trace it, according to the New York Post.

Lieutenant, junior grade John F. Kennedy aboard the PT-109 in the South Pacific during World War II in 1943. His heroics on the 109 are well known and he used his experience on the boat during his presidential campaign

Kennedy's PT 59, which is believed to be sitting at the bottom of the Harlem River near 208th Street and a rail yard near Inwood

The 59-year-old published a biography of Kennedy last summer called 'PT 109', named after Kennedy's better-known World War Two torpedo boat.

Kennedy, whose 100th birthday is Monday, used his experience on the PT 109 during the war for his presidential campaign, but according to Doyle, 'he almost never talked publicly about what he did aboard the 59', the Post reports.

The PT 59 was JFK's third command as a Lieutenant, junior grade. He took over the boat after the PT 109 sunk on August 2, 1943.

Author William Doyle wrote a biography of Kennedy called 'PT 109', after the best-known torpedo boat that Kennedy commanded

And while his heroics on the PT 109 have been well-remembered, in November 1943, Kennedy rescued 10 Marines on the PT 59 when Japanese infantrymen were chasing American soldiers in the Solomon Islands, east of Papua New Guinea.

After Kennedy commanded the 59, it ended up in a training center in Rhode Island and then the Philadelphia Navy Yard.

When Doyle started his search for the 59, he followed its paper trail. After the Philadelphia Navy Yard it was sold to a weekend fisherman who used it as a party boat, according to the Post.

The boat was set on fire and then Doyle believes it was made into a houseboat that was docked at 208th in Inwood.

Eventually the new owner let the boat sink because it was a hazard, according to Doyle, who went to the spot and even got in the river to check it out.

But when he stepped on the riverbed, he 'started getting sucked under', so his neighbor who was with him, pulled him out to safety.

'It's an ugly, godforsaken, forgotten place,' Doyle told the Post. 'That is why nobody goes up there and why the boat has been left alone.'

Doyle told the outlet he is only 99.99% sure it is the PT 59, saying his .01% of doubt will only be erased when the boat is dug out of the Harlem River and examined.

He said he hopes an organization devoted to Kennedy will be the one to excavate it.

Kennedy aboard the PT-109 in the South Pacific during World War II in 1943

Kennedy, right, and crewmen of the PT 109 in the Solomon Islands during World War II in 1943
Now that President Donald Trump is back in the United States following his first foreign trip as president, he can do what he loves best - criticizing 'fake news media' on Twitter.

The president unleashed another tweetstorm late Sunday evening defending his use of social media.

'The Fake News Media works hard at disparaging & demeaning my use of social media because they don't want America to hear the real story!' Trump tweeted late Sunday.

Hot off the heels of a successful first foreign overseas tour, Trump appeared eager to refocus public attention on matters unrelated to the ongoing investigation into his campaign's alleged ties to Russia.

Now that President Donald Trump (seen above) is back in the United States following his first foreign trip as president, he can do what he loves best - criticizing 'fake news media' on Twitter

The president unleashed another tweetstorm late Sunday evening defending his use of social media

Hot off the heels of a successful first foreign overseas tour, Trump appeared eager to refocus public attention on matters unrelated to the ongoing investigation into his campaign's alleged ties to Russia

The president used Twitter on Sunday to tout his plans for tax reform while also repeating his pledge to repeal Obamacare

The president used Twitter on Sunday to tout his plans for tax reform while also repeating his pledge to repeal Obamacare.

'The massive TAX CUTS/REFORM that I have submitted is moving along in the process very well, actually ahead of schedule. Big benefits to all!' Trump tweeted.

'I suggest that we add more dollars to Healthcare and make it the best anywhere,' the president tweeted.

'ObamaCare is dead - the Republicans will do much better!'

Earlier Sunday, Trump resumed his crusade against the 'fake news media' which he has now accused of making up sources and fabricating stories about his administration.

'It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #fakenews media.

'Whenever you see the words "sources say" in the fake news media, and they don't mention names it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #Fakenews is the enemy!' he said.

He then chastised the source of a leak who provided information about Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi to the press, a move which outraged UK officials.

Earlier Sunday, Trump revived his crusade against what he calls the 'fake news media', sharing a string of tweets in which he accused journalists of making up sources and stories

'British Prime Minister May was very angry that the info the UK gave to US about Manchester was leaked. Gave me full details!' he said.

The message comes amid reports, citing anonymous sources in the administration or close to it, that the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner tried to establish a back channel to communicate with Russian officials before the inauguration to avoid having their conversations monitored by US authorities.

The Washington Post was the first to report on it on Friday and cited 'insiders' who revealed that the Russian ambassador made note of Kushner's proposal in documents.

The back-channel claim falls into a wider pool of accusations about the administration's possible ties with Russian officials.

They have plagued the White House for months and are the subject of multiple ongoing congressional committee investigations.

Kushner has become the focus of the investigations in the past week, say more anonymous insiders.

The president's tweets came amid claims his son-in-law Jared Kushner (pictured right on Friday) tried to establish a back channel with Russian officials in December

White House sources said Kushner wanted to set up the channel to allow former National Security Adviser General Michael Flynn to communicate with Russian counterparts without being monitored by US authorities

The back channel proposal was reportedly dropped when Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was sworn in on February 1. The purpose of it had been to discuss Russia and the US's strategy in Syria.

The White House has acknowledged the meeting where it was reportedly discussed but said it was a courtesy get-together.

Trump maintains that no one in either his campaign or transition team colluded with Russian officials and the Kremlin has also dismissed the back channel claims.

Trump aides insisted over the weekend that the topic never came up during the G7 summit in Sicily, despite televisions playing round-the-clock coverage of the claims.

They insisted that the president was not asked about the reports by other foreign leaders and then refused to discuss it with a pool of reporters.

'We're not going to comment on Jared. We're just not going to comment,' said Gary Cohn, the president's chief economic adviser, during a press conference in Taormina on Saturday.

Kushner and Ivanka joined the president for the first part of his foreign trip last week. He is pictured with his wife at the Vatican last Wednesday

The New York Times reported that the White House plans to bolster its legal team with new attorneys in light of the accusations against Kushner.

Kushner spent the first half of the president's overseas trip by his side. He and Ivanka joined the president and first lady in Saudi Arabia, Israel and Rome but jetted back to Washington DC on Thursday.

Trump went on with his wife to Brussels and then Sicily for the G7 summit.

As he tweeted on Sunday, the president also criticized the media's coverage of the Montana special election.

Republican candidate Greg Gianforte won the race despite being cited for misdemeanor assault the day before polls opened for 'body-slamming' a Guardian journalist.

Trump said on Sunday: 'Big win in Montana for Republicans! Does anyone notice how the Montana Congressional race was such a big deal to Dems & Fake News until the Republican won? V was poorly covered,' referring to Gianforte's win.
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker was just trying to enjoy a Memorial Day weekend barbecue before he was skewered, roasted and burned online.

Walker shared a photograph of his chicken, beef and vegetable kebabs, unwittingly offending hundreds of Twitter users who relentlessly mocked his techniques.

Social media users zoomed in on his chunks of raw chicken, blasted his lack of seasoning and scorned his skewer assembly, all while badmouthing his ability to govern.

Twitter user @MrsJavi1 wrote: 'Not marinated. Not seasoned. Onions cooking as long as chicken. This screams "Norovirus!!!" Were you raised by wolves?'

Walker shared a photograph of his chicken, beef and vegetable kebabs, unwittingly offending hundreds of Twitter users who relentlessly mocked his techniques.

Many social media users were quick to point out that hardly any seasoning was added

Others criticized his assembly, with @RJonseing writing: 'these skewers demonstrate the declining standards of Republican leaders'

Twitter user @CaseysHotCakes even took the time to zoom in and circle a skewer of chicken, pulling in Gordon Ramsey to 'check out what this dumb, treasonous f*** is cooking....unreal'

The Republican politician was likely enjoying his long weekend when he shared the offending photograph with the caption: 'Grilling out!!!'

But horrified social media users soon responded with harsh critiques, with user @lmwilliams writing: 'That moment, when you realize the Scott Walker knows nothing about grilling.'

Several people pointed out the lack of seasoning or marinade. Adam Blas wrote: 'Salt, Pepper, a little olive oil. If you can't handle the basics step away from the grill.'

Another user asked, 'Was mayonnaise too spicy to add?' while Eric Brown wrote: 'Scott do you somehow hate flavor even more than you hate unions?'

Others took issue with the way the skewers were assembled, pointing out the different cooking times for vegetables and meats.

User @lmwilliams wrote: 'That moment, when you realize the Scott Walker knows nothing about grilling'

Others photoshopped Walker's image to express their dismay at his barbecue techniques

Others tried to enlist chef Gordon Ramsey to tear apart Walker's food

@ColiseumSewage tweeted: 'Uh, you got beef & chicken on the same skewers. One of those is gonna get overcooked.'

RoderickA1 piped in, writing: 'You are going to be eating a bunch of mushy vegetables or get Salmonella. I hope it's both. Enjoy!!!'

TinaMcGugan tweeted: 'Raw vegetables jammed up against raw chicken? Geeze, call your UW Extension food safety volunteers! Or have you cut their funding?'

At least two people shared photos of their own skewers to shame Walker by comparison, while others didn't mince their words.

@Andymoney69 wrote: 'nono @ScottWalker people want you to eat s*** not eat like s***'
A crowd of Muslims gathered on an Australian street to condemn terrorism in the wake of the Manchester attack.

The group of Islamic men stood on a path in the middle of the Perth CBD in Western Australia wearing t-shirts that read: 'I am a Muslim, ask me anything'.

Imam Kamran Tahir - who is an Ahmadiyya Muslim - stood alongside other Islam adherents while wearing the shirts in a bid to ease the fear surrounding the Islamic faith after the suicide bombing in Manchester.

Imam Kamran Tahir (pictured) donned a t-shirt with the words: 'I am a Muslim, ask me anything' and stood in the Perth CBD

The Islamic men spoke to members of the public about their religion in a bid to clear up misconceptions about the faith

The Perth man shared images of himself and fellow Muslims outside of the Murray Street Mall with a whiteboard behind them which had the words: 'I'm a Muslim. I condemn terrorism' written on it.

'Muslims went out to Perth CBD and condemned the attacks in Manchester. Great way to remove any misconceptions that people might hold,' Mr Tahir wrote on Twitter.

Photos of the congregation of Muslim men show them speaking to bystanders who stopped to have a chat about Islam and terrorism.

Mr Tahir said he wanted to take to the streets to clear up misinformed judgement on the Islam faith after the tragic terrorist bombing in Manchester.

'It was heartbreaking for us to see in the name of our faith that this atrocity was happening and that beloved human beings were unfortunately being killed in the name of Islam,' he told the West Australian.

'It was essential to show that we stand shoulder to shoulder with the people who mourned the unfortunate deaths of those who lost their lives in Manchester.'

Photos of the congregation of Muslim men show them speaking to bystanders who stopped to have a chat about Islam and terrorism

'Muslims went out to Perth CBD and condemned the attacks in Manchester. Great way to remove any misconceptions that people might hold,' Mr Tahir wrote on Twitter

The Islamic man received many messages of support after he stood out on the street and publicly condemned terrorism

He said the response from the public in Perth to their Islamic statement was surprising and overwhelming.

Many people who walked past gave the Muslim men high-fives, hugs and handshakes and spoke words of support.

After posting the pictures to his Twitter account, Mr Tahir also received messages praising him for educating the public on Islam, as many shared their frustration that Muslims felt obliged to apologise for the actions of radical followers.

'I am sorry you have to condemn something that has nothing to do with you. Thank you for your service to our community,' one person wrote.

Another said: 'That's nice but why do we have to condemn every action of aso called Muslim that does something horrific? Why are we so apologetic?'

'It's lovely, and I think it sucks that Muslims feel pressure to do this. We have got to understand that this is not representative,' another person said.

Some Twitter users said it was unfair all Muslims felt obliged to apologise for the acts of a radical few

'It is not representative': This Twitter user pointed out the actions of the suicide bomber does not reflect the mentality of all Muslims
It has been exactly one year since a 17-year-old gorilla was shot and killed at the Cincinnati Zoo when zookeepers needed to protect a three-year-old boy.

And the worldwide attention that soon followed the death of Harambe sparked thousands of memes and parody videos, making the ape a pop culture phenomenon.

The Cincinnati Zoo had no public events to commemorate Harambe even though the park is planning to expand its gorilla exhibit in June.

But while the zoo said little, Twitter users had a field day creating and bringing back some of their favorite memes about Harambe.

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It has been exactly one year since a 17-year-old gorilla was shot and killed at the Cincinnati Zoo when zookeepers needed to protect a three-year-old boy

Harambe - who would be turning 18 this year - became a pop culture phenomenon following his death

@BillRatchet said: 'Harambe died one year ago today... you know what the saddest part is ....? dawg ain't even own 1 gucci belt before his death'

@BennettMarlow shared similar sentiments when he said: 'Today marks the 1 year anniversary of our sweet prince, Harambe, being wrongfully murdered #NeverForget'

'Heroes get remembered, but legends never die #NeverForget #harambe,' pointed out user @zhopf who shared a photo of Harambe in the clouds.

@EdwardsKendyl posted a picture of her holding a photo of the ape in her graduation cap and said: 'Harambe jokes may be dead but he lives on through the shadows.'

@99_goonsquad was straight to the point and said: 'can't believe its already been a year! rip harambe (sic).'

A memorial for Harambe made in 2016 in front of the gorilla exhibit. The Cincinnati zoo had no public plans to commemorate the ape

Flowers lay around this 2016 memorial. The park is hoping to expand the gorilla exhibit in June

Flowers lay around a bronze statue of a gorilla outside Cincinnati Zoo's Gorilla World exhibit days after Harambe was killed

@BillRatchet said: 'Harambe died one year ago today... you know what the saddest part is ....? dawg ain't even own 1 gucci belt before his death'

'Today marks the 1 year anniversary of our sweet prince, Harambe, being wrongfully murdered #NeverForget,' said @BennettMarlow

'Heroes get remembered, but legends never die #NeverForget #harambe,' pointed out user @zhopf who shared a photo of Harambe in the clouds

@EdwardsKendyl posted a picture of her holding a photo of the ape in her graduation cap and said: 'Harambe jokes may be dead but he lives on through the shadows'

@99_goonsquad was straight to the point and said: 'can't believe its already been a year! rip harambe (sic)'

Months after the dangerous-animal response team took the gorilla's life, the zoo was forced to shut down its Twitter page because of all the attention and trolling it faced as a result.

But many have flocked to the zoos website to see the updates on a premature hippo born in the park in January named Fiona.

The zoo believes her birth will help build positive and healthy bonds for them going forward.
An Australian doctors lobby group has dismissed the 'inherent links' between Islam and terrorism and is urging a powerful committee to follow suit.

The Public Health Association of Australia has called on the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade to 'disavow' the concept.

'The PHAA urges the Committee to include a recommendation in its report that disavows the notion that there is any inherent link between Islam and terrorism,' the submission reads.

An Australian doctors lobby group has dismissed the 'inherent links' between Islam and terrorism and is urging a powerful committee to follow suit. Pictured, a group praying at a Sydney mosque

The Public Health Association of Australia has called on the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade to 'disavow' the concept (stock)

'The Committee should condemn any politician who refers divisively (expressly or implied) to any religious or ethnic group for the purpose of political gain.'

PHAA Chief Executive Michael Moore said there is no inherent link between any religion and acts of terror.

'When you look at terrorism and the IRA, I don't think many people blamed Christianity for terrorism when clearly there was an overlay,' he told The Australian.

'In fact there's nothing inherent in Christianity that links to terrorism.

PHAA Chief Executive Michael Moore said there is no inherent link between any religion and acts of terror

Mr Moore's comments come after radicalised Muslim Salman Abedi detonated a bomb that killed 22 people at Manchester Arena

'Intolerable behaviour is intolerable behaviour and... because individuals might frame that around Islam doesn't mean we should accept that.'

Mr Moore's comments come after radicalised Muslim Salman Abedi detonated a bomb that killed 22 people at Manchester Arena.

Abedi, who was born in the UK in 1994 to Libyan parents, blew himself up at an Ariana Grande concert attended by thousands of children and teenagers on May 22.

Police in Tripoli later arrested Abedi's younger brother and his father, who said he did not expect the attack.
A man who bashed four people in a two-hour ice-fuelled rampage across Sydney has been jailed for seven years.

Ricky Hema's three-suburb spree included king hitting a 27-year-old musician before stamping and jumping on his head five times as he lay motionless on the ground.

The 35-year-old was found guilty of two counts of common assault, one of bodily harm and another of grievous bodily harm with intent.

Ricky Hema, 37, who bashed four people in a two-hour ice-fuelled rampage across Sydney, has been jailed for a maximum of seven years

Hema's attacks began when he punched a 46-year-old man in the face at the Royal Sheaf Hotel in Burwood at 1.30pm on January 24 last year

Judge Helen Syme sentenced him to a minimum of five years and three months jail before parole in Sydney's Downing District Court on Monday.

Hema's attacks began when he punched a 46-year-old man in the face at the Royal Sheaf Hotel in Burwood at 1.30pm on January 24 last year.

He then kicked and punched a 72-year-old man at the same pub before fleeing to nearby Campsie where he brutally attacked a third man at a unit block car park.

The shocking footage shows the attacker approach a young man from behind and punch the victim forcefully in the side of the head, with the man seen crumpling to the floor

He then jumped on the unconscious man's head as well as kicking and stomping on it

Disturbing CCTV footage showed him punch his 27-year-old victim Oliver Goss in the side of the head and kick and stomp on his face at least five times.

The court heard the victim, a musician, lost three days' memory and may have permanent brain damage.

Outside court Mr Goss, whose horrific injuries included a broken nose and eye socket, said his attacker would finally pay for his crimes.

'It was a pretty brutal attack, I think Mr Hema's going be taking responsibility for his actions,' he told reporters.

Outside court Mr Goss (pictured), whose horrific injuries included a broken nose and eye socket, said his attacker would finally pay for his crimes

He was caught jumping on the mans unresponsive body in disturbing CCTV footage

'I just think the whole ice thing is a scourge on our society and it's a really terrible thing.'

After casually walking away from the scene he moved on to outside the Belfield Hotel in Belfield, where he shoulder-charged a 46-year-old man.

Hema initially denied the charges to police but pleaded guilty when the matter made it to court - earning him a 25 per cent sentence discount.

The 27-year-old victim is then made to suffer through a number of brutal kicks to the head, reportedly rendering him unconscious and leaving him with serious head injuries

As the victim lays motionless and injured on the ground the perpetrator decides to inflict his most brutal blow; taking a flying leap through the air and landing straight on the mans head

The court heard he had previous convictions for assault, robbery and intimidation and was on parole for them during his rampage.

Judge Syme agreed Hema's decade of ice addiction contributed to his crimes but did not absolve him of them, especially as he often blamed everyone but himself for his addiction instead of taking responsibility.

The judge recommended he be sent to a rehabilitation program once he was eligible for parole on April 25, 2021.
Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott has accused the nation's spy chief of tiptoeing around the subject of Islam and terrorism.

Mr Abbott said Australia can't pretend there isn't a problem with Islamic extremists and called on moderate Muslim leaders to do more to denounce attacks.

'We keep tiptoeing around this subject,' Mr Abbott told 2GB's Ray Hadley on Monday.

'The problem is that nearly all of the terrorist incidents are associated with people shouting out 'Allahu Akbar' as they kill.'

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott has accused the nation's spy chief Duncan Lewis (pictured) of tiptoeing around the subject of Islam and terrorism

Mr Abbott (pictured) said Australia can't pretend there isn't a problem with Islamic extremists and called on moderate Muslim leaders to do more to denounce attacks

Afghan refugee Numan Haider (pictured), 18, was killed with a single bullet to the head after he stabbed two police officers in Melbourne in 2014

Mr Abbott was responding to the comments of ASIO chief Duncan Lewis who told a Senate hearing last week there was no evidence to suggest any connection between refugees and terrorism.

'We are not interested in religion - we are interested in whether an individual is exhibiting or expressing violence,' Mr Lewis told One Nation leader Pauline Hanson -who advocates a ban on Muslim refugees.

Three fatal attacks in past three years have been carried out by first or second generation refugees.

Afghan refugee Numan Haider, 18, was killed with a single bullet to the head after he stabbed two police officers outside the Endeavour Hills police station, south east of Melbourne, on September 23, 2104.

15-year-old Farhad Jabar - who shot police accountant Curtis Cheng outside Parramatta police headquarters in October 2015 before being gunned down by officers - was also an Afghan refugee.

Iranian-born Man Haron Monis took 18 people hostage inside Sydney's Lindt Cafe before executing Tori Johnson after a 16-hour standoff in December 2014.

Afghan refugee Mohammad Ali Baryalei was accused of planning to kidnap and behead a random 'nonbeliever' before fighting with Islamic State in Syria where he is believed to have died.

Haider was killed with a single bullet to the head after stabbing the officers outside the Endeavour Hills police station, south east of Melbourne

Afghan refugee Mohammad Ali Baryalei (pictured) was accused of planning to kidnap and behead a random 'nonbeliever' before fighting with Islamic State in Syria where he is believed to have died

Iranian-born Man Haron Monis (pictured) took 18 people hostage inside Sydney's Lindt Cafe before executing Tori Johnson after a 16-hour standoff in December 2014

Mr Abbott said ASIO had to have good relationships with the Islamic community in order to obtain information from them.

But it also had to command the confidence of the whole Australian community and be open and upfront about the issue.

'You can't pretend that we don't have a problem, that there isn't a strain of Islam which is doing enormous damage to the whole world,' he said.

The overwhelming majority of Muslims around the world were decent people, but there was 'this strain of 'death to the infidel' in Islam'.

'That's why it's vital that we work with 'live and let live' Muslims to try and ensure that this 'death to the infidel' strain is gradually massaged away,' Mr Abbott said.

'Every time there's an incident, the same message has to be repeated. Any suggestion of 'death to the infidel' has no place in any modern religion.'
Rebel Wilson denies her grandmother made up a 'lovely' but untrue story their family was related to pioneering animator Walt Disney.

Wilson is suing Bauer Media, the publishers of Woman's Day, for defamation over a series of articles she claims painted her as a liar and a fake, and allegedly wrecked her career.

Wilson claims she has never lied about her real name, age or childhood.

During cross-examination in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Monday, Wilson said she still believed Disney was her uncle by marriage - a claim the magazine articles had portrayed as a falsehood.

Rebel Wilson (pictured) denies her grandmother made up 'lovely' but untrue family ties to pioneering animator Walt Disney

Wilson (pictured) said she still believes Disney to be her 'uncle' by marriage

She said her grandmother had researched a family tree confirming the familial link to Disney's wife Lillian Bounds and was 'proud' to have the connection.

Wilson, 37, previously told the court she had visited Disneyland many times and is part of the secret, invite-only Disneyland Club 33.

Bauer's defence barrister Georgina Schoff said a genealogist had proved there was no familial connection and that Wilson's grandmother had simply made up the story for a grandchild obsessed with Disney.

Also on Monday, Wilson denied she signed lucrative contracts for Hollywood movies in the months after Bauer Media allegedly defamed her.

Ms Schoff said the lucrative contract for Pitch Perfect 3 was dated September 17, 2015, during the period the comic actress claims she couldn't land a leading role.

However, Wilson said she didn't sign the contract until 2017 and that the document had been backdated to account for merchandising.

Wilson (pictured) is suing Bauer Media for defamation over a series of articles

Pitch Perfect star claims she couldn't attain a leading role in films because of articles

Ms Schoff also claimed Wilson had been terminated from her role in Kung Fu Panda 3 before the articles were published in May 2015, an allegation the star denied.

Ms Schoff said Wilson's termination document from DreamWorks for the movie Trolls was dated April 8, meaning she was fired well before the magazine articles were even published.

However, Wilson said movie studios often backdated contracts and that she was not terminated from Trolls until July 2015.

Wilson also said even though she'd tweeted in 2015 about starring in upcoming remakes of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Isn't It Romantic, it was 'positive thinking' from her team and there was no guarantee the projects would go ahead.
An amateur historian has stumbled across an amazing discovery that offers compelling evidence that a previously dismissed Australian convict fantasy is in fact true.

Nick Russell made the discovery by linking Japanese scriptures and drawings at the Tokushima archive in Japan with previous unverified accounts detailing the 1830 arrival of Australian convicts to Japan aboard the barbarian ship Cyprus, Guardian Australia reported.

During what is known as the 'Cyprus mutiny,' a group of prisoners were being taken from Hobart to Macquarie Harbour when they overhauled the vessel.

Makita Hamaguchi's 19th century drawings depict a vessel baring strong resemblence to the pirated brig Cyprus. When Nick Russell came across them, he linked them to the 1829 mutiny

The manuscripts said convicts had 'long pointy noses,' 'balding heads' and were drinking from 'a big glass of what appeared to be an alcoholic beverage'

Another picture of a British-flagged ship that arrived off the coast of Mugi in Shikoku, Japan

Led by former sailor William Swallow, they sailed into the South Seas and had claimed to have visited Japan before being captured in Canton, China.

Their trip to Japan had been dismissed as fantasy with a lack of Japanese records regarding the Cyprus but Mr Russell's discovery of the accounts of an unwelcome British ship match the story told by the convicts and has led historians to reconsider the facts.

The British expat, living in Japan, has shed light on what was a 187-year mystery for the Japanese, while in the process uncovering fascinating new details depicting colonial Australian history.

Having first seen the artefacts three years ago, a speculative recent Google search into 19th century mutinies led the English teacher to the story of the Cyprus mutiny.

'I just stumbled on it. Boom. There it was on the screen in front of me,' Russell told Guardian Australia.

With the help of local translators, the history buff has managed to translate the samurai accounts which offer in depth accounts to the convicts visit to a then isolationist Japan.

The archive findings depict the moment the convicts sailed into the town of Mugi, on Shikoku island.

Wary of the ships intentions, the manuscript written by a low ranking samurai named Makita Hamaguchi revealed a commander had suggested a no mercy approach when dealing with the intruders.

'I think they are pirates. We should crush them!' the manuscripts suggest the man said.

The then isolationist nation, that prohibited contact with foreigners, rebuffed the convicts attempts to request water and firewood through improvised sign language.

The 19th century Japanese drawings depict a range of foreign items the convicts has brought with them to the coastal town of Mugi

A two mast brig similar to the vessel convicts pirated in 1829 and set sail to China via Japan

The drawings by the samurais reveal a vessel with a strong resemblance to the Cyprus brig as well as drawings of the convicts who had 'long pointy noses', 'balding heads' and were drinking from 'a big glass of what appeared to be an alcoholic beverage'.

Yet abiding by strict policy, the Japanese fired upon the foreign vessel and ushered them to leave.

On realising the ship was British, the samurais became irate and approached the vessel with large guns demanding they left.

According to the accounts, the intruders looked intimidated and scared and indicated the cannon fire had caused a fatality.

The boat eventually sailed away at dusk, when it is believed the brig made its way to China.

Warwick Hirst, author of The Man Who Stole The Cyprus, revealed Russell's discovery was most likely portraying the voyage that began in Tasmania.

'I have no doubt that the Japanese account describes the visit of the Cyprus,' he told Guardian Australia.

The author went on to highlight the significance of the journey made to the Asian nation.

'In my opinion, must have been the first Australian ship to reach Japan'.

David Lawson, the Australian consulate general in Osaka, and Takashi Tokuno, the chief curator at the Tokushima prefectural archive, also felt there was significance evidence to say the ship depicted in the manuscripts was the pirated brig Cyprus.
A police officer has been fatally wounded after a wanted man opened fire during a pursuit.

The known offender shot the Senior Constable Brett Forte in the Lockyer Valley region, west of Brisbane near Toowoomba, during a police chase at about 1.40pm on Monday.

The armed man is still on the run and police are warning locals to stay indoors. They have set up an exclusion zone around Lockyer National Park.

Local resident Kyal Pennell, 23, who is trapped in his home due to the exclusion zone, said he could hear 'non-stop bursts of automatic gunfire' and police sirens.

'Every five minutes theres gunfire. There's been handgun shots, machine gun shots, and shotgun shots from what I can tell,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

He said he believed shots had been fired at a police helicopter, which had been hovering less than a kilometre away from his house since 2.30pm.

At 4.30pm, Mr Pennell said police holding semi-machine guns arrived at the front gate of his home to evacuate him and his neighbours from the area. Gunshot bursts were still echoing through the valley.

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A police officer has been fatally wounded after a wanted man opened fire during a pursuit. Police have set up an exclusion zone around Lockyer National Park (pictured)

The armed man is still on the run and police are warning locals to stay indoors

'As far as I know, a couple of guys broke out of a jail and they've shot a police officer on the front lawn,' one man told 9 News.

'I had to go pick up the kids because the wife couldn't get out, I was at work.'

Police have locked down a large area and set up an exclusion zone where the man, or gunmen, are believed to still be.

Snr Constable Forte was airlifted to Brisbane Hospital but confirmed to have died by 4pm.

'An emergent situation has been declared under the Public Safety Preservation Act following a police incident in the Lockyer Valley this afternoon where an officer has been injured,' police said in a statement.

'Initial information suggests shots were fired at police in Seventeen Mile, and a police vehicle has been involved in a traffic incident.'

Members of the public are being told to avoid Wallers, Forestry, Ringwood and Ford Roads as the wanted man is armed and on the run.

'An armed man remains outstanding and specialist police are responding,' police said in a statement.

'Local residents are being advised to remain inside.'

The police officer was airlifted to Brisbane Hospital, but died as a result of the gunshot wounds
Schapelle Corby could soon come face-to-face with the New South Wales State of Origin squad at Brisbane's Sofitel Hotel.

There is speculation Corby is staying at the five-star hotel following her return to Australia on Sunday morning.

If true, the convicted drug smuggler is on a collision course with the NSW side, which arrives at the hotel on Tuesday on the eve of their clash with Queensland.

Schapelle Corby (pictured with former Origin star Todd Carney and her sister Mercedes) could come face-to-face with the New South Wales State of Origin squad at Brisbane's Sofitel Hotel

NSW Origin stars Andrew Fifita, Josh Jackson, Boyd Cordner, Tyson Frizell and David Klemmer

NSWRL boss David Trodden contacted the Sofitel amid reports some of Corby's entourage stopped at the hotel on Sunday.

Trodden said the Blues won't be distracted by a potential media frenzy.

'I don't have any concerns about Schapelle Corby being in the hotel,' Trodden said, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

'They won't be distracted. Trust me they won't be distracted. It'll be more of a distraction for you guys. The media will be distracted.'

There is speculation Corby is staying at the five-star hotel following her return to Australia on Sunday morning

If true, the convicted drug smuggler is on a collision course with the NSW side, which arrives at the hotel on Tuesday on the eve of their clash with Queensland

While Corby's whereabouts are unknown, the 39-year-old went to extreme lengths to avoid waiting reporters as she touched down in Brisbane on Sunday.

She switched flights at the last minute, dodging the 40 reporters who had booked seats on the Virgin plane she was expected to board.

After Corby landed in Brisbane, at least 12 vehicles left the airport in two convoys - apparently designed to throw a media scrum her off her scent.

The convoys, followed by the media, left the airport, and took separate routes.

One ended at the Sofitel Hotel, while the other stopped at the KFC store at Ormeau, en route to the Gold Coast. Corby was not seen in either.

After Corby landed in Brisbane, at least 12 vehicles left the airport in two seperate convoys
The mother of a 16-year-old girl missing for more than three days is begging her daughter to tell her she is safe.

Zoe Irwin, from St Peters in Sydney's inner-west, last spoke to her mother about 2.30pm on Friday and her family are concerned for her welfare.

Police are desperately searching for the high school student after she went to meet someone in Bondi on Friday night.

Patricia Di Croce told Daily Mail Australia her daughter would spend days away with friends but Zoe's disappearance was out of character.

A desperate search is underway for a 16-year-old girl missing for almost three days after she went to meet someone in Bondi

'She will take off with friends, but she always keeps in touch at least once a day and/or I see Facebook activity, neither of which has happened since Friday which is why I've contacted police,' she said.

The worried mother pleaded with Zoe or her friends, many of whom were older than school age, to tell her the teenager was safe and well.

'No one's getting in trouble, I don't care what they're doing, I just want to know that she's okay,' she said.

Ms Di Croce said she was contacting her daughter's friends to piece together a timeline to work out where she ended up.

'I'm going through her Facebook friends list contacting everyone to see if they know where she is but they're being very tight-lipped because they don't want to get themselves in trouble,' she said.

'They don't what to tell me what's going on, for all I know she's sitting next to one of them.'

The business analyst said Zoe was seen with a girl in Bondi Junction on Friday night but other sightings around Sydney on Saturday were 'sketchy' at best.

'She doesn't have to speak with me if she doesn't want to, I just want someone to tell me they've heard from her or know where she is,' she said.

Zoe Irwin, from St Peters in Sydney's inner-west, last spoke to her mother about 2.30pm on Friday and her family are concerned for her welfare

Ms Di Croce said Zoe's phone was going to voicemail and may just have run out of battery, but that was unlikely as it was a teenager's 'lifeblood'.

Zoe is described as Caucasian appearance, with long dark brown hair and a medium build.

She moved from the U.S. with her mother, a business consultant at the University of New England, more than a decade ago after their parents' relationship broke down.

She worked at a flower shop in Enfield, deeper into the inner-west, since January.

The teenager appeared to be looking for her own place as she posted on Facebook saying she was looking for a room - and her mother was helping her find one.

'Hey there if anybody has a room for rent, I'm looking for a home, obviously will pay, thank you,' she wrote in March.

Police are appealing for information to help find her.
A Greens Party town mayor was sent to an all-expenses paid trip for a 'low carbon' talk in Mexico just days after being elected to her position.

Kim Le Cerf was elected a manager on the Melbourne City Council in November of last year, before being sent to a climate change event in Mexico City, a trip that cost ratepayers over $9,000.

Le Cerf attended the event despite her boss, city strategy director Kate Vinot, attending a C40 event nearby, an annual meeting of leaders from the world's biggest cities.

Her role as Darebin mayor earns her a salary of $100,000 including allowances. She is due to make an appearance at another low carbon event in China next month.

Kim Le Cerf (pictured center) was flown to a low carbon event in Mexico just days after being elected to the Melbourne City Council

Kim Le Cerf was elected a manager on Melbourne City Council in November 2016

Le Cerf (center) attended an event in Mexico on climate change that was also attended by her boss, Kate Vinot

A spokesperson for Melbourne city council defender her appearance at the event to the Herald Sun, saying it was separate to that of Vinot's and was funded by the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance (CNCA).

Despite being paid for by the CNCA, ratepayers still have to front the $9,184 tab, and Le Cerf billed her council a further $516.

Darebin council is not a member of the CNCA or C40.

Despite being paid for by the CNCA, ratepayers still have to front the $9,184 tab, and Le Cerf billed her council a further $516

Le Cerf will attend another 'low carbon' meeting next month in China

Evan Mulholland, Institute of Public Affairs member, criticised the 'spending money on overseas junkets.'

Mulholland said public money could be better spent rather than funding 'extravangant overseas trips' that lead to officials returning home to 'lecture us about the planet.'

Le Cerf's trip to China next month will be paid for by a not-for-profit group of local governments.
A doctor who sent trainees a barrage of sexually suggestive messages and demanded hugs and kisses has been struck off by a disciplinary tribunal.

Consultant Dr Ganesh Arunachalam, a registrar at Guys and St Thomas' and Queen Elizabeth hospitals in London, was accused of harassing junior female doctors.

A medical panel heard how he sent one member of staff 60 Whatsapp and text messages, despite her begging him to stop, and hugged and tickled another.

Dr Ganesh Arunachalam sent trainees a barrage of sexually suggestive messages and demanded hugs and kisses

The tribunal heard that in one message he sent a trainee, referred to as 'Dr A', an apple emoji as code and wrote how much he wanted the 'sweetest apple', reports the Evening Standard.

Dr A also said that his behaviour made her feel 'scared' for her personal safety.

However, he denied the accusations and said she was 'infatuated' with him.

Another trainee, known as Dr B, said Dr Drunachalam touched and tickled her when she worked shifts with him at Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

The board heard that he also kissed her on the head and said: 'I loved working with you'.

Consultant Dr Ganesh Arunachalam, a registrar at Guys and St Thomas' (pictured) and Queen Elizabeth hospitals in London, was accused of harassing junior female doctors

After the doctor reported Dr Drunachalam, he accused her of being an 'awful doctor'.

Speaking on behalf of the General Medical Council, Sharon Beattie said: 'This was inappropriate behaviour towards two female colleagues which involved sexual harassment and which was sexually motivated.

'The incidents left both victims going to work in what they must have felt was a hostile environment, which is damaging to patient care.'
Jeremy Joseph Christian has been charged with two counts of aggrated murder, two counts of second-degree intimidation and one count each of aggravated murder and being a felon in possession of a restricted firearm

The white supremacist who is accused of killing two men on a Portland train who were protecting two teenage girls had assaulted a black woman and gone on a racist rant while using public transit the night before the attack.

Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, is accused of stabbing to death Rick Best, 53, and Taliesin Myrrdin Namkai-Meche, 23, and injuring another man on a Portland MAX train on Friday night.

The incident happened after the three men stood up for two teenage girls, one of whom is Muslim, who were targeted by Christian as he told them to 'go back to Saudi Arabia' and kill themselves.

A Portland police spokesman told KGW-TV on Sunday that the night before the attack, Christian threw a bottle of Gatorade at a black woman at the Interstate Rose Quarter Station.

That woman responded by spraying Christian with mace.

Later that evening, another woman filmed Christian as he launched into a tirade about Muslims and Christians while on a train at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

A woman identified only as KK released footage of the incident to KOIN, saying that Christian was 'complaining about the city, complaining about Muslims, Christians, and it just got very violent very quick'.

'You don't like it? You got a problem with what I'm saying?' she heard Christian say. 'F*** all you Christians and Muslims and f****** Jews , f****** die. Burn you at the stake f****** die.'

She said that he was 'visibly upset' and complaining on the phone to a friend about getting pepper sprayed by a woman.

The woman said she started filming the incident about ten minutes into the phone conversation, saying that everyone was 'pretty scared'.

'By the time we were at [the Gateway Transit Center], he was talking about wanting to stab somebody and gestured to pull something out of his pocket. Everybody around me got up, I was right behind him,' she told KOIN.

KK said that nothing was done to remove Christian from the train.

Rick Best, 53, (left) and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Mece (right) 23, were both murdered on the train after stepping in as the girls were abused

Destinee Mangum, 17, was one of the girls targeted by a white supremacist on board an MAX train in Portland on Friday. She spoke out on Sunday to thank the Good Samaritans who died trying to protect her

In footage from a separate incident the night before the attack, Christian can be heard launching another tirade while talking to someone on the phone

Police have confirmed that it is Christian in KK's video and also confirmed that he was pepper sprayed the night before.

The following night, Christian was arrested for aggravated murder after Best and Namkai-Meche had their throats slashed after arguing with the man.

A third man, a 21-year-old poet named Micah Fletcher, survived the attack and is recovering in hospital.

Christian was arrested after he ran off the train at the Hollywood transit station in Portland.

Micah Fletcher, 21, was also attacked but survived

He was charged with two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of second-degree intimidation and one count each of aggravated murder and being a felon in possession of a restricted firearm on Friday.

One of the teenage girls who was targeted by Christian on Friday spoke out to thank the men who were killed while trying to protect her and her friend.

Destinee Mangum, 17, was on the train with her Muslim friend on Friday evening when Christian approached them.

Through tears, she told Fox's Oregon affiliate KPTV: 'I just want to say thank you to the people who put their life on the line for me.

'They didn't even know me. They lost their life because of me and my friend and the way we looked and I just to say thank you to them and their family and I appreciate them because without them we probably would be dead right now.'

Her mother Dyjuana Hudson issued her own message of thanks to the men's families.

'Thank you thank you thank you. You will always be our hero ....I'm soooooo sorry this happened.

'You didn't even know my girls but you stepped in and saved my babies life to the family I'm so sorry about your loss and I'm here if you need me,' she said, sharing the Facebook post of the mother of one of the brave men who died.

Destinee's friend, who was wearing a hijab at the time of the attack, has not come forward.

The accused is also a white supremacist who was pictured giving Nazi salutes at a free speech rally in April with an American Revolutionary War flag tied like a cape around his shoulders

He has posted a number of times to say he supports the Nazis, and once even said he wants a job in Norway 'cutting off the heads of people that Circumcize (sic) Babies'

Additionally, Christian threatened to 'stab some masked up b****** protesting Black Metal shows as soon as they touch me'

Additionally, Christian threatened to 'stab some masked up b****** protesting Black Metal shows as soon as they touch me'

Before attending the free speech rally where he was caught on camera giving the Nazi salute, Christian wrote: 'If you attended masked up and that mask comes off and I see a friend who sided with ANTIFA it will be merciless. Free speech or die!!! This is my land!!!'

She described how she and her friend were sitting next to one another on the train when Christian approached them.

'He told us to go back to Saudi Arabia and he told us we shouldn't be here, to get out of his country. He was just telling us that we basically weren't anything and that we should kill ourselves,' she said.

A man sitting behind them intervened, she said. She did not disclose whether it was Best, Namkai-Meche or Micah Fletcher, a 21-year-old poet who survived and is recovering in hospital.

'This white male from the back of us was like, 'he's talking to you guys? You guys can't disrespect these young ladies like that.' Then they just all started arguing,' she told.

Frightened, Destinee and her friend moved out of their seats and were preparing to get off the train when, she says, Christian 'just started stabbing people'.

'Me and my friend were going to get off the MAX and then we turned around while they were fighting and he just started stabbing people and it was just blood everywhere and we just started running for our lives,' she said.

Best was a retired Army platoon sergeant who served for 23 years. He had four children.

Namkai-Leche's family said he lived a 'full and joyous life'.

Christian was known for his hate-speech, and is a self-identified white supremacist who was pictured on April 29, referring to himself as the 'Lizard King' and giving Nazi salutes at a free speech rally, with an American Revolutionary War flag tied like a cape around his shoulders.

The attacker was 'yelling a gamut of anti-Muslim and anti-everything slurs' before he turned his focus on the women

After the suspect attacked the victims, he reportedly said, 'This is free America, I can do whatever I want' one witness told KOMO news

He walked among fellow protesters holding American flags and signs that said 'Trump Makes America Great Again.'

Christian's Facebook site paints disturbing a picture of the suspect, and he describes himself by saying: 'I'm an Ex-Con. I Like Comix, Cannabis and Metal-In Any Combination. If you are an Employer, F*** Off.'

The suspect has been in jail previously for a string of charges including robbery, kidnapping and unlawful use of a weapon, and he brags about being an ex-con on his Facebook page.

He has posted on his profile a number of times to say he supports the Nazis, and once even said he wants a job in Norway 'cutting off the heads of people that Circumcize (sic) Babies'.

Additionally, Christian has threatened to 'stab some masked up b****** protesting Black Metal shows as soon as they touch me,' in a comment thread on his Facebook profile.

On May 9, Christian wrote about a debate he challenged someone to: 'I will defend the Nazis and he will the defend the AshkeNAZIs.'

Before attending the April 29 rally where he was caught on camera giving the Nazi salute, Christian wrote: 'You should all attend the Free Speech Rally at Montanavilla if you value your rights. All Rights, I don't care if you like Antifa or Hate them. They are just an excuse for a showdown.

'I hope the Police Stand Down as in Berkeley. I will be there Demasking anyone with a mask. I will attend in Lizard King Regalia as a Political Nihilist to Provoke both Sides and attempt to engage anyone in a true Philosophy and Political Discussion.

'If you attended masked up and that mask comes off and I see a friend who sided with ANTIFA it will be merciless. Free speech or die!!! This is my land!!!'

He also referred to President Trump the 'antichrist,' but in a way that turned it into a compliment.

'If Donald Trump is the Next Hitler then I am joining his SS to put and end to Monotheist Question. All Zionist Jews, All Christians who do not follow Christ's teaching of Love, Charity, and Forgiveness And All Jihadi Muslims are going to Madagascar or the Ovens/FEMA Camps!!! Does this make me a fascist!!!'
Anne Hidalgo at the Vanity Fair Chanel dinner at Tetou Restaurant during 70th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France

The Mayor of Paris has called for a black feminist festival to be banned because she claims it is prohibited to white people.

Anne Hidalgo on Sunday called for the Nyansapo Festival in the French capital to be postponed, which is due to run from July 28 to 30 at a cultural centre.

It bills itself as 'an event rooted in black feminism, activism, and on a European scale', and 80 per cent of the festival area will be set aside as a 'non-mixed' space 'for black women,' according to its website in French.

Another space will be a 'non-mixed' area 'for black people' regardless of gender and another space would be 'open to all'.

The English version of the site does not use the word 'non-mixed,' but 'reserved.'

Hidalgo, a socialist, said on Twitter that she firmly condemned the organisation 'of this event, 'prohibited to white people'.'

'I am asking for this festival to be banned,' Hidalgo said, adding she also reserved the right 'to prosecute the organisers for discrimination'.

Police prefect Michel Delpuech said in a statement that police had not been advised about the event by Sunday evening.

But, Delpuech added, the police 'would ensure the rigorous compliance of the laws, values, and principles of the republic'.

French antiracist and antisemitism organisations strongly condemned the festival.

SOS Racisme described the event as 'a mistake, even an abomination, because it wallows in ethnic separation, whereas anti-racism is a movement which seeks to go beyond race.'

From left to right: The President of the French National Olympic and Sports Committee (CNOSF) Denis Masseglia, French Sports minister Laura Flessel, the co-president of the Paris bid for the 2024 Olympics Tony Estanguet, Paris' Mayor Anne Hidalgo, the co-president of the Paris bid for the 2024 Olympics Bernard Lapasset and the President of the Ile de France region Valerie Pecresse

LICRA - the International League against Racism and Antisemitism - said 'Rosa Parks would be turning in her grave,' a reference to the American civil rights icon.

Wallerand de Saint-Just, the regional head of Marine Le Pen's National Front party, had challenged Hidalgo on Friday to explain how the city was putting on an event 'promoting a concept that is blatantly racist and anti-republican.'

The cultural centre La Generale, where the event was to be hosted, and the collective Mwasi, which organised the event, said Sunday they were the 'target of a disinformation campaign and of 'fake news' orchestrated by the foulest far right.'

'We are saddened to see certain antiracist associations letting themselves be manipulaed like this,' according to a statement posted on the Generale website.

A 'decolonisation summer camp' in the northeastern French city of Reims elicited similar outrage last year, as it billed itself as a 'training seminar on antiracism' reserved for victims of 'institutional racism' or 'racialised' minorities - excluding by default white people.
Khaled al-Megrahi said that Libyan fanatics stand ready to strike against other Western cities in the wake of the Manchester attack

The son of the Lockerbie bomber has warned that Britain will be hit by a fresh wave of terrorism from Libya.

Khaled al-Megrahi said that Libyan fanatics stand ready to strike against other Western cities in the wake of the Manchester terror attack.

While security experts have warned that the country - which has been plunged into civil war in the wake of Colonel's Gaddafi death in 2011 - has become a fertile breeding ground for ISIS.

The chilling warning comes a week after Salman Abedi killed 22 innocent people and injured 119 more when he blew himself up at the end of a teen pop concert.

The son of Libyan parents, he is thought to have come back to Britain from Libya just days before the massacre.

Mr al-Megrahi, whose father Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was the only man ever convicted of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, accused the West of abandoning the country leaving terror group ISIS to seize control of parts of it.

In a chilling warning from Tripoli, he said the Libyan capital is awash with young terror hopefuls like Abedi eager to die as 'martyrs'.

According to The Sunday Post he said: 'The militants will kill each other here and then come to each city in the west.

'It is only a sea between us.

'A lot of Libyans are hungry, have no money and no justice. If the West continues its stance you will see a lot of the militants coming to the UK.

'The West knows what's happening in Libya but they only want to watch and see.

'You make Libya like this. You will see a lot of terrorists in the UK and everywhere.

'It was Manchester but tomorrow it will be some other place.'

Dictator Colonel Gadaffi was killed in 2011. Following his death Libya was plunged into a bloody civil war and become a fertile breeding ground for ISIS

Salman Abedi, pictured shortly before the terror attack, is understood to have travelled back to Britain from Libya shortly before he carried out the barbaric suicide bombing

David Cameron led Britain into a coalition to carry out airstrikes on the north African country in the wake of the Arab Spring.

But the former Prime Minister has been widely criticised for failing to have a plan to rebuild the country after its longstanding dictator was ousted.

Chaos , bloodshed and a protracted civil war has ensued which has fuelled the refugee crisis and provided a fertile recruiting ground for terrorists.

Mr al-Megrahi, 32, called for the UK to resume airstrikes to restore order in Libya and rid the world of a rich recruiting ground for terrorists.

He said: 'It was easy for them to do it in 2011 and it would be easy to do it again.

'This time they should arm the army and not arm the militias.'

David Cameron, pictured delivering a lecture in Ukraine in March, was criticised for rushing to war in Libya without planning for the aftermath, allowing the country to descend into chaos

Some 270 people were killed in the Lockerbie terror attack on 21 December 1998

Professor Anthony Glees, director of the Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at The University of Buckingham, told The Express: 'This is entirely credible.

'We didn't realise that in place of Colonel Gaddafi a vacuum would be created that Islamists would seize.

'Anyone travelling from there  and other countries  should be viewed with suspicion.'

Prof Paul Rogers, a Middle East expert at the University of Bradford, said: 'It's a terrifying mess. It's made it very easy for a brutal group like Isis to have a presence there.'

In a devastating verdict, the Commons foreign affairs committee savaged Mr Cameron's judgment in rushing to war in Libya in 2011, saying the intervention was based on 'erroneous assumptions'.

The cross-party committee accused Mr Cameron of ignoring military chiefs and a lack of reliable intelligence to pursue an 'opportunistic policy of regime change' in Libya.

And it says he gave little thought to how Libya would fare following the removal of dictator Colonel Gaddafi, setting the scene for the country's descent into chaos.

Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the only person convicted over the 1988 Lockerbie bombing above Scotland which killed 270 people.

He was freed from Scottish jail in 2009 on compassionate grounds because of cancer. He died in May 2012.
Fans were forced to separate a fight between Flash Gordon and the Incredible Hulk after the giant actors clashed at London's Comic Con.

Sam J Jones, who played Flash in the 1980 film, and Lou Ferrigno, famous for his role as Hulk in the 1970s TV series, got into a blazing row while signing autographs and posing for photos.

It is not clear why the pair were arguing, but it took a comic-lover to intervene and tell the actors to 'act like adults and grow up'.

Sam J Jones, who played Flash in the 1980 film, and Lou Ferrigno, famous for his role as Hulk in the 1970s TV series, got into a blazing row while signing autographs and posing for photos

Ferrigno, 6ft 5in, was heard accusing, Jones, 6ft 3in, of provoking him during the set-to at the Excel Centre event.

Comic-lover Darryn, 25, from Chelmsford in Essex, told the Sun: 'Lou was just saying ''You're winding me up''. There was a lot of finger-jabbing and it was getting pretty nasty.'

He added: 'There was a large crowd around, so I told them to act like adults and grow up as they were supposed to be there for their fans.'

The rift on Saturday does not appear to have caused too much trouble, because the superhero pair were back signing autographs, for 30 each, yesterday.

Ferrigno (left as Hulk), 6ft 5in, was heard accusing, Jones (right, as Flash), 6ft 3in, of provoking him during the set-to at the Excel Centre event

Ferrigno, 65, declined to comment about the incident.

However, Jones, 62, claimed he and the Hulk actor had teamed together to calm down arguing fans, who 'wanted to fight each other'.

He said: 'He and I together defused it.'
The police officer fatally wounded after a wanted man opened fire during a pursuit is being remembered as a hero.

The known offender shot Senior Constable Brett Forte in the Lockyer Valley region, west of Brisbane near Toowoomba, during a police chase about 1.40pm on Monday.

Police are now negotiating with the gunman who is holed up in a farm house inside a locked-down area.

'We have a person contained and at my last advice we were negotiating with that person,' Queensland Police Commissioner Ian Stewart said at a press conference on Monday night.

Snr Constable Forte, a married father-of-two, had served in the force for 15 years and was a member of Toowoomba's Tactical Crime Squad.

His wife, Susan, is also a police officer.

'A hero lost his life today,' Queensland police minister Mark Ryan said in a statement.

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Senior Constable Brett Forte died after he was fatally wounded by a gunman in Toowoomba, Queensland on Monday afternoon

Police have set up a road block at the intersection of Redbank and Adare roads, in Adare, as they hunt the known offender who shot at Snr Constable Forte

'My thoughts are with the family, friends and colleagues of the Queensland Police Service officer who was tragically killed this afternoon while doing his job selflessly serving the people of Queensland.

'Along with millions of Queenslanders, I pay tribute to his service. He will never be forgotten. With honour, he served.'

A police source said the offender, who is believed to be armed with a machine gun, got out of his car during the chase and shot Snr Constable Forte before driving down a dirt road at Seventeen Mile, just northwest of Gatton.

It's understood another police vehicle rolled over after the chase resumed and the offender also fired at a police helicopter while entering a farm house.

'Police followed him into an area, the person of interest alighted from his vehicle away from where the police officers were and opened fire on the police vehicles,' Tony Wright, Assistant Commissioner for the Southern Region, said.

'Unfortunately at this time Brett Forte lost his life. There were no other injuries to other police officers at that point in time.'

Snr Constable Forte was fatally wounded after a wanted man opened fire during a pursuit. Police have set up an exclusion zone around Lockyer National Park (pictured)

The gunman is in a siege situation with Special Emergency Response Team officers

Police are warning locals to stay indoors while they negotiate with the known offender.

Local resident Kyal Pennell, 23, who is trapped in his home due to the exclusion zone, said he could hear 'non-stop bursts of automatic gunfire' and police sirens.

'Every five minutes there's gunfire. There's been handgun shots, machine gun shots, and shotgun shots from what I can tell,' he told Daily Mail Australia.

He said he believed shots had been fired at a police helicopter, which had been hovering less than a kilometre away from his house since 2.30pm.

At 4.30pm, Mr Pennell said police holding semi-machine guns arrived at the front gate of his home to evacuate him and his neighbours from the area. Gunshot bursts were still echoing through the valley.

'As far as I know, a couple of guys broke out of a jail and they've shot a police officer on the front lawn,' one man told 9 News.

The armed man is still on the run and police are warning locals to stay indoors

Police said an emergency situation has been declared under the Public Safety Preservation Act

'I had to go pick up the kids because the wife couldn't get out, I was at work.'

Snr Constable Forte was airlifted to Brisbane Hospital but was confirmed to have died by 4pm.

'The Queensland Police Service can confirm the death of a male officer who was involved in a shooting incident whilst on duty in the Lockyer Valley [Monday],' police said in a statement.

'Police are continuing to search for the armed man who fled the vehicle into nearby bushland.

'An emergency declaration was declared under the provisions of the Public Safety Preservation Act and an exclusion zone remains in place for the area of Fords Road, Forestry Road West, Sandy Creek Road, Gerard Lane, Seventeen Mile Road, Wellers Road and Forest Road.

'Residents living in the exclusion zone are being advised to remain inside their homes until further notice.'

Locals who were out of the exclusion zone before it was set up have not been allowed back into their homes.

Members of the public are being told to avoid Wallers, Forestry, Ringwood and Ford Roads in the Lockyer Valley region (pictured). Locals are being advised to stay indoors

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said in a statement her thoughts and prayers were with Snr Constable Forte's family and friends.

'Every day, the brave officers of the Queensland Police Service put their lives on the line when they go to work,' Ms Palaszczuk said.

'Each of us should be immensely grateful for the work they do.'

Commissioner Stewart said it was a 'very, very sad day' for the service.

'We've lost a fine officer. We will miss Brett deeply and our job now is to make sure that we resolve the current operational issue without further loss of life,' Mr Stewart said.

'We thank Brett for his wonderful service to the community.

'As you would well imagine, the whole family is devastated, both his own family, the family of his wife and their extended family and then there's the police family.'

The Queensland Police Union's Ian Leavers said 'this is a tragedy for all of us in Queensland'.

'I knew [Snr Constable Forte]. He was a decent person, a family man who was respected by all of his colleagues,' Mr Leavers said.

Snr Constable Forte was airlifted to Brisbane Hospital, but died as a result of the gunshot wounds

'His family are being supported are as his work colleagues at this time.'

The Queensland Ambulance Service said is was 'deeply saddened by the tragic incident'.

'Our thoughts and condolences to all QPS staff and this officer's family,' QAS wrote on Twitter.

In a tragic coincidence, Snr Constable Forte's death comes on the anniversary of slain Gold Coast detective Damian Leeding's shooting after he responded to an armed robbery at the Pacific Pines Tavern in 2011.
Early this year his hand was left awkwardly dangling in front of a large crowd during a landmark meeting with US President Donald Trump.

But things were far more rosy for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on Monday, when he met with US senator and ex-presidential candidate John McCain in Canberra.

There was no awkward smiles or tetchy body language between the pair, with the PM and senator embracing each other warmly, before parliament heard McCain was a 'great friend of Australia'.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull (right) has shared a very warm meeting with US senator John McCain (left) in Canberra on Monday

It comes just weeks after Mr Turnbull's hand was left awkwardly dangling by US president Donald Trump (left) in front of a large crowd during a landmark meeting in New York

Meeting with Mr Turnbull and then privately with foreign affairs minister Julie Bishop, senator McCain appeared excited to be meeting with the Australian leaders.

Talking to parliament, Prime Minister Turnbull said there were no stronger voices for the Australia-US alliance than senator McCain.

'You are a great friend of Australia... welcome to our house of democracy here in Canberra,' Mr Turnbull said prior to question time.

It was a far cry from the way Mr Turnbull and President Trump's relationship started earlier this year.

After an infamous tetchy phonecall between the pair - that Trump reportedly called the 'worst' he'd had with a world leader - they finally came face-to-face in New York.

And there the pair shared another awkward moment, when Mr Turnbull stuck out his hand to congratulate Mr Trump in front of media cameras.

After an infamous tetchy phonecall between the pair - that Trump reportedly called the 'worst' he'd had with a world leader - they finally came face-to-face in New York (pictured)

There was no awkward smiles or tetchy body language between the PM and senator McCain in their meeting, before parliament heard McCain was a 'great friend of Australia'

But with Mr Trump facing the cameras, the PM's outstretched hand went unnoticed.

However the Australian reception for former army veteran McCain was far warmer, with Mr Turnbull praising him for his efforts during the Vietnam War.

'As a prisoner of war for five-and-a-half years, he selflessly - despite torture and cruelty - refused to be transferred back to the United States in advance of his colleagues,' Mr Turnbull said.

Senator McCain, an unsuccessful US presidential candidate in 2008, also met with foreign minister Julie Bishop (left)

The senior Republican, who is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is in Australia for talks on security in the Asia-Pacific region

'True leadership. True grit. True courage.'

The senior Republican, who is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is in Australia for talks on security in the Asia-Pacific region.

The senator will present a lecture at the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney as part of the Alliance 21 series.
A 93-year-old retired Marine who fought in World War II will reunite a good-luck flag with the family of a Japanese officer he took it off of during the Battle of Saipan in 1944.

With help from the Obon Society of Oregon, Marvin Strombo, of Missoula, Montana, will travel to Japan with his friends and family in August to deliver the flag, known as a hinomaru yosegaki.

The Japanese captain the flag belonged to Sadao Yasue, died during the bloody battle in 1944 after his entire village saw him off to war.

Yasue, the oldest of six children in a farming family from Higashi Shirakawa, in the south-central prefecture of Gifu, told his sister that he would 'probably never come back' from war and that she would have to look after the family.

World War II Marine Marvin Strombo, of Missoula, Montana, will meet the family of fallen Japanese military captain Sadao Yasue in Higashi Shirakawa, Japan, on August 15.

The family never heard from him again, but made a grave for him in the town. Now every year on July 18 - the day the government said Yasue died - the family gathers to pray for him.

Strombo told the Missloulian that he came across Yasue's body when he and four other sniper-scouts from a 6th Marine Regiment platoon were making a plan to the be the 'first ones into Garapan', the largest town on the small South Pacific island of Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands.

He said that on their way into Garapan in late June or early July 1944, they came across a group of Japanese soldiers trying to ambush them. Four Japanese soldiers were killed in the foiled ambush.

On the outskirts of Garapan, they found an apparently deserted Japanese front line, and saw the body of a fallen Japanese officer, who he now knows was Yasue.

He said that Yasue bore no shrapnel or bullet marks and likely had died in a mortar attack the night before.

'I looked close and saw on his breast there, he had a Japanese flag folded next to his body, inside his coat or whatever,' he told the Missoulian.

'I just about didn't take it because there was something about it that is so special and sacred,' he added. But then I figured if I didn't, somebody else would and it would probably be lost forever.

'So I took it and kind of made a vow to him that I'd return it some day. So it was meant to be, I guess, huh?'

Strombo also took Yasue's sable, which identified him as an officer, but it was stolen from his home years ago.

Strombo told the Missloulian that he came across Yasue's body when he and four other sniper-scouts from a 6th Marine Regiment platoon were making a plan to the be the 'first ones into Garapan', the largest town on the small South Pacific island of Saipan. Pictured above, troops land on the beaches of Saipan Island in June 1944

From June 15 to July 9, 1944, US soldiers launched an attack against Japanese forces on the Mariana Island of Saipan that was a crucial strategic victory in the battle of the Pacific during the Second World War

On August 10, Strombo will travel to Tokyo with his family and friends, and on August 15 - the peak of Obon, which is Japan's version of Memorial day, he will head to the village of Higashi Sirakawa for a flag exchange.

He will meet with Yasue's three living siblings - his brother 89-year-old Tatsuya Yasue and two sisters, 94-year-old Sayoko Furuta and 82-year-old Miyako Yasue.

Strombo was reunited with Yasue's family through the Obon Society, which helps reunite war memorabilia with Japanese families.

Since founders Rex and Keiko Ziak launched the organization in 2009, they've handed more than 400 flags and returned more than 100 to Japanese families.

'This is the first occasion we've encountered where we have a World War II veteran who still has the item he personally took and where the veteran has the physical ability to make the trip, and we've found the family on the other side that's receptive to foreigners coming at a very sensitive occasion,' Rex Ziak told the Missoulian.

Long before World War II, Japanese soldiers were presented with 'good luck flags', or Hinomaru Yosegaki, that featured signatures and messages from friends and family members.

Hinomaru means 'sun's circle'. The design is what Japan calls their nation's flag, which features a red circle on a white background. Yosegaki means 'sideways-writing'.

Keiko Ziak was able to match 43 names on Yasue's flag to one family. An additional several dozen of the more than 140 signatures on the flag match the last name of another family.
Three men have been arrested after video emerged showing them assaulting two women in broad daylight as a dozen others looked on and ignored their screams for help.

The blurry video aired by Indian television showed the men groping and pushing the women in Uttar Pradesh state as onlookers laughed and filmed the assault, later posting it on social media.

The incident took place last week in a remote village in Rampur district when the men surrounded the two women, whose ages and identities have not been revealed.

A gang surround the two women who were pushed and groped by at least four of the men

The blurry video (pictured) aired by Indian television showed the men groping and pushing the women in Uttar Pradesh state as onlookers laughed and filmed the assault, later posting it on social media

Police have arrested three men in connection with the attack and are hunting one more man

'We have arrested three of the main culprits and expect to get the fourth one shortly,' Mohammad Tariq, a senior Rampur police official said.

Police have analysed the footage and concluded there were four main attackers but they would be investigating the others who gathered to watch, Tariq added.

One of the victims told India's NDTV network they begged the men to stop and called for help.

'But nobody came, rather some more men came and joined the others in harassing us,' she said, covering her face with a scarf to hide her identity.

Police have charged the three men with sexual harassment and offences under India's internet laws for sharing the video on social media.

India has a terrible record of rape and sexual assault, and rights groups accuse authorities of failing swiftly to bring offenders to justice.

The victims can be heard screaming for help in the video, but nobody comes to help them

Uttar Pradesh's new leader Yogi Adiyanath, who came to power in March, sought to tackle the scourge through 'anti-Romeo squads' - police units tasked with patrolling the streets ostensibly to protect women.

But the squads themselves quickly came under fire after revelations they were harassing young couples in parks and colleges and publicly shaming them.

Azam Khan, a former Uttar Pradesh minister, invoked outrage in the wake of the latest assault when he suggested women stay indoors to avoid 'misbehaving' men.

'People should ensure that women of their house stay indoors as much as possible,' he said, describing Uttar Pradesh as 'lawless'.
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A remarkable collection of colourised images has captured the lighter side to the devastating Second World War.

Electrician Royston Leonard, from Cardiff, Wales, edited the images and brought them back to life using his colourisation skills.

In one stunning picture, an American soldier was photographed holding his national flag high and proud, while others keep an eye out for the enemy.

Other humorous images show a sailor on alert with its Alsatian dog and four soldiers sitting atop a German PTB covered with the Swastika logo.

The superb pictures have been expertly colourised by Mr Leonard, 54, who digitally paints over the black and white images and mixes his colours on screen.

A young shirtless American soldier was photographed sewing with a small dog resting on his shoulder during the Second World War (left). Meanwhile, another soldier was pictured holding a small cat on top of his helmet in a series of photographs which show the lighter side of the war (right)

An American soldier was photographed holding his national flag high and proud during the Second World War as four others kept a close eye on the enemy (pictured). Approximately 16million men from the United States served in the Second World War, which lasted six years from 1939 to 1945

Four soldiers smiled as they sat together on top of a German PTB which had a Swastika on the back. The image was taken more than 70 years ago and has been colourised by Royston Leonard. The average amount of time an American soldier served was 16 months

A group of American soldiers posed with their weapons as they held up Japanese flags after fighting in World War II. This picture, which was originally black and white, has been colourised by a 54-year-old electrician from Cardiff. Mr Leonard mixes the colours on his screen

An American soldier knelt down and gave a cat some water during the conflict which lasted six years from 1939 and 1945. It is just one of a collection of images which shows the lighter side to the war and show how the soldiers enjoyed playing with the local animals

In this particularly striking image, an American soldier comes out of a makeshift tent which has been put up in the snow to 'shake hands' with a dog during the Second World War

Mr Leonard said: 'The pictures show the quiet and lighter moments during the dreadful Second World War.

'I think small things like the dogs were the little things that made life just about bearable for the soldiers.

'It's really quite saddening when you think about the war, but these pictures show the soldiers making the best of the moment and making it fun where possible.'

The Second World War was a global conflict which lasted for six years from 1939 to 1945, and brought the demise of Nazi Germany dictator, Adolf Hitler and his monstrous regime.

In January 1944, Lt R Hoffman was photographed looking at an M4 Sherman tank which was called Bell of Little Rock. A man wearing a red and white trousers chasing Adolf Hitler was painted on the side of the vehicle and Hoffman smiled when he was looking at the artwork

A sailor was aiming his gun while lying down in a stealth position right next to an Alsatian as both of them looked out into the distance

One man was photographed painting a skull onto the side of a plane which was named the 'Jolly Roger' as five others watched closely. After finding the picture, Mr Leonard painted over the black and white images and mixed his colours on a screen

The superb pictures have been expertly colourised by electrician Royston Leonard, 54, from Cardiff, Wales. This particular image shows an American soldier sitting down at the front of a vehicle as a dog lays on the top of the military jeep during the Second World War

An American soldier was photographed being baptised by another soldier in the water as both men wore their uniforms

An American soldier held up a dog in his arms in a photograph which shows the lighter side to the conflict which lasted six years

The UK and America, long-time allies, fought side-by-side to take down Hitler's German Empire and restore order to the world.

Mr Leonard added: 'Colourisation is a hobby of mine and I learned it by trying out ideas by myself.

'I have learned so much from colourising, I feel it has helped my photography along the way.'
Jeremy Corbyn described the Palestinian terror group Hamas as 'serious and hardworking' and called for the EU trade with Israel to be suspended.

The Labour leader also said Hamas should not have to recognise the state of Israel before peace talks can begin, according to the newly-resurfaced 2010 radio interview.

The comments will alarm members of his party, and come just a day after it emerged that Mr Corbyn visited a wreath-laying ceremony at the grave of one of the terrorists behind the 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre.

Jeremy Corbyn, pictured at a campaign rally last Friday, described Hamas as hardworking in the resurfaced radio clip

Mr Corbyn has previously described Hamas - a terror group banned in Britain which runs the Gaza strip in Palestine - as 'friends'.

During the recording, broadcast by LBC, he said: 'It is not a question of whether one agrees or disagrees with Hamas on its political strategies or indeed its social strategies.

'You have to recognise that the reality is they have a great deal of support, they have a great deal of respect from a lot of Palestinians who wouldn't necessarily politically agree with them but recognise they are serious, hard-working and they are not corrupt.

Benjamin Netanyahu, pictured outside No 10 in February, was criticised by the Labour leader for not entering into peace talks with Hamas before it recognises Israel

'But they want to be part of a process.'

Hamas, which has carried out a wave of deadly bombings against Israelis, has said it will never recognise the state of Israel.

But in the interview, Mr Corbyn criticises the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for not entering peace talks with them anyway.

He said: 'When I asked about recognition of Israel, I wasn't expecting them to say we are prepared to recognise Israel. I don't think they could possibly do that and retain credibility amongst their own members.

'They went as far as using words like accepting the reality of the situation of Israel's existence.

'This apparently is not enough for Benjamin Netanyahu or for the United States, and so we continue on this, in my view, fairly disastrous policy of trying to divide the various Palestinian forces.'

And he called for Brussels to suspend European trade agreements with Israel.

He said: 'I have always made it my business to enjoy good relations with Fatah with Hamas and with the independent members of the Knesset (the Israeli parliament) and the independent members of the Palestine National Authority.

'What can we do? Firstly, pressurising British politicians concerning the European trade relations with Israel.

'European trade arrangements are very beneficial to Israel and Israel is able to develop its economy on the basis of its trade with Europe.

'There is a human rights clause in that EU Israel trade agreement which is violated by Israel, and I think it is time to suspend that agreement.'

Jennifer Gerber, Labour Friends of Israel director, criticised Mr Corbyn for visiting the grave.

Palestinians from the militant group Hamas, pictured in 2004, have carried out a wave of deadly attacks in Israel. It is a banned terror group in Britain

She said: 'It is almost unbelievable that any Labour MP would participate in a ceremony honouring a man involved in the vicious murder of innocent Israeli athletes.

'Unfortunately, this appears to be part of a disturbing pattern of behaviour and we are seeking urgent clarification from the leader's office on this matter.'

A spokeswoman for the group said: 'Hamas is an anti-Semitic terror organisation and they should be forthrightly condemned as such.

'Until Hamas abandons its anti-Semitic ideology and terrorist strategy, and accepts fully Israel's right to exist, no MP should either meet or engage with it in any way, shape or form.'

A spokesman for Mr Corbyn said he was arguing that a suspension of the trade agreement could put diplomatic pressure on Israel to enter peace talks.

He said: 'Jeremy believes all parties that have credible levels of popular and electoral support, including Hamas, need to be part of the peace process.

'Jeremy was arguing that reviewing trade relationships was a form of diplomatic pressure to be considered to encourage engagement in the peace process.

'He does not support a blanket trade boycott and was not arguing for one, nor a suspension of trade, in this interview.

'As Jeremy has said many times, referring to Hamas as friends in a meeting in Parliament was a diplomatic courtesy, not a statement of support - and this interview makes clear his differences with Hamas.'
Britain should consider fining internet giants that fail to take down extremist content as part of a fresh crackdown on terror material, a former senior spy chief has said.

Brian Lord, the ex deputy director of intelligence and cyber operations at GCHQ, said some social media firms are failing to face up to their social responsibility.

He also hit out at Facebook for only employing 4,500 moderators to take down extremist and violence material posted by its two billion users.

His comments come as Theresa May launches a fresh effort to pile pressure on tech giants such as such as Google and Twitter to take down terror material.

Brian Lord, the ex deputy director of intelligence and cyber operations at GCHQ, said some social media firms are failing to face up to their social responsibility

Mr Lord told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that the current situation is 'unsustainable'.

He said: 'I think when you have large organisations who provide ostensibly a public service to almost a quarter of the globe, I think those companies have to recognise that comes with a set of social responsibilities and not just an issue of profit.

Some degree of common ground has to be reached between these companies and the governments of the world, including the UK.

'I don't think the current position is sustainable.'

Ministers should consider a German-style system, where providers are fined millions of euros for failing to remove fake news from their sites, he said.

He said: 'I think we should consider it but as with all these issues, social media is here to stay and actually it's just as incumbent on the organisations themselves to adjust their approach to this as well as the threat of fines.

'I don't think it's either one or the other.'

He also warned that Facebook's relatively small team of moderators 'doesn't always cut it' and must be beefed up to be able to identify and take down offensive material posted online.

He said: When you have got two billion users then that number of manual moderators doesnt always cut it.

One has to recognise that the ability to be able to identify material does take time.'

Theresa May and other G7 leaders signed a declaration last Friday to demand that tech firms take tougher action to take down terrorist and other extremist material posted online

The Manchester terror attack has thrust the problem of online radicalisation back into the spotlight.

Internet companies have been roundly condemned for failing to do enough to take down terror manuals, bomb making instructions and extremist propaganda from its sites.

Mrs May last week convinced other members of the G7 to sign a declaration demanding tech firms take tougher actions to take down the material.

She had warned that the terror threat posed by ISIS is 'evolving rather than disappearing' and 'the fight is moving from the battlefield to the internet'.

And in a pointed attack yesterday, Security Minister Ben Wallace said social media giants are dragging their feet over bringing in harder measures.

He said: We have evidence they are trying to improve it, there are a few who are refusing to or are being difficult  Im not going to name them.

And thats why I think the Prime Minister was right to step up not only the language she has used but to say we are not going to allow this to progress any more.
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Photography enthusiasts were given a special treat on Sunday night as the Aurora Australis lit up the sky in Tasmania and New Zealand.

A vibrant purple covered the sky as spikes of light cut through, and a vivid green settled across the skyline.

Pictures taken in Ulverstone, about 300 kilometres north of Hobart, show the brightly coloured Aurora stretched over a suburb.

Despite being a moderately cloudy night, the aurora was still very clear in the Tasmanian sky.

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The sky in the north of Tasmania lit up on Sunday night as an Aurora Australis, or the Southern Lights, became visible

The natural phenomenon saw the sky light up in vibrant shades of purple set over a bright green base

One delighted photographer left his camera on in the background as he stood in a field in Motukarara, New Zealand, with family from abroad

Tasmania is one of the best places in the world to see the natural phenomenon, which is caused when the sun releases a burst of solar wind and magnetic fields into space.

But to the naked eye, the stunning colours are difficult to pick up.

James Garlick, an avid Southern Lights photographer, told Australian Traveller there was a huge difference between what a person could see and what a camera could pick up.

'To the naked eye, an aurora will look more like a white flickering light - it could be mistaken for a cloud,' he said.

'It's not until you do a long exposure with the camera that the colours are revealed.'

Video taken in Coronet Peak, Queenstown displays a similar scene, where a time lapse clip shows the colours develop into deep vibrancy,

The scene is set over a city, and shows cars racing by and lights flicker as the night sky above is coloured with flashes of light and bright colours.

Winter months are best for catching an Aurora Australis, and Australian Traveller claims September is the best time to look for it.

The astounding colours of the Aurora are mostly invisible to the naked eye, and are best seen through a long-exposure photograph
Alan Hills, 26, recorded himself forcing the main lock after having 650 worth of power tools pinched from his work van

A van driver has revealed the two second trick used by callous thieves to break into brand new Ford Transits.

Alan Hills, 26, from St Neots in Cambridge, recorded himself forcing the main lock of his vehicle after having 650 worth of power tools pinched from his work van.

Mr Hills is one of the latest to fall victim to the simple technique and has since heard of hundreds of other drivers who have been targeted in the same way.

He has criticised Ford's vehicle security and hopes he can encourage them to change the locks being fitted on new models.

Mr Hills said: 'All you need is a set of pliers and you can get into any brand new Ford van.

'When you pay 30,000 for a new vehicle, you expect it to be safe and secure so I want to get the message out there.

'I'm not trying to tell people who don't know about it how to break into a van, I'm trying to encourage drivers to get better locks fitted to stop it happening.'

Mr Hills, who is self-employed but is contracted to work for SafeStyle UK, left his home last Tuesday morning to find his 17-plate Transit van unlocked.

He soon realised the main driver's door lock had been broken and hundreds of pounds worth of tools had been taken from the back.

Mr Hills reported the theft to police and claims the 101 operator told him that every morning, they receive a huge number of calls reporting van theft.

But later that day, a colleague informed him of the easy way thieves are breaking into new Ford Transits - after finding a flaw in the security system.

Mr Hills' van video (pictured) has been viewed more than two million times in the last week and shared by more than 21,000 people.

By manually opening the only key-entry lock, the alarm is deactivated, making it even easier for thieves to go unnoticed.

Mr Hills' van video has been viewed more than two million times in the last week and shared by more than 21,000 people.

Carrying out a demonstration of how to access the van, he says: 'My van got broken into last night. Really easy, all it takes is this black key casing which goes on the outside.

'All they have done is pop that off, snap the black bit behind which leaves them with the key exposed.

'If not it takes two seconds, no noise.'

Mr Hills, from St Neots in Cambridgeshire, has reported the incident to Ford, urging them to up the security on brand new vans.

Pictured: Mr Hills' van that was broken into by thieves who went on to steal power tools

In a response sent back to him, a spokesperson for the motoring company said: 'As a manufacturer, we recognise the great effort thieves will go to, to ensure the continuing theft of vehicles and we understand this may be a source of concern to our customers.

'The issue is not unique to Ford and we work very closely with independent bodies such as The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders and the Police, along with security companies in the motoring industry, to ensure the highest level of security for our vehicles.

'Alongside the police, we make every effort to ensure our customers understand the potential treats to the security of their vehicles from criminal gangs, and endeavour to develop preventative measures, wherever possible.'

Mr Hills is now waiting for his van to be repaired but he fears that once the lock has been fixed, he could be targeted again.

He said: 'I've only had my van for five weeks, it's from a completely new batch.

'I'm getting it fixed but they will just put the same lock back on.

'It's just going to say 'come and get me' to thieves and I worry that it will just be damaged again.

'You imagine when you lock your vehicle that it's going to be safe but while they're still fitting these locks, it just isn't the case.'
A horror head-on collision between two trucks and a car has tragically killed three teenage siblings as their father watched on.

Jack Pink, 19, and his sisters Marina, 17, and Destiny, 15, were killed instantly from the three-car crash on the Newell Highway near Boggabilla in northern NSW about 6am.

In a tragic twist, the father, Glenn, was reportedly heading home from a fair with his children when he faced the devastating scene of the crash.

The vehicles burst into a ball of flames on impact and the cabin was torn off a petrol tanker also involved in the fiery pile up.

Jack Pink, 19, and his sisters Marina, 17, and Destiny, 15, were killed instantly from the horror crash

The head-on collision between two trucks and a car has killed three teenagers heading home from a fair.

The family worked on the travelling show circuit, Showmens Guild of Australasia vice-president Broderick Pavier told Sydney Morning Herald.

It is understood they were travelling back to Brisbane after working at a fair show in Dubbo.

Police said Jack Pink was driving a pantech truck and towing a trailer, which crashed head-on with a fuel tanker then burst into flames, according to SMH.

The father of the three teenagers, Glenn, was seen collapsed on the road near the harrowing aftermath, according to Daily Telegraph.

Images from the scene show the mangled wreckage of the truck strewn over the road by the blackened shell of a car.

Astonishingly, the fuel tanker driver survived with only lacerations to his face after he was thrown from the vehicle.

Police said Jack Pink (pictured) was driving a pantech truck and towing a trailer, while his sisters were travelling in a car at the time of the crash

It is believed the pantech truck and the car collided head-on with a second truck - a fuel tanker - that before bursting into flames

Miraculously, the fuel tanker driver survived with only lacerations to his face after being thrown from the vehicle

NSW Police have launched an investigation into how the crash unfolded.

A GoFundMe page launched for the Pink family, who are said to be 'crushed' by the tragedy.

'What they do is everything for the kids. To lose 1 would be crazy. [The fact they] lost 3 in 1 split second is just out of this world,' the page said.

'They are great people and their sacrificial love for their kids knows no bounds. This is a crushing blow to this tight knit family.'

Marina was due to turn 18 on Tuesday, according to the page.

Police set up a crime scene at the crash site.

To donate to the family go here
Iraqi security forces hope to liberate Mosul from ISIS by June 10, and end the self-styled caliphate's control of the city.

The ambitious target gives troops a little under a fortnight to clear the last remnants of ISIS fanatics from Iraq's second-largest city.

Much of Mosul, including the airport and university, are already under the control of the security forces.

Iraq hopes to liberate the last neighbourhoods of Mosul from ISIS over the next fortnight

However an unknown number of ISIS fighters are still hidden among an estimated 165,000 civilians in the old city.

The winding streets, blind alleyways and densely-packed buildings makes military progress especially difficult.

Nonetheless Iraqi commanders are adamant that the city will be re-taken by June 10.

Artillery fires against Islamic State positions. There are still an unknown number of ISIS fighters hidden in the old city of Mosul

The winding streets, cluttered buildings and civilian populations make progress especially difficult for Iraqi security forces

Major Qusay Al-Kinani, commander of Iraq's Special Operations Forces, told the Daily Telegraph: 'Mosul fell to [ISIS] on June 10, 2014, so by June 10 this year it must be liberated.'

The claim has been greeted with some skepticism, as several previous deadlines for liberation have passed.

Last year Iraqi prime minister Haider Al Abadi promised to rid Iraq of ISIS by the end of 2016.

Military commanders have also said that the liberation would be finished before Ramadan - which started last Friday.

June 10 will mark the three-year anniversary of Mosul being captured by ISIS

Iraqi forces have previously claimed that they would be able to liberate the entire city before Ramadan, which began last Friday

Ramadan has placed extra strain on Iraqi forces, who face the prospect of fasting from drink and food during daylight hours, as well as fighting

Ramadan, where Muslims fast from food and drink during the daylight hours, has added an extra strain to the troops fighting on the ground.

Lieutenant Idris Ibrahim said: 'I'm tired and angry and thirsty and that's adding to the stress of zig-zagging through these buildings.

WHY HAS IT TAKEN SO LONG TO RETAKE MOSUL? TERRAIN The U.S.-led coalition has described the battle for Mosul as 'some of the toughest urban fighting in decades.' Initially, Iraqi forces punched too deep into Mosul and suffered heavy casualties from the IS fighters who had years to prepare defenses. Mosul has been described as 'some of the toughest urban fighting in decades' When Iraqi forces slowed their advances to just a few hundred meters a day and coordinated moves across multiple fronts, IS defenses thinned and Iraqi forces were able to secure more victories and reduce military casualties. CIVILIANS The United Nations estimated more than a million civilians were still living in the city. Unlike past urban battles against IS, in Mosul Iraq's government asked civilians to remain in their homes in order to avoid massive numbers of displaced families requiring camps and other assistance. The presence of civilians means Iraqi forces cannot rely on airstrikes or artillery Iraqi commanders said the presence of civilians inside Mosul during the fight has repeatedly slowed the pace of operations as they are unable to largely rely on airstrikes and artillery to quickly clear territory ahead of their ground forces. The U.S.-led coalition has repeatedly praised Iraqi forces for showing respect for human life in the Mosul fight, but there have been instances of high civilian casualties due to the use of artillery and airstrikes. IRAQI FORCES However Iraqi forces are still taking the lead on the ground in Mosul and after more than seven months of grueling fighting, Iraq's best-trained fighters are depleted. After months of fighting, Iraqi's best-trained fighters are now exhausted and depleted Iraq's special forces suffered significant casualties in the fight for eastern Mosul and in the first weeks of the push on Mosul's west, Iraq's federal police - relatively inexperienced in urban combat - took a lead role in one of the city's most difficult districts. After the advance led by the federal police stalled, the Iraqi army's ninth division - an armored division not immediately suitable to fighting in urban environments - was brought in to assist. Advertisement

'But the best fasting in the eyes of God is that which is done during jihad, and that's what we're in right now, a righteous struggle.'

Military progress has been described as 'cautious', with 'sporadic' clashes on Sunday.

Iraqi planes dropped leaflets over the area, encouraging the civilians to flee 'immediately' to 'safe passages' where they will be greeted by 'guides, protectors and (transportation) to reach safe places.'

An Iraqi federal policeman fires at ISIS militants. Progress has been described as 'cautious'

Iraq has dropped leaflets encouraging civilians to leave the area and flee towards safe zones

IS militants have deployed snipers, suicide car bombers and suicide attackers on foot, to halt the advance.

The U.N. has warned that as many as 200,000 civilians may try to leave in the coming days.

Oxfam's Country Director in Iraq, Andres Gonzalez said: 'The people of Mosul have already suffered enough - the Government of Iraq needs to urgently establish genuinely safe routes so people can escape the fighting and get to the shelter and help they need.

ISIS has deployed snipers and suicide bombers and foot and in cars in a bid to halt the advance of Iraqi security forces

The U.N. estimates that up to 200,000 civilians will flee the area in the coming days

'Those fleeing the city are traumatised and exhausted and must be able to reach safety, adequate water, food, shelter and healthcare.

'Families currently face a terrible choice between staying in ISIS controlled areas where many have reportedly suffered extreme violence and food shortages, or risking explosive devices and bullets to escape the fighting.'

Save the Children warned that fleeing civilians could be caught in the crossfire, leading to 'deadly chaos.'
Donald Trump acts like a 'drunk tourist' who 'steps on others without realizing it' when it comes to diplomacy, a state department official has claimed after the president left a G7 Summit in Italy, in which he frustrated leaders in attendance.

Trump's performance in the last leg of his first international trip left other world leaders fuming with his stances on climate change, taxes and security.

But it was his 'arrogance' in threatening to oppose the Paris Agreement that was 'an abdication of American leadership', the official said.

President Donald Trump's performance at the G7 Summit in Italy during his first international trip left other world leaders fuming with his stances on climate change, taxes and security. He is pictured above walking to board Air Force One before departing from US military Naval Air Station Sigonella following a G7 summit of Heads of State and Government

Six of the seven G7 nations agreed to stick with their commitment to implement the 2015 Paris Agreement aimed at slowing global warming. Pictured above, from left, European Council President Donald Tusk, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, U.S. President Donald J. Trump, Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, French President Emmanuel Macron, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, British Prime Minister Theresa May and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker pose during a group photo for the G7 summit in the Ancient Theatre of Taormina

'When it comes to diplomacy, President Trump is a drunk tourist,' the State Department official told the Daily Beast. 'Loud and tacky, shoving his way around the dance floor. He steps on others without realizing it. It's ineffectual.'

The official, who has not been named, said that the United States should be 'out front' when it comes the Paris Agreement.

'One hundred and ninety-five nations never agree on anything, so when they do, accepting the measure should be easy,' the official said. 'The United States needs to be out front on this pact.'

Six of the seven G7 nations agreed to stick with their commitment to implement the 2015 Paris Agreement aimed at slowing global warming, but Trump said he needed more time to decide if the United States would abandon the accord.

His administration has argued that US emissions standards are tougher than those set by China, India and others, and therefore have put American businesses at a disadvantage.

Near the end of the summit, he tweeted teasingly that he would make a decision on Paris next week, leaving delegations to scratch their heads about why he could not commit in Taormina.

Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni, who chaired the meeting, said the other six 'won't change our position on climate change one millimeter. The US hasn't decided yet. I hope they decide in the right way.'

The G-7 summit came after Trump confounded hosts at NATO headquarters in Brussels earlier in the week. The appearance was described as a 'disaster' by more than one European official

Gentiloni said climate was 'not a minor point' and that he hoped the United States would decide 'soon and well' because the Paris accords 'need the contribution of the United States'.

'I found him very willing to engage, very curious, with an ability and desire to ask questions and to learn from all his interlocutors,' said Gentiloni, the G7 summit's host.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel was more downbeat, calling the G-7 climate talks 'very unsatisfactory'.

The G7 leaders meeting in Sicily vowed to fight protectionism, reiterating 'a commitment to keep our markets open', despite the Trump administration's talk of an 'America first' policy and continued criticism of Germany for its huge trade surplus.

They also agreed to step up pressure on North Korea, to forge closer cooperation in the fight against terrorism, and on the possibility of imposing more sanctions on Russia over its role in the conflict in Ukraine.

The G-7 summit came after Trump confounded hosts at NATO headquarters in Brussels earlier in the week.

The appearance was described as a 'disaster' by more than one European official.

With the leaders of America's NATO partners standing like school children behind him, Trump upbraided them for not spending more on defence and repeated the charge that some members owed 'massive amounts of money' from past years - even though allied contributions are voluntary.

At one point during his time in Brussels, he muscled aside Montenegrin Prime Minister Dusko Markovic as NATO leaders walked into the alliance's new headquarters for a photo session

He engaged in two alpha-male handshakes with France's new 39-year-old President Emmanuel Macron, who seemed to get the better of Trump on both occasions

At one point during his time in Brussels, he muscled aside Montenegrin Prime Minister Dusko Markovic as NATO leaders walked into the alliance's new headquarters for a photo session.

And he engaged in two alpha-male handshakes with France's new 39-year-old President Emmanuel Macron, who seemed to get the better of Trump on both occasions.

Macron praised Trump's 'capacity to listen' and his 'intention to progress with us'.

But Macron said he told the US President that it was 'indispensable for the reputation of the United States and the interest of the Americans themselves that the United States remain committed' to the Paris agreement.

Trump's appearance in Brussels was particularly galling to the Germans, who after months of painstaking relationship building with Trump - including Merkel's invitation to his daughter Ivanka for a G20 women's summit in Berlin - found themselves under attack from him on two fronts.

Before heading to NATO, Trump criticised Germany's trade surplus in a private meeting with senior European Union officials.

The macho posturing in Europe contrasted to the images, a few days earlier, of Trump and his team swaying, swords in hand, with the absolute rulers of Saudi Arabia at a lavish welcome ceremony given by King Salman.

Summing up the tour on Saturday, Trump's advisers seemed most enthused about the Saudi leg, where he clinched a $110 billion arms deal and forged what one aide described as a 'personal bond' with the king.
A bold NSW superfan has shown his true colours ahead of the State of Origin by painting his house blue  despite living in Queensland.

The man, known only as Daryl, took to social media to show his home makeover in the lead up to Wednesday's first State of Origin clash.

The move has been met with praise on social media, where many commenters commended Daryls courage.

Feeling blue: Daryl took to social media to show his bold home makeover in the lead up to Wednesday's first State of Origin clash

Proves what Origin is all about supporting the place you were born through thick and thin. Someone should remind certain players in Maroon that, wrote one commenter.

Torn between disgust and respect - but since he's my neighbour I went and had a beer with him anyway! wrote another.

But Daryl failed to impress some commenters, who pointed out his letterbox was out of keeping with the house.

Maroon coloured mailbox. I question his commitment to the Blues.

It comes amid rumours that convicted drug smuggler Schapelle Corby could come face-to-face with The Blues in Brisbanes Sofitel Hotel, where the NSW side will stay.

The intense media scrutiny surrounding Corbys return to would suggest the Blues will be bombarded with cameras and reporters, should they end up staying there at the same time.

The move comes days before Wednesday's first State of Origin clash (pictured: last years match in ANZ Stadium)
Liz Fairclough, pictured, was enjoying a dream holiday in Bulgaria when she developed an infection

A mother of four died from an infected scratch that happened while she was swimming in the sea on holiday - after blundering Bulgarian medics mistook her deadly sepsis for a torn muscle.

An inquest heard that if married teaching assistant Liz Fairclough had been treated on the NHS in the UK she may have lived.

Grandmother-of-one Mrs Fairclough, 51, from Bolton in Greater Manchester, was enjoying a dream holiday in Burgas, on the Bulgarian coast, last summer with her husband Andrew.

Preston Coroner's Court heard she suffered a fall in a hotel pool just days into the trip - then developed an infection from a scratch on her leg while swimming in the sea.

But the inquest heard medics wrongly assumed she had banged her head and failed to spot the infected leg scratch before sending her home with a pulled muscle diagnosis.

She had developed 'cellulitis' - a skin infection that is easily treated with a course of antibiotics.

But despite an operation to relieve pressure in her thigh, she died last August 18th from septic shock.

Last Friday, giving a narrative conclusion, Lancashire Coroner Dr Richard Adeley said she tragically died after 'opportunities for treatment' were missed.

Dr Adeley added: 'This was three pieces of extremely bad luck all lining up together.'

The coroner explained that the initial fall, suffering the scratch and being sent away from hospital with a suspected torn muscle all tragically combined.

Her husband Andrew Fairclough, 56, said eventually doctors diagnosed his wife with a torn muscle and she was sent home with related medication.

Preston Coroner's Court heard that Mrs Fairclough, pictured, had suffered a fall in a hotel pool - then developed an infection from a scratch on her leg while swimming in the sea

Mrs Fairclough, 51, was on holiday in Burgas on the Bulgarian coast when the tragedy happened (stock photo)

She was returned to the hospital a short time later after being left in agony at her hotel.

An operation was undertaken to relieve some of the pressure building up on her thigh, and she was transferred to intensive care, where her condition deteriorated, and she died on August 18.

Prof Satyan Rajbhandari, a consultant physician from Preston who reviewed Mrs Fairclough's case, agreed that had she been treated in the UK, she may have survived.

Prof Rajbhandari said: 'If she had been treated at an NHS hospital, when her general observations included low blood pressure, any suspected underlying infection would then have been treated with antibiotics.'

The professor told the court that even the slightest scratch to Mrs Fairclough's skin may have led to a streptococcal infection developing.

Dr Mark Pitt, who conducted a post-mortem examination in the UK, said the cause of death was septic shock, linked to a severe form of cellulitis.

Liz's heartbroken husband Andrew, pictured left, paid tribute to the mother of four

Mrs Fairclough, from Dartford in Kent, had worked as an infant feeding co-ordinator.

Her heartbroken husband Andrew said: 'My wife was a beautiful and kind person and so caring.

'She dedicated her free time to make a special difference to others. Liz was very special.'

The widower said the couple were due to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary last October before the tragedy.

He added: 'My wife was a wonderful woman, she pushed her kids and tried to inspire them to become as successful as possible.

'It is down to Liz they have had such a privileged start to life.

'She loved the outdoors and I will miss her enthusiasm and her get up and go.

'She motivated me to do things that I never thought I would. But most importantly she was the heart of the home she was the hub and we will all miss her dearly.'
A 23-year-old man has been arrested in South Yarra following a two-hour stand-off with police.

Police claim he made verbal threats towards staff at a business on Toorak Road just after 5.30pm.

The man's arrest follows a negotiation with police and News Corp claims the man was holding an edged weapon.

Toorak Road in South Yarra, Melbourne, was shut down between William Street and Chapel Street during a lengthy stand off between a 23-year-old man and police

Earlier, the incident shut down part of Toorak Road, between Chapel Street and Williams Road.

As the negotiation reached Cunningham Street, where the man was arrested, part of that road was closed to traffic.

Police told Daily Mail Australia the man is now assisting police with inquiries, and no charges have been laid.

The Melbourne Fire Brigade were called to be on stand-by at about 6pm, and a spokesperson for the MFB says there may have been a threat of self harm made during the incident.

It is also believed that Ambulance Victoria was on stand-by.

Nobody was injured during the incident.
A 9/11 truther was arrested in New York on Sunday after good Samaritans stopped him from harassing a woman in a subway station.

Jeffrey Boss, 54, started taking photos of a woman on the Seventh Avenue subway line at around 3pm as she rode the train with her friend, law-enforcement officials said.

The woman, who has not been named, asked him to stop but he continued to take photos, police said.

Jeffrey Boss, 54, was charged with assault on Sunday after taking photos of a woman on the Seventh Avenue subway line (its 72nd Street station pictured above) at around 3pm and 'trying to hit her' when she grabbed his phone

She then tried to grab the man's phone and accidentally cut her hand on the device before the altercation spilled out to the north entrance of the 72nd Street station.

Once outside, the woman's male companion grabbed Boss, witnesses said, and about ten other people joined him to make sure he wouldn't run away.

'First, the male companion was holding the guy. He wouldn't let him go,' a witness told the New York Post. 'Then other people joined in, watching the guy so he wouldn't run away.'

The group held the man for about 15 minutes before officers arrived and arrested the man.

One witness said that she overheard the victim's friend tell police that Boss 'tried to hit her'.

Boss, who claims to be running for New York mayor, was arrested by police and charged with assault.

On his website, Bossforsenate.com, he claims that he 'witnessed the NSA plan the 9/11 attacks'.

He claims that 'no main stream media in the USA' will run his story because 'the media is controlled by the NSA'.

He also claims on his site that former President Barack Obama's birth certificate 'is fake' and that former President George W Bush 'killed 100's (sic) to get elected'.
A photofit of the Ghanaian rapist in Germany

A major shake up is underway in Germany after police refused to take seriously a 999 call from a young man who called in to say his girlfriend was being raped yards from him.

The officer who took the call did not believe the desperate man on the other end of the line, and said: 'You are not messing with me I hope?'

The terrified boyfriend had been threatened with a machete when the Ghanaian refugee entered the tent he shared with his girlfriend at a campsite near Bonn and told to remain where he was.

The attacker dragged the girl a few yards into a meadow at the Siegaue Nature Reserve and raped her.

But the boyfriend had a hard time getting police to take him seriously.

'Hmm,' was the first reaction from the female police officer on the line. 'Where exactly is this rape happening?' she added.

The man was forced to watch as the attacker violated his 23-year-old partner - and the police never arrived.

The 26-year-old boyfriend eventually scooped her up and began walking with her along a main road looking for help.

He called police a second time - and again they did not take their account of what happened at face value.

The wooded area where the rapist threatened the boyfriend with a machete before raping his girlfriend

The attacker dragged the girl a few yards into a meadow at the Siegaue Nature Reserve and raped her

Finally, nearly 30 minutes later, officers arrived and the victim was taken to hospital.

Frank Piontek, spokesman for the Bonn Police, conceded that the 'incoming official in the control centre, after our findings, did not initially correctly categorize the circumstances of the first call and reacted inappropriately in her language.'

The second call was also not handled properly, he added, saying a major review of procedures is underway following the attack in April.

A photofit picture of the attacker led to his arrest and DNA testing confirmed his guilt.

A CD player he stole from the tent was found at his refugee centre.

He tried to flee when police moved in to arrest him, flinging a rucksack at one officer.

It turned out that the backpack was stolen from a barbecue party shortly before the rape occurred.

The rape was one of the most high-profile sex attacks laid at the door of refugees since the migrant crisis began, prompting hundreds of tips from the public.

The 31-year-old asylum seeker was arrested in Siegburg after a walker recognised him from the police wanted poster.
Passengers have revealed their fury at missing major life events due to the chaos caused by the British Airways global IT crash.

One family had to book 84 separate flights to make a 70th birthday and family reunion in France, while a British bride was left 'in tears' when her dream Greek wedding had to be postponed because her guests got stuck at Heathrow.

Meanwhile a pilot revealed he drove a stranded cancer patient home from Heathrow after they waited on a plane for almost four hours but never left the runway.

Laura Thomson (pictured in Greece with the rest of her wedding guests) said three of her bridesmaids and her brother got stuck at Heathrow Terminal 5 for 13 hours until the booked on another airline, leaving their luggage behind

Ms Thomson (left), from Surrey, was due to marry fiance Sam Sciortino (right) in Santorini, Greece, on Sunday but was forced to postpone due to the British Airways IT failure

Margaret Watts, right, was due to fly out to Montpellier with 17 relatives for her 70th birthday, but the family have now had to book 84 separate flights to make the trip

BA pilot of 29 years Captain Stephen Wearing, pictured, said it was the 'worst chaos he had ever seen'

Margaret Watts was set to celebrate her 70th birthday in Montpellier, France, with 17 relatives in a 7,000 holiday.

But when the family arrived at Heathrow on Saturday they were faced with a three-hour wait for information on their flight and eventually gave up and went home to Oxford.

Her daughter Rebecca, 45, told The Sun: 'To turn up for our dream trip to find that mess was heartbreaking.

'BA staff were streaming out, smoking fags without a care. None could tell us what the problem was.'

The paper reported the family has since paid 2,000 for easyJet flights tomorrow but they face several changes at 'far-flung airports' and and 'staggered flights'.

Rebecca added: 'It's devastating. All mum wanted for her birthday was us all together.'

Laura Thomson, from Guildford, was due to marry fiance Sam Sciortino on the island of Santorini on Sunday.

Daniel and Karen Martin, pictured, arrived at Heathrow from Vancouver on honeymoon but missed a connecting flight to Greece and lost their luggage

Ms Thomson (centre) said she has managed to rearrange the wedding for Monday, but the experience reduced her to tears and left her 'a shell'

But the British Airways IT failure, which was blamed on a 'power supply issue', saw three bridesmaids and her brother get stuck at Heathrow Terminal 5 for 13 hours.

The guests eventually managed to leave the airport without their luggage after booking with a different airline.

Writing on Facebook, Miss Thomson said: 'What can I say, I am just a shell of myself right now, my head is vacant, we are absolutely shattered.

'Thanks to all the suppliers out here we have managed to swap dates, without too much loss.

'I have been in tears with our dream of how it should of been slowly fading away, knowing I can't share the day with my family the way I imagined, my sister in law and nieces no longer able to be bridesmaids, my brother no longer with his suit, but we are looking on the positives that at least they will all be here at the last hour.

'I'm so sorry they have been through such hell at Terminal 5 and all the worry and fear, with BA making them cut calls off to loved ones, not being allowed to use their phones and not being advised what's happening.

'I just hope you all can enjoy Monday once it finally arrives and hopefully the topic of conversation on our special day isn't BA.'

She said she felt 'so let down' by BA after her bridesmaids and brother got caught in the chaos caused by a 'power supply problem' with the company's IT services

Passengers still face delays today at Heathrow, pictured, as several more flights were cancelled and delayed

Miss Thompson and Mr Sciortino had flown out to Santorini earlier in the week and were due to be joined by their guests on Saturday, before the IT failure.

She told the BBC: 'We've been planning our big day for two years only to be forced to rush around and change everything to take place a day later.

'My brother is one of the groomsmen, and my nieces and sister-in-law are my bridesmaids, so naturally I wanted them to share the day with us.

'They booked with British Airways because they thought it was a reliable company. We feel so let down.'

Daniel and Karen Martin arrived on honeymoon in the UK from Vancouver, Canada, and were due to fly to Greece as part of their honeymoon but now face delays and have lost their luggage.

Mr Martin told Sky News: 'Our luggage is gone and we do not know when we are going to get it. We have no clothes.

'We are flying to Greece today and we just hope we can get on a boat to Crete tomorrow to continue our honeymoon. We have 13 days of it left, but we have no clothes.'

Mrs Martin added: 'We want British Airways to reimburse us for our loss.'

Captain Stephen Wearing, who has been a BA pilot for 29 years, said the situation was 'unbelievable' and 'the worst chaos I've ever seen'.

He told the Telegraph he had driven a cancer-stricken patient home after the elderly man was left stranded after sitting on a plane for four hours without moving.

BA itself canceled another 27 flights and had 58 more delayed Monday.

BA chief executive Alex Cruz, pictured, has apologised for the problems and said the firm would do everything it could to 'meet its obligations'

The airline, which is part of the broader International Airlines Group, canceled all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick on Saturday after the IT outage, which it blamed on a power-supply problem. The glitch threw the plans of tens of thousands of travelers into disarray.

BA operates hundreds of flights from Heathrow and Gatwick on a typical day - and both are major hubs for worldwide travel.

Passengers, some of whom had spent the night at London's Heathrow Airport, faced frustrating waits to learn if and when they could fly out.

Some endured hours-long lines to check in, reclaim lost luggage or rebook flights at Terminal 5, BA's hub at Heathrow. Many complained about a lack of information from the airline.

BC chief executive Alex Cruz told Sky News he was 'extremely sorry' for all the passengers affected by the delays and cancellations.

He added there had been no loss of passengers' private data and the no-fly terror watch list was also unaffected by the glitch.

Mr Cruz said: 'Everyone at British Airways is totally committed to finding a solution for those customers affected.

'We are extremely sorry and we will follow our obligations and provide as much flexibility as possible to Mr and Mrs Martin and the rest of the customers affected.'
Leading grime artist SafOne has been charged with supply of heroin and crack cocaine.

The rapper - real name Saphan Robinson - has music is regularly played on Radio 1 andhe has performed at sell-out shows across the country.

He was arrested in a police operation and is also accused of possession of cannabis with intent to supply.

The 26-year-old grime star has a huge online following and has been included in music magazine polls of the Top 20 grime artists for the last two years.

Top grime artist SafOne - aka Saphan Robinson - has music is regularly played on Radio 1 and he has performed at sell-out shows across the country

Best known for 2015's She Wants A Man From Brum, he also appeared on P. Money's 10/10 Remix hit last year.

And his music was played before a gig last month by BRIT Award winner Stormzy at the 02 Academy.

Mr Robinson's music career began some years ago and has steadily built up a large fanbase.

His music is now played regularly on Radio 1. He is also often featured on 1 Extra, the BBC's urban music radio channel.

Robinson, of Handsworth, first appeared at Birmingham Crown Court in connection with the case on April 7.

He will stand trial with co-defendant Jermaine Alleyne, 30, of, West Bromwich, who is charged with possession of cannabis with intent to supply, and being concerned in the supply of cannabis.

Both men deny the charges against them.

The 26-year-old has been charged with supply of heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis

Birmingham Crown Court confirmed the men are due to stand trial on November 27. They are currently on police bail.

A spokesman for West Midlands Police said: 'Two men were charged with numerous drug offences in February after being arrested in Birmingham on January 24, 2016.

'Crack cocaine, heroin and cannabis were discovered during a search of the car they were travelling along the Pershore Road in at the time.'

They said that Saphan Robinson, 26, from Handsworth, and Jermaine Alleyne, 30, from Oldbury, were subsequently charged and are due to stand trial in November 2017 at Birmingham Crown Court.
An ex-BAE Systems employee who worked under a fake identity used his skills to power a 23,000 cannabis factory with free electricity, a court heard.

Seyed Sajedein, 28, got a job with the top aviation company after entering Britain illegally.

But he turned his skills to cannabis growing when he lost his job with the engineering company.

Hull Crown Court heard he had even siphoned off free electricity to power the high-voltage lamps to help grow his illegal crop.

Seyed Sajedein, 28, pictured, had struck up employment with the top aviation company after he had entered Britain illegally

Prosecutor Cathy Kioko-Gilligan said: 'He entered the country illegally and was given a different identity.

'He lost the employment that he had - he has worked at BAE.

'He said he started to grow cannabis as a way of saving money, this had been his second harvest.

'Most of the first harvest was for his own use, but he says he sold some to his friends.'

Sajedein, who has since been granted asylum in Britain, was caught after calling police when he was attacked by a man inside his home on December 20 last year.

After taking down a statement from the defendant officers 'became aware of other matters' and conducted a search of the home.

Harvested cannabis was found in the first bedroom with nine plants and growing equipment discovered in the second.

Appearing at Hull Crown Court, pictured, Sajedein pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and admitted illegally abstracting electricity

The third bedroom contained 43 small plants and a hosepipe was found in the bathroom.

Experts suggested the potential street value of the cannabis was 23,400. It was unknown how much electricity was taken, but a meter had been damaged.

Sajedein, of Hull, East Yorkshire, pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and admitted illegally abstracting electricity.

Recorder Taryn Turner asked for the immigration status of Sajedein.

Steven Garth, representing Sajedein, replied: 'He applied for asylum and was granted it. He is now a British citizen.'

The case was adjourned for sentencing until June 16 so the value of the drugs could be established.

Sajedein was granted unconditional bail.

A spokeswoman for BAE Systems said she was unable to find any employee record for 'Sajedein' at their branch at Brough, East Yorkshire.
An estimated 20 cats have died after allegedly eating toxic cat food with dozens more understood to be critically ill.

Cat owners have been showing up at vet clinics with their animals suffering from 'neurological damage' which they claim was caused by Best Feline Friend canned food.

The Australian Veterinary Association confirmed a series of complaints had been laid about the product and are investigating.

About 20 cats have died after allegedly eating cat food Best Feline Friend including Jenny Ackland's cat, which died when it was only 12-months-old around the time it ate the cat food

Ms Ackland is frustrated little effort has been done by Weruva to share the results from their testing of the product

Spokeswoman Rena Richmond said the neurological damage is possibly linked to the toxicity of pet food or deficiency.

'If your cat is exhibiting signs such as strange head or eye movements, wobbling, repeated circling or difficulty in walking you should take it to your vet for assessment,' she told the Herald Sun.

Weruva, the American pet food company behind BFF, said in a statement testing had revealed low levels of thiamine on May 25.

They said in the process of testing, some of the foods were found to have insufficient thiamine - vitamin B1, to meet the 'AAFCO complete & balanced' standards.

The results were released 20 days after the product had been recalled.

Associate Professor of Veterinary Medicine Sherry Lynn Sanderson from the University of Georgia said low levels of thiamine can result in severe health issues for cats.

'Thiamine-deficient cats develop anorexia, an unkempt coat, a hunched position, and with time, convulsions that become more severe, leading later to prostration and death,' she said.

The product (pictured) has been removed from Petbarn since it was recalled on May 5th

'Thiamine deficiency may cause a number of other neurological disorders and loss of the ability to maintain equilibrium when moving or jumping'.

Weruva said in a statement made May 12 findings would be made public soon.

The AVA are yet to receive the results.

AVA Head of Policy and Advocacy, Dr Melanie Latter said they are eagerly awaiting the analysis.

The product has since been removed from Petbarn since it was recalled on May 5th.

One woman, Jenny Ackland is a member of the community group that believes 20 cats have died possibly as a result of the food.

She said h er 12-month-old cat died after eating the BFF product but is struggling to find test results from Weruva.

'It all happened in stages, first he seemed lethargic, then he went off his food and then he became desperately ill,' Ms Ackland said

Weruva, the American pet food company BFF said the product lacked thiamine after tests were done on the cat food

'It all happened in stages, first he seemed lethargic, then he went off his food and then he became desperately ill,' she said.

'It's been three weeks since the Weruva BFF cat food recall occurred and cat owners from around Australia whose cats became ill or died are still awaiting confirmation of the cause.'

On Facebook the pet food mogul said: 'At Weruva, we are following guidance from the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA). We continue to research every detail surrounding the BFF canned foods. Tests suggested by veterinarians have been and continue to be performed, some of which require more time.

'To date, tests have not yielded any conclusive links between BFF canned foods and the reported illnesses.'

The company is asking customers to return any BFF canned food with a best before date from September 2018 through to October 2019 for a refund.
Donald Trump has been accused by some Americans of having his head in the clouds - and now a pensioner has spotted his face in a lookalike formation floating above Scotland.

Jack Boyle, 79, was looking out his fourth-floor window in Largs, North Ayrshire, and spotted the cloud to the right of Arran.

He spotted the cloud and immediately grabbed his camera and shouted his wife, Rosemary, 77, out of bed.

He said: 'I was looking out around 10pm and saw the cloud. Straightaway I reached for the camera and shouted my wife out of bed.

A man has captured the bizarre moment US President Donald Trump appeared in the sky - in the shape of a cloud

'She couldn't believe it either. It lasted for about 30 seconds and I managed to get a good few photographs of it.

'I put them on the computer and they came out better than I expected,' he added.

Mr Boyle, a former aircraft ground engineer, said although he's not a fan of President Trump, he is good for instances such as these.

'I wouldn't say I like him but he's good for a laugh every now and then, just like this.

'Everyone agrees that they can see him in the cloud in the picture.'

It is not the first time the President's image has been spotted in unusual places - he has also been compared to a fish.
Comedian Kumail Nanjiani told graduates to 'have sex with an immigrant' as he delivered a college commencement speech in Iowa last week.

The actor, who stars in HBO's hit show Silicon Valley, was speaking at his alma mater Grinnell College last Monday when he made the comment.

'So here's another concrete piece of advice I can give you - have sex with an immigrant.

'We're going through a tough time right now and it would just be really great for morale,' he said, prompting roaring laughter from the young audience.

Nanjiani, 39, moved to the US as a teenager after growing up in Karachi in Pakistan. He graduated from Grinnell in 2001 with a liberal arts degree.

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Comedian Kumail Nanjiani told graduates at Grinnell College in Iowa to 'have sex with an immigrant' as he delivered his commencement speech last Monday

Reflecting on his time there, he joked: 'When I came to Grinnell I was a devout Muslim who had never romantically touched a girl and I was going to get a degree that guaranteed me a job.

'By the time I graduated I was basically a Rastafarian with a white American girlfriend and a philosophy degree. College changes you, is my point.'

On a more serious note, the star told how going to the university as a teenager shaped his career and life.

'This little liberal arts college in the middle of Iowa changed the way I saw the entire world. Before America was my home, Iowa was my home.

'And before Iowa was my home, Grinnell was my home.'

He also gave words of hope and encouragement for international students and their families.

The star drew laughs from the crowd with his 20-minute commencement speech

'Immigration is a big topic of conversation right nowdo we take in refugees or not, these people are so different from us... And I will say this.

'Refugees are people who risked everything and left their homes in search of better lives for them and their families. What could be more American than that?

Nanjiani graduated from Grinnell in 2001. He is pictured above with his wife Emily V. Gordon

'To those of you who were able to be here, as nervous as you were to get through customs and immigration, I hope that you are just as proud to watch your children walk across this stage. And I hope that today, you see the America that we love,' he said.

Finishing his speech, he told the crowd sincerely to 'be passionate' and 'care'.

'Each other is all we have. This is all we got, this is all we have.

'And it may not be heaven, but it can be Iowa. Congratulations, class of 2017.

'Welcome to the real world. We need you out here.'

After graduating in 2001, Nanjiani moved to Chicago where he met his wife Emily V. Gordon.

The pair married in 2007 and moved to Brooklyn for him to pursue a career in stand-up.

He stars as Dinesh in HBO's Silicon Valley.
A Princeton University professor giving a commencement speech at Hampshire College in Massachusetts accused President Donald Trump of being a 'racist, sexist megalomaniac'.

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, who is an assistant professor in African American studies at Princeton, delivered a roughly 20 minute speech to the graduating class of 300 students at the private liberal arts college on May 20.

'The president of the United States, the most powerful politician in the world, is a racist, sexist megalomaniac,' Taylor said roughly two minutes into her speech.

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Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor (above), who is an assistant professor in African American studies at Princeton, gave a commencement speech at Hampshire College where she accused President Donald Trump of being a 'racist, sexist megalomaniac'

'The president of the United States, the most powerful politician in the world, is a racist, sexist megalomaniac,' Taylor (left) said roughly two minutes into her 20 minute speech on May 20

'It's not a benign observation, but has meant tragic consequences for many people in our country - from terror-inducing raids in the communities of undocumented immigrants to his disparaging of refugees in search of freedom and respite.'

Taylor, who is the author of 'From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation', suggested that political activism is the reason why the federal court has struck down Trump's executive orders that restrict immigration from several Muslim-majority countries.

'When Trump's first illegal Muslim travel ban was attempted, thousands of ordinary people flooded the airports around this country,' she said.

'And because of those protests, and the defiance they represented, that ban was stopped - not once, but twice.

'It is not enough just to be outraged. Injustice has to actually be defied.'

During her speech, she also stated that 'the status quo is increasingly intolerable'.

'The political and economic status quo in this country has failed over and over again to deliver a better way to the vast majority of people in this country,' Taylor stated.

'For millions of people, the status quo is increasingly intolerable. It gnaws away at the tiny threads that millions of people are hanging on to in their daily struggles to make ends meet.

'Now is the time for defiance. Perhaps most importantly, we need hope.'

Taylor, who has a doctorate from Northwestern University in African American Studies, said Trump has 'empowered an attorney general who embraces and promulgates policies that have already proven to have had a devastating impact on black families and communities.'

On May 12, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that he has instructed prosecutors to pursue the most serious charges possible against criminal suspects, reversing Obama-era policies and upsetting civil rights groups.

The graduating class of 2017 also heard from the school's president Jonathan Lash.

Taylor, who is the author of 'From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation', also suggested that political activism is the reason why the federal court has struck down Trump's executive orders that restrict immigration from several Muslim-majority countries

He urged graduates to use their skills to improve the world for themselves and others.

'Fearless inventors and doers, the world needs you now more than ever,' Lash said.

'You can learn anything, invent what you need, build what you can imagine. You are the change.'

Hampshire College made headlines in 2016 when the school lowered its American flag to half-staff in respect of the violence happening across the country after Trump won the election in November.

The day before Veterans Day the flag was burned and later removed so that 'racist, misogynistic, Islamophobic, anti-immigrant, anti-Semitic and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and behaviors' could be examined, according to Lash.

During Thanksgiving weekend, more than 1,000 veterans visited the college to protest the school's decision.

The college eventually replaced the flag and moved it back to its rightful place in early December.

Tuition at the private college is roughly $49,000 a year.
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A South African lion whisperer who has been accepted as part of a pride and pictured cuddling his big cats has condemned tourists petting cubs.

Kevin Richardson lounging with lions as though they were house pets might resemble a circus act in the African bush, but he is using the attention to condemn the South African industry in which customers kill captive-bred lions in confined areas.

He and other critics describe the practice as 'canned hunting' and also condemn the tourist draw of lion cub petting in special enclosures, saying those same animals would not be able to survive in the wild and often get cycled into the 'trophy' industry to be shot for a price.

Richardson said: 'Today's lion cub becomes tomorrow's trophy and the unsuspecting tourists have blood on their hands.

'The tourists have been hoodwinked into believing that their contribution of funds is going into lion conservation.'

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Kevin Richardson, popularly known as the lion whisperer, interacts with one of his lions while out for a walk in the Dinokeng Game Reserve, near Pretoria, South Africa

Richardson, pictured playing with a lion, seeks to raise awareness about the plight of Africa's lions, whose numbers in the wild have dwindled in past decades

The lion whisperer at the end of a two-hour walk with three of his lions in the Dinokeng Game Reserve, near Pretoria, South Africa

The number of lions in the wild in Africa has dropped by more than 40 per cent to about 20,000 in the past two decades, according to some estimates.

One South African operation, the Lion and Safari Park, said it stopped lion cub petting but had to resume it because of a 'dramatic and unexpected' drop in visitors and tour operators who sought out cub petting elsewhere. It said it keeps its lions until they die of natural causes or donates them to 'reputable' zoos and parks, and does not sell its lions to hunters.

Today, 42-year-old Richardson, who is married and has two children, manages a wildlife area with 31 lions within the Dinokeng reserve north of South Africa's capital, Pretoria. Many of the lions, which were captive-bred and cannot be released into the wild, were rescued from being transferred to operations that would let customers shoot them, he said.

Richardson said he does not breed lions and that those on his 1,300-hectare (3,200-acre) property feed on donated carcasses of cattle and antelope.

'I have been accepted as part of the pride,' said Richardson, scratching the lion Bayetsi's chin. 'But I have to be very careful. They are large animals and are very good at telling you how they feel.'

The lions have scratched and bitten Richardson over the years, but he said more hurtful to him has been the criticism he has faced after being filmed wrestling with his lions or roaring with them.

Richardson's website, which offers merchandise including T-shirts, key chains and calendars, says he seeks to promote wildlife preservation through 'education, awareness and funding'.

Luke Hunter, president of Panthera, a conservation group, commended Richardson for his passion and 'authentic' concern for lions, saying: 'His messaging, for what he has and what he can do, is good.'

Richardson is trying to curb the tradition of people petting cubs, and said: 'Today's lion cub becomes tomorrow's trophy and the unsuspecting tourists have blood on their hands'

The spectacle of Kevin Richardson lounging with lions as though they were house pets might resemble a circus act in the African bush, but he is using the attention to condemn the South African industry in which customers kill captive-bred lions in relatively confined areas

Richardson takes two of his lions for a walk in the Dinokeng Game Reserve, near Pretoria, South Africa

But Hunter emphasized the broader conservation needs of the lion, including efforts to protect habitats and address poaching, in which antelopes and other potential prey for lions end up in the bushmeat trade, and lions get trapped in snares laid down indiscriminately.

A relatively recent concern is demand in some Asian countries for lion bones used in traditional medicine, and the possibility that poachers are increasingly targeting lions to meet that demand.

Currently, South Africa allows the legal, annual export of bones from hundreds of captive-bred lions to China and Southeast Asia.

Richardson spoke of his intimacy with the animals.

'The relationships I have with them are purely to give them a better quality of life in a captive situation,' he said.

'I will look after them as long as I can.'
Angela Merkel isn't backing down from her remarks about the European Union not being able to trust Donald Trump's America, her spokesman has warned.

Merkel remains committed to US-German relations but has little confidence in the Trump Administration, Steffen Seibert, confirmed in a regular government news conference in Berlin on Monday.

'The chancellor's words stand on their own - they were clear and comprehensible,' he said. 'It was a deeply convinced trans-Atlanticist who spoke.'

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On Sunday, Angela Merkel (pictured)said the EU couldn't 'fully rely' on the US any more. On Monday she stood by those claims - but said she still hopes to cooperate with America

On Sunday, Merkel - who had just come from a string of NATO meetings with Trump - said at a campaign event in Bavaria: 'The times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days.

'And that is why I can only say that we Europeans must really take our fate into our own hands - of course in friendship with the United States of America, in friendship with Great Britain and as good neighbours wherever that is possible also with other countries, even with Russia.'

The remarks came the day after a stormy G7 Summit in Italy, in which Trump frustrated Merkel and the other leaders in attendance with his stance towards security, climate change and tax.

Merkel was still standing by those words on Monday, Seibert said. But he stressed that Germany still considered the US an ally.

'Those of you who have reported on the chancellor for a long time will know how important German-American relations are to her,' he told the news conference.

'They are a firm pillar of our foreign and security policy, and Germany will continue to work to strengthen these relations.'

He added: 'Because trans-Atlantic relations are so important to this chancellor, it is right from her viewpoint to speak out honestly about differences.'

In Vienna, European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny was asked whether difficult political relations between Europe and the United States were causing any downside risk for the world economy.

He replied: 'No. I have to say, this is an advantage that central banks have relative to the governments.'

Nowotny described ECB cooperation with the US Federal Reserve as 'very good, very intensive.'

'Fortunately central banks are independent and not dependent on the short-term political discussions,' he said.

Angela Merkel (seen after delivering her speech) is 'convinced' of German-American relations, her spokesman said. But he said her words on Sunday were 'clear and comprehensible'

WHAT COULD MERKEL'S TOUGH TALK MEAN FOR THE WORLD ? The roots of the current relationship between America and Europe go back to world war two and the cold war - when NATO was formed to protect Western Europe from a Soviet invasion. Since the end of World War II, Europe has increasingly relied on America's military might for its defense. Close cooperation through NATO fostered a strong economic and social bond between the member nations. However, Trump has loudly complained about European nations not paying their fair share of the cost of their defense. Now that Merkel has signaled she is moving away from Trump, it could mean a shift in the wider world order. America and Western Europeans countries have traditionally driven the world's agenda - now this could change as Trump and Merkel move further apart. Advertisement

The comments came after the G7 countries were unable to agree to a deal that would see the 2015 Paris climate accords upheld.

Merkel on Saturday labelled the result of the 'six against one' discussion 'very difficult, not to say very unsatisfactory'.

Trump, who routinely promised during his campaign to abandon the plan, said he needed more time to decide on a path forward.

However, he has reportedly told multiple people in private he will withdraw the US from the agreement, according to Axios.

Trump tweeted Saturday morning to say he would announce his 'final decision' on the accord this week.

He also reportedly described German trade practices as 'bad, very bad,' in Brussels talks last week, complaining that Europe's largest economy sells too many cars to the US.

Merkel's speech on Sunday seemed to reflect her changed opinion towards the US under Trump.

Merkel said Sunday at a campaign event in Bavaria: 'The times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days'

Trump talks to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, and Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi, second from left, at a G7 Summit expanded session in Taormina on Italy, May 27

Angela Merkel looks on as she is stood next to Donald Trump while waiting to have a photograph taken on Friday as part of the G7 meeting

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau share a laugh during the G7 Summit in Italy on Saturday

DONALD TRUMP'S HISTORY OF TOUGH TALK ON NATO Donald Trump (pictured with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on May 25 in Brussels) has repeatedly attacked NATO - but his criticisms have not always been accurate Trump repeatedly bashed NATO during his campaign and since he took office, accuses countries of 'not paying their share' and bashing the group as 'obsolete'. He made the 'obsolete' comment in the wake of the Brussels terrorist attack in 2016. In an interview this April, Trump claimed he called the organization that because it did not 'focus on terrorism'. However, NATO issued its first formal declaration on counter-terrorism in 1980, and it reviewed the 'terror blueprint' in 2012. It stated at the time: 'The Alliance strives at all times to remain aware of the evolving threat from terrorism; to ensure it has adequate capabilities to prevent, protect against, and respond to terrorist threats.' But despite that incorrect statement, Trump still lectured the other leaders in person on Thursday, declaring: 'Many of these nations owe massive amounts of money from past years.' But most notably in his speech, he also did not offer an explicit public endorsement of NATOs Article 5, 'all for one, one for all' collective defense principle - which means an attack against one country in the group is seen as an attack on all. During his time as a candidate, Trump had suggested the US might only come to the defense that meet the alliances spending guidelines - for committing two per cent of their gross domestic product to military spending. Last year, only five of the 28 countries met the goal: the US, Greece, Britain, Estonia and Poland. Fellow NATO leaders occasionally exchanged awkward looks with each other during the presidents lecture on Thursday, which occurred at an event commemorating the fall of the Berlin Wall and the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. NATO officials had expected Trump to raise the payments issue during Thursdays meeting, even preparing Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg for the prospect that the president could try to pull off a stunt like handing out invoices. Trump repeatedly bashed NATO during his campaign and since he took office, accuses countries of 'not paying their share' and bashing the group as 'obsolete'. He is pictured on April 12 at the White House But one European official said NATO members were still taken aback by the aggressive tone of his speech. Since his international tour has wrapped up, the Associated Press explained how many of Trump's claims about the defense organization are untrue. His comment about countries 'owning' money was the first to be found wanting by a fact-check. Members of the alliance are not in arrears in their military spending, nor are they in debt to the US, or failing to meet a current standard, and Washington is not trying to collect anything, despite the presidents contention. In a similar fashion, Trump tweeted this week 'pour in' for NATO since he took office. He picked up on that thread on Saturday, telling soldier at a US base in Italy: 'I will tell you, a big difference over the last year, money is actually starting to pour into NATO from countries that would not have been doing what theyre doing now had I not been elected, I can tell you that. Money is starting to pour in.' But again, that is not true, according to the Associated Press. No money is pouring into the organization and countries do not pay the US, nor do they pay NATO directly, apart from administrative expenses, which are not the issue. The issue is how much each NATO member country spends on its own defense. Although the president is right that many NATO countries have agreed to spend more on their military budgets, that is not a result of the NATO summit this past week at which Trump pressed them to do so. The two per cent goal was committed to in 2014, during the Obama administration. Advertisement

During her remarks, the German leader emphasized the need for friendly relations with the US, Britain and Russia, but added: 'We Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands.'

Merkel and Trump have had a frosty relationship, with the Celebrity Apprentice executive producer having called the German leader a 'disaster'.

'What's happening in Germany, I always thought Merkel was like this great leader. What she's done in Germany is insane. It is insane,' he said in 2015.

Donald Trump and Angela Merkel appear to be in the middle of a tense conversation at the G7 Summit on Friday

Merkel and Trump have clashed in the past, with the reality television producer calling the German leader a 'disaster'

The comment directly contradicted what he said just two months earlier, when he described Merkel as: 'fantastic... highly respected'.

Trump also refused to shake Merkel's hand during an awkward photo opportunity at the White House this year.

As the two were sat in front of a pack of photographers, Merkel could be heard saying to Trump: 'Do you want to have a handshake?'

There was no response from the president, who instead looked ahead with his hands clasped.
The shocking moment a high school student launched a racist attack on his science teacher has been captured on camera.

The student, who has been named online and across social media as Gideon Yapp, became enraged at his Eastside High School teacher in Lancaster, California, who he called 'Dr Hsu' during the clip.

School records show there is a Franklin Hsu at the school who teaches physics.

The video starts as the student is heard shouting, 'I stopped talking' at the teacher.

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The shocking moment a high school student (pictured) launched a racist attack on his science teacher has been captured on camera

The student then aggressively fronts up to the professor and yells: 'You do not come up to me and get in my goddamn face.'

Hsu, who is clearly trying to walk back to the front of the class to continue with the lesson, replies: 'All right, go sit down.'

But that outrages the student to the point he launches another verbal attack.

'No, you go sit down, come up to me like that, who the f*** do you think you are,' Yapp cries, as the teacher walks back to his desk at sits down.

The student, who has been named online and across social media as Gideon Yapp (pictured), became enraged at his Eastside High School teacher in Lancaster, California, who he called 'Dr Hsu'

The video started by showing the teacher and student arguing near the door of the classroom (left). The student was then seen walking towards the teacher and confronting him (right)

'I'm not f***ing playing. Come up to me and do that to me, I'll do it to you, b***h.'

It is not clear from the video what the student is talking about, but the teacher is then heard again in the video telling him to go sit down.

'Shut your f***ing mouth, f***ing tell me, who the f*** do you think you are,' the student is heard shouting in the teacher's face.

'F***ing n****r, f***ing b***h,' the student shouts at his Asian teacher, before appearing to break part of a tap and throw it at the teacher.

Yapp then walks towards the classroom door, stopping only to kick a bin and hurl more racial abuse.

'F*** n****r,' he yells, before picking up the bin and tipping its contents out all over the floor.

'Fix up your f***ing room,' he then yells at the teacher.

The high school student looked furious as he shouted at his teacher in the classroom (left), before he then walked towards the door and emptied a bin all over the floor (right)

The student, who was named online, damaged a tap during his furious outburst (left), before he walked back to the door while still shouting racial slurs (right)

The student is then hurried out of the room by another teacher, at which point he shouts back at the teacher: 'F***ing whack a** n****r.'

There is no video of what happened to send Yapp into a rage.

But at least one student at the school was quick to come to his defense.

'He's just, like, so sweet, you would never think of him doing anything,' Ashley Figgers told CBSLA.

'And then to hear this, it's like, "Him? No!"'

The high school also released a statement after the footage was shared across social media.

'We take this type of situation very seriously. Our teachers safety is of the utmost importance to us,' Principal Kristen Tepper said.

'The incident has been investigated and appropriate action by school administration has been taken.'

It is not known whether Yapp has been punished by his school. He has deleted all his social media accounts since his name was published over the weekend.
President Trump said Monday that North Korea has shown 'great disrespect' to China with its latest missile launch.

Jumping back into foreign policy after returning from his first overseas trip, Trump endeavored to drive a wedge between hermetic North Korea and its political benefactor  following futile efforts by the U.S. to get it to back off its aggressive actions.

'North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbor, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile...but China is trying hard!' Trump tweeted.

North Korea's latest 'successful' launch landed into the Sea of Japan, in a provocation toward one of the United States' closest allies.

President Trump said Monday that North Korea has shown 'great disrespect' to China with its latest missile launch

The president has repeatedly linked North Korea and China, saying China could reign in North Korea if it wanted to.

After meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping at Mar-a-Lago in April, Trump tweeted: 'I explained to the President of China that a trade deal with the U.S. will be far better for them if they solve the North Korean problem!"

He added at the time: 'North Korea is looking for trouble. If China decides to help, that would be great.' Then he added: ''If not, we will solve the problem without them!'

North Korea fired at least one short-range ballistic missile that landed in the sea off its east coast, the latest in a fast-paced series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions.

The missile was fired on Monday from the region of Wonsan in an easterly direction into the Sea of Japan, South Korea's military said.

It was believed to be a Scud-class ballistic missile and flew about 450 km (280 miles), South Korean officials said. North Korea has a large stockpile of the short-range missiles, originally developed by the Soviet Union.

President Trump tweeted about North Korea Monday, a day after from his first overseas trip

Earlier today it emerged that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised the test of a new anti-aircraft weapon system

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un 'guided' the launch. State media reported: 'The ballistic rocket flew toward the east sky where the day broke and correctly hit a planned target point... after flying over the middle shooting range.'

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed action along with other nations to deter Pyongyang's repeated provocations.

Abe said: 'As we agreed at the recent G7, the issue of North Korea is a top priority for the international community.

'Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea.'

South Koreans at a railway station in Seoul watch a television broadcasting a news report on North Korea firing what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile on Monday

Monday's launch followed two successful tests of medium- to long-range missiles in as many weeks by Pyongyang, which has been conducting such tests at an unprecedented pace in an effort to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of hitting the mainland United States.

Kim Jong-un has tested Scud-type short-range missiles many times in the past, most recently in April, according to U.S. officials. However, experts say it may be trying to test new capabilities that may be fed into its efforts to build an ICBM.

The state news agency boasted the system would 'completely spoil the enemy's wild dream to command the air'

'There are many possibilities ... It could have been a test for a different type of engine. Or to verify the credibility of the main engine for ICBM's first stage rocket,' said Kim Dong-yub, a military expert at Kyungnam University's Far Eastern Studies department in Seoul.

Modified versions of the Scud have a range of up to 1,000 km (620 miles).

On Tuesday, the United States will test an existing missile defence system to try to intercept an ICBM, the first such test, officials said last week.

Monday's launch was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who called a meeting of the National Security Council, the South Korean office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday condemned North Korea's latest missile launch and vowed action along with other nations to deter Pyongyang's repeated provocations.

'As we agreed at the recent G7, the issue of North Korea is a top priority for the international community,' Abe told reporters in brief televised remarks.

'Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea.'

Abe said Japan will make utmost efforts to protect its people, while staying in close touch with South Korea and other countries.

The US Pacific Command said the short-range missile, launched from near Wonsan Airfield, was tracked for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan.

The North Korean State News Agency said the system would soon be deployed throughout the country

It was not deemed a threat to North America. The command said it was working on a more detailed assessment of the missile launch.

'We continue to monitor North Korea's actions closely,' PACOM said in a statement.

'US Pacific Command stands behind our ironclad commitment to the security of our allies in the Republic of Korea and Japan,' it added.

The USS Carl Vinson has been deployed to the region, along with the USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Reagan supercarriers

It comes after reports emerged that the United States is sending a third aircraft carrier to the western Pacific region in an apparent warning to North Korea.

The USS Nimitz, one of the world's largest warships, will join two other supercarriers, the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Ronald Reagan, in the western Pacific, the sources told VOA.

The move is extremely rare for the US military, who rarely send three aircraft carriers to the same region.

Earlier on Monday it emerged that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised the test of a new anti-aircraft weapon system and ordered its mass production and deployment throughout the country, after weeks of defiant ballistic missile tests.

The North has been pushing to develop a wide range of weapon systems since early last year at an unprecedented pace including a long-range missile capable of striking the mainland United States.

In recent weeks tested its intermediate-range ballistic missile, making some technical advances.

North's KCNA news agency did not report the exact nature of the weapon or the time of the test but said it was organised by the Academy of National Defence Science.

The ANDS is a blacklisted agency that is believed to be developing missiles and nuclear weapons.

This release from Korean Central News Agency shows the new weapons system being fired

The reclusive state rejects U.N. and unilateral sanctions by other states against its weapons programme as an infringement of its right to self defense and says the programme is necessary to counter U.S. aggression.

It last conducted a ballistic missile test a week ago. The United States denies any intention to attack the North.

KNCA said: 'Kim Jong Un ... watched the test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system organized by the Academy of National Defence Science.

'This weapon system, whose operation capability has been thoroughly verified, should be mass-produced to deploy all over the country.'

The system will 'completely spoil the enemy's wild dream to command the air, boasting of air supremacy and weapon almighty.'

The guided missile system is supposed to be a deterrent for U.S. air superiority

The new weapon comes after weeks of North Korean ballistic missile tests

KCNA said Kim was accompanied by his military aides and listed the three men believed to be the top officials in the country's rapidly accelerating missile programme.

They are Ri Pyong Chol, a former top air force general; Kim Jong Sik, a veteran rocket scientist; and Jang Chang Ha, the head of the Academy of National Defence Science, a weapons development and procurement centre.

North Korea said last Monday that it had successfully tested what it called an intermediate-range ballistic missile that met all technical requirements and could now be mass-produced, although outside officials and experts questioned the extent of its progress.

On Tuesday, the head of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency said that if left unchecked, North Korea is on an 'inevitable' path to obtaining a nuclear-armed missile capable of striking the United States.

Appearing at a Senate hearing, Defense Intelligence Agency Director Vincent Stewart declined to offer a time estimate but Western experts believe the North still needed several years to develop such a weapon.
Native American soldiers speaking in their own tongue helped the Allies win World War I.

The original code talkers, the Choctaw and Cherokee, used their languages as indecipherable codes that the Germans could not solve. Their linguistic heroism came at a time when the United States government tried to eradicate their languages as part of a forced assimilation.

And only by chance did an unidentified captain overhear two men in the 142nd Infantry Regiment speaking in their mother tongue, around the time of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive on the Western Front.

At first the two men  identified in some accounts as Solomon Lewis and Mitchell Bobb  likely would have worried that they were in trouble.

Back home, children of Choctaw descent were beaten when they spoke their language at controversial state- and church-funded boarding schools, where Native American children were forced to speak English.

But at the time, the Western Front was in turmoil in part because the Germans had deciphered the Allies codes, which were generally based on European languages or math.

The Choctaw Code Talkers, some of whom are pictured in this photo, helped the Allies win World War I by using their language as a military code that proved indecipherable to the Germans

Members of the Choctaw Telephone Squad are pictured, from left to right: Solomon Lewis, Mitchell Bobb, James Edwards, Calvin Wilson and Joseph Davenport. At right is Captain E.H. Horner

The use of Native American languages also proved valuable in World War II, when the Navajo Code Talkers (pictured) helped the Allies in the war's Pacific Theater

So the captain had other ideas and brought his knowledge of the exchange to Colonel A.W. Bloor, who corralled other Choctaw soldiers the pair knew of to try a telephone message, coded in the unique language, which was quickly translated into English by the Choctaw.

Bloor then convinced his higher-ups to give the idea an official go-around, successfully arguing for the establishment of the Choctaw Telephone Squad. The group consisted of at least 19 Choctaw soldiers, many of whom knew each other from Oklahoma.

During training, it emerged that multiple military terms did not have an exact translation in Choctaw. But the soldiers worked together to devise partial meanings.

For example: Artillery became big gun, machine gun became little gun shoot fast, ammunition became arrows, gas became bad air, grenade became stone and battalions became grains of corn.

Joseph Oklahombi was one of the Choctaw Code Talkers. Not all words were directly translatable; for example, machine gun became 'little gun shoot fast'

Tobias Frazier (left) and Otis Leader (right) were two of the at least 19 code talkers who helped to secure victory for the Allies on the Western Front. The story goes that a conversation between two Choctaw soldiers was overheard by a captain, which sparked the idea for the code talkers

The scene at the Western Front in 1918 was dire and seemed to have no end in sight  the American forces were outnumbered and the Central Powers could tap the Allies codes.

A mission to capture a German stronghold called Forest Farm, in modern-day France, looked to be an ambitious, though improbable, goal in the fight to defeat the Central Powers.

But with the help of the Choctaw Code Talkers in Septembers Meuse-Argonne Offensive  the final push on the Western Front against the Central Powers that involved 1.2million American soldiers  the Allies won a decisive victory at Forest Farm and later a decisive victory in the war. An armistice was reached on November 11, 1918.

Bloor wrote in a memo from the 142nd infantry: The enemys complete surprise is evidence that he could not decipher the messages.

This assertion was later confirmed by a captured German solider. The Germans had a few bizarre theories for the Choctaw code  including that the Americans had devised a way to speak underwater.

Ruth Frazier McMillan, 75, is pictured with a portrait of her father, Tobias Frazier, one of the Choctaw Code Talkers

The Choctaw Code Talkers received official recognition in 2008, via the Code Talkers Recognition Act. Pictured is a medallion for the Choctaw Code Talkers Association

The war ended soon after the discovery that Native American languages could be used as military codes. But the significance of the linguistic codes impact did not go unnoticed.

Bloor noted in his memo: The results were very gratifying, and it is believed, had the regiment gone back into the line, fine results would have been obtained. We were confident the possibilities of the telephone had been obtained without its hazards.

The Cherokee Code Talkers, even less well-known, also helped in the Somme Offensive. They served as part of the 119th and 120th US Infantry Regiments, attached to British forces. Many of them came from North Carolina and they similarly worked to thwart the Germans, though details are scant.

Part of the reason that particularly the Choctaw Code Talkers went unnoticed is their own humility.

It is not Choctaw belief to talk about your own achievements, its up to others to praise you, Choctaw Code Talkers Association president Nuchi Nashoba told the BBC.

The code talkers would not have told many stories about themselves, they regarded what they had done as just doing their duty. When my great grandfather was interviewed for a local publication after he returned from the war, he simply said, I went to France, I saw the country and I came back alive. Just that.

Pictured at left is the medal given by the Choctaw Nation to World War I's code talkers. At right is Tobias Frazier's purple heart and honorable discharge

Across both World Wars, the Allies used the services of at least 400 code talkers, even as the United States government was trying to wipe out their languages back home. Pictured is Otis Leader

What is known is that the Choctaw Code Talkers served in the 141st, 142nd and 143rd infantry regiments, and that many of them came from Oklahoma. The names of the at least 19 are also known: Victor Brown, James Edwards, Otis Leader, Solomon Louis, Walter Veach, Tobias Frazier, Robert Taylor, Jeff Nelson, Calvin Wilson, Mitchell Bobb, Pete Maytubby, Ben Carterby (Nashoba's grandfather), Albert Billy, Ben Hampton, Joseph Oklahombi, Joe Davenport, George Davenport, Ben Colbert and Noel Johnson.

Some of them might have not even been US citizens at the time, as blanket citizenship did not come for Native Americans until 1924 with the Indian Citizenship Act.

They also paved the way for more code talkers to fight in World War II. All told, at least 400 code talkers from various Native American tribes were used in both World Wars.

In World War IIs Pacific Theater, bilingual Marines of Navajo descent used their native language to help secure victory at the iconic Battle of Iwo Jima. A force of 29 Navajo Marines was originally commissioned to use their mother tongue as a military code that would be indecipherable to Axis forces, in this case Japan. The force would grow to around 400 and the Navajo Marines became synonymous with the phrase code talkers.

But the Navajo only received official recognition for their efforts in 2000 with the Honoring the Code Talkers Act and received popular recognition with the 2002 Nicolas Cage film Windtalkers.

And recognition for all code talkers did not come until 2008, with the passage of the Code Talkers Recognition Act.

Arguably the most famous code talkers are the Navajo, who fought in World War II's Pacific Theater. Pictured are Private First Class Preston Toledo, left, and Private First Class Frank Toledo, right. The cousins were attached to a Marine Artillery Regiment

The Navajo Codetalkers received recognition in 2000 through the Honoring the Code Talkers Act.' Pictured at left is Henry Bake, left, and George Kirk, right
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President Donald Trump honored those who lost their lives serving the nation as he participated in a solemn wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery Monday and told emotional stories of just a few who perished.

'Here at this hallowed shrine we honor the noblest among us  the men and the women who paid the ultimate price for victory and for freedom,' Trump told a crowd of families, military personnel, and dignitaries at Arlington on Monday in his first Memorial Day speech as president.

'We pay tribute to those brave souls who raced into gunfire, roared into battle and ran into hell to face down evil. They made their sacrifice not for fame or for money or even for glory, but for country,' Trump said.

'They died in war, so that we could live in peace,' he added.

Among those whose stories Trump shared was Army Specialist Christopher Horton, an Oklahoma Army Guard member who died in Afghanistan. He was a sniper known 'as one of the best shots anywhere at any time,' the president said, but died during a deployment in 2011 at the age of just 26.

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President Donald Trump lays a wreath at The Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 29, 2017, in Arlington, Va.

'Here at this hallowed shrine we honor the noblest among us  the men and the women who paid the ultimate price for victory and for freedom,' Trump told a crowd of families, military personnel, and dignitaries at Arlington on Monday in his first Memorial Day speech as president

'We pay tribute to those brave souls who raced into gunfire, roared into battle and ran into hell to face down evil. They made their sacrifice not for fame or for money or even for glory, but for country,' Trump said

Members of the audience stand as flag bears walk into the Memorial Amphitheater in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia on Monday

President Donald Trump stands during the playing of Taps during a wreath laying ceremony at The Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 29, 2017, in Arlington, Virginia

'Chris sacrificed his life to protect his fellow soldiers and to protect all Americans,' Trump said, before hailing his widow.

'Chris secured his place in our hearts for eternity,' Trump continued. 'Jane: America grieves with you,' the president said.

After he concluded his story, Horton's widow, seated near Vice President Mike Pence, wiped a tear from her eye, as she received a standing ovation from members of the crowd.

'Thank you, Jane,' Trump said, looking up in her direction from the the dais where he spoke.

Trump also toured the cemetery's Section 60, which holds the graves of those who served since 2001 in the global war on terrorism. The president gave a high-five to Christian Jacobs, 8, who was dressed in a Marine uniform, and was there with his mother, Brittany Jacobs.

His father, Marine Sgt. Christopher Jacobs, was killed in 2011.

U.S. President Donald Trump high fives young Christian Jacobs, son of US Marine Christopher Jacobs, who was killed in a training exercise at Twentynine Palms, California, as his mother Brittany watches, at Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery as part of Memorial Day observance, Arlington, Virginia, U.S., May 29, 2017

President Donald Trump sings the national anthem during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, May 29, 2017 in Arlington, Virginia

Brittany Jacobs, left, watches as her 8-year-old son Christian Jacobs meets President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 29, 2017, in Arlington, Va. Jacobs father, Marine Sgt. Christopher Jacobs, was killed in 2011

Brittany Jacobs, left, and her 8-year-old son Christian Jacobs meet President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence in Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 29, 2017, in Arlington, Va. Jacobs father, Marine Sgt. Christopher Jacobs, was killed in 2011

Later, Little Christian was seen crying in his mother's lap as they visited his father's grave in the cemetery

Christian is pictured above holding his mother's hand during the 2015 Memorial Day

Army Specialist Christopher Horton was among those honored by President Trump on Monday

Trump also singled out Gen. John Kelly, his Homeland Security chief, for having lost his son, Robert, who died fighting the 'enemies of all civilizations' in Afghanistan.

'We grieve with you, we honor you, and we pledge to you that we will always remember Robert and what he did for all of us,' the president said.

Robert Kelly was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan's Helmand province in 2010 at the age of 29.

Trump said Kelly was joined by his son-in-law, Jake, a wounded warrior.

'It is because of families like yours that all of our families can live in safety and live in peace,' Trump told his homeland chief.

Robert Kelly, the son of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, died in Afghanistan at age 29

Trump also mentioned Maj. Andrew Byers, who was posthumously awarded a Silver Star for his heroism confronting Taliban forces in Afghanistan.

Trump commanded a high altitude parachute team that inserted itself into Northern Afghanistan, 'hurtling into dangerous unknown territory,' as the president told it.

'They trekked through a mile of waist-deep mud and climbed a steep cliff, before finally reaching the village that they wanted to reach,' Trump said.

During a night-long battle, the special forces team faced 'wave after wave after wave of enemy fighters. After a grenade detonated, and being surrounded by Taliban forces, 'Andrew ran through the smoke and through the hail of bullets to rescue an Afghan soldier,' Trump said, and helping open a gateway to safety for U.S. and allied forces.

'But in saving those lives, Andrew was killed, right then and there, by enemy fire,' Trump said.

'To his parents, David and Rose, we stand in awe of your son and his courageous sacrifice,' the president said.

Trump laced his remarks with religious references. ''To every Gold Star family, God is with you and your loved ones are with Him,' he said.

He also hailed former Sen. Bob Dole, the former majority leader and failed presidential candidate, who suffered injuries in World War II that extended through his life. Trump called Dole 93, a man 'whose life demonstrates the values of service and sacrifice.'

As a candidate, Trump took heat for battling with the Gold Star family of Humayan Khan, who was killed in Iraq in 2004. Khan's father, Khizr Khan, invoked his son's death during the Democratic Convention and blasted Trump, who then took to Twitter to go after the father.

Trump visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington on Monday for the ceremony. After listening to the National Anthem, Trump slowly placed the wreath before the tomb.

After a military official secured the wreath, the president gave it a pat with his hand, then slowly backed away from it.

He paused silently, and then walked away, standing for a rendition of 'Taps,' at which point the simple ceremony for military service members who have fallen was concluded.

President Donald Trump speaks at the Memorial Amphitheater in Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., Monday, May 29, 2017, during a Memorial Day ceremony

President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence listen to Alison Malachowski speak about her son, Marine SSGT. James Malachowski, in Section 60 at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia on Monday

President Donald Trump points while walking through Section 60 at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day

Former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, center, and his wife former Sen. Elizabeth Dole, left, acknowledge applause from crowd as they take their seats at the Memorial Amphitheater in Arlington National Cemetery on Monday

Accompanying the president were Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of staff Joseph Dunford.

White House Chief of staff Reince Preibus, who left Trump's overseas trip early to return to Washington, also was there, as was counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway.

Earlier, Trump sent out gratitude and prayers on Memorial Day via Twitter to those who lost their lives in service of their country.

'Today we remember the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in serving. Thank you, God bless your families & God bless the USA!' Trump wrote in one of a series of tweets Monday.

President Donald Trump speaks during a Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 29, 2017, in Arlington, Va.

President Donald Trump stands during the playing of the National Anthem before he lays a wreath at The Tomb of the Unknown Solider at Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 29, 2017, in Arlington, Va.

Vice President Mike Pence greeted about 80 participants in the Project Hero Memorial Day Bike Ride Monday

'I look forward to paying my respects to our brave men and women on this Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery later this morning,' Trump tweeted.

'Honoring the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to America. Home of the free, because of the brave. #MemorialDay,' Trump wrote in another message, adding on an American flag emoji.

On Monday morning, Trump is set to deliver his first Memorial Day address at Arlington National Cemetery.

He will lay a wreath at the cemetery, the final resting place for many military members and others who served the nation.

Trump sent the tweets after returning from a nine-day trip overseas.

In a reminder that military sacrifices continue to loom, Trump also tweeted about the North Korean threat  a day after the latest ballistic missile launch from the secluded nation known for hostile rhetoric and erratic actions.

Vice President Mike Pence greeted about 80 participants in the Project Hero Memorial Day Bike Ride.

'We are incredibly honored to host project hero back at the home of the Vice President, Pence said.

'This is a day we remember those who served and did not come home. ... To be able to welcome you here on this most hallowed of days is profoundly humbling to Karen and I,' he added.

Pence praised Trump's 'extraordinary trip' abroad, before heading to Arlington for the service.

President Trump tweeted about sacrifice in honor of Memorial Day on Monday

President Trump tweeted about sacrifice in honor of Memorial Day on Monday

President Trump tweeted about sacrifice in honor of Memorial Day on Monday

Vice President Mike Pence greeted the Project Hero Memorial Day Bike Ride and also heads to Arlington

Vice President Mike Pence greeted the Project Hero Memorial Day Bike Ride and also heads to Arlington

'North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbor, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile...but China is trying hard!' Trump tweeted.

North Korea's latest launch landed into the Sea of Japan, in a provocation toward one of the United States' closest allies.

According to a tally compiled by Axios, there are 4,411 U.S. casualties from Operation Iraqi Freedom, 2,216 from operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

Out of 1.3 million active duty U.S. military and 800,000 reservists, about 200,000 are currently deployed overseas.

ARLINGTON, VA - MAY 28: Angelica Danner and her daughter Liana lay roses at headstones in Arlington National Cemetery May 28, 2017 in Arlington, Virginia. Volunteers from throughout the country gather to place a rose on each grave in preparation for Memorial Day

A member of the National Park Service inspects the walkway at the World War II Memorial early in the morning before the Memorial Day events in Washington, Monday, May 29, 2017

Arizona Sen. John McCain sent out his own Memorial Day message in a video greeting.

'Throughout our history, we have always asked the few to protect the many in order that the rest of us  the vast majority  can live in a free and prosperous society,' the former Vietnam POW said.

'I would like to say to all of our former service members  and our service members  thanks for serving. And for all of our other citizens, I'd like say thank you for your honoring those who have served and sacrificed. I believe that it's only in America where we do such things to such a degree and it makes me proud to be an American,' McCain said.
Former Green Power Ranger and mixed martial artist Jason David Frank said he was 'grateful' for the Phoenix police department after it stopped a man who was planning an assassination attempt against him at the city's Comic convention.

Mathew Sterling, 29, was arrested on Thursday after he brought weapons into the Arizona Comicon and told officers he was a crime-fighting comic book character called 'The Punisher'. Police say Sterling appears to have mental issues.

Police said Sterling, of Mesa, Arizona, 'set a calendar reminder in his phone to alert him to kill the victim at Comicon on May 25th'.

Former Green Power Ranger and mixed martial artist Jason David Frank said he was 'grateful' for the Phoenix police department after it stopped a man who was planning an assassination attempt against him

'The victim' refers to Frank, an actor known for his role as the original green Power Ranger.

Mathew Sterling, 29, pictured, brought four loaded guns, a knife, pepper spray and throwing stars to the Phoenix Comicon Thursday. He told police he was planning to kill bad police

'I'm very grateful to the Phoenix police department for their brave and outstanding efforts, which avoided a terrible tragedy, as recently seen at the concert in Manchester,' Frank said in a Fox 10 Phoenix news conference after Sterling's arrest.

Frank said he doesn't know the man who was arrested, but he will pray for him.

'This incident is an eye-opening situation to increase and add more securities to all Comic-Cons around the world. Due to the increased securities for the duration of the show, we are banning all prop weapons, however, please do not let this hinder your creativity in the festival atmosphere,' he said.

Frank also thanked fans for support following the incident last week.

'You will start hearing stuff on social media. I'm fine. I'm okay. Love y'all,' he said. 'Even though it looks like things don't faze me, I refuse to have a situation tear me apart mentally.

'You gotta remember, things could always be worse. Things could've been worse. But it wasn't. You know, everyone is safe, things are okay, and it's a great thing.'

Police say Sterling also planned to kill a performer at the event, actor Jason David Frank, pictured. Frank is best known for his role as the original green Power Ranger, pictured

Sterling was jailed last week on suspicion of attempted murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, wearing body armor during the commission of a felony, resisting arrest and carrying a weapon in a prohibited place.

He did not have an attorney present when he appeared in court Friday and spoke only briefly, agreeing when a judge told him it might not be in his best interest to comment.

Sterling is being held on $1million cash bond, according to AZ Central.

Police were called to the Phoenix Convention Center when a woman who knows Sterling called and reported he was posting threats on Facebook about killing police officers and harming a performer at the Comicon event.

Police say Sterling appears to have mental issues. He told officers he was the crime fighting comic book character, the 'Punisher'. Sterling was arrested at the convention center after a brief struggle, pictured

He was posting pictures of police officers at the event, saying he was going to kill them, according to 12 News.

Sterling had been carrying four fully loaded guns: two 45-caliber handguns, a .454-caliber handgun and a 12-gauge shotgun, as well as a combat knife, pepper spray and throwing stars, according to AZ Central.

No one was hurt in the incident.

Prop weapons carried into the four-day Comicon are supposed to be inspected by security staff.

However, Sergeant Mercedes Fortune revealed the Sterling's weapons weren't checked.

In response to the scare cause by Sterling's threats, police added extra security to the Comicon and banned all costume prop weapons, including swords sabers and fake guns. This visitor is turning in his plastic chains Friday
As Tori Johnson knelt crying in front of an armed Man Haron Monis, he 'deserved to have hope' that someone would save him, his mother says.

Monis had just fired a shot after several of his hostages fled Sydney's Lindt Cafe, and police saw that Mr Johnson had been placed on his knees.

'He was alive and he deserved, he deserved to have hope that... someone was gonna come in and save him,' his mother Rosie Connellan told ABC's TV's Four Corners program on Monday.

'I just can't imagine how he felt in that time and I wish I'd been there with him.'

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Tori Johnson's mother, Rosie Connellan, says her son 'deserved to have hope that someone would save him' as he knelt in front of Man Monis during the Sydney Seige

The 34-year-old had been shot dead by the time police entered the cafe in the early hours of December 16, 2014, and 38-year-old barrister Katrina Dawson was fatally wounded by police bullet fragments.

NSW Coroner Michael Barnes last week handed down his findings into the siege by Monis, who was also killed at the end of the 17-hour ordeal, concluding that police acted too late.

Mr Johnson and Ms Dawson's families have mostly supported the coroner's findings but are still angry some in police leadership refused to concede mistakes during the inquest.

The families have previously criticised the siege response in submissions to the inquiry, with Ms Dawson's family saying police confidence in the contain and negotiate strategy was misplaced, and they relied too heavily on a psychiatrist who 'grossly underestimated' Monis' capacity for violence.

Ms Connellan appeared alongside her son's partner, Thomas Zinn, on Four Corners and the pair were seen choking back tears as they discussed the 34-year-old's final moments and the lengthy inquest into the siege

During the siege, Tori Johnson (left) was killed by hostage-taker Man Monis, and Katrina Dawson (right) was killed in crossfire when police finally stormed the cafe

On Four Corners, Mr Johnson's partner Thomas Zinn said he questioned whether two senior commanders in charge at the end of the siege should remain in their current roles.

Both families welcomed NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller's admission that he thought police should have launched a pre-emptive rescue earlier in the day.

Ms Connellan said Mr Fuller's statement gave her hope.

'It's amazing isn't it? That just that little acknowledgement from Fuller that they should have gone in, to me has been probably the most hopeful,' she said.

Ms Connellan broke down as she revealed she found just a sliver of hope in NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller's admission that he thought police should have launched a pre-emptive rescue earlier in the day

However, an earlier Commonwealth submission to the inquest said that sometimes not even the death of a hostage would prompt action by police.

'If, for example, the circumstances indicate both that a second death is not imminent [there may be credible information that hostages are to be killed once an hour] and that an emergency action would be highly likely to cause multiple deaths [there may be credible information that a bomb is present and will be used] then it may be better to pursue other strategies,' the Commonwealth submission said.

In other circumstances an emergency action might be warranted by something less than death or serious injury, the submission said.
This is the horrifying moment a baker is chased out of his Melbourne bakery by three men wielding hammers and a meat cleaver.

The bakery at the Keilor strip in Melbourne's north-west was invaded by three men clad in dark clothes and balaclavas about 1.30am on Sunday, Seven News reports.

Confronting CCTV footage shows the baker fleeing from the shop as three thieves wielding weapons chase him.

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Confronting CCTV footage shows the baker fleeing from the shop as three thieves wielding weapons chase him

Victoria police said a gang of five men in a small red hatchback car smashed the bakery's glass doors in the early hours of Sunday.

The men stole cash boxes inside the bakery but got away empty handed because there was no cash inside.

Police believe two of the men were African in appearance and a third was Caucasian.

The bakery worker is captured on CCTV footage running for his life out of the store and away from the three men who invaded the store

The men are seen on CCTV footage chasing the bakery worker wielding weapons

The attack was just the most recent in a spate of break-ins to happen at the Keilor strip, according to local business owners.

Local trader Peter Skopilianos told Seven News criminal activity was a growing threat to shops in the area.

'It's a big issue. The last year we've had a lot of break-ins. Most shops at lease once or twice in the last 12 months,' Mr Skopilianos said.
A legal advice guide for Muslims travelling overseas has suggested they 'clear out their telephone storage', including social media conversations, and 'delete any photos or videos that could be misinterpreted'.

The updated guide's travel advice has sparked fears it could fall into the wrong hands and be used by 'people with terrorist connections', The Australian reported.

The guide, entitled Anti-terrorism laws: ASIO, the police and you: a plain English guide to anti-terrorism laws in Australia, was initially created to help Muslim people understand complex terrorism laws and has been updated numerous times to keep up with changes to the law.

The latest update of a travel guide for Muslim people intending to travel overseas has caused controversy and outraged Immigration Minister Peter Dutton

'The initial edition of this guide was in response to a community need to understand new laws that were not only very complex but markedly different in their implications for rights and responsibilities of citizens - and the powers of ASIO and the AFP,' a press release for the book says.

'This 2017 edition incorporates the virtual tsunami of new counter-terrorism laws passed in recent years- significant parts of which the NSWCCL, the Law Council of Australia and many community groups strongly opposed.'

It was created by the Australian Muslim Civil Rights Advocacy Network (AMCRAN) and the Muslim Legal Network and has been celebrated by legal professionals and the NSW Council for Civil Liberties.

But Deakin University terror expert Greg Barton said there could be some issues with the guide's publication.

While he conceded most of the advice was 'common sense' and that the guide was developed for innocent people trying to keep out of unnecessary trouble, Mr Barton noted it could be an issue if the guide made it into more malicious hands.

'If the advice were to be taken up by people with terrorist connections, it's problematic for those who are trying to counter that,' he told The Australian.

The advice includes deleting photos and videos stored on phones that could be 'misinterpreted' (stock image)

Terror expert Greg Barton concedes the advice is for innocent people trying to make sense of terror laws but says it could be dangerous if it fell into malicious hands (pictured: excerpt from book)

The guide encourages people who want to engage in discussions about terrorism online to disclaimer their comments so it is clear they are not intended to encourage acts of violence.

'To ensure that you do not inadvertently breach any of the terrorism-related offences, it is good practice when using social media (and other forms of communication to ensure the content you are posting, sending or storing may not be considered inappropriate or potentially illegal,' the guide says.

'An example is sharing information in the form of a video, image or message which may call for or advocate an act of violence; and if you communicate in group conversations or chats which may distribute suspect materials, delete the material and leave the chat.

'You can be charged with possessing the potentially illegal material - even if on your phone/tablet.'

The guide gives advice but also explains the powers given to Border Protection, ASIO and AFP officers and the various laws that enshrine their powers (stock image)

The guide also explains in detail how anti-terrorism laws work and the real-life implications of powers given to Border Protection officers, ASIO and the Australian Federal Police to help combat terror.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has expressed deep concerns about the publication of the booklet, and has reportedly written to the Muslim Legal Network of NSW to question 'what purpose is served in providing this advice'.

According to their website: 'The Muslim Legal Network was founded in 2009 by a group of passionate lawyers and law students who saw the need for a body to address the Australian Muslim community's increasing legal needs'.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Muslim Legal Network NSW for comment.
Kellyanne Conway believes that being a woman allows her to communicate more effectively with the president.

'I could tell you a great way that my gender has helped me with the president.

'I'm actually unafraid to express my mind, but I do it very respectfully. Very respectfully and very deferentially,' she said, later describing the 'femininity' she applies to her 'duties' as counselor to the president.

Conway's remarks appeared in a Business Insider article about women in the White House on Sunday.

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Kellyanne Conway said she being a woman allows her to communicate with President Trump more effectively. The pair are pictured on the eve of his inauguration in January

The piece laid bare how there are fewer women in senior roles in Trump's administration than the three before him.

Conway, who masterminded Trump's election campaign and has served as a loyal mouthpiece since his victory, says the under-representation is unimportant.

'Attaching a hard and fast number to it is not as relevant as the contributions that are made by the women who are at the table,' she said, adding that despite there being more men than women in policy roles, 'we are heard, we are listened to'.

Conway said she is regularly subjected to sexism in the media but claims her gender has nothing to do with why she was hired as counselor to the president

Her comments were echoed by deputy White House press secretary Lindsay Walters who said: 'When you look at this White House, it's not about male versus female, it's about who is best-suited and most qualified to hold that position.'

Conway has been on the front line of Trump's many spats with the media since before he took office.

The result, she said, has been an ongoing undertone of sexism with how she is portrayed in the press.

'Go and take a look at the way I'm treated and tell me it's not sexist, tell me it's not based on my gender.

'When's the last time you saw a great story about the beer bellies and the bad comb-overs in Congress versus what was I wearing or what was a female saying or doing?' she said.

Unlike her media attackers, Conway says the president 'supports' her.

Despite her coveted closeness to him, Conway, a mother-of-four, does not consider herself on the same level as the president.

'I don't consider him my peer, he is my boss and he is my elder ... so I don't address him by his first name.

Despite their closeness, Conway admitted she has never called the president by his first name

Conway and Hope Hicks are among the few women in senior positions in the White House. Hicks, 28, is the White House director of strategic communications

'That has actually allowed me, in my view, to respectfully but forcefully express my opinion on certain matters,' she said.

Deputy National Security Advisor KT McFarland shared her opinion of the president's indifference to gender.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the principal deputy White House press secretary, faced mockery which her father labeled 'sexist and misogynistic' earlier this month

'I don't think he cares two hoots whether I was male or female. He just thought I could get the job done,' she said.

Other women in Trump's inner circle include 28-year-old Hope Hicks, White House director of strategic communications, and principal deputy White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Hicks, one of Trump's longest serving aides, remains largely out of the spotlight and has been spared being mocked in a Saturday Night Live sketch.

Huckabee Sanders was immediately parodied earlier this month when she filled in for Sean Spicer.

Her father, former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, blasted the comedy show's portrayal of her as 'sexist and misogynist'.

Conway is routinely mocked by the show's comedians along with Spicer and the president.

Despite her own complaints about sexism, Conway said it played no part in Hillary Clinton's election defeat.

'Of course sexism exists but it usually doesn't exist for a woman who was the former first lady of the United States of America, has a Yale law degree, and was the secretary of state and United States senator,' she said.
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This striking photograph shows a Venezuelan protester running for his life as it was revealed the 59th person in 58 days has been killed in the anti-government uprising.

This weekend courier it was revealed the Venezuelan customs authority has now banned couriers from importing items such as gas masks, slingshots and bulletproof vests used by some demonstrators in the protests.

Other prohibited items include first aid supplies such as burn cream and gauze, according to emailed messages sent to clients this week by the package delivery companies. These goods have been used to treat injured protesters.

It comes as a National Guard veteran in Venezuela was beaten and shot to death as he took photographs at a memorial of a victim of the brutal uprising to become the 59th person to die.

A man in a gas mask and a helmet runs away from a number of explosions in an incredible photograph of the Venezuelan riots

A protestor shouts slogans next to a truck burning during a protest to support the RCTV TV channel in Caracas, Venezuela, 27 May 2017

Members of Venezuelan Bolivarian National Guard (PNB) clash with demonstrators during a protest to support the RCTV TV channel in Caracas, Venezuela

A protester, wearing a Venezuelan national flag as a cape, sits on a traffic barrier backdropped by a truck expropriated and set aflame by protesters during clashes with security forces in Caracas

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday blamed opposition demonstrators for the killing and called it a hate crime.

The slain 34-year-old retired National Guard lieutenant, who has yet to be identified, was beaten and shot to death by attackers Saturday night in the town of Cabudare in the western state of Lara, prosecutors said.

They did not link the man's death to the wave of violent anti-government protests that have raged for 58 straight days, with a death toll that now stands at 59.

Courier services sending the advisories included local service Zoom and the Venezuela office of Mail Boxes Etc, known as MBE.

Another company, BVA Export, told clients in an email: 'It is not allowed to send gas masks and items that can be used for defence or attack in the Venezuelan protests.'

It included a detailed list of the products that it said had been banned.

There was no immediate response by the companies to requests for comment.

Government officials have publicly accused the opposition of using courier services to equip demonstrators in nearly two months of near-daily clashes with security forces.

Referring to unidentified courier services, Jose Cabello, head of Venezuela's tax and customs agency Seniat, said in a statement early this week that, 'The opposition will not use the ports of our country as a bridge to arm their terrorist groups.'

A demonstrator rests near burning trucks while rallying against President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela, May 27, 2017

A truck expropriated by protesters and set aflame by them, burns in the background as protesters gather around a traffic barrier eyeing security forces, during clashes in Caracas

A protester wearing a GhostFace mask stands in front of a truck expropriated and set aflame by protesters during clashes with security forces in Caracas, Venezuela

A truck expropriated by protesters burns in the background as a masked protester eyes a cordon of security forces during clashes in Caracas

A rally took place to mark the 10th anniversary of the last broadcasting of the private channel Radio Caracas Television (RCTV), which turned into clashes between protesters and the police

The nationwide demonstrations kicked off in late March, with opposition leaders seeking the removal of Venezuela's leftist president, whose already-low popularity has cratered amid severe shortages of food and medicines, among other economic woes.

The government also announced the death of a 20-year-old man injured in the abdomen during a protest Saturday in the city of Lecheria in the eastern state of Anzoategui.

He belonged to a party led by a jailed opposition leader, Leopoldo Lopez.

News reports said the slain officer was taking photos during a memorial ceremony for someone who died during the protest wave.

People interpreted this as spying and began attacking him.

Maduro said opposition leaders were complicit in the attack because they did not condemn it.

But opposition leaders on Saturday did in fact come out against the attack.

Riot police clash with anti-government protesters blocking the Francisco Fajardo highway during a demonstration against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro

Anti-government protesters block the Francisco Fajardo highway in Caracas during a demonstration against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro

An anti-government demonstrator stands next to a national flag during an opposition protest blocking the Francisco Fajardo highway in Caracas

A demonstrator throws a molotov cocktail during a rally against Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela

A Venezuelan opposition activist wearing a gas mask clashes with riot police during a demonstration against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas on May 27, 2017

Members of the Bolivarian National Guard of Venezuela (GNB) clash with demonstrators during a protest in support of the suspended RCTV TV channel

Freddy Guevara, deputy speaker of the National Assembly, the only government body in Venezuela that is controlled by the opposition, called it a lynching.

'Pain must not turn us into that which we are fighting,' Guevara wrote on Twitter.

The opposition said it would step up Monday's street rallies aimed at denouncing Maduro's plans to rewrite the constitution with a constituent assembly that sidesteps opposition parties.

This body will include members from social sectors such as farmers and workers that are seen as loyal to the president.

The opposition says the constituent assembly is a ploy by Maduro to avoid holding early elections as demanded by the opposition and cling to power.

'If we allow that fraud that they want to call a constituent assembly, Venezuela will be lost,' said Guevara, warning that pressure in the streets would grow.

'Let's get ready for an escalation,' Guevara said. But he called on demonstrators to refrain from violence.

Voting for the assembly is scheduled to begin in July, according to Maduro.

Members of the Bolivarian National Guard of Venezuela (GNB) cross a bridge to block demonstrators during a protest in support of the suspended RCTV TV channel in Caracas

Huge numbers of the National Guard of Venezuela cross a bridge to block demonstrators during a protest in Caracas, Venezuela

On the weekend, Venezuelans protesting against President Nicolas Maduro's government pelted riot police with flaming Molotov cocktails as the unrest continued.

Officers retaliated by firing tear gas and water cannon to stop hundreds of anti-government protesters from marching on a key military installation in the capital Caracas.

Outrage against President Maduro, who critics blame for the country's crippling economy and dire food shortages, have ranged from peaceful marches to violent melees.

But both the Venezuelan government and the opposition admit that violent protests that have gripped the country for nearly two months are out of control.

Venezuelans protesting against President Nicolas Maduro's government pelted riot police (pictured) with flaming Molotov cocktails

Officers retaliated by firing tear gas and water cannon to stop hundreds of anti-government protesters (pictured)

President Maduro's critics blame the leader for both their country's crippling economy and dire food shortages

After two months of demonstrations and bloody violence, retired military personnel joined demonstrators who marched on the Los Proceres complex, which houses the defence ministry.

A 33-year-old man who was injured during a protest in the western city of Cabudare on Thursday died the following day, bringing the death toll from eight weeks of unrest to 58.

Several people were also injured in the capital on Friday, including opposition lawmaker Carlos Paparoni who was struck in the leg with a blunt object.

Attorney General Luisa Ortega has blamed military police for hundreds of injuries and at least one death.

Protesters brand the socialist president a dictator, blaming him for economic turmoil and food shortages.

Maduro is resisting their calls for early elections, saying the opposition and the United States are plotting a coup against him.

Despite the opposition's calls for the military to abandon Maduro, the high command has retained its public support for him so far.

Opposition activists clash with the riot police during a demonstration against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas

Both the Venezuelan government and the opposition admit that violent protests that have gripped the country for nearly two months are out of control

Now retired military personnel joined demonstrators (pictured) who marched on the Los Proceres complex, which houses the defence ministry

Riot police were set on fire during the latest violent protest to bring the capital city Caracas to a standstill after almost two months of violence

Several people were also injured in the capital on Friday (pictured), including opposition lawmaker Carlos Paparoni who was struck in the leg with a blunt object

A crowd of Maduro's supporters in red shirts started a counter-demonstration on Friday near the presidential palace in central Caracas.

The president has launched steps to reform the constitution in response to the crisis. His opponents say that is a bid to dodge elections and cling to power.

The National Electoral Council said those who wanted to stand for election to the constituent assembly to rewrite the constitution should sign up next Thursday and Friday.

The opposition urged demonstrators to rally again on Saturday, this time at the offices of the state media regulator.

Friday's protest was aimed at 'demanding the military lower their weapons' and drop their support of the dictatorship, said opposition leader Freddy Guevara.

He called on the military to reject a 'constituent assembly' to be elected in July and tasked with drafting a new constitution, saying Maduro's plans 'will liquidate Venezuelan democracy forever.'

A crowd of Maduro's supporters in red shirts started a counter-demonstration on Friday near the presidential palace in central Caracas. Pictured: Anti-Maduro protesters shield themselves from water canons

Maduro has launched steps to reform the constitution in response to the crisis but his opponents say it is a bid to dodge elections and cling to power

The opposition urged demonstrators to rally again on Saturday, this time at the offices of the state media regulator

Friday's protest was aimed at 'demanding the military lower their weapons' and drop their support of the dictatorship, said opposition leader Freddy Guevara

Guevera called on the military to reject a 'constituent assembly' to be elected in July and tasked with drafting a new constitution

Earlier this week, Venezuela's chief prosecutor accused security officers of excessive force and condemned the use of military tribunals to judge protesters.

In a speech on Wednesday, prosecutor Luisa Ortega said 55 people had been killed in unrest and around 1,000 others injured.

She said 346 properties has been burned or looted as chaos flared across the oil-rich country that is reeling from an economic crisis.
New York urologists are reporting an increase in single men who are requesting vasectomies in an effort to fight off gold diggers seeking to trap them into having an unwanted baby.

Dr. David Shusterman, a urologist in Midtown Manhattan, told the New York Post that 'there's a spike in single guys' who are obtaining the procedure ahead of the summer season where many wealthy bachelors live the playboy lifestyle at their residences in the Hamptons.

'This extortion happens all the time. Women come after them. [They get pregnant and] want a ransom payment,' said Shusterman.

Dr. Joseph Alukal, a urologist at New York University, told the Post that men 'don't want to be in the situation of being accused of fathering an unwanted baby.'

He added: 'That's their fear  being told you're paying for this kid until it's [an adult].'

New York urologists are reportedly seeing an increase of single men who are requesting to have vasectomies in an effort fight off gold diggers seeking to trap them into having a baby (file photo)

'Some guys do an analysis of the cost  for three days of discomfort [after a vasectomy], it's worth millions of dollars to them.

'I never see a poor guy [asking] for a vasectomy. Rich guys are a population that's abused a lot.'

Scott, a male model who owns a waterfront home in Sag Harbor, told the Post that he won't have any issue with 'hooking up' with women he barely knows thanks to the fact that he had a vasectomy this year.

'I had a vasectomy a few months ago. Having a house in the Hamptons and being fairly well-off, I've encountered some problems  women try to get pregnant,' explained Scott, who is in his 30s and earns a half-million a year.

Dr. David Shusterman, a urologist in Midtown Manhattan,said that 'there's a spike in single guys' who are obtaining vasectomies

The male model, who describes himself as 'Tarzan with light eyes', shared how some of his sex partners have lied to him about being on birth control.

He said, 'It's a trick. [They say] 'I love you, [we] don't need a condom.' '

Scott claims that he has sex with up to 10 different women each summer and estimates that roughly 20 per cent of the ladies are trying to trap a wealthy man with a baby.

He said: 'Women want that Cinderella story [of happily ever after], but I'm noncommittal at this point in my life.'

John, a 34-year-old real-estate developer who primarily resides on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, just had a vasectomy earlier this month.

The businessman, who did not want to use his real name for professional reasons, told the Post that he can now have sex with different women every weekend in the Hamptons and doesn't run the risk of getting anyone pregnant thanks to the procedure.

He shared that last summer he met a woman at a party in the Hamptons and after they had sex he claimed to have caught her in the bathroom trying to insert his semen inside of her from the used condom.

'She denied it, but she tried to get herself pregnant,' said John, who just purchased a Southhampton home for $1.5million.

He explained that he grabbed a towel and made the woman clean herself and then shower.

Shusterman said that he suggests that his patients freeze some of their sperm before undergoing the procedure, that is usually covered by insurance or costs $1,000 out of pocket (file photo)

'After that, I have to be a lot more careful. I'm a single guy doing well  more girls come along,' he stated.

John said that having the vasectomy 'is insurance,' but he also froze his sperm just in case he decides to have children one day.

Shusterman said that he suggests that his patients freeze some of their sperm before undergoing the procedure, that is usually covered by insurance or costs $1,000 out of pocket.

The Cleveland Clinic in Ohio revealed a 10 per cent increase in vasectomies being performed before the annual NCAA March Madness tournament between 2014 and 2016.

Attorney Ira Garr told the Post that she deals with several unplanned, paternity cases each year where the father potentially has to pay 'a lot of money'.

The Manhattan matrimonial attorney explained that child support is about 17 per cent of the father's salary up to $400,000, and that after it's up to a judge to decide how much he'll have to pay.

She approves of bachelors undergoing vasectomies to fight gold diggers.

'It's a foolproof way to fool around and not get in trouble,' she said.
A Milwaukee officer was able to fend off an attack by a wanted man during a traffic stop on Sunday.

The suspect, Jonathan Boyd, told the officer he did not have a valid driver's license at the time of the stop.

In dashcam footage, the officer can be seen asking Boyd to get out of his vehicle.

A Milwaukee officer (pictured) was able to fend off an attack by a wanted felon during a traffic stop on Sunday. The suspect, Jonathan Boyd, told the officer he did not have a valid driver's license at the time of the stop

In dashcam footage, the officer can be seen asking Boyd (pictured in front of the officer) to get out of his vehicle

Seconds later, Boyd is seen attacking the officer (pictured), who has not been identified, and the two wrestle one another to the ground

Seconds later, Boyd is seen attacking the officer, who has not been identified, and the two wrestle one another to the ground.

The officer said Boyd reached for his gun before getting away from the officer and fleeing the scene on foot, according to TMJ 4.

Boyd, who is wanted on three felony warrants, was later caught and taken into custody and the officer was not seriously hurt.

Police say the officer pulled out his weapon after Boyd ran, but he did not fire the gun.

In Michigan, Boyd is charged with assaulting a peace officer and resisting arrest.

Boyd is wanted for forgery after trying to withdraw cash using someone else's checkbook in Wisconsin.

Boyd, who is wanted on three felony warrants, was later caught and taken into custody and the officer was not seriously hurt

Police say the officer pulled out his weapon after Boyd ran, but he did not fire the gun. In Michigan, Boyd is charged with assaulting a peace officer and resisting arrest
A Satantic killer - who together with his devil-worshiping bride butchered their friend upon a coffin to drink his blood - appeared in court on Monday charged with plotting a new contract killing behind bars.

Daniel Ruda's alleged target: his now ex-wife who is free while he languishes in jail 16 years after the ritualistic killing which shocked the world.

Ruda, who when he was sentenced had filed his teeth to razor sharpness to make himself look like a vampire, is accused at Bochum State Court of planning a hit on his ex Manuela who divorced him while behind bars.

Daniel Ruda and his wife Manuela stabbed baker Frank Hackert 66 times, drinking his blood on top a coffin

Ruda, pictured in 2002, filed his teeth to razor sharpness to make himself look like a vampire

'That's nonsense,' said Ruda. 'A grotesque accusation and untrue.'

According to prosecutors he tried to hire a female he met through contact advertisements in 2012 to carry out the plan.

But for the first time since he and Manuela were sentenced in 2002 he admitted the 'Satanic sacrifice' of a man called Frank Hackert at the home they shared in Bochum in 2001.

David and Manuela spent holidays in England in Scotland, attending devil-worshiping parties. But when the pair were imprisoned the romance soured, and she divorced him while locked up

She shared in the blood-drinking ritual after Frank, a baker, was stabbed 66 times on a coffin they used as a coffee table.

Ruda was sentenced to 15 years in jail for killing Frank, 33.

The court at their original sentencing heard that the couple spent holidays in England and Scotland, sleeping in graveyards and attending devil-worship parties.

Manuela was sentenced to 13 years for her role and has since been freed from a psychiatric unit but is still receiving treatment. She has been given a new identity and has no further contact with Ruda.

Ruda, who works as a librarian at a prison near Dortmund, petitioned last year to be allowed to rejoin society.

Ruda was sentenced to 15 years in jail for his murder, but petitioned last year to be released

His lawyer Hans Reinhardt said at the time: 'We want to show that he is not a dangerous man. In jail he takes no drugs, drinks no alcohol. His mother, who is 75, visits him regularly. She has only one wish; to see her son free before she dies.

'He wants to rejoin society, find a wife, settle down and have a family.'

However he's now accused of trying to hire a contract killer to infiltrate the psychiatric institute where Manuela was imprisoned and murder her

But Doris Hackert, mother of the dead man, said: 'I hope they don't let him out. I am not well. I am psychiatrically shattered. I cry a lot. It would be a nightmare for me if they let him out.'

The couple said they had chosen their victim for sacrifice because he was 'so funny and would be the perfect court jester for Satan'.

The prosecution alleges Ruda was angry and upset at Manuela both leaving him and getting out of jail before him.

Ruda says the latest accusations are 'grotesque' and 'untrue'. He has changed his name to David Wenger in anticipation of his release

Manuela has since been freed from her psychiatric unit. She has a new identity and is still receiving mental health treatment

A court spokesman said: 'The plan was seemingly for the woman he contacted to get a job in the kitchens of the psychiatric unit where his ex wife was and to kill her there out of revenge.'

But she went to police instead, leading Ruda - now grey haired and wearing a white shirt - back into the dock on a charge of incitement to murder.

He insisted: 'There was no contract to murder. The prosecution has acted with blind zeal.'

A fresh conviction for Ruda could mean as many as seven more years behind bars

But a fellow prisoner is due to give evidence that he told him of the murder plot.

Ruda added: 'It's a lie from someone who wants to make himself look important.' And his lawyer brands the alleged hit woman a fantasist.

If he is found not guilty he could be released soon - but a fresh conviction will mean as many as seven more years behind bars.

Ruda has changed his own name since he was jailed in anticipation of release. He is now called Daniel Wegner.
John McCain has called Vladimir Putin the 'premier and most important threat', who is more dangerous than ISIS.

The Senator, 80, told '7:30', a show on the Australian Broadcast Corporation, that while he believed the self-proclaimed Islamic State could do 'terrible things', the Russian leader has done more damage because of his alleged attempts to interfere with elections both in the United States and France.

Speaking of the level of threat Putin can pose, the Arizona Senator said: ' I think he is the premier and most important threat, more so than ISIS.

'I think ISIS can do terrible things, but it's the Russians who tried to destroy the fundamental of democracy and that is to change the outcome of an American election.'

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John McCain, 80, told '7:30', a show on the Australian Broadcast Corporation, that Vladimir Putin was the 'premier and most important threat' that is more dangerous than ISIS

'I think ISIS can do terrible things, but it's the Russians who tried to destroy the fundamental of democracy and that is to change the outcome of an American election,' he said

McCain has been one of only a handful of Republicans who has been an open critic of President Trump. And during this interview, he didn't hold back when he denounced the president for his silence on the mounting evidence that Russia meddled with the elections.

'Theyre still trying to change elections,' he said about the Russian government, even though he conceded he had not seen any evidence. 'They just tried to affect the outcome of the French election.

McCain also called for Trump to respond to allegations that Putin tried to hack the US election

'We have done nothing since the election last November to respond to Vladimir Putin's attempt to change the outcome of our elections.

'So, way to go Vladimir. We haven't responded at all.'

The army veteran then honed in on some of the reports of the alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, specifically about the Senior White House Advisor, Jared Kusher, allegedly attempting to open a secret communication line between Trump's transition team and the Kremlin.

'I know some administration officials are saying this is standard procedure,' Trump said. 'I don't think it's standard procedure prior to the inauguration of the president of the United States by someone who is not in an appointed position.

'This is becoming more and more bizarre. In fact, you can't make it up.'

A bit more diplomatic when he addressed Trump's temperament and the alleged troubled relationship he has with his national security team, he said: 'I get nervous from time to time. I do believe that the President has great confidence in this national security team.

'I do believe most of the time that he accepts their advice and counsel.

'Can I tell you that he does all the time? No. Does it bother me? Yes, it bothers me.'
A gunman who killed one person outside a Boulder restaurant was stopped by a brave chef who tackled the killer and wrestled him to the ground.

The shooting occurred outside the Bramble and Hare restaurant just after midnight on Monday, after two men got into an argument.

The men continued their altercation outside, where shots were fired and one of the men felled; the gunman then returned to the restaurant, where he was stopped by the brave staff member, 9News reported.

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Shooting: A man was shot outside the Bramble and Hare restaurant (center) after midnight on Monday; the shooter was then tackled by the restaurant's chef and held until cops came

The suspect was taken into custody after the chef wrestled him to the ground and held him until police arrived.

It's not yet clear what the shooter and the victim were arguing about.

Police said they are still determining whether more shots were fired when the gunman - who hasn't been identified - went inside the restaurant.

The victim, an adult male, died of his injuries at Boulder Community Health's Foothills Hospital.

He is not being identified by the Boulder County Coroner's Office until his family has been informed of his death.

The shooting has not affected the annual Bolder Boulder race.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Boulder Police Department at 303 441 1974.

Anonymous tippers can contact Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222 TIPS (8477), or at crimeshurt.com; those who inform Crime Stoppers can get a cash reward of up to $1,000 for tips that lead to an arrest and filing of charges.
A mother's screams have stopped her 15-month-old son from being kidnapped.

The toddler was picked up at a public playground in Liverpool on Thursday afternoon, and the man accused of attempting to kidnap him is still on the run.

After he was picked up at the Macquarie Street Mall playground, the boy's mother screamed and chased after him, and it is believed that helped to save him.

Police are hunting for a Middle Eastern man after he picked up a 15-month-old baby in a public playground at a western Sydney mall (pictured) and tried to walk away with him

'The male handed the child back to the mother and did not say anything to her,' Liverpool Police Detective Inspector Dean Johnstone told 7 News.

The traumatised mother says she and her son have not returned to the mall since, and that she will not allow him to play in the playground anymore.

Police confirmed to Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday morning they were continuing to hunt for the man they believe is responsible for the abduction attempt.

They say he is of Middle Eastern appearance, about 45 years old and had his black hair combed back at the time.

He has a stocky build, a clean shaven face, and was wearing a black woollen long-sleeved jacket at the time

After the man handed the boy back to his mother, police say he then left the area in an unknown direction.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Liverpool Police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Residents in a Virginia neighborhood have been left outraged by a white supremacist group's racist posters.

The posters were put up in Del Ray, a small neighborhood in Alexandria, over the weekend.

Their slogans included 'you're losing your country, white man!' and 'stop the blacks!'

They were removed by disgusted residents who took a photograph of them beforehand and shared it online.

The posters were put up by Vanguard America whose which seeks an America that is 'exclusively for white peoples'.

All of the posters were black and white. One featured an image of a black man portrayed as a monkey clutching a knife. Its accompanying message was: 'Around blacks never relax!'

These shockingly racist posters were put up in the neighborhood of Del Ray in Alexandria, Virginia, on Saturday by a white supremacist group

The posters were quickly torn down by disgusted residents who took photographs of them and posted them online to shame the group which created them

Another said: 'Stop the rapes, stop the crime, stop the murder, stop the blacks!' It included a shocking illustration of a black man attacking a white woman.

Sharing a photograph of the posters on Facebook, resident Reba Smith Winstead said: 'These were found in Del Ray, early Saturday morning (and promptly removed).'

She described them as 'a painful reminder that enjoying the SNL skits about our new reality is simply not good enough.'

'Unfortunately, having a white nationalist organization headquartered in Alexandria makes the scared and fearful cowards more emboldened to try to spread their hate.

'Hate and fear should never be the answer,' she said.

The posters have since been replaced with messages of love and inclusiveness.

One poster said 'fascism is the next step for America'. They were all created by Vanguard America

Resident Reba Smith Winstead shared the posters on Facebook on Saturday

One read: 'Del Ray: The neighborhood that's so inclusive even skinheads like to come here (but they run away in the dark).'

Mayor of Del Ray Allison Silberberg issued a scathing statement after they were discovered.

'The fliers found in Del Ray are horrible and reflect a new low in ignorance. The Alexandria Police Department has responded quickly and is investigating. At this point, we do not know who posted the fliers.

'As the City Council and I stated in our Statement on Inclusiveness last November, I would like to say in the strongest possible terms that we denounce hate speech, hate crimes, and discrimination in all forms. Alexandria is a city of kindness and compassion.

'We are a city that is inclusive, accepting, and embracing. Diversity is a core value here.

'Shame on those who have posted these hateful fliers,' she said.
Twin sisters have died after their car crashed into the back of a parked semi-truck in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Abril and Brisa Delapaz, 26, were driving home from a friend's going-away party when they crashed their Dodge Neon in Chicago's South Deering neighborhood about 4.45am.

They were pronounced dead about 5am by the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Their devastated brother, Pablo, spoke to the Chicago Tribune about his 26-year-old sisters.

Two 26-year-old sisters, Abril and Brisa Delapaz (pictured), have died after their car crashed into the back of a parked semi-truck in the early hours of Sunday morning

'You could never have one without the other,' he told the Tribune.

'Its just crazy. They came into this world together and went out together.'

But despite how close they were, 27-year-old Pablo said his sisters had very different personalities.

'Abril loved music. She was always dancing. Brisa was a goof. If anything happened, she would roll with it,' he said.

'They were always crazy, but they were also thoughtful... Both were a godsend to the family.'

Abril and Brisa Delapaz were driving home from a friend's going-away party when they crashed their Dodge Neon in Chicago's South Deering neighborhood about 4:45am

'Its just crazy. They came into this world together and went out together,' their brother, Pablo, said about Abril (left) and Brisa (right)

Abril graduated from Roosevelt University, where she was studying biochemistry, just two weeks before Sunday's fatal crash.

Brisa was working towards a career in zoology, studying at Southern Illinois University.

Pablo said his family is struggling to come to terms with the sudden loss.

'Our mom is so distraught,' he told the Tribune. 'When our father heard, he just broke down.'

A GoFundMe page has been created to help the family cover the costs of a funeral.
The Manchester bomber is believed to have been filmed shopping for hardware and snacks in the hours before he killed 22 people and injured more than 100 others.

CCTV video was released today after being recorded last Monday in a Spar store close to the flat in the city where Salman Abedi, 22, was hours before the attack.

Abedi can allegedly be seen walking around the aisles looking at items and picking up a handful of goods before going to the checkout and walking out with a bag.

CCTV video was released today after being recorded last Monday in a Spar store close to the flat in the city where Salman Abedi, 22, was hours before the attack

Abedi can allegedly be seen walking around the shop looking at items and picking up goods

Greater Manchester Police also issued a CCTV image of the bomber pulling a blue suitcase

Another image of him pulling a blue suitcase, just hours before he blew himself, was also released today.

Police have been working round-the-clock since Abedi killed 15 adults and seven children in the worst terrorist atrocity since the July 7 bombings in 2005.

BBC News, which released the video this afternoon, said the footage has been passed to investigating officers. It is not yet clear what was bought at the shop.

A total of 16 arrests have been made in connection with the attack - the latest being a 23-year-old man in West Sussex  but two people have been released.

A terror network is believed to be behind suicide bomber Abedi, who lived in Manchester after his parents had moved to Britain from Libya.

Abedi's elder brother Ismail is among the suspects being held in Britain, and a younger brother and Abedi's father have been detained in Libya.

After picking up some items the man goes to the checkout to pay before walking out with a bag

Police have been working round-the-clock since the terror attack killed 22 people last Monday

Intelligence services have launched an inquiry into how warnings about Abedi's radical views were handled amid claims that vital warning signs were missed.

Police are scouring 12,960 hours of CCTV recordings in their search for clues, have collected more than 630 pieces of evidence and have searched 21 addresses.

Authorities say Abedi returned to Britain from Libya on May 18, and probably completed assembling his bomb at a rented apartment in central Manchester.

Britain's official terror threat level was set at 'critical' in the days after the attack but was downgraded Saturday to 'severe'.

The country remains on high alert, however, as officials caution that some suspects who helped Abedi may still be at large.
Monash University will no longer include Human Resource Management by Raymond J. Stone in its curriculum after a lecturer was suspended for taking a quiz from the book, found to be offensive by Chinese students.

From the second semester the book will no longer be used after it suggested that Chinese officials were only truthful when they were drunk in one of the book's quizzes.

Complaints were laid by Chinese students at Monash, conversations took place on social media platform Wechat about the issue and questions from China's consulate-general in Melbourne were raised.

Students at Monash University were asked to complete a 'common saying in China', which stated Government officials only told the truth when they were drunk (pictured)

Human Resource Management by Raymond J. Stone (pictured) will no longer be included in the university's curriculum from the second semester

The incident has been attributed, by some Chinese officials, as a result of an increase in 'little pinks' or 'xiaofenhong' - nationalist young people who stand against any criticism of the Chinese government.

Speaking to Primrose Riordan of The Australian, the decision, made by university management to suspend lecturer Aaron Wijeratne, was questioned by professor J. Bruce Jacobs, who said they over-reacted.

'I believe, without knowing the details, that the suspension of the lecturer is inappropriate,' he said.

He said counselling may be useful however the suspension seems too harsh when the lecturer did not make the error.

Monash University admitted last Monday they had suspended human resources lecturer Mr Wijeratne.

Another question in the controversial exam (pictured) claimed the country suffered from a 'lack of skilled workers'

Monash University (pictured) has 4400 undergraduate students from China, and received many complaints about the exam

The question posed to his business school class read: 'There is a common saying in China that Chinese officials only the truth when...'

The answer provided in the Human Resources Management text book was: 'They are drunk or careless.'

A section of the book also discussed corruption among the Chinese officials.

One student thought the topic may have been appropriate a few years ago, said it was no longer relevant society.

Professor Jacobs said he could understand some students being offended however it didn't reflect an issue of prejudice against the Chinese.

'The phrase quoted is a Chinese phrase... used in China for a long time,' he said.

He said in the West there is a similar phrase in Latin which translates to 'in wine there is truth.'

Lyn Goodear, head of the Australian Human Resources, said in the interest of furthering education she could live with potentially provocative examples of texts.

She said although the book gave particular reference to China, it also mentioned situations in other countries and the observation could apply to officials anywhere.

The university said Mr Wijeratne would remain suspended during the investigation.
David Bigwood, 46, (pictured) was released on licence in 2013 and tracked one of his past victims down before raping her

A convicted child sex attacker who raped one of his past victims after being released from prison has been jailed for life.

David Bigwood, 46, was released on licence in June 2013 after serving five years in jail when he tracked down the woman.

A judge was told Bigwood, from Reading, Berkshire, pushed her onto a bed and raped her when her boyfriend had left.

He had been convicted of 19 counts of sexual assault against children, including making a young boy perform a sex act on a little girl and attempting to rape the girl.

Judge John Reddihough heard that the now 24-year-old woman was contacted by Bigwood in December 2016.

The prosecution told how Bigwood said to his victim: 'I wonder what you would look like with just your tunic on.'

He then waited for her boyfriend to leave before asking her to kiss him but she refused and he pulled her onto the bed and started kissing her.

Bigwood later put his hands under her shirt to touch her breasts, Reading Crown Court heard.

The judge was told how the young woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had struggled but Bigwood was too strong for her.

Fortunately the phone had started to ring, so the woman got up to answer it. But the court heard he later pulled down her knickers and raped her.

Reading Crown Court (pictured) heard that the woman, who is now 24, was contacted by Bigwood in December 2016

Bigwood's defence barrister said that his client was not an intelligent man and could not have pre-planned the rape.

However, Judge Reddihough highlighted the rapist had been described by a parole officer as 'an individual who likes to dominate and control others.'

Bigwood was convicted of rape and sexual assault and appeared before Judge Reddihough on Friday for sentencing.

The judge sentenced him to life, with a minimum of five years, and said: 'These are very serious offenses. It is quite hard to think of a more serious scenario than that. I don't think you show any remorse.'
A British girl has died on Croatian island of Hvar in the Adriatic Sea.

The 20-year-old was found unconscious in front of a nightclub, where she said to have been drinking and taken drugs.

Doctor's on the island's hospital battled to save her but she tragically passed away.

The 20-year-old girl died on Croatian island of Hvar, in the Adriatic Sea

Police have not yet released the girl's identity but have informed the Foreign Office.

The girl's body will be sent to a regional hospital in the city of Split to determine the cause of death.

Hvar is a top tourist destination in Croatia, and up to 400,000 British tourists visit the country every year.

Hollywood stars and celebrities, including Prince Harry, have been known to spend their holidays at the island.
A survivor of the Portland stabbing gave a thumbs up from his hospital bed as he continues to recover from a large neck wound he received when a white supremacist allegedly attacked him in an incident that left two dead.

Micah Fletcher, 21, was one of three men trying to protect two teenage girls from 35-year-old Jeremy Joseph Christian.

Christian is accused of stabbing to death Rick Best, 53, and Taliesin Myrrdin Namkai-Meche, 23, before injuring Fletcher on Friday night.

Doctors said Fletcher has a long way to go as he's seen in photos with a huge cut on the left side of his neck with a drainage tube attached.

Micah Fletcher, 21, a survivor of the Portland stabbing gave a thumbs up from his hospital bed as he continues to recover from a large neck wound he received when a white supremacist attacked him in an incident that left two dead

Fletcher, who is a poet, is being hailed a hero after he along with Best and Namkai-Meche stood up for the teenagers, one of whom is Muslim, on a Portland MAX train.

The teens were targeted by Christian when he told them to 'go back to Saudi Arabia' and kill themselves.

A Portland police spokesman told KGW-TV on Sunday that the night before the attack, Christian threw a bottle of Gatorade at a black woman at the Interstate Rose Quarter Station.

Jeremy Joseph Christian is accused of stabbing to death Rick Best, 53, and Taliesin Myrrdin Namkai-Meche, 23, before injuring Fletcher on Friday night

That woman responded by spraying Christian with mace.

Later that evening, another woman filmed Christian as he launched into a tirade about Muslims and Christians while on a train at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

A woman identified only as KK released footage of the incident to KOIN, saying that Christian was 'complaining about the city, complaining about Muslims, Christians, and it just got very violent very quick'.

'You don't like it? You got a problem with what I'm saying?' she heard Christian say. 'F*** all you Christians and Muslims and f****** Jews , f****** die. Burn you at the stake f****** die.'

She said that he was 'visibly upset' and complaining on the phone to a friend about getting pepper sprayed by a woman.

The woman said she started filming the incident about ten minutes into the phone conversation, saying that everyone was 'pretty scared'.

'By the time we were at [the Gateway Transit Center], he was talking about wanting to stab somebody and gestured to pull something out of his pocket. Everybody around me got up, I was right behind him,' she told KOIN.

Rick Best, 53, (left) and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Mece (right) 23, were both murdered on the train after stepping in as the girls were abused

Destinee Mangum, 17, was one of the girls targeted by a white supremacist on board a MAX train in Portland on Friday. She spoke out on Sunday to thank the Good Samaritans who died trying to protect her

KK said that nothing was done to remove Christian from the train.

Police confirmed that it is Christian in KK's video and also confirmed that he was pepper sprayed the night before.

The following night, Christian was arrested for aggravated murder after Best and Namkai-Meche had their throats slashed after arguing with the man.

Christian was arrested after he ran off the train at the Hollywood transit station in Portland.

He was charged with two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of second-degree intimidation and one count each of aggravated murder and being a felon in possession of a restricted firearm on Friday.

One of the teenage girls who was targeted by Christian on Friday spoke out to thank the men who were killed while trying to protect her and her friend.

Destinee Mangum, 17, was on the train with her Muslim friend on Friday evening when Christian approached them.

In footage from a separate incident the night before the attack, Christian can be heard launching another tirade while talking to someone on the phone

Through tears, she told Fox's Oregon affiliate KPTV: 'I just want to say thank you to the people who put their life on the line for me.

'They didn't even know me. They lost their life because of me and my friend and the way we looked and I just to say thank you to them and their family and I appreciate them because without them we probably would be dead right now.'

Fletcher, 21, was also attacked but survived

Her mother Dyjuana Hudson issued her own message of thanks to the men's families.

'Thank you thank you thank you. You will always be our hero ....I'm soooooo sorry this happened.

'You didn't even know my girls but you stepped in and saved my babies life to the family I'm so sorry about your loss and I'm here if you need me,' she said, sharing the Facebook post of the mother of one of the brave men who died.

Destinee's friend, who was wearing a hijab at the time of the attack, has not come forward.

She described how she and her friend were sitting next to one another on the train when Christian approached them.

'He told us to go back to Saudi Arabia and he told us we shouldn't be here, to get out of his country. He was just telling us that we basically weren't anything and that we should kill ourselves,' she said.

A man sitting behind them intervened, she said. She did not disclose whether it was Best, Namkai-Meche or Fletcher.

The accused is also a white supremacist who was pictured giving Nazi salutes at a free speech rally in April with an American Revolutionary War flag tied like a cape around his shoulders

He has posted a number of times to say he supports the Nazis, and once even said he wants a job in Norway 'cutting off the heads of people that Circumcize (sic) Babies'

Additionally, Christian threatened to 'stab some masked up b****** protesting Black Metal shows as soon as they touch me'

Before attending the free speech rally where he was caught on camera giving the Nazi salute, Christian wrote: 'If you attended masked up and that mask comes off and I see a friend who sided with ANTIFA it will be merciless. Free speech or die!!! This is my land!!!'

'This white male from the back of us was like, "he's talking to you guys? You guys can't disrespect these young ladies like that".' Then they just all started arguing,' she said.

Frightened, Destinee and her friend moved out of their seats and were preparing to get off the train when, she says, Christian 'just started stabbing people'.

'Me and my friend were going to get off the MAX and then we turned around while they were fighting and he just started stabbing people and it was just blood everywhere and we just started running for our lives,' she said.

Best was a retired Army platoon sergeant who served for 23 years. He had four children. Namkai-Leche's family said he lived a 'full and joyous life'.

Christian was known for his hate-speech, and is a self-identified white supremacist who was pictured on April 29, referring to himself as the 'Lizard King' and giving Nazi salutes at a free speech rally, with an American Revolutionary War flag tied like a cape around his shoulders.

He walked among fellow protesters holding American flags and signs that said 'Trump Makes America Great Again.'

Christian's Facebook site paints disturbing a picture of the suspect, and he describes himself by saying: 'I'm an Ex-Con. I Like Comix, Cannabis and Metal-In Any Combination. If you are an Employer, F*** Off.'

The suspect has been in jail previously for a string of charges including robbery, kidnapping and unlawful use of a weapon, and he brags about being an ex-con on his Facebook page.

He has posted on his profile a number of times to say he supports the Nazis, and once even said he wants a job in Norway 'cutting off the heads of people that Circumcize (sic) Babies'.

Additionally, Christian has threatened to 'stab some masked up b****** protesting Black Metal shows as soon as they touch me,' in a comment thread on his Facebook profile.

The attacker was 'yelling a gamut of anti-Muslim and anti-everything slurs' before he turned his focus on the women

After the suspect attacked the victims, he reportedly said: 'This is free America, I can do whatever I want' one witness told KOMO news

On May 9, Christian wrote about a debate he challenged someone to: 'I will defend the Nazis and he will the defend the AshkeNAZIs.'

Before attending the April 29 rally where he was caught on camera giving the Nazi salute, Christian wrote: 'You should all attend the Free Speech Rally at Montanavilla if you value your rights. All Rights, I don't care if you like Antifa or Hate them. They are just an excuse for a showdown.

'I hope the Police Stand Down as in Berkeley. I will be there Demasking anyone with a mask. I will attend in Lizard King Regalia as a Political Nihilist to Provoke both Sides and attempt to engage anyone in a true Philosophy and Political Discussion.

'If you attended masked up and that mask comes off and I see a friend who sided with ANTIFA it will be merciless. Free speech or die!!! This is my land!!!'

He also referred to President Trump the 'antichrist,' but in a way that turned it into a compliment.

'If Donald Trump is the Next Hitler then I am joining his SS to put and end to Monotheist Question. All Zionist Jews, All Christians who do not follow Christ's teaching of Love, Charity, and Forgiveness And All Jihadi Muslims are going to Madagascar or the Ovens/FEMA Camps!!! Does this make me a fascist!!!'
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He has rowed the Atlantic, run across the Sahara Desert and trekked the Antarctic but Ben Fogle has ticked off another feat - chasing an 8lb cheese down a very steep hill.

The TV presenter and adventurer had always wanted to take part in the annual death-defying Cheese Rolling event but had always been prevented by health and safety due to filming commitments.

Mr Fogle took part in the first race of the day as he and another two dozen competitors chased a Double Gloucester cheese 200 yards down the 1:2 gradient Cooper's Hill at Brockworth, Gloucestershire.

Speaking afterwards, the 43-year-old father of two said the race course was a lot steeper than it looked and he was nervous as he waited at the start.

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Ben Fogle (in green shorts and white polo shirt) took part in the first race of the day as he and another two dozen competitors chased a famous Double Gloucester cheese 200 yards down the 1:2 gradient Cooper's Hill at Brockworth, Gloucestershire

The TV presenter and adventurer (taking a tumble, bottom right of the Union Flag) had always wanted to take part in the death-defying Cheese Rolling but had always been prevented by health and safety due to filming commitments

Speaking afterwards, the 43-year-old father of two said the race course was a lot steeper than it looked and he was nervous as he waited at the start

Ben said: 'It is the first time I have done the Cheese Rolling. I've covered all sorts of weird and wonderful events across Great Britain and this was almost the last one on my list'

'When I was filming things for TV, I was never allowed to, for health and safety, so I've come along on my own today,' he said.

'It is the first time I have done the Cheese Rolling. I've covered all sorts of weird and wonderful events across Great Britain and this was almost the last one on my list.

'I've watched from afar for years. I made the long journey to be here. I was in Canada yesterday and I came back early especially for this.

'I've done it now. I can tick that one off. I did it once - that is enough.'

Mr Fogle, who was muddy and suffering from a sore shoulder, said: 'It is a lot more scary at the top than down here, believe me. When you see the photographs, you have no idea just how steep it is.

'It is so slippery. The nerves... all these guys look tough but once you're up there and you are looking down, it is really nerve wracking.

Female contestants begin the steep downhill race in an attempt to claim the cheesy prize

'When you see the photographs, you have no idea just how steep it is,' the TV presenter added

'I made the long journey to be here. I was in Canada yesterday and I came back early especially for this,' said Ben. Apart from being covered in mud and having a sore shoulder after the race, he otherwise felt fine

Some of the other determined contestants slip and side during their quest for the cheese

'You have got to commit because once you start on that hill you can't really just gingerly descend, you have got to really go for it. It is really scary.

'I have a slightly sore shoulder but it will be OK.'

He added: 'This is just quintessential Britishness - I love it - and I love the eccentricity of events like this.

'I think I did most of it on my bum. Am I pleased with my run? I got down to the bottom, I didn't win the cheese, but I got down.

'I think the moral of this is quit while you are ahead. I've got the mud and a few scrapes and cuts and I'll enjoy watching other people do it from now on.

'I'd always wanted to do it and finally I can say I ran after a cheese down Cooper's Hill.

'The cheese went to the best man.'
Russian President Vladimir Putin has rejected allegations that Moscow meddled in France's presidential election.

Speaking after talks with new French President Emmanuel Macron at the Palace of Versailles, he also defended a March meeting with Macron's presidential rival, far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

It came at the same press conference where President Macron's extraordinarily attacked two Russian media outlets, Russia Today and Sputnik, which he claims acted as 'propaganda' organs during his election campaign.

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Speaking after a meeting with new French President Emmanuel Macron (right), Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) rejected claims Moscow meddled in the country's election

Putin (pictured with Macron) also defended a March meeting with Macron's presidential rival, far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

Earlier today, Putin said he and Macron agreed to discuss pursuing closer cooperation on anti-terror efforts

After the meeting and press conference, Macron drove through the garden of the Versailles Palace in an electric golf car with Putin in the passenger seat

'I've always had exemplary relations with foreign journalists, but they have to be journalists,' said Mr Macron.

'Russia Today and Sputnik were organs of influence and propaganda which spread infamous counter-truths about me.'

Macron cited it as the reason why he banned their reporters from his campaign headquarters during the race for the French presidency, which he went on to win, defeating Le Pen.

Mr Putin remained stony-faced and did not reply when Mr Macron made the accusations, but the Russian president did reject allegations that Moscow wanted far-Right candidate Marine Le Pen to beat Mr Macron.

Commenting on a visit by Ms Le Pen, the National Front leader, to Moscow just before polling day, Mr Putin said: 'It was not her first visit.

'It did not mean we tried to influence the election result, moreover it would be almost impossible to do so anyway. We are not children, we are serious men!'

He went on to say it would be strange if Russia rebuffed overtures from European politicians who want to strengthen relations.

Despite denying claims of meddling, Putin described Macron's rival Le Pen as a politician who wants to develop friendly ties with Russia

Putin (right) says it would be strange if Russia rebuffed overtures from European politicians who want to strengthen relations

The Russian leader, 64, says the meeting with Le Pen did not represent an attempt to sway the race and that Russia

While Putin has backed the Syrian regime against ISIS and rebel groups France has pushed for Bashar al-Assad's removal from office

Macron said he wants a democratic transition in Syria but not at the cost of the war-torn country becoming a failed state

Macron said he had 'extremely frank, direct' talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, pushing for cooperation on Syria and against ISIS

The Russian leader, 64, says the meeting with Le Pen did not represent an attempt to sway the race and that Russia had been well-aware of opinion polls predicting Macron's victory.

Earlier today, Putin said he and Macron agreed to discuss pursuing closer cooperation on anti-terror efforts, having discussed the situation in Syria.

The Russian president, an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, underlined the importance of securing the Syrian state, adding that it's essential for combatting terrorism.

While Putin has backed the Syrian regime against ISIS and rebel groups - going as far as to send troops and weaponry to defeat its enemies - France has pushed for Assad's removal from office.

But Macron said he believes he can work with Russia on Syria and that he wants to forge a reinforced partnership against ISIS.

Macron said he wants a democratic transition in Syria, but not at the cost of the war-torn country becoming a failed state.

Macron said he believes he can work with Russia on Syria and that he wants to forge a reinforced partnership against ISIS

Speaking to journalists at the Versailles Palace, Macron went on to say the use of chemical weapons in Syria was a 'red line' for France

The two leaders held a meeting (pictured) before the opening of an exhibition marking 300 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries, in Versailles, near Paris

Macron said he also spoke to Putin about LGBT rights in Chechnya and about NGOs in Russia

But he went on to say the use of chemical weapons in Syria was a 'red line' for France.

Macron said that any use of such weapons in Syria would lead to 'reprisals' from France, without specifying exactly what form they would take.

He said he also spoke to Putin about LGBT rights in Chechnya and about NGOs in Russia.

Macron vowed during the G7 summit in Italy over the weekend that'It is essential to talk to Russia because there are a number of international issues that will not be resolved without a tough dialogue with them.'

The two leaders talks today lasted almost threehours, with Macron saying that 'Franco-Russian friendship' was at their heart.

Mr Macron added: 'No major problem in the world can be solved without Russia.'
Veteran actor Peter Vaughan, who died aged 93 after being a familiar face on stage, screen and TV for some 75 years, left hundreds of thousands of pounds in his will.

Vaughan shot to fame in the BBC prison sitcom Porridge before winning a legion of fans around the world with his starring role in Game of Thrones.

It has now been revealed that the star, who lived near Horsham in West Sussex, left 315,172 in his will when he died in December.

Most recently Peter Vaughan won a new generation of global admirers in the HBO fantasy show Game of Thrones, playing centenarian blind sage Maester Aemon

Perter Vaughan (left) as Grouty and Ronnie Barker as Fletch in the BBC prison sitcom, Porridge

Vaughan also had TV roles in Citizen Smith and Our Friends in the North.

But he was perhaps best known as the menacing 'Mr Big' gangster Grouty who ran a prison protection racket in 1970s show Porridge starring Ronnie Barker.

Most recently he won a new generation of global admirers in the HBO fantasy show Game of Thrones, playing centenarian blind sage Maester Aemon.

Peter Vaughan as Ray starring alongside Sheila Hancock as Pat and Timothy Spall as Vince in ITV's The Thing About Vince

Probate records reveal he left the bulk of his estate in trust for his second wife Lillias, his son and two stepdaughters.

Vaughan, whose real name was Peter Ohm, first married actress Billie Whitelaw before they split up in the 1960s.

He also appeared in films including Straw Dogs, The French Lieutenant's Woman, Brazil, Time Bandits, The Remains of the Day and Valentino.
A man's naked and partially decapitated body has been found in the parking lot of a Houston apartment complex.

Police were called to Santa Clara apartments at 2am on Monday. They found the man lying face up in the parking lot with a deep wound to his neck.

One neighbor said he'd heard cries of 'help' moments before they made the grim discovery.

Authorities believe the man may have been attacked in his car which was also found at the scene.

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Police found the man's naked body in the parking lot of Santa Clara apartments on Monday at 2am

There were blood stains on the exterior of its doors.

ABC News reports that the victim, who has not been named, is originally from Congo.

Members of his family were seen gathering outside the apartment complex on Monday.

Resident Manar al Quraishi called police after hearing the man's cries.

'I see a person on the ground, and face up, and no clothes,' he said.

Police have not yet made in arrests and continue to work at the apartment building.

'Officers responded to the location found an adult male in the parking lot.

'He was declared deceased at the scene.

'He appears to be dead from some kind of an edged weapon attack,' Lieutenant Larry Crowson said.

Police say the man may have been attacked in his car which was removed from the scene
A robot priest that beams lights from its hands is giving 'auto-blessings' in the same German city where Martin Luther launched the Protestant Reformation.

Five hundred years after Luther published the 95 Theses in the town of Wittenberg, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, an evangelical church unveiled an automatic blessing robot for the special celebrations.

The robot on show is called 'BlessU-2' and was developed by the Evangelical Church in Hesse and Nassau.

It consists of a metal box with a touch screen, two arms, a head with electronic eyes and a digital mouth.

A robot priest that beams lights from its hands is giving 'auto-blessings' in the same German city where Martin Luther launched the Protestant Reformation

After the robot wishes users a 'warm welcome', it asks if they want to be blessed by a male or female voice.

It then asks the believer: 'What blessing do you want?' - which results in the robot making a mechanical sound as it raises its arms to the heavens and starts to smile.

Lights then start to flash in the robot's arms as it says that 'God bless and protect you' as it recites a biblical verse.

After the blessing, the user has the possibility to print the dictum.

Church spokesman Sebastian von Gehren said: 'It is an experiment that is supposed to inspire discussion.'

Von Gehren explained that they consciously decided against a typical human appearance. He said that the reactions vary wildly, with 'one half thinks it's great' while 'the other cannot imagine a blessing from a machine.'

Remarkably, von Gehren said that especially people who have little in common with the church are attracted to the robot, with many people 'now coming every morning and evening.'

A robot priest that beams lights from its hands is giving 'auto-blessings' in the same German city where Martin Luther launched the Protestant Reformation

Church spokesman Sebastian von Gehren said the robot was 'an experiment that is supposed to inspire discussion'

Brunhilde Hoeltz-Mettang, a visitor to the church celebrations in Wittenberg, said the robot was 'interesting and courageous' even though it lacked the human touch.

She said: 'We have to think of new ways, beyond our core communities.'

Yet 500 years after Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to a church door in Wittenberg, the robot priest will not replace humans any time soon.

Von Gehren said: 'The machine should not replace the blessing of a pastor. In the future there will not be a blessing robot in every church.'
Olanzo Gomez, 42, was charged with first degree murder on Sunday. He is pictured above in an arrest photo from 2012

A Phoenix man has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder after he stabbed his 63-year-old mother to death during a family argument, police say.

Olanzo Gomez, 42, is also charged with three counts of aggravated assault following the shocking incident that left his mother, Mercy Gomez, dead, KSAZ reported.

Police say they responded to reports of a family fight at a home near 43rd Avenue and Baseline Road on Sunday around 11am.

Other family members who tried to stop the stabbing suffered minor injuries.

When officers arrived, they found the elderly woman had been stabbed.

Police say he is also charged with three counts of aggravated assault following the shocking incident that left his 63-year-old mother, Mercy Gomez, dead

Police say they responded to reports of a family fight at a home (above) near 43rd Avenue and Baseline Road on Sunday around 11am. Other family members who tried to stop the stabbing suffered minor injuries

She was rushed to nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Officers quickly arrested her son and booked him into jail.

Authorities have not revealed what the argument was about.

The incident is still under investigation.

Online records show that the suspect was previously arrested in 2012 on charges of drug paraphernalia possession/use, dangerous drug possession/use and crime trespassing.

It's unclear if he served any time behind bars for those charges in Maricopa County.




A Canadian couple's dream engagement took a dramatic turn when the hot air balloon they was flying in was forced to make a crash landing.

Stephen Martin had long planned to pop the question to his partner, Christine Peters, while flying above Edmonton.

After the voyage was delayed by weather issues previously, he finally got the chance on Saturday morning, when the lovers joined eight others and the pilot on the scenic trip above the Canadian city.

And high up in the sky, Martin got down on a knee and proposed to Peters - who was thrilled to say yes.

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Stephen Martin and Christine Peters' dream engagement in Edmonton took a dramatic turn Saturday when the hot air balloon they were flying in was forced to make a crash landing

Martin (left) made the decision because it was Peters (right) dream to fly on a hot air balloon

But their immediate joy turned to concern minutes later when the balloon began to drop from the sky - quickly.

The pilot made the decision to steer the balloon towards an empty field, but some trees got in the way on the way down.

'All of a sudden, we're still 30 or 40 feet up in the air, and just the whole thing shakes and you hear cracking of branches and we're in a tree,' Peters told CTV News.

'We went into another tree and then we snapped that tree off and then we went into the farmer's field.'

The couple aer pictured together standing next to the balloon after it made a dramatic crash landing on Saturday

Christine Peters stands next to the tree that was snapped nearly in half when the balloon slammed into it during the landing

Video of the dramatic moment was shot by another passenger in the basket.

Jeffrey Scott filmed the fall as the balloon came down through the trees, and then bounced along the ground a handful of times.

His footage shows everyone was forced to stay in the basket after the balloon finally came to a halt, as their weight was stopping it from blowing away.

'It happened so quick that I don't think anyone was really terrified or scared,' he told KWBE.

Christine Peters looks out from the edge of the balloon with a smile on her face during the flight on Saturday

After the crash landing, Martin (right) and Peters (left) are pictured standing next to the damaged basket

Martin added he wasn't even scared during the ordeal, despite the fact he is afraid of heights.

'Looking at it now, Im actually glad we went out because it was kind of like a crazy adventure,' he told CTV.

'Plus... it makes for an awesome story.'
Police have warned the public not to approach the blue suitcase that Salman Abedi was seen pulling just hours before he blew himself up and killed 21 innocent people at the Manchester Arena.

Greater Manchester Police have issued a CCTV image of the suicide bomber with the hip-high case in the city centre last Monday.

The force are warning people to contact them immediately if they see the luggage item and not to approach it.

Greater Manchester Police have issued a CCTV image of the suicide bomber with the hip-high case in the city centre last Monday

The force are warning people to contact them immediately if they see the luggage item and not to approach it

Detective Chief Superintendent Russ Jackson, from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit, said: 'We believe Abedi was in possession of this case in the days before the attack at Manchester Arena on Monday 22 May.

'I want to stress that this is a different item than the one he used in the attack.

'We have no reason to believe the case and its contents contain anything dangerous, but would ask people to be cautious.'

Mr Jackson added: 'The public should not approach the case if they see it but contact police immediately on 999.'

As well as the CCTV image of Abedi, detectives have released a picture of a replica case, as they continue to piece together the terrorist's movements in the lead-up to the attack.

It is known that the 22-year-old visited the Wilmslow Road area of Manchester and was also seen in Manchester city centre with the wheeled case.

CCTV video was released today after being recorded last Monday in a Spar store close to the flat in the city where Salman Abedi, 22, was hours before the attack

Abedi can allegedly be seen walking around the shop looking at items and picking up goods

GMP are urging anyone with details about the suitcase to get in touch and let them know.

Meanwhile, Abedi is believed to have been filmed shopping for hardware and snacks on the day of the attack.

CCTV video was released today after being recorded last Monday in a Spar store close to the flat in the city where Salman Abedi, 22, was hours before the attack at the Ariana Grande concert.

Abedi can allegedly be seen walking around the aisles looking at items and picking up a handful of goods before going to the checkout and walking out with a bag.

Police have been working round-the-clock since Abedi killed 15 adults and seven children in the worst terrorist atrocity since the July 7 bombings in 2005.

BBC News, which released the video this afternoon, said the footage has been passed to investigating officers. It is not yet clear what was bought at the shop.

After picking up some items the man goes to the checkout to pay before walking out with a bag

Police have been working round-the-clock since the terror attack killed 22 people last Monday

A total of 16 arrests have been made in connection with the attack - the latest being a 23-year-old man in West Sussex  but two people have been released.

A terror network is believed to be behind suicide bomber Abedi, who lived in Manchester after his parents had moved to Britain from Libya.

Abedi's elder brother Ismail is among the suspects being held in Britain, and a younger brother and Abedi's father have been detained in Libya.

Intelligence services have launched an inquiry into how warnings about Abedi's radical views were handled amid claims that vital warning signs were missed.

A driver uses the mechanical arm of a truck to move waste at Viridor Waste Management plant in Pilsworth, near Bury, as part of investigations linked to the Manchester bomb attack

Today, pictures emerged of a digging at a landfill site in Bury, which is part of the investigation into the bomb attack

Police are scouring 12,960 hours of CCTV recordings in their search for clues, have collected more than 630 pieces of evidence and have searched 21 addresses.

Today, pictures emerged of a digging at a landfill site in Bury, which is part of the investigation into the bomb attack.

Authorities say Abedi returned to Britain from Libya on May 18, and probably completed assembling his bomb at a rented apartment in central Manchester.

Britain's official terror threat level was set at 'critical' in the days after the attack but was downgraded Saturday to 'severe'.

The country remains on high alert, however, as officials caution that some suspects who helped Abedi may still be at large.
The legacy of President John F. Kennedy, who died at 46, was celebrated on the day he would have turned 100. Then-senator Kennedy is pictured here in his office in Washington in February 1959

The life and legacy of President John F. Kennedy, who died at 46, was celebrated on the day he would have turned 100.

The United States Postal Service commemorated Kennedy's centennial Monday with a dedication of a new JFK postage stamp in Brookline, Massachusetts, a Boston suburb where the late president was born on May 29, 1917.

USPS Boston Postmaster Nick Francescucci and representatives from the John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site - JFK's birthplace and childhood home - attended the event.

Joe Kennedy III, a great-nephew of JFK, also delivered the keynote at a ceremony held at the U.S. National Park on Monday afternoon.

The Democratic U.S. representative told The Associated Press this month that many of his colleagues in Washington tell him they were inspired into public service because of JFK.

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There are nationwide celebrations marking this day. Pictured here are Army Major General Michael Howard, commanding general of the Military District of Washington, right, and Karen Durham-Aquilera, executive director of Army National Cemeteries, left, laying a wreath at the grave of the former president in Arlington, Virginia on Monday

The United States Postal Service commemorated Kennedy's centennial Monday with a dedication of a new JFK postage stamp. Pictured here are members of the Old Guard - the army's official unit for guarding presidents - watching a wreath laying ceremony at Kennedy's grave

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston held a birthday celebration that included a flyover from the U.S. Navy and a cake baked by the family of the baker who made the engagement cake for then-Senator Kennedy and his wife-to-be. Pictured here are visitors watching a wreath laying ceremony at the grave of former president

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston held a birthday celebration that included a flyover from the U.S. Navy and a cake that was made by the family of the baker who made the engagement cake for then-Sen. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier, according to executive director Steven Rothstein.

The museum unveiled a new exhibit Friday featuring 100 original artifacts, documents, and photographs from Kennedy's life and political career. It's held several events this weekend to honor Kennedy's legacy.

'There's no one issue or one event that we could do to highlight the different facets of [Kennedy],'Rothstein said.

'Many of his key ideas are timeless. We fundamentally believe that JFK is a visionary who never goes out of style.'

A wreath-laying ceremony took place early Monday to honor the 35th U.S. president at his gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.

Kennedy served as president from January 1961 until he was assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963.

The museum exhibited 100 original artifacts, documents, and photographs from Kennedy's life and political career on Friday. The former president is pictured with his wife Jacqueline in front of the Christmas tree in the Blue Room of the White House in December 1961
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There was increased security around a naval base as a nuclear submarine was spotted breaching the surface - just one day after Spanish warships were reportedly seen.

British Forces took to their official MOD twitter account to announce the arrival of HMS Torbay at Her Majesty's Naval Base in Gibraltar.

The imposing Royal Navy vessel is one of Britain's four Trafalgar Class submarines  HMS Talent, Torbay, Trenchant and Triumph  which entered service 30 years ago.

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British Forces took to their official MOD twitter account to announce the arrival of HMS Torbay at Her Majesty's Naval Base in Gibraltar

The imposing Royal Navy vessel is one of Britain's four Trafalgar Class submarines - and could only just be seen breaching the surface

Eyewitnesses described 'increased security' during the submarine's arrival, and at her berth.

But the submarine, now in its 28th year of service, was welcomed by locals amid increasing tensions over the number of incursions into Gibraltar's waters by Spanish vessels.

Yesterday, a Spanish warship was reportedly in Gibraltar's waters, and some have claimed Torbay's arrival was seen as a 'show of force' towards the Spanish.

The Trafalgar Class submarines HMS Talent, Torbay, Trenchant and Triumph have suffered from increasing problems due to their age.

They were commissioned in 1987, 1989, 1990 and 1991 respectively and cost around 200million each.

Eyewitnesses described 'increased security' during the submarine's arrival. HMS Torbay has been called a sleek, black messenger of death - an 85m by 10m by 10m metal tube that spends most of its life lurking up to 300 metres beneath the sea, often for months at a time

The submarine, now in its 28th year of service, was welcomed by locals amid increasing tensions over the number of incursions into Gibraltar's waters by Spanish vessels

The Torbay was set to be decommissioned in 2015 but underwent extra repairs to prolong her service.

Trenchant is set to finish her service in the Navy in 2019 while Talent will follow in 2021 and Triumph will end her career in 2022.

The Trafalgars are powered by nuclear reactors and are supposed to stay at sea for up to three months.

They are equipped with Tomahawk cruise missiles and sonar equipment that can hear enemy vessels sailing more than 50 miles away.

The submarines have a typical complement of 120 to 130 personnel, up to 20 of them officers.

The Trafalgars are being replaced by Astute Class nuclear submarines

HMS Torbay has been called a sleek, black messenger of death - an 85m by 10m by 10m metal tube that spends most of its life lurking up to 300 metres beneath the sea, often for months at a time.

Her arsenal includes the Spearfish heavyweight torpedo which has both an anti-ship and anti-submarine capability and Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM) which can be used to strike at the enemies well inland, from the relative safety of the sea.

The Torbay was set to be decommissioned in 2015 but underwent extra repairs to prolong her service

Her arsenal includes the Spearfish heavyweight torpedo and Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM) which can be used to strike at the enemies well inland, from the safety of the sea

Spain has a long-standing territorial claim on Gibraltar, which has been held by the UK since 1713 and currently has the status of British Overseas Territory.

But Gibraltars government has accused Spain of trying to use Brexit to forward its territorial claims to the Rock, after an EU proposal to give Madrid a veto on decisions over the territorys future.

This month leaked documents revealed Spain is planning to use its Brexit veto over Gibraltar to tell the Rock how to run its economy.

Madrid wants to end what it describes as the Rock's 'unjustified privileges', according to reports of a leaked Spanish foreign ministry document.

Spanish officials said Gibraltar's low-tax status effectively means it enjoys 'unfair competition' and has vowed to crack down on the 'tax haven'.

They will also demand a 'new accord' over flights into Gibraltar's international airport
Hillary Clinton made a patriotic appearance at the Chappaqua Memorial Day Parade on Monday.

Dressed entirely in white and blue with a pair of sneakers emblazoned with stars and stripes, she beamed as she made her way through her hometown with husband Bill and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

All three carried American Flag umbrellas to keep the morning drizzle at bay.

Clinton, who is slowly returning to public life after her crushing election defeat, took to Twitter share her excitement about marking the occasion.

'A rainy but wonderful morning march in the Chappaqua Memorial Day Parade.

Hillary Clinton waved to crowds as she took part in the Chappaqua Memorial Day Parade on Monday in a pair of stars and stripes sneakers

She was joined by Bill and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for the occasion

Little rain won't stop Memorial Day Parade tradition in Chappaqua with the Clintons pic.twitter.com/TITkFglgrZ  David Weissmann (@djweissmann) May 29, 2017

'Thinking of our veterans who gave their lives for this country,' she said.

Cuomo did the same, sharing another photograph of the group with Instagram fans.

'I always enjoy marching with some of my dearest friends in the Chappaqua #MemorialDay parade,' he said.

Clinton waved to crowds lining the streets as they made their procession through the town.

She was dressed casually in a white raincoat, blue shirt and navy blue pants.

Despite the downpours, the 69-year-old also sported a pair of blue reflective sunglasses.

The Clintons have been taking part in the parade annually for years.

On Monday, Bill was dressed just as casually as his wife in a red polo shirt, navy slacks and a matching jacket.

Cuomo shared another picture of the parade, describing the Clintons as some of his 'dearest friends'

Afterwards, Clinton posed for photographs with other residents who had taken part

The former candidate took to Twitter to share her thoughts on the occasion afterwards

After completing the parade route, Hillary posed happily for photographs with others who had taken part.

Her outing comes a day after her first in-depth interview since the election was published.

She spoke at length to New York Magazine for the piece which was published on Sunday, reflecting for the first time in great detail how she came to lose to Donald Trump.

It is not her first attempt to address the subject. On May 2, she took part in a filmed interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour and gave a brief dissection of the defeat, appearing to blame it entirely on former FBI Director James Comey.

'If the election had been on October 27, I would be your president,' she said at the time, prompting widespread criticism that she was shunning responsibility.

In her interview with New York Magazine, she stood by the comment.

'What I was doing was working. I would have won had I not been subjected to the unprecedented attacks by Comey and the Russians, aided and abetted by the suppression of the vote, particularly in Wisconsin,' she said.

The wide-ranging interview covered a manner of other topics including how Trump leered over her and followed her around the stage during the second presidential debate.

'What he was doing was souh  so personally invasive: following me, eyeing me,' she said of it.
A high school student drowned while swimming with friends in a reservoir just 24 hours after her prom and a week before her graduation.

Annie Krantz, 18, died while swimming with three friends at the Whitten Reservoir in the Douglas State Forest of Massachusetts, according to CBS Boston.

Krantz was with three male friends when they went swimming around 2pm on Saturday.

Annie Krantz (left at prom), 18, died while swimming with three friends at the Whitten Reservoir, just a day after her high school prom and a week before her graduation. Her friends told authorities that she went under and did not return to the surface

Paramedics attempted to revive Krantz (pictured) before she was transported to Hubbard Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead

The drowning occurred at the Whitten Reservoir (pictured) in Douglas, Massachusetts

Her friends told authorities that she went under and did not return to the surface.

Douglas Police received the 911 call and sent officers and dive units to the scene.

First responders pulled her body was pulled from six feet of water around 2.45pm.

Paramedics attempted to revive her before she was transported to Hubbard Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Douglas Deputy Fire Chief John Furno said the exact cause of the drowning is still under investigation.

Douglas Deputy Fire Chief John Furno said the exact cause of Krantz's (pictured) drowning is still under investigation. Authorities said the lake water was still too cold for swimming and temperatures of the water were about 57 or 58 degrees on Saturday

Authorities said the lake water was still too cold for swimming and temperatures of the water were about 57 or 58 degrees on Saturday.

'That's cold and you can cramp up. Things can happen when you're in that water and it can happen quickly,' Furno told CBS.

Friends of the teen said that Krantz 'had a very free spirit' and 'lit up a room when she came in'.

Krantz attended Oxford High School and the school's officials made grief counselors available Sunday and they say counselors will be available again on Tuesday, according to CBS.

The school also says their thoughts and prayers are with the family.
You can now get your meat the same way you do your Kitkats.

And that's thanks to a butcher from Hudson, Wisconsin, who has placed his fresh deli meat in a vending machine for his customers - the first of its kind in the country.

Rick Reams, a butcher at a deli called RJ's Meats, has devised this way of serving his customers because he thinks it's convenient, especially when he has to close his store.

'I look at it as another way to serve the customers when I can't be there for them,' he told CBS 46.

This is the first meat vending machine in America. It has been placed outside of a butcher's for customers who arrive at the store after hours or don't have time to join a line

Rick Reams, a butcher at a deli called RJ's, is the mastermind behind this novelty

Reams says he's been waiting for this machine, which he imported from Europe, for four years.

While it's a novelty in the United States, the product - which costs about $12,000 and is manufactured by a company called Regiomat - is becoming more of a staple in countries like France, where butchers place the vending machine outside their businesses after store hours.

But Reams's customers already seem open to trying this product.

'I think its pretty cool,' said customer Tim Ross. 'I think its probably going to get some use.'

'I look at it as another way to serve the customers when I cant be there for them,' the butcher said
A high school senior who was crippled by a brain injury before he was due to graduate has finally received his diploma.

TJ Denham from West Des Moines, Iowa, was among students who took part in Valley High School's graduation last week.

The 20-year-old was due to graduate years ago but was set back by a brain injury in 2013 which crippled his body.

He soldiered on with classes despite his handicap, writing whole essays by signing out each letter of every word with his hands.

Despite his disability, he plans to pursue his dream of becoming a doctor.

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TJ Denham received his diploma from Valley High School in West Des Moines in Iowa on Sunday, four yeas after a brain injury crippled his body. He was joined on stage by his proud parents

TJ was 16 when he underwent heart surgery in 2013. At some point during the procedure, he suffered a severe brain injury.

Though his mind was unimpaired, he lost control of his body and now requires a wheelchair.

Determined to complete his high school education, he returned to classes to see it through.

TJ split his time between mainstream classes and sessions in the special education department.

He dictated his work to teachers using sign language.

On Sunday afternoon, his proud parents joined him on stage as he received his diploma.

TJ persevered despite his physical limits. His brain was unimpaired by the injury but he became wheelchair bound and lost the ability to speak

TJ was 16 when he underwent minor heart surgery in April 2013. The operation caused a severe injury in his brain

After being released from the hospital in 2014, the brave youngster slowly returned to classes

'It's a big accomplishment, and it has shown us and him that he's able to do it.

'And it's shown a lot of people who didn't think he could return to school and finish, it's shown a lot of people that he can.

'So, you know, it feels pretty good to get this under our belt, and then we're looking forward to the next thing,' his mother Kelly told WHOTV.

In one of his essays, TJ wrote optimistically: 'In the Bible Jeremiah 29:11 says, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'

'I am still 100 percent sure that God loves me and has a plan for my life, and I still plan to pursue my dreams of becoming a doctor no matter how difficult.'
Roughly 150 students from a highly regarded high school in Manhattan taunted their principal while staging a sit-in to protest against the educator who allegedly blamed women for sexual assaults and insisted 'what you wear is your intent.'

Students at the Museum School, which is located in Chelsea, also wrote protest messages on their bodies during their revolt against Principal Darlene Miller on May 25.

The incident was sparked after Miller held an assembly on dress code for the sophomore class on May 24 during which students claim she shamed female students.

'At Wednesday's assembly, the Principal began making comments about "suggestive" clothing and indirectly speaking of certain students and what they were wearing,' a student who did not want to be publicly identified told Gothamist.

'She even went as far as to say that the clothing one wears dictates their intent, obviously a very offensive statement,' he alleged.

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Roughly 150 students at the Museum School in Chelsea taunted Principal Darlene Miller (right in mug shot) by shouting 'DUI' in reference to her 2011 drunken-driving arrest during a sit-in protest (left) over comments she made during assembly. She allegedly blamed women for sexual assaults

The incident (protest is pictured above) was sparked after Miller held an assembly on dress code for the sophomore class on May 24 during which students claim she shamed female students. Miller reportedly said, 'what you wear is your intent.'

That student said Miller issued a warning to pupils saying if they 'dressed inappropriately, she would give them an over-sized shirt to make them "look like a sack of potatoes."'

Several students told the New York Post that the 70-year-old principal made a strict rebuke saying 'what you wear is your intent'.

Upset over her comments during the assembly, students organized to sit-in in front of her office the next day, as they had posters and fliers.

One read, 'Stop teaching girls what to wear and start teaching PEOPLE what to think!'

Sophomore Ashley Hawkins, 15, wore a tank top to show off a message she wrote on her skin below her collarbone.

'I'm focused on my education but you're focused on my chest,' Hawkins' message read during the protest.

It seemingly continued throughout the day, and during lunch students rushed into the hall shouting 'What I wear is not my intent!' and 'I respect myself!', according to videos shared on social media.

The students even began chanting 'DUI', calling Miller out over her controversial 2011 arrest for drunken-driving.

At the time, she crashed her car into a parked South Nyack police cruiser and failed to report the incident to the Department of Education.

She pleaded not guilty, and her trial for the crime has repeatedly been delayed. Her court date is set for June 5, the Post reported.

The protest at the school (file above) seemingly continued throughout the day, and during lunch students rushed into the hall shouting 'What I wear is not my intent!' and 'I respect myself!', according to videos shared on social media

Miller could not be reached for comment.

Toya Holness, a spokesperson for the Department of Education, told Gothamist: 'We are dedicated to providing students with a safe, supportive and inclusive learning environment.

Miller did not comment about the incident at the school last week. Her trial for the 2011 arrest is set to begin June 5

'The school is reviewing its dress code policy and staff members are working with students and families to address any concerns.'

Students are permitted to determine their own attire as long as it's not offensive, dangerous, or interferes with the learning and teaching process, according to the Bill of Student Rights and Responsibilities section of the DOE's Citywide Behavioral Expectations.

The Museum School dress code is also posted on the website for the school.

'You should use common sense and good judgment by avoiding offensive or distracting types of clothing,' it states.

'Please know that in an effort not to disrupt the educational process, we will provide you with a Museum School t-shirt to wear if you come to school dressed in an inappropriate manner.'
A 34-year-old father and his three-year-old son drowned in the Tallapoosa River when their kayak overturned on Sunday afternoon.

Jason Smith, of Heflin, had been paddling down the river with his sons, aged three and four, when he tried to slow his boat by grabbing a branch, causing it to overturn.

All three were thrown into the water, police said; the four-year-old was saved by a 12-year-old boy who was kayaking with them, but Smith and his son perished, AL.com reported.

Drowned: Jason Smith of Heflin drowned in the Tallapoosa River (pictured) on Sunday, as did his son, 3. His other son, 4, was saved by a 12-year-old who was kayaking with them

The group fell into the water while kayaking at around 4.30pm on Sunday; Smith had attempted to save his son from drowning before they were swept away.

Smith's body was recovered at around 10am on Monday. His son's body was recovered around noon.

Neither was wearing a life jacket or other flotation device when they fell in, police said.

'Any time you are in the water, always wear a life jacket,' warned Cleburne County Coroner Tracey Lambert.

Smith's four-year-old son was not injured in the incident.

The body was recovered by Randolph County and Clay County water rescues, along with ALEA, Cleburne Search and Rescue, Cleburne County Sheriff's Office, Heflin Fire Department and Hollis Fire Department.
A 14-year-old girl was gang-raped at a house party in Washington by two 16-year-old boys who then shared photographs of the assault on Snapchat, police said.

The girl told police that her last memories were of drinking at a house party in Yarrow Point, dancing and falling asleep in a bedroom.

But the following day the youth who organized the party called her to tell her that she had been raped - and that photos of the attack were circulating online, Q13 Fox reported.

Photos of a teenager who was raped at a party by two 16-year-old boys on April 1 have been spread online using Snapchat, police said. Cops have seized photos from one boy's phone

The girl, who is not being named, had learned over the course of the night that she was the only eighth grader in attendance - a fact that earned her the nickname 'The Legend' from other revelers.

There were as many as 200 juveniles in the party, according to cops.

She had drunk large amounts of whiskey and vodka before losing consciousness, she told police.

When she woke up she found her stomach aching and blood on her shoes. A friend said she had been found in the garage.

But it wasn't until the next day that she learned the terrible truth.

The boy who organized the party also contacted the victim's father and said that he'd found blood on his bathroom floor.

He also told the man that photos of the girl, 'naked and bloody', were being circulated on social media.

Police executed a search warrant and took photos from one boy's phone; both of the 16-year-old boys attend Bellevue High School.

They are also not being identified by police.

Yarrow Point was the second-wealthiest neighborhood in Washington state in 2011, according to the Puget Sound Business Journal.
The IT meltdown that grounded hundreds of British Airways flights has become a lost luggage crisis.

Yesterday thousands of people who checked in their bags at the start of the Bank Holiday weekend before their flights were cancelled were still desperately trying to find them.

The airline has admitted its website has been unable to cope with the number of people trying to post a lost luggage report.

Some passengers are so angry with the company that they are planning to boycott British Airways from now on.

Crowds growing after an IT system collapsed at London's Heathrow Airport Terminal 5

Customers have found it impossible to get through to the BAs call centres, which are based in Madrid and India.

Worse, it has emerged BAs customer service operation is weighted against British passengers in terms of call costs and operating hours. The crisis has been blamed on savage cost cutting by BAs controversial Spanish boss, Alex Cruz, who has faced calls to resign.

Yesterday Mr Cruz, who insisted he intends to stay on, said only 75,000 had been affected by the crisis. But in fact, this is just the number who had flights cancelled, with BA admitting that many more suffered delays.

Lost revenue, refunds and compensation mean the crisis will cost BA tens of millions of pounds. But it has faced accusations it is keeping customers in the dark about their legal rights to compensation.

Letters to passengers do not include any reference to the fact they are entitled to up to 524 per person as well as a refund.

However BA said it was doing everything we can to help customers, adding: We will fully honour our obligations.

Passenger Amanda Lockhart, from Devon, was due to be in Barbados but was left stuck at home after the IT failure.

She has vowed never to use British Airways again.

She told The Times: 'There were so many people in tears. I will never fly BA again after this because of the lack of aftercare.

'We are devastated. There were people in tears on the buses from the plane back to the terminal. Never flying BA again.'

The airline has admitted its website has been unable to cope with the number of people trying to post a lost luggage report

BOSS BREAKS COVER TO BLAME 'POWER SURGE' BA boss Alex Cruz offered profuse apologies BA boss Alex Cruz finally emerged from the airlines corporate bunker yesterday to offer profuse apologies to customers. For two days, the Spanish chief executive hid behind choreographed video statements and even issued an email to staff in an attempt to gag them. Yesterday, he broke cover for a series of interviews, in which he claimed a power surge was to blame for the IT crash. It comes after the 51-year-old, who joined BA in 2015, faced calls to resign. Speaking to broadcasters, he blamed a power surge at a data centre near Heathrow for the problem. He also rejected claims the failure had anything to do with outsourcing the running of computer systems to India. Theyve all been local issues around a local data centre who have been managed and fixed by local resources, he said. We did have a power surge in one of our data centres which affected the network. It stopped the millions of messages that come between all the different systems ... in the BA network. We will make a full investigation to find out exactly what happened. Advertisement

Passengers have been bombarding BAs lost luggage phone lines, website and Twitter feed.

Sky News presenter Jonathan Samuels tweeted BA saying 48 hours with no luggage & no updates on phone number or website! ... Any advice? and was advised to check the BA website.

David Ruthven, from Scotland, asked: British Airways what are you doing about missing luggage? How many days will this take to find? After being referred to the website, he added: Time for the whole management to stand down  not fit for purpose. Scandalous!

BA advises people to register their bag as missing online on the basis it will be traced and couriered to them, but it seems the site cannot cope the demand.

A message reads: We know that some customers are having issues creating a delayed bag report via our website. If this is happening to you then please call us. However the number it gives has been so busy people cannot get through.

And while operating hours for UK customers are 6am-8pm, this extends to 7.30am-11pm for Americans and 7am-11pm for those in France and Spain.

Thousands of people who checked in their bags at the start of the Bank Holiday weekend before their flights were cancelled were still desperately trying to find them

Britons are also being directed to a number which charges, while US travellers are connected to a free service.

BA admitted that significant numbers are yet to receive their bags. We are very sorry for the frustration this situation is causing, it said.

It may take several days to complete the process of reuniting bags with their owners ... We will organise for the free of charge onward delivery of bags to customers as soon as the bags arrive at their final destination.

BA said it offers a free number 0800 727 800  as well as the 0344 number, which charges, adding: Customers can also add phone charges into any claims they submit and well look at them.

Last night BA insisted it is getting back on track, adding: We continue to make strong progress in rebuilding our operation.

A full schedule was operating at Gatwick yesterday and 90 per cent of flights left Heathrow.
Indonesian police have defended using more than 100 officers to escort Schapelle Corby out of Bali, saying she could have been murdered by a drug syndicate.

Denpasar Police Chief Hadi Purnomo said authorities were on high alert because an 'intruder disguised as a journalist' might have tried to attack Corby on her way home.

'We never know that amid journalists, there could be an intruder that we need to anticipate, from a drug syndicate, Corby's enemy,' Mr Purnomo told News Corp.

'If she becomes a victim (of any attack). Who could be blamed if that happened? Of course the security.'

'It's not special treatment. It's the same like any other who asks security from police... It is better to make the things safe, rather than Corby become a victim and the story will be much longer.'

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Indonesian police have defended their excessive protection of Schapelle Corby as she left Bali

Denpasar Police Chief Hadi Purnomo said Corby could have been murdered by her drug syndicate, which would have then been blamed on Balinese security

Since joining Instagram prior to her release, Corby has amassed close to 170,000 followers in little more than 48 hours and shared her video with her growing number of fans on Monday

The extreme lengths taken by Corby, 39, and her security detail began in Bali, with a last- minute change of flights a deliberate effort to avoid the media pack.

Corby was led to Ngurah Rai airport by a convoy of Balinese police, including two armoured vehicles with machine gun-wielding officers wearing bullet proof vests.

While 40 journalists boarded a Virgin Airlines flight from Denpasar to Brisbane in the expectation she would be joining them, the convicted drug mule gave them the slip.

Instead she hopped onto a Malindo Air plane, sitting in business class and wearing a headscarf in an apparent attempt to hide her identity.

Keeping the headscarf over her head as she disembarked the jet, Corby was thought to have then boarded one of the 12 black vehicles that left the airport soon after.

But it is now clear she did not, instead being whisked away to relax and watch the madness about her return unfold on television.

Corby was led to Ngurah Rai airport by a convoy of Balinese police, including two armoured vehicles with machine gun-wielding officers wearing bullet proof vests

Balinese officers lined the streets as Corby made her way to the airport

Corby fooled media into thinking she was flying with Virgin Australia, only to change tickets last minute and board a Malindo Air flight in business class

Australian Federal Police helped escort Corby through a media pack that waited for her at Brisbane airport

Corby took to Instagram on Monday, appearing smug in a video showing her watching her dramatic homecoming unfold on TV.

Footage posted to Corby's Instagram page showed the convicted drug trafficker standing in what appeared to be a hotel room, shortly after arriving in Brisbane.

In what was a clear dig at media, the video was captioned: 'They're doing what they do best'.

'There's the convoy, Pelle's being chased by helicopter in that car, but... there we are,' Mercedes said, turning the camera to show a grinning Corby midway through.

Schapelle Corby (pictured) has shown her face for the first time since arriving in Australia, appearing smug in a video showing her watching her dramatic homecoming unfold on TV

The caption also thanks Corby's private bodyguard and 'friend' John McLeod (pictured), who is among those believed to be filmed inside a room at the Sofitel Hotel, in Brisbane

'There's the convoy, Pelle's being chased by helicopter in that car, but... there we are,' says Mercedes, before turning the camera to show Corby's grinning face

Just hours after taking the video of Schapelle in her hotel room, Mercedes arrived back at her Gold Coast home

In another tactic to throw media off the scent, a woman bearing a striking resemblance to Corby appeared at Mercedes' home just after 9am (pictured)

A man wearing a freakish horror mask was also spotted at Schapelle Corby's mother's house following the drug smuggler's extraordinary return to Australia

Seemingly in an effort to throw media off her sister's scent, Mercedes arrived at her Gold Coast home just hours after taking the video shared on Monday.

In another decoy tactic, a woman bearing a striking resemblance to Corby appeared at Mercedes' home just after 9am, while the real Schapelle was still in her hotel.

People wearing masks and family showing up to Mercedes house to 'party' with Schapelle also added to the mystery surrounding her whereabouts.

Corby's decision to avoid the media attention and share the video to Instagram is a sign of how things have changed in the 13 years she's been in Indonesia.

Since being set free from her strict parole conditions, she has seemingly wasted no time getting accustomed to the world of social media.

Seemingly having a newfound fan of Instagram, minutes before she left her Bali villa Corby posted this picture on Instagram writing: 'Big thank you to my Bali family'

In another of her posts on Monday, Corby uploaded a photo of her controversial handbag which features a photo of missing toddler William Tyrell (pictured)

Corby has spent nearly 13 years in Bali after her arrest for smuggling 4.2kg of marijuana onto the Indonesian island

In another of her posts on Monday, Corby uploaded a photo of her handbag which controversially features a photo of missing toddler William Tyrell.

'Where's William Tyrrell?' she captioned the photo, before including the hashtag: '#Williamicare'.

It comes after she raised her handbag to the media pack outside her parole office just prior to heading to the airport to fly home to Bali.

The family of the missing boy was split about her decision, with some outraged and others pleased she was raising awareness about him.

Corby spent 10 years in Kerobokan Prison after she was caught with 4.1kg of marijuana in her boogie board bag at Denpasar's Airport in October 2004.

She has spent the last three years on parole after her initial 20 year prison sentence was cut.
A robber clad in an oversized jacket and carrying a knife and jerry can has been caught on camera in a deadlock with armed police officers.

The 23-year-old man stormed a pharmacy on Toorak Road, St Kilda, on Monday during peak-hour and began threatening staff and showing his weapons.

A witness at the scene managed to remove the man from the chemist and the police were called, reports 3AW.

The 23-year-old man stormed a pharmacy on Toorak Road, St Kilda, on Monday during peak hour and began threatening staff and showing his weapons

He fled into nearby Cunningham Street before the Critical Incident Response Team arrived to negotiate with the 23-year-old.

Busy Chapel Street and surrounding areas were closed for more than two hours as police and the response team talked the man into dropping his knife and jerry can full of liquid.

The man has been taken into custody and is cooperating with police but no charges have been laid.

He fled into nearby Cunningham Street before the Critical Incident Response Team arrived to negotiate with the 23-year-old
For the thousands of marooned British travellers going slowly mad as they sit on the phone enduring day after day of that British Airways theme tune on a loop, I have a piece of advice: pretend not to be British.

On the third day of virtually no information from our erstwhile national airline, it transpired that BA is much keener to talk to you if you are from overseas.

While callers from Britain have to redial frantically between 6am and 8pm, paying the standard rate for all those hours they spend on hold cursing Delibess operatic Flower Duet, callers from around the world enjoy a much more generous window of opportunity.

BA customers are being charged up to 55p-per-minute to register compensation claims over the travel chaos caused by the global IT crash at the weekend. Pictured are flights leaving Heathrow today

Unlike their loyal UK customer base at home, who get cut off when the clock strikes eight, callers across Europe and America can carry on calling until 11pm local time  and have a much healthier chance of getting through.

Whats more, many of them  like those in the US  can call for free. So yesterday, after a fruitless two-day quest to report my familys missing luggage at Heathrow, either by phone or online, I decided to be French. And it worked a treat.

It took just 20 minutes on BAs French number to be put through to a helpful chap called Herman who finally logged our missing bags. Even so, last night there was still no sign of them. Herman turned out to be in Madrid but it doesnt really matter where you are in the world.

All calls to BA end up in either Madrid or India. The difference is its considerably easier and often cheaper if you are not British. It was only after the Mail asked why BA had a two-tier charging system yesterday that BA started publicising a free number for its British callers. But office hours remain unchanged.

Which, once again, raises the question: why does British Airways still feel entitled to pose as our national carrier?

With its parent company IAG registered in Spain, its disastrously inadequate IT operation in India, its customer services scattered from Delhi to Madrid and a shamefully inferior service specifically for its British customer base, it no longer evinces any great attachment to Britain.

On the third day of virtually no information from our erstwhile national airline, it transpired that BA is much keener to talk to you if you are from overseas

Unlike their loyal UK customer base at home, who get cut off when the clock strikes eight, callers across Europe and America can carry on calling until 11pm local time

Perhaps it is gearing up to rebrand itself under the name of Madrid-based International Airlines Group. Its not the first time BA has insulted the country which created it. Twenty years ago, its then chief executive, Bob Ayling, had the bright idea of scrapping its British livery and repainting the planes in a range of groovy multicultural images. The idea was to show it was a progressive world airline.

The only problem was people all over the world quite liked BAs Britishness. They liked its reserve, its quiet efficiency, its old-school cabin crew. Now BA was trying to be cool.

There was a toe-curling moment when Lady Thatcher appeared at the BA stand at the Tory party conference. She took one look at a model of a new-look BA plane and promptly placed a tissue over it in disgust.

The Civil Aviation Authority received complaints, too. There were reports of air traffic controllers mistaking BA planes for others. In the end, BA had to admit defeat and went back to being red, white and blue

Two decades later, the airline has again forgotten what once made it the worlds favourite airline. This time, though, it has passed the point of no return. As its pilots like to say: Ladies and gentlemen, we are now commencing our descent
A Sydney road has burst into flames after a road cutting machine ripped through a gas line.

Emergency crews are at the scene in Neutral Bay, but have not been able to contain the blaze which started at about 7.20am on Tuesday.

Roaring flames can be seen in the middle of the road, only metres from residential houses and buildings. Five homes have already been evacuated.

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Roaring flames can be seen in the middle of the road, only metres from residential houses and buildings which had to be evacuated

The man (left in cap) who was driving the machine that caught fire after hitting a gas line while doing road work on Aubin Street in Neutral Bay

The man (centre in cap) who was driving the machine explains the incident to police and fire authorities

Emergency crews are at the scene in Neutral Bay, but have not been able to contain the blaze which started at about 7.20am on Tuesday

A fire fighter talks to media at the scene where a road works machine caught fire after hitting a gas line in Sydney

Drivers have been told to avoid Aubin Street. Traffic has already begun to build up in the area.

Six crews, including HAZMAT teams, are working to extinguish the blaze after the machine cut through bitumen at the intersection of Ben Boyd Road and Aubin Street, Fire & Rescue Superintendent Inspector Norm Buckley said.

'Inquiries are continuing after a gas leak and machinery fire at Neutral Bay this morning,' NSW Police said.

'Machinery has caught fire during the operation to contain the gas leak.

Drivers have been told to avoid Aubin Street. Traffic has already begun to build up in the area

A Sydney road has burst into flames after a road cutting machine ripped through a gas line

The road works machine that caught fire after hitting a gas line on Aubin Street in Neutral Bay

Emergency crews look on as a fire is put out in Neutral Bay, Sydney

A road cutting machine (pictured right) ripped through a gas line causing the fire

'Police have had to evacuate two houses which were near the burning machinery. The occupants of these houses are not injured.

'The firefighting operation continues. Localised traffic diversions are in place.'

Six crews, including HAZMAT teams, are working to extinguish the blaze after the machine cut through bitumen at the intersection of Ben Boyd Road and Aubin Street

A Sydney road burst into flames during peak hour on Tuesday
Theresa May must have been delighted. Jeremy Paxman's much-vaunted interrogation with her proved in large part to be about immigration and Brexit.

For Mrs May that was like going into a scary A-level and finding your two best essay topics just came up in the exam.

No deal with the EU would be better than a bad deal, she said. Audience applause. She repeated the line. More audience applause. She was on home turf and it served her well.

The Sky News/Channel 4 debate show was a rather odd event. Jeremy Corbyn, batting first, tried to put across a light-hearted image (despite his horrible pro-IRA history).

Despite his horrible pro-IRA history, Jeremy Corbyn (left) tried to put across a light-hearted image in a Sky News and Channel 4 election special with Jeremy Paxman (right)

Mr Corbyn (pictured) faced repeated probes about his views on terrorist groups on the heated TV interview

Mr Corbyn wanted us to see him as a jocular Father Christmas, deflecting Paxman with weak banter, writes QUENTIN LETTS

Mrs May was stolid and serious, but more human than she sometimes can be.

Both contestants had wobbles. Mr Corbyn faced repeated probes about his views on terrorist groups. Mrs May had to endure a Paxo torrent when the veteran interviewer (perhaps frustrated that he was not getting much change from her) said EU leaders would think she was 'a blowhard who collapses at the first sign of gunfire'.

But by the end of the show there was only really one Prime Minister to be had from this contest, and her name was not Jeremy.

Mr Corbyn wanted us to see him as a jocular Father Christmas, deflecting Paxman with weak banter.

It worked at first but soon the dreadful flimsiness of Mr Corbyn's pitch to be prime minister was flapping around in the gale. There is only so far you can take bluster. Last night Mr Corbyn reached that point.

When Paxman got on to Mr Corbyn's positions on the Queen (he dislikes the Monarchy), the Falklands war ('a Tory plot') and the killing of Osama bin Laden ('a tragedy'), Corbyn started to flail. He kept looking at the ceiling.

Paxman noted that Mr Corbyn's sidekick John McDonnell wanted to scrap MI5, Special Branch and disarm the police.

When Paxman got on to Mr Corbyn's positions on the Queen, the Falklands war and the killing of Osama bin Laden, Corbyn (centre) started to flail

Prime Minister Theresa May had to endure a Paxo torrent when the veteran interviewer said EU leaders would think she was 'a blowhard who collapses at the first sign of gunfire'

The studio audience clapped loudly  and the good ship Corbyn started to take on water. Callum, from Northern Ireland, asked: 'How can we trust you, Mr Corbyn, to stop terrorism?'

Corbyn wobbled his head and gulped. 'I did make contact with Sinn Fein,' he said slowly.

Callum interrupted to point out that Mr Corbyn had attended a commemoration of IRA thugs who had been plotting to murder police officers.

Really, that this man is seen as a benevolent old Steptoe is one of the most bizarre truth-warps of our time. And his habit of smiling, oh-so-reasonably, and burbling about his desire to see world peace? Oh, spare us.

If he were the decent patriot he claims to be, would he not be angered by these accusations that he mixed with known killers?

The programme suffered, as television debates always do, from its frenzied rush.

After the pre-match hyperbole about how important the event was, and the arrivals shots (giving the TV company chiefs their moment in the lights), the show itself whizzed by.

When Mrs May was in the hot seat, she engaged with Paxo and stuck firmly to her line that Brexit was going to happen

Earlier in the day, at a Tory event in Twickenham, I had asked a rather downbeat Mrs May if she was in danger of looking a bit of a glumbucket. She shot me the sort of dirty look Mrs Herod might once have used when she saw John the Baptist's severed head being brought in on her best silverware.

By the time of last night's debate she had recovered her poise. She may never become a minter of memorable phrases but the audience treated her with a solid respect. She faced awkward queries about social care and school funding but survived.

When Mr Corbyn was up against Paxman, it was a weird mismatch, Corbyn not really on the same wavelength.

When Mrs May was in the hot seat, she engaged with Paxo and stuck firmly to her line that Brexit was going to happen and that she would walk away from the table if the EU played silly beggars.

Can we ever imagine Corbyn doing that?
Theresa May will today declare Jeremy Corbyn is too weak to negotiate Brexit as she seeks to put the country's exit from the EU 'truly at the heart of this election campaign'.

In a direct appeal to voters, the Prime Minister will argue she is the only leader who can take on 'aggressive' Eurocrats in Brussels, with formal talks to start just 11 days after polling day.

The rallying call in which she will brand herself 'the Prime Minister 100 per cent committed' to Brexit is hoped to focus voters' minds on the stark choice they face to halt a drop in the Tory poll lead.

Theresa May will today declare Jeremy Corbyn is too weak to negotiate Brexit as she seeks to put the country's exit from the EU 'truly at the heart of this election campaign'

During a visit to the West Midlands, Mrs May will put immigration unapologetically at the core of her speech, with a pledge to stand up for voters who have lost jobs or seen their wages fall because of high numbers of arrivals.

She will promise that concerns about immigration will no longer be 'dismissed as parochial', and people with a desire for their 'country to make the decisions that matter to Britain here' will not face 'ridicule'.

In an attempt to win support of voters from all parties who backed Brexit, Mrs May will celebrate the referendum as 'a quiet revolution by all those who felt let down and left behind for too long'.

The latest negotiating documents released by the European Commission show how their estimated 100billion euro divorce bill includes paying the salaries of teachers at schools attended by the children of Eurocrats for two years after Brexit.

Mrs May is expected to say: 'The European Commission... is adopting an aggressive negotiating position, which can only be met by strong leadership on behalf of Britain.

During a visit to the West Midlands, Mrs May will put immigration unapologetically at the core of her speech

JEREMY CORBYN PLOTS SNP REFERENDUM DEAL Jeremy Corbyn has pledged to start talks with the SNP about independence within days of his party winning the election. Asked about a second referendum in an interview yesterday, the Labour leader said: 'I'll obviously open discussions with the Government in Scotland.' Mr Corbyn would not rule out agreeing to the SNP's timetable for a referendum, which could see a second vote held before Brexit has concluded. He spoke as SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said her party was willing to enter a coalition in its bid for power. She added: 'If there is any chance of a progressive alliance that locks the Tories out I would want to get as much of the SNP manifesto implemented as possible.' The comments provoked a furious response from Conservatives who accused Labour of planning a sweetheart deal with the SNP. Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson said the SNP 'is desperate for a second referendum and will do anything to get it, even putting Jeremy Corbyn in No 10'. Advertisement

'Jeremy Corbyn is in no position to provide that kind of leadership. He has no plan to deliver Brexit, and he has already admitted he would give control of our borders and control of our laws back to Brussels.'

She will say with Britain's future prospects and prosperity depending on 'getting Brexit right' there could be only one choice when it came to deciding who should lead the country into the negotiations.

'I am clear about the instruction I have been given, clear about what needs to be done, and ready to get on with the job on day one  while Jeremy Corbyn doesn't have the belief, the will or the plan to deliver Brexit.'

Mrs May will say the Brexit vote was 'a revolution in which millions of our fellow citizens stood up and said they were not prepared to be ignored any more'.

'Since the first day I stepped through the door of No 10 as Prime Minister, I have been clear that the mission of the government I lead is not just to get the best possible deal for Britain in Europe, but to take this opportunity to shift the balance of Britain in favour of ordinary working people.'
Stephen Fry has warned we should prepare for the internet of the future to avoid a 'nightmare' dystopian existence.

The actor and comedian criticised 'technophobes' who have been too slow to adapt to what he described as the greatest change in the history of mankind.

Speaking at the Hay literary festival in Brecknockshire, Wales on Saturday, he said: 'Whether it is winter that is coming, or a new spring, it is entirely in our hands so long as we prepare.

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Stephen Fry has warned we should prepare for the internet of the future to avoid a 'nightmare' dystopian existence. The actor and comedian criticised 'technophobes' who have been too slow to adapt to what he described as the greatest change in the history of mankind

'While it's hard to calculate the cascade upon cascade of new developments and their positive effects, we already know the dire consequences and frightening scenarios that threaten to engulf us.'

Science fiction writers and dystopians have already laid out the 'nightmare' consequences, he added.

STEPHEN FRY'S SPEECH IN BRIEF Stephen Fry was speaking at the Hay literary festival in Brecknockshire, Wales. He criticised the 'technophobes', including politicians, who he said had been too slow to react to change such as increasingly powerful AI. He said developments in AI and robotics are 'the greatest change to our way of living since we moved from hunting and gathering to settling down in farms'. During the hour-long talk, he also accused social media giants of deliberately 'evading responsibility' for tackling sickening content found on their websites. He called for technology firms to be classified as publishers, rather than 'platforms' Advertisement

Fry, 59, said that developments in artificial intelligence and robotics are 'the greatest change to our way of living since we moved from hunting and gathering to settling down in farms, villages and sea ports and started to trade and form civilisations.'

He added: 'Whether it will alter the behaviour, cognition and identity of the individual in the same way that it is certain to alter the behaviour, cognition and identity of the group, is a hard question to answer.

'But believe me when I say that it is happening. To be frank, it has happened.'

During the hour-long talk, he also accused social media giants of deliberately 'evading responsibility' for tackling sickening content found on their websites.

He said it was 'clearly an absurd anomaly' that Facebook and Twitter are not forced to face the same legal consequences as media outlets.

Fry, who has more than 12 million Twitter followers and was one of its earliest supporters, called for technology firms to be classified as publishers, rather than 'platforms', to end the softly-softly approach to policing the internet.

His remarks came in the same week Facebook and Twitter were accused of dragging their feet over the circulation of sick videos and terror manuals on their websites.

He said people are rightly fearful of the 'refusal of social media platforms to take responsibility for those dangerous, fake, defamatory and inflammatory items whose affects which would have legal consequences for traditional printed or broadcast media, but which they can escape.'

He added: 'At the moment they are evading responsibility because they claim to be platforms, rather than publishers.

'Given that they are now a major source of news for over 80 per cent of the population, that is clearly an absurd anomaly.

'If they and Twitter recognise their responsibilities as publishers, it can certainly help them better police their content for unacceptable libels, defamations, threats and others horrors that legally-bound press would, as a matter of course, be expected to control.'

The Daily Mail has repeatedly highlighted the dangers of an unregulated internet. Last week we revealed how it takes less than 30 seconds to find bomb-making instructions and terror manuals.

Theresa May has called on technology firms to realise they have a 'social responsibility' to remove harmful content.

Stephen Fry accused social media giants of deliberately 'evading responsibility' for tackling sickening content found on their websites. He said it was 'clearly an absurd anomaly' that Facebook and Twitter are not forced to face the same legal consequences as media outlets

She said the attacks in Manchester should mark the beginning of a tougher approach to regulating the internet. It came after media outlets were accused of providing a platform for hate preachers and terrorists.

The Conservative manifesto vows to crack down on social media sites 'to protect the vulnerable and give people confidence to use the internet without fear of abuse, criminality or exposure to horrific content'.

Under promises made by the Prime Minister earlier in the month, firms will soon be obliged to remove bullying, harmful or illegal content online.

The idea is to make Britain 'the safest place in the world to be online,' although critics have questioned whether they are enough to counter online dangers.

Facebook has agreed to hire 3,000 staff to police what users post, joining 4,500 already in place.

Stephen Fry was one of the first high-profile British celebrities to join Twitter, and is one of the site's most popular users.

In February last year he temporarily deactivated his account after comments he made while hosting the BAFTAs were widely condemned on the site.

He first blocked his account in 2009, claiming there was 'too much aggression and unkindness around.' In 2010 he quite again after he was criticised for suggesting that women only go to bed with men 'because sex is the price they are willing to pay for a relationship.'
Researchers in a New York cabbage patch are planning the first release on American soil of insects genetically engineered to die before they can reproduce.

It's a pesticide-free attempt to control invasive diamondback moths, a voracious consumer of cabbage, broccoli and other cruciferous crops that's notorious for its ability to shrug off every new poison in the agricultural arsenal.

'It costs $4-5 billion a year globally to manage this pest,' said Anthony Shelton, a Cornell University researcher who's been studying the species for 40 years.

The diamondback moth is a voracious consumer of cabbage, broccoli and other cruciferous crops that's notorious for its ability to shrug off every new poison in the agricultural arsenal. Now, researchers are planning to release insects engineered to die before they can reproduce

HOW IT WORKS The moths have a synthetic 'self-limiting' gene that makes their female larvae die before they mature. Lab-bred males are released to breed with wild females, reducing the population over time by suppressing reproduction. The approach is pesticide-free, and researchers say it could be an effective way to curb the pests' activity, which can destroy cabbage, broccoli and other cruciferous crops. But, some experts argue that more information is needed on how the protein made by the moth's synthetic gene could affect wildlife that eats the insects. There are also concerns about farm workers and consumers who might inadvertently ingest dead larvae that might remain on produce. In an environmental assessment, however, USDA scientists concluded that the proposed field studies are unlikely to have an impact on the environment, wildlife, plants or human health. Advertisement

'If you can manage it without using insecticides that can affect pollinators and other non-target organisms, that's a real advantage.'

Shelton is doing field tests of gene-altered moths at Cornell's Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, 160 miles west of Albany.

Those experiments began in 2015, but until now were restricted to net-covered plots to keep the moths from straying.

Now, he's awaiting a permit from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to release the moths freely in a 10-acre cabbage patch at the research center.

He hopes to do that this summer.

The laboratory-bred moths are the creation of biotech firm Oxitec, which deployed similarly modified mosquitoes in Brazil, Panama and the Caribbean in the fight against dengue fever and other diseases.

The company hopes to conduct the first U.S. release of the gene-altered mosquitoes in Florida later this year.

The moths have a synthetic 'self-limiting' gene that makes their female larvae die before they mature.

Lab-bred males are released to breed with wild females, reducing the population over time by suppressing reproduction.

'The key is to reduce the number of reproductive females in the next generation,' Oxitec scientist Neil Morrison said.

The work has drawn criticism from organic farming organizations and groups opposed to the use of genetically modified organisms.

In comments to the USDA, GeneWatch U.K. said more information is needed on how the protein made by the moth's synthetic gene could affect wildlife that eats the insects.

Andrianna Natsoulas, executive director of Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York, said the group was also concerned about farm workers and consumers who might inadvertently ingest dead larvae that might remain on produce.

The organization also worries that straying moths could endanger the organic certification of other farms.

SCIENTISTS TEST GENE-ALTERED MOSQUITOES TO FIGHT ZIKA In a statement last year, Oxitec said tests that began in April 2015 have shown that the release of genetically modified sterile male mosquitoes succeeded in reducing a variety of disease-transmitting mosquito larvae by 82 per cent by year's end in a neighborhood of the city of Piracicaba The Oxitec insect can be used to control the Zika mosquito, Aedes aegypti and is a strain of the wild species that contains two additional genes. The Oxitec males, which can't bite, are released to seek out and mate with the wild females. Their offspring inherit the additional genes and die before becoming functional adults. They also inherit a marker that is visible under a special light, making monitoring in the field simple and helping ensure that dengue mosquito control programmes succeed. In several trials, successive releases of the Oxitec males have been shown to reduce substantially the wild population of dengue mosquitoes in the treated area. Advertisement

In an environmental assessment, USDA scientists concluded that the proposed field studies are unlikely to have an impact on the environment, wildlife, plants or human health.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also determined there wouldn't be a significant environmental impact from a proposed release of Oxitec's gene-altered mosquitoes in Florida.

Previous work to fight insect pests by stopping reproduction has used radiation to sterilize males, which are released in large numbers so wild females breed with them but produce no offspring.

That's been successful in suppressing the screw-worm fly, Mexican fruit fly, a cotton bollworm and some other pests.

The laboratory-bred moths are the creation of biotech firm Oxitec, which deployed similarly modified mosquitoes in Brazil, Panama and the Caribbean in the fight against dengue fever and other diseases. Stock image

But it was useless with the diamondback moth.

'You could sterilize them, but they couldn't fly,' which means they couldn't breed in the wild, said Shelton, who worked on a diamondback moth radiation project in 1990.

'Self-limiting' genes are just the latest in a range of diamondback moth control methods that include insecticidal chemicals as well as predators, parasites and diseases that target the moth, whose caterpillar larvae devour plants in the crucifer family.

'They're getting harder and harder to control, because with climate change, we're having more generations produced every year,' Shelton said.

'We know that to really have more sustainable control, you need to have many different tools in the toolbox.'
The fidget spinner craze has been sweeping America, with every one of the top 10 best-selling toys on Amazon a form of the hand-held toy.

And now, you can even play one in your browser - complete with a psychedelic background.

Creator Mike Bodge built the virtual fidget spinner with an added twist - it changes colors as it spins.

Use your mouse or finger to control the fidget spinner

The virtual fidget spinner adds a psychedelic background to the fidget toy.

PROS OF FIDGET TOYS One thing people often report is that fidgeting with an object in the hand helps them to stay focused when doing a long task or sitting still and attentive in a long meeting. In one preliminary study looking at stress ball use, sixth graders who used these fidget toys during instruction independently reported that their 'attitude, attention, writing abilities, and peer interaction improved.' The closest significant research is UC Davis behavioral science professor Julie Schweitzer's study of letting children with ADHD fidget  wriggling, bouncing or otherwise moving gently in place  while they worked on a lab-based concentration task called the 'flanker paradigm.' She found that more overall movement (measured using an accelerometer on the ankle) in children with ADHD did help them perform this cognitively demanding task. Advertisement

A creative director who has worked with everyone from Google and Nike to Beats by Dre, he told Dailymail.com he created it after finding the toys were sold out everywhere he went.

'Back when this craze was getting started supply wasn't keeping up with demand.

'My friend went store to store and couldn't get his hands on one.

'Every toy store in LA was sold out.

'I challenged myself to make a digital version with real physics and got it up and running in about an hour.'

On Bodge's site ffffidget.com you can set the speed and watch the grey shape rotate through the rainbow or, with a touchscreen or mouse, move the object yourself.

However, the speed with which they have spread through US and European schools is whipping up anger among teachers on both sides of the Atlantic.

Just months after the 'fidget spinner' first whirled its way into the hands of antsy youngsters, some schools have already banned it - prompting a debate about difficulties children experience concentrating.

'The fidget spinners came out of nowhere, and then it seemed every other kid had them,' said Meredith Daly, a sixth-grade teacher at a public school outside Phoenix, Arizona.

'The kids would say, 'Oh it helps me calm down.' I did not really know what to think at first.'

Sold for just a few dollars, the spinning top-like gadget divided into two or three branches, has proved a surprise hit this spring, first in the United States and then across Europe after its release on the continent last month.

The spinners have the advantage of being silent, Daly says - a relief to many grown-ups after months of 'bottle flip,' a popular game that involves spinning a bottle of water until it lands upright.

But it quickly became clear that with 'the fidget spinner, you need to keep it going, they want to look at it spinning around... it is too distracting if you are trying to learn something new,' she said.

'So we all decided 'No fidget spinners -- keep them in your backpacks!''

Like many American teachers who have recently vented their irritation on Twitter, Daly tolerates them only at parents' express request.

Or when the need arises, as is sometimes the case for children with attention problems, hyperactivity or certain forms of autism.

The fidget spinner craze has been sweeping America, with every one of the top 10 best-selling toys on Amazon a form of the hand-held toy

Other schools in the United States, France and England have banned them, even during recess, much to the annoyance of children like Tom Wuesteberg.

'It would help (to have them in school)... if I don't want to do my work anymore, I take my fidget, do a little spin and then get back to work,' the eight-year-old New originally from Belgium says.

Noelle Cullimore, who lives in Long Island with her two children, says spinning helps her 10-year-old son, who has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), to relax.

'He spins it at the bus stop or in the car, it really does keep him occupied, and for the most part it has been good for him.'

It's not just for kids. Adults also like to use spinners as a way 'to burn out stress,' says Richard Gottlieb, CEO of Global Toy Expert.

The fidget spinner (pictured) craze has been sweeping elementary and middle schools.

'People do want to fidget,' he says.

'There is so much to worry about the world right now that people need a way to work out stress.'

As annoying as it may be, many teachers recognize that a growing number of children need to play with something in their hands to concentrate better and are now more tolerant of students clicking pens or tapping their feet.

Stress balls and wiggle seats have become common in schools, Daly says.

'We could probably make a lot of money if we could come up with that quiet, effective toy that kids could do while they are writing an essay.'

many teachers recognize that a growing number of children need to play with something in their hands to concentrate better

DOCTOR FIND FIDGET SPINNERS ARE BAD FOR KIDS WITH ADHD Dr Mark Rapport, MD and Director of the Children's Learning Clinic at the University of Central Florida's Department of Psychology, told the DailyMail.com that while his current and past research indicates that many children with ADHD benefit from some forms of movement when engaged in challenging cognitive tasks, he has not come across any studies examining the potential benefits or adverse effects of fidget spinner's. Dr Rapport's 2015 study found that children with ADHD who participated in activities involving 'gross body movement,' which is movement of the limbs or large parts of the body, performed better than those who sat still during memory tasks. However, fidget spinners don't require the user to engage in gross body movement, which appears to increase brain arousal necessary to engage in many cognitive tasks, said Dr Rapport. 'Using a spinner like gadget is more likely to serve as a distraction than a benefit for individuals with ADHD,' he said. Advertisement

One of the contenders to fill that void is the Fidget Cube, a small plastic box whose every side offers a new possibility to keep fidgety fingers occupied.

A runaway success on the crowd-funding site Kickstarter, it has spawned multiple imitations.

'This behavior (fidgeting) isn't one that should continue to be stigmatized and mocked as unbecoming or inappropriate,' the inventors of the Fidget Cube said in a press release.

'We are passionate about the idea that fidgeting is a process that, with the right tools and outlet, can have positive and real-life applications.'
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has opened up on what he thinks could be the next technological moonshot  and its not Apple.

According to Wozniak, Tesla is now the company thats moving in the best direction, as they continue to put an awful lot of effort into very risky things.

The tech giant says the firms off the wall approach is paving the way for products that optimize both performance and elegance.

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Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (pictured) has opened up on what he thinks could be the next technological moonshot  and its not Apple. According to Wozniak, Tesla is now the company thats moving in the best direction

ROBOTS WILL MAKE TESLA AS BIG AS APPLE, MUSK SAYS Musk said his company's success in the coming decade would 'heavily involve Tesla going at the machine that builds the machine'. Musk is referring to automated manufacturing technologies that will produce the Tesla 3 model. The company will be rolling out three more production lines including one in the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc (NUMMI) factory in Fremont in California is projected to build 100,000 more cars every year. The Tesla boss believes this mechanised production will be more profitable than the overseas contact that Apple uses to manufacture goods. Advertisement

In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Wozniak explained that self-driving cars are probably the biggest, most obvious moonshot, at the moment.

The technology, he said, could hugely change our lives.

And, when asked who might bring about the next breakthrough technology, Wozniak says his bet is on Tesla.

I dont know, I think Tesla is on the best direction right now, Wozniak said.

They put an awful lot of effort into very risky things, he said, pointing to electric cars and self-driving cars as example.

Everybody needs transportation in our human life, Wozniak said.

So ideas of boring holes underground to get around traffic problems in big cities, ideas of the Hyperloop to accelerate traffic without having to take airplane flights.

So Im going to bet on Tesla  so many of these off the wall different directions, and they start with a car.

According to Wozniak, Teslas cars  in particular, the Model S  are built around Elon Musks ideal, making for technology thats simple, efficient, and beautiful.

Elon Musk has come under fire in recent months for his plans to bore tunnels beneath Los Angeles.

But, Musk has hit back, publishing a FAQ on the company website outlining how the Boring Company plans to achieve his vision.

'The key to making this work is increasing tunneling speed and dropping costs by a factor of 10 or more  this is the goal of the Boring Company,' it says.

'Unlike flying cars, tunnels are weatherproof, out of sight and won't fall on your head,' it explains.

'I think Tesla is on the best direction right now, Wozniak said. According to Wozniak, Teslas cars  in particular, the Model S  are built around Elon Musks ideal, making for technology thats simple, efficient, and beautiful

MUSK OUTLINES BORING PLAN Elon Musk has outlined how his Boring Company will work, claiming: -Tunneling costs must be reduced by a factor of more than 10 -Key to this is smaller tunnels that can be dug more quickly -Will work to increase the speed of the Tunnel Boring Machine -Envisions a new breed of smaller, more powerful TBMs with triple the power of current machines that can tunnel continuously Advertisement

'A large network of road tunnels many levels deep would fix congestion in any city, no matter how large it grew (just keep adding levels)'

Musk recently revealed it has begun work on its first tunnel beneath Los Angeles, which will stretch from LAX to Sherman Oaks when complete.

It came just six months after Musk first revealed his radical plan to beat LA's notorious gridlock.

Now, the entry hole, staging area, and starting tunnel for the first Boring Machine, 'Godot,' is complete, Musk says.
A solar tree with giant square leaves that convert sunlight into electricity was unveiled in the central French town of Nevers on Monday, allowing passers-by to charge their phones, surf the internet...or just enjoy the shade.

The town of 37,000 on the Loire river is the first in Europe to experiment with the technology developed by Israeli company Sol-logic.

Inspired by the acacia tree found in the Israeli desert and African savanna, the futuristic-looking 'eTree' also supplies water and street lighting.

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The mayor of Nevers, Denis Thuriot, told franceinfo that the eTree was a symbol of the town's digital engagement since 2014. Pictured is the tree after its unveiling in Never, France

The eTree's 'leaves' are solar panels that power it. Solar panels are devices that convert light into electricity

The tree has seating, USB charging and a water fountain, with a separate water trough for pets.

It's also provides a source of light at night and free WiFi, as well as an integrated LCD screen.

Its 'leaves' are solar panels that power the eTree.

The first prototype was unveiled in Israel in 2014. A year later the first operational model was presented at the COP 21 climate conference in Paris, and it's that same tree that was re-planted in Nevers, France

It was created in a partnership between French firm JCDecaux, the town of Nevers and Israeli entrepreneurs with Sol-logic.

The first prototype was unveiled in Israel in 2014.

A year later the first operational model was presented at the COP 21 climate conference in Paris, and it's that same tree that was re-planted in Nevers.

Solar trees have been planted in around 10 cities in Israel and in the US in North Carolina and California. Pictured is a man using one Sologics' eTree's in Ramat Hanadiv, a nature park and garden in Northern Israel

Since then solar trees have been planted in around 10 cities in Israel and in the US in North Carolina and California.

The mayor of Nevers, Denis Thuriot, told franceinfo that the eTree was a symbol of the town's digital engagement since 2014.

He said that the tree will be planted in twenty or so other places, including New York City.
Not only is Samsung set to begin selling refurbished versions of its its ill-fated Galaxy Note 7 in South Korea, but the firm also has plans to rebrand it.

Now, the first pictures of the new handset have revealed what it will look like - and unsurprisingly, it's exactly the same.

The only difference, according to the images sent to Droidholic, are a large R stamped onto the back of the handset.

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The handset has the same look as the original, but is believed to come with a smaller 3,200 mAh battery

GALAXY NOTE FE A new report has revealed that the South Korean firm has renamed the smartphone 'Galaxy Note FE', which stands for 'Fandom Edition'. The handset is said to boast the same look as the original, but with a smaller 3,200 mAh battery  it is also speculated to cost 30% less than the Galaxy Note 7. The refurbished Galaxy Note FE is set to hit the South Korean market by the end of June. And Samsung plans to release 30,000 units at launch. Advertisement

A recent report has revealed that the South Korean firm has renamed the smartphone 'Galaxy Note FE', which stands for 'Fandom Edition', in a bid to 'minimize the refurbished phone image'.

The handset is said to boast the same look as the original, but with a smaller 3,200 mAh battery  it is also speculated to cost 30% less than the Galaxy Note 7.

The latest report was shared by ET News, which cited 'a plurality of mobile communication companies' as its source.

'The Galaxy Note FE was named Galaxy series loyal customers,' sources said.

The purpose of the revived handset is to market it towards fans of the device, all while minimizing the refurbished phone image.

However, ET News shared that Samsung Electronics will use the refurbished 'R' to name to make it clear that it has been refurbished.

Samsung's senior official, Lee Myung-bak, has also chimed in to give more details regarding the Note 7 FE's price and release date.

'The Galaxy Note 7 Ripper Phone is most likely to launch in Korea at the end of June,' he explained.

The term 'ripper' is used in Korea to signify a refurbished phone.

'The Galaxy Note FE supplied by Samsung Electronics to the carrier is estimated at 300,000 units.'

'I am confident that the Galaxy Note 7 Ripper Phone will have sufficient standby demand.'

The South Korean firm first revealed plans to refurbish the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 in February.

However, the announcement came five months after activists and environmental groups had been urging Samsung to commit to a plan that would recycle millions of Galaxy Note 7 phones - instead of just tossing them into a landfill, which seemed to be the initial plan.

But the firm revealed three principles to ensure the Galaxy Note 7 devices are recycled and processed in an environmentally-friendly manner.

First, devices shall be considered to be used as refurbished phones or rental phones where applicable, Samsung shared in the announcement.

Second, salvageable components shall be detached for reuse.

Third, processes such as metals extraction shall be performed using environmentally friendly methods.

And earlier this month, the firm announced it had passed through Federal Communications Commission (FCC) certification and consumers could buy a refurbished unit at the end of June.

A new report has revealed that the South Korean firm has renamed the smartphone 'Galaxy Note FE', which stands for 'Fandom Edition', in a bid to 'minimize the refurbished phone image'. Pictured is the original Galaxy Note 7 that were recalled in 2016 for battery problems

The handset is said to boast the same look as the original, but with a smaller 3,200 mAh battery  it is also speculated to cost 30% less than the Galaxy Note 7 (pictured is a Galaxy Note 7 that exploded in Richmond, Virginia in Oct 2015

At this time it was also stated that the refurbished smartphones would include smaller batteries, as it was 'irregularly sized batteries' that caused the handset to explode following its August release.

When Samsung took the stage in New York on August 2, 2016 to unveil the 5.7 inch Galaxy Note 7, the firm used the event as an opportunity to take a stab at Apple's upcoming iPhone 7.

'Want to know what else it comes with?' teased Samsung's vice-president of marketing, Justin Denison.

GIRL, 13, SUFFERS MINOR BURN FROM NOTE 7 REPLACEMENT A Minnesota father says his daughter suffered a minor burn to her thumb when her replacement Samsung smartphone melted in her hand last week. Andrew Zuis of Farmington, Minn., said his daughter, Abby, was holding the Galaxy Note 7 in her left hand Friday when it melted. Zuis said that the family had acquired the new phone on the day the replacement phones were released. There had been no problem with the original phone, he said. The battery fiasco cost the firm at least $5 billion. Samsung had found that there were two issues that plagued the Note 7. Andrew Zuis of Farmington, Minn., said his daughter, Abby, was holding the Note 7 (pictured) in her left hand when it melted 'It's very fortunate Abby was not injured and was holding the phone,' Zuis said. 'If it was in her pocket, I think it would have been a whole different situation. I'm just very disappointed in Samsung and their product.' Zuis provided KSTP-TV with receipts showing that the family bought a Galaxy Note 7 in August and then exchanged it Sept. 21 after Samsung announced the recall. 'She's done with Note 7s right now,' Zuis said of his daughter. A Samsung representative told KSTP that an investigation is underway. 'We want to reassure our customers that we take every report seriously and we are engaged with the Zuis family to ensure we are doing everything we can for them and their daughter,' the representative said in a statement. Advertisement

'An audio jack. I'm just saying.'

But little did Denison know that he would soon be eating his words.

Days after the Galaxy Note 7 launched reports had surfaced that the devices were bursting into flames.

And a month later, mobile chief D.J. Koh held a press conference in Seoul, South Korea where he announced the recall of 2.5 million Galaxy Note 7 devices, stating that users would eventually receive a replacement - a new and safe Note 7.

However, the second device were also found to be faulty.

When replacement phones - with batteries from another firm, largely thought to be Chinese manufacturer ATL - also started to combust, the company decided to kill off the Note 7 for good.

Following its own investigation into the mysterious issue, Samsung had discovered that the phones were fitted with 'irregularly sized batteries' that caused battery cell's upper right corner to be crimped by the casing.

And the replacement phones that were found to explode was a result of manufacturing issues, including poor welding at the battery manufacturer.

The Galaxy Note FE supplied by Samsung Electronics to the carrier is estimated at 300,000 units and is set to be released in South Korea in the end of June (pictured is a Samsung Galaxy Note 7 that combusted in September 2016)

In December, the firm issued the same software push to users on the US Cellular network.

The major blunder has somewhat tarnished the Samsung brand and has also sparked many concerns among government and regulatory officials.

But instead of simply tossing the Note 7, the firm is giving it one more chance.

However, it is also said that the firm will not release units in the US or Canada, but Android Authority noted that users in these countries 'might be able to acquire it from re-sellers'.
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It was once a stretch of coastline where beach-goers were more likely to drown in a sea of garbage than the ocean.

But now the formerly litter-stacked Versova beach in Mumbai, India, is unrecognisable from its former self thanks to a mammoth 85-week clean-up effort.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has called it one of the worlds largest beach clean-ups in history with more than 5,000 tonnes of waste removed to reveal the golden sands lurking below.

Wasteland: Versova beach in Mumbai, India, was used as an unofficial rubbish dump for years, with much of the waste coming from nearby slums

Turning a new tide: But now the formerly litter-stacked stretch of coastline is unrecognisable from its former self thanks to a mammoth 85-week-long clean-up effort

Before and after shots show the beach's dramatic transformation, from polluted to pristine.

Afroz Shah, a lawyer for the Bombay High Court, has been praised for leading the waste removal campaign.

The 33-year-old began clearing the ocean front with the help of a neighbour back in October 2015.

As the months went on, the pair were joined by more than 1,000 volunteers including workers from local companies, school children and Bollywood stars.

Photos from the makeover project show locals wearing gloves as they retrieve litter from the sand. Some use spades to shovel waste, while there are also diggers on hand to speed the process up.

Heave ho! The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has called it one of the worlds largest beach clean-ups in history with more than 5,000 tonnes of waste removed to reveal the golden sands lurking below

Community spirit: As the months went on, more than 1,000 volunteers - including workers from local companies, school children and Bollywood stars - joined the clean-up project and the fruits of their labour were finally recognised this spring

Students, lawyers, members of the fishing community and representatives from the All India Plastic Manufacturers Association all helped to clear the rubbish

The fruits of their labour were finally recognised this spring.

Mr Shah posted a photo to Twitter on May 19 showing Versova beach looking like a desirable sun spot rather than a rat-ridden dump.

He captioned the photo: 'Versova beach is gorgeous and clean now.

'We have done our bit. We need to maintain it.'

Mr Shah said he was prompted to start the clean-up after becoming alarmed by the piles of rubbish clogging on the once picturesque waterfront.

'I shifted to my new apartment two years back and saw plastic on the beach - it was 5.5 feet high. A man could drown in the plastic,' Mr Shah told CNN.

'I said Im going to come on the field and do something. I have to protect my environment and it requires ground action.'

All hands on deck: Along with clearing the shoreline, Mr Shah's taskforce also cleaned 52 public toilets at the beach and planted 50 coconut trees

Dangerous drift: Pradip Patade, a marine conservationist in the area, said the direction of the wind was behind the waste coming in from the slums

Turning point: As the beach wasn't a popular spot with locals and tourists a clean-up operation was ignored until Mr Shah came along. It's now hoped the incredible results will inspire similar initiatives to save other polluted beaches around the world

Along with clearing the shoreline, Mr Shah's taskforce also cleaned 52 public toilets at the beach and planted 50 coconut trees.

In recognition of Mr Shah's volunteer work, he was awarded the Champion of the Earth award by the United Nations last year. He is said to be the first Indian to achieve such a feat.

Versova beach was used as an unofficial rubbish dump for years and it was considered one of Mumbai's dirtiest stretches of coastline.

Pradip Patade, a marine conservationist in the area, said the direction of the wind caused lots of waste from nearby slums to collect on the waterfront.

As the beach wasn't a popular spot with locals and tourists, a clean-up operation was ignored until Mr Shah came along.

It's now hoped the incredible results will inspire similar initiatives to help save other polluted beaches around the world.
The Cannes Film Festival awarded its coveted Palme d'Or award to Ruben Ostlund's Swedish comedy The Square on Sunday, while Sofia Coppola became only the second woman to win the best director award.

'Oh my god! OK,' the Swedish filmmaker exclaimed after he bounded onto the stage to collect the prestigious Palme, in a rare and somewhat surprising win for a comedy.

In The Square, Claes Bang plays a museum director whose manicured life begins to unravel after a series of events that upset his, and the museum's, calm equilibrium.

Big winner: Director Ruben Ostlund celebrates winning the Palme d'Or award for his film The Square, presented by actress Juliette Binoche, back left, and jury president Pedro Almodovar

Making history: While Sofia Coppola became only the second woman to win the best director award

The movie's title comes from an art installation that Bang's character is prepping, which invites anyone who enters a small square to be kind and generous.

The film's satire and exploration of moral dilemmas culminated in one of the festival's most eye-catching scenes.

A muscled, grunting man pretending to be a gorilla upsets a black-tie dinner for the museum, sniffing attendees and dragging a woman by the hair.

Ecstatic: Ruben could not contain his emotion onstage

Winning film: A muscled, grunting man pretending to be a gorilla upsets a black-tie dinner in The Square

Honored: Actress Diane Kruger with her Best Actress award for her role in the film In The Fade

The president of the Cannes jury, Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodovar, praised the film for exploring the 'dictatorship' of political correctness and those trapped by it.

'They live in a kind of hell because of that,' Almodovar said.

'It's clever. It's witty. It's funny. It deals with questions so important,' said French actress and filmmaker Agnes Jaoui, a member of the jury that also included Americans Will Smith and Jessica Chastain.

Here he is: Joaquin Phoenix with his Best Actor award for the film You Were Never Really Here

Sorry: Phoenix apologized for wearing sneakers to the big night, claiming the luggage with his shoes was misplaced

Most odds makers didn't have 'The Square' as a favorite to win the prestigious Palme d'Or, the top prize awarded at Cannes.

Coppola won best director for 'The Beguiled,' her remake of Don Siegel's 1971 Civil War drama about a Union soldier hiding out in a Southern girls' school.

Hailed as Coppola's most feminist work yet, the remade thriller told from a more female point of view stars Nicole Kidman and Kirsten Dunst, with Colin Farrell playing the wounded soldier.

Shot caller: Director Fatih Akin, right, and Kruger pose for photographers at the award ceremony at the 70th international film festival

Accepting: Kruger made her way to the stage to accept her award on Sunday night

Coppola was one of three female filmmakers out of 19 in competition for the Palme this year. The first - and until now, only - female winner of the best director prize was Soviet director Yuliya Ippolitovna Solntseva in 1961.

Diane Kruger was named best actress and Joaquin Phoenix best actor as the festival celebrated its 70th anniversary.

Kruger was honored for her performance in Fatih Akin's 'In the Fade.' She played a German woman whose son and Turkish husband are killed in a bomb attack.

Judging: Will Smith, left, and Jessica Chastain served as members of the jury for the film festival

Do the wave: Smith greeted fans on the famous Cannes red carpet steps

The film alludes to a series of actual killings that shook Germany six years ago, when it came to light that police had spent more time investigating the possible mob connections of migrant victims than the tell-tale signs of the far-right plot eventually uncovered.

'I cannot accept this award without thinking about anyone who has ever been affected by an act of terrorism and who is trying to pick up the pieces and go on living after having lost everything,' the actress said. 'Please know that you are not forgotten.'

Phoenix was recognized for his role in Lynne Ramsay's thriller You Were Never Really Here, in which he played a tormented war veteran trying to save a teenage girl from a sex trafficking ring.

Awarded: Director Lynne Ramsay poses with her leading man from You Were Never Really Here

The actor wore sneakers on stage as he collected the prize. He said his leather shoes had been flown ahead of him. He apologized for his appearance, saying the prize was 'totally unexpected.'

The French AIDS drama 120 Beats Per Minute won the Grand Prize from the jury. The award recognizes a strong film that missed out on the Palme d'Or.

Directed by Robin Campillo, the co-screenwriter of the Palme d'Or-winning film The Class, the movie centers on the activist group ACT UP in Paris in the 1990s during the AIDS crisis.

Proud: The 40-year-old actress proudly held up her intricate Chopard-designed award

Fan: Chastain has previously praised Phoenix's work in 2012's The Master

The film's docu-drama retelling of that painful period, combined with a burgeoning spirit of unity for the gay community, earned it some of the best reviews of the festival.

Vanity Fair called the film 'a vital new gay classic.'

Almodovar said, 'I loved the movie.'

Strong showing: Director Robin Campillo with his Grand Prix award for his French documentary 120 Beats Per Minute

The jury also presented a special prize to Nicole Kidman to celebrate the festival's 70th anniversary.

Kidman wasn't at the French Rivera ceremony, but sent a video message from Nashville, saying she was 'absolutely devastated' to miss the show.

Jury member Smith made the best of the situation, pretending to be Kidman.

Up close: Master of ceremonies Monica Bellucci gives a kiss to president of the jury Pedro Almodovar

He fake-cried and said in halting French, 'merci beaucoup madames et monsieurs.'

There were no prizes for the first Netflix releases selected to be in competition for the Palme d'Or: Bong Joon-ho's Okja and Noah Baumbach's The Meyerowitz Stories.

Almodovar had made clear beforehand that he didn't want the Palme to go to a movie that isn't shown on big screens. The Netflix selections prompted protests from French movie distributors and led Cannes to rule out, beginning next year, streaming-only films.

Chic: The Italian actress and model dazzled in a black wrap dress and chocolate brown suede knee-high boots as she left the Palais de Festivals after the closing ceremony
She was contestant number one in Scott Disick's conveyor belt of women this week.

And Bella Thorne wanted to show the Lord what he could have won as she filmed herself in her underwear on Sunday.

The 19-year-old uploaded her usual cache of social media clips staring at herself in the camera and not saying anything.

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The Lord's passover! Bella Thorne showed Scott Disick what he might have won as she filmed in her underwear on Sunday

But afterwards she enlisted the help of a friend to get a wider shot, revealing a wardrobe of just a black lace bra and leopard-print panties.

With music pumping, she danced around while perched on the side of a sunbed, in a display that was bound to leave her brief reality star fling cursing himself for moving onto numbers two, three, four and five.

The actress insisted she 'couldn't be happier' to be back in Los Angeles after a disastrous trip to Cannes Kourtney Kardashian's babydaddy.

She flew to France with the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star but was said to be enraged at Scott for 'using' her after he was spotted getting close to his ex-girlfriend Chloe Bartoli just hours after he was photographed cuddling up to Bella by the pool.

Same old: The 19-year-old uploaded her usual cache of social media clips staring at herself in the camera and not sating anything

Long shot: But afterwards she enlisted the help of a friend to get a wider shot, revealing a wardrobe of just a black lace bra and leopard-print panties

After returning to the US, she wrote on Instagram: 'Couldn't be happier to be back home.'

Bella and Scott had appeared to be smitten with each other while hanging out at their hotel, with one witness saying: 'Scott let Bella push him in the pool. He had a big smile on his face and was dripping wet.

'He pulled Bella close to him and she sat on his lap to dry off. They were both drenched in their clothes and kissing. They were laughing and having a good time.

She's got the moves: With music pumping, she danced around while perched on the side of a sunbed

So close: The display that was bound to leave her brief reality star fling cursing himself for moving onto numbers two, three, four and five

'They spent all day laying out and flirting with one another. They kissed several times and at one point Bella laid on top of Scott and ran her hands through his hair. When Scott got a FaceTime call on his phone, Bella got into the picture and was goofing around in the background. They stayed outside cuddling all day.'

However, Bella claimed she left Scott at one point to go to a scheduled event and whilst she was away, she saw photos of the 34-year-old television personality with his former flame Chloe.

Bella reportedly believed Scott wanted a serious relationship with her and is now fuming that the father-of-three - who has Mason, seven, Penelope, four, and Reign, two, with his ex-partner Kourtney - has ditched her.

So there: The actress insisted she 'couldn't be happier' to be back in Los Angeles after a disastrous trip to Cannes Kourtney Kardashian's babydaddy.

It comes after Bella insisted she is 'not talking' to Scott: When one fan tweeted, 'Waiting for @bellathorne to tweet that she's not talking to Scott and that she's actually with someone else (sic)', she replied: 'Hahahah I'm not talking to scott or anyone else. #dontf**kwithit (sic)'

And when another follower asked her what she was doing with Scott, she added: 'Legit nothing trolololo (sic)'.

Scott has since been spotted with a succession of women in France.
They called time on their 11-year relationship in September last year.

But now, Australian actress Naomi Watts, 48, is reportedly furious with her ex Liev Schreiber, 49, for breaking a pact not to date anyone publicly for a year.

According to this week's issue of Woman's Day, the Australian actress is not happy with Liev striking up a new relationship with interior designer Morgan Brown.

'Betrayed and humilated': Naomi Watts (pictured) is reportedly furious that her ex is seeing someone new after they agreed not to publicly date anyone for a year, reports Woman's Day

'She is so upset because he's gone back on his word and she feels betrayed and humiliated,' a friend reportedly told the magazine.

Liev, who shares sons, Sasha, nine, and Samuel, eight, with Naomi, was spotted enjoying an intimate coffee date with Morgan just over a week ago in LA.

The Ray Donovan star appeared loved-up as he took a PDA-filled stroll around the neighbourhood with Morgan, who once dated Gerald Butler.

In happier times: Liev (left) and Naomi (right) were together for 11 years before calling it quits in September last year

Moving on: Liev was spotted recently on an intimate date in Los Angeles with interior designer Morgan Brown

It comes after Naomi spoke out earlier this week about their split in an interview with Red Magazine.

'Right now Im at a point where Im healing and just wanting to protect the family unit,' she told the publication.

'Were doing, so far, a pretty good job with that.'

Doting parents: Naomi and Liev share two sons: Sasha, nine, and Samuel, eight

She also added that she wasn't ready to jump back into the dating scene just yet.

'[Dating] just seems completely frivolous and counterproductive and just not really in my world right now,' she said.

In the June issue of Vogue Australia, The Ring actress divulged that the break-up hasn't always been easy, revealing, 'there are good days and bad days.'
It has won praise in the US for its brutal representation of Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel.

And now The Handmaid's Tale has left viewers in the UK 'shocked' and 'horrified' after the brutal first episode finally aired on Channel 4 on Sunday night.

Viewers flocked to social media to describe the drama as 'terrifying', with one viewer saying they kept 'forgetting to breathe' while watching the show.

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'Horrifying': The Handmaid's Tale has left viewers in the UK shocked after the first episode finally aired on Channel 4 on Sunday night

Fans were left traumatised in particular by a harrowing scene which showed Joseph Fiennes' character Commander Waterford raping Offred - played by Elisabeth Moss - as she lay on the lap of his wife Serena Joy (Yvonne Strahovski).

The programme also stars Alexis Bledel, who plays Offred's friend Ofglen in the drama.

Fans described the first episode of the show as 'harrowing' and 'chilling', as well as 'brilliant'.

Brutal: Fans rushed to social media to describe the drama as 'horrifying', with one viewer saying they kept 'forgetting to breathe' during the show

'Chilling': Elisabeth Moss stars as Offred in the dystopian drama, which is based on the novel by Margaret Atwood

Shocking: Viewers were left traumatised in particular by a harrowing scene which showed Joseph Fiennes's character Commander Waterford raping Offred

Responding to the terrifying drama, Lisa Davis wrote 'I keep forgetting to breathe through this' while Gillian Hamill described the first episode as 'chillingly brilliant'.

Michelle Wilkinson meanwhile said the show was 'brutal and chilling', adding that she would 'need a week to recover' before the second episode.

Twitter user @joeyjojojoanna said she was 'totally gripped' by the production, describing it was 'chilling, disturbing and compelling.

Another viewer described the episode as 'horrifying... especially when it's closer to reality than you'd like to think'.

'I keep forgetting to breathe': Fans rushed to social media to describe the drama as 'terrifying', with one viewer saying they kept 'forgetting to breathe' during the show

Reacting to the rape scene involving Offred and Commander Waterford, Bethany wrote: 'That sex scene was unbelievably harrowing'.

Meanwhile, other eagle-eyed viewers spotted a cameo performance made by author Margaret Atwood herself during the first episode.

The 77-year-old appeared in a scene that saw Offred being shamed for her sexual activities in the past.

Cameo: Eagle-eyed viewers spotted a cameo performance made by author Margaret Atwood during the first episode.

Guest appearance: The 77-year-old appeared in a scene that saw Offred being shamed for her sexual activities in the past

Fans: Viewers were quick to comment on the author's guest appearance on the show

Viewers were quick to comment on her guest appearance, with Heidi Stemp writing: 'Anyone else spot Margaret Atwood's cheeky little cameo in tonight's #HandmaidsTale?'

Carley Stirups added: 'Thought @Channel4 #handmaidstake was excellent this evening. Loved @MargaretAtwood's cameo appearance too!'

The drama, which has been shown in the US on television network Hulu first, has been eagerly anticipated by viewers in the UK - with producers finally confirming that it would be making its way across the Atlantic earlier this month.

Dystopian world: Fans described the first episode of the show as 'harrowing' and 'chilling', as well as 'brilliant'

'Amazing': Viewers also praised Elisabeth's performance in the dystopian drama

Harrowing: Commander Waterford is played by Joseph Fiennes in the television adaptation

Disturbing: His wife Serena Joy is played by Yvonne Strahovski in The Handmaid's Tale

It has been met with criticism from some viewers in the US for being so graphic.

The story is set in a dystopian future, where the United States is under rule by a theocratic military dictatorship.

In this society most women have become infertile due to warfare-induced contamination so the remaining fertile females, known as 'handmaids', are kept captive.

They are made to subject themselves to ritual sex, the sole purpose of which is reproduction rather than pleasure.

'Totally gripped': Viewers described the drama as both 'brilliant and disturbing'

Offred is one such handmaid, and she is raped by Commander Waterford while his wife, Serena holds her hands behind her back.

The repeated graphic scenes have become too much for some viewers in the US, with on posting on Twitter: 'God the rape scenes in the handmaid's tale are so hard to watch. Plus they're so long'

While another added: 'Are we going to have to watch The Ceremony in every episode of The Handmaid's Tale? It's getting... painful to watch rape so frequently.'

Criticism: The drama, which has been shown in the US on television network Hulu first, has been met with criticism from viewers for being so graphic

Traumatic: The repeated graphic scenes have become too much for some viewers in the US

In a recent interview with Vulture, Fiennes had talked about what it was like to play someone who commits state-ordered sexual violence.

'He's a man with a moral dilemma and he says he only wants to make the world a better place, as a lot of people in powerful places want to do, but they slowly become corrupted,' he explained.

'And certainly that corruption becomes abhorrent...So doing those scenes is  I find them actually very difficult. They're very brutal.'

Elisbaeth meanwhile recently caused shockwaves when she insisted The Handmaid's Tale is 'not a feminist story'.

Vile: Elisabeth's Offred a handmaid who is raped by Commander Waterford while his wife, Serena Joy, played by Yvonne Strahovski, holds her hands behind her back

She said: 'It's not a feminist story; it's a human story, because women's rights are human rights.

'I never intended to play Peggy [her character in Mad Men] as a feminist and I never expected to play Offred as a feminist.'

Author Margaret later added: 'They needed an 'only,' an 'also,' and a human rights definition of the F word, in my opinion'.

Elisabeth echoed: 'I think what happened was that I left out a very, very important four-letter word, which is 'also.' It's a humanist tale. That's all. Women's rights are human rights.'
Noel Gallaghers 50th birthday turned into a whos who of stars  but included none of his own family.

The Oasis founder and his wife Sara MacDonald, 45, hired Grade I-listed Aynhoe Park in Oxfordshire at a cost of 20,000. Madonna, 58, in a 2,900 Dolce & Gabbana print dress, cosied up to U2s Bono, 57, and Stella McCartney, 45, both of whom appeared to be suffering party fatigue in this selfie.

No sign, though, of Noels estranged younger brother Liam, who after seeing the invitation, showing Noel mocked up as Colombian coke baron Pablo Escobar from TV series Narcos (inset), tweeted: Hes invited none of his family not even his own mother. Says a lot about the man and his party planner  pair of w*****s.

Madonna, 58, in a 2,900 Dolce & Gabbana print dress, cosied up to U2s Bono, 57, and Stella McCartney, 45, both of whom appeared to be suffering party fatigue in this selfie

Noel Gallaghers 50th birthday turned into a whos who of stars  but included none of his own family

Sir Mick Jaggers daughter Jade should be used to the heat given that she spends much of the year at her properties in Spain and India

Jaded in the heat - Mick's girl

Sir Mick Jaggers daughter Jade should be used to the heat given that she spends much of the year at her properties in Spain and India. However, the mum-of-three appeared to be struggling with the British sunshine.

Meeting a girl pal for lunch in London, Jade, 45, whose mother is human rights activist Bianca Jagger, barely wore a scrap of make-up and tried to keep cool in a polka dot dress while sporting 105 Tory Burch espadrilles.

And of course, even the simplest of Jades ensembles would not be complete without her trusty Chanel handbag.

Meeting a girl pal for lunch in London, Jade, 45, whose mother is human rights activist Bianca Jagger, barely wore a scrap of make-up and tried to keep cool in a polka dot dress

Cumberbatch's family affair

Benedict Cumberbatch is keeping his next project in the family by making his wife, Sophie Hunter, a co-producer of his new film.

But thats not all: the film is an adaptation of the debut novel by Megan Hunter.

Called The End We Start From, the story might resonate with the Sherlock star, 40, and his theatre director wife, 39, as it follows a mother and her newborn child. The couple have two sons, two-year-old Christopher, and two-month-old Hal Auden.

I am absolutely delighted that such a talented, passionate, and dynamic team will be working together to create [the] film, says Megan, who is married to Sophies younger brother, Timothy.

Oscar-winner Dame Judi Dench, whose daughter Finty Williams followed her into acting, has revealed her 19-year-old grandson Sam is shunning his thespian genes to become a pop star

Dame Judi's pop wannabe grandson is an Ed ringer!

Oscar-winner Dame Judi Dench, whose daughter Finty Williams followed her into acting, has revealed her 19-year-old grandson Sam is shunning his thespian genes to become a pop star.

He has no interest whatsoever in acting and wants to do his own thing  but whatever makes him happy is the main thing. Im happy about it if he is, the 82-year-old tells me.

He wants to be Ed Sheeran and he looks very much like him. He is red and proud!

However, Judi, whose late husband Michael Williams was also an actor but who is now going out with conservationist David Mills, has no regrets about choosing the dramatic arts. Acting has been a great profession, for me and Finty.
Home And Away fans can possibly look forward to another wedding in the coming months.

Photos from the Palm Beach set show new cast members Kestie Morassi and Rohan Nichol appearing to exchange vows.

The actors, who debut on the Channel Seven soap this year, were pictured kissing at a beachside ceremony on Monday.

Spoiler! Home And Away fans can possibly look forward to another wedding in a few months

Wedding bells? Photos from the Palm Beach set show new cast members Kestie Morassi and Rohan Nichol appearing to exchange vows

Happily ever after? The actors, who debut on the Channel Seven soap this year, were pictured kissing at a beachside ceremony on Monday

Rohan and Kestie are rumoured to be introduced as part of the Astoni family, the latest arrivals in Summer Bay.

Anna Cocquerel and Sophie Dillman, who were also in the scene, appear to be playing the couple's daughters.

At first glance, the photos apparently show a wedding scene, or possibly a married couple renewing their vows.

Surprise! Kestie's character is seen wearing a blindfold while being led across the sand towards her partner

Newcomers: Rohan and Kestie are rumoured to be introduced as part of the Astoni family, the latest arrivals in Summer Bay

Is that an engagement ring? She looks radiant in a floral dress and expresses surprise and joy when her blindfold is removed

Upcoming storyline: At first glance, the photos apparently show a wedding scene, or possibly a married couple renewing their vows

Kestie's character is seen wearing a blindfold while being led across the sand towards her partner.

She looks radiant in a floral dress and expresses surprise and joy when her blindfold is removed.

Rohan's character, dressed in a white shirt and chinos, appears delighted as his spouse arrives at the ceremony.

The look of love! Rohan's character, dressed in a white shirt and chinos, appears delighted as his spouse arrives at the ceremony

New faces! Anna Cocquerel and Sophie Dillman, who were also in the scene, appear to be playing the couple's daughters

You may now kiss the bride! Rohan was pictured kissing Kestie during the beachside ceremony

Let's celebrate! After appearing to exchange vows and sharing a romantic kiss, the couple smile and wave to their daughters

Best day of their lives! Both actors couldn't stop smiling while filming the scene

Meanwhile, Anna and Sophie are wearing purple frocks holding flower bouquets.

After appearing to exchange vows and sharing a romantic kiss, the couple smile and wave to their daughters.

Home And Away continues Monday night at 7pm on Channel Seven.

Forever and always: Rohan's character appears to slide a wedding ring onto Kestie's finger
Denise Bryson climbed the ranks of the FBI as the transgender agent resurfaced as the agency's chief of affairs on Sunday's episode of Twin Peaks.

The character played by David Duchovny, 56, met with FBI Deputy Director Gordon Cole, portrayed by 71-year-old Twin Peaks director David Lynch.

Cole was investigating the case of missing FBI Agent Dale Cooper, played by Kyle MacLachlan, and met with Bryson to give her an update.

Chief staff: Denise Bryson rejoined Twin Peaks on Sunday as chief of staff of the Federal Bureau Of Investigation

Bryson chastised Cole for bringing along younger female FBI Agent Tammy Preston, played by Chrysta Bell, to interview Cooper in a South Dakota prison.

Cole reminded Bryson how after her transition he confronted the 'clown comics' they work with and told them 'fix their hearts or die.'

Cooper was jailed after his prints were found at a gruesome murder scene.

The jailed Cooper greeted his old pal Cole with an odd thumb when he saw him.

On the case: Twin Peaks director David Lynch played FBI Deputy Director Gordon Cole

Strange encounter: The Showtime episode opened with missing Agent Dale Cooper communicating with a blind woman

Gag reflex: The evil Dale doppelganger started gagging while driving in the desert

He's back: Dale Cooper was somehow transformed from the Black Lodge back to reality

Price to pay: Another Dale who was living as Doug 'Dougie' Jones entered the Black Lodge before disappearing

Cooper meanwhile transitioned from the Black Lodge back to reality in the form of counterfeit double Doug Jones.

He shuffled along with prostitute Jade and awkwardly assumed Doug's identity.

Jade dropped him off at a casino where he followed the cues of flickering flames over slot machines and won multiple jackpots.

He's back: Dale assumed Doug's identity and was driven home by Jade

Assassination attempt: A gunman tried to assassinate Dale but he bent over at the right time

Lucky guy: Dale saw flames over slot machines and inserted coins into them

Multiple jackpots: The technique kept working and Dale won multiple jackpots

His wife Janey-E Jones, played by Naomi Watts, slapped him when he returned home, but later forgave him when seeing the money he won.

Agent Tammy after a group meeting later gave Cole and Rosenfield an update on the mysterios black box in New York Ctiy.

Cole then informed her that she was joining them on the trip to South Dakota.

Agents meeting: Gordon sat in on a meeting with FBI Agent Albert Rosenfield, played by the late Miguel Ferrer

The box: FBI Agent Tammy Preston, played by Chrysta Bell, gave Gordon and Albert an update on the mysterious box

Interview time: Tammy, Albert and Gordon interviewed the Dale Cooper who was imprisoned after his prints were found at a gruesome murder scene

Thumb up: Dale greeted Gordon with a thumb up

Federal agents: Albert revealed to Gordon that he gave another agent permission to share information with Dale

Deputy Chief Tommy 'Hawk' Hill was still on the case looking for Agent Cooper after the Log Lady told him that something was missing and his heritage was the key to finding it.

Hawk was aided by Lucy and Andy who threw him off track with a chocolate bunny.

He later invited Bobby Briggs to help with the investigation.

Something missing: Michael Horse as Deputy Chief Tommy 'Hawk' Hill was looking for something missing

Getting emotional: Bobby Briggs got emotional after seeing a picture of Laura Palmer

Odd family: Andy and Lucy met with their son Wally 'Brando' Brennan played by Michael Cera

Wally 'Brando' Brennan had an odd conversation with the sheriff as his parents Lucy and Andy looked on.

Dale meanwhile was adjusting to life again with his wife Janey-E and their son.

He seemed flustered by his circumstances but eagerly downed a cup of coffee before spitting out the hot beverage.

Not happy: Janey-E Jones was furious when Doug finally got back home

Lost weight: Doug's clothes were too baggy for Dale
Victoria's Secret model Alessandra Ambrosio's secret is out - she can't get enough of the sun.

On Sunday, she was seen walking on the beach in Malibu wearing a tiny white bikini which showed off her enviable model figure.

Her brunette locks flowed freely in the wind as she made her way through the sand to put her feet in the ocean.

Bikini babe: Alessandra Ambrosio showed off her enviable figure on the beach in Malibu on Sunday

The 36-year-old Brazillian mother-of-two also wore a watch and a bracelet for her relaxing walk along the coast.

The day prior, she posted a photo with three girlfriends posing topless with their backs to the camera.

'Malibu classic,' she captioned the pic which featured fellow Brazilian model friend Ludi Delfino, her agent Jessica Steindorff and another friend.

Beach bums: Ambrosio (second from left) shared this topless shot with Brazilian model Ludi Delfino, her agent Jessica Steindorff and another friend on Saturday

Stunning: The 36-year-old showed off her assets in a tiny white bikini as she walked in the sand

Serena Williams commented on the photo when it was re-posted by Steindorff saying, 'White buns lol where is my bun.'

In addition to her topless shot, Alessandra posted photos of three young girls doing handstands on the beach, one of them being her daughter Anja Louise Ambrosio Mazur.

A video posted to her Instagram Stories shows the girls rolling around in the sand and jumping around.

Simple: She wore a bracelet and a watch with her understated white swimsuit

The water's fine!: She appeared to call out to her friends to join her in the ocean

Alessandra also has a son Noah with longtime fiance Jamie Mazur.

Mazur is a California businessman with an estimated net worth of $20 million, which is half of Alessandra's.

Though they have been engaged since 2008, they have not married.
He is one of the most popular characters on Home And Away.

But fans of George Mason's Martin Ashford may have cause for concern.

The hunky star was seen dramatically collapsing on the Palm Beach set of the popular soap on Monday.

By George, is everything OK? There was shock on the set of Home And Away on Monday, as George Mason's character dramatically collapsed during beach run

Beach run: The actor was first seen energetically running along the beach in a T-shirt and striped board shorts

The 26-year-old actor was first seen energetically running along the sand in a T-shirt and striped board shorts.

He then dropped to his knees and clutched his chest and abdominal area.

Mason's new on-screen love interest, played by Penny McNamee, was seen rushing to his aid as he recovered from what appeared a bad stitch.

Despite her efforts, the character had great difficulty getting back to his feet.

In pain: He was then seen dropping to his knees and clutching his chest and abdominal area

Sure you're okay? Mason's new on-screen love interest, played by Penny McNamee (L), was seen rushing to his aid as he recovered from what appeared a bad stitch

Best efforts! Despite her efforts, the character had great difficulty getting back to his feet

Dressed in a tight white shirt and sleeveless green top, Penny then dropped to her knees as well, clutching her on-screen flame's arm.

A look of genuine concern was painted across her character's face as George clasped his hand to his mouth.

Eventually he was able to muster the energy to look in the brunette beauty's direction.

Down to his level: Dressed in a tight white shirt and sleeveless green top, Penny also dropped to her knees, clutching her on-screen flame's arm

No big deal? He eventually mustered the energy to speak to Penny, but whatever he said seemed to distress her even further, as concern turned to exasperation

He eventually mustered the energy to speak to Penny, but whatever he said seemed to distress her even further, as concern turned to exasperation.

Off-camera later, the actors looked to be doing some research, with Penny, 34, showing George something on her phone.

After their brief meeting, George looked in deep thought as he crossed his arms and perched himself on a wooden fence.

Comparing notes! Off-camera later, the actors looked to be doing some research, with Penny, 34, showing George something on her phone

Food for thought! After their brief meeting, George looked in deep thought as he crossed his arms and perched himself on a wooden fence

George's ex-criminal Martin 'Ash' Ashford character has appeared on the show since 2014.

Critics have gushed over the blonde surfer-boy's expertise in portraying the 'bad-boy's antics.

George played a starring role in three feature-length special episodes, including Home and Away: An Eye for an Eye, Home and Away: Revenge and Home and Away: All or Nothing.

Off-screen, he's dating french model Manon Buchalet, with the pair the frequent subject of engagement rumours.
Kim Kardashian during a chat show appearance Sunday said she's been 'begging' sister Khloe to become a surrogate mother and help her have another child.

Kim, 36, told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live that she has not given up on having a third child herself but the chances of it happening were 'not looking good.'

'It is a process. I have had to go through multiple things to try and do it on my own but I do not think that is looking good for me but I am not giving up,' said Kim as she appeared as a guest on Cohen's hit show from Los Angeles.

A process: Kim Kardashian during a chat show appearance Sunday revealed 'begging' sister Khloe to be a surrogate mother

'So it is a process. You kind of see the whole thing on this next season of our show of me begging Khloe to help out, but I do not want to do that to her, my mom offered, Kourtney offered,' she said.

'Oh my God I love it,' said Andy.

The pair did the pre-taped show from the stage at historic Palace Theater in Los Angeles, with two shirtless bar tenders behind them.

'I am thrilled to spend my last night at the Palace Theater with a woman who makes me feel practically a**less,' joked Andy.

Proud mama: Kim has two children, North (right) and Saint (left)

'It's a process': Kim admits that convincing Khloe has not been the easiest

Bravo show: Andy Cohen welcomed Kim as the final guest in shows taped in Los Angeles

He then introduced house DJ, James Kennedy from Vanderpump Rules, as the 'White Kanye.'

Andy kicked off by asking Kim if Kourtney had ever paid her back for her share of the private jet for the trip to New York she bailed on at the last minute.

'Nope, she didn't. She didn't get on the plane so I feel like she has three kids and I am not going to make her pay for half of the plane, but morally she should have,' laughed Kim.

Plane payment: Kim revealed that Kourtney never paid her for the private plane after bailing out in the last minute

'I agree, morally,' said Andy.

The pair then played a game where Andy asked her a question and Kim had to nominate one of her famous family members.

Andy first asked which of the Kardashians enjoyed being famous the most.

Family game: Andy asked Kim questions about her famous family

'It used to be me but now I would say Khloe. You would think Kylie. Kris Jenner,' Kim finally settled on after Andy brought her up.

'Why didn't I think of that, I didn't realize my mom was an option.'

The host then asked who was Kris Jenner's favorite in the family.

Bravo clubhouse: The Bravo clubhouse moved to the Palace Theater in Los Angeles for a week

'Me. Well, it could be Kylie, Kylie is doing pretty well.'

Andy then asked her which member of the family has the worst taste in men, as the audience shouted out suggestions with Kylie being the most audible.

'Can I plead the Fifth now?' laughed Kim as she bit her tongue and chuckled.

Drinking up: Kim sipped from her drink while on the Bravo chat show

Any then asked her who she thought would be the next Kardashian to get married.

'Khloe. I hope so,' said Kim confidently.

Kim then told Andy that Mason had the most Justin Bieber music and that Kourtney was the cheapest member of the family.

Good times: Andy laughed while interviewing Kim

Andy then asked Kim who had the worst style in the family.

'Khloe, I love you, but' she laughed.

Andy then played a Price Is Right style game called Keeping Costs Down With The Kardashians where he challenged Kim to guess how much money ordinary people spent in their lives.

Pricing game: Kim was quizzed about the prices of everyday items

Kim guessed that a one-way ride on a Los Angeles bus cost $10, but the answer was just $1.75.

Andy then asked Kim how much a gallon of milk cost and she guessed it was $3 when in reality it averages $5.49.

Kim was then asked how much dandruff shampoo costs and she guessed $6, when in fact it was $7.99. When asked to guess the price of a box of condoms, Kim guessed $5 when in fact they cost $15.99.

Game show: A Price Is Right model helped with the game

Andy then honored 10 years of Keeping Up With The Kardashians by playing a game to match up Kim's cry faces.

Pictures of Kim crying in the show were then flashed up onto the screen and Andy and the crowd had to imitate it back to Kim.

'That one is not that ugly,' said Kim of a picture of her crying when she found out about pictures of Kourtney in a sexual act with a partner.

Cry face: Andy imitated one of Kim's famous crying faces

When Andy flashed up one particular picture, Kim told him: 'That one is my worst.'

Andy also asked her if she knew why she was crying in the picture.

'Of course,' she told him.

Audience participation: Audience members also mimicked Kim's crying faces

'You were feeling bad that you did not want to be married to Kris Humphries any more,' Andy told her as Kim chuckled.

In other one Kim explained that she had been crying over a nude photoshoot.

'I don't know why I was upset, that was so stupid. I love that shoot now,' said Kim.

Classic cryface: Andy showed one of Kim's classy cryfaces while celebrating 10 years of the E! show

Andy then turned serious and told the audience that the last time he interviewed Kim was the night before she left on her fateful trip to Paris, where she was robbed at gunpoint.

'I notice you are wearing no jewelry tonight, I am wearing more than you are, my ring is bigger than yours, which I never thought would happen,' said Andy.

'We talked about your ring that night and then this horrible thing happened to you. How have you changed?'

Getting serious: Andy reminded Kim that last time he interviewed her was right before her Paris robbery

'Oh I have totally changed. My whole life has changed. I am truly so happy that happened to me in the weirdest way. Just I am such a different person for the better,' she told him.

'I am so much more grounded. My priorities are so much more in check and I would not trade that experience for the world. As crazy as that sounds.'

Andy told her that in the show it seemed she really felt she was going to die at that moment.

Life changer: Kim said the Paris robbery changed her life and made her more grounded

'Absolutely, it was not even a question, I knew that was it for me so I was really coming out on the other side you just become so grateful for everything that you have, all the small things, and things like jewelry means nothing to me.'

Kim then took questions from audience members, the first of which was if Kourtney had ever dated 'or hooked up with Justin Bieber.'

'You know what is so funny about her is that she is so private. Me being the closest sister to her she wouldn't tell me even if I begged her,' said Kim with a smile.

Music man: DJ James Kennedy was spinning the tunes

'Oh come on,' said Andy in disbelief.

'I swear to God, I am not even bulls****ing you guys. Bible. She will never speak about anyone like that, anyone she hooks up.'

Andy then asked Kim what she thought of Kendall's Pepsi commercial controversy.

Behind the bar: Two salad guys were behind the bar

'She totally understood at the end of the day and felt really awful for it and just wants to move on from it,' said Kim.

Andy asked Kim if she had thought 'Uh-oh' when she saw it.

'I didn't see it until it had already got the attention and you obviously have a different perspective when everyone is just saying something.

Downtown venue: The show was held at the downtown Palace Theater in Los Angeles

'I think anytime someone does anything they don't have bad intentions of doing it a certain way, especially as Kendall is so sensitive, she would never mean for anyone to perceive anything in a negative way.'

Andy then asked Kim why she was on social media less these days.

'I am. It has been so important for me to just be present so when I am in my house I am hardly on my phone. It is a rule to be present and communicate and interact like normal people.'

Social media: Kim explained why she's not on social media as much

Kim then told Andy she doesn't know if Kanye will ever get back on social media.

'If you can get away and are taking time off, then why not?' said Kim.

'He is just enjoying time off and enjoying life, and that is all you can really do.'

Time off: The reality star said her husband Kanye West was enjoying time off

Kim was then asked by an audience member about the night she 'exposed' Taylor Swift on Snapchat and whether she had made life awkward for Swift and her friend Kendall Jenner.

'I don't know if Kendall was a part of her squad, I don't think she was,' said Kim to screams of delight from the crowd.

'I don't think it was awkward.'

Good questiions: Audience members directly asked Kim questions

Andy then asked if she had heard at all from Taylor and Kim just shook her head and shrugged her shoulders.

Another audience member then asked how she had felt when Kanye met with Donald Trump in New York.

'Um, you know we have different opinions and I think, you know, Kanye's opinions I don't want to speak on what his opinions are but they are evolving. I encourage everyone to go and speak with a leader if they feel like they can make a change and I feel that is what Kanye thought.'

Different opinions: Kim was asked about Kanye meeting Donald Trump

Andy then told Kim he had recently interviewed Caitlyn Jenner and she asked him to pass her love onto the girls and tell them she loved them as he would see them 'before I do.'

'Maybe she is just busy on her book tour,' said Kim with a fixed smile on her face.

'I mean Caitlyn is always going to be someone that raised me and someone that taught me so much so I will always have so much respect for her and I am proud that she is going through this journey and I just wish her the best,' said Kim.

'Right. Wow,' said Andy.

Andy and Kim also played his infamous game Plead The Fifth where she had to answer questions truthfully but could Plead the Fifth to one of them and avoid it.

Packed house: The Palace Theater was packed for the taping of the show

'Here is the amazing thing about this, Kim asked for it. We were going to do something else,' said Andy.

'I did. You wanted me to recreate a scene and act and I'm like ''that is so not my thing.'' We are here, why not right?' said Kim confidently.

Andy started by asking why the whole family had recently stopped following stylist Monica Rose on social media and why they no longer worked with her.

'Can I hear the other questions first?' she asked Andy, which he denied her.

Lady in black: Kim requested to play Plead The Fifth

'S***,' she said as she thought hard about answering it.

'Okay, I will say I have not worked with her for four years so my reason is not connected to this. I will say that I read that it was said that she was the reason for my makeover when I met Kanye and I will say that Kanye got me a new team and we kind of documented it, so I think that people think that is the reason.

'For me that is maybe the reason, I needed a new vibe, as for everyone else you will have to ask them. I wanted a new vibe and Kanye wanted to give me a makeover.'

Tough question: Andy asked Kim about her and her sisters not following stylist Monica Rose on social media

Kim then repeated that Andy would have to ask her sisters about why they stopped working with her.

'I look forward to that opportunity,' said Andy.

Andy then asked Kim how relieved she was when Kylie and Tyga finished dating.

Opened up: Kim answered all the questions without Pleading The Fifth

'You know I was, I feel there was a lot of drama, and that doesn't mean he is a bad person at all,' said Kim.

'I just think that sometimes people, you know what was great was how easy that split was, there has not been any drama with her.'

Andy then asked Kim what the chances of Kris Jenner ever speaking to Caitlyn again.

No drama: The reality star said there was drama between Kylie and Tyga but not with their split

'Zero, one, no, two per cent and those are Kendall and Kylie. That's their percentage. All fair I think,' said Kim.

As Andy wrapped it up Kim could be heard telling him 'I should have Plead the Fifth for Monica.'

The Bravo host told her the first question typically is the hardest.
He's the X-Files actor who surprised fans with his 2015 album Hell or Highwater.

And David Duchovny has announced he will tour Australia in 2018.

Th 56-year-old is set to play five concerts along the east coast cities from late February to early March, according to a report by News.com.au.

Hitting the stage: X-Files star David Duchovny has announced he will tour Australia in 2018

He will start in Melbourne and Sydney, then the regional towns of Wollongong and Newcastle, before finishing up in Brisbane.

Aside from working the Twin Peaks reboot, David has been busy with playing sold out shows around the US and in Europe.

His run as a musician seems to be successful, with the actor working on a second album, set to be released later this year.

FBI turned musician: The X-Files actor will start in Melbourne, Sydney, then the regional towns of Wollongong and Newcastle, before finishing up in Brisbane (pictured with co-star Gillian Anderson)

On stage: Aside from working the Twin Peaks reboot, David has been busy with playing sold out shows around the US and in Europe

David made the foray into music by playing guitar after splitting up with his wife, Madam Secretary star Tea Leoni, with whom he shares two children with.

In an interview with The San Diego Union-Tribune he said that his divorce from the actress and time away from his kids gave him more free time to pick up the guitar.

'I had more time on my hands and the need to get something out  to commiserate musically with myself, in a way  and give myself something positive to do,' he said.

In a 2015 interview with Rolling Stone, his vocal prowess was compared to The National front-man Matt Berninger.

Former love: David made the foray into music by playing guitar after splitting up with his wife, Madam Secretary star Tea Leoni (pictured), with whom he shares two children with

'If my voice sounds like anybody, I take it as a compliment,' he said.

'With singing, I just wanted to have some sense of when I open my mouth, what the f*** is gonna come out? It's not natural to me,' David added.

The Aquarius actor is following the steps of plenty actors before him who have ventured out into the music industry and released their own music.

Pre-sale tickets for David Duchovny will begin on Wednesday 31 May at 9am, while general release tickets go on sale from 9am local time on Friday 2 June.
She's the Bachelor reject known for her ample assets and curvy physique.

And it appears Zilda Williams has slimmer expectations of herself.

The 34-year-old has showed off her humorous side by sharing a meme on her Twitter on Saturday.

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Expecataion vs reality! Zilda Williams showed off her funny side after posting a meme to Twitter comparing her body to model Belle Lucia

She posted a full body picture of herself wearing red one piece swimsuit, with high thigh cuts.

She also donned a pair of reflective aviator-style sunglasses as she emerged from the ocean after having a swim.

Next to to this she shared a photo of model Belle Lucia in a very similar red one piece swimsuit.

The thigh is the limit! She posted a full body picture of herself wearing red one piece swimsuit, with high thigh cuts.

She captioned the photo: 'Expectation Vs Reality'.

The meme welcomed many comments in support of Zilda's curvaceous figure and her being proud of her body.

One fan said: 'Reality is better than expectation here!'

Confidence! The meme welcomed many comments in support of Zilda's curvaceous figure and her being proud of her body

Another agreed saying: 'I'd take reality every day of the week...you have it over her in spades....you look amazing!'

Zilda replied to one fan saying: 'I try and embrace my curves... Still crushing on Bella'.

One male commentor sparked controversy among fans by saying: 'You should embrace them, that's what men truly prefer.'
She was recently granted a three-year restraining order against an ex-bodyguard she accused of stalking her.

So when Kris Jenner stepped out on Sunday in West Hollywood, it was no surprise she had beefed up her security detail with a burly new guard by her side.

Boyfriend Corey Gamble, 33, was not seen with Kris, 61, as she made her way into Nobu restaurant.

Playing it safe: Kris Jenner stepped out with a burly new security guard as she dined at Nobu West Hollywood on Sunday

Kris chose an off-the-shoulder cream-colored dress for her Sunday dinner outing and paired the garment with tall black boots.

She wore gold chains and rings to accessorize the look, and held on tightly to her mini Chanel clutch purse.

A stylish pair of red and cream-colored glasses were worn on her face.

All business: The 61-year-old media mogul wore an off-the-shoulder dress and black boots

After dinner the matriarch and her daughters Kendall Jenner and Kim Kardashian made their way to a John Legend concert at The Greek Theater.

The show one of two Los Angeles stops on Legend's Darkness & Light Tour.

Kim uploaded a video of she and Kendall singing along to one of John's hits as their mom looked on besotted at the singing star.

Biggest fan: The family matriarch made her way to John Legend's Los Angeles concert after dinner, where daughter Kim teased her on Snapchat

On Wednesday a judge signed off on a permanent restraining order against former bodyguard Joshua Jacobs, according to TMZ.

The Keeping Up With The Kardashians producer filed a restraining order against him earlier this month after he was arrested outside her Hidden Hills, California mansion for a third time. He is still in custody.

'The Jenner and Kardashian families take safety very seriously, and will vigorously pursue all remedies available to them, both in criminal and civil court, to ensure they are protected,' said Kris' attorney, Shawn Holley.

Sing-a-long: Sisters Kim Kardashian and Kendall Jenner sang along at Legend's concert

In the legal documents, Jenner stated that her former employee had 'crashed his vehicle through the gate to our community, came on to my property looking for me at around 1 a.m.' on May 1.

It's claimed he was trying to enter codes into the security keypad for her residence when he was spotted by her security team.

He had apparently tried to get close to her in mid-April and before that, in March when he had his grandmother with him in the car, TMZ said.
She made headlines as the teenage 'bridezilla' on Channel Seven reality TV series Bride & Prejudice earlier this year.

But Courtney Cole, 19, can now boast the ultimate revenge body after being dumped by ex-fiance Brad on his Kings Cross buck's night.

The Sydney socialite appears to have undergone a breast enlargement, and displays a noticeably bigger bust in recent Instagram photos.

Is this her revenge body? Bride & Prejudice's Courtney Cole, 19, appears to have undergone a breast enlargement and displays a noticeably bigger bust in recent Instagram photos

Courtney's social media followers have been discussing surgery rumours in the past few weeks, but she has yet to confirm the news herself.

But she has been drawing attention to her changing body shape by posting new photos alongside apparent 'throwback' snaps.

In recent pictures, Courtney's chest looks fuller while her overall body shape appears to have taken on 'Barbie doll' proportions.

Everybody's talking! Courtney's social media followers have been discussing surgery rumours in the past few weeks, but she has yet to confirm the news herself

Something to tell us? In recent pictures, Courtney's chest looks fuller while her overall body shape appears to have taken on 'Barbie doll' proportions

In particular, a photo posted from the Manly Food And Wine Festival on Monday afternoon highlights her 'body transformation'.

Courtney, who poses in black Nike leggings and a bikini top, turns away from the camera while putting her busty assets on display.

Her previous Instagram post, a 'throwback' from several weeks ago, shows her wearing a two-piece with a notably smaller chest.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Courtney for comment.

Reality TV star: Courtney rose to fame on Channel Seven television series Bride & Prejudice, which followed engaged couples whose families did not approve

Courtney rose to fame on controversial TV series Bride & Prejudice, which followed engaged couples whose families did not approve.

During the program, she split from fiance Brad after confronting him about 'speaking to other girls' on his Kings Cross buck's party.

Brad's mother Sherrie previously told New Idea that Courtney had undergone cosmetic enhancements.

'She's 18 and she's already had work done to her face,' she told the magazine.
She gave birth to her second son Racer just seven months ago.

And mother-of-two Lara Worthington (Bingle) has already pinged right back into shape.

The 29-year-old showed off her very trim and toned tummy in a bikini while holidaying in the Turks and Caicos on Sunday.

Abs-olutely incredible! Mother-of-two Lara Bingle showed off her trim and toned stomach in a bikini during her latest holiday in the Turks and Caicos on Sunday

Taking to her Instagram story to document her trip, she also flaunted her new black Mattheau two-piece.

Makeup free, the blonde was simply glowing and working up quite the golden tan.

Strolling along the shore, Lara dipped her toes in the water before going for a swim in the clear ocean.

Lara has been having a ball during her trip on the luxurious island, with snaps of her relaxing in the sun also appearing on her Instagram account.

New togs: Taking to Instagram story to document her trip, she also flaunted her new black Mattheau two-piece

Tanned: The Base entrepreneur also showed off her newly acquired tan

Having a ball: Lara also posted a snap of her relaxing in the sun during the holiday

Quick to get back in shape: The Cronulla native (pictured pre-birth) welcomed second son Racer just seven months ago and has been showing off her post-baby body on the beach

Taking to her Instagram account over the weekend, the 29-year-old model was pictured covered in sand - and her first son Rocket, two, was seemingly the culprit.

In the image, Lara's her famous figure is hidden underneath the sand while her head peeks out.

Meanwhile, a cheeky little hand (presumably Rocket's) can be seen digging with a bright yellow shovel.

The images come just days after Lara, who wed Avatar star Sam Worthington in 2014, appeared to have reverted to her maiden name, despite still using her husband's last name in her Instagram handle.

Buried alive! Lara (pictured) posted an adorable Instagram Story over the weekend of herself covered in sand - with her two-year-old son Rocket seemingly the culprit

Doting mum: Lara and Sam are parents to two boys , two-year-old Rocket (pictured) and seven-month-old Racer

What's in a name? Although Lara is still happily married to Sam Worthington (pictured right), she recently reverted to her maiden name

During a family outing to explore Pandora - The World of Avatar in Florida, the media personality proudly flashed a pass which had her name written as 'Lara Bingle'.

With her actor husband and Rocket in tow, Lara explored the new land in the Disney theme park.

The area is based on the James Cameron film, released in 2009, in which her husband starred.

It seems the family have been spending some quality time together recently.

Earlier this month, Lara and Sam were spotted enjoying a lavish getaway in the South of France.

The Cronulla native has also opened up in the past about how she's dealing with motherhood.

'It's amazing,' she previously told Fairfax. 'Two children under the age of two definitely keeps us busy, but it's the most rewarding thing ever.'
After two-weeks apart, Seven Year Switch's Stacey Louise and Sarge failed to fix their stalling relationship.

In fact, situations got much worse during Monday's reconciliation episode, with the blonde beauty bursting into tears as her beau confirmed he intends to break-up.

'Please give me another chance!' she pleaded, with tears streaming down her face.

Done? After two-weeks apart, Seven Year Switch's Stacey Louise and Sarge failed to fix their stalling relationship upon re-uniting on Monday's episode

This came as all-four couples returned home to their new partners, with Sarge and Stacey's partnership looking doomed before he'd even stepped out of the car.

'Have you missed Stacey Louise,' producers prompted her beau en route to her house.

He ignored their first two prompts, before eventually conceding: 'At the moment i'm feeling very negative about our relationship.'

Confirmed! In fact, situations got much worse during Monday's reconciliation episode, with the 36-year-old bursting into tears as her beau confirmed he intends to break-up

The ex-army personality's hesitation turned to despair after he brought up the fact she shared a bed with her experimental partner Johnny.

'We were sleeping in a massive king-size bed with a big wall in between us, what's your issue?' the surgically-enhanced reality TV veteran snapped back.

'I was jealous and I started to doubt my trust with you,' Sarge confessed.

Stacey remained steadfast throughout the argument, furious that she didn't find out he had a problem with their sex life until he brought it up 'on national TV.'

Sound-off! After a fight, Sarge screened her calls for days,telling producers: 'I don't think she has a soul... she needs to get the f**k out of my life,' before confirming he'd like councilors to help mediate their break-up

'We were going to have good sex tonight, but right now - f**k you' she said, causing upset Sarge to storm upstairs, before exiting the residence.

For days after, he screened her calls, telling producers: 'I don't think she has a soul... she needs to get the f**k out of my life.'

Before requesting: 'I need [councillors] Peter and Jo to basically be mediators in our break-up.'

When a teary Stacey finally managed to reach her absent boyfriend, who coyly explained: 'We will catch up tomorrow, but I do not want to be anywhere with you alone.'

Worse for wear! Elsewhere, Kaitlyn and movie nerd Mark's relationship also ended up worse for wear following their reconciliation

'Basically my whole journey was about answering two questions, Is love enough to keep people together - No... and do i want to actually have a partner who is more like me?'

He added: 'And the answer is yes, I want to be with someone who is more like me!'

Teary and distraught, realisation set in, before the blonde admitted to producers: 'I've just f**ked it [the relationship].'

Confession: During an argument, sobbing Kaitlyn felt helpless, confessing: 'You have the upper hand because I probably love you more than you love me'

Elsewhere, Kaitlyn and movie nerd Mark's relationship also ended up worse for wear following their reconciliation.

He questioned the American for 'breaking her promise' and sharing her bed with partner Michael and for going skinny dipping with him in a watering hole.

Eventually, a sobbing Kaitlyn felt helpless, confessing: 'You have the upper hand because I probably love you more than you love me.'

Felicity and Michael, on the other hand, looked to have fixed their issues for good, after the tattooed star admitted that he needed to stop 'over-reacting over small things.'

Fixed! Felicity and Michael, on the other hand, looked to have fixed their issues for good, after the tattooed star admitted that he needed to stop 'over-reacting over small things'

Out of the dog house! With less than a week before the couple had to decide if they stayed together, they were now back to sharing a bed for the first time in many months

With less than a week before the couple had to decide if they stayed together, they were now back to sharing a bed for the first time in many months.

After nothing much changed in their reunion, Tracey and Johnny quickly settled back into their old ways.

Catching up with her girlfriends after, Tracey revealed that 'deep-down' she wanted to be with Johnny, but added: 'I can't give it another shot if I'm not 100 per cent into it.'

Next week, the couples will have to decide whether they'll stay in their relationships, or leave for good.

Old ways? After nothing much changed in their reunion, Tracey and Johnny quickly settled back into their old ways

Time will tell! Catching up with her girlfriends after, Tracey revealed that 'deep-down' she wanted to be with Johnny, but added: 'I can't give it another shot if I'm not 100 per cent into it'
It may have been a cold day in Sydney on Monday but the stars of Home and Away were turning up the heat.

Taking to the freezing water, a bikini clad Pia Miller filmed raunchy kissing scenes with her new on-screen love interest Jake Ryan.

Shooting on the Palm Beach, Sydney set, the pair were all smiles as they raced into the water and shared a tender embrace.

Hot! It may have been a cold day in Sydney on Monday but the stars of Home and Away were turning up the heat

Laughing as they waded through the shallow waves, the screen couple raced one another onto the orange sand.

Once there, they wrapped themselves up in towels and shared a passionate kiss, Jake tenderly cupping his co-star's face in his hand as their lips met.

The kiss deepened as filming went on, and the couple placed their arms around one another.

The Melbourne based actor's hand rested gently on Pia's tanned back, their affection truly sizzling.

Loved up characters: A bikini clad Pia Miller filmed raunchy kissing scenes with her new on-screen love interest Jake Ryan

Romantic: The pair wrapped themselves up in towels and shared a passionate kiss, Jack tenderly cupping his co-stars face in his hand as their lips met

Sizzling! The kiss deepened as filming went on, and the couple placed their arms around one another, their affection truly sizzling

Gentle: Jake touched Pia's face carefully and it appears their characters are deeply in love

Smiles: The pair shared a more friendly hug and mucked around after their intense love scene

It appears the two actors share excellent on-screen chemistry and despite the cold, were in high spirits.

The twosome repeatedly laughed and shared jokes, as well as mucking around sharing a playful hug after they finished their intense love scene.

Jake and Pia also go physical during the scenes, touching one another's faces, arms and shoulders, and appear to be playing quite the loved up pair in the soap.

Look at his pretty face! Pia tenderly cupped her co-star's cheek as they filmed scenes

Friendly: Taking to the freezing water, they were seen touching one another's arms and shoulders as they waded into the waves

Fun! Despite the cold the twosome were seen smiling and laughing among the sea foam

Gorgeous! Pia showed off her famous figure in a floral print two piece

Tropical: The swimsuit featured a blue toned background and large pink flowers across the bust and bottoms

Pia showed off her famous figure in a floral print two piece with a blue toned background and large pink flowers across the bust and bottoms.

The string bikini struggled to contain the beauty's ample bust as she bounced along the shore.

The matching bottoms sat low beneath her taut tummy and tied up at her slender hips.

Run carefully! The string bikini struggled to contain the beauty's ample bust as she bounced along the shore

Slip slop slap: Even cold days require sunscreen and Pia protected herself from the rays

Tiny! Pia's famous figure including her pert derriere was on display in the swimwear

Buff bloke: Jake wasn't looking so bad either, the hunky actor flaunting his muscular arms and plethora of tattoos

The skimpy swimwear beautifully flattered the fit model's figure, her muscular abs on display.

Jake wasn't exactly looking so bad either, the hunky actor flaunting his muscular arms and plethora of tattoos.

Drying off: Jake and Pia dried off with large, brightly coloured towels

Wintry day: The cold weather was made all the more evident but the crew around the pair wearing huge puffer jackets

Bracing against the weather: Everyone but Pia and her co-star were rugged up

Warmed up: Once shooting was complete, Pia cut a vastly more casual figure in a black oversized shirt and loose track pants

Donning black and blue board shorts, his buff pecs and toned stomach were on show.

Once shooting was complete, Pia cut a vastly more casual figure in a black oversized shirt and loose track pants.

No peeking: At one point the actress hit under a towel as she changed with the help of a staffer

Looking good! A crew member made sure everything was in it's right place

The cold weather was made all the more evident but the crew around the pair wearing huge puffer jackets.

Pia plays Katarina Chapman on the TV soap, and Jake will play her bad boy new love interest.

Melbourne-born actor Jake's list of film credits include Baz Luhrman's The Great Gatsby and recent Australian mini-series Wolf Creek.
She is getting back into the American groove after an extended stay in Cannes.

So what better place for Kendall Jenner to enjoy a meal than a Japanese restaurant in Los Angeles on Sunday.

The self-styled model looked like she could hardly wait to catch up with her mother Kris at the upmarket Nobu eatery in West Hollywood.

Something up her sleeve: Kendall Jenner dined out in an eye-catching jacket in Los Angeles on Sunday

The 21-year-old, whose father is Caitlyn Jenner, wore her trademark jolly expression as she got ready for her big night out, and had clearly dressed to impress.

Kendall was wearing a denim jacket with fur sleeves, black top, skinny jeans and trendy leather boots.

The professional clotheshorse looks like she has re-acclimatised after a dream vacation, where she spent much of her time on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival in France.

She was joined for her meal by glamorous granny Kris Jenner, 61, who was wearing an off-the-shoulder cream-colored dress.

Sadly her other half Corey Gamble, 33, was not in attendance.

It beats food from Cannes: She was dining out at a posh Japanese restaurant

On-trend: Glamorous granny Kris Jenner showcased her figure in a very revealing dress

Later Kendall tagged along with her mother when she met her most famous daughter Kim Kardashian at a John Legend concert.

Kim uploaded a video that showed them singing along as John performed on stage at the Greek theater.

The concert took place at the famous Los Angeles outdoor venue The Greek Theater.

Kim's bundled up appearance could be due to the mildly chilly high 50 degree weather LA had on Sunday night.

Off=key: Later Kendall and half-sister Kim Kardashian sang along at John Legend's concert
Her sun-soaked holiday in Marbella has been somewhat tainted by the fact that she lost her luggage upon arrival.

And it seems Ashley James has still not been reunited with her clothes, as she continued to parade her figure in nothing but skimpy swimwear on Sunday.

The 30-year-old took to Instagram to share another titillating snap, which saw her flaunt her famous bust and enviably toned stomach in a racy black mesh two-piece.

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Bikini babe: It seems Ashley James has still not been reunited with her clothes, as she continued to parade her figure in nothing but skimpy swimwear on Sunday

Posing sultrily against the wall of her villa, the blonde's enviably slender figure was clear for all to see as she posed in nothing but the saucy bra top.

Plunging into a deep V at her chest to give an ample glimpse of her assets, the look was then made even sexier by its mesh panels - before it cut off beneath her bust to leave her petite waist on show.

Not stopping there, the bombshell then used the opportunity of her lost luggage to stock up on clothes - posing in a brand new bikini printed with pineapples all over.

Feeling fruity: Not stopping there, the bombshell then used the opportunity of her lost luggage to stock up on clothes - posing in a brand new bikini printed with pineapples all over (above)

Soaking up the sunshine in the skimpy triangle top and tie-side bottoms, Ashley's impressively toned stomach took centre stage as she posed seductively for fans.

Embracing the lighter side of her annoying suitcase situation, she revealed in the caption: 'The one good thing about not having a suitcase is that I got to go shopping and found this cute pineapple bikini.'

Ashley had first revealed her luggage woes on Saturday, when she took to the social media site to post a rather cheeky snap of her in the bath naked with her friend, soon after touching down in the Spanish hotspot.

Oops: Taking to the social media site to reveal her luggage woes, the stunning blonde had already posted a rather cheeky snap of her in the bath naked with her friend

She captioned the raunchy photo: 'When your suitcases don't arrive and you have no clothes. Cheers Gatwick!'

She jokingly added: 'Very excited to DJ tomorrow, let's hope my luggage turns up before then!'

The siren has been enjoying a lengthy holiday over the last few weeks - having shared snaps from Dorgali, Italy earlier this week.

Stunning: The siren has been enjoying a lengthy holiday over the last few weeks - having shared snaps from Dorgali, Italy earlier this week (above)

In a scintillating Instagram holiday snap, Ashley spoke to fans about feeling confident in her own skin - after openly discussing her battle with body dysmorphia in the past.

The stunning blonde left little to the imagination in a black lace bodysuit with oblique detailing.

Holidaying in the picturesque Dorgali commune in Sardinia, Ashley posed seductively with her ample assets on display.

The radio host completed her look with subtle gold jewellery and shades of dark eye shadow.

Red hot: Ashley James gave Pamela Anderson her run for her money in a modern take on that red one-piece

Continuing to promote body confidence she wrote: '"Even the models we see in magazines wish they could look like their own images." Cheri K. Erdman Trust me. Wearing @bluebellaofficial #noretouchig [sic].'

The seductive pics come a day after Ashley channeled Pamela Anderson in Baywatch with her very own red bikini snap.

The buxom blonde came close to popping out of the extremely plunging swimsuit as she walked sexily out of the sea.

Sharing the seductive footage online, she told fans: 'BAE WATCH! Found a red swimsuit so naturally I had to be really basic and give my best Pamela Anderson impression, especially as we're DJ'ing in Marbella this weekend at a beach party she's attending!'

The former Made In Chelsea beauty, 30, has given the Baywatch slow-motion run her best go in a new video

The buxom blonde came close to popping out of the extremely plunging swimsuit as she walked sexily out of the sea

Sharing the seductive footage online, she told fans: 'BAE WATCH! Found a red swimsuit so naturally I had to be really basic and give my best Pamela Anderson impression

Back home in London last week, the star was much more covered up than usual as she parted ways with her normal bikini-clad looks.

She looked super funky for her outing in the figure-hugging black top which was clad in the logo 'Goal Digger' in large green lettering.

The DJ teamed the look with a pair of high-waisted slim-leg blue denims, which were slightly rolled up underneath.

Strolling along in a pair of comfortable black trainers, Ashley looked very much trendy as she also sported a pair of rose gold headphones around her neck.

Statement style: Back home in London last week, the star was much more covered up than usual as she parted ways with her normal bikini-clad looks

Trendy: The former Made In Chelsea star donned a figure-hugging black top which was clad in the logo 'Goal Digger' in large green lettering

Fashionista: The DJ teamed the look with a pair of high-waisted slim-leg blue denims, which were slightly rolled up underneath

Taking into consideration the low-key aspect to the day, Ashley wore her blonde locks in a messy bun - complementing her bronzed make-up look.

Ashley regularly puts out unretouched images of her slim bikini body out on her social media as part of a fight against unrealistic body image.

But even she was shocked at her immediate reaction to the now-famous unairbrushed Kim Kardashian bikini photos which were taken during her recent trip to Mexico.

Posting a lengthy caption with a sexy shot of her in a revealing red swimming costume, Ashley admitted that she had to scold herself over judging Kim's 'cellulite'.

Style star: Strolling along in a pair of comfortable black trainers, Ashley looked very much trendy as she also sported a pair of rose gold headphones around her neck

Wistfully penning a memory of her time on holiday in Holbox Island, Ashley turned her commentary to the subject of Kim's derriere.

'To be honest, when I first saw the photos I thought two things. Firstly, I loved seeing cellulite because I thought it was great that she could of edited images and she didn't,' the model began.

'Secondly, my immediate subconscious reaction was to be judgmental of her body, and I had to stop myself because I realise - why do we do this or care about how another woman's body looks?'

Ashley's post then became philosophical in nature, and she proffered some advice for her fans that she follows herself.

Having her say: Ashley regularly puts out unretouched images of her slim bikini body out on her social media as part of a fight against unrealistic body image

'I train myself to not think about it': Even she was shocked at her immediate reaction to the now-famous unairbrushed Kim Kardashian bikini photos which were taken during her recent trip to Mexico

'Does judging Kim Kardashian make me feel better about myself? I think judgement is natural, but I always to train myself not to think it and I never say it out loud to others.'

Ashley is herself a victim of body shaming, claiming last month that a taxi driver 'slut-shamed' her for wearing a plunging black crop top.

Penning another commentary on an Instagram post about the incident, she revealed that she 'broke down in tears' and 'was made to feel like a cheap whore'.

Luckily, she decided to ignore the taxi driver, and bravely went on with her evening in the revealing top after deciding she shouldn't feel ashamed about her 'natural, God-given body'.
She's never been one to shy away from flaunting her enviable figure in an array of sartorial looks.

And Pixie Lott, 26, was back to her old style tricks as she showcased her toned abs in various swimsuit clad selfies on Instagram during her sun soaked trip in Portugal on Sunday.

The Cry Me Out hitmaker oozed sex appeal as she shared a saucy snap of herself, sporting an eye-catching pink bikini that displayed her ample cleavage with its plunging neckline.

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Pink to make 'em wink: Pixie Lott, 26, was back to her old style tricks as she showcased her toned abs wearing a vibrant pink bikini in a saucy mirror selfie on Instagram during her sun soaked trip in Portugal on Sunday

Posing alongside her sister Charlie-Ann, the Essex beauty's honed curves were in full display as she slipped on a pair of low-slung matching bikini bottoms which featured tie-side detail across her slender hips.

The songstress teased at the tops of her enviable pins while her taut stomach was on full-display as she gave the peace side with her sibling in tow.

Accessorising her look, she wrapped a number of intricate necklaces around her pristine decolletage and sported a pair of on-trend clear-lens glasses while her blonde tresses were worked into a low bun.

Captioning the figure-flaunting display, she wrote: 'I [love] you my fellow four eyed sister'.

Kooky: Showcasing her kooky style in another snap, Pixie managed to continue to exhibit her phenomenal figure in an funky crop top coords

Showcasing her kooky style in another snap, Pixie continued to exhibit her phenomenal figure in an funky crop top coords as she sat by her Conrad Hotel's luxurious pool.

Her multi-coloured floral print look featured a darling bikini top that matched her high-waisted shorts that cinched in her hourglass figure and displayed her lean limbs with aplomb.

Pixie threw a coordinating backpack over her shoulders while fixing her blonde locks in place with a complementing headband which accentuated her eclectic daisy embellished circular shades.

Noticeably absent from her darling display was her model fiance Oliver Cheshire.

Flying solo: Noticeably absent from her darling display was her model fiance Oliver Cheshire

The couple announced their engagement in November 2016, after Oliver got down on one knee on the steps of London's majestic St Paul's Cathedral.

The pair have been together for six years, although Pixie admitted to MailOnline at the BBC Music Awards back in December that she wasn't in a rush to get married.

She said: 'I really haven't gone into plans yet. Next year's going to be super busy with new music and other stuff and I don't want to rush because it I want it to be absolutely perfect.

'I just burst into tears [when it happened]. I was so tired and jet lagged as I'd just got back from LA and we'd been at a wedding party the night before.

'I'd had no sleep, so I just burst into tears, for once I was speechless!'
They announced their engagement just four days ago via Instagram.

And The Bachelor's Tim Robards, 33, and Anna Heinrich, 30, looked to be getting in wedding practice, as they attended a friend's nuptials in Bali last weekend.

The reality star couple both wore white and mingled with guests at the island destination.

Getting wedding ideas? The Bachelor's Tim Robards, 33, and Anna Heinrich, 30, attended a friend's nuptials in Bali, just days after announcing their engagement

Anna looked effortlessly chic at the destination wedding.

A white lace frock by Rachel Gilbert, with a strategic cut-out, highlighted her toned back and lithe figure.

Nude strappy heels elongated her frame, while a coordinating clutch carried most of her belongings.

Chic: Anna sported a white lace frock by Rachel Gilbert, that highlighted her toned back and lithe figure

Neutral-hued: The former criminal lawyer elongated her frame with nude strappy heels and carried the majority of her belongings in a coordinating clutch

Sweeping her signature blonde locks back off her face, Anna added a touch of bling with gold earrings, in the shape of a love heart.

The former criminal lawyer's striking facial features were enhanced with a flawless complexion, defined brows, lashings of mascara and a nude lip.

Beau Tim, cut a cool and casual figure in a white linen shirt, with several buttons left undone.

In sync: Beau Tim, donned a white linen shirt with several buttons left undone, coordinating white trousers and brown dress shoes

Social: The fitness professional, with a beverage in hand, happily mingled with fellow guests at the destination wedding

Bling: Tim added a silver statement watch as an accessory to his all-white ensemble

Coordinating linen pants and brown dress shoes finished off the the fitness professional's attire.

Clutching a beer in one hand, Tim happily chatted with fellow wedding guests.

The pictures come shortly after Tim and Anna announced their engagement via Instagram.

Beauty: Anna styled her signature blonde tresses into a chic ponytail

Content: Tim appeared carefree and relaxed as he engaged in conversation

Happy news: The sighting comes shortly after Tim and Anna announced their engagement via social media

Anna, who met her fiance four years ago on the set of The Bachelor, announced the happy news last Wednesday.

The blonde beauty debuted her impressive diamond sparkler by uploading a photo of her bikini-clad self, beaming alongside her man.

'Officially forever #ENGAGED,' Anna gushed in the caption.

Tim also shared a snap of the two lovebirds posing together, writing: 'LOVE made me do it! On the weekend... in a little dinghy... floating on a secluded river...I asked this amazing woman to marry me... she said YES!!! Woohoo!! #ENGAGED.'

Hinting: Last month, Tim delighted fans when he hinted at an upcoming marriage proposal to Anna

Positive: 'Let's just say 2017 is going to be a good year,' the entrepreneur told TV Week magazine

Last month, Tim delighted fans when he hinted at an upcoming marriage proposal to Anna.

'Let's just say 2017 is going to be a good year,' the entrepreneur told TV Week magazine.

His girlfriend meanwhile, was thrilled to hear the hunk's comment.

'That's the first I've heard of it. But it obviously it would be great,' she gushed.

Thrilled: His girlfriend meanwhile, was thrilled to hear the hunk's comment: 'That's the first I've heard of it. But it obviously it would be great,' Anna gushed

Prized bling: Anna took to Instagram last Wednesday, debuting her sparkling engagement ring
She's been linked with one of the world's biggest stars since interviewing him on live TV last week.

Now Samantha Armytage has hit back at a woman's magazine for claiming she is in a relationship with Tom Cruise.

Sam took a photo of the magazine's front cover and posted it to Instagram, questioning the article.

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Say whaaat? Samantha Armytage has hit back at a woman's magazine for claiming she is in a relationship with Tom Cruise

The front page showed a photo of Sam, 40, and Tom, 54, with the headline reading: 'Secret late-night dates... Could Sam be the new Mrs Cruise?!'

The article caught Sam's attention as she took a photo of it and shared it to her Instagram story commenting: 'Say whaaat?'

She also discussed the story on Sunrise on Tuesday morning with her co-host David Koch.

'Its such rubbish. If ever you needed to know that womens magazines were full of rubbish, have a look at it today.. dont buy it!' she exclaimed.

According to the outlandish report published in Woman's Day on Monday, the Hollywood star and the Sunrise host may be engaging in a 'budding romance' after Sam interviewed the Risky Business star last Wednesday.

Just a rumour? The hilarity of the article caught Sam's attention as she took a photo of it and shared it to her Instagram story saying: 'Say whaaat?'

The strange claim alleges Sam and Tom had were seen 'flirting' off set, with Tom 'pictured deep in conversation' with the TV host, and 'even held her hand and affectionately put his arm around her'.

The magazine goes on to muse that the pair had 'chemistry' and 'maybe even lined up an after-work liaison'.

The story also claims 'fans believe' Tom sent a 'secret signal' to Sam during the interview when he stated he liked exploring new cities 'in the middle of the night'.

Mixing business and pleasure? The magazine goes on to muse that the pair had 'chemistry' and 'maybe even lined up an after-work liaison'

New romance? The pair were linked after Sam interviewed the star on Sunrise while he was in Australia promoting the new Mummy film

The pair were linked after Sam interviewed the star on Sunrise while he was in Australia promoting the new Mummy film.

Following the interview, the blonde blushed while stating: 'He is gorgeous. I really liked him.'

'I thought there was a connection between you and Tom,' her co-host, David Koch, 61, noted.
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They are fast approaching the year anniversary since they first laid eyes on each other.

And Olivia Buckland proved she is as enamoured as ever with her hunky fiance Alex Bowen as they put on an extremely steamy display during a romantic trip to Cape Verde.

The 24-year-old Love Island star looked sensational in skimpy red bikini as she flashed her stunning frame in the two-piece showing off her eye-popping bust and peachy posterior, as Alex flaunted his ripped physique in a pair of skimpy blue trunks.

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Up close and personal: Olivia Buckland proved she is as enamoured as ever with her hunky fiance Alex Bowen as they put on an extremely steamy display during a romantic trip to Cape Verde

As the third series of the rebooted Love Island approaches, Olivia and Alex are set to ring in one year since they met on the show, during which they got off to a rocky start when a lie detector test threatened their romance - after Alex's intentions were questioned, yet they soon flouted the doubts and continued their love.

After he popped the question late last year, the duo have been living in engaged bliss - with their recent beach display proving they are truly as loved up as ever with their sizzling passion clear to see.

Alex could not keep his hands off Olivia as they hit the beach and it was clear to see why as she wowed in her red bikini which showed off every inch of her incredible frame.

The sculpted bikini top helped boost her cleavage, while dazzling adornments at the neckline drew the attention further to her bust, which she previously denied was surgically-enhanced after cruel trolls attacked her with unfounded claims about lip fillers and surgical enhancements.

Up, up and away! Alex scooped the stunning star into his arms with ease - ensuring he displayed his strength, honed no doubt by hours in the gym

Woo! The inked-up pair were giddy as they larked around on the shores

Hold on tight: After he popped the question late last year, the duo have been living in engaged bliss - with their recent beach display proving they are truly as loved up as ever with their sizzling passion clear to see

Cheeky! Alex got to grips with Olivia's ample assets, in a display that no doubt left fellow sunworshippers blushing

Back on the Love Island: Delighted Olivia found love with her fiance on Love Island, in a flurry of sun, sand and on-screen sex. And while the Essex-born beauty is blissfully revelling in the spoils of love, after her handsome beau popped the question earlier this month, she insists they will keep their sordid TV romps secret from their children

Peachy: It was clear to see Olivia works hard in the gym, as she checked out her squat-enhanced derriere

Giddy: Alex was more than appreciative of his stunning fiancee's good looks and smouldering physique

Amazing! Olivia's figure looked incredible as she walked the beach while showing off her derriere

Having a giggle: The couple are frequently seen jetting off - with the latest being a super sexy display

Not content with flashing her cleavage, the blonde beauty also showed off her incredibly perky posterior in the barely-there bottoms that sat high on her hips to best flaunt her curves.

Delighted Olivia found love with her fiance on Love Island, in a flurry of sun, sand and on-screen sex. And while the Essex-born beauty is blissfully revelling in the spoils of love, after her handsome beau popped the question, she insists they will keep their sordid TV romps secret from their children.

In a previous interview with MailOnline, Olivia lashed out at the frequent Photoshop claims she is hit with - insisting she is simply 'naturally blessed'. The stunning star soared to fame in June when she starred on the second season of the rebooted version of the ITV2 show, where she went on to meet Alex and enjoy a month of bikini-clad frolics in the sunshine.

Woo! Olivia was swept off her feet, literally, as Alex picked her up on the idyllic beach

Sizzling: The envy-inducing backdrop was the perfect setting for their romantic display

Oh my! Not content with flashing her cleavage, the blonde beauty also showed off her incredibly perky posterior in the barely-there bottoms that sat high on her hips to best flaunt her curves

Eek! When she left the house, the blonde beauty garnered a legion of social media followers and often took to Instagram to share pictures of her sizzling body - which often led to claims of Photoshop and digital wizardry

Eek! Alex picked Olivia up as she could not stop screeching with delight at her hunky man

Baewatch: The duo pulled their best Baywatch impression as they ran through the shore

Come here you! Olivia has always blasted the suggestions, as she hit back at followers by claiming she lost weight after Love Island atop having a tattoo on her waist, which provides the illusion of a more slender physique.

Oops! Alex was careful to hold on tight to his stunning girlfriend as they ambled along

When she left the house, the blonde beauty garnered a legion of social media followers and often took to Instagram to share pictures of her sizzling body - which often led to claims of Photoshop and digital wizardry.

Yet Olivia has always blasted the suggestions, as she hit back at followers by claiming she lost weight after Love Island atop having a tattoo on her waist, which provides the illusion of a more slender physique. In her interview with MailOnline, she finally put the rumours to bed as she said: 'It sounds stuck up but I don't have a reason to, I don't need to Photoshop.

'I go to the gym, I eat well, I work hard for my body. I'm naturally blessed, I can't keep sticking up for myself. It's just a case of eat well, go to the gym, just try and be happy for people rather than jealous of people.

Cheeky! The duo grew extremely close as they walked along the shore

All love! Between giggles, the duo exchanged romantic kisses - flaunting their love and their bodies

'The reason I respond to trolls is because I don't like people thinking they can speak to anyone in that way. I don't want girls to sit there and think they can take it if they're being trolled or people are being nasty.

'You have to stick up for yourself and I want to get that message across. If they wanna say I've photoshopped, I should take it as a compliment really. I've got an amazing camera which makes my skin look nice but I'd never Photoshop.'

Olivia's engagement came as a shock to the reality world, after her and Alex met a mere eight months ago, yet she is insistent their future is sparkling. She revealed they do have plans for children - but will keep an integral element of their love story quiet particularly their various on-screen romps.

She said: 'We have said we want kids eventually. We just want to enjoy our time together, we have a lot to do, experiences to have, holidays to take.

Check me out: Alex could not resist gazing at his physique during their jaunt

'It will be nice but maybe not in the next seven years. I'm still a baby anyway. I would never let my kids watch Love Island! There's not as much controversy in sex on TV as there used to be. But I won't be showing my kids Love Island. Maybe keep it secret from them for quite a while.'

Having forged a successful career in becoming a beauty guru, Olivia admitted to her biggest regret - having lip fillers at the tender age of 21.

She admits how infuriating it is when followers accuse her of having enhanced lips as the initial injections wore off after six months.

Hitting back: In January, Alex lashed out at a cruel troll who claimed Olivia's lips and breasts were fake. Of the scenario he said: 'I had my lips done November 2015 and whenever people ask me I say I did have them done

In January, Alex lashed out at a cruel troll who claimed Olivia's lips and breasts were fake. Of the scenario he said: 'I had my lips done November 2015 and whenever people ask me I say I did have them done.

'But that's why I get upset when people say I did have them done because I was really against it when I had them done. For people to accuse me of it still when I haven't had them done is really upsetting for me because I really hated it when I had them. I don't want any other girls to make the same mistake.

'If they say that about me, Alex sees how much it bothered me before. He loves me natural and without my make-up. He doesn't like when people say nasty things about me or upset me. He is protective and that's nice.

Started from the bottom now we're here... As the third series of the rebooted Love Island approaches, Olivia and Alex are set to ring in one year since they met during which they got off to a rocky start when a lie detector test threatened their romance - after Alex's intentions were questioned, yet they soon flouted the doubts and continued their love
He has publicly been named and shamed by his famous wife after she revealed all about his cheating scandal back in 2014.

Kieran Hayler, 30, had embarked on a ten-month affair with Katie Price's best friend of 20 years Jane Pountney, but despite vowing to divorce her husband on uncovering his infidelity, the couple have managed to get their marriage back on track - even renewing their vows a year later.

The mum-of-five, 39, has openly spoken of her heartbreak, but now her husband Kieran has finally had his say on his actions that rocked their relationship.

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Relationship woes: Katie Price, 39, has admitted she would have left her husband Kieran Hayler, 30, following his ten month affair with her former best friend Jane Pountney if she hadn't have been pregnant with their daughter Bunny

Appearing on Loose Women for the show's bank holiday special, Kieran joined Eamonn Holmes, James Jordan and Joe Swash on the panel alongside their respective partners Ruth Langsford, Ola Jordan and Stacey Solomon.

At the beginning of the show, he was asked whether he would be 'getting his own back' on Katie for always being so vocal about his infidelity.

But he insisted that wasn't the case and saw his stint on the show as an opportunity to 'give my opinion'.

Katie joked: 'He's been gagged... no it's good, it's about time he speaks.'

Her decision to stay with Kieran following his cheating had raised eyebrows at the time and she admitted onscreen that if she hadn't have been pregnant with the couple's daughter Bunny, two, when the affair occurred, she wouldn't have stuck around.

'Walking away would have been the easy option,' Kieran said in response.

Having his say: She had been joined by her partner on Loose Women on Monday where Kieran discussed his cheating scandal onscreen

'I don't crave [for sex] now at all': The former stripper spoke candidly of his time in therapy for a sex addiction following his wrongdoing

Since his affair was uncovered, Kieran has undergone therapy to be treated for a sex addiction and he admits one therapist had deemed him 'un-treatable' after spending four days with him in the wake of his affair.

Explaining what a sex addiction is, Kieran admitted he was more addicted to the 'adrenaline rush' being unfaithful brought with it rather than the act itself and he confesses: 'It'll never be gone, but it's how you deal with it.

'I haven't had a therapy session for a year now.'

Admitting he was skeptical at receiving help, Kieran said: 'I didn't actually believe [the therapy] was working. They made me and Katie not touch each other for eight weeks.

'I broke down completely, but you have to want to help yourself for it to work.'

'It was a cry for help': Kieran has credited his wife Katie for 'saving him' from his addiction - he had cheated on her with multiple women - including another of her close friends Chrissy Thomas

'I broke down completely': He admitted his therapy had been difficult, with therapists ordering him and Katie to 'not touch each other' for eight weeks

He claims his actions were a 'cry for help' and credited Katie for 'saving him' and making him seek help.

'I don't crave [for sex] at all now. It took me being caught to save me,' he said, before gushing: 'Kate is my guardian angel.'

During his time on air, Kieran also shared an insight into the couple's family life now and revealed he takes on a domestic role in their house - like doing the school run every morning, as Kate is 'always working' and 'earning the money' for the family.

While he received a slight mocking from the rest of the guys appearing on the show, Kieran defended his role in the household and said: 'I do everything to make her life easier, so when she steps through that door, she doesn't have to do anything.'

He joked that he doesn't receive any gratitude from his other half, but insisted he was happy to do it.

Scandal: Kieran had cheated on Katie with her former best friend of 20 years Jane Pountney - the duo embarked on a ten month affair while Katie was pregnant with daughter Bunny

Expecting: The TV star had been pregnant with the couple's daughter Bunny (pictured above moments before the birth) when she found out about Kieran's affair

Eamonn then asked the former stripper if he was still happy to do so when Katie comes home a little worse for wear, prompting the panel to ask whether he prefers Katie to her alter ego Jordan from her early glamour modelling days.

Kieran replied: 'I fell in love with Kate - the homely girl who's not going out and getting drunk and wearing her bikini out to a nightclub.

'Jordan's becoming less and less out there because Kate's getting older. She's not a 21 year old glamour model anymore, she's a mother of five and she's at home.'

Katie and Kieran had tied the knot in an intimate beach wedding in the Bahamas in January 2013, just a month after Kieran had popped the question on Christmas Day.

Their wedding came just two months after they first began dating and the duo now share two children together son Jett, three, and daughter Bunny, two.

Proud parents: Katie and Kieran share two children together, Bunny, two and their son Jett, three

Stay-at-home dad: Kieran also shared an insight into the couple's family life now and revealed he takes on a domestic role in their house - like doing the school run every morning, as Kate is 'always working' and 'earning the money' for the family

Katie is also mum to 15-year-old Harvey, son Junior, 11, and daughter Princess, nine.

Her marriage had been rocked after Katie caught her husband cheating on her with her best friend of 20 years Jane Pountney.

She had been pregnant at the time with their daughter and spotted Kieran getting intimate with Jane on a beach during a holiday they had taken to Cape Verde in 2014.

Katie was quick to name and shame the duo on Twitter and shared a series of scathing tweets that read: '@kieran0322 and jane pountney the w**** were f****** all through France they been f****** in my house the whole time even when I was home.

'@kieran0322 has confessed this today they are both lying cheating ***ts.'

Big family: Katie is also mum to 15-year-old Harvey, son Junior, 11, and daughter Princess, nine

She found out their affair had lasted ten months and later recalled the moment she lashed out at Jane - her maid of honour when she had tied the knot with Kieran - on uncovering the truth.

Katie explained how she had given her former friend a 'black eye' and 'knocked her tooth out' as she acted on her rage.

She said: 'I remember going down to the bar one day in Cape Verde to ask the staff if they had seen my husband.

'They pointed towards the beach and said he'd gone that way. I asked them if he was with anyone and they said no. At that point, I knew he had gone to meet her.

'So I started walking towards the beach and in the distance, I could see these two silhouettes on the sun loungers. My heart was racing because I knew it was them. Then there they were, kissing each other...

'I fell in love with Kate - the homely girl': Kieran admits he prefers Kate to her alter-ego Jordan from her early glamour model days

He said: 'Jordan's (pictured above in 2004) becoming less and less out there because Kate's getting older. She's not a 21 year old glamour model anymore, she's a mother of five and she's at home'

'The worst thing is Jane's two kids came in and they saw me attacking their mum. Security walked in and I just wouldn't get off her.'

In her autobiography Reborn, Katie goes into huge detail about Kieran's infidelity and recalls how she later found out he had been unfaithful on multiple occasions - including with another of Katie's close friends Chrissy Thomas.

The mum-of-five explains she grew suspicious of Jane and Kieran throughout their affair - claiming Jane had gradually 'morphed' herself into the former glamour model by copying her outfit choices and favoured beauty treatments.

On their return from Cape Verde, Katie decided to work on her marriage with Kieran and he embarked on therapy, confessing he had a sex addiction.

Kieran previously admitted he had downplayed the damning Cape Verde incident as a drunken fumble, but was later caught out after his furious wife employed the services of a lie detector analyst from The Jeremy Kyle Show.

Katie was allowed to ask three questions during the test and chose; Other than the one time in Cape Verde, have you kissed Jane? Have you ever had sexual contact with Jane? Have you had contact with Jane since the holiday in Cape Verde?

Thankful: He claimed his affair had been a 'cry for help' and credited Katie for 'saving him' and making him seek help

With his body signals letting him down, the strapping builder eventually admitted that Jane had groped him while they were lounging together  but denied having full sex with the former British Airways hostess until he was urged, with the prompting of a counsellor brought in by his wife, to finally confess.

Nearly three years on, Katie has insisted she has now forgiven Kieran for his wrongdoings.

While promoting her new autobiography Reborn in December last year, she admitted that her heart was still 'broken' and 'reliving' the ordeal had been 'torture' for her.

She admitted that she and Kieran were both heading back to therapy and Katie took a break away from her Loose Women commitments to spend some quality time with her husband to focus on their relationship.

On her return to the show in February earlier this year, she insisted that staying with Kieran despite his cheating had been the 'best thing I've ever done'.

Reliving her heartbreal: In her autobiography Reborn, Katie goes into huge detail about Kieran's infidelity and recalls how she later found out he had been unfaithful on multiple occasions

She said: 'I have actually said to him I have forgiven you and I will forget.

'I would definitely say I love [Kieran] more now. He's a different person - the old Kieran is gone.

'Don't get me wrong there has been times when I want to he him back - sometimes I want to do something to get back at him, but that is natural.'

They had renewed their wedding vows in February 2015, shortly after Katie had won Celebrity Big Brother.

During the ceremony, she had delivered a damning speech that detailed Kieran's past affair and her heartbreak.

Katie stated: 'The reason for renewing our vows today is so we can recommit to each other and he can stick to the vows he says today and not break them like before.'
She never puts a fashion foot out of place when she's on the red carpet.

And Lea Michele, 30, showcased her demure style as she stepped out in an all black ensemble while enjoying an evening at West Hollywood hotspot Craig's on Sunday night.

The Scream Queens actress dazzled the style watchers as she worked a silk slip dress which was cut on the bias and skimmed her petite frame with ease.

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Chic: Lea Michele, 30, showcased her demure style as she stepped out in an all black ensemble while enjoying an evening at West Hollywood hotspot Craig's on Sunday night

Her boudoir inspired garment featured a cleavage teasing neckline which highlighted her ample assets as she navigated the city's pavements in her height injecting strappy heels.

The TV star's knee-grazing ensemble highlighted her gym-honed figure to perfection as it hugged her narrow waist and slender hips with ease.

Adding to her sartorial display, she draped a statement leather jacket over her shoulders while she held onto her black Saint Laurent Monogramme Blogger bag in her red manicured hand.

Walk this way: The Scream Queens actress dazzled the style watchers as she worked a silk slip dress which was cut on the bias and skimmed her petite frame with ease

Lea - who rose to fame playing Rachel Berry in Glee from 2009 to 2015 - left her glossy brown locks to cascade down her shoulders in a loose style, while she sported a glossy nude lip for the evening.

Her appearance comes after she admitted she considers herself 'so happy' following the sudden death of her boyfriend Corey Monteith four years ago, as she turned the tragedy into inspiration for a new lease on life and a new album.

The Bronx-born beauty met Monteith on the set of Glee, where they played love interests and soon began dating in real life.

Honest: Her appearance comes after she admitted she considers herself 'so happy' following the sudden death of her boyfriend Corey Monteith four years ago, as she turned the tragedy into inspiration for a new lease on life and a new album

However his addiction issues were known to few, as he was found dead from a heroin overdose in a Vancouver hotel room in July of 2013.

The news crippled Michele, but she revealed earlier this month that she learned to cope and cautiously began moving forward.

'Whatever you've been through in your life,' she told People, 'to still have faith and to still believe is one of the greatest achievements you can have.'

As she leaned on friends and family, she also found solace in her music, using it as a form of therapy.

Strong: The news crippled Michele, but she revealed earlier this month that she learned to cope and cautiously began moving forward

Albeit penning new songs, many of the lyrics from her record Places hint to her relationship with Monteith, but she remains defiantly quiet on the subject.

She added: 'I like to keep certain things private. Song writing is a form of therapy.'

Performing many ballads on the album, the former Glee star revealed she took inspiration from many of her musical heroes, including Barbra Streisand and Celine Dion.

She said: 'Those women were an inspiration. Celine lost the love of her life [Renee Angelil in 2016] and holds herself with such poise. They've been these role models and it made me work hard to be the best I can be.'
They landed in the bottom three after failing to impress the judges in Sunday night's invention test.

And on Monday Jess, Sam and Trent found themselves cooking an unusual and complex dish to avoid elimination from the MasterChef kitchen.

They were cooking against renowned chef Josue Lopez, who has worked under Gordon Ramsay and made dishes for Barack Obama.

Elimination time: And on Monday Jess, Sam and Trent found themselves cooking an unusual and complex dish to avoid elimination from the MasterChef kitchen

The dish they had to recreate was called After The Eucalypt Fire which was made with emu meat and had 14 different elements.

The contestants had three hours to recreate the dish down to every small detail with the least impressive dish sending its maker home.

After Jess and Trent began powering through, Sam started to fall behind at the start of the cook by being too pedantic about exact measurements that were outlined in the recipe.

What a challenge! The dish they had to recreate was called After The Eucalypt Fire which was made with emu meat and had 14 different elements

Out in front: Jess kept a strong lead by finishing her charcoal pretzels well before the boys she was competing against

Jess kept a strong lead by finishing her charcoal pretzels well before the boys she was competing against.

Despite her lead, the judges were worried about Jess taking shortcuts in the detailed recipe to finish on time.

The judges continued their worry over to Sam's work station with Gary asking: 'What have you been doing?' as he was halfway through their time limit with hardly anything done.

Emotional: Throughout the cook, Jess broke down in tears due to the pressure and a want to stay in the competition

Inspiration: She brought a photo with her of her cooking up a storm in Italy to remind herself of the joy that she gets from cooking

Throughout the cook, Jess broke down in tears due to the pressure and a want to stay in the competition.

She brought a photo with her of her cooking up a storm in Italy to remind herself of the joy that she gets from cooking.

She said: My aunt took that picture of me. And I love that I didn't know that anyone was noticing me. Because I know when I look at that photo how much pleasure it gives me to cook.

Falling behind: The judges continued their worry over to Sam's work station with Gary asking: 'What have you been doing?'

Forgetting things! With one hour to go, Trent forgot to make his beetroot paint and skipped to making his beetroot leaf puree

After the talk with the judges, Sam came back with a vengeance and finished two elements to catch up with Jess and Trent.

With one hour to go, Trent forgot to make his beetroot paint and skipped to making his beetroot leaf puree.

Jess made the crucial mistake of leaving the storks on the beetroot leaves, making her puree an off green colour and tasting bitter but she had no time to make it again.

Uh oh! Jess made the crucial mistake of leaving the storks on the beetroot leaves, making her puree an off green colour and tasting bitter but she had no time to make it again

With 11 minutes to go, Trent still had lots of different elements to complete and was in real danger of not finishing his dish

In a mad dash in the last two minutes, the contestants only just managed to plate up their dishes with Jess breaking down after the clock at stopped because her dish lacked any kind of similarity to the the original creation.

The dishes were then tasted one at a time by the judges and Josue.

Crunch time: The dishes were then tasted one at a time by the judges and Josue

Crucial mistake: The judges were less than impressed with the presentation of Trent's dish and were disappointed with the lack of crispy elements

Sam's dish was tasted first with the judges pointing out the underwhelming texture of the beetroot by marveling in the rest of the elements.

Trent was up next and the judges were less than impressed with the presentation of his dish and were disappointed with the lack of crispy elements.

Last up was Jess's which prompted the judges to point out the bitterness of her beetroot leaf puree but said the rest of her dish was 'superb'.

After deliberation from the judges, Trent was eliminated from the competition and sent home.
An 'obsessed' fan of Rihanna has reportedly been released from custody after being arrested outside the star's New York apartment building last week.

TMZ report that Salmir Feratovic is back on the streets after pleading guilty to criminal trespass after his Tuesday morning arrest.

Feratovic was pictured in handcuffs near Rihanna's luxury apartment building, after previously being stopped outside the address twice last year.

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Targeted: An 'obsessed' fan of Rihanna has reportedly been released from custody after being arrested outside the star's New York apartment building last week

TMZ report that prosecutors wanted Feratovic to be locked up for five days after his most recent arrest, a request to which the judge agreed.

But Feratovic was released on Wednesday afternoon due to time already served.

An NYPD spokesperson confirmed to E! News that the 33-year-old was booked for criminal trespassing. The spokesperson said he had visited the residence before and was told then he was not allowed to return.

Feratovic has reportedly told TMZ that his arrest will 'not deter him from his relentless pursuit' of Rihanna.

NYC: TMZ report that Salmir Feratovic is back on the streets after pleading guilty to criminal trespass after his Tuesday morning arrest outside the star's NYC base

'Obsessed': Feratovic has reportedly said that the arrest has not deterred him in his pursuit

He was seen outside the same apartment building on two occasions in 2016, where he was stopped by the doorman.

The second incident saw the police called with reports at the time alleging he had a knife on him.

A representative for Rihanna has been contacted for comment.

Rihanna has been spending time at her New York home over the past week, where she's been working on new music in the studio.

She was also honoured for her contribution to fashion at the Parsons School of Design on Monday.
It's only been days since they announced their wedding plans via gushing posts to Instagram.

And on Monday, The Bachelor's Tim Robards, 33, and Anna Heinrich were all smiles as they arrived back in Sydney, after attending a friend's nuptials in Bali.

The reality star couple were pictured making their way out of the airport terminal, with blonde beauty Anna flaunting her sparkling engagement ring.

High-flying love! Anna Heinrich, 30, flaunted her sparkling engagement ring, as she and fiance Tim Robards, 33, jetted back into Sydney on Monday, after attending a friend's nuptials in Bali

Tim highlighted his gym-honed figure in cool and casual attire.

A grey long-sleeved top skimmed over his muscular upper frame, teamed with lightwash jeans, ripped at the knee.

White trainers, a silver statement watch and a brown satchel coordinated nicely.

Picture-perfect: The Bachelor's Tim beamed for waiting cameramen, as he wheeled his luggage out of the terminal

Svelte: Anna highlighted her figure in a grey slim-fitting top, paired with black skinny leg jeans, beige loafers and a shoulder bag

Anna looked effortlessly chic in a slim-fitting grey top, paired with skinny leg black jeans that clung to her trim pins.

A black leather biker jacket, beige loafers and a shoulder bag, tied in nicely.

Accessorising further with round-rimmed sunglasses, the former criminal lawyer drew attention to a minimal makeup palette, allowing her natural beauty to shine through.

Prized bling: Anna drew attention to her sparkling engagement ring

Details: The former criminal lawyer completed her look with round-rimmed sunglasses

Anna's blonde tresses were styled straight, falling behind her shoulders.

Wheeling her luggage through the airport terminal, there was no mistaking her sparkling engagement ring.

Tim and Anna returned from a friend's destination wedding in Bali.

The high-profile couple looked to be getting inspiration, with only having just announced their engagement via gushing Instagram posts.

Feeling inspired? Tim and Anna returned from a friend's destination wedding in Bali. The high-profile couple looked to be getting inspiration, with only having just announced their engagement via gushing Instagram posts

Making it official: Anna, who met her fiance four years ago on the set of The Bachelor, announced the happy news last Wednesday

Anna, who met her fiance four years ago on the set of The Bachelor, announced the happy news last Wednesday.

She debuted her impressive diamond sparkler by uploading a photo of her bikini-clad self, beaming alongside her man.

'Officially forever #ENGAGED,' Anna gushed in the caption.

Showing off the goods: She debuted her impressive diamond sparkler by uploading a photo of her bikini-clad self, beaming alongside her man

Tim also shared a snap of the two lovebirds posing together, writing: 'LOVE made me do it! On the weekend... in a little dinghy... floating on a secluded river...I asked this amazing woman to marry me... she said YES!!! Woohoo!! #ENGAGED.'

Last month, Tim delighted fans when he hinted at an upcoming marriage proposal to Anna.

'Let's just say 2017 is going to be a good year,' the entrepreneur told TV Week magazine.

His girlfriend meanwhile, was thrilled to hear the hunk's comment.

'That's the first I've heard of it. But it obviously it would be great,' she gushed.
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She was trackside to cheer on Lewis Hamilton and the glitzy Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday.

And just an hour after the Formula One race, stunning Winnie Harlow was on hand to console her rumoured former flame following his loss to Sebastian Vettel.

The gorgeous model took Lewis' mind off the track with a very racy thong-style bikini as the pair partied on a super yacht in Monte Carlo with a bevy of models, including Bella Hadid and Barbara Palvin.

Racy! Winnie Harlow took rumoured flame Lewis Hamilton's mind off the track with a very racy thong-style bikini as the pair partied on a super yacht in Monte Carlo with a bevy of models on Sunday, including Bella Hadid and Barbara Palvin

Winnie made the most of the scorching temperatures in her tiny burgundy and silver bikini which flaunted her model figure to perfection.

The beauty highlighted both her trim waist and pert posterior with the skimpy cut of her two piece as she paraded around the luxury yacht with her pals.

Meanwhile her model friend Bella opted for a simple but sexy black bikini with a plunging top as she worked on her tan.

Who needs a win? Just an hour after he lost the Monte Carlo Formula One race, Lewis looked in great spirits as he got touch feely with gorgeous Winnie

Back on? Winnie and Lewis reignited romance rumours when she was spotted caressing his neck at Thursday night's glamorous amfAR gala during Cannes Film Festival

Rumoured couple: Winnie flashed a big smile as got ready for a jet ski ride with her sports mad rumoured beau

Model Winnie shot to fame after being discovered by Tyra Banks on America's Next Top Model.

Having been bullied at school for her vitiligo, Winnie has previously admitted that she never expected to achieve such success in the fashion industry.

However, the catwalk beauty also recently admitted she is not a fan of being branded a 'role model' -as people shouldn't want to emulate others.

All eyes on her: Winnie, who has the skin condition vitiligo, was full of body confidence as she sunned herself on deck

Letting off some steam: Lewis stripped down to shorts and a baseball cap, showing off his extensive tattoo collection

Glam: The model flashed her pert posterior in her metallic red and silver thong-style two piece

I got you babe: Winnie was determined to get the party started following Lewis' disappointed run at the Monte Carlo race

What a view! The star who shot to fame on America's Next Top Model, proved why she is so in demand as a model

She told Elle Canada: 'I feel like I am an inspiration. Thats the word I prefer.

'I dont believe that I have to be a role model, someone to be emulated. My mom inspires me, and I take great things from her, but there are things from my mom that I would never do.'

Lewis looked in great spirits despite his loss on the track just an hour before, drinking and dancing with Winnie and co after letting off steam with a jet ski ride.

Bevy of beauties: Lucky Lewis was surrounded by his gorgeous friends on the yacht, with Bella Hadid flaunting her figure in a simply but sexy black bikini

And pose: Model Barbara Palvin looked gorgeous as she put on a sultry display with a male pal for some photos

This is the life! After spending the week at the star-studded Cannes Film Festival, Belle hot-footed it over to Monaco to see her friend Lewis race

Check out that body! Bella looked amazing in her high cut bikini bodies teamed with slicked back locks and hoop earrings

Model mates: Winnie and Bella have been partying together in Europe for the last few days, hitting Cannes and Monaco

Nice ride! The group had the use of a huge and very luxurious super yacht for their Sunday in Monte Carlo

The girls are here: Lewis made sure he had quite the welcome party as he returned to the yacht after his loss on the track

Winnie certainly seemed to lift the Brit sportsman's spirits, with the two getting very touchy feely with each other as they giggled on deck.

Lewis showed off his buff physique as she he stripped down to shorts and an on-brand Mercedes cap for a night of partying.

Winnie and Lewis reignited romance rumours when she was spotted caressing his neck at Thursday night's glamorous amfAR gala during Cannes Film Festival.

Hug it out: Bella was seen giving Lewis a big hug as the girls did their best to lift his spirits

Ready to hit the water: Winnie made sure she had all the safety gear as she waited for the jet skis to come out

Deep in thought: Lewis looked subdued at one point as he took some time by himself to ponder his F1 season

Taking his mind off things: Bella paraded around deck in her tiny thong-bikini as Lewis sipped on drinks

Admiring the view? Lewis, who was linked to Bella's sister Gigi in 2015, couldn't help but sneak a glimpse at his gorgeous friend

And as Lewis returned to work in Monaco on Sunday, Winnie followed with her pal Bella.

Lewis was racing for Mercedes AMG and no doubt Winnie was hoping he would come first. Ultimately, Sunday's win belonged to Sebastian Vettel who took his first Monte Carlo race since 2001.

They were originally linked romantically last year, despite Lewis denying they were dating. But pictures from Thursday night's amfAR Gala told a different story with Winnie seen wrapping an affection arm around Lewis' neck as he whispered into her ear at dinner.

Still got the need for speed! Despite coming off the track just an hour before, Lewis was keen to get another adrenaline rush on the water

On brand: The F1 champ dressed in head to toe Mercedes gear, the team he races for

Bevy of beauties: Bella and Winnie both chose the skimpiest of bikinis to make the most of the scorching temperatures

Kicking back: The ladies enjoyed drinks as they worked on their tans in the sunshine

Back with Lewis? Winnie and Lewis reignited romance rumours when she was spotted caressing his neck at Thursday night's glamorous amfAR gala during Cannes Film Festival

Love life whispers: They were originally linked romantically last year, despite Lewis denying they were dating

Derriere on display! Bella flashed her pert posterior as she leaned over to get another drink from a member of staff

Jet setter: Bella has been living the high life in recent weeks, being the belle of the ball at the Cannes Film Festival

Hitting the waves: Bella chatted to Winnie as she got ready to speed around the yacht

Lewis, who is 10 years the model's senior, even looked like he was leaning in to give her a kiss on the cheek at one time.

Flashing a big smile, Winnie looked delighted to be reunited with the Formula One champion during the star-studded event.

Lewis had denied that he was dating Winnie on The Ellen DeGeneres show last October, saying he was single and choosing to stay 'focused on my racing' instead.

Close: Lewis and Winnie seemed inseparable on board as the F1 racer joked around with the beaming model

Party people: The group of friends were joined by staff members to tend to their every beck and call on board

Showing some skin: Bella was full of body confidence in her minuscule thong style bikini

Kicking back: Lewis flashed a smile as he relaxed after another intense afternoon during the F1 2017 season

In the spotlight: Bella looked in great spirits as she sipped on a refreshing drink and chatted with her friends

Ready to jump in? Winnie prepared to jump in the water as she made her way down the steps

Setting sail! The full scale of the group's super yacht could be seen as they milled around in the sun traps

It's his party: Lewis downed the drinks as he caught some sun in his swim shorts and baseball cap

Sports star: The driver rocked statement mirrored shades as the sun set on the afternoon

All about the work? Lewis had denied that he was dating Winnie on The Ellen DeGeneres show last October, saying he was single and choosing to stay 'focused on my racing' instead

He and the supermodel were first linked after they were seen leaving the GQ Men Of The Year Awards in London in carefully orchestrated way in September.

At the time The Sun reported that Winnie had struck up a bond with Lewis in July, but their relationship had recently 'stepped up a notch'.

A source told the paper: 'Lewis and Winnie have known each other for a while and partied together in New York last year, but things have stepped up a notch recently.

'They didnt want to fuel any suspicion at the awards on Tuesday so agreed to stay apart from each other and avoided getting pictured together.'

Beauty on board: Barbara Palvin rocked a black summer dress as she hung out with the crowd

Say cheese! Winnie played photographer for Barbara and her male pal at one point

One for social media? Winnie was also seen capturing some snaps with her friends

Action girl! Bella couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she hit the waves on a jet ski

Giving a running commentary: Bella was seen yelling instructions to her pals as she got back on deck

Come on in: Winnie was fitted with a helmet ready for her turn on the jet ski

Off duty: Bella and Winnie have been making the most of time in between fashion seasons

Taking a minute: Lewis looked deep in thought as he no doubt stewed off his loss to Sebastian Vettel
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She's been upping the sex factor with her endless flesh-flaunting displays of late while on the red carpet during the 70th Cannes Film Festival,

Now that her cinematic duties have come to an end, Bella Hadid, 20, continued her skin-flashing array as she partied in Monaco alongside pals Winnie Harlow, 22, Barbara Palvin, 23, and Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton, 32, following the Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday on a luxurious yacht.

The supermodel showcased her phenomenal figure in a skimpy bikini which highlighted her enviable curves and peachy derriere as she jumped in and out of the crystal clear water.

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Skin-flashing: Bella Hadid, 20, showcased her phenomenal figure in a skimpy bikini which highlighted her enviable curves and peachy derriere as she jumped in and out of the crystal clear water in Monaco on Sunday

Squeezing her ample cleavage in her plunging bikini top, the fashion darling - who is the younger sister of fellow supermodel Gigi, 22 - showcased her svelte figure with aplomb as she sauntered across the impressive yacht's deck.

The Californian beauty slipped into a pair of thong-style bikini bottoms which flaunted her peachy posterior as she walked in and out of the idyllic waters alongside her dear friends.

Soaking up the last of her French Riviera trip, the former Model of The Year worked her daring bikini bottoms high onto her hips, avoiding tan lines onboard the incredible boat while she chatted to her friends, who nonchalantly lay strewn in number of relaxed poses.

Highlighting her hourglass figure, Bella - who stands at 5ft 9" - paraded her endless pins in the barely-there swimwear that she was forced to adjust every time she sat down or stood up.

Sensational: Squeezing her ample cleavage in her plunging bikini top, the fashion darling - who is the younger sister of fellow supermodel Gigi, 22 - showcased her svelte figure with aplomb as she sauntered across the impressive yacht's deck

Bottoms up! The Californian beauty slipped into a pair of thong-style bikini bottoms which flaunted her peachy posterior as she walked in and out of the idyllic waters alongside her dear friends

Sun-soaked: Soaking up the last of her French Riviera trip, the former Model of The Year worked her daring bikini bottoms high onto her hips to avoid tan lines onboard the incredible boat

Having fun: She chatted to her friends, who nonchalantly dipped their feet into the boat's water

Keeping to her effortlessly glamorous ways, she teamed her sizzling bikini look with a pair of hooped silver earrings while protecting her dazzling peepers with nineties inspired blue lens sunnies.

The style maven - who has been enjoying a whirlwind trip across Italy and France - slicked back her raven-coloured locks into a tight top knot while proving she's not immune to sea-sickness as she wrapped pressure point bands around her wrists to ease her symptoms on the water.

Later, the runway star opted to get active as she popped on a life jacket and helmet, hopping onto a jetski for some fun out on the sea.

Getting physical: Later, the runway star opted to get active as she popped on a life jacket and helmet as she prepared to indulge in some water sports

Party people: The fashion darling was joined by a number of pals on the enviable super yacht

Going for it: Bella was seen hopping onto a jet ski for some fun later in the day

Hitting the waves: Bella chatted to Winnie as she got ready to speed around the yacht

Cheeky: Bella wasn't shy showcasing her pert behind as she clambered out of the water in her barely-there bikini bottoms

Party people: The group of friends were joined by staff members to tend to their every beck and call on board

Her daring thong display comes after she suffered several wardrobe malfunctions for the model in Cannes - having accidentally flashed her lingerie in three separate gowns on the red carpet.

Despite making her fame as a model instead of an actress, Bella has been taking this year's Cannes Film Festival by storm, while her sister Gigi remains in New York with their mother Yolanda.

The brunette beauty turned heads in a number of eye-catching gowns as she attended endless premieres, as well as the star-studded amfAR gala.

Clearly letting her hair down at the famous annual event, which raises money for AIDS research, Bella was spotted swigging champagne from the bottle at the after-party, before she mingled with actor Leonardo DiCaprio at his table.

Kicking back: The ladies enjoyed drinks as they worked on their tans in the sunshine

Model mates: Winnie and Bella have been partying together in Europe for the last few days, hitting Cannes and Monaco

Bevy of beauties: Bella and Winnie both chose the skimpiest of bikinis to make the most of the scorching temperatures

Nice ride! The group had the use of a huge and very luxurious super yacht for their Sunday in Monte Carlo

Relaxing: The style maven - who has been enjoying a whirlwind trip across Italy and France - slicked back her raven-coloured locks into a tight top knot while proving she's not immune to sea-sickness as she wrapped pressure point bands around her wrists to ease her symptoms on the water

Hug it out: Bella was seen giving Lewis a big hug as the girls did their best to lift his spirits

Taking his mind off things: Bella paraded around deck in her tiny thong-bikini as Lewis sipped on drinks

However, Leo appears to be just one of many males stunning model Bella has caught the attention of in recent weeks.

Last week, the beauty was seen chatting and laughing animatedly with a mystery man over dinner in Rome, Italy, where she was shooting for Bulgari.

Yet, this date followed speculation that she had hit it off with boxer Anthony Joshua at the GQ Awards last month.

A source told The Sun of the pair, who reportedly shared a flirty exchange: 'Bella has made it clear shes focused on doing whatever she wants to  so things could easily happen.'

The rumoured flings follow her long-term relationship with The Weeknd, which came to an end in November.

Racy! Winnie Harlow took rumoured flame Lewis Hamilton's mind off the track with a very racy thong-style bikini as the pair partied on a super yacht in Monte Carlo with a bevy of models

Back on? Winnie and Lewis reignited romance rumours when she was spotted caressing his neck at Thursday night's glamorous amfAR gala during Cannes Film Festival

Who needs a win? Just an hour after he lost the Monte Carlo Formula One race, Lewis looked in great spirits as he got touch feely with gorgeous Winnie

Love life whispers: They were originally linked romantically last year, despite Lewis denying they were dating

What a view! The star who shot to fame on America's Next Top Model, proved why she is so in demand as a model

Bella's swimwear outing comes after she attended the F1 in Monte Carlo alongside her Canadian model Winnie Harlow, who was trackside to cheer on Lewis Hamilton and the glitzy Grand Prix.

And just an hour after the Formula One race, stunning Winnie was on hand to console her rumoured former flame following his loss to Sebastian Vettel.

The gorgeous model took Lewis' mind off the track with a very racy thong-style bikini as the pair partied on a super yacht in Monte Carlo with a bevy of models.

Winnie made the most of the scorching temperatures in her tiny burgundy and silver bikini which flaunted her model figure to perfection.

Letting off some steam: Lewis stripped down to shorts and a baseball cap, showing off his extensive tattoo collection

I got you babe: Winnie was determined to get the party started following Lewis' disappointed run at the Monte Carlo race

Rumoured couple: Winnie flashed a big smile as got ready for a jet ski ride with her sports mad rumoured beau

And pose: Model Barbara Palvin looked gorgeous as she put on a sultry display with a male pal for some photos

Beauty on board: Barbara rocked a black summer dress as she hung out with the crowd

The beauty highlighted both her trim waist and pert posterior with the skimpy cut of her two piece as she paraded around the luxury yacht with her pals.

Lewis looked in great spirits despite his loss on the track just an hour before, drinking and dancing with Winnie and co after letting off steam with a jet ski ride.

Winnie certainly seemed to lift the Brit sportsman's spirits, with the two getting very touchy feely with each other as they giggled on deck.

Lewis showed off his buff physique as she he stripped down to shorts and an on-brand Mercedes cap for a night of partying.

All eyes on her: Winnie, who has the skin condition vitiligo, was full of body confidence as she sunned herself on deck

All about the work? Lewis had denied that he was dating Winnie on The Ellen DeGeneres show last October, saying he was single and choosing to stay 'focused on my racing' instead

It's his party: Lewis downed the drinks as he caught some sun in his swim shorts and baseball cap

Still got the need for speed! Despite coming off the track just an hour before, Lewis was keen to get another adrenaline rush on the water

Winnie and Lewis reignited romance rumours when she was spotted caressing his neck at Thursday night's glamorous amfAR gala during Cannes Film Festival.

Lewis, who is 10 years the model's senior, even looked like he was leaning in to give her a kiss on the cheek at one time.

Flashing a big smile, Winnie looked delighted to be reunited with the Formula One champion during the star-studded event.

Lewis had denied that he was dating Winnie on The Ellen DeGeneres show last October, saying he was single and choosing to stay 'focused on my racing' instead.

He and the supermodel were first linked after they were seen leaving the GQ Men Of The Year Awards in London in carefully orchestrated way in September.

On brand: The F1 champ dressed in head to toe Mercedes gear, the team he races for
She's preparing to welcome her second child into the world later this year.

And Bar Refaeli proved pregnancy suits her down to the ground as she hit the beach during a baby-moon in Koh Samui, Thailand, on Monday.

The Israeli model, 31, showed off her beautiful baby bump as she slipped into a teal string bikini while cooling off in the ocean.

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One hot mama! Bar Refaeli showed off her beautiful bump in a teal bikini as she hit the beach during a baby-moon in Koh Samui, Thailand, on Monday

Keeping her skin protected against the heat of the sun, the catwalk queen covered up in a cream linen shirt and matching skirt.

Bar sheltered her face with a large straw hat and accessorised with a long string beaded necklace and multiple bracelets.

The beauty later posted a close-up snap, looking utterly radiant as she showcased her glowing make-up free complexion.

On Sunday, the mother-of-one - who raises daughter Liv, nine months, with businessman husband Adi Ezra - displayed her playful personality as she posed alongside a pregnant mannequin.

Natural beauty: The Israeli model, 31, also posted a close-up snap, looking utterly radiant as she showcased her glowing make-up free complexion

Mum's the word: The mother-of-one displayed her playful personality as she posed alongside a pregnant mannequin on Sunday

Cupping her baby bump with her hands, the model showed off her changing shape in a royal blue bikini as she posed for the hilarious shot.

Bar - the ex-girlfriend of Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio, 42 - confirmed the couple's pregnancy news by posting a sweet snap of her growing bump on her Instagram page on March 28.

It was just eight months after the couple - who tied the knot in their native Israel in September 2015 - welcomed their baby daughter Liv in August 2016.

Bar playfully wrote alongside the shot: 'Something's cooking'.

In an interview with Hello! Fashion Monthly in 2015, the model admitted family is everything to her and she's planning to have a large brood.

Proud parents: Bar and businessman husband Adi Ezra tied the knot in their native Israel in September 2015, before welcoming daughter Liv the following August

Oh baby! The model confirmed the couple's pregnancy news by posting a sweet snap of her growing bump on her Instagram page on March 28

'I think this will be a decade of family... I come from a family of four children,' she told the publication.

'A lot of mums could read this and think, "Yeah, try having one first". Hopefully, Ill have a big family, but I'll take it one by one.'

Bar prides herself with balancing her work and personal life and added to HELLO!: 'I feel like my job is my alter ego; its a different me and I love it. Im a Gemini!

'Behind the camera, Im totally different. I dont wear make-up, I dont wear heels and Im very basic. But I love the fact I have this job and it gives me the opportunity to dress up.

Ive never done catwalk because I was never skinny or tall enough. I was more of a sexy type of model and catwalk models arent so sexy.'
They're the Last Resort couple who are battling to save their 'sexless marriage'.

And now Jodie and Stu have revealed that they had second thoughts about participating in the show.

Stu, 39, and Jodie, 34, almost called it quits right up until they were due to fly out to Fiji to start the experiment.

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Not sure? The Last Resort's Jodie and Stu have revealed that they had second thoughts about participating in the show

Jodie had been wanting to get her marriage with Stud back on track for years but each time she suggested counselling, Stu refused.

She was surprised when Stu saw the casting ad for The Last Resort and seemed interested.

Jodie told TV Week: 'He turned to me and said, "We should go - we need this."'

Stubborn: Jodie had been wanting to get her marriage with Stud back on track for years but each time she suggested counselling, Stu refused

She continued: 'It was so random, so I totally took that and ran with it.'

Much to the couple's surprise, they were cast almost instantly when they received a call of approval from the show's producers the day after applying.

After being accepted to participate in the show, Stu started to panic that he had made a grave mistake.

Last chance? After being accepted to participate in the show, Stu started to panic that he had made a grave mistake

Jodie said: 'We were the couple who were up and down about whether we were going to go or whether we weren't... Up until pretty much the last day before we caught the plane to Fiji, Stu still wasn't 100 percent.'

After Stu received a call from the show's relationship expert Sandy Rea, everything changed and he was excited about the chance to save his marriage.

Jodie said: 'Even if Stu and I don't work it out together, I owe Sandy everything.'
They welcomed their first child together, a little girl, back in February.

And Gabriel Byrne appeared completely besotted with his newborn daughter as he and his wife Hannah Beth King took the tot for a stroll in New York City on Sunday.

The Irish actor, 67, appeared in good spirits as he joined his younger partner for the walk - stopping at one point to sweetly coo over their baby girl as they enjoyed a family day in the city.

Happy family: Gabriel Byrne appeared completely besotted with his newborn daughter as he and his wife Hannah Beth King took the tot for a stroll in New York City on Sunday

The Excalibur star maintained his usually smart appearance for the low-key day out in a crisp white shirt and tailored trousers, paired with shiny brogues.

However his ensemble simply turned all attention to his stunning producer wife, who opted for a casually glamorous black midi dress, which hugged her slender figure from head to toe, and chic gladiator sandals.

Sweeping her hair back with a pair of sunglasses, the American beauty displayed her radiant make-up free complexion - showing no signs of fatigue from looking after a newborn as she headed out with her family.

Adorable: Proving to be besotted with the little girl, the actor was later seen cooing over the tot as they ventured into the city, with Hannah beaming on proudly

Proving to be besotted with the little girl, the actor was later seen cooing over the tot as they ventured into the city, with Hannah beaming on proudly.

The pair welcomed their first child in February, after marrying in a low-key ceremony at Ballymaloe House in Cork in the summer of 2014.

While exact age gap between them is not known, Gabriel has previously stated their difference in age does not bother him or affect their relationship in any way.

Happy: The pair welcomed their first child in February, after marrying in a low-key ceremony at Ballymaloe House in Cork in the summer of 2014

He told the Belfast Telegraph last year: 'Not to sound too corny, but there is only one thing that matters in a relationship. You either love somebody or you don't.'

'It's nothing to do with me trying to revitalise or have a second life or any of that bulls**t.'

While the couple currently reside in New York, it was reported last month that the actor is keen to bring his new baby to his native Ireland to meet the whole family.

'You either love somebody or you don't': While age gap between them is not known, Gabriel has previously stated their difference in age does not affect their relationship in any way

A source told The Irish Sun: 'Gabriel remains connected to Ireland.

'His first two kids, Jack and Romy, come to Ireland a lot. He will want his new daughter to have the same relationship with his home country and hold an Irish passport.'

Gabriel was previously married to actress Ellen Berkin, but the pair amicably divorced in 1999, after welcoming two children - Jack, 28, and Romy, 25.
She's one of our most successful modelling exports, having become a Victoria's Secret angel.

And despite being based in the United States, Bridget Malcolm still calls Australia home.

Tipped to become the next David Jones ambassador, the 26-year-old told The Daily Telegraph upon her return Down Under on Monday: 'I'm so excited to be back home.'

Home soil: Bridget Malcolm, 26, tipped to be the next David Jones ambassador, returned to Australia to shoot David Jones' Spring/Summer 2017 campaign

'I love coming back from the US,' Bridget told the publication this week.

The blonde beauty has returned to Australia to shoot David Jones' Spring/Summer 2017 campaign.

The shoot took place on Monday at Sydney's Cronulla beach.

Bridget's return comes as the model has been tipped to become David Jones' next ambassador, alongside Jessica Gomes and Jesinta Campbell.

Return Down Under: 'I love coming back from the US,' Bridget told The Daily Telegraph this week

Next gig? Bridget's return comes as the model has been tipped to become David Jones' next ambassador, alongside Jessica Gomes and Jesinta Campbell

Despite her career continuing to rise, Bridget has spoken candidly about her struggle with body image.

In February, the statuesque star took to her blog, Bridgetmalcolm.com.au, confessing: 'Body image is really tough. I definitely have my struggles with it, as do all people at some point in their lives.

'What I see in the mirror is not what the reality is - and in a day my talk towards my body can veer wildly from one end of the happiness spectrum to the other.'

Body image: Despite her career continuing to rise, Bridget has spoken candidly about her struggle with body image. In February, the statuesque star took to her blog confessing: 'Body image is really tough. I definitely have my struggles with it'

Candid: 'What I see in the mirror is not what the reality is - and in a day my talk towards my body can veer wildly from one end of the happiness spectrum to the other,' the personality continued

'Whenever I am having a bad body image day I get off my phone, get off social media, and stay far away from mirrors,' she candidly continued.

Bridget made headlines in 2015 after responding to social media trolls who claimed she had an eating disorder.

'Can we STOP with the skinny shaming please?' she wrote at the time.

'I am extremely fit and healthy and am not in the slightest way anorexic.'
When it comes to selling houses, this realtor and real estate reality star does not take a holiday.

Ryan Serhant and wife Emilia Bechrakis have escaped Manhattan for the Memorial Day weekend, but the Million Dollar Listing: New York star has not escaped his demanding workload.

The newlyweds shared snaps on Instagram of their trip to Tulum, Mexico on Sunday, and while his wife's social media was filled with swimsuit and sightseeing snaps, the 32-year-old realtor's were just of him on the phone.

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Dealing making is never done: Ryan Serhant and wife Emilia Bechrakis have escaped Manhattan for the Memorial Day weekend, but the Million Dollar Listing: New York star has not escaped his demanding workload

Despite his wife looking stunning in a series of daring bikinis, Ryan was busy trying to find cell service.

The Bravo star posted a series of snaps of himself on the phone while on a tropical beach.

Deleting all but one of the photos Ryan said: 'I was supposed to be decompressing. But instead I was trying to find good cell service.'

But in the end it was all worth it, with Ryan revealing Monday he and his team were able to close on two properties.

Priorities: The newlyweds shared snaps on Instagram of their trip to Tulum, Mexico on Sunday, and while his wife's social media was filled with swimsuit and sightseeing snaps, the 32-year-old realtor's were just of him on the phone

Productive holiday: But in the end it was all worth it, with Ryan revealing Monday he and his team were able to close on two properties

The star closed on two of the homes in the Walker House in Tribeca - The $9.5 million Penthouse and a $9 million townhose.

All the while 31-year-old wife was in her element as she soaked in some sunshine on a stunning white sand beach.

Emilia posted a video of herself trying to pull a Baywatch and running in slo-mo on the beach.

For her beach session on Saturday, the petite brunette donned a simple yet very sexy black bikini.

The fixed strapped two piece was perfect for showing off her svelte frame.

Finally! On Monday, Ryan finally hung up the phone and started to relax in Tulum

Doing the Pam: Emilia posted a video of herself trying to pull a Baywatch and running in slo-mo on the beach

Simply chic: For her beach session on Saturday, the petite brunette donned a simple yet very sexy black bikini

The lawyer turned real estate agent wore a pair of purple reflective aviators over her face and left her long hair out.

Sharing another picture of herself in the black bikini, the star shared a quote: 'No matter now if the compass fails again 'Cause in your love, I built a home... and we're all we need.'

Not done there, Emilia also posted a snap of herself in a pink bikini which she wore high on hips.

'Salt water heels': The 31-year-old also wowed in a hot pink swimsuit which she wore high on her hips

But wait there's more: She later shared a snap of herself in a bronze one piece, saying she was not ready to go home

Holday snaps: Emilia also shared a lot of pictures of some of their favorite spots in Tulum

The beauty captioned the snap, 'Salt water heels'.

While Ryan may be too busy on the phone, Emilia is certainly enjoying herself.

On Monday morning she posted to Instagram again saying, 'I love this place.'

As Ryan and Emilia enjoyed their time in Tulum - or at least Emilia was - fellow Million Dollar Listing stars Fredrik Eklund and his husband Derek Kaplan are in Africa.

Meanwhile... Fellow Million Dollar Listing stars Fredrik Eklund and his husband Derek Kaplan are in Africa

The couple are visiting Derek's native Zimbabwe and Fredrik has certainly been enjoying himself.

The star shared a video of their trip which has seen them see hippos and other animals on a luxury safari.

The realtor has also had a chance to kick back at their exclusive villa which has an outdoor bath that overlooks the river.

Rest & Relaxation: The couple are visiting Derek's native Zimbabwe and Fredrik has certainly been enjoying himself
He hasn't been able to sell Bethenny Frankel's Soho pad for over three months.

But that seemed to be of little concern for Fredrik Eklund as he headed off for a holiday in Africa with his husband Derek Kaplan.

Eklund reduced the asking price of the luxury abode from $5.25 million to $4.995 million in hopes to find a buyer before he left for his vacation last week.

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Taking a break: Fredrik Eklund, 40, headed off for a holiday in Africa as his listing for Bethenny Frankel's apartment remains unsold

The 40-year-old Million Dollar Listing star posted pictures of his trip on Instagram over the weekend.

The first snap showed the reality star relaxing in a hammock in a gorgeous wood hut overlooking a serene river landscape.

He captioned the snap: 'Africa has already stolen my heart!'

In a video posted, Eklund is seen taking a break in an outdoor tub as he dons an adorable brown fedora.

Splish splash: Eklund enjoys bath time in an outdoor tub aside gorgeous African landscape

Couple's trip: Eklund enjoyed the holiday with husband Derek Kaplan, 41

Taking a dip: While on their boat ride, the couple came across a baby rhino heading into the river for a cool swim

A montage of beautiful African landscapes follow as Eklund is pictured having an al fresco brunch among lovely trees.

A group of friends enjoy a bumpy boating trip on the vast river as they witness a beautiful sunrise.

They soon come upon a baby rhino that runs into the river and splashes around.

Boogie down: Eklund enjoyed dancing with a local as they both laughed and bumped hips

Dance off: After the impromptu boogie, Eklund and the woman shared a hug

Eklund got a taste of the local flavor as he is seen dancing, smiling, and laughing with a woman during a stop on their boat trip.

The group then witnessed a pair of monkeys in the wild playing with each other and rolling around in the grass.

The whirlwind adventure ended with a beautiful outdoor dinner by candlelight as Eklund captions the posting: 'First 24 hours in beautiful Africa!'

Monkeying around: The group then witnessed a pair of primates in the wild playing with each other and rolling around in the grass

When Eklund returns home to New York, his work may still be unfinished for Frankel's apartment that has sat on the market since February.

The pair were seen on Real Housewives Of New York where they decided to list the renovated home as a 'one-of-a-kind architect-renovated residence'.

The 2,392-square-foot property - which comes with two and a half bathrooms - boasts 14ft high ceilings, a wood burning fireplace, a balcony, and a landscaped atrium.

Eklund and Frankel's dynamic relationship has led the pair to star in their own spin-off called The Bethenny and Fredrik Project (working title).

The show is currently in pre-production.

Real housewife problems: Bethenny Frankel, 46, has had her luxury Soho apartment on the market since February
He recently broke up with Danish supermodel girlfriend Nina Agdal.

But Leonardo DiCaprio, 42, appears to be dealing with the break up well, as he was spotted out and about with a bevy of beautiful women and friends in Monaco on Sunday.

Wearing his trademark grey flat cap, a grey T-shirt and shorts, the Wolf Of Wall Street actor looked relaxed for his day out with friends.

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Happy: Leonardo DiCaprio, 42, appears to be dealing with his recent break up well, as he was spotted out and about with a bevy of beautiful women and friends in Monaco on Sunday

Joining him on the sunny day out was a stunning brunette, who showcased her incredible physique in a black vest top and shorts.

Other leggy women were also seen to trail behind the actor, wearing glamorous outfits that revealed their endless pins.

Strolling in the idyllic settings of the exclusive city state of France, the group all looked to have a wonderful time as they accompanied the actor.

Beautiful: Joining him on the sunny day out was a stunning brunette, who showcased her incredible physique in a black vest top and shorts

Fun outing: Strolling in the idyllic settings of the exclusive city state of France, the group all looked to have a wonderful time as they accompanied the actor

Leonardo seems to be putting his relationship woes behind him of late.

Leonardo appeared to be partying his troubles away with pal Naomi Campbell, 47, in Cannes of Friday.

The notorious party animals were seen leaving a glamorous event together looking in high spirits, after Leo spent the evening partying with a bevy of models.

Party pals: Leonardo DiCaprio and Naomi Campbell were in very high spirits as they were spotted leaving a Cannes after party together on Friday

Leo, donning his trademark tweed-style flat cap with a blue merino wool v-neck sweater hopped into his waiting car ahead of fashion icon Naomi, who scooted in after.

With his fashionable facial hair on full display and a gold pendant hanging from his neck, Leo looked every bit the Hollywood heartthrob fans have come to expect.

Naomi looked her supermodel best in a flowing black sequined gown with statement silver plate necklace.

Loving life: The outing came hours after Leonardo appeared to be back to his Lothario self as he attended the star-studded amfAR Gala in Cannes where he chatted with Bella Hadid

The outing came hours after Leonardo appeared to be back to his Lothario self as he attended the star-studded amfAR Gala in Cannes.

The Titanic star was seen putting on a rather friendly display with a gaggle of models, as well as mingling with Bella Hadid and Rita Ora.

Enjoying a vape as he sat at one of the charity gala's prime tables, the actor and activist could be seen enjoying a chat with stunning model Bella, 20, who stopped by his table.

Striking: Naomi looked her supermodel best in a flowing black sequined gown with statement silver plate necklace

Leonardo was no doubt one of the most eligible bachelors on the night following hus recent break up.

The news of split between Leo and Nina came as a shock as they were spotted with friends in Malibu on Sunday.

That same day Agdal was forced to cancel her trip to Australia, where she was scheduled to appear at the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.

The model was supposed to attend the Misha X Myer party in Sydney on Monday night, but stayed in the US due to visa issues.

Surprise breakup: The news of split between Leo and Nina came as a shock as they were spotted with friends in Malibu on Sunday

The cover girl was 'considering' flying to Sydney on a tourist visa but the idea was supposedly abandoned due to legal issues.

Nina and Leo were seen twice together in March: at Crustacean in Beverly Hills and at her 25th birthday party in St Barts.

It looked as if they were going strong with sources saying they were 'having a lot of fun together.'

The two were never very public with their relationship and were not once photographed on a red carpet together.

Dapper: Leo, donning his trademark tweed-style flat cap with a blue merino wool v-neck sweater hopped into his waiting car ahead of fashion icon Naomi, who scooted in after

Vintage: With his usual fashionable facial hair on full display and a gold pendant hanging from his neck, Leo looked every bit the Hollywood heartthrob fans have come to expect

Nina and Leo were seen twice together in March: at Crustacean in Beverly Hills and at her 25th birthday party in St Barts.

DiCaprio and Agdal were first spotted together in May 2016 at Up & Down club in New York City.

The actor arrived at the nightclub with Agdal and a group of friends before partying the night away in the VIP section.

Solo: The two were never very public with their relationship and were not once photographed on a red carpet together

Ex: Leonardo's longest relationship has been with Gisele Bundchen who is now married to NFL footballer Tom Brady

They were then seen together in the Hamptons where they were photographed embracing after a minor car crash.

Leonardo's longest relationship has been with Gisele Bundchen who is now married to Tom Brady.

He has also dated Bar Refaeli, Erin Heatherton, Blake Lively and Toni Garrn, among others.
She's known for her interesting choices in sartorial matters.

And Chloe Sevigny didn't disappoint as she was seen in a quirky ensemble in New York on Sunday.

The 42-year-old actress paired cut off denim shorts with a navy blazer as she hopped on a bike to tour the city.

Mixing it up: Chloe Sevigny, 42, didn't disappoint as she was seen in a quirky ensemble in New York on Sunday

Always one to throw caution to the fashion wind, Chloe showcased her gorgeous gams in the tiny shorts while rocking bright argyle socks.

The American Horror Story star tucked in a vintage white button down shirt under the navy blazer.

While getting her exercise in with the bike ride, Chloe sported white sneakers and a black purse strapped across her chest.

The Portlandia regular was makeup free and kept her golden tresses long and loose while she rocked a pair of retro shades.

Zoom zoom: The actress paired cut off denim shorts with a navy blazer as she hopped on a bike to tour the city

Chloe is a showbiz veteran as she has enjoyed a career spanning 25 years.

In 1992, a then-unknown Chloe was discovered on a New York City street by a magazine editor who gave her a job at Sassy magazine, launching her modelling career.

She starred in her first film, the infamous drama Kids, and has had plenty of success in acting as she has four upcoming films.

In the meantime, Chloe can be seen in the third season of Netflix's Bloodline which was released on May 26.

She has a major role this season as nurse Chelsea O'Bannon, the younger sister of Eric O'Bannon.

The show also stars Kyle Chandler and Linda Cardellini.
He has gone from show to show but now that he is no longer Dancing With The Stars, this reality Romeo can really spend some quality time with his significant other.

The Bachelor star Nick Viall sealed his return to his fiance Vanessa Grimaldi's hometown of Montreal, Canada, with big kiss.

The 36-year-old reality star touched down on Saturday and while they have only been apart a few days, it was clear this couple were very glad to be back together.

Back together: The Bachelor star Nick Viall sealed his return to his fiance Vanessa Grimaldi's hometown of Montreal, Canada, with big kiss on Saturday

Vanessa had flown home earlier in the week to attend an event put on by her former students.

While excited to have Nick back by her side, the special education teacher turned up late to the airport.

Not that Nick minded, as he stood waiting on the curb listening to some tunes on his phone.

As soon as she pulled up, his bride-to-be jumped out of the car to give him a hug and a romantic kiss.

Homecoming of sorts: This is reportedly Nick's first trip back to Montreal since he visited her hometown on an episode of The Bachelor

Let me help: As soon as she pulled up, his bride-to-be jumped out of the car to give him a hug and a romantic kiss.

After heading back to their hotel, Vanessa shared a snap of them lying on a bed together, captioned 'Reunited with my Americano'.

Nick also took to Instagram, sharing a picture of his bride-to-be asleep in bed, saying 'Really enjoying the sights of Montreal'.

This is Nick's first trip back to Montreal since he visited her hometown on an episode of The Bachelor, according to E!.

'...my Americano': After heading back to their hotel, Vanessa shared a snap of them lying on a bed together

A source told E!: 'It's Nick's first trip to Montreal since filming the show. He didn't really get to see that much during their hometown date, the visit was so short.

'It's really his first chance to check out the city. Also, they're spending time with Vanessa's family. For Dancing with the Stars, she really supported him, now, he's going there to support her.'

Previously Vanessa's family had expressed concern that falling in love with Nick meant she would be leaving them behind and her career as a special education teacher.

'Really enjoying the sights of Montreal': Earlier on Saturday, Nick's Instagram page played host to an photo of Vanessa apparently asleep in bed

While she has been living with Nick in Los Angeles, Vanessa has maintained she is not giving everything up for love.

She told E! earlier this year about making a move to be with her partner: 'My family was very supportive of the idea of moving.

'I'm still bringing and carrying on my work from home with me. I'm still planning on teaching. I'm still planning on being part of that life that I had in Montreal.

'It was a decision we both made together and we're both very happy about that decision. Both of our families are very happy that we're together and we're starting our life together.'

Throwback: Previously Vanessa's family had expressed concern that falling in love with Nick meant she would be leaving them behind and her career as a special education teacher

Nick had vied unsuccessfully for Andi Dorfman's hand - coming in second to Josh Murray - on the 10th season of The Bachelorette, which ABC broadcast in 2014.

The 11th season of The Bachelorette aired in 2015 and saw Nick finish second again once spin-class instructor Kaitlyn Bristowe picked personal trainer Shawn Booth.

Nick had also given Bachelor In Paradise a go for its third season, which aired last year, but he hadn't wound up managing to become one of its six winners either.
No matter how beautiful the backdrop was, it couldn't do the subject justice.

Victoria Justice was spotted posing up a storm on the beaches of Tulum on Monday.

The 24-year-old looked stunning in a sexy black one-piece swimsuit with cut-out detailing along the sides.

Justice (out of your) League! Victoria Justice was spotted posing up a storm on the beaches of Tulum on Monday

The actress spent the holiday weekend in Mexico to celebrate her equally gorgeous little sister Madison Reed turning 21.

The half-siblings, joined by their close pals Camila Forero and Tatiana Paris, have been sharing photos of their fun trip on social media.

On Monday the birthday girl seemed to be absent for the beach trip, as Victoria recruited the others to snap her in the waves.

Gorgeous: The 24-year-old looked stunning in a sexy black one-piece swimsuit with cut-out detailing along the sides

Cheese: The actress was joined by close pals Camila Forero and Tatiana Paris, whom she recruited to snap pics

Hungover? The actress spent the holiday weekend in Mexico to celebrate her equally gorgeous little sister Madison Reed turning 21, who was absent fro the beach trip

Dog gone: The trio also kept warm by chasing a tiny puppy around the sand

The trio also kept warm by chasing a tiny puppy around the sand.

The night before the former Nickelodeon star uploaded a pic of the quartet heading for a night out to celebrate the milestone.

'Happy 21st b day to my beautiful sister @themadgrace (she's the Amazonian goddess on the left),' she wrote. 'You're my best friend for life & I love you more than you know.'

Happy birthday! The night before the former Nickelodeon star uploaded a pic of the quartet heading for a night out to celebrate Madison's (L) birthday

Stunners: The half-siblings have been sharing photos of their fun trip on social media

Good call: The actress looked equally chuffed with this ice-cream and motto

Blacklit: She donned some funky glow in the dark make-up on Sunday night

'Also, how hot are my girls @tatianaparis & @camilaforeroo?' she didn't forget to add.

A fortnight ago the sisters attended the Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales event held by Disney in Beverly Hills together.

She most recently played Janet Weiss in Fox's TV reboot of The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again.
Schapelle Corby has arrived back home in Australia, and no doubt she'll soon be in need of a job.

While many have been speculating about tell-all interviews, Twitter users have a better idea, with many suggesting that the 39-year-old should try reality TV.

By far the most popular suggest is that the freed convict should appear on the 2018 season of The Bachelorette after Sophie Monk has finished her 2017 run.

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New career? Schapelle Corby has arrived back home in Australia, and Twitter uses have suggested she should appear on the 2018 season of The Bachelorette

One Twitter user mused, '"The Bachelorette 2018: Schapelle". You can hear the TV execs frothing now. #schapellecorby'.

Another suggested, '#bachelorette starring #Schapelle,' and tagged the show in their comments.

Successor: By far the most popular suggest is that the freed convict should appear on the 2018 season of The Bachelorette after Sophie Monk has finished her 2017 run

One Twitter user mused: '"The Bachelorette 2018: Schapelle". You can hear the TV execs frothing now. #schapellecorby'.

Journalist Ross Clelland wrote, 'Can this please be the last seen of Schapelle Corby until I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here, or when she's The 2018 Bachelorette? Thanks.'

The suggestions of a reality TV career for the former jailbird may not be as far fetched as they sound.

Since arriving back in Australia, Schapelle has already established herself as a social media sensation.

Media sensation: Schapelle has amassed 170,000 followers in 24 hours and is on track to soon overtake PR maven and Instagram queen Roxy Jacenko

Famous: From Married At First Sight start Cheryl Maitland, to former Australian Idol Ricki-Lee Coulter and supermodel Erin McNaught, Schapelle is catching up to celebrities by the hour

She's amassed 170,000 followers in 24 hours and is on track to soon overtake PR maven and Instagram queen Roxy Jacenko.

The pair are currently tied at 170K followers each, but Schapelle's fans may quickly outnumber her and Schapelle is also beating several well-known local faces.

From Married At First Sight start Cheryl Maitland, to former Australian Idol Ricki-Lee Coulter and supermodel Erin McNaught, Schapelle is catching up to celebrities by the hour.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Network Ten for comment.

Single life? Schapelle isn't currently single but was forced to leave behind her boyfriend, and fellow convicted drug offender, Ben Panangian, in Indonesia

Schapelle isn't currently single but was forced to leave behind her boyfriend and fellow convicted drug offender, Ben Panangian, in Indonesia.

The pair met in Kerobokan prison in 2006 a year after the former beauty student was first jailed, and have been together through the ups and downs of her time in Bali.

However due to their criminal histories the pair are unlikely to be reunited in Australia or Indonesia, as Schapelle cannot return to Indonesia and Ben cannot enter Australia.
She alleged her split with ex-husband Steven Pollock was due to his extra marital affairs during an interview with The Daily Edition, earlier this month.

And newly divorced Mel Greig has revealed she has 'recently started to chat to a guy' in her dating column on YahooBe on Tuesday.

The 34-year-old based the self-deprecating article around her new flame wanting her to work on her 'lady manners'.

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Fresh start: Newly divorced Mel Greig published a new dating column on YahooBe on Tuesday, where she revealed she has 'recently started to chat to a guy'

The radio host, who divorced her ex-husband a month ago after separating in April 2016 following 18 months of marriage, described her incompatibility with her new guy.

'Ive also recently started to chat to a guy and we laugh that opposites must attract,' she wrote.

'He couldnt be any further from a bogan and I kind of love wearing a onesie and ugg boots,' she continued.

Moving on: The radio host, who divorced her ex-husband a month ago after separating in April 2016 after 18 months of marriage, described her incompatibility with her new guy

She explained how she hoped they could 'teach each other a little bit about our ways and meet in the middle'.

The Beaudesert, Queensland-born media personality stated how starting to date again has made her question at what point she 'lost her table manners'.

'Gone are my days of wearing man jocks for comfort and to store snacks in the front pouch,' she stated.

'Gone are my days of wearing man jocks for comfort and to store snacks in the front pouch,' she stated

Upon returning from Las Vegas where she had celebrated her 'divorce party', Mel recently claimed during a television interview that her ex-husband Steven had been unfaithful.

'I want to put it out now. My husband was unfaithful, I am aware of it, he is aware of it,' she continued. 'He is sorry for it, he is not proud of it.'

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Mr. Pollack for comment.
Sofia Vergara was the hostess with the mostest Sunday night at her luxury estate in Beverly hIlls.

The Modern Family star, 44, threw a tropical-themed bash complete with mermaid in the pool for family and friends.

The Colombian actress shared some of the fun with her social media followers on Monday including pics of her and hubby Joe Manganiello getting cozy during the festivities.

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Good times: Sofia Veragara threw a tropical-themed Memorial Day party complete with mermaid in the pool for family and friends Sunday night

She'd alerted her fans to her shindig by posting a short Instagram clip of herself dancing with a pair of coconuts in front of an outdoor dining table set with place mats and wine glasses.

'Almost ready for tonight's Memorial Day Paraiso Tropical partyyyyyy,' she crowed in her caption, adding emojis of a palm tree, a drink with a tiny umbrella and a flower.

And once her guests arrived, things quickly got into full swing.

Boogie'd: The Modern Family star, 44, didn't hold back as she shook her booty along with a scantily-clad dancer as the night really got going

So in love: She also found time to cozy up with her husband of two years, Magic Mike star Joe Manganiello, 40, who looked dishy in a crisp white shirt and gray

She's got a tail and no feet: Joe played his part by gallantly carrying a mermaid to the pool area

Splash! The gold bikini top-wearing performer added some exotic fun to the event

Sofia had clearly pulled out all the stops as people posed for photos holding colorful parrots.

She also brought in a personal chef to serve up Columbian food.

And in one Instagram clip, Magic Mike star Joe, 40, is seen carrying a mermaid through the throng and placing her poolside for effect.

'Love seen (sic) my friends and family have fun,' Sofia shared next to a group pic.

Look at us: The Colombian actress shared her fun times with her fans via social media

Is that a bird on her head? She pulled out all the stops even hiring colorful parrots for guests to pose with for photos

Lush: The party planners she hired transformed her mansion's backtyard into a tropical paradise for the occasion

Yum: She also hired a personal chef to serve up Colombian food and delicious-looking desserts

Hugs: Sofia and Joe, who wed in 2015, seemed as loved up as ever

As she got ready for the big night, Sofia had shared pics of herself wearing a white ruffled crop top and long colorful skirt.

She kept the island theme going by raising her arms up and down while holding coconuts as she moved her hips from side to side for a short video clip.

Her movements perfectly showcased her trim bare midriff and her loose long hair also swung slightly from side to side.

Dancing: Sofia Vergara showed off her lovely pair of coconuts on Sunday via social media

Swinging her hips: The 44-year-old Modern Family star held a large coconut in each hand as she jiggled about in a white ruffled crop top and colorful skirt that showed off her taut midriff

Checking it all out: She oversaw the preparations personally like any good hostess

Island girl: Guests dined at outdoor tables under hanging wicker baskets and glass lanterns with tropical flower displays

The actress is keeping busy as she also gets ready to promote her latest film The Emoji Movie in which she lends her voice and image to Flamenco Dancer.

'I thought it was a great adventure and who doesnt like an emoji?' she recently said about her decision to take part in the movie. 'I thought it was going to be a perfect role for me because people are always saying that I look like her!'

She joins a roster of high-profile talent for the animated feature including T.J. Miller, Anna Faris, James Corden, Maya Rudolph, Patrick Stewart, Jennifer Coolidge and Christina Aguilera.

The film is slated to open in U.S, theatres on July 28.
Veterans of the civil war, wearing the red, green and black flag of the secessionist state of Biafra, attend ceremonies to mark the conflict's 50th anniversary

Gabriel Ukuwagi was only 14 when he joined the Biafran army in 1967 to fight against Nigeria in a combat that was a foregone conclusion.

"They had jet fighters, we had machetes," he recalled.

The rebel province in southeast Nigeria declared independence on May 30, 1967, triggering a bitter civil war that would leave more than one million dead, most of them from famine and disease.

The head of Nigeria's military government, General Yakubu Gowon, vowed to crush the secessionists within three months and imposed a ruthless blockade.

In the end it would take him nearly three years to achieve his aim: the enemy would prove tough opponents for the federal troops, despite being outnumbered and under-equipped.

Many preferred to die rather than surrender.

The Igbo people, who are in the majority in the southeast, were traders, civil servants, doctors, engineers. Biafra gave them a new vocation: fighter.

The first bombardment of the federal army and the sight of "shredded bodies" and women crying made up Ukuwagi's mind.

He left for the front with thousands of other boys hardly older than him.

Pictures of famished children in Biafra stunned the world

"I never had a weapon in my hands. I had to learn from one day to the next," Ukuwagi, who is now a grandfather, recalled with a smile.

They had no inkling that the worst was yet to come.

The blockade prevented the fledgling nation from acquiring arms and food.

Thousands starved to death each day. Photographs of children with bulging eyes and skeletal bodies shocked the world, decades before the same images from famine in Ethiopia led to Live Aid.

- Victories, disappointments -

Fifty years on, a handful of civil war veterans still meet in the shade of a mango tree to sing the anthem of what was once their country: "The Land of the Rising Sun."

It's also the occasion to remember their victories and disappointments.

"It was an ugly experience," said major Ugboaja Onyemauchechukwu.

Now in his 70s, the proud former soldier lost the use of one arm from shrapnel and has undergone several operations. But he says he has "no regrets".

"At the beginning, most of weapons we used were captured from (federal troops)," he said.

Cut off from everything, the short-lived republic became resourceful.

A "red devil" armoured car used by Biafran forces during the Nigerian civil war

It created its own money, the Biafran pound, and made its own weapons.

Biafrans needed to be creative to hold out. Lorries were fitted with rusty sheets of metal to make armoured cars; small, two-seater tourist planes were reconfigured to drop bombs.

A research and production department was created, made up of engineers and scientists who made innovative home-made weapons.

They included mines, rifles, munitions, grenades and supposedly armoured vehicles that were dubbed "red devils", which are still on display in the war museum in Umuahia.

But the difference in firepower was too great. Nigeria, backed by the Soviet Union and Britain, won territory every day.

General Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, the head of the Biafran forces, had to move his headquarters twice, first from the capital, Enugu, to Umuahia, then to Owerri.

At the end of 1969, Biafra, secretly backed by France and a handful of African states, was a miniscule pocket of resistance barely a few square kilometres in size.

Colonel Levi O. Nosiri, 72, was at the last battle.

"We had no fear, we are Igbo," boasted the old man, who still wears his Biafran army uniform.

He was in charge of S Battalion, an infantry brigade. He lost his left eye and his younger brother.

"He died under my command...," he said.

Owerri fell on January 9, 1970 and with the subsequent surrender, Biafra was wiped off the map.

- Separatism revival -

Nosiri and his former brothers-in-arms still want independence from Nigeria, claiming they have been abandoned, despite Gowon's oft-repeated slogan of "no victor, no vanquished".

The old soldiers say the government in Abuja has never reconstructed the towns devastated by the war, where the slightest rain causes massive flooding and buildings threaten to collapse.

"Our children have no jobs, no hope here," said Nosiri, accompanied by the youngest of his daughters, aged 16. Such a view is fuelling the revival of the separatist calls.

"I'm ready to pick up arms," he said, his hand trembling and supporting himself with a stick.

"I cannot fight anymore but I can train young people."

Sitting next to him, major Marc Okoro nods his head nervously.

"No, I don't want them to suffer what I suffered," he says. "I don't want war any more."
Nnamdi Kanu, head of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) movement, has not given up on a 50-year-old dream of independence for the region in southeast Nigeria

Nnamdi Kanu walks slowly across the courtyard of his family home in Umuahia, southeast Nigeria, as a crowd of supporters in the red, black and green of the Biafran flag hail him as their saviour.

Eighteen months in custody does not appear to have affected his fight against Nigeria.

"I am more determined than ever," Kanu, who heads the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) movement, tells AFP calmly.

Kanu, who was released on bail at the end of April, still faces trial on treason charges.

But there is no question of his remaining silent as a key date approaches on Tuesday: the 50th anniversary of the declaration of an independent Republic of Biafra.

The secession of the Igbo people in the southeast sparked a bloody civil war that lasted nearly three years until 1970. More than one million people died of the effects of war, famine and disease.

Kanu says his aim is "civil disobedience until we get a referendum (on self-determination)", calling it "the only way forward".

- 'Deliberate' retribution -

After the war, Biafra was reintegrated into Nigeria, an ethnic and religious hotch-potch of nearly 190 million people where sectarian tensions regularly flare.

But in "Igboland", the dream of independence never really disappeared, fuelled by a sense that the Nigerian government had abandoned them -- perhaps deliberately -- after the conflict.

Veterans and young supporters crowd around in turn to hear the bespectacled Kanu speak.

In the living room where he receives guests, a life-size painting covering an entire wall depicts the prodigal son in military uniform.

He variously denounces what he says are the "killings" and "rapes" of Igbos by the security forces, and President Muhammadu Buhari's "deliberate policy to impoverish the people".

Kanu, who is in his 40s, spent his childhood in Umuahia, which was the former Biafran capital, a stone's throw from the separatist forces' bunker, and was clearly no stranger to politics.

He refuses to give his exact age but as the eldest of five children, he grew up from a young age with stories from his father, who gave logistic support to the resistance.

- 'Demi-god persona' -

Unknown to most Nigerians even two years ago, Kanu had long launched virulent diatribes against Nigeria from London, where he settled after his studies and founded the pirate radio station Radio Biafra in 2009.

He worked in real estate and campaigned on the airwaves at night. For a time he was a member of another pro-independence group, the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra.

He left MASSOB and founded IPOB in 2013.

Two years later at the World Igbo Congress in Los Angeles, Kanu crossed a line with an apparent call to take up arms. "We need guns and we need bullets," he said.

He was arrested at his hotel during a visit to Nigeria in October 2015.

Fred Anibeze, a Nigerian political scientist, called the arrest "unwarranted and uncalled for".

"He is using the Biafra struggle to garner cheap publicity for himself via broadcast from Radio Biafra, and this has been further buttressed with the demi-god persona he has been getting since his release," he told AFP.

Kanu's detention caused widespread anger among Igbos, and a series of protests calling for his release ended in bloodshed.

According to Amnesty International, Nigerian security forces killed at least 150 IPOB supporters in 2016. Abuja flatly rejects the claim.

For Don Okereke, a security analyst, Kanu "embodies aspirations of a new generation, more activist, more radical" than their elders, who fought in the war.

"He tells people just what they want to hear," he added.

- Lost tribe of Israel -

The extent of Kanu's support in the southeast of the country is difficult to gauge but his followers have virtually worshipped him since his release on bail.

Kanu does not do anything to stop the myth-making and is protected round the clock by an impressive security detail, who thoroughly search all his visitors.

Religion is ever-present in his speeches, and Kanu now wears the talit (Jewish prayer shawl) and observes the sabbath.

IPOB followers also wear the kippah (skullcap).

It all dates back to a "divine revelation" Kanu says he had during a trip to Jerusalem: the Igbo -- most of whom are Christian -- are descendents of a lost tribe of Israel, he says.

Biafra is the "promised land" and it is his mission to restore it.
Sri Lanka's monsoon death toll has climbed to 164 in the island's worst flooding in 14 years

Thousands of Sri Lankan troops battled Monday to get relief supplies to nearly half a million people displaced by the island's worst flooding in well over a decade, which has killed 169 people.

The military said a lull in torrential monsoon rains had allowed it to deploy aircraft, boats and ground troops to evacuate people from flooded areas and deliver food and other essentials.

Almost half a million people have had to abandon their homes after the island suffered its worst flooding in 14 years.

The Disaster Management Centre said 169 people had been confirmed dead, most of them buried by landslides triggered by Friday's intense rains. Another 102 people are listed as missing and 88 are in hospital.

Sri Lanka is regularly hit by flooding at the start of the annual monsoon. But carpenter J. H. Siripala, who lives in one of the areas worst hit, said he had never seen it this bad.

"I have lived in this area for 27 years and we have gone through floods, but never experienced this much water," the 62-year told AFP in Kalutara district on the southwest coast as a navy boat carried him to safety.

"I thought it was my end," he said as he recalled how the water level suddenly rose on Sunday, covering his head, before he was pulled to safety.

Dhanushka Fernando said his house was under eight feet (2.5 metres) of water on Sunday.

"We had floods in 2003 but not this much water," the 28-year-old told AFP.

Military spokesman Roshan Seneviratne said a let-up in the rains had allowed troops to access cut-off villages.

"We are able to access all the affected communities," he told AFP.

He said 1,800 soldiers and 1,100 naval personnel had been deployed to evacuate people and ferry food and other essentials to affected areas.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003, when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful monsoon.

Nearly 2,000 houses have suffered structural damage or been completely destroyed, according to official figures.

- International aid -

An investigation is under way after an air force transport helicopter crashed during an operation to distribute food to marooned villages in the southern town of Baddegama.

The 11-member crew of the Mi-17 transport helicopter were unhurt.

On Friday an airman was killed when he fell from a helicopter while trying to winch up a marooned man in the island's south.

The government said floodwaters were beginning to recede on Monday but some low-lying areas remained heavily inundated.

All schools in flood-hit areas, including the capital Colombo, will be closed for a week, it said.

Sri Lanka has sought international assistance, with India sending two naval ships laden with supplies over the weekend.

The United Nations said it would donate water containers, water purification tablets and tarpaulins while the World Health Organization will support medical teams in affected areas.

Japan had promised portable electricity generators and a team of experts to help with the relief work, officials said, adding that Pakistan was also in talks with Colombo to send relief supplies. Islamabad recently gave 10,000 tonnes of rice to Sri Lanka to help drought victims.

The meteorological department said Friday's rain ended a prolonged drought that had threatened agriculture. It is forecasting more rain in the next two days.
The Historical Aircraft Restoration will help restore John Travolta's plane so it can make the journey from the United States to their base some 90 miles from Sydney

Hollywood star John Travolta has donated his "beloved" Boeing 707 plane to an Australian aviation museum and is aiming to be part of the crew to deliver the vintage aircraft.

Made for Qantas Airways in 1964, the "Saturday Night Fever" heartthrob and qualified pilot acquired the jet when Australia's national carrier retired it more than 30 years later.

"It gives me great pleasure to make this exciting historical announcement that my beloved Boeing 707 aircraft has been donated to the Historical Aircraft Restoration society (HARS)," Travolta, a Qantas ambassador since 2002, said in a statement.

Australian aircraft preservation organisation HARS will help restore the plane so it can make the journey from the United States to their base some 90 miles (145 kilometres) from Sydney.

A date for the flight is not yet fixed but the actor, a long-time aviation buff, said he plans to be on it.

"The aircraft currently requires a lot of work to be restored to a safe flying state and having seen first hand the dedication and passion of people at HARS, I have no doubt this beautiful and historical aircraft will be flying again," Travolta said.

"I am hoping to be part of the crew to fly the aircraft to Australia."

HARS President Bob De La Hunty said the idea was first floated when he met Travolta in 2009 and the pair flew a Qantas 1955 Super Constellation aircraft along Australia's east coast.

"We share a mutual respect for old airplanes and flying and at that stage we were keen to suggest to him that if he ever wanted to part with his Boeing 707 we would be very interested in it," De La Hunty told broadcaster ABC.

"When we heard earlier this year that he was looking at possibly not continuing with his Boeing 707, we made contact. He jumped at the idea and so we've been in detailed discussions and negotiations since."

Boeing 707s dominated passenger aircraft in the 1960s, helping usher in an era of long-range travel which had previously been dominated by rail and sea.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) will seek to repair New Delhi's drifting partnership with Moscow when he meets President Vladimir Putin this week

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek to repair India's drifting partnership with Russia when he meets President Vladimir Putin this week, amid wariness over Moscow's renewed interest in New Delhi's backyard, analysts say.

The two leaders will look to stem a decline in trade between the once robust economic partners and resolve tensions over their shifting global alliances when they meet on Thursday ahead of a summit in Saint Petersburg.

The two countries enjoyed a 70-year alliance forged during the Cold War, when the Soviet Union was India's largest trading partner, diplomatic ally and main arms supplier, providing everything from tanks to aircraft.

But the relationship became unmoored following the collapse of the USSR, as India underwent an economic transformation and increasingly sought to build trade ties with Western nations.

That process has accelerated in recent years as New Delhi has orbited closer to Washington, and Russia has fostered relationships with India's chief regional rivals Pakistan and China, analysts say.

Russia remains an important partner for India but "the basis for the relationship is, however, very weak", said Dhruva Jaishankar, foreign policy fellow with Brookings India.

"People-to-people exchanges are limited, young Indians are less likely to study Russian, and even areas like energy and information technology, where the two countries have comparative advantages, are underdeveloped," he said.

The two leaders are expected to discuss a framework agreement for Moscow to supply more reactors to a nuclear plant in southern India as the country seeks to reduce its reliance on highly polluting coal.

Russia has supplied two reactors to the plant under a long-delayed agreement, and has been pushing to supply more.

A revival of two-way trade, which slumped to below $8 billion in 2015 despite an ambitious bilateral target of achieving $30 billion by 2030, will be a key priority during Modi's visit.

- Pivot to Pakistan -

New Delhi, which is the world's top arms buyer, once relied on Moscow for its military hardware, but has increasingly turned to the United States, France and Israel to update its Soviet-era defence equipment in recent years.

Furthermore, Modi is now seeking to manufacture military hardware locally, asking foreign firms to work with domestic contractors under his "Make in India" campaign, in a bid to reduce reliance on costly imports.

Although Russia is close to finalising a deal to build Kamov military helicopters in India, its recent pivot towards Pakistan has not gone unnoticed in New Delhi.

Moscow lifted its embargo on arms supplies to India's arch rival in 2014, according to Russia's ITAR-TASS news agency, and was holding talks on supplying Islamabad with combat helicopters.

Moscow also rattled India recently with its decision to support the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a project opposed by New Delhi because it runs through the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

The last few years have seen "a parting of the ways on many big issues, in particular on Afghanistan", where Moscow is seeking to broker a peace deal with Taliban insurgents, Jaishankar said.

Moscow -- which fought a disastrous military campaign in Afghanistan during the Soviet era -- has been increasingly flexing its muscles on the world stage, hosting a regional conference earlier this year that was aimed at facilitating peace talks between the Taliban and Kabul.

India has been a key supporter of Kabul's government and has poured more than $2 billion into the country since the former Taliban regime -- which was allied with Pakistan -- was toppled in 2001.

But, while New Delhi has traditionally taken a dim view of attempts to negotiate a peace settlement with the Taliban, it does not see Russia's renewed role in Afghanistan as hostile, said Brahma Chellaney from the New Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research.

"India appreciates that Russia is re-entering Afghanistan as an important player, and in doing so, not directly working against India's interest," he told AFP.

Modi's four-nation tour of Europe will also include stops in Germany and Spain to drum up foreign investment, and a face-to-face with newly-elected President Emmanuel Macron in France.
Street battles and a relentless military bombing campaign have so far failed to end the crisis in Marawi, one of the biggest Muslim cities in the mainly Catholic Philippines, and authorities have expressed alarm about the fate of those trapped

Army helicopters fired rockets at Islamist militants in a southern Philippine city Monday, as fears grew for up to 2,000 people unable to escape a week of relentless fighting that has left women and children dead.

President Rodrigo Duterte imposed martial law across the southern third of the Philippines shortly after the fighting erupted, warning the gunmen were involved in an effort by the Islamic State group to set up a local caliphate.

But street-to-street battles and a military bombing campaign have failed to end the crisis in Marawi, one of the biggest Muslim cities in the mainly Catholic nation, and authorities expressed alarm about those trapped inside the militants' areas.

"They are texting us and calling us for help," Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesman for the provincial crisis management committee, told AFP, referring to the 2,000 people his office had recorded being unable to leave.

The International Committee of the Red Cross, which is trying to help those trapped, said people were dying from the extreme conditions and stray bullets.

"When our colleges speak to them on phone calls, we hear that the situation is very difficult. Food is running out, water is running out, they don't have electricity," Martin Thalmann, the deputy head of the ICRC's Philippine delegation who is in Marawi, told AFP.

"There is intense fighting with small arms. It is really a terrible situation for them... people have died because they were shot and there was no doctor to treat them."

Authorities said the gunmen had already murdered at least 19 civilians, including women and children, while 17 members of the security forces had died in the clashes and 61 militants were killed.

Eight bodies were found on Sunday morning dumped off a bridge on the outskirts of Marawi, which is normally a bustling city of 200,000 people known as a centre of Islamic culture and education.

Philippines

Myrna Bandung, a Catholic woman, told reporters at a checkpoint on Monday as she accompanied one of those bodies out of the city that she had been with the eight when they were murdered.

"They did not kill me because I was able to recite a Muslim prayer. The others were not so lucky," a visibly shocked Bandung said.

Most of the city's residents had fled to nearby towns.

But adding to the fears for those who remained, the military announced on the weekend that it would intensify a bombing campaign on the areas being held by the militants.

An AFP reporter in Marawi witnessed helicopters flying low repeatedly on Monday afternoon and firing rockets on areas where the militants were believed to be hiding, with smoke up rising up from those locations afterwards.

Troops walked behind tanks as they went down seemingly deserted streets, occasionally launching a barrage of automatic rifle fire after being shot at by snipers.

- Raid backfires -

The violence began when dozens of gunmen went on a rampage throughout Marawi in response to an attempt by security forces to arrest Isnilon Hapilon, a veteran Filipino militant regarded as the local leader of IS.

Hapilon, a senior member of the Abu Sayyaf kidnap-for-ransom gang, is on the US government's list of most-wanted terrorists.

The gunmen on Tuesday planted black IS flags, took a priest and up to 14 other people hostage from a church, and set fire to buildings. The fate of those hostages remained unknown.

Duterte and military chiefs have said most of the militants belong to the local Maute group, which has declared allegiance to IS and which the government estimates has about 260 armed followers.

Residents and commuters queue up at a police checkpoint at the entrance to Iligan City on the southern island of of Mindanao on May 29, 2017, after local authorities locked down the city due to a terror threat

But Malaysian, Indonesian, Singaporean and other foreign fighters had joined them, the military said.

A Muslim separatist rebellion in the southern Philippines has claimed more than 120,000 lives since the 1970s.

The main Muslim rebel groups have signed accords with the government aimed at forging a final peace, giving up their separatist ambitions in return for autonomy.

The Maute, the Abu Sayyaf and other hardline groups are not interested in negotiating and have in recent years looked to IS to help them.

Duterte said Saturday he was prepared to enforce martial law for as long as was necessary to end the terrorist threat.
Protestors chant during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

Protesters have rallied for a third night running in Morocco's city of Al-Hoceima, in a northern region of the country where there has been growing social unrest.

An AFP journalist saw several hundred mainly young demonstrators gathered in two neighbourhoods of the city on Sunday night, chanting "The state is corrupt!" and "Dignity!".

They also shouted "We are all Zefzafi!" in reference to protest leader Nasser Zefzafi, who is on the run after authorities last week ordered his arrest.

The protesters attempted to make their way to the city's central square but were blocked by security forces. After an hour-long face-off with police the youths dispersed without incident.

"We cannot take a single step, the police are everywhere," an activist in the city told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Moroccan police face protestors during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

The activist said a solidarity rally had taken place in the nearby city of Imzouren.

Protests were also reported in two other northern cities, Nador and Tanger, as well as in Casablanca and the capital Rabat, where some 300 people took part.

Morocco's northern Rif region has been shaken by more than six months of social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, soon evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement".

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he on Friday allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque and called for further demonstrations.

Evening protests followed on Friday and Saturday, with demonstrators clashing with police.

As of late Sunday police had arrested 22 people in connection with the disturbances, according to officials.

Local sources have reported significantly more arrests and said many of those detained have been transferred to Casablanca.

Chanting protestors crowd the streets during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Morocco's central authorities and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.

The protests subsided following a series of political reforms including constitutional changes that saw King Mohamed VI give up some of his wide-ranging powers.
A Tunisian patient receives treatment at the emergency room of the Charles Nicole Hospital in Tunis on May 5, 2017

Overcrowded hospitals, exhausted staff and, disgruntled patients... Tunisia's public health sector is struggling to heal its many maladies.

Hours of waiting for treatment, angry patients and broken equipment have become chronic problems.

"Our hospitals are ruins," Amel Belhaj said as she visited her bedridden father in a Tunis hospital ward with mould-tainted walls and rusty radiators.

"On top of our illnesses, we have to cope with the misery of these places, the dirt, the behaviour of the staff," she said.

The nearby toilets smelled strongly of urine and rubbish was strewn on the floor.

Her father, who occupied one of the ward's 11 beds, refused to comment.

Developing the health sector has been a key priority for Tunisian governments since the country gained independence from France in 1956.

Today, the North African country's 11 million people are served by some 166 hospitals and 2,100 health centres, according to official figures.

Tunisia's 11 million people are served by some 166 hospitals and 2,100 health centres, but public health services have deteriorated since the 1990s and are failing to meet modern demand

But public health services have deteriorated since the 1990s and are failing to meet modern demand, according to a report last year by the health section of the powerful UGTT union.

"If there is one public service that needs urgent reform, it is the health sector," it said, bemoaning "social inequality" in treatment.

The sector suffers from corruption, regional inequalities in access to advanced equipment and "medical deserts" -- entire regions suffering a scarcity of healthcare professionals.

The UGTT study said Tunisia risked backtracking on the advances it has made since independence from France in 1956.

- 'Major failure' -

"There are services we're proud of and others that need particular attention," said Kaouther Hedhili, a senior health ministry official who admitted the current state of the sector was a "major failure".

She said Tunisia's public services were saturated with staff following massive recruitment into menial and administrative jobs after the 2011 revolution.

Yet hospitals also lack qualified medical staff -- across the country, the sector has a shortfall of almost 14,000 staff.

Hospitals in Tunisia lack qualified staff, with a shortfall of almost 14,000, and they are also burdened with some $207 million (185 million euros) of debt

Hospitals are also burdened with some $207 million (185 million euros) of debt, she said.

But senior health official Nabiha Borsali Falfoul said public criticism of the sector is often exaggerated.

"The hospitals are in great demand," she said. "The staff are working beyond their means."

Authorities also point out that general life expectancy in Tunisia has risen from 66 to 73 in just a decade, a sign the health service is doing its job.

One hospital official, who asked not to be identified, complained that private health operators were "demonising" the public sector.

Private clinics have mushroomed to serve wealthy clients and an influx of Libyan patients.

But because of their cost, most are out of reach for many Tunisians, who are forced to rely on public health services.

Chokri Hamouda, head of the emergency department at the Charles-Nicolle Hospital in Tunis, said a solution was urgently needed to tackle the lack of qualified medical staff.

It is imperative "to adapt the means available to the needs of the citizen", he said.

"You can't put a price on good health, but ensuring it does have a cost."
A member of Iraq's Counter-Terrorism Services advances in west Mosul's Al-Saha neighbourhood on May 29, 2017

Iraqi forces pressed forward Monday with an offensive against jihadist-held areas of Mosul as the United Nations warned of grave danger to civilians in the final stages of the battle.

More than seven months into the massive operation to recapture Mosul from the Islamic State group, Iraqi forces have retaken the city's east and large parts of its western side, but the jihadists are putting up tough resistance in areas they still hold.

"Our units are continuing to advance... and entered Al-Saha al-Oula and Al-Zinjili and Al-Shifaa neighbourhoods and the Republican Hospital," said Joint Operations Command spokesman Yahya Rasool.

IS was using "explosives-rigged vehicles and snipers and suicide bombers" to target Iraqi forces, he told AFP.

The areas mentioned by Rasool -- which are located north of Mosul's Old City, where IS also still holds significant territory -- are the main targets of the offensive, which was announced on Saturday.

The Joint Operations Command also said Monday that Iraqi aircraft had dropped leaflets over Mosul urging residents to leave IS-held areas -- the second time this has been done within the past week.

Aid agencies are concerned that civilians, particularly children, will be caught in the crossfire of the battle for Iraq's Mosul

This is the opposite of the strategy Iraqi forces employed in east Mosul, where they urged civilians to stay in their homes, and may encourage even more people to leave.

"In the past several weeks, 160,000 civilians have fled, and our expectation is that, because of this order (from the government), we could be seeing a similar number of civilians flee in coming days," Lise Grande, the UN's humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, told AFP.

"Altogether, since the start of Mosul, 760,000 civilians have left their homes, and we are looking at the possibility of another 200,000 civilians leaving," she said.

A displaced Iraqi woman with her child in a safe area on May 26, 2017 after fleeing their home during the anti-IS offensive on west Mosul

Of the 760,000 civilians who have fled, some 150,000 have since returned home, leaving more than 600,000 currently displaced.

"We are deeply concerned that right now, in the last final stages of the campaign to retake Mosul, that the civilians... in (IS) areas are probably at graver risk now than at any other stage of the campaign," said Grande.

She said that the UN estimates there are between 180,000 and 200,000 civilians in jihadist-held areas of Mosul, the majority of them in the Old City area.

The area -- a warren of closely spaced buildings and narrow streets -- has posed a significant challenge to Iraqi forces, which have surrounded it with a large number of civilians trapped inside.

"The Old City has been blockaded for a while, completely from the south and now our units are present on the north and west," Rasool said. The area's eastern side is bordered by the Tigris River.

According to information received by the UN from families who have managed to flee, conditions in IS-held Mosul are increasingly dire.

"We understand that medicines are very scarce, that there are severe shortages of safe drinking water, that there are very limited stocks of food. We also are aware that families which try to escape are often targeted by snipers," Grande said.

"You have an enclosed area, you have fighters which are determined to hold out, the civilians are in many ways trapped in that area, there haven't been resupplies into the Old City for months," she said.

The battle for Mosul has taken a heavy toll on civilians, pushing hundreds of thousands to flee, while hundreds more have been killed or wounded.

IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained much of the territory they lost.

The recapture of Mosul will not, however, mark the end of the war against IS: the jihadists hold other territory in three Iraqi provinces and are also able to carry out frequent attacks in government-controlled areas.

Forces from the Hashed al-Shaabi -- an umbrella organisation for pro-government paramilitaries that is dominated by Iran-backed Shiite militias -- are battling the jihadists west of Mosul.

In a video released on Monday, Abu Mahdi al-Mohandis, a senior Hashed leader, said the paramilitary forces had reached the border with Syria.
Israel's interior minister, Aryeh Deri, pictured on May 19, 2015, when he was serving as economy minister

Israeli Interior Minister Aryeh Deri and his wife were being questioned by fraud squad detectives Monday as part of a major corruption investigation, Israeli media reported.

Police confirmed an investigation was ongoing involving a "public official and his wife," but did not provide further details.

Public radio tweeted that Deri, who was freed in 2002 after 22 months in prison for bribery and fraud, entered the offices of the police serious crimes and fraud unit with his wife Yaffa on Monday morning.

Privately owned Channel 2 television said the couple were being interviewed in separate rooms.

Haaretz newspaper said police were questioning another 14 suspects, including the director general of a government ministry.

In Israel, the interior ministry is not responsible for law enforcement, which is under the control of a separate public security ministry.

Haaretz said the Deris were "expected to be asked, among other things, to explain how he financed real estate he bought in recent years, such as his house in Safsufa," a village in northern Israel.

A police statement confirmed the investigation, without identifying the suspects.

"This morning police detained 14 suspects from all over the country as part of an investigation conducted by the national unit for investigations and in cooperation with the Tax Authority," it said.

"This investigation began in April 2016 based on suspicions of tax offences mainly in the field of assets and was expanded to additional suspicions that expanded to other suspects, including a public official and his wife."

Contacted by AFP, a police spokesman declined to elaborate.

Deri founded the ultra-Orthodox Jewish Shas party, which is part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing coalition government.
A member of the Iraqi forces guards a position in Mosul's western Al-Saha neighbourhood during their ongoing battle to retake the area from Islamic State group fighters on May 28, 2017

Iraqi forces pressed forward on Monday with a broad offensive targeting Islamic State group-held areas in west Mosul and called for civilians to leave, the military said.

More than seven months into the massive operation to retake Mosul, Iraqi forces have recaptured the city's east and large parts of its western side, but the jihadists are still putting up tough resistance.

"Our units are continuing to advance... and entered Al-Saha al-Oula and Al-Zinjili and Al-Shifaa neighbourhoods and the Republican Hospital," said Joint Operations Command spokesman Yahya Rasool.

IS was using "explosives-rigged vehicles and snipers and suicide bombers" to target Iraqi forces, he told AFP.

The areas mentioned by Rasool -- which are located north of Mosul's Old City, where IS also still holds significant territory -- are the main targets of the offensive, which was announced on Saturday.

The Joint Operations Command also said Monday that Iraqi aircraft had dropped leaflets over Mosul urging residents to leave IS-held areas -- the second time it had done so within the past week.

Overnight, planes dropped "thousands of leaflets on the Old Mosul, Al-Zinjili, Al-Shifaa and Al-Saha areas urging citizens to leave toward our security forces," it said.

Hundreds of thousands of people have already been displaced by the battle for Mosul, and that figure is likely to rise as Iraqi forces close in the last IS-held areas of the city.

IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained much of the territory they lost.
A file photo taken on May 06, 2017 shows Moroccan activist Nasser Zefzafi banging on a pot during a protest in the northern city of Al-Hoceima

Authorities in Morocco have arrested the fugitive leader of a protest movement that has shaken the country's northern Rif region for six months, officials said on Monday.

Nasser Zefzafi, who had been on the run since Friday, was detained on Monday, said a government source and another official from the interior ministry.

Further details were not immediately available.

Morocco's northern Rif region has been shaken by social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement", based largely in the city of Al-Hoceima.

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he on Friday allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque and called for further demonstrations.

Evening protests in Al-Hoceima followed on Friday and Saturday, with demonstrators clashing with police. Protesters gathered for a third night on Sunday but dispersed peacefully after being confronted by security forces.
A new railway in Kenya is the nation's biggest infrastructure project since independence

More than a century after a colonial railway gave birth to modern Kenya, the country is betting on a new Chinese-built route to cement its position as the gateway to East Africa.

The $3.2 billion (2.8 billion euro) railway linking Nairobi with the port city of Mombasa will Wednesday take its first passengers on the 472 kilometre (293 mile) journey, allowing them to skip a hair-raising drive on one of Kenya's most dangerous highways.

The railway is the country's biggest infrastructure project since independence, and while it has courted controversy, it is a key selling point for the ruling Jubilee party ahead of August elections.

It is also part of a "master plan" by east African leaders to connect their nations by rail, with the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) planned to eventually link Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Burundi and Ethiopia.

"There is no country which has ever developed without having a very robust railway system. It was long overdue," Kenya's Transport Minister James Macharia told AFP.

He said not upgrading the railway in over 100 years "has dragged us backwards in terms of development."

- The 'Lunatic Express' -

Kenya's new $3.2 billion (2.8 billion euro) railway links Nairobi with the port city of Mombasa

It was on May 30, 1896, that colonial Britain began building a railway from what is today Kenya's coast to improve access to the riches of Uganda, showing little interest in the wild land in between.

The railway, steeped in tales of swashbuckling colonial adventure and beloved by tourists up until its last, creaking journey in April, is credited with shaping Kenya into its current form.

The capital Nairobi, today a regional hub, was a swampy outpost with no particular attraction until it became the headquarters of Kenya Railways.

The construction of the railway is the stuff of legend, with British and Indian workers terrorised by a pair of lions said to have devoured some 135 men.

The train was later dubbed the "Lunatic Express".

- 'Bad negotiations' -

Some see a touch of folly in its successor too.

In as much as the old line traced the development of colonial Kenya, the new railway has proven a mirror for modern Kenya: dogged by corruption accusations, battling environmental concerns while trying to position itself as the gateway to east Africa.

The World Bank, and others, warned that building a new railway, instead of refurbishing the old one, was by far the most expensive option.

However, the government went ahead with the project, skipping an open tender to make a direct deal with China -- whose Export-Import Bank has loaned Kenya 90 percent of the venture's cost.

"We should ask: 'Why did you negotiate this badly'?" said Kwame Owino, head of the Nairobi-based Institute of Economic Affairs.

He points to similar Chinese-built railways in Ethiopia, Tanzania and elsewhere on the continent which cost much less per kilometre.

Macharia dismisses this argument, saying Kenya's SGR could carry more cargo, and passes through trickier terrain.

He said the government expects the railway to boost GDP by 1.5 percent, allowing them to pay back the loan "in about four years".

"I think that is a little bit of wishful thinking," said Owino, questioning assumptions about the volume of cargo available to be carried, while warning high growth rates in east Africa were beginning to moderate.

He said the government, whose debt has doubled in three years, would be forced to raise taxes to cover the bill.

"My feeling as an economist is that it is going to be a white elephant, but as a taxpayer I hope not," said Owino.

Trucks currently take two days to carry goods from Mombasa to Nairobi, while the train will take eight hours. Passenger trains will take around five hours.

The railway will be managed by the Chinese contractor for five years, with 610 Chinese workers in charge, while Kenyans are trained to take over.

- Environmental woes -

The railway has also concerned environmentalists, as it cuts through a key wildlife migration route.

Ben Okita of Save The Elephants said that while underpasses have been built to allow elephants to cross, the creation of an embankment and fencing around the new railway was creating deadly confusion.

Previously one or two elephants were killed annually, but since 2016, 10 elephants have been hit on the old route.

"They are used to crossing the old line and then they get to the new railway line and they find the fence and they get confused, in the process they are hit by a train," said Okita.

The next leg of the SGR, to connect Nairobi with the Rift Valley town of Naivasha at a cost of $1.5 billion has also caused a furore as it will cut through the capital's iconic national park.

The government is currently negotiating the financing to link Naivasha to Kisumu near the Ugandan border, which Macharia says is expected to cost another $3.5 billion.
Protesters chant during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern Moroccan city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

Authorities in Morocco on Monday arrested the fugitive leader of a protest movement that has shaken the country's northern Rif region for months.

The prosecutor of the northern coastal city of Al-Hoceima said Nasser Zefzafi, who had been on the run since Friday, had been taken into custody.

He was detained "along with other individuals" and transferred to Casablanca, the prosecutor said in a statement, without providing further details of the arrests.

Those held will be investigated for "undermining the security of the state" and other criminal acts, the prosecutor added.

The Rif region has been shaken by social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi, himself unemployed, emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement", based largely in Al-Hoceima.

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque on Friday and called for further demonstrations.

Prosecutors said the arrest was ordered after Zefzafi "obstructed, in the company of a group of individuals, freedom of worship" at the mosque in Al-Hoceima.

The protest leader later appeared in footage broadcast on social media saying he was "safe and sound" and calling for further demonstrations.

As of Monday evening police had arrested 40 people in connection with the disturbances in Al-Hoceima, according to officials.

For its part, the Moroccan Association of Human Rights (AMDH) said it had identified 50 people detained and that "the number of arrests continues to rise" and had passed 70 across the whole province.

The state bears "full responsibility for the consequences of this repressive approach" in the face of peaceful demonstrations in support of "the legitimate demands of the people," AMDH added.

- 'The police are everywhere' -

Protestors have come out on the streets every night since Friday in Al-Hoceima, a city of some 56,000 residents.

On Monday night more than 2,000 demonstrators shouted slogans such as "We are all Zefzafi!" while anti-riot police looked on.

Moroccan activist Nasser Zefzafi bangs on a pot during a protest in the northern city of Al-Hoceima on May 6, 2017

The protest ended around midnight without incident, but over the weekend demonstrators clashed with police, with three members of the security forces reported to have been seriously hurt on Friday.

Demonstrations were also reported in two other northern cities, Nador and Tangiers, as well as in Casablanca, Marrakesh and the capital Rabat, where some 300 people took part.

Media reports said an Algerian journalist from El Watan newspaper was arrested in Nador.

Morocco's MAP news agency later said he was expelled because he was working without proper "authorisation".

- Tense relationship -

Authorities have accused protesters of receiving money and other support from abroad "to carry out propaganda activities".

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Morocco's central authorities, and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.

The protests subsided following a series of political reforms including constitutional changes that saw King Mohamed VI give up some of his wide-ranging powers.

Moroccan police face protesters during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit led a large delegation to Al-Hoceima last week, the latest in a series of government trips to the region.

Officials have promised increased support for the local economy, in particular the crucial fishing industry.

Zefzafi, 39, emerged as the leader of the movement by broadcasting passionate speeches online in the local Tarifit dialect from his home or the street, denouncing "corruption" and "dictatorship".

Zefzafi and other activists insist the movement is not seeking independence for the region, despite its long history of resistance to central rule and the fact that some protesters have waved the flag of the short-lived Rif republic that existed from 1921 to 1926.
North Korea has carried out 12 missile tests this year in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action

China pleaded again for dialogue on Monday to ease regional tensions after North Korea launched its latest missile test in defiance of UN sanctions.

The Chinese foreign ministry urged Pyongyang in a statement to refrain from activities that go against United Nations Security Council resolutions.

"We hope that related parties can remain calm and restrained, ease the tension on the peninsula, and bring the peninsula issue into the right track of peaceful dialogue again," it said.

It was the North's third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year -- carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

Following North Korea's test-firing earlier this month of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the North's main trade partner and ally, has repeatedly called for a resumption of six-party talks that have been dormant since North Korea walked out on the negotiations in 2009.

Washington says it is willing to enter into talks with Pyongyang, but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.
Authorities in China have installed or upgraded over 50,000 lavatories in a "national toilet revolution" designed to clean up filthy public restrooms

China is taking care of a pressing need: Authorities have installed or upgraded over 50,000 lavatories in a "national toilet revolution" designed to clean up filthy public restrooms.

Relief is coming soon, and by the end of the year China expects to have added or upgraded a total of 71,000 toilets, well exceeding a target initially set in 2015.

The plan to fix the country's bad reputation for grimy and smelly facilities has focused on restrooms in tourist sites.

In some places, shiny new toilets have replaced unhygienic open pits that offered little privacy.

More sanitation workers have also been hired.

The National Tourism Administration said in a report on Friday that almost 93 percent of the target has been reached.

"At tourist sites, visitors were angered by insufficient toilets, unhygienic conditions and lack of sanitation workers," state news agency Xinhua said.

Xinhua said a recent survey showed over 80 percent of tourists now find China's toilets satisfactory, compared to 70 percent in 2015.

Facilities tend to be worse in rural areas, where some "were little more than ramshackle shelters surrounded by bunches of cornstalk," Xinhua reported.

Additionally, officials are using technological savvy to crack down on toilet paper theft and put a stop to people smuggling out entire rolls in bulging bags.

Some sites, including the Temple of Heaven and Olympic Green complexes in Beijing, have introduced facial recognition technology to foil paper bandits.

Visitors must approach a machine one by one to get their faces scanned before receiving their portion of loo roll.

If caught stealing or misbehaving people could face a ban from the facilities.

For years already, urinals in China have featured signs encouraging men to stand closer and aim better, advising: "One small step forward, one giant leap for civilisation".
Indonesian national Siti Aisyah (C) is escorted by a heavy police presence after a court appearance in Sepang on March 1, 2017

A lawyer for one of two women charged with assassinating Kim Jong-Nam accused Malaysian authorities Monday of an "unethical" failure to share documents vital to the defence.

Indonesian Siti Aisyah, 25, and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong, 28, have been charged with the murder of Kim, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, at Kuala Lumpur International Airport in February.

Police accuse them of wiping the banned nerve agent VX on Kim Jong-Nam's face as he was about to board a flight to Macau, where he was living in exile.

South Korea accuses North Korea of masterminding the killing, a charge it denies.

Both women, who face the death penalty if convicted, are scheduled to appear Tuesday before a lower court as part of pre-trial proceedings.

They have denied the charges, saying they were duped into believing they were taking part in a stunt for a TV reality show.

Gooi Soon Seng, chief lawyer for Siti Aisyah, said police and state prosecutors have yet to give the defence the airport closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage of the assassination or the autopsy report on Kim.

"Of course this is very frustrating. I have sent so many requests and reminders but not a single reply. It is highly unethical and unfriendly," he told AFP.

The CCTV footage and the autopsy report are important in preparing a defence, Gooi said.

Gooi is wary the prosecutors may spring a surprise.

"The right to a fair trial presupposes that material documents must be supplied at the earliest opportunity during the pre-trial period, and not on the eleventh hour before the commencement of the trial," he said.

Deputy public prosecutor Muhammad Iskandar Ahmad called for patience.

"Please be patient. We are obliged to serve them the documents before the trial. That is how it has been done in all other cases," he told AFP.

"This is just another case and we adopt the same method."

He said prosecutors on Tuesday are expected to ask for the case to be transferred to the High Court for trial at a later date.

Police are still trying to trace four North Koreans suspected of having taken part in the murder plot, who are believed to have returned to Pyongyang immediately after the killing.

Three other North Koreans earlier described as "persons of interest", including a diplomat based in Malaysia, were allowed to return home under a deal to secure the release of Malaysians held in Pyongyang.

The killing sparked a diplomatic row between Malaysia and North Korea which saw both countries banning each other's citizens from leaving and withdrawing their ambassadors.

The travel ban was lifted in late March after a deal was struck involving the return of Kim's body to North Korea.
At least 180 people have now been confirmed dead in the worst flooding to hit Sri Lanka for 14 years.

More than half a million people have also been displaced by the disaster which has brought flooding and landslides to the island's southwest, and thousands of troops battled on Monday to get supplies to them.

A lull in torrential monsoon rains allowed the military to deploy aircraft, boats and ground troops to evacuate people from flooded areas, deliver essentials and recover bodies.

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Sri Lanka's monsoon death toll has climbed to 164 in the island's worst flooding in 14 years

Sri Lanka is regularly hit by flooding at the start of the annual monsoon.

But carpenter J. H. Siripala, who lives in one of the areas worst hit, said he had never seen it this bad.

'I have lived in this area for 27 years and we have gone through floods, but never experienced this much water,' the 62-year told news agency AFP in Kalutara district on the southwest coast as a navy boat carried him to safety.

'I thought it was my end,' he said as he recalled how the water level suddenly rose on Sunday, covering his head, before he was pulled to safety.

A Sri Lankan mudslide survivor sits watching military rescue work at the site of a mudslide in Kiribathgala village in Ratnapura district, Sri Lanka, Monday.. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Sri Lankan army soldiers carry the body of a victim of a mudslide in Kiribathgala village in Ratnapura district, Sri Lanka. Soldiers recovered more than a dozen dead bodies on Monday. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Dhanushka Fernando said his house was under eight feet (2.5 metres) of water on Sunday. 'We had floods in 2003 but not this much water,' the 28-year-old told AFP.

In May 2003, 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful monsoon.

The official death toll rose to 180 on Monday after soldiers dug out the bodies of a woman and a child from under tonnes of mud following a landslide in Ratnapura, the island's gem capital.

The Disaster Management Centre said another 110 people were missing.

Mud and slush cover the slope at the site of a landslide in Kiribathgala, which is known for its gems and precious stones (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Sri Lankan soldiers dig earth during rescue efforts in Kiribathgala (AP Photo/Bharatha Mallawarachi)

Just over 5,500 houses have suffered structural damage or been completely destroyed, according to official figures.

A Mi-17 transport helicopter crash landed Monday while trying to deliver food and other essentials to a marooned village in the southern area of Baddegama. But air force spokesman Gihan Seneviratne said there were no casualties.

Military spokesman Roshan Seneviratne said a let-up in the rains had allowed troops to access cut-off villages.

Sri Lanka has deployed 1,800 soldiers and 1,100 naval personnel to evacuate people and ferry food and other essentials to affected areas.

Mudslide survivors stand by the site of the accident (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

A Sri Lankan mudslide survivor stands by the damage caused in Kiribathgala village in Ratnapura district (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

The paramilitary Civil Defence Force said it was deploying about 2,000 personnel while the police have sent their elite commandos to help.

The government said floodwaters were beginning to recede on Monday but some low-lying areas remained heavily inundated.

All schools in flood-hit areas, including the capital Colombo, will be closed for a week, it said.

Sri Lankan soldiers help with rescue work at the site of a mudslide in Kiribathgala village in Ratnapura district (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

A Sri Lankan mudslide survivor salvages belongings at a destroyed house in Kiribathgala (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Sri Lankan army soldiers carry the body of a victim of the devastating mudslide (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

As the rains eased in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and parts of India issued warnings over Cyclone Mora, which is expected to make landfall on Tuesday.

Bangladeshi authorities ordered all fishing crews to return to shore and advised people living in the southeastern area of Cox's Bazar to move to higher ground.

Sri Lanka has sought international assistance, with India sending two naval ships laden with supplies over the weekend. A third ship was expected this week, officials said.

The United Nations said it would donate water containers, water purification tablets and tarpaulins while the World Health Organization will support medical teams in affected areas.

Japan had promised portable generators and a team of experts to help with relief work.
In this photograph taken on November 16, 2016, Pakistani technicians work at a power grid station in Faisalabad

Violent protests erupted in Pakistan Monday as crippling electricity cuts left hundreds of thousands of people without power in soaring temperatures during the first two days of the holy fasting month of Ramadan.

At least one person was killed and eight wounded in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after police opened fire on hundreds of people protesting at the cuts by trying to set a power station ablaze, officials said.

"The protesters first tried to torch the electricity power station and then they attacked a police station," Zafar Ali Shah, a senior government official in Malakand district, told AFP, adding that the demonstrators also attacked government buildings, offices and vehicles.

Protesters later blocked a main highway linking Malakand and the Swat valley to the rest of the country, Shah added, saying that authorities are negotiating with local leaders to defuse the demonstrations.

In the provincial capital Peshawar some 800 protesters took over two power stations, demanding government employees continue the electricity supply without interruption.

Pakistan has for years been struggling to provide enough power for its nearly 200 million citizens. Its chronic energy crisis sees daily power outages which are amplified in the summer heat.

Residents in Peshawar said they face cuts for six to eight hours a day, while rural areas can receive electricity for as little as three to four hours a day.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has vowed to solve the crisis by 2018, when elections must be held.

On Monday he said that "minimum load-shedding" should be carried out during Ramadan, during which millions of devout Pakistanis abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset.

Temperatures in Pakistan touched near-record highs over the weekend.

On Sunday angry residents burned tyres in the roads in the sweltering port city of Karachi after a massive power outage in southern Pakistan.

Water distribution -- already unreliable in the megacity of some 25 million people -- is reliant on the electricity supply, leaving thousands unable to drink, cook or wash ahead of the first day of fasting.

Authorities said the power outage extended to more than a dozen districts in the southern province of Sindh of which Karachi is the capital, where temperatures topped 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit).

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North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un (centre) oversaw the test of a new anti-aircraft missile system on May 28, 2017

President Donald Trump on Monday called North Korea's latest missile test a slap in the face for its main ally China, which the US leader praised for trying to rein in the regime.

"North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbor, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile... but China is trying hard!" Trump said in a tweet.

North Korea launched its 12th ballistic missile test this year on Monday, this one falling provocatively close to Japan.

South Korea's military said the Scud-type missile travelled for 280 miles (450 kilometers), and Japan said it was estimated to have fallen into its exclusive economic zone, extending 200 nautical miles from the coast.

The test was carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings, amid fears that Pyongyang may conduct another nuclear test.

Trump declared at the G7 summit last week that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved" and has previously warned that no option is off the table.

But so far Washington has opted for sanctions and diplomatic pressure, looking to China, the North's closest ally, to step up economic pressure on Pyongyang.

In an interview with CBS News that aired Sunday before the latest launch, US Secretary of Defense James Mattis said a war with North Korea would be "catastrophic."
Asylum seekers -- mostly Syrian refugees in Greece's case -- are entitled to join family members elsewhere in the European Union within six months from the date their request is approved.

Greece and Germany have agreed to slow the reunification of refugee families divided between the two nations during their scramble to safety, according to a leaked letter published Monday.

"Family reunification transfer to Germany will slow down as agreed," Greek Migration Minister Yiannis Mouzalas wrote to German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere in a May 4 letter obtained by leftist daily Efimerida ton Syntakton.

The Greek migration ministry declined to comment, but earlier this month Mouzalas said the slowdown was due to "technical difficulties."

In the letter, Mouzalas reportedly acknowledges that the move -- enacted because of the sheer volume of asylum requests -- will affect "more than two thousand people" while some "will have to wait for years" to reach Germany even though their requests have been approved.

Asylum seekers -- mostly Syrian refugees in Greece's case -- are entitled to join family members elsewhere in the European Union within six months from the date their request is approved.

In his letter, Mouzalas said Berlin and Athens had to agree on a "common line" to address "increasingly desperate and critical comments" so that Athens is not blamed for the delays.

He then suggests a joint response: "We understand that asylum seekers are eager to meet with their family, but given that both Greece and Germany have very large asylum seeking populations, delays are inevitable."

Ulla Jelpke, a deputy of German far-left Party Die Linke, earlier this month said Berlin had capped the number of refugees eligible for reunification at 70 people per month.

Accordingly, Efimerida ton Syntakton said there were just 70 transfers in April compared to 540 in March and 370 in February.

Immigration is a hot topic for Germany where elections are to be held in September.
A Taiwanese steel firm was behind a toxic waste dump that killed tonnes of fish in Vietnam last year

A Taiwanese steel firm behind a toxic waste dump that killed tonnes of fish in Vietnam last year started operations on Monday, state media in Hanoi reported.

The incident was one of the worst environmental disasters in Vietnam, decimating livelihoods along the central coast and sparking angry protests that continue today.

The $11-billion Formosa steel plant in central Ha Tinh province was still under construction when it was accused of illegally dumping waste into the ocean, causing masses of fish to wash up on beaches, including rare offshore species.

The plant's blast furnace started operating on Monday on a trial basis and will be closely monitored, according to an environment official quoted in the official Vietnam News Agency (VNA).

"If any incident occurs then we will stop operations immediately," said Hoang Duong Tung, deputy director of Vietnam's Environment Administration, quoted by VNA.

The test-run results will be available in 24 hours, he added, without specifying what they are monitoring for.

The Formosa plant was subject to a series of inspections, and the plant addressed 52 out of 53 violations identified before being greenlit to operate.

The remaining violation was related to a wet coking system, and officials said Formosa would switch to a cleaner dry coking system by 2019, according to VNA.

The Taiwanese steel conglomerate was ordered to pay $500 million to the Vietnam government after the mass fish deaths in April 2016.

Fishermen have continued to protest in central Vietnam, demanding greater compensation for the disaster, while some say they have still not been paid.

In April, four former officials were stripped of their Communist party positions over the Formosa scandal, including a former Ha Tinh official who has resigned from his MP post.
Islamist groups continue to make their presence felt across northern Mali, with attacks on domestic and foreign forces

A threat by radical Islamists in northeast Mali to punish an unmarried couple with death by stoning finally was not carried out, local officials told AFP on Monday.

Officials had told AFP on May 17 that the couple had been stoned to death in public the previous day in the Taghlit valley, in the remote Kidal region.

It would have been the first such incident since jihadist groups were driven out of the region in 2013 by a French-led military intervention.

The report was queried on social media but could not be checked independently as the area is difficult to access and a haven for smugglers, drug-traffickers and other criminal gangs and militia fighters.

"Finally they weren't lapidated," said a local official who asked not to be identified. "They were arrested and threatened and then some people pretended to lapidate them."

"There was no lapidation," he added. "People went to see but there was no stoning."

A Malian security source confirmed the report, saying the execution by stoning had been cancelled.

Last week, the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM), a fusion of several jihadist groups with previous Al-Qaeda links, issued a statement denying any involvement in the stoning and questioning whether it ever took place.

Jihadists seized key northern cities in Mali in March 2012, and though they were driven out the next year, Islamist groups continue to make their presence felt with frequent attacks on domestic and foreign forces.

During their brief control of key towns in the vast north, jihadist groups imposed a version of Sharia law which forced women to wear veils and set whipping and stoning as punishment for transgressions.
President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step aside at the end of his mandate has heightened unrest in Democratic Republic of Congo

The European Union imposed sanctions Monday on nine more officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including government spokesman Lambert Mende and Kalev Mutondo, the head of the National Intelligence Service, amid unrest after President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step aside.

The people targeted by asset freezes and travel bans "hold positions of responsibility in the state administration and in the chain of command of the security forces," the EU said in a statement.

They join seven people targeted by EU sanctions in December after clashes with protesters against Kabila last year left more than 50 people dead.

Brussels had warned in March that it could impose fresh measures if political and military leaders blocked a deal with the opposition over Kabila's refusal to step down at the end of his term late last year.

"The European Union remains seriously concerned by the deterioration of the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo," the EU said.

The sanctions also hit the current and former DRC ministers for the interior Ramazani Shadari and Evariste Boshab, respectively, the governor of Central Kasai province Alex Kande Mupompa and the former governor of Haut-Katanga Jean-Claude Kazembe as well as senior officers and a militia leader, the EU said.

They were listed for "having contributed to acts constituting serious human rights violations in the DRC, by planning, directing or committing them."

Mende, currently in China, was sanctioned "for the repressive media policy" in the country, it added.

A government source in Kinshasa told AFP that the situation "is very worrisome" and accused the EU of trying to "destabilise the DRC, like Libya or Iraq".

Tension has been mounting across the vast mineral-rich nation of 71 million people since December, when Kabila's second and final term officially ended but elections failed to be held.

Under an agreement brokered with the Catholic Church on New Year's Eve, Kabila, 45, would remain in office until elections in late 2017, ruling in tandem with a transitional watchdog and a new premier chosen from within the ranks of the opposition "Rassemblement" (Unity) coalition.

The Kasai region in particular has seen a major spike in violence since September, when government forces killed Kamwina Nsapu, a tribal chief and militia leader who had rebelled against Kabila.

In its statement, while the EU "firmly condemned all acts of violence," it said reports of excessive force by Congolese forces in Kasai were worrying and called on authorities to "act in keeping with human rights laws".

The deadly violence between government forces and tribal militias in Kasai has forced more than a million people from their homes over the past eight months, the UN said, and has left nearly 400,000 children at risk of dying from hunger.

Violence in the region has left at least 400 people dead since September, according to the UN, which has reported finding 40 mass graves, while two UN researchers investigating the violence were abducted and killed.
Saudi security personnel surround a rest house at the al-Munissiyah district, north-east of Riyadh, during a search for Al-Qaeda terror suspects on January 16, 2006

Qatar has deported a Saudi human rights activist who was on his way to Norway seeking international protection, a watchdog and Norwegian officials said on Monday.

Mohammed al-Otaibi, 49, fled to neighbouring Qatar in March after he faced charges in Saudi Arabia related to his human rights work and was referred to an anti-terrorism court, the Gulf Center for Human Rights said in a statement.

Otaibi was "forcibly deported to Saudi Arabia" at dawn Sunday while on his way to Norway, said the Gulf Center, which has offices in Copenhagen and Beirut.

Andreas Skjold-Lorange, a spokesman for the Norwegian justice ministry, confirmed "that a Saudi human rights activist who had received a travel permit to Norway as a (UN) quota refugee has been sent from Qatar to Saudi Arabia".

He and his wife -- who was not deported to Saudi Arabia -- were not seeking asylum in Norway but have been processed as United Nations refugees, the ministry said.

Qatari authorities also confirmed the deportation, but said it had taken place on "Wednesday May 24".

The official Qatar News Agency (QNA) said that the deportation had been confirmed by a foreign ministry source.

"The extradition was... based on legal procedures and regional and international agreements relating to the extradition of accused persons and criminals," the agency said.

First arrested in 2009, Otaibi in 2013 co-founded the Union for Human Rights in Riyadh.

Authorities ordered it shut after about one month, but he continued his work, issuing reports and giving television interviews, the Gulf Center said.

- Sensitive relations -

New York-based Human Rights Watch warned in April that Otaibi would be at risk of a long prison sentence and possible ill-treatment if forcibly returned to Saudi Arabia.

On a visit to the kingdom early this month, a United Nations special rapporteur, Ben Emmerson, strongly condemned Saudi Arabia for using counter-terrorism legislation and penal sanctions "against individuals peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression", religion, or association.

Saudi Arabia says that human rights are a matter of definition and "values" from one country should not be imposed.

It says the kingdom has made great strides in rights to education, healthcare and other areas.

The move to deport Otaibi comes at a particularly sensitive time in relations between Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Reports last week said Qatar's leader, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, made explosive remarks on state media criticising Gulf policy towards Iran, essentially putting Doha at odds with Riyadh.

But Doha maintains the Qatar News Agency website was hacked and no such comments were made by the emir.

The incident has pushed relations between the two countries to the lowest level for several years.

Qatari news sites were subsequently blocked in countries across the region, including Saudi Arabia.

In a further sign of a deepening rift between the two countries, the Saudi newspaper Okaz has reported that members of a prominent Saudi family demanded that Qatar's state mosque, the Sheikh Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab Mosque, be renamed.

The demand came amid questions over the Qatari royal family's link to Abdul Wahhab, co-founder of the Saudi state.
A handout picture provided by the Egyptian Presidency on May 29, 2017 shows Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi meeting with Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Cairo

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Monday held talks in Cairo with Russia's foreign and defence ministers on ways to battle "terrorism", his office said.

A statement said the talks with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu focused on "the struggle against terrorism" and bilateral cooperation.

Lavrov earlier discussed the situation in chaos-riddled Libya with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, the foreign ministry in Cairo said.

Rival administrations and militias have been fighting for control of oil-rich Libya since the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed veteran dictator Moamer Kadhafi.

Egypt's neighbour has also been a breeding and training ground for jihadists, including the Islamic State group.

The Cairo talks came after Egypt's air force on Friday bombed jihadist training camps in eastern Libya.

The air strikes were launched hours after masked gunmen shot dead 29 Coptic Christians in central Egypt, in an attack later claimed by the Islamic State group.

Forces loyal to east Libya military strongman Khalifa Haftar, which also took part in the strikes, said late Friday's raids hit a pro-Al-Qaeda group in the Libyan city of Derna.

"We hope Russia will do all it can so we can work together to eliminate terrorism," Shoukry said after meeting his Russian counterpart.

Egypt hopes "to continue its close coordination with Russia as part of political cooperation... but also security and intelligence cooperation to eliminate this phenomenon", he said.

In Libya, "the presence of terrorists and training camps that serve as departure points towards Egyptian territory is a direct threat to Egypt's national security," Shoukry said.

Sisi and his Russian visitors earlier "agreed on the importance of uniting international efforts in the battle against terrorism" and to step up their cooperation to meet that goal, the Egyptian presidency said.

A statement said Sisi told the Russian ministers that Cairo wants to bolster "economic, commercial and industrial ties" with Moscow.

Russia suspended all its flights to Egypt after the IS-claimed bombing in October 2015 of a Russian airliner carrying holidaymakers home from the popular Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, killing all 224 on board.

Monday's talks also focused on the conflict in Syria.

Shoukry praised "Russia's role in the success of the Astana process" -- the talks in Kazakhstan trying to bring about peace in Syria -- and said he hoped it would lead to "a total ceasefire", his office said.

Earlier this month, Damascus allies Russia and Iran as well as rebel supporter Turkey signed a landmark deal to create four "de-escalation" zones across some of Syria's bloodiest battlegrounds.

Lavrov also met Arab League head Ahmed Aboul Gheit, with both men stressing the importance of "working seriously to find political solutions to the crises and armed conflicts in the Arab world", the 22-member bloc said in a statement.

The Russian ministers' visit to Cairo had been planned for weeks as part of regular meetings between the allied countries.
Syrian families of opposition fighters gather at a staging point in the Barzeh neighbourhood of the capital Damascus on May 8, 2017, as they wait to be evacuated in the first batch

More than 1,000 people quit a rebel-held district of Damascus Monday, its governor said, in the final phase of a deal bringing Syria's government closer to controlling the entire capital.

The evacuations from the northern neighbourhood of Barzeh are part of a so-called "reconciliation" agreement for three opposition-held districts of Damascus.

Under such deals, fighters and civilians are granted safe passage to other rebel-held territory in exchange for an end to bombardment and siege.

The agreement has allowed Syria's government to declare control over the Damascus districts of Qabun and Tishrin, and on Monday the last evacuees left Barzeh.

"The last phase of the reconciliation deal for Barzeh is complete, with the departure of 1,012 people including 455 armed men," Damascus governor Beshr Assaban told state news agency SANA.

"This will allow state institutions to return to the neighbourhood," Assaban said.

The agreement was struck earlier this month and had already seen more than 5,000 people -- nearly half of them rebels -- leave Barzeh in several waves.

Like the thousands who left Qabun and Tishrin, they will head to opposition-controlled territory in northern Syria.

There are now only a handful of areas in Damascus that remain outside government control.

Rebels hold part of the heavily damaged Jobar district in the east, and in the south, the Tadamun and Hajar al-Aswad neighbourhoods as well as the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmuk are now mostly controlled by jihadists.

The evacuation deals follow a pattern of similar agreements in towns and villages around Damascus, as well as in third city Homs.

The government says the deals are the best way to end the six-year war, but the opposition says this amounts to forced displacement.

Damascus has been insulated from some of the worst violence of Syria's war, which has killed more than 320,000 people since it began with anti-government protests in March 2011.

But the government has made securing control of the last remaining rebel districts in the capital a key priority.
All 18 patients were being treated for kidney failure at a Vietnamese state-run hospital, when after 45 minutes on dialysis some reported nausea, abdominal pain and shortness of breath

Six people are dead and 12 others have been sent for treatment after undergoing kidney dialysis at a hospital in Vietnam on Monday, health officials said.

The victims were suspected to have suffered anaphylactic shock, state media reported, as officials launched an investigation into the incident.

All 18 patients were being treated for kidney failure at the state-run Hoa Binh Province General Hospital, when after 45 minutes on dialysis some reported nausea, abdominal pain and shortness of breath.

"The hospital and police have sealed off all the machines, equipment and medicine in the nephrology department," a statement from the health ministry said.

The department has also stopped receiving new patients, and the families of the deceased will be given $660 as compensation.

The ministry has sent a team to the area, 80 kilometres (50 miles) southwest of Hanoi, to investigate the incident.

"Individuals or groups who violated (regulations) will be strictly handled," the statement said.

Most hospitals in Vietnam are state-run, though private facilities are increasingly common in the communist country.

Standards of care at private hospitals tend to be better than at their government-run counterparts, but they are generally seen as safe and medical malpractice deaths are relatively rare in Vietnam.
The pre-approved Twitter measure has been criticised by the Rwandan opposition, who fear it is a tool to prevent criticism of President Paul Kagame who is seeking re-election for his third term

There will be no spur of the moment Twitter rants by Rwanda's presidential candidates, as the election commission has ruled that it must pre-approve all of their social media updates.

"We are asking (candidates) to present us their messages, their drafts to verify that they are not against the law," electoral commission head Kalisa Mbanda told AFP on Monday.

The measure, published in the government gazette earlier this month, will be effective as from the start of the official campaign on July 14 and concerns "messages, photographs and other campaign material" published on social networks.

Any social media messages will have to be submitted to the seven election commissioners at least 48 hours before their publication.

"If the message is not accepted it cannot be published," said Mbanda.

He said the goal was to "prevent declarations, words, acts that can lead the population to acts of insecurity that could divide the Rwandan population."

The measure has been criticised by the opposition, who fears it is a tool to prevent criticism of President Paul Kagame who is seeking re-election in August after the constitution was changed to allow him to run again.

"It is unfair because we think social media should be something spontaneous so if someone wants to control it or to approve it first it is going to make our work very difficult," said Frank Habineza, leader of the tiny opposition Democratic Green Party.

"If there is some message that is very critical to the ruling party maybe they can stop it saying it is against national security or something like that," he added.

Rwandan president Paul Kagame has been in charge since taking power at the head of a rebel army in 1994 and has already served two seven-year terms as president

Habineza, who is one of only four candidates who have declared their intention to run against Kagame -- pending the election commission's approval -- said he was considering legal action.

Since the end of the 1994 genocide in which around 800,000 mostly Tutsi people died, Rwanda has been praised for its stability and economic performance. However it often comes under fire for a lack of political freedom.

Rwanda is constitutionally a multi-party system but there is practically no opposition within the country.

All recognised parties generally support the policy decisions made by the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) -- with the exception of Habineza's Democratic Green Party which was the only one to object to the 2015 constitution changes allowing Kagame to seek re-election.

Kagame has been in charge since taking power at the head of a rebel army in 1994 and has already served two seven-year terms as president.

Kagame won previous elections with well over 90 percent of the vote.
President Donald Trump had been under pressure to speak out against the slayings in Portland

President Donald Trump on Monday condemned as "unacceptable" the stabbing deaths of two men who defended two young women being targeted by a suspected white supremacist on a train in Oregon.

"The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable. The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them," Trump said on Twitter.

Rick John Best, 53, an army veteran, and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, a recent college graduate, died after having their throats cut on the crowded train. They had come to the defense of two teenage girls, one of them a Muslim wearing a headscarf and the other an African-American.

A third man, 21-year-old Micah David-Cole Fletcher, was wounded and hospitalized.

The attacker, identified as 35-year-old Jeremy Joseph Christian, had been hurling abuse at the teenagers when the men intervened.

Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, is being held without bail

The Portland Mercury newspaper said Christian -- who has been charged on two counts of murder and one count of attempted murder -- was a known white supremacist and right-wing extremist.

Trump's message, sent just before he attended a Memorial Day ceremony at the Arlington military cemetery near Washington, came amid rising pressure on the president to condemn the slayings of the two men, dubbed "heroes" by local media and law enforcement in Portland.

Dan Rather, the former TV news anchor, said on Facebook that the men "were brave Americans who died at the hands of someone who, when all the facts are collected, we may have every right to call a terrorist."

"Their names were Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche and Ricky John Best. One was a recent college graduate. The other was an army veteran and father of four. I wish we would hear you say these names, or even just tweet them," Rather wrote Sunday in an open letter to the president, which was shared more than 150,000 times.

"This story may not neatly fit into a narrative you pushed on the campaign trail and that has followed you into the White House," Rather said in his post. "They were not killed by an undocumented immigrant or a 'radical Islamic terrorist.'

"They were killed in an act of civic love, facing down a man allegedly spewing hate speech directed at two teenage girls, one of whom was wearing a hijab," wrote Rather.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate crimes, has noted a sharp rise in the number of both anti-Muslim groups and bias incidents in the past year.

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate who lost to Trump in last year's election, on Sunday condemned the Portland train attack on her own Twitter account. "Heartbreaking. No one should have to endure this racist abuse. No one should have to give their life to stop it."

One of the young women who was targeted in the verbal assault by Christian thanked the two men who lost their lives helping her.

"I just want to say thank you to the people who put their life on the line for me," Destinee Mangum, 16, told KPTV television station. "Because they didn't even know me and they lost their lives because of me and my friend and the way we look."

She said Christian "told us to go back to Saudi Arabia and he told us we shouldn't be here, to get out of his country... He was just telling us that we basically weren't anything and that we should just kill ourselves."
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi approved a contentious new bill to regulate non-governmental organisations

Egypt's president has signed into law a contentious new bill to regulate non-governmental organisations, the official gazette said on Monday, triggering fears of an intensified crackdown on civil society.

Authorities have led a brutal crackdown on all forms of opposition, at times targeting human rights organisations directly, since then army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi overthrew Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013.

Sisi approved the law on May 24 after parliament approved it in November last year, the gazette said.

Rights lawyer Gamal Eid slammed the text of the new bill, which the United Nations and New York-based Human Rights Watch have also criticised.

"The law eliminates civil society in Egypt, whether human rights or development organisations," Eid said.

Under the law, foreign non-governmental groups will have to pay up to 300,000 pounds ($16,500, 14,800 euros) to start working in Egypt and renew their permit on a regular basis, the lawyer said.

No organisation can carry out or publish the results of a study or survey without prior permission from the state.

Those who violate the law could receive up to five years in jail and fines of up to one million Egyptian pounds (more than $55,000).

It requires for a "national authority" including army and intelligence representatives to oversee the foreign funding of Egyptian non-governmental organisations and the activities of foreign non-governmental organisations.

Since the 2011 uprising that toppled longtime president Hosni Mubarak, government and security officials have accused civil society of wanting to destabilise the country.

Several human rights defenders have been forbidden to travel outside Egypt and have seen their assets frozen as part of an inquiry into foreign funding to civil society groups started in 2011.

In March last year, the authorities said around 47,000 Egyptian non-governmental groups and more than 100 foreign ones were "working freely" in the country.
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - The mother of the CEO of the ride-hailing company Uber died in a boat accident in a California lake, the company said.

Bonnie Kalanick, 71, died after the boat she and her husband, Donald, 78, were riding in hit a rock in Pine Flat Lake and sank, Fresno County authorities said.

They are the parents of Travis Kalanick, 40, who founded Uber in 2009. The company has since grown to become an international operation with a market value of nearly $70 billion.

In this May 6, 2017 photo provided by Travis Kalanick, Uber Chief Executive Officer, Kalanick, center, poses with his mother, Bonnie, right, and father, Donald Kalanick, left, at the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Ky. Bonnie Kalanick, 71, died after the boat she and her husband, Donald, were riding Friday evening, May 26, hit a rock in Pine Flat Lake in the eastern part of Fresno County, in California, authorities said. (Travis Kalanick/Uber via AP)

The Kalanicks, from the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, have been longtime boaters. In a memo to Uber staff, Liane Hornsey, the chief human resources officer, called the Friday evening accident an "unthinkable tragedy." She wrote that "everyone in the Uber family knows how incredibly close Travis is to his parents."

Officers were called to the scene and found the couple on a shore of the lake, the Sheriff's office said in a statement.

Bonnie Kalanick died at the scene, and her husband suffered moderate injuries, the sheriff's office said.

An autopsy of Bonnie Kalanick is planned, the office said.

Donald Kalanick is being treated at a hospital and is in stable condition, the company said.

The couple's other son, Cory Kalanick, is a firefighter with the Fresno Fire Department.
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - An officer fatally shot a man with a history of mental illness after he charged at him and other officers with an ax during a confrontation at a San Jose apartment complex, police said Sunday.

The officers were responding to reports of a disturbance at a unit in the complex early Sunday and saw flames and smoke coming from underneath the front door when they arrived, Police Chief Eddie Garcia said.

When they forced the door open they were confronted by the ax-wielding suspect, he said. The man initially dropped the ax, but then did not comply with the officers' commands, Garcia said.

The officers then tried to subdue the suspect with a stun gun, but it had no effect on him, Garcia said. The man then picked up the ax and moved toward the officers, prompting an officer to fire at him, he said.

The suspect was taken to a hospital, where he died. His name was being withheld until the Santa Clara County Coroner's office confirms his identity and notifies his next of kin.

Police said he had been committed to a mental institution and has a criminal record including violence, weapons and drugs charges.

The officer who shot the suspect has been placed on administrative leave pending the investigation. He has been with the department for two years.

Garcia defended the officer's actions, saying he and fellow officers tried to diffuse a tense situation by trying to speak to the suspect and use nonlethal means to subdue him.

"He was left with no other choice," Garcia said. "This officer responded bravely, and almost certainly saved himself and his fellow officers from grave danger, in response to an almost impossible situation."
ATLANTA (AP) - Atlanta scored three goals in a seven-minute first-half burst in beating New York City FC 3-1 on Sunday.

Paraguayan midfielder Miguel Almiron opened the scoring in the 16th minute then Argentine winger Hector Villalba made it 2-0 when he curled the ball into the net just three minutes later.

Almiron scored his second goal in the 23rd minute as United seized control of the match while New York's lone replay was a consolation goal from Jack Harrison midway through the second half.

Houston Dynamo midfielder Juan Cabezas (5) and FC Dallas midfielder Kellyn Acosta (23) compete for a header in the first half of an MLS soccer game, Sunday, May 28, 2017, in Frisco, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

DYNAMO 0, FC DALLAS 0

FRISCO, Texas (AP) - Houston and Dallas played out a scoreless draw in the MLS Texan derby.

The stalemate left both teams tied for second in the Western Conference standings behind Kansas City.

Houston Dynamo forward Vicente Sanchez (10) and FC Dallas midfielder Mauro Diaz, right, compete for control of the ball in the second half of an MLS soccer game, Sunday, May 28, 2017, in Frisco, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Trump honors fallen and families in Memorial Day address

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) - President Donald Trump on Monday expressed the nation's "boundless" gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice paid by Americans defending the United States, dedicating his first Memorial Day address as commander in chief to a top Cabinet secretary and two other families who lost loved ones.

Participating in the somber, annual observance at Arlington National Cemetery, Trump recounted the stories of Green Beret Capt. Andrew D. Byers of Colorado Springs and Christopher D. Horton of the Oklahoma National Guard as Byers' tearful parents and Horton's emotional widow looked on.

Trump also singled out for special mention Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired Marine four-star general whose son, Marine 2nd Lt. Robert M. Kelly, was killed in November 2010 after he stepped on a land mine while on patrol in southern Afghanistan.

To all Gold Star families, Trump said of their lost service members: "They each had their own names, their own stories, their own beautiful dreams. But they were all angels sent to us by God and they all share one title in common and that is the title of hero, real heroes."

"Though they were here only a brief time before God called them home, their legacy will endure forever," Trump said.

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French president flexes diplomatic muscles in Putin meeting

VERSAILLES, France (AP) - Flexing his diplomatic muscles, French President Emmanuel Macron said he had "extremely frank" and "direct" talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday and launched an extraordinary attack on two state-funded Russian media outlets he accused of spreading "lying propaganda" during France's presidential campaign.

Macron's full-on blast at the state news agency Sputnik and broadcaster Russia Today came at a news conference with Putin standing at his side. His comments underscored the clear differences between the two men on multiple issues and fulfilled the French president's campaign promises to pull no punches with Russia when needed.

But after more than two hours of meetings - their first since Macron's May 7 election and longer than scheduled - both leaders also signaled a shared desire not to let disagreements define their fledgling relationship. The fight against terrorism, in particular, appeared to offer common ground.

Putin said Macron proposed a framework for French and Russian anti-terror experts to meet and work together. And both leaders agreed they don't want Syria - where Russia is propping up the government of President Bashar Assad - to collapse into a failed state.

Progress in Syria "will happen by a joint effort, which today we laid the foundations for," Macron said.

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Protest sparks Texas lawmaker threats of gun violence

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Hundreds of protesters opposing Texas' tough new anti-"sanctuary cities" law launched a raucous demonstration from the public gallery in the Texas House on Monday, briefly halting work and prompting lawmakers on the floor below to scuffle - and even threaten gun violence - as tense divides over hardline immigration policies boiled over.

Activists wearing red T-shirts reading "Lucha," or "Fight," quietly filled hundreds of gallery seats as proceedings began. After about 40 minutes, they began to cheer, drowning out the lawmakers below. Protesters also blew whistles and chanted: "Here to stay!" and "Hey, hey, ho, ho, SB4 has got to go," referring to the bill that Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law this month.

Some unfurled banners reading: "See you in court!" and "See you at the polls!"

State House leadership stopped the session and asked state troopers to clear the gallery. The demonstration continued for about 20 minutes as officers led people out of the chamber peacefully in small groups. There were no reports of arrests.

Texas' new law is reminiscent of a 2010 Arizona "show your papers" measure that allowed police to inquire about a person's immigration status during routine interactions such as traffic stops. It was eventually struck down in court.

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Ultimate sacrifice: Teen dies shielding cousin from gunfire

BROOKHAVEN, Miss. (AP) - It was after midnight when a gunman burst into the living room of a southern Mississippi home where young people were playing video games.

Caleb Edwards, 15, said the man - whom he knows as Corey Godbolt - demanded to know where his cousin's parents where. Jordan Blackwell, 18, said they were gone to another town.

At that, Godbolt "just started shooting," Caleb said.

As people scrambled to hide inside the Brookhaven home, Blackwell used his own body to shield his cousin Caleb from the gunfire.

With his mother standing by his side Monday, Caleb spoke calmly as he recounted to The Associated Press how he felt the force of the impact as Blackwell was shot Sunday.

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Trial near for sect members accused of beating away demons

RUTHERFORDTON, N.C. (AP) - It has been nearly 4 years since Matthew Fenner said he was beaten in a church sanctuary by a group of congregants hell-bent on expelling his "homosexual demons."

After countless twists and turns, the long-delayed, high-profile case finally appears ready to move forward in North Carolina Superior Court.

Jury selection could begin Tuesday for the first of five Word of Faith Fellowship members charged in the attack. Each defendant will be tried separately.

The first defendant, longtime minister Brooke Covington, 58, has pleaded innocent to one count each of kidnapping and assault. If convicted, she faces up to two years in prison.

The 23-year-old Fenner is bracing himself.

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City clash fuels fear of IS foothold in southern Philippines

MARAWI, Philippines (AP) - Inside this lakeside city dotted with hundreds of mosques, a powerful militant designated by the Islamic State group as its leader in the Philippines has managed to unify a disparate group of gunmen under a single command.

Over the past week, his fighters have shown their muscle, withstanding a sustained assault by the Philippine military and increasing fears that the Islamic State group's violent ideology is gaining a foothold in this country's restive southern islands, where a Muslim separatist rebellion has raged for decades.

The army insists the drawn-out fight is not a true sign of the militants' strength, and that the military has held back to spare civilians' lives.

"They are weak," Gen. Eduardo Ano, the military chief of staff, said of the gunmen, speaking at a hospital where injured soldiers were being treated. "It's just a matter of time for us to clear them from all their hiding places."

Still, the fighters have turned out to be remarkably well-armed and resilient.

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McConnell juggling diverse demands on Republican health bill

WASHINGTON (AP) - For Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, writing a Republican-only health care bill that can pass the Senate boils down to this question: How do you solve a problem like Dean, Lisa, Patrick, Ted, Rand and Susan?

Those are some GOP senators whose clashing demands McConnell, R-Ky., must resolve. Facing solid Democratic opposition to demolishing former President Barack Obama's 2010 overhaul, Republicans will lose if just three of their 52 senators defect.

In a report that complicated McConnell's task, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office delivered a damaging critique last week of the GOP-written bill the House approved May 4. It concluded the measure would create 23 million additional uninsured Americans by 2026; lower premiums for younger and healthy people by letting them buy sparser coverage; and confront unhealthy, poorer and older consumers with exorbitant out-of-pocket costs.

As GOP senators try privately crafting a bill, here are some problems facing McConnell:

23 MILLION!?!?

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Portland mayor aims to nix free-speech rally, fears 'hatred'

The mayor of Portland, Oregon, on Monday urged U.S. officials and organizers to cancel a "Trump Free Speech Rally" and other similar events, saying they are inappropriate and could be dangerous after two men were stabbed to death on a train as they tried to help a pair of young women targeted by an anti-Muslim tirade.

Mayor Ted Wheeler said he hopes the victims will inspire "changes in the political dialogue in this country."

It comes amid a wider debate in the U.S. about the First Amendment, often in liberal cities like Portland and Berkeley, California, and on college campuses, where violent protests between far-right and far-left protesters have derailed appearances by contentious figures.

Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23, and Ricky John Best, 53, were killed Friday as they tried to stop Jeremy Joseph Christian from harassing the women, one of whom was wearing a hijab, authorities say. Another who stepped in was seriously injured.

Christian's social media postings indicate an affinity for Nazis and political violence. He is accused of aggravated murder, intimidation - the state equivalent of a hate crime - and being a felon in possession of a weapon and is scheduled to be in court Tuesday.

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AP Exclusive: Suspected drug thefts persist at VA centers

WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal authorities are investigating dozens of new cases of possible opioid and other drug theft by employees at Veterans Affairs hospitals, a sign the problem isn't going away as more prescriptions disappear.

Data obtained by The Associated Press show 36 criminal investigations opened by the VA inspector general's office from Oct. 1 through May 19. It brings the total number of open criminal cases to 108 involving theft or unauthorized drug use. Most of those probes typically lead to criminal charges.

The numbers are an increase from a similar period in the previous year. The VA has pledged "zero tolerance" in drug thefts following an AP story in February about a sharp rise in reported cases of stolen or missing drugs at the VA since 2009. Doctors, nurses or pharmacy staff in the VA's network of more than 160 medical centers and 1,000 clinics are suspected of siphoning away controlled substances for their own use or street sale - sometimes to the harm of patients - or drugs simply vanished without explanation.

Drug thefts are a growing problem at private hospitals as well as the government-run VA as the illegal use of opioids has increased in the United States. But separate data from the Drug Enforcement Administration obtained by the AP under the Freedom of Information Act show the rate of reported missing drugs at VA health facilities was more than double that of the private sector. DEA investigators cited in part a larger quantity of drugs kept in stock at the bigger VA medical centers to treat a higher volume of patients, both outpatient and inpatient, and for distribution of prescriptions by mail.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said AP's findings were "troubling." He urged Congress to pass bipartisan accountability legislation he was co-sponsoring that would give the agency "the tools needed to dismiss employees engaged in misconduct." The Senate is set to vote on the bill June 6.

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Tiger Woods blames medications for his arrest on DUI charge

Tiger Woods attributed an "unexpected reaction" to prescription medicine for his arrest on a DUI charge that landed him in a Florida jail Monday for nearly four hours.

Woods, the 14-time major champion who had back surgery five weeks ago, was arrested on suspicion of DUI at about 3 a.m. Monday and taken to Palm Beach County jail. He was released on his own recognizance.

An arrest report might be available on Tuesday, Jupiter Police spokeswoman Kristin Rightler said.

"I understand the severity of what I did and I take full responsibility for my actions," Woods said in a statement Monday evening. "I want the public to know that alcohol was not involved. What happened was an unexpected reaction to prescribed medications. I didn't realize the mix of medications had affected me so strongly."

Woods apologized to his family, friends and fans and said, "I expect more from myself, too."
Jets fired rockets at militant positions in the city of Marawi in the southern Philippines, as thousands of people fled violence following a siege by gunmen linked to the Islamic State group.

In other images from the Asia-Pacific region last week, more than a thousand people packed a mosque courtyard to watch a public caning of two men convicted of gay sex in Banda Aceh, Indonesia.

Members of the police bomb squad in Jakarta, Indonesia's capital, investigated the scene after two explosions were detonated by suicide bombers, killing two police officers.

In this Saturday, May 27, 2017, photo, a fire rages at houses following airstrikes by the Philippine Air Force in Marawi, southern Philippines. Philippine military jets fired rockets at militant positions Saturday as soldiers fought to wrest control of the southern city from gunmen linked to the Islamic State group. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)

Veterinarians and local villagers came to the aid of a 10-year-old elephant that was stuck in a marshy area with a leg injury at the Amchang Wildlife Sanctuary east of Gauhati, India.

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This gallery was curated by Associated Press photo editor Toru Takahashi in Tokyo.

In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017, photo, a Shariah law official whips one of two men convicted of gay sex during a public caning outside a mosque in Banda Aceh, Aceh province Indonesia. More than a thousand people packed a mosque courtyard Tuesday to witness the caning. (AP Photo/Heri Juanda, File)

In this Wednesday, May 24, 2017, photo, members of the Indonesian police bomb squad check the area after an explosion near a bus stop in the Kampung Melayu area of Jakarta, Indonesia. Police say a suspected suicide bomb blast near a bus terminal in Indonesia's capital has killed a policeman and injured four other officers. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim, File)

In this Wednesday, May 24, 2017, photo, a domestic elephant stands by a 10-year-old wild tusker that is stuck with a rear leg injury at Amchang Wildlife Sanctuary, 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Gauhati, India. Veterinarians are nursing the 10-year-old male elephant to help it get out of the marshy area where it was spotted stuck by local villagers five days ago. This is becoming a common occurrence in the state which has a large population of wild elephants, straying out of their herds and entering swampy areas and villages. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath, File)

In this Thursday, May 25, 2017, photo, residents evacuate to safety after a militant siege in Marawi city, southern Philippines. Army tanks packed with soldiers rolled into the southern Philippine city Thursday to try to restore control after militants launched a violent siege that sent thousands fleeing. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)

In this Thursday, May 25, 2017, photo, police officers inspect the site where explosions reportedly went off near a bus terminal in Jakarta, Indonesia. A suspected suicide bombing near a bus terminal in Indonesia's capital Wednesday night killed a policeman and injured a number of people, police said. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara, File)

In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017, photo, former South Korean President Park Geun-hye leaves after her trial at the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul, South Korea. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)

In this Thursday, May 25, 2017, photo, a Thunderbolt-2000 wheeled MLRS system fires at a target during the annual Han Kuang exercises on the outlying Penghu Island, Taiwan. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying, File)

In this Monday, May 22, 2017, photo, a woman laborer pacifies her child while cleaning a manhole on a sidewalk in Mumbai, India. Some 800 million people in the country live in poverty and many of them migrate to big cities in search of a livelihood. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File)

In this Thursday, May 25, 2017, photo, Nico Locane, co-creator of "Parallax," stands under the installation of 492 extrusions of 11 different lengths that go through a series of illumination over 8 to 10 minutes during a preview of Vivid, a festival of light, music and ideas, in Sydney. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft, File)

In this Thursday, May 25, 2017, photo, a woman comforts the mother of Shakil, 38, an Indian man killed by a gang on early Thursday night, near Jewar, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south Delhi, India. Police are searching for a gang of highway robbers who allegedly raped four women after dragging them into a field and fatally shooting Shakil who tried to save them. The six looted cash and valuables from the family and then raped the women, the victims alleged. Violent crimes against women have been on the rise in India despite tough laws enacted by the government. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri, File)

In this Sunday, May 21, 2017, photo, an Indian woman bathes while standing on floating bamboo kept for sale in the river Brahmaputra in Gauhati, India. Brahmaputra is one of Asia's largest rivers, which passes through China's Tibet region, India and Bangladesh before converging into the Bay of Bengal. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath, File)

In this Sunday, May 21, 2017, photo, Mumbai Indians' captain Rohit Sharma celebrates after wining the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket final against Rising Pune Supergiant in Hyderabad, India. (AP Photo/Tsering Topgyal, File)
North Korea's ballistic missile test on Monday was its ninth this year, the South Korean military says, in an ongoing challenge to new leaders in both the United States and South Korea. A look at key developments:

Jan. 20: Donald Trump inaugurated as U.S. president.

Feb. 12: North Korea tests a new midrange ballistic missile, the Pukguksong-2. It says the missile used solid fuel, an advance that increases a weapon's mobility and makes it harder for outsiders to detect a coming launch.

People walk near a screen which reports North Korea's missile launch, in Osaka, western Japan Monday, May 29, 2017. North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile that landed in Japan's maritime economic zone Monday, officials said, in the latest in a string of test launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can reach the U.S. mainland. (Meika Fujio/Kyodo News via AP)

March 6: North Korea fires four ballistic missiles that fly about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles). Three land in waters near Japan. It later says it was simulating nuclear strikes on U.S. military bases in Japan.

April 5: North Korea fires a missile on the eve of a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The missile flies about 60 kilometers (40 miles) before falling into the sea.

April 16: North Korea fires a missile off its east coast, but the launch apparently fails. U.S. officials say the missile was likely a KN-17, a new Scud-type missile.

April 29: South Korean and U.S. officials say a North Korean midrange ballistic missile, presumably a KN-17, failed shortly after launch.

April 30: Trump calls North Korean leader Kim Jong Un "a pretty smart cookie" in a U.S. television interview for being able to hold onto power after taking over at a young age.

May 10: Liberal Moon Jae-in is inaugurated as South Korea's president. He says he wants to improve ties with North Korea.

May 14: North Korea test-fires its newly developed Hwasong-12 missile, which it says can carry a heavy nuclear warhead. Outsiders see the launch as a major step forward because of the height it reached. Moon expresses deep regret over the launch.

May 21: North Korea again tests the solid-fuel Pukguksong-2. The missile flies about 500 kilometers (310 miles) before falling into the ocean.

May 26: Moon's government says it will allow a South Korean civic group to contact North Korea to help fight malaria. It's the first government approval of a cross-border civilian exchange since January 2016.

May 29: South Korean and Japanese officials say North Korea fires a short-range ballistic missile that lands in Japan's maritime economic zone.
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) - Violence erupted at demonstrations against power cuts in several towns in northwestern Pakistan on Monday, leading to clashes with police that killed a protester and wounded several, officials said.

Hundreds of protesters burned and rampaged through government offices and police checkpoints, snatching valuables and police weapons, said Deputy Commissioner Malakand district, Zafar Ali Shah.

They tried to burn a main power station in the town of Dargai, he said. Similar clashes took place in Peshawar, Charsadda and Swat.

In Peshawar, protesters took to the streets for the third day of rallies and roadblocks, said police official Nasir Khan. At least two offices of the power supply department were ransacked, he said. Provincial lawmaker Fazl-e-Rabbi who led the rallies in Peshawar, said the protests would continue until the federal government ends disparity in the power distribution.

"We have complained to the power distributors to end the unscheduled outages, but they're not listening to us," said Shah, the deputy commissioner.

The protesters have been angered by the daily 10-12 hours of power cuts in the summer heat. The fact that Muslims fast and abstain from drinking water in daylight hours during the holy month of Ramadan has made things worse, Shah said.

Power cuts are common in energy-starved Pakistan.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took notice and instructed authorities to ensure power supply during Ramadan, especially at dawn, when Muslims start the daylong fast, and at dusk, when they break it with an evening meal, the iftar.
MADRID (AP) - Authorities in Spain say the two men arrested for ramming into pedestrians in a southern coastal town are British nationals who appeared to be drunk. Eight people, including a newborn baby and the driver, were injured.

Police say they had ruled out terrorism in Sunday's crash in Marbella. A police spokeswoman said Monday that the driver and the passenger were aged 27 and 28, held British passports and showed signs of being under the influence of alcohol. The spokeswoman spoke on customary condition of anonymity.

Authorities say the car fled from a highway checkpoint and sped off into the town of Marbella, where it struck pedestrians on a crowded avenue before becoming involved in a multiple car crash. The injured include a 12-day-old baby. The driver was seriously injured.
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) - Hungary's government is donating 145 million forints ($525,000) to Saint Joseph's Clinic in Erbil, Iraq, which provides services for mainly Christian refugees living in the city.

An agreement on the donation, meant to cover the clinic's medical supplies for six months, was signed Monday by Hungarian Minister of Human Resources Zoltan Balog and Archbishop Bashar Warda, a Chaldean Catholic cleric in Erbil.

Warda said his archdiocese received 13,200 Christian families in August 2014 after they fled Mosul when the Islamic State group took control of the Iraqi city.

Hungarian Minister of Human Resources Zoltan Balog, left, and Archbishop of Erbil, Bashar Warda talk to each others after signing a supporting document of 145 million Hungarian forint (US dollar 525,000) donation to St. Joseph's Hospital in Erbil, Iraq, which provides services for mainly Christian refugees living in the city, in Budapest, Hungary, Monday, May 29, 2017. The donation is meant to cover the clinic's medicinal supplies for six months. (Tibor Illyes/MTI via AP)

"Some families will not be able to go back, because their houses have been destroyed completely or burned," Warda told The Associated Press. "They need some time before making their way back to these villages."

Warda, who will meet Tuesday with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, said the donation "will be a big help" for the clinic, which provides free medicines to 3,100 people with chronic diseases.

The treatment of Christians in the Middle East was akin to "genocide, cleansing on a religious basis," Balog said at the signing ceremony. "The Christian quarter (of Erbil) practically turned into a refugee camp."

While Orban views the large number of Muslim migrants reaching Europe as a threat to the continent's Christian values and culture, last year the government set up a deputy secretariat within Balog's ministry to help persecuted Christians, especially in the Middle East.

In February, the agency said it gave 1 million euros ($1.1 million) each to Syria's Orthodox and Catholic churches to assist the return of refugees to their homelands.

Hungarian Minister of Human Resources Zoltan Balog, right, and Archbishop of Erbil, Bashar Warda sign a supporting document of 145 million Hungarian forint (US dollar 525,000) donation to St. Joseph's Hospital in Erbil, Iraq, which provides services for mainly Christian refugees living in the city, in Budapest, Hungary, Monday, May 29, 2017. The donation is meant to cover the clinic's medicinal supplies for six months. (Tibor Illyes/MTI via AP)
WARSAW, Poland (AP) - Poland's deputy defense minister on Monday cited security concerns in Europe as he tried to justify a move to gather data on foreign visitors and residents.

A mostly homogenous and Catholic nation, Poland's government is refusing to accept migrants from the Middle East and Africa over safety reasons. The stance has drawn condemnation from European Union leaders, who have given Warsaw a June deadline to accept asylum-seekers, or face sanctions. Warsaw has indicated it would prefer sanctions to accepting migrants.

The Defense Ministry has requested from authorities in northwestern province of Szczecin, which has close links with Germany, information about foreigners in their region, in particular foreign nationals who have Polish passports or permission to reside in Poland. The ministry made the request under "crisis management" regulations.

FILE - In this Tuesday Feb. 7, 2017 file photo, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo arrives at a press conference. Poland's Prime Minister Beata Szydlo has attended the first Roman Catholic Mass that her older son celebrated as priest, Sunday May 28, 2017. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz, File)

The request has drawn vehement criticism from the political opposition, which says such an approach is harmful because it equates foreigners with threats.

Slawomir Nitras of the pro-EU Civic Platform stressed that around 500,000 people in this country of 38 million declare to be of foreign nationality.

Deputy Defense Minister Michal Dworczyk argued that it is a "natural thing, taking into consideration the situation in the European Union today, that the state should have information on foreign nationals on Poland's territory" as it ensures security to the citizens.

He argued that attacks in recent years were carried out by people who "either came (to Europe) as illegal migrants, or by members of new generation (of migrants) living in Europe."

Poles have been among the victims of attacks carried out in Western Europe, most recently in the Manchester suicide bombing.
MOSCOW (AP) - Ukraine's intelligence agency is searching the offices of Yandex, a Russia-based Internet company best known for its search engine.

Ukrainian authorities earlier this month blocked access to Yandex as well as to several major Russian social media websites. President Petro Poroshenko said the move was made in response to Russia's annexation of the Crimean peninsula and continuing interference in eastern Ukraine.

Most of the Internet and media companies banned by Ukraine, however, are privately owned and have grown over the past decades from start-ups into major international businesses.

Olena Gitlyanska, spokeswoman for Ukrainian intelligence agency SBU, said Monday that Yandex's offices in Kiev and Odessa were searched as part of an investigation on treason charges. It was not immediately clear what the charges were related to.
PARIS (AP) - The mayor of Paris said Monday that a "clear solution" has been found with organizers of a festival for black feminists, an event that had aroused her ire because four-fifths of the festival space was to be open exclusively to black women.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo had strongly criticized and threatened to cancel the upcoming Nyansapo Festival a day earlier because it was "forbidden to white people."

In a new series of tweets on the topic, Hidalgo said her "firm" discussion with organizers had yielded a satisfactory clarification: the parts of the festival held on property would be open to everyone and "non-mixed workshops will be held elsewhere, in a strictly private setting."

FILE - This Thursday, March 9, 2017 file photo shows Paris mayor, Anne Hidalgo, speaking to media after a meeting with French president Francois Hollande, at the Elysee Palace, in Paris, France. Paris' mayor Anne Hidalgo has strongly criticized a black feminist festival in Paris that bans non-black people in large parts of the event, saying she might prosecute its organizers on grounds of discrimination. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena, File)

MWASI, the Afro-feminist collective sponsoring the three-day event, responded to the mayor's latest comments by saying it hadn't changed the festival program "an inch."

"That's what was planned from the beginning," the collective said of how the public and private spaces would be assigned.

Anti-racism associations and far-right politicians in France both had criticized the event over the weekend for scheduling workshops limited to a single gender and race.

France defines itself as a country united under one common national identity, with laws against racial discrimination and to promote secularism to safeguard an ideal that began with the French Revolution.

On Sunday, Hidalgo had said she would call on authorities to prohibit the cultural festival and might call for the prosecution of its organizers on grounds of discrimination.

"I firmly condemn the organization of this event in Paris (that's) 'forbidden to white people,'" Hidalgo had written.

Telephone calls to MWASIwere not immediately returned Monday.

The group describes itself on its website as "an Afro-feminist collective that is part of the revolutionary liberation struggles" and is open to black and mixed-race women.

The program for the first annual Nyansapo Festival, which is set to run July 28-30 partly at a Paris cultural center, stated that 80 percent of the event space only would be accessible to black women.

Other sessions were designed to be open to black men and women from minority groups that experience racial discrimination, and one space was scheduled to be open to everyone regardless of race or gender.

Organizers said on the event's website that "for this first edition we have chosen to put the accent on how our resistance as an Afro-feminist movement is organized."

Prominent French rights organization SOS Racism was among civil rights groups condemning the festival, calling it "a mistake, even an abomination, because it wallows in ethnic separation, whereas anti-racism is a movement which seeks to go beyond race."

The International League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism (LICRA), meanwhile, called the festival a "regression" and said American civil rights icon "Rosa Parks must be turning in her grave."

Identity politics remain a recurrent hot potato in a nation where collecting data based on religious and ethnic backgrounds is banned and the wearing of religious symbols - such as face-covering veils - in public is prohibited.

This approach, known to the French as "anti-communitarianism," aims to celebrate all French citizens regardless of their community affiliations.

Last week, several women attempting to stage a "burkini party" were detained in Cannes after a ban against the full-body beachwear favored by some Muslim women was upheld in a fresh decree.

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Philippe Sotto contributed to this story. Thomas Adamson can be followed at Twitter.com/ThomasAdamson_K
BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) - Moldova's pro-European Liberal Party quit the ruling coalition Monday following the arrest of Chisinau's mayor, but it looks like the government can keep its majority.

The Liberal Party withdrew its three ministers, a deputy premier and politically-appointed managers of government agencies from the three-party coalition that was formed after the November 2014 parliamentary election.

The development came after Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca was put under house arrest Friday on suspicion of influence trafficking in a city parking contract.

He hasn't commented, but Liberal chairman Mihai Ghimpu called the arrest a political move, saying there was insufficient proof to detain him.

The main ruling Democratic Party claims a majority in the 101-seat legislature after a group of 10 lawmakers recently set up a pro-government group in Parliament.

The anti-corruption center said the company won contracts because of "concerted actions" from city hall officials. Chirtoaca suspended the contract with the company this month and the company has not commented.

The 38-year-old mayor is also deputy chairman of the Liberals and has been mayor since 2007. He is in favor of the former Soviet republic's reunification with neighboring Romania, something the government doesn't support.

Chirtoaca has recently taken a stand against government plans to modify the electoral system.
LONDON (AP) - Prince William says he is sad his wife and two young children can't meet his late mother, Princess Diana.

In an interview with the magazine British GQ, the heir to the throne opened up about his feelings about his mother's 1997 death in a Paris car crash.

William told the magazine he would have liked having his mother's advice and for her to meet his wife, Kate, and to see her grandchildren grow up.

Britain's Prince William shakes hands with Chelsea team manager Antonio Conte after the English FA Cup final soccer match between Arsenal and Chelsea at the Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, May 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

Diana died long before 3-year-old Prince George and Princess Charlotte, who recently turned 2, were born.

The interview with former Tony Blair spin doctor Alastair Campbell focuses on William's strong support for charities working on mental health issues.

William says his chief goal is "smashing" the taboo surrounding mental health discussions.

Britain's Prince William, third from left, stands next to wreaths laid on the side of the pitch, as a tribute to the victims of the Manchester bomb attack, before the during the English FA Cup final soccer match between Arsenal and Chelsea at the Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, May 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Indonesian police said they arrested more suspected militants on Monday following suicide bombings in Jakarta last week that killed three policemen.

Central Java Police spokesman Djarod Padakova said a man identified as Wahyudi was arrested early Monday in Sukoharjo district of West Java province and another man was caught hours later in the neighboring district of Karanganyar.

National police spokesman Setyo Wasisto said a third suspect was detained a day earlier in Cibubur, near Jakarta.

Authorities in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority nation, have now arrested a total of six suspects since the May 24 attack in which two suicide bombers targeted police at a bus terminal in eastern Jakarta.

Three policemen and the two attackers were killed and 11 people, both police and civilians, were wounded.

Wisasto said authorities are still investigating the three men recently arrested, but the suspect arrested on Sunday was believed to have been the last person to meet with one of the suicide bombers, Ahmad Sukri, just hours before the attack.

The May 24 attack was the deadliest in Jakarta since January 2016, when a suicide and gun strike in the central business district killed four civilians and four assailants.

National police chief Gen. Tito Karnavian said DNA tests confirmed that the suicide bombers were Sukri, 32, and Ichwan Nurul Salam, 31, both from West Java.

Karnavian said they were members of Jemaah Anshorut Daulah, a network of about two dozen Indonesian extremist groups that formed in 2015 and pledges allegiance to Islamic State group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

JAD, which Washington designated a terrorist group earlier this year, has been implicated in a number of attacks in Indonesia over the past year.
PODGORICA, Montenegro (AP) - Montenegro on Monday strongly protested "inappropriate" conduct by Russian authorities against a senior ruling party leader who was prevented from changing planes at a Moscow airport.

Lawmaker Miodrag Vukovic said he was kept overnight in a transit zone at Domodedovo International Airport while on his way to an international meeting in Belarus. He returned to Montenegro on Monday.

The Montenegrin Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador, telling him the incident "represents a breach of basic international rules and diplomatic practices."

FILE - A Friday, Oct. 27, 2000 file photo of Miodrag Vukovic, President of the ruling Montenegrin DPS (Democratic Party of Socialists) at the news conference in Podgorica, Montenegro. Lawmaker Vukovic says he was kept overnight in a transit zone at Domodedovo International Airport in Moscow while on his way to an international meeting in Belarus. He returned to Montenegro on Monday, May 29, 2017. The Montenegrin Foreign Ministry says the incident "represents a breach of basic international rules and diplomatic practices." (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic, File)

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the Kremlin imposed the ban against Vukovic because Montenegro had joined Western sanctions against Moscow over its actions in Ukraine.

"It's not a secret that Montenegro joined the European Union's anti-Russian sanctions, including against (Russian) individuals," Zakharova said on the Foreign Ministry's website.

"We have always said that we reserve the right to take retaliatory measures on the basis of reciprocity, as is customary in diplomacy," she said. "We will provide a relevant explanation to the Montenegrin side."

Vukovic said the incident was politically motivated.

Montenegro previously was a close ally of Russia, but is set to become NATO's 29th member in June. Russia has threatened economic and political retaliation against the small nation.

Montenegro says that Russia was behind a foiled coup attempt in October to prevent it from joining NATO, which Moscow denies.
LONDON (AP) - Fast bowlers Kagiso Rabada and Wayne Parnell snared seven wickets as South Africa bowled England out for just 153 runs after a top-order collapse in their third and final one-day international on Monday.

Tottering at 20-6 inside the first five overs, England crumbled against Rabada (4-39) and Parnell (3-43) in a performance that lasted only 31.1 overs. It was a dramatic turn of form at Lord's, after England had posted over 300 runs at Headingley and Southampton to win the first two internationals.

Jonny Bairstow (51) hit a fighting fifty, but England's middle-order looked vulnerable in the absence of rested Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes.

South Africa's players celebrate taking the wicket of England's Jonny Bairstow during the third One Day International cricket match between England and South Africa at Lord's cricket ground in London, Monday, May 29, 2017. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Eoin Morgan's team made a dismal start with Rababa claiming three wickets in one over.

Bairstow featured in two half-century stands with David Willey (26) and debutante Toby Roland-Jones (37 not out).

Bairstow was finally stumped in the 28th over after hitting eight fours in his 67-ball knock as left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj (3-25) wrapped up the innings.

England has already clinched the series after winning by 72 runs at Headingley and narrowly winning the second match by two runs.

South Africa's Keshav Maharaj celebrates with AB de Villiers after England's Jonny Bairstow was stumped by Quinton de Kockduring the One Day International at Lord's, London, Monday May 29, 2017. (Steven Paston//PA via AP)
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Cyprus remains "very, very close" to an agreement to reunite the ethnically-divided island despite a breakdown in talks last week, a U.N. official said Monday.

Espen Barth Eide, the U.N.'s special adviser on Cyprus, called off mediation efforts Friday following a disagreement between Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci on how the talks should proceed.

The two leaders also differ on the future of around 35,000 Turkish troops on the island.

Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, right, shakes hands with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias during their meeting in Athens, Monday May 29, 2017. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

But Eide said in Athens on Monday that the talks until now had brought the prospect of federal reunification closer than ever since the island's division in 1974.

"We are indeed very, very close - actually more close than most people seem to understand," Eide told reporters after a 90-minute meeting with Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias.

"On at least five of the six issues, the leaders see eye to eye. We still have this issue of security and guarantees," he said, explaining that Anastasiades and Akinci have agreed on most issues required for a deal.

Cyprus was split in 1974 when Turkey invaded following a coup by supporters of union with Greece.

The most recent negotiations began two years ago and made significant progress on how to share power in an envisioned federation. But they stumbled on key issues of post-reunification security arrangements and how much territory each side would administer.

Over the weekend, dozens of Greek and Turkish Cypriot protesters - beating drums, blowing whistles and singing folk songs - linked arms across a U.N.-controlled buffer zone dividing the capital Nicosia to voice support for reunification.

Eide was due in Ankara, Turkey, later Monday, and he argued that his goal was to gain support needed to restart the talks.

"I'm not asking them (leaders in Greece and Turkey) to put pressure on anyone," he said.

"But I want to share with them that I am worried. I am more worried than I have been at any time during these last three years that the process is in serious trouble."

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Follow Derek Gatopoulos at http://www.twitter.com/dgatopoulos

Special Adviser of the Secretary-General on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, right, walks next to Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias during their meeting in Athens, Monday May 29, 2017. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

Greek and Turkish Cypriots hold olive leaves and a banner with a peace massage with a Turkish flag in the background, during a protest to call to the rival leaders of the two communities to "Unite Cyprus Now" across the Ledras main crossing point inside the U.N buffer zone, that divided the Greek and Turkish Cypriots controlled areas, in divided capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Saturday, May 27, 2017. United Nations envoy Espen Barth Eide has called off talks with the rival leaders of ethnically divided Cyprus after failing to find "common ground" on convening a final summit that would aim for an overall reunification deal. Cyprus was split in 1974 when Turkey invaded after a coup by supporters of union with Greece. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

A woman holds a banner as she stands by U.N peacekeepers during a peace demonstration from Greek and Turkish Cypriots at the Ledras main crossing point, inside the U.N buffer zone that divided the Greek and Turkish Cypriots controlled areas, in Nicosia, Cyprus, Friday, May 26, 2017. United Nations envoy Espen Barth Eide called off talks with the rival leaders of ethnically divided Cyprus on Friday after failing to find "common ground" on convening a final summit to aim for an overall reunification deal. Cyprus was split in 1974 when Turkey invaded after a coup by supporters of union with Greece. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)
LISBON, Portugal (AP) - The leaders of Spain and Portugal are holding their annual two-day summit, with possible joint energy and infrastructure projects due to be discussed.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa are also expected to assess European Union issues, such as the bloc's future after the United Kingdom's departure.

About a dozen ministers from each Iberian government are scheduled to attend the meeting, which began Monday in Vega Terron, Spain. The delegations boarded a boat that took them down the Douro River into Portugal.

The summit was to continue in Vila Real, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of Lisbon.

Last year, Spain's exports to Portugal were valued at more than 18 billion euros ($20 billion.) Spain also is Portugal's biggest export market.
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Greek authorities say an air force pilot has been rescued after his fighter jet crashed during a training flight into the Aegean Sea.

The jet was one of a pair of aging Mirage 2000s engaged in aerial combat training south of the Sporades island complex Monday. An air force statement said the plane developed engine problems, forcing the pilot to eject.

The statement said he was later picked up by a military search and rescue helicopter.

Greece bought the French-made jets in the late 1980s, taking delivery of 40 aircraft between 1988 and 1992.
BROOKHAVEN, Miss. (AP) - The Latest in a shooting in Mississippi that left eight people dead (all times local):

4:45 p.m.

A Mississippi teen says his life was saved by his 18-year-old cousin who shielded him from bullets.

Christianna May-Kelly, center, is supported by family members as she cries after answering reporters questions outside her parents' home in Brookhaven, Miss., Sunday, May 28, 2017. May-Kelly said her parents and mother were among the people gunned down during a shooting in rural Mississippi Saturday night. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Caleb Edwards says when a gunman entered a home early Sunday, "I thought I was going to die."

The 15-year-old talked to The Associated Press on Monday with his mother by his side. He says he was shielded from the gunman by his cousin, Jordan Blackwell, who was shot to death. Caleb's 11-year-old brother, Austin Edwards, was also killed in the mass shooting. Eight people, including a sheriff's deputy, were killed at three different houses in the small towns of Bogue Chitto and Brookhaven.

The suspect, 35-year-old Willie Corey Godbolt - known by friends and family as Corey - was arrested Sunday, hours after the rampage began. Investigators say he will be charged with one count of capital murder and seven counts of murder.

Blackwell's parents, Shon and Tiffany Blackwell, confirmed their son was killed.

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9:45 a.m.

Authorities plan to charge the suspect in the shooting deaths of eight people in Mississippi with one count of capital murder and seven counts of first degree murder.

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain says those charges could change as the investigation continues. The suspect, 35-year-old Willie Corey Godbolt, is still hospitalized at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Police have said Godbolt is being treated for a gunshot wound.

Strain says Godbolt's first appearance in court depends on when he is released from the hospital and the court's schedule.

Godbolt is accused of shooting eight people to death, including a sheriff's deputy, at three separate homes Saturday night in rural Lincoln County. Authorities say Godbolt was either related to or knew the seven other people killed.

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9:10 a.m.

Authorities say the suspect in the shooting deaths of eight people in Mississippi was related to or knew all but one of his victims.

Authorities on Monday released the names of the victims shot at three locations in rural Mississippi late Friday. They are: 55-year-old Barbara Mitchell; 53-year-old Brenda May; 35-year-old Tocarra May; a child who was not identified; a 17-year-old boy who was not identified; 45-year-old Ferral Burage; and 46-year-old Shelia Burage.

Police previously identified the one person whom the suspect did not know: deputy sheriff William Durr, 36, of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department.

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain says the suspect, 35-year-old Willie Corey Godbolt, is still hospitalized at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Police have said Godbolt is being treated for a gunshot wound.

Officers arrest suspect Willie Corey Godbolt on Sunday, May 28, 2017, following several fatal shootings Saturday in Lincoln County, Miss., officials said. (Therese Apel/The Clarion-Ledger via AP)

Vincent Mitchell reflects on his escape and the deaths of family members Sunday, May 28, 2017, outside his Bogue Chitto, Miss., home. A man was arrested Sunday in a house-to-house shooting rampage that left several people dead, including a sheriff's deputy. "I'm devastated. It don't seem like it's real," Mitchell said. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

People embrace Sunday, May 28, 2017, outside a Bogue Chitto, Miss., house where several people were fatally shot during a house-to-house shooting rampage Saturday in Lincoln County, Miss. A man was arrested Sunday in the shooting rampage that left several people dead, including a sheriff's deputy. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Officers arrest suspect Willie Corey Godbolt on Sunday, May 28, 2017, following several fatal shootings Saturday in Lincoln County, Miss., officials said. (Therese Apel/The Clarion-Ledger via AP)

Investigators stand outside a Brookhaven, Miss., home Sunday, May 28, 2017, where several people were killed during shootings Saturday at multiple locations in rural Lincoln County. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

This undated photo provided by the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation shows suspect Willie Corey Godbolt in connection with several fatal shootings Saturday, May 27, 2017, in Lincoln County, Miss., officials said. (Mississippi Bureau of Investigation via AP)

A Lincoln County Sheriff's vehicle and evidence tape block a street Sunday, May 28, 2017, in Brookhaven, Miss., where several people were fatally shot Saturday evening. A man was arrested Sunday in the house-to-house shooting rampage that left several people dead, including a sheriff's deputy. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

In this undated photo provided by Tiffany Blackwell her son Jordan Blackwell poses for a photo. Authorities say a gunman went on a house-to-house rampage on Saturday, May 27, 2017, in rural Mississippi, killing several people including Jordan Blackwell. (Tiffany Blackwell via AP)

In this undated photo provided by Tiffany Blackwell her son Jordan Blackwell poses for a photo. Authorities say a gunman went on a house-to-house rampage on Saturday, May 27, 2017, in rural Mississippi, killing several people including Jordan Blackwell. (Tiffany Blackwell via AP)

In this undated photo provided by Shayla Edwards her son Austin Edwards poses for a photo in Brookhaven, Miss. Authorities say a gunman went on a house-to-house rampage on Saturday, May 27, 2017, in rural Mississippi, killing several people including Austin Edwards. (Shayla Edwards via AP)

In this undated photo provided by Shayla Edwards her son Austin Edwards poses for a photo in Brookhaven, Miss. Authorities say a gunman went on a house-to-house rampage on Saturday, May 27, 2017, in rural Mississippi, killing several people including Austin Edwards. (Shayla Edwards via AP)

In this undated photo provided by Tiffany Blackwell her son Jordan Blackwell poses for a photo. Authorities say a gunman went on a house-to-house rampage on Saturday, May 27, 2017, in rural Mississippi, killing several people including Jordan Blackwell. (Tiffany Blackwell via AP)

In this is a Spring 2014 photo Brookhaven Police officer William Durr poses for a photo next to his police car in Brookhaven, Miss. Durr, a deputy sheriff of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department, was killed Saturday, May 27, 2017, as he reported to a domestic dispute in Bogue Chitto, a small community near Brookhaven. Authorities say a gunman went on a house-to-house rampage in rural Mississippi, killing several people including his mother-in-law and Durr. (Rhonda Dunaway/The Daily Leader via AP)
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) - Authorities on Monday detained the Dominican Republic's minister of industry and commerce and nearly a dozen other people including top-level officials in an international bribery scandal involving the Brazilian company Odebrecht.

Prosecutors said those allegedly implicated also include three legislators, a former public works minister, a former Senate president, two former directors of a regulatory electricity group and a businessman. They are scheduled to appear in court to face charges including money laundering and illegal enrichment.

"We can qualify this as an unprecedented event because of the multitude of crimes and the positions of power of those involved," said Attorney General Jean Alain Rodriguez.

He said he would request that the suspects be held for 18 months in prison as a preventive measure while the investigation continues. Rodriguez also said he will demand that the immunity automatically granted to legislators be lifted in this case.

The suspects were detained after Odebrecht told U.S. prosecutors that it paid $92 million in bribes to Dominican officials since 2001 to secure 17 key government contracts. The company moved its "bribery bureau" to the Dominican Republic from Brazil several years ago and built highways, dams and a coal-burning power plant. Construction of the $2 billion, 720-megawatt plant was awarded to Odebrecht in 2013 even though the company's bid was the highest of all those submitted and more than $500 million above the limit set by the country's Congress.

The bribes were part of an overall $788 million that Odebrecht paid to officials in 10 Latin American countries and two African ones to obtain multimillion-dollar contracts with local governments.

While hundreds of charges have been filed against high-level officials in Brazil, Colombia, Panama and Peru, Monday's arrests mark the first time anyone in the Dominican Republic is detained in the Odebrecht case.

Attorneys for Dominican Industry and Commerce Minister Tamistocles Montas, former Public Works Minister Victor Diaz Rua and former Senate president Andres Bautista and others could not be immediately reached for comment.

The legislators accused automatically have immunity, although one of them, Alfredo Pacheco, said he would renounce it and cooperate with authorities.

"I am sure I have not been bribed," said Pacheco, a former president of the Chamber of Deputies.

Odebrecht's contracts in the Dominican Republic since 2001 have totaled $5 billion, or 7 percent of the Caribbean country's annual GDP. Fifteen of the 17 contracts were awarded during the 13-year tenure of President Danilo Medina's Dominican Liberation Party, now led by former President Leonel Fernandez.

Fernandez has refused to discuss the bribes. Meanwhile, Medina has created a special commission to investigate the bidding process but also defended a deal that allowed Odebrecht executives to avoid prosecution.

Medina's administration has said investigations will clear the president and his aides of any wrongdoing and show they received no money from Odebrecht.
NEWPORT, R.I. (AP) - In its heyday, the stage at the Opera House in Newport, Rhode Island, hosted everything from performances of vaudeville and Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show to appearances by abolitionists including Frederick Douglass and Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Now the building, one of the nation's oldest opera houses, is undergoing an $18 million renovation.

The Newport Opera House Theater and Performing Arts Center is due to open in December to mark its 150th anniversary.

In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017 photo, laborer Fred Marrero, of Cranston, R.I., carries a ladder through a door frame in the Newport Opera House, in Newport, R.I. Vacant for years, the Newport Opera House is being restored and reopened. The nonprofit group that owns it hopes to make it into a centerpiece of live performance in the resort town already known for its jazz and folk festivals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

The nonprofit group that owns it hopes to make it into a centerpiece of live performance and a gathering place for the seaside resort town already known for its jazz and folk festivals.

Alison Vareika, chair of the center's board, says they hope the 700-seat venue will become a new destination and keep the music going year-round.

In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017 photo, carpenter Dan McNamee, of Tiverton, R.I., carries electrical wire in the balcony of the Newport Opera House, in Newport, R.I. Vacant for years, the Newport Opera House is being restored and reopened. The nonprofit group that owns it hopes to make it into a centerpiece of live performance in the resort town already known for its jazz and folk festivals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017 photo, passers-by walk past an entrance to the Newport Opera House, in Newport, R.I. Vacant for years, the Newport Opera House is being restored and reopened. The nonprofit group that owns it hopes to make it into a centerpiece of live performance in the resort town already known for its jazz and folk festivals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017 photo, carpenter Dan McNamee, of Tiverton, R.I., walks to the balcony of the Newport Opera House, in Newport, R.I. Vacant for years, the Newport Opera House is being restored and reopened. The nonprofit group that owns it hopes to make it into a centerpiece of live performance in the resort town already known for its jazz and folk festivals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017 photo, an architectural detail rests on the proscenium arch in the Newport Opera House, in Newport, R.I. Vacant for years, the Newport Opera House is being restored and reopened. The nonprofit group that owns it hopes to make it into a centerpiece of live performance in the resort town already known for its jazz and folk festivals. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
WASHINGTON (AP) - A zealous prosecutor who was crucial in writing the Justice Department's new policy encouraging harsher punishments for criminals is now turning his attention to hate crimes, marijuana and the ways law enforcement seizes suspects' cash and property.

Steve Cook's hardline views on criminal justice were fortified as a cop on the streets of Knoxville, Tennessee, in the late 1970s and early '80s. The unabashed drug warrior is now armed with a broad mandate to review departmental policies, and observers already worried about Attorney General Jeff Sessions' agenda are wringing their hands at Cook's ascension.

After some 30 years of prosecuting mostly violent crimes, Cook sums up his philosophy in simple terms that crystalized one night on patrol when he came upon a family whose station wagon had been hit head-on by a "pilled-up drug user." Two daughters were dead in the backseat. In Cook's eyes, everyone had to be punished, including the courier who shuttled the drugs into town and the dealer who sold them to the man behind the wheel.

This February 2011 photo shows U.S. attorney Steven H. Cook of Maryville, Tenn. Cook, a zealous prosecutor who played a key role in writing the Justice Department's new policy encouraging harsher punishments for criminals, is now turning his attention to hate crimes, marijuana and the ways law enforcement seizes suspects' cash and property. Cook's hardline views on criminal justice were fortified as a cop on the streets of Knoxville, Tennessee, in the late 1970s and early '80s. (Robert WIlson/Knoxville News Sentinel via AP)

"This theory that we have embraced since the beginning of civilization is, when you put criminals in prison, crime goes down," he told The Associated Press during a recent interview. "It really is that simple."

It is actually a widely challenged view, seen by many as far from simple. But it is one that governs Cook as he helps oversee a new Justice Department task force developing policies to fight violent crime in cities. Already he is pushing ideas that even some Republicans have dismissed as outdated and fiscally irresponsible.

Cook helped craft Sessions' directive this month urging the nation's federal prosecutors to seek the steepest penalties for most crime suspects, a move that will send more people to prison for longer, and which was assailed by critics as a revival of failed drug war policies that ravaged minority communities.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, whose more lenient policies contributed to a decline in the federal prison population for the first time in decades, slammed the reversal of his work as "driven by voices who have not only been discredited but until now have been relegated to the fringes of this debate."

Cook finds the criticism baffling. All this discussion of criminal justice changes takes the focus off the real victims, he said: drug addicts, their families and those killed and injured as the nation's opioid epidemic rages.

"For me, it's like the world is turned upside-down," Cook said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We now somehow see these drug traffickers as the victims. That's just bizarre to me."

Even some police and prosecutors supported recent bipartisan efforts to reduce some mandatory minimum sentences and give judges greater discretion in sentencing, a reversal of 1980s and '90s-era "tough-on-crime" laws. But Cook sees today's relatively low crime rates as a sign that those policies worked.

Long, mandatory minimum sentences can goad informants into cooperating and ensure drug peddlers stay locked up for as long as possible, he said.

As a defense attorney in 1986, Bill Killian recalled being unable to convince Cook - then a rookie prosecutor - to agree to leniency for his client, whom he described as a minor player in a massive meth lab operating in the wooded farmland of eastern Tennessee. The man had no criminal past and was not profiting like the ringleaders.

"He wanted the maximum, whatever the maximum could be," Killian said. More than 20 years later, Killian became U.S. attorney for that region, and Cook was chief of the criminal division, overseeing mostly violent crime, gang and drug cases.

When Holder told prosecutors in 2013 that they could leave drug quantities out of charging documents, so as not to charge certain suspects with crimes that would trigger long sentences, Cook was aghast, Killian said. Killian, meanwhile, embraced Holder's so-called smart-on-crime approach, which encouraged leniency for offenders who weren't violent or weren't involved in leading an organization.

Obama administration officials cited a drop in the overall number of drug prosecutions as evidence the policies were working as intended. Holder argued prosecutors were getting pickier about the cases they were bringing and said data showed they could be just as successful inducing cooperation from defendants without leveraging the threat of years-long mandatory minimum punishments.

But to Cook, there is no such thing as a low-level offender.

"Steve Cook thinks that everyone who commits a crime ought to be locked up in jail," Killian said. "He and I have philosophical differences about that that won't ever be reconciled."

Now Cook is detailed to the deputy attorney general's office in Washington, studying policies to see how they reconcile with Sessions' top priorities: quashing illegal immigration and violence. Cook has been traveling the country alongside Sessions as he espouses his tough-on-crime agenda, seeking input from law enforcement officials that he will take to the task force as it crafts its recommendations, which are due in July.

He offers no hints about what lies ahead. But those advocating changes to the justice system are nervous. With Sessions and Cook in powerful positions, such efforts are in peril, said Kevin Ring, president of Families Against Mandatory Minimums.

"You've put the arch enemies of criminal justice reform in charge of the U.S. Justice Department, you've made the hill a little steep," he said. Of Cook, he added, "He is out of central casting for old school prosecutors, and he's nothing if not earnest. I think he is profoundly misguided, but it's certainly not an act."

The National Association of Assistant United States Attorneys, which Cook led before his new assignment, said his ascendancy within the Justice Department bodes well for prosecutors who felt handcuffed by Obama-era policies.

Lawrence Leiser, the group's new president, called him inspiring.

"His heart and soul is in everything he does," he said. "And he is a strong believer in the rule of law."
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) - Garment workers have taken to the streets of the Haitian capital for the second time in two weeks to demand a minimum wage increase.

The workers at factories making T-shirts, pants and other apparel were also demonstrating Monday against the firing of roughly 40 union members at a Port-au-Prince industrial park.

Reginald Lanfontant is a union coordinator and one of the fired workers. He asserts the dismissals are "abusive" and demonstrations will continue.

A factory worker holds a sign that reads in Creole "Fighting workers want a new labor law to protect all laborers" during a protest demanding a minimum wage increase, from $4.67 per day to $12.47 per day, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, May 29, 2017. Workers are also protesting the firing of roughly 40 union members at a Port-au-Prince industrial park. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

They're demanding 800 Haitian gourdes per eight-hour work day. Based on current exchange rates, that's roughly $12.47 per day. They now earn 300 gourdes, or $4.67.

Factories are operational at the park that employs some 18,000 people.

Monday's protest had nearly 500 participants, a far smaller turnout than a May 19 rally that attracted thousands.

Workers chant anti-government slogans as they block the entrance of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor to demand a minimum wage increase, from $4.67 per day to $12.47 per day, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, May 29, 2017. Workers are also protesting the firing of roughly 40 union members at a Port-au-Prince industrial park. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)

Workers chant anti-government slogans as they demand a minimum wage increase, from $4.67 per day to $12.47 per day, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Monday, May 29, 2017. Workers are also protesting the firing of roughly 40 union members at a Port-au-Prince industrial park. (AP Photo/Dieu Nalio Chery)
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Constantine Mitsotakis, a former Greek conservative prime minister remembered for his fierce confrontations with liberal and socialist parties as well for backing free-market reforms, died Monday at 98 after a 60-year political career.

His family announced the death, saying Mitsotakis was "surrounded by those whom he loved. "

Mitsotakis, father of the current conservative Greek opposition leader, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, will be buried Thursday in his hometown of Hania on the island of Crete.

FILE - In this Greece, April 6, 1990, file photo, Greek Conservative New Democracy leader, Constantine Mitsotakis, gestures raising his hand at the end of his election campaign during a mass rally in Athens, Greece. Former Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis' family has put out a short statement saying Mitsotakis died Monday, May 29, 2017, "surrounded by those whom he loved and who loved him." He was 98. (AP Photo/Aris Saris, File)

The government ordered that he be awarded full state honors, with four days of official mourning. His body will lie in state at Athens Cathedral on the eve of his funeral.

"A dedicated European, Constantine Mitsotakis was one of the emblematic figures of Greek political life during a political career that lasted more than 50 years," European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said.

Mitsotakis served as prime minister between 1990 and 1993, a brief spell during two decades dominated by his Socialist rivals. He retired from active politics in 2004 but remained honorary chairman of the center-right New Democracy party.

He was credited with starting unpopular financial reforms to loosen state control of the economy, which were quietly continued by later governments, and improving relations with Turkey. But he was also often regarded as a divisive figure in a country struggling to escape its volatile political history.

Born in Hania on Oct. 18, 1918, Mitsotakis was the nephew of liberal statesman Eleftherios Venizelos and was first elected to Parliament in 1946.

He served in several Cabinet posts, including finance minister, in liberal governments in 1951-52 and 1963-65.

But in 1965, he led a group of dissidents who abandoned George Papandreou's liberal Center Union government following its clash with King Constantine II over control of the armed forces - a decision for which most liberal critics never forgave Mitsotakis.

The meteoric rise of Andreas Papandreou, George's son and a U.S.-educated economist who had returned to Greece in the early 1960s, was widely seen as a factor in Mitsotakis' split with the party.

The resulting political crisis and nearly two years of unstable government in part prompted army colonels to carry out a coup in 1967.

Mitsotakis was arrested along with other politicians at the start of the seven-year military dictatorship. He later lived in exile in Paris until shortly before the junta collapsed in 1974.

In 1977, Mitsotakis re-entered Parliament at the head of the small Neoliberal Party and, the following year, joined the governing New Democracy party, serving first as finance minister and later as foreign minister. He became the party's leader in 1984 while the conservatives were in opposition.

Mitsotakis emerged as the main adversary of Andreas Papandreou, who founded the Panhellenic Socialist Movement in 1974 rather than head his father's old party and then defeated the conservatives in a 1981 landslide.

Andreas Papandreou's son, George, became prime minister in 2009.

Both leaders ran lavish election campaigns that brought hundreds of thousands of supporters to Athens to attend mammoth flag-waving rallies.

Mitsotakis narrowly won in 1990 after the Socialists became entangled in a financial scandal and votes in 1989 twice produced a hung parliament.

His administration was marked by a dispute with neighboring Macedonia over the newly independent country's name and by large-scale union and student protests against his free market and education reforms.

Governing with a one-seat majority in Parliament, Mitsotakis' government was brought down by conservative dissenters in 1993, condemning New Democracy to spend the next 11 years in opposition.

The leader of those dissenters, Antonis Samaras, was eventually welcomed back into the party and defeated Dora Bakoyannis in a leadership contest after the conservatives lost the 2009 election. Samaras served as prime minister from 2012 to 2015, in coalition with the Socialists.

After his resignation as party leader, Mitsotakis often urged Greek governments to take bolder steps in their market reforms, and he led an unsuccessful effort for Greece's president to be elected directly by the people.

Two of his children followed him into politics.

Mitsotakis' eldest daughter, Dora Bakoyannis was mayor of Athens during the 2004 Olympic Games and later was foreign minister from 2006-2009 in a New Democracy government. Her husband, Pavlos Bakoyannis, a conservative politician, was shot to death in 1989 by the far-left Greek terrorist group November 17.

Mitsotakis, who enjoyed good health until late in life, also lived long enough to see his youngest child and only son, Kyriakos, elected as leader of New Democracy in January 2016.

Mitsotakis is also survived by two other daughters and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His wife, Marika, died in 2012.

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Derek Gatopoulos in Athens contributed
JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel's interior minister and his wife are reportedly among 16 people who were interrogated by Israel police in a major corruption probe.

Police say 16 people were taken in for questioning on Monday in the investigation into tax evasion and real estate crimes. Israeli media report that Deri and his wife were grilled by the police's high-profile crimes unit for at least 10 hours over suspected wrongdoing.

Aryeh Deri was previously sentenced to three years in prison for bribery, fraud and breach of trust in 2000 during his previous stint as interior minister in the 1990s. He served 22 months in prison, but made a political comeback and retook the reins of the religious Shas party in 2013.

Details of the case are under a police gag order.
SAO PAULO (AP) - The union representing Brazil's federal police investigators expressed concerns Monday about how probes into government corruption will be handled by a personal friend of President Michel Temer who has been named the country's new justice minister.

Torquato Jardim, who will oversee the investigators and other members of the federal police department, in the past has criticized the so-called Car Wash corruption probe that has now spread to include alleged bribes by a construction company of politicians around Latin America.

Jardim was appointed to the justice minister job on Sunday by Temer, who himself is under investigation for alleged obstruction of justice and corruption. The unpopular president has seen his support in Congress shrink amid growing pressures for him to step down. He denies any wrongdoing and has said he won't resign.

Brazil's President Michel Temer attends a meeting with airport operators at Planalto presidential palace in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, May 29, 2017. Brazil's top prosecutor has opened investigations into the president for alleged obstruction of justice and passive corruption. Temer, then vice president, rose to the presidency a little over a year ago when President Dilma Rousseff was suspended and then removed for illegally managing the federal budget. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Previous justice minister Osmar Serraglio, who was also criticized in the past by the police investigators' union, was pressured to resign after he was linked to a corruption investigation in the meat business.

The union said in a statement Sunday night that members had no idea that Temer's appointment of Jardim was coming. It added that the change in justice ministers "brings concerns and uncertainty over the possibility of interference in the work performed by the federal police."

Jardim is Brazil's third justice minister in about a year. He has criticized federal police investigations, raids and strategies in the recent past.

Until a few years ago, the new minister was a member of Brazil's top electoral court, which on June 6 will launch a trial that could remove Temer from office on charges of illegal campaign financing as well as strip impeached former President Dilma Rousseff of her right to run for office for up to eight years.

Supreme Court Justice Gilmar Mendes, who serves as chairman of the seven-judge electoral court, said Monday that it's not up to the judges to resolve Brazil's political crisis.

"The trial will be on legal issues," said Mendes, who has also been Temer's personal friend for decades.

Mendes defended Temer's choice of Jardim for the cabinet position, saying after an event in Sao Paulo that "he is very respected and he will certainly do his job very well."
SAO PAULO (AP) - Heavy rains and flooding have driven tens of thousands of Brazilians from their homes in the country's northeast and caused at least six deaths, authorities said Monday.

The state of Pernambuco has declared a state of emergency in 14 cities affected by heavy rains in recent days. More than 40,000 people have fled their homes, some of which have been destroyed, as flood waters rose waist-high in some places. Two people have died, state officials said.

In the neighboring state of Alagoas, more than 2,000 families have been forced from their homes and four people have died, authorities said.

Brazil's Defense Ministry has sent 100 military personnel and 10 vehicles to Alagoas and two helicopters to Pernambuco to help people stranded by floodwaters.

President Michel Temer visited both states Sunday to discuss the emergency response and promise federal support.
BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) - The Latest on Europe's response to the large numbers of migrants and refugees trying to reach the continent (all times local):

10:30 p.m.

Greek judicial authorities have ordered an investigation into allegations that staff at a European Union-funded NGO sexually exploited refugees and misused money intended for their welfare.

Immigration Minister Ioannis Mouzalas on Monday handed Supreme Court prosecutor Xeni Dimitriou a letter from the EU's top humanitarian aid official outlining the allegations.

The NGO allegedly involved was not publicly named, and no details on the claims were provided.

Dimitriou ordered a preliminary investigation by a financial crimes prosecutor.

The allegations were first made public this month by the EU commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management, Christos Stylianides.

Stylianides' office said in a May 16 statement that the commission is taking the allegations "very seriously" and will suspend funding to the NGO pending the investigation.

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3:57 p.m.

Romanian border police say they have detained 11 Syrian and Iraqi migrants who are suspected of trying to illegally cross the border and reach the Schengen zone.

Police said in a statement Monday that a man with both Romanian and Hungarian citizenship is also being investigated for migrant smuggling.

The statement said that police noticed a car with Hungarian plates which stopped 500 meters (550 yards) from the border with Hungary on Saturday evening.

There were five Syrian and Iraqi citizens, aged 23 to 32, and six minors aged 1 to 10 in the car, traveling with temporary asylum-seeker documents.

They told border police they wanted to illegally cross the Romania-Hungary border to arrive in the visa-free Schengen zone. Hungary is a member of Schengen while Romania isn't.
AMSTERDAM (AP) - An Amsterdam court on Monday rejected a request by a group of AkzoNobel shareholders to order an extraordinary shareholder meeting to discuss dismissing the paint and coatings company's supervisory board chairman.

The Amsterdam Commercial Court ruling came amid unrest by some AkzoNobel shareholders at the company's decision to reject three unsolicited takeover bids by American rival PPG Industries.

Rejecting the third PPG bid, worth $28.8 billion, AkzoNobel said that its own plan to spin off its Specialty Chemicals unit within 12 months to boost growth "offers a superior route to growth and long-term value creation and is in the best interests of shareholders and all other stakeholders."

Some shareholders, led by hedge fund Elliott Management, want Supervisory Board Chairman Antony Burgmans replaced, but the court refused to order a special shareholder meeting to vote on a proposal to oust him.

AkzoNobel spokesman Leslie McGibbon said the company was pleased with the decision.

"Throughout the process, the boards have been conducting themselves to the highest standards of corporate governance," McGibbon said. "Our job remains to deliver on the high-growth strategy we have outlined, and that is what we are focused on."

The court also said that AkzoNobel's repeated rejections of PPG bids had led to "incomprehension among some shareholders" and opened a fault line between AkzoNobel and those shareholders.

"This is a problem that AkzoNobel cannot ignore," the court said, adding that the company should consider how to restore good relations with the discontented shareholders.

A lawyer for Elliott declined comment, saying he wanted to discuss the ruling with his client.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - The Latest on fatal stabbings in Portland, Oregon (all times local):

4:50 p.m.

Cellphone video shows the suspect in the deadly stabbings of two men who intervened in an anti-Muslim rant against two young women on a Portland train going on a racist tirade a day earlier.

This booking photo provided by Multnomah County Sheriff's Office shows Jeremy Joseph Christian. Authorities on Saturday, May 27, 2017 identified Christian as the suspect in the fatal stabbing of two people on a Portland light-rail train in Oregon. (Multnomah County Sheriff's Office via AP)

Police Sgt. Pete Simpson confirmed Monday that video from a passenger posted by TV station KOIN shows Jeremy Joseph Christian, who's accused of murder and other counts in Friday's attack.

In the video taken Thursday, Christian uses expletives as he rants about Muslims, Christians and Jews. At one point, he threatens to stab the driver of the train. He also rails against police and taxes.

Simpson says police also are investigating an incident that day involving Christian and a black woman on the train but didn't immediately respond to emails seeking additional details.

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2:20 p.m.

The mayor of Portland, Oregon, is calling on the federal government and organizers to cancel a "Trump Free Speech Rally" and other events next weekend after the fatal stabbing of two people who confronted a man hurling racial slurs at two young women on a train.

Mayor Ted Wheeler said Monday that the community is sad and angry, and the rallies are inappropriate and could be dangerous. He says his main concern is participants are "coming to peddle a message of hatred."

Wheeler said the three men who intervened on the train Friday were willing to give their lives to stand up for people they didn't know.

He says he hopes their actions inspire "changes in the political dialogue in this country" and that people put aside their hate and honor the victims.

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10:10 a.m.

The mother of one of the girls who was the target of a hate-filled rant against Muslims on a Portland train says she's overwhelmed with gratitude and sadness for the strangers who were stabbed to death when they came to her daughter's defense.

Dyjuana Hudson posted a photo on her Facebook page of Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, saying: "Thank you thank you thank you... You will always be our hero."

Authorities say Meche and Ricky John Best were killed Friday trying to stop Jeremy Joseph Christian from harassing Hudson's daughter, Destinee Mangum, and her friend. The friend was wearing a hijab.

Christian was arrested on suspicion of aggravated murder, intimidation and being a felon in possession of a handgun.

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9:50 a.m.

President Donald Trump is condemning the fatal stabbing of two good Samaritans trying to help two young women targeted by an anti-Muslim rant in Portland, Oregon.

Trump tweeted Monday: "The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable. The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them."

The attacks came on a light rail train on the first day of Ramadan, the holiest time of year for Muslims.

Police identified the dead as 53-year-old Ricky John Best of Happy Valley, Oregon, and 23-year-old Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche of Portland. Mayor Ted Wheeler said Best was an Army veteran and a city employee.

Police have arrested Jeremy Joseph Christian in connection with the killings and say they're looking at his extremist ideology.

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This item has been corrected to show that one of the women isn't Muslim.

A sign of thanks rests against a traffic light pole at a memorial outside the transit center in Portland, Ore. on Saturday, May 27, 2017. People stopped with flowers, candles, signs and painted rocks for two bystanders who were stabbed to death Friday, while trying to stop a man who was yelling anti-Muslim slurs and acting aggressively toward two young women, including one wearing a Muslim head covering, on a light-trail train in Portland. Suspect Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, was booked on suspicion of murder and attempted murder in the attack and will make a first court appearance Tuesday. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus)

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler speak at a news conference after a man fatally stabbed two men Friday on a light-rail train when they tried to stop him from yelling anti-Muslim slurs at two young women, one of whom was wearing a hijab, in Portland, Ore., Saturday, May 27, 2017. Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, was booked on suspicion of aggravated murder and attempted murder in the attack and will make a first court appearance Tuesday. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus)
Three days into qualifying races and there's already a controversy in the America's Cup.

A thrilling showdown between two of the top challengers turned on a penalty Monday, leaving one crew fighting to keep its 50-foot foiling catamaran from tipping over, and the other crew dumbfounded.

A few hours later, the chief umpire released a statement saying the officials blew the call.

Emirates Team New Zealand beat Artemis Racing after the Swedish team was penalized turning onto the last leg Monday on Bermuda's Great Sound.

Artemis was flagged for a port-starboard violation and had to slow just as it approached the finish line after a short reach across the wind, allowing the Kiwis to win.

There were protestations of "no way" and "completely rubbish" on the Swedish catamaran, which is crewed mostly by Australians.

Turns out their protestations were spot on.

In a statement, Richard Slater, the chief umpire for the independent America's Cup Race Management, said officials "have had a discussion, we have looked at other evidence, information and data, and I think if we were to go back in time and make that call, we would green that call and not penalize Artemis."

Once a call is made, it can't be changed.

"It was obviously a pretty good race, such an epic battle, really, the whole way around," said Artemis skipper Nathan Outteridge, an Aussie. "I'm sure Pete and the boys enjoyed it as much as we did, probably a bit more at the end there."

Outteridge felt Artemis gave the Kiwis enough room.

"We were a bit shocked when the blue light came on," he said.

There were stunned looks on the crewmembers' faces after the finish.

Slater said that as the boats were approaching the gate mark, "our job is to be certain that Artemis Racing were keeping clear, and we weren't at that time certain they were keeping clear."

Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Peter Burling said the Kiwis were looking to set up a port-starboard at the mark, but didn't expect it to be so close.

Coming in at high speed, Burling dropped the catamaran off its foils and buried the starboard bow in the water to slow down.

"We were pretty lucky we didn't end up on our side," he said. "At 40 knots, you need room."

"We thought it was pretty tight, but we were happy with the outcome," Burling added. "Like any sport, you've got to play to the whistle."

It was one of the most exciting America's Cup races in years. Artemis also was penalized for being over the start line early. Still, there were nine lead changes on the seven-leg course.

Artemis and New Zealand don't have to wait for a rematch. They face off again in the opening race of the second round robin on Tuesday.

Earlier Monday, British sailing star Ben Ainslie, who leads Land Rover BAR, lost his fourth straight race. Land Rover BAR had a bad mark rounding halfway through the race and Groupama Team France went flying past and won by 53 seconds.

New Zealand finished the first round robin with four points, one behind two-time defending champion Oracle Team USA.

Struggling Land Rover BAR has three points, followed by Artemis, SoftBank Team Japan and Groupama Team France with two points apiece.

One challenger will be eliminated after the second round robin, which wraps up Saturday.

Ainslie would be in real trouble if not for bringing in two bonus points earned during preliminary regattas.

This is the first time the defender has sailed against challengers in the preliminaries. If Oracle wins the qualifiers, it will carry a one-point bonus into the first-of-seven America's Cup match beginning June 17. After the round robins, Oracle will practice on its own while the challengers sail their semifinals and finals.

Artemis looked strong in practice racing earlier this spring. It's looking to bounce back from the death of Andrew "Bart" Simpson in May 2013, when its 72-foot catamaran broke apart during a training run on San Francisco Bay.

The Kiwis are looking for redemption after blowing an 8-1 lead on match point in the 2013 match, when Oracle Team USA won eight straight races to retain the Auld Mug.

The Kiwis sacked skipper Dean Barker and replaced him with Burling.

Besides being top challengers, the Artemis and Team New Zealand sailors are familiar with one another. Outteridge and fellow Artemis crewman Iain Jensen won the gold medal in the 49er class in the 2012 Olympics, with Burling and fellow ETNZ sailor Blair Tuke taking the silver. At Rio last summer, Burling and Tuke won the gold, with Outteridge and Jensen taking the silver.

In the last race of the round robin, Barker steered SoftBank Team Japan to a 2:34 rout of France.

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Follow Bernie Wilson on Twitter at http://twitter.com/berniewilson
Anti-terror police are on the hunt for a blue suitcase Salman Abedi was carrying on the day of the deadly Manchester bombing as raids on properties continue.

The public are being asked to contact the police immediately if they see the piece of luggage, which officers have no reason to believe contains anything dangerous but are asking people to be cautious.

Attack at Manchester Arena update: image released of Abedi carrying a suitcase. Did you see him? https://t.co/NiBYb83cwj pic.twitter.com/0MK24mvtlO  Greater Manchester Police (@gmpolice) May 29, 2017

Greater Manchester Police has released an image of the suicide bomber with the hip-high case in the city centre on May 22.

Detective Chief Superintendent Russ Jackson from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit said: Did you see Abedi with this suitcase between the 18 and 22 May 2017? Where did you see him with it during that time?

You may have seen him in the Wilmslow Road area or Manchester city centre with the suitcase or know where the suitcase has been. If you have any details about the suitcase we need you to get in touch and let us know.

Manchester attack, arrests and key locations

We believe Abedi was in possession of this case in the days before the attack at Manchester Arena on Monday 22 May. I want to stress that this is a different item than the one he used in the attack.

This image was taken from CCTV in the city centre on 22 May.

Mr Jackson continued: The public should not approach the case if they see it but contact police immediately on 999.

Police raided more homes on Monday as the relentless search for the network behind the suicide bombing continued a week on from the attack.

Police at Banff Road in Rusholme, Manchester.

Officers executed a warrant at an address in Rusholme and the search remains ongoing, GMP said on Monday evening.

Police activity also centred around a tip beside the M66 motorway, between Bury and Heywood, and officers stood on guard at the entrance to the Viridor site and also at a public footpath around it.

Landfill site in Pilsworth

One worker in a fluorescent orange coat could be seen beside a man in a white boiler suit inspecting waste close to a large digger which was sifting through material.

Viridor confirmed its Pilsworth site was being searched, and the company is assisting police.

Early morning raids were carried out at a house in Manchester, along with searches carried out in Chester and Shoreham-by-Sea, on the south coast of England.

UPDATE: Man arrested in Shoreham by Sea in connection with Manchester Arena attack pic.twitter.com/bgxH38u63W  Greater Manchester Police (@gmpolice) May 29, 2017

A 23-year-old was held in the small seaside town on suspicion of terror offences in the early hours of Monday morning, GMP said.

As the police operation continued, more questions were being raised about possible security and intelligence blunders surrounding what was known about bomber Salman Abedi.

CCTV photo issued by Greater Manchester Police of Salman Abedi

With the massive operation to dismantle his terror network showing little sign of slowing, 14 men were being held in custody in connection with the attack.
North Korea has fired an apparent ballistic missile that flew almost 300 miles and landed in the waters of Japans economic zone.

It was the latest in a string of launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can reach the US mainland.

The suspected Scud-type missile launched from the coastal town of Wonsan on Monday flew about 280 miles, the Souths Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

It landed in western waters that are Japans exclusive maritime economic zone, Japanese chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga said.

The suspected ballistic missile landed in Japan's maritime economic zone (Lee Jin-man/AP)

North Korea is still thought to be several years away from its goal of being able to target US mainland cities with a nuclear ICBM, but each new test puts it closer to success.

The North has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that target Japan and South Korea and US forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles. There was no immediate comment from North Koreas state controlled media.

But the launch followed a report from the North that said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. It was not clear from the report when the test happened.

After the test, Mr Kim said the weapon systems ability to detect and track targets had remarkably improved and its accuracy also increased, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.

KCNA cited him as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system all over the country so as to completely spoil the enemys wild dream to command the air.

People walk near a screen which reports North Korea's apparent missile launch

The Norths nuclear and missile programmes are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in allies Washington and Seoul.

President Donald Trump has alternated in his public statements between bellicosity and flattery. But his administration is still working to solidify a policy to deal with North Koreas nuclear ambitions.

A new liberal president in Seoul, Moon Jae-in, has signalled he will be flexible in expanding civilian exchange with North Korea. But many analysts say Mr Moon will probably not push for any major rapprochement projects because North Korea has gone too far on its nuclear programme.

Mondays missile launch was the third one by North Korea since Mr Moons inauguration on May 10. He called a National Security Council meeting to discuss the Norths launch.

Japanese PM Shinzo Abe answers questions about North Korea's missile launch (Muneyuki Tomari/Kyodo News/AP)

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had just returned from a G7 meeting in Italy, told reporters: North Koreas provocation by ignoring repeated warning from the international society is absolutely unacceptable.

He said Japan will take concrete steps with the US in order to deter North Korea, although he did not elaborate on specific actions.

We will also co-operate with South Korea and other members of the international society and maintain high levels of caution in order to do utmost for the protection of our peoples safety.
Jeremy Corbyn has insisted he will not do a deal with the SNP to gain power at Westminster.

Nicola Sturgeon has said she would try to form an alliance to pursue progressive policies if the General Election results in a hung parliament.

The Labour leader, who has already ruled out any agreement with the SNP, spoke out on the issue again on Monday with less than two weeks to go to the General Election.

Nicola Sturgeon is more interested in another independence referendum than opposing austerity or standing up against the Tories. pic.twitter.com/vrQ5i83Pjm  Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) May 28, 2017

Mr Corbyn said: There will be no deals. There will be no alliance. Were fighting this election to win.

Only Labour or the Tories can win this election and voting Labour is the only way to remove Theresa May from office and build a Scotland for the many, not the few.

His comments follow an interview with the BBC in which Ms Sturgeon said Mr Corbyn was not credible as an alternative prime minister.

What I actually said - 'I don't want to see Tory govt or Tory PM'. Why do ScotLab feel need - let me be diplomatic here - to distort truth https://t.co/BVOY76ANAH  Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) May 28, 2017

But the SNP leader also said that if there was to be a hung parliament of course we would look to be part of a progressive alliance that pursued progressive policies.

The SNP won 56 of the 59 seats in Scotland in the 2015 general election, and in the run-up to that ballot Tories across the UK sought to raise fears about the impact a possible coalition between Labour and the SNP could have.

Recent opinion polls across the UK have showed Theresa Mays lead over Labour shrinking.

An ORB poll for The Sunday Telegraph put support for Labour on 38%, six points behind the Conservatives and a result which would see Mr Corbyn outpoll both Ed Miliband and Gordon Brown.

(David Cheskin/PA)

Mr Corbyn was also asked on Monday about how he would deal with Ms Sturgeon if he became prime minister.

Ms Sturgeons demands for a second independence referendum in the wake of Brexit have been blocked by the UK Government.

The Conservatives say another ballot cannot take place until after Brexit and only if there is public consent for a vote.

Labours manifesto says the party opposes a second referendum.

Jeremy Corbyn

Mr Corybn was asked during an interview with Bauer and Global radio stations: Theresa May says now is not the time for another independence referendum. You walk into Downing Street in a couple of weeks time, what do you say to Nicola Sturgeon?

He replied: Ill obviously open discussions with the Government in Scotland and listen very carefully to what the Scottish Parliament says.

I would ask them to think very carefully about it and suggest it would be much better to have this question dealt with at the conclusion of what are very serious and very important Brexit negotiations, where I am utterly determined to achieve tariff-free trade access to the European markets to protect manufacturing and service jobs all across the UK, all across Scotland, Wales and England as well, of course.
French President Emmanuel Macron has said he had extremely frank, direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Versailles.

Mr Macron pushed for co-operation on Syria and against Islamic State but also launched an extraordinary attack on two state-funded Russian media outlets he accused of spreading lying propaganda.

The two leaders emerged from their first meeting  discussions at the sumptuous Palace of Versailles that lasted more than an hour longer than planned  clearly still at odds on multiple issues, but also seemingly keen not to let their differences define their fledgling relationship.

Mr Macron said he spoke to Mr Putin about LGBT rights in Chechnya and about the rights of embattled NGOs in Russia, vowing he would be constantly vigilant on these issues.

Mr Putin emphasised the need for closer co-operation between Russia and France, two nuclear-armed permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Speaking with remarkable frankness, Mr Macron tore into the state-funded Russian media outlets Sputnik and Russia Today for spreading what he said were serious untruths during the French election.

When press outlets spread defamatory untruths, they are no longer journalists, they are organs of influence. Russia Today and Sputnik were organs of influence during this campaign, which, on several occasions produced untruths about me and my campaign, Mr Macron said.

I will not give an inch on this, he said. Russia Today and Sputnik  behaved as organs of influence, of propaganda, of lying propaganda.

Mr Macron was the first Western leader to speak to Mr Putin after the Group of Seven (G7) summit over the weekend, where relations with Russia were a key topic.

French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin hold a joint press conference at the Palace of Versailles (Alexei Nikolsky/AP/PA)

His invitation to the Russia leader was a surprise after the tough stance on Russia Mr Macron took during the French election.

Mr Macrons aides also claimed that Russian groups launched hacking attacks on his campaign.

Moscow strongly denied all allegations of meddling in the French election that Mr Macron won on May 7.

Mr Putin on Monday again dismissed the idea as unfounded press speculation.

French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin

But he also defended his March meeting with Mr Macrons rival in the presidential race, far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

Mr Putin described Ms Le Pen as a politician who wants to develop friendly ties with Russia and said it would have been strange to rebuff her overtures.

He said the meeting with Ms Le Pen did not represent an attempt to sway the race.

Emmanuel Macron and

Mr Putin added that Russia had been well aware of opinion polls predicting Mr Macrons victory.

Mr Macron said he was firm on other issues, too.

He said any use of chemical weapons in Syria  where Russia is propping up the government of president Bashar Assad  is a red line for France and would be met by reprisals and an immediate riposte from France.

He did not specify what form such reprisals could take, but France flies warplanes over Syria and Iraq, striking IS targets as part of an international coalition.

Mr Macron portrayed the meeting as just a first step in resetting the countrys relations with Russia.

Big things are built over time, he said. It was an exchange that was extremely frank, direct, with a lot of things that were said.

We have disagreements, but at least we talked about them, he added.
DUBAI, May 28 (Reuters) - A United Arab Emirates government minister on Sunday warned that an alliance of Gulf Arab states was facing a major crisis and he said there was an urgent need to rebuild trust.

Anwar Gargash, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, made his comments on Twitter less than a week after Saudi Arabia and the UAE signalled frustration at Qatar. Its state media published purported remarks by Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani criticising Gulf rhetoric against Iran and suggesting strains between the emir and U.S. President Donald Trump.

Tensions have been rising between Iran and its Gulf Arab neighbours, who accuse Tehran of trying to expand its influence in Arab countries including Syria and Yemen.

Qatar denied making the critical comments, saying its news agency had been hacked, but Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates allowed their state-backed media to continue running the story, angering Doha.

"The Gulf Cooperation Council countries are passing through a new sharp crisis that carries within it a great danger," Gargash said. "Fending off sedition lies in changing behaviour, building trust and regaining credibility," he added, without mentioning Qatar by name.

Gulf countries have made no official comment on the rift, which emerged after Trump's first visit to Saudi Arabia and his meetings with Arab and Muslim heads of state since he took office. But a war of words had escalated between Qatari media on one side and Saudi and Emirati media on the other.

The row appears to emanate from old accusations made in 2014 that Qatar backs Islamists outlawed by Saudi Arabia and the UAE as terrorist organisations.

Ties between Qatar and some of its GCC allies suffered an eight-month breakdown in 2014 over Qatar's alleged support for the Muslim Brotherhood, the political ideology of which challenges the principle of dynastic rule.

The rift ended after what diplomats said at the time was a promise by Qatar to the UAE that the Muslim Brotherhood would not be allowed to operate from the country.

Gargash said that the road to resolving any crisis "between someone and his brothers was to have true intentions, abide by commitments, change the behaviour that had caused damage and turn a new page".

"Our position and our stability is in our unity and to have honest intentions," he added.

Apart from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, the GCC also groups Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait.

Earlier in the day, descendents of the founding father of Saudi Arabia's Wahhabi brand of Islam published a statement in Saudi media distancing themselves from Qatar's ruling family.

In the front-page statement, Saudi Arabia's Okaz newspaper said that 200 descendants of Ibn Abd al-Wahhab demanded the renaming of a Qatar mosque named after the 18th century cleric even though most Qataris practise Wahhabism. "We, therefore, demand that the name of the mosque be changed for it does not carry its true Salafi path," the statement said, according to the Arabic-language Okaz.

Qatar's ruling al-Thani family traces its history to Najd, the central and northern part of Saudi Arabia where Ibn Abd al-Wahhab was from. (Reporting by Aziz El Yaakoubi and Sami Aboudi,; Editing by Stephen Powell)
By Zoe Tabary

BOGOSSONI, Mali, May 29 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Anthio Mounkoro has been farming land in Bogossoni for as long as she can remember - but none of it was ever hers.

"The land I've been cultivating my whole life is my father's," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation while meticulously watering a batch of shallots, careful not to waste one drop from the hose.

"No woman in my village owns land - that's for men, it's just the way it is."

In Malian society, men control access to land and decide which parts, if any, women are allowed to farm.

That has become especially problematic for women as increasingly erratic weather, including longer droughts, has increased competition for land and harvests, experts say.

In some cases, crop losses on their own land have led men to encroach on land traditionally farmed by women and even steal women's crops, according to development workers in the area.

But an experiment in securing women's access to small plots of land - and training them to grow crops in difficult climate conditions - aims to change that.

Over the past year, community groups from 18 villages in this region of central Mali have negotiated with private landlords to set aside a share of their land for women to farm.

The agreements are then put down in writing and certified by local authorities.

The initiative, led by International Relief and Development (IRD), a charity, is part of the Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED) programme, funded by the UK Department for International Development.

Under the land agreements, community groups that rent the land in turn lease it to women "for a small fee" said Sidi Dicko, the regional coordinator for Groupe de Formation Consultation et Etude, one of the effort's local partners.

In Bogossoni, for example, 147 women each now grow vegetables on a 5 square-metre plot of land in exchange for a monthly fee of 250 CFA francs (about $0.40) paid to the community group.

The women sell two-thirds of their harvest at nearby markets, and keep the rest to eat at home.

FIRST LAND, THEN A CROP

Simply having access to land is critical - but women also need to know how to get reliable harvests from it despite increasingly upredictable weather conditions, Dicko said.

In Bogossoni, as in many Malian villages, rising temparatures and erratic rainfall have caused fields and soil to dry up, making it difficult to grow much of anything.

"It gets hotter every day, and our crops don't always survive," said Mounkoro, tying a bright blue piece of fabric on her head to escape the searing 45 degree Celsius (113 degree Farenheit) heat.

The worst part of such crop failures, she said is "not having enough to feed my family".

But the project has helped her and other women buy drought-resistant seeds, identify new pests and learn to dry vegetables such as shallots so they can be stored for longer and sold in the "lean season" - when prices for food are at their highest.

"I now grow about 100kg of shallots per harvesting season, instead of 30kg previously," Mounkoro said.

AVOIDING MISSTEPS

According to Virginie Le Masson, a research fellow at the Overseas Development Institute, a British think tank, access to land is key for women to build up resources and diversify their sources of income, which can help them cope with bad weather.

Clear land rights can also help them hold on to what they produce, she said.

"A common pitfall is men allowing women to farm land but keeping the spoils for themselves," Le Masson said.

"In Chad, for example, I've seen women who had piles of millet stored at home but weren't allowed to access it because their husbands were away working seasonal jobs."

"Attempts to build women's resilience need to acknowledge the social norms women are confronted with, if they are to be successful," she added.

Fatoumata Gareka, the deputy project director at IRD, believes that "putting women's right to use the land in writing will make it more likely they can derive the benefits of their own work."

Not all of the new land agreements are yet written down and certified, she said, but the project is moving toward that goal.

The women's initiative, supported by technical agents trained by U.N. Women, has gained credibility in the community's eyes by working closely with village elders and local authorities, she said.

But she cautioned against ignoring local customs.

"When it comes to land, modern law and customary law in Mali are often at odds with each other," Gareka said. "So modern law might say women are allowed to farm land, for example, but in practice it remains the husband's or father's decision."

That makes facilitating women's access to land a delicate enterprise, she said.

"When engaging with communities, we're careful not to say, 'We're giving women land' but 'We're securing land used by women.'"

"Semantics are key here," she said. "One misstep could spark a backlash against women and ruin months of progress."

KEEPING DAUGHTERS AT HOME

Women in the region say they hope that better prospects of earning money at home will allow their daughters to stay in the community instead of setting off for Bamako, the capital, in search of a job, often as a maid.

Mati Magadji, from the nearby village of Kolondialan, has not seen Hatoumata, her 14-year-old daughter, in three years. She has been working as a housekeeper for distant relatives in Bamako.

"There is nothing for her to do here," said Magadji, holding a squirming child on her lap. "So we sent her to earn money to put towards her dowry, as we start to look for a suitable husband for her."

Most of the women in the village have sent their daughters away, while their sons often choose to leave for seasonal jobs abroad.

"Some come back to help during the rainy season but in the dry months you won't find any youth here," Magadji said.

"If there was more work for them to do here - like more land to farm - we would have no reason to send them away," she said, sighing.

Mounkoro, whose six children are now all married and have left the village, said she hopes to be able to continue farming her plot of land - but she does not expect to ever own it.

"I've never asked the question (of ownership) but at least I'm allowed to farm the land," she said. "And the men in our village are happy because we bring back money to buy food and send our children to school." (Reporting by Zoe Tabary @zoetabary, editing by Laurie Goering. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, resilience and climate change. Visit news.trust.org)
By Ernest Scheyder

VIENNA, May 26 (Reuters) - First, they ignored each other. Then, they went into a bruising fight. Finally, they are talking, albeit with opposing agendas.

The history of the relationship between OPEC and the U.S. shale oil industry has evolved a great deal since the cartel discovered it had a surprise rival emerging in a core market for its oil around five years ago.

U.S. shale bankers came to Vienna this week and OPEC is readying a trip for its top officials to Texas in a bid to understand whether the two industries can co-exist or are poised to embark on another major fight in the near future.

"We have to coexist," said Khalid al-Falih, Saudi Arabia's energy minister, who pushed through OPEC production cuts in December, reversing Riyadh's previous strategy to pump as much as possible and try to kill off U.S. shale with low oil prices.

OPEC and non-OPEC countries led by Russia agreed on Thursday to extend oil output curbs by nine months to March 2018, keeping roughly 2 percent of global production off the market in an attempt to boost prices.

But OPEC now realises supply cuts and higher prices only make it easier for the shale industry to deliver higher profit after it found ways of slashing costs when Saudi Arabia turned up the taps three years ago.

In the Permian Basin - the largest U.S. oilfield - Parsley Energy Inc, Diamondback Energy Inc and others are pumping at the fastest rate in years, taking advantage of new technology, low costs and steady oil prices to reap profits at OPEC's expense.

OPEC's latest calculus acknowledges the global clout of shale but seeks to hinder its growth by keeping just enough supply on the market to hold prices below $60 per barrel.

"All shale companies in the U.S. are small companies," said Noureddine Boutarfa, who represented Algeria at the meeting. "The reality is that at $50 to $60 a barrel, (the U.S. oil industry) can't break beyond 10 million barrels per day."

That is the level many analysts estimate U.S. oil production will reach next year, in what would be a 1 million bpd rise, a staggering jump for an industry marked during 2015 and 2016 by scores of bankruptcies and thousands of layoffs after a two-year price war with OPEC.

Still, that extra volume may not be enough to meet rising global demand or offset natural declines in traditional oilfields, which OPEC is banking on.

"For all OPEC members, $55 (per barrel) and a maximum of $60 is the goal at this stage," said Bijan Zanganeh, Iran's oil minister. "So is that price level not high enough to encourage too much shale? It seems it is good for both."

Some OPEC members seem keen to show they have shed any prior naivete about shale, making it a key topic during Thursday's meeting after barely mentioning it before. Shale's limitations, including rising service costs, also were discussed.

"We had a discussion on (shale) and how much that has an impact," said Ecuador Oil Minister Carlos Perez. "But we have no control over what the U.S. does and it's up to them to decide to continue or not."

Mark Papa, chief executive of Permian oil producer Centennial Resource Development Inc, was asked by OPEC delegates to give a presentation on shale's potential last week. He appeared to have played his cards close to his chest.

"In terms of the threat, we still don't know how much (U.S. shale) will be producing in the near future," Nelson Martinez, Venezuela's oil minister said after the talk.

WARNING FOR SHALE

By the same token, some U.S. shale leaders may also want a better insight into OPEC thinking and help OPEC understand that shale is not a flash in the pan.

"OPEC looks at shale and it scoffs," said Dave Purcell of Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co, a U.S. shale investment bank that attended the OPEC meeting for the first time. "There's a rational skepticism globally, but it misses the mark."

For example, the UAE Energy Minister Suhail bin Mohammed al-Mazroui said he did not believe U.S. oil production would rise by 1 million bpd next year.

Some of OPEC's customers are happy to see an alternative. India, the world's third-largest oil consumer, said this week it is looking to the United States for greater supply.

"The new normal has to be accepted," Dharmendra Pradhan, India's energy minister said this week ahead of the OPEC meeting.

OPEC meets again in November to reconsider output policy. While most in the group now appear to believe that shale has to be accommodated, there are still those in OPEC who think another fight is around the corner.

"If we get to a point where we feel frustrated by a deliberate action of shale producers to just sabotage the market, OPEC will sit down again and look at what process it is we need to do," said Nigerian Oil Minister Emmanuel Kachikwu. (Additional reporting by Rania El Gamal, Ahmad Ghaddar, Dmitry Zhannikov, Alex Lawler, Shadia Nasralla; editing by Dale Hudson and Philippa Fletcher)
By Tom Allard

MARAWI, Philippines, May 29 (Reuters) - The Philippine city of Iligan was overflowing with evacuees and on lockdown on Monday over fears Islamist militants had sneaked out of nearby Marawi, where troops were battling to drive out gunmen holed up in buildings for a seventh day.

The fighting in the city of Marawi with pro-Islamic State militants of the Maute group is the biggest security challenges of Rodrigo Duterte's 11-month presidency, with gunmen still holding parts of the city and fending off helicopter air strikes and ground attacks by commandos.

Most of Marawi's 200,000 people have left, many pouring into Iligan, some 38 km (24 miles) away, where authorities said they were stretched to the limit and worried that Maute fighters were blending in with the displaced and could launch attacks.

"We don't want what's happening in Marawi to spill over in Iligan," said Colonel Alex Aduca, chief of the Fourth Mechanized Infantry Battalion.

"We want to ensure the safety of people here, to prevent elements from entering and conducting terroristic activities," he told DZMM radio.

He said some rebels had been caught trying to get into Iligan, but did not give details.

Sixty-one militants, 20 members of the security forces and 19 civilians have been killed since Tuesday, when Maute rebels went on the rampage in Marawi after a botched attempt by the military to arrest Isnilon Hapilon, who the government believes is a point man for Islamic State in the Philippines.

The ability of the Maute group to fight off the military for so long will add to fears that Islamic State's radical ideology is spreading in the southern Philippines, and it could become a haven for militants from Indonesia, Malaysia and beyond.

The military believes the Maute carried out their assault before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to capture the attention of Islamic State and earn its recognition as a Southeast Asian affiliate.

Witnesses in Marawi said they had seen militants flying the Islamic State flag and wearing black outfits and headbands typical of the group.

CIVILIANS STRANDED

Troops on the streets of Marawi fired at Maute snipers as smoke poured out of several buildings.

Trucks loaded with marines arrived to reinforce soldiers guarding deserted streets as helicopters circulated above the lakeside city surrounded by jungle-clad hills.

The military said the Maute group was still present in nine of the city's 96 Barangays, or communities. Thousands of people were stranded, worried they could be intercepted by militants that have set up checkpoints on routes out of the city.

Civilians stuck in Marawi were without food and were as anxious about rocket strikes as much as they were the militants, said Zia Alonto Adiong, a politician coordinating efforts to evacuate civilians.

He said there were still dead bodies in Marawi and civilians wanted the military to stop air strikes.

"The anticipation of death is worse than death itself," he said in a television interview. "We appeal to our military forces to do a different approach."

Bodies of what appeared to be executed civilians were found in a ravine outside a Marawi on Sunday as the crisis took a more sinister turn. Most of the eight men were shot in the head and some had bound hands.

The army said it was possible more "atrocities" had taken place.

Duterte imposed martial law last week on Mindanao, an island of 22 million people where both Marawi and Iligan are located, to quell the unrest and wipe out militancy.

Some rights activists and lawmakers say martial law across the island is an overreaction that will increase the risk of human rights abuses by security forces.

Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said the imposition of martial law was necessary, and constitutional.

"It started flying the flag of the Islamic state of Iraq and Syria in several areas, thereby openly attempting to remove from the allegiance to the Philippine government this part of Mindanao," Abella told reporters.

"This constitutes the crime of rebellion."

(Additional reporting by Erik de Castro in MARAWI and Neil Jerome Morales, Karen Lema and Manuel Mogato in MANILA; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Robert Birsel)
SOFIA, May 29 (Reuters) - These are some of the main stories in Bulgarian newspapers on Monday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

CAPITAL DAILY - Ratings agency Moody's affirmed Bulgaria's sovereign ratings at Baa 2, an investment grade, with a stable outlook based on the country's resilient economy and robust mid-term growth prospects, supported by predicable macroeconomic policies.

24 CHASA - Defence Minister Krasimir Karakachanov said that all projects to buy new equipment for the army should go ahead and the government should carry them out in line with the priorities. Karakachanov said that there is a need to buy new machinery for the land forces while the ageing Russian jet fighters MiG 28 can be used through 2028.

-- Some 11.7 million tourists are expected to visit Bulgaria's resorts this year, up 11 percent from a year ago, a new report by Sofia-based Institute for Analysis and Estimates in Tourism said. (Standart, Telegraph, 24 Chasa)
ABUJA, May 29 (Reuters) - Nigeria's economy is the "biggest challenge of all" for the government, the acting president said on Monday at an event to celebrate two years of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, whose repeated periods of medical leave have nevertheless raised concerns.

The economy has contracted for five quarters in a row, data showed last week, in Nigeria's first recession in 25 years. The downturn has been driven by low global oil prices, low production levels - output has fallen by as much as a third - and a shortage of hard currency.

Buhari's absence is adding to the tension, and last week the ruling party's leader, Bola Tinubu, warned against coup threats. Buhari has been in Britain on medical leave for large chunks of the year, most recently leaving on May 7, handing over duties to his Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

"Let me first express just how concerned we have been, since this administration took office, about the impact of the economic difficulties on our citizens," Osinbajo said at the event, which marks the halfway point for Buhari's first term, in the capital of Abuja.

The government is trying to lift Nigeria out of recession by shifting away from its dependence on oil and imports, investing heavily in infrastructure and focusing on industries like agriculture, Osinbajo said.

But economists have expressed scepticism over the government's scheme known as the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, saying it amounts to little more than a wishlist rather than a roadmap offering concrete solutions.

The acting president, speaking halfway through the year, also said the budget for 2017 would soon be signed into law.

Officials had promised that the process this year would not take as long as last year, when the 2016 budget was signed in May, but the government has missed those targets. (Reporting by Felix Onuah; Writing by Paul Carsten; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
By Taiga Uranaka and Ritsuko Shimizu

TOKYO, May 29 (Reuters) - Japan Tobacco Inc plans to spend $500 million to quadruple its smokeless tobacco production capacity by the end of 2018, as it races against bigger rival Philip Morris for a larger share of the Japanese vaping products market.

Global tobacco firms see Japan as a fertile test ground for vaping products since e-cigarettes using nicotine-laced liquid are not allowed under the country's pharmaceutical regulation. While the Marlboro maker's heat-not-burn "IQOS" tobacco device is already enjoying strong demand in Japan, Japan Tobacco's launch of its "Ploom Tech" product has run into delays.

"It's embarrassing for a tobacco company top to say this, but I did not expect this," said Japan Tobacco CEO Mitsuomi Koizumi, referring to the popularity of IQOS, which had about a 10 percent market share in April, from 7.6 percent in January.

Japan Tobacco is looking for mergers and acquisitions (M&As)in emerging markets, such as Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America, as well as opportunities to invest in startups that have patents and technology for alternative tobacco products, the CEO of the world's No.3 tobacco company said.

With more people shifting to smokeless products such as IQOS due to health concerns, Japan Tobacco's domestic cigarette sales volume is likely to fall 9.6 percent this year.

"It's shocking. I am doing this business for more than 35 years but I have never experienced losing 10 percent in volume in one year," said Koizumi, a career insider who took the top job at the company in 2012.

Demand for traditional cigarettes may come under further pressure given the prospect of tougher regulations as Japan tries to introduce an anti-smoking law ahead of the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Koizumi said he expects vaping products, including Ploom Tech and IQOS, to grab as much as 25 percent of Japan's cigarette market by the end of 2018.

Philip Morris' IQOS is a battery-powered device that heats cigarette-shaped sticks packed with tobacco leaves. Ploom Tech, also a battery-powered device, generates vapour that goes through a capsule packed with tobacco leaves.

Koizumi said his company was aiming for the top share of Japan's vaping market in three years.

Japan Tobacco plans to ramp up the annual output capacity of tobacco capsules used for Ploom Tech to the equivalent of 20 billion cigarette sticks in 2018, from 5 billion planned at the end of this year, the CEO said, adding the company was also developing other tobacco vaping products.

The former state monopoly - still a third owned by the government and whose top brands include Winston, Mevius and Camel - last week announced it would start selling Ploom Tech in Tokyo on June 29, later than initially expected.

There has been speculation Japan Tobacco, which has a market capitalisation of 8.4 trillion yen ($75.3 billion), is ripe for major M&A, especially after British American Tobacco agreed a $49.4 billion takeover of U.S. rival Reynolds American Inc, creating the world's biggest listed tobacco firm.

Some analysts speculate Japan Tobacco could even potentially acquire Britain's Imperial Brands

But Koizumi said the BAT-Reynolds deal was unlikely to have a direct impact on his company's business and that Japan Tobacco was not interested in large-scale acquisitions.

"Specific names aside, deals that would be potentially problematic in terms of anti-monopoly regulation are not realistic," he added. ($1 = 111.5600 yen) (Reporting by Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
By Karolina Tagaris

ATHENS, May 29 (Reuters) - Greece will begin the process of opening up new onshore oil and gas prospects to exploration next year, the chief executive of the country's oil and gas resources management company said on Monday.

Among the first will be the Greek region of Grevena, close to where the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) will cross, Yannis Bassias, head of the Hellenic Hydrocarbons Resources Management (HHRM), told Reuters in an interview.

TAP, which will bring new gas supplies from Azerbaijan to Italy, runs across northern Greek territory.

"As of next year, and perhaps earlier, we will begin announcing that we are opening the door to whoever is interested in onshore sites, " Bassias told Reuters.

HHRM, an independent body, would start compiling data packages for Grevena and central regions too, he said.

Greece has launched an ambitious programme to discover more oil and gas, encouraged by the recent big large gas finds offshore Israel and Cyprus and spurred on by its protracted financial crisis.

Last week it granted a concession to Greece's Hellenic Petroleum for onshore exploration at two sites in the west of the country, and to privately-held Energean for another block.

Energean is currently the country's only offshore oil producer, in northeastern Greece, with an average production of 3,500 barrels per day last year.

Bassias said he expected the first new offshore and onshore drillings to begin in two years, provided bureaucratic hurdles were overcome.

He was also confident that firmer crude prices and a more stable political climate in Greece would attract prospectors to the remaining 17 of 20 blocks in the Ionian Sea and south of Crete which were unsuccessfully offered in 2014.

"We've seen all the big companies, and medium-sized ones too. Its inconceivable to not have companies express interest in the coming months in sites which were not leased during the previous bid round in 2014," Bassias said.

HHRM, tasked with finding investors, overseeing licences and monitoring the implementation of exploration and exploitation agreements, would not be launching new licence bidding rounds for those blocks, Bassias said. Instead, it was in talks with firms for so-called "investors' initiatives."

"We are optimistic because these are high risk, high reward regions," he said. (Editing by Greg Mahlich)
By Samia Errazzouki

RABAT, May 29 (Reuters) - A leading Moroccan activist was arrested on Monday alongside other protesters caught up in a wave of rallies against official abuses and corruption in the north, state media said.

Nasser Zefzafi, who has helped organise months of protests, would be investigated on charges of "threatening national security" and other crimes, state news agency MAP said, citing the general prosecutor.

Protests are rare in the North African kingdom. But tensions have been simmering in Zefzafi's home city of Al-Hoceima since October when a fishmonger died after being crushed inside a garbage truck while trying to save his fish confiscated by police.

The Al-Hoceima protests have been some of the most intense since the 2011 "Arab Spring"-style unrest that prompted the King to devolve some of his powers to an elected parliament, though the palace still holds ultimate authority.

Authorities first tried to arrest Zefzafi after he interrupted a sermon during Friday prayers in Al-Hoceima, a government official said. But supporters poured onto the streets and clashed with police as he left the city.

He was detained on Monday and transferred with other arrested protesters to the judicial police bureau in Casablanca, MAP said.

Authorities say they have arrested 20 people since Friday. Activists say 28 have been detained. Charges against them include receiving "foreign funding and logistical support to undermine the Kingdom's integrity".

Protests in solidarity with Zefzafi's "Hirak" movement were held across the country on Sunday night, including in Rabat and Casablanca, and other urban areas.

On Saturday, health officials said three policemen were critically injured following the clashes on Friday. Activists say several protesters have also been hospitalized.

The public anger over the fishmonger's death echoes Tunisia's 2011 uprising when a young street vendor set himself on fire after police confiscated his fruit and vegetables. That uprising swept Tunisian President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali from power and triggered "Arab Spring" revolts across the region.

But protests in Morocco are calling for greater freedoms and reform of the system and not directly against the king. Morocco has a deeply rooted monarchy - the Muslim world's longest-serving dynasty.

The unrest comes at a sensitive time, nevertheless, as the kingdom presents itself as a model of economic stability and gradual change and a safe haven for investment in a region torn by violence, Islamist militancy and upheaval. (Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
WARSAW, May 29 (Reuters) - Polish companies face a shortage of builders in 2018-2020, when the bulk of EU-financed infrastructure work will be done, Poland's biggest listed construction firm Budimex's Chief Executive Officer Dariusz Blocher said.

Poland lacks steelfixers, carpenters, plasterers, and bricklayers, among others, as many work in Western Europe for higher pay, he said.

"Whether we like it or not, we need a large number of workers, mainly from the East, to deliver the investment plan co-financed with the new EU perspective, particularly in 2018-2020," Blocher said in an interview released on Monday.

"We can't offer today 3,000-4,000 euros ($3,400-$4,500 a month) to every employee, as no investor would pay for it," Blocher told Reuters. In Poland, average salaries are 1,096 euros ($1,225) a month.

"There are construction sites in Poland, where about 50 percent of workers are foreigners, mainly from the East: Ukraine, Belarus, Moldavia," he said.

Blocher, whose firm belongs to Spanish construction giant Ferrovial, said Poland should relax the way work permits are granted to minimise the risk of contract delays.

Last year, Polish recruitment agency Work Service estimated that Poland needed to double immigration in order to prevent foreign investors taking cash out of the country.

In 2015, about a million Ukrainians, fleeing a separatist conflict at home, came to Poland, adding to half a million already living there, according to central bank figures.

The Polish government often uses such data to argue against accepting refugees fleeing war and economic hardship in the Middle East and Africa. (Reporting by Anna Koper and Pawel Florkiewicz; Writing by Marcin Goclowski; Editing by Louise Ireland)
HELSINKI, May 29 (Reuters) - The editor in chief of Finland's public broadcasting company Yleisradio is resigning, the company said on Monday, following a public row over suppressing critical reporting on politicians including Prime Minister Juha Sipila.

Atte Jaaskelainen's actions came under the spotlight after two journalists quit YLE in December, saying Jaaskelainen had edited their story about the awarding of a state engineering contract to a company owned by Sipila's relatives, after he received complaints from the prime minister.

Sipila was cleared by Finland's parliamentary watchdog in February of any conflict of interest, but the incident caused a stir and cost Finland its top ranking in press freedom by media rights group Reporters Without Borders.

Finland's media watchdog in March scolded Jaaskelainen and state-funded YLE, which delivers news online, on the radio and on television.

"YLE's role in the society is more important, than my own role at YLE. My efforts to lead YLE's news operations to conduct responsible journalism have come under suspicion. I hope our decision brings calm to YLE," Jaaskelainen said in a statement.

YLE said the board and Jaaskelainen decided on his immediate resignation mutually. (Reporting by Tuomas Forsell; Editing by Alison Williams)
By Maximiliano Rizzi

BUENOS AIRES, May 29 (Reuters) - Argentina expects a record 2017/18 wheat crop of about 20 million tonnes thanks to farmers' investment in more and better crop technology, the government's chief of agricultural estimates told Reuters on Monday, a forecast well above private estimates.

Argentine wheat is planted mostly in May through July, with harvesting reaching into January.

The upcoming crop could jump from the all-time high 18.4 million tonnes collected in the 2016/17 season, Martin Moreno, the Agriculture Ministry's chief forecaster, said in a telephone interview.

"We are basing that on an increase in use of technology by farmers, and in increase in the quality of that technology. We are principally talking about new seed varieties and fertilizers," he said.

The widely referenced Buenos Aires Grains Exchange forecasts a 2017/18 wheat harvest of 17.5 million tonnes, up from 16.3 million tonnes in 2016/17. Argentine growers have piled into wheat and corn since late 2015, when free-market advocate Mauricio Macri was elected president.

Macri eliminated the 20 percent and 23 percent export taxes that the previous government had put on corn and wheat exports, respectively. He also ditched the previous administration's strict corn and wheat export quota system, which killed competition among buyers and depressed local wheat prices.

For years, lack of profitability depressed demand for new wheat technology in Argentina while growers concentrated on soybeans, which were not subject to export quotas.

In May, weather experts warned that the 2017/18 agricultural season would be marked by stronger and normal rains, which could wash out some farm areas and reduce yields in others.

"We have seen concern on the part of farmers in some areas who say that excess moisture over the short- and medium-term is making it hard to prepare fields for planting," Moreno said.

"Planting intent has dropped a little bit from what they originally had," he added. The expected increase in investment is expected, however, to make up for any loss in planting area.

Argentine corn sowing starts in September, with soy going into the ground in October. Soy exports are still subject to a 30 percent export tax, which the Macri administration promises to start lowering next year despite pressure from financial markets to cut Argentina's fiscal deficit. (Reporting by Maximiliano Rizzi; Writing by Hugh Bronstein; Editing by Nick Zieminski and Paul Simao)
CAIRO, May 29 (Reuters) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi signed into law a controversial bill regulating the work of non-governmental organisations, a presidential decree showed on Monday.

Human rights groups and activists say the law effectively bans their work and makes it harder for charities to operate.

The bill restricts NGO activity to developmental and social work and introduces jail terms of up to five years for non- compliance. (Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein; Writing by Eric Knecht; Editing by Giles Elgood)
VERSAILLES, France, May 29 (Reuters) - The use of chemical weapons in Syria is a red line for France and would result in reprisals, President Emmanuel Macron said after meeting his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday.

Meeting Putin for the first time, Macron told a news conference that France and Russia must cooperate to "eradicate terrorist groups" in Syria and did not directly criticise Moscow's role there.

France and Russia back different sides in the Syrian conflict, with Putin supporting President Bashar al-Assad and Macron part of a western coalition that supports rebel groups and has accused Assad of using chemical weapons in the past.

Macron said it was essential to talk with all actors in the Syria conflict, including representatives of Assad.

"Our two countries will cooperate on Syria, this is essential," Macron said. "We need strong cooperation because we have a joint priority, which is the fight against terrorism."

Macron said he wanted Paris and Moscow to bolster intelligence sharing on Syria and to work together on finding a political solution to the conflict, but gave no details on what a political deal might look like.

Sounding less forthcoming, Putin said he wasn't sure if France's Syria policy was "independent" because it was part of a U.S-lead alliance, adding that Paris and Moscow had points of disagreement and agreement over Syria.

Putin said he and Macron had agreed the fight against terrorism was their top priority, but stressed that he hadn't changed his views on Syria and told Macron so.

Macron's warning of French retaliation in the event chemical weapons are used echo the line taken by U.S. President Donald Trump, who in April ordered cruise missile strikes in retaliation for a chemical weapons attack that Washington blamed on Damascus.

"Any use of chemical weapons would results in reprisals and an immediate riposte, at least where France is concerned," Macron said, standing next to Putin in the Versailles palace outside of Paris.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama put himself in a tough spot with his "red line" ultimatum to Syria on the use of chemical weapons, a phrase he first used in August 2012. But he backtracked in the face of congressional opposition.

In April, Russia's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Vladimir Safronkov, told the U.N. Security Council that Obama's threat of military action if a "red line" was crossed had provoked such attacks.

Syria agreed in September 2013 to destroy its chemical weapons programme under a deal negotiated with the United States and Russia after hundreds of people were killed in a sarin gas attack in the outskirts of the capital, Damascus.

But French intelligence concluded that forces loyal to Assad carried out a sarin nerve gas attack in April this year in northern Syria and that Assad or members of his inner circle ordered the strike, a declassified French report showed.

Assad has denied his government used chemical weapons. (Reporting by Michel Rose; Additional reporting by Denis Dyomkin; Writing by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Richard Lough)
By Allison Lampert and David Ljunggren

MONTREAL/OTTAWA, May 29 (Reuters) - Canadian National Railway Co on Monday said it had reached a tentative agreement with a union representing 3,000 conductors, ahead of a looming strike deadline at Canada's largest railroad.

The union had set a strike deadline of Tuesday at 4 a.m. EDT (0800 GMT) after the railroad announced new work rules during negotiations to replace an expired contract.

The details of the deal were being withheld pending ratification by Teamsters Canada Rail Conference members, CN said. The ratification process takes about 60 days.

"CN is very pleased to have reached this settlement with Teamsters Canada Rail Conference - Conductors, Trainpersons and Yardpersons without a service disruption," CN Chief Operating Officer Mike Cory said in a statement.

Teamsters Canada Rail Conference President Doug Finnson earlier confirmed that an agreement in principle had been reached between the two parties to avert strike at Canadian Rail.

The stoppage would have been be the first strike by CN conductors, or train operators, in a decade. Two sources close to the talks had previously reported good progress.

Rail shippers had earlier urged Ottawa to intervene, fearing that a shut-down would immediately damage business.

Freight Management Association of Canada wrote to Labour Minister Patty Hajdu on Sunday asking her to impose binding arbitration to resolve the dispute.

Hajdu, speaking to reporters on Monday, did not respond to questions about whether she was considering legislation to keep trains running during a strike. A federally appointed mediator is assisting in the talks.

"We have every confidence that we're going to get a deal," she said.

Canada exports most of the grain, potash and other commodities that it produces, moving them vast distances to ports via CN or Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd.

A strike would delay arrival of commodity shipments at port, racking up higher costs, said freight association president Bob Ballantyne on Monday. Retail importers would be affected, along with auto manufacturers who rely on just-in-time parts delivery, he said. (Additional reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra Maler)
Arizona Senator John McCain has called the Russians and Russian President Vladimir Putin a greater threat than ISIS, a group President Trump has called 'wicked' and 'evil losers.'

McCain made his comments on Australian television, where he contrasted Russia, a nation that the U.S. accuses of hacking the presidential election following its invasion of Ukraine and ongoing support for Bashar al-Assad in Syria, and ISIS.

"I think ISIS can do terrible things," McCain said, The Hill reported.. "But it's the Russians who tried to destroy the fundamental of democracy and that is to change the outcome of an American election.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is a bigger threat to world security than ISIS, Sen. John McCain said

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He called Putin the 'premier and most important threat, more so than ISIS,' speaking to the Australia Broadcasting Corporation's 7:30 program.

He blasted Russia's campaigns to interfere in elections in multiple countries, including in France, where President Emanuel Marcon called out Russian propaganda at a press conference with Putin.

Russia denies the interference charges. President Trump has made battling ISIS and international terrorism an overriding goal of his foreign policy.

He has called for pursuing better relations with Russia, although his administration has indicated U.S. sanctions on Russia might actually get tougher.

'Theyre still trying to change elections,' McCain said in the interview. ;They just tried to affect the outcome of the French election.'

On Friday, Trump economic advisor Gary Cohn indicated that U.S. sanctions on Russia might get 'tougher.'

The Obama administration imposed sanctions on Russia after the 2014 Ukraine invasion, and slapped additional sanctions on just before leaving office, after U.S. intelligence concluded Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential elections.

United States Senator John McCain is greeted by Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop (L) during a House of Representatives Question Time session at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, May 29, 2017. He blasted Vladimir Putin in an interview

"We have done nothing since the election last November to respond to Vladimir Putin's attempt to change the outcome of our elections. So, way to go Vladimir! We haven't responded at all," McCain said sarcastically.

French President Emmanuel Macron rolled out the red carpet for Russia's Vladimir Putin on Monday, but past suspicions of Russian meddling in the French election resurfaced with Macron denouncing Russian media and Putin denying hacking allegations.

The newly elected Macron hosted Putin at the sumptuous 17th century palace of Versailles outside Paris for his first meeting with the Kremlin leader which he had earlier said would be marked by some straight talking.

US Senator John McCain is seen during House of Representatives Question Time at Parliament House in Canberra, Monday, May 29, 2017. (AAP Image/Lukas Coch) NO ARCHIVING

The 39-year-old French leader and Putin exchanged a cordial, businesslike handshake and smiles when the latter stepped from his limousine, with Macron appearing to say "welcome" to him in French.

When they emerged from talks, which went on for almost an hour longer than scheduled, Macron said they had had a "frank exchange" and both men stressed they had agreed on the need to move forward on divisive issues such as Syria and Ukraine.

But at a joint news conference after their talks, ill-feeling came to the surface over past allegations made by Macron's camp that state-funded Russian news outlets had sought to destabilise his campaign.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and France's President Emmanuel Macron (R) hold a press conference after their meeting in Paris, France on May 29, 2017

With Putin alongside him, Macron repeated the accusation in a reply to a journalist's question, saying: "During the campaign, Russia Today and Sputnik were agents of influence which on several occasions spread fake news about me personally and my campaign.

"They behaved like organs of influence, of propaganda and of lying propaganda," he said.

During the campaign, which climaxed with Macron's election on May 7, Macron's camp irritated the Kremlin by saying its campaign's networks, databases and sites had come under attack from locations inside Russia.

When his camp barred journalists from the two Russian outlets from Macron's headquarters, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman denounced the move as "outrageous ... bare-faced discrimination".

The Kremlin and RT itself have rejected allegations of meddling in the election.

Putin did not react to Macron's comments about the Russian media, but he bristled when a journalist suggested that Moscow's hand was behind cyber attacks on the Macron campaign. These hacking allegations, he said, were not based on facts.

The Kremlin appeared to favour Macron's far-right opponent Marine Le Pen for the presidency during the campaign - a view reinforced when Putin granted her an audience a month before the election's first round.

This did not indicate an attempt to influence the outcome of election, though, Putin said.

"We are ready to receive any person, always. If Madame Le Pen asked to meet us, why would we want to refuse her? .. The more so since she always publicly spoke out for developing relations with our country. It would be strange for us to refuse her," he said.

DIALOGUE VITAL

Both sides though sought to present Putin's visit, which was intended to mark 300 years since Tsar Peter the Great visited France, as an occasion to relaunch Franco-Russian relations.

Macron, who took office two weeks ago, has said dialogue with Russia is vital in tackling a number of international disputes. Nevertheless, relations have been beset by mistrust, with Paris and Moscow backing opposing sides in the Syrian civil war and at odds over the Ukraine conflict.

Macron, whose country is part of a Western coalition that supports rebel groups and has accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of using chemical weapons, said any further use of chemical weapons in Syria was a red line for France which would result in reprisals.

But he said France and Russia, which backs Assad, should work together on Syria and he said he wanted France and Russia to boost sharing of intelligence in working together to find a political solution to the conflict.

Sounding less forthcoming, Putin said he was not sure if France's Syria policy was "independent" because it was part of a U.S-led alliance, adding that Paris and Moscow had both points of disagreement and agreement over Syria.

Macron also said he and Putin were agreed the time was right for a new round of peace talks on Ukraine in the "Normandy format" which groups Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine.

Macron made no mention of Western sanctions on Russia over Ukraine, though Putin repeated Moscow's view that their continued enforcement would not help stabilise the situation in Ukraine's east.

Macron said he had also brought up the plight of gay men in Russia's Chechnya following Russian media reports of torture and Putin had agreed to "look into the activities of local authorities".

Putin later went to an exhibition on Peter the Great, who visited France in 1717. Macron showed him a painting of the young Louis XV, who was king of France at the time of the visit. Putin also commented to Macron on a painting depicting Russian Empress Catherine the Great.

Putin later went on to visit a newly opened Russian Orthodox cathedral in Paris. He had been due to attend the inauguration of the cathedral in October, but he cancelled the trip to France after then President Francois Hollande accused Russia of war crimes in Syria and refused to give him a red carpet welcome.
By Kieran Guilbert

THIES, Senegal/MAHOU, Mali, May 30 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - P regnant and abandoned by the father of her unborn child despite his promises of marriage, 16-year-old Coumba did not think her plight could get any worse - until she told her family.

"My mother said she regretted that I was ever born," the teenager told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in an empty classroom of a secondary school in the Senegalese city of Thies.

"The whole family reacted so badly, and mistreated me during my pregnancy," she added, her voice faltering and eyes welling up as she recalled the "humiliation I brought upon my parents".

Child marriages in West Africa are driven by factors ranging from building ties between families and communities, to easing poverty by having one less mouth to feed and taking a dowry.

Yet the root cause is not related to money or goods, as commonly thought, but marriages are agreed to avoid the family's shame of having an unmarried daughter who has sex or falls pregnant, according to recent research by Plan International.

West and Central Africa have some of the world's highest rates of child marriage - three in four girls in Niger, and more than half in Mali, are married by the time they turn 18 - according to the United Nations children's agency (UNICEF).

And the number of child brides in the region is set to soar to 12 million in 2030, from around eight million today, UNICEF data shows, amid booming population growth across the continent.

For while the legal age of marriage for girls in many countries is 15 or 16, they may be wed at a younger age under Sharia or customary law in religious and traditional weddings, which are more common than civil marriages across the region.

Campaigners say approaches to tackling child marriage in West Africa must focus on more than just poverty and address the importance of honour and shame if the world is to meet a United Nations global goal to end the practice by 2030.

Challenging male attitudes towards marriage, ensuring girls are in school and offering health and sex education are crucial, several rights groups told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

"At the centre is gender inequality," said Lakshmi Sundaram of Girls Not Brides. "Change on child marriage will happen within communities when parents can see an alternative future for their daughters, and girls are able to pursue their dreams."

HONOUR IN VIRGINITY

Child marriage often cuts short a girl's education and increases the possibility of death in childbirth or injuries.

Yet the fear of shame and stigma of having a daughter who gives birth outside of wedlock tends to outweigh concerns about the health risks, experts say.

Verifying a bride's virginity, which represents her family's honour, is woven into wedding ceremonies across West Africa.

The morning after a marriage, bloodstained white sheets may be celebrated a sign of pride for the girl's family, said the report by Plan. But if the bride cannot prove she was a virgin, she loses part of her dowry and brings shame on her relatives.

Campaigners say education is key to challenging the concept that a family's standing is tied to their daughter's virginity.

At a secondary school in the village of Mahou in southern Mali, teachers are working with local health staff to educate pupils about issues such as contraception and family planning.

"The pupils are eager to learn and access such services, but parents are scared it may make their children more promiscuous," said Adama Kouyate, a biology teacher at the school in Mahou.

Despite such fears, being in school and getting good grades can persuade a girl's parents to allow her to finish her education before marriage is even considered, according to Plan.

Yet if schools are too far away or the costs too expensive, child marriage is often seen by parents as the only alternative.

"Delaying the age of child marriage is a critical milestone on the way to preventing it altogether," said Ramatou Toure-Merlo of UNICEF in Senegal.

Several child brides in Thies, Senegal, said their husbands' families had told them they could stay in school after marriage but some were still taken out of class for domestic work.

"Girls can plan around marriage and receive promises ... but this is too easily pulled away by the husband's family," said Yacene Ciss, member of a child protection committee in Thies.

BRING IN THE BOYS

Men and boys must also be involved in discussions about honour, shame and girls' rights, as little is known about their views towards and experiences of child marriage, activists say.

They must be informed not only about the harmful impacts on girls, but the ramifications for their own futures financially, given the responsibilities of paying a dowry, paying for a home and looking after a family, said Anta Fall of Save the Children.

"Marriage can be a huge barrier for a young man's life and undermine his chances to achieve what he really wants for himself," said Fall.

Faty Kane of Plan said community-based efforts are more effective than legal interventions because even if a girl an her family are aware of the law, they may lack trust in the justice system, be too poor, or fear social stigma to pursue justice.

"Criminalisation may do more harm than good," Kane said. "Attacking a revered social institution without providing any alternatives may drive it underground, thus exposing girls to higher risks and hindering dialogue with communities."

In her school in Senegal, Coumba, now 18 and the mother of a two-year-old boy, said she was relieved to have regained the support of her family, and to be able to continue her studies.

Yet the aspiring nurse could not contain her anger as she spoke about the attitudes towards girls within her community.

"Girls are judged while boys get away with everything. They lie and do anything they want just to sleep with you," she said. (Reporting By Kieran Guilbert, Editing by Belinda Goldsmith; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights, climate change and resilience. Visit http://news.trust.org)
The Bank of Ceylon (BOC) Kochchikade branch was relocated at No: 18, Chilaw Road, Kochchikade recently.

The current branch is at a more spacious and convenient location to customers. This newly relocated branch was ceremoniously opened by the banks Chairman Presidents Counsel Ronald C. Perera and General Manager D.M. Gunasekera.

Deputy General Manager Sales and Channel Management Senerath Bandara, Deputy General Manager Retail Banking Range 2 C. Amarasinghe, Deputy General Manager Retail Banking Range 1 D.M.L.B. Dasanayake, Assistant General Manager Western Province North W.B.P. Rathnayake, Assistant General Manager Marketing Priyal De Silva and the other officials and staff of the Kochchikade branch also participated in the opening ceremony.

This branch has been established and serving customers from the respective area for a considerable period of time.

The BOC Kochchikade branch will offer a wide array of banking services which encompasses personal banking such as current and local or foreign currency savings/SmartGen accounts, fixed deposit accounts, childrens and senior citizens savings accounts and saving plans, housing and personal loans, special loan schemes such as education loans, leasing and pawning facilities.

The customers can also avail themselves for debit or credit cards, micro and small and medium enterprise (SME) financing and international money transfer/remittances services.

The BOC Kochchikade branch has 24-hour self-serving SmartZone that includes an ATM and cash deposit machines (CDM) so the customers have the freedom to transact at their convenient time anytime of the day. The bank invites residents from Kochchikade to experience the superior banking service with this branch and build their success story together with the Bankers to the Nation, Bank of Ceylon.

Bringing in the digital aspect of banking to every nook and corner in the country the bank is in the process of strategically spreading its technology to all its branches. It currently maintains 627 branches, 700 ATMs and 125 CDM that amount to over 1500 customer touch points spread across the country.

The banks recently launched the Bank on wheels - the mobile banking service that will be moving to designated areas or locations according to a timetable to provide banking services much closer to its customers.
- What do the legal experts say?

A lot of hue and cry has been made at Parliament over the past couple of months with the Court of Appeal issuing a Writ of Quo Warranto disqualifying the UPFA Member of Parliament, Geetha Kumarasinghe holding office as an MP on May 3, 2017 under the claim that Ms. Kumarasinghe was holding dual citizenship at the time of seeking nomination to enter Parliament and failed to renounce from the dual citizen status before contesting at the elections from the Galle district in August 2015 as opposed to the 19th Amendment enacted by President Maithripala Sirisena after entering office in January 2015. But on May 15, 2017, there has been an extended interim relief granted in favour of appellant Geetha Kumarasinghe by the Supreme Court.



The decision made by court is currently pending and the appeal is to be argued in Supreme Court on September 25, 2017. No matter what would be said and done, this incident would have a butterfly effect on Parliament for sure.

Decision Pending; Trial on Time Out

This is an instance which challenges only Geetha Kumarasinghe occupying the position of MP under dual citizenship status. If she faces disqualification, the next person in line in the list of names would assume the position and an election would not be held in any case.- Srinath Perera

To get further comprehension on the backgrounds of the pending matter in hand, the Daily Mirror spoke to reputed Constitutional lawyer and politician Srinath Perera PC.



Starting off from square one, Srinath Perera was asked to specify on the grounds on which the 19th Amendment suggested Geetha Kumarasinghes disqualification. He said that certain reasons for disqualification of a candidate at the elections were laid down under Article 91 of the Constitution but was amended under President Sirisena where it was stated that dual citizenship was also another reason for disqualification. Under article 91 and sub paragraph (1) (d) (xiii) of the Constitution, persons who are dual citizens are disqualified from being elected as Members of Parliament or the President of the Republic. The Constitution stipulates - No person shall be qualified to be elected as a Member of Parliament or to sit and vote in Parliament if he/she is a citizen of Sri Lanka who is also a citizen of any other country. So Ms. Kumarasinghe is challenged under this amendment as she is thought to have been holding dual citizenship while bearing a post in Parliament.

Nobody knew about it. Those who must have known about it were not interested. Somebody who became aware of it must have been interested and filed papers against it. That is when the investigations and court cases started



This amendment came into operation on May 15, 2015 and she contested at the elections on August 17, 2015. This amendment came into operation prior to the election. He further stated.



Geetha took oath on September 1, 2015, so the revelation of her holding a dual citizenship after two years is a long time. Why hadnt anyone brought this up before? What had provoked the revelation this year? Wont the time issue provide a legal barrier to the case? Nobody knew about it. Those who must have known about it were not interested. Somebody who became aware of it must have been interested and filed papers against it. That is when the investigations and court cases started.



Considering the possibility of her disqualification, and if she loses her post, there will be a vacant seat in Parliament. Then there would be a big question mark left in the eyes of many. Speculations, perhaps for another election may sprout up. This is an instance which challenges only Ms. Kumarasinghe occupying the position of MP under dual citizenship status. If she faces disqualification, the next person in line in the list of names would assume the position. An election would not be held in any case. Parliamentary elections are held district wise. There would be a certain number of members that could be chosen from each district. Now in Colombo, the number stands at 21.What is normally done is names of another three individuals in addition to the 21 would be added to a list. Each party has to submit a list of 24 names i.e. Colombo district. These are the people who are contesting at the elections. The Elections Commissioner would then give each contestant a number. When the final counting of votes are completed, the number of contestants would be allotted from that particular party. The contestant who had obtained the highest number of votes would be elected.

The fact that despite her disqualification, it does not affect the others whose names appear in the list. There are certain specific grounds under which the list of names could be rejected



In the list of names given, there would also be names of a few other contestants who had not polled sufficient votes would be considered disqualified and would lose the chance of entering Parliament. The name of the other contestant who is listed next who had just missed a seat in Parliament, would be given the seat instead.



Referring to the possibility that Ms. Kumarasinghe is found guilty, wont the list of names, that includes her name be challenged, and hence, an election would be called for? The fact that despite her disqualification, it does not affect the others whose names appear in the list. There are certain specific grounds under which the list of names could be rejected. Once it is accepted, nobody can challenge. The court has issued a writ of quo warranto, which will only subject Ms. Kumarasinghe to disqualification given that she is proved guilty as charged. That courts decision will not in any event affect the rights of others who have been elected. Because the simple principle here is that Geethas election has only been challenged in particular. When the names are entered in a list, they add the names of three persons - more than the number that could be elected. All the chosen candidates are not elected from the same party. There have been a number of others who have contested in the list available. So, if Geetha faces disqualification, the next person in line with the highest number of votes will be given the post, said Srinath Perera when he was queried about the list.

This is an instance which challenges only Geetha Kumarasinghe occupying the position of MP under dual citizenship status. If she faces disqualification, the next person in line in the list of names would assume the position and an election would not be held in any case



There are various notions that other MPs who hold dual citizenships came into the existence with this whole event. If there is any truth to this tale, the list may contain names of parliamentarians with dual citizenships. We asked Srinath Perera PC what would happen in such a circumstance, he said Like I mentioned previously, this is an instance which would disqualify the challenged individual only. In my understanding, to be fair, if another candidate in the list who also holds dual citizenship, he/she should be rejected and eliminated from the list as well.



Once an MP is disqualified under a particular accusation, and in this case due to dual citizen status, one does naturally bear in mind the question whether the accused stands a chance to compete in the elections as a candidate again. If a person is disqualified as an MP, namely referring to Geetha Kumarasinghe in this case, she could contest in the next elections provided that she had annulled her dual citizenship before the next nomination date, and hence, she would stand a chance to be nominated again.

Constitutional Uncertainties Explained

Whether or not the Supreme Court will disqualify her, it has to be a question on facts; not a question of law. - Dr. Nihal Jayawickrama



With Geetha Kumarasinghes dual citizenship issue, cropped up many uncertainties on the provisions in the constitution with regard to a situation such as this. Dr. Nihal Jayawickrama, a Constitutional expert and the former Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Justice, explained that according to the law there would not be a new election for the Galle District and if disqualified the candidate on the list with the next highest number of votes would be elected.



Speaking of the disqualification of an MP, Dr. Jayawickrama said, The Constitution shows us who is qualified and who is not to seek elections, and among them is a category of people who are disqualified from seeking elections in Parliament or to seek office for Presidency. And this category includes citizens of Sri Lanka who are also a citizen of another country. So such a person is disqualified from being elected from sitting and voting in the House. And if that person has sat in Parliament, then theres a penalty for Rs. 500 a day for every day that he/ she sat in Parliament. This is clearly set out in the Constitution

Whether or not the Supreme Court will disqualify her, it has to be a question on facts; not a question of law



He further cited that there are cases when an election could be deemed void and a new election would be conducted, however, it was not done in the present case. According to Section 92 of the Parliamentary Elections Act of 1981, there are two ways in which elections can be set aside. You can file an election petition after the election is over. It says that the election in respect to any electoral district can be declared to be void on an election petition filed under grounds that one candidate was disqualified at the time of his or her election. Then you have to hold a fresh election for that particular district. Otherwise the district goes unrepresented. However this did not happen against Kumarasinghe.



He further added that, Theres another provision in that law, which is Section 115 of the Parliamentary Elections Act which states, The death, or withdrawal, or disqualification under any written law for election or for sitting and voting as a Member, whether before or after the election of the Member, of any person or persons nominated by a recognized political party or independent group for election at that election shall not invalidate or in any way affect the nomination paper of that party or group, and accordingly the candidature or election of any other person nominated by the party or group on that nomination paper shall not be invalidated by reason only of the fact of the death, withdrawal or disqualification of such person or persons which means to suggest that the disqualification of Kumarasinghe will not invalidate the list that was submitted for that district by that party. And if one member seizes to hold office then the constitution says that the person who has got the next highest number of votes will be declared elected.



Dr. Jayawickrama further voiced out an amendment he feels needs to be made in the constitution or the Parliamentary Elections Act, Since the number of votes a party gets determines the number of seats they receive, a problem which is not provided for by the constitution, which may need to be looked at again, is that people vote for a list, and when you find a person who has attracted a large number of votes and is disqualified in the list, then those votes are taken into account in deciding how many seats that party is entitled to, they get bonus seats as well, depending on whether that party has got more than any other party. The point is several months or years later you find that that particular person was disqualified from seeking election and his/her name should never have been on the list then what happens to the fact that people who actually voted because of that person being on that list? Now there is nothing in the law that anticipates that kind of situation. So I think it is something that really requires some provision, because after all, the allocation of seats and the allocation of bonus seats and the national seats all depends on the number of votes that a party gets from the electoral districts throughout the island. Is it fair? Should that be the case that the list is not rejected and the whole district is not called upon to hold another election in a situation of this nature? And the strange thing is, if you file an election petition on the grounds that one of the candidates was disqualified, if that succeeds, then of course the entire district faces a fresh poll. It could have been done but they have chosen another option, which is to come much later. I suppose one consequence of coming late is what would happen to the list.

On the basis that she is or is not a dual citizen, the courts need to be satisfied with the evidence and take a decision



But as the law now stands the fact that somebody held to be disqualified at the time of the election, will not invalidate the list that is what the parliamentary elections act says. So it doesnt have any other consequences. he added.



Speaking of the current situation Dr. Jayawickrama said, An election petition was not filed in this case so we are now left with the Quo Warranto application which is perfectly legitimate because it is intended to challenge a person who is occupying an office which he/she is not entitled to. So that remedy is also available that is also what they have used.



So then the Court of Appeal, on the facts has found that that person was not qualified to stand for election or to be elected to sit in Parliament. Then they declare that person was disqualified. The consequences of it, one has to then refer to the Constitution which says that the next person in that list should be declared elected. The Parliamentary elections Act says that the fact that somebody was disqualified before or after the election will not affect the list submitted by the party. he said

Speaking of his analysis on the situation Dr. Jayawickrama stated that, I think that if the supreme Court affirms the Court Of Appeals judgment, then Geetha Kumarasinghe would stand disqualified and the secretary of Parliament would request the Commissioner of Elections to indicate who the person is who polled the next highest number of votes, could declared elected. I dont think anything else would follow from that. And whether or not the Supreme Court will disqualify her, it has to be a question of facts; not a question of law. That is on the basis that she is or is not a dual citizen, the courts need to be satisfied with the evidence and take a decision.


Because of the themes it engenders and certain demographic realities, the English theatre in Sri Lanka is limited to the Lionel Wendt. What transpired in 1956 and thereafter was, essentially, the bifurcation of our intelligentsia into swabasha and non-swabasha. The latter remain culturally hegemonic: they call the shots in our English Departments. The media helps propagate them, moreover, we already know that the English theatre is popularised by puff-piece sketches which champion its mere existence. The Sinhala theatre by contrast, is more vibrant, more profound, and at school level, the Samastha Lanka Natya Tharagawaliya is wider in scope than its English equivalents. I believe the same can be said of our Tamil theatre.



I observed in an article written not too long ago that the English theatre in our schools tends to reinvent and reflect the English theatre elsewhere. What I meant there was that every positive and negative point about the latter can be gleaned from a school production, from the choice of subject-matter to the attitude of the playwright and the cast towards that subject-matter. Once in a while, one does come across an intelligent production, one that is formally and substantively refreshing. But thats rare. So rare, in fact that when it does come about, the reviewers tend to salivate.



Drama Comp is an annual inter-school drama competition (the title makes it rather obvious) organised by the Interact Club of Royal College. The Interact Movement in this country teeters between community service projects and projects that celebrate the fact of being members of a particular clique. In the case of Drama Comp, its membership of that esoteric circle which rallies around Lionel Wendt. For the past 31 years it has tried to equal that other celebration of English theatre in Colombo, the inter-school Shakespeare Drama Competition. A few weeks ago it was held for the 32nd time. Heres a sketch of what I saw and the reflections it compelled in me.



The theatre is rooted for the most in relationships and a sense of interconnectedness. The English theatre here is rooted even more so in those relationships, which is why most of its plays emphasise on a coming together of its characters. I am not sure whether the kind of separation we come across in Sinhala plays is absent in them because of the social content of their audiences (a largely conservative, urban middle and upper class). Before going any further, though, let me return to Drama Comp.



Three of the four finalists at Drama Comp 2017 sustained that aforementioned conception of our English theatre: Ananda College, St Peters College and St Bridgets Convent. All these productions interested me immensely, but owing to spatial constraints, I can only pass over them.



The Ananda College production echoed what I pointed out earlier in its very title: I Know You, one of those hyperlinked plots where we know the relations between the characters which even those characters do not know until the end.

The St Peters College production, meditative, jazzy, but basically self-brooding, examined the multidimensionality of the bully and the bullied. The St Bridgets production, the only non-original skit staged that evening, centred on its protagonists memories and fantasies as he grapples with the fact that hes sitting on an anti-personnel mine. I am not interested in pinpointing the flaws and demerits of these skits, rather to glean some larger and more relevant meaning from the entire event.



Shakespeares plays thrive on conflict and drama. The former necessitates the latter: once theres no conflict, theres no drama. The 20th century, on the other hand, bred a set of playwrights who saw the dramatic in the un-dramatic, who were (as Susan Sontag observed) devoted to raking up private, rather than public, hells. Of course, Shakespeare was no different there but the likes of Arthur Miller and Pirandello brought about a form of theatre that is more at home here with Sinhala productions. In other words, our English theatre is fixated on the Shakespearean maxim that the dramatic subsists on conflict. Our Sinhala theatre in comparison, has evolved.



Isnt it ironic and interesting that the best continental playwrights  Chekhov, Strindberg, Ibsen, Brecht, and Beckett  have been the darlings of our Sinhala and not English playwrights? Jayantha Chandrasiris plays owe considerably to Beckett, while Dharmasena Pathiraja graduated to the cinema with Koraya saha Andaya, an Absurdist tract which found its cinematic equivalent in his patently nihilistic Soldadu Unnahe. The late Premaranjith Tilakaratne found his Big Theme  the father-son conflict  in Strindberg, while both Henry Jayasena and Parakrama Niriella toyed around with Brechts Caucasian Chalk Circle.



To be sure, Sinhala plays arent perfect. Many of those who took to the English kitchen sink drama in the sixties and the political wave which swept our theatre in the seventies (barring the pioneers, Sugathapala de Silva and Pathiraja included) confused form for substance and skewed the latter in their work. That is why they resorted to symbols and metaphors, which their heirs subsist on even today. They are the theatrical equivalent of what Pauline Kael referred to as movie brutalists: they were tired of the stylised craftsmanship of Maname, Sinhabahu and those who were tutored under and pandered to Professor Sarachchandra.



There are no brutalists in our English theatre, just as there are no brutalists in our English literati and intelligentsia. I believe this has much to do with the social content of those who frequent the Wendt. They are, as I pointed out before, largely urbanised and conservative. It is that conservative streak which inhibits them from doing the hard yards the Sinhala theatre has. Even in our schools.



The Sinhala theatre is focused on open characters who have something to hide. The English theatre is focused on repressed characters who want to get out. This discrepancy cant really be rationalised: it exists because of that conservative streak among those who go to the Wendt. Because of that streak, they can only be insular.



And like all insular people, they desire to reveal, not hide. The best productions, on that count and in the English theatre, are those which stray away from this trend.



Which brings me back to Drama Comp. The winner this year was Methodist College, whose production TTYL was, as far as I could make it out, a visual distillation of contemporary angst. By disassociating speech from performance, it succeeded in depicting the alienation perpetuated by social media. It was fun to watch, not least because it was free of the formal constraints which characterised the other productions. The Ananda, St Peters, and St Bridgets skits were conservative in that sense. They could only affirm humanity. TTYL however, didnt affirm humanity, simply because it didnt feel it had to. I could hence only gasp at the transitions in it, accompanied by excerpts from classical music, including Beethovens Ninth, the Blue Danube and the First Movement (Spring) from Vivaldis Four Seasons.



I sound pessimistic here. I didnt intend to. But year after year, I am tired, baffled and even angered by the kind of insularity the English theatre, literati and cinema (yes, we do have an independent English cinema) breed. The Methodist production at Drama Comp 2017 was refreshing. How many such productions do we come across at the Wendt? I see David Mamet has come back, though I unfortunately missed Glengarry Glenn Ross. But for every Mamet, we get Hugo, Leroux, and Shaw. Likewise, for every standalone TTYL, we get three other not-so-standalone skits. The only consolation I therefore can get, which the judges at Drama Comp and the organisers from the Interact Club of Royal College delivered to me that night was the fact that it won. Yes, they win. Yes, they are cheered on. And how.
In Sri Lanka, the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and the Emergency Regulations introduced to combat LTTE terrorism and other Tamil militant groups are considered by Human Rights activists to be draconian pieces of legislation. They charge that those detained under the PTA are unjustifiably remanded for decades with no charges against them or charges which are based on confessions made to police officers under duress. Human Rights activists claim that apart from the injustice faced at the hands of the police and the prison officials, they also undergo harassment from fellow prisoners. These prisoners detained under the PTA are constantly referred to by the Tamil politicians and Human Rights activists as Political Prisoners.



Sri Lanka has had a history of certain abuses targeting prisoners under PTA. As a result of unrest created between those held under PTA and other non-Tamil prisoners in the past, those detained under the PTA and the Emergency Regulations are now exclusively housed at the New Magazine prison. However they are sent to the Welikada Prison Hospital for medical treatment.



Velayutham Varatharajan, remanded at the New Magazine Prison, was implicated in an attempt to assassinate former President Chandrika Kumarathunga. He was convicted by the High Court of Colombo under the PTA for aiding and abetting the attempt. His appeal is currently pending at the Court of Appeal. On April 22, he had fallen sick and was admitted to the Welikada prison hospital. Initially he was admitted to the open ward. Thereafter he had been moved to the cell section in the hospital which is similar to a prison cell. K.S. Ratnavale, human rights activist and senior lawyer who is appearing on behalf of Varatharajan said that most PTA detainees were directed to this cell section. This is not because of prison overcrowding but simply because they are political detainees and are of a particular ethnicity, he said.



Varatharajan, who is under medication for hypertension, had refused to go to the cell section. He had been writhing in pain and doctors expressed suspicion that he may have contracted dengue. Despite his condition, the Officer-in-charge had moved him to the cell section and he had to sleep on the floor. The doctor who checked him the next day recommended that he should be admitted to the National hospital. But he was not taken and the officers assaulted and verbally abused him saying that he was from the Magazine prison and therefore should not be taken. Even the doctors recommendation is not taken seriously, said Ratnavale.



According to Ratnavale, the treatment at the Welikada prison hospital is very basic. They only have a few painkillers and other basic medicines. Drugs prescribed to patients are not available. Though there is a procedure to bring drugs from outside, it is cumbersome and time-consuming. There are no X ray facilities. They are willfully keeping the standards low. The prison hospital only serves politicians convicted by courts or remanded. People like Duminda Silva who have been sentenced to death are in the Open ward, though they are not sick. But the truly sick are neglected, added Ratnavale.



Unable to bear the discriminatory attitude of the prison authorities and the horrific conditions under which he was placed, Varatharajan had pleaded with the doctor to be released from the hospital. However, the doctor had refused as his condition was serious. Varatharajan persistently said he would take responsibility. Consequently he was sent back.



Ratnavale said that when doctors recommend prisoners to be taken to the National Hospital for treatment under the PTA, they have to be escorted. However this escort is not available at all times. When there is no escort, despite the patients helpless cries and the doctors recommendation, the patient is not taken. They are taken to the hospital only when the Court orders it. It takes a few days to get a Court Order, said Ratnavale.

Step-motherly treatment is given to prisoners, so much so that prisoners dont want to go to the prison hospital. It is ill-equipped and officers are racist. Minor staff members are convicted criminals who are themselves racist. They often assault these prisoners, said Ratnvale. According to recent reports, at least 15 prisoners work as nurses at the Welikada prison hospital. Though there are six main wards in the Prison with nearly 300 patients, there are only three nursing officers. According to Health Ministry sources, the provision of nursing staff falls under the purview of the Prison Department.



Another prisoners blood sugar level went very high and his left side was almost paralyzed. When he was admitted to the prison hospital, they refused to give him treatment. He was kept there for a long time and wasnt given any food. Though the doctor had recommended urgent treatment, the Commissioner General said that was not the case, Ratnavale added, pointing out how the doctors recommendation was overridden by top prison officials. As a result of the step motherly treatment at the Welikada Prison hospital, political prisoners now plead for an established medical centre at the magazine prison. Attorney-at-Law Suren D. Perera said that in 2013, when a victim was severely tortured at the Bogambara Remand prison, he had been denied admission to the General Hospital, as the General Hospital doctors inquired about injuries and refered them to the JMO and the police if they suspected there had been a human rights violation.



Political prisoners or not?



The government has repeatedly stated that there were no political prisoners in the country. When asked about this claim, Fr. Sherard Jayawardane said the statement was unacceptable. In 1971 and 1989, JVP Sinhalese youth fought for a political cause. Similarly, the LTTE also fought for a political cause. They wanted freedom and therefore it was a political cause, he said, adding that the governments claim was merely a cover up. Speaking to Daily Mirror at a protest held recently by the National Movement for Release of Political Prisoners, he stressed that the government should release all political prisoners. He added that the disadvantaged Tamil minority had not still been offered a political solution for their predicaments which are manifold.



Are all PTA detainees LTTE sympathizers?

Not all detainees are hardcore LTTE supporters. Daily Mirror learns reliably that while leaders of the LTTE have escaped imprisonment, a majority detained under the PTA are merely implicated, had no part in the master plans and have been in remand for years. According to Perera, political prisoners in the Kandy remand prison are not hardcore LTTE cadres. They are upcountry Tamils who have lived in estates for a very long time. The LTTE have bribed them with money or beer, to entice them to provide their three-wheelers and other assistance as needed, he said. The hardcore LTTE leaders have not been arrested. Through my clients, I have learned that the LTTE leader in Kandy was not arrested. He has gone to Malaysia, added Perera.



The Prevention of Terrorism Act

The repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act No.48 of 1979 (PTA), has been repeatedly demanded by Human Rights activists. The PTA introduced in 1979 was intended to be a temporary measure. However in 1982, the PTA was made a permanent law in the country. Under the Evidence Ordinance, confessions made to police officers are not admissible before courts. This Ordinance was introduced by the British who were well aware of the notoriety of police officers for torturing inmates and obtaining confessions. However according to the PTA, confessions made to police officers above the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) are admissible. Yet activists point out that the practice of torture is prevalent even among top officials.



Ratnavale said that nearly 99% of cases filed under the PTA were based solely on the confessions of the accused which were more often than not, extracted by inflicting fear and under duress. Usually the prosecution proves the case against the accused. However, the PTA mandates that the burden of proof lies on the accused. In most cases, the main evidence is the confession. In the Voir Dire inquiry, we must prove that the confession was extracted under duress. So the burden of proof lies with the accused, explained Perera. He pointed out that in practice, it was extremely difficult to prove that a confession was extracted under duress as there would be no witnesses to speak on behalf of the accused. So in most cases the accused pleads guilty, he pointed out.



Bail cannot be granted under the PTA and therefore many who have been implicated in LTTE-related violence have been in remand for decades. The PTA permits arbitrary arrests without warrants.

They can be housed in unofficial places such as STF and army camps, said Perera. Activists point out that the worst forms of human rights abuses take place in these unofficial detention centres. Perera also noted a hesitance on the part of judges and state counsels to initiate trials as they were time-consuming. As a result, trials are postponed. Perera further pointed out that plea bargaining was no longer in use, which has also restricted the options available to political prisoners. In plea bargaining, the defence counsel bargains with the state counsel and the judge on a punishment before the case is called. Then at the trial the accused pleads guilty and the decided punishment is given, which is most often a reduced sentence. They amend the indictment for lesser charges for which there are no minimum charges. Then the judge can give a lesser sentence. Before February this year, the Attorney Generals Department had a policy to amend the charges under the PTA, where there was no damage to property or life. But they no longer amend charges, he said. The Counter Terrorism Bill which is to replace the PTA has been approved by the Cabinet. However, activists have pointed out that it is more draconian that the PTA.



Other concerns

Cases based solely on a confession rejected by court should be withdrawn. However, this has not been the case with regards to charges against those detained under the PTA. There is a trial going on in the High Court of Colombo based on the confession rejected in the Vavuniya High Court. Although the lawyers made submissions that the confession has to be rejected, the Attorney General did not consent to it, said Ratnavale.



He added, In another trial, the confession made by a former police officer who has been in remand for the past eight years was rejected. But there are four other cases against him based on the same confession. When cases with confessions rejected by a court are proceeded with by another court, it affects the consistency of judicial decisions.



Legal framework

Sri Lanka has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Sri Lanka is a signatory to the Geneva Convention. Further, local statutes such as the Constitution and the Torture Act are supposed to protect people from arbitrary arrest and torture. The PTA however, contravenes provisions in them.

When a victim was severely tortured at the Bogambara Remand prison, he had been denied admission to the General Hospital Attorney-at-Law Suren D. Perera

A timeline of major incidents affecting those held under PTA

1983- During the Black July riots, 50 Tamil prisoners were gruesomely killed at the Welikada prison. Prison authorities had allegedly encouraged convicts to attack the political detainees. Compensation was paid to the families of the victims consequent to cases filed in the District Court of Colombo by the Civil Rights Movement, spearheaded by the late Desmond Fernando P.C. who was twice President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) and Ms. Surya Wickremasinghe.

2000- Two prisoners at the Kalutara prison were killed as a result of being attacked by fellow prisoners and guards. PTA detainees had organized a memorial event to commemorate leading politician and lawyer Kumar Ponnambalam on January 7, 2000. Prison authorities, angered by this gesture, opened the compound of the convicts who pounced on the political prisoners. Though the perpetrators were identified at the inquest, the Attorney Generals Department did not prosecute or pursue the matter. However the family of Sivaratnam Sri Kumar who was killed, filed a civil case for damages before the District Court of Kalutara. They received compensation of a reasonable sum. The Attorney Generals Department appealed against the award of compensation but the order of the Kalutara District Court was affirmed by the Appellate Court.

2012- When prisoners protested against certain measures taken by the prison authorities at the Vavuniya prison, the Special Task Force was brought in on the orders of the leaders of the previous government. The STF allegedly assaulted the prisoners who sustained grave injuries. The twenty prisoners were taken to the Anuradhapura prison in the middle of the night where they were allegedly further assaulted. That same night they were then taken to the Mahara prison, where officers finally decided to direct them to the hospital. However two prisoners succumbed to their injuries.

PTA detainees are not discriminated within prisons

D.M. Swaminathan- Minister of Prison Reforms, Rehabilitation and Resettlement and Hindu Religious Affairs

Speaking to Dailymirror, D.M. Swaminathan, the Minister of Prison Reforms, Rehabilitation and Resettlement, dismissed allegations that PTA detainees were discriminated within prisons. If there is any discrimination and if I am informed, I will handle it. I will take steps immediately, he said.



According to him there are 72 detainees under remand custody whose cases are pending at various High Courts and whose trials are at different stages. Out of them, 57 are Tamils, 9 are Sinhalese and 6 are Muslims, he said. The total number of cases pending at the Attorney General Department is 16. The total number of suspects is 29. Sixteen are Tamil, 8 are Sinhalese and five are Muslim. Out of the sixteen files, four indictments are being prepared and three have been recommended to be discharged. So these seven files will be over within another months time, he added. When asked about reports claiming prisoners were performing the duties of nurses, he said that if they were employed, they would be paid. According to my knowledge, if prisoners are employed it is good as they get paid. They work in the prison hospital and not outside, so what is the harm? There is nothing wrong about that, he said.

The total number of cases pending at the Attorney General Department is 16. The total number of suspects is 29. Sixteen are Tamil, 8 are Sinhalese and five are Muslim.

They should be granted general amnesty, rehabilitated or bailed out

Mano Ganesan- Minister of National Co-existence Dialogue and Official Languages

Mano Ganesan, Minister of National Co-existence Dialogue and Official Languages said when the current government came to power there were around 200 detained under the PTA and this number has reduced to nearly 100. This is a favourable and progressive step. Yet, we have to address the issues of the rest in detention under the PTA, he added.



Stressing that the PTA had to be repealed, he said the government had pledged to the nation and international community to do so. This is going to be replaced by the Counter Terrorism Act. Its draft has been debated nationally and internationally. There are many negative opinions expressed to the extent that people claim it is more draconian than the PTA. This is a point to ponder over. But we cant simply reject it. Though is has been drafted and has gone through the cabinet, it has to be amended before it comes to the parliament, he said.



Referring to those still detained, he suggested that they should be granted general amnesty, rehabilitated or bailed out. Certain prisoners have been sentenced. But they have already spent 15 to 25 years in remand. They should be given general amnesty similar to how amnesty was granted to the southern insurgents in the 70s and 80s, Ganesan said. Others whose trials are ongoing should be bailed out or should be sent to rehabilitation centres. After the rehabilitation period of six months or one year, they should be sent home. When it comes to those who were not sentenced or charged but detained for investigation, they should be released immediately on bail, he added.

This is going to be replaced by the Counter Terrorism Act. Its draft has been debated nationally and internationally. There are many negative opinions expressed to the extent that people claim it is more draconian than the PTA. This is a point to ponder over. But we cant simply reject it. Though is has been drafted and has gone through the cabinet, it has to be amended before it comes to the parliament

There are no political prisoners in Sri Lanka. There are only criminal offenders

Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe- Minister of Justice and Buddha Sasana

When asked about the governments stance with regards to the campaign to release political prisoners, Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, Minister of Justice firmly maintained that there was not a single Tamil political prisoner in Sri Lanka. There are only criminals. After Sarath Fonsekas case there have not been any political prisoners in Sri Lanka, he said.



The Counter Terrorism Act is only a proposal. The law is the PTA. We have not applied it during the recent past, he added.

There are only criminals. After Sarath Fonsekas case there have not been any political prisoners in Sri Lanka

Detainees are those whose trials are ongoing before courts or

who have been charged

Thushara Upuldeniya- Prison Media Spokesperson

Refuting the allegations made by activists Thushara Upuldeniya, the Prison Media Spokesperson reiterating the Minister of Justice, said there were no political prisoners in Sri Lanka. Detainees are those whose trials are ongoing before courts or who have been charged, he said. When asked about the discrimination faced by those detained under the PTA, he said nothing of the sort had been reported to him. Responding to the allegation that prisoners perform the duties of nurses he said this was untrue. There is a shortage of nurses and prison officials. We have received permission to recruit people. As a temporary measure, we have decided to recruit retired nurses, he said. He added that there were no life-threatening shortcomings at the prison hospital and that facilities such as X-rays were available.



However, when asked about the structure of the Welikada prison hospital, the media spokesperson refused to disclose information for security reasons.
Always be more than you appear and never appear to be more than you are

 Angela Merkel



Two years ago Time magazine declared her the Person of the Year. She holds a record of being named by Forbes as the worlds most powerful woman for ten consecutive years. All this was before Angela Dorothea Merkel announced her re-election bid as German Chancellor for a fourth consecutive term. With ever increasing signs of her victory at September polls the world is sure to run out of titles to bestow on the lady.



The invitation Merkel got from Vladimir Putin for a visit to Moscow, hot on the heels of her meeting with Donald Trump in Washington, in March this year, only went to show the power she wields in global politics.



Last Thursday saw a youthful Emmanuel Macron veering off a handshake from Donald trump to make a beeline to greet Merkel and that too on a day that she met two US Presidents almost back to back, Barack Obama followed by Donald Trump both in Germany. The day earned her the title of uncrowned queen of global politics.



However Merkels supremacy is not something that she earned on a platter.



Till recently the German Chancellor was dubbed the last defender of Western liberalism by a world that was coiling into protective cocoons following a wave of right wing victories like the election of Trump and Brexit. Europe was mulling over the prudence behind the liberal policies of Merkel. The far right policies appeared to be too tempting to try a shot at.



Her opening of flood gates of refugees and a plethora of EU reforms made Merkel look vulnerable and isolated. However, never the one to compromise her principles for populist politics Merkel held on to the policies aimed at greater good of humanity above all however much it ate into her vote base in the interim.



It was providence or good karma that saw her fan and fellow liberalist Macron winning French polls comfortably early this month. His victory coincided with the win of Merkels party at state elections signalling that the Germans had refused to be give into the pressures of global wave of protectionism.

Today with young Macron as her man Friday, Angela Merkel is out to put a world that was precariously wobbling on a precipice of ominous protectionist patriotism, back on track.



Angela Merkels success formula is no secret. Merkel herself has spelt them out in no uncertain terms. Among them is her famous maxim, Always be more than you appear and never appear to be more than you are. The German Chancellor had never appeared too good or too smart. Theres an air of childish cheerfulness about her that belies her steely grit. She never lost her cool demeanour even when she sounded tough. The speech she made at the end of the NATO summit a few days back expressing her disappointment over the US stand on climate-change reforms, speaks volumes of this. She proposed that the EU should move ahead on reforms without US support. Hers was not a bitter, catty statement. Instead it had all the ingredients of a rational stateswoman.



I have never allowed myself to be bitter, Merkel is known to have said. Ever the optimist she will stay the course even all alone if she wants. Thats how she got respite for Syrian and Romanian refugees despite strong protests from fellow countrymen and EU nations. When it comes to human dignity we cannot make compromises, is something Merkel is known to have said. She stood for humanity when nobody was willing for that leading role in EU and finally even her own countrymen came around. Merkel believes that, it is nonsense to say Germans are unable to change. How right she is. Seven decades after World War II, Angela Merkel has steered Germany on a course which has today made it the greatest global stabilizer.
FRANKFURT MAIN AFP May28, 2017- Europe must take its fate into its own hands faced with a western alliance divided by Brexit and Donald Trumps presidency, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday.



The times in which we could completely depend on others are on the way out. Ive experienced that in the last few days, Merkel told a crowd at an election rally in Munich, southern Germany.



We Europeans truly have to take our fate into our own hands, she added. While Germany and Europe would strive to remain on good terms with America and Britain, we have to fight for our own destiny, Merkel went on. Special emphasis was needed on warm relations between Berlin and newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron, she said.



The chancellor had just returned from a G7 summit which wound up Saturday without a deal between the US and the other six major advanced nations on upholding the 2015 Paris climate accords. Merkel on Saturday labelled the result of the six against one discussion very difficult, not to say very unsatisfactory. Sundays event saw Merkel renew bonds with the Christian Social Union (CSU), Bavarian sister party to her own centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), ahead of a parliamentary vote in September.
A Mi-17 helicopter of the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) which was carrying out rescue and search operations had force-landed in Baddegama in Galle this morning.

SLAF Spokesman Group Captain Gihan Senaviratne said no casualties were reported in the accident. He said all crew members on board the helicopter were safe.

The Mi-17 had lost control when descending to distribute goods to a flood affected village in Baddegama.

Meanwhile, President Maithripala Sirisena spoke to the pilot of the helicopter and appreciated his brave efforts, the Government Information Department said.

The SLAF deployed seven Mi-17 helicopters, three Bell 212 helicopters and one Bell 412 helicopter for rescue operations since Friday. (Darshana Sanjeewa)

Video by Anuradha Priyadarshana
North Korea test-fired a missile Monday into Japans maritime economic zone -- the latest in a series of provocative launches that have ratcheted up tensions over its nuclear weapons ambitions.



It was the Norths third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year -- carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.



US military monitors said the short-range missile flew for six minutes, while Japan said it fell into the countrys exclusive economic zone (EEZ) -- waters extending 200 nautical miles from its coast.



The launch comes in fresh defiance of tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised last week at the G7 summit that the big problem of North Korea will be solved.



The latest, a short-range Scud, flew about 450 kilometres (280 miles) before landing in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) between the Korean peninsula and Japan, the US Pacific Command said.

Mondays test also marked the second time this year that a North Korean missile fell provocatively close to its neighbour Japan.



It emerged North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised the test of a new anti-aircraft weapon system and ordered its mass production and deployment throughout the country, after weeks of defiant ballistic missile tests.



Norths KCNA news agency did not report the exact nature of the weapon or the time of the test but said it was organised by the Academy of National Defence Science (ANDS).



SEOUL (AFP/Daily Mail), May 29, 2017
SLANA Vice Chairman Prasad Jinadasa, Sri Lanka Ports Authority Managing Director Sarathkumara Premachandra, SLANA Chairman A.V. Rajendra, Merchant Shipping Director General Ajith Seneviratne, SLANA Treasurer Mohamed Tahir and SLANA Secretary Minnaz Riyal Pic by Pradeep Dilrukshana

By Chandeepa Wettasinghe

The Sri Lanka Association of NVOCC (non-vessel operating common carrier) Agents (SLANA) said that it would work with the new Ports and Shipping Minister to address the negativities created by the laws and regulations passed by the previous regime, which have caused the Colombo Port to be viewed negatively by the world.

SLANA Chairman A.V. Rajendra, in his annual address at the organisations annual general meeting last week, aired his grievances about the Gazette No. 1842/16 of 2013, an issue which has caused consternation among other logistics lobby groups over the past few years as well.

He said that the former Ports and Shipping Minister Arjuna Ranatunga and Merchant Shipping Director General Ajith Seneviratne invited all stakeholders to submit fresh proposals to bring in new laws to benefit the country instead of a few with vested interests.

We will also pursue this subject with our new Minister of Ports and Shipping and we are confident that Mahinda Samarasinghe would continue to do his best for all, Rajendra said. He noted that the Ports and Shipping Ministry last year responded well to the issues raised by the shipping and logistics industry. A cabinet reshuffle last week saw Ranatunga taking over the Petroleum Resource Development Ministry.

Often in the past a change in the minister led to a change in the policies of a ministry. However, Samarasinghe is yet to issue a comment on the concerns raised on the Gazette No. 1842/16 of 2013.

When he took over duties at the ministry last week, his views were focused on the Sri Lanka Ports Authority issues and appointing a maritime professional

to head the agency.

Rajendra said that the gazette prevented service providers from collecting legitimate fees and charges from their customers for the services offered and that the gazette is totally against the international norms and practices.

Parties with vested interest pressed upon the previous government to introduce such regulations bypassing all ethical practices or discussions with the stakeholders in the industry, which were detrimental to the logistics and service industry, image of the country and against ones fundamental rights, he said.

Specifically he noted that the law prevents the NVOCC agents from collecting terminal handling charges from clients in order to pay for the services purchased from terminals, which has led to the Port of Colombo (to be) perceived by the regional NVOCC operators as a negative port.

Rajendra added that the situation is compounded due to the principals of shipping liners and NVOCC operators running

at losses.
Daily Mirror journalist excels at MASCOM media academy in Kerala

Piyumi is seen receiving her award from the Kerala State Police Chief Dr. T.P. Senkumar at the MASCOM Convocation held last week.

For courageous investigative reporting and feature writing, Daily Mirror journalist Piyumi Fonseka won a special award at the MASCOM Manorama School of Communication Convocation in Kerala, India last Friday.



A news and features writer for the newspapers print and online editions, Piyumi topped the score sheet in the Investigative Reporting Project Evaluation which included both English and Malayalam streams of the MASCOM Academy.



Having won the Denzil Peiris Young Journalist Award at the Annual Excellence in Journalism Award Ceremony jointly organised by the Editors Guild of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Press Institute, Piyumi also won the Lakshman Kadirgamar Journalism scholarship for 2016/2017. She is the first Sri Lankan to secure the highest score at the MASCOM Academy.



The Sri Lankan stall prepared by Piyumi at the final exhibition of the academy attracted many visitors and she received rave reviews for her work that displayed much information about Sri Lankas history, politics and culture.



MASCOM Academy is run by the Malayala Manorama Group, Indias biggest multimedia house.

Colleagues say Piyumi is an inspiration to journalists. She has penned a number of in-depth and investigative reports in addition to her regular news reporting in various fields. While following her studies in India, Piyumi unfolded a number of enlightening tales including the plight of Sri Lankan refugees stranded in India.

By Susitha R. Fernando
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe left for the United States on Saturday on a private visit, sources close to his office said yesterday.

A source said Mr Wickremesinghe will be away for two weeks. During his visit to the US he is due to undergo a routine medical
Sri Lankas small hydropower industry came out strongly against the negative theories and myths that plague the industry, despite it showing tangible evidence that such negativities have

no foundation.

Small Hydropower Developers Association (SHPA) Secretary Prabath Wickramasinghe said the small hydropower industry is faced with numerous problems due to the issues created by the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in particular, none of which are factual.

There are delays in obtaining various government approvals due to the unreasonable and baseless allegations by these NGOs and the reluctance of government officials to give their consent due to the pressures exerted on them by these interested parties.

He listed some of the issues the SHPA has been grappling with. Firstly, mini-hydropowers (MHPs) harm the fish in streams and negatively impact the ecosystem.

This theory has no scientific evidence as no postaudit has been conducted on the subject to quantify such impacts. While the construction is in progress, there will admittedly be an impact, which is a hallmark of development, but this is relatively low when compared with the other development projects.

He added that the existing regulations imposed by the Agriculture Department and Central Environmental Authority (CEA) are all complied with, including the height of the wier being less than three meters and sufficient environmental flow to be released to the downstream of the wier for the protection of aquatic life.

Freshwater streams are impacted much more by other factors, including the use of weedicides, pesticides and fertilizer by farmers, which are washed into streams, the dumping of garbage into waterbodies and use of dynamite to catch fish, said Wickramasinghe.

Another factor he brings up is that the impact from MHPs are localised with the overall impact to aquatic life, if any, is less than one percent, given that of the 15,000 kilometres of rivers and streams in Sri Lanka, MHPs use less than 200 kilometres, which is just 1.3 percent.

Theres also the allegation that MHPs clear forest land for construction, which Wickramasinghe says is a negligible area.



Of the 180 MHPs, only approximately 15 are in forest areas, utilising just one hectare or less  this from a forest cover of 1.86 million hectares. The other development projects including plantations, shifting cultivation, firewood collection, house construction, infrastructure and roads took 490,000 hectares of forest, while the MHPs used only 15 hectares, which is 0.0031 percent. It is apparent, that 99.997 percent of the deforestation that has taken place due to development is not related to our industry.

He adds that even to bring the impact up to one percent, 4,885 projects would have to be located in forest lands, where currently only 15 are operating.

Wickramasinghe also highlighted that there are no MHPs are in environmentally-sensitive areas, as the approvals are not granted for projects in these locations.

He reiterates that each MHP is a legal body, incorporated in Sri Lanka with offices located at the site and most often

in Colombo.

Our teams are all responsible individuals working for responsible organisations. It is easy then for these companies to be targeted by NGOs, publicising baseless information. For example, in the mass destruction of fish, can NGOs take action against farmers for using fertilizer and pesticides that run into streams or the illegal dynamite fishing? They wont because of the huge backlash in the case of farmers and the inability to find those responsible for dynamite fishing. But when it comes to a company, it is very easy to point fingers with baseless information.

The MHP industry in Sri Lanka, since its inception in 1996, now has a total of 169 projects producing 337.77 MW and has been named by the World Bank as the best-performing project of its kind. It has also become the sought-after role model by countries in Africa and South Asia as well as the World Bank.

There has been a saving of Rs.19 billion on foreign exchange given the industrys contribution to the national grid with a generation of 4,000 in direct employment for 4,000 and 5,000 indirectly, said Wickramasinghe.

Thus, Wickramasinghe stated the naysayers should look at the industry objectively, both from the fact that the industry is contributing not only foreign exchange via projects being emulated overseas and by contributing to the national grid by reducing the quantity of imported fossil fuel being used but also the fact that it produces a cleaner and greener energy that is ecologically sustainable.
A seminar organised by the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia together with the University of Kelaniya, in commemoration of the 65th anniversary of Sri Lanka-Indonesia Diplomatic Relations.

The Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in collaboration with the University of Kelaniya held a seminar titled Sri Lanka-Indonesia Relations; Reaching new heights in commemoration of the 65th anniversary of Sri Lanka-Indonesia Diplomatic Relations at the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Kelaniya recently. This event was attended by manydiplomats, dignitaries, academics and under graduate students of the university and concluded on a very efficacious notefurther strengthening the relations between the two countries.

The main intension of the seminar was to share updated and wide-ranging information on Indonesia-Sri Lanka relations with the participants, thus enriching their understanding and knowledge of the diplomatic relationship spanning 65 years between the two countries. The seminar commenced with the lighting of the traditional oil lamp and the welcome address was delivered by Prof, Neelakshi C Premawardhane, Director, International Affairs.Prof. D M Samarasinghe, Chancellor, University of Kelaniya and His Excellency, I Gusti Ngurah Ardiyasa, the ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia in Sri Lanka, , went onto address the gathering next. This was followed by exchange of mementos commemorating the significance of the event.

The preliminary session of the seminar commenced with the screening of a documentary on Indonesia with a highly perceptive key note address being delivered by Mr. O L Ameer Ajwad, Director General, East Asia and the Pacific, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sri Lanka. The line-up for the seminar also consisted of very fruitful and insightful speeches by Mr Kalinga Wijesekara, President, Sri Lanka Indonesia Business Council (SLIBC), Mr Iqram Sankyalam Cuttilan, President, Sri Lanka Indonesia Friendship Association (SLIFA), a presentation by Dr Osantha N Thalpawila, Senior Lecturer, Department of Economics, Faculty of social sciences, University of Kelaniya and a presentation on Indonesian puppetry celebrating and exploring the rich cultural and historical heritage of Indonesia delivered by Mr Kosala Kumara.

Mr Kalinga Wijesekra, President, Sri Lanka Indonesia Business Council,speaking at the seminar especially emphasised the importance of broad basing the export markets and the significance of Indonesia as an export destination for Sri Lanka. Furthermore, he highlighted the favourable positioning of Asia as an economic powerhouse and the crucial and promising role Indonesia will play as a major economic hub in the region in time to come. He also drew the attention of the gathering to how SLIBC could play an instrumental role in promoting exports, trade, services and tourism between the two economies and how the challenges could be overcome in working closely together.
White House special advisor Jared Kushner, son-in-law of President Donald Trump(AFP Photo/Thomas COEX)

Trumps son-in-law Kushner, who serves as senior adviser to Trump, has drawn the attention of the FBI because he considered setting up a secret line of communications between the incoming administration and the Russian government, primarily to discuss a resolution to the crisis in Syria, according to a person familiar with the matter.



Two of Donald Trumps top advisers said the president achieved his major goals on his first overseas trip but declined to answer questions on the topic dominating headlines back home: the FBIs interest in presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner. Were not going to comment on Jared. Were just not going to, Trumps top economic adviser Gary Cohn said of Kushner, whod been on the trip but returned home as planned after participating in Trumps visit to the Vatican.



Cohn said allies at the Group of Seven meeting in Sicily asked questions about U.S. relations with Russia but not about Kushner.



The president since he left Washington has been dealing with foreign leaders, has been dealing with jobs, has been dealing with economic growth. Hes been dealing with diplomacy. Hes been dealing with unfair trade. Hes been dealing with Paris. Hes been dealing with China. His agenda has been overflowing, Cohn said.

(c) 2017, Bloomberg  May 27, 2017 -
Two women aged 35 and 37 were killed when the car they were travelling in collided head on with a container truck travelling towards Galle from Colombo at Alawathugoda, Bentota this morning, police said.

They said the car driver who was injured in the accident was admitted to the Balapitiya Base Hospital.

The deceased were identified as residents of Beliatta and Ambalangoda. (By J.Induruwage, Prasanna Pathmasiri)

Video by Anuradha Priyadarshana
Last year, an article on Allama Muhammad Iqbal almost went into oblivion. Ironically, it was on why "Iqbal was going out of fashion".

This April was Iqbal's 79th death anniversary. Whether or not he goes out of fashion, his two-nation theory never does  much to the political tragedy of both India and Pakistan.

His ghost is posthumously awarded each year the sobriquet of "philosopher of Islam", apart from his life being relegated as that of an eccentric who first called for an independent Muslim nation.

Lovers and antagonists of Islam - be that political or religious - want to subsume Iqbal in a homogenous discourse. Of course, it was not Islam that wanted an independent nation, but Iqbal and Mohammad Ali Jouhar; followed by Choudhry Rahmat Ali, who coined the name "Pakistan", in the Pakistan Declaration; Mohammad Ali Jinnah; and other ideologues of the Muslim League.

The theory in today's context

Last week, a publication from Kashmir reported the launch of Khwaab, Azzab aur Sarab, a book by Late Pir Muhammad Afzal Mukhdoomi. Muhammad Yousuf Taing, an author and historian who was present at the launch, noted Iqbal as one of the "pillars of Kashmir's freedom struggle... [who] launched a Kashmir-centric newspaper at a time when the Maharaja did not allow publication of newspapers from [t]here... Iqbal wrote extensively about Kashmir and even formed a Kashmir committee of which he was the president. He celebrated Kashmir Day to stand against oppression on Kashmiri people."

To him, Hindus seemed to be most in power, even at places where they were not, such as the first round table. Photo: World Bulletin

While this seems to be a perfectly historical piece of information, when coupled with opinions on the political climate of Kashmir, it produces ahistorical readings. In her piece, Jinnah's 2-nation Theory Triumphs in Kashmir, Sagarika Ghose points out that the jewel in India's crown of secularism that Kashmir once was has been tarnished by the treatment the government and the army have meted out to the Kashmiris - India seeks only Kashmir, not its people.

Ghose's article was reported in Pakistan, where it can take on a different flavour  one that is likely to become a propaganda for Pakistan's inherent right over Kashmir.

Combine the pieces of the puzzle, and we have: Iqbal was a Kashmiri; he formed a Kashmiri committee and presided over it; he called for Kashmir Day; he called for an independent Islamic nation; he induced communal tensions in a perfectly harmonious nation during its freedom struggle. And nothing could be more preposterous than such a line of argument.

Iqbal did not want two nations. All he wanted was a Muslim India, within India.

Paradoxically, he did so not so much because he considered Hindus and Muslims to be essentially non-harmonious, but he believed Indian Islam was in need of reforms at that time, in order to acquire its true noble character, and differentiate itself from its fundamentalist turnin the Middle East.

Iqbal's notion of a Muslim India, within the larger dominion, came not from an arbitrary Islamic sentiment, but that of an Indian Muslim. "We have a duty towards India where we are destined to live and die," said Iqbal. "[W]e must look at the Indian problem not only from the Muslim point of view, but also from the standpoint of the Indian Muslim as such. Our duty towards Asia and India cannot be loyally performed without an organised will fixed on a definite purpose.' The clarion call for Muslims to come together politically was not meant to form another nation, but to serve the existing one, which Iqbal believed was an unjustly suffering 'ancient land."

Yet, all that sub-continental politics chose to remember were these words, taken entirely out of context: "I would like to see the Punjab, North-West Frontier Province, Sind and Baluchistan amalgamated into a single State. Self-government within the British Empire, or without the British Empire, the formation of a consolidated North-West Indian Muslim State appears to me to be the final destiny of the Muslims, at least of North-West India."

Deconstructing Allama's Allahabad address

It is widely held that the first exposition of the theory came during the Iqbal's presidential address before the Muslim League, at Allahabad, on December 29, 1930.

What Iqbal spoke on that day could not be easily comprehended by ideologues of the time, let alone today. He spoke in English-a language not accessible to all in the meeting-of ideas that were derived from the European enlightenment, or more specifically the German philosophers, Immanuel Kant and Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel.

What they understood as the higher consciousness or the "higher institution of pure ego", became in Iqbal's address a "higher communalism".

Iqbal did not consider India to be inherently divided on communal lines between Hindus and Muslims. However, he believed, for the complete "working out the possibilities that may be latent in them" the decentred Muslim consciousness had to come together in a political unity.

If the Muslims were not allowed the means of political self-determination, such as one-third reservations in the legislative assemblies, heterogeneous groups of Hindus would secure dominance over India, as the natural heirs to the British government.

Iqbal's Allahabad address happened at the time of the First Round Table Conference, in London, that was presided over by the Labour prime minister, Ramsay MacDonald, and attended by 58 delegates representing British India, and sixteen from the princely states.

This latter category of representatives constituted a majority of Hindus, even outside the larger Hindu pantheon of political leaders in the nationalist movement. The Indian National Congress shunned the first round table, as most of the leaders were in jail, due to their activities in the Civil Disobedience movement. The presence of Hindus was notwithstanding an overwhelming force. Jinnah and Jauhar were among those who attended the conference from the Muslim League. With news trickling in from their quarters, Iqbal must naturally have felt the Hindus were in numerical superiority despite the odds.

Meanwhile, since Jinnah was not in Allahabad, but in London, at that time, he too had no direct access to what Iqbal said. His turning Iqbal's philosophical vision into a political reality was only a contorted and concerted afterthought.

What India and Pakistan did to Allama's speech is the modern-day syndrome of Kashmiris swearing to hoist the Pakistani flag on Indian soil. Photo: Reuters

Reading deep into Iqbal's address, one wonders if his political will is in anyway directed against the Hindus. Rather, he seems to disguise, what he terms as the "economic inferiority" of his community, into a political situation where Muslims were not afforded substantial opportunities of improving their political position.

To him, Hindus seemed to be most in power, even at places where they were not, such as the first round table.

He says, "the participation of the Indian Princes, among whom only a few are Muslims, in a federation scheme serves a double purpose. On the one hand, it serves as an all-important factor in maintaining the British power in India practically as it is; on the other hand, it gives [an] overwhelming majority to the Hindus in an All-India Federal Assembly."

Iqbal wanted the rebirth of both Muslims and the larger Indian community, in the manner of the rebirth of an individual. He wanted communities to come together in their latent collective ego, and work towards the political fulfilment of the nation.

Islam, he believed, had saved Muslims, but it was now the time for Muslims to save Islam, and in the process the nation that Iqbal embraced as his own  an undivided India.

An enlightened communalism?

Iqbal's idea of a Muslim India within India, and all other political justifications were highly communal. Indeed, they belonged to a much higher order of communalism than can be understood today  at a time when Kashmir bears the worst brunt of communal divisiveness.

Even Rabindranath Tagore had advocated for an "enlightened communalism", in 1911. He claimed "unity" to be much different than "uniformity"; that a certain degree of disuniformity was essential towards the complete self-determination of independent political units.

Tagore's enunciation, since it came in Bengali, did not disturb much of the nation. Iqbal, who read out his address in English, actually spoke a language closer to Tagore's, than the communal vices we associate with the Allama.

In his later life, Iqbal was exceedingly disillusioned with the principle of Pakistan.

Iqbal, who read out his address in English, actually spoke a language closer to Tagore's, than the communal vices we associate with the Allama.

He supported it as the president of the Muslim League, but not as an Indian or a Muslim. Pakistan, he believed, would ruin the British government, the Hindus and the Muslims, alike.

Near the dawn of the 19th century, Tagore and Iqbal wrote two of India's most sung lyrics, "Jana Gana Mana", and "Saare Jahan Se Accha".

Both were critics of nationalism; both proponents of a higher order of communal enlightenment. What that communal ideal really was is a matter of another, a more philosophical, debate.
Indias military has always been carefully kept out of politics for the past seven decades. An apolitical, non-partisan military has been the hallmark of Indian democracy and a trait of Indian military professionalism.

However, in recent years under the Narendra Modi government, there is a serious apprehension that the military is being drawn into the murky waters of the countrys politics.

Modi has not only appointed a highly controversial retired Army Chief in his Council of Ministers, he has also humiliated two outstanding Army officers by superseding them to appoint the present Army Chief, General Bipin Rawat. His One Rank, One Pension policy has also divided the countrys military community.

Regular cross-border operations have been branded by the Modi government as "surgical strikes" to use for electoral gains. Unlike the post-Kargil operation in 1999, this time the Army did not oppose its use by the party in power for political purposes.

The Army together with the government is even advertising ordinary cross-border firing as military success vis-a-vis Pakistan.

Modis handpicked Army Chief has been giving highly provocative statements on the Kashmir issue, which undermines the Armys credibility on the ground but suits the ruling partys hardline approach and caters to its nationalist-majoritarian discourse.

In February this year, the Army Chief openly issued a threat that protesters in Kashmir against Army operations during encounters would be treated as over-ground workers of militants, inviting condemnation from the opposition parties and appreciation from the ruling regime.

On 28 May, he went a step further and openly wished that protesters, instead of throwing stones should fire weapons, so that the Army can fire back. The Army Chiefs commendation card to Major Nitin Leetul Gogoi, who got a Kashmiri man tied to the bonnet of his jeep to deter protesters, also follows the same pattern of legitimising the governments high-handed policy in Kashmir and inviting censure from the opposition.

What the Army Chief has started doing in recent months, many retired generals have been doing nearly two years in front of millions of TV viewers or print media every day and night.

The ruling party is unabashedly using the military in actively building a warmongering media frenzy and promoting the fervour of fanatical devotion to the country for its own gains. Photo: PTI

These hawkish generals are unfortunately being used as pawns in the ruling partys "patriotic" anti-Pakistan, anti-Kashmiri politics and raising doubt over the long-perceived notion of the military as a political neutral institution of the country.

As if that was not enough, several of these high-profile retired generals are also employed by RSS-funded so-called research institutions, and are even attending RSS-organised public gatherings propagating Hindutva politics.

While serving and retired generals are consistently giving politically partisan statements supporting the governments security policy, in recent years it has almost become a taboo to ask apposite questions to the armed forces even on vital matters of national interest.

Even in a country like Pakistan, where the military is the most powerful institution of the land, there is no such blanket branding of its Army critics as anti-nationals.

This ultra-nationalistic position in India by the ruling party raises a serious question mark over the state of Indian democracy.

When the military becomes perceived as politically partisan, it erodes its standing in the eyes of the common populace of the country and the sacred core of civil-military relations in a democracy crumbles.

In a democracy, the military is subservient to democratic institutions both in command and in discharging duties. However, political decisions about the use of the military and its operations need to be guided by wider strategic value and greater national interest and not to be motivated by a desire to promote partisan politics. Appointment and promotion of generals needs to adhere to a professional, not political process.

If the serving and retired generals continue to take partisan positions on public platforms and regularly expose partisan loyalties, Indian voters might reasonably assume that the opposition parties and leaders would fail to enjoy the support and confidence of the armed forces if elected to office.

In a democracy, the Opposition might be seen as not capable of pursuing a national security policy effectively if the generals openly support the ruling party. Such a situation is not good for democracy, not good for the military and not good for the country itself.

There is no doubt, it is important for Indias professional military to actively maintain its apolitical character. However, the political leadership of the country carries the responsibility of protecting the non-partisan image of military officers and military institutions.

Instead of abstaining from partisan remarks to the military gathering, Narendra Modis defence minister has even openly bragged of RSS teachings behind the success of the Armys cross-border operation.

Using serving and retired generals to openly support and promote politically controversial military operations can be viewed by the public as the loyalty of the armed forces to the ruling party rather than to the country or its Constitution.

But, that has not stopped the RSS and BJP from openly engaging retired generals to promote their highly divisive Hindutva agenda. The ruling party is unabashedly using the military in actively building a warmongering media frenzy and promoting the fervour of fanatical devotion to the country for its own political opportunism.

It is important how Indian military conducts itself in the current turbulent time, which will shape the nature and character of Indias democracy. No country should take its democracy for granted. It is critical, particularly for a developing country like India, to keep the military strictly professional and out of its politics. The military as an institution should be only designed to protect the territorial integrity of a state, and not be allowed to intrude into democratic institutions.

Where ever the military plays an active role in politics, it limits popular sovereignty, the core character of democracy.

Thus, Modis political opportunism can potentially extend the tutelage of armed forces and undermine the sovereignty of Indias citizens.
So, the Indian Army wants people to be afraid of it! Because a sledgehammer policy, which shows scant regard for citizen's human rights, is the only way to grapple with the dirty proxy war in the Valley?

Brilliant! And this is the new strategy to wean away a people from militancy? To win their hearts?

Irony of ironies: the Army Chief shared this brilliant piece of insight even as hundreds of youth were taking an Army recruitment exam in Srinagar and Baramulla. These boys had trudged to the two Army centres despite threats from militants and a strike call by Hurriyat.

Some of us were juvenile enough to presume that the job of the Army was to instill confidence; all these years we were feeling rather smug in the belief that we are all safe under its watchful eye!

But what went wrong: we thought it was going to be just pebbles versus pellets in the Valley?

Did either side tire out: or did the Army run out of pellets? Or did the reverential fantasy of achieving durable peace run aground?

Anyhow, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat knows best what he is doing; he, of course, did not spell out what "innovative" devices he has in mind to quell the unrest on the streets, apart from defending the use of a human scarecrow by one Major Gogoi.

Perhaps, roads will be littered with glass shreds, so that toddlers can't step out of their houses to cock a snook at the Army. Surely, that is innovative, General?

How else does one strike fear in the hearts of one's own people: abductions, rape, torture? This is what is understood by "dirty war" in a banana republic.

The new strategic thinking seems to be that there is no risk-free option to neutralise such violent activism. So, whatever the cost and the risk of escalation, the Army must salvage its honour by avenging the censoring stones.

How else does one strike fear in the hearts of one's own people: abductions, rape, torture? Photo: Reuters

The problem with these "innovative" devices is that they turn the international spotlight on Kashmir.

The "enlightened" media in the West, rather than highlighting Pakistan's role in the proxy war, tends to harp on the new terms of engagement and the absence of a political strategy in Kashmir, more so since both the state and the central governments are under BJP's control; it tends to incessantly replay the unrest on the streets: teenagers taking on the might of the Army and the latter responding with human shields.

With that, the world draws all the wrong inferences about the civil dissonance at play; the most odious being the comparison to Palestinian boys and girls and the strife in the Gaza Strip.

The conclusion the diplomatic community tends to draw from this is not that Pakistan is inflicting a thousand cuts, but that India is scoffing at human rights of the Kashmiris and that it does not seem inclined to resolve the issue as it is not talking about it.

As I understand it, use of force is intended to serve as a leverage to achieve short spells of equilibrium in which the political process can be kickstarted. But that does not seem to be happening.

Admittedly, Mufti Mohammed Sayeed's demise was a major setback; he was one person who could have convinced the Kashmiris about the sincerity of the Modi government.

In all fairness, post-Mufti, the scope for political intervention had indeed narrowed down and there is no one on the horizon who can act as a political interface.

But somewhere a beginning has to be made and this can come with the realisation that civil unrest has less to do with Pakistan and more to do with the dissatisfaction with the State and disenchantment with the political class.

To add to our misery, Pakistan is unsure of its impulses and split between its political and military goals. So, given that Pakistan cannot be handled on a dual plane, given the flip-flop nature of our relationship for the last 70 years, India will have to devise its own ways to neutralise the terror threat from across the LoC.

We cannot keep waiting endlessly for Pakistan to resolve its existential dilemma over Kashmir and creation of Bangladesh. In fact, India, too, should be least worried about a stable Pakistan, given the schisms and faultlines in the neighbouring country.

At the end of the day, we all realise the enormous challenges that the Army faces and the dire need to end the civil strife, as well as extinguish the jihadi threat.

Does Mr Modi have a strategy that will address the civil dissonance, the problem of a youth that is ready to self-destruct, and religious absolutism?
An Indian citizen is picked up and tied in front of a jeep as a human shield.

He was not an armed threat. The pictures of the April 9 Budgam incident are bizarre. Receiving an SOS from the Border Police and J-K Police to save them from stone-pelting, Major Leetul Gogoi strapped an alleged stone-pelter, Farooq Ahmed Dar, to a jeep as a human shield. Ten days later, chief of staff General Bipin Rawat ordered a commendation for Gogoi for special and individual acts of gallantry.

For what? For the cowardice of hiding behind a helpless man! The Indian Army thinks it is an act of heroism. BJP MLA and actor Paresh Rawal screamed in support: Instead of tying stone-pelters on the Army jeep, tie Arundhati Roy.

Why Roy? What kind of madness is this, especially because Indias ultimate aim is to convince Kashmiris that their watan is better off with the Indian Army.

Violating global norms

The Rome statute (2000) defines using human shields as an international crime (Article 8 (2) (b) (xxiii). It is a Nazi practice widely used in WW-II during the massacres in Poland and Belgium.

Irrespective of what American war historians say, it was not just the Taliban who used human shields, but the very phrase "collateral damage" is writ into American warfare.

On our International Court of Justice mission to Israel, Israels ministry of defence could hardly deny that collateral damage took place - especially during the second Intifada (2000-2005). Human shields were used by Israel on hundreds of occasions. So much so, in 2002 the Israels Supreme Court deprecated the practice in 2002 and banned it in 2005.

Do we accept the Clausewitz theory of total war? Is that what the Indian Army is doing in Kashmir? The use of air, naval and devastating weapons demands a response from international law. The concept of a just war has become meaningless. It never stopped carpet-bombing, napalm nuclear bombs or Americas wars. The Hague Conference of 1907 identified the need to protect civilians.

The Indian Army thinks it is an act of heroism. Photo: PTI

Even if the Geneva Convention may not strictly apply, the Protocol of 1949 insists on protection of civilians. International humanitarian law (IHL) steps in for the four principles: distinction, military necessity, unnecessary suffering and proportionality to situations of armed conflict. IHL presents concessions and it is arguable that clever arguments could twist "necessity" and proportionality to justify any use or abuse. Yet IHL has been interpreted rigorously in favour of civilians.

Principles

I formulate the IHL principles: Principle I prohibits use of civilians in a situation of armed internal disturbance. Principle II says the action in question must not be contrary to the law of the land. The action was clearly illegal. Dar was abducted, placed under restraint, imprisoned and subjected to humiliation and punishment without authority of law, on the skeletal basis that he had committed (or was about to commit) a crime. He was not detained after an FIR or under detention laws.

Principle III applies proportionality and necessity, for which a weak case is made under Section 81 of the Indian Penal Code permitting harm if in good faith, to prevent harm to person or property created in 1837.

But preventive action under the IPC cannot excuse blatant illegality. The IPC insists that the threat sought to be prevented should be really imminent and inevitable. Then there is the issue of proportionality.

How far can you go in good faith? In my view, Major Gogois actions were clearly criminal. He had imprisoned Dar, tied him to a jeep and placed him in a dangerous situation, masquerading this as an act of bravery.

Angst against Roy

Principle IV places the onus on the Army to show necessity and proportionality on the basis of objective facts which are objectively examined and determined.

Principle V is obviously the objective determination must include civilian presence. Let us have a Peoples Commission as an X-ray. The National Human Rights Commission is quiet.

Principle VI implies the presence of a neutral due process observer in military court martials. Instead, India's Chief to Staff commended Gogois actions for bravery though in violation of law.

The angst against Arundhati Roy is inexplicably vulgar and a penal incitement to violence. Roy reminds us of Indias blunders in the Kashmir valley. Tying Roy to a jeep hardly presents a debate other than at the Mad Hatters dinner in which the blind weep they cannot see.

Is this how India defends its case on Kashmir? Tie people to jeeps to win the war. The Valley faces its worst cumulative crisis for decades. What are we fighting for? Look inwards to ask where we are going wrong instead of pretending that we are winning surgical strikes.
There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor political, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right

- Martin Luther King Jr, A Testament of Hope

Prime Minister Narendra Modi now stands on the cusp of new political glory. Modi has literally emerged as India's rock star. It is time now that he gets down to delivering on the long list of promises that is adding up with his every new campaign.

He should not allow hubris to get better of his commitments. Indians are now sharply alive to the wisdom of the great American statesman, Thomas Jefferson: "I predict future happiness for Americans, if they can prevent the government from wasting the labours of the people under the pretense of taking care of them." We have seen earlier that enticements with extravagant populism can have disastrous consequences.

Modi has already talked about many good games and certainly delivered on some significant ones: maternity benefits for village women, paid maternity leave for working women, increased spending on health and agriculture and his powerfully alluring and vote-garnering freebie - natural cooking gas for women who had to trudge miles to fetch firewood.

All these have helped the PM cement his pro-poor credentials. But the results of several other major initiatives relating to agriculture and industry are yet not palpable on the ground. They haven't been as far-reaching or as coordinated as they could be.

India has ranked a lowly 131 among 188 countries surveyed for human development in 2016, according to a just released UN report. It has made no improvement in its ranking over the previous year. The report puts it in the "medium human development" bracket, which also includes nations like Bangladesh, Bhutan, Pakistan, Kenya, Myanmar and Nepal.

Modi has demonstrated in recent weeks that he has seized control of the national agenda and sent a message that it's time for all of India - not just its infotech services sector - to join the 21st century.

India has ranked a lowly 131 among 188 countries surveyed for human development in 2016.

Now that Modi's party BJP controls territories comprising more than 60 per cent of India's population, and is India's political juggernaut, he has better space to shift the gears of policies to crack open India's lands, factories and markets to investors.

The new power alignment puts him in an enviable position and he can combine the reinforced strength into a more ambitious liberalising agenda. States can now flex their levers through central support to loosen the grip of the middlemen-dominated agriculture produce marketing committees.

Introduced in the 1960s, these legally-enshrined committees have created several layers of intermediaries, lengthening the supply chain and increasing the opportunity for cartels to form, which in turn drive prices down for farmers and up for consumers.

India spends more on programmes for the poor than most developing countries, but it has failed to eradicate poverty because of widespread corruption and faulty government administration.

The development landscape is still arid, with occasional green shoots, and is not seeing the sort of development that significant public expenditure would seem to warrant, and the needs of important population groups remain only partly addressed.

It is a tough test for the reformer in Modi. The PM's popularity is also inseparable from the pledge that won him office in 2014: to deliver the jobs India's burgeoning population desperately longs for - with nearly a million new job-seekers entering the market every month.

The grandiose plans should not end up like the development projects of the past administrations he has been excoriating during his campaign: high-minded pronouncements on paper with zero delivery in practice. For this, it is equally important that the lessons of the failure of the long series of development programmes should not be lost on us.

India's once ample resources have been frittered away on grandiose schemes which have failed to pay the expected dividends. India's growth in GDP would constitute a resounding success only if it is labour-intensive, involving sustained and large-scale job creation. If not, millions of young Indians entering the labour force will not be able to find decent jobs and growth boasts will be hollow.

Che Guevara, whose handsome face I had seen on posters and tee shirts, comes to mind. I did not know who he was till I read this passage attributed to him: "The merit of Marx is that he suddenly produces a qualitative change in the history of social thought. He interprets history, understanding its dynamics, predicts the future, but in addition to predicting it, he expresses a revolutionary concept: the world must not only be interpreted, it must be transformed."

If Modi wants to deliver development that is both GDP-booster and at the same time is egalitarian and equitable, he would have to recast the development paradigm radically.

Nobel Laureate and India's most accomplished economist Amartya Sen has consistently struck with his stand that "growth rate is a very daft - and a deeply alienated - way of judging economic progress."

Sen and Jean Dreze, a Belgian-born Indian economist, warned as early as 1995 that reforms that boost growth, though important, were not enough to improve the living conditions of the poorest, let alone dismantle caste and gender hierarchies and generate employment.

They "have to be supplemented by a radical shift in public policy in education and health," they wrote.

Bangladesh, which is only half as rich as India measured by per capita income, now exceeds India in, among other social indicators, life expectancy, child mortality, and immunisation.

For human development to reach everyone, growth has to be inclusive, with four mutually supporting pillars - formulating an employment-led growth strategy, enhancing financial inclusion, investing in human development priorities and undertaking high-impact multidimensional interventions (win-win strategies).

Jobless growth, which has been more dramatic in the last two years, is probably the main issue of the Indian economy today. It is largely responsible for demonstrations by young Patels of Gujarat, Marathas of Maharashtra and Jats of Haryana in the name of reservations.

Since they can't get jobs in the private sector, they fall back on government jobs. But the public sector is shrinking. Not only are jobs fewer than before, but those that have been created are precarious and badly paid because of the informalisation of the economy.

The growing inequality in India is very stark. According to the Credit Suisse Global Wealth Databook 2014, the share of wealth of the richest 1 per cent in the country has been rising, in contrast to the rest of the world, and it now owns nearly half the country's wealth.

The wealth share of the top 10 per cent has increased by a tenth since 2000, and the CEO of Oxfam India has pointed out that just 1.5 per cent wealth tax on 65 of India's uber-rich could lift an astounding 90 million out of poverty.

If the country could reduce inequality by just over a third, it could eliminate extreme poverty.

According to the National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER), which incidentally doesn't subscribe to socialist ideology, only 12 per cent of the population can comprise the middle class.

Impoverished populations desperately require lighting, fuel for cooking, affordable and accessible healthcare, clean water, elementary education, housing and sanitation, and financial services. Government programmes to supply these needs are plagued with corruption (by some estimates 50-70 per cent of all welfare spending in India is soaked by the administrators in the form of bribes).

It is estimated that up to 85 per cent of government water subsidies go to private taps, yet 60 per cent of poor households collect water from public taps. Or electricity subsidies - 67.2 per cent of Indian households are connected to the electric grid, most likely representing some of the wealthiest households in the country.

The government subsidises a wide range of products and services with the expressed intention of making them affordable for the poor: rice, sugar, wheat, pulses, cooking gas, kerosene, naphtha, electricity, water, fertilisers and railways. The cost of these subsidies is about 4.2 per cent of India's gross domestic product, which is more than enough to raise the consumption level of every poor Indian household above the poverty line.

In traditionally administered government programmes, the poor often get less than their due because of local corruption in disbursement, with amounts being sponged by middlemen. By digital modes, the government can pass on benefits directly to the poor, bypassing layers of bureaucracy. Prices can be left to market forces and subsidies paid to the deserving through their accounts.

Many of India's anti-poverty programmes end up feeding the rich more than the needy. India has eliminated a raft of bureaucratic middlemen by depositing government pension and scholarship payments directly into the bank accounts of people, in a bid to prevent corrupt state and local officials from diverting much of the money to their own pockets.

Rs 36,000 crore have been saved by the government through cash transfers via the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme. More than 1,200 government schemes were examined for coverage and about 550 of them could be immediately taken up. More than 320 million beneficiaries are being provided various aids by direct credits to their accounts.

Full coverage has been achieved in 84 schemes, including Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act where wages are being paid into accounts without the intervention of the administration. Similarly subsidies for liquid petroleum gas (LPG) are also going directly into the account of beneficiaries.

Now these programmes have the potential for making a serious dent in poverty in India. Under the acronym JAM - Jan Dhan, Aadhaar, Mobile - a quiet revolution of social welfare policy is unfolding.

Jan Dhan is Modi's flagship programme to give poor people access to financial services, including bank accounts, credit and insurance. Aadhaar is the initiative to issue unique biometric identification cards to all Indians. Together with mobile money platforms, they will enable the state to transfer cash directly to those in need - without the money going through intermediaries that might take a cut.

But along with technical literacy it is s necessary to empower the recipients to access their funds more conveniently at little cost. There is concern about the lack of operable infrastructure and the resulting delays in receiving subsidies or cash transfers.

In a series of experiments with cash transfers in places such as Rajasthan, Jharkhand, and Delhi, recipients have to navigate a complex and wobbly ecosystem hobbled by unclear fingerprints to receipt systems that relied on internet access in places where no internet access exists.

In parts of Rajasthan, a programme gave cash transfers (deposited in recipients' bank accounts) in lieu of kerosene subsidies. During this time, the consumption of kerosene dropped dramatically along with user satisfaction. Many poor families were simply unable to navigate the many loops required to open a bank account, where they would receive their transfer, let alone afford the initial fee to start an account in the first place.

While the JAM Trinity and cash transfers have a role to play, so does continued outreach to marginalised families through simple technology (like cellphones) and education.

One of the most important governance ingredients that has increasing relevance on account of the incessant buzz of choruses like "sabka sath, sabka vikas" is the need for tolerance and transparency in the ruling class.

Tulsidas tells us that dispirited on seeing Ravana in an armed chariot while Rama was without arms or a chariot, Vibhishana expressed his deep anxiety thus: "Ravan rathi, virath Raghubeera!"

However, Rama explained to him that a hero who has self-control, benevolence, forgiveness, discretion, evenness of mind and compassion as his weapons or horses is unconquerable. There is a great lesson for us in this timeless wisdom.

The government should also take a radical relook at grassroots development apparatuses. The current approach of India seems to miss the holistic nature of sustainable development, allowing the goals and targets to be divided up between different ministries and departments without identifying the interlinkages that exist between the different goals, and this risks working in silos - which is unlikely to deliver.

The best approach to local development is to tap into the knowledge already available and think of ways it can be leveraged to achieve more appropriate, locally useful and sustainable development.

Approaches to rural development that respect the inherent capabilities and native of rural people and that systematically build on experience have a reasonable chance of making significant advances in improving those people's lives. A critical success factor is creating organisational capabilities at local levels that can mobilise and manage resources effectively for the benefit of the many rather than just the few.

It is important to reaffirm that significant advances are attainable for the hundreds of millions of households that constitute "the rural poor". They are a potential source of great knowledge, wisdom and creativity that have to seek first and foremost their own survival.
It's becoming more evident now. India is taking on China by all means. Leaving the so-called liberal critics like Mani Shankar Aiyar and Sudheendra Kulkarni in their own way, Prime Minister Narendra Modi did the right thing in not teaming up with the 29 countries in the One Belt, One Road forum initiated by communist China.

Modi's decision on this crucial issue seems sensible and bold, from a strategic point of view. It makes India's stand clear in dealing with China, and indeed, Pakistan.

It's not about just marking India's presence in the One Belt, One Road forum or strengthening trade ties with China, it's about India's identity, integrity, and existence.

As long as India has little doubts on the Kashmir issue, there's no point in discussing India's participation in any development project passing through Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.

The One Belt, One Road project, often dubbed as the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road, has an ambitious vision to amplify China's influence in the Asia Pacific area and Central and Eastern Europe. With this kind of infrastructure projects, China is trying to emphasise its global leadership status as US president Donald Trump is turning his nation more inward with his disastrous anti-globalisation crusade.

The Belt and Road Initiative, which was previously known as One Belt, One Road project, is Chinese president Xi Jinping's dream yet crucial project in the process to make the dragon the new imperialist power. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor or CPEC is the crux of the project, and it is passing through PoK. This alone can explain why India is unwilling to participate in China's new version of the Silk Road.

The Dragon's intention is clear, leaving no doubts for anyone, even though the CPEC has become the new bone of contention between India and China. India's logic is also simple - if we join the initiative, it would be nothing but diluting the country's stand on the Kashmir issue. So, everything is clear here. The only thing that doesn't make any sense here is the commentaries from Indian intellectuals.

Sudheendra Kulkarni, former strategist of senior BJP leader LK Advani, termed India's boycott of the Belt Road forum a self-goal.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs better advice on China. Look at the self-goal India has scored by boycotting the Belt and Road Forum summit, convened by Chinese president Xi Jinping on May 14 and 15," he laments in an article written for NDTV website. According to Kulkarni, India was the proverbial "elephant in the room" - conspicuous by its absence.

Thinkers like Kulkarni and Aiyar point out the presence of countries like the US and Japan in the forum despite their political differences with China.

I am asking a simple question to these so-called liberal thinkers - are they considering India's Kashmir issue with Pakistan similar to that of Japan's problems with China?

More than the trade benefits, China is thinking of the geo-strategic edge of the Belt and Road initiative. That's why they haven't shown this degree of enthusiasm in supporting Indias long-standing bid to get into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

We have seen what the communist-imperialist nation did in the case of Jaish-e-Mohammed leader Masood Azhar. In a tricky measure to keep their ally Pakistan happy, China blocked India's attempts to declare Azhar a UN-designated terrorist.

Despite Modi's overzealousness in taking China on board, Beijing has been incessantly trying to make India-China relations more beneficial to them, ignoring India's concerns on sensitive issues.

China pushed India hard to join the Belt and Road venture because of some ulterior motives. CPEC, the flagship project of the initiative, is passing through PoK and Balochistan. The $50-billion project offers a mere share of 0.5 per cent to the impoverished Balochistan, and the people in this immensely rich land of natural resources have been fighting against the inhuman rule of Pakistan for years.

China is skeptical about the reaction of Baloch insurgents to the CPEC project, fearing that the insurgency is posing some kind of security threat to their dream project. This should be viewed through the prism of India's sympathetic approach towards the Baloch cause.

China thinks that the presence of India in the Belt and Road initiative helps ease the situation. And, then comes the more serious factor, which is regarding the PoK region.

China has conceived the Belt and Road initiative as a geo-economic and geo-political strategy, and CPEC reflects its hidden agenda of splitting PoK from India in its mission to achieve global leadership status.

They're just making use of Pakistan for this long-term goal. Once India joined the project, it's better for us to forget the PoK issue as the action is grand enough to provide legitimacy to Pakistan's aggression in Kashmir.

Keeping this in mind, Xi had put tremendous pressure on India. But the Modi government didn't yield to it. India's measure was meant to send a clear message: Modi isn't going to do things the way his predecessors did on the Kashmir issue.
 Charlottesville Chapter of the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy holds its first meeting with executive director Kim Bobo sharing the vision of the chapter and priorities for the coming year at 7 p.m. June 6 at First United Methodist Church at 101 E. Jefferson St. (434) 296-4764.

 League of Women Voters hosts a forum with Del. David Toscano and Ross Mittiga, candidates for the Democratic Party nomination for the Virginia House of Delegates 57th District, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Monday at Northside Library at 705 W. Rio Road. A forum with Charlottesville Commonwealths Attorney candidates Joe Platania and Jeff Fogel will be from 7 to 8 p.m. June 8 in City Council Chambers. (434) 970-1707.

 University of Virginia Alumni Reunion seminars are held Friday and Saturday and June 9 and 10 at various locations on Grounds. Details and a complete schedule are available at alumni.virginia.edu/learn/faculty-led-talks/reunions-seminars. (434) 924-0311.
Ever since I ran as for the 5th District seat that Tom Perriello held for one term, I have been eager to get behind a candidate for governor. I am fully endorsing Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam in the upcoming primary. Here is why.

It starts with relationships. I have gotten to know and admire Dr. Northam personally. Ralph travelled the state several times to support my 2014 congressional run, and he has made close to 200 similar trips for candidates since.

Ralph will make sacrifices. He served in the military, and he is giving up an important career as a medical doctor to serve for the next four years as our governor.

Also, Ralph has never been a big-money candidate. If he has outraised opponents, he has done so with grass-roots support with no strings attached.

Ralph not only has a lifetime of experience serving people, but he also is a leader with a strong sense of empathy. His ability to feel for people is a rare quality in politics, which he brings from his medical practice. Ralph knows and understands the struggles of ordinary working people.

His opponent in the Democratic primary, Tom Perriello, is different. He raised and spent $5.6 million in order to serve one term in Congress. When I reached out to his 2010 campaign on behalf of my non-profit, GOV360, to discuss ways of increasing voter engagement, the campaign was not interested.

Perriello did not support Democratic nominees such as myself and others in 2014 or 2015; that is at odds with his current message.

Now, Perriello wants us to believe that he is the anti-establishment candidate who has come back to the commonwealth for our benefit. He says he will protect the environment from pipelines and polluters, but the money he raised from hedge fund billionaires has closer ties to Rex Tillerson than to The Sierra Club, Wild Virginia or Heal the Bay.

Rather than than making sacrifices for Virginians, as Ralph has for the past decade, Perriello has parlayed one well-paying government (or non-governmental organization) job into another to advance his own career, mostly outside our commonwealth.

Based on my experience and my intuitive response to the two candidates, Ralph gets my vote and support, because he has proved to me that he is not in it for himself, he stands up for what he believes in, and he cares about real people.

Lawrence Gaughan

Albemarle County
Lessons from a gubernatorial contest 32 years ago  perhaps forgotten by Democrats and Republicans  might apply to the Democratic contest this year.

Virginia Democrats are understandably nervous about their gubernatorial primary next month. History shows that a contested primary  this year, its Ralph S. Northam vs. Tom Perriello  produces a doomed nominee, destined to defeat in November. That happened in 1969, 1977 and 2009.

But in 1985, choosing their candidates by caucus and convention, Democrats not only survived a grueling and bitter nomination fight for governor  they thrived, sweeping the three top offices with a historic ticket that included the first African-American and first woman elected statewide in Virginia.

Lessons from that campaign  perhaps forgotten by Democrats and Republicans  might apply to the Democratic contest this year.

Among them: Do not underestimate the advantages for a candidate of a sustained grass-roots presence. For a high-profile latecomer to a nomination contest, celebrity is no substitute for stoop work. Harnessing the diversity of the electorate is a net plus, because  as the late Darrel Martin, a top Democratic operative in that bruiser 32 years ago  used to say  Politics is all about making the circles larger.

In 1985, Lt. Gov. Dick Davis and Attorney General Jerry Baliles clashed for the Democratic nomination for governor. Their struggle dragged on for weeks, raising the prospect of a raucous convention at which Democrats divisions would be on full display, possibly eroding confidence in a party that had been returned to power only four years earlier and auguring defeat that November.

A strong sense of reality ultimately prevailed, largely because Democrats preferred winning to losing. Candidates and party leaders  the embodiment of the now-reviled and distrusted Establishment  made tough decisions that drained egos and checking accounts, rejecting fears that a ticket featuring a black and a female was too much, too soon for a state with a lingering tradition of intolerance.

This set in motion for Democrats the new politics that  Doug Wilders victory in 1989 as the nations first elective African-American governor, notwithstanding  didnt always produce winning campaigns but better positioned the party to reach, three decades later, to a fully multi-hued electorate dominated by non-natives.

Before choosing between Davis and Baliles, Democrats chose to select their nominees through delegate-selection caucuses, a system perfected by Virginia Republicans and intended to maximize the influence of party insiders.

The primary, the traditional nominating process and tantamount to election during the 85-year reign of conservative Democrats, had been discarded because it gave the liberal rabble too big a say, producing nominees such as Henry Howell Jr., a populist firebrand with little appeal to Virginias more moderate general electorate.

Both parties these days prefer the primary, believing that a process requiring broad-based participation forces candidates to emphasize themes that simultaneously resonate with core supporters and election-deciding independents. Are Northam and Perriello, with their loud lurch left, getting that message? Virginia editorialists and Republican spinmeisters would tell you no.

Looming over the 1985 Democratic caucuses was Wilders candidacy for lieutenant governor and jitters that a lopsidedly white Virginia, rather than consider his 16-year record as an influential state senator from Richmond and his decades as a litigator, would reject him because of the color of his skin.

The Davis campaign was wary of Wilder. Because Wilder had played the race card in 1982, threatening an independent bid for the U.S. Senate that would guarantee a Democratic defeat, Davis  as a former party chairman, a perceived peacemaker  was drafted as a substitute nominee but would narrowly lose for the seat of the retiring Harry Byrd Jr. to Republican Paul Trible Jr.

However, Baliles saw an opening. An informal alliance with Wilder would help both candidates, introducing Baliles to minority voters across the state and Wilder, to white suburbanites, particularly in Northern Virginia. It worked like a charm, propelling Baliles to a come-from-behind win for the nomination in the second and final day of caucuses.

But Davis would dispute the victory, claiming violations of arcane caucus rules. The candidates and their proxies publicly bickered and privately schemed. The convention, which was supposed to be a coronation, would be a conflagration.

Suddenly, Republicans, who had been through a two-man brawl for their gubernatorial nomination, wondered if they might be the principal beneficiaries of Democratic infighting.

Chuck Robb, the departing Democratic governor, knew his legacy was on the line; that if he were not succeeded by one of his own, Republicans could claim that Robbs triumph in 1981  the first by a Democrat for governor since 1965  was an aberration and that Virginia truly was a GOP bulwark.

Robbs chief of staff, David McCloud, opened talks between the Davis and Baliles camps, trying to end the standoff in a way that would allow both candidates to save face. Davis would concede the nomination but at a literal cost  to Baliles, who agreed to raise the cash necessary to pay off Davis six-figure campaign debt.

Baliles would go on to win the governorship, carrying every congressional district  Virginia had 10 at the time  and amassing a 110,000-vote majority that pulled in Wilder for lieutenant governor, and Mary Sue Terry for attorney general. No black or woman has matched their feat since, though one African-American and two women are trying in 2017.

The vanquished, however, contributed to the Democratic victory in 1985.

Wyatt Durrette, the Republican candidate governor, had to fight off a pesky challenge for the nomination from Stan Parris, a Northern Virginia congressman who believed that his vast voter base in the Washington suburbs and access to the regions big-dollar donors easily trumped Durrettes deep appeal among party activists that endured despite two losses for attorney general.

Parris found out  as some candidates might this year  that there are some things money cant buy.

Jeff E. Schapiro is a writer for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Contact him at (804) 649-6814.
Company said it recognised a differential royalty of 11.52 billion rupees in the March quarter which had been paid earlier to the State Government of Assam. (Representational image)

State-run Oil India Ltd posted a 96 per cent fall in fourth-quarter profit, hurt by a one-time charge realised on the pre-discount and post-discount price of crude oil paid to a state government.

Net profit was 193.1 million rupees ($2.99 million) in the quarter ended March 31, compared with 4.70 billion rupees a year earlier, the company said on Monday.

Analysts on average had expected the oil and gas explorer, which also owns assets in the United States and Africa, to post a profit of 5.70 billion rupees, according to Thomson Reuters data.

The company said it recognised a differential royalty of 11.52 billion rupees in the March quarter which had been paid earlier to the State Government of Assam.
Rating:

Mumbai: The Empowered Committee of Secretaries will take a final call on draft proposals for hiking house rent allowance of central government employees at its meeting today.

"The final draft on the proposals submitted by Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa led panel will finalised today. Following another meeting on June 1, the same would be submitted to the Union Cabinet for final approval," a report on news portal oneindia.com said.

Employees' union of Central government has been demanding an increase in HRA of their basic pay in the range of 10 per cent, 20 per cent and 30 per cent based on their rankings and pay packages.

"The meeting would be held during which several proposals and demands being made by the central government employees will be discussed," the report said.

These employees started to agitate after they came to know about 'meagre' hike in salary and insignificant increase in house rent allowances was recommended by the 7th Pay Commission.

It was earlier reported that the Cabinet Secretary Pradeep Kumar Sinha has given an assurance that by June 1 he would try to send the approved draft to the Union Cabinet for their consideration.

Earlier, a panel was set up to study recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission under the stewardship of Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa. Lavasa panel after vetting the draft thoroughly had proposed an HRA in the range of 24 per cent, 16 per cent and 8 per cent.

Today's meeting may take up hike in basic salary and arrears on revised allowances will also be discussed, the report added.
Bengaluru: The Goods and Services Tax, to be rolled out in just over a month, will not only check evasions but also help India evolve as a more tax-compliant society, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said today.

"It certainly will be a more efficient tax and one of the important changes it will bring about is (that) it will not only check evasions, but also help in evolving India as a more tax complaint society," he said.

Jaitley was speaking after inaugurating the new campus of the National Academy of Customs, Indirect Taxes and Narcotics (Nacin) here, which will train officers of Central Board of Excise and Customs, besides officers of VAT department in the new GST regime, to be implemented from July 1.

He said training academies like Nacin have a very vital role to play to forge a proper coordination between taxation authorities of the Centre and the states, to implement GST, which is a product of Federal India.

"The new indirect tax is a product of Federal India. Therefore, the coordination between taxation authorities of states and the Centre will be important. It is therefore extremely important that tax training academies such as (Nacin) will have a vital role to play," he said.

The minister said the amalgamation of various indirect taxes under GST in one price is itself a monumental taxation change, which requires personnel to upgrade their skills and knowledge, as it evolves while administering.

The elimination of interaction between the assessing authority and taxpayer will minimise harassment and bring greater accountability into the system, Jaitley said.

He also said that there probably would be a single interface of taxation authorities instead of multiple interfaces. The all powerful GST Council had at the end of its two day meet at Srinagar on May 19, finalised four tax rates of 5, 12, 18 and 28 per cent for services including telecom, insurance, hotels and restaurants in the biggest tax reform since Independence.

The rates are in line with those finalised for goods and with this, rates of all items except a handful including gold, have been decided ahead of the July roll out of GST.
Pune: Defence Minister Arun Jaitley today batted for making India a defence manufacturing hub, saying it is essential to deal with various security challenges like insurgency effectively.

No country can secure itself by depending on others for its defence supplies, the minister said amid steps by the government to bring in private players in the sector.

"We cannot change our neighbours. And our neighbourhood has thrown up security challenges. We are facing insurgency and war for the last 70 years. Therefore, India needs to become an important defence manufacturing hub," he said at the 9th convocation of the Defence Institute of Advance Technology (DIAT).

"If the economy requires us to become a manufacturing hub, then security requires us to become a hub for defence manufacturing. This is the area where the country will have to use the vast resources it possesses.

"We will have to use the large number of academic institutions we have for training minds and cover up the critical gap that still exists," Jaitley said.

The country has institutions like IITs, DRDO labs and a large number of private institutes which can help it achieve the goal, the minister said. In a veiled attack on the previous UPA government, he said the "conservative policies" of the past have hindered progress in the field of defence manufacturing.

"But the new India is a more confident India, it is not the defensive India. It is India, which is willing to globally integrate, share knowledge, get knowledge from outside," he said.

The government has broken away from the restrictive past to achieve the goal of self-reliance in defence, he said. A total of 134 graduating students of the DIAT, an autonomous organisation under the DRDO, were awarded degrees on the occasion.
Taxes paid on inter-state purchases of goods or availing services will also be eligible for input tax credit.

New Delhi: Classification of different item sunder various tax slabs of GST has created an environment of anxiety and concern among the trading community across the country, Confederation of All India Traders said today.

Various verticals of retail trade are demanding lower tax on items being dealt by them since they have been categorised under higher tax slab in comparison to tax slab of current VAT tax regime, CAIT said.

As per an analysis, 1,211 goods and 36 services have been so far classified under GST out of which nearly 50 per cent goods have been placed under 18 per cent rate; 14 per cent under 5 per cent rate; 17 per cent under 12 per cent rate and 19 per cent under 28 per cent rate, CAIT said in a statement.

In view of growing discontent about proposed GST rates, CAIT has urged the government to revisit the rate schedule.

"The wider impact of the classification of items under different tax slabs needs to be gauged very cautiously since under GST not only the taxes paid on goods but even the taxes paid on the services will be eligible for input tax credit," CAIT said.

Besides, taxes paid on inter-state purchases of goods or availing services will also be eligible for input tax credit, it added.

"Hitherto, both these advantages were not available under VAT tax regime. Therefore, impact on the prices of commodities will have to be drawn after calculating advantages of input tax credit," CAIT said.
Mumbai: Tamannah Bhatia and Prabhudeva starrer Khamoshi would be the first Indian film to be shot with an 8k camera. Indo-American director Chakri Toleti, whos earlier given hits like Don and Unnaipol Oruvan, in South is known for his technical skills and is making his debut in Bollywood with this film, which is shot in three languages.

Chakri, whos filmed the Tamil version with Nayanthara and the Hindi version with Prabhudeva and Tamanaah, feels it's the best time to widen the story telling in India and it was Vashu Bhagnani's vision who wanted to introduce this technique despite the cost of the lenses going up for the same.

Since the dynamic range of each image increases, there's a special focus on costumes, make up and detailing on sets. The film, that's a thriller, would see Tammanah play the role of a deaf and mute woman and it's entirely shot in London. The film also boasts of an international crew right from the action director Stephen Richard to sound designer Valerio Cereni.

The film, which is called Kolaiyuthir Kaalam in its Tamil version, will also star Bhumika Chawla in Hindi.
Mumbai: Many moviemakers often sweat to go through the censor process of any film, but filmmaker Sunil Sanjan, who is going to debut in Bollywood with the film 'Flat 211,' believes that passing through the process of film censorship is not a difficult task. He says that even if you are a new filmmaker, then this process is very easy.

"I am absolutely new in the film industry; obviously I am not aware of the film censor process, that's why I was having trouble initially. But, during the whole process I kept my courage and I jumped into this, which is now coming out with a positive result. I probably did not know the knowledge before but now I am getting a positive response. My film is so good anyway."

Sunil also says that the process of film censor has become easier even now than before.

"Previously, there was a manual submission for the film certification, but now the work of the documentation is done online. Payment is also done online, when I spoke to Pahlaj Nihalani, chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), I remember he said that the work will be done. He gave me a hope that the film would go for the trial. And finally that work also happened. Apart from that, I found that the behaviour of all officials there was also good. "

'Flat 211' is a suspense thriller film which is being released in cinemas on June 02.
Mumbai: No matter how hard they try to keep it under wraps, rumours of Shraddha Kapoor and Farhan Akhtar being a couple are growing stronger with each passing day. Just days after news of the duo planning a hush hush vacation to work on their alleged relationship broke, we now here that Farhan is even pushing Shraddhas name for big banner projects.

And the film in question is Akshay Kumars Gold, a biopic on the glorious life of athlete Balbir Singh who brought home the first ever Olympic medal post independence in 1948.

While Akshay has already announced his association with this Reema Kagti-directed film on social media, the lead actress for this big banner project is yet to be announced. Interestingly, Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani are the producers of this patriotic film, and rumour has it that Farhan has recommended Shraddhas name for the biopic.

Although the alleged lovebirds have been vehemently denying these stories, Farhans involvement in her career and his somewhat desperate attempt to fetch the actress a star-studded movie tells a different story altogether.

Recently, there was news of the actress getting too friendly with rumoured former flame Aditya Roy Kapur at a party, which led to a fight between both the actors. To prove the rumours wrong, Farhan posted a smiling picture with Aditya on social media. Again, a very desperate attempt!
Mumbai: The FCAT has directed the CBFC to issue the certification for exhibition to the film Lipstick Under My Burkha, within the next seven days, in an order dated 26th May, 2017.

Though the FCAT had directed the CBFC to issue an "A" certificate to the film via an order dated April 18, 2017, that was sent out later that week, the CBFC has still not issued the certificate.

On May 1st, the producer submitted the film for viewing to the CBFC, in order to get the certification. But the CBFC has been delaying the process on one pretext or the other.

When the FCAT was informed of the delay by the producer, they summoned the CBFC to explain the situation. But no one showed up for the hearing and the FCAT has directed the CBFC to issue certification to Lipstick Under My Burkha within the week.

Lipstick Under My Burkha was first denied certification by the CBFC in January and then again by the revising Committee in February. The producers had then filed an appeal with the FCAT for a reversal of the CBFC decision.

Producer Prakash Jha says, Since the CBFC was not issuing the certificate, we had to approach the FCAT again. Im glad the FCAT has directed the CBFC to issue the certification to the film within the week. We will be announcing the release date soon.

Says filmmaker Alankrita Shrivastava, These are pressure tactics by the CBFC. They are once again trying to do their best to stifle the voices of women. Because the FCAT has pointed out that the CBFC cannot deny certification to a film because it is lady-oriented, the CBFC is just delaying the process. But it has been weeks. And we have been waiting to get the certification in hand so we can announce a release date. We first applied for the censor certificate at the end of December. It is now almost June. Who is going to pay for the delay of five months?

Lipstick Under My Burkha has already won 9 international awards, including the Grand Jury Prize at Films de Femmes Creteil, France and the inaugural Oxfam Award for the Best Film on Gender Equality. It has been officially screened at over 25 international film festivals across the world. The film features Konkona Sensharma and Ratna Pathak Shah, and tells the story of four small town women in search of a little freedom.
Mumbai: Irrfan Khan who's mostly known for his wicked persona and the one who's otherwise low-key on social media, now took to Instagram making his debut on the platform.

The actor, whos basking in the success of his latest release Hindi Medium, has taken to the platform in grand style by posting what we can call one of the most awesome things you will see on social media today!

Dressed to perfection in the Jai-Veeru outfit and striking a perfectly resembling pose, Irrfan made an impressive debut leaving us wanting more.

What we know for now is that the actor will be posting throwback images from his young days of what inspired him to become and actor, truly showing us the imagery that he always craved to be an actor par excellence what he is today!

The actor will next be seen in Kapil Sharma's 'Firangi'.
Mumbai: Sonam Kapoor is not the one to dodge controversial questions but with time and multiple disastrous experiences, a more mature Sonam is now almost always diplomatic during her media interactions. Case in point: Aishwarya Rai Bachchans neon orange lipstick at the 70th edition of Cannes Film Festival.

The actress, who is also an ambassador of the globally renowned cosmetic brand that Ash endorses, declined to comment on the former Miss Worlds neon lipstick.

Last year, Aishwarya made headlines internationally for her bold purple lips and Sonam went gaga over the gorgeous lady, whom she had called an aunty once. Kapoor told PTI, The whole idea of fashion and make-up is for people to discuss it and I guess she wanted to be discussed. She achieved what she wanted to achieve with it, which I think is great. I think it (purple lip colour) looked great and she carried it off with aplomb.

Deepika Padukone also debuted at the prestigious film festival this year. All three ladies were appreciated for their flawless beauty and impeccable fashion sense.
Mumbai: Varun Dhawan has rigorously been training for his upcoming flick Judwaa 2, which is a sequel to the cult Salman Khan starrer 'Judwaa.'

The film has extensively been shot in London, and the actor has been a regular at posting videos and pictures from the sets.

Now, that the actor has wrapped up the London schedule, he posted yet another on-set video on Twitter.

The video shows director David Dhawan (who is also his father) cracking a bottle on Varuns head. David compliments Varun for being a good and naughty actor but later breaks the bottle on his head.

Surprisingly, Varun looks unaffected and laughingly says, This is the treatment I get on the sets of Judwaa 2.

Well, we assume the video to be shot with all precautions and just for fun's sake.

With Jacqueline Fernandez and Taapsee Pannu in the film, Varun essays the twin characters of Raja and Prem from Judwaa in its sequel.

Here is the video posted by Varun:
Mumbai: Chennai based model, Gaanam Nair, whos been missing since 26 May, has still not been traced.

A humongous online campaign has been launched to get hold of her whereabouts.

Gaanam Nair, also known as jikki has been missing since 26th May. Friends and relatives are in search, please share and help! pic.twitter.com/l5yeePoM8A  Ashok Selvan (@AshokSelvan) May 29, 2017

Gaanam, a 28-year-old marketing manager and model based out of Chennai, has been living with her relatives with her dad being based in Delhi.

The lady, whod left for work on her two-wheeler, never showed up at office, and has been missing ever since.

She went missing on 26th May and has been untraceable ever since. The police have been extensively searching for her. Her friends in the city have also been trying their level best to track her. The news has attracted a lot of national media attention. General hospitals are also being scanned. We are hoping for the best, revealed Vaishnavi Prasad, media consultant and another friend.

Gaanams mobile phone has also been switched off ever since.

(Inputs by Ashwin Vinayan)
Mumbai: Rajinikanth's much hyped 'Kaala Karikaalan' shoot has begun in Mumbai, and the local fans of the superstar were in for a surprise when the actor showed up in Wadala, to shoot for the Pa Ranjith directorial.

The actor was snapped mid-shoot in the city, filming the Dhanush production.

The superstar has constantly been in the news, with his highly anticipated foray into politics getting a boost courtesy his public addressal of fans after a long hiatus of eight years.

Rajini, who'll be locking horns with none other than Akshay Kumar in '2.0', is still basking in the phenomenal success that was 'Kabali', and the fans can barely contain their hysteria surrounding 'Kaala Karikaalan'. The film reunites Rajini with his 'Kabali' director, Pa Ranjith.

Dhanush, who co-owns Wunderbar Films with wife Aishwarya, had taken to Twitter to announce the film in August 2016.

Huma Qureshi has also been roped in as his leading lady in the mammoth venture.
Returning to the silver screen after a long break, director Jayanth C. Paranjee admits his mistakes. The long hiatus was due to my failures. I made some mistakes; it was not deliberate, but they happened unintentionally. But I took good care of my forthcoming film Jayadev, so Im confident it will do well, says Jayanth.

Mahesh Babu

After working with top actors like Chiranjeevi, Balakrishna, Venkatesh, Mahesh Babu, Nagarjuna and Pawan Kalyan, the director has chosen to introduce Ghanta Ravi as his lead.

Its not about a big or a small actor. After I directed many big stars, I introduced Prabhas under my direction. I knew that Prabhas is going to be a big star, reveals Jayanth. He added that he felt the same after seeing Ravi.

The film is based on a cop. Inspired by the Tamil film Setupathi, Jayanth feels that the story suits Ravis style. I have customised the script to Telugu nativity, he says.

The director also failed as producer with Takkari Donga, starring Mahesh Babu. Mahesh didnt charge a penny for that film. I have to do a film for him. He wants me to pen a love story, but I am looking to explore other genres, Jayanth reveals.
Within the health sector, visual impairment and blindness, including preventable blindness or permanent impairment of vision, ought to be a matter of grave concern to policymakers and the medical profession. (Representational image)

Health is wealth goes the old adage. By extension, the wealth of a nation is the health of its people  the state of its health sector, allocation of resources to the health sector, as well as delivery of services, especially to the poor and deprived sections of society.

Within the health sector, visual impairment and blindness, including preventable blindness or permanent impairment of vision, ought to be a matter of grave concern to policymakers and the medical profession.

In the words of Helen Keller, The only thing worse than being blind is having sight and no vision. It may be said of government policy and indeed society today that there is little vision in determining health prerogatives, with very little, if any at all, emphasis on eye health viewed as an element of holistic healthcare.

Estimates by WHO on visual impairment globally and the causes thereof show that as of 2010, there were 285 million visually impaired people, of which 39 million were blind. WHO estimates that 80% of all causes of visual impairment are preventable or curable if determining causes and treatment were made priorities and control measures were implemented consistently across the world, by providing refractive services and offering surgery to people in need. Two thirds of visually impaired people globally could be rid of impairments to their vision.

The two main causes of visual impairment in the world are uncorrected refractive errors, accounting for 42% of visual impairment and cataract at 33%. Cataract is the clouding of the lens inside the eye, preventing clear vision. Although most cases of cataract are related to ageing, it is also possible for children to be born with the condition, or a cataract may develop after eye injuries, inflammation, and some other eye diseases. In most cases vision can be restored by timely intervention through a surgery to replace the clouded lens.

A refractive error is more common, in fact as estimates show, it is the most common eye disorder. It occurs when the eye cannot clearly focus on images. The result is blurred vision, which can sometimes be so severe as to cause visual impairment.

The most types of refractive errors are myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism, which leads to difficulty in seeing the distance; reading or seeing at arms length; and distorted vision resulting from an imperfection in the curvature of cornea or lens. Another major eye condition is presbyopia (which literally means aging eye). It is an age-related eye condition that makes it more difficult to see very close. According to WHO estimates, 153 million people worldwide live with visual impairment due to uncorrected refractive errors. Unlike cataract, refractive errors can easily be treated by a pair of spectacles.

In India, the prevalence of childhood blindness is estimated at 0.17%, of which 33% is caused by refractive errors (Dandona et al. Childhood Blindness in India). Over 10 crore people suffer from uncorrected refractive error, which can cause preventable blindness. Perhaps more distressingly, over 1 crore Indian children, 5% of all children in the country, suffer from vision impairment due to uncorrected refractive error. Most of them are underprivileged and cannot afford a pair of spectacles. Also, it will increase the productivity of those affected by 34 % and their wages by 20% (The Socio-Economic Impact of Poor Vision- Vision Impact Institute).

This scenario poses a number of challenges before society in general and policymakers in particular. India has one of the largest reservoirs of young, employable people in the world. It is expected to become the worlds most populous country in the years to come. For the country to realise its potential, it is doubtlessly imperative that the productivity of the population should be enhanced. The correction of refractive errors through a pair of spectacles is therefore something that should be looked into with some seriousness given the magnitude, in absolute terms, of the prevalence of eye health issues among young people.

Similarly, eye health issues among older citizens must also be viewed with seriousness, in equal measure. For instance, it is best for a cataract to be diagnosed and treated at an early stage rather than for it to reach a stage where serious visual impairment or potential blindness is inevitable. Poor vision is also statistically shown to multiply the risk of hip fractures in the elderly by seven times (The Socio-Economic Impact of Poor Vision- Vision Impact Institute).

The need of the hour in this situation is for strengthening eye care services in the country through their integration into the health system. Comprehensive eye care services need to become an integral part of primary health care. It can no longer be neglected. There is no room for debate that an inclusive model of eye health within the general health promotion and practice will prove to be much more beneficial and sustainable in the longer run for the country and its people. Such an inter-disciplinary approach in health care delivery can also address issues such as premature birth, vitamin A deficiency, diabetes and smoking.

A critical shortfall in the number of optometrists also needs to be addressed. Ideally, India should have 125,000 optometrists based on the current population but there are unfortunately only 45,000 of them, which is just a third of the requirement. This is where the educational component of healthcare is vital in the context of eye health. Students should be made aware of Optometry as a field of study and encouraged to take it up just like in any other specialty.

India Vision Institute screening programs: Since 2012, India Vision Institute (IVI) has conducted 220 vision screening programs in and around Chennai and other cities in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Puducherry, West Bengal, Delhi and Mizoram. Underprivileged children from government, corporation, municipality schools, orphanages and adults from various underprivileged communities such as gypsies, lepers, fishermen, daily wagers, Puzhal prison inmates (men, women and juveniles), firecracker makers, beedi makers and auto drivers underwent vision screening programs through Eye See & I Learn and Eye See & I Work campaigns and received free spectacles. Over 106,990 individuals from the underprivileged communities (including over 68,564 children) were screened and free spectacles were distributed to 10,846 individuals (including 4,810 children).
A thickening of the left ventricle in the heart (hypertrophy) means that it has to work harder to pump blood and is a common marker for heart disease. (Photo: AFP)

Washington D.C.: A recent study shows that higher than normal Body Mass Index (BMI) may cause worse cardiovascular health in those aged as young as 17.

The study was presented at the Conference of the European Society of Human Genetics. Dr Kaitlin Wade, a Research Associate at the Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit (MRC-IEU) at the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK, and colleagues used data from The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) to investigate the potential link between increased BMI and cardiovascular health.

She said, "ALSPAC is a world-leading birth cohort study, started in the early 1990s with the inclusion of more than 14,000 pregnant mothers and their partners and children, and provides an excellent opportunity to study environmental and genetic contributions to a person's health and development. It was therefore ideal for this purpose."

The scientists found that cardiovascular risk due to increased BMI was likely to emerge in earlier life. The design of existing observational studies (those just looking for associations in the population) have meant that they are unable to make a distinction between correlation and causation.

The team was able to use genomic data from ALSPAC to detect the likely causal relationship between higher BMI and higher blood pressure and left ventricular mass index (LVMI) in those aged 17 and 21.A thickening of the left ventricle in the heart (hypertrophy) means that it has to work harder to pump blood and is a common marker for heart disease.

"Our results showed that the causal impact of higher BMI on cardiac output was solely driven by the volume of blood pumped by the left ventricle (stroke volume). This, at least in part, can explain the causal effect of higher BMI on cardiac hypertrophy and higher blood pressure that we observed in all our analyses," noted Dr Wade.

The findings support efforts to tackle the obesity epidemic from an early age in order to prevent the development of cardiovascular changes known to be precursors of cardiovascular ill-health and disease.Dr Wade shared, "It is the first time that the nature of this relationship has been shown in group of young adults where it has been possible to draw improved conclusions about its causation."

The researchers are now trying to untangle the relationship between higher BMI and disease mechanisms including metabolomics (the study of the chemical processes involved in the functioning of cells and the abundance and diversity of microbes living in the gut - the gut microbiome). "We have also begun an analysis of the causal role of higher BMI on detailed measures of cardiac structure and function within the ALSPAC data. We hope to further explore these associations within an older population - the UK 1946 birth cohort," said Dr Wade.

He concluded by saying, "Whilst randomised controlled trials are important for disentangling cause and effect in disease, they are expensive, time-consuming and labour-intensive. Modern genomics allows us to detect causality more quickly and cheaply, and the availability of large quantities of genetic data means that we can overcome the limitations of observational epidemiological studies. We believe that there are clear messages for cardiovascular health in our findings and we hope that they may lead to increased efforts to tackle obesity from early life."

Professor Joris Veltman, Director of the Institute of Genetic Medicine at Newcastle University Newcastle, United Kingdom, noted, "Distinguishing between correlation and causation is tremendously difficult in medical sciences, especially for complex interactions like those between obesity and cardiovascular disease. In this study, statistical genetics approaches were applied to longitudinal cohorts from the UK to improve this. The scientists could demonstrate that obesity also causes poorer cardiovascular health in young adults. In contrast, higher BMI did not seem affect heart rate in this group."
1.Benota villa: A beautiful boutique hotel on the South West coast is perfect to unwind. This villa came with a personal chef who arranged for a lovely local cuisine which included fish curry and rice. These dishes cater to your taste buds in ways you didnt even know! With the beach right next to us, we relished the local Srilankan style food (the best meal of the trip).

2.Pedlars Inn Cafe, Galle Fort: The fort is a huge walking space with lovely architecture. Pedlars Inn Cafe serves you a mix of continental and Sri Lankan food. We tried out a Thai platter with fresh juice which was delicious. This place is a steal if youre the kind that loves to unwind to some great music and food.

3.Blue whale spotting: One of the highlights of the trip was definitely our blue whale spotting experience. After four hours into the Indian Ocean, two large whales showed up right next to our ferry which was the most breathtaking sight. The cost of blue whale spotting is approximately INR 4,000 per head. However, taking a private boat is not recommended.

4.Geoffrey Bawas work: A renowned architect, his work can be seen all around Srilanka. Some of his most iconic works though can be seen in the New Parliament of Sri Lanka. Amongst the ones that we visited was The Bentota Beach Hotel in the South West province of Gale.

5.The Dutch Hospital: With a few hours to spend here, we headed straight for the Dutch Hospital. It is the oldest building in the Colombo Fort area dating back to the Dutch colonial era in Sri Lanka. It has the best fine dine restaurants like Semondu and Kinnaree. We had a lovely dinner with live singing and impromptu dancing just before we headed back to India.
Hyderabad: The Cyberabad police on Sunday unearthed a multi-crore scam and arrested the sub-registrar of Kukatpally, who illegally transferred 693 acres of government land to private companies. The police also arrested the directors of two companies  P.V.S. Sharma, 72, director of Goldstone Infratech and P.S. Parthasarathi, director of Trinity Infraventures Ltd.

Kukatpally Sub-registrar Rachakonda Srinivasa Rao had allegedly taken crores of rupees in bribes from the private companies to transfer land situated in Miyapur village in Serilingampally mandal, to the two companies at ludicrously cheap prices, causing a loss of Rs 587 crore to the government.

Senior police officers say they are zeroing in on other officials of the companies, including a politically well-connected employee of Goldstone Infrastructure, who may also be involved.

The investigation has revealed that the Deputy Collector of Serilingam-pally had issued a memo in 2007 stating that the land in Miyapur village was government land/poramboku land. There were many legal disputes going on in court regarding this land. In 2011, the deputy collector wrote to the sub-registrar again, stating that the land belonged to the government. P.S. Parthasarathi (of Trinity Intraventures) and others prepared a GPA from the various petitioners who had filed a case in the court and executed a deed in favour of Suvishal Power Gen Ltd. Sub-registrar Srinivas Rao helped the suspects to transfer the land, said Madhapur DCP Vishwa Prasad.

The police said that the suspects only paid Rs 68 lakh for the land which is actually worth Rs 587 crore. Mr Rao has allegedly been using the bribe money for international tours. This year, he visited Australia. We are verifying where he went to blow up the money, said a senior official.

Rao is also suspected to be possessing huge properties and unaccounted for wealth. Officials said the Anti-Corruption Bureau is likely to step in and investigate his wealth and assets.

Kukatpally police started the investigation against Mr Rao after district registrar N. Saidi Reddy lodged a complaint.
New Delhi: A 21-year-old Kashmiri man, who was allegedly trying to join the terror group ISIS, has been deported from Turkey to India after being picked up by Turkish authorities, official sources here said on Monday.

Srinagar resident Afshan Parvaiz was deported from the Turkish capital of Ankara on May 25 and whisked away to an undisclosed destination by security agencies in Delhi, the sources said.

He was being assessed by various security agencies, they said.

Parvaiz had left home after an argument with his father, who wanted him to join a college while the son was interested in religious studies, the sources said.

They said he booked himself a seat on a flight to Tehran on March 23. He was scheduled to return to Delhi on April 9 after exploring avenues for religious studies in Europe, they said.

The Kashmiri man, who is the second person to be deported from Turkey in the last two months, apparently sent a message to his family to tell them that he was facing some "problems", the sources said.

When the police and other agencies in Kashmir were informed about this, a probe was launched to locate him, they said.

According to the sources, the security agencies then got in touch with their Iranian counterparts, who found out that Parvaiz was travelling to Ankara.

The authorities in Ankara were contacted and he was picked up while he was travelling in a bus in the Turkish capital, they said.

He was sent to India on May 25 by a Turkish Airlines flight, the sources said.

In March, Mohammed Taha, a resident of Srinagar, was deported from Turkey and sent to India. He has been put in preventive custody, they said.

Security agencies in India have viewed their alleged plans to join the ISIS with concern. They believe that some Kashmiri youths are getting radicalised by 'jihadi' propaganda material shared by the ISIS on the Internet.

The agencies feel that if the growing influence of the ISIS is not checked, it can be detrimental to the situation in the Valley.

Recently, an audio clip had surfaced on social media sites in which Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militant commander Zakir Moosa could be heard talking about establishing an Islamic caliphate in the Valley.

The police had carried out an analysis of the clip, comparing the voice with that of Moosa's in earlier videos and audios.

The 5.40-minute audio warned Kashmir's separatist leaders against interfering in the HM's plan to establish a caliphate as the ISIS has done in parts of Syria and Iraq.

The call for a caliphate is being seen as a worrying twist to militancy in Kashmir, which has largely revolved around a demand for independence or secession to Pakistan, without an overtly religious subtext.

During the recent protests in the Valley, ISIS flags were waved in certain areas, and slogans supporting the terror group were painted on walls.

However, Hizbul Mujahideen leader Syed Sallahuddin had said there was no place for groups such as the ISIS, Al-Qaeda or the Taliban in Jammu and Kashmir.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday granted bail to Kolkata-based businessman Paras Mal Lodha, in connection with a money laundering case.

Earlier on May 5, the bail plea of Rohit Tandon, the other accused in the case, was rejected by the High Court.

The High Court had also issued notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking a report Lodha's bail plea.

Earlier in February, the ED had issued a provisional attachment order attaching movable and immovable properties worth Rs. 6,84,26,500 of Lodha, Tandon and others in a money laundering case post demonetisation.

Investigation conducted so far has revealed that post demonetisation, Lodha along with others illegally exchanged demonetised currency of Rohit Tandon and others into monetized form on commission basis with the help of Suman, Amranjay Kumar, Atul Kumar Aggarwal, Manoj Kumar Aggarwal and others including Hawala operators.

In this process of illegal exchange, Amranjay Kumar, Atul Kumar Aggarwal and Manoj Kumar Aggarwal have been the direct beneficiaries and knowingly assisted in the offence of money laundering by the possession and acquisition of the properties involved in money laundering.

Since the active role of Lodha surfaced during the investigation, he was arrested under section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 on December 2 last year. He is now under judicial custody.

Lodha was held in Mumbai by the Enforcement Directorate after they recovered huge cache of new currency notes of Rs. 500 and Rs. 2,000 from a Delhi law firm which belonged to advocate Rohit Tandon and Chennai based businessman Sekhar Reddy.

Income Tax officials also claimed that they seized Rs. 132 crore in currency notes including Rs. 34 crore in 2,000 notes, and 177 kilograms gold from fourteen of Reddy's premises.
The police have registered a case in the matter and role of guards is also being investigated. (Photo: File/Representational)

Jaipur: An undertrial gave a slip to Central Jail guards after allegedly convincing them to take him to his house when he was out from the prison for treatment.

The undertrial, Rahul Nanda, is wanted at several police stations in cases of attempt to murder, kidnapping and a dozen other similar crimes.

On Sunday, he complained of a stomach-ache following which he was taken to the SMS hospital in Jaipur. At the hospital, the accused allegedly convinced the jail guards to take him to his home in Transport Nagar of the city.

Nanda managed to dodge them while they were being offered tea, the police said.

The jail guards then informed the police about the incident. The police have registered a case in the matter and role of guards is also being investigated.

"We will investigate the involvement of jail guards in Nanda's escape. The matter is under investigation," Additional DCP (East) Hanuman Prasad said.
Chennai: City Police arrested a constable attached to the Flower Bazaar police station for masterminding a truck heist near Thiruvottiyur last year. The role of Prakash (29) who is serving as a head constable with the city police has been established after sustained investigations, police sources said. Amulraj (30) of Washermanpet, who works at the Government printing press was also arrested, police said.

Police had arrested seven persons last May after an armed gang hijacked a container truck ferrying pharmaceuticals to the Chennai Port. On May 26, 2016, the truck was halted at the Popular weighbridge near Ondikuppam in Tiruvottiyur police limits when the armed gang approached the truck. The truck was coming from a private pharma firm in Ranipet in Vellore district carrying several lakh worth drugs meant for export.

The gang had come in an SUV (Reg.no TN 02 T 3997) and had attacked the truck driver Vinoth (27). They later let him off near Ambattur toll gate and escaped with the truck after which the driver informed his owner.

Police zeroed down on the SUV the gang came in. The car and the owner, S Suresh (31) of Kolathur were picked up a week later. Suresh's inputs led police to the place where the container truck was kept hidden. The truck and the cargo were recovered from Keezhanur village in Thiruvallur district.

Meanwhile, police arrested the father-son duo of D Babu (45) and B Joseph (22) from Kolathur who are said to have initially masterminded the robbery and subsequently five others. Babu is said to be a serial offender and was involved in similar thefts before.

He had planned to sell the truck by changing the number plates and documents a few months later, police said.

Meanwhile, Tiruvottiyur police were informed of the role played by a city police constable, after which they initiated investigations. It was found that Prakash had developed friendships with the members of the gang when he was serving in the Armed Reserve (AR) and used to be on security detail accompanying prisoners, a police official said. Prakash was produced before a magistrate and remanded in judicial custody.
Hyderabad: While software companies are calling recent layoffs performance-based removals, experts are advising techies to improve their skill sets and be soft at the workplace to avoid negative impressions by the HR personnel.

As per reports, after the Trump Governments new rules on salaries of H1B visa holders and compulsory employment to American citizens in Indian companies in the United States and the poor growth rate in the recent fiscal, companies are working on removing senior executives from Level-3 to Level-6. Similar measures will be taken by the end of this year against Level-2 techies.

Cognizant told the Labour Commission on Thursday that removals based on performance were a routine process and were not layoffs. However, the hearing is still pending with the labour commissioner and arguments will be taken up on May 26, 2017.

Meanwhile, an official spokesperson from Capgemini said the company was committed to continuous talent development and building capabilities of employees.

The company evaluates employees based on strict performance criteria in an objective process, consistent with industry norms to ensure we are aligned with our customer needs, business priorities and overall industry evolution. We are also providing training programmes to our employees. So far, we have far provided training to over 2,000 employees in emerging technologies in India, the spokesperson said.

The recent emergency meeting, under supervision of IT Minister K.T. Rama Rao, following the Cognizant order came up with a conclusion to provide skill development programmes to techies in Hyderabad to overcome the present crisis.

An official from the IT department said the government, along with Telangana Information Technology Association (TITA) and other agencies such as TASK, will provide training to Telangana-based techies in cross-skill technologies for Horizontal to Horizontal platforms and vertical-skill technologies for those with master skills in any one technology and not enough skills in vertical technologies like health care and banking.

S.N. Vishal, a techie from Madhapur, said the situation was critical for above manager-level employees.

Skill upgradation, including improving multi-platform skills, is the only solution in handling the current situation. Those with additional qualifications like Big Data, Cloud Computing, Cyber Security and Vertical technologies are safe from the layoffs.

Techie numbers

1,386 Number of IT companies in City

116 Number of Big-companies

4 lakh Number of IT professionals

Current scenario creates threat to: Level-3 to Level-6 employees
Chennai: Karti Chidambaram on Saturday said his only link to INX Media, owned by Indrani and Peter Mukerjea, was that his friend was its auditor. A friend of mine is the auditor of that television company and it is the only connection I have with that firm, he said. Karti, who is now in London, said in a Facebook post that CBI had unnecessarily included his name in the case.

Karti, who posted a facsimile image of his interview to a Tamil media outlet, said though this was a "corruption case, there are no details about which government official was bribed, they have just mentioned some unknown officials." "I know how to handle this legally," he said and asked why the officials who raided his premises had "not come out openly about what was seized from my house and what evidences they had got."

"Only if they had got anything, could they be able to spell that out," he said, apparently claiming that no seizure of evidential value was made. Karti also said that he had not received any summons from CBI to appear before it in Delhi.

He also uploaded a photo of his with Richard Evans, eminent historian and president of Wolfson College, University of Cambridge.
It has been submitted by the Confederation that the existing stock of liquor is of value of almost Rs 200 crore and the firms be allowed to dispose of the stock in other states where liquor is not banned. (Photo: Representational Image)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday granted time till July 31 to liquor manufacturers and sellers in Bihar to dispose of their existing stock outside the state.

The Nitish Kumar government had imposed a complete ban on liquor in Bihar from April 1, 2016.

A vacation bench headed by Justice AK Sikri considered the submission of the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies that they are facing huge economic loss in view of the ban imposed in the state on sale of alcoholic beverages.

It has been submitted by the Confederation that the existing stock of liquor is of value of almost Rs 200 crore and the firms be allowed to dispose of the stock in other states where liquor is not banned.

The court agreed to the contention and granted time till July 31 to the confederation for getting rid of their existing stock.
Earlier on May 27, Students' Federation of India (SFI) staged similar protest in Kerala by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum. (Photo: ANI Twitter)

Chennai: A group of students at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras conducted a beef festival, showing their agitation against the Center recent order against selling cattle thus imposing an indirect beef ban.

More than 50 students supported the cause by participating in this fest late on Sunday night.

Earlier on May 27, Students' Federation of India (SFI) staged similar protest in Kerala by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum.

Similar fest was also organised at different locations across Kerala.

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan on Friday ordered that the ministry has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes.

"Aim of the rules is very specific. It is only to regulate the animal market and the sale of cattle in these markets, and ensuring welfare of cattle dealt in market. And the rule provides for a strict animal monitoring committee and an animal market committee at the local level," Vardhan told ANI.

He said the seller and buyer both have to ensure that the cattle is not being bought or sold in the market for slaughter purposes.

"An undertaking to this effect has to be given to the member secretary of the animal market committee from the seller as well as the buyer," Vardhan added.

As per the notification, cattle are defined as "bulls, bullocks, cows, buffalos, steers, heifers and calves and camels".

The rules also state that the purchaser shall not sacrifice the animal for any religious purpose or sell it to a person outside the state without permission and must keep in with the state's cattle protection laws.
Chennai: Police identified the victims of the car fire accident off East Coast Road near Mahabalipuram on Saturday night as members of the same family and residents of Chromepet in Chennai. Victims include newlywed, J Divya Sri (24), an engineering graduate and wife of an officer in the Indian Army and her parents - Jeyadevan (52) and Ramadevi (50), police said.

The family was said to have been driving in their hatchback to Puducherry when the vehicle caught fire near Manamai between Mahabalipuram and Kalpakkam around 9 pm. Jeyadevan, who was driving the car, had steered it towards a gated residential plot off the main road, where the car caught fire. It is not clear as to why the trio did not get off the car immediately after smoke emanated from the vehicle and drove the car to the residential plot, which is about 100 metres off the main road, an investigating official said.

Police personnel traced the car registration from the vehicle chassis and traced the identity of the victims. Neighbours directed the police personnel to their in-laws, who reside in Velachery. Divya Sris husband, Sharath is a Captain in the Indian Army and is based in Pathankot, police sources said. They had got married in December last year.

The couple had visited the city recently to check on Sharaths mother, who was suffering from an ailment, police said. On Saturday, Sharath did not accompany his wife and in-laws for some reason, an official quoted him as saying.

Preliminary investigations suggest an electric short circuit would have triggered the fire. However, further enquiries are to be made, a senior police officer told DC. Jeyadevan was an auditor while his wife Ramadevi was a retired schoolteacher. The family hailed from Palakkad in Kerala.

Police said that they have informed Jeyade--vans relatives in Bengaluru. Mamallapuram Police have registered a case and are investigating.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh leaves with wife Pratibha Singh after appearing in connection with disproportionate assets case at Patiala House Court, in New Delhi on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Monday termed the disproportionate assets case against him and his wife as political vendetta.

Moments after the 82-year-old politician was granted bail by a special court, Singh said that it was going to be a long battle.

"It's a political vendetta. It's a long battle and I will fight and win the case," the Chief Minister said.

The Congress leader and his wife Pratibha Singh were granted bail by a special court in New Delhi in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh each and one surety of the same amount.

The court, however, asked them not to leave the country without its prior permission.
New Delhi: BJP president Amit Shah has ruled out dialogue on the Kashmir issue until stone-pelting ends, but insisted that the government will talk to everyone once violence ends.

Asked if the government will speak to the Hurriyat (separatists) too as was done by the previous NDA government, he said, Once violence ends and an atmosphere of dialogue is created, we will talk to every one.

The Agenda of Alliance sealed by the BJP and the PDP before they formed the government in the state talks about holding dialogue with all internal stakeholders.

We have said that we will start dialogue once stone- pelting stops. As long as there is stone-pelting, there cannot be dialogue. We cannot give them flower if they pelt stones. They will have to understand it, he said.

Asked if he was satisfied with the performance of the state government, in which the BJP is a junior partner to the PDP, he said it had done very good work on developing infrastructure and succeeded in bringing development to far-flung areas.

For the first time, he has said, Jammu and Ladakh, two other regions in the state besides Kashmir, believe that they have got justice.
New Delhi: After the support lent by Army Chief General Bipin Rawat for Major Leetul Gogoi, the Centre on Monday concurred with the former's statement that 'the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation'.

Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu took to Twitter to express the Centre's backing on the issue.

"Totally agree with #IndianArmy chief's statement that the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation," Naidu tweeted while quoting a news daily article.

Meanwhile, defence experts have also opined that such felicitations would give morale boost to the Indian Army.

Army chief Rawat on Sunday came to the rescue of Major Gogoi, and said such "innovative ways are required to counter the dirty war" underway in Kashmir.

Indicating his firm approach to counter the insurgency, Gen Rawat said Army would take steps, which would break the clutches of militancy in South Kashmir.

Rawat added that the situation prevalent in Kashmir makes it mandatory for the Army to resort to tough measures.

Major Gogoi was in the spotlight after a video shot during the April 9 Srinagar Lok Sabha by-polls, posted on the social media, showed a man tied on the bonnet of an Army jeep in Jammu and Kashmir's Badgam.

The video went viral and sparked a major controversy, with one faction condemning the Army's action while the other commended their ingenuity.

The Court of Inquiry regarding April 9 incident is under finalisation.
Kannur/Alappuzha: The Kerala government on Sunday suggested it could bring in a law to counter the central ban on sale of cattle for slaughter, as the political slugfest over the issue intensified fuelled by a row over a Youth Congress activist butchering a calf in full public view.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who had on Saturday shot off a letter to the Prime Minister to protest the Centre's decision, hit out at the BJP-led government at the centre and the RSS, saying there was no need for the people of the state to draw lessons from New Delhi or Nagpur on their food habits.

Minister for Local Administration K T Jaleel said the government would consider formulating a new legislation to overcome the Centre's cattle ban.

Opposition Congress led UDF, meanwhile, decided to observe Monday as a 'black day' against the ban.

Amid the raging debate over the issue, police on Sunday registered a case against a Youth Congress worker Rijil Makulti and his accomplices for slaughtering a calf in public in Kannur during 'Beef fest' organised across the state by the Congress and the Left yesterday to protest the Centre's ban.

Latching onto the issue, the NDA in Kerala decided to observe Tuesday as a day of protest against the incident.

Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan posted the video of the the gory Kannur incident on twitter, calling it "cruelty at it peak" and said no normal person can behave in this manner.

"A case has been registered under Sect 120 A of the Kerala Police Act on the basis of a complaint of Yuva Morcha activist", Kannur SP Siva Vikram, told PTI.

The offence deals with slaughtering any animal in a way that causes annoyance or inconvenience to the public and is punishable with imprisonment up to one year or a fine of up to Rs 5,000 or with both.

An embarrassed Congress sought to distance itself, saying the party will not support anyone who has violated the law, but the Youth Congress activist who led the protest said he had no regrets.

"If anyone has violated the law then he should be dealt with accordingly and the Congress party will not support him. However, we need to first establish whether the person in the video is related to the party or not," said Congress Spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi at a press briefing in Delhi.

However, Makulti told a television channel today, "We don't regret our act. This was done as part of our protest."

Speaking at a function at Alapuzha, Vijayan said Keralites have a traditional food habit pattern, which was healthy and nutritious, and nobody needs to change it.

"The state government will provide all facilities to people to partake food of their choice. There is no need for Keralites to learn it from anybody in New Delhi or Nagpur" (headquarters of RSS), Vijayan said.

Minister for Local Administration K T Jaleel said the cabinet would discuss the issue and the state government would consider formulating a new legislation to overcome the Centre's cattle ban.

Condemning Saturday's beef fests and butchering of the calf, BJP state President Rajasekharan said DYFI and Youth Congress, youth outfits of CPI(M) and Congress, were turning 'butchers' and people should be careful, he cautioned.

NDA will observe a 'protest day' on Tuesday against the slaughter of the calf and against CPI(M) State Secretary, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, for his alleged remarks against the Indian Army, Kummanam, who is the Chairman of Kerala NDA, said.

Balakrishnan has stoked a controversy alleging that women belonging to minority communities were subjected to atrocities by army personnel in states where the AFSPA was implemented.

Protest marches and meetings will be held, he said.
New Delhi: Condemning the brutal murder of an e-rickshaw driver in the national capital, who was beaten to death for opposing public urination, Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday assured that he was personally looking into the matter and the culprits will not be spared.

Taking to Twitter, Naidu said it was sad indeed that the driver lost his life while he was promoting Swachh Bharat.

An E-rickshaw driver was allegedly beaten to death on Saturday evening in GTB Nagar after he prevented two students from urinating near the Metro station.

As per the locals, two boys were drinking alcohol and were urinating near the Metro station, which was opposed by the E-rickshaw driver.

In order to take revenge, the boys later returned in the night to beat him up.

"14-15 men came together and started beating the man. Nobody came to help him. The man was beaten to death as the boys filled towels with stones and brutally thrashed him. They even started beating me. Somehow I was able to run away from here to ask for help," said one of the E-rickshaw drivers, also an eye witness.

According to another witness, the boys were possibly from Delhi University's Kirori Mal College, as one of the E-rickshaw drivers, Pramod dropped them in front of that college in the evening.

"The boys who did this, later in the evening went to Kirori Mal College. We can identify them. We even asked the police to search the CCTV footage, but they are not even ready to do so," said Pramod.
Chennai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached 30 kg gold bars worth Rs 8.56 crore in connection with its probe into a money laundering case against Tamil Nadu sand mining baron J Sekhar Reddy and his associates, registered post demonetisation.

The ED, in March this year, had arrested Reddy and his two alleged associates K Sreenivasulu and P Kumar in this case.

The agencys zonal office here issued a provisional attachment order "attaching 30 kg of gold bars worth Rs 8,56,99,350 of Reddy and his associates in connection with the exchange of old notes to new currency notes under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act," the Enforcement Directorate said in a statement.

"On reasonable belief that the gold bars are part of proceeds of crime, the same were provisionally attached," it said.

The ED had earlier attached assets worth Rs 34 crore in this case.

Reddy was earlier arrested by the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) too in the same case of alleged black money generation post demonetisation.

The ED had filed a criminal complaint against Reddy and others based on a CBI FIR in the case which was registered after the I-T department first searched his premises and those of his associates in November last year.

The I-T department has made one of the biggest detection of alleged unaccounted income of over Rs 142 crore in this case with the seizure of Rs 34 crore in new notes, Rs 97 crore in old currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 and gold bars weighing 177 kg, post demonetisation.

The ED said the gold bars were "recovered and seized by the Income Tax Department from the residential premises of Prem Kumar.

"Prem Kumar has stated that he used to receive money from Srinivasulu, associate of Reddy, for purchase of 1 kg gold bars and the said seized 30 kg gold bars from his residence was purchased accordingly using the demonetised currency and belongs to Reddy," the central probe agency said.

The Reddy case and the other involving Delhi-based lawyer Rohit Tandon are being probed by at least four agencies--the ED, the Income Tax department, the CBI and Delhi Police--and are considered the two most high-profile black money cases being investigated in the aftermath of the notes ban.
Clashes erupted in the Kashmir Valley after security forces gunned down Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Ahmed Bhat in Tral region. (Photo: DC)

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has found strong evidence against Kashmiri separatists Farooq Ahmad Dar, Javed Ahmad Baba and Nayeem Khan, who have been alleged to have received funds from Pakistan-based terrorist groups to create tensions in the valley.

Sources said, the separatist leaders were summoned on Monday in the national capital over the same.

Earlier this month, the NIA had questioned them in the national capital for four consecutive days.

The NIA went to Srinagar to probe into the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir.

The agency continued questioning the separatist leaders regarding their involvement in raising, collecting and transferring funds through Hawala and other channels for terror funding in Kashmir.

The agency has collected details of 13 accused who have been chargesheeted so far in the cases in the Valley in the recent past, pertaining to the damage caused to schools and public property as part of the larger conspiracy to perpetuate violence and chaos in Kashmir.

The development came after the Hurriyat Conference suspended Nayeem Khan from the organisation after he allegedly confessed to receiving money from Pakistan and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) for Kashmir unrest.

Khan was allegedly heard admitting in a TV sting operation that he had received money from Pakistan to create unrest in the Valley.

He, however, claimed that the sting operation was fake and doctored.

After the video surfaced, the NIA registered a preliminary probe against Khan, Tehreek-e- Hurriyat leader Gazi Javed Baba and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (R) chairman Farooq Ahmed Dar.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh leaves after appearing in connection with disproportionate assets case at Patiala House Court, in New Delhi on Monday. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh were on Monday granted bail by a special court in New Delhi in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case.

Special Judge Virender Kumar Goyal granted the relief to all the accused on a personal bond of Rs one lakh each and one surety of the same amount.

The court, however, asked them not to leave the country without its prior permission.

Earlier on Monday, the CBI had opposed the bail plea of the Chief Minister saying they may influence the witnesses and the ongoing probe in a disproportionate assets case against them.

The public prosecutor said Singh was the 'king of the state' and if granted bail, no one will dare to come forward to depose before the court.

In their bail plea, Virbhadra Singh, who has not been arrested so far, and the other accused submitted that the investigation was complete as the CBIhad already filed the chargesheet.

But the CBI said the investigation in the case was still on and granting of bail might hamper it.

The 82-year-old politician had also cited several medical reports, saying he was suffering from serious ailments.

The accused persons also claimed that they will be able to look after their case in a better manner if they are out on bail.

Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh on May 22 appeared as accused in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case and sought bail.

The CBI has chargesheeted Virbhadra Singh, his wife, Universal Apple Associate owner Chunni Lal Chauhan, stamp paper vendor Joginder Singh Ghalta, Managing Director of Tarani Infrastructure Vakamulla Chandrasekhar and co-accused Lawan Kumar Roach, Prem Raj and Ram Prakash Bhatia for the alleged offences including criminal conspiracy, forgery and corruption.

The charge sheet also names as accused LIC agent Anand Chauhan, who was arrested in the case and is currently in judicial custody.

The court had on May 8 summoned them after taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the CBI.

The CBI chargesheet, running into over 500 pages having the statements of around 225 witnesses and containing 442 documents, claimed that Singh had amassed assets worth around Rs 10 crore which were disproportionate to his total income during his tenure as a Union minister.

Chauhan was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on July 9 in 2016 in a separate money laundering case related to the DA case.

The matter was transferred by the Supreme Court to the Delhi High Court, which on April 6, 2016 had asked the CBI not to arrest Singh and directed him to join the probe.

On November 5, 2016, the apex court had transferred Singh's plea from the Himachal Pradesh High Court to the Delhi High Court, saying it was not expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, but 'simply' transferring the petition 'in interest of justice and to save the institution (judiciary) from any embarrassment'.
Hyderabad: Hotels in the state and Andhra Pradesh will remain shut on May 30 to protest the proposed higher tax rates under the GST regime which will come into effect on July 1. Also on Tuesday, chemists will down shutters to protest, among other things, the new requirement to upload records of sale of medicines on a central server.

The TS and AP hoteliers associations have extended its support to the bandh called by the South Indian States Hotels Association. The Federation of Hotels and Restaurants Association of India has given a call to hold dharna on June 1 at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.

The Telangana State Hotels Association and Greater Hyderabad Hotels Association have extended their support to bandh and dharna.

Hotels fear hike in expenses

The Telangana State Hotels Association on Sunday passed a resolution stating that GST rates were against the interests of the hotel industry and the public and was detrimental to the growth of the sector.

It appealed to hotels, restaurants, lodges, bars and restaurants, sweet shops, bakeries, tiffin centres, messes, dhabas, canteens, caterers and resorts to wear black badges as a mark of protest from May 29 to 31 and voluntarlily close their businesses on May 30.

Association president S. Venkat Reddy said that under the GST regime, customers would have to pay tax at 12 per cent and 18 per cent in about 90 per cent of the hotels as against 5 per cent VAT now.

Nearly 90 per cent of the hotels are required to file returns thrice a month. upload the sales invoices, bills regularly. Small and medium hotels have to depend on billing machines. A lot of administrative work and expenses will be incurred by hoteliers under GST, Mr Reddy said.

Hotel owners argued that the consequences of higher GST rates will drive common people to roadside eateries, which prepare and serve food under unhygienic condtions, who do not have any licences or pay any taxes and not provide any employment like hotels. The government will have no control over these eateries.

We have made several representations to Centre and state governments to levy two-tier tax structure, namely 5 per cent for non-star category hotels and other tax slab for star hotels. However, they have completedly ignored our pleas, Mr Reddy added.
New Delhi: Without mincing words, Union Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu on Monday strongly supported Army Chief General Bipin Rawat's recent assertion on Kashmir.

Naidu questioned whether the people of the nation should sympathise with the security forces or with the stone-pelters.

"You also know who the stone-pelters are. Our neighbour (Pakistan) is providing funds to stone-pelters. They are funding the separatists as well. They are doing this in order to spread terrorism here. In order to improve the situation in Kashmir, what is necessary should be done. The same has been suggested by the Army Chief and I completely stand by his side," Naidu told ANI.

"I fail to understand those supporting stone-pelters. Is it right to sit silently when people are pelting stones at the Army. Whom should the people sympathise with, the nation and Army or stone-pelters?" he added.

Army chief Rawat on Sunday applauded Major Gogoi, and said such "innovative ways are required to counter the dirty war" underway in Kashmir.

Indicating his firm approach to counter the insurgency, Gen Rawat said Army would take steps, which would break the clutches of militancy in South Kashmir.

Rawat added that the situation prevalent in Kashmir makes it mandatory for the Army to resort to tough measures.

Major Gogoi was in the spotlight after a video shot during the April 9 Srinagar Lok Sabha by-polls, posted on the social media, showed a man tied on the bonnet of an Army jeep in Jammu and Kashmir's Badgam.

The video went viral and sparked a major controversy, with one faction condemning the Army's action while the other commended their ingenuity.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said he had not thought that his monthly radio programme, Mann Ki Baat, would be viewed politically when it launched more than two years back.

The Prime Minister said through the programme he had become like a member of every household of the country, conversing with my family about routine issues.

Some people take Mann Ki Baat as a monologue and some criticise it from a political angle, he said in the first programme after the completion of three years of his government. He said that like an ordinary citizen, he too gets influenced by good or bad things.

When I started Mann Ki Baat, I had not thought so, he said about the programme launched on October 2, 2014. Through the programme, the PM said that he felt like he was conversing with my family while sitting at home.

He added that there are many families who have written to him these very feelings. The PM then referred to the launch by President Pranab Mukherjee of an analytical book on Mann Ki Baat two days back.

As an ordinary citizen and as an individual, this was very inspirational event for me, he said. Talking about the book, he had praise for Akbar, an artist living in Abu Dhabi, who had offered to sketch the topics on which various episodes of Mann Ki Baat without taking a single rupee.

The PM also emphasised on the importance of preserving the environment, laid thrust on cleanliness and waste management and spoke about the importance of yoga and talked about freedom fighters.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to embark for four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France on Monday, with an aim to boosting Indias economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investment.

In the first leg of his six-day trip, he will visit Germany, where he will hold talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel under the framework of India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC).

He will also call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Modi said he and Merkel will chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine.

Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, German competencies fit well with my vision for Indias transformation.

In Berlin, Modi and Merkel will also interact with top business leaders of both the countries to further strengthen the trade and investment ties.

I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our Strategic Partnership, he said in a Facebook post.

On Tuesday, Modi will travel to Spain for an official visit, the first by an Indian prime minister in almost three decades.

He will call on King Felipe VI and hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy.

We will discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism, he said.

The prime minister said there is significant potential for deepening bilateral trade and investment ties.

We seek active participation of Spanish industry in various Indian projects including infrastructure, smart cities, digital economy, renewable energy, defence and tourism, he added.

He will also meet top CEOs of the Spanish industry and encourage them to partner in the Make in India initiative.

I look forward to their valuable recommendations for strengthening India-Spain economic partnership, he wrote.

From Spain, the prime minister will travel to St. Petersburg in Russia from May 31 to June 2 for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit.

...I will be conducting detailed discussions with President Putin to take forward our dialogue from the last Summit in Goa in October 2016, he said.

The two leaders will also be interacting with CEOs from the two countries.

On June 2, Modi and Putin will address the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) where India is the guest country.

In a first meeting of its kind, I will also have the opportunity to engage with Governors from various Russian regions to further broad base bilateral cooperation and more actively involve States/Regions and other diversified stakeholders, he said.

At the beginning of his visit, he will go to Piskarovskoye Cemetery to pay homage to those who perished during the siege of Leningrad.

He will also visit the world famous State Hermitage Museum and the Institute of Oriental manuscripts.

I greatly look forward to my visit to St. Petersburg in this special year for the bilateral relationship as both countries celebrate the 70th Anniversary of our diplomatic relations, Modi said.

In the last leg of the tour, he will visit France from June 2 to 3 for an official meeting with the newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

France is one of our most important Strategic Partners. I look forward to meeting President Macron and have discussions on issues of mutual interest, Modi said.

I would be exchanging views with the French President on important global issues including UN Security Council reforms and Indias permanent membership of the UN Security Council, Indias membership of the various multilateral export control regimes, counter-terrorism cooperation, collaboration on climate change and International Solar Alliance, he added.

France is Indias 9th largest investment partner and a key partner in its development initiatives in the area of defence, space, nuclear and renewable energy, urban development and railways.

I am committed to substantially strengthening and advancing our multi-faceted partnership with France, the prime minister said.
Hyderabad: BJP Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy on Sunday said the construction of a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya was a matter of faith for Hindus and that there could be no compromise on this issue.

He was addressing a public talk on 'Building Sri Ram Mandir in Ayodhya Through Legal Framework' organised by Virat Hindustan Sangam in Hyderabad.

"The Ram temple issue is very important for our (Hindus) existence and identity and there can be no compromise on this. I would like to tell you that Ram Mandir will be built at any cost and it will be built at the place where he (Lord Ram) was born and where 'pran prathistha puja' (consecration) has taken place, he said.

"In a petition filed in the Supreme Court, I had said it was my fundamental right to pray to Ram. It is our faith that Ram was born there and hence the 'mandir' (temple) will come up only at that place...no one can question it," said Swamy.

He said it had been proven by the experts of the Archaeological Survey of India that there existed a temple at that site. "Babri Masjid was built on the place where Ram was born and after demolishing the Ram Mandir, the Babri Masjid was constructed," claimed Swamy.

"In 1994, the then Narasimha Rao government in an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court had submitted that if it was proved that there was a mandir before the mosque came up at that place, all the land would be given to Hindus. Now I told (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi to cite this thing and give the land to Hindus, he said.

Masjid is only a place to read namaz and it can be read anywhere, but our temples, wherein once pran prathistha puja is done, it will forever remain a mandir," Swamy claimed.

The saffron leader claimed that there have been instances where mosques have been demolished for road development works and shifted to other places in Saudi Arabia and Turkey. The Supreme Court will take up the case on the Ram temple issue soon, he said.

"I will request to take up the matter on a day-to-day basis hearing and if it is done we will win the case in four months by Diwali. Now it is for the government and the Solicitor General to inform the Court that Swamy's fundamental right plea is correct. Ram Mandir will be definitely built by 2018," said the Rajya Sabha MP.

There is a need for Hindus to get united, Swamy stressed. On Kashmir issue, he said, "If Pakistan attacks India, its existence will be over and it will be divided into four parts."
Lucknow: With Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan wading into controversy with his remark over the recent Rampur molestation video, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma on Monday said that upholding the dignity of women is of utmost importance for the Yogi Adityanath Government, adding that there is no place for anti-social elements which disrespect women.

"As per Indian traditions, respecting women is of utmost priority and the current government has introduced laws for that. Due to our anti-Romeo squad, anyone with untoward intentions must think twice. There is no place for anti-social elements that disrespect women," Sharma told ANI.

He further said that the state government is responsible for the safety of the women and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government is bound to carry out their duties.

Earlier on Sunday, Azam Khan said that under the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government and the prevailing situation in the state, men should try and keep their women indoors.

In a sardonic attack at the BJP dispensation, Khan said looking at the accelerating cases of crime in the state, ladies should avoid going to suspicious places.

"There is nothing astonishing in the fact that incidents of murders, loot. Rapes are being reported under this government. After the Bulandshahr incident men should try and keep their women and ladies of the house indoor as much as possible. And women should also avoid going to suspicious or lone places," said Khan.

His remark came after a video of two women being molested by a group of men in broad daylight in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur surfaced, which set social media afire.

12 to 14 boys can be seen in the video, molesting the women, even while they pleaded to let them go.

Proving the sheer fearlessness of the perpetrators, the boys filmed the entire development and posted it on social media.

Besides manhandling and molesting the girls, the boys were laughing and making jokes the whole time, while the distraught girls kept on begging to be spared.

Surprisingly, it was not much long ago when Yogi-Adityanath Government has launched 'Anti-Romeo' squads to check on eve-teasing in public areas, to ensure the safety of girls in the state.
Chennai: The unprecedented drought in Tamil Nadu has forced TN foresters to sound an alert and close down bird sanctuaries early this year. The popular Vedanthangal bird sanctuary located in Kancheepuram district will close by June 1, which is one and a half months ahead of the usual time.

According to the Vedanthangal forest range officer G. Subhiah, this season has seen a drastic reduction in birds' arrival. With the water level fast falling, the sanctuary will be closed early this year. Birds have also started leaving the sanctuary. Last year close to 35,000 migratory and nesting birds visited the sanctuary and thousands of chicks successfully vacated the sanctuary by July end, but this year the migration season had ended in May, the ranger said. This year the sanctuary recorded 22000 birds and 90 per cent have left the sanctuary.

According to bird watchers, the deficit in summer showers coupled with monsoon failure turned water bodies bone dry. Most of the birds returned without nesting due to lack of water and prey. Whenever the monsoon fails, the foresters divert water from Maduranthagam reservoir and then release fingerlings to help the nesting birds in Vedanthangal, but when the entire northern Tamil Nadu is dry there are no other options, foresters added.

At present, a few hundred Pelican, egrets, painted stork and cormorants are there in the sanctuary. Guess by next month the entire Vedanthangal lake will be dry, said N. Balaji, a regular visitor to Vedanthangal.

District forest officers are now examining the water levels in wildlife sanctuaries and reserve forests. The only respite is that the reserve forests in Nilgiris, Hogenakkal and Krishnagiri have received good rainfall in the past two weeks, sources at Forest department headquarters in Panagal Building said.
Animal husbandry minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav said CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao is expected to convene a meeting to take a call. (Representational image)

Hyderabad: The Telangana state government will appeal to the Centre to lift the blanket ban on sale of cattle for slaughter. Cattle are sold in nearly 500 markets across the state.

The government feels that this draconian measure will affect around 85 lakh small and marginal farmers. Animal husbandry minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav said CM K. Chandrasekhar Rao is expected to convene a meeting to take a call.

According to the Central regulation, only farmland owners will be allowed in cattle business at animal markets. The notification covers bulls, bullocks, cows, buffaloes, steers, heifers and calves and camel. The government wants the Centre to lift the ban on sale of old and injured cattle for slaughter as they cannot be used in agricultural activities. Such cattle are usually sent to slaughter. If farmers are not allowed to sell such cattle, they will have to bear the financial burden of keeping them.

Centre must consult states: Talasani

States like Kerala and West Bengal have opposed the ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter and other states are seeking certain relaxations.

Animal husbandry minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav said that in a federal set-up, the Centre should consult states before taking such a crucial decision affecting lakhs of farmers, besides other industries which are dependent on cattle.

Such unilateral decisions taken by the Centre will create unnecessary problems in states. This issue is under the consideration of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao. He is expected to convene a meeting soon and decide how to go ahead on this issue, Mr Yadav said.

Yadav community celebrates the Sadar festival (buffalo carnival) in a grand manner in the city every year, the day after Diwali. This is now proscribed under the new orders.

The Telangana State government is planning to hold these celebrations officially from this Diwali. Mr Yadav himself has been leading the celebrations as minister for the last two years.

At present, there are 275 government-run animal markets in Telangana State and 175 private ones.

There are another 1,000 small markets in rural areas. As per animal husbandry department statistics, there are 92 lakh cows, bulls and buffaloes in the state.

Of these, 50 lakh are cows and bulls. Another imposition by the Central government is that farmers must have identity cards to sell cattle and need to seek certificates from agencies concerned to prove that the cattle is being sold only for agricultural purposes.

Who will give a certificate that old cattle is being sold for agricultural purpose? What can farmers do with old, useless cattle and other animals? Mr Yadav asked.
Chennai: DMK working President M K Stalin will lead a protest on May 31 in Chennai against the Centre's ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter at animal markets.

The party also hit out at the Palanisamy government for keeping mum on the issue when the neighbouring states of Kerala and Karnataka have opposed it.

In a release issued in Chennai, the DMK said the fundamental right to choice of food given by the Constitution has been snatched away by the Centre.

Quoting media reports, it said trade was hit at the Anthiyur cattle shanty in Tamil Nadu due to the stringent curbs.

Stalin will lead a protest at the district collectorate in Chennai against the Centre and sate governments on the issue, it added.

Chief Minister K Palanisamy had on Saturday said he will comment on the Centre's ban on cattle sale after going through the related notification.

Opposition parties, including the DMK, however, had condemned the move and demanded that the Centre withdrew the notification immediately.
Hailing from Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu, Dharshana, who has almost nil vision in right eye and partial in left, uses magnifying glass to read. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: The compulsion of using a magnifying glass for reading did not deter Dharshana M V from putting in her best efforts, as she scored 96.6 per cent and secured the third rank in CBSE class XII examination in the differently-abled category.

Aditya R Raj from Trivandrum, Lakshmi PV from Palakkad, (both in Kerala) and Dharshana M V from Krishnagiri of Tamil Nadu are top three scorers in CBSE class XII examinations in the category, results of which were announced on Sunday.

"I am very happy," Dharshana, from Nalanda International Public School in Krishnagiri, told PTI over the phone.

Dharshana suffers from microcornea which has rendered her right eye almost a 'nil vision' and the left one a partial vision.

Dharshana said despite the physical challenge she was motivated to put in her best and expressed gratitude to her parents and teachers for not putting pressure on her.

"My general principle is that I like to do my best in whatever I do. So when I started preparing for class XII examination, I decided I should do my best, whatever I could.

Keeping that in my mind I started preparing.

"For reading, I used magnifying glass. I got good support from my school and my parents. They did not create any fear in my mind about the exam and motivated me and instilled confidence that I could do well," she said.

Dharshana, a commerce stream student who scored 483 marks out of 500, said she needs to use magnifying glass to read small text.

She now wants to study commerce and become an entrepreneur, while also developing her music skills.

"I want to purse B. Com in Chennai and after that become an entrepreneur. I also want to develop my music talent," Dharshana, who is leraning in Carnatic music, said.
Hyderabad: The Congress Party is annoyed at the outcome of a government sponsored poll that gives the party just two seats in the 2019 general election. Several Congress leaders slammed Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Raos poll survey results on Sunday and challenged him to order a snap election or byelections to the 30 Assembly and Lok Sabha seats being held by defectors who joined the TRS.

In separate media interactions on Sunday, the Congressmen said that the party is ready to face the challenge and gave the Chief Minister three options: to dissolve the Assembly and go for mid-term polls, or let there be byelections for the 24 Assembly and three Lok Sabha seats being held by defectors, or at least cause a by-election to the Sircilla Assembly segment represented by Minister K. T. Rama Rao and prove the survey is right.

The Pradesh Congress Committee president Uttam Kumar Reddy charged Chief Minister Rao with heading one of the most-corrupt governments in the country. He said the Chief Minister, by periodically releasing bogus survey results, is trying to cover up his misdeeds and failures. He has demanded that the Chief Minister disclose which agency was engaged to carry out the survey. He said the people are ready to dump the TRS in the next general election. Senior Congress MLA, Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, demanded that the Chief Minister call for a byelection to the Nalgonda Lok Sabha segment from where Gutta Sukhender Reddy won in 2014 and then defected to the TRS. If Mr Gutta Reddy wins as the TRS candidate against him, Mr Komatireddy said he will quit both his Nalgonda Assembly seat and politics.

Shabbir Ali, leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council, said it is surprising that Mr K.T. Rama Rao got 91 per cent in the latest survey whereas his constituency was awarded 46 per cent in a survey held just two months ago. Did KTR create jobs for weavers or was Sircilla developed on the lines of Bhiwandi and Surat in these two months? he asked. He said the CMs address to the media following BJP president Amit Shahs state visit clearly showed that he was going to lose in the next election as his performance is going down day by day in the state.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As a first step towards making the state old age-friendly, two villages in Thiruvananthapuram and four in Palakkad will soon be declared as Vayo Souhruda grama panchayats. These villages will have all the necessary facilities to ensure that no person above the age of 60 is left unsheltered and unfed. All service, including medical and police help, will be at their beck and call.

The Vayo Souhruda project is being implemented with the assistance of Centre for Gerontological Studies. The panchayats that will be made 'old age'-friendly are: Manikkal, Poovachal and Vembayam panchayats in Thiruvanantha-puram and Karimba, Peruvembu, Mundoor, and Puthussery panchayats in Palakkad. The project is implemented under the LDF Government's 'Sayamprabha' Scheme.

"Under Sayamprabha, the idea is to provide senior citizens all the services they require in the most generous manner," social justice minister K.K. Shylaja said. The project will be implemented with the help of several departments and would guarantee safety, shelter, health, nutrition and even livelihood for senior citizens, the minister added. There will be well-endowed old age homes in each of these panchayats, equipped with a clinic to boot. As for senior citizens living in their own homes, they will be provided dedicated and free services in all areas from health to plumbing. Regular health check-ups will be conducted for senior citizens in shelter homes as well those living with their children in private homes.

A Geriatric Register will also be prepared in each of these panchayats. The register, which will be a comprehensive one with relevant details like medical history of senior citizens and dependant addresses, will be kept in the police station and government offices in the panchayat. The police stations will also set up a helpline number for senior citizens, and would also do a thorough check of maids and other persons working for senior citizens. The creation of a Geriatric Register was a directive issued by the DGP in a circular issued in 2010 after rules were framed for the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007.
Lucknow: BJP stalwarts LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti will appear before a special CBI court in Lucknow on Tuesday for framing of charges in the Babri Masjid demolition case.

Besides them, Special CBI judge SK Yadav had asked BJP leader Vinay Katiyar, VHP's Vishnu Hari Dalmia and a one-time firebrand Hindutva preacher Sadhvi Ritambara to present themselves before the court in person.

While directing the accused to present themselves in person, the judge had said no application for adjournment or exemption from personal appearance shall be entertained.

The court, which is hearing two separate cases relating to the demolition of the Babri masjid, would also frame charges against Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, Mahant Ram Vilas Vedanti, Baikunth Lal Sharma alias Prem Ji, Champat Rai Bansal, Mahant Dharma Das and Satish Pradhan in the second matter.

The Supreme Court had on April 19 ordered prosecution of Advani (89), Joshi (83), 58-year-old Bharti, and other accused for criminal conspiracy in the politically sensitive case. It had also ordered day-to-day trial to be concluded in two years.

The top court had called the destruction of the medieval-era monument a "crime" which shook the "secular fabric of the Constitution" while allowing the CBI's plea seeking restoration of criminal conspiracy charge against the four BJP leaders, including Katiyar (62), and others.

However, the Supreme Court had said BJP leader Kalyan Singh, who is the Rajasthan Governor and during whose tenure as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh the disputed structure was razed, is entitled to immunity under the Constitution as long as he holds the gubernatorial office.

It had transferred the case against Advani, Joshi, Bharti and three other accused from a Raebareli court to Lucknow for a joint trial in the demolition case.
Chandigarh: Facing sharp criticism over the recent slaughtering of a calf by the party's youth activists in Kerala's Kannur, the Congress Party on Monday assured that such elements have no place in their party and hence have been suspended.

"What we saw is completely unacceptable and is alien to Indian civil society, our culture and founding principles. Such elements have no place in the Congress party or in our culture. India's culture is not to cause harm to anybody, any living being much less to the holy cow which we all celebrate," Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said.

He further informed that the workers involved in the killing have been already suspended by the youth congress.

However, the Congress didn't miss the opportunity to attack the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over its recent order against selling cattle and said, "May we also ask whether BJP will also give similar advise to BJP ruling government in Goa and to Manohar Parrikar and Kiren Rijiju who has been blotching over similar incident or to other BJP ruled states where such incidents are common."

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had condemned the 'barbaric' incident while dubbing it as 'thoughtless and unacceptable.'

"What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric & completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party. I strongly condemn the incident," Rahul said in a tweet.

Earlier Sunday, Kannur Police registered a case against district president of Youth Congress and other Congress workers under Section 120 (A) of the Kerala Police Act, for slaughtering calf in public view.

The police filed the case on the basis of a video where the president of Youth Congress, Rigil Pookkutty and other Youth Congress workers could be seen slaughtering the calf.

The incident comes amid hue and cry over Centre's new rule prohibiting sale of animals for slaughter or religious sacrifice at livestock markets and animal fairs.

Students' Federation of India (SFI) also staged a protest in Kerala against the ban by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum.
Kolkata/ New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday strongly objected to the use of red beacon by West Bengal Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Arup Biswas despite the Centre's ban on it.

Biswas was seen using the red beacon atop his vehicle in Siliguri on Monday.

When media questioned him, he replied, "Our government has not yet banned red beacon. So, we are not bound to follow the instructions of others."

National Secretary of the BJP Rahul Sinha lambasted the Mamata Banerjee Government over it and alleged that the West Bengal Government was running on the policies of Imams like Barkati.

"Imams like Barkati are inner soul of the Trinamool Congress. Look at the language. Arup Biswas also took stand like Barkati that the Mamata Banerjee Government hasn't banned use of red beacon so why should he stop using it," said Sinha.

He said ministers like Biswas don't deserve to be minister in any state and he should resign.

Noor-ur-Rehman Barkati, the imam of Kolkata's Tipu Sultan mosque, had earlier this month was embroiled in controversy when he had refused to remove red beacon from his car. However, he had to remove it after various Muslim bodies opposed his defiant stand.

Another BJP leader Zafar Islam also launched a scathing attack on West Bengal government over Biswas' use of red beacon.

He said the Mamata Banerjee Government is only interested in power and not people.

"The Mamata Banerjee Government is only interested in power and not in serving people. They want to lead a life of VIP (Very Important Person) whereas Prime Minister Narendra Modi has clearly said that the people of this country are real VIPs," said Islam.

He said the use of red beacons by the ministers of Mamata Banerjee shows that power, VIP culture are important for them and not the aspirations of the common man.

Seeking to end the VIP culture, the Union Cabinet last month had decided that beacon lights will be removed from all vehicles from May 1, except emergency vehicles, like ambulances and fire brigade.

The notification mentioned that every year, the transport department of the state or union territory administration, as the case may be, shall issue a public notice bringing to the notice of the general public the list of authorities to whom the permission to use the vehicles specified.

The ban applies to union ministers, chief ministers, state cabinet ministers, bureaucrats and judges of the High Court and Supreme Court while President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and the Lok Sabha Speaker are exempted from the ban.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Berlin on Monday on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France aimed at boosting bilateral economic engagement with them and inviting more investment for India's transformation.

His visit to Germany, which he described as a "new chapter" in bilateral relations, will commence with a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel at her country retreat of Schloss Meseberg.

Both leaders will discuss issues of mutual interest in an informal setting over dinner at the 18th-century palace, nearly 80 km northwest of Berlin.

"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi said in a Facebook post ahead of his visit.

Modi said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."

Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, "German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation."

The more formal part of the visit will begin tomorrow when Modi is welcomed with military honours at the Chancellery, following which he will hold talks with Merkel as part of the fourth round of the bi-annual India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations [IGC]. The last IGC was held in New Delhi in October 2015 when bilateral ties were significantly scaled up.

In Berlin, the two leaders are expected to clinch a host of agreements and are likely to deliberate on several pressing global issues, including the situation in the South China Sea, China's 'One Belt, One Road' initiative and the growing threat of terrorism.

Prime Minister Modi and Chancellor Merkel will have a luncheon meeting with senior business leaders before inaugurating the Indo-German Business Forum tomorrow.

The deadlocked Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union (EU) is likely to take centre-stage at this meeting, with Germany-based CEOs keen to push for a further opening up of the Indian market.

The India-Germany Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), among India's 23 BITs with EU countries, had lapsed in March this year. Trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to USD 9.54 billion. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.

The German embassy in Berlin had launched the Make in India Mittelstand (MIIM) Programme in September 2015 to facilitate the German Mittelstand (SMEs) to do business in India.

Currently 73 German Mittelstand (SMEs) companies are being facilitated through MIIM Programme for their market entry and investment in India.

Out of these, 46 companies have progressed well in India investment plan, the embassy claims.

Modi will end his German tour with a courtesy call on German President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, before leaving for Spain tomorrow evening.
New Delhi: Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar on Monday while launching an anti-ragging mobile app introduced by the University Grants Commission (UGC) categorically stated that ragging will not be tolerated and students involved in it will not be allowed to continue their education in the respective institutions.

Simultaneously, Javadekar said the students would meet severe penalty and punishment as per the law.

Javadekar said, "This anti ragging app is a good step for protection and will give a feeling of security to students and those who are involved in ragging will not be tolerated and they will not be allowed to continue their education in that institution. At the same time they will meet severe penalty and punishment as per the law."

"Physical or mental torture of a new student is ragging which we won't allow, this is unacceptable and therefore this app will become a handy tool to any student who goes through such experience," he added.

Earlier, one had to visit the website for registering a complaint of ragging and the record shows that timely action was taken which in turn had resulted in the decrease of such instances. But still this ill has to be eliminated completely.

This mobile app will help students to register complaints to counter the menace of ragging and streamline the process of registering complaints.

It will work on android system on which students can log in and register their complaints immediately. Accordingly all concerned will be informed immediately and action will start immediately.

However the Minister expressed hope that good senior students will act as mentors for their juniors and was hopeful of the fact that majority of the senior students guide their juniors properly and in only a few cases ragging happens which needs to be completely eliminated from campuses.
JD(S) national president H.D. Deve Gowda and Chief Minister Siddaramaiah during the Balija Community Bruhath Samavesha in Bengaluru on Sunday. (Photo: Shashidhar B.)

New Delhi: In a move to get cracking for the Karnataka assembly elections due next year, the Congress has summoned all its top leaders including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to Delhi to meet Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Monday.

The main item on the agenda is finalising the name of the new KPCC president. The incumbent, Dr G. Parameshwar is expected to be replaced with two frontrunners for the post-Power Minister D.K. Shivakumar and former IT Minister S.R. Patil.

Shivakumar belongs to the Vokkaliga community which constitutes 15% of the state population. He enjoys a good rapport with Mr Gandhi. Patil belongs to the Lingayat community constituting about 20% of the state population.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is backing Patil because the BJPs CM candidate, B.S. Yedyurappa is also a Lingayat. So having the state unit chief from the same community as the BJPs CM candidate will take care of caste equations.

The newly appointed general secretary in charge of Karnataka, K.C. Venugopal has already submitted a report to the high command regarding the state unit chief. The final announcement is expected by May end.

Senior leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Veerappa Moily, K.H. Muniyappa, Rajya Sabha MPs B.K. Hariprasad and K Rehman Khan will be attending the meeting at which fissures in the Karnataka unit are also likely to come up.
Former TD MP from Adilababd Ramesh Rathode joins TRS in the presence of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao at Telangana Bhavan in Hyderabad on Monday.

Hyderabad: Asserting that all sections of people were backing the TRS and would vote for the party again as it had implemented all its poll promises, party president and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Monday slammed the BJP, Congress and Telugu Desam for targeting the ruling party.

Taking exception to Union labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya and others calling the TRS-sponsored survey bogus, Mr Rao said, Your party has also conducted surveys. Were they bogus? The survey is not bogus, but damak (brain) is bogus. You are not able to digest the survey which is favourable to the TRS. Your stomach is filled with gas.

Characterless Telugu Desam, addressless BJP, outdated Communists have no place in Telangana state, he said. People yearn for the TRS as it has done well for them.

He called Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu a cheat for going back on waiver of loans to farmers in his state, asked him to mind his business in AP. Mr Rao asserted that Mr Naidu had no place in Telangana state and would lose his deposit.

He challenged Congress MLAs to resign if they had the guts and contest again instead of demanding that the TRS get its legislators to resign.

You people resign and prove if you have public support. Why should we resign? We have resigned umpteen times. I myself have quit several times. We are fed up with resigning. I will not be surprised if there will be repeat of the GHMC polls results in the Assembly elections too, he said.

Mr Rao was speaking after admitting Telugu Desam former MP Ramesh Rathod, Congress leader P. Ravinder Rao and other TD and Congress leaders from Adilabad district into the party at Telangana Bhavan on Monday. Ministers T. Harish Rao, A. Indrakaran Reddy, Jogu Ramanna, Tummala Nageswara Rao and others were present.

Listing out the historic political events till the formation of the state and subsequent series of developmental and welfare activities that stunned the state and country, Mr Rao said the people would vote for TRS on just one issue  electricity.

Farmers suffered for ages for want of quality power. Farms dried up due to lack of water, agriculture pump sets got burnt due to low voltage. But its a thing of the past. From a mere Rs 5 lakh annual income through sand mining, we got `370 crore in 2015-16, Rs 432 crore in 2016-17 and we have now set a target of Rs 650 crore, he said.

He said he was confident that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would back 10 per cent reservations to STs. Mr Rao said he would fight with the Centre if 12 per cent reservations for Muslims was not approved.
Sony had officially announced that its latest, second-gen Digital Paper (model DPT-RP1) is set to arrive in the US markets sometime in June. The 13.3-inch E Ink tablet is expected to be priced at around $700.

The company took to its official website to make the announcement. The E Ink tablet comes along with a bunch of improvements including a higher resolution (1,650 x 2,200). In comparison to its predecessor, the second-gen Sony Digital Paper is going to be lighter and will sport a thinner design as well. Users can use to tablet to read and annotate documents. Sony has specifically targeted professionals and students who have to handle complex documents such a research papers with its latest innovation.

Digital Paper has proven to be a better way to read and write in a range of professional applications, said Bob Nell, director, Digital Paper at Sony Electronics. Now, an array of new features and improved performance broadens its appeal and expands our potential audience beyond the professional markets that have already embraced Digital Paper. With this second generation, it truly is  paper perfected, he added.

The Digital Paper offers 16GB of internal storage that can carry up to 10,000 PDF documents and it further enables up to 3 weeks of use on a single charge using rechargeable lithium-ion batteries.

Users, through the use of the Digital Paper companion app on a PC or Mac, can enable a two-way transfer of single or multiple files to and from the tablet via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or USB. It also enables auto sync and document sharing from document management services such as Dropbox, Box and Google Docs. The Print to Digital Paper function lets users print from any Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or PDF document.

No word on when the Sony Digital Paper will arrive in other markets, has been out yet.

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In a new move, Dubai has plans for its future to cater to its citizens and become the happiest city on Earth. The plans will take shape by learning and using the data from citizens to improvise on government services.

Dubai has the tallest skyscrapers, and is one of the only cities in the world where even the police use Lamborghinis on the man-made islands. In an interview to Motherboard, director of Smart Dubai Dr. Aisha Butti Bin Bishr said that they will harvest data from its citizens to make the big effort. She is heading this grand plan and told MB that the e-Government, that started way back in 2001, by ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, believes that implementing technology can benefit the city. Their vision is to make Dubai the smartest and happiest city in the world and the way to do that is to use technology to the fullest.

The goal will be achieved by using a new initiative, called the Smart City platform, where Dubai wants to bring efficient, seamless, safe and impactful experiences across the city with one single digital platform. This smart platform will consist of different layers, which include infrastructure, which will get in data from different databases around the city, and an application layer, where government services will be provided based on the data ingested.

A smartphone app will also be implemented which is known as Dubai Now Platform, where anyone can download and use it. The app will feature services such as health, driving, residency, visas, businesses, housing, education, security and justice. This app/service will help people manage their day-to-day aspects and be more aware about the city around them.

To know more about the move, click on the interview by Motherboard , where Dr. Aisha Butti Bin Bishr explains more about the Smart City.

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We have arrived at such a stage in life that WhatsApp has become an integral form of communication. Its widespread roots can be found across all age groups, especially the teenagers. Todays youth spend hours in the virtual space, particularly during evenings and night-time.

Now, a new study led by Arie Kizel from the University of Haifa in Israel has come to the conclusion that WhatsApp allows young people to express themselves in ways they cannot at school.

The study which seeks to examine the way people experience the virtual space was recently published online. While, many parents are concerned about their kids encountering cyber-bullying on social media platforms including WhatsApp; researchers claim that the app actually provides the teenagers with a more intimate forum than schools, to communicate and openly express themselves.

Arie Kizel conducted a study wherein participants were recorded as describing WhatsApp as a place where there is respect for language. Kizel especially emphasised on the importance of WhatsApp group chats by saying, The group chats are based on trust among the members of the group, and this enhances the possibility to be in contact.

The study reportedly included two groups comprising of eight members each. The members essentially fell between the age group of 14 to 17-year-olds. Thereafter, the participants were asked to analyse texts taken from the class WhatsApp group.

Questions like,"What do you feel about the relationships that were created in the virtual domain? What did the group give you? What didnt the group give you? How was this group different from groups that dont operate online?, were required to be answered.

On WhatsApp, I usually feel that I am not being judged, particularly because there isnt any eye contact or physical contact, only words and signs. So I feel more intimacy and security. I expose myself more, but it isnt embarrassing, maybe because I dont see peoples physical reactions, one participant in the study explained.

Another participant stated that chatting on WhatsApp groups is an intimate and personal experience because its a place wherein the participant can write without anyone hearing it.

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Till quite recently, travellers entering India, including her own citizens, had to answer a question in the arrival card at immigration: Are you carrying a satellite phone? India remains among the small group of nations including, Russia, China, Cuba and Myanmar which bans the use of satellite phones within its boundaries, thanks to perceptions that such calling devices, untethered to a terrestrial operator within the country, could be exploited by terrorists.

In the process India has denied itself a robust and fail-safe technology which has served well in disaster situations worldwide when all conventional communication channels fail. The need was acutely felt during the Chennai floods of December 2015, when rescue operations were cut off from victims for almost two days. Ironically, only five months earlier, in July that year, when Nepal suffered a massive earthquake, satellite phones as well as sat-backed Broadband Global Area Networks (BGAN) were widely used by aid agencies to coordinate rescue and rehabilitation.

Perhaps someone in Delhi was watching... because last week, in what is a huge change of policy, the Indian government enabled BSNL and its partner, global satcom services leader Inmarsat, to set up an Indian Global Satellite Positioning System ( GSPS) gateway in Ghaziabad  a prelude to shortly offering government and private sector customers, access to satphone services. BSNL will, offer the service initially to government departments-- disaster relief agencies, Border Security, Railways etc. In 18 months to two years, the service will be offered to all citizens, says BSNL Chairman Anupam Srivastava. Call rates are expected to be in the Rs 30 to Rs 40 per minute range.

Inmarsat's world-wide services are backed by three geostationary satellites, recently augmented by a fourth for redundancy. By setting up an earth station here, Inmarsat has addressed the government's security concerns  since the communication will now land within India  like all other domestic cellular telecom. In a win-win it will now allow government to equip civil authority and the national disaster relief agencies with satphones as well BGAN-type data terminals which will work when all other forms of communication  radio, cellphone, Internet and telephone  fail.

In Singapore at the CommunicAsia show last week, I got to try out the Inmarsat ISatPhone2, a handy 316 gram device with its own swing-out satellite antenna. It works for voice, text and data  but the data connection is something of a standby and is quite slow  around 2.4KBPS. The voice was crystal clear when I called home.

Inmarsat is not the only player on the satcom scene. The other names are Iridium, Globalstar and Thuraya, with fairly similar services. Iridium and Globalstar use 40-60 low level earth orbiting satellites rather than geostationary satellites.

Once India has met its security criteria, chances are, it will soon open up satphone usage to private enterprises as well. "Only Connect!" said E. M. Forster, famously, in his book 'Howard's End'. Technology has changed beyond recognition, but the need to connect people to people, is ageless.

India's eye in the sky

India's indigenously developed network of seven satellites to provide her own global positioning system or GPS is now, up and working. The ground receivers to work with what was as the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) and has now been rechristened NAVIC (navigator in Sanskrit) for NAVigation with Indian Constellation, are falling into place. Services are expected by end 2017.

With this, India will join a small club  US, Russia, China, EU  with its own GPS system. The advantage is hugely strategic: NAVIC will cover all of India and up to 1500km beyond, to provide pin-point positioning and navigation. Today, everyone uses the US-based GPS system. What if in a future scenario, its use is denied to us? We will then have our own  and will not be susceptible to blackmail. Meanwhile the government is being sensible: GPS which has 30 satellites will remain the standard, but NAVIC will complement it. Already Indian aviation is using one of NAVIC's services  GAGAN  for aircraft guidance.

IndiaTechOnline

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A man poses for the photo with his face covered with money and by a sign that reads in Portuguese 'Temer Out'. (Photo: AP)

Rio De Janeiro (Brazil): Some of the best Brazilian musicians organised a protest concert on Sunday, demanding the resignation of President Michel Temer amid corruption allegations. They also called for new elections.

Accused of paying an imprisoned former Senate colleague hush money, Temer is refusing to resign and released a statement denying the incident.

According to the statement, President Temer had not authorised any bribes to be paid to imprisoned former House speaker Eduardo Cunha, in exchange for his silence regarding a long-running corruption investigation.

As per reports, the musicians like Caetano Veloso and Milton Nascimento performed at the event. It also saw performances by Teresa Cristina, Martnalia, Mano Brown, Criolo and others.

The protesters demanded an early vote, if Temer resigns or is forced out, rather than have his replacement picked by Congress.

Brazilian law calls for the lower house speaker to serve as interim president for up to 30 days until Congress picks someone to finish the presidential term, which runs through 2018.
A US-led international coalition has been carrying out air strikes against the IS group in Iraq and Syria since 2014 (Photo: AP)

Washington: Civilian casualties are inevitable in the war against the Islamic State group but the United states is doing "everything humanly possible" to avoid them, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said in an interview aired Sunday.

A US-led international coalition has been carrying out air strikes against the IS group in Iraq and Syria since 2014, and nongovernmental organizations say the attacks are claiming ever more civilian lives.

Interviewed on CBS's "Face the Nation" program, Mattis said that "civilian casualties are a fact of life in this sort of situation."

But he quickly added that "we do everything humanly possible, consistent with military necessity, taking many chances to avoid civilian casualties -- at all costs."

Some NGOs have blamed the rising civilian death toll on a push by President Donald Trump's administration to accelerate the pace of combat in an effort to "annihilate" the jihadists.

But the Pentagon contests both the NGOs' death counts and the charge that a new sense of urgency under Trump is to blame.

"We have not changed the rules of engagement," Mattis said. "There is no relaxation of our intention to protect the innocent."

The coalition has officially acknowledged responsibility for more than 450 civilian deaths since its bombing campaign began in 2014, including 105 in the Iraqi city of Mosul on March 17.

However, Airwars -- a London-based collective of journalists and researchers that tracks civilian deaths in Iraq and Syria -- reports that coalition strikes have killed at least 3,681 people.

Although the Pentagon on Thursday acknowledged that an American bombing attack in Mosul on March 17 claimed at least 105 civilian lives, it blamed munitions stored by the jihadists in the houses targeted.

That, Mattis said Sunday, showed "once again the callous disregard that is characterized by every operation they have run."
Washington: Congressional Democrats on Sunday demanded to hear directly from top White House adviser Jared Kushner over allegations of proposed secret back-channel communications with Russia, saying the security clearance of President Donald Trump's son-in-law may need to be revoked.

Trump, having returned from a nine-day overseas trip, immediately railed against administration leaks, calling them "fabricated lies," in a flurry of tweets.

And his Homeland Security head defended the idea of establishing that kind of communication as a "smart thing" and said he didn't see "any big issue here" for Kushner.

But to the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee, it's "obviously very concerning" that a key Trump campaign figure was possibly seeking secret communications with a country that intelligence experts say intervened in the 2016 election.

Rep. Adam Schiff of California said the government needed to "get to the bottom" of the matter and urged a review of Kushner's security clearance "to find out whether he was truthful."

"If not, then there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance," Schiff said.

The Associated Press and other news organizations reported that Kushner in December proposed a back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team.

Kushner spoke with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about facilitating sensitive discussions to explore the incoming administration's options with Russia as it developed its Syria policy.

The intent was to connect Trump's chief national security adviser at the time, Michael Flynn, with Russian military leaders, a person familiar with the discussions told the AP. The person wasn't authorized to publicly discuss private policy deliberations and insisted on anonymity.

Russia, a pivotal player in Syria, has backed Syrian President Bashar Assad, often at the expense of civilians and at odds with US policy during Syria's long civil war.

The White House did not acknowledge the meeting or Kushner's attendance until March. At the time, a White House official dismissed it as a brief courtesy meeting.

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, described the latest allegations involving Kushner as "serious" and called for a thorough investigation.

"He needs to answer for what was happening at the time," Booker said. "What's worrying me are the patterns we're seeing. So one is this administration not talking about our values, cozying up to authoritarian leaders. And the other pattern we have is just a continuous drumbeat of inappropriate contacts with the Russians."

Lawyers for Kushner said he was willing to talk with federal and congressional investigators about his foreign contacts and his work on the Trump campaign.

The disclosure of the back channel put the White House on the defensive. Just back from visiting the Middle East and Europe, Trump on Sunday dismissed recent reports as "fake news."

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies," Trump tweeted. He added: "Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names ... it is very possible that those sources don't exist."

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said he didn't know if the news reports were true but described back-channel communications as a "good thing."

He was echoing the sentiment of National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, who declined to address the contents of Kushner's December meeting with the Russian diplomat to reporters in Sicily over the weekend and suggested that back-channel communications were commonplace and not concerning.

"It's both normal, in my opinion, and acceptable," Kelly said. "Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organizations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us is a good thing." "I don't see the big deal," he added.

Kushner's involvement in the proposed back channel was first reported by The Washington Post, which said he suggested using Russian diplomatic facilities for the discussions, apparently to make them more difficult to monitor.

The newspaper cited anonymous US officials who were briefed on intelligence reports on intercepted Russian communications.

The Post reported that Kislyak was taken aback by the suggestion of allowing an American to use Russian communications gear at its embassy or consulate - a proposal that would have carried security risks for Moscow as well for as the Trump team.

According to the person familiar with the Kushner meeting, the Trump team eventually felt there was no need for a back channel once Rex Tillerson was confirmed as secretary of state on Feb. 1.

Flynn served briefly as Trump's national security adviser before being fired in February. Officials said he misled Vice President Mike Pence about whether he and the ambassador had discussed US sanctions against Russia in a phone call.

Sally Yates, the former acting attorney general, told Congress this month that that deception left Flynn vulnerable to being blackmailed by the Russians.

Flynn remains under federal investigation in Virginia over his foreign business ties. He was interviewed by the FBI in January about his contacts with Kislyak.

Kushner was a trusted Trump adviser last year, overseeing the campaign's digital strategy. He remains an influential confidant within the White House as does his wife, Ivanka Trump.

Federal investigators and several congressional committees are looking into any connections between Russia and the Trump campaign, including allegations that there may have been collaboration to help Trump and harm his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.

The Senate intelligence committee, which is investigating Russia's meddling in the 2016 US presidential election, has requested information and documents from Trump's campaign dating back to July 2015, the AP and other news outlets confirmed.

Kelly appeared on "Fox News Sunday," NBC's "Meet the Press" and ABC's "This Week," Schiff also spoke on ABC, and Booker was on CNN's "State of the Union."
Mexico City: A council of Mexican indigenous groups backed by the Zapatista rebels has selected a Nahua Indian woman as the country's first indigenous female presidential candidate.

The Indian Governance Council selected Maria de Jesus Patricio to run in the 2018 election, issuing a statement on Sunday saying that "we will seek to put her name on the ballot." Because the council is not a registered political party, it may need signatures to get Patricio on the ballot.

The council is calling for an "anti-capitalist and honest" government, saying: "We don't seek to administer power; we seek to dismantle it."

Local media describe Patricio as a traditional healer from the western state of Jalisco. The Zapatistas led a brief armed uprising for Indian rights in 1994, but have stayed out of electoral politics.
Washington: The intelligence community in the United States is believed to have informed the US Congress that Pakistan has by and large failed to curb militants and terrorists operating from its soil.

It added that because of this failure, "these (terror) groups will (continue to) present a sustained threat to American interests in the region, and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan.

According to the Dawn, during a Congressional hearing on Afghanistan and the ongoing war against terror elements there, the intelligence chiefs reportedly gave a candid assessment of the situation in war-torn Afghanistan to the Senate Armed Services Committee.

A transcript, released this weekend, shows that though much of the debate focused on Pakistan, there was a concern expressed that despite increased military efforts to defeat the Taliban, these militants would continue to make gains, especially in the rural areas of Afghanistan.

"Afghan security forces' performance will probably worsen due to a combination of Taliban operations, combat casualties, desertions, poor logistics support and weak leadership," warned National Intelligence Director Dan Coats. Coats leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI.

Illinois Republican Senator Joni Kay Ernst asked the intelligence chiefs to spell out the measures that Washington would like Kabul's neighbours to take to help stabilise the region.

"I think certainly an evaluation of how we work with Pakistan to address the situation of the harbouring of terrorist groups would be essential to a strategy that affects Afghanistan," Coats replied.

"Because that is potentially a very disrupting situation, putting our own troops at risk and undermining the strategy of dealing with the Taliban and local groups that are trying to undermine the (Afghan) government. So it's a very clear link that I think would have to be addressed in conjunction with whatever's done in Afghanistan."

"Besides more troops, which I anticipate might be part of the plan that we see, we need to implement a different strategy on the ground in Afghanistan?" Senator Ernst asked Defence Intelligence director Lt. Gen. Vincent Stewart

"We've got to get a couple of things. One, very clear that Afghanistan's security and stability is in the interest of all of the parties in the region and does not pose a risk to Pakistan," Lt. Gen. Stewart replied.

"We've got to convince Pakistan that if they're harbouring any of the Haqqani network members that it is not in their interest to continue to host the Haqqani network."

Lt, Gen. Stewart also urged the Trump administration to work with Afghanistan's neighbours to go after the 20 terrorist organisations that were still active in the region.

"They undermine not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but all of the region," he added.

Lt. Gen. Stewart also suggested "pushing" Pakistan to do more against the Haqqani network and urged US policymakers to "separate the Taliban from the Pashtun", because Pakistan wanted a Pashtun-dominated Afghanistan.

"So we've got to get the conversation going again with Pakistan about their role in not harbouring any of these terrorists, helping to stabilise Afghanistan and, I think, maybe, we'll have some progress," he said.

Lt. Gen. Stewart said he believed Pakistan still had some influence in bringing Taliban to the table. "So we've got to get them to think about reconciliation, that the status quo is not in their best interest," he said.

The intelligence chiefs also flagged the issue of Pakistan's concern over India's influence in Afghanistan, and cautioned that the latter could look to China to offset this perceived imbalance in regional geo-politics and end its so-called global isolation.

"They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to the state of Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations. so that - if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan interests," he said.
Jolo: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has said he will ignore the Supreme Court and congress as he enforces martial law across the southern third of the country, even though the constitution gives them oversight.

Duterte on Tuesday imposed martial law in the Mindanao region, home to 20 million people, following deadly clashes in a mostly Muslim-populated city involving militants whom he said were trying to establish a caliphate for the Islamic State group.

"Until the police and the armed forces say the Philippines is safe, this martial law will continue. I will not listen to others. The Supreme Court, congress, they are not here," Duterte told soldiers on Saturday.

"Are they the ones dying and losing blood, bleeding, hemorrhaging because there is no help, no reinforcement? It's not them."

Philippines' Duterte vows to ignore Supreme Court and Congress as he enforces martial law, even though constitution gives them oversight pic.twitter.com/0EyQmrExIx  AFP news agency (@AFP) May 29, 2017

The 1987 constitution imposes limits on martial law to prevent a repeat of the abuses under dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who was deposed by a famous "People Power" revolution the previous year.

The charter requires the president to submit a report to congress on why martial law has been declared.

Congress can then revoke a president's declaration of martial law, which is limited to 60 days. If a president decides to extend martial law, congress can again review and revoke.

But Duterte threatened to ignore the mechanisms in place for extension. "They say after 60 days I should go to congress: I don't know," he said.

The Supreme Court can also rule on martial law's legality if a case is filed before it, but Duterte said the judges would not understand the situation.

"The Supreme Court will say they will examine into the factual (basis). Why, I don't know. They are not soldiers.

They do not know what is happening on the ground," Duterte said yesterday on Jolo, a southern island that is under martial law.

A day after declaring martial law, Duterte described the nine years of military rule under Marcos as "very good" and said his would be similar.

Duterte also told soldiers on Friday they would be allowed to conduct searches and arrests without warrants.

"During martial law, your commanders, you, you can arrest any person, search any house. There is no more warrant needed," he told troops.

His comments contradicted a government statement released yesterday to explain martial law.

"Warrants of arrest or search warrants should be issued," the statement from the government's information agency said. "No person may be arrested and detained without orders coming from these civil courts."

Duterte has overwhelming support in congress, which is this week widely expected to endorse his initial declaration of martial law.

However the Supreme Court chief justice, Maria Lourdes Sereno, on Friday expressed concerns about the declaration.
Frankfurt: Europe "must take its fate into its own hands" faced with a western alliance divided by Brexit and Donald Trump's presidency, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday.

"The times in which we could completely depend on others are on the way out. I've experienced that in the last few days," Merkel told a crowd at an election rally in Munich, southern Germany.

"We Europeans truly have to take our fate into our own hands," she added.

While Germany and Europe would strive to remain on good terms with America and Britain, "we have to fight for our own destiny," Merkel went on.

Special emphasis was needed on warm relations between Berlin and newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron, she said.

The chancellor had just returned from a G7 summit which wound up Saturday without a deal between the US and the other six major advanced nations on upholding the 2015 Paris climate accords.

Merkel on Saturday labelled the result of the "six against one" discussion "very difficult, not to say very unsatisfactory".

The US president tweeted that he would reveal whether or not the US would stick to the global emissions deal -- which he pledged to jettison on the campaign trail -- only next week.

On a previous leg of his first trip abroad as president, Trump had repeated past criticism of NATO allies for failing to meet the defensive alliance's military spending commitment of 2.0 percent of GDP.

Trump also reportedly described German trade practices as "bad, very bad," in Brussels talks last week, complaining that Europe's largest economy sells too many cars to the US.

Sunday's event saw Merkel renew bonds with the Christian Social Union (CSU), Bavarian sister party to her own centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), ahead of a parliamentary vote in September.

Polls show the chancellor, in power since 2005, on course to be re-elected for a fourth term.
Yasin also said that treating the seriously injured victims was incredibly distressing. (Photo: LinkedIn)

London: A 37-year-old Pakistani-origin doctor, who spent 48 hours saving the lives of victims of Manchester terror attack, was racially abused and called a terrorist after being told to "go back to your country", media reports said on Monday.

Naveed Yasin, a trauma and orthopaedic surgeon, was on his way back to Salford Royal Hospital to continue to help the victims when a middle-aged man pulled up beside him and hurled abuse at him.

He was called a "brown, P*** b******" and a "terrorist" by a thug in a van after spending two days operating on people injured in the blast, the Manchester Evening News reported. "Go back to your country, you terrorist. We don't want you people here!", the man said.

"I can't take away the hatred he had for me because of my skin colour...and the prejudices he had associated with this," Yasin said. Yasin was born and brought up in Keighley, West Yorkshire. He lives in Trafford with his wife and two daughters.

His great-grandfather moved to Yorkshire from Pakistan in the 1960s. "Terror attacks don't discriminate against race or religion but this [the racial abuse] didn't discriminate either," he said.

Yasin also said that treating the seriously injured victims was incredibly distressing. "The injuries patients have had include horrific [damage] to limbs, typical bomb-blast injuries," he said.

Yasin added that his daughter could have been among the victims. His eldest daughter Amelia, 11, had wanted to go to the targeted Ariana Grande concert, but he and his wife Firdaus ruled against it because it was on a school night.

Yasin said that he and his colleagues had found working on the victims of last week's suicide bombing at Ariana Grande concert in Manchester Arena that killed 22 people, to be an "extremely profound and traumatising experience".

British police yesterday conducted fresh raids in Manchester and arrested a 19-year-old man in connection with the concert bombing, taking the total number of those in custody over the attack to 13.
It was the Norths third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year. (Photo: Representational/File)

Beijing: China pleaded again for dialogue on Monday to ease regional tensions after North Korea launched its latest missile test in defiance of UN sanctions. The Chinese foreign ministry urged Pyongyang in a statement to refrain from activities that go against United Nations Security Council resolutions.

We hope that related parties can remain calm and restrained, ease the tension on the peninsula, and bring the peninsula issue into the right track of peaceful dialogue again, it said.

It was the Norths third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year  carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

Following North Koreas test-firing earlier this month of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the Norths main trade partner and ally, has repeatedly called for a resumption of six-party talks that have been dormant since North Korea walked out on the negotiations in 2009.

Washington says it is willing to enter into talks with Pyongyang, but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.
The ICJ on May 18 stayed the execution of Kulbhushan Jadhav. (Photo: AP)

Islamabad: The ICJ will neither acquit nor release Indian national Kulbushan Jadhav, who has been sentenced to death by a military court, the lawyer representing Pakistan at the global court claimed on Monday, asserting that India has wrongly claimed victory in the case.

"The Jadhav case is a very clear case. He can never be released or acquitted," Khawar Qureshi told media after a meeting with Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali.

"You are making something out of nothing," he told reporters.

"Foreign Office will be giving you a much more detailed press statement soon," he was quoted as saying by the Nation.

Qureshi also advised mediapersons to "behave responsibly" and "give Pakistani officials the respect they deserve."

The UK-based lawyer said that India has "wrongly claimed victory" after the Hague-based court "temporarily" stayed the execution of Jadhav.

"The problem seems to be that this case is more about political point scoring than about the law," he said.

Jadhav, 46, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of "involvement in espionage and sabotage activities" against the country.

The ICJ on May 18 stayed the execution of Jadhav.

The ruling triggered criticism of the Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) for its "poor handling" and also for its choice of Qureshi, who represented Pakistan's case before the ICJ.

Several political analysts and politicians had claimed that the country's legal counsel was not adequately prepared.

Following the verdict, media reports claimed that the Attorney General will represent Pakistan in the Jadhav's case at the ICJ after widespread calls for a change in the country's legal team.

Meanwhile, the Attorney General said that Pakistan would present all evidence before the ICJ in the Jadhav case, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported.

He claimed that Pakistan's stance has not been rejected at the ICJ and the interim verdict of the court is not a defeat or victory of any country.

Replying to a question, the Attorney General said, "Pakistan is a responsible country and would not violate the international laws but never compromise on the national integrity."

The Attorney General said he would consult the national security committee on the Jadhav issue.

He said Pakistan is satisfied over the matter of his arrest and punishment and the country is not "answerable in front of anyone" about the decision of death sentence to Jadhav.

To another query, he said Pakistani court has provided justice to Indian woman Uzma, who was forced to marry a Pakistani man at gun point.

She was allowed by the Islamabad High Court to return to India following a plea she filed with the court requesting its directive after her husband took her immigration papers.
North Korea today test-fired a ballistic missile, the latest in a series of launches that have ratcheted up tensions over its quest to develop weapons capable of hitting the United States.



The short-range missile flew for six minutes before landing in the Sea of Japan, the US Pacific Command said, adding it was working on a more detailed assessment.



The launch comes in fresh defiance of tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised Friday that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved".



Trump's comments came at the G7 summit in a meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan, which along with South Korea is most immediately threatened by North Korean belligerence.



Abe swiftly condemned today's launch and vowed "concrete action" with the US.



"We will never tolerate North Korea's continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community," Abe told reporters.



"As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international community's top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States," he said.



In Washington, a National Security Council spokesman said Trump had been briefed on the launch.



South Korea's new president, Moon Jae-In, ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said leader Kim Jong-Un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.



The isolated regime has been stepping up efforts to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental United States.



The missile launches and Pyongyang's threat to stage its sixth nuclear test have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention was an option under consideration.



South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said today's missile had a flight range of about 450 kilometres.



Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, told reporters the missile appeared to have fallen into the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) -- waters extending 200 nautical miles from its coast.



The regime has carried out two atomic tests and dozens of missile launches since the beginning of last year, with multiple sets of UN sanctions failing to halt its weapons push.



Following North Korea's test-firing of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet earlier this month, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.



But China, the North's main trade partner and ally, has made it clear that the push for diplomatic talks -- not imposing more sanctions -- was the priority.



The United States has said it is willing to enter into talks with North Korea -- but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.



Kim Jong-Un has sought to ramp up North Korea's nuclear programme under his rule, saying the regime needs atomic weapons to defend itself against the threat of invasion.



The UN Security Council adopted two sanctions resolutions last year to pile pressure on Pyongyang and deny the regime the hard currency needed to fund its military programmes.



In all, six sets of sanctions have been imposed on North Korea since it first tested an atomic device in 2006.
A search operation was launched by the Punjab Police and the Army after an abandoned bag containing Army fatigues was found here, a police official said today.



A local resident informed the police about the bag yesterday following which the search operation was conducted in Pathankot city and Mamoon Cantonment here.



"We conducted a search operation along with Army officials here to look for any suspicious person," the official said.



"Five shirts and two trousers were found in a wheat flour bag at a secluded place near the Defence Road here," the official said.



In 2015, three heavily-armed terrorists wearing Army fatigues had hijacked a car and stormed a police station in Dinanagar town of Gurdaspur district. They killed seven persons, including a Superintendent of Police, before they were gunned down.



Last year, four terrorists who had sneaked in from across the border had attacked the Pathankot Air Base on the intervening night of January 1 and 2, claiming the lives of seven security personnel.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Berlin today at the start of his six-day tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France aimed at boosting bilateral economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investment for India's transformation.



His visit to Germany, which he described as a "new chapter" in bilateral relations, will kick off with a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel at her country retreat of Schloss Meseberg this evening.



Both leaders will discuss issues of mutual interest in an informal setting over dinner at the 18th-century palace, nearly 80 km north-west of Berlin.



"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi said in a Facebook post ahead of his visit.



Modi said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."



Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, "German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation."



The more formal part of the visit will begin tomorrow when Modi is welcomed with military honours at the Chancellery, following which he will hold talks with Merkel as part of the fourth round of the bi-annual India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations [IGC]. The last IGC was held in New Delhi in October 2015 when bilateral ties were significantly scaled up.



In Berlin, the two leaders are expected to clinch a host of agreements and are likely to deliberate on several pressing global issues, including the situation in the South China Sea, China's 'One Belt, One Road' initiative and the growing threat of terrorism.



Prime Minister Modi and Chancellor Merkel will have a luncheon meeting with senior business leaders before inaugurating the Indo-German Business Forum tomorrow.



The deadlocked Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union (EU) is likely to take centre-stage at this meeting, with Germany-based CEOs keen to push for a further opening up of the Indian market.



The India-Germany Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), among India's 23 BITs with EU countries, had lapsed in March this year. Trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.



Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to USD 9.54 billion. A total of 1,800 German companies is operating in India.



The German embassy in Berlin had launched the Make in India Mittelstand (MIIM) Programme in September 2015 to facilitate the German Mittelstand (SMEs) to do business in India.



Currently, 73 German Mittelstand (SMEs) companies are being facilitated through MIIM Programme for their market entry and investment in India.



Out of these, 46 companies have progressed well in India investment plan, the embassy claims.



Modi will end his German tour with a courtesy call on German President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, before leaving for Spain tomorrow evening.


Curfew-like restrictions continued in parts of Kashmir for the second consecutive day today as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Bhat in an encounter with security forces.



The restrictions were in place in seven police station areas of Srinagar - - Khanyar, Nowhatta, Safakadal, M R Gunj, Rainawari, Kralkhud and Maisuma, officials said.



Strict restrictions also continued in Anantnag and Shopian districts and Pulwama town in south Kashmir and in the township of Sopore in Baramulla district of north Kashmir, the officials said.



In all the restrictions were in place in four out of 10 districts in the valley.



They said Section 144 of CrPc continued in the districts of Budgam and Ganderbal in central Kashmir.



The officials said the curbs in these areas continued for the second day as a pre-emptive measure to prevent spread of violent protests which took place on Saturday immediately after Bhat was killed along with his colleague in an encounter in Soimoh area of Tral in south Kashmirs Pulwama district.



A civilian was also killed allegedly in cross firing between militants and security forces during the encounter.



Though there were few stone-pelting incidents in some areas of the valley yesterday, the situation remained under control.



A police spokesman said yesterday that there were six incidents of stone pelting in Pulwama, Kulgam, Shopian and Sopore, but the situation across the valley remained peaceful and under control.



He said police and security forces used maximum restraint while dealing with the situation at these places and miscreants were chased away.



Meanwhile, normal life remained affected in the rest of the valley for the second day due to a two-day strike called by separatists to protest killing of the two militants and use of "brute force" against protestors.



The separatist trio - chairmen of both factions of Hurriyat Conference, Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, and JKLF chief Yasin Malik  have also called for a march to Tral tomorrow to pay tributes to the slain militants.



While Malik was arrested from his residence here yesterday, Geelani and Mirwaiz are under house detention.



The authorities have suspended mobile internet services in the valley, while the outgoing call facility on prepaid numbers has also been snapped as a precautionary measure.



Kashmir University has postponed all examinations scheduled to be held today and tomorrow.



A spokesman of the university said fresh dates for the deferred examinations shall be notified later.

Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST), Awantipora, on Sunday also postponed the examination scheduled for today.



The university also suspended the class work for today in view of the prevailing situation.



Schools and colleges have also been closed for today in Srinagar and for two days in Pulwama.




The CBI today took custody of RJD leader Shahabuddin whose name has cropped up as an accused in journalist Rajdeo Ranjan murder case.



CBI sources said Shahabuddin has been brought to the agency headquarter for questioning in this case. Shahabuddin was lodged in Tihar prison.



The agency has told a Muzaffarpur court that his name has surfaced as an accused in the case and it needs his custodial interrogation.



The agency was granted the permission by the court to question him.



The four-time RJD MP from Siwan is alleged to have been involved in the murder of Ranjan, a journalist of a prominent Hindi daily in Siwan last year.



Shahabuddin is facing trial in more than 45 criminal cases and was moved to Tihar Jail in February this year on a Supreme Court order on a plea by Siwan native Chandrakeshwar Prasad, whose three sons were killed in two separate incidents.



Ranjan was gunned down on May 13 last year and his wife has accused Shahabuddin of having a role in the killing.
Uttar Pradesh Forest Minister Dara Singh Chauhan has said the recent spurt in crimes in the state indicates a "conspiracy to defame" the Yogi Adityanath-led government.



The state has witnessed several incidents of rapes and molestation in the recent past. Three incidents of gang rapes were reported last week from the state, while a video that showed two women being molested by 14 men in Rampur district triggered an outcry yesterday.



Soon after the Yogi government took charge in March, it announced the setting up of Anti-Romeo squads to battle crimes against women. The squads were widely criticised as vigilante groups working outside the purview of the law.



Chauhan, who did not explain who had hatched the conspiracy against the government, also told reporters here yesterday that the state government would soon start a drive against corruption.
The Queensland government said today it will not oppose any direct infrastructure fund transfer from the Australian federal government for Adani group's controversy-hit Carmichael coal mine project, which is in limbo.



"We will not stand in the way of those arrangements. In the case of the Carmichael Mine, any funds will pass directly from the Federal government to Adani. We will fulfil our obligations in line with the Master Facility Agreement agreed with the federal government," said Curtis Pitt, the state's Treasurer and Minister for Trade and Investment.



"It should be noted that the Northern Australia Infrastructure facility (NAIF) has not lent any funding since it was announced two years ago, and I would encourage the Turnbull government to actually start using the available funds. We promised that Queensland taxpayer funds would not subsidise the Carmichael rail line and we are keeping that promise," he said in a statement.



Pitt said Adani group "will not be required" to secure funding through the NAIF in order to access the Queensland government's new resources framework. "They now have as much certainty as can be provided by the state government in terms of approvals, environmental conditions and our position on a royalties framework," he said.



Adani group had postponed its final investment decision on the AUD 21 billion project after the state cabinet did not give any "clarity" on offering royalties holiday for the project. However, last week the state government declared that there would be no "royalty holiday" for Adani and the company would pay full royalties.



And today Pitt added that Carmichael mine will pay "every cent of royalties owed to the state - there will be no royalty holiday." He said all royalties will be paid, and if they are deferred, they will be paid with interest and with security of payment in place. "That's more money for our state to spend on infrastructure, renewables, health and education," Pitt said.



The controversial project managed to garner some support after Malcolm Turnbull's government indicated it will support AUD 900 million loan for Adani's project for a railway between the Adani site in the Galilee Basin and its coal port at Abbot Point.



Pitt's comments have come after Federal Infrastructure Minister Matt Canavan sought an urgent clarification on the state government's position on the issue of facilitating NAIF funds. Last week, Deputy Premier Jackie Trad said that the state government would not be involved in facilitating any loan funds from NAIF.



The Carmichael project, expected to create hundreds of jobs in Australia, has been facing opposition from environmentalists and indigenous groups. The Indian energy giant has for more than five years battled the opposition to any expansion of the Abbot Point port, saying it will cut into the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.



The Adani group entered Australia in 2010 with the purchase of the greenfield Carmichael coal mine in the Galilee Basin in central Queensland, and the Abbot Point port near Bowen in the north.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram today said it was "preposterous" to suggest that any member of his family could influence six secretaries of the central government who were part of the FIPB.



Rebutting allegations that his son Karti had influenced the decisions of the now-defunct Foreign Investment Promotion Board, Chidambaram said it was a "despicable slur" on the six secretaries of the government. "Anyone who has worked with me knows that no one would dare to influence my decisions. I had never allowed any family member to speak to me or to any officer of my ministry on any official matter," he said in a statement.



The CBI had a fortnight ago filed an FIR against Karti, INX Media founders Indrani and Peter Mukerjea on charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, receiving illegal gratification, influencing public servants and criminal misconduct. The CBI claims that Karti received money from INX Media through a company "indirectly controlled by him" for using his influence to manipulate a tax probe against it.



The former finance minister said as far as FIPB cases were concerned, he had approved only FIPB-recommended cases and put before him by the secretary economic affairs.



Chidambaram said the FIPB was serviced by a secretariat, chaired by the secretary economic affairs. It included four other secretaries (industry, commerce, external affairs and overseas Indian affairs) and the secretary of the administrative ministry. Five of them were among the senior most IAS officers and the sixth was a senior IFS officer of the Ministry of External Affairs. Each of them had a long and distinguished record of service, he said.



The recommendations of the FIPB would be submitted to the Ministry of Finance where they would be once again examined by junior officers and then by the additional secretary and the secretary before the file was put before the minister.



Each file put before the minister would usually contain a number of cases, and the recommendations of the FIPB and the economic affairs secretary, he said.



"At the relevant time, the FIPB was chaired by D Subba Rao who later became governor of RBI. He was succeeded by Ashok Chawla, who later became chairman of the competition commission of India. The other secretaries were equally distinguished civil servants," he said.



Chidambaram said in the last two weeks, leaks and insinuations have been "deliberately fed" to a section of the media and "maliciously circulated" on social media. "In fact, I have obtained a copy of the FIR from social media. The origin of these leaks is Chennai in my home state of Tamil Nadu," he said.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh today termed as "political vendetta" the disproportionate assets case against him and his wife.



Moments after the 82-year-old politician was granted bail by a special court, Singh told mediapersons that it was going to be a long battle. "It's a political vendetta. It's a long battle and I will fight and win the case," the Chief Minister said.



The Congress leader and his wife Pratibha Singh were granted bail by a special court here in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case on a personal bond of Rs one lakh each and one surety of the like amount. The court, however, asked them not to leave the country without its prior permission.
Ten days after a 23-year-old woman nearly chopped a god-mans penis off while resisting his attempt to rape her in Thiruvananthapuram, the womans mother has thrown in a twist to the case by claiming that her daughters police complaint is false.



In a petition submitted to state police chief T P Senkumar, she claimed that her daughter attacked Sreehari, aka Gangeshananda Theerthapada (54), because the god-man was opposed to her relationship with a man. She said her daughter had not spoken to the swami for about 18 months due to differences over the relationship but had invited him to her home, in Kannammoola here, ahead of the May 19 incident.



According to the petitioner, her daughter has psychological issues. Sreehari was sleeping in the hall of her house when the attack happened and he had not entered her daughters room, she said. The petitioner did not state these details when she was interrogated by the police.



Sreehari, who was admitted in the Government Medical College and Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, was booked under section 376 (rape) of the IPC and provisions of the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. According to the womans statement, Sreehari had been raping her since she was a minor and the abuse continued for about eight years.

Sreehari was known to the womans family for many years and the family consulted him before taking important decisions.
Police on Monday nabbed four more youths in connection with the molestation of two girls on a road in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur district.



Police sources here said that so far five youths, including the prime accused, identified as Shahnawaz, have been arrested in connection with the matter. Hunt was still on to nab nine other accused persons, sources said.



Police said that Goonda Act had been slapped on the accused.



Two girls were molested by a group of men on a village road near Tanda area in the district a few days back. The culprits had also uploaded a video containing their indecent acts.



Police had registered a case against 14 people in this connection.



The incident had triggered a massive outrage and the state government came under sharp attack from different quarters.






In a pamphlet claimed to be that of Maoists, actor Akshay Kumar and badminton player Saina Nehwal have been condemned for extending help to the kin of CPRF personnel killed in the recent Naxal attacks in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district. However, the police are yet to verify the authenticity of the pamphlet.



"We condemn the financial assistance given to the families of the jawans who were killed in a PLGA (People's Liberation Guerrilla Army) attack by actor Akshay Kumar and badminton player Saina Nehwal...," reads the pamphlet in circulation here on the social media. The PLGA is the armed wing of the Communist Party of India (Maoist).



The pamphlet, purportedly issued by the 'south sub-zonal bureau' of the banned outfit, further says, "We request eminent personalities, senior artists, players and celebrities to stand by the poor people of the revolutionary movement and condemn the government oppression and violation of human rights."



Akshay and Saina had given financial assistance to the kin of martyrs who were recently killed in two Maoist attacks in Sukma district.



On April 24, at least 25 CRPF personnel were killed and six wounded in Sukma, in one of the deadliest attacks by the Naxals. Prior to it, the Naxals ambushed a CRPF patrolling team on March 11 in the district in which 12 personnel lost their lives.



In the pamphlet, the central government is accused of killing "innocent" tribals in the name of 'Operation Green Hunt'.
Uttar Pradesh minister Swati Singh landed in a huge controversy after she inaugurated a beer bar in the state capital.



According to the sources here, Swati Singh, who was a minister of state with independent charge, inaugurated the beer bar at a posh locality in the state capital a few days back.



The matter came to light, when pictures showing the minister cutting the ribbon of the beer bar in the presence of some other people, including two senior UP officials, went viral on the social networking sites on Monday.



The inauguration came at a time, when women in several parts of the state had been demonstrating to press their demand for closure of liquor shops, which were situated near residential areas.



Swati Singh's husband Daya Shankar Singh, a senior BJP leader, was also among the invitees on the occasion of inauguration.



Swati Singh came into limelight last year, when her husband Daya Shankar Singh had made an objectionable remark against BSP supremo Mayawati and was arrested. Swati had later been made the president of the Women's Wing of UP BJP.



District magistrate of Raebareli Gaurav Singh and his wife and police chief of Unnao district Neha Pandey were also present on this occasion.



Sources said that the presence of two senior officials at the inauguration has not gone down well with the government and two have been asked to explain the same.



The opposition parties slammed the minister for the inauguration and demanded her removal from the ministry.



''It exposes the double face of BJP....it says something and practices something else,'' state Congress leader Ajai Kumar said. Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Rajendra Chaudhary also criticised the minister.



BJP leaders, however, feigned ignorance about the matter and said that they had no information about the same. ''The minister may have done it in her personal capacity,'' remarked a state BJP leader.


Airlines should advise its crew on what should they eat in the 24 hours prior to operating a flight to ensure that they don't fall sick mid-air, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) has recommended.



The AAIB's recommendation to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation came following investigations into a "serious incident" of incapacitation of a pilot of Jet Airways while flying from Bangkok to Delhi on May 7, 2015.



The plane with 121 passengers and six crew members on board had entered Kolkata airspace when the pilot felt uneasy. "After 1.5 hours of flight, the pilot-in-command (PIC) was served salad, soup and curd. (15 minutes after having this) he started feeling uneasy," the report said.



The pilot had re-entered the cockpit after feeling but 30 minutes later, he "was absolutely unresponsive and shivering." He was again taken out of the cockpit and administered medicines. Tests revealed that the pilot did not consume alcohol.

The flight was completed by the First Officer with the help of another pilot who travelling in the same flight.



"During the previous night, the Pilot-in-Command had his dinner which mainly consisted of noodles. On the day of incident, he had fruits, fresh fruit juice, soup and bread for his breakfast and lunch. He had sufficient sleep i.e. 8 hours during night and 2 hours during day," the report said.



In its recommendation, it suggested, all airlines should ensure guidance materials available to crew regarding "the meals which flight crew must not consume before a flight or a layover leading to a flight within 24 hours.



As the particular flight landed in Delhi and not in Kolkata despite it being the closest after the pilot felt uneasy, the AAIB said the DGCA must clearly define as a policy that an aircraft must commence diversion to the closest suitable airport once a flight crew incapacitation is confirmed.


In an incident involving cow vigilantism, a video of which also went viral, two youths of Malegaon tehsil of Washim district in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra were beaten up by gau rakshaks last week.



In the video, a group of men were seen beating up the two meat traders.



Reports reaching there said that the group of men who bashed them up later took them to the police station last Friday.



Washim districts Superintendent of Police Mokshada Patil said on Monday that samples of the meat had been sent to Nagpur for detailed examination and ascertain whether it was beef.



We have registered two sets of complaints. Nine people had been arrested in connection with the incident. Seven of them who attacked the two men were booked under various sections of the IPC. The two people who were attacked were booked under section 295a of the IPC, she said.



Further investigations were in progress.







#WATCH: Cow vigilantes thrash 2 traders for allegedly possessing beef in Malegaon area of Maharashtra's Washim(26/5) (NOTE: STRONG LANGUAGE) pic.twitter.com/7L2eZRjhlE  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017




A 21-year-old Kashmiri man, who was allegedly trying to join the terror group ISIS, has been deported from Turkey to India after being picked up by Turkish authorities, official sources here said today.



Srinagar resident Afshan Parvaiz was deported from the Turkish capital of Ankara on May 25 and whisked away to an undisclosed destination by security agencies in Delhi, the sources said. He was being assessed by various security agencies, they said.



Parvaiz had left home after an argument with his father, who wanted him to join a college while the son was interested in religious studies, the sources said. They said he booked himself a seat on a flight to Teheran on March 23. He was scheduled to return to Delhi on April 9 after exploring avenues for religious studies in Europe, they said.



The Kashmiri man, who is the second person to be deported from Turkey in the last two months, apparently sent a message to his family to tell them that he was facing some "problems", the sources said. When the police and other agencies in Kashmir were informed about this, a probe was launched to locate him, they said.



According to the sources, the security agencies then got in touch with their Iranian counterparts, who found out that Parvaiz was travelling to Ankara. The authorities in Ankara were contacted and he was picked up while he was travelling in a bus in the Turkish capital, they said. He was sent to India on May 25 by a Turkish Airlines flight, the sources said.



In March, Mohammed Taha, a resident of Srinagar, was deported from Turkey and sent to India. He has been put in preventive custody, they said.



Security agencies in India have viewed their alleged plans to join the ISIS with concern. They believe that some Kashmiri youths are getting radicalised by 'jihadi' propaganda material shared by the ISIS on the Internet. The agencies feel that if the growing influence of the ISIS is not checked, it can be detrimental to the situation in the Valley.



Recently, an audio clip had surfaced on social media sites in which Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militant commander Zakir Moosa could be heard talking about establishing an Islamic caliphate in the Valley. The police had carried out an analysis of the clip, comparing the voice with that of Moosa's in earlier videos and audios.



The 5.40-minute audio warned Kashmir's separatist leaders against interfering in the HM's plan to establish a caliphate as the ISIS has done in parts of Syria and Iraq. The call for a caliphate is being seen as a worrying twist to militancy in Kashmir, which has largely revolved around a demand for independence or secession to Pakistan, without an overtly religious subtext.



During the recent protests in the Valley, ISIS flags were waved in certain areas, and slogans supporting the terror group were painted on walls. However, Hizbul Mujahideen leader Syed Sallahuddin had said there was no place for groups such as the ISIS, Al-Qaeda or the Taliban in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Income Tax Department has started a probe into the mining contracts allegedly bagged by four former employees of Punjab minister Rana Gurjit Singh. The department has also written to the Punjab government, seeking details of the mining contract bagged by four ex-employees of the minister.



"An inquiry into the mining contract awarded to four persons whose names have appeared in newspaper reports, has been initiated but it is at preliminary stage now," an income tax official said today.



Opposition parties, the AAP, the SAD and the BJP, have been demanding sacking of Rana, the state power and irrigation minister, for allegedly acquiring sand and gravel mines through "benaami transactions in the name of his former cook and staff".



They had raised questions over the allotment of mining contracts to Amit Bahadur at Saidpur Khurd village in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar for Rs 26.51 crore, Kulvinder Paul Singh at Mehadipur in SBS Nagar for Rs 9.21 crore, Gurinder Singh at Rampur Kalan village in Mohali district for Rs 4.11 crore and Balraj Singh at Bairsal village for Rs 10.58 crore.



A two-day e-auction of sand mines in Punjab had culminated with bids worth Rs 1,026 crore secured for 89 mines.



The department has written to the state government to provide all details about the mining contracts. The IT sleuths have sought details such as at what rate the mining contract was allotted to them, how much upfront money has been deposited and what are their addresses, the official said.



Tthe AAP had said the party leaders would sit on a 'dharna' outside the Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's house on May 30 if no action was taken against Rana. "It is the money of Rana Gurjit Singh who pumped it through his four former employees to get the mining contracts in Punjab," AAP MLA Sukhpal Khaira had alleged.



Khaira had also showed the copy of the purported income tax return of Bahadur, one of the minister's former cooks, to the media. "As per income tax return for the financial year 2014-15 of the former cook, his income was about Rs 95,000. He was getting a salary of just Rs 11,706 per month. With such meagre income, will a cook be able to bag a mining contract of Rs 26 crore," Khaira had asked.



Yesterday, the Congress had said the chief minister was looking into the allegation that Rana had acquired mines through "benaami transactions" and assured that the government was committed to uphold the trust reposed in it by the people.



However, Rana had denied the charges, saying neither he nor his company, Rana Sugars Limited, had any direct or indirect stakes in sand mining business. "The fact that some of my former employees reportedly bid for the mines does not in any way imply that I have interests or stakes in the business," he had said.



"There are thousands of employees who have worked with me and left from time to time and I cannot be held accountable for what they do after leaving my companies," he had said. The Congress government had earlier claimed that there would be complete transparency in the e-auction of sand mines.
Three cops, who were posted with a Police Response Vehicle (PRV), were suspended today for "delayed" response in the death of a Karnataka-cadre IAS officer, Lucknow Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Deepak Kumar said.

The policemen were suspended after an internal inquiry, he said.



Eyewitnesses had alleged that the PRV despite being informed at 5:33 AM on May 17 did not reach the spot outside the Meera Bai Marg guest house from where Tiwari's body was found.



The response team, which operates under Uttar Pradesh Police's Dial-100 scheme, reached half-an-hour late, they had claimed. "The three policemen posted with PRV-467 have been suspended for delayed response in the Anurag Tiwari death incident," Kumar said.



The development comes a week after the state government recommended a CBI probe into the incident on May 22. Though the investigation agency is yet take over the probe, the state police's SIT has already quizzed Tiwari's friend IAS Prabhu Narain Singh and others.



Tiwari, 36, was found dead on May 17, his birthday, under mysterious circumstances near the guest house, where he was staying, in the high-security Hazratganj area here. His family had alleged that he was murdered at the behest of corrupt officers as he was a whistle-blower and was about to expose a "scam" in the food, civil supplies and consumer affairs department in Bengaluru where he was posted as commissioner.



The police have registered a murder case in the matter, five days after Tiwari's body was found. Tiwari, a 2007-batch officer, was staying at the guest house with a batch mate after attending a mid-career training programme in Mussoorie.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today described terrorism as the "gravest challenge" facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the UN to deal with this menace.



Modi, who arrived here on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, in an interview to German newspaper 'Handelsblatt' said, "Europe has been hit hard by terrorism".



"To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace," he said.



Modi's remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently. The latest terror attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.



Speaking to the country's leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy "remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people".



"We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti- immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed," Modi said. "We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation," he said.



Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was as among the "most open" and "fastest growing major economies in the world". The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.



"India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time...There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council," he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.



On the Indo-German ties, he said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Start-up India, Clean India and Smart Cities.



In reference to the wider European Union (EU) and Britain's impending exit, he said, "The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security.



"India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach."



On the German side, Merkel had recently said, "The times when we could rely on the other have passed ... We Europeans, we must really take destiny into their own hands." In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, 'Handelsblatt' claimed.



The prime minister's visit to Germany has been described as a "new chapter" in the bilateral relations between the two countries.



"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit."Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation," he said.



The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine".



Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year. Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to 9.54 billion dollars. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.
US President Donald Trumps swing through West Asia was relatively successful. He did make a few gaffes but avoided offensive remarks or tweets that would have ruffled the feathers of his hosts. At the end of his first trip to Saudi Arabia and Israel, it appears that Trump will be able to do business with the two governments. He did well to visit the West Bank, too, and meet Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas there. In Saudi Arabia, he struck a $110 billion arms deal for supply of helicopters, ships, intelligence-gathering aircraft, a missile-defence radar system etc. This should benefit the US military industry. An arms deal with the Saudis was finalised by the Barack Obama administration but the latter nixed the deal following mounting Saudi atrocities in Yemen. Trumps delinking of arms sales from human rights concerns will make the House of Saud happy and strengthen the US-Saudi bond.



In Israel, Trump spoke in generalities and avoided telling Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu what he needs to do to resolve the West Asia conflict. Thus, he spoke grandly about the need for compromise to resolve the conflict and his personal commitment to helping the Israelis and the Palestinians reach a settlement. But he avoided making any specific reference to a two-state solution. He made no mention of borders or Israeli settlements and was vague on the exact parameters of an ultimate deal.



Thus, Trumps visit has been successful in setting the stage for the US to do business with the Saudis and Israel but whether his approach will lead to peace in the region is doubtful. For one, his courting of the Saudi royals signalled that in the regions geopolitics and sectarian conflicts, the US will continue to back Sunni Saudi Arabia rather than do a balancing act between Riyadh and Shia Iran. The Trump administrations recent comments on Iran have indicated a return to tense US-Iran relations. The arms deal with the Saudis will not only fray US-Iran relations further but also, it will impact negatively the security situation in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan etc. As for the Israel-Palestinian conflict, Trump must understand that any shift away from the two-state solution is not a solution. An unfair deal may work in business, but not in the explosive political arena of West Asia. Importantly, Trump must realise that peace in West Asia will not come by blaming Iran for all the regions woes or supplying the Saudis, Israel and other US allies in the region with weapons and ignoring their support to terrorism. This may help Washington retain its grip over West Asia but it will keep the region restive.
Little Rock, Brahmavar, has registered cent percent results in Class 12. A total of 98 students (Science) had appeared for the examination and all have secured distinction.



Vivek Nayak M is the highest scorer in the Biology combination with 97.8% while Karthik Rao M has scored 96.6 % in Computer Science combination. As many as 37 students have scored more than 90% marks. Thirteen students have obtained A1 in all subjects, a press release from Dr John Thomas, principal of Little Rock, said.



Kendriya Vidyalaya No 1, Panambur, Mangaluru, has recorded cent percent results in the All India Senior Secondary examination for Class 12 conducted by Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). Out of the 51 students, who appeared for the examination, 35 students have secured distinction and eight students have scored more than 90% marks. Ranjana Kasangeri 477 (95.4%), Vaishnavi R Lak-kalkatti 94.8%(474), Rishikesh S V 94.2%(471), Suprasad D Baikampady 93.2% (466), Monu Singh 93%(465) are the top scorers.



The third batch of Class 12 students of Mount Carmel Central School, Maryhill, has secured 100% results in the AISSCE-2017 in Science stream  PCMB and PCMC. A total of 31 students had appeared for the exam. Ashwin Ashokan Vannarath and Frizelle DSouza have topped the school with 96%. Out of 31 students appeared for the exam, 12 students have passed with distinction and the remaining 19 students have passed in first class.



St Theresas School, Mangaluru, has secured 100% results in ICSE Board examination. Out of 112 students who appeared for the examination, 69 have passed with distinction, 37 in first class and six in second division. Varun Mark Gonsalves has topped the school with 94.83%. The other toppers are Eleanor Nikita Roche (94.33%), Anusha Zita DCunha (93.16%), Advithi Kottary (93.16%), Amritha B Bhanday (93%), Sharan Shetty (92.83%), Sherwin Maclin Lobo (92.50%) and Preksha Bharath (92.50 %).



Vidyodaya Public School, Udupi, has secured cent per cent results in Class 10 ICSE examination. The school has been securing cent per cent for the last 11 years. Out of 80 students appeared for the examination, 38 have passed with distinction and 42 have passed in first class.
Indias beef exports and leather sector is likely to be affected due to the governments ban on the trade of cattle for slaughter and industry will seek revocation of the decision.



The country exported buffalo meat worth Rs 26,000 crore, and Rs 35,000 crore worth leather and leather products in the 2016-17 fiscal. About 35 lakh people are engaged in these industries.



Last week, the Environment Ministry had notified ban on sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter and also prohibited any cruel practices on them.



The decision will have implications on meat exports as well as on the availability of raw material for the domestic industry. We will ask the government to reconsider the decision, former chairman of Council for Leather Exports Rafeeq Ahmed said.



However, apex exporters body Federation of Indian Exports Organisation (FIEO) Director General Ajay Sahai said, There will be slight impact on exports as cattles are normally purchased directly from farmers and not from animal markets. FIEO is studying the complete impact of the decision, he added.



Stating that the decision will hit farmers badly, All India Meat and Livestock Exporters Association Spokesperson Fauzan Alavi had last week said that a large number of farmers bring their unproductive cattle to the markets for sale.



It is the unproductive cattle, which arrives in large number for sale in these markets, as their feasibility virtually cease to exist, while the per day maintenance cost goes up. The high yielding milching animals rarely arrive at the cattle market for sale. The per day cost incurred on a buffalo ranges from Rs 125 to Rs 150, while the general price of the milk sold is Rs 40 per litre. If the per day milk production dips, then gradually the cattle becomes unproductive, he had said.


Minister for Planning and Statistics M R Seetharam warned of withdrawing funds and development projects, if the works handed over to Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Ltd (KRIDL) are not completed within the deadline.



At a review meeting on MLAs and Coastal Development Authority Fund utilisation at the DCs office here on Monday, he said several legislators and other elected representatives have been expressing dissatisfaction over the delay of works taken up by the KRIDL.



The funds are underutilised due to inordinate delays. Hence, the works will be implemented by public works department or the Zilla Panchayat engineering department, he said.



Seetharam directed the officials to complete the works related to Coastal Development Authority (CDA), which have been taken up by KRIDL, before September 1.



MLA B A Mohiyuddin Bava said Rs 50 lakh has been handed over to KRIDL to construct toilets at government college, Muttur. But the work has not yet been started and this has posed a problem to students, he said.



MLA J R Lobo urged to start the work on the skywalk near Town Hall as soon as possible. The minister said a separate account will be maintained in the name of the CDA to deposit the funds.



Earlier, the non-utilised funds went back to the government. Last year, Rs 15 crore was released and 12.6 crore was utilised. The remaining amount was returned to the government. A new account for the CDA will be opened in two to three days, he said.



This year, Rs 20 crore has been sanctioned to the CDA in the budget for various development works. The drafting of the action plan for the implementation of programmes is in progress, he said.



In 2015-16, the CDA constructed a footbridge, two suspending bridges, seven fish markets and two parks. In 2016-17, 82 footbridges, two suspending bridges, eight fish markets, two parks, two skywalk and roads, one drinking water supply programme and five anganwadis have been constructed. CDA chairperson Sharada Mohan Shetty was present.
The High Court of Karnataka on Monday dismissed a PIL seeking directions not to allow the celebration of Tipu Jayanthi in Kodagu district and not to organise any functions in the name of Tipu Sultan.



A division bench comprising Chief Justice S K Mukherjee and Justice P S Dinesh Kumar dismissed the PIL as the petition had become infructuous since Tipu Jayanthi was over.



Manjunath K P, a resident of Kodagu district, had approached the court contending that history was being rewritten by politically motivated people to project a man like Tipu Sultan, who he said was guilty of mass murder, as a hero.



It not only hurts the sentiments of the Kodavas, but also sends out a wrong message about history to the future generation of the country, the petitioner contended. Citing violence and loss of life during Tipu Jayanthi celebrations in 2015, the petitioner had sought directions to the government not to hold any celebrations in Kodagu district.



The petitioner was directed to give a representation to the chief secretary. The government said that measures would be taken to ensure there will be no untoward incidents in future during Tipu Jayanthi celebrations. The bench dismissed the PIL as the celebrations were over in 2016.
A man and his three-year-old daughter, who had sustained severe burns after an LPG cylinder exploded at his house in Marathahalli, died on Sunday at Victoria Hospital.



The victims are Karan (32) and his daughter Neha. Karans wife Maya, who had sustained 20% burns, is being treated at the hospital. Mayas son Nikhil (7) died of burns on Saturday.



Maya went into depression after doctors informed her about the death of her husband and children.



The victims hail from Nepal. They arrived in the city about a month ago. Karan was a security guard at an apartment in Marathahalli where the family was living in a room in the basement.



The incident occurred on May 23. Maya had forgotten to turn off the cylinders regulator properly.



The cylinder pipe had suffered damage, resulting in the gas leakage, added the police.



When Maya woke up the following morning and switched on the lights, the cylinder exploded. Her two children, who were asleep, sustained severe burns. All four were rushed to Victoria Hospital.
There was tension near Ravindra Kalakshetra when a group belonging to MOOment Bengaluru, gathered and shouted food is our right, protesting against the governments ban on beef sale.



Another group called the Bharatiya Gau Parivar and other right-wing outfits who were present at the venue, countered the protest by raising slogans against the leftists.



The MOOment was organised by Students Federation of India (SFI) and Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) with other groups. The police detained over 50 protestors and bundled them into a police vehicle.



No permission granted



Earlier in the day, deputy commissioner of police (Central division) Chandragupta said no permission was given for any protests or beef fests in front of Town Hall.



Meanwhile, the Bengaluru unit of the BJP condemned the beef fest stating that the protest has the potential to disturb the law and order as it hurts the sentiments of millions of people.
A poor woman travelled all the way from Chikkaballapur district to the national capital to meet Chief Minister Siddaramaiah with her grievance on Monday.



Muniyamma, a resident of a village in the backward Gudibande taluk of Chikkaballapur district, has a problem with her land. Though she has been trying to resolve the problem by meeting officials, the issue was not resolved.



After hearing that the chief minister is going to Delhi and she can easily meet him there, the 51-year-old woman reached the national capital after traveling over 2,000 km by train. Despite not knowing Hindi, she was able to reach Karnataka Bhavan in the early hours of Monday. She was able to catch up with the chief minister when he was about to have his breakfast around 9 am.



Siddaramaiah, after receiving her memorandum, immediately dialled Deepti Kanade, deputy commissioner of Chikkaballapur district, and directed her to resolve Muniyammas problem on priority. He also asked the officials in Delhi to make arrangements for her stay in Karnataka Bhavan and her return to her native place. He also gave her Rs 2,000 from his pocket.



According to Siddaramaiah, she had purchased three acres from one Narayanappa some 30 years ago.



However, when she went to the revenue office to get the khata transferred to her name, it was found that she was cheated by the seller as the land was a government property. Though officials allowed her to cultivate the land, they refused to transfer the property in her name as rules do not permit the same.



I want the land transferred in my name or alternative land given to me. I had met the chief minister twice in Bengaluru but the issue was not resolved. I met him here and am now confident that the land will be given to me, Muniyamma said.



Narrating her problem, Muniyamma told reporters that she has been running from pillar to post to get alternative land for the past several years.



Somebody told me that the chief minister would be easily available in Delhi and I came here. If I had failed to meet him, I would have met Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the plea, she said, hoping that her problem would be solved.



Muniyamma said she travelled in an unreserved general compartment and enquired with more than 40 people to come to Chanakyapuri where Karnataka Bhavan is located.
The police arrested two rowdies for plotting their rival gang members murder in Begur. The suspects are Santosh (26) and Asgar (21), both residents of Begur. The police seized six stolen bikes worth Rs 7 lakh, a pistol and three live bullets from them. The two are involved in 11 criminal cases.



According to the police, the suspects were college dropouts and took to crime. They got acquainted with Gaurav Singh, a native of Mumbai, who is serving a sentence in Central Prisons, Parappana Agrahara, in JCB Narayans murder case. They got the pistol and bullets from Singh in the prison.



They wanted to use the pistol to murder their rival Sunil, a resident of Akshaynagar in Begur. They told the police they used the pistol to threaten people and rob them of their valuables.


The High Court of Karnataka on Monday granted bail to Karibasavayya, a police head constable attached to the Parapanna Agrahara police station.



He was arrested by the Mico Layout police for helping a group of people run a high-profile prostitution racket in BTM Layout.



He had identified a house for the group to run the prostitution racket and also ensured that the local police never raided it. He often shared alerts about possible raids by CCB sleuths with the group and regularly received money from it.



The Mico Layout police raided a posh villa in BTM Layout in April and arrested a few persons involved in the racket. During the interrogation, the suspects claimed that Karibasavayya helped them run the racket without any hurdles.



The police had booked Karibasavayya under various sections of the Immoral Trafficking (Prevention) Act and the Indian Penal Code.



Justice Rathnakala granted bail on the grounds that Karibasavayyas name was not mentioned either in the complaint by the victims or in the FIR. The victims have not mentioned his name in their statement. The judge granted conditional bail to the head constable.
High drama unfolded at the Palike Council meeting on Monday, when three women corporators from wards under Rajarajeshwari Nagar Assembly constituency tried to consume phenyl in a bid to commit suicide.



Draped in black sarees and sporting black ribbons on their foreheads, JD(S) corporator from Laggere ward Manjula Narayanaswamy, ruling Congress corporator from HMT Layout Asha Suresh and BJP corporator from JP Park Mamatha Vasudev staged a sit-in demonstration in the well of the House to protest the excesses of Congress MLA Munirathna.



They were protesting the recent attack on Manjula at an event where Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had laid the foundation stone for the remodelling of stormwater drains. Some women, purportedly supporters of Munirathna, had assaulted Manjula, pulled her sari and hair. Later, a number of police cases were registered against her.



The meeting was stormy from the beginning with women corporators demanding justice and protection from the MLA. The meeting was adjourned thrice due to the din.



When the council was adjourned for the second time, the three corporators tried to consume phenyl. However, other corporators rushed towards them and snatched the bottles.



Asha said: The craving for power has made our corporators mute spectators to Munirathnas excesses in his constituency. What is the use of granting crores of rupees for development works when the public representatives, especially women, are living in fear? We cannot visit our wards to inspect the development works because we are attacked and abused. Officers never respond to our calls.



Later, women corporators cutting across party lines staged a demonstration at the entrance of the BBMP Council hall. Holding placards that portrayed Munirathna as Ravana and corporator G K Venkatesh as Dushasana, the protestors raised slogans.



Why has the government turned a blind eye to the attack on me? My sari was pulled and I was assaulted. The 50% reservation for women in municipal corporations has lost its meaning when women public representatives are living in fear, Manjula said.



Sympathising with the three woman corporators, Mayor G Padmavathi said, We will have a meeting with Minister for Bengaluru Development K J George on Saturday. Such excesses cannot go on. Earlier too, similar incidents in Rajarajeshwari Nagar had led to commotion in the House, said the mayor.



She urged the agitating corporators to go back to their seats, but they were unrelenting. Some Congress corporators pointed out that there were other important issues to discuss. The statement led to commotion, forcing the Mayor to adjourn the meeting.
Most hotels and restaurants in the city will remain closed on Tuesday to protest against increased rates under the goods and services tax regime.



The city has 3,000 registered hotels and restaurants. An association representing them said all of them, darshinis included, would suspend business on Tuesday and open only on Wednesday morning.



This is the first-ever bandh called by the business, insiders said. About 25% of Bengalureans depend on the citys diverse eating joints for their daily meal, according to an informal industry estimate. The Centre intends to roll out GST from July 1.



The bandh call was given by the Bruhat Bengaluru Hotels Association (BBHA). The Karnataka State Hotel Owners Association, however, is not taking part in the protest, which means it is business as usual for eateries in districts other than Bengaluru.



About 50,000 hotels and restaurants from Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala are supporting the bandh, according to Veerendra N Kamat, treasurer of BBHA. He told DH the decision was taken after the Centre released GST details recently.



In the past, hotels and restaurants were closed during bandhs, such as those connected with the Cauvery protests. But this is the first time they have come together to raise their voice against the government with such a protest. All restaurants, hotels, cafes and eateries will be closed from 6 am on May 30 to 6 am on May 31, he said.



Owners of the businesses will gather at Town Hall in Bengaluru on Tuesday, and also submit memoranda to the state government and the Centre.



Districts unaffected



M Rajendra, president of the Karnataka State Hotel Owners Association, said the decision was limited to Bengaluru and Bengaluru Rural.



We have members from 29 other districts and none of them, including districts in the vicinity of Bengaluru, has decided to shut down. Though we are protesting against the tax hike, only Bengaluru hoteliers have decided to shut down, he said. Some pubs and bars are likely to be open in Bengaluru, Rajendra reckoned. The bandh could affect weddings and parties depending on caterers.
The Congress high command is likely to ask Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president G Parameshwara to continue in the post till the next Assembly polls while asking him to quit as the home minister soon.



The decision seems to have been taken by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, who held a meeting with over 17 leaders, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Parameshwara and party MPs, separately on Monday.



The party top brass will announce the decision in a day or two, Siddaramaiah told reporters after he held a second round of discussion with Rahul, along with Parameshwara.



Rahul is understood to have taken the decision on continuing Parameshwara as party chief as he felt it would be politically imprudent to remove a Dalit party president when the BJP was all out to woo Dalit voters. It was decided that Parameshwara should concentrate on the elections by giving up his ministerial role, to which he reportedly agreed, a highly placed source told DH.



Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, a top contender for the KPCC chiefs post, may be made the chairman of the campaign committee. Another key contender, Water Resources Minister M B Patil, will be given charge of the manifesto committee.



In a bid to placate the Lingayat community, former minister S R Patil, who was also in the race for the PCC chiefs post, will be made the chairman of the Legislative Council or a minister in the Cabinet.



At present, there are two vacancies in the Cabinet. Another vacancy will be created once Parameshwara demits office. Rahuls interaction with top state leaders is being seen as the culmination of an elaborate exercise undertaken after K C Venugopal was appointed AICC general secretary in-charge of Karnataka.



Consequent to Parameshwara continuing as PCC chief, the party high command is expected to make changes in the organisational set-up in a month. Even district units are unlikely to be disturbed till the elections are over, a source said.



Though Siddaramaiah wanted a Lingayat leader, especially S R Patil, he was forced to accept Parameshwaras continuation because he was backed by senior Congress leaders.



Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge is also said to have cautioned the party high command against replacing a Dalit as PCC chief with a representative of the forward community.
The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre to consider giving police protection to the family of a Manipuri youth, who was killed in a road rage involving the chief ministers son.



Asserting that no one simply makes allegations against a chief minister, a bench of Justices A K Sikri and Deepak Gupta said, If they want protection, they must be given it. There should not be a problem in giving them security.



Appearing for the Centre, Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh said the government has to evaluate the threat perception to the petitioner.



Representing Irom Chitra Devi, mother of the victim Roger, advocates Kamini Jaiswal and Utsav Bains said the family has been living in fear in Delhi since leaving Manipur.



The council for the Manipur government said the family did not approach the state for police protection, and if they had, they would have been given security.



The bench, however, asked Singh to consider providing protection to the petitioners. Ajay Meetai, son of Chief Minister N Biren Singh, was handed a five-year jail term for culpable homicide as he fired at Roger for not allowing him to overtake, leading to a confrontation on March 20, 2011.
BJP president Amit Shah on Monday met RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat in Nagpur to discuss new experiments that the former has carried out to increase the organisational strength.



RSS spokesperson Manmohan Vaidya confirmed to DH that the meeting took place at 5 pm on Monday at the Sanghs Nagpur headquarters. RSS general secretary Bhaiyyaji Joshi was also present in the closed-door meeting.



Shah had sought an appointment with Sarsanghchalak Bhagwatji a long time ago to discuss organisation issues, particularly to share his experiences on new experiments for increasing the organisational strength, Vaidya said.He also said that Bhagwat and Shah travelled in the same flight from Delhi to Nagpur on Monday.



Shah is said to have had an hour-long meeting with Bhagwat, besides interacting with local BJP leaders and workers to take a feedback on the organisational matter.



Vaidya, however, denied the buzz that the first round of consultation may have taken place between the top brass of the party and its ideological mentor on the Presidential election.



The BJP sources said the RSS will vet the partys candidate and only after that views of prominent NDA allies would be sought before going public with its choice for the top Constitutional post.



Though the Opposition wants the Modi government to declare its candidate and build a consensus on the Presidential election, the BJP leadership is not in a hurry to rush through the process to find a replacement for Pranab Mukherjee, who demits office on July 24.
The Met department has predicted rain in Bihar due to a cyclonic activity. The Met department has predicted rain and thundershowers in several parts of Bihar in the next 24 hours due to a likely transformation of a depression over the east-central Bay of Bengal into a cyclonic circulation.



The weather bureau has also predicted the timely arrival of the monsoon in the state.



Usually, the monsoon arrives in Bihar by June 10. We expect it on time this year as the conditions are favourable for further advancement of the southwest monsoon into parts of southeast Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal in the next 24 hours, said S K Patel, meteorologist at the Patna Met office.



The state has already received 106.7 mm of pre-monsoon rains until May 28, including the 10.5 mm rain on Sunday, which claimed five lives in Champaran district.



Following rainfall, the maximum temperature in Patna has come down from 40 degrees celsius to 35 degrees Celsius, a Met Departmenbt source said.



The cyclonic circulation is persisting in the upper air in several parts of northeast and north-central Bihar, which would result in rain and thundershowers in Bhagalpur, Champaran, Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga for the next two days. In Rajasthan, a fresh spell of rain in the wee hours of Monday has provided respite from the oppressive heatwave prevailing in the state over the last few days.



The Met department has said temperatures across the state has dropped by 5 degrees Celsius.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday described the Centres notification on cattle slaughter as a deliberate attempt to encroach upon the states powers, and said her government would not accept it.



The Union government had last week banned the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter.



The environment ministry had notified the stringent Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017, under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.



We will challenge it legally. We will consult the states advocate general on this matter. I will request the Centre not to interfere with state matter, she told a press conference at the state secretariat.



It (Centre) is an elected government and it has its jurisdiction. The state government is also an elected government and it has its jurisdiction, Mamata said.



It is a deliberate attempt to encroach upon the states powers. It is undemocratic, unconstitutional and unethical. It is also an attempt to destroy the federal structure, she said.



In a crucial move aimed at mobilising pan-India support against the Centres curbs on the sale of cattle for slaughter, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday wrote to other chief ministers, seeking to form a united Opposition against the restrictions.



Unless we stand together and oppose this anti-federal, anti-democratic and anti-secular move, it may mark the beginning of a series of similar measures aimed at destroying the federal democratic fabric and secular culture of our country, the chief minister stated in his letter.



Vijayan said since the matter falls within the purview of state legislatures, the governments may be allowed to formulate policies and laws to suit the socio-cultural and economic milieu of the respective state.



He said the unreasonable restrictions on the fundamental right to carry out any trade or occupation will not stand the test of constitutionality.
A day after an e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death as he objected to two persons urinating in the open, the Centre has asked the police to take strongest possible action against the culprits.



Union Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu on Monday visited the family of Ravinder Kumar, who was killed in northwest Delhis Mukherjee Nagar area.



He handed over a cheque of Rs 50,000 in his personal capacity to Kumars family as temporary relief.



Naidu said he had spoken to the lieutenant governor of Delhi and that the state administration had agreed to give a grant of Rs 5 lakh as relief to the family of the deceased.



The Centre has been strongly pushing the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM), a scheme focused on urban sanitation for making the country open defecation-free by 2019.



In the past three years, close to 2.09 crore toilets have been built. As 60% of open defecation in the country takes place in rural areas, the thrust of the government as well as its publicity programmes are on the rural population.

Ironically, the incident occurred on the eve of the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation coming out with an aggressive campaign called Darwaza Band, starting Tuesday.



Actor Amitabh Bachchan will formally launch the event in Mumbai. It is designed to encourage behavioural change in men who have access to toilets, but do not use them.



Naidu tweeted, Sad that an e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping 2 people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting Swachh Bharat (Clean India campaign) (sic).



The incident occurred when the driver was waiting to pick up commuters at the GTB Metro station, less than 3 km from the Delhi University campus.



Kumar found the men urinating outside Gate Number 4 of the Metro station. He asked them to use the Sulabh Shauchalaya (pay-and-use toilet), located a few metres away.



Witnesses said as Kumar urged the youths to maintain hygiene, one of them got angry. When they saw other rickshaw drivers support Kumar, they left, but only after threatening him, a senior police officer said. The youths, accompanied by 15-20 men on bikes and e-rickshaws, returned an hour later, around 8 pm.



They spotted Kumar and started thrashing him. They dragged and kicked him, and smashed his face, resulting in critical injuries. On realising that a large number of people had gathered, the assailants fled, the officer said.
Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat on Monday received political support for his strong words on ways to fight the upsurge in Kashmir insurgency.



The tension in the Valley has thrown life out of gear for close to 10 months. If somebody throws stones at the army, should they do nothing? I totally agree with the army chiefs statement, said Union minister Venkaiah Naidu.



Our neighbour (Pakistan) is providing funds to stone-pelters. They are funding the separatists as well. They are doing this in order to spread terrorism here. In order to improve the situation in Kashmir, what is necessary should be done. The same has been suggested by the army chief and I completely stand by him, Naidu said.



In an interview on Sunday, Rawat not only supported Major Leetul Gogoi, who tied a Kashmiri youth to the bonnet of an army vehicle as human shield, but also backed the Majors tactics.



Last week, Rawat met Defence Minister Arun Jaitley and briefed him about the scenario in Kashmir.



People are throwing stones and petrol bombs at us. If my men ask me what do we do, should I say, just wait and die? I will come with a nice coffin with a national flag and I will send your bodies home with honour. Is this what I am supposed to tell them as the chief? I have to maintain the morale of my troops who are operating there, Gen Rawat had said.



The Congress, however, toed a cautious line.



Party spokesperson Manish Tiwari said: I dont want to be in the boots of the army chief. The army is dealing with a tough situation. But the fundamental tenets of the counter-insurgency operation is also about winning the hearts and minds.

DH News Service



Mans plan to join IS foiled



A 21-year-old Kashmiri man, who was reportedly trying to join the terror group Islamic State (IS), has been deported from Turkey to India after being picked up by Turkish authorities, PTI reports from Srinagar.



Afshan Parvaiz, a resident of Srinagar, was deported from the Turkish capital of Ankara on May 25 and whisked away to an undisclosed destination by security agencies in Delhi, sources said.
The army conducted a massive search operation in Pathankot after the police found a suspicious bag with military uniforms near the high-security Mamun Cantonment area late on Sunday night.



A high alert has been sounded, and search teams are looking for suspicious movement in the area. A local tipped off the police about the abandoned bag. The military was immediately alerted.



A source said three military uniforms were recovered from the bag. The border town is in close proximity to Pakistan. Last year, heavily armed militants from Pakistan had attacked the frontier Air Force base in the area.



Four militants, who were later gunned down, had come in military uniforms to avoid suspicion.



In 2015, in Gurdaspur, not far from Pathankot, three heavily armed militants in army uniforms first hijacked a car and later stormed a police station. Seven people were killed in the attack before the terrorists were neutralised.



Since these two terror strikes in Punjab, security agencies are not taking chances even if tip-offs are false. There have been several incidents in the past where the public has reported suspicious movement in the area.
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More than 100 alleged victims of horrific experiments and abuse at a Derbyshire hospital have now come forward - making it the county's biggest-ever probe into crimes against children.

Police are investigating the actions of controversial medic Dr Kenneth Milner at Aston Hall Hospital in the 1960s and 70s, where he is accused of pumping vulnerable youngsters with drugs to correct "deviant" behaviour.

Allegations about his actions were first highlighted by the Derby Telegraph in an investigation. Police have written to victims to say they have identified 58 crimes.

Now, we can reveal 105 people have contacted the police to claim they were abused. Expert lawyers representing them say this is the biggest case they have come across in Derbyshire.

And one of the country's leading abuse lawyers says it is one of the biggest abuse scandals he has come across in a mental health institution.

Dianne Collins, of Nelsons Solicitors in Lodge Lane, Derby, represents around 30 people.

She said: "I have never come across a case like this before, it's the biggest we've ever done or are aware of in terms of people coming forward.

"And I think this is just the tip of the iceberg, there will be a lot of other people out there who have not come forward or who might have died which is very sad because they will not be able to get justice.

"One hundred and five is a very high number and I suspect the national coverage this story has received would have meant more people coming forward."

Richard Scorer, who has been described as one of Britain's leading specialists in the field of abuse law, said the Aston Hall case was "major".

Mr Scorer, who works at legal firm Slater and Gordon, said: "This is highly serious and one of the biggest abuse scandals in a mental health institution. It's is very substantial.

"It looks like Dr Milner had a complete liberty to abuse and it appears there were no safeguarding procedures in place to stop that happening. I have represented 168 alleged victims of Jimmy Savile but that was across various institutions but this is just one.

"Somebody like this would have had a lot of power over very vulnerable victims, especially because this was in a mental health setting. They could not leave and anything they said against him would not be believed."

Mr Scorer said they would have been seen as "unreliable".

Stephen Edwards from Liverpool-based Been Let Down, is representing numerous victims. He said in his career he had never worked on a case with so many people claiming abuse.

He said: "I've never come across or worked on anything on this magnitude before. This is a very unusual case and I imagine there are a lot more than the 105 who have contacted the police. I am aware of people who have for whatever reason not wanted to go to the police or me as a lawyer. I think it's a positive thing that so many have contacted the police."

Dr Milner is accused of restraining young patients and pumping them with drugs and then making them relive past experiences. Some alleged victims claim he sexually abused them.

A letter sent to alleged victims last month by Derbyshire police said they were in the process of recording crime types in relation to the accounts given. It said once all accounts are obtained it would prepare a report for consideration of the Crown Prosecution Service.

The letter says the police are confident there are sufficient resources for the investigation to continue and more people are contacting them making claims against Dr Milner.

Dr Milner died in 1976. Numerous alleged victims are claiming compensation from the Department for Health for what they say happened to them.

An obituary in the British Medical Journal on January 31, 1976, stated Dr Milner was born on June 26, 1909, and educated at Wakefield Grammar School and Leeds University, graduating with honours in 1933. He gained his medical doctorate there in 1939.

Derbyshire police have issued some helplines for anyone in need. They said, for immediate help and support, people should call the Samaritans on 116 123.

Within office hours, people can telephone health workers Andrew Rayner or Liz Holmes on 01332 623700, ext 31537. If people require support for their mental health outside of normal office hours, they should contact their out-of-hours health service.
Memorial Day is often the most difficult holiday to approach.

Do you even say Happy Memorial Day? Isnt a sackcloth and ashes posture going a little too far the other way?

It is a holiday to remember the dead, but it is also a holiday to celebrate the freedom that resulted. It isnt always easy to know the right tone.

It did not take long to find the appropriate approach Monday during the 11th Annual Wiregrass Area Memorial Day Ceremony at Sunset Memorial Park. It came during the opening prayer.

Not apart from us, Rev. Jack Beachem, Jr. of Acts Church prayed. A part of us.

The ceremony was part celebration and part somber. The overflow crowd cheered and clapped when the World War II veterans in attendance were honored. Later, they stopped for a moment of silence to remember all of those who died in military action.

They remembered the missing in action, those currently serving overseas and those currently at home.

It can be a little confusing. Command Sergeant Major David Scott Lane, one of the ceremonys speakers, said he is always honored when someone thanks him for his service. On Memorial Day, however, he doesnt want people to forget the real reason for the holiday.

It is our sacred duty to ensure they are not lost to history, said Lane, who serves with the 1st of the 145th Aviation Regiment at Fort Rucker. Earlier I said it isnt about those of us still serving in uniform, but we cant lose focus on our present warfighters. Even as we preserve and cherish the memory of our fallen, we must remember, too, that more than 186,000 soldiers are currently deployed to 140 different countries, always willing to sacrifice to ensure the freedoms of this great nation and its people, just as those we honor here today.

Former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore also addressed the ceremony and urged those in attendance to remember the reason for the holiday. Moore served in Vietnam.

Being a veteran, we celebrate Veterans Day, but there is one thing veterans have in common with everybody here. We didnt give our lives, Moore said.

But, we do have something in common with those who fought and did not come back. We all know what it means to be lonely. We all know what it means to be away from home. We all know what it means to think how nice it would be back at our house, eating our mothers cooking, enjoying the companionship of our brothers and sisters. Nobody wants to be there, but they did so willingly. They did so to serve their country, Moore said.

The ceremony paid special tribute to Staff Sergeant Joseph C. Hidalgo, Sr., who served in World War II and died in January of 2004. He is buried at Sunset Memorial Park and a special wreath-laying was held during Mondays ceremony.

Hidalgo received the Bronze Star. He served as a cook, but doubled as a stretcher-bearer and corpsman a Peleliu in the Palau Islands. According to a Marine Corps Combat Correspondent Dispatch, Hidalgo aided wounded marines, gave first aid to innumerable comrades, performed a blood plasma transfusion under fire and, on occasion, worked day and night carrying badly needed supplies to the front. Officers who recommended Hidalgo for the Bronze Star say he worked for 48 continuous hours under enemy gunfire to carry supplies to the front and bring wounded men back to an aid station.
In this digital era, most businesses rely on online processes and applications as the backbone of their operations. Manual and paper-based procedures are dwindling as automated and computer-based systems take their place.

This increasing digitisation is making businesses more efficient and streamlined, but it also comes with risks that need to be mitigated. Recently, one of the worlds largest insurance companies, Lloyds, warned that the Australian economy faces a potential damage bill of $16 billion over the next decade as a result of cyberattacks.(1)

Many Australian businesses are lulled into a false sense of security in the mistaken belief that they are too small, isolated or insignificant to be the target of a cyberattack. Yet this couldnt be further from the truth. Every organisation is a potential target.

This was illustrated by the recent attack from the ransomware known as WannaCry, which hit a handful of Australian small businesses after attacking thousands of computer systems worldwide. Ransomware effectively locks up a users or organisations files, making them inaccessible until the victim pays a ransom to the perpetrator. The amount is usually small enough to be affordable, encouraging payment. However, companies that pay the ransom often find themselves the victim of further attacks, since the cybercriminals have now identified them as a target that is willing to pay.

Ransomware isnt the only risk facing Australian businesses. Often, organisations are targeted not for the information they can provide but for the doors they can open into other, more lucrative targets. Cybercriminals are no longer loners in a dark room. Instead, cybercrime has become a well-funded, lucrative industry in which expert hackers are paid a living wage to spend as much time as it takes finding and exploiting vulnerabilities.

In practice, this means cybercriminals have almost unlimited time and resources to spend probing organisations to find gaps and opportunities to get into the network and use that access to gain progressively more access until they hit the jackpot.

By contrast, most organisations are preoccupied with the work of running a business, of which the IT operations form just one part. Security efforts are, in turn, just a small component of overall IT operations. Consequently, there is simply no way Australian businesses can beat cybercriminals just by throwing more resources at the problem.

Instead, businesses need to be smart about how they protect themselves. Too often, businesses focus on the wrong aspects when looking to secure their corporate IT assets and the business processes that run on that environment.

There are two sides of the security equation: inbound attacks; and outbound traffic. The industry has done a good job educating businesses about the importance of preventing inbound attacks, and most companies have some form of protection in place, whether its as simple as a firewall or anti-virus, or as complex as a full intrusion protection system.

Whats misunderstood generally is the importance of outbound data. When businesses consider security, they must do so from both the inbound and the outbound perspective.

No matter how effective perimeter protection is, most networks are likely to be breached at some point. Its important for the organisation to control the damage by containing it. That can be achieved by not letting the attacker conduct outbound communications. Its those outbound communications that let the hacker download the payload, whether thats a piece of malware, ransomware or a key logger. By blocking that outbound communication, the business can render the attack useless.

Because the importance of preventing outbound communication isnt well understood, most businesses dont have strong security measures in place. However, there are effective technologies to block and manage outbound traffic; chiefly, proxy servers.

IT managers are often reluctant to implement proxy servers because they can make it difficult for employees to access a websites application plugins like a Facebook app, or other non-business related sites and apps, and simply patching the application with updates can be challenging. The impact on the user experience attracts a lot of complaints, so IT managers often open up a port here or there so users can access their favourite sites and apps. However, this defeats the purpose of the proxy server, which can be an extremely effective way to protect a companys data both in the cloud and on-premise.

Organisations need to remember that protecting outbound communication is the single most important aspect of neutralising attacks. Implementing a transparent proxy server is the most effective way to do that.

1.https://www.lloyds.com/cityriskindex/

About the author
A British data watchdog has raised questions about whether it was appropriate for a healthcare trust to share data on 1.6 million patients with DeepMind Health, an artificial intelligence company owned by Google.

The trust shared the data in connection with the test phase of Streams, an app designed to diagnose acute kidney injuries. However, the sharing was performed without an appropriate legal basis, Sky News reported earlier this week, based on a letter it obtained.

The National Data Guardian at the Department of Health earlier this year sent the letter to Stephen Powis, the medical director of the Royal Free Hospital in London, which provided the patients records to DeepMind. The National Data Guardian safeguards the use of healthcare information in the UK.

The UKs Information Commissioners Office also has been probing the matter, and is expected to complete its investigation soon.

One of the concerns since the launch of the Streams project has been whether the data shared with Google would be used appropriately.

The data used to provide the app has always been strictly controlled by the Royal Free and has never been used for commercial purposes or combined with Google products, services or ads  and never will be, DeepMind said in a statement provided to TechNewsWorld by spokesperson Ruth Barnett.

DeepMind also said that it recognizes that there needs to be much more public engagement and discussion about new technology in the National Health System, and that it wants to be one of the most transparent companies working in NHS IT.

Safety-First Approach

Royal Free takes seriously the conclusions of the NDG, the hospital said in a statement provided to TechNewsWorld by spokesperson Ian Lloyd. It is pleased that the NDG asked the Department of Health to look closely at the regulatory framework and guidance provided to organizations engaging in innovation.

Streams is a new technology, and there are always lessons that can be learned from pioneering work, Royal Free noted.

However, the hospital took a safety-first approach in testing Streams with real data, in order to check that the app was presenting patient information accurately and safely before being deployed in a live patient setting, it maintained.

Real patient data is routinely used in the NHS to check new systems are working properly before turning them fully live, Royal Free explained, adding that no responsible hospital would deploy a system that hadnt been thoroughly tested.

Googles Reputation

The controversy over Streams may have less to do with patient privacy and more to do with Google.

If this hadnt involved a GoFA (Google Facebook Amazon), I wonder if this would have evoked such an outcry, observed Jessica Groopman, a principal analyst at Tractica.

In this case, DeepMinds affiliation with Google may have hurt it, she told TechNewsWorld.

Although theres no evidence of data abuse by DeepMind, the future fate of personal healthcare information is an issue that has raised concerns, Groopman noted.

Theres a concern that once these sorts of applications  and use of these sets of big, personal data  become more commonplace, it will lead to commercial use of the data, she said. Im sure that Google and DeepMind understand that anything they do is going to be hyperscrutinized through this lens of advertising revenue.

Too Much Privacy

Health apps can have real benefits for individuals, as Streams illustrates, but they need data to do it, which can raise privacy questions.

When youre looking at deep learning applications, the amount of data that is required to train these models is huge, Groopman explained. Thats why these kinds of tensions will continue to occur.

Patient information must be given the highest level of protection within an organization, argued Lee Kim, privacy and security director at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.

But there must be a balance between restrictions and availability of the data, she told TechNewsWorld.

An immense amount of progress can be made in healthcare and self-care through the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence to deliver more accessible, affordable and effective care solutions to the market, noted Jeff Dachis, CEO of One Drop, a platform for the personal management of diabetes.

We must always respect data privacy and the individuals right to that privacy, he told TechNewsWorld, but not halt all the much needed progress in this area under the guise of data privacy.
Red Hat on Monday announced a new Application Platform Partner Initiative at its North America Partner Conference in Las Vegas. The goal is to provide a more robust ecosystem for companies engaging in digital transformation.

The company has started conducting tests in a pilot program with a small number of solutions-oriented consulting partners in North America.

We are planning to engage with a small group of partners during the pilot phase  aiming for approximately one to two dozen partners, said Red Hat spokesperson Daniel Thompson.

There isnt a set timeframe for the pilot phase, he told LinuxInsider. The objective is to work closely with these partners to get the program up and running and then scale it globally from there.

Consulting Play

The consulting partners  Exadel, OSI Consulting, Vizuri, Levell and others  are working with Red Hat to provide a range of sales, marketing and delivery services around several of the companys technologies, including Red Hat JBoss Middleware, Red Hat OpenShift and Red Hat Mobile Application Platform.

Red Hat is providing training and certification, technical support and customer service. Red Hat Consulting services also are available to partners in the program when they are working with Red Hat installed base accounts.

Customers are using a wider array of applications and need a more cost-effective integration platform, said Glenn Gesell, president of OSI Consulting.

Red Hats open source solutions offer new options for building integrations and container-based business applications, he added.

The new program will help accelerate the adoption of cloud, container and mobile technologies, said John Dickman, senior vice president of Vizuri. The availability of a network of partners with greater expertise will inspire confidence in those undergoing transformation, he said, noting that Vizuri has been collaborating with Red Hat on open source solutions for the past 10 years.

Small and Medium-Sized Businesses

By trying to figure out how digital transformation impacts small and medium-sized businesses, Red Hats program appears to be aiming squarely at Microsoft, noted Paul Teich, principal analyst at Tirias Research.

Red Hat has large-enterprise brand recognition and reach, he told LinuxInsider. However, moving digital transformation into the mainstream for mid-sized and smaller customers requires a broader set of go-to-market partners. This is a good SMB channel partners play for Red Hat.

Red Hat recognizes that in order to expand its ecosystem, it must enhance and adjust its partner programs continually as its product portfolio evolves, and customer needs change, said Jeffrey Kaplan, managing director at ThinkStrategies.

The limited rollout of the latest partner program indicates that the company is still testing their market fit and operational effectiveness, he told LinuxInsider, before programs are offered to a broader array of partners across most geographies.

As it has grown in recent years, Red Hat has bullt out a more robust engineering team and taken on more of a leadership role with its customers, noted Peter Christy, research director at 451 Research.

The leadership at the company have come to realize that they have to operate more at the platform level, he told LinuxInsider, and help customers understand the open source model more broadly.

We believe open source is at the heart of digital transformation, said John Bluer, vice president for global alliances at Red Hat, and we are passionate about enabling our customers to succeed in their transformation efforts with open source.
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"Figures show that out of the 52% of the area suitable for mariculture, a mere 0.03% is currently used. The figures are 30 and 11% for freshwater aquaculture and 17 and 39% for brackish water aquaculture. Mariculture areas include Aceh, Padang, Lampung, Bali and Maluku, and the fish species include grouper and barramundi," says Mr. Jimmy De Mey, sales in charge for Buhler's feed milling business in Indonesia which was started more than 25 years ago.



"Buhler is a 100% Swiss family-owned company, and is committed to sales stability, investing 5% of its annual turnover in R&D. Its 2016 turnover was CHF 2.45 billion. Buhler has 27 manufacturing sites and over 90 service stations around the world, with 11,000 employees in over 140 countries. Buhler Indonesia was formed in 2012, with workshops in Surabaya, and an office and laboratory service in Jakarta. Our engineers provide support and servicing to our customers in the country," says Mr. De Mey.



Specifically for aqua feed milling, Mr. De Mey also describes Buhler as having "good partnerships" to set up aqua feed plants in the country. "We have various machines in our portfolio, such as our single screw and twin screw extruders, which define the wide range of aqua feed which we can produce, such as sinking and floating feeds. We also provide feed mill customers turnkey solutions along their whole process line," highlights Mr. De Mey.



Indonesia's rapid population growth and increasing need for food are also driving other sectors in the industry, which Buhler has been capitalising on. Of the five poultry market zones designated in the country, the company already has customers in all of them.




H7N9 Influenza & The Art of War: How a silent killer used us to develop its weapons of mass destruction

Making itself ever more virulent while pretending to be in retreat, the H7N9 virus is an unprecedented threat to China's broiler sector -and the world's people.

An eFeedLink Hot Topic

In retrospect, H7N9 avian influenza virus appears to be following Sun Tzu's Art of War: For several years, it studied our weaknesses, making itself stronger while pretending to be in retreat. Having used our own weapons to undermine vaccines and flu treatments, it now reveals itself ready to start a global pandemic.

Alongside the 579 innocent human lives it has taken since early 2013, China's chronic H7N9 bird flu outbreaks been a business disaster by any measure. Several times since the first outbreak in 2013, it caused China's total broiler flock to fall by 10% to 30% in just months. Four years after the first outbreak happened, China is producing nearly 20% less chicken meat than it did in 2012 and they are eating at least 30% less poultry meat per person than what was expected by this time.

Alongside the countless lost investments in flocks, feed and wet market closures, bird flu stained the entire poultry sector's reputation. Now it seems that the attempts to cure bird flu might have been worse than the disease itself: Scientific evidence suggests that H7N9 is turning into a highly pathogenic microbe. Ironically, it is the bird flu vaccines themselves that appeared to have encouraged H7N9 to mutate and render even human remedies ineffective.

The clue came during this winter's outbreak, which defied conventional, science-based expectations: Natural immunity increases with time and viruses have no interest in killing off their hosts. Consequently, every succeeding pathogenic viral outbreak is usually less lethal than the previous one. That was true of H7N9, which after its initial outbreak, made fewer, milder and less damaging human and livestock outbreaks over the next three years.

Unfortunately, this downtrend was broken with the past winter's unexpected surge in both poultry and human H7N9 cases, with nearly 25% of the latter resulting in fatalities. During this fifth H7N9 outbreak peak period of October through February, Chinese broiler inventories fell by 12%, with AA white feather numbers declining 15% over this time.

Human bird flu cases fared even worse. By mid-2016, the incidence of human bird flu cases and deaths recorded by the World Health Organization (WHO) had fallen by over 80% from their early 2014 peak. The situation seemed to be well under control until this winter.

From late October through mid-May, the number of chickens infected rose to their highest peak since this strain of bird flu's initial outbreaks. In any given week of the Q4 2016, Q1 2017 or the first two months of Q2 2017, weekly human H7N9 cases totaled 4 to 10 times more than a year earlier.

Not only did this fifth outbreak's human cases exceed the old 2014 record, at 713 cases (as of 26 May 2017), it accounts for nearly half the 1,525 H7N9 infections recorded since the first human case was registered in early 2013. With this outbreak, the number of H7N9 cases and deaths even exceeds those caused by Southeast Asia-based H5N1, which has been wreaking havoc for a decade longer.

During April and May, the number of cases fell, as the outbreak went into its cyclical, seasonal downturn. But even throughout April and May 2017, new H7N9 weekly cases equaled or exceeded weekly numbers seen during the cyclical peak periods of Q1 2015 and Q1 2016 flu seasons.

Spring time also brought the news that for the first time, H7N9 had been detected at live-bird markets within Inner Mongolia; a province that borders the nations of Mongolia and Russia. This follows the detection of H7N9 in birds in a province on China's southern border into Vietnam. Thus, while all H7N9 cases have been in China up to now, it appears to be only a matter of time before H7N9 begins to infect wild fowl in Southeast Asia and Central Asia, with non-Chinese poultry and human cases to follow.

Even so, it must be said that China's inability to control H7N9 is not due to lax efforts in controlling the disease: Beijing reacted to the latest outbreak far more quickly, farmers vaccinated many more birds and policymakers closed poultry markets more rapidly and for a longer time than in the past. Even when wet markets were closed, cases continued to spread among both people and chickens.

The bad news is that H7N9's rising virulence arises from its evolution into a new strain that resists human vaccines and we may have accelerated its coming into the world. Guangdong province still accounts for the majority of H7N9 avian influenza virus found in wild birds. Now however, alongside the well-known Pearl River Delta variant of H7N9, a new strain of this avian influenza type is now emerging in provinces bordering on the Yangtze River.

A May 26 report by the University of Minnesota's Centre for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) states, "Most of the recent H7N9 viruses from China belong to the Yangtze River Delta lineage, which shows reduced cross-reactivity to earlier candidate vaccine viruses, suggesting that stockpiled vaccines made with the earlier virus might not protect against the newly circulating viruses."

It added that, "WHO advisors said two existing H7N9 vaccine strains didn't seem to protect against the new [Yangtze River] lineage, and they proposed the development of a new one." But there's even worse news. The viruses' rapid mutation rate is making its treatment as impossible as its prevention: Researchers discovered that many human cases of the Yangtze H7N9 no longer respond to the commonly prescribed influenza antidote of Tamiflu.

It rapid viral mutation rate has made the world's current stockpile of H7N9 human vaccines and Tamiflu antidote at best only partly effective. Worse yet, vaccines given to broilers may have both accelerated H7N9's development and been responsible for this outbreak's high number of bird flu cases.

The idea that China's own bird flu vaccines could themselves be responsible for bird flu's escalating virulence go back more than a decade and now feel eerily prophetic. Back in 2005, Robert Webster, an influenza researcher at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, USA concluded that by being only partly effective, "Existing vaccines can only reduce the amount of virus rather than totally inactivating it."

According to Webster, while H7N9 vaccines given to broilers halt the expression of easily visible bird flu symptoms, they do not stop the virus from multiplying, mutating and spreading within poultry flocks. Xinhua News agency quoted Guangdong-based poultry Zhong Nanshan was quoted as stating that, "Existing [broiler] vaccines can only reduce the amount of virus rather than totally inactivating it."

Chinse poultry vaccine's coincident ability to eliminate H7N9 infection symptoms without killing the virus is extremely unfortunate. All scientific research points to the fact that poultry viruses evolve into strains more lethal to humans when they can circulate in bird flocks for an extended period of time.

By hiding H7N9's symptoms in poultry while giving the viruses a (partly effective) anti-body stress load, China's broiler vaccines have created a perfect accelerator for H7N9's evolution into a lethal virus: One that cannot be stopped by human vaccines or even treated when infection occurs.

Alongside partly effective vaccines, there is one other reason why China has had a much harder time controlling bird flu than Hong Kong did: While China had a policy of only culling visibly infected birds, Hong Kong culled whole broiler flocks even if only one or two chickens fell sick. When the poultry vaccines masked flu symptoms while allowing the virus to spread and evolve, the limited culling exercises gave H7N9 a perfect breeding ground.

Infected poultry with no H7N9 symptoms is not just the perfect biological for creating new, deadly bird flu strains but is highly effective in spreading it to wild birds and poultry too. Henry Wan, an influenza virologist at Mississippi State University states that, "When vaccinated birds do not have 100% immunity against a particular virus strain, the birds may still be able to infect others with the virus."

Wan explains that, "Because it has some level of immunity, the bird will not show any clinical signs, but it can still shed viruses." All this has been going on undetected within billions of Chinese broilers for the better part of ten years. Now that the virus is achieving a critical level of lethality, it may be too late to stop it.



To be fair to China, Hong Kong's solution is not practical for a country of 1.4 billion people. Whereas Hong Kong can kill every chicken in its territory and import 100% of its poultry meat, China's market is simply too large for the world's poultry exporters to fully supply. To be fair to China, Hong Kong's solution is not practical for a country of 1.4 billion people. Whereas Hong Kong can kill every chicken in its territory and import 100% of its poultry meat, China's market is simply too large for the world's poultry exporters to fully supply.

This leaves China in a highly awkward position. On one hand, with no country able to export enough chicken meat to feed a population of a billion, it cannot simply cull all its poultry and carry on, like Hong Kong did. On the other hand, the only solution to this situation appears to be a combination of Thai-style compartmentalization of poultry rearing and hygiene.

Wan concurs that, "Raising chickens in confinement minimizes their exposure to wild migratory waterfowl, which have been identified as possible reservoirs of the avian influenza virus. Biosecurity practices also limit exposure of the chickens to unauthorized visitors on the farm." He advocates that, "Flocks are raised as securely as possible, and then are tested for exposure to the avian influenza virus before they are sent to market."

Wan's opinion is backed by the OIE which concluded, that, "Any decision to use [poultry] vaccination must include an exit strategy, i.e. conditions to be met to stop vaccination." This follows research by scientists such as David Swayne of Texas A&M University.

Swayne noted in his study that, "Five countries accounted for 99% of vaccine used: 1) China (90.9%), 2) Egypt (4.6%), 3) Indonesia (2.3%), 4) Vietnam (1.4%), and 5) Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (< 0.01%) with the exception of Hong Kong, all of these countries remain firmly entrenched with [poultry] viruses after more than a decade of avian flu vaccine use, and none show any signs of looking for the recommended exit."

While going cold turkey and completely discontinuing the use of poultry vaccines might be China and the world's only hope of avoiding a serious bird flu epidemic, it is not a pleasant or easy option. With no vaccines, epidemics of H7N9 or newly evolved variants might burn through China's vast poultry population for years. It would probably cause huge financial losses before the H7N9 virus family stabilizes and stops evolving so rapidly. While going cold turkey and completely discontinuing the use of poultry vaccines might be China and the world's only hope of avoiding a serious bird flu epidemic, it is not a pleasant or easy option. With no vaccines, epidemics of H7N9 or newly evolved variants might burn through China's vast poultry population for years. It would probably cause huge financial losses before the H7N9 virus family stabilizes and stops evolving so rapidly.

Between bird flu outbreaks and its ban on US breedstock, China's broiler sector is already literally on its knees. Over the medium term, removing bird flu vaccines from its roster of health care measures can only further undermine this industry's faltering production and profitability.

While China's policymakers have not made any large, definite decisions on this matter, one thing has changed: A recent CDC risk assessment study put H7N9 at the top of the list of pandemic threats from among a dozen bird and animal poultry and livestock viruses. The CDC concluded that H7N9 has the greatest potential for creating a pandemic that would kill millions of people around the world.

In conclusion, H7N9 has brilliantly fooled agribusiness researchers, pretending to retreat and fade away while quietly transforming itself into something too deadly to vaccinate against or treat. Having developed its weapons of mass destruction, H7N9 now literally stands at the edge of China's borders, getting ready to take flight into the surrounding international community.

Do we have the scientific wisdom and political willpower to stop this evolving human disaster? Only time will tell.





All rights reserved. No part of the report may be reproduced without permission from eFeedLink.




The United States is sending a third aircraft carrier strike force to the western Pacific region in an apparent warning to North Korea to deter its ballistic missile and nuclear programs, two sources have told VOA.



The USS Nimitz, one of the worlds largest warships, will join two other supercarriers, the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Ronald Reagan, in the western Pacific, the sources told VOA's Steve Herman.




Witnesses sought to damage near Fairy Bridge

Police are appealing for information following an incident of criminal damage in the south of the Island.

Officers say damage was caused near Fairy Bridge on the Castletown Road in Santon.

A Land Rover Discovery was involved in the incident, as well as a man and woman who were walking in the area.

Police are keen to hear from the couple, as well as the driver of a small blue car who stopped following the incident.

Anyone who can help police with their investigation can contact Castletown Police Station on 822222.
America's Got Talent season 12 is premiering Tuesday and NBC recently released a clip in which current judges, Simon Cowell, Howie Mandel, Mel B and Heidi Klum welcome new host Tyra Banks to the show. Banks will helm this iteration, and will replace previous host, Nick Cannon, who infamously quit the show after some racial comments he made.

Banks receives quite a welcome in the new clip. In addition to hugs and a confetti shower, she also receives a cake, which she promptly licks along with the other female judges.

Reception to Banks joining the show has been mixed. While many are excited to see a fresh face, there are also those who really miss Cannon and feel he was treated harshly when the video with his comments emerged. Fans have been sharing the hashtag "BringBackNick" to show their support for him in social media.

America's Got Talent will be premiering tomorrow on NBC at 8 p.m. The show will be scouring the country in search of the greatest talent. The last person voted by America will win a one million dollar grand prize, and will succeed previous winner, Grace VanderWaal.
Arizona welfare agency bans political and religious speech By Rachel Alexander

Shortly after its Roman Catholic director was fired by the governor, the Arizona Department of Economic Security implemented a policy incredibly  and unconstitutionally  imposing a sweeping ban on religious and political speech. This was done in order to squelch the culture that beloved and popular Tim Jeffries had cultivated at the agency. Jeffries was not afraid of displaying his devout Christianity and love for the First Amendment in public. He was fond of saying Blessings and prominently featured the states motto, Ditat Deus, which means God enriches, around the office. He also often quoted consequential figures (such as Mother Teresa, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Dalai Lama and Mahatma Ghandi) to emphasize the imperative of serving the poor, afflicted and disadvantaged with love, care and respect. For that and more, Jeffries was slandered by employees and bureaucrats with grudges, who complained to organizations like Americans United for the Separation of Church and State and the Secular Coalition of Arizona. Despite the fact Jeffries was the top reformer in Arizona State Government (in my opinion and many others concur), cleaning up the bloated welfare agency and increasing morale by large margins, the governor caved in to pressure and fired him the day before last Thanksgiving. While director of the agency, Jeffries reduced the agency headcount by 2 percent and planned additional streamlining to free up more resources for 1.6 million Arizonans who need the agency. Jeffries fired employees who bullied and harassed other employees. He fired employees who were not performing. He had employees who stole from the agency arrested. Jeffries even dared to go after a corrupt Democratic legislator who was illegally taking food stamps (an investigation that his predecessor squelched), and other high-profile investigations were progressing at the time of his firing. Over 1,000 employees contacted Jeffries sympathetically after he was fired, hed made such a difference. Many remain fiercely loyal to the reformer, and contact him regularly. DES employees have even hosted Jeffries for lunches, cocktails and dinners to thank him for his vigorous and loving efforts on their behalves. Jeffries was likely the governors only agency director to fulfill the governors directive to significantly reduce agency costs by rooting out waste, fraud and abuse. Every termination was legal in the right to work State of Arizona. Every quote Jeffries shared was constitutional in our United States of America. This month part of what appears to be new guidelines for training approximately 8,000 DES employees throughout Arizona was leaked to the media. The revised policy bans religious speech within the agency. It states, Topic of Religion is no longer allowed in class or in the office. Specifically, No religious quotes, No religious sayings, and Avoid mentioning blessings. Incredibly, the policy doesnt stop there. It goes on to ban all political speech, No mention of politics. Might as well pile on, squelching both clauses of the First Amendment while youre at it. I asked DES if the document was distributed to all employees. Bizarrely, a spokesperson responded and said it was merely partial meeting notes taken by a staff member during a staff meeting for one training unit within the Office of Professional Development. If those are notes, thats one incredible note taker; the document is professionally organized with subheadings, section numbers and letters, bullet points and titles. Even if was merely notes from a meeting, the verbal instructions to employees still trample on the First Amendment. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled extensively in this area. According to The First Amendment Center, Public employees  can speak about religious matters in the workplace to a certain degree, particularly if the speech is not communicated to the general public. In fact, the Center says they are generally even permitted to go as far as proselytizing, unless a fellow employee asks them to stop. The First Amendment specifically protects political and religious speech more than other types of speech. In the 1983 case Connick v. Meyers, the Supreme Court opined, When employee expression cannot be fairly considered as relating to any matter of political, social, or other concern to the community, government officials should enjoy wide latitude in managing their offices, without intrusive oversight by the judiciary in the name of the First Amendment. I have worked for multiple government agencies, and politics and religion were popular topics between me and my co-workers around the water cooler. When I worked for the Arizona Attorney Generals Office, there was an outcry because then-Attorney General Janet Napolitano merely tried to limit Christmas decorations to employees individual work areas. Employees from my section of the office responded by displaying Happy Holidays from the Loch Ness monster taped to a sorry looking plant located in a public area that looked like the mythical creature and Seasons Greetings from Bigfoot, with a horribly drawn sketch by yours truly if I remember correctly. How did this blatantly unconstitutional policy get put into place? Who drafted and approved it? There is no way Arizona Governor Doug Ducey  who is a Republican and Catholic  approved of something that clearly violates the Constitution. Someone in management at DES clearly has an ax to grind, and they apparently dont care if it means trampling on the First Amendment rights of probably all 8,000-plus DES employees and contractors just to destroy the lasting legacy Jeffries created, where employees were appreciated and loved their jobs. Not to mention the cost to taxpayers if the agency is sued. DES management needs to rescind the offensive policy. Otherwise, do not be surprised if religious liberty and free speech organizations like First Liberty and the Alliance Defending Freedom  the latter which is headquartered in Arizona  escalate this to a constitutional lawsuit. As they should. If this trampling of our rights can occur in in a lone state government agency, it will continue elsewhere. Rachel Alexander and her brother Andrew are co-Editors of Intellectual Conservative. She has been published in the American Spectator, Townhall.com, Fox News, NewsMax, Accuracy in Media, The Americano, ParcBench, and other publications. Home
Why expecting subway passengers to pay is racist By Michael R. Shannon

A select group of Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) passengers discovered what happens when government ignores the Broken Windows theory of policing in favor of the lefts Let It All Hang Out philosophy. Broken Windows, introduced by James Wilson and George Kelling, held that a community starts to deteriorate when political leadership deemphasizes enforcement of quality of life ordinances. Wilson and Kelling used the example of a building with a couple of broken windows. If the windows arent repaired, vandals will continue to break windows until there is no glass at all. Failure to repair the first few signals that there wont be any consequences for breaking more in the future. Deterioration continues until vandals break into the building and destroy the inside, too. The social scientists contended the same thing happens in cities. If law enforcement ignores quality of life crimes like public urination, drinking in public, littering, graffiti and vandalism then disorder spreads and escalates. By 1990 William Bratton, chief of New York Citys Transit Police, was tired of supervising the transit equivalent of Subway from Hell so he ordered his troops to crackdown on quality of life offenders. Plainclothes cops started arresting fare jumpers, aggressive panhandlers and vandals. Crime plummeted as a result of enhanced enforcement. New Yorks subway system became safe enough for politicians to ride. In 2017 BART discovered it, too, has a problem with fare jumpers. The San Francisco Chronicle reports 22,000 people a day may be illegally riding BART for free  and depriving the transit system of as much as $25 million a year. For most of us thats a lot of money, but for some BART board members it was a small price to pay if it kept BART cops from harassing minorities. BART board member Lateefah Simon  a former farejumper herself is convinced there are just as many upperincome seniors jumping fares as there are minority leapers, but BART cops will someone concentrate their enforcement on teens, minorities and the homeless. We dont want to create more problems than we solve, she explained. So while the board was dithering a problem created itself. Five days after Simon poohpoohed a plan for fare enforcement, a mob hijacked a BART train. As reported by SFGate, A mob of 4060 young people streamed onto a BART train in Oakland Saturday night, robbing multiple riders of bags and cell phones and injuring at least two people. Juveniles jumped the fare gates and rushed aboard at least two cars of a Dublin-bound train at Coliseum Station shortly before 9:30 p.m. Some members of the group held doors open, stalling the train, while others ran through cars and some robbed and assaulted passengers. BART management was contrite: Before all else, our hearts go out to the passengers who were victims of Saturday's robbery. Once the sympathy was out of the way, BART reverted to best practices for leftists that put a higher priority on political correctness than keeping the peace. It lied. Overall, crime has been on the decline, and we want to stress that this robbery is neither reflective of the safety of our system nor of public transportation generally. We strive to provide a safe place for our passengers.... Only crime isnt down. Crime is up 22 percent in the first quarter of 2017. In fact crime is so obvious and out of control that acting chief Jeffery Jennings has declared a state of emergency. Sympathy after the fact would not have been necessary if BART management practiced competence before the incident. Ignoring an obvious and expensive problem like rampant fare jumping only encourages the practitioners to push the limits and escalate their law breaking. A sensible solution would be to let the data determine where to enforce. I think the term for that is science and the left claims to be the party of science. The system has cameras in the stations and it can determine which stations are hotspots and at what time incidents occur. This common sense research might have prevented the taking of the BART train, since it occurred right after a juvenileheavy event ended. There is no indication the board will even try to mine the data. Adopting a Broken Windows policy might result in too many minority arrests, so the board is willing to risk a few broken heads. Im not so sure passengers on the Dublinbound train agree with that choice. Quality of life laws arent designed to inflict discrimination; theyre designed to establish a baseline for public behavior. These laws protect the elderly, the infirm, the young, the female and the wimpy, while restraining the unruly. Regardless of whether government tolerates broken windows or broken turnstiles, it always leads to broken heads in the end. Michael R. Shannon is a public relations and advertising consultant with corporate, government and political experience around the globe. He is a dynamic and entertaining keynote speaker. He can be reached at mandate.mmpr (at) gmail.com. He is also the author of Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!). Home
Nipping a legal problem in the bud By Paul Driessen

One of my recent articles predicted that the Fish & Wildlife Services endangered species designation for the rusty patched bumblebee would lead to its being used to delay or block construction projects and pesticide use on hundreds of millions of acres of US farmland. The abuses have already begun. Projects in Minnesota and elsewhere have been delayed, while people tried to ascertain that no bees were actually nesting in the areas. Now a federal district court judge has ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency failed to consult with the FWS before approving 59 products containing neonicotinoid pesticides that are used primarily as seed coatings for corn, canola, cotton, potato, sugar beet and other crops. As crops bud and grow, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt must nip this problem in the bud. Thankfully, Judge Maxine Chesney has given them the means to do so. The Endangered Species Act requires that EPA determine whether a pesticide may affect a listed species, she noted, and consult with the FWS and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS, which has no conceivable role in protecting domesticated or wild bees), before approving the 59 products, which contain the neonics clothianidin or thiamethoxam. So EPA must consult with the agencies and determine that the insecticides would have no effect on the species or establish stricter guidelines for using them. The Center for Food Safety and a couple of beekeepers initiated their lawsuit to toughen restrictions on or ban use of the 59 pesticide products, because of alleged risks to bees and other pollinators. Pesticide manufacturers, their CropLife America trade association, and various farmers and beekeepers argued that these neonic insecticides are safe for bees, and no new measures or restrictions are needed. Properly done, consultation would evaluate the conflicting claims and ensure more informed policies. During the Obama Administration, those consultations would likely have involved only the EPA, FWS and NMFS, where many analysts have anti-pesticide views, along with the anti-insecticide plaintiffs. The industry and other parties who intervened in the lawsuit would likely have been excluded or ignored. But those interveners certainly bring essential expertise. So do farmers, other beekeepers, the Department of Agriculture, scientists who have been studying neonic and other threats to honeybees, and wild bee experts like Sam Droege in the Interior Departments US Geological Survey. Truly informed policies and regulations must involve all such experts, as well as parties who will be most affected by any EPA-DOI decisions: construction companies and unions, local government officials, conventional farmers who rely on neonics to protect their crops  and beekeepers who increasingly understand that honeybee colony losses in recent years were due to natural pests and pathogens, and that alternative pesticides are actually more harmful to bees than neonics. Extensive studies have concluded that the actual cause of bee die-offs and colony collapse disorders has been a toxic mix of tiny pests (parasitic Varroa destructor mites, phorid flies, Nosema ceranae gut fungus, tobacco ringspot virus and deformed wing virus)  as well as chemicals used by beekeepers trying to control these beehive infestations. These diseases and pathogens can easily spread to wild bees. Field studies involving crops where bees forage for pollen have consistently found no observable adverse effects on honeybees resulting from exposures to properly applied neonic seed coatings. The studies assessed neonic residues from bees and hives under actual pollinating/pollen-gathering conditions; they found that pesticide residues were well below levels that can adversely affect bees  and that neonics did not cause any detrimental effects on the development or reproduction of honeybee and wild bee species. That should not be surprising. Coating seeds ensures that neonic pesticides are absorbed into plant tissues  and thus target only pests that actually feed on the crops. This reduces or eliminates the need to spray crops with much larger quantities of neonicotinoid, pyrethroid or other pesticides that definitely can kill birds, bats and beneficial insects that inhabit or visit the fields or are impacted by accidental over-sprays. Even organic farming can harm bees, as it often employs powerful, toxic natural chemicals (like copper sulfate) and spraying with live Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) bacteria. Laboratory studies consistently overdose bees with pesticides, under conditions that do not come close to approximating what bees encounter in forests, grasslands or croplands. That makes their findings highly questionable to useless for devising responsible, science-based regulations. These realities help explain the sudden attention to wild bees. When the hullabaloo over honeybee deaths and colony collapse disorder supposedly caused by pesticides (especially neonics) collapsed like a house of cards, eco-activists began raising alarums over wild bees species. Thats because so little is known that their latest no wild bees  no food or flowers claims cannot yet be refuted as convincingly as were claims about domesticated honeybees that have been bred and studied for centuries. The FWS and Interior Department clearly opened a Pandoras Box when they decided to list the rusty patched bumblebee as endangered (rather than merely threatened). That bees historic range covers nearly 4 million acres, scattered in unknown segments among 378 million acres across 13 Northeastern and Midwestern states. Other species that anti-pesticide activists want added to the endangered list (yellow-banded, western and Franklins bumblebees) were found historically in small areas scattered over more than a billion acres in 40 US states. Some nest in the ground; others in trees. If environmentalists succeed in getting these endangered designations  especially coupled with a narrow consultation process  they could delay, block or bankrupt power lines, bridges, highways, pipelines, housing developments, wastewater treatment plants, plowing operations and other projects all over the USA. Non-organic farming, neonic-treated seeds, and other pesticide use could be particularly vulnerable. The actual environmental benefits would be minimal  or profoundly negative, as farmers are forced to use other insecticides or switch to land-intensive organic methods. Additional ironies abound. The constant environmentalist, court, news media and government agency attention to bees and pesticides is hard to understand in the context of policies that promote, mandate and subsidize large-scale wind turbine installations  while ignoring or exempting their impacts on raptors and other birds, bats, and even whales (NMFS should investigate that) and human health. Meanwhile, extensive monoculture corn and canola plantations (to produce feed stocks for ethanol and biodiesel production) replace millions of acres of food crop and wildlife habitat lands, while using vast quantities of water, fertilizer and energy to replace the oil, coal and natural gas that rabid greens want kept in the ground. These biofuel operations reduce biodiversity and the numbers and varieties of flowering plants on which wild bee species depend. In addition, over their life cycles ethanol and biodiesel generate more carbon dioxide than fossil fuels per Btu of energy produced (see here, here and here). Broad-based consultations are therefore essential, to ensure that all these topics are addressed by experts and affected parties who can help evaluate the science and policy implications for domesticated and wild bees, as well as for farming, construction, jobs, families and other species. They must assess not just the alleged risks of using neonics, but also the risks of not using them, risks associated with having to use other classes of pesticides, and risks that could be reduced or eliminated by using modern neonic seed coatings. They should focus on replicable, evidence-based, field-tested science, not laboratory studies; balance agricultural, consumer and environmental needs; and consider bees in the context of how we protect (or dont protect) other valuable wildlife species. These steps would help restore science and common sense to policy and regulatory processes  and serve as a foundation for adjusting the Endangered Species Act to minimize regulatory and litigation excesses. Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow (www.CFACT.org) and author of Eco-Imperialism: Green power - Black death. Home
We need more special counsels By Dr. Robert Owens

The original accusation, the underlying premise for the entire hissy fit by the chronic sufferers of Trump Derangement Syndromes about Russian collusion was that the Russians hacked the DNC and gave the emails to Wikileaks. Recently Internet entrepreneur and hacker, Kim DotCom, admitted that he was part of an operation along with Seth Rich, an employee of the DNC to get internal emails to Wikileaks. Now we have proof that this underlying premise was a lie all along. We now know that the person who really did give the DNC emails to Wikileaks didnt have to hack in, because he was an insider to begin with: Seth Rich. We also know that Seth Rich was mysteriously killed in Washington DC on July 8, 2016, and that the Metro Police are slow walking the investigation. The police say it was a botched robbery. The killer or killers took nothing from their victim, leaving behind his wallet, watch, and phone. In August Wikileaks offered a $20,000 reward for information on the murder of DNC staffer Seth Rich. Julian Assange also suggested in August that Seth Rich was a Wikileaks informant. Kim Dotcom tweeted out that he has evidence Seth Rich, the murdered DNC operative, is the Wikileaks source. Hes ready to release the evidence to Congressional investigators. It doesnt seem as if anyone in Washington is interested since this shines a light on the lie that started it all. There is so much about this that is interesting. Such as, the fact that the DNC leaders, Hillary Clinton, and Podesta, never disputed what was said in the emails. They instead attacked how the information was leaked. The media of course misdirected as best they could to cover up the facts. Look at who made the accusations not at the accusations themselves. If there was any fraud in the last election cycle it was the DNC fat cats stacking the deck against Bernie Sanders in the primaries. I continue to ask if the Russians hacked the election and Hillary won the popular vote whose side were they on. Just ask yourself: who would the Russians rather have as president of the United States a corrupt politician that everyone in the world knows can be bribed or a billionaire who says, Drill Baby drill when their economy is based on oil? Now we have a Special Counsel to investigate a non-crime that probably makes sense inside the beltway and through the looking glass. Why not have a Special Counsel to investigate Bill Clintons visit with Loretta Lynch on the tarmac in Arizona. How about one to investigate all the people illegally leaking confidential material in an attempt to thwart the Trump agenda? What about one to investigate how many people were illegally unmasked by Susan Rice and the rest of the Obama hit machine? If were going to empanel Special Counsels to investigate rumors why stop until weve investigated them all? Where are the over 30,000 emails deleted by Hillary Clinton? If the massive donations to the Clinton Foundations werent thinly veiled bribes why did they dry up as soon as Hillary lost the election? Special Counsels like Special Prosecutors take on a life of their own. Which is eventually close to the half-life of a radioactive material, it lives on and on and on. They need convictions to justify the bloated staffs and budgets that they acquire in years of so-called investigations. Look at the case of who leaked the name of Valerie Plame. The whole thing started with an article on July 14, 2003, by Robert Novak, journalist for The Washington Post. This article named Plame as a CIA operative effectively ending her career. Before the Special Prosecutor was even named people in the government knew that the source of the leak was Richard Armitage. However he was an insider, a member of the establishment, so he couldnt end up as the fall guy. Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald pushed and prodded until he was able to catch someone in a discrepancy between multiple interviews over several years. Then he prosecuted Scooter Libby for that discrepancy and got a conviction. It was not for revealing Plames name but for impeding the investigation into something that was already known before the investigation began. Back in 1980 when Ronald Reagan won shocking the Democrat establishment they demanded an investigation of his Presidential campaign saying they made a deal with Iran to delay the release of American hostages until after the election. How else could this has been actor beat a sitting president as successful as Jimmy Carter? Thats when Tom Foley the Democrat leader of the House said, We have no conclusive evidence of wrongdoing, but the seriousness of the allegations, and the weight of circumstantial information, compel an effort to establish the facts. As long as we are going to continue to follow the Democrats criteria for investigations lets go for the Holy Grail. Lets investigate the report that Obama's Kenyan (paternal) grandmother, as well as his half-brother and half-sister testified that Barack Hussein Obama was born in Kenya, and not in Hawaii as the president claims. And there is reported testimony from a Mombasa science teacher and the Mombasa Registrar of births that Obama's birth certificate from Mombasa is genuine. This report shows a copy of President Obamas birth certificate that Lucas Smith obtained through the help of a Kenyan Colonel who got it recently directly from the Coast General Hospital in Mombasa, Kenya. So, if were going to have Special Counsels lets have a bunch of them. Lets look into every rumor and accusation in Washington. That should cause enough gridlock to hopefully protect us from all the help the perpetually re-elected continue to force upon us. Maybe then we could live our lives in peace as they all scurry into the shadows like roaches when you turn on the light. Drain the swamp! Dr. Robert Owens teaches History, Political Science, and Religion. He is the Historian of the Future @ http://drrobertowens.com  2017 Contact Dr. Owens drrobertowens@hotmail.com Follow Dr. Robert Owens on Facebook or Twitter @ Drrobertowens / Edited by Dr. Rosalie Owens Home
U.S. intelligence reports warn of cyber "Cold War" By Jim Kouri

"(What they do)

(They smile in your face)

All the time they want to take your place

The back stabbers (back stabbers)

(They smile in your face)

All the time they want to take your place

The back stabbers (back stabbers)"

- The Back Stabbers (The O'Jays, 1972) The U.S. House of Representatives and Senate should pass legislation to increase cyber security  in both public and private sectors  since the country is involved in a "type of cyber Cold War," former U.S. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said during a congressional presentation.



The Obama administration's Clapper told the panel of lawmakers that the United States economy is losing upwards of $300 billion per year because of rampant cyber-based corporate espionage. Director Clapper also discussed intrusions on public systems controlling everything from major defense weapons systems and public air traffic to electricity and banking.



Speaking at a hearing of the House Select Intelligence Committee on worldwide threats, the intelligence community's top commander urged lawmakers to pass a bill that forces intelligence sharing between the government and the private sector, following the model of the Defense Industrial Base pilot program launched by then-Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn in 2011.



In addition to DNI Clapper, former Central Intelligence Agency Director David Petraeus, Defense Intelligence Agency Director Ronald Burgess and former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert Mueller also testified before the bi-partisan Intelligence Committee. Mueller is now the independent counselor investigating the so-called Trump-Putin Collusion case.



From a counterespionage viewpoint, Mueller said that the importance of dealing with cyber threats is paramount and such attacks "will equal or surpass the threat from terrorism in the near future."



Cyberspace touches nearly every part of an American's daily life. It's the broadband networks beneath us and the wireless signals around us, the local networks in our schools and hospitals and businesses, and the massive grids that power our nation, according to the White House cybersecurity report.



One of the world's most prolific cyber-espionage perpetrators are the Chinese who routinely "lift" research and development data from major corporations in the U.S. and other industrialized nations.



It's the classified military and intelligence networks that keep us safe, and the World Wide Web that has made us more interconnected than at any time in human history. We must secure our cyberspace to ensure that we can continue to grow the nation's economy and protect our way of life, stated officials with the National Security Council



The nation's cybersecurity strategy is twofold: improve our resilience to cyber incidents, and reduce the cyber threat. Conservative Base's editor, Jim Kouri, CPP, is founder and CEO of Kouri Associates, a homeland security, public safety and political consulting firm. He's formerly Fifth Vice-President, now a Board Member of the National Association of Chiefs of Police, a columnist, and a contributor to the nationally syndicated talk-radio program, the Chuck Wilder Show. He's the author of two books: "Crime Talk: Conversations with America's Top Law Enforcement Officers" and "Assume the Position: Police Science for Journalists and Screenwriters." He's former chief of police at a New York City housing project in Washington Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the 1980s. In addition, he served as director of public safety at St. Peter's University and director of security for several major organizations. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police and security officers throughout the country. Kouri appears regularly as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including Fox News Channel, Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, etc. He also serves as political advisor for Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor Michael Moriarty (Law & Order). He holds a bachelor of science in Criminal Justice from Southwest University and SCI Technical School in New York City and completed training at the NYC Police Academy, FBI Continuing Education Program, and the Certified Protection Professional (CPP) of the American Society for Industrial Security. To subscribe to Kouri's newsletter write to COPmagazine@aol.com and write "Subscription" on the subject line. Home
The car dealership solution to health insurance costs By Michael R. Shannon

Bloomberg reports Obamacare premiums are scheduled to skyrocket up to 59 percent in Maryland, 38 percent in Virginia and 34 percent in Connecticut. A Baltimore 40yearold would pay $715.00 a month for a plan with a $2,500 deductible. Health insurance is costly for three reasons: Government interference, lack of price transparency and consumer overuse. Heres what would happen if we used car insurance like health insurance. Wed expect oil changes to be covered after our $20.00 copay. Thered also be a long list of routine checks and diagnostics run each time your ride was in the shop, because the Dept. of Transportation requires mechanics to treat every vehicle like it was a 1961 DeSoto that had never had the oil changed. Your $250.00 invoice would have itemized charges for GoJo, shop rags, coveralls, disposable ratchets, oil, opening the oil, oil filter and about a hundred other entries. But that doesnt matter, since after the copay, everything is free! Besides you feel sorry for DeSoto owners. Later the car breaks down on the highway. You tell the CarFlight pilot to drop it off at the Mercedes dealer. Cost doesnt matter once the deductible is paid, but you do demand a nice loaner while your car is in surgery. Before leaving, you tell the mechanic to check the tires and see if they need replacing, because after all thats what insurance is for, isnt it? Car insurance usage at that level would end our obesity crisis, because wed soon be a nation of pedestrians. Obamacare would be joined by Obamacar. Real Obamacare reform would require the health market to operate like the auto market. I dont mean the patient goes in the doctors office, negotiates for six hours and agrees on a price have his appendix removed. Then, in his weakened state, the finance manager pressures him into breast implants for the wife. What I do mean is allowing consumer choice and provider accountability. Smart consumers get an estimate before their car is serviced. If its too high, they talk to another shop. If its too much money to sink into an old car, you start shopping for new. Thats price transparency. In health care we have price opacity. If you ask the hospital what it costs to have your appendix removed you get one of three replies: Uproarious, tablepounding laughter. Dead silence. Or thinly veiled contempt at such an ignorant question. Price uncertainty might make sense if it was a brain transplant. Plenty of variables there, but thats not the case with appendectomies. The Annals of Surgery estimates 280,000 are performed each year. Producing a reliable cost estimate should be routine  give or take a sponge left inside. Yet you cant get an estimate because consumer knowledge is consumer power. One way to begin imposing market discipline would be to require any hospital taking federal money to post turnkey prices for the 25 most common hospitalized surgical procedures; the 25 most common outpatient procedures and the 25 most common tests. All charges must match the best price offered insurance companies. The howls this would generate from the medicalindustrial complex prove how useful the information is. (More details on this in an earlier column here.) And speaking of sponges, if you take your car in to the shop for an engine overhaul and a mechanic leaves a wrench in the crankcase, that car is going back to the shop. The subsequent repairtofixtherepair is free. Thats not the way it works with hospitals. Hospitals make money on their mistakes and get away with it because consumers send the bill to the insurance company. That means higher premiums in the long run and it encourages incompetence. If the guy who works on your car has to fix his mistakes for free, the guy who works on your heart should, too. People should pay for routine doctors visits out of their own pocket and save insurance for major expenses. When my family was between insurance policies I negotiated the cost of doctors appointments and lab tests by offering to pay in full right before I left. I saved 30 to 40 percent by taking the insurance company out of the equation. Putting a middleman between the provider and the patient adds another layer of cost and bureaucracy. Hiding the cost of medical services encourages overuse. Consumers can choose health insurance coverage options just like they can choose auto insurance coverage. Government experts requiring coverage simply guarantees a lifetime income to lobbyists and treats citizens like serfs. My car market analogy isnt perfect. Legislators protect instate auto dealers from out of state completion, just like health insurance companies are protected now. It is certainly a start, though, and a vast improvement over what we have now. Michael R. Shannon is a public relations and advertising consultant with corporate, government and political experience around the globe. He is a dynamic and entertaining keynote speaker. He can be reached at mandate.mmpr (at) gmail.com. He is also the author of Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!). Home
Brian Mulroney and the failure of Canadian conservatism in the 1980s (Part Three) By Mark Wegierski

Mulroney clearly lacked what the neoconservative political writer William Kristol and others have called the ability to "govern strategically", something which Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau did so successfully for so long. To "govern strategically" means to have a set of certain fundamental policy objectives (i.e., what is commonly called an "agenda"), which springs from one's personal philosophical framework, and to clearly enunciate it and fight for it in the political arena. Those who do not "govern strategically" find themselves perpetually on the defensive, reacting to developments shaped by others, fighting on other's terrain, at someone else's chosen time and place, and being judged by other's criteria. Without a fundamental intellectual framework or overarching "vision" (something to really believe in and fight for), Brian Mulroney was condemned to failure. Although successful in gaining formal power, he was incapable of exercising it de facto. His two terms ended in disaster. The two most memorable accomplishments of Mulroney were the Canada-U.S. Free Trade deal (something that had long been opposed by the Conservative Party  and supported by the Liberal Party -- for most of Canadian history), and the Goods & Services Tax (GST), Canadas version of a value-added tax, which largely helped only the Liberals after 1993 in allowing them to have huge government spending and balance the budget at the same time. The two major attempts to conciliate Quebec, the Meech Lake Accord, and the Charlottetown Agreements, both failed. To use the terminology of the political thinker Vilfredo Pareto, Mulroney could be seen as a super-cunning "fox", who lacks the backbone and principles of a "lion", and so was unable to effectively exercise his power, however successful he was in attaining it in the purely formal sense. To a large extent, the failure of Brian Mulroney in the 1980s reflected the general failure of the federal Progressive Conservative party in enunciating a clear and consistent philosophy and set of policies, a signal failure to take advantage of one of their rare and fleeting moments of electoral triumph. Saddled with the leadership of Brian Mulroney, the domination of key ministerial portfolios by the "Clark clique", and the ever-present shadow of Dalton Camp and Associates (who had knifed John Diefenbaker and carefully "guided" the party through twenty years of Liberal hegemony), the federal PC party was well-headed for the disaster of 1993, while apparently almost wholly ignorant of the social forces working to bring it down. PC party members proved incapable of turning around the direction of the party even for purely personal, selfish reasons. The PC party appeared incapable of acting even in its narrowly-conceived self-interest, let alone for the sake of higher principles. Purely from the standpoint of pragmatic politics, the embracing by the federal PCs of Liberal and NDP positions, policies, and programs, was a path to political suicide. While alienating and confusing core PC supporters (who indeed turned in large numbers to Preston Manning's Reform Party), these sorts of policies failed to win over convinced liberals and socialists. Given the choice between PCs enacting liberal policies, and Liberals enacting liberal policies, whom were the more liberal-oriented sections of the electorate more likely to choose? This argument against the PCs adopting liberal policies is also instructive in terms of the situations in Ontario and New Brunswick provincial politics in the 1980s. Indeed, the PCs were solidly trounced in both provinces in the latter half of the 1980s. It does not seem likely that Mulroney was handed the second-largest majority in Canadian history to continue and extend the policies of previous Liberal governments. The adoption by the federal PCs of Liberal and NDP policies and programs could be seen as a frustration of the democratic process, which presupposes that the voters have the right to choose from a variety of widely-differing, widely-contrasting, platforms and philosophies, to make at least some fundamental choices. As Mulroney drew ever closer to Liberal and NDP policies and programs, he weakened not only the future electoral prospects of the federal PCs, he also made a mockery of that trust which people put in him. By "governing strategically" with his 211-seat majority, Mulroney could have, even in four years, dramatically changed the shape and direction of all of Canadian society, as Trudeau had done during his sixteen years in power. As society changed in response to his initiatives, Mulroney would have found that his social base and support would have grown, rather than shrunk. Rather than a helpless pawn of other tendencies and powers, Mulroney would have himself become the chief focus of power in Canadian society, as befits a democratically-elected Prime Minister. Rather than presiding over yet another brief Conservative party interval, Mulroney might well have found himself leading Canada proudly to the Twenty-First Century, as the head of an effective and dynamic Tory party. Canada has today reached a situation driving towards the most extreme forms of political correctness and of the ideological hegemony of what critics have called the managerial-therapeutic regime. Its possible that only the vast, resource-based wealth of Canada allows the country to avoid some more obviously dystopic and violent outcomes. The weakness and incoherence of the Centre-Right Opposition, especially in the 1980s, has contributed to the inability of Canadian society today to somehow temper vast, onrushing societal velocities and trajectories. Mark Wegierski is a Canadian writer and historical researcher. Home
My pilgrimage, Chapter Fourteen: The New World Order Empire By Michael Moriarty

By the time this article reaches publication on Enter Stage Right, President Trump may well have returned from his first and vitally important trip abroad to Saudi Arabia, Israel, The Vatican, Belgium and Sicily. It is fundamentally a whirlwind presentation of his entire foreign policy. Its single most important objective? To start the beginning of the end for worldwide terrorism. For the Evil losers. God willing, hes right, that they ultimately lose. In reality, they will be greatly diminished but, as History has shown us for 1400 years, they and their euphemism, Islamic Radicals, will be back. After visiting three of the most important religious capitals in the world, The Vatican, Israel and Saudi Arabia, President Trump will have, we hope, consolidated with all three spiritual leaderships a unified commitment by all three power centers to join him in declaring war on terrorism. Almost as the enemys Special Message to Trumps determination: Manchesters largest concert hall in all of Europe is bombed by ISIS! At last report, 22 dead and over 60 injured!! However, God bless Manchester, the resilience of its people and the determination of its police to see this terrorist ring destroyed! Returning to Donald Trumps crusade and his obvious admiration for Russias Vladimir Putin: why is the very Leftist mainstream media now so determined to make Vladimir Putin the new Adolf Hitler and Donald Trump his Mussolini? Because Putin has been a previously known Soviet? No! Its not even because hes a tyrannical dictator whos allied with Iran. Putin is most vehemently opposed by the American mainstream press and a clearly bi-partisan coalition of Dems and Rino-Bush-Loyalistic Trump-haters! Why? Because Vladimir Putin is, like Donald Trump, against a New World Order! Thank God SOMEONE

is against

this treasonous excuse

for destroying the sovereignty

of the United States

and all

self-protecting forms

of

nationalism!! Making puppets out of the entire human race! And these know-it-alls are so ruthlessly close to being successful!! Particularly in the very homeland and defining example of individual freedom: The United States of America. Why? Over twenty years of this kind of message from American leadership. The World

Is to be run

By the United Nations! I beg your pardon?! Meanwhile, as if Radical Muslim Terrorism werent enough, China appears to be in an undeniably PAY-BACK mode with Donald Trump! All the threats that President Trump made? Warning Beijing that he would punish China for their currency manipulation? North Korea, with, I am increasingly sure, Red Chinas deliberate strategy, is trying to trap President Trump in what they believe is a no-win situation?! The Communists of the Orient are smugly certain that Trump is an amateur. What the Reds would consider Trumps arrogant over-confidence about negotiating China into a fairer currency policy? North Koreas threatening missile tests are actually Chinas response to Trumps Presidential prophecies and predictions. The Chinese even had Trump re-negotiating his earlier belligerency about Chinas trade games. President Trump, with Chinas sudden boycott of coal supplies from Pyongyang, thought he was winning his negotiation. Chinas seemingly helpful moves were actually stringing Trump along while North Korea continually infuriates all of America with threats and missile tests. Do you really believe that Red China is not pleased with American discomfort? Meanwhile, President Trump has, as they say, been lawyering up. He can no longer dismiss the threats of impeachment from the New World Order Conspirators. Traitors wanting to impeach The New World Orders major, Presidential opponent, Donald Trump, to benefit their treasonous plans for power over the entire world. The New World Order Empire is aborning! Michael Moriarty is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor who starred in the landmark television series Law and Order from 1990 to 1994. His recent film and TV credits include The Yellow Wallpaper, 12 Hours to Live, Santa Baby and Deadly Skies. Contact Michael at rainbowfamily2008@yahoo.com. He can be found on Twitter at https://twitter.com/@MGMoriarty. Home
Trump restores trust with American allies in Middle East By Stephen Gregory

With quick visits to Riyadh, Jerusalem, and Bethlehem, President Donald Trump has reasserted American leadership in the Middle East and laid out an ambitious agenda to bring peace and stability to the region. Trump used speeches to the Arab Islamic American summit in Riyadh on May 21, and to a gathering of Israeli notables at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem on May 23, to reset relations with the two closest U.S. allies in the region. New Policy King Salman of Saudi Arabia praised Trumps visit as a turning point in relations with the United States. A turning point was needed because by the end of President Barack Obamas time in office, relations with Riyadh had turned frosty. The king did not greet Obama at the airport when he visited Saudi Arabia in 2016. At the Arab Islamic American summit on May 21, Trump addressed the leaders of 50 Muslim countries. The new course he charted for U.S. policy addresses terrorism and the U.S. stance toward Iran. While Obama rarely spoke of terrorism, Trump used versions of the word terror 31 times in his address. More importantly, he challenged Muslim majority nations to take the lead in combating radicalization. Trump attributed terror to an ideology, which he distinguished from the religion of Islam. In one of the more memorable lines of the speech, he said: Terrorists do not worship God. They worship death. Obamas Middle East policy was built around a rapprochement with Iran, which included a deal that critics say guarantees Iran will develop nuclear weapons. Trump identified the leading state sponsor of terror as Iran, a regime that is responsible for so much instability in the region. He called upon all nations of conscience to isolate Iran, deny it funding for terrorism, and pray for the day when the Iranian people have the just and righteous government they deserve. The summit was clearly meant to help organize opposition to both Iran and terrorism. Toward the beginning of the speech, Trump said, Our goal is a coalition of nations who share the aim of stamping out extremism and providing our children a hopeful future that does honor to God. In the weeks prior to his visit to Saudi Arabia, the Trump administration floated the idea of an Arab NATOan alliance of Arab nations that, like NATO, would have a mutual self-defense pact. According to the Middle Eastern newspaper al-Monitor, there have been discussions of a regional alliance that would include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, and perhaps Kuwait that together would face off against Iran. The United States would not be part of the alliance but would offer patronage and support. In his speech, Trump announced what is said to be the largest single arms deal in American history, selling $110 billion worth of high-tech weaponry to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said the total worth of deals signed came to $380 billion. Trump announced two new institutions aimed at fighting terror, including a center for combating extremist ideology, to be opened in Saudi Arabia. An agreement to prevent the financing of terrorism, called the Terrorist Financing Targeting Centerco-chaired by the United States and Saudi Arabia, and joined by every member of the Gulf Cooperation Council was signed at the summit. A New Tone A common reaction to Trumps speech was that this was not the Trump seen on the campaign trail, who made several comments that offended Muslims. Trumps tone was inclusive, as he described the history, culture, physical beauty, and economic potential of the Middle East and spoke respectfully of Islam as one of the worlds great faiths. Beyond the tone, though, Trumps description of a foreign policy based on principled realism would have appealed to his audience, many of whom were not elected. Trump did not mention democracy in the speechhe noted that he promised in his inaugural address that America will not seek to impose our way of life on othersand said his vision for those gathered together at the summit was one of peace, security, and prosperity. According to Max Abrahms, professor of political science at Northeastern University, When Trump goes to the Muslim world and says he is a realist, that is very welcome news to national leaders. The United States, Abrahms points out, has had a history of trying to overthrow regimes that dont share our ideology. Realism does not base policy on spreading an ideology. Salafism Abrahms said the fact that Trump gave a speech in Saudi Arabia on countering terrorism was deeply ironic. The Saudis have a really bad record on financing terrorism and encouraging terrorist ideology, Abrahms said. ISIS has used Saudi educational materials in its caliphate. The 9/11 Commission reported that six Saudi officials provided financial help to al-Qaeda prior to the attack on the twin towers, although there was no evidence the government of Saudi Arabia did so. Abrahms says hes skeptical Saudi Arabia will give up its support of Salafist groups, which espouse a fundamentalist version of Sunni Islam and often preach jihad, or holy war. Trumps criticism of Iran in this context deepens the irony, according to Abrahms. Iran has been fighting organizations like al-Qaeda and other Salafist groups whose ambition is to attack the United States. Iran does so because of deep sectarian differencesthese groups are bitter enemies of the Shia faith. Abrahms believes Trumps speech used countering terrorism as a device for bringing together opposition to Iran. Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, a global human rights organization, is more hopeful for Trumps anti-terror initiatives. Cooper believes these put pressure on the Saudis. Moreover, the threat Iran poses to the Gulf States is a massive opportunity to recalibrate old thinking and just maybe come up with a new approach, Cooper said. If Trumps visit leads to the taking down of Saudi financing and support for ideologies that support terror, it will be a historic achievement. Israel In Jerusalem, Trump won over Israelis who had become troubled about their nations relations with the United States under Obama. The Times of Israel reports this scene from Trumps speech at the Israel Museum: Irans leaders routinely call for Israels destruction, he said bleakly and bitterly, reading from the teleprompters. Then he departed from his prepared text, and added: Not with Donald J. Trump, believe me. The remark was met with cheers and a standing ovation. Netanyahu, on his feet, pumped a fist. Later in his speech, Trump promised Iran would never get a nuclear weapon. That same day, Trump became the first American president to pray at the Western Wall, one of the holiest sites in Judaism. Palestinians working through UNESCO have sought to rebrand this site as Muslim, trying to erase the link of the Jewish people to their heart, Cooper said. Trump going there wearing a yarmulke is a confirmation to all of the centrality and holiness of this area to the Jewish people. It will not long be forgotten. Trump expressed confidence during his time in Israel that the big deal of negotiating peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians could be achieved. On his visit on May 23 to see Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Bethlehem, Trump chastised him for the Palestinian practice of rewarding terrorists for attacking the Israelis. The night before, a terrorist had set off a bomb in Manchester, killing 22. Its so interesting that our meeting took place on this very horrible morning of death to innocent young people, Trump said. Peace can never take root in an environment where violence is tolerated, funded, and even rewarded. Abbas has agreed to enter peace negotiations with the Israelis. Stephen Gregory is a writer for The Epoch Times where this originally appeared. Home
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 EU-China relations are of critical importance for both the EU and China but also for the world at large given their contributions to the global economy. Until 2025, when the current framework governing their mutual ties will come to its end, a major factor shaping the interactions between both partners will be the impact of the UKs decision to leave the EU. This process will unfold amidst wider global uncertainty as well as uncertainty surrounding the likely nature and details of the EU-British deal. The options do not include only so-called hard and clean Brexit but also a number of other possibilities such as the UK trying to mitigate the impact of a hard Brexit by moving closer to the bloc or alternatively moving further away. These options will be affected by intervening variables such as the responses from EU institutions, member states but also global players, including China.

The extent to which Brexit will have an impact on the EU-China ties will largely depend on Chinas strategic approach to the bloc as well as the EUs own trajectory over the next ten years. For China, the scale of the UKs interactions with China means that relative standing of the EU  and with it its status as an important player in the current Chinese diplomatic approach  is likely to go down, made up for by more of a focus on wider Europe or individual member states. That impact will, however, also depend on particular issues. The EU27 as a trade and investment partner for China will be weaker after Brexit and especially the impact on finance and investment will be significant. This will likely also include a relative shift in Chinese investment in Europe away from the UK.

In policy terms, Brexit will probably weaken liberal voices on economic policy towards China. How the EU-China relations might be different following the Brexit will depend on the kind of the Brexit deal. In case of the soft option, the UK could be broadly aligned with the EU on China policy in terms of transactions and more stable relationships. A harder option would likely make it more difficult to develop the mutual relationship within the triangle EU-UK-China, which would create challenges especially in the areas in which the UK is stronger than the rest of Europe, such as financial services. Divergent policy approaches in areas such as the regulation of investment or trade agreements could also create problems between the EU and UK in dealings with China. Overall though, EU-China ties will always take precedence over UK-China relations from Beijings perspective due to their greater and truly global scale and broader significance.

Brexit: Implications for EUChina Relations  Research Paper by Tim Summers  Chatham House, The Royal Institute of International Affairs.

(The Research Paper can be downloaded here)
Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said that US President Donald Trump was still against the 2015 Paris agreement to fight climate change, essentially preventing other world leaders meeting in Sicily for a G7 meeting to persuade the new American leader to support the treaty. The entire discussion about climate was very difficult, if not to say very dissatisfying, German Chancellor Angela Merkel commented.

Mr. Trump has previously called global warming a hoax. He tweeted following the meeting that he would make a decision next week on whether to support the 2015 deal on curbing carbon emissions. However, all G7 leaders found common ground on other issues such as fight against terrorism, Syria and Libya as well as fighting extremist propaganda on the Internet and they signed a statement to bolster efforts in these areas. Mr. Gentiloni thus pointed out that climate was the only open question.

Italian Prime Minister also said that there was some progress on the issue of international trade but added that the wording of the final statement was still being worked on. Donald Trump had previously advocated a protectionist agenda, which alarmed his G7 allies. On the major theme of global trade, we are still working on the shape of the final communique, but it seems to me the direct discussions today have produced common positions that we can work on, Mr. Gentiloni said. The G8 leaders still continue to work without Russia as G7 after they declared in March 2014 that a meaningful conversation with Moscow was currently not possible.
Gunmen opened fire on a bus carrying Coptic Christians in central Egypt on Thursday (25 May), killing at least 28 people including children and wounding 25. The bus was on its way to the Monastery of St Samuel the Confessor about 135 kilometers south of Cairo. No terrorist group has claimed attack yet but the Islamic State (ISIS) has targeted Copts a few times in recent months. The most recent attacks claimed the lives of 46 people at Palm Sunday services in the cities of Alexandria and Tanta. Another suicide bombing killed 29 people in December and a Christian community was forced to flee the town of el-Arish in the northern Sinai Peninsula after a series of gun attacks in February.

The attack on the bus was carried out by 8 to 10 gunmen wearing military uniforms. They stopped the bus on a desert road near Adwa police station on the border between Beni Suef and Minya provinces. Minya Province Bishop Makarios said that many of the victims were killed at point blank range. The European Union expressed its condolences to the friend and families of the victims, urging the Egyptian authorities to hold accountable those responsible.

Coptic Christians make up about 10 percent of Egypts 92-million population and the Coptic Orthodox Church is the main Christian Church in Egypt. Most Copts live in Egypt but the Church also has about a million members outside the North African country. Coptic Christianity dates back to about 50 AD when the Apostle Mark is believed to have visited Egypt. The head of the Church is called the Pope and is considered to be the successor of St Mark. The Coptic Church separated from the rest of Christianity at the Council of Chalcedon (451 AD) in a dispute over the divine nature of Jesus Christ.
The brands aim is to reach out to the youthfraternity

Actor Parineeti Chopra has joined the club of celebrity endorsers as the brand ambassador of Lyra. Lyra is one of the largest legging brands in the women wear segment.

Positioned as leggings for anytime anywhere, the manufacturers of Lyra, Ebell Fashion, a Lux group company, has further plans of premiumisation and portfolio expansion and thus signing up with Chopra facilitates targeting the current youth fraternity.

Announcing the brand association, Udit Todi, Director, Ebell Fashion, said, In a very short span of time, the brand has helped us to strengthen our presence in the burgeoning womens leggings category. We have also extended our brand portfolio to intimate wear like lingerie and loungewear for women. Lyra is slowly progressing and carving itself out as a lifestyle brand with the aim to expand into further categories beyond leggings with differentiated offerings in an endeavour to command the highest share in this market.

The legging business is growing by 50% a year and currently the brand commands a market share of 38% in the mid to premium segment.

Speaking on the occasion, Chopra said, I find Lyra leggings very comfortable and easy to wear. I can sport them anywhere and at all times. This product from Ebell Fashions is both trusted and known for delivering consistent quality and I am happy to be associated with them.

Roping in the actor for Lyra will be supported by a 360-degree integrated communication. Apart from exploring all major Hindi GEC channels, a comprehensive communication campaign would be done through print medium, BTL initiatives and in-store activations.

Campaign summary:

Campaign link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqoekO6K3hU Campaign elements: TVC, Print, outdoor, Digital, Cinema, social media Creative Agency: Rediffusion Photographer: K U Mohanan Creative Director: Rahul Jauhari Production House: ELEMENTS Director: Vivek Daschaudhary Producer: Barkha Sawhney TVC details Working title of film : MY LIFE MY LYRA Duration : 45 secs masters for digital and cinema and 30 sec for TV Campaign breaks : 21st May 2017 Exposure (media used) : TVC, Print, outdoor, Digital, Cinema, social media

Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)
A couple of random thoughts here:



Are you current with your US income tax filings? If not, you may want to look into the Streamlined Compliance program BEFORE you make any moves toward relocating back to the US. (The program has a standard penalty if you file from within the US which doesn't kick in if you're filing from overseas.) There are a number of threads in our Expat Tax section about the Streamlined Compliance program.



You may want to make a couple of exploratory trips back to the US to investigate the job markets in and around the areas you are considering - or in areas close to where your US family lives.



The matter of your son is going to be tricky, since you can't actually sponsor him until you are established yourself in the US (i.e. with a job, income and place to live) and that is going to take some time. There is also the matter of whether or not he'll be able to find an equivalent program of study in the US.



Anyhow, given the time difference, I'm sure someone from the States will be online soon to give you more specific information.

Cheers,

Bev
Hi All,



I am an Engineer+MBA. planning to apply for Canada PR for ICT Business Analyst.



I do not have experience in Australia or Australian client. I have always worked for Banking/ Financial Services domain for UK and Europe region.



1. How easy or difficult it is to get a job as a BA in Australia?

2. Also, what can I do now to increase my chances of getting job early? (Any certifications, job sites that i can apply from india?)

3. Generally, how many days/ months it take to get a job after landing in Ca?





Experience: 27 months as Application Developer

33 months as Business Analyst
County sheriff Jerry Clayton is the most popular politician in Washtenaw County: he was the top vote-getter in last Augusts Democratic primary, outscoring even seven-term prosecutor Brian Mackie.

Its easy to see why. Eloquent and charismatic, yet soft-spoken and self-effacing, Clayton inherited a couple of hornets nests when he took office in 2009, and calmed them both.

The first was the chronic deficits rolled up under his predecessor, Dan Minzey. After retroactively raising his budget year after year, some county commissioners were so angry they aided and abetted Claytons challenge to his former boss.

The other was rapidly escalating bills for police servicesthe patrols the sheriff provides to townships without their own departments. Ypsilanti Township, the largest contracting government, was suing the county in an an ultimately futile attempt to overturn the increases. The townships legal fees alone totaled more than $1 million before the case was settled in 2011.

It was extremely tough, Clayton says over coffee at Panera Bread on Washtenaw. There was a lack of trust in the sheriffs office. There was a lack of faith in the leadership. There was a lack of faith in the service. Now its eerily quiet.

Clayton made peace with the board by bringing the departments costs under control and with the townships by combining more responsive service with minimal price increases. We understand that the kind of service required in Manchester is different from the kind of service required in Ypsilanti Township, he says. And weve been able to keep the price down. It goes up, but by 1 percent a year. It cant be more, because our [township] partners are going to break under the burden of increasing contracts. But our costs go up by more than 1 percent a yearand the contract is up [for renewal] at the end of this year.

Thats one reason the sheriff is willing to stake his popularity by advocating a countywide public safety millage. The other is that he figures as many as half the prisoners in his jail wouldnt need to be there if the county could afford better mental health services and more substance abuse treatment.

Were criminalizing the wrong things, Clayton says. Were criminalizing, to some degree, mental health and substance abuse issues. Thats the wrong approach.

Theres no question a huge number of people in jail have social-service needs. Approximately 50 percent are on some kind of psychotropic medication, the sheriff says. And 70 percent of that 50 percent has some kind of dual diagnosis, some kind of substance abuse/mental health issue.

Clayton says that he and Trish Cortes, head of the countys Community Mental Health, talk a lot about the intersect between what her staff does and what our staff does, both in the jail and in the street, and how in many circumstances we have the same client baseand we usually interact with them in moments of crisis.

Their departments are already working together, with Cortess staff training Claytons deputies on mental health issues. But Clayton says a public safety millage would allow them to do much more. Lets go comprehensive, he urges. Lets identify how this community should support people with mental health issues and whats the best strategy for providing that.

Strengthening human services should appeal to the countys liberal urban coreespecially since Claytons plan would also steer additional funds to municipalities like Ann Arbor and Pittsfield that pay for their own police forces. Holding down local costs for the sheriffs police services, meanwhile, should win over voters in the more conservative townships. In total, the sheriff figures a one-mill tax bringing in about $14 million annually would do the trick.

But will Clayton get to try? At a working session as the Observer went to press, Clayton and Cortes were scheduled to give a presentation to the board of commissioners on mental health and policing needsa conversation that the sheriff hoped would lead to discussion of a millage. But I dont know what the boards going to do, Clayton says. I know what makes the most sense, what would have the most value. But Im only one voice, and I dont get to vote.



Claytons plan is an act of conviction from a man whos seen law enforcement from both sides.

I took part in my share of knucklehead behavior as a kid, says Clayton, but the consequences werent so bad then as for kids today. Today a lot of kids get kicked out of school and even arrested  for some of the things I did back then.

Clayton spent half of his high school years living in a dangerous part of Detroit, and knows he is very blessed. He says the main reason his life turned out so differently from those of many of the people he grew up with was because of his status as a star football player at Cooley High School.

Back then there was a code that gang members did not mess with athletes from their high school, he recalls. Thats because everyone took great pride in the accomplishments of athletes from their neighborhood and school and wanted them to go on and succeed and become a star.

But even some athletes went down the wrong path because of all the temptation, the sheriff continues. They wanted quick, easy money. Some of our best athletes got involved in crime. There was one guy I knew, who could have been an All-xADAmerican, but I heard that he got killed execution style when he was twenty.

Clayton, though, worked summer jobs to save money for college, and in 1980 won a full football scholarship to EMU. While still in school, he got a part-time job with the sheriffs office as a work program supervisor, one of the guys who took the crews out cleaning the road. I did it for two years and was offered a full-time position.

He never finished collegeClaytons one class short of getting a bachelors degree in communications. Sometimes I think of finishing it up at WCC and maybe getting a masters degree, he says. But right now I am too busy actually doing my work.

The future sheriff rose to first lieutenant, but he retired in 2006. It was made very clear to me that my skills werent required, Clayton says with a tight smile. I was OK with that. It was not the environment I wanted to be in.

He ran against Minzey in 2008 because I felt that with the right leadership and the right vision the sheriffs office could make a tremendous impact. It was crystal clear to me what was possible. We can be more than an institution that locks people up.

That speaks to Claytons core conviction. The majority of those folks [in the county jail] dont pose a risk to the community, he says with quiet passion. Theyre not violent offenders. They shouldnt be in jail.

The people of this county have given us four years to get things done, Clayton concludes, and I have built up political capital and the communitys trust. I am in a unique position to make these fundamental changes to the criminal justice system.

For that to happen, though, he and Cortes must persuade the boardand the votersto buy into the vision.



Something is going to happen, says Pittsfield commissioner and clinical psychologist Felicia Brabec. We have things to do and not enough resources from operating millages. If we dont have additional revenue, well have public safety shortages.

Were looking at options to continue level of services and seeing if we can improve things. One way is a millage.

Clayton believes a millage is the best way to provide relief for the general fund budget. A lot of mental healths dollars are restricted federal dollars. We need dollars that arent restricted.

They need them for what the sheriff calls Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion. Were the first responders. We have a person in crisis, and we take them to emergency [rooms that] are not equipped to deal with it, so theyre going to end up in jail. And one of the worst things for people in a mental health crisis is isolation, restriction, and seclusion.

What if we had a community crisis center where they could get triaged and stabilized and then go back home? he asks. He thinks that could keep a lot of people out of the criminal justice systemand out of his jail.

Though Clayton doesnt know where such a center could be located, he knows where it shouldnt be: We dont want it in the jail. Jails just making things worse!

He makes an equally strong case for helping the townships with policing costs. The current contract model is not sustainable, he says. Although our contracting partners pay over $150,000 for a police services unit, that doesnt cover the true costs [of] about $180,000. Thats not just for the deputy. Thats direct costs, indirect costs, and overhead.

With seventy-nine deputies, aka police service units, under contract, that means an annual $2 million gap is being covered by the county. To keep that from expanding further, Ive proposed about 6 percent [increases] for the next four years. We can sustain with these increases for the next four yearsbut thats it. Ive advocated to do the millage sooner rather than later because why wait until the boat is sinking?



Will the board sign on? I dont know, says board chair and Ann Arbor commissioner Andy LaBarre. What I know for certain is were likely going to have long-term budget issues around public health and human services and, most acutely, mental health. A millage is probably the simplest way to go about solving this. Its a yes-or-no question directly to the public: do you want to tax yourself more for these services or not?

Will the board ask the question? We might, replies LaBarre, but we might not.

Brabec, the previous board chair, also cant predict how her colleagues will vote. A third of the board is new since November, she points out. People understand the revenue, but will people understand the need? We havent had any individual conversations, and as a whole board we havent talked about it.

Weve asked if its possible. Within the next couple of months well know.

With several other local millages already scheduled this year, timing will be a question if the commissioners decide to go ahead. We know the Ann Arbor school board will have a sinking fund millage in May and the special ed renewal in November, Brabec says (see Inside Ann Arbor, p. 13). And there may be a Water Street millage in Ypsilanti.

LaBarre says if the board does ask for a millage, itd most likely be on the August or November ballot. He readily acknowledges the public safety needSheriff Clayton has squeezed it as much as it could be done, but theres a limitand the mental health needthe state is saying to do more with less to make everything betterwell, it doesnt. And he likewise admits those issues are interrelated, because without mental health services we will exacerbate the need for more public safety funding.

But LaBarre also acknowledges that its likely to be hard for the board to decide. The last two years have been difficult, and we have struggled to make decisions. Just choosing a new county administrator took a year and a half.



Will Clayton get the chance to fundamentally change the countys criminal justice system?

There have been many discussions around funding mental health and public safety, and from all the numbers Ive seen its likely that additional resources may be needed, says first-term Ann Arbor commissioner Jason Morgan. But there are a lot of other issues: veterans, transportation, affordable housing, community and economic development.

The bottom line for me is if theres a proposal that helps people directly, Id support putting it to the voters. But there needs to be more discussion before we put the millage on the ballot.

With just three months until August and six until November, the commissioners will have to move fast if they want to put Jerry Claytons vision before the voters this year.

No matter what the board decides, Brabec sees hard choices ahead. As we went to press, she emailed that shed just learned that there may be additional, drastic cuts to [the federal Department of Health and Human Services] directly impacting our consumers who receive mental health services. In my mind, either we ask the voters for additional revenue or we need to make more cuts.



Additional reporting by Madeline Strong Diehl
Hi,



I got a job offer fom a RAK based consulting firm and am planning on starting the new resident visa process by end of June.



As I started with my preparations for relocation I also went to the hospital to get everything checked.



The ELISA blood test was reactive to Hepatitis C antibodies.

The following PCR Test was negative as no virus was found.



The doctor told me that I do NOT have Hep C.

He said it probably was a false positive result or that maybe my body was exposed to HCV once but was able fight the virus itself.



My online research to this specific topic was not very satisfying which is why id like to ask you some questions...

- Will I be tested for HCV as new resident (I will work in offices)?

- What if te test for antibodies reacts again?

- Will they make a PRC test to assess the medical condition / or will I be sent home?

- What else can/will happen?



Thank you so much!

Ralph
The Spanish-Mexican military presence in San Antonio came to a close on June 6, 1836, when Capt. Francisco Castaneda turned over the city to Capt. Juan Seguin, commander of the Army of the Republic of Texas company charged with the towns occupation. As he led his small detachment out of Bexar, Castaneda represented the end to 118 years of a presidio presence in San Antonio. The towns military history did not end there, obviously, but in celebrating San Antonios 300th anniversary it is worth noting the settlements origins as a military post.

When Franciscan missionaries and soldiers arrived in the San Antonio area to establish a presidio-mission complex, they were repeating a process that Spanish frontiersmen had been undertaking for generations farther south.

Governor Martin de Alarcon founded Mission San Antonio de Valero and Villa de Bexar at the beginning of May 1718, but the villa, or town, never developed. Instead, in the years that followed, soldiers cleared fields, dug acequias (irrigation canals), erected homes and other buildings and started families. Finally, a couple of years later, the Marques de Aguayo settled the towns permanent location and increased the garrison to 54 officers and enlisted men.

When Inspector General Brigadier Pedro de Rivera reviewed the presidio late in 1727, he found the garrison well-armed and disciplined. The soldiers may well have boasted to him of the successful 1723 campaign in which they had killed more than 30 braves and captured many horses along with women and children. Thus, thinking the Indians defeated, he recommended a reduction of the garrison to 44 officers and men.

The small company had its hands full. It provided each mission with three to five men. The companys horse herd, which was grass-fed, required a substantial guard. Escort service  of the mail, of visitors entering or leaving the province, of civilians going to cut timber or to hunt  also reduced the number of troopers available at the garrison itself. When not otherwise occupied, the soldiers performed construction work around the presidio. And, of course, there were the occasional campaigns against various Indian groups.

When in 1731 the Crown attempted to boost Texas settlement by bringing in immigrants from the Canary Islands, it was the garrison that bore the brunt of the effort. Responsible for their safety and acculturation, Captain Juan Antonio Perez de Almazan moved the new arrivals into the soldiers dwellings and laid out the new town right next to the presidio, considering the exhausted condition of the settlers, their inexperience with the weapons used against the Indians, and their lack of horsemanship. The Islenos got the cropland that the soldiers had cleared and the acequia madre that they had opened. It would take years of complaints to Mexico City for the military settlers to gain access to land, water and citizen status in the settlement they had founded in 1718.

Hostilities with the Lipan Apaches placed a major break on the settlements progress until peace with them was negotiated in 1749. In that year, in the most spectacular event to have taken place in the frontier community, Apaches and colonials danced around a large pit dug in the center of the military plaza  today the space occupied by San Antonio City Hall  as they buried the symbols of war: a horse, hatchet, lance and arrows.

The years of relative peace that followed led royal officials to repeat Brigadier Riveras mistake of 1727, assuming that peace with the Lipans was at hand and that the garrison could be reduced or moved. Always short of funds, as early as 1750 policy-makers considered relocating the presidio at the site of a new mission complex, to which idea the town council responded that if the presidio were moved, not one-half the citizenry would remain, because of all who would follow it, as it is the only commerce this country has.

The viceroy eventually decided against moving the whole presidio, but did reduce the garrison to 22 officers and enlisted men in order to use the remainder to staff a new presidio on the San Saba River. The 1757 reduction not only posed a setback to the communitys growth, it forced the civilian population to take on a greater share of the defensive burden. It is during this time that an organized militia emerged.

A 1759 punitive expedition against the Nations of the North (Caddos, Wichitas, Comanches) that followed the destruction of Mission San Saba in 1758 was planned in San Antonio, which contributed soldiers, militiamen and mission Indians to the campaign. The expedition not only failed to punish the attackers, but served to make Bexar the target of the Apaches enemies for the next two decades.

More Information Explanation The legend, in English, for Ramon de Murillo's sketch of a presidio soldier: N. 1 Quilted leather coat of seven buckskins N. 2 Saddle pommel and cantle N. 3 Carbine N. 4 Saddlebags for water and provisions N. 5 Lance N. 6 Pistols hanging from saddle skirt hooks N. 7 Shield N. 8 Boots and spurs N. 9 Wooden stirrups N. 10 Cartridge box See More Collapse

A reform of New Spains frontier defense system in the 1770s brought profound changes to Presidio de Bexar. Governor Baron de Ripperda was responsible for closing the remaining missions and presidios of East Texas and relocating the capital to San Antonio. He oversaw the initial integration of additional soldiers into the presidio company, which increased to more than 80 men. To protect the ranches between San Antonio and La Bahia, he established a post on Cibolo Creek in 1771.

The need for protection was evident in one of his successors monthly reports from a decade later. In February 1781 Governor Domingo Cabello reported how a rescue party from the presidio had arrived at the scene of a skirmish between a patrol party from the Cibolo post and Comanches. It had found the troop leaning against trees, their scalps missing and their fingers and noses cut off. But they must have put up a good fight, for fifty spent cartridges were found and the lips and teeth of the soldiers were black with powder, and from the evidence it seems that they must have killed some Indians.

Under Cabello, military improvements continued. By 1781 the garrison consisted of 100 men divided into companies of light and heavy cavalry. He reorganized the militia and supplied it with standard weapons. And, in 1785-86 he successfully negotiated treaties with various tribes.

The last decade of the 18th century was one of greatly diminished Indian hostilities and growing prosperity for San Antonio, and the presidio continued to serve as the towns economic engine. Most members of the garrison were locals, some of them third or fourth generation soldiers of the company. Thus, the presidio was Bexars most important employer. Administrative and financial reforms, combined with growing trade with peaceful Indians and expansion of the garrison, led a growing number of merchants and artisans (and less savory types) to move into town.

United States claims to Texas as part of the Louisiana Purchase required a massive reinforcement of the province that brought hundreds of troops from throughout northeastern Mexico to Texas. By 1810, more than 1,000 troops were stationed in San Antonio, which got new barracks, a military hospital and a powder house built in the area of todays old cemeteries on East Commerce Street.

In the midst of this military boom, the Mexican War of Independence erupted and Texas military establishment blew with the winds of change, fighting both against and for royalist interests. Nevertheless, it was expected to fight off Indian raids, chase out pirates from Galveston Island, pursue rebels and unauthorized encroachers from Louisiana, and even drive out a band of Napoleonic exiles from the lower Trinity River.

By the time Mexican independence arrived in 1821, the progress that had been made in creating a sustainable society based on a relatively well-equipped military was in shambles. Payrolls stopped arriving, leading to desertions, criminality and a general breakdown of morale. Independent Mexico was never equipped to properly restore the presidio system to its required strength and vitality, and its feeble attempts to do so in the early 1830s made up one of the contributing factors leading to the struggle for Texas independence.

In all probability, Capt. Castaneda knew very little of the history he was leaving behind when he withdrew from San Antonio in June 1836. However, in abandoning the presidios archives, he provided the means by which we can understand and appreciate this crucial aspect of San Antonios early story as part of Mexicos and Texass shared military heritage.

Jesus F. de la Teja is Regents Professor of History and Jerome and Catherine Supple Professor of Southwestern Studies at Texas State University, where he has taught Texas and borderlands history since 1991. The inaugural state historian of Texas, he has served as president of the Texas State Historical Association and is a member of the Philosophical Society of Texas and the Texas Institute of Letters. A longtime student of San Antonios early history, he is the author of San Antonio de Bexar: A Community on New Spains Northern Frontier (1995) and Faces of Bexar: Early San Antonio and Texas (2016).

COMING SUNDAY: The collection that started the McNay Art Museum.
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LIVE OAK - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency staff are studying a former chemical plant to prepare to address pollution that threatens the Edwards Aquifer.

EPA personnel began their initial assessment of the Eldorado Chemical Co. plant at 14350 Lookout Road the last week of April and have been speaking to nearby residents at community meetings, according to a recent EPA factsheet.

The EPA faces a diminished budget as it addresses the nations polluted sites. The fiscal year 2017 budget passed by Congress cut the Superfund program by $70.3 million compared to 2016. A leaked budget proposal shows President Donald Trumps administration hopes to cut it by another $194 million in 2018.

The Texas Commission of Environmental Quality knew about the pollution since at least 1996, according to a TCEQ spokeswoman. The TCEQ took some steps to address it but ended up referring it to the EPAs Superfund program.

The EPA added Eldorado to its list last year. Over nearly 30 years, the manufacture of paint strippers and cleaners at the plant left behind chemicals in the soil and shallow groundwater, according to the EPA.

Those chemicals could eventually make their way into the Edwards Aquifer, though the EPA and TCEQ say there is no evidence that has happened yet. The EPA estimates that 215,722 people in San Antonio, Live Oak, Selma, Converse and Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph get drinking water from nearby wells.

Some of the pollutants left behind in soil and found in shallow groundwater include the chemical solvents tetrachloroethene, trichloroethene, vinyl chloride and dichloroethene, according to the EPA.

The first three are known carcinogens, and all four are known to have adverse effects on various skin and organ systems in high enough doses, according to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

Last year, officials with the Edwards Aquifer Authority were concerned that an abandoned water well on the property could provide a pathway to the Edwards. That well has not yet been plugged, EAA communications director Elizabeth Woody said.

We are still very actively trying to close the well and working with the EPA, she said.

The EPAs initial field work will include studying the sites geology and sampling water wells in and around the site, according to the fact sheet. They will continue sampling soil, soil gas and groundwater to gauge the risk to people and the environment.

Live Oak city manager Scott Wayman said the citys conversations with the EPA have been positive so far.

Theyre really good at explaining to people how that process is, he said.

Last fall, EPA officials began showing up to homeowners association meetings at Bridlewood Park, homeowners association president Joseph Garcia said. Some homes in the neighborhood are as close as 550 feet from the site.

Garcia said his neighbors main concerns were whether the contaminants made their way into the neighborhood and how a Superfund cleanup stretching on for years might affect their property values. EPA officials told them the pollution posed little risk to them but did not have solid answers on the property value question, Garcia said.

Wayman said he has received calls from some residents concerned about drinking water. He has assured them that Live Oaks water supply well taps Edwards water at 600 feet below the surface, much deeper than the plume of groundwater pollution.

They have found contamination in alluvial groundwater, down as far as 30 feet, Wayman said, I assure them that our water comes from much further down than 30 feet.

Records show the plant operated from 1978 to 2007, drawing scrutiny from state regulators in its final years.

In 1996, the TCEQ ordered Eldorado to comply with environmental regulations and to cease managing hazardous waste in their reuse water system, TCEQ spokeswoman Andrea Morrow said in an email.

The TCEQ did more investigations in 1999 and 2001, and the company addressed some pollution problems from 2001 to 2006, Morrow said. But the violations continued, and the state Attorney Generals office eventually required Eldorado to pay fines and comply with the 1996 order.

In 2006, Pittsburgh-based PPG Industries bought Eldorado. By 2008, the Live Oak site was abandoned, Morrow said. She described how TCEQ and EPA officials used a hazard scoring method to determine the EPAs Superfund program would be the most effective route to addressing the pollution.

Part of the Superfund process often involves finding potentially responsible parties - entities that are legally liable for cleanup costs. The EPA has not found any for the Eldorado site, EPA spokeswoman Jennah Durant said in an email.

bgibbons@express-news.net

Twitter: @bgibbs
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At the San Antonio International Airports Terminal B, Casey Gray cradled an assortment of gifts for the arrival of a lifelong friend that she had never met.

In her arms, Gray held symbols of the Lone Star state: a Texas flag, a bouquet of yellow roses and a pillow embroidered with the words, Welcome Yall!

Im excited and elated, I cant believe that its going to happen, Gray, 56, said last week as cameras surrounded her as she waited for her friends Memorial Day weekend visit. In my lifetime, I was hoping it would happen and it has.

With her husband, Randy, and son, Chance, by her side, Gray scanned the descending escalator staircase for a sight of Jackie Rutter Elliot, her longtime pen pal from Australia.

It means a lot to my mom, Chance, 17, said. Im excited for her.

Then, among the sporadic stream of travelers, Elliot appeared, smiling as Gray rushed her with a two-armed embrace. It was the first time that the friends had met face to face in 50 years.

Its amazing, Elliot, 56, said of finally meeting after their long correspondence. Its just one of those things that kept us going.

The scene was reminiscent of the emotional airport greetings that unfold in the movie, Love Actually, which had a short sequel broadcast Thursday night on NBC.

Family members and friends played a big role in bringing the two together. Elliots daughter, Lauren, initiated the meeting when she e-mailed Gray that Elliot would be traveling to North America to visit Rutter during an internship in Canada. Rutter then surprised her mother with Air Canada tickets to San Antonio to finally meet the pal who became a sister more than 4,900 miles away.

Elliot was accompanied by her friend, Rebecca Kennedy, 46, who helped Rutter arrange the meeting..

In 1966, the women were linked by the television show Big Blue Marble, which connected kids the same age and gender around the world. Gray was matched with Elliot, then living in London, England, and Constance Cheng Heng Bun, in Singapore. Gray recalled that Constance wrote about bombings that fell close to her village. After six months, the San Antonio resident never heard from her pal again.

Gray and Elliot continued writing letters to each other. The only dry spell occurred when they were teens, they recalled and their attention turned to boys and boy bands. They reconnected as young adults and have since shared numerous milestones such as their marriages, births and deaths of family members.

The one constant in their letters was a curiosity about each others culture. In 1983, Randy Gray suggested his wife should call Elliot for Christmas; it was the first time they had heard one anothers voice. He recalled Elliot asking him if Texans lived on ranches, rode horses and had a herd of cattle.

The pair kept penning letters, even as social media, Facebook and email made it easier to stay in contact with one another. The Gray family has a weekend of activities planned for their friend before she departs today. The first place Elliot wanted to visit: The Alamo. Then plans called for a tour of the River Walk, visits to other iconic sites and setting aside time to sift through letters Elliot has mailed through the years.

Gray said she and her family hope to be able to go to the land down under in the future to return the visit.

Russ Handy, aviation director for the City of San Antonio, said he had goosebumps when he heard about the pen pal story.

I just think that its heartwarming that this still happens, Handy said.

vtdavis@express-news.net
Texas A&M anthropologist Alston Thoms likes to tell the story of the mistakes made in handling the discovery of an African slave cemetery in New York in the early 1990s. Its a case anthropology students learn about in introductory coursework.

Thoms, a noted academic well-acquainted with the ancient history buried downtown and in and around San Antonios missions, considers the case a classic one, illustrating how government and business forces can clash with American history and culture, its preservation and their communities.

The African Burial Ground National Monument, managed by the National Park Service, has attracted millions and is a National Historic Landmark. But in 1991, human remains were found there during construction of a federal office building. Officials forged ahead while protests amounted.

African-American activists argued the cemetery wasnt being given proper respect and that they werent included in discussions. Though the people had been buried 200 years ago, descendants of slaves who literally worked to death were still living in the city. Their protests grew to include a broader community.

The planned site of a federal building is now a memorial, hallowed ground where 400 remains were found, half of them were children and teens. Studies have showed the broken bones and malnutrition they suffered. Among other studies, DNA tests were conducted.

According to the General Services Administrations website, the overall project is a testimonial to a positive and collaborative partnership between many parties, including federal agencies, historic preservationists, Howard University and the black community. Perhaps that collaboration ultimately happened, but it reads a bit too congratulatory given the conflict the project stirred.

Thoms, who serves as a consultant on the Reimagine the Alamo project, considers the slave cemetery case a cautionary tale as San Antonio goes about renovating downtown. He says burial grounds and cemeteries are not only concentrated at Milam Park and under whats now The Childrens Hospital of San Antonio, but at Mission Valero, as he more often calls the Alamo. Many others sit east of downtown.

Throughout history, Thoms said the mistake powers that be often make is assuming such sacred sites have no stakeholders  people personally connected perhaps even by DNA, or who have a vested interest in how theyre developed.

As the Alamo is reimagined, Thoms has particular concerns not only about short-sighted efforts to focus on Valeros 13 days to glory but about the thousands of Native American graves that rests in, around and in front of Valero and the potentially adverse effects on cultural resources in that ground.

The impact will be felt, too, by the missionized Indian descendants whose ancestors lived in the area for 15,000 years, he said. In the 2010 Census, more than 11,000 San Antonians self-identified as Native American, though many others, including Mexican-Americans, could be tied to those original people.

In my mind, theres absolutely no doubt whatsoever that in the confines of Alamo Plaza is, really, a microcosm of the history of the New World, 15,000 years of it, Thoms said. Ive often said if you could go back in time and stand atop the Tower of the Americas with time-lapse photography, you could see people hunting mammoth right there, and you would see some form of cultural continuity until the Spanish arrive.

It means there is 15,000 years of thousands of people living and moving through Bexar County for all that time, he said. The church burial records show upwards of 1,000 people are buried there, right in front of the plaza and in the walls.

Its in my vested interest to get the story right, Thoms said, to let folks know the history is much more than the 13 days to glory. Its what happened before and after.

Those 13 days are what generations of Texans were taught from an Anglo mind-set and is so imbedded in the states psyche that its seen as the most important, or inaccurately as its only, history.

Ive spent a lot of time as a white Texan embarrassed by that and trying to correct that, he said.

Thats why the case of an African slave cemetery is a good homework assignment for San Antonio. Its especially important as it gets closer to tricentennial celebrations and continues to receive international attention because of its World Heritage site designated Spanish Colonial missions.

eayala@express-news.net

Twitter: @ElaineAyala
A group of diverse but like-minded individuals, the members of ARC have come together in their common desire to fight hatred, bigotry, intolerance and violence because of the harm these antisocial behaviors cause to our society. In that effort, we will not use or sanction the use of illegal actions (such as violence or intimidation) in pursuit of our desired aims and if we learn of anyone who does use these unethical methods we will report those individuals to the authorities. Instead, we will use the guarantees found in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms that ensure freedom of legal speech and expression.
AUSTIN  The legislative session that ends Monday was defined by discord, but there were moments of grace that spanned the ideological divide.

Some of those tender moments came when lawmakers shared their personal experiences to highlight their support for legislation, casting aside their business-as-usual personae to show their hearts.

They came when House lawmakers shared the love they feel for their children as they passed a bill to address cyberbullying, named Davids Law in memory of 16-year-old David Molak. David, who had been a student at Alamo Heights High School, killed himself last year after he was targeted on social media.

I have a son who has some special requirements and special needs, and he gets picked on. Its heart-wrenching, said Rep. Dan Huberty, a Houston Republican who heads the House Public Education Committee, in urging his colleagues earlier this month to support Davids Law.

He told me later that his son, Ryan, has the cognitive disabilities dysgraphia and dyslexia, and that the 15-year-old had been bullied.

When youre not able to finish the standardized test on time, people pick on you, Huberty said. Its just a combination of things.

Ryan is well-adjusted and is working through the difficulties, Huberty said, but its clearly a tough thing for a father to see. Thats something that cuts across the lines that divide lawmakers from different parties or differing wings of the same party.

I think that the most important thing is that were talking about kids, Huberty said. It doesnt matter what their parents political party is. We should be fighting for these children, and thats what were doing.

Davids Law  championed by Sen. Jose Menendez and Rep. Ina Minjarez, both San Antonio Democrats  has been approved and sent to Gov. Greg Abbott, who has signaled his support for it.

Menendez in turn, in an emotional moment in the Senate, shared his thanks for the chambers passage of a bill a few days ago to ease access to investigational stem-cell treatment for people who have a severe chronic or terminal illness.

His wife, Cehlia Newman-Menendez, has multiple sclerosis. The senator drives from San Antonio to Austin and back every day that his legislative duties call him to the Capitol. That allows him to take care of his family, which includes three children.

Some of these diseases that just dont have cures, all you want is to be able to have a little quality of life so that you can be there with your family, so I want to say thank you, Menendez told Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, as senators lined up beside him.

When Menendez spoke, Rep. Drew Springer, R-Muenster, was in the chamber. A joint author of the bill, Springer earlier had given a heart-filled speech in the House when it appeared the measure would fall victim to a bill-killing spree by tea party Republicans angry that their own priorities hadnt passed. Springers wife uses a wheelchair because she was involved in a diving accident while they were dating.

When I talked with Menendez on Saturday, he said his wife had been in the hospital. He was grateful for the care she received there, but was torn about having to be away while she was getting treatment.

If I werent here, Id be in the hospital, being an advocate, he said. She was released Sunday.

Access to investigational stem-cell treatment could be something thats meaningful for his wife.

Knowing that there is no cure for MS, we had talked about stem-cell therapy in the past. Where do you go? Is it really going to help? he said.

His decision to speak up about the bill was a chance to have a positive moment in a difficult legislative session.

I dont feel all that great about too many things that have happened this session, he said. I just felt like I wanted to be appreciative of something that seemed good.

The measure got final legislative approval Sunday and was sent to the governor.

pfikac@express-news.net

Twitter: @pfikac
Four Canadian youths under 25 years old will head to Belgium this October

By Diego Flammini

Assistant Editor, North American Content

Farms.com

One hundred of tomorrows bright agricultural minds will meet in Brussels, Belgium from October 9 to 13 during the 2017 Youth Ag Summit.

Representatives from 49 countries, who range in age from 18 to 25, will participate in themed discussions of Feeding a Hungry Planet and address the United Nations Sustainability Goals.

Cassandra Hayward of Nova Scotia, Brandon Hebor from Toronto, Alexis Wagner from Newfoundland and Cameron Olson from Alberta will represent Canada.

Farms.com caught up with Olson, whos currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Animal Science at Texas A&M University.

Farms.com (Farms): What inspired you to think about participating in the Youth Ag Summit?

Cameron Olson (CO): Over the last few years Ive been given the opportunity to travel to Mexico and the Dominican Republic to collect research data. We were out of the cities and away from the resort-style towns most people are used to going to. The needs that are out there in the developing world, in terms of nutrition and getting enough to eat, really opened my eyes.

Farms: A big term in the industry nowadays is sustainable agriculture. What is an important element of sustainable ag?

CO: The biggest key to sustainable agriculture is defining sustainable. I think a lot of people and organizations have struggled to come to a consensus of a proper definition. Within agriculture, we have crop production and animal production. And, within those groups, we have vegetable versus cereal crops and things like beef cattle versus dairy goats. All of these separate things are going to require a different definition of sustainable.



Cameron Olson

Farms: In order to be selected for the summit, you had to write an essay about the UNs Sustainable Development Goals. What did your essay include?

CO: I wanted to make sure beef cattle was presented as a viable option for the future of providing nutrition around the world and retaining youth in agriculture so we have the workforce to produce the food.

Farms: What do you hope to contribute to the summit?

CO: I think I have a strong beef cattle and animal agriculture background and hope to bring that viewpoint. I think its easy for animal agriculture to be overlooked at conferences like this. It can be easy to forget how beneficial ruminant animals are to ecosystems, to providing nutrition, and as a source of power and movement in terms of draft animals.

More information can be found on the summits website or by following @YouthAgSummit on Twitter.
Once he had secured the land and water supply and received the go ahead from the shire, the rest was relatively easy for Koos as the system he uses is one he is well accustomed to.
The situation on the border remains calm, Chief of the GS of the Armenian Armed Forces, Lieutenant-General Movses Hakobyan told reporters on Monday, Panorama.am reports.

May 29, 2017, 13:04 The Armed Forces fully control the situation on the frontline - Movses Hakobyan

STEPANAKERT, MAY 29 , ARTSAKHPRESS: Despite some tensions observed, today, the Armed Forces fully control the situation on the frontline, Hakobyan said, when asked to comment on the situation on the border between Azerbaijan and Armenia as well as the Line of Contact between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan.

In the words of the Chief of the GS of the Armenian Armed Forces, the borderline of the Artsakh is fully equipped monitoring cameras and partially the border of the Republic of Armenia.
In einem offenen Brief an das Europaische Parlament wendet sich die Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung gemeinsam mit vielen europaischen Verlagen gegen die neue ePrivacy-Verordnung der EU.

Wir dokumentieren den von vielen europaischen Verlagen unterzeichneten offenen Brief sowie die Unterschriftenliste im englischen Orginal:

Open letter to the European Parliament / Council

Trust, privacy and news - the need to rethink ePrivacy proposals

We support the objective of the Commissions draft ePrivacy regulation, which has the potential to clean up the digital economy, and to restore citizen trust in how their data is used online. Citizens are rightly concerned about the use of their personal data by third party companies of whom they have never heard, and have no idea about the role that they play in their digital lives online. News organisations depend on the trust of our readers, and we support a system of regulation that restores trust, and cleans up the digital environment. But news organisations also use data generated by readers to improve their products and services by offering readers journalism that is relevant to them, and serving display digital advertising that is relevant to readers.

As a result of digital distribution, more digital citizens are accessing high quality news and quality information than ever before. But the increasing trend towards consumers accessing news content via third party gateways such as Google News, Facebook, Yahoo, Apple News, MSN (Microsoft) and Amazon Alexa is changing the way that European citizens consume news[1], making publishers ever more reliant on a small number of global platforms as a consequence. Through the current ePrivacy proposals, the Commission proposes that digital citizens must consent to non-strictly necessary tracking on a global basis when they connect to the Internet via a browser interface. Given that 90 per cent of usage across Europe is concentrated in the hands of just four companies: Google, Apple, Microsoft and Mozilla[2], this focus on obtaining user permission via the browser interface has the potential to exacerbate the asymmetry of power between individual publishers and these global digital gateways.

The ePrivacy proposals contrast with the implication of the Commissions General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)  due to come into force in May 2018 - which aims to empower user privacy by forcing sites themselves to make sure that users understand and are empowered to control the gathering of data about their browsing behaviour in context of each site that they visit. By creating a single global permission within the browser interface, the Commissions ePrivacy proposals will make it more difficult to ensure transparency and meaningful user empowerment in practice, and remove any distinction between publishers who place a high value on the trust of their users, and those who do not. While the explanatory memorandum accompanying the ePrivacy proposals does not place an outright ban on publishers communicating with readers in order to seek consent for the use of 3 rd party cookies, in practice, publishers are concerned that it will be incredibly difficult to persuade readers to change their browser settings to allow 3 rd party cookies. As a consequence, individual news organisations would be unable to provide readers with personalised content and marketing, or serve relevant digital advertising within their environments.

The practice of serving relevant advertising to readers is now an established norm in the advertising industry, and is essential to ensure that publishers can compete with Google and Facebook who already control 20% of total global advertising spend in 2017[3]. If as a result of these proposals, news publishers were unable to serve relevant advertising to our readers, this would reduce our ability to compete with the capabilities of dominant digital platforms for digital advertising revenues, ultimately undermining our ability to invest in high quality journalism across Europe.
But, although a recent poll showed 17% of Queenslanders supporting One Nation, I believe this only a tiny minority of Australians are racist.

THE rise of Pauline Hanson's One Nation (we'll be swamped by Asians, we'll be swamped by Muslims) political party has given some impetus to the growth of racist sentiment in Australia in recent years.

There were the goldfield riots against Chinese workers and blackbirding (effectively slave labour) in the 19th century. In the 20th century there was the white Australia policy and not allowing Aboriginal Australians to be counted as citizens until 1967. Overall, weve been a pretty sorry bunch of bigots.

The Immigration Restriction Act 1901 put in place the law that became the cornerstone of the white Australia' policy. The Governor-General signed the document two days before Christmas Day 1901, a week after he had signed the Pacific Islander Labourers Act into law.

Together with Section 15 of the 1901 Post and Telegraph Act, these formed a powerful set of legal instruments shaping immigration policy at the foundation of the Commonwealth of Australia. They continued to guide thinking on immigration for half a century.

The Immigration Restriction Act enabled the government to exclude any person who 'when asked to do so by an officer fails to write out at dictation and sign in the presence of the officer, a passage of 50 words in length in a European language directed by the officer'. The dictation test could be administered to any immigrant during the first year of residence.

It was initially proposed that the test would be in English but it was argued that this could discourage European migration and advantage Japanese people and Americans of African descent. Instead, any European language was specified. In 1905 this was changed to any prescribed language to lessen offence to the Japanese. From 1932 the test could be given during the first five years of residence and any number of times.

The dictation test was administered 805 times in 190203 with 46 people passing and 554 times in 190409 with only six people successful. After 1909 no person passed the dictation test and people who failed were refused entry or deported.

The Act remained in force until 1958.

And what about today?

My Papua New Guinean wife, Rose, and I have lived together happily in Australia for 10 years now and in all that time have been met only with kindness, generosity and love from our white Australian friends.

But there have been three incidents of overt racism.

The first was in a Brisbane pub where Rose was sitting in a corner with some PNG friends. A somewhat inebriated white man at the bar started railing about "allowing these black bitches into the bar".

Rose took him to task and pointed out that her ancestors had saved the lives of many Aussie soldiers during World War II. Things got a bit heated and the other patrons rose up to support Rose. The offender was forced to apologise and was ejected from the pub. Round one to Rose.

In the second incident, we were window shopping in Tuggerah Mall on the NSW central coast when I became aware of a white woman with two teenagers walking behind us with exaggerated steps and whistling Old Macdonald had a Farm.

Rose thought nothing of it, but I realised what they were doing and rounded on them saying, in not uncertain terms, where they could go before I called security. Round two to Peter.

Incident three. Sadly, even though we live in a pretty multicultural community (the SDA College nearby has lots of PNG and Pacific islander students passing through), we have a United Patriots Front supporter passing out literature in our local shopping centre.

Now the UPF is probably the most blatant and provocative white supremacist movements in Australia and is often given oxygen by some right-wing media commentators. The UPF chose to give out its magazine outside our local shopping centre next to the Indian restaurant.

When I saw this I grabbed all the magazines and dumped them in the nearest rubbish bin  but only after taking a copy and showing it to the local shopkeepers.

"If you want to keep your customers, I told them, don't allow this to be on display outside your shop." They agreed and promised to ditch the stuff if it appeared again. Round three for multiculturalism.

I'm all for freedom of speech but this doesn't allow you to shout out "Fire! Fire!" in a crowded theatre when there is no fire.

So is Australia racist? For the vast majority of us I'd say no. But some few sick individuals manage to maintain the rage against humanity and decency.

And those politicians and media commentators who fan the flames have a lot to answer for.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has urged the government to support the apparel sector in the upcoming Budget 2017-18 by providing additional 5 per cent cash incentive for two years. The association has said that it would be difficult for the sector to remain competitive in the global markets without additional support.

The cash incentive will only be applicable to the members of BGMEA and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), said Md Siddiqur Rahman, president BGMEA during a press conference.

Rahman also urged the government to withdraw tax at source for next two years, reducing corporate tax to 10 per cent for five years. He called upon the government to ensure policy stability for investment.

The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has urged the government to support the apparel sector in the upcoming Budget 2017-18 by providing additional 5 per cent cash incentive for two years. The association has said that it would be difficult for the sector to remain competitive in the global markets without additional support.#

The RMG industry has been facing a number of challenges, including fall in apparel prices, increase in production cost, and strong currency against dollar, which have slowed down the growth, according to him.

The BGMEA president also said that production cost has increased by 18 per cent in the last two years while prices of apparel items exported by Bangladesh have fallen by 40 per cent in the last 15 years. Besides, there is huge pressure of remediation works in the factory. Against this backdrop, the RMG industry needs the support from the government to retain competitiveness in the global market. (KD)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
With a view to grow apparel sale and fabric business over the next few years, Raymond is investing Rs 350 crore in capacity and retail expansion in 2017. Of this, Rs 200 crore will go for manufacturing expansion in India and offshore, and Rs 150 crore is meant for retail expansion. The company is building a large suiting manufacturing plant in Ethiopia.The plant in Africa will be operational in 2017 itself. The company is also expanding business in Amravati in Maharashtra for cotton fabric, an agency report said.

With a view to grow apparel sale and fabric business over the next few years, Raymond is investing Rs 350 crore in capacity and retail expansion in 2017. Of this, Rs 200 crore will go for manufacturing expansion in India and offshore, and Rs 150 crore is meant for retail expansion. The company is building a large suiting manufacturing plant in Ethiopia.#

Of the Rs 350 crore, Rs 200 crore will be allocated to manufacturing expansion, both in India and offshore, while Rs 150 crore will go towards retail expansion, Sanjay Behl, CEO, Raymond, told the new agency.The Ethiopia plant will manufacture two million jackets, and the Amravati plant has a capacity of three million metres of linen fabric that will be added this year, Behl said. The company plans to expand its retail presence to about 1,500 stores by 2020, the report said.The company plans to open nearly 150-200 stores in 2017, Behl said.Raymond has more than 1,000 franchise based retail stores. Its brands include Raymond (ready to wear), Raymond Made to Measure, Color Plus, Park Avenue and Parx. The company has tied up with the Khadi and Village Industries Commission to launch its branded Khadi. The new lable will be available at KVIC outlets, besides its own, across India and leading e-commerce portals beginning August 2017.We are building capability in finishing, design, and distribution for khadi and investing step by step, Behl said, according to the report. (SV)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
The special garment package of Rs 6,000 crore that was introduced by the ministry of textiles has successfully created 7,50,000 jobs in the sector during the fiscal ended March 31, 2017, the ministry has estimated. Apparel exports increased by close to 9 per cent after the announcement of the package, as per the data by the textiles ministry.

Garments worth $13.47 billion were exported during the period between July 2016 and March 2017, as compared to $12.37 billion during the same period in the previous fiscal. However, the total value of textile and apparel exports witnessed a decline of 3.5 per cent to earn $38.6 billion in FY17, mainly owing to a reduction in outbound textile shipments.

Although the package created 7,50,000 jobs in the apparel sector, it missed the target. One of the main reasons for this was that a number of notifications which were required for the package's implementation came much later after its announcement in June 2016.

The job creation estimate is based on a thumb rule which is often adopted by the government, according to a Financial Express report. The rule states that an investment of Rs 1 crore creates 70 direct labour-intensive jobs in the garment sector and 30 direct jobs in the spinning sector. Additionally, 10 direct jobs in the textile sector create 13 indirect jobs in lacework, hand embroidery, handwork, washing, specialised dyeing, logistics and more. (KD)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk  India
HON PM BAINIMARAMA SPEECH AT THE HANDING OVER OF REPATRIATED TABUA FROM THE NEW ZEALAND GOVERNMENT TO THE FIJIAN GOVERNMENT





In a very real sense, we are welcoming these Tabua back home, in an exchange that bears deep cultural and historical meaning for Fiji and the Fijian people. And full credit goes to both the Fijian and Kiwi border enforcement agencies who  under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna, or CITES  worked collaboratively to make this happen. Vinaka vakalevu.

The NZ High Commissioner, H.E. Mr. Mark Ramsden,The Secretary-General for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES), Mr. John Scanlon,Honourable Ministers,Ladies and Gentlemen,Bula vinaka and a very good afternoon to you all.Im delighted to be here today on this historic occasion as my Government receives 148 repatriated sperm whales teeth  known in Fiji as Tabua  back from the New Zealand Government.The true value of the Tabua to the Fijian people is difficult to express in words, but I think it was put well by historian Ronald Albert Derrick, when he described it as the price of life and death. For us as Fijians, there are few items that carry greater significance and, historically, Tabua were exchanged among chiefs on only the most sacred and important occasions. For example, they were given as gifts in times of reconciliation, as a dowry for marriages or to strengthen an alliance.To this day, the deep cultural value of Tabua for Fijians has remained undiminished, as we still exchange Tabua during weddings, funerals, birthdays and during important negotiations.Since 2010, weve instituted a quota on the trade and export of Tabua in Fiji, in line with our commitment under the CITES. In fact, due to our efforts to protect the whale populations in our waters, only Tabua recovered from stranded sperm whales can add to the number of Tabua in circulation in Fiji.I am extremely proud of my Governments commitment to limit our trade of Tabua in order to protect the sperm whales  a species currently classified as vulnerable. The reality is, while we clearly place enormous value on the cultural importance of the Tabua, our love and respect for our oceans, seas and marine life will always take precedence. Our deep affinity for the sea defines who we are as a nation and as a people, so we are happy to do our part to protect a species that shares our ocean and that for so long has been an intimate part of our way of life.That love for our oceans is why the world is looking to Fiji to lead the community of nations to reduce the pollution and overfishing that is threatening the health of our oceans and seas, as we co-host the UN Conference on Oceans with Sweden next month in New York. In that regard, this exchange is very timely, as we receive back items that symbolise a deep tie between our ocean ecosystems and our nations cultural wealth.We look forward to working alongside New Zealand at the conference to rally the international community to commit to the conservation and sustainable use of our oceans, seas and marine resources. An issue of vital importance to the Fijian people, and to every person who calls the Pacific home.Thank you again to the Government of New Zealand for working with us to safely return these Tabua to their rightful home in Fiji. They are true national treasures and, now that they are back, they will bring warmth, pride and a deep sense of cultural belonging into the homes of those who receive them.Vinaka vakalevu. Thank you.
Actor Riteish Deshmukh doesn't worry about social media trolls and says people are mature enough to deal with them.

Asked about how he deals with criticism and trolls on social media, Riteish told IANS over phone from Mumbai, "Reaction to any kind of praise or negativity depends on yourself. If you can block, avoid it and just move on, it won't affect you."

"Everyone has their own barometer of how they want to tackle their social media handles, tweets and whatever they want to put on Facebook."

"So, whenever someone tweets something, I think they know what they are going to get and what the reactions are going to be. Every individual is different and the way they handle things, and they are mature enough to deal with it."

Meanwhile, Riteish is currently busy promoting his forthcoming film Bank Chor directed by Bumpy. The film also features Rhea Chakraborty and Vivek Oberoi.
Nivin Pauly, the young actor and wife Rinna Joy welcomed their second child, a baby girl on May 25. The actor, who is extremely excited about the arrival of his little princess, recently presented her a special gift.

Interestingly, Nivin Pauly recently bought a Mini Cooper S for his little daughter. The actor himself revealed the news through his official Instagram page and shared the picture of the new car, with his fans.

As per the latest reports, Nivin Pauly and Rinna Joy are yet to finalise the name of their little princess. Rinna and Nivin's first child, the five-year-old son Daveed Pauly was born in 2012.

It was a love marriage for Nivin Pauly and Rinna Joy, who were classmates during their engineering studies in FISAT. The couple tied the knot on August 28th, 2010 at Syro Malabar Catholic Church, Aluva.

Nivin Pauly, who is going through a wonderful phase in his career, will be next seen in the upcoming Tamil movie Richie. The actor's next Malayalam release will be Njandukalude Nattil Oridavela, his second production venture.

He is currently busy with the upcoming Geetu Mohandas movie Moothon, which will feature him in a different role. Nivin's other upcoming projects include Shyamaprasad's Hey Jude and Roshan Andrews's Kayamkulam Kochunni.
CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - Japan will on Monday release May figures for imports, exports and trade balance, highlighting a light day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. Imports are expected to rise 14.5 percent on year after gaining 15.1 percent in April. Exports are called higher by an annual 16.0 percent after gaining 7.5 percent in the previous month. The trade surplus is pegged at 43.3 billion yen, down from 481.7 billion yen a month earlier. Australia will provide May numbers for new motor vehicle sales; in April, sales added 0.3 percent on month and 0.1 percent on year. New Zealand will see May data for its services index, as well as Q2 data for the Westpac Consumer Confidence Index. In April, the services index had a score of 52.8, while the Westpac index was at 111.9 in Q1. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
ESPOO, Finland, Aug 31, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --Picosun Oy, leading supplier of high-quality Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) solutions for industrial production, reports of repeat sales of automated P-300BV vacuum batch production systems to major Asian discrete device manufacturers.

Even if the 300 mm wafer size is the current state-of-the-art in many key semiconductor applications, and efforts have been made to increase this size even to 450 mm, the 200 mm market is very much alive and showing no signs of tailing off. One main factor supporting this steadfast longevity is the increasing usage of substrate materials such as GaN, SiC, and sapphire, where the wafer size is limited to 200 mm, or even smaller. These substrates have many benefits over traditional silicon and they allow manufacturing of components that are central in several technologies affecting our everyday life and the modern society. Examples are LED lighting, car and transport automation, power conversion, wireless communication and remote sensing. A prime example of the last two is the rapidly spreading Internet-of-Things with the billions of sensors forming its core. All of these applications ensure that the demand for 200 mm semiconductor production equipment stays at constant high and even increases.

Picosun answers this demand with its PICOSUN' P-300BV ALD system, designed for fast batch processing of wafers up to 200 mm size. The P-300BV ALD system is ideal for e.g. MEMS and compound semiconductor production. It is equipped with single or dual vacuum load lock system for semi-automatic loading and unloading of substrates under constant vacuum, enabling deposition of nitrides and other sensitive materials. Wafer carriers of metal and quartz are available, depending on application. Full integration to factory automation is possible via SECS/GEM protocol.

"The P-300BV system has been a success amongst our key production customers. As so many central semiconductor applications and emerging technologies of today utilize 200 mm substrates, there has been even a shortage of suitable manufacturing equipment. We at Picosun are happy to help in this and supply the market with our production-proven ALD tools and solutions specifically designed and optimized for 200 mm production," summarizes Juhana Kostamo, Managing Director of Picosun Oy.

Picosun provides the most advanced ALD thin film coating technology to enable the industrial leap into the future, with turn-key production solutions and unmatched expertise in the field. Today, PICOSUN' ALD equipment are in daily manufacturing use in numerous major industries around the world. Picosun is based in Finland, with subsidiaries in Germany, North America, Singapore, Taiwan, China, and Japan, and a world-wide sales and support network.

For more information visit www.picosun.com.

More information:

Mr. Juhana Kostamo

Managing Director, Picosun Oy.

Tel: +358-50-321-1955

Email: info@picosun.com

CONTACT:

MinnaToivola

minna.toivola@picosun.com

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

http://news.cision.com/picosun-oy/r/repeat-sales-of-p-300bv-vacuum-batch-production-tools-boost-picosun-s-position-in-the-200-mm-semicon,c2337174

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Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - July 6, 2017) - Avalon Advanced Materials Inc. (TSX: AVL) (OTCQX: AVLNF) ("Avalon" or the "Company") is pleased to report on the results from laboratory testing of its lithium hydroxide product conducted recently by the National Research Council of Canada ("NRC"). The lithium hydroxide product was made from petalite concentrate using Avalon's proprietary hydrometallurgical process developed for the Separation Rapids Lithium Project, Kenora, ON.

The product sample, technically referred to as Lithium Hydroxide Monohydrate (LiOH.H 2 O), was evaluated by NRC as a potential feed material for lithium ion battery cathodes. Elemental analysis of Avalon's lithium hydroxide product confirmed that it was of high purity with very minor amounts of non-lithium metal impurities within the range reported by commercial suppliers of battery grade lithium hydroxide materials.

A lithium and manganese-rich nickel manganese cobalt oxide (LMR-NMC) cathode material was synthesised using Avalon's lithium hydroxide product and demonstrated "excellent electrochemical performance" exhibiting a high capacity rate (209 mA/h/g), high initial coulombic efficiency (86%) and very little capacity fade (<1% after 60 cycles): all comparable to the performance of material synthesised from a reference lithium hydroxide product.

NRC reported that the Avalon lithium hydroxide product would be a suitable precursor for the synthesis of lithium and manganese-rich NMC-type cathode materials. Avalon has also identified opportunities to further improve the purity of its initial lithium hydroxide product and will be following up with further testwork in the near future. This work will be supported by funding received from Northern Innovation Program of the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation ("NOHFC") as disclosed in the Company's news release dated June 27, 2017. The Northern Innovation Program is designed to support the development and commercialization of new technologies that will contribute to future prosperity in Northern Ontario.

The Company's Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") disclosed in the news release dated September 27, 2016, outlined a scenario for economic production of a high purity lithium hydroxide product from its concentrate of the lithium mineral petalite using its proprietary hydrometallurgical process. Avalon is now in the process of preparing an updated technical report to reflect the revised mineral resource estimate following the recent drilling program, updated product pricing and modifications to the process flowsheet.

Avalon is now planning to develop a Phase 1 demonstration plant in the Kenora area to not only confirm the efficiency of its proprietary petalite flotation and lithium hydroxide production processes but also to provide large volume trial samples for customers interested in its lithium hydroxide product and other lithium mineral by-products. Avalon is targeting an initial production capacity for the demonstration plant of between 650 and 1,300 tonnes of lithium hydroxide per annum.

The technical information included in this news release has been reviewed and approved by the Company's Senior Vice President, Metallurgy and Technology Development, David Marsh, FAusIMM (CP), and Donald S. Bubar, P.Geo. both Qualified Persons under NI 43-101.

About Avalon Advanced Materials Inc.

Avalon Advanced Materials Inc. is a Canadian mineral development company specializing in niche market metals and minerals with growing demand in new technology. The Company has three advanced stage projects, all 100%-owned, providing investors with exposure to lithium, tin and indium, as well as rare earth elements, tantalum, niobium, and zirconium. Avalon is currently focusing on its Separation Rapids Lithium Project, Kenora, ON and its East Kemptville Tin-Indium Project, Yarmouth, NS. Social responsibility and environmental stewardship are corporate cornerstones.

For questions and feedback, please e-mail the Company at ir@AvalonAM.com, or phone Don Bubar, President & CEO at 416-364-4938.

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the statement that the Avalon lithium hydroxide product would be a suitable precursor for the synthesis of lithium and manganese-rich NMC-type cathode materials, that Avalon has also identified opportunities to further improve the purity of its initial lithium hydroxide product and will be following up with further testwork in the near future, that this work will be supported by funding received from Northern Innovation Program of the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation, that Avalon is now in the process of preparing an updated technical report, that Avalon is now planning to develop a Phase 1 demonstration plant in the Kenora area and that Avalon is targeting an initial production capacity for the demonstration plant of between 650 and 1,300 tonnes of lithium hydroxide per annum . Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "potential", "scheduled", "anticipates", "continues", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "scheduled", "targeted", "planned", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be" or "will not be" taken, reached or result, "will occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Avalon to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions management believes to be reasonable at the time such statements are made. Although Avalon has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from expected results described in forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to market conditions, and the possibility of cost overruns or unanticipated costs and expenses as well as those risk factors set out in the Company's current Annual Information Form, Management's Discussion and Analysis and other disclosure documents available under the Company's profile at www.SEDAR.com. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Such forward-looking statements have been provided for the purpose of assisting investors in understanding the Company's plans and objectives and may not be appropriate for other purposes. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Avalon does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that are contained herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.
Virbac is the 7 th veterinary company worldwide

Industrialization contract totaling 1 million for the manufacturing of an innovative administration and closure system compatible with vials

First deliveries expected in Q1-Q2 2018

Regulatory News:

BIOCORP (FR0012788065 ALCOR PEA-PME eligible), a French company specializing in the development and manufacturing of medical devices and smart-drug delivery systems, announces today the signature of an industrialization contract with Virbac, the 7th veterinary company worldwide.

BIOCORP, whose expertise and know-how are well-renowned, is thereby closing a deal in line with its strategy of creating new opportunities and manufacturing programs through specific developments implemented since 2015 (project-based services using BIOCORP's expertise). Virbac Group, a company dedicated to animal health, employs over 4,800 people and has a global presence with subsidiaries in 31 countries, production centers in 11 countries and R&D centers on 5 continents.

The investment deal was closed after a 24-month collaboration between BIOCORP and Virbac for the development of a delivery device adapted to the needs of the veterinary laboratory. This device, an innovative administration and closure system for vials, is reusable and offers an optimal administration for products selected by Virbac.

The first deliveries are expected between the 1st and 2nd quarter of 2018. BIOCORP will then be responsible for the production of the industrialized product.

"We are thrilled to announce the signature of this industrialization contract with Virbac which successfully concludes the R&D program custom-developed by our teams. This collaboration with Virbac, an expert in animal health, highlights the width of our scope and the wide range of applications of our expertise," commented Jacques Gardette and Eric Dessertenne, respectively founder and CEO, and Chief Operating Officer of BIOCORP.

ABOUT BIOCORP

Founded in 2004 in Issoire (near Clermont-Ferrand), France, BIOCORP is a French company specializing in the development and manufacturing of medical devices and innovative drug delivery systems. It is listed as 'Innovative Company' by the French public investment bank Bpifrance. With over twenty years of experience and more than 30 manufactured products, BIOCORP is a key player in the industry, providing drug delivery solutions that meet the evolving needs of patients. Today, BIOCORP continues to innovate in the area of medical plastics, its core business, and to market traditional devices (alternative to aluminum capsules, syringe and vial administration systems) that have been an important source of recurring income. Its solid expertise and capacity to innovate have allowed the company to develop new Internet-connected products, including: the DataPen, a reusable smart injection pen that automatically transmits data to a mobile app, helping patients to manage their treatment; and treatment management add-ons, which adapt to existing delivery devices and are compatible with most injection pens in the market. The company has a team of 48 employees.

BIOCORP is listed on Alternext since July 2015 (FR0012788065 ALCOR).

For more information, please visit: www.biocorp.fr

Follow us on Twitter @BIOCORPSystems

ABOUT VIRBAC

A laboratory that has always been dedicated to animal health.

Founded in 1968 by a French veterinary doctor, Virbac is an independent pharmaceutical laboratory that has always been dedicated to animal health. Today ranked 7th veterinary company worldwide, the Group has a global presence in over 100 countries and offers a comprehensive and practical range of products and services covering the majority of animal species and diseases. Linking the needs of health care providers to the latest technological advances, Virbac's innovation is supported by an industrial tool meeting the highest international quality standards. Virbac has been forging personalized relationships with veterinarians and farmers in each country for nearly fifty years. Through this privileged partnership, in which social, health and environmental issues come together, Virbac contributes day after day to shape the future of animal health.

For more information please visit: www.virbac.com

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170528005002/en/

Contacts:

BIOCORP

Jacques Gardette

CEO

investisseurs@biocorp.fr

or

Eric Dessertenne

Chief Operating Officer

or

Press relations

ALIZE RP

Caroline Carmagnol Wendy Rigal

+33 (0)1 44 54 36 66 +33 (0)6 48 82 18 94

biocorp@alizerp.com
VALCOURT, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 11/24/17 -- BRP Inc. (TSX: DOO) will hold its third-quarter FY2018 financial results conference call on Friday, December 1, 2017 at 9 a.m. (ET). Jose Boisjoli, president and chief executive officer, and Sebastien Martel, chief financial officer, will discuss the results and address questions from analysts.

The press release will be distributed on a Canadian newswire on Friday December 1 at approximately 6 a.m. (ET).

For investors and analysts:

514-392-0235 or Telephone 800-564-3880 (toll-free in North America) Event code: 4276978 Click for international dial-in numbers. Webcast Click here to access the webcast.

For media and interested participants:

Webcast Click here to access the webcast.

An archived recording will be available here two hours after the event for 30 days following the original broadcast.

About BRP

BRP (TSX: DOO) is a global leader in the design, development, manufacturing, distribution and marketing of powersports vehicles and propulsion systems. Its portfolio includes Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobiles, Sea-Doo watercraft, Can-Am off-road and Spyder vehicles, Evinrude and Rotax marine propulsion systems as well as Rotax engines for karts, motorcycles and recreational aircraft. BRP supports its line of products with a dedicated parts, accessories and clothing business. With annual sales of CA$4.2 billion from over 100 countries, the Company employs approximately 8,700 people worldwide.

www.brp.com

@BRPNews

Ski-Doo, Lynx, Sea-Doo, Evinrude, Rotax, Can-Am, Spyder and the BRP logo are trademarks of Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. or its affiliates. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Contacts:

For media enquiries:

Sylvain Larocque

Senior Advisor, Media Relations

450.532.6421

sylvain.larocque@brp.com



For investor relations:

Philippe Deschenes

Financial Analyst

450.532.6462

philippe.deschenes@brp.com




WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - US President Donald Trump has defended his son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner, who is facing allegation that he discussed setting up a back channel with the Russian ambassador in December. Trump, who did not comment during his just concluded foreign tour on reports that Kushner is under scrutiny in FBI's Russia probe, praised his son-in-law and the work he has done in the White House after his return home. 'Jared is doing a great job for the country,' Trump said in a statement given to the New York Times Sunday night. The business tycoon-turned political leader expressed 'total confidence' in him. 'He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programs that will save our country billions of dollars,' according to Trump. 'In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person,' the President added. But Trump did not specifically responded to allegations made against Kushner, who is married to his eldest daughter, Ivanka. Ivanka is serving as an unpaid adviser to the US President at the White House. Both of them had accompanied Trump in his five nation Middle East-Europe tour. The Trump administration admits that the US Government has back-channel communication with 'a number of countries,' but did not say if the allegations against Kushner were true. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 05/29/17 -- Editors Note: There is a photo associated with this press release.

Twenty-seven teens from 15 Toronto schools will take on the issues of bullying, negativity and hopelessness with public performances of their original music, dance and drama, at the Bata Shoe Museum, 327 Bloor Street West, on Wednesday, May 31, 2017 at 7:00 p.m. Many coming from challenging situations in society, they will demonstrate the confidence, courage and leadership they have developed through participation in real-life workshops provided by the charity, DAREarts. They demand excellence of themselves and us as their supporters. Families, TDSB teachers, principals, trustees and superintendents will cheer them on. Everyone is welcome to attend.

This showcase will also see the presentation to a youth of the DAREarts William Stevenson Award for Excellence in Writing. Presenting the award is Monika Jensen-Stevenson, Emmy-winning producer of 60 Minutes and spouse of the late internationally renowned author, William Stevenson, best known for A Man Called Intrepid.

Over 150 students from 26 schools spanning Toronto's downtown core to east Scarborough have attended the spring program as DAREarts "delegates". They were then entrusted with the job of going back to their respective schools after each DAREarts Day to peer-teach their classmates what they had learned.

Toronto participating schools this spring include: Brock PS, Cedarbrook PS, Chine Drive PS, Corvette JS, Cosburn MS, Earl Haig PS, Eastview PS, Equinox Holistic Alternative, Fairbank Memorial CS, George Webster ES, Gordon A. Brown MS, Jesse Ketchum PS, Joseph Brant PS, Niagara Street JPS, Pauline JPS, Queen Victoria PS, RH McGregor ES, Regent Heights PS, Roden PS, Samuel Hearne MS, Sloane PS, St. Andrew's PS, Westwood MS, Willow Park JS & Winchester PS

Backgrounder:

DAREarts is a Canadian charity which stands for "Discipline, Action, Respect, Responsibility and Excellence in Education". DAREarts' 5-year program works with 9-14 year olds from schools in high-priority neighbourhoods, across Canada, empowering them to become leaders. Visit www.darearts.com

Each year in Toronto, DAREarts students are selected by their schools: two from each grade 4 to 8 who are most in need of the opportunity provided by DAREarts to see a wider world and become leaders. DAREarts lead teacher, Laura MacKinnon, then takes these children to a number of arts venues including the AGO, the Gardiner Museum, Ballet Jorgen and the Aga Khan Museum to expand their artistic horizons. She is joined by a number of accomplished Canadian artists including Emmy-winning producer of 60 Minutes, Monika Jensen-Stevenson; Juno-nominated songwriter Glenn Marais; Dora-winning actor Jamie Robinson; co-artistic director of Opera Atelier Jeannette Lajeunesse Zingg; award-winning visual artist Ricky Schaede; and renowned choreographer Fly Lady Di.

These visits ware just the beginning of their experience. With the DARE values of Discipline, Action, Responsibility and Excellence, DAREarts kids are given an opportunity to opt out of destructive behaviour and expectations of failure. They dare themselves to succeed by diving into the programming that DAREarts provides. The kids create their own mandate for a bright future. Words from a grade five student, "I feel different because I had so many things that were bad in my life, then DAREarts made me let go of it in a good way. At DAREarts we are a family!"

DAREarts thanks all its supporters, including Local Education Partner, the TDSB, its Grade 8 Class Sponsor, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Lead Supporters: Northbridge Insurance, Scotiabank, TD Bank Group and the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.

To view the photo associated with this press release, please visit the following link: http://www.marketwire.com/library/20170529-2017-DAREarts-Toronto.jpg.

Contacts:

Marilyn Field

Founder & President

905-729-0097

mfield@darearts.com



Vince Ciarlo

Ciarlo Communications

416-458-5090

vciarlo@ciarlo.ca




MONTREAL, QUEBEC -- (Marketwired) -- 05/29/17 -- Critical Elements Corporation (the "Corporation" or "Critical Elements") (TSX VENTURE: CRE)(OTCQX: CRECF)(FRANKFURT: F12) is pleased to announce results from Pilot Plant program recently completed by the Company with Outotec to demonstrated that the conversion of Critical Elements spodumene resources into lithium carbonate battery quality using the thermal leaching process was easily achievable.

This well knowns conversion process (calcination, thermal leaching & bicarbonization & crystallization) from Spodumene concentrate to lithium carbonate showed extremely good results with extraction rates of 88.4% with very high purity of lithium carbonate of 99.9%. This extraction rate surpasses the worldwide average of between 70 to 75% in what is accepted as an industry standard.

Purity of 99.9% was reached and the impurity profile is outstanding with levels of sodium below 100 ppm, calcium below 200 ppm, iron below 20 ppm and heavy metals below 5 ppm.

Li2CO3 analyses -impurity levels in Li2CO3

The table is available at the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/Li2CO3_analyses.jpg

These results demonstrated that Critical Elements approach to the lithium carbonate processing plant has been validated and do not require any additional cost intensive purification steps. The diagram below illustrates the Critical Elements process flow:

The diagram is available at the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/CE_FlowSheet.jpg

"This supports the low impurity profile of our ore allows us the production of lithium carbonate battery quality at competitive costs without additional purification steps" said Jean-Sebastien Lavallee, Chairman and CEO of Critical Elements.

As supported by these tests, and by choosing this technology (i.e. Thermal Leaching Process) Critical Elements has demonstrated their technological leadership, which will result in a superior product at the lowest possible cost.

PILOT PLANT WORK DETAILS

Details on piloting work program achieve over 336 hours at Outotec Pilot plant:

-- Pilot operated in 8 hour shifts 24 h/day, 7 days a week -- Pilot is operated for 14 days = 336 hours -- During 8 hour shift the following tasks are done -- Slurry preparation (Sample from PR) -- Leaching + bicarbonization (Sample after BcR) -- Leach residue filtration and washing (Sample from BC WW, residue to PSD analysis) - Polishing filtration of the filtrate (Sample from T1) -- Crystallization (Sample from S3 filtrate) -- Caustification (Sample from pHR and T2) -- Li2CO3 washing is done once a day -- Sample from S4_Li2CO3 and LC WW -- In total 22 solution samples and 7 solids samples a day approx. 400 samples in total

To date Critical Elements has completed the following testing and piloting work:

-- Piloting of the chosen concentrator plant design (see Critical Elements' press release dated April 5, 2017) -- Piloting of the thermal conversion of the ore from alpha-spodumene to beta-spodumene (See Critical Elements' press release dated April 13, 2017) -- Piloting of the Thermal Leaching Process currently being completed.

This is shown graphically below:

The graph is available at the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/CE_Dev.Status.jpg

Based on the results of the above work and modelling conducted by Outotec, Critical Elements believes that the overall total recovery rate should approach 81% which compares very favorably to industry standards which are typically in the low to mid 60's.

This recovery is based on the following:

-- Concentrator Plant Recovery-92% possible as indicated by Outotec's modelling -- Decrepitation Kiln Recovery-96% verified in pilot plant -- Thermal Leaching Process-94% as an average verified in pilot plant -- Bicarbonization/Lithium Carbonate crystallization- 98% -- Overall yield- potentially as high as 81.4%

Outotec is a leading technology company in multiple mining and extraction industries, including the lithium industry, with sites in Frankfurt, Germany and Pori, Finland, as well as other locations.

They offer competent knowledge of the various processing options for both beneficiating spodumene, as well as converting spodumene into saleable lithium salts. Their lithium expertise includes multiple years of research into various lithium processing options; including the understanding and optimizing the process Critical Elements has chosen for lithium extraction.

Jean-Sebastien Lavallee (OGQ #773), geologist, shareholder and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical content of this release.

About Critical Elements Corporation

A recent financial analysis (Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) on the Rose lithium-tantalum Project, Genivar, December 2011) of the Rose project, 100% owned by Critical Elements, based on price forecasts of US $260/kg ($118/lb) for Ta2O5 contained in a tantalite concentrate and US $6,000/t for lithium carbonate (Li2CO3) showed an estimated after-tax Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 25% for the Rose project, with an estimated Net Present Value (NPV) of CA $279 million at an 8% discount rate. The payback period is estimated at 4.1 years. The pre-tax IRR is estimated at 33% and the NPV at CA $488 million at a discount rate of 8%. (Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability). (The preliminary economic assessment is preliminary in nature). (See press release dated November 21, 2011.) The PEA includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves and there is no certainty that the preliminary economic assessment will be realized.

The conclusions of the PEA indicate that the operation would support a production rate of 26,606 tons of high purity (99.9% battery grade) Li2CO3 and 206,670 pounds of Ta2O5 per year over a 17-year mine life.

The project hosts a current Indicated resource of 26.5 million tonnes of 1.30% Li2O Eq. or 0.98% Li2O and 163 ppm Ta2O5 and an Inferred resource of 10.7 million tonnes of 1.14% Li2O Eq. or 0.86% Li2O and 145 ppm Ta2O5.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Contacts:

Jean-Sebastien Lavallee, P.Geo.

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

819-354-5146

jslavalle@cecorp.ca

www.cecorp.ca



Investor Relations:

Paradox Public Relations

514-341-0408




TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 05/29/17 -- INV Metals ("INV Metals" or "Company") (TSX: INV) is pleased to announce that it has successfully reached agreement with the Ministry of Mining on the terms and form of the Mining Exploitation Contract ("Exploitation Contract") for Loma Larga ("Loma Larga" or "Project"), the Company's 100% owned gold project located in Ecuador. The Company anticipates the Exploitation Contract will be executed after the successful completion of the feasibility study ("FS") and other key milestones.

Ms. Candace MacGibbon, CEO, stated, "We are extremely pleased to announce the Company and the Government of Ecuador have agreed on the form and terms of the Exploitation Contract for the Company's flagship Loma Larga gold project. When executed, the Exploitation Contract will govern certain fiscal and other matters relating to the development and operation of Loma Larga. The Company may now move forward incorporating the fiscal terms of the Exploitation Contract into the FS."

She added, "The agreement on the terms and form of the Exploitation Contract marks a major achievement and milestone for the development of the Project and the Board of Directors and Management wish to thank the Ministry of Mining for its continued support of INV Metals and the mining industry. With the completion of our successful $27.6 million financing in March, the Company is fully financed to complete the FS, undertake ramp development and fund planned exploration at Loma Larga and our regional properties."

The Company commenced formal negotiations with the Ministry of Mines in early March. With the Exploitation Agreement negotiations substantially complete, INV Metals is advancing its plans to develop the underground mine with anticipated annual gold production of approximately 150,000 ounces over a 12 year mine life. Management is in the final process of selecting consultants to prepare the FS to advance the engineering design, support environmental permitting, provide information for community engagement, and determine financing requirements. The FS is expected to commence in early June and it is anticipated to be completed in up to 18 months.

Concurrent with the commencement of the FS, the Company intends to complete the engineering required to design and permit the development of the mine adit, related infrastructure and underground ramp to access the Loma Larga ore body. Depending on permitting requirements and timelines, management plans to commence the underground development in 2018, to engage in an advanced exploration program, confirm geotechnical conditions and provide employment and training opportunities for the local work force.

Exploration is ongoing at Loma Larga and on the Company's Tierras Coloradas and Las Penas greenfield properties. The Company's exploration budget for 2017 is $5 million.

Summary of Key Terms

A summary of the key items of the Exploitation Contract are noted below.

-- INV Minerales Ecuador S.A. INVMINEC ("INV Minerales"), the Company's wholly owned Ecuadorian subsidiary, has the right to develop and operate Loma Larga for a period of 25 years, subject to renewal. -- INV Minerales will pay a royalty of 5% on the net income ("Royalty" or "Royalties") of precious metals and related by-product sales. -- INV Minerales will pay US$15 million of the Royalty in advance ("Advanced Royalty") to primarily support community development and social programs. -- Payments of the Advanced Royalty will be subject to the following schedule and milestones: i. US$5 million on the execution of the Exploitation Contract; ii. US$5 million on the first anniversary of the execution of the Exploitation Contract; and iii.US$5 million on the second anniversary of the execution of the Exploitation Contract. -- The Advanced Royalty is deductible against future Royalties payable in the amount that is the lesser of 50% of the Royalties payable in a six month period or 20% of the total Advanced Royalty calculated annually.

Additional Taxation Matters

INV Minerales is also expected to be subject to the following taxes, which are currently in effect:

-- 22% corporate income tax; -- 12% state profit sharing; -- 3% employee profit sharing; -- Value added taxes ("VAT") which will be refundable on expenditures incurred after January 2018 when, and if, INV Minerales generates export sales; -- An extraordinary revenue tax ("Windfall Tax") payable if the market price exceeds a stipulated base price for gold, silver and copper. The Windfall Tax will be calculated at 70% of the difference between INV Minerales' gross revenue and the theoretical revenue at a base price ("Base Price"). The Base Price will be determined on a monthly basis as the 10-year trailing average of the daily price of gold, silver or copper, adjusted for the US Consumer Price Index, plus one standard deviation. The Windfall Tax will not apply until 4 years after INV Minerales has recovered the undiscounted value of the cumulative investment in Loma Larga since the concession was granted. -- INV Minerales will be subject to a "Sovereign Adjustment" in the event that the cumulative benefit derived from Loma Larga to the Government of Ecuador is not equal to at least 50% of the total benefits from the Project. The benefits to INV Minerales will be calculated annually as the net present value of the cumulative free cash flows of Loma Larga since the concession was granted. The benefits to the Government of Ecuador will be calculated as the net present value of the cumulative sum of corporate income tax, Royalties, Windfall Taxes, state profit sharing taxes, non-recoverable VAT and previous Sovereign Adjustment payments, if any, over the same period.

About INV Metals

INV Metals is an international mineral resource company focused on the acquisition, exploration and development of precious metal projects in Ecuador. Currently, INV Metals' primary assets are: (1) its 100% interest in the Loma Larga gold property in Ecuador, (2) its 100% interest in the Las Penas, Tierras Coloradas, and La Rebuscada exploration projects in Ecuador, and (3) its 35% interest in the Kaoko property, located in Namibia.

Forward-Looking Statement

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include statements that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "estimates", "may", "could", "would", "will", or "plan". Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties.

Although these statements are based on information currently available to the Company, the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management's expectations. Forward looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, the execution of the Exploitation Contract, the terms of the Exploitation Contract, expectations regarding future tax rates, the successful completion of the FS, the timing of the FS, future financing needs, the development, production and mine life of an underground mine, the timing and completion of a mine adit and ramp development and the Company's objectives, goals and future plans. Risks, uncertainties and other factors involved with forward-looking information could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include, among others, risks related to the execution of the Exploitation Contract, changes in tax rates, the terms of the Exploitation Contract, the successful completion of the FS, the timing of the FS, future financing needs, the development, production and mine life of an underground mine, the timing and completion of a mine adit and ramp development and industry-wide risks and project-specific risks, and risks associated with mining and mineral exploration activities. There is no guarantee that the Exploitation Contract will be signed. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors, refer to the Company's annual information form dated March 27, 2017 and filed with Canadian securities regulators available on the Company's issuer profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this press release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this press release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. Except as required by law, the Company does not assume any obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking statements contained in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Contacts:

Candace MacGibbon

Chief Executive Officer

Phone: (416) 703-8416

E-mail: cmacgibbon@invmetals.com




the New York Court of Appeals erred badly, by allowing highly abusive blight condemnations and defining pretextual takings so narrowly as to essentially read the concept out of existence.

evidence that the blight studies were predetermined

evidence that the firm conducting the blight studies, AKRF, had a conflict of interest, given that it had been concurrently and consecutively paid by Columbia and Forest City, respectively

evidence that the parties seeking the land had contributed to the blight

The upshot of the courts rulings is that developers and other politic ally influential interest groups are free to lobby for blight designations obtained on the basis of studies conducted by firms facing an obvious conflict of interest and acting under biased instructions. Further, the results of such studies are to be assessed under a nearly limitless definition of blight that includes any area which might be underdeveloped or stagnant.

Article XVIII, section 1 permits condemnations that eliminate substandard and insanitary conditions. From its inception, however, this provision was used to eliminate under-populated but not especially blighted neighborhoods for the purpose of allowing private firms to improve these neighborhoods for private purposes.

The case for the condemnation was not that the housing in the Gas House District was unequivocally worse than average New York City housing, but rather that the housing could be improved.

That Bruce Ratner was involved from the outset in the development of Atlantic Yards might suggest corruption, but it might also suggest that the relevant politicians were not such fools as to think that they could embark on a major land assembly without firm commitment from a developer with a track record of success in managing commercial development in Brooklyn. (Ratner demonstrated such success by his developing Metrotech Center, a few blocks west of Atlantic Yards). By contrast, the New London site now sits barren and empty as a result of the New London Development Authoritys failure to secure a specific development commitment from a reliable developer up front.

The factors are simply too mushy and policy-laden. Even a judge making a good-faith effort to deploy these factors might balk at distinguishing between a municipalitys careful selection of a reliable developer in advance of a project (the hallmark of good planning) and the municipalitys being unduly influenced by that same developer (the hallmark of corruption).

Give condemnees their attorneys and expert witness fees whenever the compensation award after trial is higher than the initial good-faith offer made by the condemnor in advance of condemnation... the fee approach uses a crisp, bright line rule without mushy definitions of blight, private influence, or public benefit.

[s]lum clearance is the redemption of areas where the physical condition of the housing and the neighborhood is so squalid, so demoralized, so lacking in light, ventilation, fire protection and sanitation, so overcrowded with buildings and people that the existence of such areas endangers the health, safety and morals of those living there and impairs the welfare of the entire community wherein such areas exist.

a definition of blight that covers only areas that lack basic amenities is still a far cry from Goldsteins holding that Article XVIII allows the condemnation of any neighborhood where there is room for reasonable differences of opinion over whether it is underdeveloped.

Before leaving the issue of blight, it is important to emphasize that the Court of Appeals errors went well beyond simply adopting an extremely expansive definition of the term. It also upheld blight determinations that were based on studies conducted by a firm that was on the payroll of the very same private interest groups who would take over the property should the use of eminent domain be authorized. In addition, the firm was issued highly biased instructions that made clear that the authorities wanted it to reach a predetermined conclusion. Moreover, the evidence suggests that Ratner and Columbia themselves may have created much of the blight that was then used to justify the condemnation of property for transfer to them.

Somin's response: pretext





So far, however, the vast majority of state and federal courts that have addressed the issue have adopted at least one of these four standards.... The New York Court of Appeals and the Second Circuit are unusual outliers in rejecting all four.

Somin, a libertarian, noted that he'd rather rely not on judges evaluating pretext but on enforcing a narrow definition of "public use." So pretext remains a second-best option.





And Somin suggested that all the standards need not be applied in each case, thus obviating the potential contradictions of requiring extensive planning but not knowing the identity of the new private owner.





I don't think it's necessarily a contradiction, as long as developers are expected to compete for an RFP, and Somin agrees:

If a project is genuinely well-planned and likely to turn a profit, local government should be able to attract a variety of private investors willing to take it on simply by holding an auction selling the relevant development rights to the highest bidder. That approach both reduces the danger of political favoritism and increases the potential return to taxpayers... If there is serious doubt about whether the plan is good enough to attract bidders, then perhaps it is also not good enough to justify forcing private property owners to give up their land.

Somin's response: the holdout problem





And if there are "sincere dissenters" rather than strategic holdouts, "letting them stay not only shows respect for property rights, but also maximizes economic efficiency by leaving the property in the hands of those who value it the most," Somin wrote.









In such cases, and if there are truly public purposes, the holdout problem might be solved by economist Claude Gruen's I'm not so sure about that. Atlantic Yards represented a huge override of zoning, allowing for much more development at a site that, at least in part, was quite capable of absorbing that development. The question was how that would proceed, and whether a private developer would be in the driver's seat.In such cases, and if there are truly public purposes, the holdout problem might be solved by economist Claude Gruen's suggestion of automatic condemnation (after acquisition of 80% of the land) and supercompensation.

The Fordham Urban Law Journal hosted a debate between NYU Professor Roderick Hills and Ilya Somin on the eminent domain decisions by the New York Court of Appeals in the cases of Atlantic Yards (aka) and Columbia University (aka).Somin's 2011 article Let there Be Blight , which I covered here and here , argued that these takings violated both the New York state and federal constitutions, especially, he said , because of the contrast between the courts broad definition of blight and the state constitutional provision limiting blight condemnations to substandard and unsanitary areas. Hills responded with a critique and Somin posted a reply I quoted Somin's argument:The "extraordinarily broad definition of blight, he allowed, is not out of line with that of other states that define blight expansively though "at odds with the text of the New York Constitution, which allows blight condemnations only in 'substandard and insanitary areas.'"He also pointed to three areas in which the court failed to consider evidence and thus "broke dubious new ground":Somin also criticized the failure "to consider any evidence of improper motive," the unwillingness to consider the pretextual nature of "a planning process completely dominated by a private beneficiary," and the failure to address the fact that a private company, Forest City Ratner, was the clear beneficiary of eminent domain.He wrote thatand"probably rank among the most dubious blight condemnation decisions in American history" and said:In "Rethinking Balancing Tests in Blight Condemnation Jurisprudence, Hills criticized Somin for an unpersuasive (New York) constitutional critique, and unwise policy proposals. Regarding the constitutional critique, he wrote:For example, he cited the decision that led to the creation of Stuyvesant Town in Manhattan:While Hills acknowledged "governmental tendencies to over-use eminent domain" during the urban renewal era, he suggested the "alternatives to judicial deference are not ideal"--notably the problem of a holdout seeking ever more compensation.(I'd add that, in the case of Atlantic Yards, the holdouts in most cases were not seeking more compensation but making a political protest. Had the government owned/operated the arena, or had a different project, the holdout problem would have been different.)Beyond that, Hills suggested that the Somin-supported "mushy balancing tests"--regarding too much private influence or or too little public benefit from eminent domain--would mostly let judges "do whatever they like," and they mostly "defer to politicians."That's not untrue, given that the Atlantic Yards eminent domain cases were all deferential.That said, once the arena was a done deal, state Supreme Court Justice Marcy Friedman did harshly criticize Empire State Development, the state authority overseeing/shepherding Atlantic Yards, ordered a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, and hinted she might have ruled differently had she been fully informed.If judges "should be especially suspicious of condemnations where the identity of the private developer is known in advance," Hill observed, that suggests "judges should encourage cities to raze whole city blocks before cities have a firm commitment from a specific developer."He called that "madness from the perspective of sensible planning." Perhaps. New York City's efforts to assemble land for private developers in Willets Point hasn't worked so well. But in the case of the Atlantic Yards project, when there was underutilized public property--the Vanderbilt Yard--and existing private property, seems more murky.Hills wrote, regarding Atlantic Yards:That's a little simplistic. Ratner built MetroTech beginning in the 1980s, when ithard to get private developers interested in Brooklyn. By 2003, the economy had changed drastically. But the Metropolitan Transportation Authority never tried to market the newly valuable Vanderbilt Yard for development. And Atlantic Yards was never primarily a commercial development.Hills suggested:But selecting a reliable developer in advance of a project is not necessarily the same as having a developer make a proposal and then running with it.Hills offered "a modest suggestion" to increase fairness:But that ignores the vast difference between a compensation award--fair market value--and the value of the new development rights. It would make more sense to practice "land readjustment," giving current owners some fractional share in the future development.In response, Somin argued that Hills gets it wrong, that at the 1938 Constitutional Convention, where the "substandard and insanitary" definition was adopted, a leading proponent stated that:As to whether the word slum was broad enough to include any area that lacked basic amenities such as central heating and indoor plumbing, Somin allowed that "Hills is perhaps on firmer ground." Still, he argues:He reminded readers:Somin suggested that most Hills may be right that very many won't try to analyze any of the four factors regarding pretext, as suggested in the U.S. Supreme Court'sopinion: the magnitude of the public benefit; the extensiveness of the planning process; whether the private beneficiary was known; and the intentions of the condemning authorities:He suggested the holdout problem can be addressed by imperfect market mechanisms, which he calls "a lesser evil than giving local and state officials nearly unconstrained power to condemn property and transfer it to private parties."Also, he wrote that it's often possible to build around holdouts. (Not the case with the Atlantic Yards arena, though.)
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 29, 2017) - True Leaf Medicine International Ltd. (CSE: MJ) (FSE: TLA) (the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has closed the first tranche of its recently-announced non-brokered private placement by issuing an aggregate of 3,099,829 units (each, a "Unit") at a price of C$0.30 per Unit for aggregate gross proceeds of C$929,950 (the "Private Placement"). Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company (each, a "Common Share") and one warrant exercisable into one Common Share at an exercise price of $0.45 for a period of 24 months. One insider of the Company subscribed for 666,666 Units, representing C$200,000 of the gross proceeds.

In connection with the Private Placement, the Company paid an aggregate of $12,474 in cash commissions to two finders, equal to 7% of the gross proceeds received from investors introduced to the Company by those finders.

The Company intends to use the proceeds of the Private Placement as disclosed in its news release dated May 3, 2017, and in particular, to develop the business of its True Leaf Medicine, True Leaf Pet and True Leaf Pet Europe subsidiaries.

All securities issued pursuant to the Private Placement are subject to a statutory hold period of four month and one day.

In addition, the Company is pleased to announce that it has granted options to purchase an aggregate of 3,900,000 Common Shares to certain of its directors, officers, employees and consultants at an exercise price of $0.395 per share for a maximum term of two years. Of this group, five insiders of the Company received a total of 1,400,000 options. All of the options vest immediately.

As a result of this grant, the Company now has a total of 6,064,285 options outstanding, representing approximately 9.4% of its issued and outstanding Common Shares.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy securities in the United States. The securities referenced herein have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold in the United States except in compliance with one or more exemptions from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws.

About True Leaf:

True Leaf Medicine International Ltd., through its wholly-owned subsidiary 'True Leaf Pet', has entered the $104.9 billion global pet care industry with a line of hemp-focused pet chews and supplements marketed through natural pet health and veterinary channels in Canada, the United States and Europe. The Company has also filed an application under Health Canada's Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (ACMPR) to become a Canadian licensed producer through its 'True Leaf Medicine' subsidiary. It has passed through the security screening process of Health Canada's review and is currently in the final review stage before the 'pre-licensing inspection' approval.

For more information, please see the Company's website at www.trueleaf.com

Investor Contact:

Kevin Bottomley

Director and Corporate Relations

kevin@trueleaf.com

M: 778-389-9933

Media Contact:

Paul Sullivan

BreakThrough Communications

p.sullivan@breakthroughpr.com

O: 604-685-4742

M: 604-603-7358

NEITHER THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER HAVE REVIEWED OR ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS PRESS RELEASE.

Forward-Looking Information:

This press release contains forward-looking statements. The use of any of the words "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "should", "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this press release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks discussed in the Company's continuous disclosure filings available under the Company's profile on www.sedar.com. While the Company may elect to, it does not undertake to update this information at any particular time.

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 05/29/17 -- K92 Mining Inc. ("K92") (TSX VENTURE: KNT)(OTCQB: KNTNF) is pleased to announce the results of its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders ("AGM") held Wednesday, May 24, 2017 in Vancouver, Canada.

Shareholders voted in favour of all items put forward by the Board of Directors and management.

All seven of the individuals nominated for the board of directors were elected, and shareholders also voted in favour of (i) appointing PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as auditors of the Company for the ensuing year and authorizing directors to fix auditor remuneration; and (ii) approving and ratifying the Stock Option Plan.

The Board of Directors consists of;

R. Stuart (Tookie) Angus, Chairman Ian Stalker, Chief Executive Officer and Director Bryan Slusarchuk, President and Director John Lewins, Chief Operating Officer and Director Mark Eaton, Director Saurabh Handa, Director Graham Wheelock, Director

On behalf of Management

Ian Stalker, Chief Executive Officer and Director

The TSXV has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION: This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All statements that address future plans, activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur are forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements and information contained herein are based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the market price of the Company's securities, metal prices, exchange rates, taxation, the estimation, timing and amount of future exploration and development, capital and operating costs, the availability of financing, the receipt of regulatory approvals, environmental risks, title disputes, failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated, accidents, labour disputes, claims and limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining industry, changes in national and local government regulation of mining operations, and regulations and other matters.. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Contacts:

K92 Mining Inc.

Ian Stalker

Chief Executive Officer and Director

(604) 687-7130

(604) 608-9110 (FAX)




Sharecare, an Atlanta, GA-based digital health company, received an investment from global alternative investment firm Summit Partners.

The amount of the deal was not disclosed.

The company intends to use the debt capital to fund new capabilities and acquire talent.

Founded in 2010 by Jeff Arnold and Dr. Mehmet Oz, and led by Justin Ferrero, president, Sharecare provides an AI-powered platform that leverages smartphones to give people (employees, health plan members, patients, self-motivated individuals or caregivers) access to the care they need, when they need it. The platform simultaneously focuses on an individuals holistic health needs to drive daily engagement, while aggregating a critical mass of behavioral data. Artificial intelligence is applied to that data in real-time to accurately personalize recommendations, and predict and influence positive outcomes for each individual, which enables anyone to simplify, engage with and manage their health, in a single place.

Backers include hospitals, health care investment firms and health plans, in particular, HCA (NYSE:HCA), Trinity Health, the Heritage Healthcare Innovation Fund and Hawaii Medical Service Association (HMSA); Discovery Communications, Harpo Productions, Sony Pictures Television; Claritas Capital; Wellington Management; Wells Fargo; and Swiss Re.

FinSMEs

29/05/2017
VRC Technologies, a Houston, Texas-based chemical formulations, manufacturing and distribution company, received a growth equity investment.

The deal was led by Cimbria Capital.

Co-founded by Robert Green who has designed new formulations of individual components and complex mixtures of proprietary chemical projects for the agribusiness, industrial, petrochemical, and pharmaceutical industries and his father, a former senior scientist for over 30 years at Witco Corporation, and led by new CEO Martin D. Beirne, III, VRC operates manufacturing and rail distribution facilities in Brownwood, Texas.

With deep formulary expertise in the agrochemicals and oilfield chemicals sectors, the company has supported some of Americas leading chemical companies in innovating to seek reliable surfactant and adjuvant packages.

Cimbria Capital is a private equity firm based in Texas conducting early stage buyout and growth capital investments in the water technology and agribusiness sectors in North America and Europe.

FinSMEs

29/05/2017
New Delhi: Finding a strategic partner for Air India, someone who will invest and manage the debt-laden airline, is easier said than done. In fact, different arms of the government seem to be pulling in different directions on the best way forward for this white elephant. Niti Ayog has been preparing a roadmap for disinvesting the airline for months now; the civil aviation ministry wants a roadmap from Air India top brass itself; the airline has been talking to banks for a massive haircut to reduce debt. And while all these disparate actions are being taken, the government continues to pump equity into the airline.

Now, when it seems the government is also keen to explore the strategic partner route to disinvest Air India, there could be more confusion. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in a television interview over the weekend that So history has given us a second chance that (should) a good investor come, which has credibility, civil aviation ministry will consider it (disinvestment).

First, as we said earlier, finding a strategic partner is not the only option in the table. Civil Aviation Minister A Gajapathi Raju said earlier this month that the airline itself has been asked to suggest a roadmap for its future and ways to manage its insurmountable debt. Raju did not rule out disinvestment but has persistently said that this is only one of the options before the government. Remember, the government has been consistently saying in Parliament that it has no plans to disinvest Air India. So what Jaitley said on Saturday could merely be a trial balloon to judge if any interested parties at all come forward with any credible proposal for Air India.

Second, unless the government offers substantial sops, very few investors may come forward to manage an airline whose debt is in excess of Rs 50,000 crore, and which continues to turn in losses despite a large amount of financial support from the government. Though the government feels that the large aircraft fleet and other assets like lucrative slots at congested global airports are positives in Air Indias valuation process, it must also decide if the debt burden can be reduced  either through hair cuts by lenders or through a write off  before the airline becomes attractive for any prospective investor.

The Economic Times report quotes unnamed Air India officials to hint that the Tatas would be the best bet in case the strategic investor route is taken. Obviously, there has been no comment from the Tatas as they already operate two separate airlines in the crowded Indian aviation market.

Sources close to developments say that Air India is already in advanced negotiations for a debt-for-equity deal with some public sector banks which also involves a hair cut. This deal involves 19 PSU banks, which are being asked to convert about Rs 20,000 crore of loan to the airline into equity. AIs total annual interest outgo of Rs 4,000 crore could then be reduced by a fourth, in case the banks agree under the Sustainable Structuring of Stressed Assets (S4A) scheme.

While this proposal sounds good, no one seems willing to answer the simple question: Should the government be forcing PSU banks  who are already over burdened with NPAs  to take on more through this S4A scheme? Why should the banks suffer for historical mismanagement of Air India? Such a scheme could see banks owning as much as 40 percent equity in an airline which has just around 15 percent share of the domestic market in a business being dominated by ever expanding private players.

Anyway, two senior economists have advocated the best way to turn the failing national airline into a great global airline: Cut it loose from the clutches of the government, Mint report said.

They have pointed out other successful examples of governments getting out of the airline business such as UK privatising British Airways. (This was widely seen as being among the most challenging of the Margaret Thatcher-era privatisations in the UK. The airline rose, in a few short years, to become the worlds favourite airline. Indeed, the experience of other countries in successfully privatising their national carriers, from Kenya (Kenya Airways) to Canada (Air Canada) to Singapore (Singapore Airlines) should prove instructive in designing our own approach.

The first attempt at privatising Air India was a botched one, when dirty politicking stalled the entire process. Singapore Airlines had teamed up with the Tatas to buy 40 percent stake in Air India in 2001 but the sale never happened.

Will the airline be second time lucky? It is well known that some of the top officials manning the airline today are vehemently opposed to any disinvestment by the government. Also, as we said earlier, the debt question hangs heavy  it will not just take strong political will but also savvy financial manoeuvring for the government to disinvest Air India.
New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has favoured disinvestment of the loss-making Air India, saying the airlines market share is just around 14 percent whereas the debt burden is Rs 50,000 crore. This is the clearest indication yet from the current NDA regime on possible stake sale in Air India, which is staying afloat on taxpayers money. Air India's market share today is around 14 percent while the debt is Rs 50,000 crore while the government has not put in money in private carriers, Jaitley said at Dialogue@DDNews programme.

To run Air India, around Rs 50,000 crore have been put in and that money could have been used for promoting education, the minister added. "In this country, if 87 or 86 percent flying can be handled by the private sector... then they can also do 100 percent," Jaitley said.

According to him, of the total debt, around Rs 20,000-25,000 crore are related to aircraft valuation. "What to do with the remaining amount... Air India also has some assets," he said even as he emphasised that the civil aviation ministry is making all efforts to explore all the possibilities.

Jaitley further said that when he was civil aviation minister for a brief period during 1999-2000, he pitched for disinvestment of Air India arguing that if it was not done, "nothing will be left to disinvest. That was around 18 years ago".

Air India, which is surviving on a Rs 30,000-crore bailout package spread over 10 years announced by the Manmohan Singh government in 2012, is working on ways to improve its financial position.

In 2015-16, the airline posted operational profit of Rs 105 crore on account of low fuel prices and increased passenger numbers. Last fiscal, the airline is estimated to have earned a total revenue of Rs 21,000 crore while passenger revenue stood at Rs 16,500 crore.

While rumours of the government selling stake in the national carrier have been doing the rounds, there has been no official word on the same. The civil aviation ministry has been maintaining that it wants the airline to survive. In the past also, there have been at least two significant attempts for disinvestment of Air India, but those efforts did not materialise.

Last week, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said Air Indias books are "bad", and "business as usual" is not going to help it, but the government wants the airline to survive.

He had also said the airline was grappling with "legacy" issues.
Defence Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday batted for making India a defence manufacturing hub, saying it is essential to deal with various security challenges like insurgency effectively.

No country can secure itself by depending on others for its defence supplies, the minister said amid steps by the government to bring in private players in the sector.

"We cannot change our neighbours. And our neighbourhood has thrown up security challenges. We are facing insurgency and war for the last 70 years. Therefore, India needs to become an important defence manufacturing hub," he said at the 9th convocation of the Defence Institute of Advance Technology (DIAT).

"If the economy requires us to become a manufacturing hub, then security requires us to become a hub for defence manufacturing. This is the area where the country will have to use the vast resources it possesses.

"We will have to use the large number of academic institutions we have for training minds and cover up the critical gap that still exists," Jaitley said.

The country has institutions like IITs, DRDO labs and a large number of private institutes which can help it achieve the goal, the minister said.

In a veiled attack on the previous UPA government, he said the "conservative policies" of the past have hindered progress in the field of defence manufacturing.

"But the new India is a more confident India, it is not the defensive India. It is India, which is willing to globally integrate, share knowledge, get knowledge from outside," he said.

The government has broken away from the restrictive past to achieve the goal of self-reliance in defence, he said.

A total of 134 graduating students of the DIAT, an autonomous organisation under the DRDO, were awarded degrees on the occasion.
London: More than a third of British Airways (BA) flights from London's Heathrow Airport have been cancelled, leaving thousands of passengers stranded for the second day today following a major global computer failure for which a workers' union blamed outsourcing to India.

Sunday departures from Gatwick, London's other major airport, are delayed, but none have been cancelled. The airline urged people to check the status of flights before travelling to the airport.

British Airways had earlier said it plans to resume most of its flights out of Heathrow and Gatwick airports on Sunday following major IT system disruption that had grounded planes yesterday.

"We are aiming to operate a near-normal schedule at Gatwick and the majority of services from Heathrow on Sunday, the airline said.

A BA spokesperson added: "We are continuing to work hard to restore all of our IT systems. We are extremely sorry for the huge disruption caused to customers throughout Saturday and understand how frustrating their experiences will have been.

"We are refunding or re-booking customers who suffered cancellations on to new services as quickly as possible and have also introduced more flexible rebooking policies for anyone due to travel on Sunday and Monday who no longer wishes to fly to/from Heathrow or Gatwick."

Thousands of passengers had their travel plans disrupted as a result of the problem, with one workers union blaming the outsourcing of IT jobs to India for the chaos, a claim denied by the airline.

"We would never compromise the integrity and security of our IT systems," BA said in reference to GMB union's claim.

BA chief executive Alex Cruz had said it was believed "the root cause [of the computer problems] was a power supply issue".

The company said there was no evidence the failure was the result of a cyber attack.

The airline is expected to have to pay out huge sums in compensation, including the cost of hotels, transport and meal expenses for stranded passengers.

The GMB union said the "meltdown" could have been avoided if BA hadn't made hundreds of IT staff redundant and outsourced their jobs to India at the end of last year.

"This could have all been avoided. In 2016 BA made hundreds of dedicated and loyal IT staff redundant and outsourced the work to India," said Mick Rix, national officer for aviation at GMB.

"BA have made substantial profits for a number of years, and many viewed the company's actions as just plain greedy," he said.

The move in 2016 had sparked protests and outrage from members of the union.

The IT failure had affected check-in and operational systems, including customer service phone lines.

Thousands of bags remain at Heathrow Airport, but BA has advised passengers not to return to collect them as they will instead be couriered to customers.

BA said although some of its IT systems have returned, "there will be some knock-on disruption to our schedules as aircraft and crews are out of position around the world .

Delays were also reported in Rome, Prague, Milan, Stockholm and Malaga due to the system failure, which coincided with a bank holiday weekend and the start of the half-term school holidays for many people in the UK.
Bengaluru: The All India IT Employees Association (AITEA) is planning to organise a united front of IT employees associations to hold talks with Karnataka government to resolve various problems, including layoffs soon.

"We are planning to organise a united front of IT employees associations to hold talks with Karnataka government to resolve the problems including layoffs soon," AIITEA president Syed Muqueemuddin said.

The decision to bring all associations under one roof was taken by AIITEA in a meeting, he said.

"I have begun contacting members of other associations like FITE (Forum For IT Employees)," he added.

The FITE is a forum of IT employees and has presence in nine IT hubs, including Chennai, Pune and Bengaluru.

FITE is in the process of approaching the labour commission in Bengaluru to submit a petition to stop the alleged "illegal terminations" happening at Cognizant.

The body had already approached labour commissions in Chennai and Hyderabad, alleging that the US-based firm is illegally terminating thousands of employees by forcing them to resign.

After bringing all the fora under one roof, the chiefs of several associations will decide on holding deliberations with Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge and Labour Minister Santosh Lad, on problems faced by IT industry and employees, including layoffs, Muqueemuddin said.

During the talks with IT and Labour Ministers, the united front will urge the government to hold an open house discussion by inviting all the stakeholders including IT captains and employees.

"The open house meeting with all the stakeholders will give opportunities to air their grievances, which will give the government a sense about the problems faced by IT companies and employees," he said.

Replying to a query, Muqueemuddin said he would like the meetings to begin by next week.

Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge had earlier asked the affected IT employees to lodge a complaint with the labour department.

In an interview with PTI recently, Kharge had said the government would look into the matter and provide legal assistance if the affected or laid off employees approached it like their counterparts had in Tamil Nadu.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has embarked on a four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France with the aim of boosting India's economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investments.

The prime minister's tour comes after he celebrated his three years in office with much fanfare last week. Despite the incidence of rising violence against minorities in the last few months, Modi has been able to ride high on a favourable political wave due to lack of a credible and strong opposition. The trend has been evident in the recent elections, where Modi's BJP party has been able to cash in on the failure of the opposition.

This indeed has given the prime minister more confidence and is likely to reflect in his current tour abroad. After all, foreign tours are all about showcasing the country's best prospects to prospective investors.

In the context of the prime minister's four nation tour, here is a look at India's trade relations with all the four countries he will be visiting.

With Germany, India has had robust trade relations. However, over the last six years, the total trade between the two nations has been on a decline. From a high $23.5 billion in 2011-12, the total trade has come down to $18.73 billion in 2016-17. India has a trade deficit with Germany. As trade is on a decline, the deficit too has declined from $7.6 billion to $4.2 billion over the last six years.

According to the India government, textiles, metal and metal products, electro-technology, leather and leather goods, food and beverages, machinery, pharmaceuticals, auto components, chemicals, gems and jewellery, and rubber products are the main exports to the country. The key items imported from there are machinery, electro-technology, metal and metal products, chemicals, auto components, measurement and control equipment, plastics, medical technology, pharmaceuticals, paper and printing materials.

With Russia too, India has a trade deficit. From 2011-12 until 2015-16, total trade between the countries had been on a decline. In 2016-17, there had been an increase to $7.5 billion. However, this is much lower than the $30 billion target set by the countries in December 2014. Major items of export from India to Russia are pharmaceuticals, tea, coffee and tobacco, nuclear reactors and boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances, organic chemicals, electrical machinery and equipment. Meanwhile, the key import items are pearls, precious and semi-precious stones, metals, nuclear power equipment, electrical machinery and equipment, mineral oil and products, iron and steels, optical, precision and surgical equipment.

With Spain, India has a trade surplus. The country is India's seventh largest trading partner in the European Union. The key export items to Spain from India are organic chemicals, textiles and garments, iron and steel products, automotive components, marine products and leather goods. Meanwhile, the imports are machines and mechanical appliances, vehicles and automobiles, plastic manufactures, electrical appliances, rubber and rubber products, olives/olive oil.

With France too, India has a trade surplus. The total trade between the countries has remained more or less steady. India's key export items to France are textile and textile articles; mineral fuels and oils; machinery and mechanical appliances, and electrical equipment; chemical and allied products; animal, vegetable and food products, vehicles and aircraft, footwear, metals and articles thereof, leather articles, gems and jewellery. India's imports from the country include machinery and mechanical appliances, electrical equipment, vehicles and aircraft; chemical and allied products, optical, photographic, cinematographic, measuring, checking, precision, medical or surgical instruments and apparatus; metals and related articles, plastics, rubber and related articles, and animal, vegetable and food products.

As of 2016-17, India's exports to these four countries accounted for 6.5 percent of the country's total exports - $18 billion. Meanwhile, the total imports from these countries at $23.62 billion accounted for 6.2 percent of total imports to India. The total trade ($41.62 billion) was 6.3 percent of India's total global trade and trade deficit stood at 5.3 percent.

Now comes the most important data: FDI flow. As per the data with Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion data, Germany is the seventh biggest FDI source for India. From April 2000 to March 2017, various German companies have invested about $9.7 billion in India, which is about 3 percent of total FDI flows the country has witnessed. France, with $5.72 billion, stands at 9th position; Spain ($2.42 billion) at 12th; and Russia ($1.2 billion) at 21st spot.
Egyptian businessman Ahmed Adel Abdallah Ahmed has filed a $42.5 million lawsuit against Sheikh Hamad Isa Ali Al Khalifa, a distant cousin of the current king of Bahrain for breach of contract. The two parties had entered into an agreement that Ahmed would arrange for Sheikh Hamad to meet with popular Hindi film stars in exchange for a fee.

Bar & Bench reports that Ahmed entered into an oral agreement with Hamad which required the former to make arrangements for the latter to meet 26 Hindi film stars. However, after meeting four stars  Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Ranveer Singh and Aditya Roy Kapur  in Mumbai and Dubai, Hamad reneged.

The same report states that Hamad only paid $3-3.4 million and refused to pay the amount decided mutually for meeting the rest of the 22 stars. In fact, he even backed out at the eleventh hour when all arrangements for meeting two more stars had been made.

Also, the same report states that Ahmed claimed that Hamad entered into an agreement with a third party for arranging meetings with 13 film stars, thus breaching the exclusivity of the agreement with Ahmed. Consequently, Ahmed sued him in a British court.

The first hearing decided the jurisdiction of the case as Hamad insisted that the proceedings should be carried out in a Bahrain court. However, since there was a contention regarding a possible skewed judgment in favour of Hamad, since he is a member of the royal family, and for multiple other legalities pertaining to jurisdiction, the British court ruled that the case can be carried out in British courts.

The Times of India reports that Ahmed is an international businessman who offers professional broking services to wealthy and/or notable personalities through his Dubai-based company. The same report states that Hamad's uncle, who has keen interest in Hindi cinema, introduced him to Ahmed in 2015.

Speaking about the judgment to initiate trail proceedings, Pavani Reddy, Managing Partner at Zaiwalla & Co. (the law firm that represented Ahmed in the case), said The judgment reinforces the principle that in determining which forum is the most appropriate forum, the court will consider connecting factors, by reference to identity of parties, their location and whereabouts of documents and witnesses and where the issues will most suitably be tried in the interest of both parties and the ends of justice.
The Bastar south sub-zonal bureau of the the Communist Party of India (Maoist) has published leaflets threatening actor Akshay Kumar and sportsperson Sania Nehwal for extending financial support to the kin of slain jawans of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) who died during encounters with Maoist forces.

In the leaflets, the Naxalites have also appealed to influential celebrities like Kumar and Nehwal to voice their concerns against the CRPF forces for allegedly committing excesses against tribal women and children. These leaflets have been published in both Hindi and the regional Gondi languages. They were circulated as part of the week long celebration to mark the 50th anniversary of the naxalite movement, as reported by Deccan Chronicle.

The Indian Express translated an excerpt of the pamphlet as saying, "We condemn the financial assistance given to the families of CRPF jawans killed in PLGA attacks. We appeal to famous figures, film actors, sportspersons and celebrities to stand with the revolution and poor people. Stand against police atrocities and human rights violations.

India.com quoted DM Awasthi, Special Director General (anti-Maoist operations), Chattisgarh, as saying, "Everyone appreciates what the two celebrities did for the martyrs and it is a nationalist approach. The remarks of Maoists only exposes their mentality."

Kumar had donated Rs 9 lakh each to families of 12 CRPF jawans who were killed in an encounter with Naxalites in Sukhma on 16 March earlier this year. Kumar also launched the Bharat Ke Veer app which facilitates direct digital transfer of money from donors to the families of slain soldiers of paramilitary forces.
Anand Surapur's The Fakir of Venice, which was initially supposed to be filmmaker-turned-actor Farhan Akhtar's onscreen debut, may see the light of the day years after its production.

The makers have released its final trailer which hints at the possibility of an approaching release date. The trailer shows Akhtar as a free-spirited man who loves taking up unique challenges. Thus, he soon owns up the responsibility of looking for a fakir, as demanded by an Italian art gallery which wants to make an installation on the intriguing Indian figure.

Akhtar's character travels across the length and breadth of India in search of that enigmatic fakir until he eventually finds Annu Kapoor's character. Annu looks rather slim and young owing to the fact that the film was shot in the last decade. However, he fits the bill as a drunkard and borderline insane fakir and looks extremely impressive in the rushes of the trailer.

The setting then changes to Venice where all hell breaks loose between the two characters. While the cause of drama is not disclosed, the inflexion point seems to change the mood of the film from a slice of life entertainer to a dark and gritty thriller.

The film has been written by filmmaker Homi Adajania and is based on a life experience he had over a decade ago. The music has been composed by AR Rahman, which is why despite all these years that have gone by, the music still sounds as fresh as a young Farhan Akhtar who injects every frame of the trailer with signature levity.
Thugs of Hindostan, Aamir Khan's upcoming project, is set to release in Diwali 2018, and the shoot of the film will finally begin shooting on 5 June, reports Koimoi.com. Meanwhile, the logo of the film has been released, and it has a gritty look to it.

And here's the logo of #ThugsOfHindostan... Stars Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Katrina Kaif, Fatima Sana Shaikh... Diwali 2018 release. pic.twitter.com/t6FDRH9dMe  taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) May 29, 2017

The film will reportedly be shot in Malta, Southern Europe, where two large ships, built in the 18th century-style have been mounted for the shooting of the film. In an official statement to Bollywoodlife.com, the Thugs of Hindostan team said, "This ambitious film, that brings together Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan for the first time, will begin to shoot aboard two specially constructed, massive ships, that are currently docked by the Maltese seaside. Thugs of Hindostan will begin filming on these ships that have been built for over two months."

Recently, Aamir Khan clarified that the film is not inspired by the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. "The film is not inspired from any other film. It is an action adventure film but the story is not similar. There are some hundreds of action adventure films. There is Pirates of the Caribbean, there is Indiana Jones and many others. All these are action adventure films. So the genre of our film is action adventure but the story is different. Even my character in the film is not similar to any other character," he said to IANS.

Thugs of Hindostan marks the second collaboration between Fatima Sana Shaikh and Aamir Khan; she made her debut in his last film Dangal, where audiences saw them as father and daughter. The duo are training in sword fighting, and it was reported that the film's release was delayed because Khan asked for more time to hone his skills.

This film will see Katrina Kaif in the role of a dancer. It is directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya, with whom Kaif and Khan previously worked on Dhoom 3.
The revelries and focused cinema experience at the 70th Cannes Film Festival came to an end amidst the watchful eyes of the French army parading the Croisette. 120 Beats Per Minute won the Grand Prix amongst all the entries from various countries.

The announcement by the jury got a standing ovation as the hall resonated with applause. Director Robin Campillo seemed spellbound at winning the prize.

The ceremony was a multilingual spectacle, and Monica Bellucci invited the jury to announce and give away the awards.

Nicole Kidman could not be there in person to receive her special award, Will Smith collected it on her behalf  doing an impersonation of her that delighted the audience. Kidman later came on a live chat to personally address the audience.

For the Palme d'Or, Juliet Binoche declared: "Love is light, and movies are made of light." The Square won the Palme d'Or hands down  much to the relief of the press that had been betting on the film ever since they saw it.

The press conference with the jury was a treat to witness as the good cheer of Will Smith and his childlike antics kept the mediapersons entertained. Will Smith said of the judging process: "It was smooth and easy. I was asking Pedro [Almodovar] to stop offering me sexual favours for my vote, otherwise all was well... That was a joke!"

The jury did have 'passionate discussions' before coming to unanimous decisions.

The women on the jury  Maren Ade, German film director; Fan Bingbing, Chinese actress; Jessica Chastain, American actress and producer; Agnes Jaoui, French actress and film director  were asked if they felt having female storytellers led to more authentic stories of how the world views women. The women expressed surprise at the representation of female characters in the films at Cannes this year. They hoped that women's point of view would be better covered (in the time to come).

Sofia Coppola's win marks the first time a female American filmmaker has been named Best Director at Cannes. It was felt that cinema must reflect society, and we're not there yet. Will Smith added that it wouldn't hurt to have a couple of Black directors in the competition as well.

Pedro Almodovar said that there was more than one film in this year's Cannes selection that had him mesmerised. Commenting on whether present day filmmaking could match up to those of masters in the field, Almodovar replied: "We need time if we are to be compared to the masters. Now everything (is) very fast so we cannot be compared to the masters."

He was also asked if the Palme d'Or would continue to be relevant in the future. Almodovar replied in the affirmative, pointing out that cinema is changing everywhere, and the way we are watching it is changing. We consume more images than ever before. There will be more story tellers, making more compelling and moving stories, but from France (the Palme d'Or) will be hugely important. "For the rest of the world, I can only say that we are not disappearing," Almodovar said.

Will Smith said the Palme d'Or would continue to be relevant "because the French audience is a rich, cultural, discerning, critical, audience with a head start over the rest of the world".

Almodovar was also asked if he wanted 120 Beats Per Minute to win the Palme d'Or considering his love for LGBT causes. Almodovar admitted that he had been moved to tears by the film, and that Robin Campillo had told the story of a hero who saved many lives.

Will Smith meanwhile, said that Jupiter Moon was a film he loved, as he was raised in a staunch religious household. Smith said he would watch the film again, and was very impressed with the director, Kornel Mundruczo.

Will Smith was also asked about films from Africa  and he replied by saying that the Cannes Film festival jury is representative of the world, and the attempt was always to being in films of colour from all backgrounds. "We can do more of this in the future... to find more films from a cross section and send them in by opening the alleyways. We are very intent to go beyond today," Smith said.

As for The Square, which won the Palme d'Or, the jury spoke of how the film was very well enacted and deals with the most important issues around the world. It's a completely contemporary film about the dictatorship of being politically correct, and the director and cast came in for high praise.

The finale of extended fireworks lit up the Cannes sky and mesmerised the jury, the filmmakers, the press and pedestrians alike. The first cracker that went out scared most people as it sounded like gunshots and no sparklers came out of it. The terrifying stillness that followed gave way to a second, third, fourth and countless other crackers in succession, as if saluting the very spirit of cinema.

The writer is a filmmaker
Priyanka Chopra's Hollywood debut film, Seth Gordon's action comedy Baywatch, was panned by critics but her performance in the negative role was noticed and lauded. As her fans await the release of the film in India this Friday on 2 June, they have yet another event to look forward to.

The Indian Express reports that Priyanka will be honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, in the new category of Internationally Acclaimed Actress. The same report quotes Dharmendra Mehra, General Secretary, Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Awards, as saying, "Priyanka has made the country proud and hence, is the right choice for the award. Its not yet confirmed if Priyanka will be present at the ceremony to collect her award. The event is on 1 June and the actor hasnt returned to India yet. She has given her consent but whether or not she will be present, is not known."

Priyanka rose to international fame with the American television series Quantico in which she plays the role of a spy, Alex Parish. In spite of a dip in ratings of Season 2, Quantico has been renewed for another season on ABC Network this year. Also, she has brushed shoulders with popular Hollywood stars like Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron in Baywatch.

While she is currently in New York City promoting Baywatch, it is not known whether she will fly back to India later this week to receive the award in person. Otherwise, her mother Madhu Chopra will do so on her daughter's behalf.

Deccan Chronicle reports that the Academy will also honour Madhu on the same occasion for churning out a multitude of regional films under Priyanka and her production banner Purple Pebble Pictures. "We thought it is important to honour Madhu Chopra as her Marathi film won so many awards at the prestigious National Awards," said Mehra, alluding to the three National Film Awards that her maiden Marathi production, Rajesh Mapuskar's comedy Ventilator, won earlier this year.
Ram Gopal Varma made a career out of gangster movies like Satya, Company, the Sarkar series, D... as he found the world of gangsters intriguing and normal families boring.

Now that he is venturing into the digital space, the filmmaker wants to focus on the Mumbai Mafia and show some of the biggest underworld rivalries. Besides the flashbacks in the '80s with gangsters like Karim Lala and Haji Mastan, his web series Guns and Thighs, will chronicle the fights that finished the underworld in Mumbai.

In a chat with Firstpost, Varma says he wont shirk from talking about the big Bollywood stars crossing path with the underworld in his web series, which will span four seasons comprising 10 episodes each.

To make it brave and bold, is that the reason you chose the digital medium instead of the big screen?

As a filmmaker, my job is to tell a story and after that we need to tell it as effectively as possible. Obviously there are certain restrictions in a theatrical film which could be of CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) or the kind of audience that will come in. Besides legal and commercial, there are various other considerations, but when you are telling a story on the web, you are actually telling one person at a time who is only coming if he is interested in the subject matter and is aware of what he is going to see. Nothing will be lost in translation in terms of how effectively I can tell. I know so much about the underworld and it gives me a height of creative satisfaction as I can exactly show what I deeply think without thinking for one second about how will people react. Even if you look at the language or the imagery, it has been done in a context. Trying to water it down is doing injustice to the aspect of what it is supposed to be. The first time we saw the imagery (frontal nudity) in Shekhar Kapurs Bandit Queen about 25 years back and you know that it was shown in a context. First time you probably heard expletives was in Satya which came in 1998 and it was also in context. There is not a single shot done for effect. It is a part of a certain world and the language and images are the intrinsic part of that world. Anybody who comes to watch Guns and Thighs, the title itself is indicative of what it is. You make your choice to watch it as an individual. Freedom is about you being able to make the choice.

Talking about imagery, this is the first time you have pushed the envelope because female nudity is not seen even in Indian web series. How did you tackle it and how much of preparation did your actors have to do? How did you convince them?

When I met the actors and actresses, I told them my intention and exactly what it means... First of all, a web series (is part of) a digital world, it is not bound by areas, it is not like it is being seen only by people in this region. The digital world is a separate world. I can watch Narcos on the Colombian drug lord that is being made in Colombia, and people in South Indian villages can watch the sub-titled version of the same. When you are doing digital and web series, you should not think in terms of cinema or a certain group or a certain region or certain kind of people watching it. You may have 500 people watching in Colombia and might only have five people watching in Bengaluru. It happens all the time in the digital world. I explained this to the actors and crew members involved and they were convinced with my sincerity and my logic and they trusted me completely.

It was mostly in the '90s that we heard about the nexus between the underworld and Bollywood. How would people connect to your web series now?

I dont think the underworld is relevant today. It lost its hype around 2005. When you are telling a story, it is not about whether it is happening now or it happened earlier. For example, it was in 1920s when the mafia started in America just around the Prohibition time and by 1956 it got over, and Godfather was made in the early '70s. So any time you see a story, it is eventually the characters and situations, and then you come up with a genre. When I made Satya, people wondered how did I know so much about the underworld and how did I portray gangsters in a realistic way. Now, how do they know it is real? They are connecting to the emotions which seem real and which is the reason it looks real. It is explained in the voice over. Why was there an escalated criminal activity happening between 1995 and 2005? Because after the break-up of the D Company, lot of other gangs were trying to (get a piece of the pie). It is like when a company breaks up, all the competitors will try to corner the market. A similar thing happened in the underworld, so that will create situations, and that will create characters, that will create inter-relationships which you normally never see happen.

Also, it is a misconception that there was a nexus between the underworld and Bollywood. The underworld never put money in the industry. If underworld had to put in money, then why is it underworld  that would defeat the purpose. Most of the time they either used it for publicity, they used to get a high  to scare who we think are stars and big filmmakers. They used to help friends by making a phone call. The underworld at that time wanted to be in news, they were just crazy for publicity apart from other reasons. But when the Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) was created by the encounter cops in 1998 or 1999, pretty much by 2004 they killed most of the gangsters. Many other gangsters lost their power. Disbanding of the encounter squad in 2005 was a signal that underworld as a force was completely reduced.

You have mostly made crime dramas and gangster stories; have you ever been at the receiving end (of threats) because the subject matter you were dealing with involves a lot of risk?

If I am still alive, then I was not at the receiving end. Why would the underworld have any problem with anyone making a film on them? The underworld is a kind of an illegal business organisation, they are not terrorists selling an ideology. They are not trying to sell a certain thought, so they would either ignore or they might have reacted to something wrongly portrayed. Otherwise, technically speaking there is no reason for them to mind movies on the underworld. It is very much like if I make a film on businessmen, they wont get upset with me.

Why have you chosen relatively new actors for your web series?

I wanted to have a heightened sense of reality in it. I felt that if there are known actors, it will look like you are watching a person perform because you have seen that person in another film, but an unknown actor will be taken as a character. The same thing happened with Satya. If I had taken known faces in Satya, it wouldnt have been the same.

Do you think in todays time it has become difficult to express thoughts openly without being trolled? [RGV recently quit Twitter, as has Sonu Nigam.]

I think social media is just noise. It shouldnt be taken so seriously. Eventually it is a democracy and everyone has the right to speak according to the Constitution. Social media allows you to shout but if someone wants to take the shout seriously, they have the choice to block it and they have the choice of not following that person. To take social media seriously is a mistake. It is like grafitti on walls.

Why do we have the overbearing element of the underworld and sex mostly present in our movies?

Power and sex are the two most motivating factors by nature. Most of the time, the moment there are people in powerful positions, they will indulge in something which they tell the normal people not to. I named the series Guns and Thighs as a synonym for power and sex which are primary motors of nature in any politics of a criminal nature (sic).

How do you see he digital space opening up for web series?

That is the future and I have no doubts about it. Look at the great series streamed on Netflix, be it Narcos or House of Cards...These days when I meet people, they ask me what series I am watching, they dont ask what film I watched or plan to watch. It is catching up rapidly. Here we are scared of making two-hour long movies, whereas, people have been watching something like a Narcos for 12 hours at a stretch  which means the content is so interesting. Your mindset completely changes when you are watching a web series, you dont need to have that stipulated first act, second act, interval, climax...you can tell the story in your own way, as you think it deserves to be told.

How do you go about directing the series?

In the course of research, I could be talking to cops, ex-gangsters, some middlemen, I would always feel that there is so much material and it is impossible to do justice by putting it in feature film in which we predominantly use a very old-fashioned way of making. But a web series (is) a continuous process. Everything I show is real, whatever I have heard in the last many years. I might just change names to protect my sources. I have spent lot of time with gangsters and when you are talking to them there will be emotional elements, I am more interested in understanding their feelings. For instance, the first time a gangster shoots somebody... I look for the emotional and psychological aspects of every incident. The stories of the underworld and crime never tire me because I feel normal families are boring. I am intrigued by this world.

Will you also show the top Bollywood actors crossing path with the underworld?

Hundred per cent. But I don't want to disclose more on this aspect.

Finally, what went wrong with Sarkar 3?

A post-mortem of anything doesnt make sense. Everybody will eventually believe what they want to, so there is no point in venturing into it.
Superstar Rajinikanth started the shoot of his Pa Ranjith directed Kaala, for son-in-law Dhanushs Wunderbar Productions in Mumbai from Sunday, 28 May 2017. The film is being shot in actual locations in Mumbai, like Dharavi. The story is about a man from Tirunelveli who comes to Mumbai and unites the local Tamils, and later goes on to become a Robin Hood-like don. A source revealed that the story is very much Nayagan-meets-Kabali  and that it could be a launch pad for Rajinikanths political career.

Kaala has an impressive star cast  like National Award winning Tamil actor and director Samuthirakani, who plays Rajinikanths chief henchman. The female actors incude Huma Qureshi, Eashwari Rao and Anjali Patil. Ranjith has also roped in some of the finest Marathi actors like Nana Patekar, Sayaji Shinde, Ravi Kale, Pankaj Tripathi, Mikhi Mikija and south Indian supporting actors Sampath, Aruldas, Aravind Akash, Vathikuchi Deepan, Ramesh Thilak, Manikandan, Velu and hundreds of other junior artistes for the movie.

On the technical side, Ranjiths regular music director  Santhosh Narayanan  is in charge, while Murali G will be the cinematographer. National Award winning editor Sreekar Prasad has been roped in by Ranjith, replacing his regular editor PL Praveen. The buzz is that Kaala will be a quickie and the entire shoot will be wrapped up in 60 to 75 days in Mumbai, and on a huge set put up in Chennai. The film is budgeted around Rs 150 crore, will be story-driven, and have only basic VFX and special effects. Please note Rajinikanths last release Kabali's theatrical and other rights and endorsements fetched a pre-release business of Rs 175 crore. As per trade sources, Wunderbar is trying to get somewhere around Rs 200 crore for Kaala, as trade inquiries have started.

Meanwhile, the grapevine has it that Kaala will be Rajinikanths last and final hurrah as an actor, as he will be moving into politics. Rajinikanths brother Satyanarayana Rao Gaikwad, who lives in Bengaluru, told The Times Of India: It is the peoples wish that Rajinikanth should enter politics. He has just ended the first round of consultation with his fans and well wishers who were urging him to take the plunge. Satyanarayana Rao made it clear that Rajinikanth would make his political plans apparent by the end of July. It makes sense as the Kaala shooting schedule will be complete by then. The buzz is that the film will have a lot of political messaging  which would be Rajinikanths proposed partys ideological stance.

Rajinikanth has also formed a core think tank team to advise him on his political moves. The feeling is that it is the right time to step into politics, under the prevailing political situation, as an alternative to Dravidian parties. A well known consultant who helped the BJP is likely to be roped in to give Rajinikanth's image a political makeover.

Just a week before his Mumbai shoot, the superstar met up with political analysts and top editors on a one-to-one basis and sought their opinion and views. He met leading editors of Tamil and English news channels and discussed the political situation and his entry into politics. His think tank is also sourcing all the latest on the caste equation constituency-wise, and the major issues regarding the common man. All this has put the spotlight back on Rajinikanths imminent entry into politics.

Here are a few stills of Rajinikanth, on the sets of Kaala:
New Delhi: Activities of "gau rakshaks" (cow vigilantes) or views of Hindutva organisations like the RSS should not be taken as the policy of the Narendra Modi government for whom the Constitution is Bible, says Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan.

If one has to analyse the performance of the Modi government, then it has to be done on the basis of what it has achieved and not by "elements and atmospherics outside", Paswan told IANS over telephone from London in a chat on three years of the government.

Paswan, who is in London for a medical check-up relating to a problem of occasional breathlessness, has dismissed criticism by detractors that the Muslim community has been pushed to the status of second-class citizens.

"Muslims have faith in Modi because he has said the only religion for him is the Constitution which provides for equality and a life of honour and dignity for all communities irrespective of the religion.

"Modi talks only of development. He never talks of religion, article 370, Babri masjid or Ram janambhumi," Paswan added.

Even on triple talaq, the government has said that it will only implement what the Supreme Court would say in its judgment. "We have only said that we will protect the rights of Muslim women in consonance with what the court says in its judgment."

Asked about the activities of Hindutva fringe elements like the gau rakshaks, who were involved in incidents in which people have been killed for allegedly transporting cows for slaughter, the minister demanded that the state governments act tough against such elements "who break the law in the name of cow protection."

He said that the Centre has made it clear that there will be no goondaism allowed in the name of gau rakshaks.

To a question about views of organisations like the RSS and other outfits on sensitive issues, Paswan said if RSS says something in accordance with its policies then it does not mean they are the policies of the government.

"Even my own party, Lok Jansakti Party, has got its own manifesto and views on issues like Dalits, Muslims and backward classes. Everyone has the right to say what he wants to say. But what is important is what the government does.

"The Modi government has not said or done anything that can be called as discrimination against one religion or community," he asserted.

Paswan maintained that the last three years have been a golden era for the country with Modi providing decisive leadership which has rescued the economy and brought back macro-economic stability.

"In Britain whoever you talk to has only admiration and respect for the Indian government. Modi has been described as bold leader who is prepared to take risks like the demonetisation undertaken last year," he said.

Paswan, whose portfolio of consumer affairs has been temporarily given to agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh, plans to return home early next month after check-ups.
After a first quarter fraught with looming federal-level cuts to arts funding, artists and arts organizations statewide are breathing a sigh of relief.

The Arizona Commission on the Arts announced last week that a $1.5 million allotment will renew again through Fiscal Year 2018 after Governor Doug Ducey signed the states total $9.8 billion budget into law in March.

Though shy of the $2 million the Arizona Commission originally petitioned for, local agencies are glad for the renewed infusion derived from interest accrued on Arizonas Rainy Day Fund. Heading into its 50th year as the state arts agency, Executive Director Robert Booker thanked advocators and legislators on both sides of the aisle.

But what does this mean for local artists and community members hoping to catch a concert or a gallery show?

Finding funds

At the peak of the Recession, continuous cuts reduced the Arizona Commission on the Arts General Fund to nothing by 2012. The $20 million Arizona ArtShare Endowment, built over twelve years with bipartisan support, followed  reducing the agencys budget by 60 percent from FY2008-2012.

But the $1.5 million added in 2016 bumped the agencys total budget to $2,318,600  holding steady into 2018.

Organizations and artists all over the state apply for a share, especially represented by the agencys Community Investment Grants. This type of grant, said Arizona Commissions Communications Director Steve Wilcox, provides operating support to non-profits, local arts agencies, and tribal cultural organizations whose mission is to produce, present, teach or serve the arts.

In FY2017, 23 organizations in Coconino County, received funds from the agency. Non-profits including Canyon Movement Company, Grand Canyon Guitar Society and the Sedona Center for the Arts have benefited.

Through the CIG, the Flagstaff Arts Council added an unrestricted $28,000 contribution to its budget. Arts Council Executive Director John Tannous noted the non-profit doesnt often receive unrestricted grant funds  those not earmarked for any specific purpose or programs.

Arts Commissions funds were applied to staffing, enabling the group to bring a new member on board who manages specific programs.

It really is an investment, Tannous said. When we talk to our legislators, we very much focus on that because without that funding the reality is we would have to cut staff, then wed end up cutting programs.

Cutting effect

The Museum of Northern Arizona is the top grant recipient in all of Coconino County. FY2017 brought $47,000 to the museums general operating budget, which supports more than 450 programs, said Marketing Director Cristen Crujido.

The current fiscal year represents an uptick for recipients like MNA, which at one point received $60,000 from the Arizona Commission in FY2014 before dropping to $25,000 in 2016.

These fluctuations mark the changes to the commissions overall budget deficits and recoupments  and thus the organizations.

For the Flagstaff Arts Council, Tannous explained cuts affected staff. The result was two-fold, Tannous said: deficient community benefit and a decreased ability to attract additional funds from national-level donors, like the National Endowment for the Arts.

Since, the council has been able to grow over the last two years to four full-time staff including Tannous and Deputy Director Elizabeth Vogler, plus a Marketing Director and Program Coordinator.

Thats the number one way were able to provide for the community, Tannous added. We have a lot of volunteers, but we really do need to have paid staff.

He explained agencies like the NEA pay close attention to grants doled on the state level, treating them as a preliminary vetting process.

The Arizona Commission awards grants based on the recommendations of independent review panels composed of a cross-section of community leaders, volunteer experts, educators and arts practitioners from areas throughout Arizona, Wilcox said.

Governor-appointed commissioners then approve or deny their recommendations.

In accordance with the Arts Commissions strategic plan and governing statutes, schools and nonprofit arts organizations are awarded grants based on such factors as community investment, quality of programming, fiscal ingenuity, and responsible stewardship of public funds, Wilcox added.

Community at work

With added funds, MNA has conceived new programs including the Four on the Floor exhibit closing May 29, and Tiny Tales, a monthly story series geared toward toddlers. Heritage Festivals, summer Thirsty Thursdays and more have been able to continue as they depend on this sort of grant support.

Our programs and services are strategically planned to serve our diverse community: research scientists, seniors, educators, schoolchildren, Native American tribal communities, and visitors from around the world, Crujido added.

Tannous noted continued investment in the arts leads to job creation and future program support.

And from Downtown Friday Nights starting First Friday, June 2, to new installments of favorite exhibitions, including NightVisions 2017 open June 11, the community can benefit from grant dollars at work.

We see it as non-political, bi-partisan, Tannous added. Funding for the arts is an investment in jobs and the economic prosperity of the state of Arizona. Its really something thats supported on both sides of the aisle.
Gandhinagar: Even as the WHO has confirmed India's first three cases of Zika virus in Gujarat, the state government on Sunday said there is "no reason to worry" since effective measures were being taken.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) had confirmed that three persons, including a pregnant woman, were infected in Ahmedabad city by the mosquito-borne virus.

"There is no epidemic situation. The three cases are isolated ones. All the patients have recovered and are in good condition," Gujarat Chief Secretary JN Singh said at a hurriedly convened press conference here.

He claimed 1.25 lakh blood samples had been drawn to check for the virus.

The cases were reported from the industrial suburb of Bapunagar area in Ahmedabad. The patients were a 64-year-old man, a 34-year-old new mother and a 22-year-old pregnant woman.

The first infection was detected in February last year and then in November. The latest case came to light in January this year.

According to the WHO, there have been no new cases of the non-fatal disease.

The senior bureaucrat, however, parried questions on why the Gujarat government did not issue a public alert despite WHO guidelines when the cases came to light.

He maintained there was no reason to worry and that there was no epidemic situation.

The WHO has called the findings as "low-level transmission" but it has issued a warning that new cases linked to babies born with underdeveloped brains could occur in the future.

Though the Gujarat government maintains thousands of samples have been collected, the UN health agency said the cases were reported during random monitoring and surveillance at the BJ Medical College in Ahmedabad.

The Zika virus is transmitted by aedes aegypti mosquito, the same mosquito that transmits dengue and chikungunya.

In pregnant women, Zika can cause birth defects such as microcephaly  unusually small heads  and other brain abnormalities in babies in the womb.

The infection can also cause Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare neurological disorder that causes paralysis.

There is no treatment or vaccine for Zika infection.

The virus can show symptoms such as mild fever, skin rash, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise or headache. But only about 20 per cent of patients show symptoms that usually last up to a week.

As standard protocol, the Union Health Ministry had informed the WHO about the cases on May 15.

The central government has shared with states an action plan to prevent an outbreak of Zika. A team of officials has been put together to monitor the situation.

The Indian Council of Medical Research has so far tested 34,233 samples for Zika.
Chandigarh: Security agencies and the Punjab Police were on alert on Monday in Pathankot district following the recovery of a suspicious bag that contained an army uniform.

A search operation was launched early on Monday by the Punjab Police and other security agencies in the district, especially near the Indian Air Force base at Pathankot.

The abandoned bag was found late on Sunday night.

Police officials told IANS that the recovery was being investigated.

Security agencies remained on alert in border districts of Gurdaspur and Pathankot following the terrorist attack on the IAF base at Pathankot in January 2016 and the terror attack in Dinanagar town in Gurdaspur district in July 2015.

Both districts share an international border with Pakistan. Both districts are also close to the troubled state of Jammu and Kashmir.
New Delhi: Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, on a four-day visit to Myanmar, met the country's iconic leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Monday and held talks with the top military leadership to boost defence and security cooperation between the two countries.

He also met Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services.

Rawat inspected a Guard of Honour accompanied by Senior General Soe Win, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar Armed Forces.

Myanmar is one of India's strategic neighbours and shares a 1,640-km-long border with a number of northeastern states including militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur.

"This visit is yet another milestone to reach out to our neighbourhood in the field of defence cooperation and build upon existing mutual cooperation and trust between the two nations," the defence ministry had said in a statement.

General Rawat is also likely to address student officers of National Defence College which is a premier institution grooming the future senior leadership of Myanmar defence services. He is also scheduled to visit Defence Services Academy in Pwin Oo Lwin.

Myanmar's president Htin Kyaw had visited India in August last year during which the two countries had agreed to step up bilateral coordination between border guarding forces to ensure security in the areas along the border.

India has been concerned over some militant groups from the Northeast region taking shelter in Myanmar. The country has been assuring India that it would not allow any insurgent group to use its territory against India.
In a blow to managing director of Republic TV Arnab Goswami, Delhi High Court has issued notice to the former editor-in-chief of Times Now and his newly-launched channel and sought response on Congress leader Shashi Tharoor's defamation plea, PTI reported. In his plea, Tharoor has claimed damages and compensation of Rs 2 crore from the journalist and his channel for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him while airing news relating to the death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar.

"Bring down the rhetoric. You can put out your story, you can put out the facts. You cannot call him names. That is uncalled for," Justice Manmohan said while issuing notice to Goswami and the channel and seeking their replies by August 16, the next date of hearing.

Senior advocate Salman Khurshid, appearing for Tharoor, said he should be protected and the channel and the journalist directed to justify the statements made against him.

Senior advocate Sandeep Sethi, appearing for Goswami and the channel, said they would justify each and every statement made by them and therefore, there was no need for any interim order injuncting them.

On 26 May, Tharoor had filed a civil defamation suit against Goswami and Republic TV in the Delhi High Court claiming damages and compensation of Rs 2 crore for allegedly making defamatory remarks towards him while airing news relating to the death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar.

The Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram had also sought a direction from the high court to restrain the TV channel from broadcasting any show relating to the death of his wife till the investigation is completed by the Delhi police. The Congress leader, in his lawsuit, had made Goswami and Arg Outlier Media Asianet News Private Limited, the company which owns Republic TV, as parties.

He referred to the broadcasting of news items from 8 to 13 May when the TV channel claimed to air an expose connected to the death of his wife. The lawsuit filed through advocates Muhammad Ali Khan and Gaurav Gupta denounced the news, claiming that the recordings were released in a sensational manner so as to appease the viewers and created a non-existing controversy by maligning his public life and public image.

"It is not out of place to say that defendants (Goswami and TV channel) broadcasted news reports and alleged expose' which were intended to lead the viewers to believe that the deceased was murdered either by the plaintiff (Tharoor) or at the instance of the plaintiff...Such a broadcast clearly has the potential of adversely impacting the ongoing investigation into the death of the deceased," the plea said while seeking to restrain from "maligning and defaming him in any manner" by reporting or broadcasting the news relating to the death of Pushkar.

Responding to the suit, Goswami alleged that Tharoor wants to stop his channel from finding out the truth in the Sunanda Pushkar case. "My response is that it is a matter of great concern that Tharoor wants to block a TV channel from finding out the truth about who killed his wife," PTI had quoted Goswami as saying in Mumbai.

"In fact, he should be more concerned about finding the truth. And it is he who should be asking questions about why the investigations have been so shoddy, rather than block the channels trying to finding out the truth," he further added.

According to Tharoor, Goswami (as the editor-in-chief with Times Now) had aired such news, which was restrained by the National Broadcasting Standards Authority.

In the lawsuit, he was entitled to Rs 2 crore damage and compensation "for having suffered humiliation and having suffered severe loss of reputation in the eyes of the public and he has baselessly been declared by the defendants as the alleged murderer of his late wife".

He stated that the police is probing into the matter and has also lodged an FIR.

"It is pertinent to mention that the Delhi Police took statements from a number of people, including him," the suit said, adding that during the probe not a single allegation has been made by the investigating authorities against the MP.

Sunanda Pushkar was found dead in a suite of a five-star hotel in South Delhi on the night of 17 January, 2014.

With inputs from agencies
Bengaluru: Four Nigeria nationals and one from Ivory Coast were arrested for allegedly peddling cocaine in the city, said police on Sunday.

"On a tip-off, the Crime Branch raided two houses in the suburbs and seized 168 grams of cocaine valued at Rs 18 lakh," said Additional Commissioner of Police, Crime, S. Ravi said in a statement.

In the first raid, three Nigerians, Udogala Augustine Arinze, 29; Ebuka Emmanuel Iweh, 37 and Peter Nwabunwanne Okafor, 26 were caught with 117 grams of the drug.

In another raid, Ebele Ifekwu Ufearoh, 53, of Nigeria and Zago Constant, 32, of Ivory Coast were nabbed for possessing 51 grams of cocaine.

Mobile phones, a laptop, two portable weighing machines, a pocket router and two two-wheelers were also seized from both the spots.

A case has been filed against the five under the Narcotic, Drug and Psychotropic Substances Act and the Foreigners' Act and a court has sent them to 14 day judicial custody.
The CBSE results were announced on Sunday, with the topper scoring 99.6 percent. According to The Indian Express, there has been an increase of 7.3 percent in the number of students scoring 95 percent and above  from 9,351 last year to 10,091 this year. Furthermore, a perfect 100 has been achieved by a few students in almost all schools this year. This has caused considerable concern for students seeking admission, with cut-offs expected to soar coupled with competition from other boards in securing admission.

Could the marks moderation policy be the reason for the soaring cut-offs? News 18, in a report, said that CBSE has announced the results retaining the marks moderation policy, in accordance with the Delhi High Court ruling.

Moderation policy is a practice where "students are given extra marks in subjects regarded as difficult, or when there have been differences in the sets of question papers."

According to The Indian Express, in 2015 to 2016, cut-offs rose by 0.5 percent to one percent across various streams. However, the News 18 report hinted that cut-offs may decline if the moderation policy was scrapped: "Sources at the DU admission department said that there were chances of the cut-offs seeing a dip this year if the school boards had gone ahead with scrapping the moderation policy."

However, Hindustan Times reported that only marginal rise in cut-offs would be noted. In Delhi, the number of students securing 95 percent and above has decreased  from last years 2,927 to 2,326. But the decrease would not translate into lower of cut-offs at the Delhi University since the university accept applications from all regions in India. The results may cause worry among Delhi students as they might find it difficult to get into a college of their choice.
New Delhi: Girls outshone boys in the CBSE Class 12 results declared on Sunday, bagging the top two spots and recording a better pass percentage compared with boys. Raksha Gopal from Delhi's neighbourhood Noida in Uttar Pradesh topped the Class 12 Central Board of Secondary Education exams, followed by Bhoomi Sawant De from Chandigarh.

Raksha from Amity International School in Noida secured 99.6 percent marks, and Bhoomi from DAV School in Chandigarh scored 99.4 percent marks, the CBSE said. Aditya Jain and Mannat Luthra, both from Bhavan Vidyalaya in Chandigarh, came joint third with 99.2 percent marks.

According to CBSE, a total of 87.5 percent girls passed the exams compared with 78 percent boys.

A total of 10,76,761 students registered for the Class 12 examinations but only 10,20,762 appeared at 3,504 centres across the country between 9 March and 29 April. The pass percentage this year recorded a marginal drop to 82 percent from 83.05 percent last year. Only 8,37,229 students managed to pass this year, the board said.

The CBSE announced the results of all its 10 regions simultaneously  including the highest 2,58,321 students from Delhi region, followed by Panchkula in Haryana with 1,84,557 and Ajmer in Rajasthan with 1,31,449 candidates.

The board said 10,091 students scored more than 95 percent marks, and 63,247 more than 90 percent this year. A total of 2,497 candidates with various disabilities also sat for the exams this year, of which 2,123 students passed.

Ajay K Raj from St. Thomas Central School in Thiruvananthapuram topped in the differently abled category with 490 marks out of a maximum of 500 marks. The board said 125 differently able candidates scored above 90 per cent, with 21 scoring above 95 per cent marks. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar congratulated all successful students after the results were declared.

"Congratulations to all my young friends who have successfully passed the CBSE Class 12 exams and best wishes for future endeavours," Modi said in a tweet. Beside congratulating the students, Javadekar also talked to toppers over phone. "I want to congratulate all the students who scored well... success gives you strength and confidence. Also congrats to students of all boards," Javadekar said in a video message to students.

The minister advised students who could not perform well that "the defeat is not final unless we keep trying".

"Therefore, you should try more and you will get definite success," he said. "I called up first four toppers Raksha Gopal, Bhumi Sawant De, Mannat Luthra and Aditya Jain," he said.

He said he was happy that toppers came from arts, science and commerce streams, and added that one topper aspires to become an economist, another an IAS officer while two others aim to pursue engineering and political science.

He said the credit for their success goes to their hard work, dedication, parents and teachers. The results this year were delayed as the CBSE had proposed to scrap the moderation policy on 25 April.

However, Delhi High court shot down the proposal, saying the rules cannot be changed at the eleventh hour. The Class 12 results can be accessed on Central Board of Secondary Education website cbseresults.nic.in.
Thiruvananthapuram: With both the main political fronts in Kerala opposing the ban on cattle slaughter, the state cabinet will on Wednesday announce a date for an all-party meeting to discuss the issue, Agriculture Minister VS Sunilkumar said on Monday.

"This is a question of livelihood for thousands of farmers in the state and has been in practice for ages. We will take up this issue in the cabinet meeting and don't be surprised if Kerala initiates legal steps against the new law," he told the media in Thiruvananthapuram.

There have been widespread protests against the new law. Youth Congress have taken to the streets in the state but caused outrage by publicly slashing the head of an ox during one such protest.

The ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist held over 300 "beef festivals" across Kerala where cooked beef was freely served.

Forest and Animal Husbandry Minister P Raju said the new law cannot come into effect in Kerala.

"This is a ridiculous law. Kerala cannot implement it. We will look into all angles on how to tackle this," Raju said on Monday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears to be the only party in Kerala which has accepted the central government's directive on cattle slaughter.

"The new law has been misunderstood by the other parties," BJP state general secretary K Surendran said.

For the Congress, what has come as a dampener was the manner in which their activists in Kannur slashed the head of an ox.

The police on Sunday night registered a case against the Youth Congress activists, whose action has been strongly condemned by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi.

Youth Congress leader Regil Makutty and three others were suspended on Monday by the national leadership and the state Congress followed suit.

State Congress president MM Hassan told reporters that the state government should call a special session of the assembly to override the central law.

"Today we are observing a black day to protest against the anti-people law of the Centre. But we do not approve of what happened in Kannur. Hence we have suspended them from the party," said Hassan.
Thiruvananthapuram: Police on Sunday booked some Youth Congress activists who allegedly publicly killed a calf to protest the Centre's ban on sale of cattle for slaughter, as the incident drew flak from various quarters.

Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan, who posted the video of the the gory incident on Twitter, called it "cruelty at it's peak" and said no normal person can behave in this manner. CPM MP, MB Rajesh, said the illogical form of protest should have been avoided and it would only help the Sangh Parivar.

An embarrassed Congress sought to distance itself, saying the party will not support anyone who has violated the law, but a Youth Congress activist who led the protest said he had no regrets.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi called the incident 'thoughtless, barbaric and completely unacceptable,' in a tweet condemning the act.

What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless,barbaric& completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.I strongly condemn the incident  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) May 28, 2017

The brazen act was committed in front of a huge crowd in Kannur on Saturday during the 'Beef Fest' held by the Left and Congress in Kerala to protest against the Centre's ban.

On the basis of a complaint from Yuva Morcha district General Secretary CC Ratheesh, police on Sunday registered a case against Rijil Makulti, a Youth Congress worker, and others under Section 120 A of the Kerala Police Act, police sources said.

The offence deals with slaughtering any animal in a way that causes annoyance or inconvenience to the public and is punishable with imprisonment up to one year or a fine of up to five thousand rupees or with both.

"If anyone has violated the law then he should be dealt with accordingly and the Congress party will not support him. However, we need to first establish whether the person in the video is related to the party or not," said Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi at a press briefing in Delhi.

However, Rijil Makulti told a television channel on Sunday, "We don't regret our act. This was done as part of our protest."

The 18-month-old animal was butchered in an open vehicle as Youth Congress workers raised slogans against the Centre's decision to ban sale of cattle for slaughter. The meat was then distributed free to onlookers.

Congress leader Pandalam Sudhakaran said the manner in which the calf was dragged for being slaughtered left a pain in the heart. It is difficult to accept such mode of protests, he said.

Congress leader M Lijju, a former Youth Congress president, said there were certain rules with regard to slaughtering of animals which they should have kept in mind.

They might have carried it out considering the serious consequence of the government notification, he, however, added.

CPM MP, Rajesh, said the youth workers should have exhibited civilised behaviour.

Condemning the incident, BJP state president Rajasekharan said DYFI and Youth Congress, youth outfits of CPI(M) and Congress, were turning 'butchers' and people should be careful.

In the name of protests against the cattle sale ban, animals are being slaughtered and protests staged with blood stained head of the butchered animal. "Is it something a normal person does?, Kummanam asked in a press release in Kannur.

The Centre has banned the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter, a move that is expected to hit export and trade of meat and leather.
Amritsar: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal arrived in Amritsar on Monday on a one-day visit and offered prayers at the Golden Temple.

This is Kejriwal's first visit to Punjab after the results of the Punjab assembly elections that were declared in March.

Kejriwal was accompanied by senior Aam Aadmi Party leaders from Punjab, including state convenor and Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann and co-convenor Aman Arora.

Kejriwal told the media outside the Golden Temple complex that he had come to pay obeisance on the martyrdom day of fifth Sikh guru, Arjan Dev.

A group of journalists alleged manhandling by Kejriwal's security outside the complex as they tried to speak to the AAP National Convenor.

Kejriwal later left for a venue near the airport to meet party leaders and activists.

Some activists showed black flags to Kejriwal en route to the venue.

The AAP won 20 seats in the 117-member assembly, becoming the main opposition to the state government formed by the Congress, which won 77 seats.

The AAP leadership is preparing for by-election to the Gurdaspur lok sabha seat, which fell vacant following the death of Bharatiya Janata Party MP and actor Vinod Khanna on 27 April.
Two actors whove never worked together, and have barely had any interaction with each other before a couple months ago, are charged to enliven the duality of one of film and fictions most iconic couples.

But Nichole Garrison and Keenan Larson are hitting it off as the famed Mrs. Robinson and Benjamin Braddock, offering a timely launch to Theatrikos summer mainstage productions in The Graduate.

The show runs Friday, June 2 through June 18. Friday and Saturday performances are at 7:30 p.m., Sunday matinees at 2 p.m. at the Doris Harper-White Community Playhouse. Tickets are $18-$21, or $20-$24 for opening night including a post-performance reception. Call 774-1662 or visit Theatrikos.com for more.

Ideally, the pair wouldve liked more time to bond for the sake of these steamy roles, but, as Garrison noted, the process has moved quickly and smoothly.

Its terrifying, honestly, Larson said with a laugh. When you think of the role.

Of course, hes alluding to the sexy romp featured in this enlightened comedy. But with Theatrikoss newest director Patricia McKee leading the way, one of the silver screens most notable stories is coming into its comedic own.

Even the first night, McKee was walking the on-stage couple through a tableau where things got a little clumsy. Legs and arms entwined, Garrison announced her next moves  laughing all the way.

When youre an actor, theres a comfort level, a personal space thing, Garrison said. All those boundaries have to go away  and they have to go away fast in a very unnatural amount of time  You have to be a grown-up about it, or you have to be a kid about it. Weve been both.

McKees style broadens beyond the actors to the story, too, where she explained her job is to adhere to the intentions of the playwright. One exception is an off-stage guitarist playing the Simon & Garfunkel transitions live for the audience.

I think a lot of directors like to put their stamp on stuff, she added. I like to disappear.

The playwright seems to have followed similar notes, too. The actors noted Terry Johnson adapted the story for the stage, but didnt pick apart the rapid-fire dialogue exchanged between Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman in the screen version.

This presents a challenge they are deftly working at squashing.

It forces you to have really acute beats, Larson said. You have to try to make up the mind of your character; not necessarily get into the mind. Youre trying to make something out of  some unnecessary repetitions.

The seamless result comes from playing off each others reactions on stage, and, ultimately, getting to know their characters beyond the iconic portrayals of Anne Bancrofts Mrs. Robinson and a young Dustin Hoffmans Braddock.

And while Garrison admits shes never been Mrs. Robinson in life, she certainly can identify with her. Instead of portraying the glimmering vixen as the woman everyone knows  a superficial, unscrupulous diva  shes diving straight into the characters core.

I understand her in a really intimate way, not because Ive lived this story, but Ive lived similar stories  ish, Garrison said. I can relate to her pain, her loneliness and sadness. I think Im really trying to love her rather than judge her.

She hopes audiences leave the theatre with an understanding of Mrs. Robinson, and a sense of love and empathy.

At 23, Larson is a recent graduate himself. Hes settled into a creative pathway now, but his life couldve taken a different curve -- much like Braddock, who is suddenly faced with a decision after having his entire life planned until that moment.

That transition, man, I level with immediately, he said. I see why when youre lost you make some ridiculous decisions when its given to you. Hell take any direction until he finds as soon as something peaks his passionate interests.

In Braddocks situation, that passion comes from Mrs. Robinsons daughter, Elaine. She is Braddocks True North, as Laron noted, who instills in him the idea that love isnt much of a choice when passion is present.

In this, the actor explained hes eager to learn how audiences compare the textures of this storys stage version with the film  to experience and enjoy the dynamism the actors have brought to the stage some feel was missing from the original portrayals.

I hope this production will break that notion, Garrison added. I hope that people walk away from it understanding these people in a different light  Its not that iconic image we think of in The Graduate.
New Delhi: The onset of the southwest monsoon is likely to advance further due to a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal, which is expected to turn into a "severe cyclonic storm" by Monday night, the meteorological department said on Sunday.

The department said that rains were likely to begin in Kerala by 30 May-31 May, marking the onset of monsoon in the country.

Earlier this week, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) M Rajeevan said conditions were favourable for the advancement of monsoon to 30 May.

India Meteorological Department (IMD) Director General K J Ramesh said the deep depression would help in the advancement of monsoon over Kerala and northeast India.

"Conditions are favourable for further advance of southwest monsoon into some parts of southeast Arabian Sea, Maldives area, some more parts of Comorin area, southwest Bay of Bengal and east central Bay of Bengal, remaining parts of southeast Bay of Bengal and some parts of west central and northeast Bay of Bengal during the next 24 hours.

"With the strengthening of westerlies and likely northward shift of the shear zone, conditions are also becoming favourable for further advance of southwest monsoon and its setting in over Kerala and parts of northeastern states around 30 May -31 May," the IMD said.

The deep depression is likely to intensify into a severe cyclonic storm by 29 May-30 May and cross Chittagong by the noon of 30 May.

This will bring "heavy to very heavy rainfall" in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland, the IMD said.

Skymet, a private weather forecasting agency, said the deep depression Will be responsible for an early onset of the the southwest monsoon.

The MeT has predicted a "normal" monsoon this year.
Condemning the murder of an e-rickshaw driver by a group of men in Delhi for opposing public urination, Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said that the victim was "promoting #SwachhBharat while he was murdered".

"Sad that an e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping two people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting #SwachhBharat, Naidu tweeted on Monday morning.

Taking a strong note of the incident, Naidu wrote on his twitter handle that he was personally looking into the matter and the culprits will not be spared.

Sad that an e rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping 2 people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting #SwachhBharat /1  M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) May 29, 2017

Spoke to police commissioner & asked him to take strongest action possible against the culprits. /2https://t.co/1OfW21hOT3  M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) May 29, 2017

The incident happened on Saturday evening when Ravindra saw two men urinating outside north Delhis Guru Teg Bahadur Metro station and objected to it, reported The Times of India.

Taking umbrage at his reaction, the men threatened to teach him a lesson, and returned to the spot seven hours later along with 20 other men and mounted an assault on the driver, reported The Indian Express.

The police has registered a case of murder, and investigation has begun. IANS reported that the police is examining the CCTV footage of the area to identify the accused. "We feel 12 to 13 youths were involved, but there could have been more. A search is on to nab the youths in PG hostels and other possible hideouts," said Deputy Commissioner of Police Milind Mahadeo Dumbere to IANS.

The Indian Express added that preliminary investigation of Delhi Police suggests that the two men could be students of Delhi University. Investigators are trying to ascertain the college in which the two suspects study.

With inputs from agencies
New Delhi: A countrywide row over the new rules restricting the sale of cattle with Youth Congress activists in Kerala publicly killing an ox and the state's ruling Left Front holding over 300 "beef festivals" while West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee threatened legal measures against the "unconstitutional" provision seemed to force the government to rethink.

As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and others condemned the acts of Youth Congress and Left workers in Kerala, the Congress suspended its Kannur youth leader Regil Makutty and three others while party Vice President Rahul Gandhi condemned the killing of the animal.

In the wake of stiff opposition from some states, including Kerala, to the new rules, the central government is likely to exempt buffaloes from the 'no slaughter' list, an official said.

"We have received some representations over the list of animals included (in the new rules). We are working on it," AN Jha, Secretary in the Union Environment Ministry, told IANS.

In a bid to prevent cruelty to animals, the Ministry on 26 May modified rules making it mandatory to ensure that cattle are not bought or sold at cattle markets for slaughtering. The list of animals includes cows, bulls, buffaloes, heifers, calves as well as camels.

Ever since the notification, there have been widespread protests in various states, especially Kerala, one of the states where cow slaughter is not banned.

Youth Congress activists took to the streets in the state, but caused outrage by publicly slashing the head of an ox during one such protest, while the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) held over 300 "beef festivals" where cooked beef was freely served.

With both the main political fronts in Kerala opposing the ban, the state cabinet will on Wednesday announce a date for an all-party meeting to discuss the issue.

"This is a question of livelihood for thousands of farmers in the state and has been in practice for ages. We will take up this issue in the cabinet meeting and don't be surprised if Kerala initiates legal steps against the new law," Agriculture Minister VS Sunilkumar said in Thiruvananthapuram.

Forest and Animal Husbandry Minister P Raju said the new law cannot come into effect in Kerala.

BJP appears to be the only party in Kerala which has accepted the central government's directive on cattle slaughter.

"The new law has been misunderstood by the other parties," BJP state General Secretary K Surendran said.

State Congress President MM Hassan said: "Today we are observing a black day to protest against the anti-people law of the Centre. But we do not approve of what happened in Kannur. Hence we have suspended them from the party."

Meanwhile Trinamool Congress supremo Banerjee termed the amended rules "unconstitutional" and said the decision would be challenged legally by her government.

"This is a destructive attitude to federal structure, unnecessary bulldozing, encroaching and interference to federal structure. We are not accepting that. We will challenge it legally and constitutionally for interference in state power," she said in Kolkata.

"This is a deliberate attempt to encroach the state power. This is absolutely unconstitutional, unethical and undemocratic," said Banerjee.

The Congress's West Bengal unit dubbed the new cattle trade rules whimsical, saying it will adversely impact the livelihood of millions associated with the meat industry and allied sectors.

Earlier, the BJP criticised the Congress and Left parties over slaughtering an ox publicly and organising beef festivals.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said: "Why are the Congress workers playing with the sentiments of the people. Everyone has the right to speech in India. But I don't know why this is happening. It is condemnable."

On the other hand, BJP leader in Meghalaya Bernard Marak on Monday said his party will not ban beef and legalise slaughter houses if it comes to power in the state, thus reducing the prices of meat.

However the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) warned the Congress and the CPM that they would "face the ire of public".

"It (killing of cow) is natural for the Communist party which has a culture of barbarously killing its opponents. We cannot expect any sensitivity from them for 'gau-mata'... but the Congress, which had once made 'gau raksha' its foundation for freedom movement... they do beef party... is there anything more condemnable?" said its International Joint General Secretary Surendra Jain in a statement.
Army Chief General Bipin Rawat's remark defending Major Leetul Gogoi is a bit intriguing. It raises some questions that beg answers.

One, he says with little ambiguity that India is at war in Kashmir. It's a dirty war, a proxy war, but it's still war. It's something the current political dispensation would be cagey about admitting, going for euphemisms to dilute the gravitas of the word. But trust the Army chief to call a spade a spade. Now the questions: How long has the Army been into the war? Is it since the killing of Burhan Wani, Hijbul commander, in July last year?

Two, who's the enemy? Is it the stone-pelters? General Rawat makes it obvious.

"People are throwing stones at us. People are throwing petrol bombs at us. If my men ask me what do we do, should I say, just wait and die? I will come with a nice coffin with a national flag and I will send your bodies home with honour. Is it what I am supposed to tell them as chief?" he said. Again, as chief of the armed forces he makes the correct statement. He cannot be sympathetic to people attacking his men. But why should the elite force be engaging with stone-pelters, apparently flash mobs without a leader?

If the separatist leaders are behind those hurling stones at army personnel  this is what the mainstream media and a big section of the supporters of the government would have us believe  why not go after then directly? They should be behind bars on sedition charges, not roaming free, instigating youth to wage war against India. It would be a definite tactical move forward, the inflection point in the country's approach to Kashmir. A decision in this regard has to come from the political establishment in Delhi. It would spare the Army from getting into an embarrassing war where it cannot even open fire at the enemy.

His frustration was evident when he said: "In fact, I wish these people, instead of throwing stones at us, were firing weapons at us. Then I would have been happy. Then I could do what I want to do."

Why is Delhi playing coy, leaving the Army in a bizarre situation? General Rawat said the adversaries as well as people should be afraid of the Army. Fine, but when people realise your hands are tied they will lose all fear. Perhaps that's one major reason why stone-pelting has not stopped in the Valley despite tough words from the Centre.

Three, the army chief said dirty war calls for innovations and defended Major Gogoi's use of a Kashmiri as a human shield. Now, can this be standard operating procedure in militancy-affected states? Obviously not. The Army cannot keep tying up perceived enemies to vehicles to ward off attackers as a routine practice. It not only has human rights repercussions but also can damage the moral authority of the Army, which it can ill-afford.

So was there really a necessity for the Army chief to defend Gogoi's action openly? His remark virtually gave the aura of legitimacy to something that should have been treated with as little fuss as possible. The danger in it is that the blood hounds in the entire country would expect and demand more of such action from the Army. It would only aggravate the existing bad situation in Valley, making it difficult for both government and the defence forces to work towards a solution different from the muscular one.

The Army can do without effusive praise from the intemperate civilian world. As a professional force it has done enough, including winning wars and providing service during calamities, to command respect in the country. If General Rawat's remark was aimed at conveying a message to the country about the Army's position in the Valley, it was not required.

What Kashmir requires at this point is a political solution. The government should be explaining to the country whether the Army must be in an uncomfortable situation like this and for how long.
After Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Ahmed Bhat was killed during an encounter in Tral, Riyaz Naikoo has emerged as the next man commanding the militant outfit in the Valley. But who is Naikoo?

As Firstpost reported earlier, at 29, Naikoo is one of the oldest surviving militants in the Valley. Unlike Sabzar, who was a school drop-out, Naikoo is tech-savvy and according to police sources, the Hizbul Mujahideen may want Naikoo as the leader to use the social networking sites to galvanise support for militancy in Kashmir.

"He (Naikoo) has the ability to attract impressionable minds towards militancy through social media," a report in Times of India said.

According to the India Today, Naikoo, who comes from Durbug in Awantipora, Pulwama district is rated as an 'A++' category terrorist, and Rs 12 lakh is being offered for information leading to his arrest. He is also said to have escaped from several traps laid for him by security forces in the past three years.

Naikoo was one of the militants who showed up at the funeral of Shariq Ahmad Bhat, a terrorist who was killed in a night-long encounter with security forces in January.

"Naikoo fired several shots in the air. This was a revival of an earlier tradition of paying tributes to slain militants in Kashmir. The video was shot and widely circulated on social media. Many believe that this tactic adopted by Riyaz Naikoo brought many youths to terrorism in the Valley," India Today reported.

"Police records state that Naikoo, after his release from detention under public safety act (PSA), got drawn into terrorism. He is wanted in several killings, including those of police officers, and was a close associate of Burhan Wani, and was seen in some photographs with him last year," the Times of India reported.

According to The Economic Times Naikoo is considered a moderate among the hardline Hizbul militants and speaks contrary to the deposed Hizbul commander Zakir Musa. "He favours a secular society in the Valley," the report said.

In fact, according to the report, Naikoo had invited Kashmiri Pandits to return to the Valley in an 11-minute video address.

Naikoo, alias Zubair, said, "We will welcome them (Kashmiri Pandits) warmly and there is always a place for them in our hearts. They are part of our nation. We are their protectors and not their enemies."
New Delhi: The Indian Army is facing a 'dirty war' in Jammu and Kashmir which has to be fought through 'innovative' ways, army chief General Bipin Rawat has said, stoutly defending the use of a Kashmiri as a 'human shield' by a young officer.

In an exclusive interaction with PTI, Rawat said the main objective of awarding Major Leetul Gogoi, when a court of inquiry was finalising its probe into the incident, was to boost the morale of young officers of the force who are operating in a very difficult environment in the militancy-infested state.

"This is a proxy war and proxy war is a dirty war. It is played in a dirty way. The rules of engagements are there when the adversary comes face-to-face and fights with you. It is a dirty war... That is where innovation comes in. You fight a dirty war with innovations," Rawat said, in what were the general's most comprehensive comments yet to the media on the issue.

The army chief's Commendation medal to Gogoi, who had tied a man to an army jeep and used him as a human shield from stone throwers in April was criticised by human rights activists, Kashmiri groups and by a few retired army generals. A video of the incident had triggered a row with many condemning it.

Gogoi was awarded for his sustained efforts in counter-insurgency operations.

"People are throwing stones at us, people are throwing petrol bombs at us. If my men ask me what do we do, should I say, just wait and die? I will come with a nice coffin with a national flag and I will send your bodies home with honour. Is it what I am supposed to tell them as chief? I have to maintain the morale of my troops who are operating there," Rawat said.

Talking about the complexity of the security challenge in the state, he suggested it would have been easier for the armed forces if the protesters were firing weapons instead of throwing stones.

"In fact, I wish these people, instead of throwing stones at us, were firing weapons at us. Then I would have been happy. Then I could do what I (want to do)," he said.

Rawat, who had served in Jammu and Kashmir extensively, said if people in any country lose fear of the army, then the country is doomed.

"Adversaries must be afraid of you and at the same time your people must be afraid of you. We are a friendly army, but when we are called to restore law and order, people have to be afraid of us," he said.

At the same time, he asserted that maximum restraint is being maintained while handling the situation in the Valley.

Rawat said that as the army chief, it was his duty to lift the morale of the army personnel in Jammu and Kashmir and he did it by awarding Gogoi.

"As army chief my concern is morale of the Army. That is my job. I am far away from the battle field. I cannot influence the situation there. I can only tell the boys that I am with you. I always tell my people, things will go wrong, but if things have gone wrong and you did not have malafide intent, I am there," he said.

Rawat also said there was a ploy to break the trust between various security forces, and Gogoi could not have refused to provide security when polling agents had sought security assistance.

"Tomorrow elections have to be held in Anantnag and similar things may happen. If the army does not respond to call for assistance, then the trust between the people whom we are protecting, police and army will break.

"That is something I cannot allow to happen. This is what the militants want. It can create a divide between the army and other security forces," he said.

The army chief said he had a broad idea about what was going on in the court of inquiry into the Gogoi incident, and that is why he went ahead with awarding the Major. "I know what is happening in the COI. It is being finalised. What do we punish him for," he said.

He said armed forces have the right of self defence and Gogoi could have opted for firing at the crowd but he chose not to resort to it.

Farooq Dar, who was tied to the jeep, says he is not a militant or a stone thrower, and was only returning home after casting his vote in the by-election when he was hauled away. He says he still suffers from physical and mental trauma after being paraded on the jeep's bonnet with a sign slung around his neck, warning stone pelters of the consequences.

The army chief said just four districts of south Kashmir were disturbed and it was incorrect to say that entire Kashmir has gone out of control.

"It will have to be a composite solution. Everybody will have to get involved. Army's role is to ensure that violence does not take place and the common man who is not indulging in this (violence) is protected," he said, when asked about the solution to the Kashmir issue.

He also emphasised on the need for taking harsh measures to stop infiltration and counter-terrorism.

The army chief also wondered why not much noise was being made when young army officer Lieutenant Umar Fayaz was killed by militants when he was on leave.

Asked whether there should be a political initiative to reach out to the Kashmiri people, Rawat said it was for the government to decide, adding such initiatives were taken in the past as well.

"Has political initiative not been taken in the past? What was the result, you had Kargil...," he said.

To a separate question, the army chief said he does not anticipate a "limited war" with Pakistan.
Ranchi: Jharkhand governor Draupadi Murmu launched the nation-wide campaign of a humanitarian organisation to end child sexual abuse.

The campaign titled "It Takes Every Indian to End Child Sexual Abuse" by World Vision India (WVI) was launched by Murmu.

Speaking on the occasion, the governor said, "Responsibility for prevention of child sexual abuse is shared by parents, schools, communities, government and the broader

society," said a release issued by WVI."

"It is important to sensitize children on sexual abuse so that they can be vigilant through age appropriate messages. Children should also be guided to contact the child help line 1098 during crisis. This campaign launched by World Vision India will reach across the rural and urban India and help in ensuring safe environment for our children," the release said quoting the governor.

Mikhael Pradhan, head, advocacy, World Vision India said, "The magnitude of sexual violence against children is unknown. Yet there is not enough conversation and action taken on this issue. Through this campaign, we aim to encourage every Indian to provide a safe environment for children."
Srinagar: Separatists on Monday lashed out at army chief Gen Bipin Rawat for his comments on the role of the armed forces in Kashmir, saying it amounted to granting them "absolute authority and no accountability".

They decried Rawat's defence for Major Leetul Gogoi who had tied a man to a jeep as a human shield against stone pelters.

Rawat had said that the main objective of awarding Gogoi, when a Court of Inquiry was finalising its probe into the incident, was to boost the morale of young officers of the force who are operating in a very difficult environment in the militancy-dominated state.

"The statements coming out of New Delhi show that the government of India has decided to openly admit that it has handed over Kashmir and the people of Kashmir to its army, granting them absolute authority and no accountability, to deal with Kashmiris," moderate Hurriyat Conference chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said in a statement.

He said this was being done "with the sole objective that Kashmir remains part of India, no matter if all Kashmiris have to be repressed, killed or humiliated for that".

Mirwaiz said Rawat's remarks about stone-pelting youth was an incitement to the youth of Kashmir to take to arms.

He said, "the level of arrogance of power and contempt exhibited towards the people of Kashmir through such insensitive statements, no longer shocks the people of Kashmir."

The Hurriyat chairman said several wars on external front and prolonged "internal repression" have not resolved Kashmir issue for past 70 years.

JKLF chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik said, "The height of shamelessness is such that human shielding of an unarmed young man is termed as bravery and innovation."
New Delhi: Animal rights body PETA has written to the Kerala police demanding strict action against the Youth Congress workers allegedly involved in the public butchering of a calf in the state's Kannur district.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has also called for the accused to be psychiatrically evaluated and counselled saying such people may harm humans in the future.

It said that the Centre's ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter exists to "eliminate cruelty" to animals at markets.

"All the accused should be booked under Section 429 and all other relevant sections of the law and the accused should be required to undergo psychiatric counselling and evaluation," a PETA statement said on Monday.

Section 429, which applies to cruelty to animals valued at over Rs 50, stipulates imprisonment for up to five years.

"The US Federal Bureau of Investigation has found that a history of cruelty to animals regularly appears in the backgrounds of serial rapists and murderers," it added.

Three Youth Congress activists were on Monday suspended in connection with the incident as part of a protest against the Centre's notification banning the sale of cows for slaughter.
Islamabad: The ICJ will neither acquit nor release Indian national Kulbushan Jadhav, who has been sentenced to death by a military court, the lawyer representing Pakistan at the global court claimed today, asserting that India has wrongly claimed victory in the case.

"The Jadhav case is a very clear case. He can never be released or acquitted," Khawar Qureshi told media after a meeting with attorney general Ashtar Ausaf Ali.

"You are making something out of nothing, he told reporters.

"Foreign office will be giving you a much more detailed press statement soon, he was quoted as saying by the Nation.

Qureshi also advised mediapersons to "behave responsibly" and "give Pakistani officials the respect they deserve.

The UK-based lawyer said that India has "wrongly claimed victory" after the Hague-based court "temporarily" stayed the execution of Jadhav.

"The problem seems to be that this case is more about political point scoring than about the law," he said.

Jadhav, 46, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of "involvement in espionage and sabotage activities" against the country.

The ICJ on 18 May stayed the execution of Jadhav.

The ruling triggered criticism of the Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) for its "poor handling" and also for its choice of Qureshi, who represented Pakistans case before the ICJ.

Several political analysts and politicians had claimed that the country's legal counsel was not adequately prepared.

Following the verdict, media reports claimed that the attorney general will represent Pakistan in the Jadhavs case at the ICJ after widespread calls for a change in the countrys legal team.

Meanwhile, the Attorney General said that Pakistan would present all evidences before the ICJ in the Jadhav case, the Associated Press of Pakistan reported.

He claimed that Pakistans stance has not been rejected at the ICJ and the interim verdict of the court is not a defeat or victory of any country.

Replying to a question, the Attorney General said, "Pakistan is a responsible country and would not violate the international laws but never compromise on the national integrity."

The Attorney General said he would consult the national security committee on the Jadhav issue.

He said Pakistan is satisfied over the matter of his arrest and punishment and the country is not "answerable in front of anyone" about the decision of death sentence to Jadhav.

To another query, he said Pakistani court has provided justice to Indian woman Uzma, who was forced to marry a Pakistani man at gun point.

She was allowed by the Islamabad High Court to return to India following a plea she filed with the court requesting its directive after her husband took her immigration papers.
A group of cow vigilantes thrashed two meat traders on the suspicion that they were carrying beef on 26 May, media reports said. A video of the assault is doing the rounds.

According to The Indian Express, one of the assailants in the video was seen slapping the victim and demanding that he says Jai Sri Ram. They were later heard talking about taking the victims to the Malegaon police station.

#WATCH: Cow vigilantes thrash 2 traders for allegedly possessing beef in Malegaon area of Maharashtra's Washim(26/5) (NOTE: STRONG LANGUAGE) pic.twitter.com/7L2eZRjhlE  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

A report by India Today said, Mokshanda Patil, SP of Washim district, said nine people had been arrested in connection with the incident, seven of them who attacked the two men were booked under various sections of the IPC.

The two victims, too, have been booked under Section 295a of the IPC. The SP also urged the public to inform the police if they suspected anyone of selling cow meat so that immediate action could be taken after verification.

Patil told Huffington Post that samples of meat seized from the men have been sent to a state laboratory in Nagpur for verification. In 2015, the state government had banned the illegal slaughter of cows, bulls and buffaloes. However, in January, the Bombay High Court amended sections of the Maharashtra Animal Preservation (Amendment) Act that prohibited possession of beef.

The BJP and the Sangh family supports a ban on cow slaughter but "condemns" vigilantism in the name of its protection, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said on 25 May, declaring they (the cow vigilantes) are "not our people".

Gadkari's comments are the strongest repudiation of cow vigilante groups by the Modi government, which has come under fierce attack by its rivals over violence perpetrated by the so-called "gau rakshaks".

With inputs from PTI
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday called the Centre's new cattle sale regulation as "unconstitutional" vowed to challenge it "legally". After Kerala, West Bengal also rejected the cattle slaughter ban on Monday with Banerjee stating that the central government should not interfere in state matters and destroy the federal structure. "If you destroy the state's heritage and federal structure, everything is destroyed," Banerjee said at press conference in Kolkata.

According to NDTV, She also said the Centre's move is anti-secular and anti-democratic.

Earlier, on Sunday, leather exporters in Kolkata had slammed the central government's amended rule a day before, which forbids cattle trade for slaughter, as a "death certificate" to the leather industry. The exporters had also threatened to move court and hit the streets if the ban was not repealed or modified.

Though Banerjee accepted the presence of cross-border cattle smuggling to Nepal and Bangladesh, the two countries that share their borders with West Bengal, she also emphasised how smuggling has been controlled to a great extent. She also alleged that the Narendra Modi-led central government is curtailing funds for many important schemes in the state.

Senior members of Council of Leather Exports, CLA Tanners Association and Indian Leather Products Association claimed that the Centre's amendment was "legally null and void" as live cattle belonged to the powers bracketed under the state list according to the Indian Constitution.

"The centre should have discussed the matter with the state governments first. How can they come up with a unilateral notification on a state subject? We demand the Centre immediately withdraws or amends the notification," CLA Tanners Association General Secretary Imran Ahmed Khan said.

"If the Centre does not, we will approach the court, and also hit the streets as the Centre has handed a death certificate to the industry, which will be hugely hit," said Council of Leather Exports' regional chairman (East) Ramesh Kumar Juneja.

Khan alleged that the Centre's decision was a fresh effort to finish off small industries and instead give a boost to multi-nationals and big companies.

"The small sector will be the hardest hit. The big companies and multi-national will only gain," he said.

The industry leaders said the ban will rob 35 million people involved in the industry of their livelihood in the country, while exports would be halved from $7 billion to $3.5 billion.

With inputs from IANS
With an aim to boost India's economic engagements and to invite more investments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be undertaking a four-nation tour from Monday, starting with Germany.

The prime minister will be first visiting Germany on 29 May, and begin discussions of regional and global importance with Chancellor Angela Merkel, according to ANI.

These discussions will take place in Meseberg near Berlin. Modi will meet Merkel to review the state of Germany's and India's bilateral relationship. He will also hold talks under the framework of India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC). Besides Merkel, Modi will also be meeting German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, reported The Indian Express.

Modi stated that he and Merkel will develop a blueprint that focuses on "trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine, The Indian Express further reported.

As per ANI, Modi will be the first Indian prime minister to visit Spain in a period of approximately 30 years. In Spain, besides calling on King Felipe VI, Modi will hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy.

According to The Times of India, Modi will meet President Mariano Rajoy, and the two will discuss 'ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism.'

Modi aims to bolster 'Make in India' by encouraging Spanish CEOs to partner with the Indian entrepreneurial initiative, The Times of India further said.

Thereafter, from 31 May to 2 June, the Indian prime minister will visit Russia by paying a visit to Piskarovskoye Cemetery in honor of those who lost their lives during the Siege of Leningrad (1941-1944). He will then attend the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit, held in St. Petersburg. "Modi and Putin will address the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) where India is the guest country," as per The Indian Express.

Hindustan Times reported that "GV Srinivas, joint secretary (Eurasia) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said Modis participation in SPIEF signals that there will be emphasis on trade and investment during the Russian leg of the tour."

The visit would also celebrate the 70th anniversary of the two countries' diplomatic relations. India Today mentioned that the Goa summit's dialogue from October 2016 will be taken forward when Modi will hold detailed discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Newly-elected French president, Emmanuel Macron, will also be meeting Modi from 2 to 3 June.

The following topics would be discussed in the meeting with the French president: "UN Security Council reforms and Indias permanent membership of the UN Security Council, Indias membership of the various multilateral export control regimes, counter-terrorism cooperation, collaboration on climate change and International Solar Alliance, as reported by The Indian Express.

Other than the aforementioned topics, France and India will be "cooperating on multiple areas including defence, space, nuclear and renewable energy, urban development and railways," NDTV said in a report.
After mammoth celebrations across the country to mark three years of the Narendra Modi government, the prime minister is embarking on a four-nation visit to Germany, Spain, Russia and France. This European tour sojourn kicks off on Monday, with Modi setting off for Berlin.

Delhi: PM Narendra Modi departs for Berlin in Germany, on his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France pic.twitter.com/nYzhw8CU6s  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

India and Germany have been strategic partners since 2000. But at the core of the relationship is a strong economic partnership. Many of the things that make up Modis vision of India  Skill development, Digital India, Make in India and giving an impetuous to small and medium-sized business  encompass what Germany can provide. In fact Indias needs and Germanys expertise are a perfect fit. So the prime minister will hope to further strengthen and expand this relationship. The India-Germany inter-government consultations will take this process forward.

Germany is Indias largest trading partner within the EU. It is also one of the leading foreign direct investors in the country, with as many as 1,600 German companies operating in India. Six hundred joint ventures are already in place according to Indian officials.

With fears of countries leaving the EU after Britain now having receded, a free trade agreement with Europe will be now be looked at with fresh enthusiasm. So far, 16 rounds of negotiations have been completed and both India and the EU are keen to get this agreement signed and sealed. No dates are yet on the horizon as yet, because the EU must now go through the arduous process of untangling Britain from the bloc. It will take more time to materialise.

On Monday evening, after the prime minister lands in Berlin, he and German chancellor Angela Merkel will have a quiet dinner at her country residence at Schloss Meseberg. Here, they will hold wide-ranging discussions on global, regional and bilateral issues.

Terrorism will be a big part of this conversation as terror strikes have become a global phenomena. The latest attack in Manchester is just one of the many deadly strikes across Europe. The prime minister is likely to speak about the terror emanating from Pakistan as well as his take on what is happening in Afghanistan. Both leaders will exchange views on how best the international community can work together against this common issue.

Chinas ambitious Belt and Road Initiative is certain to figure in the talks. Modi is likely to point out why Delhi decided to skip the mega event in Beijing earlier this month. The South China Sea, where both Germany and India share a similar view, will come up while discussing the Asia-Pacific region.

Merkel, on her part, is likely to give Modi a brief on the recently-concluded G-7 meet and the future of the Paris climate agreement. US president Donald Trump has refused to endorse it and wants more time to think it over. Merkel is unhappy with his position on NATO. She said at a meeting on Sunday that Europe needs to be more self-reliant when it comes to defence. In other words, she exhorted Europe not to always rely on the US to do the heavy lifting.

Indias entry to the Nuclear Suppliers Group will certainly be raised by the prime minister. Although Germany has already said it would back Indias claim. German Ambassador to India Martin Ney said at a news conference ahead of the prime ministers visit that Germany supports Indias entry not just to the NSG, but to other non-proliferation oufits like the Wassenaar Arrangement and the Australia Group as well.

Ney said that the two governments will ramp up efforts on vocational training, education, renewable energy and railways. The ambassador lauded government efforts on enabling foreign companies to do business in India.

On Tuesday, the India-Germany inter-governmental consultations takes off. Modi and Merkel will lead their respective delegations. The Indian entourage includes Minister for Science and Technology Harsh Vardhan, Minister for Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal, Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Minister of State for External Affairs MJ Akbar. A number of MoUs in the key areas of trade, investment and energy are likely to be signed.

A defence procurement agreement is being discussed by the two sides. "India is a strategic partner for Germany. Of course, we have our export control regimes and they will continue to govern our

dealings in export. India is a strategic partner and providing stability in Asia and there is no reason why the government-to-government approach should not make further progress," Ney said.

At a briefing by the Indian side, Joint Secretary (Europe West) Randhir Jaiswal said in answer to a question, "Defence is an important component of our relationship, we have regular meetings to take forward defence cooperation and hopefully we can make it more attractive in the days to come for German companies to invest in India as part of Make in India programme."

Modi and Merkel will also have a luncheon meeting with business leaders from both countries after which the prime minister will address the India-Germany business summit.

On Tuesday evening, Modi leaves for Spain and then on to Russia and France.
Berlin:Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Berlin on Monday at the start of his six-day tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France aimed at boosting bilateral economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investment for India's transformation.

His visit to Germany, which he described as a "new chapter" in bilateral relations, will kick off with a meeting with chancellor Angela Merkel at her country retreat of Schloss Meseberg on Monday evening.

Both leaders will discuss issues of mutual interest in an informal setting over dinner at the 18th-century palace, nearly 80 km north-west of Berlin.

"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi said in a Facebook post ahead of his visit.

Modi said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."

Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, "German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation."

The more formal part of the visit will begin from Tuesday when Modi is welcomed with military honours at the Chancellery, following which he will hold talks with Merkel as part of the fourth round of the bi-annual India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations [IGC]. The last IGC was held in New Delhi in October 2015 when bilateral ties were significantly scaled up.

In Berlin, the two leaders are expected to clinch a host of agreements and are likely to deliberate on several pressing global issues, including the situation in the South China Sea, China's 'One Belt, One Road' initiative and the growing threat of terrorism.

Prime minister Modi and chancellor Merkel will have a luncheon meeting with senior business leaders before inaugurating the Indo-German Business Forum on Tuesday.

The deadlocked Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union (EU) is likely to take centre-stage at this meeting, with Germany-based CEOs keen to push for a further opening up of the Indian market.

The India-Germany Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), among India's 23 BITs with EU countries, had lapsed in March this year. Trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion in 2016.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to $9.54 billion. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.

The German embassy in Berlin had launched the Make in India Mittelstand (MIIM) Programme in September 2015 to facilitate the German Mittelstand (SMEs) to do business in India.

Currently 73 German Mittelstand (SMEs) companies are being facilitated through MIIM Programme for their market entry and investment in India.

Out of these, 46 companies have progressed well in India investment plan, the embassy claims. Modi will end his German tour with a courtesy call on German President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, before leaving for Spain on Tuesday evening.
Ahmedabad: The National Investigation Agency will take over from Gujarat's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) in a case involving two suspected Islamic State operatives arrested in February allegedly for plotting to spread terror in the state, a senior official said here on Monday.

Waseem Ramodiya and his younger brother Naeem were arrested by the Gujarat ATS from Rajkot and Bhavnagar, respectively, for allegedly plotting to spread terror in the state on the instructions of their Islamic State handlers.

"The NIA will take over from the ATS the probe into a case involving two suspected ISIS operatives. We will hand over the probe documents to NIA officials in the coming days," a top ATS official has said.

The duo is presently lodged in Rajkot jail.

When Waseem and Naeem were in the custody of the ATS, an NIA team conducted a joint interrogation with ATS at the latter's headquarters here.

As per the FIR, the brothers were under surveillance for over a year for their suspected activities and communication with their alleged ISIS handlers.

It stated that Waseem and Naeem were about to carry out 'lone-wolf' attacks in Gujarat and had planned to escape to Syria after that.

During their interrogation by the ATS, it was revealed that Waseem had convinced Naeem to join him for spreading terror using various means, including planting bombs, the ATS official said
Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced that his government would launch a vigorous campaign against child marriage and dowry.

"Like total liquor ban, the state government would launch a vigorous campaign against child marriage and dowry from coming Gandhi Jyanti," Kumar said at a function.

Kumar said like taking a call against total prohibition on demand of a few women, he was inspired to run a campaign against child marriage by a woman at "Lok Samvad" (public interaction) programme.

Drawing attention towards evil effects of child marriage, he said among others it results in malnourishment among woman and children and and also "stunting" (short height) among new generation. "I am bothered as how to do away with the problem of stunting," he said.

The chief minister was speaking at 11th foundation day function of Mahavir Vatsalya Cancer hospital run by donation from devotees at Mahavir temple near Patna junction.

He exhorted that the temple should play an active role in propagating against social evils like dowry and child marriage among devotees. Kumar said while Bihar has been a focal point for political changes in the country the state has lagged behind in carrying agitations for social causes.

"I started social stirs after assuming power (in 2005)," he said and highlighted initiatives like save girl child, prohibition, de-addiction and women empowerment to drive home the point.

The Bihar chief minister also referred to drastic increase in percentage of immunisation in the state at around 84-85 percent.

"Our target is to bring Bihar among top five states in terms of immunisation," he said.

Kumar remembered successful pulse polio drive immediately after coming to power in 2005. District magistrates were endowed with the responsibility for successful conduct of pulse polio campaign, he said and recalled people flocking to him during his visit to Pakistan recently to know about pulse polio success.

Kumar also emphasised the need to launch a campaign to inspire people to show same promptness in medical treatment of daughters as done for sons.
New Delhi: There would be no tolerance for those involved in any ragging and such students would not be allowed to continue their education, HRD minister

Prakash Javadekar said.

The Union minister made the remarks at the launch of an anti-ragging mobile application which would help students file their complaints of ragging.

"Those who are involved in ragging will not be tolerated and they will not be allowed to continue their education in that institution. At the same time they will be given severe penalty and punishment as per the law," Javadekar said.

"As per my knowledge, in campuses a majority of senior students actually help guide their juniors and properly mentor them, but in a few cases ragging happens which needs to be completely eliminated. Physical or mental torture of a new student is ragging which we won't allow, this is unacceptable and therefore, this app will become a handy tool for any student who goes through such experience," he added.

The minister said earlier one had to visit the website for registering a complaint of ragging and "record shows that timely action was taken, which in turn had resulted in a decrease in such instances. But still this ill has to be eliminated completely".

The app will work on android system on which students can log in and register their complaints immediately. Accordingly all concerned would be informed and action would be taken.
A worrying phenomenon has become widespread on the political horizon of the country. Extra-legal forces and vigilante groups have emerged under the wings of political parties. Most ruling parties forming the government at the Centre or state are allied to groups which can be used to pulverise critics and dissenters, often with violence.

These groups often have caste flavours and promote anti-Dalit objectives. They act with impunity and flourish under the patronage and protection of the police and local administration. Ruling parties prefer using such allied forces as it allows them to shrug off responsibility as and when convenient.

Dissent and diversity are at a low premium and under pressure. The contradiction between the right to life and personal liberty on one hand and the state and vigilantes on the other is becoming heightened. It is, therefore, time to reemphasise the significance of the fundamental rights, in particular, Article 21 of the Constitution.

Article 21 enshrines the most precious of all the fundamental rights recognised by the Constitution  the right to life and personal liberty. The full worth and significance of this article were not clearly understood for a long time after independence. So much so that the Supreme Court overturned nine high courts' unanimous verdict and upheld the Emergency imposed during the Congress regime, one the most serious onslaughts on personal liberty in India.

Subsequently, the article received dynamic evolution at the hands of the court. Its constructional growth is not matched by any other provision. The initial focus of the courts was on the deprivation aspect of life and personal liberty. The Supreme Court, in Gopalan (AIR 1950 SC 27), looked at Article 21 narrowly and isolated from other fundamental rights.

"Personal liberty" was understood as liberty of person or body and as an antithesis of law was sufficient to deprive a person of his life or personal liberty. The course correction happened in Maneka Gandhi (1978) 1 SCC 248. The Supreme Court overruled its previous position and held that Article 14, 19 and 21 should be considered together holistically as a holy trinity and that the depriving law should be one which lays down a just, reasonable and fair procedure.

Later, the Supreme Court began focussing on the content of life and personal liberty guaranteed by Article 21. The apex court emphasised that it was not the mere animal existence or freedom from restraint which was guaranteed, but that it embraced the right to live with dignity. It was understood as including the right to shelter, right to environment, a right of children against exploitation, the right to privacy, etc.

Another 25 years later, the Supreme Court basing on the judicial innovation of the Doctrine of Basic Structure in Kesavanand Bharti took another leap forward in IR Coelho's case (2007) 2 SCC 1. It ruled that the trinity of fundamental rights were a part of the basic structure of the Constitution and could not be destroyed even by a constitutional amendment.

Thus, another vital limit was drawn against the state's power. The right to life and personal liberty was thus strengthened. This article is not yet fully explored. It is verily a bastion of the fundamental right to dissent, critically enquire and to choose one's way of life and a protection against state and non-state forces, who wish to trample upon this right and impose their conception of how the life is to be lived. How one wants to live precedes living with dignity and is intricate to it.

When Article 21 seeks to protect life and personal liberty, it very meaningfully brings into play a symbiotic relationship between the life of an individual and his personal liberty. The two, when considered in their togetherness, would indicate the intent of the framers to recognise that in India every individual would have the right to personal liberty, which would include the right to choose the way of life he wishes to lead and to live it with dignity.

When Article 21 talks of the fundamental right to life, it is not merely a protection from destruction of life or its incarceration by the state, but it is a positive right to live one's life in its many facets and range in the way one likes, undeterred and unfettered by state power. As long as an individual's thoughts and action are not injurious to others and peaceful the state should not interfere. The individual enjoys full sovereignty and hegemony over his thoughts and actions. In fact, it is the state's obligation flowing from Article 21 to provide protection to all individuals so that they are able to think, act and live the way they want. And also, to provide the conditions for such living to the best of its ability.

This right to the way of life would include the right to eat the food the individuals want; to dress how they wish; to adopt the mode of worship and the religion one pleases; to read and write what one wants to; to speak and express what he so chooses. The State can impose reasonable and just restrictions on this right on constitutionally limited heads without being excessive.

The limiting role of the state is secondary to its primary role of encouraging an individual's thought, speech and action even when they are opposed to or different from the thinking and policies of the government. The Constitution seeks to build India as an open society, tolerant of different ways of life. It is not the job of the government to be a sponsor of a particular way of life.

Life and personal liberty would involve the whole growth of the individual. The framers deliberately introduced Article 21 in its expansive plenitude as they were aware that in India there were regressive groups and even feudal thoughts and forces, which were holding back the unfolding and unleashing of individual enterprise. And that in the developmental path of the country there will always be such regressive forces who will blunt individuality and will pull the nation back.

Such forces are truly anti-national but often tend to cloak themselves as nationalist forces or protectors of culture or religion. Therefore, Article 21 ought to be understood as providing a foundation for full individual growth and as conferring the choice to an individual to determine the way he wants to grow and live, including his group existence. It's truly a foundational platform for free secular growth. Of course, with equality of opportunity.

Article 21 does not use the word "choice", as does Article 30 which confers on religious and linguistic minorities the right to establish educational institutions of their choice. But choice is inherent in all fundamental rights. Article 21 talks about liberty. It means freedom. Without choice, liberty and freedom have no meaning. In all the fundamental rights in Article 19  Speech and expression; movement throughout the territory of India; settling in any part of India; engage in any business, occupation and trade  choice is the essence of freedom, the core of liberty.

Take away the choice and you have dictatorship or tyranny. The framers of the Constitution were therefore not content with a mere mention of these freedoms and choices and gave a positive mandate to the state, to provide equality of opportunity to all. Article 14, 15 and 16 together oblige the state to guarantee equality of laws and equality before the law. In short, equal liberty.

Article 25 of the Constitution also deals with an important aspect of personal liberty: the right to conscience and to freely profess, practice and propagate religion. This right is expressly made subject to public order, morality and health. It is also subjected to the other provisions of Part III of the Constitution. Thus it is subject to Articles 14, 15, and 21 as well.

Two aspects of these provisions stand out for a mention. First, the right to religion and to conscience guaranteed is subservient to the equality, in particular, gender equality, assured by Articles 14 and 15. This would compel the various religions practised in India to reform to eliminate inequality prevalent within them. Courts too can intervene to mandate removal of inequality.

Second, Article 25 only concerns itself with conscience and practice of religion. It is an assurance of secularism as far as practice and propagation of religion is concerned. But secularism has significance even for atheists and agnostics and many aspects of life are not governed by religion or are peripherally touched by religion. Secularism is not only about the state being neutral towards all religions or even religious tolerance, it is more about tolerance and development of different ways of life. Therefore, the right to life and personal liberty assures to all the right to choose the way of life for oneself in all its diverse aspects. It is the fountain of secularism.

These restrictions have to stand the test of reasonableness and fairness. They cannot be excessive. This is equally valuable as it rules out vigilantism by any group of people. No group of persons can be allowed to arrogate to themselves the power to act outside the law and impose their own conception of morality, religious correctness, righteousness and understanding of legal mandates. They cannot bash up or lynch people who differ from them or do not do their bidding and do not accept their thoughts and views or their way of life, in short, do not conform to their opinion and views.

The essence of Article 21 is non-conformance and not-conformance, which is the essence of dictatorship. Article 21 is inspired by the Socratic experience, where non-conformance led to his execution. Vigilantes conforming mandate is patently illegal. In many cases, like with gau rakshaks, these groups cook up facts regarding cow slaughter and beef eating and attack minorities. They pose as self-proclaimed law enforcers.

Actually, it is a commission of an offence by them under the penal laws. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has rightly characterised them as thugs. The state must come down with a heavy hand on these self-proclaimed defenders acting outside the law in the name of nation, culture or religious sensitivities. If the state is soft or protectionist towards the vigilantes resorting to violence, then it is liable to be understood as indirectly sponsoring the vigilantism and as abdicating its primal duty to protect life and personal liberty.

Article 21 states that "no person shall be deprived of his life and personal liberty". When is a person "deprived"? It is not only when a person is incarcerated or when the hangman's noose is tied around his neck or when some restraint is put on his movement or assembly. The absence of such restraints and unfair impositions of punitive acts by the state are termed as negative liberty by many philosophers, including Isaiah Berlin.

Deprivation also occurs when the State fails to encourage individual's thoughts and actions by ensuring the existence of opportunities for their development and by failing to prevent the extra-legal forces or vigilantes from obstructing the exercise of this right. This is termed as positive liberty. The injunction and mandate of Article 21 have a broad sweep and the emphasis is on both negative and positive aspects of liberty. If the state fails to protect, the judiciary would be entitled to act in the discharge of its constitutional duty as the sentinel on qui vive.

The reason why Article 21 is couched in an injunctive form is that our framers proceed on the basis that everyone in India should enjoy the right to life and personal liberty. They understood the importance of this right inhering in every individual as they had suffered deprivation and denial of it during the freedom struggle.

And this structuring of Article 21 is not a mere matter of form. It acknowledges the existence of the right and then seeks to delimit the authority and power of the state. When it says that no person will be deprived of this right except with the authority of law, it is clearly ruling out both the executive action of the state as well as the action of non-state actors or vigilante groups from interfering with the right as they have neither law making nor law enforcing authority. Interference by such groups is nothing but an assault on life and liberty.

The rights enshrined in Article 19 are all part of and included in the right to life and personal liberty in Article 21.

If, nevertheless, certain rights were separately mentioned it was only to restrict the power of the state further. To wit, free speech and expression can be restricted only on the heads of security of the state, public order, defamation, contempt of court, incitement to offence and morality.

Right to assemble peaceably and without arms and movement are also limited in the same fashion. Limitations can be imposed by the State only by making laws whose reasonableness can be tested by constitutional courts. The restrictions so imposed should not be excessive  a la VG Row case AIR 1952 SC 196.

Various shades of vigilante groups have emerged in India to dictate what girls should wear and when they should go out of their houses; what should be shown in the films; what should not be written by authors; what should not be done in public; what should not be eaten; what views should be expressed or rather shouldn't be expressed by intellectuals; and so on. And this is all being done in the name of nationalism, religion, culture, and even hurting of sensitivities.

These vigilantes are all extra legem  not authorised by law. They are like the group of terrorists and Islamic State cells who use extra-legal terror not only against the state but even against people to make them conform to their belief and opinion about Islamic tenets.

The two reinforce each other. Both rely on instilling conformance through fear. They both are regressive and carry a perverted sense of their religion. But they are believed to have vote banks or support base. That explains the softness of political parties, ruling or otherwise, towards the extra-legal forces. It is democracy in regressive play.

Hinduism involves worshipping of the sun, the moon, trees, air, fire, water etc. They believe in astrology  stars and planets governing human destiny. The Hindu pantheon is diverse  even animals are bestowed holiness and godliness. The cow, too, is idolised  though today it is used by so called Hindu gau rukshaks as a ruse for lynching Muslims and Dalits.

Look at the diversity of plants, flowers and fruits nurtured by mother earth for our nourishment and growth. See the humongous diversity in the marine life in the ocean which constitutes over 70 percent of the earth's planet. The plant kingdom is truly amazing in its diversity  a mesmerising beauty.

Over the course of history, human beings have evolved diverse ways of living. They have struggled against oppression and discovered a benevolent or welfare State with personal liberty. We understand that different ways of life need to be protected and given the opportunity to flourish. Beauty lies in diversity. No wonder then that India's first prime minister, Jawahar Lal Nehru, emphasised on"unity in diversity".

In the melting pot of Indian nationhood, so may religions, culture, languages and food habits meld together in the oneness that there is no option but to accommodate the various ways of life. This is what Article 21 seeks to secure. We cannot allow borers, grazers and predators amongst us to flourish.

Philosopher John Stuart Mill, in his masterpiece "On Liberty", says that, "protection against the tyranny of the magistrate is not enough: there needs to be protection against the tyranny of the prevailing opinion and feeling; against the tendency of society to impose, by other means than civil penalties, its own ideas and practices as rules of conduct on those who dissent from them; to fetter the development, and, if possible, prevent the formation, of any individuality not in harmony with its ways, and compel all characters to fashion themselves upon the model of its own. There is a limit to the legitimate interference of collective opinion with individual independence: and to find that limit, and maintain it against encroachment, is as indispensable to a good condition of human affairs, as protection against political despotism".

Liberty is a war cry born out of the struggles against atrocities  atrocities against the slaves; atrocities of feudal lords against peasants and Dalits; ecclesiastical inquisitions; atrocities against labour; atrocities against the colonies by Imperialist powers; the Gulag Archipelago and the like.

Often, the atrocities were sanctioned by laws and quite often beyond the confines of the law. The imperialist wars  World War one and two  added their own dimension. There is need to lay emphasis on rights to life and personal liberty, which faces danger from states, from terrorists and from vigilantes. It is time to renew commitments to the right to life and personal liberty  the right of people to choose and live in their way of life. It is time to rebuff all forces which attempt to assault the fundamental right to life and personal liberty.

The author is a senior advocate in the Supreme Court of India.
Mumbai: Forest department employees at Mahabaleshwar in Satara district of Maharashtra have accused Shiv Sena MLA Tukaram Kate of assaulting them over collection of tourist toll.

The allegations have been refuted by the MLA. In the incident that was captured on CCTV, Kate was seen assaulting two men after they asked the Mumbai MLA to pay tourist toll.

"The employees had merely asked the MLA to pay tourist toll like they do to all other people. They were unaware that he was an MLA. Instead of explaining his point, the MLA suddenly started assaulting the forest department employees," an official from the forest department said.

He claimed that when the men approached the police to file a complaint against Kate, they were snubbed and false cases were filed against them.

Meanwhile, the MLA has refused all charges and said, "Nothing of this sort happened."

An official from Mahabaleshwar police station told media, "There was some altercation between both parties. The MLA then came to the police station and filed a complaint against the two employees of the forest department and accordingly a complaint was lodged. We have not received any complaint from the other party."
New Delhi: Within a month of the Sukma attack in which Maoists killed 25 CRPF troopers, the paramilitary force claimed a huge success in its anti-Maoist operations  with 105 Left-Wing rebels caught and 25 surrendering  thanks to better intelligence gathering in a new "aggressive" strategy.

A Home Ministry document accessed by IANS revealed that the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) achieved the success between 24 April and 23 May, which is the highest month-wise figure so far this year. The force also seized over Rs 20.35 lakh cash, 39 weapons, 4,628 ammunition, 302 explosives, four grenades, 91 bombs and 29 improvised explosive devices (IEDs) from the rebels. Three gelatine sticks, 5,133 detonators and 60 kg narcotics were also recovered.

According to the document, three Maoists surrendered and 41 were apprehended in over 100 special operations conducted in Chhattisgarh, as part of its "new strategy".

The most surrenders were reported from Jharkhand (15) and Odisha (7), while the maximum number of Maoists apprehended were in Bihar (45), followed by Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand (12) and Telangana (7), it said.

In the nearly four months this year before the 24 April Sukma attack, only 28 Maoists had surrendered while 516 were apprehended from 10 Maoist-hit states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

Over 300 armed Maoists attacked a 99-member unit of the 74 CRPF Battalion providing security cover to road construction workers in Sukma district in south Chhattisgarh's Bastar region, killing 25 personnel and leaving six others injured.

CRPF's new Director General RR Bhatnagar, explaining the reasons for the force's success in anti-Maoist operations, told IANS: "All round efforts are being taken. We have had much better cooperation with the state police constantly. That's why we have been achieving success."

Asked if the CRPF's new strategy was the reason behind the achievement, he said: "It's not happened because of strategic changes, but due to concentrating on issues like better intelligence and coordination with the state police, constant aggressive posturing and better use of technology."

Of the 25 Maoists apprehended, 15 were involved in the Sukma attack, he said.

Bhatnagar said the CRPF is now focusing on conducting joint intelligence-based operations after the Sukma attack. "Our personnel are carrying out intensified operations every day, despite the harsh summers and sweltering heat," he added.

In the one month since the Sukma attack, 10 CRPF personnel were injured during the course of 74 anti-Maoist operations, an attack on two CRPF camps, a mine blast and 12 direct confrontations with the rebels.

The CRPF also said that they lost 28 weapons and 3,420 ammunition in 82 incidents in the one month.

As per the document, the highest number of Maoist surrenders  2,166  was reported in 2016, while 1,635 rebels were apprehended. In 2015, the surrender figure was 940  less than half the number  but the number apprehended was 1,608.

In 2014, a total of 940 Maoists surrendered and 1,546 were caught. In 2013 the figure of surrendered Maoists was low at just 81, while the number of rebels caught stood at 1,596.

In 2012, 983 Maoists surrendered while 1,766 were held  the highest figure so far.
Ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to office, one of his top priorities has been the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan. That being said, the mission's aspiration of making India open defecation free isn't anywhere near to coming true. As a data analysis by Indiaspend points out, 51.6 percent of households across the country do not use improved sanitation facilities. Considering these dismal numbers, it would not be amiss to consider India's open defecation issue a crisis. And the ones most affected by this issue are women.

As Modi himself said in his Independence Day address in 2014, "Brother and Sisters, we are living in the 21st century. Has it ever pained us that our mothers and sisters have to defecate in the open? Isn't the dignity of women our collective responsibility?" Living up to these ambitions, the Swachh Bharat Mission has joined forces with pipes and fitting company Astral Pipes inform and empower people on this issue. The first step to this mission has been a powerful ad of women talking, more like singing, down men in their village who are about to defecate out in the open.

Living up to these ambitions, the Swachh Bharat Mission has joined forces with pipes and fitting company Astral Pipes to inform and empower people on this issue. The first step to this mission has been an ad of women talking, more like singing, down men in their village who are about to defecate in the open.

When these men, obviously shocked and embarrassed at getting caught, tell the women that they are the "pride of the village" the women give them a fitting response. The women, clad in red, sing, "Is there pride in getting eve-teased?" and "Is there pride in getting raped?"

The ad goes on to add that every single day, women in rural India risk their dignity and even their lives for the most basic right  a place to defecate.

It is true that women in many parts of India risk their dignity and also their lives for this basic, fundamental right. The ad campaign hopes to create awareness about the issue and has launched a hashtag #EveryWomansRight along with Womens Web towards that.

The Swachh Bharat site currently shows the progress made on the construction of toilets in India.

Watch the full ad here:
New Delhi: Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu today voiced "total agreement" with Army Chief General Bipin Rawat's statement that the "dirty war" in Jammu and Kashmir has to be fought through innovative ways.

The Congress, however, said one of the fundamental tenets of counter insurgency operations across the world is winning the hearts and minds of the people also.

Asked to comment on the army chief's remarks, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said he "does not envy the army chief as nobody would like to be in his boots".

He said the army is dealing with a tough situation and one understands it, but it also has to be borne in mind that the Indian Army has perhaps the widest experience in counter insurgency operations.

"In fact, a large number of counter insurgency manuals in various other parts of the world, have actually imbibed the experience of the Indian Army and the Indian Armed Forces and one of the fundamental tenets of counter insurgency operations is also winning the hearts and minds of the people. And we would leave it at that," he told reporters.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Naidu tweeted, "Totally agree with Indian Army chief's statement that the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation".

Totally agree with #IndianArmy chief's statement that the dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir calls for innovation.https://t.co/RynSHTHGHV  M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) May 29, 2017

In an interview to PTI, Gen Rawat said that the army is facing a "dirty war" in the state and it has to be fought through "innovative" ways.

He also strongly defended the use of a Kashmiri man as a 'human shield' by a young army officer last month against stone pelters in the valley.
Washington: US Secretary of Defence James Mattis said the US had "accelerated" its tactics against the Islamic State (IS), moving from a policy of "attrition" to one of "annihilation".

The retired Marine Corps general on Sunday also said "civilian casualties are a fact of life in this sort of situation", adding: "We're not the perfect guys, but we are the good guys. And so we're doing what we can," The Guardian reported.

His remarks came a day after he cited the suicide bombing in Manchester, which has been claimed by IS, in a speech to graduating cadets at the United States Military Academy at West Point.

"Manchester's tragic loss underscores the purpose of your years of study and training at this elite school," Mattis said on Saturday. "We must never permit murderers to define our time or warp our sense of normal. This is not normal."

The bombing outside an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena killed 22 people, the youngest an eight-year-old girl, and injured dozens more. Fourteen people have been arrested, with two subsequently released. The bomber, Salman Abedi, was Libyan but may have traveled to Syria.

Speaking on CBS's 'Face the Nation' on Sunday, Mattis said: "Our strategy right now is to accelerate the campaign against IS. It is a threat to all civilised nations. And the bottom line is we are going to move in an accelerated and reinforced manner, throw them on their back foot.

"We have already shifted from attrition tactics, where we shove them from one position to another in Iraq and Syria, to annihilation tactics where we surround them. Our intention is that the foreign fighters do not survive the fight to return home to North Africa, to Europe, to America, to Asia, to Africa. We're not going to allow them to do so. We're going to stop them there and take apart the caliphate."

Mattis also said efforts against Isis would be "a long fight" and "a fight about ideas".

"We're going to shatter their sense of invincibility there in the physical caliphate," he said. "That's only one phase of this. Then we have the virtual caliphate, that they use the internet."
Kolkata: Though ravaged by a relapse of Hodgkin's lymphoma, 16-year-old Bodhisattva Mandal scored a whopping 91 percent in his class 10 exams under the West Bengal board.

Gearing up for a bone marrow transplant in Mumbai, the teenager's desire at this point in time is to overcome the disease by becoming an oncologist.

"He laments that he couldn't score a perfect 100 in Mathematics. He scored 98. His one constant thought is to study more and he wants to treat the disease by becoming a specialist," Bodhisattva's father Manoranjan told IANS from the Mandals' Garia residence in Kolkata on Monday.

According to the Mayo Clinic, Hodgkin's lymphoma  formerly known as Hodgkin's disease  is a cancer of the lymphatic system.

In Hodgkin's lymphoma, cells in the lymphatic system grow abnormally and may spread. As the disease progresses, it compromises the body's ability to fight infection.

"He was first diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2013 when he was in class seven. That same year he was pronounced free of the disease after series of chemotherapy sessions in Mumbai's Tata Memorial Hospital. We used to take him to Mumbai every three months for check-ups. He is a good student and he never let cancer get in the way of being an achiever," elaborated Manoranjan, a para teacher in Mathematics in a school at Garia.

In December 2016, Bodhisattva suffered from a bout of high fever.

"We wanted to take him to Mumbai for a check-up but he wanted to devote time to prepare for his upcoming board (Madhyamik) exams. Again in February 2017, two days before the start of the exams, he came down with high fever. This time it hovered around 103F (39.4C) and he appeared for all the papers in that condition. Such was his will to study," Manoranjan said.

Within days of the exams getting over, the anxious Mandals made a rushed trip to Bodhisattva's doctors in Mumbai.

The news was not good.

"They ran tests and found the cancer had relapsed and is spreading. Around eight chemo sessions are needed and a bone marrow transplant is crucial to save his life," the student's father said.

However, Bodhisattva isn't about to let himself and his dreams become the cancer's conquests.

"Today (on Monday) he is preparing for the bone marrow transplant. Since it is autologous (the donor is the patient himself or herself), the stem cells are being harvested from him today. He is mentally strong and will bear any pain to get rid of the disease. His school, Naktala High School is very supportive," said Manoranjan, adding the family will leave no stones unturned to ensure his treatment which will set the Mandals back by Rs 12 to Rs 14 lakh.

Manoranjan, who earns around Rs 8,000 per month, has appealed to the public to help Bodhisattva through donations.

"I want my son to fulfil his dreams just like the other students. He is battling death but is so full of life and zest. I urge the public to come forward," added Manoranjan. He can be contacted at phone number 7044583254.
Kolkata: After he was caught on camera using a red beacon on his vehicle on Monday, West Bengal minister Arup Biswas justified it saying the state government had not banned it yet.

"Unless and until the state government bans it, how can we do it (stop using red beacon)," Biswas told the media in Siliguri.

In April, the Centre announced a ban on red beacons atop official vehicles of VVIPs, effective from 1 May. Ambulances, fire services, police and army can still use blue flashing beacons.
Mumbai: Maharashtra heath minister Dr Deepak Sawant on Monday held a review meeting with officials as cases of Zika virus infection were reported in the neighbouring state of Gujarat.

"The virus has been detected in the country and as a precaution we are issuing instructions to district health officials. Some of the symptoms of Zika infection are similar to regular fever but patients should undergo blood tests," he said.

Blood tests can be carried out for free at the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, he said.

"The infection spreads only through mosquito bites. It is not an air-borne disease," he said.

Last week, NIV confirmed that three persons from Ahmedabad were infected with Zika between January and February, 2017.
Bhubaneswar: The Odisha unit of the Samajwadi Party has cautioned the state government against the possible spread of Zika virus in the state following its detection in Gujarat.

Stating that the Indian Medical Council and WHO have confirmed three Zika cases in Gujarat, Samajwadi Party state president Rabi Behera in a letter to Odisha's health and family welfare minister Pratap Jena, urged him to take emergency steps for prevention against the Zika virus.

Many people from the state travel to Surat and Ahmedabad in search of jobs, more particularly the people of Ganjam district. Behera, therefore, claimed that Ganjam district in Odisha is more vulnerable to the disease.

"There is every possibility that the migrating people from Ganjam and other parts of the state may become the carrier of Zika virus," Behera said.

He said the monsoon will reach Odisha coast soon and heavy rain prediction is made by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). "If immediate steps are not taken for prevention of Zika spread in Odisha, the situation may aggravate," Behera cautioned.

The party also made a suggestion to launch massive awareness campaign at various levels as people in the state hardly know about the Zika virus and its prevention.
Visakhapatnam: Nara Chandrababu Naidu on Monday was unanimously re-elected as president of Telugu Desam Party's central committee in Visakhapatnam.

The biennial election was held during the three-day annual conclave of TDP Mahanadu that ended in the port city on Monday.

Party election officer E Peddi Reddy declared Naidu elected as president of the central committee as he was the only one in the fray after the close of nominations on Sunday.

This was for the record 22nd time that the Andhra Pradesh chief minister has been handed over the party reins.

He was first elected as TDP president (of united Andhra Pradesh) in 1995 after he triggered a split in the party by dislodging founder-president NT Rama Rao from the top post.

Since then he had been continuing as the party chief.

Following the bifurcation of the state in 2014, the TDP declared itself a 'national party' and a central committee was put in place with Naidu as the head in 2015.

This is second successive election for him as the TDP central committee president.

The party constitution was amended during this Mahanadu, empowering the central committee president to appoint or remove chiefs of the state units.

Naidu took oath as the TDP head amidst lusty cheers by the party cadre.

He vowed, as the TDP chief, to build a society free of inequalities.


Ahead of Ramadan, 2017, Canada Post issued its first ever Eid stamp honouring Islams important holidays: Eid el Fitr and Eid el Adha.

An explanation accompanied the ten-stamp booklet:

Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha are two of the most important festivals celebrated by Muslims worldwide. Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the Ramadan fast. Eid al-Adha commemorates Abrahams willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael as an act of obedience to God and marks the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. Both celebrations can include special ritual prayers, lavish meals, visits with friends and family, gift-giving and acts of charity.

To some it may seem like a token of tolerance and respect, but to Muslim Canadians it exhibits how valued diversity and multiculturalism are in Canada.

Over a million Muslims live in Canada or what construes 3.2 percent of the population comprising the second largest religion after Christianity. Over 90 mosques are spread over the vast Canadian land mainly in urban hubs. And since Canadas charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees freedoms such as freedom of religion, freedom of belief, and freedom of peaceful assembly, faithful Muslims practice the pillars of Islam unperturbed.

However, as brazen terrorist attacks occur worldwide by those who claim they are Muslims, it is important to see how concerned Muslim Canadians are about hate crimes stemming from a backlash after terrorist attacks: Islamophobia, discrimination, stereotyping, and fear for own safety.

The Islamophobia frenzy that swarms the US and Europe does not exist in Canada. True though, Canada hasnt experienced a September 11 or its aftermath; only one case stands out: a series of shootings on Parliament Hill in 2014, by a deranged person of Libyan descent that left one soldier dead. It was not followed by any hate crimes.

As everywhere else, the hijab remains the most visible of Muslim traits, and the cause of much friction in the western world. One case was quite controversial in Canada. A Quebec judge in March, 2015, refused to hear the case of a Muslim woman wearing the hijab unless she removed her hijab. The judge compared the hijab to a hat and sunglasses, which are not allowed in court.

The judges comments were condemned by Canadians, including then Prime-minister-to-be Justin Trudeau. A Quebec Superior Court justice later criticized the judges actions and considered the premise she adopted, comparing the hijab to a hat and sunglasses, to have no force of law in Canada.

Feeling safe, a Syrian refugee wears a headscarf in Downtown Vancouver despite the odd first glance by onlookers. Hijabbed Saudi students are treated similar to all other students at universities. Muslim Iranian students, hijabbed and unhijabbed, lead ordinary lives on Canadian campuses.

In Ontario Muslim students pray as a group on Fridays. This has been going on for years. Lately though some protested the 20-minute group prayer and called for the Jummahs" ban, finding it inappropriate exposure to religion in a secular school system.

At the end, the Province of Ontario considered the Friday prayer in full compliance with the human rights code and religious accommodation guidelines.

The niqab is a different matter altogether. Many non-Muslim Canadians see it as an infringement on rights, feeling uncomfortable with a woman covering her face in public. However, even that was considered unconstitutional.

Zenera Ishaq, a Muslim of Pakistani origin, took the Canadian citizenship oath in a niqab. Originally she was denied the opportunity to participate in a citizenship ceremony unless she uncovered her face. The woman took the issue to court and won the case.

Though hate crimes have doubled in recent years, with 99 religiously motivated hate crimes up from 45, these crimes remain minor and not deadly. That with the exception of the tragedy that occurred in early 2017.

An assault on a Quebec City mosque took the lives of six Muslim worshipers and injured nineteen others. Unnerving the whole country, the assault left Canadians reeling in shock and was condemned as a terrorist attack by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Condemning the assault, Trudeau said, More than one million Canadian Muslims coming to grips with a bloody terrorist attack at a Quebec City mosque must know they are loved and not alone in their pain. Thirty-six million hearts are breaking with yours.

Clearly Prime Minister Trudeau celebrates multiculturalism in all its forms. In June 2016, the prime minister celebrated multiculturalism as the long and proud tradition of inclusion and diversity. Here is an except:

As the first country in the world to adopt a policy of multiculturalism 45 years ago, Canada has shown time and time again that a country can be stronger not in spite of its differences, but because of them.

Our roots reach out to every corner of the globe. We are from far and wide, and speak over 200 languages. Our national fabric is vibrant and varied, woven together by many cultures and heritages, and underlined by a core value of respect.

Multiculturalism is our strength, as synonymous with Canada as the Maple Leaf.

Personally, I only partially stand out in a Canadian society; I have a dark complexion, I have a slight though some may say thick accent, and I spend months in my birthplace, Egypt. However, I dont wear a headscarf, I am loud and outspoken, and my gender and age are not that of a stereotypical terrorist. In all fairness, I cannot represent the Muslim multitudes.

So how have I been treated in Canada? I have never been intimidated, harassed, or discriminated against verbally or physically. I enjoy the same freedoms bestowed on everyone else. Whilst still teaching, I was often recognized as the Egyptian prof, if someone couldnt recall who I was exactly, but thats about it.

Amongst other ethnicities and spiritual diversities, such as Sikhs, Asians, Latinos, and Africans, everyone is an immigrant in Canada with equal rights and freedoms.

I dont know how non-Muslim Canadians would react if Canada was suddenly hit by a slew of horrendous, bloodthirsty attacks as seen elsewhere around the world. Will life in Canada as Muslims know it change?

I hope nothing of this sort happens so that Canada remains as inviting and as peaceful as it has always been.
New Delhi: Accusing Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and his government of practising untouchability, the Congress on Sunday demanded that he tender an apology to Dalits and a case be registered against him for insulting them.

Referring to reports that authorities distributed soap and shampoo to Musahar dalit families and asked them "clean themselves" before attending a public meeting of the chief minister, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi, "The incident has depicted the true face of the BJP and the RSS, particularly the chief minister."

He said Adityanath appeared not to be a 'yogi' (renouncer), but a 'bhogi' (materialistic). "The true face, thought process, thinking, actions have reflected in the way the soaps were distributed and callous officials said that they must smell good before the chief minister. A low level of untouchability was directly practised," he said.

Strongly condemning the incident, the Congress leader said it was unfortunate that he who was supposed to be the guardian of democracy had displayed this mindset and his army of officials had implemented this mindset.

According to media reports, a day before Adityanath's visit to Mainpur Deenapatti village in Kushinagar district on Thursday, Musahar Dalit families received two soaps and a sachet of shampoo, and instructions to "clean themselves" before attending the public meeting.

"They (BJP leaders) have insulted the entire community of that village but more importantly they have insulted the concept of dalits in this country," he said.

The Congress spokesperson also asked which part of the Constitution was the chief minister upholding by reflecting such a mindset.

"The chief minister must immediately apologise to this community. Appropriate cases must be registered under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against him and his official army, which has practised this brazen and shocking form of untouchability," said Singhvi.
The enthusiastic members of the Kerala Youth Congress probably thought it would be a striking idea to register protest against the recent Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF) order to ban sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter from live animal markets.

Clad in crisp white lungi and white shirt, they held the Congress flag in their hands and loaded themselves and a calf in a small truck, to slaughter the animal in broad daylight, in full public view. It was probably their version of a civil disobedience movement or some kind of beef party as organised by Engineer Rashid in Kashmir, the difference being the Congress workers in Kerala did not cook it, but distributed the raw meat free.

Youth Congress leaders didnt fully realise the implications of their act. Congress strongest leader, Rahul Gandhis grandmother Indira Gandhi, had chosen cow and calf symbol after the party split into Congress (O) and Congress (R) in the months following her elevation to the leadership position. The partys original symbol 'pair of bullocks carrying a yoke went to Congress (O), Congress (R), headed by Indira, chose 'cow and calf' (Gai-bachra) as its symbol in 1969. Indira with the symbol and the 'garibi hatao' (remove poverty) slogan swept the 1971 polls.

During Emergency in 1975 and post-Emergency in 1977, Congress cow and calf symbol was ridiculed with Indira being projected as the cow and Sanjay Gandhi as calf. The Congress split again in 1977 with senior leaders like Jagjivan Ram leaving the party, forcing Indira to rename the party as Congress (I) and opt for a new 'hand' symbol.

Though it has been close to 40 years since the time Congress abandoned the cow-calf symbol, now the same taunt is being hurled at Sonia and Rahul.

Therefore, it was not surprising that Rahul or his office promptly took to twitter condemning the incident in the strongest possible terms: What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric& completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party. I strongly condemn the incident.

What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless,barbaric& completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.I strongly condemn the incident  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) May 28, 2017

But the damage has already been done. Youth Congress is still perceived as Rahul's baby and workers of Youth Congress raising slogans against Narendra Modi and Amit Shah while slaughtering a calf will surely not go down well with the people of the country. The issue became public after Kerala state BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan posted a video of this incident on his twitter account.

Cruelty at its peak.Cattle slaughtering by Kerala Youth Congress leader in broad daylight,in front of public gathering. pic.twitter.com/4gBWUVDa1l  KummanamRajasekharan (@Kummanam) May 27, 2017

Apart from it being a barbaric and mindless act, the issue will have grave implications for the grand old party and its leaders. As it is, many Congress leaders are concerned about its anti-Hindu and pro-minority image. After its humiliating defeat in 2014 parliamentary elections, one of its senior most leader and a close confidante of Sonia, AK Antony at a public function in Kerala had said: Some sections of society have an impression that the party is inclined to certain communities or organisations. Congress policy is equal justice to everyone. But people have doubt whether that policy is being implemented or not. This doubt is created by the partys proximity towards minority communities and such a situation would open the door for the entry of communal forces into Kerala.

His words assume significance in the current context. But Congress under Rahul's leadership is not a party that learns its lessons easily. The idea behind the alliance with Akhilesh Yadavs Samajwadi Party was to consolidate Muslim votes in UP election, but it failed to get the votes of the majority.

The end result was humiliating for Congress. It ended winning only seven seats in a 402-member strong UP Assembly and those who won, didnt win because they had the blessings of Rahul, but because they were in a position of strength, irrespective of the Congress sign and symbol.

The Kerala incident will haunt Congress for a long time. In the next six months, BJP and Congress will be pitted against each other for a straight fight in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections. This anti-Hindu, beef fest tag, could pinch the Congress hard.

More so, the incident took place in less than 48 hours after Sonia and Rahul hosted lunch for Opposition leaders (those who could be inclined for forming an anti-BJP coalition - a UPA3). The leaders, posing for photo-ops, with competing egos, contrasting personalities, clashing social philosophies were not very inspiring. Most of those gathered there were facing charges of corruption and shell companies, and had dwindling social support base. Calf slaughter and beef fest is not going to help them in boosting their political prospect.

The Narendra Modi government waited for three years, weighing its options before notifying ban on sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter (does not apply to goat and sheep). The new rule has been put in force under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act of 1960.

The Congress and its prospective allies in Opposition parties will have to realise that they can set off a public discourse and win it, either on stated objectives of the government behind this ban or on BJPs age-old pledge to protect the cow and its progeny.
Taking the investigation of the Rajdeo Ranjan murder case one step forward, the CBI on Monday took over custody of Bihar strongman Mohammad Shahabuddin, the main accused in the scribe's killing. The former RJD MP was taken to the CBI headquarters in New Delhi for further questioning.

CBI takes custody of former RJD MP Mohammad Shahabuddin in an ongoing investigation of case relating to murder of journalist Rajdeo Ranjan pic.twitter.com/IZAzemj6IA  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

Shahabuddin was lodged in Tihar prison.

Reacting to the development, Ranjan's wife told Times Now that she was confident that in the end all those who were responsible for her husband's death will be brought to the books.

The central agency had on Friday named Shahabuddin as an accused in the infamous murder case. As per the CBI Special court's order, Shahabuddin was produced in the court of special judge Anupam Kumari in Muzaffarpur through video-conferencing facility.

The agency has told a Muzaffarpur court that his name has surfaced as an accused in the case and it needs his custodial interrogation. The agency was granted the permission by the court to question him.

Shahabuddin is the 10th accused in the murder case. The CBI special court had on 22 May issued the production warrant against Shahabuddin on the plea of CBI to produce him through video-conferencing for trial.

The CBI had also filed the application the same day for making Shahabuddin as an accused in the case. The CBI counsel submitted that it would soon file charge-sheet against Shahabuddin, who is currently lodged in high-security Tihar jail in the national capital.

The premier investigating agency has already filed charge-sheet against seven accused persons in the case while two accused persons-

Mohammad Javed and Mohammad Kaif- are on bail. Javed and Kaif are active members of Shahabuddin gang.

The four-time RJD MP from Siwan is alleged to have been involved in the murder of Rajdeo Ranjan, a journalist of a prominent Hindi daily in Siwan last year.

Shahabuddin is facing trial in more than 45 criminal cases and was moved to Tihar Jail in February this year on a Supreme Court order on a plea by Siwan native Chandrakeshwar Prasad, whose three sons were killed in two separate incidents.

Rajdeo Ranjan, district bureau chief of a Hindi daily was gunned down on 13 May last year and his wife has accused Shahabuddin of having a role in the killing.

The Special court fixed June 9 as the next date for production of Shahabuddin in the case.

With inputs from agencies
The Government of Nagaland is not going to implement the Centre-imposed-ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter, a minister in the Government of Nagaland told Firstpost, stating that it would impact the traditional food habits of the people in the state where beef is a staple food.

"Nagaland is not going to implement this law related to cow slaughter," Imkong Imchen, Minister of Highways in the Nagaland government told Firstpost.

There is no need for a policy (amounting) to ban cow slaughter in Nagaland, added Imchen, who is an MLA of the ruling Naga Peoples Front, which is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government at the Centre. The minister added that the new rules may to some extent affect the traditional food habit in Nagaland where beef is a staple food.

The statement from the Nagaland minister has come at a time when the Kerela governments reaction to this new rule sparked made a debate across the country.

The recently-issued rules of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1960, which restricts the sale of cattle for slaughter, has come as an embarrassment to the BJP ally in Nagaland, as beef is a staple food in the northeastern state.

A day earlier, the Nagaland chapter of Indian National Congress had launched a scathing attack on the ruling NPF and the BJP for initiating a communal agenda by imposing a nationwide ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter.

"The Nagaland Pradesh Congress Committee (NPCC) has slammed BJP government at the Centre, saying that the move to impose nationwide ban on sale of cow/cattle for slaughter by taking shelter under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 was a blatant display of their communal and divisive agenda, which would not be acceptable to the Nagas, The Nagaland Post had quoted Congress as saying.

The Congress party had also asked the NPF government which has been the comfort party of the BJP for the past 15 years to outrightly reject the nationwide ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter.

The ban has put the state chapter of the BJP in an awkward situation too. Earlier, the president of the state chapter of BJP, Visasolie Lhoungu, had told the media: Ban on cow slaughter like the one in Uttar Pradesh wont take effect in Nagaland if our party comes to power next year. The reality here is very different and our central leaders are aware of that.

But the recent nationwide ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter has left the state unit of the saffron party faceless. Firstpost tried to contact Lhoungu several times but he did not respond.

Eduzu Thelou, the general secretary (administration) of BJP's Nagaland chapter said, "We are going to discuss the issue regarding the ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter in a meeting. Our president will express his views after the meeting.

The BJP had been making steady inroads in the states in North East India after its first victory in the Assam Assembly election last year. Only recently, the party formed its first government in the state of Manipur, which also has a sizeable Christian population.

The recent rules banning the sale of cattle for slaughter may block the saffron party's stride in the region where three Christian dominated states Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya are heading for polls next year.

Ashok Agarwal, a lawyer in the Delhi High Court told Firstpost that the Centre cannot initiate any legal action against the state government, even if it chooses not to implement the ban on cattle slaughter since there is no such provision in the law.

In a surprise notification in The Gazette of India, issued on 23 May, the environment ministry introduced restrictions on the sale of cattle to prevent their killing.

A notification in The Gazette of India, titled Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change states that no one can bring cattle to an animal market unless he or she has furnished a written declaration that the cattle will not be sold for the purpose of slaughter. Further, upon sale of the cattle, the animal market committee will take an 'undertaking' that the animals are for agricultural purposes and not for slaughter," reported the Hindustan Times. You can read the notification here.
Hyderabad: BJP Rajya Sabha member of parliament Subramanian Swamy on Sunday said the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya was a matter of faith for Hindus and that there could be no compromise on this issue.

He was addressing a public talk on 'Building Sri Ram Mandir in Ayodhya Through Legal Framework' organised by Virat Hindustan Sangam in Hyderabad.

"The Ram temple issue is very important for our (Hindus) existence and identity and there can be no compromise on this. I would like to tell you that Ram Mandir will be built at any cost and it will be built at the place where he (Lord Ram) was born and where 'pran prathistha puja' (consecration) has taken place. In a petition filed in the Supreme Court, I had said it was my fundamental right to pray to Ram. It is our faith that Ram was born there and hence the 'mandir' (temple) will come up only at that place...no one can question it," said Swamy.

He said it had been proven by the experts of the Archaeological Survey of India that there existed a temple at that site.

"Babri Masjid was built on the place where Ram was born and after demolishing the Ram Mandir, the Babri Masjid was constructed," claimed Swamy.

"In 1994, the then Narasimha Rao government in an affidavit filed before the Supreme Court had submitted that if it was proved that there was a mandir before the mosque came up at that place, all the land would be given to Hindus. Now I told (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi to cite this thing and give the land to Hindus.

"Masjid is only a place to read namaz and it can be read anywhere, but our temples, wherein once pran prathistha puja is done, it will forever remain a mandir," Swamy claimed.

The saffron leader claimed that there have been instances where mosques have been demolished for road development works and shifted to other places in Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

The Supreme Court will take up the case on the Ram temple issue soon, he said.

"I will request to take up the matter on a day-to-day basis hearing and if it is done we will win the case in four months by Diwali.

"Now, it is for the government and the Solicitor General to inform the Court that Swamy's fundamental right plea is correct. Ram Mandir will be definitely built by 2018," said the Rajya Sabha MP.

There is a need for Hindus to get united, Swamy stressed.

On Kashmir issue, he said, "If Pakistan attacks India, its existence will be over and it will be divided into four parts."
The Narendra Modi government is likely planning a Cabinet reshuffle after the presidential election on 25 July, according to media reports.

According to the Business Standard, the top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) thinks the reshuffle and expansion are necessary to prepare the Cabinet for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

The rejig is also important in the light of vacancies in certain posts like that of the ministry of environment, forests and climate change after the death of Anil Madhav Dave.

The Business Standard report also says the reshuffle will not just fill vacancies but is also expected to promote performing ministers who currently have independent charges of their portfolios and to find a successor to Kalraj Mishra, who turns 76 in July and heads the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises.

In keeping with the tradition of the Narendra Modi government, ministers holding portfolios are usually below the age of 76. However, the reshuffle will probably not see any chief ministers gaining a central portfolio.

The BJP's decision comes a day after the CPI on Sunday said the Delhi meeting of Opposition parties to discuss a joint presidential candidate could well be the beginning of a joint front against the Modi government.

"The time has come to move with a united programme against the Bharatiya Janata Party. We see meeting in Delhi when leaders of these parties discussed a consensus presidential candidate as the beginning," said CPI general secretary S Sudhakar Reddy, on a visit to Kerala capital to participate in party meetings.

Recently, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also said, "Opposition is united on the issue of presidential election," after meeting the prime minister.

With inputs from IANS
New Delhi: Delhi deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Monday raised concerns over real estate and liquor industry being left out of the the GST ambit and suggested it was done because they were being run by "influential people".

"Liquor and real estate lobbies have succeeded to intervene in the GST. Without any hesitation, I can say that these two sectors have been kept out of the GST because political leadership and influential people are conventionally indulged in real estate," Sisodia said.

He said many politicians "invest their black money" in real estate business.

"We are the only country in the world which has kept land and liquor out of the GST ambit. Even a child knows black money is invested in real estate sector," he said

"I also wrote to all finance ministers on this issue, but my opinion was actually rejected by Council meeting of GST," Sisodia said.

Meanwhile, addressing MLAs on the premises of the Delhi Assembly on the GST, Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian said he completely agreed on the principle of bringing liquor and land under the GST and all states should come together to make it happen.

Sisodia also said the national capital will benefit after the GST is implemented.

A senior government official said that as per rough estimate, there will be an increase of Rs 5,000 crore in tax collection by the city administration once the new tax regime is in place.

The deputy chief minister said there were still a lot of problems in the GST implementation, but not in its concept.

On his part, the chief economic advisor also supported the views of Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel who expressed apprehension of "conspiracy" by keeping liquor and real estate sectors out of GST and said it will only lead to huge corruption in the country.

"There has been some improvement in real estate sector...you (states) have the power to change it. All states should come together. The power is with you, but I completely agree on this issue in-principle," chief economic adviser Subramanian said.

Subramanian said that when implemented, the tax collection of states will be increased significantly as the compliance rate will rise.

He also ruled out any burden on manufacturers due to GST and said that there will be no increase in the existing tax rates.
New Delhi: Sacked Delhi minister Kapil Mishra will hold an "exhibition" of documents pertaining to the "scams" in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government and the party on 3 June.

Stating this in his blog, Mishra also questioned chief minister Arvind Kejriwal's "silence" over the alleged irregularities in the AAP and the Delhi government.

"Kejriwal sacked (Delhi's food and civil supplies minister) Asim Ahmed Khan just on the basis of an audio. We were happy that a strict action was taken against him. There are enough documents indicting Kejriwal, but it appears that there are different set of rules for Asim and Kejriwal and (health minister) Satyendar Jain," he said.

Khan was sacked from Kejriwal's cabinet over graft charges.

Mishra also called upon those who participated in the India Against Corruption movement, which was a precursor to the formation of AAP, to attend the exhibition on 3 June at the Constitution Club in New Delhi.

"A decision will be taken on the next course of action i.e. a no-confidence motion against the Kejriwal government, a referendum or right to recall," he said.

During their anti-corruption movement days, Kejriwal and social activist Anna Hazare used to invoke the concept of 'right to recall' a government or any elected representative in case they were found to be not performing.

The sacked minister had accused Jain of giving Rs 2 crore to Kejriwal.
Patna: Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi accused Lalu Prasad Yadav's wife Rabri Devi of acquiring valuable land allotted to minister Abdul Bari Siddiqui and former minister Sudha Shrivastava when she was chief minister.

"By misusing her position as chief minister, Rabri Devi had acquired land worth Rs 10 lakh each allotted to Siddiqui and Sudha Shrivastaa by MLA cooperative," Modi alleged in a statement.

"Its astonishing that in 1992-93, the MLA cooperative had alloted 5.59 decimal land to the two at a price of Rs 37,000 and after 10-years Rabri Devi acquired it from them at the same price," Modi alleged. The price of land today is in crore, he said.

Rabri Devi headed RJD government in Bihar from 1997 to 2005.

"What so special that while RJD leaders Raghunath Jha and Kanti Singh gifted their valuable lands to Tejaswi Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav and similarly Siddiqui and Sudha Shrivastava parted their valuable land for a paltry sum to Rabri Devi?" he asked.

Modi, who is former Bihar deputy chief minister, asked why chairman of the MLA cooperative Jaiprakash Narayan Yadav and its secretary Bhola Yadav, both close aides of Lalu Prasad Yadav, have not made the list of allottees of plot of the cooperative public.

Modi, the leader of Opposition in state Legislative Council, also questioned the silence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over the irregularities in MLA cooperative instead of dissolving the committee immediately.

Starting from allegations of dumping soil of an upcoming mall in the state capital in which Lalu's ministerial sons have stake in Patna zoo last month, Modi has

regularly come up with series of allegations of corruption and acquiring benami properties against Yadav's family.

Yadav and his party leaders have dismissed the allegations and leveled counter-allegations against Modi of patronising his businessman brother RK Modi in "dubious" deals.
Politics makes for strange bedfellows and Telangana politics, it would seem, is likely to make even strangers into bedfellows. After decades of fighting each other, it seems the Congress and the Telugu Desam are warming up to each other in India's youngest state. So much so that if the initial interest shown in each other stays till 2019, the two could even contest elections together.

Imagine a Chandrababu Naidu-Rahul Gandhi combination taking on K Chandrasekhar Rao and Narendra Modi. That will be a tectonic shift in politics in the Telugu states. Because do not forget, the Telugu Desam owes its birth to an anti-Congress position in 1982.

For the last three years, since the formation of Telangana and the Telangana Rashtra Samiti, the Reddy community has felt left out of the power equation. The Velama community to which chief minister KCR belongs, has been wielding dominance and the Reddys, who were used to positions of absolute political authority when the Congress was in power, want to get back to centre stage.

But the present Congress leadership does not inspire the confidence that it can upstage KCR two years from now. Though two Reddy leaders  PCC chief Uttam Kumar Reddy and CLP leader Jana Reddy  lead the party unit in Telangana, they do not have the killer instinct and the kind of sharp and colorful polemical faucet that KCR employs.

It is here that TDP leader Revanth Reddy scores. He is easily the most popular and aggressive non-TRS leader who manages a connect with the crowd. This despite being sullying his name in the cash for votes scandal where he was caught on tape, allegedly trying to bribe an independent MLA to vote for the TDP candidate in the MLC elections in May 2015.

It was senior Congress leader and former Union minister Jaipal Reddy who spilled the beans on the possible understanding when he said the party is ready to fight against the TRS with the help of other non-BJP political parties. That essentially boils down to the TDP and the Left parties, who have limited presence. Revanth Reddy has expressed similar views that TDP's fight is against the ruling party in the state.

The indications have been in the air for some time now. During the crisis over the chilli crop earlier this month, Uttam Kumar Reddy praised Chandrababu Naidu, something that may not find favour with the moribund Congress unit in Andhra Pradesh. Taking a jibe at KCR, he complimented the Andhra Pradesh chief minister for giving bonus to chilli farmers who were not getting minimum support price.

But this move has not found support among many Telangana Congress leaders who see in this political understanding an ideological issue. How can the Congress tie up with a party that is an ally of the BJP at the Centre, goes the argument. But the flip side is that the BJP and the TDP are not allies in Telangana. In fact, if you look at both Telangana and Andhra together, the picture is like a Housefull movie screenplay. While fighting against each other in Telangana, the TDP and the BJP will be allies in Andhra where the Congress will be a rival.

The driver for this decision is also spurred by the suspicion over the real nature of the TRS-BJP dynamics. While Amit Shah's criticism of the KCR regime and the CM's sharp retort would make it seem the two parties are at daggers drawn, there are few takers for the theory. "Modi se dosti aur Amit Shah se kushti (Friendship with Modi and tussle with Amit Shah)" asked Jaipal Reddy. He believes there is more than what meets the eye given KCR's equation with Narendra Modi and the enthusiasm among many TRS MPs to be part of the NDA in New Delhi. The TRS will be more than happy with a situation where the BJP ends up short of a few seats post 2019 and has to take a lift from the pink party's ambassador car to get past the 272 mark. The Congress thinks the TRS will be happy with a stronger BJP in Telangana so that it cuts into the anti-TRS vote that otherwise would come into the Congress kitty.

It is not clear if the TDP Reddy-Congress Reddy bhai bhai has the blessings of the Congress High command or Naidu but should it take place, it has both advantages and disadvantages. On paper, the math looks good as it will prevent the split of votes. But the minus is that the TDP has an anti-Telangana image in the state and the TRS will go all out to tar the Congress with the same brush.

This is because even now Naidu does not hide his resentment against the bifurcation of united Andhra Pradesh. Moreover, many of the contentious issues over division of assets as per the Bifurcation Act have not been satisfactorily settled between the two states and it will be used by TRS to embarrass the TDP-Congress combine should it take place.

For Naidu, the fear would be that the leftover part of the TDP would be poached upon by either the TRS or the BJP if he does not take any steps to ensure its longevity. Already 12 of its 15 MLAs have joined the TRS in batches in the last three years and the party is a pale shadow of what it used to be in united Andhra Pradesh.

But if Naidu allows the polarisation to take place, it will be embarrassing for him to share the platform with the Congress in Telangana. It will expose him to charges of political opportunism. Either way, it won't be an easy decision to take. The only relief he has two years to take the call. And on a lighter note, it will be a ghar waapsi of a kind for Naidu as he was a Congress minister in Andhra Pradesh before he joined father-in-law NT Rama Rao's TDP.
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New Delhi: Accusing Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and his government of practising untouchability, the Congress demanded that he tender an apology to Dalits and a case be registered against him for insulting them.

Referring to reports that authorities distributed soap and shampoo to Musahar Dalit families and asked them "clean themselves" before attending a public meeting of the chief minister, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi, "The incident has depicted the true face of the BJP and the RSS, particularly the chief minister."

He said Adityanath appeared not to be a 'yogi' (renouncer), but a 'bhogi' (materialistic). "The true face, thought process, thinking, actions have reflected in the way the soaps were distributed and callous officials said that they must smell good before the chief minister. A low level of untouchability was directly practised," he said.

Strongly condemning the incident, the Congress leader said it was unfortunate that he who was supposed to be the guardian of democracy had displayed this mindset and his army of officials had implemented this mindset.

According to media reports, a day before Adityanath's visit to Mainpur Deenapatti village in Kushinagar district on Thursday, Musahar Dalit families received two soaps and a sachet of shampoo, and instructions to "clean themselves" before attending the public meeting.

"They (BJP leaders) have insulted the entire community of that village but more importantly they have insulted the concept of dalits in this country," he said.

The Congress spokesperson also asked which part of the Constitution was the chief minister upholding by reflecting such a mindset.

"The chief minister must immediately apologise to this community. Appropriate cases must be registered under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against him and his official army, which has practised this brazen and shocking form of untouchability," said Singhvi.
Pianist Elie Dufour, bassist Yann Phayphet and drummer Marc Michel met in France in 2010. They ended up creating EYM Trio, a jazz band which balances strong rhythms and beautiful harmonies, captivating the audience right from their first chords. Their music includes covers and original compositions inspired by rhythms from North Africa, Bulgaria, Romania and India.

In 2016, the band embarked for a seven gig tour outside Europe for the first time to India. They returned with a new experience and fresh inspiration, which evolved into their song called 'Bengaluru'.

The trio have not been able to get over their time in India and its audience. So, they're back in India this week. They are performing five concerts organised in association with the music agency Gatecrash. Here's the schedule :

May 31 - Bonobo, Mumbai

1 June - Shisha Cafe, Pune

2 June - The BFlat Bar, Bangalore

4 June - Depot48, Delhi

7 June - The Piano Man Jazz Club, Delhi.

They are the fresh young faces of European jazz, so walk on to any of the venues mentioned above and get ready for a new experience in Jazz music!
London: Britain on Monday said it would be a "strong partner" to Germany in response to comments by German Chancellor Angela Merkel about Britain and the United States no longer being reliable allies.

"As we begin the negotiations about leaving the EU, we will be able to reassure Germany and other European countries that we are going to be a strong partner to them in defence and security and, we hope, in trade," interior minister Amber Rudd told BBC radio.

"We can reassure Mrs Merkel that we want to have a deep and special partnership so that we can continue to maintain European-wide security to keep us all safe from the terrorists abroad and those that are trying to be nurtured in our country," she said.

Britain voted to end its four decades of European Union membership in a referendum last year and complex negotiations with Brussels are due to begin later this month ahead of an exit expected in 2019.

At an election rally in Munich in southern Germany on Sunday, Merkel told the crowd, "The times in which we could completely depend on others are on the way out. I've experienced that in the last few days".

"We, Europeans truly have to take our fate into our own hands," she said, speaking after a summit in Sicily with G7 leaders including British Prime Minister Theresa May and US president Donald Trump.

While Germany and Europe would strive to remain on good terms with America and Britain, "we have to fight for our own destiny", Merkel added.The German leader's comments also elicited reactions from two minor British opposition parties, the Liberal Democrats and the UK Independence Party.

"The Prime Minister has allied herself with Donald Trump and these comments are the inevitable outcome," Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said."It doesn't have to be this way, a vote for the Liberal Democrats can change Britain's future and we can avoid this extreme Brexit that Theresa May is pursuing," he said.
London: British Airways (BA) has not blamed any Indian IT firm for the massive flight disruption over the last weekend that hit more than 1,000 flights.

Reacting to the incident that saw most services cancelled from London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports on 27 May, British Airways told The Registrar that the problem occurred due to "power failure" and not because of any IT company.

"We would never compromise the integrity and security of our IT systems. IT services are now provided globally by a range of suppliers and this is a very common practice across all industries," British Airways CEO Alex Cruz told The Registrar.

The unions had blamed the airline's decision in 2016 to outsource IT jobs to India for the mass disruptions.

The GMB union, which had cautioned against outsourcing jobs, said BA laid off hundreds of IT staff and gave away the work to India. The union blamed cost cutting for the travel chaos.

According to Cruz, many of the airline's IT systems were back on Sunday "and my colleagues across the airline are working very hard to build back our flight programme and get as many of our customers as possible away on their travels.

"The airline's IT teams are working 'tirelessly' to fix the problems," Cruz added.

According to The Guardian, British Airways could face a bill of at least 100 million pounds in compensation, additional customer care and lost business resulting from the incident.
By Padraic Halpin

| DUBLIN

DUBLIN Campaigners seeking a ruling on whether Britain's departure from the European Union can be reversed have dropped the case they brought before the Irish High Court, one of the plaintiffs said on Monday.The campaigners, who raised 70,000 pounds ($90,000) in the space of 48 hours last December to fund their challenge, brought the case in Ireland in the hope that it would be referred to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for a definitive ruling. They cited the Irish state's opposition, the length of time the case would have taken and the potential scale of costs involved as the reasons for pressing on with their challenge.

"With regret, we have agreed between us and with Ireland that the litigation should be discontinued," British tax specialist Jolyon Maugham, the lawyer behind the challenge, said in a statement on his website.Maugham said last month that he expected the case could be referred to Luxembourg by June or July but on Monday said it was unlikely to be heard in front of the Irish High Court until the autumn, and even then would require a further hearing in the Supreme Court before a referral could be achieved.

A further likely four to eight month wait for the ECJ to hear the challenge meant a decision may not be made much in advance of October 2018 when both the EU and Britain say they hope to have concluded exit negotiations, Maugham said.He said the costs would not be insignificant and that of the money raised through a a crowdfunding website, a significant portion had already gone towards legal fees. Any remaining funds will be given to other Brexit-related litigation or to charity.

"Each of the European Council, Commission and Parliament has said the United Kingdom could withdraw the Article 50 notice (of the EU's Lisbon Treaty) with agreement. There is no doubt this is so," Maugham said."Discontinuing leaves open the possibility that the United Kingdom could withdraw the Article 50 notice unilaterally. This may be possible - legal opinions on the question differ - but discontinuing means we cannot know by this route whether it can." (Editing by Louise Ireland)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Beijing: China, on Monday, asked India to be 'cautious' and exercise 'restraint' over building infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the country's longest bridge linking Assam with the state claimed by Beijing.

"We hope India adopts a cautious and restrained attitude on the issue before the final settlement of the border issue with China to jointly control disputes, safeguard peace and tranquility in the border areas," the Chinese Foreign Ministry told IANS.

"China's position on the eastern section of the Sino-Indian border areas is consistent and clear," a statement in Chinese said.

Modi opened the country's longest bridge over Brahmaputra river that connects Assam's easternmost region with Arunachal Pradesh, claimed and dubbed by China as South Tibet.

"China and India should resolve territorial disputes through negotiations and consultations between the two countries," the foreign ministry said.

China and India have a longstanding border dispute.

The 9.2 km Bhupen Hazarika bridge will cut the distance and travel time between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by 165 km and five hours.

Analysts say the bridge will ensure swift movement of Indian troops in Arunachal Pradesh, which, therefore, will bolster India's defence along the China border.

China and India fought a brief war in 1962 when the Chinese entered Arunachal Pradesh and unilaterally declared a ceasefire after withdrawing to the McMahon Line.

Since then Indian and Chinese troops have had several skirmishes.

China has long been building infrastructure along the border unlike India, which, experts say, avoided building roads in the region, fearing a repeat of the 1962 war when the People's Liberation Army sent troops to Assam.
Beijing: China pleaded again for dialogue on Monday to ease regional tensions after North Korea launched its latest missile test in defiance of UN sanctions.

The Chinese foreign ministry urged Pyongyang in a statement to refrain from activities that go against United Nations Security Council resolutions.

"We hope that related parties can remain calm and restrained, ease the tension on the peninsula, and bring the peninsula issue into the right track of peaceful dialogue again," it said.

It was the North's third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year  carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

Following North Korea's test-firing earlier this month of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the North's main trade partner and ally, has repeatedly called for a resumption of six-party talks that have been dormant since North Korea walked out on the negotiations in 2009.

Washington says it is willing to enter into talks with Pyongyang, but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.
Islamabad: Pakistan has had a significant 40 percent drop in the number of American visas granted to its nationals under the new Trump administration despite not being on the list of the US president's travel ban countries.

Interestingly, the number of non-immigrant US visas to Indians has increased by 28 percent in March and April this year as compared to the monthly average of the previous year, according to the newly-released monthly official data.

Non-immigrant visas granted to Pakistanis are down by 40 percent in March and April this year compared to the 2016 monthly average, a Pakistani media report said quoting data released by the US State Department.

Pakistanis were issued 3,925 non-immigrant visas in April and 3,973 visas in March 2017 under the Trump administration.

The Obama administration last year issued a total of 78,637 non-immigrant visas to Pakistanis with a monthly average of 6,553, which was 40 percent higher than the current average.

Before March this year, the state department did not release monthly breakdowns of visas and only annual figures were available.

The report compared the March and April 2017 figures with monthly averages for 2016. Even in 2015, monthly average remained 6,179 as a total of 74,150 Pakistanis had been granted visas.

A spokesperson of the State Department told the The News International: "Visa demand is cyclic, not uniform throughout the year and affected by various factors at the local and international level. Visa issuance numbers tend to increase during peak travel seasons, such as during the summer and the winter holidays, though there may be different trends at the country, nationality, or visa-category level".

The data showed that Indian nationals received 87,049 visas in April and 97,925 visas in March this year. Last year, people from India received 72,082 non-immigrant visas each month on average with an annual total of 864,987 visas.

Pakistan is not the only Muslim-majority country experiencing decline in non-immigrant US visas. A similar analysis of 50 Muslim majority countries reveals that number of visas issued to their nationals has also declined by 20 percent in April as compared to their monthly country average last year, the report said.

The six countries targeted by president Donald Trump's revised travel ban  Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen -- experienced a 55 percent decline in non-immigrant visas compared with last year's monthly average.

Experts believe that drop in visas may indicate that more visa applicants are now subject to excessive scrutiny.

In January, Trump signed an executive order temporarily barring people from seven Muslim-majority countries  Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen.

In March, he signed the revised travel ban excluding Iraq from the list. The order was challenged in a court and a judge had halted the travel ban.
Perhaps the person who has profited the most from the phenomenon of 'fake news' is Donald Trump, the 45th President of the United States of America.

His campaign was mired in controversy and so is his presidency. From allegations of grabbing p*****s to setting up direct communication lines with Russia, Trump is in the middle of a meltdown.

But what's alarming is how Trump plays any negative news as 'fake news' and channels which pander to the administration, such as Fox also end up calling it BS. And now he's playing the fake news card with perhaps the most damaging scandal of them all: Russia and its alleged links to his campaign.

On Friday, one of the most damning stories about the Trump administration emerged from The Washington Post. The newspaper reported that Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner made a pre-inauguration proposal to the Russian ambassador to set-up a secret, bug-proof communications line with the Kremlin. The Post reported that Kushner (then and now) adviser to Trump, even suggested using diplomatic facilities in the United States to protect this channel from being monitored.

Michael Flynn, who was fired as Trump's national security adviser, was also present at this meeting which reportedly took place at Trump Tower in New York in December.

The Washington Post previously reported that investigators were focusing on meetings he held in December with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak and the head of a Russian bank that has been under US sanctions since 2014.



So, what's the deal?

Kushner had at least three previously undisclosed contacts with the Russian ambassador to the United States during and after the 2016 presidential campaign, seven current and former US officials told Reuters. Those contacts included two phone calls between April and November last year, two of the sources said. Reuters also reported that further details uncovered about this communication more extensive than what the White House acknowledged.

Separately, there were at least 18 undisclosed calls and emails between Trump associates and Kremlin-linked people in the seven months before the 8 November presidential election, including six calls with Kislyak, sources told Reuters earlier this month. Two people familiar with those 18 contacts said Flynn and Kushner were among the Trump associates who spoke to the ambassador by telephone. Reuters previously reported only Flynns involvement in those discussions.

Six of the sources said there were multiple contacts between Kushner and Kislyak but declined to give details beyond the two phone calls between April and November and the post-election conversation about setting up a back channel. It is also not clear whether Kushner engaged with Kislyak on his own or with other Trump aides.

Kushner has offered to talk to Congress about these meetings, according to his lawyer Jamie Gorelick. The report is another sensational detail in the deluge of allegations raising questions about the Trump team's relationship with the Russians, whom US intelligence agencies say tried to sway the November election in Trump's favour and thus deny Hillary Clinton the presidency.

How did FBI find out?

The FBI scrutiny of Kushner began when intelligence reports of Flynns contacts with Russians included mentions of US citizens, whose names were redacted because of US privacy laws. This prompted investigators to ask US intelligence agencies to reveal the names of the Americans, the current US law enforcement official said.

FBI investigators are examining whether Russians suggested to Kushner or other Trump aides that relaxing economic sanctions would allow Russian banks to offer financing to people with ties to Trump, said the current US law enforcement official.

The head of Russian state-owned Vnesheconombank, Sergei Nikolaevich Gorkov, a trained intelligence officer whom Putin appointed, met Kushner at Trump Tower in December. The bank is under US sanctions and was implicated in a 2015 espionage case in which one of its New York executives pleaded guilty to spying and was jailed.

What did Trump say?

And these massive allegations, at first, were met with silence from the Trump administration which then devolved into public scrambling to get their story straight. The morning after he returned from the 9-day long visit to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Palestine, The Vatican, Belgium and Germany, Trump broke his silence in his favourite way: On Twitter.

It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017

Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017

....it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 28, 2017

So why did Kushner need this channel?

Trump's war on fake news  and his go-to response for unfavourable news  aside, why did Kushner want these back channels and why was it important that these lines were secure enough to even avoid monitoring by US agencies? Former CIA Director Mike Hayden quoted in The Independent, perhaps asks an important question: What manner of ignorance, chaos, hubris, suspicion, contempt would you have to have had to think that doing this with the Russian ambassador was a good or appropriate idea?

Defence 1: Back channels are part of norm

According to an AFP report, senior Trump administration officials have defended Kushner's actions by saying that it is normal to establish back channel ties with a foreign government. Trump's National Security Adviser HR McMaster said, "We have back channel communication with a number of countries... I would not be concerned about it."

Homeland Security's John Kelly also said that it is "acceptable" and added, "Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organisations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us, is a good thing and, again, it comes back to whatever the communication is, comes back into the government and shared across the government; so, it's not a bad thing to have multiple communication lines to any government."

Defence 2: Just wanted to talk about Syria

According to The Atlantic, administration officials have claimed that this communications lines was about the Syrian civil war discussion.

Defence 3: Not diplomacy, just a channel to talk

The article in Politico also presents another argument  they were merely talking to the Russians like an Opposition party.

Rebuttal

Why did Kushner want to hide this from the Obama administration? Why were they in such a hurry to set this up even before the inauguration? Why was there deliberate intent to avoid any monitoring by the US intelligence agencies? Why did Trump transition team not want the Barack Obama administration to know about this channel?

For now, as no answers are forthcoming from the Oval Office, we have only questions.

With inputs from agencies
US president Donald Trump has told confidants that he will withdraw from the landmark Paris Agreement, according to news reports.

Axios reported that Trump has told many individuals in his administration, including EPA chief Scott Pruitt, that he plans to withdraw from the Paris climate change deal. This is a big deal.

Leaving the Paris Agreement would be the largest step Trump could take to reverse his predecessor Barack Obama's climate change policies, and tell the world that climate change is not a priority for the Trump administration, Axios reported.

Chicago Tribune reported that Trump left the G7 Summit without committing to the Paris deal. While the Trump administration said it would take its time and consider whether the United States would remain in the Paris accord, the other six nations agreed they would honour their commitment to the deal, Chicago Tribune reported.

Time reported that Trump, on Saturday, said he would give his decision on the agreement next week. On the campaign trail, Trump vowed he'd cancel the agreement and argued that it hurts US interests, however, his closest advisers are divided.

Pruitt and Steve Bannon have reportedly advocated for leaving the agreement, while US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Trump's daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner are strong advocates for staying in the deal, the report added.

What is the Paris Agreement?

The Paris Agreement was 195 countries reaching a deal in 2015  to save the earth from catastrophic climate change that threatened to bring about a mass extinction of species, including human beings  the agreement was described as historic because this was the first time a consensus was reached over the grave environment challenge facing all nations equally.

The agreement required the ratification of at least 55 states, representing 55 percent of global emissions. The United States and China, the two biggest polluters, ratified the Paris treaty in September 2015 and and urged other nations to follow suit.

The countries voluntarily agreed to hold the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels and also make efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. For this, the key was reducing the dependence on fossil fuels and cutting the greenhouse gas emissions.

A new world order

The US leaving the Paris Agreement would not put an end to the deal as we know it. However, as the second largest polluter on earth, the Paris deal would be in great jeopardy.

The Atlantic reported that the US withdrawing from the deal could create a "stampede effect", and other countries would follow suit. However, according to The Atlantic, it is likely that Trump will renegotiate America's pledge to cut greenhouse emissions as much as 28 percent by 2025, which was the goal of the Obama administration.

However, it isn't all doom and gloom. According to a report in CNN, the leadership vacuum left by the US could lead to Europe and China stepping up the fight against climate change. European leaders have hinted that should Trump withdraw from the Paris Agreement, a carbon tax might be levied on US imports, CNN reported.

Dire consequences for the planet

"The noose tightens," Princeton University climate scientist Michael Oppenheimer, co-editor of the peer-reviewed journal Climatic Change, told The Independent. The US withdrawing from the Paris Agreement would only aggravate the climate change problem and make it much more difficult to prevent the crossing of a global temperature to a dangerous threshold.

Three billion tonnes of additional carbon dioxide could be released into the air every year, melting the ice sheets faster, further raising sea levels and leading to extreme weather, the report added.

Trump in denial: Not just a river in Egypt

While Trump has publicly stated that he has an open mind on climate change, a look at his previous comments shows that he is a global warming sceptic. Five years ago, Trump called climate change a massive hoax perpetrated by China.

The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 6, 2012

The Chinese later promised they did not in fact, make up global warming to hurt the United States.

While Trump's aides have repeatedly said he is "evolving" on the issue of climate change, no one knows for sure which way Trump will go. The world is watching with bated breath. While it can still breathe.

With inputs from agencies
Washington: US President Donald Trump has accused media outlets of "fabricating" much of the news they publish about the White House and inventing anonymous sources on which the reports are ostensibly based.

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," said Trump in the first of several Sunday morning tweets, Efe news reported.

"Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names ... it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!" he added in two more tweets.

Now that the US president is back from his nine-day international tour, he appeared to be reacting to recent reports, citing anonymous sources, that his son-in-law  Jared Kushner  is being focused upon in the ongoing investigations into Russian interference in the November election and that Trump is planning big changes within the White House staff.

Since he came into office in January, Trump has repeatedly expressed frustration at press leaks coming from the White House or the US intelligence agencies, and in February he said that he had ordered an investigation of those "criminal" acts and that those responsible for the leaks would pay a big "price".

The president, who significantly curtailed his presence on Twitter during his first international tour  which took him to Saudi Arabia, Israel, The Vatican, Brussels and Sicily  could certainly be irritated at the revelations regarding Kushner published by The Washington Post last Friday in an article citing "US officials briefed on intelligence reports."

Both The Wall Street Journal  on Friday  and the Washington Daily, on Sunday, reported that Trump is planning a big shakeup in the White House, including possibly dismissing or reducing the role of Press Secretary Sean Spicer.

Those changes also include, according to the anonymous sources cited by the papers, creating a "war room" to respond to the constant media reporting on the Russia probe and directing the flow of the White House message on it, including the possibility that a team of attorneys may review Trump's tweets.

In his Sunday tweets, the president also referred to his international trip, saying "Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!".
New French president Emmanuel Macron is promising tough talk at his first meeting with Vladimir Putin on Monday, following an election campaign when his team accused Russian media of trying to interfere in the democratic process.

Macron, who took office two weeks ago, has said that dialogue with Russia is vital in tackling a number of international disputes. Nevertheless, relations have been beset by mistrust, with Paris and Moscow backing opposing sides in the Syrian civil war and at odds over the Ukraine conflict.

Fresh from talks with his Western counterparts at a NATO meeting in Brussels and a G7 summit in Sicily, Macron will host the Russian president at the palace of Versailles outside Paris.

Amid the baroque splendour, Macron will use an exhibition on Russian Tsar Peter the Great at the former royal palace to try to get Franco-Russian relations off to a new start.

"It's indispensable to talk to Russia because there are a number of international subjects that will not be resolved without a tough dialogue with them," Macron said.

"I will be demanding in my exchanges with Russia," the 39-year-old president told reporters at the end of the G7 summit on Saturday, where the Western leaders agreed to consider new measures against Moscow if the situation in Ukraine did not improve.

Relations between Paris and Moscow were increasingly strained under former President Francois Hollande. Putin, 64, cancelled his last planned visit in October after Hollande said he would see him only for talks on Syria.

Then, during the French election campaign, the Macron camp alleged Russian hacking and disinformation efforts, at one point refusing accreditation to the Russian state-funded Sputnik and RT news outlets which it said were spreading Russian propaganda and fake news.

Two days before the 7 May election runoff, Macron's team said thousands of hacked campaign emails had been put online in a leak that one New York-based analyst said could have come from a group tied to Russian military intelligence.

Moscow and RT itself rejected allegations of meddling in the election.

Putin also offered Macron's far-right opponent Marine Le Pen a publicity coup when he granted her an audience a month before the election's first round.

Macron decisively beat Le Pen, an open Putin admirer, and afterwards the Russian president said in a congratulatory message that he wanted to put mistrust aside and work with him.

Hollande's former diplomatic adviser, Jacques Audibert, noted how Putin had been excluded from what used to be the Group of Eight nations as relations with the West soured. Meeting in a palace so soon after the G7 summit was a clever move by Macron.

"Putin likes these big symbolic things. I think it's an excellent political opportunity, the choice of place is perfect," he told CNews TV. "It adds a bit of grandeur to welcome Putin to Versailles."

The Versailles exhibition commemorates a visit to France 300 years ago by Peter the Great, known for his European tastes.

Frank conversation

A Russian official told reporters in Moscow on Friday that the meeting was an opportunity "to get a better feel for each other" and that the Kremlin expected "a frank conversation" on Syria.

While Moscow backs President Bashar al-Assad, France supports rebel groups trying to overthrow him. France has also taken a tough line on European Union sanctions on Russia, first imposed when it annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, and cancelled a $1.3 billion warship supply contract in 2015.

During the campaign, Macron backed expanded sanctions if there were no progress with Moscow implementing a peace accord for eastern Ukraine, where Kiev's forces have been battling pro-Russian separatists.

Since being elected, Macron appears to have toned down the rhetoric, although he noted the two leaders still had "diverging positions" in their first phone call.

Macron has said his priority in Syria was crushing the Islamic State group, which will resonate with Putin.

One French diplomat said Macron was insisting on talking more after several years when everyone took France's hard line for granted, making compromise difficult.

"Macron gave himself enough wiggle room, which opens up a new diplomatic and political window," said the diplomat.
Melbourne: Australia's iconic Great Barrier Reef has experienced widespread coral decline and habitat loss than previously thought, due to global bleaching events over the last two years, scientists said today.

The 2,300 kilometre World Heritage Site suffered its most severe bleaching on record last year due to warming ocean temperatures during March and April.

"We are very concerned about what this means for the Great Barrier Reef itself and what it means for the communities and industries that depend on it," said Russell Reichelt, Chairman Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority in Australia.

"The amount of coral that died from bleaching in 2016 is up from our original estimates and, at this stage, although reports are still being finalised, it is expected we will also see an overall further coral cover decline by the end of 2017," said Reichelt.

Both aerial and in-water surveys confirmed a pronounced gradation in impacts from north to south.

It is now confirmed an estimated 29 per cent of shallow water corals died from bleaching in 2016. Coral bleaching did extend to deeper corals beyond depths divers typically survey to, but mortality cannot be systematically assessed.

This is up from the original estimated 22 per cent in mid-2016, with most mortality occurring in the north of the Reef, researchers said.

The most severe mortality was confined to the area north of Port Douglas, where an estimated 70 per cent of shallow water corals died and there was significant variability between and within reefs.

This year, further coral loss is expected from the second consecutive year of bleaching and the impacts of tropical cyclone Debbie, researchers said.

This is in addition to ongoing impacts from crown-of-thorns starfish, coral disease and poor water quality from coastal run-off.

The 2017 pattern of bleaching was similar to 2016, but most severe in the centre of the Reef between Cairns and Townsville. Ongoing thermal stress is also causing elevated coral disease.

Tropical cyclone Debbie impacted around a quarter of the Reef in early 2017.

Combined with coral bleaching - which is predicted to become more frequent and more severe as a result of steadily rising ocean temperature - the long-term trend of coral decline is expected to continue and accelerate.

Recovery from bleaching is also likely to be slower than from other impacts, researchers said.

Coral bleaching occurs when abnormal environmental conditions, like heightened sea temperatures, cause corals to expel tiny photosynthetic algae, called 'zooxanthellae'.

The loss of these colourful algae causes the corals to turn white, and bleach. Bleached corals can recover if the temperature drops and zooxanthellae are able to recolonise them, otherwise the coral may die.
Washington: Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner should have his security clearance reviewed after the revelation that he allegedly spoke with a Russian ambassador, the House Intelligence Committee's top Democrat has said.

"There ought to be a review of his security clearance to find out whether he was truthful, whether he was candid," Adam Schiff said on ABC News' 'This Week' on Sunday, the NY Daily News reported.

"If not, then there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance."

He said that Kushner's contacts with the Russians, if true, present "a real problem" in whether Trump's son-in-law should be trusted.

Schiff said he expects Kushner, who serves as a senior advisor to Trump, will soon be asked to testify before his House committee.

The Washington Post reported on Friday that Kushner, a real estate mogul, met Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak in December to talk about setting up a secret communications channel between Trump's transition team and the Kremlin to discuss Syria and other diplomatic issues.

Kushner was joined by Michael Flynn, the retired general who would resign as Trump's national security advisor after reports that he secretly spoke with Kislyak about sanctions.

The FBI is reportedly looking into Kushner and the Kislyak conversation as part of its probe into Russia's alleged hacking of the 2016 campaign and possible collusion with the Trump campaign.

The White House has tried to downplay Kushner's contacts, and Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said Sunday he "didn't see any big issue."

"I know Jared. He's a great guy, decent guy," Kelly told NBC News' 'Meet the Press.'

"His number one, number one interest is the nation. So you know there's a lot of different ways to communicate  back-channel, publicly  with other countries."
VERSAILLES, France French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday that he and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin were agreed the time was right for a new round of peace talks on Ukraine.The two were speaking at a joint news conference in Versailles, outside Paris, during a visit by Putin at the invitation of the newly inaugurated French leader.Macron said last week that he wanted to bring together soon the 'Normandy format' which groups the leaders of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine and which met first in Normandy, northwest France.

On Monday, he said Putin shared the same hope, adding that the talks should take place "in days or weeks."

Putin, for his part, said sanctions imposed by western countries on Russia over its activities in Ukraine would not help stabilise the situation in the east of the country where it borders Russia.Last Friday at G7 talks in Sicily, European Council President Donald Tusk urged the group's leaders to stick to their sanctions, but his urging came a day after a senior U.S. official said Washington had no position on the issue.

The 28-nation EU bloc and the United States imposed sanctions on Russia after Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and then backed separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.While EU leaders have so far backed sanctions until a shaky ceasefire agreement signed in February 2015 in Minsk is fully implemented, U.S. President Donald Trump's promise of warmer ties with Moscow has tested the EU's resolve to remain united on the issue. (Reporting by Michel Rose in Versailles and Ingrid Melander in Paris; Writing by Andrew Callus; Editing by Richard balmforth)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
London: British police carried out fresh raids in Manchester and arrested two persons in connection with the 22 May terror attack in the city.

Greater Manchester Police said the two men  one of them aged 19 and the other 25  were arrested on Sunday on suspicion of terror activities.

With the latest arrests, the number of those in custody in this connection has gone up to 13. Two others were earlier released without charge.

The 19-year-old was arrested in a raid on the former home of Salman Abedi, the suicide bomber behind Monday night's bombing at the Manchester Arena that claimed 22 lives.

Abedi, 22, was listed at the property along with his older brother, Ismail, who was arrested shortly after the terror attack at an Ariana Grande concert and remains in police custody.

Residents described their houses shaking and hearing a loud blast as officers forced their way into the semi-detached property in the Gorton area of Manchester, The Guardian reported.

Explosions were reported at several of the search sites on Sunday, although police have not commented on whether a controlled explosion was used to gain entrance to the property.

Earlier on Sunday, police had conducted raids in Moss side area of Manchester and arrested the 25-year-old man.

As the large-scale operation continued, Britain's National Health Service (NHS) said 54 people injured in the attack were still being treated in eight hospitals with 19 receiving critical care.

A total of 116 people had required hospital care in the wake of the massacre, police previously said.

Britain's terror threat level has also been reduced to 'severe' from 'critical'.

The terror threat level now indicates that an attack remains highly likely rather than imminent. The army troops deployed as a result of Operation Temperer will be reduced from Monday night.

Prime Minister Theresa May made the announcement after leading a meeting of the government's emergency committee Cobra.

About 1,000 armed police officers have been freed up by the decision to deploy the army to protect key sites including Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament.

Investigators believe 22-year-old Manchester-born suicide bomber Abedi, from a family of Libyan origin, acted as part of a terrorist network.

Abedi was known to United Kingdom security services, but his risk to the public remained "subject to review", according to reports.

In the Libyan capital Tripoli, Abedi's 20-year-old younger brother Hashem and their father, Ramadan, are being held by special forces linked to the country's interior ministry.
Berlin: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday described terrorism as the "gravest challenge" facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations (UN) to deal with this menace.

Modi, who arrived in Berlin on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, in an interview to German newspaper Handelsblatt said, "Europe has been hit hard by terrorism".

"To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace," he said.

Modi's remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently. The latest terror attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.

Speaking to the country's leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy "remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people".

"We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti-immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed," Modi said.

"We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation," he said.

Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was as among the "most open" and "fastest growing major economies in the world".

The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.

"India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time...There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council," he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.

On the India-German ties, he said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Start-up India, Clean India and Smart Cities.

In reference to the wider European Union (EU) and Britain's impending exit, he said, "The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security.

"India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach."

On the German side, Merkel had recently said, "The times when we could rely on the other have passed ... We Europeans, we must really take destiny into their own hands."

In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, Handelsblatt claimed.

The prime minister's visit to Germany has been described as a "new chapter" in the bilateral relations between the two countries.

"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit.

"Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation," he said.

The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine".

Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to $9.54 billion. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has embarked on a four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France with the aim of boosting India's economic engagement with these countries.

My visits to these nations are aimed at boosting Indias economic engagement with them & to invite more investment to India.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 28, 2017

The Ministry of External Affairs states that Modi will travel to Spain on 30 May for the official visit.

On 31 May, he will meet President of the Government of Spain Mariano Rajoy and discuss bilateral relations between the two nations. Modi is also scheduled to meet King Felipe VI of Spain. He will then go on to have a round-table interaction, called the India-Spain CEOs Forum, with leading Spanish business leaders to invest in India as part of his 'Make in India' initiative.

As Modi posted on his official Facebook page, there is significant potential for deepening bilateral trade and investment ties. Infrastructure, smart cities, digital economy, renewable energy, defence and tourism are some of the many sectors that can see India-Spanish cooperation. Combating terrorism will be another keystone discussion between the leaders.

With Spain, India has enjoyed cordial relations ever since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1956, which were initiated with the opening of the Spanish Embassy in New Delhi, followed by accreditation of our High Commissioner to London as Ambassador to Spain in 1958.

The economic ties between the two nations are particularly noteworthy. According to the Ministry of External Affairs, bilateral trade between India and Spain in 2016 stood at $5.22 billion, while India's exports to Spain stood at $3.83 billion.

Spain's exports, on the other hand, stood at $1.39 billion, meaning that India has a trade surplus with the nation. The key export items to Spain from India are organic chemicals, textiles and garments, iron and steel products, automotive components, marine products and leather goods.

Meanwhile, the imports are machines and mechanical appliances, vehicles and automobiles, plastic products, electrical appliances, rubber and rubber products and olives/olive oil. Spain also happens to be the 12th largest investor in India with $2.32 billion in foreign direct investments.

MEA adds that over 200 Spanish companies have subsidiaries, joint ventures, projects or liaison offices and purchase offices in India. There are also over 40 Indian companies in Spain, the most significant ones being in the areas of IT, energy, automobiles and pharmaceuticals. Indian investment in Spain stands at $800 million euros. Modi's trip to this European nation aims to further strengthen this economic bond.

Culture has also been a highlight in the two nation's diplomatic ties. Last year, the 'Festival of India', sponsored by Ministry of Culture, presented an array of events in Spain during 2016: Ranging from Indian dance and music to literature and theatre. The third International Day of Yoga was also conducted Spanish cities like Madrid, Barcelona, Valladolid and Canary Islands 18 to 25 June, together with seminars related to Ayurveda and Sanskrit.

India has the third largest Asian diaspora in Spain, with over 55,308 immigrants. MEA reports that the consular wing of the Indian Embassy processed 5,380 passports, 1,185 Overseas Citizen Of India (OCI) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) applications and issued 35,857 visas for Spain in 2016.

As an Economic Times piece reports, Modi will be signing the 'Agreement on Cyber Security' to tackle cybercrime and countering violent extremism, especially in light of ransomware like Wanacry affecting computers globally. There are also quite a lot of agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) pending between India and Spain. Many of these MoUs could be signed during this trip. Here is the list as of 13 April, 2017.
After an energetic start to his foreign tour, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has run into strong global headwinds.

A lot of it is not his doing. Tectonic shifts in global order have affected India as much as any other nation whose growth is invested, to a large extent, on the free movement of people and goods underwritten by the post-Cold War Washington consensus.

India has also been grappling with the rise of a hegemon in its backyard. Terrorism from across the border continues to bleed and distract us, drawing us into a reluctant war. The important thing to note is how India is reacting to the changes.

To his credit, in the three years that he has been in power, Modi has shown an eagerness to engage with sovereigns and the willingness to put in the hard yards to deal with a global order in a state of flux. He has made some mistakes in working on assumptive theories on Pakistan and China, but once rebuffed, has shown an admirable fluidity in recalibrating his positions.

He has sought to use India's large and influential expatriate population as a tool of foreign policy, taken a hard line on Pakistan and China, while also going out of his way to build partnerships in the subcontinent based on India's geo-economic advantages. He has also begun to court middle powers such as Japan and Australia to counter China's imperialist expansionism.

A common refrain runs through Modi's myriad foreign policy initiatives  an attempt to look at the bigger picture  and he has been pragmatic enough to base the initiatives on realism, not idealism. This is a crucial departure for a nation that has long sought to engage with other sovereigns based on how it would like the world to be, and not how it is.

Carnegie India director C Raja Mohan, in The Indian Express, writes of the three tenets that guide Modi's diplomacy: "One, diplomacy is about making friends into allies, neutrals into friends, and adversaries into neutrals. Second, political will and adroit diplomacy can alter the perspectives of other nations on issues of vital interest to India. Third, as the interests of countries evolve, so will their positions over time."

Nothing exemplifies this vision more than his ongoing four-nation trip of Europe starting with Germany, followed by trips to Spain, Russia and France. As American exceptionalism comes under challenge from a world struggling to cope with the collateral damage caused by Islamist terrorism, backlash against globalisation and the rise of a mercantile superpower in China, Modi has rightly seen an opportunity to extend India's engagement with middle powers that may provide India the cushion that it badly needs.

Modi's purpose during the six-day trip to four nations could be broadly divided into three parts:

1. Showcasing the economic opportunities that India offers, now under a unified tax regime.

2. Finding common ground on the global scourge of terrorism.

3. Focusing on partnerships and reinforcing commitment on relationships at a time when new alliances are forming and old ties are breaking down.

It wouldn't have escaped Modi's notice as he touched down in Berlin that Angela Merkel  with whom he is scheduled to have a private dinner on Monday at the chancellor's Schloss-Meseberg country retreat  has warned Europeans that they must take their fate into their own hands rather than "completely relying on Trump's US and a post-Brexit UK."

To the extent that the German chancellor will meet Modi at a private setting in a castle meant for high-level engagements, it shows that Germany attaches a lot of importance to the meeting and Merkel is willing to see what Modi has to offer.

As Seema Guha writes in Firstpost, "Germany is Indias largest trading partner within the EU. It is also one of the leading foreign direct investors in the country, with as many as 1,600 German companies operating in India. Six hundred joint ventures are already in place."

Yet, for nations that share democratic values and free trade, the strategic partnership hasn't reached the heights it should have. Part of the problem lies in the delay in talks between India and European Union (EU) on free-trade agreement (FTA) that has been hit by the Brexit bullet and the lapse of bilateral investment treaty.

The EU rejected India's 2015 model Bilateral Investment Treaty on the grounds that it kept taxation out of its ambit and kept international arbitration as last resort for any dispute. The EU wants more protections for its investors and Modi will have to convince the hard-nosed Germans that 'retrospective taxation' won't upset India-German bonhomie.

In a Facebook post, Modi says "India and Germany are large democracies, major economies and important players in regional and global affairs. Our strategic partnership is based on democratic values and commitment to an open, inclusive and rules-based global order. Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for Indias transformation."

Trouble is, transformational relationships are rooted in the hard realities of quid pro quo. The intergovernmental consultations and the meeting of top German CEOs will likely be dominated by talks on bilateral treaty. If Modi manages to hard sell India as an investment destination, he will find the Germans much more receptive towards accepting India's concerns on terrorism and Chinese expansionism. From Modi's stress on 'commitment to rules-based order', it is evident that India will explain its core concerns against joining Chinese president Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative.

As Livemint points out, in his next stop  Spain  Modi will become the first prime minister to land on Spanish soil for a bilateral visit since Rajiv Gandhi in 1988. The focus will be on deepening trade and investment with an eye on Make in India initiative. In his visit to France, Modi will meet president Emmanuel Macron, and terrorism is expected to figure high on the agenda.

It is during his Russia visit, (31 May - 2 June), when Modi attends the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit and addresses the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), that his skills as a negotiator will be tested. Modi faces the challenging task of thawing the India-Russia relationship. The historic tie has lost its ideological moorings. The new relationship is based purely on economic interests.

Modi will be under pressure to convince Russian president Vladimir Putin that the ties between the two countries run too deep for Russia to lean towards a Russia-China-Pakistan axis. In a Facebook post, Modi writes: "I greatly look forward to my visit to Saint Petersburg in this special year for the bilateral relationship as both countries celebrate the 70th anniversary of our diplomatic relations."

But will that be enough to wean a stagnating Russia away from a partnership with China, where it risks becoming just another client state? And how does Modi plan to balance his Russia outreach with the United States' 'Rebalance to Asia'?

We'll have to wait for the answers.
By Alexandra Valencia

| QUITO

QUITO Ecuador's new leftist president Lenin Moreno said on Monday Julian Assange is a "hacker," making his strongest comments to date against the WikiLeaks founder while still stressing he could stay on in the country's London embassy.Moreno, who was sworn in earlier this month, has broken with his predecessor and mentor Rafael Correa, who had said Assange was a "journalist" and granted him asylum in London in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations. Assange, who denies the allegations, feared Sweden would hand him over to the United States to face prosecution over WikiLeaks' publication of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents in one of the largest information leaks in U.S. history.

During the campaign, Moreno had already taken a tougher stance on Assange, warning him "not to intervene in the politics" of countries friendly to Ecuador. "Mr. Assange is a hacker. That's something we reject, and I personally reject," Moreno told journalists on Monday.

"But I respect the situation he is in, which calls for respect of his human rights, but we also ask that he respects the situation he is in."Assange dodged an eviction order in Ecuador's April election, after the right-wing candidate who had vowed to kick him out of the embassy lost to Moreno.

Still, the tight presidential election highlighted just how vulnerable Assange is should a new government be ushered in.In May, Swedish prosecutors dropped their investigation into the rape allegations but British police said Assange would still be arrested if he left the Ecuadorean embassy where he has been holed up for five years. (Writing by Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Sandra Maler)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Fiddle, viola and cello players of all ages and skill levels took part in Saturdays Tallgrass Prairie Fiddle Festival at Homestead National Monument, ready to play for a crowd that was eager for bluegrass and folk music.

The day started with fiddle and harmonica workshops before the fiddling competition began. Participants were required to bring their own fiddles, but the Homestead had harmonicas available to purchase for those wanting to take part.

Master violin maker Marilyn Wallin was on hand to help fix broken fiddles.

Wallin, whos based out of a shop in Lincoln, is a luthier and can repair almost any instrument with strings. Shes the granddaughter of Nebraskas first violin maker, she said. While she doesnt have any of his original instruments, she still makes repairs using his tools. She also had rosin, extra bows and a collection of accessories to help the fiddlers in need.

Shes been making repairs at the fiddle festival for a couple of years now, and she described the experience in one word.

Bliss, Wallin said.

I just love this sharing of music from the heart. I do my part, but my part is silent," she said. "When my job is done, they're still silent. It's time for them to become tools for someone else to use.

Folk music duo Debby Greenblatt and David Seay were up on stage, hosting the workshops and the fiddling competitions. They are a husband and wife team from Avoca, Neb. Theyve been performing side by side for 38 years and have been working with the Tallgrass Prairie Fiddle Festival since its inception in 1999.

They introduced performers and filled the air with upbeat music while judges Steve Hanson, Chris Sayre and Terry Keefe made their decisions.

There were three divisions in the fiddle competition. The juniors division, which was based not on age, but whether the fiddler had played for less than five years; the senior division, which includes musicians who have played for more than five years; and the legends division for the fiddlers who have taken first place in the senior division at previous competitions.

This was Maddyn Wenstrands first Tallgrass Prairie Fiddle Festival, and though she is only 12, she entered into the senior division as shes been playing for six years now.

Maddyn competed against her mother, Cari-Lynn Wenstrand, who works as a strings instructor for Lincoln Public Schools. Wenstrand said theres just something about being out at the Homestead that makes it a fabulous experience.

Fiddle playing is my hobby, Wenstrand said. The old time fiddle music is a big interest of mine. It's just really fun. There are so many styles of fiddle-playing, so it's just endless what you can do.

More than 20 fiddlers hit the stage on Saturday for the competitions. Some performed alone, while others were accompanied by guitarists. They were required to play three songs: one hoedown, an upbeat song in two or four count; a waltz, a dance tune in three count; and a tune of choice that could be a jig, polka, ragtime or blues tune.

For the junior division, Kirsten Shaw took first place, followed by Elya Constable in second and Patrick Marks in third. For the senior division, Grant Fincham won first, Cari-Lynn Wenstrand came in second and Riley Shaw was third.

For his fourth year in a row, legend Jason Shaw took first place in the legends division with second place going to Joseph Loftus and John Shaw coming in third place.

With prizes totaling more than $3,000 this year, Homestead National Monument expressed their thanks to the sponsors.

They received grants from the Nebraska Arts Council and Nebraska Cultural Endowment, as well as Eastern National. One organization thats been alongside the fiddle festival since its inception, said superintendent Mark Engler, is the Coffin Family Foundation. They are the reason theres no entry fee for the competition, he said, and a big part of whats kept the festival so successful.

A lot of work that the Coffin Family Foundation does to support the festival goes unseen, said park ranger Susan Cook. Things like the prize money and advertising for the event come from the foundation, she said.

The festival is one of the monuments most popular events, according to Engler. Like most things at the Homestead, he said, its dependent upon the weather cooperating, but its popular enough that they have to hire a bus to bring people in from the second parking lot. In addition to that, its one of his favorite things that the monument does each year.

I think it's just seeing everybody and how much they enjoy themselves, Engler said. Especially the musicians. When they go off in the corner and they practice and warm up, all these jam sessions, the air's just filled with all this music. I think that's one of the coolest things.

Maddyn Wenstrand agreed. Being out in the fresh air, surrounded by green trees and people enjoying the music just cant be beat. It also has another upside compared to playing at home.

It's a lot more peaceful because you don't have dogs running around, she said. Or little brothers annoying you.
Seoul: North Korea on Monday test-fired a ballistic missile, the latest in a series of launches that have ratcheted up tensions over its quest to develop weapons capable of hitting the United States.

The short-range missile flew for six minutes before landing in the Sea of Japan, the US Pacific Command said, adding it was working on a more detailed assessment. The launch comes in fresh defiance of tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised Friday that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved".

Trump's comments came at the G7 summit in a meeting with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan, which along with South Korea is most immediately threatened by North Korean belligerence.

Abe swiftly condemned the launch and vowed "concrete action" with the US. "We will never tolerate North Korea's continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community," Abe told reporters.

"As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international community's top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States," he said.

In Washington, a National Security Council spokesman said Trump had been briefed on the launch.

South Korea's new president, Moon Jae-In, ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said leader Kim Jong-Un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.

The isolated regime has been stepping up efforts to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental United States.

The missile launches, and Pyongyang's threat to stage its sixth nuclear test, have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention was an option under consideration.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said today's missile had a flight range of about 450 kilometres.

Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, told reporters the missile appeared to have fallen into the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ)  waters extending 200 nautical miles from its coast.

The regime has carried out two atomic tests and dozens of missile launches since the beginning of last year, with multiple sets of UN sanctions failing to halt its weapons push.

Following North Korea's test-firing of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet earlier this month, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the North's main trade partner and ally, has made it clear that the push for diplomatic talks  not imposing more sanctions  was the priority.

The United States has said it is willing to enter into talks with North Korea  but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.

Kim Jong-Un has sought to ramp up North Korea's nuclear programme under his rule, saying the regime needs atomic weapons to defend itself against the threat of invasion.

The UN Security Council adopted two sanctions resolutions last year to pile pressure on Pyongyang and deny the regime the hard currency needed to fund its military programmes.

In all, six sets of sanctions have been imposed on North Korea since it first tested an atomic device in 2006.
US president Donald Trump on Monday called North Korea's latest missile test a slap in the face for its main ally China, which the US leader praised for trying to rein in the regime.

"North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbour, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile... but China is trying hard!" Trump said in a tweet.

North Korea launched its 12th ballistic missile test in 2017 on Monday, this one falling provocatively close to Japan.

South Korea's military said the Scud-type missile travelled for 280 miles (450 kilometres), and Japan said it was estimated to have fallen into its exclusive economic zone, extending 200 nautical miles from the coast.

The test was carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings, amid fears that Pyongyang may conduct another nuclear test.

Trump declared at the G7 summit last week that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved" and has previously warned that no option is off the table.

But so far Washington has opted for sanctions and diplomatic pressure, looking to China, the North's closest ally, to step up economic pressure on Pyongyang.

In an interview with CBS News that aired Sunday before the latest launch, US Secretary of Defense James Mattis said a war with North Korea would be "catastrophic."
Islamabad: Pakistan is taking a relook at its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance to be led by its former army chief Gen Raheel Sharif to avoid further straining its relationship with neighbouring Iran, according to a media report on Monday.

The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan has decided to follow clear red lines in joining the alliance first announced by Saudi Arabia in 2015.

Its decision comes after statements by Saudi authorities at the Arab Islamic-US summit in Riyadh on 20-21 May suggested that the military alliance was meant primarily to counter Iran  a regional rival of Saudi Arabia.

The Riyadh summit focused on isolating Iran  which was kept out of the summit  and countering terrorism in West Asia.

Pakistani officials insisted that the Pakistan government in-principle agreed to be a part of the initiative if its sole purpose was to fight terrorism. It was believed that the government had joined the alliance when in April it green-lighted Sharif to leave Pakistan to lead the alliance.

But the officials said a final decision will be made once the terms of reference (ToRs) of the alliance are finalised. The ToRs would be finalised during a meeting of the defence ministers of the participating countries in Saudi Arabia soon.

A senior official familiar with the development told the daily that Pakistan would present its set of proposals during the meeting.

Pakistan, according to the official, would recommend that the military alliance should have a clear objective, that is to fight terrorism. Any deviation from this goal, he added, will not only undermine the alliance but lead to more divisions in the Muslim world.

"We are very clear that we will join this alliance only to fight terrorism," the official emphasised.

Foreign office spokesman Nafees Zakaria has also indicated that Pakistan was yet to take a final decision.

"What we need to understand is that the terms of reference of the alliance are yet to be finalised. The defence ministers of the participating countries will meet and discuss the modalities of the coalition. We must wait until we have all the information to comment on its outcome. We shouldn't indulge in speculations," Zakaria said in one of his briefings.

The Pakistan government has already given a public commitment that it would not become part of any initiative whose aim is to target any other Islamic country, including Iran.

Defence minister Khawaja Asif on the floor of the National Assembly has said that Pakistan would withdraw from the alliance if it turns out to be sectarian in nature.

Even Gen Sharif had reportedly told the Saudis that he would lead the grouping only if its main purpose was to fight terrorism and not aimed at any other Islamic country.

To avoid any strain in its ties with Iran, Pakistan had pushed for mediation between Tehran and Riyadh. Islamabad even mooted the idea of inclusion of Iran in the military alliance.

However, those efforts could not succeed since Saudi Arabia and Iran have serious differences on regional disputes, particularly the current hotspots in West Asia.

Pakistan's main opposition parties  Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Peoples Party  have been calling for maintaining "neutrality" in the Arab-Iran rivalry. But given the longstanding strategic ties with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is unlikely to completely withdraw from the alliance.

Nonetheless, officials stressed, Pakistan's participation would remain confined to counter-terrorism efforts.
Lahore: Pakistan's Punjab Assembly on Monday unanimously adopted a resolution demanding the federal government to immediately take up the issue of violence in Kashmir to the UN and request the world body to intervene.

The resolution was tabled by Opposition Leader Mian Mahmoodur Rashid in the Punjab Assembly's session on Monday.

The resolution condemned the killing of Hizbul Mujaheedin commander Sabzar Bhatt and other militants last week.

"This House shares the grief of the victim families, expresses solidarity with the Kashmiris," the resolution said.

It said, "The House demands the federal government to immediately take up the recent killings of Kashmiris at the hands of the India forces to the UN requesting it to intervene and stop the bloodshed in the valley.

It added,"Besides, the Pakistani government must raise this issue at other international forums to provide relief to the Kashmiris who are struggling for their freedom."

The assembly passed the resolution unanimously.

The opposition leader also demanded removal of Pakistan Kashmir Committee chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman for doing no service to the Kashmir cause."The federal government is spending Rs 2 billion annually on the Kashmir Committee which has completely failed to deliver as its performance is zero," he said.
Islamabad: Pakistan's Supreme Court dismissed the objections raised by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's son against members of a team investigating the Sharif family's overseas businesses in connection with the Panama Papers case.

Hussain Nawaz had pleaded with the apex court, urging it to remove two members of the six-member Joint Investigation Team (JIT) the court had appointed in April to investigate corruption allegations against members of the Sharif family.

A three-member special bench heard the Hussain's plea in which he had said that two members-Bilal Rasool of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and Amer Aziz of the State Bank of Pakistan - should be removed as members of the JIT, allegeing that they were not impartial.

He had said the presence of these two members may affect the fairness and impartiality of the JIT and its findings. Hussain's counsel, Khawaja Haris, had alleged before the bench that the two members have been "abusive", Dawn reported.

Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, who headed the bench, dismissed the accusation and ordered the JIT to continue its probe. Khan also said the two members were experts in white-collar crime.

"We will not change any member of the JIT, nor will we prevent someone from doing their work," the judge remarked, drawing attention to the fact that a special bench of the Supreme Court has appointed the six members of the JIT. Whether it is the prime minister or an ordinary citizen, nobody is above the law," he added.

The JIT has submitted an initial report before the apex court on 22 May and was told to complete the probe in 60 days. It has to submit a fortnightly progress report to the court. The case against the Sharifs is for alleged money laundering in the 90s when he twice served as prime minister. The JIT was formed as a result of the case filed last year after the names of his children appeared in the leaked Panama Papers, which documented the offshore dealings of many of the world's rich and powerful.

Sharif has denied any wrongdoing. Meanwhile at the hearing, Federal Investigation Agency's Additional Director Gen Wajid Zia, who heads the JIT, told the Supreme Court that Qatari royal Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al-Thani has not appeared before the investigating team.

Two letters signed by the Qatari royal have been presented before the court by the Sharifs to establish the legitimate money trail for the London apartments, that are at

the heart of the corruption allegation. Justice Khan said that if the Qatari royal did not appear before the JIT, his letters would be thrown out.
Islamabad: Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif's son Hussain Nawaz was interrogated on Sunday by a Supreme Court-appointed joint investigation team (JIT) probing his family's business dealings abroad, in the high-profile Panama Papers case.

Hussain was accompanied by his lawyer for the proceedings but the JIT objected to his presence and said Hussain can get help from the lawyer after securing permission from the Supreme Court.

According to officials, Hussain later faced the JIT alone and his questioning went on for about two hours.

Hussain visited the JIT office at National Judicial Academy in Islamabad after he was summoned on Saturday for questioning.

He appeared before the JIT despite his petition in the Supreme Court in which he raised objection about two members of the JIT whom he termed as biased.

According to a source, one of the JIT members is considered a close friend of former president General Pervez Musharraf. The other is said to be a relative of former Punjab governor Mian Azhar, a founding member of the Pakistan Muslim League and currently aligned with the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

The court would hear the petition on Monday and Hussain will personally appear before the three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan.

The JIT had submitted an initial report before the Supreme Court on 22 May and was asked to complete its probe in 60 days.

The JIT was set up following a decision by the Supreme Court on 20 April regarding Panama Paper case. The JIT has to submit fortnightly progress reports to the court.

Sharif had got a temporary breather from the Supreme Court which said there was "insufficient evidence" to remove him from office but ordered setting up of a JIT to probe the graft allegations against his family.

The high-profile graft case is about alleged money laundering by Sharif in 1990s when he twice served as the Prime Minister to purchase assets in London.

Information about the assets surfaced when Panama papers last year showed that they were managed through offshore companies owned by Sharif's children.

Prime minister Sharif has denied any wrongdoing since the scandal first surfaced.
Paris: Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo has called for a black feminist festival in the city to be banned on the grounds that it excludes white people, the media reported.

The Nyansapo Festival is slated to be held in July. Billed as "black feminist", 80 percent of the venue will be reserved for black women, the BBC reported.

Black people of any gender will be allowed in another area, while a third area will be open to all.

Hidalgo tweeted on Sunday that she reserved the right "to prosecute the organisers for discrimination".

Some French anti-racism organisations have condemned the festival, reports the BBC.

SOS Racisme called it "an abomination" and said it "wallows in ethnic separation", while Licra, the International League against Racism and Antisemitism, said: "Rosa Parks (American civil rights activist) would be turning in her grave."

Last week, the regional head of the far-right National Front party had challenged Hidalgo to explain the "blatantly racist" event.

The organisers said in a statement that they had been "the target of a campaign of disinformation and fake news orchestrated by the extreme right" and they were "saddened to see some anti-racist associations let themselves be manipulated".

They added that many had "no problem" with women-only feminist groups when race was not stipulated.
By Philip Pullella

| ROME

ROME Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday urged Pope Francis to visit Canada to apologise to indigenous peoples for the Catholic Church's treatment of aboriginal children in schools it ran there.Starting in the late 19th century, about 30 percent of children of Canada's native peoples, or about 150,000 children, were placed in what were known as "residential schools" in a government attempt to strip them of their traditional cultures and ancestral languages.For over a century, the schools were government-funded but many were administered by Christian Churches, the majority by Roman Catholics. "I told him how important it is for Canadians to move forward on real reconciliation with the indigenous peoples and I highlighted how he could help by issuing an apology," Trudeau told reporters after meeting the pope.He said he had invited the Argentine-born pontiff to make the apology in Canada.

Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission said in a 2015 report that the practice, which kept children from the First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples far from their parents, amounted to "cultural genocide". Many children were physically and sexually abused. The commission made 94 recommendations, including that the pope issue a formal apology in Canada to survivors and their descendents for the Church's "role in the spiritual, cultural, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse" of the children.

Trudeau said that in their private talks, the pope "reminded me that his entire life has been dedicated to supporting marginalised people in the world, fighting for them, and that he looks forward to working with me and with the Canadian bishops to figure out a path forward together".Canadian bishops have said the pope might visit next year.Trudeau said he and the pope also discussed climate change. Unlike U.S. President Donald Trump, who met the pope last week, Trudeau and Francis agree that climate change is caused by human activity.

"We talked about how important it is to highlight the scientific basis of protecting our planet and the moral and ethical obligations to lead, to build a better future for all people on this earth," Trudeau said.At last week's Group of Seven (G7) summit in Sicily, Trump refused to back a landmark international agreement reached in Paris in 2015 to reduce global warming.Trump said he would decide this week on whether to pull out of the accord, which was backed by his predecessor Barack Obama.Trudeau, who is Catholic, said he had "a deeply personal and wide-ranging, thoughtful conversation with the leader of my own faith". (Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Tom Heneghan)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Caracas: The Venezuelan Opposition has called to scale up the ongoing protests against President Nicolas Maduro's government, claiming that June will be a definitive month, and announced that the fundamental objective will be to block the Constituent Assembly.

"It is very important that the country knows that the Democratic Unity will take up June as a definitive month," the vice-president of the National Assembly, Freddy Guevara, said on Sunday on behalf of the Opposition alliance, Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD), and stressed that the Venezuelan people "have already spent 58 days on the streets".

"June is a key month in which the Venezuelan people will demonstrate their organisation, their conviction and their commitment to a free Venezuela through a process of increasing the pressure against the dictatorship significantly," he added.

Guevara questioned the Constituent Assembly, which Maduro's government promotes as a way out of the country's crisis, and warned that if "this fraud is allowed to be established, Venezuela will be lost."

"Therefore, we have decided to take this up as a fundamental objective, not only of the Unity but of all the people of Venezuela, to prevent that fraudulent process in the country," he said.

He urged the people to stay in the streets "despite repression, tiredness or hopelessness".

Venezuela has been facing protests by both the government and the Opposition for two months, some of which have resulted in violence, leaving at least 59 dead, according to figures from the prosecutor's office.
Washington: US Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly on Sunday said he was considering banning laptop computers on international flights into and out of the country amid signs of "a real threat."

Kelly made his remarks during the Memorial Day weekend, one of the busiest travel periods in the United States, at a time when the bombing at a concert in Manchester, England has raised concerns that further attacks  possibly involving explosives packed in electronic devices  may be planned.

"There's a real threat  numerous threats against aviation," Kelly told the Fox News Sunday program when asked about the likelihood a wide-reaching ban on large electronics in airplane cabins could be imposed.

Terrorists are "obsessed" with the idea of "knocking down an airplane in flight  particularly a US carrier, if it's full of mostly US folks," the homeland security chief said.

But in an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" later, Kelly specified that despite ongoing and persistent concerns, "we have no specific threats right now."

A laptop ban could disrupt travel between Europe and America. Some 3,250 flights a week are expected this summer between European Union countries and the United States, according to aviation industry figures.

If put in place, a laptop ban would greatly expand on a rule Kelly announced in March banning electronic devices larger than a smartphone from the cabins of flights from 10 airports in the Middle East and North Africa.

The rule affects Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Morocco.

Britain took similar measures in March targeting a smaller list of countries: Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Saudi Arabia.

In Europe last week during President Donald Trump's nine-day foreign trip, Kelly met with European Commission officials in Brussels to discuss a possible laptop ban in airplane cabins.
The US government is strengthening its crackdown on combatting corporate concentration in the meat sector, with a US$375 million cash injection. In the first round of... Read More
WILLISTON, N.D.  In Karolin Jappes first year as emergency manager in McKenzie County, she responded to five explosions at oil and gas facilities.

Jappe was most concerned that four of the five companies did not have emergency plans.

Its hard to work with a company when they dont have a plan, she said.

Three years into her job in North Dakota's busiest oil county, Jappe routinely participates in training exercises with oil companies to prepare for emergencies. Shes also established a list of local contacts for most companies in the event of an incident.

Thats critical, to have that relationship with the companies, she said. Its totally turned around from my first year.

Life continues to change in the Bakken as the northwest North Dakota oil activity picks up again.

North Dakota State University graduate Kevin Black left a job with a global oilfield services company right before oil prices dropped to launch a new business with his cousins.

Starting a company during the downturn made them nervous, but an innovative truck design that Black says came from North Dakota ingenuity helped the business expand while other companies were downsizing.

In a way, the timing really helped our company grow because we were filling a gap and a need in the market, Black said.

Pat Bertagnolli, a human resources manager for the oil industry, has seen firsthand the ups and downs in the Bakken. Now as the region is again facing a workforce shortage, hes helping develop strategies to recruit employees.

I think its going to be competitive out there with whats going on around the country, Bertagnolli said.

Better prepared

Since Jappe started working in McKenzie County in 2014, shes seen the risks in the oilfield decrease.

Today I think theres a lot more experienced people than there were three years ago, by far, Jappe said.

Shes also seen the community become safer. During her first month on the job, a tornado hit an RV park south of Watford City where many oilfield workers and their families lived.

Since then, the community has added tornado sirens and developed an emergency alert system to contact landlines and cell phones.

I just think were better prepared, said Jappe, a native of western Montana.

She also does outreach to educate people on how to prepare for North Dakotas extreme weather, particularly if they are new to the area or live in temporary housing.

The straight line winds alone will take campers and push them right over. Ive seen that several times, Jappe said.

Highway fatalities in McKenzie County have dropped significantly since the height of the oil boom  eight deaths last year compared to 25 a few years ago  thanks to new highway bypasses and other road improvements.

Jappe continues to worry about environmental damage from brine, a waste byproduct of oil and gas production, but shes seen an increase in pipeline monitoring.

If you have a brine pipeline, you have to watch that probably more than your oil pipeline, she said.

Doctors of the oilfield

Black and his cousins, Wyatt Black and Malachi Black, founded Creedence Energy Services in late 2014 to focus on what they saw as a niche opportunity in the oil industry.

As oil wells age, mineral deposits develop and build up, potentially causing wells to fail. Black said its similar to scum building up on a shower drain, but on a much larger scale.

This is a problem that all fields face to one degree or another, but it is certainly a significant problem in the Bakken, he said.

Their business, with a shop in Williston and administrative office in Minot, helps companies prevent problems by testing wells and prescribing chemicals to reduce failures.

Were kind of like the doctors of the oilfield, Black said.

They also found a way for oil companies to cut costs and improve safety with a unique pump truck design.

Instead of sending three to five pieces of equipment to a well site, their design allows them to send a single truck. In addition, their truck is engineered so chemicals no longer need to be transferred from drums or totes out in the field.

It significantly reduces risk to spills and exposure to chemicals, Black said.

By helping oil companies become more efficient and reducing environmental hazards, Creedence Energy Services grew during the downturn, now employing 11 people.

The company recently hired its second graduate from the University of North Dakotas petroleum engineering program.

Were very excited to be bringing young talent from the universities back out to Williston, Black said.

Skeptical labor force

As human resources director for B&G Oilfield Services, Bertagnolli said his best recruiting tool was focusing on making sure workers have a good experience in North Dakota.

All we really did was turn our employees into recruiters, Bertagnolli said. If we find an experienced pipeliner, hes got 20 experienced buddies.

With oil activity picking up again in North Dakota, experienced workers are again in demand. But many are nervous after losing jobs or seeing reduced hours during the downturn.

The labor force that we need out here is skeptical, said Bertagnolli, who moved to Watford City from Helena, Mont., in 2011.

He says communication and transparency with workers is key so they feel secure about their jobs.

If employees see a situation where they feel like their hours are going to be threatened, theyre jumping, he said.

Bertagnolli recently left B&G to join the human resources department of an oil company in the Bakken. He continues to serve on the states Workforce Development Council and says the early hires that come to North Dakota will be key.

That group is critical to us right now, to make sure they have a good experience, Bertagnolli said. Because theyre the ones that will say, This is real, come out here. If we are successful as a state with that, more people will come.
After a stint of frugality, Americans have returned to their borrowing ways. But are they getting into the kinds of debt trouble that lead to recessions?

U.S. consumers now owe roughly $12.73 trillion to banks and other lenders for mortgages, car loans and credit card spending, according to the New York Federal Reserve. That exceeds even the total before the last financial crisis.

Economists generally say people's willingness to borrow is a good thing, because it shows they're more confident about their financial futures. And the economy is in far better shape than a decade ago, when economists called the debt unsustainable and the housing market crashed. That's not the concern now.

"Some of us are worried that consumers are going back into old habits, but the U.S. consumer is in a much different position before the financial crisis and even before in the late 1990s," said Ryan Sweet, an economist with Moody's Analytics who is not related to the AP reporter.

Gone are the worries about second homes financed with no-money down mortgages. The stress points now are in three main categories: auto loans, credit cards and  to a greater extent but for different reasons  student loans.

"If it's not a tool you can use to build stability and long-term net worth, debt leads to more problems than it can solve," said Todd Christensen, a credit counselor with the nonprofit organization Debt Reduction Services.

STUDENT LOANS

Not all debt is considered equal, and both mortgages and student loans have typically been considered ways for people to leverage themselves into a better life. A home loan historically has been a way for middle-class Americans to build wealth, while student loans helped people get better-paying jobs.

Student loans have become a source of concern, though, as they become a greater proportion of the debt Americans owe  and those debts are not being paid back. In 2007, student loan debt was less than 5 percent of the debt Americans owned. That figure has more than doubled in 10 years to nearly 11 percent.

As college costs have risen and student loans get larger, the amounts that are delinquent have been increasing. Americans currently have $1.34 trillion in student loan debt, of which 10.98 percent is 90 or more days past due. That's up from 6.85 percent of loans 10 years ago.

"Student loans are a place to keep an eye on," Sweet said as a potential long-term problem for the U.S. economy.

Delinquent student loans can hurt a person's credit score, and affect the ability for a first-time buyer to qualify for a mortgage. That could become a bigger problem as millennials enter their prime years to become a homeowner.

Dallas resident Taylor Green, 29, is using debt strategically. Green, who works in finance, recently opened a credit card to help him and his fiance pay for their wedding. He hopes to use the points he earns from that to then help cover the cost of a trip to Europe.

"We both have good, stable jobs with decent security, so we are a more comfortable taking on the debt," Green said. "But we want to pay this debt down as fast as we can once the wedding is over."

Green says he also has significant student loan debt, which is in forbearance, that he plans to tackle aggressively once the wedding is over.

CAR LOANS

Americans have been on a car-buying binge, as automakers sold a record 17.6 million cars last year to beat the level set a year earlier. People are also borrowing more money to buy their cars and are financing them for longer periods of time.

The average length of a new car loan is around 62 months, compared to 55 months before the Great Recession, according to the St. Louis Federal Reserve. And delinquencies in auto loans have been inching higher as well. The percent of auto loans 90 or more past due has climbed for 13 straight months, to 2.30 percent of all loans. Five years ago, that figure was 1.63 percent.

Most of the delinquencies in auto loans have been concentrated around subprime borrowing, which has become more accessible to consumers in recent years. Americans with credit scores of less than 620, which is typically considered subprime or deep subprime, owe roughly $280 billion in auto loans  exceeding their pre-recession peak set in 2007, according to the New York Federal Reserve.

But economists don't believe that if those loans go bad that it would pose a risk to the U.S. economy, like subprime mortgages did in 2007. The entire auto loan industry is $1.17 trillion, compared with the $8.63 trillion mortgage market.

CREDIT CARDS

Of the three worry spots, credit cards are often seen as the most toxic of debts. They're easy to accumulate, generally used to buy non-wealth generating consumer goods and often have the highest interest rates.

Americans are carrying less credit card debt then they did before the Great Recession, but have re-embraced using them. Credit card debt has risen from $659 billion in 2014 to $746 billion last year, according to data from the New York Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, after years of trending lower, Federal Reserve data shows credit card delinquencies have reversed course and are climbing again  albeit still from relatively low levels.

Banks are seeing the same trend. JPMorgan Chase, one of the nation's biggest credit card issuers, had to set aside slightly more money to cover bad credit card debts in the most recent quarter. American Express, which historically has some of the lowest default rates because its customers tend to be well-off, also saw those rates rise slightly in its U.S. card business last quarter.

"It's worrisome, but at the same time, it was also inevitable," said Matt Schultz, senior industry analyst with Creditcards.com, a division of Bankrate.com. "There's only so much credit card debt Americans can hold before they get into trouble."

Another specter over those who are carrying higher credit card balances: interest rates.

With the economy in good shape, the Federal Reserve has started raising interest rates. But unlike mortgages, most auto loans and student loans, credit card rates are variable, and can move higher as the prime rate does. So that 15 percent rate on a credit card balance has moved up to 16 percent. How much small changes will affect people's ability to pay isn't clear, but Schultz is watching closely.

"Delinquencies will rise as interest rates rise. I don't know what the tipping point will be for the consumer is, but it's going to be fascinating to watch," he said.

___

Ken Sweet covers banking and consumer financial issues for The Associated Press. Follow him on Twitter at @kensweet.
U.S. First Lady Melania Trump opened a window onto the luxury world over the weekend when she wore a $51,000 designer jacket to a lunch on the sidelines of a global summit in Sicily.

While the revelation sent many into sticker shock, the reality is that those kinds of prices belong to the most exclusive high end of haute couture that operate at the highest level of hand craftsmanship, accessible only to the very few.

"For the brands, they need to do it, to have the attention and to keep the research and development high," said Claudia D'Arpizio, a senior partner at Bain & Company consulting. "There is not a real public for that. I would say very few women in the world are buying haute couture. While for the rest, I think people are spending money, but they are more cautious about value."

A floral applique jacket like the one Mrs. Trump purchased for the G-7 outing, for example, would require many seamstress hours of hand embroidery. Dolce&Gabbana did not release any details of the materials, but Stefano Gabbana celebrated its high-profile outing on Instagram.

Looking beyond the uppermost tiers of indulgence, a new Bain study shows that sales of global luxury goods leveled off last year from a period Chinese-fueled euphoria. They are expected, however, to grow again this year, despite uncertainty generated by the recent Manchester attack and changing U.S. travel policies.

Sales of luxury apparel, jewelry, accessories and beauty products last year totaled 249 billion euros ($280 billion), compared with 251 billion euros in 2015. They are expected to grow by 2 percent to 4 percent this year.

The forecasts reflect improved confidence in Europe, which suffered declines after terror attacks in Paris, and solid performance in China. They will offset a slowdown the United States due largely to the strong dollar and uncertainty over travel policy.

"Local customers are buying again, both in Europe and China," D'Arpizio said.

While sales in Paris are back to pre-attack levels, D'Arpizio said new uncertainties can affect the outlook. In Europe, that includes the impact from the more recent terror attack in Manchester. And in the United States, that includes the new administration's moves to impose a travel ban on some Muslim nations and even widen the ban on laptops in the carry-on luggage on inbound overseas flights, which she dubbed the "Trump Slump."

"These restrictions are not helping when planning holiday trips," she said.

While the impact on luxury sales of Trump's travel policies have yet to be calculated, D'Arpizio said the strong dollar is hurting sales to tourists to the United States, in particular from China, Argentina and Brazil.

For 2017, European sales are expected to increase 7 percent to 9 percent, while formerly double-digit China is expected to grow by a more moderate 6 percent to 8 percent. A slight contraction is forecast for the Americas and Japan.

The eye-popping price of Melania Trump's floral applique jacket goes against overall pricing trends in the luxury world.

D'Arpizio said high-end consumers are more price conscious than ever, and they won't accept an annual price increase for the same products. Innovation is key.

"They are happy to pay for newness or innovation or extreme quality that is durable but not for the same product that is inflated 6 percent every season," she said.
Congressional Democrats on Sunday demanded to hear directly from top White House adviser Jared Kushner over allegations of proposed secret back-channel communications with Russia, saying the security clearance of President Donald Trump's son-in-law may need to be revoked.

Trump, having returned from a nine-day overseas trip, immediately railed against administration leaks, calling them "fabricated lies," in a flurry of tweets.

And his Homeland Security head defended the idea of establishing that kind of communication as a "smart thing" and said he didn't see "any big issue here" for Kushner.

But to the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee, it's "obviously very concerning" that a key Trump campaign figure was possibly seeking secret communications with a country that intelligence experts say intervened in the 2016 election.

Rep. Adam Schiff of California said the government needed to "get to the bottom" of the matter and urged a review of Kushner's security clearance "to find out whether he was truthful."

"If not, then there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance," Schiff said.

The Associated Press and other news organizations reported that Kushner in December proposed a back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team. Kushner spoke with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about facilitating sensitive discussions to explore the incoming administration's options with Russia as it developed its Syria policy. The intent was to connect Trump's chief national security adviser at the time, Michael Flynn, with Russian military leaders, a person familiar with the discussions told the AP. The person wasn't authorized to publicly discuss private policy deliberations and insisted on anonymity.

Russia, a pivotal player in Syria, has backed Syrian President Bashar Assad, often at the expense of civilians and at odds with U.S. policy during Syria's long civil war.

The White House did not acknowledge the meeting or Kushner's attendance until March. At the time, a White House official dismissed it as a brief courtesy meeting.

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, described the latest allegations involving Kushner as "serious" and called for a thorough investigation.

"He needs to answer for what was happening at the time," Booker said. "What's worrying me are the patterns we're seeing. So one is this administration not talking about our values, cozying up to authoritarian leaders. And the other pattern we have is just a continuous drumbeat of inappropriate contacts with the Russians."

Lawyers for Kushner said he was willing to talk with federal and congressional investigators about his foreign contacts and his work on the Trump campaign.

The disclosure of the back channel put the White House on the defensive. Just back from visiting the Middle East and Europe, Trump on Sunday dismissed recent reports as "fake news."

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies," Trump tweeted. He added: "Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names ... it is very possible that those sources don't exist."

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said he didn't know if the news reports were true but described back-channel communications as a "good thing." He was echoing the sentiment of National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster, who declined to address the contents of Kushner's December meeting with the Russian diplomat to reporters in Sicily over the weekend and suggested that back-channel communications were commonplace and not concerning.

"It's both normal, in my opinion, and acceptable," Kelly said. "Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organizations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us is a good thing."

"I don't see the big deal," he added.

Kushner's involvement in the proposed back channel was first reported by The Washington Post, which said he suggested using Russian diplomatic facilities for the discussions, apparently to make them more difficult to monitor. The newspaper cited anonymous U.S. officials who were briefed on intelligence reports on intercepted Russian communications.

The Post reported that Kislyak was taken aback by the suggestion of allowing an American to use Russian communications gear at its embassy or consulate  a proposal that would have carried security risks for Moscow as well for as the Trump team.

According to the person familiar with the Kushner meeting, the Trump team eventually felt there was no need for a back channel once Rex Tillerson was confirmed as secretary of state on Feb. 1.

Flynn served briefly as Trump's national security adviser before being fired in February. Officials said he misled Vice President Mike Pence about whether he and the ambassador had discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia in a phone call.

Sally Yates, the former acting attorney general, told Congress this month that that deception left Flynn vulnerable to being blackmailed by the Russians. Flynn remains under federal investigation in Virginia over his foreign business ties. He was interviewed by the FBI in January about his contacts with Kislyak.

Kushner was a trusted Trump adviser last year, overseeing the campaign's digital strategy. He remains an influential confidant within the White House as does his wife, Ivanka Trump.

Federal investigators and several congressional committees are looking into any connections between Russia and the Trump campaign, including allegations that there may have been collaboration to help Trump and harm his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.

The Senate intelligence committee, which is investigating Russia's meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, has requested information and documents from Trump's campaign dating back to July 2015, the AP and other news outlets confirmed.

Kelly appeared on "Fox News Sunday," NBC's "Meet the Press" and ABC's "This Week," Schiff also spoke on ABC, and Booker was on CNN's "State of the Union."
Watch out for the "Mad Dog" when the sun goes down.

That's the message Sunday from Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, whose nickname has been used by President Donald Trump on Twitter.

The Pentagon chief is a battle-hardened, tough-talking retired Marine Corps general who was entrusted with some of the most challenging commands in the military.

So what might you expect him to say when asked, "What keeps you awake at night?"

Maybe another missile launch from North Korea? An attack by Islamic State militants? An incident in the South China Sea?

"Nothing," he tells CBS' "Face the Nation."

"I keep other people awake at night."
As the summer tourism season gets underway, Yellowstone National Park officials are figuring out how to deal with the ever-increasing visitation that stresses personnel and facilities, clogs roadways and sometimes results in tourists taking unnecessary and even illegal risks like getting too close to a 2,000-pound bison or a steaming hot thermal feature.

Were trying to look at this very comprehensively, said park superintendent Dan Wenk.

To do that, the park hired Ryan Atwell, a social scientist, in late 2015. Atwell is still putting together data from tourist surveys and comments from park staff to provide Yellowstone officials with enough information to back up a decision, whatever that may be.

One proposal that has long been suggested is busing tourists to ease traffic on park roadways, but thats complicated by the large size of the park and its numerous entrances. People may come in from the North Entrance at Gardiner and leave via the South Entrance near Jackson, Wyoming.

Ive not been quiet about saying limits on visitation are possible, Wenk said, but I cant say anything until we have the data.

Popular place

Last year Yellowstone played host to more than 4.25 million visitors, another record year for visitation. That number was up almost 4 percent from 2015 and was more than 21 percent higher than in 2014.

Part of the reason for the increase may have been attributed to the National Park Services 100th anniversary and national and international media attention focused on Yellowstone, including the entire May 2015 issue of National Geographic Magazine. Even without that limelight this year, park officials are preparing for tourist numbers to climb again, noting that for many visitors Yellowstone is a bucket list trip.

Despite so many people in the park, there are still plenty of places where travelers can avoid the hubbub, often by walking down a trail.

Some places are hit really hard, while many other areas in the park are pristine and unused, said Jennifer Carpenter, chief of the Yellowstone Center for Resources.

So crowding problems are not spread equally across the parks 2.2 million acres.

Its such a complex issue in Yellowstone because its such a big park, Carpenter added.

She noted that 84 percent of visitors surveyed said that even with more than 4.2 million people visiting the park they still enjoyed their experience. But Jody Lyle, chief of the Office of Strategic Communications, pointed out that more than half of visitors said crowding and traffic affected their trip in some way.

For every complex problem theres a simple solution thats wrong, Wenk said. A lot of people say, put in a transportation system, but how do we pay for it?"

Education

Park officials used to believe that many of the problems rangers and interpreters had with tourists were because those people hadnt read the brochures they were handed at the entrances. That newspaper contains warnings like the proper distances to stay away from certain wildlife. Or maybe the travelers simply ignored signs warning them to stay on boardwalks in thermal areas. So it was long believed more education was key, but that viewpoint may be changing slightly.

Wenk said in portions of the visitor survey hes looked at, some people said they knew they werent supposed to pose for a selfie next to an elk, but decided to risk it anyway.

I dont know how to deal with that, he said. I thought we had an information problem.

Last summer the park experimented with making violations more public, hoping that word of the violations and fines would spread and discourage other visitors from taking unnecessary risks, Lyle said. There was no way to judge if the publicity worked, but anecdotally she said it seemed to get some groups to respond.

Park newbies

Part of the problem is that about 84 percent of the visitors to the park every year are coming for the first time, according to park data. International visitors hail from as close as Canada to as far away as Asia and Europe, with 12 languages spoken.

The language barrier is there but perhaps not as big a problem as we thought, Wenk said.

Park officials have been proactive and contacted tour bus companies, whose traffic has steadily increased as the number of tourists from China has risen, to try and advise folks about rules and regulations before they even get to the park.

The park also hired rangers who spoke Mandarin, added seasonal employees to help with traffic jams and installed porta-potties to ease lines at bathrooms. The entry hours were expanded and Wenk empowered staff working in the different districts of the park to take action they thought would help.

But even if it could throw more personnel at the problem, which the park said it doesn't have money for, then Yellowstone runs into another obstacle. Residents living in nearby towns are now taking advantage of companies like Airbnb to rent out their apartments or homes to tourists. That has meant less housing available for seasonal workers. Yellowstone employs about 800 to 850 people in the summer.

Its the resource

All of the talk about traffic gridlock and human jams ignores one of the fundamental facts about Yellowstone management: that preservation of the unique resource and its wild inhabitants is the primary concern. Without either, the visitors who spend more than $524 million in communities near the park and support about 8,100 area jobs would evaporate. The cumulative impact of Yellowstone on the local economy has been estimated at $680 million.

That economic impact is only there if we continue to protect that place, Wenk said.

So when tourism bumps up against the resource, the park will rule in favor of the resource, Wenk indicated.

As we look to the future, preservation has to be the key value we consider as we address increasing visitation, Wenk noted in a press release about the parks economic impact. Protecting the park also protects the regional tourism economy.

Critics have questioned the parks dedication to that ideal, as infrastructure like new lodges, cell towers and increased infrastructure such as sewer plants are built. Theres also concern from groups like Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility questioning the increasing commercialization of parks to raise money. Wenk said such funding is a necessity.

We need to be increasingly reliant on earned revenue, he said.

Last budget year, the park received about $35 million in appropriations from the Department of the Interior, he said, but it costs about $90 million a year to run the park. So the rest of Yellowstones budget is paid for by things like utility reimbursements, franchise fees, visitor fees for everything from camping to entry, as well as donations from corporations like the camera company Canon.

Difficult issues

As maintenance backlogs swell in parks like Yellowstone, concern about more tourists, fewer employees and less money to maintain and operate the park may seem like much bigger problems than the few tourists who get burned, gored, injured or even killed while visiting Yellowstone.

After all, there has always been unacceptable behavior inside the park. The main difference now is that almost everyone is carrying a small camera or video recorder in their cellphones. Nowadays its more likely that the bad deeds will be posted on the internet where millions of people can see it.

So theres no research smoking gun that says: This is the reason we need to do X, Carpenter said. Where do we take action and what do we do?

The complicated issues are never far from Wenks mind.

My first thought when I wake up in the morning is: How do I not screw this up? he said.
President Trump has returned to the White House after a successful first trip abroad, signaling a shift back to domestic issues: health care, tax reform, and whether Republicans can work together to deliver legislation amidst ongoing distractions that continue to plague the administration.

The most recent disruption comes from a report by the Washington Post on Friday that suggests Trumps son-in-law, senior adviser Jared Kushner, might have been in talks with Russian officials to create a secret communication channel between the Trump transition team and the Kremlin.

But House Ways and Means Committee chairman, Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, is not concerned that the latest plot twist in the seemingly perpetual Russia probe will distract the administration from its political agenda.

There is a lot going on, and the public is seeing a lot of these issues being talked about online and on TV, and everywhere else. But in Washington, we are continuing to be just focused on delivering tax reform. We have to, Brady said during an interview on the FOX News Channel.

Despite the continued drama in the White House, and the reported turmoil within the GOP regarding the health care overhaul, Brady is confident Senate Republicans will come together to make good on their promise to repeal and replace ObamaCare, simply because doing nothing isnt an option.

Theyve [the Senate] got good smart people over there, they have learned a lot from the key changes and improvements we made, and Im just optimistic at the end of the day they will get it done, Brady said.

And although some Democrats have used the Congressional Budget Office score of the new revised GOP health care bill as a rallying cry against the American Health Care Act, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the chambers No. 2 Democrat, offered a ray of hope for bipartisanship.

Lets sit down together, Durbin said during an interview with Chris Wallace on the FOX News Channel. I don't agree with many aspects of [the Republicans] starter plan. But it's a good faith effort to do two things: Reduce the cost of health insurance and expand the reach of health insurance. That should be our national goal.

As for tax cuts, Brady acknowledged that its the biggest challenge of any generation, but believes the president and his team are focused on the timeline for delivering pro-growth, bold, permanent tax reform this year.
Ted Nugent is ready to serve his country whether that's in office or as a musician.

The outspoken rock guitarist addressed rumors that began swirling in February that he planned to run for Senate in 2018.

"Well, I'm a terminal 'we the people American patriot' and I think I'm doing the most important political job in the world and that is participating in the scared experiment of self government and demanding constitutional accountability from our elected employees," he said on "Fox & Friends."

He added, "There's no limit to what I'd be willing to do to help make this country great."

He's still mulling over a possible run for Senate and has been discussing his options with his "Republican friends."

"I'm a hell raiser," he said. "I'm what the Founding Fathers wanted all Americans to be...and it's all about the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Ten Commandants, the Golden Rule, being the best that you can be, earning you're own way."

He added sarcastically, "Wow, I'm a radical."

While the 69-year-old weighs his options, he is glad to finally have a "hell raiser in the White House."

He praised President Trump's efforts since assuming the presidency.

"[Put] America first, make America great again, job security, secure the border. You know, it's so simple even guitar players can figure it out," he said of Trump's priorities.

"If you're not pissing off the idiots you're an idiot," he added of Trump's critics. "He's not an idiot; He's driving the idiots crazy so I'm so proud of him."

Michigan GOP press officer Sarah Anderson told Fox News in February that they have not spoken with Nugent but that "Ted Nugent would be a great candidate to win against Debbie Stabenow."
One hundred years, one month and 27 days ago, the U.S. Congress declared war on Germany and officially entered into what was then called The Great War. Although the United States troops were relative latecomers to the conflict, its still unlikely that many Americans who served in World War I would consider it great in any fashion.

The war would come to be known for some of the most abysmal fighting conditions ever known by mankind. Trench warfare and chemical weapons like mustard gas covered much of Europe. Even 100 years later, the battlefields are still preserved carefully, to ensure that any residual canisters that may still lie hidden are not accidentally discharged.

In the relatively short amount of time the United States spent in World War I, from 1917-1918, more than 115,000 Americans were killed, among the 4.7 million U.S. service members overall.

On this Memorial Day, to be able to stand in the same locations our predecessors stood 100 years ago, its a stark reminder of the tremendous impact these men and women had at home and abroad.

But their service and their legacy live on today, as we, and several of our students, will see firsthand as we travel to Europe to retrace the experiences of some of the individuals who came before us.

Over the past three years, weve focused on the 715 members of the Bucknell University community who served and have learned incredible stories of selflessness and sacrifice. And now weve traveled to battlefields and grown closer to the Bucknellians who put their lives on hold in order to serve.

Student Anthony Paolella chose to research George Wilson Potts, Class of 1913; Potts was one of the 40 Bucknellians who gave their life to the effort. Julia Carita chose to study Thomas W. Agnew, who served in the ambulance corps and earned the French Croix de Guerre with a bronze star before returning and graduating in 1920.

Amy Collins researched 1st Lieutenant Charles OBrien, who, in September 1918, despite a serious leg wound, continued to lead his men until felled, and received the Distinguished Service Cross posthumously. And Julia Stevens focused on Katherine Baker, who served as a nurse alongside the French troops. She worked so tirelessly that a building of the Henri Rollet Association for at-risk children outside of Paris is dedicated to her.

These stories are just a few of the men and women who served in WWI, but they encapsulate the stories of all service members, across all wars and across all generations so well.

Among other stops, our team will also travel to Varennes-en-Argonne, where the state of Pennsylvania erected and still maintains a monument to commemorate all of the states soldiers, sailors, and Marines who served and gave their lives in France.

In wars that were fought thousands of miles away from our shores, its easy to lose sight of the impact these men and women had at home and abroad.

On this Memorial Day, to be able to stand in the same locations our predecessors stood 100 years ago, its a stark reminder of the tremendous task placed before them.

Were honored to have the opportunity to remember them in this fashion, thanks in large part to their answering that call.

David Del Testa is associate professor of history at Bucknell University and Adrian Mulligan is associate professor of geography at Bucknell University. Both serve as advisors for the Bucknellians in WWI project
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.

We didnt pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.

President Ronald Reagan

May is traditionally a month of delight and expectation. Summer is drawing near, the school year will end soon, pools begin to open, maybe a beach trip is planned. I look forward to all of that. But, for me and my family, an underlying twinge of pain, sadness and loss invades our hope and anticipation of an otherwise joyful month.

On May 14, 2007, my world flipped upside down. My husband, Army Major Larry Bauguess, was serving in his dream job, deployed to Afghanistan, as an operations officer in the 82nd Airborne Division. Larry was a warrior and a gentleman and, true to his roots, he was participating in a peace meeting in Pakistan.

By all accounts, the historic meeting was successful. The Afghani, Pakistani and U.S. leadership had reached an agreement. The leaders from all three sides shook hands, exchanged coins and posed for pictures. A short while later, a uniformed Pakistani Frontier Guardsman, who had the mission to provide security for our troops, instead raised his rifle, took aim and opened fire. Larry stood between the shooter and his men. On his feet, he protected his men and took the brunt of the assault.

Our tiny daughters Ryann and Ellie and I were in our home at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, when the notification team came to deliver the heartbreaking news. The sound of the doorbell startled me. I remember walking to the door on that beautiful May afternoon expecting to see a little one on our front porch wanting to play with my girls. When I looked through the peephole, I saw something entirely different.

Through the tiny glass tunnel, I saw a man dressed in army greens. As I pushed away from the door, blood rushed to my face and a cold chill raced up my spine. When youve been in and around the Army for as long as we have, you know what it means when a man dressed in an army-green suit with a chest full of ribbons comes to your house during a time of war.

Since that day, my daughters and I have had quite a journey of heartache and pain, but we have had joyful moments, too. We work very hard to strike a balance. We lean on our faith. We follow Larrys example.

We miss him. Every. Single. Day. We feel his void in everything we do, even 10 years later. But, we have chosen to drive on in a manner that, we hope, has honored him. If we didnt do that, if we had quit, if we had given up on life or felt sorry for ourselves even for a minute, Larry Bauguess would come down here and say, I didnt give my life so you could stop living yours. He would tell us to drive on. He would say, Live your life. The best way to honor me is to get back out there and continue to live.

I know he would say that to me, and I would say the exact same thing to him. So, we drive on. We live our lives, and we live in a way that we hope brings honor to him.

So, this Memorial Day, enjoy the pool. Enjoy the beach trip. Relish in the fact that the school year is almost over and summer is right around the corner. But, please, remember those intrepid Americans who, for decades and decades, have given that last full measure of devotion. Remember those who have given their lives to provide the blanket of freedom that allows us to live free. Never forget their sacrifice. Pray for the families left behind. And always remember that, though it absolutely is worth fighting for, freedom isnt free.
I completed 339 combat missions for over 800 flying hours in my career as a United States Air Force pilot. I am one of only two Air Force ace pilots from the Vietnam War, where I returned as one of the most decorated pilots in history. And I am fortunate enough to have survived to tell my tale.

Many of my fellow pilots and crew members did not.

It is for them we pay tribute on Memorial Day; those brave men and women who died in the act of service to our great nation.

This Memorial Day is of particular importance to me because it falls on the 70th anniversary of the United States Air Force. Upon graduating from the Air Force Academy in 1964 until retiring as an Air Force Brigadier General in 1999, I encountered some of the bravest and the most altruistic individuals Ive ever known; whose actions spoke volumes of their love of country and disregard for self.

So while you enjoy some extra time off, consider taking a moment to reflect on the selfless service of the fellow American service men and women who served and died to preserve our freedom  better yet, show your support by taking part in a local Memorial Day event.

It is also the ongoing 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War, which is the conflict where I served as pilot, becoming one of three ace pilots (someone who has shot down five enemy aircraft during aerial combat). Of the many American casualties during Vietnam, nearly 3,000 were Air Force service men and women. These Americans put aside their differences  cultural backgrounds, religions, and political views  to answer the call of their country. Whether they necessarily agreed with the premise of war, or not, these brave patriots laid down their lives to protect our nations principles and advance freedom for the oppressed.

Despite the various criticisms, the United States accomplished some very critical objectives during the fight in Vietnam. Among them, and most importantly, we helped stem the tide and spread of communism in that region, which ultimately led to the fall of the Soviet Union and the advance of freedom and democracy, which is felt around the world today.

For this and many other reasons, our living veterans of the Vietnam War deserve respect and admiration  make sure to thank them on this day  but their service pales in comparison to those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country; and it is those fallen soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines whom we honor on Memorial Day.

So, while you enjoy some extra time off, consider taking a moment to reflect on the selfless service of the fellow American service men and women who served and died to preserve our freedom. Better yet, show your support by taking part in a local Memorial Day event.

While many of the traditional Memorial Day celebrations have declined over the years, the National Memorial Day Parade in Washington, D.C. is one of the shining tributes that exist to preserve the legacy of the fallen. I look forward to taking part in the parade this year, and I will do so with my fallen friends in my heart and mind.

Brigadier General R. Steve Ritchie is a member of the American Veterans Centers Advisory Board. Hes the only Air Force ace pilot of the air war in Vietnam. A veteran of more than 800 combat hours in the F-4 Phantom during 339 missions over Southeast Asia, Ritchie is the only American pilot to down five MiG-21s, the most sophisticated fighters in the North Vietnamese fleet. By the time he left active duty in 1974, Ritchie had been awarded the Air Force Cross, four Silver Stars, 10 Distinguished Flying Crosses and 25 Air Medals - making him the 30th most highly decorated individual in United States military history.
In recent days we have seen shameful images of American young people burning the flag, disrespecting the national anthem and desecrating the U.S. Constitution. We have seen them try and silence free speech and bully those who defend freedom.

And while the young people who spit on our traditions seem to get all of the media attention, there are many young Americans who cherish our freedoms and have a profound respect for the red, white and blue.

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Trail Life USA and American Heritage Girls have taken up the mantle of defending our values and our traditions. And my email has been inundated with stories and photographs of Trail Men and American Heritage Girls honoring the fallen on this Memorial Day.

I was especially moved by the Trail Men of Troop VA-0412. They partnered with American Heritage Girls and placed more than 4,000 American flags on the graves of heroes resting in the Culpeper National Cemetery in Virginia.

Its nice to know there are some young people in America who still stand for the National Anthem and pledge allegiance to the flag, young people who understand that our freedom is bought with a price.

The cemetery staff took time to share stories about some of the men who gave their lives for our freedom  including Sgt. Cameron Thomas, killed in action in Afghanistan.

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Our troop placed a flag on his grave in his honor, Sharon Croushorn told me. We are so thankful for the opportunity to serve our fallen heroes in honor of Memorial Day.

Trial Life Troop KS-0007 and American Heritage Girls decorated St. Gregorys Catholic Cemetery and City Cemetery in Marysville, Kansas. The young people installed nearly 1,900 American flags.

Trail Life Troop CA-611 decorated hundreds of graves at the Riverside National Cemetery in California.

As a father and American it was a solemn and welcome experience watching our children learn, Trailmaster Aaron Wyant told me. One of my sons took his time reading the names on the headstones of the soldiers and he told me how sad he was at so many losses  but how glad he is for his freedom.

Its nice to know there are some young people in America who still stand for the National Anthem and pledge allegiance to the flag, young people who understand that our freedom is bought with a price. Its nice to know that Trail Life USA and American Heritage Girls are raising up a new generation of patriots.

And when they come of age, some of those very young people will answer the call and take their place among those who tend freedoms flame  those who ensure that our nation will always be the land of the free, the home of the brave.
A group of New Jersey eighth-grade students schooled House Speaker Paul Ryan over his unwillingness to critique President Trump.

About half of the more than 200 students from South Orange Middle School refused to pose for a photo with Ryan during a school trip to Washington, D.C., last Thursday.

Matthew Malespina, 13, who waited across the street with other classmates declining to be in the picture with the Wisconsin Republican, said the school informed them the night before of the photo op on the Capitol steps.

I was like, Oh God, Im not taking a picture with this man. I first texted my mom because my mom hates Paul Ryan as well, Matthew told the Post on Sunday. And I was saying to her, Oh God, I cant do this. I cant take a picture with him. She said that was completely fine, just be respectful.

Being in the photo wasnt mandatory, Matthew said, so he was surprised by the number of students who agreed to turn out because of the lack of support among the students for Trump.

Our school is pretty liberal. I only know three Trump supporters in our grade and theres a lot people in our grade. So its fairly liberal. [Teachers] knew that a lot of people didnt like Paul Ryan, he said. But they gave us the option. I was shocked by the number of people who wanted to join me and my friends to not take a picture of him. It was like half the grade.

His mom, Elissa Malespina, said shes proud of her son for standing up for his principles.

I proud of him that he chose to not do that and I proud he did so in a respectful manner, she told the Post. Yes, he [Ryan] is the third most powerful person in the nation, technically, but I dont agree with his stance on a lot of things and neither does my child.

Click for more from the New York Post.
The head of the Senate Judiciary Committee is calling for a review of potentially fraudulent statements and misrepresentations made by a Chinese company in promoting property investments that are partly managed by the company of senior White House adviser Jared Kushner's family.

In a letter sent to the Department of Homeland Security and Securities and Exchange Commission, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R  Iowa) asks for an investigation into the marketing claims made by Chinese firm Qiaowai Group to fellow Chinese investors of the One Journal Square project in Jersey City, N.J. The claims in question center on the promotion of the project to potential investors who seek to immigrate to the U.S. through the EB-5 investor visa program.

As Im sure you are aware, recent press reports indicate that Qiaowai has touted its relationship with the current administration as a guarantee that potential EB-5 investors will receive lawful permanent residence in return for a no-risk investment in One Journal Square, Grassley wrote in his letter.

Grassley cites stories from both Reuters and the New York Times that report that Chinese investors in the One Journal Square project were guaranteed of green cards and safe investments and that the president would make sure it came through.

Since the Reuters and New York Times stories were published in the middle of May, Qiaowai has removed any mention of the green cards or other promotions from its website, but Reuters noted that during a recent One Journal Square event in Shanghai the company advertised that the project in a real sense guarantees a permanent green card and the safety of the investment principal, and we consider it one of the best of Qiaowais 87 projects to date!

Grassleys letter is the latest in a series of stories related to allegations that the Kushner family used their connections to the Trump administration to advance their business. Jared Kushner's sister Nicole Meyer came under scrutiny earlier this month for purportedly using her brother's role in the Trump administration to attract investors.

Late last week it was reported that Kushner  who is married to President Trumps daughter Ivanka  proposed in December a back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team.

Kushner's involvement in the proposed back channel was first reported by The Washington Post, which said he suggested using Russian diplomatic facilities for the discussions, apparently to make them more difficult to monitor. The newspaper cited anonymous U.S. officials who were briefed on intelligence reports on intercepted Russian communications.

Reuters has reported that Kushner had at least three previously undisclosed contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak last year, including two phone calls between April and November. Kushner's attorney, Jamie Gorelick, told Reuters that Kushner "has no recollection of the calls as described."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A December meeting between Jared Kushner, President Donald Trumps son-in-law and one of the senior advisers in the Trump administration, and Russian ambassador Sergei Kislyak at Trump Tower focused on Syria, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News Monday.

During the meeting the Russians broached the idea of using a secure line between the Trump administration and Russia, not Kushner, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News. That follows a recent report from The Washington Post alleging that Kushner wanted to develop a secure, private line with Russia.

The idea of a permanent back channel was never discussed, according to the source. Instead, only a one-off for a call about Syria was raised in the conversation.

In addition, the source told Fox News the December meeting focused on Russia's contention that the Obama administration's policy on Syria was deeply flawed.

JARED KUSHNER WANTED SECRET COMMUNICATIONS CHANNEL WITH RUSSIA, NEW REPORT ALLEGES

Details of the meeting follow a NBC report that Kushner, who is married to Trumps daughter Ivanka, is currently under FBI scrutiny as part of the investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

Kushner suggested the use of Russian diplomatic facilities as a way to shield pre-inauguration discussions with Kislyak from monitoring, according to The Post.

Kislyak allegedly then relayed the suggestion to his superiors in Moscow. That was based on intercepts of Russian communications that were reviewed by U.S. officials, although neither the meeting nor the communications of the Americans involved were under U.S. surveillance, officials told the Post.

The source has told Fox News that Kushner is eager to tell Congress about the meeting and any others of interest.

Fox News Catherine Herridge contributed to this report.
Defense Secretary James Mattis offered a dark outlook of what war with North Korea would look like hours before the rogue regime launched another ballistic missile.

Mattis said in a televised interview with CBS News Face the Nation on Sunday that a conflict with North Korea would be probably the worst kind of fighting in most peoples lifetime.

The bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if were not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means, he said.

Later Sunday, North Korea tested a short-range Scud ballistic missile off of its eastern coast, the U.S. military said. The statement said the missile flew for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile flew about 280 miles.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said what appeared to be a North Korean ballistic missile fell within Japan's exclusive maritime economic zone.

We cannot tolerate such repeated actions from North Korea, and we have lodged a strong protest against North Korea, criticizing them in the strongest form, Suga said.

There was no immediate comment from North Korea's state controlled media. But the launch followed a report from the North that said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. It wasn't clear from the report when the test happened.

North Korea is still thought to be several years away from its goal of being able to target U.S. mainland cities with a nuclear ICBM, but each new test puts it closer to success. The North has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that target Japan and South Korea and U.S. forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Fifty-three years ago, Vida native John Olsen spent three months aboard a U.S. Navy tugboat in the South Pacific as part of a secret U.S. military chemical and biological weapons testing program.

After being honorably discharged, Olsen returned to Montana, earned a business degree from Eastern Montana College (now Montana State University Billings), and worked as a manager  until he started getting sick. Between 1981 and the present, Olsen has suffered a series of severe and sometimes life-threatening illnesses, including five bouts of cancer, extreme high blood pressure, cardiovascular problems, emphysema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder. Over the years, Olsen learned that some of his fellow sailors had similar illnesses, but they had been warned not to talk to anyone about what they did in equatorial waters back in 1963-64.

"We've got all kinds of problems, breathing and blood problems and cancers," Olsen said in a recent interview at his Billings Heights home.

Secret tests

Finally, in 2000, the U.S. Department of Defense publicly acknowledged Project SHAD (Shipboard Hazard and Defense), a series of tests in which U.S. military personnel were exposed to chemical and biological weapons and required to clean their ships with highly carcinogenic chemicals. SHAD was part of the larger Project 112 run out of a Utah military base from 1963 to 1974. It involved both land and shipboard testing of chemical and biological weapons.

As recently as last year, the DOD insisted that there was no proof that Project SHAD caused health problems for the sailors and Marines who participated. An Institute of Medicine report reached that conclusion, but the authors also said that their requests for additional information were denied by DOD because SHAD data remains classified.

Olsen, who became unable to hold management jobs due to his poor health, has received medical care at the VA. But he and other Project SHAD veterans have been denied VA disability benefits because they are denied access to their service records, which are still classified by the Pentagon.

Righting a wrong

Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., and Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., aim to help veterans like Olsen get the benefits they earned and have been denied for decades.

The senators introduced the Gary Deloney and John Olsen Toxic Exposure Declassification Act that now awaits a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Deloney was a U.S. Navy pilot who flew secret missions that exposed him to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. Deloney passed away still waiting for declassification of records that would prove his exposure to the toxic defoliant and qualify him for VA disability benefits.

Project SHAD alone exposed at least 5,900 U.S. military members to chemical and biological agents, according to DOD. Thousands more may have been exposed in other classified U.S. military operations.

S.726 would require declassification only of information necessary for a veteran to prove his or her claim for disability benefits. The bill also would allow the DOD to refuse to release records if the secretary of defense "determines that declassification of those documents would materially and immediately threaten the security of the United States."

It's hard to imagine that records proving Olsen's exposure to hazardous substances more than 50 years ago could be a threat to our national security in 2017.

Olsen obeyed the order to keep mum about Project SHAD, not even telling his wife, Bertha Olsen, until after the DOD acknowledged the project in 2000. The next year, they attended a reunion of Project SHAD veterans in San Diego.

"When we got married, I was not able to tell her anything I had done when I was in the service," Olsen said.

Military superiors had told him he was selected for this special project that would involve the very best sailors. He spent nearly two years training for it, including training in how to don hazardous materials suits. But during the actual months of testing, the sailors had no hazmat suits. The did get lots of shots that they were told were vaccinations against biological agents that would be sprayed on their ship.

The aerial spraying was always done at night, so the sun wouldn't destroy the biological agents, he said. Five tugboats would be lined up off Johnson Island. A Navy plane would fly over them, spraying them with something. Then the boat crew would clean their ships with gallons of full-strength chemicals, even cleaning the refrigerators so the food was exposed to the cleaner.

Olsen was 23 when his tugboat was being bombarded with still-classified substances. He's now 76. Some Project SHAD veterans are deceased. It's not known how many other veterans secretly exposed during their service to toxic substances are living.

This wrong should have been righted generations ago. Congress should approve the Toxic Exposure Declassification Act without further delay.

Hazardous duty

On this Memorial Day, there are American heroes being penalized for hazardous duty. It's time to honor that service. Congress must direct DOD to share information with VA for the sake of U.S. veterans.

We commend Tester and Moran for leading this belated effort. We call on Montana's Sen. Steve Danies and Wyoming Sens. Mike Enzi and John Barrasso to actively support the bill named for a Vida native who served in Project SHAD.

"Those medical records should not be classified at this time," Tester told The Gazette, just days after meeting with Agent Orange veterans now living in the Kalispell area. "It's a problem we shouldn't have to fix."

In the chaos of Washington, D.C., Congress can right this longstanding wrong  if Democrats and Republicans work together. Moran and Tester have started the bipartisan drive, time for the rest of the Senate to follow their lead.
President Trump visited Arlington National Cemetery on Monday to perform one of the most solemn duties as commander-in-chieflaying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The president gave his first Memorial Day address, after laying the wreath, like so many presidents before him, as part of the ceremony to remember, and honor, the men and women who died fighting for the United States of America.

Thank you for joining us as we honor the brave warriors who gave their lives for ours--Spending their last moments on this earth in defense of this great country and its people, Trump began. We only hope that every day we can prove worthy, not only of their sacrifice and service, but of the sacrifice made by their families and loved ones they left behindspecial, special people.

Trump went on to honor Homeland Security Secretary Gen. John Kellys fallen son, Robert, and the Kelly family.

I especially want to extend our gratitude to Gen. Kelly for joining us todayan incredible manI always call him general, Trump said. He understands more than most ever could, or ever will, the wounds and burdens of war.

Robert Kelly, 29, was killed in a roadside bomb blast in 2010 during a foot patrol in Afghanistans Helmand Province.

Trump added: To the entire Kelly family, today, 300 million American hearts are joined together with you. We grieve with you. We honor you and we pledge to you that we will always remember Robert and what he did for us.

Trump honored Gold Star families calling their fallen loved ones angels sent to us by God, in his first public address since returning from his first trip overseas as commander-in-chief.

They all share one title in commonand that is the title of heroreal heroes, Trump said. Though they were only here for a brief time before God called them home, their legacy will endure forever.

Trump went on to honor former Sen. Bob Dole and his wife, former Sen. Elizabeth Dole, and other Gold Star families and service men and women in the audience.

While we cannot know the extent of your pain, what we do know is that our gratitude to them and to you is boundless and undyingwill always be there, Thank you, Trump said. Their stories are now woven into the soul of our nation, into the stars and stripes on our flag, and into the beating hearts of our great, great people.

Vice President Mike Pence attended the ceremony, along with Defense Secretary Gen. James Mattis, and Homeland Security Secretary Gen. John Kelly, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Joseph Dunford.

Before the president began his remarks, Dunford thanked fallen military men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

They were people who stood for something larger than themselves, people who understood what we have in our country is worth fighting for, Dunford said, introducing Defense Secretary James Mattis.

To the families of the fallen both here, and at home, no words will ease your pain, but I bet you, let it have meaning unite your sorrow with their awesome purpose, Mattis said.

Trump finished his first Memorial Day address by honoring the unknown soldiers who have lost their lives in service.

Today we also hold a special vigil for heroes whose stories we cannot tell, because their names are known to God alone--the unknown soldiers, Trump said. We do not know where they came from, who they left behind, or what they hoped to be, but we do know what they did. They fought and they died in the great and noble act of loyalty and love to their families and to our country.
President Trump visited Arlington National Cemetery on Monday to perform one of the most solemn duties as commander-in-chief laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Vice President Mike Pence attended the ceremony, along with Defense Secretary Gen. James Mattis and Homeland Security Secretary Gen. John Kelly.

Trump laid the wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, backed away, and put his hand on his heart for the sounding of the Taps.

Secretary Mattis will give his first Memorial Day remarks at Arlington National Cemetery, before President Trump gives his address to honor the fallen military men and women on this Memorial Day, 2017.
President Trump proclaimed Memorial Day, May 29, 2017, as a Day of Prayer for Permanent Peace.

The White House released the proclamation last week, saying that Memorial Day is our Nations solemn reminder that freedom is never free.

I, Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Memorial Day, May 29, 2017, as a day of prayer for permanent peace, and I designate the hour beginning in each locality at 11:00 a.m. of that day as a time when people might unite in prayer, stated Trumps proclamation, urging the press, radio, television, and all other information media to cooperate.

Trumps proclamation also requests that governors of the United States and government officials direct the flag be flown at half-staff until noon, as well as half-staff flag displays from peoples homes for the customary forenoon period.

The proclamation comes, according to the White House, as we commemorate the centennial anniversary of Americas entry into World War I, when more than 4.7 million Americans served, representing more than 25 percent of the American male population between the ages of 18 and 31.

It is a moment of collective reflection on the noble sacrifices of those who gave the last measure of devotion in service of our ideals and in the defense of our nation, Trumps proclamation states. On this ceremonious day, we remember the fallen, we pray for a lasting peace among nations, and we honor these guardians of our inalienable rights.
Protests erupted in the Texas capitol building on Monday over Gov. Greg Abbotts new law cracking down on sanctuary cities, interrupting the final day in this years regular session of the Texas Legislature.

Hundreds of protesters chanted in opposition to the new law, forcing House leadership to stop the session and send state troopers to clear the gallery.

Activists wearing red T-shirts reading "Lucha," or "Fight," quietly filled hundreds of gallery seats as proceedings began. After about 40 minutes, they began to cheer, drowning out the lawmakers below.

Some protesters held banners that said, See you in court and See you at the polls, while others chanted Hey, hey. Ho, ho. SB-4 has got to go.

The demonstration continued for about 20 minutes as officers led people out of the chamber peacefully in small groups. There were no reports of arrests.

Abbott signed SB-4 into law earlier this month in an effort to remain consistent with federal immigration law. The law effectively bans sanctuary city policies in Texas and gives law enforcement officers the ability to ask the immigration status of anyone they stop. Under the law, officers who fail to comply, or cooperate, with federal immigration agents could face jail time and fines reaching $25,000 per day.

What it means is that no county, no city, no governmental body in the state of Texas can adopt any policy that provides sanctuary, and second, what it means, is that law enforcement officials, such as sheriffs, are going to be required to comply with ICE detainer requests, Abbott said on Fox & Friends the day after signing the bill into law.

He added, Isnt it quasi-insane that we have to pass a law to force law enforcement officers to comply with the law?

Texas is the first state to officially ban sanctuary cities under President Trump. Colorado passed a law in 2006 outlawing sanctuary cities, but the measure was repealed in 2013. So far, only Texas, Mississippi, Georgia, and Tennessee have officially passed bills into law banning sanctuary policies. Virginia attempted two measures in the Republican-led legislature, but both were suspended after Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe threatened to veto.

The Texas law is set to take effect on Sept. 1, and opponents have vowed to challenge it in court, after slamming it as the nations toughest on immigrants since Arizonas crackdown in 2010. But Abbott said key provisions of Texas law had been tested at the U.S. Supreme Court, which struck down several components of Arizonas law.

Mayors throughout the Lone Star State were in opposition to the bills passage, claiming it would weaken the relationship between law enforcement officials and the public, but Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton already filed suit against local jurisdictions that had been accused of not cooperating with federal immigration agents.

Paxton filed the lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, just days after Abbott signed SB-4 into law.

Unfortunately, some municipalities and law enforcement agencies are unwilling to cooperate with the federal government and claim that SB-4 is unconstitutional, Paxton said.

But opposition groups are pushing back.

Just last week, the Texas Civil Right Project filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of the Texas Organizing Project Education Fund, alleging SB-4 is a discriminatory, unconstitutionally vague bill that encourages racial profiling.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
He was the American president who aimed an entire country at the moon, and for that NASA will always remember.

President John F. Kennedy , born 100 years ago today (May 29), wasn't the first U.S. president to oversee NASA, but it was he who in 1961  amid a space race with the Soviet Union  set the country firmly on a path to the moon for the next giant leap for human spaceflight. To honor Kennedy's vision and space legacy, NASA is celebrating with a special JFK centennial website: http://www.nasa.gov/specials/jfk100/ . The website features images of Kennedy's biggest moments with NASA and astronauts, as well as excerpts from " Ten Presidents and NASA " by space policy expert John Logsdon, which originally appeared in the " NASA 50th Anniversary Magazine ."

"This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of President John F. Kennedy," NASA officials wrote on the centennial page. "Though NASA was formed by Dwight Eisenhower, President Kennedy gave the infant agency its early focus with his famous challenge to land astronauts on the moon by the end of the decade." [ Photos: JFK's NASA Legacy ]

The year 1961 was a transformative one for human spaceflight. On April 12 of that year, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to fly in space . (Alan Shepard, the first American in space, would launch just a few weeks later on May 5.)

On May 25, 1961, Kennedy issued his moon challenge to a joint session of Congress, where he called for increased funding for space exploration and clearly set the moon as a human spaceflight goal by the end of the decade.

"First, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth," Kennedy told Congress . "No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish."

You can read Kennedy's full speech to Congress .

Later that year, Kennedy again pitched the moon goal on Sept. 12, this time before a crowd of 40,000 at Rice University in Texas, where he gave one of his most famous and stirring speeches .

"We choose to go to the moon," Kennedy said during the speech. "We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too."

Kennedy would not live to see NASA, and the entire country, achieve the lunar goal the president set out in 1961. The president was assassinated in Dallas by Lee Harvey Oswald on Nov. 22, 1963. Six years later, on July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon, winning the space race and kicking off what would ultimately be six crewed lunar landings during the 17-mission Apollo program. [ Presidential Visions for NASA Throughout History ]

"What might have happened to Apollo and NASA overall, had Kennedy spent another five years in the White House, can only be a matter of speculation," Logsdon wrote in "Ten Presidents and NASA." "We know the public's association of the space program with Kennedy was so strong that six days after Kennedy was assassinated, the new president, Lyndon Johnson, announced in a nationwide television address that the NASA center from which our moon voyagers would launch would be named in Kennedy's honor."

NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida was the launch site for the agency's massive Saturn V rockets that launched Apollo missions to the moon. The spaceport also served as the home for NASA's space shuttle fleet.

According to Logsdon , on the day Armstrong and Aldrin landed their Apollo 11 lander on the moon, an anonymous citizen placed flowers and a note on Kennedy's gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.

The note read simply: "Mr. President, the Eagle has landed."

Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik and Google+ . Follow us @Spacedotcom , Facebook and Google+ . Original article on Space.com .
Authorities were investigating Sunday after 12 people were shot at a block party in Alabama.

Phenix City police said the shooting occurred at around 4:30 a.m. WTVM reported that police found a man with a gunshot wound to the top of his head when they arrived at the scene. He was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.

Eleven other victims were also hospitalized, but their conditions were not immediately known.

Authorities have not named any suspects nor have any arrests been made, the station reported.

Neighbors told WTVM that the neighborhood does not usually see any trouble.
A non-profit organization that honors fallen military men and women and their families by running launched a new initiative this yeara program dedicated to Gold Star children.

Wear blue, run to remember, is a national running community that honors the service and sacrifice of the American military, but co-founder, Lisa Hallett, who has lead the organization for almost a decade, decided to direct attention and effort to our newest heroes- the Gold Star youth.

Hallett started the wear blue Gold Star Youth Mentorship Program in April, which pairs active duty military with children of fallen service members.

So much attention is given to parents and spouses, but our Gold Star youth dont always have such a deliberate path to honor, remember, and celebrate their fallen hero, Hallett told Fox News. We had no idea where this program was going to go, but it has been amazing seeing our youth and mentors connect.

On the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, the mentor and Gold Star youth participated in a Heroes Hike joined by family members and local athletes. On Monday, Memorial Day, the mentors training and guidance allowed the Gold Star children to participate in wear blues annual Memorial Day run. Wear blue had Memorial Day meet-ups at various locations across the nation.

The run featured upward of 2,000 military, civilians, and Gold Star families; and the 21 youth, and 23 mentors who directly participated in the program.

Hallett told Fox News that the program has had a very personal impact on her family. Her husband, CPT John Hallett, was killed on August 25, 2009, just three weeks after the birth of their third child, Heidi, and just six weeks after his deployment with 5th Stryker Brigade to Shah Wali Kot District in Kandahar. Capt. John Hallett was killed when his unit encountered an improvised explosive device.

While my children Jackson, Bryce, and Heidi would never know their Daddy as we had hoped, I want his fellow military to serve as role models, offering a glimpse into the life of service that defined Johns career, passions, and ultimately, his death, Hallett told Fox News. This Gold Star Youth Mentorship Program has illuminated my childrens father for them, established healthy coping mechanisms, rebuilt their identities as military children, and empowered them on their journeys forward.

The organization was originally founded following the redeployment of 5-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, a unit that, while deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, sustained a significant amount of combat losses and casualties. During that deployment, a small group of 5-2 wives and battalion support staff met weekly to run, seeking to create a support network for one another. When the brigade returned, Hallett, and co-founder, Erin OConnor, turned the small group into a nationwide vision.

Im so proud of these kids  it was so powerful to hear them, our newest heroes, say the names of their fallen parents, and share how theyve chosen to move forward in their lives, Hallett told Fox News. They are such an inspirationto live a little stronger, push a little harder, and be a little better.


Americans turned out by the thousands Monday to celebrate the life and legacy of President John F. Kennedy on the day he would have turned 100.

The U.S. Postal Service commemorated Kennedy's centennial with a dedication of a JFK postage stamp in Brookline, a Boston suburb where he was born on May 29, 1917.

The image on the stamp is a 1960 photograph by Ted Spiegel of Kennedy when he was campaigning for president in Seattle. Boston Postmaster Nick Francescucci said the stamp was selected because of the way Kennedy was looking up.

"His eyes were high, they were looking to the sky (and) it looked like there was a big bright future ahead of us," Francescucci said.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Joe Kennedy III gave the keynote speech at the John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site  JFK's birthplace and childhood home. His great-uncle, he said, was a man who had honest and infectious pride. He not only implored a generation to serve, but he promised them a country worthy of their service, the congressman said.

A wreath-laying ceremony also was held to honor the 35th U.S. president at his gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Kennedy served as president from January 1961 until he was assassinated Nov. 22, 1963. He was 46.

In Boston, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum held a birthday celebration that included a cake made by the family of the baker who made the engagement cake for then-Sen. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier, museum officials said. The celebration capped a long Memorial Day holiday weekend of events to honor Kennedy's legacy and drew thousands of visitors on his centennial celebration.

"There's no one issue or one event that we could do to highlight the different facets of (Kennedy),"said Steven Rothstein, the library foundation's executive director. "Many of his key ideas are timeless. We fundamentally believe that JFK is a visionary who never goes out of style."

The late president's commitment to service also was celebrated at a Saturday ceremony co-hosted by the National Peace Corps Association. Association president Glenn Blumhorst said those who have served in the Peace Corps see themselves as "the living legacy of JFK."

Kennedy issued an executive order establishing the Peace Corps in 1961.

"His call to service in asking what we can do for our country is the way that we responded," Blumhorst said. "We feel that that is one way of completing our national service."
Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly is defending an alleged effort by top White House adviser Jared Kushner to create back-channel communications with Russia.

Kushner is President Donald Trump's son-in-law.

Speaking on Sunday's news shows, Kelly says he doesn't know whether the reports by The Associated Press and other news outlets are true. But he describes such efforts to communicate as "a good thing."

Congressional Democrats are demanding to hear directly from Kushner over allegations of the proposed secret back-channel. They say his security clearance may need to be revoked.

The top Democrat on the House intelligence committee is congressman Adam Schiff of California. He says it's "obviously very concerning" if a key Trump campaign figure was possibly seeking secret communications with Russia.

Intelligence experts say Russia meddled in the election.
In a story May 29 about a series of shootings in Mississippi, The Associated Press reported erroneously, based on incorrect information from authorities, the middle name of the man charged in the shootings. His name is Willie Cory Godbolt, not Corey.

A corrected version of the story is below:

The Latest: Teen says slain cousin shielded him from bullets

A Mississippi teen says his life was saved by his 18-year-old cousin who shielded him from bullets

BROOKHAVEN, Miss. (AP)  The Latest in a shooting in Mississippi that left eight people dead (all times local):

4:45 p.m.

A Mississippi teen says his life was saved by his 18-year-old cousin who shielded him from bullets.

Caleb Edwards says when a gunman entered a home early Sunday, "I thought I was going to die."

The 15-year-old talked to The Associated Press on Monday with his mother by his side. He says he was shielded from the gunman by his cousin, Jordan Blackwell, who was shot to death. Caleb's 11-year-old brother, Austin Edwards, was also killed in the mass shooting. Eight people, including a sheriff's deputy, were killed at three different houses in the small towns of Bogue Chitto and Brookhaven.

The suspect, 35-year-old Willie Cory Godbolt  known by friends and family as Cory  was arrested Sunday, hours after the rampage began. Investigators say he will be charged with one count of capital murder and seven counts of murder.

Blackwell's parents, Shon and Tiffany Blackwell, confirmed their son was killed.

____

9:45 a.m.

Authorities plan to charge the suspect in the shooting deaths of eight people in Mississippi with one count of capital murder and seven counts of first degree murder.

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain says those charges could change as the investigation continues. The suspect, 35-year-old Willie Cory Godbolt, is still hospitalized at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Police have said Godbolt is being treated for a gunshot wound.

Strain says Godbolt's first appearance in court depends on when he is released from the hospital and the court's schedule.

Godbolt is accused of shooting eight people to death, including a sheriff's deputy, at three separate homes Saturday night in rural Lincoln County. Authorities say Godbolt was either related to or knew the seven other people killed.

___

9:10 a.m.

Authorities say the suspect in the shooting deaths of eight people in Mississippi was related to or knew all but one of his victims.

Authorities on Monday released the names of the victims shot at three locations in rural Mississippi late Friday. They are: 55-year-old Barbara Mitchell; 53-year-old Brenda May; 35-year-old Tocarra May; a child who was not identified; a 17-year-old boy who was not identified; 45-year-old Ferral Burage; and 46-year-old Shelia Burage.

Police previously identified the one person whom the suspect did not know: deputy sheriff William Durr, 36, of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department.

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain says the suspect, 35-year-old Willie Cory Godbolt, is still hospitalized at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Police have said Godbolt is being treated for a gunshot wound.
MISSOULA  The morning after Republican Greg Gianforte secured a clear, if narrow, victory to become Montanas next congressman, party leaders and political observers parsed the results for clues about what the 2018 U.S. Senate race might look like.

At 10:33 p.m. Thursday, on the heels of independent and media election observers, the Montana Secretary of State called the race a victory for Gianforte. The final tally showed the Republican with 50.2 percent, Democrat Rob Quist with 44.1 percent and Libertarian Mark Wicks with 5.7 percent of the nearly 380,000 ballots.

Gianfortes 6-point margin of victory is smaller than other Republicans secured in 2016: Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton by 20 points and Ryan Zinke beat Denise Juneau by 16 points. Both political parties say the results provide favorable insights for the 2018 Senate race between Democrat Sen. Jon Tester and whomever Republicans select to face him in a contest that could start late this year.

Some had speculated that Gianforte himself might seek the seat after gaining a toehold in U.S. Congress as a member of the House. Political analysts say Gianfortes lackluster victory, coupled with continued fallout from his recent citation for misdemeanor assault of a journalist, might hurt his chances of securing the party and donor support necessary for that run, or should he decide to make a second bid to become Montana governor in 2020.

Rob Saldin called it an open question.

If he does run, what kind of support will he get from the party? Do they support him the same way they did this time? asked the University of Montana political scientist. Gianforte personally is more vulnerable. Hes run twice now. He lost the first and won the second one by a much smaller margin than other Republicans.

Even before it was clear Thursday night that Quist had lost, advisers to his campaign and the Montana Democratic Party were arguing Gianfortes assault citation was the beginning of the end of his political career.

But GOP Chairman Jeff Essmann said Thursdays results were hurt little, if at all, by Gianfortes citation. In fact, the incident might have improved his likability among some Republican voters.

Frankly, I think hes showed hes a human, you know. Theres certain voters that dont respond to the engineer, businessman persona and do respond to somebody thats human who, that when hes pushed, hes gonna react, he said.

Regardless of whether Gianforte is the partys pick, Essmann expressed confidence about the 2018 race.

Weve got a strong bench of Republican candidates. A lot of people kicking the tires. Last night, a big win, is going to encourage some people to take a look and think about making the commitment to run for that seat.

Secretary of State Corey Stapleton, a Republican, suggested the recent election could be a good indicator of voter interest next year.

Well probably expect almost identical turnout, he said. If this was similar to 2014, we will almost look for a 55 percent turnout in 2018, plus a premium for a U.S. Senate race because of the spending. So maybe thats 57 or 58 percent depending on how competitive it is.

About half of the states registered voters cast ballots  a near-match of the 2014 midterm election, but fewer than the 2016 general election, when nearly three-quarters voted. Analysts say the figure is impressive given that special elections historically draw fewer people to the polls.

Perhaps, they say, it is not surprising given the more than $17 million poured into the 85-day contest largely by national political organizations. Some wonder if Montana might finally see the same kind of spending on a U.S. Senate races seen in other states, where $20 million to $50 million has become fairly common in recent years.

The tea leaves I see are green, said Lee Banville, a University of Montana professor of journalism and politics. Theres going to be a lot of money in this race.

Constitutional law and campaign finance expert Anthony Johnstone agreed. He said the candidate selection in the special election could be indicative of the 2018 primaries and how both parties recruit their preferred frontrunners.

Gianforte and Quist "were selected, in this case by the parties, for name recognition and donor network more than policy or character issues or experience, he said, noting other leading contenders in the nomination process had years of political service under their belts as legislators or in other positions. Thats going to create an environment where we may see some surprise.

Since the Supreme Court of the United States opened up corporate spending in politics and triggered the formation of dark money groups known as Super PACs, Johnstone said the ability to raise big money has become an issue earlier than ever in campaigns. Rather than simply being a strategy decision in the general election, more and more candidates are deciding whether to even run in the primary because of their depth of ties, or lack thereof, with donors.

Millions was spent by both Democrat- and Republican-leaning groups in the special election, but the sources of that money couldnt have been more different," Johnstone said.

Largely because of outside spending, Greg Gianfortes support came from primarily billionaire-funded super PACs and wealthy donors inside and outside Montana, he said. Quists financial base was primarily small-dollar donors, both directly to his campaign and, to a limited extent, made to outside interest groups.

That make-up matches other recent federal races and could again be the pattern seen in 2018.

Despite the big spending in the special election, not all counties saw the same level of voter engagement.

Jeremy Johnson, a political scientist at Carroll College, noted that, at least at first blush, it appeared turnout was depressed somewhat in Missoula and Gallatin counties, possibly because most of the liberal-leaning college students who live there had already left for summer internships and jobs, or had trouble voting because of address changes.

The problem Democrats had wasnt the turnout, he said. In the swing areas, they didnt do that well.

Yellowstone County is the states most populous, accounting for 14 percent of all ballots cast Thursday. To win a statewide election, Democrats have to lose close there, said Saldin, the UM political science professor.

It wasnt successful this time, Saldin said of Democrats ground organizing with volunteers for Quist. How much time did Quist actually spend in Billings? He seemed to spend a lot of time in Missoula.

Those results could be troubling for Democrats after Juneau, the 2016 candidate for the same seat, only brought in 36 percent of the votes, almost the same as Quist. Gov. Steve Bullock, however, secured 48 percent of the ballots in his run for re-election.

Quist also lost Cascade County, an urban area that once reliably voted for Democrats but has become increasing competitive as Republicans have spent time and money building a network there since 2010. The margin was closer with Quist earning 42 percent of the votes, again a figure that almost perfectly matches that of Juneau. Again, Bullock performed bette,r with 54 percent support.

It has to do with how much the votes are about issues and how much they are about politics, Banville suggested. The more that its become a national thing, a referendum on Trump or whatever, the more it didnt help Quist. If were talking about the kind of tactical issues like public lands access, these are things that people think about in slightly more nuanced ways, Banville said, noting that Bullocks advantage could be as simple as the fact state races tend to focus more on issues of local importance and policy decisions than the bigger national tug-o-war between the political parties.

Congress is not making those kinds of decisions, but Tester has been good at sort of peeling off an issue that will help him resonate with more rural voters or ag voters or veterans, and those can really help win counties like Cascade.

Johnson also wondered if Democrats might have pushed potential voters too hard. Theres a fine line, he said, between buying enough fliers, text messages and television ads to motivate potential voters to get to the polls, and having spent so much they instead become annoyed and apathetic.

Some people were probably over-contacted, he said.

That balance might be more difficult for national organizations to gauge when advertising is cheaper in Montana than many other places around the country and voters here do not regularly see such big money and sophisticated, personal targeting used in state-level campaigns.

Nonetheless, Johnson said some positives can be found in the Quist results.

Democrats are doing 10 to 15 points better than in Novembers federal races. Certainly, he outperformed some other Democrats, like Hillary Clinton and Denise Juneau, he said. While you can flip certain areas, its not yet enough to flip predominately rural areas.

On their own, rural counties do not make a big impact on the results. But add up 10 counties with 2,000 voters and a candidate can amplify or negate the effect of a larger county like Silver Bow. Places like that, Quist won big, while Gianforte dominated in the rural counties.

We have to see how the Trump administration is doing in 2018. If Trump loses more of his popularity rating, its possible it would make Montana more competitive, Johnson said.

Yet, he noted the state differs significantly from some other areas  such as those surrounding New York or Minneapolis  with a significant number of Trump supporters who tend to be highly educated and suburban. The president did not campaign on some of the social issues of evangelical conservatives that had been a big draw of Republican support in the past, so how his policies affect pocketbooks will be key. Depending on the particular policies Trump pushes and whom they benefit  urban or rural communities, wealthy or working-class families  Montana conservatives either might double down on Trump or start to pull away.

Overall, Saldin said drawing conclusions about the 2018 Senate race from the recent special election is fraught because of one important fact: Tester is an incumbent, which Quist was not.

Tester has been around long enough that I wouldnt say this foreshadows the outcome, he said. But in general Democrats always have to run a little scared in Montana. That even includes Tester.

The Montana Democratic Party is gearing up, having hired Chris Meagher to anchor initial work on Testers campaign until a full team is hired. He suggested Thursdays results wont dictate much about their re-election strategy.

It doesnt change anything hes going to do, Meagher said.
A relative of the suspected gunman in the Mississippi shooting rampage that left eight people dead said he was "devastated" that a family dispute ended tragically on Saturday.

"I'm devastated. It don't seem like it's real," Vincent Mitchell said shortly after his stepson-in-law, Willie Corey Godbolt, was arrested. "Him and my stepdaughter, they've been going back and forth for a couple of years with that domestic violence."



Godbolt, 35, is accused of walking into Mitchell's home in Bogue Chitto in southern Mississippi just before midnight Saturday and opening fire, killing Mitchell's wife, his sister-in-law and one of their daughters.

Also slain was Deputy William Durr, a two-year sheriff's department veteran and former police officer in nearby Brookhaven, where authorities said Godbolt fled and killed four more people at two other homes.

Godbolt stormed into Mitchell's home that night and demanded his estranged wife give up their two children. She and the kids had been staying with them for about three weeks, Mitchell told The Associated Press.

"He'd come to get his kids. The deputy was called," and asked him to leave, and it seemed like Godbolt would comply at first, Mitchell said.

"He acted like, motioned like, he was fixing to go. Then he reached in his back pocket and grabbed a gun," Mitchell said. "He just started shooting everything."

Mitchell and Goldbolt's wife managed to escape.

Godbolt was arrested near the final crime scene, in a subdivision of ranch houses, and hospitalized in good condition -- treated for a gunshot wound -- but it's unclear who shot him. At least seven hours passed between the first shooting and arrest. Godbolt said he didn't plan to be captured alive.

"My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets," he said. "Suicide by cop was my intention."

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said prosecutors plan to charge Godbolt with murder. It's unclear what the motive for the shooting is at this time.

Authorities gave no details on his relationship to the victims, but a member of Godbolt's church told the Associated Press that everyone but the deputy was related to Godbolt by blood or marriage.

"Everybody that got killed was related to him, except the deputy," said Johnny Hall Sr., a longtime member of the New Zion Union M.B. Church in Bogue Chitto, not far from the initial crime scene, where he said Godbolt also was a member.

Godbolt himself shed some light on what happened, in an interview he gave to The Clarion-Ledgeras he sat with his hands cuffed behind his back on the side of a road in Brookhaven, about 70 miles south of Jackson.

"I was having a conversation with her stepdaddy and her mama and her, my wife, about me taking my children home," he said. "Somebody called the officer, people that didn't even live at the house. That's what they do. They intervene."

"They cost him his life," he said, apparently referring to Durr. "I'm sorry."

"My pain wasn't designed for him. He was just there," Godbolt said. "I ain't fit to live, not after what I done."

Durr, 36, was married and had an 11-year-old son, Lincoln County Sheriff Steve Rushing said.

Off duty, he was a ventriloquist who took his puppets to schools and churches. Two weeks ago, Durr entertained preschoolers at Brookhaven Academy, a Christian school in town. The message he shared was that  like fireflies  people can use their inner light to help those around them.

"His character: top-notch," said Page Nelson, the school's elementary principal.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
ARE CHANGES COMING TO THE WHITE HOUSE?

President Trumps first big move on the heels of his first foreign trip of his presidency could be to overhaul his White House staff. According to a report, Trump may bring back top campaign strategists, hire a PR staff and roundup a team of lawyers after more reports of alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election surfaced last week. Trump has reportedly entertained the idea of bringing back former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski and former deputy campaign manager David Bossie.

DHS CHIEF: NO BIG DEAL IF KUSHNER TRIED BACK-CHANNEL NETWORK WITH RUSSIA

DURBIN TO SENATE REPUBLICANS: LETS SIT DOWN TOGETHER ON OBAMACARE OVERHAUL

MATTIS: WAR WITH NORTH KOREA WOULD BE CATASTROPHIC

Defense Secretary James Mattis said in a televised interview Sunday that war with North Korea would be probably the worst kind of fighting in most peoples lifetime. Mattis did not mince words when speaking about a potential conflict, calling possible conflict catastrophic. Hours later, North Korea test a ballistic missile off of its eastern coast. The U.S. military said the missile flew for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan  in its economic zone.

NORTH KOREA TESTS SHORT-RANGE BALLISTIC MISSILE, US MILITARY SAYS

COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CRISIS OVER NORTH KOREA

MERKEL SAYS EUROPEAN UNION MUST CONTROL ITS OWN DESTINY

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday that the past few days have shown her that European Union nations must maintain friendships with the United States and Great Britain, but also put "our destiny into their own hands. Merkel did not mention President Trump by name, but her comments have been widely interpreted as a response to the president declining to join six other countries in reaffirming their commitment to the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement at the G-7 summit in Sicily that ended Sunday.

ERIC SHAWN REPORTS: MERKELS MESSAGE TO PRESIDENT TRUMP

MACRON SAYS TRUMP HANDSHAKE WAS MOMENT OF TRUTH

DHS CHIEF CONSIDERS LAPTOP BAN ON ALL INCOMING US FLIGHTS

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said in an interview on Fox News Sunday he is considering a ban on passengers carrying laptop computers on all international flights in and out of the United States. I might, he said. There's a real threat -- numerous threats against aviation. That's really the thing that they are obsessed with, the terrorists, the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if it's a U.S. carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly U.S. folks.

MATTIS: US USING ANNIHILATION TACTICS IN FINAL STAGES OF ISIS FIGHT IN MOSUL

TED NUGENT: THERES NO LIMIT TO WHAT ID BE WILLING TO DO TO HELP MAKE THIS COUNTRY GREAT

Ted Nugent is ready to serve his country whether that's in office or as a musician. The outspoken rock guitarist addressed rumors that began swirling in February that he planned to run for Senate in 2018. "Well, I'm a terminal 'we the people American patriot' and I think I'm doing the most important political job in the world and that is participating in the scared experiment of self-government and demanding constitutional accountability from our elected employees," he said.

SI MODEL: I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN

AMERICA A PROMISED LAND?

NAVY PARACHUTIST KILLED AFTER CHUTE FAILS TO DEPLOY DURING FLEET WEEK SHOW

COMING UP ON FNC

9:00 a.m. ET: Memorial Day observance at the National WWII Memorial to honor and remember more than 400,000 Americans who lost their live during WWII. Watch coverage on Fox News and FoxNews.com.

10:55 a.m. ET: President Trump honors fallen men and women of the Armed Forces with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. Watch coverage on Fox News and FoxNews.com.
A Pennsylvania police officer came in contact with a powdery substance while searching a suspects car over Memorial Day weekend, resulting in an accidental overdose.

Washington Township Police said two officers had responded to a one-car accident early Sunday morning and arrested Travis Ross for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Ross told one of the officers his wallet was in the center console of his car, Police Chief Scott Slagle said.

When that officer went inside of the suspects vehicle and opened the console, a powdery substance went up into the air, Slagle told Fox News. Slagle said the officer turned around and started walking back toward his vehicle. He was dizzy and felt his heart racing, Slagle said. The officer then went down on one knee feeling like he was going to pass out.

The paramedics were already on their way to the accident scene, according to Slagle. Once they arrived, they gave the officer two doses of Narcan and sent him to Forbes Regional Hospital where he was treated for a few hours before being released, Slagle told Fox News.

It is unclear whether the powder the officer came in contact with was heroin or fentanyl. Police said theyll know once test results come back.
The Supreme Court may soon decide how courts are supposed to view presidential power in the age of Donald Trump.

The administration has promised a high court appeal of a ruling blocking the president's ban on visitors from six majority Muslim countries. The case could be a major test for the young administration and for a court that has its 5-4 conservative majority restored with the confirmation of Trump nominee Neil Gorsuch as the ninth justice.

First, the justices must agree to intervene  something they'll probably do considering the importance of the issue. If so, then they will be dealing with an area of the law, immigration, where courts have given presidents a lot of leeway.

But the president's power over immigration is not absolute, and several lower courts have prevented Trump from putting in place a temporary ban on travel to the U.S. by residents of Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

The travel policy was first issued a week after Trump took office on Jan. 20 and then revised following initial unfavorable court rulings. The dispute is unusual because Trump himself has supplied much of the evidence that opponents said demonstrated that anti-Muslim prejudice lay behind the policy.

At issue in the case are statements Trump made during the campaign, in interviews and in his actions as president.

"We've never really had, at least in recent decades, a case like this which involves blatant evidence of pretextual discrimination by the president himself and also in the immigration sphere," said Ilya Somin, a professor at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School.

The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the travel policy Thursday, saying that Trump's comments helped show that the policy was "steeped in animus and directed at a single religious group."

One key issue may be whether statements from candidate Trump should carry any weight. Three dissenting judges on the 4th Circuit said the statements shouldn't be considered because candidates say many things while campaigning and shouldn't necessarily be held to them.

Josh Blackman, a professor at the South Texas College of Law in Houston, said he thinks the Trump factor that was central to the 4th Circuit's ruling could be less pronounced at the Supreme Court.

The court could pay more attention to declarations from Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly in support of the policy. "The justices recognize their decisions will long outlive Donald J. Trump. They'll be a little more careful to recognize that this isn't only for or about Trump," Blackman said.

Yet it may not be possible for the justices to separate the issue from Trump himself, said Richard Primus, a University of Michigan law professor.

"If a different president had issued this order, would it be unconstitutional? The question falsely assumes that another president could have issued this order. This order only makes sense from an administration that wants to demonstrate to its constituency that it doesn't like Muslims," Primus said. "Neither Obama nor Clinton, or either President Bush, would have issued this order."

It's hardly clear how the Supreme Court might eventually rule in the case, but Justice Anthony Kennedy probably will be in the majority whatever the outcome. That's because Kennedy, closer to the ideological center of the court than any of his colleagues, often casts the decisive vote when the court is otherwise split between conservatives and liberals.

Both sides in the dispute have pointed to an opinion Kennedy wrote in 2015 in Kerry v. Din, a case in which an American citizen sought to challenge the denial of a visa for her Afghan husband.

Kennedy sided with the other conservative justices in favor of the Obama administration and against U.S. citizen Fauzia Din. But 4th Circuit Chief Judge Roger Gregory used Kennedy's opinion to buttress his majority opinion against the Trump travel ban.

Judges must "step away from our deferential posture and look behind the stated reason for the challenged action" when a lawsuit makes a strong argument about bad faith motivating the policy, Gregory wrote, citing Kennedy's opinion.

The dissenting judges said Gregory misread Kennedy's opinion. "Nowhere did the Din Court authorize going behind the government's notice for the purpose of showing bad faith," the dissenters said.

Kennedy could well settle the disagreement over what he meant, and whether the travel ban is upheld or falls.
A tiger killed a female zookeeper after the animal entered an enclosure she was in at a zoo in England, police said.

Police arrived at Hamerton Zoo Park, located about 80 miles north of London, at 11:15 a.m. after they received reports of a "serious incident."

Air ambulance were at the zoo about 20 minutes later, but the zookeeper died at the scene after the attack. Visitors were evacuated shortly after the incident.

"At no time did the animal escape from the enclosure," Combridgeshire Constabulary wrote on Facebook, adding that they believe there was no foul play.

Eyewitness Jeff Knott, from Cambridgeshire, told Sky News that staff had been "a real credit" to the zoo during the evacuation.

"Staff were very calm and professional. All visitors around us were leaving in a very calm manner  no running, shouting or anything similar," Knott told Sky News.

Hamerton Zoo Park said in a statement that it appeared to be a "freak accident" and a full investigation will be conducted.

"All our thoughts and sympathies are with our colleagues friends and families at this dreadful time. The park will be closed from tomorrow 30th May, and we will give more information as soon as we can," the statement read.

The zoo did not provide any further details on the tiger.

Read more from SkyNews.
Hungary's government is donating 145 million forints ($525,000) to Saint Joseph's Clinic in Erbil, Iraq, which provides services for mainly Christian refugees living in the city.

An agreement on the donation, meant to cover the clinic's medical supplies for six months, was signed Monday by Hungarian Minister of Human Resources Zoltan Balog and Archbishop Bashar Warda, a Chaldean Catholic cleric in Erbil.

Warda said his archdiocese received 13,200 Christian families in August 2014 after they fled Mosul when the Islamic State group took control of the Iraqi city.

"Some families will not be able to go back, because their houses have been destroyed completely or burned," Warda told The Associated Press. "They need some time before making their way back to these villages."

Warda, who will meet Tuesday with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, said the donation "will be a big help" for the clinic, which provides free medicines to 3,100 people with chronic diseases.

The treatment of Christians in the Middle East was akin to "genocide, cleansing on a religious basis," Balog said at the signing ceremony. "The Christian quarter (of Erbil) practically turned into a refugee camp."

While Orban views the large number of Muslim migrants reaching Europe as a threat to the continent's Christian values and culture, last year the government set up a deputy secretariat within Balog's ministry to help persecuted Christians, especially in the Middle East.

In February, the agency said it gave 1 million euros ($1.1 million) each to Syria's Orthodox and Catholic churches to assist the return of refugees to their homelands.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to take action against North Korea after Pyongyang's missile test on Sunday ended in the Sea of Japan.

Abe addressed the situation in a brief televised address on Monday: "As we agreed at the recent G7, the issue of North Korea is a top priority for the international community," according to Reuters.

"Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea."

NORTH KOREA THREAT: MATTIS SAYS WAR WITH ISOLATED NATION WOULD BE 'CATASTROPHIC'

North Korea tested a short-range Scud ballistic missile off its eastern coast at 4:40 p.m. ET (5:40 a.m. Monday Korea time). The missile flew for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan.

US officials told Fox News a North Korean MiG fighter jet crashed near the launch site of the latest surface-to-air missile test.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said the missile fell within Japan's exclusive maritime economic zone. He said there was no immediate report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.

"We cannot tolerate such repeated actions from North Korea, and we have lodged a strong protest against North Korea, criticizing them in the strongest form," Suga said in a statement after the test.

This is the third missile test North Korea has conducted in a month. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has vowed to field a nuclear-armed missile that is capable of reaching U.S. territory.

Russia and China condemned Sunday's missile test and called for restraint.

FOX NEWS: COMPLETE COVERAGE OF NORTH KOREA CONFLICT

The U.S. military announced last Friday that it will be launching a first-of-its-kind missile intercept test this week. The test would involve launching a custom-made missile from the Marshall Island and aim to shoot it down in space by firing an interceptor missile from a base in California.

Fox News' Lucas Tomlinson contributed to this report.
The Latest on Europe's response to the large numbers of migrants and refugees trying to reach the continent (all times local):

10:30 p.m.

Greek judicial authorities have ordered an investigation into allegations that staff at a European Union-funded NGO sexually exploited refugees and misused money intended for their welfare.

Immigration Minister Ioannis Mouzalas on Monday handed Supreme Court prosecutor Xeni Dimitriou a letter from the EU's top humanitarian aid official outlining the allegations.

The NGO allegedly involved was not publicly named, and no details on the claims were provided.

Dimitriou ordered a preliminary investigation by a financial crimes prosecutor.

The allegations were first made public this month by the EU commissioner for humanitarian aid and crisis management, Christos Stylianides.

Stylianides' office said in a May 16 statement that the commission is taking the allegations "very seriously" and will suspend funding to the NGO pending the investigation.

___

3:57 p.m.

Romanian border police say they have detained 11 Syrian and Iraqi migrants who are suspected of trying to illegally cross the border and reach the Schengen zone.

Police said in a statement Monday that a man with both Romanian and Hungarian citizenship is also being investigated for migrant smuggling.

The statement said that police noticed a car with Hungarian plates which stopped 500 meters (550 yards) from the border with Hungary on Saturday evening.

There were five Syrian and Iraqi citizens, aged 23 to 32, and six minors aged 1 to 10 in the car, traveling with temporary asylum-seeker documents.

They told border police they wanted to illegally cross the Romania-Hungary border to arrive in the visa-free Schengen zone. Hungary is a member of Schengen while Romania isn't.
Moldova's pro-European Liberal Party quit the ruling coalition Monday following the arrest of Chisinau's mayor, but it looks like the government can keep its majority.

The Liberal Party withdrew its three ministers, a deputy premier and politically-appointed managers of government agencies from the three-party coalition that was formed after the November 2014 parliamentary election.

The development came after Mayor Dorin Chirtoaca was put under house arrest Friday on suspicion of influence trafficking in a city parking contract.

He hasn't commented, but Liberal chairman Mihai Ghimpu called the arrest a political move, saying there was insufficient proof to detain him.

The main ruling Democratic Party claims a majority in the 101-seat legislature after a group of 10 lawmakers recently set up a pro-government group in Parliament.

The anti-corruption center said the company won contracts because of "concerted actions" from city hall officials. Chirtoaca suspended the contract with the company this month and the company has not commented.

The 38-year-old mayor is also deputy chairman of the Liberals and has been mayor since 2007. He is in favor of the former Soviet republic's reunification with neighboring Romania, something the government doesn't support.

Chirtoaca has recently taken a stand against government plans to modify the electoral system.
Montenegro on Monday strongly protested "inappropriate" conduct by Russian authorities against a senior ruling party leader who was prevented from changing planes at a Moscow airport.

Lawmaker Miodrag Vukovic said he was kept overnight in a transit zone at Domodedovo International Airport while on his way to an international meeting in Belarus. He returned to Montenegro on Monday.

The Montenegrin Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador, telling him the incident "represents a breach of basic international rules and diplomatic practices."

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the Kremlin imposed the ban against Vukovic because Montenegro had joined Western sanctions against Moscow over its actions in Ukraine.

"It's not a secret that Montenegro joined the European Union's anti-Russian sanctions, including against (Russian) individuals," Zakharova said on the Foreign Ministry's website.

"We have always said that we reserve the right to take retaliatory measures on the basis of reciprocity, as is customary in diplomacy," she said. "We will provide a relevant explanation to the Montenegrin side."

Vukovic said the incident was politically motivated.

Montenegro previously was a close ally of Russia, but is set to become NATO's 29th member in June. Russia has threatened economic and political retaliation against the small nation.

Montenegro says that Russia was behind a foiled coup attempt in October to prevent it from joining NATO, which Moscow denies.
LARAMIE, Wyo.  Tala died on a Friday.

A month shy of 34 years old, the caramel-colored Arab mare with a fleck of white between her eyes looked up at her longtime owner, rider and friend, Bonnie Swiatek, whinnied weakly and struggled in vain to stand.

It was April 7. The wind was calm, and the sun was warm.

"She picked a good day to die," Swiatek writes in memoriam.

Tala's packmates  Sage, Rocket and Sky  knew she was dying for some time, Swiatek said.

But while the mares hung their heads and refused to eat, Bonnie wiped away her tears, straightened her back and took to the mountains to remember Tala as she truly was  an endurance horse.

Tala lived two lives. First, she was a cow pony at Connie Wilbur's ranch east of Laramie, where she was born.

Tala put in 16 good years for Connie before meeting Swiatek, who bought her for endurance racing in 1998.

"I never expected her to win anything," Swiatek recalled.

"But she was fearless  she would try anything and do anything."

Considered past her prime by many, Tala surprised Swiatek with her youthful spirit and blind determination.

During the next 10 years, the duo logged 1,250 miles in limited-distance endurance races, which range from 25-35 miles. They won the Mountain Region Endurance Riders Partners Award, and twice Tala received the best condition award, which is granted to the horse determined by a veterinarian to be in the best physical condition after a race.

Tala competed in 48 endurance races, completing 45, and finished 27 races in the top 10 rankings.

"When she wanted to go on an endurance ride, she would come right up to me, stare me in the eyes and look out at that distant peak," Swiatek said.

Because Tala's dam, a foal's mother, died the day she was born, Connie handfed her for two weeks before convincing another dam to raise her.

"She really imprinted on women because of her being handfed," Swiatek said.

A small horse at 14-hands tall, Tala never raised her own foals, but she mothered several.

"She had no babies, but she was a mentor mare," Swiatek said. "We'd be riding (in an endurance race) and she would barely tip her head  I did not tell her to do this  but she would barely tip her head to see where the new horses were. And if they were going too slow, she would slow down by herself and ease them up to the correct pace."

While nurturing, Swiatek said Tala had no patience for "stupid horses" frequently pushing past animals much larger than herself if they froze in fear at the sight of a difficult climb.

Clad in a light-blue T-shirt tucked behind a large gold-and-silver "Fort Howes 55" belt buckle, Swiatek's hand meandered over several awards she and Tala won throughout the years.

"She talked a lot," Swiatek said. "She didn't whinny like you would expect of any horse  she had a repertoire. She had language."

Imitating Tala's speech, Swiatek snorted, snooted and honked to illustrate the horse's communicative range.

"And of course, I talked to her as well," she said. "I talk to all the horses."

After Tala's death, Swiatek said the loss was hard on her other horses.

"They all got real quiet," she said. "Sage just wasn't eating like she normally does. One morning, I was picking up manure, and (Sage) followed me around like a dog, and I was crying, because I was finally realizing what I had lost. When I was done, (Sage) put her head on my shoulder and put her head against my head."

After sharing a moment, Swiatek said the two parted ways feeling much better.

Tala was a cow pony, mentor mare and endurance racer, but Swiatek said she will always remember Tala as her best friend.

"She took as much care of me as I took care of her," Swiatek said.

___

Information from: Laramie Boomerang, http://www.laramieboomerang.com
Poland's deputy defense minister on Monday cited security concerns in Europe as he tried to justify a move to gather data on foreign visitors and residents.

A mostly homogenous and Catholic nation, Poland's government is refusing to accept migrants from the Middle East and Africa over safety reasons. The stance has drawn condemnation from European Union leaders, who have given Warsaw a June deadline to accept asylum-seekers, or face sanctions. The nationalist government of Prime Minister Beata Szydlo has indicated it would prefer sanctions to accepting migrants.

The Defense Ministry has requested information from authorities in northwestern province of Szczecin, which has close links with neighboring Germany, about foreigners in their region, in particular foreign nationals who have Polish passports or permission to reside in Poland. The ministry made the request under "crisis management" regulations.

The request has drawn vehement criticism from the political opposition, which says such an approach is harmful because it equates foreigners with threats.

Slawomir Nitras of the pro-EU Civic Platform stressed that around 500,000 people in this country of 38 million declare to be of foreign nationality. Among the minorities are German, Belarussian, Lithuanian and Roma ethnic groups.

Deputy Defense Minister Michal Dworczyk argued that it is a "natural thing, taking into consideration the situation in the European Union today, that the state should have information on foreign nationals on Poland's territory" as it ensures security to the citizens.

He argued that attacks in recent years were carried out by people who "either came (to Europe) as illegal migrants, or by members of new generation (of migrants) living in Europe."

Poles have been among the victims of attacks carried out in Western Europe, most recently in the Manchester suicide bombing.
Defense Secretary James Mattis said Sunday the U.S. has switched to annihilation tactics against the Islamic State and is focused on completely surrounding the militants instead of moving them from place to place.

Our strategy right now is to accelerate the campaign against ISIS. It is a threat to all civilized nations. And the bottom line is we are going to move in an accelerated and reinforced manner, throw them on their back foot, Mattis said in a televised interview on CBS News Face the Nation.

He said the goal was to take out the militants before they could flee to neighboring countries.

Our intention is that the foreign fighters do not survive the fight to return home to North Africa, to Europe, to America, to Asia, to Africa. Were not going to allow them to do so. Were going to stop them there and take apart the caliphate, Mattis said.

U.S.-backed forces in Iraq have launched an offensive to reclaim the last ISIS-held districts in Mosul, according to The Wall Street Journal. The assault on the outskirts of the western part of the city started Saturday. The militants are expected to put up one last fight before coalition forces move in.

Iraqi troops will have to do battle on foot because the armored vehicles are too big for Mosuls narrow streets and back alleys. The part of the city is still filled with around 200,00 civilians.

Click for more from The Wall Street Journal.
Although Brig. Gen. John Epperly has lived in Fredericksburg for the past 20 years, his military career often takes him away from the familiar streets and faces of the cherished place he has come to call his home.

And now is no different: Epperly is currently deployed a half a world away in the sandy deserts of Kuwait as deputy commander of the Virginia National Guards 29th Infantry Division.

The division started training in October, and is stationed on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. The unit is tasked with building partnerships with military counterparts in other nations, including Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.

By being here, we support stability in the region, Epperly said. When our militaries better know each other, we start a dialogue that helps maintain regional security.

Under Epperlys direction, the division is responsible for over 10,000 soldiers spread across five countries in the Arabian Gulf region. This includes overseeing several subordinate brigades.

Said another way, we take care of those brigades so they can get their jobs done, Epperly said. Much of my day involves making myriad decisions toward that end.

Maj. Gen. Blake Ortner, the commander of the 29th Infantry Division, relies heavily on Epperly. In addition to many years of service together under the 29th ID, the two share a common bondthey are both from the Fredericksburg area.

A native of Stafford County, Ortner is responsible for the training, readiness and care of approximately 18,000 soldiers.

He said there is no such thing as a typical day on deployment. He usually attends meetings, and makes several trips each month to visit soldiers and military leaders across the 10 countries where they are assigned.

When not in uniform, Ortner works as the deputy government relations director for Paralyzed Veterans of America. He is responsible for working with Congress and federal agencies to protect benefits and healthcare for veterans.

The 29th ID is projected to return in late summer, and the soldiers are eagerly waiting for the day they can hug and kiss their loved ones again.

But manylike Epperlyhave grown accustomed to the trials of military life.

Epperly was born at Camp LeJeune, N.C., when his father was in the Marine Corps. He grew up in Radford and was appointed to West Point after graduating from Pulaski County High School. After eight years of active duty service, he settled down with his family in Fredericksburg in 1997.

Since then, he has deployed to Mississippi as a battalion commander to provide relief after Hurricane Katrina and he participated in his first combat deployment during the Iraqi Surge Campaign in 200708.

I joined because I wanted to continue to serve my country, he said. I stayed in after 9/11 because the nation was at war and I felt that as a professional officer I had a duty to continue my service.

There is a tradition of service in Epperlys family. In addition to having a father in the Marine Corps, both of his sons are serving. His oldest, Matt, is a lieutenant in the Coast Guard, and is deployed to Kuwait aboard a cutter. When he returns, he will be going to California to command his own patrol boat.

Epperlys youngest, Michael, is at the U.S. Naval Academy. Both of his sons graduated from Mountain View High School in Stafford County.

The family frequently calls one another and takes advantage of Facetime. They are making plans for things they will do when all together again.

It helps to look forward to better times, Epperly said.

Reminders of home keep Epperly going. He misses green grass, fresh air and his hobbies, especially scuba diving.

Epperly also misses his civilian job. When not in uniform, he works as executive vice president for operations at a cybersecurity organization, Coalfire Inc. The company supports federal and commercial clients nationwide, including Amazon Web Services, Google and Microsoft, among others.

Im what is considered a traditional guardsman in that I have a civilian job and am a citizen soldier as well, he said.

Like Epperly, Ortner said it is difficult not to be there as his children adjust to college life, and his wife deals with everything that comes up on the home front alone. Although this is his fifth deployment and his family knows the drill by now, it doesnt make the separation any easier, he explained.

I miss not being there to support my wife when she has to call the insurance company to deal with storm damage, or problems with the bank, he said. We were together before 9/11, so you could say she didnt sign up for this life and I am on my fifth deployment.

Ortners family is coping with the separation through their strong shared faith and support from church and military friends.

I think it helps that they also believe we are doing something good over here, he added.

Ortner wants those back home to know there are still soldiers overseas in dangerous areas, like Kuwait, fighting to preserve the freedoms they enjoy. Despite the hardships of deployment and the understanding they could be moved to a combat zone at any moment, the soldiers have maintained a positive attitude.

I know it is a cliche, but we all honestly know we are protecting America by what we do here and we do not take that lightly, he said. Every day we stand in harms way for our families and our fellow Americans and do it willingly.

Epperly couldnt agree more. He said one perspective is always confirmed when he goes overseasAmerica is a very special place and there are still people fighting for it.

I want folks back home to know that we still have a lot of Americans in harms way, he said. We should not forget that.
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Kurt Peterson's skills, such as mastering the Russian language and working in military intelligence, have found a new outlet as he has taken on the work of a substitute and alternative education teacher in Mandan.

Peterson, who enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1980 after graduating from the University of Mary with a bachelor's degree in English, said he had no interest in teaching.

"I said no way am I going to teach, and here I am at Mandan," he said.

After enlisting, Peterson garnered attention by how quickly and efficiently he learned the Russian language: He was soon assigned as an intelligence solider to various missions in the Soviet Union and Kazakhstan, Ukraine.

"I consider that the height of my career and power. I was good at Russian," said Peterson.

Peterson's duties were to inspect Soviet Union missiles, interpret Russian military intelligence and to enforce the INF Treaty and the START I Treaty signed by President George H.W. Bush in 1991.

"The Start I Treaty limited the use of nuclear weapons," he said.

The Russian Peterson learned early in his military career would come in handy again when he was assigned as a courier for the U.S. State Department in Moscow. Peterson said the State Department building in Moscow was initially riddled with listening bugs, so the U.S. had to rebuild the building. In 1990, he made 10 700-mile trips inspecting missiles, with his last tour in 1995.

On May 18, Peterson presented a detailed PowerPoint to the students in Ryne Jungling's AP history classes at Mandan High School. Peterson informed the students of his time overseas during the Cold War and Gulf War in the 1980s and 90s.

Peterson focused on his courier duty between Helsinki and Moscow, Gulf War, Berlin Wall and interpreter/inspector for the INF and START I treaties. His military career included more than 20 missions to the Soviet Union or countries formerly under its power.

Jungling said Peterson has substituted in his AP class for the past three years and shared his experiences as an intelligence soldier.

"It's kind of been a staple to end the year with him coming to present; the kids really enjoy it. They like hearing from him firsthand," Jungling said.

Peterson retired from the Army in 1996 as a staff sergeant. After 12 years of teaching in Standing Rock, he and his wife moved to Mandan and began working in the school system.
The 500kW AD plant is fed with waste food, bedding and manure mainly

More than 30,000t of food waste, supplied by local vegetable growers, passes through the gate of beef finisher John Dales farm, near Wisbech each year.

The waste food is used to finish 3,000 dairy-bred steers and to create electricity from a 500kW anaerobic digestion (AD) plant. Digestate is also sold to local farmers in the form of fertiliser as an additional income source.

See also: What can slurry-only AD plants offer dairy farmers?

Mr Dale set up the waste feed lot and the BioCow renewable energy company in 2010 after he joined forces with business partner Derek Burgoyne.

The two men crossed paths when the farm was a customer of the food company that Mr Burgoyne worked for.

I had the site and the cattle required to generate feedstock for the AD plant and Derek had the access to residual food waste for the cattle to eat, as well as a strong commercial background, Mr Dale explains.

Relationships

The farm is situated in one of the UKs most condensed vegetable production areas and relationships have been forged with Fenland growers who hand over outer leaves, misshapen produce, slivers and peelings, free of charge.

About 600t of residual food waste is supplied in an average week, ensuring a constant stream of fresh produce for the cattle, with feed costing just 10/t for haulage.

The Holstein-Friesian cattle are bought-in between nine and 18 months old from various suppliers across the South.

Theyre all finished outdoors, in holding pens bedded with straw and are fed on a diet of waste fruit and vegetables, he explains.

The farm achieves growth rates of 1.4kg/day from the waste food and achieves weights of 300kg deadweight at Grade O+3 from the dairy-bred stock. All cattle are sold to a large supermarket chain.

Diets

The ration is usually made up wholly of residual food waste. Occasionally diets are supplemented with maize or silage grown on the farm but these are normally surplus to requirements and sold on for premium prices.

Nutritionally, Mr Dale admits ration formulation is not an exact science and certain products give better growth and definition than others.

We never put more than 10% of any one product in the varied mix and aim to even out the ration to keep both continuity and level growth throughout the cattles time with us, he says.

Plant feed

None of the farms home-grown silage crops is used in the AD plant. Instead, manure from the feed lots forms the primary supply for the plant.

We use approximately 40t of manure, bedding and any leftover food waste to fuel the plant every day, Mr Dale says. This means that there are no direct input costs involved, where plant feedstock is concerned, he adds.

Mr Burgoyne explains the AD plant generates 4,380,000kW of energy annually at a feed-in tariffs rate of 14.5p/kWh in a contract agreed in 2010, before successive cuts to government funding. However, the heat created is not exported as the renewable heat incentive was not available when the plant was built.

Setting up the plant was a time-consuming and daunting process, according to Mr Burgoyne, who chose Privilege Finance to help fund the 3m project because of the companys experience in the field.

It took us just over a year to get the plant up and running, but just four years later, weve already paid off over half the seven-year investment, Mr Burgoyne says.

However, he acknowledges the situation is different in 2017.

The difference now is the necessary investment is quite substantial and with the government incentives drying up there is less appetite for AD, he says.

But he suggests there are other benefits such as digestate production to provide cheap fertiliser.

Digestate

The AD plant generates 28,000cu m of digestate every year. Some is used on the silage and maize crops but a significant amount is sold to neighbouring farmers being roughly one-third cheaper than compound fertiliser.

This provides a great source of additional income for the farm business and creates a revenue stream from something that would typically have little economic value, Mr Burgoyne says.

One of our biggest customers has stopped all other fertilising activities completely in favour of the digestate and others have seen a massive initial improvement in crop production, he adds.

The only disadvantage he concedes is the digestate use is not targeted, serving as a blank covering rather than a precise application.
Tim Ralston had a dream to one day publish his collection of poems. Stanzas carefully written, self-critiqued, then revised about life in rural North Dakota, with echoes of the Cold War. Couplets shared experiences from Ralston's time serving as an English language instructor in the U.S. Air Force during the Vietnam War.

I would tell him, Tim, put it out there, but he insisted on keeping the collection whole until he was done," said his wife, Mary Kay Keller Ralston. "Deep down, I knew it was never going to be done. It was never going to be right in Tim's eyes."

Tim Ralston died in 2010, just two weeks shy of the couple's 25th wedding anniversary. Within his obituary, a promise was made: "Tim's wife and daughter plan to edit and make available his last revised edition."

"After choosing some pieces to use for his funeral, we packed the writing away, completely overwhelmed," said daughter Mariah Ralston Deragon. "In the fall of 2012, we began to seriously look through Dad's writings again and started typing up the work."

Mary Kay Ralston and her daughter spent "a good part of three to four years preparing to publish "Tributaries," a collection of poems.

We just couldnt do a whole bunch at once, Mary Kay Ralston said, opening a red, spiral-reamed notebook with Tributaries etched on the cover. Inside are pages, upon pages, of handwritten thoughts, poems and scribbles. Its been a difficult process, sometimes extremely frustrating."

Most of the editing was done on any given Sunday afternoon. Mariah Ralston Deragon would type the version she thought correct, then her mother would go back through, with a magnifying glass, and compare the typed copy to the original.

We were a good team, Mary Kay Ralston said. Id spot something she missed and vice versa. It's been interesting working with Mariah, because shes a lot like him. Its almost like Im working with Tim.

Tim Ralston grew up on a farm north of Petersburg, the oldest of four children. According to Mary Kay Ralston, he was a "quintessential book worm" and wrote poetry as far back as anyone can remember. He graduated from Mayville State College before enlisting in the U.S. Air Force in 1970.

Mary Kay Ralston remembers the moment when her husband was selected to be the English language instructor: They instructed everyone in the room to raise their hands, which everyone did. Then they said, Everyone lower your hands, except Tim Ralston. Tim was the only one left with his hand in the air. With his background in English, he was the likely candidate. He did that for one year and it literally affected the rest of his life.

He received the Air Force Commendation Medal for excellence in teaching and, in 1974, received an honorable discharge. Poetry served as an outlet following the war. Tim Ralston went back to college and graduated from Eastern Washington University, Cheney, Wash., bringing his total majors to five.

He worked as a field inspector for the North Dakota State Tax Department in the early-1980s, when farmers were facing hard economic times. When his job required him to seize land from the farmers, he refused and resigned his position.

"He just didn't have it in him. He wasn't that kind of person," said Mary Kay Ralston, who described her husband as a jack of all trades, writing poetry whenever time and life allowed.

He loved to read books, especially nonfiction. Although he admired the works of well-known poets Robert Burns and Robert Frost, Tim Ralston often resisted the urge to flip through their books, in fear of unintentionally copying their style.

"Dad went out of his way to avoid reading poetry when writing 'Tributaries,' because he didn't want it to influence his work," Mariah Ralston Deragon said.

Mary Kay Ralston said she often marveled at her husband's writing process: He always had to have a video going, some kind of white noise in the background. 'Gettysburg,' 'Forrest Gump,' 'JFK'  Id have the lines of movies memorized by the time he was done.

Tim Ralston would often recite lines of his poetry to family and friends.

"Bits and pieces of poems would just come out of him," Mary Kay Ralston said.

The mother-daughter duo finished publishing "Tributaries" last year.

"My mom and I wanted to make my dad's writing available to the public," Mariah Ralston Deragon said. "Not as a vanity project, nor simply as a tribute to a loved one. We wanted to do this because we both feel that his work is worthy of publication and should be included in the canon of Midwestern poets."

"Tim would be so happy," Mary Kay Ralston said, smiling.
Rails works between Sechtem and Bruhl : Deutsche Bahn did not work 24 hours a day

Bonn After the commuter chaos at Bonn main train station, the Rail and Transport Union has criticised Deutsche Bahn and is demanding better coordination of construction projects before further planned works to the same route in early 2018.

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Deutsche Bahn is facing criticism from the Rail and Transport Union (EVG) that it did not continuously operate three shifts on the works between Sechtem and Bruhl in order to avoid paying high nighttime surcharges. The EVG president, Rainer Bohnet, said: The communications chaos, the life-threatening situation for passengers at Bonn main station and the construction plans for the renewal of the overhead lines between Sechtem and Bruhl defied description.

Above all, he was indignant about the coordination of the works, which led to two weeks of severe disruption for commuters until 22 May. Normally work is carried out around the clock to minimize interruptions to services on railway sites. Apparently this was avoided because otherwise a high nighttime surcharge would have had to be paid.

A railway spokeswoman from Dusseldorf conceded that: work was not always carried out 24 hours a day. She said this was primarily because of: a recommendation from the bomb disposal service.

The service was informed in advance of the preparations for the lengthy works to replace the overhead lines on the stretch in the first quarter of 2018. And they came to the conclusion that because of the proximity to residential areas, it would be safer to work in daylight, said the railway spokeswoman. Where possible, the construction workers had worked non-stop.

When asked whether work could be carried out 24 hours a day on the several month long repair works scheduled for the coming year, the railway spokeswoman said the exact plans for the construction site and its effects on rail traffic had not yet been fixed. However, Deutsche Bahn would try to ensure works were carried out continuously. However, it is not always up to us. It also depends on the construction services.

Referring to the pending works to the overhead lines, Rainer Bohnet criticised the apparently high cost pressures of such works: These inevitably fall to the passengers and the entire rail system and therefore we are demanding that in future Deutsche Bahn rules out complete blockages of routes or the complete cutting off of large cities, as recently happened in Wuppertal, even if this means construction projects will be more expensive.

The rail union also has further demands. Bohnet says: Deutsche Bahn, National Express, TransRegio and the Rhineland local transport (NVR) as well as cities and districts must sit together early enough around one table and work out a passenger-friendly concept that is then communicated comprehensively and early enough. In Bohnets opinion, this should include general permission for commuters to use long distance trains. Deutsche Bahn refused to do this last time for logistical reasons. It made announcements giving permission for certain journeys. The EVG also thinks the Line 16 should run more frequently  at 10 minute intervals to Bonn main station - during the works period.
Weather in Bonn and the region : Sweltering 35 degrees Celsius forecast for Bonn

Bonn Record temperatures were already recorded on Sunday in Bonn. Temperatures of 35 degrees Celsius are expected at the start of the week and it will be humid.

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Monday will be hot with temperatures forecast to reach 35 degrees Celsius. Altenahr and Grafschaft will have the coolest temperatures with 31 degrees Celsius forecast. The heat wave has reached the region, but seems for the time being to have reached its peak. Forecasters say the temperature in Bonn on Tuesday will only reach 26 degrees, falling to 24 degrees on Wednesday. The online weather service Wetteronline says today could be the hottest day in May since records began.

Tuesday will also be sunny and clouds will only occasionally obscure the sun. There will be scattered showers. Temperatures will reach between 22 and 25 degrees Celsius during the day, falling to 12 degrees at night.

The cause of the heat wave is a high over south-east Europe which is bringing this hot and sometimes stormy body of air to North Rhine-Westphalia. The German weather service has issued a general warning for the entire state: localised violent storms, heavy rain and hail cannot be ruled out this afternoon.

Weather statistician Klaus Kosack says the record highest temperature set on 17 May has already been exceeded. On Saturday he recorded the first tropical day (where temperatures exceed 30 degrees Celsius) of the year. The first such day in 2016 was on 23 June. Tropical days in May are not very common. The last one in Bonn was on 24 May 2012 with 30.2 degrees Celsius, explains Kosack. It was even hotter on 27 May 2005 at 32.5 degrees Celsius.

Temperatures were highest in the western parts of Germany with 32.9 degrees Celsius in Heinsberg-Schleiden on Saturday according to the German weather service. The second hottest place was Saarbrucken-Burbach with temperatures of 32.7 degrees Celsius.
Article

Protecting the worlds oceans  an important goal of Germanys climate diplomacy

The worlds oceans are vital to our survival. They regulate the global climate and are a source of food and income for billions of people. Only a very small part of the seas enjoys legal protection, however. Our diplomats are working in New York right now to change this state of affairs.
Best Chinese smartphones expected to launch in India soon Features oi -Harish Kumar We await the launch of these Chinese smartphones in India.

When it comes to the Indian smartphone market, the Chinese smartphone brands are highly popular for their ability. The notable Chinese brands include Xiaomi, Lenovo and a few others.

It won't be an exaggeration to say that the above-mentioned China-based smartphone makers have managed to create a loyal fanbase for them in the Indian market with their value for money offerings.

The one aspect that these brands follow is offering feature-rich smartphones at not so expensive price ranges. By launching such offerings, these makers have made the fans eagerly await the release of the Chinese smartphones.

Best EMI offers on Android N smartphones

So, here is a list of some of the Chinese smartphones those are expected to be launched soon in India.

Xiaomi Mi Max 2 Key Specs

6.44-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD IPS 2.5D curved glass display

2.2GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 626 14nm processor with Adreno 506 GPU

4GB RAM with 64GB storage

6GB RAM with 128GB storage

expandable memory with microSD

MIUI 8 based on Android 7.1 (Nougat)

Hybrid Dual SIM (micro+nano/microSD)

12MP rear camera with Sony IMX378 sensor, dual-tone LED flash

5MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor, Infrared sensor

4G VoLTE

5000mAh battery Honor 6A Key Specs

5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD display

Octa-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 64-bit processor with Adreno 505 GPU

2GB RAM with 16GB storage / 3GB RAM with 32GB storage

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with EMUI 5.1

Hybrid Dual SIM (micro + nano / microSD)

13MP rear camera with LED Flash, PDAF, 28mm 5P lens, 1080p video recording

5MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G VoLTE

3020mAh (typical) battery Meizu M5c Key Specs 5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD display with 400 nits brightness, 1000: 1 contrast ratio

1.3GHz Quad-Core MediaTek processor with Mali T720 GPU

2GB RAM, 16GB internal storage, expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with Flyme OS 6

8MP rear camera with LED Flash, PDAF, f/2.0 aperture

5MP front-facing camera

Hybrid Dual SIM (nano+nano/microSD)

Fingerprint sensor

4G VoLTE

3000mAh battery Xiaomi Mi 6 Key Specs

5.15-inch (19201080 pixels) Full HD display with 600 nits brightness

2.45GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 835 64-bit 10nm processor with Adreno 540 GPU

6GB LPDDR4x RAM with 64GB / 128GB (UFS) internal storage

Android 7.1.1 (Nougat) with MIUI 8

Dual SIM (nano + nano)

Splash resistant

12MP rear camera

secondary 12MP camera

8MP front-facing camera

4G LTE

3350mAh (typical) / 3250mAh (minimum) battery Huawei Nova 2 Plus Key Specs 5.5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD LTPS 2.5D curved glass display

Octa-CoreKirin 659 processor with MaliT830-MP2 GPU

4GB RAM

128GB internal memory

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with EMUI 5.1

Hybrid Dual SIM (nano+nano/microSD)

12MP rear camera

secondary 8MP camera

20MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G LTE

3340mAh (typical) battery Huawei Nova 2 Key Specs

5-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD LTPS 2.5D curved glass display

Octa-Core Kirin 659 processor with MaliT830-MP2 GPU

4GB RAM

64GB internal memory

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with EMUI 5.1

Hybrid Dual SIM (nano+nano/microSD)

12MP rear camera with LED flash

secondary 8MP camera

20MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G LTE

2950mAh (typical) battery Gionee S10 Key Specs 5.5-inch (1920 1080 pixels) Full HD LTPS 2.5D curved glass display

2.5GHz Octa-core MediaTek Helio P25 processor with Mali-T880 GPU

6GB LPDDR4X RAM

64GB Internal memory

expandable memory up to 128GB with micro SD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with Amigo 4.0 OS

Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano / microSD)

16MP rear camera with dual-tone LED flash

8MP secondary camera

20MP front camera

8MP secondary camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G LTE

3450mAh battery Huawei Enjoy 7 Plus Key Specs

5.5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD 2.5D curved glass display

Octa-Core Snapdragon 435 processor with Adreno 505 GPU

3GB RAM with 32GB storage

4GB RAM with 64GB storage

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 7.0 Nougat with EMUI 5.1

Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano/microSD)

12MP rear camera with LED Flash

8MP front-facing camera

4G VoLTE

4100mAh battery (typical) Gionee S10B Key Specs

5.5-inch (1920 1080 pixels) Full HD IPS 2.5D curved glass display

1.8 GHz Octa-core MediaTek Helio P10 processor with Mali T860 GPU

4GB RAM

64GB Internal memory

expandable memory up to 128GB with micro SD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with Amigo OS

Dual SIM

13MP rear camera

secondary 5MP camera

16MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G LTE

3700mAh battery Gionee M6S Plus Key Specs

6-inch (1920 1080 pixels) Full HD AMOLED 2.5D curved glass display

Octa Core Snapdragon 653 processor with Adreno 510 GPU

6GB LPDDR3 RAM

64GB /256GB Internal memory

expandable memory up to 256GB with micro SD

Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) with Amigo OS 3.5

Dual SIM

12MP rear camera with dual-tone LED flash, f/1.9 aperture, 1.4m Pixel size

8MP front-facing camera, f/2.0 aperture, 1.4um pixel size

Fingerprint sensor, Encrypted chip (China only)

4G VoLTE

6020mAh battery with fast charging Huawei Y3 2017 Key Specs a 5-inch IPS LCD display which offers a screen

a 1.1GHz Cortex A53 quad-core processor

1GB RAM

Mali-T720 MP2 GPU

Android v6.0 (Marshmallow) operating

internal memory of 8GB

external memory card slot which supports up to 128GB

8MP main camera

2MP front camera

2,200mAh li-ion battery Huawei Y7 2017 Key Specs

5.5-inch (1280 x 720 pixels) HD 2.5D curved glass display

Octa-Core Snapdragon 435 processor with Adreno 505 GPU

2GB RAM

16GB storage

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Android 7.0 Nougat with EMUI 5.1

Hybrid Dual SIM (nano + nano/microSD)

12MP rear camera with LED Flash

8MP front-facing camera

Fingerprint sensor

4G LTE

4000mAh battery (typical) Huawei P10 Key Specs

5.1-inch (1920 x 1080 pixels) Full HD LCD 2.5d curved Gorilla Glass 5 display, 500 nits brightness

Octa-Core Huawei Kirin 960 processor with Mali G71 Octa-core GPU

4GB RAM

64GB storage

expandable memory up to 256GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with Emotion UI 5.1

Hybird Dual SIM (nano SIM + nano SIM / microSD)

20MP (Monochrome) + 12MP (RGB) Dual rear cameras

8MP front-facing camera, Leica lens

Fingerprint sensor

4G VoLTE

3,200 mAh battery with fast charging Huawei P10 Plus Key Specs

5.5-inch (2560 x 1440 pixels) Quad HD LCD 2.5d curved Gorilla Glass 5 display

Octa-Core Huawei Kirin 960 processor with Mali G71 Octa-core GPU

4GB RAM with 64GB storage

6GB RAM with 128GB storage

expandable memory up to 256GB with microSD

Android 7.0 (Nougat) with Emotion UI 5.0

Hybird Dual SIM (nano SIM + nano SIM / microSD)

20MP (Monochrome) + 12MP (RGB) Dual rear cameras

8MP front-facing camera, Leica lens

Fingerprint sensor

4G VoLTE

3,750mAh battery with fast charging Huawei P10 Lite Key Specs

5.2 Inch FHD Touchscreen Display

2.1GHz Octa-Core Kirin 658 16nm Processor

4GB RAM With 32GB ROM

12MP Rear Camera With LED Flash

8 MP Front Camera

Hybrid SIM

4G VoLTE/WiFi/Bluetooth 4.1

Fingerprint

USB Type-C

3000 MAh Battery

Best Mobiles in India

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Best Samsung smartphones under Rs 6,000 in India Features oi -Harish Kumar Samsung phones under Rs 6,000 available to buy in India.

Samsung is one of the very few smartphone makers that have considerably delivered on making smartphones an everyday product in the Indian market.

The tech giant sells handsets in all the price-points and is considered as the only smartphone manufacturer that can pick up a fight with Apple iPhones.

While the company's ever popular Galaxy series comprises of some of the best mobile phones the world has seen- Galaxy S8/S8+, Galaxy S7 Edge, etc. it also makes a huge margin in the sub Rs. 10k price-point. The Galaxy On series is one such example that sells like hot cakes in tier 2 and tier 3 cities.

Best Chinese smartphones expected to launch in India soon

That said, today we are going to present a list of best Samsung smartphones under Rs. 6,000 that can prove to be a value for money deal for price-conscious buyers.

These handsets run Android, come with decent build quality and offer all the required features that you would expect from a budget smartphone. Pick one for you if you are looking for a value for money deal.

Samsung Z2 Buy At Price of Rs 4,650

Key Specs

4-inch (800  480 pixels) WVGA TFT display

1.5 GHz quad-core processor

1GB RAM

8GB internal memory

expandable memory up to 128GB with microSD

Tizen OS 2.4

Dual SIM

5MP rear camera with LED Flash

VGA front-facing camera

4G VoLTE

1500mAh battery Samsung Z3 Buy At Price of Rs 4,990

Key Specs

5-inch (1280  720 pixels) HD Super AMOLED display

1.3 GHz quad-core Spreadtrum processor

1GB RAM

8GB internal memory

expandable up to 128GB with microSD

Tizen OS 2.4

Dual SIM

8MP rear camera

5MP front-facing camera

3G

2600mAh battery Samsung Galaxy J1 Ace Buy At Price of Rs 4,988

Key Specs 4.3-inch (480 x 800 pixels) Super AMOLED display

1.3 GHz dual-core processor

512MB RAM

4GB internal memory

expandable memory up to 64GB with microSD

Android 4.4 (KitKat)

Dual SIM

5MP auto focus rear camera with LED flash

2MP front-facing camera

3G

1800 mAh battery with Ultra Power Saving Mode Samsung Galaxy Core Prime Buy At Price of Rs 6,000

Key Specs

4.5 Inch WVGA PLS Touch Screen Display

1.3 GHz Quad Core Processor

1 GB RAM

Dual SIM

5MP Camera With LED Flash

2 MP Front Camera

3G

WiFi

2000 MAh Battery Samsung Galaxy S Duos 3 Buy At Price of Rs 6,000

Key Specs

4 Inch WVGA Touch Screen Display

1.2 GHz Dual Core Processor

512MB RAM

Dual SIM

5MP Rear Camera With LED Flash

VGA Front Facing Camera

3G

1500 MAh Battery

Best Mobiles in India
Overall, dont let the bhoot mislead you, nothing bhootiya about this story. Had the makers tried to push the envelope, the idea could have been outstanding for a bhootiya comedy.
U.S. Democrats Demand To Hear From Kushner On Russia Ties

May 29, 2017

U.S. Democrats demanded to hear from key White House adviser Jared Kushner over allegations he tried to establish secret communications with Russia before the inauguration of his father-in-law, President Donald Trump.

Representative Adam Schiff (Democrat-California), who sits on the House Intelligence Committee, said on May 28 that it was "obviously very concerning" that a key Trump transition team member was possibly seeking secret links with a country accused of interfering in the 2016 election.

Some Democrats said Kushner's national security clearance might have to be revoked.

The allegations first surfaced in reports by The New York Times and The Washington Post. Other news outlets also reported on Kushner's alleged attempt to establish a back-channel line to the Kremlin.

Trump took to Twitter to label the leaks coming out about his administration as "fabricated lies."

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," he wrote.

"Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names it is very possible that those sources don't exsist [sic] but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!" Trump wrote.

News reports said Trump was meeting with attorneys at the White House on May 28 over matters related to Russia, possibly to set up a so-called "war room" to respond to the controversy.

Kushner, senior presidential adviser Steve Bannon, and White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus could lead the team, the reports said.

'Inappropriate Contacts'

Democrat Schiff said the government needed to "get to the bottom" of the matter. He said a review of Kushner's security clearance was necessary to determine "whether he was truthful."

"If not, then there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance," Schiff said.

U.S. media reported that Kushner in December spoke to Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak about setting up a secret communications channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team.

The White House has confirmed the meeting and Kushner's attendance in March but said it was only a brief courtesy call.

Senator Cory Booker (Democrat-New Jersey), who is on the Foreign Relations Committee, described the allegations as "serious" and called for a thorough investigation.

"He needs to answer for what was happening at the time," Booker said. "What's worrying me are the patterns we're seeing. So, one is this administration not talking about our values, cozying up to authoritarian leaders. And the other pattern we have is just a continuous drumbeat of inappropriate contacts with the Russians."

Kushner's lawyers have said he was willing to talk with investigators about his foreign contacts and his work on the Trump campaign.

With reporting by AP and AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-kushner- democrats-demand-russia-ties/28515721.html

Copyright (c) 2017. 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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Australia to Send 30 More Troops to Afghanistan Following NATO Request

Sputnik News

09:27 29.05.2017(updated 11:56 29.05.2017)

Canberra will send 30 Australian Defence Force (ADF) military advisers to Afghanistan within the framework of a recent NATO request to improve the capabilities of the Afghan security forces, Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne said Monday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  On May 12, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said that Canberra was considering a NATO request to expand its presence in the crisis-torn state.

"These additional ADF members will allow Australia to commit additional advisers to further develop the long-term capabilities of the Afghan security forces as part of our current train assist mission. Their role will be to continue in the train advise and assist roles," Paine said, as quoted by the news.com.au website, adding that the Afghan mission played an important role in the struggle against terrorism and Canberra's commitment would be "both timely and appropriate."

The Defense Minister added that Canberra's move was made in light of "broader ADF commitments" and against the backdrop of the world's changing strategic environment.

Despite being a non-NATO state, Australia currently has 270 defense and civilian personnel in Afghanistan, providing training to local forces.

 Sputnik

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Spokesman: Merkel Remains Committed to Strong Trans-Atlantic Ties

By VOA News May 29, 2017

German Chancellor Angela Merkel remains committed to strong trans-Atlantic relations, her spokesman said Monday, after the German leader suggested that the United States is no longer a reliable partner.

"Because trans-Atlantic relations are so important to this chancellor, it is right from her viewpoint to speak out honestly about differences," spokesman Steffen Seibert said Monday during a news conference.

"The times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days," Merkel said, addressing a campaign rally in Bavaria.

Merkel, among other European leaders, was sharply critical of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision at the recent G-7 meeting in Sicily not to reiterate support for the 2015 Paris agreement to combat climate change. In a pared down final communique, all G-7 nations except the U.S. pledged action to mitigate climate change. Merkel has said the climate agreement is so important there should not be any compromise on it.

While acknowledging that Germany and Europe should strive to maintain good relations with the U.S. as well as Britain, which is leaving the European Union, Merkel also said, "We need to know we must fight for our own future as Europeans for our destiny."

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Iran asks Turkey for explanation over deaths of border guards

Iran Press TV

Mon May 29, 2017 8:35AM

Iran says it has asked for explanation from Turkey after a cross-border attack left two Iranian border guards dead on Saturday.

"The subject has been announced to the Turkish government through diplomatic channels and we are awaiting their response," Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi told a weekly news briefing in Tehran Monday.

Seven border guards were also injured when PJAK terrorists attacked them while they were changing posts, before retreating into Turkey.

"This is an unpleasant incident. We don't like to have insecure borders with Turkey. We hope that with the prudence, responsibility and response of the Turkish government, we can take a decision," he added.

Iran's border police chief also said Turkey should be held accountable for the deaths of the Iranian border guards and for letting terrorist groups operate in its border areas.

"We consider Turkey liable and the country should be held accountable for this act of terrorism," Tasnim news agency quoted Brigadier General Qassem Rezaei as saying Sunday.

PJAK is an offshoot of Turkey's Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and is known for carrying out random hit-and-run attacks against Iranian targets, after which they retreat to their lairs in Turkey as well as Iraq.

They carry out their attacks in parts of Iran's West Azerbaijan province which borders Iraq, Turkey, and Armenia. Rezaei said "unfortunately, in the areas bordering Turkey, we witness activities by terrorist groups under various pretexts."

Earlier this month, Iran said it welcomed Turkey's plan to build a 144-kilometer wall along its border. Ankara says the wall is aimed at halting the movement of PKK militants who are based in Iraq's Qandil mountains bordering Iran and Turkey.

Beside terrorists, smugglers also use the border to bring in bootleg goods such as alcohol from Turkey and northern Iraq.

The Iranian commander issued a harsh warning, saying "terrorist groups will soon meet a crushing response for their stupid acts."

"Terrorist groups are one of the plots of the world arrogance. They once used to go on rampage in the country's northwest and operate within our borders. But, today they are based outside our borders," Rezaei said.

"The blows which have been dealt to terrorist groups by security, military and defense forces have forced them to carry out their idiotic acts somewhere else but they will receive a teeth-breaking response anyway," he added.

Last month, 10 Iranian border guards were killed and two others injured in an ambush attack near the town of Mirjaveh in the southeastern Sistan-and-Baluchestan province. The assailants escaped into Pakistan after the attack, for which the Jaish ul-Adl terrorist group claimed responsibility.

"We have many different enemies who have infiltrated parts of the countries around us," Rezaei said.

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McCain: Russian president 'a greater threat than ISIL'

Iran Press TV

Mon May 29, 2017 3:2PM

US Senator and former presidential candidate John McCain has claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a bigger threat to world security than the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group.

"I think ISIL can do terrible things ... but it's the Russians who tried to destroy the fundamental of democracy and that is to change the outcome of an American election," McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Monday in an interview with ABC network during a tour of Australia.

Asked to evaluate the perceived threat posed by Putin, McCain said, "I think he is the premier and most important threat, more so than ISIL."

The Arizona Republican also said that although he had seen "no evidence" relative to Moscow successfully influencing the 2016 presidential election, he believed the Russians "tried, and are still trying."

"They're still trying to change elections. They just tried to affect the outcome of the French election," he added.

The senator also slammed US President Donald Trump's response to Russia's alleged attempts to influence the US election and called for more sanctions against Moscow.

"We have done nothing since the election last November to respond to Vladimir Putin's attempt to change the outcome of our elections. So, way to go Vladimir. We haven't responded at all," McCain said.

Moreover, McCain added that he is concerned about reports that Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner called for a secret communication channel with Russia even before Trump took office.

The senator dismissed administration officials' assertion that what Kushner did was standard procedure, noting it happened "prior to the inauguration of the president of the United States by someone who is not in an appointed position."

McCain said Trump makes him nervous when it comes to international security.

"I do believe that the president has great confidence in this national security team. I do believe most of the time that he accepts their advice and counsel," he said. "Can I tell you that he does all the time? No. Does it bother me? Yes, it bothers me."

Relations between the US and Russia have frequently been described as being at all-time low over the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.

Russia and the US have been supporting opposite sides during the six-year militancy in Syria.

Moscow has been helping Damascus in its fight against extremist militants, including Daesh, while Washington has been backing some of the militant groups operating in the country. The US has also been leading dozens of its allies in a coalition purportedly targeting Daesh positions in the Arab country.

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PRESS RELEASE

Mithra obtains marketing authoriZation for Tibelia in France

French MA completes decentralized procedure with MAs granted in 15 European countries

Tibelia is currently marketed in a number of countries through existing supply and license agreements

Further agreements and product launches anticipated in 2017

Liege, Belgium, 29 May 2017 - Mithra (Euronext Brussels: MITRA), a company specialized in Women's Health, announces that it has received a Marketing Authorization (MA) for the commercialization of Tibelia in France. The French MA completes the decentralized procedure started in 2016, with MAs now granted in 15 European countries.

Tibelia is already on the market in the UK, Spain, and the Netherlands, through existing supply and license agreements signed in 2016, with launches in Italy, Finland and Sweden expected in coming months. Mithra expects to sign further agreements, including in France, in 2017.

Tibelia is a generic version of Livial developed by Mithra. The product is a synthetic steroid (tibolone) for use in hormone replacement therapy. This includes the relief of postmenopausal symptoms, in addition to prevention of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women at high risk of future fractures who are intolerant of, or contraindicated for, other medicinal products.

These indications represent a global market of EUR 114.5 million, equating to 299 million tablets sold each year. The French market alone represents approximately EUR 2.3 million in annual sales[1].

Mithra intends to transfer the production of Tibelia to its Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO), its state of the art research, development & production facility in Liege, Belgium.

Francois Fornieri, CEO of Mithra, commented: "We are very pleased to receive Marketing Authorization for the commercialization of Tibelia in France, the final country remaining under the European decentralized procedure. The MAs obtained underline once more the development and regulatory expertise of our dedicated teams here at Mithra. We expect Tibelia to become an increasingly important source of future revenue, especially as we transfer its production to our CDMO facility in the future. We look forward to establishing further partnerships for Tibelia and providing greater choice to women to safely address menopausal symptoms."

For more information, please contact:

Press

Julie Dessart

Chief Communication Officer

+32 4 349 28 22 / +32 475 86 41 75

press@mithra.com

Investor Relations

Francois Fornieri, CEO

+32 4 349 28 22

investorrelations@mithra.com



Sofie Van Gijsel, IRO

+32 485 19 14 15

investorrelations@mithra.com / svangijsel@mithra.com



Consilium Strategic Communications

Jonathan Birt, Sue Stuart, Hendrik Thys, Cameron Standage

mithra@consilium-comms.com

+44 2 037 095 700

About Tibelia

Tibelia is a synthetic steroid (tibolone) intended to be used for hormone replacement therapy. Tibelia is a bioequivalent of Livial 2.5mg which is a product that mimics the activity of the female sex hormones in the body, and is used especially for the relief of symptoms occurring after menopause. In some countries, this product is also used for the prevention of osteoporosis. It has been demonstrated that tibolone has favourable effects on various tissues in the body, such as brain, vagina and bone.[2]

About Mithra

Mithra (Euronext: MITRA) is dedicated to providing innovation and choice in women's health, with a particular focus on fertility, contraception and menopause. Mithra's goal is to develop new and improved products that meet women's needs for better safety and convenience. Its two lead development candidates - a fifth generation oral contraceptive Estelle and next-generation hormone therapy Donesta - are built on Mithra's unique natural estrogen platform, E4 (Estetrol). Mithra also develops, manufactures and markets complex therapeutics and offers partners a complete spectrum of research, development and specialist manufacturing at its CDMO.

Mithra was founded in 1999 as a spin-off from the University of Liege by Mr. Francois Fornieri and Prof. Dr. Jean-Michel Foidart. Mithra is headquartered in Liege, Belgium. Further information can be found at: www.mithra.com

Important information

The contents of this announcement include statements that are, or may be deemed to be, "forward-looking statements". These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the words "believes", "estimates," "anticipates", "expects", "intends", "may", "will", "plans", "continue", "ongoing", "potential", "predict", "project", "target", "seek" or "should", and include statements the Company makes concerning the intended results of its strategy. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and readers are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. The Company's actual results may differ materially from those predicted by the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.

To subscribe to Mithra's mailing list, visit investors.mithra.com









[1] IMS Health 2016.

[2] Livial Patient Information Leaflet.




THUNDER BAY, ON, May 29, 2017 /CNW/ - Wolfden Resources Corp. (WLF-TSX-V) ("Wolfden" or the "Company") today announces that it intends to complete a non-brokered private placement (the "Offering") of up to 2,500,000 common shares of the Company that are "flow-through shares" within the meaning in the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the "Flow-Through Shares") at a price of $0.16 per Flow-Through Share for gross proceeds of up to $400,000. The Company may, in its sole discretion, increase the size of the Offering, by up to 15% for up to an additional 375,000 Flow-Through Shares. In connection with the Offering, the Company may pay finder's fees to certain arm's length parties in accordance to the rules of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") in consideration for their efforts in introducing subscribers to the Company.

The securities to be issued under this Offering will be offered by way of private placement in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario and such other provinces or territories of Canada as may be determined by the Company, in each case, pursuant to applicable exemptions from the prospectus requirements under applicable securities laws. Securities issued under the Offering will be subject to a four-month hold period which will expire four months and one day from the date of closing of the Offering.

Closing of the Offering is anticipated to occur on or about June 7, 2017. The Offering is subject to acceptance by the TSXV and other customary conditions for a transaction of this nature.

The net proceeds from the Offering will be used for exploration on the Company's Orvan Brook property in New Brunswick, Canada.

ABOUT WOLFDEN RESOURCES:

Wolfden is a mineral exploration company holding nickel properties in Manitoba and Zn-Pb-Cu base-metal properties in New Brunswick. Manitoba is ranked #2 in Canada and #2 in the world as the most favourable jurisdiction to conduct mining and exploration (Fraser Institute (2016-2017)).

This press release contains forward-looking information (within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation) that involves various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information includes statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance of the Company, and include, without limitation, statements relating to the anticipated closing date of the Offering and use of proceeds and statements relating to plans and results of exploration and the magnitude and quality of the property. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and the Company's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information in this news release, including without limitation, the following risks and uncertainties: (i) risks inherent in the mining industry; (ii) regulatory and environmental risks; (iii) results of exploration activities and development of mineral properties; (iv) risks relating to the estimation of mineral resources; (v) stock market volatility and capital market fluctuations; and (vi) general market and industry conditions. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. This forward-looking information is based on estimates and opinions of management on the date hereof and is expressly qualified by this notice. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed in the Company's disclosure materials filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada at www.sedar.com. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward looking information or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from such information unless required by applicable law.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Wolfden Resources Corp.
On Saturday, in the morning, at the South Brisbane War Memorial Park, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC and Mrs Kaye de Jersey attended the official unveiling of the Navy Memorial where the Governor addressed guests.

Also in the morning, at ANZAC Square, Brisbane, the Governor was represented by Major Cynthia Milligan, Honorary Aide-de-Camp, at the UN Peacekeepers Service, where Major Milligan read the UN Secretary Generals Message and laid the first wreath.
On Sunday, in the morning, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC and Mrs de Jersey attended Eucharist at St Thomas Anglican Church of Toowong.

Following, at Bardon State School, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey visited the Schools Mayfair fete.
Description

GIS - 29 May, 2017: Mauritius is benefiting from a line of credit of USD 500 million from the Government of India following the two-day State visit of the Prime Minister, Mr Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, to India on 26 and 27 May 2017. This financial assistance will help assist Mauritius in the implementation of priority projects. Mauritius is benefiting from a line of credit of USD 500 million from the Government of India following the two-day State visit of the Prime Minister, Mr Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, to India on 26 and 27 May 2017. This financial assistance will help assist Mauritius in the implementation of priority projects.

The statement was made during a joint press conference by Mr. Jugnauth and the Indian Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi, on 27 May 2017, at the Hyderabad House, in New Delhi. Prime Minister Jugnauth expressed his appreciation with regards the noble gesture on behalf of the Indian Government which he said bears testimony to the longstanding relations of kinship and the close collaboration between the two countries. He also conveyed his heartfelt gratitude to the Government of India for its continuous unflinching support in the pursuit of our legitimate right to exercising sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago.

Mr. Jugnauth further highlighted that this line of credit will be used to finance projects in line with the vision of the Government to make Mauritius a country that is well integrated in the global economy, ready to take on the challenges and seize the opportunities ahead while catering to the needs and aspirations of its people.

He recalled that Mauritius has one of the most extensive expanses of ocean, over which the country exercises certain rights. However, he emphasised the need to ensure that the sea lanes are safe and secure and that regular patrolling is conducted to combat illegal activities such as piracy, illegal fishing in our territorial waters and trafficking. The Prime Minister also explained that Mauritius and India have, accordingly, developed a strong bilateral cooperation in the field of defence and security.

For his part, the Indian Prime Minister, described his meeting with the Mr. Jugnauth as warm and productive and stressed that this State visit reflected the depth of the ties between the two nations. He reiterated the full support of his Government in respect to the implementation of major projects undertaken by the Government of Mauritius and also expressed his appreciation with regard to the leadership demonstrated by Mauritian Prime Minister on the important issue of renewable energy.

In the margin of the visit, several agreements were signed between Mauritius and India in various spheres of cooperation. They are namely: Long term collaboration in education, training and research in various sciences and technology between the Mauritius Oceanography Institute and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research , IndiaNational Institute of India ; the International Solar Alliance Agreement , which is in line with a personal initiative of Mr. Modi along with the former President of France, Mr Francois Hollande, to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and; the construction of a new runway and a jetty in Agalega, which will enhance the economic development of the island.

Business meeting

In a business meet held on 26 May 2017 between the captains of business communities from India and Mauritius, on the theme  Mauritius: Your Preferred Regional Investment and Business Platform , Prime Minister Jugnauth reiterated that Mauritius is strategically located at the cornerstone of India and Africa. He stressed on the preferential access to a vast consumer base of 400 million consumers that our memberships with the SADC and COMESA regional economic communities provide, as well as the wide array of bilateral investment treaties and double taxation agreements with a number of African economies.

He further invited the Indian business community to replicate, in Mauritius, the same enthusiasm and buzz it displays in bringing to fruition the initiatives of the Indian Government. He invited them to make the most of the services offered by the Board of Investment office in New Delhi to explore and tap business opportunities in Mauritius.

Other issues raised pertained to the Mauritian-Indian partnership cemented in the agreement in the form of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) currently in negotiation. The CECPA will provide the opportunity for even greater flows of trade in goods and services as well as improve cross border investment between our two countries.

The CECPA builds from the successful renegotiation of the Double Taxation Avoidance Treaty between the Mauritian and the Indian Governments in 2016, which has brought certainty to investments between our borders. Investments from Mauritius to India still represent a sizeable proportion of total investments, which provides much comfort in the terms of the new treaty.

For Prime Minister Jugnauth, the revised treaty is in fact one pillar of our strategy: that of positioning Mauritius as a jurisdiction of substance to service the African continent and be the safety net for Indian investors willing to manage their investments in the region.
Bernie Ecclestone has hit out at some of the moves already made by F1's new owners Liberty Media.

The sport's long-time 'supremo' was ousted recently and replaced by Chase Carey, Ross Brawn and Sean Bratches.

And Ecclestone, 86, told Germany's Welt am Sonntag newspaper that the trio is already doing "things I would never do or never would have done".

One of them, said the diminutive Briton, is the new emphasis on social media.

"I have never been convinced of this kind of communication because I do not believe it makes a good contribution to formula one," said Ecclestone.

He continued to criticise Liberty: "Formula one is now run like a branch of Starbucks, with someone else always throwing milk into the coffee."

(GMM)
What Criminal Laws Protect Reporters From Assault?

It is generally understood that journalists and reporters are protected under the First Amendment. Unfortunately, the First Amendment does little to criminalize an attack or assault on members of the press. Generally, when members of the media are attacked, only the typical criminal assault charges will be brought.

A recent example of an attack on the press that has made national headlines involved Republican political candidate Greg Gianforte "body slamming" a reporter. This attack has resulted in paltry misdemeanor assault charges against the candidate. It has also caused an uproar surrounding the lack of stronger criminal protections for journalists and reporters.

Are Reporters Covered by Hate Crime Statutes?

Despite freedom of the press being enumerated in the First Amendment, hate crime statutes do not extend to cover journalists or reporters. This means that an attacker that is targeting a reporter due to hate toward the media will not be prosecuted any differently than an ordinary assault.

Some state's criminal laws provide for aggravated charges when a crime is motivated by malice, intimidation, or other like factors. In those states, if an attack on a reporter is particularly egregious, aggravated charges could potentially be brought.

Civil Rights Protections

Under civil rights laws, both federally and in certain states, a reporter may have civil remedies after an attack prompted by their status as a reporter. Pursuant to one of the broadest and strongest civil rights laws in the country, 42 USC 1983, a reporter or journalist can sue a government official or entity for violating their First and Fourth Amendment rights. This statute provides for civil liability when government officials deny people their civil rights.

If a reporter is attacked by a police officer, or other government official, while lawfully trying to report or gather the news, reporters not only will have claims under the Fourth Amendment for any assault they suffer, but also under the First Amendment for being prevented from engaging in free press activities.

Also, some states provide other similar protections. For example, in California, the Bane Act prohibits government officials from denying a person their civil rights through the use of intimidation, coercion, or force.

Related Resources:
Pascal Wehrlein will return to hospital in the coming days, following another rollover crash.

The Sauber driver had to miss the start of the 2017 season after injuring his back in a crash during the 'race of champions' winter event.

Now, in Monaco, Wehrlein was once again able to walk away from a similar rollover crash, before slamming McLaren fill-in Jenson Button for the "stupid" overtaking attempt.

The German broadcaster RTL reports that Wehrlein experienced back pain in the aftermath.

"Yes, I'll have to do a scan next week," the 22-year-old confirmed.

Wehrlein is also quoted as saying by Brazil's Globo: "I hope to be ok.

"I hit my head on the barrier again, so I will have to do a new CT scan of my back. We'll see.

"It seems ok, but since I had this injury, I'm not sure," he added.

(GMM)
Mon National Party submits that the use of the phrase non-secession from the union violates the 1947 constitution and we are against it, said Nai Layie Tamarh, general secretary of Mon National Party.

Representatives cited Article X of the 1947 Burma (Myanmar) constitution: every state shall have the right to secede from the Union in accordance with the conditions hereinafter prescribed.

If they that phrase is included in the final document, it will only serve to increase the concerns and doubts of the oppressed minority ethnic peoples. It will affect national unity and reconciliation, and tarnish the current talks, said Nai Layie Tamarh.

The conference is split into five sectors, each discussing a different aspect of the process. Military representatives to the political sector, who are largely independent of the National League for Democracy-led government, are the only group pushing the non-secession language. Political parties, armed ethnic groups and some scholars have advised against it.

The political sector is discussing language used by the Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC), a tripartite organization composed of the government, some armed groups, and political parties. The guiding principles for the negotiations had called for the establishment of a Union based on the principles of democracy and federalism, that upholds the non-disintegration of the Union, the non-disintegration of national solidarity, and perpetuation of national sovereignty. The military recently moved to change the first principle to non-secession.

Nai Chain Toi, the leader of the other major Mon political party, the All Mon Regions Democracy Party (AMDP) also rejects the non-secession language.

Just because they are talking about building a federal union, does not mean it will be genuine federalism. Whether the result of this framework for negotiations is true federalism depends on what is decided.

The political parties of other ethnic groups also announced their opposition to the non-secession language. The Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), one of the largest ethnic parties in the country, said in a statement issued on May 25 that the new term totally violates the promise and spirit of the original Panglong agreement. They added that it is not what Myanmars independence leader General Aung San had intended by the original agreement, and would destroy national unity.

The five sectors being discussed at the second round of peace talks are politics, economy, society, land and resources, and security. After two days of discussion, results from each sector will be submitted to the full conference for further discussion and deliberation on May 28.

By Mon News Agency
Timothy writes, "Diego Gomez is a Colombian conservation biologist. When he was a college student, he shared a single research paper online so that others could read and learn from it, just as he did. Diego was criminally prosecuted for copyright infringement, and faced up to 8 years in prison."

"Today a court in Colombia acquitted him of the charges. This is good. Dragging students into court for sharing educational materials makes no sense. But the fight isn't over. The prosecution is appealing the case, and we'll need to help Diego in his defense yet again."



Diego's story also serves as a cautionary tale of what can happen when copyright law is broadened through international agreements. The law Diego was prosecuted under was enacted as part of a trade agreement with the United States. But as is often the case when trade agreements are used to expand copyright law, the agreement only exported the U.S.' extreme criminal penalties; it didn't export our broad fair use provisions. When copyright law becomes more restrictive with no account for freedom of expression, people like Diego suffer.

DIEGO GOMEZ FINALLY CLEARED OF CRIMINAL CHARGES FOR SHARING RESEARCH

[Elliot Harmon and Jeremy Malcolm/EFF]





Colombian Court Acquits Diego Gomez of Criminal Charges for Sharing a Research Paper Online

[Timothy Vollmer/Creative Commons]
Future EQ models can be integrated in the series production of existing Mercedes-Benz plants on four continents. With highly flexible structures, the plants already can produce vehicles with different drive types on the same line. The company will decide on the basis of market demand which foreign locations will produce further EQ models within the production network.

Mercedes-Benz announced that its Rastatt plantthe companys lead plant in global production of compact carswill produce compact-class electric EQ models in the future. The decision is based on a declaration of intent, which the company has set up with the works council. All three German Mercedes-Benz car plantsRastatt, Bremen and Sindelfingenwill now produce EQ-brand EVs.

In 2015, Rastatt plant management and works council reached an agreement for competitiveness and future development and agreed to produce the next Mercedes-Benz compact car generation in Rastatt.

Building on the experience gained during the series production of electric vehicles at the location, the workforce is being prepared for the new models and further technological developments with comprehensive training programs. The Mercedes-Benz Rastatt plant is running at high capacity utilization, and currently creating the conditions for the production start of the next compact car generation in 2018. This includes constructing two new body shops on the site, as well as a training center. The new training center is the central facility for training the plants workforce, as well as for the employees in the worldwide compact car production compound.

We are making a decisive step towards digitalization and new technologies. Having met all the requirements, the Rastatt team is ready for the challenges. Together with our ambitious colleagues, we as a works council want to help to shape the change in the automotive industry for electric mobility. We have laid the foundation for this. Ullrich Zinnert, Chairman of the Works Council at Mercedes-Benz Rastatt

With the Concept EQ, Mercedes-Benz Cars presented a new generation of electric vehicles. (Earlier post.) More than ten new electric passenger cars are scheduled to be launched by 2022 in all segments from smart to large SUVs. Ten billion euros (US$11.2 billion) will be invested in the expansion of the electric fleet in the next few years.

The new electric vehicles will be produced within the global, highly flexible and efficient production network of Mercedes-Benz Cars with plants on four continents. The first EQ series modelthe EQCwill roll off the line at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Bremen in the year 2019. In addition to that, luxury-class EQ models will be produced at the plant in Sindelfingen. (Earlier post.)

The company assumes that the proportion of electric vehicles in the total unit sales of Mercedes-Benz will be between 15 and 25 percent by 2025. In addition to traction batteries, ACCUMOTIVE will produce batteries for Mercedes-Benz energy storage units and 48-volt-systems. (Earlier post.) The pioneering 48-volt on-board power supply is celebrating its premiere in the new generation of the S-Class and will be gradually introduced in various model series.

The Mercedes-Benz Rastatt plant in Germany is the biggest employer in the region, with a workforce of around 6,500 employees. The A-Class, B-Class and the compact SUV GLA are manufactured at the location. In 2016, more than 300,000 vehicles rolled off its production lines. The production compound of the current compact car generation further includes the plant in Kecskemet, Hungary (production: B-Class, CLA, CLA Shooting Brake), the Chinese production location BBAC (Beijing-Benz Automotive Co. Ltdjoint venture between Daimler AG and BAIC Motor; production: GLA) and the Finnish contract manufacturer Valmet Automotive (production: A-Class). In 2017, the Mercedes-Benz Rastatt plant is celebrating its 25th anniversary.
J. L. BELL is a Massachusetts writer who specializes in (among other things) the start of the American Revolution in and around Boston. He is particularly interested in the experiences of children in 1765-75. He has published scholarly papers and popular articles for both children and adults. He was consultant for an episode of History Detectives, and contributed to a display at Minute Man National Historic Park.
In memory of our heroes

Military men and women have given their lives to secure American freedom since 1775, so its fitting to honor their sacrifices each Memorial Day.

Even as we pause to remember the fallen, soldiers today are serving in very dangerous places  Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, South Korea and elsewhere. Some may lose their lives.

While we wish for a world without war, weve learned that peace is more likely to be maintained when a strong military guards against aggression.

The U.S. relies on an all-voluntary military. Part of the bargain is to provide for the needs of veterans and the families of those killed in the line of duty. We must not let them down or forget those who have protected our nation through the generations.

Hunger game

To hear some people tell it, the problem with poor people is that they need to stop being poor.

In other words, they need to get a job.

If only the solution were that simple.

That Cliffs Notes version of such thinking ignores the demand for jobs versus the availability of jobs.

It also ignores that many poor people are working, often more than one job, but still struggle to make ends meet.

Adding insult to the tone-deaf rhetoric is the downright mean-spirited policy decisions that seem to follow.

Exhibit A in North Carolina is Republican state Sen. Ralph Hise, who wants tighter restrictions in North Carolina on eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or food stamps  even though its a federal program and making the cuts wouldnt save the state one penny.

The provision appears on page 114 of the state Senate budget.

If Hise had his way, the state would purge nearly 133,000 North Carolinians off the food stamp rolls, more than 51,000 of them children.

Hise has explained that he wants to make the changes because he believes the eligibility rules unfairly exclude some people.

So, the answer is to exclude even more people in a state in which food banks struggle to keep their shelves stocked? Seriously?

In Guilford County, especially, were all too familiar with the twin ravages of hunger and poverty.

Hise ought to be. He represents a poor area whose regional food bank vigorously opposes the cuts. If fact, the 47th District exceeds the state averages for both child poverty and overall poverty rates.

Sad to say, Hise has company in high places. President Trumps federal budget proposes a whopping $190 billion in cuts to food stamp benefits.

We can only hope the state House doesnt have the same appetite for such blatant cruelty and illogic.

Out at home

Never mind what we said before, IBM is telling an undisclosed number of its employees in the Triangle.

We dont want you working from home anymore.

This, from the same company that was a major champion of the practice not that long ago.

An IBM spokeswoman told The News & Observer of Raleigh in an email: In many fields, such as software development and digital marketing, the nature of work is changing, which requires new ways of working, and we are bringing small, self-directed agile teams in these fields together.

Among the advantages of working from home are fuel and commuting time savings, especially in the congested Triangle. Its also an attractive plum to offer prize recruits.

On the other hand, actually seeing your co-workers face to face on a regular basis can build a greater sense of teamwork, camaraderie and chemistry.

Then again, the bottom line simply may be the bottom line.

IBMs revenue has declined for 20 consecutive quarters, though the spokeswoman flatly denied that cost-cutting was a factor.

At any rate, a company has the right to shape its workplace policies to fit its needs, and those needs  and the nature of the work  can change over time.

Though making a living in your pajamas and bedroom slippers does have its appeal, one size does not fit all.
GREENWICH  The weather on Monday did not dampen the Sound Beach Volunteer Fire Co.s annual Memorial Day parade in Old Greenwich.

The rain mostly held off as the 95th annual parade marched up Sound Beach Avenue into Binney Park, where hundreds paid tribute to those who have served the country.

Ashley and Zino Carr, central Greenwich residents, came to the parade with their children, Nula, 3, and Cullen, 1, as they do every year no matter the forecast.

Its Memorial Day, we have to represent to teach the kids, Ashley Carr said.

Its so important to honor those who have fallen, Zino Carr added.

Many of the Sound Beach Avenue businesses got into the spirit, including Bennett Jewelers, whose owner Wyatt Bennett, opened the store to serve coffee and donuts, and also dressed up in a red, white and blue wig, stars and stripes vest and was waved the American flag as the marchers passed.

This is a very important event for the community, Bennett said. This should be a solemn occasion because we are remembering the dead, but aside from that, its great to see so much participation and people excited to pay tribute to those who have served.

Former Greenwich residents Dick and Kate Gildersleeve returned to town from their home in Stamford for the parade. They have been coming to the parade since they first moved to Greenwich in 1972.

You have to remember those who are no longer here, said Dick Gildersleeve, a former Marine. This is a special day. Its a great three-day weekend, but the significance is the fallen service men and women.

The parade went off without a hitch as the Greenwich Police Department, Greenwich Emergency Medical Services, Greenwichs Boy and Girl Scouts, the Cos Cob Fire Police Patrol, the Mary Bush Society and the Greenwich Democratic Town Committee marched. Others rode bicycles, some traveled by car and the Greenwich Fire Department, both through its career and volunteer companies, was the grand finale as the trucks sounded their sirens and honked their horns.

The American flag was raised in Binney Park following the parade and then lowered to half-mast to remember those killed in service. The flag was returned to full mast to symbolize lifting the memories of the dead.

Ana Heavey, a Greenwich High School senior, a member of GEMS Explorers and the daughter of Chief of Police James Heavey, was among those who spoke during the ceremony.

I believe it is truly a blessing that we live in the town of Greenwich, she said. We are seemingly inundated with ways to honor our veterans and remember those who have passed multiple times a day every single day during Memorial Day weekend. Whether it be wearing one of the red poppies handed out at the Greenwich Town Party, attending one of the three parades in town or attending one of the multitude of ceremonies, there is no shortage of ways to get involved in Greenwich.

The Old Greenwich event was one of several during the weekend. American Legion Post 29 assembled the centerpiece of the weekend with a ceremony Monday morning at the Indian Harbor Yacht Club. Memorial ceremonies were also held Monday in Byram and Chickahominy and there were parades in Glenville and Byram on Sunday. A ceremony was held Saturday morning in Cos Cob.

Nearly 150 people attended the ceremony where memorial wreathes were placed near the clubs flagpole and in Long Island Sound. Honor guards from the Greenwich Police Department and Boys and Girls Club of Greenwich participated in the ceremony.

We could not today enjoy the precious gifts of liberty with which we have been so richly blessed without the unselfish sacrifice and heroism of the nearly one and a half million members of the United States Armed Forces who have fallen in battle throughout our history, Post 29 Commander Peter Lebeau said. We owe them so very much and it is a debt we can never repay, so we must never forget them and forever honor their memory.

First Selectman Peter Tesei spoke at the morning memorial and at the Old Greenwich ceremony. He said it was important for the younger generation to pay close attention and learn the valuable lessons of service to the country and how it enables Americans to live in freedom.

Keynote remarks were delivered by Edward Vick, an Old Greenwich resident. Vick, a Naval officer, served in the River Patrol Force and led more than 100 combat missions along the rivers of the Mekong Delta and the Cambodian border, winning several commendations, including two Bronze Stars and the Presidential Unit Citation.

Vick shared the story of Eric Muller, who grew up in Riverside with every advantage. Vick said Muller could have led a hedge fund and had a backcountry mansion but instead volunteered for the Army as a private and became a member of the elite Green Berets during Vietnam.

Muller led a squad of Vietnamese troops in 1967 seeking an elusive Viet Cong regiment before he was killed in a violent gun battle. Vick described how Muller, who received a Silver Star, refused medical treatment and pulled at least two of his soldiers out of the line of fire, called for artillery and air support and continued the fight, inspiring his men to defeat their determined enemy.

Vick said there is a higher meaning to wars.

Its that the world knows that we are still the light of freedom and the world knows that America has a backbone of young men and women willing to pay the price to defend our country and our way of life, Vick said. People who understand what it truly means when we say freedom isnt free.

kborsuk@greenwichtime.com
News / Africa

by Lizeka Tandwa, News24

Johannesburg - When the real history is told, President Jacob Zuma will be remembered for bringing hope to millions of South Africa's citizens, Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Des van Rooyen said.Van Rooyen sang Zuma's praises during the opening of the Traditional Leaders Indaba at Birchwood Hotel on the East Rand on Monday morning."That the institution of traditional leaders is now well recognised in the democratic South Africa is in no small way... [because of] the leadership of our current leaders, [like] President Zuma," he said.Van Rooyen said Zuma should be celebrated as the leader whose hallmark has been the struggle for the voiceless.He said that sacrifices made by Zuma had guided his own actions to ensure that services delivery had improved for the poorest of the poor in the country."He is the hero of the masses. Those voiceless citizens who do not have access to Twitter and Facebook."We know very well that he is not a friend to monopoly capital; we know very well that he is shaking a lot of things. His leadership has changed the lives of the poorest of the poor," Van Rooyen said.Gupta allegationsHis comments come on the back of Zuma surviving another motion of no confidence tabled against him at a meeting of the ANC's national executive committee (NEC) in Pretoria at the weekend.It also follows the revelations on Sunday of a trove of emails linked to the controversial Gupta family. The emails show that the Guptas picked up the tab for Van Rooyen's visit to Dubai in 2015.Van Rooyen was finance minister for a weekend in December 2015, when former finance minister Nhlanhla Nene was removed. Van Rooyen was removed after an uproar, and replaced by Pravin Gordhan.Gordhan was axed in a Cabinet reshuffle at the end of March this year.Van Rooyen, who has refused to comment on recent allegations against him, praised Zuma on Monday for dedicating his life to struggle for the "poorest of the poor".Zuma, who was described by NEC sources as "very angry", and who allegedly threatened his detractors in the ANC not to "push him too far" after the motion, smiled when he arrived at the indaba.He was welcomed by Van Rooyen as they walked side by side to the conference hall.Also in attendance were Small Business Minister Lindiwe Zulu and Public Protector Busisiwe Mkwebane.When News24 attempted to get comment from Zuma on the ANC NEC, his bodyguards brushed the reporter aside.




Haiti - Politics : Deep sadness of President Moise





Following the death of the former Senator Turneb Delpe, Coordinator of the  Mouvement Patriotique Populaire Dessalinien  (MOPOD) in a hospital in New York on Saturday, May 27, https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-21065-haiti-politics-former-senator-turneb-delpe-coordinator-of-mopod-passed-away.html President Jovenel Moise expressed in a note his deep sadness at the disappearance of this militant who marked Haitian political life.



"The President of the Republic, His Excellency Jovenel Moise, expresses his deep sadness at the announcement of the death of former Senator Turneb Delpe, whose action marked the Haitian political life for several decades.



The Head of State would like to pay tribute to an activist who has worked tirelessly for democracy, human rights and individual freedoms. We can not say enough the tireless efforts he has made, not without bitterness and disenchantment, throughout his life, to promote national dialogue.



Today, society and in particular the Haitian political class mourn the loss of a great party leader, a man of conviction, a patriot who offers for the future lessons of courage, integrity and self-denial. The President of the Republic, His Excellency Jovenel Moise, expresses his deepest condolences to his family, his relatives and his political allies."



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-21065-haiti-politics-former-senator-turneb-delpe-coordinator-of-mopod-passed-away.html



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Politics : Towards the creation of a Parliamentary Front against Hunger in Haiti





Some 20 deputies participated in a day of reflection on the establishment of a Parliamentary Front Against Hunger (FPF), recently organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).



Nathanael Hishamunda, FAO Representative in Haiti, drew the attention of Parliamentarians to the fact that the fight against hunger requires a multi-level governance approach that includes both Executive, Legislative and Judicial powers, economic agents and Organizations of the Civil Society.



He particularly stressed the role of the legislature in this approach to fighting hunger, through legislation that can accompany food and nutrition security policies and programs, and has drawn the attention of parliamentarians to their ability to put the issue of food security at the highest level of the political and legislative agenda.



The deputy Tanis Tertius, chairman of the Committee on Agriculture and Food Security in the Chamber of Deputies, said he relies on FAO's technical support for the establishment of such a Front, like other countries of the region "The creation of a Parliamentary Front against Hunger will allow us to respond to the different facets of poverty and hunger and to identify the possibilities of solution through the implementation of adapted public policies."



The day focused mainly on issues related to the processes and mechanisms for creating this front: the different steps involved in creating an FPF, its composition, mandate, objectives, relevance, structure, legal status, its legitimacy within the legislature, its internal regulations, its strategies, its conditions of sustainability, among others.



At the end of the day, FAO's Special Ambassador "Zero Hunger" for Latin America and the Caribbean, former Dominican Deputy Guadalupe Valdez, who facilitated the discussions, stressed that despite the major challenges faced by Haiti, achieving food security as a goal of sustainable development by 2030 is possible if all actors combine their efforts in the same direction.



Ambassador Valdeza recalled that with the support of FAO, 17 Parliamentary Fronts against Hunger, 4 Framework Laws and 20 laws on food security and nutrition issues have emerged in some countries in the region "Haiti could be the 18th country to join the Regional Coordination of Parliamentary Fronts against Hunger and the first Francophone country in the world to create one.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















News / National

by Staff reporter

Embattled Zanu-PF national political commissar Saviour Kasukuwere will soon know his fate after a probe team set to investigate allegations being levelled against him completed its report now likely to be presented to President Mugabe this week.Kasukuwere is facing a litany of allegations that include failing to run the party's commissariat department and plotting to topple President Mugabe.To give credence to his alleged questionable leadership, last week Kasukuwere brewed a shocker after he made a unilateral decision to disqualify Pearson Meeting Mbalekwa from contesting in the party's primaries for the Chiwundura by-election via a text message.Leader of the Kasukuwere probe team, Advocate Jacob Mudenda told our Harare Bureau yesterday that they had completed the report and soon it would be presented to the President."We have finalised the (Kasukuwere) report and what is left is for us to present it to His Excellency, President Mugabe," he said.Asked when the report would be tabled to the President and Politburo, Adv Mudenda said: "That I cannot tell."Sources close to the matter said the report might be presented to the President this week because it was long overdue."I am sure that the report will be presented to the President this week because this matter has dragged for too long," said the source. "The issue is now creating problems in the party and should be brought to finality."Among other things, Kasukuwere is accused of presiding over factionalism in Zanu-PF, through setting up parallel structures with a view to deposing President Mugabe at an envisaged special Congress.It is alleged that Kasukuwere bulldozed a number of individuals - including high-ranking officials - to influential positions across various structures of the ruling party.Mashonaland Central was the first to accuse Kasukuwere of trying to engineer President Mugabe's ouster via parallel structures primed for an Extraordinary Congress of the party.Other provincial executives then turned up the heat, signing petitions calling for the removal of the national commissar. This saw Zanu-PF's President and First Secretary, Mugabe, assigning the case to a high-level probe team led by Adv Mudenda.Zanu-PF organs and affiliate organisations last week said Kasukuwere's case needed closure as it risked affecting preparations for next year's harmonised elections.


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News / National

by Stephen Jakes

Residents of Rimuka are up in arms with the power utility over the continued power outage that has gone for more than three months without a lasting solution it has been learnt.Residents occupying houses along Chidoko, Garwe, Mafunga, and Zengwe streets have been in dark for the past three months for twenty hours daily and despite repeatedly approaching ZETDC Kadoma offices it has failed to yield positive results.Godfrey Mazuba of Mafunga street said that they have endured power blackouts for more than three months."We've gone for than three months with these blackouts and despite repeated calls to ZETDC nothing has changed, if they don't us to have power like any other citizen ,they must tell us!"charged Mazuba.Christopher Ngwenya of Garwe also weighed in that ZETDC Kadoma conduct is very disgusting and residents have mooted a demo against the Kadoma ZETDC."We've been badly affected by ZETDC because our problem has gone for some time without a solution, so we've mooted a peaceful demo so that pur plight is head!"said Ngwenya.Another women popularly known as Mai Ozzy said that ZETDC Kadoma personnel need to be serious with the concerned residents."ZETDC Kadoma needs to be serious with us because this not good for us,we're citizens just like any other Zimbabwean.Efforts to get a comment from ZETDC Kadoma proved fruitless.
A Chevron Australia employee who was terminated for using a racist slur has been found to have been unfairly dismissed, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.



The FWC found dismissal was too severe for the offence and the workers' actions were "careless rather than involving reckless indifference".



However, the FWC did not award compensation for lost remuneration, finding the employee had caused offence to employees and had a responsibility to Chevron to comply with its policies.



HRD contacted Chevron for comment and a spokesperson said the company respects the FWCs decision as an independent arbiter.



Chevron Australia is fully committed to providing a diverse and inclusive work environment which is free from unlawful discrimination and where individual differences are respected, said the statement.



This commitment is reflected in policies, training and associated programs.



The employee was on a bus to Chevrons Gorgon project on Western Australias Barrow Island when he told colleagues a story about a friend and his girlfriend, who was a young gin.



The worker spoke about how his friend "rooted a gin down the beach" and had to leave her behind because he was "getting his arse chewed by sand-flies".



Another worker responded he "used to see gins hitchhiking from place to place and men would pick them up and f--- the bums off them and dump them in the middle of nowhere to make their own way back into town".



The comments were overheard by two indigenous workers and one complained that his "blood was boiling" and his "adrenalin was pumping". He also said he was hurt, angry and so disgusted, as these disgusting comments are directed towards all the women in his family.



Chevron dismissed the worker for "inappropriate workplace behaviour" after finding his use of the term "gin" was "absolutely intolerable" and contrary to its anti-discrimination policy.



However, the employee argued he had not realised "gin" was a derogatory term for indigenous women until he had googled it after the incident.



The employee also argued that he only thought it was derogatory if it was told directly to an indigenous woman.



He said he had apologised immediately to his indigenous colleagues and said he had a past history of advocating for and mentoring indigenous people.



The worker had been previously employed by BHP Billiton as an indigenous employment adviser and later by Fortescue Metals Group as an indigenous development adviser between 2010 and 2013.



He also gave evidence that he had been told by Chevron employees that a couple of weeks after he had been dismissed, another employee had used the word nigger in a meeting at the workplace with managers and he had only been given a written warning for this.



The commissioner Bruce Williams said the second indigenous man who overheard the bus comments had told Chevron that growing up in WA in his culture gin is not necessarily derogatory  Regard should have been had for the fact there was a range of opinion as to how rude or offensive using the word gin was.




YLE on Friday reported that a restaurateur in Lahti has run their restaurant for months by using asylum seekers from the local reception centre as unpaid workers.

The Finnish Red Cross (SPR) is looking into allegations that asylum seekers have been exploited by employers participating in a programme designed to familiarise asylum seekers with the working life in Finland, the TET programme.

Katja-Pia Jenu, a labour and occupational safety inspector at the Southern Finland Regional State Administrative Agency, revealed to the public broadcasting company that similar discrepancies have been detected at a few other restaurants and other types of establishments.

SPR will look into the allegations, Juhana Paivarinta, a project manager at SPR, affirms to Uusi Suomi.

We must look into this, absolutely. The excesses described are so blatant that we must leave no stone unturned to find out whats underneath and if something like this is going on in a wider scale, he states.

He adds that he is not yet aware of any case of exploitation related to the programme.

YLE has also obtained copies of the work-practice contracts that indicate that the practice periods have been longer than the maximum of three weeks and that after the expiry of the period the employees have continued working on a new contract.

Mari Eklund-Kiiski, the head of the reception centre, tells the public broadcaster that it is likely that employers have somehow obtained the contract templates and used them without authorisation. The objective is that the work practice periods are no longer than three weeks and that the same employee can only be used once, she emphasises to YLE.

Paivarinta, similarly, estimates that it seems that the employer in question has taken advantage of the status of SPR. SPRs logo and contract details have been snatched and put on the paper, he says.

YLE highlights that many asylum seekers are willing to accept offers even for even unpaid jobs in order to have something meaningful to do with their time.

The TET trial was launched roughly a year ago in Varsinais-Suomi and, after positive results adopted also at other reception centres in Finland in October. Its purpose is to promote the integration of asylum seekers and familiarise them with the working life and ways of living in the country.

If they are granted asylum, they will have the readiness to seek employment. Asylum seekers who are idle can become frustrated and isolated from the society, which easily leads to institutionalisation, explains Paivarinta.

He reveals that asylum seekers most typically work in restaurants, provide cleaning services and tend to parks and other public places. The approximately 1,000 three-week practice periods that have already been completed, he adds, have resulted in up to 120 asylum seekers  including 7080 thus far this year  finding paid employment.

One property management firm, for example, hired many asylum seekers after the work practice period, he tells.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Photo: Vesa Moilanen  Lehtikuva

Source: Uusi Suomi
News / National

by Alice Charamba

First Lady Grace Mugabe once indirectly attacked the late first black Bulawayo mayor Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu for expressing the ambition to be vice president.That was in 2014 when top remaining former Zapu members jostled for the then vacant post.Ndlovu's chances dimmed after Grace expressed astonishment at a rally that a person struggling with poor health should be showing an interest in the cushy job.Ndlovu was slowly showing signs of poor health.At least five top Zanu-PF members including Ndlovu had declared their interest for the post.At the time the then Zanu-PF national chairman Simon Khaya Moyo was heavily tipped to land it during the Zanu-PF December elective congress of 2014.Kembo Mohadi, former ambassador to South Africa Phelekezela Mphoko, former Zipra stalwart Ambrose Mutinhiri and Ndlovu were eying the post.But Grace said the former Zapu leaders jostling for the top post were an embarrassment and were not setting a good example.Below is what Grace said during one of her condemned "Meet the people tours"."That agreement (Unity Accord) made provisions for one vice-president from PF Zapu, with guidelines on who should occupy that seat."But now anybody who thinks they can be VP is saying I want the post and we have five men now."That is bad. That spirit might catch up in the women's league"All those vying for the post are senior politicians and what are they teaching those of us who are new in politics."It's causing confusion among members and it must stop."
News / National

by Staff reporter

President Robert Mugabe's under pressure government is facing a fresh crisis after teachers warned yesterday that they would stage a crippling strike if authorities go ahead with their plans to close more than 40 schools in Matabeleland South.Their mass action threats come as fed up nurses have also given the government notice that they will soon start toyi-toying to press for improved working conditions and the dismissal of the Health Services Board (HSB) secretariat, which they accuse of failing to act on their long-standing grievances.Various teachers' representatives told the Daily News yesterday that they had already put in motion the process of mobilising their members, civic groups FROM P1and community leaders to confront the government over the school closure debacle.This comes after the government announced last week that it was planning to shut down 40 schools in Matabeleland South - on account of low pupil and student enrolments.A fuming Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) secretary general, Raymond Majongwe, did not mince his words yesterday, telling the Daily News that they would go on strike if the government went ahead with their plans."The response from various groups is overwhelming because we are all agreed that we must speak with one voice to pressure authorities."Several CSOs (civil society organisations) and activists are willing to join the communities that are being punished by government for being located away from schools."The policy is that an examination centre can be established where six people have registered for examinations, yet here we are talking about 100 or more pupils who will be disadvantaged by the plans at some schools."So, after consultations, we greed that we will take whatever action will be necessary, including demonstrating," Majongwe said.The chief executive officer of the Zimbabwe Teachers Association (Zimta), Sifiso Ndlovu also said his organisation would not countenance any schools being closed by "a rigid ministry that lacks dynamism"."We will continue to engage government on this and put pressure on them, encouraging the authorities to abandon the plans as we also want to tell the permanent secretary to stop all this nonsense of wanting to run the ministry as if it were her private company."This ministry is not organised, it is rigid and lacks dynamism. Imagine a ministry in which the average age of virtually its entire education officers from district to province is 55 years."Obviously, their thinking is not in tandem with that of the younger generation because of the rigidity which may not bring transformation in a manner that the young minds can," Ndlovu thundered.The plan to close down the schools has also not gone down well with local residents and civil society groups, who both accuse the government of being insensitive to the plight of the poor, and the people of Matabeleland in particular, who have long felt marginalised by the State.Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition spokesperson, Dumisani Nkomo, is also on record saying the move will be challenged vigorously."This move smacks of further alienation, discrimination and marginalisation of an already exploited region."We reiterate our position that we are vehemently opposed to the closing of schools to the already historical disadvantaged regions of Matabeleland."We will not stand by idly as the rights of children are violated. We call upon our members to resist this insane move."It is frivolous and vexatious for the government to claim that these schools are not viable when the government is presiding over more than 50 loss-making parastatals and yet these loss-making entities are still dear to government," Nkomo said.He also said the government's decision was a flagrant violation of section 75 of the Constitution, which ensured the right to education, as well as section 81 which upheld children's rights.The Community Development Trust (CDT) also described the decision to close the schools as "totally unacceptable as it violates the children's right to education"."This is based on a flawed, outdated and ill-conceived policy of one teacher to 40 students, which is a one-size-fits-all' policy that does not consider differences in settlement patterns and population sizes of various communities of Zimbabwe and in Matabeleland."In this policy directive, the ministry ... did not consider the best interests of the children but its own administrative interests, which is wrong," CDT director Nkululeko Tshuma said.Human rights lawyer, Dewa Mavhinga, also told the Daily News yesterday that teachers would be "totally justified" to go on strike, as the closure of schools was a very important matter."The threat to close over 40 schools in Matabeleland is a matter of national importance that justifies strike action by teachers, and which parents, civil society, and progressive political movements should join to condemn this blatant attack on the right to education."The government should not purport to address low enrolment by creating problems. Any necessary interventions must also involve the communities themselves," Mavhinga told the Daily News.Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC also said it was time for "all progressive forces to join hands and resist the government's ruinous policies such as the threat to close schools"."The decision to close 40 schools in Matabeleland is absolutely nauseating. The Zanu-PF regime has now gone bonkers."Of course, the MDC, as a labour backed political party, is very much in support of the decision by teachers to embark on a nationwide strike to protest the unconstitutional and vindictive government decision to close 40 schools in Matabeleland South."The people of Matabeleland have continued to suffer badly since the Gukurahundi genocide ... Minister Lazarus Dokora and his team at the ministry of Education must surely be smoking some hazardous substance."Otherwise, how on earth could they arrive at this shocking decision to close 40 schools in this historically marginalised region?" MDC spokesperson Obert Gutu said.Meanwhile, nurses gave notice last week to strike, over poor working conditions which they blame on the HSB "clueless" board."We feel the HSB does not understand us and how we operate. We have been raising our grievances since 2010 and up to nowthey have not yet addressed those issues."The purpose of the HSB is to address the conditions of service for health workers, but this is not happening," Zimbabwe Nurses Association secretary-general, Enock Dongo, told the Daily News on Friday."Even when you have been working as a nurse for 10 years, and when you should be considered to be a senior, you get the lowest salary of about $285. It's all because your grade doesn't change. You remain grade D1, instead of maybe D3."Someone can also have three or four diplomas on top of a nursing degree and still be in that low grade. We have specialities in midwifery, intensive care and physiotherapy, but all that is not being recognised."We want the HSB secretariat to be removed ... and we will not stop demonstrating until they are removed. They are non-medical people and they don't even know how we operate as health workers," Dongo said."When we discuss our issues with the board, they appear to understand, but the problem comes with implementation  that's where the problem is. We cannot have the lives and professions of over 35 000 people suffer because of a few people, and we are saying we are fed up," he added.
A Dublin taxi driver charged with being in possession of 100,000 of cannabis herb for sale or supply in his vehicle has been granted bail with strict conditions.

James O'Reilly (42) was stopped in his car by gardai at Castle Mills in Balbriggan last Monday at 9.50pm.

The accused, of Chieftain's Close, Balbriggan, was arrested and detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act at Balbriggan Garda Station.

Bail

Gda Eamonn McFadden told Swords District Court that Mr O'Reilly was charged with being in unlawful possession of 5kg of cannabis herb for sale or supply.

Gda McFadden said that the accused made "no reply" after caution to each charge.

Gardai made no objection to bail being granted while directions were sought from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

Judge Dermot Dempsey remanded the accused on bail on his own bond of 400, subject to his residing at his home address, not applying for a passport or travel documents, providing gardai with a mobile phone number within seven days and signing on three times a week at Balbriggan Garda Station.

Dressed in a white shirt, navy jacket and blue jeans, Mr O'Reilly did not address the court or indicate how he intends to plead during his trial.

Defence solicitor Fiona D'Arcy said there was an application for legal aid as Mr O'Reilly was a taxi driver but his car had been seized by gardai.

"He is effectively unemployed now," she said.

The judge granted legal aid and remanded Mr O'Reilly to appear before Balbriggan District Court on July 27 for DPP directions.
News / National

by Staff reporter

This week is another big one politically for President Robert Mugabe and his warring ruling Zanu-PF - with the nonagenarian scheduled to address a mega rally in Marondera, amid the former liberation movement's worsening infighting.Zanu-PF insiders told the Daily News yesterday that the rally, which is being organised by the party's youth league, would be a show of force by Mugabe - to remind his ambitious lieutenants and their brawling factions that "he is very much still in charge".Mugabe - who spent all of last week in Mexico, attending an obscure conference on climate change - returned home at the weekend at a time that there are growing fissures within Zanu-PF, as the bigwigs fighting to succeed him escalate their mindless bloodletting.In the week that Mugabe was in Mexico, his supporters clubbed each other during violent clashes in Bulawayo, while intra-party tensions went a notch up after former intelligence operative, Pearson Mbalekwa, was barred from representing Zanu-PF in the impending Chiwundura by-election.As if this was not enough, the influential women's league which is headed by his powerful wife Grace, is also facing fresh problems in Bulawayo, where 10 of its regional officials have been suspended.Youth league secretary, Kudzanai Chipanga, reiterated yesterday that the Marondera rally was one of many they were organising to galvanise support for Mugabe."The rallies are meant for the youths to reaffirm our support for President Robert Mugabe as our candidate, not only for next year's elections, but also as our life president."The party is united fully behind President Robert Mugabe and there has never been any debate about whether he should be the candidate or not."His candidature is unanimously endorsed by all in Zanu-PF," Chipanga told the Daily News."It is our constitutional mandate as Zanu-PF youths to mobilise support for party programmes. In president ... Mugabe we have a name that makes our job easier because many youths in the country look up to him as a role model."The rally will also see the launch of our voter registration campaign as we encourage youths to participate in social, economic and political programmes," he added.However, analysts said it would be interesting to see how Mugabe would use the rally platform to deal with Zanu-PF's worsening tribal, factional and succession wars.This is more so, as observers have also consistently said Mugabe's failure to resolve Zanu-PF's thorny succession riddle is fuelling the ruling party's deadly infighting.The 93 year-old has studiously refused to name a successor, insisting that the party's congress has that mandate: to choose a person of their own choice.
News / National

by Staff reporter

A pastor at the heart of a protest movement against President Robert Mugabe has demanded that the United Nations (UN) intervenes in Zimbabwe to avert another "stolen election."Evan Mawarire - whose #ThisFlag movement led the biggest anti-government rallies in a decade in 2016 - said Mugabe's election-stealing antics have been documented throughout Zimbabwe and beyond."I am 40 years old, I had never been a politician. The one thing I know, I have watched election after election, the ones that have been rigged, the ones that have been lost controversially," Mawarire told the ninth annual meeting of the Oslo Freedom Forum in Norway last week."I have watched those things happen and I have always yearned can the regional powers come to our rescue, can the continent come to our rescue, can the United Nations come to our rescue, but sometimes there is so much going on in the world there is no one to listen to your trouble. Zimbabwe is entering a season of change," he said.He called on the UN to implement relevant council resolutions over the Zimbabwe crisis.Mugabe, 93, who has ruled Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, was endorsed by his ruling Zanu-PF party last December to run in next year's presidential election, his last allowed under a Constitution passed in 2013."It's part of what shames us as Zimbabweans," Mawarire said."Someone said this to me Robert Mugabe was Mandela before Mandela was Mandela'. But somehow something went wrong."Today he is 93-years-old and has declared that next year he will be running for president and it's a blot on him as a leader that he has failed to groom a successorfailed to take responsibilityfailed to run Zimbabwe better than he received itit troubles many Zimbabweans because we are trying to dream a new future," he said."But we can't because this past keeps holding on to us. And that's what this young generationrepresents with our courage that says we are not afraid of you anymore, we are more afraid of our children 20 years from now asking us why did we not do anything."Mawarire, who faces a 20-year sentence for charges that include attempting to subvert the government and inciting public violence, said: "The State continues to say they are not ready to prosecute, so continue to push my case forward."I have to report to the police regularly. I am followed by (State) security agents my passport has been seized and I only have access to it when I apply to the High Court stating exactly where I am going."I want to take this moment to thank my parents, baba and amai Mawarire because they allowed me to use the title deeds to the only home my family has as surety for my return to Zimbabwe after I am done here."
North High class' portraits of veterans to be on display Friday
Opinion / Columnist

Figures are important, particularly for Zimbabwe where they simply don't add up. Let's start with Mugabe's trip to the Mexican resort of Cancun less than a week after he returned from seeing his doctors in Singapore.Mugabe travelled by chartered airliner with an entourage of three dozen people. All of them received a daily allowance of at least $1,000. Some would have got considerably more, among them three cabinet ministers who would be obliged by the dignity of their office to stay in the best suites in the most expensive hotels. That will prove to Mugabe's opponents that Zimbabwe is doing alright, won't it?Why were they in Mexico? One wonders if it was just for the expenses. The routine UN meeting on 'disaster risk reduction' was attended by only the odd head of state like Mugabe who, this time, was apparently denied his usual grand-standing opportunity. Mugabe is said to have left Mexico 'not too pleased' before the conference ended. His entourage was presumably 'not too pleased' at losing some per diems out of the millions of dollars in cash that Mugabe takes with him every time he moves (or is this cache only for his own expenses?).Some more figures: last year Mugabe made more than 20 trips abroad, spending $36 million in ten months according to the finance ministry. This year has seen no slowdown.Herald scribe Mabasa Sasa, who was one of the $1,000 a day fellow travellers, came up with a scoop: President Mugabe told the media on arrival home that 'natural and manmade disasters that Zimbabwe has experienced in recent years have made Government wiser to the need to prepare for such exigencies'  such as not building homes in waterways. He went on to report: 'President Mugabe was welcomed at Harare International Airport by Vice-Presidents Emmerson Mnangagwa and Phelekezela Mphoko, Cabinet ministers and other senior Government officials, and service chiefs.'Vice-President Mnangagwa will no doubt have given Mugabe the happy news that the government had exceeded Zanu PF's election promise of creating 2.2 million jobs. This is indeed news to the 90%+ of the population who are looking for work.MDC T legislator Eddie Cross, in an article on corruption in Zimbabwe, says 'I can think of 4 Ministers in Government whom I am prepared to say are honest and not involved in any material corruption  but the rest, 30 of them, are rotten to the core and do not miss an opportunity to make a margin on anything over which they have control.'He continues: 'The evidence of corruption on a massive and pervasive scale is everywhere  estates of homes that would look good on a Hollywood Boulevard. Ministers, earning a few thousand dollars a month, accumulating tens of millions of dollars of property, luxury cars with wives and girl friends swimming in luxuries of every kind. Even Mr Mugabe, who earns a very modest salary, has luxury homes in Harare, Zvimba, South Africa, Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia. The Head of a Medical Aid Society that provides medical cover to the Civil Service; steals US$35 million in three years, is fired and no further action is taken.'Perhaps it's time Mr Mugabe gave up his travels and paid some attention to what is going on at home.
Opinion / Columnist

People's Democratic Party Youth Assembly National Secretary for Defence and Security was yesterday attacked by Zanu-PF thugs who seriously injured him.Tarisai Musurudzwa who was in the company of other PDP members from Harare Province was attacked by Zanu-PF hooligans soon after a successful belated Africa Day celebration rally which was held in Mabvuku. The PDP condemns in strongest terms the attack on its member.Zanu-PF always relies on violence; such levels of intolerance have no place in a modern society. The party restates the point mentioned in the Agenda for Restoration and Rehabilitation of Electoral Sustainability (ARREST) that there must be a mechanism to deal with violence including decentralised electoral courts of violence. The signs are clear that Zanu-PF will once again use violent tactics in the next election.In terms of Section 67 Constitution, all citizens have the right, to form and join political parties, to campaign freely and peacefully for their political parties, to gather peacefully to influence, challenge or support political causes. Zanu-PF is therefore in violation of this provision; the law must descend on the perpetrators.The PDP yesterday held three concurrent belated Africa Day celebrations following the first one successfully held in Bulawayo on Africa Day.Speaking at the Kamunhu shops President Tendai Biti said only a Transformational Democratic Development State can answer the problems that the Zimbabwean people are facing.He said the People's Democratic Party will pursue this model as it provided a framework which will ensure growth and development is even and inclusive.President Biti said more than two million decent jobs will be created contrary to Zanu-PF's failure only managing to create two jobs one for Bona and another for her husband against a background of many people losing their jobs and companies en masse.The President also highlighted the need to implement devolution as provided in the National Constitution. He said the provisions on devolution are meant to ensure inclusive and even development as well as to ensure accurate priorities are determined by locals.The Mabvuku Africa Day celebration was also addressed by the PDP International Relations Secretary Willias Madzimure, National Women's Assembly Chairperson Evelyn Masaiti, National Youth Chairperson Moses Manyengavana and National Secretary General Tatenda Chigwada.In Midlands South Treasurer General Benson Ntini addressed a belated Africa Day celebrations gathering in Vungu. The Treasurer General also met with prospective local authority candidates in the District.The party also held a similar event in Masvingo; the gathering was addressed by the Deputy Secretary General of the Party Wilstaff Sitemere.On Saturday the Party participated in an interparty forum of the Coalition of Democrats (CODE) in Bulawayo where provincial party structures from parties in CODE held their first gathering.In 2014 at Mandel the party resolved to work with other political parties to form a formidable coalition against dictatorship. In light of this resolution restated in Cannon C of ARREST, the PDP National Chairperson Lucia Gladys Matibenga will address a HerVoteWins gathering in Bulawayo on the 9th of June together with leaders from other political parties including NPP President Joice Mujuru, MDC-T Deputy President Thokozani Khupe and Priscilla Misihairambwi-Mushonga from the MDC.Together Another Zimbabwe is PossiblePDP Communications
This could be the moment. The prospect that Rajinikanth has been toying with for a long time now. His reticence in taking the long-sought-for political plunge is consistent with his low-profile real-life persona, but could also be interpreted as a sign of his prudence.

Rajinikanth has been consistent that he does not see himself as a political leader or statesman. Nevertheless, speculation about his imminent entry into the political arena has cropped up with uncanny regularity. Sceptics have claimed that such speculations reach a crescendo just before the release of his movies. That would be too simplistic an assessment.

The real cause for rumour mills to grind animatedly is not only because the enigmatic megastar seems to relish keeping the media guessing about his political plans, but also that his own actions have had political undertones. His contact with Prime Minister Narasimha Rao in the mid-1990s to help the Congress in the elections did not lead to much, except that the party was left further weakened in Tamil Nadu after it suffered a split. The GK Moopanar faction walked out of the Congress to form the Tamil Manila Congress (TMC). The TMC got the tacit support of Rajinikanths extensive fan club network but the support was not enough to catapult it to power. Megastar Rajinikanth did note that, and stayed away from explicitly supporting other parties after that.

Rajinikanth, given that he is from Bengaluru, has been compelled to weigh in when tensions between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have come to a head over the Cauvery river water sharing dispute. He has even tried to build a political consensus over the inter-linking of the rivers across the country, another of his projects that has not found much traction  a reflection of his lack of political sagacity.

The other piece of the Rajinikanths political will he, wont he, puzzle is his supposed antipathy towards the late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, J Jayalalithaa. Whatever the circumstances and the speculation around the neighbours falling out, Rajinikanth chose not to confront her politically in a one-on-one confrontation, and with her death, never can. Rajnikanths political prospects seems the brightest now, thanks to the huge political vacuum created by the demise of Jayalalithaa and the near-retirement of the DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi. Or do they?

So when a Marathi-speaking Kannadiga from Tamil Nadu considers a political career in his adopted state, what are the factors he would have to weigh? Of course he is hugely popular. Would that translate into votes? MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa as actors-turned-politicians and who even has strong roots outside the state have etched their names in the Tamil political firmament. If anybody can form a triumvirate with MGR and Jaya, it could be Shivaji Rao Gaikwad a.k.a.Rajinikanth. For that, his fan clubs should have been deployed as a part of larger strategy to build his political career, quite like how MGRs fan clubs acted as the bulwark of his political game plan, which helped Jayalalithaa too.

MGR had his political career firmly ensconced in the Dravidian movement. Jayalalithaa stayed true to it merely in name and oversaw the erosion of Dravidian values. Though the Dravidian movement is rooted in atheism, Jaylalithaa was clearly religious and publicly gave money to temples. Rajinikanth has not got the political pedigree or the ideology, instead he has hobnobbed with the Congress initially and more recently with the BJP.

Caste politics is a reality despite the Dravidian movements sway over the politics of Tamil Nadu over the past few decades. Violence against Dalits is an everyday reality. Will Rajinikanth overcome the political faultlines? For that the people of Tamil Nadu should feel the State has reached a political cul de sac and think only Rajinikanth can save it. If not, the mega star will give some political space for a non-existent BJP to make some inroads into the State and nothing else.

@onlinejourno

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Opinion / Columnist

David Anderson teaches at the School of Oriental & African Studies, London. Originally published on 3 May 2000, by UK Independent.

There's nothing new under the sun. Not even in Zimbabwe. Robin Cook may have cajoled the Commonwealth into joining Britain in admonishing Robert Mugabe's government, but it is doubtful that many members of the Commonwealth share Mr Cook's enthusiasm for building pressure against Zimbabwe. Many African leaders, in particular, will agree with Mr Mugabe's contention that he is merely seeking to right the wrongs of history. For Mr Mugabe, the land question is the last colonial question, and it is one he now intends to resolve, whether Mr Cook likes it or not.The issue of land distribution holds the key to Zimbabwe's history, from the colonial past to the present, and, in the words of Mr Mugabe himself, it remains the biggest single problem his government has yet to resolve.There are good reasons for African bitterness over land. Whites in colonial Rhodesia simply took the land they wanted by conquest. They paid no compensation to the Africans they dispossessed. European farms, big and small, dominated productive Highveld by 1900 and still do today. Land was free. Labour was cheap. And throughout the colonial period, the state provided enormous financial subsidies to Rhodesia's white farmers.By contrast, African agriculture was sorely neglected under British colonial rule. Confined by law to so-called native reserves and special purchase areas, African farmers were not encouraged to compete with whites. And by the 1950s, the reserves were grossly overcrowded and declining in productivity.Growing rural poverty and a smouldering sense of injustice at the denial of access to farmland fuelled African political protest in the Sixties. Land was a central plank of the nationalist political platform. When the guerrilla war began, in the Seventies, both Joshua Nkomo's Zapu party and Mr Mugabe's Zanu pledged to bring about radical land reform on gaining power.By the end of the Seventies, more than 40 per cent of the country was still in the hands of white farmers. Their community had been the backbone of Iain Smith's support since UDI, fighting against the rise of African nationalism and bitterly opposing any suggestion of African political advancement. Even in defeat, few of Rhodesia's white farmers were ready to give up their land. As the negotiations to bring majority rule to Rhodesia came to a head, the question of land redistribution still appeared to be the greatest stumbling-block to a peaceful settlement. Britain took some responsibility for helping with the land question at that time, and it was agreed that 75m would be given to offset the costs of buying out European farmers after independence.That inducement helped to bring African nationalists to the negotiating table, but when they arrived at Lancaster House in 1979, for the final round of constitutional talks, Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government sprang a surprise. The representatives found themselves confronted by an uncomfortable compromise that would commit them to respecting existing European property rights and debar them from any expropriation of land during the first 10 years of independence, while the constitution negotiated at Lancaster House remained in force. In return, Britain would meet half the costs of a resettlement programme. In 1980, the British government pledged 20m for that purpose. Under international pressure, the compromise was agreed. To Zimbabweans, it seemed a poor deal. And it has rankled ever since.Maintaining the status quo on the land was to be the price of independence. These were the terms set by the British government: there would be no place for socialist solutions in independent Zimbabwe. To sugar the pill, Britain dangled the prospect of other forms of development aid in the reconstruction of the war-torn Zimbabwean economy, stressing the importance of stability in commercial farming to secure future prosperity. Since 1980, Britain has consistently used the land question as a bargaining counter with Zimbabwe, most recently in 1998, when continued support for the Mugabe government's settlement programme was linked again to the condition that there be no move toward compulsory purchase of commercial farms.Why should the Zimbabweans have expected any more from the British? Many had hoped that Zimbabwe would benefit from a scheme similar to that adopted in Kenya after independence. There, under the much-lauded "million-acre scheme", more than 1,000 white settlers had transferred lands to African farmers between 1962 and 1966, with Britain underwriting the land values paid in compensation to the departing Europeans. Farms were often massively overvalued, securing excellent prices for the departing farmers. But the costs were high, amounting to more than 25m, of which the British government paid 67 per cent.In Kenya, property had been transferred to Africans, but the reality was that the poor and landless seldom gained access to the farms. The vast majority of lands under the million-acre scheme were taken up by wealthier farmers who could afford the purchase costs.By the 1980s, the Kenyan model was considered non-viable, both politically and economically. No donor could accept a scheme under which land was distributed to wealthier farmers while landlessness was so apparent among others, and it was recognised that the start-up costs for any programme in Zimbabwe would need to be considerably higher than in the Kenyan case if farmers were to make an economic success of things. It was a price the Thatcher government simply was not prepared to pay.It was British policy, therefore, that in effect prevented any attempt to redistribute lands in Zimbabwe throughout the Eighties. And it was British capitalism that created the problem in the first place. White prosperity was built on the oppression and exploitation of Africans. It is not difficult to see why land redistribution remains such a live political issue.On the international stage, the Zimbabweans have won the quiet admiration of many other Africans for refusing to be pushed around by their former colonial masters. If anyone has lost the plot in the Zimbabwe saga, it is not Robert Mugabe. He understands the importance of land in Zimbabwe's history only too well, just as he has a clear view of what must be done to retain power. And he knows that Britain is committed to paying further toward the costs of land redistribution in Zimbabwe. The only question that remains is: when, and how much. That may not be to the liking of some British ministers, but no matter how hard they huff and puff, it is not they who will blow Mr Mugabe's house down.
While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was euphoric over its performance in the 2014 elections in Uttar Pradesh, Dalit activists were worrying about the decimation of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). They feared a political vacuum if Mayawati lost her strength.

Their fears were confirmed after BSPs performance in the 2017 assembly polls, especially when they were hoping for Mayawatis return as chief minister.

BHU professor MP Ahirwal says, The political developments have turned the clock back in times when we were treated as untouchables and unequals. Ab daman chakra shuru ho gaya hai (the cycle of atrocities has begun). We are again being called chamars. (a sub-caste of Dalits that is often used to demean them)

Now, the immediate concern of Dalit activists is the fragmentation of their vote in case BSP fails to resurrect before the 2019 polls. According to their assessment, BJP accrued Dalit support where BSP was weak.

The Sangh parivar had started a drive in early 1990s to encompass Dalits into the Hindutva fold. The foundation of Ram temple in Ayodhya was laid by a Dalit, followed by Dalit Bhoj at their homes, attended by senior VHP-RSS-BJP leaders. Mayawatis meteoric rise threw a spanner in BJPs political moves as Dalits started identifying themselves with her, a Jatav by caste.

Contrary to BJPs jubilation over partys penetration into the Dalit vote bank, community leaders still believe that BJP remains the second choice, next to Congress, in areas where BSP is non-existent. They say a few sub-castes like Pasi, Balmiki and Dhobhi, neglected by the BSP leadership, became BJP supporters while Jatavs have stood behind BSP as a rock.

Rattled by Mayawatis downfall, the near absence of second line of leadership and sudden spurt in atrocities against the marginalised, has activated Dalit intellectuals who have again taken up the onus of preparing their community for the next general election.

They have published Alert 19 to reunite Dalits in UP as well as other parts of the country. The document was released in Meerut on 14 April , 2017 and will be sent for mass distribution next month.

Literature, which has always played a key role in the political mobilisation of Dalits has always been best sellers at book fairs. A rickshaw-puller Bhullar in Allahabad had once observed, Only two communities can proclaim to have Veds. Brahmins have Brahm Ved. We have Chamar Ved.

Dalit politics has always emerged from the communitys social agenda and here we highlight the 19 demands, including steps needed to check the atrocities on us, says Dr Satish Kumar, who was a part of the team of academicians and activists that worked on the document. The team was led by senior research scientist with the UGC Dr Bale Ram.

Alert 19 talks about the need to strengthen the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, arms licences and arms at subsidised rates, martial training, special police force, social security, scholarship to Dalit students irrespective of family income among others. Dr Satish Kumar says their motto is to catch them young at the age of 18 years.

Of late, several Dalit organisations have surfaced working in various parts of the country and state. Mayawati does not want their proliferation but the deepening of fault lines tempered with caste sentiments can bring them together under the BSP umbrella at the time of elections, says Prof Bari Narayan, author of a book on Kanshi Ram.

As Dr Satish Prakash says the youth is not satisfied with Dalit leadership. Dalits prefer aggressive politics and Behenji with age has lost that aggression. A new leadership will soon emerge to unite Dalits to defeat the BJP.

The BJP, which has been banking on Dalit support for 2019 polls may have to re-draw its strategy to retain Dalit support. As of now the sentiments are building against it. Saharanpur violence has again reaffirmed their belief that they are not safe under upper-caste rule.

Read more: Growing Dalit anger is bad news for the saffron brigade
The recent lynchings in Jharkhand unfold a relentless script of mob violence in our country. Such brutal manifestation of violence has now become a public spectacle internalised and normalised in the narrative of the modern nation. Media reports show horrific visuals of blood-soaked and mutilated bodies of human beings. One remembers with horror the lynched bodies of two Muslim cattle traders found hanging from a tree in Latehar in Jharkhand last year. Swarming armed perpetrators chasing helpless, unknown individuals are recurrent images that craft the new language and pattern of violence.

How might we make of these forms of senseless violence? Public attacks on marginalised groups, especially Muslims, Dalits, Adivasis, Christians, women and other oppressed groups, testify to the ways violence has entered the private, public and local spaces in our country. Violence is now a language of political and ideological assertion for domination and control over people, who are suddenly caught unawares by angry mobs.

Some may argue that these attacks happened in the past too. Whipping and flogging were routine aspects of colonial violence that demonstrated imperial power. During the mutiny-rebellion of 1857, mutilated bodies of Indian rebels were hung from trees as spectacles for public consumption. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 is another instance of brutal colonial violence when General Dyer ordered his troops to fire upon approximately 20, 000 unarmed people. This was followed by Dyers infamous crawling order and the creation of a crawling lane in Amritsar where no Indian was allowed to walk the street. The report of the Congress Committee observed, the process consisted in persons laying flat on their bellies and crawling exactly like reptiles. In 1947, at the time of Partition, human bodies became sites of lynching and collective violence, women and children being the worst victims. Like in the present times, lynching in all these instances is synonymous with humiliation, violation and destruction of human bodies.

In many ways, colonial forms of violence have continued to flourish in modern India. After independence, however, a new script of violence has been written. Since the 1980s, violence escalated amid processes of secularisation and economic development. Closer to our public memory are, in the words of Ashis Nandy, the secular riots of 1984 openly organised and promoted by Congress cadres. The angry mobs carrying voters lists celebrated public lynching and burning on the streets. Indeed, the modern languages of Hindutva nationalism and statist secularism, as Nandy argues, have converged at different points to find political expression in violence. It is in this sense, mob violence has acquired a new legitimacy, sanction and political meaning.

Incidents of lynching in Dadri, Alwar and Jharkhand demonstrate the extent of symbolic and celebratory forms of violence in everyday lives. These are aggressively linked to modern technologies, modes of communication and institutions of the State  police, judiciary and bureaucracy. Smartphones are used to spread rumours about cow-slaughter and to circulate incendiary motifs, images and symbols. A new form of primeval propaganda is manufactured to forge a collective, homogenous, standardised majoritarian identity devoid of plurality and fluidity. The grisly scenes of violence are captured through cameras and demonstrated as extra-judicial punitive measures against the so-called transgressors, who are helpless and innocent victims. Such scientific techniques provoke, mobilise and inflame the passions of the mass audience. The public exhibition of retribution and punishment is the primary message of such violence.

The widening web of violence has become localised through local networks, but it openly coheres with larger national interests and political outfits. Local vigilante groups, which also include non-State actors, have become active participants in perpetrating vigilante justice and asserting their muscle power through extortion and intimidation. Backed by militant Hindu nationalist outfits, they perpetrate mob violence on vulnerable individuals and communities with impunity. Human beings are dehumanised in the process of lynching.

There is a numbness to the response of the public audience. Often, perpetrators of violence are not seen as aggressors, and victims are viewed as non-victims. In the cacophony of hate, anger, savagery, political and intellectual debates, justice eludes. The recent lynchings show the complexity and pattern of the violence-laden situation. The category of the other is now uncertain and shifting. The modern state remains absolutely mute. A complicit spectator of the spectacle.

Nonica Datta is Associate Professor, Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University

The views expressed are personal
The travelogue by Eric Newby titled Slowly Down the Ganges, which narrates the story of the 1200 mile journey down the Ganges, has inspired a Boston-based artist and curator, Shakeel Hossain. He has created and collated artworks to narrate the mythological story of one Indias most sacred river.

Ganga is an icon river that provides an all-encompassing canvas of India. It represents the art, history and culture of the country, and the exhibition showcases the same. I conceived this exhibition about 30 years ago but at that point it didnt materialise. Now, the subject finds itself in quite a few discourses. This exhibition also tries to include some of the present situations that complete the narrative, says Hossain.

To tell the story of the river, since its inception, new artworks apart from the already existing ones have been commissioned. It presents a cross section of Indian ethos, as expressed through art and history. Covering all the mythological aspects, Gangas relation with Shiva, Krishna and Brahma is also depicted. Ganga is a goddess and a river too, and one needs to respect both these aspects. Some installations show Ganga amidst trash with the urgent need of protection, says Farah Yameen, project coordinator.

This painting shows Ganga hiding in the feet of Lord Krishna, to escape the wrath of Radha.

Hossain had proposed the idea of this exhibition about years back but due to lack of funds, he couldnt work on the project. There was a promise of funding from the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) but it never came. Except the standard National Museum budget, we managed it without any support. The project was envisioned on a much grand scale but was curtailed, he adds.

CATCH IT LIVE What: Ganga- River of Life and Eternity Where: National Museum, New Delhi On till: June 20 Timings: 10am to 6pm (Closed on Monday and public holidays) Nearest Metro Station: Central Secretariat on the Yellow Line

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The Royal Academy of Arts, in partnership with The Royal Collection Trust, will present Charles I: King and Collector, a major exhibition that will reunite the art collection King Charles I of England (1600-1649)  one of the most extraordinary and influential art collections ever assembled. During his reign, the monarch acquired works dating from the 15th to 17th centuries, including pieces by Van Dyck, Rubens Holbein and Titian. The collection was dispersed after his execution in 1649.

Around 150 works from the former collection of Charles I will be brought together for the first time since the 17th century at The Royal Academy of Arts in London next year. The exhibition includes 90 works lent by Queen Elizabeth II, as well as works from The National Gallery in London, the Musee du Louvre in Paris and the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid.

(On left) Anne Cresacre by Hans Holbein the Younger (c. 1527); Charles I at the Hunt by dAnthony van Dyck (c.1635) (RMN-Grand Palais (musee du Louvre) / Christian Jean)

Highlights include the monumental portraits of the king and his family by Anthony van Dyck: Charles I and Henrietta Maria with Prince Charles and Princess Mary, Charles I on Horseback with M. de St. Antoine, Charles I on Horseback and Charles I at the Hunt. The latter, lent by the Louvre, will return to England for the first time since the 17th century.

Queen Henrietta Maria with Sir Jeffrey Hudson by Anthony van Dyck (c.1633); Venus with Mercury and Cupid by Correggio (c.1525) (RMN-Grand Palais (musee du Louvre) / Christian Jean)

The show features various works by Rubens, including Minerva Protects Pax from Mars and Landscape with Saint George and the Dragon, as well as celebrated tapestries of Raphaels Acts of the Apostles.

Works by major artists of the Renaissance also feature, including Correggio, Titian, Veronese, Durer, Holbein the Younger and Bruegel the Elder.

Charles I: one of historys greatest collectors

In the two years prior to his ascension to the throne, Prince Charles visited Madrid, which was under Habsburg rule at the time. The future king was impressed by the Habsburg art collection and returned home with various works, including paintings by Titian and Veronese. He built on this fledgling collection by acquiring other pieces  including a collection accumulated by the Dukes of Mantua  and by commissioning works from artists such as Anthony van Dyck. By 1649, the collection of Charles I comprised around 1,500 paintings and 500 sculptures.

Triumphs of Caesar by Andrea Mantegna, (c. 1484-92) (RMN-Grand Palais (musee du Louvre) / Christian Jean)

The Royal Academy of Arts was founded by King George III in 1768. It is a privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to be a clear, strong voice for art and artists.

Supper at Emmaus  by Titian, (c.1530) (RMN-Grand Palais (musee du Louvre) / Christian Jean)

Charles I: King and Collector runs from January 27 to April 15, 2018, at The Royal Academy of Arts in London, UK.

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Kangana Ranaut is probably controversys favourite child. First she set off an online debate on nepotism in Bollywood when she appeared on Karan Johars chat show Koffee With Karan. Then she triggered a row over the credit for the script in Hansal Mehtas upcoming film Simran.

Her name was placed before the films original writer, Apurva Asrani, and that didnt go down well with Apurva. He wrote a long Facebook post on how such things work in Bollywood.

Later, when the poster of Manikarnika was released, filmmaker Ketan Mehta accused Kangana of stealing his film, saying it was originally meant to be his.

Now, the Rangoon star has been apparently drawn into the credit controversy again with a photo posted by Vidya Balan on Instagram.

This is the pic:

The caption says: Who needs credit when your director gifts you this card? Thankoo Suresh Triveni.

Suresh Triveni is directing Vidya Balan in Tumhari Sulu.

Bollywood producer Tanuj Garg reposted the photo with this caption: What director saab #sureshtriveni did, before Sulu asked him for extra credits (He gave her a credit card!!)

It strongly seems like an indirect jibe at Kangana who was given the additional story, screenplay and dialogues credit for Simran.

Later, Apurva Asrani also joined the conversation and wrote, Before Vidya Balan could demand an additional credit on her new film, her producer gave her this...Hilarious, making it clear who the target was.

Will Kangana Ranaut reply? Lets wait and watch.
Aparshakti Khurana is joining the digital bandwagon and will soon be seen in a web series. The actor doesnt believe in restricting himself and is interested in dabbling in various mediums such as digital, radio, cinema, television et al. And now, he is also gearing up to launch his first single.

Talking about his multiple interests, the actor says, Id always wanted to do something on the music front as well. I would want to host a show where I can really connect with people in the rural areas. I am a peoples person. Id like to explore every medium. For me, it is important to explore your potential.

Ask him if he had any myths about the industry before foraying into the field and he says, A lot of people told me that people here are not approachable. But I didnt feel so. I met people who were approachable, humble and warm. I love the professionalism of this city. I am not one of those who would hear something and make a perception. In any case, you cant please everyone. There are people who dont get along with anyone, but get along with me, he says on a lighter note.

The actor has acted in films such as Dangal and Badrinath Ki Dulhania will next be seen in a web series helmed by Hansal Mehta.

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Geeta Kapoor, who was seen in Kamal Amrohis Pakeezah (1972) with Rajkumar and Meena Kumari, was found abandoned by her son at a Mumbai hospital.

A Times of India report said Geeta was brought to SRV Hospital in Goregaon (Mumbai) in an unconscious state in April and was suffering from low blood pressure. Geetas son Raja, who is a choreographer, left the hospital claiming he would return with cash (deposit for Geetas admission at the hospital) but he never showed up.

Dr Dipendra Tripathi, chief intensivist of the hospital says, As soon as the ambulance brought her to hospital, the son asked if a deposit had to be paid. He left the hospital on the pretext of looking for an ATM and never returned. Since admission, no one from the family has asked about her.

Her BP was low. She was definitely not well-fed, he added.

When hospitals officials visited the residence to look for Geetas son, neighbours told them the place had been rented out three months ago and the family had vacated it within hours of sending the mother to hospital, the report further said.

Filmmaker and CBFC (Central Board of Film Certification) member Ashoke Pandit and producer Ramesh Taurani have paid Geetas hospital bills that amount to Rs 1.5 lakh. I came to know that an old lady named Geeta Kapoor has been abandoned in a Mumbai hospital by her children only after reading about it in the newspapers. I didnt know Geeta Kapoor is the Geeta Kapoor from Pakeezah. After reaching the hospital I cleared the bills, and I wanted to tell the hospital guys that she will be taken care of, so there are no insecurities from the hospitals side and they would continue treating her. Paying the bills was not a big thing, really. I saw my mother in her, Indian Express quoted Pandit.

Another doctor said, Raja got her to us, lying about him being an army officer and she needing urgent treatment. He was asked to pay a deposit and complete the formalities. He left saying he would get money from the nearest ATM, but never returned. We had no option but to start the treatment as she was in a bad shape.

Hindustan Times could not independently verify the reports.

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The trailer of director Pankaj Parashars documentary based on the lynching of a Muslim man in Bisada village of western Uttar Pradesh has been released on YouTube.

The film chronicles the events that unfolded at Dadris Bisada village on September 28, 2015, after a mob beat up 55-year-old Mohammad Ikhlaq and injured his son Danish, 22, over allegations of slaughtering a cow and storing its meat for consumption. Ikhlaq succumbed to his injuries while Danish survived with critical injuries.

The incident triggered national outrage over religious intolerance and a chain of protests across the country, with prominent writers, filmmakers and scientists returning their awards.

The Brotherhood focuses on the relationship between two neighbouring villages, Til Begampur and Ghodi Bachera. While Muslim Thakurs are dominant in the first village, the second one is controlled by the Hindu Thakurs. Both the villages have common wedding traditions and rituals.

The history must be revisited and roots must be respected so that the country forever keeps such kind of brotherhood paramount. We need to understand the real reasons behind such communal tension and how easily we can combat it, Parashar said.

The 24-minute documentary will also showcase the history of the region which stretches from Dadri to Jaisalmer in Rajasthan.

Hemant Rajora, the assistant director of the documentary, asserted The Brotherhood is about communal harmony.

Til Begambur is like the elder brother of Ghodi Bachera. They have been sharing the same tradition since ages, and that makes them unique. Unfortunately, the situation is not the same anymore, Rajora said.

A still from The Brotherhood.

The Brotherhood will be released on YouTube on May 30.

Parashar is a correspondent with Hindustan, the Hindi newspaper published by a subsidiary of HT Media Ltd.
It may be hard to repeat stupendous success, but not if you are Amish Tripathi. After his bestselling The Scion of Ikshvaku (2015), the first book in Amishs Rama Chandra series, which, along with his Shiva Trilogy, sold over 3.5 million copies, comes the much-awaited second book, Sita: Warrior of Mithila.

Heres all you need to know about the book:

Sita is a fierce warrior

Far from being a coy, timid princess, Amishs Sita is a warrior well-trained in combat and warfare. She has long been seen in popular culture as the adarsh bhartiya naari  devoted, obedient and silent. Amish, drawing on the Adbhut Ramayana and Gond Ramayani, presents a more rounded, strong, proactive character in his interpretation. He traces her life trajectory while exploring the kind of mental strength and agility it must have taken to deal with the challenges she faced. What kind of strength of character it must take for an adopted child to become a warrior, a prime minister, and a goddess, as she is remembered today. Amish told HT in an earlier interview.

The book cover, released earlier this month, depicts Sita as a fierce, well-built fighter, fearlessly taking on a group of men with just a lathi in hand.

It is not a sequel

While the first book narrated the story of Ramas birth and childhood up to Sitas abduction, the second does not begin from where the first concluded. Instead, Sita: Warrior of Mithila narrates the origins of the adopted daughter of King Janak and maps her rise from an orphan to a skilled warrior who becomes the prime minister of her fathers kingdom. Amish has spoken about the multi-linear narrative technique he uses in these books in earlier interviews. The third book will be narrated from the birth of Ravana to Sitas kidnapping; after which the story will converge into a common narrative in the later books.

The book is not from Sitas point of view

If the cover is anything to go by, Sita is clearly the hero here. Amish has repeatedly emphasised that his second book is not Ramayana from Sitas perspective. It is, instead, the story of Sita, where Ram comes as a character in the last part of the book, he said.

With his Shiva trilogy, Amish turned a beloved God into a pop culture icon. Will Amishs Sita be the new feminist icon for a new generation? Well soon find out.

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A few weeks ago, literary critic Aditya Mani Jha wrote a scathing post on Facebook, taking a dig at Indian publishing houses for their obsession with anything and everything Bollywood. His outburst seems to have been triggered by the announcement of Bollywood actress Richa Chaddas book about her well-documented struggles with an eating disorder.

In a widely carried press release, the actress called the book an experiment. I want to open my heart out and give people a peek into my world. We have assumptions about the privileges an actor enjoys. Well, I hope to shatter certain myths, whether they be about standards of perfection, patriarchy and what it means to be a good girl.

Jha, like many of his peers, felt very strongly about this impossible-to-ignore trend in publishing, despite the fact that he is an admirer of the actresss work and films.

One wonders what it is about Bollywood or Bollywood-driven books that makes publishers  big and small  go weak in the knees. A senior sales person at a multinational publishing house told me that such decisions are driven purely by commerce. The autobiographies of big stars such as Dev Anand and Dilip Kumar sold in excess of 50,000 and 30,000 copies, respectively. Even Anupam Khers self-help books have been bestsellers. The recently released Rishi Kapoor and Karan Johar autobiographies are runaway successes.

Actor Shahrukh Khan and filmmaker Karan Johar during the launch of Johars memoir An Unsuitable Boy in Mumbai. (PTI)

According to him, even books by Tier-2 Bollywood stars sell anywhere between 10-20,000 copies, a number that even five debut works of fiction or non-fiction put together may not be able to achieve. Such deals are also great talking (or bragging!) points and a branding exercise for publishers since the reach of many of these stars, including the Tier-2 ones, goes well beyond traditional publishing and reading circles. While it might look like they are vanity projects and produced just for the consumption of a stars fan following, some of these books do gain a lot of general readership, and deservingly so.

Shilpa Shettys book didnt sell over 100,000 copies only because she is Shilpa Shetty, but also because she is very well known for her fitness, a publishing professional told me.

Similarly, former Bollywood actress Anu Agarwals awe-inspiring journey from the cult movie Aashiqui to a reclusive, media-shy yogi after a near-death experience is a story that had to be told.

Even within the sub-genre of Bollywood books, there are certain titles that outperform others. Memoirs are by far the biggest draws for publishers and readers. One can hardly recall a single Bollywood memoir that hasnt done exceptionally well. The same cannot be said of biographies (even those whose authors have full access to their subjects) or works of fiction, short stories, or poetry penned by the stars. The recently released first and only biography of a big star notorious for having run-ins with the law sank without a trace. I know of many other well-researched biographies that havent sold beyond 3,000-5,000 copies. Perhaps it is for this very reason that publishers are more welcoming of first-person accounts, even those ghost-written by a journalist who has either followed the star over the years or with whom he/she has a strong rapport.

This Bollywood craze benefits professionals attached to stars and makes the path to publication very easy for them. Almost every other publishing house has published or is going to publish some B-town stars fitness trainer, nutritionist, counsellor, stylist, even a dentist. In fact, the favourite DJ of the reigning king of Bollywood is coming out with a book. Most of these titles are actively and unabashedly endorsed, launched and promoted by the star in question.

However, there is one major downside to publishing such books. Most of them are hard to assemble and publish, and involve endless delays and star tantrums. It normally takes at least two years to publish such a book from the time of signing, a commissioning editor specialising in such books told me.

The situation is even worse if the star has committed to writing the book himself/herself. One of my authors recently told me that a Bollywood actress confessed to her that she hadnt written even one word of the book she was supposedly publishing with a major publishing house. If one factors in the endless trips to Mumbai, the lavish seven-star wooing-and-cajoling meals, the unavoidable editorial handholding, and the excessive post-publication marketing spending, one wonders if these books recover their costs at all.

Some works, such as Shilpa Shettys book on fitness and yesteryear actor Anu Agarwals memoir, gained a lot of general readership due to their content and not just because they were written by celebs.

While Bollywood continues to make stars out of publishing, either by endorsing writers or even making mainstream big-budget films out of their works, the reverse has never happened. Unless, of course, one refuses to accept that Twinkle Khannas incredible publishing story falls in that category. Khanna is one out of the only two Indian female writers who have surpassed the sale of 1 lakh copies, the other being the spiritual-romance author Savi Sharma. But unlike Sharma, Khanna enjoys the patronage of both mass market readers and serious literary readers, both of whom find her writing genuinely good and humorous. Her appeal mirrors that of another bestselling writer, Anuja Chauhan, except that both her books have sold way more than the latters.

When I asked a publishing professional if these Bollywood books will make life difficult for the already embattled debut writers in our country, he said, No. Because they are in a different category. But the fact remains that they are published by the same publishing houses with finite budgets, and limited editorial and marketing resources.

Kanishka Gupta is a literary agent, author, consultant and publishing commentator. He is the founder of Writers Side, the largest literary agency and consultancy in South Asia.
Opinion / Letters

Dear Sir/Madam,May I draw your attention that our president's Globe-trotting is clear indication that he has no interest at heart for the majority of Zimbabwean citizens and hence should not be considered for re-election to represent us in 2018.He's spending more time in the skies and outside the country than in his office back home and yet his country is facing critical political and economic crisis which needs his immediate attention. Millions are living in abject poverty and facing starvation.By resorting to globe-trotting as his first priority, the president has clearly proved beyond any reasonable doubt that whatever happens at home - he does not care. For example, thousands have lost everything to the recent floods, striking health-care workers - nurses and doctors, civil servants, liquidity and cash crisis - demonstrations coupled with police brutality - just to mention a few - seem not to be critical issues for his attention. Instead he prefers flying outside the country on countless occasions either attending to his private business or pointless summits.Now he's on record as the most travelled head of state in the world - but what does this bring us back home especially if the economy is down on its knees and worse still the government is even failing to pay its wage bills on time.The president has clocked 200 000 km in 2016 in 6 months and used US$80 millions. He has been to Singapore 10 times this year alone for personal visits and medical checks.According to Businesslive.com the president had 35 delegates on his recent visit to Mexico to attend"Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction" in Cancun - where daily allowances for those who accompanied him were raging from US($1 000 to $1 500) which comes to a minimum of more than $35 000 on daily basis. If multiplied by 7 days they spent this gives us a minimum expenditure of almost $300 000 yet back home banks can not afford to issue more than $20 per customer.In addition AllAfrica.com confirms that Mugabe was not given speaking slot in Mexico for unclear reasons. This brings about no known achievements resulting from trying to fix global issues and yet alone failing to fix problems at home made up of hunger, poverty and untold suffering.Editor, Globe trotting by the president has no justification whatsoever as it only shows that the regime has totally abandoned Zimbabweans.Mugabe and his cronies are now busy involved in self aggrandisement and power politics which is of no help or benefit to the citizens and should not be given chance to be back in power again.Yours SincerelyPythias Makonese
While finance minister Arun Jaitley was bold enough to announce that the government may look at a strategic stake sale in national carrier Air India, the question is who is going to buy the debt-laden airline.

Air India has amassed a debt of Rs 50,000 crore over the years, half of which is on account of buying costly aircraft beyond its means.

Air India, which has fleet size of 114, mostly Boeings and Airbuses, is estimated to have booked operating profit of Rs 300 crore in 2016-17, almost three times the Rs 106 crore recorded in 2015-16.

The government will infuse Rs 1,800 crore from the 2017-18 Union budget, after pumping in close to Rs 24,000 crore between April 2012 and March 2016, from taxpayers money.

But it will take ages for the Maharaja, which is the mascot of Air India, to make net profits and cleanse its balance sheet.

Here are the five reasons why it will be difficult for the government to go for a possible stake sale in Air India:

1) Restructuring plan fails to cut debt

In 2012, the government approved a Turnaround Plan (TAP) and Financial Restructuring Plan (FRP) for Air India, promising to infuse Rs 30,231 crore till 2021.

The government infused Rs 6,750 crore worth of equity in 2011-12, apart from offering equity for cash deficit support of Rs 4,552 crore till 2017-18, equity for guaranteed aircraft loan of Rs 18,929 crore till 2021.

Yet, Air Indias debt has piled up to nearly Rs 50,000 crore, according to Jaitley. Of the total debt, around Rs 25,000 crore are related to aircraft valuation, he said.

Banks have recently turned down a request to convert close to Rs 9,000 crore of debt into equity.

If a company acquires Air India, it has to repay the debt or face liquidation action from lenders.

2) Not a profitable venture

High debt coupled with expensive operating costs, including for staff, have prevented Air India to book net profit for more than a decade now.

As per provisional figures for 2016-17, the airline is projected an operating profit of Rs 300 crore and net loss Rs 3,643 crore.

Last fiscal, Air India had an operating profit of Rs 105 crore and a net loss after tax of Rs 3,836.77 crore.

According to the civil aviation ministry, Air Indias losses has come down significantly in recent years from Rs 6,865.17 crore in 2010-11, Rs 7,559.74 in 2011-12, Rs 5,490.16 crore in 2012-13, Rs 6,279.60 crore in 2013-14 and Rs 5,859.91 crore in 2014-15.

Air India is trying to shore up revenues through streamlining routes, phasing out of old fleet and consequential reduction in maintenance cost and closure of some overseas offices.

3) Falling market share

Since the entry of private airliners from early 1990s, Air Indias market share has fallen every passing month.

Latest government data show Indigo, which started operations in 2006, dominates the Indian sky with a market share 41.4% as of April 2017.

SpiceJet has cornered 12.9% of the pie in the last 12 years, while Go Air has 8.1%.

Jet Airways has a market share of 15.2% while its low cost arm Jet Lite has 2.4%.

New entrants Vistara now has 3.2% of the market share while Air Asia 3.3%.

4) Competition from road and railways

Over the decades, air travel has become relatively cheaper but the competition from road and rail transporters remains intense.

Air India is offering lower fares to match Rajdhani second and first class fares in select sectors.

Low-cost private players have curtailed Air Indias efforts by lowering their fares to lure customers.

5) Valuation

The government will face problems in justifying the valuation of Air India as and when it opts for a strategic sale.

Interglobe Aviation Ltd, which operates Indigo Airlines and posted a net profit of Rs 1,659 crore in 2016-17, trades at a little less than 1,100 a piece and has a market capitalisation of over Rs 39,000 crore.

Air India will be valued much less considering its market share of about a third of Indigo and carrying a legacy of mammoth debt burden and losses.

However, Air India has property at prime locations across the country.

Whichever one looks at it, the valuation process may raise eyebrows from political parties, audit bodies and lawmakers committees in Parliament.
Warning that demonetisation may have slowed economic growth sharply in 2016-17, the World Bank on Monday projected India to expand by 7.2% in this financial year as the country reaps the benefits of reforms such as the Goods and Services Tax scheduled to be rolled out from July.

In its India Development Update report, World Bank said Indias GDP growth may have slowed to 6.8% in 2016-17, from 7.9% in the previous year, as Novembers note ban decision slowed activity in cash-dependent sectors.

The demonetisation drive that weeded out Rs 15.44 lakh crore of high denominated currency notes impacted the poor and the vulnerable the most, it said.

But economic growth was expected to pick up to 7.2% in 2017-18, and accelerate to 7.7% by 2019-20, riding on strong fundamentals along with implementation of reforms.

Despite renewed weakness in private investment and limited lift from external demand, India was poised to continue growing robustly in FY17 until demonetization dented growth, albeit moderately, causing cash immediate crunch and affecting activity in cash-reliant sectors, the report said.

India remains the fastest growing economy and its growth fundamentals remain soundImplementation of GST (goods and services tax) will make it even stronger, said Junaid Ahmad, World Bank Country Director in India.

However, continued uncertainties in the global environment including rising global protectionism and a renewed slowdown in the Chinese economy besides weak private investment and a high level of bad assets with the Indian banks continue to remain challenges to the economy.

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In a fresh twist to the alleged NH-74 land scam, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has asked the Uttarakhand government to withdraw a case filed against its local officials.

The case was filed by the previous Congress government. The current dispensation led by chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has recommended a CBI probe into the 300-crore scam.

In a recent letter, NHAI chairman Yudhvir Singh Malik reportedly asked the state government to remove the names of NHAIs regional officials from the FIR.

Cabinet minister Madan Kaushik confirmed that NHAI authorities have asked the CM to withdraw the FIR against their regional officials. The request by top NHAI authorities was made during his (Rawat) recent meeting with Nitin Gadkariji in Delhi, where I was also present, Kaushik, who is also the state governments spokesperson, told Hindustan Times.

Rawat met Gadkari days after the Union road surface minister sent a letter to the Uttarakhand government stating that a CBI probe into the NH-74 land scam would demoralise the NHAI officials. Rawat had confirmed as much. He (Gadkari) wrote to us that NHAI being a funding agency, the role of its officials was limited to releasing the monetary compensation that was to be disbursed among farmers whose land was acquired for the NH-74 coming up in the Udham Singh Nagar district, Rawat had said.

In his letter, Gadkari had clarified that the NHAI had released the monetary compensation as per the suggestion of the state government officials.

The NHAI made the request on the same plea that its regional officials released the monetary compensation as per the suggestions of the local officials as they did not want the work on NH-74 to be delayed, Kaushik said. It (NHAI) also clarified that as per its mandate, its officials had no role in disbursing monetary compensation to farmers or acquiring land from them, which is the jurisdiction of state government, he clarified.

Kaushik further said that the state governments stand was that the case against the NHAIs regional officials stands as they failed to raise objections when the state officials paid monetary compensation to farmers beyond the legally prescribed limit. Also, our plea is that its (NHAI) regional officials disbursed monetary compensation among farmers at will or on the basis of pick and choose, he told HT.

The names of NHAI officials figure along with those of the state government against whom the previous Congress regime lodged a case in Rudrapur. A week after the BJP formed its government in the state in March this year, six sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) rank officials were suspended and a case registered against a seventh official, who had retired. Rawat had then said that he has recommended for a CBI probe into the scam.

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New Delhi: The expert panel appointed by the National Green Tribunal had gone beyond its jurisdiction while suggesting that Yamuna flood plains should be rehabilitated, the Art of Living, headed by spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, alleged on Monday.

The committee didnt have the power to consider rehabilitating the Yamuna flood plains. It only had the powers to suggest restoration of the floodplains. The committee had exceeded its jurisdiction, the foundations counsel Nikhil Sakhardande told the NGT.

The case relates to the Art of Living holding World Culture Festival from March 11-13 in 2016. The NGT had appointed an expert panel, which in its report had suggested restoration and rehabilitation of the flood plains that would require at least Rs42 crore and 10 years.

The committee has admitted in its report that it was not aware about the condition of the floodplains before the event. But went on to suggest that it needs to be rehabilitated, the foundations counsel pointed out.

It is like accusing someone of cutting down a tree and then saying we dont know whether the tree existed, but we feel that you should plant a tree, Sakhardande added.

The Art of Living also raised doubts over the satellite images used by the committee to estimate the damage. The expert committee report was based on a single satellite image dated September 5, 2015, taken during the peak monsoon season to show that wetlands existed on the event site, he added.

Art of Living had filed a 200-page parallel report in the NGT to counter the allegations levelled against it. The foundation had roped in at least 15 experts to prepare the scientific report. The NGTs panel comprised seven experts.

The NGT panel had accused the foundation of levelling and compacting the soil resulting in heavy damage to the floodplains as it stopped the soils gaseous exchange and played havoc with the ground water recharging system.

It is impossible for even a practicing geophysicist to claim that ground was levelled or compacted without a geophysical study, says the reports.
Union minister Venkaiah Naidu on Monday gave Rs 50,000 as financial aid to the family of the e- rickshaw driver who was beaten to death for stopping two men from urinating in the open outside the GTB Nagar Metro Station.

The Union urban development minister accompanied by Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari met the family members of the victim. He also visited the spot outside the metro station where Ravinder (32) was beaten to death by a dozen men on Saturday evening.

Naidu gave a Rs 50,000 cheque from his own account to the wife of the deceased as an interim relief. We have also talked to the commissioner of the North Delhi Municipal Corporation for providing a job for her, Tiwari said.

The minister also directed the police to arrest, as soon as possible, the men responsible for killing Ravinder, whom he described as a promoter of Swachh Bharat.

Tiwari said, The irony is that the spot where the e- rickshaw driver was beaten to death is hardly a few metres away from a Sulabh Shauchalaya complex. It is perhaps the first case where someone has given his life in the country for promoting cleanliness and sanitation and we are committed to support Ravinders family.

Union minister Venkaiah Naidu gives a cheque of Rs 50,000 to the family of e-rickshaw driver, who was beaten to death in Delhi. (ANI)

Earlier in the day, Naidu had asked the Delhi Police chief to take stern action against those involved in the killing.

Sad that an e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping two people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting Swachh Bharat, Naidu tweeted.

He said he has spoken with Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik and asked him to take the strongest action possible against the culprits.

Ravinder, who lived in a slum near the GTB Nagar Metro Station, got married last year. His wife is seven months pregnant.

The police said that no arrests have been made so far in the incident though a few men have been picked up for questioning.
The rickshaw stops in front of Mahinder Singhs stall. The passenger orders a glass. The rickshaw puller, too, asks for one. They both glug their drinks within a minute.

We see this sight on any hot morning at Old Delhis Turkman Gate. The pavement shack is right next to the centuries-old Mughal-era gateway.

In Delhi, the king of chillers at this time of the year may be the rose-flavoured Rooh Afza. But this sattu ka gholthe cooling drink usually identified with the eastern state of Bihar  is not far behind.

Mahinder Singh founded his stall 40 years ago when he arrived in the city from his village in western Uttar Pradesh. In his 70s, he is always seen in a white kurta and dhoti.

When we visit, he had gone to Phatak Teliyan to get ice. His two sons, Vinod and Joginder, are preparing the drink  one brother adds the sattu flour and sugar into a water-filled container, the other churns the mixture with a ladle. It takes two days to finish off 7kg flour and 7kg sugar, the brothers tell us.

Soon, the father returns with ice. By now, more thirsty customers are trickling in, including an auto-rickshaw driver in a grey uniform.

The sattu stall is active from April to August, after which it disappears. What is life like for Mr Singh and sons from September to March? We head to Punjab to work in jaggery production, says Vinod.

The brothers say that their sattu ka ghol is so popular that the stall is regularly visited by doctors from as far away as Irwin aspatal (Lok Nayak Hospital). Instead of verifying this claim, we do the next best thing and order a glass. The drink instantly energizes us. We feel ready to take on the heat.


In the Patel Chest area of Delhi Universitys (DU) North Campus, a group of youngsters can be found spending time at roadside tea stalls. Observe carefully to realise that they dont just loiter but also attend to stray dogs, at shelters set up by Shivam Dewan and group.



The tale of these good samaritans dates back to last October, when a 24-year-old engineer, Dewan, helped a white Indie stray. I live in Paschim Vihar and was assisting a company in Patel Chest to set-up of a cafe. There I befriended a dog, suffering from malnutrition. I named her Molly. One day, I got a call from a stall owner, asking for help to save Molly, says Dewan. He took the ailing dog to Friendicoes and found that it had fractured its pelvic bone. Mollys treatment took two months and made Dewan so attached to the cause that he sought help of neighbouring college students to create a collective for Molly and others like her.

Molly responded to the love and care of students from DU, who volunteered to help  Shivam Dewan

Today, with the help of seven other DU students, they have set up two dog shelters. Initially they were made of cardboard cartons but later they made shelters out of brick and mortar.

When we saw Molly, we volunteered to help, and that spiralled into a group. At present, we are taking care of three adult dogs and eight pups in shifts, says Gayatri Misra from Miranda House.

Students from the North Campus have been taking care of dogs at the shelters in between their class lectures.

Misra, who hails from Assam, says its mostly in the company of these animals that she feels at home. Its important to value these strays because they are also part of our society. Earlier I used to even miss my classes to go and pet the dogs at the shelter. Now that we are busy with our exams, I meet the dogs in the morning shift only. When Im sad or depressed, they bring a smile on my face, adds Misra.

The brick and mortar dog shelters were built when Shivam took help of two labourers, working behind Patel Chest Hospital.

However, their journey hasnt been hurdle-free. One of the dog shelters was broken by someone. Not all shopkeepers were happy with our initiative. We are looking for safe environs to built more shelters in the coming months, with the financial help we have sought via crowdfunding. To maintain one shelter for six months, the operational cost is about Rs 2500, which includes price of dogs food, their visits to doctor for vaccination etc. And, if a dog meets with an accident, the cost goes higher, adds Dewan.

Final year law student, Heena Shehrawat, informs, We are planning to hold a meeting on May 30, to discuss how to create safe shelters. And since some of us are completing our courses this year, we have the task to find new volunteers too.

Follow @htlifeandstyle for more

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Suspecting transportation of beef, a group people set on fire a vehicle carrying animal bones in the jungles of Aravallis in Faridabad late on Saturday. The vehicle was on its way to Hapur in UP from Bhadkal in Faridabad.

Police said the mob from Anangpur village in Surajkund beat up the driver and drove the Tata 407 to the jungles where they set it on fire. Two fire tenders were rushed to the area to control the fire.

We case against over 50 people, mostly youth from the village under different provisions of IPC and SC/ST Act. We arrested five of them who were produced in court, said a police officer.

The arrested men are Nishant, Sagar, Parveen, Kuldeep and Deepakall in their 20s -- of Anangpur village.

We found that the contractor had licence from the Municipal Corporation of Faridabad to lift dead animals in Faridabad, the police official said.

I was on a scooty following my Tata 407 when someone abruptly kept his vehicle in front of it and directed my driver to come down, said Karjan Singh, who claimed he had got contract from MCF to lift dead animals.

A resident of Molarband village in Delhi, Singh said the youths beat his driver and took the vehicle to the jungles where they set it on fire.

Bad smell comes out from vehicles transporting animal bones. The youths at Anangpur chowk suspected that our canter was carrying beef. My driver and I said we had permission to carry animal bones but they did not pay heed to our pleas, Karjan told Hindustan Times.

MCF officials confirmed they auction areas to contractors to pick up dead animals.  We have allotted proper sites on the Faridabad-Gurgaon road to such contractors to dump such dead animals, said an official of MCF.

In Faridabad there are three such contractors.

We take the skin and bones of the dead animals and sell them elsewhere, said Karjan. Generally we transport bones to factories in Hapur, Bulandshahr and Meerut.

Police have launched search to nab the remaining suspects. Since the contractor and the driver are from backward classes, a case was registered under the SC/ST Act also, Bhram Prakash of Surajkund police station, who initially investigated the case, said.

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Customs officials on Saturday arrested a 63-year-old man who was trying to use wheelchair as cover to smuggle gold at Delhis Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA).

The passenger had arrived from Dubai by a Jet airways flight and was stopped by customs officials after the green channel.

We had information about two passengers smuggling gold from Dubai. These two passengers, one was on wheelchair and the other assisting him, were zeroed in. It was a sensitive case as the passenger was on wheelchair. He was walking fine when he was asked to and that raised our suspicion, said a customs official.

During interrogation, he admitted carrying gold. Four gold bars were kept in the pockets of a specially prepared short he was wearing under his trousers and tied up with a rope.

The passenger, who is from Pondicherry, was supposed to travel to Chennai.

A total of 3.5 kgs of gold worth R 93 lakh was recovered from them. Both passengers were arrested under the Customs Act, the official added.

Customs officials said this was the first case of a passenger misusing a wheelchair for smuggling. But officials were instructed not to harass wheelchair-bound passengers in the name of checking.

On Thursday, a passenger coming from Riyadh and an airport employee were arrested for smuggling gold. The passenger had smuggled 2.7 kgs of gold worth R80 lakh and handed it over to the employee in the washroom.

The employee was supposed to smuggle it out of the airport but both were caught after the green channel.
Europe has often declared its intention to be an independent player on the world stage. The European Union has been variously described as a postmodern State, the civilian power and even, bizarrely, as the metrosex power. In every case, Europe has fallen far short of its promise and, in times of crisis, gone back to the Atlantic alliance and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. What makes German Chancellor Angela Merkels comments after the latest Group of Seven summit that Europe should no longer be completely dependent on the United States is that it was given by a German leader and someone as cautious as Merkel. Brussels and Paris have a long record of similar statements. However, they were always treated as sound and fury, signifying nothing, because the beating heart of the EU was in Berlin. However, after a disastrous G-7 summit in which the US president, Donald Trump, declined to join the others on climate change and denounced Germany for its trade policies, Merkel felt that it was necessary to at least throw a few straws in the wind.

It is almost fortuitous that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come for the intergovernmental consultations held every two years between New Delhi and Berlin at this point. The flip side to Merkels concerns at the Atlantic alliance is that Germany needs to reach out to new and rising powers. Almost by default, India should be first among equals in such an outreach. Russia is seen as a source of trouble by Europe. China, while economically extremely important to Europe, has a political system that is almost the antithesis of the post-sovereign, liberal democratic order of which the EU believes it is the bellwether. India is not without its flaws, but its trajectory both economic and political is much closer to what Europe and Germany would feel comfortable with.

The problem will be whether Merkels doubts about the US and even Great Britain mean that Germany will be able to regress back into the mindset of a 19th century European power again. New Delhi has long treated the EU only as an economic partner because European countries seemed incapable of understanding that in places like Asia concepts the balance of power and realpolitik were alive and kicking. Germany has a chance to show it understands this and begin using its considerable financial and technological capacities to enhance Indian economic and even military power. Japan is already well done this path. Merkel has a chance to show a similar strategic understanding.
The Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) on Tuesday declared the Class 12th science, commerce and arts results 2017 (Intermediate) on its website.

Candidates can check the BSEB 12th arts results by clicking here.

Candidates can check the BSEB 12th commerce results here.

Candidates can check their BSEB 12th science results by clicking here.

Khushboo Kumari of Simultula residential school is the science topper. Ganesh Kumar with 82.6%, fron RNSJN Utkramit Madhya Vidyalaya, Samastipur, topped in arts and Priyanshu Jaiswal (81.6%), from College of Commerce, Arts and Science, Patna, topped in commerce.

Handsome prizes, including cash is on offer for Class 10 and 12 toppers of Bihar in 2017.

In a first, the BSEB will provide Rs 1-lakh to the class 10 and class 12 toppers in all the three streams along with a laptop and a kindle e-reader.

The second and third toppers will get Rs 75,000 and Rs 50,000 each along with the gadgets, while fourth and fifth rank holders will get Rs 10,000 each and a laptop.

Having had to face a lot of embarrassment due to toppers scandal just a year ago and cheating in 2015, the BSEB got the credentials of the 2017 toppers doubly checked this time, while their copies were rechecked by a committee comprising experts of all the subjects from constituent colleges.

Board chairman Anand Kishor said toppers deserved to be applauded for having come through a tightly conducted examination this year. This is recognition of their hard and honest work, as the entire exercise is aimed at helping meritorious students, he added.

Intermediate exam, comprising over 13-lakh students, had ended on February 25, while 16 lakh students appeared at the matriculation examination, which ended on March 12.

There will also be rewards for officials of the district administration involved with the examination, police and education department, with the honorarium going up from Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000 per examination.

At a board meeting, it was also decided to create a new post of examination controller (miscellaneous) in the BSEB in view a large number of other exams it has to conduct around the year. The approval of the education department will soon be obtained for it. Till the approval is obtained, some ad hoc arrangement would be made by the board.

The board has also accepted the long pending demand of its employees and they would now be treated like other government employees. The government has decided to give them the benefit of seventh pay-scale with effect from January 1, 2016, though payment would be made from April 1, 2017.

In another important decision, the board decided to cancel the affiliation of two Hajipur schools  Kendriya Rajeshwari Uchch Bidyalay and Ujjwal Kumar Mishra School  for forging registration of students. All the results have been withheld and explanation sought from the two schools.

In future, software will be updated to detect such frauds at the very ouset. Aadhar cards will also be used for registration, said the chairman.
Scores of students along with their parents staged a protest outside the Central Board of Secondary Educations (CBSE) regional office in Bhubaneswar on Monday alleging discrepancies in the Class 12 board examination results.

The students and their parents gathered outside the boards office in Saheed Nagar area holding placards and shouting slogans, a day after CBSE declared the results.

Some students alleged their results were withheld without any reason being cited and others claimed that the evaluation of the answer sheets have been faulty. The protesters demanded immediate action by the CBSE for revaluation of the answer sheets and immediate publication of the withheld results.

I was shocked to find that I have secured 5 marks in maths and 8 in chemistry, while my English score is 85. I am not as bad a student to fail in the exam. I dont believe it. I want revaluation of the papers at the earliest, a student of a city school said.

She said her results were withheld till Sunday evening and then she found that she has failed.

When contacted, CBSEs regional officer Sumita Singh said the aggrieved students who came with their parents submitted a representation. We received their representation and forwarded it to our head office, Singh said.

Most of the students complained that they have got low marks than expected and sought revaluation, she added.

She said the results of some to the students were held due to some technical problem which has now been sorted out.

Nearly 82% students, lower than last years 83%, cleared the Class 12 exams. The pass percentage for the Delhi region at 86.45 was higher than the national pass percentage, board officials said. Last year, 87.01% student cleared the exam in the region.

Nearly 11 lakh candidates registered for the Class 12 exams, which were held between March 9 and April 29, this year against 10,67,900 students last year.

Board officials said students scoring in the 95-100% range increased to 10,091 from last years 9351.

Girls performed better than boys by 9.5% as out of 4,60,026 girls 87.50% passed and 78% of 6,38,865 boys cleared the exam. The pass percentage of disabled students was 86.69 with 2123 out of 2449 passed.

A Noida girl became the topper in the Class 12 exam and students from Chandigarh were ranked second and third across India. Raksha Gopal, who pursued humanities at Amity International School, scored 99.6% marks to ace the exams.
The city has stunned everyone with three of its students featuring on the top of the list in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Class 12 board examinations.

DAV School student Bhoomi Sawant, a science student, scored 99.4% marks to emerge as the all-India second topper. Bhavan Vidyalaya students Mannat Luthra and Aditya Jain jointly bagged the third rank, scoring 99.2% in commerce. The school hasnt just stopped there.

CBSE called up to say that our school has four out of top seven toppers in the country, school principal Vaneeta Arora told HT.

The citys teachers mainly come from public school background and relate to the students in much better way. Ive seen over decades that their skills are much better than others in the region. SK Marriya, educationist

While this may have come as a surprise, the tiny union territory has always done well in academics. For instance, the average marks secured by Bhavan Vidyalaya students this year are 92% as against 91% last year. And that marginal improvement has made a huge difference.

Weve been working hard at it and so have been other schools, says Arora, on why the city has done so well this time. Principals say theres been a cutthroat competition among schools in the city and its only been growing to get a higher share of the toppers.

An educationist, SK Marriya, attributes the citys success to the quality of teaching.

The citys teachers mainly come with public school background and relate to the students in a much better way, says Marriya, the regional director of the DAV managing committee. Ive seen over decades that their skills are much better than others in the region and its improving all the time, adds Marriya.

Some analysts say that citys small size works to its advantage as students use their time saved on commuting on their studies.

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Delhi was in for a rude shock on Sunday, when they realised that none of the three toppers of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) 12 board exams were from the national capital. Moreover, even though the number of students who have scored over 90% and 95% has increased across India, it has dropped in Delhi since last year.

The number of students who scored above 90% grew up to 9,211 in India from 2016 to 2017. The same number in Delhi dropped from 10,324 to 9,406 .

Similarly, the 95% and above club also shrank in Delhi by 601 since last year, whereas it grew by 740 across the nation.

Stakeholders were left gobsmacked and were seen grappling for answers. One popular explanation given by some educationists is that Delhi attempts a different paper from the rest of the country. The principal of one of the more prestigious institutions said, Though I can only make a conjecture here, but the one obvious reason seems to be that the question papers for Delhi are different. It may have been more difficult than the others.

A moderation policy, which helps level the playing field by attributing extra marks for difficult questions, is supposed to have taken care of the problem. However, some have also expressed their doubts about this.

The CBSE had decided to scrap the moderation policy. Then on the courts orders they said they would continue using moderation and were still able to release the revised results in a matter of days. So it does beg the question if moderation really did take place or not, said another principal of one of the well-known private schools in Delhi.

They also suspect that the moderation hasnt been applied properly. Because if the Delhi papers had been more difficult than the other sets, then students in other centres would have obviously scored better.

Mathematics, Accountancy and Economics teachers from multiple schools have also come forward claiming that the average scores in their subjects have dropped since last year. As per assessment of our results, we found that students have scored lower in Maths and Economics compared to previous years, Manohar Lal, principal DPS Mathura Road.

Jyoti Arora, principal Mount Abu school, added that the situation was similar for accountancy. Teachers from Ahlcon school, ASN school, also corroborated the claims.

I dont think the moderation policy was implemented correctly, claimed Rajeev Kumar Jha, a mathematics teacher at Ahlcon International School.

However, many insisted that it was still too early to decide what went wrong and where. We are still analysing the data and trying to figure out exactly what went wrong. It cant be moderation or the question paper. Because at the time of the exams and when the marking scheme was being finalised, the feedback we received was that there was no difference in the difficulty level, said LV Sehgal, the principal of the Bal Bharati Public School.

No matter the reason, what remains to be seen is how this will impact undergraduate admissions at the Delhi University. With cutoffs not expected to drop, Delhi students may just lose out on this rat race.

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The son of an autorickshaw driver in Kerala emerged as the topper in the disabled category on Sunday by scoring 98% in the Class 12 board examination 2017 conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).

Ajay R Raj, a student of St Thomas Higher Secondary School in Thiruvananthapuram, is partially blind and appeared in the exam with the help of a screen reading software. Raj scored 490 out of 500 marks.

Lakshmi PV of Palghat Lions School in Keralas Palakkad and Dharshana MV of Nalanda International Public School in Tamil Nadus Krishnagiri were the second and the third topper in this category. Lakshmi scored 97.2% and Dharshana secured 96.6%.

A student of humanities -- English, political science and economics -- Raj wants to pursue English literature and would like to work in a rural area as a teacher.

I thought of getting good marks, but not a rank. I dedicate my rank to my parents, teachers and friends. I would like to pursue a teaching career and help children belonging to the rural areas, Raj, who belongs to the remote Kuttiyadi panchayat in Kozhikode district, said.

Raj lived in a hostel and his school provided him with a scholarship and other facilities.

A studious student he scaled all difficulties with much ease. He deserved the top slot, the principal of the St Thomas School, Sebastian T Joseph, said.

One of Keralas leading public schools, St Thomas notched up a 100% result. Another student from the school, Aaron John Sabu, scored the highest in the science stream in the state and scored 97.4%.

The Thiruvananthapuram region topped in terms of pass percentage of 95.62 followed by Chennai at 92.60.

Nearly 82% students, lower than last years 83%, cleared the Class 12 board exams. Over 11 lakh candidates registered for the Class 12 exams, which were held between March 9 and April 29, this year against 10,67,900 students last year.

Girls performed better than boys by 9.5% as out of 4,60,026 girls 87.50% passed and 78% of 6,38,865 boys cleared the exam. The pass percentage of disabled students was 86.69 as 2123 out of 2449 passed.

A Noida girl became the topper in the Class 12 exam and students from Chandigarh were ranked second and third across India. Raksha Gopal, who pursued humanities at Amity International School, scored 99.6% marks to ace the exams.

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The Central Board of Secondary Education used its moderation policy to give marks in the class 12 school finals, a move several state boards fear might put their students in disadvantage during admission to popular colleges.

The CBSE adopted the policy in 1992 but decided with 32 state boards to scrap it this April. The Delhi high court directed the countrys biggest school board in May, days before the results were due, to put off the decision this year.

By then, eight state boards declared their results without following the practice in which students are awarded extra marks for unusually difficult questions in a particular subject or when there are differences in the sets of test papers.

In accordance with the court order, the CBSE declared its results on Sunday by tweaking marks from the total score of students. A number of states felt cheated, though they didnt say that in as many words.

Punjab education minister Aruna Choudhary said marks moderation hides the actual calibre of a student.

It should be scrapped as it would affect other boards. CBSE should let students know their actual capacity and accordingly they would choose their streams and make their careers.

Officials in Karnataka, which has nixed moderation, said the southern states students might find it difficult to get admission in Delhi University colleges this year.

The state boards pass percentage recorded a dip of 5%  from 57.2% in 2016 to 52.38% this year. This was the worst performance in Karnataka since 2012.

West Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee suggested that the CBSE scrap the policy next year.

Otherwise, it will be unfair for students of state boards that havent gone for moderation. Boards yet to do away with moderation should do it. There should be a uniform policy, he said.

CBSE officials clarified that marks of high-scoring students were not increased. But those who fell short by two-three marks to reach the minimum grades for clearing the exam were adjusted.

The boards pass percentage dipped from 83.05% in 2016 to 82.02% this year. Also, theres a marginal dip in the number of students scoring above 90%  down from 63,387 last year to 63,247 this summer.

We have only carried out moderation to bring uniformity in the evaluation process  No spiking of marks has been done in the garb of moderation, a senior CBSE official said.

But 10,091 students scored above 95% marks, 740 more than last year, despite not getting the advantage of moderation.

The marking policy doesnt apply to students scoring 95% and above.

The increase in scorers in this bracket might push up the cut-off marks for admission to Delhi University colleges. The first cut-off for most popular courses in DU was above 95% last year.

Delhi University will offer 56,000 seats in undergraduate courses this year.

More than a million students from 10,678 schools affiliated to the CBSE wrote the class 12 finals this year.

(with inputs from HTC Chandigarh, Bengaluru and Kolkata)
Girls performed better than boys in the ICSE (Class 10) and ISC (Class 12) board exams 2017, results of which were declared by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) on Monday.

Nearly 2,40,660 candidates  1,68,591 for ICSE and 72,096 for ISC  appeared in the exams this year.

The pass percentage of candidates who appeared in the ICSE exam was 98.53 and that of the ISC students was 96.47%. Last year, 98.50% students cleared the ICSE exam and 96.46% candidates passed the ISC.

Girls did better than boys in both forms of the exams in terms of pass percentage. In ICSE, 99.03% girls passed and 98.13% boys cleared the exam. Similarly, in ISC girls outperformed boys with a pass percentage of 97.73 as compared to the 95.39% boys who cleared the exam.

The ICSE exam was written by 96,770 boys and 78,529 girls and  out of which 94,957 boys and 77,765 girls passed the exam respectively. In the ISC exam, 39,703 boys and 33,930 girls appeared and out of which 37,872 boys and 33,161 girls passed the exam respectively.

Region wise, south dominated in both forms of the exams. In ICSE, the southern region applicants achieved a pass percentage of 99.64 and in ISC, the region achieved 98.97.

Toppers

Muskan Abdulla Pathan from Hutchings High School, Pune and Ashwin Rao from St Pauls English School, Bengaluru were declared as joint toppers of ICSE (10th) exam with 99.4%.

Ananya Maity of The Heritage School, Kolkata was the topper of ISC (12th) boards with 99.50% marks.

Im delighted. I cannot tell you how happy I am. She is a wonderful child. Shes not only brilliant in academics but also in creative writing. Whats more, shes down to earth and well behaved, Seema Sapru, principal of the Heritage School, said.

She has an inclination for creative writing. She also loves to play the piano. Needless to say, she devoted a number of hours in studies, Ananyas father Chinmoy Kumar Maity, who is a doctor, told HT.

The second rank in ISC was shared by 4 students, including Ayushi Srivastava of CMS Gomti Nagar in Lucknow, Devesh Lakhotia of Kolkatas St Xaviers Collegiate School, Rishika Dhariwal of Mumbais Jamnabai Narsee School, and Keerthana Srikanth of Scotish High International School in Gurgaon. All of them obtained 99.25%.

The third rank was shared by 5 students with 99% marks.

Delayed results

The results for the ICSE and ISC exams were delayed this year as they began at least a week later than usual because of the assembly elections that were held in five states.

Last year, the results were declared on May 6, 2 weeks earlier than usual due to the introduction of a new technique known as the Live Ink Character Recognition (LICR).

And in 2015, they were declared on May 18.

At least 8 papers clashed with election dates and were rescheduled. While the ISC exams were advanced by a week (January 30-April 26), the ICSE exams were delayed by 10 days (March 10-April 21).

As per the earlier schedule, the ISC and the ICSE exams were supposed to begin on February 6 and February 27 respectively.

The Central Board of Secondary Education declared the Class 12 board examination 2017 on Sunday. The CBSE 10th result 2017 is likely to be announced soon.
The Gujarat Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (GSEB) declared the results for Class 10 board examinations at 8am on Monday.

Candidates can check their results on boards official website, gseb.org. They have to key in their seven-digit seat number and have been advised to check their marksheets too when the schools distributes those for a final confirmation of the result.

In an advisory, the board advised the students to check their marksheets carefully for details like name and date of birth. Any discrepancy should be brought to their notice immediately.

Over 11 lakh students appeared for the SSC examinations that were held between March 15, 2017 to March 25, 2017.

On Sunday, the CBSE declared its school final results, adopting a marking system that it nixed last month. The Delhi high courts ordered the board to continue with the moderation policy this year.
Promising pianist and creative writer Ananya Maity of Kolkata topped this years Indian School Certificate (ISC) Class12 finals, 2017. It was conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, an autonomous board with schools across the country.

The daughter of physician Chinmoy Kumar, Maity scored 99.5% and wants to study psychology in college. She loves creative writing and reads a lot of literature, he said.

The results of the Indian School Certificate (ISC) examinations, called so by the board for its Class 12 finals, were declared on Monday afternoon.

Ananyas flair for the arts was recognised during a workshop on creative poetry writing conducted by British poet Luke Kennard at the British Council in Kolkata last year. Her short story, Choices, made it to an anthology called The World I Write In, published by Nivasini Publishers.

Unlike most teenagers, Ananya is not hooked to the social network such as Facebook.

She doesnt have an account. Sometimes, she uses it by logging through our account, her father said.

Besides devoting long hours to preparing for the exam and writing stories and poems, she loves to play the piano.

Her alma mater, the Heritage School, is overjoyed with her feat.

I cannot tell you how happy I am. She is a wonderful child. Shes not only brilliant in academics but also in creative writing. Whats more, shes down to earth and well-behaved, said principal Seema Sapru.

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As another Class 12 batch graduated from CBSE-affiliated schools on Sunday, one cannot blame students if they wished they could score more than 100 out of 100. Because there seems to be no rational means to stay ahead in this absurd race of all-too-perfect scores.

Raksha Gopal, the all-India topper, scored 99.6% in all five subjects and missed a cent percent score by just two marks. She got 99% in history and psychology but 100 on 100 in the other three subjects, including English.

The results come just five days after the Boards attempts to stop moderation of marks, in order to bring some sanity in exam scores, was shot down by the Delhi High Court.

Since high marks in school-leaving exam inevitably lead to higher cutoffs to get into Delhi University, too many top-scoring students will continue to compete for a few good options for undergraduate courses. For the most popular courses in best colleges, the qualifying score has consistently stayed above 95% and the seats fill up fast.

In 2011, Shri Ram College of Commerce was the first to ask for 100% in a certain four-subject combination for admission to B.Com (Hons), triggering mass outrage and inspiring a series of Rajnikant one-liners. But the jokes fell flat when at least two students made the cut.

This mad race to get cent percent marks has reached a stage where nobody is really sure how good is good enough. To reverse this trend, the CBSE, along with other state boards, had in April this year decided to drop the policy of moderation, a practice where students were given extra marks in subjects regarded as unusually difficult, or when there were variations in question paper sets. The board had also found that such marks were given in excess, leading to a spike in the overall scores and sending cutoffs for college admissions through the roof.

Last week, the Delhi High Court directed the CBSE to exercise moderation. Even if the board challenges this decision in Supreme Court  it has not yet  the anomaly of inflated marks cannot be set right unless the CBSE reviews its own evaluation process.

Three years ago, my colleague Neha Pushkarna analysed CBSE results to find that while the number of students appearing for Class 12 Board exams across the nation went up by 64% between 2009 and 2014, the number of those scoring 95% or more jumped by 780%. Interestingly, marks above 95% are not moderated by the CBSE.

It is not that the schoolchildren got smarter over the years. A data-based digital interactive released by HT on Saturday shows that a student scoring 88% in Class 12 boards in 2015 would have scored 78% a decade earlier.

We cant blame the practice of moderation alone for inflated scores. In 2004-05, as a de-stressing measure, CBSE had shifted its policy from testing what a student does not know to what she actually knows. Long-answer-type questions were reduced in favour of objective-type questions. Each answer had to have certain points and keywords that were given out to teachers marking the papers. A student who got all of them right would score full marks, even for long essay-type questions, Pushkarna reported.

One could imagine 100% marks in maths, physics and accountancy. But now even English and history can get you a perfect score.

Some would argue that identifying keys to each answer is a good way of evaluation because it minimises the scope for subjectivity and brings uniformity in marking. After all, CBSE has over 18,000 schools affiliated to it across India and more on than a million students appear for Class 12 boards every year. But then, conducting exams whose results decide the future of so many students has to be more than an administrative or logistical exercise.

Such inflated marks create a false sense of academic excellence among students. It also fuels an unsustainable rat race. Often, DU is accused of being competitive and turning away students when it is merely reacting to the prevalent marks-market dynamics.

Till the early 2000s, as the HT interactive shows, 80% in the best of four could get you a seat in a top on-campus college. With the same marks now, a student would be lucky to get one anywhere at all.

Ending the practice of moderation could be a good start in making the CBSE marking pattern more realistic. But true reform will not be possible unless the assessment system itself is overhauled. The Board results will still throw up exceptional results. But at least it will be less crowded at the top.

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Bob Odenkirk, who stars in the Breaking Bad spin off, Better Call Saul, has not only proved his mettle as an actor but is also one of the finest writers on TV right now.

He started as a writer in 1987 for the popular show, Saturday Night Live and later wrote for many other internationally acclaimed shows.

Usually, people feel it would be natural for comic actors to attempt drama than drama actors attempting comedy. Does he think thats true? Bob says, Well, I wrote on Saturday Night Live, and as a writer, the biggest challenge we had was straight drama actors coming in to host the show. Some of them have such an arch presence, that it gives you something fun to work with. I dont want to name names, but very often a good dramatic actor is impossible to work with in comedy. Theres just nothing to play against. Often times, theyre very sympathetic and have a softer character persona. Theyre very mutable, but theres nothing heightened about them, which makes them great in films as an everyman.

Slippin' Jimmy and Kimmy have an investment opportunity for you. #BetterCallSaul A post shared by @bettercallsaulamc on May 27, 2017 at 3:04pm PDT

Bob praises Hollywood actor Tom Hanks, calling him a great host. Somehow, he was the exception. He is incredibly likable and mutable and relatable. I think drama actors sometimes interpret comedy as- be loud and stupid. Theres a lot of humour to be found in being broad and loud, but its kind of a clumsy way of looking at it. So, that seems to be a harder transition to me. Comedy actors surprise people by playing a quieter dramatic moment that no one expected out of them. But, I think, most comic actors are very capable of doing drama, he says.

Youll definitely want to be in the know before #BetterCallSaul returns on June 5. Catch up now. A post shared by @bettercallsaulamc on May 25, 2017 at 6:59am PDT

Bob adds, I was kind of dismissive of the challenge of it allmaybe because I didnt want to intimidate myself. Now, after three seasons of Better Call Saul, I have a little more respect for drama actors than I did. Beyond the challenge of finding a moment and playing it honestly and modulating your performance so that it plays real, theres another challenge that I discovered over time, which is kind of staying inside of a different person for a long period of time. Theres a lot of personal turmoil in Jimmys life. Im not saying there isnt in my own life Im a mess! That should be the title of my autobiography- Im a mess. But just diving into another persons life and staying there is kind of hard after a while, says the 54-year-old actor.

Make yourself comfortable and catch up on the latest #BetterCallSaul. A post shared by @bettercallsaulamc on May 24, 2017 at 11:34am PDT

Bob adds that one of the things that he loves about this show is that it has comedy. Those days are a big joy and relief for me, because thats closer to what I spent my life doing. And its lighter. I just hope I dont push that. Sometimes when Im doing the comedy I can get a little light in the loafers, he says.

Saul Goodman is back on Mondays #BetterCallSaul. A post shared by @bettercallsaulamc on May 19, 2017 at 6:34am PDT

Talking about the show that airs on Colors Infinity in India, he says, I love this character and all the places that he gets to go. I used to read these articles about James Gandolfini and how difficult it was for him to play this character in The Sopranos. And Bryan Cranston has also said that he couldnt wait to be done playing Walter White. I remember thinking- Whats the big deal? But then you deal with a couple years of someones turmoilespecially these tortured charactersand its a little rough.

Pour Jimmy. #BetterCallSaul A post shared by @bettercallsaulamc on May 13, 2017 at 2:52pm PDT

Is he looking forward to season 4? I am. I think the confidence we all feel with these characters and the writing is really good. It makes you enjoy it more. Our writers set a lot up in the first three seasons. Its a lot of setting the dominoes up, so that when they start to fall it goes faster and faster. Season 3 and 4 will be the dominoes falling fast. It has to be and it will.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

Will Jimmy give Kim a Bad name on Mondays #BetterCallSaul? A post shared by @bettercallsaulamc on May 12, 2017 at 6:47am PDT
Over 26,500 job-seekers  who were staying in Saudi Arabia either without valid documents or overstayed their visas with a hope to get another job  are slated to return home under a 90-day amnesty scheme announced by the kingdom in April.

Indian officials said this was an opportunity for the nationals to correct their status in the kingdom and return to work in Saudi should they get opportunities in future.

There are 30 lakh Indians in Saudi Arabia, which makes it the largest expatriate community in the kingdom. And the kingdom is home to largest Indian passport holders outside India.

Sources said Indian mission in Saudi Arabia issued over 25,000 travel documents to nationals who availed the amnesty scheme announced in April. Officials hope those who availed the exit passes will leave the country as Saudi authorities made it clear that the amnesty under the Nation Without Illegal Expats campaign will not be extended.

According to a statement by Jamman Al-Ghamdi, adviser to the director of Public Security in Saudi Arabia, as many as 276,000 expatriates have been handed exit visas under the amnesty scheme so far. But Indian officials conceded that it was not easy to convince people to leave the country as they are hopeful of finding work and making their stay legal.

We have set up over 20 centres across the kingdom to sensitise citizens to avail the amnesty and leave the country without any legal hassles of paying the penalty, said an official.

Of the 26,713 applications for emergency exit, Uttar Pradesh topped the list with 11,390 forms. There are over 2,000 applicants each from West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, and over 1,000 from Bihar, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.

A substantial number of people are reported to be in the runaway category (those run away from their sponsors). Under Saudi law, consent of the sponsor is necessary to get an exit visa.

The amnesty scheme is not extend to those who are involved in any criminal cases.

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Pakistan has had a significant 40% drop in the number of American visas granted to its nationals under the new Donald Trump administration despite not being on the list of the US Presidents travel ban countries.

The number of non-immigrant US visas to Indians increased by 28% in March and April this year as compared to the monthly average of the previous year, according to the newly-released monthly official data.

Pakistanis were issued 3,925 non-immigrant visas in April and 3,973 visas in March, 2017.

The Obama administration last year issued a total of 78,637 non-immigrant visas to Pakistanis with a monthly average of 6,553, which was 40% higher than the current average.

Before March this year, the US state department did not release monthly breakdowns of visas and only annual figures were available.

The report compared the March and April 2017 figures with monthly averages for 2016. Even in 2015, monthly average remained 6,179 as a total of 74,150 Pakistanis had been granted visas.

A spokesperson of the state department told the The News International, Visa demand is cyclical, not uniform throughout the year and affected by various factors at the local and international level. Visa issuance numbers tend to increase during peak travel seasons, such as during the summer and the winter holidays, though there may be different trends at the country, nationality, or visa-category level.

The data showed that Indian nationals received 87,049 visas in April and 97,925 visas in March this year. Last year, people from India received 72,082 non-immigrant visas each month on average with an annual total of 864,987 visas.

Pakistan is not the only Muslim-majority country experiencing decline in non-immigrant US visas. A similar analysis of 50 Muslim majority countries reveals that number of visas issued to their nationals has also declined by 20 per cent in April as compared to their monthly country average last year, the report said.

The six countries targeted by President Donald Trumps revised travel ban - Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen - experienced a 55 per cent decline in non-immigrant visas compared with last years monthly average.

Experts believe that drop in visas may indicate that more visa applicants are now subject to excessive scrutiny.

In January, Trump signed an executive order temporarily barring people from seven Muslim-majority countries - Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen.

In March, he signed the revised travel ban excluding Iraq from the list. The order was challenged in a court and a judge had halted the travel ban.
The National Democratic Alliance government has taken seven months to find a chairperson for the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) and the likely choice is former junior HRD minister Ram Shankar Katheria.

Katheria, a BJP MP from Agra, was dropped from the union cabinet last July following a controversy over his mark-sheet and a hate speech against Muslims. The party, however, said he was relieved of his charge for Uttar Pradesh elections held earlier this year.

The commission, a Constitutional body to safeguard interests of the Dalits, has no chief or members at the moment.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau, the highest number of atrocities against Scheduled Castes were reported from Uttar Pradesh in 2015.

PL Punia, a Congress Rajya Sabha MP and previous chairman, said, Houses of Dalits were burnt, they were injured yet police arrested them. No compensation has been disbursed. The commission should have taken the lead in providing them justice.

Punia also slammed the government for the delay in reconstituting the commission saying all complaints received by the commission are pending for months.

Social justice minister Thawar Chand Gehlot said the commission was being reconstituted and names have been sent for Presidents approval. The gazette notification is expected soon.

Giving reasons for the delay, the minister said, Election code of conduct was in force due to the state assembly elections. The selection process began after March.

The model code came into force in January 2017 while Punias term ended in October 2016.

Vice-chairperson Raj Kumar Verka retired six months ago. Member Raju Parmar completed his tenure in November 2016 while members Ishwar Singh and PM Kamalamma retired this March.

The government has to fill posts of a chairman, a vice-chairman and three members.

In the Rohith Vemula case, the commission had pushed the Telangana government to register a case under the SC/ST Atrocities Act against University of Hyderabad vice chancellor Appa Rao Podile and union labour minister Bandaru Dattatreya. The commission also directed the state government to provide compensation to Vermulas family.

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A few days after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Bhat in an encounter in Tral in South Kashmir, many names are doing rounds as contenders for the top spot by Hizbul Mujahideen.

While some media reports quoted intelligence sources as saying another top commander Riyaz Naikoo might be named chief , official sources told HT that there a few more contenders.

While Naikoo seems to be the best option after the groups fall out with Zakir Musa, others like Yaseen Itoo and Sadam Paddar are also the contenders.

Naikoo, 30, is a post graduate, and the longest-surviving militant in Hizbul Mujahideen and had joined group almost along with Burhan Wani-the local commander whose death triggered unrest of 2016 in which 100 people were killed.

Yaseen on the other hand is oldest among the current lot of militants. According to sources, Itoo who goes with the alias Ghaznavi is the only among the current batch of militants who has a pan district command.

About 40 years of age, Itoo has served jailed terms twice.

While the group had named Mehmood Ghaznavi as their commander after Burhans death, it is not clear if they were referring to Itoo. While most of the militants in groups of fours and fives, who operate in their own districts. The militants are not under one central command but only Itoo has a pan district hold, said an official. Unlike other Hizb commanders, who were from South Kashmir and more specifically from Tral, Itoo is from Chadoora in Budgam in central Kashmir.

Sadam Paddar another contender. Waseem Shah and Altaf Kachroo are also important. All of them carry a reward between Rs 10 and Rs 12 lakh.

Sources say Sabzars killing will also bring back focus on Lashkar militant Abu Dujana. The group distinctions have also blurred , the Hizb and Lashkar are seen working in coordination. So Abu Dujanas stature might also rise, said an official.

This will discourage a lot of boys who were intending to join militants, said a source.

The Army has also made it clear that going after the top commanders is going to be the future strategy. Around 200 militants are currently active and 110 of them are locals .

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BJP national president Amit Shah met Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat and general secretary Bhaiyyaji Joshi on Monday amid intense speculation about the NDA government fielding either a Dalit or a tribal for the post of next President of India.

The meeting was significant in the wake of Shahs statement that the BJP would consult opposition parties -- that have been working to forge unity over a joint presidential candidate -- before deciding on the ruling alliances pick for the top constitutional post.

The BJP chief went to RSS headquarters at 4.45pm and held a close-door meeting with Bhagwat and Joshi for over two and a half hours.

RSS sources said that both Bhagwat and Joshi wanted that a person with a Sangh Parivar background be nominated for the post of President.

Earlier, there was speculation that Bhagwat would be nominated as NDA candidate for the next President but the RSS chief himself shot down that proposal.

Read more: BJP will consult Oppn before picking presidential candidate, says Amit Shah

President Pranab Mukherjees term ends on July 25. The Presidential election is due earlier that month.

The BJPs sweeping victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand has stacked the numbers in the electoral college in favour of the government. The electoral college comprises 776 parliamentarians and 4,120 legislators. Its total strength is 10, 98,882 votes and the halfway mark is 5, 49,442 votes. The NDA is short of 25,000 votes  a gap that can be easily bridged by smaller parties such as the AIADMK.

In view of the suggestions from the Sangh, the BJP-led NDA may throw a surprise candidate by nominating either a Dalit or a tribal leader.

The RSS wants to send out a message that Sangh Parivar is not a casteist organization. Union social justice minister Thawar Chand Gehlot, a well-known Dalit face or the Governor of Jharkhand Draupadi Murmu may be the probable candidates for the post.

RSS sources said that Bhagwat and Joshi made it clear that they have no objections if either Gehlot or Murmu is nominated for the constitutional post.

At the meeting, the leaders also discussed a likely cabinet reshuffle (expected to take place after the Presidential elections).

They focused on the need for a full time defence minister following Manohar Parrikar moving to Goa as the states chief minister. The defence ministry is now under finance minister Arun Jaitleys additional charge
Here is a new campaign to change behaviour of men defecating in open  Darwaja Band. Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan will launch the campaign from Mumbai on Tuesday to promote use of toilets. Bachchan is one of the brand ambassadors of Narendra Modi governments Swachch Bharat campaign.

Darwaja Band stands for shutting the door on open defecation, a senior government officer involved with the programme told HT. Other bollywood actors will also join this movement.

Actress Anuskha Sharma is also part of the campaign and will be seen encouraging women to stand up for this issue in their villages and assume a leadership role.

Bachchan, too, sent out a series of tweets in the afternoon to support the campaign. India has vowed to end open defection. Spread the message of cleanliness through Darwaza Band & support Swachh Bharat..I do!! Bachchan wrote in one of the tweets. In another message in Hindi, he said diseases will disappear once every village becomes open defecation free.

We want India to progress as also the villages! Darwaza Band is a roadmap to my clean India. Swachch Bharat, he wrote in a separate tweet.

The initiative of the Union drinking water and sanitation ministry is supported by the World Bank, and the government plans to roll it out immediately after the launch.

A campaign will be carried out through TV, radio and print advertisements and also through short video messages that can be shared on different platforms.

Behaviour change has been the focus of Swachh Bharat Mission, which is being pursued through a countrywide comprehensive IEC (Information-Education-Communication) programme, a government release said.

Officials said communication campaigns have been taken up both, at the central and state levels, for promoting sustained use of toilets and for sustaining the Open Defecation Free status achieved.
The CBI on Monday took custody of former RJD MP Mohammed Shahabuddin in connection with the murder of Bihar-based journalist Rajdeo Ranjan, an official said.

Shahabuddin is now lodged in the Tihar Jail in New Delhi.

The former MP was, on May 26, named one of the 10 accused in the murder of Ranjan, who hailed from Bihars Siwan district, by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The CBI is preparing to file a chargesheet on the basis of evidence collected by it, official sources said.

The case was handed over to the CBI in September last year after the slain journalists widow Asha Ranjan and his father Radhe Krishna Chaudhary repeatedly alleged that Shahabuddin was behind the murder.

The suspicion over Shahbuddins involvement deepened after names of two of his henchmen, Mohammad Kaif and Mohammad Javed, surfaced during investigation.

A chargesheet has been filed against six of the accused. Javed and Kaif are on bail and Shahabuddin has been made the 10th accused.

Police in Bihar had earlier claimed that the murder was the result of premediated conspiracy.

Sources claimed that the slain journalist had become a threat for criminals because of his news reports against the deteriorating law and order condition in Siwan.

Shahabuddin was in jail when the journalist was gunned down in Siwan while returning from office on May 13, 2016. He is facing 39 criminal cases including those of kidnapping and murder and was shifted to Tihar Jail on February 18.
Conditions are favourable for the onset of southwest monsoon in Kerala by Tuesday, the Indian Meteorological Department said on Monday.

While south Kerala has been receiving widespread rains since early Monday, only few places have received rains in the northern parts. However, it is likely to improve by Tuesday, IMD Thiruvananthapuram director S Sudevan told PTI.

Present meteorological analysis indicate that conditions are favourable for onset of southwest monsoon in Kerala in the next 24 hours, the director said.

While Mavelikkara (Alappuzha) and Vaikom (Kottayam) each received six cm of rain, Kochi witnessed five cm rainfall. Enamackel and Irinjalakuda (Thrissur) besides Quilandy (Kozhikode) were among the areas which received three cm of rain.

Thiruvananthapuram city, Minicoy and Peermade (Idukki) each received one cm of rain.

Rain and thundershowers are most likely to occur at most places in Kerala in the next five days.

Strong winds from westerly direction with speed occasionally exceeding 45-55 kmph are likely off Kerala coast and over Lakshadweep.

Meanwhile, in Kottayam a huge tree got uprooted and fell on a house, causing injuries to three persons, who have been hospitalised, police said.
The Youth Congress suspended on Monday three workers including Rejil Makutti for slaughtering a calf in public during a protest rally in Kerala that triggered widespread criticism, even from party vice-president Rahul Gandhi.

PCC acting president M M Hassan said their action was not in accordance with the Congress tradition and culture.

Youth Congress members slaughtered the animal on Saturday in the heart of north Keralas Kannur town amid slogan shouting against the Centre for banning the sale of cows for slaughter at animal markets, a move likely to choke the meat industry and hurt traders.

But videos of the slaughter, and cooking of the meat, went viral on social media and television, embarrassing the party and sparking condemnation of what many called unnecessary killing of an animal.

Their thoughtless action brought enough shame to the party. We will take strict action against them, a senior Congress leader said, adding that party workers should keep utmost restraint during such protests.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had condemned the slaughter and said his party would not support it. What happened in Kerala is thoughtless, barbaric and completely unacceptable to me and Congress Party. I strongly condemn the incident, he tweeted. Many party leaders also condemned the act.

What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless,barbaric& completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.I strongly condemn the incident  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) May 28, 2017

Even the animals meant for slaughter deserve sympathy. Dont we need to show humanity? The mode of protest in Kannur was a cold-blooded one, senior Congress leader Panadalam Sudhakaran said in a social media post.

Sixteen Youth Congress activists who slaughtered the cow in public were charged on Sunday under IPC Section 428 and section (ii) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960.

As the protest against new cattle notification mounted, the state government is planning to convene an all-party meet. As beef is widely consumed in the state the Centres decision to ban sale and purchase of animals from market has triggered widespread outrage in the state.

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Men Reveal The Moments That Made Them Feel Sad And Lonely

Trending News: Men Reveal Moments That Prove You Need To Start Going On Dates ASAP

Quick Take

Family gatherings... Cute couples on the beach... Weddings... Sometimes it can feel like everyone around you is in a happy relationship except for you. And yeah, that f*cking sucks if a relationship is what you're looking for  but there's always hope.

These days there are TONS of ways to meet people, including but not limited to: dating sites, apps, bars, social groups etc. In many ways, being single is better than being in a relationship. Plus, being single is arguably the least awkward it's ever been as more and more people are choosing to say no to monogamy in favor of different kinds of relationships and hookups.

But I get it, when you're at your lowest and loneliest, it's hard to see the light. And these guys bravely discussed easily relatable moments when being single can feel terrible.

In Reddit's Askmen forum, the question was posed: What were your moments of "Wow I'm single and lonely" right now?

The responses... Well, they're heartbreaking.

scienceandwonder writes:

The worst part for me is that I've reached a stage in my career/philanthropic life where I get awards and recognition at banquets and such like. Which I attend alone. In the midst of the applause, all I can think about is how much I want one special person there to say, "You look amazing and I'm so proud of you."

There's an old saying: Love yourself, and the rest will follow. I think that applies here.

toysjoe:

Applying for a job with the police and filling out the background check when they ask you to fill out your spouse/partner's information.

Sometimes singlehood can pop up in odd and unlikely situations  but you've gotta own it. Why? Because that's you doing you right now.

kaizack:

My crush caught me looking at her and smiled. Like, a genuine, happy smile. I swear I rode off that high for a week. :/

This one isn't sad, it's great! Now that you've got the look, go in and get 'em tiger. Here are some tips for approaching.

Squints753:

Morning after a friend's wedding

True, weddings are when love is in the air. Know what else weddings are a time for? Hooking up with other single people in attendance.

kittenlover27:

Im sitting at a diner by myself enjoying a great brekafest. I do this often and it doesn't bother me, but man would it be nice to be able to have conversation over breakfest with a partner.

Talk to the waitress, who knows, you might get a number :).

Drop This Fact

In 1950, just 22% of Americans were single. Nowadays, there are 109 million people who aren't in a committed relationship.
Curfew, restrictions and a call for shutdown by separatists crippled normal life in Kashmir on Monday, two days after popular Hizbul Mujahedeen militant Sabzar Bhat was killed in an encounter in south Kashmir.

Officials said curfew was imposed under police station areas in Srinagar city and restrictions were imposed in several other parts of districts like Shopian, Kulgam, Pulwama, Badgam, Ganderbal, Bandipora, Kupwara and Baramulla.

The Valleys joint separatist leadership had called for a shutdown on Monday due to which most shops and business establishments remained shut while public transport stayed out of roads.

Separatists have called for a March to Tral on Tuesday.

Chief of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq was placed under house arrest while Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front chief, Yasin Malik was arrested and shifted to the central jail on Sunday.

Hardliner Hurriyat chief Syed Ali Geelani has been under continued house arrest.

The Valley has been tense since Saturday after Bhat and an accomplice were killed in a gunfight with the security forces in Saimoh village of Pulwama.

Bhat was the local chief of the home-grown militant organisation and is believed to have succeeded Burhan Wani, whose encounter death in July 2016 set off violent street protests in the Kashmir Valley that left at least 100 people, most of them civilians, dead.

Mobile internet and telephone services on pre-paid numbers have remained suspended since Saturday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi described terrorism as the gravest challenge facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the UN to deal with this menace.

Modi, who arrived in Berlin on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, in an interview to German newspaper Handelsblatt said: Europe has been hit hard by terrorism.

To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace, he said.

Modis remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently. The latest terror attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.

Speaking to the countrys leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people.

We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti- immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed, Modi said.

We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation, he said.

Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was as among the most open and fastest growing major economies in the world.

The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.

India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time...There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council, he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.

On the Indo-German ties, he said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Start-up India, Clean India and Smart Cities.

In reference to the wider European Union (EU) and Britains impending exit, he said, The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security.

India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach.

On the German side, Merkel had recently said, The times when we could rely on the other have passed ... We Europeans, we must really take destiny into their own hands.

In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, Handelsblatt claimed.

The prime ministers visit to Germany has been described as a new chapter in the bilateral relations between the two countries.

I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership, Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit.

Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for Indias transformation, he said.

The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine.

Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to 9.54 billion dollars. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.
Three cases of the Zika virus reported in Ahmedabad have not provoked the municipal corporation or the Gujarat government to announce a campaign against the disease. But a drive to check mosquito breeding is already under way to combat malaria.

After the World Health Organisation (WHO) confirmed on Friday the three Zika cases Indias first  the state government maintained that they were isolated and said there is no reason to panic.

According to the WHO, the earliest infection was detected in February 2016 and the most recent one was found this January. No cure is available for Zika.

Just a couple of days before the WHOs announcement, at an anti-malaria meeting, state health minister Shankar Chaudhary said that the mosquito is a terrorist and suggested drones could be used to locate breeding grounds in terraces and backyards.

Under its campaign to rid Ahmedabad of malaria, local health authorities say they are checking over 15 lakh places across the city for breeding sites.

The Malaria Free Ahmedabad campaign aims at eradicating mosquitoes, so it would address the concern related to Zika virus as well, said Ahmedabad mayor Gautam Shah. No special drive is required.

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The Haryana government has decided to more than double the limit of free travel facility in the state roadways buses for girl students of universities and professional colleges.

Chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar has approved a proposal to increase this limit from 60 to 150 kilometres, an official release said here on Monday . This decision will benefit 2.15 lakh girl students of universities and professional colleges in the state.

The decision will cause an annual additional financial burden of about Rs 7.68 crore to the state exchequer, it added.
Pakistan is not answerable to anyone about the death sentence given to Indian national Kulbushan Jadhav and the ICJ will not release or acquit him, members of the legal team representing Islamabad at the world court said on Monday.

Attorney general Ashtar Ausaf Ali described the former naval officer as an Indian agent and said Pakistan has important information against him that will be presented to the International Court of Justice.

Khawar Qureshi, the London-based lawyer who is part of Pakistans legal team, said the ICJ will not free or acquit Jadhav, who was sentenced to death by a military court for alleged involvement in spying and subversive activities.

Let me make it very clearCommander Jadhav is not going anywhere. He is not going to be released or acquitted. The ICJ will never release him or acquit him, Qureshi told the media after a meeting with the attorney general.

He said India had wrongly claimed victory after the Hague-based court temporarily stayed Jadhavs execution. You are making something out of nothing, he told reporters.

The attorney general told the media that Pakistan was satisfied with the handling of Jadhavs arrest and punishment. Pakistan, he said, was not answerable in front of anyone about the death sentence given to Jadhav.

Ali also said Pakistans stance had not been rejected by the ICJ and the interim verdict was not a defeat or victory of any country.

Qureshi, who had been widely criticised by Pakistans opposition parties for his handling of the case, said the media should behave responsibly and give Pakistani officials the respect they deserve.

The problem seems to be that this case is more about political point-scoring than about the law, he said. The Foreign Office will issue a detailed statement about Jadhavs case, he added.

Following the criticism of Qureshi, the attorney general said he personally represent Pakistan at future hearings in the ICJ. Qureshi was also criticised for being paid 50,000 whereas Harish Salve, the lead counsel for India, had taken up Jadhavs case for a token payment of one rupee.

Jadhav, 46, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of involvement in espionage and terrorist activities. The ICJ stayed his execution on May 18.

India has dismissed the charges against Jadhav and said he was kidnapped from Chabahar port in Iran, where he was engaged in business.

Several Pakistani ministers, including interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, have said Jadhavs case will be taken to its logical conclusion according to the countrys laws and Constitution.

While replying to a query, the attorney general said Pakistans courts had provided justice to Indian woman Uzma Ahmed, who was forced to marry a Pakistani man at gun point. She was allowed by Islamabad High Court to return to India.
India and Fiji on Monday signed an agreement that provides for stepping up defence and security ties including in defence production and military training.

The deal was signed after defence minister Arun Jaitley held extensive talks with his Fijian counterpart Ratu Inoke Kubuabola during which they also agreed to deepen cooperation in maritime security sphere.

The two ministers also discussed expanded defence partnership in maritime security between both the countries, and naval cooperation was identified as an area of promise, the defence ministry said.

It said the MoU on defence cooperation envisages several areas of cooperation including in defence industry, military training and humanitarian assistance and disaster management.

Kubuabola was given a Tri-Services guard of honour at the lawns of South Block.

Earlier, the visiting minister laid a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti.

Earlier in the day, Kubuabola visited the Western Naval Command in Mumbai.
Indias remarkable role in United Nations peacekeeping missions in various parts of the world was on Monday hailed by the global body.

India is the largest cumulative troop contributor, having provided almost 200,000 troops in nearly 50 of the 71 UN peacekeeping missions over the past six decades, including 13 of the current 16 missions.

Participating at an event to mark the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, UN resident coordinator in India Yuri Afanasiev read out a message from UN secretary general Antonio Guterres in which he hailed Indias contribution.

He also mentioned that last year 117 peacekeepers had laid down their lives which included two from India.

It will be an understatement to say that Indias contribution to global peace has been remarkable, Afanasiev said.

He also paid tribute to Indian peacekeepers - rifleman Brijesh Thapa and Sepoy Ravi Kumar - who laid down their lives in the line of duty.

Thapa had served with the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo while Kumar was deployed with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

Vice-chief of army staff Sarath Chand applauded the Indian peacekeeping contingents for their dedication, conduct and competence.

He also spoke on the changing dynamics in peacekeeping in the present UN missions and the way forward to overcome the challenges.

The nature of conflicts and the reactions to these conflicts have also dramatically changed over the past decades, Chand said.

Army officials said there had been 50 cases of alleged sexual exploitation and abuse against UN peacekeepers since January 1 last year but there was not a single allegation against Indian soldiers.

Afanasiev said India had set an example in February last year, when it deployed the first ever female foreign police unit for peacekeeping mission in Liberia.

He said the UN peacekeeping budget is less than a half of one per cent of global military spending and is shared between all 193 UN members states.

The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is celebrated world over on May 29 to honour the fallen peacekeepers and to pay tribute to those who served or are still serving in UN peacekeeping missions.

The theme for the day this year is Investing in Peace Around the World.

The event saw participation by the diplomatic community, officers from ministries, veteran peacekeepers, UN country teams, students from prominent universities and Indian Army contingents earmarked for UN deployment.
Anam Nisha is a first-year student in the department of chemical engineering at the Rohilkhand University in Bareilly. The daughter of a mechanic, her parents battled hostile relatives, uncomfortable with sending a girl to college, and decided to educate her she will become the first engineer in her family.

Nisha has made friends with her classmates, a majority of Hindus. But something changed during the 2017 elections in UP.

I did not feel this earlier. But in this election, among our friends, this feeling of being Hindu and Muslim sharpened. In discussions, our friends made us feel we were different. She says the BJP had created this division.

Mohammed Tanweer, a final year student from Gorakhpur, nods. When the PM came and said kabristan and shamshanghat, we felt uncomfortable. Look at issues being raised everyday. It makes us sometimes ask  do we have the wrong name?

No generalisation about a community as large and diverse as Indian Muslims can be entirely accurate. Yet, in the course of meeting dozens of young Muslims, from west UP to the eastern most edge of Bihar, it became clear that Nisha and Tanweer are not exceptions. Muslims are shaken, disturbed, and worried.

Living as anti-nationals

Firoze Ahmad is an assistant professor in the Aligarh Muslim Universitys campus in Kishanganj, in Bihars Seemanchal. Muslims have begun avoiding public gatherings because anything you say can be misconstrued. On social media, as soon as you say something, you are immediately branded anti-national, terrorist, and of course Pakistani, he says.

A survey conducted by the well-regarded Centre for the Study of Developing Societies in four states  Gujarat, Haryana, Odisha and Karnataka  gives a clue into the mindset that leads to these labels. Only 13% of Hindus saw Muslims as highly patriotic, even though 77% Muslims saw themselves as highly patriotic.

When asked what, specifically, was bothering him, Firoze Ahmad says, Look at the hate campaigns. When they say love jehad, raise triple talaq, talk of gau raksha, want ghar wapsi, who are they targeting? There is a common pattern. They want to ignite new debates with Muslims as the target group.

He then clarifies. It is not the PM. He is for Sabka saath, sabka vikaas. It is those acting in his name. They need to be punished.

Shadab Khan is pursuing an MBA in the campus.

This nationalism discourse has created a gulf. If I say I love Barcelona, I am a nationalist. But if I say I love Pakistani player Shahid Afridi, I become an anti-national. This has percolated down to every college, every street, every social media conversation.

Across age groups and regions, most Muslims blamed BJP and the Sangh parivar, but they were as critical of the media.

Back in Bareilly, Heeba Roshan, a second year student of chemical engineering, noted, with a laugh, There would have been far more peace, and so much less insecurity, if we all stopped TV news.

Muslim women vote in Varanasi in the final phase of UP election 2017. (PTI File Photo)

Media penetration had increased, every household was watching news, this was shaping mindsets, and the content usually reinforced the views that Hindus held of the community, and alienated Muslims, pointed Ahmad.

Sense of discrimination

All of this points to a degree of psychological alienation. But is this merely perceptional or is it rooted in facts?

In Kishanganj, Raashid Nehaal is the director of the AMU campus  which operates out of two temporary buildings, one of which also doubles up as both the academic block and the girls hostel. There are only two courses being offered; he has not been able to appoint faculty, expand courses, or even build boundary walls. Work on a new campus building is halted.

Why?

Since the BJP government has come to power, they have not released a single paisa to us. The approved funds for this campus  meant to serve the backward region  is 136 crore; all we have got so far is 10 crore, which was released before the BJP won.

Nehaal does not mince words. What should we understand from this? They have become prejudiced. He pins it on politics, and the difference in nature of regimes is palpable here. The secular government of Nitish Kumar  which relied on Muslim votes  has extended all support to the campus, but the Union government, Nehaal claims, has been hostile.

At the other end of the Hindi heartland lies the small town of Deoband, famous for its influential Islamic seminary.

At a cloth shop in the bazaar, a group of young men look back at 2017 polls. Shah Alam tells his friends, We were unnecessarily living with a myth that at 18%, Muslims can decide elections. The majority decides elections. And BJP has shown they dont need us at all.

What has been the impact of this?

Secular parties treated us as just a vote-bank, but we at least had leaders to go to. There is no one here to listen to us. Sunwai khatam ho gayi, replies Alam.

Adnan owns the cloth shop, and says, Under the Mudra scheme, I applied for a loan of 5 lakh. I have gone to the bank repeatedly. But my application got rejected.

But maybe his loan got rejected because it did not meet the criteria? Would it be correct to pin it to religion? He replies, It is the mindset. The bank official told me  you will not get it. Dont waste your time.

Whether it is indeed, factually, their religious identity which is leading to Adnans loan being rejected, Alams voice not being heard, Ahmad or Khan being called anti-national, Nisha and Tanweer feeling a sense of distance from their friends, Roshan getting uncomfortable watching television, or Nehaal struggling to get funds for his campus is one part of the story, open to debate. The more important part is that all of them feel that this is discrimination that stems from their religious identity.

And all of this is leading to a question that Khan  the Kishanganj student  asks bluntly, I have always felt Indian. But today, I am being forced to ask myself  is this my country?

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The bull of Kottihalli village temple vanished on May 19. It was found within hours, but tongues wagged in the village of 200 households in Tumakuru district, around 75 km northwest of Bengaluru.

The bull run happened on Day 1 of an annual four-day fair of Goddess Kucchangiyamma. On the third day of festivities (May 21), for the first time in Kottihallis history, Dalits were to enter the temple under an agreement engineered by the police.

The fair ended abruptly that Sunday shortly after Dalits stepped out of the temple.

The bull ran away because of the Dalits, is a jibe Kottihallis Dalits allege they heard from savarnas (forward caste Hindus). We also heard the bull had stopped eating because Dalits entered the temple, said Mahalingaiah, 53, a Dalit resident of the village.

A day before the fair, police had held a peace meeting between Dalits and savarnas. The Dalits had petitioned the police to ensure they faced no caste-based discrimination during the event.



We entered the temple about 5 am, but the priest refused to perform the puja, added Mahalingaiah. The priest agreed after police intervened. We offered prayers till about 7 am.

He added, After we came out of the temple, the savarnas started taking down decorations around the temple. We were told the fair had ended.

Tumakuru deputy superintendent of police, K Nagaraj, said, We had gathered all the residents (on May 18) and told them that temple entry for the Dalits would have to be allowed. Everybody had agreed. Police saw the agreement crumbling.

Dalits say the temple bull running away for a few hours is being used to taunt them. (Vikram Gopal/HT Photo)

Kottihallis savarnas insist the fair being called off was not related to Dalits entering the temple.

An old woman who lived near the temple had died about a week ago and, as is the norm, there is a period of mourning. That is the reason the fair was called off, said Ranganna, 45, a Vokkaliga (savarna), who runs a fair price shop in the village. It is all a misunderstanding. We have lived in the village as members of the same family.

But Rangannas account incensed the dead womans son, Kumar, also a Vokkaliga. How dare they say the fair was called off because of my mothers death? The mourning period ended three days before the fair. If they really were mourning for my mother, they should not have conducted the fair at all, he said.

After the fairs end, Dalits claim savarnas stopped interacting with them. Kottihalli has 50 Dalit households located in a cluster.

Police organised yet another peace meeting on Thursday to resolve the crisis, but the savarnas did not turn up.

An elderly savarna resident of the village who did not want to be named said Dalits had enjoyed reservation, drawn the benefits of education and were more affluent. You cannot say anything against them, even if they have benefited from the states largesse.

The temple priest, Chikkanna, who belongs to the Kuruba caste (classified as an Other Backward Class), justified his reluctance to assist Dalits in offering prayers. I told them that they could conduct the puja themselves. The village has two Kuruba households and members of these families have traditionally been the priests.

Kottihallis savarnas denied they had ostracised the Dalits. We did not attend the second peace meeting because we were not informed in advance, said fair price shop owner Ranganna.

Dalits refuse to buy this. On the fourth day of the annual fair, the idol of Goddess Kucchangiyamma is taken out in a procession around the village. But the procession does not come to our part of the village. For about six years, we have been asking for the procession to pass by our houses too. After all, we too pay for the fair, said Kemparajamma, 60, who is among those leading what Dalits see as a fight for assertion of rights.

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Here's another word to add to your Moroccan vocabulary: kasbah. A kasbah (or casbah) is defined as citadel of any of various North African cities.If there is one place you'd like to get lost in your own wanderings, it's here. The cobble-stone streets lead to narrow alleys where the walls of the buildings are half white (upper) and half blue (lower). Apparently blue is a color that repels mosquitoes, so they used blue.Each door or window is unique and charming and worth photographing. A walk through the alleys gives a sense of other-worldliness for me. It's easy to get lost here, but it's also not hard to find your way back, but while you're "lost" just enjoy the views and take photos.The history of the kasbah dates back to 12th century when Almohad Caliphate built it as a fortress at the mouth of the Bouregreg River. Later it became the refuge of Andalusian muslims fleeing Spain in the 1600s.More recently, it was the site of one of Tom Cruise's Mission Impossible movie. It was a tidbit that amused me, but did not really matter in the whole impression of the site.In this trip, we did not make it to Chefchaouen, which is a popular tourist spot more popularly known for its blue and white walls. The Oudaya made up for missing Chefchaouen. For now.
Three police officials, who were posted with a Police Response Vehicle (PRV), were suspended on Monday for delayed response in the death of a Karnataka-cadre IAS officer, Lucknow senior superintendent of police (SSP) Deepak Kumar said.

The policemen were suspended after an internal inquiry, he said.

Eyewitnesses had alleged that the PRV despite being informed at 5:33am on May 17 did not reach the spot outside the Meera Bai Marg guest house from where Anurag Tiwaris body was found.

The response team, which operates under Uttar Pradesh Polices Dial-100 scheme, reached half-an-hour late, they had claimed.

The three policemen posted with PRV-467 have been suspended for delayed response in the Anurag Tiwari death incident, Kumar said.

The development comes a week after the state government recommended a CBI probe into the incident on May 22.

Though the investigation agency is yet take over the probe, the state polices SIT has already quizzed Tiwaris friend IAS Prabhu Narain Singh and others.

Tiwari, 36, was found dead on May 17, his birthday, under mysterious circumstances near the guest house, where he was staying, in the high-security Hazratganj area.

His family had alleged that he was murdered at the behest of corrupt officers as he was a whistle-blower and was about to expose a scam in the food, civil supplies and consumer affairs department in Bengaluru where he was posted as commissioner.

The police have registered a murder case in the matter, five days after Tiwaris body was found.

Tiwari, a 2007-batch officer, was staying at the guest house with a batch mate after attending a mid-career training programme in Mussoorie.
Kashmir police chief Muneer Khan said on Monday he was unaware about the reported deportation of a Kashmiri man from Turkey to India after being picked up by Turkish authorities.

I am not aware of any such case as yet, said Kashmir inspector general of police Muneer Khan.

PTI, quoting sources, reported that Srinagar resident Afshan Parvaiz, 21, was deported from the Turkish capital of Ankara on May 25 and whisked away to an undisclosed destination by security agencies in Delhi.

He was being assessed by various security agencies for his alleged plans to join ISIS, the agency reported.

However, the intelligence officials in Kashmir said Parvaiz, a resident of Khanyar in old city, was deported because he had some discrepancy in his passport.

The news agency, quoting sources, also reported that Parvaiz had left home after an argument with his father, who wanted him to join a college while the son was interested in religious studies. They said he booked himself a seat on a flight to Teheran on March 23.

The agency also reported that another Srinagar resident Mohammed Taha, was deported from Turkey and sent to India. He has been put in preventive custody.
Despite the unrest in Kashmir snowballing, Union home minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said that the problem would be solved soon without any compromise with Pakistan.

He did not elaborate how the Kashmir problem would be solved.

Singh said certain forces were trying to misguide the Kashmiri youths but this would be checked.

Kashmir is ours and so are the Kashmiris, he said at a programme to highlight achievements of the Modi government in the past three years.

He did not dwell long on Kashmir, but went on to highlight the successes of the BJP-led central government .

Three years ago no one had thought that the BJP would get a clear majority but on assuming power we had to match the expectations of the people who gave us this mandate and we were successful, he said.

He said the party swept to power in UP and Uttarakhand on the basis of its good rule in the past three years.

You have seen the working during the BSP and SP rule in UP and the corruption. The previous government at the Centre too was into thousands of scams. But no one can make any allegation of corruption against our government, he said.

The home minister also targeted the Congress. In 2014 they called the PM Maut Ka Saudagar but if there is any messiah of the poor, it is Modi.

Read more: Modi govt wont talk to separatists who use Kashmiris as guinea pigs: Ram Madhav

On demonetisation, he said the PM had taken the decision to curb corruption. Should corruption not be eradicated or should terrorism not be wiped out? he asked the people who responded in the affirmative.

Singh reiterated the promise of making the country corruption-free and claimed that the GDP had increased after demonetisation.

Singh said it would take a few hours to list the Modi governments achievements but claimed that by 2022, the income of the people would be doubled.

He also highlighted Ujjwala Yojna, Beema Surakhsa Yojna and Jandhan Yojna of the Modi government, as well as structural and procedural reforms.

It was only Modi who thought about the poor women and introduced Ujjwala Yojna under which gas connection would be given to more than two crore women, he said.

Earlier, Singh paid floral tributes to former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh on his death anniversary.
A 21-year-old Kashmiri man, who was allegedly trying to join the terror group Islamic State, has been deported from Turkey to India after being picked up by Turkish authorities, official sources said on Monday.

Srinagar resident Afshan Parvaiz was deported from the Turkish capital of Ankara on May 25 and whisked away to an undisclosed destination by security agencies in Delhi, the sources said.

He was being assessed by various security agencies, they said.

Parvaiz had left home after an argument with his father, who wanted him to join a college while the son was interested in religious studies, the sources said.

They said he booked himself a seat on a flight to Teheran on March 23. He was scheduled to return to Delhi on April 9 after exploring avenues for religious studies in Europe, they said.

The Kashmiri man, who is the second person to be deported from Turkey in the last two months, apparently sent a message to his family to tell them that he was facing some problems, the sources said.

When the police and other agencies in Kashmir were informed about this, a probe was launched to locate him, they said.

According to the sources, the security agencies then got in touch with their Iranian counterparts, who found out that Parvaiz was travelling to Ankara.

The authorities in Ankara were contacted and he was picked up while he was travelling in a bus in the Turkish capital, they said.

He was sent to India on May 25 by a Turkish Airlines flight, the sources said.

In March, Mohammed Taha, a resident of Srinagar, was deported from Turkey and sent to India. He has been put in preventive custody, they said.

Security agencies in India have viewed their alleged plans to join the IS with concern. They believe that some Kashmiri youth are getting radicalised by jihadi propaganda material shared by the IS on the Internet.

The agencies feel that if the growing influence of the IS is not checked, it can be detrimental to the situation in the Valley.

Recently, an audio clip had surfaced on social media sites in which Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militant commander Zakir Moosa could be heard talking about establishing an Islamic caliphate in the Valley.

The police had carried out an analysis of the clip, comparing the voice with that of Moosas in earlier videos and audios.

The 5.40-minute audio warned Kashmirs separatist leaders against interfering in the HMs plan to establish a caliphate as the ISIS has done in parts of Syria and Iraq.

The call for a caliphate is being seen as a worrying twist to militancy in Kashmir, which has largely revolved around a demand for independence or secession to Pakistan, without an overtly religious subtext.

During the recent protests in the Valley, ISIS flags were waved in certain areas, and slogans supporting the terror group were painted on walls.

However, Hizbul Mujahideen leader Syed Sallahuddin had said there was no place for groups such as the ISIS, Al-Qaeda or the Taliban in Jammu and Kashmir.
China asked India on Monday to be cautious and exercise restraint over building infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh, days after Prime Narendra Modi launched the countrys longest bridge linking Assam with the state claimed by Beijing.

We hope India adopts a cautious and restrained attitude on the issue before the final settlement of the border issue with China to jointly control disputes, safeguard peace and tranquillity in the border areas, the Chinese foreign ministry said.

Chinas position on the eastern section of the Sino-Indian border areas is consistent and clear, a statement in Chinese said.

Modi last week opened the countrys longest bridge over Brahmaputra river that connects Assams easternmost region with Arunachal Pradesh, claimed and dubbed by China as South Tibet.

China and India should resolve territorial disputes through negotiations and consultations between the two countries, the foreign ministry said.

China and India have a dragging border dispute.

The 9.2km Dhola-Sadiya bridge will cut the distance and travel time between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by 165km and five hours.

Analysts say the bridge will ensure swift movement of Indian troops in Arunachal Pradesh, which, therefore, will bolster Indias defence along the China border.

China and India fought a brief war in 1962 when the Chinese entered Arunachal Pradesh and unilaterally declared a ceasefire after withdrawing to the McMahon Line.

Since then Indian and Chinese troops have had several skirmishes.

China has long been building infrastructure along the border unlike India, which, experts say, avoided building roads in the region, fearing a repeat of the 1962 war when the Peoples Liberation Army troops entered Assam.
Three youth were allegedly thrashed on suspicion of possessing beef by some cow vigilantes, who also circulated a video of the act on social media, in east Maharashtras Rajora village.

The incident took place on May 26 in Washim district and seven suspected cow vigilantes were arrested from the village on the same day. The police have also booked the three victims for the possession of beef, a police officer said.

As the video of the incident was doing rounds on social media, the police were maintaining a strict vigil to avert any untoward incident during the festive season of Ramzan, Washim Superintendent of Police Mokshada Patil told PTI.

The incident occurred last Friday when the three youths were allegedly carrying the meat to sell it in their community for consumption, she said.

After some cow vigilantes got wind of this, they went to the village, beat up the youths and also shouted slogans, the SP said.

The activists seized the meat and took the youths to Malegaon Police Station, 12 km away from the village.

The police registered a case against the cow vigilantes under various sections of the IPC, including rioting and voluntary causing hurt.

Patil said one of the cow vigilantes filmed the incident on his mobile phone and circulated the video in various social media groups.

The police also booked the three youths for possessing beef under various sections of the amended Maharashtra Preservation and Security of Animals Act, the officer said.

The police also added section 295 A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the IPC in the FIR against the cow vigilantes.

We added section 295 A of IPC as the video of the incident was shot and circulated on social media with an intention to spoil the communal peace and harmony during the festival season in the state and the country, she said.

A local court released all the accused on a bond, she added.

The SP said the police have sent the sample of the seized meat to a laboratory in Nagpur to verify whether it was cow meat.

The situation in the area was under control as police took immediate action, the SP said.

In the wake of the incident, the police searched slaughter houses in Malegaon and Shirpur areas to check whether any beef was stored there.
In a major relief to Haryana IAS officer S N Roy, who was accused of sexual exploitation by a woman about two years ago, the Supreme Court of India dismissed her special leave petition (SLP) filed against the Punjab and Haryana high court order dated December 21, 2016 which too had dismissed her petition.

Roy, who is currently principal secretary, Haryana fisheries department, has recently written to chief secretary D S Dhesi in the context, that the complaint filed against him by the Panchkula-based complainant Rosy Sharma was nothing but an attempt to malign his reputation with a threat to blackmail and extract money in connivance with some accomplices, as has now been upheld also by the apex court of the country.

Roys communication was in response to the inquiry being conducted by the chief secretary after the complainant had lodged complaints to different authorities including the chief secretary. She alleged that Roy had been exploiting her for the past more than three years on the pretext of marriage after lying to her that he was divorced though he lived with his two children.

Alleging that she knew Roy since 2008, she said she was married, had a child and had separated from her husband. However, in his explanantion to chief secretary Roy, had held that she was levelling allegations and threatening to implicate him in a false case of rape if he did not pay her Rs 10 crore.

Roy has now written to CS that now with the passage of time, the veracity of the said complaint and its various contents have been adequately inquired into by the agency of competent jurisdiction and adjudicated judicially by the courts of law, extending up to the highest court of the land, leading to consistent findings that the said complaint was utterly false.

Roy further held that even though the Punjab and Haryana High court verdict December 21, 2016 in which it suspected that the entire exercise by the complainant was undertaken basically with the ulterior motive of blackmailing the accused, the said order was challenged by the complainant before the Supreme Court of India through an application of special leave to appeal (criminal) which was dismissed by the Supreme Court of India through its order dated April 17, 2017.

It may be recalled that the complainant had lodged complaints against Roy since February, 2015 and filed criminal cases in lower and high court. While a revision application was dismissed by the additional sessions judge  cum  judge special court, Chandigarh on April 19, 2016, it was challenged before the Punjab and Haryana High Court in a criminal miscellaneous application. The said application was dismissed by the high court on December 21, 2016. ``It was in this order that the court gave word to its suspicion that the entire exercise by the complainant was undertaken basically with the ulterior motive of blackmailing the accused, Roy said.

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A BJP leader from Meghalaya has said the party would make beef cheaper if voted to power in the northeastern state which is a due for assembly election next year.

Bernard Maraks promise comes at the time when the BJP-led union government is facing severe criticism for its recent directive banning sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter.

Consumption of beef is a routine thing among Garo people, most of who are Christians. But the prices are very high as there is no regularisation. If elected, our party will regularise sale, which will bring prices down, Marak told HT on Sunday.

Meghalaya is predominantly Christian, with the community accounting for 74.59% of the states population in the 2011 census.

Beef is widely consumed in Meghalaya. The state unit has written to Nalin Kohli, the BJP in-charge for Meghalaya, to ensure the state was spared the ban, reflecting uneas within the party over the cattle-trade directive.

There would be no ban on consumption of beef in the state, said Marak, who is the president of the partys Tura city unit in Garo Hills.

Maraks views on bringing down the price were his own and not those of the party, state BJP chief Shibun Lyngdoh said.

As a party we havent made any promise of bringing down prices of beef if elected to power in the state next year. But there wont be a ban on beef in Meghalaya, he told HT.

Defending the Centres move, Lyngdoh told mediapersons in Shillong on Sunday the latest ban would curb smuggling of cows to neighbouring Bangladesh.

Cow smuggling is rampant along the Bangladesh border. According to reports, more than 8,000 cows were seized by border authorities in Meghalaya in the last five years.

The Centres trade ban, which will hit poor farmers and squeeze supplies to the countrys Rs 1 lakh-crore meat industry, is being seen as a move to push the BJPs alleged Hindutva agenda.

Cows are considered holy by many Hindus and have gained in importance since Prime Minister Narendra Modi stormed to power in 2014 with several BJP-ruled states enacting strict laws to punish cow slaughter.

Beef festivals are being organised in protest in Kerala. Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the southern state wouldnt adhere to the ban.

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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is on Monday expected to question two Kashmiri separatists in a probe into the funding of subversive activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

Former militant and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chairman Farooq Ahmed Dar, alias Bitta Karate, and Javed Ahmed Baba of the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat were asked to be present at the anti-terror agencys headquarters in Delhi, officials said on Sunday.

The NIA on May 19 filed a preliminary enquiry to probe the funding of last years unrest in the Valley that saw heavy stone-pelting, burning of schools and other government buildings.

The two were asked to bring along details of their bank accounts and property papers, sources said.

A preliminary enquiry is an initial probe that determines if a case needs further investigation.

Kashmir was rocked by violent street protests after a Hizbul Mujahideen militant, Burhan Wani, was killed in a gunfight with security forces on July 8.

More than 100 people, most of them civilians, were killed in clashes with security forces amid rolling curfew and prolonged shutdowns called by the separatist Hurriyat Conference.

The separatists have been accused to secretly receiving funds from Pakistan to stoke trouble in the Valley.

Stone-pelting has emerged as a security concern. Security forces says locals rush to sites of gun battle and throw stones at soldiers to create a diversion to help militants escape.

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The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Monday questioned three Kashmiri separatists in a probe into the funding of subversive activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

Former militant and Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (R) chairman Farooq Ahmed Dar, alias Bitta Karate, Javed Ahmed Baba of the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat and Nayeem Khan of the National Front were summoned to the NIA headquarters in Delhi.

NIA inspector general and spokesperson Alok Mittal said the three separatists were questioned till late Monday evening and were asked to be present at the headquarters on Tuesday morning as well.

The agency on May 19 filed a preliminary enquiry to probe the funding of last years unrest in the Valley that saw heavy stone-pelting, burning of schools and other government buildings.

A preliminary enquiry is an initial probe that determines if a case needs further investigation.

The three, according to NIA officials, were asked to bring along details of their bank accounts and property papers, official sources in the investigating agency said.

Kashmir was rocked by violent street protests after Hizbul Mujahideen militant commander, Burhan Wani, was killed in a gunfight with security forces on July 8.

More than 100 people, most of them civilians, were killed in clashes with security forces amid a rolling curfew and prolonged shutdowns called by the separatist parties such as Hurriyat Conference and Tehreek-e-Hurriyat which is headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek to repair Indias drifting partnership with Russia when he meets President Vladimir Putin this week, amid wariness over Moscows renewed interest in New Delhis backyard, analysts say.

The two leaders will look to stem a decline in trade between the once robust economic partners and resolve tensions over their shifting global alliances when they meet on Thursday ahead of a summit in Saint Petersburg.

The two countries enjoyed a 70-year alliance forged during the Cold War, when the Soviet Union was Indias largest trading partner, diplomatic ally and main arms supplier, providing everything from tanks to aircraft.

But the relationship became unmoored following the collapse of the USSR, as India underwent an economic transformation and increasingly sought to build trade ties with Western nations.

That process has accelerated in recent years as New Delhi has orbited closer to Washington, and Russia has fostered relationships with Indias chief regional rivals Pakistan and China, analysts say.

Russia remains an important partner for India but the basis for the relationship is, however, very weak, said Dhruva Jaishankar, foreign policy fellow with Brookings India.

People-to-people exchanges are limited, young Indians are less likely to study Russian, and even areas like energy and information technology, where the two countries have comparative advantages, are underdeveloped, he said.

The two leaders are expected to discuss a framework agreement for Moscow to supply more reactors to a nuclear plant in southern India as the country seeks to reduce its reliance on highly polluting coal.

Russia has supplied two reactors to the plant under a long-delayed agreement, and has been pushing to supply more.

A revival of two-way trade, which slumped to below $8 billion in 2015 despite an ambitious bilateral target of achieving $30 billion by 2030, will be a key priority during Modis visit.

Pivot to Pakistan

New Delhi, which is the worlds top arms buyer, once relied on Moscow for its military hardware, but has increasingly turned to the United States, France and Israel to update its Soviet-era defence equipment in recent years.

Furthermore, Modi is now seeking to manufacture military hardware locally, asking foreign firms to work with domestic contractors under his Make in India campaign, in a bid to reduce reliance on costly imports.

Although Russia is close to finalising a deal to build Kamov military helicopters in India, its recent pivot towards Pakistan has not gone unnoticed in New Delhi.

Moscow lifted its embargo on arms supplies to Indias arch rival in 2014, according to Russias ITAR-TASS news agency, and was holding talks on supplying Islamabad with combat helicopters.

Moscow also rattled India recently with its decision to support the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a project opposed by New Delhi because it runs through the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

The last few years have seen a parting of the ways on many big issues, in particular on Afghanistan, where Moscow is seeking to broker a peace deal with Taliban insurgents, Jaishankar said.

Moscow -- which fought a disastrous military campaign in Afghanistan during the Soviet era -- has been increasingly flexing its muscles on the world stage, hosting a regional conference earlier this year that was aimed at facilitating peace talks between the Taliban and Kabul.

India has been a key supporter of Kabuls government and has poured more than $2 billion into the country since the former Taliban regime -- which was allied with Pakistan -- was toppled in 2001.

But, while New Delhi has traditionally taken a dim view of attempts to negotiate a peace settlement with the Taliban, it does not see Russias renewed role in Afghanistan as hostile, said Brahma Chellaney from the New Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research.

India appreciates that Russia is re-entering Afghanistan as an important player, and in doing so, not directly working against Indias interest, he told AFP.

Modis four-nation tour of Europe will also include stops in Germany and Spain to drum up foreign investment, and a face-to-face with newly-elected President Emmanuel Macron in France.
Bilateral cooperation on economic, defence, science and technology, and nuclear fronts, parleys on EU-India Free Trade Agreement, and fight against terror top Prime Minister Narendra Modis agenda during his four-nation tour of Europe from Monday.

Modi visits Germany on Monday for the biannual Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC); Spain on what will be an Indian Prime Ministers first visit in nearly 30 years; Russia for the annual bilateral summit; and France for his first meeting with newly elected President Emmanuel Macron.

Berlin is Modis first port of call, where he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will head the fourth biennial Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) on Tuesday.

India and Germany have over 25 Working Groups, including in areas like climate change, energy, infrastructure, and tourism.

According to German ambassador to India Martin Ney, like in the last IGC in 2015, there will be a series of substantial MoUs (memorandums of understanding) and joint declarations of intent after the talks in Berlin.

One of the most important areas in which these agreements are likely to be signed is business.

The Indo-German Chamber of Commerce is the biggest German bilateral chamber outside Germany. It has more than 7,000 German and Indian member companies, Ney said, adding that over 1,800 German companies are doing business in India.

India is interested in German technology and knowhow, and we are interested in sharing this, he said.

PM Modis itinerary PM Modi is going on a six-day tour from May 29-3 June. May 29- PM will first stop in Germany. He will hold talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel. May 30- Modi will travel to Spain- the first Indian PM in almost three decades. He will call on King Felipe VI and hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy May 31 to June 2- PM Modi will travel to St. Petersburg in Russia. Will attend 18th India-Russia Annual Summit, meet President Vladimir Putin. June 2 to 3- PM will visit France. He will attend an official meeting with newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

Speaking ahead of Modis visit, Randhir Jaiswal, Joint secretary (Europe West) in the External Affairs Ministry, said that Germany is the largest trading partner of India in the European Union.

German economic profile, support, excellence, and expertise match with our development priorities, be it Make in India, Skill India, Clean India, Digital India, and Smart Cities, Jaiswal said.

According to ambassador Ney, both countries cooperate closely in terms of G20 coordination, UN Security Council reforms, freedom of navigation, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos), strategic importance of the Indian Ocean region, the fight against terrorism, and stability in Afghanistan.

Germany supports Indias membership in different export control regimes, including the NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group), he said.

After a meeting with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Modi will leave for Spain on May 30. The last prime ministerial visit to the country was by Rajiv Gandhi in 1988.

On May 31, the Prime Minister will hold a bilateral summit with Spanish Premier Mariano Rajoy.

Modi will also call on Spanish King Felipe VI and interact with a select group of Spanish CEOs keen to invest and expand their businesses in India. Around 200 Spanish companies are operating in India.

Stating that economic partnership formed an important pillar of the bilateral relationship, Jaiswal said: Spain enjoys a reputation in the fields of renewable energy, high speed rail, infrastructure, tunneling, technology solutions, including civil aviation air space management, and waste water management.

Cooperation in counter-terror will be an important element of the agenda in Spain.

From Spain, Modi will travel to Russia on May 31 and hold the 18th annual bilateral summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 1 in St. Petersburg.

The following day, the Prime Minister will for the first time attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), a business event.

GV Srinivas, joint secretary (Eurasia) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said Modis participation in SPIEF signals that there will be emphasis on trade and investment during the Russian leg of the tour.

Stating that while India-Russia cooperation in the areas of defence, nuclear and space was very, very ahead, Srinivas said that bilateral trade has, however, come down for a variety of reasons from $10 billion to around $7 billion now.

Science and technology cooperation and people-to-people contacts are also areas that will come up for discussion during the Modi-Putin meeting.

From Russia, Modi will fly to Paris on June 2 evening and hold a bilateral meeting with French President Macron the next day.

Stating that France was a leading strategic partner of India, Jaiswal said that the two countries have very strong cooperation in the areas of space, civil nuclear, defence, and economy.

According to Jaiswal, during the France, Germany and Spain legs of the tour, the ongoing discussions between the European Union and India on a Free Trade Agreement would also figure prominently.

European nations are among those with which India has terminated bilateral investment protection treaties (BITs) following a new BIT model New Delhi released in December 2015.

Stating that EU member-states have passed on the responsibility of investment protection negotiations to the EU, Ambassador Ney said that the European Commission and the Indian government should sit down as soon as possible to negotiate a free trade agreement.
Beef stirred the political pot on Monday, after Congress activists in Kerala killed a cow in a public square to defy the central governments new curbs on the sale and purchase of the animal.

The protests were staged after the Union environment ministry notified last week that no cattle can be sold or bought in animal markets for slaughter.

The decision brought the Opposition and the ruling BJP into conflict.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and the CPM, which rules Kerala, spoke in a rare voice of unity between the two arch rivals against the Narendra Modi government.

We wont accept the Centres decision  it is unconstitutional, Banerjee said, dubbing the ban as an attempt to encroach into state power.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan urged his counterparts to raise their voice against the restrictions on cattle trade, saying the Centres anti-federal, anti-democratic and anti-secular move is an attempt to usurp power from the state governments.

In a letter to the chief ministers, he said the ban would affect the livelihood of millions of people, especially those in the farming sector.

Vijayan said he didnt need a lesson in food habits from New Delhi or Nagpur, referring to the RSS headquarters in Maharashtra.

The CPM will organise evening dharnas in 2,000 places across in Kerala on June 2. The date coincides with BJP chief Amit Shahs three-day tour to the southern state, where the party is trying to make inroads.

Focus on cows, considered sacred by Hindus, and beef has increased since the BJP won power in 2014. The partys ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, has long pushed for a nationwide ban on cattle slaughter and trade.

But a beef ban was viewed as an attempt to limit peoples freedom to choose what they eat.

Besides, the curbs on cattle trade have the potential to alienate Muslims who dominate the Rs 100,000-crore meat business in India. Hindu hardliners and cow vigilante groups have been increasingly asserting themselves since 2014.

Muslims are considered a key support base of Banerjees Trinamool Congress, the CPM and Congress. Banerjee wondered why the trade curbs were announced on May 23, just before the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

The BJP attacked the Congress after functionaries of the opposition partys youth wing killed a cow in Kannur and distributed the meat to people on Saturday.

This is shameful and in many ways provocative. Political opposition happens but it is unfortunate that such an act has been committed, that too by Youth Congress workers, Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

The Congress suspended three functionaries associated with the slaughter and party vice president Rahul Gandhi called the incident barbaric, saying his party wont tolerate such acts.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said such action by party workers was completely unacceptable and alien to civil society, our culture and founding principles.

The party was in damage-control mode after Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan posted the video of the incident on Twitter, calling it cruelty at its peak. The video triggered national outrage.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who had clamped down on illegal slaughterhouses and cattle smuggling soon after coming to power this April, questioned the opposition parties silence on the incident.

The 44-year-old priest-politician, an active promoter of cow conservation, asked: Why are the people who staged vociferous protests over the incidents in DU and JNU silent on the issue?

His target was political leaders who supported students involved in alleged anti-national functions in the two premier universities in the national capital.

Amid the partys condemnation of the Kerala incident, a senior BJP leader of the Garo Hills in Meghalaya allayed fears over a beef ban in his state, which goes to the polls next year.

In Meghalaya, most of the BJP leaders eat beef. The question of banning beef does not arise in a state like Meghalaya, Bernard N Marak said and promised to bring down beef prices if voted to power.

Most of the protests on Monday over the cattle trade rules were recorded in Kerala and neighbouring Tamil Nadu, where cow slaughter is not banned.

In IIT Madras, about 80 students organised a beef festival on the campus of the countrys premier engineering institute. It is our democratic right to choose our food, said Abhinav Surya, a final-year student.

Tamil Nadus main opposition DMK has planned a protest on May 31. DMK working president MK Stalin will lead the protest in Chennai, the party said, adding the fundamental right to choice of food granted by the Constitution has been snatched away.

(with inputs from Kumar Uttam and agencies)
Road robbers struck in the Buddhist pilgrimage town of Gaya, chopping off four fingers of a private college assistant professor after they discovered he did not possess any precious metal.

The victim, Kapil Kumar, who teaches at Shaheed Baliram Singh Yadav College in Gaya, 110 km south of Patna, was to get married on June 3.

Kumar was returning home on his motorbike from Gaya to Bodh Gaya after distributing his wedding invitation cards when the robbers chased him on a motorbike and intercepted him near Gaya airport on Saturday evening. They gagged Kumar with a piece of cloth and thrashed him, after dragging him into the bushes off the deserted road.

Kumar told the police the robbers were looking for gold bracelet, chains or rings on him. On not finding any precious metal on me, they chopped off my fingers. One of the robbers told his companion to kill me. Fortunately, good sense prevailed on them and they left me in the bushes writhing in pain, he said.

The victim has lodged a case at the Bodh Gaya police station.

Gaya city superintendent of police Awakash Kumar did not respond to repeated phone calls or text messages.

However, Gaya senior superintendent of police Garima Mallick told HT, Though such an incident has been reported, I am not sure if it was a road hold-up. Ill have to check with the police station concerned.Call me after 15 minutes.

When HT called back, Mallick said, I havent been able to verify it, as I am in a meeting. Ill call you back as soon as I get a confirmation.

She, however, did not revert till the filing of the report.

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The Supreme Court on Monday gave liquor manufacturers from Bihar time till July 31 to dispose of their old stocks worth over Rs 200 crore outside the state.

A bench headed by Justice AK Sikri allowed the plea filed by the manufacturers to extend the deadline from May 31 to July 31.

Earlier, the court had extended till May 31 the deadline of April 30, which was fixed after the Nitish Kumar government imposed a ban on liquor in the state from April 5 last year.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies, submitted before the bench that the firms would be incurring huge losses if they are not allowed to dispose the existing stocks.

The state opposed the plea, saying the firms were indulging in illegal liquor trade, to which the court said: If they are engaging in illegal trade, then why dont you (state) check them? Do you think that once the stocks are cleared, there would be no illegal trade?

But, the court made it clear that there shall be no further extension under any condition.

Read more: Liquor traders men pelt stones on police, free seven from custody in dry Bihar

The confederation, in its fresh plea, said it was impossible dispose the huge stock because the time was too less to either destroy it or export. It was lying in the warehouses of the companies and godowns of Bihar State Beverage Corporation (BSBCL).

On October 7, 2016, the SC had stayed the operation of Patna High Court judgement nullifying the state law prohibiting sale and consumption of all types of liquor in the state. The order came on Bihar governments appeal against the HC verdict quashing the prohibitory order.

The Bihar government then came out with a new law against sale and drinking of alcohol within a month of the HC order.
Serving Puducherry has been a challenge on several counts, Lt Governor Kiran Bedi said in an open letter to the people of Puducherry on the eve of her completing one year in office.

I have had many hostile situations. But the Team Raj Nivas comprising capable officers have remained focused on the higher purpose of being here to serve the people of Puducherry. It (office of Lt Governor) is not a post but a position to serve to the maximum, the letter released to the media by Bedis office said.

She said her team of officers have been her support and have made each day better for Puducherians in several respects and at times under difficult circumstances.

Raj Nivas has always stayed connected with people through social media handles. The year ahead will combine the good practices followed now and would do even more still to strengthen grass root democracy and inclusion, she said, adding that complaints with prima facie evidence would be referred to the central vigilance agencies for credible investigation and appropriate action.

May the year ahead see a swachch Puducherry, secure Puducherry and prosperous Puducherry, the letter read.

Bedi, countrys first female IPS officer, has been making weekend visits to various areas, to see the shortcomings in availability of basic amenities to the people and also neglect of amenities in residential colonies and other areas.

She described her last one year as a fascinating journey in more respects than one, challenges notwithstanding.

Bedi had assumed office on May 29 last year and has been on visits to various pockets, mostly on her bicycle, fixing faults in the administrative machinery and addressing woes of the people as well as issuing on the spot orders for rectification of shortcomings.
Former Kerala minister A K Saseendran was booked by the chief judicial magistrate court in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday in connection with his alleged sleaze talk with a woman journalist of a TV channel.

Saseendran had to quit the Pinarayi Vijayan government two months ago after Mangalam News channel released an audio clip containing the alleged phone conversation between the journalist and the minister in which the latter was heard talking in a sexually-explicit tone.

Later the police arrested the channel CEO and six others on allegations of honey trap.

Soon the woman journalist had filed a complaint with the CJM court saying that the minister used to harass her continuously and made frequent phone calls and talked to her indecently on a number of occasions.

Initially the news channel claimed that Saseendran had sought sexual favours from a housewife when she approached him for some favour.

It also claimed that the audio clip was handed over to the channel by the woman as she wanted to expose the harassment he meted out to her.

But later channel CEO A Ajith Kumar clarified that a woman scribe had voluntarily come forward to carry out the sting operation against the minister.

He claimed that she was part of an eight-member investigation team constituted by the channel.

Kumar was forced to apologise after many writers, intellectuals and journalists criticised the way the channel carried out the sting operation.
The Himachal Pradesh high court on Monday directed the state election commission to conduct the Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC) elections by June 18.

The high court bench, comprising justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and justice CB Barowalia, asked the state election commission to notify the election plan within 24 hours of receiving the judgment. Take all consequential action to ensure that the elections are held no later than June 18, even if this calls for deviation from Rule 33 (regarding election programme), read the 46-page judgment.

On May 9, the commission had deferred the elections that were due before June 4, the day the tenure of the current municipal body ends. The commission cited discrepancies in the voter list and ordered its special revision.

KNOW THE SHIMLA MC The Shimla municipal corporation, set up in 1851, is one of the oldest civic bodies in India At present, it has 25 wards after delimitation, it will have 34 wards As per the May 5 voter list, there are over 88,000 voters in the Shimla MC The present mayor and deputy mayor belong to the CPM.

Local resident Raju Thakur filed a petition in the high court, submitting that delaying the election violated the law.

Acting on his petition, the court observed that the revision of the electoral rolls cannot stall the poll process and should have been done in a timely manner. It is incumbent upon the state election commission and other respondents to carry out the mandate of the Constitution and to ensure that a new municipality is constituted in time. The election to the municipality should be conducted before the expiry of its duration of five years as specified in Clause (1) of Article 243 (4), the judgment read.

It ruled that the revision of electoral rolls was required to be carried out in time by the respondents and if that has not been done so within the time-frame, the election has to be conducted on the basis of the existing electoral rolls.

The court said that the authorities should ensure that the new body of elected representatives of the corporation is constituted by June 19. The election shall be conducted on the basis of the final electoral rolls published on May 5, 2017.

The elected and nominated body of the municipal corporation shall not be permitted to be in office after June 4, 2017, and it shall be the duty of the state government to put in place a proper mechanism to ensure that the working of the corporation does not suffer on account of implementation of this judgment, the bench ruled.

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Her only crime, as they say, was falling in love.

Uzma Ahmad met Tahir Ali, a Pakistani citizen, in Malaysia. She travelled to his home in the neighbouring country on May 1, only to find that Ali had four children from a previous marriage. What followed was a wedding at gunpoint, sexual assaults, and a subsequent escape to the Indian high commission.

She was brought back to India on Thursday, after a brief legal battle.

Its easy to go to Pakistan, but tough to return. Pakistan is a well of death, a tearful Uzma said upon her return.

Entering the Indian high commission wasnt easy. In order to trick Ali into taking her there, a couple working with the embassy in Islamabad pretended to be her brother and sister-in-law.

Uzma told Ali she could get some cash for him from her relatives at the high commission, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj told HT. It worked, because Ali was a greedy man.

As the harassed woman went in to meet deputy high commissioner JP Singh, Ali waited outside. A call was made to Swaraj, but she was in the midst of a meeting. Singh then arranged for Uzma to stay the night at the embassy.

When Swaraj was contacted the next day, her immediate instruction was to verify Uzmas credentials as an Indian national. Her passport was thoroughly checked, and the address of a brother in India was verified.

Once Uzmas credentials were confirmed, embassy officials received an order from Swaraj. Even if we have to keep her at high commission for a year or two, we will, it said.

Embassy officials got in touch with Pakistani authorities the next day, and they responded positively. However, that was also when two new factors came into play  the International Court of Justice stayed the execution of suspected RAW agent Kuldeep Jadhav, and Ali began planning to go legal. Pre-empting the move, embassy officials approached the Islamabad high court on May 12.

At the high commission, Uzma was getting jittery. Ali would roam around the high commission with four aides, often flashing rifles at those guarding the building. I dont want to go back to him, she told officials. Please feed me poison instead.

When the matter came up for hearing before the Islamabad high court, armed guards escorted Uzma to its premises in an embassy vehicle. The judges ordered her return after a detailed hearing.

Though Swaraj wanted Uzma back in India immediately, that could not happen. High commission officials got a certified copy of the high court order around 2.30 pm, just an hour before the Wagah Border gate was expected to shut. Realising that reaching before that was impossible, authorities decided to keep Uzma at the embassy for one more day.

Singh left with the woman for the border at 2.30 am on May 24. They reached Wagah around 7.30 am, two hours before the gate would open. Wait in the car with her, Swaraj told Singh. I dont want any more hassles before she gets back.

At 9.30 am, Uzma entered India again. Celebrations broke out soon after. Swaraj tweeted her welcome, and television channels relayed the good news across the country.

Uzma met the Union minister the next day, and broke down in her embrace. I am here only because of Sushma maam. She told me that I was Hindustan ki beti, her daughter, and that I need not worry. These words gave me strength when I was completely torn inside, she said, also thanking her bhaiya and bhabhi at the Islamabad embassy for their help.

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The Assam governments assurance to include 6 Other Backward Class (OBC) communities in the Scheduled Tribe roll in the state is being opposed by the representatives of the tribes that are already on the list on grounds that it would deprive them of the benefits of reservation.

On Friday, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Guwahati to inaugurate the 9.15km long Dhola-Sadiya bridge between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, members of these tribal communities were in the Capital demanding for the protection of their rights.

As many as 19 tribal communities under the umbrella of the Coordination Committee of Tribal Organisations of Assam (CCTOA) , have opposed the move to include Ahoms, Koch-Rajbangshis, Morans, Mataks, Chutiyas, and Adivasis (tea tribes) in the tribal list.

The ST list in Assam includes communities such as the Bodo, Tiwa, Karbi, Dimasa, Mising, Sonowal, Garo and Deuri. These tribal communities are worried that if these advanced and populous communities are recognised as tribes, they would corner the bulk of the quotas in jobs and educational institutions.

The inclusion of these 6 communities in the tribal list has been the ruling Bhartiya Janata Partys poll promise. In April, chief minister Sarbanand Sonowal met the representatives of these communities and reiterated his governments commitment to fulfil the promise.

The Centre has set up a committee to examine the proposal and is expected to submit its report by the end of June.

But, the tribal communities are worried. They have urged the government to rethink the proposal, pointing out that inclusion of prosperous communities that are politically and economically powerful would decimate the tribals.

The CCTOA referred to the 1996 decision of granting tribal status to the Koch-Rajbangshis through an ordinance, which led to the community capturing 81% seats in Assam Engineering College, 100% in the Assam Ayurvedic College and 78% in all the three medical colleges in the state.

The ordinance was later sent to a select committee and the bill to grant ST status was not passed in Parliament.

It also cited the example of the Meenas, who were similarly given ST status.

The Meenas of Rajasthan who constitute about 1.6% of the STs of India as per the 2011 census secured 35.5% of the seats reserved for STs in the civil services examination in 2013-14, Aditya Khakhlari, chief coordinator of the committee, said.

Majority of these (6) communities do not possess characteristics, which define tribals. There is no study to prove that many of these are politically, educationally, socially and culturally backward justifying the grant of Scheduled Tribe status, he said in a keynote address at a seminar on Friday.

The CCTOA has also made a reference to the registrar general of India and the Scheduled Tribes Commission having in the past turned down the proposalas many as eight times between 1981 and 2006to include these communities in the ST list.

A community is included in the ST list after the Centre gets a nod from the concerned state government/UT administration for a recommendation as required under Article 342 of the Constitution.

If the concerned state government recommends the proposal, it is sent to the registrar general of India (RGI) for their comments or views. If the RGI recommends the proposal, it is then referred to the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) for their recommendation.

The community is listed as a tribe if the NCST also recommends the case, and the matter after getting a cabinet approval is put up before Parliament for its consent.

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The kidnap marriage case at Gaighat in Bihars Muzaffarpur district, 71 km north of Patna, took a new turn on Monday with the groom refuting the police theory of his abduction by brides family.

A Muzaffarpur court, meanwhile, has ordered a judicial inquiry into the alleged police highhandedness against the bride and her sister, while the district senior superintendent of police (SSP) has suspended the Gaighat police station SHO.

Abhinay Kumar, who was allegedly kidnapped for marriage, told a Muzaffarpur court that his wedding with Julie was solemnised with mutual consent of both the families.

I was never abducted. The police reached the venue when final marriage ritual was to be completed. I became frightened on seeing the police and fled from there. Later, police picked me from a nearby location and took me to police station, Kumar, who hails from Maithi village in Gaighat police station area of the district, said in the affidavit filed before the court of sub judge-16 Subhash Kumar Rai.

The court also took suo motto cognizance of the alleged brutality of policemen on Julie and her sister Shobha and ordered a judicial inquiry into the matter.

Julie and Shobha , meanwhile, said the police had beaten them with wooden and fibre sticks till they lost consciousness. They also hit at our private parts, they told reporters at sadar hospital, where they have been admitted after their arrest.

Bruises on every inch of their bodies speak volumes of police brutality, said Julies counsel Sangita Shahi, who is also a former member of the state women commission.

Shahi said a complaint petition had been filed against 11 personnel of Gaighat police station for their highhandedness and brutality. The court has heard our plea and ordered an inquiry, she said.

Taking a strong note of the matter, Muzaffarpur SSP Vivek Kumar has suspended Gaighat station house officer (SHO) Rajesh Chaudhury and sent the entire staff of the police station to police lines. The SSP, however, stuck to the kidnap marriage theory, saying Abhinay Kumars mother had complained about his abduction on camera.

The police took action only when they got information about the kidnapping from Abhinay Kumars parents over phone. Their statements have been recorded by the inquiry committee, set up to look into the matter, the SSP added.
The police registered a case against a shopkeeper on Monday for keeping shoes in boxes on which the Tricolour was printed.

After knowing about the shoe boxes carrying a national flag design, Congress workers went to the shop in a mall near Jhalawar Road in Kota city. Shopkeeper Mahesh Rao admitted his mistake after Congress workers protested. He immediately removed around two dozen shoe boxes from his shop.

The police booked the shopkeeper and an unidentified shoe manufacturer after Kranti Tiwari, state president of the Congresss social justice and empowerment cell, lodged a complaint.

An FIR has been lodged against shoe shopkeeper Mahesh Rao and an unidentified shoe manufacturer in New Delhi under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act 1971, said Jaiprakash Beniwal, circle inspector of Vigyan Nagar police station in Kota.

There is a provision of maximum three years imprisonment or fine or both for violation of this Act. Beniwal said action would be taken after a probe.

Use of Tricolor design on shoe boxes is defamatory and a conspiracy; this will not be tolerated, Tiwari said, demanding action.

Mahesh Rao said the shoe boxes arrived from a Delhi firm about 10 days ago and he was ignorant about the Tricolor design.
The macabre love story of Manua Majumdar who scripted her husbands cold blooded murder with the help of her lover has shocked West Bengal.

On May 3, Manua, a 28-year-old casual staffer at Barasat municipality, left work early to meet her boyfriend Ajit Roy, 26, at her house. The two knew each other since college.

In the same room, Ajit would later brutally murder Manuas husband, Anupam Sinha, 34, a manager at a travel agency. The two had been married for a year.

Ajit hit Anupam on the head with an iron rod, then slashed his veins with a knife to finish him off. But before that he shoved the rod in Sinhas mouth and dialled Manua so she could hear his dying shrieks over the phone. Initially, she had planned to be present during the murder.

After Anupam was dead, Ajit cleaned up the apartment. The next morning, he took a dip in the Ganges in Kolkata after throwing his clothes and Anupams cell phone in the river.

The police first suspected foul play when they found Anupams gold ring near his body -- a professional criminal would not have taken off the ring from the victims finger and leave it at the crime scene.

Ajit reportedly told the police that Manua had given the ring to Anupam on their first anniversary a few months ago and he did not want to see it on Sinhas finger anymore.

Initially we thought it was another extra-marital affair gone wrong. We see many such crimes these days, said a police officer handling the probe. But this case is a shocker for us.

Police arrested Manua and her lover two weeks after Anupam, a Bangladeshi national settled in Kolkata, was found murdered in his home in Barasats Hridaypur area.

If Manua and Ajit wanted each other so badly, they could have simply opted for divorce and started afresh. Why did they have to murder a hard-working man who wanted a family? said Ratri Roy, a homemaker from Ballygunge in south Kolkata who is keenly following the investigation.

On Saturday, when she was produced before a court, a crowd shouted slogans and even assaulted her lawyer for trying to defend her in court.

I probed numerous murder cases but this one stands out, said Samir Ganguly, retired Kolkata Police deputy commissioner who headed the homicide section for many years.

Apparently, Anupam had discovered Manuas relationship with Ajit and the couple used to fight over it. He never elaborated but would often regret his marriage. I shouldnt have married her, he would say, Abhisek Chatterjee, a colleague of Anupam, told the media after the murder.

Incidentally, Ajit, too, was married once and his former wife told the police that he used to torture her physically.

What has shocked Kolkata residents is Manuas cool demeanour during the probe. On Saturday, when she saw hundreds jostling to have a look at her and shouting abuses at her, she quietly wondered what the fuss was all about.

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Several garbage bins have gone missing just a week after they were distributed to boatmen in the temple town of Varanasi to prevent tourists from throwing waste into the Ganga.

A boatman who did not wish to be named said some locals and boatmen had taken the bins home.

Vinod Kumar Nishad, president of the Maa Ganga Nishad Raj Seva Samiti, an organisation of boatmen, told HT that he would inform municipal authorities to ensure the dustbins are recovered.

The Varanasi Municipal Corporation (VMC) and NGO Brijkishore Student Welfare Association had distributed 1,200 dustbins  600 blue and green each for dry and wet waste  to the boatmen on May 21 under the Namami Gange (clean Ganga) mission.

Over 40 drains carrying sewage from all over the city flows into the Ganga. A study by IIT BHU professor Mishra revealed that the pollution in the river increased as water levels receded due to high temperature.

Besides, many tourists have food while boating and dump the leftovers and wrappers into the holy river. Now they are supposed to use the dustbins on the boats.

Varanasi mayor Ramgopal Mohale said he would ask the municipal commissioner to look into the matter and ensure that the dustbins are recovered.

Dustbins have been provided to the boatmen with the pious objective of making the Ganga clean, Mohale said, and appealed to the boatmen to ensure their safety.

Vinod said the dustbins on his boat were safe as he locked them in a box before leaving for home at night. Some other boatmen too follow this practice.

Avinash Srivastava, VMC tehsildar, also said he would look into the matter and ensure that dustbins were back on the boats.

The VMC sanitation workers collect the bins twice daily and give them back to boatmen after taking out the garbage.

The civic authorities have decided to put up signage on the boats, asking people to use the dustbins and not dump waste in the river.

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A professional photographer from Lucknow, Mithlesh Maurya, who began his motor cycle ride from Kanyakumari to Ladakh on May 23, set off alone but by the time he reached Agra, Chetan Popat from Nagpur, Shubham from Indore and Pradeep Dass from Kolkata had joined him.

Maurya has dedicated his 7,000 kilometre ride (to be completed in about 20 days) to soldiers guarding the nations borders day and night. Maurya, 42, travelled to Kanyakumari to begin his journey on a Royal Enfield motor cycle.

During the journey, the riders would also traverse the Khardung La pass, said to be the highest motorable road in the world. I set off alone on May 23 but two of my Facebook friends Chetan and Shubham joined me later, said Maurya, who carries a diary and asks those whom he meets to write their comments on the bravery and sacrifices of the Indian army. The diary contains numerous comments in different languages.

Captain Manoj Pandey who made the supreme sacrifice during the Kargil War and was awarded the highest military honour Param Vir Chakra posthumously was from my city, Lucknow. So I will visit the museum in Kargil sector where the martyr finds mention, said Maurya who is father of two children.

This is not the first time he has embarked on such a journey. He had undertaken a 4,500 km long journey from Lucknow last year too.

I was following Mithlesh Maurya on Facebook and was excited at the prospect of a motor cycle journey with him. So I joined him at Nagpur, said Chetan D Popat, 31, a software engineer working for an IT firm. I have dedicated my journey to spreading the message of cleanliness, he said.

Shubham Mishra, 23, is the youngest among the four and comes from Indore. He has been to Ladakh on a motor cycle in the past. Be a man and respect the women, said Shubham, citing the message he would spread during his ride.

Pradeep Dass, 36, is a government employee working for the electricity department and has already travelled from Kolkata to Agra. He too is a frequent rider and has been to Nepal and Arunachal in the past. Travelling is the best way to relax whenever you can get leave from your job. I love the silence we move through while on motor cycle and this relaxes me, so I prefer riding alone, said Pradeep who carries no message and is of the view that man should dedicate some time to himself.

They all shared a room after reaching the Taj city on Saturday night and were all thanks to Vikram Shukla, coordinator for We Royal Riders who extends such hospitality to riders crossing Agra.

Read more: Lucknow sisters set out to Ladakh on bike to salute bravery of Indian Army

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As efforts to review the National River Ganga (Rejuvenation Protection and Maintenance) Bill, 2017, have been started, it is expected that the Ganga will soon become the first river in the country to be protected by an Act.

In July last year, a committee under justice (retd) Girdhar Malviya was entrusted with the task of preparing the draft act with provisions to ensure cleanliness and uninterrupted flow of the national river. Malaviya submitted the proposed draft law to union water resources and Ganga rejuvenation minister Uma Bharti in April this year.

Amicus curiae of the Allahabad high court Arun Kumar Gupta, an advocate, told HT that with the aim of protecting the Ganga through an Act, the union water resources and Ganga rejuvenation ministry has now constituted a four-member committee to review salient features of the bill for further action.

I am one of the four members in the committee. The other three members include the director general of the National Mission for Clean Ganga, joint secretary, ministry of water resources, Sanjay Kundu and additional advocate general, Madhya Pradesh, Purushaindra Kaurav. The committee has to submit its report in two months, Gupta said.

As per Gupta, stringent measures were proposed in the bill prepared by a committee headed by justice (retd) Girdhar Malaviya. During the Congress rule, despite assurances from the then union environment minister Harish Rawat nothing concrete could be achieved. Now, with the four member committee asked to submit its report along with suggestions within two months, the proposed Ganga Act seems to be in its final stage, he said. Gupta was instrumental in getting the national river status for the Ganga in 2010.

Read more: Bins go missing from boats in Varanasi; clean Ganga mission affected

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Why do mothers behave like this? This, in this case means why mothers behave in a peculiar manner (which is best known to them). Children from India have shared their versions of their mothers logic on question and answer site, Quora. And, since the stories are related to Indian mothers, the replies will relate with most of us.

The question, which was posted on the website was: What are the best stories about mothers logic? It has received 61 answers, and as expected, most of them will instantly crack you up with their humour and wit.

DOES YOU MOTHER OVERFEED YOU?

Many of the users have mentioned this one typical habit of mothers  to forcefully or slyly overfeed children. One of the users named Kandarp Joshi from Pune, Maharashtra, has written:

I always eat three chapatis, not more, not less. But, when I open my tiffin box at office, I always find four chapatis.

Mothers logic :- If any of your friend might want to eat or if you have more work load someday, you might get hungry. What then?

I eat alone. I always bring one chapati back. But, next day again, its one chapati more in tiffin box.

I try hard to explain it to her, but its always one chapati more.

Rekha feeds son Hrithik Roshan in the film Koi... Mil Gaya (2003).

FOOD IS THE CORE OF ALL THE PROBLEMS IN THE WORLD!

No matter how tensed you are, or how hard you are struggling to improve your scores, or happy that you have finally cracked that much awaited promotion; the result of every conversation comes down to the food that you want for dinner tonight or lunch tomorrow!

One of the users, Monisha Gangasri from Tamil Nadu, has explained these situations bang on:

Scenerio 1 :

Me : I have scored less CGPA this time. How am I going to cope with this?

My mom : What are you going to have for tomorrows lunch - lemon rice or tomato rice ?

Me : *Facepalm*

Scenario 2 :

Me : Mom! I got good marks in entrance examination. But I dont know which college to choose. I am confused.

My mom : What do you want for dinner - idly or dosa?

Me : *Facepalm*

Scenario n :

Me : I think I will fail in that subject.

My mom : I have made your favourite dish, go and eat.

Me : *Facepalm*

MATCH-MAKING ON RADAR

If food is extracted from the life of an Indian mother and they are dragged out of the kitchen, then beware of their capabilities to invade your Facebook and WhatsApp accounts or groups.

One of the users, Pooja Lakshmeshwar from Bengaluru, describes the never-ending drama of matrimony at home.

Ma: Who is that new boy in the group picture you put up?

Me: My friends friend. Met him yesterday when we all hung out.

Ma: He looks good, why dont you marry him? Ask her to talk to him about you. Which caste is he? What does he do? He is tall also. You will make a lovely pair. Is he from Bangalore? Should we approach his parents?

Me:

P.S. This phenomenon only occurs when the Indian girl is in her marriageable age.

PERPETUAL DILEMMA

If your mother says that they dont need your help then beware because the minute you take to your game station or mobile phone, when inside the house, their behaviour will make you wonder what just happened on earth!

Saransh, a Delhiite and an analyst by profession, narrates such proceedings in Indian households quite adeptly:

Me : Mom, you need help?

Mom : No, Ill do it.

10 minutes later,

Mom :All you have to do is chatting all day, cant even help your old mom in work

THEIR CARE, COVERS IT ALL

No matter how irritated a young one feels by his/her mother; its their presence that one always craves for. Among many of the users who have stated how their mothers take care of them, one of these stories, by Anisha Kochhar, will make you teary eyed for sure.

Heres what Kochhar writes:

Mom( discussing every wrong eating and sleeping habit i practiced in my entire lifetime)

Dont get out the bed. Take these medicines. Look what you have made of yourself. Cant you even care about yourself this much?

( Does not sleep the entire night and cares for you until you are healthy as a horse, actually even mire healthy as you were before getting ill

Mom has high fever and a bad headache.

Prepares food for you. Does all the household chores without complaining once. Forgets to rest and take her medicines and end up giving the explanation. Im all right. No need for a doctor. Ill manage. Its just fever. You take care of yourself.

In the film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), the bond between Kajol and Farida Jalal defines the relationship between a mother and a child beautifully.

Follow @htlifeandstyle for more

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The Mumbai crime branch (Unit 6) arrested two persons on Monday for allegedly kidnapping a 5-year-old girl and demanding a ransom of Rs10 lakh from her parents. The police rescued the minor within 24 hours from Mumbra, where Imran Shaikh, 24, and Abbas Khan, 36, had kept her at their friends house.

The police said the girl was kidnapped on Friday evening by Shaikh, a relative of the minor, while she was playing outside her house in Maharashtra Nagar, Mankhurd. Her father is a local businessman and deals in nylon bags. They added that Shaikh was accompanied by Abbas.

The two then kept the girl at their friends place. They lied to him saying that the girl was their niece and her parents had asked them to look after her while they were visiting their home town, said inspector Pritam Parab from Unit 6.

The girls parents approached the police after they received the Rs10 lakh ransom call. Initial inquiry revealed that the SIM card using which the ransom call was made was purchased from Shivaji Nagar and the accused were present in the area when the call was made.

We arrested Imran and he confessed to the crime during interrogation. He then revealed the girls location in Mumbra following which she was rescued on Saturday night. Abbas was held later, said an officer.

He said Shaikh told them that he had approached the girls father two weeks ago seeking financial help, but the man refused to help. Angered at being snubbed, Shiakh decided to teach the girls father a lesson and kidnapped the girl.
The 86-week-long campaign that transformed Versova beach, one of the dirtiest in Mumbai, to one of its cleanest, found a mention in Mann ki Baat  a monthly radio programme hosted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

While talking about the importance of preserving the environment, waste segregation and clean India, Modi highlighted the Versova beach clean-up as a peoples movement.

It is our duty to protect the environment for our future generations. One of Mumbais dirtiest beaches, Versova, has been completely transformed into a clean and pristine beach. Over 86 weeks, Mumbai citizens got together and worked towards making this a reality, said Modi adding, The entire credit for this goes to Versova Residents Volunteers (VRV) and their leader Afroz Shah, who began the clean-up in October 2015.

He reminded the citizens that what started off as a two-person clean-up drive was transformed into a peoples movement.

Last December, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) called it the worlds largest beach clean-up in history and awarded Shah UNs top environmental accolade  Champions of the Earth award at Cancun, Mexico, making him the first Indian to achieve such a feet. The campaigners have cleared 5.4-million-kg trash from the beach in the last one-and-a-half year.

I would like to congratulate Shah and VRV for putting together this mass movement to clean the environment and bringing together citizens from different walks of life to be part of this change for a cleaner India, Modi said.

Soon after Modis address to the nation, UNEP head Erik Solheim took to social media portals to express his happiness that the PM recognised Mumbai residents efforts. Solheim had visited India in October last year, February this year and participated in the beach clean-up.

With 8 days to go for World Environment Day, PM Modi launches a national clean-up on a scale never seen, tweeted Solheim adding, Bold leadership with tangible results. If 1,500 people can collect 5 million kilos on Versova beach, imagine what 1.3 billion people can do.

In October 2015, irked by the immense amount of garbage being pulled in by the sea and on Versova beach, Shah, a lawyer in his thirties, and his 84-year-old neighbour, Harbansh Mathur (who passed away last year) began clearing the 2.5-km beach of litter, including plastic, cement sacks, glass bottles, discarded clothing and footwear. The cleaning operation continues. On Sunday, 300 volunteers led by Shah removed 40,000 kg of trash with the help of 500 employees from a private bank.

Shah told HT that he was happy that VRVs efforts were recognised by the PM but since this was a continuous effort, the group would not stop until the seashore was cleaned completely. It is a great feeling that the PM has recognised our efforts and we are thankful to him, said Shah. However, our work continues like it has and we are planning the next weeks cleanup schedule.

He added that the UNEP India and the Maharashtra Maritime Board will be joining VRV for the World Environment Day cleanup on June 4 and 5. While the beach is clean, there is a lot of trash still being pulled in from the creeks on to the shoreline. Next weeks clean-up will be massive, as we will remove trash using nets from the creek, mangroves and the seashore.

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The Mumbai police took to Twitter to launch their Sholay-style campaign against cybercrime on Monday.

Not the gun but awareness can be your biggest weapon against the online 'Gabbars' #ReelToReal pic.twitter.com/lGkJDBHhRQ  Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) May 29, 2017

Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan noted the polices use of his dialogues, saying he supported the awareness drive.

T 2439 -An initiative I support, @MumbaiPolice awareness campaign on traffic, cybercrime..based on my dialogues https://t.co/fZSnx91lgZ  pic.twitter.com/3BDyc6cP8q  Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) May 29, 2017

In the first four months of the year, 178 cases of cybercrime were registered in Mumbai. Only 15 of them were solved. While cases of card fraud have gone up from last year (166 cases were registered in the first four months of 2016), the police have solved fewer cases than they did last year (22 cases were solved between January and April 2016)  a worrying trend.

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With the monsoon around the corner and only 48 hours to complete road repairs in Mumbai, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is racing against time.

Of the 878 roads taken up over two months, the BMC has repaired 522.

One of the reasons for the delay has been shutting down of more than 100 stone quarries in Thane, leaving contractors in a scramble to find raw material.

However, the civic body assured the procurement of raw material is back on track.

A majority of the roads that are stuck are priority I and II roads, which means they are vulnerable and prone to developing potholes.

As part of monsoon preparedness, the civic body will release 24 WhatsApp numbers, where citizens can send their complaints.

In the absence of a dedicated number for monsoon complaints, the citys disaster cell was flooded with distress calls last year.

The civic body had received more than 1,000 calls for rain-related queries and complaints.

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The Bombay high court on Monday refrained the police and the civic authorities from taking action against 200 hawkers at Musafirkhana near Crawford Market.

The hawkers, most of whom have been selling fabric and cutlery in the area for generations, had approached a vacation bench of the court challenging a demolition order issued by the Lokayuktas office in January.

On January 31, the Lokayukta initiated a suo moto inquiry and ordered the police to initiate against the stalls saying that the owners had illegally extended their shops and encroached upon footpaths on either side of the roads, which obstructed traffic in the area. The Lokayukta had asked the police to take appropriate action within four weeks.

While the police did not act upon the orders immediately, they started visiting the area from May and allegedly threated hawkers to shut shop. The hawkers, who approached the court through their counsels Satish and Pradnya Talekar, argued that demolition of their stalls would violate their rights to life, dignity and earn a livelihood.

They also challenged the validity of the Lokayukta order, arguing that it could only make recommendations to the police or the civic bodies. But lacked the power to issue direct orders. The hawkers also argued that the Lokayukta had issued the demolition order without granting them a hearing. The petitioners also said that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had not conducted any independent inquiry into the allegations of encroachment.

The court is likely to take up the matter for further hearing on June 5 .

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A new kind of library came to Mumbai on Sunday  a human library where people served as books, telling their stories to anyone who stopped by to listen.

The initiative has its roots in Copenhagen, Denmark, where four men held the first-ever human library event in 2000. It has since spread to 70 countries, including India, with all events sanctioned by the four original co-founders.

The idea is to break barriers and start conversations. So, in India, events held in Indore and Hyderabad have featured sex workers, rape victims, divorcees and members of the LGBT community. In keeping with a set of guidelines, each human book is taught how to deal with readers and address questions.

The Mumbai event, held at the Title Waves bookstore in Bandra, featured 13 living books, including a child molestation survivor, a plus-sized model, a woman journalist and a gay oncologist.

Each was given a title - Miracle Being; Always a Plus, Never a Minus; Eager to Win, Not to Please; Not Under My Watch, etc.

The event was organised by Andaleeb Qureshi, 32, a chemical engineer who its came upon the concept online. The books approached her through the initiatives Facebook page, asking to be featured.

Im overwhelmed by the response. This is our first event and around 300 readers participated! All our sessions were booked within the first two hours. Im now planning to organise one every month. We already have 60 books waiting to share their stories, Qureshi said.

The readers, aged 20 to 60, went throuh the catalogues and borrowed the book of their choice for a conversation session. Each session lasted 20 minutes.

It took a lot of courage to share my story with strangers. But I really wanted to let people know how I fought against body-shaming and won. I hope my story will inspire other, said the 34-year-old plus-sized model.

Im a voracious reader but this is a new experience for me. It was amazing to be able to talk to a book! My book was the oncologist. His experiences of the prejudices he faces were humbling. I would like to come back for this event again, said Ranjana Patil, 50, a retired teacher.

Arpan Vadhera, a 23-year-old ad executive, said the books had inspired him to be a book and share his story too.

I met with a Muslim woman and she talked about Muslim stereotypes. The session felt like a amalgamation of reading a book and watching a play. When I read a book its just my interpretation. The cool thing about the human library is that its interactive, so the authors interpretation is available to you too, he said.

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After putting Class 12 admissions in Mumbai colleges on hold for the past three months, the states school education department on Monday finally shelved a plan to make the process online.

The department just about 5% of students want to switch colleges after Class 11, and so investing in an online process makes little sense.

The ends dont justify the means, said a senior education official. The official said colleges can start offline admissions as soon as education minister Vinod Tawde officially scraps the plan. Tawde has agreed. We will inform colleges in a couple of days, the official said.

Junior colleges will be able to fill vacancies on their own, offline, like they did in the past.

The decision comes as relief to Class 12 students looking to change colleges this year. Colleges had to put on hold for a few months after the department issued a circular saying students can change colleges only through the online process.

College principals, however, were upset with this flip-flop by the department. We are victims of the departments poor planning. Next time, it will be better if they think things through before implementing them, said Kavita Rege, principal, Sathaye College, Vile Parle.

Hindustan Times reported on May 26 that education officials proposed shelving the plan in a meeting with Tawde. Officials said with the Class 11 admission process being delayed by nearly a month with many changes in those admissions this year, it would be difficult to handle both classes together.

The state overhauled the admission procedure for Class 11 and Class 12 after the Bombay high court asked it to bring in transparency and make the process more efficient. A new software by Nysa Asia will be used. Nysa Asia also replaces Maharashtra Knowledge Corporation Limited (MKCL) as the technical partner this year.

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State government officials said that 33.17 hectares (ha)  almost four times the size of Oval Maidan (9 ha) in south Mumbai  of reserved mangrove forests will be axed to build the northern portion of the coastal road project.

The mangrove cover in suburban Mumbai is spread across 3,723 ha, with 2,288 ha in the eastern suburbs and the rest in the western suburbs between Bandra and Borivli. The city will lose nearly 1% of its mangrove cover to the project.

Construction of the 29.2-km-long costal road, worth Rs 12,000 crore, has been planned in two phases. The southern portion  from Princess Street flyover to Bandra-Worli Sea Link (BWSL). The second phase is from BWSL to Kandivli.

Sources from the state government said mangroves in Malwani,Oshiwara, Malad, Dahisar, Juhu, Versova, Kandivli and Borivli will be cut down once the construction begins.

Malwani will lose most of the mangrove cover, almost 8 ha. However, reforestation and replantation of mangrove saplings will be done for the entire cover that Mumbai will lose, said a senior official from state environment department.

Last year, to speed up the approval process from the state and the Centre, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) sought separate clearances for the project by dividing it into phase I and phase II. The union environment ministry gave its nod for phase I in April. The BMC had received flak from the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) last year, as phase II would require large-scale reclamation of land for which mangroves would be chopped.

We are trying to figure out the environmental impact of phase II. Mitigation measures have been drafted and a disaster management plan has been put together. However, until we dont fully understand the impact, the proposal will not be forwarded to the Centre, said a senior civic official.

The official added that one of the conditions that the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) had laid out while clearing phase I included restoration of mangroves. The state mangrove cell will be receiving Rs106 crore or 2% of the funds for phase I of the project, he said.

Officials from the state mangrove cell said while they are yet to receive the money, mangrove plantation has already commenced. A 200 ha patch in Airoli has been planted with mangrove saplings. We will ensure that the patch grows into a mangrove forest by next year, said N Vasudevan, additional principal chief conservator of forest, state mangrove cell.

The coastal road will also have a sea-bridge between Bandra and Versova, which will be built by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC). According to the BMC, the project needs reclamation of 186 ha of land, of which 91 ha will be developed as green space.

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A group of women have started a campaign to end the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), sometimes called female circumcision, in India. The custom, followed in India only by Bohras, a Shia sub sect, involves partial or total removal of external female genitalia. International agencies describe it as child abuse and a violation of human rights.

Women, who include Bohras, have petitioned religious leaders and the Union government seeking a ban on the custom. They have said that while sections of the Indian Penal Code and child abuse laws can be used to punish offenders, there is no specific law prohibiting it. A lawyer Sunita Tiwari has filed a petition asking for a ban. Last week, Speak out on FGM, one of the groups campaigning against it, and the Lawyers Collective, a human rights group, released a document A guide to eliminating the practice of FGC in India which, they said, could serve as a blueprint for a law against the custom.

The paper says that women who were forced to undergo the procedure, apart from being victims of human and child rights abuse, can, like under French law, also be recognised as disabled people because the practice leaves them with life-long mental and physical impairments. Speak out on FGM, which had earlier restricted its campaign to online petitions, has said they will join the legal fight against the practice.

The Bohra clergy has said the custom is a religious obligation, but refused to talk to the women campaigning to end it. The religious leaders, it seems, did not want to get into the debate. They have now announced the formation of a group called the Dawoodi Bohra Women for Religious Freedom to defend the practice and challenge the court petition.

The group, which includes doctors, has not spoken to the media which has extensively covered the anti-FGM campaign.

In an e-mailed response to this newspaper, they said they have tolerated an uninformed assault on them by the media, at the behest of a handful of women who do not represent them. They have called the petition in the Supreme Court a damaging PIL (Public Interest Litigation) to stop us practising a harmless religious rite. Referring to Tiwari, they said: She has claimed that damage is being done to each and every girl and woman of this community in some way or other. And therefore she has been compelled to file the PIL on behalf of all those voiceless women who have suffered in silence.

In a message forwarded to this newspaper, one member, Nafisa Kagalwala, said, This practice, like all religious practices, is never forced upon anyone. So what is the need for all this hype and what is the need for passing a law against it?

The group has said that circumcision, as they refer to FGM, has not damaged them. We have a membership of thousands of educated women, increasing by the day. We intend to show that the Petitioner does not speak on our behalf and has based her PIL on hearsay evidence, distortions and hysteria, the group has said.

Dr Fatema Jetpurwala, a founder member of the group told HT in an e-mail reply: India is known for its uniqueness in imparting religious freedom to all its citizens and I am convinced that our legal system will not take it away from me, a proud Dawood Bohra woman and the thousands of DBWRF who have joined me.

Another member, Rashida Diwan, said, We are a self-respecting, law-abiding community, never telling others what to do. We demand the same faith in our ability to practice our religion without harming ourselves or others.

The FGM supporters said that the countrys freedom of religion allows them to practice the custom.

We are disappointed that the Supreme Court gave notice to the respondents without affording us, the target of the PIL, an opportunity to have our say. We will now intervene at the Supreme Court to ensure that the numerous false statements made in the PIL are exposed and the right to practice religion granted to every citizen of India is not denied to us, said a supporter.

With the fight pitting one group of Bohra women against another, the anti-FGM campaigners are preparing for an antagonistic debate. It is going to be a long-drawn legal fight, said Masooma Ranalvi, convener of Speak out on FGM.
The wait is finally over for more than 18,000 students from Maharashtra who appeared for the Indian School Certificate (ISC) and Indian Secondary Certificate of Education (ICSE) exams held in April. The results will be declared online today at 3 pm.

Nearly 2 lakh students from across India appeared for the exam.

Students can access their results by clicking on the Results 2017 link on the Council of Indian School Certificate website - www.cisce.org or through SMS.

This year, results have been delayed by nearly a month as the exams began late owing to assembly elections in five states. Last year, the results were announced on May 6.

The delay led to stress among students, who were worried about missing out on admissions to higher education institutes. This is the first time that the results have been delayed. I want to apply to Delhi University and was anxious as to whether I would be able to do so on time, said Shruti Pawar, an ICSE student from Malad.

Mumbai schools are expecting high scores, since students said they found the papers easy this year, said principals. We are expecting a 100% result like every year. Scores might shoot up as students found the papers easy, said Zeenat Bhojabhoy, principal, Jamnabai Narsee School, Vile Parle.

However, Bhojabhoy added that she was worried about specially abled students who appeared for the exam. Echoing her sentiments, Alice Vaz, principal, Ryan International School, Kharghar said, The exams were student-friendly this year. We hope our students, especially those with learning disabilities get a good percentage so they can seek admission to the college of their choice.

Students will get a digitally signed statement of marks and certificates through a Digi Locker facility, in which the documents are safely stored. Students can access it through a login ID and password. Even migration certificates for ISC will be sent there.

This year, students can also apply for rechecking of papers directly, using the councils portal. This facility will be available for only seven days - from May 29 to June 6.

Schools can write to the cisce helpdesk - cisce@orioninc.com or call the toll free number 022-267226106 if they have any doubts.

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Police recently arrested three people accused of stealing two cars in Vikhroli, one in Mankhurd and a fourth in CBD Belapur in Navi Mumbai.

The accused, Mehtab Khan, 28, Rushab Chotalia, 20, and Rahul Tiwari, 23, targeted taxi drivers early in the morning. They would pose as passengers and hire taxis under the pretext of going for a long drive. When the driver reached a secluded place, the accused would threaten him with a sharp weapon and rob him. They would ask the driver to alight before driving off in his vehicle, said a high-ranking police officer.

Police said the men assaulted the taxi drivers who resisted their robbery attempts. The taxi drivers were beaten and robbed of their money and mobile phones. The accused abandoned the taxis after a while, said the officer. Police are trying to ascertain if more people were involved in the crimes. They are examining CCTV camera footage for clues.

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The ICSE (Class 10) and ISC (Class 12) results were declared on Monday, and for the third time in a row, two Mumbai students ranked in the all-India merit list.

Humanities student Rishika Dhariwal, from Jamnabai Narsee School in Vile Parle, stood second in the all-India ISC merit list with a score of 99.25%. She shared the rank with three other students. In the ICSE merit list, Farzan Bharucha from Greenlawns High School in Warden Road came second, with a total of 496 out of 500. His percentage in English and four other subjects is 99.2%. Bharucha scored a perfect 100 in mathematics and technical drawing applications.

The national ICSE topper is Muskan Pathan from Hutchings High School in Pune. She scored 99.4% and bagged a full 100 in computer applications and mathematics.

You can check your results by clicking on the Results 2017 link on the Council of Indian School Certificate website-www.cisce.org or through SMS.

READ: Check scores and pass percentage

In Maharashtra, more students passed in both the Class 10 and Class 12 exams compared to last year. Of 17,064 students who wrote the ICSE exams, 99.81% passed and of the 2,318 students who wrote the ISC exams, 98.71% passed.

Students scores shot up across Mumbai too, with schools registering higher averages than last year.

Our school average at 88.45 is at an all-time high, the number of students scoring above 90% also increased significantly, said Seema Saini, principal, NL Dalmia School.

Across the state, girls performed better than boys in both exams  99.90% of Class 10 girls passed, and 99.10% girls passed Class 12 . Boys lagged behind this year, with a 99.73% success rate in ICSE and 98. 26% in ISC.

The results were delayed this year by nearly a month as the Assembly elections in five states pushed exam dates. Until results were declared on Monday, the delay had students stressed as they were worried about missing out on admission to higher education institutes.

This is the first time the results have been delayed this much. I want to apply to Delhi University and was anxious if I would be make in on time, said Shruti Pawar, an ICSE student from Malad.

ICSE exams are usually not tough and students were happy with the papers this year, said Sunita George, principal, Bombay Scottish School, Powai. She said all schools worked hard to improve performance. We constantly give them practice tests, revisions and tips, which go a long way in boosting their performance.

Alice Vaz, principal of Ryan International School, Kharghar said, The exams were student-friendly this year and we hope our students, especially those with learning disabilities, get good marks so they can get admission in colleges of their choice.

Students will get a digitally signed statement of their marks, while certificates will be issued through a Digi Locker facility. Students can access this using a log in ID and password. Even migration certificates for ISC will be sent there.

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Disappointed with the state governments decision of not offering him a ministers portfolio, BJP ally Vinayak Mete has floated a new party, Bhartiya Sangram Parishad, on Monday.

The new outfit, he said, will be a strong alternative force in state politics. Mete has roped in former Shiv Sena central minister Subodh Mohite as its state president.

Every party has a right to grow and we are only working towards that. We feel that there is vacuum in state politics and our party will fill the space, said Mete.The BJP went back on its commitment over sharing power with us and this has really hurt us.

The BJP had made Mete the Chairman of the Shivaji Memorial Committee but denied him a ministerial berth. Mete is angry as all the other allies---Republican Party of India (RPI), Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana and Rashtriya Samaj Paksha were given ministerial berths except him.

Mete, a prominent Maratha leader, was wooed by the BJP during the 2014 elections from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Mete heads the Shiv Sangram, an outfit that fights for the Maratha communitys interests. Shiv Sangram was active on the issue of Maratha reservation and construction of the Shivaji Memorial.

Mohite was once an influential Sena leader from Vidarbha and has been twice the MP from Ramtek . In his very first stint, he was inducted as the Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises minister in the Atal Behari Vajpayee government. However, in 2007,he had a fall out with Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and joined the Congress. He lost the subsequent bye-elections, after which he was marginalised from the Congress.

According to Mohite, he was not given a chance to perform in the Congress. The Congress never gave me chance to prove myself. I have held several meetings with the Congress high command but nothing fruitful came off it, said Mohite. Since the BJP-Sena are busy fighting each other and the Congress-NCP are nowhere in picture, it is a good opportunity for our party to serve as an alternative, he added.

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From losing a parent to fighting off cancer, here are stories of children who displayed extraordinary strength to overcome their difficulties and perform well in their board exams.

He fought breathing trouble to write exams

Gopal Dhoot

Gopal Dhoots dust allergy made it difficult for him to breathe when the wrote his ICSE papers. The discomfort became so severe he was unable to write the papers himself. The education board allowed him to use a writer, and he scored managed to score 77% in his Class 10 exams.

But just days before the results were announced, Dhoot had an asthma attack on May 25 and was rushed to the hospital. His father told him his scores in the Intensive Care Unit. When he got the results, he was happy. He expected a bit more, but he was satisfied, his father, Manoj said. The 15-year-old from Childrens Academy, Kandivli, said was unable to study for a few weeks because of the respiratory illness. Gopal has had chronic bronchitis for more than a year. But when the exams neared, his health started deteriorated and he was unable to study, said Manoj.

Gopal was responding well to treatment and should be discharged in two days.

School helps boy who lost father before exam

Devashish Mahurkar

Devashish Mahurkar, 15, lost his father just a month before the Class 10 exam began. But teachers and the principal of HVB Global Academy, Marine Drive, supported him and gave him the courage to study.

Devashish secured 78.56% in the ICSE exams.

Devashishs family came to know of his fathers illness in November, and have since been travelling out of the city for treatment. We we had to take urgent calls and go wherever we got medication for his father. We even thought of asking Devashish to a break from the school year. But, the school staff took over and helped us through, said Renuka, Devashishs mother.

They made sure my child ate well, studied and was taken care of, Renuka said.

Devashish is still shaken by his fathers death. His family said he likes the commerce stream, but could pursue computers as an alternative.

Chemo, radiation and hard work

This brave heart didnt let cancer beat him. Diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma last year, a 16-year-old Campion School student caught up on school work and packed in revisions between chemotherapy and radiation sessions. The student, who requested not to be named, scored 86%.

Even during his exams, he had to go through radiation sessions for three weeks. We asked him to skip the year, but he was determined, his mother, a resident of Malabar Hill, said. Radiations drain you from the inside, but he went to school like a normal boy. He is an inspiration, she said. He has been a brilliant student all through and we are very proud of him, said his father, adding the school gave the family ample support.

Diabetes didnt stop him from writing the exams

His fluctuating sugar levels made Svojas Pitales parents worry about his exams. Svojas, a type-1 Diabetes patient, constantly felt dizzy or tired and found it hard to fall asleep.

Balancing sugar levels was crucial during his exams, said his mother Yadnya. He had to be injected insulin every time he ate . But Svojas, a student of Lilavatibai Podar High School, Santacruz, fought through it to score 72.4% in the ICSE exams.

(With inputs from Bhakti Makwana)
A four-year-old boy living in Royal Palms in Aarey Colony, Goregaon, suffered injuries after he was attacked by a leopard on Saturday evening.

Cases of man-animal conflict have been rare in Mumbai since 2013. However, there has been a sudden rise in such incidents, with three being reported at the citys green lung between March and May.

Forest department officials said the incident took place between 7.30pm and 7.45pm, when the boy and his father were walking near the Royal Palms apartment complex area. The family wanted to keep the matter private and did not wish to disclose details. Our inquiry revealed that the boy was walking a few paces behind his father when he spotted the leopard. The animal pounced on him and dragged him a few feet. His father made a ruckus and asked passersby to help, said Santosh Kank, range forest officer, Mumbai forest range. The leopard got frightened and fled.

The man took his son to a hospital in Goregaon soon after the incident. The boy suffered minor injuries on his chest, back and legs. We met the family at the hospital, who told us the boy would be discharged on Monday, said Kank.

On March 17, a three-year-old boy was attacked by a leopard near Khadakpada, a tribal hamlet inside the forests of Aarey Milk Colony. The boy suffered injuries on his chest and throat, but escaped after residents scared the leopard away. On May 21, a three-year-old boy was saved by his mother, who snatched him away from the claws of a leopard that had pounced on him in Chafyachapada, Aarey. The boy suffered minor injuries.

Stay safe Be alert after dark as this is when leopards are active. Play loud music so big cats avoid you. Do not venture out alone after dark. Do not form a crowd around the animal. Ensure that the garbage is disposed of and no feral dogs frequent the locality. (Source: State forest department)

With the rising number of attacks, forest department officials said the situation was becoming serious. We filed a report about the incident on Monday. I have written to senior forest officials, requesting them to give us the go-ahead to track and trap leopards attacking residents, said Kank.

We have asked Royal Palms for CCTV camera footage of the incident and have set up several camera traps in the area. We will track the animal and find out how many big cats frequent this area, said Jitendra Ramgaonkar, deputy conservator of forest, Thane territorial. Trapping is not a solution. We have already begun sensitisation drives with Royal Palms residents and will ensure our patrolling teams are in the area.

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Residents of nine extremely dangerous buildings in Mumbai have refused to vacate the premises despite the warning issued by the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA).

Residents fear that once they leave, they will not be able to return and will be made to languish in MHADAs transit camps for the rest of their lives.

Residents of a building in Kazi Street, which features in the list of dilapidated buildings, said MHADA did not guarantee them that they could return. How can we just leave our premises without any agreement in place? he asked. We all work at local offices and our children go to nearby schools. Everything will be disrupted if we move, said the residents, who did not wish to be identified. They added that conditions in transit camps are extremely unhygienic.

Nine buildings were chosen as part of the MHADAs annual pre-monsoon survey of dangerous buildings. These buildings have outlived their utility and are being supported by iron rods, which prop them up. While MHADA has made provisions for tenants to shift to transit camps, they are reluctant to move and prefer staying in dangerous structures.

Swapnil Katarnavre, secretary, Youth Voice, said the MHADAs track record was to blame for residents resistance. People who evacuated their buildings 20 years ago are still languishing in the transit camps, with no sign of them returning. Why will people vacate their houses when the situation is such? said Katarnavre.

Since 1970s, many residents living in old, dilapidated buildings moved to MHADA transit camps hoping to return after their premises were redeveloped. However, the redevelopment was stalled owing to buildings being demolished to make way for widening projects or the site being reserved as a playground or recreation ground or litigation. The result  these tenants continued to stay in the transit camps, which became their permanent dwellings.

State minister for housing Ravindra Waikar acknowledged the problem and said the state was trying to solve this issue. We are working out a scheme in which the residents will be assured of a home in the same place, said Waikar.

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Chemists across the country will go on a 24-hour strike at midnight on Monday to protest the online sale of medicines and Goods and Services Tax. However, the Food and Drugs Authority of Maharashtra has asked pharmacists in the Mumbai Metropolitan and Konkan regions not to join it.

Pramod Danve from the Chemist Association of Maharashtra said the protest was against governments plan to make medicines available online. Its blindly following western countries because we do not have the technical, infrastructural, or logistical resources to completely implement the e-portal plan, said Danve. He added that it was a token strike and that chemist shops would reopen on May 31.

FDA officials have asked all hospitals, both government and private, to stock up on medicines. Pharmacies around major hospitals will most likely be open round the clock to ensure patients do not suffer.

All the hospitals have been asked to stock up on medicines before the strike so that it doesnt affect critical patients, said Dr Harshdeep Kamble, FDA commissioner.

Chemists claim that Centres e-portal scheme will create further hassles about the kind of medicines requested by the patients and will be mired in logistical problems.

With the recent MCI circular asking doctors to prescribe generic medicines, chemists said these guidelines would clash with e-portal scheme.
After learning from past failures to control fire and starting a processing plant at Deonar dumping ground, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has decided to appoint a consultant to scrutinise contractors to be appointed for processing waste at the citys second largest dumping ground at Mulund.

Mitcon Consultancy and Engineers Services Limited will be hired at a cost of Rs5.45 crore for six years or time taken to finish the Mulund project  whichever comes first. The firm will work as an advisor to the civic body, help it secure various clearances and permissions, manage, guide and scrutinise contractors bidding to process the waste. The firm will also scrutinise each and every stage, and check whether the derivable has been met or not.

Although the BMC has tabled the proposal in the standing committee, which will be discussed on Tuesday, it is yet to finalise contractors to process waste at the dump. Located in the eastern suburbs of the city, the Mulund landfill currently holds 60 lakh metric tonnes of waste.

So far, tenders have been floated to appoint contractors to process waste at Mulund and the BMC has received three bids. The plant will only be functional after a year or more. Four hectares will be given inside the dumping ground to set up a waste processing plant.

The civic body had also appointed consultants at Deonar to study the feasibility of setting up waste-to-energy plant. The BMC had earlier hired Tata Consulting Engineers Limited (TCEL) for Rs 59 lakh to conduct the feasibility study.

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The son of a police inspector, who was arrested for murdering his mother, confessed during his interrogation that he drew the smiley emoticon on the floor next to his mothers body because he felt relaxed.

Last week, after stabbing his mother Dipali, 42, as many as 12 times with a kitchen knife, Siddhant Ganore, 21, wrote Tired of her, catch me & hang me on the bedroom floor with his mothers blood with a smiley next to it.

When asked why he did this, a police source privy to the investigations said, He said it just occurred to him at the time.

The police said Siddhant left their Santacruz east residence on Wednesday afternoon and took the first train he got from Santacruz railway station. He changed two to three trains before finally reaching Jodhpur in Rajasthan on Thursday afternoon, the police added.

He checked into a hotel and was traced through the mobile phone he had been using, the police said. He was brought back to city on Friday morning and remain in police custody till June 2.

Siddhant told the police he was frustrated with his mother because she would fight with him over his poor academic performance. He also told the police he was frustrated owing to the constant fights she had with his father.

He said he lost interest in studies because of this. His father Dyaneshwar Ganore was last posted at Khar police station where he was part of the team that investigated the sensational Sheena Bora murder case.
While there were drizzles on the outskirts of Mumbai, in areas such as Ulhasnagar, Thane and Navi Mumbai on Monday, the city will get further respite from heat as light showers are expected over the next 24 hours. The Mumbai-Goa Tejas Express is fully booked for the second consecutive week.

Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan supported the Mumbai polices use of his dialogues in their campaign against cybercrime.

Meanwhile, a four-year-old boy living in Royal Palms in Aarey Colony, Goregaon, suffered injuries after he was attacked by a leopard on Saturday evening.

Here are the top five stories from Mumbai:

Mumbai to get cooler, light showers expected over the next 24 hours

Mumbaiites, expect cloudy conditions accompanied by light rain for the next 24 hours. A light drizzle fell on the outskirts of Mumbai, in areas such as Ulhasnagar, Thane and Navi Mumbai. Light rain was also recorded in Mulund and Nahur. A light drizzle was also observed at south Mumbai on Monday afternoon.

Mumbaiites splash about in pre-monsoon showers, welcome respite from the heat

Kalyan-Dombivli and Ulhasnagar residents enjoyed pre-monsoon showers on Monday morning around 10 am.

The sudden downpour, the second to be reported in the city, lasted for about five minutes. On May 15, the Kalyan witnessed its first shower of the year around 10.45 pm. Thunderstorms and lightning were reported at Thane in the evening.

A woman walks through a drizzle in Kalyan. (HT)

Amitabh Bachchan lends support to Mumbai polices Sholay-style drive against cybercrime

The Mumbai police took to Twitter to launch their Sholay-style campaign against cybercrime on Monday. Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan noted the polices use of his dialogues, saying he supported the awareness drive.

Leopard pounces on 4-year-old in Mumbai, drags him for a few feet, flees after locals create ruckus

A four-year-old boy living in Royal Palms in Aarey Colony, Goregaon, suffered injuries after he was attacked by a leopard on Saturday evening. Cases of man-animal conflict have been rare in Mumbai since 2013. However, there has been a sudden rise in such incidents, with three being reported at the citys green lung between March and May

Mumbai-Goa Tejas Express is fully booked for second week too

A week after the launch too, Indian Railways first high-speed premium train on the Mumbai-Goa route, Tejas Express, is proving to be crowd-puller. The train is fully booked for the second consecutive week.
In the latest of a series of attacks on its ally, the Shiv Sena took digs at Prime Minister Narendra Modis decision to demonetise Rs1,000 and Rs500 notes, claiming that it had weakened farmers financial state. In an editorial in the party mouthpiece Saamana, the Shiv Sena said that on one hand, the Maharashtra government was not waiving the loans of distressed farmers, while on the other, demonetisation left district cooperative banks unable to loan farmers money to sow Kharif crops.

Farmers are not getting relief from debt and neither can they ask for loans once again. District co-operative banks are their only support, but the current Reserve Bank of India governor, with the help of the government, is trying to ruin farmers lives, read the editorial.

The Shiv Sena also backed its political rival, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar, who had first highlighted the issue of district cooperative banks and urged the Centre to come up with a solution. Sharad Pawar is our political opponent, but he has exposed how old notes worth Rs8,000 are still lying in district cooperative banks. Is this one of the Modi governments achievements over the past three years? it added.

According to official figures, district cooperative banks still have deposits worth Rs2,772 crore in demonetised notes. Owing to the Centres indecision, these banks, which are the backbone of the states farm credit system, are unable to give farmers loans.

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A pothole-free ride for Mumbai motorists could be a distant dream as the pre-monsoon road repair work on the Western Express Highway (WEH) and Eastern Express Highway (EEH) is yet to commence.

With the monsoon just 10 days away, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) has failed to attract contractors to repair damaged stretches on the WEH and EEH.

MMRDA officials said the ban on the quarries in Thane has resulted in a severe shortage of construction material and this is why contractors are not coming forward. After the National Green Tribunal (NGT) banned quarrying activities in Thane, there has been a shortage of construction material. We have not got a response from contractors for a few stretches on both highways. The contractors have to fetch material from far-flung areas such as Raigad or Palghar, which escalates the cost, said a senior MMRDA official.

However, MMRDA officials said they will tweak the bid conditions to attract road contractors to carry out pre-monsoon repairs. The desilting of nullahs has started, and the repair work hardly takes six to seven days. We are confident that we will get contractors and the work will be completed on time, an official added.

After the NGT ban on March 30, more than 70 quarries were shut, which affected the civic bodys construction and repair work.

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Angered by the opposition to building Shiv Sena founder late Bal Thackerays memorial in Mumbai, party leader and industries minister Subhash Desai on Monday said that Mahatma Gandhi held no constitutional posts but his memorials were built across the country, so why were there so many questions over Thackerays memorial.

There were many politicians in the country, like Mahatma Gandhi, who held no constitutional positions but their memorials were built. We remember him as the father of the nation, Desai said

He added that Thackeray was a great leader and was above the rules for building memorials. People want a memorial dedicated to Thackeray and there is nothing wrong if the state government is determined to do so, the industries minister said.

He was reacting over a public interest litigation filed against providing government land for the Thackeray memorial in Dadar.

Thackeray is the founder of Shiv Sena and the party wants to build his memorial at the Mayors bungalow at Dadar. After much wait, the state government decided to allot the plot to the trust formed for the cause. But the move has run in to legal hurdles after an activist Bhagwanji Raiyani filed a public interest litigation challenging the governments decision while referring to a 2013 Supreme Court ruling, which said that no memorials should be allowed on government-owned houses. The Centre also issued a circular banning the conversion of government bungalows into memorials.

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This monsoon, the BMC is giving you the chance to register your monsoon-related complaints on WhatsApp.

To up its game this monsoon, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to release 24 WhatsApp numbers next week to solve citizens problems.

The civic body will provide each ward office with a WhatsApp number. The number will be attended to by a ward officer, who will then delegate the work. The number will be functional only during the monsoon season, said additional municipal commissioner Sanjay Deshmukh.

At present, the BMC has a Twitter handle, potholes complaint application and a disaster control and complaint number where it registers complaints ranging from encroachments to illegal constructions. However, the civic body decided to release the 24 numbers for a better and quicker response. We will not register complaints on Twitter. With the WhatsApp number, the system will be decentralised, quicker and will give a better response, said the additional municipal commissioner.

Every year, the BMC also releases a helpline number. But it is usually inundated with calls during monsoon.

The BMC will also continue its MCGM 24x7 application for pothole complaints, where citizens can capture the longitude and latitude of the potholes location and upload a photograph. The BMC started a pothole-tracking website in 2011. Once the complaint is registered, the official concerned will have to approach the contractor to fix the pothole within 48 hours or face a penalty. Officials said the mobile application will also follow a similar procedure.

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Citizens protesting against the proposed Metro 3 depot at Aarey Colony has been in the news. It is good that citizens are concerned about the damage that the construction of the metro depot will cause to the Aarey Colony, which is one of the last (not the last) surviving green spaces in Mumbai. Last week, some trees in some other parts of the Colaba-SEEPZ route were cut and the city witnessed similar protests.

While Metro 3 is facing strong opposition over its proposed depot in Aarey Colony, for some reason, the states and local governments plans to build projects through another bigger green space in the city  the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP)  have not come under public scrutiny yet.

The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) wants to build an underground tunnel through the national park to connect Borivli with Thane. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has planned to build Mulund-Goregaon Link Road and one of the two options for the road alignment is a 9-km long underground tunnel through the national park. There is also a suggestion to build a ropeway so that people can travel between Borivli and Thane.

A part of the national park in Thane could be sacrificed for widening the Mumbai Ahmedabad national highway and the construction of the Mumbai-Delhi freight corridor. These plans are in their initial stages and it is not clear how many of them will materialise. However, they show the intention of the authorities: Damage to the environment is permissible if it is meant to help construction of infrastructure projects.

Still, shouldnt we take a look at the damage caused to the national park?

Spread over 103 square kilometers, the SGNP is Mumbais biggest green cover, which has been under attack for quite some time.

Mumbai is one of the very few cities in the world to have such a forest within the city limits. In fact, the SGNP is the largest national park in the world located within city limits.

Part of the Western Ghats biodiversity, it is home to more than 274 species of birds, 35 species of mammals, 78 species of reptiles and amphibians, 170 species of butterflies and over a staggering 1,300 species of plants, says the SGNPs official website. It also has two lakes  Vihar and Tulsi  built more than a century ago.

According to records,the SGNP occupies roughly 20% of Mumbais geographical area. However, this green cover could be shrinking now. Last year, its buffer zone was reduced to a range to 4 km from previous 10kms.

Over the past few decades, slums have mushroomed on a large part of the SGNP buffer zone.

Several buildings have been built in this zone as well. Not just that, from road contractors plants to ashrams of godmen to fancy villas, everything has been coming up in close vicinity of the park. Activists have been pointing out that the national park is being encroached from all sides, putting it under serious threat.

No wonder, every now and then we have been reading stories of leopards attacking human beings in the area on the periphery of the national park.

Unfortunately, not many voices are being raised to ensure that this precious green cover remains intact. The sooner we realise this, the better are the chances to save this beautiful jungle which is part of our city.

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The state government on Monday ordered the suspension of Dasna jail superintendent, SP Yadav, and ordered for him to be attached to a prison training centre in Lucknow. The superintendent faced allegations of sending unwanted messages from his personal mobile number to the wife of a man lodged in the jail in connection with an alleged bank fraud.

The woman had forwarded a complaint to officials and an inquiry was conducted by district magistrate Ministhy S. The inquiry report was later sent to Lucknow on May 24 and Yadav was suspended.

We have received the order for his suspension. We were supposed to conduct a factual inquiry based on what both parties had to say in their defence. The report was sent in the original form to the state officials and the government took a decision for suspension. We are not in a position to comment on the findings. The complaint was about harassment and sending messages over WhatsApp, the DM said.

The jail superintendent said while he and the woman did exchange messages, the case made against him was false.

The entire case was fabricated and a complaint sent to the chief minister. The DM had also sent her report. It seems some people were working behind the scenes to get me suspended. The woman came to jail as her husband is lodged there in connection with a bank fraud case. She sent me messages and I replied. There is nothing objectionable about the messages. It is a conspiracy against me, Yadav said.

He added that he came to know about his suspension from the state administration.
Four days after four women were allegedly gang-raped and a man shot dead in the fields off Yamuna Expressway, while they were tavelling from Jewar to Bulandshahr, the mother of 40-year-old Shakeel, who was shot dead, suffered a mild heart attack.

The 70-year-old woman complained of breathlessness and fell unconscious. She was taken to a nearby hospital with the help of police and doctors referred her to a private hospital of cardiologist Dr SK Goel in Bulandshahr.

Family members said Shakeels mother was allegedly under a lot of trauma since the incident on early Thursday.

Around 5:30pm, when the male family members returned from prayers, the septuagenarian complained of uneasiness. She fell to the ground and was taken to a private hospital in Jewar.

However, doctors attending to her referred her to Bulandshahr. Family members said she was admitted for more than five hours and then discharged.

Doctors told family members that the woman had suffered a mild heart attack. Her condition is stable, family members said.

The family members, on Monday morning, had staged a protest at the office of subdivisional magistrate in Jewar, demanding the immediate arrest of the six highway robbers.

They gave a two-day ultimatum to the administration and the police for nabbing the culprits.

On Thursday, eight members of the family were travelling to Bulandshahr from Greater Noidas Jewar when they were waylaid by the six robbers around 1.30 am. The gang looted near Rs 50,000 in cash and valuables before allegedly raping the women and killing Shakeel who tried to fight them off.

Since the incident, the police have launched the man hunt, but no one has been arrested.
The family members and relatives of the four women, who were allegedly robbed and gang-raped off Yamuna Expressway while on their way to Bulandshahr last Thursday, protested against the delay in arresting the accused men.

A group of around 100 people took out a silent march through the internal roads of Jewar town on Monday and staged a protest at the office of the subdivisional magistrate.

Protesters said four days have passed since the incident and the police are yet to make headway in the case and nab the culprits.

A bread earner of a family was shot dead, the women were raped and men were robbed of money. This was a brutal incident and the police have not taken it seriously. We have been given assurances, but nothing has happened, a relative said.

The protest began at 10am and it continued till 4pm as they were waiting for a final assurance from the administration. Protesters raised slogans against the government and the police for not acting swiftly.

They also expressed resentment over the medical reports, which has ruled out rape, being made public. There was no need to disclose them before getting the final reports from a forensic laboratory in Lucknow, a relative said.

The disclosure of medical report has troubled the women in society and the government should look into it. Primary reports are not final and we consider the disclosure as a disrespect to women. The chief minister should see why this happened, another relative said.

On Sunday, Union minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi had said that she will order an inquiry to ascertain who conducted a press conference and revealed the findings of the preliminary medical report of the victim women.

The protesters on Monday also included elderly people in their demonstration and dispersed only after subdivisional magistrate Shubhi Singh Kakan and circle officer Jewar, Dileep Singh reached the spot.

Kakan said the police are also working on the case. However, protesters demanded that the police should make arrests within two days.

We have given the police a two-day ultimatum to arrest the culprits. If that does not happen, we will continue our protest in a larger way, a family member said.

Dileep Singh, circle officer, said, We cannot give any assurance on when the case will be solved. The relatives have been told that the police are already working on the case. Arrests cannot happen on the basis of ultimatums.

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Three months after the Aam Aadmi Partys (AAPs) rout in the Punjab assembly elections, Delhi chief minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal reached Amritsar on Monday and stressed the need for strengthening the partys organisational structure in the state.

The Delhi CM, who landed at the Amritsar airport in the morning and headed for the Golden Temple to pay obeisance, said the AAPs new Punjab unit will pacify the annoyed party workers and start an andolan (movement) against the Captain Amarinder Singh-led Congress government for its failure to fulfil the pre-poll promises.

Later, addressing party workers at a resort, Kejriwal said: More powers will be given to booth-level party workers, presidents of village-level committees in the new party setup. All party MLAs will be asked to redress party workers grievances on priority.

Capt should apologise

Amarinder had promised one job per family, farm debt waiver and even smartphones to the youth. But not even a single promise has been fulfilled to date, he said. Referring to recent school board results, Kejriwal said: Education level in the state is poor and farmers are still committing suicides.

Arvind Kejriwal addressing party workers in Amritsar on Monday. (Gurpreet Singh/HT)

Workers feel alienated: Khaira

Partys Bholath MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, who expressed displeasure when Bhagwant Mann was made the Punjab convener, said workers and volunteers were being ignored in taking important decisions within the party. We need to give grassroots workers more say in the decision-making process, said Khaira.

Indiscipline wont be tolerated: Mann

Addressing party workers, Mann said: Assembly poll results were not as per our expectations but we dont have to give up hope. We need to form a strong party structure again. I will meet disgruntled workers and bring them back into the party fold.

Warning that there was no room for indiscipline in the party, he said action would be taken against workers and leaders found posting wrong information about party on the social media.

Party MLAs, leader of Opposition in the Punjab assembly HS Phoolka and partys Punjab co-convener Aman Arora were also present. Meanwhile, Congress workers waived black flags as Kejriwals convoy as he was heading towards the private resort.

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A search operation was launched by the Punjab Police and the Army after an abandoned bag containing Army uniforms was found here, a police official said on Monday.

A jute bag containing army combat dresses was found abandoned on defence road at Mamoon Cantonment area in Pathankot, on Sunday evening. A passerby found the bag hidden in bushes along the defence road and informed about the matter to army.

The army officials later informed local police who opened it and found five shirts and two trousers of army uniform.

We conducted a search operation along with army officials here to look for any suspicious person, the official said.

Station house officer (SHO) Ravinder Mamoon said that the police and army are jointly investigating the matter.

The place where the bag was found is nearly three kilometres from army gates of Mamoon area. The police and security forces keep on patrolling the area after the attack on air base of Pathankot in which the security forces had gunned down four Pakistani militants

(With agency inputs)
Four of the seven CBSE Class 12 toppers belong to Bhavan Vidyalaya, Sector 27, Chandigarh.

Principal Vaneeta Arora says soon after the Central Board of Secondary Education results were declared on Sunday, she got a call from the CBSE headquarters to say that four of her students were among the top seven in the country.

For the past five years, the school has been making headlines as toppers in the commerce and humanities streams of the tricity of Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali are invariably from Bhavans.

COMMERCE COUNT

The school shot to fame in 2012 when Navya Singla became the all-India topper with 98% in the commerce stream. This year, two students, Aditya Jain and Mannat Luthra, are jointly ranked third in the country with 99.2%. Saurabh Gupta and Sanat Goel with 99%, also in commerce, are ranked fourth in the country across all streams and second in commerce. This year, the class average of commerce has been 93.5%, while in 2016 it was 90.2%.

In 2016, the school surprisingly missed out among toppers in commerce. In 2015, Kanksha Malhotra was the tricity commerce topper with 97.8% and in 2014 all three tricity toppers of commerce, Sumedha Arora (97.8%), Rishab Goyal (97.6%) and Kshitej Mendiratta (97.4%) were from Bhavan Vidyalaya.

In 2013 also, the top two positions were from the school in commerce.

ART OF SCORING

Kritika Chaudhary and Pragati Sharma are tricity humanities toppers with 98.2%. The class average is 91.7%, while last year it was 91.3%.

In 2016, Anushka and Sonakshi Bhushan were tricity toppers with 98% marks and in 2015, Tript Kaur with 98.8% was second in the country. School students missed top slots in 2014.

In 2013, Bhavya Kumar and Natasha were second in the tricity with 96%, while in 2012 Pallavi Sharma with 96% was first in the tricity. In the science stream, the school produced the topper in 2015 when Ayushi Sood topped the tricity with 96.6 % in the medical stream.

ENTRANCE TEST TO CLASS 11

The school has been attracting the best in commerce and humanities streams from other schools in the tricity. Since the CGPA (Cumulative Grade Points Average) arrived, we started taking an entrance test for students seeking admission in Class 11 as Class 10 results are getting manipulated. One schools CGPA may not equivalent to that of the other. It is true that the cream from among students from other schools come here, principal Arora says.

This years commerce toppers Aditya and Mannat joined Bhavans in Class 11 but Sanat and Saurabh have been studying here since primary school. It should be seen why we attract the best talent she said.

Arora, a commerce teacher who took over as principal nine years ago, says the average class percentage has risen in humanities and commerce. Asked why students from the school were not among toppers in medical and non-medical streams, she said, Thats because we dont allow dummy admissions. Most of our students leave after Class 10 if they are pursuing the medical or non-medical stream. They have to prepare for entrance tests.

We involve students, teachers and parents to get good results. We are known to be school that is strict about attendance and discipline, the principal said. Aditya Jain, who scored 99% and is nations second topper in commerce . It is not a faulty perception that the school attracts the best talent. Here you get to know where you stand. Every student has a dream of either pursuing law or CA.

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Superstar Rajinikanths next film, Kaala, with Kabali director Pa. Ranjith, went on the floors on Sunday in Mumbai where it will be shot non-stop for next 40 days.

Rajinikanth plays a Tamil migrant in Mumbai in the film.

We have exclusively learnt that the project will be made in Tamil as well as Hindi, and it will feature some dialogues in Marathi too. It is believed that the film will revolve around south Indians, especially Tamilians in Mumbai and their fight for equality.

Rajinikanth on sets of Kaala.

Kaala is a colloquial word used to insult south Indians, especially used to target their race. The film will have music by Santhosh Narayanan and National award-winning editor Sreekar Prasad is part of the project.

Rajinikanth views his shots on day one of Kaala shoot.

Since the film will be predominantly shot against the backdrop of Mumbai, the makers decided to simultaneously shoot the film in Hindi. If not every scene, those featuring Rajinikanth and some key supporting cast will be shot in Hindi. Unlike Kabali, the film wont be dubbed in Hindi, and Rajinikanth is expected to mouth his lines in Hindi and in Marathi in some key junctures, a source from the films unit told Hindustan Times.

The makers on Sunday confirmed that Huma Qureshi plays the leading lady, while popular Bollywood star Nana Patekar will be seen in a key role.

The film will also stars Anjali Patil, Sayaji Shinde, Samuthirakani and Sakshi Aggarwal in supporting roles. Tipped to be another gangster saga, the film is being produced by Dhanush.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

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Andrew Scheer, a social conservative who unexpectedly won the race to head Canadas main opposition party, is a popular legislator who may be able to unite a divided movement as he prepares to take on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The low-profile 38-year-old former speaker of the House of Commons was elected leader of the right-leaning Conservatives on Saturday after 13 ballots, beating ex-foreign minister Maxime Bernier by just two percentage points.

Andrew Who? said a front-page headline in Sundays Toronto Star, reflecting widespread surprise at the outcome.

The tight election reflects a split between members who want to debate abortion and same-sex marriage -- which are legal in Canada -- and those who prefer to focus on fiscal issues.

Theres some common ground between libertarians and fiscal conservatives and foreign affairs conservatives. So my job is to find the very best of all of that, Scheer told CTV television on Sunday.

Scheer is well-liked inside the party and should benefit from four years as House speaker, a job that requires good relations with all parliamentarians, said Kathy Brock, political science professor at Queens University in Kingston.

Hes young, hes dynamic, he knows how to work with people, having been Speaker, so thats a good result for the Conservatives. They have got a nice alternative to Trudeau, she said in a phone interview.

Canada's Prime Minster Justin Trudeau looks on as he visit the town of Amatrice, which was levelled after an earthquake last year, in central Italy. (Reuters File Photo)

Influential Conservative Jason Kenney praised Scheer, calling him truly one of the nicest, most decent, and genuine people I know, a sign that party leaders are rallying behind Scheer.

The result marked another setback for populists who hoped their popularity was on the rise around the globe after Republican Donald Trump won last years US presidential election.

Hard line Conservative leadership contenders -- including one who proposed would-be immigrants pass a Canadian values test -- did poorly. That follows losses of far-right populist candidates in France and the Netherlands.

Canadians have always been more receptive by a significant degree than Americans to immigration, said Brock.

Scheer, who like the 45-year-old Trudeau smiles a lot and has a young family, must now prepare for an election in October 2019.

Although he will inherit a fund-raising machine that generates twice as much money as the Liberals, a Nanos Research survey last week gave the Liberals a massive 14-point lead.

Its not enough for the Conservatives just to elect a leader that could turn things around for them. They actually need the Liberals to make mistakes in order to move the numbers, pollster Nik Nanos said in a phone interview.

Still, Nanos predicted that Scheer is well positioned for the battle, saying he could take on the role of a common man challenging a celebrity politician.

The Conservatives need to pull together a credible economic plan to demonstrate that they can beat Trudeaus Liberals, who are running much larger budget deficits than promised, analysts said.

Scheer has vowed to eliminate the shortfall in two years, without giving many details.

One challenge he faces is that he is promoting policies similar to those of former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, a dour politician who lost power in 2015 in part thanks to voter weariness with his combative stance.

Canadas steadily recovering from a prolonged shock caused by the slump in prices of crude oil, a major Canadian export.

Scheers economic agenda includes tax cuts and opposition to Trudeaus plans for a national carbon price.

Scheer praised Harper, who frustrated social conservatives by shutting down discussion of abortion and same-sex marriage.

The new leader says he will not formally reopen the debate on abortion, though he believes parliamentarians have the right to speak out on all issues.

The challenge now, and something Ill be working very, very hard on, is to express our positions in a way that resonates with a larger (number) of Canadians, he told reporters on Saturday.
Indias alleged support to separatist forces in Pakistans Balochistan province, its diplomatic offensive against Islamabad and involvement in Chabahar port of Iran are factors that could impact the development of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a report sanctioned by the Chinese government has said.

Indias strategic closeness with Afghanistan too is destabilising the border areas of Pakistan and creating problems for CPEC, the report contended.

The CPEC, which is expected to connect Kashgar in China with Gwadar port southwestern Pakistan through a network of roads, railway lines, oil and gas pipelines and fibre-optic cables, is the flagship project under President Xi Jinpings Belt and Road Initiative.

India has repeatedly raised its concerns about the project with China because the corridor passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Referring to the case of Kulbhushan Jadhav, an Indian national who Pakistan says was apprehended in Baloshistan province, the report compiled by scholars from Renmin University said: Apart from formally pressurising (Pakistan), India with friends and in secret supported the Balochistan separatist movement in an attempt to divert the limited military strength of Pakistan towards the western side.

It added, Kulbhushan Jadhavs code name was monkey. The target of his activities are: Penetrate Balochistan National Party, deliberately increase the dispute within Pakistan on CPEC, being in contact with Balochistan separatist group and terrorist groups, aiding terror activities and providing combat training to traitor groups.

Scholars from Renmin Universitys Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies and Caijing magazine put together the report after a two-week field trip to CPEC sites, including Gwadar port and Bin Qasim coal-fired power plant.

India is most anxious about the construction of the CPEC and the opening and operation of the Gwadar port by China, the report said.

India thinks the CPEC and a strong Pakistan are huge threat to the security of India. Not only will the Chinese military forces come up on the north, east and west of India but also that Pakistan may completely cut off India from the channels to get oil and natural gas from the Persian Gulf and central Asia, the report in Chinese argued.

It claimed India was buying poor refugees from Afghanistan with money and training them in terror activities. They are a huge threat to the internal stability of Pakistan, it added.

The report also contended that Indias cooperation with Iran to develop Chabahar port was aimed at countering the CPEC.

Indias policy in dealing with Pakistan is not just limited to being destructive on the face. At the end of May (last year), Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Iran and it had an important outcome. India will undertake constructions worth $50 billion in the Chabahar port of Sistan-Balochistan province in southeast Iran, it said.

The report argued that compared to Chabahar port, Gwadar would evolve into a better port as bigger ships will be able to dock there and because of natural mountainous protection from hurricanes.

But Chabahar port is not without any merit. The infrastructure within Iran is far better than in Pakistan. It can easily connect to the water and electricity network of the country. It only needs investment and construction; then it can be easily connected to the transport network within Iran, it said.
Frances new President Emmanuel Macron was to host Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday in the latest test of his diplomatic mettle after vowing firm stands on Ukraine and Syria.

It is essential to talk to Russia because there are many international issues that will not be resolved without a tough exchange with the Russians, Macron said at the G7 summit in Sicily which wound up on Saturday.

The 39-year-old centrist leaders meeting with Putin, 64, caps a whirlwind of diplomacy including the G7 talks as well as last weeks NATO summit in Brussels.

He told a French weekly that he was not bothered by leaders who think in terms of power ratios, citing Putin as an example along with US President Donald Trump.

But Macron, who became Frances youngest president just three weeks ago, said he does not believe in the diplomacy of public invective but in bilateral dialogue.

As a candidate, Macron had tough words for Russia, accusing it of following a hybrid strategy combining military intimidation and an information war.

Since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2014, Russia has flexed its muscles with a series of war games involving tens of thousands of troops in areas bordering NATO Baltic states.

Not a single concession

In Sicily on Saturday, Macron said he would make not a single concession to Russia on Ukraine as he and his G7 counterparts said they were prepared to strengthen sanctions against Moscow.

Western powers charge Russia with failing to honour its commitments under the Minsk accords framework for establishing a cessation of hostilities between Kiev forces and Moscow-backed separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

France helped spearhead the sanctions, which have seriously dented EU-Russia trade, with a retaliatory Russian embargo on European agricultural products hurting French farmers.

The Syrian conflict will also be high on the agenda, with Macron saying he was in favour of building an inclusive political solution in a much more collective way.

He regretted that none of the G7 states is party to Syria peace talks under way in the Kazakh capital Astana initiated by Russia, Iran and Turkey, although there are US observers.

Separate UN-backed negotiations have become down in Geneva over the six-year-old Syrian conflict.

Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov told a Moscow news briefing that he expected an interesting and frank discussion on Syria.

France is among the countries with a very severe stance towards the regime of (Syrian President) Bashar al-Assad, he said.

Coming so soon after an election in which the Kremlin was widely seen as backing Macrons far-right rival Marine Le Pen -- with Putin hosting her during a surprise visit to Moscow -- the encounter in Versailles, near Paris, will have an added personal edge.

Putin was quick to congratulate Macron on his election, urging him to overcome mutual distrust and join forces to ensure international stability and security.

Pragmatic

The visit comes seven months after the Russian leader cancelled a trip to Paris for the opening of a Russian cathedral complex near the Eiffel Tower in a spat over Syria with then president Francois Hollande, who had said Russias bombing of Aleppo could amount to war crimes.

The venue will be the sumptuous palace of Versailles, where the pair will inaugurate an exhibition marking 300 years of Franco-Russian ties since the visit of Russias modernising tsar Peter the Great to France in 1717.

After the talks and a joint news conference, Putin will visit the Paris Orthodox cathedral complex on his own.

On the eve of Putins visit, central and eastern European activists staged a small anti-Putin demonstration in Paris.

We are counting on Macron not to fall into Putins trap, Anne-Marie Goussard, who heads a Franco-Lithuanian umbrella grouping, told AFP.
Days after a bomb ripped through the Manchester Arena, locals take their seats at a comedy club where British humour is helping people cope with the aftermath of the terror attack.

Its important to have a bit of humour when youre dealing with real-life stress and challenging events, because it helps people deal with it in a way, its like a coping mechanism, said Cate Gardner, who had come to the Frog and Bucket comedy club to celebrate her birthday.

Instead of crying, its better to laugh in a way, because you just sort of get through it, and you help others get through it and its how you move forward, she told AFP, while at the bar people bought jugs of beer as they waited for comedians to hit the stage.

Humour made a cautious appearance just hours after the attack, as poet Tony Walsh spoke of Manchesters habits and great history at a vigil held in the citys Albert Square.

Hushed laughter broke the silence of the crowd, which was followed by huge applause at the end of the poem.

David Perkin, director of the Frog and Bucket, said humour had for generations been sought as a way to soften problems.

British humour will always respond to anything, whether its a good thing or a bad thing, he told AFP.

It always has been so, back to the humour of the First World War, the Second World War, theres always been jokes.

Perkin recalled crowds arriving at the clubs previous venue in the wake of the 1996 Irish Republican Army bomb which injured more than 200 people in Manchester.

The Frog reopened on the Monday night and people were queueing to get in to hear the comedians take the mick about the IRA bomb.

British Threat Levels

The attack at a concert by US pop star Ariana Grande on Monday last week killed 22 people and left more than 100 injured, prompting British Prime Minister Theresa May to raise the countrys threat level to critical.

The move was met with jest on Twitter, with social media users adopting the hashtag British Threat Levels to describe the moments that would really terrify them.

Eye contact on the Tube, wrote one user of etiquette on the London underground.

Were British. I dont get scared until the threat level hits Replacement Bus Service, wrote another in reference to train travel disruptions.

Satirical website The Daily Mash joked about the prime ministers decision to have the army take on police work, by quoting a fictional serviceman.

Soldier Tom Logan said: I have no experience of investigating break-ins, so what Ill probably do is point my gun at people and ask them if they did it, the website wrote.

For those at the comedy club over the weekend, jokes were seen as a way of helping the nation come to terms with its worst terror attack in more than a decade.

No matter what goes on in life, I think its always good to lighten things and just enjoy laughter and enjoy your life, said Christian Bajda, at the Frog and Bucket with friends.

Humour will always win

Although the audience was determined to enjoy their night despite the ongoing terror investigation, jokes about the attack would not be heard on stage.

There is a timescale and certainly a period where something is so raw, and so emotive, that you cant touch it really, said comedian Steve Royle ahead of his performance.

Perkin agreed it would be some time before audiences would be ready to laugh about the attack.

I can remember when Princess Diana died, it was really quite a while before people could really see a lighter side to things that have happened, he said.

It will take time, but they will find the good northern backbone to take the mick out of something thats happened.

When comics do eventually turn their attention to the bombing, Perkin said they would steer clear of the attacker Salman Abedi and the victims: It will be more about peoples reactions and how they can find the humour in that and seeing the good side out of a terrible situation.

Royle pointed to the 2010 film Four Lions, a dark comedy about a group of British would-be jihadists, as one example of how jokes can be made about terrorism.

With the bombing kept off the script at the Manchester comedy club, the audience chatted excitedly as they awaited the first jokes of the night.

Theres been many disasters suffered by this great city, but the humour will always win out in the end, said Perkin.
Members of Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedis network are still potentially at large, British interior minister Amber Rudd said on Sunday, after the terrorism threat level was lowered because of significant progress in the investigation.

Police said they have arrested a large part of the network behind the bombing, which killed 22 people at a concert hall, and four more men were arrested over the weekend as police continued to close in on the group.

Asked during an interview on BBC television whether some of the group were still at large, Rudd said: Potentially. It is an ongoing operation. There are 11 people in custody, the operation is still really at full tilt in a way.

Greater Manchester Police said on Sunday they had arrested a 25-year-old man and a 19-year-old man on suspicion of terrorism offences, taking the total number of people arrested in connection with the attack to 15.

Prime Minister Theresa May said developments in the investigation into the bombing meant that intelligence experts had decided to lower the threat level from its highest rating critical, meaning an attack could be imminent, to severe.

Police officers guard the entrance to a street in the Moss Side area of Manchester on May 28, 2017 during an operation. (AFP photo/ John Super)

Police have issued a photograph of Abedi, a 22-year-old Briton born to Libyan parents, taken on Monday night before he blew himself up and said they believed he had assembled his bomb in an apartment in the city centre.

British officials have confirmed he had recently returned from Libya and the officers said that police needed information about his movements since his return to Britain on May 18.

Abedi was known to British security services before the bombing, the government has said, but Rudd declined to comment on exactly what had been known about him.

Media have reported that people who knew Abedi had raised concerns about him and his views as long ago as five years before he carried about Mondays attack.

The intelligence services are still collecting information about him, but I wouldnt rush to conclusions, as you seem to be, that they have somehow missed something, Rudd said.

TOP LIST OF MILITANTS

When asked how many potential militants the government was worried about, Rudd said the security services were looking at 500 different potential plots, involving 3,000 people as a top list, with a further 20,000 beneath that.

That is all different layers, different tiers. It might be just a question mark about one of them or something serious with that top list, she said.

The government has previously complained that technology companies are not doing enough to tackle the use of their networks both to promote extremist ideology and for communication between militant suspects via encrypted messages.

Rudd said Britain was making good progress with internet companies on this but that more could be done. Technology companies such as WhatsApp say they cannot break end-to-end encryption.

I believe we can get them to be more successful in working with us to find a way of getting some of that information, she said.

The area that I am most concerned about is the internet companies who are continuing to publish the hate publications, the hate material that is contributing to radicalising people in this country.

Security minister Ben Wallace also told the BBC that the government was looking at a range of options to put more pressure on internet companies to take down extremist material and change their algorithms to stop such posts from linking to similar material elsewhere online.
The Nepal government on Monday deferred the second phase of elections to local bodies by nine days to June 23 to ensure the participation of agitating Madhes-based parties.

According to a cabinet decision, some electoral provisions will be amended speedily in line with the demands of the Madhesi parties so that they can register and get their election symbols.

But the government was silent on two key demands of the Madhesi parties  amendments in the new Constitution to make it more Madhes-friendly and inclusive, and increasing the numbers of local government units in the plains known as Terai.

After repeatedly failing to amend the Constitution, the government decided to add 22 more local units in the Terai region, a move subsequently stayed by the Supreme Court.

As their demands remain unfulfilled, it is still unclear if the Madhes-based parties will join the polls on June 23.

The cabinet also decided to request the Supreme Court to vacate its interim order against the government's decision to increase the local government units.

It was expected that increasing local administrative units in line with the population ratio would encourage the Madhes-based parties to join the polls, being held after two decades.

In its stay order on May 26, the apex court said the number and boundaries of local units cannot be revised after the announcement of the election date according to Clause 4 of the Local Level Election Act 2017.

The courts decision further angered Madesh-based parties that recently formed the Rashtriya Janata Party-Nepal (RJP-N), which was already enraged by the election commission's refusal to register it to participate in the local elections and provide it with an election symbol.

On Sunday, during a meeting between ruling and opposition parties and RJP-N , caretaker Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda proposed deferring the polls.

The Sanghiya Gathabandhan, a unified group of six Madhes-based parties led by RJP-N, had announced various protest programmes aimed at foiling the June 14 elections. The alliance had been pressing the government to defer the date for the second phase of polls.

With the first round successfully held on May 14, clouds of uncertainty were hanging over the second phase to be held in 41 districts of four provinces.
North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile that landed in Japans maritime economic zone Monday, officials said, in the latest in a string of test launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can reach the US mainland.

The suspected Scud-type missile launched from the coastal town of Wonsan flew about 450 kilometers (280 miles), the Souths Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. It landed in Japans exclusive maritime economic zone, which is set about 200 nautical miles off the Japanese coast, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said. He said there was no report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.

North Korea is still thought to be several years from its goal of being able to target US mainland cities with a nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile. It has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that could hit Japan and South Korea as well as US forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.

North Koreas state-controlled media had no immediate comment. But a day earlier, the North said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. It wasnt clear from the state media report when the test happened.

Kim found that the weapon systems ability to detect and track targets had remarkably improved and was more accurate, according to the official Korean Central News Agency. KCNA cited Kim as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system all over the country so as to completely spoil the enemys wild dream to command the air.

The Norths nuclear and missile programs are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in Washington and Seoul.

President Donald Trump has alternated between bellicosity and flattery in his public statements about North Korea, but his administration is still working to solidify a policy to handle its nuclear ambitions.

Mondays launch was the third ballistic missile launch by North Korea since South Koreas President Moon Jae-in was inaugurated on May 10. He has signalled an interest in expanding civilian exchange with North Korea, but many analysts say he wont likely push for any major rapprochement because North Korea has gone too far in developing its nuclear program.

Moon called a National Security Council meeting Monday morning to discuss the Norths launch. In a separate statement, South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff warned North Koreas repeated provocation would further deepen its international isolation.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who just returned from a G7 meeting in Italy, told reporters that North Koreas provocation by ignoring repeated warnings from the international society is absolutely unacceptable.

The US Pacific Command said in a statement that it tracked a short-range missile for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan.

Suga, the Japanese cabinet secretary, told reporters that the missile fell about 300 kilometers (190 miles) north of the Oki islands in southwestern Japan and 500 kilometers (310 miles) west of Sado island in central Japan.

Suga said Japanese officials will discuss North Korea with a senior foreign policy adviser to Chinese President Xi Jinping, Yang Jiechi, who is scheduled to visit Japan later Monday. He said China has been increasingly stepping up and using its influence over North Korea and that the two sides will thoroughly discuss the situation.

Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, the North carried out two nuclear tests last year - in January and September. Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of the Norths secretive weapons program is unknown.

Despite the missile launches, South Korea under Moon has made tentative steps toward engaging the North by restarting stalled civilian aid and exchange programs. It said last week it would allow a civic group to contact North Korea about potentially offering help in treating malaria, the first government approval on cross-border civilian exchanges since January 2016.

___

AP journalists Mari Yamaguchi and Kaori Hitomi contributed to this report from Tokyo.
Russia condemned on Monday the latest missile launches conducted by North Korea, while calling the world community for restraint, RIA news agency quoted a deputy Russian foreign minister as saying.

We are at the same time calling on the partners with whom we are working to show restraint, including towards military activity in this region, the agency quoted Vladimir Titov as saying.

North Korea fired at least one short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast, the latest in a fast-paced series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions.
Rescuers in Sri Lanka pulled out on Monday more bodies buried in the mudslides that were triggered by the countrys worst torrential rains in 14 years, taking the death toll to 164.

The Disaster Management Centre (DMC) said 104 people are still missing while 88 remain in hospital. The incessant rains experienced since Thursday night have driven nearly half a million people out of their inundated homes in the southern and western regions.

Police said a Sri Lankan Airforce helicopter (SLAF) MI-17 carrying relief aid for flood victims crashed in the southern Galle district, the worst hit of the 14 districts by flash floods and earth slips in the ongoing monsoon rains, while carrying out relief operations in the flood-stricken areas.

There were no casualties and Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena telephoned the Squadron Leader Bhanuka Delgoda, the pilot of the MI-17 to congratulate him for his bravery.

The pilot lost control of the helicopter due to bad weather and crashed into woods, police said.

On Saturday, a Lanka Air Force airman, Y M S Yaparatne, 37, died while carrying out relief operations in the Galle district as he fell off from the helicopter.

More rains are expected in the next two days as the depression in the east central Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm MORA and is now moving away from the island, it said.

Flood waters were receding in the worst-affected districts of Ratnapura and Kalutara but the authorities said cleaning up operations could take weeks.

Some 412 houses were fully damaged with over 4,200 houses suffering partial damage. Some 471,000 people remain displaced while over 75,000 people are currently being housed in over 330 temporary relief accommodation.

Following Indias lead in sending out emergency relief to Sri Lanka, more countries have started pledging assistance to provide relief to the flood victims.

China will donate relief items worth $2.2 million.

The relief goods, to be dispatched to Colombo by a chartered flight soon, include tents, blankets, sheets, rain boots and life jackets.

The second Indian relief ship, INS Shardul arrived at Colombo Port on Sunday. It has nearly 200 personnel on board, including specialised rescue, diving and medical teams, as well as a large amount of relief material and Gemini inflatable boats.

The first ship, INS Kirch reached Colombo on May 27. The 40 tonnes of relief materials on board INS Shardul included rice, atta (flour), dal, sugar, bed sheets, blankets, durries, rain coats, milk, biscuits, etc.

The rescue, diving and medical teams on board will work in coordination with the Sri Lankan Navy and other authorities, and are now being deployed in the worst affected areas, particularly Ratnapura and Horana.

A third Indian naval Ship, INS Jalashwa, with additional relief materials, is expected to reach Colombo soon.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang sent condolence messages to President Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe respectively on the loss of the lives and property in floods and landslides caused by heavy rain.

The flooding was the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful Southwest monsoon, officials had said.

Sri Lanka, which has been heavily deforested for cash crops, often witnesses landslides during the monsoon season.
A 19-year-old Sri Lankan woman on Monday gave birth to a stillborn baby on board a helicopter minutes after being rescued in the flood-hit southwestern region.

The woman was rushed to a nearby hospital where her condition was under control, rescue officials said.

She went into labour minutes after being airlifted to safety from Ratnapura district, which is one of the worst flood-hit areas in the country.

At least 177 people have been killed and 104 others missing in the island nations worst torrential rains in 14 years. The death toll is expected to rise further, according to the Disaster Management Centre.

Some 412 houses were fully damaged with over 4,200 houses suffering partial damage. Some 471,000 people remain displaced while over 75,000 people are currently being housed in over 330 temporary relief accommodation.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful Southwest monsoon, officials had said.

Sri Lanka, which has been heavily deforested for cash crops, often witnesses landslides during the monsoon season.
The story of a young Hindu man who joined the Pakistan Army and was killed in the line of duty earlier this month has gone viral on social media.

Lance Naik Lal Chand Rabari, 27, was an emotional young man who breathed his last while serving on the Mangla front near Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. While he died on active duty, the exact circumstances of his death could not immediately be ascertained.

Lal Chand, a resident of Ismail Khan Nautkani village in Badin district of Sindh province, was the fifth of 11 children of a poor shepherd father and a farmer mother. Bhemon Rabari, his elder brother, said Lal Chand earlier served in the Waziristan tribal region, where he desired to crush militants who had caused damage and inflicted losses on the country.

Lal Chand Rabari We salute you. You are our hero. Hindu soldier died in defence of Pakistan https://t.co/g7G1xdklh6 pic.twitter.com/ZQRSDihyqa pic.twitter.com/QrggjQ9Vzg  Ch.Nasir Mahmood (@nasirmahmood27) May 29, 2017

I would take revenge for every drop of blood from those who have inflicted loss to the children and people of our country, Lal Chand said when he returned from his posting in Waziristan.

After passing the matriculation examination in 2009, Lal Chand went to Badin from his village without informing his family and applied to join the army. He graduated while serving in the army.

Lal Chand used to encourage his two younger brothers, currently studying in class 11 and class 7, to join the army. The country we are living in is like our home and whosoever would attack it would have to face serious retaliation till the last breath in my body, he had reportedly said.

Lal Chand Rabari sacrifices his life defending nation against extremists.Soldiers & their families deserve our support, love & respect. #RIP pic.twitter.com/hQsKsb79kB  Munaza Hassan (@MunazaHassan) May 20, 2017

Referring to the familys lineage, Bhemon said members of his clan are always ready to fight the enemy, whosoever they may be, until the last drop of blood as they are Rajputs.

Our mother is all set to sacrifice her sons and grandsons in defending the country and has no remorse for losing her son while defending its boundaries, Bhemon said, quoting his elderly mother.
While President Donald Trumps travel ban has been stuck in courts, the number of non-immigrant visas being issued by the United States to citizens of Muslim-majority countries has been generally declining  including to those in Pakistan, according to some calculations.

As first reported by Pakistans The News, the drop was an estimated 40% for Pakistan in the months of March and April this year compared to the unweighted annualised average for 2016, not taking into account traditional seasonal surges such as summer months, other breaks and holidays.

Numbers were up by an estimated 28% for India, by the same calculation.

US news site Politico had first used this model to report a 20% decline in the number of non-immigrant visa issues to citizens of nearly 50 Muslim-majority countries, not factoring in seasonal surges pointed out by the state department and experts.

An apple-to-apple, month-on-month comparison  April 2017 and April 2016 or 2015, for instance  could not be done as the monthly breakdown for 2016 and preceding years could not be obtained immediately by Hindustan Times.

It was also not clear if the drop was because of visa refusal or fewer applicants or both  travel and immigration experts have noted a general decline in travel to the United States in recent months. The rate of refusal of B visas  the most popular short-stay US visa for tourism and business  for Pakistan was 46.43% in 2016; it was 26.02% for India.

Trumps March executive order remains stuck in court, with an appeals court upholding a stay on it last week, despite it being narrower in scope compared to the first one that he issued in January. The administration plans to go to the Supreme Court.

The new order suspends the issuance of new visas to citizens of Syria, Iran, Yemen, Libya, Somalia and Sudan (Iraq figured in the first order but was dropped from the second); and the entry of all refugees, and not only from Muslim-majority countries.

Pakistan is not in that list, but it seems to have suffered a decline according to a calculation of the state department data by Pakistans The News, which used the same formula to first report the 40% drop in non-immigrant visas to Pakistanis  to 3,925 in April and 3,973 March from the unweighted annualised average of 6,553 in 2016 (total 78,637).

A state department spokesperson told Politico: Visa demand is cyclical, not uniform throughout the year, and affected by various factors at the local and international level. Visa issuance numbers tend to increase during peak travel seasons, such as during the summer and the winter holidays, though there may be different trends at the country, nationality, or visa-category level..
Nancy Vasquez left the turmoil in her native El Salvador behind and moved to the US, where she was able to support her family, buy a house and start a food-truck business catering to workers on the outskirts of Washington thanks to a temporary residency permit that has lasted for nearly 20 years.

But the seemingly stable life that Vasquez and several hundred thousand others have built under that legal residency program now appears to be on shaky ground.

Immigrants and their supporters fear President Donald Trumps skepticism about immigration means he will take a harder line than his predecessors on a program that began as a humanitarian gesture to temporarily defer deportations of people from countries that were considered too fragile to take them back  especially Central American nations devastated by war or natural disasters.

Vasquez said she is thinking about how she would sell her property and move back home. She also wonders what she would do with her 11-year-old daughter, a US citizen by birth.

Imagine what would happen, she said in an interview in Rockville, Maryland, after a day of driving her food truck to construction sites. We would be left with no protection. We would be totally defenceless.

Noe Duarte, a 40-year-old Salvadoran landscaper in the Washington area, said he recently cancelled a trip home for a family reunion because he wasnt sure he would be able to get back to the US and worries he would have to be a subsistence farmer back home. If they dont renew it, everything will come crashing down, he said.

Many see an ominous sign in the Department of Homeland Securitys May 22 decision to grant only a six-month extension of temporary protected status for nearly 60,000 Haitians instead of the standard 18 months.

The administration said it needed more time to decide whether Haiti had sufficiently recovered from its devastating 2010 earthquake. But officials suggested Haitians in the program should get their affairs in order so they would be ready to return home.

As for Central Americans, the department said, Homeland Security Secretary John F Kelly would review conditions and consult with appropriate agencies as the expiration date approaches next year. Each country is considered individually, on a case-by-case basis, it said in a written statement.

Critics argue that renewal has come to seem automatic, encouraging illegal immigration and violating the spirit of what was originally a temporary program to protect people fleeing Central Americas civil wars of past decades. After some interruptions, it was renewed and extended to cover natural disasters.

Immigrants from Honduras and Nicaragua were covered in 1999 due to the destruction from Hurricane Mitch a year earlier. El Salvador was added in 2001 after a series of earthquakes. Citizens of those three countries now make up 80 percent of the 435,000 people from 10 nations with TPS. Their status has been renewed every 18 months as other countries, including Rwanda, Kuwait and Lebanon, have come and gone from the list.

The program covers only people who were in the US, legally or otherwise, at the time their countries were included by presidential decree. Thats about 10 percent of the Central American-born population in the US now. Those who arrived after the TPS decrees arent protected.

A bill introduced in Congress would require the Senate and House of Representatives to approve any extensions of TPS, meaning it would no longer be a unilateral decision by the executive branch. As it stands now, the system is haphazard and has created the expectation that people will be allowed to stay, said Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

This idea that they should be indefinitely strung along is absurd, Krikorian said. Its no way to run an immigration system.

Governments of nations covered by the plan devote much of their relationship with Washington lobbying to extend it. Both they and previous policymakers in Washington have feared that a mass return of citizens would cause economic and social chaos by hitting a crucial source of foreign income, remittances from workers abroad, while flooding impoverished countries with jobless people.

The biggest negative impact would be for our countries because of those remittances, said Vasquez, a 47-year-old who originally came to the US on a tourist visa in 1999 and stayed when she got TPS. They are going to miss that money.

Advocates of extending the program say it would be cruel to disrupt families that are now firmly established in the US while conditions in their homelands remain troubled.

We are talking about people who have created new lives and have done everything within the legal system to stay here, said Julio Calderon, an immigration activist from Honduras who lives in South Florida and whose parents have TPS. Taking the status away from Haitians, even as conditions there remain difficult, would set a precedent, he said. This is why Im scared.

Immigrant advocates also say those sent back to Honduras and El Salvador could be exposed to horrific gang violence, which has driven recent waves of migrants who arent covered by TPS.

The head of DHS recently commented on the fact that the gangs are like terrorist organizations, said Anne Pilsbury, director of Central American Legal Assistance in New York. So one would hope that they wouldnt want to send people back to a country with terrorists.

Cecilia Menjvar, a University of Kansas sociology professor who has conducted of surveys of people with the status, said 90 percent of people on TPS are in the labor force and many have started businesses. They will do whatever they can to pay taxes because that shows the government that they are good people, she said. They will find ways to pay taxes even if they are self-employed. They want to show that they are contributing.

People in TPS arent eligible for public benefits, must pay taxes and undergo background checks when they submit renewal applications.

Duarte, a stocky man who came to the US through the Arizona desert in 2000, said the program has enabled him to earn as much as $39 an hour. Back home, there is nothing for me. I would have to go back to farming, he said at a McDonalds in Silver Spring, Maryland, after a day planting trees.

Vasquez said that if sent home, she would find a way to make it, but thinks the US would be better off to let her family stay. There are many of us here and we do a lot for this country.
North Korea was linked to the WannaCry Ransomware cyber-attack which wreaked havoc to many countries across the globe. Some cyber security experts analyzed the case and concluded that the Asian country was the one behind the attack.

In the said report, a former head of the US Department of Homeland Security just claimed that North Korea is the culprit behind the WannaCry Ransomware attack. With this, The Guardian reported that the allies of the Pyongyang regime were the top suspects for the said hacking.

When the WannaCry Ransomware virus attacked most countries in Europe, the health service's administration system in the UK was hacked. Apart from this, many countries across the globe also experienced failure in state infrastructures.

It can be recalled that the WannaCry Ransomware threatened most business establishments including offices around the world. However, the attack did not last long as a cyber-security expert based in the UK was able to determine the origin of the said computer virus.

Meanwhile, an expert in global cybercrime and terrorism said the North Korea may be the suspect behind this WannaCry Ransomware. The claims also added that this is because the country does not take part in financial systems with other countries around the globe.

With this, there was a doubt as to how North Korea can support its regime if the country lacks financial aid. As a result, the country will engage in committing a crime on an international scale like theft, human trafficking, smuggling goods, and even drugs. Moreover, it will no longer be surprising if they will try to generate and gain money by extortion and then participating in this WannaCry Ransomware.

It was also reported on The Daily Star that North Korea is more likely to be involved in the Ransomware attack than the Russians. The report also revealed that the technical details used in the WannaCry code were similar to the latest hack which also linked to North Korea, particularly Pyongyang.

Besides, North Korea doesn't really have a legitimate trade that's why they engage in this kind of extortion, unlike the Russians which have their own stable economy. As the country is being caught in the nuclear testing issue these days, North Korea is again considered the reason behind the WannaCry Ransomware attack.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The United States through President Donald Trump administration is expected to extend and expand its laptop ban to all international flights including Europe. Moreover, apart from the expansion of the said ban, authorities will also conduct a tighter screening of carry-ons in airports.

As part of the possible security threats that the U.S. might encounter, the country will ban laptops from cabins on all flights going in and out of the country. This was confirmed by the country's Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly following series of terrorists' threats across the globe.

It can be recalled that the U.S. government already implemented a ban on large electronic devices in aircraft cabins most especially if these are U.S. carriers. With the latest report from The Guardian, the Trump administration is planning to raise the bar when it comes to the security in airlines and particularly if the airline carrier is full of Americans.

Reports also claimed before that the United Sates already imposed a restriction on laptops and other big digital devices on flights from 10 airports. These airports included Qatar, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirate which are predominantly countries in the Middle East.

Though the timing of the said laptop ban has not been revealed, the U.S. government claimed that this is part of a larger and tighter airline security effort to fight terrorism and other forms of threat. What is for sure at the moment is that the standard for the security and the laptop ban will be raised.

However, even if this laptop ban can contribute substantially in preventing threats and terrorism, still CNN reported that some airline companies fear that this will affect their customer demands. But they made it clear that security is more important than profits since when something happens in the flight, this can likewise affect customers' demands.

With the latest report on the extension and expansion of the laptop ban which will no cover all international flights, most airline companies assured that they will comply. Besides, the Trump administration is looking for ways to counter threats of terrorists.

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
He's starring in Amazon's adaptation of the smash hit Lore horror podcast...

Former UFC fighter Cathal Pendred has landed the lead role in Amazons small screen adaptation of Aaron Mahnkes horror anthology podcast, Lore, which proclaims that: sometimes the truth is more frightening than fiction.

With an average six million monthly listens, it bares all the hallmarks of a massive TV hit.

The Dubliner, who also has Ray Donovan, Into The Badlands, Peaky Blinders and the soon-to-be-released Cardboard Gangsters on his rapidly expanding acting CV, will play real-life Irish folklore character, Michael Cleary, who becomes convinced that his wife, Bridget, has been replaced by a changeling.

He also features in My Name Is Lenny, the upcoming biopic of 1970s bare knuckle boxer, Lenny McClean, which includes Josh Helman, John Hurt and Michael Gambon among its heavyweight cast.
Irish flick 'The Killing of a Sacred Deer' has been honoured with the best screenplay award at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

The film sees the Dubliner reunited with director Yorgos Lanthimos: the two worked together on the Irish dystopian drama 'The Lobster', which also scooped a prize at Cannes last year.

The thriller-horror, which is a story about a surgeon who adopts a teenage boy played by 'Love/Hate' star Barry Keoghan, also stars Nicole Kidman as the wife of Farrell's character. It is is co-produced by Dublin film company Element Pictures.



The Swedish film 'The Square' won the coveted Palme D'or. While Sofia Coppola won Best Director for 'The Beguiled', which also stars Colin Farrell.

And Joaquin Phoenix won Best Actor for 'You Were Never Really Here' and Diane Kruger won Best Actress for her role in 'In The Fade'.


Alexander Wild is a bug photographer, selling his images of fire ants, bed bugs and other critters to pest control companies, board game developers and publications ranging from Nature to National Geographic. But Wild also has to deal with his own pests: Companies, government agencies and others that use his photos in their own advertising without permission and without paying a fee.

Wild, an entomologist, owns the copyright to his images. Each picture costs him an average of $50 to make when he figures in travel expenses and equipment. So it annoys him when he sees people assume his photos are free for the taking since they're on the internet.

Wild sued Cypress Creek Pest Control of Houston for alleged copyright infringement earlier this month in federal court in Houston, alleging the company used one of his photos of rover ants, the 2 mm bugs that swept through Texas about a decade ago from Argentina and are keeping pest control companies busy. He is seeking damages up to $150,000, according to the complaint.

RELATED: Photo sparks intellectual property battle with University of Houston

Cypress Creek is just the latest company to face legal action for using someone else's creative work in its marketing materials. A whole industry has sprung up that searches online for violators and then demands money, usually in the form of speedy settlements.

Wild hires a third-party company that scours the internet for images used without permission and then asks the offenders to pay licensing fees for the photos they're using. Most of the time the images are removed or the license fee is paid. But when companies don't respond, the copyright cops take legal action. At any given time, Wild has dozens of pending cases. Wild said he can't comment on this lawsuit because he isn't familiar with it.

Zach Ivey, president of Cypress Creek Pest Control, described the situation as a learning experience, albeit an expensive one. He said he didn't realize the company he hired to design his website didn't have rights to use Wild's photo of rover ants. Then on his lawyer's advice, Ivey ignored offers to settle the dispute for more than a year on the assumption he wouldn't face financial penalties since he took down the photo immediately after hearing of the copyright protection.

"I didn't intend to steal property," said Ivey, who is the third generation of the family-owned pest control business that started in 1968 on a dining room table. Ivey recently settled the lawsuit for a confidential sum. He is expecting it to be dismissed soon.

Intellectual property experts say that business owners often find themselves faced with big penalties if they don't settle. A cottage industry has popped up to represent photographers and other artists who discover their work is being used without a licensing agreement.

"It's a bit of a vigilante thing," said Steve Levine, intellectual property lawyer with Carrington, Coleman, Sloman & Blumenthal in Dallas. "But they are enforcing the legitimate rights of the author."

RELATED: Outhouse trademark dispute hits the fan

Where it gets murky, he said, is when some representatives become overly aggressive, demanding, for example, a $30,000 fee when the photo would never have sold for that kind of money. Since most disputes are settled long before they reach the courthouse, artist representatives often have the upper hand in negotiations, he said.

Wild, an ant specialist with a Ph.D. in entomology from the University of California, Davis, began taking photos of insects 15 years ago to complement his scientific work. Along the way, his photographs become popular, with some images generating tens of thousands of dollars for books, magazines, board games and museums.

But he also began to notice his photos showing up in places that didn't pay for them. Ant photos are especially popular to purloin, especially fire ants. So are termites and bed bugs, said Wild, who travels to bed bug labs, including one at the University of Kentucky, to get those pictures.

Popularity of an image affects value, said Wild. The more common an image, the less it's worth. Buyers often ask for unpublished photos, said Wild, who is also curator of entomology at the University of Texas at Austin.

Wild said he wished there was an easier way to fight copyright infringement. He used to do the copyright sleuthing himself but it took hours each week tracking down the scofflaws. A while back, Wild hired a third-party company that does it for him, Boston-based Image-Rights International.

Joe Naylor, CEO of ImageRights, said he launched the company in 2008 after one of his friends complained he was trying to launch his career as an photographer but his images were being taken from his website without compensation. Naylor, an engineering graduate from the University of Texas working in Silicon Valley, did some research and found photographers had little recourse because it would cost more to hire a lawyer for one hour than they'd get for one photo.

To boost efficiency, Naylor built a platform to continually search websites for photos by his clients that were uploaded. When violations are found, the company can take legal action.

ImageRights seeks fees that are commensurate to what the photographer charges for the images, he said. "It's their livelihood," said Naylor, who represents 8,000 photographers.

Chris Schwegmann, intellectual property lawyer with Lynn Pinker Cox & Hurst in Dallas, said he's never seen a copyright claim involving bugs. It's much more common with real estate.

Real estate companies put together marketing materials but instead of hiring their own photographers, they use photos shot by previous owners they find online. Another common problem is when on-line travel sites use photos of hotels and restaurants without buying the image rights.

"It happens more than you think," Schwegmann said. "It's people being sloppy and looking for images to suit their purpose."

Wild pursues companies and government agencies that use his work, but the one group he can't do anything about are the online websites operated by robots that steal popular stories and photos. They're typically based offshore, don't respond to take-down requests and are impossible to trace, he said.

"It's maddening," Wild said.
Memorial Day marks the beginning of summer - unofficially, at least. And book lovers know what that means: a chance to plow through paperbacks, poolside. Cut out for the coast with a cooler and a Kindle. Find some flip-flops and fresh fiction.

Whether you're headed to a beach house or the backyard, new books will make the long, lazy days of summer even better. Here are 15 of the titles we're most looking forward to reading before Labor Day.

'Little Sister'

by Barbara Gowdy

Available now

Rose Bowan has a mystery on her hands: Every time a thunderstorm moves in, she is transported into the body of another woman - living her life, seeing through her eyes. Is it real? Is Rose having migraines or dreams, or is this really happening? And why has her mother, who has dementia, suddenly started talking about Rose's little sister, who died in childhood?

'Theft by Finding: Diaries (1977-2002)'

by David Sedaris

Available Tuesday

It's hard to resist the wit of David Sedaris, whether it's delivered in a book, on stage or on the radio. Now he has selected favorite passages from his private journals, where many of those essays and stories were born - memories, experiences, deep thoughts and outrageously funny observations. By the way, this summer's release is the first of two volumes, so we can look forward to even more of this private Sedaris.

'Do Not Become Alarmed'

by Maile Meloy

Available June 6

This story of a nightmare vacation starts with a couple of families together on a cruise. When the ship stops at a port in Central America, the tour bus breaks down, and the kids head off for the beach. And then they disappear. That's when Maile Meloy's story becomes a thriller, with a fast-paced narration from two perspectives, the frantic parents and their missing children.

'You Don't Have to Say You Love Me'

by Sherman Alexie

Available June 13

Sherman Alexie has written a memoir about his childhood on the Spokane Indian Reservation - his brain surgery as an infant, his alcoholic parents, his difficulties growing up. But primarily, the popular novelist's book is about his mother, a complicated, unpredictable and sometimes abusive woman he spent a lifetime battling - and, at her death, sought to understand.

'A House Among the Trees'

by Julia Glass

Available June 13

When famous children's author Mort Lear dies unexpectedly, he leaves everything he owns to his longtime assistant. As she untangles the complications Mort left behind, she finds herself dealing with an angry museum curator, her own embittered brother and a British movie star who has been cast to portray Mort in a film. And along the way, she learns disturbing things she never knew about her boss. Glass' story is fiction, but fans of Maurice Sendak will recognize pieces of this tale.

'Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body'

by Roxane Gay

Available June 13

Essayist Roxane Gay's work is always smart, often funny and unflinchingly honest. In this memoir, her honesty is searing as she recounts her history with food, self-worth and "wildly undisciplined" body - a history that started with trauma and evolved into a blend of shame and self-confidence.

'The Changeling'

by Victor LaValle

Available June 13

This is a perfect summer horror read. When first-time parents Apollo and Emma have their baby, strange things start happening. Emma ties up her husband, murders their child and vanishes - and when a stranger claims to know where she is, Apollo sets off on a mysterious, sometimes magical quest to find her.

'The Graybar Hotel'

by Curtis Dawkins

Available July 4

This short-story collection offers unsparing, detailed glimpses of prison life. The stories are fiction, but they're based on truth: Author Curtis Dawkins, who has an MFA in fiction writing, is also a convicted murderer serving a life sentence without parole.

'The Reason You're Alive'

by Matthew Quick

Available July 4

David Granger, 68 and still haunted by his time in Vietnam, has surgery for a brain tumor and decides he needs to right a wrong from long ago. He sets out to find a man named Clayton Fire Bear - an American Indian soldier David once had to discipline - and return a knife he stole. Author Matthew Quick's name may sound familiar; he's the author of "The Silver Linings Playbook."

'American Fire: Love, Arson and Life in a Vanishing Land'

by Monica Hesse

Available July 11

Three years ago, Washington Post writer Monica Hesse covered a hearing for a rural Virginia man who pleaded guilty to 67 counts of arson. Then she learned that the rash of fires in Accomack County - 77 of them, one after the other - was part of a strange love story. "American Fire" dives deep into the lives of the couple who set those fires - and into the story of a downtrodden place that, for five long months, wouldn't stop burning.

'What We Lose'

by Zinzi Clemmons

Available July 11

In the white Philadelphia suburbs, Thandi - the daughter of mixed-race parents - has always felt like an outsider. But when she loses her mother to cancer, Thandi begins to search for meaning, love and a connection to her mother's South African roots. This is the first novel from Zinzi Clemmons, who uses photographs, song lyrics and blog posts to tell a partly autobiographical story.

'A Talent for Murder'

by Andrew Wilson

Available July 11

It's a real-life mystery that has never been explained: In 1926, mystery writer Agatha Christie left her house, abandoned her car and disappeared for 11 days. Christie, in her mid-30s at the time, claimed that she had amnesia and couldn't remember what had happened or why. Now, nearly 100 years later, Andrew Wilson has written a novel that imagines what might have happened to her in that missing chunk of time - a story based partly on research and partly on his imaginings.

'The Body in the Clouds'

by Ashley Hay

Available July 18

In this unusually imaginative story, men in three different centuries see the same thing: a man falling through the sky above Sydney Harbor. One is an 18th-century astronomer; another is a 1930s bridge worker; and the third is a 21st-century banker coming home to Australia. What do they see, and why do they see it? Ashley Hay's novel follows the three of them, who are somehow, strangely, connected through the centuries.

'Are You Sleeping'

by Kathleen Barber

Available Aug. 1

Anyone who has fallen head-first into a podcast such as "S-Town" or "Serial" will appreciate the plot of Kathleen Barber's novel. When a hit podcast reopens a long-closed murder case, the dead man's daughter, who spent a decade trying to move on, is dragged right back into her past. She has to face - and maybe learn - the truth.

'A Stranger in the House'

by Shari Lapena

Available Aug. 15

Karen Krupp bolts out of her house one evening, races to the wrong side of town and slams her car into a pole - but when she wakes up in the hospital, she says she can't remember the accident or why she left the house. As the mystery grows, the police, her husband and even Karen aren't sure what to believe. This is more psychological suspense from the author of last year's "The Couple Next Door."
The intersection of Blossom Street and Crestwood Drive has long been an informal way for pedestrians to enter Memorial Park.

For years, all you could see was a gap in the fence, a bridge and a scruffy footpath into a thicket on the park's eastern edge. Unless you lived on that side of the park, you might not have known it was there.

In the summer of 1917, though, this was Gate No. 2, the soldier's entrance to Camp Logan. A hundred years ago, some 34,000 soldiers would come in waves to Houston to train as the U.S. entered World War I.

But that's not a story the park has been good at telling. "People don't always understand why it's called Memorial Park," says Shellye Arnold, the president and CEO of the park's conservancy.

What, exactly, does Memorial Park memorialize? A new master plan is designed to bring the memorial back to the park - with one extra idea that might push the limits of what we think a memorial should do.

Construction started on Camp Logan in July 1917 and took about six weeks. The camp was one of 45 bases established by the war department to train a military of 2 million soldiers, according to Louis Aulbach, who with Linda Gorski, his partner, wrote a history of the place.

Aulbach grew up in Houston, but he says even he didn't know why it was called Memorial Park until he began his research in his 50s.

He learned that the site, which over the years had been home to charcoal manufacturing, logging operations and orchards, was graded and trees were removed to make way for some 1,500 pier-and-beam buildings and tent encampments to house all the soldiers. Showers and latrines were built on concrete foundations, the remains of which can still be found inside the park - if you know where to look.

The park's new master plan, approved by City Council in 2015 and and designed by Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects (NBWLA), begins with this history.

"NBWLA wanted to listen to the stories of the park," says Arnold. "What do the soils say? What does the human history say? What does the future say? The master plan is grounded in listening, grounded in research."

In a section called the Eastern Glades, which is currently under construction, NBWLA's design reimagines the soldier's entrance.

That out-of-the-way gap in the fence will be widened and formalized, supplemented with interpretive signage. And that as-you-like-it footpath will be paved in crushed granite, lined with trees and extended, inviting users into the park along the same route the soldiers took into the camp for the first time.

A living memorial

But it's in another section of the park where the design gestures become larger and more poetic. Still in a conceptual phase and not currently funded, the Memorial Groves would be sited near the railroad tracks that run perpendicular to Memorial Drive, between the hiking trails and the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center.

Here is where you can see the concrete remains of the camp's showers and latrines. And it's here where Thomas Woltz, principal and owner of NBWLA, imagines a complicated living memorial that both honors and evokes the park's histories.

First, the archeological remains of those showers and latrines would be curbed in weathering steel and filled with crushed granite.

"We live in an era where we are longing for authenticity in everything we see," Woltz says. "It was never our intention to recreate a moment in time or rebuild those buildings, but rather to reveal them."

Second, in this 90-acre section of the park, towering regiments of loblolly pines would be planted in precise formations reminiscent of the soldiers who left the city to fight - and, sometimes, to die - for their country.

"It could be laid out similar to the spacing of the original tents of the camp," Woltz says. "You could start to evoke it, through a poetic representation of the scale that was Camp Logan."

The "regiments" would be supplemented with interpretive signage. Aulbach gets excited about the educational opportunities Memorial Groves would provide. Outside of the San Jacinto Monument, he says, there aren't many places where students can physically inhabit sites that are important to Houston history.

"Every direction you look," Woltz says, "you'll see these long lines of trees. That itself will be impressive, and it will start to get at the scale of the camp and scale of the sacrifice."

About that sacrifice: Woltz has floated an idea for a two-part ceremony that even Arnold says has been met with "mixed reviews."

Planting an idea

The idea isn't part of the approved master plan. It's not funded. It's purely speculative. Aulbach has heard from people who don't like it.

But it goes something like this:

The average age of a soldier to die in World War I was just 25. (And it just so happens that a loblolly pine reaches maturity around the same age.) Woltz envisions a pair of events, 25 years after the Memorial Groves have opened to the public, during which Houston comes together to ritually fell one of the "regiments" and then replant it. The cutting would happen on Memorial Day and the replanting on Armistice Day.

"Bringing gravity to Memorial Day and hope to Armistice Day could be a great way for Memorial Groves to weave itself into Houston's civic life," Woltz says.

"People love [the idea] for its poetry and its poignancy and for the service it honors," Arnold says.

In turn, the trees could be milled and turned into lumber, which could be used to build public housing. Because, for Woltz, there's an additional nod to history. This landscape was once used for logging. And pine, he points out, is used to frame houses. "This [proposal] gets at both ecological sacrifice and human sacrifice," he says. "It would evoke this idea that something in the prime of life is sacrificed for the common good."

As the master plan was presented to the public, Aulbach says, one of the first questions that was asked was whether it was known why it was called Memorial Park. "Only a scattering of hands went up" out of the group of 400 people, he says.

"That immediately told the conservancy and [the landscape architects] that a lot of education needs to be done. We've lost the sense of why the park was established, which was to commemorate the soldiers who fought there."

One of 45 camps

Camp Logan is the only one of those 45 training camps, Woltz says, that hasn't been paved over and developed. Aulbach recalls a time when he was visited by a scholar writing a history of the camps who was moved to tears by the quality of the archaeological remnants that can be found inside the park.

"It seems we forget about World War I, because of all the major wars that occurred since," Aulbach says. "But it was the first big mobilization of the country in terms of military activity since the Civil War. We've lost that. I think this fills a gap in our story of Houston."
The oncologist was blunt: Stefanie Joho's colon cancer was raging out of control and there was nothing more she could do. Flanked by her parents and sister, the 23-year-old felt something wet on her shoulder. She looked up to see her father weeping.

"I felt dead inside, utterly demoralized, ready to be done," Joho remembers.

But her younger sister couldn't accept that. When the family got back to Joho's apartment in New York's Flatiron district, Jess opened her laptop and began searching frantically for clinical trials, using medical words she'd heard but not fully understood. An hour later, she came into her sister's room and showed her what she'd found. "I'm not letting you give up," she told Stefanie. "This is not the end."

That search led to a contact at Johns Hopkins University, and a few days later, Joho got a call from a cancer geneticist co-leading a study there. "Get down here as fast as you can!" Luis Diaz said. "We are having tremendous success with patients like you."

What followed is an illuminating tale of how one woman's intersection with experimental research helped open a new frontier in cancer treatment - with approval of a drug that, for the first time, targets a genetic feature in a tumor rather than the disease's location in the body.

The breakthrough, made official last week by the Food and Drug Administration, immediately could benefit some patients with certain kinds of advanced cancer that aren't responding to chemotherapy. Each should be tested for that genetic signature, scientists stress.

"These are people facing death sentences," said Hopkins geneticist Bert Vogelstein. "This treatment might keep some of them in remission for a long time."

In August 2014, Joho stumbled into Hopkins for her first infusion of the immunotherapy drug Keytruda. She was in agony from a malignant mass in her midsection, and even with the copious amounts of OxyContin she was swallowing, she needed a new fentanyl patch on her arm every 48 hours. Yet within just days, the excruciating back pain had eased. Then an unfamiliar sensation - hunger - returned. She burst into tears when she realized what it was.

As months went by, her tumor shrank and ultimately disappeared. She stopped treatment this past August, free from all signs of disease.

The small trial in Baltimore was pivotal, and not only for the young marketing professional. It showed that immunotherapy could attack colon and other cancers thought to be unstoppable. The key was their tumors' genetic defect, known as mismatch repair (MMR) deficiency - akin to a missing spell-check on their DNA. As the DNA copies itself, the abnormality prevents any errors from being fixed. In the cancer cells, that means huge numbers of mutations that are good targets for immunotherapy.

The treatment approach isn't a panacea, however. The glitch under scrutiny - which can arise spontaneously or be inherited - is found in just 4 percent of cancers overall. But bore in on a few specific types, and the scenario changes dramatically. The problem occurs in up to 20 percent of colon cancers and about 40 percent of endometrial malignancies - cancer in the lining of the uterus.

In the United States, researchers estimate that initially about 15,000 people with this defect may be helped by this immunotherapy. That number is likely to rise sharply as doctors begin using it earlier on eligible patients.

Joho was among the first.

Even before Joho got sick, cancer had cast a long shadow on her family. Her mother has Lynch syndrome, a hereditary disorder that sharply raises the risk of certain cancers, and since 2003, Priscilla Joho has suffered colon cancer, uterine cancer and squamous cell carcinoma of the skin.

Stefanie's older sister, Vanessa, had already tested positive for Lynch syndrome, and Stefanie planned to get tested when she turned 25. But at 22, several months after she graduated from New York University, she began feeling unusually tired. She blamed the fatigue on her demanding job. Her primary-care physician, aware of her mother's medical history, ordered a colonoscopy.

When Joho woke up from the procedure, the gastroenterologist looked "like a ghost," she said. A subsequent CT scan revealed a very large tumor in her colon. She'd definitely inherited Lynch syndrome.

She underwent surgery in January 2013 at Philadelphia's Fox Chase Cancer Center, where her mother had been treated. The news was good: The cancer didn't appear to have spread, so she could skip chemotherapy and follow up with scans every three months.

By August of that year, though, Joho started having relentless back pain. Tests detected the invasive tumor in her abdomen. Another operation, and now she started chemo. Once again, in spring 2014, the cancer roared back. Her doctors in New York, where she now was living, switched to a more aggressive chemo regimen.

"This thing is going to kill me," Joho remembered thinking. "It was eating me alive."

She made it to Jess' college graduation in Vermont that May. Midsummer, her oncologist confessed he was out of options. As he left the examining room, he mentioned offhandedly that some interesting work was going on in immunotherapy. But when Joho met with a hospital immunologist, that doctor told her no suitable trials were available.

Joho began planning to move to her parents' home in suburban Philadelphia: "I thought, 'I'm dying, and I'd like to breathe fresh air and be around the green and the trees.' "

Her younger sister wasn't ready for her to give up. Jess searched for clinical trials, typing in "immunotherapy" and other terms she'd heard the doctors use. Up popped a trial at Hopkins, where doctors were testing a drug called pembrolizumab.

"Pembro" is part of a class of new medications called checkpoint inhibitors that disable the brakes that keep the immune system from attacking tumors. In September 2014, the treatment was approved by the FDA for advanced melanoma and marketed as Keytruda. The medication made headlines in 2015 when it helped treat former President Jimmy Carter for melanoma that had spread to his brain and liver. It later was cleared for several other malignancies.

Yet researchers still don't know why immunotherapy, once hailed as a game changer, works in only a minority of patients. Figuring that out is important for clinical as well as financial reasons. Keytruda, for example, costs about $150,000 a year.

By the time Joho arrived at Hopkins, the trial had been underway for a year. While an earlier study had shown a similar immunotherapy drug to be effective for a significant proportion of patients with advanced melanoma or lung or kidney cancer, checkpoint inhibitors weren't making headway with colon cancer. A single patient out of 20 had responded in a couple of trials.

Why did some tumors shrink and others didn't? What was different about the single colon cancer patient who benefited? Drew Pardoll, director of the Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at Hopkins, and top researcher Suzanne Topalian took the unusual step of consulting with the cancer geneticists who worked one floor up.

"This was the first date in what became the marriage of cancer genetics and cancer immunology," Pardoll said.

In a brainstorming session, the geneticists were quick to offer their theories. They suggested that the melanoma and lung cancer patients had done best because those cancers have lots of mutations, a consequence of exposure to sunlight and cigarette smoke. The mutations produce proteins recognized by the immune system as foreign and ripe for attack, and the drug boosts the system's response.

And that one colon-cancer patient? As Vogelstein recalls, "We all said in unison, 'He must have MMR deficiency!' " - because such a genetic glitch would spawn even more mutations. The abnormality was a familiar subject to Vogelstein, who in the 1990s had co-discovered its role in the development of colon cancer. But the immunologists hadn't thought of it.

When the patient's tumor tissue was tested, it was indeed positive for the defect.

The researchers decided to run a small trial, led by Hopkins immunologist Dung Le and geneticist Diaz, to determine whether the defect could predict a patient's response to immunotherapy. The pharmaceutical company Merck provided its still-experimental drug pembrolizumab. Three groups of volunteers were recruited: 10 colon cancer patients whose tumors had the genetic problem; 18 colon cancer patients without it; and 7 patients with other malignancies with the defect.

The first results, published in 2015 in the New England Journal of Medicine, were striking. Four out of the 10 colon cancer patients with the defect and 5 out of the other 7 cancer patients with the abnormality responded to the drug. In the remaining group, nothing. Since then, updated numbers have reinforced that a high proportion of patients with the genetic feature benefit from the drug, often for a lengthy period. Other trials by pharmaceutical companies have shown similar results.

The Hopkins investigators found that tumors with the defect had, on average, 1,700 mutations, compared with only 70 for tumors without the problem. That confirmed the theory that high numbers of mutations make it more likely the immune system will recognize and attack cancer - if it gets assistance from immunotherapy.

The studies were the foundation of the FDA's decision on Tuesday to green-light Keytruda to treat cancers such as Joho's, meaning malignancies with certain molecular characteristics. This first-ever "site-agnostic" approval by the agency signals an emerging field of "precision immunotherapy," Pardoll said, one in which genetic details are used to anticipate who will respond to treatments.

For Joho, now 27 and living in suburban Philadelphia, the hard lesson from the past few years is clear: The cancer field is changing so rapidly that patients can't rely on their doctors to find them the best treatments. "Oncologists can barely keep up," she said. "My sister found a trial I was a perfect candidate for, and my doctors didn't even know it existed."

Her first several weeks on the trial were rough, with an early hospitalization after she cut back too quickly on her fentanyl and went into withdrawal. She still has some lasting side effects today - joint pain in her knees, minor nausea and fatigue - but they are manageable.

"I have had to adapt to some new limits," she acknowledged. "But I still feel better than I have in five years."

The FDA's decision last week was an emotional moment. Diaz, now at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, immediately texted her. "We did it!" he exulted.

"I got chills all over my body," Joho said. "To think that I was at the end of the road, with no options, and then to be part of such a change."

Her experience has prompted her to drop plans to go back into marketing. Now she wants to help patients navigate the new cancer landscape. "Become an expert on your cancer" is her message. "Don't be passive." She encourages patients to try clinical trials.

As a cancer survivor with Lynch syndrome, Joho will be closely watched; if she relapses, she is likely to be treated again with immunotherapy. And if her mother relapses, Keytruda might now be her best chance.

"Coming out the other side, I feel really lucky," Joho said. She's also grateful for something else: A few years ago, her sister Jess was tested for the disorder that has so affected their family. She was negative.
Bill Kenny's decision to act - to move past words and end the life of a veteran lawman he had never met - was no sudden thing. For five years, he had tried to go through channels and conform to process, but his frustration at last yielded to murderous resolve.

Yet Kenny wanted it known that he was no mere lunatic with an ax to grind. To that end, he offered all the detritus of his long campaign for so-called justice: journal entries, emails by the hundred, 287 recorded telephone calls, lists and timelines and summaries of his many grievances. All of it was included on a personal website, carefully organized and none of it secret.

This was Kenny's self-styled testament for posterity, a mass of material under the title "Harris County Administration Commits Organized Crime." The killing of deputy constable Clint Greenwood on a Monday morning last month was a coda to this odd magnum opus - an exclamation point dipped in blood.

"This simple but exceptional case exposed me to the dark side of corrupt and powerful public servants who have been feeding at the county trough," Kenny wrote, describing an effort that began in the winter of 2012. "Instead of following the law, Harris County Administration condoned these crimes and conspired against an innocent citizen."

Month after month, Kenny pleaded his case. The months became years, and those years took their toll.

William Francis Kenny's long slide into a world of his own invention is a cautionary tale about the corrosive effect of paranoia under stress. Disconnected from his family, having neither job nor home, the 64-year-old former computer specialist no longer was tethered to the foundations of everyday life. So what began as a simple desire to have a police report revised turned into an overpowering fixation, one aided by the limitless time on his hands.

What made his intense obsession so hard to understand - and Greenwood's murder and his own suicide days later so bizarre - was the relative insignificance of the incident that started it all. To even call it an incident is a stretch. No official document or representative of law enforcement ever accused Kenny of breaking the law or even doing anything he should not have.

Inciting incident

On the evening of Feb. 14, 2012 - Valentine's Day - a pair of deputies showed up at the house of Kenny's wife, Lisa. Their divorce would be finalized within a few days, and he had come by to pick up framed family photos. An argument ensued, and she became physical as he grabbed some pictures and walked out the door, leaving plainly visible scratches and marks. He pushed her away and drove off.

The deputies showed up several hours later. They were responding to a 911 call made by Lisa's father, Joe Felice, who had grown increasingly worried as he thought about a brief phone conversation he'd had with Kenny. To Felice, it seemed that his son-in-law was angry and apparently "out of his mind." He told police that Kenny had even threatened him with violence while on the phone.

No arrest was made. By then, Kenny was long gone. The deputies dismissed it as a minor domestic squabble and filled out a perfunctory report, not even citing the alleged terroristic threat.

Yet as Kenny's mind drifted inexplicably toward the irrational, the consequences grew by the day. He could not get past his fixation on that 911 call. The fact that he had not been charged was beside the point. His ex-father-in-law had called the cops on him. His wife had said something about him assaulting her, failing to mention her own behavior. That had to be addressed, he felt. And he would not rest until it was.

Most people would have shrugged it off. That Kenny could not, that it kept growing ever larger in his mind, likely reflects some type of basic "cognitive dysfunction," said Asim Shah, a psychiatrist and professor at Baylor College of Medicine. Although Shah said he cannot diagnose someone he never met, he said Kenny likely began to suffer from a paranoid delusion, seeing the actions of others directed only at him.

"You cannot argue with them," Shah said of those with paranoid delusions. "They cannot be wrong."

Two months after the incident, Kenny was making repeated calls to different agencies asking for help. For those who reviewed the matter, from sheriff's office investigators to DA prosecutors, there was nothing that needed to be done.

Kenny refused to accept their explanations. Slowly, he constructed an elaborate palace of conspiracy and corruption, all of it working to stifle his effort to "clear" his name.

"I went through the chain of command expecting to come across someone with authority and morals," he wrote. "But  Harris County Administration condoned these crimes and conspired against an innocent citizen."

The variety of prosecutors, police administrators and others he turned to from 2012 to 2015 ultimately numbered in the dozens. If most were annoyed by his insistent calls and emails, some took time to listen carefully to his complaint, and a few even expressed sympathy. But none offered hope of any sort of official action.

"I think I can understand your frustration, but the decision (to drop the case) has been made," wrote Annette Baldwin, a Katy neighborhood organizer who lived nearby and also served on the sheriff's Civil Service Board, in response to a letter from Kenny in July 2013. "If you want to spend money and file a civil case, that is, of course, your prerogative. If it were my money, I'd let it go. Life's not always fair."

'Emotionally devastated'

But fairness was what Kenny insisted on. No one really knows why it happened to take root in his mind, or why it overwhelmed every other concern.

Dr. Shah said there is little medical understanding of the origins of paranoid delusions.

"People with this delusional disorder are usually fine in everyday life," Shah said. "But the delusions do not go away. It is not easy to set aside a delusional mind."

Kenny's family became increasingly aware of his obsession. His ex-wife expressed displeasure that he was posting domestic matters, including intimate details and accusations, on a website open to the public. How clearly they saw his delusional state of mind is unclear. Numerous family members declined interview requests.

Circumstances surrounding the divorce may have had something to do with it. State records indicate his company, Micro Installers, came to an end around 2011. Internet archives show it to be a computer software company with only a few employees that specialized in small business operations. It's unclear where Kenny worked after it failed, though he did have a job for a short period for an online grocery service that also went under. Money had been a serious issue for several years.

"I have been emotionally devastated, financially destroyed, and now they are finishing up with character assassination," he wrote in June 2012 to Lynne Parsons, a Harris County assistant district attorney, pleading that she file charges against his ex-wife and her father. "You know the truth, you know mistakes were made."

Parsons, of course, knew only what the initial investigation and a follow-up inquiry revealed.

"He was absolutely beyond reason," recalled Parsons, who is now in private practice. "This was a man who could not see beyond a very narrow focus of him being wronged."

The angry obsessive was a profile at odds with the person his older friends knew. He came from a large, close and prominent Irish Catholic family in Geneva, N.Y. He moved to Texas as a young man, and in time, many of his siblings ended up here as well. He married and raised three boys, leading what appeared to be an uneventful middle-class life in Katy.

"He was always a good man and very caring," said Patrick Bruno, who grew up with him in New York and kept up over the years. "The person I knew, well, I'm shocked he would even think about this. The accumulation of different downfalls that came in a rapid period of time took him to a place he couldn't get out of."

The last act

As Kenny's personal life slipped into disrepair, he had only one constant, a refuge of sorts: the cause. He had put so much into it over the last few years. Now, on its altar, he would sacrifice not only himself but one of the 55 public employees he had listed who he felt had been unhelpful or corrupt.

Among them was Greenwood, a respected career law enforcement officer and prosecutor. Greenwood headed the sheriff's office's Internal Affairs Division at the time Kenny began his crusade, and Kenny complained he had trouble reaching him.

"At least 20 times this unaccountable weasel won't face me and hides behind subordinates," he wrote.

Lofton Harrison, who was an acting captain in the Internal Affairs Division when a furious Kenny first contacted him, said he's come to believe that Kenny's grievance sprang from something beyond outrage over a 911 call. The life he once had, that he might still have had but for a few events, was gone.

"My belief," Harrison said, "is that he wanted his family back. It was everybody's fault that they weren't together."

Perhaps the realization that no reunion was possible and that none of his appeals to various agencies would be successful became inescapable. The email barrage ended. There were no more posts to his website. Harrison figures that Kenny finally saw the dead end looming before him.

"He felt like he couldn't get what he wanted," he said. "So he did what he did."

St. John Barned-Smith contributed to this report.
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Tim Miller was driving through Sam Houston National Forest on Sunday afternoon, preparing to stand in front of reporters for a sobering update: Volunteers and rescue workers still had not found the 3-year-old boy who'd wandered from a campsite a day earlier.

Miller, the president of the volunteer search-and-rescue group Texas Equusearch, had planned to emphasize that dozens of highly trained rescue workers were doing everything in their power to find little Ezra Parrish.

But by then  nearly 24 hours after the toddler had gone missing, after a second full day in 90-degree heat  Miller figured the best they could hope for was to recover the boy's body before heavy thunderstorms moved into the area that evening.

After 17 years helping look for lost children, Miller knew the odds of finding the boy alive were getting worse by the minute.

Then, a few minutes before the 2 p.m. news conference, Miller's cellphone rang. One of his volunteers was on the other end, panting:

"Tim, they found him!"

"Is he alive?" Miller asked.

"I don't know."

Click.

Miller hopped out of his vehicle and headed toward the gathering of journalists, still unsure what he was about to tell them. Before he could say anything, the volunteer called back:

"Tim ... he's alive."

***

The evening before, Gloria and Jeremy Cooper were sitting at a Dave & Busters in Houston when she received a call about her 3-year-old son, Ezra, who was supposed to be on a camping trip with his biological father and siblings.

The voice on the other end wasn't making sense: Ezra had wandered away from the campsite that afternoon, several hours earlier. Now, as the sun began to set, he still hadn't turned up.

The couple got in their car and zoomed up Interstate 45 toward the campsite, horrified the boy was missing and angry they hadn't been notified sooner. Although they had more questions than answers, they started contacting family in Houston and across the country as they drove, asking for prayers and help.

A few family members in California, including Gloria's sister and a 21-year-old niece, booked the next flight to Houston.

***

By the time Gloria and Jeremy arrived at the remote campsite off Forest Road 208, dozens of fire and rescue workers had already spent hours combing through thick brush and trails near the area where Ezra had last been seen. The New Waverly Fire Department had received the call about a missing toddler around 3 p.m.

Jeremy, Gloria and other family members grabbed flashlights and joined the rescue workers, shouting Ezra's name while moving through the forest.

Police helicopters began circling overhead, scanning infrared cameras over the vast forest.

Down below, Jeremy, Ezra's stepdad, suppressed tears as he imagined the boy he'd grown to think of as his own, alone in the darkness.

He must be terrified, he thought.

Or worse.

***

By sunrise, dozens of volunteers had descended on the secluded stretch of woods, desperate to help. Some had seen news of the missing boy the night before; others were part of a network of experienced search-and-rescue volunteers, including Miller's group and the Sam Houston Trails Coalition.

The trained volunteers got to work, cutting through thick brush with machetes. Others rode along trails on four-wheelers.

Miller slipped a motorboat into nearby Lake Conroe and used sonar to search the water, quietly hoping the boy hadn't made it that far.

Family members arrived from California and joined the effort.

More than 200 people searched, fanning out over 4 miles.

Hours slipped by, and as the morning cool gave way to thick midday heat, hope began to slip away.

How long could a little boy survive alone in the forest in these conditions? Jeremy wondered but dared not speak it.

Miller had already contemplated the question and reached his conclusion: This rescue mission was about to become a recovery effort.

***

Not far away, 21-year-old Lalaine Dungca was walking along a trail, shouting for her 3-year-old cousin.

"Ezra! Can you hear me? Ezra!"

She was among the family members who'd flown in from California the night before as soon as they heard the news.

Like the others, she'd been searching for several hours now but clung still to an irrational hope.

"Ezra!"

She told herself she had to keep trying.

"Ezra!"

From an area of thick brush, about a mile from the campsite where the boy had disappeared, she heard it. A tiny squeak. She ran toward it.

"Ezra, is that you? Can you hear me?" she yelled.

Then she heard his muffled voice: "Yeah."

Lalaine pushed through the tall, thick grass and thorn bushes, until she saw him, wide-eyed, pale and covered with scratches  but alive.

***

Jeremy got the call from Lalaine, then started running in her direction, adrenaline propelling him after more than 30 hours without sleep, and shouted to volunteers as he passed them on the trail.

"They found him! He's alive! They found him!"

By the time he arrived, the boy had been loaded onto the back of a four-wheeler and taken to an ambulance. Jeremy recalled the moment of being reunited a few hours later, in an interview outside Texas Children's Hospital in The Woodlands, where the boy was being treated.

"Were you scared?" Jeremy asked him.

"Yes," Ezra responded.

"Did you sleep?"

"Yes."

"Where were you?"

"In the grass."

Family members gathered around the ambulance, weeping as word spread that the boy was going to be fine.

A mile away, Miller stood in front TV news cameras and told one of the happiest  and most surprising stories  he's ever told.

___

Glynn A. Hill and Dylan Baddour contributed to this report.
11/9/2022

The Lee University women's soccer team looks to bounce back in the NCAA tournament after losing the GSC Championship game to Mississippi College on Sunday afternoon. The Lady Flames were ... more
In the wake of a federal racketeering indictment in San Antonio that targeted three top leaders, the Bandidos Motorcycle Club has opted to put on paper what they have argued all along, that they are not a gang but a legitimate brotherhood of motorcycle riders.

In March, the Bandidos national board and interim president, William E. Sartelle, formed a nonprofit corporation called USARG Inc. to represent the Bandidos and to handle the groups charitable contributions. Sartelle, Timothy W. Harper and Marcos M. Flores, all of the Houston area, are listed as directors.

On May 3, USARG filed an assumed name certificate with Texas Secretary of State Office to conduct business as the Bandidos Motorcycle Club United States.

It was announced at the presidents meeting on January 28, 2017, that a non-profit corporation would be set up and that all chapters would be entering into licensing agreements in order to continue to be Bandido chapters, according to an affidavit obtained by the San Antonio Express-News. The affidavit is signed by William S. Morian Jr., who became general counsel for the Bandidos in early May.

The meeting in Las Vegas included presidents from the 123 licensed chapters of the Bandidos in the United States, court records said.

In an interview with the Express-News, Morian said USARG Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation.

Theyve been operating as a motorcycle club for many years, Morian said. Steps were taken just to update their status. Bill Sartelle, and the national chapter, took steps to put it on paper.

The Bandidos were formed in the Houston area in the 1960s and earned an outlaw reputation, using the motto: we are the people our parents warned us about. They are considered Texas ruling biker club. The Bandidos have drawn headlines mainly for crimes of members, but some chapters have been in the news for conducting toy drives for children and motorcycle runs for charity.

The money raised by USARG Inc., no one receives that money in their pockets, its all used for charitable purposes, said Morian, of Jasper. None of the Bandidos or the board use those funds, its not for personal gain.

USARG will regulate the Bandidos trademark and its logos. Morian said the USA club has not been affiliated with international groups carrying the Bandidos name since 2006.

If some pop-up club tries to use the logos or trademarks that belong to the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, then obviously the corporation can file an injunction or seek damages, Morian said.

Mike Helle, president of the San Antonio Police Officers Association, found the move incredible, and said those behind it put themselves in a precarious position. In many cases, investigators have seen Bandidos members paying their club dues with money from drug sales or other crimes, so money laundering could be another crime they might be accused of.

He also said he believed the laws regulating nonprofits prohibited documented criminal groups from obtaining nonprofit status, and if it doesnt, Id venture to say that loophole will be closed pretty damned quick.

Its an interesting cover, Helle said. It doesnt escape the criminal aspect thats behind the curtain.

A rival club, the Hells Angels, has filed trademark suits in more than a dozen cases in federal court, alleging infringement on apparel, jewelry, posters and even yo-yos, according to news reports. The Hells Angels have also challenged Internet domain names and a Hollywood movie  all for borrowing the Hells Angels name and insignias. The defendants have included Dillards, Toys R Us, Alexander McQueen, Amazon, Saks, Zappos, Walt Disney and Marvel Comics, the reports said. Another longtime motorcycle club, the Boozefighters, also has previously registered as a nonprofit, according to Morian.

Morian also said the nonprofit incorporation move is aimed at helping dispel myths about the Bandidos  law enforcement has painted the group as a criminal organization, calls it the Bandidos Outlaw Motorcycle Organization. Law enforcement blamed a deadly melee and shootings at a restaurant in Waco in 2015 on the Bandidos clashing with a smaller group, the Cossacks, though many bikers dispute that account and blame police for the violence. Dozens of attendees were indicted on state charges in Waco, and some are awaiting trial.

Separately, in January 2016, federal prosecutors in San Antonio obtained a racketeering indictment charging the Bandidos then national president, Jeffrey Fay Pike, 61, of Conroe, vice president John Xavier Portillo, 57, of San Antonio, and national sergeant-at-arms Justin Forster of San Antonio. The indictment, revised twice since then, has added other alleged Bandidos, accusing them of murder in furtherance of the organizations racketeering. Pike, Portillo and Forster are accused of sanctioning violent acts listed in the indictment, including attacks on rival bike clubs and murder.

Yes, things have happened over the years to individual members that may have been (wrongly) attributed to the club, Morian said. Look, these members are all men, big guys, ominous, but theyre hard-working, they pay insurance, buy braces for their kids and have jobs just like everyone else. One bad thing happens to a Bandido and the media and law enforcement want to attribute it to the organization. There is no organized criminal structure in this club, period.

If a San Antonio Spur commits a violent crime, it shouldnt be attributed to all the San Antonio Spurs, Morian said as he listed other groups that might get wrongly blamed for the act of one member.

Pike stepped down as president after his arrest in January 2016, and Sartelle took over for a period, though a meeting was held Friday to discuss the future leadership, according to court records. Morian said Sartelle is no longer national president, and the Bandidos decided to have its board run the group. He said he was not at liberty to say how many members are on the board.

In the latest revised indictments, prosecutors added four alleged Bandidos, charging them in the killing of a man in Austin who reportedly tried to start a chapter of the Hells Angels.

Anthony W. Benesh III was gunned down by a sniper in 2006 in front of his girlfriend and two children as they left Saccones Pizza in Austin. The indictment added San Antonio residents Johnny Downtown Johnny Romo, 47; Robert Romo, 45, Jesse James Kronic Benavidez, 40, and Norberto Hammer Serna Jr., 35, as defendants  alongside Pike and Portillo.

Portillo has remained in jail without bond since his arrest in January 2016, while Pike was released last year on bond. Forster took a plea deal and awaits sentencing.

In mid-May, prosecutors at first consented to Pikes request to a San Antonio judge for permission to travel outside of Texas, but then filed a motion in mid-May to have him detained. It says the feds learned that Pike had re-assumed his post as president of the Bandidos.

To re-assume the top leadership position of a criminal enterprise, while on bond for racketeering charges stemming from his leadership of that same organization, exhibits unfathomable disregard for the seriousness of the charges he faces, the governments motion said. It also drastically raises the likelihood of his participation in, or association with individuals engaging in, criminal activities, and undermines this courts supervision and role in ensuring the community remains safe.

Pikes lawyer, Dick DeGuerin, countered in a court filing last week that Pike has been a model defendant while on pretrial release. And while there had been discussions of having Pike return to the presidency, it ultimately did not happen, and Pike is also not a director in USARG, DeGuerin wrote.

No hearing has been scheduled yet to take up the request to detain Pike. Trial is tentatively set for February.

gcontreras@express-news.net

Twitter: @gmaninfedland
WASHINGTON - John Kelly, President Donald Trump's homeland security secretary, on Sunday defended a reported effort by Jared Kushner, the president's embattled son-in-law and key adviser, to establish a secret channel with Russia during the transition, calling it "a good thing."

"Any information flow into the government and then considered by the government, I won't criticize that," Kelly said in an interview on ABC's "This Week." "All of these lines of communication are a positive thing, in my opinion."

Kelly's remarks came amid news that Kushner was a focus of investigations into possible collusion between Russia and Trump's associates during the campaign and transition, a development that has consumed an already-beleaguered White House.

Trump back on Twitter

The president, home after a nine-day trip overseas, quickly turned his Twitter account back into a political weapon Sunday, assailing what he called the "fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media."

Trump's administration has been straining to contain the fallout from news reports that Kushner spoke in December with Russia's ambassador, Sergey Kislyak, about establishing a secret channel to Moscow to discuss the war in Syria and other matters.

In television interviews Sunday, Kelly defended Kushner's conduct and his character generally.

"He's a great guy, decent guy. His No. 1 interest, really, is the nation," Kelly said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "So, you know, there's a lot of different ways to communicate, back channel, publicly with other countries. I don't see any big issue here relative to Jared."

Kelly also echoed Trump's aggressive posture against leaks, calling U.S. officials' disclosure of information about the bombing in Manchester, England, "darn close to treason."

Soon, Trump had fired off a message of his own on the subject.

"British Prime Minister May was very angry that the info the U.K. gave to U.S. about Manchester was leaked," he wrote on Twitter. "Gave me full details!"

It was a familiar morning for Trump on his favored medium - and for a nation that had, for a little more than a week, gone without the president's stream-of-consciousness missives.

Trump back on Twitter

The president had largely avoided provocative Twitter posts during his journey through the Middle East and Europe, but he quickly returned to form after arriving at the White House late Saturday, pushing back Sunday morning against the flurry of news reports about Kushner.

"Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names," Trump wrote, "it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #Fake-News is the enemy!"

The president woke up to find headlines and talk shows focused on the latest turns in inquiries that he had been able to put aside for much of his trip. The freshest developments brought the matter into his own family.

News articles also focused on efforts by administration aides to develop a damage control plan to handle the controversies. That plan would potentially seek to wall off questions involving the investigations from day-to-day governing by creating a separate war room in the White House, assembling a high-powered legal team outside the White House and shaking up the president's communications team.

One consensus among administration lawyers and private lawyers consulted by the White House was that Trump needed to restrain himself on Twitter, rather than create new problems with impulsive or unfiltered messages.
Today we pause to remember perhaps the most memorable group of veterans who ever marched down our city's streets. This holiday weekend marks the 75th anniversary of Houston's greatest Memorial Day parade, when huge crowds packed downtown streets as a throng of men volunteered for the U.S. Navy to replace the crew of the sunken USS Houston.

On the night of March 1, 1942, the USS Houston and Australia's HMAS Perth sank during a ferocious fight with Japanese naval forces. The Battle of Sunda Strait claimed the lives of 700 of the Houston's 1,068 crewmen. Survivors endured years of torture, disease and deprivation as prisoners of war forced to work on the Burma-Thai railroad, the infamous "Railway of Death" depicted in "The Bridge on the River Kwai."

At the time, Houstonians knew only that their city's namesake ship had been lost at sea; the fate of her crew was a mystery. So when the Navy announced it would rename a new ship as the next Houston, city leaders came up with a simple and ambitious goal: Ask for 1,000 volunteers to replace the lost ship's crew by joining the Navy at an outdoor ceremony in downtown Houston. Five special trains would then carry the Houston Volunteers from Union Station, the railroad depot that's now Minute Maid Park, directly to San Diego where they would report for basic training.

They asked for 1,000 men, but more than 3,000 answered the call. And on a Saturday afternoon, an estimated 150,000 people packed downtown Houston's streets to see them off.

"Women wept openly and men dabbed their eyes with handkerchiefs, while those who managed to hold back the tears tried in vain to ignore the lumps in their throats...," the Houston Press reported. "Hundreds fell in behind the parade and marched with it to the railroad terminal, where 5,000 who had failed to attend the ceremonies were waiting to bid goodbye to their boys. A deafening din of applause shook the station yards. Relatives ran alongside the train, touching the hands of their men and stopping, finally, to weep or console others."

The city later organized a fundraising drive, hoping to collect $85 million to pay for the new ship. They ended up with enough money not only to build the new Houston, but also to build an aircraft carrier christened the USS San Jacinto. Among the men who catapulted into the sky from her deck was the navy's youngest pilot, George H.W. Bush.

On this Memorial Day, we pause to remember not only the lost crew of the USS Houston, but also everyone else who has ever- like the Houston Volunteers - reported for duty and defended our country.
On John F. Kennedy's second day as president, he signed his first executive order to improve nutrition for poor families by expanding the surplus commodities program. By 1963, his signing of the Equal Pay Act and publication of the groundbreaking report, American Women, by his President's Commission on the Status of Women, had cemented for Kennedy a permanent place in the history of feminism. On May 29, we celebrate Kennedy's 100th birthday, but we should also celebrate a women's rights legacy whose echoes can still be heard.

What is extraordinary about this legacy is its inclusiveness. American Woman, released by the President's Commission six weeks before Kennedy's assassination, is no treatise on white suburban women, as some might expect given Betty Friedan's Feminine Mystique came out the same year. While it addresses housewives reentering the workforce, it also focuses on poor women, women of color, particularly African-Americans, urban and rural women including migrants, and women in different regions and occupations. A graph, "Many Mothers, Especially Negroes, Must Work: Percent of Married Women in Labor Force," exemplifies attention to what today might be called the "intersectionality" of race, gender, class and more. The report pressed policymakers to give such concerns their utmost attention while crafting legislation on pay equity, maternity leave, childcare, and more.

Incessant American fascination with Kennedy's extramarital affairs may explain why the subject of "Kennedy and women" rarely calls to mind the new avenues on women's rights that emerged during his presidency, nor the extraordinary women who paved them. But his impact is unmistakable. Unlike the current presidential administration, he appointed women with longstanding commitments to the labor movement and politics. As director of the Women's Bureau, Esther Peterson, who met Kennedy in 1947 as Washington legislative representative for the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, drafted the Equal Pay Act, convinced JFK to establish the commission, and brought scores of women on board from labor, civil rights, religious and women's organizations.

Former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, who chaired the commission, held Kennedy's feet to the fire. On her radio program in April 1962, she queried him about why the U.S. had fewer women in legislative positions than did poorer countries and what he thought about those who wanted women removed from the workforce because they took jobs from unemployed men. She liked his answer: "Most of the women who work really need to, to maintain their families." And most worked at pay levels and in occupations men would reject. What was needed was more jobs, "not to attempt to deprive women of the chance to work and contribute." Roosevelt, who had worried during his campaign that Kennedy was weak on civil rights, brought such friends as civil and women's rights attorney Pauli Murray to the commission.

It is no small paradox a president with a checkered record on civil rights would leave a legacy on women's rights devoting so much attention to racist barriers. Kennedy embittered activists when he failed to act on campaign promises. Only after the infamous violence in Birmingham did Kennedy act definitively by proposing a new Civil Rights Act.

Ironically, Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act one day before proposing that civil rights legislation. He discussed "equal opportunity" in a different context, emphasizing work still to be done, especially the urgent need for daycare for women who had no choice but to work.

Today, women serve on juries in every state, but the gender wage gap persists. Women earn 80 cents on average for every dollar earned by men, but African-American, Hispanic and Native American women earn 63, 54, and 58 cents respectively, for every dollar paid to white male counterparts. Less income for women means less affordability for housing, healthy foods, higher education, quality child care and health care.

Kennedy and the women who prodded him toward feminism approached access and opportunity through a standard of what white men possessed and navigating the difference. American Women began to introduce a new paradigm, setting the intention to dismantle disadvantage at the interconnected levels of women's identities, such as race, class and gender.

It is through this lens we today can push rights for women to the next level. Unlike 1963, many women have a passion born of frustration, an accumulation of wisdom regarding the need for an intersectional approach, and the power of a movement no presidential commission could achieve.

Green is an associate professor of history and a Public Voices Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin. Vohra-Gupta is the assistant director of the Institute for Urban Policy Research & Analysis and a Public Voices Fellow.
You have heard a lot of talk about the future of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) lately. There are those that want to eliminate it, those that want to leave it alone and those who want to change it in one way or the other.

After almost a quarter-century, I think the time is right to take another look at NAFTA. After all, think about how the world has changed in the past 23 years. Most of us have the world in our pocket, carrying a smartphone that is capable of worldwide communications in many forms. That phone also brings us information from every corner of the globe. We are truly all connected.

Yes, the internet was out there when NAFTA first was signed, but it certainly wasn't the economic driver that it is today. If you had a mobile phone 23 years ago, the only thing it did was make phone calls. There was no Google, YouTube, Facebook or Twitter. Cameras still used film and Sony had just released the first Playstation.

Although many things have changed over the years, the need for free trade and having strong working relationships with Mexico and Canada have not. In fact, the argument could be made that we need these partners now more than ever.

According to the International Trade Administration, Texas exported more than $232 billion of goods and services in 2016; almost $93 billion was to Mexico, by far Texas' largest trading partner. Canada is Texas' second-largest trading partner. Texas exported almost $20 billion to Canada in 2016. In 2014, over 41,000 Texas companies exported goods from a Texas address. The numbers show that thousands of jobs and paychecks depend on this business in Texas and that every major metropolitan area in Texas is doing a thriving trade business, led by Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth, El Paso and San Antonio.

The question is: What should we do to strengthen these ties, yet still make sure United States companies and workers are treated fairly? We owe it to our Texas businesses and our people to answer that question. That is why the Texas Association of Business and our partners, both north and south of the border, are looking for that solution.

TAB has formed the Texas/Mexico Trade Coalition to make sure Texas businesses are heard and that the administration has a full awareness of the historic relationship that has grown between Texas and Mexico. We want the Texas/Mexico Trade Coalition to gather information from our business members, state and federal office holders and Mexican business leaders and elected officials. We will then use that information to help in the recrafting of NAFTA.

One exciting fact for Texas is that the Mexican economy is continuing to grow. Mexico already has the No. 11 economy in the world, and there are projections that by 2030 the Mexican economy will surpass the German economy. Increasing trade will mean more jobs and paychecks for not only Texas, but also the entire country. This is not an economic powerhouse that we should ignore.

We can't assume that an economy that big does not have other options as far as trading partners. There's nothing stopping Mexico from taking its business elsewhere - and limiting our trade relationship with them will certainly lead to that happening. Mexico already has 10 free trade agreements with 45 countries.

Our new coalition has been formed because we must fight for the next generation of NAFTA jobs and paychecks. This is something that not only is good for Texas but also is good for the entire country.

Moseley is CEO of the Texas Association of Business.
Houston will host the first Southern Missouri Jackpot Show on June 11 at the fairgrounds on North U.S. 63, organizers said.

Weigh-in is 8 to 10 a.m. The show begins at 10:30 a.m. The show order is swine, lambs, goats and beef. (Organizers said contestants must specify either market or breeding animal)

The fee is $15 for small animals and $20 for beef. Seventy-five percent of all entry fees will go back the student competitors. Plaques or trophy buckles for grand and reserve will be presented within each species.

The showmanship fee is $5 with 100 percent to the top two showmanship winners in each class.

For more information contact Nathan Sanders at 417-849-3541. Vendor space also is available.




With Memorial Day approaching, the counter-culture era soul song of the 60s, War, came to my mind. Originally sung by the Temptations, and later by other artists, its lyrics not only reflected the thinking of many during that era, but also mirrors our feelings today: War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.One of the great, recurring tragedies of human history has been the ever-present reality of war  between nations, cultures, and even within nations. The founding of the United States involved the Revolutionary War, and mortal combat has never been far from our collective thinking.The War Between the States, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam war, and ongoing conflicts in the Middle East have been continual reminders of the horrific devastation of warfare.As some take this Memorial Day to protest wars of every kind and form, this is our opportunity not to commemorate conflict, but to remember those who nobly and bravely sacrificed their lives to protect and preserve the rights and privileges we enjoy today  and often take for granted. Most of us have family members or friends among them, making this observance particularly poignant.Many whose time on earth ended abruptly on fields and seas of battle were young men and women, with hopes and dreams still unfulfilled. They fought to protect freedom, values and ideals that were threatened by adversarial forces. The conflicts they engaged in may have been distasteful, but their heroic service should never be forgotten.War, of course, has hardly been an American invention. The annals of time are punctuated by wars waged throughout the world. Sad as it is, warfare has been a permanent part of the sin-scarred human condition. Reading the Bible, we find numerous accounts of war between peoples  often the Israelites in battle against the Philistines, Babylonians, Hittites, Midianites, Amorites, and all the other ites.We read of the exploits of good and bad kings like Saul, David, Ahab and Jehoshaphat, as well as great warriors like Abishai, Nimrod, and a fiercely loyal soldier named Uriah the Hittite. While Uriah was in the heat of battle, King David chose to have a dalliance with his wife, Bathsheba. War, as we know, often isnt the source of the highest virtues.As we contemplate the horrors of war, and those who gave their lives in defense of their cause, its good to remember that our hope should not be placed in military might. As Psalm 20:7 states, Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. Proverbs 21:31 adds, The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord.Yes, war might be good for absolutely nothing, as the song says. And its often difficult to discern whose side God is on. But in the battle against evil, not only externally but also within ourselves, our trust must always be in the Lord, not any human arsenal.As He promises in Isaiah 41:10, So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. On this Memorial Day, its important to remember this.----
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He stressed that the development of an HR team is top priority because it enables Singapores economic transformation through human capital development. Teo called on HR professionals to adapt and grow to effectively help their businesses during the transformation journey.

Teo cited research commissioned by the Workforce Development Agency. It revealed that HR and business leaders believe HR professionals have yet to acquire all the skillsets required to meet emerging needs.

Many are preoccupied with performing transactional tasks such as recruiting to fill vacant positions and ensuring salary is paid on time, said Teo. These are necessary, but not enough priority is placed on becoming better strategic business partners, providing solutions to strengthen human capital, to deal with the changes in our employment landscape, and managing employee relations and engagement.

Among other things, Teo said HR professionals need to:

build up their business and financial acumen to better understand the business and manpower environment

have capabilities to implement a hiring process that move from qualifications-based to skills-based. be adept at using data and applying analytics to guide decisions in staff deployment, training and talent development

be proficient in leveraging technology to handle transactional HR operations

The minister also announced the successful completion of a pilot assessment on a national HR certification framework. The framework was first introduced in October last year and covers over 30 foundational and functional competencies, as well as the mindsets and behaviours HR professionals need at different career stages to be more effective.
Here are the new business licenses from the County Clerk's office:

A R T

5331 MEADOWBROOK LN

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37411



AGNES AND DORA BY RENEE HOOD

1018 N SANCTUARY RD

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



AMY'S DOGS AND MORE

1000 OSAGE DRIVE

SODDY DAISY, TN 37379



ANGELS AT HAND HOME SITTING SERVICE

8004 BILL REED RD

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



AUTO DETAIL AND TRANSPORTERS

2827 CUMMING HWY

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37419



BELLISIMA ADVANCED AESTHETICS INC

748 OVERBRIDGE LN

STE 5

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37405



BEST WESTERN HERITAGE INN

7641 LEE HIGHWAY

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



BFE, LLC

7625 HAMILTON PARK DRIVE,

SUITE 26

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



BRAD MORROW'S EXCAVATION

8034 DAVIS WOLFE LN

OOLTEWAH, TN 37363



BWY TRANSPORT INC

100 CHEROKEE BLVD

STE 313

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37405

.



CATO 1367

5591 HIGHWAY 153

STE 102

HIXSON, TN 37343



CECIL MECHANICAL

7627 MONGER LN

OOLTEWAH, TN 37363



CHATTANOOGA BEAUTY AND BARBER SUPPLY LLC

627 SHALLOWFORD RD

STE A

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37411



CHATTANOOGA CUSTOM WOODWORKING

723 INTERMONT RD

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37415



CHATTANOOGA WHOLESLAE FABRICS

6242 PERIMETER DR

#2

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



COMCAST BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS, LLC

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37402



CREATIVE HARDSCAPES

430 SARATOGA PLACE

CLEVELAND, TN 37312



CROSS COUNTRY GOLD DRMS TRANSIT

2288 GUNBARREL RD

STE 292

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



D & N JANITORIAL LAWN CARE

1101 E 13TH STREET

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37408



DART TOWN ARENA LLC

7331 LEE HWY

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421

.



ESDEX

3221 THROUGH ST

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37411



FTH MARKETING SOLUTIONS LLC

1807 TAFT HWY

STE 81

SIGNAL MOUNTAIN, TN 37377



GENO'S SALON

181 RIVER ST

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37405



GOT SQUARED AWAY

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37402



H J BLAKEMORE TRUCKING

3933 ST ELMO AVENUE

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37409



HAMPTON PAINTING

325 CHEROKEE DR

CLEVELAND, TN 37323



HOME FRONT SECURITY

8612 SNOW HILL RD

OOLTEWAH, TN 37363



HONDUMEX

5630 HWY 153

SUITE I

HIXSON, TN 37343



HUMMBEA'S POUNDCAKES

122 PEMBROOK LN

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



IMMACULATE CLEANING SERVICE

707 BUCKLEY ST

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37404

.



J&J ELECTRICAL CONTRACTING

8009 IGOU GAP RD

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



JONES CONSTRUCTION

175 WEN-DELL LN SE

CLEVELAND, TN 37323



JZ RUIZ CONCRETE LLC

26 HUNT AVE

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37411



KING TREASURE

609 TUNNEL BLVD

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37411



LIVELY LAWN CARE

8220 ISLAND POINT DR

HARRISON, TN 37341



MOCKINGBIRD HOME INSPECTIONS

1609 LONG ST

UNIT 103

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37408



MR VENDING LLC

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37402



NOOGA LAWN CARE

11225 LONDON LANE

APISON, TN 37302



OCEAN RIVER CAPITAL LLC

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37402



PERFORMANCE GLASS INC

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37400

.



PIPE IT UP

3317 TARLTON AVE

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37410



PURPLE SUNBEAM ENTERPRISES

1316B STRATTON PLACE DR

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



ROCK SOLID MOBILE REPAIR

3929 AZALEAN DR

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37415



SERENA "THE BOOK GIRL" HUTCHINSON

2451 ATRIUM WAY

NASHVILLE, TN 37214



SLC ORIGINALS

7733 COVE RIDGE DR

HIXSON, TN 37343



SOUTHERN ELECTRIC SERVICE

8108 SHALLOWFORD RD

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37421



STRUT BOUTIQUE

8414 LEXIE LN

OOLTEWAH, TN 37363



TATUM ELECTRIC

VARIOUS LOCATIONS

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37402



TEMPLETON PROPERTIES, INC

310 PINE RIDGE RD

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37405



TENNESSEE AUTO TRANSPORTERS

2000 CITIGO AVE

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37404

.



TOPFLIGHT LAWN CARE, LLC

7423 WINDERMERE WAY

HIXSON, TN 37343



TUCKER CONSTRUCTION LLC

832 GEORGIA AVE

STE 510

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37402



UNITED MECHANICAL & ELECTRICAL INC

115 WEAVER DR

DICKSON, TN 37055



WALDEN WINDOWS

400 EAST MAIN STREET

SUITE 230

CHATTANOOGA, TN 37408


Kevin Winter via Getty Images INGLEWOOD, CA - MARCH 28: Actress Angelina Jolie hugs Zahara Marley Jolie-Pitt (L) and Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt (R) after winning award for Favorite Villain in 'Maleficent' during Nickelodeon's 28th Annual Kids' Choice Awards held at The Forum on March 28, 2015 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Like mother, like daughter.

Angelina Jolie credited her late mother, French-American actress Marcheline Bertrand, with inspiring her parenting style in a recent interview for Elle France.

Speaking to journalist and longtime friend Marianne Pearl, Jolie explained how she worked to be a positive example for her six children as her mother had been for her.

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She would have thrived as a grandmother, Jolie told the magazine, adding that she was sad her children missed out on the contributions Bertrand would have made to their lives.

In light of the actresss split from husband Brad Pitt in 2016, Jolie mentioned looking to her mothers legacy for guidance on how to raise her children as a single mother.

Bertrand raised Jolie and her brother alone after divorcing their father, Jon Voight, when Jolie was a child.

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I would give anything for her to be with me at this time. Ive needed her. I talk to her often in my mind and try to think what she might say and how she might guide me, Jolie added.

Her mothers influence on Jolies life has always been plain to see.

In an April interview for Marie Claire, the Maleficent actress talked about signing onto a beauty campaign for Guerlain to be the face of their new fragrance because it was a brand her mother loved.

It spoke to her, as it does to me, of beauty, history, and quality; one of the oldest perfume houses in the world, from France, a country I love and feel connected to, she said.

Guerlain's new fragrance has been created for an extraordinary, sincere & authentic woman: Angelina Jolie, our new icon. #MonGuerlainpic.twitter.com/iwHKxu5Gmg  Guerlain (@Guerlain) March 1, 2017

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In Jolies words, Bertrand was a natural woman who never spoiled herself, never wore makeup, and wore modest jewelry but also had special items for when she wanted to be feel special and feminine.

One of the biggest decisions Jolie ever made was also inspired by her mother. The actress had a double mastectomy in 2013 to reduce her chances of developing cancer, a disease that had claimed her mother, grandmother, and aunt. She carries a mutated form of the BCRA1 gene, which makes her more susceptible to the illness.

My mother fought cancer for almost a decade and died at 56. She held out long enough to meet the first of her grandchildren and to hold them in her arms. But my other children will never have the chance to know her and experience how loving and gracious she was, Jolie wrote in an op-ed for The New York Times in 2013.

In a follow-up piece in 2015, after having her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed, Jolie wrote about being treated by the same surgeon who treated her mother.

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I last saw her the day my mother passed away, and she teared up when she saw me: You look just like her. I broke down.

Jolie emphasized wanting to prevent her children from losing her early as she had lost her own mother. I know my children will never have to say, Mom died of ovarian cancer.

Betrand was also highly active in humanitarian work, something for which Jolie has also become acclaimed.

Betrand co-created the All Tribes Foundation to support the survival of Native American people and the Give Love Give Life organization to raise awareness about gynecological cancers, and produced a benefit concert in 2003 for Afghan refugees.

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Jolie spent many years as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and is now a Special Envoy for the UNHCR. She made the UNs largest donation by a private individual in response to an appeal for Afghan refugees in 2001. She also champions other causes including conservation, community development, child immigration and education, and womens rights.

Even Jolies Guerlain campaign is tied to her activism. Her entire salary for the project will be going to her charities.

Jolie told Elle she hopes to pass this spirit of social responsibility down to her own kids  Maddox, 15, Pax, 13, Zahara, 12, Shiloh, 10, Vivienne, 8, and Knox, 8  as Bertrand passed it down to her.

I try to lead by example, being conscious of others and being responsible. And to help them have a broader view of the world, Jolie said.

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There's one thing Nicolas Fabien-Ouellet wants to make clear: he has no problem with people eating, enjoying or adapting on poutine. In fact, he encourages it.

The problem, he says, is how Canada and the rest of the world has come to see the delicious dish of fries, gravy and cheese curds  and specifically how it has been culturally appropriated from Quebec.

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What is now a celebrated symbol of Canadian food culture, was originally used as a tool to "tarnish Quebec culture and undermine its legitimacy of self-determination as a nation."

"What people often do not realize about poutine is how its social status has not always been so high, and that the dish has actually been used as a way to mock Quebec society," the Montreal-born researcher wrote in his paper "Poutine Dynamics," which he will present this week at the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences at Ryerson University.

His paper argues that poutine is following a similar "rags-to-riches" food trend as kimchi and sushi  "foods that went from being food items with a connotation of shame, be it to shame a culture or a personal identity, to being highly sought by foodies and then by the masses."

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Invented in Quebec in the 1950's, poutine's prominence across Canada and around the world has really only risen in the past 10 years or so. But Fabien-Ouellet argues that the dish's explosion in popularity comes with appropriation of Quebecois food culture.

"I noticed more and more how poutine was presented as a Canadian dish, instead of a Quebecois dish," he told HuffPost Canada.

"This is a problem, because Quebec has a distinct culture, a distinct society and nation."

Fabien-Ouellet points to national polls that claim poutine as one of the "Greatest Canadian Inventions" and chefs around the world who highlight the dish as "the official dish of Canada."

Wendy's, when introducing poutine to their menu in 2012, even went as far as launching a "Poutition," asking Canadians to vote to make poutine the "National Food Of Canada."

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Fabien-Ouellet is not the first to discuss the role "Canadization" has played on poutine.

Six years ago, Montreal chef Chuck Hughes told Toronto Life magazine that he's "concerned" about how poutine has become known as a Canadian dish.

"Its totally NOT a Canadian dish. Its Quebecois!" he said.

Ian Alexander Cuthbertson, a postdoctoral fellow at Queen's University, further explored poutine's identity in a blog post from earlier this year, arguing that "poutines status as either Canadian or Quebecois is political."

Fabien-Ouellet says it's not enough just to inhale a plate of tasty poutine  he says it's important that people understand the sociohistorical consequences of the dish.

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"Appreciation comes with recognition and we should be labelling poutine as 'Quebecois' and not 'Canadian.'"

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Poverty and income inequality increased in Canada during the Harper era  but whether or not the policies of the previous Conservative government are to blame remains an open question.

Between 2006 and 2015, when Prime Minister Stephen Harper was in power, after-tax earnings among Canadians grew from a median of $62,700 to $69,100  an increase of 10.2 per cent, according to Statistics Canada data released on Friday.

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But the gains were very unfairly distributed, wrote economist Andrew Jackson in a blog post asserting that inequality "surged under Harper."

Crunching StatsCan's numbers, Jackson  a former economist at the Canadian Labour Congress and now a senior policy advisor at the Broadbent Institute  determined that the top 20 per cent of earners were the only people whose share of total income rose in the nine years Harper was in power.

The share of the all income groups in the bottom 80 per cent fell under Harper, he concluded.

Statistics Canadas data on income shows a clear trend: The higher your income bracket, the larger the increase in your income between 2006 and 2015:

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The top 20 per cent of Canadian earners took home 44.7 per cent of all income in 2015, up from 43.9 per cent in 2006, Jackson's analysis found.

The data also shows that there was a small increase in the share of Canadians who live below the low-income line. Some 14.2 per cent of Canadians were below the cutoff in 2015, up from 13.4 per cent when Harper came to power in 2006.

But were the Harper governments policies to blame for this rise in inequality?

Jackson wouldn't speculate on the causes when asked by HuffPost, but we can find some clue by comparing pre-tax incomes to after-tax incomes.

What StatsCans data shows is that market incomes (that is, the paycheques given out in the labour market) rose in a similar pattern to earnings after taxes  the rich saw larger pay hikes than low-income earners.

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This suggests that employers, rather than government policy, were behind the increase in income inequality  but government policy did little to mitigate the situation.

The income gap has been growing in recent decades in many developed countries.

Economists have blamed the phenomenon on  among other things  offshoring of jobs to low-wage countries; automation of many lower-skilled jobs; and rising pay among executives.

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An alleged ambulance hijacker has been arrested after taking an emergency vehicle on an overnight joyride across southern Ontario, leading three different police departments on a high-speed chase.

The 29-year-old man allegedly stole the ambulance from Cambridge Memorial hospital around midnight Sunday, jumping into the driver's seat while a paramedic was filling out paperwork on the passenger's side with the keys still in the ignition, according to CTV News.

Stephen Van Valkenburg, Waterloo Regions chief of paramedic services, told CTV that the emergency worker was just about to lock the door when the man climbed inside.

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VIDEO: Ambulance stolen in Cambridge, chased through Halton, Toronto, Brampton. Pursuit now terminated, unit last spotted in Richmond Hill. pic.twitter.com/Nk5WR5KsX4  Jeremy Cohn (@JeremyGlobalTV) May 28, 2017

Local police tracked down the car, but were unable to catch up as it sped across Highway 401, Waterloo Police Supt. Christopher Goss told CBC News, so Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) took over.

Stopped with a spike belt

The high-speed chase also crossed into York Region, but police failed to stop the car around 1:50 a.m. in Newmarket, Ont., according to CBC News.

OPP eventually managed to stop the car using a spike belt on Highway 26 near Rainbow Valley Road West around 6 a.m.

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OPP acting Staff Sgt. Peter Leon told CTV Toronto the fact that the chase happened overnight was a "saving grace" that allowed police to follow from a safe distance.

Leon said the driver activated the emergency vehicle's sirens several times  and noted that ambulances have equipment capable of automatically changing traffic signals.

No injuries or collisions were reported.

The driver, who is being held for a bail hearing, has been charged with possession of stolen property, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, and flight from police, according to the Toronto Star.

Van Valkenberg told CTV the paramedic did the right thing by getting out of the ambulance and not trying to stop the hijacker.

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Prince William has been doing a lot of sharing as of late.

The 34-year-old father of two, who will grace the cover of British GQ in July, shared a series of intimate photos and personal stories with the magazine.

Most notably, William opens up about his mother Princess Diana. The 20th anniversary of her death is fast approaching this summer.

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Princess Diana helping Prince William with a jigsaw puzzle in his playroom at Kensington Palace.

I can talk about her more openly, talk about her more honestly, and I can remember her better, and publicly talk about her better, William says of his mother. It has taken me almost 20 years to get to that stage. I still find it difficult now because at the time it was so raw. And also it is not like most peoples grief because everyone else knows about it, everyone knows the story, everyone knows her.

The Duke of Cambridge also talks about the sadness he feels knowing that his children will never know their grandmother, the late Princess of Wales.

GQ photographer captures the young royal family relaxing under a tree in the grounds of Kensington Palace https://t.co/2OkEnMsnWTpic.twitter.com/PUXXlM97I9  Canadian Living (@canadianliving) May 29, 2017

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I would love her to have met Catherine and to have seen the children grow up," he reveals. "It makes me sad that she wont, that they will never know her.

William, who is second in line to the throne, also admits he would have liked his mother's opinion on raising a family, though he seems to have a pretty good idea of how he wants Prince George and Princess Charlotte to grow up.

"I want George to grow up in a real, living environment, I dont want him growing up behind palace walls, he has to be out there. The media make it harder but I will fight for them to have a normal life," he says.

The Duke and Duchess Of Cambridge with Prince Harry during an event to announce plans for Heads Together on January 17, 2017 in London, England.

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William, alongside his wife and brother, has been busy advocating for the Heads Together campaign, which the trio founded to educate the public on the importance of good mental health.

"I've been really shocked how many people live in fear and in silence because of their mental illness," William says. "I just don't understand it. I know I come across as quite reserved and shy, I dont always have my emotions brewing, but behind closed doors I think about the issues, I get very passionate about things.

"I know I come across as quite reserved and shy, I dont always have my emotions brewing, but behind closed doors I think about the issues, I get very passionate about things."

"I rely on people around me for opinions, and I am a great believer in communication on these issues."

Earlier this year, the prince surprised many when he shared a video of himself in a conversation about mental health with pop star Lady Gaga.

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How did Andrew Scheer win the Conservative leadership race? What accounts for the other surprises? There are some really interesting points to note about this when one digs into the results.

You can find full results here. Here are a few of my hot takes.

The gap between Andrew Scheer and Maxime Bernier was relatively constant throughout most of the ballots -- but it closed through the final three. With four candidates left, Brad Trost dropped off. About two thirds of Trost's voters went to Scheer, and a third went to Bernier (not including those whose ballots were blank after Trost). Scheer then got about three fifths of Erin O'Toole's voters, to Bernier's two fifths. These things in combination were enough to push Scheer over the top.

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Scheer demonstrates an ability to unify different parts of the party.

Some have said that Scheer won because of social conservatives -- but it's actually much more correct to say that he won because he was able to cut both ways and gain momentum from across the conservative spectrum. He did much better with Trost's (likely) more socially conservative voters AND with the more progressive voters who generally made up O'Toole's voter coalition.

Two thirds and three fifths represent a difference of about six per cent, which isn't that significant. Scheer did about as well with Trost and O'Toole voters, which demonstrates an ability to unify different parts of the party and to strike an appropriate and substantial balance.

While I think our team struck the right balance, a couple social conservative special-interest groups were not very happy. Campaign Life Coalition (CLC), for example, explicitly said that Andrew Scheer should be disqualified from consideration, saying on their voter guide before a list that included Scheer: "The remaining candidates are disqualified from consideration. Please do not rank their names on the ballot."

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That didn't stop CLC from issuing a press release after the fact, which began "Pro-lifers applaud Scheer." It always pays to be gracious, of course, but any frank analysis of how Scheer won needs to take into consideration this strong opposition.

All different kinds of Conservatives can and do have a place in our party under his leadership.

Speaking of Brad Trost, the riding-level breakdown of his support is fascinating. On his final ballot, he was behind Scheer in his own riding of Saskatoon-University, and yet remained in a dominant position in many highly diverse Scarborough and Markham ridings. In Alberta, Trost was at about 10 per cent in Battle-River Crowfoot (very rural) while he was over 30 per cent in Edmonton-Riverbend (urban and diverse).

Trost did well because of his team's prioritization of ethno-cultural outreach, even while his message was resonating relatively poorly with "rural white men." Scheer picking up many of these voters in later rounds of voting was in part a function of a sophisticated ground game and outreach program.

Just spoke with @andrewscheer to congratulate him on his election as CPC leader. I'm looking forward to working constructively together.  Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) May 28, 2017

You can expect the Liberals to try to attack Scheer on these issues. You can expect the same tired tropes to be trotted out about a "hidden agenda" -- but Scheer's win and the way he won show that all different kinds of Conservatives can and do have a place in our party under his leadership.

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The balance Scheer has struck on these issues -- emphasizing individual freedom, freedom of speech and free votes for members of Parliament -- is the right thing for our party and for our country. It will help us win in 2019.

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ranplett via Getty Images http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s173/ranplett/africa.jpg

As a Canadian-born black woman that once lived in the United States, the mindset that some of my people have about nationality within our community is limited and disappointing.

There are some people from Africa that believe they are different than people from the Caribbean. They openly make a reference that they are "African" and the others are "black people."

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When I lived in the United States, I noticed that Caribbean people have a belief that they are better than African Americans because their culture is more connected to Africa. Some African Americans are less likely to have an interest in Africa or the Caribbean culture because their culture was taken from them by force during slavery.

Let's not forget some people that were not born in the continent of Africa, don't want to be connected to their original roots because of the negative images we see every day on television. I have heard the stories of new African immigrants ridiculed by black people born in North America that have left some resenting those that were born here.

The divide between some of my people gives me a headache. The entire purpose of colonization in Africa between the fifteenth and nineteenth century was to separate African people from their culture and place them around the earth to make it hard for them to figure out who they are.

A race of people that don't see each other as the same are a disenfranchised group of people to the rest of the world.

The sad part about this fact is it is an unfortunate part of history but we are now in the twenty-first century, and some black people are still mentally colonized. I understand that it is hard to let go of a certain way of thinking that was passed down from generation to generation. Now is the time to see the bigger picture and start accepting each other as the same people.

When a racist cop stops a Black Canadian, Caribbean or African born person, I highly doubt the police officer is going to treat you any better because you were born in Canada. With that said, why do you think you are better?

I can debate for hours about the countless similarities between Jamaicans and Nigerians or Barbadians and Ghanaians. I have conversations with my people from all different nationalities and the only thing that is preventing some from realizing this is education.

Instead of going back home, try going to the Caribbean to see it for yourself. An alternative to thinking you are different than your friend from Africa is to get on a plane and study the culture.

When I ask some of my people about their indifference to integrating, the topic of culture always comes to mind. I remember having a conversation with a man from the Caribbean about an African-born woman he met that is passionate about the discussion of slavery. He believed that people born in Africa have no say in slavery because they were kidnapped and brought to the Caribbean or North America.

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This statement is ignorant because if one looked at the genocide that occurred across the African continent during colonization, it would bring tears to their eyes.

It is 2017 black people! It is time to stop looking at each other as distant cousins and embrace each other as a diasporic family. If you have a better way of doing things in your culture, teach your neighbor your way of life and vice versa.

The more that you hold onto ignorance, outsiders will continue to affirm that you have no love for self and kind. A race of people that don't see each other as the same are a disenfranchised group of people to the rest of the world.

I appreciate the ones that don't let nationality get in the way of acceptance. Once you begin to realize that we are all different but the same, some of the issues that are a part of our community will slowly disappear.

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By: Samir Shaheen-Hussain and Nazila Bettache

"The first task of the doctor is [...] political: the struggle against disease must begin with a war against bad government." - Michel Foucault, The Birth of the Clinic

On May 13 the Federation of Medical Specialists of Quebec (FMSQ) held a special general assembly, Operation "Code Red," at the Montreal Olympic Stadium. The imagery is evocative: the Quebec health-care system is going down in flames, and the FMSQ wants to rush to its rescue.

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The FMSQ, which includes over 10,000 medical specialists from across the province, is completely justified in its opposition to the major overhaul of the health-care system imposed by Minister Gaetan Barrette that has been denounced from all sectors of society. Physicians across the province have already expressed their concerns about, and/or rejection of, Laws 10, 20 and 92, as well as Bill 118. However, it is Bill 130, and its threat to physicians' professional autonomy, that ultimately compelled the FMSQ to escalate its tactics by mobilizing for the May 13 assembly (over 3,000 members reportedly registered), in a context where the agreement between the FMSQ and the Ministry of Health and Social Services has been expired since March 2015.

In the weeks prior to Operation "Code Red," the message was framed around safeguarding health care for the people of Quebec. We obviously cannot criticize such a laudable mission, but the rhetoric rings hollow when considering the FMSQ's indifference to government actions that have had major impacts on people's health and well-being in recent years.

For example, in June 2012, the federal government implemented drastic cuts to the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP), preventing thousands of refugees, refugee claimants and other migrants with precarious status from accessing health care across the country. The consequences of the cuts were disastrous. The FMSQ issued a press release expressing some concern about the implications on medication coverage, but the cuts were never explicitly denounced in and of themselves. Meanwhile, organizations like the Canadian Medical Association, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and Ontario's Council of Medical Officers of Health supported the campaign spearheaded by Canadian Doctors for Refugee Care condemning the IFHP cuts (which were ultimately reversed in April 2016). The FMSQ did not.

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We find it unacceptable that Quebec physicians - many of whom are overworked, exhausted and discouraged - must work in deteriorating conditions

In 2015, workers from the public sector in Quebec led forceful campaigns to improve their working conditions and wages. The negotiations with the current provincial government included our colleagues working in the public health-care system, who are directly impacted by the deleterious policies imposed by Minister Barrette and denounced by the FMSQ. Although Medecins quebecois pour le regime public issued a public statement expressing its discomfort with ever-increasing physicians' incomes in a context where austerity measures were being forced onto other health-care workers, the FMSQ did not display any tangible solidarity with our colleagues. Perhaps more shocking, the FMSQ (and its counterpart, the Federation des medecins omnipraticiens du Quebec) had previously negotiated a deal whereby Quebec physicians would benefit from an increase in income that would be proportionally equivalent to the hard-fought gains eventually obtained by those in the public sector!

Finally, in November 2016, the National Assembly adopted Bill 70. While this legislation ostensibly seeks to integrate those on social assistance more quickly into the workforce, it introduces a penalty that can deprive a welfare recipient of a third of their monthly payment (from $628 to $404). Many community groups and unions vehemently denounced the further stigmatization of those on social assistance. A group of psychiatrists published an open letter (with over 500 signatories working in the health-care sector) criticizing this punitive approach and the harmful impacts this policy would have on the health and well-being of people who would be forced into more precarity. The FMSQ abstained, yet again, from intervening.

Let there be no doubt: As physicians practising in Quebec, we are unequivocally opposed to the provincial Liberal government and Minister Barrette's overhaul of the health-care system and centralization of powers (notably Bill 130, but also Laws 10 and 20), which undermine the principles of universality and accessibility that are supposed to be central to our health-care system. On a regular basis, we are humbled by the efforts and dedication of our physician colleagues towards patients. We find it unacceptable that Quebec physicians -- many of whom are overworked, exhausted and discouraged -- must work in deteriorating conditions while concurrently being treated with disdain and hostility by Minister Barrette. Meanwhile, we also find it particularly lamentable that working conditions have deteriorated significantly across the board for health-care workers in the public system.

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However, we can't ignore the significance of decisions like mandating Lucien Bouchard to represent the FMSQ in future legal actions. In the 1990s, then-Premier Bouchard's Parti Quebecois government accelerated the erosion of our health-care system through massive cuts in the context of the "virage ambulatoire," motivated by his zero-deficit policy.

We can't ignore that the last time the FMSQ mobilized its members like it did for Operation "Code Red" was in 2006, when Gaetan Barrette -- then president of the FMSQ -- negotiated a deal with the provincial government (current premier, Philippe Couillard, was minister of health at the time) that resulted in the explosion of medical specialists' income (i.e., a 66 per cent increase between 2004 and 2014). The FMSQ went so far as to reward him with a severance package worth $1.2 million when he quit the FMSQ to run in the 2014 provincial elections with the Liberal party. Thanks to Gaetan Barrette's "victories" while president of the FMSQ, physicians' incomes continue to increase in both absolute and relative terms (i.e., the percentage of the total provincial budget devoted to physicians' remuneration has gone from 5.7 per cent in 2006-7 to 7.6 per cent in 2015-16), thereby threatening the very sustainability of the public health-care system in Quebec.

We can't be honest with ourselves by responding to the FMSQ's calls to save the health-care system if these calls serve only its own interests and so long as it remains silent on major issues impacting the health of Quebec's population, including the on-going attacks against the most marginalized groups of our society by successive governments. We therefore wait for the day when the call for solidarity put forth by the FMSQ will not only apply to medical specialists, but will be extended to the entire population of Quebec.

We will welcome the time when the FMSQ becomes a more democratic organization and breaks away from the corporatist-union approach accentuated during the president Barrette era, and mobilizes against minister Barrette's draconian reforms by developing a common front with other groups and sectors also opposed to them. At the end of the day, if the goal is truly to save the health-care system, the FMSQ must adopt an approach rooted in solidarity and social justice rather than self-interest.

The original version of this piece was sent to a few dozen medical specialists across the province. Several expressed support, but were not able to sign on publicly. The following medical specialists are signatories to the original text:

Amir Khadir, microbiologist - infectious disease specialist, Montreal

Catherine Dea, public health & preventative medicine specialist, Montreal

Chi-Minh Phi, pediatrician, Montreal

Francis Livernoche, pediatrician, Sherbrooke

Jennifer Turnbull, pediatric emergentologist, Montreal

Marie-Helene Lizotte, pediatrician, Rimouski

Matthew Weiss, pediatric intensivist, Quebec

Michele Mahone, internist, Montreal

Yasmine Ratnani, pediatrician, Montreal

Nazila Bettache (internist) and Samir Shaheen-Hussain (pediatric emergency physician) are medical specialists and activists for social justice.

The authors would like to acknowledge the contributions of Dror Warschawski and Guillaume Hebert to this text.

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The Chattanooga Choo Choo Senior Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol supported the 2017 first annual Challenge Air Fly Day event at Wilson Air on Saturday.Challenge Air, a nationwide non-profit organization, plans and facilitates Fly Day Events to change the perception of children with special needs through the gift of flight. By eliminating the belief that they are limited, the children can grow to their full potential. They are given the opportunity to find courage within themselves and build in areas where they lack self-esteem.Furthermore, opening up more doors to possibilities by allowing the children to see if they can fly a plane, then they can do anything.There were over 40 children and their family members, who received a flight from a local pilot that had volunteered their time and plane. Before a flight, the child and their family attended Pilot Ground School, where they learned about basic aviation safety and familiarization. After ground school, they met with their pilot and load team members, who assisted them down a red carpet towards the aircraft. After the flight, the children received their Wings and a Pilot Certificate. It was an exciting day for everyone, especially the children and their families. For many, it was the first time in a plane, nonetheless get to fly.Among other activities offered, Civil Air Patrol conducted educational workshops for the children. CAP volunteer 2nd Lt Frank Fry offered simple science experiments and demonstrations that focused on aeronautical and weather applications. The children really enjoyed the hands on activities, including the drone and the paper airplanes.Chattanooga Choo Choo Commander Maj. Kelly Williamson was the Flight Deck Boss, and provided the logistic oversight for the entire day. Maj. Kelly Williamson said, It was a privilege to serve our community and country with the great volunteers of the Choo Choo Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol. Our squadron really showed their heart for others, by devoting their time for a successful, first ever, Challenge Air event in Chattanooga! Experiencing the joy of the 43 special needs co-pilots of Challenge Air gave us all special blessings and perspective on all that we have. Sharing the excitement of flying with these kids and their families is a memory that every pilot will never forget.This years Fly Event was such a huge success, that next years event is already in the planning stages and is expected to be twice as successful. For more information about the event and Challenge Air, visit www.challengeair.com.Civil Air Patrol, the longtime all-volunteer U.S. Air Force auxiliary, is the newest member of the Air Forces Total Force, which consists of regular Air Force, Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, along with Air Force retired military and civilian employees.CAP, in its Total Force role, operates a fleet of 550 aircraft and performs about 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and is credited by the AFRCC with saving an average of 78 lives annually. Civil Air Patrols 56,000 members nationwide also perform homeland security, disaster relief and drug interdiction missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. Its members additionally play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to more than 24,000 young people currently participating in the CAP cadet program.Performing missions for America for the past 75 years, CAP received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2014 in honor of the heroic efforts of its World War II veterans. CAP also participates in Wreaths Across America, an initiative to remember, honor and teach about the sacrifices of U.S. military veterans. Visit www.capvolunteernow.com for more information.
Barton: "But do you, yourself, believe [in gay marriage]?"

Scheer: "I, it's, look, I don't -- it's absolutely -- our party dealt with this issue in Vancouver and, you know, there was a specific policy plank in our platform, and I think members decided, a lot of social conservatives who, you know, have differing views on that decided, look, if it's not something that's ever going to be changed, it's been this way for 10 years -- I have my own personal beliefs and, you know, my own faith background, but at this point in time with the Conservative Party of Canada trying to build a national viable coalition, it's not something that --"

Barton: "But that sounds like, you're just going to, you're going to live with it. You're going to live with the fact that gay people can get married; it's not, but it's not something you believe in."

Scheer: "Look, it doesn't matter, like if people have personal views on things, there's a lot of things that divide us as Conservatives and there's a lot of things that unite us. This is one of those issues that -- it's a -- it happened in 2005, you know I was a member of Parliament at the time, I voted my conscience."
Toby Melville / Reuters

We're all sick to death of seeing the words 'strong and stable' posted through our letterboxes, plastered on newspapers and repeated on television.

The Tories and right-wing media alike are pushing the fallacy of Theresa May as having 'strong and stable' leadership abilities; that her hands are the safe ones to put our future with Europe in. But in reality, what those 'strong and stable' hands will actually do is dismantle our public services bit-by-bit, further alienate us from our closest allies and strangle all opportunities from the young who aren't fortunate enough to be born into a wealthy background.

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This 'strong and stable' leadership has so far done what some are calling one of the biggest U-turns in election history, and has broken a manifesto pledge before the election has even been won. This 'strong and stable' manifesto has even been publicly attacked as 'badly thought through' by the former Chancellor of this very same government.

The 'strong and stable' Theresa May, who insists only she can stand up to both our allies and enemies alike, was the first world leader to meet Donald Trump and be photographed holding his hand, despite his racist and sexist comments. It isn't much of an exaggeration to say that most of Britain collectively shuddered as we watched our leader shamelessly hold hands with a sexual predator and refuse to so much as reprimand his comments and behaviour.

If Theresa May can't stand up to perhaps the most petulant, inexperienced and childish Presidents in history, how on earth can we expect her to lead Brexit negotiations?

If Theresa May were so 'strong and stable', why will she not participate in television debates that democracies worldwide have now adopted as a key feature of any election? After crucial elections such as the US presidential race and the recent presidential contest in France, televised debates have become a crucial factor in helping the public decide whose ideas they like the best, and who they believe is most competent. The right-wing media like to paint Jeremy Corbyn as the one who should be concerned, but he isn't the leader refusing to engage in public, uncensored debate.

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Jeremy Corbyn, unlike the 'strong and stable' Theresa May, has been all over the UK meeting real voters and has even breached security procedures to show up at vigils, without any press, for the tragedy in Manchester.

Corbyn, who is apparently weak and unreliable, fared far better in an interview with the formidable Andrew Neil than 'strong and stable' Theresa May did, who still could not answer a question posed to her despite being asked three times.

Corbyn, whose manifesto is apparently going to bring us back to 1980s chaos, is the only leader out of the two main parties to provide a fully-costed manifesto.

Corbyn, who apparently never stood a chance against the 'strong and stable' Theresa May, has cleared what was once a 24-point Conservative lead only a month ago to a mere five-point difference between the two parties now.

You would have thought that the 'strong and stable' Theresa May, who had previously denied that she would call a snap election multiple times on television, wouldn't have taken such a risk. Or perhaps her arrogance and political opportunism - something that we do not need in a leader right now - led her to believe this snap election would be more of a coronation than an election.

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Despite the full force of the majority of the British media behind her and the Conservatives, it seems like Theresa May's 'strong and stable' certainly of winning this election is slipping through their fingers day-by-day, as Corbyn rises up to the challenge.
Leon Neal via Getty Images

Leadership, leadership, leadership. The British General Election of 2017 has been remarkable for the attempt by some to reduce politics to an individual's qualities as a leader. While the opposition parties have sought to focus on policies, the ruling Conservative Party has chosen to make everything about the head of government.

Their plan rolled into action at the start of the year. Knowing the importance of establishing her name and image as a "leader," in January Theresa May scrambled to Washington to be the first foreign politician to stand at the White House with President Donald Trump. Her team knew that no matter how badly he was viewed, that pictures alongside the President would confirm her status as a leader. If the President became even more controversial than he had been during the campaign, more people would see that May's ability to talk to him could matter. There would be nothing to lose.

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During the campaign, no Conservative politician has appeared in the media without repeating the phrase "strong and stable leadership," and making the case that the election is simply a choice of leader, rather than competing party philosophies, priorities and policy programmes.

The idea that the functioning of a whole nation might depend on the ability of one person to get other people to act, has its roots in the end of the Cold War. Since then, in most counties around the world, we saw the spread of big business into all walks of life. Old organisations were swept aside and international corporations with new management were installed. The existing motivations of staff to work were at risk of decline. While the rise of the knowledge and services economy meant that their motivation would matter more than ever. Companies wanted their staff to believe in their managers. So across the world we were asked to see managers as leaders, and a huge industry of training managers to think of themselves as leaders took off. Staff were no longer expected just to work. Now we were meant to believe.

This process was happening in the workplace but would go on to promote a view of leadership in politics. Managers need to find compromise and gain agreement. Whereas leaders need to be decisive and followed. So the idea of the consensual politician went into decline. The fear that grew after 9/11 meant some people sought reassurance from those in roles of authority. The stresses arising from the financial crisis would only compound that process, especially for those of us not making the connections between recession, austerity and the way the state had been captured by banking interests.

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Analysing these trends before the crisis, in 2007 two historians published a warning: "the stage has been set for the resurgence of authoritative leaders offering unambiguous and easily consumable but fundamentally ineffective messages..." they wrote. They predicted more "...leaders who know their own truth, do not tolerate disloyalty, do not bother with argument or evidence and which make decisions guided by their own self-interest."

Though these scholars published their critique as a warning, ten years later it had become a blueprint for Theresa May's premiership. After she left President Trump in Washington the Prime Minister continued with a flight to Turkey to meet the controversial President Erdogan. The news reported they signed a deal for fighter jets. Such deals are actually a matter for corporate lawyers and customs officials, not Prime Ministers. But that wasn't allowed to interfere with telling the story of Theresa May single-handedly leading Britain. If she could fly planes, they would probably report that she piloted the jet to Istanbul.

Over the next months, Theresa May began to see Britain as we rarely do, from above, as she criss-crossed the country in helicopters to land amongst vetted groups of supporters. In February, her two flights to Cumbria in the space of a fortnight indicated that the plan was ramping up a gear. Why let the opposition have advance warning of an election, when you can just say you changed your mind after a walk in the hills?

With the rest of the Conservative Party reduced to "Team May", with the election of 2017 we have begun to witness an era of what I call "hyperleadership," where the only thing said to matter is the individual with the most senior role.

The demise of this idea of hyperleadership is inevitable because it relies on a myth which evaporates once people turn away from the political theatre on their TV screens and discuss the idea. We know that a team doesn't win just because the captain plays well. We know that if any of our workmates kept telling us they were "strong and stable" they would be on their way out at the next restructure.

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Given that hyperleadership has its origins in the spread of international business, it is ironic that the latest thinking on business leadership is leaving such myths behind. In the rare moment that the leader of the opposition Jeremy Corbyn talked about his leadership, he said he welcomed dissent to ensure power is held to account, and that for him leadership was about equipping us all with more power. Both of those ideas were explored in the past year in the Harvard Business Review, the world's leading voice on management ideas. And it's the way we teach leadership at the University of Cumbria.

A week out from the election, it is yet to be seen whether this is just a moment or a new era of hyperleadership. Rising against it is a very different notion of collective leadership, where professionals from outside politics are organising to enable people to vote tactically for whoever might beat one of Theresa's team.
Um Taha sits with her four children who are suffering from cholera. She has been camping on the floor of the diarrhoea treatment centre in the heart of Sana'a city. (Unicef Yemen/2017/Rajat Madhok)

More than two years of brutal conflict, a looming famine and now life-threatening cholera that is spreading rapidly - right now, nearly ten million children in Yemen are in extreme danger.

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Yemen is currently facing a fast-spreading cholera outbreak that is of an unprecedented scale. In the last month, the number of reported cases has nearly doubled since the previous outbreak, and a much more infectious strain seems to be the culprit this time: contaminated water, untreated sewage and uncollected garbage have led to more than 400 associated deaths alone.

Overcrowded cities are helping the disease spread quickly. Amongst a crumbling health system and poor infrastructure, this epidemic is continuing to spread against the backdrop of a major humanitarian crisis, and children continue to bear the biggest brunt.

One out of every hundred people are dying in this most recent outbreak. In just one month there have been 41,866 new cases - of these, 30% are children. The consequences could be catastrophic if the world does not act now.

Malnourished children and people living with other chronic health conditions are now at greater risk of death as they are facing a 'triple threat' of conflict, famine and cholera - this outbreak has come at a time when children really are at their most vulnerable.

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Here in the UK, when children get sick and have diarrhoea, it can be worrying but certainly not life-threatening. However, this is far from the reality in Yemen, where mothers and their fatally sick children are filling up health centres desperately seeking treatment in the country's capital, Sana'a.

Much of this outbreak is treatable and preventable. Through DFID, British aid has played and still is playing a huge role in this humanitarian response, with water and hygiene programmes reaching more than 300,000 people in cholera-affected areas already. UK aid is effective in crises like this thanks to the UK having an independent and dedicated department focused on scrutinising the use of every penny and operating within rules that ensure its mission is clear.

The effective delivery of this vital, life-saving aid that children so desperately depend on is unequivocal and must be protected to continue to reach the people who need it the most. In these very weeks, millions of pounds are being given toward the immediate cholera response - British aid is delivering supplies, distributing hygiene kits and establishing centres where children will have access to oral rehydration, which could save their lives.

Having visited Yemen last year I saw the gradual decline in services for children first hand. Many schools were closed, food supply was erratic and most children already didn't have access to a doctor or a hospital. malnutrition levels were startling then. Since that time things have continued to get worse.

Unicef staff are sparing no effort throughout the country, even in the hardest to reach areas - monitoring and treating contaminated water, ensuring children have access to treatment such as oral rehydration salts and health services, as well as continuing to respond to the ongoing needs of children suffering from food insecurity.

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A man who has admitted growing cannabis worth more than 23,000 worked at BAE Systems despite entering the UK illegally, a court has heard.

Seyed Sajedein, 28, called police on December 20, last year, complaining that a man was attacking him and his property.

Cathy Kioko-Gilligan, prosecuting at Hull Crown Court , said after taking down a statement, officers "became aware of other matters" and conducted a search of the home.

Upstairs, they discovered a cannabis factory.

Harvested cannabis was found in the first bedroom. In the second bedroom, nine plants and growing equipment were discovered.

The third bedroom contained 43 small plants and more equipment, and a hosepipe - used to water the crops - was found in the bathroom.

Miss Kioko-Gilligan added that on January 10 an electrician from energy provider Npower replaced a meter that had been damaged.

In addition to pleading guilty to producing cannabis, Sajedein, of Greenwood Avenue, north Hull, also admitted illegally abstracting electricity.

The amount of electricity he stole could not be ascertained, Miss Kioko-Gilligan said.

The prosecutor then gave further details of Sajedein's past.

"He entered the country illegally and was given a different identity," she said. "He lost the employment that he had. He has worked at BAE.

"He said he started to grow cannabis as a way of saving money. This had been his second harvest. Most of the first harvest was for his own use, but he says he sold some to his friends."

Experts suggested the potential street value of the cannabis was 23,400.

Recorder Taryn Turner asked for the immigration status of Sajedein.

Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will auto-play soon 8 Cancel Play now

Steven Garth, representing Sajedein, replied: "He applied for asylum and was granted it. He is now a British citizen."

Recorder Turner adjourned sentencing until June 16 so the value of the drugs could be established.

Sajedein was granted unconditional bail.

A spokeswoman for BAE Systems said she has been unable to find any employee record for Sajedein.
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They may have been working at Radio 1 Big Weekend but these police officers definitely know how to have a good time.

And these video clips prove it. They were taken by festival-goers on Saturday and Sunday.

The police have been praised for keeping the festival safe - and having fun - during the two-day event, which took place at Burton Constable Hall.

And as these fantastic pictures and videos show, they definitely enjoyed themselves.

On Twitter, @GarethBarlow wrote: "The officers from @Humberbeat were legendary at #bigweekend- handling a huge event with endless professionalism and endless smiles."

While @adfairweather wrote: "Great time @BBCR1 #bigweekend. Big up to @Humberbeat @HPDogSection all the armed officers from the rest of UK & @ShowsecUK for keeping us safe."

One of the videos shows police officers - who have by this point swapped hats with festival-goers - enjoying a dance to Sean Paul, while another captures a police officer busting moves to Kings of Leon while sitting on another officer's shoulders.

On Twitter @joelow09 wrote: "Just chilling with a PCSO on my shoulders during #radio1bigweekend."

And as Katy Perry paid tribute to the victims of the Manchester terror attack on Saturday night, police even joined in a spontaneous group hug in the crowd.

Another video captured by someone at the event shows a St John's Ambulance worker breakdancing, shown in the video below.

Humberside Police Assistant Chief Constable Andy McDyer said: "I would like to thank everyone who attended for engaging so positively with our officers and staff, making it such a pleasant environment to work.

"This positivity has spread to social media where the public have been incredibly supportive of Humberside Police, which will no doubt mean a lot to everyone associated with the force."

About 50,000 people attended the two-day event which was headlined by global superstars Katy Perry and Kings of Leon.

The star-studded line-up also included performances from Little Mix, Rita Ora, Kasabian, Bastille and Sean Paul.

Did you get any video of police letting their hair down at Big Weekend? We would love to see it. Email sophie.kitching@hulldailymail.co.uk.
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What a weekend!

Over the past two days, 50,000 music lovers have descended on Burton Constable Hall for Europe's biggest free music festival.

Music has been at the heart of the event, naturally, but it has also been an excuse to dress up, drink, eat and have LOADS of fun.

Here's a selection of pictures which sum up Sunday at Radio 1 Big Weekend in Hull.

Police get down with the crowds

Our boys and girls in blue proved a hit with festival goers, who stopped for selfies with them, busted out the moves alongside them and praised them for their high spirits while working the festival.

It seems the festival bug was contagious and got everyone in the mood for a boogie, whether they were working or not.

Glitter magic

Face paint is a common feature of any successful festival but, as we all know, Hull has a bit more class than most places. Bring out the glitter paint!

Men sprinkled the magic dust in their beards, while girls painted it around their eyes to add a little bit of glam to their festival look.

Head and shoulders above the rest

The best way to see any gig is on the shoulders of your best mate. Or a complete stranger for that matter, as long as you get to see your favourite band perform, who cares right?

(Image: Jerome Ellerby)

Little Mix mix it up

They may have been late arriving on stage, but Little Mix did not disappoint when they finally arrived.

The X Factor winners were the opening act on the second day and minus a blip when Perrie Edwards swore, cutting the live stream for viewers back home, they showed why they are one of the biggest girl bands in the charts right now.

Bog standard festival hygiene

A necessary evil of all good festivals, using the toilets was always going to be a low point for fans. They are stuffy, they smell and the risk of running out of loo roll is high.

Sean Paul gets the crowds pumping

This was the act that got the crowds really going. All it took was for the legend that is Sean Paul to give a HUGE Big Weekend brrrap! and the crowd went wild. They 'Be Burning' for more.

Take a selfie like you just don't care

If there was ever a good excuse to strike a pose and take an unashamed selfie, Big Weekend was it. And you were snapping in your thousands! From pouts to fist pumps, you all looked great.

Fancy dress has the power to impress

While the fashionistas stole the show rocking their headbands and hippie headwear, others caught attention by going in fancy dress  and why not?

As well as these Power Rangers, we had tigers, pandas and even people wearing traffic cones on their heads. If you can't get away with it at a festival, where can you?

Friendship blossoms at festival

If you weren't great mates before this weekend, you are now. What better way to bond than over a beer in the sunshine, listening to the top performers of our time?

Manchester was never far from our minds

For the second time over the weekend, Hull showed its support in a moving minute's silence for the victims of the Manchester terror attack.

People stopped in their tracks in an amazing show of solidarity to a fellow northern city which loves music.

Kings of Leon were AMAZING

US superstars Kings of Leon brought Radio 1 Big Weekend to an end in an immense and powerful performance that saw fans dancing none-stop for the entire set.

Kicking off their headliner act against a backdrop of flashing lights, the four-piece band brought a mix of old and new songs to the stage, meaning whether you were a devout fan or simply there for the experience, everyone could go wild.

Tired but happy and riding the bus home

The shuttle bus system might have raised a few eyebrows when first announced but, as this bunch of happy festival goers show, it really wasn't all that bad.

Huge shout out to the bus drivers who worked tirelessly to make sure everyone had fun. We hope you get some well deserved rest.
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Radio 1's Big Weekend has been declared a triumph by all the organisations involved with Hull's City of Culture programme who are now looking forward to a massive summer.

The Burton Constable Hall festival was always expected to be one of the biggest and best events in the city's special year.

And, with huge household names such as Katy Perry, Kings of Leon, Kasabian and Little Mix performing to a weekend crowd of 50,000 people it really didn't disappoint.

Kings of Leon set ends with fantastic firework display

Read more: Katy Perry went to a Hull McDonald's after Big Weekend headline performance

Martin Green, director of Hull UK City of Culture 2017, said: "Bringing Radio 1's Big Weekend to Hull 2017 has been fantastic.

"The crowds have been great and the atmosphere incredible. It's been awesome to see 50,000 people coming together across the two days and having a good time with some brilliant music.

"It's an event that could not have happened without the partnership and support of a range of partners, including the National Heritage Memorial Fund appointed trustees and the family and staff at Burton Constable Hall, as well as our colleagues at Hull City Council and East Riding of Yorkshire Council and of course the police and the other blue light services.

"It's a fabulous kick off to a summer of great music in Hull and East Riding."

As well as the great music, the beautiful historic site played a key role in making the weekend one we will all remember.

Nick Hildyard and Rodrica Straker, trustees of the Burton Constable Foundation, said: "The festival-goers have been fun-loving, cooperative and polite and it has been delightful to hear the comments from the people we have bumped into over the past two days.

"With people of all ages coming to the festival, it is helping raise the profile of Hull's own and only historic house. We would like to pay tribute to the staff at the Burton Constable Foundation, the BBC, Hull 2017 and the many others who have worked so hard for weeks to pull this off. It has exceeded all expectations."

Many are hoping the Radio 1 festival's success will lead to the region having an annual music festival that will continue to treat us to massive international acts.

This was something presenter Greg James was keen to push for when he sat down and spoke to the Mail.

For now, it is worth remembering Hull and East Yorkshire will be hosting some great music events this summer including Humber Street Sesh, Tidal Waves and concerts from acts including Primal Scream, Flaming Lips and Ocean Colour Scene.

Stephen Brady, leader of Hull City Council, said: "We are delighted with how well Radio 1's Big Weekend has gone in this our City of Culture year.

"Hull is already a great city for music and this is one of the biggest events in the calendar. Our thanks go to all our partners, but especially the police and other emergency services for helping to ensure festival-goers had a safe and enjoyable weekend."

Councillor Stephen Parnaby, leader of East Riding Council, said: "Having BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend take place in the East Riding as part of Hull UK City of Culture 2017 has been tremendous.

"It helps put the area even more firmly on the map as a place to visit and to enjoy live music and we hope it will inspire fans to look out for other great events coming up over then next few months, like our Tidal Waves beach music festival, which is on June 9 and 10."

If you want to catch up on all the best bits from Big Weekend visit our website and What's On Facebook page.

Read more: Let's make sure Big Weekend isn't just a wonderful one-off
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A former Royal Marine commando who shared indecent images of children as young as two told police he was "lonely and needed a girlfriend".

Julia Baggs, prosecuting at Hull Crown Court , said police "interrogated" the IP address of Frank Turner, 67, after intelligence was received.

A search of his home in Tennyson Street, Goole , was carried out on January 26, 2016, during which computer equipment was seized.

Experts found hundreds of still and moving images of children being abused, including 132 deemed to be in category A - the most serious.

Ms Baggs said evidence pointed to Turner having shared a number images, including those in category A.

"He was asked in interview if he had a sexual interest in children," Ms Baggs told the court. "He denied this and said he was lonely and needed a girlfriend.

"He said that he understood that it was illegal (to download indecent images of children). He said that he had tried to delete them prior to police attending at his address."

Turner pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children, three counts of distributing indecent images of children, and one count of possessing extreme pornography, namely bestiality.

Catherine Duffy, for Turner, said her client had recently retired from his job as a long distance lorry driver. Prior to that, Turner had been medically discharged from the Royal Marines.

Referring to references handed to the court, Ms Duffy said: "He is described as a hardworking and diligent man who was well thought of.

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"He has decided to retire, partly because of the reaction of colleagues. He is not a man who will trouble the courts again. He is extremely ashamed."

Judge Mark Bury rejected Turner's claim that he did not have a sexual interest in children and sentenced him to 20 months imprisonment.

He told Turner: "In my judgement, once you have started distributing images of children the only sentence is one of immediate imprisonment.

"You will notify (as a sex offender) for ten years and you are disqualified from working with children for life."
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Senior Colonel Wu Qian, the spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense of China. [File photo by Chen Boyuan/China.org.cn]

Chinese military aircraft intercepted a U.S. Air Force surveillance plane on May 25 in airspace southeast of Hong Kong, China's Ministry of National Defense (MOD) confirmed on May 28.

U.S. media reported the previous day that two PLA (People's Liberation Army) Air Force J-10 jet fighters intercepted a U.S. P-3 maritime surveillance aircraft 240 kilometers southeast of Hong Kong. The reports claimed the Chinese fighters came as close as 180 meters.

Senior Colonel Wu Qian, the spokesman for the MOD, rejected the allegation, saying it was "inconsistent with fact."

Wu said the U.S. plane was engaged in spying activities off the coast of China's Hong Kong SAR, prompting PLA aircraft to be scrambled to investigate. The PLA pilots' handling of the incident was "professional and safe," he added.

The MOD has accused the United States of frequently sending military vessels and aircraft into the waters and airspace off China's coast.

Such activities jeopardize China's sovereign safety and endanger the frontline personnel from both parties. "They are the fundamental cause of China-U.S. military issues concerning maritime and airspace security."

Wu Qian reiterated that China demands the United States take concrete steps to prevent further such incidents, adding the Chinese military would resolutely carry out its duties to safeguard the country's sovereignty and safety.
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It was an incredible weekend that Hull will never forget.

The success of the Radio 1 Big Weekend festival, held at Burton Constable Hall, has led to it being described as one of the best ever.

About 50,000 people attended the two-day event which was headlined by global superstars Katy Perry and Kings of Leon.

The star-studded line-up also included performances from Little Mix , Rita Ora, Kasabian, Bastille and Sean Paul.

And the weather couldn't have been any better for the biggest music festival Hull has ever seen, with music fans bathed in glorious sunshine and temperatures of up to 26C.

Radio 1 host Nick Grimshaw said the festival had been one of the best Big Weekends ever.

Watch Nick Grimshaw talk to us about Big Weekend

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"I love Hull, it's so friendly and welcoming," he said. "I go back home to Manchester a lot so I love spending time up north, and I think the crowd has been amazing at this Big Weekend. It's been one of the best ever.

"The crowd have been so receptive. Often when you ask someone about a gig they say every crowd is amazing but Hull have been brilliantly. They were great and respectful when we held the minute silence each day, which was moving to see, and they have just been jumping around and going mad for everyone.

"I don't know whether that's because these pop stars don't often all gather in Hull, or just the great Northern vibe."

Grimshaw said he was also able to spend time perfecting his Hull accent.

"I have a few friends from Hull that now live in London and they have been teaching me a lot of the accent," he said.

"I love it when they say know and no together in a Hull accent."

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Rodrica Straker, of Burton Constable Hall, said it had been a huge event for the city.

"I think this is the biggest thing in the region in forever and ever and will be forever and ever because it is just one of those magical things the BBC bring round the country," she said.

"The line is the biggest and the best for the 14 years they have been doing it and we are just so lucky to have it.

"The idea sprung up a few years ago and I reckon it has taken a year and a half of really intensive planning.

"It has been really hard to keep this secret and then since January 23 it has been rather crazy.

"It has culminated in this amazing weekend."

DJ Greg James also praised the friendliness of people in Hull.

He said: "I have just met about 100 people while walking down here and they are all super friendly.

"This site is fantastic and I am definitely coming back. I love the Hull accent. I think it's rubbing off on me."

The DJ said he hoped the success of Big Weekend would mean Hull gets its own major music festival in the future.

"The way people have responded to it there's clearly a demand for it and that should be the legacy," he said.

"There's something amazing about putting a festival like this in a place that never saw a festival before.

"This is something new for the area and during that month leading up to it, the impact has been really cool."

Humberside Police have also been praised for their handling of the huge event, just days after a suicide bomber killed 22 people at an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena.

Officers danced with fans and posed for selfies during the event.

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Assistant Chief Constable Andy McDyer said: "Big Weekend has been a fantastic event that has undoubtedly showcased the local area nationally.

"I would like to thank everyone who attended for engaging so positively with our officers and staff, making it such a pleasant environment to work.

"This positivity has spread to social media where the public have been incredibly supportive of Humberside Police, which will no doubt mean a lot to everyone associated with the force.

"From a policing perspective, there has been very little disorder and the public have embraced the advice offered to them.

"The success of the event is a credit to the hard work and dedication of all the agencies involved and I am proud we played a part in making it a family friendly event."

(Image: Jerome Ellerby)

A BBC chaperone praised the behaviour of festival goers at the Big Weekend as "fantastic".

Anthony Styles said there had been no major incidents and that chaperones had enjoyed the weekend.

"People losing phones has been the main issue we've had to deal with," he said. "But it's been really good because loads have been handed in. Thankfully most of what's been lost has been found.

"Sunday had a real family feel, whereas Saturday was more of the younger party goers. But I have to say the behaviour of everyone has been fantastic.

"It's been a brilliant weekend and someone upstairs was smiling on us because the weather's been brilliant."
Kris Kobach's political comeback is complete. Here is what it means.

Kris Kobach's victory as Kansas attorney general will usher in an office that will be active in challenging the federal government in court.
Because of rain, North Adams residents gathered in the American Legion for the Memorial Day Ceremony.
Jenny Holzer's illuminated work went live on Saturday night. Holzer's graphics are being projected in five spots along the building. Three of the spires in 'Cloudland' talking to each other. New Signage has been installed inside and outside of the campus. Five projector pods are set up on River Street. Bruce Odland and Sam Auinger's 'Harmonic Bridge.' One the pillars prior to its being painted over. PreviousNext

Mass MoCA Expands Beyond Campus

One of the interactive music machines by New Orleans Airlift. NORTH ADAMS, Mass.  Blinking lights, strange sounds, searing words, twisted trees.

The contemporary art that's been largely confined to the campus of Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art is being loosed upon the city it calls home this summer.

Work began last week in preparation for Sunday's grand opening of Building 6, a monumental renovation that doubled the amount of gallery space and made Mass MoCA the largest contemporary art museum in the world. The installations are in conjunction with some pop-up retail, signage and landscaping meant to direct museum patrons beyond the 16-acre campus.

It's an effort to take a "second bite of the apple," said Executive Director Joseph Thompson last week, by building on the excitement of the museum's expansion to build a stronger relationship to the city.

"It's another moment that North Adams can put itself forward," he said. "That started the North Adams Exchange idea."

The museum's tried some connections in the past but not at this level. The idea was inspired in part by a visit last summer by Karen Hopkins, longtime Brooklyn Academy of Music president who had selected Mass MoCA for a case study during her fellowship with the Mellon Foundation.

One thing she stressed, Thompson said, was that the regional focus on marketing for Mass MoCA not overshadow North Adams' potential.

"What she said was, 'from my eyes and my taste North Adams is the interesting place,'" he said. "North Adams feels different, it's got all the raw, edgy qualities of a small city."

One thing that stuck with him was Hopkins' description of how Brooklyn had been promoted. The focus had been on Manhattan -- how it was so close. "For 15 years they talked about Brooklyn in relation to Manhattan," he said. "It was only when they turned to say Brooklyn was different, diverse, affordable ... trying to describe what was the magic of Brooklyn, Brooklyn took off."

To that end, large cranes blocked streets last week as crews installed a ring of LED lights on the four highest steeples that would make them blink out a verse by Henry David Thoreau in Morse code.

"It's not a fireworks show but I particularly like it when the churches begin talking to each other," Thompson said.

On River Street, five cargo pods with projectors inside were installed on tube framing to project an illuminated work by artist Jenny Holzer.

Where the light show of churches and Mass MoCA's clocktower talking to each other in coded verse has a local historical angle -- Thoreau wrote the verse atop Mount Greylock  Holzer's light projection is more biting as it brings home descriptions of war in large lettering across the length of the museum's north side.

"Cloudland" runs through the summer while Holzer's work, "For North Adams, 2017," runs Wednesdays through Sundays from dusk to 11 through June 25, the weekend that the Solid Sound Festival returns.

"We're using the moment to articulate the entire campus and make it more clear for visitors and adding signage and seating, having more places to hang out really," Thompson said. "Visitors will discover a new lawn we've planted in Courtyard D and we've extended outside the campus."

Upwards of 10,000 people were at Mass MoCA on Sunday, with nearly 7,000 attending the Cake concert. To get more of those people downtown, the museum's pitched tents at the former Mohawk Center parking lot and scattered sound installations around town, including the mechanical musical instrument by New Orleans Airlift at the corner of Marshall and Main.

There are potential plans to demolish the so-called Leu building and redevelop the area but that's years away and millions of dollars. Instead, the museum's using thousands of dollars from fundraising for the tents, signage and landscaping.

"Corraling the retail, food and activity, that's really the hard work," Thompson said. He credited the city and some of the "new blood" like Benjamin Lamb and Suzy Helme for stepping up. "Once they said they would take that on, we said we'd do the structure."

A significant change is opening the space under the Memorial Bridge that had been messy and overgrown and laying down white stone.

"Why we didn't think of that 10 years ago ... when you were standing in the parking lot, it was psychologically a little daunting," he said. "It was dark and overgrown and there was broken glass you literally couldn't get there because of the fence but you didn't want to get there."

But the work under the bridge meant that another public art piece was painted over, and that has some in the community upset.

Bruce Odland and Sam Auinger's "Harmonic Bridge" had been installed back in 1998 underneath the span. The work picks up sound in the key of C and piped out through a box on either side that sounds like chanting. Part of the work was painting the columns beside in the boxes in gray.

About five years ago, however, a community group and local children painted images from pillow patterns made by Arnold Print Works on one set of columns; they following year, they replicated mill children photographed by Lewis Hine.

"They were originally painted as part of the 'Harmonic Bridge' installation in 1998," Thompson said. "We maintained them from time to time ... it's a subtle gray to match the concrete sound installation."

In a letter to the editor, one of the leaders of the community painting effort decried the loss of history and art.

"I vacillate between angry and sad now every day, but my heart goes out to the residents of the city," Christina King wrote.

Thompson said it was a complicated issue. The museum wasn't aware of the community project until it was started and then was under the impression it would only be up a few years. The original artists have been asking when "Harmonic Bridge" would be restored. This seemed to be the right time to do it.

"I know it's hard," he said. "Every year, at Mass MoCA we go through the emotional turmoil of taking down or painting over thousands of square feet of art we've fallen in love with I know the pain of that."

Thompson said he reached out to coordinator Gail Sellers (Sellers confirmed that) and told her what would happen and that the paintings would be documented. He said he didn't realize it had also been a school project.

"I wish I would have gotten through to the actual teachers and the kids who did the work themselves so they would understand," he said. "I think it would have stung a little less."
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Gender inequality is one that's present on every level of the industry: from blockbuster cinema, to the glitz of the Academy Awards, to the European sophistication of the Cannes Film Festival.

Though many significant works by female directors have passed through the festival, they're rarely rewarded during the closing prize ceremony; hopefully, that's a fact that will change soon, with The Beguiled director Sofia Coppola landing a historic win at this year's ceremony.

She becomes the second woman ever, in the festival's 70-year history, to win the Best Director prize, the first being Soviet filmmaker Yuliya Solntseva in 1961 for The Chronicle of Flaming Years.

Recommended How Nicole Kidman became Queen of Cannes

The Beguiled collects together a stellar cast: Nicole Kidman plays the headmistress of Miss Martha Farnsworth Seminary for Young Ladies. Kirsten Dunst plays teacher Edwina, and Elle Fanning plays student Alicia.

The inward-looking world of these young women is suddenly disrupted by the arrival of a wounded Union army soldier, played by Colin Farrell. Though the 1971 film which adapts the same book by Thomas P. Cullinan focused on the soldier, Coppola will shift the narrative to the women and their relationships with each other and with the man who threatens to disrupt their harmony.

 The Beguiled - Trailer

In her pre-written speech, read out by director and jury member Maren Ade, Coppola thanked Jane Campion for being a role model, being the only female director to have ever won the coveted Palme d'Or for best film.

You can read the full list of winners here.
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Swedish film The Square has won the prestigious Palme Dor at the Cannes Film Festival.

The satirical film, directed by Ruben Ostlund, is about the director of a contemporary art museum who stages a new exhibition called "The Square" in a bid to attract publicity.

The concept is that, inside the square, everyone is encouraged to behave responsibly. However, the director himself has his phone and wallet stolen inside the installation and sets out to find the thief.

Starring Mad Mens Elisabeth Moss and The Wires Dominic West, it had been well-received by critics after being released on 19 May.

The film was described by the Cannes jury, overseen by Spanish director Pedro Almodovar, as clever, witty and funny and dealing with important questions.

Mr Almodovar added that it was a "rich" masterpiece that tackled the "horrific dictatorship" of political correctness.

Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Show all 14 1 /14 Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for A Series of Unfortunate Events: season 1 Starring: Neil Patrick Harris, Malina Wiessman, Will Arnett, Cobie Smulders, Patrick Warburton Release date: Out now Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Riverdale: season 1 Starring:KJ Apa, Lili Reinhart, Camila Mendes, Cole Srpuse, Madchen Amick Release date: New episodes every Friday Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for iBoy Starring: Bill Milner, Maisie Williams, Miranda Richardson Release date: Out now Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Santa Clarita Diet: season 1 Starring: Drew Barrymore, Timothy Olyphant, Nathan Fillion, Patton Oswalt Release date: 3 February Netflix Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Ultimate Beastmaster Hosted by: Terry Crews Release date: 24 February Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Love: season 2 Starring: Gillian Jacobs, Paul Rust, Claudia O'Doherty Release date: 10 March Netflix Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Iron Fist: season 1 Starring: Finn Jones, Jessica Henwick, David Wenham, Rosario Dawson Release date: 17 March Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Sense8: season 2 Starring: Toby Onwumere, Doona Bae, Jamie Clayton, Tuppence Middleton Release date: 5 May Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for House of Cards: season 5 Starring: Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright, Neve Campbell, Joel Kinnaman Release date: 31 May Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Dear White People: season 1 Starring: Antoinette Robertson, Brandon P Bell, Logan Browning Release date: TBC Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Okja Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Tilda Swinton, Lily Collins, Steven Yeun, Giancarlo Esposito Release date: TBC Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later Starring: Elizabeth Banks, Paul Rudd, Janeane Garofalo, Bradley Cooper, Amy Poehler, Alyssa Milano, Jai Courtney Release date: TBC Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Master of None: season 2 Starring: Aziz Ansari Release date: TBC Netflix Originals 2017: All the films and TV shows to look out for Stranger Things: season 2 Starring: Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown Release date: TBC

As the festival drew to a close, it was announced that Joaquin Phoenix had won best actor for his role in thriller You Were Never Really Here, while Diane Kruger took home the best actress award for her part in In The Fade.

Sofia Coppola was handed the best director prize for The Beguiled, becoming only the second woman in the festivals 70-year history to win the award.

Coppolas remake is a feminist adaptation of Clint Eastwoods 1971 version of the film, which is about a girls school in 1864 Virginia and the events that take place when some of the pupils discover a wounded Union Army soldier.

A special prize to mark the film festivals 70th anniversary was awarded to Nicole Kidman.
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Theresa May has been accused of being Donald Trumps mole in Europe after leaked documents showed the UK attempted to water down EU policies designed to tackle climate change.

While other European politicians have made clear to the Republican billionaire that his denial of climate science is a problem, the Prime Minister has remained resolutely silent on the issue.

Her visit to Washington  when the two leaders were pictured holding hands  was widely regarded as an attempt to build a strong relationship with Mr Trump, despite concerns about his attitudes towards women, migrants, Islam, Vladimir Putins Russia and other issues.

The leaked documents, obtained by Greenpeaces Energydesk, show the UK tried to make a policy designed to improve energy efficiency  reducing greenhouse gas emissions and making goods cheaper to run for consumers  voluntary rather than mandatory.

It also essentially argued EU member states should be allowed to make no progress at all towards a 2030 target on renewable energy until the last moment.

Barry Gardiner, the shadow International Trade Secretary, who speaks on climate change issues as a result of Ms Mays decision to scrap the dedicated climate change Cabinet post, told The Independent: After the G7 [meeting], the word was put out that six countries were on track, pursuing the objective of the Paris Agreement. Only one country, America, was out of step.

That simply has been proven not to be the case by this leak, which shows Donald Trump actually has a mole within the EU and that mole is the UK.

The UK is, behind the scenes, trying to water down the commitments and make them voluntary instead of mandatory.

He said the changes proposed by the UK were not cosmetic  to make targets aspirational, rather than legally enforceable, was ridiculous.

Its a substantial change, Mr Gardiner said. To say all this is just non-binding is to completely move away from that fact that Paris has set in place clear ultimate objectives and we have to be on a trajectory to meet that.

The whole basis on which we in the UK have set in place our trajectory to meet our targets is on a legally binding basis.

Thats why we have given the Committee on Climate Change that independent status to make these recommendations which are then set in law through the whole process of setting carbon budgets.

He pointed to the Governments failure to produce an effective plan to reduce carbon emissions in line with a carbon budget announced in 2011.

I think the UK loves the rhetoric of being a world leader on climate change but we are living off the reputation that was built up in 2008 when we [Labour] put through the Climate Change Act, Mr Gardiner said.

The way in which the Government has really failed to do anything following the third Carbon Budget is really of huge concern. We have now waited since July 2011 to have an implementation plan.

ClientEarth, a group of environmental lawyers who have twice successfully won court orders forcing the Government to improve illegally poor plans to tackle air quality, has raised the prospect of further legal action over the Governments failure to produce an effective Emissions Reduction Plan.

In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour Show all 39 1 /39 In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud arriving for a reception ahead of a banquet at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump, and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud being welcomed at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump with King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud during a welcome ceremony with traditional sword dancers at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with US President Donald J. Trump and wife Melania during a welcome ceremony at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump adjusts the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal, after it was bestowed upon him by Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud presents U.S. President Donald Trump with the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 Palestinians print posters depicting US President Donald Trump in preparations for his planned visit, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband White House senior advisor Jared Kushner, before delivering his remarks to the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump looks on as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef exchange a memorandum of understanding Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump shares a laugh with a child during a visit to the American International School in the Saudi capital Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers rest during preparations ahead of President Trump's landing in Tel Aviv, Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump makes her way to board Air Force One in Riyadh as she heads with her husband the US President to Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One for Israel, the next stop in Trump's international tour, at King Khalid International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers wait for the arrival ceremony of US President Donald Trump at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, Israel AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive aboard Air Force One at Ben Gurion International Airport in Lod near Tel Aviv, Israel Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump disembark Air Force One on arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump and his wife, US First Lady Melania Trump are welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, in Lod outside Tel Aviv, Israel EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sit during welcome ceremony in Tel Aviv AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump chats wife Sara Netanyahu as US President Donald Trump chats to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a welcoming ceremony to welcome Trump at Ben Gurion International Airport Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump delivers a speech upon his arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump gestures during a press conference with Israel's President at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump watches as First Lady Melania Trump signs the guest book at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump walks with first lady Melania Trump in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, in Jerusalems Old City Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump stands next to Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz at the plaza in front of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and White House senior advisor Jared Kushner leave notes at the Western Wall in Jerusalem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Ivanka Trump, assistant and daughter of US President Donald J. Trump, touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump arrives in a vehicle to Saint Damaso's Court for a private audience with Pope Francis in Vatican City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis walks past Ivanka Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on the occasion of the private audience with President Donald Trump, at the Vatican AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis exchanges gifts with US President Donald Trump during a private audience at the Vatican Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis meets US President Donald Trump and his wife Melania during a private audience at the Vatican Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis with US President Donald J. Trump EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis gets into is car after meeting with US President Donald Trump AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 President Donald Trump and his wife Melania look at the frescoed ceilings during their visit to the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican L'Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump security vehicles are seen in front of Air Force One before take off from Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump wave to reporters before boarding the Air Force One to Brussels, at the end of a 2-day visit to Italy including a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican, at Rome's Fiumicino international airport AP

In one of the leaked documents, the UK proposed watering down an EU plan to improve energy efficiency by 30 per cent by 2030, reducing the target figure to 27 per cent and making it indicative rather than binding.

Another submission showed the UK also wanted to remove a requirement for a linear trajectory towards a 2030 target for renewable energy after 2021.

This would mean that states would be able to spend years without doing anything then suddenly catch up just before 2030.

The document says: Technologies, particularly newer and less established technologies, do not roll out at a linear pace.

We do not consider that linear progress to the target should be expected or determined at the EU and, rather, that it should be for member states to determine based on their plans.

Requiring a linear trajectory towards the 2030 target would not have prevented states from doing more than was required.

 Donald Trump claims his first foreign trip has been a success. His body language tells otherwise

Jonathan Gaventa, director of environmental think-tank E3G, told Energydesk that the UKs actions were difficult to understand given the policies would not apply until after the expected date for Brexit.

This smells of obstructionism, he said. The UK is p*****g off countries it needs as allies.

Caroline Lucas, leader of the Green Party, added that the documents were a strong indication that, unless we fight back, Britain could become an offshore pollution haven where the environment is in the firing line of an aggressive Government with a blind and brutal deregulation agenda.

The Conservative Party did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Google has launched a new feature that could make its search box even more popular than it already is.

The company has added a new Personal tab to its search page, which is designed to make it easier for you to track down your own content.

Personal is only available when youre logged in to your Google account, and results are taken from other Google services, like Gmail and Google Photos.

Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty

If you search for London, for instance, Google will show you its regular list of relevant links. At the top of the results page, you can select Maps, News, Images or Video results too.

Immediately to the right of these options is More, which is where the Personal tab lives.

Selecting Personal will take you to another page, which looks very similar to Googles standard search page, but shows a list of items in your agenda that are related to London, any of your own Google Photos pictures that were taken in London, and Gmail messages containing the word London.

These items are split between separate cards, each of which repeats the message, Only you can see these results.

A number of Google ads sit at the bottom of the Personal page.

Much of Googles latest developer conference focused on Lens, a new service thats designed to encourage users to feed a lot more data to the company and give it much greater insight into our daily lives than ever before.

While Personal is certainly useful, it could stoke existing privacy fears.

However, it doesnt appear to be available to all users at the moment, and is instead rolling out gradually.

Personal hasnt yet made it to the Google app either, and lacks support for Google Drive files, though its possible that this will be added in the future.
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Donald Trump was like a drunk tourist on his first trip abroad, which saw awkward handshakes with the French President, shoving the Prime Minister of Montenegro and causing German Chancellor Angela Merkel to declare the end of the US alliance with Europe.

A US State Department official blasted the arrogance of the President as he flew from Saudi Arabia and Israel to Europe last week.

When it comes to diplomacy, President Trump is a drunk tourist, the unnamed official told The Daily Beast.

Loud and tacky, shoving his way around the dance floor. He steps on others without realising it. Its ineffectual.

Most concerning was Mr Trumps vow to make a final decision on the Paris climate change agreement next week  a measure which 195 nations have already agreed upon before his election.

He was accused of undermining the international diplomacy when he took a tougher stance on the G7 than on Saudi Arabia, where he made no mention of human rights violations in Yemen and was feted with lavish ceremonies and received the highest civilian honour.

In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour Show all 39 1 /39 In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud arriving for a reception ahead of a banquet at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump, and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud being welcomed at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump with King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud during a welcome ceremony with traditional sword dancers at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with US President Donald J. Trump and wife Melania during a welcome ceremony at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump adjusts the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal, after it was bestowed upon him by Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud presents U.S. President Donald Trump with the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 Palestinians print posters depicting US President Donald Trump in preparations for his planned visit, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband White House senior advisor Jared Kushner, before delivering his remarks to the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump looks on as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef exchange a memorandum of understanding Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump shares a laugh with a child during a visit to the American International School in the Saudi capital Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers rest during preparations ahead of President Trump's landing in Tel Aviv, Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump makes her way to board Air Force One in Riyadh as she heads with her husband the US President to Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One for Israel, the next stop in Trump's international tour, at King Khalid International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers wait for the arrival ceremony of US President Donald Trump at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, Israel AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive aboard Air Force One at Ben Gurion International Airport in Lod near Tel Aviv, Israel Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump disembark Air Force One on arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump and his wife, US First Lady Melania Trump are welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, in Lod outside Tel Aviv, Israel EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sit during welcome ceremony in Tel Aviv AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump chats wife Sara Netanyahu as US President Donald Trump chats to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a welcoming ceremony to welcome Trump at Ben Gurion International Airport Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump delivers a speech upon his arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump gestures during a press conference with Israel's President at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump watches as First Lady Melania Trump signs the guest book at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump walks with first lady Melania Trump in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, in Jerusalems Old City Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump stands next to Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz at the plaza in front of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and White House senior advisor Jared Kushner leave notes at the Western Wall in Jerusalem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Ivanka Trump, assistant and daughter of US President Donald J. Trump, touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump arrives in a vehicle to Saint Damaso's Court for a private audience with Pope Francis in Vatican City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis walks past Ivanka Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on the occasion of the private audience with President Donald Trump, at the Vatican AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis exchanges gifts with US President Donald Trump during a private audience at the Vatican Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis meets US President Donald Trump and his wife Melania during a private audience at the Vatican Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis with US President Donald J. Trump EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis gets into is car after meeting with US President Donald Trump AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 President Donald Trump and his wife Melania look at the frescoed ceilings during their visit to the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican L'Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump security vehicles are seen in front of Air Force One before take off from Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump wave to reporters before boarding the Air Force One to Brussels, at the end of a 2-day visit to Italy including a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican, at Rome's Fiumicino international airport AP

At a ceremony to celebrate Nato member nations' strength after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Mr Trump said Germany was bad, very bad for its trade surplus and told off the 28 countries for not paying what they should be paying. He also refused to commit to upholding Article 5 of the Nato Treaty, and did not utter the words all for one, one for all.

Mr Trump flew back to the US with a $100 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia and tweeted, Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!

 Donald Trump claims his first foreign trip has been a success. His body language tells otherwise

His trip led French leader Emmanuel Macron, with whom Mr Trump was seen gripping hands and gritting teeth, to announce that the handshake with the President was not innocent.

Ms Merkel declared to a crowd in Bavaria that Europes ability to rely on the US was over, to a certain extent. This is what I have experienced in the last few days.

Europe really must take our fate into our own hands, Ms Merkel added.

He also appeared to push aside Montenegro Prime Minister Dusko Markovic to stand at the front of a group of Nato leaders. Mr Markovic said the move was "inoffensive".

The signalling of the potential end of the US-German alliance could be described as good news for Russia, which has so far been restrained by Nato from provoking further aggressions in other countries like those in Crimea.

Democrats railed against missed opportunities by Mr Trump during his first venture.

Senator Cory Booker told CNN that Mr Trump did not focus on the core issues like climate change, human rights issues or Russian aggression.

Not talking about the real human rights concerns in Saudi Arabia, its almost like reducing America from the light and hope in the world to just a utilitarian kind of transactional relationship, he said.
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It has been hailed as a cure for cancer and all forms of inherited disease.

But scientists have now discovered that a system for editing the genes of living creatures can have a potentially dangerous side-effect  causing unintended mutations.

Human trials of the Crispr-Cas9 gene-editing technique are already underway in China and are due to start in the US next year.

One of the supposed strengths of the system is that it allows specific sections of the genome to be targeted.

This prompted one expert, Dr Edze Westra, to predict earlier this year that it would be used to cure all inherited diseases, to cure cancers, to restore sight to people by adding, deleting or repairing genes.

Writing in the journal Nature Methods, researchers in the US described how they had used Crispr-Cas9 to restore sight to blind mice.

However, when they then sequenced the entire genome of the animals, they found two had more than 1,500 small mutations and more than 100 larger deletions and insertions of genetic material.

One of the researchers, Professor Stephen Tsang, of Columbia University, said: We feel its critical that the scientific community consider the potential hazards of all off-target mutations caused by Crispr.

Researchers who arent using whole genome sequencing to find off-target effects may be missing potentially important mutations.

We hope our findings will encourage others to use whole-genome sequencing as a method to determine all the off-target effects of their Crispr techniques and study different versions for the safest, most accurate editing.

He added that even a small change  even affecting a single nucleotide, the basic building block of DNA  could have a huge impact.

Previously, scientists have used a computer algorithm to highlight areas of the genome most likely to have been damaged inadvertently and then examine those sections of DNA alone.

The researchers said these algorithms seem to do a good job when Crispr was used on tissues in the laboratory, but full genome sequencing was required when dealing with live animals.

Science news in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Science news in pictures Science news in pictures Pluto has 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen Pluto has a 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen that is doing strange things to its surface, Nasa has found. The mysterious core seems to be the cause of features on its surface that have fascinated scientists since they were spotted by Nasa's New Horizons mission. "Before New Horizons, everyone thought Pluto was going to be a netball - completely flat, almost no diversity," said Tanguy Bertrand, an astrophysicist and planetary scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center and the lead author on the new study. "But it's completely different. It has a lot of different landscapes and we are trying to understand what's going on there." Getty Science news in pictures Over 400 species discovered this year by Natural History Museum The ancient invertabrate worm-like species rhenopyrgus viviani (pictured) is one of over 400 species previously unknown to science that were discovered by experts at the Natural History Museum this year PA Science news in pictures Jackdaws can identify 'dangerous' humans Jackdaws can identify dangerous humans from listening to each others warning calls, scientists say. The highly social birds will also remember that person if they come near their nests again, according to researchers from the University of Exeter. In the study, a person unknown to the wild jackdaws approached their nest. At the same time scientists played a recording of a warning call (threatening) or contact calls (non-threatening). The next time jackdaws saw this same person, the birds that had previously heard the warning call were defensive and returned to their nests more than twice as quickly on average. Getty Science news in pictures Turtle embryos influence sex by shaking The sex of the turtle is determined by the temperatures at which they are incubated. Warm temperatures favour females. But by wiggling around the egg, embryos can find the Goldilocks Zone which means they are able to shield themselves against extreme thermal conditions and produce a balanced sex ratio, according to the new study published in Current Biology journal Ye et al/Current Biology Science news in pictures Elephant poaching rates drop in Africa African elephant poaching rates have dropped by 60 per cent in six years, an international study has found. It is thought the decline could be associated with the ivory trade ban introduced in China in 2017. Reuters Science news in pictures Ancient four-legged whale discovered in Peru Scientists have identified a four-legged creature with webbed feet to be an ancestor of the whale. Fossils unearthed in Peru have led scientists to conclude that the enormous creatures that traverse the planets oceans today are descended from small hoofed ancestors that lived in south Asia 50 million years ago A. Gennari Science news in pictures Animal with transient anus discovered A scientist has stumbled upon a creature with a transient anus that appears only when it is needed, before vanishing completely. Dr Sidney Tamm of the Marine Biological Laboratory could not initially find any trace of an anus on the species. However, as the animal gets full, a pore opens up to dispose of waste Steven G Johnson Science news in pictures Giant bee spotted Feared extinct, the Wallace's Giant bee has been spotted for the first time in nearly 40 years. An international team of conservationists spotted the bee, that is four times the size of a typical honeybee, on an expedition to a group of Indonesian Islands Clay Bolt Science news in pictures New mammal species found inside crocodile Fossilised bones digested by crocodiles have revealed the existence of three new mammal species that roamed the Cayman Islands 300 years ago. The bones belonged to two large rodent species and a small shrew-like animal New Mexico Museum of Natural History Science news in pictures Fabric that changes according to temperature created Scientists at the University of Maryland have created a fabric that adapts to heat, expanding to allow more heat to escape the body when warm and compacting to retain more heat when cold Faye Levine, University of Maryland Science news in pictures Baby mice tears could be used in pest control A study from the University of Tokyo has found that the tears of baby mice cause female mice to be less interested in the sexual advances of males Getty Science news in pictures Final warning to limit "climate catastrophe" The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued a report which projects the impact of a rise in global temperatures of 1.5 degrees Celsius and warns against a higher increase Getty Science news in pictures Nobel prize for evolution chemists The nobel prize for chemistry has been awarded to three chemists working with evolution. Frances Smith is being awarded the prize for her work on directing the evolution of enzymes, while Gregory Winter and George Smith take the prize for their work on phage display of peptides and antibodies Getty/AFP Science news in pictures Nobel prize for laser physicists The nobel prize for physics has been awarded to three physicists working with lasers. Arthur Ashkin (L) was awarded for his "optical tweezers" which use lasers to grab particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells. Donna Strickland and Gerard Mourou were jointly awarded the prize for developing chirped-pulse amplification of lasers Reuters/AP Science news in pictures Discovery of a new species of dinosaur The Ledumahadi Mafube roamed around 200 million years ago in what is now South Africa. Recently discovered by a team of international scientists, it was the largest land animal of its time, weighing 12 tons and standing at 13 feet. In Sesotho, the South African language of the region in which the dinosaur was discovered, its name means "a giant thunderclap at dawn" Viktor Radermacher / SWNS Science news in pictures Birth of a planet Scientists have witnessed the birth of a planet for the first time ever. This spectacular image from the SPHERE instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope is the first clear image of a planet caught in the very act of formation around the dwarf star PDS 70. The planet stands clearly out, visible as a bright point to the right of the center of the image, which is blacked out by the coronagraph mask used to block the blinding light of the central star. ESO/A. Muller et al Science news in pictures New human organ discovered that was previously missed by scientists Layers long thought to be dense, connective tissue are actually a series of fluid-filled compartments researchers have termed the interstitium. These compartments are found beneath the skin, as well as lining the gut, lungs, blood vessels and muscles, and join together to form a network supported by a mesh of strong, flexible proteins Getty Science news in pictures Previously unknown society lived in Amazon rainforest before Europeans arrived, say archaeologists Working in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, a team led by archaeologists at the University of Exeter unearthed hundreds of villages hidden in the depths of the rainforest. These excavations included evidence of fortifications and mysterious earthworks called geoglyphs Jose Iriarte Science news in pictures One in 10 people have traces of cocaine or heroin on fingerprints, study finds More than one in 10 people were found to have traces of class A drugs on their fingers by scientists developing a new fingerprint-based drug test. Using sensitive analysis of the chemical composition of sweat, researchers were able to tell the difference between those who had been directly exposed to heroin and cocaine, and those who had encountered it indirectly. Getty Science news in pictures Nasa releases stunning images of Jupiter's great red spot The storm bigger than the Earth, has been swhirling for 350 years. The image's colours have been enhanced after it was sent back to Earth. Pictures by: Tom Momary

The mice used in the study had a gene that causes blindness and Crispr was used to correct this.

While hundreds of mutations were discovered  none of which were predicted by the algorithms  the mice themselves did not appear to be any worse for wear.

And the researchers said they were still confident that gene-editing would be medically useful.

Professor Vinit Mahajan, of Stanford University, who also took part in the research, said: Were still upbeat about Crispr.

Were physicians, and we know that every new therapy has some potential side effects  but we need to be aware of what they are.

They are now trying to improve the targeting and cutting techniques used by the Crispr system.
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Nasa is set to make a major announcement about its first mission to touch the sun.

The agency wants to send a spacecraft closer to the sun than ever before, where it will face extreme temperatures and radiation levels.

It will speak about Solar Probe Plus at an event on Wednesday, which will be livestreamed on Nasa Television and the agencys website from 4pm BST.

Nasa unveils space tourism posters Show all 6 1 /6 Nasa unveils space tourism posters Nasa unveils space tourism posters Nasa space tourism posters Nasa's canny decision to commission sumptuous vintage-inspired posters by Seattle design firm Invisible Creature has firmly placed space travel back where it belongs: in the imagination of travellers Nasa Nasa unveils space tourism posters Nasa space tourism posters It is particularly fitting that the Nasa commission went to Don and Ryan Clark, who have been running Invisible Creature since 2006, undertaking projects for the likes of Nike and Target Nasa Nasa unveils space tourism posters Nasa space tourism posters "We were ecstatic, just because our grandfather was an illustrator at Nasa for 30 years," says Clark Nasa Nasa unveils space tourism posters Nasa space tourism posters The artwork harks back to the Jet Age-era posters commissioned by Howard Hughes' Trans World Airlines and its rival United in the 1950s and 1960s, when the work of David Klein (for TWA) and Stan Galli (for United) glamorised and essentially branded this new age of air travel Nasa Nasa unveils space tourism posters Nasa space tourism posters It doesn't matter that Nasa has no plans for a "Grand Tour" of Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus Nasa Nasa unveils space tourism posters Nasa space tourism posters If global travel is for daydreamers, going beyond the atmosphere is for true space cadets Nasa

The spacecraft, which is set to take off in the summer of 2018, will be tasked with collecting data about the mechanisms that heat the corona, the outermost part of the sun's atmosphere.

For reasons currently unknown, the corona is hundreds of times hotter than the suns surface, with temperatures at 500,000 degrees Celsius or higher.

Its also behind the solar wind, a constant stream of charged particles that can impact life on Earth.

Placed in orbit within four million miles of the suns surface, and facing heat and radiation unlike any spacecraft in history, the spacecraft will explore the suns outer atmosphere and make critical observations that will answer decades-old questions about the physics of how stars work, said Nasa.

 Nasa release year-long time-lapse of the Sun

The resulting data will improve forecasts of major space weather events that impact life on Earth, as well as satellites and astronauts in space.

The spacecraft will have to withstand temperatures of up to 1,400 degrees Celsius, which it plans to do with the help of an 11.5cm-thick carbon composite shield.

The Solar Probe Plus event will take place at the University of Chicagos William Eckhardt Research Center Auditorium.
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Alex Cruz, the chief executive of British Airways, has apologised profusely to passengers caught up in the travel chaos at the weekend that grounded flights at Heathrow and Gatwick, but denied the disruption had anything to do with cost-cutting in the business.

Giving his first media interview since a major outage caused the airlines IT system to collapse last Saturday, he refused to resign and said the problem was not a result of outsourcing jobs to other countries.

I can confirm that all the parties involved around this particular event have not been involved in any type of outsourcing in any foreign country, he told Sky News.

They have all been local issues around a local data centre.

He added that no BA passengers data had been compromised in the IT meltdown and said there was no evidence it was the result of a cyber attack, promising not to allow such an outage to happen again.

The IT failure was caused by a short but catastrophic power surge at 9.30am that affected the companys messaging system, he said, and the backup system failed to work properly.

We will have completed an exhaustive investigation on exactly the reasons of why this happened, Mr Cruz said. We will, of course, share those conclusions once we have actually finished them.

We have no evidence whatsoever that there was any cyber attack of any sort.

BA plans to operate about 95 per cent of its flights on Monday from the two major London hubs, but 27 departures and arrivals were already cancelled on the day, and 58 were delayed.

After the outage caused more than 1,000 flights to be delayed or cancelled, including BAs sister airlines in Spain, Iberia and Air Nostrum, focus quickly turned to Mr Cruzs handling of the company, having shut down the airlines computer department last year, slashing 700 jobs in the UK.

In pictures: British Airways disruptions Show all 17 1 /17 In pictures: British Airways disruptions In pictures: British Airways disruptions A passenger looks at a British Airway plane at John F. Kennedy (JFK) international airport in New York Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions British Airways planes are seen at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions Passengers stand at the British Airways check-in desk after the London's Gatwick and Heathrow airports suffered an IT systems failure, at the 'Leonardo da Vinci' airport in Fiumicino, near Rome, Italy EPA In pictures: British Airways disruptions Arrivals notice boards are displayed at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People wait with their luggage at the British Airways check in desks at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions Thousands of passengers face a second day of travel disruption after a British Airways IT failure caused the airline to cancel most of its services Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions A woman covered in a blanket sleeps in Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions People sleep next to their luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People sleep at Heathrow Terminal 5 in London Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions A woman sleeps on a luggage trolley at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People queue to enter the terminal at Gatwick Airport Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People wait with their luggage at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 Getty In pictures: British Airways disruptions Thousands of passengers face a second day of travel disruption after a British Airways IT failure caused the airline to cancel most of its services Getty In pictures: British Airways disruptions People queue with their luggage outside Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions People queue for check-in at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5. Thousands of passengers face a second day of travel disruption after a British Airways IT failure caused the airline to cancel most of its services Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions People sleep next to their luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People wait with their luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters

He then outsourced the companys IT systems to Indian firm Tata Consultancy Services.

GMB unions national aviation officer, Mick Rix, claimed the chaos could have all been avoided if BA had not made hundreds of dedicated and loyal IT staff redundant and outsourced the work to India.

Experts predict the knock-on effect could continue for several days and BA is facing huge compensation costs, with reports suggesting the bill could top 100m.

Mr Cruz said the airline was committed to following all compensation rules.
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British Airways mass systems failure and cancellation of flights during one of the UKs busiest travel weekends of the year may have been down to cost cutting under a new CEO.

The company has denied the claims.

After an unidentified power supply issue caused the delay and cancellation of more than 1,000 BA flights, focus has narrowed to CEO Alex Cruz and what unnnamed colleagues have described as his slash and burn management style.

He was accused of hiding behind several videos to explain why tens of thousands of passengers were caught up in the travel chaos, and he issued an email to staff, warning them to refrain from live commentary.

Mr Cruz, whose company could be facing a compensation bill of 150 million including delivering passengers' luggage by courier back to their homes, shut down the airlines computer department last year, slashing 700 jobs in the UK. He then outsourced the companys IT systems to Indian firm Tata Consultancy Services.

GMB unions national aviation officer, Mick Rix, said: This could have all been avoided. BA in 2016 made hundreds of dedicated and loyal IT staff redundant and outsourced the work to India.

The CEO was reportedly paid more than 800,000 last year.

In pictures: British Airways disruptions Show all 17 1 /17 In pictures: British Airways disruptions In pictures: British Airways disruptions A passenger looks at a British Airway plane at John F. Kennedy (JFK) international airport in New York Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions British Airways planes are seen at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions Passengers stand at the British Airways check-in desk after the London's Gatwick and Heathrow airports suffered an IT systems failure, at the 'Leonardo da Vinci' airport in Fiumicino, near Rome, Italy EPA In pictures: British Airways disruptions Arrivals notice boards are displayed at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People wait with their luggage at the British Airways check in desks at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions Thousands of passengers face a second day of travel disruption after a British Airways IT failure caused the airline to cancel most of its services Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions A woman covered in a blanket sleeps in Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions People sleep next to their luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People sleep at Heathrow Terminal 5 in London Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions A woman sleeps on a luggage trolley at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People queue to enter the terminal at Gatwick Airport Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People wait with their luggage at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 Getty In pictures: British Airways disruptions Thousands of passengers face a second day of travel disruption after a British Airways IT failure caused the airline to cancel most of its services Getty In pictures: British Airways disruptions People queue with their luggage outside Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions People queue for check-in at Heathrow Airport Terminal 5. Thousands of passengers face a second day of travel disruption after a British Airways IT failure caused the airline to cancel most of its services Getty Images In pictures: British Airways disruptions People sleep next to their luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters In pictures: British Airways disruptions People wait with their luggage at Heathrow Terminal 5 Reuters

A British Airways spokeswoman said that the company would "never compromise the integrity and security of our IT systems".

"IT services are now provided globally by a range of suppliers and this is very common practice across all industries and the UK Government," she said.

"British Airways employs around 35,000 people in the UK providing high skilled and well paid jobs. It hires 1,000 people a year and has a strong apprenticeship programme."

Since Mr Cruz moved from leading low-cost Spanish airline Vueling to BA 18 months ago, the British firm scrapped free meals and reduced legroom on some flights.

In previous interviews, Mr Cruz said airlines were prisoners [] of really old technology and said BA need to take decisions quickly and take them to market quickly.

On a website called the Professional Pilots Rumour Network, used anonymously by aviation workers and BA staff, one person wrote: He is a slash-and-burn manager and his philosophy and aggressive cost-cutting has obviously been taken a step too far here and he has to go for the good of BA.

Another said: "He is a rabid cost-cutter and frankly should be sacked."

Stranded passengers over the bank holiday weekend complained of a lack of communication from the airline and were forced to sleep in terminal buildings or pay hiked-up prices at local hotels.

Mr Cruz said many IT systems were back up today and we are doing all we can to restore our flight programme but disruption has spilled over into a third a day, affecting some short-haul services to London Heathrow.

Mr Cruz said there was no evidence of a cyberattack, but did not explain where the systems had failed and why the airline had not automatically jumped to a back-up supply.

Nearly a third of BA flights from Heathrow had been cancelled by Sunday afternoon.
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A Tory MP has dismissed a disabled woman on live television after she told him tens of thousands of disabled and sick people were dying every year due to cuts in health and social care.

Conservative MP Dominic Raab responded to an emotional address from Fiona, a disability activist from Aberdeen, in which she said she had known disabled people who and committed suicide, by saying it was just a childish wish list if there was not a strong economy creating the revenue.

During the open debate on the Victoria Derbyshire show, Fiona said disabled people were "fleeing" from England to Scotland where she said the devolved parliament was doing more to protect them.

Youre all talking about numbers and money, and there is an ocean of suffering under that. Oxford University just released research showing that in 2015 in England and Wales alone there were 30,000 excess deaths caused by cuts to health and social care," she said.

Tens of thousands of disabled and sick people are dying every year. We are dying. There have been hundreds of suicides. I spent hours after the last general election trying to talk people out of killing themselves, and I didnt always succeed.

People are dying here and nobody cares. I have friends who have been helping resettle disabled people in Scotland because at the very least we have a Scottish parliament which is trying its best with limited funds to protect people against the worst of these cuts. People have been fleeing England for their lives.

Fiona cited a study by Napier University that found the work capability assessment causes deterioration in peoples mental health and can lead to thoughts of suicide, adding: It kills people. It is an act of violence and we are dying.

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This election is life or death for us. Anybody who votes for the Conservative Party, who are going to further these cuts, they are complicit in those deaths.

In response to Fionas comments, Mr Raab said: There are plenty of heart-rending stories here, and no one could be anything other than moved by it. We have put in 11,000 more doctors into the NHS, 12,000 more nurses. We have got a renewed focus on mental health and also making sure were trying to take the pressure off big hospitals in the manifesto.

But the real truth is the moneys got to come from somewhere, and I can think of lots of things that I would like to avoid making difficult decisions on and lots of areas like the health service or schools that I want to put even more money in, but unless youve got a strong economy creating the revenue, its just a childish wish list.

Were trying to do our best to get the balance right between responsible public finances and investing in some of those crucial areas you discussed.

Recommended May refuses to rule out further disability benefits cuts

Fiona responded by saying: So you choose to sacrifice tens of thousands of disabled people, for the sake of that? This is the sixth richest country in the world. It is a choice that people make.

In Scotland, we have a limited block grant, and they still manage to create a health service which functions, they still manage to create a care service which functions. And you are choosing to sacrifice us.

It comes after Theresa May refused to rule out making further cuts to disability benefits in the next Parliament if the Conservatives are returned to government.

Asked by The Independent at a campaign event in Mansfield earlier this month whether she would rule out any further cuts to support, the Prime Minister responded: If you look at what weve been doing on disability benefits, what we have done is look at focusing disability benefit payments on those who are most in need.

In fact, we are spending more on disability benefit payments than has been done by any government in the past."

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. Stormont and the political situation in Northern Ireland has been in limbo following the collapse of the power sharing executive due to the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme scandal which implicated the DUP Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Priti Patel, International Development Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Larry the Downing Street cat runs ahead of Michael Fallon Britain's Secretary of State for Defence as he arrives for a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, June 12, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth REUTERS UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Michael Gove, Environment Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Scottish National Party Leader Nicola Sturgeon (C) leaves after speaking to the media in Parliament Square. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A policer officer enters a polling station in London AP UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A woman leaves after casting her vote at the Hove Museum and Art Gallery near Brighton, in southern England Getty UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 A woman walks past a general election display in the window of a betting shop in Camden on June 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow, Getty Images UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May visits Atherley Bowling Club during an election campaign visit on June 7, 2017 in Southampton, England. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow June 8 to vote in a general election. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital Getty Images UK General Election 2017 5 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a general election campaign visit to a removals depot in Edinburgh AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Pro-Independence supporters hold a march through Glasgow AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn campaigns for the upcoming general election in Beeston, Nottinghamshire AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts to supporters after a rally at Beeston Youth and Community Centre as he visits the East Midlands during the final weekend of the General Election campaign on June 3, 2017 in Nottingham, England. If elected in next week's general election Mr Corbyn is pledging to create a million new jobs and to scrap zero-hours contracts Getty Images UK General Election 2017 1 June 2017 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson joins a selection of Scottish Conservative election candidates and activists during campaigning on May 1, 2017 in South Queensferry, Scotland. With only seven days to go until the general election on June 8th, polls are showing the SNP out in front and the Conservatives set to close in on Labour. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 29 May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May canvasses in Richmond with Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith on May 29, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. After suffering defeat in the London Mayoral election Zac Goldsmith resigned over the Government's position on Heathrow expansion. He stood as an Independent but lost in a by-election to the Liberal Democrats. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron poses for a selfie taken by carer April Preston during a General Election campaign visit to the Barlow Medical Centre, in Didsbury, Manchester Yui Mok/PA UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at an election campaign event in Wrexham, Wales Reuters UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and Labour's former deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, exit the party's general election campaign 'battle' bus as they arrive at an event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walks with supporters between venues, before speaking again at another general election campaign event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 An anti-fox hunting protester is taken away and arrested by police outside the venue where Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May was due to launch the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto at Gresford Memorial Hall in the village of Gresford, near Wrexham, North Wales, on May 22, 2017. 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A 30-a-week cut to some new claimants of the Employment and Support Allowance came into effect in April despite opposition from more than 30 disability charities.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says the lower rate of cash support will encourage disabled people to find work, but charities say the cuts make life harder for disabled people who face extra costs and mean some people will be unable to afford basic necessities.

The Government was also forced to U-turn on a 4.4bn cut to the personal independence payment (PIP) in March last year after signs of a rebellion amongst its own backbenchers and the resignation of Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith, who said he could not back the policy.
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Visitors have been evacuated from Hamerton Zoo in Cambridgeshire after keeper was killed by a tiger.

Police earlier denied reports on social media that a tiger had escaped from its enclosure.

Cambridgeshire Police said on Twitter they attended an incident at the 25-acre Hamerton Zoo Park near Huntingdon on Monday morning. A spokesperson confirmed no animals had escaped.

In a second statement on Monday evening, the force said a zookeeper had died.

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A statement released by the force said officers were called at around 11.15am to reports of a "serious incident".

"We can confirm that no animals have escaped and members of the public are safe," a statement said.

A spokesman for Cambridgeshire Police said they had suspended contact with the media while they investigated and would release more details later.

Hamerton Zoo Park houses a variety of exotic animals, including Malaysian tigers, cheetahs and lemurs.

The zoo issued a warning to visitors in December last year after a visitor to the park scaled a metal fence barrier.

A spokesperson for the Mid Anglia General Practitioner Accident Service (Magpas) air ambulance said: "At 11:34am today, the air ambulance landed in a public place near Sawtry in Cambridgeshire, after the Magpas enhanced medical team were called to a very serious incident.

"An East of England Ambulance Service paramedic crew and two rapid response vehicles were also in attendance, alongside the police."

The zoo will remain closed for the rest of the bank holiday.

Eyewitness Jeff Knott, from Cambridgeshire, said staff had been "a real credit" to the zoo during the evacuation.

The 32-year-old told the Press Association: "We had been in the zoo since about 10.30am and heard/seen nothing until asked to leave about 11.45am.

"Staff were very calm and professional. All visitors around us were leaving in a very calm manner - no running, shouting or anything similar."

On Saturday, the attraction announced it had finished work on two new enclosures. Our latest development here at Hamerton Zoo Park[was] finished yesterday allowing viewing of our Greater Flamingo flock, and one Cassowary enclosure, the parks website said.
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Thousands of suspected extremists should be detained in internment camps, a former high-ranking Scotland Yard official has said.

Warning that the UK faced an "unprecedented terrorist threat", Tarique Ghaffur said mass incarceration was needed to prevent future attacks because there were too many potential terrorists for security services to monitor. It emerged on Saturday that MI5 suspected 23,000 of being Islamist extremists, of whom 3,000 were still considered a threat.

"The time has come to set up special centres to detain these 3,000 extremists," Mr Ghaffur wrote in an article for The Mail on Sunday.

The measure has been condemned by human rights organisations and security experts alike, who said it would only exacerbate the threat from extremism.

Recommended Key terror power used to stop jihadis used just once

Mr Ghaffur, who was assistant commissioner at Scotland Yard at the time of the 2005 attacks in London, said the camps could be overseen by "vetted Muslim and other community leaders".

Deradicalisation programmes would run inside the centres, Mr Ghaffur said, calling for imams to support the radical plan.

"I know many will oppose these centres as oppressive," Mr Ghaffur added. "But the threat we face from terrorism is unprecedented and if we do not take bold steps now we will not be able to prevent future attacks."

As part of his plans Mr Ghaffur also called for "extremist asylum seekers" to be "re-vetted".

Debate about anti-terrorism measures was reignited after the Manchester attack, in which 22 people were killed by Mancunian-born Salman Abedi.

Internment for suspected Islamist extremists was also proposed last week by Colonel Richard Kemp, the former British Army commander in Afghanistan.

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. 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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. 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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

But former Met Commissioner Lord Ian Blair warned against the mass incarceration of suspects without charge, telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme the use of camps during the Troubles proved it was an ineffective and damaging policy,

"We must not move to a situation where we are just sweeping up people," he said.

"I mean, it reminds one of the events in Northern Ireland which led to the hunger strikes where you started to sweep up whole sets of a community, you angered that community enormously.

"The internment was not effective. The absolute thing we need now is the co-operation of the communities of Britain, particularly, Im afraid its clear, the Muslim community."

Former Security Minister Lord West has also warned: "Internment would be bad for our standing in the world, and also our position would not be good in fighting terrorists."
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The boss of British Airways (BA) has reportedly tried to stop staff commenting on the computer system failure that resulted in flights being cancelled from Gatwick and Heathrow.

Alex Cruz, chief executive and chairman of British Airways, apparently emailed members of staff urging them not to comment on the meltdown which caused severe disruption to BA flight operations worldwide.

The Spanish businessman has recorded a series of video messages which have been released via Twitter but has refused to be publicly questioned on the matter.

Either you are part of the team working to fix this or you arent. We are not in the mode of debriefing what happened but rather lets fix this mode, Mr Cruz said to staff, according to the The Daily Mail.

If you do not want to get involved or cannot get involved, I would kindly ask you to refrain from live commentary, unless it is a message of support to the thousands of colleagues that love BA as much as you do, he added.

 Public's furious response to BA chief executive's video statement

A spokesperson for British Airways said: While we welcome open discussion our clear focus right now is to help our customers and get our operation back to normal.

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

The airline was forced to ground all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick due to the system crash, causing chaos at both airports.

BA said it believes the failure was caused by a power supply issue, after it found no evidence of a cyber attack.
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A trainee pilot has been arrested in West Sussex in connection with the inquiry into the Manchester bombing.

The 23-year-old was held on suspicion of terror offences at an address in Shoreham-by-Sea, Greater Manchester Police said.

Investigators have been tracking alleged members of the bomb plot basing themselves away from the city, a security source told The Independent.

However, they said it was a coincidence that the suspect is a trainee pilot.

 Bomber Salman Abedi pictured moments before Manchester Arena massacre

He is the 16th person to be arrested in connection with the attack, which killed 22 people and injured more than 100.

Violet Mainda, who owns a hairdressers salon beneath the flat where he was arrested, described him as a very nice bloke.

She added: He was a client. He was a normal bloke, very jovial.

I think he had finished, or was still training, to be a pilot.

Manchester explosion in pictures Show all 37 1 /37 Manchester explosion in pictures Manchester explosion in pictures People running down stairs as they attempt to exit the Manchester Arena after a blast, where U.S. singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester Twitter/@ZACH_BRUCE/ via REUTERS Manchester explosion in pictures Helpers attend to people inside the Manchester Arena after a suspected suicide bomber detonated an explosive device at the end of an Ariana Grande concert, killing 22 people PA wire Manchester explosion in pictures Armed officers guard outside a hotel near the Manchester Arena following reports of an explosion, in Manchester, Britain EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Police officers are seen outside the Manchester Arena, where U.S. singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester, northern England Reuters Manchester explosion in pictures Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police and fans close to the Manchester Arena, after reports of an explosion Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures There have been reports of explosions at Manchester Arena where Ariana Grande had performed Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police deploy at scene of explosion in Manchester, England, at a concert in Manchester Arena AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police stand by a cordoned off street close to the Manchester Arena Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police deploy at scene of explosion in Manchester, England AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police deploy at scene of a reported explosion during a concert in Manchester, England, on May 23, 2017. British police said early May 23 there were "a number of confirmed fatalities" after reports of at least one explosion during a pop concert by US singer Ariana Grande. Ambulances were seen rushing to the Manchester Arena venue and police added in a statement that people should avoid the area AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures An ambulance drives away from the Manchester Arena, where U.S. singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester Reuters Manchester explosion in pictures Police escort members of the public from the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A woman sits in the street in a blanket near the Manchester Arena as police guard the area following reports of an explosion, in Manchester, Britain EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Two women wrapped in thermal blankets stand near the Manchester Arena, where US singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester Reuters Manchester explosion in pictures A Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) bomb disposal robot is unloaded outside the Manchester Arena following reports of an explosion, in Manchester. At least 19 people have been confirmed dead and others 50 were injured, authorities said. It is being treated as a terrorist incident until police know otherwise EPA Manchester explosion in pictures A Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) bomb disposal robot is unloaded outside the Manchester Arena following reports of an explosion, in Manchester EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Members of the public receive treatment from emergency service staff at Victoria Railway Station close to the Manchester Arena on May 23, 2017 in Manchester, England. There have been reports of explosions at Manchester Arena where Ariana Grande had performed this evening. Greater Manchester Police have have confirmed there are fatalities and warned people to stay away from the area Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Armed police after a suspected terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena at the end of a concert by US star Ariana Grande left 19 dead PA wire Manchester explosion in pictures Emergency services arrive close to the Manchester Arena in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures An amoured police vehicle patrols near Manchester Arena in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A man carries a young girl on his shoulders near Victoria station in Manchester AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police officers stand at the Miller Street and Corporation Street Crossroads, in front of the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police block a road near to the Manchester Arena in central Manchester, England AP Manchester explosion in pictures Armed police patrol near Victoria station in Manchester, northwest England. Twenty two people have been killed and dozens injured after a suspected suicide bomber targeted fans leaving a concert of US singer Ariana Grande in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police forensic officers leave the Manchester Arena as they investigate the scene of an explosion in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A forensic officer collects evidence on a walkway between Victoria station and Manchester Arena following a deadly terror attack in Manchester, Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A woman and a young girl wearing a t-shirt of US singer Ariana Grande talks to police near Manchester Arena following a deadly terror attack in Manchester, Getty Manchester explosion in pictures EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham and Manchester City Council Leader Sir Richard Leese speak to the media outside Manchester Town Hall after a suicide bomber killed 22 people, including children, as an explosion tore through fans leaving a pop concert in Manchester Dave Higgens/PA Wire Manchester explosion in pictures The media gather behind a police cordon in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Flowers left close to the Manchester Arena, the morning after a suicide bomber killed 22 people, including children, as an explosion tore through fans leaving a pop concert in Manchester Danny Lawson/PA Wire Manchester explosion in pictures Ariana Grande concert attendees Karen Moore and her daughter Molly Steed, aged 14, from Derby, leave the Park Inn where they were given refuge after last night's explosion at Manchester Arena Getty Manchester explosion in pictures Signs saying 'We love Manchester' are displayed in a window in Manchester, England Getty Images

He told me but I can't quite remember what he said. He was from Libya.

The Independent understands that the arrest is not thought to be linked to anything other than the Manchester attack.

Shoreham Airfield, also known as Brighton City Airport, said they did not have anyone available for comment.

Meanwhile, Azmal Chaudhury, who runs the Palki Indian restaurant opposite, told The Independent that the man came in relatively often and seemed quite normal.

Recommended Manchester bomber was known to MI5 but not under active investigation

He said he usually came in alone and lived in the flat opposite, he believed he had a Western girlfriend he lived with but he was not sure.

Early morning raids were also carried out at a house in Manchester, along with searches carried out in Chester.

The Bank Holiday raids followed a flurry of police activity in Manchester over the weekend, with the arrest of a 25-year-old man in Old Trafford and a 19-year-old man in Gorton.

MI5 has reportedly launched two urgent inquiries into whether it missed the danger posed by Abedi, 22, amid allegations it was warned of his deadly intent.

The domestic security service is said to be investigating whether any glaring errors were made in the handling of intelligence before the attack last Monday night.

The block of flats were the new suspect is believed to live in Shoreham (PA)

Spy chiefs are believed to have held an emergency review in the days after the atrocity, while a separate in-depth inquiry is being conducted to look at the decision making surrounding his case before the massacre, the Guardian reports.

A senior Whitehall source previously has said Abedi was a former subject of interest to the security services whose risk remained subject to review.

In the wake of the attack it emerged British counter-terror authorities were grappling with 500 investigations into 3,000 individuals.

Security sources later confirmed that a further 20,000 individuals were said to have been considered subjects of interest in the past, meaning as many as 23,000 people have appeared on the radar of counter-terror agencies, although the period the figures cover is unclear.

Additional reporting by PA
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Police have released new images of Salman Abedi carrying a blue suitcase in the days before the deadly Manchester bombing.

Members of the public are being asked to contact police immediately if they see the piece of luggage.

The image, released by Greater Manchester Police (GMP), shows the suicide bomber with the hip-high case in the city centre on 22 May.

Issuing a new appeal for information, including for any new photos or video footage of the attack that has not yet been passed to investigators, GMP said they were particularly interested in Abedis whereabouts in the four days prior to the attack.

Recommended Police search rubbish dump in connection with Manchester terror attack

Detective Chief Superintendent Russ Jackson, from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit, said they had no evidence to suggest the suitcase is dangerous but warned people to be cautious.

"We believe Abedi was in possession of this case in the days before the attack at Manchester Arena on Monday 22 May, he said.

"I want to stress that this is a different item than the one he used in the attack.

"We have no reason to believe the case and its contents contain anything dangerous, but would ask people to be cautious.

"The public should not approach the case if they see it but contact police immediately on 999."

The latest image of Manchester bomber Salman Abedi (PA/GMP)

As well as the CCTV image of Abedi, detectives have released a picture of a replica case, as they continue to piece together the terrorist's movements in the lead-up to the attack.

It is known that the 22-year-old visited the Wilmslow Road area of Manchester and was also seen in Manchester city centre with the wheeled case.

GMP is urging anyone with details about the suitcase to get in touch.

It is not known if police activity around a tip beside the M66 motorway near Bury on Monday was linked to the missing suitcase. A spokeswoman for GMP refused to comment on any link between the two when approached by The Independent.

Manchester explosion in pictures Show all 37 1 /37 Manchester explosion in pictures Manchester explosion in pictures People running down stairs as they attempt to exit the Manchester Arena after a blast, where U.S. singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester Twitter/@ZACH_BRUCE/ via REUTERS Manchester explosion in pictures Helpers attend to people inside the Manchester Arena after a suspected suicide bomber detonated an explosive device at the end of an Ariana Grande concert, killing 22 people PA wire Manchester explosion in pictures Armed officers guard outside a hotel near the Manchester Arena following reports of an explosion, in Manchester, Britain EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Police officers are seen outside the Manchester Arena, where U.S. singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester, northern England Reuters Manchester explosion in pictures Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police and fans close to the Manchester Arena, after reports of an explosion Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures There have been reports of explosions at Manchester Arena where Ariana Grande had performed Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police deploy at scene of explosion in Manchester, England, at a concert in Manchester Arena AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police stand by a cordoned off street close to the Manchester Arena Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police deploy at scene of explosion in Manchester, England AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police deploy at scene of a reported explosion during a concert in Manchester, England, on May 23, 2017. British police said early May 23 there were "a number of confirmed fatalities" after reports of at least one explosion during a pop concert by US singer Ariana Grande. Ambulances were seen rushing to the Manchester Arena venue and police added in a statement that people should avoid the area AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures An ambulance drives away from the Manchester Arena, where U.S. singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester Reuters Manchester explosion in pictures Police escort members of the public from the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A woman sits in the street in a blanket near the Manchester Arena as police guard the area following reports of an explosion, in Manchester, Britain EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Two women wrapped in thermal blankets stand near the Manchester Arena, where US singer Ariana Grande had been performing, in Manchester Reuters Manchester explosion in pictures A Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) bomb disposal robot is unloaded outside the Manchester Arena following reports of an explosion, in Manchester. At least 19 people have been confirmed dead and others 50 were injured, authorities said. It is being treated as a terrorist incident until police know otherwise EPA Manchester explosion in pictures A Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) bomb disposal robot is unloaded outside the Manchester Arena following reports of an explosion, in Manchester EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Members of the public receive treatment from emergency service staff at Victoria Railway Station close to the Manchester Arena on May 23, 2017 in Manchester, England. There have been reports of explosions at Manchester Arena where Ariana Grande had performed this evening. Greater Manchester Police have have confirmed there are fatalities and warned people to stay away from the area Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Armed police after a suspected terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena at the end of a concert by US star Ariana Grande left 19 dead PA wire Manchester explosion in pictures Emergency services arrive close to the Manchester Arena in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures An amoured police vehicle patrols near Manchester Arena in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A man carries a young girl on his shoulders near Victoria station in Manchester AFP/Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police officers stand at the Miller Street and Corporation Street Crossroads, in front of the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police block a road near to the Manchester Arena in central Manchester, England AP Manchester explosion in pictures Armed police patrol near Victoria station in Manchester, northwest England. Twenty two people have been killed and dozens injured after a suspected suicide bomber targeted fans leaving a concert of US singer Ariana Grande in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Police forensic officers leave the Manchester Arena as they investigate the scene of an explosion in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A forensic officer collects evidence on a walkway between Victoria station and Manchester Arena following a deadly terror attack in Manchester, Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures A woman and a young girl wearing a t-shirt of US singer Ariana Grande talks to police near Manchester Arena following a deadly terror attack in Manchester, Getty Manchester explosion in pictures EPA Manchester explosion in pictures Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham and Manchester City Council Leader Sir Richard Leese speak to the media outside Manchester Town Hall after a suicide bomber killed 22 people, including children, as an explosion tore through fans leaving a pop concert in Manchester Dave Higgens/PA Wire Manchester explosion in pictures The media gather behind a police cordon in Manchester Getty Images Manchester explosion in pictures Flowers left close to the Manchester Arena, the morning after a suicide bomber killed 22 people, including children, as an explosion tore through fans leaving a pop concert in Manchester Danny Lawson/PA Wire Manchester explosion in pictures Ariana Grande concert attendees Karen Moore and her daughter Molly Steed, aged 14, from Derby, leave the Park Inn where they were given refuge after last night's explosion at Manchester Arena Getty Manchester explosion in pictures Signs saying 'We love Manchester' are displayed in a window in Manchester, England Getty Images

Police officers stood on guard at the entrance to the Viridor site and also at a public footpath around it.

One worker in a fluorescent orange coat could be seen beside a man in a white boiler suit inspecting waste close to a large digger which was sifting through material.

It comes as anti-terror police raided more homes on Monday as the search for the network behind the suicide bombing continued.

Early morning raids were carried out at a house in Manchester, along with searches carried out in Chester and Shoreham-by-Sea, on the south coast of England.

 Bomber Salman Abedi pictured moments before Manchester Arena massacre

A 23-year-old was held in the small seaside town on suspicion of terror offences in the early hours of Monday morning, GMP said.

As of Monday evening, 14 men were being held in custody in connection with the Manchester Arena attack.

The bank holiday raids followed a flurry of police activity in Manchester over the weekend, with the arrest of a 25-year-old man in Old Trafford and a 19-year-old man in Gorton.

Police have been working round-the-clock since Abedi killed 22 people, seven of them children, and injured more than 100 in the worst terrorist atrocity since the 7 July bombings in 2005.
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More than 200 drivers a day were caught using their mobile phones illegally in the wake of a major crackdown on the practice.

Police forces in Britain penalised almost 6,000 motorists for the offence in the four weeks after tougher punishments took effect, equivalent to one every seven minutes, figures obtained by the Press Association reveal.

Campaigners said the findings were worrying, suggesting that many drivers were ignoring repeated warnings about the dangers of using phones at the wheel despite a string of publicity campaigns and the risk of harsher sanctions.

From 1 March, those who fall foul of the rules have faced receiving six points on their licence and a 200 fine  up from the previous penalty of three points and 100.

The changes mean new drivers risk losing their licence for sending a single text.

Calls for efforts to curb illegal mobile phone use intensified in the wake of a string of high-profile cases and research indicating that it is widespread.

Figures obtained following Freedom of Information requests show forces recorded 5,977 instances of the practice the four weeks after the clampdown was rolled out alongside a nationwide police campaign.

The actual figure is likely to be higher as seven forces did not provide figures and some cases may not have been logged at the time FOI responses were issued.

The Metropolitan Police registered the highest number at 2,037, meaning more than 70 drivers were caught using a handheld phone on London's roads each day.

Thames Valley Police recorded the second-largest total at 478, followed by Police Scotland (339), Hampshire Police (280) and Cheshire Police (224).

Incidents reported by police after the tougher penalties were introduced include:

A man was spotted doing his online banking while driving along the M5 motorway near Birmingham

Norfolk Police stopped a woman who was responding to a message about her lost puppy being found

A lorry driver was fined for texting on a bright pink mobile phone while travelling along the M2 in Kent

A 7.5-tonne lorry was driven around a roundabout in Bournemouth by a man using his phone

A driver was on his phone while behind the wheel of a school minibus with 10 children on board in Manchester

The RAC Foundation described the increased penalties as a start, but warned the figures for March suggested the key message still isn't sinking in.

Steve Gooding, director of the motoring research charity, said: Driving is a safety-critical activity that requires our full attention. Hands need to be on the wheel and eyes looking out of the windscreen, not down at the phone screen.

The new figures sparked calls for more investment in traffic policing to compliment the tougher penalties.

There have been falls in the numbers of drivers handed fines for using handheld mobiles in recent years amid reductions in full-time dedicated roads policing officers.

Brake spokesman Jack Kushner described the number of drivers selfishly using their mobile phones behind the wheel as concerning.

Driver distraction is a growing menace and it's worrying that drivers don't seem to be getting the message, he said.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 9 November 2022 Australia and Spain play during the Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup group A match at the Copper Box Arena, London PA UK news in pictures 8 November 2022 A migrant attempting to communicate with journalists is pinned against a fence by members of staff, before being taken out of view, at the Manston immigration short-term holding facility, located at the former Defence Fire Training and Development Centre in Thanet, Kent PA UK news in pictures 7 November 2022 Handout photo issued by Just Stop Oil of a protester who has climbed a gantry on the M25 between junctions six and seven in Surrey, leading to the closure of the motorway PA UK news in pictures 6 November 2022 A grey seal with its pup, at the Donna Nook National Nature Reserve in north Lincolnshire, where they come every year in late October, November and December to give birth to their pups near the sand dunes, the wildlife spectacle attracts visitors from across the UK PA UK news in pictures 5 November 2022 Demonstrators with placards calling for a General Election march near the Houses of Parliament AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 4 November 2022 A peacock is seen in the early winter sunshine in the Dutch Gardens in Holland Park AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 3 November 2022 Florence Kasumba, Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta and Lupita Nyongo attend the European Premiere of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in London Getty 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

The charity wants the 200 fine to be "significantly increased" to deter offenders.

Twenty-two people were killed and 99 seriously injured in accidents on Britain's roads in 2015 where a motorist using a mobile was a contributory factor, Department for Transport figures show.

Police say they want to make using a mobile while driving as socially unacceptable as drink-driving.

National Police Chiefs' Council lead for roads policing Anthony Bangham said: Drivers need to understand that this is not a minor offence and you will be prosecuted under new, tougher penalties.

He said forces are committed to tackling the behaviour, adding: Encouraging results from recent campaigns show how effective new tactics and innovative approaches can be.
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A Northern Irish man challenged Jeremy Corbyn over attending a commemoration for IRA fighters killed during an attempted terror attack in Loughgall in 1987.

Callum McNeill was a member of the studio audience during Sky News/Channel 4 leaders debate.

Both Mr Corbyn and Theresa May were asked questions by the audience before being grilled by veteran political interviewer Jeremy Paxman.

Mr McNeill asked the Labour leader why he had attended the meeting which honoured eight members of the republican terror cell who attempted to attack the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) in the village.

Three men drove a digger with a bomb in its bucket through the perimeter fence while the rest of the unit opened fire on the building.

The base was half destroyed by the bomb but no soldiers were killed. Instead a 36-man unit of the SAS immediately ambushed and killed the group.

The deaths were the IRAs greatest loss of life in a single incident during the "Troubles".

Mr Corbyn defended attending the meeting, saying it was to honoured everyone who had died in Northern Ireland during the conflict.

He said: The contribution I made to that meeting was to call for a peace and dialogue. It is only by dialogue and process that we brought about the peace in Northern Ireland.

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. 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Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. 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Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. 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Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. 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I think that is a good thing and I think going forward we need to make sure that during the Brexit negotiations there is no return to any kind of hard border between Northern Ireland and the republic.

The confrontation is the latest in a series of accusations about Mr Corbyn's links to the terror group.

During an interview with Andrew Neil on Sunday, Mr Corbyn was forced to deny he had ever met or supported members of the IRA as he faced accusations that he had failed to condemn a single atrocity carried out by the terror group

Instead he said: I obviously did meet people from Sinn Fein, as indeed I met people from other organisations, and I always made the point that there had to be a dialogue and a peace process.
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Theresa May will warn today that Brussels has adopted an aggressive negotiating position for talks that will begin just eleven days after the election.

Ms May has long argued that only she, and not Jeremy Corbyn, is capable of leading Britains negotiations with Brussels, a point she will make again on Tuesday in a speech in the West Midlands.

The Conservatives have highlighted the most recent EU negotiating guidelines released by the European Commission, including mention of the so-called "divorce bill" which calls for a "single financial settlement" covering all the UK's outstanding liabilities.

Recommended May forced to defend security record as she relaunches campaign

"This single financial settlement should be based on the principle that the United Kingdom must honour its share of the financing of all the obligations undertaken while it was a member of the Union," the paper said.

The EU has not yet set out what it considers a fair sum, with varying reports indicating anywhere between 20bn and 90bn. Brexit Secretary David Davis has said even 1bn is a lot.

In her speech, Mrs May is expected to say: "The European Commission has shown the importance of the choice faced by the British public next week.

"They are adopting an aggressive negotiating position, which can only be met by strong leadership on behalf of Britain.

"Jeremy Corbyn is in no position to provide that kind of leadership. He has no plan to deliver Brexit, and he has already admitted he would give control of our borders and control of our laws back to Brussels."

The Conservative campaign chief Sir Lynton Crosby is understood to have told the party to refocus on the issue of Brexit, after the disastrous social care policy announcement and subsequent U-turn, branded the dementia tax.

The Prime Minister has since backtracked on the policy that would force elderly to fund their own social care up until the point they had spent all but the final 100,000 of any estate they might leave. She has since announced there will be a upper limit on the amount, but elderly voters will still have to go to the polls not knowing what that limit is.
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Jeremy Corbyn signed a motion in the House of Commons that condemned IRA violence and "extended its sympathy to the relatives of those murdered".

The Leader of the Labour Party supported an early day motion put forward by Labour MP David Winnick to commemorate the victims of the IRA bombing in Birmingham in 1974.

The motion was tabled on the 20 year anniversary of the attack that killed 21 people and injured 182 others and was signed by Mr Corbyn in November 1994.

This House notes that it is 20 years since the mass killings of 21 people in Birmingham as a result of terrorist violence; deplores that such an atrocity occurred and again extends its deepest sympathy to the relatives of those murdered and also to all those injured, the motion said.

And strongly hopes that the present cessation of violence by the paramilitary organisations in Northern Ireland will be permanent and thus ensure that such an atrocity as took place in Birmingham as well as the killings in many other places both in Northern Ireland itself and Great Britain will never occur again, it adds.

Mr Corbyn has faced repeated questions over his historic links to the terrorist organisation and his involvement in the Irish peace process.

The Labour leader, who attended rallies and protests organised by the Republican-backed Troops Out Movement in the 1980s, has said he condemns "all bombing" that took place during that period.

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. Stormont and the political situation in Northern Ireland has been in limbo following the collapse of the power sharing executive due to the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme scandal which implicated the DUP Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Priti Patel, International Development Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Larry the Downing Street cat runs ahead of Michael Fallon Britain's Secretary of State for Defence as he arrives for a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, June 12, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth REUTERS UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Michael Gove, Environment Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Scottish National Party Leader Nicola Sturgeon (C) leaves after speaking to the media in Parliament Square. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A policer officer enters a polling station in London AP UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A woman leaves after casting her vote at the Hove Museum and Art Gallery near Brighton, in southern England Getty UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 A woman walks past a general election display in the window of a betting shop in Camden on June 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow, Getty Images UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May visits Atherley Bowling Club during an election campaign visit on June 7, 2017 in Southampton, England. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow June 8 to vote in a general election. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital Getty Images UK General Election 2017 5 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a general election campaign visit to a removals depot in Edinburgh AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Pro-Independence supporters hold a march through Glasgow AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn campaigns for the upcoming general election in Beeston, Nottinghamshire AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts to supporters after a rally at Beeston Youth and Community Centre as he visits the East Midlands during the final weekend of the General Election campaign on June 3, 2017 in Nottingham, England. If elected in next week's general election Mr Corbyn is pledging to create a million new jobs and to scrap zero-hours contracts Getty Images UK General Election 2017 1 June 2017 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson joins a selection of Scottish Conservative election candidates and activists during campaigning on May 1, 2017 in South Queensferry, Scotland. With only seven days to go until the general election on June 8th, polls are showing the SNP out in front and the Conservatives set to close in on Labour. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 29 May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May canvasses in Richmond with Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith on May 29, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. After suffering defeat in the London Mayoral election Zac Goldsmith resigned over the Government's position on Heathrow expansion. He stood as an Independent but lost in a by-election to the Liberal Democrats. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron poses for a selfie taken by carer April Preston during a General Election campaign visit to the Barlow Medical Centre, in Didsbury, Manchester Yui Mok/PA UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at an election campaign event in Wrexham, Wales Reuters UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and Labour's former deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, exit the party's general election campaign 'battle' bus as they arrive at an event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walks with supporters between venues, before speaking again at another general election campaign event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 An anti-fox hunting protester is taken away and arrested by police outside the venue where Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May was due to launch the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto at Gresford Memorial Hall in the village of Gresford, near Wrexham, North Wales, on May 22, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election AFP/Getty Images

He has also repeatedly denied he met with the IRA, most recently during an interview with Andrew Neil for the BBC.

I didnt support the IRA. I dont support the IRA. What I want everywhere is a peace process, Mr Corbyn said.
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Jeremy Corbyns mission to transform the Labour Party will continue even if he loses the general election, the partys campaign chief has said.

Ian Lavery told a rally in Glasgow that whatever happens on June 8 the Corbyn project is only just beginning. The party was in the "long, long, long process of changing politics here in Britain", he said.

"Whatever happens in the election isn't the end in the Corbyn project, it's only the beginning in the Corbyn project, the shadow minister for trade unions and civil society and key Corbyn ally, added.

Some have interpreted Mr Lavery's comments, as suggesting that Mr Corbyn will stay on as leader even if the party loses the election, undoubtedly worrying some members who are likely to call for his head if he does not win power.

It follow's The Independent's exclusive revelation last month that he would likely try and remain at the helm of the party even if he leads his party to a crushing defeat at the ballot box.

Sources said he could remain in post until he can hand over to a left-wing successor or until the partys annual conference in September, when allies will attempt to change party rules in order to make it easier for a candidate from the left of the party to secure the MP nominations needed to run for leader.

Mr Corbyn himself later suggested to the Buzzfeed website that he would stay on regardless of the election result. The claim was then denied by his office.

Mr Laverys comments came as Mr Corbyn was forced to deny he had laid a wreath in honour of a Palestinian fighter who was involved in the hostage-taking and massacre at the 1972 Olympics that killed 11 members of the Israeli team.

Mr Corbyn travelled to Tunisia in October 2014, less than a year before becoming Labour leader, and attended a ceremony where wreaths were laid. Writing in the Morning Star shortly afterwards, he said he had laid a wreath for those killed by an Israeli air raid on the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and on the graves of people "killed by Mossad agents in Paris".

Recommended May knows Corbyn is right about foreign policy

He wrote: "Wreaths were laid at the graves of those who died on that day and on the graves of others killed by Mossad agents in Paris in 1991."

According to The Sunday Times, that was a reference to Atef Bseiso, a PLO agent who was involved in the 1972 attack. Mr Corbyn denied this was the case.

"I was in Tunisia at a Palestinian conference and I spoke at that Palestinian conference and I laid a wreath to all those that had died in the air attack that took place on Tunis, on the headquarters of the Palestinian organisations there," he told Sky News.

"And I was accompanied by very many other people who were at a conference searching for peace."

Asked if he was honouring Bseiso, he said: "Absolutely not, we were searching for peace in the Middle East.

"The only way we achieve peace is by bringing people together and talking to them. That was the whole point of that conference, that's been, frankly, the whole point of my life."

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. Stormont and the political situation in Northern Ireland has been in limbo following the collapse of the power sharing executive due to the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme scandal which implicated the DUP Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Priti Patel, International Development Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Larry the Downing Street cat runs ahead of Michael Fallon Britain's Secretary of State for Defence as he arrives for a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, June 12, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth REUTERS UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Michael Gove, Environment Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Scottish National Party Leader Nicola Sturgeon (C) leaves after speaking to the media in Parliament Square. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A policer officer enters a polling station in London AP UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A woman leaves after casting her vote at the Hove Museum and Art Gallery near Brighton, in southern England Getty UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 A woman walks past a general election display in the window of a betting shop in Camden on June 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow, Getty Images UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May visits Atherley Bowling Club during an election campaign visit on June 7, 2017 in Southampton, England. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow June 8 to vote in a general election. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital Getty Images UK General Election 2017 5 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a general election campaign visit to a removals depot in Edinburgh AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Pro-Independence supporters hold a march through Glasgow AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn campaigns for the upcoming general election in Beeston, Nottinghamshire AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts to supporters after a rally at Beeston Youth and Community Centre as he visits the East Midlands during the final weekend of the General Election campaign on June 3, 2017 in Nottingham, England. If elected in next week's general election Mr Corbyn is pledging to create a million new jobs and to scrap zero-hours contracts Getty Images UK General Election 2017 1 June 2017 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson joins a selection of Scottish Conservative election candidates and activists during campaigning on May 1, 2017 in South Queensferry, Scotland. With only seven days to go until the general election on June 8th, polls are showing the SNP out in front and the Conservatives set to close in on Labour. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 29 May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May canvasses in Richmond with Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith on May 29, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. After suffering defeat in the London Mayoral election Zac Goldsmith resigned over the Government's position on Heathrow expansion. He stood as an Independent but lost in a by-election to the Liberal Democrats. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron poses for a selfie taken by carer April Preston during a General Election campaign visit to the Barlow Medical Centre, in Didsbury, Manchester Yui Mok/PA UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at an election campaign event in Wrexham, Wales Reuters UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and Labour's former deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, exit the party's general election campaign 'battle' bus as they arrive at an event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walks with supporters between venues, before speaking again at another general election campaign event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 An anti-fox hunting protester is taken away and arrested by police outside the venue where Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May was due to launch the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto at Gresford Memorial Hall in the village of Gresford, near Wrexham, North Wales, on May 22, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election AFP/Getty Images

Simon Johnson, chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council, said: "In light of today's news reports, it is high time that Jeremy Corbyn clarify his views regarding Palestinian terrorism.

"At first sight, attending a wreath-laying ceremony for a known terrorist, who led one of the most notorious acts of international terrorism, the attack on the Munich Olympics, would appear to be beyond the pale."

It came as Tom Watson, Labours deputy leader, who is viewed with suspicion by Mr Corbyns allies, accused the Conservatives of being hell bent on viciously attacking Jeremy Corbyn.

Mr Watson also accused Theresa May of showing contempt for voters by refusing to take part in a head-to-head TV debate.

The more they avoid exposing the deficiencies of Theresa May to public scrutiny, the more people are beginning to realise that shes not up to the job, he said. Youve only got to look at her handling of the dementia tax issue to know what a poor negotiator she is.

Both Ms May and Mr Corbyn will separately face questions from a studio audience on Monday night in a programme to be screened on Sky News and Channel 4. Each will then be interviewed by Jeremy Paxman.
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The SNP will look to be part of a progressive alliance with Labour if the general election results in a hung parliament, Nicola Sturgeon has said.

Scotlands First Minister and SNP leader said she did not think Jeremy Corbyn was credible as an alternative prime minister, but that she would nonetheless seek to work with Labour and others to pursue progressive policies in the event of a hung parliament.

Speaking to Andrew Neil in a BBC interview on Sunday, Ms Sturgeon said: If there was to be a hung parliament of course we would look to be part of a progressive alliance that pursued progressive policies.

But she added that the outcome of the election was likely to see a Tory majority, and that her priority was to encourage voters in Scotland to vote SNP.

She said: But lets get back to the reality of this election. The reality of this election, even with a narrowing of the polls, is that were going to face a Tory government perhaps with a bigger majority.

So my priority in this election is to say to people in Scotland: if you want Scotlands interest to be protected and our voice heard, then youve got to vote SNP to make sure thats the case.

Voting Tory deliveries Tory MPs wholl rubber stamp Theresa May and voting Labour in Scotland risks letting the Tories in.

When asked whether she would prefer Ms May or Mr Corbyn in Downing Street, Ms Sturgeon said: I dont want a Tory prime minister. I dont want to see a Tory government.

She also said she was proud to see the SNPs left-wing policies borrowed by Mr Corbyn, concluding that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery".

Following Ms Sturgeons comments, Conservative party chairman Patrick McLoughlin said a deal between the SNP and Labour would mean Jeremy Corbyn propped up by a weak and unstable coalition just days before the Brexit negotiations start  putting at risk the deal we need to get.

He said: Corbyn and the rest would put up taxes, weaken our defences and increase immigration. And we know he would give in to Sturgeons demand for another independence referendum because hes absolutely fine with that.

In the days of shock election results, Jeremy Corbyn could become PM  and the polls are tightening.

The Conservatives also posted a tweet reading: Nicola Sturgeon confirms to Andrew Neil that she would prop up a progressive alliance in a coalition of chaos under Corbyn. Don't risk it.

The Tories have frequently claimed in the lead-up to the general election that any coalition between Labour and other political parties would usher in a coalition of chaos.

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. Stormont and the political situation in Northern Ireland has been in limbo following the collapse of the power sharing executive due to the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme scandal which implicated the DUP Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Priti Patel, International Development Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Larry the Downing Street cat runs ahead of Michael Fallon Britain's Secretary of State for Defence as he arrives for a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, June 12, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth REUTERS UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Michael Gove, Environment Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Scottish National Party Leader Nicola Sturgeon (C) leaves after speaking to the media in Parliament Square. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A policer officer enters a polling station in London AP UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A woman leaves after casting her vote at the Hove Museum and Art Gallery near Brighton, in southern England Getty UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 A woman walks past a general election display in the window of a betting shop in Camden on June 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow, Getty Images UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May visits Atherley Bowling Club during an election campaign visit on June 7, 2017 in Southampton, England. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow June 8 to vote in a general election. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital Getty Images UK General Election 2017 5 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a general election campaign visit to a removals depot in Edinburgh AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Pro-Independence supporters hold a march through Glasgow AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn campaigns for the upcoming general election in Beeston, Nottinghamshire AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts to supporters after a rally at Beeston Youth and Community Centre as he visits the East Midlands during the final weekend of the General Election campaign on June 3, 2017 in Nottingham, England. If elected in next week's general election Mr Corbyn is pledging to create a million new jobs and to scrap zero-hours contracts Getty Images UK General Election 2017 1 June 2017 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson joins a selection of Scottish Conservative election candidates and activists during campaigning on May 1, 2017 in South Queensferry, Scotland. With only seven days to go until the general election on June 8th, polls are showing the SNP out in front and the Conservatives set to close in on Labour. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 29 May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May canvasses in Richmond with Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith on May 29, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. After suffering defeat in the London Mayoral election Zac Goldsmith resigned over the Government's position on Heathrow expansion. He stood as an Independent but lost in a by-election to the Liberal Democrats. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron poses for a selfie taken by carer April Preston during a General Election campaign visit to the Barlow Medical Centre, in Didsbury, Manchester Yui Mok/PA UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at an election campaign event in Wrexham, Wales Reuters UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and Labour's former deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, exit the party's general election campaign 'battle' bus as they arrive at an event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walks with supporters between venues, before speaking again at another general election campaign event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 An anti-fox hunting protester is taken away and arrested by police outside the venue where Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May was due to launch the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto at Gresford Memorial Hall in the village of Gresford, near Wrexham, North Wales, on May 22, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election AFP/Getty Images

In response to Ms Sturgeon's comments, Labour disputed that the party would do any deals with other parties, claiming there was "only one alternative and that's Labour".

A Labour spokesperson told The Independent: We couldnt be clearer on this: no deals. Theres only one alternative government and thats Labour.

"The only way to get the change we need, to build a fair economy and strong public services is to vote Labour.

While the Labour and Liberal Democrat leaders have consistently rejected the idea of forming alliances, the Green Party has supported the progressive alliance movement, and a number of local Labour and Lib Dem parties have defied their national parties and formed local alliances in an effort to oust Tory MPs.

Recent polls across the UK have shown the Tory lead over the Labour Party is narrowing.

Estimations for the best-case scenario have been revised by the Tories from a majority of 200 down to 80, while the projection for the worst-case scenario is a hung parliament, in which no party is able to get a majority.
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People suspected of committing terrorism offences should be locked up without trial, Ukip leader Paul Nuttall has suggested.

Mr Nuttall said he wouldnt take anything off the table when it comes to tackling the threat from radical Islamist terrorism.

"When you read this morning there's a suspected 23,000 jihadis living amongst us, obviously MI5 are stretched to capacity at this present moment in time," he told the BBC's, The Andrew Neil Interviews.

"I think we've got to look at ways of ensuring that our people are safe, whether that is a return to control orders, whether that is tagging these people, who knows in the future maybe a return to internment."

A policy of indefinite internment was adopted in Northern Ireland by the British Government in the 1970s but was widely considered to have boosted support for the IRA.

Mr Nuttall did not directly call for the policy to be introduced in the UK for terror suspects but said he believed it was something that should be considered.

"If you consider that it costs roundly a million pounds year to have 24/7 surveillance on these people, we're talking a vast amount of money, he said. "I'm not saying now is the time to return to this, but I wouldn't rule it out.

"I think we've got to look at ways of ensuring that our people are safe, whether that is a return to control orders, whether that is tagging these people, who knows in the future maybe a return to internment."

He added: "I wouldn't take anything off the table in the future because, as I say, unless we get a grip on this what happened in Manchester the other night, which is part of my constituency, could become commonplace. And that's the last thing we want to see."

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. Stormont and the political situation in Northern Ireland has been in limbo following the collapse of the power sharing executive due to the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme scandal which implicated the DUP Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Priti Patel, International Development Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Larry the Downing Street cat runs ahead of Michael Fallon Britain's Secretary of State for Defence as he arrives for a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, June 12, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth REUTERS UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Michael Gove, Environment Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Scottish National Party Leader Nicola Sturgeon (C) leaves after speaking to the media in Parliament Square. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A policer officer enters a polling station in London AP UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A woman leaves after casting her vote at the Hove Museum and Art Gallery near Brighton, in southern England Getty UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 A woman walks past a general election display in the window of a betting shop in Camden on June 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow, Getty Images UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May visits Atherley Bowling Club during an election campaign visit on June 7, 2017 in Southampton, England. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow June 8 to vote in a general election. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital Getty Images UK General Election 2017 5 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a general election campaign visit to a removals depot in Edinburgh AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Pro-Independence supporters hold a march through Glasgow AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn campaigns for the upcoming general election in Beeston, Nottinghamshire AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts to supporters after a rally at Beeston Youth and Community Centre as he visits the East Midlands during the final weekend of the General Election campaign on June 3, 2017 in Nottingham, England. If elected in next week's general election Mr Corbyn is pledging to create a million new jobs and to scrap zero-hours contracts Getty Images UK General Election 2017 1 June 2017 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson joins a selection of Scottish Conservative election candidates and activists during campaigning on May 1, 2017 in South Queensferry, Scotland. With only seven days to go until the general election on June 8th, polls are showing the SNP out in front and the Conservatives set to close in on Labour. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 29 May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May canvasses in Richmond with Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith on May 29, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. After suffering defeat in the London Mayoral election Zac Goldsmith resigned over the Government's position on Heathrow expansion. He stood as an Independent but lost in a by-election to the Liberal Democrats. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron poses for a selfie taken by carer April Preston during a General Election campaign visit to the Barlow Medical Centre, in Didsbury, Manchester Yui Mok/PA UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at an election campaign event in Wrexham, Wales Reuters UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and Labour's former deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, exit the party's general election campaign 'battle' bus as they arrive at an event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walks with supporters between venues, before speaking again at another general election campaign event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 An anti-fox hunting protester is taken away and arrested by police outside the venue where Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May was due to launch the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto at Gresford Memorial Hall in the village of Gresford, near Wrexham, North Wales, on May 22, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election AFP/Getty Images

Mr Nuttall also expressed support for the use of methods including waterboarding during the interrogation of terrorist suspects.

"If we were in the situation where there was going to be an immediate attack and people's lives were on the line, I want to see British families protected, he said. I would put their lives over the human rights of any jihadi".

He also re-iterated his support for the reintroduction of the death penalty for terrorists and child killers - but said this was not official Ukip policy.

Mr Nuttall has previously said he would be willing to act as executioner himself. He told Mr Neil he believed child murders like Ian Brady should be sentenced to death.

People like Ian Brady, who only died last week  its cost us 10 million in taxpayers money to keep that man alive. If Im prepared to stand up and say that I believe in the death penalty then maybe I would pull the level on people like Ian Brady.

I dont see why British people have to pay so much money to keep someone like that alive.

Additional reporting by agencies.
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Theresa May has relaunched the Conservatives general election campaign after a six-day break in activity following the Manchester attack.

Addressing Tory activists at a school hall in Twickenham, south west London, the Prime Minister condemned the appalling depravity of a cowardly and callous killer after Salman Abedi to blew himself up outside an Ariana Grande concert killing 23 and injuring dozens more.

Defending the decision to resume campaigning, she said: "It is right that we carry on with our life and that we dont allow the terrorists to disrupt our way of life. And so Im coming back into the election campaign.

Ms May was pressed by journalists on her record on security matters during her time as Home Secretary, when policing budgets were cut and a number of security service staff were made redundant.

It has also been revealed that temporary exclusion orders, introduced by Ms May in 2015, make it easier to block potential British terrorists from returning to the UK, but have been used on just one occasion.

Defending her record, she said: Lets just look at what I did when I was Home Secretary for six years. First of all I excluded more hate preachers from coming to this country than any home secretary ever has. There were one or two who I booted out of the country as well.

When I was Home Secretary we actually gave the police extra powers. We put through major legislation  the Investigatory Powers Act  to ensure that our police and security services have what they need to do the job they do on a day-to-day basis.

In contrast, Jeremy Corbyn has voted against and opposed every single piece of anti-terror legislation in his time in Parliament. Thats the contrast: Im willing to stand up for our national security and do what is necessary in the British interest. Hes not.

Ms Mays speech marked a clear return to the Conservatives core campaign messages, with the Prime Minister contrasting her strong and stable leadership with what she claimed was the prospect of a coalition of chaos led by Jeremy Corbyn and including the Liberal Democrats and Scottish National Party (SNP).

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. Stormont and the political situation in Northern Ireland has been in limbo following the collapse of the power sharing executive due to the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme scandal which implicated the DUP Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Priti Patel, International Development Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Larry the Downing Street cat runs ahead of Michael Fallon Britain's Secretary of State for Defence as he arrives for a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, June 12, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth REUTERS UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Michael Gove, Environment Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Scottish National Party Leader Nicola Sturgeon (C) leaves after speaking to the media in Parliament Square. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A policer officer enters a polling station in London AP UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A woman leaves after casting her vote at the Hove Museum and Art Gallery near Brighton, in southern England Getty UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 A woman walks past a general election display in the window of a betting shop in Camden on June 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow, Getty Images UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May visits Atherley Bowling Club during an election campaign visit on June 7, 2017 in Southampton, England. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow June 8 to vote in a general election. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital Getty Images UK General Election 2017 5 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a general election campaign visit to a removals depot in Edinburgh AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Pro-Independence supporters hold a march through Glasgow AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn campaigns for the upcoming general election in Beeston, Nottinghamshire AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts to supporters after a rally at Beeston Youth and Community Centre as he visits the East Midlands during the final weekend of the General Election campaign on June 3, 2017 in Nottingham, England. If elected in next week's general election Mr Corbyn is pledging to create a million new jobs and to scrap zero-hours contracts Getty Images UK General Election 2017 1 June 2017 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson joins a selection of Scottish Conservative election candidates and activists during campaigning on May 1, 2017 in South Queensferry, Scotland. With only seven days to go until the general election on June 8th, polls are showing the SNP out in front and the Conservatives set to close in on Labour. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 29 May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May canvasses in Richmond with Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith on May 29, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. After suffering defeat in the London Mayoral election Zac Goldsmith resigned over the Government's position on Heathrow expansion. He stood as an Independent but lost in a by-election to the Liberal Democrats. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron poses for a selfie taken by carer April Preston during a General Election campaign visit to the Barlow Medical Centre, in Didsbury, Manchester Yui Mok/PA UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at an election campaign event in Wrexham, Wales Reuters UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and Labour's former deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, exit the party's general election campaign 'battle' bus as they arrive at an event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walks with supporters between venues, before speaking again at another general election campaign event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 An anti-fox hunting protester is taken away and arrested by police outside the venue where Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May was due to launch the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto at Gresford Memorial Hall in the village of Gresford, near Wrexham, North Wales, on May 22, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election AFP/Getty Images

If you cant lead your own party, how can you possible lead the country through this very important, historical moment? she said of Mr Corbyn.

The Prime Minister also attacked the Labour leaders shadow cabinet allies, claiming John McDonnell, the Shadow Chancellor, is a Marxist who had to google the deficit and believes in abolishing MI5 and that Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott, who struggled to explain the costs of her partys policing policy earlier in the campaign, cant add up.

Ms May repeatedly claimed only she has a clear plan for Brexit and beyond.

Brexit isnt just a process, Brexit is an opportunity, she said, promising to cut immigration, lead the world in fighting terrorism, build more affordable homes, raise wages and introduce better protections for workers.

Its about standing up and dealing with the burning injustices that we see in this country because those injustices remain a scar on the soul of our nation, she said.

The Prime Minister confirmed that Brexit negotiations with the EU will begin on 19th June  eleven days after polling day.

There wont be any putting it off; it wont be possible to stall it, she said. The Europeans are ready, thats the timetable thats been set.

 General Election polls and projections: May 29

In response to a Daily Mail journalist suggesting she was a glumbucket and was not enjoying the campaign, the Prime Minister insisted she was optimistic about what can achieve for this country.

She said: This is a crucial election and there is a very clear choice for people when they come to that poll on June 8, and it is that choice between a coalition of chaos led by Jeremy Corbyn and the strong and stable leadership of me and my team, going forward with not just a plan for Brexit but a clear vision for a better, stronger, more prosperous Britain in the future."

While the Prime Ministers speech was a return to her core campaign slogans, there was a noticeable shift in the messages displayed on banners held up by activists standing behind Ms May.

While Conservative Party branding had been all but removed and replaced with Ms Mays name on earlier campaign materials, the placards used in Twickenham read Vote Conservative and The Best Brexit Deal - a reflection of the fact that, polls suggest, the Prime Minister has become less popular over the course of the campaign, while support for Mr Corbyn has grown.
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A song accusing Theresa May of being a liar has reached tenth place in the download charts but radio stations have refused to play it.

The Big Top 40 show on Capital FM and Heart opted not to play the song, which is performed and produced by Captain Ska.

During the chart show, hosted by Marvin Humes and Kat Shoob, it was announced the song was in the tenth spot before the song in ninth position started to play.

Recommended The band behind the Theresa May protest song

The track features a range of Ms Mays speeches and interviews and attacks the Prime Ministers record in office.

The lyrics of the song include shes a Liar, Liaryou cant trust her, no no no no and "when there's nurses going hungry and schools in decline I don't recognise this broken country of mine.

Jake, a band member and songwriter from Captain Ska, said the song was written to expose the horrific effects Tory policy has on ordinary people.

This can only be seen as an attempt by the media owners to undermine public opinion. Thousands of people have downloaded this track and we demand that it is aired as any other song would be," he said.

The song is being promoted by the Peoples Assembly Against Austerity, who are asking people to complain about the track not being played on radio.

All proceeds from the song between 26 May and 8 June will be split between food banks around the UK and The People's Assembly Against Austerity.

The Independent has contacted Big Top 40 for a comment but at the time of publication none was provided.
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A woman from Florida has claimed she was forced to marry her rapist at age 11.

Sherry Johnson says she was raped four times by members of her familys church congregation as a child. As a result, she became pregnant at age 10.

When investigators began looking into her case, she claims her family tried to protect her rapist by forcing her to marry him.

Recommended New Jersey refuses to ban child marriage outright

My mom asked me if I wanted to get married, and I said, I dont know, what is marriage, how do I act like a wife? Ms Johnson told The New York Times. She said, Well, I guess youre just going to get married.

Florida is one of 27 US states that permits children of any age to be married with their parents permission.

Ms Johnson says her marriage kept her from attending school regularly. Instead, she took care of their children  she gave birth to nine in total  and fought with her husband over finances.

It was a terrible life, Ms Johnson said.

The marriage eventually dissolved, as most underage marriages do.

Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Show all 20 1 /20 Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Angela Merkel German Chancellor AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Hillary Clinton U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Reuters Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Janet Yellen Federal Reserve Chair Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Melinda Gates Co-founder of The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Mary Barra General Motors Co. Chairman and CEO Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Christine Lagarde Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Sheryl Sandbert COO of Facebook Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Susan Wojcicki CEO of YouTube Getty Images for GLAAD Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Meg Whitman Hewlett Packard Enterprise CEO Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Ana Patricia Botin Santander Bank's president AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Ginni Rometty IBM Chairman, President and CEO Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Park Geun-Hye President of South Korea Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Michelle Obama U.S. first lady Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Indra Nooyi Chairperson and CEO of PepsiCo Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Angela Ahrendts Apple senior vice president Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Abigail Johnson President and CEO of Fidelity Investments and chairman of Fidelity International Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Tsai Ing-wen Taiwan President AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Michelle Bachelet Chile President AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Federica Mogherini High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy AFP/Getty Images Forbes top 20 most powerful women in the world Safra Catz Oracle president Getty Images

Ms Johnson later wrote a book about her story, called Forgiving the Unforgivable. The story inspired Florida state Representative Cynthia Stafford to sponsor a bill outlawing child marriage in Florida.

"Marriage is an adult responsibility," Ms Stafford said. "We don't want them to vote, we don't want them to drink alcohol, they can't drive a car, and we allow them to marry under 16?"

Both Ms Staffords legislation and a matching Senate bill died in committee. A similar law was shot down by the New Hampshire state legislature this year.

Just this month, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie vetoed a law that would have outlawed child marriage without exception.

An exclusion without exceptions would violate the cultures and traditions of some communities in New Jersey based on religious traditions, Mr Christie said in a statement.

A 2011 study found that some 9.4m US women were married before age 16. The study also found that such women were more likely to have psychiatric disorders, and to seek out health services.

You cant get a job, you cant get a car, you cant get a license, you cant sign a lease, Ms Johnson told The New York Times, so why allow someone to marry when theyre still so young?
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US President Donald Trump attacked the news media and dismissed leaks from the White House as fake news on Sunday, following reports his son-in-law tried to set up a secret channel of communications with Moscow before Trump took office.

Shortly after Trump's remarks on Twitter, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly made the rounds of Sunday television news shows to praise any so-called back channel communications, especially with Russia, as a good thing.

The Republican president returned to the White House after a nine-day trip to the Middle East and Europe that ended on Saturday to face more questions about alleged communications between Jared Kushner and Russia's ambassador to Washington.

It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media, Trump wrote in a series of Twitter posts on Sunday.

In a statement later on Sunday night, carried by the New York Times, Trump praised Kushner and the work he has done in the White House.

"Jared is doing a great job for the country," he said. "I have total confidence in him. He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programs that will save our country billions of dollars. In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person."

The White House faces mounting questions about potential ties between Russia and Trump's presidential campaign, which are also the subject of criminal and congressional investigations.

Trump officials were preparing to establish a war room to address an issue that has begun to dominate his young presidency.

Aides said Trump was expected to meet with lawyers as early as Sunday, the New York Times reported.

Two Republican US senators played down the Kushner reports on Sunday, while the former director of national intelligence, James Clapper, took a darker view of such contacts with representatives of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

My dashboard warning light was clearly on and I think that was the case with all of us in the intelligence community - very concerned about the nature of these approaches to the Russians, Clapper told NBC's Meet The Press.

Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, had contacts with Moscow in December about opening a secret back channel of communications, according to news reports published while Trump was away on his trip.

The 36-year-old Kushner, a real estate developer with no previous government experience, had at least three previously undisclosed contacts with the Russian ambassador to the United States during and after the 2016 presidential campaign, seven current and former US officials told Reuters.

Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names, Trump wrote, it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!

Contacts between Trump associates and Russian officials during the campaign coincided with what US intelligence agencies concluded was a Kremlin effort through computer hacking, fake news and propaganda to boost Trump's chances of winning the White House.

White House officials defended the concept of secret communications channels without commenting specifically on the Kushner case. National security adviser James Clapper told reporters on Saturday that so-called back-channeling was not unusual.

Kelly, the homeland security secretary, carried the same message on Sunday.

It's both normal, in my opinion, and acceptable, he said on ABC's This Week programme. Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organisations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us, is a good thing.

Kelly told Fox News Sunday there was nothing wrong with the Trump transition team trying to build relationships with the Russians as they prepared to take over the White House.

US Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said such secret channels may be used in situations including peace talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan or for the release of American hostages.

But for people associated with the campaign after that campaign has ended and where the Russians during that campaign were helping you, to try to establish a back channel and hide it from your own government, that's a serious allegation, he said.

Schiff was particularly concerned about a Washington Post report that the back channel would have been conducted at a Russian diplomatic facility to avoid monitoring in US communications systems. You have to ask, well, who are they hiding the conversation from? he said on ABC.

Schiff said he expected Kushner, who serves as an unpaid adviser to Trump, to appear before his committee and suggested his security clearance be reviewed.

Kushner initially had come to the attention of FBI investigators last year as they began scrutinising former national security adviser Michael Flynn's connections with Russian officials, the two sources told Reuters.

Republican US Senator Lindsey Graham told CNN he doubted the Kushner reports were accurate. Senator Bob Corker, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, noted that Kushner has been willing to answer questions. They reached out to us yesterday to make sure that we knew that was the case and I'm sure he's willing to do so," Corker said on NBC's Meet The Press.

The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Show all 17 1 /17 The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Paul Manafort Mr Manafort is a Republican strategist and former Trump campaign manager. He resigned from that post over questions about his extensive lobbying overseas, including in Ukraine where he represented pro-Russian interests. Mr Manafort turned himself in at FBI headquarters to special counsel Robert Muellers team on Oct 30, 2017, after he was indicted under seal on charges that include conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading US Foreign Agents Registration Act statements, false statements, and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. Getty The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Rick Gates Mr Gates joined the Trump team in spring 2016, and served as a top aide until he left to work at the Republican National Committee after the departure of former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. Mr Gates' had previously worked on several presidential campaigns, on international political campaigns in Europe and Africa, and had 15 years of political or financial experience with multinational firms, according to his bio. Mr Gates was indicted alongside Mr Manafort by special counsel Robert Mueller's team on charges that include conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading US Foreign Agents Registration Act statements, false statements, and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. AP The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation George Papadopoulos George Papadopoulos was a former foreign policy adviser for the Trump campaign, having joined around March 2016. Mr Papadopoulos plead guilty to federal charges for lying to the FBI as a part of a cooperation agreement with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Mr Papadopoulos claimed in an interview with the FBI that he had made contacts with Russian sources before joining the Trump campaign, but he actually began working with them after joining the team. Mr Papadopoulos allegedly took a meeting with a professor in London who reportedly told him that Russians had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton. The professor also allegedly introduced Mr Papadopoulos to a Russian who was said to have close ties to officials at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr Papadopoulos also allegedly was in contact with a woman whom he incorrectly described in one email to others in the campaign as the "niece" to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Twitter The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Donald Trump Jr The President's eldest son met with a Russian lawyer - Natalia Veselnitskaya - on 9 June 2016 at Trump Tower in New York. He said in an initial statement that the meeting was about Russia halting adoptions of its children by US citizens. Then, he said it was regarding the Magnitsky Act, a US law blacklisting Russian human rights abusers. In a final statement, Mr Trump Jr released a chain of emails that revealed he took the meeting in hopes of getting information Ms Veselnitskaya had about Hillary Clinton's alleged financial ties to Russia. He and the President called it standard "opposition research" in the course of campaigning and that no information came from the meeting. The meeting was set up by an intermediary, Rob Goldstone. Jared Kushner and Paul Manafort were also at the same meeting. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jared Kushner Mr Kushner is President Donald Trump's son-in-law and a key adviser to the White House. He met with a Russian banker appointed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in December. Mr Kushner has said he did so in his role as an adviser to Mr Trump while the bank says he did so as a private developer. Mr Kushner has also volunteered to testify in the Senate about his role helping to arrange meetings between Trump advisers and Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Rob Goldstone Former tabloid journalist and now music publicist Rob Goldstone is a contact of the Trump family through the previously Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant, which took place in Moscow. In June 2016, he wrote to Donald Trump Jr offering a meeting with a Russian lawyer, Natalya Veselnitskaya, who had information about Hillary Clinton. Mr Goldstone was the intermediary for Russian pop star Emin Agalaraov and his father, real estate magnate Aras, who played a role in putting on the 2013 pageant. In an email chain released by Mr Trump Jr, Mr Goldstone seemed to indicate Russian government's support of Donald Trump's campaign. AP images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Aras and Emin Agalarov Aras Agalarov (R) is a wealthy Moscow-based real estate magnate and son Emin (L) is a pop star. Both played a role in putting on the previously Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant in Moscow. They allegedly had information about Hillary Clinton and offered that information to the Trump campaign through a lawyer with whom they had worked with, Natalia Veselnitskaya, and music publicist Rob Goldstone. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Natalia Veselnitskaya Natalia Veselnitskaya is a Russian lawyer with ties to the Kremlin. She has worked on real estate issues and reportedly counted the FSB as a client in the past. She has ties to a Trump family connection, real estate magnate Aras Agalarov, who had helped set up the Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant which took place in Moscow. Ms Veselnitskaya met with Donald Trump Jr, Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort in Trump Tower on 9 June 2016 but denies the allegation that she went there promising information on Hillary Clinton's alleged financial ties to Russia. She contends that the meeting was about the US adoptions of Russian children being stopped by Moscow as a reaction to the Magnitsky Act, a US law blacklisting Russian human rights abusers. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Mike Flynn Mr Flynn was named as Trump's national security adviser but was forced to resign from his post for inappropriate communication with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. He had misrepresented a conversation he had with Mr Kislyak to Vice President Mike Pence, telling him wrongly that he had not discussed sanctions with the Russian. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Sergey Kislyak Mr Kislyak, the former longtime Russian ambassador to the US, is at the centre of the web said to connect President Donald Trump's campaign with Russia. Reuters The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Roger Stone Mr Stone is a former Trump adviser who worked on the political campaigns of Richard Nixon, George HW Bush, and Ronald Reagan. Mr Stone claimed repeatedly in the final months of the campaign that he had backchannel communications with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and that he knew the group was going to dump damaging documents to the campaign of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton - which did happen. Mr Stone also had contacts with the hacker Guccier 2.0 on Twitter, who claimed to have hacked the DNC and is linked to Russian intelligence services. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jeff Sessions The US attorney general was forced to recuse himself from the Trump-Russia investigation after it was learned that he had lied about meeting with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Carter Page Mr Page is a former advisor to the Trump campaign and has a background working as an investment banker at Merrill Lynch. Mr Page met with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Mr Page had invested in oil companies connected to Russia and had admitted that US Russia sanctions had hurt his bottom line. Reuters The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jeffrey "JD" Gorden Mr Gordon met with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 Republian National Convention to discuss how the US and Russia could work together to combat Islamist extremism should then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump win the election. The meeting came days before a massive leak of DNC emails that has been connected to Russia. Creative Commons The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation James Comey Mr Comey was fired from his post as head of the FBI by President Donald Trump. The timing of Mr Comey's firing raised questions around whether or not the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign may have played a role in the decision. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Preet Bharara Mr Bahara refused, alongside 46 other US district attorney's across the country, to resign once President Donald Trump took office after previous assurances from Mr Trump that he would keep his job. Mr Bahara had been heading up several investigations including one into one of President Donald Trump's favorite cable television channels Fox News. Several investigations would lead back to that district, too, including those into Mr Trump's campaign ties to Russia, and Mr Trump's assertion that Trump Tower was wiretapped on orders from his predecessor. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Sally Yates Ms Yates, a former Deputy Attorney General, was running the Justice Department while President Donald Trump's pick for attorney general awaited confirmation. Ms Yates was later fired by Mr Trump from her temporary post over her refusal to implement Mr Trump's first travel ban. She had also warned the White House about potential ties former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to Russia after discovering those ties during the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign's connections to Russia. Getty Images

Though he had not seen evidence of collusion when he stepped down on 20 January, Clapper said all the signs made an FBI investigation not only appropriate but necessary.

Russia, at least for my money, is our primary adversary, he told NBC. They are not our friends. They are in to do us in.

Copyright Associated Press
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Donald Trumps handshakes have become something of an international curiosity  and now, psychologists have broken down the "tactical" move.

The president's unique grip raised eyebrows during his visit to a Nato summit last week, where he appeared to painfully twist the arm of French President Emmanuel Macron.

Ahead of the opening of the new Nato headquarters in Brussels, Mr Trump grabbed the French presidents arm hard enough to jerk him to the side. Mr Macron had to place his other hand on Mr Trump in order to spring free.

Recommended Emmanuel Macron speaks out about that handshake with Donald Trump

Florin Dolcos, a psychology professor at the University of Illinois, called it a tactical move.

It goes down to asserting dominance, Mr Dolcos told The Huffington Post. Why he wants to do that? I dont know. It looks, to me, like he is trying too hard.

The President's fierce shake has made headlines in the past, starting with his grasp of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abes hand. The grip lasted 19 seconds.

Later, Mr Trump almost jerked Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch off his feet with a handshake during a ceremony announcing his nomination.

In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour Show all 39 1 /39 In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud arriving for a reception ahead of a banquet at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump, and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud being welcomed at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump with King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud during a welcome ceremony with traditional sword dancers at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with US President Donald J. Trump and wife Melania during a welcome ceremony at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump adjusts the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal, after it was bestowed upon him by Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud presents U.S. President Donald Trump with the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 Palestinians print posters depicting US President Donald Trump in preparations for his planned visit, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband White House senior advisor Jared Kushner, before delivering his remarks to the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump looks on as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef exchange a memorandum of understanding Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump shares a laugh with a child during a visit to the American International School in the Saudi capital Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers rest during preparations ahead of President Trump's landing in Tel Aviv, Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump makes her way to board Air Force One in Riyadh as she heads with her husband the US President to Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One for Israel, the next stop in Trump's international tour, at King Khalid International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers wait for the arrival ceremony of US President Donald Trump at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, Israel AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive aboard Air Force One at Ben Gurion International Airport in Lod near Tel Aviv, Israel Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump disembark Air Force One on arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump and his wife, US First Lady Melania Trump are welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, in Lod outside Tel Aviv, Israel EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sit during welcome ceremony in Tel Aviv AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump chats wife Sara Netanyahu as US President Donald Trump chats to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a welcoming ceremony to welcome Trump at Ben Gurion International Airport Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump delivers a speech upon his arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump gestures during a press conference with Israel's President at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump watches as First Lady Melania Trump signs the guest book at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump walks with first lady Melania Trump in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, in Jerusalems Old City Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump stands next to Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz at the plaza in front of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and White House senior advisor Jared Kushner leave notes at the Western Wall in Jerusalem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Ivanka Trump, assistant and daughter of US President Donald J. Trump, touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump arrives in a vehicle to Saint Damaso's Court for a private audience with Pope Francis in Vatican City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis walks past Ivanka Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on the occasion of the private audience with President Donald Trump, at the Vatican AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis exchanges gifts with US President Donald Trump during a private audience at the Vatican Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis meets US President Donald Trump and his wife Melania during a private audience at the Vatican Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis with US President Donald J. Trump EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis gets into is car after meeting with US President Donald Trump AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 President Donald Trump and his wife Melania look at the frescoed ceilings during their visit to the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican L'Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump security vehicles are seen in front of Air Force One before take off from Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump wave to reporters before boarding the Air Force One to Brussels, at the end of a 2-day visit to Italy including a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican, at Rome's Fiumicino international airport AP

Body language expert Darren Stanton previously told The Independent that the President's grip is "all about the assertion of power and control".

Trump is saying, This is my space, my time, you are the guest, my house rules apply,'" Mr Stanton said.

Some world leaders have started preparing for a handshake-showdown with the President. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attracted attention for his notably strong, extended grip with Mr Trump when the two met in February.

Mr Macron even admitted to purposefully prolonging his grip with the President, as a show of strength.

My handshake with him was not innocent, Mr Macron said. We need to show that we wont make small concessions, even symbolic ones, while not over-hyping things either.

 President Trump and President Macron have awkwardly long handshake

Nothing, however, can prepare world leaders for another signature Trump move: ignoring the handshake altogether.

Mr Trump failed to heed calls to shake the hand of German Chancellor Angela Merkel when she visited the White House in March. (He says he didnt hear them.)

At a meeting with Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu this month, Mr Trump appeared to miss the presidents outstretched hand.

It is another way of establishing rank, which is that he is the one initiating, Mr Dolcos said of the move. Im not going in when you initiate. Im probably ignoring it and then Ill come back. This is now when we are doing this. Not when you initiate it.
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The most successful deal of Jared Kushners short and consequential career in real estate and politics involves one highly leveraged acquisition: a pair of adjoining offices a few penny-loafer paces from his father-in-laws desk in the White House.

Over the past week, Kushner, who at age 36 occupies an ill-defined role somewhere between princeling and President Donald Trumps shadow chief of staff, has seen his foothold on that invaluable real estate shrink amid revelations he is under scrutiny in a federal investigation into whether there was collusion with Russian officials during the presidential campaign.

Kushner, an observant Jew, spent the Sabbath in fretful seclusion with his wife, Ivanka Trump, at his father-in-laws resort in Bedminster, New Jersey, unplugged, per religious custom, from electronics. But he emerged defiant and eager to defend his reputation in congressional hearings, according to two of his associates.

What is less clear is how Kushners high-profile woes will affect his hard-won influence on a mercurial father-in-law who is eager to put distance between himself and a scandal that is swamping his agenda and, he believes, threatening his family.

Some Democrats are calling on the president to revoke Kushners security clearances. Representative Adam B. Schiff, Democrat-California, senior Democrat on the House committee investigating Russian efforts to sway the 2016 election, suggested in an interview Sunday that the recent news reports about Kushner have brought the investigation from the periphery of the Trump campaign and transition teams into the Oval Office.

If these stories are accurate in their description of Kushner and Michael Flynn, Trumps ousted national security adviser, were they acting at the behest of Trump, then-candidate or president-elect Trump? But whether they were or not, theyre still significant.

In a statement Sunday night, Trump praised his son-in-law and the work he has done in the White House.

Jared is doing a great job for the country, he said. I have total confidence in him. He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programmes that will save our country billions of dollars. In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person.

But in recent weeks the Trump-Kushner relationship, the most stable partnership in an often unstable West Wing, is showing unmistakable signs of strain.

That relationship had already begun to fray a bit after Trumps dismissal of the FBI director, James Comey, which Kushner had strongly advocated, and because of his repeated attempts to oust Steve Bannon, Trumps chief strategist, as well as the Presidents overburdened communications team, especially Sean Spicer, the Press Secretary.

It has been duly noted in the White House that Trump, who feels that he has been ill served by his staff, has increasingly included Kushner when he dresses down aides and officials, a rarity earlier in his administration and during the campaign.

The most serious point of contention between the president and his son-in-law, two people familiar with the interactions said, was a video clip this month of Kushners sister, Nicole Meyer, pitching potential investors in Beijing on a Kushner Cos. condominium project in Jersey City, New Jersey. At one point, Meyer  who remains close to Kushner  dangled the availability of EB-5 visas to the United States as an enticement for Chinese financiers willing to shell out $500,000 or more.

For Trump, Meyers performance violated two major rules. Politically, it undercut his immigration crackdown, and in a personal sense, it smacked of profiteering off Trump  one of the sins that warrants expulsion from his orbit.

In the following days during routine West Wing meetings, the president made several snarky, disparaging comments about Kushners family and the visas that were clearly intended to express his annoyance, two aides said.

Kushner did not respond, at least not in earshot.

His preppy aesthetic, sotto voce style and preference for backstage manoeuvring seemingly sets him apart from his father-in-law  but the similarities outweigh the differences. Both men were reared in the freewheeling, ruthless world of real estate, and both possess an unshakable self-assurance that is both their greatest attribute and direst vulnerability.

Kushners reported feeler to the Russians even as President Barack Obama remained in charge of US foreign policy was a trademark move by someone with a deep confidence in his abilities that critics say borders on conceit, people close to him said. And it echoes his history of sailing forth into unknown territory, including buying a newspaper at age 25 and developing a data-analytics programme that he has said helped deliver the presidency to his father-in-law.

He is intensely proud of his accomplishments in the private sector and has repeatedly suggested his tenure in Washington will hurt, not help, his brand and bottom line.

That unfailing self-regard has not endeared him to the rest of the staff. Resentful Trump staff members have long talked about Jared Island, to describe the special status occupied by Kushner, who, in their view, is given license to exercise power and take on a vague portfolio  Middle East peace and innovation are its central components  without suffering the consequences of failure visited by the president on mere hirelings.

Adding to the animus: Kushners aloof demeanour and his propensity for avoiding messy aspects of his job that he would simply rather not do  he has told associates he wants nothing to do with the legislative process, for instance. He also has a habit, they say, of disappearing during crises, such as his absence on a family ski trip when Trumps first health care bill was crashing in March.

Bannon, a onetime Kushner ally turned adversary known for working himself into ill health, has taken to comparing the former real estate executive to the air, because he blows in and out of meetings leaving little trace, according to one senior Trump aide. Just as Trump does, Kushner quickly forms fixed opinions about people, sometimes based on scant evidence. But Kushner is quicker to admit when he has misjudged a situation, and to change course.

Despite the perception that he is the one untouchable adviser in the presidents inner circle, Kushner was not especially close to his father-in-law before the 2016 campaign. The two bonded when Kushner helped to take over the campaigns faltering digital operation and to sell a reluctant Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of Fox News parent company, on the viability of his father-in-laws candidacy by showing him videos of Trumps rally during a lunch at Fox headquarters in mid-2015.

When asked by friends and associates to describe the source of his influence over the president, Kushner has offered explanations rooted in loyalty, family and, above all, his acceptance that Trump is a 70-year-old man of fixed habits who cannot be easily diverted from a course of action.

Kushner is fond of telling friends that he does not have any vested interests beyond seeing his father-in-law succeed. Many of the people working for Trump are not looking out for the boss, but I am, Kushner told a visitor recently.

My job is to put him in a good place, Kushner told another person he spoke to before embarking on the Middle East leg of Trumps trip, which he planned.

Often, that entails soothing Trump. Other times, he serves as a goad, as he did in urging Comeys ouster and assuring Trump that it would be a political win that would neutralise protesting Democrats because they had called for Comeys ouster over his handling of Hillary Clintons use of a private email server, according to six West Wing aides.

Kushners war with Bannon has been a damaging distraction. Several upper-level staff members said Kushner has made it plain to them that they needed to choose sides or be iced out from an increasingly influential team that includes Gary D. Cohn, the director of the National Economic Council, and a handful of other Kushner-allied power brokers like Dina Powell, a national security official.

Kushner remains infuriated by what he believes to be leaks about his team by Bannon, who has privately cautioned Trump against being captured by liberal, New York globalists associated with his son-in-law, according to three people close to the president.

Trump, however, has had enough. He recently chided Kushner for continuing to call for Bannons ouster, saying he would not fire his conservative populist adviser  who has deep connections with Trumps white working class base  simply because Kushner wanted him out, according an administration official.

Kushner appears to be modifying his centrist stances. Instead of urging the president to keep the US in the Paris climate accord, as he sought to months ago, Kushner has come to believe the standards in the agreement need to be changed, a person close to him said.

Trump admires Kushners tough streak, and shares his taste for payback, especially in defence of his family. Over the years, former employees said, Kushner has quietly sought revenge on enemies whom he sees as hostile to another scandal-buffeted man in his life  his father, Charles Kushner, a New Jersey-based real estate tycoon who was imprisoned for, among other crimes, efforts to retaliate against his sister for cooperating with a federal inquiry targeting him.

As owner of the Observer, a once-edgy, salmon-hued broadsheet he purchased when he was 25, Kushner pushed for negative articles his editors viewed as vehicles for personal animus. The Observers targets included The Star-Ledger in Newark, New Jersey, whose coverage of Charles Kushners case angered the family; a little-known banker who apparently had irked the elder Kushner, and a lender who had refused Jared Kushners request to forgive part of the familys debt on a Fifth Avenue skyscraper.

Ken Kurson, a friend of Kushner who until this month was editor-in-chief of the Observer, said accusations about personal score-settling were complete nonsense, adding that story ideas can and should come from anywhere.

Kushner sees his role as a freelance troubleshooter, but he has focused on foreign policy, friends say, because he saw a gap in the White House structure in that area.

Top administration officials know the importance of cultivating him: Last month he travelled to Iraq at the invitation of General Joseph F. Dunford Jr, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and he serves as a sounding board for officials like Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster, the national security adviser, according to Elliott Abrams, a Republican foreign policy veteran whom Trump vetoed for a job in the State Department.

I hear more worries about the president than about Jared, he said. In fact, I never hear complaints about Jared.

But Jason D. Greenblatt, the White House adviser on international negotiations, said that on the Middle East at least, Kushner is not just a sounding board but an adviser who helps shape policy options for the president. Together with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and others, he said, Kushner helps shape policy decisions to put before the president. He said Kushner deserves a substantial part of the credit for Trumps recent trip to the Middle East. Jared put together all the moving parts, he said. It went great.

With a staff of about a half dozen, Kushner has also created an office for innovation that is tackling a disparate array of projects, from promoting apprenticeship programmes as an alternative to four-year college degrees to modernisng how the government buys software.

Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Alphabet, Googles parent company, said in an email, His passion on this is very real.

So far, on some issues, the innovation offices role seems mostly advisory. David Shulkin, Veterans Affairs secretary, said he meets with Kushner about twice a month to discuss his plans to modernise his agency.

Asked for a concrete example of how Kushners office has helped him, Shulkin said aides are pulling together corporate leaders who hired a lot of veterans and thats important.

But the Russia investigation has shaken Kushner, friends and associates say. When news broke last week, Kushner and his wife at first discussed getting a statement denying the report issued through the White House Counsel, Donald F. McGahn II  who told them that it was not a good precedent to set and that it was a job for a personal attorney.

The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Show all 17 1 /17 The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Paul Manafort Mr Manafort is a Republican strategist and former Trump campaign manager. He resigned from that post over questions about his extensive lobbying overseas, including in Ukraine where he represented pro-Russian interests. Mr Manafort turned himself in at FBI headquarters to special counsel Robert Muellers team on Oct 30, 2017, after he was indicted under seal on charges that include conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading US Foreign Agents Registration Act statements, false statements, and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. Getty The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Rick Gates Mr Gates joined the Trump team in spring 2016, and served as a top aide until he left to work at the Republican National Committee after the departure of former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort. Mr Gates' had previously worked on several presidential campaigns, on international political campaigns in Europe and Africa, and had 15 years of political or financial experience with multinational firms, according to his bio. Mr Gates was indicted alongside Mr Manafort by special counsel Robert Mueller's team on charges that include conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading US Foreign Agents Registration Act statements, false statements, and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts. AP The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation George Papadopoulos George Papadopoulos was a former foreign policy adviser for the Trump campaign, having joined around March 2016. Mr Papadopoulos plead guilty to federal charges for lying to the FBI as a part of a cooperation agreement with Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. Mr Papadopoulos claimed in an interview with the FBI that he had made contacts with Russian sources before joining the Trump campaign, but he actually began working with them after joining the team. Mr Papadopoulos allegedly took a meeting with a professor in London who reportedly told him that Russians had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton. The professor also allegedly introduced Mr Papadopoulos to a Russian who was said to have close ties to officials at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Mr Papadopoulos also allegedly was in contact with a woman whom he incorrectly described in one email to others in the campaign as the "niece" to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Twitter The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Donald Trump Jr The President's eldest son met with a Russian lawyer - Natalia Veselnitskaya - on 9 June 2016 at Trump Tower in New York. He said in an initial statement that the meeting was about Russia halting adoptions of its children by US citizens. Then, he said it was regarding the Magnitsky Act, a US law blacklisting Russian human rights abusers. In a final statement, Mr Trump Jr released a chain of emails that revealed he took the meeting in hopes of getting information Ms Veselnitskaya had about Hillary Clinton's alleged financial ties to Russia. He and the President called it standard "opposition research" in the course of campaigning and that no information came from the meeting. The meeting was set up by an intermediary, Rob Goldstone. Jared Kushner and Paul Manafort were also at the same meeting. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jared Kushner Mr Kushner is President Donald Trump's son-in-law and a key adviser to the White House. He met with a Russian banker appointed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in December. Mr Kushner has said he did so in his role as an adviser to Mr Trump while the bank says he did so as a private developer. Mr Kushner has also volunteered to testify in the Senate about his role helping to arrange meetings between Trump advisers and Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Rob Goldstone Former tabloid journalist and now music publicist Rob Goldstone is a contact of the Trump family through the previously Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant, which took place in Moscow. In June 2016, he wrote to Donald Trump Jr offering a meeting with a Russian lawyer, Natalya Veselnitskaya, who had information about Hillary Clinton. Mr Goldstone was the intermediary for Russian pop star Emin Agalaraov and his father, real estate magnate Aras, who played a role in putting on the 2013 pageant. In an email chain released by Mr Trump Jr, Mr Goldstone seemed to indicate Russian government's support of Donald Trump's campaign. AP images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Aras and Emin Agalarov Aras Agalarov (R) is a wealthy Moscow-based real estate magnate and son Emin (L) is a pop star. Both played a role in putting on the previously Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant in Moscow. They allegedly had information about Hillary Clinton and offered that information to the Trump campaign through a lawyer with whom they had worked with, Natalia Veselnitskaya, and music publicist Rob Goldstone. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Natalia Veselnitskaya Natalia Veselnitskaya is a Russian lawyer with ties to the Kremlin. She has worked on real estate issues and reportedly counted the FSB as a client in the past. She has ties to a Trump family connection, real estate magnate Aras Agalarov, who had helped set up the Trump-owned 2013 Miss Universe pageant which took place in Moscow. Ms Veselnitskaya met with Donald Trump Jr, Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort in Trump Tower on 9 June 2016 but denies the allegation that she went there promising information on Hillary Clinton's alleged financial ties to Russia. She contends that the meeting was about the US adoptions of Russian children being stopped by Moscow as a reaction to the Magnitsky Act, a US law blacklisting Russian human rights abusers. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Mike Flynn Mr Flynn was named as Trump's national security adviser but was forced to resign from his post for inappropriate communication with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. He had misrepresented a conversation he had with Mr Kislyak to Vice President Mike Pence, telling him wrongly that he had not discussed sanctions with the Russian. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Sergey Kislyak Mr Kislyak, the former longtime Russian ambassador to the US, is at the centre of the web said to connect President Donald Trump's campaign with Russia. Reuters The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Roger Stone Mr Stone is a former Trump adviser who worked on the political campaigns of Richard Nixon, George HW Bush, and Ronald Reagan. Mr Stone claimed repeatedly in the final months of the campaign that he had backchannel communications with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and that he knew the group was going to dump damaging documents to the campaign of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton - which did happen. Mr Stone also had contacts with the hacker Guccier 2.0 on Twitter, who claimed to have hacked the DNC and is linked to Russian intelligence services. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jeff Sessions The US attorney general was forced to recuse himself from the Trump-Russia investigation after it was learned that he had lied about meeting with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Carter Page Mr Page is a former advisor to the Trump campaign and has a background working as an investment banker at Merrill Lynch. Mr Page met with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Mr Page had invested in oil companies connected to Russia and had admitted that US Russia sanctions had hurt his bottom line. Reuters The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Jeffrey "JD" Gorden Mr Gordon met with Russian Ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 Republian National Convention to discuss how the US and Russia could work together to combat Islamist extremism should then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump win the election. The meeting came days before a massive leak of DNC emails that has been connected to Russia. Creative Commons The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation James Comey Mr Comey was fired from his post as head of the FBI by President Donald Trump. The timing of Mr Comey's firing raised questions around whether or not the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign may have played a role in the decision. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Preet Bharara Mr Bahara refused, alongside 46 other US district attorney's across the country, to resign once President Donald Trump took office after previous assurances from Mr Trump that he would keep his job. Mr Bahara had been heading up several investigations including one into one of President Donald Trump's favorite cable television channels Fox News. Several investigations would lead back to that district, too, including those into Mr Trump's campaign ties to Russia, and Mr Trump's assertion that Trump Tower was wiretapped on orders from his predecessor. Getty Images The biggest names involved in the Trump-Russia investigation Sally Yates Ms Yates, a former Deputy Attorney General, was running the Justice Department while President Donald Trump's pick for attorney general awaited confirmation. Ms Yates was later fired by Mr Trump from her temporary post over her refusal to implement Mr Trump's first travel ban. She had also warned the White House about potential ties former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn to Russia after discovering those ties during the FBI's investigation into the Trump campaign's connections to Russia. Getty Images

While Kushner has said he and his wife might move back to Manhattan if it were best for their family, he appears, for now, willing to stay and fight.

Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, said in an appearance on NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday that White House officials had reached out to reassure him that Kushner was willing to cooperate in the inquiry into possible collusion between the Russians and Trump aides. He seems to be a very open person, Corker said of Kushner. Id let him speak for himself when the time is right.

Copyright The New York Times
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President Donald Trump has released his first official statement on the attack in Portland, Oregon, more than 48 hours after the two victims died.

"The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable," Mr Trump tweeted. "The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them."

Three days earlier, an Oregon man was accused of fatally stabbing two men and injuring one on a Portland commuter train. The victims died attempting to stop the man from screaming hate speech at two women who appeared to be Muslim, Portland police report.

The suspect, 35-year-old Jeremy Joseph Christian, has been charged with two counts of aggravated murder  a capital offence in Oregon.

Mr Christian has a history of posting anti-Muslim sentiments on social media, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. He has also been filmed yelling racial slurs at a free-speech march by freelance journalist Mike Bivins.

Calls grew over the weekend for Mr Trump to comment, as even Richard Spencer  a known white nationalist  called the attacks "saddening". But the president did not comment on the attack in the ensuing 48 hours, despite tweeting 14 times from his personal account.

The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Show all 9 1 /9 The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the media White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer takes questions during the daily press briefing Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Union leaders applaud US President Donald Trump for signing an executive order withdrawing the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations during a meeting in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington DC. Mr Trump issued a presidential memorandum in January announcing that the US would withdraw from the trade deal Getty The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Mexico wall A US Border Patrol vehicle sits waiting for illegal immigrants at a fence opening near the US-Mexico border near McAllen, Texas. The number of incoming immigrants has surged ahead of the upcoming Presidential inauguration of Donald Trump, who has pledged to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. A signature campaign promise, Mr Trump outlined his intention to build a border wall on the US-Mexico border days after taking office Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and abortion US President Donald Trump signs an executive order as Chief of Staff Reince Priebus looks on in the Oval Office of the White House. Mr Trump reinstated a ban on American financial aide being granted to non-governmental organizations that provide abortion counseling, provide abortion referrals, or advocate for abortion access outside of the United States Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the Dakota Access pipeline Opponents of the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines hold a rally as they protest US President Donald Trump's executive orders advancing their construction, at Columbus Circle in New York. US President Donald Trump signed executive orders reviving the construction of two controversial oil pipelines, but said the projects would be subject to renegotiation Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and 'Obamacare' Nancy Pelosi who is the minority leader of the House of Representatives speaks beside House Democrats at an event to protect the Affordable Care Act in Los Angeles, California. US President Donald Trump's effort to make good on his campaign promise to repeal and replace the healthcare law failed when Republicans failed to get enough votes. Mr Trump has promised to revisit the matter Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Donald Trump and 'sanctuary cities' US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January threatening to pull funding for so-called "sanctuary cities" if they do not comply with federal immigration law AP The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and the travel ban US President Donald Trump has attempted twice to restrict travel into the United States from several predominantly Muslim countries. The first attempt, in February, was met with swift opposition from protesters who flocked to airports around the country. That travel ban was later blocked by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The second ban was blocked by a federal judge a day before it was scheduled to be implemented in mid-March SANDY HUFFAKER/AFP/Getty Images The controversial orders Donald Trump has already issued Trump and climate change US President Donald Trump sought to dismantle several of his predecessor's actions on climate change in March. His order instructed the Environmental Protection Agency to reevaluate the Clean Power Plan, which would cap power plant emissions Shannon Stapleton/Reuters

In a highly shared Facebook post, journalist Dan Rather urged Mr Trump to say the names of those who died.

"Two Americans have died leaving family and friends behind," Mr Rather wrote. "They are mourned by millions more who are also deeply worried about what might come next. I hope you can find it worthy of your time to take notice."

Mr Trump has previously tweeted about attacks in the UK and in France. He responded within hours to an April shoot-out in Paris that killed two.

When the president did issue his statement on the Portland attacks, it came from the official POTUS account, instead of his more popular @realDonaldTrump handle.

As of press time, the tweet had received 3,700 retweets, and almost as many replies.
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She could barely get the words out.

But Destinee Mangum wanted to thank the three men who came to her help when she and a friend allegedly suffered racist abuse on a train in Portland, Oregon. All three of the men were stabbed, purportedly by Jeremy Christian, said to be a white supremacist. Two of them died. One remains in hospital being treated for his injuries.

I just want to say thank you to the people who put their life on the line for me, the 16-year-old told KPTV. Because they didnt even know me, and they lost their lives because of me and my friend and the way we look.

The teenager had been on the train last Friday when she and a friend were said to be been insulted by Mr Christian. One of the women was wearing an hijab.

He told us to go back to Saudi Arabia and he told us we shouldnt be here, to get out of his country, said the young woman. He was just telling us that we basically werent anything and that we should just kill ourselves.

Three men intervened. Army veteran Ricky John Best, 53, and college graduate Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, were killed, while the third, poet Micah David-Cole Fletcher, 21, suffered a knife wound to the neck.

 Portland attack suspect Jeremy Christian at a 'free speech rally' making a Nazi salute

The young woman said that after they were abused, they moved to another part of the train and were preparing to get off at the next station. It was at that point, the three men stepped in, with one of them saying you cant disrespect these young ladies like that.

Then they just all started arguing, said the teenager. Me and my friend were going to get off the MAX and then we turned around while they were fighting and he just started stabbing people. It was just blood everywhere and we just started running for our lives.

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. 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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. 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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. 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Several passengers chased after the suspect and called 911, directing officers to his were he was.

Its haunting me, she said. And I just want to say thank you to them and their family and that I appreciate them because without them, we probably would be dead right now.

The teenagers mother also offered her thanks to the three man who went to the help of her daughter and her friend.

I want to say thank you so much, said Dyjuana Hudson. I couldnt imagine what youre going through right now as far as losing someone and Im sorry it had to be at the hands of my children.

Mr Christian has been charged with with two counts of aggravated murder and one count of attempted murder. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

Meanwhile, more than than $800,000 has been raised for the families of the three men stabbed. Muslim communities helped raise $330,543 by Monday morning, while two other finds were established to cover the victims hospital bills, funeral costs and other expenses. That has raised raised more than $500,000.
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The first group of women graduated from US Army infantry training last week, but with soldiers obscured by body armour, camouflage face paint and smoke grenades, it was almost impossible to tell that the mixed-gender squads in the steamy woods here were any different from they have been for generations.

Thats just how the Army wants it.

After the Obama administration ordered the military in 2013 to open all combat positions to women, the Army developed gender-neutral performance standards to ensure that recruits entering the infantry were all treated the same. Still smarting over accusations that it had lowered standards to help the first women graduate from its elite Ranger School in 2015, the Army has taken pains to avoid making any exceptions for infantry boot camp.

The Army has also sought to play down the significance of the new female infantrymen  as they are still known  not mentioning, when families gathered last week for their graduation, that the 18 women who made it through would be the first in more than two centuries for the American infantry.

Its business as usual, the battalion commander overseeing the first class, Lieutenant Colonel Sam Edwards, said as he watched a squad of soldiers run past  including one with French braids and a grenade launcher. Ive tried to not change a thing.

Just before graduation, one female drill sergeant pulled aside a group of female privates, who ranged from high school athletes to a single mother with a culinary degree, and gave them her unofficial assessment out of officers earshot.

This is a big deal, she said as she looked into one recruits eyes.

In the new integrated infantry companies, women and men train together in mixed-gender squads from before dawn until after dusk: practising the same raids, kicking in the same doors, doing the same push-ups when their squad messes up.

At night, they sleep in rooms separated by gender, in identical metal bunks. To graduate, all must pass tests of the same infantry skills, including hurling a grenade 35 metres, dragging a 268-pound dummy 15 metres, running five miles in less than 45 minutes and completing a 12-mile march carrying 68 pounds.

Hair is one of the few places where standards still diverge. All men get their heads shaved on arrival. Women dont. Not wanting to be held to a different standard, though, many of the women decided a few weeks into training to shave in solidarity.

I loved my hair, but didnt want anyone to look at me and think I was being treated special, said Private Irelynn Donovan.

Afghanistan and Iraq were turning points for the Armys thinking on women in combat. The wars forced thousands of women who were not technically combat troops into fire fights. Nearly 14,000 women were awarded the Combat Action Badge for engaging with the enemy. Today most of the men leading the Army have served with women in combat for years.

Recommended Transgender Marine becomes one of the first men to serve openly

We saw it can work, said Major General Jeffrey Snow, who heads Army Recruiting Command at Fort Knox, Kentucky. And now we have a generation that just wants to accomplish the mission and have the most talented people to do it.

The Army is determined not to sacrifice performance for the sake of inclusion, and many women have not been able to meet the standard. Of the 32 who showed up at infantry boot camp in February, 44 percent dropped out. For the 148 men in the company, the dropout rate was just 20 percent.

Commanders say the higher dropout rate among females is in line with other demanding boot camps for military police and combat engineers, which have been open to women for years. In part, they say, it is a consequence of size. A five foot two woman has to carry the same weight as a man who stands a foot taller, and is more likely to be injured.

Why did so many more women fail? One female recruit summed it up by saying simply, Hey, the infantrys tough, man.

This month, after 14 weeks of running and crawling in the dirt, Alpha Company marched onto the parade grounds in crisp dress uniforms and carefully creased berets.

The company commanders voice booming over loudspeakers welcomed them to the infantry, but he gave no nod to the women now joining the ranks.

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

The women appeared to take it in stride. But Donovan, who had won the award for the highest female fitness score in the company, finishing just behind the top man, shrank in embarrassment when her mother greeted her with a bouquet of flowers.

Mom, she muttered, looking to see if anyone noticed, you dont bring flowers to infantry graduation.

 The New York Times
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Donald Trumps multi-billion dollar arms deal with Saudi Arabia could be held up by US politicians seeking to scrutinise its contents.

Members of both the US presidents Republican Party and rival Democrats in both Congress and the Senate are hoping to block the sale of the weapons and equipment.

Mr Trump signed the $110bn deal during a recent visit to Saudi Arabia.

This package demonstrates, in the clearest terms possible, the United States commitment to our partnership with Saudi Arabia and our Gulf partners, while also expanding opportunities for American companies in the region, and supporting tens of thousands of new jobs in the US defence industrial base, a White House statement said shortly afterwards.

But In a letter to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressmen Ted Lieu, a Democrat and Republican Ted Yoho urged their colleagues to reconsider the sale of precision guided munitions (PGMs) to the oil rich Middle Eastern Kingdom.

They pointed out that former president Barack Obamas administration had halted a planned sale of of PGMs to Saudi Arabia in December, due to concerns over the widespread civilian casualties in Yemen and significant deficiencies in the Royal Saudi Arabian Air Forces (RSAF) targeting capabilities.

They said: This decision was the result of an internal review launched after the United Nations and a number of human rights organisations documented a series of RSAF airstrikes on civilian targets including hospitals, markets, schools and a large funeral.

They added that in March, The State Department had reversed this policy without providing any justification for what had changed in its assessment.

As a result they said it was incumbent of the committee to exercise its oversight powers and to ask tough questions of Mr Trumps administration.

In the Senate meanwhile, Senators Chris Murphy, Al Franken and Rand Paul introduced a joint resolution of disapproval for the deal.

Under a provision of the Arms Export Control Act, they hope to block the sale of weapons and equipment to the Royal Saudi Air Force, a;though it represents only a portion of the total package.

However, they will have to wait for over a week before bringing their measure to the floor of the Senate.

Other Congressional leaders slammed the deal on account of Saudi Arabiass human rights violations and export of extremist ideologies.

10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Show all 10 1 /10 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In October 2014, three lawyers, Dr Abdulrahman al-Subaihi, Bander al-Nogaithan and Abdulrahman al-Rumaih , were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for using Twitter to criticize the Ministry of Justice. AFP/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2015, Yemens Sunni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was forced into exile after a Shia-led insurgency. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has responded with air strikes in order to reinstate Mr Hadi. It has since been accused of committing war crimes in the country. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Women who supported the Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the ban on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities. The government warned that women drivers would face arrest. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Members of the Kingdoms Shia minority, most of whom live in the oil-rich Eastern Province, continue to face discrimination that limits their access to government services and employment. Activists have received death sentences or long prison terms for their alleged participation in protests in 2011 and 2012. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses All public gatherings are prohibited under an order issued by the Interior Ministry in 2011. Those defy the ban face arrest, prosecution and imprisonment on charges such as inciting people against the authorities. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2014, the Interior Ministry stated that authorities had deported over 370,000 foreign migrants and that 18,000 others were in detention. Thousands of workers were returned to Somalia and other states where they were at risk of human rights abuses, with large numbers also returned to Yemen, in order to open more jobs to Saudi Arabians. Many migrants reported that prior to their deportation they had been packed into overcrowded makeshift detention facilities where they received little food and water and were abused by guards. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses The Saudi Arabian authorities continue to deny access to independent human rights organisations like Amnesty International, and they have been known to take punitive action, including through the courts, against activists and family members of victims who contact Amnesty. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1000 lashes and 10 years in prison for using his liberal blog to criticise Saudi Arabias clerics. He has already received 50 lashes, which have reportedly left him in poor health. Carsten Koall/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Dawood al-Marhoon was arrested aged 17 for participating in an anti-government protest. After refusing to spy on his fellow protestors, he was tortured and forced to sign a blank document that would later contain his confession. At Dawoods trial, the prosecution requested death by crucifixion while refusing him a lawyer. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Ali Mohammed al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 aged either 16 or 17 for participating in protests during the Arab spring. His sentence includes beheading and crucifixion. The international community has spoken out against the punishment and has called on Saudi Arabia to stop. He is the nephew of a prominent government dissident. Getty

Senator Patrick Leahy, the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, accused Trump of kowtowing to one of the worlds wealthiest and repressive regimes.

Healso accused the Saudi royal family of support for extremism that breeds terrorism and gross mistreatment of its own citizens.

Human rights organisations have also criticised the deal.

Shortly after it was signed Amnesty International accused the President of a glaring omission of human rights on the leaders agenda, and called for the US to stop selling arms to the Saudis to prevent the nations violation of international law via air strikes in Yemen and killing civilians.

Jeff Abramson of the Arms Control Association also cited the numerous cases of Saudi airstrikes against civilians in Yemen, telling Foreign Policy magazine: The Saudis have not proven to be responsible in their use of American weapons."
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Donald Trump said North Korea has shown 'great disrespect' for China after its latest ballistic missile test.

"North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbour, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile," the President tweeted.

He added: "But China is trying hard!"

North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile towards Japan, which reached an altitude of 75 miles and flew for almost 300 miles.

The Scud-type missile landed in the waters of Japan's economic zone, but Japan's chief cabinet secretary said there was no immediate report of damage to vessels or ships in the area.

The US Pacific Command said it had detected and tracked the short-range missile for six minutes, determining that it did not pose a threat to the US.

It was the latest in a string of launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can reach the US mainland.

 US General Stewart: It is 'inevitable' North Korea will be capable of hitting US in nuclear attack

The North has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that target Japan and South Korea and US forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.

It recently ordered mass production of a new ballistic missile capable of striking Japan and major US military bases.

Mr Trump has alternated in his public statements between bellicosity and flattery, but his administration is still working to solidify a policy to deal with North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

A new liberal president in Seoul, Moon Jae-in, has signalled he will be flexible in expanding civilian exchange with the North.

But many analysts say Mr Moon will probably not push for any major rapprochement projects because North Korea has gone too far on its nuclear programme.

In pictures: North Korea military drill Show all 8 1 /8 In pictures: North Korea military drill In pictures: North Korea military drill North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un watches a military drill marking the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the Korean People's Army (KPA) KCNA/Handout via REUTERS In pictures: North Korea military drill A military drill marking the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the Korean People's Army (KPA) is seen in this handout photo by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) KCNA/Handout via REUTERS In pictures: North Korea military drill A military drill marking the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the Korean People's Army (KPA) is seen in this handout photo by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) KCNA/Handout via REUTERS In pictures: North Korea military drill A military drill marking the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the Korean People's Army (KPA) KCNA/Handout via REUTERS In pictures: North Korea military drill A military drill marking the 85th anniversary of the establishment of the Korean People's Army (KPA) KCNA/Handout via REUTERS In pictures: North Korea military drill This image made from video of still images broadcast in a news bulletin by North Korea's KRT, shows what was said to be a 'Combined Fire Demonstration' held to celebrate the 85th anniversary of the North Korean army, in Wonsan, North Korea. KRT via AP Video In pictures: North Korea military drill This image made from video of still images broadcast in a news bulletin by North Korea's KRT, shows what was said to be a 'Combined Fire Demonstration' held to celebrate the 85th anniversary of the North Korean army, in Wonsan, North Korea. KRT via AP Video In pictures: North Korea military drill This image made from video of still images broadcast in a news bulletin by North Korea's KRT, shows what was said to be a 'Combined Fire Demonstration' held to celebrate the 85th anniversary of the North Korean army, in Wonsan, North Korea. KRT via AP Video

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had just returned from a G7 meeting in Italy, told reporters: "North Korea's provocation by ignoring repeated warning from the international society is absolutely unacceptable."

He said Japan will "take concrete steps with the US in order to deter North Korea," although he did not elaborate on specific actions.

"We will also co-operate with South Korea and other members of the international society and maintain high levels of caution in order to do utmost for the protection of our people's safety."

Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, the North carried out two nuclear tests last year, in January and September.

Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of the North's secretive weapons program is unknown.

Additional reporting by agencies
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German leader Angela Merkel was right to confront Donald Trump over the need to tackle climate change, her spokesman has said.

A day after she had suggested that Germany and Europe could no longer rely on the US under the leadership of Mr Trump, there was a doubling down on the German Chancellors comments.

Her spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said the Chancellor remained committed to strong trans-Atlantic relations, but her suggestion after meetings with Mr Trump, that Europe can no longer entirely rely on the US, speaks for itself.

[US-German relations] are a strong pillar of our foreign and security policy, and Germany will continue working to strengthen these relations, said Mr Seibert. Precisely because they are so important, its right to name differences honestly.

Last week, Mr Trump was pressed by leaders of the G7 to keep the US in the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change, an accord agreeing to cut carbon dioxide emissions that Barack Obama signed his name to. The agreement involves almost 200 countries, and experts say it is essential if the planet is to have any chance of tackling catastrophic climate change.

10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Show all 10 1 /10 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A group of emperor penguins face a crack in the sea ice, near McMurdo Station, Antarctica Kira Morris 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Floods destroyed eight bridges and ruined crops such as wheat, maize and peas in the Karimabad valley in northern Pakistan, a mountainous region with many glaciers. In many parts of the world, glaciers have been in retreat, creating dangerously large lakes that can cause devastating flooding when the banks break. Climate change can also increase rainfall in some areas, while bringing drought to others. Hira Ali 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Smoke  filled with the carbon that is driving climate change  drifts across a field in Colombia. Sandra Rondon 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Amid a flood in Islampur, Jamalpur, Bangladesh, a woman on a raft searches for somewhere dry to take shelter. Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable places in the world to sea level rise, which is expected to make tens of millions of people homeless by 2050. Probal Rashid 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Sindh province in Pakistan has experienced a grim mix of two consequences of climate change. Because of climate change either we have floods or not enough water to irrigate our crop and feed our animals, says the photographer. Picture clearly indicates that the extreme drought makes wide cracks in clay. Crops are very difficult to grow. Rizwan Dharejo 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Hanna Petursdottir examines a cave inside the Svinafellsjokull glacier in Iceland, which she said had been growing rapidly. Since 2000, the size of glaciers on Iceland has reduced by 12 per cent. Tom Schifanella 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A river once flowed along the depression in the dry earth of this part of Bangladesh, but it has disappeared amid rising temperatures. Abrar Hossain 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A shepherd moves his herd as he looks for green pasture near the village of Sirohi in Rajasthan, northern India. The region has been badly affected by heatwaves and drought, making local people nervous about further predicted increases in temperature. Riddhima Singh Bhati 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change A factory in China is shrouded by a haze of air pollution. The World Health Organisation has warned such pollution, much of which is from the fossil fuels that cause climate change, is a public health emergency. Leung Ka Wa 10 photographs to show to anyone who doesn't believe in climate change Water levels in reservoirs, like this one in Gers, France, have been getting perilously low in areas across the world affected by drought, forcing authorities to introduce water restrictions. Mahtuf Ikhsan

On the election trail, Mr Trump called climate change science a hoax, and suggested he would pull out of the agreement, as he believed it was bad for business. After Mr Trump returned to Washington, it was reported that he had decided to withdraw the US, despite the protestations of Europe.

Speaking over the weekend at an event in Bavaria, Ms Merkel had stressed the need for friendly relations with the US, Britain and Russia, but added: We Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands.

Ms Merkel said the traditional western alliance was threatened by the new US presidency and Brexit, and the times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days.

 Angela Merkel: 'We Europeans must take our destiny into our own hands'

The Associated Press said Germany has also bristled at criticism from Mr Trump over Nato spending and the countrys large trade surplus. Ms Merkel is looking ahead to elections in September, when she is seeking her fourth term.

Her main challenger, the Social Democrats chancellor candidate Martin Schulz, was even more outspoken in his comments about the G7 and Nato meetings last week, saying the summits made clear Mr Trump was a President of the United States of America who wants to humiliate others, who presents himself like an authoritarian ruler.

Europe is the answer, and stronger cooperation between the European countries at all levels is the answer to Donald Trump, Mr Schulz said on ARD public television. And above all else we must not submit to Trumps arms-race logic.

Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said Mr Trumps actions had weakened the West, and his short-sighted policies had hurt the interests of the EU.
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Donald Trump used Americas Memorial Day to momentarily remove himself from the controversy surrounding his administration over alleged links to Russia  visiting Arlington National Cemetery and honouring those who had died in war.

It was Mr Trumps first Memorial holiday as President, and at Arlington he laid a wreath and paid special tribute to Robert Kelly, the son of his Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly. The 29-year-old was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistans Helmand Province in 2010.

I especially want to extend our gratitude to General Kelly for joining us today  an incredible man  I always call him general, said Mr Trump. He understands more than most ever could, or ever will, the wounds and burdens of war.

 Donald Trump claims his first foreign trip has been a success. His body language tells otherwise

Mr Trump, who secured five draft deferments for Vietnam  four for college and one for a bad ankle  will have appreciated the solemnity and the warm response he received at Arlington. Since he returned from a nine-day overseas visit, his first official foreign trip, his administration has been besieged by fresh revelations over his campaign teams contacts with Russia.

The most recent furore focuses on his trusted advisor and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who reportedly sought to establish a communications back channel with Russia, during a meeting last December with Russias Ambassador to Washington, Sergey Kislyak.

It was also reported that the 36-year-old was a focus of the FBIs ongoing probe into possible collusion between Mr Trumps team and the alleged effort by Moscow to influence the 2016 election. Mr Kushner has offered to testify with any official investigations.

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

Mr Kushner previously volunteered to share with Congress what he knows about these meetings, his lawyer, Jamie Gorelick, said in a statement. He will do the same if he is contacted in connection with any other inquiry.

Mr Trump has been placed in an intensely difficult predicament by the developments. There are few people he trusts more than his son-in-law and would be loathe to lose him from the West Wing. At the same time, amid reports that the President is planning a major shake-up inside the White House, there is said to be mounting talk that Mr Kushner may be obliged to take a leave of absence until the issue is resolved.

For now, Mr Trump is sticking with the man married to his eldest daughter.

Jared is doing a great job for the country. I have total confidence in him, he said in a statement to the New York Times.

He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programmes that will save our country billions of dollars. In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person.

Mr Trumps Secretary of Homeland Security, who was present at Arlington, has also come to the defence of Mr Kushner. Over the weekend, he said that the suggestion to establish a back channel communication with Moscow was both normal and appropriate.

Anytime you can communicate with people, especially organisations who are not particularly friendly us, its a good thing, he told ABC News. Whatever the communication is, it comes back to the Government and is shared.

Speaking at Arlington, Mr Trump said: To the entire Kelly family, today, 300 million American hearts are joined together with you. We grieve with you. We honour you and we pledge to you that we will always remember Robert and what he did for us.
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The man leading the federal investigation into possible collusion between Donald Trumps campaign and Moscow, has stressed integrity, patience and humility in a student graduation speech.

Robert Mueller, a former FBI Director, said that nothing else matters if people were not honest.

As the saying goes, if you have integrity, nothing else matters, and if you do not have integrity, nothing else matters, Mr Mueller told graduating students at Tabor Academy in Massachusetts.

In his first public appearance since being named special counsel on May 17, he added: Whatever we do, we must act with honesty and with integrity, and regardless of you chosen career, you are only as good as your word.

Mr Mueller, who headed the FBI under George W Bush and Barack Obama, encouraged the graduates to enjoy the journey ahead and all it has to offer.

 Robert Mueller addressing leaking in 2013

As I reflect on my career, I could say that I never could have anticipated where I have ended up, he said, according to CNN.

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

The school near Cape Code invited Mr Mueller to speak to the graduating seniors, including his granddaughter, before he was appointed special counsel. He did not address the Russia investigation during his commencement speech and did not meet with reporters afterwards.

When given the opportunity to address students, I always mention integrity because it is so essential to who and what you ultimately will become, Mr Mueller said.

Later in his address, Mr Mueller said patience was also an important part of life, and that it is an acquired skill that was still working on.
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Bishop Edwin De La Pena was sipping coffee after dinner in a southern Philippines coastal town last Tuesday when he received a phone call: it was from one of his diocese priests, who sounded panicky and distressed.

Father Teresito Chito Sugarno, the vicar general of Marawi City, had been taken hostage by Islamist militants along with about a dozen of his parishioners.

He was only given a few lines to deliver, and it was simply echoing the demands of the kidnappers - for the troops to withdraw, said De La Pena. If the demand was not met, he was told, something bad would happen.

There has been no further word from the group of Christians since they were caught up in a ferocious battle that has raged between Islamist insurgents and Philippines soldiers in Marawi for the past week.

As many as 180,000 people, about 90 percent of the population, have fled the usually bustling lakeside town nestled in lush tropical hills that, almost overnight last week, became a theatre of urban warfare.

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte declared martial law across Mindanao - the country's southernmost island and an area the size of South Korea - as troops outside Marawi closed in on Isnilon Hapilon, who was proclaimed emir of South East Asia last year after he pledged allegiance to Isis.

Mindanao has long been a hotbed of local insurgencies and separatist movements: but now, Islamist fighters from Malaysia, Indonesia and other countries have converged in Mindanao, stoking fears that it could become a regional stronghold of Isis.

More than 90 percent of the Philippines' 100 million people are Christian, but here Muslims are in the majority. In 1980 Marawi proclaimed itself an Islamic City and it is the only city in the country with that designation.

For the small Christian community of Marawi, however, life in the city had until recently been peaceful and prosperous.

We don't consider ourselves Muslims or Christians, we are just friends, said De La Pena, who has lived for 17 years in Marawi but was out of town when the violence broke out.

That peace was shattered some months ago, he said, after the army bombed an encampment of Islamist groups some 50 km (30 miles) away.

They said they pulverised the whole camp, but these people simply transferred their base of operation from the jungle to the urban centre, to the city, Marawi, he told Reuters in an interview from Iligan City, 37 km (23 miles) from Marawi.

They came in trickles, a few people at a time. They have relatives there. They lived, they recruited, he said, adding that authorities appear to have missed the looming threat.

Chaos was unleashed upon Marawi when troops searching for Hapilon were ambushed by heavily armed militants.

More than 200 local and foreign fighters from the Maute group and others allied to Isis fanned out across the city, seizing the main hospital and prison before attacking the Cathedral of Maria Auxiliadora.

Inside, nearby residents told De La Pena, Father Teresito and a group of worshippers were decorating the church for a holy day to celebrate the life of Mary, a sacred figure in both Christianity and Islam.

Dela Pena said they ran to the nearby bishop's house, hoping they would be safe there, but the militants burst in after them. That evening, after bundling their captives into vehicles, they torched the church, according to the residents.

Photos showing the priest, a young man and a woman slumped against a wall have circulated on the internet. Dela Pena believes they are being used as human shields by the militants.

I cannot imagine. I have no words to describe it, he 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

Still, he remains hopeful that the city can unite again. The vast majority of Marawi's citizens, whatever their faith, are appalled by the violence and disruption, he said.

I think we can begin something more effective in terms of working together, in terms of dialogue, in terms of peaceful coexistence, he said. After all, we have shared the same predicament.

Copyright Reuters
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The Great Barrier Reef  a canary in the coal mine for global warming  can no longer be saved in its present form partly because of the extraordinary rapidity of climate change, experts have conceded.

Instead, action should be taken to maintain the World Heritage Site's 'ecological function' as its ecological health declines, they reportedly recommended.

Like coral across the world, the reef has been severely damaged by the warming of the oceans with up to 95 per cent of areas surveyed in 2016 found to have been bleached.

A scientist examines bleached coral on the Great Barrier Reef near Orpheus Island (AFP)

Bleaching is not always fatal but a study last year found the largest die-off of corals ever recorded with about 67 per cent of shallow water coral found dead in a survey of a 700km stretch.

Now experts on a committee set up by the Australian government to improve the health of the reef have revealed that they believe the lesser target of maintaining its ecological function is more realistic.

In a recent communique, the expert panel said they were united in their concern about the seriousness of the impacts facing the Reef and concluded that coral bleaching since early 2016 has changed the Reef fundamentally.

There is great concern about the future of the Reef, and the communities and businesses that depend on it, but hope still remains for maintaining ecological function over the coming decades, it said.

 Great Barrier Reef at 'terminal stage' after latest coral bleaching data

Members agreed that, in our lifetime and on our watch, substantial areas of the Great Barrier Reef and the surrounding ecosystems are experiencing major long-term damage which may be irreversible unless action is taken now.

The planet has changed in a way that science informs us is unprecedented in human history. While that in itself may be cause for action, the extraordinary rapidity of the change we now observe makes action even more urgent.

It recommended that reducing greenhouse gas emissions must be central to the response.

This needs to be coupled with increased efforts to improve the resilience of the coral and other ecosystems that form the Great Barrier Reef. The focus of efforts should be on managing the Reef to maintain the benefits that the Reef provides, it added.

While the committee's communique did not expressly give up hope that the reef could be saved in its current form, the Guardian reported that two experts on the committee, speaking anonymously, revealed they had recommended introducing the goal of maintaining "ecological function" at a recent meeting.

And the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority explained what that would mean.

The concept of maintaining ecological function refers to the balance of ecological processes necessary for the reef ecosystem as a whole to persist, but perhaps in a different form, noting the composition and structure may differ from what is currently seen today, the authority said.

The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures Show all 9 1 /9 The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures Satelite image of the Great Barrier Reef NASA The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures The Agincourt reefs are a small group of reefs known as ribbons that run parallel to the continental shelf on the very outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef Rex The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures Soft corals in the Great Barrier Reef Rex The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures Air view of the Agincourt Reefs which are a small group of reefs known as ribbons that run parallel to the Continental Shelf on the very outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Port Douglas in north-eastern Queensland, Australia Rex The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures Helicopter cockpit and aerial view of Great Barrier Reef, Cairns, Queensland, Australia Getty Images/iStockphoto The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures Bat fish and Parrot fish in Great Barrier Reef Getty Images/iStockphoto The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures Green Turtle with Diver Underwater in Great Barrier Reef iStockphoto The Great Barrier Reef - In Pictures The great Barrier Reef Getty Images/iStockphoto

Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, who sits on the expert panel, told the newspaper they were trying to manage reefs in a rapidly changing world.

So managing to restore the reefs of the past  the way they were prior to the big insults of the 80s, 90s and 2000s ... maybe we need to be looking at this in a different sense, he said.

What are the key ecological functions? Essentially, what roles do they play that are important to humans?

The expert committee's views could lead to the reef being declared a World Heritage Site "in danger", a finding that the Australian government has resisted.
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged European Union (EU) nations to stick together in the face of emerging policy divisions with the US, Britain's decision to leave the bloc and other challenges.

Speaking at a campaign event held in a Bavarian beer tent, Merkel suggested that the G7 summit in Italy that ended Saturday had served as something of a wake-up call. G7 leaders were unable to reach unanimous agreement on climate change after US President Donald Trump said he needed more time to decide whether to back a key climate accord.

The times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days, Merkel told the crowd of some 2,500 that gathered to hear her and Bavarian governor Horst Seehofer.

And so all I can say is that we Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands, she said, according to the dpa news agency.

Merkel emphasised the need for continued friendly relations with the US and Britain and also stressed the importance of being good neighbours wherever that is possible, including with Russia, but also with others.

But we need to know we must fight for our own future, as Europeans, for our destiny, she said.

Despite the Trump administration's talk of an America first policy and ongoing criticism of Germany for its massive trade surplus, the G7 leaders in Sicily did vow to fight protectionism, reiterating a commitment to keep our markets open.

They also agreed to step up pressure on North Korea, to forge closer cooperation in the fight against terrorism, on the possibility of imposing more sanctions on Russia over role in the conflict in Ukraine.

But while six of the seven G7 nations agreed to stick with their commitment to implement the 2015 Paris Agreement that aims to slow global warming, Trump said he needed more time to decide if the US would abandon the accord.

His administration has argued that US emissions standards are tougher than those set by China, India and others, and therefore have put American businesses at a disadvantage.

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

After the summit, Merkel called the climate talks very difficult, if not to say, very unsatisfactory.

Copyright Associated Press
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel told a crowd Sunday in southern Germany that Europe can no longer rely on foreign partners. According to The Washington Post:

Merkel on Sunday declared a new chapter in US-European relations after contentious meetings with President Trump last week, saying that Europe 'really must take our fate into our own hands.'

Offering a tough review in the wake of Trump's trip to visit EU, Nato and G7 leaders last week, Merkel told a packed Bavarian beer hall rally that the days when Europe could rely on others was 'over to a certain extent. This is what I have experienced in the last few days.'

This is an enormous change in political rhetoric. While the public is more familiar with the special relationship between Britain and the United States, the German-US relationship has arguably been more important. One of the key purposes of Nato was to embed Germany in an international framework that would prevent it from becoming a threat to European peace as it had been in World War I and World War II. In the words of Nato's first secretary general, Nato was supposed to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down. Now, Merkel is suggesting that the Americans aren't really in, and, by extension, Germany and Europe are likely to take on a much more substantial and independent role than they have in the past 70 years.

Merkel's comment about what she has experienced in the past few days is a clear reference to President Donald Trump's disastrous European tour. Her belief that the United States is no longer a reliable partner is a direct result of Trump's words and actions. The keystone of Natois Article 5, which has typically been read as a commitment that in the event that one member of the alliance is attacked, all other members will come to its aid. When Trump visited Nato, he dedicated a plaque to the one time that Article 5 has been invoked - when all members of Nato promised to come to the United States' support after the attack on 11 September 2001. However, Trump did not express his commitment to Article 5 in his speech to NATO, instead lambasting other Nato members for not spending enough money on their militaries. When Trump went on to the Group of Seven meeting in Italy, he declined to recommit to the Paris agreement on climate change, leaving the other six nations to issue a separate statement.

This cements the impression of the United States as an unreliable partner. Trump has ostentatiously refused to express his commitment to an agreement that has been the bulwark of Europe-US security relations over the past three generations. He also has declined to say that the United States will work within the previously agreed framework on global warming. While many authoritarian states are cheered by Trump's election and actions, since he is unlikely to press them on human rights and other sore points, traditional US allies are enormously disheartened.

Merkel's rhetoric is clearly intended to imply that as the transatlantic relationship grows weaker, the European Union will grow stronger. When she links Britain's departure from the European Union with US unreliability, she suggests that now that Britain is gone, it will be possible for the EU to concentrate on getting its own affairs in order, propelled by a stronger relationship between Germany and France. Britain always wanted to keep transatlantic security institutions, such as Nato, strong, which sometimes meant pushing back against giving the EU a new security role. Now that Britain is no longer going to be part of the EU, it will no longer have veto power.

However, Merkel will face her own challenges in building a stronger Europe. Europe faces several internal disagreements. States such as Poland and Hungary agree more with Trump than with Germany on many issues. Southern European countries still resent Germany's support of painful and (for them) damaging austerity policies. If Germany wants to cooperate with France on security, France is likely to look to Germany to make concessions on economic governance and spending. Although Merkel has recently hinted that such concessions might be possible, they will be controversial with other German politicians (including senior members of her party) and perhaps with the German public. Finally, the criticisms offered by Trump (and many US leaders before him) are not entirely wrong - European states spend much less on their militaries than the United States does on its military and have effectively outsourced much of their defence to US armed forces.

Still, it is important to note that Merkel's temperament is the polar opposite of Trump's. She is highly cautious. This speech is not an impulsive move. Instead, Merkel is starting to make the case for a different EU, one that is stronger, more self-reliant and disinclined to look to the United States for leadership. If she wins the upcoming German election decisively and is able to secure enough agreement from other European states to isolate the naysayers, she may set in motion a substantial long-term shift in the EU-US relationship.

Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Show all 33 1 /33 Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump's first 100 days in office were marred by a string of scandals, many of which caught the eye of the Independent's cartoonists Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Trump's first 100 days have seen him aggressively ramp up tensions with his nuclear rivals in North Korea Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Mr Trump has warned of a "major, major conflict" with the pariah nation lead by Kim Jong Un Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Mr Trump dropped the "mother of all bombs" on alleged ISIS-linked militants in Afghanistan, amid an escalation of US military intervention around the globe Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Mr Trump has been accused of falling short of the standards set by his predecessors in the Oval Office, including Franklin D Roosevelt Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons The tycoon's ascension to the White House came at a time when the balance of power is shifting away from Western nations like those in the G7 group Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Western politicians, including the British Conservative party, have been accused of falling in line behind Mr Trump's proposals Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Brexit is seen to have weakened Britain, reducing still further any political will to resist American leadership Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Mr Trump's leadership has been marked by sudden and unexpected shifts in global policy Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Trump's controversial missile strike on Syria, which killed several citizens, was seen by some analysts as an attempt to distract from his policy elsewhere Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons The President has also spent a large majority of his weekends golfing, rather than attending to matters of state Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Though free of gaffes, a visit from Chinese president Xi Jinping spotlighted trade tensions between the two states Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons One major and unexpected setback came when Mr Trump's Healthcare Bill was struck down by members of his own party Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Mr Trump has been a figure of fun in the media, with his approval at record lows Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons A string of revelations about Mr Trump's financial indiscretions did not mar his surge to the White House Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Outgoing President Barack Obama was accused of wiretapping Trump Tower by his successor in America's highest office Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons The alleged involvement of Russian intelligence operatives in securing Mr Trump the presidency prompted harsh criticism Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons The explosive resignation of Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who lied about his links to the Russian ambassador, was just one scandal to hit the President Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Many scandals, such as the accusation Barack Obama was implicated in phone-hacking, first broke on Mr Trump's Twitter feed Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump's election provoked mass protests in the UK, with millions signing a petition to ban him from the country Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump cited a non-existent terror attack in Sweden during a campaign rally Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump stands accused of stoking regional tensions in Eastern Asia Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons North Korea has launched a number of failed nuclear tests since Mr Trump took power Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Theresa May formally rejected the petition calling for Mr Trump to be banned from the UK Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons When Mr Trump's initial so-called Muslim ban was struck down by a federal justice, the President mocked the 69-year-old as a "ridiculous", "so-called judge" Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons A week after his inauguration, Theresa May met with Mr Trump at the White House Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump's first days in office were marked by a hasty attempt to follow through on many of his campaign promises, including the so-called Muslim ban Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump's decision to ban citizens of many majority-Muslim countries from the US sparked mass protests Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Revelations about Donald Trump's sexual improprieties were not enough to keep him from being elected President Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons British PM Theresa May was criticised by many in the press for cosying up to the new President Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons One of Mr Trump's top aides, Kelly Anne Conway, was mocked for describing mistruths as "alternative facts" Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons British PM Theresa May was quick to demonstrate that her political aims did not hugely differ from Mr Trump's Donald Trump's first 100 days: in cartoons Donald Trump's inauguration, on 20 January 2017, sparked protests both at home and abroad

People have not yet seriously begun to think through the consequences of Trump's election for global politics. In some parts of the world, it is creating great opportunities. States whose interests clash with the United States may now have opportunities to win gains while the United States, the global hegemony, is distracted with its internal crises. In other parts of the world, allies are likely to recalibrate their behaviour, and in particular their dependence on the United States. They will not want their security to entirely rely on a country that can elect a president as erratic as Trump is and hence will start to hedge their bets. If the current US administration has decided that it no longer needs to rely on allies as much as in the past, those allies are deciding that they cannot rely on the US anymore and are starting to forge their own arrangements, which will diminish the US ability to influence their actions and decisions.

Copyright The Washington Post
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Emmanuel Macron has compared Donald Trump to Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, saying they all see international relationships as a balance of power.

The newly installed French president compared Mr Trump to the increasingly autocratic leaders when commenting on pictures of a tense handshake between them at the Nato summit in Brussels last week.

Mr Macron said the tense handshake, which last several seconds with both men's knuckles looking white before Mr Trump was forced to pull away first, was "not innocent" and was designed to show he was not a pushover.

He told French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche: Donald Trump, the Turkish president or the Russian president see relationships in terms of a balance of power.

That doesnt bother me. I dont believe in diplomacy by public abuse, but in my bilateral dialogues I wont let anything pass.

He said that a leader must show that they will not "make small concessions, even symbolic ones" or over publicise their achievements.

Numerous reports have emerged of Mr Trump behaving like a "drunk tourist" during his first foreign trip abroad.

In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour Show all 39 1 /39 In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud arriving for a reception ahead of a banquet at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump, and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud being welcomed at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump with King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud during a welcome ceremony with traditional sword dancers at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with US President Donald J. Trump and wife Melania during a welcome ceremony at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump adjusts the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal, after it was bestowed upon him by Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud presents U.S. President Donald Trump with the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 Palestinians print posters depicting US President Donald Trump in preparations for his planned visit, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband White House senior advisor Jared Kushner, before delivering his remarks to the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump looks on as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef exchange a memorandum of understanding Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump shares a laugh with a child during a visit to the American International School in the Saudi capital Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers rest during preparations ahead of President Trump's landing in Tel Aviv, Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump makes her way to board Air Force One in Riyadh as she heads with her husband the US President to Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One for Israel, the next stop in Trump's international tour, at King Khalid International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers wait for the arrival ceremony of US President Donald Trump at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, Israel AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive aboard Air Force One at Ben Gurion International Airport in Lod near Tel Aviv, Israel Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump disembark Air Force One on arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump and his wife, US First Lady Melania Trump are welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, in Lod outside Tel Aviv, Israel EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sit during welcome ceremony in Tel Aviv AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump chats wife Sara Netanyahu as US President Donald Trump chats to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a welcoming ceremony to welcome Trump at Ben Gurion International Airport Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump delivers a speech upon his arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump gestures during a press conference with Israel's President at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump watches as First Lady Melania Trump signs the guest book at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump walks with first lady Melania Trump in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, in Jerusalems Old City Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump stands next to Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz at the plaza in front of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and White House senior advisor Jared Kushner leave notes at the Western Wall in Jerusalem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Ivanka Trump, assistant and daughter of US President Donald J. Trump, touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump arrives in a vehicle to Saint Damaso's Court for a private audience with Pope Francis in Vatican City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis walks past Ivanka Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on the occasion of the private audience with President Donald Trump, at the Vatican AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis exchanges gifts with US President Donald Trump during a private audience at the Vatican Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis meets US President Donald Trump and his wife Melania during a private audience at the Vatican Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis with US President Donald J. Trump EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis gets into is car after meeting with US President Donald Trump AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 President Donald Trump and his wife Melania look at the frescoed ceilings during their visit to the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican L'Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump security vehicles are seen in front of Air Force One before take off from Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump wave to reporters before boarding the Air Force One to Brussels, at the end of a 2-day visit to Italy including a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican, at Rome's Fiumicino international airport AP

An anonymous US State Department official blasted the "arrogance" of Mr Trump during the trip, which included trips to Saudi Arabia, Israel, the Vatican and Brussels before he arrived in Sicily for the G7 summit, and his "loud and tacky" way of approaching diplomacy was "ineffectual".

On the first day of the Nato summit, Mr Trump was captured on film appearing to forcibly shove the Prime Minister of Montenegro, Dusko Markovic, out of his way so he can appear at the front of the group photo.

He later denounced his fellow Nato leaders for not spending more on defence to their faces in a speech where he said they were not being "fair" to the US.

The Republican also refused to commit to Article 5 of the Nato treaty  which means a member state will come to the aid of another if they are attacked.

Following the summit, German Chancellor Angela Merkel took the unusual step of saying publicly that after what she had "experienced in the last few days", she had concluded Europe could no longer rely on the US to help them.

Despite this Mr Trump himself insisted the trip was a success, tweeting: Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!

The distancing of Europe from the US will be interpreted as good news in Moscow as Russia has previously rallied against Nato which has restrained its attempts to make further inroads into Eastern Europe.
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Germany should reconsider sharing intelligence with the United States, because Donald Trump and his administration "chatter too much" and could give critical information to Russia, a German MP has warned.

Thomas Opperman, the leader of the Social Democrats (SDP), described Mr Trump's handling of classified information a "security risk for the West".

It comes after Angela Merkel suggested Germany and Europe can no longer rely on the US under Mr Trump.

Speaking at a campaign event held in a Bavarian beer tent, the German Chancellor emphasised the need for friendly relations with the US, Britain and Russia, but added: We Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands.

Ms Merkel said that as the traditional western alliance is threatened by the new US presidency and Brexit, the times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over".

Mr Opperman, whose party is in a coalition with Ms Merkel's in the German parliament, said the intelligence services must be clever about sharing information with the US.

 Angela Merkel: 'We Europeans must take our destiny into our own hands'

He told several German newspapers: I have an impression that Donald Trump and his team chatter too much."

He added: It should be taken into account that Trump is a president who, one should assume, passes critical information to Russian representatives.

This is a dangerous situation. It cannot continue as it is. This endangers the information exchange and can be dangerous for both sides."

In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour Show all 39 1 /39 In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud arriving for a reception ahead of a banquet at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump, and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud being welcomed at Murabba Palace in Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump with King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud during a welcome ceremony with traditional sword dancers at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with US President Donald J. Trump and wife Melania during a welcome ceremony at Murabba Palace, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 US President Donald Trump adjusts the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal, after it was bestowed upon him by Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 20 May 2017 Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud presents U.S. President Donald Trump with the Collar of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 Palestinians print posters depicting US President Donald Trump in preparations for his planned visit, in the West Bank town of Bethlehem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump accompanied by first lady Melania Trump, his daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband White House senior advisor Jared Kushner, before delivering his remarks to the Arab Islamic American Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump looks on as U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef exchange a memorandum of understanding Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump shares a laugh with a child during a visit to the American International School in the Saudi capital Riyadh Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 21 May 2017 US President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers rest during preparations ahead of President Trump's landing in Tel Aviv, Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 First Lady Melania Trump makes her way to board Air Force One in Riyadh as she heads with her husband the US President to Israel Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump board Air Force One for Israel, the next stop in Trump's international tour, at King Khalid International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Israeli soldiers wait for the arrival ceremony of US President Donald Trump at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, Israel AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive aboard Air Force One at Ben Gurion International Airport in Lod near Tel Aviv, Israel Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump disembark Air Force One on arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump and his wife, US First Lady Melania Trump are welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon arrival at Ben Gurion Airport, in Lod outside Tel Aviv, Israel EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sit during welcome ceremony in Tel Aviv AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump chats wife Sara Netanyahu as US President Donald Trump chats to Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a welcoming ceremony to welcome Trump at Ben Gurion International Airport Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump delivers a speech upon his arrival at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump gestures during a press conference with Israel's President at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump watches as First Lady Melania Trump signs the guest book at the President's Residence in Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump walks with first lady Melania Trump in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews can pray, in Jerusalems Old City Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US President Donald Trump stands next to Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz at the plaza in front of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and White House senior advisor Jared Kushner leave notes at the Western Wall in Jerusalem Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 US First Lady Melania Trump touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 Ivanka Trump, assistant and daughter of US President Donald J. Trump, touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 22 May 2017 President Donald Trump visits the Western Wall AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald J. Trump arrives in a vehicle to Saint Damaso's Court for a private audience with Pope Francis in Vatican City EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis walks past Ivanka Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on the occasion of the private audience with President Donald Trump, at the Vatican AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis exchanges gifts with US President Donald Trump during a private audience at the Vatican Getty Images In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis meets US President Donald Trump and his wife Melania during a private audience at the Vatican Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis with US President Donald J. Trump EPA In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 Pope Francis gets into is car after meeting with US President Donald Trump AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 President Donald Trump and his wife Melania look at the frescoed ceilings during their visit to the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican L'Osservatore Romano/Pool Photo via AP In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump security vehicles are seen in front of Air Force One before take off from Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome, Italy Reuters In pictures: President Donald Trump on tour 24 May 2017 US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump wave to reporters before boarding the Air Force One to Brussels, at the end of a 2-day visit to Italy including a meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican, at Rome's Fiumicino international airport AP

It comes after Mr Trump was accused of leaking highly classified information about Isis during his meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov.

The Russian President, Vladimir Putin, dismissed the scandal as "political schizophrenia".

Mr Trump went on to insist he has the "absolute right" to share "facts pertaining to terrorism and airline flight safety" with Russia.

It led a senior German politician to call the President "a security risk to the Western world".

Burkhard Lischka, who sits on the Bundestags intelligence oversight committee, said: If it proves to be true that the American president passed on internal intelligence matters that would be highly worrying."

Donald Trump talks to Angela Merkel during the G7; differences emerged from the meeting in Sicily when the US President refused to commit to the Paris climate agreement (AFP)

A spokesman for Ms Merkel said she was right to confront Mr Trump over the need to tackle climate change.

Steffen Seibert said the German Chancellor remained committed to strong trans-Atlantic relations, but her suggestion after meetings with Mr Trump that Europe can no longer entirely rely on the US speaks for itself.

[US-German relations] are a strong pillar of our foreign and security policy, and Germany will continue working to strengthen these relations.

Precisely because they are so important, it's right to name differences honestly.
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One in three refugees in camps on the Greek island of Chios has witnessed a suicide there, an alarming report has revealed.

Research seen exclusively by The Independent shows 39 per cent of displaced people living on Chios  of whom there are an estimated 3,782  have witnessed a death on the island, with 87 per cent of these saying it had occurred due to self-harm or suicide.

One refugee said he saw someone set himself on fire, telling researchers: I saw one person setting himself on fire, and maybe Ill be the next one. I feel so bad and depressed.

The report by the Refugee Rights Data Project (RRDP), based on 300 interviews with refugees on Chios, found that seven in ten (71 per cent) respondents had experienced mental health problems since arriving, and that less than a third of them (29 per cent) had been able to access medical care.

The figure was even higher for women, who made up 12 per cent of those interviewed, with 94 per cent of them having experience mental health problems since arriving and less than a third (30 per cent) having been able to access support.

The findings are of particular concern following reports that thousands of refugees in Greece are at risk of losing vital support as charities prepare to withdraw services from the countrys hotspot islands, such as Chios, as changes to EU funding are set to leave them out of contract by the end of July.

While NGOs on Greek islands have until now received millions of euros from the European Commissions humanitarian division (Echo) to provide services to refugees, the changes will see the allocation of funding, as well as the selection of projects to be funded, become the sole responsibility of the Greek authorities.

Charities on the island have now warned that in the light of the new findings, withdrawals of services will have a detrimental and inhumane effect on peoples lives, and urged that health, safety and human rights of the displaced people arriving must now be the highest priority.

As well as concerns over the lack of mental health care to support the large number of refugees with psychological problems, the report revealed issues surrounding safety on the island.

Eighty-five per cent of refugees said they never feel safe or dont feel safe on Chios, while only three per cent saying they feel perfectly safe. Nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of respondents said they had experienced police violence, and many told researchers the police treated refugees like animals.

A similar proportion (22 per cent) said they had experienced violence by Greek citizens on Chios, often from anti-immigrant groups staging demos on the island, which have been known to escalate into violence against refugees.

Thirty-seven per cent meanwhile said they had experienced violence by other refugees  often described as the result of exhaustion and tensions in overcrowded camps, combined with an absence of adequate security measures in and around the camps.

Half of the children interviewed were unaccompanied, with nearly three quarters (73 per cent) saying they didnt feel safe in the camp and more than a quarter (29 per cent) saying they had witnessed someone dying on the island, according to the report.

More than a third of the under-18s interviewed were recorded as having experienced mental health problems, but just 18 per cent had received medical care, and only 17 per cent had been offered access to advice about their rights and possibilities to change their situation. Nearly three quarters (73 per cent) said they had family somewhere in Europe.

The UNHCR estimated that there were 3,782 refugees on the island at the time of the study. Of these, 42 per cent were from Syria, 12 per cent from Iraq, nine per cent from Afghanistan and the remaining from a number of other countries including Iran, Palestine, Pakistan and Yemen, according to the report.

The RRDP interviewed approximately 10 per cent of the refugee population on Chios. Of the respondents, 88 per cent were male and 12 per cent female, and the average age was 27, with 10 per cent being children aged 17 of under, including some female minors.

The average time respondents had spent on Chios was three months, with seven per cent having been there for a year or longer, and only a third of respondents residing on the island with family members. Seven in 10 of respondents told researchers they had family elsewhere in Europe.

Recommended Charity service withdrawal threatens thousands of refugees in Greece

The majority of refugees interviewed said there was a severe lack of access to information, with 86 per cent saying they had no access to information about their legal rights and opportunities to change their situation, while 78 per cent said they couldnt access information about European asylum law and immigration rules.

Almost half (41 per cent) of refugees questioned had not yet been able to submit their asylum application at the time of the study, while five per cent of them had had their application rejected and were awaiting deportation.

Almost all (95 per cent) of respondents said they were unable to go back to their home country due to fears of war, persecution or other. When asked about how they felt about being in Europe currently, seven in 10 said they felt very bad or bad.

Commenting on the findings, Johanna Puhakka, RRDP research coordinator, said it was evidence that the island of Chios is "at breaking point", and urged that the proposals for NGOs to withdraw from providing services was "misguided" and required "urgent" reconsideration.

Our research indicates that Chios is currently at breaking point. This small island is overcrowded, and the organisations and agencies operating there are clearly struggling to provide some of the most basic services required," said Ms Puhakka.

The decision of humanitarian organisations to withdraw from the island in June therefore appears critically misguided and needs to be urgently reconsidered.

Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Show all 13 1 /13 Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Volunteers walk a group of refugee children towards their school on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Refugee children pose at a makeshift camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A Syrian Kurd mother combs Roza's hair, as she prepares to go to a volunteer-run school in a refugee camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Refugee children attend an English language class at the volunteer run school on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Refugee children carry vegetables in a refugee camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A newly arrived Syrian refugee, 13, holds her sister, 2, in a makeshift camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Refugee children pretend they go to school as they play in a refugee camp in the island AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A Greek girl walks past a graffiti on her way to a school on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A Malian refugee child poses from behind a fence in a makeshift camp AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A Syrian Kurd mother combs Roza's hair, as she prepares to go to a volunteer-run school in a refugee camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A Syrian family from Aleppo newly arrived to Greece sits in a makeshift camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A child carries a broken blackgammon game in a makeshift camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees Inside the classroom with Chios's child refugees A child holds onto her mother, Djeneba from Mali, before attending school in a refugee camp on the island of Chios AFP/Getty

Sarah Story, co-founder of charity Refugee Info Bus, echoed the urgency of the situation, saying: The health, safety and human rights of the displaced people arriving on Chios must be our highest priority right now.

Increased resources and services need to be allocated  not reduced. Any further withdrawals of services will have a detrimental and inhumane effect on peoples lives on Chios, given that this island is indeed, at breaking point.

She added: "If new services are not introduced, then transfers from Chios to mainland Greece must be accelerated. Moving families and vulnerable people off the island must be urgently prioritised."
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Vladimir Putin and Emmanuel Macron appeared awkward as they shook hands and posed for photos in the Palace of Versailles in France.

All eyes were on the French and Russian Presidents body language as they came face to face for the first time against a backdrop of increasingly fraught trans-Atlantic relations.

Speculation over tension between the pair has been heightened by the newly elected French leaders now infamous white knuckle handshake with Donald Trump at the Nato conference last week, with Mr Macron later saying the showdown was not innocent and was, in fact, a moment of truth.

Although Mr Macron and Mr Putin initially engaged in a cordial but somewhat perfunctory handshake and exchanged smiles after Mr Putin stepped out onto the red carpet from his limousine, they looked stern and serious as they walked into Versailles.

Once inside the opulent palace just outside of Paris, the world leaders appeared somewhat awkward and uncomfortable as they shook hands and held the pose for the cameras. Sitting side by side on gilted seats, they both struggled to get comfortable, with Mr Putin seemingly looking less than impressed.

The pairs hour-long meeting, which has not been attended by any aides and only translators, is expected to be an awkward one. There are a number of potential flashpoints that could be intensified by recent friction between Europe and the US and mounting foreign policy difficulties facing European leaders.

Recommended Emmanuel Macron speaks out about that handshake with Donald Trump

At the G7 summit in Sicily at the weekend, Mr Macron said: "It is essential to talk to Russia because there are a number of international issues that will not be resolved without a tough dialogue with them."

Not only has France taken a tough stance against Moscow over Russias intervention in Ukraine, Mr Putin appeared to support the French Presidents nationalist, populist rival Marine Le Pen during the presidential campaign. He hosted Ms Le Pen in Russia just a month before the election's first round.

Whats more, during the campaign, Mr Macrons digital campaign manager argued the then candidate was being targeted by Russia in a simultaneous campaign of both hacking and fake news.

Mr Macron is hosting the Russian leader at the Palace of Versailles to mark 300 years of Franco-Russian diplomacy that started under Russian Czar Peter the Great. A press conference will be held directly after the meeting but only four questions will be taken.
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Pentagon chief James Mattis has said that the US is accelerating the tempo of the fight against Isis, and that civilian deaths should be anticipated as a fact of life.

While US forces operating in Syria and Iraq do do everything humanly possible to prevent the loss of innocent life, Civilian casualties are a fact of life in this sort of situation, General Mattis told CBS Face the Nation on Sunday.

The battle has already shifted from attrition to annihilation tactics, he said, designed to prevent foreigners who joined the so-called caliphate from returning home.

 Children of Mosul describe life under Islamic State

The interview comes after new figures from war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights found that the last four-week period was the deadliest for Syrian civilians on record since the US-led coalition bombing campaign began in 2014.

A total of 225 civilians, including 36 women and 44 children, were killed in the period between 23 April to 23 May, the UK-based Observatory said.

The Western coalition strikes are conducted without the consent of the Syrian government, with which the US does not have official diplomatic ties, and have long been criticised by Damascus and Syrias allies in Moscow and Tehran for causing unnecessary loss of life.

In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Show all 30 1 /30 In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian family arrives at a checkpoint, manned by pro-government forces, at the al-Hawoz street roundabout, after leaving Aleppo's eastern neighbourhoods Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian woman, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, reacts as she stands with her children in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood, after regime troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian pro-regime fighters, gesture as they drive past resident fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian rebels withdrew from six more neighbourhoods in their one-time bastion of east Aleppo in the face of advancing government troops, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian rebels withdrew from six more neighbourhoods in their one-time bastion of east Aleppo in the face of advancing government troops, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian residents, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, arrive in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood , after regime troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian pro-regime fighters, gesture as they drive past residents fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian residents, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, arrive in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood, after regime troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian residents, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, arrive in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian pro-regime fighter speaks with a child, as residents flee violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood. Syrian rebels withdrew from six more neighbourhoods in their one-time bastion of east Aleppo in the face of advancing government troops AFP/Getty Images In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Smoke rises as seen from a governement-held area of Aleppo, Syria Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian soldiers targeting rebels-held areas in the eastern neighborhoods in Aleppo, Syria. According to media reports, the army is now holding on 99 percent of Aleppois eastern neighborhoods EPA In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian pro-government forces patrol Aleppo's eastern al-Salihin neighbourhood after troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian soldiers rest following the battle at al-Sheik Saeed neighborhood in Aleppo, Syria EPA In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian pro-government fighter walking past closed shops in the Bab al-Nasr district of Aleppo's Old City. Once renowned for its bustling souks, grand citadel and historic gates, Aleppo's Old City has been rendered virtually unrecognisable by some of the worst violence of Syria's war Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria The crucial battle for Aleppo entered its 'final phase' after Syrian rebels retreated into a small pocket of their former bastion in the face of new army advances. The retreat leaves opposition fighters confined to just a handful of neighbourhoods in southeast Aleppo, the largest of them Sukkari and Mashhad Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian civilans arrive at a checkpoint, manned by pro-government forces, at the al-Hawoz street roundabout, after leaving Aleppo's eastern neighbourhoods. Syria's government has retaken at least 85 percent of east Aleppo, which fell to rebels in 2012, since beginning its operation Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian civilians flee the Sukkari neighbourhood towards safer rebel-held areas in southeastern Aleppo Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrians celebrate in the government-held Mogambo neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, after rebel fighters retreated into a small pocket of their former bastion in the face of new army advances Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrians celebrate in the government-held Mogambo neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, after rebel fighters retreated into a small pocket of their former bastion in the face of new army advances. The fall of Aleppo would be the worst rebel defeat since Syria's conflict began in 2011, and leave the government in control of the country's five major cities Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian refugee Aliya inside the tent where she lives with her husband and ten children in a camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian refugee women and children outside the entrance to their tents in the refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA Wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA Wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee woman outside the entrance to the tent where her family live, in the refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A vehicle drives past a mosque at night in Idlib, Syria. Picture taken with a long exposure Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Damaged buildings stand in the rebel-controlled town of Binnish in Idlib province, Syria Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria The night sky is seen through damaged windows in the rebel-controlled town of Binnish in Idlib province, Syria Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Damaged buildings stand in the rebel-controlled area of Maaret al-Numan in Idlib province, Syria Reuters

However, since US President Donald Trump entered office in January this year there has been a marked uptick in civilian deaths in bombing operations against Isis across both Syria and neighbouring Iraq.

Mr Mattis said on Sunday that Mr Trump had given the Pentagon greater executive control over military operations against Isis, as per his election trail promises to focus his foreign policy on eliminating the group.

Probably the most important thing we're doing now is we're accelerating this fight, he said. We're accelerating the tempo of it....

 Theresa May refuses three times to say if she would join US in a strike against Syria

We are going to squash the enemy's ability to give some indication that they're - that they have invulnerability, that they can exist, that they can send people off to Istanbul, to Belgium, to Great Britain and kill people with impunity, General Mattis added.

In March, the US was accused of killing around 300 civilians alone after one strike which hit a mosque in Aleppo province and two incidents in the fight for Isis-controlled neighbourhoods of the Iraqi city of Mosul.

Last week the US admitted at least 105 Iraqi civilians were killed in one of the Mosul strikes. Investigations into all three incidents are still underway.

An official US military estimate from earlier this month found that 352 civilians in total have been unintentionally killed since the campaign began - but rights groups have severely criticised the estimate as too low, accusing the US of not taking sufficient precautions to avoid civilian deaths.

Isis now holds onto just a fraction of the territory that was under its control at the height of the groups powers in 2014.

Twin US-backed campaigns to oust fighters from their last urban strongholds - Raqqa in Syria and Mosul in Iraq - are underway, led by local forces on the ground and assisted by US military advisors and aerial campaigns.

The complex Syrian civil war has killed almost 500,000 people, the UN says, and is now in its seventh year.
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An Israeli television channel has claimed that US President Donald Trump shouted at Palestinian Authority (PA) Leader Mahmoud Abbas in talks held during Mr Trumps visit to the West Bank last week.

You tricked me in [Washington] DC! You talked there about your commitment to peace, but the Israelis showed me your involvement in incitement [against Israel], Mr Trump is alleged to have shouted at the Palestinian leader, an outburst that was followed by several minutes of shocked silence, said Israels Channel 2, citing an unnamed American official.

The alleged quotes were reported in Hebrew, and then tweeted by reporter Udi Segal in English.

 Trump: Israelis and Palestinians are 'reaching for peace'

The PA has denied the report, saying that the 23 May meeting went well.

The Channel 2 report certainly does not match up with the warm words exchanged between the two leaders during a televised media conference after the private meeting in Bethlehem.

Meeting you in the White House earlier this month given us hope and optimism of the possibility to make the long-standing dream of lasting peace come true, Mr Abbas said, emphasising the Palestinian leaderships desire for a two-state solution.

Mr Trump and Mr Abbas met in person for the first time at the White House on 3 May, when the US president boldly stated his desire to do whatever is necessary to achieve a lasting peace deal in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict despite the failure of several previous US administrations.

Israel: From independence to intifada Show all 7 1 /7 Israel: From independence to intifada Israel: From independence to intifada 26973.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26974.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26975.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26976.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26977.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26985.bin Robert Capa/Magnum Israel: From independence to intifada 26986.bin Robert Capa/Magnum

In the meeting earlier this month Mr Trumps administration called on the PA to do more to tackle violence against Israelis and end payments to the families of those killed or imprisoned by Israel.

The day before the alleged argument Mr Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuvin Rivlin in Jerusalem.

Speaking at Israels National Museum just before he left the region, Mr Trump said:

I had a meeting this morning with [President] Abbas and can tell you that the Palestinians are ready to reach for peace, before turning to gesture towards Mr Netanyahu, seated behind him.

In my meeting with my very good friend Benjamin, I can tell you also, that he is reaching for peace. He wants peace, the US President said.

Mr Trump warned, however, that such a historic undertaking will not be easy.

Israeli minister attmpets seflie with Trump to Netanyahu's dismay

The presidents visit to Israel and the West Bank was part of his inaugural trip abroad as president, a whistle-stop tour taking in meetings with world leaders in Riyadh, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Rome, Brussels and Sicily.

Mr Trump used a speech in the Saudi Arabian capital to impress upon representatives from Muslim countries that they and Israel faced a common enemy in the form of Islamic terrorism and the possible threat of Iran.
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A Palestinian judge has banned divorces during the month of Ramadan as people may make hasty decisions because they have not eaten and not smoked.

Mahmoud al-Habbash, head of the Palestinian Islamic sharia court system, said people who deprive themselves of food and cigarettes during daylight hours may create problems in their relationship and then make quick and ill-considered decisions.

To avoid such decisions, judges will only consider and rule on divorce applications made after the month of fasting is over, Al Jazeera reports.

He said his order was based on the experience of previous years.

 Ramadan 2017: All you need to know

In the Occupied Palestinian Territories, but also in Israel and Lebanon, only religious courts have the power to allow marriages and divorces.

More than 50,000 weddings were celebrated in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip in 2015, but over 8,000 divorces were also registered, according to the Palestinian Authority.

Millions of Muslims across the globe are fasting for Ramadan, one of the five pillars of Islam.

During the month, many Muslims will fast from sunrise to sunset, forgoing food and water, smoking and sex during daylight.

The end of Ramadan will be marked by the Eid al-Fitr festival, a celebration that can last up to three days each year.
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For all the talk about Brexit, Donald Trump and a global populist insurgency, the most successful democratic politician of the West so far in the 21st century is a pragmatic, unshowy figure from the Europhile centre right. Angela Merkel, so far as can be judged, is cruising towards a fourth consecutive term as Chancellor, having made the historic decision to permit one million Syrian refugees to come to Germany. She is a reminder for anyone who cares to look that politics can be mature.

So Ms Merkel carries considerable weight and, when she warns Europe that it will need to look increasingly to its own structures and resources to secure its future prosperity and security, she will be heeded.

Increasingly outspoken, with Germany gradually learning to assert itself, she has spoken almost despairingly of no longer being able to rely on the UK and the US in the manner it has been used to since 1945. She is right, too: President Trump may be less disparaging about Nato than he was on the campaign trail, but he remains equivocal; his relationship with Russia still uncertain. On climate change, the US President seems to take some malicious pleasure in making friends and allies wait for his final verdict, as if he were some judge on a reality television show pausing for dramatic effect before announcing a winner. Overall, Mr Trump is living down to expectations. No wonder the German Chancellor is not prepared to accept his clowning around.

 Angela Merkel: 'We Europeans must take our destiny into our own hands'

Ms Merkel is also right to point to Britain's growing isolation, if not alienation, from Europe. Whoever wins on 8 June, the UK will be led by a more or less Eurosceptic prime minister, committed to whatever Brexit deal can be rescued from the current wreckage.

If it is Theresa May, as is apparent from her Article 50 letter, she will be prepared to sacrifice UK security interests in the name of Brexit. She is also apparently willing to use the future of EU citizens living and working here as negotiating cards. And she will impose limits on the free movement of goods, services and people as the inevitable result of exiting the single market and the EU customs union.

Events such as the G7 conference bring into sharper focus what a lonely existence the British will soon have: a stumbling economy, failing public services, depressed living standards will be joined by a smaller role and voice in the world.

There is little sign that the global influence we now exert via the collective clout of the EU will be replaced by closer relations with the US, let alone China, Russia or India.

How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Show all 8 1 /8 How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Weetabix Chief executive of Weetabix Giles Turrell has warned that the price of one of the nations favourite breakfast are likely to go up this year by low-single digits in percentage terms. Reuters How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Nescafe The cost of a 100g jar of Nescafe Original at Sainsburys has gone up 40p from 2.75 to 3.15  a 14 per cent risesince the Brexit vote. PA How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Freddo When contacted by The Independent this month, a Mondelez spokesperson declined to discuss specific brands but confirmed that there would be "selective" price increases across its range despite the American multi-national confectionery giant reporting profits of $548m (450m) in its last three-month financial period. Mondelez, which bought Cadbury in 2010, said rising commodity costs combined with the slump in the value of the pound had made its products more expensive to make. Cadbury How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Mr Kipling cakes Premier Foods, the maker of Mr Kipling and Bisto gravy, said that it was considering price rises on a case-by-case basis Reuters How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Walkers Crisps Walkers, owned by US giant PepsiCo, said "the weakened value of the pound" is affecting the import cost of some of its materials. A Walkers spokesman told the Press Association that a 32g standard bag was set to increase from 50p to 55p, and the larger grab bag from 75p to 80p. Getty How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Marmite Tesco removed Marmite and other Unilever household brand from its website last October, after the manufacturer tried to raise its prices by about 10 per cent owing to sterlings slump. Tesco and Unilever resolved their argument, but the price of Marmite has increased in UK supermarkets with the grocer reporting a 250g jar of Marmite will now cost Morrisons customers 2.64 - an increase of 12.5 per cent. Rex How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Toblerone Toblerone came under fire in November after it increased the space between the distinctive triangles of its bars. Mondelez International, the company which makes the product, said the change was made due to price rises in recent months. Pixabay How Brexit affected Britain's favourite foods from Weetabix to Marmite Maltesers Maltesers, billed as the lighter way to enjoy chocolate, have also shrunk in size. Mars, which owns the brand, has reduced its pouch weight by 15 per cent. Mars said rising costs mean it had to make the unenviable decision between increasing its prices or reducing the weight of its Malteser packs. iStockphoto

Some obvious vital interests will be more vulnerable, such as the status of Gibraltar and the Falklands. Much more important, if Nato does start a gradual decline in power and relevance under President Trump, and some form of EU defence capability emerges to replace it  long an ambition of European federalists  then the UK will be left to assemble its own defences without the collective security offered by Nato or the EU. With a nuclear deterrent which has proved irrelevant in every conflict since the Second World War, and which is in any case highly dependent on America, Britain has only its much denuded conventional armed forces and intelligence services to see off threats at home and abroad. They are highly professional, brave and among the best in the world, but they are no substitute for the leading role Britain used to play in the EU and Nato.

Angela Merkel is right in her implication that a lonelier future lies ahead for Britain.
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Your editorial on 27 May would seem to be playing into the belief that we must all be treated like children at the present time, unable to cope with valid points (political or otherwise) made about our countrys involvement in foreign conflicts resulting in the kind of poisonous atmosphere in which zealots can be recruited and used for murderous ends.

The people who are grief stricken are the bereaved relatives and friends of the poor people who were killed in the Manchester atrocity. The citizens of Manchester are extremely shocked at this terrible event in their midst; the rest of us are appalled. While staunch solidarity with one another is highly commendable, scenes of mass public emotion might actually encourage the terrorists, making them feel very powerful. They obviously want to cause anguish and, in their religious fanaticism, believe people outside their own mindset are worthless, so in their warped view do not merit any compassion.

As a country we would be advised to show grit and level headedness in the face of the seams of fanaticism that lure young men into such feverish thoughts that mass murder and simultaneous self destruction become not only acceptable but desirable. If more police officers getting to know locals and picking up vital information is a route to greater protection for the public, I want to know about it. And if a political party has undermined this through austerity measure, I want to know that too.

Penny Little

Great Haseley, Oxfordshire

Theresa May, then the Home Secretary, addressed the Police Federation Annual Conference 2016 in Bournemouth and said, We must never underestimate how the poison of decades-old misdeeds seeps down through the years and is just as toxic today as it was then. Thats why difficult truths, however unpalatable they may be, must be confronted head on... So we must not let the lessons of Hillsborough and other past injustices go unheeded, and we must not be afraid to face up to the challenges of today.

Wasn't the invasion of Iraq another past injustice, which, to their credit, Jeremy Corbyn and Labour Party members have faced up to and confronted head on, however unheeded and unpalatable this difficult truth is to her and some members of the Tory party?

Geoff Naylor

Winchester

Please do not overlook the extraordinary statement from Amber Rudd that she has not changed her view on securing the safety of the nation. Does she really expect us to support a Home Secretary that doesn't acknowledge that security situations are constantly changing and demand changing approaches and updated insights? Such hubris in a Home Secretary is extremely dangerous.

Robin Bradbury

Llangollen

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. Stormont and the political situation in Northern Ireland has been in limbo following the collapse of the power sharing executive due to the Renewable Heat Incentive scheme scandal which implicated the DUP Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Priti Patel, International Development Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Larry the Downing Street cat runs ahead of Michael Fallon Britain's Secretary of State for Defence as he arrives for a cabinet meeting at Downing Street in London, Britain, June 12, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth REUTERS UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Michael Gove, Environment Secretary leaves 10 Downing Street on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 Scottish National Party Leader Nicola Sturgeon (C) leaves after speaking to the media in Parliament Square. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A policer officer enters a polling station in London AP UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A woman leaves after casting her vote at the Hove Museum and Art Gallery near Brighton, in southern England Getty UK General Election 2017 8 June 2017 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 A woman walks past a general election display in the window of a betting shop in Camden on June 7, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow, Getty Images UK General Election 2017 7 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May visits Atherley Bowling Club during an election campaign visit on June 7, 2017 in Southampton, England. Britain goes to the polls tomorrow June 8 to vote in a general election. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A supporter wears a pair of Jeremy Corbyn decorated tights at a general election campaign event in Birmingham, central England, on June 6, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another deadly terror attack in the nation's captial. AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 A picture taken in London, shows election leaflets from various parties displayed ahead of the United Kingdom's general elections. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital Getty Images UK General Election 2017 5 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a general election campaign visit to a removals depot in Edinburgh AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Pro-Independence supporters hold a march through Glasgow AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn campaigns for the upcoming general election in Beeston, Nottinghamshire AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 3 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reacts to supporters after a rally at Beeston Youth and Community Centre as he visits the East Midlands during the final weekend of the General Election campaign on June 3, 2017 in Nottingham, England. If elected in next week's general election Mr Corbyn is pledging to create a million new jobs and to scrap zero-hours contracts Getty Images UK General Election 2017 1 June 2017 Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson joins a selection of Scottish Conservative election candidates and activists during campaigning on May 1, 2017 in South Queensferry, Scotland. With only seven days to go until the general election on June 8th, polls are showing the SNP out in front and the Conservatives set to close in on Labour. Getty Images UK General Election 2017 29 May 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May canvasses in Richmond with Conservative candidate Zac Goldsmith on May 29, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. After suffering defeat in the London Mayoral election Zac Goldsmith resigned over the Government's position on Heathrow expansion. He stood as an Independent but lost in a by-election to the Liberal Democrats. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron poses for a selfie taken by carer April Preston during a General Election campaign visit to the Barlow Medical Centre, in Didsbury, Manchester Yui Mok/PA UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May speaks at an election campaign event in Wrexham, Wales Reuters UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and Labour's former deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, exit the party's general election campaign 'battle' bus as they arrive at an event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walks with supporters between venues, before speaking again at another general election campaign event in Kingston upon Hull, northern England Getty Images UK General Election 2017 22 May 2017 An anti-fox hunting protester is taken away and arrested by police outside the venue where Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May was due to launch the Welsh Conservative general election manifesto at Gresford Memorial Hall in the village of Gresford, near Wrexham, North Wales, on May 22, 2017. Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to elect a new parliament in a general election AFP/Getty Images

Who is responsible for the invisible Tim Farron?

You refer to a survey which found that half the electorate dont know who Tim Farron is. Do you think this has anything to do with the ongoing refusal of the broadcast media to refer to anything to do with the Liberal Democrats, let alone Tim Farron? Do you think it has anything to do with the print media  with the honourable exception of The Independent  refusing to print anything to do with the Liberal Democrats?

I have been a member of this party and its predecessors for more than 50 years. I can never remember a time when this refusal to acknowledge our existence has been so blatant. The fastest growing political party in the UK, with a membership that has now doubled to over 100,000 in recent months, the only political party representing the views of the 48 per cent who voted to Remain, simply airbrushed and edited from the debate. It is a scandal and a disgrace.

Richard Fagence

Windsor

What motivates a suicide bomber?

Many people find it difficult to understand what goes on in the minds of suicide bombers, but one version of Islamist fatalism makes it perfectly comprehensible. According to this, the precise time of each persons death is fated, but not the place or manner of death. For example, when 1,426 pilgrims died during a stampede in a tunnel in Mecca in July 1990, the Saudi ambassador to the UK was reported at the time as avoiding responsibility for the tragedy by saying that they would have died at that time anyway, even if they hadnt gone to Mecca. So on this view, it is impossible to commit suicide in the sense of dying earlier than one would have from some other cause.

Yet dying in an act of martyrdom nevertheless guarantees a place in paradise, whereas dying in a mundane way might mean dying in a state of sin, thus leading to eternal damnation. This would also explain why such a high proportion of suicide bombers have a background of criminality, or of sinning against Islamist morality: the act of martyrdom cancels out their earlier misbehaviour.

The only solution is for Islamic philosophers and clerics to educate people away from this incoherent and dangerous form of fatalism.

George MacDonald Ross

Leeds

It has taken 2,000 years for Europeans to live in peace with each other. Mixed marriages have led to more and more European families with double nationality. I am British and have spent most of my adult life living in continental Europe yet I can never imagine myself as an Italian, German, French or Spanish national.

So can someone explain how and why Britain and EU nations hand out passports like candy to people from other continents with totally different cultures, laws and religions who are not and can never be European. Yes, we had colonies but they all wanted, and have been granted, independence. Nevertheless, we now have British and French Libyans, Somalis, Nigerians, Indians, Pakistanis, Turks, Afghans, Algerians, Moroccans, Senegalese, Congolese etc etc. The system is becoming uncontrollable and unfair to most of the population.

No Westerner could get passports from these countries if they wanted them. It is one-way and causing tremendous social transformation, as well as creating segregated communities in our towns and cities which are becoming the breeding grounds for anti-Western feelings and terrorism.

It is time to end dual or triple nationality. We each have a different culture and history. This does not mean people cannot live in another country, but everyone should only have one nationality and one passport to end the abuse.

Peter Fieldman

Madrid

Angela Merkel is demonstrating unusual foolishness

Clearly Angela Merkel had a bruising time at the Nato and G7 summits, and her view of President Donald Trump is probably at an all time low. But her public statement that Germany and Europe could no longer rely on the US  and even, it seems, the UK  is out of keeping for Merkel and surprisingly foolish, even allowing for electoral manoeuvring.

She risks igniting a row with Trump that could know no limits. She is probably outraged at his attitude to the Paris climate change agreement; that is one thing, but nuclear security in Europe is something else entirely and of far more immediate concern. We must endure and survive a four-year Trump presidency, not escalate disagreement to such an extent that he effectively walks away from Nato.

Merkel should be careful: Europe would not be able to secure its eastern borders without full US engagement. A drift towards neutrality and acceptance of Russian influence would begin, and even the UK might eventually give up on our defence commitments to the European mainland if EU leaders continue to take the tone that Merkel has just adopted.

Brexit and Trump have much to answer for. Merkel should not make things worse

 Angela Merkel: 'We Europeans must take our destiny into our own hands'

John Gemmell

Great Barr, Birmingham

Angela Merkel, in placing the importance of defence and security of Europe on the agenda, does rather hint at the obvious solution on Brexit. The UK should raise spending on its armed forces to an appreciable greater level and with more continental deployments. In return, the EU should grant the UK a favourable Brexit settlement.

John Barstow

Pulborough, West Sussex

Not your average corner shop

Your article on the Waitrose effect influencing house prices suggests an average boost of 21,512 of houses close to a supermarket compared to similar houses in nearby areas and quotes a premium of as much as 36,000 in some instances. This seems to be the economics of the lunatic asylum.

I get all my groceries and other household items home delivered and the cost ranges from 2 to 7 depending on the time and day of the week. Even taking the most expensive delivery rate, and the average boost of 21,500, one could get more than 3,000 home deliveries and still have change out of the house price premium. Assuming two food deliveries a week, it would take almost 30 years of deliveries to break even and if one also factors in the fuel and time saved it is a no brainer.

It's good for the environment, too, to have one truck delivering goods rather than hundreds of cars using fuel and adding to congestion.

Patrick Cleary

Honiton, Devon

Searching questions

For an organisation which boasts it is one of the UKs premier polling companies, the methadology used by ComRes in its recent survey of public opinion on abortion limits appears, to me, to be deplorable. In Sir Humphry Appleby style each question seems prefaced by a statement intended to guide punters into giving the answer required by those commissioning the poll.

The cut-off question begins: In most EU countries the limit for abortions is 12 weeks or less. In light of this difference what do you think the time limits should be in Britain? But almost every EU country allows abortion on request up to 12 weeks and with medical advice up to the end of second trimester  essentially the same as in the UK.

Only one in 10 UK abortions takes later than 13 weeks gestation, the vast majority due to serious maternal illness or a major foetal abnormality which cannot be detected or confirmed until after 16 weeks. The conclusion that most people want abortion limits curtailed brings the polling industry into disrepute.

Rev Dr John Cameron

St Andrews

Undiagnosed autism is a growing social problem

As the father of an autistic son, may I thank Paul Flint (Letters, 28 May 2017) for his comments regarding sentencing of autistic offenders.

It is generally thought that one in 100 of the population are likely to be on the autistic scale, but given the lamentable history of our health and education authorities interest in autism, the significant likelihood is that this figure is far larger. There is therefore every likelihood that a significant percentage of our prison population are undiagnosed autistics. These individuals were therefore imprisoned because the state failed to recognise their condition, and failed to offer them the support and counselling they needed to be good citizens.

This is a situation that, instead of improving, is likely to get worse as a result of the Governments pursuit of cost-cutting measures at every level of societies vital fabric. Yet, just like the proverbial stitch in time, wise and proper spending to diagnose and support all those with an autistic spectrum condition would ultimately save so much grief and money.

David Curran

Feltham, Middlesex
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Children's Minister Katherine Zappone says child protection decisions 'must be based on comprehensive information'

The Children's Ombudsman has called for one-stop shops to be set up to guarantee the right response to emergency child protection cases.

Niall Muldoon called for social workers, gardai and therapy services to be based in the same building after a damning review of how state agencies work together when at-risk or troubled youngsters are removed from their families.

The audit by special rapporteur Geoffrey Shannon found evidence of serious failings into how children are cared for outside normal working hours and how data is recorded on the Garda's internal Pulse computer system.

The trawl of 5,400 cases from 2008 to 2015 was ordered by the Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan following the Children's Ombudsman's inquiry into the removal of two Roma children from their families in 2013 amid unfounded fears the youngsters had been abducted.

Mr Shannon's review found gardai are inadequately trained to deal with child protection issues.

It said there is poor and limited inter-agency co-ordination between Tusla - the Child and Family Agency and gardai.

It said some children are repeatedly removed from the same families, social work cover outside of normal working hours is inadequate and there are gaps in protection for children with behavioural problems.

Ombudsman Mr Muldoon made the call after Children's Minister Katherine Zappone vowed to do whatever is needed to improve child protections.

He said it is time for the Government and relevant agencies to consider the benefits of co-location.

"This would mean setting up a one-stop shop where everyone working on child protection including social workers, gardai and therapy services would be physically located in the same space, so they can quickly and collectively deal with issues," he said.

Mr Muldoon said similar systems, known as Child Advocacy Centres, are in place in parts of Scandinavia, the UK and in Canada.

The idea was first mooted in 2011.

"These services would be built around the child; considering their views and best interests," Mr Muldoon said.

"Interagency co-operation on this level would be extremely beneficial to children and would minimise the trauma experienced by children who currently have to interact with a number of agencies, and who are often interviewed a number of times on the same issue."

Ms Zappone is to meet Mr Shannon next week on the issues raised in his audit.

The minister said o ut-of-hours child protection services now operate nationwide.

In Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow and Cork city social workers are available to engage directly with the children concerned, she said.

In other parts of the country, social workers are on call to deal with garda queries and place children in emergency foster care.

Ms Zappone said gardai now also have full access to the Child Protection Notification system to check if a child is at ongoing risk of harm.

The minister also said Tusla and the gardai are set to agree a protocol on the use of emergency powers to remove a child from their family, which will include clear and extensive guidance on a range of issues in relation to children at risk.

This will address many of the issues raised in the report, Ms Zappone's office said.

Amid concerns of a dispute with Mr Shannon over how the audit was carried out, Tusla clarified that it was initially contacted by him when the review started but that none of its staff were interviewed.

"Tusla is committed to building on the existing relationships and joint approaches developed with all agencies and organisations," the agency said.

"An Garda Siochana is a crucial partner in the area of child protection and both agencies have distinct functions, powers, responsibilities and methods of working."
Construction projects underway or in planning will add 3,000 hotel bedrooms in Dublin by 2020, a 15pc increase in the total stock.

Developments currently in the pipeline will add new units in the aparthotel and budget sectors, which are currently under-represented in Dublin, according to research from property group Savills' Hotels and Leisure division.

Savills analysed hotels currently in the planning process, that have received planning approval or are currently under construction, and found that more than 3,000 bedrooms will be built by the end of 2019.

Dublin currently has a stock of approximately 19,000 bedrooms. Rising hotel prices at peak times, including those associated with major business conferences, have provoked fears that a lack of supply will ultimately hurt tourism by eroding competitiveness.

"Most Dublin hotels trade in both the leisure and corporate markets and hotel development is also targeted at both markets," Tom Barrett, Director Savills Hotels & Leisure said.

Hotal capacity is also a concern for the European Council. It said cities vying to win the European Medicines Agency (EMA) when it leaves London after Brexit must meet conditions including having a daily peak hotel capacity of 350 rooms to cater for the agency's 36,000 annual visitors.

According to Savills, new hotel development in Dublin is currently focused in a handful of key areas, led by Dublin 1 and 2, followed by Dublin 8 and the airport.

Next year, 55pc of new bedrooms will come from new hotels, with the balance from extensions to existing properties. By 2019, Savills expects almost 90pc of new supply to come from new hotels.
The Minister for Justice and Equality has been called on to urgently outline her plans to combat increased thefts from farms.

Making the call, Independent Senator Ronan Mullen, said farmers have been making the best of this weather by spreading slurry and doing all sorts of cutting and other general maintenance on their land.

However, he says some are waking up to find that their machinery, equipment or livestock have been stolen from their yards or fields while they slept.

Official figures indicate that burglaries on farmland fell 14pc in 2016 on the corresponding figure for 2015, but each week that passes this year there are news reports of farmers being robbed of their possessions.

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In the past few months, tractors have been stolen from yards across the country, cattle and sheep rustled and vehicles and tools taken, he said.

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Mullen highlighted recent incidents which saw a quad bike and trailer were taken from a dairy farmer in Co. Waterford and that four miniature ponies worth 4,000 were stolen from fields in Co. Leitrim. While on St. Patrick's Day, a tractor worth about 30,000 was taken from a farm in Co. Carlow at 7.30pm.

It has been claimed that drones are being used to spy on farms, some of which are very easy targets if they are located near good road networks.

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This is why I would like the Minister to come to the House and outline what measures she is taking to protect farmers and what her Department is doing to prevent such crime from taking place in the first place.

The closure of rural Garda stations has been very difficult for communities around Ireland, as we all know, and has increased the fears of those living on farms or in rural parishes.

Last August, we had a major awareness campaign from the Garda Siochana, the Irish Farmers' Association, DoneDeal and Crimestoppers to halt thefts on farms but crimes against farmers, as I have been saying, continue to happen on a frequent basis.

Of course, some farmers are potentially losing more money by offering cash rewards of thousands of euros in order to get their means of production back, while others are forced to pay higher premiums for insurance, he said.
This week, US President Donald Trump visited Israel's holocaust memorial, Yad Vashem. Having visited there myself, I remember it as heart-wrenching experience.

Trump signed the guest book, "It is a great honour to be here with all my friends. So amazing and will NEVER FORGET!"

The short message touting "all my friends" with the unlikely upbeat "amazing" adjective angered some, with it being described as adolescent or thoughtless.

Media outlets contrasted it with a variety of more eloquent notes written by US government officials who visited in the past.

When you write a thing like that in a place like that, it's permanent. But so, too, for those of us whose jobs haven't put us in the White House.

If you write as a habit without thought or intention, it can become a liability. You don't want to communicate unconsciously. But that is precisely what many of us do.

Let's explore two sides of the coin.

1: Uber-informal - I made up that term, but you know what I mean.

A new business contact sent me an email on Wednesday. It has one, two, three, four smiley face emojis and one thumbs-up emoji. (And yes, I had to look it up, the preferred English plural for emoji is emojis.)

I use emojis too. Generally, however, I reserve them for emails or social media posts.

For business writing, while I always aim for a friendly and warm tone in my word choice, I probably wouldn't pop in an emoji unless I know the client very well and believe they are the emoji type.

To be fair to the person who sent me that emoji-filled email, we had met briefly face-to-face at an event I spoke at recently and since I have an amiable, energetic style of delivery, he must have presumed - correctly - that I would welcome them.

Decide what works for you. For instance, I can't bring myself to use "LOL", but I unapologetically roll out an exclamation mark when I want to add enthusiasm to the written word. Compare, "It was great to meet you yesterday." with "It was great to meet you yesterday!"

Sometimes, I even go for more than one. But never five out of respect to author Terry Pratchett who wrote that five exclamation marks is the "sure sign of an insane mind".

Our written style of business communication is changing. Don't be a dinosaur and dismiss new forms of expression as a "fad" - like an older member of last Sunday's Marian Finucane Show panel I sat on did as we discussed social media. The influence is real. If you want to be relevant, consider social media writing style tools.

2: Uber-formal - The other side of the business-writing coin is devoid of emotion.

One of my clients, preparing to establish a new company-wide email protocol, sent me a sample email to review. Without revealing who it's from, here's my review. "Dear all, IT will be changing our printer in the morning to badge print setup. Instructions are below on how to use the badge printing. 'Bob Smith' will also be around in the morning to answer any queries. I have also left some leaflets on the stationery press for your reference. Best regards,"

At face value this is fine. It's a straight-forward "informative" business email. It delivers information. Nothing else.

But, if you consider the themes we have been exploring in my column for the past several weeks - employee engagement, leadership warmth, kindness, and building a sense of one-team, there are a variety of things that could be applied here.

1 Salutation: A desire to establish a protocol around emails may include a single, directed salutation. "Dear all" for every e-mail is fine. Realise however, that over time, no one sees this anymore. The reader's eyes simply move directly to the next sentence. Consider an agreed upon range of salutations, or deliberately allow salutations to be customised for the reader.

2 Body: This is very straightforward, as I mentioned. I wonder if the body would change once the audience's reaction is considered. Does everyone understand what is happening with the printers? Do they know this change is coming? Will anyone possibly be confused by this? What will happen next when someone reads this? If there are concerns that could be perceived before writing, then referring to concerns in the body would demonstrate care.

3Sign Off: Same as with the salutation. The way a written correspondence is signed off can become so rote as to have people not even see it. Even within protocol, here's another opportunity to connect in a thoughtful variety: "Have a great rest of your day", "Kindly", "Cheers", etc.

4Bonus: What if you make "new email protocol" a campaign? Have people submit their top three "Salutations and Sig-outs" for internal and external emails. Announce all the entries. Then announce and reward winners. Introduce some fun and engagement.

You can align your written communications to reflect your professional corporate brand. Becoming a more deliberate communicator means learning to tailor your communications style to the appropriate audience and platform.

Now, go out and enjoy the rest of your Sunday!! ?

Communications concerns hit the top of most employee surveys. Tell me yours and let's see if we can find solutions together. Email me - with or without emojis - in care of Sundaybusiness@independent.ie
Concern Worldwides annual income reached its highest ever level in 2016, with the charity raising 183.5m last year, according to financial statements revealed in its 2016 annual report.

The figure was up on the 182.2m raised in 2015, despite what the Concern ceo, Dominic MacSorley referred to as difficult recent year for the charity sector in Ireland and the UK.

As an organisation, we understand the crucial importance of maintaining the highest standards of accountability and transparency as we deliver our programmes across some of the worlds poorest countries, MacSorley said.

The organisation said that the increased income enabled it to expand the scope and depth of its work to provide essential support to the poorest people living in some of the worlds most volatile and hard to reach places.

Last year, MacSorley, who has worked with the charity for 35 years, and was paid a salary of 99,740.

Aside from public donations, Concern received a total of 147m from governments and co-funders in 2016, including the Irish Government, which donated 24.2m through Irish Aid.

Meanwhile the British Government donated 22.6m, the EU donated 28.6m, while 25.1m came from the US Government.
On the housing front, four in five think prices will rise this year and 70pc expect rents to increase. Photo: Bloomberg via Getty Images

Four in five people here think house prices will rise this year and consumer confidence remains high but there are signs that business sentiment has weakened.

Bank of Ireland's Economic Pulse, which combines a range of measures of consumer and business sentiment into a single number index, stood at 92.4 in May, lower than in April or at the same time last year.

"In terms of sentiment, we're seeing a mixed picture this month, with consumers holding steady but some softness on the business side weighing on the headline Economic Pulse," said Dr Loretta O'Sullivan, group chief economist at Bank of Ireland.

Overall, households were slightly more upbeat about the current economic situation, but less sure about their own finances.

Confidence is higher and improving in Dublin, and weakest in Munster and Connacht/Ulster.

On the housing front, four in five think prices will rise this year and 70pc expect rents to increase.

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Stripping out households, business confidence weakened in May. The majority of businesses do not expect to change their selling prices in the period ahead, but builders are more likely to pass on rising input costs (excluding labour).
Families can be torn apart by wills. Ill-thought out, poorly communicated, and indeed absent wills can trigger major family rifts - particularly where property or land is involved, as is often the case with Irish families.

Even seemingly fair wills can lead to deep divisions. "I've seen very unfair wills and I've seen wills that appear to be fair and yet still cause rifts," said Mura Browne, a solicitor with Browne & Co Solicitors in Letterkenny.

However, there are some steps you can take to help avoid the huge upset which your will might cause.

Damage limitation

Consider discussing your will with your family before you finalise it.

"A will is a private thing - and whatever you put into it is your business," said Browne. "Where there's a number of people in a family, it can be a good idea to sit down with them all - or sit down with them individually - and ask them what they want from your will. You may find that a person doesn't want what you had planned to leave to them. The problem though is that whenever a family start to discuss what they want from a will, it can cause rifts before the person even dies."

Avoid suggesting to people that you're going to leave something to them - if you have no intention of doing so or if you haven't already included such instructions in your will. You may die before making a will and should that happen, the person is unlikely to get what you promised them. Unfulfilled promises can be a major source of strife with inheritances. Many people have been promised inheritances of land sites, houses or cash - only to find that those assets have not been earmarked for them in a will. This can lead to disappointment and resentment.

"Don't give someone the impression that you're going to give them something if you haven't already said so in a will," said Browne. "Someone can be led to believe they're going to inherit something and then they can be shocked when they don't get it."

Attaching conditions to an inheritance can be another major source of family rows. "If you are going to give someone something in a will, just give it to them," said Browne. "Attaching conditions to something can cause massive family feuds - especially with property. People often leave the family home to someone on the condition that the property can be used by the rest of the family as a holiday home. That can cause war."

Another major source of family rows is when one child is treated differently to others in a will. "Parents may decide that one child gets less than others," said Patrick Murphy, managing director of Retirement & Life Planning, which runs retirement courses across the country. "Perhaps the child was put through college - when the others weren't and so the child who received the college education may not be getting left as much. If you're going to do something differently for one of your children, be sure to explain why. Your solicitor can put a letter into your will explaining this."

An explanation should also be given if one child, relative or individual is being left much more than others in the family.

Biggest mistakes

One of the biggest mistakes you can make when it comes to wills is not making one. You are said to be intestate if you die without making a will, and in such cases it is ultimately the law that decides who inherits your wealth and property. Should you die intestate, when you are survived by your spouse and children, the rule of the law is that two-thirds of your estate will go to your spouse; with the rest divided equally among your children. This may not be how you wish your estate to be divided.

Following family or local traditions may also be unwise. "In rural areas, people often still have the tradition of giving everything to the eldest son so that the family name is carried on after the parents pass away - particularly if it's a farm or land that's being passed on," said Browne. "The family name can still be lost if you do that though - as the eldest son could sell on the land or farm."

Even if you make a will, failure to regularly review it can lead to problems - or see important people in your life lose out on an inheritance.

"People often make a will when they take out a mortgage but they never review it afterwards," said Derek Bell, chief operating officer with the Retirement Planning Council of Ireland. "However, people will come in and out of your life after you make a will - and your circumstances are likely to change as you get older. So it's important to review a will every five years."

Children can often be overlooked in wills - particularly in the event of the untimely death of one or both spouses. Should you have children, it's important to include them in your will - regardless of which spouse outlives the other. This is particularly the case if your children are young, or if one of them has a medical condition or disability and so requires care and financial support. Couples often plan to draw up a will where the surviving spouse inherits everything - on the assumption that one spouse will outlive the other and that the surviving spouse will look after the children. However, this may not always happen. Both parents could have an untimely death or die at, or very near, the same time. "There will effectively be no will if both parents die at the same time and a will has been made leaving everything to the surviving partner," said Bell. Be mindful too that one spouse could remarry after the other passes away - or that one or both spouses could remarry if the marriage breaks down. In such cases, the children of the first marriage could be at a disadvantage if they haven't been provided for in a will.

"If the surviving spouse remarries, the new wife will automatically be entitled to half of everything - and if the new marriage produces children, the share of an estate left for the children of the first marriage will be watered down again," said Browne.

Will must-knows

You cannot disinherit your spouse or civil partner. Should you make a will but leave your spouse out of it, he or she is entitled to a legal right share of your estate - which can be claimed after you die, if they wish to do so. In such cases, should you have no children, your spouse has an automatic right to claim half of your estate. Should you have children, your spouse is entitled to a third of the estate and your children are not necessarily entitled to the rest. You do not have to leave anything to your children in your will. However, if you do not, they may be able to challenge your will on the basis that you have not fulfilled your obligations towards them.

You can leave instructions in your will stating that money in your bank account be used to cover the cost of your funeral expenses when you die.

Hire a solicitor or get professional advice when drawing up your will - otherwise, you could make a will which is wholly, or partly, invalid. Should this arise, the rules of intestacy will apply to either the entire will or the invalid part - and so your wishes on how your estate is divided are unlikely to be carried out. Tell a trusted relative or friend where your will is. "Very often, people know a will is made - but can't find it," said Bell. "Normally, the original is left with a solicitor - and a photocopy with the individual's other papers."

Wills are said to bring out the worst in human nature so there is never any guarantee that yours will be received amicably, despite any efforts you take to achieve that. Still, it's worth doing what you can to avoid conflict after you pass away.

You can expect to pay a solicitor anything from 100 to a few hundred euro for a simple will. However, the cost could be much more, depending on how complicated your will is. "Wills for very big complicated cases could cost tens of thousands of euros," said Michael Gaffney, a tax expert with KPMG who has advised many family businesses on succession planning.

Useful resources

citizensinformation.ie

This is the website of the Citizens Information Board  the State board tasked with providing information on public and social services. It is an excellent website with comprehensive information on a wide variety of topics, including wills and inheritance. In its Death and Bereavement section, there is information on how to make a will, what happens a deceaseds estate if they havehe has  or have not has not  made a will, how to register a death, and the main money matters that can arise after a death. You can also find information about Capital Acquisitions Tax  more commonly known as inheritance tax  on this website.

lawsociety.ie

This is the website of the Law Society of Ireland. The site has a link to a helpful Making a Will guide which outlines the basic information one needs to hand when drawing up a will, what to bear in mind if you have young children, and where you stand with wills if you are separated, divorced, or married. To pull up this guide on the website, click the Public tab, following by the Legal guides tab, and then click Making a Will. Towards the end of the Making a Will page, there is a link to the Making a Will guide. Bear in mind that this guide is dated November 2014, so some rules around inheritance tax have changed since it was written. This website also has a section where you can search for a solicitor.

revenue.ie

This is the website of the Revenue Commissioners where you can find information on inheritance tax, including the tax-free thresholds (where you can inherit a certain amount tax-free, depending on your relationship to the disponer), and the inheritance tax reliefs and exemptions which you may be able to claim. There is also a good section on the common issues that can arise when calculating inheritance tax, such as the valuation date to be used when calculating the value of a gift or inheritance  and when you can claim a credit for Capital Gains Tax (CGT) if both CGT and inheritance are chargeable on an asset. To pull up the sites section on inheritance tax, click the Capital Acquisitions Tax link in the sitesA-Z glossary.

ageaction.ie

This is the website of Age Action, a lobby group for the elderly. It includes news snippets and blogs which are of interest to the elderly. In the sites How we can help section, there is good information on elder abuse, including how to spot it  and how to protect yourself against it.

lawreform.ie

This is the website of the Law Reform Commission. The Commission is currentlyexamining the rules around Section 117 of the Succession Act 1965  the law which allows a child to challenge a parents will. Last year, the Commission published a paper on the issues it is examining around Section 117. You can read this paper by clicking Current Projects, Land Law Succession and Trusts and then the link to the paper itself.

rpc.ie

This is the website of the Retirement Planning Council of Ireland where you can find information on the organisations retirement-planning courses.
Up to 60m is being made available for projects aimed at job creation in a new regional development fund.

Funding will be provided by the Department of Jobs through the State development agency Enterprise Ireland.

The move, which is being launched by Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Mary Mitchell OConnor TD and Minister of State for Employment and Small Business Pat Breen TD, is part of the Governments regional action plans which aim to ensure that regional parts of Ireland get economic growth and investment.

Through this fund, I am delighted to be backing local stakeholders to drive their own futures by putting forward their own innovative proposals to deliver sustainable employment, Minister Mitchell OConnor said.

Read more: Confidence among small businesses remains below pre-Brexit levels

Organisations will be able to apply to Enterprise Ireland for funding under four different streams with varying investment levels; the first being major change projects, which will allow organisations to compete for between 2m and 5m in funding per project.

The second stream is regionally significant projects, and applicants will be able to apply for funding of between 250k and 2m per project.

The third stream, local & community enterprise development projects, will see applicants compete for between 50k and 250k in funding per project.

Meanwhile, the final stream, industry clusters, will allow applicants to apply for between 50k and 250k in funding per project.

This fund will help to ensure the benefits of our growing economy are felt in every region. Harnessing the talent of people in the regions, linking enterprises to the third level sector, keeping entrepreneurs connected, supporting innovation, and putting in place various development programmes for our companies is something we must keep working on, Minister Breen said.

While the CEO of Enterprise Ireland, Julie Sinnamon, said the funding would support the development of industry clusters which will facilitate knowledge transfer, innovation and collaboration among organisations.
Is it a shock that Facebook lobbied the Irish Government on tax and data laws? No - all big companies do.

Are we surprised Taoiseach Enda Kenny responded favourably to such lobbying efforts?

Again, no. The German chancellor protects her country's car industry. The UK prime minister bats for London's financial services sector. So the Taoiseach may well give tech firms a hearing, especially when they're adding jobs in a recovering economy.

Nevertheless, correspondence between Mr Kenny and a senior Facebook executive, most likely chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, is revealing. What's clear is that the two big policy issues for Facebook are tax and data protection.

On tax, Facebook wanted the Government to keep its position "in mind" when engaging in international discussions on proposed tax-avoidance rules. The company also hinted that the outcomes of the tax law revisions could impact its investment strategy here.

"We hope to be helpful to you identifying the implications with different options for future investment and growth in Europe," a Facebook executive, likely Ms Sandberg, wrote to Mr Kenny in February 2014.

It's almost certain that other big multinationals based in Ireland regularly engage in such lobbying.

Nevertheless, we now know Facebook explicitly put it on the agenda in a follow-up (June 2014) meeting between Ms Sandberg and Mr Kenny.

The second issue, data protection law, is more revealing. The correspondence shows Facebook congratulating the Taoiseach for "internalising" Facebook policy on formation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) during Ireland's presidency of the EU. That particular law is probably the single most important piece of data privacy law ever introduced in Europe.

"You made enormous progress," the correspondence with the Taoiseach says. "When it came to the European Data Protection Regulation, you and your staff really internalised our concerns and were able to present them in a reasonable way, which has had a positive impact on both the process and work product."

It's not clear how the Government advanced Facebook's specific requests.

However, it's apparent Facebook really wanted the principle of a single data regulator rather than a patchwork of them around the EU. It may not be a surprise that Facebook regarded the succession of Ireland's data protection commissioner as being one of interest to them.

The then commissioner, Billy Hawkes, had presided over an audit of the firm. By and large, his team gave Facebook a clean bill of health. This created some controversy at the time. Subsequently, a legal case on privacy against Facebook by Austrian student Max Schrems brought down a major transatlantic trade agreement (Safe Harbour).

Ultimately, the Irish Government may argue a close working relationship with big employers pays dividends. In the case of Facebook, it will point to 800 new jobs set for Dublin's north quays. Whether Ireland is any more pliable with big tech firms than Germany is with car companies or the UK is with banks remains to be seen.
People wait with their luggage at the British Airways check in desks at Heathrow Terminal 5 in London. REUTERS/Neil Hall

In 1989, bosses at British Airways were so confident that they could make the audacious claim in the carriers advertisements that it was The Worlds Favourite Airline.

Twenty-eight years later, however, and BAs standing with air travellers has fallen far short of that bold slogan.

This bank holiday the UKs flag carrier was plunged into turmoil after a worldwide computer systems meltdown sparked chaos across the airlines network. The travel plans of thousands of customers have been thrown into disarray by the IT failure, which has led to passengers flying without their luggage and others being stranded at airports around the world.

The disruption will also deal a financial blow to BA, which is now owned by International Airlines Group (IAG), the FTSE 100 giant behind Irelands Aer Lingus and Spanish carrier Iberia. Under EU rules, passengers are likely to be able to claim compensation for the mayhem and the airline is also obliged to provide refreshments for delayed passengers.

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When American carrier Delta Air Lines was rocked by a similar computer failure last August that forced it to cancel about 2,300 flights, it suffered a $100m hit to revenues.

Aside from the financial cost, the turmoil will also add to a growing list of controversies that have dogged BA in recent years.

Cost cuts

In January BA scrapped free food and drink for its economy passengers on short-haul routes and replaced the service with a range of Marks & Spencer snacks and sandwiches that passengers have to pay for instead.

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The move, which sparked anger among passengers, was the latest in a series of cost cuts and changes that BA bosses have made as they battle fast-growing budget airlines such as Ryanair and easyJet. Lured by its cut price fares, Ryanair flew 117m passengers last year, making it Europes biggest airline.

In 2009, BA abandoned free meals on some short haul flights and reduced the range of alcoholic drinks on offer. Meanwhile, in March it emerged that it was adding an extra two rows of seats into its Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft, reducing passengers legroom from 30 inches to 29 inches.

The move means that travellers on the planes now have the same amount of space as on an easyJet flight and one inch less than Ryanair. BA justified the overhaul by saying it allowed the carrier to offer the cheaper fares, which helps it compete with its budget rivals.

Other recent cost cuts have included axing fresh flowers in first-class toilets.

While unpopular with passengers and at odds with BAs premium image, slashing overheads has become ingrained in its culture ever since Willie Walsh took charge of the airline in 2005. Mr Walsh, who is now chief executive of parent company IAG, earned the nickname Slasher Willie even before he joined BA, after cutting about 2,500 jobs at Aer Lingus.

Alex Cruz, the Spanish businessman who took the helm at BA for IAG a year ago, is driving the renewed focus on costs at the airline and, like Mr Walsh, he has plenty of experience in the area. He was previously the boss of Vueling, the budget Spanish airline that IAG took control of four years ago.

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Heathrow chaos

The fiasco surrounding the opening of Heathrows Terminal 5 nine years ago cost BA about 16m, raised questions over whether Mr Walsh could lose his job, and dealt a blow to the airlines reputation.

The 4.3bn facility, which was built for BA, got off to a disastrous start in March 2008 when about 500 flights caImage ncelled and some 23,000 bags misplaced.

In a grilling by MPs on the Commons transport select committee, Mr Walsh admitted that the turmoil was caused by BA staffs lack of familiarity with the new terminal.

He also conceded that BA executives had been aware of the problems before the facilitys chaotic debut and that it had been airlines decision to press ahead with the opening despite the lack of employee training.

My regret is we did compromise on the test programme, he told MPs. We did this with our eyes open. We knew it was a risk, it was a calculated risk, and it was a risk I decided to take.

Brexit shockwaves

Like other UK airlines, BAs owner IAG was rattled by the surprise vote to leave the EU in last Junes referendum.

Just hours after the referendum result, IAG shocked the City by warning investors that profits would not rise as much as expected. The pounds slump against the euro after the vote has hurt the company because it generates most of its revenues in sterling but reports its results in the European currency.

IAG has since trimmed back its growth plans and in the months after the referendum reported that it had seen more muted demand from business travellers because of the uncertainty caused by Brexit.

Nevertheless, despite the turbulence caused by the Brexit vote and passengers disgruntlement with cut-backs, IAGs finances remain robust.

Helped by Mr Walshs focus on costs, adjusted operating profits climbed 8.6pc to 2.54bn last year. BA may have long since dropped its motto that it is the worlds favourite carrier, but profits at its parent company are still flying high.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
A song branding British Prime Minister Theresa May a liar has hit number 10 in the iTunes download chart but radio stations across the UK are refusing to play the track.

The song, performed and produced by Captain Ska, has been rejected by Capital FM and Heart but reached number one in the download chart on Sunday night.

It features speeches and interviews with May followed by a chorus of "She's a liar, liar, you can't trust her, no no no" and talks about the NHS, education and poverty, "when there's nurses going hungry and schools in decline I don't recognise this broken country of mine".

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The song is being promoted by the Peoples Assembly Against Austerity and all proceeds from the song from May 26-June 8 will be divided between UK food banks and The People's Assembly Against Austerity.
When Margaret Atwoods novel The Handmaids Tale was published in 1985, it was rightly hailed as a masterpiece of speculative fiction (Atwood has always rejected the label science fiction and didnt hide her displeasure when her book was given the inaugural Arthur C Clarke Award) as well as a major work of feminist literature.

Its portrait of a future America, now called the Republic of Gilead, in which democracy has been overthrown by a totalitarian, Christian fundamentalist theocracy and women have been subjugated by the ruling patriarchy was chillingly well-drawn.

Thirty-two years ago, though, it still felt comfortingly far-fetched. You could lose yourself in this nightmarish vision of a new puritanism, but the nightmare ended once you closed the covers and returned to dependable reality.

Atwood imagines a terrifying world where women are enslaved, stripped of their most basic human rights (including their names and identities), corralled into social classes, forbidden to read and casually raped, mutilated and executed.

Those who transgress  gay people, for instance, or doctors who perform abortions  are either banished to the colonies, where theyre doomed to a slow, painful death processing toxic waste, or hanged and put on display at a wall in the city square.

Pollution and sexually transmitted diseases have decimated female fertility and drastically reduced the birthrate, so women still capable of bearing children are forced to become handmaids  breeding stock whose sole purpose is to bear children for the barren wives of their ruling male masters.

Clothed in long red dresses and white bonnets that hide their faces, the handmaids spend their days in their sparsely decorated rooms, venturing out only to run errands.

On ceremonial nights, a handmaids job is to lie passive and emotionless, her head resting in her mistresss lap, mechanically copulating with the masters. Its rape as a grotesque parody of lovemaking.

As present-day America lurches ever deeper into conservatism and repression under the chaotic leadership of a sexist narcissist whose inner circle is packed with bigots, homophobes and creationists seemingly intent on waging war on liberal democracy, Atwoods cautionary tale of a future ruled by Old Testament-inspired religious and social fanaticism has taken on a frightening new relevance.

So this magnificent new adaptation (there was a misguided 1990 film version) couldnt have arrived at a more opportune time. It succeeds spectacularly on every level.

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One of the problems in adapting the book is that long stretches of it are the interior monologue of handmaid Offred (it literally means of Fred, the name of her master), played here by Elizabeth Moss, who is just terrific.

The series gets around this by the simple expedient of a voice-over, an old, often misused device that in this case works brilliantly, serving to fill us in on everyday life in Gilead, where the mundane, such as trips to the market to buy groceries, sits side-by-side with the horrific  the claustrophobic coupling scene involving Offred, her master (Joseph Fiennes) and his wife (Yvonne Strahovski).

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Drenched in sunshine, this particular part of Gilead could be just another affluent New England suburb where families live in elegant, gated houses, except here armed guards known as Eyes patrol the streets in vans, monitoring the handmaids, who must walk to the market in twos.

Offreds constant companion on these trips is Ofglen (Alexis Bledel), who talks in pious platitudes. Fear, paranoia and betrayal are everywhere, nobody is to be trusted, so every conversation between the two crackles with tension.

Information about how society came to be this way is parcelled out in flashbacks. We get glimpses of Offreds old life, when she reveals to a friend that she is pregnant, and to the harrowing moment when she loses her husband (OT Fagbenle) and son as they made a break for the Canadian border.

The ending of Atwoods novel is ambiguous, so The Handmaids Tale will, with the authors blessing, extend to several seasons. If whats to come is as good as this magnificent first episode, were set for something very special.
A leading animal rights campaigner has offered a reward for information after Independent.ie revealed worrying pictures of young men with a dead mammal they had brought to student accommodation.

Captain Paul Watson, the founder of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society who stars in the reality show Whale Wars, has offered a 2,000 reward for information about the incident.

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On Saturday Independent.ie published images which show two young men appearing to dance around a student dwelling with the deceased mammal.

We are also aware of video which shows the mammal being thrown out of a window in the Parchment Square Student Accommodation complex on the Model Farm Road, Cork.

He said he is seeking information "on where in Ireland the dolphin was taken and when".

The controversial eco-warrior, who is one of the founding members of Green Peace, labelled the men pictured "dolphin abusers" in a passionate social media post.

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An employee at the complex discovered the carcass on the grass outside one of the apartments the morning after the party. The mammal was brought to UCC for a post-mortem.

A spokesperson for the Cork Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals condemned the actions of the young men and described them as "idiots".

"The mind boggles with people's stupidity," the spokesperson said.

"Anybody with any level of cop-on would know it's not right.

"They'll think twice before they do something like this again."
A MAN incorrectly identified as a convicted sex offender on Facebook has spoken about being confronted by a mob of about 30 people who followed him around a town before gardai intervened.

The man, who identified himself as David Murray and said he is a government employee, said a photograph of him was linked to convicted sex offender Anthony Luckwill, who was reportedly spotted in the Kildare area.

Speaking today on KFMs Kildare Today and RTE Radio Ones Liveline, Mr Murray said he was subsequently confronted by a "vigilante mob" as he attempted to look at an apartment in Monasterevin.

"I was hoping I would find a peaceful place in Monasterevin until around 7.30pm last Friday when I was confronted by a vigilante mob accusing me of being a convicted, notorious paedophile named Anthony Luckwill," he said.

"No evidence was produced. When I requested to be shown the photo they were basing this accusation off, they refused.

"Without the name Anthony Luckwill being used, insinuations, accusations and abuse were hurled at me.

"I was told my image was all over social media and that my photograph was in every Garda station. I was threatened repeatedly and was told to leave the area."

Murray then explained how he walked down to a nearby pub he visited regularly while in Monastervin in an attempt to call Gardai for assistance.

"I was pursued on the footpath by the people and a couple driving a car, hurling abuse at me and trying to involve other people on the street in the activity against me," he said.

"While I was in the pub, one of the ringleaders of the mob came in and repeatedly took photos of me on his mobile phone."

Two Gardai arrived at the pub an estimated 40 minutes later where they verified Mr Murray's identity after he presented photo ID.

Gardai then escorted the innocent man to the car where a mob of approximately 30 people were waiting.

"I cant commend the two Garda officers enough. They were highly competent, composed and efficient at what they did," Mr Murray said.

"The reports are I was arrested as Anthony Luckwill and taken away by the Gardai. The actual situation was I needed the Gardai to protect me from the residents of Monasterevin to ensure my safety after they recklessly endangered it."

Luckwill has a series of convictions for possession of child pornography both here and in Wales.

He sexually assaulted two young boys in 2011 and subsequently received a four-and-a-half-year jail term.

The sex offender, who is in his mid 40s and previously had an address in Navan, Co Meath, was jailed after posing on the internet as a casting agent for TV programmes.

Local media outlet KildareNow had published an article last Friday stating that Luckwill had been spotted in the area and did not issue a retraction until midday Saturday.

They published what they described as "a verified police 'mug shot' photograph of Luckwill" with the article.

However, in the clarification, the outlet said that a reader posted a photograph of another man in the comment section when the article was posted on Facebook. KildareNow has since issued a clarification and apology.

Mr Murray said he is currently consulting a solicitor as he examines his options.

"I didnt sleep for 40 hours," he said.

"I've been trying to contact anybody who could have influence to get the truth across.

"Somebody puts my photo on a Facebook page indicating that there was a known paedophile in Kildare when there was no basis for that to happen.

"People need to be damn sure that about what they post on social mediaThere are still people today saying on Facebook that 'this man is guilty'."

Mr Murray told Phillip Boucher Hayes on RTE Radio Ones Liveline this afternoon he has since been told by two people that he bears no resemblance to the known paedophile.

"I was very stressed but I wasnt particularly scared since I knew I was innocent and I knew they were completely wrong," he said.

"I know I am right and I know they are wrong.. I know I am innocent. I know they are guilty of vigilante mob action. That basically helps me with the situation."
The news came as a bolt out of the blue. Our little seven-month-old daughter Aoife was, as far as we were concerned, perfect. What was expected to have been a routine X-ray had ended with a diagnosis of hip dysplasia - which meant that she would have to undergo a procedure under anaesthetic and wear a cast on her lower body for at least 12 weeks.

Aoife was going to be fine in time, but the next few months when she should have been taking her first steps were instead going to be lived in a plaster-cast with a little gap for a nappy.

There was frantic reading of photocopied leaflets, a little ill-advised Googling and a few self-indulgent tears. Her condition meant that both of her hips were under-developed, and failure to act immediately would have resulted in more serious problems later in life. My wife Colette and I put our little girl in a tiny gown and into the steady hands of the surgical team.

Aoife's journey began two days after she was born. The care both she and Colette received in the maternity hospital was excellent, albeit a little frantic at times because of the workload on the staff. Like all newborns, she underwent a basic paediatric check which showed nothing untoward.

The diligent doctor asked whether there was a history of any problems with hips, and we offered that one of our boys had a minor problem that had fixed itself. Aoife was to be sent for a routine X-ray, we were told not to worry and were handed a yellow copy of the referral form. It was put into a bag, and we prepared to bring our daughter home.

Then life took over. A new baby turns your life and your house upside down. We forgot about the form and the referral amid the clouds generated by nappies and sterilising bottles. The other boys were getting used to having a new distraction in the house. Having opted to go public rather than private, we assumed there was a waiting list and that at some stage, we'd get a call.

Further routine medical checks were carried out, but Aoife's condition did not manifest itself in a way that was identifiable from a physical exam. In the end, it was the public health nurse asking whether any issues were outstanding that prompted Colette to mention the yellow form. Heads were scratched. No, there had never been a call to bring her in. Yes, they definitely wanted to refer her. The advice was simple: "Sure, give them a ring."

So we rang the specialist orthopaedic hospital, and it turned out they had never heard of us. We scanned our copy of the yellow form at home, sent it by email, and Aoife was called for assessment within a few weeks. The delayed X-ray showed that one hip was dislocated and the other was seriously underdeveloped.

Only after the first procedure on our 11-month-old daughter did we pause to ask how something like this could have gone astray. And more importantly, had it happened to someone else?

Anyone who has ever listened to my radio programmes over the years would know that I am no shrinking violet - yet in the face of something personal like this, I hesitated.

If we made a fuss, would it affect our daughter's treatment? What would be gained by complaining about a lost referral?

In the end, we decided that we needed to know what happened, so one morning I rang a number in the HSE and we went down the rabbit hole.

After a number of false starts, we eventually got a response in writing, and found out that an Irish hospital in the second decade of the 21st century had sought to refer our daughter to another hospital by fax. They even enclosed something which neither of us had seen for years - a fax confirmation note.

We were floored. In front of us was an immobile baby in a cast. Who uses fax any more? Does anyone even use a fax machine any more? Had they not heard of email? If the X-ray had been taken when it was supposed to, would she have needed such an invasive treatment?

We were angry, and the system wasn't helping. The convoluted nature of the appeal process allows for a period of 28 days to appeal, but by this stage the hospital had passed the investigation to the other hospital, who would not respond for another 28 days, by which time the original appeal window would have closed. In the end, that other hospital said that they had never received the fax.

So who was right? And did this happen to anyone else? We made the decision to enlist the help of the Ombudsman for Children.

The effect was fascinating. The Ombudsman took the basic details, all of our correspondence, spoke to us by telephone and set about undertaking a "preliminary investigation". There followed a flurry of official correspondence to compile the evidence about what happened, with an investigative precision and a zeal that we as parents could only have dreamed of.

What they found was a systematic failure of the referral pathway between the two hospitals. Their review of 2,077 cases over a 16-month period found a total of 20 patients whose faxed referrals had been lost.

We never found out whether the others faced similar issues, but Aoife was unlucky. The delay in her referral for the X-ray "resulted in the failure to diagnose, in a timely way, her condition which then required urgent treatment before she began to walk".

The hospitals were involved in a series of summits that culminated in both of us attending a meeting of senior staff. Apologies were accepted. New patient pathways were explained. Thanks were offered for having highlighted the issue.

We sat before a total of 16 or so people, advocating on behalf of a two-year-old who was at home watching Peppa Pig and oblivious to the fight she had started.

The Ombudsman told us that the matter had been raised nationally with the HSE, and I was to later find out that a directive was to be issued banning further use of inter-hospital fax referrals.

What we had found most frustrating was that anyone stepping back from the process would have seen the risk of using such outdated technology. For us, the episode exposed a massive IT shortfall within our hospital network, where two major hospitals couldn't communicate electronically.

Had we not complained, that fax machine would still be in use. Instead, it was consigned to the dustbin where it belonged. The faultless medical treatment that Aoife received means her prognosis is excellent (she hasn't stopped running since she took to her feet).

Thanks to the Ombudsman, and the good people we met along the way within the HSE, a little girl made a big change in our broken system. Here's hoping others won't be afraid to find their voice.
The Coast Guards were called to rescue two people who were "hanging on for their lives" after their jet ski sank in Dun Laoghaire harbour.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour Police alerted the Irish Coast Guard to the sinking jet ski in the harbour last night at the old Stena Line berth.

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On arrival the Coast Guards found the two casualties "hanging on for their lives" as their jet ski was 60 per cent submerged in the water.

The two people had no life jackets or wetsuits.

Instructions were given to the casualties on what to do from Dun Laoghaire Coast Guard members until the RNLI arrived.

"This was a very close call tonight and highlights the incredible decisions made by people who risk their lives by not wearing the appropriate equipment or making sure their craft is seaworthy," said the Dun Laoghaire Coast Guard.

Earlier in the day, Dun Laoaghaire Coast Guard members were dispatched to Coliemore Harbour after two jet skiers got into difficulty, however on this occasion the Jet skiers "realised their error of judgment and departed".

The Coast Guards said that the incidents were not related.
The tribunal investigating an alleged smear campaign against Garda whistleblower Sgt Maurice McCabe has been "completely undermined" following confirmation that a mobile phone belonging to Garda Commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan has gone missing.

Opposition TDs last night demanded an explanation from Ms O'Sullivan as to how crucial evidence sought by the Disclosures Tribunal appears to be no longer in existence.

Sources confirmed that Ms O'Sullivan has been unable to furnish Mr Justice Peter Charleton with a smartphone she used since her appointment. A mobile phone device belonging to former Garda commissioner Martin Callinan is also missing.

The revelations have been described as deeply troubling given that a star witness at the tribunal, Superintendent David Taylor, has claimed that he was directed to smear Mr McCabe by Mr Callinan when he served as the force's press officer.

He is also believed to have told the tribunal Ms O'Sullivan was complicit in the campaign against the whistleblower.

The news of the missing phones comes exactly two years after Supt Taylor was arrested for the alleged leaking of information to the media. During his arrest, Supt Taylor had his phone seized on the orders of Commissioner O'Sullivan's husband, Detective Chief Supt Jim MacGowan.

The DPP has since cleared Supt Taylor of any wrongdoing.

But it's understood that he has been unable to obtain his mobile phone for the purposes of his case in front of the tribunal because it is still in the custody of gardai.

Supt Taylor's lawyers have sought the phone as part of a discovery order from the force's Charleton liaison unit.

As revealed by the Irish Independent, the unit is staffed by some of the Commissioner's closest associates.

These include retired assistant commissioner Mick O'Sullivan and former chief superintendent Brendan Mangan. The unit is headed up by Detective Supt Tony Howard, who was involved in investigating Supt Taylor over an unrelated issue.

Last night, Labour TD Alan Kelly described the revelations as "quite frankly incredible".

He expressed deep concern about the confirmation that Ms O'Sullivan and Mr Callinan's phones are missing. The former minister also raised a previous commitment by Ms O'Sullivan to put in place new procedures after the Fennelly Commission found that Mr Callinan had up to 10 bags of his belongings shredded following his retirement. Mr Fennelly had sought a number of items, including Mr Callinan's Sim card, but was told this had gone missing.

"New regulations and protocols were to be put in place at the highest levels in the Garda to ensure such behaviour and destruction of documents could never take place again. An assistant commissioner was put in place to make sure this happened," Mr Kelly said.

"If this was the case, how could the mobile phone of Commissioner O'Sullivan from the period in question now also be missing, considering she put in place procedures and protocols to make sure this never happened again?"

Fianna Fail TD John McGuinness accused Garda management of showing "contempt" to the inquiry.

"We now need an FBI-style investigation into the actions of Garda management," Mr McGuinness said.

A Garda spokesman said: "An Garda Siochana is committed to co-operating fully with the Disclosures Tribunal. These matters you raised are before the tribunal and we are not in a position to comment at this stage."
A HIGH COURT judge today highlighted the courage of a young garda in the execution of her duty with the stark contrast of what was daily appearing in the media about members of the force.

Mr Justice Bernard Barton, awarded Garda Caroline Flynn more than 50,000 compensation for injuries she suffered during an Operation Anvil crackdown on drug barons in 2011.

He said Lucan-based Garda Flynn, despite bleeding from injuries to her face from an assault by a man she had been searching, had pursued him with colleague Garda Suzanne McGrath and arrested him.

"Her actions are indicative of the way in which the vast majority of the gardai carry out their duties, Judge Barton said. This case speaks out about the dedication of gardai and the risks they face while doing their duty.

Barrister John Hayden, who appeared with Michael Leonard of Byrne Carolan and Cunningham solicitors for Garda Flynn, told the court she had been conducting a search of a suspect when he whacked her in the face and ran off.

Judge Barton said Garda Flynn, injured and bleeding from her mouth, could easily have decided not to give chase but had taken off after the man and ultimately succeeded in arresting and charging him with assault of which he had been convicted.

The judge said that during the search Garda Flynn had received a blow to her mouth injuring her left upper incisor which ultimately resulted in damage to a nerve of the tooth, causing her continued severe pain. Despite having to take time off work severe pain she had returned to duty.

Garda Flynn had told the court she had been part of an Operation Anvil exercise against suspected drug pushers in the Ronanstown-Clondalkin area of Co Dublin when the assault had occurred.

She had been left with sensitivity damage to a nerve which had led to pain shooting up into her cheek. She could no longer take a very cold or hot drink without risking sparking off pain that could last for up to four hours at a time.

Garda Flynn told the court she had benefitted from an electrical stimulation procedure to the nerve in 2012 and had been told by her medical expert that she may require future electrical stimulation under sedation.

No-one would put themselves through this unless there is going to be some ongoing benefit and Garda Flynn is continuing with her duty. If she doesnt take precautions there is an ongoing risk that the pain could return at any time, Judge Barton said.

Awarding Garda Flynn 35,000 damages for pain and suffering to date and a further 15,000 for pain in the future, Judge Barton directed that if a future stimulation procedure was necessary the 2,000 cost should be borne by the State.

The judge awarded her 3,189 for expenses to date bringing the total award to 53,189 against the Minister for Public Expenditure on the basis that the injuries and assault had been caused maliciously to her in the course of her duty.
David McWilliams: I have to pinch myself... I can actually read books and think of ideas and get paid for it. Picture: David Conachy

David McWilliams with wife Sian Smyth at the launch of his new book 'The Good Room'

When he was 10 years old, David McWilliams' father lost his job. The indignity was such that he maintained the facade of his daily routine for the sake of the neighbours.

"I remember my father putting on a shirt and tie and pretending to go to work because of the shame," recalls David, who began to feel the anxiety creep into his home.

"[Kids] can sense things really, really deeply inside them. They know if there's anxiety, fear, a little bit of trauma, no matter how normal the parents are trying to be. And I suppose that memory stuck."

Sitting in The Grapevine wine bar in Dalkey, David mulls over how it shaped him today: "It created in me a pathological fear of a boss.

"Maybe my reaction to that over the years was to never allow myself be dependent on anyone.

"You see your father and your father's future and his dignity and his masculinity - and all these very profound things - affected. It's not just about the finance that's been taken away from him. I remember thinking to myself 'That's never going to happen to me'.''

It is one of the reasons he took an interest in economics - where he quickly became the celebrity chronicler of Ireland's boom and bust. It is also probably the reason he has more jobs on the go than most people have on their CV.

There's his role as an economic adviser with the Development Bank of the Caribbean, which he flies out to "four or five times a year". His gig as an economics lecturer to MBA students in Trinity College Dublin and he says, without expanding, "I work within the UK and the States quite a bit." He is also a columnist, documentary maker, organiser of The Dalkey Book Festival and the Kilkenomics festival, as well as being a best-selling author.

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Famous for his depictions that capture Ireland's economic zeitgeist, such as 'the good room' and 'the breakfast roll man', David explains how the latter came about in the unlikeliest of places, in 2004, when he was at a friend's wedding.

"I was in the jacks at about 2.30am and two lads, who were leaning up against the urinal, started giving me a lecture on remortgaging and second homes."

He pinpoints it as his ''shoeshine boy moment'', the instant he knew the economy was about to go bust.

"These two guys were like 'breakfast rolls' [men] - I remember thinking what they would look like the next day. Then I saw a whole lot of guys go by in hi-vis jackets, it was a couple of weeks after, and that's when I said, 'That's it'."

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I wonder if his pop culture approach brings resentment from po-faced economists?

"Of course you've enemies, but I embrace my enemies. My dad actually told me once, he said: 'Listen son, it's very simple - show me a man without enemies, I'll show you a man without a backbone'. If you don't have enemies, you stand for nothing.''

So has he felt other economists looking down on him?

"Oh God, yes, absolutely. There is a general sense in academia that academics are very important and if you don't believe that to be the case - which I don't - then of course they are going to react.

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But, he says, it doesn't cost him any sleep: "Maybe when I was younger - everybody craves the affirmation of their peers." But, he says "then we realise they're not our peers peers are the hundreds and thousands who read your books, the hundreds and thousands who tune into watch your RTE documentary, they're your peers.''

On the critical reviews, he says: "They are fantastically outrageous. They are designed to hurt." However, his reaction surprises his family: "Sian [his wife] is always amazed about how Zen I am, I just say, 'You've got to find your inner Gandhi at these moments, darling'."

One of the criticisms levelled at McWilliams, when he predicted the crash, was that some day, he was bound to be right.

Does it annoy him? "No. Everybody needs to try and rationalise their stupidity after the event, so that's how they do it."

Was it difficult when people kept admonishing him for talking the economy down? "Maybe it's the Scot in me but I don't have that, sometimes Irish, need to be loved.''

When his prophecies came true, one person who did breathe a sigh of relief was his wife.

"I remember Sian saying, 'Jesus Christ, thanks be to God!' If I had to go to another dinner party where people actually ran away from us!'

"I didn't realise it but we were probably quite toxic at the time."

But it paid off. His work on the economics circuit has earned him a pretty penny. Accumulated profits at the media firm he owns soared to more than 1m last year. When I ask him about this, he tightens up: "I don't ever really talk about money, I know that might sound strange."

But he has been particularly successful in that respect, I suggest. "Maybe. But it's because I don't worry about money. If you go into any venture for that alone, the likelihood is you'll fail."

He says the best financial decision he ever made was to work hard on his economics degree. And the worst?

"I made an investment in a friend's company. He was happy to come to the house with his kids. That was a bad one." Afterwards, he says: "I just felt like a gobshite!"

He currently lives in Dalkey and has a summer home in Croatia, off the coast of Split, where he spends up to two months of the year holidaying with his family. It is where he chose to celebrate his 50th birthday last August - several weeks later Bono flew over to join them.

An economist and a rock star - how did that happen? "He's actually hugely into economics," says David.

They met through a mutual friend "and we just realised we'd a lot more in common".

They regularly have pints in Finnegan's, although he laughs off the prospect of giving the billionaire financial advice, "no, zero", he admits they chat about the economy.

He wonders why there is a lack of female economists in Ireland and wants to see more to take the discipline back from the "extreme masculinity" that has hijacked it.

The best economist "understands love and emotion, all the things that drives us feelings not figures drive the world", he says, citing Irish homeowners who got into negative equity during the crash: "Some said they were greedy, but they weren't, they were in love."

As for another rock-bottom recession, he says: "I think there's going to be ups and downs but it's not going to be like what we saw."

For those wanting to buy a home, the future is bright: "I think prices will go up - not as dramatic as they are - but I don't think you should be waiting for the big crash unless European rates go through the roof, and I don't see that happening."

And, as for the housing crisis, he believes it would be partly eased if the State freed up building regulations, saying: "There was a very good announcement yesterday for Poolbeg, which I think is 16 to 17-storey blocks. We should have 40-storey blocks."

"Most proper cities have high-density urban living. The higher density, the better transport, schools, creches, all that sort of stuff.

"I don't understand why a city like Dublin can't have a Georgian and Victorian centre, then height in the Docks," he argues.

In the meantime, David is busy putting together a stellar list of speakers for the Dalkey book festival, for which former American Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders will jet in.

So what's his secret to getting box-office names to his little seaside village?

The answer can be found in Dale Carnegie's book How to Win Friends and Influence People: "find something that people want and give it to them, it's not that hard".

When David bumped into Malcolm Gladwell a few years ago, the author told him he had an obsession with 1980s middle distance Irish runner, John Treacy. McWilliams organised a run for the pair in the Phoenix Park.

And again this year, he stuck with Dale Carnegie's tried and tested formula.

"Sanders's wife is Irish American and is obsessed with his roots, so we traced them. That's why he's coming. It's just like hosting a big party and inviting lots of people to come."

It sounds like he has the dream job. He says: "I have to pinch myself every morning and say, 'Is this really happening? I can actually read books and think of ideas and get paid for it?'

Did his father live to see his success?

"Oh yeah, he'd walk around the town here and say, 'Look, here is my son on the telly'."

And he doesn't even have to wear a tie.

The Dalkey Book Festival takes place from June 15-18. See www.dalkeybookfestival.org
Well over 1,000 ASTI members are reported to have left the union since January. (Stock picture)

Teachers who are members of the Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) are being offered immediate benefits if they suspend their industrial action when they meet for a special convention on June 10.

Pay increases, a lifting of the freeze on increments, and access to promotional posts and permanent contracts are among the concessions that have been put on the table by the Department of Education in return for a suspension.

The concessions could even have been effective as early as this week, but efforts by union moderates, who were pushing for a truce to be called on Friday, were rejected by ASTI hardliners.

The department wrote to ASTI last week advising that all of the financial and other advantages of the Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA) would be effective immediately from the date of even a temporary end to the dispute.

It is highly unusual to offer such a trade-off in return for a suspension of action.

But the department and many ASTI members are keen to see an end to the dispute.

However, the department has made clear that any pay and conditions restoration measures would stand to be reversed if a suspension was not sustained.

The ASTI governing body - which is made up of its 23-member Standing Committee - had the opportunity to end the action at its meeting on Friday.

But a move to do so was narrowly defeated by hardliners.

However, the outcome of the vote revealed a split among senior ASTI officers - and a chink in the leadership's stance against ending the long-running disputes over pay and junior cycle, which have caused considerable disruption to life in about 500 second-level schools.

Well over 1,000 ASTI members are reported to have left the union since January.

And union moderates have been seeking the earliest possible resolution, in order to stem that haemorrhage and to provide certainty before the school year ends, particularly for young teachers hoping for permanent contracts.

The Department of Education letter, setting out the terms of the trade-off, was sent to ASTI ahead of the meeting of the Standing Committee on Friday.

With confirmation of the department's position, ASTI moderates wanted the Standing Committee to exercise its authority to vote on the move to suspend action, rather than waiting for the convention taking place on June 10.

But the motion to suspend action - which would have been decided on a simple majority - never got to a vote.

ASTI president Ed Byrne first put a procedural motion on whether the meeting should vote on the main motion, resulting in 11 in favour - including some senior officers - and seven against.

However, as this procedural motion needed a two-thirds majority - which it missed by one - it was not carried, and so the main motion was not taken.
Kevin and Margo Greaney with a photo of their late brother Michael and his wife Valerie. Photo: Michael MacSweeney/Provision

The family of a man who died in a murder-suicide launched a scathing attack on former and current health ministers Leo Varadkar and Simon Harris over their handling of Ireland's mental health crisis.

In December 2014, Michael Greaney (53) fatally stabbed his wife Valerie before taking his own life. He also stabbed his daughter.

He had been admitted to CMH in Dublin in 2013 but was released within months.

His brother Kevin Greaney says it was "outrageous" that his family had still not been briefed on the full mental health report into the tragedy as the third anniversary approaches.

Mr Greaney said he had received "not even the courtesy of an acknowledgement" over his call for a public inquiry into the mental healthcare dealings with vulnerable adults involved in similar tragedies.

He warned that Ireland must learn lessons from the spate of such tragedies in recent years.

"We wanted an independent inquiry into what happened with Michael," Mr Greaney said.

"We have the backing of opposition health spokesman Billy Kelleher. But nothing has happened. I think it is appalling the way our family has been treated by ministers like Leo Varadkar and Simon Harris, the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE).

"We were promised our questions would be treated as a priority so as not to cause further hurt."

Mr Greaney claimed his family was told last December the HSE report was almost ready. "That was six months ago and we haven't heard a thing."

The HSE said it was delayed. "Due to the complexity, broad terms of reference and numbers of individuals involved, regrettably this systems analysis report has taken much longer to finish than is usual. Once the report is complete, the family will be provided with a copy."
GardaI took action to protect a man who was wrongly identified as a sex offender on social media.

A media website in the Midlands issued an apology and a clarification after the man's photograph was uploaded on to Facebook by a member of the public and falsely identified as a sex offender.

Gardai subsequently had to intervene when the innocent man was confronted by locals.

'KildareNow' published an article regarding the concerns of parents in Monasterevin in Co Kildare and elsewhere that convicted sex offender Anthony Luckwill had been seen in the locality.

They published what they described as "a verified police 'mug shot' photograph of Luckwill" with the article.

However, in the clarification, the outlet said that a reader posted a photograph of another man in the comments section when the article was posted on Facebook. This man looked like the convicted sex offender and was apparently seen in Monasterevin.

Shortly after the posting, there was an altercation between locals and the man. There is no suggestion that the man had done anything wrong.

To avoid an escalation, the man had to be given Garda protection in order to leave the area.

"KildareNow would like to unreservedly apologise to that innocent person who gardai also confirmed is not Anthony Luckwill," the media outlet added in its statement. "We also ask that no further images of this innocent person are posted on KildareNow's Facebook or any other social media platform."

A Garda press office spokesman said: "Gardai in Monasterevin were alerted to an incident in a premises on Dublin Street on Friday at approx. 8.30pm. Gardai attended and removed a man for his own safety."

A spokeswoman for Facebook said the social media company was investigating the circumstances of what occurred.

Luckwill has a series of convictions for possession of child pornography, both here and in Wales. He sexually assaulted two young boys in 2011 and subsequently received a four-and-a-half-year jail term.

The sex offender, who is in his mid-40s and previously had an address in Navan, Co Meath, was jailed after posing on the internet as a casting agent for TV programmes.

In 2013, Trim Circuit Court was told that Luckwill set up an "audition" for a 16-year-old boy, whom he then sexually assaulted.

Luckwill, originally from Clondalkin in Dublin, was living in Navan at the time of the offence in 2011 and the teenager was brought to his home for the "audition" by his mother.

He also sent him sexually suggestive messages in relation to what might occur at auditions, and said it was common for casting agents to have sexual relations with potential actors.

Luckwill pleaded guilty to defilement of a child under the age of 17. He was also sentenced for the sexual assault of a 13-year-old boy.
THE Religious Sisters of Charity has said they will end their involvement in the St Vincent's Healthcare Group and won't be involved in the ownership of the planned new National Maternity Hospital.

It comes after a row erupted over the plan to move the maternity hospital from Holles Street to the St Vincent's campus, which is owned by the religious order.

Now they have confirmed that they "will not be involved in the ownership or management of the new National Maternity Hospital".

There was concern that procedures to be carried out at the planned hospital, including fertility treatments like IVF, are against Catholic teachings and would not be allowed at the new site.

Health Minister Simon Harris said he wanted until the end of May to address the issue of ownership of the hospital.

The Religious Sisters of Charity released a statement on the matter this morning.

They are planning to transfer their ownership to a new charity, to be called "St Vincent's" and said they will have no involvement in this company.

Meanwhile, a separate statement from St Vincent's Healthcare Group (SVHG) said that the ownership of a specific piece of land at the Elm Park campus, the site of the former St. Vincents Private Hospital, will be sold to SVHG "at commercial terms to be agreed".

The piece of land is currently subject to a rental agreement which is to cease.

Minister Simon Harris welcomed the decision today describing it as a "very significant development" for the healthcare sector.

The timing of this historic decision is very welcome. It directly addresses concerns regarding the question of religious influence in the new National Maternity Hospital and further illustrates the constructive role of the Sisters to facilitate this landmark project," he said.

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The potential involvement of nuns in the running and governance of a maternity hospital had caused deep unease in some medical circles and among the public.

The controversy arose after details of a confidential deal emerged between the Sisters of Charity, the St Vincent's Healthcare Group, medics and management at the National Maternity Hospital and the Department of Health to build the new maternity hospital at St Vincent's.

It would have seen the nuns give land at Elm Park for the new hospital but retain ultimate ownership under a complex corporate structure.

It prompted leading obstetrician Dr Peter Boylan, a former Master of Holles Street, to resign from the board of the current National Maternity Hospital.

At the heart of the controversy over the Sisters of Charity involvement in maternity services were concerns that nuns or the Catholic Church hierarchy could dictate what medical treatments or procedures were carried out.

Dr Boylan questioned whether they could influence whether women could have terminations if their life is at risk, seek IVF treatment, sterilisation or contraceptive care.

Ambiguity deepened when Bishop Kevin Doran said the Sisters would have to obey church law as owners of the hospital, regardless of how the facility is funded, and that governance rests with the pope.

The hospital was first founded by one of its nuns, Sr Mary Aikenhead, in 1834.

In a statement this morning Sr Mary Christian, the Congregational Leader of the Religious Sisters of Charity, said:

The Religious Sisters of Charity will end our involvement in St Vincents Healthcare Group (SVHG) and will not be involved in the ownership or management of the new National Maternity Hospital.

For the last two years we have been actively working to find the best way to relinquish our shareholding of the St Vincents Healthcare Group (SVHG). It includes three hospitals; St. Vincents University Hospital, St. Vincents Private Hospital and St. Michaels Hospital, Dun Laoghaire.

Although the Sisters of Charity no longer have any direct involvement in the provision of healthcare services we remain dedicated to preserving the legacy of Mary Aikenhead, whose mission in life was to heal and care for the sick and poor.

"We believe that the future continued success of SVHG can best be ensured by our transferring ownership of the group to a newly formed company with charitable status to be called St. Vincents.

"The Religious Sisters of Charity will have no involvement in this new company.

Upon completion of this proposed transaction, the requirement set out in the SVHG Constitution, to conduct and maintain the SVHG facilities in accordance with The Religious Sisters of Charity Health Service

Philosophy and Ethical Code, will be amended and replaced to reflect compliance with national and international best practice guidelines on medical ethics and the laws of the Republic of Ireland.

The SVHG Board, management and staff will continue to provide acute healthcare services that foster Mary Aikenheads core values of dignity, compassion, justice, quality and advocacy.

"They will ensure that the three hospitals in SVHG can continue to meet the needs of their patients and families, so that every individual can always access the care and treatment they need to achieve health and well-being.

The plan to transfer ownership includes:

 The transfer from the nuns to the new "St Vicnent's" entity for a "nominal" or peppercorn consideration in return.

 The Sisters of Charity will no longer appoint directors to the SVHG board, and the two nuns in place at the moment will resign with immediate effect.

 St Vincent's "will not be subject to undue influence by individuals or from any source"

 St. Vincents will not seek to generate any profit or surplus, or to remunerate Directors for their work.

 The new charity's directors will have required skillsets in law, finance, healthcare and social care.

 The directors are to stay "true to the values of our Foundress, recognising the right of everyone to access the care and treatment they need to achieve the best possible health care outcomes, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender or personal means."

 In the event of the liquidation or wind-up of St. Vincents at any time in the future, any surplus assets arising therefrom will be vested with the Charitable Regulator and utilised for healthcare purposes and facilities with similar values

Sr Mary Christian said: "Just as our Founder Mary Aikenhead saw the need in 1834 to establish a hospital to meet the needs of the sick and poor, we believe that it is in the best interests of the patients and children born in the National Maternity Hospital today that they be provided with modern maternity and neonatal services that are women and infant centred and integrated within the Elm Park campus.

It is now time for us to relinquish completely our involvement in SVHG. We are confident that the Board, management and staff of SVHG will continue to maintain a steadfast dedication to providing the best possible acute healthcare to patients and their families in line with the values espoused by Mary Aikenhead.

"This proposal has the full support of the Board of SVHG. It is subject to implementation of all necessary legal, financial and regulatory matters," the statement added.

SVHG chairman James Menton welcomed today's developments.

He said they "reflect the wonderful legacy to Irish healthcare of the Sisters of Charity.

"The Sisters have always held the highest ambitions for the provision of world class healthcare services in Ireland and have successfully achieved and sustained this.

"They also see the need for the proposed development of the new National Maternity Hospital integrated within the Elm Park campus and want to do everything possible to ensure this vital facility for mothers and babies is developed as quickly as possible.

The Board, management and 4,000 staff of SVHG are also absolutely committed to upholding the vision and values of Mary Aikenhead  namely dignity, compassion, justice, quality and advocacy which result in the best possible outcomes for our patients and their families, he added.
A SEVEN month old girl who died in a freak accident in Tipperary was carried to the altar for her Mass of the Angels by her heartbroken father.

The tiny white coffin of Chloe Fogarty was carried to the altar of St Nicholas Church in Solohead, Co Tipperary by her distraught father, Paul.

The coffin was gently placed before the altar where Mr Fogarty was comforted by Parish Priest Fr John Morris before 11.30am Mass.

Chloe's mother, Louise, then paid an emotional tribute to her little girl saying she had to go because "Heaven needed a very special angel."

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"Chloe, our beautiful darling angel," she said.

"I cannot believe we are all here today - almost two years ago Paul and I were married here.

"Just a few months ago we celebrated your christening. We were the happiest parents when you came along on September 30.

"This day, eight months ago, you were on your way into this world.

"You would be eight months old tomorrow.

"Chloe you switched on a happiness in us that we never knew we had.

"You were the most precious person in our lives - our beautiful, happy Chloe.

"You always had a smile on your face for everyone you met.

"You knew how to put a smile on everyone else's face too.

"We loved you so much and you had so much love to give.

"We never took any day for granted with you - each day was bright with you in it," she said.

Chloe was discovered unresponsive state in a parked car in Dundrum, Co Tipperary shortly after 1pm last Thursday.

Despite being rushed by air ambulance to University Hospital Limerick (UHL), doctors were unable to save the infant.

Thursday was the hottest day of the summer so far in Ireland.

Almost 500 mourners packed St Nicholas' Church today for a funeral which Fr Morris said was one of the saddest in the church's 150 year history.

"Sometimes there are no words. Tears are the most eloquent," he said.

The Offertory Gifts included Chloe's two favourite teddies, a book of nursery rhymes and a combined Tipperary-Limerick jersey in tribute to where the little girl hailed from.

The mourners were led by Chloe's parents, Paul and Louise, her grandparents Helen and Christy McInerney as well Mai and Joe Fogarty.

Also present were colleagues of Mr Fogarty from O'Dwyer Steel, work friends of Mrs Fogarty, members of Kilfeacle-Golden GAA club where Mr Fogarty plays hurling and members of Tipperary community associations.

Gardai are preparing a file for the coroner on Chloe's tragic death.

The incident is being treated as a tragic accident.
'Take a Stand' to save Hellfrie and Massy's Woods.

Hundreds of protesters marched to Dublin's Hellfire Club to protest against the proposed 19m tourist development of the site.

Plans put forward by Dublin County Council include a visitor centre, restaurant, cafe and large car park.

The council hopes the development will attract up to 300,000 visitors a year.

However, more than 250 protesters turned out as part of the "Save the Hellfire" campaign.

"There is a huge groundswell of people who are against this development," said organiser Elizabeth Davidson.

"They don't want this beautiful environment spoiled in favour of commercial development.

"People come up here to relax, clear their head, walk the dog and bring their family out for a lovely free day and they don't want to see it commercialised."

Protesters fear the environment will not be able to sustain the visitor numbers envisaged by the council.

"This delicate environment will not tolerate 300,000 people visiting it," said Ms Davidson.

"However, it will tolerate the people who visit it at the moment, who come in their hundreds at the weekend, the people of Dublin.

"Why should we be penalised? Come and walk, absolutely, but don't turn it into a commercial centre."

Among the speakers at the event was TD Richard Boyd Barrett and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan.
Millennial breakfast burger: Between an avocado burger bun is whipped feta, onion, tomato, rashers (though millennials can call it bacon) and a soft-fried egg to knit it all together

In the past 10 years, avocados have come further than any fruit would have dared to dream. They have become the symbol, the spirit animal, the rallying cry of a generation that rents and brunches, more commonly known by that grim moniker of millennials.

Millennials and avocados have shared a trajectory - from the excited innocence of new possibilities to self-parody and hatred - their fates inextricably linked.

In the beginning, there was avocado toast. It was on breakfast menus and it was good. A new cohort of young people reinvented brunch. These whippersnappers liked to think of the places they ate as being independent - and hipster cafes exploded, trailing avocado wherever they went.

Their popularity on groovy breakfast menus displayed rising awareness of the ethical implications of eating meat. Remember, this was a generation obsessed with health and food. It was a generation of internet natives who prided themselves on their global outlook. Avocados were exotic and green: just how its consumers wished to be themselves.

Innocent times.

We are now at peak avo/peak millennial; it started with newspaper reports which detailed the alarming rise of hospital admissions for "avocado hand": gashed palms from trying to slice the beasts. People called for warning stickers on the fruit. Tutorials went online overnight. Martha Stewart got involved. We were paying for our guacamole with a blood sacrifice.

Then an Australian millionaire publicly suggested that perhaps more millennials could buy houses if they weren't spending all their money on avocado toast and lattes.

This is ridiculous. No 20-something would drink a latte. Lattes are for babies.

Twitter was immediately filled with the plaintive voices of 32-year-olds who didn't eat avocados and still didn't own a house. Some nerds did the maths and figured out it would take literally hundreds of years of forgoing daily avo-toasts to pay for a property.

In an interview, Leo Varadkar joked that the smashed avocado he was eating on the campaign trail was the reason he only owned an apartment. "I am having the avocado mash," he announced. (Politics for: "I am relevant. Please.")

Then, last week, avolattes became A Thing. This, obviously, is coffee served in a hollowed-out avocado half - why they didn't call it a javacado is beyond me.

It all started as a joke, but we millennials ruined it, like we ruin everything. We actually wanted to buy them - for a laugh. So coffee shops sold them to us. And thus the decline of my generation, and the avocado, snowballed.

This is it. Avolattes are our entire problem: we think we're sooooo funny with our ironic selfies and knowing emojis. But this is who we are now: a homeless generation parodying ourselves into oblivion.

The avocado has become the lens through which we see our lives: it encapsulates our social and economic position. We have sympathy for it because in many ways we are not that different. Strange, unappealing and frivolous to older generations, millennials and avocados are destroying the world.

Cultivation of the fruit is also fuelling deforestation, environmental degradation, while in Mexico the avo trade is increasingly controlled by a drug cartel.

The avocado is a mysterious green enigma - we all know the agony and ecstasy of slicing into its yielding flesh to discover whether it's ready to be eaten or whether its time has passed. The only way to find out is to take a chance.

Millennials are not so different. Though we all look the same, inside many of us are blackened, rotting and no good to anyone. Employers and cooks can both wonder: "Do I have one of the good ones? Is it worth a punt?"

We know we'll never be able to afford to buy a house so we console ourselves with avo-toast at brunch and salt it with our tears. It may be overpriced, but it won't add up to a deposit.

Let us eat avocado. Let us invent horrible caffeinated joke-beverages so we have an excuse to endlessly theorise about ourselves. But self-awareness isn't going to save us. We're folding in on ourselves. The joke has gone too far and we're the only ones laughing. Help.
Alcohol is behind a spike in people presenting to A and E with self-harm injuries on public holidays, with St Patrick's Day showing the highest numbers of hospitalisations, new research suggests.

The trend has been described as the paradox of public holidays, referring to the unexpected increase in self-harm on days generally associated with celebration.

According to a study, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, alcohol consumption on these days may be a linked factor.

More than 100,000 self-harm cases between 2007 and 2015 were examined, with researchers finding that an average of 32 people presented to hospital with self-inflicted injuries on public holidays. This is compared to an average of 27 people on normal days.

St Patricks Day saw the highest number of presentations on average (44), closely followed by New Years day (41).

Alcohol was in the system of 43pc of people presenting on public holidays, compared to 38pc on other days. It was present in 46pc of cases on St Patricks Day.

The increased risk of alcohol being present in self-harm presentations on public holidays that we found may suggest that there are more impulsive and aggressive self-harm acts occurring on these days the report said.

The findings are part of a study carried out by the National Suicide Research Foundation and the departments of Epidemiology and Public Health and Obstetrics and Gynaecology at UCC.

The studys lead researcher, Eve Griffin, said strategies to target alcohol consumption may be important in reducing risk of suicidal behaviour, particularly those targeting specific periods and groups.

The results mirror data collated by Samaritans Ireland, who say that bank holidays are the busiest times for them.

Samaritans Ireland provides a 24-hour helpline for people suffering from mental health difficulties or going through distress and, according to an impact report published last year, receives the highest volume of calls during public holidays.

The report states that the average number of calls received on a Bank Holiday Monday is 1,835, compared to 1,705 on a normal Monday.

Rachel Wright, Policy and Communications manager for Samaritans, believes this may occur for a number of reasons.

Speaking to Independent.ie, she said: Theres a few different things that happen around a Bank Holiday. People might have more time out of their routine and something we notice is that loneliness and isolation are huge issues for people that are struggling.

So, sometimes over a bank holiday weekend people arent having as much interaction as they do over the week so it can be a really difficult time for them.

Similar to the reports findings, Ms Wright said that alcohol can have a significant impact.

She said: We also know that a huge amount of people who attempt suicide have been drinking. Its likely that there is more drinking over a bank holiday weekend and that can really affect someone's mood, can lower their inhibitions and can make them more likely to act on suicidal thoughts or feelings they may have.

Its a huge factor. It can be quite difficult, culturally in Ireland to try to socialise without alcohol, so its maybe just for people to be really conscious of how thats likely to make them feel.

With the bank holiday weekend approaching, Ms Wright encouraged people to reach out to friends or family if they are struggling, or to contact the Samaritans by way of their helpline or text service.

If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article you can contact:
Gardai and members of the 'Sloggers to Joggers' group form a gaurad of honour as the hearse leaves after the funeral of Sandra O'Brien at St Finian's Church in Swords, Dublin. Picture credit; Damien Eagers 25/5/2017

The HSE has confirmed that more than 50 people have fallen ill after an outbreak of food poisoning due to Salmonella in North Dublin.

The statement comes a week after Sandra OBrien, who was in her 50s, died from suspected food poisoning at a First Communion party.

The Health Service Executive confirmed that the outbreak has affected "multiple groups".

The HSE is liaising with the Food Safety Authority of Ireland and an Outbreak Control Team has been formed and an investigation is ongoing.

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The statement continues: "The HSE is aware of more than 50 people (including 4 children) ill from a number of separate groups of family parties supplied by a North Dublin food business on Saturday 13th May and Sunday 14th May.

"To date five people were admitted to hospital and 16 of those ill have been confirmed as Salmonella."

The first cases of food poisoning were notified to the HSE on Thursday May 18. The statement confirms that a north Dublin food business was identified as the common link in this outbreak.

"The investigation is focused on this business. A Closure Order was served on the food business on Friday 19th May."

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The HSE say the investigation is ongoing and includes further examination of the food business operation and food served and assessment of the information from ill and well persons who consumed food.

"Members of the public should contact their GP if they have any concerns regarding their health. People who think they may be ill as a result of this outbreak may also contact the HSEs Environmental Health Service or Department of Public Health in Dublin to assist in the investigation of this outbreak."

Last week the Food Safety Authority confirmed it has placed the closure order on the kitchen and associate storage facilities of O'Dwyer's pub, Strand Road, Portmarnock which is occupied by catering company Flanreil Food Services Ltd.

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"The investigation is in its early stages and while it is currently focusing on a catering company, Flanreil Food Services Ltd, the source and cause of the outbreak has not yet been identified," said a Food Safety Authority spokesperson.

Concerned members of the public are asked to To contact the HSE Environmental Health Service please phone 01-8976140 during office hours(or email cdu@hse.ie with your name and telephone number)

To contact the HSE Department of Public Health please phone 01-6352145, during office hours.
A second Cabinet minister has said the Government cannot express confidence in the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE) following the dramatic collapse of the Sean FitzPatrick trial.

As the Cabinet prepares to discuss the fallout from the debacle, Health Minister Simon Harris said the Government must now look at the setting up of a new anti-corruption agency.

Mr Harris said the Government should have backed a previous anti-corruption bill tabled by the Social Democrats.

But he insisted such a move would not have prevented the collapse of the trial involving the former chairman of the Anglo Irish Bank.

"The question is how does the ODCE interact with the courts, and with the Director of Public Prosecutions?

"I cannot, and the Government cannot, express confidence in this office," Mr Harris told RTE's 'The Week in Politics'.

His remarks came after Tanaiste and Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald said the ODCE is "clearly not fit for purpose".

Ms Fitzgerald said there is an "absolute sense of outrage from the public over the lack of accountability".

Meanwhile, new documents released under the Freedom of Information Act have shown staff shortages in the ODCE.

Letters published yesterday show that the most senior Garda post, a detective inspector role, has remained vacant for eight months.

In one letter, ODCE boss Ian Drennan described the vacancy as "a very serious development" given the agency was facing into "a lengthy and complex trial".

Speaking on RTE's 'This Week' programme, Labour Party leader Brendan Howlin said a US-style anti-fraud agency is now required

"We need an organisation like the SEC, Securities and Exchange Commission, in the US that is genuinely feared by those who would trespass against company law."

Mr Howlin also criticised vacancies in the agency.

"Out of 13,000 gardai in the country, the notion that you couldn't find three to give to the ODCE is not credible," Mr Howlin said.
The two ministers vying to be Taoiseach have slated each other's election campaigns, with Simon Coveney accusing Leo Varadkar of trying to buy his way to power.

As the Fine Gael hustings ended on a bitter note, Mr Varadkar said his rival was creating "a dishonest" portrayal of his own commitment to compassionate policies.

Both candidates used the fourth and final leadership debate in Co Cork, attended by more than 800 party members and politicians, to deliver gloves-off performances.

Mr Varadkar described the policy document produced by the Housing Minister during the contest as "something vague" which he could use to cover the fact he is not willing to make big decisions.

In response Mr Coveney said he want to deal with "five or six big issues that I actually want to change Ireland with as a Taoiseach".

"What Leo is doing is committing to spending money that we don't have yet."

Mr Coveney said he wanted to plan the country's future and then look at the funding priorities.

"Leo couldn't wait for that because there was an election under way," he said.

The ministers again clashed over the message the party should carry into future elections. "I have heard a lot of talk about compassion from Simon over the past week. I agree with most of what he has said," Mr Varadkar said.

"What I cannot agree with is what he has tried to say about me and I want to counter that here tonight.

"Fine Gael has enough enemies... we have enough of that without saying that about each other. In my view it is divisive, it is dishonest and it is not a good way to seek a mandate."

Mr Coveney said he wasn't questioning anybody's compassion but did question the direction in which Mr Varadkar wants to take Fine Gael.

Mr Varadkar also claimed that if Fine Gael committed itself to "motherhood and apple pie" policies only, we would end up like Greece.

Earlier, Mr Coveney attacked Mr Varadkar's policy approach as effectively leaving behind portions of Irish society.

"You need to ask the question - not who has the greatest list of goodies, [but] who is going to shine the light for this party and this country?" he said.

"How do we shine a light through Fine Gael thinking so we can give direction to the country?"

Passionate

Mr Coveney said that, unlike Mr Varadkar, he offers a passionate vision for rebuilding Irish society for the 21st century.

"That is what marks us out [in Fine Gael] - left-wing parties want to create a dependency culture. I want to represent an enabling culture.

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"We need to be a party about building a fairer, stronger society."

Mr Varadkar was booed by the audience when he criticised Mr Coveney for once again expressing admiration of Green Party leader Eamon Ryan and his policies.

In turn, he criticised the Cork TD for the lack of specific policy details in his leadership platform.

"If you're not going to answer those questions [about tax cuts, funding priorities] you don't have a philosophy, you just have a passionate speech."

Mr Varadkar said he offered a new social contract to Irish people - with no one paying more than 50 cent in the euro in tax and merging the Universal Social Charge with PRSI to offer people enhanced services and benefits.

Both also clashed over Local Property Tax (LPT), with Mr Coveney saying Mr Varadkar's plan to allow the tax remain within the county it is raised from as being "irresponsible."

Mr Varadkar countered: "It is another deliberate misrepresentation of my policies."

The debate: in quotes

Simon Coveney

"We are the only party in Ireland that can be trusted with the economy - let no one rewrite history in that regard."

"You need to ask the question - not who has the greatest list of goodies, [But] who is going to shine the light for this party and this country? How do we shine a light through Fine Gael thinking so we can give direction to the country?"

"This time last week I believed I could win this contest and there were a small group of people around me who thought I could. But the people around me now believe there is a mood of change in Fine Gael."

"I tweeted a message that being an underdog means nothing if you believe in yourself. That's what we have seen in my campaign for the past week."

Leo Varadkar

"It is great to be here in Cork - I have always enjoyed away games the most."

"We are not Simon versus Leo, Cork versus Dublin, or rural versus urban."

"Our second ambition is hope and ambition, equality of opportunity. We don't believe in equality of outcome, but everyone should have the equal chance to do the best they can. We are also the party of law and order and of security."

"Let nobody say our party is elitist."

"I have heard a lot of talk about compassion from Simon over the past week. I agree with most of what he has said. What I cannot agree with is what he has tried to say about me and I want to counter that here tonight. I have served in ministries and roles where I have been able to make a real difference."

"If we were about motherhood and apple pie we would be Greece."

Fine Gael parliamentary party endorsements for leader

The Fine Gael parliamentary party makes up 65pc of the total electorate.

That makes each of the 73 members' votes worth 0.9pc of the total ballot.

Of the remaining electorate, 230 party councillors account for 10pc, while the remaining 25pc is rank and file members.

Leo Varadkar Simon Coveney Total: 45 Total: 19 Ministers: 17 Ministers: 5 TDs: 16 TDs: 5 Senators: 11 Senators: 8 MEPs: 1 MEPs: 1 Richard Bruton -Minister Simon Harris - Minister Frances Fitzgerald - Minister Damien English - Minister Michael Ring - Minister Dara Murphy - Minister Eoghan Murphy - Minister David Stanton - Minister Sean Kyne - Minister Marcella Corcoran Kennedy - Minister Joe McHugh - Minister Kate O'Connell - TD Helen McEntee - Minister Maria Bailey - TD Charlie Flanagan - Minister Sean Barrett TD Paul Kehoe -Minister Hildegard Naughton - TD Patrick O'Donovan - Minister Peter Fitzpatrick - TD Regina Doherty - Minister Tim Lombard - Senator Mary Mitchell O'Connor - Minister Jerry Buttimer - Senator Paschal Donohoe - Minister Paudie Coffey - Senator Heather Humphreys - Minister James Reilly - Senator Pat Breen - Minister Colm Burke - Senator Catherine Byrne - Minister John O'Mahony - Senator Andrew Doyle - Minister Paul Coghlan - Senator John Paul Phelan - TD Gabrielle McFadden - Senator Noel Rock - TD Deirdre Clune - MEP Tony McLoughlin - TD Alan Farrell - TD Michael D'Arcy - TD Tom Neville - TD Josepha Madigan - TD Pat Deering - TD Jim Daly - TD Brendan Griffin - TD Ciaran Cannon - TD Colm Brophy - TD Peter Burke - TD Fergus O'Dowd - TD John Deasy - TD Joe Carey - TD Neale Richmond - Senator Catherine Noone - Senator Paddy Burke - Senator Martin Conway - Senator Michelle Mulherin - Senator Maura Hopkins - Senator Ray Butler - Senator Frank Feighan - Senator Maria Byrne - Senator Joe O'Reilly - Senator Kieran O'Donnell - Senator Brian Hayes - MEP

Undeclared Enda Kenny - Outgoing Party Leader * Martin Heydon - Party Chairman * Michael Noonan - Minister Michael Creed - Minister Bernard Durkan - TD Sean Kelly - MEP Mairead McGuinness MEP

* Outgoing leader Enda Kenny and party chairman Martin Heydon will not make an endorsement
Leo Varadkar turned down an offer from Taoiseach Enda Kenny to remain in the Department of Health, the Irish Independent has learned.

Mr Kenny has told colleagues privately that he asked the leadership frontrunner to continue on as health minister but he refused.

This forced the Taoiseach to offer the job to Simon Harris, who was initially set to take charge of the Department of Social Protection.

The news that Mr Varadkar wanted out of health has been confirmed by senior Government figures, including ministers close to Mr Kenny.

But it comes after Mr Varadkar last week told the first of the Fine Gael leadership hustings that he "had unfinished business in health".

The comment prompted his rival in the leadership battle, Simon Coveney, to reply: "If I have the privilege of being Taoiseach, I will remember that Leo has unfinished business in health."

Mr Varadkar was asked yesterday why he turned down the opportunity to remain in health.

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He said he did not wish to comment on a private meeting with the Taoiseach, which took place amid the Cabinet reshuffle on May 6 last year.

"We had a discussion about that when the new Government was formed and, I suppose, the discussion was private, and I wouldn't like to divulge too much of it," Mr Varadkar told the Irish Independent.

"But I guess it would be fair to say that I had a particular view what would be required to be done in health. And I still have very strong views on it. But I suppose it was a conversation that is one, perhaps, that is private."

Last night, a spokesman for Mr Kenny said he would "never comment on a private conversation" with one of his ministers.

Mr Varadkar has already faced accusations from members of the Coveney camp that he is not a team player.

One minister last night accused Mr Varadkar of turning down the offer to remain in health so that he could focus on building his leadership campaign. "Leo said he has 'unfinished business in health'. Then why didn't he tell the Taoiseach he wanted to remain there?" said the minister.

Budget

Mr Kenny is understood to have been surprised by Mr Varadkar's refusal to accept the offer of health. During the private conversation, which lasted about 10 minutes, Mr Varadkar is understood to have said that health requires an extra billion euro in its budget. This is equivalent to the sum secured by Mr Harris when he took over.

Meanwhile, Mr Varadkar has revealed controversial plans to end the practice of private patients receiving preferential treatment in public hospitals.

The Dublin West TD told Fine Gael members in Galway that introducing the ban would cost almost 700m per year.

"Private health insurance should be for private hospitals and private clinics," Mr Varadkar said. "Hospitals get a lot of money from private health insurers."

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Mr Varadkar said he was promising "leadership from the Taoiseach's office" on health and said he understood the health service.

The proposal to end queue jumping by private patients in public hospitals has also been backed by the all-party Oireachtas committee on the future of healthcare.

However, a senior Government source last night warned that any such move would have to be done over a number of years, otherwise "it will leave a black hole of almost 700m in the public health system".

Mr Varadkar has said, however, that he does not agree with proposals by some members of the committee to remove tax relief on health insurance payments.

Fine Gael parliamentary party endorsements for leader

The Fine Gael parliamentary party makes up 65pc of the total electorate.

That makes each of the 73 members' votes worth 0.9pc of the total ballot.

Of the remaining electorate, 230 party councillors account for 10pc, while the remaining 25pc is rank and file members.

Leo Varadkar Simon Coveney Total: 45 Total: 19 Ministers: 17 Ministers: 5 TDs: 16 TDs: 5 Senators: 11 Senators: 8 MEPs: 1 MEPs: 1 Richard Bruton -Minister Simon Harris - Minister Frances Fitzgerald - Minister Damien English - Minister Michael Ring - Minister Dara Murphy - Minister Eoghan Murphy - Minister David Stanton - Minister Sean Kyne - Minister Marcella Corcoran Kennedy - Minister Joe McHugh - Minister Kate O'Connell - TD Helen McEntee - Minister Maria Bailey - TD Charlie Flanagan - Minister Sean Barrett TD Paul Kehoe -Minister Hildegard Naughton - TD Patrick O'Donovan - Minister Peter Fitzpatrick - TD Regina Doherty - Minister Tim Lombard - Senator Mary Mitchell O'Connor - Minister Jerry Buttimer - Senator Paschal Donohoe - Minister Paudie Coffey - Senator Heather Humphreys - Minister James Reilly - Senator Pat Breen - Minister Colm Burke - Senator Catherine Byrne - Minister John O'Mahony - Senator Andrew Doyle - Minister Paul Coghlan - Senator John Paul Phelan - TD Gabrielle McFadden - Senator Noel Rock - TD Deirdre Clune - MEP Tony McLoughlin - TD Alan Farrell - TD Michael D'Arcy - TD Tom Neville - TD Josepha Madigan - TD Pat Deering - TD Jim Daly - TD Brendan Griffin - TD Ciaran Cannon - TD Colm Brophy - TD Peter Burke - TD Fergus O'Dowd - TD John Deasy - TD Joe Carey - TD Neale Richmond - Senator Catherine Noone - Senator Paddy Burke - Senator Martin Conway - Senator Michelle Mulherin - Senator Maura Hopkins - Senator Ray Butler - Senator Frank Feighan - Senator Maria Byrne - Senator Joe O'Reilly - Senator Kieran O'Donnell - Senator Brian Hayes - MEP

Undeclared Enda Kenny - Outgoing Party Leader * Martin Heydon - Party Chairman * Michael Noonan - Minister Michael Creed - Minister Bernard Durkan - TD Sean Kelly - MEP Mairead McGuinness MEP

* Outgoing leader Enda Kenny and party chairman Martin Heydon will not make an endorsement
Facebook chief, Sheryl Sandberg, personally lobbied the Taoiseach at one-to-one meetings and in correspondence, on who would be appointed as Irelands next Data Protection Commissioner.

Given extraordinary access to the Taoiseach, Ms Sandberg lobbied Enda Kenny personally at meetings in Davos and California, and in subsequent correspondence, trying to influence his appointment of a successor to Billy Hawkes, who was due to retire from the role of Data Protection Commissioner.

Ms Sandberg doesnt specifically name any preferences she has for potential successors in the documentation. She makes clear, however, that Facebook is interested in who the appointment will be, and that whoever is appointed is a strong candidate as Mr Hawkes was a hard act to follow.

She says in the documentation that she hopes whoever is appointed to the position will be able to collaborate with Facebook and provide leadership on the data protection issue in Europe.

Documents released to the Irish Independent under the Freedom of Information Act, reveal how over a period of 11 months, Ms Sandberg used her privileged access to the Taoiseach to lobby him on two issues of critical interest to Facebook: taxation and data protection, specifically who would replace Mr Hawkes.

The correspondence between the Taoiseach, his officials and Ms Sandberg takes place in 2014 as Facebook is fighting two battles on two continents: one against the IRS in the United States, which has found that Facebooks Irish operations present a possible $5billion tax liability; and the other fight against allegations that Facebook Ireland handed users private data to US spies.

The Irish Data Protection Commissioner had played a crucial role in Facebooks defence of the US spying claims. Mr Hawkes had refused to investigate the claims on legal grounds. However, at the time of the lobbying of Enda Kenny by Ms Sandberg, these grounds were being appealed to the Irish High Court, and the Court of Justice of the European Union was going to be asked to rule on the matter.

Ms Sandberg was anxious to ensure that Mr Hawkes successor as Data Protection Commissioner would be as strong as Mr Hawkes had been.

The documents released under the Freedom of Information Act cover 11 months of correspondence between the Taoiseach, his officials and Sheryl Sandberg.

Beginning on January 3 2014, the Taoiseachs officials set up a one-to-one meeting between the Taoiseach and Ms Sandberg in meeting room ME22 at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The meeting was to take place at 11am sharp on January 23. The correspondence reveals that Ms Sandberg sets the time of the meeting and confines it to 15 minutes because of her tight schedule.

At the meeting, Ms Sandberg lobbies Mr Kenny on taxation and on the spies issue, specifically advancing Facebooks position in relation to proposed European Data Protection regulations. Later that evening Ms Sandberg dropped by an IDA dinner at Davos.

Two days after the Davos meeting Ms Sandberg writes to Mr Kenny, and is sure to warn how changes to taxation or privacy laws might lead Facebook to consider different options for future investment and growth in Europe.

The email reads:

I also want to commend you once again for your leadership during your Presidency of the EU. You made enormous progress. When it came to the European Data Protection Regulation, you and your staff really internalised our concerns and were able to present them in a reasonable way, which has had a positive impact ...We hope we can rely on you for your continued leadership on this regulation since we still have more work to do here. Along the same lines, I was pleased to hear that you are so involved in the OECD working group process on tax reform. These discussions will be very complicated and important, and we hope to be helpful to you identifying the implications with different options for future investment and growth in Europe. We are keen to collaborate with your office on this, just as we have on the DPR.

After the one-to-one meeting in Davos, Facebooks Senior Policy team, comprising 15 executives from Washington, California, Dublin, and across Europe, requested a personal meeting with the Taoiseach in Government Buildings on February 6 2014.

Mr Kenny did not meet the delegation but instead sent his special adviser, Paul OBrien, the Secretary General to the Government, Martin Fraser, and two of the Taoiseachs experienced assistant secretaries with responsibility for international economic matters, Lorcan Fullam and John Callinan.

After this high-powered delegation, the Taoiseach was invited to Facebooks Menlo Park headquarters in the United States, in June 2014, where he had a meeting with Sheryl Sandberg, which was scheduled to last for precisely 43 minutes.

They discussed the need for one tax regulator in the EU, and also the issue of who would replace Billy Hawkes as Data Protection Commissioner. Mr Hawkes was to retire on August 31 that year.

A subsequent letter to the Taoiseach in June 2014 specifically mentions Billy Hawkes and the need for his replacement to be a strong candidate. While Mr Hawkess independence and integrity are undisputed, there is no doubt that Facebook would have been relieved in 2013, when Mr Hawkes refused to investigate claims that Facebook Ireland had transferred data to the States for examination by the NSA.

Mr Hawkes had refused the investigation on the legal grounds that Facebook was entitled to send data from the EU to the US under EU Commission Safe Harbour provisions. However, at the time when Ms Sandberg was being granted personal access to the Taoiseach, a subsequent judicial review in the Irish High Court had been initiated, which again threatened Facebooks bottom line.

Two days after this June 2014 meeting, Ms Sandberg wrote to the Taoiseach and invited him to open Facebooks new Nama-funded headquarters in Silicon Docks in November that year.

The letter was used to again lobby the Taoiseach on taxation and Data protection, and to warn about the consequences of disappointing Facebook, which would involve the company having to revisit its investment strategies for the EU.

We agree with you that to have a true Single Market approach, it is important to have one regulator, whether on privacy or tax, to enable businesses and benefit consumers across the EU. Without this, the risk is that companies will revisit their investment strategies for the EU market. We hope you will continue to play a leadership role on the Data Protection regulation since there is still more work to do there.

Her letter then switches to a pointed reference to Billy Hawkes departing as Data Protection Commissioner in Ireland and the importance of appointing someone Facebook would approve of in his place.

Read More

It was helpful to hear how you are focused on finding a strong successor to Billy Hawkes, as Data Protection Commissioner for Ireland. Billy will be a hard act to follow and we are hopeful that his successor will be someone who will establish a collaborative working relationship with companies like ours and be able to lead on the important issue of data protection compliance in Europe.

By November 2014, when Enda Kenny opened Facebooks new NAMA-funded offices in Dublins Silicon Docks, the Taoiseach had created a new junior ministry - a Minister of State with responsibility for Data Protection, within The Taoiseachs own department.

He mentions this in his closing remarks to Facebook executives: On a very serious note, one of the key challenges going forward for companies such as yours, is Data Protection .I believe that it is of the utmost importance to work closely with out new Data Protection Commissioner. As a measure of the seriousness with which we take this issue, I have recently appointed a new Minister of State for Data Protection - Dara Murphy - within my own Department, as we are very conscious that we need to be fully on top of all aspects of Data Protection.

In this area, Irelands ability to build and maintain good relationships at EU and international fora on Data Protection is paramount for the continued growth of this exciting new area of opportunity in Ireland and we are determined to address all the complex issues which these challenges raise. 

By June the following year the government had increased the funding for the Data Protection Commissioner, according to a memo prepared after a meeting between then Minister for Enterprise Jobs and Innovation, Richard Bruton, and senior Facebook executives who had travelled to Ireland to discuss building a 200m Data Centre in Clonee, County Meath on June 3 2015.

Minister Bruton outlined the economic work of the Government over recent years, the appointment of a Minister of State for Data Protection, the fact that we work closely with the EU on Data issues and that we recently strengthened the office of the Data Protection Commissioner by allocating additional resources," the document reads.

Investigation

In October 2015, the European Court of Justice declared that the Safe Harbour provisions were invalid - a move which led to Hawkes successor, Helen Dixon agreeing to investigate the claims against Facebook Ireland.

Ms Dixon reopened the investigation, and took a case asking the Irish High Court to refer to the Court of Justice of the European Union the question of whether so-called standard contractual clauses (SCCs) used by Facebook and others to transfer data from the EU to the US, are valid. After 20 days of evidence, judgment in the case was reserved in the Irish High Court in March 2017. A decision is still awaited.

Meanwhile, the EU has adopted a new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) . It comes into force in May 2018 after a two-year transition period. It extends the scope of the EU data protection law to all foreign companies processing data of EU residents. It harmonises data protection regulations throughout the EU, with severe penalties of up to 4pc of worldwide turnover.

According to the European Commission, personal data is any information relating to an individual, whether it relates to his or her private, professional or public life. It can be anything from a name, a home address, a photo, an email address, bank details, posts on social networking websites, medical information or a computers IP address.

Facebook appears to have won some concessions. The regulation does not apply to the processing of personal data for national security activities or law enforcement. However, the data protection reform package includes a separate Data Protection Directive for the police and criminal justice sector that provides robust rules on personal data exchanges at national, European and international level.

Ms Sandberg will also have been pleased to note that under the new regulation, there is to be a one-stop-shop for privacy complaints, where businesses deal with the Data Commissioner in the country of their main establishment.

In this case, this means Facebook will be dealing with Ms Dixon, the former companys registrar and civil servant who is now Irelands Data Protection Commissioner.
Notes and emails between Sheryl Sandberg and Enda Kenny reveal how the Taoiseach forged a bond with perhaps the worlds most powerful business woman.

There is a private note exchanged after the World Economic Forum in Davos, which hints that the pair's brief meeting went well.

In this exchange, U2 frontman Bono garners a mention in the dispatches.

On February 14, 2014 Sheryl Sandberg wrote Mr Kenny the following note:

Dear Taoiseach

It was great to see you again in Davos. I appreciated the chance to meet with you privately, as well as the opportunity to come by the IDA dinner. You have a real champion in Bono and equally so with me and Facebook. I hope it came through how much we value our relationship with you and Ireland. I remain grateful for the partnership that weve been able to establish with you and your staff. Ireland has been a wonderful home for Facebook and your innovation agenda has enabled us to continue building our Irish operations, a trend that we hope to carry on well into the future.

I also want to commend you once again for your leadership during your Presidency of the EU. You made enormous progress. When it came to the European Data Protection Regulation, you and your staff really internalised our concerns and were able to present them in a reasonable way, which has had a positive impact on both the process and work product. We hope we can rely on you for your continued leadership on this regulation since we still have more work to do here. Along the same lines, I was pleased to heard that you re so involved in the OECD working group process on tax reform. These discussions will be very complicated and important, and we hope to be helpful to you identifying the implications with different options for future investment and growth in Europe. We are keen to collaborate with your office on this, just as we have on the DPR.

As I said at our meeting, I would be thrilled to host you at Facebook Headquarters in Menlo Park any time, and would be even more thrilled if you were available

two redacted lines.

Please let me know when you are planning to come to the US and your schedule might permit a stop in California.

It takes 24 days for the Taoiseach to reply to Sheryl Sandbergs personal note:

Dear Redacted

It was a pleasure to meet you once again at the World Economic Forum in Davos and I was delighted that you came along later that evening to the dinner organised by the IDA. I greatly appreciate your positive comments regarding the Governments innovation agenda which has helped to facilitate the integration of your operations in Ireland.

I welcome these opportunities to engage with you and your colleagues to discuss the further development of Facebook in Ireland. I know that senior officials from my Department had a very constructive meeting with redacted and your policy team recently and that they expanded on our discussions held in Davos particularly in relation to data protection and the international tax reform agenda. We look forward to continuing this dialogue at future encounters.

With warm and personal regards

Your sincerely

Enda Kenny

Taoiseach

The emails are part of an eleventh-month correspondence chain provided to the Irish Independent under Freedom of Information Laws which show that Facebook lobbied the Taoiseach on the issue of taxation and data protection.
Terrified shoppers and their children fled in horror yesterday as a man was murdered in front of his three-year-old son in a crowded supermarket car park.

The killers fired off half a dozen bullets as they gunned down loyalist Colin Horner just a few yards from the doors of Sainsburys Bangor store.

Just yards away, panic erupted in the massive Sainsburys store as an alert was sounded on the tannoy and shoppers fled, leaving their trolleys in the aisles.

Brave first aiders from the Balloo Link store rushed to help the fatally wounded victim, keeping him alive until an ambulance crew arrived.

Sainsburys employee Robson McCracken told the Belfast Telegraph: A car drew up and shot a man in the car park, just outside the store. There was panic in the store, with trolleys abandoned everywhere.

First aiders from Sainsburys kept the victim alive until the ambulance team arrived, he said.

Its believed the killers were not wearing masks or balaclavas.

The PSNI confirmed that the 35-year-old had died from his injuries. Police believe there may have been more than 100 witnesses to the shooting.

Superintendent Brian Kee said: Our thoughts are very much with the family of the 35-year-old victim at this extremely difficult time and I condemn this brutal, senseless and horrendous killing.

This cold-blooded murder was carried out in broad daylight in front of families who were out enjoying this Bank Holiday weekend.

The recklessness of this murder is all too evident. It is beyond belief that the gunman shot the victim when he was out with his son.

This young boy witnessed everything and he will undoubtedly carry that memory for the rest of his life. We are very lucky that we are not also dealing with the death of this child today.

The gunman also showed total disregard for the safety of the public, including other children, who were in the car park at the time of the attack.

It is understood Mr Horner was a friend of former South East Antrim UDA boss Geordie Gilmore, who was murdered in Carrickfergus in March.

Mr Gilmores son, George Jnr, posted a photo of Mr Horner on Facebook with the message: RIP big mate.

Last night, the PSNI carried out a series of raids on premises in Carrickfergus in the wake of the murder.

Condemnation of the murder was led by Secretary of State James Brokenshire.

The community in Bangor and all those involved will understandably be deeply shocked by this horrendous murder, he said.

To shoot someone in a busy supermarket car park in sight of children and shoppers shows a brutality and recklessness that will not be tolerated.

Ards and North Down Mayor Deborah Girvan described the murder as a callous and despicable act of violence. To blatantly walk up to someone and shoot bullets into them in broad daylight, in a busy public area, in front of children, families and people going about their business, is absolutely shocking and cowardly, she added.

Stormont Green Party MLA Steven Agnew, who represents North Down, said: Its very shocking that this took place in broad daylight on a busy shopping day, with children and families present. A large number of people will have been shocked by this incident. Anyone who has witnessed or was nearby, undoubtedly, this will live long in their memory.

Alliance MLA and former Stormont minister Stephen Farry said it had sent shockwaves through Bangor.

This was a brutal incident, made all the more reckless and shocking by the fact it took place in a busy supermarket car park on a Sunday afternoon, he said.

Shoppers going about their regular business could have easily been on the end of this attack.

North Down DUP MLA Gordon Dunne spoke of his shock at news of the murder.

I am very alarmed to hear of this gun attack in a busy shopping complex, he said.

This is a popular retail complex and it has certainly shocked the local community, particularly as there would have been many in the area at the time, including young children, on a Sunday afternoon.

Sinn Fein MLA Chris Hazzard also condemned the Bangor shooting. The South Down Westminster election candidate said: Whoever was behind this shooting wants to drag us back to the past. It will not happen.

Sainsburys said the store would be closed while the PSNI carry out their investigation.
Vicky O'Dwyer may be an obstetrician at Holles Street, but she was still fazed when she went to give her own newborn son, Paddy, a bath. She enlisted the help of her sister Sophie, but alas for poor little Paddy, she wasn't much more clued-in. "We put water and suds in a tub and plopped him in," Sophie recalls. "He started screaming crying and we realised that the water was freezing cold. We totally messed it up, but it was hilarious."

Vicky recalls how Sophie minded Paddy while she and her husband Brian went to a wedding, but the baby started to cry and Sophie didn't know what to do. "She phoned her husband, Ivano," she laughs. "When we popped in between the church and reception, Paddy was in Ivano's arms, smiling and laughing."

The sisters grew up in Dartry and Ballsbridge, and their parents are John and Imelda Gleeson. Vicky was four when Sophie was born. "We got closer as we got older," says Vicky, "and we're really close to our parents. As teenagers, we shared clothes and make-up, and we also used to steal our mum's clothes because she is really stylish." Sophie says she was sporty and Vicky was academic and musical when they were at school.

Their dad worked in commodities, and their mum was as an Aer Lingus attendant before becoming a psychologist. The girls enjoyed some trips to New York as children thanks to their mum's job. Vicky (35) became interested in medicine when their dad had a heart bypass aged 40. She went to UCD to study medicine, and then specialised in obstetrics and gynaecology. Her training took her to hospitals in Dublin, Limerick and Cork, and she is now the maternal medicine fellow at the National Maternity Hospital, where she looks after pregnant women with medical problems.

She is also mum to three children, Patrick (seven), Holly (five) and Jack (20 months). Her husband, Brian O'Dwyer, works in sales and she first met him in sixth year in secondary school. They dated briefly and then got together a few years later.

Sophie studied economics and sociology at UCD and then did a postgrad in event management and PR. She set up her own consultancy, Muse Events, and currently looks after sponsorship for Taste of Dublin. After that is over, she will devote herself fully to The Stork Box, the new enterprise that she has just launched with Vicky.

Sophie (30) is married to Ivano Cafolla, son of well-known personalities Cindy and Ivano. They met at the Oxegen festival and he owns No. 5 bar. They have a daughter Sienna (two) plus Ivano also has a daughter Sophia (seven) from a previous relationship.

The Stork Box specialises in products for mum and baby, including a pre-packed maternity hospital box. The idea came to Vicky because expectant mothers were always asking her what they should take in their hospital bag. She regularly sees people with huge cases full of stuff they don't need or missing things they would have liked.

The sisters have come up with a range of pregnancy and gift boxes, plus hospital boxes containing essentials for both mum and baby during their hospital stay. The Baby Bag contains essentials like clothing, a blanket, nappies and wipes, and the Mum Bag contains toiletries and female hygiene products especially for a new mum.

"We were both working when we were pregnant, and I learned a lot from Vicky about what the actual essentials are," says Sophie. "There are so many lists online, but we wanted to create a service that takes the time and stress out of preparing the maternity hospital bag, while also providing the very best products to help make the hospital stay as comfortable as possible for expectant parents.

There are also a few extra touches to treat new mums, such as magazines and a Just Eat voucher, so they can order their first meal at home when they're too consumed by the new arrival to cook."

In addition to the Maternity Box and Pregnancy Box, there are three gift boxes - the Newborn Stork Box, the Night Night Stork Box, and the Playtime Stork Box. Sophie has also developed her own baby clothing range, Mini Style Addict, including baby vests and babygros.

The girls' dad supported them in establishing the business, and it is already being very well received. Going forward, Vicky will remain working in her hospital job, which she adores, while Sophie will devote herself full-time to the business.

"I will be doing the day-to-day running, but it will be myself and Vicky working on the full plan," says Sophie. "Going forward, we plan to launch our second range of boxes in July and then another range within the clothing side in October."

Vicky says Sophie is amazing at planning and organising, and is the outgoing, bubbly one. She also admires her sense of style. They are best friends as well as sisters and speak every day, and their children play together as they live five minutes apart. They actually lived together during their college years, and got to know each other's friends, and Sophie says that Vicky is more laid-back while she is "bossier".

"Vicky is super smart and determined, and I think it's impressive how she juggles her work life with her own life," she says. "She's a terrible driver though!"

www.thestorkbox.ie
THE Garda press office issues, on a weekly basis, images of people who are reported missing in Ireland. The images are rarely carried in the national media and in most cases the missing person's report is followed within days by a further press release stating the "party concerned" has been located.

This was not the case almost three decades ago. When separated mother-of-two Antoinette Smith disappeared after attending a Slane concert headlined by David Bowie on July 11, 1987, no reports were carried in the national media. Her two daughters, Lisa, aged seven, and Rachel, four, were left frightened and confused and in the care of family.

Autumn and winter passed and there was no sign and no public appeals over the missing 27-year-old, whom friends recall as a fun-loving person and loving mother. Then, on April 3 the following year a family out walking at Glendoo in the Dublin Mountains came across Antoinette's remains. She had been murdered and her body dumped in a bog hole near a pathway used by turf-cutters. Reports at the time stated she had been strangled with her bra and a plastic bag had been placed over her head.

At the time Antoinette disappeared there was barely any co-ordination of missing person files to see if Ireland may have had a serial killer of young women. The Garda "Murder Squad", based in the Phoenix Park, had been disbanded the previous year after a series of newspaper articles alleging heavy-handed tactics. The squad, however, had a remarkable success rate in solving murders. Its detectives had training to the highest international standards.

With the core of trained detectives dispersed, there was no centralised unit that might have taken up Antoinette's case and it was left with the busy Tallaght garda station. Little progress was made. When the body was discovered in April 1988 appeals and a photograph were finally issued. Gardai had accounts from friends of her last night, returning late in the evening from the concert wearing a T-shirt she had bought in Slane. She went to a disco in the Al Mirage club on Parnell Street and had parted with friends who returned home towards north Dublin. They had last seen her heading southwards along O'Connell Street.

A taxi driver told gardai he had picked up a fare just across the Liffey in Westmoreland Street. He said a young woman matching Antoinette's description sat in the front passenger seat and two young men had sat together in the rear. He had taken them to the Yellow House pub in Rathfarnham where, the young men said, they were going to a house party. Rathfarnham is in the shadow of the mountains and Glendoo. They had Dublin accents, he told gardai.

Another man came forward, a hill walker, who had been out early on the morning of July 12 at Cruagh Woods a mile or so from the spot where Antoinette's body had been dumped. He too saw two young men not dressed for hill-walking coming from the direction of Glendoo. He gave a description that did not quite match that given by the taxi driver, who said the two passengers were dressed in dark clothes. The hill walker said the two men he saw were dressed in light-coloured casual clothes. Gardai were unable to match the men. The taxi-driver's account fitted well with the last-known movements of Antoinette as she had left the nightclub at 2.30am and the taxi man had picked up the fare at 3am.

The hill walker recalled seeing the two young men descending from Cruagh Wood just before 6am. But, gardai knew the location was a popular spot for young people holding outdoor parties in good weather, as there had been that day.

The investigation ran cold. Appeals for the young men in the taxi and coming down the mountain to come forward, renewed last week by Antoinette's daughters, were unsuccessful.

There was no apparent inkling that there could be a man, or men, who would have the potential to become a serial homicidal rapist.

Antoinette's story disappeared from the media and was almost forgotten until three years later, when Kerry-born prison officer Patricia Doherty, also a mother of two young children, disappeared from near her home in Bohernabreena in the foothills of the same mountain area on December 23, 1992. Patricia, 30, had been out doing some last-minute Christmas shopping just after teatime when she disappeared in the darkness. Her body was found the following summer when the turf bank she had been dumped in collapsed, exposing her remains, in Glassamucky Breakers  a belt of bogland that stretches across from Glendoo Woods  only a mile or so from where Antoinette was discovered.

In the interim, 31-year-old Patricia O'Toole had been murdered in the same area of

the mountains in September 1991. Her murderer, Army Private Sean Courtney, had been quickly caught and convicted. He and Patricia had had a random encounter in Dublin earlier that evening when she stopped and asked him for directions and he had got into her car and overpowered her. Courtney, now free and starting a new life with a partner and child, had intended to rape Patricia and had instead beaten her to death and didn't conceal her body.

The issue of the disappearance of women in the mountains only came to significant public attention in March 1993 when the American student Annie McCarrick, 26, disappeared on a day trip to the mountains. She was last seen in Johnny Fox's pub in Glencullen, in the company of a young man said to be tall and of athletic build. The US Ambassador Jean Kennedy-Smith took a personal interest in the case and a major investigation was put in place. Detective Inspector Martin Donnellan sought a review of all cases of missing women and in that process a young garda discovered that two disappeared women had both been in relationships with the same man, Michael Bambrick.

As the McCarrick case was under investigation, gardai arrested Bambrick, who admitted he had killed his common-law wife, Patricia McGauley, 43, in September 1991, dismembered her body and buried it in the back garden of his Clondalkin home. He started a relationship with Mary Cummins, 39, the following year. He also strangled her and buried her beside his former partner. Bambrick was cleared of murder and the State accepted a plea of manslaughter for which he was sentenced to 18 years.

As the Nineties wore on there were more disappearances and a growing understanding that Ireland had a serial killer of young women. His focus, it seemed, was on young women on their own in the western reaches of the Dublin and Wicklow mountains.

In November 1995, 21-year-old Jo Jo Dullard disappeared while hitching home at night. She was last seen standing by the roadside at Moone, Co Kildare. In July 1998 Deirdre Jacob, an 18-year-old student, was grabbed near her home in Newbridge, Co Kildare, and never seen again.

Eva Brennan, a quiet 40-year-old single woman, was last seen leaving her parents' home in Terenure, south Dublin, on Sunday, July 25, 1993. Imelda Keenan, 22, disappeared on January 3, 1994, in Waterford city. On August 23, 1996, Fiona Pender, 25, a pregnant former beauty queen, disappeared from Tullamore, Co Offaly.

On February 13, 1997, Ciara Breen, 17, was reported missing from Dundalk, Co Louth, and has never been seen since. In February 1998, Fiona Sinnott, 19, disappeared from her home at Ballycushlane in Wexford.

Gardai set up a major review and search operation, Trace, which ultimately failed to solve the disappearances and its work was passed on to the Garda's Cold Case team, which last week renewed the appeals over Antoinette Smith in a press conference attended by her daughters. They spoke movingly of their loss and pleaded to someone, a relative or associate, who had suspicions about any young man or men who might have murdered their mother.

The gardai and Antoinette's daughters avoided any mention of Larry Murphy, the notorious figure who was caught in February 2000 in the Wicklow mountains above his home in Baltinglass in the process of strangling a young woman he had abducted from Carlow town. After repeatedly raping his victim, Murphy had placed a plastic bag over her head and was in the process of strangling her with her bra when two local hunters came across the scene and recognised him.

Save the report at the time that Antoinette Smith was also strangled with her bra and there was a plastic bag over her head, there was no evidence to link Murphy, now 47, to her or any other of the disappeared women. Murphy was 23 at the time Antoinette disappeared and there was no evidence he had been in Dublin that night. He never made any admissions to gardai when questioned about the other disappeared women.

He is living in Amsterdam such was the public clamour on his release after serving only 10 years for the attempted murder and rape of the young woman in 2000.

But, as one senior detective pointed out last week, since he was arrested in 2000 and imprisoned, no other young women have disappeared in Leinster and none has been a victim of the type of ordeal to which Murphy subjected his last victim.
Aoibhin Garrihy at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Finalists congratulate Jane Mulrooney at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Jane Mulrooney at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Finalists at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Aoife Melia and Eoghan McDermott at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Jane Mulrooney and Stuart Montgomery at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Norah Casey and Shauna O'Halloran at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Jane Mulrooney at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Judge Aoibhin Garrihy with Dr Jane Mulrooney, from Co Galway, who was the winner of the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon 2017 award at the 1,000 Guineas in the Curragh. Photo: Brian McEvoy

After torrential downpours over the weekend, the sun came out for day two of the Tattersalls Irish Guineas Festival.

Actress Aoibhin Garrihy, 2fm presenter Eoghan McDermott and publisher Norah Casey served as celebrity judges to pick the male and female winners of the Killashee 'Irish Tatler' Style Icon competition.

Jane Mulrooney, a doctor from Co Galway, and Stuart Montgomery, from Co Cork, emerged victorious.

Wearing a dress by Roksanda Ilincic, a hat by Martha Lynn, Louis Vuitton shoes and a bag by Hermes, Jane said she was over the moon to have won.

Expand Close Jane Mulrooney at the Killashee Irish Tatler Style Icon competition at The 1000 Guineas at the Curragh Racecourse in Kildare. Picture: Brian McEvoy / Facebook

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"I'm delighted, it's fabulous. The style is amazing and everyone makes an effort," she said.

Jane walked away with a two-night stay for two at the Killashee Hotel, including spa treatments, and a shopping spree worth 500.

Dr Mulrooney, who has a private dermatology clinic, is no stranger to the best dressed lady competition, having previously won at the Punchestown Festival last year wearing the same hat.

"Martha [Lynn] makes very wearable hats, simple structured lines and I think she does them very well," she said.

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Judge Aoibhin Garrihy said she was looking for some "Hollywood glam" on the racecourse.

"A classic look is important as well. Because it's summer and it's sunny, a pop of colour is always nice," she said.

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"As Irish women, I think we tend to cling to the blacks and navys. I'm all about supporting Irish as well, so an Irish milliner is always a plus. People didn't shy away from the bright colours, which was great."

Businesswoman Casey made her first public appearance since she revealed on RTE's 'Late Late Show' that she was the victim of domestic abuse.

Casey later found love with her second husband, Richard Hannaford, who passed away in 2011.

For all the pictures from race day, check out the gallery:
Three separate fundraising campaigns have raised over $840,000 (655,000) for the families of two men who were killed after apparently standing up for a Muslim girl and her friend in Portland.

Two men died and a third was injured after a man allegedly began yelling racial slurs at two young women, one who was wearing a hijab, on a train in the American city.

A campaign launched by the citys Muslim Educational Trust has so far raised more than $330,000 for the families of 53-year-old Ricky John Best and 23-year-old Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche.

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Micah David-Cole Fletcher, 21, was severely injured and a separate campaign to support him has received almost $140,000 in donations.

Destinee Mangum told FOX 12 that she and her 17-year-old friend were riding the train when a man approached them yelling what is described as hate speech.

Mangum said the man told them to go back to Saudi Arabia and told them to get out of his country.

The 16-year-old said her friend is Muslim, but she is not.

The Muslim-led campaigns page reads: We wish to respond to hate with love, to evil with good, as our faith instructs us, and send a powerful message of compassion through action.

No amount of money will bring back the victims, but we do hope to lessen their familys burdens in some way and also show our heartfelt appreciation for their heroic acts against Islamophobia. Lets all stand together against hate.

Police arrested 35-year-old Jeremy Christian, who is being held on suspicion of aggravated murder and attempted murder.

The FBI and US Attorney for Oregon are working with police in Portland on the investigation.
People at Seoul railway station last week watching a TV news programme showing a file image of a missile launch conducted by North Korea (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

Russia condemned on Monday the latest missile launches conducted by North Korea, while calling the world community for restraint, RIA news agency quoted a deputy Russian foreign minister as saying.

"We are at the same time calling on the partners with whom we are working to show restraint, including towards military activity in this region," the agency quoted Vladimir Titov as saying.

North Korea fired at least one short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast, the latest in a fast-paced series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions.

It was the latest in a string of launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can reach the US mainland.

The suspected Scud-type missile launched from the coastal town of Wonsan on Monday flew about 280 miles, the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

It landed in western waters that are Japan's exclusive maritime economic zone, Japanese chief cabinet secretary Yoshihide Suga said.

He said there was no immediate report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.

North Korea is still thought to be several years away from its goal of being able to target US mainland cities with a nuclear ICBM, but each new test puts it closer to success.

The North has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that target Japan and South Korea and US forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.

There was no immediate comment from North Korea's state controlled media.

But the launch followed a report from the North that said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. It was not clear from the report when the test happened.

After the test, Mr Kim said the weapon system's ability to detect and track targets had "remarkably" improved and its accuracy also increased, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.

KCNA cited him as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system all over the country so as to "completely spoil the enemy's wild dream to command the air".

The North's nuclear and missile programmes are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in allies Washington and Seoul.

President Donald Trump has alternated in his public statements between bellicosity and flattery. But his administration is still working to solidify a policy to deal with North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

A new liberal president in Seoul, Moon Jae-in, has signalled he will be flexible in expanding civilian exchange with North Korea.

But many analysts say Mr Moon will probably not push for any major rapprochement projects because North Korea has gone too far on its nuclear programme.

Monday's missile launch was the third one by North Korea since Mr Moon's inauguration on May 10.

Mr Moon called a National Security Council meeting to discuss the North's launch.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had just returned from a G7 meeting in Italy, told reporters: "North Korea's provocation by ignoring repeated warning from the international society is absolutely unacceptable."

He said Japan will "take concrete steps with the US in order to deter North Korea," although he did not elaborate on specific actions.

"We will also co-operate with South Korea and other members of the international society and maintain high levels of caution in order to do utmost for the protection of our people's safety."

Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, the North carried out two nuclear tests last year, in January and September.

Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of the North's secretive weapons program is unknown.

Mr Moon has made tentative steps toward engaging the North by restarting stalled civilian aid and exchange programmes as a way to improve strained ties.

South Korea said recently that it will allow a civic group to contact North Korea about potentially offering help in treating malaria, the first government approval on cross-border civilian exchanges since January 2016.
The red carpet is set up prior to the welcoming ceremony between French president Emmanuel Macron and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the Palace of Versailles, near Paris (AP)

Russian president Vladimir Putin has arrived in France for talks with newly-elected French president Emmanuel Macron.

Mr Macron greeted Mr Putin with a firm handshake on a red carpet leading into the Palace of Versailles before both men walked inside.

Mr Putin's trip is likely to shape Russia-France ties for years, with Mr Putin trying to mend strained ties with the West and with Mr Macron after the Russian leader backed Mr Macron's far-right rival Marine Le Pen.

Mr Putin and Mr Macron will hold a joint news conference after their talks.

AP
Missed chances to catch Manchester bomber Salman Abedi will be investigated, the British home secretary said yesterday, as it was claimed that US officials warned MI5 that he was planning an attack.

As the security services faced growing questions over the failure to prevent Abedi from killing 22 people at the Manchester Arena, Amber Rudd said that whether there were "signals" that were not picked up on would be examined.

Despite the terror threat being reduced from critical to severe on Saturday, she confirmed that members of Abedi's terror network could still be at large.

She spoke after claims that the FBI had told MI5 earlier this year that Abedi was part of a north African terror cell based in Manchester looking to launch an attack.

Yesterday, the son of Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, warned that the UK faced an unprecedented wave of terror from Libya after it had been abandoned by Western powers and fallen into the hands of terror groups.

Khaled al-Megrahi, whose father was the only man ever convicted of the 1988 bombing, said from his home in Tripoli: "It is only a sea between us. A lot of Libyans are hungry, have no money and no justice.

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"If the West continues its stance, you will see a lot of the militants coming to the UK.

"The West knows what's happening in Libya, but they only want to watch and see.

"You make Libya like this. You will see a lot of terrorists in the UK and everywhere. It was Manchester, but tomorrow it will be some other place."

US federal agents had been monitoring Abedi since last year and had passed on information from Libya and from intercepting his communications, it was said.

"Following this US tip-off, Abedi and other members of the gang were scrutinised by MI5. It was thought at the time that Abedi was planning to assassinate a political figure. But nothing came of this investigation and, tragically, he slipped down the pecking order of targets," a source told a British newspaper.

Abedi was also reported to authorities by residents at least five times in five years.

Ms Rudd said: "Of course, people will want to look afterwards to see whether there are signals that could have been learnt, how could we do this better."

"Signals" are normally used by the intelligence services to refer to emails.

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She warned that the hunt for Abdedi's accomplices was still ongoing.

She said: "The operation is still really at full tilt, in a way, and so until the operation is complete, we can't be entirely sure that it's closed."

Yesterday afternoon, Greater Manchester Police carried out further raids. Three men arrested in Moss Side were later released. A 25-year-old was detained in the Old Trafford area, bringing the number in custody to 12.

Two people arrested earlier in the week were later released without charge. ( Daily Telegraph, London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022]
Constantine Mitsotakis pictured in 1990, when he was New Democracy leader, at an election rally in Athens (AP Photo/Aris Saris, File)

Constantine Mitsotakis, a former conservative prime minister remembered for fierce confrontations with Greece's liberal and socialist parties during a 60-year political career, has died aged 98.

"Today at 1am Constantine Mitsotakis departed life, surrounded by those whom he loved and who loved him," his family said. No cause of death was given.

Mitsotakis served as prime minister between 1990 and 1993, a brief spell during two decades dominated by his Socialist rivals. He retired from active politics in 2004 but remained honorary chairman of the centre-right New Democracy party.

He was credited with starting unpopular financial reforms to loosen state control of the economy, and improving relations with Turkey.

But he was also often regarded as a divisive figure in a country struggling to escape its volatile political history.

Born in the port of Hania on the southern Greek island of Crete on October 18 1918, Mitsotakis was the nephew of liberal statesman Eleftherios Venizelos and was first elected to Parliament as a member of that party in 1946.

He served in several Cabinet posts, including finance minister, in liberal governments in 1951-52 and 1963-65.

But in 1965, he led a group of dissidents who abandoned George Papandreou's liberal Centre Union government following its clash with King Constantine II over control of the armed forces.

The meteoric rise of Andreas Papandreou, George's son and a US-educated economist who had returned to Greece in the early 1960s, was widely seen as a factor in Mitsotakis' split with the party.

The resulting political crisis and nearly two years of unstable government in part prompted a group of army colonels to carry out a coup in 1967.

Mitsotakis was arrested along with other politicians at the start of the seven-year dictatorship, and he later lived in exile in Paris until shortly before the junta collapsed in 1974.

In 1977, Mitsotakis re-entered Parliament at the head of the small Neoliberal Party and, the following year, joined the governing New Democracy party, serving first as finance minister and later as foreign minister.

He became the party's leader in 1984 while the conservatives were in opposition.

Mitsotakis emerged as the main adversary of Andreas Papandreou, who founded the Panhellenic Socialist Movement in 1974 rather than head his father's old party and then defeated the conservatives in a 1981 landslide.

Andreas Papandreou's son, George, became prime minister in 2009.

Mitsotakis narrowly won elections in 1990 after the Socialists became entangled in a financial scandal and polls in 1989 twice produced a hung parliament.

His administration was marked by a dispute with neighbouring Macedonia over the newly independent country's name and by large-scale union and student protests against his free market and education reforms.

Governing with a one-seat majority in Parliament, Mitsotakis' government was brought down by a group of conservative dissenters in 1993, condemning New Democracy to spend the next 11 years in opposition.

After his resignation as party leader, Mitsotakis urged governments to take bolder steps in their market reforms, and he led an unsuccessful effort for Greece's president to be elected directly by the people. He denied he coveted the country's top job.

Two of his children followed him into politics.

Mitsotakis' eldest daughter, Dora Bakoyannis was mayor of Athens during the 2004 Olympic Games and later was foreign minister in 2006-2009 in a New Democracy government.

Her husband, Pavlos Bakoyannis, a conservative politician, was shot dead in 1989 by members of the far-left Greek terrorist group November 17.

Mitsotakis, who enjoyed good health until late in life, also lived long enough to see his youngest child and only son, Kyriakos, elected as leader of New Democracy in January 2016.

Besides those two children, Mitsotakis is survived by two other daughters and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His wife, Marika, died in 2012.

AP
Emmanuel Macron and Vladimir Putin walk in the Galerie des Batailles at the Versailles Palace, near Paris (Stephane de Sakutin/Pool Photo via AP)

French President Emmanuel Macron has said he had "extremely frank, direct" talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Versailles.

Mr Macron pushed for co-operation on Syria and against Islamic State but also launched an extraordinary attack on two state-funded Russian media outlets he accused of spreading "lying propaganda".

The two leaders emerged from their first meeting - discussions at the sumptuous Palace of Versailles that lasted more than an hour longer than planned - clearly still at odds on multiple issues, but also seemingly keen not to let their differences define their fledgling relationship.

Mr Macron said he spoke to Mr Putin about LGBT rights in Chechnya and about the rights of embattled NGOs in Russia, vowing he would be "constantly vigilant" on these issues.

Mr Putin emphasised the need for closer co-operation between Russia and France, two nuclear-armed permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Speaking with remarkable frankness, Mr Macron tore into the state-funded Russian media outlets Sputnik and Russia Today for spreading what he said were "serious untruths" during the French election.

"When press outlets spread defamatory untruths, they are no longer journalists, they are organs of influence. Russia Today and Sputnik were organs of influence during this campaign, which, on several occasions produced untruths about me and my campaign," Mr Macron said.

"I will not give an inch on this," he said. "Russia Today and Sputnik ... behaved as organs of influence, of propaganda, of lying propaganda."

Mr Macron was the first Western leader to speak to Mr Putin after the Group of Seven (G7) summit over the weekend, where relations with Russia were a key topic.

His invitation to the Russia leader was a surprise after the tough stance on Russia Mr Macron took during the French election.

Mr Macron's aides also claimed that Russian groups launched hacking attacks on his campaign.

Moscow strongly denied all allegations of meddling in the French election that Mr Macron won on May 7.

Mr Putin on Monday again dismissed the idea as unfounded press speculation.

But he also defended his March meeting with Mr Macron's rival in the presidential race, far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

Mr Putin described Ms Le Pen as a politician who wants to develop friendly ties with Russia and said it would have been strange to rebuff her overtures.

He said the meeting with Ms Le Pen did not represent an attempt to sway the race.

Mr Putin added that Russia had been well aware of opinion polls predicting Mr Macron's victory.

Mr Macron said he was firm on other issues, too.

He said any use of chemical weapons in Syria - where Russia is propping up the government of president Bashar Assad - is a "red line" for France and would be met by "reprisals" and an "immediate riposte" from France.

He did not specify what form such reprisals could take, but France flies warplanes over Syria and Iraq, striking IS targets as part of an international coalition.

Mr Macron portrayed the meeting as just a first step in resetting the country's relations with Russia.

"Big things are built over time," he said. "It was an exchange that was extremely frank, direct, with a lot of things that were said."

"We have disagreements, but at least we talked about them," he added.

The leaders' first handshakes - relatively brief and cordial - after Mr Putin climbed out of his limousine at Versailles were far less macho than Mr Macron's now famous who-will-blink-first handshake showdown with US President Donald Trump when the two leaders met for the first time last week.

Mr Putin said he and Mr Macron agreed to discuss pursuing closer co-operation on anti-terror efforts, with a proposed exchange of experts to work towards that goal.

On Syria, Mr Putin underlined the importance of securing the Syrian state, adding that it is essential for combating terrorism.

Mr Macron took the same stance, saying: "I want us to organise a democratic transition but also preserve a Syrian state."

"Failed states in that region are a threat for our democracies" and fuel terrorism, he said.

AP
A man who got into an argument with his estranged wife over their children went on a shooting rampage in rural Mississippi that left eight people dead, including two boys.

"I ain't fit to live, not after what I done," said a handcuffed Willie Corey Godbolt (35).

Godbolt said he did not intend for police to capture him alive. "My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets," he said. "Suicide by cop was my intention."

The gunfire erupted at a home in Bogue Chitto after a policeman arrived in response to a domestic disturbance call, and spread to two houses in nearby Brookhaven, about 110km south of Jackson.

The dead included two boys. Godbolt was hospitalised with a gunshot wound, though it wasn't clear who shot him.

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said it was too soon to say what the motive was.

Godbolt himself shed some light on what happened, by giving an interview to a local newspaper as he sat with his hands cuffed behind his back on the side of a road.

Godbolt said he was talking with his wife and in-laws when somebody called authorities.

"I was having a conversation with her stepdaddy and her mama and her, my wife, about me taking my children home," he said. "Somebody called the officer, people that didn't even live at the house. That's what they do. They intervene.

"They cost him his life," he said, apparently referring to the policeman. "I'm sorry."

The stepfather-in-law, Vincent Mitchell, said Godbolt's wife and their two children had been staying at his Bogue Chitto home for about three weeks after she left her husband.

After the sheriff's deputy arrived at the house, Godbolt looked as if he was about to leave, then reached into his back pocket, pulled a gun and opened fire, Mr Mitchell said.

Mitchell said he escaped along with Godbolt's wife. But he said three family members were killed in his home: his wife, her sister and one of the wife's daughters.

"I'm devastated. It don't seem like it's real," Mr Mitchell said.

The slain deputy was identified as William Durr (36).

After fleeing his in-laws' house, Godbolt killed four more people at two other homes.
As the White House scrambles to deal with the fallout from the latest revelations about contact between Donald Trumps campaign team and Russia, there is said to be mounting that talk that his favoured advisor, Jared Kushner, may have to take a leave of absence.

Mr Trump returned to Washington after a nine-day overseas tour and immediately went on the offensive, saying the leaks coming out of his administration were fabricated lies invented by the media.

Yet as the President was said to have met with his own criminal defence lawyer who is helping him deal with the FBIs probe into possible collusion between his team and Moscow alleged effort to influence the election, increasing attention was being paid to Mr Kushners future.

Last week, it was confirmed the 36-year-old, who is married to Mr Trumps eldest daughter, Ivanka, was the focus of the FBIs ongoing investigation.

It was then reported that Mr Kushner had last year asked the Russian Ambassador to the US to establish a secret back channel using Russias communication systems to enable the Trump transition team to talk to Moscow.

Speaking on ABCs This Week, Chief White House correspondent Jon Karl said there had been a lot of talk of a shake-up, now that Mr Trump had returned to Washington. He said there was also a big question as to what role Mr Kushner should have.

There is no advisor closer to the president - his office goes - opens right into the Oval Office. He has taken on a portfolio bigger than anybody in the West Wing, he said.

And you hear people now, very close to the president, openly saying that it is too much, that he now finds himself at the centre of this investigation, even if he is ultimately completely cleared, he is at the centre of this investigation right now.

He added: And you hear people close to the president quietly saying, is it too much and is it time for Jared to take a step back, maybe even take a leave of absence from the White House.

There are few people Mr Trump trusts than his son-in-law. Even though his background was in real estate and not politics, Mr Kusher was placed at the head Mr Trumps election campaign. After his surprise victory, Mr Trump insisted that he and Ivanka Trump take up jobs within the West Wing of the White House.

Mr Kushner has been widely criticised for his alleged request to the Russians to establish a backchannel. At the very least, people said, he had been extremely naive; others were more blunt.

Former CIA Director Mike Hayden, said: What manner of ignorance, chaos, hubris, suspicion, contempt would you have to have had to think that doing this with the Russian ambassador was a good or appropriate idea?

But Mr Kushner was defended by John Kelly, Mr Trumps Homeland Security secretary, who said his actions had been appropriate.

Any information flow into the government and then considered by the government, I wont criticise that, Mr Kelly said. All of these lines of communication are a positive thing, in my opinion.

Mr Kushner has yet to publicly comment on the revelations. Through his lawyer, he has repeated an offer to cooperate with official investigators.
President Donald Trump is considering overhauling his White House staff and bringing back top campaign strategists, frustrated by his team's inability to contain the crisis involving Russian meddling in the election.

Expanding teams of lawyers and experienced public relations hands are being recruited to deal with the drumbeat of new revelations about Moscow's interference and possible improper dealings with the Trump campaign and associates. The disclosures dogged the president during his first trip abroad since taking office and threaten to overwhelm and stall the agenda for his young administration.

Mr Trump returned at the weekend from his nine-day journey to a White House seemingly in crisis mode, with a barrage of reports hitting close to the Oval Office and involving Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and influential adviser.

A rally planned for Thursday in Iowa was postponed due to "an unforeseen change" in Mr Trump's schedule.

Yesterday, he sought to downplay recent news reports portraying his administration in disarray, calling it "fake news" on Twitter. In a flurry of angry tweets, Mr Trump said that "many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies".

He added that it is "very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers."

The latest reports in the Russia matter said Mr Kushner spoke with Russia's ambassador to the US about setting up secret communications with Moscow during the presidential transition.

While overseas, Mr Trump's longtime lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, joined a still-forming legal team to help the president shoulder the intensifying investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 election and his associates' potential involvement.

More lawyers with deep experience in Washington investigations are expected to be added, along with crisis communication experts, to help the White House in the weeks ahead.

"They need to quarantine this stuff and put the investigations in a separate communications operation," said Jack Quinn, who served as White House counsel for President Bill Clinton.

During the Monica Lewinsky investigation, the Clinton White House brought on a dedicated group of lawyers and a created a separate media operation to handle investigation-related inquiries so they didn't completely subsume the president's agenda.

Mr Trump believes he is facing more of a communications problem than a legal one, despite the intensifying inquiries.

The president has considered bringing his disgraced former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and former deputy campaign manager, David Bossie, formally back into the fold.

Mr Lewandowski's return would be a particularly notable development, given the fact that he was fired by Mr Trump after clashing with staff and Mr Trump's adult children. Mr Lewandowski was sacked after assaulting a reporter.
A cabinet member and nearly a dozen other people including top-level officials in the Dominican Republic's government have been detained in a widening international bribery scandal involving the Brazilian company Odebrecht, authorities said.

Prosecutors said those implicated also include three legislators, a former public works minister, a former senate president, two former directors of a regulatory electricity group and a businessman.

They are scheduled to appear in court to face charges including money laundering and illegal enrichment.

"We can qualify this as an unprecedented event because of the multitude of crimes and the positions of power of those involved," said attorney general Jean Alain Rodriguez.

Lawyers for Dominican industry and commerce minister Tamistocles Montas, former public works minister Victor Diaz Rua and former senate president Andres Bautista and others could not be immediately reached for comment.

Mr Rodriguez said he would request that the suspects be held for 18 months in prison as a preventive measure while the investigation continues.

He also said he will demand that the immunity automatically granted to legislators be lifted in this case.

The suspects were detained after Odebrecht told US prosecutors that it had paid 92 million dollars (71 million) in bribes to Dominican officials since 2001 to secure 17 key government contracts.

The company moved its "bribery bureau" to the Dominican Republic from Brazil several years ago and built highways, dams and a coal-burning power plant.

Construction of the two billion dollar (1.5 billion), 720-megawatt plant was awarded to Odebrecht in 2013 even though the company's bid was the highest of all those submitted and more than 500 million dollars (389 million) above the limit set by the country's congress.

The bribes were part of an overall 788 million dollars (613 million) that Odebrecht paid to officials in 10 Latin American countries and two African nations to obtain multimillion-dollar contracts with local governments.

While hundreds of charges have been filed against high-level officials in Brazil, Colombia, Panama and Peru, Monday's arrests mark the first time anyone in the Dominican Republic has been detained in the Odebrecht case.

The legislators accused automatically have immunity, although one of them, Alfredo Pacheco, said he would renounce it and co-operate with authorities.

"I am sure I have not been bribed," said Mr Pacheco, a former president of the Chamber of Deputies.

Odebrecht's contracts in the Dominican Republic since 2001 have totalled five billion dollars (3.89 billion), or 7% of the Caribbean country's annual GDP.

Fifteen of the 17 contracts were awarded during the 13-year tenure of President Danilo Medina's Dominican Liberation Party, now led by former president Leonel Fernandez.

Mr Fernandez has refused to discuss the bribes.

Meanwhile, Mr Medina has created a special commission to investigate the bidding process but also defended a deal that allowed Odebrecht executives to avoid prosecution.

Mr Medina's administration has said investigations will clear the president and his aides of any wrongdoing and show they received no money from Odebrecht.

AP
A wild boar charged at children at a playground in Vienna, then hid in shrubbery next to an apartment house before being shot by police.

Police spokesman Patrick Maierhofer said the children ran away and nobody was hurt, in the latest of occasional attacks involving wild pigs that live in close proximity with humans in the leafy outskirts of the Austrian capital.

Mr Maierhofer was cited by state broadcaster ORF on Monday as saying police decided to kill the animal on Saturday after municipal veterinary authorities told them they had no sedation substances available.

Leigh Turner, the United Kingdom's ambassador to Austria, was left shaken and slightly injured earlier this month after being chased recently by a hostile boar in Vienna's Lainzer Tiergarten nature park.

AP
A protest against President Michel Temer of Brazil at the Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Thousands of people attended a protest concert on Copacabana Beach to demand a presidential election as pressure mounted on Brazil's leader to resign amid corruption allegations.

The event on Sunday was called "Diretas Ja," which translates as "Direct Elections Now".

It featured Brazilian music heroes Caetano Veloso and Milton Nascimento as well as other nationally acclaimed artists such as Maria Gadu, Criolo and Mano Brown.

In dense fog, thousands of people crammed around a stage truck to sing along with the performers and demand President Michel Temer's resignation between songs by chanting: "Temer out! Direct (elections) now!"

"This concert is neither of the right nor of the left," said Wagner Moura, the lead actor of the Netflix series Narcos who hosted the event, despite a multitude of red union flags representing the leftist Workers' Party.

"It is for the right of the Brazilian people to choose their next president," he added before introducing artists on stage.

Mr Temer's popularity has slumped since he became president a little more than a year ago after Dilma Rousseff was impeached and removed from office.

Some Brazilians consider his presidency illegitimate because of the way Ms Rousseff was ousted.

And many people are angry over his push to pass a series of economic changes, including capping government spending, loosening labour laws and reducing pension benefits.

His standing took a new hit after recent allegations that he endorsed paying bribes to ensure the silence of a former politician who is in prison for corruption.

Brazil's highest court is investigating Mr Temer for alleged obstruction of justice and involvement in passive corruption, based on a recording that seems to capture his approval of the hush money. He denies wrongdoing.

If Mr Temer resigns or is forced out, Brazilian law calls for the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies to serve as interim president for up to 30 days until Congress decides who will finish the term that runs through 2018.

"It is legal, but it is not ethical," Moura said of Congress picking a new leader, while polls indicate many Brazilians want any new president chosen directly by voters.

"Morally we have to elect our next president," said Moura, who helped organise the concert with the support of left-leaning parties and social movements.

According to watchdog groups, around 60% of the members of both chambers of Congress are under investigation for various crimes including corruption.

Matheus Araujo, a business administrator who attended the protest with his baby daughter in his arms, said Congress was in no condition to choose the next president.

Mr Temer announced changes in his Cabinet on Sunday, switching the transparency minister to justice minister and vice versa.

Critics said the move was aimed at putting TMr emer's long-time friend Torquato Jardim in the crucial justice minister position.

The concert allowed different generations of protesters to compare the current movement with the 1980s call for general elections when Brazil was under a military dictatorship.

"Back in 1984, I was protesting like this in downtown Rio," recalled Rosana Bulos, a university professor.

"This symbolises the return of that same hope, that we can achieve things with our voices and without war."

AP
Tiger Shroff recently visited Maldives for his latest GQ photo shoot and the pictures are mesmerizing us till date.

However, there is something else apart from the perfectly svelte body of tiger Shroff that we could drool over- The beauty of Maldives. Even Tiger himself is enchanted by the magic of the place.

Being a private person Tiger prefers exotic locations and Maldives being a beach gives ample amount of peace and tranquility to a person.

He had also indulged himself in a lot of fitness activities in Maldives.

The young actor is a hardcore workaholic and yet the beautiful travel spot has etched itself so deep in Tiger's heart that he would love to visit the place over and over again.

The picturesque location now tops the favorite travel destinations list in Tiger's mind. The fitness enthusiast is looking forward to traveling to this pleasant destination now.
Keystone Realtors (Rustomjee) IPO to open on 14th November The IPO of Keystone Realtors will open on November 14th. It will close on November 16th. The issue size is of Rs 635 crore. Price band has been set at Rs 514 - 541 per share. Mi... November 10, 2022 | 3:51 pm

GST officials detected Rs 55,575 crore worth of tax evasion, arrested over 700 people, in the past 2 Over the previous two years, the GST officials have discovered fraud totalling Rs55,575 crore and have detained over 700 people for defrauding the exchequer, an official told ET on Thursday. Th... November 10, 2022 | 2:58 pm

Bharat Electronics inks agreement with Goa Shipyard for development of autonomous navigation Navratna Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) has signed an MoU with Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) for joint development of products/solutions in the area of Autonomous Navigation an... November 10, 2022 | 12:54 pm

PSP Projects secures work order worth Rs200 crore; Stock rises PSP Projects Limited has informed to the exchanges regarding receipt of work order. In a regulatory filing, the company said, "We are pleased to inform that we are in receipt of... November 10, 2022 | 12:37 pm

Five Star Business Finance IPO receives .02 times subscription application at the end of day 1 Five Star Business Finance IPO has received .02 times subscription application at the end of day 1. Five Star Business Finance, a non-banking financial organization with headqu... November 10, 2022 | 11:39 am
Some movies are so twisted that you will have to watch them twice to understand the symbolism and the climax. Here are 14 films such that will challenge your intellect and plot-grasping skills.

1. 100 Days

The 1991 psychological thriller with Jackie Shroff and Madhuri Dixit had the most unexpected climaxes. A remake of the Tamil film called Nooravathu Naal which was loosely based the 1978 American mystery-thriller film Eyes of Laura Mars, 100 Days did manage to scare the audience with its story.

2. Identity

10 strangers arrive at a deserted location and are acquainted with each other. They are then mysteriously killed off one by one. Directed by James Mangold, this whodunnit will keep you guessing until the end.

3. Kaun

The psychological thriller directed by Ram Gopal Verma and written by Anurag Kashyap is a film which you shouldnt watch when youre alone. With stellar performances by Urmila Matondkar and Manoj Bajpayee, this film will give you sleepless nights.

4. Manorama Six Feet Under

A cult neo-noir, Manorama Six Feet Under will be remembered as one of the finest performances by Abhay Deol. The movie is roughly based on Roman Polanskis Chinatown.

5. Donnie Darko

Its freaky to watch Jake Gyllenhall getting manipulated by a scary bunny to commit a series of crimes. The science-fiction thriller would captivate your attention right from the beginning, however the movie gets difficult to comprehend as it proceeds.

6. Raat

Raat will be touted as RGVs spookiest delivery, way scarier then Bhoot. Revathy is so convincing as a possessed woman, that she makes even the bold ones scream with horror.

7. Zodiac

The film is based on the real-life Zodiac killer who terrified San Francisco for 25 years! Two journalists spend their entire lives in finding out the real killer, only to realise that they would never be able to find him. With Jake Gyllenhall and Robert Downey Junior in main roles, this one will keep you on the edge of your sofa seat.

8. Drishyam

A remake of a Malayalam film with the same name, Drishyam will astound you with its story and climax. Ajay Devgn plays a strong father who protects his family till the end with great charisma and appeal.

9. The Life of David Gale

David Gale, played by Kevin is a popular professor and is a staunch opponent of the death penalty. He is arrested for the murder of activist Constance Harraway, and he will be hanged in three days time. His life now is in the hands Bitsey Bloom (Kate Winslate) a journalist, who has to prove that he did no wrong. The movie is in this list because of its twisted ending which nobody could predict.

10. Woh Kaun Thi

With Manoj Kumar and Sadhna in the lead roles, Woh Kaun Thi is a true Bollywood classic that manages to scare you, even if you watch it today. It was this 1964 film, directed by Raj Khosla which gave Bollywood its stereotypical white sari lady ghost .

11. The Others

The movie which got Nicole Kidman a BAFTA and a Golden Globe is a supernatural, gothic horror film with elements of psychological horror. The simple plot of a woman moving into a haunted house with her two photosensitive children becomes so complicated till the end, that it will shake you to the core.

12. A Wednesday!

Its the clash of the titans in A Wednesday! with Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam Kher in the lead roles. The entire movie would make you bite your nails and the climax would keep you at the edge of your seats.

13. The Sixth Sense

This list would be incomplete without this classic. The Sixth Sense had the most unexpected climax of all times. The stellar performance by Haley Joel Osment and Bruce Willis makes it a must-watch.

14. Khiladi

When you start watching this Akshay KumarDeepak Tijori starrer, you feel its a funny, college romance, however as the film proceeds it gets some shocking twists and turns which you would never expect.
Imma joking! No, actually I am not.

Housefull might have not been appreciated by a lot of people but the movie still managed to cast its spell on the audiences. You all remember Aakhiri Pasta, don't you? The character which brought Chunky Pandey in the limelight after a long time.

The character had become popular, of course. But did you know that their is a huge fan-following of Akhiri Pasta in Bangladesh as well? So much so, that a Bangladesh-based Pasta brand has renamed their product after the character, and not only that, they have also roped in Chunky Pandey to endorse the brand. Isnt that cool?

YouTube

Bangladesh has always been second home to me. But more than Chunky Pandey, fans want to see Aakhri Pasta, which right now seems to have overshadowed my personality, the actor told Mid-day, revealing that he was amused to have received the offer.

Twitter

Fun Fact: Chunky had introduced a dish at his restaurant with the same name seven years ago. He says that the character was brought to life by Sajid Nadiadwala, the producer of the film.

Hence, the Bangladesh brand will have to take their permission for the same. "After all, he and [filmmaker] Sajid Khan created the character for Housefull, he said.

Are you excited to watch Chunky Pandey reviving his Aakhiri Pasta character yet again? Tell us in the comments section below.
Akshay and Saina Nehwal had donated Rs.9 lakhs and Rs.6 lakhs respectively to each martyrs family.

Chhattisgarh Maoists have apparently threatened Akshay Kumar and Saina Nehwal to not provide any sort of help to the CRPF Jawans and their families as, according to them, they loot the poor. They further asked them to stand by their side and contribute to their Krantikari Andolan (revolutionary movement).

For the unversed, Akshay and the badminton player had donated Rs.9 lakhs and Rs.6 lakhs respectively to the families of each of the 25 CRPF Jawans who were martyred in a Maoist attack in Sukma on March 16. In fact, Akshay had also launched an app, Bharat Ke Veer, for facilitating direct transfer of money to the families of martyrs from donors.

(Also Read: After Airlift & Rustom, Akshay Kumar To Bring Raniganj Coalfield Rescuers Story On The Big Screen)

#BREAKING: Maoists warn actor Akshay Kumar and badminton player Saina Nehwal for helping CRPF jawans pic.twitter.com/INmL31t9Ux  Republic (@republic) May 29, 2017

Twitter

We condemn the financial assistance given to the families of CRPF jawans killed in PLGA attacks. We appeal to famous figures, film actors, sportspersons and celebrities to stand with the revolution and poor people. Stand against police atrocities and human rights violations, the pamphlet, which was published in Hindi and regional Gondi languages, read.

The pamphlet was circulated last week while they celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Naxalbari movement.

(Also Read: Akshay Rustom Kumar Plays A Game Of Volleyball With Indian Navy Sailors In Mumbai)
I am there, your parents are there and your friends are there with you. You are not alone. Be happy, he says.

Board exams! As soon as somebody says this term, it haunts the heck out of you. All those who have been through this phase, understand the trauma it brings along. It takes a lot of hard work and pressure and when results are declared, not everyone stands happy.

CBSE Higher Secondary School exams results were out yesterday, and, we know, a lot of students are under depression unsatisfied with their results and unsure of their future plans. But Rajkummar Rao says he is there for you all.

india-forums.com

The actor is offering help to all the students who are unhappy with their results, and he says that they can contact him at any point via social media.

For all you wonderful students out there. pic.twitter.com/zqTDuR3T5S  Rajkummar Rao (@RajkummarRao) May 28, 2017

I know today many results for Class 12 CBSE board exams have come and in case you haven't performed well or failed... don't worry. There is nothing wrong about it. It keeps happening. It is a beautiful life...A lot needs to be accomplished.

ikarmik.com

He said that so many people who didnt score well in their exams are successful in life. So, why not you people? Don't worry. Talk to your friends, parents, talk to me. You can message me on any social networking platform. I am there to help and talk to you. But all I can tell you is that there is nothing wrong in this. Not this year, then next year. There are so many avenues and opportunities. I am there, your parents are there and your friends are there with you. You are not alone. Be happy.

From our end, just a reminder  you didnt fail in life, and these exams, for sure, do not measure your intelligence.
Even when the world doesnt believe in you, your parents do. From cleaning your poop to paying for your unexpected demands, parents endured all the moments of your childhood, and they never got embarrassed by the silly things you did as a child.

They say old-age is your second childhood; it is that age when parents need emotional support of their loved ones, especially their children, but often we have seen people abandoning their parents in old-age homes. But what has happened recently has left everyone in a state of shock.

It is beyond disheartening to know that Geeta Kapoor, the actress who has worked in more than 100 films and is best known for her work in Pakeezah has been abandoned by his son at a hospital. What is more heartbreaking is that the actress said that he often used to beat her up too.

jansatta.com

What exactly happened? Geeta was admitted to the SRV Hospital after her blood pressure fell low on April 21. When her son was asked to deposit the fees, he reportedly went out to withdraw money from an ATM, but he never came back.

The doctors didnt stop her treatment because she was already in a miserable condition. They tried contacting his son and daughter Pooja but their efforts went in vain. The bill had reached 1.5 lakh, and the hospital finally had to lodge a complaint at the police station.

amarujala.com

He used to beat me up as I did not approve of his philandering ways. He would give me food once in four days, and sometimes, even lock me up for several days. I was not ready to go to an old-age home, thats why, he planned all this. He deliberately kept me hungry and I fell ill. Then, he got me admitted and fled, she told Mid-day thereafter.

Producer Ramesh Taurani and Ashoke Pandit have apparently come forward to pay her hospital bills. Meanwhile, Police is trying to trace her family members now.

The age difference might bother you at times, but just remember that when nobody was standing by your side, your parents were. In their heart, they always supported you. Dont leave your parents when they need you the most.
Adding another feather to her already loaded hat, actress Priyanka Chopra will be honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award for being an international icon.

Movie review preview

The Baywatch star will be given the award under the newly introduced 'Internationally Acclaimed Actress' category at a ceremony.

"Priyanka's hard and sincere efforts have helped her place herself on an international platform with grace.

Twitter

"She is representing India at a global level and that has made every Indian proud of her work. This compelled us to introduce this fresh category in the awards," Dadasaheb Phalke Academy and Award Committee chairman Ganesh Jain said in a statement.

Twitter

Celebrities like Anil Kapoor, Kapil Sharma, Juhi Chawla and Nitesh Tiwari, among others, are expected to attend the event. The board of trustees for Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Awards include Johny Lever, Pahlaj Nihalani, Mithun Chakraborty and TP Agrawal.

One of India's highest-paid and most popular celebrities, Chopra has received numerous awards, including a National Film Award and five Filmfare Awards. In 2016, the Government of India honoured her with the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, and Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Battling the summer sun can be quite a task in itself; trying to cool yourself from within by keeping yourself hydrated through liquids, yoghurt, fibre filled vegetables and fruits that have a cooling effect.

yogalily.com

Turns out that yoga has a potent technique, called Sheetali Pranayama, which can help cool you down from within and bring relief to people suffering from a heat stroke. The best part is all it takes is a few minutes and it can be done wherever you are at!

The video below has two variations of the Sheetali Pranayama:

The standard variation has you seated with your hands placed on your knees and bringing your tongue out rolled, looking like a tube or rolled paper. Take a long deep breath through your tongue, then close your mouth and exhale through your nose.

via GIPHY

The variation is similar to the standard form; the only difference is that this one is done with your teeth clenched. You take a long deep breath through your teeth and exhale through your nostrils.

via GIPHY

Note: Just make sure you are not suffering from low blood pressure, the flu and respiratory issues when performing this technique.
Whether its the story of Dana Manjhi, the Odisha man who carried the dead body of his wife on his shoulders because he was allegedly denied ambulance, or several other cases that surfaced after that, the apathy of administration across states have been the same.

One such example was seen on Saturday when a three-year-old child died because he didnt get an ambulance on time which could shift him from Gurgaons civil hospital to Safdarjung hospital in New Delhi.

The boy, Babu had fallen from an under-construction building in sector-38 on Friday and was brought to the civil hospital in Gurgaon. Doctors told Babus father Ram Kishore to take him to Safdarjung as he had already lost a lot of blood by then and Gurgaon hospital wasnt equipped enough to treat him.

Babu was brought at 11:30 am and doctors told his father right away to shift him to Delhi. But hospital couldnt provide him with ambulance immediately and precious time was lost. Babu got an ambulance at 12:15 pm and he died en-route to Safdarjung hospital. Doctors there declared him dead.

The child was an out-patient and was sent to Safdarjung hospital. First-aid was provided to the patient, Dr Pawan Chauhan, Emergency Ward, Civil Hospital was quoted by HT. If Babu had got the ambulance immediately, his life could have been saved. Now authorities are back on what they do best. Yes, passing the buck.

Neelam Thapar, deputy civil surgeon, Civil Hospital, Gurgaon, said, We are looking into the matter and investigating it.

DailyMail

Dr MP Singh, in charge for ambulance services, told HT that the delay happened because he didnt receive information on time. The control room in the civil hospital didnt receive any information about requirement of an ambulance. Thus, there was a slight delay, he said.

This is not the first instance of negligence here as on April 13, a three-month-old boy, Abel, died because the ambulance which was supposed to shift him to Safdarjung hospital didnt have fuel in it. Abel breathed last after waiting for more than two hours for an ambulance.
Bengaluru residents were in for a shock in the morning as the Varthur lake started foaming due to its heavy toxicity.

Sunday witnessed a heavy spell of rain following which the toxic lake started spewing foam, covering the streets of Bengaluru.

BCCL

The increased froth overflowed on roads causing inconvenience to motorists, after three days of continuous rains.

BCCL

Earlier, another lake in Bengaluru had caught fire because of the pollutants released into it.

The National Green Tribunal, this year, ordered the closure of all industries that pollute around Bengaluru.
PTI

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will add another feather to its already glittering cap when on June 5 it will launch the Fat Boy aka GSLV MK-III, a satellite which will enable India to send manned missions to space. Read more

Here are more top stories of the day:





1) Bengaluru's Lake Varthur Is Spewing Foam And It Looks Like Snow Has Covered The City

BCCL

Bengaluru residents were in for a shock in the morning as the Varthur lake started foaming due to its heavy toxicity. Sunday witnessed a heavy spell of rain following which the toxic lake started spewing foam, covering the streets of Bengaluru. Read more

2) With 5K People Armed With Brooms, Vadodara Sweeps Its Way Into Guinness Book of World Records

Now again, the PM's novel initiative seems to have scaled a new height. Vadodara, which is the tenth cleanest city in the country, set a new Guinness world record on May 29 for the maximum number of people sweeping a single road. Read more

3) After 'Abki Baar Trump Sarkar' Won US, Conservatives Hope To Woo British-Indians With 'Theresa Ke Saath'

PTI

Britain's ruling Conservative Party has released a Hindi campaign song on Sunday in an attempt to woo the nearly 1.6 million strong Indian diaspora in the country. Read more





4) 19-Year-Old Pakistan Woman, Who Alleged Rape, Sentenced To Death By 'Panchayat'

Representational Image

19-year-old Shumaila has been sentenced to death by village elders in Pakistan's Punjab province for allegedly having an illicit relationship with her cousin. She had accused him of raping her at gunpoint. Read more





5) Tightening Norms, US Might Ban Laptops On All Flights Into And Out Of The Country

AFP

Planning to raise the bar on airline security, US might ban laptops from aircraft cabins of all flights into and out of the country. In an interview on Fox News Sunday, John Kelly, Secretary of Homeland Security, said the US plans to "raise the bar" on airline security, including tightening screening of carry-on items. Read more
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' initiative has inspired leaders across the globe. More recently, Bill Gates heaped praises on the initiative and called it a 'bold move'.

Now again, the PM's novel initiative seems to have scaled a new height. Vadodara, which is the tenth cleanest city in the country, set a new Guinness world record on May 29 for the maximum number of people sweeping a single road.

Vadodara Municipal Corporation Commissioner Vinod Rao said around 5,058 people came together to sweep the venue. The venue was a bridge that connected Akota, an urban area, with Dandia bazaar in the city, spread over 1km.

"The idea behind organising this event was to encourage people to keep their surroundings clean. Cleaning up the city is the duty of the VMC but keeping it clean is the collective responsibility of the citizens. Residents of the cultural capital of Gujarat have to inculcate the habit of cleanliness," said Dr Vinod Rao, municipal commissioner to TOI.

People also sang the national anthem and national song while sweeping the road.

PM Modi lauded the citys spirit by tweeting about the event. Vadodara celebrated its inclusion in 10 cleanest cities in a very inspiring manner."

Vadodara celebrated its inclusion in 10 cleanest cities in a very inspiring manner. pic.twitter.com/2C1B3LI9Fu  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) 28 May 2017

Participants who swept the place in groups of 50, pledged to keep the city clean in presence of Mayor Bharat Dangar and Vadodara MP Ranjan Bhatt. The certificate of the world record was awarded by adjudicator of the Guinness World Records soon after the event.
In the latest provocation, North Korea today fired a missile into Japan's maritime economic zone, shooting up the tensions over its nuclear weapons ambitions.

This was North Korea's third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year. North Korea has been carrying out these tests defying the UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

Reuters

US said that the short-range missile flew for six minutes, while Japan said it fell into the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) -- waters extending 200 nautical miles from its coast.

Last week, at the G7 Summit, US PM Donald Trump said that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved".

AP

The launch comes right after Trump's tough talks.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe swiftly condemned the test and vowed concerted action along with its US ally.

"We will never tolerate North Korea's continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community," Abe told reporters.
Steve Wozniak may have helped found one of the biggest tech companies today, but it seems he doesnt have high hopes for its innovational capabilities.

In an interview with Bloomberg Canada, Wozniak mentions that he believes Apple will not be the source of the next big idea, but that will actually come from Eccentric entrepreneur extraordinaire, Elon Musk.

I think Tesla is on the best direction right now, he said in the interview. Theyve put an awful lot of effort into very risky things. Wozniak mentions Musks futuristic outlook as proof of that, pointing out how he anticipated the trends for electric and self-driving cars, as well as other public transport systems like Hyperloop and the Boring Company.

They started with a car -- the Tesla Model S -- that made little sense in engineering terms in how much you have to build for what price and what the market will be, Wozniak said. It fit one person's ideal of this will be the most beautiful, you know, a very beautiful, elegant and simple device to use. It was really built for Elon's own life. What car would he like? And when things come from yourself, knowing what you'd like very much and being in control of it that's when you get the best products, he concluded.

Wozniak speaks from experience of course, seeing as how Apple first gained popularity because it was designing computers that looked nothing like the standard fare back in the day. However, he doesnt seem to think Apple is on the track of innovation anymore. In fact, its possible he believes the company has grown too big, and its now stagnating.

Look at the companies like Google and Facebook and Apple and Microsoft that changed the world - and Tesla included. They usually came from young people. They didn't spring out of big businesses, Wozniak said.

Maybe Apples creative spark really did die with Steve Jobs, and all the company is left with now is a growing pile of profit (which is great for them) and a growing worry about keeping their market lead (which is not). In tandem, those two things almost always lead to making only safe plays, never taking a risk. And if Wozniak is right, that means were in for a load of disappointment from Apple over the next couple of years.
Gaslighting: State Mind Control and Abusive Narcissism

By Vanessa Beeley

Exceptionalism: the condition of being different from the norm; also: a theory expounding the exceptionalism especially of a nation or region.

May 29, 2017 " Information Clearing House " - There are many theories surrounding the origin of American exceptionalism. The most popular in US folklore, being that it describes Americas unique character as a free nation founded on democratic ideals and civil liberties. The Declaration of Independence from British colonial rule is the foundation of this theory and has persevered throughout the often violent history of the US since its birth as a free nation.

Over time, exceptionalism has come to represent superiority in the minds and hearts of Americans. Belief in their economic, military and ideological supremacy is what has motivated successive US governments to invest in shaping the world in their superior image with little or no regard for the destruction left in the wake of their exceptional hegemony.

In considering itself, exceptional, the US has extricated itself from any legal obligation to adhere to either International law or even the common moral laws that should govern Humanity. The US has become exceptionally lawless and authoritarian particularly in its intolerant neo-colonialist foreign policy. The colonized have become the colonialists, concealing their brutal savagery behind a veneer of missionary zeal that they are converting the world to their form of exceptionalist Utopia.

Such is the media & marketing apparatus that supports this superiority complex, the majority of US congress exist within its echo chamber and are willing victims of its indoctrination. The power of the propaganda vortex pulls them in and then radiates outwards, infecting all in its path. Self-extraction from this oligarchical perspective is perceived as a revolutionary act that challenges the core of US security so exceptionalism becomes the modus vivendi.

Just as Israel considers itself the chosen people from a religious perspective, the US considers itself the chosen nation to impose its version of Democratic reform and capitalist hegemony the world over. One can see why Israel and the US make such symbiotic bedfellows.

The fatal war for humanity is the war with Russia and China toward which Washington is driving the US and Washingtons NATO and Asian puppet states. The bigotry of the US power elite is rooted in its self-righteous doctrine that stipulates America as the indispensable country ~ Paul Craig Roberts: Washington Drives the World Towards War.

So why do the American people accept US criminal hegemony, domestic and foreign brutal tyranny & neo-colonialist blood-letting with scant protest? Why do the European vassal states not rise up against this authoritarian regime that flaunts international law and drags its NATO allies down the path to complete lawlessness and diplomatic ignominy?

What is Gaslighting?

The psychological term Gaslighting comes from a 1944 Hollywood classic movie called Gaslight. Gaslighting describes the abuse employed by a narcissist to instil in their victims mind, an extreme anxiety and confusion to the extent where they no longer have faith in their own powers of logic, reason and judgement. These gaslighting techniques were adopted by central intelligence agencies in the US and Europe as part of their psychological warfare methods, used primarily during torture or interrogation.

Gaslighting as an abusers modus operandi, involves, specifically, the withholding of factual information and its replacement with false or fictional information designed to confuse and disorientate. This subtle and Machiavellian process eventually undermines the mental stability of its victims reducing them to such a depth of insecurity and identity crisis that they become entirely dependent upon their abuser for their sense of reality and even identity.

Gaslighting involves a step by step psychological process to manipulate and destabilize its victim. It is built up over time and consists of repetitive information feeds that enter the victims subconscious over a period of time, until it is fully registered on the subconscious hard disk and cannot be overridden by the conscious floppy disk. Put more simply, it is brainwashing.

 Overall, the main reason for gaslighting is to create a dynamic where the abuser has complete control over their victim so that they are so weak that they are very easy to manipulate. ~ Alex Myles

Three Stages of Gaslighting: Stage One



The first stage depends upon trust in the integrity and unimpeachable intentions of the abuser, a state of reliance that has been engendered by the abusers artful self-promotion and ingratiating propaganda. Once this trust is gained, the abuser will begin to subtly undermine it, creating situations and environments where the victim will begin to doubt their own judgement. Eventually the victim will rely entirely upon the abuser to alleviate their uncertainty and to restore their sense of reality which is in fact that of the abuser.

Stage Two

The second stage, defence, is a process by which the abuser isolates the victim, not only from their own sense of identity but from the validation of their peers. They are made to feel that their opinion is worthless, discredited, down-right weird. In political circles they would be labelled a conspiracy theorist, a dissident, a terror apologist. As a consequence, the victim will withdraw from society and cease to express themselves for fear of ridicule, judgement or punishment.

This stage can also be compared to Stockholm Syndrome where a hostage or captive is reduced,by psychological mind games, back to infantile dependency upon their captor. Narcissistic abuse bonds the victim to the aggressor via trauma. Stockholm Syndrome bonds the victim to the aggressor via regression to an infantile state where the abuser/aggressor becomes the parent who will rescue the victim from imminent annihilation. Both methods tap into the victims survival mechanisms to gain and maintain control.

Stage Three

The final stage is depression. A life under the tyrannical rule of a narcissist drives the victim into a state of extreme confusion. They are stripped of dignity & self-reliance. They, ultimately exist in an information vacuum which is only filled by that which the abuser deems suitable or relevant. This can eventually invoke symptoms of PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder]. Flashbacks, constant apprehension, hyper vigilance, mind paralysis, rage and even violence. The process is complete and the victim has been reduced to a willing accomplice in the abusers creation of a very distorted reality.

Exceptionalism or Narcissism?

We are currently seeing the transformation of US exceptionalism into an abusive Narcissism.

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The gargantuan apparatus of mind bending and controlling is being put into hyper drive by the ruling elite. We are inundated with propaganda that challenges our sense of reality but only after being tenderized by the fear factor. Fear of terror, fear of war, fear of financial insecurity, fear of gun violence, fear of our own shadow. Once we are suitably quaking in our boots, in comes the rendition of reality that relieves our anxiety. If we challenge this version of events we are labelled a conspiracy theorist, a threat to security. We are hounded, discredited, slandered and ridiculed. We are isolated and threatened.

Wars are started in the same way. Despite the hindsight that should enable us to see it coming, the process swings into motion with resounding success. The ubiquitous dictator, the oligarch who threatens to destroy all that the US and her allies represent which of course is, freedom, equality & civil liberty all wrapped up in the Democracy shiny paper and tied with the exceptionalist ribbon.

Next the false flag to engender fear, terror and to foment sectarian strife. The support of a legitimate organic, indigenous revolution conveniently emerging in tandem with US ambitions for imposing their model of governance upon a target nation. The arming of freedom fighters, the securing of mercenary additions to these manufactured proxy forces. All this is sold in the name of freedom and democracy to a public that is already in a state of anxiety and insecurity, lacking in judgement or insight into any other reality but that of their abuser.

The NGO Complex Deployment

Finally, the Humanitarians are deployed. The forces for good, the vanguard of integrity and ethical intervention. The power that offers all lost souls a stake-holding in the salvation of sovereign nations that have lost their way and need rescuing. A balm for a damaged soul, to know they can leave their doubts and fears in such trustworthy hands as HRW, Amnesty International, they can assuage their deep sense of guilt at the suffering being endured by the people of far flung nations because they can depend upon the NGOs to provide absolution with minimal effort on their part. They dont realise that NGOs are an integral part of their abusers apparatus, operating on the leash of neo-colonialist financing and influence. NGOs provide the optic through which the abuser will allow the victim to perceive their world and once absorbed into this flawed prism the victims own cognitive dissonance will ensure they do not attempt a jail break.

In this state of oppressed consciousness the victim accepts what they are told. They accept that the US can sell cluster bombs to Saudi Arabia that obliterate human beings and lay waste to essential civilian infrastructure in Yemen. They accept that the US financially, ideologically & militarily supports the illegal state of Israel and provides the arsenal of experimental weapons that maim and mutilate children and civilians on a scale that is unimaginable. They accept that a crippling blockade of the already impoverished and starving nation of Yemen is necessary to resolve the issues of sectarian divisions that only exist in the minds of their Congressional abusers.

The majority of Americans accept mass murder under the pretext of the right to protect, because their ability to form rational and reasoned opinions has been engineered out of them. This is now the definition of US exceptionalism. It is their ability to manipulate the world into accepting their lawlessness and global hegemony agenda. In seeking to impose its own image upon our world the US has drifted so far from its founding principles, one wonders how they will ever return to them. They have employed a recognised form of torture to ensure capitulation to their mission of world domination which entails the mental, physical and spiritual torture of target civilian populations.

In conclusion, the US has indeed achieved exceptionalism. The US has become an exceptional global executioner and persecutor of Humanity. Imperialism is a euphemism for the depths of abuse the US is inflicting upon the people of this world.

Our only hope is to break the cycle of abuse with empathy for the victim and with appreciation for the years of brainwashing that precedes their agonizing passive-aggressive apathy towards crimes being committed in their name.

This was an email I received recently from one courageous young American girl whose epiphany is testament to the resilience and survival instinct of the human spirit.

 My name is Caroline and I am a 22 year old US citizen. I only fairly recently discovered the truth about Empire/NATOs activities in Syria and Libya and so many other countries (thanks to writers like Andre Vltchek, Cory Morningstar, Forrest Palmer). I am sickened when I remember that I signed some of those Avaaz petitions and I feel horrified at knowing that I have Syrian and Libyan blood on my hands. I want to believe that Im not really guilty because I really thought (as I had been told) that I was not doing something bad at the time, but still, what I did contributed to the suffering of those people and I want to do something to atone in at least some small way, even though I probably cant make up for what I did or erase my crime.

If its not too much trouble, could you please tell me what you think I should do, if there is anything?

She deserves an answer

***

Author Vanessa Beeley is a contributor to 21WIRE, and since 2011, she has spent most of her time in the Middle East reporting on events there  as a independent researcher, writer, photographer and peace activist. She is also a member of the Steering Committee of the Syria Solidarity Movement, and a volunteer with the Global Campaign to Return to Palestine. See more of her work at her blog The Wall Will Fall .
Home Take Torture Off Agenda



Consider ending violence in a nonviolent way



By Kristin Y. Christman



May 29, 2017 " Information Clearing House " - According to President Donald Trump, people who are tortured deserve it. Trump's initial draft executive order in January revealed his passion for reopening U.S. black site prisons, loading Guantanamo with prisoners, and rewriting the Army Field Manual to redefine allowable interrogation techniques.



Sure, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis opposes torture. But multiple CIA agents, military brass, legislators, and citizens have opposed torture for decades. Those with a will for torture find a way.



The Bush administration tortured foreign prisoners using waterboarding, forced feeding, rectal feeding, slamming into concrete walls by the neck, freezing water, stripping, beating, dragging, mock executions, isolation, drug injections, agonizing enclosure in tiny boxes, forced runs while hooded, and harrowing threats to families. Such despicable behavior, hypocritically to preserve American values and safety, makes some Americans want to shred their flags.



Guilt of foreign captives is often unknown. There are no trials. There's not even a clear definition of guilt. Even if guilt were proven, torture is immoral and illegal. The post-9/11 torture program violated the U.S. Constitution, the U.S. Uniform Code of Military Justice, and international law.



U.S. torture policy rested partly upon psychologists James Mitchell's and Bruce Jessen's absurd logic that since dogs cease resisting electric shocks when learning resistance is futile, prisoners will release truthful information when tortured. Notice, the poor dogs didn't divulge any information. And given affectionate training, dogs will joyfully cooperate.



In 2002, Mitchell and Jessen implemented torture at a U.S. black site in Thailand run by Gina Haspel, who had the site's videotapes destroyed in 2005 and is now Trump's CIA deputy director. That year, the CIA outsourced almost its entire interrogation program to Mitchell, Jessen, and Associates who developed 20 "enhanced interrogation techniques" for $81.1 million. A sadistic murderer could've done that for free.



What was the excuse for tax-funded depravity? CIA attorney John Rizzo explained, "The government wanted a solution. It wanted a path to get these guys to talk." Rizzo believed that if another attack occurred and he'd failed to force captives to talk, he'd be responsible for thousands of deaths.



Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales defended the torture program's "ability to quickly obtain information from captured terrorists ... to avoid further atrocities against American civilians."



So cruelty is defended in the name of protecting us, as if we're chickens running around, believing the sky will fall if we don't get tough now. But if timely action is critical, doesn't it waste time to quickly go in the wrong direction?



After all, seasoned interrogators know torture is useless. It damages mental clarity, coherence, and recall. In its 2014 report, the Senate Intelligence Committee recognized torture's unquestionable failure as an information-gathering tool: It acquires neither actionable intelligence nor prisoner cooperation. Victims, crying, begging, and whimpering, are rendered "unable to effectively communicate." No Advertising - No Government Grants - This Is Independent Media Get Our Free Daily Newsletter Particularly disgusting is the U.S. double standard of justice. Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Trump have protected torture program members from prosecution, often by invoking the "state secrets executive privilege." Apparently, torture folks don't belong on trial. They're above the law. We're supposed to understand that they were doing their best, serving our nation, following orders, pressured, fearful: good people with noble motives.



Yet when we turn to suspected Mid-Eastern militants, we're not supposed to consider their circumstances, motivations, pressures, or fears. Apparently, they also don't belong on trial. They're below the law. Nail them with drones, the extrajudicial killing more politically palatable than extrajudicial torture.



Mitchell, Jessen, and Associates face a lawsuit in court June 26, and Trump is trying to block federal court access to CIA testimony on grounds of "national security."



But as long as the U.S. perceives enemies the way exterminators perceive cockroaches, national security will be elusive and any peace will be no more stable than a house of cards.



Notice that intelligence efforts always revolve around obtaining Destructive Intelligence: information for defeating enemies. No Constructive Intelligence is sought, nothing to illuminate causes of violence and cooperative solutions.



Why? Because the CIA, NSA, and Department of Defense are boxed in by organizational missions to conquer enemies, missions that constrict the mind's ability to perceive the enemy as having any heart or mind worth caring about.



If we created a U.S. Department of Peace whose mission was to non-violently address roots of violence, such a mission would gear American ingenuity and enthusiasm toward the bigger picture of conflict resolution and friendship rather than toward desperate conclusions that security requires cruelty toward enemies.



We've got to considerately ask Mid-Eastern friends and enemies their perspectives on ISIS, the Taliban, and the U.S., ask their ideas for creating trust, caring, justice and peace, for leading meaningful lives, sharing wealth and power, and resolving disagreements. Such questions would rapidly elicit the empowering Constructive Intelligence needed to activate cooperative solutions.



But without a caring approach to peace, the American imagination fails us, imagining only the bad that may result from refusing to torture and kill, rather than the good that will come from non-violently resolving conflict.



Kristin Christman is author of Taxonomy of Peace. https://sites.google.com/site/paradigmforpeace A previous version of this article was first published in the Albany Times Union. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. Click for Spanish , German , Dutch , Danish , French , translation- Note- Translation may take a moment to load. What's your response? - Scroll down to add / read comments Please read our Comment Policy before posting - It is unacceptable to slander, smear or engage in personal attacks on authors of articles posted on ICH. Those engaging in that behavior will be banned from the comment section. Click here to comment on our Facebook page
The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Mr Muhammad Babandede, has threatened to apply harder sanctions on any officer who engages in professional misconduct.

Babandede told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja that the threat became necessary to improve service delivery to the public.

He said that the measure was part of the ongoing reforms to reposition the NIS in line with international best practice.

The NIS boss said he visited the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos, on undercover mission recently to monitor the NIS operations.

He said during his visit, some officers were caught engaging in unprofessional activities.

The officers had been invited to the NIS headquarters in Abuja for questioning and appropriate sanctions.

This is to ensure that passengers are not subjected to unnecessary delays and that our services are efficient and in line with international best practice, Babandede said.

According to him, his team has scheduled a similar visit to all other airports/formations in the country to rid the service of bad eggs.

He, therefore, warned officers and men of the NIS to sit up or get weeded out.

The comptroller-general reiterated his commitment to ensure efficient service delivery in the issuance of travel documents to Nigerians/foreigners.

He also pledged to strengthen border surveillance to stem illegal immigration in the country.
The Archbishop of the Enugu Province, p Anglican Communion, Emmanuel Chukwuma, said on Monday that the clergy is not in support of the sit-at-home declared by the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB.

IPOB and MASSOB urged Igbos to sit at home on May 30 to observe the groups anniversary.

Mr. Chukwuma, a most reverend, made this known at the Democracy Day celebration and second year anniversary of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi in Enugu on Monday.

The cleric, who spoke before offering the opening prayer of the Democracy Day, called on all people in South-East to go about their legitimate businesses, saying that the clergy were against the declaration.

Before I offer the opening prayer, let me first of all state the position of the clergy on the sit-at- home declaration by IPOB and MASSOB.

We are not in support of the call. We advise all to ignore it and go about their legitimate businesses, he said.

Mr. Chukwuma, whose clarification was applauded by the crowd, urged traders and workers to open their shops and ignore the call.

He said the people of south-east would fare well and enjoy more and better dividends of democracy in a united Nigeria.

Source: (NAN)
Ace Nigerian comedian, AY, has taken to his Instagram page to celebrate the lady who drove 39km just to take a selfie with him. In the AY celebrates you post, the comedian cheered up the lady who was disappointed because he left and couldnt wait for her, and also disclosed his reason for leaving.

Heres what he wrote;

@precious_mabelicious I CELEBRATE YOU

Please do not allow @instablog9ja and some of those career killing commenters come between us. Who am I not to be readily available for a selfie with you? I only felt bad about you passing judgement on me without knowing that I had to leave Armani Hotel in Dubai to be on another location for The wedding Party 2 shoot.

God willing when next I am in Dubai I will make the same miles you travelled to make it up to you and your friends. Kindly ignore all the negative comments about you being described as jobless on the blog. I have come to realise that people will always talk about you, either for good or bad, what is important is the content of your heart.

I am fully committed to loyal and true fans like you. The more fans we have the more popular we become in the business. So I have every reason be as nice as possible to people like you who made us become what we are by attending our shows, seeing our movies and supporting all creative endeavours.

But lets also quit passing quick judgement on celebrities. We must also understand that sometimes celebrities have bad days and dont feel like being social. Famous people are human too, and theyre not always in the best mood. However, being congenial is pretty much part of our job, so weve got to at least avoid treating our fans terribly. Trust me to improve on myself. And if you are in Nigeria on June 17, I do have a VIP Invite for you to be at the premiere of 10 Days In Sun City. (Enough selfie with me and the bigger stars that will make your day). One Love!

Note: Those of you who think my number one fan is jobless DM her for your Dubai Employment Visa (if una get work like her una go comment less).

Source: Instagram
The Police force has arrested a man, his children and other family members in Abuja for allegedly lynching a 60-year-old man who urinated by their residence.

Pius Inaiwe was said to have been killed by the suspects for passing urine in their compound in Jiwa, a community in the Abuja Municipal Area Council.

It was learnt that Inaiwe went into a coma after he was assaulted by the suspects.

He was subsequently rushed to a private hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival by the medical personnel.

Our correspondent gathered that the incident, which occurred last Thursday, caused an uproar in the community resulting in an attempt by some youths to attack the suspects involved in the assault on the deceased.

Northern City News learnt that it took the intervention of the Divisional Police Officer, Gwagwa Police Station, and some other prominent persons in the area to stop the youths from attacking the suspects involved in Inaiwes killing.

The FCT Police Public Relations Officer, Perry Usen, confirmed to our correspondent on Sunday that six suspects were in custody in connection with the incident.

I can confirm to you that we have six suspects in custody in connection with the incident. A man and his family members, including his children were arrested for allegedly lynching a 60-year-old man because he urinated near their compound. Investigation is ongoing to know the level of their involvement in the crime, he said.
Members of Movement for Actualization of Sovereign State of Biafra ( MASSOB) and its sister group, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) , and combined security agents staged separate processions ahead of the May 30 sit at home order by the pro-Biafra agitators.

While security agents comprising the Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, State Security Services, Army and Airforce processed across major streets in Owerri and other parts of the state, the pro-Biafra activists staged a street protest across the state capital ahead of the May 30, 50th year Biafra anniversary celebration.

Singing pro Biafra songs, the secessionist groups shared hand bills which read 2017 Biafra Heroes remembrance day. We remember our fallen heroes from 1966-2017. 3.5 million Biafrans killed in Nigeria Biafra war. Over 200 IPOB members killed from 2015 till date. 30th May 2017, sit at home. Celebrating 50th Biafra anniversary.

Amidst cheers and ovation from residents who came out to watch them, the MASSOB and IPOB members, demonstrated, clutching various Biafra insignias.

Surprisingly, they did not clash with security agents who were equally on separate procession .

Speaking to our correspondent on the phone, MASSOB leader, Uchenna Madu, said that by the procession, security Agents were helping his organization to make the May 30, celebration a huge success.

Madu, said that his group was on the streets to sensitise the people on the need to sit at home tomorrow (today) in honour of Biafra activists who died while fighting for the freedom of the Biafran people.

The MASSOB leader accused security agents of orchestrated plans to attack his group and IPOB during the celebrating, saying that we are not deterred by what the security Agents are doing. They are instilling fear in our people thereby helping to make the celebration a success. They want to attack us tomorrow, but we are not deterred.

The Police spokesperson in the state, Andrew Enwerem, told our correspondent on the phone, that the demonstration was called Operation joint show of force being carried out together by security Agents in the state on the need to go about their lawful duties and disregard the directive by the pro Biafra agitators.

He called on the people of the state to go about their normal duties, as there was no cause for the alarm.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
This comes in the wake of the Lagos State Government declaration not to back down from the case between the actress and her husband. The Lagos State Government is demanding that the Nigerian Police forward the duplicate of the case file on the alleged assault on Mercy Aigbe by her husband, Lanre Gentry. This comes in the wake of the Lagos State Government declaration not to back down from the case between the actress and her husband.



The State Government in a letter written through the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, DPP, May 22, 2017, indicated its interest in prosecuting the alleged case of assault. It was learned that aside from writing to the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos Mainland Local Government, DPP also copied other relevant agencies, to alert them of its plan.



The State Government argued that the assault contravenes sections 171, 243 and 244 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011. The Coordinator of the State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team, DSVRT, Mrs. Titilola Vivour- Adeniyi, explained that if anyone is beaten or suffered abused, the State is also being abused, noting, we must begin to renew our mindsets and treat Domestic Violence for what it is; a crime against the State. Gentry has since been arrested, arraigned and remanded in jail for the charge of domestic violence.

One week after his arrest, he was released following the perfection of his bail conditions.
A Lagos High Court has barred local government areas from conducting marriages across the country.

The court, in a judgment, declared that the Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate was unknown to law and therefore unconstitutional, null and void.

A Certified True Copy of the judgment by Justice I. O. Harrison of Court 37, General Civil Division of the Lagos Judicial Division, dated May 15, 2017, in suit no LD/1343GCM/2016, was obtained by our correspondent on Sunday in Abuja.

The plaintiff, Olamide Babalola, representing himself and other recipients of modified marriage certificates from the local governments, had dragged the Ikeja Local Government and Registered Trustees of Association of Local Governments of Nigeria before the court over the modified marriage certificate issued by the first and second defendants.

The plaintiff had sought a declaration that the first defendant did not have the powers to issue modified or customised marriage certificates different from the one provided in Form E under Section 24 of the Marriage Act Laws of Federation of Nigeria,1990.

Babalola also prayed for a declaration that the second defendants Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate was unknown to law and unconstitutional.

He equally wanted a perpetual injunction restraining the defendants, their agents, officers, employees and representatives from further issuing modified or altered marriage certificates apart from the form as provided under Form E (1st schedule) and Section 24 of the Marriage Act, LFN, 1990.

Harrison, in her judgment, declared that the first defendant did not have the powers to issue modified or customised marriage certificates different from the one provided in Form E under section 24 of the Marriage Act.

She said, The court thus orders as follows: declaration that the second defendants Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate is unknown to our law, unconstitutional, null and void.

A perpetual injunction, restraining the defendants their agents, officers, employees and representatives from further issuing modified or altered marriage certificates apart from the form as provided under Form E (1st schedule) and Section 24 of the Marriage Act, LFN, 1990.

A perpetual injunction, restraining the second defendant, their agents, officers, employees and representatives from further issuing Modified Local Government Unified Marriage Certificates.

Citing Imunze vs Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2014 LPELR 22354 (SC) and Onochie vs Odogwu, 2006 Nigeria Weekly Law Report, (Part 975) 65, Harrison stated that while registration of marriage is regulated by local government being under the concurrent list, formation of marriage is under the exclusive list within the domain of the Federal Government regulated by the Federal Ministry of Internal Affairs-item 6 of 2nd schedule of 1999 constitution.

The judge pointed out that a marriage had been declared invalid by the Supreme Court on the grounds that it was not in line with Form E as provided by the Marriage Act.

It is thus trite that the local and state government cannot make separate arrangements outside that provided for in the Marriage Act, that is Form E, Harrison ruled.

The court however added that the marriages conducted by local governments and issued with the certificates, which are not in conformity with Form E, will by virtue of Section 34 of the Marriage Act be regarded as good and valid in law to all intents and purposes.

It believes that there should be a re-issuance of the proper certificate to all persons in possession of the invalid certificates.

The judgment read in part, The court will further consequentially order that all such modified marriage certificates issued by the first and second defendants be surrendered to the appropriate local government where the marriage was conducted and appropriate certificate, in line with Form E, should be reissued to the claimants herein and all other concerned persons.

The judge said the second defendant and its branches issued their own form known as the Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate, which was also issued to the claimant by the first defendant.

Following the judgment, the Federal Government has written to the various embassies in the country not to recognise marriages conducted by local governments.

A director in the Ministry of Interior, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the embassies were asked not to issue visas to applicants with local government marriage certificates in line with the court order.

Most of the marriages conducted by local government registries are sham and were merely used to obtain visas by desperate Nigerians. We have written to the embassies not to give out visas based on such marriage certificates, he said.

The Director of Press, Ministry of Interior, Willy Bassey, described the court judgment as a welcome development, which he said had put paid to the illegal acts by the local governments.

Source: ( Punch Newspaper )
Following the imprisonment of Nollywood actress, Mercy Aigbes husband, Lanre Gentry and marital crisis show that have been put up on social media by the couple, the Lagos State Government has written to the Nigerian Police, demanding that it forward the duplicate of the case file on alleged assault on the Nollywood actress, Mercy Aigbe by her husband, Lanre Gentry.

According to Vanguard, the request for the case file shows the State Governments resolve not to back down from the case between actress and her husband. The couple The State Government in a letter written through the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, DPP, May 22, indicated its interest in prosecuting the alleged case of assault.

Vanguard gathered that the resolve to write the Police, was sequel to the result of the medical check-up conducted on the actress that indicated alleged assault by her husband.

It was also gathered that aside writing to the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the State Criminal Investigative Department, SCID, Panti, Yaba, Lagos Mainland Local Government, DPP also copied other relevant agencies, to alert them of its plan.

The State Government argued that the assault contravene sections 171, 243 and 244 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

It would be recalled that Coordinator of the State Domestic and Sexual Violence Response Team, DSVRT, Mrs. Titilola Vivour- Adeniyi, had during his sensitization programmes argued that Domestic Violence is a crime committed against the State.

She explained that if anyone is beaten or suffered abused, the State is also being abused, noting, we must begin to renew our mindsets and treat Domestic Violence for what it is; a crime against the State.

Also, the State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem, had during this years ministerial briefing said:

The DPP is committed to ensuring that all offenders are brought to book thereby discouraging impunity in our society. We are also committed to speedy trials, especially so that suspects are not detained for too long awaiting trial. It is our belief that both the victims of a crime and the alleged offenders deserve to have their cases resolved at the earliest possible time, he added.

Source: Vanguard
North Korea test-fired a missile Monday into Japans maritime economic zone  the latest in a series of provocative launches that have heightened tensions over its nuclear weapons ambitions.

It was the Norths third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year - carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

US military monitors said the short-range missile flew for six minutes, while Japan said it fell into its exclusive economic zone, extending 200 nautical miles from the coast.

The launch went ahead despite tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised last week at the G7 summit that the big problem of North Korea will be solved.

Japans Prime Minister Shinzo Abe swiftly condemned the test and vowed concerted action with its US ally.

We will never tolerate North Koreas continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community, Abe told reporters.

As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international communitys top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States.

The North has been stepping up efforts towards its ultimate goal  developing an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental US.

Mondays test also marked the second time this year that a North Korean missile fell provocatively close to its neighbour Japan. South Koreas military said the Scud-type missile travelled for 450 km (280 miles).

 Conflict catastrophic 

Despite Trumps strident warnings, Secretary of Defense James Mattis said in an interview which aired Sunday before the launch that a war with North Korea would be catastrophic.

The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea, he told CBS News.

This regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea. And in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well.

But the bottom line is, it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if were not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means.

Mattis declined to say what kind of action from Pyongyang would constitute a red line for Washington, saying the administration needs political manoeuvre room.

The latest launch demonstrates the Norths determination to secure more leverage in any future negotiations with the US, said Cho Han-Bum, an analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification.

The North, despite its series of provocations, has not crossed the ultimate red line, which would be staging another nuclear test or a successful ICBM test, Cho said.

Todays launch is the Norths way of saying to the world, It wouldnt be easy to make us suspend our weapons programmes even if you manage to pressure me into negotiations, he said.

 Direct challenge 

South Koreas new president Moon Jae-In ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said its leader Kim Jong-Un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.

The South condemned the missile test as a grave threat and a challenge to Moon, who advocates dialogue with the North in a break from his conservative predecessors.

That the North repeated such provocations after the inauguration of our new leadership is a direct challenge to our demand for peace and denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, the foreign ministry said.

The missile launches, and Pyongyangs threat to stage its sixth nuclear test have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention was an option under consideration.

Following North Koreas test-firing earlier this month of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the Norths main trade partner and ally, has made it clear that the push for talks  and not more sanctions  is the priority.

The US has said it is willing to enter into talks with North Korea, but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.

Source:( AFP )
The family of late Nollywood actress, Moji Olaiya, through the burial committee have refuted the reports that the she died of poisoning.

A statement released by the committee reveals that the reports of the deceased dying as a cause of poisoning is a total fallacy.

Read their report below:

The attention of the Burial Committee of Late Moji Olaiya has been drawn to the rumour spreading around that the autopsy carried out on the deceased stated that the late thespian died of poison. It is a total fallacy.

The family through this committee wish to vehemently state as follows:

i. Late Moji Olaiya DID NOT die of poison and the rumour mongers should provide the autopsy report they are quoting from.

ii. The younger brother of the deceased Femi Olaiya who travelled from UK to Canada and top Nigerian promoter in Canada Mr Yinka Farinde monitored and recieved the details of the autopsy and nothing of poison is in the original autopsy documents with the family.

iii. Whoever is spreading the rumours is evil and have no respect for the dead. Karma like kinetic energy will locate and find such detractors, using the vulnerability and anonymousity of social media as a channel to perpetrate their motive.

iv. That we know BREAKING NEWS doesnt wait for no one but it makes more sense for the media and blogger to verify vividly the source of a news item and have documetary evidence or fact in sight before going to press.

v. The family finds the rumour disturbing and see it as a deliberate attempt to frustrate the befitting burial they are putting in place for their beloved one.

vi. The accused women were of help to the deceased in terms of accommodation and so on during her lifetime in the same Canada and one of them has been taking care of the 2-months old child the deceased left behind as we speak. Any envious intentions against their persons should not degenerate to the level of spreading falsehood such as murder against. It is bizarre and appalling.

vii. The committee humbly again ask for total respect for the dead, family and women whose pictures had gone viral. Thank you for usual understanding and co-operation in this regards.

Yomi Fabiyi

Publicity Secretary For: LATE MOJI OLAIYA BURIAL COMMITTEE.
Coming after his wifes baby bump was busted at Banky W and Adesua Etomis introduction ceremony few weeks back, it seems Toolz and her husband Capt. Tunde just welcomed a baby girl.

Just yesterday, May 28 , Toolz shared a lovely post on her Instagram celebrating a year anniversary of their wedding. Now the good news has arrived , the delectable couple has welcomed a baby girl as indicated in a post by Tunde Demuren. Toolz has supposedly delivered a baby girl in New York and he is on board to meet her and their new baby.

Her husband, who took to Instagram few hours ago to celebrate their wedding anniversary, shared this:


Eighteen months in custody does not appear to have affected his fight against Nigeria.

I am more determined than ever, Kanu, who heads the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) movement, tells AFP calmly.

Kanu, who was released on bail at the end of April, still faces trial on treason charges.

But there is no question of his remaining silent as a key date approaches on Tuesday: the 50th anniversary of the declaration of an independent Republic of Biafra.

The secession of the Igbo people in the southeast sparked a bloody civil war that lasted nearly three years until 1970. More than one million people died of the effects of war, famine and disease.

Kanu says his aim is civil disobedience until we get a referendum (on self-determination), calling it the only way forward.

 Deliberate retribution 

After the war, Biafra was reintegrated into Nigeria, an ethnic and religious hotch-potch of nearly 190 million people where sectarian tensions regularly flare.

But in Igboland, the dream of independence never really disappeared, fuelled by a sense that the Nigerian government had abandoned them  perhaps deliberately  after the conflict.

Veterans and young supporters crowd around in turn to hear the bespectacled Kanu speak.

In the living room where he receives guests, a life-size painting covering an entire wall depicts the prodigal son in military uniform.

He variously denounces what he says are the killings and rapes of Igbos by the security forces, and President Muhammadu Buharis deliberate policy to impoverish the people.

Kanu, who is in his 40s, spent his childhood in Umuahia, which was the former Biafran capital, a stones throw from the separatist forces bunker, and was clearly no stranger to politics.

He refuses to give his exact age but as the eldest of five children, he grew up from a young age with stories from his father, who gave logistic support to the resistance.

 Demi-god persona 

Unknown to most Nigerians even two years ago, Kanu had long launched virulent diatribes against Nigeria from London, where he settled after his studies and founded the pirate radio station Radio Biafra in 2009.

He worked in real estate and campaigned on the airwaves at night. For a time he was a member of another pro-independence group, the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra.

He left MASSOB and founded IPOB in 2013.

Two years later at the World Igbo Congress in Los Angeles, Kanu crossed a line with an apparent call to take up arms. We need guns and we need bullets, he said.

He was arrested at his hotel during a visit to Nigeria in October 2015.

Fred Anibeze, a Nigerian political scientist, called the arrest unwarranted and uncalled for.

He is using the Biafra struggle to garner cheap publicity for himself via broadcast from Radio Biafra, and this has been further buttressed with the demi-god persona he has been getting since his release, he told AFP.

Kanus detention caused widespread anger among Igbos, and a series of protests calling for his release ended in bloodshed.

According to Amnesty International, Nigerian security forces killed at least 150 IPOB supporters in 2016. Abuja flatly rejects the claim.

For Don Okereke, a security analyst, Kanu embodies aspirations of a new generation, more activist, more radical than their elders, who fought in the war.

He tells people just what they want to hear, he added.

 Lost tribe of Israel 

The extent of Kanus support in the southeast of the country is difficult to gauge but his followers have virtually worshipped him since his release on bail.

Kanu does not do anything to stop the myth-making and is protected round the clock by an impressive security detail, who thoroughly search all his visitors.

Religion is ever-present in his speeches, and Kanu now wears the talit (Jewish prayer shawl) and observes the sabbath.

IPOB followers also wear the kippah (skullcap).

It all dates back to a divine revelation Kanu says he had during a trip to Jerusalem: the Igbo  most of whom are Christian  are descendents of a lost tribe of Israel, he says.

Biafra is the promised land and it is his mission to restore it.

Source: (AFP.)
The speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has hailed the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari high in its second year in office, saying many commendable achievements have been recorded within these two years.

This was contained in a statement by Mr. Dogaras special adviser, media and public affairs, Turaki Hassan.

Mr. Dogara congratulated President Buhari, acting President Yemi Osinbajo, state governors and all Nigerians for the 18 years of democracy in the country and second anniversary of the Buhari administration.

He restated the commitment of the government to bringing succour to the common man and also saluted all Nigerians for their resilience in the face of challenges they encounter daily.

We know that within the two years of this administration, the government has achieved a lot in the area of security and transportation, he said.

In Agriculture and in diverse fields of our endeavours, a lot has been achieved and a lot need to be done, but we are committed to bringing succor to the common man, he said.

He further thanked and appreciated Nigerians for the dedication, patience, hope and resilience that they have shown.

In spite of the biting economic recession, we have held on to our hope for a better nation and we have not given up, he said.

I want to congratulate all of us and implore us to continue to hope and pray for everyone in position of authority in this country and to assure us that well surely get to our destination.

Mr. Dogara also noted that despite challenges, democracy remains the best form of government, adding that the government of the day was committed to strengthening institutions and fighting corruption.

He called for unity among Nigerians across the country.

Nigeria represents the best hope of a Black man and that hope cannot be realized in a factionalized state with no unity and with every one trying to fight for self-determination, he said.

Source: ( Premium Times )
Peterborough, ON (May 28, 2017)- The second week of 50th Anniversary Season action rolled to the starting line on Saturday, May 27 at Peterborough Speedway, as the Ontario Modifieds Racing Series, Ontario Pro Challenge and OSCAAR Midgets & Pro Midgets joined the home track Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, Jiffy Lube Mini Stock and Thunder Car divisions.

The Jiffy Lube Mini Stocks kicked-off feature race action, with Ember Junkin and Kevin Strutt on the front row. Junking would hold an early advantage and began lapping slower cars with less than a handful of laps in the books, but her time at the front of the field was short-lived. After taking the green flag in 5th spot, James Townsend took a lead hed never surrender after a restart with 5 laps on the board. Donovan Price, Junkin, Strutt and Kent Missons completed the top 5.

With 20 laps on the agenda, the Ontario Modifieds Racing Series hit Canadas Toughest 3rd of a Mile Paved Oval for the first time in 2017 with the father and son duo of Rick and Rob Warnes on the front row. The pair showed the rest of the field the fast way around, but Brad Stevensons #77 was the class of show and took the top spot just 5 laps into the run. Rob Warnes would hang-on to the runner-up spot and was chased across the stripe by his father. Opening round winner Duane Cinnamon was 4th, with Randy Hollingsworth 5th.

With Jeremy Kelly and Ryan Oosterholt showing the way, the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun field rolled from the staging area. As he had a week earlier, Oosterholt elected to start from the tail of the field, putting Keith Parkes alongside Kelly for the initial green flag. Parkes would have a strong run at the front of the pack as the leaders caught the backmarkers with about 5 laps on the board. A pair of yellow flags would shuffle the deck and put Kelly in control for a late race shootout with Sean Kennedy. Last years champion got the better of last weeks winner, as Kelly headed for Dart Heating and Air Conditioning victory lane. Jake Kelly, Baden Powell and Dylan Wills completed the top 5.

Dwight Lavoie and defending track champion Howie Crowe brought the Thunder Car field to the Great Canadian RV green flag for their 20 lapper. Crowes refurbished #28 took an early lead and was still in control with half the laps complete. A restart, with only 5 circuits remaining saw Dan Archibald at the front of the pack and hed hold on for his first win of the year. James Townsend, Rob Richards, Bailey Jacobs and Anthony DiBello would complete the top 5.

Mike Johnson and Bryan Stevanus brought the Ontario Pro Challenge machines to the line for their 30 lap feature tilt. Stevanus and Kyle Batty broke away from the field and were running nose-to-tail at the front of the pack, when the pair came together in the middle of the backstretch. The incident also collected Tim Norris and Peter Hattin, who were running 3rd and 4th at the time. All drivers were unhurt, but only Norris and Batty were able to return to action. Norris kept challenger Rick Seeley at bay for the win. Ken Lillycrop, Tim Shanahan and Batty finished-out the top 5.

Nigel Buttivant took the OSCAAR Midget main event. Jordan Hanna claimed the Pro Midget checkered flag.

Earlier in the evening, James Townsend and Neil Hannah split the Jiffy Lube Mini Stock heats, with Brad Stevenson, Mark Gordon, Rick Warnes and Duane Cinnamon sharing the Ontario Modifieds Racing Series qualifiers. Jeremy Kelly, Ryan Oosterholt, Sean Kennedy and Keith Parkes took the Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun preliminary rounds. Thunder Car qualifying saw Dan Archibald with a pair, Anthony DiBello and Howie Crowe take the checkered flags. Daniel Hawn and Jordan Hanna split the Pro Midget qualifiers, with Bryan Stevanus and Kyle Batty each taking a pair of the Ontario Pro Challenge heats.

Bullring bullet points: The nights 50/50 draw paid close to $600 to a lucky race fanJames Townsend picked a great night to do double-duty, winning the Mini Stock feature event and finishing second in the Thunder Car A mainBrandon Feeney had an adventure just getting to the track. The rookie of the year hopeful in the Thunder Car division needed to rent a cube van to tow his car to the speedwayAfter winning the 2016 OMRS title, John Baker has endured a couple of frustrating weeks on the tour. His reworked #63 machine suffered mechanical issues during practice for the second straight event.

Action at Canadas Toughest 1/3-Mile Paved Oval resumes with the years first Fan Appreciation/Toonie Spectator Grandstand Admission Night  presented by Pepsi  Saturday, June 3rd. The show will feature a special 50th Anniversary 50 lap main event for the Organics & Glass Late Models, along with action for the home track Battlefield Equipment Rental 4Fun, Jiffy Lube Mini Stock and Trent Lakes Complete Plumbing Renegade Truck divisions; plus, the Trailers Plus.net Eastern Ontario Legends Series. Pit gates will open at 2:00, with the spectator grandstands unlocked at 4:00 and racing at 5:00.

Full schedule details and the latest news can always be found by logging onto www.peterboroughspeedway.com, liking the Peterborough Speedway page on Facebook or following the track on Twitter. Fans can also download the free app on your Smartphone.

Prepared by: Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications/First Draft Media

clarkemotorsports@hotmail.com, www.facebook.com/clarkemotorsports

613.968.6410
Peterborough, ON (May 28, 2017)- The Ontario Modifieds Racing Series powered by Torque Builders Inc. rolled into Canadas Toughest 1/3-Mile Paved Oval on Saturday, May 27 for the first time in 2017 and joined the 50th Anniversary Season celebration at Peterborough Speedway.

Nearly a dozen teams from the popular open-wheeled racing tour signed-in to tackle the tight, tricky bullring on Mount Pleasant Road, west of the Liftlock City and the nights 20 lap main event rolled to the green flag with the father and son duo of Rick and Rob Warnes on the front row. The pair showed the pack the quick way around during the early stages of the event, but they were no match for Brad Stevenson.

The driver of the S & S Racing ride wheeled his ultra-sharp #77 machine from outside of the second row and took command of the headline dance with just five circuits showing on the lap counter. A yellow flag at the halfway mark slowed the pace, but did nothing to derail Stevensons trip to the winners circle. On the restart, hed move-out to an advantage of nearly five car lengths as he watched the laps click away from the front of the field.

Rob Warnes chased Stevenson across the stripe, with his father close behind. Duane Cinnamon  who won the opening round, a week earlier at Sunset Speedway  was fourth, with Randy Hollingsworth completing the top five. Mark Gordon, Connor James, Chris Burrows, Craig Stevenson and Willow Barberstock rounded-out the running order.

Stevenson, Rick Warnes, Mark Gordon and Cinnamon took checkered flags during qualifying heats run earlier in the event.

Ontario Modifieds Racing Series Peterborough Speedway Notebook: For the second straight show, reigning series champion John Baker Jr. was forced to watch the action from the sidelines, as his #63 machine developed problems during the pre-race practice session. As is usually the case, the driver said the car was running great just before the issues cropped-upThe series returns to Peterborough Speedway Saturday, June 10th. Before the race event, OMRS will host its annual Test a Mod day from 11:00 until 2:00.

Prepared by: Jim Clarke, Clarke Motorsports Communications/First Draft Media

clarkemotorsports@hotmail.com, www.facebook.com/clarkemotorsports

613.968.6410
Last February, group CEO Michael Cameron announced the One Suncorp  business model. Key to that model is a sharpened customer focus; the banking and insurance giant has set out to create a unique financial services marketplace, in which those customers have multiple needs met by products across the group and their loyalty to Suncorp is accordingly strengthened.

Gary Dransfield heads the team tasked with improving customer access to Suncorps products via the creation of new, interactive platforms. He tells Insurance Business how Suncorp has gone about working to seat the customer firmly at the centre of its business.

We had to reorganise ourselves  away from end-to-end businesses to a more customer-centric operating model and structure  with a team focused on customer experience, with a team focused on customer engagement platforms, but right across all of our lines of business, not siloed by line of business  And reorienting our processes and our systems to focus on the full breadth of a customers relationship with us, he explains.

It then becomes much more about how what we measure is about the end-to-end customer experience of the organisation and how that drives us to design  processes that better meet customers needs  and, hopefully, dispose customers to want to stay with us longer.

Dransfield emphasises that the expectations insurance customers now have of their digital interactions with insurers are the result of interactions they have had in the digital space with other sectors.

That very much creates the frame of reference for how consumers, whether they be business customers or individual customers, want to interact with any organisation, he says.

So, we start from that perspective, trying to deliver customer experiences digitally that align  in terms of the user experience design, the interfaces and the intuitiveness of the journey  with the way consumers typically would see digital interactions in other industries.

On the claims front, Dransfield talks about the importance of increasing the visibility of the process. We want to find ways to improve claims decision-making, speed it up, get an answer for a customer and get them through the supply chain for repair or reinstatement as quickly as possible. Digital and technology help to facilitate that, but still, where there are human experiences, we need to enable that kind of service interaction through the human experiences as well. And its equally applicable for businesses or consumers.

The disruptors?

Preparing for future success in insurance requires clear cognisance of the work occurring in the ever-growing, multi-billion dollar global insurtech industry. Dransfield stresses that its important to consider insurtech businesses in two distinct categories  those that threaten and those that enable.

There are those players in insurtech and fintech who want to  go and upend traditional business models, and they do that usually by finding a way to solve customer problems better and quicker and at lower cost. Weve got to be very aware, as have all industries, of the risk of organisations just coming along and disrupting our business model, he says.

But then there are those insurtech and fintech players that are creating their model to help existing traditional business models work better for customers  In our case, we know there is an inevitability to digital business processes and business models creating disruption, so we want to participate in that, plus run our traditional business as well as we can so were not as prone to being disrupted.

Last April, Suncorp announced a US$5m equity stake in San Francisco-based technology developer Trov. The insurer and the start-up partnered to launch Trov Protection, offering on-demand insurance to customers for individual items, all organised from their mobile phone.

Suncorp was the first insurer globally to work with Trov. More recently, multinational insurer AXA has announced a partnership with Trov to provide single-item insurance in the UK.

Dransfield talks about the significance of the Trov partnership for Suncorp.

We very much went into it to partner with an organisation that thinks differently about the customer experience in insurance because, of course, we can think about the customer experience in the way we would typically think as an insurer, but Trovs not an insurer. Theyre a customer experience company, theyre a data company, and thats how theyll disrupt the traditional insurance business models  by thinking from a pure customer experience point of view and enabling a better customer experience with access to data.

That was very much the inception of the relationship with Trov  how do you work with somebody whos going to help, almost infect the DNA of Suncorp, to think differently about the customer experience and how we enable it and then, secondly, use that different thinking to innovate our own business model?

On potential further insurtech partnerships, Dransfield says, We want to go out and find partners in that wider innovation ecosystem globally to work with, to help us understand how we need to innovate and to undertake with us some of that innovation.

Increasingly though, he says, Suncorp wont just apply that approach to its insurance business.

We want to apply that to how we think about financial well-being for our customers beyond the various classes of insurance, to the way in which customer interactions more generally are done, particularly in a marketplace model, where we want to be able to introduce to our nearly nine million customers a whole range of solutions that will improve their financial well-being.

Open for business

Dransfield describes Suncorps first concept store, recently opened in Sydneys Parramatta, as the first physical manifestation of its marketplace approach.

What we wanted to do was take the opportunity to trial making the broader range of brands that sit within the group available to our customers and visible, he says.

So we have AAMI, GIO, APIA visible in that location, as well as the Suncorp brand, but also [we wanted to] move beyond banking and a limited amount of insurance to enable our customers to see the broad range of what we can do. The word concept is very deliberately chosen because it is a test and learn environment. We dont assume that weve got it perfectly right on day one, in terms of the way that we make our brands more visible to our customers, and the way in which we bring more of our products and solutions to bear than just pure banking in a physical store environment.

Dransfield says the concept store is very deliberately retail-oriented.

It doesnt look like a typical bank branch, and weve skilled the people in the store to be able to work across a number of brands and a number of products and solutions and, with partners, were delivering digital customer journeys in there.

While Suncorp is undertaking significant work targeting consumers directly, Dransfield says the business also wants to expose more of the organisation to its broker partners to then help them to grow their businesses.

One dimension of that is opening up our application programming interfaces (APIs) to partners to be able to connect their systems into. Increasingly, for the whole business, we think about everyday tools that we can make available to both consumers and to our business customers and our broker partners. A good example of thats a risk assessment tool that weve been able to open up and expose to brokers.

Dransfield foresees a future for insurance which, in addition to customers service expectations being driven by experiences across industries, will see much greater symmetry in information between customers and insurers.



We see that as an opportunity to really enhance the customer experience of insurance and to make it much more frictionless than its historically been.


Fairfax Financial Holdings has found buyers for a 12.2% stake in its joint venture insurance business in India, ICICI Lombard, according to reports over the weekend.The Canadian insurer has agreed to sell to Red Bloom Investment Ltd, a Warburg Pincus private equity investment fund a 9% stake in the firm, while Tamarind Capital Pte Ltd and IIFL Special Opportunities Fund will get 1.59% each.The sale values ICICI Lombard at 203 billion rupees or $3.15 billion.After the deal, Fairfaxs share of the firm will be whittled down to 22.1%, while India's ICICI Bank Ltd will own 63.3% of the insurer.Fairfax India Holdings, the companys investment arm in the country, recently upped its investments to almost $1 billion with its additional capitalization of the Bangalore International Airport (BIAL).According to finance research platform VCCEdge, the firm went on a fundraising mission in Canada in November 2014 to raise $500 million for its India ventures.The company will invest in businesses that are expected to benefit from Indias current pro-business political environment, its growing middle class and its demographic trends that are expected to underpin strong growth for several years. Sectors of the Indian economy that the company believes will benefit most from such trends include infrastructure, consumer services, retail sector and the export sector, Fairfax India stated in its public offering regulatory filings.Fairfax is reported to be optimistic about Indian opportunities largely due to a regulatory overhaul of the conduct of business in the country, which includes direct transfer of subsidies, labour laws, and the bankruptcy code; as well as a renewed focus on infrastructure and the development of smart cities.
Forbes has released its list of the Worlds Biggest Insurance Companies for 2017.At the top of the risk management heap is Ping An Insurance Group, one of two Chinese insurers in the top 5. In the past year, the company, which has been led by chief executive Ma Mingzhe since 2001, racked up more than $106 billion in sales, earning $9.5 billion in profits.Translated into English, the company name means safe and well. It is listed on both the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. It was also recently named as the worlds most valuable insurance brand whose name equity has been valued at $16 billion. Allianz comes a close second on the list, clearing $7.6 billion in margins over sales of $115.7 billion. The German firm also holds the 21st place in the Forbes Global 2000 list. Chief executive Oliver Bate has been at the helm of the 147,000 strong firm since 2015. After reporting a 23% rise in profits earlier this year, the company undertook a 3 billion euro share buyback program to fulfil its promise to its investors.Frances Axa Group comes in third with $6.2 billion in profits from $132 billion sales, according to Forbes. The firm also took the 27th spot in the Forbes Global 2000 list overall. The Paris-based insurance and investment management firm became one of the top three global financial services brands in 2016. In September last year, the firm saw a changing of the guard in its leadership as German Thomas Buberl stepped into the shoes of Henri de Castries, who served as chief executive for 17 years. Change has been good so far. In a March briefing, Buberl reported that companyrevenues exceeded 100 billion euros. Not a bad start for someone who doesnt try to copy anybody else, as he told The Telegraph.In the fourth spot is Japan Post Holdings, which also ranks 45th in the Global 2000 list. The Tokyo based insurer is a state-owned conglomerate that also engages in logistics, banking and other financial services.Rounding out the top five is another Chinese insurer, China Life Insurance, with a Global 2000 rank of 52. The firm is 70% state owned and has restructured in 2014 to meet the demands of deregulation in its home market, along with the appointment of current chief executive Dairen Lin.Prudential, Zurich Chubb , AIA Group and Munich Re make up the rest of the top 10 of the Forbes list.Top P& C Insurers on the worlds biggest public company list list were:# 109 Chubb Switzerland# 143 Tokio Marine Japan# 179 Travelers US# 206 MS&AD Insurance Japan# 214 Peoples Insurance Co China# 306 Sompo Japan# 382 Progressive US# 552 Samsung Fire & Marine South Korea# 575 QBE Australia# 941 Fairfax Financial Canada# 947 WR Berkley US# 970 Arch Capital Bermuda
Chief financial officer sheds light on the trading results
XL Catlin has announced a new chief underwriting officer for their global marine business.Rob McAdams has been promoted to the role, having previously held the position of UK/Ireland marine leader.McAdams has more than two decades of experience in the insurance industry, having held positions with Reliance National in New York prior to joining XL Catlin in 2000.Since joining the global firm, McAdams has honed expertise in hull, ports and terminals and global marine and upstream energy liabilities.He has shown great leadership skills in his former roles and has exactly the right experience and expertise to steer strategy for our Marine team at a global level, Doug Howat, chief executive for global lines at XL Catlin said of the move.
In the two years since Chinese President Xi Jinpings official announcement of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) during his state visit to Pakistan on April 20, 2015, the first slate of early harvest CPEC projects are poised to be completed. Jian Han, the Political and Press Counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Pakistan, describes CPEC as having entered the stage of fast-track implementation, with 2017-18 being the year of comprehensive implementation with Early Harvest Projects reaching fruition.





CPEC Project Director Hassan Daud Butt states that with the completion of the Early Harvest Projects in 2018, about 7,000 MW of energy would be added to the national grid and linkages of Eastern and Western routes would be completed. This will set the foundation for CPEC to move into its industrialization phase, with the commencement of work on the development of nine industrial zones to be set up under CPEC across the country. Chinese experts and Pakistans Board of Investment will work together to ensure maximum investment in these industrial zones. The completion of the Western route would also open up the underdeveloped provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan for accelerated development, with the completion of the network of highways linking Gwadar Port in the south with the Khunjerab Pass in the north providing much-needed transportation connectivity to previously inaccessible areas.





To support these ongoing projects, the Pakistani government has budgeted 180 billion rupees (USD 1.71 billion) for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and its projects during the 2017-18 financial year, which will be the third year of CPECs implementation. Also, in late May 2017, during Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifs visit to Beijing to attend the Belt and Road Forum, PM Sharif and President Xi signed almost USD 500 million worth of additional deals for CPEC, including agreements for Gwadar Airport, East Bay Expressway, and Havelian Dry Dock.





In the broader Central Asian region, the connectivity to the Indian Ocean offered by CPECs growing land transportation network and Gwadar Port, and the oil and gas pipelines that will be constructed under CPEC, have drawn the interest of the governments of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. In the long-term, even after CPEC is completed within Pakistan, the CPEC network could potentially be extended beyond Pakistans borders into Central Asia.





Long-Term Projects





The Pakistani government has submitted its proposal to China for projects to be completed under CPECs long-term plan, which are projects scheduled to be completed by 2030. (Projects under the short- and mid-term plans are scheduled to be completed by 2020 and 2025 respectively.) In terms of connectivity, Pakistan has proposed the development of an integrated transport system which includes the expansion of the highway network as well as the expansion of existing railway lines and  the modernization of the railway. The development of the integrated transport system also includes the construction of the East Bay Expressway and the new international airport.





In the energy sector, Pakistans proposal to China for CPEC long-term projects includes the construction of oil and gas pipelines from Gwadar Port into China.





In the finance sector, Pakistan has proposed to China that they expand their cooperation on currency swaps to support the financing for projects along the CPEC. Pakistan has also proposed the creation of a bilateral payment and settlement system to reduce the demand for third-party currency as well as the establishment of a settlement platform for RMB cross-border trade and investment. Pakistan has also recommended greater support for both countries enterprises and financial institutions in carrying out direct financing for projects along the CPEC in each others capital markets, including greater cooperation between their stock exchanges and the development of a cross-border credit system and cross-border financial services. In addition, in its proposal for the CPEC long-term plan, Pakistan has also requested increased financing from the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank to support its future development needs.









In terms of IT and communications, Pakistan has proposed developing information connectivity  through construction and operation of local communication networks and broadcast and TV networks. The proposal recommends that this development of Pakistans IT and communications connectivity be facilitated through the construction of a cross-border fiber-optic network and the upgrading of Pakistans network facilities, including the national data center and the second submarine cable landing station. Pakistan has also proposed cooperation with China for the incorporation of IT in e-commerce, IT industrial parks and IT industry clusters, as well as e-government initiatives such as electronic border controls.





In the energy sector, Pakistans proposal to China for CPEC long-term projects includes the construction of oil and gas pipelines from Gwadar Port into China. These pipeline projects will involve the construction of oil refineries and storage facilities at Gwadar and along CPEC route. The proposal also includes the development of clean energy such as hydropower, wind, and solar power plants. In the industrial sector, Pakistan proposes cooperation with China to improve its textile and garment manufacturing industries as well as industrial capacity cooperation in sectors such as chemicals, engineering, agro, iron & steel and construction materials. In the agricultural sector, Pakistan proposes cooperation with China in biological breeding, production, processing, storage and transportation, infrastructure construction, disease prevention and control, water resources development and utilization, land development and remediation, ICT-enabled agriculture and marketing of agricultural products.





Security Concerns





The kidnapping in late May 2017 in Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, of two Chinese nationals who were operating a Chinese language school, has raised concerns in China over the security arrangements for CPEC, especially since Balochistan is the province where Gwadar Port is located. As Wang Wenwen reminds us, Islamic militants have often carried out abductions of foreigners on Pakistani soil, either for ransom or to get publicity for their cause. Chinese people have also been targeted occasionally, despite the friendly relations between the two countries. Balochistan in particular has seen frequent violence committed by Islamic terrorists and separatists and the Belt and Road program is often exposed to potential threats. Last year, a Chinese engineer was injured in a bomb attack in southern Pakistan and a separatist group, the Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they were targeting the CPEC.





As with the jihadi militant groups who have attacked CPEC installations, violence against CPEC has come from separatist groups as well, including the abovementioned Sindhudesh Revolutionary Army and the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), which in mid-May 2017 murdered 10 laborers working at a road construction site in Gwadar. As Syed Ali Shah notes: Though the road where the laborers were working was not a specific CPEC-funded project, it was a part of a network of connecting roads that are part of the corridor  a common target for separatist militants who view construction projects as a means to take over their land.





In the meantime, one of the tribal leaders of the Baloch community, the current Khan of Kalat, Mir Suleman Dawood Jan, who is currently living in exile in the UK, has condemned CPEC as a Chinese military project and an existential threat to the Baloch people. The Khans comments could add fuel to the fire of the BLA and the Baloch separatist movement, which see Balochistan as a victim of illegal occupation by the barbarian Pakistan army.





Apart from militant violence, another significant threat to the successful completion of CPEC comes from India. A recent report from UNESCAP (United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific) warns of the danger posed by the geopolitical tensions and political instability which are likely to be triggered should CPEC installations be constructed in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir  disputed territory which is controlled by Pakistan but which is claimed by India. CPEC threatens to draw China into this long-standing bilateral dispute.





References





Completion of CPEC early harvest project would lead to sustainable dev in Pakistan. (2017, May 26). Pakistan Observer.





CPEC an existential threat to Baloch: Khan of Kalat. (2017, May 27). ANI.





CPEC: Why Pakistan will not gain much from this OBOR project in its present form. (2017, May 25). Financial Express.





Haider, M. (2017, May 2). Pakistan, China close to adopting long-term plan for CPEC. The News International.





Johnson, K. (2017, May 13). Pakistan signs nearly $500 million in China deals at Silk Road summit. Reuters.





Khawar, H. (2017, May 28). The real CPEC plan. Daily Times.





Lim, A. C. H. (2016, March 1). Iron brothers: Sino-Pakistani relations and the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. IPP Review.





Pakistan allocates Rs 180 billion for CPEC in budget. (2017, May 27). IANS.





Shah, S. A. (2017, May 13). 10 labourers killed in Gwadar as unidentified assailants open fire at construction site. Dawn.





Shah, S. A. (2017, May 24). Two Chinese nationals kidnapped from Quetta. Dawn.





Shahbazov, F. (2017, May 25). Will the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor be a gateway to Central Asia? The Diplomat.





Wang, W. W. (2017, May 25). Kidnapping highlights risks along China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. Global Times.





Yousafzai, F. (2017, May 25). Long-term CPEC to bring $300bn investment. The Nation.
Religion should not act as a barrier to accessing state-funded schools, according to Equate.

The children and family rights organisation will attend a forum today which is discussing the role of religion in Primary School admissions.
It has emerged that Facebook chief Sheryl Sandberg lobbied the Taoiseach about who should be appointed Ireland's next data protection commissioner.

It comes as the social media giant faces an investigation under new Data Protection Commissioner Helen Dixon.
A legal challenge initiated in the Irish courts with a view to halting Brexit is not proceeding and has been struck out on consent, the High Court was told today, writes Ann O'Loughlin.

The president of the High Court, Mr Justice Peter Kelly, was told today by Maurice Collins SC, for the State, and Martin Hayden SC, for the plaintiffs, the action could be struck out on consent of the sides with no order.

The judge struck out the case which was initiated by a British barrister, Jolyon Maugham QC, along with Northern Ireland Green Party leader and MLA, Steven Agnew, Jonathan Bartley, co-leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, and Green Party MEP for the south-east of England, Keith Taylor.

The proceedings were aimed at establishing if Britain can halt Brexit after triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty.

The plaintiffs wanted the High Court to refer issues in the case for determination by the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU). They sought various declarations or interpretations of the Treaties of the EU, including a declaration that Article 50, once triggered, can be unilaterally revoked by the UK government.

Ireland and the Attorney General had entered a conditional and without prejudice appearance before the High Court to contest the action and they asked that the issue of jurisdiction to be decided first.

Mr Justice Kelly earlier this month had fixed May 31st to make directions for resolution of various issues related to jurisdiction. He previously remarked, if the State succeeded in what it described as its "knockout blow" to the challenge, that would be the end of the matter.

Among the issues raised by the State were whether the High Court here had any power to grant the relief sought against the State defendants and why the case was brought here.
A man has been jailed for nine years for helping his friend to rape a young woman in a public park in Cork city.

Keith Aherne of Sawmill Lane, Sawmill Street in Cork denied the charge but a jury found him guilty last March.

The woman went drinking with a friend in a park in Cork city on a night in June 2013.

She told Gardai she fell asleep and awoke to find the accused and another man there.

She said Keith Aherne, who was 19 at the time, kissed her on the cheek but she told him to go away, and he did so.

Later, the court heard he pushed her to the ground and held her down while his friend raped her. She said he kept saying its alright, girl.

Judge Isobel Kennedy said it was to his credit that he declined his friends offer to also rape her and that he tried to offer her some comfort afterwards, but she said his actions facilitated the rape.

The severe impact that night has had on the victim and Ahernes 41 previous convictions were also aggravating factors, she said.

Aherne was handed a ten-year sentence this morning with the final year suspended.

The court heard his co-accused has since passed away.
A Limerick man, who is described as being "known" to gardai, is in a critical condition in hospital after the car he was driving crashed through a roundabout and into a large advertising sign, writes David Raleigh.

The 33-year old, from the Moyross estate, was driving a black coloured BMW Coupe 320, which was destroyed in the collision.

Gardai do not believe any other vehicle was involved in the crash, which occurred on the N18, on the outskirts of Limerick city, between the Radisson Hotel roundabout and the Coonagh roundabout.

The crashed BMW was discovered by a passing motorist around 2.40am and they notified the emergency services.

The driver, who was found inside the car, was cut from the wreckage by firefighters attached to the Limerick City Fire and Rescue Service.

He was rushed by ambulance to University Hospital Limerick and was later transferred to Cork University Hospital.

The injured man is understood to have sustained critical head injuries in the impact of the crash.

The Ennis to Limerick inbound lane remains closed to allow garda forensic collision inspector conduct a detailed examination of the scene.

Gardai at Mayorstone are investigating.

Appealing for witnesses Superintendent Derek Smart, Henry Street, said: "Anyone who was at the Ennis Road around the time in question, who was coming from the Ennis direction, and if they saw any vehicle driving at speed or saw anything suspicious to contact us."
A special ceremony will take place in Wexford today to honour the 100th anniversary of the birth of former US President John F Kennedy.

The event will see a memorial concert and military salute take place this afternoon.
He told an informal meeting of European Union agriculture ministers in Malta that 2016 was the hottest year on record and a new high for the third year in a row.

We are approaching this debate from a position of strength  namely the hard-won global consensus outlined in the COP21Climate Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals, he said.

We have a strong impetus for action and a clear framework for moving ahead. But the challenge remains enormous.

Noting the UN describes water as a lifeline for humanity, Mr Hogan said this is certainly the case in the context of delivering sustainable food security.

As human populations continue to grow rapidly and economies expand, water resources are being depleted and polluted at an alarming rate, he said.

Mr Hogan warned that water quality is deteriorating across Europe. Scarcity of water, which was typically affecting many southern EU member states, is now increasingly felt in many northern European regions, which limits water availability for the agricultural sector.

In this context, it is not alone welcome but essential that the issues of water and agriculture receive growing attention in the international agenda, he said.

Mr Hogan said he discussed this in January at the G20 meeting of agriculture ministers. The related declaration underlines that water is an essential production resource for agriculture and is therefore critical for feeding the growing world population.

He said the European Commission also recently published a staff working document on Agriculture and Sustainable Water Management in the EU.

Both documents not alone cover similar issues, but they also identify similar challenges which, together, they must address as a matter of urgency.

Mr Hogan invited the EU member state ministers to make full use of the wide range of existing policy tools to improve the availability and quality of water.
Shane Fitzpatrick hopes his inexorable rise to the top of the hospitality industry will inspire young people to choose a career in a trade he says offers excellent career prospects.

The Kildare native, who now lives in Mallow, won a general manager of the year award for western Europe at the Carlton Rezidor Shining Star Awards in London for his guidance of the Radisson Blu Hotel and Spa in Little Island, Co Cork.

Radisson Blu operates in almost 1,000 locations in more than 70 countries, and is a subsidiary of the Carlton Rezidor Hotel Group, which employs an estimated 88,000 worldwide.

Mr Fitzpatrick said he hoped his progression through the ranks would inspire men and women to think about a career in the industry. Im with the Radisson Group the last 12 years. I have been in Limerick, Dublin and Athlone, and I finally ended up here in Cork.

I was in college in Cathal Brugha Street and I worked my way through bars and restaurants. I joined Radisson as food and beverage manager and worked my way up. Prior to that, I had done the bar jobs, the weekend work and the functions, hotels and restaurants and a year in Australia, he said. The hospitality industry has been seen as a stopgap for young people in the past as they work their way to another career  something Mr Fitzpatrick would like to see change.

Across the board, there are huge opportunities in our industry. The big problem is trying to get qualified chefs. It is a problem that is getting bigger and bigger. A lot of people in Ireland still see leisure and the hotel industry as a stop-gap. It will cover them for summer holidays but they dont see it as a career.

Catering and hospitality traditionally hasnt been pushed hard enough in schools. Career guidance perhaps geared people towards the traditional secure stable roles. It has to start there, he says.

If a guidance counsellor can identify people with good communication and social skills, it starts there. You see in Italy or Austria that staff are very mature  it is a career that makes them proud. I dont think weve got to that level in Ireland yet.

In this industry, you will never be short of a job. There are so many travel opportunities. Whether in a group like Radisson or not, there is plenty of scope, he said.

Communication skills go a long way. People thinking about it could surprise themselves when they see how well the hospitality industry would suit them, he said. Obviously you need passion for the job, depending on what role youre in. Some think its just about the bar or restaurant but there is a range of roles, from sales to human resources, maintenance to the gym to accounts. At the end of the day, whatever role you are in within an industry, its all about people, he said.

While Brexit would bring challenges, there are also opportunities for Cork, he says. We are corporate from Monday to Thursday and very much leisure driven at the weekends. Corporate has definitely lifted. Were lucky where we are in terms of the industry right on our doorstep. A lot of the big pharmaceuticals are performing very well. Our leisure tends to be domestic-based. However, the impact of Cork Airport cannot be underestimated. A lot of our business comes in on a Monday from London, they stay four nights and head back on Thursday night, Friday morning or afternoons, he said.

East Cork was burgeoning as a tourist venue, he said, while business tourism in the Cork region was also improving. The long-awaited event centre and redevelopment of Pairc Ui Chaoimh was vital, he added. We are lucky in relation to our location, with the likes of Fota Wildlife Park, Cobh, Midleton.

Everyone used to talk about West Cork but East Cork is becoming hugely popular. The event centre is vital, we need to get it started. The Wild Atlantic Way and Ancient East were very important, as was The Gathering. It took a while for momentum to build and then it took off. It benefited us, taxis, trains, activities, food  it had a snowball effect. Ireland is now very much activity-based, people asking what can they do.

Once North American visitors arrive in Cork, weve got to keep them here. There has been a tradition of arriving in Cork and heading to Kerry. Now they see Cork as their home for the holiday. With so many good bars, restaurants and golf courses, good hotels, friendly people, there is no reason people should not plan their weekend around Cork, he said. Now is a good time for the hospitality sector, he believes.

Most hotels are in a position to spend money and reinvest back into it. Running a good hotel is based on teamwork, he said. Beds and beds, and rooms are rooms, but if you dont have the right people, it doesnt matter. Your staff is everything.
Getting into Yale was one of the achievements which helped the Monaghan brothers bring this years National Enterprise Award for Exports home to Mayo.

Manufacturing furniture for pubs since the 1980s, their company, Monaghan Bros Bar Furniture got into Yale University with a consignment of chairs and stools which are used in a dining area in the medical school.

It was one of our first exports to the US and is a significant reference customer for us because of the prestige of Yale, said director Peter Monaghan who, with the help of the Ireland West International Trade Centre in Rhode Island and Mayo Enterprise Local Enterprise Office, began targeting US exports three years ago.

We have now opened a showroom the Centre with a sales agent and this month we have signed a distribution agreement with the USs largest restaurant supply company Trimark  which has named us as preferred vendors for New England, says Mr Monaghan.

Currently employing a staff of ten, Monaghan Bros has, through developing new markets in the UK, Australia and Europe as well as the US, doubled sales in the last three years and is now aiming to increase its turnover by a further 20% this year.

For the four Monaghan brothers, Peter, Richard, Michael and Paddy, setting up a furniture company between two bogs in Claremorris was a means of avoiding emigration in the 1980s.

Finding a niche supplying bars and hotels around Ireland, their business thrived in the boom but suffered in the recession.

The companys recovery was boosted by the setting up of the Ireland West International Trade Centre.

It is a collaborative partnership involving members of the Irish diaspora in the US and Mayo Local Enterprise Office.

It was designed to help small companies in the west of Ireland develop exports.

It was through a contact at the Centre that we got the Yale order as well as one to supply furniture for a large Irish pub in North Carolina, another in New York and a restaurant in New England.

Since it began courting new business in the US, the company has also been experiencing growth in a number of other areas.

Petrol forecourt retailer Applegreen became a customer in 2014 when it put in an order for cafe furniture for an outlet in Swords.

Since then we have provided furniture for around 50 Applegreen outlets  we are now working on seven orders  two in the UK and five in Ireland, says Mr Monaghan.

An Australian architect who found Monaghan Bros on the Internet has also become a regular customer.

In the last three years we have supplied furniture to around 15 hotels in hotels and restaurants in Australia and it is now one of our largest export markets, he says.

The company has also supplied furniture for Irish pubs in France, Germany, Portugal as well as one in Hiroshima in Japan.

Supermacs is also a customer and we have done a lot of work for the John Duffy Design Group  an architect who specifies using our furniture, he says.

In addition to signing an agreement with Trimark in the US, the company is now planning to take on distributors in both Germany and France, with a view to developing more Irish pub business.

In the last three years, exports have grown from zero to 30%.

The company has also seen a recovery in the Irish market.

We are experiencing an increase in demand from hotels and restaurants  they are spending again, Mr Monaghan says.

Noting that staff size and the turnover are back up to levels from before the recession, Mr Monaghan says the companys growth shows that its West of Ireland location is no obstacle to exporting anywhere in the world.

We compete by being able to provide quality bar furniture to the specifications set out by architects and interior designers and by being competitively priced, he says.

He says that because of low overheads, Monaghan Bros can compete successfully on price in Australia and the US.

Aiming to grow exports to 75% this year, the company plans to use its newly won National Enterprise Export Award to win further export customers.

Website: barfurniture.net
The restrictions are intended to protect endangered wildlife and plants. The farmers in Galway, Offaly, Roscommon, and Westmeath signed up to 15-year Farm Plans with the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) in 2006, but these plans were stopped in 2012. The disputed area relates to up to 105 NPWS farm plans.

The bogs were in crisis in 2012, so they pulled our funding and put it into the bogs, said Galway farmer Charlie Killeen, chair of the Shannon Action Group. It was envisaged that the farm plans would solve any problems relating to the hen harrier scheme. Were quite willing to co-operate with any measures that need to be introduced. Were not spraying on these lands; were still farming to the guidelines. We are guardians of the land.

From 2012, farmers have been invited to instead apply for GLAS and other environmental schemes. Teagasc costed the NPWS plans at 350/ha 12 years ago. Farmers in the Shannon Callow area would get around 200/ha if they signed up to GLAS, while also agreeing to seven actions, some of which this group of farmers also strongly oppose.

If a farmer needed planning for a fence to comply, the burden would be on his title deeds, said Mr Killeen. Because of that, banks wouldnt accept your land as security for a loan.

Worst of all, if youre found to be in breach of any of these rules, you could face six months in jail or fines of up to 200,000. The only scheme that will work for us now is a restoration of the NPWS farm plans.

The west coast farmers argue that the new schemes do not offer the level of support needed for their local environmental issues. With the change from farm plans to Glas, control of the funding has also gone from the NWPS to into the Department of Agriculture through the National Development Plan. Formal meetings since 2012 have failed to deliver the changes sought.

Farmers in the Shannon Callow have mounted signs banning Birdwatch Ireland and the NPWS from entering their lands. They say they wont take down the signs until the 15-year farm plans have been honoured.

Last year, the group blocked the river. Further protests are planned this year. Mr Killeen said the IFA has plans to lift the issue to the top of its agenda in the coming months.

The IFA said its members have voiced their opposition to the designation of land since the late 1990s. However, given that the EU Birds and Habitats Directives are obligatory on member states, IFA has strongly pursued a compensation mechanism from whatever source to make up the losses incurred from the designation of land.

In the 1997 and 2004 SAC agreements with Government, farmers were promised adequate compensation for restrictions on farming with recourse to arbitration in any disputed cases.

There has been no case put forward for arbitration, said an IFA spokesman. IFA has always stated the best mechanism of compensation is the NPWS Farm Plan Scheme. This closed for new applicants in 2010. There are no farmers in this scheme.

The only new measure on the horizon is the Locally Led Scheme, which may help farmers in designations.

IFA estimates that a significant number of farmers in the Shannon Callows are in the GLAS scheme with measures such as the Wader Bird, Private Natura and other measures, added the spokesperson.

At the latest meeting with Minister Humphreys, IFA again looked for the restoration of the NPWS Farm Plan Scheme.

IFA has created working groups to cover each designated land group in its lobbying plans. For the Shannon Callows, nominations for each of the four counties.
A large crowd of hill farmers attended both the farm visit and the subsequent meeting.

Despite the challenges posed for hill farmers in these areas, a sustainable future can be charted for them, if a number of specific policy measures are pursued.

Most hill and mountain lands are designated as Special Areas of Conservation or Special Protected Areas. It means farmers in these areas have severe restrictions imposed on them, which impacts on their ability to farm and generate income. Some 20% of the countrys land mass could be described as hill-type land.

Hill farmers provide vital public goods in the form of landscape management, biodiversity and environmental improvements across large areas of hill and mountain lands and farmers are entitled to be paid for these services.

A key measure is the 25m increase in Areas of National Constraint (ANC) payments secured by the IFA under the Programme for Government in 2016. This must be paid out to farmers in 2018 and it will be a central element of our pre-Budget submission.

Hill farmers must benefit from this budget increase as they were the farmers who lost out most in the 2009 cuts.

Low incomes in hill areas

It looks like the Austrian move to defer the review of the ANCs will be approved by the EU Farm Council. While Agriculture Minister Michael Creed has backed the deferral of the review of ANCs, there can be no deviation from the IFA proposal that payments reflect the natural disadvantage of the land type. We will continue to pursue the Government on this.

The 2015 Teagasc National Farm survey clearly highlights the low incomes from Hill Sheep farming, with the average income at 14,743. This works out at only 283 per week. The figures show that direct payments are a vital support, whether it is Basic Payment, ANC, Glas, or Sheep Welfare. Direct payments for hill farmers must be protected and enhanced.

The payment delays under GLAS were particularly severe for commonage farmers because of their income dependence on direct payments. Mr Creed cannot stand over the payment delays on Glas, which is undermining this important environment scheme at farm level.

Heritage Bill

On the Heritage Bill, it is of vital importance that the Heritage Bill is passed in the Dail to allow for better management of hill areas through controlled burning of vegetation.

Lamb prices

The price momentum on early lamb has to be maintained later into the lamb selling season. Hogget finishers, who are vital to the light lamb and store lamb trade had a very difficult season with prices well back on last year.

Hill sheep farmers have made considerable progress in recent years by improving and adopting both breeding and production to meet market requirements. Producers can maximise their returns by ensuring they have a suitable lamb which meets a particular market requirement, whether it is a ewe lamb for breeding, a lamb for store buyers or a light finished lamb for the factory.

25m Sheep Welfare Scheme secured

IFA worked hard and secured 25m in additional funding for the new Sheep Welfare Scheme which was taken up by 22,500 sheep farmers on 2m ewes.

The estimated 5m underspend in this scheme must be fully protected for the sheep sector.

The IFA National Sheep Committee is considering a number of options for the 5m, including a proposal from the Connemara meeting that it would go to hill sheep farmers.

Weve already had contact with senior officials in the Department of Agriculture on the matter. IFA will consult widely with sheep producers via our branches and county executive structure.

Brexit

The increase in sheep numbers of 137,000 ewes in the December 2016 census is positive for the sheep sector. On Brexit, IFA will keep the farming and the agriculture sector top of the Governments agenda.

On sheep, free trade access to the UK market and the New Zealand imports are the key issues, along with maintaining the CAP budget.
Guns N Roses might have trashed hotel rooms and tour buses over the years since their Appetite for Destruction album seared its way to number one back in the late 1980s but they were all about the fans at Slane.

Kicking off the European leg of their Not in this Lifetime tour to a sold-out crowd at Slane Castle the band gave the fans exactly what they wanted  the soaring highs of rock anthems such as Welcome to the Jungle and the reined-in energy of Patience.

I must admit that my heart broke a little bit when I saw Axl first  the snake-hips and manic energy have given way to a heavier and older version of himself. But, thinking rationally, a lot of the fans at Slane on Saturday wouldnt look too hot in the school uniforms they wore when they bought their first Guns N Roses cassette either.

And when Axl took in some of the thrilled reaction from the 80,000-strong crowd lining the natural amphitheatre that is Slane, he seemed to relax back into the swaggering, raspy-voiced star people had travelled to experience for themselves.

A GnR show is so much more than Axls distinctive voice  they served up hard rock hits with a superb mix of showmanship and strut. Leather, check shirts, bandannas  and of course Slashs trademark top hat and mop of jet black hair.

We expect our rock stars to party hard and live life to excess  and then act surprised when some of that drip-feed of Jack Daniels takes its toll on one of the worlds best-selling bands of all time.

But the years of hedonism and rebellion seem to have actually suited lead guitarist, Slash. He delighted long-time fans with aggressive solos on his lizard-green guitar and wrung the intoxicatingly gritty notes of Paradise City and Mr Brownstone out into the warm night air with an ease that showcased his genuine skill.

Duff McKagan, who was the bands bassist from 1985-1997 is back in a more confident role  one time he was in danger of imploding in a burst of liquor abuse, eyeliner and teased, bleached hair. Now, hes lean and weathered-looking and definitely pulling his weight onstage.

There was a particularly poignant rendition of Soundgardens Black Hole Sun as a tribute to singer Chris Cornell who died earlier this month.

Drummer, Frank Ferrer, guitarist Richard Fortus, drummer Frank Ferrer, and keyboardist Melissa Reese werent in the original line-up but fitted in flawlessly and looked the part too. The band didnt spend a lot of time on banter with the crowd and instead served up hit after hit.

Though Axl did salute Lord Henry  Slane Castle owner, Henry Mountcharles  who couldnt attend due to illness.

You Could Be Mine and Nighttrain were spot-on and fans revelled in the three-hour gig.

Some had even travelled from the US for this concert  booking tickets before American dates were announced.

While there were lengthy delays getting into and out of the concert venue and security was tightened  the crowd was genuinely appreciative of the style and talent of one of the quintessential big rock bands of the past four decades.

Many Slane veterans opted for one of the two campsites located next to the venue rather than face the queues heading for the main road  and were delighted that the heavier rain of earlier in the day held off for the duration of the gig.

In true rock tradition, Axl flung his mic into the crowd after the final song and then a pyrotechnics display brought the epic concert to a close  leaving fans satisfied that Guns N Roses served up a performance of a lifetime.
The ODCE  under fire since the collapse of the Sean FitzPatrick trial  is facing two separate probes and calls by numerous Cabinet members and Opposition politicians for it to be disbanded and replaced with a new anti-corruption agency.

But Transparency International Ireland is warning that reforming the body, or replacing it, will not work if sufficient supports are not put in place. Chief executive John Devitt said the Government had to decide whether to maintain the current system where investigating white-collar crime was the responsibility of multiple agencies such as the ODCE, the Standards in Public Office Commission, the Central Bank, and the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau, or to amalgamate them.

But he stressed: Whether you continue with the multi-agency model that we currently use to investigate white collar criminal offences, or establish a unitary economic crimes or anti-corruption agency, its important that it be allowed to go about its work free from political interference and that it be adequately resourced.

He said the Hong Kong anti-corruption agency had more than 1,000 staff. The ODCE had fewer than 40 and SIPO, just 15. He added that any reformed ODCE or new agency should not be funded and overseen by the Minister for Enterprise as is the case now, but should be directly answerable to the Dail.

Enterprise Minister Mary Mitchell OConnor has demanded a full report from ODCE director, Ian Drennan, by June 23, and the Oireachtas Committee on Jobs has written to him asking him to come before it as a matter of urgency.

But Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald and Health Minister Simon Harris have already effectively discounted the findings of both exercises, declaring the ODCE unfit for purpose. Ms Fitzgerald said at the weekend that the collapse of the trial, amid criticisms of bias, file-shredding, and witness coaching by the prosecution, was an absolute disgrace.

Given what people have suffered, people feel there is unfinished business and the failings of the agency are profound. It was clearly not fit for purpose, she said.

Mr Harris, told RTE the office did not have the competence for major investigations such as Anglo. Its an office that was largely taking cases to the District Court, he said. He added nothing is off the table when it came to deciding its future.

Labours Brian Howlin and the Social Democrats Roisin Shortall called for a complete overhaul of the approach to white-collar crime while Fianna Fail said that it had raised concerns about the staffing and expertise available to the ODCE long before the trial collapsed.

Since it was set up in 2001, it has only had its full complement of staff twice  in 2002 and 2003  and has been missing at least one and sometimes several personnel every year since. It has been short three people in recent months.

Editorial: 10
The advertorial in the Daily Telegraph focused primarily on attracting visitors to Northern Irelands Causeway Coastal Route and the Wild Atlantic Way in the south.

The article, which accompanied a map, featured almost double the amount of information on the Causeway Coastal Route than on the Wild Atlantic Way.

The only location in West Cork pinpointed on a map was the Mizen Head, but there was no reference in the printed article to the landmark or any other attractions in the coastal region.

However, Kinsale, referred to in the article as a Celtic Sea harbour port, received three mentions.

Clonakilty-based Fianna Fail councillor Christopher OSullivan said that he was left fuming by the advertorial.

He claimed Tourism Ireland is consistently omitting West Cork from their editorials and advertising campaigns.

Efforts are clearly been made to push other areas, but West Cork just isnt on their radar, he said.

Anyone who lives in West Cork knows what an incredible place it is. We have the longest and most spectacular coastline in Ireland.

We are quickly becoming a centre of excellence in artisan food production and we lead the way when it comes to cultural and musical events, yet none of this seems to register with Tourism Ireland.

Mr OSullivan said his frustration reached tipping point on reading an editorial which contained no reference to West Cork, whatsoever.

While West Cork residents and regular visitors to West Cork know of its incredible beauty the rest of Ireland, Europe and the world are largely unaware.

Tourism Ireland is the body charged with its promotion and, in my opinion, they have come up short when it comes to this region.

Mr OSullivan said he was delighted to see Kinsale had been mentioned and did not begrudge any other areas benefitting, but said it was not a level playing field when the whole of West Cork was ignored.

I am asking serious questions of our national tourism development authority and I am asking serious questions of their dedication to West Cork, he said.

Tourism Ireland recently embarked on a new Embrace the Wild Atlantic way of Life advertising campaign and Mr OSullivan feels that too was focused towards other counties on the western seaboard.

Although that campaign contains very brief glimpses of Dursey Island and Mizen Head, there are multiple references to Kerry and the Skelligs, Loop Head in Clare, and also Galway, he said. In fact, I have yet to set eyes on a Wild Atlantic Way billboard that refers specifically to West Cork. I am pleading with Tourism Ireland to rectify this.

He also noted road signs on the N40 (South Ring Road in Cork) also directed people to Tralee, but with no reference to West Cork.

A simple gesture from Tourism Ireland would be to commission a tourism sign on this busy road directing people towards West Cork, said Mr OSullivan.
A major British Airways crash has highlighted the importance for businesses of testing backup systems and disaster recovery procedures to ensure that they work as planned.

The airline experienced what CEO Alex Cruz described as "a major IT systems failure" that, he said, affected all check-in and operational systems.

The failure on Saturday, May 27, resulted in the delay or cancellation of hundreds of flights, leaving thousands of passengers stranded at London's Heathrow Airport on a holiday weekend. Things were still not back to normal two days later.

Cruz described the cause of the failure as "a power supply issue," without going into detail.

A spokeswoman for British Airways elaborated.

"It was a power supply issue at one of our U.K. data centres. An exceptional power surge caused physical damage to our infrastructure and as a result many of our hugely complex operational IT systems failed," she said.

Before you ask: "We do have a back-up system," the spokeswoman said.

But?

"But on this occasion it failed."

British Airways isn't the first airline to be laid low by a power failure. Delta Air Lines suffered similarly in August 2016 when a switch box carrying power into the company's headquarters failed, grounding flights worldwide.

A single point of failure had also brought down systems at Southwest Airlines the previous month, although on that occasion the problem was in a network router.

Although British Airways had more than one data center, it's not inconceivable that the same power surge could have damaged two sited close together.

Back in 2012 the company revealed that it had two data centers on sites right next to its Waterside global headquarters near Heathrow. Those sites housed 500 data cabinets in six halls according to Sunbird, the company that supplied the airline's DCIM (data center infrastructure management) system.

So far, British Airways doesn't know why its backup plans failed. IT staff have spent the last two days getting systems up and running again, and aren't done yet.

"When the customer disruption is completely over, we will undertake an exhaustive investigation to find out the exact circumstances and most importantly ensure that this can never happen again," said the spokeswoman.

That was probably Delta's intention too -- until its IT systems went down again in January 2017, resulting in the cancellation of around 150 flights. That time around, the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority said "automation issues" had caused the flight cancellations.

Between ticket refunds and compensation payments British Airways, like Delta before it, will be hundreds of millions out of pocket as a result of the failure of its backup systems. But even businesses that aren't trying to juggle hundreds of planes in the air would do well to test whether backup, failover and business continuity plans work before disaster strikes.
Ten years ago: Youngsters at Gurnard Primary School took their centenary celebrations to a new height.

Their excitement took off when a helicopter from Cabair Heliphotos touched down on the school field having taken a series of aerial photographs of the school and the children who formed a giant number 100 on the ground.



100 Years Ago

May 26, 1917



A WARNING was issued to Island bakers by the Ministry of Food about the ingredients used in their loaves.

They were told the practice of using more than the imported amount of standard flour instead of millers flour would not be tolerated and the excuse of not being able to get hold of millers flour would not be accepted.

Suppliers of the correct flour were improving daily and bakers were advised to look further afield if they had trouble obtaining ingredients.



75 Years Ago

May 30, 1942

A German raider was shot down at Yaverland by Spitfires during an afternoon hit-and-run.

Taking advantage of the low cloud, the raider came in from the sea with the apparent object of attacking a ship.

A short dog-fight between the raider and several Spitfires ended with the German pilot bailing out of his machine, which fell in flames into a turnip field.

The pilot, who was adorned with an Iron Cross, landed near Yaverland church and was immediately taken prisoner.



50 Years Ago

May 26, 1967



Some 25 members and friends of the Unidentified Flying Object Society met for their annual dinner at the Wheatsheaf, Newport.

The guests of honour were Dr Geoffrey Doel and his wife. Dr Doel, chairman of the British UFO Research Association, outlined the current work of his organisation with emphasis on the newly acquired mobile investigation unit specifically equipped with such items as Geiger counters, UFO detectors, telescopes and radios.



25 Years Ago

May 29, 1992



Firms were lining up to look at Cowes student Mark Stewarts award-winning Beam Music machine.

Only a month earlier, Mark, 17, had won the final of the Young Electronic Designer of the Award at the Science Museum, London.

Since then, eight companies had expressed an interest in producing it commercially, with an expected price tag of 200 (379 in todays money).

The invention, which was designed to help disabled children, allowed musical sounds to be activated by breaking a beam of light and could be adapted to control a mouse cursor on a computer screen.



10 Years Ago

May 25, 2007



Hundred of tons of rock crashed into the beach at Whitecliff Bay in the biggest landslide for more than five years. Whitecliff Bay was made a no-go area to the public by coastguards after a massive chunk of cliff plummeted to the foot of the Culver headland.

Eye witness Zoe Barker said: The top half of the cliff started to peel away in a vast triangular chunk.

It was an extraordinary and surreal sight and seemed to happen in slow motion.

The chunk appeared to hover, with a crack of blue sky growing between it and the main cliff.

Then it fell, shattering into thousands of pieces at the bottom, with an incredible roar.


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Today being John F. Kennedys 100th birthday, heres a column I wrote about his rescuer that we published on Aug. 24, 2014.

Jr

On another August, one 71 years ago, America was engaged in war, albeit a far bigger one. A South Pacific islander of modest means came upon a boat-wrecked lieutenant of wealth from the other side of the world.

The lieutenant and his men communicated with the islander and his friend through sign language. The islander and his friend shared their food with the starving sailors and rubbed sticks together to build them a fire. Eventually, the islander agreed to carry a request for help to a Naval base about 35 miles away. The islander showed the lieutenant how to scratch a message with a pocketknife in the skin behind a coconut shell. The lieutenant did so. The islander and friend paddled off, safely delivering the message.

The lieutenant, John Fitzgerald Kennedy, would become the president of the United States. Twenty years after his South Pacific rescue, hed be gunned down in Dallas.

That news quickly went round the world, but it probably took a while getting to the islander, Eroni Kumana. His island, Rannoga, was remote and lacked electricity or phones. But Kumana had heard of the success of the man hed rescued and was no doubt saddened by his death.

Kumana lived on for another half century on his tiny spot of sand in the Solomon Islands, fishing, making canoes, raising a family and surviving any number of hellacious storms. Earlier this month, he died on this island where hed spent his life of more than 90 years.

The New York Times marked Kumanas death last Sunday with an amazing story that has had me thinking since about fate and destiny.

There are the big and obvious questions: Should JFK or his men have seen the Japanese destroyer coming that split their PT boat in half one night? After it happened, Kennedy behaved heroically in saving one of his men and swimming for help. The story of his heroics, as first captured by John Hershey in 1944 in The New Yorker, surely helped his political career. Would the world be better or worse now if Kennedy had died in the South Pacific? Did he save the world from nuclear war or blindly burden America with involvement in Vietnam?

There are volumes written about such questions.

Much less is known about Eroni Kumana.

The New York Times story lays out some intriguing basics: Kumana ... was among several hundred men who joined the Coastal Watch, a cadre of indigenous boatmen and British military officers that tracked Japanese transport movements for the duration of the war. The work, the Times tells us, involved considerable risk of punishment or death at the hands of the Japanese.

Whether Kumana thought about the danger or not, he and his friend, Biuku Gasa, helped save the life of the future leader of the most powerful nation in the world. Kumana said he was invited to Kennedys 1961 inauguration and received a plane ticket paid for by the Kennedy clan, the Times reported. But a clerk from his government turned him away at the airport, saying he was too uneducated to be the islands representative, the Times reported, and someone else was sent in his place.

Kennedy kept the coconut shell from his rescue on his desk in the Oval Office. He must have thought of Kumana from time to time. I hope he was thankful. He owed much of his success to his father. But he owed his very life to Kumana.

Kumana occasionally told his story to authors and journalists, the Times noted, but was modest about it, because he considered the rescue what any decent person would have done in the same situation.

I hope I could be that decent. I hope JFK would have been just as decent to Kumana had the tables been turned.

Many of us would agree that Kumana was just as good a man as Kennedy, maybe better. But many of us, if were honest, would say wed rather have had JFKs fun, rich and powerful life instead of Kumanas poor and powerless one, despite JFKs terrible end.

We Americans cyberspace around in our palms, but most of us couldnt rub two sticks together to build a fire.

And would we risk our lives for a stranger from the other side of the world?

I may not really understand what true decency is. But I believe Eroni Kumana did.
Dallas, 05/28/2017 /SubmitPressRelease123/

Dallas Drug Defense Lawyer News: The war on drugs was a policy created by the Nixon Administration in the early 1970s. Under the policy, courts adopted a no-tolerance policy for drug offenses. The most noticeable effect of the policy was a massive increase in the U.S. prison population. The federal government also began to direct many funds toward federal drug control agencies.

The policy also criminalized marijuana possession. Although 11 states decriminalized it between 1973 and 1977, and the Senate Judiciary Committee voted in 1977 to decriminalize it at the federal level, the policy had already taken root in American culture. Many states and cities launched their own zero tolerance policies for even minor drug offenses.

Throughout the 1980s, the public became increasingly concerned with illegal drug use. As a result, drug-related incarceration rates soared. By 1997, the number of people imprisoned for nonviolent drug crimes had ballooned from 50,000 to 400,000.

Today, the U.S. has the highest incarceration rate of any country in the world. Although the U.S. makes up just five percent of the worlds population, it accounts for a staggering 25 percent of the worlds prison population.

In recent years, many states have moved to decriminalize marijuana use and possession. In 2015, the Federal Bureau of Prisons also released over 6,000 inmates as part of a larger movement to reduce the countrys prison population.

Shift Back to a Strict Drug Policy

As reported by The Washington Post, Attorney General Jeff Sessions may be shifting the country back to the harsh policies of the 1980s.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said [recently] that he has directed his federal prosecutors to pursue the most severe penalties possible, including mandatory minimum sentences, in his first step toward a return to the war on drugs of the 1980s and 1990s that resulted in long sentences for many minority defendants and packed U.S. prisons.

The article points out that the Obama administration put policies in place that instructed federal prosecutors to avoid charging certain defendants that would trigger long mandatory minimum sentences. Now, Sessions has undone that policy. Instead, he has told prosecutors to charge defendants with the most serious crimes, carrying the toughest penalties.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder has condemned Sessions policy as a step backward. Holder stated, The policy [Sessions] announced today is not tough on crime. It is dumb on crime.

The Director of the American Civil Liberties Unions Campaign for Smart Justice also had harsh words for Sessions policy. Jeff Sessions is pushing federal prosecutors to reverse progress and repeat a failed experiment  the War on Drugs  that has devastated the lives and rights of millions of Americans

The Importance of Working with an Experienced Texas Criminal Defense Lawyer

Although the future of federal drug crimes prosecution is unsettled, the shifting policies of the current administration emphasize why its important for anyone charged with a federal drug offense to work with an experienced Texas criminal defense lawyer.

Sources:

http://www.drugpolicy.org/facts/new-solutions-drug-policy/brief-history-drug-war-0 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2015/07/07/yes-u-s-locks-people-up-at-a-higher-rate-than-any-other-country/?utm_term=.12cdc19f35e0 https://www.themarshallproject.org/2015/10/06/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-new-federal-prisoner-release#.k30Y2uDm5 https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/sessions-issues-sweeping-new-criminal-charging-policy/2017/05/11/4752bd42-3697-11e7-b373-418f6849a004_story.html?utm_term=.6445b9f7b1ef

Broden Mickelsen Dallas Drug Defense Lawyer

Broden & Mickelsen, LLP  Dallas Drug Defense Lawyer

2600 State St Dallas, Texas 75204

Main Phone: (214) 720-9552

source: http://www.brodenmickelsen.com/blog/war-drugs-texas-criminal-defense-lawyer-weighs/

Social Media Tags:Federal Drug Crimes Prosecution, Strict Drug Policy, texas criminal defense, Texas criminal defense lawyer, War on Drugs

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Two members of the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Public Health will provide tractor safety courses in June and July in nine cities across Nebraska. The program is a partnership with the Nebraska Extension Tractor Safety and Hazardous Occupations Courses. Teens 14 or 15 years of age who work on farms are encouraged to register.

Nebraska Extension is part of the University of Nebraska Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of NebraskaLincoln, which also cooperates with counties and the United States Department of Agriculture.

Federal law prohibits youth under 16 years of age from working on a farm for anyone other than parents or legal guardians. Certification received through this course grants an exemption to the law allowing 14- and 15-year-olds to drive a tractor and to do field work with specific mechanized equipment.

The most common cause of agricultural-related death in Nebraska is overturned tractors and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs). Extensive training on tractor and ATV safety occurs during in-class lessons with hands-on activities. Instilling an attitude of safety first and respect for agricultural equipment are primary goals of the course.

The course includes classroom instruction, which will cover the required elements of the National Safe Tractor and Machinery Operation Program and hands-on participation, concluding with a written test. To receive certification, students must demonstrate competence in hitching and unhitching equipment and driving a tractor and trailer through a standardized course.

Classes begin at 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and end times will vary, depending on the number of participants.

Dates, locations, and site coordinator phone numbers are below.

June 1 and 2  Auburn Fairgrounds (402) 245-4324;

June 6 and 7  Valentine Fairgrounds (402) 376-1850;

June 13 and 14  North Platte West Central Research and Extension Center (308) 532-2683;

June 15 and 16  Gering Legacy Museum (308) 632-1480;

June 19 and 20  Wayne Fairgrounds (402) 584-2234;

June 22 (includes online component)  Gordon Fairgrounds (308) 327-2312;

June 23 (includes online component)  McCook Fairgrounds (308) 345-3390;

July 10 and 11  Grand Island College Park (308) 385-5088.

Participants must submit registration forms at least one week before the course. Cost of the course is $60, which includes educational materials and instruction, supplies and lunches. For more information, contact the Extension Office of the location where student will attend.

Nebraska Medicine and UNMC's mission is to lead the world in transforming lives to create a healthy future for all individuals and communities through premier educational programs, innovative research and extraordinary patient care.
KEARNEY  The Nebraska Admirals Association will welcome six sailors from the USS Nebraska submarine to the Kearney area in June. The sailors will be the guests at a barbecue supper on June 13 at Mitzis Pavilion in Yanney Heritage Park.

Tickets to the barbecue will be available June 5 at the Kearney Hub offices for $15 per person, with only 20 tickets available, Checks should be made payable to the Nebraska Admirals Association and picked up by 4 p.m. June 12. On June 14 the sailors will visit various businesses and attractions in the Kearney area before heading to North Platte to participate in festivities surrounding the North Platte rodeo days.
As chairperson of the Legislatures Agriculture Committee, and an ag producer, Im humbled and proud to promote the successes of agriculture. But even more important is to continue to work on solutions for the challenges facing Nebraskas farmers, ranchers and the rural economy, including burdensome property taxes.

Im excited about all the future opportunities for Nebraska agriculture, such as our continued success with ethanol. As a leading producer of ethanol, Nebraska ranks second nationally, which is why Im pleased to join Gov. Pete Ricketts in celebrating Renewable Fuels Month. Its been a difficult road to develop the ethanol industry, but the return on that investment has been tremendous for the communities that are home to ethanol plants, the workers at those plants and their families, our farmers and ranchers, and our states overall economy.

In February, during the National Ethanol Conference, Bob Dinneen, president of the Renewable Fuels Association, expressed concerns about the future of the Renewable Fuels Standards (RFS) beyond 2022. He said, The debate on Capitol Hill is shifting away from repealing the RFS to reforming it after 2022, when the congressionally mandated volumes proscribed in the law are removed and replaced with largely unfettered discretion by EPA to set future standards for all renewable fuels. We need to be active ... participants in that debate.

I agree with Dinneen. Im not comfortable with leaving the fate of this important industry in the hands of the EPA. As we celebrate Renewable Fuels Month, let us also be mindful that we must work to secure the future of the ethanol industry.

Sen. Lydia Brasch, Bancroft
Nearly 227,000 low-income or disadvantaged Nebraskans depend on Medicaid funding for health care or mental health services. Its crucial to process claims efficiently and properly handle authorization of care so that important services can be delivered.

A key example is home health care. Another is mental health counseling. These supports are vital for many Nebraska households. Nebraska shifted on Jan. 1 to a new system in which companies or nonprofits providing those services can choose among three managed care companies now administering the bulk of the states Medicaid program.

The new approach provides a major plus by bringing behavioral health under the same umbrella as physical health. As a result, the system provides incentives to treat patients whole range of conditions, mental as well as physical.

But five months into Nebraskas new system, the claims processing and authorization of care have run into major problems.

World-Herald reporting this week pointed to examples in which claims were left unpaid for some behavioral health and home health providers, and care wasnt authorized for some individuals.

These misfires have triggered a host of complaints, including from Nebraska lawmakers, who say they will increase their oversight. The unpaid bills have led CenterPointe, a behavioral health treatment center with programs in Omaha and Lincoln, to take out a line of credit for the first time in 44 years. The new system places increased administrative obligations that can weigh significantly on some small-scale providers.

HHS says processes have improved, pointing to the increased volume of payments to providers in the last six weeks. Most of the complications involve individual cases rather than large-scale processing issues, HHS contends.

Under CEO Courtney Phillips, HHS has commendably achieved efficiencies in some of its operations. The department streamlined the procedure for low-income Nebraskans to apply for federal nutritional assistance. It reduced the waiting times for families seeking state help for loved ones with developmental disabilities.

HHS and the three management companies need to demonstrate similar progress now with Medicaid management.

Omaha World-Herald
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FILE - In this Monday, April 17, 2017, file photo, Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force troop members wait to board the plane as they start leaving South Sudan as part of the process to end their five-year participation in the ongoing UN peacekeeping mission. Poll results released Monday, May 29, show that about half of Japan's population supports a constitutional revision that would clarify the legality of the country's military, a new approach Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is proposing as his party struggles to gain public support for a change. (AP Photo/Samir Bol, File)
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The declaration by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) asks ARLEM to provide input into "the design and implementation of policies", and to participate in a working group of a "UfM Regional Platform on Sustainable Urban Development" in order to discuss "the operational steps to be taken to implement the UfM Urban Agenda". The purpose of the regional platform would be to develop ways of "fostering innovative and sustainable solutions, promoting better knowledge and best practices on common urban development priorities, and identifying new projects that would be replicated in the region". The declaration also describes local authorities as having a "crucial role" in the implementation, monitoring and review of the new UfM Urban Agenda.The UfM's Urban Agenda will contribute to achieving the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which, in Goal 11, explicitly sets the target of making "cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable".Speaking at the ministerial meeting in Cairo, ARLEM's rapporteur on a sustainable urban agenda for the Mediterranean region of Jordan, said: "We need to enable local authorities to fully grasp their potential as drivers for sustainable urban development. It is in cities that the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will succeed or fail. Key policies do not exist independent of the territory, and they have to all have to be played out in urban areas." Mr Masad is city manager for the Municipality of Greater Amman, Jordan's capital.The UfM's declaration states that "The UfM Urban Agenda is based on a holistic, integrated, place-based and long term approach to sustainable urban development, necessary to promote well-managed, economically prosperous, gender and socially inclusive, just, safe, healthy, accessible and resilient, as well as resource-efficient and low-carbon environmentally sustainable cities".The UfM says cities in the Mediterranean region face one of the fastest rates of urbanisation in the world, are suffering a "fast decline" in "many historical city centres" because of "the development of major urban areas", and are highly vulnerable to climate change.ARLEM was invited to the ministerial meeting by Corina Cretu, European Commissioner for Regional Policy, and Walid Masir, Jordan's Minister for Municipal Affairs. In addition to representatives of the 43 member states of the UfM, the ministerial meeting was attended by UN-Habitat, the European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the World Bank, and the African Development Bank.The European Committee of the Regions, the founder of ARLEM, is involved  in differing ways  in a variety of other international processes and agreements that the UfM identifies as shaping its Urban Agenda: the New Urban Agenda agreed at the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) in Quito in October 2016; agreements within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; the UN's Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030; and the Urban Agenda for the European Union adopted in May 2016.
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Last fall I was witness to a miraculous event. I rarely take off from work, but did so on a Friday to go to Baltimore to lend moral support to my family doctor friend, Cathy Maslen. She and her workmates at Chase Brexton Health Care (a community health clinic in the Baltimore area with a focus on the gay and transgender community and the inner-city poor) were doing something that I had never seen medical professionals do in the pastthey were staging a protest about poor working conditions.

Cathy had worked at Chase Brexton for the better part of twenty years, as had many of her workmates. They are a remarkably committed and caring group of professionals, taking care of a patient population with profound needs and remarkable challenges. Even in the best of circumstances, their work is difficult. But of late, it was made even harder by the dictates of a new CEO.

In response to mounting financial pressures, Chase Brextons new management had cut staff through multiple rounds of layoffs, and cut physician salaries by 20 percent (though they could gain back some of the money by seeing higher numbers of patients and through compliance with burdensome government data collection efforts and quality initiatives). The result was that the clinical staff was being pushed to do much more with much less, and they felt that patients were being endangered as a result.

Pushed to the brink, the medical staff did something that is quite uncommon among medical professionals. They contacted a local labor organizing group, and were considering the option of unionizing. A vote on the union was scheduled.

The new CEO was not pleased. In retaliation, he hired union strike-busters, who began to harass and intimidate Chase Brexton staff. They even fired five staff members, including longtime clinicians.

As upset and demoralized as staff were, their patients may have been more so. They organized the protest I attended. Hundreds of people  patients, community members, and staff  gathered on the sidewalk outside Chase Brextons administrative offices. Speech after speech detailed the remarkable bond between patients and the clinical staff.

The next week the vote took place, and despite huge pressure and efforts to intimidate them, staff voted to join the union. The CEO soon resigned. It was a remarkable series of events for a profession that is not known for such things.

Traditionally, doctors have not unionized. In some instances, it is even illegal (privately-employed doctors are forbidden to unionize for the purpose of collective bargaining for better wages). But until recently, I dont think most doctors would have considered it necessary, anyway. But times have changed.

Another factor that keeps doctors from forming unions is that unions often do something that doctors feel they cannotthey go on strike. From a moral and legal perspective, a physician strike is frowned upon. The obvious moral hazard of a physician strike is patient endangerment. It is a basic violation of our commitment to do no harm. And for good reason, there are well-developed legal precedents preventing physicians from abandoning patients with whom they have an established relationship.

And so, American physicians have never had much of an organized labor movement. And this may be part of the reason that American health care is in the state it is in. American physicians have no legitimate mechanism to effect change in the American health care system (nor do patients, for that matter). The balance of power in American health care rests almost entirely with government bureaucrats and health insurance and large health system executives, who exert nearly complete control. Doctors have professional organizations, like the American Medical Association and state medical societies, but resistance has not been their focus, and they have had little effect on health care reform. Many physicians have come to question these organizations value, and even their motives and conflicting interests in such matters.

So, when government bureaucrats say doctors need to comply with useless, wasteful programs, doctors have little choice but to comply. When insurance companies use cumbersome prior authorization processes and arbitrary denials to impede patient care, again, doctors are forced to comply. It is an important part of what is wrong with the American health care system. Doctors have little say over their own profession.

And so the time has come for physicians to organize themselves. But what form should that organization take? And assuming we organized into some new type of professional representative organization, or even a union, what should we do? Even amongst physicians, there is no real agreement about what should be done to fix the system. But one thing I can assure you, divided we will continue to fail.

Should we go on strike? I think most physicians would still consider this ill-advised because of the harm that could befall our patients. But we must find other effective ways to resist because the health care status quo is, quite literally, killing patients and ruining the practice of medicine. The system itself violates the call to do no harm. To honor our oath, we cannot let that continue.

Organized resistance could take many forms other than a strike. If a large group of physicians banded together and boycotted a new government program, maybe it could be altered or stopped.

Physicians are generally a very thoughtful group. I would love to see what we could come up with if we organized and put our heads, and our great energies, together. We owe it to ourselves, but even more to our patients, to try. To not try would violate the sacred oath we take to do no harm just as assuredly as abandoning our patients to this dreadful system does.

Matthew Hahn is a family physician who blogs at his self-titled site, Matthew Hahn, MD. He is the author of Distracted: How Regulations Are Destroying the Practice of Medicine and Preventing True Health-Care Reform.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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Seeing the work and results of the European Institute for Innovation and Technology (EIT) in action; this was the purpose of the visit by Tibor Navracsics, Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, and Markku Markkula, President of the European Committee of the Regions, to EIT Digitals Budapest innovation hub on Monday 29 May.

The visit follows the Hungarian innovation hub becoming a full node in January 2017, offering Budapest, Hungary and the CEE region great opportunities to drive digital transformation and innovation across Europe.

Commissioner Navracsics said: "Today is a reminder both of the talent Europe has to offer and of EIT Digitals work in nurturing this talent through its valuable educational programmes. Combined with unique pan-European networking; access to knowledge, funding and new markets; the EIT offers a unique pipeline for both budding and existing entrepreneurs across Europe."

President Markkula added: "It is inspiring to be here in Budapest and see the EIT's commitment to boost European human capital, especially focussed on young people and a new innovative future. I fully agree with Commissioner Navracsics that innovation and entrepreneurship in education is vital for Europe's future and the EIT is ideally placed to make this happen. I look forward to joint CoR & EIT collaboration in and for Europe's cities and regions. Together, we can transform great ideas into successful businesses, new jobs and sustainable growth."

Martin Kern, EIT Interim Director, stated: " The EIT is Europes largest innovation community, bringing together leading business, research and higher education institutions. EIT Digital and its partners here in Budapest are demonstrating in practice how the investment into the development of entrepreneurial talents pays off as it directly creates the innovations that help to resolve the challenges of tomorrow. I am pleased to be able to introduce Commissioner Navracsics and President Markkula to some of our committed partners and passionate entrepreneurs that give us a glimpse into the future."

Willem Jonker, CEO EIT Digital, concluded: "We are very happy to have Commissioner Navracsics and President Markkula visiting us today given the import role education and regions play in the digital transformation of Europe."

EIT Digital Budapests Director, Zoltan Horvath, introduced several of the Nodes partners to the visitors. Csaba Antall, of EIT Digital Partner Ericsson; Antal Kuthy, CEO of E-group, the first Hungarian SME to found an independent research laboratory; and EIT Digital Master student, Daniel Ratai, founder of Leonar3Do, an integrated software and hardware platform capable of creating an entire three-dimensional virtual reality environment.

Source: European Institute of Innovation & Technology
While some local residents enjoyed the day off from work on this Memorial Day, some families spent it at the cemetery.

The veterans section of the city cemetery saw many visitors.

Each tombstone had a U.S. flag beside it, but some families took balloons, flowers and other decorations to honor the lives of those who served but were lost.

For one family, the tribute was for a man who not only served his country, but also his extended family with the same devotion.

A ceremony was also held at the veterans section at the cemetery.
Veterans, families and residents gathered on Monday to pay their respects to the men and women who have fought for our country.

We spoke with Korean War Veterans President Ernesto Sanchez on what Memorial Day means to him: "Memorial Day should not be just one day for us that have lost a brother, a friend in combat. We feel it everyday, and every day at night when we got to bed, we pray for them. It is something that hurts a lot, but at the same time we are so proud that somebody fought for our country. This country of ours is great, and we must keep on protecting it."
A man is being accused of using his car to run over three women this past Sunday.

Police are now sharing details of those attacks that they believe show were not accidents.

Before police could arrive at the arrest Sunday afternoon, the man at the center of the manhunt had already hurt three women, which police believe he has never met.

Nevertheless, police say his actions against them were intentional.

On Sunday morning at around eight, a 24-year-old woman was approaching an intersection downtown. Police say the woman was about to cross the intersection before she saw a black car.

Once the woman crossed the street, the man allegedly ran her over.

The woman landed on the hood of the vehicle and then fell off the food. After that, the man started to reverse and was about to hit her again.

The woman got up and took that as an opportunity to get off the intersection.

The suspect, 24-year-old Lorenzo Alonzo Romero got back in the car and headed towards central Laredo.

At around ten in the morning, he saw a 34-year-old woman jogging around Lamar Middle School. Romero then allegedly hit the woman from behind as she was jogging.

An hour later, Romero appeared at South Buena Vista, where he found a 45-year-old woman walking in the street. The woman was on her way to church when she was allegedly struck from behind.

Police say they had to wait until they could confirm that these incidents were related before going public.

They also say the victims dont appear to know Romero, however police are still gathering statements.

Police say they cannot comment on the mans motive, so they dont jeopardize a future trial.

Romero is now facing three charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
By Cecile Lefort and Charlotte Greenfield

SYDNEY/WELLINGTON, May 29 (Reuters) - The Australian dollar was sidelined in quiet trading on Monday after failing to hold above chart resistance and looked vulnerable to declining iron ore prices.

Undermining the Aussie was Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showing speculators had further reduced their long Aussie positions for the week to May 23 to be a net long 2,635 contracts from 6,344 the week before. The Aussie has shed 3 U.S. cents since March, partly due to falling commodity prices and the euro's resurgence on upbeat economic indicators in the euro zone.

Recent kiwi strength has capped the Aussie. The Australian dollar touched a four-month lows against its kiwi neighbour earlier in the session to be last at NZ$1.0558 . It dropped 2 percent last week in the largest such decrease in more than a year.

The losses are due in part to a diverging commodity outlook with prices of iron ore, Australia's top export earner, off 27 percent since mid-April.

"It's all about the commodity plays these days and with the markets growing increasingly concerned about demand for iron ore, the Aussie could continue to struggle - more so if both the Fed and ECB point to a more hawkish shift in forward guidance," said Stephen Innes, a senior trader at OANDA.

In contrast, the outlook for New Zealand's dairy products, its largest export, is promising.

Global dairy prices have risen five times in a row in the past two months while cooperative giant Fonterra lifted its forecast milk payout for the 2016/17 last week. The New Zealand dollar rose over the weekend, touching a two-month high of $0.7077 before retracing slightly to trade around $0.7050 on Monday.

Investors are waiting for Wednesday's central bank financial stability report which is expected to flag ongoing risks in the housing sector, but an improved outlook for dairy.

New Zealand government bonds eased, sending yields 3 basis points higher at the long end of the curve.

Australian government bond futures edged off six-month highs, with the three-year bond contract down 1 tick at 98.290. The 10-year contract shed half a tick to 97.5545, while the 20-year contract lost 1 tick to 96.9700.

The spread between Australian and U.S. 2-year government bonds inched up to 29 basis points, having plumbed 28 basis points on Friday, the smallest since 2001.

Likewise, the 10-year bond spread stood at 19 basis points, from 16 basis points last week, which was the slimmest since November.

(Reporting by Cecile Lefort and Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Eric Meijer)
May 29 (Reuters) - Australian shares look set for a positive start to the week on Monday, recouping from losses in the previous session, with trading expected to be light as U.S., UK and Chinese markets will be closed for holidays.

In their previous session, oil and gold ended higher, while iron ore and copper drifted lower. Wall Street closed little changed on Friday, while the U.S. dollar firmed.

The local share price index futures rose 0.12 percent, or 7 points, to 5,763, an 11.3-point premium to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close.

The benchmark had fallen 0.7 percent at the close of trade on Friday, although it added 0.4 percent on the week.

New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX 50 index was 10.74 points, or 0.2 percent, lower at 7,428.16 at 2204 GMT after three gaining days.

For a digest of the day's business stories in Australian newspapers, click on (Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Cooney)
By Phil Noble | MANCHESTER, ENGLAND

Members of Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi's network are still potentially at large, British interior minister Amber Rudd said on Sunday, after the terrorism threat level was lowered because of significant progress in the investigation.

Police said they have arrested a large part of the network behind the bombing, which killed 22 people at a concert hall, and three more men were arrested over the weekend as police continued to close in on the group.

Asked during an interview on BBC television whether some of the group were still at large, Rudd said: "Potentially. It is an ongoing operation. There are 11 people in custody, the operation is still really at full tilt in a way."

Greater Manchester Police said on Sunday that they had arrested a 14th person in connection with the attack. The 25-year-old man was detained in the southwest of the city on suspicion of terrorism offences. Police were also searching another address in the south of Manchester.

Prime Minister Theresa May said developments in the investigation into the bombing meant that intelligence experts had decided to lower the threat level from its highest rating "critical", meaning an attack could be imminent, to "severe".

Police have issued a photograph of Abedi, a 22-year-old Briton born to Libyan parents, taken on Monday night before he blew himself up and said they believed he had assembled his bomb in an apartment in the city center.

British officials have confirmed he had recently returned from Libya and the officers said that police needed information about his movements since his return to Britain on May 18.

Abedi was known to British security services before the bombing, the government has said, but Rudd declined to comment on exactly what had been known about him.

Media have reported that people who knew Abedi had raised concerns about him and his views as long ago as five years before he carried about Monday's attack.

"The intelligence services are still collecting information about him, but I wouldn't rush to conclusions, as you seem to be, that they have somehow missed something," Rudd said.

"TOP LIST" OF MILITANTS

When asked how many potential militants the government was worried about, Rudd said the security services were looking at 500 different potential plots, involving 3,000 people as a "top list", with a further 20,000 beneath that.

"That is all different layers, different tiers. It might be just a question mark about one of them or something serious with that top list," she said.

The government has previously complained that technology companies are not doing enough to tackle the use of their networks both to promote extremist ideology and for communication between militant suspects via encrypted messages.

Rudd said Britain was making good progress with internet companies on this but that more could be done. Technology companies such as WhatsApp say they cannot break end-to-end encryption.

"I believe we can get them to be more successful in working with us to find a way of getting some of that information," she said.

"The area that I am most concerned about is the internet companies who are continuing to publish the hate publications, the hate material that is contributing to radicalizing people in this country."

Security minister Ben Wallace also told the BBC that the government was looking at a range of options to put more pressure on internet companies to take down extremist material and change their algorithms to stop such posts from linking to similar material elsewhere online.

(Writing by Kylie MacLellan in London; Editing by Alison Williams, Stephen Powell and David Goodman)
May 29 - Gold held near its highest in four weeks on Monday after rising almost 1 percent in the previous session, buoyed as geopolitical tensions boosted its safe-haven appeal.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold was flat at $1,266.40 per ounce at 0044 GMT. On Friday, it climbed 0.9 percent to touch its strongest since May 1 at $1,269.50.

* U.S. gold futures slipped 0.1 percent to $1,266.4 an ounce.

* North Korea fired what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast, South Korea's military said, the latest in a series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions.

* U.S. President Donald Trump attacked the news media and dismissed leaks from the White House as "fake news" on Sunday, following reports his son-in-law tried to set up a secret channel of communications with Moscow before Trump took office.

* British Prime Minister Theresa May's lead over the opposition Labour Party has narrowed sharply, according to opinion polls published since the Manchester attack, suggesting she might not win the landslide predicted just a month ago.

* The U.S. economy slowed less than initially thought in the first quarter, but softening business investment and moderate consumer spending are clouding expectations of a sharp acceleration in the second quarter.

* Heavy rains and a cyclone led to an 8 percent, or 6-tonne drop in Australian gold production in the first quarter, a survey released on Sunday showed.

* Hedge funds and other money managers increased their net long position in COMEX gold for the first time in four weeks, in the week ended May 23, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data showed on Friday.

* Gold demand in Asia tapered off this week as buyers took to the sidelines in India to await a new national tax policy and as China entered a seasonal slowdown.

* The state-backed Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and China's Fosun International Ltd could announce an investment in Russia's top gold producer Polyus in early June, a source familiar with the talks told Reuters.



DATA/EVENT AHEAD (GMT)

* No major data scheduled for Monday May 29.

* Chinese markets shut on May 29-30 for Dragon Boat Festival.

* Many traders will also be away from their desks for public holidays in the United States and Britain on Monday, with U.S. gold futures closing early.

(Reporting by Vijaykumar Vedala in Bengaluru; Editing by Joseph Radford)
In less than 24 hours, mining giant Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX) has been able to resolve issues with union members at its Veladero mine in Argentina. The day before, members of the AOMA union launched an unplanned work stoppage, the company reported early Monday morning. However, since then, the company has said the work stoppage has ended. The Company has initiated a formal dialogue process with the union leadership to address issues of concern, an afternoon company press release said. We continue to anticipate the resumption of normal leaching activities at Veladero in the second half of June, subject to approval by San Juan regulatory and judicial authorities. Leaching activities at Veladero have been restricted since March 29, after a pipe carrying processing solution at the mines heap leach facility failed, the release added.

Barrick Deals With Unprecedented Union Strike in Argentina

Mining giant Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX) is facing union issues in Argentina, the company said in a statement Monday. [O]n Sunday, May 28, one of several unions representing employees at the Veladero mine in San Juan province, Argentina, initiated an unplanned work stoppage, the release wrote. Barrick is in dialogue with the union leadership to seek a timely resolution to the situation. However, the company reported that construction works in the heap leach valley that are necessary for the resumption of full operations at the mine are not affected by this work stoppage. Leaching activities at Veladero have been restricted since March 29, after a pipe carrying processing solution at the mines heap leach facility failed, the release said.
PARIS, May 29 (Reuters) - French officials are having serious talks with financial institutions looking to leave London as Britain prepares to quit the European Union, ECB Governing Council member Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on Monday. "We are having discrete but numerous and serious contacts," Villeroy, who is also head of the French central bank and financial sector supervisor, told journalists. "Paris has every chance" of attracting banks, he added.

(Reporting by Leigh Thomas; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
ATHENS, May 29 (Reuters) - Greek private sector bank deposits declined slightly in April after a small rise in the previous month, remaining at levels last seen 16 years ago, central bank data showed on Monday.

Business and household deposits dropped to 118.99 billion euros ($133.01 billion), their lowest level since October 2001, from 119.31 billion in March.

Greek banks have seen small deposit inflows over the space of a year after the country clinched a third bailout to stay in the euro zone. They remain dependent on central bank borrowing to plug their funding gaps.

"In April, deposits of the domestic private sector decreased by 139 million euros, compared with an increase of 278 million in the previous month and the annual growth rate stood at 3.1 percent, unchanged from the previous month," the Bank of Greece said. ($1 = 0.8946 euros)

(Reporting by George Georgiopoulos)
JAKARTA, May 29 (Reuters) - Indonesia's central bank governor said on Monday he expected the balance of payments surplus in Southeast Asia's biggest economy to be $3 billion to $4 billion by the end of 2017, down from $12.1 billion last year.

Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo also told reporters the current account deficit could come in at 1.8 percent to 1.9 percent of gross domestic product this year, or around the same level as in 2016.

(Reporting by Hidayat Setiaji; Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
ABIDJAN, May 29 (Reuters) - Ivory Coast, Africa's fastest growing economy last year, will issue a $1 billion Eurobond next month, Finance Minister Adama Kone told Reuters on Monday. "Everything will be finalised this week," Kone said at the sidelines of a conference in the main city of Abidjan. "The amount decided upon is $1 billion. The launch is planned for next month."

(Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Writing by Joe Bavier; Editing by Tim Cocks)

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
Following are news stories, press reports and events to watch that may affect Poland's financial markets on Monday. ALL TIMES GMT (Poland: GMT + 2 hours):

MOSCOVICI

European Union's economic commissioner Pierre Moscovici told Rzeczpospolita daily that further integration of the euro zone is absolutely necessary to integrate EU's economies. He called for creating an euro zone budget.

JYSK

Danish furniture producer will relocate part of its production to Eastern Europe from China, Rzeczpospolita said.

PARTY POLL

Poland's governing party Law and Justice (PiS) has a stable support of 33.5 percent of Poles, while the biggest opposition party Civic Platform had 26.1 percent, according to a party poll conducted by IBRiS pollster, quoted by Rzeczpospolita.

WARSAW STOCK EXCHANGE Warsaw stock exchange wants to become a regional leader in terms of number of listed foreign companies, the bourse's acting Chief Executive Officer Jaroslaw Grzywinski told Wprost weekly.

SECURITY WORKERS

Up to 10,000 people may lose their jobs as security workers and guards, after the minimum wage has been raised, Rzeczpospolita said.

LIUGONG

Chinese construction machinery producer LiuGong Dressta Machinery is moving its European headquarters to Poland from Amsterdam, Puls Biznesu daily said.

EATON PARK CAPITAL

Former PKN Orlen Chief Executive Officer Igor Chalupec has decided to buy out from Eaton Park Capital fund its shares in press distributor Ruch, Puls Biznesu said.

TRUMP

U.S. President Donald Trump will visit Poland, President Andrzej Duda's advisor said, according to Gazeta Wyborcza daily.

RETIREMENT AGE

Lowering retirement age, which will come into effect this autumn, will cost Polish budget 55 billion zloty ($14.68 billion) within five years, Gazeta Wyborcza said.

**** Reuters has not verified stories reported by Polish media and does not vouch for their accuracy. ****

For other related news, double click on: Polish equities E.Europe equities Polish money Polish debt Eastern Europe All emerging markets Hot stocks Stock markets Market debt news Forex news For real-time index quotes, double click on: Warsaw WIG20 Budapest BUX Prague PX ($1 = 3.7463 zlotys)

(Reporting by Warsaw Bureau)
HANOI, May 29 (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 0403 GMT.

May 29 USD/VND mid-point 22,384 USD/VND interbank 22,740/22,750 USD/VND unofficial 22,740/22,750 SJC gold (mln dong/tael) 36.37/36.59

Interbank offered rates Overnight 2.5-3.0

1 week 2.7-3.1

1 month 3.5-3.8

3 months 4.3-4.6

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; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
COLOMBO, May 29 (Reuters) - The Sri Lankan rupee edged down on Monday in dull trade as dollar demand from importers outpaced exporter selling and inward remittance of the U.S. currency, traders said.

Rupee forwards were active, with spot-next forwards trading at 152.90/95 per dollar at 0631 GMT, compared with Friday's close of 152.85/95.

One-week forwards were at 153.05/20, compared with the previous close of 153.00/10.

Dealers said the rupee could be pressured if floods and landslides impact the island nation's export crops.

Sri Lankan authorities warned of more rains and landslides on Monday as a cyclone formed in the Bay of Bengal after floods killed 164 people following the heaviest showers in 14 years. "If the floods have an adverse impact on agricultural exports, it could put pressure on the rupee," said a currency dealer asking not to be named.

"Floods also could pressure the overall GDP and government budget deficit with high infrastructure spending."

Dealers said the rupee has been under pressure after the central bank governor on May 18 said that the bank would allow gradual depreciation of the currency.

The spot rupee did not trade on Monday.

The central bank fixed the spot rupee reference rate at 152.50 on May 5.

Sri Lankan shares were down 0.2 percent at 6,684.67, as of 0638 GMT. Turnover stood at 126.3 million rupees ($827,654.00).

($1 = 152.6000 Sri Lankan rupees)

(Reporting by Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez; Editing by Amrutha Gayathri)
(Adds details)

PARIS, May 29 (Reuters) - The European Union needs to set simple rules on bank capital to complete its project of bringing banks in the euro zone under a sole EU supervisor, ECB Governing Board member Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on Monday.

Speaking in his role as head of the ACPR French financial sector regulator, Villeroy said the EU also needed better coordination between the European Central Bank's single supervisor, the European Commission and national regulators.

"Two and a half years after banking union, there has been clear progress, but its construction is not yet finished. We need to finish the resolution pillar with completed and more simple rules," Villeroy told journalists in Paris.

Villeroy also called for a rapid solution to bank troubles in Italy and Portugal, saying it was "not normal" that local problems weighed on overall European banking sector.

Following the launch of the single EU bank supervisor for the euro zone, regulators have focused on coming up with new global minimum bank capital rules in the Basel Committee of supervisors.

Banks have dubbed the remaining capital rules "Basel IV", meaning a step change in capital from Basel III, the existing set of rules that were rushed through after the 2007-2009 banking crisis and aimed to toughen up capital requirements.

"We clearly are in favour of finalising Basel III based on improved and better supervised internal models," Villeroy said.

"But we would refuse, along with other countries especially in the EU, a 'Basel IV' based on the standard method and which would therefore take real risks less well into account," he added.

European banks in the euro zone have voiced concern that proposed rules could limit their use of internal models to calculate risk exposure in favour of a so-called standard method, which the banks say would not reflect specific business realities as accurately.

Villeroy also urged the United States not to roll back regulations in place since the financial crisis as President Donald Trump has said he would do.

He also repeated a call for clearing large euro transactions in countries covered by Eurosystem supervision, which includes both the ECB and the 19 euro zone central banks. "After Brexit, we don't see how this could be in London," he added.

A Bank of France spokeswoman said different set-ups for supervising clearing were possible in the Eurosystem and that the debate had not yet been settled.

(Reporting by Leigh Thomas and Julien Ponthus; Editing by Andrew Callus and Edmund Blair)
(Recasts; Adds union comment, stock price)

BUENOS AIRES, May 29 (Reuters) - Barrick Gold Corp said on Monday one of several labor unions at its Veladero mine in Argentina, the site of three cyanide solution spills in 18 months, went on strike on Sunday.

Leaching activities at Veladero have been restricted since March 29 when a pipe carrying cyanide solution used for processing gold from ore failed at the mine's heap leach facility. Construction in the heap leach valley that is needed for full operations to resume at the mine is not affected by the work stoppage, Barrick said. It said it still expects to resume normal leaching activities in the second half of June.

Barrick said it is meeting with union leaders to reach a timely resolution to the situation.

A source from the AOMA union, who asked not to be named, told Reuters that talks with Barrick were ongoing. The source declined to say what the complaint was that led to the "open-ended" work stoppage.

The government of Argentina's San Juan province, where Veladero is located, said earlier this month that it had approved a plan for improving safety following the facility's most recent cyanide solution spill. Barrick's stock was little changed, up 2 Canadian cents at C$22.05 on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Veladero is one of Barrick's five core mines. Barrick, the world's biggest gold producer, agreed in April to sell 50 percent of Veladero to China's Shandong Gold Mining Co Ltd for $960 million. (Reporting by Nicolas Misculin in Buenos Aires and Parikshit Mishra in Bengaluru; Writing by Hugh Bronstein and Nicole Mordant; Editing by Paul Simao and Steve Orlofsky)
The Herald reports:

The Manchester suicide bomber used taxpayer-funded student loans and benefits to bankroll the terror plot, police believe. 

Abedis finances are a major theme of the police inquiry amid growing alarm over the ease with which jihadists are able to manipulate Britains welfare and student loans system to secure financing.

One former detective said jihadists were enrolling on university courses to collect the student loans often with no intention of turning up.

Abedi was given at least 7000 ($12,700) from the taxpayer-funded Student Loans Company after starting a business administration degree at Salford University in October 2015. It is thought he received a further 7000 in the 2016 academic year even though he had already dropped out of the course.

Abedi, 22, never held down a job, according to neighbours and friends, but was able to travel regularly between the UK and Libya.
Audrey Young writes:

It is a Budget that makes life better for many low and middle-income Kiwis and it makes life worse for the Opposition. The design of the $6 billion package to lift incomes over four years makes it difficult for the Opposition to complain. Under the package 50,000 fewer children would be in low-income households (as measured by the OECD) at April next year  a 30 per cent reduction in that particular measure of child poverty.

Im not a huge fan of that measure of child poverty, but the left use it constantly to claim that we have dire child poverty. So they should be cheering from the rafters a Budget that reduces the number of children in households below the poverty line by 50,000.

Certainly Opposition claims that it is a tax cut for the wealthy in disguise is not sustainable. That is unless they think someone on the average wage is wealthy.

I think Labour regard anyone earning over $14,000 a year as wealthy according to their arguments.

Steven Joyce, Bill English and Andrew Little will get the same tax cut as someone on the average wage. Someone on the average wage of $58,900 will get the same tax cut as someone earning twice the average wage or three times the average wage  $20 a week  as will anyone earning over $52,000.

Yep. And some low income households will be getting an extra $150 a week. Yet Labour votes against!

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Shenandoah, IA (51601)

Today

Windy. Cloudy skies will become partly cloudy this afternoon. Slight chance of a rain shower. Morning high of 68F with temps falling sharply to near 40. Winds WNW at 25 to 35 mph..

Tonight

Clear skies. Low near 20F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph.
By Seo Tae-jong

The historic Brexit referendum was approved by voters on June 23, 2016. This unexpected result drove world leading financial companies in London to worry that Brexit would cost London its hub status and to announce that they will look for cities that could replace London for their operations.

While Paris, Frankfurt and Dublin have all been thought to be contenders, each of them has touted itself as the most appropriate alternative for London. These cities recognize that being Europe's financial hub can earn them an enormous profit and additional benefits, so it can be said that war without gunfire has already started among them.

Korea came to take part in a global competition earlier in 2003 by creating a "Northeast Asia Financial Hub Road Map" and promoting policies for establishing itself as a financial hub. After that, "the Creation and Development of Financial Hubs Act" was enacted in late 2007, and the Financial Hub Korea (Fn Hub Korea) was set up at the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) in September 2008.

On the frontline of global competition, the Fn Hub Korea promotes the entry of foreign financial companies and business operations into Korea. Furthermore, the Fn Hub Korea exerts every effort to address difficulties and complaints of foreign financial firms and also provides living assistance, such as an immigration service. In addition, the Fn Hub Korea particularly focuses its capabilities on providing financial firms with a business-friendly market environment.

For example, the Fn Hub Korea holds an annual event called "FSS Speaks," which is to offer explanations about how the FSS will supervise and inspect foreign financial companies. The Fn Hub Korea also hosts meetings between the FSS Governor and CEOs of foreign financial institutions on a regular basis. Plus, the Fn Hub Korea operates diversified channels to communicate with financial firms and visits businesses if necessary to understand what impediments the firms encounter in Korea.

When it comes to the complaints and suggestions from foreign financial firms, the FSS responds to them at once or reflects on their problems later. Indeed, the FSS relaxed Chinese wall regulations and permitted outsourcing of data processing to offshore IT companies, as foreign companies had consistently asked. Furthermore, the FSS has swiftly accepted report filings on ancillary and concurrent businesses of banks. These regulatory improvements have been receiving positive remarks to date.

Meanwhile, the Fn Hub Korea jointly hosts "Global Companies Job Fair" with Seoul Metropolitan Government with aims to improve business and living conditions for people from abroad and help foreign financial companies find and hire domestic talent. Furthermore, the Fn Hub Korea has published various reference materials, including a financial transaction guidebook and manuals for immigration and living in Korea.

Thanks to these efforts, foreign financial companies which have operations in Korea came to 168 at the end of 2016, about 30 percent greater than the 130 at the end of 2003. The amount of Korean stocks held by foreign investors significantly increased 236 percent from 143 trillion won to 481 trillion won between 2003 and 2016. These indicate that Korea's financial globalization has considerably improved.

The FSS will continue to attempt to push forward necessary policies on developing Korea into a financial hub. First of all, the FSS will greatly improve communication with foreign financial companies. Second, it will do its utmost to create more transparent business and regulatory environments comparable to those of advanced economies, providing the financial ecosystem where fair competition is available.

In particular, the FSS is going to improve financial regulations to make them consistent with global standards. At the same time, it will work hard to establish a new financial regulatory paradigm to brace for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, including fin-tech and information technology. To this end, the FSS will make a shift in our supervisory framework from ex-ante supervision to ex-post supervision. Moreover, it will pave the way for foreign financial companies to introduce new products based on creativity and autonomy.

The FSS will also strive to create a business-friendly environment to facilitate the entry of foreign financial companies into the Korean market by boosting cross-border transactions and attracting global floating money, seeking a new source of income.

The FSS expects that its tireless efforts will pay off sooner or later, encouraging more foreign companies to start businesses in Korea. It hopes that both consumers and market players can enjoy benefits of Korea's development into a global financial hub.



The author is First Senior Deputy Governor at the Financial Supervisory Service.
E-commerce company Coupang mistakenly advertised a Samsung monitor at 10 times cheaper than it should have been./ Screen capture from Coupang

By Eom Da-sol

Workers at e-commerce company Coupang had a rough Friday morning.

Hundreds of online customers ordered a 32-inch Samsung monitor mistakenly priced with one missing zero. Some Netizens criticized people who ordered the monitor when the price was obviously a mistake.

The large monitors went on sale from 2 a.m. on Friday advertised at 29,900 won instead of 299,000 won ($267).

Over the next six hours, hundreds of customers rushed to the website and ordered the monitors. Some online communities allegedly spread news of the pricing error to encourage others to buy the monitors.

Netizens joked on the site's customer inquiry and review section.

"I have ordered 300 monitors. I hope Coupang keep the promise with its customers," a netizen said. Others even threatened the company, saying, "Do not delete the sale post, Coupang. Or I will call the customers' service hotline all day."

While some laughed at the jokes and the skyrocketing number of orders at Coupang, others pointed out that Korean netizens were embarrassing because they found people's mistakes amusing.

More than 1,000 comments on Daum, Korea's second-biggest online portal, criticized the buyers.

"Not funny. That post is clearly a mistake. Taking advantage of it and making a laughing stock out of it are just unacceptable," a netizen said. Another said, "This shows how Korean netizens react to the mistakes made by others. We should be ashamed of ourselves."

Coupang deleted the advertisement at around 8 a.m. An official told The Korea Times that "The orders would be canceled and the money would be fully refunded."
By Nam Hyun-woo



The Mirae Asset Global Growth Fund posted high yields by investing in companies related to the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Mirae Asset Global Investments said Monday.



According to Zeroin, a fund assessment firm, the Mirae Asset fund chalked up 25.77 percent of return in a year as of May 24 and 16.61 percent this year alone. Its accumulated yield after its launch on April 15, 2014, stands at 42.54 percent.



The asset management firm recommended the fund, which it says is designed to earn handsome profits despite the current financial environment plagued by uncertainty and low economic growth.



Mirae Asset invested the fund in innovative firms that are expected to show long-term growth along with social changes. It considered such factors as the advance of technologies, expanded middle-income households in emerging countries, aging society and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.



The Seoul-based outfit said the fund runs under three investment strategies. First, it focuses on innovative firms around the world, as the firm believes innovative companies' value eventually goes up.



Second, the fund uses both top-down and bottom-up approaches to analyze such companies. Mirae Asset said it monitors more than 15,000 investment targets and sorts out the best 1 percent through quantitative analysis.



And then, Mirae Asset sets up a portfolio comprised of 20 to 30 companies, which the company regards as the optimal number of investment targets for best returns.



The fund's January report showed 70.2 percent of companies that the fund invested in are in the United States, followed by China with 12.1 percent and Europe with 9.7 percent. By sectors, info-tech companies accounted for 57.6 percent, followed by consumer goods makers with 25.2 percent and financial firms with 4.53 percent.



Mirae Asset has earned its credit in running offshore equity funds. The Korea Financial Investment Association said the value of Mirae Asset's offshore equity funds accounted for 30 percent of Korean firms' overseas equity funds.



"Mirae Asset Global Growth Fund invests in innovative companies which can grow and are impacted less by negative market conditions," said Mok Dae-kyun, head of Mirae Asset's global management division. "The fund also has strength as it makes diversified investments in global assets and comes along with tax benefits."




North Korea fired a ballistic missile from its eastern coast early Monday morning, dealing another blow to efforts by South Korea's new government to improve inter-Korean ties.

The missile, presumed to be a Scud type, was launched eastward from the vicinity of Wonsan, Gangwon Province, at around 5:39 a.m., according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

"The flight distance is around 450 kilometers," it said.

The North's latest action was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who ordered related government officials to convene a National Security Council meeting, said the JCS.

The session started at 7:30 a.m., presided over by Moon's national security adviser Chung Eui-yong.

The U.S. Pacific Command also confirmed the launch occurred near Wonsan Airfield, saying the missile was tracked for six minutes until it landed in the East Sea.

"The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) assessed that the missile launch from North Korea did not pose a threat to North America," the Hawaii-based command said in an emailed statement. "U.S. Pacific Command stands behind our ironclad commitment to the security of our allies in the Republic of Korea and Japan."

U.S. President Donald Trump was also briefed on the North's provocation, a White House official said.

The Japanese government strongly denounced the North as the missile appears to have landed in waters near its territory.

"This ballistic missile launch by North Korea is highly problematic from the perspective of the safety of shipping and air traffic, and is a clear violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said.

The North's Scud missiles using liquid fuel is known to have a range of 300-500 km, mainly targeting the South.












South Korea's foreign ministry strongly condemned North Korea's latest missile test Monday, vowing to take stern action against any provocation.

The North fired a ballistic missile believed to be a Scud type early Monday morning. It was launched eastward from near Wonsan before landing in the East Sea.

"This is a clear violation of the U.N. Security Council's relevant resolutions and poses a serious threat not only to the Korean Peninsula but also to global peace and security," the ministry said in a statement.

"The government will not tolerate any kinds of provocation and take stern action," it added. "The North should stop all provocations immediately and move toward the denuclearization path as quickly as possible."

Monday's test marked the ninth missile provocation this year alone and the third of its kind since the inauguration of South Korean President Moon Jae-in on May 10.












The office of U.N. Secretary-General Antonia Guterres on Sunday rejected Japan's claim that he expressed support for a 2015 deal reached between Seoul and Tokyo over the issue of Japan's wartime sexual slavery.



According to press reports, Japan's Foreign Ministry made the claim that Guterres backed the deal, which is deeply unpopular in South Korea, when he met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Italy on Saturday on the sidelines of a summit of the Group of Seven industrialized nations.



But Guterres' spokesman said the U.N. chief never expressed support specifically for the 2015 deal.



"The secretary-general and Prime Minister Abe did discuss the issue of so-called comfort women. The secretary-general agreed that this is a matter to be solved by an agreement between Japan and the Republic of Korea," the spokesman said in a note to correspondents.



"The secretary-general did not pronounce himself on the content of a specific agreement but on the principle that it is up to the two countries to define the nature and the content of the solution for this issue," he said.



The 2015 deal, which was reached when impeached former President Park Geun-hye was in office, centered on Japan's admission of responsibility for the crime and plans to pay reparations to the victims. South Korea promised to end the dispute once and for all if Japan fulfills its responsibilities.



But the agreement has been under fire for failing to take the victims' positions into consideration.



Historians estimate that up to 200,000 women, mainly from Korea, which was a Japanese colony from 1910 to 1945, were forced to work in front-line brothels for Japanese soldiers during World War II. Japan has long attempted to water down the atrocity. (Yonhap)




By Kim Se-jeong



Six out of 16 dams built for the Four Major Rivers Project will have their gates opened Thursday, officials said Monday, a follow-up to President Moon Jae-in's order last week to overhaul the project.



At a press conference, an infrastructure ministry spokesman said the dams will be partially opened at 2 p.m. on Thursday.



"The gates will be open to the point where it won't affect farms nearby that are in need of a large quantity of water in May and June," an official said.



The six are Gangjeong-Goryeong, Dalseong, Hapcheon-Changnyeong and Changnyeong-Haman dams on the Nakdong River, Gongju dam on the Geum River and Joonsan dam on the Youngsan River.



The six were chosen based on water volumes and the extent of algal blooming. As a result, the Gangjeong-Goryeong dam will see its water level drop by 1.25 meters, while waters in the Changnyeong-Haman dam will fall 20 centimeters.



Environmentalists denounced Monday's announcement.



"The dams will be open too little. It's like not opening them at all," said Shin Jae-eun from the Korea Federation for Environmental Movements, an NGO. "The government needs to open the gates fully and others soon."



Asked when it will open other dams' gates, the official answered: "It can damage the ecosystem of the river if all weirs are opened simultaneously. We need to move cautiously and patiently." The Ministry of Environment will monitor conditions in preparation for this.



The Four Major Rivers Project is Korea's biggest and most controversial river refurbishment program. Between 2007 and 2012, the government spent 22.2 trillion won ($17.3 billion) of taxpayers' money, building 16 dams on the country's four major rivers.



Former President Lee Myung-bak who spearheaded the project claimed it would prevent flooding and droughts and boost tourism.



Environmentalists opposed the plan from the beginning, warning of threats to the rivers' ecosystems  and it turned out to be true with algae blooming near the dams. The situation was particularly worrying for the Nakdong River which supplies 13 million people, including Busan and Daegu residents, with drinking water.



Shin criticized the government's mention of farms as a reason for not opening the gates fully.



"In the regions around the Nakdong River, no drought has been reported this year. It makes no sense that the gates will be open only a little because of farmers. We believe the government lied to citizens and President Moon with its deceptive announcement today."



Monday's announcement came amid friction between President Moon and former President Lee after Moon ordered another round of audits for the Four Major Rivers Project  it has been scrutinized three times over the past five years.



Cheong Wa Dae said the purpose of the fourth audit would be to get to the bottom of the problem and learn from mistakes. But conservative politicians and former President Lee took offense, saying the audit was meant to discredit them.







skim@koreatimes.co.kr




By Lee Min-hyung





High-capacity residential energy storage system manufactured by Samsung SDI

Samsung SDI plans to take the covers off its new residential energy storage system (ESS) products, which use differentiated design technology, to pre-empt the highly potential market.

The Seoul-based company said Monday it will display its full ESS lineup at Intersolar Europe 2017. The event will take place in Munich, Germany, for three days beginning May 31.

Intersolar is the world-leading exhibition for the ESS and solar industries. Samsung SDI has taken part in the trade show since 2012. A thousand companies including ESS leaders are expected to attend the three-day event.

Included in the product line are market champions and a next-generation cash cow. The former are new residential ESS products, while the latter is an uninterruptible power system with the potential for exponential market growth.

Plus, Samsung SDI will also demonstrate the world's largest utility-scale ESS and high-voltage ESS modules. As electricity-powered devices catch on, ESS has emerged as a big business. The market's size is expected to expand down the road.

A residential ESS is a battery system installed in a home. Its main purpose is to store electricity generated by solar panels in system batteries for later use.

"One of the advantages of Samsung SDI's residential ESS modules is high scalability. Samsung SDI plans to provide ESS modules fitting the various needs of ESS makers on time by applying differentiated scalability," a Samsung SDI official said.

"If modules are highly scalable, our customers need to carry out only minor design changes. As a result, they can save cost and time."

The company is scheduled to start mass producing residential ESS modules in the second half of this year. It conducted tests together with customers beginning last year.

Samsung SDI is one of the global leaders in residential ESS. It has remained a market leader in Japan for four straight years since 2013. The Japanese market has grown rapidly due to concerns about electric grid insecurity since the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011.

"Customers are showing much interest in the differentiated scalability of Samsung SDI's residential ESS modules," Samsung SDI Vice President Park Se-woong said. "We will keep introducing ESS products with market-leading technology."

BS, a market consultancy, predicted global residential ESS sales would reach 83,000 this year and jump by about 16 percent on average to 146,000 by 2020.

It also expected Samsung SDI had the biggest share of the global market in 2016 with 30 percent.
Claude Lanzmann at the bridge in Pyongyang / Scene from "Napalm"







A brief but passionate encounter with a North Korean nurse six decades ago drives French filmmaker Claude Lanzmann's personal journey through the secretive state



By Clarence Tsui





As in most documentaries filmed in North Korea, Claude Lanzmann's Napalm features images of officially approved events designed to boost the country's social and political prowess.

People are shown presenting bouquets at mammoth statues commemorating the late leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. During a film shoot, a dexterous actress fights off an army of villains dressed in South Korean military uniforms. Elsewhere in a gymnasium, taekwondo athletes show off their amazing chops.

But the documentary's most telling moment is much shorter and less choreographed. Approaching a bridge during a tour of Pyongyang, the 91-year-old Lanzmann is shown fiercely shaking off a minder who is trying to guide him in a certain direction.

"Let go of me," he shouts, waving his walking cane.

Speaking in Cannes after Napalm's world premiere at the French city's annual film festival, which wraps up on Sunday, Lanzmann recalled feeling "almost handcuffed" by his guides during his visit to North Korea in 2015.

"I always had to fight against them. There were always more than two guards," the French filmmaker said.

They were shadowing him so closely that he "almost became friends" with them, he added.

The documentary shows him seemingly enjoying the spectacles around him, impressed by the actors, athletes and a young, English-speaking soldier showing him around a miliary museum. Lanzmann said he did not go to North Korea two years ago to make friends.

While he convinced North Korean authorities to grant him entry to the country by stating his interest in taekwondo, he had another idea in mind all along: to make a very personal documentary about his brief amorous encounter with a local nurse there in 1958.

In fact, the bridge where Lanzmann had that brief brush-up with his escort was the place he enjoyed a clandestine date with a local woman nearly 60 years ago, when he went to Pyongyang as part of a delegation of left-leaning French intellectuals trying to figure out what the Stalinist country was like in the aftermath of the Korean war.

It's an affair he wrote about previously in his memoirs The Patagonian Hare, which was published in 2009. He has now brought this account to the screen in a long monologue in Napalm's second half, recalling how he met the nurse when she came to give him an injection in the hotel, and how the pair embraced and kissed in the room.

He said they arranged to meet outside afterwards, and they had a brief escapade along the riverfront and also on a rowing boat  before security officers finally caught up with them and took her away.

At the end of the documentary, Lanzmann says he received a letter from North Korea a few months after that visit. Through an attached French translation printed under an official North Korean letterhead, he explains, he discovered it was a postcard with a message presumably written by the nurse.

Unsurprisingly, the pair's erotic encounter was not mentioned in the message. Instead, the nurse  or the writer of the postcard  thanked him for visiting the country in propaganda-like language, and said soon "peace-loving people will meet for sure".

But Lanzmann said he did not intend to locate the nurse during his first return to North Korea in 2004, or during the 2015 trip which produced footage for Napalm.

"It is not a good experience to see a woman you knew and see her already becoming old, it was not pleasant for you," he said.

This apprehension of confronting the past runs very much against the sprawling documentaries he has produced to explore the Holocaust.

An anti-Nazi resistance fighter in France during the second world war, he founded the literary journal Les Temps Modernes with philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre and was highly critical of his own government's suppression of Algeria's pro-independence struggle during the 1950s and 60s.

He made his first documentary, Israel, Why, in 1973. But it was Shoah, released in 1985, which established him as a filmmaker with its depiction of the Holocaust through the testimonies of those who survived Nazi Germany's concentration camps.

Despite its personal roots, Napalm is similar to Lanzmann's previous documentaries in its reflections on war and catastrophe.

According to Lanzmann's research, the US army poured 3.2 million litres of napalm over North Korea during the Korean war, preceding the chemical's widespread use during the Vietnam war.

In the documentary, Lanzmann also used a lot of footage which Pyongyang authorities used to show the death and carnage during the Korean war.

Lanzmann said he had no intention of making Napalm a political film. He added that he neither has "political sympathy for the regime" nor considers the country as "an axis of evil" as former US president George W Bush once called it. However, he described his recent visits to North Korea as "pure horror".

"When I went there the second time in 2004, it was terrible," he said. "It was the end of a famine with thousands of deaths ... it was a complete change compared to what was in North Korea in 1958.

"There was nothing to eat, I was really starving and I could not eat what they served me as I started immediately to vomit. They did all they could to forbid me to have any meeting with the population."

Nevertheless, his producer Francois Margolin, who had a working relationship with the North Korean film authorities, helped him and cinematographer Caroline Champetier return to the hermit state in 2015 to gather footage for Napalm.

In one scene in Napalm, a state employee shows Lanzmann scenes from a recently produced film on her Mac computer  a sign of modern technology both at odds with perceptions of the country as backwards, but also in line with the state-produced anti-US propaganda videos released online in the past few months.

Lanzmann said Napalm remains a personal story and he doesn't intend the film to have anything to do with the tensions in and around North Korea today.

"I don't think [the film] is a metaphor," he said.
Actress Song Hye Kyo recently appeared on an episode of Channel A's "Poongmon Show". During the episode, the actress revealed how she was once blackmailed by someone she once knew.

As previously reported by Koreaboo, actress Song Hye Kyo was once blackmailed together with her mother. Apparently, the person behind the threats was someone the actress once worked with.

Back in January of 2005, Song Hye Kyo's mother received a random letter. However, when she opened it, the letter contained a letter that blackmailed them.

The "blackmailer" asked Song Hye Kyo's mother to give him/her a staggering 250 million Korean won (KRW). The amount was equivalent to over $220,000 at that time.

The letter also specifically said that if Song Hye Kyo's mother fails to give the said amount, the "blackmailer" would pour hydrochloric acid onto their bodies. The "blackmailer" has apparently prepared huge amounts of the toxic liquid.

Song Hye Kyo's mother then immediately moved the actress out to an undisclosed location. Song Hye Kyo's mother also reported the blackmailing attempt to the police.

After the investigation that ensued, it was found out that the "blackmailer" was Song Hye Kyo's previous manager. The manager has lived with Song Hye Kyo for 3 years.

Song Hye Kyo's mother initially thought that the "blackmailer" was someone who previously asked her family for financial aid. When Song Hye Kyo's mother found out who it actually was, she cried uncontrollably because of the unexpected betrayal.

Song Hye Kyo's mother also did not file a case against her daughter's previous manager. The reason was simple - she does not believe that he [the manager] could not do such thing.

Song Hye Kyo's previous manager was let go by the agency because of not reporting the commission he earned from Song Hye Kyo's photo shoots and spent it randomly. The manager reportedly struggled financially after being laid off and even had to sleep at several public baths.

In other news, Song Hye Kyo expressed that she would like to work with "Goblin" actor Gong Yoo. As reported by Soompi, both the celebrities were in Hong Kong on May 4.

Song Hye Kyo attended a fashion event in the country. Gong Yoo, on the other hand, was in Hong Kong for his fan meet.

Song Hye Kyo was asked whether she would like to do a project with Gong Yoo in the near future. The actress promptly replied that she would love to, if the opportunity comes.
There is really no stopping to all of the rumors and speculations about the possible relationship between G-Dragon and Sandara Park. This is despite the denial of the two K-pop idols. Now, Sandara Park took the opportunity to once again say that there is nothing romantic happening between G-Dragon and herself.

Just recently, Sandara Park went to Manila, the Philippines to promote her latest movie entitled "One Step." The movie has also premiered in the country. And during the press con originally intended solely for her latest movie, the press also took the opportunity to ask Sandara Park regarding the real status of her love life.

According to Korea Portal, Sandara Park was asked once again regarding the truth behind the speculations about her possible relationship with G-Dragon. And as a response to that question, Sandara Park finally shed light on the issue.

In her statement, Sandara Park says that the first time that he met G-Dragon was way back in 2004. The K-pop idol then adds that G-Dragon was still a young boy during those times.

Sandara Park then says that she is not sure where the rumors originated because they haven't been doing any project together. However, she then says that she is grateful and thankful to all of her fans and supporters.

According to Christian Post, Sandara Park also took the opportunity to clarify the issue that she also has a relationship with Robi Domingo, a popular TV personality in the Philippines. Park also worked together with Robi Domingo in a Filipino talent show program, "Pinoy Boy Band Superstar".

Rumors have it that Sandara Park was the reason why Robi Domingo's relationship with longtime girlfriend, Gretchen Ho, ended. Gretchen Ho is also a popular TV host in the Philippines.

In the interview, Sandara Park says that she is just good friends with Robi Domingo.
It is not uncommon for popular K-pop idols to be rumored dating each other. It's because they are popular celebrities in the first place, and their fans can't help but hope that their idols date each other.

What happens today is that even the slightest of kind gestures exchanged between K-pop idols is understood as a sign by their fans that there is something romantic happening between them. Surprisingly, their fans and the people are quicker to announce that their idols are dating.

Now, MONSTA X's I.M and Cosmic Girls' Luda, are the recent K-pop idols to be rumored dating each other. The idols' fans have decided to create a compilation of the instances where I.M and Luda might have hinted that there is something going on between them. One of those instances is when I.M surprisingly talked about how his stage name came up.

According to Korea Portal, the K-pop idol says that he was previously called "Would You Like". Take note that "Would You Like" is the catch phrase of Cosmic Girls that they use to identify themselves.

Another instance was when I.M danced out the choreography of the Cosmic Girls. This shows that the idol is really fond of the group. Or probably, I.M is really fond of Luda.

According to All K-pop, there was the answer that came straight out of Luda's mouth. This was when she was asked what was her ideal type of guy is. In the interview, Luda says that she prefers a left-handed person who knows how to use chopsticks properly.

And with it, the fans and supporters of MONSTA X and I.M specifically, easily answered out the hint, pointing it out to MONSTA X's I.M. Whichever the case is, there is no doubt that I.M and Luda look good together. So there's really no problem if they're into each other.
Benjamin Olewine III

Benjamin Olewine III, a respected and beloved entrepreneur, civic leader, and friend to many passed away on May 27, 2017, at Community General Osteopathic Hospital. Ben was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on October 3, 1921, to Benjamin Olewine, Jr. and Madeline Yaple Olewine. He was a 1939 graduate of William Penn High School and served in the United States Army in the 82nd Quartermaster Mobile Battalion from 1942 to 1945 in India, Burma and China.

He was predeceased by his wife of 61 years, Gloria M. Olewine, and is survived by his son, Benjamin Olewine IV, his daughter and son-in-law, Kristen Olewine Milke and Denis Milke, M.D., and his wonderful friend and caregiver, Samuel Nkum. He is also survived by his sister-in-law, Anita Dowd, cousins, Sandra Novotni and Peggy Ann Pedersen, nephew, Steven Dowd, and niece, Patricia Berendt.

The Olewine family has deep roots in Harrisburg with the first generation of the family arriving in the 1700s. Ben was very proud of his familys history. His grandfather opened the familys first grocery store in 1905 and over the years that store evolved into market stalls, catering, and specialty foods. In 1958, Olewines Cheese House became Olewines, Inc. and under Bens entrepreneurial leadership became one of the top 50 full service wholesale food distributors in the United States. The company was sold to Sysco Corporation in 1988 and Ben became Chairman Emeritus. He continued to go to his office at Sysco every day until the age of 91.

Mr. Olewine served on the Susquehanna Township School Board in the 1950s and was a founder of American Legion Post 1001 in Susquehanna Township. He was a 32nd degree Mason and was a member of Paxton United Methodist Church.

He generously funded many organizations, projects, and young people seeking an education in Central Pennsylvania and around the world. His proudest accomplishment was the Wildwood Lake Nature Center. He always thought of it as a special place for the community. His food distribution warehouse was across the street where he looked out at the lake, where his children went to ice skate in the winter months in the 50s and early 60s and in the neighborhood where he bought his first house on Linglestown Road. In Bens childhood, he spent many happy days in the park and at the zoo that existed there at the time. Nature and bird conservation have been very important to Ben and his son. Wildwood, Dauphin County and Audubon Pennsylvania have served as a perfect example of how private philanthropy, non-profit organizations, and government can work together for environmental education and conservation in our communities and for the betterment of our community as a whole.

Ben also funded the Culinary Arts School at Harrisburg Area Community College and its chef training program in conjunction with Bricco restaurant in downtown Harrisburg. He was a key supporter of Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts, Lancaster Bible College, Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, Dauphin County Library System, Pinnacle Health Systems, Hershey Medical Center, Homeland Center, Lynn University, Central Pennsylvania Friends of Jazz Youth Jazz Camp, National Audubon Society, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, and Birdlife International. He also supported many funds for cancer research at Jefferson Medical Hospital, the University of Iowa, Johns Hopkins and St. Jude Childrens Hospital. He also provided funding for many other non-profit organizations. He said, I am very proud of everything I have done and happy that I have been able to do it. I always said Id give back if I was ever able to do so.

He will be profoundly missed by his family and the many others whose lives he touched with his gentle and kind spirit.

His Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 A.M. on Thursday June 1, 2017 at Paxton United Methodist Church, 3550 North Progress Avenue, Harrisburg, with Rev. Brent T. Salsgiver, officiating. Interment, in Harrisburg Cemetery, will be followed by a reception. Friends may call at the Jesse H. Geigle Funeral Home, Inc., 2100 Linglestown Road, Harrisburg, on Wednesday evening from 5:00 to 8:00 P.M.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Audubon Pennsylvania, 100 Wildwood Way, Harrisburg, PA 17110; Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts, 225 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA 17101; or the Pinnacle Health Foundation, Grateful Patient Program, P.O. Box 8700, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8700.

Those wishing to share memories or condolences with the family are invited to visit BitnerCares.com or Facebook.
Anchorage Police are investigating a vehicle accident that happened Saturday night off the Seward highway.

According to APD at around 10:30pm, a BMW was traveling northbound, pulled out to pass another vehicle, then struck a Ford Ranger head-on.

Police say multiple victims with critical injuries were flown by helicopter to Anchorage hospitals.

They suspect alcohol may have been a contributing factor in the collision.
Making sense (and, sometimes, nonsense) out of Current News, Issues, Politics
Whether you call it by its original name, Decoration Day, or the more common name synonymous with the first big three-day vacation weekend of the year, Memorial Day, the fact is that it is a time to recall those who have gone before us.

One of the best sources for background and all things Memorial Day is http://www.usmemorialday.org, a website first created in the fall of 1994 by student David M. Merchant, reportedly as a project for Dr. Gretchen Whitney's Information Network Applications Class in the School of Information Sciences at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville Tenn.

According to the website, Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. There are many stories as to its actual beginnings, with over two dozen cities and towns laying claim to being the birthplace of Memorial Day.

Merchant explains how there is also evidence that organized women's groups in the South were decorating graves before the end of the Civil War. A hymn published in 1867, "Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping", by Nella L. Sweet carried the dedication, "To The Ladies of the South who are Decorating the Graves of the Confederate Dead."

While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the birthplace of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it's difficult to prove conclusively the origins of the day. It is more likely that it had many separate beginnings; each of those towns and every planned or spontaneous gathering of people to honor the war dead in the 1860's tapped into the general human need to honor our dead, each contributed honorably to the growing movement that culminated in General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. It is not important who was the very first, what is important is that Memorial Day was established. Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all.

In the days since, in many places it has expanded to include a time to remember all deceased loved ones  military veteran or otherwise. In big veterans cemeteries across the country the day will include formal placing of flags, laying of wreaths, gun salutes and speeches and prayers. Many of those ceremonies will last an hour or so at the most.

In rural areas, though, the day can mean an all-day happening where folks gather and bring lawn chairs to sit under shade trees and talk. In some cases therell be picnic baskets for meals shared with relatives and acquaintances not otherwise seen during the rest of the year. Sometimes a collection plate or box is set up to gather donations for the year-round upkeep of the rural resting places.

The scene will be repeated over and over again at small church and community cemeteries dotting the two-lane blacktop and gravel backroads that connect North America. In many of these rural cemeteries some of the nations greatest military heroes lay in rest. While not always the most highly decorated officers on record, historically when the call to serve was given you could count on the boys and men, and more recently women, of rural America to stand up and be first in line.

Often those protectors of our freedoms were laid to rest in the rural cemeteries near the valleys and ridges where they grew up, usually behind a small country church. Its there that relatives will gather on Decoratin Day to sit and tell stories and share memories.

According to the Memorial Day website, The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states. The South refused to acknowledge the day, honoring their dead on separate days until after World War I (when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war). It is now celebrated in almost every State on the last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971 to ensure a three day weekend for Federal holidays), though several southern states have an additional separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas, April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 (Jefferson Davis' birthday) in Louisiana and Tennessee.

Merchants agrees that the reverence surrounding Memorial Day has faded into more of a celebration of time off work and a three-day weekend. He writes, Traditional observance of Memorial day has diminished over the years. Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and traditions of Memorial Day. At many cemeteries, the graves of the fallen are increasingly ignored, neglected. Most people no longer remember the proper flag etiquette for the day. While there are towns and cities that still hold Memorial Day parades, many have not held a parade in decades.

There are a few notable exceptions. Since the late 50's on the Thursday before Memorial Day, the 1,200 soldiers of the 3d U.S. Infantry place small American flags at each of the more than 260,000 gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery. They then patrol 24 hours a day during the weekend to ensure that each flag remains standing. In 1951, the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts of St. Louis began placing flags on the 150,000 graves at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery as an annual Good Turn, a practice that continues to this day.

More recently, beginning in 1998, on the Saturday before the observed day for Memorial Day, the Boys Scouts and Girl Scouts place a candle at each of approximately 15,300 grave sites of soldiers buried at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park on Marye's Heights (the Luminaria Program). And in 2004, Washington D.C. held its first Memorial Day parade in over 60 years.

In the end, theres one train of thought which reasons that returning Memorial Day to a specific day, instead of allowing it to always be a three-day weekend, would put the emphasis back on the original purpose of Decorating Day.

But what may be needed to return the solemn, and even sacred, spirit back to Memorial Day is for a return to its traditional day of observance, Merchant concludes. Many feel that when Congress made the day into a three-day weekend in with the National Holiday Act of 1971, it made it all the easier for people to be distracted from the spirit and meaning of the day. As the VFW stated in its 2002 Memorial Day address: Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed greatly to the general public's nonchalant observance of Memorial Day.

Locally, veterans will hold several ceremonies today to honor their fallen comrades.

As for how buddy poppies came to have a part on Memorial Day, according to www.usmemorialday.org, In 1915, inspired by the poem "In Flanders Fields," Moina Michael replied with her own poem:

We cherish too, the Poppy red

That grows on fields where valor led,

It seems to signal to the skies

That blood of heroes never dies.

She then conceived of an idea to wear red poppies on Memorial day in honor of those who died serving the nation during war. She was the first to wear one, and sold poppies to her friends and co-workers with the money going to benefit servicemen in need. Later a Madam Guerin from France was visiting the United States and learned of this new custom started by Ms. Michael and when she returned to France, made artificial red poppies to raise money for war orphaned children and widowed women. This tradition spread to other countries.

In 1921, the Franco-American Children's League sold poppies nationally to benefit war orphans of France and Belgium. The League disbanded a year later and Madam Guerin approached the VFW for help. Shortly before Memorial Day in 1922 the VFW became the first veterans' organization to nationally sell poppies. Two years later their "Buddy" Poppy program was selling artificial poppies made by disabled veterans. In 1948 the US Post Office honored Ms Michael for her role in founding the National Poppy movement by issuing a red 3 cent postage stamp with her likeness on it.
PRESS RELEASE

FISA Court Condemns Obama Administration Illegal Spying on Americans

May 27, 2017 (EIRNS)A recently declassified April 26, 2017 ruling from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court declared that the Obama Administration intelligence agencies practice of collecting and searching intercepted communications created, "a very serious Fourth Amendment issue" and that the failure to disclose these violations demonstrated an "institutional lack of candor."

Not surprisingly, this shocking revelation about the Obama Administrations illegal spying has gotten little attention in the news media, compared to the histrionics about the so-called Trump Russia connection. In fact, the FISC ruling shows that former FBI Director Comey lied to Congress about this in the famous hearing that preceded his firing, showing that President Trump was absolutely justified not only in firing Comey, but in calling him a "nut-job."

The issue in the FISC ruling concerns the collection of "upstream" data by the NSA, which is data collected from the internet backbone, not individual service providers. This data inevitably sweeps up huge amounts of data that is then stored, and later searched, by the NSA, FBI, CIA etc. The court estimated that 1 in 20 Americans have been spied on in this way.

In 2011, the court set guidelines for how these data can be searched and for the minimization of unmasking of U.S. persons. But, also at that time, Obama relaxed the rules concerning surveillance and unmasking of U.S. citizens. Since that time there has been a threefold increase in the searching and unmasking of U.S. citizens under Obama.

According to the court ruling, on October 26, 2016, Obama intelligence officials admitted to the court that the administration had been violating the 2011 guidelines.
DEAR DOCTOR: A new study said that prolonged antibiotic use is tied to colon polyps. But "prolonged" meant "two weeks or more." I had a couple of bacterial infections in a six-month timespan. How worried should I be?

DEAR READER: Antibiotics have undoubtedly revolutionized medicine, saving countless lives against multiple types of bacterial infections. However, with antibiotics readily available and a society that craves a quick fix, antibiotics have been overused. For example, they are often prescribed needlessly for upper respiratory symptoms that are not due to bacterial causes. Such overuse has led to the formation of antibiotic resistance; alterations of normal bacterial populations in the intestinal, oral and nasal cavities; and unnecessary side effects from the antibiotics themselves.

As for whether antibiotics can increase the risk of precancerous polyps in the colon, let's look at the evidence.

The study to which you're referring, published this year in the journal Gut, reviewed the antibiotic usage of 16,642 female nurses age 60 or older. In 2004, the women filled out a questionnaire reporting the amount of antibiotics they used between the ages of 20 and 39 and between the ages of 40 and 59. In 2008, the women filled out another questionnaire reporting their antibiotic usage between 2004 and 2008. All the women had at least one colonoscopy between 2004 and 2010.

Researchers found that women who took antibiotics between the ages of 20 and 39 had an increased risk of colon polyps compared to women who hadn't taken antibiotics. The increased risk was relatively small for women who had taken antibiotics for only one to 14 days within that 20-year period, but the risk increased significantly -- by about 1.4 times -- among women who took antibiotics for 14 days to two months. That heightened risk didn't increase further among women who took antibiotics for greater than two months.

For women who took antibiotics between ages 40 and 59, the rate of colon polyps increased more dramatically and was more dependent upon the length of antibiotic use. Those who took antibiotics for more than two months had a 1.69 times greater risk of developing colon polyps compared to women who hadn't taken antibiotics. Because colon polyps can eventually lead to colon cancer, the findings are worrisome.

Additionally worrisome are the findings of a 2008 Finnish study of people ages 30 to 79 assessing their antibiotic use from 1995 through 1997. The researchers found that people who had six or more prescriptions of antibiotics in that two-year timeframe had a 15 percent increased risk of colon cancer.

A possible theory about why antibiotics may lead to the formation of colon polyps, and later cancer, could be because they indiscriminately kill healthy gut bacteria. As this occurs, other, more unhealthy bacteria predominate in the colon, which can affect its immune response, leading to disruptions in its lining and the formation of polyps.

So, yes, there does appear to be some increased risk of colon polyps with antibiotic use. I wouldn't be overly concerned about two courses of antibiotics, though I would be concerned for a multitude of reasons about a repetitive use of antibiotics. Such use raises the need to look for new ways to prevent, and treat, infections.

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. Owing to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.
Ride-hailing giants Uber and Lyft, which left Texas tech-savvy capital city a year ago over local fingerprint requirements for drivers, have returned after state lawmakers intervened.

Both companies began rolling on Austins streets again Monday, when Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that puts the state  not local governments  in charge of regulating the ride-hailing industry.

Local leaders in Austin, the conservative states most liberal city, argued unsuccessfully that its tech-driven economy was uniquely positioned to launch capable alternatives that could fill the gap.

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Austin is an incubator for technology and entrepreneurship, and we are excited to be back in the mix, Uber spokesman Travis Considine said Thursday.  We know that we have a lot of work to do in the city, but we couldnt be more excited for the road ahead.

Uber and Lyft  which are both based in San Francisco  fled Austin after losing a bruising and expensive fight to replace an Austin ordinance that required fingerprint-based background checks of drivers, a variety of data reporting and other requirements.

Advocates for fingerprinting say its the best way to weed out drivers with criminal records. Uber and Lyft have argued their background checks suffice and that fingerprint databases can be out of date. Fingerprinting can also slow down the process of adding new drivers.

Austin became the chosen battleground as similar debates cropped up in other large cities around the country, and the companies spent about $9 million on the campaign before they were rejected by the citys voters. The companies followed through on threats to leave rather than submit to the local rules, and quickly turned their efforts to lobbying for statewide regulations.

Texas Republican-controlled Legislature saw the vote as liberal Austin stepping on free enterprise, and within hours of the Austin vote, lawmakers announced plans to pass a statewide regulations bill even though the legislative session was still months away.

The bill they passed requires companies to be licensed by the state and pay an annual operations fee. It also requires them to perform local, state and national criminal background checks, but doesnt require fingerprints.

After Uber and Lyft left Austin, several local companies moved to fill the gap and followed the citys rules. One of them, Fare, urged customers not to abandon them once Uber and Lyft return.

It wasnt long ago you voted for something you believe in, Fare said in an email to its customers Friday. Show your representatives (who should be working for you, not corporate lobbyists), that you were serious when you asked for stricter screening and background checks on drivers. Next time you need a ride, call on any one of the local ridesharing companies that chose to work for YOU these last 12 months.

Abbott signed the bill Monday, saying on Twitter that he was overturning Austins regulation that trampled freedom & free enterprise. Texas joins more than 40 states that have enacted statewide ride-hailing regulations, including Florida last month.

Supporters of the statewide measure say it will eliminate any confusion caused by a patchwork of regulations around the state. Austin Mayor Steve Adler says it stifles local control.

Im disappointed that the Legislature chose to nullify the bedrock principles of self-governance and limited government by imposing regulations on our city over the objection of Austin voters, Adler said.
Michel Hazanavicius can imagine what people think. I mean, hes heard what people think.

A movie about Jean-Luc Godard? At the Cannes Film Festival? While the master himself is still around?

Godard himself called it a stupid, stupid idea. May as well say the French New Wave was a waste of time, so resistant will the reigning powers be.

But then, Hazanavicius  whose The Artist won the Oscar for best picture after its premiere at Cannes six years ago  has never much cared what the reigning powers think. The Artist was an accident, of sorts, or at least an anomaly: the French director was at that point best known for making the OSS series of spy parodies and had never swam in such holy waters.

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Im like the guy playing for a team outside my own city when Im here, he said playfully in an interview at the festival several days ago. I make movies for popular audiences  movies that dont go to festivals. Im always thinking that Im going to disappoint these guys [festival critics]. They dont look like guys who want to laugh.

So when his Godard movie, titled Redoubtable, was announced for the 2017 Cannes competition in April and drew its share of criticism, Hazanavicius, well, laughed it off.

Turns out he may be laughing last. The film, which premiered at the festival last week before selling to the U.S. distributor Cohen Media Group, did not earn the best reviews of Cannes. And when awards were announced Sunday night, it was not among the hallowed few to receive a prize.

No matter. The notices were solid. And Hazanavicius was vindicated because he did what he always said he would: make a movie that treated its subject substantively but cheekily, with respect but not reverence.

I was touched by this love story. It really was an allegory of this very unique period for Jean-Luc Godard, Hazanavicius said. How he killed his love is really an allegory of how he killed himself.

Redoubtable covers a particular chapter of the French cinema masters life  when he married a young Anne Wiazemsky (its based on her book) during the same 1960s period as he was moving from commercial successes like Contempt and My Life to Live to more stridently political work like La Chinoise, about a Maoist group of students. Derided by both audiences and critics, the latter title dinged the directors reputation for years to come, and served as both reason for and product of a major Godard shift, claiming his marriage with it.

Louis Garrel plays the late-thirtysomething director and Stacy Martin his wife nearly half his age. Each infuses their characters with a comic verve rarely seen in biopics, let alone one about great living artists. When Godard stands up to give tedious political speeches he persists through the booing like a stoner-philosopher in a vintage Judd Apatow movie; when he keeps losing his glasses during stampedes at political rallies, it provides as durable a running physical gag as in any Laurel & Hardy sketch.

The Godard seen here is also deeply acerbic and funny  hardly the earnest tightwad normally shown in strident-artist portrayals. It ensures hes getting in as many laughs on others as were getting on him.

Martin offers her own comedic foil, the kind of character who illustrates just how stale and problematic the put-upon wife in Hollywood male biopics tends to be.

I called Anne and wasnt sure if I could convince her [to sell me the book], Hazanavicius, thoughtful and soft-spoken, said. Them I told her I see the book as a comedy and she just opened up. She said, I see it that way too; why does nobody else?

Hazanavicius carried out those comedic ambitions via other means, such as faux-pretentious chapter headings (Wolfgang Amadeus Godard) and playful meta touches, including a brilliantly shameless scene about (and featuring) nudity.

There is a serious subtext here too, of course, mostly about the idea of the aging revolutionary. Godard shook up the status quo, culturally and formally, with many of his early movies. But by the late 1960s the world was catching up to him and, at least as Hazanavicius tells it, he was hardly seen as innovative.

Its that moment when the revolutionary isnt one anymore  what happens when he realizes that? Hazanavicius said

Though hardly a film historian, the director may be more qualified than people realize to tell this story. The Artist gave him an instant currency. He used it not for a U.S. studio project (though he has a few in development) but to make The Search, a movie about the war in Chechnya that was roundly panned at Cannes a few years ago.

That didnt go well, Hazanavicius said, with the same wryness that often marks his work. But it made me pretty qualified to make a movie about a filmmaker who has all this success and then he makes a political film and people look at him differently.

He flashed a mischievous grin. So in that way Im like Godard.

See the most-read stories in Entertainment this hour 

steve.zeitchik@latimes.com

Twitter: @ZeitchikLAT
Mario Maglieri was a central character in the story of Los Angeles youth culture.

And Sunday afternoon at the Rainbow Bar & Grill on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, those who knew Maglieri, the late fixture of the Sunset Strip who co-owned both the longtime pizza-pasta joint to the stars and the iconic club the Whisky a Go Go, gathered to share tales of how a music scene created a family.



For the record: Rick Fazekas used to be a student at UC Riverside, not Cal-State Riverside.

Maglieri, who recently died at 93, was feted on the same stretch of land where he helped build a rock n roll hub. Starting in the mid-1960s, the proprietor and longtime manager of the neighboring rock club the Roxy ruled the neighborhood with cigar in mouth and a patriarchal kindness.

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One measure of his mark lay in the volumes of stories floating around the Rainbow on Sunday.

Many of us grew up over here because wed come over from the San Fernando Valley, said photographer Brad Elterman, standing outside at a door to the Roxys upstairs club. In the 1970s he captured a shot of John Lennon and Ringo Starr after the Beatles breakup.

We were 16 or 17, and there were no parental controls at all, Elterman said, adding that Maglieri was like a father to so many of these young kids who came over to discover the magic. Another photo Elterman took on the Strip captured Bob Dylan hanging with Robert De Niro.

Mikael Maglieri, in sunglasses, receives condolences during a memorial for his father, Mario Maglieri, as his mother Scarlett looks on at the Rainbow Bar & Grill. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

The Rainbow, Roxy and Whisky a Go Go represented a bold contrast from his parents place in the Valley, Elterman said. It was like youd entered two different civilizations. It doesnt have the feel of that today, and I cant really explain why. Maybe it was because I was 18, but maybe its because inside were Jimmy Page and Robert Plant.

Sipping a Sunday afternoon pint of beer, longtime music manager and former label boss Jim Maley recalled time spent at the Rainbow in the 1970s with wide-eyed wonder.

We were young and dumb and naive, but he kept an eye on us and made sure nobody messed with us.  Richard Vasquez, on Mario Maglieri

I was here seven nights a week for seven years, Maley said, noting that at the time the Rainbow was one of the only rock n roll bars in town, making it a destination for touring bands and musical expats.

Maley, who said that over the years hes done everything in the business except make a lot of money, had an office at the nearby Hyatt House (now the Andaz), and when the Whos notorious drummer Keith Moon was living there in the mid-1970s, the two would grab lunch and inevitably end up at the Rainbows bar.

Recalled Maley: One time we came here and [Moon] was pretty buzzed, as usual, and he started playing drums on the table. Wed already ordered  and they actually threw him out because he wouldnt stop banging on the tables.

Aside from the scene inside the various venues, Maley said that the Rainbows parking lot played a crucial role in the after-hours social circuit. At 2 a.m. closing time, the lot would fill up, and Maglieri was never far away.

I always knew where every party was, Maley said. Everybody would walk around  Wheres the party tonight? And the New Yorkers would say, What the  do people do now?

Sheila Lightfoot shows Jim Maley images she put together in memory of Mario Maglieri during a memorial for the late-night club owner. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Standing in line to sign Maglieris guest book, hairdresser Richard Vasquez pulled out a baggie filled with old ticket stubs from the Roxy dating back to 1978.

He was so distinguished. We felt secure when he was standing next to us, Vasquez said of Maglieri. I remember him standing outside, smoking, taking the head count in front of the Roxy.

Vasquez said he and his friends were into jazz fusion, and Maglieri greeted them while artists such as Ronnie Laws, Roy Ayers Ubiquity and the Blackbyrds were hitting the stage.

We were young and dumb and naive, but he kept an eye on us and made sure nobody messed with us. Anybody in that line was treated all the same  fairly, Vasquez said.

Actress Debbie Dutch called Maglieri her rock n roll father. I could come and hed be sitting out here with his cigar and I could talk to him. He called me Blondie.

Dutch said her then-boyfriend was in the studio with George Harrison during her time spent in the neighborhood, and when she wasnt helping out on backing vocals shed hit the Roxy to dance: Different wig on every night, with a different name  and I was underage and I never had to worry about anything.

She pauses, on the verge of tears. Its my youth. This is like the end of part of my heart. And everybody feels the same way. Mario was like our father.

Rick Fazekas met Maglieri in the early 1970s when Fazekas was a student and radio DJ at Cal-State Riverside. His student radio gig, on which hed promote upcoming shows at the Whisky, paid dividends on the Strip.

Actress Debbie Dutch, left, becomes emotional while remembering her friend Mario Maglieri. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Mario really appreciated that, he said. We could come down and see shows and meet the bands backstage. I saw Cream on their first U.S. tour  got to go backstage and watch Ginger Baker roll a joint with one hand.

In 1980, Maglieri hired Fazekas to be a DJ at the Rainbow. It was a key musical moment in a neighborhood that was becoming home to a big Persian population. When the new clientele started requesting disco, the rockers took a stand. They were afraid the Rainbow was going to turn into a disco club, Fazekas said.

The DJ eventually got a job at United Artists Records, where he toured with Electric Light Orchestra and was charged with taking his labels acts to Disneyland. Among those he guided? Hawkwind, when longtime Rainbow Bar & Grill patron Lemmy Kilmister was still in the band.

Although he didnt know Maglieri well, Fazekas felt compelled to pay his respects on Sunday. It was a true honor to know a man like that.

Added photographer Elterman: It was a magical time and a magical period. I dont think well ever see it again, and youre not going to find a guy like him.

For tips, records, snapshots and stories on Los Angeles music culture, follow Randall Roberts on Twitter and Instagram: @liledit. Email: randall.roberts@latimes.com.
Romantic tragedies abound Monday night on ABC when the Romeo and Juliet sequel Still Star-Crossed premieres directly after The Bachelorette.

Adapted from a book of the same name by Melinda Taub, the Elizabethan period drama picks up where Shakespeares left off.

The Capulet-Montague feud that drove the two young lovers to take their own lives is now igniting a civil war in the city of Verona. The only hope for peace, ironically, lies in yet another Capulet-Montague relationship, this one between two young people who cant stand each other but must put aside the idea of a marriage rooted in love to unite their families and city.

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If it sounds like a wonderfully simple premise for a new series rooted in a cherished classic, its not. On the contrary, its a heavy lift, even for Shonda Rhimes.

Producer Rhimes (Greys Anatomy and Scandal) and writer-producer Heather Mitchell (Scandal) have too many characters to deal with here, and too much history to unravel, before the real story kicks in.

The first episode (all that was released for review) feels like cramming for a midterm rather than easing into a new series you may or may not want to commit to, given the dozens of other shows vying for your attention.

In Still Star-Crossed, Romeo and Juliet are alive for the first half of episode one. That means viewers who have forgotten their Shakespeare basics are afforded a quick crash course in the forbidden relationship between the lovers and their warring families.

Still, the primer doesnt help clear up a story that is so dense and confusing from the outset it often smothers the performances of a large cast that, with few exceptions, doesnt seem all that dynamic in the first place. The time and effort would have been better spent underpinning the narratives of the living characters  those tasked with carrying Season 1 forward.

The story they tell, as best I could tell, goes something like this:

The vitriol and hatred between Lord and Lady Capulet (Anthony Head and Zuleikha Robinson) and Lord Montague (Grant Bowler) has spread to the streets since their beloved children were found dead. Cousins, distant relations and apparently anyone with a sword has now taken to slashing their way toward. Well, Its unclear if they even know what the endgame is.

But theres a possible solution to the chaos. Prince Escalus (Sterling Sulieman), who has taken over in the wake of his fathers death, decides the best way to get his city under control again is to join the sparring families in royally sanctioned matrimony. The unfortunate souls he has chosen to take a hit for Team Verona are Juliets cousin Rosaline (Lashana Lynch) and Romeos cousin Benvolio (Wade Briggs).

But even this planned union has tragedy written all over it. Thats because Rosaline and Escalus were once in love before they were split apart by forces Escalus claims were beyond his control. The heat is still there, but who will end up getting burned?

The setting is beautiful (director Michael Offer shot much if the show in Spain): a cityscape complete with gleaming spires, rustic town squares, Moor-influenced marketplaces and ornate churches.

The backdrop is complemented by the casts stunning wardrobe: lots of velvety royal blues and purples. In love and fight scenes, the shimmering gold brocade vests and leather are the stars.

If only the characters and dialogue were as notable.

The most interesting aspect is colorblind casting, in which family members of different races need no explanation, or relationships between brown and white characters arent contested because of race. (Family name? Thats another matter).

They speak in 21st century dialect, likely an intentional move to help modern audiences engage, with occasional bits and pieces of Shakespearean-like verse dropped in for good measure. But the mix-and-match dialogue has the opposite effect of helping non-theater majors assimilate. Its awkward and distracts from an already hard-to-follow story.

The performances here are also often buried under the dense narrative, not to mention way too many perfunctory sword fights. Still, newcomer Medalion Rahimi (Princess Isabella) and her fictional brother played by Sulieman do manage to make an impression despite the difficult circumstances.

Yet parting with Still Star-Crossed after one episode isnt likely to bring sweet sorrow, but rather the relief of a tragedy averted.

Still Star-Crossed

Where: ABC

When: 10 p.m. Monday

Rating: TV-14-DV (may be unsuitable for children under the age of 14 with advisories for suggestive dialogue and violence)
For the last five years, the drought severely depleted the Kern River, usually one of the fastest-flowing rivers in the West.

But the exceedingly wet winter has returned the 165-mile Kern, Californias 10th-longest river and a favorite among whitewater rafting enthusiasts, to a power not seen in years. Fueled by runoff that ultimately stretches from its headwaters at the base of Mt. Whitney, dramatic rapids and swift flows are returning to a river so feared that its known as the Killer Kern.

Over the Memorial Day weekend, its reputation was confirmed.

Three people died and 24 were rescued in multiple incidents along the river, about three hours north of Los Angeles. Five more were rescued from other nearby rivers.

Ten people have died in Kern and Tulare county rivers this year. And officials say they fear the death toll could climb in the coming summer months, as chilly snow melt fuels the river water.

The problem: Memories are short, and people have forgotten what a normal, powerful Kern River is like.

People arent used to this big water

People arent used to this big water like weve had in the past. Five years of a drought really impacts peoples ability to look at a river  they just dont remember, Tulare County Sheriffs Lt. Kevin Kemmerling said Monday. This year, they think its the same river, but its five times as big.

They get lulled into a false sense of security, he added. What they think is a tranquil river that theyre used to  the currents are running 12 mph. And you cant swim out of it once you get into it.

In the last wet winter, in 2012, about two dozen people died on the Kern, Kemmerling said. The river is marked with a sign that says: Kern River: 280 lives lost since 1968.

We have electronic sign boards advising them: 'Do not swim. Very cold water. Dangerous.'  Mike Theune, park ranger at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

Flow of the river jumps

During the drought, the flow of water on the Kern at this time of year slowed to as low as 1,000 cubic feet per second, Kemmerling said. On Saturday, the river was flowing five times that fast.

The numbers are just giant, Kemmerling said. And when people get caught in that water, that translates to hundreds and hundreds of pounds of force against the human body.

Sheriffs search and rescue crews pulled a mans body from the Kern River on Monday, May 29, 2017. (Carol Ferguson / KBAK-TV / KBFX-TV) (Carol Ferguson / KBAK/KBFX)

Falling into the river

On Saturday, a man in his 40s died after falling into the river from a raft operated by Sierra South, a local outfitter, Kemmerling said. The raft was navigating the Cable Run, a Class IV rapid that is intense and turbulent.

The accident occurred about five miles north of Kernville, where the river water was 40 degrees, Kemmerling said. Rescuers performed CPR for about 20 minutes; he was rushed to Kern Valley Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Tom Moore, president of Sierra South, said the man was part of a church group and was a last-minute substitute.

He was wearing a wetsuit and life jacket, Moore said. The man fell backward out of the inflatable raft when it was hit by a wave, he added.

The man was able to grab on to a kayak that had been tailing the raft, and after grabbing hold of a paddle he was pulled back onto the raft, Moore said. He was following commands and was responsive, but he collapsed shortly after he was pulled back into the boat, Moore said.

Moore said a relative of the victim told him that the coroner suspects a heart attack. The coroner was unreachable Monday night.

Were so sorry and so sad for him and his family, Moore said. In 32 years of running, weve never had an accident like that.

Classes of rapids

Class I: Fast-moving water with riffles and small waves.

Class II (Novice): Straightforward rapids.

Class III (Intermediate): Rapids with moderate, irregular waves that may be difficult to avoid and can swamp an open canoe.

Class IV (Advanced): Intense, powerful rapids requiring precise boat handling in turbulent water. Risk of injury to swimmers is moderate to high, and water conditions may make self-rescue difficult.

Class V (Expert): Extremely long, obstructed or very violent rapids that expose a paddler to added risk. Swims are dangerous, and rescue is often difficult even for experts.

Class VI (Extreme and Exploratory Rapids): These runs have almost never been attempted and often exemplify the extremes of difficulty, unpredictability and danger.

Source: American Whitewater

On Sunday morning, the body of a woman in her 40s was pulled out of the Kern River in Hart Park, about eight miles northeast of Bakersfield, said Kern County Sheriffs Lt. Bill Smallwood. She had been floating on the river with her family a day earlier, fell into the water and couldnt be found.

Then on Monday, authorities found the body of a man who had been rafting with his son, who is between 12 and 14 years old, Smallwood said. The two were on the Kern River west of Lake Isabella when they were thrown out of the raft by a rapid.

The juvenile was able to get to the shoreline. The father was last seen being carried down the river, Smallwood said. They were out on their own.

Its only going to get worse

Smallwood and other officials said the rivers are simply dangerous right now.

Everyone should stay out of the water, Smallwood said. Its only going to get worse. Once we get the melt from Mt. Whitney, its only going to speed up the flow of the river.

The Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks issued a blunt warning on its website: Park rivers are dangerous. Keep your distance!  Please: Stay away from the river. Return safely to your family.

The Kern River has actually earned the nickname the 'Killer Kern,' and its earned it for a reason  John Frando, Bakersfield Fire Department spokesman

So far this year, five people have died on the Kaweah and Tule rivers in Tulare County. Most had either gone for a swim or slipped and fell into the fast-moving water. One person died trying to rescue her friend.

The Tulare County sheriff and the U.S. Forest Service have since closed the Tule River. While the Kern River is at a normal flow, the Tule River is flowing unusually strongly, and the danger to public safety was immense, Kemmerling said.

The perils of falling in whitewater rapids

Generally speaking, a persons immediate physiological reaction when hitting water as cold as 40 degrees is to gasp. That can draw a substantial amount of water into the lungs, Kemmerling said Monday. Also, the rapid shock of falling into intense rapids can sometimes trigger a heart attack, he said.

Even with a life vest, a person does not float in whitewater rapids and can be plunged to the bottom of the river and rise to the top in rapid succession.

Classes I through III rapids, nothing is really going to keep you in that river. But when you start getting to IV and above, because of the power of the water, it changes the dynamic of the water and it becomes extremely more dangerous, Kemmerling said. The survivability in whitewater is very difficult.

A big whitewater rafting season

Rafters have been excited for this whitewater season, with outfitters earlier this spring expecting an incredible amount of runoff after one of the wettest winters on record. Some outfitters expected theyd be able to continue operating through August; whitewater season typically ends in July.

Just two years ago, the extreme drought placed substantial pressure on the whitewater rafting industry. In 2015, the Kern River Festival, which draws hundreds of professional and recreational paddlers each year, was canceled for the first time in 51 years.

Luther Stephens, an owner of Whitewater Voyages, a Kern River rafting company that was not involved in any rescues this weekend, said water levels will remain high for the next several weeks and that entering the water without a guide is dangerous.

I wouldnt raft it alone any more than I would go climbing Yosemite myself without being with someone who knew what they were doing, Stephens said. Its one of the few things you can still do thats a true adventure.

Were just going to be careful where we put folks and just run safe trips through the course of the year, Stephens said.

Rescues over the Memorial Day weekend

11 rescued on Saturday, March 29, on the Kern Rivers Tombstone and Tequila Chute rapids  both considered Class IV by the sheriffs department  about 9 miles north of Kernville after commercial rafting companies called for help. Rescues were conducted from various locations on the river.

on Saturday, March 29, on the Kern Rivers Tombstone and Tequila Chute rapids  both considered Class IV by the sheriffs department  about 9 miles north of Kernville after commercial rafting companies called for help. Rescues were conducted from various locations on the river. 16 rescued from rivers in Tulare County on Sunday, March 3011 on the Kern, four on the Kaweah, and one on the St. Johns.

from rivers in Tulare County on Sunday, March 3011 on the Kern, four on the Kaweah, and one on the St. Johns. 2 rescued in the Kern River on the west side of Bakersfield. A man and an 11-year-old boy in a kayak were overturned and thrown into the river, and clung onto small trees and brush until bystanders called for help and they were rescued

Deaths on rivers in Tulare and Kern counties in 2017

Kern River: 5 deaths

5 deaths Tule River: 3 deaths

3 deaths Kaweah River: 2 deaths

Source: Tulare County Sheriffs Department and Bakersfield Fire Department

ron.lin@latimes.com

Twitter: @ronlin

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UPDATES:

10:55 p.m.: This article was updated to include quotes from a park ranger and the Bakersfield Fire Department.

9:30 p.m.: This article was updated to include the number that 280 lives have been lost since 1968 on the Kern River.

8:30 p.m.: This article was updated with additional details, including a third death.

This article was originally published at 1:25 p.m.
An off-duty Los Angeles police officer was in the wrong place at the right time early Monday when an assailant opened fire on him and a group of friends, police said.

The officer, whose name was not released, was at a party near the intersection of Division Street and West Avenue 33, said LAPD Officer Mike Lopez.

Around 1:30 a.m., the officer and several friends were standing together when a man fired on the group, striking one person in the leg, Lopez said. The shooter immediately fled.

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The officer, armed with a handgun, fired back at the man, who managed to escape. The officer did not give chase.

The injured man was taken to a nearby hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Lopez said.

Details of the shooting, including how many times the officer fired, were not available. Investigators were interviewing the officer and others in the group in an attempt to get a description of the shooter, Lopez said.

joel.rubin@latimes.com

Follow @joelrubin on Twitter
It originated as Decoration Day in May 1868, an annual commemoration in which the graves of the war dead were decorated with flowers.

At the time, Maj. Gen. John A. Logan, who served in the Mexican-American War and the Civil War, declared that Decoration Day should be observed in May because flowers would be in bloom all across the country.

Watch: Trump attends Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery 

As decades passed, it became known as Memorial Day, and in 1971 a federal law took effect declaring Memorial Day a national holiday to be held on the last Monday of May, observing all military personnel who have died in American wars.

Here are the total battle deaths from Americas wars, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. (These numbers do not include those who died in theater but not in battle.)

4,435

On April 19, 1775, the first engagement of the war between the colonies and Britain erupted in Massachusetts, long a hotbed of rebellion, with the battles of Lexington and Concord. Two months later, the Second Continental Congress representing the 13 colonies tasked George Washington to be commander of the Continental Army. In 1789 he became the first president of the United States.

British troops fire on Continental Army soldiers during a Patriots Day reenactment of the battles of Lexington and Concord, in Lexington, Mass. (Keith Viglione/Associated Press)

2,260

The causes were complex, but at its core, the war was about Britain preventing the United States from trading with foreign countries. Also, Britain did not want the young United States to move into western territories, so it provided weapons to Native Americans on the British side. On June 18, 1812, President James Madison signed the declaration of war for the conflict now best remembered for the sacking of Washington, D.C., and for inspiring Francis Scott Key to write The Star-Spangled Banner.

An artists interpretation of the attack on Washington, D.C., by British troops during the War of 1812. (Getty Images)

1,000

European settlers and Native Americans had battled each other long before the United States was founded, but those conflicts took on new urgency as the country expanded westward in the 1800s. The native populations were massacred, driven from their lands and compelled to give up their language and culture. The total dead is an estimate by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument preserves the site of the June 25-26, 1876, Battle of the Little Bighorn, near Crow Agency, Mont. (Barbara Davidson/Los Angeles Times)

1,733

The war was the first U.S. conflict fought primarily on foreign soil and carried out the expansionist vision of President James K. Polk. In the end, Mexico lost large portions of its territory, which today include all or parts of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah. The war also served as a training ground for many soldiers  including Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant  who would fight against each other in the Civil War.

An 1828 map by William Lizars shows the vast territory Mexico held after independence. Mexico would lose much of its northern territory in the war with the United States. (Marcos Ramirez)

140,414 (Union)

74,524 (Confederate)

The tally of battlefield deaths, awful as it is, offers only a glimpse of the suffering and sacrifice during the war that put down the rebellion of 11 Confederate states and ended slavery. Thousands of soldiers, from both North and South, died from disease or other causes. Among Union forces, there were 224,097 deaths in theater but not in battle. For the Confederacy, the total was 59,297.

The carnage of the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest one-day battle of the Civil War, near Sharpsburg, Md., was captured in this Sept. 17, 1862, photograph. (Mathew B. Brady file )

385

The war resulted from conflicts between Spain and the United States and, eventually, ended colonial rule by Spaniards in the Americas. The war also extended the United States global reach with the acquisition of territories in Latin America and the Pacific. The war would long be remembered for the cry, Remember the Maine!  after a U.S. naval ship that exploded in Havana Harbor  and for the attack on San Juan Hill in Cuba that included future President Theodore Roosevelt.

Albert Edmund Lord III portrays buffalo soldier Edward Lee Baker Jr., who received the Medal of Honor and was a captain in the 10th U.S. Cavalry during the Spanish-American War. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

53,402

After remaining neutral in the war for almost three years, the United States entered on April 6, 1917. At the time, many Americans shared the view of President Woodrow Wilson and were reluctant to enter the war. But, citing increasing German aggression, Wilson asked Congress to approve a declaration of war to enter the war to end all wars.

Army Gen. John Joseph Black Jack Pershing, center, led the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I. (Getty images)

291,557

For two years, the United States remained neutral in the war until Japans surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Within days the U.S. was at war as well with the other Axis powers, Germany and Italy. It would become Americas bloodiest war. A total of 670,846 service members suffered nonmortal wounds.

Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower meets with Army paratroopers from the 101st Division in England on June 5, 1944, a day before the D-day invasion at Normandy, France. (National Archives)

33,739

In June 1950, communist North Korea initiated a surprise attack on South Korea. The United States and other nations came to the Souths aid in what President Harry S. Truman called a police action. The war was seen as key to preventing the spread of communism. Though an armistice was signed to halt hostilities, a peace treaty to formally end the war never was.

U.S. Marines, fighting their way from the communist encirclement at Chosin to Hungnam, rest in the snow in December 1950, a few months into the Korean War. (Associated Press)

47,434

In an effort to prevent communist North Vietnam from taking over South Vietnam, the United States deployed nearly 3.4 million troops to Southeast Asia. The war, Americas longest up to that time, forever changed American politics and culture as public opinion turned against the conflict. In addition to those killed in battle, there were 10,786 deaths in theater.

Army Spc. Nelson A. Parker calls for air power support as a U.S. patrol is surrounded by Viet Cong forces in the jungle 20 miles north of Saigon on Feb. 15, 1965. (Associated Press)

148

On Jan. 16, 1991, President George H.W. Bush announced the operation intended to oust occupying Iraqi forces from Kuwait, which Iraq had invaded and annexed months earlier. Iraqi forces were quickly overwhelmed by American firepower.

A destroyed Iraqi tank is shown near a series of oil well fires in the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War in this March 9, 1991, photo in northern Kuwait. (Associated Press)

6,915

Shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, President George W. Bush launched what has become known as the war on terror. This led to military action in Afghanistan and the second invasion of Iraq, which ultimately toppled dictator Saddam Hussein. To this day, American troops are fighting against extremist groups in Iraq and Afghanistan. The cumulative death total figures are according to icasualties.org, a website dedicated to keeping detailed documents of fallen service members fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

U.S. troops and Iraqi police officers stand guard in Mosul, Iraq, in 2003. (Maya Alleruzzo/Associated Press)

CALIFORNIA'S WAR DEAD: Read tributes to Americans who died in Iraq and Afghanistan 
When he was in college, Taliesin Namkai-Meche took an introductory religion class on Islam and impressed his professor with a deep desire to understand how others see the world.

Rick Best spent years in Muslim countries as an Army platoon sergeant in Afghanistan and Iraq.

And Micah Fletcher won a Portland poetry competition in 2013 with an entry about prejudices faced by Muslims.

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Those details, reported by the Oregonian newspaper, may help explain why the three men acted in a way that has much of Portland praising them as heroes.

On Friday night, they found themselves in the same train car in Portlands light-rail system when a 35-year-old white supremacist named Jeremy Christian began shouting anti-Muslim slurs at two teenage girls, one of them wearing a Muslim head scarf, police said.

The details of what happened next are still unclear, but when the men intervened and placed themselves between the girls and Christian, he pulled out a knife and stabbed each in the neck, police said. Best, 53, was killed at the scene, and Namkai-Meche, 23, died at a hospital. Fletcher, 21, remained hospitalized Sunday and was expected to recover.

Their actions were brave and selfless and should serve as an example and inspiration to us all.  Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler

Their actions were brave and selfless and should serve as an example and inspiration to us all, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said. They are heroes.

I hope that the three families of the three heroes recognize the significance and the magnitude of what their loved ones did, said Harris Zafar, spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam mosque in southwest Portland. Its inspiration that theyve given frankly to the entire country.

He said the Muslim community in Portland aimed to collect $60,000 in donations for the victims families. There is an overarching sense of gratitude and really just affection that the Muslim community wants to convey, Zafar said.

On Sunday, the home page of the Oregonian featured a photograph of Namkai-Meches mother, Asha Deliverance, forehead to forehead with a young Muslim woman in a head scarf at a vigil held at the transit center where the attack occurred.

That was a very stark image for me, Zafar said. It just showed that the inspiration is not just from the three themselves who stood up, but clearly this is part of their families  look at the courage that even the mother is showing.

Namkai-Meche graduated last year from Reed College in Portland with a degree in economics and was an intern at a consulting firm. The college said it was planning a memorial.

His enthusiasm was infectious, Namkai-Meches family said in a statement. We lost him in a senseless act that brought close to home the insidious rift of prejudice and intolerance that is too familiar, too common.

Best, who had three teenage sons and a 12-year-old daughter, worked for the citys Bureau of Development Services, which planned to make counselors available when the staff returns to work Tuesday. He made news in 2014 with an unsuccessful run for Clackamas County commissioner in which he refused to accept campaign donations.

Fletcher was on his way to work at a pizza shop when he was attacked.

When his poem about anti-Muslim prejudice won the contest in 2013, he told the Oregonian, I just hope that people are listening and try to do something about it.

The suspect, Christian, was arrested and charged with murder and attempted murder. He could also face hate crime charges, police said.

He was photographed by a newspaper in April giving a Nazi salute at a Portland rally, and his Facebook profile contains neo-Nazi statements such as, Yep. Im a nazi [sic], Hail Vinland and I will defend the Nazis.

Schmid is a special correspondent.

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Hundreds of protesters opposing Texas tough new anti-"sanctuary cities law launched a raucous demonstration from the public gallery in the Texas House on Monday, briefly halting work and prompting lawmakers on the floor below to scuffle  and even threaten gun violence  as tense divides over hardline immigration policies boiled over.

Demonstrators wearing red T-shirts reading Lucha, or Fight, quietly filled hundreds of gallery seats as proceedings began. After about 40 minutes, they began to cheer, drowning out the lawmakers below. Protesters also blew whistles and chanted: Here to stay! and Hey, hey, ho, ho, SB4 has got to go, referring to the bill that Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law this month.

Some waved banners reading: See you in court! Texas new law is reminiscent of a 2010 Arizona show your papers measure that allowed police to inquire about a persons immigration status during routine interactions such as traffic stops. It was eventually struck down in court.

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Under SB4, Texas police chiefs and sheriffs are required  under the threat of jail and removal from office  to comply with federal requests to hold criminal suspects for possible deportation.

Police officers also have the option to ask the immigration status of anyone they stop. The bill was viewed as a crackdown on Austin and other sanctuary cities, a term that has no legal meaning but describes parts of the country where police are not tasked with helping enforce federal immigration law.

The Texas House leadership stopped the session and asked state troopers to clear the gallery. The demonstration continued for about 20 minutes as officers led people out of the chamber peacefully in small groups. There were no reports of arrests.

A legislative session that began in January concluded Monday, and the day was supposed to be reserved for group photos and goodbyes. Lawmakers are constitutionally barred from approving most legislation on the last day.

But even after the protest ended, tensions remained high. State Rep. Ramon Romero, a Democrat from Fort Worth, said he was standing with fellow Democratic Rep. Cesar Blanco of El Paso when Republican colleague Matt Rinaldi came over and said: This is BS. Thats why I called ICE.

Rinaldi, of Irving in suburban Dallas, and Blanco then began shouting at each other. A scuffle nearly ensued before other lawmakers separated the two.

Later, a group of Democratic lawmakers held a news conference to accuse Rinaldi of threatening to put a bullet in the head of someone on the House floor during a second near scuffle. They said the comment was made in the direction of Democratic Rep. Poncho Nevarez, from the border town of Eagle Pass.

Rinaldi left the House floor and was unavailable for comment, but he told the Dallas Morning News that he was only objecting to the Democrats seemingly riling up the protesters. Rinaldis website says he has a license to carry a concealed handgun.

A statement regarding today. pic.twitter.com/M0BcBXa43P  Matt Rinaldi (@MattRinaldiTX) May 29, 2017

He's a liar and hateful man. Got no use for him. God bless him. https://t.co/te13An7gwm  Rep. Poncho Nevarez (@poncho_nevarez) May 29, 2017

Mondays protest was organized by activists who canvassed over Memorial Day weekend in Austin. They informed anxious immigrants about the rights they retain despite the law and urged grassroots resistance against it.

Abril Gallardo rode 15 hours in a van to Austin to urge fellow Latinos to fight back.

Fear motivated me to get involved, said Gallardo, a 26-year-old Mexican native who entered the U.S. illegally at age 12.

Texas cities and immigrant rights groups have challenged the legality of the law, hopeful for a legal victory like the one in Arizona, but that could take months to have any effect.

But even as some vowed to fight, others have begun fleeing the state. Their ranks are still too small to quantify, but a larger exodus  similar to what occurred in Arizona  could have a profound effect on the Texas economy. The state has more than 1 million immigrants in the country illegally, according to the Migration Policy Institute.

Some are abandoning Texas for more liberal states, where they feel safer  even if it means relinquishing lives theyve spent years building.

Jose, a 43-year-old Mexican living in the U.S. illegally since 2001, and his wife, Holly, left Austin for Seattle in January in anticipation of Texas immigration crackdown. That meant parting with Joses grown son, their community of friends and their beloved home of eight years.

I felt like we ripped our roots up and threw ourselves across the country, said Holly, a 40-year-old Kentucky native who wanted to protect her husband.

Holly said as soon as Donald Trump was elected president, she and her husband began preparing to move. They expected Texas would follow Trumps agenda trying to force local law enforcement to do immigrations job. And when they heard Texas had approved a crackdown on sanctuary cities, she said, they finalized the decision.

I was living in constant fear in Texas, said Holly, who works as an immigration paralegal and has been married to Jose for 11 years. Now I know my husband is safe, and I dont have to worry every day about whether hes going to come home.
DEAR HARRIETTE: I saw what appeared to be self-harm marks on my friend's hip while we were at the beach. I didn't want to bring more attention to these lines by asking for another opinion, but I am worried about her. Should I probe into her life even though we aren't best friends? No one else seems as concerned as I am. -- Talk to Me, Coney Island, New York

DEAR TALK TO ME: If you think you can get your friend to open up to you, give it a try. Get together with her for a quiet engagement. Introduce a conversation about your life, and encourage her to speak about her own. Know that most people who are living with some kind of emotional disorder or stress do not willingly talk about their challenge. Instead, they usually hide them from the people who interact with them.

In order to get your friend to talk about what you saw, you probably have to ask her about what you think you noticed on her hip. Rather than asking if it was self-harm, why not ask her if she fell or otherwise injured herself? Tell her that you are asking because you noticed marks on her hip. If you have some sense of what your friend may have done, ask her specifically if engages in self-harm; even if she denies it, you can still tell her that you want her to be healthy and whole, and you are worried about her. You can suggest that she have a medical checkup to make sure that she is in good health. Ultimately, though, you will need to accept that she will get help when she is ready -- likely not a moment before.

DEAR HARRIETTE: My friend, "Amanda," is too spontaneous for my liking. I need concrete plans to be able to commit to something and write it down in my planner. Amanda, however, likes to call me around 6 p.m. and ask if I want to go to a concert in two hours or take the weekend off to go camping. She works for herself, so it is easier for her to make these kinds of plans, yet she always tells me I'm "boring" or "old" whenever I can't give in to her whims. Have I lost my sense of fun, or is Amanda being too hard on me? -- Forewarning, Rochester, New York

DEAR FOREWARNING: You and Amanda have very different concepts of time. That doesn't make either of you wrong. It makes you different. You do not need to judge yourself harshly, nor should Amanda judge you. To stop the critiques, point out to Amanda that you two have different ways of planning your lives. This is not representative of being old or young, boring or exciting -- it is just different.

Tell Amanda that the chances of you spending time with her increase when you have more warning. This is based on your schedule and the way that you manage your time. Explain that you will try to be more spontaneous, but you cannot guarantee that it will work. Most important, you will feel more comfortable if the two of you can plan a date together.

DEAR HARRIETTE: At the last minute, I agreed to have an acquaintance help out on a project I was working on because it sounded like she might be able to bring in some much-needed funding. It turns out that her participation was shocking. She was loud and obnoxious the whole time. She did not bring in one dollar. She did turn me on to a couple of good resources for the project, but honestly, it wasn't worth it.

I feel like her involvement sullied my brand. She and I have completely different personalities, and she is not professional in her behavior. How can I sever ties with her? She has been pressuring me to host another public project that she could partner on with me. After how poorly this recent fiasco ended, I don't want to have any more to do with her. How do I walk away from her without suffering the negative consequences of her bad-mouthing me for doing so? -- Awkward, Atlanta

DEAR AWKWARD: Be careful. Think long and hard about a strategy to acknowledge this person's efforts, even if they didn't pan out. Thank her for her hard work. Let her know that you appreciate her interest in helping you with this project. Tell her that you will not be pursuing the other project that she recommended. Suggest that she look for another partner for future projects.

DEAR HARRIETTE: Recently, I have been feeling kind of run down. I think in part it's because I've been worrying about money and how to make ends meet. But I know I have gained weight and not paid such great attention to my body as I've been trying to hustle to pay my bills. I feel like I need to rest, but I don't know when I can do it. I also need to get a physical, but I'm afraid of what the doctor is going to say. I feel stuck, and that only makes me want to take a nap. How can I do something positive for myself when I'm feeling so blue? -- Frozen, Philadelphia

DEAR FROZEN: The good news is that you understand how you feel and what you are facing. Now you need to take action. Why not address each concern independently? Start by scheduling a physical examination. As scary as this may be, it will give you a gauge on what you need to do for your life in order to become stronger. One friend of mine felt like she was dragging for months. She learned that her vitamin D was so low that it was likely the culprit. Now she takes prescription-strength vitamin D supplements and feels better. Who knows what you will learn about yourself, but it's worth finding out.

Next, consider what you are good at doing that people pay for. It may be time to change your job or add something to your work schedule. The best way to determine what that is will be to evaluate your skills.

Finally, it's OK to nap. Some people nap daily for a few minutes to get a little boost in the day. You can, too. Just don't stay in bed too long!

DEAR HARRIETTE: I have a neighbor who doesn't understand boundaries. She is lonely and constantly wants to engage with me and my family, as well as other neighbors. It has gotten to be too much. She will stop by unannounced and uninvited and bang on the door or ring the bell. The time of day is of no matter to her. And if I answer and tell her it's not a good time or that I have company, she barges in anyway and inserts herself into the experience. I haven't figured out a way to get her to understand that mine is not an open door for her. I don't want to be rude, but she has gone way overboard in wearing out her welcome. SOS! -- Overboard, Brooklyn, New York

DEAR OVERBOARD: I know this may seem harsh, but what you are going to have to do is stop responding to her. If she rings your bell and you don't want her to come over, do not answer the door. If she calls repeatedly when you are unavailable, do not respond. If you see her out and about and she approaches you about why you are avoiding her, explain that you are not always available. If she says that she could hear people in your house when she came knocking on your door, tell her that you may have had company and didn't hear the door. Ultimately, if she keeps pushing, you will have to tell her that it bothers you that she attempts to come to your home whenever she pleases without asking first. Tell her that you do not appreciate her overstepping your personal boundaries. Ask her to stop.

DEAR HARRIETTE: My mother is getting older, and she is beginning to show signs of aging. She is frail and doesn't get around as easily as she once did. My siblings live all over the country, and I'm the only one who sees her on a regular basis. I have told my brothers and sisters that I think they should visit more often because Mom is not doing well, but I don't think they believe me. Her voice sounds strong on the phone, and most of them speak to her relatively frequently, so they think I'm exaggerating.

As the child who watches out for her, I can tell you that we have had a few scares -- everything from a bad cold (which can be tough for an 85-year-old) to a sinus infection, the flu and fainting. My mother's doctor calls her condition "the normal signs of aging," but the way I see it, whatever is going on, her children need to see her more frequently. How can I impress this upon them? -- Older Mom, Boston

DEAR OLDER MOM: Use technology to support your cause to let them see how your mother is doing and also help to connect them more immediately. Engage FaceTime, Skype or another service to set up video calling with your mother so that they can see for themselves what her state is.

Additionally, call them separately and ask them to come visit. Consider hosting a family get-together this summer where you invite all family members to attend and pitch in with food and beverages. You will have fun and celebrate your mother.

Harriette Cole is a lifestylist and founder of DREAMLEAPERS, an initiative to help people access and activate their dreams. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106
In 1994, nearly 500 banks were headquartered in California. Today, there are fewer than 180. By the end of the year, if current trends hold, Californians will have only one-third the number of banks to choose from for their mortgage, small business and personal savings needs than they did just a couple of decades ago.

There are a few reasons for this disturbing trend, which is happening across the country. But the most important one  the reason I hear more than any other from bankers who decide to merge, sell or close their institution  is the increasing federal regulatory burden.

That doesnt mean I oppose all regulation. In the wake of the financial crisis, regulatory changes were necessary, and provisions in the Dodd-Frank Act passed in 2010 helped improve financial stability. But nearly a decade after the crisis, weve ended up with too many duplicative and sometimes contradictory rules that dont always promote safety and soundness, and may actually hinder banks from serving their customers and growing local economies.

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For example, I recently heard from a bank in Southern California that, to its great regret, had to end its mortgage loan program. Dodd-Franks mortgage regulations and disclosures meant the bank would have to purchase expensive software to manage the new layers of red tape  so expensive, in fact, that the bank was going to lose money on every single loan.

Our economy performs best with a healthy and diverse mix of banks to meet customers needs  large, small and everywhere in between.

Getting community banks out of the business of helping qualified Americans buy homes cant have been what Congress intended when it passed Dodd-Frank. It makes sense to recalibrate some elements of that law to ensure that its working properly.

A proposal in the House would take important steps in that direction. The Financial CHOICE Act, which the Financial Services Committee recently voted to send to the floor, includes several sensible provisions that the banking industry endorses, as well as others that require further study and analysis.

Among the measures I support: The legislation would allow regulators to tailor their oversight to the unique risk profiles of individual financial institutions; provide greater opportunities for banks to appeal decisions by their examiners; and ease some requirements on mortgages that banks hold in their own portfolios (meaning they retain all the risk). The overall effect of these and other provisions would be to give banks more breathing space and consumers more choices.

Though banks adjust as best they can for the sake of their customers, the smallest banks have too few assets to keep up with ever growing compliance costs. Indeed, the vast majority of banks that have disappeared are community banks. At the end of 2016, California had just 11 small banks left; in 1994, these banks accounted for nearly half of the industry in the Golden State.

Some have pointed to strong bank profits as an argument for why reform is unnecessary. Profitability is, of course, a sign of economic strength that we should celebrate; profitable banks benefit their customers, investors, employees and broader communities.

However, the topline profit figure doesnt tell the whole story. Increased regulatory compliance costs limit bankers ability to reach underserved communities. Moreover, tunnel vision on bank profits ignores macro-level trends.

Since Dodd-Frank was passed, just four new banks have formed nationwide. (The newest, Im pleased to report, is in Orange County.) This abysmal pace of startups is principally due to the extraordinary regulatory burden placed on small banks and the excessive sums of capital new-bank investors are required to put up.

Our economy performs best with a healthy and diverse mix of banks to meet customers needs  large, small and everywhere in between. Without reasonable reform in Washington, Californias banking sector will continue to shrink and become less diverse. Californians  and all Americans  will pay the price in terms of lost opportunities for growth.

Rob Nichols is president and CEO of the American Bankers Assn.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook

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A few years ago, on an anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the historian Alan Brinkley wrote about a visit to the museum at the Texas School Book Depository, the building in Dallas where Lee Harvey Oswald waited with a rifle to shoot the president on Nov. 22,1963. Brinkley was struck by the extraordinary notes left in the museums guest log.

Our greatest President. Oh, how we miss him! The greatest man since Jesus Christ.

Those words, Im sure, were written by Americans who were alive during the Kennedy presidency. Such adoration is usually generational, dependent on the men and women who knew him.

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Public memory thins with time. I see that because I teach. My students, born long after Kennedy lived and died, know what he was, not so much what he did. To them, he is a cultural figure rather than the political man he was. They did not live through the density of events I remember: the Cold War, the struggle for black civil rights. Ordinarily, when JFKs name comes up, they speak of the Peace Corps, the space race and the grace and beauty of the man preserved on film. The rest has to be taught or shared by their elders.

He was not qualified for the big job, but then no one ever is. The presidency is an act of faith.

Jack Kennedy was not our greatest president, though he was a good one. He was of the generation that fought in World War II and came home to change America and Americans, the way we looked and the way we thought. Kennedys first political slogan, when he ran for Congress from Massachusetts in 1946, was The New Generation Offers a Leader.

He was 29 years old then and looked younger, a skinny guy plagued by a lifetime of sickness and the rigors of combat. Most important, he would not wait his turn. Soon enough none of us would and the country was remade.

There is no status quo, he once said. True enough then, as America jetted into the future to become a smarter and more ambitious nation: more mobile, intermarried, comfortable with new technologies, new ideas. We were richer than wed ever imagined we could be. Hopeful, optimistic. And Kennedy, the youngest man ever elected president, was the model of the new American.

He even figured out a new way to become president, revealing that the principal qualification for the office was wanting it. Why not me? he said as he began organizing his fellow veterans, concentrating on almost forgotten primary elections and using the newest thing, television, to connect.

He was not qualified for the big job, but then no one ever is. The presidency is an act of faith. It requires judgment above all, in reacting to events unforeseen, bringing out the best in the American people.

As president, Kennedy stumbled at the beginning, dealing with a Southern-dominated Congress of his own Democratic Party and with an entrenched federal bureaucracy. The bloody disaster of the 1961 Cuba invasion, the Bay of Pigs, was of his own making, his naivete. But the nation rallied around him and his approval ratings actually went up. Its amazing, he said. The worse you do, the more they like you.

And we did like him. Running against then-Vice President Richard Nixon, he won just 49.7% of the popular vote. A year later, national polls reported that 59% of respondents said they had voted for him. His approval ratings soared to 83%. And after his murder, his martyrdom, 65% would tell pollsters he had been their choice in 1960.

Kennedys was a foreign policy presidency. He proposed domestic initiatives such as national healthcare and was pretty much ignored by half of congressional Democrats. But over time, trusting his own judgment, against the advice of older men, he was able to take real control in the nuclear-shadowed struggle with the Soviet Union.

He was, after all, the first president to come to power since 1812 in a world where a foreign power had the capacity  in this case, nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles  to decisively strike the American mainland. Yet because of Kennedys political skill, his efforts to check nuclear proliferation and to reach out to the Soviets, there was less danger of war and annihilation in 1963 than in 1961.

At home, he bent the arc of American history when he had to choose between his Southern party mates and young blacks (Negroes then) demonstrating at lunch counters, knocking at the gates of public colleges and riding buses into the dark dangers of Alabama and Mississippi. He opted for the minority  This is not a political issue. This is a moral issue  no small thing in a democracy.

He was not the greatest president but he was a hell of a politician  candid if not honest, a man who saw greatness and sometimes even touched it. Yet he was unfinished, and he remains forever young  even though he would have been 100 today.

Richard Reeves, a senior lecturer at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, is the author of many books including President Kennedy: Profile in Power.

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Memorial Day marks the unofficial start of summer. And one thing that means is trout fishing.

Especially this summer, because the five-year drought has mercifully ended. Streams are leaping off the mountains in whitewater cascades, carrying bug buffets to fish lurking in deepwater pools. Cold-water lakes are chock-full.

Trout and their cousin salmon, caught off the coast and savored grilled or smoked, are among Californias most prized assets. They and another cousin, the majestic, ocean-going steelhead trout, are three things that make this state a special place to live.

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Were fortunate to have whats left. We used to have much more. And, if the trend continues, well have a whole lot less in the future.

Fishery biologists at UC Davis and California Trout, a nonprofit activist organization, issued a 100-page report recently, and its conclusions were alarming. It predicted that three-fourths of Californias trout, steelhead and salmon species will become extinct in the next 100 years. Within 50 years, nearly half will die off.

The biologists lump these related species under one name, salmonids, and call them the iconic fishes of the northern hemisphere.

The salmon and steelhead are anadromous. That is, theyre hatched in freshwater, swim out to sea for a while, then return to the rivers of their hatching to spawn offspring. California has 21 such species.

Why do they hang out in the ocean? To get large. If youre a bigger fish you can lay more eggs and have more babies, says Patrick Samuel, conservation director for California Trout and one of three biologists on the study.

This has allowed them to evolve and survive. Salmon go out to sea to get fat on marine nutrients that they cant get in fresh water. All those nutrients normally wouldnt be available in rivers, but the salmon bring some back to jump-start their young.

Of course, the salmon die after spawning. That fertilizes the rivers and plants. And it feeds the bears and other animals. Its amazing how nature works all this out  until humans muck it up.

The steelhead spawn and live on. They beat it back to sea and return once or twice more to mate and reproduce.

As for the strictly freshwater trout, there are 10 species in California.

California has the greatest diversity of salmonid species of any state in the lower 48, Samuel says. Thats due to the unique geology and climate. There are lots of different climates. And lots of elevation change.

The fish have different life strategies. They dont put all their eggs in one basket. Central Valley Chinook salmon, for example, have four different spawning runs so they dont all get wiped out if a natural disaster happens, like an earthquake or a master flood that scours out a riverbed.

But, Samuel adds, as you might expect, their abundance has been declining significantly  for salmon and steelhead in particular.

Why? Largely because of what weve done to Californias landscape, he says, mainly by building dams that block salmon and steelhead from their historic spawning waters  such as huge Shasta on the Sacramento River or little Matilija on the Ventura.

Updates from Sacramento 

When I was a kid in Ojai, my dad used to routinely catch steelhead in the Ventura River. That ended after Matilija Dam was built. But the reservoir soon silted up with crud. Local groups have been searching for $80 million to tear it down.

Samuel estimates that 95% of Southern Californias steelhead have disappeared. The Santa Ynez River in Santa Barbara County used to host 20,000 spawning fish annually. Now there may be a handful.

In Northern California, there are still sizable runs, but theyre greatly reduced from the glory years.

The Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers historically supported up to a million Chinook salmon a year, Samuel says. So many there actually were canneries on San Francisco Bay. Now were nowhere close to that.

Blame also water diversions for irrigating orchards in the San Joaquin Valley.

Agriculture interests scream that government wastes water by letting it flow to the sea. But if water doesnt flow to the sea, neither do salmon and steelhead. And that kills the coastal fishing industry.

As for Californias state fish, the golden trout, 50 years ago there were an estimated 40,000 enjoying their native range in the southern Sierra. Now there are only somewhere between 400 and 2,600, the study found.

But the major, overarching threat to all these cold-water critters is global warming, the report warns.

What can be done? The report calls for not making things worse by at least protecting whats left of our best fish waters.

Also, try to restore waters that were lost generations ago, such as flood plains. Flooded rice fields, where fish can eat themselves silly, now are helping with that.

In addition, tear down useless dams like Matilija. And provide passage around useful dams.

Most important: Get political leaders  not just wildlife managers  to give a rip.

Its a very concerning trend, Samuel says. But these fish are incredibly resilient. Given half a chance, they will survive. They made it through the drought. Now we need to double-down and be more innovative.

Ive always liked the old Babylonian proverb: The gods do not deduct from mans allotted span the hours spent in fishing.

But there need to be fish to catch.

george.skelton@latimes.com

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Iraqi officials coordinating the Mosul offensive against Islamic State extremists that began in October have reversed themselves after urging residents to shelter in place, and are telling them to flee.

Prime Minister Haider Abadi had hoped Mosul would be recaptured by the end of last year, but Iraqi forces slowed once they reached the densely packed west side.

In a push last week before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan started, government forces failed to seize the Grand Nuri mosque where Islamic State leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi declared the caliphate three years ago.

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The Iraqi military said in a statement that it dropped hundreds of thousands of leaflets on areas still under Islamic State control urging citizens to exit through safe corridors.

The leaflets fell in west Mosuls Old City, one of the last Islamic State strongholds, prompting more concern among humanitarian groups about the safety of tens of thousands of civilians.

The city of Mosul was among the places seized by the extremists in 2014, and the offensive to retake the city began Oct. 17. Before the offensive began, Iraqi officials had dropped leaflets and aired television advisories urging residents to stay home rather than flee.

Militants have used civilians in the city as human shields, zooming between houses on motorbikes, forcing their way into homes and shooting at U.S.-led coalition planes from roofs to trigger airstrikes.

The people of Mosul have already suffered enough. The government of Iraq needs to urgently establish genuinely safe routes so people can escape the fighting and get to the shelter and help they need, Andres Gonzalez, Oxfams country director in Iraq, said in a statement Monday.

Families currently face a terrible choice, between staying in ISIS controlled areas where many have reportedly suffered extreme violence and food shortages, or risking explosive devices and bullets to escape the fighting, Gonzalez said, using an acronym for Islamic State.

Officials at Save the Children, another aid group in Iraq, also released a statement saying they are deeply concerned that any calls to leave west Mosul will mean that civilians, particularly children, are in significant danger of being caught in the crossfire.

About 700,000 people have already fled Mosul, once Iraqs second-largest city with a population of 1.2 million. Many have returned to the east side of the Tigris River that bisects the city, but portions of the west remain under siege. Up to 200,000 more people could flee as fighting moves to the Old City, U.N. officials said last week.

Abu Abdulla lives near Nuri mosque in the Old City, and has been trying to protect his four children. Militants have threatened to kill anyone using cellphones. In an interview Monday, Abu Abdulla, 35, spoke softly, scared, his voice tired.

His family has been fasting for Ramadan, subsisting on staples that have become rare and expensive: lentil soup and bread washed down with water.

The army is still far from us, he said, more than a mile away. We are dying of hunger: No food, no drinkable water and the water that we are drinking is from wells and it is not clean. We are getting sick.

He had not heard about government leaflets ordering residents to evacuate.

No one dropped leaflets, he said. People are dying from airstrikes and mortars. Many houses and infrastructure have been destroyed completely. We need them to free us as soon as possible. If they dont, many people will die of hunger.

Abu Abdulla begged for help from military commanders and the international community.

We are tired of our life. It is unbearable here, he said. People want to be freed as soon as possible.

Times staff writer Hennessy-Fiske reported from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and special correspondent Resol from Sulaymaniyah, Iraq.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the unusual step Sunday of convening his Cabinet at a sensitive Jerusalem holy site, spurring howls of protest by Palestinians who claim the area where it is located for the capital of a future state.

The special session marking the 50th anniversary of Israels capture of East Jerusalem was held in a tunnel near the giant limestone blocks of the Western Wall, a place of reverence for Jews because of its proximity to where two ancient temples stood in biblical times  the holiest site in Judaism.

Palestinians saw the meeting as a provocation. Muslims consider the Western Wall part of the Noble Sanctuary, an esplanade that includes Al Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam.

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After the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel annexed the Old City site along with all of East Jerusalem, a move that was never recognized by the international community.

The area is flashpoint for both sides. Netanyahus decision in 1996 to open a new tunnel entrance spurred days of violence in the West Bank that left about 100 Palestinians and more than a dozen Israelis dead.

Todays meeting in occupied East Jerusalem is an attempt by the Israeli government to normalize occupation, oppression and colonization over the land and people of Palestine, Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said in a statement.

The Cabinet session was the latest example of posturing by Netanyahu, who is under pressure from religious nationalist politicians to be more proactive in asserting Israeli sovereignty in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

Netanyahu pledged Sunday to plow more resources into developing the area around Jerusalems Old City and to build a cable car to improve access to the Western Wall.

Following the destruction of the Second Temple, this spot was the focus of the longings of our people for generations, Netanyahu said. Thousands of years have passed, the Jewish people returned to their land, established a state and are now building its unified capital.

If carried out, Israels plans could upset a delicate status quo in the Old City, said Ofer Zalzberg, an analyst at the International Crisis Group.

Netanyahu is trying to respond to pressure from the religious right, which is asking, Fifty years after capturing Jerusalem, whats next?'' he said. Palestinians see this as the entire Israeli government saying, Now we are just below the wall, but we want to push ahead.

Israeli celebrations of the reunification of Jerusalem kicked off a week ago, with Netanyahu vowing at a festive ceremony that Israel would never relinquish control over the Old City.

The following day, President Trump became the first sitting U.S. president in more than a century to visit the Western Wall and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, believed to mark the site of Jesus crucifixion.

Israelis viewed the gesture as tacit recognition of their control over East Jerusalem, even though the White House declined a request for Netanyahu to join the president, in keeping with U.S. policy that the status of the Old City is a subject for peace negotiations.

Mitnick is a special correspondent.

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A 73-year-old Australian fisherman must have thought he was in Steven Spielberg's classic movie Jaws, as he survived a 9-foot great white shark attack that knocked him off his feet and landed on his boat.

The airborne shark that flew out of the water and into a 15-foot powerboat injured the fisherman, Terry Selwood. The shark's pectoral fin badly bruised and caused bleeding to Selwood's right arm. Fortunately for Selwood, after the coast guards took him to the paramedics at Evans Head, 450 miles north of Sydney, it was reported that his swollen arm did not have any fractures.

Once Selwood fell on the deck from the collision, he quickly jumped up and avoided the shark's extreme erratic wiggling. Selwood quickly went to the gunnel at the bow of the boat.

"I didn't give it a chance to look me in the eyes. I wanted to get up and get on top of the gunnel because it was thrashing around madly," Selwood told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Selwood radioed the Evans Head coast guard and stayed away from the wiggling 440-pound carnivore until the coastguard skipper, Bill Bates, arrived and pulled Selwood out of the vessel.

Bates mistook the serious danger of Selwood's radio call.

"Often a fisherman will bring a small shark on board - maybe 2 or 3 feet - and they're still ferocious. That's what I was expecting, but I was totally wrong," Bates said.

Selwood told the Associated Press on Monday that other than his boat, he will have to replace destroyed equipment like buckets and coolers before he goes back to the favorite fishing spot that he has visited for more than 50 years.

"He didn't do anything structural to me boat, it just smashed anything that was in his road," Selwood said. "You can understand, he was a wild creature out of his comfort zone."
The snapped photo of the giant frog caught by a man in Texas has gone viral.

Both the Internet and wildlife experts are trying to figure out the photo's authenticity of the giant frog, also known as "Frogzilla."

Markcuz Rangel, smiling with a rifle in one hand and a 13-pound massive creature on the other, is seen in the photo. Rangel claims that he bagged and captured it in a pond on a ranch near Batesville.

Even though many claim the image is not real, a wildlife worker says the monster amphibian is 100 percent real.

Well, maybe not as a monster, but more like an optical illusion of a really big frog.

Steve Lightfoot, a spokesman for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, said the image is real but doesn't mean it will destroy Tokyo

"It's not as bigly as it appears," Lightfoot told Chron.com.

"[It was an] optical illusion created by extending frog toward the camera - similar to what you see with fishermen holding up fish to make them appear larger," said Lightfoot, who still appreciated the enormousness of the amphibian. "Still a big bullfrog, though."

The Internet's craze over the monster frog began once the South Texas Hunting Association shared the photos on its Facebook page, reports Chron.com.

The viral photos also picked up more steam when reports suggested the giant bullfrog was shot and killed with a rifle.

Many were outraged that Rangel did not let the frog live in peace, regardless of its size.
May 29, 2017, 1:53pm ET

Study shows a few autonomous cars could ease traffic congestion

Even before they become mainstream, autonomous cars could have a positive impact on traffic patterns.

A new study suggests that just a few autonomous cars sprinkled in with the daily commute could drastically reduce traffic congestion while improving fleet-wide fuel economy.

The study  conducted by scientists associated with Illinois University, Rutgers, Temple and The University of Arizona  was designed to see if self-driving cars could ease the phenomenon of the phantom traffic jam, that is when stop and go traffic seemingly occurs for no good reason. The experiment was conducted using about 20 cars following a circular path at no more than 15mph. The drivers were given simple instructions: "Drive as if you were in rush hour traffic. Follow the vehicle ahead without falling behind. Do not pass the car ahead. Do not hit the car ahead. Drive safely at all times. Do not tailgate. But put an emphasis on catching up to the vehicle ahead if a gap starts opening up.

One of the 20 cars used in the experiment had a human doing the steering, but the stop-and-go of that car was handled via an intelligent cruise control system that kept a set distance to the car ahead.

Researchers found that just the one autonomous vehicle had a profound affect on traffic patterns. The driverless car was successful at dampening traffic waves and even influenced cars around it to drive more smoothly. Moreover, that smoother driving styling improved the overall efficiency of the bunch by a whopping 40 percent.

"When I first saw the numbers, I thought this can't be, Daniel Work, an assistant professor at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, told Smithsonian Magazine. "It's almost too good to be true.

Researches admit that the study isn't an accurate representation of real-world driving  where drivers aren't limited to one lane or speed  but there is evidence to suggest that even a few autonomous cars could go a long way in reducing traffic congestion.
May 29, 2017, 4:48am ET

Will Mexico City's taxi drivers go electric?

Billionaire Carlos Slim is funding the project.

Mexican automaker Giant Motors is developing a battery-electric taxi in a bid to curb Mexico City's air pollution problem.

Designing an electric car from scratch is complicated and costly. However, Giant Motors is partially funded by Carlos Slim, one of the richest men in the world. And, Reuters reports it's getting help from a small electric car maker named Moldex as well as researchers from four Mexican universities.

The group is currently experimenting with various prototypes. It hopes to finalize the design before the end of the year, meaning the first electric cabs could begin real-world testing as early as next year. Additional details -- including range, body style, and price -- haven't been released yet.

"The peculiar challenge with taxis in Mexico City is that they often ride around with no passenger, looking for a fare," explained Giant Motors CEO Elias Massri in an interview with Reuters. He added that means the taxis need fast-charging batteries.

The yet-unnamed model is being developed specifically for Mexico City; it's not based on an existing car. While exports to other Latin American nations seem likely, it's too early to tell whether it will be sold outside of its home nation.

Air quality in Mexico City has improved since officials took the Volkswagen Beetle taxis (pictured) off the street in 2012, but pollution remains a major problem. Slim hopes the electric car he's funding will ultimately replace the 130,000 cabs registered in the Mexican capital.

Photo by Ronan Glon.
Someone using personal information from five Williams Township residents got a Best Western Rewards MasterCard and used it at Target stores in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, authorities report.

The victims are ages 47, 48, 73, 73 and 78 and have ties to Old Well Road in the township, Pennsylvania State Police said in a news release. The crimes happened between April 24 and May 1, police said.

The investigation is continuing and police ask anyone who has information on the crimes to call the Belfast barracks at 610-759-6106.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
One Laois town now has doubled its chances of producing the new Rose of Tralee, after the Perth Rose in Australia was announced last weekend.

Mountmellick was already celebrating one of their own being crowned the Laois Rose for the first time. Maeve Dunne is from Emmet Street, where her parents own the popular Emmet stores. An event manager, Maeve only recently moved back from Australia herself.

Now the town is celebrating yet again, after the Perth Rose was selected last Saturday May 27 as Kerrie-Ann Barnes.

The beautiful young Rose is a daughter of Stephanie O'Neill, originally from Mountmellick. Kerrie-Ann was born in the UK and the family moved to Australia in 2005.

Stephanie announced the win online, to floods of congratulations from Laois.

"She WON she Won she Won my baby is the Perth Rose ," a delighted Stephanie said.

Kerrie-Ann, who works at a rugby club, sang Black Velvet Band during her stage interview.

"What an amazing experience!! I can not believe I am the 2017 Perth Rose I wouldn't have gotten to this point without all of the help from my family, friends, and my Sponsors. Thank you also to the committee , and the judges, and of course the nine other girls I have come to be great friends with over the past few months! I am extremely delighted to represent Perth in August," she said.

The town will be rooting on their two Roses this August 16 to 22, for the Rose of Tralee International festival.
Twenty jobs will be created in Rathdowney with the opening of a new store in the Rathdowney Retail Outlet by Mr PRICE - Branded Bargains.

The new store will officially open on June 29th at 12 noon. Mr PRICE currently employ 700 people in their stores nationwide. They will be hiring 20 people for their new store in Rathdowney.

The opening of Mr PRICE Rathdowney will bring the Mr PRICE store count to 39 and the employee count to a figure in excess of 700 people within the Irish economy.

The opening of Mr PRICE Rathdowney will be an event not to be missed. It will be a fun filled event with balloons, giveaways and so much more.

Edel McSorley, Operations Director for Mr PRICE commented, "Irish consumers are now so savvy and love a bargain, this is what has really helped our growth. We are looking forward to opening store number 39 with many more in the pipeline for 2017. So for stationery, arts and crafts, home wares, bulk discounted confectionery, food, toiletries, domestic cleaning goods and so much more Mr PRICE is the "go to place!"

Bernie Moloney, Operations Manager for the Outlet said: "We are thrilled for the people of Rathdowney that at least 20 new jobs will be created, and we are working very hard behind the scenes to bring other initiatives and business here."

"A combination of very fair rents coupled with the fact that The Rathdowney Hub, as it will be known going forward, qualifies for the Business Incentive Scheme for rates reduction of 75% in year one, 50% in year 2 and 25% in year three are all a great help in driving business this way.

"In addition we can advise that we are actively engaging with Enterprise Ireland in looking to bring new projects and business to Rathdowney. We are now very definitely open for business. Any rental enquires should be made to Sherry Fitzgerald Hyland, Portlaoise."
Cut backs are being made to bus services effecting Kildare commuters.

JJ Kavangh have announced they will be dropping one morning service from Athy to Dublin and two evening services from Dublin to Athy and Kilcullen.

The 9.00am service from Athy to Dublin ceases from tomorrow morning (May 30).

Changes have been made to the 7.15am service to Dublin, which will now depart at 6:25am from Athy and 6:50am from Kilcullen.

From Dublin, the 9pm and 11:30pm services from Dublin will no longer operate.

The 5:45pm from Ulster Bank will now leave at the later time of 6pm, and arrive in Athy at 7:45pm, and Kilcullen at 8:05pm.

This leaves only one return time from Dublin to Athy in the evening and two morning services.

Cllr Martin Miley (FF) is outraged by the cuts. This disgraceful move is destroying peoples way of lives, removing their ability to work and socialise across communities. I cannot understand how the NTA have allowed this to happen.

For a look at the new schedule, visit http://ticketbooking.jjkavanagh.ie/PromoPdf/717.pdf.
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Prosperous Drama Society, which came third in the All Ireland Drama finals in Athlone in recent weeks is set to celebrate its centenary in the coming weeks at the national theatre.

The group, who brought their production The Play about The Baby by Edward Albee to Athlone, won the Abbey Theatre Award, which means that it will be put on in the Peacock stage in the Abbey for three nights, all of which are now sold out.

This is a real honour for the group, and to receive it in the year that marks 100 years of drama in Prosperous, makes it extra special, a spokesperson said.

We do this as a hobby, so to get the chance to be in our national theatre is spectacular for us.

They will present their production, which features Robert Massey, Amanda Ryan, Ashleigh O'Neill and Jimmy Murphy in the Abbey this coming weekend, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, June 1 to 3.

While all three evening shows are booked out, there is still some availability for the matinee show on Saturday, June 3 at 2.30pm. To book, click here.

The play features two couples, one younger and carefree, the other older and cynical, who try to teach the younger pair a bout the unfairness of the world.

The Society has had numerous successes over their 100 years, and in the past number of years they have rarely not made it to the All-Ireland finals in Athlone.

And they weren't the only Kildare club doing well in Athlone. In fact, while the first place in Athlone went to the Dalkey Players, Naass Moat Club came second with The God of Carnage.

The club had won seven out of the eight festivals they contested in the run-up to the All-Ireland finals. And they came second in the other one.

Their play, God of Carnage by French writer Yasmina Reza was directed by Eugene Delaney and featured Anne Delaney, Padraig Broe, Sarah Gallagher and Conor OConnell.

Read more: From Prosperous to Monaco
A motion to Kildare County Council to fly the Palestinian flag over Aras Chill Dara has this evening been narrowly defeated.

Kildare County Councillors were asked to vote on a motion to allow the Palestinian flag to be flown above the Council offices for a week in June.

The motion, by Cllr Joanne Pender followed recent similar decisions by Dublin City Council and Sligo, Donegal and Galway County Councils to fly the Palestinian flag as a gesture of solidarity.

However, by a vote of 16 to 15 against, the motion was defeated. There were four abstentions.

The motion was supported by Sinn Fein and independent members including Joanna Pender and Brendan Young.

However Cllrs Seamie Moore and Suzanne Doyle spoke against the motion.

It was felt by some of the councillors that the motion was not appropriate.

This motion is to raise awareness of the international humanitarian crisis that is unfolding in Israels prisons. We cant stand idly by and ignore this and the plight of Palestinians who have endured decades of occupation under the boot of Israel, Cllr Pender had explained in advance of the meeting.

Read more: Politician wants to fly Palestinian flag at Kildare County Council offices
Fianna Fail TD for Sligo-Leitrim Eamon Scanlon has hit out at the Governments failure to recognise or develop the potential of the North West region and has accused Ministers of continuing with two-tier recovery policy.

Deputy Scanlon was speaking in the Dail where he called on the Government to create a balanced jobs policy by investing in infrastructure and public services in the North West.

"There is huge potential for Sligo and Leitrim to be developed as the key growth centre for the North West, but the Government needs to take the lead and ensure that key investment and infrastructure projects are undertaken to make it more attractive for people to live and work here.

"With redeployment and recruitment of public sector jobs, along with improved links to other urban centres throughout the region, Sligo can become a more effective regional driver, supporting a greater share of population, economic and employment growth," explained Deputy Scanlon.

"There has been a clear failure by the Government to create a balanced jobs strategy for the regions, with the bulk of new employment opportunities focused almost exclusively in the capital and commuter belt region. In 2016, 48% of all IDA Ireland jobs were in the Greater Dublin Area and commuter counties  compare that to 2.9% in the North West region. Those figures speak for themselves.

"Investment in infrastructure must be made a key priority if the North West is to become a viable option for economic opportunities. There isnt even a motorway linking the region with the rest of the country. I recently spoke to the IDA and they made it very clear that they have no interest in investing in an area that doesnt even have a proper road network.

"The Government needs to seriously reconsider its approach to the regions if it is serious about encouraging competitiveness. Not everybody wants to live in Dublin but the short-sighted policies being implemented by this Government and the last is seriously limiting the options for people who want to live in the North West."
The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has advised that CervicalCheck  Irelands National Cervical Screening Programme changes its primary screening method to HPV testing.

HIQA carried out a health technology assessment (HTA) to assess the impact of changing from the current policy of primary screening with liquid-based cytology to primary screening with HPV testing.

Todays Health technology assessment (HTA) of human papillomavirus (HPV) testing as the primary screening method for prevention of cervical cancer found that changing to primary HPV testing would reduce the number of screenings each woman has in her lifetime, while providing better accuracy in detecting precancerous abnormalities and early stage invasive cervical cancer.

It is important to note: Women would experience no change in how the cervical screening sample is collected.

HIQAs Director of Health Technology Assessment and Deputy Chief Executive Dr Mairin Ryan said, HPV infection is associated with almost all cervical precancerous abnormalities and invasive cervical cancers. Compared with the current screening strategy, primary HPV screening is a better test which allows all women who participate in cervical screening to become aware of their current HPV status and those who are at higher risk of cervical cancer to be picked up earlier.

Where a woman is found to be HPV-positive following primary HPV screening, a follow-up test using liquid-based cytology will be carried out on that same sample to inspect for cellular abnormalities. If any abnormalities are detected, a more detailed examination of the cervix (colposcopy) is needed. Women with a negative HPV test can be reassured that they are at very low risk of developing precancerous abnormalities in the next five years. For this reason, we advise that the interval between screenings can be increased to every five years for those currently being screened three-yearly. A change to primary HPV screening means the same benefit is provided to women in fewer screenings.

Implementing primary HPV screening five-yearly from age 25 to age 60 would lead to two fewer screening tests over a womans lifetime. 20% more precancerous abnormalities would be detected and 30% more cervical cancer cases and deaths would be avoided for every screening test carried out compared with the current screening strategy.

As HPV infection is more common in younger women, women who have not been vaccinated against HPV and who are aged between 25 and 30 years may benefit from three-yearly screening to ensure they are protected.

Dr Ryan continued, CervicalCheck began in 2008 and there has been good uptake with four in five eligible women up to date with their smear tests. However, this decreases with age. For this reason, HIQA advises that cervical screening may be extended up to 65 years of age for women who have only had the benefit of routine cervical screening from age 50. While this would come with an increased cost, it would provide additional clinical benefit for these women.

In 2018, the first women vaccinated against HPV 16 and HPV 18 as part of the national school-based immunisation programme will become eligible for CervicalCheck. These women are at lower risk of developing cervical cancer.

However, as the current vaccine does not protect against all virus types that can lead to cervical cancer, vaccinated women should still attend for regular cervical screening.

Dr Ryan said: Vaccinated women should be screened every five years with HPV testing, as it is the best strategy in this group.

This report was approved by the Board of HIQA and will now be submitted to CervicalCheck - Irelands National Cervical Screening Programme and the Minister for Health to inform decision-making about the screening programme.

Read the full HTA at www.hiqa.ie
A sum of 436,736 will be made available in 2017 for Housing Adaptations for Older People and People with a Disability living in private houses in Co Leitrim.

The announcement was made this afternoon by Minister for Housing, Planning, Community & Local Government, Simon Coveney T.D., with a total of 59.8 million being made available in 2017 for Housing Adaptations for Older People and People with a Disability living in private houses.

This investment will allow extensions to be built for people with a disability as well as housing adaptations to improve mobility aid (such as stair lifts, access ramps, etc.).

Minister Coveney stated, "The grants that are made available, whether large or small, can greatly improve the quality of life of people with a disability or who are reaching an age in life when they are less mobile."

The available exchequer funding for 2017 is 47.8m, an increase of 6% on the 2016 figure of 45m. Combined with the local authority contribution, the overall funding is now 59.8m.

The grants are 80% funded from the Exchequer by the Department of Housing, Planning, Community & Local Government, with 20% funding from the relevant local authority. Grants are payable in the main to owner-occupied (private) housing. Also eligible are houses being purchased under the Tenant Purchase Scheme, private rented accommodation, accommodation provided under voluntary housing schemes and accommodation occupied by persons living in communal residences. Grants of up to 30,000 are available for an adaptation, up to 8,000 for housing aid for older people and up to 6,000 for mobility aids.

Here are some of the funds being made available in neighbouring counties.

Leitrim

349,389 (exchequer funding) and 87,347 (local authority funding). Total: 436,736

Cavan

1,132,455 and 283,114. Total: 1,415,569

Donegal

631,127 and 157,782. Total: 788,909

Longford

616,592 and 154,148. Total: 770,740

Roscommon

799,390 and 199,848. Total: 999,238

Sligo

1,061,459 and 265,365. Total: 1,326,824
America is the original version of modernity  we are the dubbed, the sub-titled version, stated the philosopher, Jean Baudrillard, mischievously in America, a searing essay published in 1986. The theoretician of contemporary society had underestimated the huge changes in the world which were just beginning at the time. Since then, we have entered the age of global cities: cities which are worlds in themselves have sprung up. They vy with each other in audacity on all the continents, attracting both wealth and talents, imposing their power and proclaiming to be the heralds of globalisation and a new modernity. From New York to Singapore, London to Shanghai, Melbourne to Bombay, Lagos to Sao Paulo, a string of megacities already represents a new society of the spectacle, that of a great transformation at work. They have undergone numerous changes, including demographic, technological, environmental and sometimes even democratic ones  a huge field for all-round and infinite innovation and experimenting which have begun to to revolutionise our everyday life.

Major cities have changed more in two decades than in a century. We are on the brink of a technological revolution states Carlo Ratti who directs the most prestigious of the urban planning laboratories, the SENSEable City Lab at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) in Boston; Internet is now spreading to the physical space which used to be the preserve of architects and city planners and it will enable us to interact with the objects all around us in a thousand and one ways. This movement is behind the development of what are truly smart cities: from energy to waste management, from mobility to water distribution, from urban planning to civic participation,

Big data and artificial intelligence

In support of his demonstration, Carlo Ratti takes the example of driverless cars. The idea originated at the end of last century and it is gradually taking shape. The boldest experiment has just begun in Singapore. Cars have a visual field which is equal to or greater than that of man and they are going to transform city living: Your car will drive you to work, then, instead of sleeping in the garage, it will be used by other members of the family, neighbours, or even a social community with whom you share it . Carlo Ratti gets carried away and goes on to state that an MIT study has forecast that between 30% and 40% of private cars will disappear. Fewer cars means faster transport time, less-congested roads, more protection for the environment, etc.

This urban transformation is fuelled by the combination of data and artificial intelligence. These cities are all fully equipped with sensors. In a report on the major urban trends of the year, presented during the Netexplo, in Paris, last April, Julien Levy, a professor at HEC, summed up the ongoing movement thus: We have moved from a phase in which the issue was one of transforming everything into data, to a new phase in which the issue is one of transforming everything by the use of data.

This extends to every aspect of urban life. The winners of the prizes in the world-wide competition for urban innovation launched by Le Monde, act as a yardstick on every continent. In Nigeria, the start-up WeCyclers (First Prize) has invented an on-demand waste collection using confirmation of transactions by SMS and sophisticated bicycles. In Singapore, the city has designed and developed a revolutionary system for public transport based on driverless, electric cars. At Pittsburgh in the United States the Robotics Institute at the Carnegie Mellon University has perfected a high-performance system crammed full of artificial intelligence devices for the flow control of urban traffic (Surtrac, Mobility Prize). In India, in Chandigarh, a start-up launched a platform linking bike-taxi (rickshaws) drivers and clients for transport and deliveries. In Grenoble, a French firm Sylfen (Energy Prize) achieved a world first with an innovative solution for the hybrid stocking of energy.

To assess these transformations and discuss their multiple impacts on our societies, Le Monde has organised for the first time a prestigious event in Singapore, the world laboratory of smart cities in the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy on 2nd June, 2017. Some thirty speakers from all over the world, along with all our partners, LAtelier BNP Paribas, Engie, the Caisse des depots, Saint-Gobain, Keolis, Veolia and Enedis will take part in these discussions as well as in the smart cities innovation award ceremony (see p.4). The town of tomorrow will be invented in the informed discussion of the views of all those concerned. Residents will be given priority; their demand for inclusion, participation and involvement in the co-construction of their living conditions is obviously one of the keys for the success of this urban transformation. In the words of the American essayist, Thomas Friedman, If a society does not construct a foundation under the feet of its members, many will want to raise walls.

Francis Pisani et Vincent Giret
Beijing, one of the most polluted cities to the world JASON LEE / REUTERS

Over 750 million Chinese living in urban areas are faced with the pollution of their environment. To tackle the phenomenon and not be subjected to the wrath of the middle classes, the Peoples Republic of China wishes to promote the emergence of new satellite cities.

Faced with their rapid growth and to meet challenges on a par with their population, Chinese cities are endeavouring to clean up. Rapid urbanisation, along with exports, has driven the development of the country since the economic opening in the early 1980s.

In 1981 urban areas only accounted for 7,000 square kms. in China but in 2015 this had risen to 49,000 square kms. In the same period, the number of urban areas jumped from 193 to 653. Attracted by new possibilities of employment, the Chinese left the rural areas in droves. In 1978, when Deng Xiaoping, the father of the reforms, came to power only 170 million Chinese lived in cities, as compared with over 750 million in 2015, or more than 56% of the population. The Communist Party intends to pursue this fast-paced movement with the urban population reaching over 60% in 2020.

These staggering statistics are a challenge for the country. The residents in these huge urban sprawls suffer from their concomitant evils: a high degree of water and atmospheric pollution, new urban areas with poor urban transport connections, endless traffic jams. What these citizens persist in demanding are clear answers to their problems. As of 2014, the Prime Minister, Li Keqiang declared that the war on pollution had begun.

Not very convincing projects

Local leaders all wish to emulate each other which fosters rivalry; they all want to stand out as the one who got rid of the smog in the city. Meanwhile the State Party impatiently looks on, fearing that these large areas of pollution will alienate them from the new middle classes. Under Xi Jinping, the Party leadership is committed to implementing a new type of urban development before 2020 focussing on people and not endangering the environment.

This endeavour began around Beijing with the declared aim of curbing the growth of population in the capital. It should be stabilised at 23 million inhabitants in 2030, as compared with 21 million today, to improve the quality of the air which the residents breathe and reduce congestion in the city. To meet this aim, the Peoples Republic wants to see the creation of new satellite cities. Thus part of the administrative services of the capital will soon be forced to move to the outlying suburb of Tongzhou, 23 kms. east of the Forbidden City. At the same time, the President, Xi Jinping, intends to create a new town from scratch, Xiongan, two hours by road to the south of Beijing, in an area of mines and the metal industry.

Previous initiatives have resulted in projects which were not very convincing. In 2006 the President at the time, Hu Tintao, described a project for an eco-city in the north-east of the country at Caofeidian, on the banks of the Gulf of Bohai, as being as precious as gold. Despite the 83 billion dollars spent on building a deep-water port and on reclaiming building areas from the sea, this project has now resulted in abandoned factories, empty high-rise residential towers and a mountain of debts.

A project for an eco-city

Similarly, a project for an eco-city north of Shanghai, in Dongtan, designed in cooperation with the United Kingdom, has never seen the light of day. Another in Tianjin (in the North-East), conceived with the support of Singapore, is having difficulty in attracting residents.

The French have also tried in the centre of China, at Wuhan. This is a huge city of over ten million inhabitants on the river Yangzi, home to the major production sites of the French automobile manufacturers in China. The area of Caidian is to be built as a sustainable city with architecture on a human-scale, the development of highways and railways but at a lower level, streets adapted to pedestrians and cyclists. Keolis, EDF, Suez and other major French firms hope to be part of this project. If it is a success, they consider it will be a model for other emerging cities.

Another tendency, which is perhaps more promising than the high-risk planning of new districts where it is difficult to predict whether or not they will attract the population or remain vacant, is the rationalisation of the existent. The Chinese city of tomorrow aims to be smart. An unlikely example is to be found in dusty Yinchuan, a town of two million inhabitants between the Yellow River and the Gobi Desert; here there are garbage bins equipped with solar panels which supply the electricity enabling the waste to be compacted and the garbage collection service to be alerted when they are full.

Harold Thibault
The infinity-edge pool perched in the 57th floor of the Marina Bay Sands, in Singapore, in June 2014. VIVEK PRAKASH / REUTERS

Singapore is tiny, beside the giants of India and China; it nevertheless manages to play an important role where smart cities are concerned. With its 4.7 million inhabitants, little Singapore has established itself as one of the models in the world for the smart city. The city-state plays a key role in the extraordinary development of the two Asian giants, China (1.4 billion inhabitants) and India (1.3 billion inhabitants). It experiments on all fronts, loves innovations and multinationals, and seduces clients from all over the world.

Playing in part on its Chinese-origin community (75% of the population), Singapore has signed several partnership agreements with China for testing and further development of smart cities. This is the case, amongst others, for the business park in Suzhou and the high-tech eco-island of Nanjing, the former capital, which has a population of over 8 million inhabitants. The experiments are then reproduced in other cities, including the eco-city of Tianjin and the City of Knowledge in Guangzhou. This methodology provides a platform enabling Singaporean and Chinese firms to demonstrate their capacities in matters of technologies in a holistic manner, explains the INFOCOMM Agency in Singapore.

Data collection on a massive scale

And China is not alone. To develop its high-priority project of creating 100 smart cities by the year 2020, the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has also turned towards the know-how and investment capacity of the Singaporeans (of whom over 7% are of Indian origin). Singapore scores points when Hong Kong is marking time. Hong Kong is further away geographically and relies on the gamble  made long ago  of betting heavily on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).

In more specific sectors, the Nation-state positions itself as a sort of life-size laboratory at world level of the city of tomorrow with cutting-edge experiments on autonomous vehicles or ethnic diversity by neighbourhood and even by apartment building. Above all, data collection on a massive scale combined with the predictive intelligence of big data is used in all sectors for modelling projects, planning changes and endeavouring to offer the most innovative serves, whether it be a question of fluidity, of security, of the comfort of buses or the location of child-care centres. The municipality has moreover implemented a measure which is often a source of anxiety elsewhere. It has set up a sophisticated traffic control system, the price of which varies in function of the amount of traffic, the neighbourhood, the time and the day of the week.

The brand knows how to sell

With the support of this strong position, Singapore organises a World Cities Summit each year. In 2016 this brought together mayors and leaders from 103 cities in 63 countries: all either clients already or potentially so. The brand knows how to sell and it sells itself well. It knows how to rely on its powerful financial community and, for implementation, on various private firms, including Surbana Jurong, present all over the world.

In 2014, the Prime Minister launched the Smart Nation programme, placed under the responsibility of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Vivian Balakrishnan, thus displaying its ambition to look further afield. A cardinal virtue, the government has understood the importance of a systemic vision for improving cities by means of technology.

Both at home and abroad, Singaporeans focus on sustainable development and concern for citizens in the form of provision of quality services. But, overall, their model tends more to the datapolis side than to the participolis side: it prioritizes collection and processing of data more than the effective participation of citizens.

This model is limited, as Anthony Townsend, a researcher at the University of New York points out. In an article published by the Technology Review, he states that The perfectly controlled and efficient utopia of a very safe and smart city can work in a place like Singapore. But it would probably never work in New York or Sao Paulo, where expectations in terms of conception and of what make the vitality of a community, are completely different. Townsend thus confirms that there is no single model of a smart city. This in no way prevents this small nation-state from innovating or from finding clients all over the world.

Francis Pisani
Welcome to the Golden Dozen, and our xxxth weekly round-up from the Lib Dem blogosphere  Featuring the five most popular stories beyond Lib Dem Voice according to click-throughs from the Aggregator (-, 2017), together with a hand-picked seven you might otherwise have missed.

Dont forget: you can sign up to receive the Golden Dozen direct to your email inbox  just click here  ensuring you never miss out on the best of Lib Dem blogging.

As ever, lets start with the most popular post, and work our way down:

1. Heres my 2017 General Election prediction by Nick Tyrone on NickTyrone.com.

Not exactly over-brimming with optimism from a Lib Dem perspective  but I would like some more answers on Scotland.

2. Everyone is a winner but UKIP and the Greens in this weeks one council by-election by Mark Pack on Mark Pack.

What happened this week?

3. Paul Keetch has died by Jonathan Calder on Liberal England.

Jonathans article on the passing of the former Lib Dem MP for Hereford.

4. Chief Executive of Liverpool arrested and and questioned over LDL and OCL scandal by Richard Kemp on But what does Richard Kemp think?

Richard calls for the resignation of the Mayor.

5. Election notebook #12 by Stephen Tall on Stephen Tall.

Stephen on Manchester, polls and Hugo Rifkinds poisonous Times article.

And now to the seven blog-posts that come highly recommended, regardless of the number of Aggregator click-throughs they attracted. To nominate a Lib Dem blog article published in the past seven days  your own, or someone elses, all you have to do is drop a line to [email protected] You can also contact us via Twitter, where were @libdemvoice

6. There but for the grace of God by Jennie Rigg on Kaatu, verata, necktie.

A heartfelt and defiant reaction to the Manchester attack.

7. Remainers Diary Day 246 by Josephine Hayes on Facebook.

A good rebuttal of the a big majority will strengthen my hand nonsense. As has been repeatedly pointed out, increasing the size of the Tories majority will make no difference to the UKs bargaining position at all. It cant, any more than changing the crew on the Titanic would have made any difference when the course was still set for a crash into an iceberg at full speed.

8. Brexit: Handy doorstep guide for canvassers by Peter Wrigley on Keynesian Liberal.

. (Submitted by xxx.)

9. The rise of authenticity and what it means by David Boyle on The Real Blog.

A post inspired by his wifes designs.

10. Some thoughts on the Manchester tragedy by Andrew Page on A Scottish Liberal.

Andrews analysis of the attack

11. 2017 General Election Diary Day 38: 3 scenarios in search of an election by Nick Barlow on What you can get away with.

Which, if any, could be a parallel with the current one?

12. What is the meaning of Theresa Mays wobble? by Matthew Green on A Thinking Liberal.

A post written before Manchester and concluded afterwards. Is the Dementia Tax problem more about Mays lack of consultation with her own side?

And thats it for another week. Happy blogging n reading n nominating.

Featured? Add this to your blog post!



<a href="https://www.libdemvoice.org/top-of-the-blogs-the-lib-dem-golden-dozen-482-54456.html"><img src="https://www.libdemvoice.org/images/golden-dozen.png" width="200" height="57" alt="Featured on Liberal Democrat Voice" title="Featured on Liberal Democrat Voice" /></a>

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings
What is the rapture? What will take place at the time of this prophetic event? In this three-program series, you will learn why millions of Christians will suddenly be missing from the earth to meet Jesus in the air and then be taken to heaven. Second, youll discover why the power of world leadership will shift away from the United States to Europe. Third, well share how a world leader will arise and proclaim he can bring peace and stability to the world. Fourth, well discuss why the rapture will take place at any moment, before the tribulation period begins. Well walk verse by verse through the key biblical passages to help you better understand what Scripture teaches about the rapture.

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Trading Standards has warned parents of the dangers of the fidget spinning craze after a 10-year-old boy almost choked to death after swallowing part of the toy.

Lincolnshire trading standards took to twitter to spread word of the the horrific incident which saw the youngster rushed to hospital.

Fidget spinners have taken playgrounds across the county by storm but many have raised fears they present a risk to children due to their size presenting a choking hazard.

Some schools in the UK have banned the gadget because pupils are becoming distracted in the classroom.

The Mirror reported that Kelly, of Texas, USA, was driving her daughter Britton home from a swimming event when she said she heard an "odd retching noise" coming from the back seat.

The horrified mum described the incident in a Facebook post that has been shared more than 400,000 times.

"We had a pretty eventful Saturday," Kelly wrote.

"On the way home from a fun swim meet, I heard Britton make an odd retching noise in the back seat as I was driving.

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"Looking back in the mirror, I saw her face turning red and drool pouring from her mouth  she could utter noises but looked panicked so I immediately pulled over.

"She pointed to her throat saying she'd swallowed something, so I attempted Heimlich but there was no resistance.

"She said she'd put part of her fidget spinner in her mouth to clean it and somehow swallowed it."

Kelly rushed her daughter to get medical help but doctors were unable to identify where the foreign object was located.

Transferred to Texas Children's Hospital, an X-ray showed the spinner lodged in her esophagus.

"The GI doctor was fascinated...he'd only just learned of fidget spinners that morning when he was at the mall with his son, so it was a surprise to be faced with one in a case a few hours later," Kelly said.

"After multiple, very stressful attempts to place an IV, Britton was taken to surgery to endoscopically locate and remove the object.

"Fortunately we had a positive outcome, but it was pretty scary there for a while...not only because of the initial ingestion, but then the concern about the composition and structure of the object, and finally, the risk with general anesthesia."

Kelly said she wanted to offer a word of caution to parents.

"The bushings pop out easily, so if you have young kids (under eight years old) keep in mind that these present a potential choking hazard," she said.
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A songwriter from Lincolnshire who wrote hit songs for the likes of Michael Jackson has left his widow nearly 40 million.

Rod Temperton, famous for tracks such as Thriller, Off the Wall and Rock With You, died after a short battle with cancer at the age of 66, his family announced last October.

The Cleethorpes-born writer went to South to De Aston School in Market Rasen near Lincoln.

He was regarded as one of the finest songwriters of his generation, writing countless classics.

Thriller was one of three songs he wrote for Michael Jackson's album of the same name which went on to become the biggest selling album of all time.

He left his entire estate, worth 40m, to his widow Kathy.

Speaking to the Daily Telegraph in 2007, Mr Temperton said: "I woke up, and I just said this word... something in my head just said, this is the title.

"You could visualise it on the top of the Billboard charts. You could see the merchandising for this one word, how it jumped off the page as 'Thriller'."

The son of Les and Ida, Mr Temperton was educated at Reynolds Street School in Cleethorpes, De Aston at Market Rasen and Grimsby College of Technology.

After his death, BBC radio presenter Gilles Peterson said; "Apart from Lennon and McCartney no one from the UK has written more gold plated songs than Sir Rod Temperton."
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A pensioner who fell outside a Lincoln high street store badly injuring her face has praised the students who came to her aid.

Joan Hollies, 81, was leaving the Marks and Spencer store on the High Street on Thursday, May 25, when she fell and bruised her face.

She said that a group of students were among the people who helped her after the fall and refused to leave her side.

She said: "I don't know what happened really. I do have walking problems and health problems but I lost my balance and fell down on the concrete in front of the Marks and Spencer's.

"A lady came up and said she tried to stop me falling, but when someone is going like that you can't really do anything to help stop them.

"But then another girl came up and helped me and she didn't leave my side."

The passers-by who came to Joan's aid called an ambulance for her.

She added: "I realised I was surrounded by a few of them, and they all stayed with me, the students stayed they wouldn't go.

"One went to get an ambulance, then the Marks and Spencer first aider came out and more people from Marks and Spencer and they all stayed until the ambulance came."

Joan has suffered severe bruising to her face after the incident describing it as "completely black".

She is also relieved her injuries are not more serious.

She said: "I'm 81 years old so I'm very lucky I didn't break anything.

"I just want to thank the people who helped me especially the students because they wouldn't leave me.

"The Marks and Spencer's staff insisted that I had a drink and something to eat, they said I could have anything I wanted but I didn't really feel like eating anything with the shock.

"I just want to put a thank you out to all the people who helped me, especially the students. They were all young people but I don't know where they came from, they all appeared out of nowhere.

"It's the least I can do to thank them all."
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The owner of a Lincolnshire bar has appeared in London's High Court after playing music in two town venues without a licence.

Jonathan Askham appeared in the court after he was found playing recorded copyrighted tracks at both the Gravity Bar, at 8 Market Place, and Ra Ra, 28 Market Place, Grantham, without a licence from music royalties collectors Phonographic Performance Ltd.

One of the country's top judges, Mr Justice Birss, imposed a music ban and hefty legal bill on Askham.

The judge ordered him to pay PPL's legal costs of 2,397 by 30 May.

The pay-up or shut-up order was imposed after the judge heard that a PPL inspector heard music being played at both premises on November 12 last year, including the same track at each, "No Diggity", when Askham did not hold a PPL licence.

Lawyers representing PPL told the judge that letters were sent to the premises informing Askham of the nature and extent of PPL's repertoire and the fact that the playing in public of sound recordings without PPL's licence or permission constitutes infringement of its copyright, and inviting him to acquire a licence.

The ban applies to all forms of mechanically recorded music such as records, tapes and CDs in PPL's repertoire.

Christine Geissmar, Operations Director, PPL said: "There is an intrinsic value that recorded music adds to businesses, and this judgement acknowledges that the performers of the music and record companies should be fairly rewarded.

"Businesses that choose to play recorded music without a licence may face legal action and financial and other consequences as a result. Legal action is only ever sought as a last resort where a business continues to play music following repeated attempts from PPL to get the correct licensing in place.

"PPL issues licences to hundreds of thousands of businesses and organisations across the UK when they play recorded music to their staff or customers. Licensees include bars, night clubs, shops, hotels, offices,factories, gyms, schools, universities and public sector organisations up and down the country.

"After the deduction of PPL's running costs, all licence fee income is distributed to PPL's record company and performer members. The majority are small businesses, all of whom are legally entitled to be fairly paid for the use of their recordings and performances. PPL does not retain a profit for its services."
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Angling bait producer Marukyu Europe Ltd has boosted its turnover by 300 per cent in just a handful of months after moving to Lincolnshire. Nicholas Fletcher spoke to sales and marketing manager, Howard Kaye, about how business has taken off and the challenges the industry faces in the future.

Marukyu Europe Ltd is considered the number one angling bait manufacturer in the world by people in the know.

The UK-based business ships thousands of specialised products to keen anglers across the globe on a daily basis.

Its distribution centre had been based in Wales until recently.

READ MORE: Traffic be gone! 2.5m earmarked for A46 roundabout improvements

However, the firm has now moved to Boston to carry on its success story  and early signs are good.

Turnover at the organisation has sky-rocketed, increasing 300 per cent in two months since it relocated in December.

Howard Kaye, national sales and marketing manager at the company, said moving to Lincolnshire was an opportunity bosses couldn't resist.

She said: "Three years ago we acquired a manufacturing plant in Boston  it was very competitively priced and it already had much of the equipment needed to carry out production.

"We work in a niche industry so the right sites can be thin on the ground.

"As an anecdote, we could produce products in Boston before they were sent to Wales - they could then be sent back to Boston.

"Having both in the same area we have been able to reduce our production and distribution spending."

The firm has managed to shave a huge 30 per cent off his distribution costs by moving to Lincolnshire.

Mr Kaye described it as an "incredible turnaround".

The keen angler, who has worked within the industry for around 25 years, insists it isn't just the bringing together of production and distribution that has seen the company's fortunes soar.

He said: "There are several reasons it is going so well, one is the quality of the sales personnel we have who really know what they are doing.

"Secondly, the quality and effectiveness of the products speak for themselves."

Marukyu Europe Ltd has cornered the market on producing a range of fish bait products which do not harm the environment or the fish who tuck into them.

The company's 'thanks for the fish and nature' tagline, only goes to reinforce the message and expose its Japanese routes.

Mr Kaye said creating conscientious bait gives them the edge  even if it means they are more expensive than their competition.

He said: "There is a very scientific background to all the bait we sell.

"Every ingredient is safe for fish to eat and digest and does not harm water quality.

"It makes us a little more expensive but it really is a Rolls-Royce type product vs a Ford.

"Anglers have become more conscious about the health of fish in recent years.

"We are the pioneers of this and as the world evolves other people are following us, but they are following  we are trend-setters."

The product is popular with retailers too, according to Mr Kaye who says there is a healthy margin on each product which makes sure "everyone is a winner".

In his two and a half decades in the industry, Mr Kaye said it has changed a lot.

But he claims the biggest change is in the professionalism of the people who are running businesses within the sector.

He said: "Professionalism in the last decade has shot up.

"Years ago you used to go into a small fishing tackle shop, smell the bait and the spit and sawdust environment.

"But now in the supermarket age, they are much more family-friendly and can walk in with your wife and children.

"The technical knowledge has also increased.

"I think these things are a natural evolution."

Mr Kaye was keen to point out that it was still an activity for everyone, claiming a person who spends 25 can have as much fun and someone buying top of the line equipment for 20,000.

He said: "We all enjoy it for different reasons  I am very competitive but if a retired guy from Cherry Willingham wants to spend less, they can still enjoy it.

"It is accessible and there lots of places you can do it in Lincolnshire free of charge and watch the world go by.

"To me that is incredible."

But Mr Kaye said the biggest challenge facing the industry is standing out from the crowd in a sea of leisure activities.

He said interest in angling is remaining steady but is not "necessarily on a massive growth spike", arguing that people have less time on their hands than ever.

Competition for people's attention is fierce and it is tough to compete he says.

Mr Kaye said: "We are in a market that is saturated in opportunity.

"Sports and computer games  we are sterilising the world in some respects.

"You can experience anything on your screens inside your home instead of going out  but eventually most people rebel against that.

"We are bullish about humanity's desire to go outdoors."

Increasing the profile of angling and making it easier for families to get involved is the future, according to Mr Kaye.

He said: "We are putting our products in the hands of people who have a large digital media following and use the products to great affect.

"We are also investing in family opportunities, for example a family in central London, we are going to create opportunities where they can enjoy angling together as a family with equipment, instruction, etc.

"We are very much here to say and we are here to grow, and we are looking forward to expanding our UK and European distribution."

Lincoln-based strategic marketing specialists, Fill the Gap Marketing, and award-winning creative company, Epix Media, have recently been commissioned to support Marukyu Europe with their marketing and business growth.

Fill the Gap Marketing, based in the south of the city, will be assisting Marukyu with a wide range of strategically planned marketing services, whilst Epix Media will be crafting their new website to ensure it's quicker and easier for Marukyu's customers to stock their products.

These projects will be key in boosting Marukyu's brand exposure across the UK and ensuring their ecologically sound and carefully designed products reach even more consumers.

Rachael Smith, Marketing Director for Fill the Gap Marketing said: "We're very excited to be working in partnership with Epix Media to help support Marukyu with their marketing as they look to expand further into the UK market with their high-quality fish bait and eco-friendly products."

Director of Epix Media, Zoe Easey, said: "We're looking forward to working alongside Fill the Gap Marketing by developing Marukyu a bespoke website that will support them as they expand further in the UK market."

Howard Kaye, National Sales Manager, explains what working with Fill the Gap Marketing and Epix Media means for the UK division of Marukyu: "Since moving our manufacturing and distribution centre from Wales to Boston in Lincolnshire at the end of 2016, we have begun investing heavily in development and key staff, and have seen our sales increase month on month. With the demand for our products from UK anglers rising, we have looked to Fill the Gap Marketing and Epix Media to support us with our marketing, making sure we are looking after our current customers and helping us gain new customers."
May 29, 2017, 5 AM

The United States 1861 1 indigo (Scott 63-E11e) of the Premiere Gravure, or August, issues. Stanley Ashbrook and Hugh M. Clark, two titans of classic U.S. philately, had an illuminating discussion about the Premiere Gravure stamps in 1940. Now that the P

Editors Insights  By Donna Houseman

In this column in the May 22 issue of Linns, we announced that the Philatelic Foundation and the Collectors Club will be sharing a home beginning Dec. 1.

The Philatelic Foundation is one of the worlds most esteemed expertizing bodies, and recently, the organization turned on the afterburners to promote the importance of its role in the stamp hobby.

A recent announcement from the PF started out stating, So many good things are happening at The Philatelic Foundation, and we want to let you know more about them.

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The announcement came in the form of what is to become a series of emails titled Whats New at the PF. The contents of the emails also will be posted on the PF website.

Stanley Ashbook was one of the great scholars of classic United States stamps, best known for his monumental research works: the two-volume The United States One Cent Stamp of 1851-57 and his book The United States Ten Cent Stamp of 1855-57.

The PF has digitized Ashbrooks files and made them available free on its website. The digitization was made possible through a grant from the David T. Beals III Charitable Trust

Ashbrooks archive comes in the form of scrapbooks, index cards, and color photographic slides.

A quick review of the digitized images from Ashbrooks scrapbooks revealed several examples of correspondence between Ashbrook and Hugh M. Clark.

Clark was editor of the Scott catalogs from 1936 to 1946, and Ashbrook was an advisor for the U.S. stamp listings in the catalog.

An exchange between the two men mentioned the so-called August, or Premiere Gravure, issues.

In a May 16, 1940, letter to Clark, Ashbrook writes:

Re - the 1861 Issue. Sooner or later the catalogue is bound to recognize the fact that the August stamps were,

1st - never regularly issued -

2nd - That they have no excuse for being in the catalogue for the reason that these labels were not made under Government supervision ,  The Augusts were merely samples of work which the National Bank Note Co. submitted to the Government in their effort to obtain the 1861 contract.

In his letter of reply dated May 21, Clark writes, So far as the August issue is concerned, I still want to talk this over with you in far greater detail than is possible by correspondence.

At that time, the stamps were listed as Scott 55-62. Likely at Ashbrooks urging, an editors note was added to the 1940 Scott United States Stamp Catalogue (later renamed the Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps and Covers) stating, It is doubtful that Nos. 55, 56, 57, 59, 61 and 62 were regularly issued.

Beginning with the 1991 U.S. Specialized catalog, the August issues, or, more correctly, Premiere Gravure issues, including Scott 58, were moved to the Special Printings section of the catalog. A footnote stated that No. 62B unused cannot be distinguished from No. 58, which does not exist used.

An Essays section was added to the 1992 Scott U.S. Specialized catalog, and the Premiere Gravure issues were renumbered and listed in the Essays section or Trial Color Proofs section of the catalog.

In the 2003 U.S. Specialized catalog, Scott recognized that the former 58 and the current 62B actually were the same stamp, and 58 was deleted from the listings.

In the 2009 Scott U.S. Specialized catalog, the Premiere Gravure issues were grouped together in a special section titled 1861 First Design Essays and Trial Color Proofs. The Premiere Gravure issues also are listed in the Essays and the Trial Color, Die and Plate Proofs sections.

Their current numbers, with original numbers in parentheses, are: Scott 63-E11e (55), 65-E15h (56), 67-E9e (57), 69-E6e (59), 70TC6 (60), 71TC6 (61), and 72-E7h (62).
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The Kennedy Assasination

John F. Kennedy in the presidential limousine in Dallas, Tex. on Nov. 22, 1963, moments before his assassination. (Image credit: Victor Hugo King, via The Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division)

On Nov. 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy died in Dallas, Texas, the victim of a shot through the head that rung out as his motorcade passed through Dealey Plaza. The spot, marked with a white X, became the birthplace of dozens of conspiracy theories.

The Warren Commission's investigation of the JFK assassination, commissioned by Lyndon B. Johnson in the months following Kennedy's death, determined that the killer was a former U.S. Marine named Lee Harvey Oswald, acting alone, who fired three shots from the Texas School Book Depository along the motorcade route.

But many Americans aren't buying it. Polls suggest that since the assassination, most people disbelieve the "lone gunman" theory. According to Gallup, 52 percent of Americans believed the Kennedy assassination was a conspiracy in the week after the president's death. The number reached 81 percent in both the 1970s and 1990s.

As of 2013, 61 percent think more than one person killed Kennedy. And Kennedy conspiracy beliefs aren't just held by average Joes and Janes: The U.S. House Select Committee on Assassinations argued in 1978 that more than one gunman was present that day, and this month, Secretary of State John Kerry told NBC's "Meet the Press" that he has "serious doubts" that Oswald acted alone.

So if Americans don't think Oswald acted alone, whom do they blame for Kennedy's death? Here is a sampling of popular Kennedy assassination conspiracy theories.

The Mafia

A silhouette of a retro mobster. (opens in new tab) , Shutterstock (opens in new tab) ) (Image credit: dreamerve

A few days before the 50th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination, 13 percent of Americans told Gallup pollsters they believed the Mafia was behind the killing.

The Mafia conspiracy theory typically centers on New Orleans mobster Carlos Marcello, who was deported to Guatemala after Kennedy came to office and charged his brother, Robert, with tackling organized crime as the U.S. Attorney General. After Marcello made his way back to the United States (there's an apocryphal story of him slogging through the jungle in alligator shoes), he allegedly made threats against the president. He also allegedly made a jailhouse confession of the crime to an FBI informant. Mafia conspiracy believers point to Lee Harvey Oswald's trip to New Orleans prior to the assassination, as well as to the mob ties of Oswald's killer Jack Ruby. [Infographic: How Does the Mob Work?]

The government

Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in as president on Air Force One after JFK's assassination. (Image credit: Cecil W. Stoughton, White House Press Office (WHPO))

Or did the government do it? Thirteen percent of Kennedy conspiracy believers think so, according to Gallup. It's not entirely clear who these believers consider to be "the government," as a number of theories involve government agents.

One popular accusation, cited by 1 percent of Gallup respondents: Lyndon B. Johnson, Kennedy's vice president, ordered the deed. According to the book "The Man Who Killed Kennedy: The Case Against LBJ" (Skyhorse Publishing, 2013) by libertarian political activist Roger Stone, Kennedy's successor murdered not only Kennedy, but also several others on his path to political power. Most believers of this theory say that LBJ had the motivation  a desire for the presidency  and that he worked with a shadowy cabal of co-conspirators. Supposedly, Johnson hated Kennedy and feared being dropped from the 1964 presidential campaign ticket.

"It's very important to understand that Johnson was merely the linchpin of the conspiracy that I believe involved the CIA," Stone told the Voice of Russia.

The CIA

The seal of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). (Image credit: CIA)

Ah, the CIA! Seven percent of conspiracy-loving Americans blame the Central Intelligence Agency for Kennedy's death. The theory was perhaps even more popular in the 1960s and 1970s, as Americans became aware that the CIA really had plotted to assassinate Vietnam's president Ngo Dinh Diem (successfully) and Cuba's Fidel Castro (unsuccessfully). After the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba in 1961, Kennedy and the CIA were on rough terms, leading conspiracy-minded individuals to suspect the CIA retaliated by having the president killed.

CIA conspiracies often overlap with mob conspiracies because of revelations that the agency worked with organized crime on its Castro schemes.

Fidel Castro

A Cuban stamp depicting Fidel Castro. (opens in new tab) / Shutterstock.com (opens in new tab) ) (Image credit: Neftali

But what about Castro himself? He certainly had reason to be unhappy with the Kennedy administration: The CIA was plotting to kill him, after all, and had trained Cuban exiles to attempt to overthrow his communist government in the fumbled Bay of Pigs Invasion.

LBJ himself subscribed to this conspiracy theory. On two separate occasions, in 1968 and 1969, he said in interviews that he thought Castro had been behind the assassination. For his part, Castro denied the allegations, calling the idea "absolute insanity" in a 1977 interview. Having the U.S. president killed would have been too dangerous for Cuba, as the United States would surely retaliate, Castro said.

Nevertheless, today, 5 percent of Americans believe Cuba was behind the assassination, Gallup found.

Anti-Castro Cubans

The flag of Cuba (opens in new tab) , Shutterstock (opens in new tab) ) (Image credit: Daniel Korzeniewski

While some conspiracy theorists implicate Castro in Kennedy's death, others blame Castro's enemies. (A lot of people had possible motives, it seems.)

Cuban exiles who hoped to reclaim their homeland from Castro's communist government had their hopes dashed when the CIA-backed Bay of Pigs Invasion failed. Some blamed Kennedy for botching the operation. The House Select Committee on Assassinations spurred on this theory in their 1979 report, which said that individual angry Cuban exiles may have been in on the plot.

Political Components

Shadow government concept. (opens in new tab) , Shutterstock (opens in new tab) ) (Image credit: isak55

Five percent of Americans who believe in a JFK conspiracy today think unnamed political opponents had Kennedy shot, and another 5 percent say unknown special interest groups were responsible. Some are more specific, according to Gallup's recent polling: Two percent blame big business or Big Oil (Dallas being in petroleum-loving Texas); 1 percent say labor unions or Teamsters were behind the assassination, and another 1 percent say right-wing political operatives are to blame. Three percent blame the Ku Klux Klan or other racist groups.

In 2010, the KKK theory got a boost from a former FBI agent named Don Adams, who claimed that Florida radical Joseph Adams Milteer told an informant in 1963 that a plot to kill the president was in the works. Like just about everyone with an opinion on the JFK assassination, Adams has written a book about his theory, "From an Office Building with a High-Powered Rifle: One FBI Agent's View of the JFK Assassination" (Trine Day, 2012).

On the other hand, a full perusal of Milteer's allegedly prescient remarks about the shooting reveals his "foreknowledge" may have been more bluster than not: Milteer talks of presidential look-alikes and an assassination at the White House, and his description of a possible sniper assassination plot is vague and generic. [5 Milestones in Gun Control History]

Russia

Nikita Khrushchev with John F. Kennedy (Image credit: Public Domain)

Lee Harvey Oswald was a defector to the Soviet Union. He lived in the USSR from 1959 to 1962. According to some conspiracy believers, he was brainwashed or simply recruited to assassinate the president during this time.

The Soviet conspiracy's motivation is said to be Nikita Khrushchev's anger at having to remove weapons from Cuba in the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. In 2007, Lt. Gen. Ion Mihai Pacepa, a defector from Romania, wrote a book claiming the KGB plotted to assassinate a number of world leaders, including Kennedy. Adding to the intrigue, Oswald visited the Russian embassy in Mexico in the weeks leading up to the assassination.

Of course, an attack traced back to Russia would have risked nuclear war, leading some skeptics to dump this theory.

The military-industrial complex

Vietnam....Marines riding atop an M-48 tank cover their ears as te 90mm gun fires during a road sweep southwest of Phu Bai. (Image credit: National Archives)

Could the war in Vietnam have indirectly caused Kennedy's death? One percent of American conspiracy believers think so, Gallup reports.

According to the military-industrial complex conspiracy theory, Kennedy intended to pull the U.S. military out of Vietnam. Shadowy forces in the military, resenting the impending decision, had him killed. Oliver Stone's popular conspiracy film "JFK" (1991) pushes this theory, arguing that Kennedy's assassination was a military coup designed to put the war-friendly Johnson in office. [10 Most Outrageous Military Experiments]

After JFK's death, however, his brother Robert told reporters that Kennedy had no intention of pulling out of Vietnam, and historians are uncertain how the Vietnam War would have turned out with Kennedy at the helm.

The Secret Service

Duties of the Secret Service include protecting the president and investigating financial crimes. (Image credit: Ross Toro, LiveScience Contributor)

It's the ultimate inside job: The Secret Service, tasked with protecting the president, ensures his death instead ... the theory goes.

About 1 percent of conspiracy believers polled by Gallup in the run-up to the 50th anniversary of the assassination blamed the Secret Service for killing Kennedy. According to this theory, anti-Kennedy agents in the Service had no interest in protecting him from shots. Conspiracy theorists also find it suspicious that certain security measures, such as agents near the rear bumper of the car, weren't in place that day in Dallas.

Both the Warren Commission and the House Select Committee on Assassinations cleared the Secret Service, but the House committee determined the agents were deficient in their duties.

I dunno, just somebody

Jackie Kennedy and her children John Jr. and Caroline walk past a guard of honor at the funeral of President Kennedy. (Image credit: Central Press/Getty Images))

Forty percent of Americans who blamed a conspiracy for killing Kennedy had no particular sense of who was behind the plot, according to Gallup's November 2013 poll. This large number of uncertain people may reflect a few factors. Dissatisfaction with the official story is probably one. The difficulty of sifting through dozens of potentially plausible villains is likely another.

A third factor, however, may simply be that the JFK assassination has taken on a life of its own. Conspiracy theory chatter begets conspiracy theory books begets conspiracy theory movies begets more chatter, books and movies debunking all of the above. Eventually, the idea that something secretive happened becomes almost enshrined in the culture.

"If you're living in this culture, you know it's not unreasonable for you to say 'well, everyone's talking about it,'" University of Miami political scientist Joe Uscinski told LiveScience. "And a lot of our beliefs are based on 'Everyone's talking about it.'"
On May 29, the nation commemorates the 100th anniversary of John F. Kennedy's birth. It's worth noting on this occasion that even now, more than 50 years after his death, Kennedy is widely regarded as one of the country's best presidents. Although historians may feel differently, the public consistently ranks him at or near the top among American leaders.

Why does Kennedy remains so popular  indeed, nearly as popular in public memory as he was during his presidency? This is the question I explore in my new book, "The Afterlife of John Fitzgerald Kennedy: A Biography."

The Kennedy brand

To begin with, President Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy worked hard to construct a positive image of themselves, what I call the Kennedy brand. And because history is as much about forgetting as remembering, they made every effort to filter out information at odds with that image.

As I note in my book, Americans knew little of the first lady's nicotine habit, her lavish spending or her use of amphetamines. Nor did they know of the president's drug dependencies, medical problems or marital infidelities.

On the contrary, in their restoration of the White House, famous state dinners, elegant costumes and skillful management of the media, the Kennedys represented themselves as idealized versions of the president and first lady.

Together with the president's image as a progressive politician in the tradition of the New Deal, they were seen as the happy couple and loving parents who communicated a message of hope and progress, charm and intelligence, youth, vitality and beauty. If not always true to who they were behind the scenes, their public persona was enormously popular with their fellow Americans. Indeed, over the course of his administration, the president's approval rating averaged about 70 percent  a remarkably high figure by today's standards.

Kennedy's assassination and the profound cultural trauma it induced transformed the constructed image of the president, now glossed in the glory of a fallen hero, into a flashbulb memory that transcended his death. The Kennedy brand now became a sacred symbol of all that was good in American life, his virtues those of the nation itself. Jacqueline Kennedy wanted her husband remembered as the stuff of legend rather than political science. She wanted him remembered for what he represented, she told journalist Theodore H. White, not alone for what he did. She wanted him remembered as a man of style, a peacemaker, a crusader for social justice and a gifted orator who inspired hope in the future and confidence in government.

What is more, she set out to accomplish that goal from the moment of JFK's death. She transformed her husband's funeral into a dramatic reproduction of his life as she wanted it remembered. She missed no opportunity to draw a connection between her husband and both Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt, two of the great reform presidents, or to recall his love of family, wartime heroism, devotion to service and willingness to sacrifice for the greater good.

With the same goal, she selected Arlington National Cemetery as his final resting place. There, her husband's grave would share visual space with the monuments honoring Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln, reminding everyone that he was among the great American presidents. Situated below the Custis-Lee Mansion and above the Lincoln Memorial, his gravesite would also recall his commitment to civil rights and his role as a peacemaker who tried to calm a nation racked by racial and regional strife. Finally, located with other veterans in the sacred ground of Arlington National Cemetery, it would remind visitors once again of his wartime heroism and his belief in public service and sacrifice.

Monuments of paper and stone

Jacqueline Kennedy also made efforts to embed the Kennedy brand in American memory. She oversaw the design of the Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston and persuaded President Johnson to push forward with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. and the John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The performing arts center recalled the president's support of the arts as a token of free expression in a democratic society. The space center memorialized his commitment to the space program and his sense of adventure, faith in the future and confidence that no dream was too grand, no goal beyond reach. The Kennedy Library and Museum brought to mind his life as a man of letters, his love of learning and his sense of history.

Through the Kennedy Library, as I argue in my book, Jacqueline Kennedy managed her husband's records to safeguard his reputation. She gave privileged access to those who would write the president's biography as she wanted it recorded, denying similar access to those who might cast a more critical eye on his life. The skillfully contrived museum reproduced his presidency by revealing some aspects of his life while slighting or erasing others.

Through these efforts, Jacqueline Kennedy embedded her husband's identity, as she defined it, so deeply in the collective memory of the American people that even the most aggressive critics could not fully dislodge it.

Reinforcing her efforts was a wave of nostalgia that swept the country beginning in the 1970s. As the historian Robert Dallek reportedly said, Kennedy looked so good because what came later looked so bad (opens in new tab). After Kennedy's death came more assassinations, the Vietnam War, the Watergate scandal, racial strife and urban riots. Added to the mix was a full-scale assault on traditional values evident in the feminist movement, the sexual revolution, the drug culture and the campaigns to legalize abortion and protect gay rights.

It was in this context that Americans looked back nostalgically on the early 1960s and Kennedy in particular, especially the traditional values he supposedly represented.

In death Kennedy became a more polished version of the already idealized image he had presented in his news conferences, campaign speeches, TV specials and ubiquitous photographs. He became the ideal American, and following his death, his countrymen wanted to preserve that memory of him, however constructed, and perhaps of themselves and their country when he was in office.

Michael Hogan, Professor of History, University of Illinois at Springfield

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
For 149 years, Americans have taken the last Monday in May to remember those who have died in our wars. Like all deaths honored by the state, flags fly at half-staff. However, on Memorial Day, the U.S. flag flies at half-staff only for the first half of the day, and then is raised to full height from noon to sundown. This unique custom honors the war dead for the morning and living veterans for the rest of the day.

No one knows the exact date this tradition began, but an Army regulations book from 1906 carries instructions for the procedure, so it predates the 20th century, said Clark Rogers, executive director of the National Flag Foundation. In 1924, Congress codified the tradition into U.S. Code Title 4, Section 6, with the proclamation, For the nation lives, and the flag is a symbol of illumination, explaining how the noon flag-raising symbolizes the persistence of the nation in the face of loss, Rogers told LiveScience. [The True Story Behind the 1st Memorial Day]

"The first part of the day honors those who sacrificed, and the second part of the day honors those who are still with us," Rogers said.

The precise origin of a half-raised flag as a way to honor the fallen is also unclear, Rogers said. Some traditions say the lowered flag allows room for an invisible flag of death to fly above it. Others point to the tradition in naval warfare of lowering a flag to indicate surrender. There are also claims that lowering a flag symbolically recreates the ancient Greco-Roman tradition of signaling death with a broken column or staff, Rogers said. Currently, at least 21 countries use a lowered flag to honor the dead.

For instance, on Oct. 22, 2012, Cambodia flew their flag at half-mast to mourn the death of their King-Father Norodom Sihanouk, according to news reports. Canada flies its flags at half-mast several days every year, such as on June 23 for the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism. In Finland, the word for flying the flag at half-staff is "suruliputus." On Anzac Day, April 25, in Australia, the flag is flown at half-staff until noon to honor those who served and died in war.

Honoring the dead, especially the war dead, played a key role in post-Civil War America, said David Blight, a professor of history at Yale University and author of "Beyond the Battlefield: Race, Memory, and the American Civil War" (University of Massachusetts Press, 2002). Both the Union and the Confederacy began honoring lost soldiers before the war even ended, as war widows combed battlefields in search of their fallen relatives. Eventually, the flowers that mourners left at the graves across the nation merged with the May celebrations of freed slaves to form a national Memorial Day, Blight said.

The celebration of this holiday, which gained an official designation on May 30, 1868, began falling out of practice in the beginning of the 20th century, but then reentered popular practice during World War I, Blight said.

Then, after World War II, advocacy by veterans' groups led to the creation of a separate holiday for living military personnel in the form of Veterans Day, Blight said. Thus, Memorial Day became a day for exclusively celebrating the sacrifice of those who fell in battle, leaving only the mid-day flag-raising to signal hope beyond death, and honor those who survived battle.

Editor's Note: This article was first published in 2010 and updated on May 29, 2017.

Original article on Live Science.
Does Vladimir Putin really own Donald Trump? Its more likely than you think

Kompromat is the name of the Russian game  and to win the White House, Trump may have unwittingly been played



Imagine the moment when Vladimir Putin first learned that his Russian hackers had struck gold by obtaining the emails of John Podesta, the chairman of Hillary Clintons presidential campaign.



Shots of vodka all around, singing, dancing and hurling empty glasses into the fireplace. Then Putin rubs his palms together and begins to scheme: How best to use this information?



One obvious ploy would be to secretly approach Donald Trumps campaign and demand a ransom in exchange for the public release of Podestas hacked emails.



Imagine the reaction from Trump: Absolutely not! I would never compromise my honor and integrity. I would rather lose this election than win in an underhanded manner.



Ha ha ha! Yeah right.



Trump, of course, would have done anything to have those emails released. Name your price, would far more likely have been his response.



The Russians would have instructed Trump that all he needed to do was just take a more friendly position toward Russia. Do not criticize Russia or Putin, and advocate for better relations between the United States and Russia. And once Trump becomes president, he would then need to help lift the sanctions against Russia for invading Crimea.



Thats it? Thats all I gotta do? Trump would have exclaimed in delight. Done!



The art of the deal.
With Vladimir Putin in the east and Donald Trump to the west, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is now telling Europe it has to stand up for itself. It's a call that's already being answered by the continent's richest region.

Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway have over the past two years been deepening their military cooperation to counter a deteriorating security situation in the Baltic and the Arctic. They are also forging closer ties on softer issues, presenting this week a joint initiative to meet sustainability goals, promoting the 20 million-person region's shared values on social equality, and discussing joint interaction with China.

"There's no doubt that Europe needs to take bigger responsibility, we have to spend more on defense and security," Erna Solberg, Norway's prime minister, said in an interview on Monday as Nordic leaders start a two-day summit in Bergen. Norway will ensure good cooperation "with its closest allies, and some are in the EU and some are on the other side of the Atlantic," she said.

The Nordic summit started a day after Merkel said reliable relationships forged in Europe since the end of World War II "are to some extent over." The German chancellor made those comments after meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Brussels and Sicily over the past week.

Both Solberg and Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila cautioned against interpreting Merkel's remarks as a major shift.

The comments were mainly about the economic side, "that European countries should take more responsibility on the NATO budget," Sipila said. "This message has been quite clear all the time. At the same time this means that we can cooperate more inside the European Union" and that "the window is open for defense cooperation," he said.

The broadest shifts in policy in the region have been seen in Finland and Sweden, which unlike Denmark and Norway aren't members of NATO. The two neighbors have intensified military cooperation and also forged closer ties with the military alliance without outright joining NATO. Finland's proximity to Russia has excluded it from becoming a full-fledged member, while Sweden has a long-held belief that official neutrality serves it best.

All four countries have been boosting spending, with Denmark and Norway now working toward meeting the 2 percent spending goal that NATO members have been lambasted by Trump for not meeting.

Because of the different security alliances, Solberg said that closer Nordic cooperation will likely center on economic questions.

"European cooperation will become stronger going forward and then we will cooperate with those that are our closest allies, but Sweden and Finland are also close partners," she said.

But even now Sweden is in "grave difficulties" after disarming since the end of the cold-war, according to Finnish diplomat Rene Nyberg, who has served as Finland's ambassador to both Moscow and Berlin.

"There are many building blocks, which are quite solid," Nyberg said in an interview in Helsinki May 24. "Finland's military cooperation with Sweden has proceeded at an incredible pace, and it's a great success. Sweden needs it -- it's not just Finland that does."

Sipila said the cooperation "is very important for both countries."

Trump's talk on raising trade barriers, and the U.K.'s decision to exit the European Union, have also jolted the trade-dependent region. The U.K. was seen as a key ally within the bloc by Sweden and Denmark, two other countries that have chosen not to adopt the euro. Norway, flush with oil wealth, has rejected joining the EU altogether.

Sipila said there are "a lot" of possibilities to strengthen economic ties across the region, including setting up a single "digital market" and a bio-fuels market.

The Nordic leaders also discussed more joint cooperation in dealing with China, albeit on an "ad-hoc" basis, according to Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, as well as combating climate change.

"As the most integrated region in the world we have today agreed to further deepen our cooperation," Lovfen said at a press briefing.

---

--With assistance from Kati Pohjanpalo
When President Donald Trump's top foreign policy advisers gathered recently at the White House to discuss plans to revamp the administration's Afghanistan strategy, the makeup of those in the room was indicative of a significant turn in U.S. foreign policy.

Seated front and center in the Situation Room table were four current or former generals who dominate just about every big national security decision Trump makes.

The debate, however, was most notable for the voices that were absent.

Intended as a crucial final debate session before the plan went to the president, the meeting took place on a day in which Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the president's top diplomat, was in New York. His acting deputy attended in his place.

The generals at the table included national security adviser Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster; Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and former four-star generals Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly. Most of those in attendance emerged believing that the Afghanistan plan was ready to go to the president for final approval, U.S. officials who took part in the session said.

Unbeknown to the White House, America's top diplomat was not on board: Tillerson, who heads a department that some White House officials described as "AWOL" during the review process, didn't think the plan did enough to address other countries in the region with a stake in Afghanistan, such as Pakistan, Iran and India, a person familiar with his thinking said. Tillerson also was concerned that the plan called for beefing up the State Department's presence in dangerous locations outside Kabul.

Even though the State Department remains understaffed at its top ranks, department officials said it had been an active participant in the review and insisted that a final decision on the emerging plan was probably weeks away. A State Department spokesman declined to comment on the ongoing discussions until "the group arrives at a decision point."

The disconnect over a major policy shift, with big implications for the Pentagon, the State Department and the federal budget, illustrates the sway military officers exercise in the Trump administration. Current and former military officers not only hold positions at the highest ranks of government but also fill senior staff jobs in the White House that have traditionally been the purview of civilians or experienced diplomats.

According to a review by The Washington Post, at least eight out of 25 senior policy and leadership positions on the National Security Council (NSC) are held by current or former military officials, up from two at the end of the Obama administration.

The shift in staffing reflects Trump's faith in the nation's warriors and his delight in shows of military force. On the campaign trail and in office, he has promised to "knock the hell" out of the Islamic State and take a harder line against an array of adversaries, including North Korea to Iran.

Since January, that attitude has rippled across U.S. foreign policy and the NSC itself. In the Middle East, Trump has emphasized support for Arab allies, prioritizing a desire to contain Iran and pound extremist groups over the Obama administration's advocacy for human rights and reforms designed to improve life in closed and repressive societies. That shift is one that has long been advocated by the U.S. military.

In Yemen and Somalia, the president has given the military greater rein to launch raids and fire missiles, empowering on-the-ground commanders to make decisions that were tightly managed by the previous White House.

In Afghanistan, the administration seems poised to accede to a troop surge, despite resistance from the State Department and some within the White House - including senior adviser Stephen Bannon - who fear the costly plan won't work. The request by successive ground commanders for more forces and latitude to strike the Taliban dates back more than a year.

To some analysts, the heavy presence of military officers on the NSC, many of whom helped forge the Bush administration's do-or-die response to a spiraling insurgency in Iraq, is a much-needed corrective inside the White House. They say that a stable and sustainable outcome in such places as Iraq, Yemen and Syria cannot be achieved quickly or on the cheap.

Other experts worry that the officers' immersion in the wars of the past 15 years have made it hard for them to take broad view of U.S. power and influence in the world that extends beyond armed conflict in the Middle East and South Asia.

"It would take a remarkable individual to stand back from those experiences and think critically of them," said Andrew Bacevich, a retired Army colonel and history professor at Boston University. "It would be hard for them to consider that the path they had taken [in the wars] might have been a wrong one."

The NSC was created after World War II to harmonize national security decision-making amid competing departments with different agendas. It was set inside the White House, and not the Pentagon, to ensure that the military, with its massive resources and personnel, would not dominate foreign policy planning.

"There needed to be a civilian mechanism to help guide strategy and decision-making," said Derek Chollet, a top official in the Obama White House and Pentagon. While there is a long tradition of military personnel serving on the NSC, Chollet said the staff has typically been dominated by career civil servants and experts from outside of government.

The heavy military component to the current NSC is a product of a cascade of events that began with a presidential election in which much of the Republican foreign policy establishment in Washington actively opposed Trump. The president-elect chose Michael Flynn, a retired three-star general steeped in intelligence and counterterrorism operations, as his first national security adviser.

Flynn resigned after less than a month in office, but before he left he filled top NSC positions with people he knew from his time as a senior intelligence analyst in Iraq and Afghanistan. Those selections included Derek Harvey, a retired colonel who coordinates Middle East policy, and Matthew Pottinger, a former Marine and journalist who is senior director for Asia.

McMaster, who succeeded Flynn, has similarly leaned heavily on the military for expertise. He chose Army Reserve Maj. Gen. Ricky Waddell as his deputy national security adviser and, more recently, tapped Rudolph Attalah, a retired lieutenant colonel, as senior director for Africa.

At the same time, the State Department is in talks with the White House to reduce the number of diplomatic staff who serve temporary assignments at the NSC, a move that would cut costs but could intensify the militarization of the White House. The effort is driven by cost-cutting at State and a desire at the White House to pare back an NSC seen as bloated and micromanaging.

One worry among some current and former White House officials is that the heavy military presence might make it harder for the Trump administration to effectively oversee the vast swath of nonmilitary agencies involved in foreign policy. Others fret that the military officers might go easy on the Pentagon. "You have a harder time critiquing your own institution to which you owe your future livelihood," said a former White House official. "It's a tough balance to strike, but when you have a concentration of military officers, I think they have a tendency to be very deferential" to superiors.

The concentration of military officers is highest in the section of the NSC focused on the Middle East and Iran. For many of those officers, the defining experience of their career was service in Iraq when President George W. Bush ordered a surge of more than 30,000 troops to stave off near-certain defeat.

It was the war's most dramatic period, when a force of more than 160,000 U.S. troops was locked in a deadly battle with both Sunni insurgents and Iranian proxies for control of the country.

"The thing that worries me most is that a lot of these officers really forged their view of the world and the Middle East at a particular moment in our occupation of Iraq," said Colin Kahl, a former Pentagon and White House official who focused on the Middle East.

Today the United States faces a vastly different situation in the region. U.S. troop levels are a small fraction of their Iraq War peak, and chaos and civil war have spread throughout the region.

Kahl said the military-heavy White House could overestimate its ability to influence events in the region or needlessly provoke Iran, leading to more conflict and bloodshed.

It's also possible that military officers, chastened by the losses in Iraq, will take a more cautious view.

"The conventional wisdom on this is probably wrong," said Peter Feaver, a senior official in George W. Bush's White House and professor at Duke University. "Empirically, the military is more reluctant to use force . . . but if force is used, then they want it to be used without restraint."
North Korea launched a new short-range ballistic missile, similar to a Scud, on Monday morning, and it flew about 280 miles to land inside Japan's exclusive economic zone.

This launch is North Korea's third in three weeks and its 12th this year, underscoring Kim Jong Un's determination to advance his regime's technical capabilities and his continued defiance of the international community.

"The firing of the ballistic missile of this time is extremely problematic in terms of safety of aircraft and ships," Yoshihide Suga, Japan's chief cabinet secretary, told reporters in an emergency news conference. "It also clearly violates resolutions adopted by the United Nations Security Council."

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, returning from a G-7 meeting in Italy, said that Japan will work with the United States to deter North Korea. The White House said President Donald Trump had been briefed on the latest missile launch, which coincided with the Memorial Day holiday weekend in the United States.

The missile was launched shortly after 5 a.m. local time from an airfield near Wonsan, on North Korea's east coast, according to the U.S. Pacific Command and South Korea's joint chiefs of staff.

"The missile was tracked for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan," Pacific Command said in a statement, adding that it was working to assess the missile. "We continue to monitor North Korea's actions closely."

Moon Jae-in, South Korea's new president, ordered an emergency national security council meeting to discuss the latest launch, and his joint chiefs said the South Korean military was "maintaining full preparedness."

Before the latest launch, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that war with North Korea would "probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes."

North Korea was threatening the United States with its nuclear weapons, but its conventional weapons could cause huge devastation in South Korea, where half the population lives in the Seoul area, within firing range of North Korean artillery.

"The bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if we're not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means," Mattis told CBS News' "Face the Nation" on Sunday.

Kim has been pushing ahead with his weapons program at a rate that has alarmed analysts and policymakers, ordering the launches of a variety of rockets that appear part of his ambition to obtain an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the mainland United States.

He has overseen the launch of 78 missiles since he took power 5 1/2 years ago, compared to the 16 missiles fired during the 17 years that his father, Kim Jong Il, was at the helm.

Although the missiles sometimes explode shortly after launch, the North Koreans have had a surprisingly good success rate, said Shea Cotton, an expert at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation in California. Of the 78 missiles launched under Kim Jong Un, 61 have succeeded, giving him a 78 percent success rate, Cotton said.
LUBBOCK The Texas Department of Transportation turned 100 years old this year and the Lubbock District is celebrating with an event at the districts first headquarters office located on the Panhandle South Plains fairgrounds. The event will feature a traveling exhibit with a refurbished 1918 Liberty Truck and will highlight the agencys ongoing mission of connecting Texans to what matters most  the people and places they love. The public is invited to attend.

While our name, appearance and some responsibilities have evolved over time, our agency was founded on the basic idea of getting the farmer out of the mud, said Lubbock District Engineer Steve Warren, P.E. It is because of our employees, past and present, and the relationships we have forged with our transportation partners, that we long-ago surpassed that vision to become the premier transportation agency in the nation. As we celebrate our past, we look forward to delivering new projects that will keep Texans moving for the next 100 years.
Physical therapist

joins clinic

Nicholas J. White is the most recent licensed physical therapist to join The Corvallis Clinic.

White treats a variety of shoulder, knee, neck and back injuries. Spine treatment is of particular interest to him.

He practiced at Concentra Medical Center in San Francisco in 2016, HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital of Utah in Sandy, Utah, in 2015 and 2016, and the University of Miami Health System, Bascom Palmer, in Miami, Florida, in 2014.

He earned a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in 2016, and a Bachelor of Science degree in exercise science at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City in 2012.

For an appointment, call 541-754-1265 or go to www.corvallisclinic.com/NewPatientAppointmentRequest.

Augerot on board

of foundation

Benton County Commissioner Xanthippe Augerot was elected to the Board of the Benton Community Foundation last December.

A lifelong Northwesterner, Augerot has lived in Oregon for more than 20 years. She was elected to the Board of Commissioners last November, and took office in January.

OSU receives

WorldatWork seal

Oregon State University has earned WorldatWorks Seal of Distinction for 2017.

The seal is a mark of excellence designed to identify organizational success in total rewards effectiveness. Oregon State is one of 160 organizations to be honored as a 2017 recipient. All the 2017 recipients were recognized during the WorldatWork Total Rewards Conference & Exhibition, held earlier this month in Washington, D.C.

Started in 2012, the Seal of Distinction is awarded to companies that meet defined standards of workplace programs, policies and practices weighted on several factors, such as the complexity of implementation, required organizational resources, perceived breadth of access and overall level of commitment from leadership. Applicants are evaluated on categories including health and wellness, pay for time not worked, retirement, recognition, workplace flexibility and more.

This years recipients represent industries of education, finance, government, health, law, manufacturing, and pharmaceuticals  and hail from 36 states, the District of Columbia and Canada. The 2017 list includes 80 companies who are first-time Seal of Distinction recipients. Eighty companies have received the seal in previous years.

Real estate office

adds employee

Alma Ayala recently joined the staff of Coldwell Banker Valley Brokers in Albany.

She is working in the residential market in the Willamette Valley area, and can be reached at 541-971-3214 or AAyala@ValleyBrokers.com.

Property search tool upgraded

The Benton County Assessment Department recently launched major enhancements to the web-based property account search tool found at www.co.benton.or.us/assessment/property_search.

The tool now features two additional web pages offering detailed property information: Value History and Tax Information.

The Value History page displays current and historical Real Market, Assessed and Taxable Values. The data is presented in a table sorted by the most recent tax year. Additionally, the Value History web page contains an easy-to-understand line graph of a property's historical Real Market Value compared to the Maximum Assessed Value.

The Tax Information page features real-time tax balances, historical tax amounts, tax statements, and payment history.

Website users can search for properties using a street address, property owner name, account number, tax lot data or sales data. Users will then click on the appropriate account listed in the search results to view the property detail.

When viewing the property detail, users can navigate to the Value History, Tax Information, Sales, Improvement Detail and Tax Map using the Property Account Search menu.

Bank appoints

financial adviser

Wells Fargo Advisors has appointed Chad Wegner as a financial adviser in Albany.

In his new role, he provides financial products and services to high value customers in Albany and its surrounding communities to help them succeed financially.

Wegner previously managed a Wells Fargo branch in Corvallis for two years. He joined Wells Fargo in 1996 as a teller in Portland. He transferred to the Corvallis branch in 1997, where he was promoted to lead teller. He later served as a personal banker and assistant bank manager.

Wegner was promoted to branch manager in 2005. He later served as a Community Banking district manager, where he led almost 70 team members at branches in Albany, Corvallis, Lebanon, Philomath and Sweet Home.

He worked as a branch manager and market manager in Salem from 2010 to 2014 before transferring back to the Corvallis branch.

Wegner earned a bachelor degree in fish and wildlife science and a masters degree in business administration from Oregon State University.

Corvallis Elks

select officers

Corvallis Elks Lodge No. 1413 recently announced its officers for the Elk year 2017-18.

The incoming Exalted Ruler is Don Bartley. Others installed were Leading Knight Joey Taylor, Loyal Knight Bruce Wilkinson, Lecturing Knight Jeff Griffith, Secretary Evelyn Begin, Treasurer Pernita Gregory, Chaplain Sharron de Montigny, Inner Guard John de Montigny and Tiler Paul Myers. The following members were recognized for service to the lodge: Don Bartley, officer of the year; Bret Miles, Elk of the Year; and Bill McCormick, Volunteer of the Year.
Evan Burns woke Monday shortly before 6 a.m. when one of his roommates yelled Fire!

The two went to alert their remaining roommates to the fire only to find an intruder attacking two of them with a knife.

The attacker turned his attention to Burns, knocking him to the ground and stabbing him. Burns kicked the man, trying to break free. Another roommate started punching the attacker, offering Burns a means for escape.

I got up and my only thought was I had to get out, Burns said during a phone interview on Wednesday.

Burns ran out of the house on Northwest 27th Street in Corvallis. He was covered in blood from a knife wound in his nose and upper lip. Having just woken up, he was wearing only his underwear.

The 22-year-old alerted a man outside to call 911. He yelled to his neighbors, who had been woken by the fire, to call the police. A neighbor told him to keep running, that the suspect was behind him. Burns sprinted toward Northwest Harrison Boulevard.

I saw the killer was chasing me so I kept running and I was trying to yell at cars to stop and people to call 911, he said. No one would stop. People were just passing me. It was really ridiculous.

Burns didnt stop until he saw the police arriving.

Shortly thereafter, officers arrested 22-year-old Benjamin Leland Bucknell on suspicion of arson and attempted murder.

Authorities say Bucknell poured gasoline on the ground outside the basement bedroom windows at 413 NW 27th St. and started a fire before breaking into the house and attacking the roommates with a knife.

Bucknell is facing 20 felony charges, including attempted murder, first-degree assault, arson and burglary. He pleaded not guilty to all charges during his Tuesday arraignment in Benton County Circuit Court.

Albany attorney Thomas Hill is representing Bucknell. Hill said after the arraignment that he will be considering whether mental health issues are a factor in the case. On Friday, he said he could not offer more comment on the case until he is able to investigate further.

'We're all like family'

Burns now has stitches in his nose and lip. He has a cut on his head from being knocked to the ground by the attacker. He has minor cuts to his arms, legs and back from the knife.

Police say the roommate who alerted Burns to the fire, Nadav Mouallem, was asleep in a sleeping bag that caught fire.

When Mouallem and Burns went to wake the other roommates, they heard one of them, Catherine Lisman, screaming from upstairs. Her boyfriend, Dan Rinkevich, also was yelling for help. When the two men got upstairs, the intruder started stabbing Burns. Mouallem helped fight him off.

Lisman and Rinkevich sustained serious stab wounds to their heads and shoulders, as well as skull fractures, a court affidavit states. They underwent emergency surgery at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Corvallis.

The suspect allegedly stabbed another roommate, Jesus Valencia-Camacho, in the left side of his head, the affidavit states. According to the document, Valencia-Camacho has lost the ability to see from his left eye. He was taken by helicopter from Good Samaritan to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in Portland for treatment, the affidavit states.

Another roommate, Nolan Butuso, sustained a cut to his face during the attack.

Mouallem was uninjured.

The first thing we all thought of was each other, and thats what kept us alive, Burns said. Were all like family, and it was our worries for each other that made sure we all got out.

'Everybody was a hero'

The suspect's piercing blue eyes have been haunting Annie Todd since Monday.

There was no remorse, the 22-year-old Todd said on Thursday outside her apartment. It was horrible. Ive never seen someones face like that.

Todd, who lives next door to Burns and told him to keep running when she saw him exit the house, came face-to-face with the attacker just moments before shouting out her warning to Burns.

Todds boyfriend, Matthew Goodlett, woke her after hearing an explosion outside their bedroom window, which faces the house where Burns lives. Goodlett grabbed a fire extinguisher from their apartment and went to put out the fire while Todd ran to her friends house to tell them to evacuate. She was surprised to find the front door wide open.

Todd said she entered the kitchen and saw a man attacking Valencia-Camacho, who was on his knees. The suspect, who was wearing a yellow bandana over his face, was standing over Valencia-Camacho, stabbing him in the face. Blood was splattering onto the kitchen walls and ceiling. Todd locked eyes with the attacker, who continued to stab Valencia-Camacho.

It was like he didnt care I was there, she said. It wasnt going to stop him.

Todd was on a cellphone with a 911 emergency dispatcher and yelled, Hes stabbing my friend!

She screamed at the attacker to stop, and he pushed Valencia-Camacho aside. The intruder took a step toward her, and she ran. She went to her apartment; she and Goodlett went inside and locked the door. They watched from an upstairs window as Burns ran by. Todd then saw the suspect leave the house and go toward Northwest Tyler Avenue.

Todd ran back outside. She found Valencia-Camacho hobbling out of the front of his house. She helped him onto a couch on the porch.

Lisman and Rinkevich, covered in blood, joined them on the porch. Todd, an emergency veterinary technician, started applying pressure to everyones wounds. She retrieved a rag from somewhere, and Goodlett took paper towels from their apartment. Butuso had a minor cut to his face and started helping his more badly injured roommates.

I kept saying, Jesus, its going to be OK, and he said, Annie, I know, Todd said.

A few minutes later, the Fire Department arrived. Todd, who was still on the phone with the 911 dispatch center, had her arms wrapped around Valencia-Camacho, trying to stop the flow of blood from his head and shoulders, her phone cradled between her neck and shoulders.

When she saw the first responders, she lowered her shoulder and her phone fell into a puddle of blood.

Todd helped Valencia-Camacho to an ambulance. She then ran back to the porch to help Lisman and Rinkevich.

Everybody in that house was a hero, Todd said. Nobody was concerned for themselves.

Blood covering her arms and legs, Todd sat on the porch with Butuso and talked with police. She then washed her friends blood off her skin and went to visit them at Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center. There, she talked with a trauma counselor.

On Tuesday, Todd said, she visited Valencia-Camacho in Portland.

Jesus is like the most positive, friendliest person youve met in your life, Todd said. They became friends last summer, after Todd and Goodlett moved in next door.

Todd took the roommates three cats into her apartment and cared for them for the first two days after the attack; the cats now are back with their owners. Shes also gone into the house to retrieve belongings for the roommates.

Theyre just such good people, she said. For one bad person that came into that house, there were seven good people helping each other out.

Long road to recovery

Burns, who went to stay with his family in Roseburg after the attack, said the roommates face a long road to recovery filled with doctors appointments.

Were going to continue being there for each other in the coming days, he said.

Burns said he didnt know Bucknell before the attack. He was unsure if the other roommates knew him.

I just hope that this gentleman who attacked us finds remorse for his actions, Burns said. I dont wish justice out of anger, but I just want to make sure he isnt able to do this again to anyone else.
President Trump is an expert on some things. The North American Free Trade Agreement is not one of them.

He understands human nature better than most. He knows how we like to blame our problems on external forces, how indifferent the elites can be to working-class struggles, and the strain that immigration and trade can place on low-skilled American workers who feel besieged and displaced. He also understands how to cynically mix together those ingredients, add a dash of fear with racial undertones and whip up a magic stew capable of transporting a carnival barker to the White House.

But the president has much to learn about the history of NAFTA.

Last week, the Trump administration formally notified Congress of its intent to renegotiate the agreement. While its unlikely that Americans will ever see a brick-and-mortar wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, Trump is well on his way to keeping at least one campaign promise.

In a letter to congressional leaders, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said that the administration wants NAFTA to be modernized.

Im worried that modernized is Trump-speak for gutted.

Now, the meter is running. In less than 90 days, the United States can start renegotiating the agreement with its partners  Mexico and Canada. The idea is for Congress and the White House to spend these next three months conferring about how to change NAFTA in order to benefit American workers.

Trump is convinced  probably because he says it so often  that NAFTA is unfair to Americans. But he has it backward.

NAFTA should, in fact, be renegotiated  because it has traditionally been unfair to Mexicans.

Consider the illuminating example of Mexican trucks, which were largely kept off U.S. roadways  in violation of NAFTA  during much of the Clinton and Obama years.

This was all to please the Teamsters. You see, union truck drivers dont want to compete with Mexican drivers for lucrative long-haul contracts in the United States, even if the jobs originate in Mexico.

So, for years, U.S. drivers benefited from this crazy system where Mexican trucks were barred from going beyond 25 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border. Mexican truckers would have to pull over and transfer their cargo onto U.S. trucks, which would then complete the journey to cities like Milwaukee, Seattle or St. Louis.

Thats not fair, and its harmful for commerce. How do unions defend something like that? Technically they dont have to. They line the pockets of Democratic politicians, who then make the argument for them on the House floor or Senate chamber.

And thats where things got ugly. In the immigration debate, its usually Republicans who flirt with racism and demagoguery to serve their narrow political interests. But in the debate over NAFTA, and the Mexican trucks, it was Democrats who played that game as they shamelessly attempted to camouflage their errand for the unions as a public-safety issue.

All through the 1990s, Americans were told how rickety and unsafe these Mexican trucks were, and how Mexican drivers were likely hauling drugs or were themselves operating under the influence of drugs. The idea was to scare Americans into maintaining the 25-mile prohibition  despite the fact that people living in U.S. border communities such as Brownsville, Texas, or San Diego shared their highways with Mexican trucks every day and never had much trouble.

President Obama finally lifted the ban and granted the Mexican truckers permanent access to U.S. roadways, but that didnt happen until January 2015. That was more than 20 years after NAFTA went into effect.

Now theres a fear that Trump will use the NAFTA renegotiation to scrap that order. If Trump succeeds in running Mexican trucks off U.S. roadways, how strange would that be? A Republican president adopting the pro-union protectionist policies of a Democratic predecessor.

It makes you wonder. Democrats are implying that Trump works for Russia. We should be asking if he really works for them.

ruben@rubennavarrette.com
This years ranking of local schools by the Houston-based nonprofit Children at Risk offers optimism that things on the local public education front are on the upswing.

But before we start celebrating, lets do a reality check. There is still much work to be done.

While it is good to acknowledge the successes along the way we cannot afford to lose focus of the bigger picture, and that includes the fact that only one in five children in San Antonio is reading at grade level.

The Children at Risk ranking of schools indicates the number of San Antonio schools scoring an A or B is steadily growing. However, despite the gains, the community continues to rank lower overall than other major metropolitan areas in the state.

That is not to say the other metropolitan areas are doing tremendously better. A close examination of the ranking reveals that even those communities at the top of the list have much room for improvement.

Over the past three years, the percentage of San Antonio schools ranked with an A or B increased from 40 percent to 43 percent. Austin, which topped the rankings in the state this year, had only 51 percent of its schools ranked with a grade of A or B. Houston and Fort Worth each had 48 percent of their schools with A and B ratings.

Children at Risks annual rankings consider poverty rates and enrollment demographics when comparing schools state standardized tests scores and year-over-year gains.

Other ranking factors include academic growth, SAT, ACT, Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate scores in science, technology, engineering and math.

Some local school administrators take issue with the Children at Risk rankings calling them an oversimplistic and inaccurate representation of the work they do. They refuse to acknowledge the school ranking report.

We can all agree the success of a school has to do with so much more than test scores. Strong leadership from the district administration, a hardworking school board, principals with good management skills and high quality classroom teachers are all factors that contribute to the overall well being of a school district.

Children at Risk officials, in fact, attribute the noticeable ranking gains by some Texas school districts directly on what they refer to as turnaround superintendents, hired to bring change to troubled schools.

Lists, rankings and grades do not define a school district, but they do help shed light on problem areas and programs that are showing results.

The Children at Risk reports merit use as a resource by policy makers as they struggle to make the difficult decisions about the future of Texas public education.

The findings of the nonpartisan research organization are based on data collected by the state and available to anyone for the asking.

The numbers are difficult to dispute. So the superintendents should stop trying and districts should start installing not just turnaround superintendents, but principals and teachers who fit the same mold.
There were some sharp exchanges at Saturday's Fine Gael leadership election hustings in Ballinasloe between Leo Varadkar and Simon Coveney.

Leo Varadkar has vowed to prioritise the upgrade of the N4 and N5 and improve the inadequate ambulance service in the west of Ireland if he becomes Taoiseach.



Cllr Micheal Carrigy said Minister Varadkar gave a similar commitment when he met with Fine Gael councillors in Longford on Friday morning.



Cllr Carrigy stated, "Minister Varadkar said that he would prioritise the upgrade of the N4 from Mullingar as part of his Capital Programme should he be elected Taoiseach."

YOU MAY ALSO BE INTERESTED IN WATCHING THIS VIDEO:

Leo Varadkar determined that Fine Gael reclaim Dail seat in Longford







Simon Coveney, also vowed Connacht would thrive with him at the helm.

Up to 800 party members attended round three of the Fine Gael leadership hustings in the Shearwater Hotel in Ballinasloe on Saturday.

Ambulance response times in the region are among the worst in Ireland and Minister for Social Protection Varadkar claimed he would address this.

Coveney made less promises on the night, emphasising that hed invest in a long-term 2040 plan that would, nevertheless, bring benefits to the west.



Simon Coveney, now the Housing Minister, defended his role as Agriculture Minister during the last Dail term.

The voting in the Fine Gael leadership race begins later today Monday and concludes on Friday.

ALSO READ:

N4/N5 motorway upgrade will bring new business to Longford

UNANIMOUS SUPPORT FOR N4/N5 MOTORWAY UPGRADE PROJECT AT OIREACHTAS JOINT COMMITTEE Click HERE
The mid-valley is holding one of the nation's biggest parties for the Aug. 21 total solar eclipse, and Linn-Benton Community College is bringing the balloons.

Specifically, about an hour before the eclipse begins, the college's Space Exploration Team will launch one helium balloon, about the size of a refrigerator, into the atmosphere.

The launch will take place from an Oregon State University research vessel roughly 50 kilometers off the Oregon coast. The goal: obtaining the nation's very first pictures of the moon's shadow as it begins to cross the sun.

LBCC's balloon will be carrying a payload of cameras, modems and equipment to accomplish the goal. The Space Exploration Team will be monitoring its speed, direction, altitude and the most critical part: the video feed, which NASA will stream live via its website, www.nasa.gov.

That's if everything goes just right. So to have the best shot at everything going just right, team members have been sending up practice balloons from the campus track through much of the spring. They plan another half-dozen or so between now and August.

Last week's mission had to be scrubbed: too much cloud cover to meet the Federal Aviation Administration's 50-percent-clear rule. The one before that went pretty well, except for the payload lodging in a 90-foot tree when it came down.

And this particular Saturday, May 27, came with its own complications. Liftoff went perfectly, right at noon into a cloudless sky, but the ground station wasn't receiving communication from the payload to allow it to be tracked.

"We can point it by hand, it's just not as accurate," said Levi Willmeth, the Space Exploration Team club president, adding wryly: "As long as it doesn't move, we're in great shape."

For several minutes Saturday, the balloon stayed nearly directly over the college, allowing team members to align the receiving antenna manually. When it flew too high to be seen, adviser Parker Swanson, a computer science instructor at LBCC, tracked it via ham radio signals relayed to a website he could monitor on his phone.

Once launched, the payload can be recovered in one of two ways: Either the balloon flies so high and expands so far it eventually pops (usually somewhere in the neighborhood of 100,000 feet), sending the payload parachuting to earth, or the team sends a signal to the payload to cut itself free from the tether. This can be done either through direct communication with the payload or by programming in a particular time to cut loose even if communication is lost.

Shortly after 3 p.m. Saturday, the payload and parachute came down about 12 miles northeast of the college, in a field near Freitag Road just south of Mill Creek. The balloon popped earlier than expected  rose too far, too fast, the group figures  and the parachute tangled on the way down, resulting in a rougher-than-expected landing.

Luckily, said team member Dawson Riethmayer, only the casing and part of the cutdown equipment had some damage. The rest of the materials were more or less unscathed, "which is amazing, to be honest," he said.

No matter what problems occurred Saturday, the launch will be considered a success, Riethmayer said. The collected information will show both what went wrong and what went right. "Either way, it's still great data."

LBCC is among 54 schools throughout the nation planning to live-stream the solar eclipse on Aug. 21.

It's a project sponsored by the Oregon Space Grant Consortium and is part of the NASA eclipse ballooning mission, organized largely by Montana State University. Willmeth, Swanson and others from LBCC spent a week at Montana State last summer learning about the project.

It's not the first time the LBCC Space Exploration Team  strictly an extracurricular club  has worked on a major project with NASA.

In 2015, team members designed and built an experiment to travel on a NASA sounding rocket and measure cosmic rays. Another rocket experiment last year, designed in cooperation with OSU's physics and engineering department, wasn't as successful but did lay the foundation for future advanced physics experiments on longer-duration balloons.

The connection with the federal aerospace research agency has led to prestigious opportunities for three current or former LBCC students.

Willmeth, who graduated from LBCC in December 2016 and is now a senior at OSU, is traveling this summer to Fairmont, West Virginia, for a NASA internship testing software for drones and satellites.

Brianna Smith-Sparks, a 2015 LBCC graduate and former Space Exploration Team member who graduates from OSU next month, landed a Pathways position at Johnson Space Center in Texas starting this fall.

Delphine Le Brun Colon, who will graduate from LBCC this June, will travel to Huntsville, Alabama, on a NASA internship testing RS-25 engines for the Space Launch System.

It's projects like these that help inspire the next generation of scientists, Willmeth said.

Explained Swanson: "Our job here at the college is to ignite minds."
Lifestyle / Travel

From Europe to the Americas, we find out which are the most popular holiday destinations of the wealthy this summer

May 29, 2017 | By AFP Relaxnews

When money is no obstacle, and the world is your pearl-studded oyster, wealthy travelers are more apt to jet off to Italy than any other destination. Thats according to the luxury travel agency network Virtuoso, which looked at the most popular destinations sought by their wealthiest clients in the US at member agencies around the world. For the list, experts looked at bookings made for this summer through their network which, so far, total more than $39.7 billion USD in transactions.

The list of the 10 most popular destinations is dominated by Europe, with the quartet of traditional favourites Italy, the UK, France and Spain topping the ranking.

Along with offering natural and cultural attractionsamong the most important priorities for affluent globetrottersthe strength of the US dollar against the Euro and the British pound are making Europe a particularly appealing destination for 2017.

South Africa is also a favourite for travellers looking to strike off bucket-list dreams, notably safaris and wilderness retreats. This year, Canada has also become top of mind as the country celebrates its 150th anniversary with a slew of events planned coast to coast. Canada Day is July 1. Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands are also popular, particularly for ocean and river cruisers.

Heres where wealthy American travellers are most likely to jet off to this summer, according to Virtuoso:
MONDAY

Memorial Day ceremony, 10 a.m., IOOF Cemetery, 37295 Cemetery Road, Lebanon. Organized by American Legion Post 51. Observance to include Post Everlasting ceremony, program with local organizations, flyover, display of more than 600 burial flags. If you are interested in presenting a wreath, call 541-451-1351.

Memorial Day service, 10 a.m., Crystal Lake Cemetery, 360 SW Avery Ave., Corvallis. American Legion Post 11 will host a traditional service. The program will begin with a flag ceremony by Boy Scout Troop 3 and bugler Pat Johnson. Steve Matthews will direct a group from the Corvallis Community Band in providing instrumental music. Dianne Nelson will provide vocal music. The audience will have opportunities to participate. Speakers will include Mayor Biff Traber and keynote speaker U.S. Air Force ROTC Commander Lt. Colonel Warren Brainard. Local service and fraternal organizations will place wreaths at the feet of the Old Soldier in remembrance and honor of past sacrifices for the nation. The ceremony will conclude with "Taps," played by Johnson. All, including children, are welcome.

Memorial Day ceremony, 11 a.m., Linn County Veterans Memorial, Timber Linn Park, 900 Price Road SE, Albany. Organized by American Legion Post 10, Veterans of Foreign Wars Linn Post 584 and the Linn County Veterans Memorial Association. Information: 503-559-1806.

Benton County Veterans Memorial Day program, 2 p.m., National Guard Armory, 1100 NW Kings Blvd, Corvallis. Organized by the Benton County Veterans Memorial. Information: 541-753-6410, Becki.Goslow@gmail.com or www.vetsmemorialbtco.org. Program honoring those who have served our country and those families who have sacrificed. Honoring the Greatest Generation. Keynote speakers: Clyde Marshall and A.J. Hearing, Vietnam Veterans, U.S. Marine Corps. Special guest: Brigadier Gen. William J. Edwards, OANG, Reflection of the Purple Heart Walkway of Honor, POW/MIA table, 21-gun salute, sequential "Taps."

Memorial Day patriotic program, 2:30 p.m., Imagine Coffee, 5460 SW Philomath Blvd., Corvallis. The O.K. Chorale, along with the Color Guard of Scout Troop 3 of Corvallis, will honor the men and women who served under the Stars and Stripes.

Willamette Valley Concert Band: Memorial Day Patriotic Pops Concert, 7 p.m., LaSells Stewart Center, 875 SW 26th St., Corvallis. The concert, billed as Theres No Business like Show Business, will feature show music by Irving Berlin, Henry Mancini, Richard Rodgers and George Gershwin, and patriotic music to commemorate Memorial Day. Donations will be used to fund music scholarships for area middle school band musicians. Parking is free in the Reser Stadium parking lot. Information: wvcband.org.
What hurts the Tories greatly now is that they are so remote from EU realities because of their fundamental disdain of all things European (other than perhaps fine French wines).

That deliberate cultural remoteness is a key reason why they missed the big story of the Brexit vote - that Britain's planned exit serves the rest of the EU as great glue.

The Tories have overlooked this, but Angela Merkel surely hasn't. She is actually very British in her political style. She certainly did not want the outcome of the Brexit vote as it materialized.

But now that it's there, she is determined to turn a calamity into an unexpected, but very welcome opportunity to increase the EU 27's cohesion.

Merkel not taking any of it

The reason why Juncker's dinner at Downing Street, contrary to the May Day machine's PR efforts, was no surprise was because Angela Merkel signaled as much in her speech to the German parliament in late April.

Merkel - usually not a woman of clear words - left no doubt that she considers May's negotiating strategy totally unrealistic. That is why, for all intents and purposes, Merkel decided to interfere in the British elections.

When she said in the German Bundestag that the deal May envisions can't be had, she destroyed her British colleague's artfully created narrative.

Merkel never takes kindly to upstarts who try to rock the boat, whether for reasons of vanity, immaturity or lack of realism.

The likely reason for Merkel's drastic step is that she believes that Theresa May feels so encouraged and resolute in her stance because she is stuck listening to her own echo chamber.

The Tories miscalculated badly: Merkel not only stands 100% behind the EU 27's chosen path. She has been pretty much the one pushing for it, realizing that the EU will not have a better reason to re-learn how to stand together than through Theresa May's gift of folly.

From Berlin's vantage point

On this issue, even amidst a brewing campaign in Germany ahead of the September elections, in which Merkel seeks a fourth term as chancellor, Merkel and her grand coalition partner, the SPD, stand completely united.

That is also why the hopes pedaled by some "strategists" in London (really Tory propagandists) that an SPD-led government would be more lenient toward the UK exiting is a flight of fancy.

In fact, long though the odds may be, the German government believes that its - and all of Europe's - interests are best served by England coming to its senses at some point and abandoning Brexit.

That is one more reason why May's willingness to prefer "no deal" to a "bad deal" may turn into one of the biggest own goals in diplomatic history.

The Federal Republic has long operated on the basis of one core conviction: Only an EU with the UK still on the inside is a really strong EU.

But Berlin draws a very different conclusion from that than does London. From the German vantage point, it means that playing tough with the Brexiteers is just what this longshot strategy requires.

It decidedly does not mean that the German government would lean over backwards to accommodate the UK on its exit strategy. That is another profound miscalculation in London.

Germany not ready to compromise

Germany's strategy toward the UK is driven by whatever it can do to strengthen the critical dimension of market-oriented thinking in the European economy (that it regards as deficient in several other EU economies).

As a consequence, there is no appetite whatsoever in Germany for compromise with the Tories, although the latter - in their increasing despair - still hope for it down the stretch.

From the German vantage point, a different logic would only apply to a UK revising the Brexit agenda and wanting to stay inside the EU.

Even if May were to obtain a "strong mandate" from the voters in June, in the rest of Europe this would largely be interpreted as a strong, but surreal "refusenik" vote that abstracts from people's own economic interests.

But there is more bad news for May. Her snap elections are ill-timed. The Brexit camp's central narrative - we in the UK are doing so much better than the rest of the EU - is crumbling just as she has chosen to launch an election campaign.

Not only are there visible storm clouds on the British economy's horizon, but the EU economy - the supposed graveyard of Britain's dynamism - is showing signs of real recovery.

May: Trump of Europe?

Politicians on the continent have a clear appreciation that the Brexit vote was first and foremost a "venting" vote.

British working class voters, too cowed to see the Tories for what they are, were directed to vent their anger against Brussels as a veritable pinata , to ensure that they don't direct their anger at British elites.

Far from May's erstwhile hopes to lead a sovereignty revolution, she is increasingly revealing herself as the Trump of Europe: Whatever strategic mistakes she commits - and there are many - she is instinctively inclined to blame other nations for her own flaws and miscalculations.

Just consider her latest assertion that the EU 27's consolidated position on Brexit leads to foreign-imposed "uncertainty and instability" and brings "grave risk to our growing economy with higher taxes, fewer jobs, more waste and more debt."

In short: She is already prepared to throw all the fear-mongering Tory propaganda into the bathtub.

In her increasing shrillness, May is beginning to sound like Marine LePen, of France's Front National. This expresses itself not just in their joint ardent border-closing mindset.

It also manifests itself in the illusory belief that "sovereignty" has wealth-creating functions for lower-class workers.

To some, this comparison, though it is real, may seem unfair. But even those voices should ask themselves about one perhaps inconvenient, but still powerful basic fact of European history - guilt by association.

In conclusion, the real surprise about May's Brexit strategy is that it represents a big departure from the unflinchingly reality-based political assessments that have been the hallmark of Britain's international policies for centuries.

To date, the UK has not been known to hang the outcome of an iffy national strategy on a reed. But Theresa May is trying just that.

Stephan Richter ist Herausgeber und Chefredakteur von The Globalist .
London : More than a third of British Airways flights from Londons Heathrow Airport have been cancelled, leaving thousands of passengers stranded for the second day today following a major global computer failure for which a workers union blamed outsourcing to India. Sunday departures from Gatwick, Londons other major airport, are delayed, but none have been cancelled. The airline urged people to check the status of flights before travelling to the airport. British Airways had earlier said it plans to resume most of its flights out of Heathrow and Gatwick airports today following major IT system disruption that had grounded planes yesterday.

"

We are aiming to operate a near-normal schedule at Gatwick and the majority of services from Heathrow on Sunday,? the airline said. A BA spokesperson added: "We are continuing to work hard to restore all of our IT systems. We are extremely sorry for the huge disruption caused to customers throughout Saturday and understand how frustrating their experiences will have been. "We are refunding or rebooking customers who suffered cancellations on to new services as quickly as possible and have also introduced more flexible rebooking policies for anyone due to travel on Sunday and Monday who no longer wishes to fly to/from Heathrow or Gatwick."

Thousands of passengers had their travel plans disrupted as a result of the problem, with one workers? union blaming the outsourcing of IT jobs to India for the chaos, a claim denied by the airline. "We would never compromise the integrity and security of our IT systems," BA said in reference to GMB union?s claim. BA chief executive Alex Cruz had said it was believed "the root cause [of the computer problems] was a power supply issue". The company said there was no evidence the failure was the result of a cyber attack. The airline is expected to have to pay out huge sums in compensation, including the cost of hotels, transport and meal expenses for stranded passengers. PTI
MARTINSVILLE-The service begins at noon today, as a way of paying tribute to fallen soldiers. S.T. Fulcher, director of Roselawn Funeral Home, Roselawn Burial Park and the VSO Committee of Martinsville, will hold a special memorial at the Roselawn Chapel, one of several being held throughout the area today.

The most important thing is that a lot of people gave their lives for this country while fighting in foreign combat, Fulcher said.

Also, Fulcher noted that many of the area veterans who fought in World War II are leaving very, very quickly.

Making the ultimate sacrifice, Roselawns event strives to remember those who have passed away. Fulcher also hopes to honor living veterans by showing support for the sacrifices they made.

The service will honor the memory of two local veterans, General Robert Bob Petty and Charles Barney Reed, Jr.

Petty, whose remains are buried at Roselawn Cemetery, was a brigadier general who served in the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War. The veteran received several honors for his service, including a Bronze Star Medal, two Legion of Merit awards and a Meritorious Service Medal. Petty served his country in England, Japan, Scotland and Vietnam.

Reed served in the United States Navy for six years, from 1940 to 1946. He was a high-speed code operator, Radioman Second Class, on Admiral Turners flagship, USS Eldorado, during the Pacific Theater operations at Iwo Jima and Okinawa, according to Reeds obituary.

They were very familiar to a lot of members of the veteran community, Fulcher said about Petty and Reed.

Fulcher said that 18 members of Reeds family are expected to attend the service on Monday, as well as members of Pettys family.

Roselawn will honor the veterans by placing their pictures and biographies on a table at the front of the chapel and will present the families with a plaque.

The ceremony will also honor prisoners of war and American soldiers who are missing in action.

We still have a lot of soldiers listed as missing in action and we dont know what happened to them or where theyre at, Fulcher said. Weve got a whole lot of men and women who are unaccounted for.

The keynote speaker at the event will be Virginia Congressman Morgan Griffith and Rev. David Gilleran will give the Memorial Day Dedication and will lead the Memorial Prayer. The U.S. Army National Guard 29th Infantry Band will perform special music, and Bob Norris will play the bagpipe during the POW/MIA Tribute by AMVETS.

Cadets from the Magna Vista High School JROTC will assist with the flag and will help local veteran Billy Barbour place the Memorial Day Wreath. Placing and retrieval of the POW/MIA Flag will be conducted by SCPO Michael Stewart.

Its a way to pay homage to the veterans who have served our county, Fulcher said. Its paying respect to those who have served so honorably and have put their lives on the line to secure our freedom.

There will also be a service at Peoples Cemetery at 10:30 a.m. The event will take place at the end of Second Street in Martinsville. 16th District Delegate Les Adams will speak at the ceremony, along with W.C. Fowlkes, Ret. Lt. Col.  U.S. Army.
Given their recent track record it is not necessary to be a brave man in order to tell the pollsters they are talking 'blx'. Well, I'm rarely brave when it comes to making political forecasts, just dumb, as my record of totally wrong predictions indicates - it's alright, JK, no need to dredge through the archives, I'm pleading guilty!

However, the story from the pollsters that somehow, in some way, 'Jezza' Corbyn and his collective of Trots and loonies are seriously giving the vicar's daughter a hard run during this election is a load of old 'cobblers'. The mythical ice cream in hell has a better chance than the Labour party! Of course, should I prove to be wrong then an imminent migration to Outer Mongolia might be in order before the iron curtain slams down.

Yes, there was a cock-up with the Tory announcement concerning charges for elderly care. It stemmed, in my view, from Mrs. May's 'uber-loyalty' to that pair of dipsticks in her back office who sit to her right and left. Neither of them are practicing politicians and she would have done much better to run it past some of her cabinet before announcing it. None of them are exactly the brightest lights on the Xmas tree but they can usually be relied upon to spot a monster turd flying in their direction!

Even so, I truly cannot believe for a second that the GBP (Great British Public) will do anything other than shower 'Jezza' and his comrades with offal.

(Now, I must just pop over to the Church next door to pray that I'm right - for a change!)
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Judges for MassLive's Best of Mass Sushi competition visited the five Western Massachusetts finalists Friday, trying creations like the Hu Ke Lau's cheese-covered TNT roll and Iya sushi's honey-tinged Bumble Crunch.

The trip included visits to Hu Ke Lau in Chicopee, South Hadley's Iya Sushi and Noodle Kitchen, Blue Water Sushi in Ludlow, Osaka in Northampton and Master Chef in South Hadley.

The restaurants made up half of the 10 finalists nominated and voted on by MassLive readers. Judges visited the Eastern and Central Mass. contestants on May 24.

Check out photos from the judging in the gallery above, and video clips -- including live sushi-making demonstrations -- in the playlist below.

And see photos from the Eastern and Central Mass. finalists here:
Working with the Smithsonian Institution, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum and private collectors, the Springfield Museums will honor the legacy of slain President John F. Kennedy in an upcoming exhibit.

"Jack & Jackie: The Kennedys in the White House" -- running Dec. 7, 2017 through March 25, 2018 -- will celebrate the lives of the 35th president and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. It will not only highlight the White House years of 1961-1963, but also honor the 2017 centennial of JFK's birth.

"Its wonderful that it is happening during the centennial, said Kay Simpson, executive director of the Springfield Museums.

Kennedy, who was born in Brookline on May 29, 1917, was assassinated in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.

The Springfield Museums, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, will exhibit 27 photographs on loan from the National Museum of American History in Washington.

The Richard Avedon photographs will anchor the Springfield Museums exhibition, providing a glimpse into the Kennedys' personal life, while also documenting their public image.

These are the iconic photographs everyone knows of JFK, Jackie, Caroline and John-John and what we call 'Camelot.' Simpson said. The photographs are intimate and beautiful.

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U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, has worked on behalf of the museums to obtain items from the JFK Library in Boston and the Library of Congress in Washington for the exhibit, Simpson said,

Neal, seen above with a transcript of JFK's inaugural address at the Library of Congress,said that "100 years after John F. Kennedys birth, the energy, purpose and hope of the new frontier continues to inspire countless people across the globe to this day."

"I count myself among those who still believe public service is a noble and meaningful endeavor because of his dynamic example. And while President Kennedys term lasted only a thousand days, he challenged the American people to give back to their country, sought to restore Americas confidence, and pledged to seek a more peaceful world. He once said that 'as we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live them.' As we celebrate his life, let us remember his call to action and continue to work together to make the United States a more perfect union.

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Building on the momentum of the Wood Museum of Springfield History's 2013 exhibition titled "The John F. Kennedy Experience: An Exhibit by Frank J. Andruss Sr." the Springfield Museums will also highlight local connections to the Kennedy presidency and offer exciting programming, Simpson said.

JFK's campaign swings through Western Massachusetts during in his senate and presidential runs will be recalled, as well as his many visits to the area, she said.

Photographs from The Republican archives will make up part of the exhibit.

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Jacqueline Kennedys fashion and her work to improve the White House will also be part of "Jack & Jackie: The Kennedys in the White House."

She had an impact on fashion and she elevated the stature of the White House, Simpson said.

The former first lady, who died in 1994, is remembered for her contributions to the arts and preservation of historic architecture, including her pivotal role in saving Grand Central Terminal from demolition.

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In addition to the exhibit, related events will include:

The Museums are in discussion to host Caroline Kennedy at the Springfield Public Forum in the fall of 2017.

On Nov. 22, 2017, a remembrance ceremony will be held at the Eternal Flame in Springfield's Forest Park.

The Museums a la Carte noontime lecture held on Dec. 7, 2017 will feature Shannon Perich, Curator of Photographic History Collection at the National Museum of American History, discussing the photographs of the Kennedys taken by Richard Avedon in 1961.

The Holiday Gala, themed to Camelot, will open the exhibition on Dec. 7, 2017. Shannon Perich, and other dignitaries from the Smithsonian, will be a featured guest.

The Culture and Cocktails public event on Dec. 14, 2017 will also be themed to Camelot and feature the Smithsonian Jazz Master Works Orchestra playing music from the 1960s.

Additional lectures and programs, to be determined, will take place in January, February and March of 2018.

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Thirty years ago, this week, a federal report stating that the average price of gasoline would probably be over $1-a-gallon that summer. The report predicted a slowing in the growth of driving over the summer season. The average price per gallon the previous summer was $.87.

Later in the week the first edition of The Union~News was published. The newspaper reported that over 200 newsroom personnel would bring information to the residents of Western Massachusetts seven days a week. Nine editions of the Union~News were published on a daily basis.

Twenty years earlier, a Memorial Day story reflecting on the Western Massachusetts casualties from the war in Vietnam. For example, the names of nine Pittsfield men were remembered that Memorial Day. One casualty from 1965, six from 1966, and two more up to that point in 1967.

After the ceremonies and parades, many area residents spent the day outdoors. This 1967 photo from Forest Park in Springfield showed the jam of thousands of automobiles trying to make their way through the park.

From the May 31, 1967 edition of The Springfield Union

These are some of the headlines you'll see from Page 1 of The Republican and its predecessors over the past fifty years for the week of May 28 - June 3. Each week I'll put together a slideshow of Page 1 images from selected years over the course of that week. We're starting with a look back at one, five, thirty, forty and fifty years ago, with Page 1s from each day of the week for those years.

The slideshow for May May 28 - June 3 is embedded at the top of this article.

We'll also find some humor printed out on page one over the years. In 1967 'Dennis The Menace' could be found on the bottom of page one six days a week.

From the June 1, 1967 edition of The Springfield Union

Five years ago this week Elizabeth Warren was endorsed by 95% of the delegates at the state Democratic convention in Springfield. She was the party's choice to run against Republican U.S. Senator Scott Brown in November.

And a year ago S. Prestley Blake's recreation of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Somers, sold at auction. The auction was conducted live in the home and was open only to those invited as qualified buyers. Blake spent $8 million to build the scaled down and updated replica. The purchase price at the auction was for $2.125 million.



As you'll find with looking through the slideshow, that while many stories come and go, many of the issues and topics that affected lives in the past, continue to have an impact on our lives today.

Copies of these and other stories can be found in the online archives. The Historic Archive includes stories from 1824 to 1989, and the Newsbank Archive covers 1988 through the present day.
METHUEN - A 16-year-old Methuen youth is being treated for a serious gunshot wound and a second youth in under arrest, police said.

According to a statement posted on the Methuen Police Department Facebook page, three youths were handling a handgun at about 4:30 p.m. Saturday when one was shot in the shoulder.

The wounded youth was transported to a Boston Hospital where he was admitted with what police describe as a serious but non-life-threatening gunshot wound.

After a brief investigation police attempted to arrest the 17-year-old juvenile in his home but were assaulted by the youth as he fought off being arrested.

Police have charged the 17-year-old youth with possession of a firearm without a license, possession of ammunition, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling and assault and battery on a police officer.

He is being held in lieu of $5,000 cash bail pending an appearance in court Monday.

The incident remains under investigation as police are working with K9 units to locate the handgun used in the shooting.
AMHERST -- More than a hundred public safety personnel, elected officials and scouts of all ages filled VFW Post 754 Monday for Memorial Day ceremonies held inside after the annual parade was canceled because of the threat of rain.

A contingent of scouts and veterans marched from the Town Common to the VFW anyway and the rain held off until the end of the events, but officials decided to be safe rather than sorry.

Rob McAllister, a member of the Airborne Long-Range Surveillance and Reconnaissance team who participated in the invasion of Iraq in 2003, told those in attendance that serving in the military is "about selfless service."

"It's about people who went and fought for this country and unfortunately lost their lives on the foreign field of battle," said McAllister, who was awarded a Purple Heart as well as the Bronze Star with Valor.

McAllister said he attended Norwich University -- a private military college in Northfield, Vermont -- but decided a military career wasn't for him. So, he became a ski bum for a while and took classes at other schools.

But then came the Sept. 11 terror attacks. "I was upset... I wanted to fight for my country," he said.

He understood then that joining the military is "the most selfless thing."

"There's that thing that's bigger than you as an individual. I will never do something as big as serving my country," he said.

Before she offered her prayer, VFW Chaplain Anita Morris read an excerpt from a story in the Air Force Times to link the ceremonies to the contemporary struggles of war, to remind people that the day is more than just cookouts.

"This fall will mark 16 years that American troops have been engaged in Afghanistan fighting al-Qaida and the Taliban -- a war of unprecedented duration," she read.

The passage noted that some of today's soldiers serving in Afghanistan were toddlers at the time of the Sept. 11 attacks, and that more than 2,000 American soldiers have died there while another 20,000 have been wounded.

"Even as we commemorate the past, we must consider the many dangers we are confronting today and those that lie ahead," she read.

Veterans Director Steven Connor, state Rep. Solomon Goldstein-Rose, D-Amherst, and Select Board member Connie Kruger also spoke.

Goldstein-Rose read a Memorial Day proclamation from Gov. Charlie Baker.

The ceremonies also included the reading of the names of veterans who died in the last year.
Like many nations, the United States pauses each year to honor those who died in its defense through military service. The custom is an ancient one, recalling a speech by the Athenian statesman Pericles that the casualties of war are worthy men and "the living need not have a more heroic spirit."

On Monday, May 29, Memorial Day, in communities across America, there will be speeches striking similar themes and a moment of silence will be observed. Like the poppies in Flanders Fields [World War I battlefields in Belgium described in a famous poem], small flags will be seen among the graves in the nation's many military cemeteries and the families of the fallen will stop to remember.

Beyond mere ceremony, the day represents a debt paid by the living to those Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure their countrys freedom. Some died in battle, some of disease. Others were lost in foreign prisons and never returned. Most died very young, defending their nations ideals and liberties perhaps even before they had much of a chance to fully appreciate them. Hundreds of thousands died fighting to make others free too, in North Africa, Europe, the Pacific, Asia and the Middle East.

Memorial Day honors no single battle or war. Its meaning transcends heroic monuments. Rather, it is the recognition by a grateful nation that lives and blood lost in defense of its freedoms are never given in vain.
HOLYOKE -- Natives of Guatemala and Mexico will receive citations from the mayor on June 5 in one of numerous events here marking June as National Immigrant Heritage Month.

"There's a lot of immigrant pride in Holyoke, where people come from, Polish, Canadian, Irish backgrounds. For us it's a time to celebrate immigrants," Kate Preissler, director of Wistariahurst Museum, 238 Cabot St., said in an interview Thursday.

Such a series of events also is intended to show that Holyoke is a community, said Andres Villada, special assistant to Mayor Alex B. Morse.

"Like the mayor always says, Holyoke is a welcoming place, they don't have to live in fear," Villada said.

Morse will present citations to Marikler Toensmeier, who was born in Guatemala City, Guatemala and works as community building and engagement manager for WayFinders, a nonprofit that helps people get safe places to live, and Iohann Rashi Vega, who was born in Mexico City, Mexico, who works in media production for youth at Gandara Center, said a press release from the mayor's office.

This is the second year Morse has celebrated National Immigrant Heritage Month by recognizing individuals' contributions, the press release said.

Toensmeier and Vega will receive citations in a reception on June 5 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Wistariahurst, the press release said.

The reception will include the art of Steven Huerta and remarks by state Rep. Aaron M. Vega, D-Holyoke, on the importance of Holyoke continuing to be a welcoming community. The reception is free and open to the public, the press release said.

Other events include:

Immigration rights and training workshop, June 6, 4:30 p.m., Holyoke Health Center, 230 Maple St.

Journeys Home: Perspectives on Immigration, June 7, 6 to 7 p.m., Holyoke Heritage State Park, 221 Appleton St.

An exhibit of the family and personal histories shared with the Nuestros Senderos Project, June 10, 2 to 5 p.m., Holyoke Public Library, community room, 250 Chestnut St.

Historical lecture with professor Ginetta Candelario of Smith College, June 14, 6 to 7 p.m., Wistariahurst.

Screening of documentary "Documented," June 21, 5:30 p.m., Holyoke Senior Center, 291 Pine St.

Lived Realities of Immigration: Mexican and Undocumented in the United States, June 28, 6 to 7:30 p.m., Wistariahurst.

"Who Makes Holyoke Home," picnic in the garden, June 29, 5 to 7 p.m., Wistariahurst.

For more information visit wistariahurst.org
CHICOPEE - A somber ceremony at Vietnam Veterans' Memorial Park paid respects to 15 men from Chicopee who gave their lives in the war, and to all fallen American military heroes.

On Sunday evening, Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 111 held its 25th annual Memorial Day ceremony at the park on Chicopee Street.

"What we do now is try to remember, and preserve those memories," said Mayor Richard Kos, addressing more than 50 people in attendance, including the families of fallen service members. "What people have gone through is not forgotten, is not ignored."

Upon returning from Vietnam, many veterans were harassed by anti-war protesters, spat upon and blamed for the war that killed hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians. Those stories weighed heavily on the minds of many veterans at Sunday's ceremony.

"I know that America did not treat our returning veterans very well during Vietnam," said state Sen. Don Humason, R-Westfield, who represents the ward in which the memorial stands. "We now know how to welcome them home the right way, and to praise them, and to tell them how much we appreciate their service.

"I think we learned that because of the mistakes we made after Vietnam," he added.

David Chapdelaine, former president of Vietnam Veterans of America Chapter 111, recalled protests at Westover Air Reserve Base and other military bases in Massachusetts during the Gulf War. Contemporary reporting from The Republican said 200 protesters were arrested at Westover alone.

"Happily, veterans are treated much better today," said Chapdelaine.

A candle lighting ceremony honored those missing in action, and allied soldiers from around the world who have fought and died alongside the U.S. in numerous conflicts since World War I.

Larry White, a member of the organization, read an original poem called "We Want Our Country Back." Before he began, he said the spirits of the fallen were in attendance, and wondered what they would say if they could speak to the living.

"They're not on the walls right now," he said, referring to the 15 memorial plaques that adorn pillars at the park. "They're here with us. ... We need to hear them."

A Memorial Day parade planned for Monday has been canceled due to inclement weather in the forecast. A ceremony will take place at the American Legion Post 452 on Exchange Street at 10 a.m., and the public is welcome to attend.

The 15 Chicopee men killed during the Vietnam War were: Army Sgt. Carl L. Glasscock, Army Cpl. Edward P. Stefanik, Army Pfc. Roger J. Dumont, Marine Sgt. Harold J. Gilbert, Army Sgt. Robert R. Litwin, Army Lt. Robert O. Gagne, Army Pfc. Zygmunt P. Jablonski Jr., Navy Chief Petty Officer Donald E. Kulacz, Marine Cpl. Robert R. Tolpa, Army Spc. John J. Laskowski, Army Spc. Thomas J. Wilk, Army Pfc. Robert R. Dowds, Army Spc. Michael P. Bouchard, Army 1st Lt. Mark H. Rivest and Marine Pfc. Edward J. Downey Jr.
SOUTH HADLEY -- Connecticut River Conservancy executive director Andrew Fisk will speak at the South Hadley community group Know Your Town's annual dinner meeting on Thursday, discussing climate change and its impact on the river.

Fisk has been the conservancy's leader for six years. The Greenfield-based organization was founded in 1952 to address pollution in the river.

His address is titled, "Living in a Changed Climate: What does it mean for the Connecticut River and what should we do about it?"

Fisk earned a doctorate in environmental science and land use policy from Rutgers University in 1995.

Prior to joining the conservancy, he was bureau director for Land & Water Quality at the Maine Department of Environmental Protection from 2003 to 2011.

"Though it may not appear glamorous, our day-to-day work stretches from the Canadian border to the tides of Long Island Sound and helps preserve an amazing natural heritage for future generations," the Connecticut River Conservancy's website says.

The June 1 Know Your Town event takes place at 5:30 p.m. at Willits Hallowell Center on the Mount Holyoke College campus. For information about Know Your Town or to attend the dinner, contact Martha Terry at marthaterry25@gmail.com.
Police say a 38-year-old Massachusetts man was drunk when he struck a woman with his van in Stoughton Sunday night.

Vairo Martins of Whitman is accused of striking a woman with his van while she crossed Park Street in Stoughton around 9:35 p.m. The woman was taken to a Boston hospital with serious injuries.

Authorities said Martins failed field sobriety tests at the scene. He was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, negligent driving and unlicensed driving.

Police closed the intersection where the woman was struck for several hours as they investigated.
SPRINGFIELD -- The man accused of setting fires in the city's Old Hill and Bay neighborhoods that displaced dozens of residents in March has denied six arson charges in Hampden Superior Court.

Bail was set Thursday at $250,000 for Mardell Davis, 30, of Maryland.

That is the same bail amount as set in his Springfield District Court arraignment. Indictments by a Hampden Superior Court grand jury moved the case to Superior Court.

Davis is accused of setting the fires on Union, Hancock and Andrew streets.

Five apartment buildings or multi-family homes at 282, 286 and 292 Union St., plus 125 Andrew St. and 185 Hancock St., were set on fire after midnight on March 12. Nearby homes also were damaged by flames, officials said.

Fire units from surrounding communities rushed to the scenes to assist Springfield firefighters.

Davis is also accused in a Maryland rape case and is wanted on a warrant in that state.
The United States and Saudi Arabia are dedicating themselves to a new strategic partnership for the 21st century, and to charting a renewed path toward a peaceful Middle East marked by economic development, trade, and diplomacy, said U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

The United States and Saudi Arabia announced the signing of more than 30 agreements representing foreign military sales and commercial deals valued at more than $350 billion if fully implemented; $109 billion of that is in arms sales to bolster the security of Saudi Arabia. This will result in thousands of American jobs created through direct investments in the United States and purchases of American goods, American equipment, and American technology. American companies' bottom lines will also benefit from increased investments into Saudi Arabia.

The defense packages fall into five broad categories: border security and counterterrorism, maritime and coastal security, air force modernization, air and missile defense, and cyber security and communications upgrades.

The package of defense equipment and services supports the long-term security of Saudi Arabia and the entire Gulf region, said Secretary Tillerson, in particular in the face of malign Iranian influence and Iranian-related threats which exist on Saudi Arabias borders on all sides.

Additionally, it bolsters Saudi Arabias ability to provide for its own security and to contribute to counterterrorism operations across the region.

In an effort to win the battle for the hearts and souls of would-be terrorists, Saudi Arabia has opened the new Global Center for Combatting Extremist Ideology. It is intended to be a Saudi-led hub for defeating extremism in the information world. It is critical to take on ISIS in cyberspace, said Mr. Tillerson, as this is their recruiting tool. This is how they message to lone wolves around the world.

Gulf Cooperation Council members, including Saudi Arabia, have signed a new agreement with the United States to combat terrorist financing.

Moreover, Gulf Cooperation Council members, including Saudi Arabia, have signed a new agreement with the United States to combat terrorist financing. The Terrorist Financing Targeting Center, co-chaired by the Treasury Department and the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Interior, represents a new and creative response that leverages existing tools and formalizes cooperation between the United States, Saudi Arabia and partners in the Gulf to counter terrorist financing.

This new Terrorist Financing Targeting Center will enhance existing tools and cooperation with partners in the Gulf to forcefully address evolving threats, said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

These steps will serve to create a renewed strategic partnership between the United States and Saudi Arabia aimed at eradicating terrorism and strengthening economic development and peace.
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The only thing that changed Thursday night was that Greg Gianforte went from candidate to Congress.

Not like thats a small feat, especially given the events of this past week, which included the soon-to-be congressman being cited for assault.

The title notwithstanding, nothing has changed in our view.

By that we mean: The seven-point victory margin doesnt erase the Bozeman Republicans actions. The apology doesnt square the deal.

Forgiven? Maybe  thats not for us to decide.

Forgotten? It cannot be.

By THE BILLINGS GAZETTE EDITORIAL BOARD

Full Story: http://billingsgazette.com/opinion/editorial/gazette-opinion-representative-or-not-it-s-still-a-matter/article_9a2fdf9c-bab4-509b-9445-4705ef98ff24.html
All I do is work. I merely exist. I dont get out much because traffic is terrible and parking is terrible. I dont like that public transportation takes a long time to travel a short distance, eg 30 minutes for 4.5 miles not including the time waiting on a bus or train. More deets in the comments

https://www.quora.com/Is-it-time-to-leave-San-Francisco

***

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Whether you are interested in locating your business here, starting a new one, or expanding an existing business, we are ready and able to assist you. Let one of our team members answer any questions you have, and direct you to the best resources available to help your venture succeed. http://business.mt.gov/
President Donald Trump received both pageantry and a warm reception on his first trip to the Middle East.

Whether bowing his head to receive the King Abdulaziz al Saud Collar from Saudi Arabian King Salman, gathering around the glowing orb at the Global Center for Combating Extremist Ideology in Riyadh or standing at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Trump played the leader of a superpower. His hosts went along.

King Salman and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wanted a warm, public interaction with the U.S. president, something neither had with former U.S. President Barack Obama. Trump delivered.

But in policy terms, the trip did not address how Trump will grapple with the core problems the United States has with each of these close allies, Saudi Arabia and Israel. Trump is an entertainer, not a diplomat. The Mideast leg of this trip reinforced that he values imagery over policy.

As an expert on U.S. policy in the Middle East and on Arab-Israeli relations, I think it is clear that Trumps hopes for regional stability or an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement  outcomes that require detailed policy  rest on shaky ground. Will he go beyond merely meeting Israeli and Saudi demands for positive public images and the exchange of kind words?

Helping Saudi Arabia, undermining Iran

On the question of challenging Irans alliances and regional leadership aspirations, Trump and Netanyahu spoke much more harshly than Obama. In his speech in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Trump said, Iran has fueled the fires of sectarian conflict and terror. It is a government that speaks openly of mass murder, vowing the destruction of Israel, death to America, and ruin for many leaders and nations in this room.

But Trump has not yet tried to undo the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, despite his campaign promises. Perhaps he will try to squeeze the agreement indirectly by increasing sanctions against Iran on the basis of other issues, such as terrorism or human rights violations. But squeezing Iran would be a tough sell to U.S. rivals like Russia and China, or even major European allies who generally like the existing agreement with Iran.

Still, Trumps visit to Riyadh made clear he is firmly on Saudi Arabias side in its regional cold war with Iran. Iran and Saudi Arabia both aspire to be the leading power in the Middle East. They arent fighting each other directly, but rather by arming and aiding allies in civil wars in nearby Syria and Yemen.

Trumps deepening of the U.S. commitment to Saudi Arabia was most tangibly signaled by the massive arms commitment and the disinterest in both democracy and human rights questions or any public discussion of Saudi Arabias role in the war in Yemen.

Trumps short time in Saudi Arabia left the central contradiction of his approach unexplored. In Trumps words, the United States will successfully achieve the aim of stamping out extremism with Saudi Arabia as a lead partner.

But how is that feasible when Saudi Arabias repressive regime, ideology and wealth have helped create the environment in which Islamist extremism thrives? The Saudi government is a dictatorship lacking protections for free speech or a free press. Moreover, though U.S.-Saudi cooperation on the matter has improved in recent years, private Saudi money has flowed to violent radicals, including al-Qaida.

Israeli-Palestinian peace?

With the Israeli government, Trump changed the tone and atmospherics compared with Obama. Trump and the Israeli prime minister have similar worldviews and, in public, seem genuinely excited to be working together.

But even with this visit to Israel, it remains unclear how much U.S. policy will shift. Like Obama and many previous U.S. presidents, Trump has pressed Israel to curtailsettlement construction in the West Bank. He seems interested in solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and creating peace, as he told both Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, although no process is yet apparent.

Is it bluster or substance?

Its hard to tell. On this trip, Trump avoided mentioning a two-state solution, the usual proposal offered to address competing Israeli and Palestinian demands. Perhaps Trump hopes Arab states will put pressure on Palestinians in order to achieve some other kind of regional peace deal, but he and his advisers offered no concrete plan.

In the next year or two, the Trump administration will have to make choices about its Middle East policy. Either warmly embrace Saudi Arabia or comprehensively address the roots of extremism. Either warmly embrace the Israeli government and its distaste for a two-state solution, or pursue Israeli-Palestinian peace. If the administration wants to use this trip to develop actual U.S. policy, it will need to make hard choices and offer specific details.
As more and more of us admit to being unable to imagine our lives without a smartphone, a new study investigates the impact of technology on parenting and child behavior. Share on Pinterest New research suggests that parental use of technology might lead to bad behavior in children. The American Psychological Association (APA) report that in 2015, almost half of people in the United States said that they could not imagine life without a smartphone. According to their data, almost every U.S. adult (99 percent) owns one or more electronic device, including desktop computers, smartphones, tablets, and televisions. Additionally, the amount of people who use social media has risen from 7 percent in 2005 to 65 percent in 2015. The APA cite multiple studies that have shown how the use of technology negatively impacts adults mental and physical well-being. But what is the effect of technology on children? More specifically, how does parents use of technology affect their childrens behavior? Researchers from the University of Michigan C.S. Mott Childrens Hospital (Mott) in Ann Arbor, and Illinois State University in Normal, set out to examine this. The study co-authors are Dr. Jenny Radesky, a child behavior expert and pediatrician at Mott, and Brandon T. McDaniel, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences at Illinois State University. The new research was published in the journal Child Development.

Studying the link between technoference and childrens bad behavior Previous studies have found a correlation between poor parent-child interaction and extensive parental use of digital technology. However, to the authors knowledge, no studies have yet examined technologys impact on child behavior. The new study asks whether or not heavy use of digital technology by the parent correlates with technology-related interruptions in the interaction between the parent and the child. This kind of interference is coined technoference by McDaniel, and the study examines whether there is a correlation between technoference and child behavioral issues. Radesky and McDaniel examined reports from 170 two-parent U.S. families, whose children were aged just over 3 years, on average. The researchers asked mothers and fathers about their use of smartphones, laptops, and tablets, and other technological devices. The study looked at how these devices interrupted the time spent together in the family, from checking texts during dinner, playtime, or other activities, to conversations that parents engage in with their children. Parents were asked to rate their childrens behavior over the past 2 months, reporting on how often their children whined, sulked, showed signs of hyperactivity, were irritable, or easily became frustrated. Radesky and McDaniel adjusted for various factors such as signs of stress or depression in the parents, the income and level of education, and the quality of co-parenting  that is, how supportive parents were of each other.
For the most part, individuals who receive treatment for depression  through medication, psychotherapy, or a combination of both  make a full recovery. However, statistics suggest that only a third of patients with severe depression actively seek treatment.

Depression is a generally defined as a condition characterized by feelings of sadness, emptiness, and hopelessness that persist for at least 2 weeks. Symptoms may also include feelings of guilt, worthlessness, fatigue , problems concentrating, and thoughts of death or suicide.

The researchers recently presented their findings at the 29th Association for Psychological Science Annual Convention , held in Boston, MA.

Study co-leader Eva-Maria Stelzer, of the University of Arizona in Tucson, and colleagues found that adults with depression who took part in bouldering for 8 weeks experienced significant improvements in symptoms of the condition.

Bouldering is a form of rock climbing that does not include the use of harnesses or ropes. The sport often involves low-level climbing, but with complicated routes.

More than 15 million adults in the United States are affected by depression, making it one of the most common mental health disorders in the country. But a new study suggests that there may be a surprising way to help combat this debilitating condition: bouldering.

For their study, Stelzer and colleagues set out to investigate whether bouldering might have a beneficial impact for people with symptoms of depression.

Bouldering, in many ways, is a positive physical activity, says Stelzer. There are different routes for your physical activity level, and theres a social aspect along with the feeling of an immediate accomplishment when bouldering.

The study included more than 100 adults from Germany who were randomly allocated to one of two groups. One group immediately started bouldering, while the other group had to wait to start the sport.

Both groups took part in bouldering for 3 hours per week for a total of 8 weeks, and the majority of participants were new to the sport.

At various points throughout the study, the severity of depressive symptoms among participants was assessed using the Becks Depression Inventory and the Symptom Check List Revised.

The researchers found that the participants who immediately began bouldering experienced a 6.27-point improvement in Becks Depression scores. For the same time period, however, the group that waited to boulder only showed a 1.4-point improvement.

According to the team, the improvement in the Becks Depression score seen in the immediate bouldering group represents a change in depression severity from moderate to mild.

Stelzer notes that bouldering requires high levels of concentration, which is likely what makes the sport beneficial for people with depression, given that rumination is a problem for such individuals.

You have to be mindful and focused on the moment. It does not leave much room to let your mind wonder on things that may be going on in your life  you have to focus on not falling, she explains.

All in all, the team believes that bouldering might be a beneficial addition to current treatments for individuals with depression, and it may even help people with other mental health disorders.

Id always encourage patients to do the sport they like  may it be climbing or something else  as sport is a wonderful possibility to prevent all possible sorts of illnesses, mental and physical. Study co-leader Katharina Luttenberger, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany

Learn how eating low-fat milk and yogurt might help to reduce depression risk.
Menopause is a transitional time, after which it is no longer possible to become pregnant. The process usually begins when a person reaches their 40s, but it can happen earlier in some circumstances. Some surgeries, medical treatments, and health conditions can result in early menopause. For example, undergoing surgery to remove one or both of the ovaries will cause levels of the hormones estrogen and progesterone to dip. Removing both ovaries will trigger surgical menopause. In this article, learn more about surgical menopause, including what to expect and some lifestyle remedies.

Surgery and menopause Share on Pinterest Some people may experience early menopause after undergoing certain types of surgery. Various types of surgery can affect the female reproductive organs. These surgeries include the removal of the uterus, fallopian tubes, cervix, and one or both ovaries. Surgical menopause can occur after undergoing bilateral oophorectomy. This is a procedure in which a surgeon removes both ovaries. They may also remove the uterus, the fallopian tubes, the cervix, or a combination of these, depending on the reason for the procedure. When a surgeon removes the uterus, this is called a hysterectomy. If the surgeon removes both ovaries, menopause will begin immediately after the operation. If they remove the uterus, fallopian tubes, or both but leave one or both ovaries intact, menopause will probably start within 5 years. The effects of surgical menopause will be similar to those of natural menopause, but they may be more acute. This is because the hormonal changes will happen suddenly rather than over several years. The changes will generally start as soon as the procedure is over.

Causes or reasons for surgery There are many reasons for choosing to have surgery. For example, a person may undergo treatment to resolve endometriosis or to prevent cancer. Others may opt for surgery as part of sex reassignment surgery . Some medical reasons for undergoing an oophorectomy include: easing endometriosis

treating benign or cancerous tumors or cysts

easing ovarian torsion, in which an ovary becomes twisted

preventing ovarian cancer in those at high risk People with a personal family history of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, or both may undergo testing to see if they have a genetic feature that increases their risk of cancer, such as changes in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. If these features are present, the person may decide to have surgery to reduce their risk of cancer in the future. Research suggests that undergoing surgery can significantly reduce the risk of developing ovarian, fallopian tube, or peritoneal cancer later in life. Anyone who is considering ovarian surgery for any reason should discuss the benefits and risks with their healthcare provider. What does oophorectomy involve? Learn more here.

Medical menopause Sometimes, certain medical treatments can trigger the effects of menopause. Doctors call this medical menopause. The impact may be temporary or permanent, depending on the intervention. Chemotherapy for breast cancer, for example, may cause a temporary pause in menstruation and the effects of menopause. This will start within weeks or months of beginning the treatment. In some cases, menstruation will resume within a year of the treatment finishing. However, this is not the case for everyone. According to some data, 2550% of 30-year-olds who undergo this kind of treatment will start menstruating again. Research also suggests that even if menstruation returns, a person may experience menopause earlier than they would have if they had not had the treatment. Learn more about menopause here.

What to expect Natural menopause occurs over a number of years, but surgical menopause occurs suddenly. Although everyone experiences menopause differently, the abruptness of the change can mean that the impact of surgical menopause is slightly different to that of natural menopause. Menopause happens when levels of estrogen and progesterone dip. This change can give rise to various effects, including: hot flashes and night sweats

vaginal dryness

changes in libido

difficulty sleeping

mood changes

problems with thinking, focusing, and memory These effects may start to appear within hours or days of the surgery, depending on the extent of the procedure.

Complications Menopause is a normal transition that the body goes through, similar to puberty. Some of the changes that occur with natural menopause may not be due to menopause but to the aging process. Natural menopause usually happens around midlife. At this age, people are also likely to experience other physical changes. However, the hormonal changes that occur with either natural or surgical menopause can trigger or increase the risk of certain complications , regardless of the age at which menopause starts. These complications include osteoporosis and heart disease, as estrogen has a key role in both. For example, estrogen helps support strong bones. When estrogen levels dip, bone density can decrease, and the bones can become weaker and more likely to break, possibly giving rise to osteoporosis. Estrogen also plays a role in cardiovascular health, and people who have experienced menopause may have a higher risk of stroke, heart attack, and other cardiovascular concerns. That said, people who eat a varied diet and get regular exercise may have a lower risk of some of these complications.

Fertility changes After the removal of both ovaries, it will no longer be possible to become pregnant, and menopause will follow. People who still wish to have children after treatment should discuss the options with their doctor or a specialist counselor. If a person undergoes medical menopause and there is a chance that menstruation will resume, they may wish to consider preserving some eggs, such as by freezing them, to increase their chance of having a healthy pregnancy later in life. Discussing these risks with a healthcare provider can help an individual make an informed decision. What happens when a person freezes their eggs? Learn more here.

Treatment A doctor might prescribe hormone therapy after surgery to reduce the impact of menopause. Hormone therapy is not suitable for everyone. Those with a high risk of stroke, for example, may not be able to use it. Other types of treatment can also help people manage the effects, which may include low mood, anxiety, hot flashes, and sleep problems. Learn more about hormone therapy here.

Lifestyle remedies Trying some lifestyle remedies might help reduce the impact of surgical menopause. These remedies include: Avoiding the triggers of hot flashes: Alcohol, caffeine, spicy foods, stress, and warm temperatures can all trigger hot flashes.

Alcohol, caffeine, spicy foods, stress, and warm temperatures can all trigger hot flashes. Keeping cooling items to hand: It may help to keep a portable fan and a bottle of ice water nearby.

It may help to keep a portable fan and a bottle of ice water nearby. Using a lubricant during sex: This can help make sex more comfortable and enjoyable.

This can help make sex more comfortable and enjoyable. Keeping the bedroom cool and quiet: This can help make sleeping easier. Other tips include avoiding large meals and fluids before bedtime, following a regular routine for going to bed and getting up, and leaving mobile devices outside of the bedroom, if possible. Also, a person may wish to keep a fan near their bed.

This can help make sleeping easier. Other tips include avoiding large meals and fluids before bedtime, following a regular routine for going to bed and getting up, and leaving mobile devices outside of the bedroom, if possible. Also, a person may wish to keep a fan near their bed. Taking steps to relieve stress: Some tips to relieve stress include getting enough sleep, exercising, taking walks in nature, meditating, and practicing yoga.

Some tips to relieve stress include getting enough sleep, exercising, taking walks in nature, meditating, and practicing yoga. Seeking help when needed: A doctor, counselor, or other healthcare provider can offer support and treatment if a person has any physical or mental health concerns.

A doctor, counselor, or other healthcare provider can offer support and treatment if a person has any physical or mental health concerns. Joining a support group: A person can ask their healthcare provider about local support groups for people with menopause or surgical menopause. In many cases, friends or family will also be willing to help.
Protein may manipulate immune system to influence white blood cell movement.

The virus that causes chickenpox - varicella zoster virus (VZV) - possesses a protein that could enhance its ability to hijack white blood cells and spread throughout the body, according to new research published in PLOS Pathogens.

The findings, presented by Victor Gonzalez-Motos of Hannover Medical School, Germany, and colleagues, may provide new insight into the poorly understood mechanism by which VZV spreads after initial infection in the respiratory tract.

VZV causes chickenpox in children and can reactivate later in life to cause shingles. After infecting the respiratory tract, the virus hijacks the immune system's white blood cells, using them to spread in the body - including to the skin to cause chickenpox.

To better understand this process, the researchers investigated whether VZV influences the function of chemokines, small immune system proteins that attract white blood cells to sites of infection and guide their movement within the body.

The scientists focused on a VZV protein known as glycoprotein C, since previous research suggested it may play an important role in the infection cycle. In the lab, they performed chemotaxis experiments and found that the addition of glycoprotein C enhances the ability of chemokines to attract white blood cells, including white blood cells from the tonsils, which are a major target of VZV during initial infection.

Further experiments uncovered the molecular details of the interaction between glycoprotein C and chemokines. The researchers also showed that VZV viral particles that had been genetically engineered to remove glycoprotein C had a reduced ability to enhance chemokine attraction of white blood cells, indicating the importance of glycoprotein C for this process.

Overall, these results suggest that glycoprotein C may interact with chemokines to attract more white blood cells to the site of VZV infection, where the virus can hijack the white blood cells to spread to other parts of the body. Further research is needed to investigate whether this hypothesis holds up in human tissue.

Article: Varicella zoster virus glycoprotein C increases chemokine-mediated leukocyte migration, Gonzalez-Motos V, Jurgens C, Ritter B, Kropp KA, Duran V, Larsen O, et al., PLOS Pathogens, doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006346, published 25 May 2017.
Francisco Javier Zapata, a gubernatorial candidate for a small political party in the Mexican state of Nayarit , is now one of the most recognizable faces in the country thanks to an embarrassing gaffe on a billboard that went viral on social networks.

Daniel Azuara

The top of the billboard reads #hashtagcampana (hashtagcampaign) instead of using the Twitter convention of a hashtag symbol (#) followed by a slogan for use on social media. An official for the Encuentro Social (Social Encounter) party initially confirmed the mistake, blaming the design department, pointing out that the hashtag should have been #wewillrevolutionizeNayarit

In the meantime, a number of tweeters took advantage to poke fun at the party, with one wit pointing out that this is what happens when parties try to multi-task, and another imagining the conversation between the campaign manager and the design team:

- Ramiro, they approved the photo, printed it and put the campaign hashtag

- Okay boss

- Don't forget the hashtag...

- No, how on earth would that happen...

Benjamin Valdivia, the partys social media coordinator, explained that the gaffe wasn't a ploy to attract attention, as some tweeters are making out. This seems to be borne out by the fact that there was only one billboard with the blunder, in the suburbs of Tepic, the capital of the state in the country's west. Valdivia explained that the party has asked for the billboard to be taken down and replaced with a corrected one, adding that he had only become aware of the error when an acquaintance sent him the meme.

However, there seems to have been some backtracking on these assurances as the party began to claim that #hashtagcampana had been a deliberate invitation to voters to send in their ideas for the real hashtag. This was stage two, says Zapata in a short video in which he also insisted his party is revolutionizing the social networks [] We want the people to be involved in our plan for developing government.

Like when you are learning to use the internet and how to campaign at the same time

Meanwhile, Daniel Azuara, State President of the Revolutionary Institutional Party (PRI) in Nayarit, which the PRI controls, took the opportunity to tweet a photo of the billboard. He also posted a new billboard with the same hashtag, following the claim the former was deliberate.

English version by Heather Galloway.
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Fragile X Syndrome

Metformin as Targeted Treatment in Fragile X Syndrome - (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28436599) Ilse Gantois, Arkady Khoutorsky, Jelena Popic, Argel Aguilar-Valles, Erika Freemantle, Ruifeng Cao, Vijendra Sharma, Tine Pooters, Anmol Nagpal, Agnieszka Skalecka, Vinh T Truong, Shane Wiebe, Isabelle A Groves, Seyed Mehdi Jafarnejad, Clement Chapat, Elizabeth A McCullagh, Karine Gamache, Karim Nader, Jean-Claude Lacaille, Christos G Gkogkas, Nahum Sonenberg. Metformin ameliorates core deficits in a mouse model of fragile X syndrome. Nature Medicine, 2017; DOI: 10.1038/nm.4335

The research team conducted the study to see the effect of metformin in treating symptoms associated with Fragile X syndrome. Metformin was injected in the mice with Fragile X syndrome. The research team found thatThe findings of the study published in, showed Metformin could be used to treat other autism spectrum disorders, said, Ilse Gantois, a research associate in Sonenberg's lab at McGill. In further studies, the research team hopes to understand the drug's exact role in these pathways.Nahum Sonenberg, James McGill Professor at McGill's Biochemistry Department and co-senior author of the new study said the findings offer hope for patients with Fragile X syndrome.added Jean-Claude Lacaille, Canada Research Chair in Cellular and Molecular Neurophysiology and professor in the Department of Neurosciences at Universite de Montreal and a major collaborator on the study.explained Gantois.said Sonenberg. The molecular mechanism of how metformin exactly works is complicated. The research team is yet to find the molecular interaction of metformin and whether the cellular functions are affected. The team also hopes to improve the efficacy of metformin drug to treat the condition.Fragile X syndrome is an inherited form of intellectual disability caused by defects in the Fragile X Mental Retardation 1 gene (FMR1). The FMR1 triggers the excess production of protein in the brain, dysregulate the connections between neurons and contribute to behavioral changes.Fragile X is co-diagnosed with autism, anxiety disorders, sleep disorders and seizures.Individuals with Fragile X Syndrome may be affected by both behavioral and medical conditions. Studies suggest that Fragile X syndrome can increase the risk of obesity. Patients with this syndrome are likely to overeat due to lack of satiation that results in morbid obesity. Metformin could be a targeted treatment for Fragile X syndrome. As metformin has a strong profile in children and adults with diabetes and obesity, it could be a targeted treatment for cognitive and behavioral concerns.Source: Medindia
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This led to an average difference in weight between the two groups of 2lbs, independent of other factors like birth weight, weaning age, breastfeeding and mother's background.Professor Brown suggests babies allowed to feed themselves stopped eating when they became full, meaning they were less likely to overeat.The study also found that babies allowed a range of solid foods from the age of six months - a process known as "baby-led weaning" - were often trim, healthy and adventurous eaters. In contrast, she saidProfessor Brown, an associate professor at Swansea University, said: "Let them eat as little as they want. A jar of baby food is too big for what a little baby needs. "When you are waving the spoon around and saying 'here comes the big aeroplane - let's finish it', if they clamp their mouth shut, forget about it. They will not starve."And addressing the issue of messy mealtimes, she added: "Kids need to learn about food. "They need to find out, for instance, what happens if they squash it or drop it on the floor."Professor Brown's advice is similar to that of doctor Benjamin Spock, who recommended in the 1960s that babies should be allowed to feed themselves from as young as possible.In the early 2000s, the Department of Health released advice suggesting thatThat advice remains today, with current NHS weaning guidelines suggesting babies should be offered soft finger foods that they can feed to themselves, alongside spoon-fed purees from six months old.Finger foods can include mashed or soft cooked fruit and vegetables. Parents can then introduce more advanced foods later, including small pieces of meat and rice.A statement on the NHS website explained: "It's a really important step in their development and it can be great fun to explore new flavors and textures together. Babies don't need three meals a day to start with - so you can begin by offering foods at a time that suits you both."Source: Medindia
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Stem cells give rise to the different cell types in adult tissues but, in order to maintain these tissues throughout adulthood, stem cells must retain their activity for decades. They do this by "self-renewing," dividing to form additional stem cells, and resisting the effects of environmental signals that would otherwise cause them to prematurely differentiate into other cell types.Many tumors also contain so-called "cancer stem cells" that can drive tumor formation. Some tumors, such as triple-negative breast cancers, are particularly deadly because they contain large numbers of cancer stem cells that self-renew and resist differentiation.To identify factors that help non-cancerous mammary gland stem cells (MaSCs) resist differentiation and retain their capacity to self-renew, Yibin Kang, the Warner-Lambert/Parke-Davis Professor of Molecular Biology, and colleagues searched for short RNA molecules called microRNAs that can bind and inhibit protein-coding messenger RNAs to reduce the levels of specific proteins.The researchers identified one microRNA, called miR-199a, that helps MaSCs retain their stem-cell activity by suppressing the production of a protein called LCOR, which binds DNA to regulate gene expression. The team showed that when they boosted miR-199a levels in mouse MaSCs, they suppressed LCOR and increased normal stem cell function. Conversely, when they increased LCOR levels, they could curtail mammary gland stem cell activity.Kang and colleagues found that miR-199a was also expressed in human and mouse breast cancer stem cells. Just as boosting miR-199a levels helped normal mammary gland stem cells retain their activity, the researchers showed that miR-199a enhanced the ability of cancer stem cells to form tumors. By increasing LCOR levels, in contrast, they could reduce the tumor-forming capacity of the cancer stem cells. In collaboration with researchers led by Zhi-Ming Shao, a professor at Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center in China, Kang's team found that breast cancer patients whose tumors expressed large amounts of miR-199a showed poor survival rates, whereas tumors with high levels of LCOR had a better prognosis.Kang and colleagues found that LCOR sensitizes cells to the effects of interferon-signaling molecules released from epithelial and immune cells, particularly macrophages, in the mammary gland.During normal mammary gland development, these cells secrete interferon-alpha to promote cell differentiation and inhibit cell division, the researchers discovered. By suppressing LCOR, miR-199a protects MaSCs from interferon signaling, allowing MaSCs to remain undifferentiated and capable of self-renewal.The microRNA plays a similar role during tumorigenesis, protecting breast cancer stem cells from the effects of interferons secreted by immune cells present in the tumor. "This is a very nice study linking a normal and malignant mammary gland stem cell program to protection from immune modulators," said Michael Clarke, the Karel H. and Avice N. Beekhuis Professor in Cancer Biology at Stanford School of Medicine, Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, who first discovered breast cancer stem cells but was not involved in this study."It clearly has therapeutic implications for designing strategies to rationally target the breast cancer stem cells with immune modulators."Toni Celia -Terrassa, an associate research scholar in the Kang lab and the first author of the study, said, "This study unveils a new property of breast cancer stem cells that give them advantages in their interactions with the immune system, and therefore it represents an excellent opportunity to exploit for improving immunotherapy of cancer.""Interferons have been widely used for the treatment of multiple cancer types," Kang said. "These treatments might become more effective if the interferon-resistant cancer stem cells can be rendered sensitive by targeting the miR-199a-LCOR pathway."Source: Eurekalert
From touching the glowing orb at The Global Centre for Combating Extremist Ideology in Riyadh, to meeting Pope Francis, the U.S. President Donald Trumps Middle East tour has been an adventurous affair, not just for him but for the entire world, especially the Internet trolls. None were spared and no words were minced while making memes and jokes on some of the awkward instances that Trump was a part of during his tour.

So, after returning from his trip, he decided to seek Internets aid and help people choose wisely if they are planning to visit the Middle East anytime soon. So, he wrote about each and every place he visited in his TripAdvisor reviews and those testimonies are honest and hilarious AF. Well, its not exactly the White House but Mashable that decided to post this on his behalf and for those who still couldnt figure out, these reviews are just satirical posts and not true. So, folks while you are still jumbled up in your thoughts, here are some dank reviews you will ever get to read on the travel site.

The Vatican (Vatican City)

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Brussels, Belgium

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The Wailing Wall (Jerusalem, Israel)

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Global Center For Combating Extremism (Riyadh Saudi Arabia)

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Masada (Israel)

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Murabba Palace (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)

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Taormina (Sicily, Italy)

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Yad Vashem, Israels Official Memorial To Victims Of The Holocaust (Jerusalem, Israel)

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Source: Bored Panda
While we were busy cribbing about how miserable our lives are, this Ranchi boy conquered his battle against cancer and scored 95% in the CBSE Class XII board examinations 2017. The results were announced yesterday. While, some were busy planning night outs and parties to deal with the stress of study, Rishi was busy visiting the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) every 3 months for a checkup. We are not trying to draw parallels here to look down on your achievements or make you feel bad; all we are trying to do is recognize this guys efforts, and cancer couldnt stop from achieving what he wants. 19-year-old Tushar Rishi of Delhi Public School (DPS) was diagnosed with cancer in his left knee because of which he couldnt sit for the class 10th board exams.

 Facebook - Tushar Rishi

Rishi scored 95 in English, 95 in Physics, 93 in Mathematics, 89 in Computer and 100 in Fine Arts. Rishi, who feels that regular studying can largely help in reducing the exam pressure, told Hindustan Times, I am in a much better condition now after all the treatments. But I have to visit AIIMS in every 3 to 4 months for checkups and updates on my health. Rishi further said, The bone cancer was detected just after my Class 10 mock exams in 2014. I was under chemotherapy for around 11 months. It has obviously changed me a lot, but I try and stay focused on my academics. But after chemotherapy, he came back with a bang and scored a perfect 10 CGPA in 2015.

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When asked about his career preference, he said that he does not want to go for engineering and would wish to pursue either English or economics from Delhi University. Tushars mother, Ritu Agarwal said He was solely dependent on the classes at school as he did not go to tuition. I am more than happy with his performance. I have seen him battle cancer and I know how difficult it was for him. She further added, I hope he stays healthy and achieves all his career goals. For those who dont know, Rishi is the author of a book titled The Patient Patient where he has penned down his struggle as a young cancer survivor.

 Facebook - Tushar Rishi

Imagine telling someone that they have been diagnosed with cancer, their life will crumble within seconds and for Tushar his journey wasnt a rosy one at all. But Tushar not only fought cancer but also won it and emerged as an epitome of a true fighter. We are extremely proud of his victory, strong will and dedication.

Source: Hindustan Times
The courts have struck uncharted territory. A man reported to the authorities by his wife for psychological abuse seven years ago has undergone a sex change and become a woman before the case against him could be brought to a conclusion.

Sex-change surgery. Getty

As Spanish gender violence legislation does not address female-on-female abuse in this context, a 48-year-old fireman from Asturias who is now officially a woman could soon be off the hook.

The defense attorney, Inigo Urien Azpitarte, asserts that his clients case is now under review as no precedent for it is known in Spain. When Urien accepted the case seven years ago, he was representing a man married by the Church whose wife had brought charges of insults and harassment without physical aggression.

The lawyer also claims his client worries about losing her job as a firefighter after her sick leave ends

According to Urien, when the couple were getting divorced his client started to refer to himself as a woman. He was diagnosed with a gender identity disorder, and this diagnosis enabled him to alter his name in the Civil Register after undergoing hormone treatment and surgery to change his sex.

Urien has asked for the case to be dealt with by a court of civil law in Asturias rather than through the criminal courts, which would try the accused for domestic violence. My client is not an alleged abuser because the alleged psychological violence was inflicted by a woman on another woman, he argues. This person has been diagnosed with gender identity disorder, which means that she has been a woman from birth. In these circumstances, laws dealing with domestic violence cannot be applied because domestic violence is considered to be a crime between a man and a woman.

The accused has not given the attorney permission to reveal her identity. She is, Urien says, very upset and doesnt want to speak for fear of adding to the suffering of the couples two children, who are eight and 10, and whose custody is shared between the defendant and the mother, a 45-year-old office worker.

The attorney doesnt rule out the possibility of the case reaching the Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg

The lawyer also claims that his clients anxiety has been exacerbated by the uncertainty of whether she will lose her job as a firefighter after her sick leave ends. The other party maintains that if she was really a woman when she passed the exams to become a firefighter, then she did not meet the established qualifications for the job, says Urien.

The attorney doesnt rule out the possibility of the case reaching the Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. If the family court in Asturias does not take on the case, Urien has his sights on the Supreme Court and, if that doesnt resolve the issue, the Constitutional Court. Were going to see if theyre prepared to open up a new judicial route in the EU, he says.

English version by Heather Galloway.
Spanish companies have a problem with size, according to Economy Minister Luis de Guindos. Speaking at an economic forum in the Catalan city of Sitges on Friday, De Guindos said that he is going to present the Cabinet with a report in the coming days analyzing the reduced size of many Spanish businesses and what kind of an impact this has on the economy.

Luis De Guindos (l) and Circulo de Economia chief Juan Jose Brugera. Albert Garcia

The minister argued that if Spanish firms were of a similar size as the European average, the countrys GDP would leap forward by 3.5 percentage points. If the average size of Spanish firms was equivalent to the United Kingdom, the increase would be 7.5 percentage points.

Speaking to a crowd of business-people, economists and representatives of the Catalan regional executive, De Guindos listed some of the consequences of having a corporate fabric made up of much smaller businesses than elsewhere in Europe.

We need to increase the scale of Spanish businesses

Luis De Guindos

These include greater difficulties for internationalizing operations and finding the right financial structure. It even creates hurdles to corporate governance, said the minister.

We need to increase the scale of Spanish businesses, said De Guindos at the 33rd Meeting of the Circulo de Economia, a Barcelona-based, non-profit think tank.

The Popular Party (PP) official painted an upbeat economic scenario for Spain in which the only dark clouds were those created by populisms and their simple, magical solutions. De Guindos included the Catalan governments escalating pro-independence rhetoric in this category.

English version by Susana Urra.
Former Prime Minister of Greece Konstantinos Mitsotakis was a figure who, during his long years of political and parliamentary activity, left an indelible mark on the country.



The Foreign Ministry, which Konstantinos Mitsotakis twice headed, addresses sincere condolences to the family of the deceased.
The conservative Popular Party (PP) government of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy is working with the Socialists (PSOE) and the center-right party Ciudadanos in an attempt to forge a united front against plans on the part of the regional government of Catalonia to stage an independence referendum  a vote Madrid strongly opposes, and which it has attempted to block in the Constitutional Court .

Spanish Prime Minster Mariano Rajoy. Carles Ribas

Spanish Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria held high-level talks with Cuidadanos leader Albert Rivera two weeks ago on the issue, and on Monday Rajoy spoke to recently reinstated Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez in a meeting that saw the two politicians in strong agreement on the need to defend the Spanish Constitution and stop the Catalan vote from going ahead.

Under the Constitution, national sovereignty resides with all Spaniards.

Catalan Premier Carles Puigdemont leads fellow Catalan political leaders outside the regional congress on Monday. Massimiliano Minocri (ATLAS)

While the Spanish government is keeping tight-lipped about possible future developments, Rajoy is already planning a round of talks with leaders of those parties that share the governments position on the referendum issue. On Monday, Sanchez repeated his call for the issue to be discussed in Congress.

Meanwhile, pro-independence parties in the Catalan regional parliament on Monday met to discuss how they would proceed in the face of mounting opposition from Madrid. On Sunday, the government of Spains Catalonia region said it would announce a date for the vote within 15 days and reveal the question that would be asked of Catalans, but Mondays talks did not produce any deal.

Madrids response has fallen short of expectations

Neus Munte, Catalan government spokeswoman

Sundays announcement came just one day after secessionist groups had urged the regional premier, Carles Puigdemont, to disclose details about a project that is pitting the Catalan government against Madrid, where the central government opposes the idea of a unilateral referendum.

On Sunday, Catalan government spokeswoman Neus Munte told Catalan regional radio station RAC-1 that the date and content of the unilateral referendum will be announced within the next two weeks.

She justified this move citing Madrids refusal to negotiate a legal referendum that all parties could accept. Rajoys position throughout the Catalan nationalists independence drive has been that Spanish Congress must approve a referendum on self-rule, as its outcome affects all Spaniards, not just Catalans.

This was his attitude when Catalonia held an earlier, non-binding vote on November 9, 2014. The regional premier at the time, Artur Mas, was later tried for his role in organizing what the courts deemed to be an illegal consultation, and barred from office for two years.

Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy speaking at the Economic Circle summit in Sitges. Carles Ribas

Seven months ago, his successor Puigdemont promised his supporters a new referendum for late 2017. But his foot-dragging when it came to the specifics had been worrying secessionists in the region.

With this latest announcement, Puigdemont is seeking to drum up new interest in the referendum at a time when opinion polls show the lowest support for the independence cause since the process began.

The regional premier has also declined Madrids invitation to come and discuss his plans in Spanish Congress. The Catalan government, for its part, says that Rajoy refused an offer to negotiate the referendum. The Spanish PM says it is not up to him to negotiate such a procedure, but up to Congress.

Munte described Madrids attitude toward the referendum as a case of I cant and I wont, and: Were the ones calling the shots around here.

We would have liked for the referendum conditions to have been shared with the government, but its response has fallen short of expectations with regard to the majoritys proposal in Catalonia, said Munte.

Neither the Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) nor the reform party Ciudadanos, which opposes secession, have been asked to the Monday meeting of Catalan parties.

PSC leader Miquel Iceta said the referendum plan is unilateral and illegal and that insisting on going down this road is to head directly for the rocks.

Like a Brexit for Spain Javier Casqueiro Any remaining hopes for an agreement between Madrid and Barcelona were dashed over the weekend, when Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and Catalonias Carles Puigdemont both gave talks at a political and economic summit organized by the think-tank Circulo de Economia in Sitges. Speaking at the close of the summit on Saturday to an audience that included some of Catalonias most-influential business leaders, Rajoy compared Catalan secession with Brexit, and said that it would be a traumatic experience with terrible economic consequences. He supported his economy ministers theory that Catalonia would lose 30% of its GDP.

A significant majority of Spaniards (77%) feels that the Rajoy administration has not handled the Catalan territorial crisis adequately. This figure shoots up to 96% among residents of Catalonia, according to a survey by the pollster Metroscopia. This negative view of the governments actions is spread across voters from all parties, including those from the ruling Popular Party (PP).

Following his re-election, Rajoy launched Operation Dialogue  an effort to improve relations with Barcelona following a strained period that included Mass trial over the 2014 independence vote.

But despite increased contact and announcement of upcoming investment in the region, relations have soured even more.

English version by Susana Urra.
Its the ultimate traveler fantasy: a seaside vacation with an all-inclusive hotel deal, and everything free of charge. As it turns out, many British visitors have made this a reality in recent years, thanks to phony claims of food poisoning.

British visitors have been a mainstay of Spanish beach resorts for years. Getty Images

This practice has shot up by 700% in the last year alone, and has cost the hospitality industry nearly 60 million by its own calculations. As a result, businesses in tourist areas such as the Balearics, the Canary Islands, Costa Blanca and Costa del Sol have come together to try to fight this growing trend.

The scam is simple enough. The tourist buys a travel package with any travel agent and stays at a Spanish hotel that includes all meals in the price. Back in Britain after the vacation, the tourist uses a claims-management company to file a complaint against the company that organized the trip, alleging that the hotel meals made him/her ill.

The Spanish hotel industry is working on a raft of measures to defend its own interests

Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation

Current British consumer laws barely require the claimant to produce any evidence. No doctors report is necessary, and claims may be filed up to three years after the event.

Since it is hard to prove that the client did not get sick, and faced with high legal fees if the case goes to court, the tour operator accepts the claim, then passes on the cost to the Spanish hotel as per their contract, in which the latter accepts responsibility for all damages. The holidaymaker gets a full refund for the cost of the trip, and the intermediaries take a fee.

If [all the claims] were true, there would already have been a global health alert, notes the Spanish Confederation of Hotels and Tourist Accommodation (CEHAT), which is working to fight the fraud.

This practice has grown by 700% over the last year, says Marc Ripoll, a lawyer who specializes in international law at Monlex Hispajuris, and who has advised the hotel sector on this type of fraud.

Nearly 70% of claims are fraudulent or gray, meaning that the client was ill, but the pathology was unrelated to the food and drink at the hotel, says Ripoll, who notes that Britain recently had a similar problem with false claims over whiplash injuries in car accidents.

Nearly 70% of claims are fraudulent or grey, meaning that the client was ill, but the pathology was unrelated to the food and drink at the hotel

Marc Ripoll, lawyer

Two years ago, British legislation was reformed to address this problem, and claim farms then turned to claims over fake cases of gastroenteritis abroad. The Diario de Mallorca reported that hotel workers have photographed sales representatives for claim farms talking to their hotel clients on site.

But after being hit with claim after claim, hotels are starting to review each case in detail and to compile evidence that their establishments meet all hygiene and food safety requirements.

On some occasions, the fraud is discovered simply by checking out the claimants social media posts.

The CEHAT wants legal reform to clauses in the contracts between hotels and travel agents, which currently let the latter pass on the costs of client claims to the hotel. This industry association wants the law to demand evidence that the illness really existed, and that it was related to the food that the claimant consumed at the hotel.

Claims flood

In the meantime, traditional areas for British tourism such as Calvia and Ibiza in the Balearic Islands have been flooded with claims.

The cases began in the Canary Islands, and quickly spread through word of mouth and campaigns by claims-management firms that make no win, no fee promises to their clients.

The situation is cause for concern due to the volume of claims expected this summer, said Ramon Estalella, secretary general of CEHAT, who has already met with the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) to discuss the problem.

In a statement released on its website, CEHAT said that ABTA admitted that the situation involves complex, well-organized and highly professional groups, and that it is very hard to combat these bad practices.

CEHAT also warns that the Spanish hotel industry is working on a raft of measures to defend its own interests: all fraudsters will face criminal prosecution in the Spanish courts, including all links in the fraud chain.

In the meantime, the Hotel Business Federation of Mallorca has asked for UK visitors to be banned outright from all-inclusive vacation packages. The Diario de Mallorca reported that the association president, Inma Benito, considers the scam such a problem that hoteliers are actually considering no longer selling all-inclusive packages to British tourists, even though the latter represent the second-biggest market for Mallorca, and the top market for the Balearic Islands and for Spain as a whole.

English version by Susana Urra.
As they sat around a table wearing crisp, red jackets in honor of their famed unit's red-tailed aircraft, four Tuskegee Airmen recounted war stories as if they happened yesterday.

They were among the men who defied the odds by becoming the first African-American pilots, navigators and support personnel to serve during World War II, often escorting and protecting bombers.

Retired Col. Charles McGee, former cadets Walter Robinson and William Fauntroy Jr., all trained as pilots, and former Pvt. Major Anderson, a maintainer, joined the Army Air Corps and ended up in Tuskegee, Ala., in front of leaders who "found ways to bring necessary training to us who were totally segregated," Robinson said.

The veterans, who range in age from early-to-late 90s, sat down with reporters at an event hosted by the Air Force Academy Society on May 17 in Washington, D.C.

McGee, an ROTC student at the University of Illinois who joined the Army in 1942, said there were a few phases to "the Tuskegee experience."

'The Tuskegee Experience'

He described the activation of the 99th Fighter Squadron, the first Tuskegee unit to deploy in 1943 to Northern Africa, flying the P-40 Warhawk.

The next phase extended the mission to the larger 332nd Fighter Group, bringing in additional squadrons flying P-39 Airacobras, P-47 Thunderbolts, and P-51 Mustangs -- identified by their famous "red tails." The markings flagged to counterparts the pilots were friendlies and earned the airmen their nickname.

Then came the activation of the 477th Bombardment Group, which trained on B-25 Mitchell bombers in the U.S. but did not complete training in time to see combat.

The effort brought together 996 pilots, and more than 15,000 maintenance, ground and support personnel, leading to 1,491 combat missions, according to the Air Force Historical Research Agency.

"They didn't drop the standards [for us], even though they didn't think we were going to be successful," said McGee, reflecting on his time as a first lieutenant.

"We were trained well, we were prepared for the opportunities, and although we were segregated ... fortunately the record that we established helped the Air Force when they separated from the Army ... to say, 'We need to integrate.'"

'The Man That Taught All of Us'

As an institution, the Army didn't change its attitude toward African-Americans during World War II, even as the Tuskegee Airmen began training, McGee said. Rather, the unit's leaders -- men like C. Alfred Anderson -- made the training worthwhile, he said.

Anderson, a pioneer black aviator and first chief civilian flight instructor at the Tuskegee Institute, worked to make them exceptional.

"I give all the credit to those guys," Fauntroy said of the instructors who made him feel like "I was capable of going into combat."

Fauntroy, "the baby in the bunch," signed up with the Army Reserve in 1944 at 17 years old. But the war ended before he got the chance to deploy. He said if it weren't for the instructor pilots, the airmen would never have become aviators.

Anderson would become "the man that taught all of us," Fauntroy said.

Their training was enhanced when combat veterans came back from the war and continued practicing with them on lessons learned while over German skies.

While attending Howard University in Washington, D.C., in 1941, Robinson volunteered for the Army Air Corps. Although he too didn't get his chance to serve in combat, he said, "It has to be noted, that there are those who brought to the Tuskegee experience an intelligence of training and protection that we wouldn't have been able to survive without."

'In My Gun Sights'

McGee did get the chance to see action overseas.

On Aug. 24, 1944, he was escorting B-17 Flying Fortresses from the 5th Bomb Wing over Czechoslovakia when a group of German Luftwaffe fighters came roaring in.

The "fighters tried to penetrate the bombers we were escorting, and my element was designated to chase them off," he said

"[The enemy fighter] took a dive for the ground and, fortunately, I was behind him. He made a turn that put him right in my gun sights. And that was it."

McGee flew 409 fighter combat missions in World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

'Love Your Mechanic'

Major Anderson was only 16 when the U.S. entered the war in 1941. He registered for the draft at 18 and was called up a few months later. He served as a mechanic.

"If you didn't love your mechanic, you didn't understand what he was doing for you," Robinson said of Anderson. The ground personnel worked tirelessly to keep the airmen safe, he said.

After basic training and about five months of occupational school, Anderson found himself stateside in 1944 patching up B-25s riddled with bullet holes as a sheet metal repairman with the 477th Bombardment Group. He was honorably discharged in 1946.

"And that's my story," he said.

For him, the experience was routine -- like the other men, he was just doing his job.

'Doing Something for Your Country'

McGee agreed.

"It came from the basis of doing something for our country -- for me, doing something I liked, knowing that's what I'd pass on to young people now," he said.

McGee said he fears technological advancements may be taking skilled jobs away from workers. He also said the U.S. must work to improve its schools so young people can prepare for today's fast-paced work culture and be granted opportunities previously unavailable to them.

The same goes for the U.S. service branches, McGee said.

"Sometimes, you have to focus specifically," he said. "If the problem is more minorities and more women in, then there should be a focus of training more minorities and women to fill whatever that job is."

He added, "It's got to start before they're 18, and we need to pay attention to that if we're going to improve the future, that all are represented equally in whatever endeavoring field."

'American Opportunity'

Looking back, the men said they had no regrets for choosing military service.

The Army Air Corps became the Air Force in 1947. A year later, President Harry S. Truman signed the executive order to begin desegregation throughout the armed forces.

"Segregation was wrong, but looking back at that time ... we established lifelong friendships," McGee said. "Much of the story gets lost in Air Force history, but we're still proud we were able to serve our own country."

At the end of the discussion, the message was clear: Keep breaking barriers.

"We accomplished something that helped lead the country," McGee said. "We didn't call this civil rights. It was American opportunity."

-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214.

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A tragic parachute malfunction sent a member of the Navy's elite SEAL parachute team plunging into the Hudson River earlier today in what would become a fatal accident, according to Navy officials.

The parachutist was a member of the San Diego, California-based parachute demonstration team The Leap Frogs. The 15-man team is composed of members of the Navy SEAL community, including active-duty Navy SEALs, Special Warfare Combatant-craft Crewmen (SWCC) and support personnel. It's the official parachute demonstration team of the Navy.

The team was in New York City for the annual Fleet Week event.

Leap Frog performances typically feature six parachutists who jump from an aircraft at heights of up to 12,000 feet. Their demonstration feature smoke canisters, canopy formations, and sometimes streamers or flags.

The accident took place around 12:10 p.m. during a coordinated team parachute jump at Liberty State Park in Jersey City, New Jersey.

"New York City look to the skies at 12:00. We'll be jumping into Liberty State Park today for Memorial Day Weekend," reads a tweet posted on the official Leap Frogs Twitter page earlier today.

The parachutist, who has not been identified, was pulled from the water immediately by Coast Guard personnel who were standing by the support the demonstration, according to the announcement. He was then taken to Jersey City Medical Center for treatment. He was pronounced dead there at 1:10 p.m., an hour after the jump.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to his family, and I ask for all of your prayers for the Navy SEAL community who lost a true patriot today," Rear Adm. Jack Scorby, Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic, said in a released statement.

The tragic death remains under investigation. Navy officials say the jumper's name is being withheld until his family members have been notified.

-- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck.
Ecuadoran and US researchers have discovered a new species of glassfrog in the Amazon jungle . The amphibian, which has been named Hyalinobatrachium yaku, differs from other glassfrogs due to the dark green spots it has on its head and body, as well as having a longer and louder song and transparent skin, through which its heart can be seen beating.

The newly discovered species of glassfrog is so transparent its heart can be seen beating. Jaime Culebras

More information La rana de cristal que muestra su corazon

In a study published in the US scientific journal ZooKeys, researchers at Ecuadors Quito University explain that the ventral pleats of the Hyalinobatrachium species are transparent, meaning that its organs are visible, but not all glassfrogs have hearts that can be seen through their chests. In some, the organ appears white, but in the yaku the blood can be seen as red.

Another peculiarity of the amphibian is its reproductive behavior: males look after the eggs until they hatch and fall into running water. The researchers warn that the newly discovered species is already at risk of extinction due to oil exploration and production in the area. Water, in the form of streams, is fundamental for the reproductive biology of all glassfrogs. Water pollution, mainly through oil and mining activities, represents one of the biggest threats for Amazonian amphibians, as well as for numerous other water-dependent species, they write in the ZooKeys article.

Water pollution represents one of the biggest threats for Amazonian amphibians

Road-building is also a threat to the frogs. The research team says that a road close to the area of San Jose de Payamino, around 100 kilometers west of Quito, close to the Sumaco Galeras National Park, has impacted on H.yaku populations, noting that no communities were found within a kilometer of the highway.

Glassfrogs presumably require continuous tracts of forest to interact with nearby populations, and roads potentially act as barriers to dispersal for transient individuals, such as those documented at San Jose de Payamino, notes the article in ZooKeys, which concludes with a call to the Ecuadoran authorities to take measures to protect the habitat the species lives in.

English version by Nick Lyne.
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...
A 13-year-old boy lost both his legs from the tibia down on Sunday, after being run over by a Madrid Metro train on Line 1. According to early investigations, the minor was riding between two cars while the train was in motion.

The incident took place on Madrid Metro Line 1. Victor Sainz

The accident took place at 8pm at the Sierra de Guadalupe station, in the southeast of the city. Security camera footage shows that the train had already closed its doors and was leaving the station when the boy climbed onto the coupling between two of the cars. He then fell several meters down the line, once in the tunnel. The train driver was not aware of the situation and continued on his journey, running over the boy in the process.

The driver was not aware of the situation and continued, running over the boy in the process

Despite losing his legs, the minor, who has Moroccan nationality, managed to crawl off the tracks to safety. He managed to reach a ventilation shaft, and shouted for help. A passerby on the street heard his calls and alerted the emergency services. He was taken to La Paz hospital in a critical condition. Medical sources said today that he is still being treated, although the family has refused to allow any further details to be released.

Police sources told EL PAIS that the boy had previously been seen on security camera footage playing on the trains, usually accompanied by the same group of youngsters he was with when the accident happened.

At 8.30pm on Sunday, a Twitter user uploaded a video he recorded in a Line 1 station, in which two youngsters can be seen jumping between the trains. It has not yet been confirmed, however, whether the video footage captures the boy who was later injured.

English version by Simon Hunter.
ANN ARBOR, MI - As a celebrated author, newspaper editor and columnist, Don Faber spent his life chronicling the obscurities of Michigan's history with books on everything from the Toledo War to the state's "Mormon king."

Don Faber

Faber died Saturday, May 27 in Ann Arbor. He was 78 years old.

The Grand Rapids native was a former editor and columnist at The Ann Arbor News.

His weekly column was titled "Faber's World."

Faber joined the newspaper in the late 1970s after gaining political notoriety as a speech writer for Gov. George Romney in the 1960s.

Aside from local journalism, Faber made his way as a Michigan historian. His accounts explored little known facts about the state's origins.

Books that studied the The Toledo War -- which he called "The First Michigan-Ohio Rivalry" -- and Michigan's first governor, Stevens T. Mason, are just two highlights from his catalog.

Authors and scholars called Faber's work "engaging" and "fascinating," according to the University of Michigan Press.

While he leaves behind the keys to dramatic historical facts and figures, Faber's friends and colleagues from The Ann Arbor News remember him as a cool and collected journalist, even as deadlines approached.

"Don was incredibly full of life," said Geoff Larcom, executive director of Marketing Relations at Eastern Michigan University.

Larcom worked with Faber at The Ann Arbor News for a number of years before Faber retired in the early 2000s.

"He was so many different things, and sampled so much of what life had to offer," he added

"He suffered a great deal of tragedy. He was an impassioned political writer. He wrote like he was on fire. When he played on the News softball team, his nickname was 'Crazy Legs Faber' because he ran after fly balls pretty fast for his age."

He is survived by his second wife, Jeanette Faber, and preceded in death by his first wife, Nancy Faber.

Nancy Faber was the victim of a fatal robbery attempt in 1983. Her murder was highly publicized as a local true crime story that almost went cold before one of two suspects finally confessed.

According to his former colleagues at the News, Faber coped with the loss of his wife with grace and resilience, aided by his sense of humor.

Many of his former colleagues shared memories and photos of Faber's death on the "Ann Arbor News alumni" Facebook group, remembering his prowess playing softball, and the impressive voice he used to sing during Sunday service at First Presbyterian Church of Ann Arbor, 1432 Washtenaw Ave.

"(Faber) and I once had a 'sword' fight with pica poles," wrote Susan Oppat on Facebook.

"Don't know why. Laughed (until) we cried! We actually ended up short of breath."

Faber was also a respected community servant, volunteering his time as an active participant with the Rotary Club of Ann Arbor.

Funeral arrangements were pending and had yet to be finalized.
BAY CITY, MI -- A Civil War veteran and Bay City hotel proprietor who died in 1907 had his headstone rededicated on Memorial Day.

Henry Schindehette, of Company I of the 24th Michigan Infantry, was honored 110 years after his death with a memorial ceremony Monday, May 29, at Pine Ridge Cemetery, 198 Ridge Road.

The service was conducted by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War U.S. Grant Post No. 67. Members of Schindehette's family attended the ceremony.

Paul Davis, a member of the SUVCW, and Charles Buckhahn, an ordained minister and member of the group, led the rededication ceremony.

Davis called Schindehette a patriot and said to forget his failings and remember his virtues.

"Let us so live that when the time shall come, those we may leave behind may say above our graves, 'Here lies the body of a true-hearted, brave and earnest defender of the republic,'" Davis said.

Members of Schindehette's family presented the following to his headstone:

A wreath of evergreen, as a symbol of undying love for comrades in the war

A single rose, as a symbol of purity

A wreath of laurel, as a symbol of victory

A flag was also placed to honor Schindehette's services in the Civil War.

Civil War reenactors and members of the SUVCW performed a three-round musket salute before the playing of "Taps." Buckhahn closed the service with a blessing.

Davis said ceremonies are conducted to remember soldiers and "keeping green" their memory.

"It's an honor for us to do this," Davis said. "If we have family, it makes it more special and more important."

Judy Rowell, Schindehette's great-great-niece, and her family was in attendance Monday. The Kawkawlin resident said she received a call from the SUVCW last week to say Schindehette would be honored at a ceremony.

Rowell said she was surprised, but honored to take in the moment with her grandsons.

"I feel honored they would contact us and we get to participate," she said.

Schindehette was born in Germany on Aug. 2, 1840. Bay County historian Jim Petrimoulx said he moved to the U.S. alone at age 15. When Schindehette was 22, he enlisted at Detroit as a private in Company I of the 24th Michigan Infantry.

He was wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1, 1863. His left thigh ulcerated and never healed. He was sent back to Detroit for medical attention at Harper's Hospital, which was founded to attend to wounded Civil War soldiers.

While at Harper's, Schindehette met Samantha Diamon, a nurse who attended to him. After spending eight months in the hospital, Schindehette was discharged on March 24, 1864. He married Diamon and the couple relocated to Bay City.

Schindehette and Diamon had 12 children, but just six lived to adulthood.

His brothers, George, John and Martin, eventually followed him and also lived in Bay City, Petrimoulx said.

Schindehette served as a deputy U.S. Marshal for some time before entering the hospitality business. He ran the National Hotel, on the corner of Fourth and Saginaw streets in Bay City.

Petrimoulx said Schindehette ran the hotel until 1883. After, his brother George ran the Republic Hotel at the same address but in a newer building. His brothers John and Martin were also in the saloon business at different locations, while his sister Matilda married someone in the saloon business.

Schindehette was active in the U.S. Grant Post No. 67 of Bay City, Grand Army of the Republic.

Petrimoulx believes Schindehette did not work past 1883 due to declining health. Schindehette admitted himself into Mercy Hospital in Bay City on July 19, 1907, after suffering from an infection in the wound in his hip suffered at Gettysburg. He died of tetanus shortly after.

His wife died 18 years later. The two are buried at Pine Ridge alongside one of their children. Schindehette's headstone was recently straightened up and cleaned, Petrimoulx said.

Petrimoulx added there are 40 soldiers who fought at Gettysburg buried in Bay County, with 20 at Pine Ridge. Gerald Schroeder, president of the Friends at Pine Ridge Cemetery, said there are 152 Civil War soldiers buried in the cemetery.

"We think of ourselves as the Civil War cemetery of Bay County," Schroeder said.

The Friends of Pine Ridge Cemetery will show the 1993 film "Gettysburg" at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 4, at the State Theatre, 913 Washington Ave.
DETROIT - Rain and thunder rolled through Detroit on Sunday afternoon, but the ominous weather didn't stop electronic music enthusiasts from dancing at the annual Movement festival downtown.

And the risk of more severe weather appeared to dissipate, at least for the Detroit and Ann Arbor areas.

Festivalgoers dance in the rain in Downtown Detroit during the Movement electronic music festival at Hart Plaza, May 28, 2017. (Tanya Moutzalias | MLive)

The National Weather Service canceled its severe thunderstorm and hazardous weather watch for four southeast Michigan counties.

Those counties include: Washtenaw, Wayne, Jackson, Oakland, Livingston and Macomb. The National Weather Service initially listed these counties as under watch until 8 p.m.

Monroe, Lenawee, Hillsdale and Branch counties will remain under a thunderstorm and other hazardous weather watch until 8 p.m., according to updated weather warning map provided by the National Weather Service.

That includes a flood advisory for parts of central and eastern Hillsdale County until 6:45 p.m. Hillsdale is expected to receive 1 to 2 inches of rain until 8 p.m., which could result in minor flooding, reads the National Weather Service warning.

In Washtenaw County, heavy rain and strong wind caused a dreary scene in Ann Arbor and surrounding cities. Flashes of lightning were visible but scattered.

Impending rain in Wayne County caused security officers at Movement, Detroit's Memorial Day weekend electronic music festival, to move festival goers 30 feet away from stages.

Security officers said the move was to avoid risk of electrocution from nearby stage equipment, according to guards working the festival.

Despite the wet weather, Movement crowds and artists continued to dance and play in the rain.

MLive Photographer Tanya Moutzalias contributed to this report.
HOLLY, MI -- Hundreds gathered Sunday to honor American veterans who have passed away.

The Great Lakes National Cemetery Advisory Council hosted its 12th annual Memorial Day Ceremony on Sunday, May 28, at the national cemetery. The ceremony drew in hundreds of people from across the state and featured moments of silence, a rifle salute and a presentation of colors, among other tributes.

Col. Clark C. Barrett of the Michigan Army National Reserve presented the keynote speech at the ceremony. Barrett, now a civilian engineer, attended West Point and has served in infantry branches in Germany, Bosnia, Egypt and Iraq. He spoke about the impact these soldiers' lives have had on their loved ones and the American people.

"So many mothers and wives, husbands and fathers, do their duty every day to make sure that their loved one is remembered," he said. "They carry on understanding that their soldier chose this life of service, and understood the risk of their death as a sacrifice for mission, unit and country."

After the hour-long ceremony, many families ventured off toward the grave of their loved one lost.

Maria Hiteshew, 56, of Mt. Morris, kneeled beside the grave of her husband Barry Hiteshew and wiped tears from her eyes. Barry Hiteshew served in the Navy for 20 years and died in May 2014 after a six-year battle with prostate cancer.

"It's very important to remember everybody that has given their lives," she said. "It's a sacrifice, but it's nice that the people understand what they give to protect our lives, to protect our country. It's nice to hear that they're not forgotten. I just miss him so much."

The Great Lakes National Cemetery is one of two national shrines in Michigan. The cemetery opened in 2005 and features 544 acres that will serve as the resting place for an estimated 244,000 veterans and their dependents. Currently, there are roughly 33,000 veterans and their dependents who have been laid to rest at the site.
LINDEN, MI -- Stanley Aldrich sat in a white limousine Monday morning outside the Linden VFW Post 4642 bearing seals of the different armed forces branches.

The 90-year-old U.S. Navy and Army veteran watched May 29 as parade-goers assembled outside the post for the 70th annual Memorial Day parade, hoping people would remember the true reason for the day of remembrance.

Having helped build the Linden VFW block-by-block, Aldrich talked his father into letting him join the Navy at 17 in 1945, the year World War II came to an end.

"I had two brothers that were in the Navy and I wanted to be in with them," said Aldrich, dressed in full uniform.

He spent time "here, there, and everywhere" in Korea, helping bandage up wounded soldiers being dropped in the country.

"Everything seemed to happen at night," Aldrich said. "I landed in Korea at night. We got on a train and went way, I don't know how far we went up in there. First thing I know, we started hearing kaboom, kaboom. We were getting close, but I was lucky. I got to come home."

Linden resident Dafne Ward offered her thanks in a message scribbled on the Patriot Wall outside the VFW hall.

Ward's husband, Dave Ward, served in the U.S. Army, having headed to Panama during the December 1989 invasion of Panama.

"It's a way of remembering. It's a sad day because we are talking about all the people that have passed away, died (in combat), or have not come back in our wars," she said. "It's sad. I can't even imagine, a mom that lost her kids."

Ward also reminded people to remember those who've returned and have their scars on the inside, not visible to those around them.

"We have to remember, to give help for them," she said. "When they come back you don't know the horrific conditions they have to live."

Ward and Aldrich both asked people to think about the true meaning behind the day.

"One thing I don't like, they're using Memorial Day to sell stuff, cars, mattresses. I hate that," Aldrich said, "Memorial Day is not for that. Remember the guys that left a long time ago and the ones that are in right now."
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- The congressman from the Grand Rapids area will meet with constituents at two town hall meetings this week.

U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, R-Cascade Township, announced plans for both events, which are open to the public.

The first will be held Wednesday, May 31, in Grand Rapids:

Time: 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

Date: Wednesday, May 31

Place: Ottawa Hills High School Auditorium

Address: 2055 Rosewood Ave. SE Grand Rapids, MI

The second will be held Thursday, June 1, in Battle Creek:

Time: 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.

Date: Thursday, June 1

Place: The Kool Family Community Center

Address: 200 W. Michigan Ave. Battle Creek, MI

The congressman has held several town hall meetings so far this year, including a handful in the Grand Rapids area.

Town halls held by congressmen in their home districts have received increased attention this year as groups who oppose Donald Trump's presidency use them as a forum to express discontent with the new administration.

First elected to Congress in 2010, Amash won reelection to a fourth term in November 2016.

He represents Michigan's 3rd congressional district, which stretches from Albion in the south to Sand Lake in the north and includes all or portions of Barry, Calhoun, Ionia, Kent and Montcalm counties.


My visits to these nations are aimed at boosting Indias economic engagement with them & to invite more investment to India.

 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 28, 2017

Prime Minister Narendra Modi set out on a six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France on Monday with an agenda to boost bilateral relations, enhance trade and seek investments.

Germany

Modi will first visit Germany for the fourth India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) on May 30 along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at Meseberg, near Berlin.

Germany is India's largest trade partner in the European Union. It is also one of the leading sources of Foreign Direct Investment into India. Therefore, several Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) are expected to be signed to broaden the canvas of bilateral cooperation.

"Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for Indias transformation," Narendra Modi posted on Facebook.

Prime Minister and Merkel will jointly address India-German Business Summit, where they will interact with a select group of CEOs to build up economic relations.

Spain

After the Prime Minister meets German President Dr Frank-Walter Stein Meier, he will travel to Spain on Tuesday. It will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in three decades.

The last visit was in 1988 when then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi travelled to Madrid.

Modi will call on King Felipe VI and hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy.

The main focus will be to discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, with combating terrorism being one of the important agendas.

He will also meet top CEOs of Spanish industry and encourage them to partner in the Make in India initiative.

Russia

On May 31, Prime Minister will travel from Spain to St Petersburg in Russia for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit.

Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin will interact with CEOs from the two countries.

On June 2, Modi and Putin will address the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) where India is the "guest country".

At the beginning of his visit, he will visit Piskarovskoye Cemetery to pay homage to those who perished during the siege of Leningrad.

He will also visit the world famous State Hermitage Museum and the Institute of Oriental manuscripts.

France

In the last leg of the tour, Modi will visit France on June 2 for an official meeting with the newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

France is India's 9th largest investment partner and a key partner in its development initiatives in the areas of defence, space, nuclear and renewable energy, urban development and railways.
Chandan Taparia of Motilal Oswal Securities told CNBC-TV18, "We are positive on Indiabulls Housing Finance. This stock has taken support at exact rising support trendline on the daily and the weekly chart and formed a fry pan bottom on the daily chart as well. It has seen the built up of long positions followed by short covering. So, it looks quite strong for an upmove towards Rs 1,155, one can buy with a stop loss of Rs 1,055."

"Second is buy on Tata Steel. We have seen buying interest in most of the metal stocks, with a built up of long positions and the sustained put writing in all these metals stocks indicates that next 7-8 percent movement cannot be ruled out. So here I am recommending to be with Tata Steel. It has surpassed hurdle of Rs 497-500 zone after the consolidation of last couple of trading sessions. So, technically it formed a pole and flag pattern and looking towards targets towards Rs 543, one can buy the same with a stop loss of Rs 497. In option trades also trade 510 Call to play the momentum with limited risk," he said.

"Third trade is a buy on Reliance Industries. After the profit booking of last two-three weeks, the stock has taken support near Rs 1,295-1,300 zone. We have seen put writing at Rs 1,300-1,310 strike, which indicates that now bottom is placed for the short-term message and the stock has potential to bounce towards Rs 1,380-1,400 zone to catch the market momentum. So, here also we are recommending to go long with a stop loss of Rs 1,308 for the upside target of Rs 1,400."

"Apart from that, I am recommending one more strategy that is on Axis Bank. Most of the private banks are doing well. However, Axis Bank remains in a range and we are expecting this rangebound move to continue. We are expecting this stock to move towards Rs 530 zone. So recommending Call ladder strategy in that - buy 510 Call, sell one lot of 530, sell one lot of 540. So in the entire strategy the risk is only Rs 3,000 and if the stock move towards Rs 530-535 zone then one can get the profit of around Rs 9,000-12,000 in this strategy."

: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd
The government may soon offload the loss-making Air India with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley favouring divestment of the national carrier.

Mired in debt for years, the state-owned airline has been staying afloat on taxpayers money and the government now seems to think that it is not worth spending more funds on its revival.

In an interview with DD News over the weekend, Jaitley said that Air Indias market share today is around 14 percent but the debt is Rs 50,000 crore. In this country, if 87 or 86 percent flying can be handled by the private sector... then they can also do 100 percent, he added.

This has been the strongest indication from the NDA government regarding privatisation of the state-owned airline.

Recently, the government seems to have warmed up to the idea of divesting its stake in Air India. The statement by Arun Jaitley resonates with the views of many top government officials who have recently floated the idea of privatising the carrier.

The aviation ministry is currently exploring various options, while the government's policy think-tank NITI Aayog is also looking into the issue, including a possible strategic sale.

Back in 2012, the Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance government had gave a Rs 30,000 crore bailout package spread over a decade to prop up Air India's equity. Out of this fund, the company has already received Rs 22,280 crore.

In an interview, then Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju told The Hindu that despite the Rs 30,000 crore bailout package approved for Air India in 2012, the national carrier remained a debt trap. He had said that the government cannot commit the taxpayers money for an eternity to revive the ailing company.

Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian, had also recommended that government should privatise Air India in the Economic Survey released this year.

By the end of March 2015, Air India had accumulated a debt of Rs 51,367.07 crore. At the end of FY16, the airlines debt had been reduced to around Rs 46,000 crore. Out of this, Rs 28,000 crore were short-term loans.

Earlier this month, Air India chief Ashwani Lohani, through a Facebook post, said that the debt acquired by Air India is at the root of all problems for the company.

Jaitley further said that when he was Civil Aviation minister for a brief period during 1999-2000 under the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, he had asked for disinvestment of Air India, arguing that if it was not done, nothing will be left to disinvest."
wockhardt_300_44272682

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Drug maker Wockhardt on Monday said Irish regulator cleared its Shendra formulation plant in Aurangabad, Maharashtra.

"We wish to inform the exchanges that the Health Products Regulatory Authority of Ireland (HPRA) has granted a certificate of GMP (good manufacturing practices) compliance to our Shendra facility," the company said in a statement to exchanges.

The Shendra facility was inspected from February 27 to March 3 this year.

Ireland is a member country of European Union. Typically, EU member states depend on each other's inspections based on a mutual recognition agreement.

Wockhardt's manufacturing facility in Shendra is new and serves the UK, Irish and domestic markets.

The company doesn't disclose its sales in Ireland.

Wockhardt acquired Irish drug-maker Pinewood Laboratories in 2006 and runs a manufacturing unit there.

Shendra facility is under US FDA warning letter and is going through remediation.

Shares of Wockhardt rose 0.32 percent and were trading at Rs.588.40 on BSE at 12.02 am, the benchmark Sensex gained 0.06 percent to 31,053.29 points.
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Troubled with capital constraints, state-owned Central Bank of India sold close to Rs 23,000 crore worth of loans in FY17 to meet the capital mandate following the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) cleanup drive.

Gross advances of the bank shrunk to Rs 1.53 lakh crore in March 2017, a de-growth of 19.5 percent as against Rs 1.90 lakh crore in March 2016 which was due to sale of loan assets of Rs 22,991.22 crore through IBPC (Inter-Bank Participation Certification) participation, Central Bank of Indias financial results stated.

IBPC transactions are aimed to fill short-term requirements of banks and are typically bought back by the seller bank within three to four months, depending on the agreement.

The selling bank receives cash in return for loans sold to shore up its immediate capital needs.

This helped Central Bank of India to shore up its capital adequacy ratio under Basel III to 10.95 percent from 10.41 percent a year ago. The tier-I capital was up to 8.62 percent from 8.20 percent.

Current norms under Basel III require banks to maintain a minimum capital adequacy of 9 percent and a Tier-I ratio of 7 percent. Capital adequacy is a measure of a banks solvency based on its financial strength.

The bank has been weighed down on account of capital. Last year, we didnt get the capital we required (from the government) and thats why we had to shed the assets worth Rs 23,000 crore through IBPCTo meet the capital mandate, we had to de-grow and hence our NPA number looks more pronounced but in absolute terms, NPAs have risen only by about Rs 1,000 crore, said Rajeev Rishi, Chairman and Managing Director of Central Bank of India.

The public sector bank reported a rise in gross NPA (non-performing assets) at 17.81 percent of total loans as compared to 14.14 percent in the previous quarter. In absolute terms, this increased to Rs 27,251 crore from Rs 25,843 crore as on December 2016. The bank targets to bring in 14 percent by March end in FY18.

Net NPAs rose to 10.20 percent (Rs 14,218 crore) from 7.36 percent (Rs 13,241 crore).

Last year, Central Bank of India received a capital of Rs 100 crore while this year, Rishi has requested for Rs 3,500 crore.

We need for both growth and Basel III. Even if I dont increase my capital adequacy ratio levels, I will need the money. We expect the loan growth to be 8-10 percent.

The bank will also look at raising capital from the market through a QIP or sale of non-core assets including its 8 percent stake in IL&FS, which could generate about Rs 1,000 crore and some real estate.

On the banks growth the Rishi said the bank did many things but got eclipsed due to high NPAs.

The bank increased its CASA (current and savings account) share to 40 percent from 31 percent three years ago with high cost deposits down to Rs 10,000 crore from a whopping Rs 56,000 crore and its staff strength was down by about 4,000 to 37,000.

It also made an operating profit of 17 percent, however a net loss of Rs 592 crore (down from loss of Rs 898 crore a year ago.)

For the full year, the banks loss increased to Rs 2,439 crore from Rs 1,418 crore in FY16.

The bank chief said, But my focus will be on recoveries and if I can get them done, things should get better...I am expecting almost Rs 3,000 crore recoveries and about Rs 1,500 crore upgradation. My slippages pipeline is at about Rs 7,000 crore for FY18.
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While the government has been a champion of renewable energy so far, wind energy hasnt been receiving its share of love  or so it would appear. A combination of lower tariffs, muddled policy, and lowered incentives are threatening to cripple the industry.

At the core of the soul-killing malaise is perhaps the governments decision to procure power through a reverse auction. Producers will be at a disadvantage as they will be forced to offer competitive tariffs, and undercut their margins.

There has been a steady drop in wind power tariffs which have now crashed to Rs 3.46 per unit. Currently, there is cross-selling of wind power between states, an arrangement blessed by the Centre where the haves agree to sell their wind capacity to the have-nots. But lowered tariffs could mean discoms in these wind-power generating states would want the same rate at which power is supplied to the deficient ones.

The biggest impact of this move was felt on wind power producers like Inox Wind whose order book shrank overnight. With no signing of PPAs, there were no investors willing to buy wind power generators.

Going forward state governments are expected to follow the auction-based mechanism to bag wind power orders, but this is expected to take some time as states learn the ropes and prepare the ground work for issuing tenders.

According to a Maybank Kim Eng report of the eight active states installing wind power in India, three have already started working on their state specific auction programme.

All new projects that would come up in future are expected to be through the auction route. Wind power producers believe that an annual 7,000 MW of wind power projects will be announced every year till 2022. The current installed capacity of wind power in the country is 32.27 GW with governments target of touching 60 GW by 2022. Out of the annual order of 7 GW (7,000 MW) central government is expected to place 4 GW of orders while the remaining is expected to be placed by state governments and public sector players.

While the industry is adjusting to the new reality, there is uncertainty on the projects that are already under progress. A Crisil report, as reported by Mint, points out that under-construction projects, as part of the FiT or feed-in tariff (which promises a steady revenue stream) regime may be put up for auction by the states.

The problem is that these projects are being built without a PPA and are based on the market rates prevailing before the industry was shaken up. All negotiations of these projects with suppliers (of turbines, etc) have been based on higher rates.

Many states have already announced competitive bidding for under-construction projects. Rajasthan is likely to conduct reverse bidding for the existing 100 MW of projects, which are at various stages of commissioning. This will be followed by Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh for 500 MW.

Companies constructing these projects will have to go back to their supplies and renegotiate the terms for the equipment which have already been ordered to such low levels that they can be successful in the reverse bidding process. This move alone can disturb the industry that has been affected by policy changes.

The Crisil report says that with the onset of reverse auctions, the competitiveness of wind power versus other fuel sources has increased. The bid prices for the recent reverse auction, for one, are 24 percent lower than the weighted average tariffs of coal-based plants, discovered under Case I bidding in the recent past. This gives an idea of the renegotiation that has to be done by the producers.

Reverse bidding will no doubt bring down margins across the industry, but the recent decision to auction under-construction projects will bring down prices further. Its clearly not a good time to be in the wind power business.

However, after the dust has settled, under-construction projects are auctioned and state governments announce their bidding process, the sector is expected to have better visibility. Though there will be pricing pressure, technology advancement will ensure that there is enough left on the table for producers. Already wind turbine generators prices have fallen by 20 percent over the last five years.
Foreign Minister of Armenia to participate in the Fifth Paris Peace Forum

Armenia: EU and Armenia Hold annual Dialogue on Human Rights

Todays Shushi, Occupied and Cleared of Armenians, is a Real Example of Turkish-Azerbaijani Policy of Ethnic Cleansing of Artsakh

Ookla, the the global leader in internet testing and analysis has awarded Ucom

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Sweden will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union

Ameriabank: At the Vanguard of Armenia's Banking Sector

STATEMENT OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARTSAKH

SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS

Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders

PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces

There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan

Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia

Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair

Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan

I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General

I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox

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There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur

EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol  Armenia and Azerbaijan  to do so without delay

An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan".

UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT

The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022

Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully

The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces

LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET

STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN

This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan

Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments

Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex
NITI Aayog chose four infrastructure projects of the Delhi government and will help in executing them.

Two out of the four projects are related to transit-oriented development - smart city at North Delhi's Gulabi Bagh and ISBT Sarai Kale Khan in southeast Delhi.

The other two are the North-South Delhi elevated corridor from Signature Bridge to National Highways 8 (near IGI Airport) and the Elevated Cycle Corridor along Press Enclave Marg (Satpullah Nallah) to Barapullah Nallah flyover in south Delhi.

The government's premier policy think tank will provide support services to the four projects executed by the Public Works Department of the Delhi government.

"NITI Aayog has chosen the Delhi government's four infrastructure projects under its Development Support Service to States (DSSS) policy," Delhi PWD Minister Satyendar Jain told PTI.

Under the DSSS, the National Institution for Transforming Indian (NITI) Aayog provides expertise to selected projects of state governments.

Jain said a presentation on the Delhi government's projects were recently presented to the senior officials of the NITI Aayog.

"Delhi government recently sent files relating to these projects to UTTIPEC (Unified Traffic and Transportation Infrastructure - Planning & Engineering, Centre) for its approval," the minister said.

He also said that once the government gets the approval from UTTIPEC, the PWD will start the work on these projects.
In a significant verdict, the Supreme Court has asked courts to have an economic analysis of law approach, reports CNBC-TV18.

The apex court is sending out a message that law and economy may interface on various occasions and it is increasingly important for the courts to appreciate that.

This could mark a paradigm shift in courts decision and it comes at a time when projects worth thousands of crores of rupees are stuck due to pending litigation.

The order says that India is a developing country and while all agencies have contributed towards that it is time now for the judiciary to also perform its duties in pushing the country in that direction. The judiciary is duty bounds to take into account economic considerations, the apex court said.

It further added that in cases where there are two possible views, the court must lean on the side of the view that is in favour of employment, infrastructure, economy and higher revenues.

Part of the courts order also says that even in cases where economic interests competes with the life of individual citizens, the view has to be balanced.

It further regretted that the Indian judiciary has resorted to economic analysis of law on ad hoc basis. Time has come to consider the inter-discipline between law and economics as a profound movement on sustainable basis, held the bench, seeking an attitudinal change.
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India will levy a 5 percent tax on all equipment required for generating solar power compared with nil duty now, a government official clarified, putting an end to confusion about the new taxation policy for the industry after its landmark tax reform.

"All solar equipments and its parts would attract 5 percent GST only," Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said in a tweet on Sunday, contrary to the initially planned two tax slabs of 5 percent and 18 percent.

India, the world's third biggest greenhouse gas emitter, has set a target to produce 100 gigawatts of solar power in five years to fuel its economic expansion while reducing its carbon footprint.

A flat 5 percent tax on all solar power equipment will put the sector on par with domestic coal from July 1 and make solar energy generation more expensive.

The 5 percent tax, however, is in contrast to a previous notification that had fixed an 18 percent tax on photovoltaic cells and panels, which account for a bulk of solar power generation costs.

Domestic coal sales now attract a 11.69 percent duty.

State-run Coal India Ltd , saddled with millions of tonnes of unsold coal, is expected to be the biggest beneficiary of the decision.

A tax on solar parts could hurt the young and booming industry, which relies heavily on cells imported from China. Solar tariffs in India had fallen to a record low of 2.44 rupees ($0.0378) per unit earlier this month.

India is extending capital subsidies and cheaper loans for clean energy to help meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi's goal of raising renewable energy capacity by more than five times in the next five years to fight climate change.

Solar power generation capacity in India has more than tripled in less than three years to over 12 GW, helped by lower module prices and borrowing costs.
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Honda Cars India, the countrys fourth largest car maker, will majorly overhaul its product line-up by 2020 to fend off competition from Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai, both of whom are entering Hondas premium turf.

The Greater Noida-based car maker is working on new models of the City, Jazz and Amaze all of which will get launched in the next 12-36 months. Further, the Honda Civic, a premium sedan, will make a comeback to the Indian market after a five-year hiatus.

Honda has realigned plans for the Indian market as per which it will continue to focus on the premium segment that includes executive sedans and premium hatchbacks as against its earlier plans of becoming a mass market manufacturer.

The all-new City and Jazz have been in the works since 2015. The City has been the flagship of Honda despite other significant product introductions by the company in other segments. This new City and Jazz will get launched in India in 2020, said an industry source.

City remains the largest-selling model for the Japanese brand in India with an average monthly volume of 4,800 units last year. Only the Ciaz is the ahead of the City in volumes at an average of 5,400 units a month.

With an eye on volumes the company had launched the compact hatchback Brio in the same price range as the Maruti Suzuki Swift, the segment-bestseller. Similarly, it launched the Mobilio multi-purpose vehicle to take on the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga.

While Mobilios production is stopped and the company has no plans on continuing with the model, sources add that the Brio may also be on its way out owing to poor volumes and low popularity among buyers.

Globally, there is the new Brio coming in. But Honda will most likely not bring it here. However, the new Amaze, which uses Brios platform will replace the existing Amaze when it gets launched in the next 12 months, said an industry source.

During the last financial year Brio managed to generate average sales of just 500 units a month a far cry from the average monthly volumes of 13,900 units clocked by the Swift, according to data collected by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.

The Mobilio, which too is based on the Brio platform, was tailor-made for markets like India. Built at Hondas R&D center in Bangkok the seven-seater, people carrier was launched in 2014 in India at Rs 6.49 lakh.

Its volumes, however, have been in a sorry state. In the ten months period of April-January the model managed average monthly volumes of just 214 units compared to an average of 5200 units clocked by the Ertiga.

In January, Honda launched an updated Mobilio in Indonesia. However, HCILs President and CEO Yoichiro Ueno said that costs for meeting new vehicle safety regulations set for introduction in India later this year is prohibitive for the launch of the Mobilio here.
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As Indians, we are obsessed with word big  a big car, we all want a big house, a big salary package and as investors, we always want big returns.

Bahubali is synonymous to something big and as investors, we want to invest in stocks which can give multibagger returns in quick time.

If you remember, Bahubali II collections crossed the Rs 1,000 crore mark in no time. Forget about the first week or second week, this is by far the most successful movie in Indian history.

Having a portfolio of quality stocks can give returns which can match Bahubali. Investors should possess the patience to invest in the market or a company when there is fear in the market and valuations are just right because that would have a good risk-to-reward ratio.

Even in the field of investing, the waiting game eventually pays off. Of course, like Bahubali, you need to keep constantly chipping away at your eventual investment goal, Angel Broking said in a blog.

Like Bahubali, your investment decisions must be driven by cold logic and incisive analysis. Your decisions may appear to be wrong, but that is not really material, it said.

Here, in this article, we are also focussing on stocks which have already doubled your money in the last 2-3 years, but can still fetch multibagger returns in the next 2-3 years.

All these stocks possess qualities of strong management, wide product portfolio, interlinked with an economy which is likely to do well in near future etc.

Last week, market touched record highs but we saw some profit booking in small and midcap stocks. The S&P BSE Midcap index closed 124 points lower, while the S&P BSE Smallcap Index ended 140 points down for the week ended May 26.

Last week trading activity suggested that all is not well in the broader market and if there is a correction that investors should be ready with their shopping list.

Since the last one to two months it was being anticipated that midcaps are bound to correct given steep valuation, increased valuation gap between large & midcaps and the risk of high expectation on earnings growth next year, Vinod Nair - Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services told Moneycontrol.

Largecaps will also be under pressure given consolidation in the global market but outperform the midcaps. Short term investors are suggested to book profit while long-term investors should consider this as an opportunity to expand their midcap exposure in the long-term, he said.

We have collated a list of 10 stocks as suggested by various experts which have already risen more than 100 percent in the last 3 years but can still offer multibagger returns in next 2-3 years

Analyst: Vinod Nair - Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Bharat Forge

Bharat Forge (BFL) is planning to scale up the new business from current 5 percent to 15 percent in the next 2 to 3 years. The orders from Boeing and new defense JV with AM General will provide higher revenue visibility in the non-auto sector during FY18.

BFL has also entered into JVs with SAAB, Rafael & IAI (Israel Aircraft Industry) which will boost its presence in the field of air defense. Government mandatory for in-house sourcing for Make in India projects will benefit Bharat Forge, in the long run, to build up order book.

Upcoming BS6 emission norms can aid a sharp increase in content per vehicle due to increase in the engine components parts in car and Truck segment. We expect 13 percent revenue CAGR over FY17-19E led by pick-up in US truck market and de-risking the utilization in the non-auto sector, said Nair.

Ashok Leyland (AL)

Ashok Leyland (AL) is the second largest commercial vehicle (CV) manufacturer in India will be direct beneficiary led by improvement in the road infrastructure projects. AL is the largest supplier of logistic vehicles to Indian Army (5 percent of revenue), will see higher traction from the new defense procurement policy.

AL's 100 percent acquisition on its 3 JV with Nissan Corporation of the LCV business will give positive impetus for the business and also allow using the Nissan technology on a 1 percent royalty basis for 5 years.

The management is focused on gaining market share in LCV from 15 percent to 30 percent over next 2-3 years by launching new models in FY18. We expect the AL's revenue to grow at 14 percent CAGR over FY17-19E by factoring 12 percent volume growth in our estimate for the same period, Nair said.

Havells India

Higher than expected GST rate in consumer discretionary may have some impact on volume due to likely price hike post the GST rolled out. However, being a leading player in electrical consumer goods and the recent acquisition of Lloyd consumer business is expected to bring long-term scalability to HAVLs consumer business.

We expect revenue & PAT to grow at healthy 14 percent & 17 percent CAGR over FY17-FY19E. Given strong revenue growth and healthy earnings outlook HAVL is expected to portray a long-term story in the consumer goods segment, said Nair.

Bharat Electronics (BEL)

BEL has market leadership in defence electronics given its strong execution capabilities, technological tie-ups with a higher focus on R&D.

BEL is a debt free and a cash rich company with a strong order book with of Rs33,806 crore which is 4.7x FY16 sales, providing strong revenue visibility for next 4 years.

Further, BEL will be a major beneficiary of GoI higher focus on Make in India and higher indigenous procurement. GoI plans to bring down import dependence to 30 percent from current 60 percent.

Further, under the new defense procurement policy, a new category called Buy Indian (Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured  IDDM) was introduced, having the highest priority in procurement which will provide higher opportunities for domestic players and improve domestic R&D investments.

Analyst: Dinesh Rohira, Founder & CEO, 5nance.com

Marico

The maker of Hair Oil and Edible Oil announced a strong set of the number during the Q4 with volume growth for domestic business at 10 percent higher than industry growth.

As company focus to increase the volume growth through penetrating in the rural market, the higher than expected monsoon is expected to drive the price of stock for long term. The stock has registered 167 percent returns in last three years.

3M India

With about USD 30 billion in sales and operation in more than 7 countries, 3M sales wide range products portfolio. As a company prepares to enter defence foray, the order-book is likely to build a huge revenue for the company from mid to long term perspective.

Bajaj Finance

With growth in consumer finance coupled with increase customer base, Bajaj Finance has surged by almost 400 percent in last three years. The net profit during the Q4 grew at 43 percent while containing the surge in NPA at 1.68 percent.

The company is expected to increase the size of the balance sheet by 25 percent in the medium term, the growth trend is expected to an extent for several phases.

Indiabulls Housing Finance

A mortgage lender at midcap segment had delivered 3 digit promising returns in last three years. The company reported 24 percent growth in net profit during the Q4 backed by growth in loan and interest income. As government plans for affordable housing, the theme is expected to boost the top-line of the company in the medium term.

Analyst: Amarjeet Maurya in Midcap Research at Angel Broking

We believe that one should look at selective midcaps where there is a strong earning visibility and good financials. Investors should not write off the midcaps but remain cautious and selective at the current valuations.

Midcaps with poor fundamentals and high leverage balance sheet should be avoided. Maurya is positive on KEI Industries, Mirza International, Asian Granito, Navkar Corp, etc. in midcap space.

KEI Industries

Despite slower orders due to the UP elections and the impact of the de-monetisation in H2 FY17, KEIs EPC division did well in FY17. The Chopanki plant expansion disrupted production, hurting sales of EHV cables.

The re-structuring of vendor financing led to the recognition of buyers credit as part of debt, leading to greater transparency. With strong orders across verticals providing revenue assurance for the next two years, the stock is a good buy at current levels, AnandRathi said in a note.

Mirza International

Mirza International Ltd a leading footwear producing company would be a big beneficiary of a) Shift from unorganized to organized market in India b) Improving economic conditions of the target export market to benefit. The company has diversified revenue source, established a domestic retail presence along with Amalgamation of Genesis Footwear in 2016.

Mirza Intl. has launched a new brand Bond Street at a price point slightly below the Redtape brand in the range of Rs 1500-2000 per pair. The company plans to sell around 3-4 lakh pairs in the domestic market in FY18. The new brand will give deeper penetration to the company in MBOs in tier 2 and 3 cities, Axis Securities said in a report.

The new brand is expected to help the company capture its position in the MBOs, where the sales were on exhibiting declining trend, it said.

The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
The S&P BSE Sensex remained volatile throughout the trading session on Monday and hit a record high 31,214.39. As much as 37 stocks hit a fresh record high on the BSE.

Stocks which hit fresh record high include names like Maruti Suzuki, IndusInd Bank, Savita Oil, Manpasand Beverages, Escorts, Finolex Industries, PC Jewellers, Shakti Pumps, Power Grid etc. among others.

Riding the momentum, as much as 87 stocks hit a fresh 52-week on the BSE which include names like HDFC Bank, L&T, HUL, HDFC, Apar Industries, BPCL, Tata Steel, ITC, Hindalco, South India Bank etc. among others.

The S&P BSE Sensex finally closed 81 points higher or 0.26 percent at 31,109.28. It hit a record high of 31,214.39 and a low of 30,869.90.

The Nifty ended 9.8 points higher or 0.1 percent at 9,604.90. It hit a record high of 9,637.75 and a low of 9,547.70 in trade today.

One big positive factor which is fuelling markets higher is domestic as well as global liquidity. Foreign investors have pumped in nearly USD 4 billion in the country's capital market so far this month of May due to finalisation of GST rates.

According to latest depository data, FPIs invested a net Rs 9,007 crore in equities during May 2-26, while they poured Rs 15,769 crore in the debt markets during the period under review, translating into a net inflow of Rs 24,776 crore (USD 3.85 billion).

However, there was some pressure on the broader market.

"Midcap stocks have outperformed benchmark indices amid the muted earnings growth. If we dissect NSE Midcap index, 40 percent of the companies are ahead of price CAGR. This is the kind of froth which has gotten created in a large chunk of midcap space," Kashyap Pujara, ED & Deputy Head of Research, Axis Capital said in an interview with CNBC-TV18.

Hence, for investors, the best practice would be to look at bottom-up stories. They should invest in stocks where they are sure that there is a possibility of earnings growth and expectation of Vs earnings growth are realistic in terms of current multiple which the stock is trading at.

The S&P BSE Midcap index 150 points lower or 10.03 percent, led by losses in HPCL, Reliance Infrastructure, Reliance Capital, Reliance Communications, JSW Steel etc. among others.

The S&P BSE Smallcap index 231 points lower or 1.5 percent at 14,855, led by losses in Federal Bank, Crompton Greaves, Bharat Financial, JP Associates, Voltas, and Century Textiles etc. among others.
Six more airports in the country, including Patna and Chennai, will do away with the practice of tagging and stamping domestic passengers' hand baggage from June 1.

Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Director General OP Singh told PTI that the new airports include Jaipur, Guwahati, Lucknow and Trivandrum, apart from Patna and Chennai.

"We had run a trial at these six airports for a few weeks. After finding that an enhanced number of new gadgets, CCTVs and security paraphernalia has been put in place, the process of doing away with the tagging and stamping of domestic air passengers' hand baggage will begin from June 1," the DG said.

The CISF had first initiated this new system at seven airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad from April 1.

The force is tasked with guarding 59 civil airports in the country.

Singh said five more airports at Varanasi, Pune, Goa, Bhubaneswar and Vishakhapatnam would be next in line where the tagging and stamping of passengers' hand baggage will be done away with in the coming days.

"The trial will now begin at these five airports," he said, adding the force proposes to initiate this people- friendly measure at all the airports under its cover, by the year-end.

By having the stamped tags on the hand baggage, the security personnel used to be assured that no weapon or ammunition-like material enters the aircraft with the passenger and now with the deployment of smart cameras and repositioning of security paraphernalia at the six new airports, the same objective is being achieved.

The procedure remained a major irritant for passengers and they have made many complaints in this regard to airport authorities saying this system poses hassles for them as it consumes time and in case they forget to get it tagged, security personnel would ask them to go back and get it done.

The output roller trays at the six airports, which will initiate the new drill, have now been extended in order to provide more visual clarity to the security personnel on each and every bag even as they have been instructed to minutely go through the x-ray images before clearing the handbags.

A committee comprising officials of the CISF, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the airport operators has been recently constituted to smoothen the roll-out of this new protocol at all the 59 airports guarded by the paramilitary force.

This was done after a high-level meeting chaired by Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju and his counterpart in the civil aviation ministry, Jayant Sinha, in which the earlier BCAS order about stamping the hand baggage tags was stayed.

The meeting while staying an earlier BCAS order had sought a thorough review of the security apparatus before the new measure could be launched.

The CISF said it had sought modifications in the airport security for doing away with the hand baggage stamping and "to make sure that passengers could not access bags containing restricted items which are segregated by CISF personnel for checking (after X-ray scanning)".

DG Singh had said the new measure will enhance "passenger experience and provide hassle-free security environment to them" while travelling through the airports.

The new protocols are only meant for domestic passengers and those travelling to international destinations will have to get their hand baggage tags stamped as usual.
Getting the first job is a milestone achieved. Nowadays, most employers insist on a bank account with a particular bank where the employer would credit the salary. For many millennials, it is one of the many to do HR formalities. Experts, however, look at it as an important step in the journey towards financial freedom. A savings bank account is an enabler and, if used wisely, can give you a head-start. Here are some tips you can use.

Get the facts right

This may sound really stupid- but do check if your name and address is captured right by the bank. If there are any discrepancies, bring it to the notice of the bank. Corrections should not be postponed.

Do check with the bank if your mobile number and email id are recorded right. Since you will be getting transaction alerts and one-time passwords sent by bank on SMS and email, you cannot afford to get them wrong. If the bank has registered your corporate email id in their records, do change it to your personal email id. This will ensure that you will keep getting banks communication on email even if your corporate email id changes or you quit the company.

Know the rules of game

Each bank will have its own set of rules about your salary account. Though these accounts generally come with zero balance norm, there may be charges if you exceed a certain number of transactions. After a certain number of free transactions at the ATM and branch, the banks typically levy charges on cash transactions. Do check the charges associated with bank drafts and online payments, too. These may come handy if you intend to make payments.

With each new account opened the bank shares the booklet containing important rules and regulations, as per the directives of Banking Codes and Standards Board of India. Preserve this booklet as it will enlist all charges and limits that come with your salary account.

Free demat account

Many banks offer a free demat account and a free investment account along with salary account. It is an industry-wide practice to offer a free demat account for the first year. After the first year, the demat account holder is expected to pay the annual fee in the range of Rs 400 to Rs 500. Even most stock brokers do not charge you in the first year for the demat account. So, there is nothing great about it.

Demat account is essential if you plan to invest in shares. If you plan to restrict yourself to mutual funds and fixed deposits, there is no need of a demat account. You mays simply refuse to open a free demat account. You can open it anytime you want in future.

Credit card

If you have landed a well-paying job and your employer is in A list, there is a high possibility that you will be offered a free credit card at the time of opening of a salary account. Please note the free credit card means that there will not be any annual charges for the first year. But the bank may charge you from the second year. Also, if you do not pay your credit card bills you are charged a heavy late payment fee along with steep interest charge. There are some credit cards that are free for life  which means they do not charge any annual fee. However, the user is expected to pay the credit card bill in full before the due date. Otherwise, the late payment fee and interest charge will nullify the benefit of zero annual fee.

If you decide to go for a credit card, do check the benefits first. If it does not suit your needs, you can give it a pass. If you intend to go for one, understand the charges and resolve to be a prudent user of credit. Pay the credit card bill in full before the due date. It will help you build your credit score, says Sukanya Kumar, Founder of RetailLending.com. To achieve this, sign a debit mandate with your bank which will enable the credit card issuing entity to collect the outstanding bill from your salary account. To ensure it happens, you will have to keep the right amount of balance in your salary saving bank account.

Use it optimally

If you have an outstanding education loan, it is time to pay back. Opt for a standing instruction on your savings bank account to pay your EMI. You can also use the account to invest in liquid funds to park your short-term savings. Thus, you can create your emergency fund, says Jignesh Shah, founder of Mumbai-based Capital Advisors. You may also want to start systematic investment plans in mutual funds to fund your financial goals.

Your salary account opens doors to the world of better money management. Make the most of it.
Achiievers Equities' commodity report on Gold

Gold trading range for the day is 28633-29031.

Gold prices gained as political uncertainty led investors to favor bullion over assets considered riskier such as stocks.

San Francisco Federal Reserve President John Williams said he is spending more time thinking about how fiscal policies under U.S. President Donald Trump could impact the economy.

Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard said that a brighter global economy is posing less risk to the Fed's outlook for the U.S.

BUY GOLD JUN 2017 @ 28900 SL 28800 TGT 29020-29150.MC

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.

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ICICI Direct's research report on Bharat Forge

Increasing focus on new verticals like railways, aerospace, defence, mining & renewables is expected to yield positive outcome in near to medium term. The aerospace revenues increased from Rs 10 crore to Rs 35 crore, while the defence revenues increased from Rs 100 crore to Rs 175 crore in FY17.

Outlook

We remain upbeat on the long term growth potential of the company, which remains the largest forgings company in the world, with strong engineering capabilities. Thus, we value BFL on an SOTP basis with standalone business at 28x FY19E EPS of Rs 42.9 and other subsidiaries at Rs 105/share to arrive at a target price of Rs 1300. We ascribe a BUY recommendation to the stock.

For all recommendations, click here

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

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Stork makes its nest of garbage (video)

Both human factor and climate changes affect the environment. Environmentalist Silva Adamyan alarms that today mining industry is the most concerning in Armenia, as a result of which cancer and endocrine diseases have activated. We are the second country in the whole world with cancer rates, and it proves that the environment isnt examined appropriately. We do not have full research on soil, water issues etc, Silva Adamyan told the journalists. She says that if it continues the same way, both cancer and endocrine diseases will be transferred from generation to generation, The change in the endocrine system is genetics of a nation, if the gene is changed, what will become of us? The environmentalist can see the solution to the issue in carrying out relevant examinations, as well as plating trees, which will make forests more, We should plant such trees, which will change the landscape. Today the environmentalist also touched upon the issue of garbage. Silva Adamyan says that we are wholly in garbage. She also mentioned that in Surenavan village of Ararat marz the stork made its nest of garbage.
Angel Broking's currency report on EURINR

In the last week, Euro spot traded lower by 0.20 percent (EURUSD) and 0.17 percent (EURINR) after the Euro - zone finance ministers along with the IMF failed to agree on debt relief for Greece and did not release new loans to Athens, but came close enough in talks to aim for both deals at their next meeting in three weeks. In the recent speech, the ECB President commented that the committee would not be altering its course on monetary policy any time soon. He ended the speech on a positive note saying that recent market optimism reflected the Euro - zones solid economic recovery. Today, EURINR spot is likely to trade lower after Angela Merkel said that Germany could no longer rely on Donald Trump's America and has to be independent enough.

Today, EURINR spot is likely to trade lower after Angela Merkel said that Germany could no longer rely on Donald Trump's America and has to be independent enough.

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.

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Moneycontrol Research

Once considered a utility item, luggage products now are a lifestyle statement, thanks to increasing business and leisure travel, and rising disposable incomes. The Good and Services Tax could be a short-term dampener for the luggage industry, but should benefit organised players like VIP Industries and Safari in the long run.

How big is the opportunity?

The overall luggage market in India is roughly Rs 7,000-8000 crore, according to market estimates, with organised players controlling 40 percent.

Over the last decade, the industry has consistently grown in respectable low teens. We see the growth sustaining as there are enough factors favouring this trend.

The growth of travel infrastructure such as roads, airports and railway stations have contributed significantly to the development of the travel industry in India. Over the years, both domestic and international air travel have consistently grown in double-digits.

Macro drivers of the luggage industry

Aided by macro drivers like GDP growth, rising personal income levels, changing lifestyles, huge middle class as well as the availability of low-cost air fares and diverse travel packages, India is rapidly becoming one of the fastest growing outbound travel markets in the world, second only to China. UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization) predicts that todays 20 million outbound Indian travellers will more than double to 50 million over the next three years.

India is expected to replace China as the most populous country in the next five years. Bigger than the entire US population, Indias middle-class today numbers 350 million people. Millennials, who constitute a considerable portion of Indian population, travel and like to do so hands free, which in turn has resulted in the growth for the backpack-duffle bag category.

Also, luggage has also become an important part of the wedding trousseau, with even people in Tier II and III cities buying branded suitcases and strollers during the wedding season.

While the rural segment was traditionally catered to by the unorganised sector, branded players in recent times have started launching products at reasonable price points to grab market share in this category as well.

Modern retailing and new fashion trends are also expected to drive the sale of casual bags and travel luggage bags category. As per a Nielsens West report, the proportion of consumers who claim to shop at Modern Trade occasionally has grown from 54 percent in 2015 to 66 percent in 2016. Hypermarkets have become a favourite destination for the urban shoppers and as almost all the luggage brands are visible there.

Apart from hypermarkets, luggage retailers are also tapping online marketplaces including Flipkart, Amazon and are revamping their own online portal to catch eye balls.

Oligopolistic nature of the organised sector

Samsonite, VIP and Safari constitute approximately 95 percent of the total organised sector of the luggage industry. Brands like Delsey, Tommy Hilfiger to name a few, account for the rest. VIP is the leader with an almost 50 percent market share, followed closely by Samsonite (45 percent). Safari accounts for the rest.

The oligopolistic nature of the industry, favourable macro tailwinds, and gradual shift in consumer preference for branded luggage (also triggered by the implementation of Goods & Service Tax) augurs well for the organised listed entities like VIP Industries and Safari.

Life after GST

While GST prima facie looks like a dampener with a higher rate of 28 percent compared to the current revenue neutral rate of 18 percent to 19 percent, it may be countered to some extent in the short term, thanks to the strength of the domestic currency. Strengthening of rupee and softer polymer prices should have a sobering impact on input prices (largely imported from China).

We feel organised players can tide over the incremental taxes with smart management of costs. Unorganised players might be at a disadvantage as pricing difference--their competitive edgewould get considerably eroded should they be forced to adhere to the taxation norms.

Two companies worth a look

VIP Industries (market cap: Rs 2,670 crore), which started its retail journey in 1971, manufactures a range of hard-sided and soft-sided luggage including trolleys, suitcases, duffels and overnight travel solutions, executive cases, backpacks and school bags. Key brands are VIP, Skybags, Alfa, Aristocrat, Carlton, and Caprese.

VIP is now the second largest player in the world and largest in Asia. The company derives ~45 percent of its sales from the VIP brand, 27 percent plus from Skybags brand, 20 percent from Aristocrat and Alfa combined, and ~8 percent combined from premium Carlton and Caprese brands.

Over the past few years, VIP has wrested share from Samsonite across segments, though it has lost share to Safari, primarily in the value segment. VIP gained large market share in backpacks and has become the market leader from a nil presence a few years ago.

A stable and a matured player with a diverse offering, VIP will balance growth and profitability going forward and be a secular play on this theme.

VIP  A Glance at Finances

Safari (market Cap: Rs 550 crore) has become a serious challenger in the past few years especially in the value segment with its aggressive growth strategy. This company is rapidly spreading itself through mass-premium section and is planning to revamp the entire portfolio for more aggressive expansion. It has acquired Genius Leathercraft and with that the brands like Genius, Magnum, Activa, Orthofit, all came into the Safari basket. It has also forayed into school bags segment.

Soft luggage is a major contributor to sales. With the right product offering, the company is trying to cater to the change in consumer preferences towards the convenience of light and wheeled travel products and away from heavier products without wheels.

With growth as the mantra, the company appears to be grabbing market share at the cost of profitability. Being a price competitive player, after the initial hiccups post GST, Safari Industries should be able to wrest market share from unorganised players. In the near-term, the sharp appreciation of the Indian currency should shield margins to some extent.

The company has aggressive growth ambitions and targets to become Rs 1,000 crore company in next three-four years.

Safari  A Look at Financial Journey

What should you buy?

VIP Industries and Safari have risen by 72 percent and 50 percent, respectively in the past one year. However, given the secular theme, gains on account of shift from unorganised to organised, these companies are ideal for investors with a longer term investment horizon. Investors should gradually accumulate the stocks with 60 percent weight in VIP and 40 percent in Safari to capture stability and growth of this highly promising segment.
Dilip Shanghvi | Founder and MD, Sun Pharmaceuticals | Net worth: Rs 89,700 (Image: Reuters)

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India's largest drug maker Sun Pharma shares dropped close to 13 percent on Monday with companys management hinting at a tough year ahead with a single digit decline on consolidated sales due headwinds in US and uncertainty over resolution of its Halol plant, which is critical to companys big product approvals.

FY18 is likely to be challenging year for us, said Dilip Shanghvi, Managing Director of Sun Pharma in the companys post results earnings call. US generics industry is facing rapidly changing market dynamics, increased competitive intensity and customer consolidation is leading to pressure on pricing, Shanghvi said.

Continued delay in approvals from Halol facility is also impacting us, he added.

Sun Pharmas Halol unit was issued a warning letter by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2015 due to violation of good manufacturing practices. Consequently, the pace of product approvals in the US has slackened.

What makes things complicated for Sun Pharma is the lack of any exclusivity benefit like the one it had in the form blood cancer drug imatinib in FY17 and also the uncertainty amongst the trade channels due to upcoming GST implementation in Indian market.

We may even have a single digit decline in consolidated revenues, Shangvi said.

While the sales may see a decline but research and development expenses are likely to be shot-up to 9-10 percent on total sales in FY18 compared to 7.6 percent in FY17.

The investments on R&D has become imperative as Sun Pharma invests on funding the clinical development of its global specialty pipeline.

The company also hinted of higher tax rate and a capex to the tune of USD 350 million in FY18.

The companys March quarter earnings were way below street expectations.

Its net profit fell 13.6 percent to Rs 1,223.71 crore, while net sales were down 8 percent at Rs 6,825.16 crore on year-on-year basis.

Sales in the US were USD 381 million, down 34% from a high base last year.

Analysts tracking the company estimate FY18 to be much worse, though they expect things to look up from FY19. We expect 15 percent decline in US sales in FY18 due to pricing pressure in Sun Pharma and Taro portfolio, said Kumar Saurabh of brokerage house Motilal Oswal.

Saurabh expects pending launches such as Xelpros, Elepsia, Glumetza and Odomozo ramp-up to partially offset the revenue decline.

Brokerage house CLSA has downgraded Sun Pharma to sell and has cut the target price steeply from Rs 860 to Rs 500 on the back of 25 percent dip in US sales.

Global research firm JP Morgan observed that the companys revenue decline guidance highlights increasing uncertainty in FY18.

Further, it believes that uncertainty on regulatory issues as well as earnings will keep the stock under pressure.

Having said that, JPMorgan expects the headwinds could give better entry point to focus on upside from specialty pharma and is well-positioned to transition into specialty pharma over the medium term.
India's coastal regulation norms are set for a reboot. Marine and Coastal Regulation Zone (MCRZ) notification 2017, a draft of which is currently worked on by the Environment Ministry, will be replacing the older version. Even as the new regulations look to monetise the over 7000 km coastline of India to leverage its developmental potential, environmentalists have strongly objected to the manner in which the draft has been hushed up. At the heart of their complaint is the unwillingness of the government to release details of the draft, a work-in-progress, for a wider audience.

So, is the MCRZ an improvement on Coastal Regulation Zone which it hopes to replace? Find out.

The notification: Its evolution

The Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification gives protection to the Indian Coastline since 1991. The notification also contains regulations to set up development projects and commercial activities along the coastline, which include the establishment of ports, thermal power plants and Special Economic Zones.

The draft went through a series of amendments since 1991 which were solidified in the CRZ Notification 2011.

What does the CRZ notification 2011 say?

The CRZ Notification 2011 was drafted after consulting all stakeholders including policy makers, civil society organisations, fisher groups and coastal communities. It was a balanced document which made the state coastal zone management authorities responsible for its implementation, limiting the role of the state government in project appraisals and coastal planning.

Amendments to the CRZ 2011

The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) constituted a six-member committee headed by Dr Shailesh Nayak, the former director of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, to review the 2011 notification.

After a presentation was made to Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar in November 2014, a series of amendments were proposed to the Act.

The Committee submitted its report to the Ministry in January 2015, after consulting only the state governments, excluding all other stakeholders.

The Criticism

Several RTIs were filed by the Namati Environmental Justice Programme, a special committee of environmentalists set up by the Centre for Policy Research to look into the CRZ regulations.

The MoEFCC rejected the RTIs on grounds that the government approval has not arrived. However, an order from the Information Commissioner in May 2016 led to the Ministry partially disclosing the contents.

The Namati Committee has massively criticized the secrecy behind the drafting of policies and the exclusion of stakeholders such as environmentalists, urban planners, policy makers and fishermen communities in the proposed amendments.



The MCRZ suggests that the no-development zone from the high tide line in rural coastal areas be shrunk to 50 million from 200 million



It proposes that the state and Union Territories should prepare tourism plans for their respective MCRZ areas.



It reduces coastal protection zone for islands from the present 500 metres from the high tide line to just 20 metres.



It proposes to allow tourism activities in ecologically sensitive areas



It gives power to the state government to decide the extent of developmental activities in the coastal area.



It clarifies that activities of the Defence Research and Development Organization, Indian Space Research Organization extraction of natural gas will require consent from the ministry.





I thank MoEF&CC @anilmdave for amending CRZ notification. Relief to shack owners in Goa, as dismantling & rebuilding is no longer needed.

 Manohar Parrikar (@manoharparrikar) May 7, 2017

Concerns Expressed

Environmentalists of the Namati Committee have assessed the report and declared that the new regulations permitting tourism and real estate structures in and around coastlines will have serious implications on marine ecology and environment. They are of the opinion that it is definitely weaker than the 2011 Notification. The Committee also expressed concerns on the unavailability of the report for public consideration.
Harshwardhansinh Zala, a 14-year-old who signed a Rs 5 crore contract with the Gujarat government to develop landmine-detecting drones in January, has secured 89 percent in his Class 10 examinations.

"The result is measured by your memory, not your knowledge. This is not the end of the life. Thank you to all well wishers," he said in a Facebook post on Monday.

Zala, a student of Sarvoday Vidhyamandir, Ahmedabad, is the founder of Founder and CEO at Aerobotics 7 and founder at Robosoft Group, according to his Facebook profile.

The boy wonder said in the post that he had only studied 25 days prior to the exams. He was busy with projects for his company, he said.

He had signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit in January with Gujarat Council on Science and Technology (GUJCOST) to explore the possibility of commercial production of a drone that can help detect and defuse landmines.

Zala had created the prototype after he read about army casualties due to landmines. The Gujarat state government had partially funded the Rs 5 lakh prototype.
Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi uses a headphones to listen to a speech during the United Nations Vesak Day Conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka May 12, 2017. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte - RTS16AZW

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first radio address to the nation - Mann Ki Baat - took place on October 3, 2014. It has gained immense popularity over the past two-and-a-half years, with Modi addressing the nation once a month on different topics.

Now, the short history of the Prime Minister's popular radio show has been chronicled in a book 'Mann Ki Baat: A Social Revolution on Radio'.



#PresidentMukherjee received the first copy of book Mann Ki Baat: A Social Revolution on Radio at Rashtrapati Bhavan today pic.twitter.com/lnO0dZLDeL

 President of India (@RashtrapatiBhvn) May 26, 2017

Written by Rajeev Gupta, the book is a compilation of Modi's speeches that gives readers a chance to know unknown facets of the Prime Minister's thinking, his beliefs and his thought process.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has written the preface to the book. "This book is filled with Prime Minister Modi's enthusiasm for interacting with the people of India, particularly with the youth. I cannot but feel his strong passion for dialogue with his people," Abe wrote.

The book tells the backstory of how the idea was concieved and the way it transformed into a set format.

An excerpt mentions an anecdote about when officials went to PM regarding the nomenclature. Narendra Modi replied to their query saying, Arre isme kya hain? Kaho kuch halki phulki mann ki baaten karoonga".

According to the book, several names like 'PM ke saath ru-ba-ru', 'Varta Modi Ji Ke Saath' and 'Modi Vaani', were initially considered for the programme.

The book illustrates how 'Mann Ki Baat' has bridged the gap between the 'Old India' and the 'New India', the latter representing the youth in particular.

It also narrates the impact of 'Mann Ki Baat', where the Prime Minister's talk initiated the mass movements in cleanliness, promoting India's tourism and following traffic rules.



#MannKiBaat is an ingenious and influential medium, merging a traditional medium with modern mediums: VP Shri Hamid Ansari  PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 26, 2017

The book mentions that Modi gets thousands of letters from listeners of Mann Ki Baat every month. Although he does not read all of them because of his busy schedule, those he reads are looked at carefully to find out the issues and concerns of the citizens of the country.

The 'Mann Ki Baat' book also a critical analysis of the show in terms of the feedback from listeners, and metamorphosis of the phrase Mann Ki Baat, which entered the political lexicon in order to mock Prime Minister Modi.

However, Prime Minister's idea to communicate people directly through radio grabbed the attention of many listeners as the medium has a far better reach than television in India.

"I have been a quintessential organization man all my life," said PM Modi about the power of radio in the book. "I know the difference the radio can make. American Presidents used it well... So many people heard Martin Luther King's 'I have a dream' speech on the radio. It has a transformative power like no other medium."

Microsoft founder Bill Gates has also contributed the book. He wrote, "Mann Ki Baat is a great example of how media can be used as a platform for bringing about positive change. Through this new initiative Prime Minister Modi has included millions of Indians in a collaborative effort that can improve the efficiency of public service information delivery and accelerate progress."
Supporters of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) burn Pakistan's national flag during a protest in Mumbai, against the death sentence given to former Indian naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav in Pakistan, India April 12, 2017. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade - RTX3584I

The International Court of Justice will neither acquit nor release Indian national Kulbushan Jadhav, who has been sentenced to death by a military court, the lawyer representing Pakistan at the global court claimed today, asserting that India has wrongly claimed victory in the case.

"The Jadhav case is a very clear case. He can never be released or acquitted," Khawar Qureshi told media after a meeting with Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali.

The UK-based lawyer said that India has "wrongly claimed victory" after the Hague-based court "temporarily" stayed the execution of Jadhav.

Jadhav, 46, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of "involvement in espionage and sabotage activities" against the country.

The ICJ on May 18 stayed the execution of Jadhav.

The ruling triggered criticism of the Pakistan Foreign Office (FO) for its "poor handling" and also for its choice of Qureshi, who represented Pakistans case before the ICJ.

Several political analysts and politicians had claimed that the country's legal counsel was not adequately prepared.

Following the verdict, media reports claimed that the Attorney General will represent Pakistan in the Jadhavs case at the ICJ after widespread calls for a change in the countrys legal team.

Meanwhile, the Attorney General said that Pakistan would present all evidences before the ICJ in the Jadhav case according to the Associated Press of Pakistan.

He claimed that Pakistans stance has not been rejected at the ICJ and the interim verdict of the court is not a defeat or victory of any country and that he would consult the national security committee on the Jadhav issue.

He said Pakistan is satisfied over the matter of his arrest and punishment. The country is not "answerable in front of anyone" about the decision of death sentence to Jadhav.
The UN battalion leading the parade during the Bastille Day 2008 military parade. Credit: Marie-Lan Nguyen (CC by 2.5).

Offering a chance to honour over 3,500 United Nations peacekeepers who have lost their lives in service since 1948, this International Day of UN Peacekeepers on May 29 is based on the theme of Investing in Peace around the World.

India has lost 35 soldiers in last 17 years of peacekeeping, according to information obtained by RTI activist HS Grewal and reported by the Times of India.

India, who has been with the UN peacekeeping mission since 1950s and has the second largest troop, has lost 156 of its peacekeepers since the beginning, a 2014 government report stated.

Yet Indias long commitment to peacekeeping efforts has not been recognized in economic terms as the UN owes India USD 55 million, which is the second highest outstanding to any other member country. The UN owes the most to Ethiopia  USD 64 million.

Earlier this month, Syed Akbaruddin, Indias Permanent Representative to the UN, tweeted mentioning UNs outstanding to India while India had paid its dues to the international body.

The outstanding payment of dues to countries contributing troop and police for their services is a concerning matter to India and other countries, said Anjani Kumar, Counsellor in the Permanent Mission of India to the UN (PMI) on May 16 at a session of the General Assembly's Fifth Committee.

Although Kumar noted that the financial basis is not too important to India's enduring commitment to peacekeeping operations, but "for the kind of services rendered by the peacekeepers and the risks undertaken by them for ensuring collective peace and security, what UN pays to them is a token amount."

Ex-Lieutenant General Satish Nambiar stated in a 2013 PMI report that there have been radical changes in the nature of the peacekeeping commitment pointing to the increasing dangers peacekeepers face in highly-conflicted zones. More than 7500 Indian troops are current;y posted in risky zones like Congo, South Sudan, Afghanistan, and Liberia.

Akbaruddin declared Indias position in UN peacekeeping mission with regards to size of troops on the International Peacekeeping Day.



No Sir.

India is 2nd largest troop & police contributing country after Ethiopia.

Check facts here.https://t.co/lkqh5mM0ap https://t.co/KsoMfNxp1M  Syed Akbaruddin (@AkbaruddinIndia) May 29, 2017



India has taken part in more than 40 peacekeeping missions with more than 1.8 lakh troops being deployed over time.

Moreover, the very first female Formed Police Unit (FPU) was constituted by India and the unit is deployed in Liberia. The female FPU has inspired many other women to join the operations, claimed a report released by PMI to the UN (New York).

(With inputs from PTI)
Southern superstar Rajinikanth's comments made during a week-long meet-and-greet session with fans in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, have sparked rumours that the 66-year-old actor intends join politics.

"If God wills it, I will enter politics tomorrow," he had said addressing crowds from 15 districts of Tamil Nadu. "I will call you when there is a war. You come then. In the old days all men would go when there was a war," he said.

Rajinikanth has stayed away from politics so far, in a state where transition from movies to politics is rather fast.

Rajinikanth's possible entry into politics has been opposed by some for him not being a Tamilian. Rajinikanth was born as Shivaji Rao Gaekwad in a Marathi family in Karnataka.

During the speech, the superstar reacted to the cricticism by saying, "I was in Karnataka only for 23 years and have been in Tamil Nadu for more than 40 years. I am a pure Tamil, you have made me a Tamil."

Rajinikanth's brother Satyanarayana Rao Gaekwad recently hinted to the media that his brother was set to join politics.

"It is the people's wish that Rajinikanth should enter politics. He has just ended the first round of consultation with his fans and well-wishers who were urging him to take the plunge," Satyanarayana has said.

Key issues that may drive his political debut

A large power void has been created in Tamil Nadu after the death of then chief minister J Jayalalithaa in December.

Ageing Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader M Karunanidhi has delegated responsibilities to his son MK Stalin who is still learning the nitty-gritty of politics.

With four years to go until the next scheduled state assembly elections, entry into politics now will give him enough time to settle down.

BJP

Rajinikanth has in the past has praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and had met him during the 2014 Lok Sabha election campaign, in Chennai.

Senior BJP leader Nitin Gadkari recently in an interview with CNN News 18 said, "He is welcome in politics and it is my request to him to think about Bharatiya Janata Party. There is an appropriate place for him in BJP".

BJP president Amit Shah too said that the party's doors are open to "every good person".

AIADMK

The split in the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) after Jayalalithaa's death has left no one in complete control of the party.

However, neither the VK Sasikala, nor the O Panneerselvam faction will be ready to play second fiddle in their own party.

DMK

Rajinikanth had helped the DMK win the 1996 elections by criticising the AIADMK. However, he has since called it a "political accident". A rising Stalin may not want to live under Rajinikanth's shadow.

Launch his own party

Establishing his own outfit may let him set his own agenda. Rajinikanth may also fear alienating some sections of his fans if he joins any of the current parties.

He could also woo disgruntled leaders from other parties. A source close to Rajinikanth named AIADMK's Ma Foi Pandiarajan and DMK's two time Member of Parliament, S Jagathrakshakan as two such leaders who could be lured to join the superstar's outfit.

The BJP which does not have a foothold in southern India is looking to grow in the state.
India today announced a USD 500 million line of credit to Mauritius as the two countries resolved to deepen ties in a range of areas including the maritime domain.

The two countries also signed a maritime security agreement after extensive talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Mauritian counterpart Pravind Jugnauth.

In a statement, Modi said he and Jugnauth agreed that effective management of conventional and non-conventional threats in the Indian Ocean is essential to pursue economic opportunities.

The bilateral maritime accord will strengthen mutual cooperation and capacities, he said.

A total of four agreements were signed after the talks between the two leaders.

"The agreement today on the USD 500 million line of credit to Mauritius is a good example of our strong and continuing commitment to the development of Mauritius," the prime minister said.

The two countries also decided to ramp up cooperation in a number of areas including trade and investment.

"India is proud to participate actively in the ongoing development activities in Mauritius," Modi said.
In the issue of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict the CSTO member states should be faithful to the CSTO official position

On May 29, the RA NA Deputy Speaker Eduard Sharmazanov received the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Republic of Armenia Igor Nazaruk. During the meeting the development of the inter-parliamentary relations, cooperation in the international different platforms, political and economic ties of the two countries were discussed. Mr Sharmazanov highlighted the combined work and supporting each other on the international platforms, including in the CSTO PA and the OSCE PA. The NA Deputy Speaker has underlined that our parliamentary delegation is for exclusively peaceful settlement of the conflicts in the CSTO zone of responsibility, particularly in the issue of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. In this context Eduard Sharmazanov expressed conviction that the parliamentarians of the CSTO member states should be faithful to the CSTO official position in this issue. If we want to solve the problem, we should understand the reason, and the reason is that Azerbaijan does not recognize the exercise of the right to Artsakh peoples self-determination. Artsakh people should completely exercise its right to self-determination, Mr Sharmazanov said. By the NA Deputy Speakers assessment, the deepening of the inter-parliamentary relations will give an opportunity to expand the development of the economic relations between Armenia and Belarus, noting that the EEU membership gives a new opportunity in this matter. First, the Ambassador congratulated the newly elected parliament on the occasion of holding the NA elections and assured that the cooperation of the parliaments of the two friendly countries from now on will continue to develop upwards. Mr Nazaruk also highlighted the peaceful settlement of the NK problem within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. An agreement was reached to hold the sitting of the Inter-Parliamentary Committee on Cooperation between the RA National Assembly and the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus in Minsk in summer.
Hardoi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves at an election campaign rally at Hardoi district on Thursday. PTI Photo (PTI2_16_2017_000238B)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Berlin today at the start of his six-day tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France aimed at boosting bilateral economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investment for India's transformation.

His visit to Germany, which he described as a "new chapter" in bilateral relations, will kick off with a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel at her country retreat of Schloss Meseberg this evening.

Both leaders will discuss issues of mutual interest in an informal setting over dinner at the 18th-century palace, nearly 80 km north-west of Berlin.

"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi said in a Facebook post ahead of his visit.

Modi said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."

Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, "German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation."

The more formal part of the visit will begin tomorrow when Modi is welcomed with military honours at the Chancellery, following which he will hold talks with Merkel as part of the fourth round of the bi-annual India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations [IGC]. The last IGC was held in New Delhi in October 2015 when bilateral ties were significantly scaled up.

In Berlin, the two leaders are expected to clinch a host of agreements and are likely to deliberate on several pressing global issues, including the situation in the South China Sea, China's 'One Belt, One Road' initiative and the growing threat of terrorism.

Prime Minister Modi and Chancellor Merkel will have a luncheon meeting with senior business leaders before inaugurating the Indo-German Business Forum tomorrow.

The deadlocked Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union (EU) is likely to take centre-stage at this meeting, with Germany-based CEOs keen to push for a further opening up of the Indian market.

The India-Germany Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), among India's 23 BITs with EU countries, had lapsed in March this year. Trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to USD 9.54 billion. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.

The German embassy in Berlin had launched the Make in India Mittelstand (MIIM) Programme in September 2015 to facilitate the German Mittelstand (SMEs) to do business in India.

Currently 73 German Mittelstand (SMEs) companies are being facilitated through MIIM Programme for their market entry and investment in India.

Out of these, 46 companies have progressed well in India investment plan, the embassy claims.

Modi will end his German tour with a courtesy call on German President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, before leaving for Spain tomorrow evening.
Amid an atmosphere of anxiety among citizens following detection of Zika virus in Ahmedabad, the Gujarat government yesterday said all the three cases were isolated and currently no such threat exists.

Gujarat Chief Secretary J N Singh claimed ample steps were taken after the National Institute of Virology (Pune) confirmed that three persons from Ahmedabad were infected with Zika between January and February, 2017. No new cases were emerged

"There is nothing to worry about at present. Out of the three patients found to be infected with Zika, two were pregnant women while one was a 64-year-old man. No new case was found since February, when the third and last case emerged," Singh told reporters.

State authorities sent blood samples of the three patients to NIV for final confirmation after the laboratory attached with B J Medical College in Ahmedabad found presence of Zika virus in primary screening of blood samples, he added.

Among these, the two pregnant women belonged to Bapunagar area of the city while the elderly man was from western part of Ahmedabad.

According to him, the two women later gave birth to healthy children having no sign of Zika infection.

"After we came to know about these cases, health authorities had launched a massive drive in those areas during those months and collected thousands of sample from the patients who were having fever. However, not a single positive case was found," said Singh.

Yesterday, the World Health Organisation (WHO) announced that three positive cases of Zika virus have been reported in Ahmedabad city between January and February.

Singh claimed, "While responding to a question in Parliament in March, Union Minister of State for Health had announced that three cases of Zika were found in Ahmedabad. This was also reported by some newspapers at that time. Thus, there was no secrecy from the government's side,"

He also said it is still unclear how this virus entered Gujarat, as none of the patients had gone abroad.

"Zika can spread locally through mosquitoes or it can enter India if the infected person comes back from a foreign country. " said Singh.

According to Gujarat Health Commissioner J P Gupta, around 350 health teams have screened 25,000 houses in Bapunagar area during January and February, however, no positive case of Zika infection was found.

"Apart from mosquito bite, this virus also spreads through sexual transmission. When the first sample was tested positive for Zika by NIV, we had launched a massive drive to find other cases through 350 teams. But, no new case was found," said Gupta.

Asked about the allegation of secrecy maintained by the state government, Gupta confirmed that the issue was very much public as the Centre had already announced it in Parliament.

Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani has assured citizens that Zika poses no immediate threat at present.

"All the three cases were old. As soon as our government learned about it, we have taken decisive steps. It is my appeal not to panic, as no new case has emerged since then. My government is taking all steps to stop the spread of Zika virus," he said at a function in Kheda district.

Dr Atul Patel, an expert and an advisor to state government on health issues, said there is no specific cure for Zika and it is a non-fatal virus unlike that of dengue.

"Zika virus belongs to the same family of malaria and chikungunya. If it infects a pregnant woman, then it may infect the brain of the newborn. Otherwise, this is not life threatening. Since there is no specific cure, patients can take paracetamol and take rest till they revive with time," he added.
Prime_Minister_PM_Modi_make_In_India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today described terrorism as the "gravest challenge" facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations (UN) to deal with this menace.

Modi, who arrived here on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, in an interview to German newspaper 'Handelsblatt' said, "Europe has been hit hard by terrorism".

"To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace," he said.

Modi's remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently. The latest terror attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.

Speaking to the country's leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy "remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people".

"We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti- immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed," Modi said.

"We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation," he said.

Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was as among the "most open" and "fastest growing major economies in the world".

The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.

"India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time...There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council," he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.

On the Indo-German ties, he said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Start-up India, Clean India and Smart Cities.

In reference to the wider European Union (EU) and Britain's impending exit, he said, "The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security.

"India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach."

On the German side, Merkel had recently said, "The times when we could rely on the other have passed ... We Europeans, we must really take destiny into their own hands."

In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, 'Handelsblatt' claimed.

The prime minister's visit to Germany has been described as a "new chapter" in the bilateral relations between the two countries.

"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit.

"Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation," he said.

The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine".

Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to 9.54 billion dollars. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.
Education

Montgomery County Community College will present the spring installment of the interview/talk show program Issues and Insights April 20 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in Science Center room 214, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The programs will be simulcast to the Colleges West Campus in South Hall room 216, 101 College Drive, Pottstown. Dr. Kolsky will offer a humorous presentation, Carrots, Sticks and Politics: A State of the Nation and the World Message. In this speech, he will provide his interpretation of domestic and international politics and then welcome questions from the audience for discussion. Issues and Insights, is free and open to the public. For information, contact Dr. Thomas Kolsky, professor of political science, at 215-641-6380 or tkolsky@mc3.edu.

Montgomery County Community Colleges STEM Scholars Program will host a STEM Jam! open house April 25 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Advanced Technology Center at the Colleges Central Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The drop-in event is designed for students interested in learning more about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Activities will include STEM program information and career advising, STEM speakers throughout the day from industry and academia, micro-helicopter and robotics competitive obstacle courses and demonstrations and static models of STEM student and faculty work. For more information about STEM Jam! or STEM programs at MCCC, contact William Brownlowe at wbrownlowe@mc3.edu or 215-641-6644, or Robin Zuhlke at 215-619-7440 or rzuhlke@mc3.edu.

Temple Ambler, located at 580 Meetinghouse Road, presents the following events:

International Club Global Bazaar April 15 from 5 to 8 p.m. The Ambler Campus International Club invites all students, faculty, staff and the community to celebrate a multitude of diverse cultures, which will be showcased at the organizations Global Bazaar. This family friendly event will highlight cultural traditions and celebrations in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, South American, North America and Africa through music, entertainment, food and informative displays developed and presented by students at the Ambler Campus. Young visitors will be provided with passports, which they may get stamped at each country they visit. Prizes will be awarded to world travelers who talk to cultural representatives, answer questions about the countries theyve visited and take part in fun-filled activities designed to help them learn about the rich diversity of cultures found throughout the world. Refreshments will be served. The event is free. For more information, call 267-468-8108 or e-mail tuc36466@temple.edu.

EarthFest 2011 April 29 from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. More than 75 exhibitors, including the Philadelphia Zoo, The Franklin Institute, the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Elmwood Park Zoo and the Insectarium, will take part in EarthFest 2011. School students of all ages are invited to attend and develop displays of their own. EarthFest partner the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society also offers its Kids Grow Expo, featuring the Junior Flower Show, as part of the event. For more information, call 267-468-8108 or e-mail duffyj@temple.edu.

Annual Spring Plant Sale May 7 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The plant sale  an Ambler Campus tradition dating back to the early 1900s  will feature woody plants and perennials in portable sizes, hardy trees, shrubs, and vines, native plants that are attractive to wildlife, herbs, and hanging baskets. There will also be numerous special plants for sale to highlight Amblers special anniversary year. Garden books and garden tools will also be available for sale. Students, staff, and volunteers from the Department of Landscape Architecture and Horticulture and the Ambler Arboretum Advisory Committee will be available to answer questions. All proceeds from the Spring Plant Sale will support the Ambler Arboretum Fund and the Pi Alpha Xi National Honor Society. Information: 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary.

June Homecoming/Louise Bush-Brown Garden Dedication June 5 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. (June Homecoming), Bright Hall Lounge; 2 p.m. (Garden Dedication), Ambler Campus Formal Perennial Gardens. Tickets  June Homecoming: Participant  $18 per person; Sustainer  $25 per person; Benefactor  $40 per person. The 2011 June Homecoming, sponsored by the School of Environmental Design Alumni Association, will include the Alumni Association annual meeting and luncheon. June Homecoming will be followed by the formal dedication of Temple University Amblers Formal Perennial Gardens as the Louise Bush-Brown Formal Gardens. During this 100th anniversary of the campus, Temple University Ambler and the Ambler Arboretum of the Temple University is honoring Louise Bush-Browns many contributions to the history of the campus by formally dedicating the gardens in her honor. During the program, campus Executive William Parshall will welcome guests, Ambler Arboretum Director Jenny Rose Carey will speak about the Bush-Browns and the history of the garden, and an official ribbon cutting will be held for the Louise Bush-Brown Formal Garden. Following the ribbon cutting, guests are invited to take a tour of the gardens, which will wend their way to the Campus Greenhouse for the School of Environmental Designs annual Plant Auction. Information (Garden Dedication): 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Information (June Homecoming): 215-482-0722. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary.

Northview Garden Tour and Fundraiser for the Ambler Arboretum June 12 from noon to 5 p.m. Call for reservations. Tickets: $15 per person or $20 at the door. In addition to the gardens of the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University, Arboretum Director Jenny Rose Carey has a garden oasis all her own right in Ambler  Northview. Visitors will have the opportunity to take self-guided tours throughout the many gardens, where garden experts will be available to answer questions about the various designs. The Ambler Keystone Chapter of the Womans National Farm and Garden Association will also provide tea and refreshments. All proceeds from the tours will support the Ambler Arboretum of Temple University. Information or to register: 267-468-8001 or judy.shatz@temple.edu. Learn more at www.ambler.temple.edu/anniversary.

The Senior Adult Activities Center of Montgomery County, 536 George Street, Norristown, will hold the following events:

SAAC Adult Day Care, an alternative to Nursing Home Care is available  for information call 610-275-1960

Volunteers are needed for Meals on Wheels Program (call the number above)

SAACs Fifth Avenue Boutique opens Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Exercise with Theresa will be held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 1 p.m.

Dance class is held every Monday at 10 a.m.

Tai Chi is held every Monday at 10 a.m.

Yoga is held every Tuesday at 10:30 a.m.

Line Dancing is held every Thursday at 10:30 a.m.

Dancing with Joan is held every Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.

Sculpture Class is held Wednesdays from 2 to 3:30 p.m.

Why Should I Learn Spanish? will be held Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m.

Generations On-Line computer classes for seniors will be held Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.  4 p.m.  computers are available during those hours.

Health Living will be held every Tuesday at 1 p.m.

Boomer U will hold the following events. Boomer U is located at 45 Forest Avenue, Ambler. Registration & payment is required for all events: 215-619-8863.

Pilates Class is held Wednesdays and Fridays at 9:30 a.m. First class is free; please bring a mat. For information call 610-291-5376.

Blue Bell School of Dance, 921 Penllyn Blue Bell Pike, Blue Bell, hosts Argentine Tango Classes and a Milonga dance party every Friday evening. Lessons start at 8:30 p.m. followed by dancing at 9:30 p.m. Andrew Conway, master Argentine Tango dancer, instructor and performer and his partner Linda Chase will instruct. All levels welcome and no partner is needed. Refreshments will be served. Fee is $12 per person and includes lesson and dancing. Information: 215-634-1101 or www.amoretango.com.

The Montgomery Hospital Medical Center will offer the following classes:

Childbirth Education Class- all parents are invited to participate, including those who are delivering at

other hospitals. For more information on maternity services or classes, call 610-270-2020.

CPR and First Aid Courses are offered for beginners to experiences health care providers. Call 610-270-2313.

The Ambler SAAC (Senior Adult Activities Center), located at 45 Forest Ave in Ambler will hold the following events:

Tai Chi every Monday and Thursday at 11 a.m.

Yoga is every Tuesday at 1 p.m. and Friday at 10:30 a.m.

Strength and balance training every Wednesday at 10 a.m.

Armchair Aerobics is held every Monday at 10 a.m.

Gourmet Weight Wise every Thursday at 12:30.

Fitness Center and Pool Room open daily 8 a.m.-4 p.m.

The Diabetes Education Center will offer day and evening classes each month. Health insurance pays for diabetes education classes. Preregistration is required. Call 610-270-2301.

For Kids & Families

The Ambler Kiwanis Club will host its annual Easter Egg Hunt April 26 at 10 a.m. in Ambler Borough Park, located just off of the intersection of Hendricks Street and Valley Brook Road. Members of the Wissahickon Key Club will assist Kiwanians in hiding thousands of wrapped chocolate eggs in a designated area of the park. Also hidden will be plastic colored eggs, which are redeemed for prizes. Elementary school children are separated by age.

Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation will hold its 21st annual Storybook Egg-Stravaganza April 15 fom 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Upper Dublin Township Building. Toddlers and preschoolers love this annual event where photo opportunities with favorite friends abound! Treasures are collected from UDP&Rs assortment of lifesize cutouts of favorite cartoon characters from Disney, Sesame Street, Nickelodeon and other well-known animation. Children can have their picture taken with Bugsy OHare; bring your own camera. And dont forget a basket for goodies! $7 for UD residents; $12 for non-residents. Pre-register at 215-643-1600 ext. 3443.

Splash Week is a free week-long program that teaches children and families basic swimming skills and water safety practices. All YMCA branches will host multiple classes each day from April 11 to 15. For more information, contact the Ambler Area YMCA at 215-628-9950.

Healthy Kids Day is April 16 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The day is filled with fun, engaging and artistic activities that cultivate healthy living as part of the YMCAs larger efforts to help more kids and families become physically active. All activities are free and open to the community. For more information, contact the Ambler YMCA at 215-628-9950. No reservation is required.

The Ambler Area YMCA has added several new programs for area youngsters. Classes are held late afternoons or evenings on various weekdays. For more information, visit philaymca.org or call 215-628-9950.

Basic Beading: Ages: 10+. Wednesdays 7 to 7:45 p.m. This class will teach you the fundamentals of wiring and stringing along with how color can be used to create unique and vibrant beadwork design. You will create various jewelry including earrings, bracelets, charm pendants and much more! Supplies will be provided. Bringing your own jewelry pliers or tools would be a plus.

Messin with the Masters: Ages: 8-12. Thursdays 7 to 7:45 p.m. Learn about some of the worlds greatest artists. You will be inspired to create your own Starry Night with oil pastels and tempera paints, a tissue paper painted Monet garden, a Picasso head using scraps of paper, a Georgia OKeeffe clay flower bowl and a Rousseau jungle collage.

Super Scientist: Ages: 5-7. Mondays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Well be concocting chemistry experiments such as making slime, mixing potions and having fun with magnet magic. Your budding little scientist will enhance his/her creative thinking and motor skills and to top it off will learn that science can be serious fun.

Wacky Junk Art: Ages: 8-12. Thursdays 6 to 6:45 p.m. Why throw it away! Instead join us to make household junk into aliens from outer space, wacky specs, crazy hats, body masks or a recycled train.

Globe Trotters: Ages: 4-6. Tuesdays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Youre never too young to start thinking globally. Each week, we explore a new country through crafts, games, music, stories and even some taste-testing. A perfect introduction to our great big world!

Crazy about Crafts: Ages: 5-7, Thursdays 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. Let your childs creative juices flow with our fun arts and crafts projects each week. Fine motor skills and creative thinking skills will be enhanced with this crafty class.

Come out and join the Ambler Area YMCAs Teen and Junior Leaders Club. Participants are given the freedom to plan community service projects year round and truly make a difference in the lives of people in need. Those in Teen and Junior Leaders also attend leadership retreats all along the East Coast three times a year and meet other leaders who are doing the same great work in their respective areas. Dont miss out on this inspiring opportunity. Teen Leaders, ages 13-17, meet every Wednesday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Junior Leaders, ages 10-12, will begin in the spring and will meet every Monday. For more information, contact Mike Miles, Teen Director, 215- 628-9950 x 1540 or mmiles@philaymca.org.

Did you know that the new Ambler Area YMCA holds childrens birthday parties at its site for members and non members as well. The Ambler Y does all the work from start to finish and birthday parties include a personalized cake, ice cream, beverage and paper products. Parties are held on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and include two party hosts to lead activities, set-up, clean-up and assist with serving. You can have a Splash Party for children ages six to 12 in the new zero depth entry pool with water slide and spray fountains. Up to 25 children have exclusive use of the pool area with 30 minutes in the party room. Sports Parties are offered for kids ages four to 12 with age appropriate activities and games, and sports such as floor hockey, soccer, basketball or dodge ball. Children ages three to five years of age will enjoy parties in the Family Active Center with use of the Moon Bounce and organized activities, such as parachute play and songs. For information, 215-628-9950 ext. 1583.

Community Events at the Ambler Y:

-YAchievers YMCA Achievers is a developmentally based, extracurricular, educational and team mentoring program designed to help students in grades five through 12 prepare for fulfilled livelihoods in college and beyond. Participation is free and all students in this program receive a free YMCA membership. Registration for the 2009 program begins now. You do not need to be a YMCA member to utilize these special services. Call 215-628-9950 to register.

Greater Norristown Art Leagues Childrens Weeklong Summer Art Camps will be held at 800 West Germantown Pike in East Norriton, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday throughout the summer. The cost per session is $125 per student for ages 6 and up. Jo Ann Cooksey Bono teaches an introduction to basic drawing skills and techniques from 10 a.m. until the lunch break each day. In the afternoon sessions, Mary Vogel Lozinak involves the students in hands on projects such as collage, papermaking, T-shirt printing, 3D design and sculpy clay. Fridays Graduation Day includes an art show, awards ceremony and reception for parents, siblings, grandparents and friends. All supplies are included. Students provide their own lunch. A refrigerator is available and the building is air-conditioned. This is the 15th year to run this successful program. Both instructors are professional artists with State Police and Child Abuse Clearances. To register, call Jo Ann at 610-279-1008, or register on-line at www.gnal.org.

Health

Dresher Physical Therapy is hosting an interactive seminar discussing its Golf Assessment Progam April 30 from 10 a.m. to noon at Dresher Physical Therapy, 1075 Virginia Drive, Suite 200, Fort Washington. Physical therapist Chris Miller, certified through the Titleist Performance Institute, will discuss why your body may be the most important piece of golf equipment you invest in and how this can drastically improve your game. $10 in advance; $15 at the door. Call 215-619-4545 to reserve your spot.

The Chestnut Hill Center for Enrichment, Center on the Hill and Chestnut Hill Hospital will host a Senior Health and Resource Fair April 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Chestnut Hill Presbyterian Church, 8855 Germantown Ave. The event is free. For more information, call 215-248-0180 or e-mail chseniors@cavtel.net.

The Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center is hosting Help Yourself to Health, a new six-week workshop for older adults with ongoing health conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure, anxiety, heart disease and others. The free workshop will take place at the Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center, 45 Forest Ave. on six Thursdays, May 12 through June 16 from 9:30 a.m. to noon. Although there is no charge to participate, registration is required. To register, call 215-619-8863.

The Ambler Senior Adult Activities Center is sponsoring an eight-week program called A Matter of Balance: Managing Concerns About Falls. Presented by the Montgomery County Health Department, this workshop will be held on Tuesdays, May 3 to June 21 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Ambler Center, 45 Forest Ave. If you pre-register by April 27, the fee is only $5! Registration at the first class is $10. (Checks should be payable to SAAC and will benefit our Meals on Wheels program that serves homebound seniors.) A workbook will be provided and refreshments will be served. Call 215-619-8863 to register or for more information.

Fort Washington Wellness Center classes are ongoing. There are several offered during lunch or right after work, for your convenience: Boot Camp from noon to 1 p.m. on Monday; Zumba is MWF from 11 a.m. to noon and Friday at 4 p.m.; there are 25 cycling classes; Ashtanga and Vinyasana Yoga and Pilates; and a group Womens Strength Training class M-F from 10 to 11 a.m. Questions, call Cathy DeMarco at 215-641-1245.

Following the success of other local area programs, Impact Sports and Upper Dublin Parks and Recreation are delighted to team up again to offer a spring program for the 2011 season! Upper Dublin area children ages 3-5 years old can attend a Sports Program featuring their favorite sports games; soccer, rugby, hockey, track and field, basketball, and more. The program will start on April 27 and run through June 1. Cost for the program is $85 for the six weeks. The classes will be running 12- 1 p.m.; 1- 2 p.m.; 2- 3 p.m. For more info or to register, call Upper Dublin Township on 215 643 1600 or visit their website a http://www.upperdublin.net.

Spring Aquatic Programs  UDHS Pool:

-Summer is just around the corner  Community Aquatic Programs at the UDHS Pool can help get you into shape! Programs begin in March; preregistration is required.

 Shallow Water Aerobics  Two 5-week programs, Wednesday nights, 8-8:45 p.m., $40R/$50NR.

 Adult Swim Instructions  Two 5-week programs, Wednesday nights, 7-8 p.m., $50R/$60NR

-Open Rec Swims are fun for the whole family! Come out on Fridays from 7-9 p.m. or Saturdays from 1-4 p.m. and enjoy use of the pool and diving area. Fridays are offered through June 17; Saturdays are offered March 12-May 21.

-Join a growing group of adult lap swimmers and water walkers. Lanes are set aside evenings and weekends for use; lanes are shared. Monday  Thursday from 7:30-9:30 p.m.; Fridays from 7-9 p.m. and Saturdays (March 12-May 21) from 1-4 p.m.

-Private Swimming & Diving Lessons for ages 3-adult are offered at the UDHS Pool through a partnership with the Upper Dublin Aquatic Club (UDAC). Visit the UDAC website for more information, www.udac.us, and click the link to UDHS Private Lessons.

-Looking for local programs for US Masters Swimming (adults) or Water Polo (all ages)? UDAC and UDSD are working together to develop programs that will be offered at the UDHS Pool. Add your name to Interest Lists by emailing slohoefer@upperdublin.net. emails will be sent about clinics and program start dates.

Questions about Community Aquatic Programs at the UDHS Pool, group use of the pool or pool rental? Contact Susan Lohoefer, Facility & Community Affairs Manager at slohoefer@upperdublin.net or call 215-643-8800 x8994.

SilverSneakers Fitness Program. The Healthyways SilverSneakers Fitness Program is a result-oriented program that enables older adults to take charge of their health. The program is an innovative blend of physical activity, healthy lifestyle and socially oriented programing. Members of the program are eligible for a free YMCA membership, with use of the pool and exercise equipment, along with customized classes designed for older adults who want to improve their strength, flexibility, balance and endurance. If you are a subscriber to Independence Blue Cross (Personal Choice 65 PPO) or Keystone 65 HMO, Bravo Health, or Health Options Programs (HOP), call the Ambler Area YMCA, 215-628-9950 or Hatboro Area YMCA, 215-674-4545. You can also visit www.silversneakers.com.

Zumba Fitness offers Zumba dance/fitness classes at Academy of Dance and Music/BBAD Studio located at 1524 DeKalb Pike in Blue Bell (behind Sherwin Williams). Classes are offered three times a week: Tuesdays at 6 p.m., Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 8 a.m. For a free trial pass for your first class, email us at info@danceandmusic.biz or call 610-277-2557. For more info, visit our site at www.academyofdanceandmusic.org.

Chestnut Hill Health Systems presents the following Health Education Programs:

FITNESS CLASSES

Golden Yoga: A Breathing, Stretching and Relaxation Class. Fridays, 2:30-3:30 p.m. Lea Auditorium, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. Registration for four classes at a time required. Golden Yoga is Classical Yoga, adapted by the SKY Foundation, to accommodate those who have difficulty getting up and down from the floor. The program includes postures, breathing, relaxation and meditation techniques, all performed while sitting in a chair and standing. Registration required. Call 215-247-3029. Cost: $20 for 4 classes per month.

Tai Chi: Tuesdays & Thursdays, 8:30  9:30 a.m. Springfield Residence, 8601 Stenton Ave. Classes, for the novice or beginner/intermediate student, are designed to improve balance, power, posture, coordination, flexibility and mental focus. Slow, gentle movements are modified to most everyones abilities. For more information or to sign up for a free introductory class, call 215-882-2804. Cost: $8 per class/paid monthly.

SUPPORT GROUPS

Weight Loss Surgery Support Group: Fourth Wednesday of the month, 7-8 p.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia. Join us for a monthly get-together where well share information for those interested in weight loss surgery, learn from guest speakers discussing current news on issues including lifestyle modification, nutrition and exercise and provide ongoing support for those who have completed surgery. Registration required. Call 215-753-2000.

Breast Cancer Networking Group: Fourth Tuesday of the month 5:30  7 p.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia. A free, confidential support group for women living with a diagnosis of breast cancer designed to provide a forum for sharing information, feelings and concerns associated with breast cancer. Facilitated by Tish Wakefield, LCSW, Oncology Social Worker. Registration required. To register or for more information, call 215-248-8047.

New Moms Support Groups Tuesdays 10:30 a.m.  12 p.m.; contact Jeanine ORourke, MSW or 2:30  4 p.m.; contact Susan Schack, Ph.D Volunteer Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. The Center for Postpartum Depression at Chestnut Hill Hospital is pleased to offer two new support groups to support new moms. Both groups will be run by experienced mental health professionals who really get it when it comes to new motherhood and juggling relationships, extended family, work/family balance and self-care. If you are experiencing new mom challenges that often heighten anxiety and involve hormonally driven depression, join us for an informative and supportive forum to connect with other moms. Infants are welcome. $30 per session (flexible based on need). Registration is required. Call Dr. Schack, 646-265-2484, or Ms. ORourke, 215-206-2931.

Man to Man Prostate Cancer Support Group Third Thursday of the month 8-9 a.m. Williams Conference Room, Chestnut Hill Hospital, 8835 Germantown Ave. A networking group for men diagnosed with prostate cancer designed to provide education, support and encouragement. Spouses and partners welcome. Harry M. Baer, MD, Chief, Urology Division, will host Ask the Doctor. Registration required. Call 215-248-8325.

Contact the Senior Center by phone 215-248-0180 or email (chseniors@cavtel.net) with your questions about these programs or any of our on-going activities and classes.

Holy Redeemer HomeCare and Hospice seeks compassionate and emotionally mature volunteers to provide support to local hospice patients and their families in Bucks, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties. Volunteers may also assist with pet therapy and administrative work within the hospice department and are requested to have daytime availability. Hospice patient care volunteers visit with patients in their homes or nursing facilities once a week for two to three hours. They provide emotional support and companionship to patients and family members, assist with errands or provide respite for caregivers. Bereavement volunteers support the families of hospice patients following the loss of a loved one, while administrative volunteers assist with typing, mailings and/or filing. Hospice care workers provide a great service to families and loved ones of hospice patients. Many volunteers also report a great deal of personal satisfaction as a result of their services. Patient care and bereavement volunteers complete an application and attend an 18-hour volunteer training program that covers the medical, psychological and spiritual aspects of hospice volunteering. Day and evening training programs are offered. To sign up for volunteer opportunities in Pennsylvania, contact Holy Redeemer Volunteer Coordinator Jean Francis at 215-698-3737 or email jfrancis@holyredeemer.com.

Librarytalk

Upper Dublin Public Library, 805 Loch Alsh Avenue, Ft. Washington, 215-628-8744

www.upperdublinlibrary.org

APRIL CHILDRENS PROGRAMS:

Storytimes: Please register in the library.

o Wee Ones: 0 to 23 months Thursdays and Fridays 10:30 to 10:50 a.m.

o Tiny Tots: age 2. Wednesdays 10:30 to 10:50 a.m. and Fridays 11 to 11:20 a.m.

o Jr. Book Lovers: ages 3 to 6. Tuesdays 10:30 to 11 a.m.

o Bedtime Storytimes: 7 to 7:30 p.m. April 20 and 27. Wear your jammies, bring your teddy & hear Miss Barbara read bedtime stories! For ages 3 to 6.

APRIL TEEN PROGRAMS:

North Hills Library Teens April 28 from 4 to 6 p.m. Movie Matinee

APRIL UDPL ADULT PROGRAMS:

NEW! ESL Conversation Group. Tuesdays from 7 to 8 p.m. Interested in practicing your English in a safe and caring environment? Come to our conversation group and improve your skills! Please register with Kay Klocko at 215-628-8744 or kklocko@mclinc.org.

One-on-One Computer Mentoring. Get personalized assistance from experienced computer volunteers! Sign-up for a one-hour session. Limit one session per month. Please register  contact info above.

Book Groups Please register with Kay Klocko 215-628-8744.

o Daytimers: April 21 at 1:30 p.m. Tired of book groups where you all read the same book? Read any fiction or non-fiction book on this months theme: Explorers. Please register.

Meetings:

Annual Meeting of the Friends of UDPL: April 14 at 1 p.m.

Board of Directors: April 20 at 7 p.m.

Blue Bell Library www.wvpl.org Upcoming Events: The Wissahickon Valley Public Library, 650 Skippack Pike (Route 73) in Blue Bell, is diagonally across from the Blue Bell Inn. Call 215-643-1320 or visit their website at www.wvpl.org.

For children and teens at Blue Bell:

* Story times with guitar music by Miss Michelle, the singing librarian.

* Mondays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages.

* Wednesdays at 4:30 p.m. for all ages.

* Fridays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages.

* Family Movies, new releases, second Saturdays of the month at 1:30 p.m.

* May 14  Despicable Me

* June 11  Alpha and Omega

* Special Events

* April  watch for date of spring/Easter events

* April 14 at 4:30 p.m.  Junior Lego Club for children ages 3 through 5. Parents and caregivers need to stay with children.

* April 14 at 7 p.m.  Jeopardy for ages 11 to 18. Test your book and library knowledge for prizes. Sign up to be a contestant. No sign up to be in the audience. Snacks provided.

* April 16 at 1 p.m.  Adult Mystery Book Group discussing The Beekeepers Apprentice by Laurie King.

* April 16 at 1:30 p.m.  Childrens event for One Book, Every Young Child celebration. Story and craft for book Whose Shoes?

* April 19 at 7 p.m. and April 26 at 1:30 p.m.- Adult book group discusses The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester. Group led by Adam Button.

* April 30 through May 3  Friends book sale with about 10,000 items for sale for children, teens and adults.

* May  sign up for Science in the Summer

* June  sign up for Enrichment Programs for Elementary-Age children

* June  sign up for Summer Reading, all ages

For adults at Blue Bell:

* Daytime Book Discussion Group  fourth Tuesday, Jan  April at 1:30 p.m.

* April 26  The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

* Night-time Book Discussion Group  third Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m.

o April 19  The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

* Art Series with Dr. Sheldon Weintraub, docent at The Barnes and speaker at local colleges

o April 27 at 2 p.m. The Art of Looking at Art-Is She Nude or Is She Naked?

*Mystery Book Discussion Group, third Saturday of the month at 1 p.m.; new mystery theme each month; www.wvpl.org/programs

* Yoga on Mondays at 1:30 p.m. $20 for eight classes; $5 per drop-in class.

* Tai Chi on Mondays at 3 p.m. with Dr. Kurt Findeisen. $20 for eight classes; $5 per drop in class.

* Philadelphia Museum of Art presents class on their Marc Chagall exhibit, April 13 at 2 p.m.

* Giant Book Sale, April 29  May 3

o Starts with almost 10,000 items for children and adults!

o Held during library hours.

o Preview for members of the Friends of the Library, April 28 at 7 p.m.

o Join the Friends and attend the preview sale. Modest fee to join.

* Blooms at Blue Bell Gardening Series

o May 11 at 1 p.m.  Summer Bulbs by PA Horticultural Society

* Knitting group Mondays and Wednesdays at 10 a.m. Work on your project or observe and learn. The groups continue year-round in the community room.

* Socrates Cafe discussion group every Monday at 7 p.m. You pick the topic to discuss each week. No sign-up, nothing to read.

* Bridge every Friday at 12:30 p.m. New players welcome.

* Mah Jong every Wednesday at 1 p.m. New players welcome.

*Chess every Wednesday at 7p.m. for adults and teens 14 and older.

* Movie Matinee showing recent releases every Thursday at 2 p.m. April 14: Maos Last Dancer; April 21: Welcome to the Rileys; April 28: Conviction; May 5: Inception; May 12: Inside Job; May 19 The Kings Speech; May 26 The Fighter; June 2 Rabbit Hole; June 9 Black Swan; June 16 127 Hours

* Ongoing like-new, year-round book sale for adults & children during library hours

* Library opening at 10 a.m. Monday through Saturday!

Ambler Library, a branch of the Wissahickon Valley Public Library, 209 Race St., 215-646-1072. www.wvpl.org. All the following events occur at the Ambler Library.

* Story times with guitar music by Miss Michelle, the singing librarian.

* Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. for all ages.

* Thursdays at 4:30 p.m. for all ages.

* For adults:

* Beading Group meets the first and third Monday of every month at 1 p.m. Work on your own projects or come to watch and learn.

* Free Family History Lookup with Connie Briggs. Email Connie for an appointment at the Ambler Library. conniebriggs@comcast.net

* Special Events:

* April 14 at 1:30 p.m.  Book Group discusses Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian.

* April 19 at 7 p.m.  Travel to Paris with world traveler Harry Balin. Tea and scones at 6:30 p.m.

* April 21 at 7 p.m.  Art with Sara for children in fourth through seventh grades.

*May 2 at 6:30 p.m.  Discuss the movie Lone Star with Temple Professor Lisa Hawkins. Watch the movie ahead of time.

*May 10  Robert Capucci discusses Art into Fashion. Tea and scones served at 6:30 p.m. Program at 7 p.m.

*May 12 at 1:30p.m.  Book Group discusses The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman.

*May 17  Tour the gardens of Devon and Southwest England with Lois McMullen. Tea and Scones at 6:30 p.m. Program at 7 p.m.

*June 13 at 6:30 p.m.  Discuss the movie Blade Runner with Temple Professor Lisa Hawkins. Watch the movie ahead of time.

Meetings and Lectures

The Unisys Blue Bell Retiree Group will meet in the Church on the Mall in the Plymouth Meeting Mall April 14 at 1:30 p.m. Kathy Sacket Young, director/trainer with the North Penn YMCA, will speak on Keeping Fit in Retirement. For more information, contact Membership Committee Chairperson Jerry Feldscher at 610-275-3538 or President Al Rollin at 215-368-4833.

The next FWBA meeting will be April 28 at the Hilton Garden Inn Fort Washington. Networking begins at 11:30 a.m.; meeting from noon to 1 p.m. Leon Singletary, Principal, First Contact HR and FWBA Executive Board, will present: Social Media: How to Use It To Get More Business. Lunch is provided courtesy of the Hilton Garden Inn Fort Washington. Members are welcome to bring a guest. An RSVP is requested by return email or 215-628-0313.

Big Brothers Big Sisters Southeastern PA is hosting a information sessions over the next few weeks on how to become a Big Brother. The information sessions will take place: April 16 at noon, April 19 at 8 a.m. and April 28 at 6 p.m. All sessions will be held at the groups Norristown Office,t 530 DeKalb St., Norristown. For more information, call 610-277-2200.

The North Penn Chapter of the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA) normally meets on the third Tuesday of each month from now until May. Meetings are held at the William Penn Inn on Route 202 and Sumneytown Pike, Upper Gwynedd, PA. Social hour starts at 5:30 p.m., dinner is served at 6:30 p.m., and the technical program begins at 7 p.m. Cost with reservation is $28 for members. Members without reservations and guests pay $30. Students with reservations pay $15. Reservations may be made by noon on the Monday preceding the meeting by phoning 215-371-1854 or emailing the reservation to northpennima@yahoo.com northpennima@yahoo.com. Information about the North Penn Chapter is available at http://northpenn.imanet.org/.

LeTip, a professional organization of men and women who are dedicated to the highest standards of competence and service meets every Tuesday at Cedar Brook Country Club, 180 Penllyn Pike, Blue Bell at 7 a.m. -meeting officially starts at 7:16 a.m. and ends at 8:31 a.m. Our purpose is the exchange of business tips, leads, and referrals. Each business category is represented by one member and conflicts of interest are disallowed. Guests are welcome to visit any of our breakfast meetings.

Every third Thursday of month, Sunrise Assisted Living of Blue Bell (795 Penllyn Pike, Blue Bell, PA 19422, 215-619-2777) serves as a satellite site to 148th Legislative district PA congressman Mike Gerber from 10 a.m. to noon. Stop by for help needed with things such as disability placards and license plates, vehicle registration, utilities issues, birth/death certificates,property tax/rent rebates, etc. Notary services arranged by appointment.

The Eastern Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce is an action-oriented organization dedicated to promoting its members and the economic health of eastern Montgomery county. The Chamber is committed to serving as a catalyst by uniting business, community agencies, government and education to make our county a great place to live and work. For information, call 215-887-5122 or visit www.emccc.org.

Do you have a fear of public speaking? Blue Bell Toastmasters Club can help. We meet from 7 to 9 p.m., on the second and fourth Tuesday at the Marriott Courtyard, located on Route 202, directly across from the Montgomeryville Mall. Learn how to improve communication and leadership skills in a friendly and supportive environment. Guests are welcome. Admission fee: $5. For more info, visit www.bbtoast.org.

The PennSuburban Chamber of Commerce will hold the following meetings (for reservations to any of the following, email info@PennSuburban.org)

-Breakfast News Network, 7:30-8:45 a.m. at Normandy Farm Hotel (1401 Morris Road, Blue Bell, PA 19422) $15 members, includes full buffet breakfast. Join us for a networking program at Normandy Farm Hotel every Thursday morning for breakfast, business news, informative speakers, and plenty of networking. The cost includes a full breakfast buffet. Copies of the business cards will be made available to those who would like them.

The BNI, Fort Washington Chapter meets every Monday at The Hilton Garden Inn, 520 Pennsylvania Ave., Fort Washington for a networking meeting. Meetings are from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. Visitors are welcome. The only cost to attend is the cost of your meal. For information or a reservation to attend, please call Luanne Cram at 215-947-7784, or visit our Internet site at: http://www.BNIDVR.Com and click on the menu item Find a Chapter.

For the past seven years, people have enjoyed participating in WVWAs Adopt-a-Tree program. Individuals can support the Association in its reforestation efforts by purchasing native trees to be planted. Supporters can plant their adopted tree or have WVWA volunteers will plant it. Trees cost $30 each. If you would like to volunteer or purchase a tree(s), please contact: Bob Adams at Bob@wvwa.org or call: 215-646-8866 for more information. Check www.WVWA.org for directions and maps.

Sustainable Upper Dublin, http://sustainableupperdublin.org, meets the first Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m., at the Upper Dublin Township Building, 801 Loch Alsh Avenue, Fort Washington, PA 19034. Please send any questions to suec@sustainableupperdublin.org or call 610-996-6316. To learn more about Sustainable Upper Dublin, view or join the discussion at http://googlegroups.com/group/sustainableupperdublin.

Special Events

The Mattie N. Dixon Community Cupboard will hold its first nutrition class April 19 at 10 a.m. at the Community Cupboard, 150 N. Main St., Ambler. Lynne Sinclair, a nutritionist from Abington Memorial Hospital specializing in diabetic nutrition, will conduct the class. Topics will include healthy eating, beneficial foods, recipes, making meals with every day foods, and how to use unfamiliar produce. A healthy snack will be provided.The class is is open to all residents in Montgomery County.

The Historical Society of Fort Washington presents The History of Conshohocken April 19 at 8 p.m. at the Clifton House, 473 Bethlehem Pike, Fort Washington. Jack Coll will present an illustrated program on the history of the Borough of Conshohocken. Coll is a longtime resident of Conshohocken and a member of the Conshohocken Historical Society. He is co-author with his son, Brian, of the Arcadia Then and Now Series book Conshohocken. He has also done books Conshohocken and West Conshohocken Sports and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Italian Feast. He has taken many photos for the Conshohocken Record and the Norristown Times Herald. This program is free. Refreshments will be served. For additional information, call 215-646-6065.

Taste of the White House Soiree featuring former White House Chef Walter Scheib will take place April 29 at 6 p.m. at Manufacturers Golf & Country Club in Fort Washington to celebrate HealthLinks 10th anniversary and honor its founders, the Eugene Jackson Family. The evening will heat up with a Chef Meet & Greet, followed by a specially selected presidential menu. Gala tickets are $150 per person. Proceeds benefit HealthLink, a free clinic providing compassionate, quality medical and dental care to uninsured, working adults in Bucks and Montgomery counties who fall in between the health care cracks. Go to http://tasteofthewhitehouse.charityhappenings.org to make reservations online or lend support through sponsorship. For event information, call 267-699-0124 or email jmarushak@healthlinkmedical.org.

The Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association will hold an open house at the Evans-Mumbower Mill April 17 from 1 to 4 p.m. The Mill is at the corner of Swedesford and Township Line Roads in Upper Gwynedd. The open house is free but donations are welcome. For more information, call 215-646-8866 o email info@wvwa.org.

The Eastern Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce will host Breakfast With Your County Commissioners and State Representatives April 21 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the Holiday Inn Fort Washington, 432 W. Pennasylvania Ave. Commissioners: James R. Matthews (Chairman), Joseph M. Hoeffel (Vice Chair), State Representatives: Todd Stephens (District 151) and Josh Shapiro (District 153). Register onlineat www.emccc.org. $10 for EMCCC member; $20 for non-members.

Upper Dublins Districtwide Allied Art Show will be held April 27 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. in the Upper Dublin High School Athletic Complex.

The Rev. Alfred Muli, chaplain at Fort Washington Estates, will be the featured speaker at the Kiwanis sponsored breakfast observing the National Day of Prayer May 5 at 7 a.m. at the William Penn Inn. The breakfast is open to the public ($15). Reservations can be made by calling 215-646-4356 or by emailing georgesaurman@Juno.com.

The Upper Dublin Shade Tree Commission invites people to participate in its spring bare root planting events, sponsored in part by Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation and Friends of Robbins Park. On April 9, zix trees will be planted at the Evelyn B. Wright Park & Community Pool, 401 Logan Ave., North Hills, at 9 a.m., followed by the planting of 10 trees at Sheeleigh Park, Loch Alsh Avenue and Douglas Street, Ambler, at 10:15 a.m. On April 29, students from Upper Dublin High School will join the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society to plant 16 trees in Robbins Park, Butler Pike and Meetinghouse Road, Ambler, to help launch the societys Million Trees campaign. This event will occur in conjunction with Temple Amblers EarthFest. Experienced tree-tenders are sought to assist the students. For more information,contact Ron Ayres at 215-653-0421 or 215-483-4348.

The Friends of the Wissahickon and the Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association are teaming up once again to clean the Wissahickon Creek from top to bottom April 30 from 9 a.m. to noon. This spring marks the 41st anniversary of Wissahickon Valley Watershed Associations annual Creek Clean Up, and the second year that FOW has teamed up with WVWA. Volunteers of all ages will clean the creek, the surrounding trails and the many tributaries of the Wissahickon Creek. Armed with bags, volunteers will be assigned to sections of the creek. Following the clean up, all volunteers are invited to WVWAs Talkin Trash picnic in Fort Washington State Park, with food provided by Whole Foods Market of North Wales. The pavilion is located on Mill Road in Flourtown. To help out in Montgomery County, all volunteers must be pre-assigned a section of the Wissahickon Creek to clean. Please contact Bob Adams, WVWA director of stewardship, at 215-646-8866 ext. 14 or bob@wvwa.org. To work with the Friends of the Wissahickon in Philadelphia, meet at the pavilion along Forbidden Drive, a short distance south of the intersection of Forbidden Drive and Northwestern Avenue. Limited parking is available along Northwestern Avenue and other nearby streets. Volunteers are encouraged to bike or carpool to the event. To participate, register at www.fow.org. Contact Kevin Groves with questions at 215-247-0417 ext. 105 or groves@fow.org.

Montgomery County Community Colleges International Club invites the community to the second annual International Festival April 20 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Central Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The rain date is April 26. The International Club will transform the outside quad area into multicultural celebration with various performances by dancers, singers and musicians. Artists will share their artwork at various display tables. Activities include games, raffles, Easter egg decorating and henna tattoos. Students will have samples of international cuisine at tables representing different countries and will serve food from various local ethnic restaurants. Throughout the evening, volunteers will accept donations and will raffle gift baskets and prizes to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity. Donations of food, international clothes and prizes are needed. Volunteers, including artists and performers, are welcome. For more information or to sponsor an activity, contact Gillian Nel, International Club president, at gnel9277@students.mc3.edu or 267-974-0163.

The Arts and Humanities Division at Montgomery County Community College is partnering with the Philadelphia Writers Conference to host Memoirs Matter: How Life Stories (Including Yours) Can Transform Your Relationship to Literature April 23 from 1 to 3 p.m. in Advanced Technology Center room 101, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell. The event is free and open to the public. In the first part of this two-hour seminar, professor and author Robert Waxler will explain how writing his two memoirs affected his life as well as his relationship to literature. In the second part, blogger and workshop leader Jerry Waxler will present a sequence of steps to help writers find their own story. For information, contact Dana Resente at dresente@mc3.edu.

The Maple Glen Garden Club will hold its fourth annual Plant Sale on May 7 from 8 to 11 a.m. Perennials, shrubs, vegetables and native plants grown by the club members will be sold. The club uses the plant sale proceeds to fund community projects, a college scholarship and community plantings. The sale will be held in the 500 block of Coach Road, Horsham, as part of a neighborhood garage sale. Plants will be sold at bargain prices. For more information, email MapleGlenGardenClub@gmail.com.

The Relay for Life Craft Show is looking for local crafters to participate in show, which will be May 21 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the Wissahickon High School track, 521 Houston Road, Ambler. There is a $10 entry fee, and 20 percent of sales are donated to the American Cancer Society. Participants will receive a 6-foot table under a tent. For information, contact Joanne at joannescoles@comcast.net or Mindy at mcamsilver@comcast.net.

Spring House Estates is hosting its annual book fair on April 18 from 4 to 7 p.m. and April 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Included will be hardback and paperback used books. Spring House Estates is located at 728 Norristown Road, Lower Gwynedd.

The PennSuburban Chamber of Commerce will present the Penn Suburban/Hatfield Joint Business Card Exchange April 20 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Univest Bank Lansdale Area Financial Service Center, 120 Forty Foot Road, Hatfield. The event is free. To make reservations, visit PennSuburban.org/Events. Join Univest National Bank and Trust Co. for a spring-inspired Business Card Exchange at its newest office in the Hatfield Pointe Shopping Center. Come out and meet members of Univests executive management team while enjoying fine food and beverages.

13th Annual Community Reading Day Kick-off Breakfast Get Together April 26 from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the North Wales Area Library, 233 Swartley St., North Wales. The event is free. To make reservations, visit PennSuburban.org/Events. For more information, contact the chamber office at 215-362-9200 or info@pennsuburban.org. Join presenting sponsor Verizon, chamber staff and fellow members for the Community Reading Day volunteer get together. The Community Reading Day program allows volunteers to read a designated book to second-grade students throughout 38 area public and private schools and present the book as a gift to each class. Even if you are not a volunteer, you are cordially invited to stop by to network, enjoy coffee and pastries.

Ambler Mennonite Church is hosting a Spring Craft Show and Flea Market May 21 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Rain date will be May 28. The community is invited to shop the great craft booths, find some gifts and deals, as well as enjoy home baked goods and tasty lunch specials. Childrens activities are planned. All vendors are encouraged to contact the church at 215-643-4876 or AmblerMennonite@verizon.net. Advertising, signage, customer parking and a shuttle to auxiliary parking at nearby lots for vendors will be provided. 10 foot by 10 foot spaces can be rented for $5 each and tables for an additional $5 each. All proceeds from space and table rentals go toward school kits for children around the world. The church is located at the corner of East Mt. Pleasant Avenue and North Spring Garden Street, Ambler.

The Wissahickon Valley Watershed Association presents The Life & Times of Aquatic Insects in the Wissahickon Creek April 16 from 1 to 3 p.m. Join WVWA for a hands-on program. RSVP required: www.wvwa.org or 215-646-8866. WVWA member fee: $5 per person / $15 per family. Non-WVWA member fee: $10 per person / $20 per family.

The photography exhibition Natures Palette by photo-artist Judy Miller will run March 18 to May 19 at the Art in the Storefront gallery, 41 E. Butler Pike, Ambler.

JPRN  Networking For People in Transition & People Who Can Help Them  Unemployment remains high. JPRN, the Jarrettown Professional Relationship Network can help. Are you trying to network your way to a new job? Do you have expertise or contacts that can help people in transition? Is your company or organization looking for people in the area? This is a free outreach program to support those seeking work, involve people with contacts and networking know how, and involve local companies. Meetings held monthly at Jarrettown United Methodist Church, Limekiln Pike.

Pennsylvanias Low-Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) grant program is now open for the 2010-11 heating season. Grants are based on income, family size, type of heating fuel and region. Additional information, such as specific income limits, and applications for LIHEAP grants are available online via the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Access to Social Services (COMPASS) website at www.compass.state.pa.us. Applications are available at most public officals district offices, county assistance offices, local utility companies and community service agencies, such as Area Agencies on Aging or community action agencies.

Begin your holiday shopping at Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation! Entertainment books for 2011, Philadelphia North, are now on sale at $30 each. Regal/United Artists movie tickets are on sale for just $7.50 each, and tickets to the Adventure Aquarium, Baltimore Aquarium, and the Philadelphia Zoo are also available. Discounted ski vouchers to area mountains will be arriving in December; call 215-643-1600 x3443 for more information. Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation office hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

RSVP of Montgomery County and the Wissahickon Valley Public Library have partnered again to offer the public their popular free mock interview sessions. The mock interviews are conducted by RSVP volunteers who are retired professionals, some of whom were in hiring positions themselves. Packets of information which include a sample employment application and interviewing tips with mock interview questions are available at the library to pick up prior to a scheduled mock interview or will be sent via email once the interview is scheduled. To schedule your interview, please contact Janis Glusman at RSVP 610-834-1040, ext. 16. The library is also offering a free resume review service. Bring in your current resume and the professional reference staff will assist you with hints and tips on capturing your work history accurately.

Registration for Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation summer playgrounds, Camp B.I.G. and Small Folks, X-Zone, and sports camps has began. Register online at www.upperdublin.net/store, or at the UDP&R office, 801 Loch Alsh Avenue, Fort Washington. Call 215-643-1600 x3443 for more information.

Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation and Danielles Espresso Cafe presents Mornings at Mondaug Bark Park April 16 and May 21 from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Meet fellow dog lovers. These events include complimentary coffee, treats for people and pups and raffles/giveaways.

Upper Dublins Annual Spring Flea Market will be held June 4 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Reserve a table, or come and shop. Tables are $15 for UD residents, $20 for non-residents. This successful event occurs rain or shine. Refreshments available. Call 215-643-1600 ext. 3443 to register for a table.

Regal movie tickets available for purchase at Upper Dublin Township Parks & Recreation. Reduced rate: $7.50 per ticket. Some restrictions apply. Call 215-643-1600 x3443.

Whitpain Township Parks & Recreation movie tickets $7.50 Regal Cinemas, United Artist & Edwards Cinemas on sale throughout the year Monday  Friday from 9 a.m.  4 p.m.

Whitpain Township Parks & Recreation Camp Sign-ups for Stony Creek Day Camp  Stony Creek Tracers and Park n Tots. Register on-line at www.whitpaintownship.org OrCome to Township Building with check or Visa MasterCard Monday  Friday from 9 a.m.  4 p.m. For additional information call 610.277-2400 ext. 374

Upper Dublin Parks & Recreation offers exciting new programs for the fall:

-Returning favorites include UK Elite Petite Soccer, Tiny Dancers, Kiddie Tennis, Fun-nastics, Messy Playtime, Little Chefs, and more. Babysitters Training will be offered in November and December. Continuing Adult Fitness Classes include Cardio Circuit, Core & More, Yoga, Boxing, and Adult G.Y.M. For more information call 215-643-1600 x3443. Register for programs online at www.upperdublin.net/store.

Music and Theater

The community is invited to a Cantors Concert April 16 at 8 p.m. Congregation Beth Or, 239 Welsh Road, Maple Glen. Listen and hum-along to the Yiddish, pop tunes and classical music performed by Congregation Beth Ors own Cantor David Green and his special guest, Cantor Irvin Bell, from Temple Beth Israel in Deerfield Beach, Fla. The cantors will be accompanied by Mark Sobol and his Klezmer musicians. Tickets are $18 in advance and $25 at the door. RSVP with payment to Barb Murtha, 239 Welsh Road, Maple Glen, PA 19002, or call 215-646-5806 ext. 220.

Gwynedd Friends Coffeehouse will host the Jameson Sisters May 14. Doors open at 7:30 pm, performance at 8:00 pm. Gwynedd Friends Coffeehouse is located at the corner of Rte. 202 & Sumneytown Pike, Gwynedd. $5 suggested donation. Light refreshment available at a modest cost. For further information, call 215-393-9576 or visit gwyneddmeeting.org/coffeehouse.html.

Celebrate patriotism through song with Gwynedd-Mercy Colleges choir, the Voices of Gwynedd, as it presents Hear America Singing April 15 at 8 p.m. The choir will perform song selections from all over the country, including Georgia on My Mind, New York State of Mind, and a medley including Philadelphia Freedom and Allentown. The performance will end with When the Saints Go Marching In to acknowledge the choirs upcoming tour in New Orleans. Hear America Singing will take place in the Julia Ball Auditorium, located in St. Bernard Hall. Parking is available in lots A, C and D. Admission is free.

The Choristers will present Anton Dvoraks Stabat Mater April 16 at 7:30 p.m. at Upper Dublin Lutheran Church in Ambler. The choir will be accompanied by a 41-piece orchestra. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for senior citizens, $10 for students and children are free. Tickets will be sold in advance or at the door. For more information, call 215-542-7871 or visit TheChoristers.org

Religious News

The Staircase Gallery at Or Hadash: A Reconstructionist Congregation in Fort Washington will feature the work of Emily Ennuat-Lustine. The artist will be showing paintings and graphics inspired by her own personal spiritual journey and quest for meaning. Some of the works to be shown have been inspired by Biblical Psalms and writings. Her work has been shown at Abington Art Center, Cheltenham Arts Center and Old City Gallery of Jewish Art among others. The exhibition is open Friday evenings starting Feb. 18 after Shabbat services. Gallery hours are: Mondays through Thursdays 10-4:30, Fridays 10-3 and following Shabbat Services and Sundays 10-1. The synagogue is located at 190 Camp Hill Road in Fort Washington. For additional information contact the synagogue office at 215-283-0276.

Reunions

St. Matthews High School Conshohocken Class of 1961 is looking for classmates. For details, contact Greg Marincola at 215-646-2239, 215-740-1296 or gregcola@comcast.net.

Olney High School Class of 1971 is Lloking for classmates for a 40th reunion Oct. 28. For details, contact Judy at ohsclassof71@yahoo.com or 215-870-7572.

Abington High School Class of 1961 is seeking classmates for a 50-year reunion to be held Oct. 14-15, 2011.Visit the website, www.abington61.com, for details or call 215-947-1779.

Overbrook High School class of January 1956 is having a 55 year reunion on May 22, 2011 at the Bala Golf Club in Philadelphia. For information please contact overbrookreunion56@comcast.net

Germantown High School Class Of January 1961 is looking for classmates for 50th year reunion to take place in May of 2011. Please contact: 215-362-9148, 856-577-0659 or samdelcomo@comcast.net

The June 1961 class of Germantown High School is holding their 50th reunion on May 15, which will be a brunch. For further details please contact Linda Dorfman Alten at lindaalten@yahoo.com or call 215-441-8411.

Support

New Life Presbyterian Church in Dresher, will host GriefShare, a special seminar and support group which will run on Monday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m., from March 7 through June 6. At each meeting there will be a DVD about the grief process, discussion and reference to a grief workbook. Preregistration is required to secure a place in the group and to purchase a GriefShare notebook (for a one-time fee of $15). The notebook goes along with the 13-week schedule covering such topics as: living with grief, the effects of grief, and stuck in grief. For more information or to register, call: Sandy Elder at 215-884-5149.

PUPS (People Understanding Parkinsons) A self-help group for those adjusting to a new diagnosis or dealing with the early stages of Parkinsons Disease. Meets fourth Tuesday of the month from 1 to 2:30 p.m., at Abington Health Center, Schilling Campus, Willowood Building, 2510 Maryland Road, Suite 251, Willow Grove. For more information or to RSVP, contact Lorna at 215-542-2931.

The North Penn Visiting Nurse Associations Meals on Wheels program is looking for volunteers to pack or deliver meals to the elderly and infirmed. Meals are packed and delivered mornings, Monday through Friday. You can volunteer for as many days per week or month as you would like. Packaging meals requires approximately 2-1/2 hours of your time each day and involves making sandwiches, packaging food into individual serving containers and packing coolers with the meals. Delivering meals requires approximately 1-1/2 hours of your time each day and involves loading coolers into your car and delivering a route of approximately 10 to 15 stops. The Meals on Wheels program is also in need of emergency, winter-weather volunteers to pack and deliver meals in bad weather. North Penn VNA is located at 51 Medical Campus Drive in Lansdale and delivers meals in the Lansdale, North Wales and Blue Bell areas. For more information or to volunteer, please call Bridget, North Penn VNA Meals on Wheels coordinator at 215-855-8296.

Elkins Park Area CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) meets the first Tuesday of every month, 7- 8:30 p.m., at Einstein at Elkins Park Hospital in Elkins Park. For information on CHADD or ADHD, please see our website www.chadd.net/249 or call Claire Noyes at: 215-779-6656.

Center for Loss and Bereavement, 3847 Skippack Pike, Skippack (610-222-4110) www.bereavementcenter.org Offers professional counseling for individuals, couples, children and families dealing with issues of loss and bereavement. Six-week adult support groups: Newly forming young adult grief support group  every other Wednesday, 7  8:15 p.m. (free of charge); Monthly loss of child support  second Mondays, 7-8:15 p.m.; Six-week young loss of spouse/partner  Thursdays, 10-11:15 a.m.; Other groups scheduled as interest is shown for suicide loss support, adult loss of parent, motherless daughters, adult loss of sibling, coping with chronic illness and disability and mens loss of spouse. Nellos Corner Family Bereavement program offers peer grief support groups for ages 4 through teen and their caregivers  Every other Tuesday or Wednesday (free of charge) Local chapter of Parents of Murdered Children also meets at the Center. Registration required. Call for further information.

CHADD is a national organization for children & adults with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder, providing education, advocacy and support for individuals and their families with AD/HD. Einstein at Elkins Park Hospital, 60 Township Line Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027, will host children & adults with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder on the First Tuesday of each month 7  8:30 p.m. Free, no childcare provided.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphias Kehillah of Old York Road is sponsoring a free Caregiver Support Group for individuals who care for an elderly person with cognitive and/or physical impairments. The group meets at SarahCare Adult Day Care Center, 101 Washington Lane, Suite G-6, Jenkintown, Pa., on the first Wednesday of each month. Patty Rich,
May 29, 2017

U.S. Wants Control Over Anbar And Beyond - Iraq and Syria Will Prevent It

The U.S. is casting its net over the desert between Iraq and Syria, Saudi Arabia and Jordan to install military bases and power-structures that will guarantee major influence in the area for the foreseeable future. A part of that plan is to develop Sunni proxy forces that will keep the government forces of Damascus and Baghdad out of the area. Another part is to privatize important infrastructure to keep it under direct U.S. control.

To privatize the Iraqi Highway 1 between Baghdad and the Jordanian capital Amman, is a major point in these plans. According to the NYT:

As part of an American effort to promote economic development in Iraq and secure influence in the country after the fight against the Islamic State subsides, the American government has helped broker a deal between Iraq and Olive Group, a private security company, to establish and secure the countrys first toll highway.



Map by New York Times

The map shows Highway 1 from Baghdad to Amman. Notice the road junction east of the Jordan-Iraq border. There the road splits with one branch going north-west towards Damascus. The point where that road crosses from Iraq to Syria is the al-Tanf border station currently occupied by U.S. forces and their British and Norwegian auxiliaries as well some Syrian "rebels" under U.S. control. The U.S. recently bombed a convoy of Syrian and allied Iraqi forces which was moving towards that area. The U.S. military dropped leaflets to Syrian troops to order them to stay away from their own border. Who the f*** do those U.S. troops think they are? What is there justification to be there in the first place? Large Iraq and Syrian government forces are now moving towards al-Tanf from the two sides of the border to evict the occupiers. Iraq, Syria, Iran and Russia have agreed that no U.S. position will be tolerated there. U.S. and other foreign troops will either move out voluntary from al-Tanf or they will be removed by force.

Highway 1 and its branch to Damascus is the most important economic lifeline between Syria and Jordan in the west and Iraq and beyond in the east. Whoever controls it, controls major parts of commerce between those countries. Iraq is a country with rich resources. While it is under economic strains after decades of U.S. sanctions and war against it by the U.S. and Takfiri proxy forces it has no long-term need to rent out such major real estate.

Nevertheless the current Iraqi government under Prime Minister al-Abadi signed a preliminary agreement for a 25 year contract with the U.S. company:

Mr. Abadi has awarded the development project to Olive Group, although the final details are still being worked out. The project would include repairing bridges in western Anbar Province; refurbishing the road, known as Highway 1; and building service stations, rest areas and roadside cafes. It would also include mobile security by private contractors for convoys traveling the highway.

Al Abeidi is now under pressure from the Shia majority who elected him into office to renounce the deal. It is obviously that the deal is not in their interest nor that of the country. According to U.S. diplomats one purpose of the deal is:

pushing back on the influence of Shiite Iran, whose growing power in Iraq has alarmed important Sunni allies of the United States like Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

Iran has little to do with the road. It is the Shia majority of Iraq that would benefit most from free flowing traffic and commerce on it.

Turkey and Saudi Arabia have enabled the Sunni insurgency in Iraq of which ISIS is just the latest incarnation. To allow the U.S. to control the road and thereby Anbar province in the name of Turkey and Saudi Arabia would guarantee that future Sunni insurgencies could threaten Baghdad whenever "needed". Just remember how Obama said he used ISIS to throw then Prime Minster Maliki out of office:

The reason, the president added, that we did not just start taking a bunch of airstrikes all across Iraq as soon as ISIL came in was because that would have taken the pressure off of [Prime Minister Nuri Kamal] al-Maliki.

A U.S. controlled west-Iraq and south-eastern Syria would be a highway for Saudi Arabian miscreants from their country up towards Baghdad and Damascus. It would be an incarnation of the "Salafist principality" the U.S. and other early ISIS supporters have wished for since at least 2012.

The U.S. is willing to obfuscate and to lie to further its imperial plans. The NYT is, as usual, complicit in that:

Playing on painful memories and fears of Iraqis, news outlets have also run false reports that Blackwater  the private security firm that acted with impunity in the early days of the American occupation and gunned down innocent Iraqis in Baghdads Nisour Square in 2007  had taken on the project. The politics of this country are challenging, said Christian Ronnow, executive vice president of Constellis, the parent company of Olive Group, a private security firm that has worked for years in Iraq.

What the NYT claims are "false reports" are in fact reasonable conclusions:

The [Constellis] Group combines the specialized skills and operational excellence of ACADEMI, Edinburgh International, Strategic Social and Triple Canopy,

ACADEMI

is an American private military company founded in 1997 by former Navy SEAL officer Erik Prince as Blackwater, renamed as XE Services in 2009 and now known as Academi since 2011 after the company was acquired by a group of private investors.

Olive Group is Constellis Group is Academi is Blackwater - the "false reports" in Iraqi media are way more truthful on that than the NYT is.

The U.S. project in Anbar province and its potential control of Highway 1 through private U.S. forces threatens to put an economic stranglehold on Iraq, Syria and Jordan. I trust that nationalist forces in those countries as well as their allies will do their best to prevent it.

Posted by b on May 29, 2017 at 11:37 UTC | Permalink

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The U.S. Coast Guard rescued four boaters 25 miles east of Port Canaveral on Sunday, the agency said in a news release.

Coast Guard rescued 4 boaters Sunday

2 adults, 2 children found in the water

All were wearing life jackets, no injuries



The Coast Guard 7th District Command Center received a distress call at 10:30 a.m.

A Coast Guard Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry airplane crew in the area diverted to the scene to search.

An abandoned vessel was located at 12:30 p.m.

Coast Guard crews expand their search to find the boaters.

Two adults and two children were rescued and taken to Port Canaveral.

They were all wearing life jackets, according to officials. No injuries were reported.
AUSTIN -- Memorial Day marks the end of the 85th Regular Session, but lawmakers could find themselves in Austin during the summer to deal with some unfinished business. After a bill to extend the Texas Medical Board died due to conflicts between the House and Senate in the waning days, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wants Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special session to deal with two of his top priorities that didn't make it to the governor's desk: property tax reform and the so-called "bathroom bill." Only the governor can call an extra session and only he can set the topics eligible for legislation in it. Abbott said at a bill signing on Monday that he will announce a decision about a special session later in the week.

Over the weekend, the House and Senate passed a final version of the state budget, authorizing $107.7 billion to pay for state services for the next two years. Despite the tight revenue forecast, its author says the budget will fund the state's critical priorities and put more money into education, mental health care and Child Protective Services. "This budget is fiscally responsible," said Senate Finance Committee Chair and Flower Mound Sen. Jane Nelson. "It essentially is flat compared with the current one, but it makes progress in several key areas."
After staying ahead of average rainfall since the first of the year, Plainview area residents have now fallen behind the curve.

Average rainfall in Plainview through the end of May, based on more than a century of rainfall records, is 6.62 inches. With just a couple of days left in the month, the rainfall-to-date for 2017 snow stands at 5.49 inches. While thats better than 2016 when 4.24 inches was measured through the end of May, its still 1.13 inches below normal.

The current U.S. Drought Monitor, posted Thursday, shows all six counties in the Herald circulation area to have adequate soil moisture levels although a plume of dryness has spread into counties to the south and southeast. Some of those counties include Lubbock, Crosby, Dickens, King, Knox, Childress and Cottle.

Although dry conditions have spread into the South Plains and Rolling Plains, statewide there was significant improvement in drought conditions over the past week.

Currently just 2.4 percent of Texas suffers from drought conditions. Thats down from 6.2 percent a week ago. Deficit soil moisture covers just over 22 percent of the state. Thats an improvement from 34 percent a week ago.

Just the southern tip of Texas  the lower half of Cameron County including the city of Brownsville  is experiencing Severe Drought. Portions of 20 other counties scatted across the eastern half of Texas are suffering Moderate Drought. The two counties closest to Plainview are Fisher and Stonewall.

Much of the improved moisture conditions can be attributed to streaks of heavy rain across north-central Texas, with locally heavy rainfall of 4 to 8 inches. Unfortunately, the precipitation bypassed a few areas, including the lower Rio Grande Valley.

This weeks report notes that in McAllen, temperatures reached or exceeded 90 degrees on 27 of 29 days from April 25-May 23, missing only May 7 and 8. During that 29-day span, McAllens rainfall totaled just 0.31 inch. On May 21, USDA noted that topsoil moisture was 100 percent very short to short in the lower Rio Grande Valley. Farther east, abundant rain fell in most places, although northern Mississippi was one area being monitored for possible drought expansion.

Looking ahead, the National Weather Service in Lubbock reports that thunderstorm chances will increase significantly from late Tuesday night through Wednesday and Thursday. With an increase in moisture aloft and with relatively light upper-level winds, the region could see some slow moving storms with locally heavy rainfall.

Rain changes are expected to decrease this weekend, but not completely.

High temperatures should remain in the 80s through Thursday with the increasing moisture and cloud cover, but then warm to the 90s for the weekend.
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A growing number of Plainview residents want one of the areas newest residents, Stephanie Rene Lopez, to know that shes not welcome.

Lopez was living in Las Cruces, New Mexico, when convicted in the 2002 death of her 5  month old daughter, Brianna Lopez. In 2003, she was found guilty of negligent child abuse resulting in death and child abuse and sentenced to spend the next 27 years in prison. She was released Wednesday from a prison in Grants, New Mexico, after serving about 13 years. The next day, she reported to her parole officer in Plainview, after being paroled her through the interstate compact that includes all 50 states and the District of Columbia and U.S. territories.

Were just in shock that New Mexico would send her here, said Virginia Castro. This is a very close, tight community, and shes not welcome.

Castro joined with a group of more than a dozen residents Friday who voiced their opposition to having Lopez in Plainview to a news team from KCBD-TV in Lubbock. They first heard that Lopez was coming to Plainview through Facebook and Instagram, and quickly began organizing.

Its just crazy, Castro said. She needs to go. She needs to leave, that monster. We want her to know that we know shes here, and we dont like it.

Casie Augustine, a mother of four between ages of 8 and 4, said the groups aim is not to promote violence against Lopez. Rather, its to serve as a voice for Baby Brianna. We wont let this baby be forgotten. Whether 10 or 100, Plainview has become her family and we are looking out for her. We are now Briannas mothers and fathers, her brothers and sisters, her grandmothers and grandfathers, and aunts and uncles.

Augustine has organized a Balloons for Brianna vigil at 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 25, at Kidsville Park. They plan to release pink and white helium-filled balloons and hold a candlelight vigil and walk for the child.

Jason Clark, spokesman for the Texas Department of Corrections in Huntsville, confirmed Friday that Lopez reported to her parole officer in Plainview about noon Thursday and will be staying at a private residence in the Plainview area, possibly with family members.

According to the Plainview Police Department, Stephanie Lopez will not be residing inside the Plainview city limits, but elsewhere in the region while reporting to the parole office here.

Clark said Lopez will be under close supervision and be required to wear a GPS device around her ankle. She is forbidden to have contact with co-defendants and other felons, and must pay fees associated with her parole. She will be subject to random homes visits and drug testing, and must either find employment or seek educational opportunities.

According to published accounts, Brianna Lopez - Baby Brianna - was born Feb. 14, 2002, and died just over five months later as a result of horrific abuse inflicted by her father, Andy Walters, and uncle, Steven Lopez. Those injuries included two skull fractures, broken ribs, broken legs, a broken arm, 15 human bite marks and numerous bruises all across her body. She also was sexually abused.

Steven Lopez and Andy Walters were convicted in 2003 on several felony charges, including intentional child abuse resulting in death and first-degree criminal sexual penetration. Both remain behind bars after drawing sentences of more than 50 years.

According to trial testimony, Stephanie Lopez was aware of the ongoing abuse but did nothing to intervene. She delayed calling for an ambulance for several hours following the final episode of abuse that took Baby Briannas life.

New Mexicos Secretary of Corrections Gregg Marcantel, in a statement issued following Stephanie Lopez release, noted, The case sent shock waves through the community. Baby Brianna was horrifically tortured, raped and murdered, and we all want the monsters who took part in this brutal crime to face justice. Unfortunately, the law at the time allowed these violent offenders to have a much lighter sentence than what they deserved.

As a result of the death of Brianna Lopez, the state of New Mexico in 2005 adopted the Baby Brianna Bill, which carries a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 30 years for intentional child abuse, up from a maximum sentence of 18 years when Brianna died.

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez was the Dona Ana County district attorney who prosecuted the Baby Brianna case. Since taking office, she has proposed reinstated the death penalty to include those charged with intentional child abuse resulting in death.
Back in the 20th century, kids -- as well as adults who sometimes acted like them -- seemed destined to make their own fun. Not too much in the way of time-passing was in play if it cost anything, thus fertile minds were often in creative mode, if only in the sharing of jokes and stories.

Many times conversations began with, Did you hear the one about ? Sadly, these words rarely are heard anymore.

My old daddy could tell stories with the best of em, and hed laugh as heartily as hearers at punchline time. Clearly, such banter lessened the cares of the day.

Much fun-poking came at the expense of youngsters. They took most everything seriously from adults whod been there, done that.

Carpenters took advantage of apprentices, often asking them to retrieve make-believe items. Such requests seemed legitimate to the eager-to-please, wide-eyed youngsters. A carpenter, sawing away, exclaimed, Dad blame it, I sawed this board an inch too short. Would you please run down to the lumber yard and borrow their board-stretcher?

The youngster immediately headed downtown. He returned empty-handed, telling the carpenter that the man at the yard had loaned out the board-stretcher, and its not due back until tomorrow. (The guy was, of course, in on the joke, and played along.)

There was a whole nother category for the military, what with a steady inflow of recruits to send hither and yon on aimless tasks.

Many wandered around military bases seeking keys to the parade grounds.

Not every installation had parade grounds, and those that did rarely had fences. And if they had fences, the gates were never locked.

Ask locals in resort areas if youd like to be regaled by dumb questions theyve fielded from tourists on first visits to distant locales. One flat-lander, amazed upon first seeing mountains, asked, Reckon where they came from?

When the local answered that the glaciers brought them, the visitor countered, Where are the glaciers now?

The locals answer: Theyve gone back for another load.

Lonn Taylor, a recognized author/historian/columnist who traded in life in Washington, D.C. and Austin, Texas, to reside in the Big Bend area of Texas, wrote recently about a Marfa hotel clerk who fields questions regularly about the mysterious Marfa lights.

Many ask him about the best time to see the lights. We dont turn them on until after dark, he answers.

Ive heard about these lights since Hector was a wee pup, and saw them in the 1960s. (Theories abound, including Taylors mention that some folks believe the lights can be traced to the glow of radio-active jackrabbits.)

Sometimes real life occurrences are funnier than made-up stories. Another from the Big Bend is an account of the late Hallie Stillwell, a crusty ranch woman, peace justice and columnist for the weekly Alpine Avalanche.

Pad in hand, she was among journalists and broadcasters invited to a Davis Mountain press conference for Americas first astronauts prior to their first moon mission.

Present were nationally-recognized figures from TV networks, wire services and major newspapers. Hallie asked just one question: Now you fellows dont really think youre going to walk on the moon, do you?

Much has been made lately of fake news. It has been around for quite a spell. As a lad, I wondered about blaring claims that seemed largely unsubstantiated.

For several years, an over-the-counter elixir called Hadacol was heralded as a cure-all for everything, as were uranium-sitting emporiums that attracted sitters from far and wide to claim the magical cures. Two centers where ailing folks sought magical sand in which to sit were in Marlin and Mineral Wells. (In the latter city, many sitters also soaked in the mineral water for which the community is known.)

I never knowingly swallowed Hadacol, or sat in sand beyond the boxes, but many friends did. Bottom line, there may not be much truly new under the sun.

Dr. Don Newbury is a speaker in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. Send inquiries/comments to newbury@speakerdoc.com.
Before reading President Trumps proclamation designating Memorial Day 2017 as a Day of Prayer for Permanent Peace, Dr. Charles Starnes told a large crowd attending the holiday observance in Plainview Cemetery that America needs citizens to help like never before to remain strong.

Less than 20 percent of those now serving in Congress have any military experience, explained Starnes, a retired U.S. Navy captain. During the 1950s and 60s, veterans made up 60 to 70 percent of those serving in Congress.

Less than 1 percent of Americans today serve in the military, although since 1775 a total of 42 million Americans have served during times of conflict.

The help of every American is needed to keep this nation strong, explained Starnes, keynote speaker at Mondays Community Memorial Day Service. We need to write letters, email and call our congressmen and senators insisting they keep our military strong.

With 1.2 million American servicemen and women making the ultimate sacrifice while on active duty, Starnes said it should be obvious that freedom is never free. It takes a tremendous sacrifice.

Mayor Wendell Dunlap, offering a welcome, added that the American military during the past century has served in virtually every corner of the globe in defense of freedom  not just for those in the United States, but for those in many other nations.

We should never forget the cost it has taken to secure and maintain our freedom, Dunlap said. We observe this special day of remembrance for that very reason.

Kim Horne, executive director of Hale County Meals on Wheels, announced that the Walmart Foundation has provided a $25,000 grant to assist with home-delivered meals for eligible veterans and their dependent or surviving spouses who reside in Plainview and Seth Ward. Application forms are available by contacting Horne at 292-9020.

Mondays ceremony was organized by the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 260 in conjunction with the City of Plainview. Municipal Judge Pat Hernandez was emcee.

President Trumps proclamation recalls that a century ago, during World War I, more than 4.7 million Americans served in the military  more than 25 percent of the nations male population between ages of 18 and 31. The U.S. lost more than 100,000 during that conflict.

In 1950, Congress in a joint resolution requested each U.S. president to issue a proclamation to observe Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace. Congress, by public law, has designated 3 p.m. local time each Memorial Day as a National Moment of Remembrance. Although Trumps proclamation continues that tradition, he also designated the hour beginning at 11 a.m. as a time for all Americans to unite in prayer.
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Ken Ackerman, whose classic, stentorian radio announcers voice graced Bay Area airwaves for more than five decades, has died. He was 95 and died at his home in Terra Linda early Sunday of natural causes.

Mr. Ackerman is best remembered as the soothing announcer on the overnight music program, Music Til Dawn, on KCBS. He joined the station in 1942, at age 20, when it was still KQW. He retired in 1982 but continued to work on KCBS on a part-time basis until 1995.

Stan Bunger, co-anchor of KCBS morning news, noted, When I joined KCBS in 1982, Ken Ackerman had already been there for 40 years! He was truly a link to a completely different era of radio.

Mr. Ackerman, who was born in 1922 and raised in Sacramento, got into radio while attending Grant Union High School, announcing a student program that aired on KROY. Graduating in 1940, he landed a part-time announcing job on KFBK there after a brief audition. He decided to give San Francisco a shot in 1942 and, after a brief audition for KQW, they hired me on the spot. He seemed to have been born with a radio voice. (In a 2009 column about KCBS, The Chronicles Carl Nolte wrote that Mr. Ackerman sounded like polished wood.)

KQW became KCBS in 1949, and in 1953, the CBS network began Music Til Dawn, offering beautiful music and light classics, and featuring a local announcer for each of its owned and operated stations. Mr. Ackerman began around 1958, following the original announcer, Dave McElhatton. He hosted the program from 11:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. five days a week, and followed by reading the farm report and a newscast.

One of his fans was film director Alfred Hitchcock, who had a home in the Santa Cruz mountains. As Mr. Ackerman recalled in an interview in 2010 with the California Historical Radio Society, he was a stickler for details, so in 1963, when he was making The Birds in Bodega Bay, he cast him as a radio announcer. Later, he recalled, Hitchcock recorded a shout-on for him. He said, I go to bed with Mr. Ackerman; I sleep with Mr. Ackermanhe went on and on.

By the time Music Til Dawn ended in 1970, KCBS had switched from a variety format to all-news during daytimes. Mr. Ackerman, almost overnight, became one of the stations news anchors.

Mr. Ackerman helped found the social organization the Broadcast Legends in 1992. The first meeting, he recalled, drew 14 attendees; the group now has 300 members. Mr. Ackerman was voted into the first class of the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame, in 2006.

His story and his work can be heard online at the California Historical Radio Society and the Bay Area Radio Museum. Also, Stanford Universitys library is home to a donation he made, of recordings of live jazz broadcasts from the 1950s and 60s in various San Francisco clubs. Mr. Ackerman, Bunger said, also gave memorabilia to colleagues. One gift: teletype copy from President Kennedys assassination in 1963. It always touched me that he waited 40 years to give it away, and then gave it to me.

Mr. Ackerman is survived by two daughters, Barbara and Marie. At his request, no service is planned.

Ben Fong-Torres is a Bay Area freelancer.
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The Foo Fighters were supposed to shut down the fifth annual BottleRock Napa Valley festival Sunday night. But in the end, it was the concert organizers who pulled the plug on the multiplatinum rock band led by Dave Grohl.

Even though the group was allotted a two-hour headlining slot on the third day of the luxe festival in the heart of Napa, the band made it only midway through Everlong, its hit song from 1997, when it ran up against the concerts strict 10 p.m. curfew. The promoters promptly shut down the speakers and video screens as Grohl and the band kept going to the wild cheers of the sold-out crowd.

It was a fitting end to the festival that packed in so much action over Memorial Day weekend that it often felt impossible to keep up. More than 80 eclectic artists performed during the three-day festival, including after-parties like the Foo Fighters private concert at the 150-capacity Blue Note Napa on Friday night. From wine tastings and gourmet food offerings, to an on-site spa and countless VIP perks  there was always more to discover, more to taste, more to do.

Grohl was racing against time from the moment the Foo Fighters took the stage shortly after 8 p.m., sensing that for their first major rock show in two years they would have trouble covering all the highlights of their two decades-plus career. They didnt even get to their new track, The Sky Is a Neighborhood, which Grohl and drummer Taylor Hawkins debuted May 15 at the annual Acoustic-4-A-Cure benefit concert at the Fillmore in San Francisco.

Weve got too many f songs, Grohl said.

They nearly made it through all the hits, touching on fast and loose versions of hits like Learn to Fly, My Hero, and Best of You, alongside throwaway covers of songs such as Queens Another One Bites The Dust and Tommy Tutones 867-5309/Jenny.

Grohl could have been a little more efficient with his time, large chunks of which were used for random noodling and long-winded monologues, plus a Happy Birthday sing-along for his wife, Jordyn Blum.

How many people have never seen the Foo Fighters before? he asked, eliciting a huge cheer from the audience that stretched as far as the eye could see on the grounds of the Napa Expo. Thats cool. Its been 22 years. Couldnt get a sitter?

Grohl nearly screamed his voice hoarse during Monkey Wrench but didnt show any sign of slowing down as the band bolted for  and past  the festivals finish line.

The Foo Fighters arent the only headliners whove been cut off at the festival. The Cure was unplugged in 2014 because of the curfew. Surrounded by residential neighborhoods, with houses that face the main stage, the curfew was set when neighbors complained about the noise after BottleRocks first year.

BottleRock returns May 25-27, 2018.

Aidin Vaziri is The San Francisco Chronicles pop music critic. E-mail: avaziri@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @MusicSF

Online: Catch up on what you missed at this years BottleRock Napa Valley: www.sfchro nicle.com/bottlerock
Some of San Antonios biggest Tejano mainstays treated the city to a weekend of music at the 36th annual Tejano Conjunto Festival held by the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center.

Flaco Jimenez, Tony Tigre y La Rosa de Oro and Eva Ybarra hit the stage during the three-day festival at Rosedale Park, as well as David Lee Garza y Los Musicales, a Hall of Fame honoree who returned to the Tejano Conjunto Festival for the first time in more than a decade.
To celebrate the start of the summer grilling season, May 28 has been set aside as National Hamburger Day.

According to a report by PBS, the average American eats about three burgers a week, which adds up to about 50 million hamburgers a year.
Albany

As homeowners fly Old Glory on front porches and in front yards this Memorial Day, some state lawmakers want to ensure that renters have a legal right to do the same.

The state Senate passed legislation that last week would prohibit landlords from barring their tenants from displaying an American flag from a pole or in the window of their rental unit. The bill would require that a tenant contact the landlord to discuss proper placement of the flag so that it is in compliance with any local zoning restrictions and to ensure that the flag is of an appropriate size.

The bill, which awaits action in the Assembly, augments current state law protecting condominium owners' right to display a flag that is not more than 4 feet by 6 feet.

"It's not about landlord rights, it's not about tenant rights, it's about American rights," bill sponsor Sen. Pam Helming, R-Ontario County, said on the Senate floor Wednesday. "It is surprising and honestly incredibly troubling to me that today in 2017 in the United States of America an individual must be granted protections under state law in order to show their patriotism and their support of this great country of ours. Displaying the American flag is a freedom of expression and it is a right."

Federal lawmakers passed legislation in 2006 that gives condo owners the right to fly an American flag, but they did not address the issue for renters.

"As our brave men and women continue to fight to protect our country overseas, Congress has passed an important measure to protect our citizens' right to express their patriotism here at home without burdensome restrictions," then-President George Bush said upon signing the bill.

Short of federal protections, as Helming notes in her bill sponsor's memo, some states have stepped in to prohibit landlords from banning the display of flags. In Ohio, tenants have a legal right to display the red, white and blue, a POW/MIA flag and the state flag. Service flags approved by the Department of Defense also may be displayed in the window of a residence of an immediate family member of someone serving in the armed forces.

Similarly in New Jersey, a homeowners' association cannot limit or prohibit the display of a U.S. flag, yellow ribbons or other signs supporting U.S. troops.

Though Helming's spokesman said there was not a specific circumstance in New York that led her to sponsor the bill  which is carried in the Assembly by Queens Democrat Michael DenDekker  there have been scuffles over tenants displaying flags in other parts of the country.

In a suburb of Columbus,Ohio, an 86-year-old woman was ordered in 2014 to take the American flag down from its post on her porch. She was subsequently given permission to keep it flying after a media coverage surrounding her property management company's initial decision. That instance, which preceded the Ohio law, created a legal question, according to The Columbus Dispatch: Can a landlord regulate the display of a specific type of flag? An attorney for the property manager told the newspaper that it cannot discriminate against other types of flags if it allows a tenant to display a certain flag.

Asked if the New York bill could be amended to include the right to display other types of flags, such as state or city flags, Helming's spokesman said the senator's focus is on American flags.

News stories about landlord-tenant disputes related to flags and other forms of patriotic display led the American Apartment Owners Association to advise members to use caution when wading into the subject.

"It may be wise to develop a policy that focuses on safety and habitability  not on politics," the organization states on its website. "Showing some flexibility may diffuse the pressure cooker of emotions surrounding a flag display. Being too restrictive may increase the possibility of disputes with tenants  and between tenants  which inevitably creates more work for the landlord."

In other flag-related action last week, the Senate also passed a bill that would require that American flags purchased for display at public buildings are 100 percent made in America. That bill passed the Senate in 2015 and 2016 but has not come up for a vote in the Assembly.

mhamilton@timesunion.com  518-454-5449  @matt_hamilton10
On this date in ...

1917: It was called "the best ever Decoration Day," as 40,000 Albanians watched 3,000 marchers honor those who gave their lives in the service of the U.S., from the Civil War on. The veterans of the 1860s received the loudest cheers and prolonged wails of auto horns as they remembered their fallen comrades, leading into the boys of 1917, on their way off to the latest conflict in Europe.

1967: The Academy of the Holy Names planned to relocate and expand in the next two years. It also planned to establish an Institute of Fine Arts. The first step would be implemented in the fall when grades nine to 12 were relocated to the Marylrose campus on New Scotland Avenue, where a new 10-classroom wing would be built. In the fall of 1968, grades 1 through 8 would be relocated in a planned wing to be added to the Holy Names Provincial House, 1061 New Scotland Ave.

1992: After seven years of planning, Albany County's Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated in Lafayette Park, surrounded by the great pillars, porticos and gables of the state Education Building, the state Capitol and Albany City Hall. Hundreds gathered for the day's events, punctuated by doleful bagpipes, color guards and spirited sounds from the U.S. Marine Corps Band. The monument was built for $500,000, thanks in part to donated services.

Have any memories or thoughts about how our history relates to today's events? See http://blog.timesunion.com/history/
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Brig. Gen. Steven Ferrari has assumed command of the New York Army National Guard's, Troy-based, 42nd Infantry Division during a ceremony at the Empire State Plaza, Albany.

Ferrari replaces Maj. Gen. Harry Miller, who has moved into a full-time active duty assignment with the Army National Guard.

The new commander, of Winslow Township, N.J., is a veteran of the Iraq War. He previously served as one of the division's two assistant commanders.

Miller leaves command of the 42nd Infantry (Rainbow) Division for a full-time position with the Army National Guard, serving as the mobilization assistant to the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency in Washington, D.C.

The 42nd Infantry Division is based in Troy, but has command responsibility of more than 20,000 soldiers assigned to National Guard brigades throughout the Northeast including units in New York, New Jersey, Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts. In 2005 the 42nd Infantry Division was responsible for command of 23,000 soldiers in Iraq.

The 42nd Infantry Division is also responsible for the Federal Emergency Management Region II Homeland Response Force, which can deploy 1,200 New York and New Jersey National Guard soldiers and airmen in the event of an emergency.

Ferrari joined the New Jersey Army National Guard in 1981. He has served in a variety of positions to include deputy adjutant general of the New Jersey National Guard, chief of staff of the New Jersey Army National Guard, commander of the 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, and commander of the 3rd Battalion, 112th Field Artillery.

He joined the New Jersey Army National Guard in January 1981 and was commissioned through Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Ga., in 1982.

Ferrari commanded the 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in Iraq in 2008-2009 when the unit was responsible for security force operations at Camp Cropper, Camp Bucca, Balad, Ashraf and Baghdad.

He served as an active duty, full-time, guardsman from June 1986 to August 2011.

The general is also a graduate of the Army War College. He earned a bachelor's of science in business information systems and a master's degree in strategic studies.

Ferrari has earned as two Legion of Merits, a Bronze Star, four Meritorious Service Medals, five Army Commendation Medal, an Army Achievement Medal, seven Army Reserve Components Achievement Medals, a Joint Meritorious Unit Award, a New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal, and the New York Meritorious Service Medal.

As division commander, he had training oversight of the 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in New Jersey, the 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in Vermont, 197th Fires Brigade in New Hampshire, the 26th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade in Massachusetts, and the 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 42nd Combat Aviation Brigade and 369th Sustainment Brigade from New York.

Prior to division command, Miller served as the New York National Guard's assistant adjutant general from 2012-13.

While on active duty at Fort Drum as senior post commander from 2010 to 2011, he was responsible for the readiness, safety, and well-being of the 38,000 soldiers, families and civilian employees at the post. Miller deployed to Iraq twice between 2006 to 2008 and also served as director of Joint Operations for the New Hampshire National Guard in Concord, N.H., and was the director of Doctrine, Training and Force Development at the National Guard Bureau. Miller's assignments also included service with the 1st Armored Division, 82nd Airborne Division and the 1st Special Forces Group.

His awards include a Defense Superior Service Medal, two Legion of Merits, two Bronze Stars, a Meritorious Service Medal, a Special Forces Tab, a Ranger Tab, and the a aster Parachutists Badge.

ROTC cadet honored

Army Reserve Officers Training Corps Cadet David Rakvica, a junior majoring in Civil Engineering from Ballston Lake, was awarded the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association of Old Crows Award.

Rakvica received the award during a ceremony at the Western New England University, Springfield, Mass.

This award is presented to a student majoring in a scientific or technical field, who has demonstrated outstanding potential.

Memorial Day

A Memorial Day ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at the American Legion Post 1450's covered pavilion at 275 Grooms Road, Halfmoon.

The event will include a Color Guard, a rifle salute, and the playing of TAPS, Chuck LaFountain, post commander, has announced.

Refreshments will be served following the ceremony.

News of your troops and units can be sent to Duty Calls, Terry Brown, Times Union, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 or brownt@timesunion.com.
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An earlier version of this story incorrectly noted the cause of the sewage line failure. Mark Mykins, supervising building inspector for the Town of Wilton, said improper fittings and the lack of support for the waste lines led to the failure.

Wilton

The owner and residents of the Crest Inn Suites and Cottages worked over the weekend to repair $20,000 in damage to the water, sewer and electric lines in hopes that all 14 families can move back in by Wednesday.

The residents, including eight children, were forced out on Tuesday when, owners said, a disgruntled former tenant, evicted days before for nonpayment of rent, sabotaged the infrastructure of the 21-unit complex with motel rooms and several cottages separated by a courtyard with a lawn.

"We have four witnesses who saw him at 1 a.m.," said Shahyer Hussain, the owner. "The next day, people go in the shower and flush their toilets and everything is coming up out of the ground."

He said the town's supervising building inspector, Mark Mykins, found the sewer lines cut in three places. The copper ground wire was sliced and stolen, and the water purification system was vandalized. As a result, the state Department of Health shut down the property that is considered transitional housing for low-income tenants paying $225 to $250 a week.

Mykins disputes Hussain's claims about the failure of the sewage line, which he said was caused by improper fittings and lack of support for the waste lines.

Regardless, the residents were forced to vacate the premises.

"Some are camping, other people went to motels," Hussain said. "We are paying for it because social services wouldn't help them. But there are children involved. If we don't help them, they would be out on the streets."

Ray Clemens, an electrician who lives there and was working on restoring power, said he has never seen a ground wire cut and removed.

"It looks like he cut the line in an area where he could be hidden from view," Clemens said. "But without a ground, people could have been shocked or it could have caused a fire. In 20 years, I haven't seen anything like it."

Hussain said that the Saratoga County Sheriff's Office is investigating the case. However, deputies could not confirm Sunday if an investigation is underway.

Hussain purchased the property, then known as the Hideaway Motel, in 2005. He said they spent $500,000 to renovate the rooms and winterize the rear cottages. He is also painting the rooms, replacing tile in the bathrooms, reinstalling smoke detectors and putting in a new sump pump.

"Most come here to save a little money so they can move into a more expensive place in Saratoga," said Hussain, who is an immigrant from Pakistan and resident of Saratoga Springs. "You need like $4,000 to rent an apartment there." An average one-bedroom apartment in Saratoga Springs costs $1,200 a month.

Jimmy Sherman, who was among the group of tenants cleaning up the place on Sunday, has lived there three months and wants to move back into his room as soon as possible.

"I can't wait to get back here," he said. "I like living here. Nice people."

wliberatore@timesunion.com  518-454-5445  @wendyliberatore
Nationwide, last week was EMS Week. Liberty County Emergency Medical Services (Liberty County EMS) provides ambulance service and paramedics throughout the county including the cities of Dayton and Cleveland. The city of Liberty, served by the Liberty Fire Department EMS, is the sole exception.

EMS Week in Liberty County went largely unnoticed amidst the end of school, Dayton FFA events, business as usual, and preparations for summer. In life there are many things taken for granted until needed or gone. When needed, Liberty County EMS first responders are there to save lives, even when least expected.

With the pending completion of the Grand Parkway (TX 99) slicing through the western side of Liberty County, improved accessibility will create opportunities for new industries, businesses and residential population. Countywide, residents are on the brink of facing historic change. County population is projected to double or more by 2035. Dayton and Cleveland will grow even more rapidly.

According to Mike Koen, director of Liberty County EMS, a 501(c)3 non-profit, ambulance service will be on the front lines of that growth and change.

"Maintaining current technology and a fleet of ambulances required to support such growth, demands constantly adapting and moving forward with new resources. Meanwhile, continuing to provide ongoing mission critical ambulance service without interruption is our top priority, 24/7," Koen said.

For example, eight new state-of-the-art 12-lead cardiac monitors purchased in March from Zoll Monitor at a cost of $250,000 are currently being used in the Liberty County EMS fleet of eight ambulances. All are Zoll X Series monitors.

Dana Holst, Liberty County EMS clinical and training supervisor, is certified as a Critical Care Advanced Paramedic with 25 years experience. According to Holst, these new monitors are equivalent to those used during cardiac catheterization at Cath Labs in major hospitals.

This spring, required physicals for UIL athletes in preparation for the 2017-18 academic year are being conducted as a collaborative effort between Liberty County EMS, Liberty Dayton Regional Medical Center, Lee College School of Nursing, and area school districts. All services provided are at no cost to the athlete's family or school districts as part of a community outreach and service by the participating agencies

In Dayton ISD, required UIL physical exams were completed for all athletes from middle school through high school last week. According to Holst, nearly 400 young UIL athletes were examined. Similar physicals have been completed recently at Liberty (270), Hardin (160), and Hull-Daisetta ISD (100).

"These exams are much more comprehensive than a 'standard physical,'" Holst said.

A team of five student nurses from the RN program led by Dr. Tracy Allen, DNP, FNP-BC, CEN, director of Nursing at Lee College in Baytown, participated in the physicals.

Dr. Richard Todd Husby, M.D. with Liberty Dayton Regional Medical Center (L-D RMC), is board-certified in Emergency Medicine. According to Holst, "Dr. Husby supervised all physicals and is the medical director for the four (4) advanced level nurse practitioners from the L-D RMC. He also works closely with paramedics."

Each student nurse is finally evaluated by one of four advanced paramedics from Liberty County EMS each equipped with the new heart monitors. If something "doesn't look right," according to Holst, further evaluation, testing, or referral can be made immediately by Dr. Husby.

Recently, just that situation occurred. Holst recognized an irregular and "odd" reading. Dr. Husby concurred. Husby immediately shared an image of the EKG with an associate and friend, a pediatric cardiologist. On review, the cardiologist said the young athlete should be sent to Texas Children's Hospital for further evaluation immediately, as in that day. Emergency transportation was not required. The athlete's parents were notified and made arrangements as quickly as possible.

"In a worst case scenario, such an anomaly could lead to sudden death on or off the playing field," Holst said.

Once the child was released from their care, the paramedics, nurse practitioners, and Dr. Husby exchanged "high fives" acknowledging a possible life saved as a result of that comprehensive physical.

"This is why we all do what we do," Holst said.

Liberty County EMS, with a 40-year track record of excellent service, continues to provide the best possible care now and stays abreast of technology to move forward into the rapidly changing future. When needed, Liberty County EMS first responders provide top level care meeting and exceeding today's needs while preparing for tomorrow.
Lawmakers scuffled on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives on Monday after a Dallas-area Republican told Democrats that he called Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers on protesters in the House gallery.

"We were just on the floor talking about the SB4 protests, and [state Rep.] Matt Rinaldi, R, came up to us and made it a point to say, 'I called of them,'" said state Rep. Philip Cortez, D. "And this is completely unacceptable. We will not be intimidated. We will not be disrespected."

The protesters were apparently chanting and waving signs against SB4, the controversial Texas bill that Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law this month. It bans sanctuary cities, allows police to question anyone they detain about their immigration status, and compels local officials to comply with federal requests to detain individuals in state and local law enforcement facilities. The law was passed amid a national conversation about immigration enforcement priorities and promises from the Trump administration to aggressively pursue and deport illegal immigrants.

Signing SB4 into law was seen as a big victory for Texas Republicans, who had tried unsuccessfully to pass a ban on sanctuary cities in each legislative session since 2011. Texas Democrats reacted to the law's passage with alarm; one lawmaker went on a hunger strike.

Video of the scuffle shows lawmakers pushing one another, yelling and gesticulating. Later, Democrats said Rinaldi repeatedly got in their faces and cursed at them.

Afterward, Democrats held a news conference, furious at what they called "disrespect."

"He saw the crowd, and he saw illegals," said state Rep. Ramon Romero Jr. "He saw people that, whether he likes to accept it or not, in his heart, he has hate for those people, and he wants to see them gone. He wants to see them gone so much, to the point that he called ICE."

At one point, some of the language between the two sides apparently turned violent.

"There was a threat made from Representative Rinaldi to put a bullet in one of my colleagues' heads," state Rep. Justin Rodriguez said during the news conference. "That kind of threatening language, he needs to be called out and held accountable for."

But Rinaldi said the threat went the other way - that state Rep. Poncho Nevarez, D, "threatened my life on the House floor."

"I called ICE on several illegal immigrants who held signs in the gallery that said, 'I am an illegal immigrant and here to stay,'" he said in a statement after the incident. Rinaldi went on to detail purported threats against him from Democratic lawmakers, saying he was assaulted and had sought the protection of law enforcement officials.

Rinaldi is reportedly under the protection of the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Without audio of the exchange on the Texas House floor, it's impossible to say who threatened whom. But scuffles in the legislature show how passionate an issue immigration enforcement is for both sides.

Rinaldi's decision to call ICE agents fits in with Texas Republicans' main argument on immigration: that laws on the books should be enforced more strictly, and illegal immigrants should be processed for deportation. Democrats say Rinaldi crossed a huge line, accusing him of profiling Hispanics in the House gallery.

And the fight over sanctuary cities isn't over. In April, a federal judge said President Trump's executive order on sanctuary cities is unconstitutional, and a barrage of legal challenges to the new Texas law is expected soon.
As they campaign against each other ahead of national elections in September, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her chief political rival, Martin Schulz, find themselves united in opposition to President Donald Trump.

Speaking at a beer hall rally in Munich on Sunday, Merkel suggested that the era when Europe could rely on the United States may be coming to an end and that the continent "really must take our fate into our own hands."

The dramatic announcement came after contentious meetings with Trump, who had used his first official trip to Europe to criticize German trade, scold world leaders about their NATO spending, and refuse to commit to the Paris agreement on combating climate change.

Schulz, a former president of the European Parliament, is the head of the center-left Social Democrats. He is easily the most convincing challenger to Merkel's 11-year reign as chancellor and a charismatic leader in his own right. Yet rather than criticize his rival or her Christian Democratic Union-led government for the strained relationship with Trump, Schulz has passionately offered support.

In video published by the Deutsche Welle news agency on Monday, a visibly angry Schulz can be seen railing against Trump, who he said "believed he could inflict humiliation in Brussels."

The Social Democrat leader then said it did not matter that Merkel and he were in the middle of an election campaign, as "the chancellor represents all of us at summits like these, and I reject with outrage the way this man takes it upon himself to treat the head of our country's government."

"That is unacceptable," Schulz said.

He had made a similar comment on Sunday shortly after Merkel's remarks. "A stronger cooperation of European countries on all levels is the answer to Donald Trump," Schulz told the public broadcaster ARD. On Monday, he tweeted in German, English and French that the "best response to Donald Trump is a stronger Europe."

Such comments suggest that Trump's reputation in Europe may end up influencing the continent's politics in unexpected ways. Although the possibility of a Schulz chancellery has become less and less likely after poor showings by the Social Democrats in recent regional elections, the center-left's animosity toward Trump is broadly shared by many German voters.

In a poll conducted in February, 78 percent of Germans said they were "very concerned" about Trump's policies - almost 20 percent more than those who were worried about the politics of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Characteristically, Schulz has taken a more direct tone in his criticism than the soft-spoken Merkel, calling Trump's policies "un-American" in late January. Notably, he has pushed back on long-standing U.S. demands for Germany to spend 2 percent of its gross domestic product on defense - something Trump pushed during last week's meeting of the leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

However, while the Christian Democrats were beneficiaries of a short-lived "Trump bump" after the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Merkel also may have found ways to use Germans' animosity toward Trump to her advantage. Thanks to a quirk of scheduling, before she met Trump in Brussels last week, she spent a morning with former U.S. President Barack Obama, who is still broadly admired in Germany.

After Merkel's comments about Trump at the beer hall, she received applause for a whole minute. The next day, her spokesman reiterated her intent. "The chancellor's words stand on their own," Steffen Seibert said during a news conference Monday. "They were clear and comprehensible."
KYOTO, Japan - A collaboration between U.S. company Google Inc. and university students in Kyoto has created a website to introduce Japan's craftworks to the world.

The website (g.co/madeinjapan) currently features about 140 traditional craftwork items from the nation's 47 prefectures in Japanese and English. The list includes Nishijin brocade from Kyoto Prefecture and Arita porcelain ware from Saga Prefecture.

Using photographs, text and movies showing the processes involved in craftworks, the Google-run website features various Japanese artworks in an unprecedented endeavour.

"We worked hard to create the website using smart, stylish images and atmospheres just like those in fashion magazines," said a student who edited material and created designs for the site. "We hope visitors to the site will appreciate how wonderful Japanese craftworks are."

One of the movies on the site shows a craftsman hitting a brass board with a hammer on a wooden work table. The man checks the curve of the board and starts hitting it again to gradually form the rolled mouthpiece of a kiseru pipe.

The man in the video is Seizo Tanigawa, 67, a kiseru pipe artisan and the ninth-generation operator of Tanigawa Seijiro Shoten in Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto. The pipe specialty shop was founded in the 18th century.

Tanigawa hopes the movie will spread awareness of the craftsmanship. "Kiseru pipes are a perfect example of Japan's chic culture and accomplishments, so I wanted to make them widely known," he said.

According to Google Japan G.K., this is a part of "Google Arts & Culture," a global-scale project to compile various forms of arts and documents into an online database. The ongoing project has focused on Japan's handiwork.

The company hoped to create a site that would attract young Japanese and foreigners who are not familiar with craftworks.

It asked Shinya Maezaki, 40, an associate professor of Kyoto Women's University who is an expert in craftwork, for his cooperation in the project.

Maezaki and about 40 students taking his seminar and several students from Ritsumeikan University started working on the project in the summer of 2015. The students received a large number of photographs and movies taken by photographers and text written by staff members of museums across the nation. They examined which aspects to use in the final versions and edited material on computers and created the entire design for the website.

In Kyoto and other cities, the students visited local artisans to improve the editing process.

"We tried hard to find the best way to create a site that viewers would find cool and attractive," said Mitsuki Iwata, 21, a fourth-year student of Kyoto Women's University.

The website launched in January last year, with programs featuring 83 items, including Miyama washi paper from Yamagata Prefecture.

Later, some craftworkers who were suffering from a lack of publicity and struggling to find successors showed interest in cooperating with the website. This was followed by more artisans who were in similar situations.

The website was completed in March, with programs introducing 141 items from all of Japan's prefectures.

The number of page views is undisclosed, but the site has received comments from people in Europe and the Middle East who admire Japanese craftworkers' excellent tradition.

"The students successfully presented the attraction of Japanese craftsmanship (to the world) using their young sensibility," Maezaki said, speaking about the positive responses from visitors.

Cultural Heritage Online, run by the Cultural Affairs Agency, also serves as an online database of cultural assets, arts and crafts, but it mainly deals with items designated as national treasures.

Naoto Ikegai, a visiting associate professor at the University of Tokyo, said, "This website is valuable as it covers craftsmanship, a field that wasn't fully covered by digital archives before, and introduces content rich in both quality and quantity."

"The design of the website is sophisticated, and it's also easy to use," said Ikegai, a lecturer in information politics.
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WASHINGTON - The Trump administration argued over the weekend that back-channel communications are acceptable in building dialogue with foreign governments, part of an effort to minimize fallout over White House adviser Jared Kushner's reported discussion about creating a secret conduit to the Kremlin at a Russian diplomatic compound.

But some former administration officials on Sunday criticized the use of such secret channels, especially during a presidential transition, saying they could send a confusing message and be manipulated by a foreign power.

Democrats raised new concerns about Kushner. And the top-ranking Democrat on the House committee investigating potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia called for a review of Kushner's security clearance.

The controversy is the latest to tie the most senior ranks of President Donald Trump's administration to Moscow amid multiple investigations into Russian interference in the election. It comes as Trump returned to Washington from his first international trip, renewed his tweets about unfair media coverage, and eyed a major retooling of his White House staff to deal with Russia-related scrutiny.

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, the lone Trump official representing the administration on Sunday public affairs shows, broadly characterized reports that Kushner might have sought such back-channel communications as "a good thing." The comments expanded on a defense first put forward Saturday by national security adviser H.R. McMaster in a news conference in Sicily.

"It's both normal, in my opinion, and acceptable," Kelly said on ABC News' "This Week." "Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organizations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us is a good thing."

But foreign policy experts and former officials told The Washington Post such a request of the Russians would be inappropriate unless carefully coordinated with the Obama administration, which was in office at the time. They said any secret communications could have left Kushner vulnerable to manipulation by Russian officials.

The Washington Post reported Friday that Kushner discussed the possibility of setting up secret and secure communications between the Trump transition team and the Kremlin during a December 2016 meeting with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. The conversation was relayed by Kislyak to Moscow and intercepted by U.S. intelligence officials, according to U.S. officials briefed on the reports.

Kislyak reportedly was taken aback by the request, which involved possibly using Russian communications equipment at its embassy or consulate.

Kushner's meeting with Kislyak was not initially disclosed when Trump's son-in-law sought a security clearance. Media reports revealed the meeting, along with another private session Kushner had with a representative of a Russian bank. Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, is now a senior White House adviser with wide-ranging foreign policy and domestic duties.

"If you're going to create a back channel that relies solely on the Russian communications and apparatus, that's a really serious issue," said Mark Lowenthal, a former assistant director at the CIA. "That's extremely dangerous."

Kelly on Sunday did not explicitly confirm that Kushner made the request or that the use of Russian diplomatic facilities was considered. He suggested that Kushner would have relayed any information exchanged in such meetings to the U.S. government to try to broker a more favorable relationship with an adversary.

"Back-channel communications with people are ways to communicate with people, again not in front of the press, as an example, but that information is not necessarily kept secret from the rest of the government," Kelly said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

The meeting with the Russian ambassador occurred when Kushner was not yet a government employee, and the effort's secrecy gave the appearance that he and other senior Trump aides were not sharing their moves with the Obama administration.

Several Democrats, including Sen. Richard Durbin, Ill., and Sen. Cory Booker, N.J., said the reported Kushner meeting needs additional probing. And the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Rep. Adam Schiff, Calif., suggested that Kushner's security clearance should be reviewed.

"I do think there ought to be a review of his security clearance to find out whether he was truthful, whether he was candid," Schiff said. "If not, there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance."

The president, who has often weighed in angrily about stories suggesting ties between his campaign officials and Russia, has not responded specifically to the Kushner allegations. But in a series of tweets early Sunday, he accused reporters of inventing stories and sources.

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," Trump wrote in one tweet.

Trump, who was initially expected to stop by the PGA golf tournament hosted at the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia, made no public appearances Sunday.

The Kushner revelations also could deepen the administration's woes as congressional investigators and newly named special counsel Robert Mueller probe his contacts. Schiff said he expects Kushner to testify before the House intelligence committee.

Beyond security concerns, a proposed back channel would have been a breach of democratic protocol, said Eliot Cohen, a former counselor to President George W. Bush's State Department. After an election, the president-elect and his staff typically contact foreign governments in coordination with the current administration, Cohen said.

"There's no way that it can be appropriate to say, 'I want to use a hostile government's communications system to avoid our government knowing anything about it,' " Cohen said.

Other meetings with foreign dignitaries were treated with similar secrecy during the Trump transition. Kushner, retired Gen. Michael Flynn and now-White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon also met with the crown prince of Abu Dhabi in New York, a meeting the Obama administration learned about when the prince's name appeared on a flight manifest.

U.S. diplomats have relied on back channels with foreign counterparts in other situations involving sensitive negotiations. President Franklin D. Roosevelt used a group of go-betweens to privately maintain close relations with British statesman Winston Churchill while the United States remained officially neutral before entering the Second World War. Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had a personal relationship with Anatoly Dobrynin, who was the Soviet ambassador to the United States for two decades, and the two men often met unofficially.

More recently, the Obama administration opened a secret line of communication with Cuba in an effort to secure the release of political prisoners and move toward a normalized diplomatic relationships. A small team of senior White House officials and Cuban officials met quietly in Canada and the Vatican for over a year in order to keep the meetings from the public eye, although State Department officials executed a coordinated strategy publicly.

Jon Finer, a senior State Department official in the Obama administration, said Kushner's reported back-channel effort illustrates "that the Trump team had less trust in the American government than in a foreign adversary that undermined our election.

"And the million-dollar question then becomes: What was so urgent and so sensitive that the president needed it to be handled this way? Every explanation offered so far has been wholly unsatisfying," Finer said.

---

The Washington Post's Adam Entous and Paul Kane contributed to this report.
Bernie O. Aaberg was an Army private with the 170th Engineer Combat Battalion from Minnesota who went missing in the Philippines during World War II. Frank W. Zywicki of New York also went missing in that war, a Naval quartermaster lost when his submarine, the USS Cisco, is believed to have been sunk by Japanese bombers in the South China Sea in late 1943.

Aaberg and Zywicki have the distinctions of being, alphabetically, the first and last service members on the U.S. military's list of those missing in action. Between the two of them are more than 80,000 others.
On Monday, March 19, 1917, three Americans strapped into the cockpits of their single-seat biplanes on a French airfield, and embarked on a reconnaissance mission. The United States was weeks away from declaring war on Germany and entering World War I. But these Americans, natives of Illinois, New York and Massachusetts, had sailed to France to aid the country in its conflict with Germany.

The American trio, members of an elite squadron known as the Lafayette Escadrille, quickly got into trouble. One had a faulty engine and turned around. The two others, Edmond Genet and James "Mac" McConnell, crossed enemy lines and confronted their adversaries. Genet got hit and flew back to the base. But McConnell vanished. Four days later, his aircraft's wreckage was located, along with his body, pocked with bullets and stripped of all belongings, according to the 2016 book "The Lafayette Escadrille" by Steven A. Ruffin.

Where would the American who died in action be buried? It's a question that faced so many U.S. families whose loved ones died overseas during World Wars I and II. In McConnell's case, his remains eventually made their way to a crypt built in 1928 just outside Paris called the Lafayette Escadrille Memorial Cemetery, erected to honor the the American pilots and others who joined France's aviation service during the Great War.

For decades, the cemetery was owned and operated by a private French entity called The Lafayette Escadrille Memorial Foundation. But in January, the American Battle Monuments Commission, a little-known U.S. government agency headquartered in Northern Virginia and established in 1923, agreed to take over the site. The Lafayette Escadrille Memorial Cemetery became the 26th official U.S. cemetery abroad, joining the ranks of the Normandy American Cemetery and the Netherlands American Cemetery. The commission's cemeteries and memorials around the world - mostly in Europe, but also in the Philippines, Mexico, Panama and North Africa - serve as the final resting place for nearly 140,000 Americans.

"It's a national policy that we bring our war dead home, so it's extremely unlikely that we will have another occasion for us to establish permanent U.S. cemeteries overseas anymore," said Mike Conley, the commission's executive officer. "That's why adding this cemetery is a big deal. It won't happen very often in the future."

After the start of World War I in 1914, but before the U.S. declared war in April 1917, a group of Americans traveled to France, volunteering for the fight. Eventually, they lobbied the French government to create a squadron of American pilots. At the time, air combat was fairly novel, but many of the Americans knew how to fly and were eager for combat.

The French government finally agreed. On April 20, 1916, seven Americans rendezvoused at an airfield near Luxeuil, France, forming the first of what would soon be called the Lafayette Escadrille. Less than a month later, several of them took off in their Nieuport fighter planes by the Vosges Mountains, near the country's eastern border. It was a routine, danger-free patrol, but Ruffin declares in his book that "history had just been made."

The men had "decided to ignore their own country's rigid neutrality stance - one that the United States would maintain for nearly another full year before officially entering the war - in order to come to the aid of France," Ruffin wrote.

Initially, the group was called the "Escadrille Americaine," a moniker that angered Germany, whose leaders believed the U.S. couldn't remain neutral and have a military unit named in its honor. Finally, the name morphed into "Escadrille de Lafayette," or the Lafayette Escadrille.

"Escadrille" is French for squadron. But why Lafayette?

The men wanted to honor French aristocrat Marquis de Lafayette, who in 1777 came to America to fight for American independence.

A total of 38 Americans served in the Lafayette Escadrille, but more than 200 Americans flew in other French aviation units during World War I. All the Americans who flew for France during the conflict were part of the Lafayette Flying Corps. After the U.S. entered the war in 1917, the Americans transferred to what was then the U.S. Air Service.

Just outside Paris, in the suburb of Marnes-la-Coquette, the Lafayette Escadrille Memorial Cemetery features an arc and a crypt with 68 sarcophagi. But only 52 of them contain the remains of pilots who served in either the Lafayette Escadrille or other French squadrons. Some pilots' families had their loved ones' remains repatriated to America.

Conley, the commission's executive officer, said the foundation that operated the site didn't have enough money to sustain its upkeep for the long-term. Last year, Congress authorized the commission to acquire the site, and by January, the ownership transfer was official.

"We definitely thought it was the right thing to do," said Conley. "The French no longer had the means to ensure the care of that memorial in perpetuity. That's our core mission."

Right now, visitors to the memorial need to set up in advance a tour of the crypt. But Conley said he hopes the commission can hire staff to ensure the crypt can remain open so that anyone can visit without making a reservation.

For McConnell, the founding member of the Lafayette Escadrille who was shot down in 1917, the thought that he'd be buried in a crypt open to tourists might have been a shock. According to Ruffin's book, McConnell left a letter behind for his comrades, written with his "typically sarcastic wit":

"My burial is of no import. Make it as easy as possible for yourselves. I have no religion and do not care for any service. If the omission would embarrass you, I presume I could stand the performance. Good luck to the rest of you. God damn Germany and vive la France."
Albany

In this week's New York state government news, lawmakers stretch Memorial Day weekend into a week off, the New York Court of Appeals takes up physician-assisted suicide, and Uber and Lyft prepare to expand upstate.

A look ahead in Albany:

Session winding down

Lawmakers will take a break this week before returning June 5 for the final three weeks of their annual session.

The last dash is usually a frantic time when lawmakers rush to pass hundreds of bills and forge last-minute deals on tough issues.

This year, however, many of the top priorities for Gov. Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders were included in the state budget passed in April  leaving a relatively short list of items for June.

Among the remaining high-profile bills is one that raises the minimum age of marriage to 17. Current law allows children as young as 14 to get married with parental and judicial consent.

Stronger governmental ethics proposals and measures to authorize advance voting are also languishing on the agenda, but there's little sign of momentum going into the session's final days.

Assisted suicide

New York's highest court on Tuesday will hear oral arguments in a court case that seeks to authorize physician-assisted suicide  a contentious issue that appears to be going nowhere this year in the Legislature.

The case was filed by New Yorkers facing terminal illnesses  and their physicians  who say the state should recognize an individual's right to end their life.

A proposal before lawmakers would allow someone with a terminal illness to request life-ending medication from a physician. Two physicians would have to certify that the patient's condition is terminal and that they are mentally competent to make the decision.

Colorado, Washington, Vermont, California, Oregon and the District of Columbia already have current laws allowing people to request life-ending medication from a physician. The situation is somewhat more complicated in Montana, where a 2009 state Supreme Court decision shielded doctors from prosecution if they help terminally ill patients die.

New Yorkers with terminal conditions and relatives of people who died after painful illnesses have repeatedly lobbied lawmakers to pass legislation in New York to legalize physician-assisted suicide but top lawmakers have said they don't expect the measure to come up for a vote this year.

Early Uber?

Cuomo is expected to sign legislation this week to allow Uber and Lyft to begin picking up passengers in upstate New York June 29, just in time for the July 4 holiday.

A provision included in the state budget permitted the two ride-hailing apps to begin service in cities like Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse as well as all of Long Island  but not until July 9.

Uber and Lyft had been limited to the New York City area.

Supporters of the accelerated start date say permitting Uber and Lyft to start before July 4 will benefit tourism and reduce drunken driving during the busy holiday.
During the Obama administration, Education Secretary Arne Duncan got pretty steamed at people who opposed his school reform efforts, especially his support for the Common Core State Standards. In 2013, for example, he went after Core critics, telling a group of state schools superintendents:

"It's fascinating to me that some of the pushback is coming from, sort of, white suburban moms who - all of a sudden - their child isn't as brilliant as they thought they were and their school isn't quite as good as they thought they were, and that's pretty scary."

That same year, he said the Core "has become a rallying cry for fringe groups" - without noting that critics had come from all across the political spectrum. He frequently denounced the "status quo" as indefensible and criticized opponents as wanting to maintain that status quo.

Now we have a new education secretary, Republican Betsy DeVos, and she is taking attacks on people who disagree with her to a whole new level. She, too, has denounced the status quo as unacceptable and has suggested that those who oppose her want to maintain it. She said at the Brookings Institution in March:

"The reflexive question asked, often politely, by critics of choice is why should we not simply fix the broken schools first? If only schools received more funding, they say, the schools could provide a better learning environment for those being left behind.

"I don't pretend to have all the answers, but we should not pretend that the status quo is acceptable."

Actually, most critics of school choice don't say that more money is the sole answer to improving troubled public schools. They are certainly concerned that many districts are actually starved for funds - just look at Oklahoma, where some schools are operating only four days a week because of financial woes - but they have long said that the standardized test-based accountability systems that were the focus of the administrations of presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama have severely harmed public education.

Many DeVos critics agree with her about the failure of some of the "reform" programs of the past - but they don't buy her solution, seeing the push to spend taxpayer dollars on nonpublic and religious education as simply a way to privatize public education.

Let's look at parts of a speech she recently gave to the American Federation for Children's National Policy Summit in Indianapolis. DeVos was a founder and leader of the AFC, an organization that favors school choice.

At the beginning of her speech, she boldly declared, "Education should not be a partisan issue."

"Sure, various approaches to education policy should be hotly debated, and they certainly are. But making sure that all of our kids get a great education - how could it be a partisan issue? Everyone - in both parties - should support equal opportunity in education, regardless of a child's income, Zip code or family circumstances."

Of course, everyone should support equal opportunity in education, and sure, various approaches to education policy should be hotly debated. But, it turns out, she thinks that if you don't agree with her about what "equal opportunity" means and how to achieve it, you are, well, ignorant. Here's what she said later in the speech:

"The point is to provide quality options that serve students so each of them can grow. Every option should be held accountable, but they should be directly accountable to parents and communities, not to Washington, D.C., bureaucrats.

"In order to succeed, education must commit to excellence and innovation to better meet the needs of individual students. Defenders of our current system have regularly been resistant to any meaningful change. In resisting, these 'flat-Earthers' have chilled creativity and stopped American kids from competing at the highest levels. Our current framework is a closed system that relies on one-size-fits-all solutions. We need an open system that envelopes choices and embraces the future."

So if you think that her view of education in America is hurting public education or restricting opportunity for all students, then you are a flat-Earther. What's that? Someone who believes the Earth is flat. There's actually a Flat Earth Society, which is referred to in a piece on livescience.com that explains:

"First, a brief tour of the worldview of a flat-earther: While writing off buckets of concrete evidence that Earth is spherical, they readily accept a laundry list of propositions that some would call ludicrous. The leading flat-Earther theory holds that Earth is a disc with the Arctic Circle in the center and Antarctica, a 150-foot-tall wall of ice, around the rim. NASA employees, they say, guard this ice wall to prevent people from climbing over and falling off the disc. Earth's day and night cycle is explained by positing that the sun and moon are spheres measuring 32 miles (51 kilometers) that move in circles 3,000 miles (4,828 km) above the plane of the Earth. (Stars, they say, move in a plane 3,100 miles up.) Like spotlights, these celestial spheres illuminate different portions of the planet in a 24-hour cycle. Flat-earthers believe there must also be an invisible 'antimoon' that obscures the moon during lunar eclipses.

"Furthermore, Earth's gravity is an illusion, they say."

In other speeches, she has repeatedly attacked the traditional public education system, calling it a "dead end," among other things, and made clear that she doesn't think much of the people who support it.

Incidentally, in her flat-Earther speech, she noted that Annette Polly Williams, a longtime Democratic state legislator in Wisconsin, was the author of the first school-choice legislation in the United States. Here's what DeVos didn't say: Williams changed her mind about school choice and accused voucher and other choice advocates of taking advantage of African-Americans. Does DeVos know that?
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WESTPORT  To a former employee and Westport resident, James Comey was far from a showboat, but a hands-on leader who took a sincere interest in all his employees while maintaining a self-deprecating humor and acute sense of self-awareness.

After President Donald Trump fired Comey, he called the former FBI director crazy and a nut job.

But Evan Barr, who was an assistant United States attorney under Comey when he was the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said those characterizations could not be further from the truth.

Comey is a very highly principled public servant who believes strongly in trying to do the right thing, Barr said.

In 2002 and 2003, Barr reported to Comey as chief of the Major Crimes Unit, where he oversaw cases related to financial institution fraud, computer hacking, health care fraud, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act cases, tax evasion, money laundering and mail and wire fraud.

Although Barr disagreed with Comeys decision to send a letter informing Congress the FBI re-opened its investigation into Hillary Clintons use of a private email server just before the 2016 presidential election, he thinks his old boss did so because he felt it was his duty and was motivated by the belief that he was doing the right thing.

Comey was respected and well-liked by employees across the spectrum, from unit chiefs  like Barr  all the way down to junior prosecutors.

He was the kind of guy who was interested in what cases you were working on, and he would follow the trials that the more junior prosecutors were handling. I served under a bunch of U.S. attorneys, because I was there for 10 years, and he was pretty hands-on, Barr said.

Comey made time to get to know all members of his department. He was equally solicitous of the secretaries and the security guards as he was the lawyers and the senior prosecutors. Thats the kind of guy he is, Barr said.

Trump fired Comey amid an FBI investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia to alter the 2016 presidential election results.

Shortly after he fired Comey, Trump told NBCs Lester Holt that Comey was a showboat and a grand-stander, descriptions not in line with Barrs experience.

The 6-foot, 8-inch Comey was known to have a very self-deprecating sense of humor, including cracks about his height, Barr said.

Comey would make jokes about how he did not quite command as much authority at home with his large family as he did in the office, Barr said.

After he was selected by then-president George W. Bush to serve as deputy attorney general in October 2003, Comey left the SDNY in December, but would occasionally see his old co-workers at dinners.

He is a very down-to-earth, very warm person, a very inspiring leader for the office. A kind of guy who had a lot of sympathy for people in the trenches and really a great leader in the office, Barr said. He was widely admired in the office and people really enjoyed working for him.

Barr was not shocked when he heard the news Trump fired the nations top law enforcement official: Hes a highly principled public servant and has strongly held views, and it did not come as a big surprise that he ultimately ended up clashing with the administration.

The New York Times reported Trump asked Comey to stop the investigation into Michael Flynn, Trumps former national security adviser, who resigned. The newspaper also reported Trump asked Comey to pledge his loyalty at a dinner Trump initiated. The White House has disputed and denied the accounts.

Comey is set to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee on the Trump administrations possible ties to Russia.

I think Jim will come across very credibly, and to the extent his recollection differs from the presidents, I think the people listening  including the senators and the congressmen  will believe Comey, Barr said.

@chrismmarquette; cmarquette@bcnnew.com
One man is dead and another in critical condition after a shooting Sunday night in southwest Houston.

Houston police officers found a man in critical condition after a shooting at about 9:30 p.m. in the 8800 block of Gustine Lane, Lt. Larry Crowson said.
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AUSTIN  On the final day of a legislative session a marked with bitter strife, a tea-party Republican got into an altercation with Latino Democrats after calling immigration officials on people protesting the recently passed sanctuary cities ban.

The dustup on the House floor escalated with the Republican saying he would put a bullet into the head of Democratic Rep. Poncho Nevarez of Eagle Pass, said Rep. Justin Rodriguez, D-San Antonio, who claimed to have heard the remark.

In an interview with reporters, Republican Rep. Matt Rinaldi of Irving denied the comment, but later posted on Facebook that he would shoot him (Nevarez) in self defense.

U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, who later spoke to immigration advocates at a rally outside the capitol, said that Rinaldi racially profiled every protester in the gallery by calling U.S. Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement just because he saw a bunch of people that are a shade darker.

This is a clear example of how SB 4 will eventually encourage more incidents like the one earlier today (Monday), he said.

The confrontation on the House floor involved several lawmakers, observers said.

In his Facebook post, Rinaldi accused Nevarez of threatening his life, saying, Poncho told me that he would get me on the way to my car. He later approached me and reiterated that I had to leave at some point, and he would get me. I made it clear that if he attempted to, in his words, get me, I would shoot him in self defense.

Asked earlier by the Express-News what he had said to Rinaldi, Nevarez replied, I said, You gotta leave the building sometime.' Asked what he meant by that, he said he meant that rather than having these conversations here in front of everybody, we could have them outside.

Nevarez said he didnt recall whether he made his remarks before or after Rinaldi made his comment, which he said he didnt hear clearly.

I didnt hear the exact words. It was something about a bullet in my head, Nevarez said.

The scene was a capper to a session which saw ongoing battles between the House and the Senate, both dominated by Republicans; between tea-party Republicans and more moderate members of the GOP; and between Democrats and Republicans on issues including the sanctuary cities ban.

The ban drew particular concern and emotion from Democrats because it ensures law officers have the authority to ask people they detain about their immigration status, prompting fears of racial profiling.

Its almost reflective of kind of the ugliness that we saw all session. In a certain way, you hate to end on that note, but its almost appropriate that we do, because thats the kind of session it was, Rodriguez said.

Rep. Ramon Romero, D-Fort Worth, said the altercation started when he was looking up at the gallery above the House and pumped his fist to encourage the protesters , who were carrying signs and banners and chanting. The protesters were escorted out of the gallery by law enforcement because such demonstrations arent allowed in that space.

Romero said Rinaldi commented on the lack of decorum and said, Yeah, thats why I called ICE. Romero said that Rinaldi called the protesters a bunch of illegals.

Rinaldi said in the interview that he didnt remember exactly what had been said, and he declined to say whether he had called ICE.

However, on Facebook, Rinaldi wrote that his life had been threatened after I called ICE on several illegal immigrants who held signs in the gallery which said I am illegal and here to stay. Several Democrats encouraged the protesters to disobey law enforcement. When I told the Democrats I called ICE, Representative Ramon Romero physically assaulted me, and other Democrats were held back by colleagues.

No ICE agents were seen at the Capitol Monday

Asked about Rinaldis claim that he had been pushed and shoved, Romero said, Absolutely not. Hes absolutely lying, but I wouldnt put that past him.

After DPS troopers cleared the gallery, the protesters moved outside to the south steps of the Capitol. There, the Workers Defense Project, Fair Immigration Reform Movement, United We Dream and Black Transwoman held a rally with speeches and a band playing Mexican cumbias.

Congressman Castro told the crowd that they will eventually see Gov. Greg Abbott in court when SB 4 is argued as unconstitutional, and that Texas will not allow people to be victims of state leaders playing politics for their own primaries.

In every generation there have been Americans like yourselves who have stood up and said, thats enough, we are not going to take this anymore, the people of the United States and the people of Texas know better than this, Castro said.

The congressman said encouraging people to vote is key.

The only way to turn things around is if we do everything we can to get our fellow Texans out to vote. We need to replace the governor of the state of Texas, replace the lieutenant governor who wont give up on this bathroom bill, Castro said, referring to the bill that would have kept transgender Texans from using the bathrooms of the sex with which they identify, one of the main battlegrounds between the House and Senate leadership this session. The bill died.

Monica Roberts, a trans human rights advocate from Black Transwomen, said that SB 4 is nothing new to Texas, but rather it is following the pattern of conservatives in the Texas Legislature targeting groups they dont like.

She urged protesters to register to vote before November 2018.

Flush every Republican out of office that voted this bill into existence. It is past time for progressive Texans to take control of this House, Roberts said.
Voters will have a chance to cast ballots for mayoral and City Council runoff races starting Tuesday at one of 25 polling places. Visit the Bexar County elections page for a list of locations.

Polls will be open 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., June 5 and 6. The runoff election is June 10.
AUSTIN - The House and Senate blamed each other Sunday for an impasse that could trigger a special session through the failure of a bill to continue the Texas Medical Board, with lawmakers saying Texans health is at stake.

Youre not going to have a doctor in the state of Texas, said Sen. Van Taylor, a Plano Republican who is vice chairman of the Texas Sunset Advisory Committee that reviews state agencies.

Others said the better question could be who would ensure Texas doctors meet educational and quality standards if the board went away.

Agencies under sunset review are set for extinction if lawmakers dont approve legislation to continue them. The Texas Medical Board is among those hanging in the balance.

This is a fight that has nothing to do with the physicians or with the Texas Medical Board, and everyone at the Capitol knows that, said Texas Medical Association President Carlos J. Cardenas, MD. The TMB serves a critical state function, licensing physicians and protecting the health and safety of Texans. We have no reason to believe that any of our state leaders want the TMB to go away, and we have every expectation that they will find a way to make sure that doesnt happen.

The Senate, over which Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick presides, had a bill in hand Sunday that had been amended by the House to include safety-net language to keep agencies including the Texas Medical Board alive even though they havent received a separate vote from lawmakers.

But Patrick wants to force a special session because the House hasnt acted on two priority bills. One bill would require an automatic vote if cities and counties increase local property tax revenues beyond a certain amount, and the other would restrict the restrooms that transgender people can use in government buildings, schools and universities.

The House instead has approved measures to give taxpayers more information about their local property tax bills and to say that students who dont want to use the restrooms that align with their biological sex should be given another option.

House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, said his chamber wont negotiate further on the bathroom bill and that there is no need for a special session.

Only Gov. Greg Abbott can call a special session and set its agenda. While he supports the bathroom and property tax reform bills, he hasnt said whether he will put lawmakers into overtime if the measures dont pass. Failure of the sunset bill would force the issue.

Patrick has said he would use the sunset measure as leverage. Sunday, he said the House made mistakes by not advancing other legislation to save the Texas Medical Board and by using faulty language in its amendment adding safety-net language to the other bill. Taylor agreed that the amendment language was unworkable.

The fix the House sent us doesnt work. It just doesnt compute. The only way to fix this is with a special session, Taylor said. He said the amendment continues the agencies but not laws undergirding them.

House lawmakers pointed to wording in the amendment that specifically refers to the law governing each agency.

Hes 100 percent wrong, said Rep. Larry Gonzales, R-Round Rock, Sunset commission chairman. This language works.

At an earlier news conference with other House members faulting the Senate for not acting on the sunset bill, Gonzales said, Ladies and gentlemen, its on them. The ball is in their court.

Patrick, at a news conference later with senators, similarly blamed the House.

We can fix it. Well fix it in the special (session). We can do it in a couple of days, but its all on them, Patrick said.

pfikac@express-news.net

Twitter: @pfikac
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Forty-nine years have passed since Pfc. Milton A. Lee was cut down in a desperate firefight and brought home to Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery.

There he has lain, a principled young man whose life was lost but whose example has inspired anyone familiar with his story.

More than 1,000 people who huddled under umbrellas in a steady rain were reminded Monday of how Lee earned the Medal of Honor. Making up one of the largest crowds in years at Fort Sam, they ignored the scowling skies to salute those who gave up their future for their countrys safety and security.

I think its important to honor all of our military, living and dead, said Jackie Scherer, 64, of San Antonio.

And its an honor to be here amidst all this solemnity because these people gave their lives so we can do the things that we can do and say the things that we say, said her friend, Elaine Turney, 59, of San Antonio.

They came out despite the weather because they knew what day this was, said retired Army Sgt. Maj. Robert Masten, 75, of San Antonio. This is Military City, U.S.A., and probably every person who came out here either was a veteran themselves or affiliated with a veteran.

One Gold Star Mother in the crowd bore a new tattoo. Love always + forever, Robby.

At 52, Kim Smith of San Antonio has been a fixture at Fort Sam since her son, Robby Frantz, was killed in a grenade blast at his Baghdad guard station on June 17, 2003. He was the third San Antonian killed in the Iraq war, and she soon came to the funerals of those lost there and in Afghanistan.

The memories of her sons infectious laugh, his love of rap and rock and his 1999 Honda Prelude havent faded. The birthdays and anniversaries of his death still weigh. The tattoo on Smiths right forearm is in Frantzs handwriting, his closing words from his letters home  the last of which arrived after his death at age 19.

I had thought about tattoos as something to remember Robby, but I figured if I ever got one it had to be the right tattoo because its permanent, she said.

In this cemetery, there are so many like Frantz.

Milton Lee also was 19 when he was killed. He joined the Army in 1967 as a principled Christian who wanted to be a minister and who abhorred violence. He carried an M-14 rifle instead of a Bible at basic training on Fort Polk, Louisiana, running a mile before breakfast and marching 10 miles a day. He learned to break down and quickly rebuild the rifle.

He was taught one other thing: How to kill his enemy  No wounding, he wrote.

At advanced infantry training, he sent a letter home underscoring things that apparently bothered him even more.

You cannot realize what a Christian is faced with here, he wrote Charles Nelson, a close friend. Everything under the sun. Sex, drinking, smoking, cussing, etc. I'm having a hard time. What is worse is that am in my weakest spiritual condition I have ever known.  Charles, if you have ever prayed for me, please do it.

Shipped out to a bitter war in distant Southeast Asia, Lee wrote of children  being killed, women become widows, villages are burned and anything that moves is shot at. Nelson once said that Lee, a graduate of Harlandale High School, was not a person you would imagine being a hero or medal winner, or much of a military man, for that matter,

On the last day of his life, Lee had been at war four months. A soldier who closed many of his letters with, Your Friend in Christ, he carried four grenades, 200 rounds of M-16 ammunition, 300 rounds of M-60 machine gun ammunition, a claymore mine, four canteens of water, a shovel, sleeping gear and enough rations to last a week.

When his platoon was attacked in the city of Phu Bai, he fought like a man possessed, gave first-aid to wounded soldiers and took on four North Vietnamese army soldiers as his unit counterattacked.

With utter disregard for his own personal safety, Private Lee charged through the murderous fire, killing the enemy soldiers and allowing his platoon to overrun the position, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told the crowd, reading from Lees Medal of Honor citation. Not until his platoon overran the enemy did Private Lee succumb to his wounds at the age of 19.

In her keynote speech, Sara Elton, the chief operating officer of the the Veterans Administrations Denver-based Continental District urged those in the crowd to do one last thing before leaving the cemetery.

Walk around and read just one name on a headstone, marker or niche cover at the columbarium walls and think about what that person must have been like, putting their right hand in the air and swearing to protect us, putting on the uniform every day in the face of danger and defending the flag, Elton said. Think about that person, and thank that person in your heart and remember.

sigc@express-news.net
Chances for rain and thunderstorms in San Antonio are expected to pick up as the week progresses, according to meteorologists from the National Weather Service.

There's a 30 percent chance of rainfall from Monday afternoon to Tuesday night, but an upper-level disturbance foreshadowing rain and scattered thunderstorms could roll through Bexar County sometime Wednesday.
Police are searching for a gunman who shot a man in his 30s outside of a Northeast Side strip club.

Officers responded to the shooting around 5 a.m. to a gas station near Loop 410 and Perrin Beitel Road, where they found the victim suffering from a gunshot wound in his arm.
Expedia is now booking hotels in Cuba.

American Airlines is flying American tourists from Miami to Havana.

For more than a year American-owned cruise lines have been hauling U.S. citizens by the thousands to the Castro Brothers' beautiful socialist paradise 90 miles off the tip of Florida.

Thanks to President Obama's decision to liberalize relations with Cuba in 2015, the island is now open to direct visits by American tourists.

I can't believe how excited so many Americans are to get a chance to see some '57 Chevies and Buicks and visit a country that has been wrecked and essentially frozen in time by a dictatorship since JFK was president.

I'd love to see Cuba too. Its people, culture and beaches are beautiful. Its pre-Fidel history and Spanish heritage are rich.

My wife is in the travel business, so I could go on a cruise to Havana for peanuts anytime I wanted.

But as long as Raul Castro and the other thugs in the Communist Party remain in power in Cuba, I promise I'll never go there.

Half a century of Castros-style Communism turned Cuba into a backward, open-air gulag that American liberals unconditionally adored or made excuses for because everyone in the country got free education and free health care.

Meanwhile, it didn't matter to most liberals that Cubans were also kept dirt poor and had no free speech, no free vote, no free press or access to the Internet, no freedom to start a business and no freedom to travel.

Since the Obama Administration's liberalization efforts and the invasion of American tourists, things have not improved for the average Cuban.

Their country is still run by a socialist communist dictatorship and they're still third-class citizens.

They still can't go to the fine tourist hotels or pricy tourist shops. They can't go to the tourist beaches. They sure can't afford a new car or even a motorbike on their $25 a month, which is about the national average income.

To this day, Cuba's oppressive government continues to treat 11 million human beings like animals in a rundown socialist zoo.

And if you go there as a tourist from New York or London, all you're doing is putting hard currency into the coffers of Raul and the other zookeepers.

The Americans who cruise to Cuba with their dollars and debit cards don't understand, or don't care, that they are propping up a despotic government, and the liberal and conservative media aren't making a stink about it.

You'd think the free Cuban community in Florida would be making a bigger deal out of American tourist money being used to keep their family members in a large cage called Cuba.

But they aren't saying much, either.

As for me, I will never visit Cuba until its people are truly free. I hope it doesn't take too long.

But until I can go to Havana, befriend an ordinary Cuban and be able to buy him a plane ticket so he can visit me in Southern California, I won't spend a dime to help pay for the upkeep of the Castro Brothers' human zoo.

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.
For months, pundits and political advisers have tried to figure out what Trumponomics really stands for. Even President Trump himself struggled to characterize it, saying, It really has to do with self-respect as a nation.

Now that we have the presidents budget in hand, we have a more definitive answer: Trumponomics  like Ryanonomics  is based on the principle that living in poverty doesnt suck quite enough. That is, more people would be motivated to become rich if only being poor werent so much fun.

Presidential budgets should be read as statements of political ideology, not determinations for what will ultimately become law. (Congress, after all, does the appropriating.) In this case, the political ideology is reflected in major cuts to anti-poverty programs and the social safety net, all in the name of not discourag(ing) able-bodied adults from working. And so, with the compassionate goal of making the poor a little less comfortable and a little more motivated, this budget savages nearly every anti-poverty program you can imagine.

Were no longer going to measure compassion by the number of programs or the number of people on those programs, but by the number of people we help get off of those programs, said Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney, describing massive safety-net program cuts that would not help people get off safety net programs so much as eject them violently and immediately, regardless of where they land.

Under the proposed budget, Medicaid loses $610 billion over the next decade, which the administration suggests is on top of the $839 billion expected to be cut from Medicaid by the American Health Care Act. That means Medicaid funding would be cut nearly in half by 2028.

The budget not only slashes funding for food stamps by $191 billion over the next decade  that is, by more than a quarter  but also proposes charging retailers a new fee if they want to accept food stamps from customers. Seems like a good way to discourage grocers from even participating in the program, so food stamp recipients lives can get a little less convenient.

Trump proposes to completely eliminate funding for lots of other programs. These include before- and after-school programs for poor students; the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps poor people pay for heat; Community Development Block Grants (which help fund Meals on Wheels, homeless services, blight removal and other initiatives); and the Energy Departments Weatherization Assistance Program, which helps low-income families increase the energy efficiency of their homes.

The administration would hobble if not zero out lots of other programs too, such as rental assistance programs that help 4.5 million very low-income, disabled and elderly Americans afford housing, in order to encourage work and self-sufficiency.

Note that Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson has similarly argued that subsidized housing should not provide a comfortable setting that would make somebody want to say: Ill just stay here. They will take care of me.

Apparently one way to achieve this goal is to throw people out of affordable housing altogether.

Perversely, this budget also includes lots of cuts to job-training and other programs that help people acquire human capital and improve their employment prospects  again, in the name of encouraging people to become self-sufficient and find jobs on their own.

Funding for Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act job training and employment service programs, for example, would fall 39 percent next year. The federal work-study program gets slashed in half.

So much for the Republican fetishization of working ones way through college.

Or compassionate conservatism, for that matter.

crampell@washpost.com
By Lambert Strether of Corrente.

By now everybody knows that Montana Republican Greg Gianforte won comfortably against Democrat Rob Quist, after body-slamming Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs for asking a question about the CBO report on the AHCA. Shortly thereafter, The Atlantic  You remember The Atlantic? The magazine that turned David Frum into a liberal icon?  ran this piece by Adam Serwer, The Lesser Part of Valor, which analogizes Gianforte body-slamming Jacobs to South Carolinas Preston Brooks caning Massachusetts Charles Sumner on the floor of the Senate, before the Civil War. Serwers piece at the very least reinforces the Bluexit frame  that is, secession by Blue States  as proposed by Kevin Baker in the New Republic (see also Salon and Alternet, among others). But there are other reasons the piece is problematic. First, Ill review the caning of Sumner, and then Ill pick apart Serwers analogy.

From the United States Senate:

On May 22, 1856, the worlds greatest deliberative body became a combat zone. In one of the most dramatic and deeply ominous moments in the Senates entire history, a member of the House of Representatives entered the Senate chamber and savagely beat a senator into unconsciousness. The inspiration for this clash came three days earlier when Senator Charles Sumner, a Massachusetts antislavery Republican, addressed the Senate on the explosive issue of whether Kansas should be admitted to the Union as a slave state or a free state. In his Crime Against Kansas speech, Sumner identified two Democratic senators as the principal culprits in this crimeStephen Douglas of Illinois and Andrew Butler of South Carolina. He characterized Douglas to his face as a noise-some, squat, and nameless animal . . . not a proper model for an American senator. Andrew Butler, who was not present, received more elaborate treatment. Mocking the South Carolina senators stance as a man of chivalry, the Massachusetts senator charged him with taking a mistress[1] . . . who, though ugly to others, is always lovely to him; though polluted in the sight of the world, is chaste in his sightI mean, added Sumner, the harlot, Slavery. Representative Preston Brooks was Butlers South Carolina kinsman. If he had believed Sumner to be a gentleman, he might have challenged him to a duel. Instead, he chose a light cane of the type used to discipline unruly dogs. Shortly after the Senate had adjourned for the day, Brooks entered the old chamber, where he found Sumner busily attaching his postal frank to copies of his Crime Against Kansas speech. Moving quickly, Brooks slammed his metal-topped cane onto the unsuspecting Sumners head. As Brooks struck again and again, Sumner rose and lurched blindly about the chamber, futilely attempting to protect himself. After a very long minute, it ended. Bleeding profusely, Sumner was carried away. Brooks walked calmly out of the chamber without being detained by the stunned onlookers. Overnight, both men became heroes in their respective regions.

The Civil War Podcast concludes:

One of the most shocking and provocative events in American history, the caning of Charles Sumner by Preston Brooks destroyed any pretense of civility between North and South. . While Sumner eventually recovered after a lengthy convalescence, sectional compromise had suffered a mortal blow. Moderate voices were drowned out completely, extremist views became intractable, and both sides were locked on a tragic collision course.

Thats the caning of Sumner. Now lets see what Serwer has to say:

Despite Brookss public bravado, many of his contemporaries understood that what he had done was an act of cowardice. The antebellum South was a society built on the violent exploitation of defenseless people; it is in no sense strange or odd that slaveholders would see no incompatibility between their concept of freedom and valor, and ambushing and caning a man who said something that hurt their feelings. Brooks was a hopelessly craven bully who bludgeoned a man in ambush and then shrank from a fair duel with an equal once he realized he would lose. I dont mean to fetishize courage, which can be possessed by good and evil alike. I tell this story to show that in politics, one defends cruelty or cowardice by cloaking it in a delusion of valor. Gianforte attacked a man professionally obligated not to fight back. He initially accused Jacobs of being the aggressor and justified the assault by describing him as a liberal reporter. He hid from reporters all through election day, and as Brian Beutler points out, apologized only after he had won the seat. Physically attacking journalists for asking questions is cowardly. Every single person who defends it is engaging in an act of cowardice. The notion that Gianforte was merely channeling the rugged frontier culture of Western mountain men when he attacked someone who asked him a question is laughable and patronizing. It is not 1856, but these are the politics of a false valor forged by fear. It is the political logic of frightened people who need to tell themselves they are brave. This is not valor; it is the celebration of violence against those who cannot respond in kind. [2]Brooks is long dead, but the heirs to his peculiar notion of bravery govern America still.

The basic structure of Serwers analogy is this: Jacobs is to Gianforte as Sumner is to Brooks, except in todays America, not pre-Civil War America; the connection between the two pairings is the cowardice cloaked in valor shown by both Gianforte and Brooks, and the victimhood of Jacobs and Sumner. Lets pick that apart.

Trivially, Jacobs, unlike Sumner, wasnt beaten bloody and unconscious, and didnt undergo a lengthy convalesence, the latter unmentioned by Serwer (I say this not to minimize Gianfortes assault, but to contrast the strength of feeling behind the two events, about which more in a minute.)

Less trivially, Serwer presents Jacobs as a man professionally obligated not to fight back. Literally, at the mano-a-mano level, Serwer is correct. Systemically, Serwer is not correct, in the sense that the institution backing Jacobs  the Guardian  has all sorts of ways to fight back, the pen being mightier than the body-slam. Again, I say this not to minimize Gianfortes assault, but to resist the Serwers implicit metaphor that reporters are like referees  the key word is professionally MR SUBLIMINAL Paging Thomas Frank! which implies neutrality  who may not be tackled, as opposed to players on the field, who may be. But, as the Guardians coverage, or non-coverage, of Sanders[3] proves, as of 2016 the press are most definitely players. Now, it may be that the press are defenseless players who cannot be tackled, but players they are, and not referees[4].

Importantly, Serwer equivocates on the force of his analogy. True, he qualifies: It is not 1856, but then he immediately goes on to explain why it might as well be: [T]hese are the politics of a false valor forged by fear. So, if the politics are the same, were on the same path now as then, right? So maybe its not 1856, but were at the Compromise of 1850? The Nullification Crisis of 1832? Where? 18XX, I suppose. In any case, the whole tone of the piece leads me to speculate that the qualification was inserted by a careful editor; if you crossed it out, no one would notice.

More importantly, Serwer gets slavery wrong. Again he writes:

The antebellum South was a society built on the violent exploitation of defenseless people

No. The antebellum South was a society built on treating human beings as chattels who could be bought and sold. (Wage labor is also [t]he violent exploitation of defenseless people, although the nature of the violence and the nature of the exploitation are different.) Let me at this point quote Lincolns Second Inaugural Address, helpfully deleting the conceptual aspects of slavery that Serwer omits:

Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsmans two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.

Most importantly, Serwer, by framing the caning of Sumner and the body-slamming of Jacobs in terms of the personal and ahistorical characteristics (cowardice) of Brooks and Gianforte  a liberal deformation professionelle  omits any mention of systemic causes, and the moral question at the heart of Sumners caning. In 1856, the country was divided over slavery  a great moral question, as well as a great economic question[5]. That accounts for the strength of feeling both Brooks (the slaver) and Sumner (the abolitionist) shared. If Serwer is going to reinforce todays Civil War tropes, as he does, and identify with one side of that war, as he does, and with a protagonist on one side of that war, as he does, then it would behoove him to explain why he is on the side he sees as todays version of the Civil War side he supports. Where is the moral issue on the scale of slavery? Is it racism? Not with Obamas record on foreclosure in Black communities, or with the Clinton Dynastys carceral and welfare policies. Is it sexism? Not with Obama enshrining the Hyde Amendment into the ACA. Is it give me your tired, your poor? Not with Obamas deportation record. Is it the rule of law? Not when you contrast Bushs prosecution of criminal CEOs with Obamas failure to do so. Is it the social contract? Not with real wages flat for a generation and income inequality increasing under Obama. Is it life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness? Not with thousands of excess deaths from despair as shown by Case-Deaton.

And so on. Im sure readers can think of other examples. My point is that you cant claim Charles Sumner for your own  identify, that is, with Sumners victimhood  without taking into account what made Summer who he was, as a man, as a politician, and as Brookss enemy: Abolition. Where is the equivalent cause for liberals today? Im not seeing it. Trump is a bad person (as he is, as Buchanan was) doesnt cut it. Nor does Jacobs was a professional. If you analogize A to B, and then leave out the most important aspect of A, then your analogy is no analogy at all. That is what Serwer has done; he has written Hamlet without the prince.

NOTES

[1] See, e.g., the Civil War diary of Mary Boykin Chesnut, a lady of society in Charleston, South Carolina, as quoted in Charles Joyners Shared Traditions:

[2] I left out the Trump indictment in Serwers peroration, not because the claims are untrue, but because this post is not about Trump. In the previous paragraph, Im omitting all mention that everything Serwer lists has also been enabled by liberals.

[3] Heres an interesting compilation.

[4] Always excepting the small blogs, especially the family ones.

[5] The slave states developed a sophisticated ideology that slavery was a positive good, contrasting it to the ills of wage labor, and justifying it Biblically. Defeating the slave power entailed enormous capital destruction (that is, the slaves). McPhersons Battle Cry of Freedom estimates that the 4 million slaves freed were worth $3.5 billion dollars, more than Northern rail and manufacturing combined.
Great white shark jumps into Australian fishermans boat AFP

BA flight disruption spills over into third day FT. The CEO blames a power supply problem. I dunno

Route to Air Travel Discomfort Starts on Wall Street NYT

Get ready for the coming business travel crisis ComputerWorld

Britains Second Empire (podcast)Tax Justice Network (RS). We talk to film director Michael Oswald about his new film The Spiders Web: Britains Second Empire. Also, we discuss booming Swedens reverse-Trumpism: its economy grew almost twice as fast as the US last year  and it wasnt achieved through cutting taxes.

US consumers trust deficit is permanent FT

The addict brokers: Middlemen profit as desperate patients are treated like paychecks Stat

The NRA Would Like to Insure You Now Politico (DK).

Army Fraud Crackdown Uses Broad Net to Catch Small Fish, Some Unfairly NYT. A bounty referral program.

Car owners are holding their vehicles for longer, which is both good and bad CNBC

Why Americans Arent Hitting the Road This Summer WSJ

Lets Watch Pittsburghs Mayor Slowly Realize Uber Is Not His Friend Vice

Why I think Stocks Wont Crash Spectacularly but May Zigzag Lower in Agonizing Ups-and-Downs, for Decades Wolf Street. Hedgies as automatic stabilizers for the market? Hmm.

The Zombification of Canada Bond Economics

The worlds most toxic town: the terrible legacy of Zambias lead mines Guardian

Innovation Wont Overcome Stagnation Satyajit Das, Bloomberg

Brexit

China

India

Imperial Collapse Watch

Kill Me Now

Wake up, liberals: There will be no 2018 blue wave, no Democratic majority and no impeachment Salon. From Salons executive editor. Should be a wake-up call to the Democrat establishment, but that assumes facts not in evidence.

The Democrats Need a New Message Matt Taibbi, Rolling Stone (voteforno6).

Hillary Clinton is okay. Are you? Carl Beijer

New Cold War

Trump Transition

Health Care

Class Warfare

The Art and Science of Comedic Timing New York Magazine

World Bankspeak  how to hide the failure of a mission! Bill Mitchell. References this fascinating source: Bankspeak: The Language of World Bank Reports, 19462012 Stanford Literary Lab.

Antidote du jour (via):

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
Wind energy now on par with nuclear energy in Germany

(Nanowerk News) Wind energy has become an integral part of the energy supply. A new milestone for the transformation of energy supply systems was reached last year with renewable energy now accounting for 29 percent of the gross energy consumption. That is more than the conventional nuclear and brown coal power plants.



"With 80 TWh, wind energys contribution to the gross German energy generation is now 12.4 percent whilst nuclear energy lies at 13 percent. Energy production with offshore wind energy plants is gathering speed" says Prof Dr Kurt Rohrig, editor of the new "Germany Wind Energy Report 2016", as he outlines the significance of wind energy.



The new "Germany Wind Energy Report 2016" is published by the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy and Energy Systems Technology in Kassel.



Onshore increase remains at a high level

4394 MW of newly installed capacity began operation in 2016, just falling short of the previous record of 4665 MW from 2014. Today, around 28,000 onshore wind energy plants across Germany contribute almost 46,000 MW of nominal power to the energy supply. The largest absolute increase in capacity took place in Lower Saxony with approx. 700 MW.



The average onshore plant commissioned in 2016 rotates at a hub height of 128 m with a rotor diameter of 109 m. The number of wind turbines in newly commissioned wind farms is decreasing due to the development of even larger wind power plants.

Offshore capacity 10x higher than in 2013

156 offshore wind energy plants began operation in 2016 with 818 MW of nominal power. A total of around 13,900 MW is generated by offshore wind energy plants worldwide. The majority  around 12,400 MW  in European waters, e.g. UK 4940 MW, Germany 4089 MW, Denmark 1271 MW, The Netherlands 1119 MW, Belgium 712 MW.

Offshore wind energy plants are being built even further offshore and deeper into the water: on average 53 km offshore and a depth of 27 m underwater. The offshore wind energy plants completed in 2016 in German waters have an average nominal capacity of 4.3 MW. "Plants with 5 to 6 MW are currently state-of-the-art technology, and plants with nominal capacity of up to 8 MW are currently being tested. A 10 MW offshore wind energy plant is no longer utopian" says Rohrig.

Wind power met 12.4% of the German energy demand in 2016

Rohrig summarises the energy yield: "With a total supply of 188 TWh, renewable energy covered 29 percent of the German energy demand and thus, for the first time ever, provided more energy than any other source. For the first time ever, with 12.4 percent, wind energy accounts for just as much as natural gas (13 percent) or nuclear power (13 percent). Wind energy is therefore an essential pillar of the German energy transition".

"Special reports" on current industry issues

The "Germany Wind Energy Report 2016" (only available in German) documents and illustrates the role of wind energy in the mix of renewable energies, the development of both onshore and offshore wind energy, and the challenges of grid integration using 100 illustrations and numerous tables. With this annual report, the Kassel-based Fraunhofer Institute has been providing numbers and statistics on the development of wind energy use since 1991. In five "special reports", guest authors report on the following current research topics:

1. In-flight measuring systems 2. Floating substructures for offshore wind energy plants 3. Comparison of logistics concepts for commissioning offshore wind farms 4. Future wind energy cost development 5. Contribution to inter-sector collaboration for achieving climate targets
Find the newest releases to watch from National Geographic on Disney+, including favourite documentary series and films Free Solo, The Rescue, Shark Beach with Chris Hemsworth and The World According to Jeff Goldblum.
The sci-fi world of the future is being built in Dubai. Now, the Dubai Police is welcoming the first ever robot officer in their ranks. It's not quite the stuff of movies just yet, but this "robo-cop" is pretty close.

According to a report from BBC News, the robot will be stationed at the malls and tourist attractions. Civilians can tap on a touchscreen on the robot's chest to report crimes, pay fines and find out information. It will also collect data that's going to be shared with transport and traffic officials.

Eventually, the Dubai government hopes that 25 percent of the force will be robots by 2030. These aren't meant to replace human officers. Instead, the robots will make the force's workload lighter so they be more efficient and focus on more important areas.

"We are not going to replace our police officers with this tool," Brigadier Khalid Al Razooqi, director general of smart services at Dubai Police, explained. "But with the number of people in Dubai increasing, we want to relocate police officers so they work in the right areas and can concentrate on providing a safe city."

The robot from Pal Robotics can broadcast the data immediately to the command and control center, which makes it capable of protecting the people 24/7. It can communicate in Arabic and English, but the developers are also planning to add a couple more languages like Russian, Chinese, French and Spanish.

In the future, the government is hoping to be able to create a robot that can actually function as a regular police officer. While the stage is already in research and development, there's still a lot of work ahead.

"Technology-wise, we are still struggling," Alrazooqui told CNN. "Robots (that) can run similar to a human being, capturing criminals, carrying weapons. We are still waiting until manufacturers reach that target. We're working very closely with them, and we even provided them (with) all the system requirements."
You really can use 3D printing for anything. New Zealand aimed higher - literally and figuratively - by developing and launching a 3D-printed battery-powered space rocket called Electron from the isolated Mahia Peninsula.

According to a report from The Guardian, Silicon Valley-funded Rocket Lab launched the very first flight of the low-cost rocket that's being touted as a breakthrough in solving the financial and logistical barriers that often keeps many from space.

Rocket Lab revealed that their technology is a way to offer companies more chances to get satellites up in space without it causing them an arm and a leg, so to speak.

"Our focus with the Electron has been to develop a reliable launch vehicle that can be manufactured in high volumes," Rocket Lab founder and chief executive Peter Beck told The Guardian. "Our ultimate goal is to make space accessible by providing an unprecedented frequency of launch opportunities."

The achievement is also a step in making New Zealand a surprising low-cost space hub. Air and sea transportation need to be re-routed every time a rocket is launched, and the country's relatively empty skies - at least compared to the United States - make it an ideal site. New Zealand is also a good spot to kick off satellites on its way to a north-to-south orbit.

The launch has been four years in the making, approved by the US Federal Aviation Administration who monitored the flight. Two more tests are slated before commercial operations begin near the end of 2017.

"We're committed to making space accessible and this is a phenomenal milestone in that journey," Beck said in an official statement. "The applications doing this will open up are endless. Known applications include improved weather reporting, Internet from space, natural disaster prediction, up-to-date maritime data as well as search and rescue services."
Investigators on Monday returned to a brand new Dublin water park two days after a boy was thrown from the bottom of a three-story slide.

The boy only suffered some scratches after flying from the slide and skidding across the concrete below at The Wave water park, but investigators want to figure out what went wrong with The Emerald Plunge ride in hopes of preventing a similar incident from injuring any future parkgoers.

Investigators on Monday are trying to figure out how a boy was thrown from a water slide at The Wave in Dublin. Bob Redell reports.

It is still unclear what caused the boy to eject from the slide, which had been tested several times before Saturday's grand opening and certified by Cal-OSHA the day before, according to city officials.



State investigators on Sunday began gathering information during an intial examination of the ride. Representatives from WhiteWater, the slide's manufacturer, and Cal-OSHA investigators were at the park Monday to further inspect the ride.



"We are thankful the 10-year-old involved in the incident walked away without any serious injury," a statement from WhiteWater read in part. "We are working closely with the team at (The) Wave, and both of their high speed slides have been shut down pending a full investigation from the WhiteWater team."

Investigators on Monday are slated to return to a new Dublin water park two days after a boy was thrown from the bottom of a three-story slide. Bob Redell reports.

Video captured by the Bay Area News Group shows the boy shoot down the open slide, known as "The Emerald Plunge." As he reaches the flat section designed to slow riders down, his body glides across the slide's side wall before skimming across the concrete surface below.

The slide involved and one directly next to the one out of which the boy fell were closed following the incident.

A third slide at the park was also closed Sunday because of a faulty flow meter. That slide is scheduled to be reopened Monday.

A highly-anticipated water park opening in Dublin Saturday took a frightening turn when a boy was flung from the bottom of a three-story slide before skidding across the concrete. Sergio Quintana reports.

The 31,000-square-foot, $43 million facility opened just in time for Memorial Day Weekend. The park features a 48-foot tall tower with a total of six water slides. There is also a smaller splash area for children and multiple swimming pools.

On The Wave's website, The Emerald Plunge ride is described as "a splash you'll never forget."



"This speed slide is an open waterslide that gives you a great view of the Tri-Valley landscape as it sends guests plunging straight down into the splashdown lane below," the ride's description reads.

Riders must be at least 48 inches tall to ride The Emerald Plunge.


State legislators are meeting this holiday weekend in Springfield as they try to come to an agreement on a new budget, but one of the Democrats key initiatives is reportedly in big trouble.

According to NBC 5, , Democrats held a caucus on Sunday night in Springfield, and only 46 representatives are planning to vote for a tax hike that the Senate passed last week. In order to pass the legislation out of the House, 60 votes would be needed, leaving Democrats well short of that mark.

Governor Bruce Rauner has already expressed opposition to an income tax hike, saying that he will not consider any type of hike unless it is accompanied by a freeze on property taxes in the state.

The deadlock over the tax hike is just one part of the budget drama, as legislators will need to come to an agreement by May 31. If they are unable to reach an accord, then the legislature would have to put together a two-thirds vote to pass any budget legislation, leaving open the possibility that the state could enter a third year in a row without a budget.

With that deadline looming, legislators fired verbal barbs at each other during Sundays session in Springfield.

Its no time to be playing games with peoples bills, especially this budget bill, State Rep. Linda Chapa Lavia (D  Aurora) said during Sundays meeting of lawmakers.

Republicans responded to those statements, saying that Democrats have no interest in forging any bipartisan consensus on a bill.

Democrats are not interested in bipartisan support on what we should be doing with taxes, State Rep. Jeanne Ives (R  Wheaton) said.
Six people have been killed, including a 15-year-old boy, and at least 44 other people have been wounded in Chicago shootings throughout the Memorial Day weekend.

The shootings happened between 6 p.m. Friday and 3 a.m. Tuesday, with a late surge of violence leaving 13 people shot in less than four hours Monday night.

The most recent fatal shooting happened around 2:45 a.m. Tuesday.

A 21-year-old man was inside a vehicle when someone fire shots at the car, striking the man multiple times, once in the back and through his heart, police said. The man was taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County where he was pronounced dead.

The shooting marked the first fatality since about 9:50 p.m. Sunday, when a 17-year-old boy was shot dead and two other people wounded in the South Side Englewood neighborhood. Two 17-year-old boys and a 20-year-old man were standing in the street in the 6900 block of South Harvard when a male approached them and opened fire, according to Chicago Police. One of the teenage boys was shot in the head and pronounced dead at the scene. The Cook County medical examiners office did not immediately release his identity. The other teenage boy was shot in the left shoulder and taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, and the 20-year-old man went to Stroger Hospital with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Both of their conditions had stabilized.

About four hours earlier, an 18-year-old man was shot to death in the Longwood Manor neighborhood on the South Side. He was shot in the head about 5:40 p.m. in the 9800 block of South Wallace and pronounced dead at the scene, police and the medical examiners office said. His identity has not been released. Witnesses told police that an unknown male fired multiple shots at the man.

A 52-year-old man was killed in a domestic-related shooting at 1:32 p.m. Sunday in the West Side Austin neighborhood. Oscar L. Clay got into an argument with a 27-year-old man in the 1700 block of North Narragansett when the younger man pulled out a handgun and shot him, authorities said. Clay was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:45 p.m. The shooter is not in custody.

Earlier Sunday, two people were found shot to death in an apparent murder-suicide in the South Side Bronzeville neighborhood. Tiara Goodman, 25, and a 32-year-old man, whose identity has not been released, were found about 10:50 a.m. in the hallway of an apartment building in the 2900 block of South State, near the Dearborn Homes housing project, authorities said. Both had been shot in the head and were pronounced dead at the scene. A gun was recovered at the scene.

The 15-year-old boy was killed about 6:30 p.m. Sunday in a Lawndale neighborhood drive-by shooting that also left a 16-year-old girl wounded on the Southwest Side. The two teenagers were in a gangway in the 1600 block of South St. Louis when someone fired shots at them from a passing gray vehicle, authorities said. The boy was shot in the back and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital, where he died. His name has not yet been released. The girl suffered a graze wound to the back and was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital.

Two men were wounded in a drive-by shooting at 1:24 a.m. Monday outside a BP gas station in the Archer Heights neighborhood on the Southwest Side. The men, ages 21 and 22, were driving south in the 4500 block of South Pulaski when someone in a dark-colored SUV fired shots in their direction, police said. The younger man was shot in the right knee, while the older man suffered a gunshot wound to the right leg. They were both taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where their conditions were stabilized.

This is sad, man, said the 37-year-old cashier at the gas station, who asked to remain anonymous. Im sick of seeing this st. I wish it would just end already, this violence is not necessary.

On Monday morning, two men were shot as they drove on Interstate 57 in what was at least the 23rd expressway shooting Chicago has seen this year.



Nearly three dozen other people have been shot in Chicago since 6 p.m. Friday.

This years holiday weekend has been less violent than last years.

In 2016, 62 people were shot, six of them fatally, by about midnight Monday of the long holiday weekend, which is widely viewed as the unofficial start of summer  with an accompanying surge in city gun violence. By the end of that weekend, 69 people had been shot, leaving 6 dead. Twelve people were killed and 43 wounded over 2015s holiday.

To combat this years carnage, Chicago Police flooded the streets with 1,300 extra patrol officers through early Tuesday.

On Sunday night into Monday morning, 30 people were arrested in an anti-violence initiative across the city, according to a statement from police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. Seven illegal guns were seized and more than 40 traffic citations were issued.

Seventy-seven people were arrested Saturday night into Sunday morning, Guglielmi said. Ten illegal guns were seized and 176 traffic citations were issued.

On Friday night, 53 people were arrested, including 30 who were arrested during pre-emptive raids. Four illegal guns were seized and more than 70 traffic citations were issued.
A man and a dog were shot in Bridgeport and a woman was kidnapped early Monday morning. The woman was later located in Wallingford and police are trying to determine exactly what happened.

Police responded to Federal Street in Bridgeport around 1 a.m. after receiving reports of gunshots and found the male victim and the dog, Stogie.

Police then learned that two or three males apparently kidnapped the girlfriend of the shooting victim.

The woman and the unidentified males drove up Route 8, got onto Interstate 84 and got off the highway in Waterbury.

The woman told police the last thing she remembered seeing before they got off the highway was the large cross at Holy Land USA in Waterbury.

At some point, the males bailed out of the car.

Wallingford police said she was left in the car and was driving around, unable to explain to police her whereabouts, so police told her to find a landmark.

The woman and the car she was taken in were then found at the First Connecticut Credit Union at 159 S Turnpike Road, according to Wallingford Police.

Bridgeport officials said the men let the woman out of the car in Wallingford, then she called 911.

The woman is working with both police departments to help them piece together what happened.

The dog, Stogie, had no connection to the man who was shot and the woman who was kidnapped, according to the dog's owner.

She said the initial shooting happened down the street, then someone ran over to her driveway and shot Stogie.

Stogie went through surgery but has died.
Authorities said that eight people, including a sheriff's deputy, were fatally shot in rural Mississipppi, NBC News reported.

The shooting spree began around 11:30 p.m. Saturday when authortieis received a domestic disturbance call in Bogue Chitto, according to the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation. The Bureau added the vicitms were discovered in three separate locations in Lincoln County.

The slain deputy was identified as 36-year-old William Durr, a two-year veteran at the sheriff's department. The other victims were not yet identified.

Willie Corey Godbolt, 35, was taken into custody, the bureau told NBC News. Following his arrest, he told The Clarion Ledger newspaper that he was talking with family members when someone called the authorities, adding that his intention was to be killed by police.
Texas lawmakers have voted to allow handgun permit holders to have guns in their parked cars outside schools.

The Senate gave final approval to the measure Saturday, sending it to Gov. Greg Abbott for his consideration. The vote came a day after Abbott signed into law a sharp decrease in fees paid to obtain a handgun license.

The bill allowing guns in parked cars at schools is aimed at teachers and school workers who want to keep their weapons in their vehicles without violating state law. Opponents worry it raises the potential for danger if a car is burglarized on school property.
One of the Texas lawmakers involved in an argument on the House floor Monday says he has been receiving threats.

"I have been in contact with DPS, and I have let them know that I want to have my house monitored, that I want to have our district office monitored. They have been very quick to respond," said State Rep. Ramon Romero, D-Fort Worth.

Hundreds of protesters opposing Texas' tough new anti-"sanctuary cities" law launched a raucous demonstration from the public gallery in the Texas House on Monday, briefly halting work and prompting lawmakers on the floor below to scuffle.

The argument began after hundreds of protesters opposing Texas' tough new anti-"sanctuary cities" law launched a raucous demonstration from the public gallery in the Texas House on Monday, briefly halting work and prompting lawmakers on the floor below to scuffle -- and even threaten gun violence -- as tense divides over hardline immigration policies boiled over.

Activists wearing red T-shirts reading "Lucha," or "Fight," quietly filled hundreds of gallery seats as proceedings began. After about 40 minutes, they began to cheer, drowning out the lawmakers below. Protesters also blew whistles and chanted: "Here to stay!" and "Hey, hey, ho, ho, SB4 has got to go," referring to the bill that Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law this month.

Hundreds of protesters opposing Texas' tough new anti-"sanctuary cities" law drowned out lawmakers in the Texas Capitol on the final day of the legislative session, Monday, May 29, 2017.

Some unfurled banners reading: "See you in court!" and "See you at the polls!"

State House leadership stopped the session and asked state troopers to clear the gallery. The demonstration continued for about 20 minutes as officers led people out of the chamber peacefully in small groups. There were no reports of arrests.

Texas' new law is reminiscent of a 2010 Arizona "show your papers" measure that allowed police to inquire about a person's immigration status during routine interactions such as traffic stops. It was eventually struck down in court.

A legislative session that began in January concluded Monday, and the day was supposed to be reserved for goofy group photos and sappy goodbyes. Lawmakers are constitutionally barred from approving most legislation on the last day.

But even after the protest ended, tensions remained high. Romero said he was standing with fellow Democratic Rep. Cesar Blanco of El Paso when Republican colleague Matt Rinaldi came over and said: "This is BS. That's why I called ICE."

A statement regarding today. pic.twitter.com/M0BcBXa43P  Matt Rinaldi (@MattRinaldiTX) May 29, 2017

Rinaldi, of Irving in suburban Dallas, and Blanco then began shouting at each other. A scuffle nearly ensued before other lawmakers separated the two.

Later, a group of Democratic lawmakers held a press conference to accuse Rinaldi of threatening to "put a bullet in the head" of someone on the House floor during a second near scuffle. They said the comment was made in the direction of Democratic Rep. Poncho Nevarez, from the border town of Eagle Pass.

In a subsequent Facebook statement, Rinaldi admitted saying he'd called federal authorities and threatened to shoot Nevarez -- but said his life was in danger, not the other way around.

"Nevarez threatened my life on the House floor after I called ICE on several illegal immigrants who held signs in the gallery which said 'I am illegal and here to stay,'" Rinaldi wrote. He said Democrats were encouraging protesters to ignore police instructions and, "When I told the Democrats I called ICE, Representative Ramon Romero physically assaulted me, and other Democrats were held back by colleagues."

Hundreds of protesters opposing Texas' tough new anti-"sanctuary cities" law launched a raucous demonstration from the public gallery in the Texas House on Monday, briefly halting work and prompting lawmakers on the floor below to scuffle.

Rinaldi said Nevarez later "told me that he would 'get me on the way to my car.'" Rinaldi said he responded by making it clear "I would shoot him in self-defense," adding that he is currently under Texas Department of Public Safety protection.

NBC 5 has reached out to Rinaldi several times, and we have not heard back.

Republican State Rep. Rodney Anderson, who also represents part of Irving, was on the floor when the argument happened. He knows all of the lawmakers involved.

"You had some passionate people on both sides. Nerves are frayed, and it is one of those situations that is unfortunate, because it reflects poorly on the body, and it does not do anything to advance legislation to help the people of Texas," Anderson said.

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At their news conference Monday, Democratic lawmakers vowed to target Rinaldi's seat. His district is a competitive one. Rinaldi won by fewer than 1,200 votes.

"Dallas County is a very competitive county, and I would be more surprised if there was not a challenger for any of the Dallas County Republicans," Anderson said.

The Associated Press' Meredith Hoffman and Will Weissert contributed to this report.


Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick held a press conference Sunday afternoon with other members of the Texas Senate, calling out the Texas House for not completing their work during the normal session.

Both the House and the Senate hosted press conferences, pointing the finger at the other today.

The two sides are at odds over a routine procedural bill to extend the life of five Texas agencies. That includes a medical oversight law that previously died in the Texas House, after some of its most conservative members killed every item on a legislative calendar full of non-controversial issues.

The Senate says the House didn't pass their original bill on time and the legislation from the House that was finally sent over does not cover everything it needs too.

The House maintains that it did get its work done on time.



The House and Senate also could not agree on a so called "bathroom bill" or property tax reform.

The legislature has until midnight Monday night to wrap up any outstanding issues.

Then focus shifts to Governor Greg Abbott who is the only one that can call a special session, if he sees it necessary.
A highly anticipated water park opening in Dublin, California, took a frightening turn Saturday when a boy was flung from the bottom of a three-story slide before skidding across the concrete.

The 10-year-old boy managed to walk away with only some scratches after being ejected from the Emerald Plunge ride at The Wave, which is the East Bay's newest water park.

"We got him into first aid and they checked him out," said John Rodems, Dublin Director of Parks and Community Services. "He was in good spirits. He was smiling. I think he was a little stunned coming out of the transition area a little bit."

The boy's parents then took him to the hospital to be further examined, and he was later released, said Dublin Assistant City Manager Linda Smith. Officials originally said the boy wasn't taken to a hospital.



The slide involved in the incident was shut down immediately, and park officials also closed the slide next to the one out of which the boy fell. State inspectors on site Sunday investigated both. A third slide was also closed, although park officials said it was not related to the incident.

On Monday, a team of state safety inspectors, city workers and representatives from the slide manufacturer are set to meet about what will be done to mitigate danger on the slide before it is approved to reopen.

"Hopefully by tomorrow  if not the next several days  well understand what occurred, and we will work to make sure it doesnt happen again," Smith said.



Video captured by the Bay Area News Group shows the boy accelerating down the open slide. As he reaches the flat section at the bottom of the slide, his body glides across the slide's side wall before skimming across the concrete surface below.

"I thought he was dead at first," witness Omarea Grigsby said. "He hit the ground pretty hard. You hear like a (pop)."



The slide in question could remain closed for a few days while officials investigate how the boy slipped out of it and formulate a plan to prevent such an incident from happening again.

"You know, it's safety first, everything that we do," Rodems said. "We've been testing that slide for a matter of a couple of weeks. Those slides were certified yesterday by the state of California."

Despite the accident and slide closures, the park remained busy Saturday, with more than 1,000 tickets sold, Smith said. Sunday's tallies were not yet available.

The 31,000-square-foot, $43 million facility features multiple pools, a 48-foot tall water slide tower with a total of six water slides, a splash area for youngsters and more accommodations for guests wishing to relax outside of the water.

Construction of the facility began in March 2015 at a time when California was suffering through a historic drought. Despite some grumblings about water use, park officials assured residents that the city was being "extremely water conscious" with the project.


There's a beer battle brewing in San Diego over craft beer.

In the East Village, many consider Monkey Paw a craft beer jewel. Saturday, a new Oregon-based brewery owned by Anheuser Busch opened called 10 Barrel.

Around 6 p.m. a crowd gathered outside Monkey Paw. Cheers erupted as a plane flew by. Behind it was a sign that read "10 Barrel is not craft beer."

"You know it was just a crazy idea," says Robert Esparza.

Esparza was behind the sign. He set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for the plane. The campaign resonated. He needed $900, as of Saturday he was closing in on $5,000.

"It really shows that people are up against a hard battle and it means a lot to them. Otherwise, they wouldn't put their hard earned money towards it," he said.

"Everyone's got their own opinion and who am I to tell them what that opinion should be, right? But at the end of the day, we're not here trying to fool anyone," said Garret Wales, co-founder of 10 Barrel Brewing.

He flew in for Saturday's grand opening.

"We're having a good laugh about it. Hey, we just want to be friends," Wales said. "I can assure you that the intentions of 10 Barrel is to join this craft beer community. Help how we can. Get help where we need it and just be a member."

This debate ultimately boils down to two points. First, that buy-in to the community over time. Second, the definition of craft beer.

"I don't let someone else tell me what's craft," Wales said. "I define craft as something that's made with love; made with care. That's exactly what we've always done."

The Brewers Association defines it as something small, independent and traditional.

Though many people NBC7 talked to still described large local breweries as "craft."

"I think it's because they're San Diego based breweries from the get go. They're not moving into San Diego trying to masquerade as a craft brewery. They're born and raised here. And that matters to a lot of people," Esparza said.

10 Barrel has added 90 jobs to run it's new location here in San Diego.
A fallen Navy pilot shot down in Vietnam 51 years ago was finally laid to rest at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery Sunday.

Lt. Commander Fredrick Crosby was killed in action during a bomb assessment mission, a mission that he volunteered for, in Vietnam in 1965.

His daughter, Deborah, worked for decades to fulfill a promise the family had made to her grandmother. On Sunday, her dream came true.

Im just overwhelmed with gratitude and with pride and with emotion, Deborah said. It was more than I could ever expect. Its just been a really amazing day.

Frederick Crosbys remains were found in a pond in Thanh Hoa province, according to the Associated Press, with the help of a lifelong native who recalled for investigators a day he saw an American plane crash near his home.

Phan Van Truong, the 89-year-old witness, said that a salvage team came to the site and hauled pieces of the plane away. Van Truong even used scraps of the plane to make a cooking utensil and to fix a clock.

With the new information from Van Truong, military investigators searched the pond and in 2015 and found bones, pieces of Crosbys uniform and his wedding band.

Just days before Memorial Day in 2016, Deborah got a call from the military telling her they had found her father.

It was really overwhelming, Deborah said of the phone call. It brought me back to the day I found out about my dads death. It was very emotional. I just burst out into tears. It was very overwhelming.

Now, Deborah and her family have closure. The thoughts of What if? have been erased and their dad, brother and grandfather has come home.

My dad is home, and here we grew up in Pt. Loma, so my dad being buried here at Fort Rosecrans is truly coming home. Hes home at last, Deborah said.

Fredricks sister Sharon said that her brother loved to fly, loved the Navy and love his country. She was sad that her parents werent alive to see this day, but was certainly relieved to see it for herself.

I dont think a day in that 52 years I havent thought of it.
An accidental brush fire in Mandeville Canyon that has charred at least 55 acres was 80 percent contained late Sunday, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

By the time the blaze was reported about 12:45 p.m. it had burned three to four acres of brush near a house in the 2960 block of Mandeville Canyon Road, fire department spokeswoman Margaret Stewart said.

The fire was caused by a worker doing weed abatement for brush clearance, Stewart said.

An hour later, it had spread to eight acres, burning up hillsides toward the Mountaingate Country Club, Stewart said.

The fire was declared a "major emergency" by the LAFD around 2 p.m.

By 3:30 p.m., the acreage burned had ballooned to 30 acres, she said.

A volcano-like smoke plume was visible across the Westside and San Fernando Valley, as the fire consumed moderate to thick brush in an area just off Mandeville Canyon Road, a dead end thoroughfare that snakes up a deep canyon, lined by expensive view houses.

Mandeville Canyon Road was shut down at Sunset Boulevard to accommodate fire fighting operations, Stewart said.

The area was expected to remain an active fire operation for at least the next 36 hours, she said.

Some 115 firefighters were on the scene within 70 minutes and about 160 were there by 3:30 p.m., Stewart said.

The city fire department dispatched two water-dropping helicopters, and the county fire department employed another one, in addition to five camp crews to help the ground attack against the flames, Stewart said.

A command post was set up to coordinate the various firefighting agencies at Mountaingate Drive, according to Stewart.

Fire trucks were staged for assignment at Sunset Boulevard, two-plus miles downhill from the fire. Another command post was set up at the Mountaingate country club, north of the fire and just west of the San Diego (405) Freeway.

Firefighters asked Los Angeles police to be ready in case houses need to be evacuated. Eventually five homes were cleared, Stewart said.

No houses were burned and no injuries have been reported.

Traffic was snarled at the bottom of the canyon, and only emergency vehicles were allowed north of there.

One family told firefighters they evacuated their home so quickly they left food cooking on a stove. Crews were sent to turn it off.

Equipment that had been assigned to an earlier fire in Lake View Terrace was redirected to a fire station in Van Nuys after the Brentwood fire broke out.

The nearby Getty Center museum did not close, but stopped allowing additional patrons to enter as a precaution, a spokesman said.
A Navy SEAL and member of the Navys elite parachute team, the Leap Frogs, based in San Diego, was killed by a parachute malfunction during an aerial demonstration at Liberty State Park in New Jersey on Sunday.

According to the Navy, the SEAL landed in the Hudson River at approximately 12:10 p.m. EST and was immediately retrieved by rescue crews on standby. He was taken to Jersey City Medical Center where he was pronounced dead at 1:10 p.m.

Theresa Saleeby Awad, who lives in New Jersey, was watching the show with her husband and two young children.

We were all standing there watching the jumpers, she said. Everyone realized what was going on. We immediately turned towards the parachuter. We saw the parachute and something else going into the water and the parachute going off into the building.

Awad said the parachute looked like the sail of a boat that lost it winds.

The entire crowd was just stunned. Period, she continued.  No other word for it. You saw everybody, all of the emergency services react very quickly. Eerily quiet after it happened. Somebody told the DJ to start playing again to divert attention from the crowd. My husband wanted to leave but we stayed for our children. It was sad to see, truly it was. This was a day we wanted to celebrate men and women of the armed forces.

A Facebook post on the Leap Frogs official page stated that the demonstration started at 12 p.m.

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The aerial demonstration was a coordinated jump featuring the Leap Frogs during a Fleet Week New York event.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to his family, and I ask for all of your prayers for the Navy SEAL community who lost a true patriot today," said Rear Adm. Jack Scorby, Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic.

The SEALs name has not been released. The incident is under investigation.

No other information was available.

Please refresh this page for updates on this story. Details may change as more information becomes available.
Drug enforcement officials say traffickers are bringing more cocaine into South Florida than at any time in the past decade.

Officials with the Drug Enforcement Administration say Colombia has been producing more cocaine than at the height of the notorious 1980s. Back then, South Florida was the main conduit for cocaine shipments headed to the United States in an era famous for "cocaine cowboys."

The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported Sunday that 90 percent of the cocaine seized in the United States can be traced back to Colombia, and Colombia has tripled its production in the past few years.

"There is a mountain of cocaine, much of it is likely headed our way," said Justin Miller, intelligence chief for the DEA's Miami field division. "But we are already seeing these drug combinations, and cocaine deaths are already going up significantly."

Customs and Border Protection officials in Florida said they confiscated 61 percent more cocaine last year over the prior year, amounting to 9,500 pounds of cocaine.

Because there is a lag time between production and distribution, the full impact of the increase has yet to hit South Florida, authorities said.

Experts trace the boom in production to when the Colombia government stopped aerial spraying of herbicides over cocoa fields used to make cocaine in the fall of 2015 because of health concerns.

"The aerial spraying worked quite well," said Richard Mangan, a former DEA agent and Florida Atlantic University criminal justice professor. "But there was a lot of pushback after a while to the damage it was doing to legitimate crops, the damage it was doing to people."

Meanwhile, the state Medical Examiner Commission reports that overdose deaths from cocaine are at their highest level in Florida since 2007. From 2012 to 2015, cocaine deaths in Florida went from 1,318 fatalities to 1,834 fatalities.

Only the synthetic painkiller fentanyl surpassed cocaine for contributing to Florida overdose deaths in Florida for the first half of last year, according to medical examiner records.

The increase in production in Colombia already is driving down prices in South Florida.

One kilo, or about 2.2 pounds, of pure cocaine was worth between $28,000 and $35,000 two to three years ago. Today, the same amount is worth $26,000 to $28,000, Miller said.
A man who allegedly beat his girlfriend and abandoned her on the side of a New Jersey highway was shot by state police inside his home when he allegedly charged at a trooper who was trying to arrest him, authorities say.

State police had gone to the Brady Road home in Lake Hopatcong Sunday night after they came across a woman walking along the shoulder of Interstate 80, the New Jersey attorney general's office says. The woman told troopers she'd been assaulted by her boyfriend while they were driving on I-80, and that he made her get out of the car.

She had visible injuries on her face and body, authorities say.

Five troopers went to the boyfriend's home at about 11:30 p.m. to arrest him, and spotted him walking out onto a patio through a set of sliding doors at the back of the house, the attorney general's office said.

When the troopers identified themselves, the man retreated back into the house and locked the patio doors, according to authorities. Three of the troopers went around to the front to get into the lower-level home, and as they tried to arrest him in a narrow hallway, he allegedly charged "aggressively" at the trooper in the lead position.

That trooper fired two rounds from his service handgun, hitting the man once in the lower body, authorities said.

One neighbor, Dan Malloi, told News 4 he heard a noise Sunday night, like a sharp bang, and he thought someone set of fireworks, which typically happens around Lake Hopatcong close to the holiday. But he awoke to find state police swarming the scene.



The boyfriend, identified as 35-year-old Matthew Gerndt, was taken to Morristown Medical Center with a non-life threatening injury. Police sources say he had a blood alcohol level more than three times the legal limit.

None of the troopers was hurt.

Gerndy is charged with assault and resisting arrest, and is expected to be taken into police custody once he's released from the hospital.

The attorney general's office investigates all police-involved shootings in the state.
The male lion brushes through the tall grass and strides into a clearing in a South African wildlife sanctuary. A man beckons the big cat with purring sounds. The lion, Bayetsi, responds with a gentle growl and caresses Kevin Richardson, popularly known as the "lion whisperer," with its mane.

Richardson hopes his hands-on stunts with lions will highlight the plight of the African predator, whose numbers have dwindled. It also thrusts him into a sensitive debate about human interaction with lions; some conservationists say Richardson's message is sound and sincere, but note the limits of what he can do to address big-picture problems facing the vulnerable species.

The number of lions in the wild in Africa has dropped by more than 40 percent to about 20,000 in the past two decades, according to some estimates.

Made for viral viewing on social media, the spectacle of Richardson lounging and cavorting with lions as though they were house pets might resemble a circus act in the African bush. But he uses the attention to condemn the South African industry in which customers kill captive-bred lions in relatively confined areas.

He and other critics describe that practice as "canned hunting" and also condemn the tourist draw of lion cub petting in special enclosures, saying those same animals would not be able to survive in the wild and often get cycled into the "trophy" industry to be shot for a price.

"Today's lion cub becomes tomorrow's trophy and the unsuspecting tourists have blood on their hands," said Richardson, who once worked at a tourist park that offered lion cub-petting. The tourists, he said, "have been hoodwinked into believing that their contribution of funds is going into lion conservation."

One South African operation, the Lion and Safari Park, said it stopped lion cub petting but had to resume it because of a "dramatic and unexpected" drop in visitors and tour operators who sought out cub petting elsewhere. It said it keeps its lions until they die of natural causes or donates them to "reputable" zoos and parks, and does not sell its lions to hunters.

Today, 42-year-old Richardson, who is married and has two children, manages a wildlife area with 31 lions within the Dinokeng reserve north of South Africa's capital, Pretoria. Many of the lions, which were captive-bred and cannot be released into the wild, were rescued from being transferred to operations that would let customers shoot them, he said.

Richardson said he does not breed lions and that those on his 1,300-hectare (3,200-acre) property feed on donated carcasses of cattle and antelope.

"I have been accepted as part of the pride," said Richardson, scratching the lion Bayetsi's chin. "But I have to be very careful. They are large animals and are very good at telling you how they feel."

The lions have scratched and bitten Richardson over the years, but perhaps more hurtful to him has been the criticism he has faced after being filmed wrestling with his lions or roaring with them.

Richardson's website, which offers merchandise including T-shirts, key chains and calendars, says he seeks to promote wildlife preservation through "education, awareness and funding."

Luke Hunter, president of Panthera, a conservation group, commended Richardson for his passion and "authentic" concern for lions, saying: "His messaging, for what he has and what he can do, is good."

But Hunter emphasized the broader conservation needs of the lion, including efforts to protect habitats and address poaching, in which antelopes and other potential prey for lions end up in the bushmeat trade, and lions get trapped in snares laid down indiscriminately.

A relatively recent concern is demand in some Asian countries for lion bones used in traditional medicine, and the possibility that poachers are increasingly targeting lions to meet that demand. Currently, South Africa allows the legal, annual export of bones from hundreds of captive-bred lions to China and Southeast Asia.

Richardson spoke of his intimacy with the animals.

"The relationships I have with them are purely to give them a better quality of life in a captive situation," he said. "I will look after them as long as I can."

Associated Press writer Christopher Torchia contributed to this report.
For the 30th year, the annual Rolling Thunder "Ride for Freedom" rumbled into Washington with hundreds of thousands of bikers. The official events started Friday evening, with the "Blessing of the Bikes" at Washington National Cathedral.

Since 1988, thousands of bikers and spectators have converged in Washington to honor military veterans and members of the military missing in action. More than 1 million people are expected to participate.

Vietnam War-era veteran Bob Atkinson and his wife, Brenda Atkinson, said they were honored to ride in Rolling Thunder for their 17th year. They rode 900 miles to D.C. from their home in Perkins, Illinois.

Bob Atkinson said he rides to "keep people aware that there's still people missing in action."

"Until we get rid of that and treat everybody fairly and right, then the government needs to be aware, and this is one way that they're aware every year -- that people come here for this," he said.

Being part of the huge wage of bikers approaching the National Mall never fails to make him cry, he said.

NBC Washington's Chris Gordon rode on the back of retired Navy veteran Ken Gulledge's bike. Gulledge rode to D.C. from South Carolina and will return to Afghanistsn soon following 30 years of service to the Navy.

"This is what I do. I defend freedom. This is the reason I'm on earth," he said.

Bikers will meet at the Pentagon from 7 a.m. to noon on Sunday, then ride to D.C. at noon. A program will be held on the National Mall, near the Lincoln Memorial, at 1:30 p.m. At 3 p.m., Billy Ray Cyrus, Rockie Lynne and Gordon Painter are set to perform.

There will be a wreath presentation at the World War II Memorial at 9 a.m. on Monday, at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery at 11 a.m. and for Vietnam War veterans at 1 p.m. The National Memorial Day Parade is set to start at 2 p.m.

For the full schedule, see the Rolling Thunder website.

The ride is open to anyone who wishes to show their support. Organizers recommend that all participants be experienced in riding in slow, stop-and-go traffic.

Officials encourage drivers to keep an eye out for motorcyclists even more than usual. Even the smallest collision between a car and a motorcycle can be deadly for the motorcyclist," Officer Nathan Probus of the Prince William County Police Department told WTOP.

Dancing With the Stars' first celeb contesant for season 25 was announced on Good Morning America on Wednesday

The NBC Washington traffic map will be updated throughout the day as roads open and close.

Go here for the full Memorial Day weekend weather forecast.

See the little one's adorable reaction to the performance.
Germany's Angela Merkel said Europe could no longer "fully count on others" in a speech over the weekend, a sign of the widening cracks in the Germany-U.S. relationship, NBC News reported.

"All I can say is that we Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands," the German leader said at a campaign event in Bavaria. "The times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days."

Although Merkel didn't mention President Donald Trump by name, her blunt remarks followed a bruising series of meetings with Trump at the NATO summit in Belgium and then at the G-7 gathering in Italy.

Trump on Thursday had alleged 23 out of the 28-member nations owed "massive amounts of money" to U.S. taxpayers, and he also did not explicitly promise to protect America's NATO allies if they came under attack.
President Donald Trump's push to get in front of the pack at a NATO summit generated indignation in the Balkans and garnered attention on social media  but the man he shoved aside took it in stride.

At Thursday's gathering in Brussels, Trump put his right hand on the right arm of Montenegro Prime Minister Dusko Markovic and pushed himself ahead as NATO leaders walked inside the alliance's new headquarters and prepared for a group photo.

Trump then stood near Markovic and spoke to Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite.

Video of the incident spread on social networks in multiple languages.

"It seems Donald Trump did not want that anyone overshadows his presence at the summit," said the Montenegro newspaper Vijesti.

Other Balkan websites ran headlines such as "America First" and "Where do you think you are going?"

Markovic himself, however, shrugged off the slight.

"It didn't really register. I just saw reactions about it on social networks. It is simply a harmless situation," he told reporters after the summit.

Instead of being insulted, he took the opportunity to thank Trump for supporting Montenegro's membership in NATO. The small former Yugoslav republic is slated to become NATO's 29th member next month.

And in any case, Markovic said, "it is natural that the president of the United States is in the front row."

Did President Trump shove another NATO leader to get in front?
A section of Southern California coast has been closed again after at least four sharks were spotted close to shore.

Officials in San Clemente say the water is off limits Sunday from one mile north to one mile south of the city beach's pier.

Closures were ordered in the same area a week ago after two dozen great whites were seen, including one about 10 feet long.

Juvenile great whites, typically under 8 feet, are common along Southern California, where they feed on small fish. As they get larger, white sharks start feeding on bigger marine mammals, a factor lifeguards use to consider closures.

Fishermen on the pier reported seeing several great white sharks last week. One shark, described as approximately 10 to 12 feet was reeled in. They told NBC 7 it was released because it was determined to be a great white. The species is protected.

Another shark spotted by the fishermen was 16 to 20 feet long.

An NBC 7 news crew witnessed a fisherman hooking what appeared to be a six-foot Soupfin Shark from the pier after noon.

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Last month a woman was injured by a 10-foot white shark at San Onofre State Beach, south of San Clemente.

Leeanne Ericson survived the attack on April 29 but suffered major injuries to her right leg. She was improving but still hospitalized at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla over the Memorial Day weekend according to family updates.



NBC 7's Artie Ojeda spoke with surfers who frequent San Onofre State Beach who say recent shark warnings and sightings don't concern them one bit.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) receives US Trade Representative

Robert Lighthizer in Hanoi on May 20th (Photo: VNA)



The visit aims to continue carrying out Vietnams foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralisation of foreign relations, and proactive and active integration into the world. It is also set to bring into play the attained outcomes and foster Vietnam-US cooperation.

Vietnam and the US established diplomatic ties on July 12th, 1995. A Consulate General of the US was opened in Ho Chi Minh and another of Vietnam was set up in San Francisco in November 1997.

Positive strides have been recorded in bilateral relations in all spheres since the countries established a comprehensive partnership in July 2013 on the basis of respecting each others territorial integrity, political regime and development path, for the sake of their own interests and for regional peace, stability and development cooperation.

Delegation exchanges have been increased in recent years. Vietnamese leaders visiting the US included Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (July 2015), National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung (September 2015). President Truong Tan Sang attended the United Nations General Assembly in September 2015, and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung attended the special ASEAN-US Summit in February 2016. There have also been many US delegations touring Vietnam such as the trips by President Barack Obama (May 2016), Secretary of State John Kerry (January 2017), and Secretary of Defence Ashton Carter (June 2015).

Over the past years, the US has become one of the leading trade partners of Vietnam. Bilateral trade has continually grown by about 20 percent each year. Despite a trade deficit with Vietnam, the US has enjoyed a rapid export growth rate of 77 percent annually, four times higher than the growth of Vietnams shipments to the US.

With 815 projects with total registered capital of USD10.07 billion, the US ranks eighth among 112 countries and territories directly investing in the Southeast Asian nation. On March 27th-28th, 2017, the two countries restarted the technical meeting of the Council on Bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement.

Both sides have also intensified cooperation in security, defence, science, technique, information technology, bio-technology, oceanography, and space technology.

During a Vietnam visit by President Barack Obama in May last year, the two sides issued the joint announcements on partnership in climate change and wildlife trafficking combat. Accordingly, the US will support Vietnam with USD60 million to cope with climate change and another USD10 million to fight wildlife trafficking in five years.

Regarding education, there are more than 31,000 Vietnamese students and apprentices in the US at present, turning Vietnam into the sixth biggest source of foreign students in the US. The Fulbirght University Vietnam has been actively implemented while first moves have been made to carry out the Peace Corps programme, which allows US volunteers to teach English in Hanoi and HCM City.

The number of US tourists to Vietnam reached 552,700 in 2016, a year-on-year rise of 12.8 percent.

Bilateral coordination has been enhanced at many multilateral organisations and forums to which both countries are members such as the UN, ASEAN, East Asia Summit, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), and ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus.

The two countries have also worked together in global issues such as climate change response, food security, energy and water resources, trans-national crime and terrorism fight, and prevention of weapons of mass destruction proliferation.

They have maintained annual dialogues on human rights with straightforward and constructive spirit, not letting differences hamper the development of their relations./.
North Korea on Monday fired an unidentified projectile off its east coast, South Korea's military said, in what is likely the latest test-launch of a ballistic missile as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can reach the U.S. mainland.

A statement by the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launch came from around the eastern North Korean coastal town of Wonsan, but the agency didn't say what type of projectile was fired or if it was successful. South Korea's Yonhap news agency, without citing a source, said the projectile is believed to be a ballistic missile, but the South Korean military said it was still analyzing what exactly the North launched.

North Korea is still thought to be several years away from its goal of being able to target U.S. mainland cities with a nuclear ICBM, but each new test puts it closer to success.

The North's nuclear and missile programs are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in allies Washington and Seoul.

U.S. President Donald Trump has alternated in his public statements between bellicosity and flattery. But his administration is still working to solidify a policy to deal with North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

A new liberal president in Seoul, Moon Jae-in, has signaled he will be flexible in expanding civilian exchange with North Korea. But many analysts say Moon won't likely push for any major rapprochement projects because North Korea has gone too far on its nuclear program.

Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, the North carried out two nuclear tests last year _ in January and September. Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of the North's secretive weapons program is unknown.

Moon has made tentative steps toward engaging the North by restarting stalled civilian aid and exchange programs as a way to improve strained ties.

South Korea said recently that it will allow a civic group to contact North Korea about potentially offering help in treating malaria, the first government approval on cross-border civilian exchanges since January 2016.

North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile that landed in Japan's maritime economic zone Monday, officials said, in the latest in a string of test launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can reach the U.S. mainland.

The suspected Scud-type missile launched from the coastal town of Wonsan flew about 450 kilometers (280 miles), the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. It landed in Japan's exclusive maritime economic zone, which is set about 200 nautical miles off the Japanese coast, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said. He said there was no report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.

North Korea is still thought to be several years from its goal of being able to target U.S. mainland cities with a nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile. It has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that could hit Japan and South Korea as well as U.S. forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.

North Korea's state-controlled media had no immediate comment. But a day earlier, the North said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. It wasn't clear from the state media report when the test happened.

Kim found that the weapon system's ability to detect and track targets had "remarkably" improved and was more accurate, according to the official Korean Central News Agency. KCNA cited Kim as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system all over the country so as to "completely spoil the enemy's wild dream to command the air."

The North's nuclear and missile programs are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in Washington and Seoul.

President Donald Trump has alternated between bellicosity and flattery in his public statements about North Korea, but his administration is still working to solidify a policy to handle its nuclear ambitions.

Monday's launch was the third ballistic missile launch by North Korea since South Korea's President Moon Jae-in was inaugurated on May 10. He has signaled an interest in expanding civilian exchange with North Korea, but many analysts say he won't likely push for any major rapprochement because North Korea has gone too far in developing its nuclear program.

Moon called a National Security Council meeting Monday morning to discuss the North's launch. In a separate statement, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff warned North Korea's repeated provocation would further deepen its international isolation.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who just returned from a G7 meeting in Italy, told reporters that "North Korea's provocation by ignoring repeated warnings from the international society is absolutely unacceptable."

The U.S. Pacific Command said in a statement that it tracked a short-range missile for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan.

Suga, the Japanese cabinet secretary, told reporters that the missile fell about 300 kilometers (190 miles) north of the Oki islands in southwestern Japan and 500 kilometers (310 miles) west of Sado island in central Japan.

Suga said Japanese officials will discuss North Korea with a senior foreign policy adviser to Chinese President Xi Jinping, Yang Jiechi, who is scheduled to visit Japan later Monday. He said China has been increasingly stepping up and using its influence over North Korea and that the two sides will thoroughly discuss the situation.

Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, the North carried out two nuclear tests last year - in January and September. Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of the North's secretive weapons program is unknown.

Despite the missile launches, South Korea under Moon has made tentative steps toward engaging the North by restarting stalled civilian aid and exchange programs. It said last week it would allow a civic group to contact North Korea about potentially offering help in treating malaria, the first government approval on cross-border civilian exchanges since January 2016.

AP journalists Mari Yamaguchi and Kaori Hitomi contributed to this report from Tokyo.
Senior White House adviser Jared Kushner is being told to "lay low" in the aftermath of the reports that he sought to set up a secret back-channel with Russia, a White House official told NBC News.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity and said some staffers were speechless when they learned about reports of a purported Russia backchannel.

NBC News reported Thursday that Kushner had come under FBI scrutiny in the Russia investigation, with multiple officials telling NBC News that investigators believe Kushner has significant information relevant to the probe.

The Washington Post reported Friday that Kushner discussed the secure communication channel with the Kremlin and the Trump transition, while Reuters reported Kushner had undisclosed contact with Russian diplomats. Kushner's attorney has issued a statement saying he's volunteered to tell investigators everything he knows about meetings with diplomats.
President Donald Trump on Monday expressed the nation's "boundless" gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice paid by Americans defending the United States, dedicating his first Memorial Day address as commander in chief to a top Cabinet secretary and two other families who lost loved ones.

Participating in the somber, annual observance at Arlington National Cemetery, Trump recounted the stories of Green Beret Capt. Andrew D. Byers of Colorado Springs and Christopher D. Horton of the Oklahoma National Guard as Byers' tearful parents and Horton's emotional widow looked on.

Trump also singled out for special mention Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, a retired Marine four-star general whose son, Marine 2nd Lt. Robert M. Kelly, was killed in November 2010 after he stepped on a land mine while on patrol in southern Afghanistan.

To all Gold Star families, Trump said of their lost service members: "They each had their own names, their own stories, their own beautiful dreams. But they were all angels sent to us by God and they all share one title in common and that is the title of hero, real heroes."

"Though they were here only a brief time before God called them home, their legacy will endure forever," Trump said.

Horton, a sniper sent to Afghanistan in 2011, died in a gun battle with the Taliban near the Pakistan border three months into his deployment. Byers was on his third combat tour and, Trump said, ran through smoke and a hail of bullets to rescue an Afghan soldier when he was killed last November.

Secretary Kelly's other son, Johnny, is getting ready for his fifth military deployment. A son-in-law, Jake, is a wounded warrior.

Trump also recognized former U.S. senator and GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole, 93, who suffered lifelong injuries during World War II. He attended the ceremony along with his wife, Elizabeth Dole, also a former U.S. senator.

"As we honor the brave warriors who gave their lives for ours, spending their last moments on this earth in defense of this country and of its people, words cannot measure the depth of their devotion, the purity of their love or the totality of their courage," Trump said.

"We only hope that every day we can prove worthy not only of their sacrifice and service, but of the sacrifice made by the families and loved ones they left behind. Special, special people," he said.

Before the remarks, Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, touching it for a long moment before stepping away. He then rested his hand on his heart as a bugler played "Taps."

Stepping to the microphone to deliver the address, Trump seemed to relish the warm welcome from the audience gathered in the sun-splashed amphitheater. Trump has been feeling particularly aggrieved in recent weeks by federal and congressional investigations into contacts between his associates and Russian government officials, including news reports that Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and top White House adviser, proposed establishing secret back-channel communications with Russia during the presidential transition.

The president was accompanied to Arlington cemetery by Vice President Mike Pence, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as a slew of advisers and Cabinet members, including veterans' secretary David Shulkin and housing secretary Ben Carson.

After the address, Trump visited a section of the cemetery for U.S. service members killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The White House said Trump visited the gravesite of Robert Kelly, who was laid to rest in Section 60.

Asked what meaning Memorial Day held for him, Secretary Kelly said: "Sad."

Accompanied by Pence, Trump walked briefly among the white marble headstones and greeted families, including Brittany Jacobs and her 6-year-old son, Christian, who was dressed like a Marine. Jacobs' father, Marine Sgt. Christopher Jacobs, died during a training accident in California in 2011.
Heading home from a Memorial Day weekend vacation? Leave late, officials say.

The Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) recommended that travelers leave early Monday or stay late. Leaving before 10 a.m. or after 10 p.m. is ideal.

Expect heavy westbound traffic on the Bay Bridge, MDTA said.

MONDAY's best Bay Bridge travel times: Before 10am & after 10pm. Plan ahead! Expect a busy PM for WB traffic. Leave early or stay late. pic.twitter.com/IdxTyvMJNg  MDTA (@TheMDTA) May 28, 2017

If you'll be driving in Virginia, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) has a new interactive map that shows when and where traffic was heaviest on Memorial Day weekend for the past three years. The map lets you pick your time and then zoom in on your route.

Officials hope the tool will help drivers dodge major traffic. Also, VDOT has suspended most road work from noon Friday to noon Tuesday to reduce congestion.

For a live map of backups and closures, see the NBC Washington traffic page.

VDOT has live updates on their website. MDTA updates are available by calling 1-877-BAYSPAN (229-7726)
A group of protesters gathered Sunday outside the offices of Richard Spencer, the white nationalist who is credited with coining the term "alt-right."

Protesters have convened outside Spencer's Virginia offices regularly in recent months, but the organizers said Sunday's gathering was larger than usual. The protest came a day after racist fliers with messages including "Stop the blacks" and "You're losing your country, white man" were found in Alexandria, Virginia.

Sunday's protesters held signs saying "White supremacy not welcome" and "Love not hate."

"Its particularly important that we lead the way for our kids," said one protester, who gave his name only as Allen. "I would like to believe that some of the explicit racism and implicit racism thats still around here will be a thing of the past in their generation. But if not, we need to teach them to stand up."

Alexandria residents woke up Saturday morning to find racist flyers on poles and car windows. The images on some of the fliers are the same as those on a white supremacist website that endorses "American fascism."

Mayor Allison Silberberg issued a statement, saying the city denounces "hate speech and hate crimes and discrimination in all forms."

Alexandria police are investigating.


It was after midnight when a gunman burst into the living room of a southern Mississippi home where young people were playing video games.

Caleb Edwards, 15, said the man  whom he knows as Corey Godbolt  demanded to know where his cousin's parents were. Jordan Blackwell, 18, said they were gone to another town.

At that, Godbolt "just started shooting," Caleb said.

As people scrambled to hide inside the Brookhaven home, Blackwell used his own body to shield his cousin Caleb from the gunfire.

With his mother standing by his side Monday, Caleb spoke calmly as he recounted to The Associated Press how he felt the force of the impact as Blackwell was shot Sunday.

"He loved me enough to take some bullets for me," Caleb said.

Caleb's 11-year-old brother, Austin Edwards, was also shot to death in that living room early Sunday. They were among the eight people killed in three houses in a rampage that started late Saturday after law enforcement officers were called about a domestic dispute. A deputy sheriff was among those killed. The other seven were all relatives or acquaintances of the accused shooter.

Investigators said Willie Corey Godbolt, 35, will be charged with one count of capital murder and seven counts of first degree murder. Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said the charges could change as the investigation continues.

Godbolt was hospitalized for a gunshot wound and was in good condition Monday; it wasn't clear who shot him. He could make an initial court appearance Tuesday.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation identified some of those killed as: Barbara Mitchell, 55; Brenda May, 53; Tocarra May, 35; Ferral Burage, 45; and Shelia Burage, 46; and deputy William Durr, 36. The parents of Austin Edwards and Jordan Blackwell identified their sons as the other victims.

Brookhaven is a south Mississippi city surrounded by pine trees and rolling green pastures. The outbreak of violence has shaken the county of 34,500 residents.

More than a dozen people stood in the driveway of Edwards' and Blackwell's grandparents Monday afternoon and joined hands for prayer.

"We need you, oh God, to be with this family in their grief," said Richard Thomas, pastor of New Home Church of Christ Holiness.

Jordan Blackwell played linebacker for the Brookhaven High football team. As he prepared for his senior year, two universities and a nearby community college had already expressed interest in him, said his mother, Tiffany Blackwell. She and her husband, Shon, described their son as cheerful and unselfish. She said Jordan dreamed of getting a Camaro for high school graduation.

Tears rolled down one cheek Monday as Tiffany Blackwell described coming home and finding her slain son.

"When I walked in the house and saw my child lying there, I just thought he was sleeping," she said. "I told him to wake up. I told him to get up, but he wouldn't move."

Caleb described his younger brother, Austin, as "a happy kid" who liked to play and cook.

Caleb said after his brother was shot, "I thought I was going to die."

Godbolt showed up at Vincent Mitchell's Bogue Chitto home before midnight Saturday to demand that his estranged wife give up their two children. She and the children had been staying with them for about three weeks, Mitchell told AP.

"He'd come to get his kids. The deputy was called," and asked him to leave, and it seemed like Godbolt would comply at first, Mitchell said.

"He acted like, motioned like, he was fixing to go. Then he reached in his back pocket and grabbed a gun," Mitchell said. "He just started shooting everything."

Mitchell said he escaped along with Godbolt's wife, but Mitchell's wife, her sister and one of the wife's daughters were killed. Authorities said Godbolt fled and killed four more people at two other homes.

At least seven hours elapsed between the first shootings and Godbolt's arrest near the final crime scene, in a subdivision of ranch houses.

The deputy, William Durr, had worked in Christian ministry before going into law enforcement, and liked doing puppet shows to deliver uplifting messages to children. Durr was married and had an 11-year-old son. His mother spoke briefly with the AP on Monday, saying that the family is still in distress.

"He was a good Christian man," Debbie Durr said at her rural home near Brookhaven. "He was a youth minister and a pastor before going into law enforcement."

Godbolt told The Clarion-Ledger that he hadn't planned to be captured alive.

"My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets," he said. "Suicide by cop was my intention."

Associated Press writers Kathleen Foody in Atlanta and Kevin McGill in Brookhaven contributed to this report.
The popularity of a nude beach in Vermont is helping to drive state plans to develop the area to add parking spaces, boardwalks and flush toilets.

Regulars who visit the southwest cove on Lake Willoughby in Westmore, just south of the Canadian border, fear the changes planned by the state will destroy the pristine nature of the beach and the area.

After an outcry, the state is scaling back its plans.

The Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation commissioner says the pressure is on the area to require parking, access for the disabled and restrooms. A spokesman says the area needs to be safer.

The area is also home to state park hiking trails and other popular beaches.
The search for a woman who went missing while canoeing in the Saco River in Fryeburg, Maine, is now a recovery mission, and one of the first responders who tried to save her is hospitalized in critical condition.

Jennifer Bousquet, 38, of South Berwick, went missing Saturday when she fell out of a canoe that capsized in the river. Wayne Demers, 62, of Somerworth, New Hampshire, and Brian Day, 54, of South Berwick, also fell out of the canoe, but made it to safety.

Officials said alcohol was a factor and Bousquet was not wearing a life jacket.

Two Fryeburg police officers attempted to perform a water rescue, but their police boat crashed near the shore, injuring Officer Dale Stout, 51, and Officer Nathan Desjardins, 20.

Stout was released from the hospital Monday, according to Fryeburg Police Chief Joshua Potvin. We wish him a full and speedy recovery, said Potvin.

Desjardins is still in extremely critical condition at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston. Nate and his family continue to be in our thoughts and prayers, said Chief Potvin.

Desjardins had just joined the police department three months ago, and this weekend was his first day in the field.

The Warden Service said water conditions this weekend, including cold temperatures, and a fast current, made the river dangerous.

The search and recovery mission is being conducted cautiously, according to Lt. Timothy Place.

Theres a lot of current, and a lot of debris in the river, said Place. There are some places we cannot search right now.

The events of the weekend have left some witnesses shaken. Paul Wall was paddling nearby, and heard the impact of the police boat crash and officers screams.

He said he paddled in the direction of the sound, and found Stout and Desjardins severely injured.

When you look at the two officers, you look at one and know hes got a chance, said Wall. When you look at the other, and you dont know, you have to make a decision to help the one [first]. That was the hardest part for me  was to decide who to save. Its terrible.




Ambassador Tran Thi Ha Phuong and Mr. Vasileios Konstantinidis (Photo: baoquocte.vn)

Mr. Vasileios Konstantinidis is the first Honorary Consul of Vietnam in Greece. From now on, Vietnamese legal entities and citizens in the consular area will have more advantages in doing business, living, studying, travelling and Greek citizens, international friends in the city of Thessaloniki will be better able to get all information related to politics, economics, investment, commerce, culture, science and technology, tourism of Vietnam from the Honorary Consul to contribute to promoting the friendship and cooperative relations between Vietnam and Greece.

On this occasion, Ambassador Tran Thi Ha Phuong paid a courtesy visit to Mr. Tzitzikostas Apostolos, Governor of Central Macedonia, and Mr. Boutaris Ioannis, Mayor of Thessaloni city, to exchange information and enhance cooperation opportunities.

Governor Tzitzikostas Apostolos and Mayor Boutaris Ioannis expressed their pleasure at the establishment of the first Honorary Consulate of Vietnam in Thessaloniki city, and expressed their desire for stronger economic and trade cooperation among localities of the two countries, as well as between Greece and Vietnam.

Ambassador Ha Phuong and Governor Tzitzikostas Apostolos agreed to hold a workshop on cooperation opportunities between Vietnam and Greece in September.

In September and October, President Tzitzikostas Apostolos and a delegation of Greek businessmen will visit Vietnam to seek economic cooperation, trade and investment opportunities./.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The government plans to provide the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) with powers to impose penalties for violations.

The proposal, which has been in the works for some time, would give more leeway for the regulator in taking enforcement actions against erring entities. Moving ahead, the Civil Aviation Ministry has already started work to amend the Aircraft Act, 1934.

A senior Ministry official said the idea is to have "more graded granular penal provisions" for the DGCA in dealing with violations. The proposal also comes at a time when the country's domestic aviation sector has been seeing healthy double-digit growth for over two years and entry of more new players are expected.

At present, the DGCA has the penal power to cancel the license of an airline in case of a violation which is "very harsh", the official said.

According to the official, the amendments concerned are being worked out and after getting the Cabinet approval, the same is likely to be taken up during the Monsoon Session of the Parliament. There are stringent provisions in place for the DGCA to deal with violations at various levels, including those related to airlines, pilots, crew members and other entities.

The watchdog can debar, suspend and even cancel the permission to fly for the carriers as well as individual pilots and engineers. However, it cannot impose any monetary penalty. In recent times, the Ministry has been working on ways to bolster the regulatory framework, including to deal with unruly passengers. There are more than ten domestic scheduled commercial airlines operating in the country.

Domestic air passenger grew little over 15 per cent in April as carriers flew 91.34 lakh passengers. In the same period a year ago, the airlines carried 79.32 lakh people.

NEW DELHI: The government plans to provide the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) with powers to impose penalties for violations. The proposal, which has been in the works for some time, would give more leeway for the regulator in taking enforcement actions against erring entities. Moving ahead, the Civil Aviation Ministry has already started work to amend the Aircraft Act, 1934. A senior Ministry official said the idea is to have "more graded granular penal provisions" for the DGCA in dealing with violations. The proposal also comes at a time when the country's domestic aviation sector has been seeing healthy double-digit growth for over two years and entry of more new players are expected. At present, the DGCA has the penal power to cancel the license of an airline in case of a violation which is "very harsh", the official said. According to the official, the amendments concerned are being worked out and after getting the Cabinet approval, the same is likely to be taken up during the Monsoon Session of the Parliament. There are stringent provisions in place for the DGCA to deal with violations at various levels, including those related to airlines, pilots, crew members and other entities. The watchdog can debar, suspend and even cancel the permission to fly for the carriers as well as individual pilots and engineers. However, it cannot impose any monetary penalty. In recent times, the Ministry has been working on ways to bolster the regulatory framework, including to deal with unruly passengers. There are more than ten domestic scheduled commercial airlines operating in the country. Domestic air passenger grew little over 15 per cent in April as carriers flew 91.34 lakh passengers. In the same period a year ago, the airlines carried 79.32 lakh people.
Pramod Thomas By

Express News Service

KOCHI: A storm may be brewing in tea prices with both domestic factors and global factors contributing to the change. Tea production has witnessed a slump in the first quarter of 2017 (calendar year) across all the major black tea producing countries. Kenya led the trend with 35.46 per cent drop in production compared with the same period in 2016 followed by Bangladesh at 11.78 per cent slump.

The tea production in North India was down by 19.3 per cent and South India produced 12 per cent lower in the first quarter compared to last year. Industry experts blame climate change and drought like situation in major producing areas for the visible shift. This will lead to an increase in tea price in the short to medium term.

The weather pattern has changed and it has affected production. However, there is no visible impact on price as it had to be improved owing to shortfall in availability, said R Sanjith, head (Commodities) of United Planters Association of Southern India (UPASI). But he feels it may be because of lower demand.

Accoring to the Tea Board, the production during January-March 2017 was 88.6 million kg , while it was 105.8 million kg during the same period in 2016. The drop in production is not reflected in prices, which may be because of black marketing. But we are hopeful that GST would bring in traceability, said Thomas Jacob, chairman, Association of Planters of Kerala.

KOCHI: A storm may be brewing in tea prices with both domestic factors and global factors contributing to the change. Tea production has witnessed a slump in the first quarter of 2017 (calendar year) across all the major black tea producing countries. Kenya led the trend with 35.46 per cent drop in production compared with the same period in 2016 followed by Bangladesh at 11.78 per cent slump. The tea production in North India was down by 19.3 per cent and South India produced 12 per cent lower in the first quarter compared to last year. Industry experts blame climate change and drought like situation in major producing areas for the visible shift. This will lead to an increase in tea price in the short to medium term. The weather pattern has changed and it has affected production. However, there is no visible impact on price as it had to be improved owing to shortfall in availability, said R Sanjith, head (Commodities) of United Planters Association of Southern India (UPASI). But he feels it may be because of lower demand. Accoring to the Tea Board, the production during January-March 2017 was 88.6 million kg , while it was 105.8 million kg during the same period in 2016. The drop in production is not reflected in prices, which may be because of black marketing. But we are hopeful that GST would bring in traceability, said Thomas Jacob, chairman, Association of Planters of Kerala.
Gokul M Nair By

Express News Service

Palliative care is not only for terminally-ill patients, but for anyone in need of severe pain management and also counselling. Not a lot of people are aware that such centres also offer emotional support to the patients family and loved ones.

CHENNAI: When 76-year-old Padman-abhan was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2015, his family was admittedly more in shock than he was. He took it stoically, and with an air of acceptance, but it was extremely stressful for the other family members, recalls Shobha, his daughter. The next few months comprised of a series of visits to the hospital for chemotherapy, which admittedly took a toll on their lives and more so on Padmanabhan. He grew weaker and more distressed over the course of treatment. When it was clear that the cancer had spread, his doctors suggested palliative care.

We had no idea what it was, and it took some time for the doctors to convince us, recalls Shobha. Availing the services of an NGO, Padmanabhan was able to ease the pain of treatment through regular physiotherapy sessions that soothed his aged body. The volunteers also counselled us on how best to take the diagnosis, how to attend to him during his last days, and how to prepare ourselves for the inevitable. It helped the family cope with his death in late 2015 as best as they could.

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines palliative care as a multi-disciplinary approach that improves the quality of life of patients with life-threatening illnesses, and their families by relieving suffering and pain  physical, psychosocial and spiritual. The main focus of care is the patient and also his/her significant other; so it is not merely the patient who is part of the process, adds Deepa Muthaiya, chairman, DEAN Foundation, a city-based pain and palliative care centre, one of the oldest in the city. Through palliative care, we ensure basic nursing care, good control of symptoms along with giving social and emotional support is provided.

Palliative care has for long been seen as the last resort for terminally-ill cancer patients, a misconception that unfortunately skews public perception, according to Dr Mallika Tiruvadanan, consultant doctor, Lakshmi Pain and Palliative Care Centre. The word palliate means to relieve suffering and pain, both emotional and physical  and suffering is common whether the disease is terminal or not, she adds. Even if the cancer is curable, doctors can be heard telling the patient that they are not ready for palliative care  a decision that does little to alleviate the turmoil the patient and his family may be undergoing.

She points out that the focus of palliative care is on treating the side-effects of treatment. For example, the most common effects of chemotherapy include diarrhoea, vomiting and nausea, which are not related to the disease. However, this involves skilled counselling and training thats not found in our basic medical curriculum, and it goes beyond just the bedside manner of our doctors. The focus should be on treating the patient not just the disease, she adds.

The Economist Intelligence Units review (2015) of global palliative care through its Quality of Care Index that ranked 80 countries on the quality of the care given at the end of life. India ranked a low 67, trailing even behind most so-called third world African countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya. Even though globally palliative care has become an integral part of the medical curriculum, it is still not a part of the MBBS curriculum in India, where progressive growth in palliative care is confined to the southern states and a few in the North East.

The palliative care unit of the seminal Adyar Cancer Institute is fairly new  having been created since the government took a more proactive step towards palliative care, avers Dr Kalpana Balakrishnan, HoD, pain and palliative care unit at the institute.

For training professionals in this field, the State government asked the DEAN Foundation in 2009 to enable the setting up, training and support of palliative care centres in 17 government hospitals across the State. This would bring palliative care to several rural areas as well, and since then, several people have accessed it as well.

However, when these trained professionals are posted out, it becomes a burden to train a newbie once again. And this is similar for new doctors, who, ignorant of referral practices for terminally ill patients, do not follow procedure for referrals, rues Muthaiya. Most palliative care organisations today offer charitable donations and try to support the economically deprived through free treatment as much as possible.

The WHOs guidelines to treat chronic pain through palliative care is called the WHO Step Ladder pattern. It gauges the level of a patients pain, and then prescribes treatment accordingly

 Dr Mallika Tiruvadanan, consultant doctor, Lakshmi Pain and Palliative Care Centre

GRIM FIGURES

According to Pallium India, only 11 of the 29 Indian states have palliative care centres set up as of 2015, which means less than 1% of India 1.2 billion people have access to palliative care. One of the biggest barriers is also the non-availability of opioids such as morphine, which are not stocked in pharmacies due to stringent rules under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. In the first 13 years since the NDPS Act, morphine consumption in India fell by 92% while globally consumption increased by 437%

Patients can assess and let doctors know about their symptoms through the Edmonton Symptoms Assessment Scale (ESAS). It has 8 visual-analog scales for levels of pain, activity, nausea, depression,

anxiety, drowsiness, appetite and sensation of well-being. It must be completed

by the patient mostly, or with assistance from relatives.

Palliative care is not only for terminally-ill patients, but for anyone in need of severe pain management and also counselling. Not a lot of people are aware that such centres also offer emotional support to the patients family and loved ones. CHENNAI: When 76-year-old Padman-abhan was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2015, his family was admittedly more in shock than he was. He took it stoically, and with an air of acceptance, but it was extremely stressful for the other family members, recalls Shobha, his daughter. The next few months comprised of a series of visits to the hospital for chemotherapy, which admittedly took a toll on their lives and more so on Padmanabhan. He grew weaker and more distressed over the course of treatment. When it was clear that the cancer had spread, his doctors suggested palliative care. We had no idea what it was, and it took some time for the doctors to convince us, recalls Shobha. Availing the services of an NGO, Padmanabhan was able to ease the pain of treatment through regular physiotherapy sessions that soothed his aged body. The volunteers also counselled us on how best to take the diagnosis, how to attend to him during his last days, and how to prepare ourselves for the inevitable. It helped the family cope with his death in late 2015 as best as they could. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines palliative care as a multi-disciplinary approach that improves the quality of life of patients with life-threatening illnesses, and their families by relieving suffering and pain  physical, psychosocial and spiritual. The main focus of care is the patient and also his/her significant other; so it is not merely the patient who is part of the process, adds Deepa Muthaiya, chairman, DEAN Foundation, a city-based pain and palliative care centre, one of the oldest in the city. Through palliative care, we ensure basic nursing care, good control of symptoms along with giving social and emotional support is provided. Palliative care has for long been seen as the last resort for terminally-ill cancer patients, a misconception that unfortunately skews public perception, according to Dr Mallika Tiruvadanan, consultant doctor, Lakshmi Pain and Palliative Care Centre. The word palliate means to relieve suffering and pain, both emotional and physical  and suffering is common whether the disease is terminal or not, she adds. Even if the cancer is curable, doctors can be heard telling the patient that they are not ready for palliative care  a decision that does little to alleviate the turmoil the patient and his family may be undergoing. She points out that the focus of palliative care is on treating the side-effects of treatment. For example, the most common effects of chemotherapy include diarrhoea, vomiting and nausea, which are not related to the disease. However, this involves skilled counselling and training thats not found in our basic medical curriculum, and it goes beyond just the bedside manner of our doctors. The focus should be on treating the patient not just the disease, she adds. The Economist Intelligence Units review (2015) of global palliative care through its Quality of Care Index that ranked 80 countries on the quality of the care given at the end of life. India ranked a low 67, trailing even behind most so-called third world African countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya. Even though globally palliative care has become an integral part of the medical curriculum, it is still not a part of the MBBS curriculum in India, where progressive growth in palliative care is confined to the southern states and a few in the North East. The palliative care unit of the seminal Adyar Cancer Institute is fairly new  having been created since the government took a more proactive step towards palliative care, avers Dr Kalpana Balakrishnan, HoD, pain and palliative care unit at the institute. For training professionals in this field, the State government asked the DEAN Foundation in 2009 to enable the setting up, training and support of palliative care centres in 17 government hospitals across the State. This would bring palliative care to several rural areas as well, and since then, several people have accessed it as well. However, when these trained professionals are posted out, it becomes a burden to train a newbie once again. And this is similar for new doctors, who, ignorant of referral practices for terminally ill patients, do not follow procedure for referrals, rues Muthaiya. Most palliative care organisations today offer charitable donations and try to support the economically deprived through free treatment as much as possible. The WHOs guidelines to treat chronic pain through palliative care is called the WHO Step Ladder pattern. It gauges the level of a patients pain, and then prescribes treatment accordingly  Dr Mallika Tiruvadanan, consultant doctor, Lakshmi Pain and Palliative Care Centre GRIM FIGURES According to Pallium India, only 11 of the 29 Indian states have palliative care centres set up as of 2015, which means less than 1% of India 1.2 billion people have access to palliative care. One of the biggest barriers is also the non-availability of opioids such as morphine, which are not stocked in pharmacies due to stringent rules under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. In the first 13 years since the NDPS Act, morphine consumption in India fell by 92% while globally consumption increased by 437% Patients can assess and let doctors know about their symptoms through the Edmonton Symptoms Assessment Scale (ESAS). It has 8 visual-analog scales for levels of pain, activity, nausea, depression, anxiety, drowsiness, appetite and sensation of well-being. It must be completed by the patient mostly, or with assistance from relatives.
M Sathish By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The three persons who were found charred to death in a car on Saturday near Kalpakkam have been identified as wife of an Army officer and her parents. Police sources said it was Divya Shrees husband Sarth Chandran, who is said to be currently serving at Pathankot, who confirmed the identities from the gold jewels and other items recovered from the bodies.

The Hyundai Santro car in which the three were believed to be travelling was found high on flames in a deserted residential layout near Manavai close to the ECR around 9 pm. The bodies were charred beyond recognition and the police managed to trace the vehicle owners address to Chrompet using the registration number.

The neighbours told us they left home in the car at around 6pm from their house at Kamala Street, Nehru Nagar in Chrompet, said a police officer. The investigators are yet to ascertain how exactly the car caught fire and how the three persons got trapped inside.

Divya Shree, an ME graduate, got married to Sarth Chandran in December and had come to Chennai just four days ago, to stay with her parents.

CHENNAI: The three persons who were found charred to death in a car on Saturday near Kalpakkam have been identified as wife of an Army officer and her parents. Police sources said it was Divya Shrees husband Sarth Chandran, who is said to be currently serving at Pathankot, who confirmed the identities from the gold jewels and other items recovered from the bodies. The Hyundai Santro car in which the three were believed to be travelling was found high on flames in a deserted residential layout near Manavai close to the ECR around 9 pm. The bodies were charred beyond recognition and the police managed to trace the vehicle owners address to Chrompet using the registration number. The neighbours told us they left home in the car at around 6pm from their house at Kamala Street, Nehru Nagar in Chrompet, said a police officer. The investigators are yet to ascertain how exactly the car caught fire and how the three persons got trapped inside. Divya Shree, an ME graduate, got married to Sarth Chandran in December and had come to Chennai just four days ago, to stay with her parents.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD:Patients suffering from high blood pressure and high sugar levels have been cautioned to get their stock of medicines refilled in view of the proposed bandh of chemists and druggists stores on May 30.

Telangana Chemists and Druggists Association said that they would observe a one-day bandh against the Central governments move to have an e-portal to regulate the sale of medicines.There are around 25,300 chemists stores in Telangana. President of the Association, S Venkatapathi said that all the stores will down their shutters on Tuesday. However, pharmacy stores attached to hospitals, some of the chain medical stores would be open which will be of relief to people who need medicines on emergency basis.

One of the argument floated by the Chemists and Druggists association revolves around unregistered practitioners. As per the governments move, details of registered medical practitioner should be fed into the e-portal while dispensing drugs to a customer. In villages, practitioners of Ayurvedha, Unani and Siddha too prescribe allopathic drugs. Now, when a customer brings a prescription, how can details of the unregistered medical practitioners be fed into the e-portal?, Venkatapathi questioned.

He also said that if dispensing of drugs is made online, there is every chance that drug addictis might use fake prescription to buy medicines.

Hotel bandh likely to get mixed response

Hyderabad: The proposed bandh by Telangana State Hotels Association (TSHA) on May 30 is looking to get a lukewarm response. In opposition to the proposed General Sales Tax by the central government, TSHA has called for a one-day bandh of hotels across the twin cities. While only few hotel owners were aware of this, others did not want toclose. My hotel is located in a public space where there are five movie screens around. How can I incur a whole day losses especially during this festive season, says Md Idris, owner of Pride of Hyderabad.

HYDERABAD:Patients suffering from high blood pressure and high sugar levels have been cautioned to get their stock of medicines refilled in view of the proposed bandh of chemists and druggists stores on May 30. Telangana Chemists and Druggists Association said that they would observe a one-day bandh against the Central governments move to have an e-portal to regulate the sale of medicines.There are around 25,300 chemists stores in Telangana. President of the Association, S Venkatapathi said that all the stores will down their shutters on Tuesday. However, pharmacy stores attached to hospitals, some of the chain medical stores would be open which will be of relief to people who need medicines on emergency basis. One of the argument floated by the Chemists and Druggists association revolves around unregistered practitioners. As per the governments move, details of registered medical practitioner should be fed into the e-portal while dispensing drugs to a customer. In villages, practitioners of Ayurvedha, Unani and Siddha too prescribe allopathic drugs. Now, when a customer brings a prescription, how can details of the unregistered medical practitioners be fed into the e-portal?, Venkatapathi questioned. He also said that if dispensing of drugs is made online, there is every chance that drug addictis might use fake prescription to buy medicines. Hotel bandh likely to get mixed response Hyderabad: The proposed bandh by Telangana State Hotels Association (TSHA) on May 30 is looking to get a lukewarm response. In opposition to the proposed General Sales Tax by the central government, TSHA has called for a one-day bandh of hotels across the twin cities. While only few hotel owners were aware of this, others did not want toclose. My hotel is located in a public space where there are five movie screens around. How can I incur a whole day losses especially during this festive season, says Md Idris, owner of Pride of Hyderabad.
Lviv authorities plan to begin building an incineration plant at the end of this year, Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovy has said.

"We plan by the end of the year to finalize the whole project for building an incineration plant and start the first stage of construction work," Sadovy said.

According to him, the proposal of France's Egis to build such an enterprise in the territory of combined heat and power plant No. 2 is pretty wise.

"This is our city territory. It's a pretty wise decision that needs to be approved by the city council," the Lviv mayor said.

Sadovy added the construction of the plant is a complicated process, it is impossible to do this in one month.

"We have ambitions to build a plant for deep waste processing. It will be almost the first such plant in Ukraine," Sadovy stressed.
Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Anger was palpable in the Borabanda cattle market in Hyderabad on Saturday, the day after the media woke up to the cow-loving central governments fresh restrictions on sale of cattle in markets across the country.

Borabanda is a suburb to the west of Hyderabad. The weekly cattle market, called a santha, predates the areas urbanization and today lies cheek by jowl beside a bustling commercial and residential locality called Erragada.

Some 400 heads of cattle are sold at the santha each week. More than 60 per cent of them are destined to the slaughterhouse. Hundreds of people make a livelihood from the market -- traders, drivers, middlemen, farmers. It is also frequented by buffalo buyers and sellers, mostly meat exporters, every Sunday.

A large part of this activity will come to a standstill if the Centres rules are enforced.

Telangana has 19 such markets run by the states Agriculture Marketing Department in addition to the local cattle markets run by the states 8,750 gram panchayats.

At the Kaverammapeta weekly cattle market in Jadcherla, farmers seemed flummoxed by the new rules.

Our lives would be ruined, said Jayant Reddy, a farmer from Manapuram village. I brought two cows here to sell. I can't afford to keep them. I would get a good price if I sold them to butchers. Farmers would not give me as much.

The communities most likely to be affected by the ban -- butchers and small farmers -- are unsurprisingly the first to react to the new rules. For the latter, crippled by debt and drought, this is a double blow after the crash in red chilli prices this month.

Farmer leaders said this was a cruel blow. "More than 80 per cent of farmers in Telangana are small farmers. They cannot afford to keep cattle if they are not raising a crop. And its difficult to find another farmer wholl buy a bullock now. Farmers sell their cattle for slaughter if they are in financial difficulty or if they need money for a family function. What are they to do now, asked B Chandra Reddy, vice-president of the Telangana State Rytu Sangham.

The other group thats hit the hardest are people of the Qureish community from which many of the cattle traders and butchers hail.

More than 90 per cent of cattle traders are Muslims.If the new rule is enforced, their lives will be destroyed," said Faheem Qureshi, president of the All India Jamiatul Quresh Action Committee, which has said it will challenge the rules in court.

"It is not just us but lakhs of others are bound to be affected, everyone who is dependent on cattle. Each part of an animal -- blood, tail hair, horns, bones and skin  is used by a wide range of industries," Qureshi added.

A coy piece of work

The notification is rather a coy piece of work. It does not specifically ban sale for slaughter. It forbids sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter at animal markets. However, as most sales at cattle markets are for slaughter, it amounts to a de facto ban.

"Farmers bring cattle to santhas because they can get a better price, said a trader at the Borabanda santha in Hyderabad. Here meat exporters compete with farmers to buy. The seller benefits.

Buffalo meat exporters too have a sad face to pull. "Buying cattle at santhas makes it easier for us as there is a vet available who can certify an animal (mandatory as per the law).

Buying from farmers individually is impossible. Where would you get a vet in a village? said an official of Al-Kabeer, one of the largest exporters of buffalo meat in the country.

Expert view: How Brazil does it



Dr Sagari Ramdas, veterinary scientist and member of the Food Sovereignty Alliance, says slaughter plays an important role in maintaining the livestock population. Citing the example of Brazil, one of the largest beef exporters, she says the country has a higher population of the Ongole bull than Andhra Pradesh, where the prized breed originates from. One reason for this, she says, is due to the cycle of breeding, selling and buying and slaughtering which keeps the breed robust.

Further, she warns of a consequence unforeseen by the cow lovers in Delhi. If the right of a farmer to sell his cattle to whomever he wants is snatched, he will just stop rearing cattle.

This will in turn result in a reduction of the livestock population, especially of native breeds.

"This has been observed in Haryana and Maharashtra, two states which have implemented a ban on beef. Not just this, the population of stray cattle will increase as farmers will have no option but to let loose their unproductive cattle. In Maharashtra there has been a three-fold increase in stray cattle since beef ban," she adds.

Cattle market dynamics



Keeping cattle can be expensive, especially in the off-season. A farmer would have to spend about Rs 150 per day on the roughly 20 kg of fodder a good cow would consume, apart from providing a minimum of 10 litres of water a day.

On the other hand, a farmer would get between Rs 12,000 and Rs 30,000 if he sold the animal for slaughter, depending on its weight.

If an animal is healthy and useful for agriculture or dairy, then selling it for the same purpose would fetch as much as Rs 1lakh for a pair depending on the breed, size, strength, utility, colour and other aspects.

However, if the animal is not productive for either purpose, it will command no demand in the market except for slaughter.

What can go wrong if farmers are barred from selling for slaughter?

1. Low prices for their cattle

2. Costly cattle to keep at times of drought

3. Abandonment of unproductive cattle

4. Increase in stray cattle

5. Setback to cattle breeding

6. Loss of breed vigour in native breeds

7. Higher cost of acquisition of cattle for slaughter

HYDERABAD: Anger was palpable in the Borabanda cattle market in Hyderabad on Saturday, the day after the media woke up to the cow-loving central governments fresh restrictions on sale of cattle in markets across the country. Borabanda is a suburb to the west of Hyderabad. The weekly cattle market, called a santha, predates the areas urbanization and today lies cheek by jowl beside a bustling commercial and residential locality called Erragada. Some 400 heads of cattle are sold at the santha each week. More than 60 per cent of them are destined to the slaughterhouse. Hundreds of people make a livelihood from the market -- traders, drivers, middlemen, farmers. It is also frequented by buffalo buyers and sellers, mostly meat exporters, every Sunday. A large part of this activity will come to a standstill if the Centres rules are enforced. Telangana has 19 such markets run by the states Agriculture Marketing Department in addition to the local cattle markets run by the states 8,750 gram panchayats. At the Kaverammapeta weekly cattle market in Jadcherla, farmers seemed flummoxed by the new rules. Our lives would be ruined, said Jayant Reddy, a farmer from Manapuram village. I brought two cows here to sell. I can't afford to keep them. I would get a good price if I sold them to butchers. Farmers would not give me as much. The communities most likely to be affected by the ban -- butchers and small farmers -- are unsurprisingly the first to react to the new rules. For the latter, crippled by debt and drought, this is a double blow after the crash in red chilli prices this month. Farmer leaders said this was a cruel blow. "More than 80 per cent of farmers in Telangana are small farmers. They cannot afford to keep cattle if they are not raising a crop. And its difficult to find another farmer wholl buy a bullock now. Farmers sell their cattle for slaughter if they are in financial difficulty or if they need money for a family function. What are they to do now, asked B Chandra Reddy, vice-president of the Telangana State Rytu Sangham. The other group thats hit the hardest are people of the Qureish community from which many of the cattle traders and butchers hail. More than 90 per cent of cattle traders are Muslims.If the new rule is enforced, their lives will be destroyed," said Faheem Qureshi, president of the All India Jamiatul Quresh Action Committee, which has said it will challenge the rules in court. "It is not just us but lakhs of others are bound to be affected, everyone who is dependent on cattle. Each part of an animal -- blood, tail hair, horns, bones and skin  is used by a wide range of industries," Qureshi added. A coy piece of work The notification is rather a coy piece of work. It does not specifically ban sale for slaughter. It forbids sale and purchase of cattle for slaughter at animal markets. However, as most sales at cattle markets are for slaughter, it amounts to a de facto ban. "Farmers bring cattle to santhas because they can get a better price, said a trader at the Borabanda santha in Hyderabad. Here meat exporters compete with farmers to buy. The seller benefits. Buffalo meat exporters too have a sad face to pull. "Buying cattle at santhas makes it easier for us as there is a vet available who can certify an animal (mandatory as per the law). Buying from farmers individually is impossible. Where would you get a vet in a village? said an official of Al-Kabeer, one of the largest exporters of buffalo meat in the country. Expert view: How Brazil does it Dr Sagari Ramdas, veterinary scientist and member of the Food Sovereignty Alliance, says slaughter plays an important role in maintaining the livestock population. Citing the example of Brazil, one of the largest beef exporters, she says the country has a higher population of the Ongole bull than Andhra Pradesh, where the prized breed originates from. One reason for this, she says, is due to the cycle of breeding, selling and buying and slaughtering which keeps the breed robust. Further, she warns of a consequence unforeseen by the cow lovers in Delhi. If the right of a farmer to sell his cattle to whomever he wants is snatched, he will just stop rearing cattle. This will in turn result in a reduction of the livestock population, especially of native breeds. "This has been observed in Haryana and Maharashtra, two states which have implemented a ban on beef. Not just this, the population of stray cattle will increase as farmers will have no option but to let loose their unproductive cattle. In Maharashtra there has been a three-fold increase in stray cattle since beef ban," she adds. Cattle market dynamics Keeping cattle can be expensive, especially in the off-season. A farmer would have to spend about Rs 150 per day on the roughly 20 kg of fodder a good cow would consume, apart from providing a minimum of 10 litres of water a day. On the other hand, a farmer would get between Rs 12,000 and Rs 30,000 if he sold the animal for slaughter, depending on its weight. If an animal is healthy and useful for agriculture or dairy, then selling it for the same purpose would fetch as much as Rs 1lakh for a pair depending on the breed, size, strength, utility, colour and other aspects. However, if the animal is not productive for either purpose, it will command no demand in the market except for slaughter. What can go wrong if farmers are barred from selling for slaughter? 1. Low prices for their cattle 2. Costly cattle to keep at times of drought 3. Abandonment of unproductive cattle 4. Increase in stray cattle 5. Setback to cattle breeding 6. Loss of breed vigour in native breeds 7. Higher cost of acquisition of cattle for slaughter
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Bollywood actor Rajkummar Rao is apparently lending a helping hand to those who did not perform well in their CBSE Higher Secondary School exams.



The 32-year-old-actor took to Twitter and shared a 59-second long video in which he told Class 12 students not to be upset over their results.



In the video, he shared, I know today many results for Class 12 CBSE board exams have come and in case you haven't performed well or failed... don't worry. There is nothing wrong about it. It keeps happening. It is a beautiful life...A lot needs to be accomplished.

For all you wonderful students out there. pic.twitter.com/zqTDuR3T5S  Rajkummar Rao (@RajkummarRao) May 28, 2017

The Trapped star also noted that he has several friends, who didn't do well in their Class 10 and 12 board exams, yet they are successful in their career.



Adding, So, why not you people? Don't worry. Talk to your friends, parents, talk to me...You can message me on any social networking platform. I am there to help and talk to you. But all I can tell you is that there is nothing wrong in this. Not this year, then next year. There are so many avenues and opportunities. I am there, your parents are there and your friends are there with you. You are not alone. Be happy.



Overall pass percentage is 82 percent, while it was 83 percent last year. Around 11 lakh students have appeared for the CBSE Class 12 exam.

NEW DELHI: Bollywood actor Rajkummar Rao is apparently lending a helping hand to those who did not perform well in their CBSE Higher Secondary School exams. The 32-year-old-actor took to Twitter and shared a 59-second long video in which he told Class 12 students not to be upset over their results. In the video, he shared, I know today many results for Class 12 CBSE board exams have come and in case you haven't performed well or failed... don't worry. There is nothing wrong about it. It keeps happening. It is a beautiful life...A lot needs to be accomplished. For all you wonderful students out there. pic.twitter.com/zqTDuR3T5S  Rajkummar Rao (@RajkummarRao) May 28, 2017 The Trapped star also noted that he has several friends, who didn't do well in their Class 10 and 12 board exams, yet they are successful in their career. Adding, So, why not you people? Don't worry. Talk to your friends, parents, talk to me...You can message me on any social networking platform. I am there to help and talk to you. But all I can tell you is that there is nothing wrong in this. Not this year, then next year. There are so many avenues and opportunities. I am there, your parents are there and your friends are there with you. You are not alone. Be happy. Overall pass percentage is 82 percent, while it was 83 percent last year. Around 11 lakh students have appeared for the CBSE Class 12 exam.
By BNS

Ranveer Singh hurt himself on the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansalis Padmavati. The actorss spokesperson issued a statement regarding this, While shooting the climax of the film, Ranveer injured himself on the head. The injury needed immediate medical attention but the actor didnt let this interfere with the shoot.

Ranveer hurt himself on the head while shooting for the film during a particular take but he was so engrossed in the performance that he did not realise it till cut was called its only after he started bleeding profusely from the head after cut was called did everyone realise that he was hurt badly. Ranveer received initial first aid on the set and was rushed immediately to a nearby hospital for treatment. He completed the basic treatment and returned to the films set to complete his portions of the shoot. Rather than let his injury slows him down or impact the shoot, Ranveer completed the days work. He required stitches on the head.

Now the actor has decided to take a break from the shoot. A source says, Ranveer has been advised to take some rest and that is why he has taken a break. He will be flying to London and will return around June 8 and is likely to join the crew immediately. He has already informed Bhansali and he has already agreed to give him leave as the shooting is at its last leg. Till then crew will try and finish shooting with rest of the actors.

Ranveer Singh hurt himself on the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansalis Padmavati. The actorss spokesperson issued a statement regarding this, While shooting the climax of the film, Ranveer injured himself on the head. The injury needed immediate medical attention but the actor didnt let this interfere with the shoot. Ranveer hurt himself on the head while shooting for the film during a particular take but he was so engrossed in the performance that he did not realise it till cut was called its only after he started bleeding profusely from the head after cut was called did everyone realise that he was hurt badly. Ranveer received initial first aid on the set and was rushed immediately to a nearby hospital for treatment. He completed the basic treatment and returned to the films set to complete his portions of the shoot. Rather than let his injury slows him down or impact the shoot, Ranveer completed the days work. He required stitches on the head. Now the actor has decided to take a break from the shoot. A source says, Ranveer has been advised to take some rest and that is why he has taken a break. He will be flying to London and will return around June 8 and is likely to join the crew immediately. He has already informed Bhansali and he has already agreed to give him leave as the shooting is at its last leg. Till then crew will try and finish shooting with rest of the actors.
Namita Bajpai By

Express News Service

LUCKNOW: In all probability, senior BJP leaders LK Advani, MM Joshi, Union minister Uma Bharti, and three other saffron leaders--MP Vinay Katiyar, Sadhvi Ritambhara, and Vishnu Hari Dalmia will appear in special CBI court for framing of charges in Babri mosque demolition case on Tuesday.

The court had earlier summoned all the six accused to appear before it on May 26 for framing of charges in compliance of the Supreme Courts April 19, 2017 order failing which May 30 was fixed as the next date for appearance by the court. Special CBI Judge SK Yadav had cautioned the accused persons that no further adjournment or exemption from personal appearance would be granted on next date. On last Friday, all the accused and submitted an application for exemption from appearance on the pretext of personal reasons.

The court, which is hearing two separate cases, has also fixed May 30 for framing of charges against the other six accused including Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, Ram Vilas Vedanti, Baikunth Lal Sharma alias Prem Ji, Champat Rai Bansal, Mahant Dharma Das and Satish Pradhan.

After the demolition of the disputed structure in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992, two First Information Reports were lodged. While Crime No. 197 dealt with demolition of the mosque by kar sevaks in which Vedanti, Nritya Gopal Das and four others are accused, crime No. 198 named Advani, Joshi and 20 others for inciting the mob through their speeches and contriving the demolition of Babri mosque.

LUCKNOW: In all probability, senior BJP leaders LK Advani, MM Joshi, Union minister Uma Bharti, and three other saffron leaders--MP Vinay Katiyar, Sadhvi Ritambhara, and Vishnu Hari Dalmia will appear in special CBI court for framing of charges in Babri mosque demolition case on Tuesday. The court had earlier summoned all the six accused to appear before it on May 26 for framing of charges in compliance of the Supreme Courts April 19, 2017 order failing which May 30 was fixed as the next date for appearance by the court. Special CBI Judge SK Yadav had cautioned the accused persons that no further adjournment or exemption from personal appearance would be granted on next date. On last Friday, all the accused and submitted an application for exemption from appearance on the pretext of personal reasons. The court, which is hearing two separate cases, has also fixed May 30 for framing of charges against the other six accused including Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, Ram Vilas Vedanti, Baikunth Lal Sharma alias Prem Ji, Champat Rai Bansal, Mahant Dharma Das and Satish Pradhan. After the demolition of the disputed structure in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992, two First Information Reports were lodged. While Crime No. 197 dealt with demolition of the mosque by kar sevaks in which Vedanti, Nritya Gopal Das and four others are accused, crime No. 198 named Advani, Joshi and 20 others for inciting the mob through their speeches and contriving the demolition of Babri mosque.
Anand ST Das By

Express News Service

PATNA: A police officer in Bihar was on Monday placed under suspension and a judicial probe was ordered into brutal police action during a wedding ceremony in which, according to the polices erroneous claims, the bridegroom was abducted and forced into marriage.

A team of policemen from Gaighat police station in Muzaffarpur district had unleashed violence at the wedding of Julie Kumari and Abhinay Kumar and brutally beaten up Julie and her family members on Friday.

A badly injured Julie and three other family members were also arrested on charge of abducting Abhinay for the marriage.

The police action at the wedding mandap (altar) had caused widespread condemnation and even led to a brief clash between villagers and the policemen.

The court of Muzaffarpur sub-judge-16, which Julies family approached with a complaint about the unprecedented police brutality, took up the matter and judge Subhash Kumar Rai ordered a judicial inquiry into it, said Julies lawyer Sangita Shah, a former member of the Bihar State Women's Commission. The police action at a wedding was reprehensible and based on false claims, she added.

The courts order came after Abhinay, who had fled the wedding altar during the police brutality fearing for his life, presented himself at the court along with his family and said he was not abducted.

It was a wedding being solemnised with mutual consent of our families. The police action, which happened during the final stage of the rituals, was unwarranted, said Abhinay, who also visited Julie at a hospital where she is being treated for injuries she sustained

after thrashing by the policemen.

Muzaffarpur SSP Vivek Kumar placed Rajesh Chaudhury, the SHO of Gaighat police station, under suspension and shifted the entire staff of the police station to the police lines on Monday.

The police action was prompted by a complaint received from the bridegrooms family claiming he was abducted and was being forced into marriage, said the SSP.

We are already married and we will live together as husband and wife, said Julie, who alleged that the police beat herself and her sister Shobha, also admitted at the hospital, mercilessly and on their private parts.

How did they fail to see that I was in full bridal attire and in the middle of my wedding? They beat us up like we were hardened criminals, she added.

PATNA: A police officer in Bihar was on Monday placed under suspension and a judicial probe was ordered into brutal police action during a wedding ceremony in which, according to the polices erroneous claims, the bridegroom was abducted and forced into marriage. A team of policemen from Gaighat police station in Muzaffarpur district had unleashed violence at the wedding of Julie Kumari and Abhinay Kumar and brutally beaten up Julie and her family members on Friday. A badly injured Julie and three other family members were also arrested on charge of abducting Abhinay for the marriage. The police action at the wedding mandap (altar) had caused widespread condemnation and even led to a brief clash between villagers and the policemen. The court of Muzaffarpur sub-judge-16, which Julies family approached with a complaint about the unprecedented police brutality, took up the matter and judge Subhash Kumar Rai ordered a judicial inquiry into it, said Julies lawyer Sangita Shah, a former member of the Bihar State Women's Commission. The police action at a wedding was reprehensible and based on false claims, she added. The courts order came after Abhinay, who had fled the wedding altar during the police brutality fearing for his life, presented himself at the court along with his family and said he was not abducted. It was a wedding being solemnised with mutual consent of our families. The police action, which happened during the final stage of the rituals, was unwarranted, said Abhinay, who also visited Julie at a hospital where she is being treated for injuries she sustained after thrashing by the policemen. Muzaffarpur SSP Vivek Kumar placed Rajesh Chaudhury, the SHO of Gaighat police station, under suspension and shifted the entire staff of the police station to the police lines on Monday. The police action was prompted by a complaint received from the bridegrooms family claiming he was abducted and was being forced into marriage, said the SSP. We are already married and we will live together as husband and wife, said Julie, who alleged that the police beat herself and her sister Shobha, also admitted at the hospital, mercilessly and on their private parts. How did they fail to see that I was in full bridal attire and in the middle of my wedding? They beat us up like we were hardened criminals, she added.
Aishik Chanda By

Express News Service

KOLKATA: After Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee slammed the Centres decision to ban cattle sale for slaughter in livestock markets as unconstitutional and charged that it infringed on the concurrent list manned by the provinces.

Speaking at a presser at State secretariat Nabanna here on Monday, the West Bengal chief minister vowed to fight against the decision legally and questioned the timing of the decision at the onset of Ramzan.

This is a clear infringement into a state subject of the concurrent list. Who is Centre to decide what we will eat or wear? We will not abide by the Centres new decision. Bengal is not compelled to follow the new decision and will not follow, she said.

Stating that the decision was another attack into the federal structure, Mamata added: Governments may come and go but democracy will stay. We need to protect democracy and secularism.

Invoking Article 246 of the constitution, Mamata said that it is clearly mentioned that state Legislature has powers to make laws with respect to matter enumerated in concurrent list of seventh schedule. Why was the new law brought just before Ramzan on May 23?, she questioned.

The TMC supremo further added that she is trying to bring all secular parties together on the issue who are against the Centres decision on banning cattle sale for slaughter at livestock markets.

Mamatas statement comes after Pinarayi Vijayan said that Malayalees dont need to seek permission from New Delhi or Nagpur (the RSS headquarters) to eat anything. The State witnessed massive beef festivals on Sunday against the Centres move. A beef festival was also held in IIT Madras on Monday against the Centres decision.

Cow slaughter is not punishable only in a few Indian states that include West Bengal, Kerala and north-eastern states. Mamata had earlier been vocal in supporting the right to eat beef or anything an individual may want as a result of which a priest in Jagannath temple in Puri wanted to prevent her entry into the temple.

KOLKATA: After Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee slammed the Centres decision to ban cattle sale for slaughter in livestock markets as unconstitutional and charged that it infringed on the concurrent list manned by the provinces. Speaking at a presser at State secretariat Nabanna here on Monday, the West Bengal chief minister vowed to fight against the decision legally and questioned the timing of the decision at the onset of Ramzan. This is a clear infringement into a state subject of the concurrent list. Who is Centre to decide what we will eat or wear? We will not abide by the Centres new decision. Bengal is not compelled to follow the new decision and will not follow, she said. Stating that the decision was another attack into the federal structure, Mamata added: Governments may come and go but democracy will stay. We need to protect democracy and secularism. Invoking Article 246 of the constitution, Mamata said that it is clearly mentioned that state Legislature has powers to make laws with respect to matter enumerated in concurrent list of seventh schedule. Why was the new law brought just before Ramzan on May 23?, she questioned. The TMC supremo further added that she is trying to bring all secular parties together on the issue who are against the Centres decision on banning cattle sale for slaughter at livestock markets. Mamatas statement comes after Pinarayi Vijayan said that Malayalees dont need to seek permission from New Delhi or Nagpur (the RSS headquarters) to eat anything. The State witnessed massive beef festivals on Sunday against the Centres move. A beef festival was also held in IIT Madras on Monday against the Centres decision. Cow slaughter is not punishable only in a few Indian states that include West Bengal, Kerala and north-eastern states. Mamata had earlier been vocal in supporting the right to eat beef or anything an individual may want as a result of which a priest in Jagannath temple in Puri wanted to prevent her entry into the temple.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Six more airports in the country, including Patna and Chennai, will do away with the practice of tagging and stamping domestic passengers' hand baggage from June 1.

CISF Director General O P Singh told PTI that the new airports include Jaipur, Guwahati, Lucknow and Trivandrum, apart from Patna and Chennai.

"We had run a trial at these six airports for a few weeks. After finding that an enhanced number of new gadgets, CCTVs and security paraphernalia has been put in place, the process of doing away with the tagging and stamping of domestic air passengers' hand baggage will begin from June 1," the DG said. The Central Industrial Security Force had first initiated this new system at seven airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad from April 1.

The force is tasked with guarding 59 civil airports in the country.

Singh said five more airports at Varanasi, Pune, Goa, Bhubaneswar and Vishakhapatnam would be next in line where the tagging and stamping of passengers' hand baggage will be done away with in the coming days.

"The trial will now begin at these five airports," he said, adding the force proposes to initiate this people- friendly measure at all the airports under its cover, by the year-end.

By having the stamped tags on the hand baggage, the security personnel used to be assured that no weapon or ammunition-like material enters the aircraft with the passenger and now with the deployment of smart cameras and repositioning of security paraphernalia at the six new airports, the same objective is being achieved.

The procedure remained a major irritant for passengers and they have made many complaints in this regard to airport authorities saying this system poses hassles for them as it consumes time and in case they forget to get it tagged, security personnel would ask them to go back and get it done.

The output roller trays at the six airports, which will initiate the new drill, have now been extended in order to provide more visual clarity to the security personnel on each and every bag even as they have been instructed to minutely go through the x-ray images before clearing the handbags.

A committee comprising officials of the CISF, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the airport operators has been recently constituted to smoothen the roll-out of this new protocol at all the 59 airports guarded by the paramilitary force.

This was done after a high-level meeting chaired by Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju and his counterpart in the civil aviation ministry, Jayant Sinha, in which the earlier BCAS order about stamping the hand baggage tags was stayed.

The meeting while staying an earlier BCAS order had sought a thorough review of the security apparatus before the new measure could be launched.

The CISF said it had sought modifications in the airport security for doing away with the hand baggage stamping and "to make sure that passengers could not access bags containing restricted items which are segregated by CISF personnel for checking (after X-ray scanning)".

DG Singh had said the new measure will enhance "passenger experience and provide hassle-free security environment to them" while travelling through the airports.

The new protocols are only meant for domestic passengers and those travelling to international destinations will have to get their hand baggage tags stamped as usual.

NEW DELHI: Six more airports in the country, including Patna and Chennai, will do away with the practice of tagging and stamping domestic passengers' hand baggage from June 1. CISF Director General O P Singh told PTI that the new airports include Jaipur, Guwahati, Lucknow and Trivandrum, apart from Patna and Chennai. "We had run a trial at these six airports for a few weeks. After finding that an enhanced number of new gadgets, CCTVs and security paraphernalia has been put in place, the process of doing away with the tagging and stamping of domestic air passengers' hand baggage will begin from June 1," the DG said. The Central Industrial Security Force had first initiated this new system at seven airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad from April 1. The force is tasked with guarding 59 civil airports in the country. Singh said five more airports at Varanasi, Pune, Goa, Bhubaneswar and Vishakhapatnam would be next in line where the tagging and stamping of passengers' hand baggage will be done away with in the coming days. "The trial will now begin at these five airports," he said, adding the force proposes to initiate this people- friendly measure at all the airports under its cover, by the year-end. By having the stamped tags on the hand baggage, the security personnel used to be assured that no weapon or ammunition-like material enters the aircraft with the passenger and now with the deployment of smart cameras and repositioning of security paraphernalia at the six new airports, the same objective is being achieved. The procedure remained a major irritant for passengers and they have made many complaints in this regard to airport authorities saying this system poses hassles for them as it consumes time and in case they forget to get it tagged, security personnel would ask them to go back and get it done. The output roller trays at the six airports, which will initiate the new drill, have now been extended in order to provide more visual clarity to the security personnel on each and every bag even as they have been instructed to minutely go through the x-ray images before clearing the handbags. A committee comprising officials of the CISF, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the airport operators has been recently constituted to smoothen the roll-out of this new protocol at all the 59 airports guarded by the paramilitary force. This was done after a high-level meeting chaired by Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju and his counterpart in the civil aviation ministry, Jayant Sinha, in which the earlier BCAS order about stamping the hand baggage tags was stayed. The meeting while staying an earlier BCAS order had sought a thorough review of the security apparatus before the new measure could be launched. The CISF said it had sought modifications in the airport security for doing away with the hand baggage stamping and "to make sure that passengers could not access bags containing restricted items which are segregated by CISF personnel for checking (after X-ray scanning)". DG Singh had said the new measure will enhance "passenger experience and provide hassle-free security environment to them" while travelling through the airports. The new protocols are only meant for domestic passengers and those travelling to international destinations will have to get their hand baggage tags stamped as usual.
By ANI

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a four nation tour to Germany, Spain, Russia and France on Monday.

Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Gopal Baglay tweeted that the week-long visit of the Prime Minister would be one of vigorous and intense diplomacy.

A week of vigorous diplomacy as PM @narendramodi departs for four nation visit to Germany, Spain, Russia & France pic.twitter.com/CV5qq9Fct8  Gopal Baglay (@MEAIndia) 29 May 2017

The four-nation visit is expected to be focused on enhancing bilateral trade and commerce, economic cooperation and counter terrorism.

In Germany, Mr. Modi will take part in the 4th Indo-German Inter-governmental Consultations and meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel to strengthen bilateral relations.

He will also be the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Spain in almost 30 years. There, he will meet the Spanish leadership and also interact with a group of CEOs who are reportedly interested in investing in India.

In Russia, the Prime Minister will attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and also have a summit interaction with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

This will be the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit.

In Paris, France, he will have bilateral talks with recently elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

Prior to his departure, the Prime Minister said that hoped that his visits to these four nations would open a new chapter in bilateral relations with India as well as further deepen strategic and economic partnerships.

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a four nation tour to Germany, Spain, Russia and France on Monday. Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Gopal Baglay tweeted that the week-long visit of the Prime Minister would be one of vigorous and intense diplomacy. A week of vigorous diplomacy as PM @narendramodi departs for four nation visit to Germany, Spain, Russia & France pic.twitter.com/CV5qq9Fct8  Gopal Baglay (@MEAIndia) 29 May 2017 The four-nation visit is expected to be focused on enhancing bilateral trade and commerce, economic cooperation and counter terrorism. In Germany, Mr. Modi will take part in the 4th Indo-German Inter-governmental Consultations and meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel to strengthen bilateral relations. He will also be the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Spain in almost 30 years. There, he will meet the Spanish leadership and also interact with a group of CEOs who are reportedly interested in investing in India. In Russia, the Prime Minister will attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and also have a summit interaction with Russian President Vladimir Putin. This will be the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit. In Paris, France, he will have bilateral talks with recently elected French President Emmanuel Macron. Prior to his departure, the Prime Minister said that hoped that his visits to these four nations would open a new chapter in bilateral relations with India as well as further deepen strategic and economic partnerships.
Manish Anand By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: In an indication that the BJP has already begun the exercise to turn the July Presidential poll into a show of strength, the saffron outfit has counted that even if the 17-party jamboree, cobbled up by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, vote as a block, it would still be short of 1,17,520 votes from the halfway mark in the electoral college.

The grand Opposition, which is being attempted by the Congress chief, is short by as much as 1,17,520 votes from the 50 per cent mark in the electoral college of the Presidential election. By feting the DMK, the Congress has helped the cause of the BJP to gain the support of both factions of the AIADMK. The NDA will be way ahead of the Opposition, said a top BJP leader, who added that the Opposition, by initiating parleys to put up a joint candidate, has shut the doors on the possibility of a consensus.

The electoral college of the Presidential election has a strength of 10,95,619 votes, with the NDAs share being 5,27,371 and UPA commanding just 1,73,849 votes. The Congress chief had hosted a lunch on Friday for leaders of 16 other Opposition parties, including constituents of the UPA.

The YSR (Congress) and TRS will support the NDA in the election. The BJPs campaign in Telangana this month to broaden the party-base in the State will not affect the TRS supporting the NDA nominee. The BJP is counting on both factions of the AIADMK. Efforts are underway to wean away more political parties to NDAs side for the July poll, said the senior leader.

NEW DELHI: In an indication that the BJP has already begun the exercise to turn the July Presidential poll into a show of strength, the saffron outfit has counted that even if the 17-party jamboree, cobbled up by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, vote as a block, it would still be short of 1,17,520 votes from the halfway mark in the electoral college. The grand Opposition, which is being attempted by the Congress chief, is short by as much as 1,17,520 votes from the 50 per cent mark in the electoral college of the Presidential election. By feting the DMK, the Congress has helped the cause of the BJP to gain the support of both factions of the AIADMK. The NDA will be way ahead of the Opposition, said a top BJP leader, who added that the Opposition, by initiating parleys to put up a joint candidate, has shut the doors on the possibility of a consensus. The electoral college of the Presidential election has a strength of 10,95,619 votes, with the NDAs share being 5,27,371 and UPA commanding just 1,73,849 votes. The Congress chief had hosted a lunch on Friday for leaders of 16 other Opposition parties, including constituents of the UPA. The YSR (Congress) and TRS will support the NDA in the election. The BJPs campaign in Telangana this month to broaden the party-base in the State will not affect the TRS supporting the NDA nominee. The BJP is counting on both factions of the AIADMK. Efforts are underway to wean away more political parties to NDAs side for the July poll, said the senior leader.
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: For the second consecutive day, the restrictions imposed by authorities to foil protests and shutdown called by separatists against killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Bhat and his associate affected normal life in Valley on Monday while a 70-year-old mentally unsound person was arrested and released after he attempted to grab rifle of a paramilitary jawan, who took it as a rifle snatching bid.

An official said curfew-like restrictions remained in force for second day in areas falling under seven police stations in Srinagar.

The police and CRFF men had placed barricades in the curfew-hit areas to prevent movement of people.

The official said tough restrictions also remained in place in Anantnag town of south Kashmir.

He said in other parts of the Valley, restrictions under Section 144 remained in force and there was ban on assembly of more than five people at a single place.

In the areas, where restrictions were not enforced, life was crippled by the two-day shutdown called by the separatists against killing of Sabzar Bhat and his associate in an encounter with security forces on Saturday.

All shops, business establishments and petrol pumps in Srinagar and other parts of Valley remained closed while public transport was off the roads.

Sabzar, who was Burhan Wanis successor and Hizbs Kashmir chief, alongwith his associate Faizan Muzaffar were killed in a gunfight with security forces on Saturday. A civilian Aqib Rashid was killed in security forces firing on protestors after the encounter.

In view of tension, authorities had ordered closure of educational institutions across the Valley today. The exams scheduled for the day were also postponed.

Authorities have placed separatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Shabir Shah, Ayaz Akbar, Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai, Shahid-ul-Islam and others under house arrest to prevent them from leading any anti-India demonstration.

Pro-independence JKLF chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik was arrested yesterday from his residence at Maisuma in uptown Srinagar. He has been shifted to central jail, Srinagar.

The train services in Valley remained suspended for second day today while mobile internet services remained snapped for third day.

Defying restrictions, a group of youth took to roads at Tahab area in south Kashmirs Pulwama district. Chanting pro-freedom and anti-India slogans, they pelted stones on the CRPF men, who fired tear smoke shells and resorted to baton charge to disperse them.

A police spokesman said barring stone pelting in Tahab in Pulwama, situation remained peaceful and under control throughout Kashmir.

Authorities have decided to continue the restrictions tomorrow in view of Tral march called by separatist leaders.

Strict restrictions will remain imposed tomorrow in territorial jurisdiction of seven police stations in Srinagar district, Deputy Commissioner Srinagar Farooq Ahmad Lone said.

He said all schools and colleges in Srinagar will remain closed tomorrow.

Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Baseer Ahmad Khan, said class work in all schools/Higher Secondary Institutions and colleges in Valley shall remain suspended tomorrow as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, a 70-year-old mentally unsound person was arrested after he allegedly attempted to grab rifle of a CRPF jawan, who took it a weapon-snatching incident and raised an alarm.

A police officer said the main grabbed the rifle of a CRPF man at Lal Chowk area in south Kashmirs Anantnag town today.

He said the jawan took it a weapon-snatching bid and raised an alarm.

The other CRPF men rushed to the spot and took the elderly man into custody. He water handed over to police. During questioning, police found that the man was a mentally unsound and set him free, he said.

SRINAGAR: For the second consecutive day, the restrictions imposed by authorities to foil protests and shutdown called by separatists against killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Bhat and his associate affected normal life in Valley on Monday while a 70-year-old mentally unsound person was arrested and released after he attempted to grab rifle of a paramilitary jawan, who took it as a rifle snatching bid. An official said curfew-like restrictions remained in force for second day in areas falling under seven police stations in Srinagar. The police and CRFF men had placed barricades in the curfew-hit areas to prevent movement of people. The official said tough restrictions also remained in place in Anantnag town of south Kashmir. He said in other parts of the Valley, restrictions under Section 144 remained in force and there was ban on assembly of more than five people at a single place. In the areas, where restrictions were not enforced, life was crippled by the two-day shutdown called by the separatists against killing of Sabzar Bhat and his associate in an encounter with security forces on Saturday. All shops, business establishments and petrol pumps in Srinagar and other parts of Valley remained closed while public transport was off the roads. Sabzar, who was Burhan Wanis successor and Hizbs Kashmir chief, alongwith his associate Faizan Muzaffar were killed in a gunfight with security forces on Saturday. A civilian Aqib Rashid was killed in security forces firing on protestors after the encounter. In view of tension, authorities had ordered closure of educational institutions across the Valley today. The exams scheduled for the day were also postponed. Authorities have placed separatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, Shabir Shah, Ayaz Akbar, Mohammad Ashraf Sehrai, Shahid-ul-Islam and others under house arrest to prevent them from leading any anti-India demonstration. Pro-independence JKLF chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik was arrested yesterday from his residence at Maisuma in uptown Srinagar. He has been shifted to central jail, Srinagar. The train services in Valley remained suspended for second day today while mobile internet services remained snapped for third day. Defying restrictions, a group of youth took to roads at Tahab area in south Kashmirs Pulwama district. Chanting pro-freedom and anti-India slogans, they pelted stones on the CRPF men, who fired tear smoke shells and resorted to baton charge to disperse them. A police spokesman said barring stone pelting in Tahab in Pulwama, situation remained peaceful and under control throughout Kashmir. Authorities have decided to continue the restrictions tomorrow in view of Tral march called by separatist leaders. Strict restrictions will remain imposed tomorrow in territorial jurisdiction of seven police stations in Srinagar district, Deputy Commissioner Srinagar Farooq Ahmad Lone said. He said all schools and colleges in Srinagar will remain closed tomorrow. Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Baseer Ahmad Khan, said class work in all schools/Higher Secondary Institutions and colleges in Valley shall remain suspended tomorrow as a precautionary measure. Meanwhile, a 70-year-old mentally unsound person was arrested after he allegedly attempted to grab rifle of a CRPF jawan, who took it a weapon-snatching incident and raised an alarm. A police officer said the main grabbed the rifle of a CRPF man at Lal Chowk area in south Kashmirs Anantnag town today. He said the jawan took it a weapon-snatching bid and raised an alarm. The other CRPF men rushed to the spot and took the elderly man into custody. He water handed over to police. During questioning, police found that the man was a mentally unsound and set him free, he said.
Ukraine's service for food safety and consumer protection has received data confirming an outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) among pigs in Odesa region.

According to the agency's press service, the outbreak ASF was registered in the village of Yaroslavka (Odesa region) when Four pigs died from the ailment.

Biopsies of the dead pigs conducted at the state scientific research institute's laboratory for diagnostics and animal sanitary expertise on May 26 confirmed the diagnosis.

According to preliminary information, there were 49 pigs at the site of the outbreak.

With the aim of coordinating efforts to localize and liquidate the ASF outbreak a meeting of the state anti-epidemic commission at the Saratska district administration was held. A plan was approved to liquidate the ASF outbreak and localize the outbreak.

Measures to prevent the spread of ASF are being taken at the epicenter of the outbreak.

The ASF virus is the causative agent of ASF. The virus causes a hemorrhagic fever with high mortality rates in pigs, but persistently infects its natural hosts, warthogs, bush pigs and soft ticks of the Ornithodoros genus, without any visible symptoms. There is currently no vaccine against ASF.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: A top BJP leader on Sunday said those who take up arms against the State will be killed by the security agencies, while firmly stating there would be no talks with stone-pelters in the Kashmir valley. The BJP appears to have drawn the line that the government would firmly deal with separatists in the Kashmir valley.

Jo banduk uthayega, usko hum maarenge (those who take up arms against the State will be killed by the security agencies). There is no doubt on the issue. The government is not worried about the situations in the Kashmir valley. We are very confident that the situations there will soon come under the control, said the senior BJP leader.

The BJP leader stated talks could be held only when stone-pelting ceases completely in the valley.

This phase will end soon. The secessionist forces will be defeated. The security forces are taking actions on the ground against terrorists. Once the peace is restored, we will initiate all exercises, including the talks, said the leader.

But the BJP believes, according to sources, that the agitation in the Kashmir valley is directly sponsored by Pakistan, and, hence, there could not be any leniency in dealing with the situations.

The security forces know how to deal with the situations there. They will continue to have a free hand to tackle insurgency in the valley. Its evident that Pakistan is attempting to push terrorists into the valley by taking advantage of the melting of the snow. The iron-fisted approach will continue in the State, stated the BJP leader.

NEW DELHI: A top BJP leader on Sunday said those who take up arms against the State will be killed by the security agencies, while firmly stating there would be no talks with stone-pelters in the Kashmir valley. The BJP appears to have drawn the line that the government would firmly deal with separatists in the Kashmir valley. Jo banduk uthayega, usko hum maarenge (those who take up arms against the State will be killed by the security agencies). There is no doubt on the issue. The government is not worried about the situations in the Kashmir valley. We are very confident that the situations there will soon come under the control, said the senior BJP leader. The BJP leader stated talks could be held only when stone-pelting ceases completely in the valley. This phase will end soon. The secessionist forces will be defeated. The security forces are taking actions on the ground against terrorists. Once the peace is restored, we will initiate all exercises, including the talks, said the leader. But the BJP believes, according to sources, that the agitation in the Kashmir valley is directly sponsored by Pakistan, and, hence, there could not be any leniency in dealing with the situations. The security forces know how to deal with the situations there. They will continue to have a free hand to tackle insurgency in the valley. Its evident that Pakistan is attempting to push terrorists into the valley by taking advantage of the melting of the snow. The iron-fisted approach will continue in the State, stated the BJP leader.
S N M Abdi By

Our boycott of the One Belt One Road Forum in Beijing is a milestone in IndiaChina relations. It is a watershed in Indias overall foreign policy as well because China is not only capable of overtaking America as the worlds most powerful nation but also happens to be the country which George Fernandes, defence minister in NDA 1, publicly called Indias enemy number one. And lest we forget, China was cited by Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the principal reason for Indias 1998 nuclear tests in a classified communication to Bill Clinton.

After sizing up Xi Jinping, PM Narendra Modi is known to keep a hawks eye on China with Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval ably assisting him. Even before the laudable boycott of the OBOR Forum, the Dalai Lamas recent prolonged sojourn in Arunachal Pradesh (which China claims), deepening engagement with Taiwan and the pampering of Uighur political activists bore the triumvirates signature. The trio clearly believes in looking China in the eye without blinking.

China, of course, is unable to digest our new policy. Within days of the OBOR snub, it retaliated by killing whatever little prospects India had of gaining admission into the Nuclear Suppliers Group at Berne next month, by insisting on the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty yardstick, clubbing us with Pakistan. Notably, Pakistan is the common denominator in every IndiaChina discordfrom the China Pakistan Economic Corridor responsible for our OBOR boycott, to Chinese opposition to UN listing Masood Azhar as a global terrorist and of course NSG membership.

Against this background, is it really wise on Indias part to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organisationa Eurasian security grouping which China dominatesat its forthcoming Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, on June 89? Largely due to Beijings tactics, it has taken India two long years to sign 28 mandatory conventions and draft documents for upgrading its observer status to full membership of SCO.

It certainly seems to me that signing up in todays tense scenariocharacterised by the chill that has set in after our OBOR snub and Beijings retaliationis like walking into the tigers lair, or let's say the dragon's den. Modis presence in Astana is a given. Nawaz Sharif too will surely attend as Pakistan, like India, will be promoted from observer to full member. The stage is now set for the media to start speculating about the possibility of a ModiSharif meeting on the sidelines of SCO to break the dangerous IndiaPakistan stalemate. But regardless of a Modi-Sharif tete-a-tete in Astana, it is time for New Delhi to re-examine the wisdom of joining SCO at this juncture when besides China, Russiathe other superpower which calls the shots in SCOis no longer the all-weather friend India could blindly trust.

I understand that New Delhi is so angry with Moscow over military exercises with Islamabad and sale of defence hardware, not to speak of Russia ganging up with China, Pakistan and Iran to legitimise the anti-India Taliban in Afghanistan, that it has read Russia the riot act. According to my information, India has bluntly told Russia that unless it somehow convinces China to expedite our NSG entry, India wont sign the MoU with Russia for developing units 5 and 6 of the Kudankulam nuclear plant. Our stand is a financial blow to Moscow. Clearly, India now has enough self-belief to treat Russia as an arms dealer or nuclear energy expertise provider instead of a UN Security Council veto-wielding superpower we played second fiddle to for decades.

We can cope with Vladimir Putins Russia. But China, against whom India has now taken a tough, principled stand, poses a mega-threat for two reasons: Its perpetual quest for opportunities to humiliate us and its nexus with Pakistan; it is seething after the OBOR snub. By my reckoning, it will not stop at sabotaging our NSG prospects at Berne.

That is why I do not subscribe to BJP ideologue Ram Madhavs optimism that there is no reason to assume that Indias decision to boycott OBOR will affect bilateral relations with China adversely. Both India and China have a mature leadership under Modi and Xi.

They will work together in multilateral forums like the SCO, Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank (AIIB) and BRICS. Rather than trust Madhav, India should take very seriously ex-Navy Chief Arun Prakashs warning that China might re-enact a 1962 in the Bay of Bengal to cut India down to size again by inflicting a Pearl Harbour in the Andamans. Seconding Prakash, retired Vice Admiral P K Chatterjee says that as India can ward off a Chinese attack from the northern border, I can vouch that they will attack in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea region.

I would also attach equal importance to former IB chief M K Narayanans cautionary note that buoyed by its defence budget of $151.5 billion (2017) which is much larger than that of all other nations with the exception of the US, China is no longer willing to remain a status quo power, or play by existing rules governing the international order. India must realise this, and avoid being caught unawares. According to another defence expert, P Sawhney, China could unleash cyberwarfare where it has unparalleled offensive capabilities; or, with proven anti-satellite capabilities, it could shoot Indian satellites in both geosynchronous and low-earth orbitsit has plenty in its arsenal to embarrass India.

Clearly, Modis India doesnt see China as a challenge but a threat. And we have stood up to the threat with full faith in our capabilities as manifested in our new-found resolve not to take Chinas aggression, territorial or otherwise, lying down. When the battle lines are so clearly drawn, joining a China-led grouping honestly doesnt make much senseparticularly as we were made to wait two years before being let in halfheartedly.

S N M Abdi

An award-winning journalist and commentator based in Kolkata

Email: snmabdi@yahoo.com

Our boycott of the One Belt One Road Forum in Beijing is a milestone in IndiaChina relations. It is a watershed in Indias overall foreign policy as well because China is not only capable of overtaking America as the worlds most powerful nation but also happens to be the country which George Fernandes, defence minister in NDA 1, publicly called Indias enemy number one. And lest we forget, China was cited by Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the principal reason for Indias 1998 nuclear tests in a classified communication to Bill Clinton. After sizing up Xi Jinping, PM Narendra Modi is known to keep a hawks eye on China with Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval ably assisting him. Even before the laudable boycott of the OBOR Forum, the Dalai Lamas recent prolonged sojourn in Arunachal Pradesh (which China claims), deepening engagement with Taiwan and the pampering of Uighur political activists bore the triumvirates signature. The trio clearly believes in looking China in the eye without blinking. China, of course, is unable to digest our new policy. Within days of the OBOR snub, it retaliated by killing whatever little prospects India had of gaining admission into the Nuclear Suppliers Group at Berne next month, by insisting on the Nuclear Proliferation Treaty yardstick, clubbing us with Pakistan. Notably, Pakistan is the common denominator in every IndiaChina discordfrom the China Pakistan Economic Corridor responsible for our OBOR boycott, to Chinese opposition to UN listing Masood Azhar as a global terrorist and of course NSG membership. Against this background, is it really wise on Indias part to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organisationa Eurasian security grouping which China dominatesat its forthcoming Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, on June 89? Largely due to Beijings tactics, it has taken India two long years to sign 28 mandatory conventions and draft documents for upgrading its observer status to full membership of SCO. It certainly seems to me that signing up in todays tense scenariocharacterised by the chill that has set in after our OBOR snub and Beijings retaliationis like walking into the tigers lair, or let's say the dragon's den. Modis presence in Astana is a given. Nawaz Sharif too will surely attend as Pakistan, like India, will be promoted from observer to full member. The stage is now set for the media to start speculating about the possibility of a ModiSharif meeting on the sidelines of SCO to break the dangerous IndiaPakistan stalemate. But regardless of a Modi-Sharif tete-a-tete in Astana, it is time for New Delhi to re-examine the wisdom of joining SCO at this juncture when besides China, Russiathe other superpower which calls the shots in SCOis no longer the all-weather friend India could blindly trust. I understand that New Delhi is so angry with Moscow over military exercises with Islamabad and sale of defence hardware, not to speak of Russia ganging up with China, Pakistan and Iran to legitimise the anti-India Taliban in Afghanistan, that it has read Russia the riot act. According to my information, India has bluntly told Russia that unless it somehow convinces China to expedite our NSG entry, India wont sign the MoU with Russia for developing units 5 and 6 of the Kudankulam nuclear plant. Our stand is a financial blow to Moscow. Clearly, India now has enough self-belief to treat Russia as an arms dealer or nuclear energy expertise provider instead of a UN Security Council veto-wielding superpower we played second fiddle to for decades. We can cope with Vladimir Putins Russia. But China, against whom India has now taken a tough, principled stand, poses a mega-threat for two reasons: Its perpetual quest for opportunities to humiliate us and its nexus with Pakistan; it is seething after the OBOR snub. By my reckoning, it will not stop at sabotaging our NSG prospects at Berne. That is why I do not subscribe to BJP ideologue Ram Madhavs optimism that there is no reason to assume that Indias decision to boycott OBOR will affect bilateral relations with China adversely. Both India and China have a mature leadership under Modi and Xi. They will work together in multilateral forums like the SCO, Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank (AIIB) and BRICS. Rather than trust Madhav, India should take very seriously ex-Navy Chief Arun Prakashs warning that China might re-enact a 1962 in the Bay of Bengal to cut India down to size again by inflicting a Pearl Harbour in the Andamans. Seconding Prakash, retired Vice Admiral P K Chatterjee says that as India can ward off a Chinese attack from the northern border, I can vouch that they will attack in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea region. I would also attach equal importance to former IB chief M K Narayanans cautionary note that buoyed by its defence budget of $151.5 billion (2017) which is much larger than that of all other nations with the exception of the US, China is no longer willing to remain a status quo power, or play by existing rules governing the international order. India must realise this, and avoid being caught unawares. According to another defence expert, P Sawhney, China could unleash cyberwarfare where it has unparalleled offensive capabilities; or, with proven anti-satellite capabilities, it could shoot Indian satellites in both geosynchronous and low-earth orbitsit has plenty in its arsenal to embarrass India. Clearly, Modis India doesnt see China as a challenge but a threat. And we have stood up to the threat with full faith in our capabilities as manifested in our new-found resolve not to take Chinas aggression, territorial or otherwise, lying down. When the battle lines are so clearly drawn, joining a China-led grouping honestly doesnt make much senseparticularly as we were made to wait two years before being let in halfheartedly. S N M Abdi An award-winning journalist and commentator based in Kolkata Email: snmabdi@yahoo.com
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The differently-abled should not languish in the margins, but they should be a part of mainstream society, says Ajay R Raj, who has topped the CBSE Plus-II examination at the national level in the differently-abled category. You dont see Stephen Hawking as a physically challenged individual, do you? You see him as a scientist, he says.

Visually challenged Ajay scored 490 marks (Humanities) to become the topper in the category, and even the overall topper in the general category is only eight marks ahead of him! Hailing from Kuttiady, Kozhikode, Ajay did his Plus-Two at St Thomas Central School, Mukkolakkal, Thiruvananthapuram. His father Rajan N K is an auto driver, and mother Radha, a homemaker.

Up to the tenth, I studied at the A J John Memorial HSS in Kuttiady, then shifted to St Thomas for my Plus-Two. Till then, I followed the state board, in Malayalam medium. The school officials in Thiruvananthapuram welcomed me with great warmth, he recalls. In sitting for the CBSE examinations, he was assisted by Sandhya, an NGO worker, who acted as writer.

Ajay dreams of pursuing a degree in English Literature at Delhi University. On the facilities available to differently-abled today, Ajay says it is a complex subject. The differently-abled in urban areas are better of than their rural counterparts, whose facilities usually begin and end with Braille texts and white canes, he says.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The differently-abled should not languish in the margins, but they should be a part of mainstream society, says Ajay R Raj, who has topped the CBSE Plus-II examination at the national level in the differently-abled category. You dont see Stephen Hawking as a physically challenged individual, do you? You see him as a scientist, he says. Visually challenged Ajay scored 490 marks (Humanities) to become the topper in the category, and even the overall topper in the general category is only eight marks ahead of him! Hailing from Kuttiady, Kozhikode, Ajay did his Plus-Two at St Thomas Central School, Mukkolakkal, Thiruvananthapuram. His father Rajan N K is an auto driver, and mother Radha, a homemaker. Up to the tenth, I studied at the A J John Memorial HSS in Kuttiady, then shifted to St Thomas for my Plus-Two. Till then, I followed the state board, in Malayalam medium. The school officials in Thiruvananthapuram welcomed me with great warmth, he recalls. In sitting for the CBSE examinations, he was assisted by Sandhya, an NGO worker, who acted as writer. Ajay dreams of pursuing a degree in English Literature at Delhi University. On the facilities available to differently-abled today, Ajay says it is a complex subject. The differently-abled in urban areas are better of than their rural counterparts, whose facilities usually begin and end with Braille texts and white canes, he says.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Congress has suspended three Youth Congress leaders, including Kannur Parliament mandalam president Rijil Makkutti who led the protest against cattle slaughter ban in Kannur on Sunday, where the activists butchered a calf in full public view and distributed beef.

KPCC president M M Hassan told media persons here Rijil and two others -Josy Kandathil and Sharafudeen- have been suspended from the party and the youth outfit.



The KPCC strongly deplores the Kannur incident. However, the Congress will continue the protests against cattle slaughter ban, he said.



The YC protest in Kannur against cattle slaughter ban has hogged national headlines and triggered public outrage for the cruelty towards the calf. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi deplored the incident and the AICC directed the KPCC to take strong action against the offenders involved in the barbaric act.

Hassan said the action against the trio was on the basis of a report given by the Kannur DCC. We had sought an explanation from the DCC president.



The three Youth Congress men were suspended on the basis of the DCC report.



The Kannur incident had blurred the protests of the Congress against the centres cattle slaughter ban. It was against the culture of the Congress. Hence the suspension, Hassan said.



Convene special session of Assembly: Cong

Hassan urged the state government to convene a special session of the Assembly to enact a legislation to override the cattle slaughter ban in the state. He said Kerala should not accept the ban and initiate strong steps against the NDA Governments infringement on the fundamental right of the citizens for choice of food.



The Congress will extend all support to the measures taken by the state government in this regard. A special session of the Assembly should be convened and a legislation adopted to overcome the Union Governments notification on cattle slaughter. Strong protests will be held against the entry of communal fascism into the kitchens, he said. The Thiruvananthapuram DCC will organise a protest march to the Raj Bhavan on June 1.

CPM to hold mass protest against beef ban on Friday

TPuram: Stepping up its protest against the Central Governments ban on sale of cattle for slaughter, the CPM will organise 2,000 evening dharnas across the state on June 2. The dharna, to be staged at panchayat, municipal and corporation centres at 4 pm, is part of a mass resistance by the party to urge the Centre to withdraw the notification. The Union Environment Ministrys notification is aimed at foisting RSS agenda on the country, the CPM alleged.

Will abide by party decision:Rijil Makkutty

Kannur:Youth Congress leader Rijil Makkutty, who was suspended from the organisation for slaughtering a calf in full public view in protest against Centres decision to ban sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter, has said he would abide by the party decision. I will be a disciplined party worker and ready to accept any decision made by the party. The struggle against Sangh Parivar will continue, he said.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Congress has suspended three Youth Congress leaders, including Kannur Parliament mandalam president Rijil Makkutti who led the protest against cattle slaughter ban in Kannur on Sunday, where the activists butchered a calf in full public view and distributed beef. KPCC president M M Hassan told media persons here Rijil and two others -Josy Kandathil and Sharafudeen- have been suspended from the party and the youth outfit. The KPCC strongly deplores the Kannur incident. However, the Congress will continue the protests against cattle slaughter ban, he said. The YC protest in Kannur against cattle slaughter ban has hogged national headlines and triggered public outrage for the cruelty towards the calf. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi deplored the incident and the AICC directed the KPCC to take strong action against the offenders involved in the barbaric act. Hassan said the action against the trio was on the basis of a report given by the Kannur DCC. We had sought an explanation from the DCC president. The three Youth Congress men were suspended on the basis of the DCC report. The Kannur incident had blurred the protests of the Congress against the centres cattle slaughter ban. It was against the culture of the Congress. Hence the suspension, Hassan said.Convene special session of Assembly: Cong Hassan urged the state government to convene a special session of the Assembly to enact a legislation to override the cattle slaughter ban in the state. He said Kerala should not accept the ban and initiate strong steps against the NDA Governments infringement on the fundamental right of the citizens for choice of food. The Congress will extend all support to the measures taken by the state government in this regard. A special session of the Assembly should be convened and a legislation adopted to overcome the Union Governments notification on cattle slaughter. Strong protests will be held against the entry of communal fascism into the kitchens, he said. The Thiruvananthapuram DCC will organise a protest march to the Raj Bhavan on June 1. CPM to hold mass protest against beef ban on Friday TPuram: Stepping up its protest against the Central Governments ban on sale of cattle for slaughter, the CPM will organise 2,000 evening dharnas across the state on June 2. The dharna, to be staged at panchayat, municipal and corporation centres at 4 pm, is part of a mass resistance by the party to urge the Centre to withdraw the notification. The Union Environment Ministrys notification is aimed at foisting RSS agenda on the country, the CPM alleged. Will abide by party decision:Rijil Makkutty Kannur:Youth Congress leader Rijil Makkutty, who was suspended from the organisation for slaughtering a calf in full public view in protest against Centres decision to ban sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter, has said he would abide by the party decision. I will be a disciplined party worker and ready to accept any decision made by the party. The struggle against Sangh Parivar will continue, he said.
R Sivakumar By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: The recruitment drive in Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS) to appoint 49 assistant professors, despite having surplus strength now, is mired in controversy because of irregularities and malpractice in short listing the candidates.

Two top faculty heads are up in arms against the selection process, openly raising serious charges against the selection committee and pointing their finger of suspicion at the Vice-Chancellor Dr S Thilagar whose three year tenure is to end in December this year.

Dr PI Ganesan, director, Centre for Animal Health Studies, in a letter to the university Registrar, accused the selection process as stage managed. I vehemently condemn the process of selection of Assistant Professor by direct recruitment in TANUVAS which was stage managed with various degree of manipulation to circumvent the very objective of the selection of meritorious candidates for the divine task of teaching, conducting research and disseminating knowledge, he rued in the letter.

Explaining the dubious manner in which the interview was held, the senior faculty head stated that his endorsement was sought in the selection sheet without filling the names of the selected candidate.

The letter, which was also forwarded to the secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry, states that during the interview held on May 18, the chairman of the selection committee had asked the members to consider a particular candidate.

Ganesan also alleged that he was not made part of the selection committee for subjects in which he had expertise at instance of the V-C.

Another senior faculty head Dr D Baskaran, dean, College of Food and Dairy Technology, Koduvalli, had registered his discontent and displeasure on the selection sheet itself.

Ever since the process of appointment of assistant professors was set in motion, it had attracted severe criticism of not following the rules governing such recruitment.

The rules and regulations laid out by the UGC are not followed. The reservation policy is also not adhered to in the recruitment process, said Dr M Balaji, a Namakkal-based activist, who had shot off complaints to top authorities.

Sources stated that the unrelenting V-C had been acting against the advise of the secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry who had directed him not to go ahead with the recruitment drive as he had only six months left in office.

The Governors secretariat is understood to have sought an explanation on the dubious selection process as it had received several complaints and representations.

CHENNAI: The recruitment drive in Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS) to appoint 49 assistant professors, despite having surplus strength now, is mired in controversy because of irregularities and malpractice in short listing the candidates. Two top faculty heads are up in arms against the selection process, openly raising serious charges against the selection committee and pointing their finger of suspicion at the Vice-Chancellor Dr S Thilagar whose three year tenure is to end in December this year. Dr PI Ganesan, director, Centre for Animal Health Studies, in a letter to the university Registrar, accused the selection process as stage managed. I vehemently condemn the process of selection of Assistant Professor by direct recruitment in TANUVAS which was stage managed with various degree of manipulation to circumvent the very objective of the selection of meritorious candidates for the divine task of teaching, conducting research and disseminating knowledge, he rued in the letter. Explaining the dubious manner in which the interview was held, the senior faculty head stated that his endorsement was sought in the selection sheet without filling the names of the selected candidate. The letter, which was also forwarded to the secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry, states that during the interview held on May 18, the chairman of the selection committee had asked the members to consider a particular candidate. Ganesan also alleged that he was not made part of the selection committee for subjects in which he had expertise at instance of the V-C. Another senior faculty head Dr D Baskaran, dean, College of Food and Dairy Technology, Koduvalli, had registered his discontent and displeasure on the selection sheet itself. Ever since the process of appointment of assistant professors was set in motion, it had attracted severe criticism of not following the rules governing such recruitment. The rules and regulations laid out by the UGC are not followed. The reservation policy is also not adhered to in the recruitment process, said Dr M Balaji, a Namakkal-based activist, who had shot off complaints to top authorities. Sources stated that the unrelenting V-C had been acting against the advise of the secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry who had directed him not to go ahead with the recruitment drive as he had only six months left in office. The Governors secretariat is understood to have sought an explanation on the dubious selection process as it had received several complaints and representations.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Police personnel working in Maoist-affected areas in the state have sought sophisticated weapons and other protective gears to take part in operations against the Reds during emergency situations.

The cops also highlighted the lack of facilities including infrastructure and other logistics in the newly-formed police stations, divisional offices and administrative offices in districts.

Recently, the cops (SI to DSP rank officers) had dropped their suggestions in a drop box and the higher officials are understood to have verified some of them. It is revealed that majority of policemen suggested the government to provide basic infrastructure to police stations in the newly-formed districts.

The policemen, including some higher officials working in districts under whose limits some Maoist-influenced localities fall, have sought the state government to provide technology that would work in dense places and weapons to cope up extremists.

Keeping in mind the recent Maoist attack on police forces that took place in neighbouring states, the senior police officials have taken these demands seriously. Sources informed Express that they would provide basic infrastructure to newly-formed police stations.

The policemen also brought the issue of lack of coordination between police officials from the rank of deputy superintendent of police (DSPs) and sub inspectors that impacted badly on investigation and law and order.

We have received a number of suggestions from policemen working in districts and cities as part of Chief Ministers advice to know the ground-level situations in the department. We will take every suggestion seriously and will analyse them in order to sort the issues. We will take security measures in providing weapons to our forces and will also provide proper training of such high-end weapons, a senior officer told Express.

HYDERABAD: Police personnel working in Maoist-affected areas in the state have sought sophisticated weapons and other protective gears to take part in operations against the Reds during emergency situations. The cops also highlighted the lack of facilities including infrastructure and other logistics in the newly-formed police stations, divisional offices and administrative offices in districts. Recently, the cops (SI to DSP rank officers) had dropped their suggestions in a drop box and the higher officials are understood to have verified some of them. It is revealed that majority of policemen suggested the government to provide basic infrastructure to police stations in the newly-formed districts. The policemen, including some higher officials working in districts under whose limits some Maoist-influenced localities fall, have sought the state government to provide technology that would work in dense places and weapons to cope up extremists. Keeping in mind the recent Maoist attack on police forces that took place in neighbouring states, the senior police officials have taken these demands seriously. Sources informed Express that they would provide basic infrastructure to newly-formed police stations. The policemen also brought the issue of lack of coordination between police officials from the rank of deputy superintendent of police (DSPs) and sub inspectors that impacted badly on investigation and law and order. We have received a number of suggestions from policemen working in districts and cities as part of Chief Ministers advice to know the ground-level situations in the department. We will take every suggestion seriously and will analyse them in order to sort the issues. We will take security measures in providing weapons to our forces and will also provide proper training of such high-end weapons, a senior officer told Express.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: We will win the Ayodhya case in four months, claimed BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Subramanian Swamy. The issue has to be resolved quickly. Presently the Supreme Court is busy with the issue of triple talaq. There are not many judges at present, but I will soon approach the court again and request them to form a bench, said Swamy addressing a 1,800 strong Virat Hindustan Sangams supporters at Hyderabad on Sunday. Reiterating his earlier rhetoric, the senior leader said the construction of Ram temple at Ayodhya will begin in 2018.

Speaking on why Babri Masjid was named Babri and not Babar Masjid, the MP claimed, I was curious to know this and so I got the Babarnama works translated into English. I got to know that the name Babri belonged to a seven-year-old boy who Babar had an extra affection for. I dont wish to elaborate on this.

The event also saw potshots being aimed at Hyderabad MP and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi after he dared BJP national chief Amit Shah to contest election from Hyderabad. This time the elections at Hyderabad will not be between two political parties, it will be two between two ideologies. One will be between the one who says Bharat Mata ki Jai and the other who refuses to say it, said Paripoornananda Saraswati, head of Sreepeetham ashram.

The issue of Ram temple can be settled very very quickly as now we have Yogi Adithyanath as the chief minister of UP. We can settle it outside the court and he is ready for it. He can do it easily, said Paripoornananda. He further added that Muslims will not stand in the way of the temple as they too were tired of the vote bank politics.

If Pak nukes us, well nuke them 10 times

Speaking on the issue of Kashmir, Swamy said, The problem in Kashmir is restricted to a small area and it wont even take 10 days to resolve it. We are more concerned with the question But what if Pakistan attacks? Last time we made them two, this time we will make them four. On the apprehension of Pakistans retaliatory attacks using nuclear weapons, Swamy said, If they nuke us we will nuke them ten times. Officials from USA have told me that they have put lock on Pakistans nuke arsenal using cyber technology.

HYDERABAD: We will win the Ayodhya case in four months, claimed BJP leader and Rajya Sabha member Subramanian Swamy. The issue has to be resolved quickly. Presently the Supreme Court is busy with the issue of triple talaq. There are not many judges at present, but I will soon approach the court again and request them to form a bench, said Swamy addressing a 1,800 strong Virat Hindustan Sangams supporters at Hyderabad on Sunday. Reiterating his earlier rhetoric, the senior leader said the construction of Ram temple at Ayodhya will begin in 2018. Speaking on why Babri Masjid was named Babri and not Babar Masjid, the MP claimed, I was curious to know this and so I got the Babarnama works translated into English. I got to know that the name Babri belonged to a seven-year-old boy who Babar had an extra affection for. I dont wish to elaborate on this. The event also saw potshots being aimed at Hyderabad MP and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi after he dared BJP national chief Amit Shah to contest election from Hyderabad. This time the elections at Hyderabad will not be between two political parties, it will be two between two ideologies. One will be between the one who says Bharat Mata ki Jai and the other who refuses to say it, said Paripoornananda Saraswati, head of Sreepeetham ashram. The issue of Ram temple can be settled very very quickly as now we have Yogi Adithyanath as the chief minister of UP. We can settle it outside the court and he is ready for it. He can do it easily, said Paripoornananda. He further added that Muslims will not stand in the way of the temple as they too were tired of the vote bank politics. If Pak nukes us, well nuke them 10 times Speaking on the issue of Kashmir, Swamy said, The problem in Kashmir is restricted to a small area and it wont even take 10 days to resolve it. We are more concerned with the question But what if Pakistan attacks? Last time we made them two, this time we will make them four. On the apprehension of Pakistans retaliatory attacks using nuclear weapons, Swamy said, If they nuke us we will nuke them ten times. Officials from USA have told me that they have put lock on Pakistans nuke arsenal using cyber technology.
By PTI

LAHORE: A 14-year-old Pakistani girl was allegedly pushed by two of her teachers from the rooftop of a school building in the Punjab province for refusing to "clean the classroom", a media report said.

Fajjar Noor, a class-IX girl student, is battling for her life at Ghurki Hospital, Lahore. She has got multiple fractures and her spinal cord is also broken. "My class teachers ordered me to clean the classroom as today (May 23) was my turn to do so. I told them that I was not feeling well and would do it some other day. On this, they took me to another room and started slapping me. Then they took me to the rooftop and ordered me to clean it (roof). When I argued, they pushed me from the rooftop," Noor was quoted as saying by Dawn, after she regained consciousness.

The incident took place at the City District Government Girls School, Kot Shahabdin, Shahdara and the teachers have been booked for attempted murder case.

Two senior teachers first inflicted corporal punishment on Fajjar Noor and then took her to the top (third) floor of the school building and pushed her down, Punjab Secretary Education (schools) Allah Bakhsh Malik said.

"The incident took place on May 23 but the school administration and some other officials kept it secret from the education department," Malik said. "We came to know about (the incident) on Saturday evening. A departmental inquiry has been launched and the matter has also been referred to the Chief Minister Inspection Team for a thorough probe," he added.

"The chief minister has immediately placed District Education Authority Chief Executive Officer Ehsan Malik, Deputy DEO Tayyaba Butt and Headmistress Naghmana Irshad under suspension for hiding the incident. Both teachers have also been suspended and they will be proceeded under the Punjab Employees Efficiency and Disciplinary Act," he said.

"Although Malik visited us and tried to allay our concerns. The CM should come and see my daughter's condition...she is in extreme pain," said Rukhsana Bibi, Noor's mother.

Shahdara Town police have registered FIR against the teachers under section 324 (attempted murder). "Police teams are raiding their residences, however no arrest has been made so far," a police official said.

LAHORE: A 14-year-old Pakistani girl was allegedly pushed by two of her teachers from the rooftop of a school building in the Punjab province for refusing to "clean the classroom", a media report said. Fajjar Noor, a class-IX girl student, is battling for her life at Ghurki Hospital, Lahore. She has got multiple fractures and her spinal cord is also broken. "My class teachers ordered me to clean the classroom as today (May 23) was my turn to do so. I told them that I was not feeling well and would do it some other day. On this, they took me to another room and started slapping me. Then they took me to the rooftop and ordered me to clean it (roof). When I argued, they pushed me from the rooftop," Noor was quoted as saying by Dawn, after she regained consciousness. The incident took place at the City District Government Girls School, Kot Shahabdin, Shahdara and the teachers have been booked for attempted murder case. Two senior teachers first inflicted corporal punishment on Fajjar Noor and then took her to the top (third) floor of the school building and pushed her down, Punjab Secretary Education (schools) Allah Bakhsh Malik said. "The incident took place on May 23 but the school administration and some other officials kept it secret from the education department," Malik said. "We came to know about (the incident) on Saturday evening. A departmental inquiry has been launched and the matter has also been referred to the Chief Minister Inspection Team for a thorough probe," he added. "The chief minister has immediately placed District Education Authority Chief Executive Officer Ehsan Malik, Deputy DEO Tayyaba Butt and Headmistress Naghmana Irshad under suspension for hiding the incident. Both teachers have also been suspended and they will be proceeded under the Punjab Employees Efficiency and Disciplinary Act," he said. "Although Malik visited us and tried to allay our concerns. The CM should come and see my daughter's condition...she is in extreme pain," said Rukhsana Bibi, Noor's mother. Shahdara Town police have registered FIR against the teachers under section 324 (attempted murder). "Police teams are raiding their residences, however no arrest has been made so far," a police official said.
By AFP

BEIJING: China pleaded again for dialogue on Monday to ease regional tensions after North Korea launched its latest missile test in defiance of UN sanctions.

The Chinese foreign ministry urged Pyongyang in a statement to refrain from activities that go against United Nations Security Council resolutions.

"We hope that related parties can remain calm and restrained, ease the tension on the peninsula, and bring the peninsula issue into the right track of peaceful dialogue again," it said.

It was the North's third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year - carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

Following North Korea's test-firing earlier this month of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the North's main trade partner and ally, has repeatedly called for a resumption of six-party talks that have been dormant since North Korea walked out on the negotiations in 2009.

Washington says it is willing to enter into talks with Pyongyang, but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.

BEIJING: China pleaded again for dialogue on Monday to ease regional tensions after North Korea launched its latest missile test in defiance of UN sanctions. The Chinese foreign ministry urged Pyongyang in a statement to refrain from activities that go against United Nations Security Council resolutions. "We hope that related parties can remain calm and restrained, ease the tension on the peninsula, and bring the peninsula issue into the right track of peaceful dialogue again," it said. It was the North's third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year - carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action. Following North Korea's test-firing earlier this month of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang. But China, the North's main trade partner and ally, has repeatedly called for a resumption of six-party talks that have been dormant since North Korea walked out on the negotiations in 2009. Washington says it is willing to enter into talks with Pyongyang, but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.
Defense Minister of Ukraine Stepan Poltorak on Monday, May 29, will hold a meeting with Czech Defense Minister Martin Stropnicky in Kyiv.

According to the press service of the Defense Ministry, there will also be talks between the delegations of the defense ministries of the two countries, after which the heads of delegations will sign a joint statement.
By AFP

VERSAILLES: French President Emmanuel Macron hosts Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin today in their first meeting since he came to office with differences on Ukraine and Syria in full view.

After playing handshake power games with US President Donald Trump at his first international summit last week, 39- year-old Macron hosts the Russian leader in the splendour of Versailles outside Paris.

It is Macron's latest test of his diplomatic mettle after the G7 talks in Sicily last week and the NATO summit in Brussels where he turned the tables on Trump by refusing to release his hand for several seconds during the handshake for the cameras.

"It is essential to talk to Russia because there are many international issues that will not be resolved without a tough exchange with the Russians," Macron said in Sicily.

Russia's powerful ambassador to France, Alexander Orlov, said he hoped the meeting could help turn the page on the fraught relationship between Putin and Macron's predecessor Francois Hollande.

"Many things in the future will depend on the first meeting," Orlov told Europe 1 radio.

"It is very important that we begin to dissipate the mistrust that has built up in recent years."

As a candidate, Macron had tough words for Russia, accusing it of following a "hybrid strategy combining military intimidation and an information war".

Since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2014, Russia has flexed its muscles with a series of war games involving tens of thousands of troops in areas bordering NATO Baltic states.

Macron told a French weekly that he was "not bothered" by leaders who "think in terms of power ratios", citing Putin as an example along with Trump.

But Macron, who became France's youngest president just three weeks ago, said he does not believe in "the diplomacy of public invective but in bilateral dialogue".

Macron said he would make "not a single concession" to Russia on the long-running conflict in Ukraine as he and his G7 counterparts said they were prepared to strengthen sanctions against Moscow.

Government forces have been battling Moscow-backed insurgents in eastern Ukraine for over three years.

Western powers charge Russia with failing to honour its commitments under the Minsk accords framework for ending the hostilities.

France helped spearhead the sanctions, which have seriously dented EU-Russia trade, with a retaliatory Russian embargo on European agricultural products hurting French farmers.

The six-year-long Syrian conflict will also be high on the agenda, with Macron saying he was in favour of "building an inclusive political solution in a much more collective way".

He regretted that none of the G7 states is party to Syria peace talks under way in the Kazakh capital Astana initiated by Russia, Iran and Turkey.

Separate UN-backed negotiations have become bogged down in Geneva.

Russia is a strong supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad whereas, as Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov said before the visit, France "is among the countries with a very severe stance towards (Assad's) regime".

Coming so soon after an election in which the Kremlin was widely seen as backing Macron's far-right rival Marine Le Pen -- with Putin hosting her during a surprise visit to Moscow -- the encounter in Versailles will have an added personal edge.

Moscow has also been blamed for a raft of cyberattacks on Macron's election campaign, with aides accusing the Kremlin of mounting a "smear campaign" against him.

Putin was quick to congratulate Macron on his election, urging him to "overcome mutual distrust" and "join forces to ensure international stability and security".

The visit comes seven months after Putin cancelled a trip to Paris for the opening of a Russian cathedral complex near the Eiffel Tower in a spat over Syria with Hollande, who had said Russia's bombing of Aleppo could amount to war crimes.

In Versailles, Macron and Putin will inaugurate an exhibition marking 300 years of Franco-Russian ties since the visit of Russia's modernising tsar Peter the Great to France in 1717.

After the talks and a joint news conference, Putin will visit the Paris Orthodox cathedral complex on his own.

VERSAILLES: French President Emmanuel Macron hosts Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin today in their first meeting since he came to office with differences on Ukraine and Syria in full view. After playing handshake power games with US President Donald Trump at his first international summit last week, 39- year-old Macron hosts the Russian leader in the splendour of Versailles outside Paris. It is Macron's latest test of his diplomatic mettle after the G7 talks in Sicily last week and the NATO summit in Brussels where he turned the tables on Trump by refusing to release his hand for several seconds during the handshake for the cameras. "It is essential to talk to Russia because there are many international issues that will not be resolved without a tough exchange with the Russians," Macron said in Sicily. Russia's powerful ambassador to France, Alexander Orlov, said he hoped the meeting could help turn the page on the fraught relationship between Putin and Macron's predecessor Francois Hollande. "Many things in the future will depend on the first meeting," Orlov told Europe 1 radio. "It is very important that we begin to dissipate the mistrust that has built up in recent years." As a candidate, Macron had tough words for Russia, accusing it of following a "hybrid strategy combining military intimidation and an information war". Since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2014, Russia has flexed its muscles with a series of war games involving tens of thousands of troops in areas bordering NATO Baltic states. Macron told a French weekly that he was "not bothered" by leaders who "think in terms of power ratios", citing Putin as an example along with Trump. But Macron, who became France's youngest president just three weeks ago, said he does not believe in "the diplomacy of public invective but in bilateral dialogue". Macron said he would make "not a single concession" to Russia on the long-running conflict in Ukraine as he and his G7 counterparts said they were prepared to strengthen sanctions against Moscow. Government forces have been battling Moscow-backed insurgents in eastern Ukraine for over three years. Western powers charge Russia with failing to honour its commitments under the Minsk accords framework for ending the hostilities. France helped spearhead the sanctions, which have seriously dented EU-Russia trade, with a retaliatory Russian embargo on European agricultural products hurting French farmers. The six-year-long Syrian conflict will also be high on the agenda, with Macron saying he was in favour of "building an inclusive political solution in a much more collective way". He regretted that none of the G7 states is party to Syria peace talks under way in the Kazakh capital Astana initiated by Russia, Iran and Turkey. Separate UN-backed negotiations have become bogged down in Geneva. Russia is a strong supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad whereas, as Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov said before the visit, France "is among the countries with a very severe stance towards (Assad's) regime". Coming so soon after an election in which the Kremlin was widely seen as backing Macron's far-right rival Marine Le Pen -- with Putin hosting her during a surprise visit to Moscow -- the encounter in Versailles will have an added personal edge. Moscow has also been blamed for a raft of cyberattacks on Macron's election campaign, with aides accusing the Kremlin of mounting a "smear campaign" against him. Putin was quick to congratulate Macron on his election, urging him to "overcome mutual distrust" and "join forces to ensure international stability and security". The visit comes seven months after Putin cancelled a trip to Paris for the opening of a Russian cathedral complex near the Eiffel Tower in a spat over Syria with Hollande, who had said Russia's bombing of Aleppo could amount to war crimes. In Versailles, Macron and Putin will inaugurate an exhibition marking 300 years of Franco-Russian ties since the visit of Russia's modernising tsar Peter the Great to France in 1717. After the talks and a joint news conference, Putin will visit the Paris Orthodox cathedral complex on his own.
By IANS

WASHINGTON: The Donald Trump administration is considering banning laptops from the passenger cabins of all international flights to and from the US, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly has said.



Kelly, a retired general, was asked on Fox News on Sunday if he would expand an existing ban to cover laptops on all international flights into and out of the US, The Guardian reported.



"I might," he said.



Such a move would dramatically expand the ban, announced in March, that affects about 50 flights per day from 10 cities, mostly in the Middle East.



The ban prevents travellers from bringing laptops, tablets and certain other devices on board in carry-on bags. All electronics bigger than a smartphone must be checked in.



The measure applies to nonstop US-bound flights from 10 international airports in Amman, Jordan; Kuwait City, Kuwait; Cairo; Istanbul; Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Casablanca, Morocco; Doha, Qatar; and Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. About 50 flights a day, all on foreign airlines, are affected.



Earlier this month, reports said the Trump administration would broaden the ban to include planes from the European Union, affecting trans-Atlantic routes that carry as many as 65 million people a year.



US officials have said that initial ban was not based on any specific threat but on longstanding concerns about extremists targeting jetliners. Speaking on Fox and Friends on Friday, Kelly said some people would "never leave the house" if they knew what he knew about terrorist activity.



"There's a real threat," Kelly said on Sunday, adding that terrorists are "obsessed" with the idea of downing a plane in flight, "particularly if it's a US carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly US folks. It's real."

WASHINGTON: The Donald Trump administration is considering banning laptops from the passenger cabins of all international flights to and from the US, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly has said. Kelly, a retired general, was asked on Fox News on Sunday if he would expand an existing ban to cover laptops on all international flights into and out of the US, The Guardian reported. "I might," he said. Such a move would dramatically expand the ban, announced in March, that affects about 50 flights per day from 10 cities, mostly in the Middle East. The ban prevents travellers from bringing laptops, tablets and certain other devices on board in carry-on bags. All electronics bigger than a smartphone must be checked in. The measure applies to nonstop US-bound flights from 10 international airports in Amman, Jordan; Kuwait City, Kuwait; Cairo; Istanbul; Jeddah and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Casablanca, Morocco; Doha, Qatar; and Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. About 50 flights a day, all on foreign airlines, are affected. Earlier this month, reports said the Trump administration would broaden the ban to include planes from the European Union, affecting trans-Atlantic routes that carry as many as 65 million people a year. US officials have said that initial ban was not based on any specific threat but on longstanding concerns about extremists targeting jetliners. Speaking on Fox and Friends on Friday, Kelly said some people would "never leave the house" if they knew what he knew about terrorist activity. "There's a real threat," Kelly said on Sunday, adding that terrorists are "obsessed" with the idea of downing a plane in flight, "particularly if it's a US carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly US folks. It's real."
By AFP

VERSAILLES: France would respond immediately to any use of chemical weapons in Syria, French President Emmanuel Macron said today while urging a stepped-up "partnership" with Moscow in fighting the Islamic State group in the country.

"A very clear red line exists on our side, the use of chemical weapons by whomever," Macron said at a joint news conference in Versailles with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

"Our absolute priority is the fight against terrorism and the eradication of terrorist groups and Daesh in particular,"

he said, using an alternate name for the Islamic State group.

"It's the guiding principle of our action in Syria and in which I want... for us to be able to strengthen our partnership with Russia."

The newly elected French leader said he favoured "a democratic transition" in Syria that would "preserve the Syrian state".

He added that "failed states in the region are a threat to our democracies, and we have seen each time they have enabled terrorist groups to advance."

VERSAILLES: France would respond immediately to any use of chemical weapons in Syria, French President Emmanuel Macron said today while urging a stepped-up "partnership" with Moscow in fighting the Islamic State group in the country. "A very clear red line exists on our side, the use of chemical weapons by whomever," Macron said at a joint news conference in Versailles with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. "Our absolute priority is the fight against terrorism and the eradication of terrorist groups and Daesh in particular," he said, using an alternate name for the Islamic State group. "It's the guiding principle of our action in Syria and in which I want... for us to be able to strengthen our partnership with Russia." The newly elected French leader said he favoured "a democratic transition" in Syria that would "preserve the Syrian state". He added that "failed states in the region are a threat to our democracies, and we have seen each time they have enabled terrorist groups to advance."
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is taking a relook at its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance to be led by its former Army chief Gen Raheel Sharif to avoid further straining its relationship with neighbouring Iran, according to a media report today.

The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan has decided to follow clear redlines in joining the alliance first announced by Saudi Arabia in 2015.

Its decision comes after statements by Saudi authorities at the Arab Islamic-US summit in Riyadh on May 20-21 suggested that the military alliance was meant primarily to counter Iran - a regional rival of Saudi Arabia.

The Riyadh summit focused on isolating Iran - which was kept out of the summit - and countering terrorism in the Middle East.

Pakistani officials insisted that the Pakistan government in-principle agreed to be a part of the initiative if its sole purpose was to fight terrorism. It was believed that the government had joined the alliance when in April it green- lighted Gen Sharif to leave Pakistan to lead the alliance.

But the officials said a final decision will be made once the terms of reference (ToRs) of the alliance are finalised. The ToRs would be finalised during a meeting of the defence ministers of the participating countries in Saudi Arabia soon.

A senior official familiar with the development told the daily that Pakistan would present its set of proposals during the meeting.

Pakistan, according to the official, would recommend that the military alliance should have clear objective, that is to fight terrorism. Any deviation from this goal, he added, will not only undermine the alliance but lead to more divisions in the Muslim world.

"We are very clear that we will join this alliance only to fight terrorism," the official emphasised.

Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria has also indicated that Pakistan was yet to take a final decision.

"What we need to understand is that the Terms of Reference of the alliance are yet to be finalised. The defence ministers of the participating countries will meet and discuss the modalities of the coalition. We must wait until we have all the information to comment on its outcome. We shouldn't indulge in speculations," Zakaria said in one of his briefings.

The Pakistan government has already given a public commitment that it would not become part of any initiative whose aim is to target any other Islamic country, including Iran.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on the floor of the National Assembly has said that Pakistan would withdraw from the alliance if it turns out to be sectarian in nature.

Even Gen Sharif had reportedly told the Saudis that he would lead the grouping only if its main purpose was to fight terrorism and not aimed at any other Islamic country.

To avoid any strain in its ties with Iran, Pakistan had pushed for mediation between Tehran and Riyadh. Islamabad even mooted the idea of inclusion of Iran in the military alliance.

However, those efforts could not succeed since Saudi Arabia and Iran have serious differences on regional disputes, particularly the current hotspots in the Middle East.

Pakistan's main opposition parties  Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Peoples Party  have been calling for maintaining "neutrality" in the Arab-Iran rivalry. But given the longstanding strategic ties with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is unlikely to completely withdraw from the alliance.

Nonetheless, officials stressed, Pakistan's participation would remain confined to counter-terrorism efforts.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is taking a relook at its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance to be led by its former Army chief Gen Raheel Sharif to avoid further straining its relationship with neighbouring Iran, according to a media report today. The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan has decided to follow clear redlines in joining the alliance first announced by Saudi Arabia in 2015. Its decision comes after statements by Saudi authorities at the Arab Islamic-US summit in Riyadh on May 20-21 suggested that the military alliance was meant primarily to counter Iran - a regional rival of Saudi Arabia. The Riyadh summit focused on isolating Iran - which was kept out of the summit - and countering terrorism in the Middle East. Pakistani officials insisted that the Pakistan government in-principle agreed to be a part of the initiative if its sole purpose was to fight terrorism. It was believed that the government had joined the alliance when in April it green- lighted Gen Sharif to leave Pakistan to lead the alliance. But the officials said a final decision will be made once the terms of reference (ToRs) of the alliance are finalised. The ToRs would be finalised during a meeting of the defence ministers of the participating countries in Saudi Arabia soon. A senior official familiar with the development told the daily that Pakistan would present its set of proposals during the meeting. Pakistan, according to the official, would recommend that the military alliance should have clear objective, that is to fight terrorism. Any deviation from this goal, he added, will not only undermine the alliance but lead to more divisions in the Muslim world. "We are very clear that we will join this alliance only to fight terrorism," the official emphasised. Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria has also indicated that Pakistan was yet to take a final decision. "What we need to understand is that the Terms of Reference of the alliance are yet to be finalised. The defence ministers of the participating countries will meet and discuss the modalities of the coalition. We must wait until we have all the information to comment on its outcome. We shouldn't indulge in speculations," Zakaria said in one of his briefings. The Pakistan government has already given a public commitment that it would not become part of any initiative whose aim is to target any other Islamic country, including Iran. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on the floor of the National Assembly has said that Pakistan would withdraw from the alliance if it turns out to be sectarian in nature. Even Gen Sharif had reportedly told the Saudis that he would lead the grouping only if its main purpose was to fight terrorism and not aimed at any other Islamic country. To avoid any strain in its ties with Iran, Pakistan had pushed for mediation between Tehran and Riyadh. Islamabad even mooted the idea of inclusion of Iran in the military alliance. However, those efforts could not succeed since Saudi Arabia and Iran have serious differences on regional disputes, particularly the current hotspots in the Middle East. Pakistan's main opposition parties  Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Peoples Party  have been calling for maintaining "neutrality" in the Arab-Iran rivalry. But given the longstanding strategic ties with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is unlikely to completely withdraw from the alliance. Nonetheless, officials stressed, Pakistan's participation would remain confined to counter-terrorism efforts.
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Supreme Court today dismissed the objections raised by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's son against members of a team investigating the Sharif family's overseas businesses in connection with the Panama Papers case.

Hussain Nawaz had pleaded the apex court urging it to remove two members of the six-member Joint Investigation Team (JIT) the court had appointed in April to investigate corruption allegations against members of the Sharif family.

A three-member special bench heard the Hussain's plea in which he had said that two members - Bilal Rasool of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and Amer Aziz of the State Bank of Pakistan - should be removed as members of the JIT, allegeing that they were not impartial.

He had said the presence of these two members may affect the fairness and impartiality of the JIT and its findings.

Hussain's counsel, Khawaja Haris, had alleged before the bench that the two members have been "abusive", Dawn reported.

Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, who headed the bench, dismissed the accusation and ordered the JIT to continue its probe. Khan also said the two members were experts in white-collar crime.

"We will not change any member of the JIT, nor will we prevent someone from doing their work," the judge remarked, drawing attention to the fact that a special bench of the Supreme Court has appointed the six members of the JIT.

"Whether it is the prime minister or an ordinary citizen, nobody is above the law," he added.

The JIT has submitted an initial report before the apex court on May 22 and was told to complete the probe in 60 days. It has to submit a fortnightly progress report to the court.

The case against the Sharifs is for alleged money laundering in the 90s when he twice served as prime minister. The JIT was formed as a result of the case filed last year after the names of his children appeared in the leaked Panama Papers, which documented the offshore dealings of many of the world's rich and powerful.

Prime Minister Sharif has denied any wrongdoing.

Meanwhile at the hearing today, Federal Investigation Agency's Additional Director Gen Wajid Zia, who heads the JIT, told the Supreme Court that Qatari royal Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al-Thani has not appeared before the investigating team.

Two letters signed by the Qatari royal have been presented before the court by the Sharifs to establish the legitimate money trail for the London apartments, that are at the heart of the corruption allegation.

Justice Khan said that if the Qatari royal did not appear before the JIT, his letters would be thrown out.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Supreme Court today dismissed the objections raised by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's son against members of a team investigating the Sharif family's overseas businesses in connection with the Panama Papers case. Hussain Nawaz had pleaded the apex court urging it to remove two members of the six-member Joint Investigation Team (JIT) the court had appointed in April to investigate corruption allegations against members of the Sharif family. A three-member special bench heard the Hussain's plea in which he had said that two members - Bilal Rasool of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and Amer Aziz of the State Bank of Pakistan - should be removed as members of the JIT, allegeing that they were not impartial. He had said the presence of these two members may affect the fairness and impartiality of the JIT and its findings. Hussain's counsel, Khawaja Haris, had alleged before the bench that the two members have been "abusive", Dawn reported. Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan, who headed the bench, dismissed the accusation and ordered the JIT to continue its probe. Khan also said the two members were experts in white-collar crime. "We will not change any member of the JIT, nor will we prevent someone from doing their work," the judge remarked, drawing attention to the fact that a special bench of the Supreme Court has appointed the six members of the JIT. "Whether it is the prime minister or an ordinary citizen, nobody is above the law," he added. The JIT has submitted an initial report before the apex court on May 22 and was told to complete the probe in 60 days. It has to submit a fortnightly progress report to the court. The case against the Sharifs is for alleged money laundering in the 90s when he twice served as prime minister. The JIT was formed as a result of the case filed last year after the names of his children appeared in the leaked Panama Papers, which documented the offshore dealings of many of the world's rich and powerful. Prime Minister Sharif has denied any wrongdoing. Meanwhile at the hearing today, Federal Investigation Agency's Additional Director Gen Wajid Zia, who heads the JIT, told the Supreme Court that Qatari royal Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al-Thani has not appeared before the investigating team. Two letters signed by the Qatari royal have been presented before the court by the Sharifs to establish the legitimate money trail for the London apartments, that are at the heart of the corruption allegation. Justice Khan said that if the Qatari royal did not appear before the JIT, his letters would be thrown out.
By AFP

KIEV: Kiev security services today said they were conducting searches in the Ukrainian offices of the popular Russian internet company Yandex as part of a treason probe.

"The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) is conducting searches in the offices of the subsidiary of the Russian company Yandex in Kiev and Odessa", SBU spokeswoman Olena Gitlyanska wrote on her Facebook page.

Gitlyanska specified that the search is part of a criminal probe into "state treason", though without specifying what Yandex Ukraine's alleged role is in the probe.

The company's press service told Russian news agency Tass that they have no information about the reasons of SBU actions.

"Lawyers are already on their way to our offices", Yandex said, adding that the company is ready to "provide the necessary information."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told AFP that "there is not enough information to understand what is going on - are these investigative actions or an audit".

The move comes after Ukraine blocked Russia's most popular social media networks and the Yandex search engine earlier this month in response to the Kremlin's alleged backing of a three-year separatist war in the east.

Peskov had called Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's decision "another manifestation of unfriendly, short-sighted policy toward Russia".

The ban remains in effect for three years.

KIEV: Kiev security services today said they were conducting searches in the Ukrainian offices of the popular Russian internet company Yandex as part of a treason probe. "The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) is conducting searches in the offices of the subsidiary of the Russian company Yandex in Kiev and Odessa", SBU spokeswoman Olena Gitlyanska wrote on her Facebook page. Gitlyanska specified that the search is part of a criminal probe into "state treason", though without specifying what Yandex Ukraine's alleged role is in the probe. The company's press service told Russian news agency Tass that they have no information about the reasons of SBU actions. "Lawyers are already on their way to our offices", Yandex said, adding that the company is ready to "provide the necessary information." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told AFP that "there is not enough information to understand what is going on - are these investigative actions or an audit". The move comes after Ukraine blocked Russia's most popular social media networks and the Yandex search engine earlier this month in response to the Kremlin's alleged backing of a three-year separatist war in the east. Peskov had called Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's decision "another manifestation of unfriendly, short-sighted policy toward Russia". The ban remains in effect for three years.
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has had a significant 40 per cent drop in the number of American visas granted to its nationals under the new Trump administration despite not being on the list of the US President's travel ban countries.

Interestingly, the number of non-immigrant US visas to Indians has increased by 28 per cent in March and April this year as compared to the monthly average of the previous year, according to the newly-released monthly official data.

Non-immigrant visas granted to Pakistanis are down by 40 per cent in March and April this year compared to the 2016 monthly average, a Pakistani media report said quoting data released by the US State Department.

Pakistanis were issued 3,925 non-immigrant visas in April and 3,973 visas in March 2017 under the Trump administration.

The Obama administration last year issued a total of 78,637 non-immigrant visas to Pakistanis with a monthly average of 6,553, which was 40 per cent higher than the current average.

Before March this year, the State Department did not release monthly breakdowns of visas and only annual figures were available.

The report compared the March and April 2017 figures with monthly averages for 2016. Even in 2015, monthly average remained 6,179 as a total of 74,150 Pakistanis had been granted visas.

A spokesperson of the State Department told the The News International: "Visa demand is cyclical, not uniform throughout the year and affected by various factors at the local and international level. Visa issuance numbers tend to increase during peak travel seasons, such as during the summer and the winter holidays, though there may be different trends at the country, nationality, or visa-category level".

The data showed that Indian nationals received 87,049 visas in April and 97,925 visas in March this year. Last year, people from India received 72,082 non-immigrant visas each month on average with an annual total of 864,987 visas.

Pakistan is not the only Muslim-majority country experiencing decline in non-immigrant US visas. A similar analysis of 50 Muslim majority countries reveals that number of visas issued to their nationals has also declined by 20 per cent in April as compared to their monthly country average last year, the report said.

The six countries targeted by President Donald Trump's revised travel ban -- Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen -- experienced a 55 per cent decline in non-immigrant visas compared with last year's monthly average.

Experts believe that drop in visas may indicate that more visa applicants are now subject to excessive scrutiny.

In January, Trump signed an executive order temporarily barring people from seven Muslim-majority countries -- Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen.

In March, he signed the revised travel ban excluding Iraq from the list. The order was challenged in a court and a judge had halted the travel ban.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has had a significant 40 per cent drop in the number of American visas granted to its nationals under the new Trump administration despite not being on the list of the US President's travel ban countries. Interestingly, the number of non-immigrant US visas to Indians has increased by 28 per cent in March and April this year as compared to the monthly average of the previous year, according to the newly-released monthly official data. Non-immigrant visas granted to Pakistanis are down by 40 per cent in March and April this year compared to the 2016 monthly average, a Pakistani media report said quoting data released by the US State Department. Pakistanis were issued 3,925 non-immigrant visas in April and 3,973 visas in March 2017 under the Trump administration. The Obama administration last year issued a total of 78,637 non-immigrant visas to Pakistanis with a monthly average of 6,553, which was 40 per cent higher than the current average. Before March this year, the State Department did not release monthly breakdowns of visas and only annual figures were available. The report compared the March and April 2017 figures with monthly averages for 2016. Even in 2015, monthly average remained 6,179 as a total of 74,150 Pakistanis had been granted visas. A spokesperson of the State Department told the The News International: "Visa demand is cyclical, not uniform throughout the year and affected by various factors at the local and international level. Visa issuance numbers tend to increase during peak travel seasons, such as during the summer and the winter holidays, though there may be different trends at the country, nationality, or visa-category level". The data showed that Indian nationals received 87,049 visas in April and 97,925 visas in March this year. Last year, people from India received 72,082 non-immigrant visas each month on average with an annual total of 864,987 visas. Pakistan is not the only Muslim-majority country experiencing decline in non-immigrant US visas. A similar analysis of 50 Muslim majority countries reveals that number of visas issued to their nationals has also declined by 20 per cent in April as compared to their monthly country average last year, the report said. The six countries targeted by President Donald Trump's revised travel ban -- Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen -- experienced a 55 per cent decline in non-immigrant visas compared with last year's monthly average. Experts believe that drop in visas may indicate that more visa applicants are now subject to excessive scrutiny. In January, Trump signed an executive order temporarily barring people from seven Muslim-majority countries -- Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen. In March, he signed the revised travel ban excluding Iraq from the list. The order was challenged in a court and a judge had halted the travel ban.
By IANS

WASHINGTON: The US intelligence community has informed Congress that Pakistan does not want heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan and will likely turn to China to offset New Delhi's sway in Kabul, the media reported on Monday.

During a recent hearing on Afghanistan at the Senate Armed Services Committee, US intelligence chiefs assessed the situation in the war-torn country, and discussed Pakistan's interests in Kabul, Dawn reported.

The Trump administration is finalising a new policy for Afghanistan and the ongoing consultations in the White House have generated much interest in the US media and think tanks.

Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger recently suggested resuming air strikes on terrorist targets in Pakistan.

Observers in Washington said the Trump administration might do so if terrorists targeted US military personnel and installations in Afghanistan.

"Pakistan is concerned about international isolation and sees its position through the prism of India's rising status, including New Delhi's expanded foreign outreach and deepening ties to the US," said National Intelligence Director Dan Coats, who leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI.

"Pakistan will likely turn to China to offset its isolation, empowering a relationship that will help Beijing to project influence in the Indian Ocean," the Dawn quoted Coats as saying.

Coats said Islamabad had failed to curb terrorists in Pakistan and because of this failure, "these groups will present a sustained threat to the US interests in the region and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan".

"Pakistan desires for Afghanistan some of the same things we want: a safe, secure, stable Afghanistan. One addition -- there is no have heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan," said Defence Intelligence Director Lt General Vincent Stewart.

"They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations... so that -- if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan's interests," the General said.

Coats told the Senate committee that despite increased military efforts, the Taliban continues to make gains in Afghanistan.

Senator Joni Kay Ernst, an Illinois Republican, asked the intelligence chiefs to spell out the measures that the US would like Afghanistan's neighbours to take to help stabilise the region.

"I think certainly an evaluation of how we work with Pakistan to address the situation of the harbouring of terrorist groups would be essential to a strategy that affects Afghanistan," Coats replied.

"Because that is potentially a very disrupting situation, putting our own troops at risk and undermining the strategy of dealing with the Taliban and local groups that are trying to undermine the (Afghan) government," Coats said.

"Besides more troops, do we need to implement a different strategy on the ground in Afghanistan?" Senator Ernst asked General Stewart.

"We've got to convince Pakistan if they're harbouring any of the Haqqani network members that it is not in their interest to continue to host Haqqani network," Stewart said.

The General urged the Trump administration to work with Afghanistan's neighbours to go after the 20 terrorist organisations that were still active in the region. "They undermine not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but all of the region."

Stewart also suggested "pushing" Pakistan to do more against the Haqqani network and urged US policymakers to "separate the Taliban from the Pashtun", because Pakistan wanted a Pashtun-dominated Afghanistan.

"So we've got to get the conversation going again with Pakistan about their role in not harbouring any of these terrorists, helping to stabilise Afghanistan," he said.

Stewart said he believed Pakistan still had some influence in bringing Taliban to the table. "So we've got to get them to think about reconciliation, that the status quo is not in their best interest."

WASHINGTON: The US intelligence community has informed Congress that Pakistan does not want heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan and will likely turn to China to offset New Delhi's sway in Kabul, the media reported on Monday. During a recent hearing on Afghanistan at the Senate Armed Services Committee, US intelligence chiefs assessed the situation in the war-torn country, and discussed Pakistan's interests in Kabul, Dawn reported. The Trump administration is finalising a new policy for Afghanistan and the ongoing consultations in the White House have generated much interest in the US media and think tanks. Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger recently suggested resuming air strikes on terrorist targets in Pakistan. Observers in Washington said the Trump administration might do so if terrorists targeted US military personnel and installations in Afghanistan. "Pakistan is concerned about international isolation and sees its position through the prism of India's rising status, including New Delhi's expanded foreign outreach and deepening ties to the US," said National Intelligence Director Dan Coats, who leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI. "Pakistan will likely turn to China to offset its isolation, empowering a relationship that will help Beijing to project influence in the Indian Ocean," the Dawn quoted Coats as saying. Coats said Islamabad had failed to curb terrorists in Pakistan and because of this failure, "these groups will present a sustained threat to the US interests in the region and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan". "Pakistan desires for Afghanistan some of the same things we want: a safe, secure, stable Afghanistan. One addition -- there is no have heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan," said Defence Intelligence Director Lt General Vincent Stewart. "They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations... so that -- if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan's interests," the General said. Coats told the Senate committee that despite increased military efforts, the Taliban continues to make gains in Afghanistan. Senator Joni Kay Ernst, an Illinois Republican, asked the intelligence chiefs to spell out the measures that the US would like Afghanistan's neighbours to take to help stabilise the region. "I think certainly an evaluation of how we work with Pakistan to address the situation of the harbouring of terrorist groups would be essential to a strategy that affects Afghanistan," Coats replied. "Because that is potentially a very disrupting situation, putting our own troops at risk and undermining the strategy of dealing with the Taliban and local groups that are trying to undermine the (Afghan) government," Coats said. "Besides more troops, do we need to implement a different strategy on the ground in Afghanistan?" Senator Ernst asked General Stewart. "We've got to convince Pakistan if they're harbouring any of the Haqqani network members that it is not in their interest to continue to host Haqqani network," Stewart said. The General urged the Trump administration to work with Afghanistan's neighbours to go after the 20 terrorist organisations that were still active in the region. "They undermine not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but all of the region." Stewart also suggested "pushing" Pakistan to do more against the Haqqani network and urged US policymakers to "separate the Taliban from the Pashtun", because Pakistan wanted a Pashtun-dominated Afghanistan. "So we've got to get the conversation going again with Pakistan about their role in not harbouring any of these terrorists, helping to stabilise Afghanistan," he said. Stewart said he believed Pakistan still had some influence in bringing Taliban to the table. "So we've got to get them to think about reconciliation, that the status quo is not in their best interest."
More than ten flats of a five-storey building on Tolstoho street in Krasnohorivka were damaged in shelling this morning, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said on its website on Sunday, citing Ukrainian representatives in the Joint Center for Control and Coordination (JCCC).

"Three flats were destroyed almost completely. The shell hit the window of a flat on the fourth floor. The blast ruined partitions on the third and fifth floors. Luckily, residents had left the house on time. The number of injured people reached eight. Again, luckily these are all minor injuries," a statement says.

The shelling of the town's residential sector continued from 6.35 a.m. till 9 a.m., with the enemy using large-caliber weapons prohibited by the Minsk agreements, the JCCC said.

Shells also hit the ambulance and neurology unit of a local district hospital, ripped through the roof of school No. 2 on Nakhimova Street, causing fire, and damaged residential buildings on Mayakovskoho, Belynskoho, Hrushevskoho, Bohdana Khmelnytskoho, Tchaikovskoho and Kashtanova Streets.

A group of JCCC monitors continues working in the town and investigating other circumstances surrounding the attack.

Three days ago the enemy already shelled a local hospital, agrarian college and residential areas, the statement says. "The barbaric shelling of the same quarters of the populated locality proves that bandits are pounding Krasnohorivka's vital infrastructure absolutely conscientiously and deliberately and that for them no laws of humanism and warfare exist. Such terror attacks by illegal armed groups of the Separate Districts of the Donetsk Region against civilian population are another attestation of gross violations of the Minsk agreements, the deliberate planning and execution of terror attacks against civilian population," the JCCC said.
Richard Underwood, a lieutenant for the U.S. Army during the Korean War, shares his experience then and why Memorial Day is important to him.
Today we release the important update to our most in demand clinical guideline, on the Management of Gout. Gout is the most searched for term on our website and its is a particularly painful form of arthritis which is becoming more common, yet continues to be poorly managed.

This latest Guideline is for all UK doctors and allied health professionals in primary and secondary care who look after and treat patients with the condition. It is an update of previous guidance, created in response to increases in the incidence, prevalence and severity of gout; the availability of new pharmaceutical treatment options; continuing suboptimal management in both primary and secondary care; and better understanding of the barriers to effective care experienced by patients and providers.

The most important change from the previous guideline is the recommendation that curative treatment with urate-lowering drugs should be offered to all patients with gout early in the course of their disease rather than waiting for them to develop troublesome, disabling symptoms.

The key recommendations fall into three areas: management of acute attacks; modification of lifestyle and risk factors; optimal use of urate-lowering therapies.

Several recommendations help health professionals help their patients to manage their own condition through information - on managing acute attacks; continuing any established urate-lowering therapy during an attack; the causes and consequences of gout and hyperuricaemia; on healthy lifestyle choices to tackle the risk factors of alcohol consumption and obesity; and the rationale, aims and use of urate-lowering therapy to target urate levels.

Other clinician focused advice is that all patients with gout should be screened for cardiovascular risk factors and co-morbid conditions such as cigarette smoking, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidaemia, obesity and renal disease.

The full guideline contains specific recommendations for management of gout in special groups: patients with renal sufficiency, severe refractory tophaceous gout, and in pregnancy. The guidelines are accredited by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) which recognises robust, evidence-based and critically evaluated high-quality processes applied to developing a clinical guideline.

Commenting on the updated guidance, lead author Dr Edward Roddy, Reader in Rheumatology and Consultant Rheumatologist at Keele University commented:

The Working Group who created this guideline included experts from primary and secondary care and also patient members. The guideline will be invaluable for UK practitioners in managing the condition and in guiding professionals towards the key advice and information to pass on to their patients. Wide dissemination and implementation of this guideline will have an immediate impact on clinical care in specialist rheumatology as well as general practice.

Dr Elizabeth MacPhie, Chair of the Standards, Audit and Guidelines Working Group at the British Society for Rheumatology and Consultant Rheumatologist added:

Guidelines are massively important. Rheumatologists, general medical consultants and general practitioners will all be interested in this one. Gout is our most in demand guideline. This is because gout is common, excruciatingly painful and certainly not confined to the 18th century, as the public might believe.

Harry L Forrester, retired Cost Accountant of Fole near Uttoxeter has gout and was on the Working Group creating the guideline. He said:
A 5-year-old boy, who is profoundly disabled and has complex needs, has been given his first full nights sleep thanks to a pioneering new sleep system.

Alex Ray from Huddersfield was born three months prematurely. His condition means he is unable to walk or talk and is severely vision impaired. He also has severe epilepsy, scoliosis, both hips are dislocated and cannot sit up unaided and is tube-fed.

His mum, Sarah has frantically tried to find a mattress or sleep system that would allow Alex to sleep more than just a few hours.

Unfortunately, nothing has worked and Alex, along with his exhausted mum, has only ever had 3 or 4 hours of uninterrupted sleep per night.

It wasnt until they used a new UK manufactured sleep system, originally designed for people with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and Multiple Sclerosis (MS), that the familys life was completely transformed.

The results have been amazing, said Sarah. Alex will settle almost straight away and he sleeps straight through the night uninterrupted, which was unheard of before.

He is also having fewer seizures, as a result of having more sleep and his physio has noticed he is a lot more relaxed in sessions, especially around his shoulders.

Designed by Mobility with Dignity, a unique feature of the Comfier is a set of 10 large inflatable tubes, manufactured by Chesterfield based Speed Plastics, that fit easily on top of Alexs existing mattress.

These large tubes can be individually inflated or deflated by the user or their carer until they are in a comfortable position. Unlike most static sleep systems, this means the user can decide exactly how soft or hard the support under any part of their body is at any time.

Sarah is able to easily inflate and deflate the tubes to suit Alexs comfort and clinical preferences. Additionally, there is a tube under either side of the Comfier which keep Alex straight and protected in the same position throughout the night.

The system can be controlled in a number of ways, including a hand held remote control, a variety of buttons and switches and even using retinal scanning (eye gaze) devices.

Sarah added:

At last I have peace of mind, because I know Alex is comfortable and wont slide down the bed, which was the main problem with other sleep systems in the past. It has totally transformed our lives and I dont know how we coped without it.

Engineer, Dane McGee, who designed the system, explains the concept for the Comfier came from his desire to give people with limited or no mobility the chance to sleep comfortably.

He attended local support groups across Yorkshire to work with clinicians, physios and families to see how his designs could help people, who for medical reasons couldnt get comfortable.

The Comfier was originally designed for people with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) and Multiple Sclerosis (MS) but after hearing Sarah and Alexs story we just wanted to help, said Dane.

Im delighted that it has helped them and has given both Alex and Sarah the sleep they so desperately needed. Our aim was always to enable people with limited mobility and complex care needs to regain independence and control, so its heart-warming to hear just how much it has improved their lives.

Source: http://www.speedplastics.co.uk/pioneering-sleep-system-gives-5-year-old-boy-with-complex-needs-his-first-nights/
An international research team led by UvA researchers Jeroen Bos, Martin Vinck and Cyriel Pennartz has identified a new type of neuron which might play a vital role in humans' ability to navigate their environments. The discovery is an important step towards understanding how the brain codes navigation behaviour at larger scales and could potentially open up new treatment strategies for people with impaired topographical orientation like Alzheimer's patients. The team's results are published in the latest edition of Nature Communications.

Every day billions of people across the planet successfully navigate their environments, for example when they go to work or head home. Such journeys generally happen with little conscious effort and rest on the brain's ability to use overall knowledge of an environment to make estimates of where it finds itself. The ability to make fine grained assessments of location is seated in the hippocampus, a seahorse-shaped structure located in the temporal lobe. Research shows that the precise mechanism for navigation includes hippocampal place cells, which increase or decrease in electrical activity depending on one's location. However, when making their daily commute, people don't need very detailed representations of which houses they pass in which order. Instead, they can make due with more course information. Left at the museum and somewhere down the road right again at the supermarket, called topographical orientation.

Building on current research, the researchers investigated how large scale navigational knowledge is coded within the brain and whether this process indeed occurs in different structures within the temporal lobe. They did this by training rats to perform a visually guided task in a figure-8 maze consisting of two loops that overlap in the middle lane. During the experiment, the researchers measured electrical activity in the brain by using a novel instrument which allowed the researchers to simultaneously record groups of neurons from four different areas. They recorded from the perirhinal cortex, hippocampus and two sensory areas. Recordings from the perirhinal cortex revealed sustained activity patterns. The level of electrical activity clearly rose and fell depending on the segment the rats were in and persisted throughout that entire segment.

'We found a pronounced difference between the responses in the perirhinal cortex and responses in other areas of the brain', says Jeroen Bos, lead author and researcher at the UvA's Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences. 'Units from the perirhinal cortex had sustained responses throughout the whole loop. By contrast, responses from hippocampal place cells were scattered across the maze and their fields were much smaller than the loops of the maze. We were surprised to see the perirhinal cortex's responses align so closely with the layout of the maze, primarily because the region is commonly associated with object recognition. This seems to be a new type of neuron, which we have informally dubbed the 'neighbourhood cell'. This neuron seems to enable the brain to specifically differentiate between distinct segments ("neighbourhoods") of the environment.'

Neuroscience eBook Compilation of the top interviews, articles, and news in the last year. Download a copy today

The team's results offer a first glimpse on how the brain is able to code navigation behaviour at larger scales and could be especially relevant for people with an impaired capacity for topographical orientation. The large scale of perirhinal coding contrasts with the finer scale of hippocampal coding. 'It is known that patients with Alzheimer's disease or with damage to the temporal lobe have great difficulty finding their way, especially to remote goal locations', says fellow researcher and professor of Cognitive Systems and Neuroscience Cyriel Pennartz. 'Albeit new, our findings don't conflict with previous literature on this phenomenon, for example such as the long-time London cab driver who sustained hippocampal damage. Although the driver could still navigate through the city, he remained highly dependent on main roads and would frequently get lost when using side streets. It might be that he was using the perirhinal cortex for global orientation but could no longer make use of the fine-grained place fields normally found in the hippocampus.'

In addition to offering new insights into brain mechanisms for spatial navigation at different scales, the results may guide patients with Alzheimer's or other diseases in using other spatial strategies than the ones most severely affected. The findings point to the perirhinal cortex as a target for treatment. Finally, research on neural replacement devices and assistive robots may benefit from this study.
Beijing: Days after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 9.2 km Dhola-Sadiya bridge, China asked India to be "cautious" and exercise "restraint" over building infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh.



China has since long claimed Arunachal Pradesh as its own, part of a long-standing border dispute between the two countries.



"We hope India adopts a cautious and restrained attitude on the issue before the final settlement of the border issue with China to jointly control disputes, safeguard peace and tranquility in the border areas," the Chinese Foreign Ministry told IANS.



"China's position on the eastern section of the Sino-Indian border areas is consistent and clear," a statement in Chinese said.



Last week, Modi opened the country's longest bridge over Brahmaputra river connecting Assam's easternmost region with Arunachal Pradesh, claimed and dubbed by China as South Tibet.



"China and India should resolve territorial disputes through negotiations and consultations between the two countries," the Foreign Ministry said.



The Dhola-Sadiya bridge will cut the distance and travel time between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by 165 km and five hours.



Analysts say the bridge will ensure swift movement of Indian troops in Arunachal Pradesh, which, therefore, will bolster India's defence along the China border.



China and India fought a brief war in 1962 when the Chinese entered Arunachal Pradesh and unilaterally declared a ceasefire after withdrawing to the McMahon Line.



Since then Indian and Chinese troops have had several skirmishes.



China has long been building infrastructure along the border unlike India, which, experts say, avoided building roads in the region, fearing a repeat of the 1962 war when the People's Liberation Army troops entered Assam.



(With inputs from IANS)
New Delhi: As law school aspirants across the country check their Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) scores and zero in on the college where they would want to study for the next five years, Professor N R Madhava Menon, popularly known as the father of modern legal education in India, told News18 that he would like the 5-year law course to be split into a 4+1-year program to facilitate specialized training.



According to Menon, the last year should be used for training the students according to their choice.



I would like the 5-year integrated LLB Course to be split into a 4+1-year programme under which the first four years will be law school-based teaching of compulsory and optional subjects, and the final year would be devoted to customized training in the field under the supervision of the law school. This final year training will depend upon the career choice of the student, namely (a) Litigative Practice (b) Corporate Transaction Practice (c) Mediation & Arbitration (d) Community Lawyering (e) Judicial/Civil services, etc, Menon told News18.



With many students now opting for distance legal education, Menon called it fit for serving the purpose of public legal education, and not something beyond that. Distance education is ideal for public legal education. However, for professional legal education, which involves training in skills, ethics and attitudes, distance education has to be necessarily supplemented by practical training programmes in an institution, said Menon.



Prof. Menons views were echoed by another eminent jurist and the Vice Chancellor of National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR), Hyderabad, who told News18 that the idea of splitting the law courses was good, but should only be limited to the creme de la creme students.



In NALSAR, a student had to earn 180 credits before he or she could be awarded the five-year law degree. But I made it 200 credits by establishing a relationship between attendance and credits earned. Prof Menons idea of splitting the law course will hold good only if students can complete earning their 200 credit till the 4th year. Then, the last year could be reserved for honing ones interests like judicial services, litigation, or corporate practice. But this idea cannot be implemented all across India as it would only suit the best of students, said Prof Faizan Mustafa.



However, Professor Mustafa also called for a complete overhaul of the uniform law syllabus in the country and said that the uniform law entrance or syllabus in India does not meet the need of our diverse country.



I do not support the Uniform Civil Code and prefer piecemeal reforms. Similarly, India should also get rid of one single common law entrance exam for the entire country or a uniform law syllabus across the country. It does not meet the demand of a diverse country like India. Today, law students are hardly prepared for the real action which takes place in the lower courts. Separate curriculum and courses will help, which will teach one things like the Shop Lifting Act and Goonda Act. If a student wants to practice in Rampur, why are we teaching him International Trade Law? said Prof Mustafa.
New Delhi: West Bengal PWD Minister Arup Biswas is still using a red beacon, despite a nationwide ban on it and claims that the Mamata Banerjee government has not banned lal battis yet.



TMC MP Sougata Roy said, I cant comment on this issue.



Earlier, the Shahi Imam of Kolkatas Tipu Sultan mosque, Maulana Noor-ur Rehman Barkati, had also drawn criticism for refusing to take down his red beacon.



I don't think this even matters. It is pointless. There are red beacons everywhere, on top of planes, then why not cars? Barkati had said.



The cleric had claimed that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has given him the permission to use red beacon and that Shahi Imam has been given the nod by the erstwhile British government.



Barkati finally removed the red beacon, but only after persuasion by the Bengal CM. He was also involved in a war of words with Mass Education Minister Siddiqullah Chowdhury who had protested outside the Tipu Sultan mosque against Barkati.



Noor-ur-Rehman Barkati, the maverick imam of Kolkatas Tipu Sultan mosque, who finally removed the red beacon from his car on Saturday after being prodded by chief minister Mamata Banerjee, lodged a police complaint against minister and minority leader Siddiqullah Chowdhury who staged a protest outside the mosque against the clerics reckless behavior.







The Union Cabinet on April 19 decided that the red beacon light will be removed from all vehicles, including that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The move got implemented from May 1 is seen as a crackdown on the VIP culture.
In exactly a month from now will begin the annual pilgrimage to Amarnath cave.This years 40-day yatra, starting from June 29, will be held in highly charged atmosphere  a month after Hizbul commander Sabzar Bhats death and nearly a week before July 8, the day Burhan Wani was killed last year.Incidents of clashes between stone-pelters and security forces are as frequent as ever.The Home Secretary has himself held a meeting to review security of Amarnath Yatris. More than 27,000 personnel will be deployed to secure this years yatra. The yatra, which last year was 48 days long, has been cut short by 8 days.There are equal threats from militants and stone-pelters. All threats are being taken care of, Ashok Prasad, advisor in the Home Ministry, told reporters last week.Around 100 people have already died in the valley after Wanis encounter last July.According to sources in the army, there are 150 foreign militants in the valley right now, and for the first time they are outnumbered by the presence of 250 local recruits. The militants have since the beginning of this year picked up the ante, as protests have intensified. But this is still not the biggest concern to the security forces in securing the Yatra.Amarnath Yatra will begin roughly around the time when youth-led unrest in the valley will complete one full year of clashing with security forces. These protests seem to be beyond the control of any political party, militant outfit or separatist camp.And how these mobs behave around July 8 is the biggest fear for the security forces on the ground.We have not received any specific input, as far as militant groups are concerned, on the Yatra being targeted as of now. But our main worry is about how these youth-led mobs will behave during the Yatra. All thats required is for one among the mob to call for attacks on the Yatris and that could lead to a serious situation, said a senior CRPF officer posted in the valley.It is for this reason, the officer added, that Yatra this time is being considered with greater sensitivity than it has been quite some time.CRPF, which already has 300 companies in the valley right now, will deploy 100 more companies to secure the Yatra. Each company has 80 soldiers.Overall, more than 30,000 soldiers from local police, CRPF and army were deployed in last years Amarnath Yatra.So far no separatist outfit or militant group has opposed the yatra. The head of the moderate wing of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC), Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, told News 18, that the Hurriyat is looking at Amarnath Yatra as a window of opportunity.There is nothing for the yatris to fear. Even at the peak of 2016 agitation not one yatri was harmed. There are no two ways about it, we welcome the yatra. But we also hope that when the yatris come to Kashmir they for themselves see the heavily militarised zone that we live in, said Mirwaiz.He added that he hoped that the tourists understand and tell other people about the conditions we live in every single day, and help in starting a dialogue with New Delhi. In this sense, we are looking at the upcoming Yatra with a sense of hope and as an opportunity.Though there has been no opposition to the Yatra from any political camp, it is being opposed by civil society groups. Last month, a report on Yatra was released by Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society. It was titled Amarnath Yatra: A Militarized Pilgrimage and talked about how the ever increasing size of the Yatra was creating an ecological hazard.The report also made several political statements, such as, [by conducting this Yatra] Indian State comes through clearly as a Hindu state, privileging the rights of Hindu pilgrims over pressing local environmental and human rights concerns. In Kashmir this divisive communalisation has further significance given that it is a disputed territory, and a Muslim majority region.Khurram Pervez, a Kashmir-based human rights activist who co-authored the report, told News 18, Kashmiris will continue to welcome the Yatris as they always have.He said he saw no reason, why the Yatra should be opposed or obstructed in any way. It is very important to the people who are connected with Kashmirs hospitality industry. Political people have also said that the Yatra should go on. But our concerns are the ecological imbalances should be addressed. We dont think the Yatra is an emotive issue. Last year also 4.25 lakh people turned up for the Yatra but not one was harmed in any way.Security officials who are making arrangements for the Yatra are banking on the fact that even during peak turmoil in the state the Yatra or the Yatris have never been attacked, except once  in 2000 when terrorists struck at the base camp of the yatra in Pahalgam, killing 32 people.An IG-rank official in the state police said that if the Yatra is attacked this time, it will mark a significant shift in the nature of unrest in Kashmir.I have been here long enough to know that the Yatra has, apart from one incident, never been attacked. And even at that time we have reasons to believe that the terrorists were aiming for our men rather than the yatris. At the maximum there have been incidents of some stone pelting, for which we are prepared. I cannot rule out an attack on the Yatra, but if such a thing happens it will be something never seen before. Such an attack, if carried out, will change a lot of dynamics in the state.But it has been a year of unprecedented developments in Kashmir. Militants from different groups coming together in one video, more than 90 local youths joining militancy in 2016 alone, students leading protests in the valley, politicians hiding in Srinagar. All this has happened mostly since last July 8.Which is why everyone, from security officers, to political parties to separatists and the people outside the state will keenly be observing as the first batch of Amarnath Yatris begin the annual pilgrimage this year.
The city was treated to some much-needed rain respite on Sunday, but along with the showers returned the toxic froth in the Varathur Lake. The lake near Whitefield Main Road started foaming again and the froth spilled onto the roads, inconveniencing commuters.A wired mesh erected had been holding the froth from spreading to the road till now but gushing winds over the weekend brought the foam and its unbearable stench to the road.The siphon system, which was installed on pilot basis at Varthur Kodi to suppress the froth, was rendered defunct as gushing rainwater and sewage saw froth rise over.A report in Bangalore Mirror said the incident comes after Bengaluru development minister KJ Georges visit to the affected area on May 26. George reportedly spoke to the residents who told him of the lakes condition. George told them the authorities would look into the issue, but the problem returned.Varthur Lake is one of many lakes plagued with problems in Bengaluru. The Bellandur Lake which also foams up during rains made headlines recently for catching fire. Effluents and chemical discharge from surrounding establishments end up polluting the lakes.The city has received 24.13 cm rain since May 1. The average rainfall in May for the city is 11 cm.
EU Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn will visit Ukraine on June 1-2, the press office of the EU Delegation to Ukraine has reported.

The European Commissioner will visit Kyiv, Mariupol and Dnipro, it said on Monday.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a four-nation tour on Monday to boost Indias economic ties with Germany, Spain, Russia and France.



Since assuming office in May 2014, Modi has made 56 foreign trips, starting from his first trip as PM in June 2014 to Bhutan. News18 looks at the important foreign trips that Modi has taken in the past three years:



August 2014: Visited Nepal, becoming the first PM in 17 years to do so. Modi visited Nepal again in November, 2014, to attend the SAARC Summit. He also went to Japan and the Tokyo Declaration for India-Japan Strategic and Global Partnership was finalised



September 2014: Went to the United States, where he addressed thousands of supporters at Madison Square, met then President Barack Obama and addressed the UN General Assembly



November 2014: Visited Australia to attend the G20 Summit in Brisbane



March 2015: Visited the Indian Ocean archipelago nation of Seychelles, another first by an Indian PM



May 2015: Became the first ever Indian PM to visit Mongolia



July 2015: Visited Russia to attend the BRICS summit in Ufa



August 2015: Visited the UAE, the first by an Indian PM in 34 years



September 2015: Visited New York for the UN General Assembly session. Modi also met then US President Barack Obama on that trip. He visited San Jose, California, where he interacted with top Fortune 500 CEOs



December 2015: Modi, on his way back from Afghanistan, stopped over at Pakistan. He wished Pak PM Nawaz Sharif on his birthday and even attended his granddaughters wedding



March 2016: Was in the US to attend the 4th Nuclear Security Summit



June 2016: The PM, in the United States, addressed a joint meeting of the US Congress and delivered the keynote at the 40th AGM of the US-India Business Council



September 2016: The month marked the PMs second visit to China where he went to attend the G20 summit



May 2017: Visited Sri Lanka and addressed the Tamil community in Dickoya
New Delhi: Pakistans latest terror boss Hafiz Abdul Rehman Makki has mocked his countrys army, calling it the puppet of the Jamaat-ud-Dawah, the terror group he now heads.



In a video accessed by CNN-News18, Makki says the Pakistan army is a puppet in the hands of the JuD, adding that former army chief Raheel Sharif was heading an Islamic coalition today because of his support to our jihad.



In the video, Makki can also be seen slamming former Pakistan military ruler Pervez Musharraf, saying he was forced to flee the country because of the JuD.



Makki, who took over as the JuD chief after the house arrest of his brother-in-law and 26/11 attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed, also declared a global jihad, daring India, the NATO, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.



In the video, Makki, who carries a bounty of $2 million, is seen saying that Pakistans jihad defeated America in Afghanistan and that even Russia asks Pakistan for help today.



We kicked the US out of Afghanistan. We will defeat the NATO and will also destroy India. Even Russia asks Pakistan for help today. Bothe US and Russia are dud superpowers. They are nothing in front of our global jihad, Makki says in the video.



Speaking to CNN-News18, former Pakistani president Musharraf put up a weak opposition to Makkis claim, saying he left Pakistan of his own accord and that the Makki was just giving his views.



He (Makki) has his own view which I dont accept. He does not know the fact. I didnt flee. I stayed in Pakistan for eight months after I resigned. He doesnt understand the world situation or the current Muslim world, Musharraf said.







Its not that the Pakistan government cannot act against these elements. They choose not to, he said.



Calling the JuD a welfare organisation, Musharraf said: This is a freedom of speech issue. The JuD is a welfare organisation. They do the best relief work during earthquakes and floods. He (Makki) is not abusing anyone. He is just giving his views.
Berlin: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived on Monday on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France aimed at boosting bilateral economic engagement with them and inviting more investment for India's transformation.



His visit to Germany, which he described as a "new chapter" in bilateral relations, will commence with a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel at her country retreat of Schloss Meseberg.



Both leaders will discuss issues of mutual interest in an informal setting over dinner at the 18th-century palace, nearly 80 km northwest of Berlin.



"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi said in a Facebook post ahead of his visit.



Modi said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."



Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, "German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation."



The more formal part of the visit will begin tomorrow when Modi is welcomed with military honours at the Chancellery, following which he will hold talks with Merkel as part of the fourth round of the bi-annual India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations [IGC]. The last IGC was held in New Delhi in October 2015 when bilateral ties were significantly scaled up.



In Berlin, the two leaders are expected to clinch a host of agreements and are likely to deliberate on several pressing global issues, including the situation in the South China Sea, China's 'One Belt, One Road' initiative and the growing threat of terrorism.



Prime Minister Modi and Chancellor Merkel will have a luncheon meeting with senior business leaders before inaugurating the Indo-German Business Forum tomorrow.



The deadlocked Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union (EU) is likely to take centre-stage at

this meeting, with Germany-based CEOs keen to push for a further opening up of the Indian market.



The India-Germany Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT), among India's 23 BITs with EU countries, had lapsed in March this year. Trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.



Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to USD 9.54 billion. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.



The German embassy in Berlin had launched the Make in India Mittelstand (MIIM) Programme in September 2015 to facilitate the German Mittelstand (SMEs) to do business in India.



Currently 73 German Mittelstand (SMEs) companies are being facilitated through MIIM Programme for their market entry and investment in India.



Out of these, 46 companies have progressed well in India investment plan, the embassy claims. Modi will end his German tour with a courtesy call on German President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, before leaving for Spain tomorrow evening.
Lucknow: Trouble seems to be brewing for UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath as a minister of his government was allegedly seen inaugurating a beer shop in Lucknow.



Minister of state (independent charge) Swati Singh, the wife of BJP leader Dayashankar Singh, was seen at the inauguration of Be-The-Beer shop, along with IPS couple Gaurav Singh and Neha Pandey. While Gaurav is currently posted in Raebareli, his wife is posted in Unnao. DIG Zone has asked both IPS officers to explain why they were part of the inauguration. Me and my husband were on leave and were in Lucknow, Neha told News18.



While Singh was unavailable for comment, spokesperson of UP BJP, Shalabh Mani Tripathi said that he was unaware of any such event. We can only comment on this when we have more details, he said.



The opposition slammed the government on the alleged involvement of their minister. On one hand, there are women fighting to ban liquor shops in the state, and on the other hand there is a BJP minister whos inaugurating more such shops, said Congress MLA Lallu Singh.
Chennai: The 28-year-old Chennai model, Gaanam Nair, who was reported missing returned home in Chennai on Monday.



The model was reportedly depressed but police refused to give any details till the investigation is complete.



Nair's family had filed a missing person report after they failed to contact her since 26 May 2017.



A native of Delhi Gaanam Nair, a small-time model and marketing manager at a salon in Nungambakam, has been staying in Chennai for past 15 years with her aunt.



Nair did not report to work on Friday, following which a complaint was registered at KK Nagar police station.



Before her disappearance, Nair was last seen on her way to work, travelling from Virugambakkam to Nungambakkam on a black Activa early on the morning of 26 May. The police are now examining CCTV footage in the hopes of uncovering a clue.
Mumbai: Actor Rajkummar Rao is willing to help those who did not perform well in their CBSE Higher Secondary School exams.



Rajkummar on Sunday took to Twitter, where he shared a 59-second-long video. He requested Class 12 students not to be upset over their results, which the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) declared on Sunday morning.



In the video, Rajkummar said: "I know today many results for Class 12 CBSE board exams have come and in case you haven't performed well or failed... don't worry. There is nothing wrong about it. It keeps happening. It is a beautiful life...A lot needs to be accomplished."



The 32-year-old actor also expressed that he has several friends, who didn't do well in their Class 10 and 12 board exams, yet are successful in their career.



"So, why not you people? Don't worry. Talk to your friends, parents, talk to me...You can message me on any social networking platform. I am there to help and talk to you. But all I can tell you is that there is nothing wrong in this...not this year, then next year. There are so many avenues and opportunities."



"I am there, your parents are there and your friends are there with you. You are not alone. Be happy," Rajkummar said.



About 10,98,981 students appeared in the Class 12 examinations of the CBSE this year, according to the board.



A total of 6,38,865 boys and 4,60,026 girls appeared for the Class 12 examinations held between March 9 and April 29.




Pouring scorn on the BJP, the CM said that the ruling party at the Centre is the one that "wants the Aadhaar cards for cows", adding that the BJP was not following the Constitution and they had no right to decide who eats what.

The West Bengal CM also urged the Centre not to play with the federal structure of the governance in India. "Government may come and go, but you cannot play with secularism and democracy," Mamata said.

: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday came down heavily on the Centre, outrightly refusing to accept its recent notification banning the sale of cattle for the purpose of slaughter."I am against any ban on cattle slaughter. It's unconstitutional. We will fight against it legally," Mamata said, exhorting all the secular parties to stand shoulder-to-shoulder against this move."Neither we accept, nor are we bound to abide by this notification," Mamata said, addressing a press conference. Taking a dig at the Central government, she said: "This government will now ban cow milk also... All of us like Gau Mata, but this is not the way to deal with the problem.Mamata trained guns on the media, too, accusing it of one-sided coverage and going silent on the ruling dispensation. Stressing the importance of cattle trade, she said that "we export cattle to Bangladesh and get cattle from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar"."The ban is going to hit the farmers badly," Mamata said, even asking the government if the "cattle was supposed to be locked up".Earlier in the day, Kerala chief minister had ramped up the attack on the centre over the same notification. Taking a dig at the BJP-ruled Centre and the RSS, Pinarayi Vijayan said he didnt need a lesson in food habits from New Delhi or Nagpur."The state government will give all facilities to people to have food of their choice. There is no need for Keralites to learn it from anybody in New Delhi or Nagpur."
What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless,barbaric& completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.I strongly condemn the incident  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) May 28, 2017

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan ramped up his attack on the Centre over an India-wide ban on the sale of cattle, and not just cow, for slaughter at animal markets.Taking a dig at the BJP-ruled Centre and the RSS, Pinarayi Vijayan said he didnt need a lesson in food habits from New Delhi or Nagpur. "The state government will give all facilities to people to have food of their choice. There is no need for Keralites to learn it from anybody in New Delhi or Nagpur." The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is headquartered in Nagpur.The Kerala government is said to be mulling a new law to counter the central ban on sale of cattle for slaughter as the political slugfest over the issue intensified fuelled by a row over alleged ox slaughter allegedly by Youth Congress activists.Police have registered a case against a Youth Congress worker and his accomplices for the alleged ox slaughter in Kannur during a 'beef fest' organised across the state by the Congress and the Left to protest the Centre's ban.Latching onto the issue, the NDA in Kerala has decided to observe Tuesday as a day of protest against the incident. Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan posted the video of the alleged incident on Twitter, calling it "cruelty at its peak" and said no normal person can behave in this manner."A case has been registered under Sect 120 A of the Kerala Police Act on the basis of a complaint of Yuva Morcha activist", Kannur SP Siva Vikram, told PTI.The offence deals with slaughtering any animal in a way that causes annoyance or inconvenience to the public and is punishable with imprisonment up to one year or a fine of up to Rs 5,000 or with both.An embarrassed Congress sought to distance itself, saying the party will not support anyone who has violated the law, but the Youth Congress activist Rijil Makulti who led the protest said he had no regrets."If anyone has violated the law then he should be dealt with accordingly and the Congress party will not support him. However, we need to first establish whether the person in the video is related to the party or not," said Congress Spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi at a press briefing in Delhi.However, Rijil Makulti told a television channel, "We don't regret our act. This was done as part of our protest."Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi tweeted that the incident was completely unacceptable to him and the party.
New Delhi: Just three months after his emphatic win in the Punjab Assembly polls, Captain Amarinder Singhs government is battling allegations of corruption. Rana Gurjit, the power minister in the Punjab cabinet, has been accused by the opposition Aam Aadmi Party of awarding sand mining contracts to people close to him under questionable circumstances.



A day after party chief Arvind Kejriwal interacted with the state unit in Amritsar, the AAP is planning a massive demonstration outside CM Amarinder Singhs residence in Chandigarh.



One of the 89 contracts awarded by the Amarinder government has gone to 36-year-old Amit Bahadur, who used to work as a cook for power minister Rana Gurjit. AAP legislator from Bholath, Sukhpal Singh Khaira, who is leading the charge against the Congress government, told News 18, The man in question is Amit Bahadur, who was a cook. He has a monthly salary of just Rs 11,000. How is it that a man who makes such little money was able to procure a contract worth Rs. 26 crore? In fact, he paid Rs 13.5 crore up front. Where did he get so much money? Neither Gurjit nor Captain have answered the questions. In fact, the CM has not even said a word.



Bahadurs Income Tax returns, a copy of which is with News 18, show that his annual income was Rs. 75,390 in financial year 2013-14 and Rs. 92, 860 in 2015-16.



His total salary for the month of February 2017, when Congress won a landslide majority in the Punjab assembly, is shown as Rs. 11, 706. According to Khaira and the AAP, these facts point to a larger scam than just a simple conflict of interest.



Khaira added, That it is a conflict of interest is apparent. But we need to look beyond just that. A man who earns just Rs. 11,000 has managed to pay Rs. 13.5 crore in one go. This points towards a benami and hawala racket being operated out of Punjab. At the Center of it all is a minister in the Amarinder government. I am certain that this money is from Rana Gurjits shady dealings. In terms of corruption, the Congress is looking to outdo even the Akalis.



According to AAP sources, party MLAs raised the matter with Arvind Kejriwal during his Amritsar visit. A senior party leader said the Punjab MLAs movement against corruption in the state had received the party chiefs blessings.



Khaira added, We have one straighforward demand. Unless Amarinder Singh dismisses Rana Gurjit from his cabinet by tomorrow morning, we will launch a major protest against the state government. We are all gathering in Chandigarh tomorrow, outside the CMs residence, to protest. Unless the CM acts against his minister, we will assume that he, too, is complicit in this matter.


After the recent Ransomware attack that targeted the obsolete versions of Microsoft Windows, a new malware has emerged and this time, on Googles Play Store.The malware named Judy was found in over 41 Google Play Store apps. By far, Judy has already infected around 8.5 Million to 36.5 Million Google Play Store users.Security Research firm Check Point discovered the Judy malware first and informed Google of the same. Though Google has started removing the infected apps from the Play store, the malware affected apps have already reached a count of more than 4.5 Million downloads.As per a blog posted by Check Point, Judy Malware has evaded Googles security checks since more than a year as it was found on Apps dating back to April 2016."The malicious apps reached an astonishing spread between 4.5 million and 18.5 million downloads. Some of the apps we discovered resided on Google Play for several years, but all were recently updated" reads the blog.Judy Malware is believed to have been created by a South Korean firm named Kiniwini. Essentially an auto-clicking adware, the malware is aimed at making money for the developers by auto-clicking on ads through the infected devices.As per the researchers, Kiniwini uses the name ENISTUDIO corp on the Google play Store.The Malware spread comes as a direct threat to Googles reputation as the malware has been able to operate on its Google Play Store undetected, for more than a year.
Vitaliy Serdiuk, lawyer of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, said he would file another statement on behalf of his client with the Obolonsky District Court of Kyiv on Monday that the ex-president cannot attend the trial and did not receive the subpoena.

"I am planning to file a statement signed by Viktor Yanukovych with the Obolonsky District Court; this statement is about applying the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters: our client has not been subpoenaed to that proceeding, and no request has been made for international assistance as is prescribed by the aforesaid convention," Serdiuk said on Monday morning, before the court started to hear the high treason accusations brought against Yanukovych.

"Hence, the result is that Viktor Yanukovych cannot participate and recognize the evidence collected during the proceeding as appropriate and admissible," Serdiuk said.

Yanukovych demanded in his statement that "the Prosecutor General's Office and the court strictly comply with the European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters, i.e. provide a video link as an international legal assistance procedure," the lawyer said.

"This is the only way to conduct the required interviews and to obtain appropriate and admissible evidence in the course of questioning top-ranking state officials, which he will also request during this proceeding," Serdiuk said.

The European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters "cannot be ignored, even though the Prosecutor General's Office wishes to conduct the trial without Viktor Yanukovych," the lawyer said. "This will not happen; he will participate in the proceeding and in the discussion of all evidence the Prosecutor General's Office wishes to present," he said.

The relevant statement and a number of others will be lodged with the court, Serdiuk said. In all, the defense team has prepared to file over 230 requests with the court on Monday. "There are things to do. The defense has done its homework," he said.
One of Australia's biggest draw cards, the Sydney Vivid light show, got underway Friday with police vowing to take to the skies, streets and waterways in the wake of the terror attack in Britain this week.



Some 2.5 million people are expected to take in more than 90 light and sound installations scattered across the city during the 23-night annual festival, the world's largest of its kind.



While there has been no direct threat to Vivid, authorities are eager to reassure visitors, many of them tourists, following the bombing at a pop concert in Manchester on Monday that left 22 dead and dozens injured, many of them children.



A "high-visibility policing strategy" will see extra officers patrolling with "firearm explosive dogs" carrying out searches.



"We have police in the air, we have police on water and we have police on the ground," New South Wales state Assistant Police Commissioner Mick Fitzgerald told reporters.



"We are very very confident we have sufficient resources in place."



Artists from around the world will be in Sydney for the festival, with more than 400 music events scheduled alongside the light installations and projections, including giant sea creatures beamed onto the Sydney Opera House's iconic sails.



"Tourists can be incredibly confident, as can locals, in visiting Vivid to enjoy themselves and to do so knowing that every resource possible has been deployed to look after their safety and welfare," said New South Wales major events minister Adam Marshall.



Australian officials say they have prevented 12 terror attacks on home soil since 2014 with 61 people charged.
Curator Jaroslaw Trybus points to a glass display case with an ornate brass door handle inside.



Seemingly banal, the 19th-century curio is one of the few things that remains of Warsaw's old city hall, which like 90 percent of the Polish capital, was destroyed during World War II.



"The door handle was ripped out by force, which you can see by the trim plate, by the city hall janitor during the Warsaw Uprising," Trybus told reporters at the Museum of Warsaw, which reopened Friday after four years of renovation and redesign.



He "recognised that something had to be saved from city hall" as tens of thousands of Poles fought the occupying German Nazis in the ill-fated 1944 uprising. It was one of the war's bloodiest episodes, taking the lives of some 200,000 Warsaw residents.



The failed two-month rebellion would go on to spark reprisals by the Nazis, who exacted their revenge by razing the city house by house, street by street, until it was just a pile of rubble.



"I think this story tells us more than a lot of articles," Trybus said, adding that the janitor also salvaged 11 spoons and a chunk of the floor.



"It shows how dramatic the uprising was, during which it was necessary to save such seemingly everyday objects as a door handle or a spoon."



The old city hall was eventually rebuilt after the war, as was the museum itself, which takes up 11 connected tenement houses that form a maddening maze of rooms and staircases as complex as the city's own history.



"I actually think it's a good thing that you can get lost. It gives you a chance to stop and look around you" and appreciate not only the exhibition but also the historic buildings themselves, museum director Ewa Nekanda-Trepka told AFP.



Postcards, packaging, mermaids



The museum is located on the Old Town Market Square, which was carefully reconstructed after the war and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.



To tell the story of the city, one left with next to nothing after the war, the museum staff chose to focus on objects, which Trybus described as "witnesses and themselves participants in the history of the city".



"Our parents and grandparents used to show us old things and use them to communicate family history. This is a normal, natural way of passing along knowledge found in objects," Trybus said, contrasting the method with the abstract way history is taught in schools.



The new permanent exhibition, "The Things of Warsaw," showcases 7,352 objects across 21 rooms with themes like postcards, clocks, maps, silverware, packaging and mermaids -- the symbol of the city.



In the Room of Archeology, excavated pottery from the Middle Ages is displayed alongside a couple of modern-day pots whose bright red and blue surfaces show signs of serious damage.



"These pots were also dug up from the ground... during excavations on the site of the former Warsaw ghetto" set up by Nazi Germany during the war, according to Trybus.



The museum's overhaul cost 64 million zloty (15 million euros, $17 million) and was co-funded by the city and the Norway Grant: money provided by non-EU states Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein to poorer EU members in return for access to EU markets.



For those who absolutely require facts and charts and numbers to learn their history, the museum basement provides just that, including fun city milestones like the first post office (1647), the first escalator (1949) and the first kebab shop (1994).
Canberra: Australia will deploy more troops in Afghanistan to conduct advisory and training missions to the Afghan security forces following a request from NATO, Defence Minister Marise Payne said on Monday.



"Given the centrality of Afghanistan in the global fight against terrorism, an enhanced Australian contribution to the resolute support mission is both timely and appropriate," Payne told the Senate.



Earlier this month, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said his government was open to the possibility of sending more troops to Afghanistan in response to a request made by NATO during his trip to the Middle East, Efe news reported.



According to the announcement on Monday, Australian authorities have confirmed the commitment to send an additional 30 troops to Afghanistan without specifying the date of deployment.



Australia has so far deployed 270 members of its Armed Forces in Afghanistan, with some 780 in Iraq and Syria, where they are assigned to provide assistance and training and to collaborate in aerial strikes, respectively.



Australia is currently conducting military training of the local army in Afghanistan, where the country deployed up to 1,500 soldiers for operations between 2001 and 2014, which was considered the largest military contribution of a country outside the Atlantic Alliance.
Seoul: North Korea on Monday fired an apparent ballistic missile off its east coast that landed in the waters of Japan's economic zone, South Korean and Japanese officials said, the latest in a string of recent test launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can reach the US mainland.



A statement by the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launch came from around the eastern North Korean coastal town of Wonsan. The agency added that North Korea fired a suspected Scud-type ballistic missile that flew about 450 kilometers.



Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said what appeared to be a North Korean ballistic missile fell within Japan's exclusive maritime economic zone. He said there was no immediate report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.



North Korea is still thought to be several years away from its goal of being able to target US mainland cities with a nuclear ICBM, but each new test puts it closer to success.



The North has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that target Japan and South Korea and US forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.



There was no immediate comment from North Korea's state controlled media. But the launch followed a report from the North that said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. It wasn't clear from the report when the test happened.



After the test, Kim said the weapon system's ability to detect and track targets had "remarkably" improved and its accuracy also increased, according to the official Korean Central News Agency. KCNA cited Kim as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system all over the country so as to "completely spoil the enemy's wild dream to command the air."



The North's nuclear and missile programs are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in allies Washington and Seoul.



US President Donald Trump has alternated in his public statements between bellicosity and flattery. But his administration is still working to solidify a policy to deal with North Korea's nuclear ambitions.



A new liberal president in Seoul, Moon Jae-in, has signaled he will be flexible in expanding civilian exchange with North Korea. But many analysts say Moon won't likely push for any major rapprochement projects because North Korea has gone too far on its nuclear program.



Today's missile launch was the third one by North Korea since Moon's inauguration on May 10. Moon called a National Security Council meeting to discuss the North's launch.



Suga, the Japanese cabinet secretary, said, "We cannot tolerate such repeated actions from North Korea, and we have lodged a strong protest against North Korea, criticizing them in the strongest form."



Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, the North carried out two nuclear tests last year in January and September. Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of the North's secretive weapons program is unknown.



Moon has made tentative steps toward engaging the North by restarting stalled civilian aid and exchange programs as a way to improve strained ties. South Korea said recently that it will allow a civic group to contact North Korea about potentially offering help in treating malaria, the first government approval on cross- border civilian exchanges since January 2016.
Washington: The US intelligence community has informed the Congress that Pakistan was wary of Indias heavy influence in Afghanistan.



A Pakistan media report said that the US Intel informed the Congress that Islamabad was likely to turn to China to offset Indias alleged influence on its western borders.



The discussion on Pakistans interests in Afghanistan was part of a recent congressional hearing on the Afghan war. The Trump administration is finalising a new policy on Afghanistan and the ongoing consultations in the White House have generated much interest in the US media and think tanks, said the report.



The discussion comes in the wake of Republican congressman, Adam Kinzinger, reportedly suggesting resuming air strikes on alleged terror targets in Pakistan.



According to the report, during a recent hearing at the Senate Armed Services Committee, "US intelligence chiefs gave a candid assessment of the situation in the war-torn country".



Pakistan is concerned about international isolation and sees its position through the prism of Indias rising international status, including Indias expanded foreign outreach and deepening ties to the United States, the report quoted Dan Coats, who, as National Intelligence director, leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI.



Pakistan will likely turn to China to offset its isolation, empowering a relationship that will help Beijing to project influence in the Indian Ocean, he added.



Pakistan views Afghanistan  or desires for Afghanistan some of the same things we want: a safe, secure, stable Afghanistan. One addition  one that does not have heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan, said Defence Intelligence director Lt Gen Vincent Stewart, according to the report.



They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to the state of Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations so that  if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan interests, the general was reported as saying.



According to the report, Director Coats also told the Senate committee that despite increased military efforts to defeat them, the Taliban militants had and would continue to make gains, especially in rural areas.
Royal Air Force confirm image showing Love from Manchester message on bomb is real - https://t.co/5DgALFHBoD pic.twitter.com/GxEyINtsfI  UK Defence Journal (@UKDefJournal) May 25, 2017

Armourers in the UK's Royal Air Force scrawled the message "love from Manchester" on a bomb meant for air strikes against the Islamic State terror group following the concert attack, according to a media report.A photograph, which has been widely shared on social media, showed the message "love from Manchester" on a Paveway IV bomb loaded on a British jet carrying out air strikes from Royal Air Force (RAF) Akrotiri in Cyprus, The Telegraph reported.An RAF spokesperson confirmed that the photo was genuine."The sentiment of the message written on the weapon is understandable and such writing has history in the RAF, so the individual concerned will not be taken to task," a source was quoted as saying.The report comes days after suicide bomber Salman Abedi blew himself up at a concert by pop star Ariana Grande at Manchester Arena last week, killing 22 people and 119 injured.Children as young as eight and parents were among the dead after thousands of fans were targeted as they left the gig on Monday.During World War II, army men wrote messages on bombs headed toward Japan after the Pearl Harbor attack. Messages were also written on bombs after the 9/11, with notes coming from New York City police and fire departments.
Reuters: The United States might ban laptops from aircraft cabins of all flights into and out of the country, John Kelly, Secretary of Homeland Security, said on Sunday.



In an interview on Fox News on Sunday, Kelly said the US plans to "raise the bar" on airline security, including tightening screening of carry-on items.



"That's the thing that they are obsessed with, the terrorists, the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if it's a US carrier, particularly if it's full of US people."



In March, the government imposed restrictions on large electronic devices in aircraft cabins on flights from 10 airports, including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Turkey.



Kelly said the move would be part of a broader effort to tighten airline security to combat what he called "a real sophisticated threat. He said no decision has been made as to the timing of any ban.



"We are still following the intelligence," he said, "and are in the process of defining this, but we're going to raise the bar generally speaking for aviation much higher than it is now."



Airlines are concerned that a broad ban on laptops may erode customer demand. But none want an incident aboard one of their airplanes.



"Whatever comes out we'll have to comply with," Oscar Munoz, chief executive officer of United Airlines said at the company's annual meeting last week.



"To the administrations' great credit, they have given us a heads up. We've had constant updates on the subject. We know more than most. And again, if there's a credible threat out there, we need to make sure we take the appropriate measures."



Among the enhanced security measures will likely be tighter screening of carry-on items to allow Transport Security Administration (TSA) agents to discern problematic items in tightly stuffed bags.



The reason, Kelly said, is that in order to avoid paying fees for checking bags, people are stuffing them to the point where it is difficult to see through the clutter.



"The more stuff is in there, the less the TSA professionals that are looking at what's in those bags through the monitors can tell what's in them."



The TSA has begun testing certain new procedures at a limited number of airports, requiring people to remove additional items from carry-on bags for separate screenings.



Asked whether the government would expand such measures nationwide, Kelly said: "We might, and likely will."



Speaking on CBS's "Face the Nation," Defense Secretary James Mattis reiterated his announcement made on May 19 that U.S.-led coalition was now encircling Islamic State fighters in their strongholds in a tactical shift before starting a military campaign to "annihilate" them.



"Our intention is that the foreign fighters do not survive the fight to return home to North Africa, to Europe, to America, to Asia, to Africa," he said. "We're going to stop them there and take apart the caliphate."



On Friday Kelly told Fox News that if most people knew the extent of the security threat to the United States some people would "never leave the house."
Tokyo: Grand champion Hakuho, left, receives the Emperor's Cup from Japan Sumo Association Chairman Hakkaku after winning the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo Sunday, May 28, 2017. Hakuho forced out his compatriot Mongolian Harumafuji (11-4) in the day's final bout to improve to 15-0 a day after securing his first title in a year with a win over ozeki Terunofuji. Hakuho won the summer tourney last year but has struggled with foot and thigh injuries since then and missed much of the March tournament due to injury. (Image: AP/PTI)
India: An Indian Muslim offers prayers before breaking his fast on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramzan at Mecca Masjid in Hyderabad, India, Sunday, May 28, 2017. Islam's holiest month is a period of intense prayer, dawn-to-dusk fasting and nightly feasts. Just before the fast, Muslims have a pre-dawn meal to get them through the day. Most Muslims break their fast like the Prophet Muhammad did some 1,400 years ago, with a sip of water and some dates at sunset. (Image: AP)
The Russian Federation intends to deploy nuclear offensive weapons on the territory of the occupied Crimea, chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Andriy Parubiy said at a meeting of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Tbilisi on Monday.

"Now Russia is carrying out an intensified militarization of the illegally occupied peninsula, placing new types of weapons and military equipment there, including plans to deploy, and according to some sources, have already placed nuclear deterrent weapons," he said.

He also noted that the Russian occupation regime persecutes representatives of the Crimean Tatar and Ukrainian ethnic communities on the peninsula. In addition, the speaker said that the Russian Federation is stepping up military operations on the collision line in Donbas.

At the same time, Parubiy said that it is important for Ukraine to settle the conflict in a peaceful way and to this end it is necessary to maintain political pressure on the Russian Federation and sanctions against it. "And if the escalation of Russia's aggressive actions continues, I am convinced that we must jointly come to strengthening sanctions against Russia," he said.

According to Parubiy, the refusal of the Russian Federation to observe the ceasefire regime, to quit the fire in Donbas, undermine the efforts of Ukraine and the international community aimed at de-escalation and stabilization of the situation in the region.
Over the past day, militants have opened fire on positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces 48 times in the area of conducting Anti-Terrorist operation (ATO), as a result of which seven servicemen have been wounded, the press service of the ATO headquarters has reported.

The Ukrainian military operation staff said on Monday that 48 attacks had been mounted against Ukrainian armed forces' positions and seven servicemen had been injured over the day.

Ukrainian army defense lines came under 20 attacks in the Mariupol sector, the staff said.

In the Donetsk sector, attacks mostly focused on Ukrainian army strongholds in a suburb of Avdiyivka before midnight.

Ten ceasefire breaches, including five during the night, were seen in the Luhansk sector, it said.
Expanding linkages with Chile

In recent years, Chile has strived to develop closer ties with the English-speaking Caribbean and with Trinidad and Tobago in particular through new proposals. We therefore decided to open an embassy in Guyana last year, and to increase our diplomatic presence as an observer country, both within Caricom as well as at the Association of Caribbean States (ACS).

As a result, President Bachelet participated as a specially-invited guest at the 37th Inter-Sessional Meeting of Caricom Heads of Government in July 2016, and the ACS Secretary General visited Chile in April this year. At the aforementioned Caricom meeting, the President and Prime Minister Rowley met to promote the bilateral agenda, which led to this visit.

Accordingly, we held the third Round of Political Consultations this year and we have increased bilateral co-operation. During 2016 and in the course of this year, we offered 28 courses and seminars to Trinidad and Tobago in several areas and we shall continue with other meaningful joint initiatives that will soon be announced. From 2006 to date, more than a 100 citizens of this country have been trained through Chilean co-operation or from joint initiatives with other countries. Similarly, several citizens from Trinidad and Tobago participate in Chiles English Open Doors programme, which aims to help Chilean teachers in public schools teach the English language.

This supporting evidence tells us that gradually, in spite of the distance and language barriers, there is greater interaction between Chile and Trinidad and Tobago. This year, we shall work more on specific projects already agreed to, incorporating cultural fusion with the invaluable support of the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and the Arts.

In the economic sphere, Chile and Trinidad and Tobago have an active trade relationship. Last year, 38 percent of our exports to Caricom came to this country.

Bilateral trade reached US$640 million at the end of December 2016. It is quite noteworthy that Chile is the main buyer of liquefied natural gas from Trinidad and Tobago, and that 92 per cent of the LNG used by Chileans come from this nation. In terms of energy, we are working to make the Inter-American Conference of Energy Ministers a meaningful regional milestone.

This conference will be held in September this year in Santiago and will address the challenges of climate change.

We want to strengthen and expand the linkages in energy to other areas in the economy.

Thus, we would like to conclude initial studies for a possible and more ambitious trade agreement.

In a few weeks, we shall have specific ideas to propose in this regard. Teams from both trade ministries are working on this.

We also wish to forge ahead in signing an air services agreement, so that the Piarco and Santiago airports can become regional hubs for passengers and cargo.

Chile and Trinidad and Tobago are countries that belong to the same hemisphere. We share the same respect for representative democracy, the rule of law, the supreme value of human rights and the universal validity of international law. Herein lies the foundation of our shared relationship, but there are also practical elements that increasingly unite us. Chile is today the largest Latin American user of the Panama Canal and, accordingly, we are quite interested in the security of Caribbean maritime routes. I also believe that the future of Caribbean countries lies in greater openness towards Latin American countries where hundreds of millions of people reside.

Climate change must also mobilise us towards having more meaningful dialogue for capacity building in resilience in both countries. Chile is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to certain natural disasters and Trinidad and Tobago has the most outstanding regional institutions for the prevention of these. Similarly, the global paradigm shift from electricity production to non-conventional renewable energy sources has given rise to more dialogue in the sector. We are working in these spheres, as well as on the exchange of capacities that will improve the lives of our fellow citizens.

In summary, herein lies the significance of Prime Minister Rowleys visit to Chile. It is an ambitious visit, but one that wishes to sharpen the focus on relations with a view to the future in light of the challenges faced by both countries in the world today
Ten cents riddled in the face, chest

Fortune who lives in Laventille was shot along with two other people as he stopped at a bar in Barataria to purchase drinks. Police are working on a theory that his slaying was a reprisal. Police said that at 11.45 pm on Saturday, Fortune was in a white Nissan Almera car in the company of a male relative when they decided to stop at the bar for drinks.

Just as the driver got out of the car got, occupants in another car approached and using a high-powered weapon believed to the military- grade AR 15 Assault Rifle, let loose a volley of shots, hitting Fortune in the face and chest. Stray bullets struck Fortunes relative and a patron at the bar/ Both were later treated at hospital.

One, a 55-year-old man was shot in the hip and the other was shot in his chest. Both were taken to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope where the one shot in the chest, remains warded in stable condition.

Just over a month ago, Fortune was acquitted of the murder of Jayson Irie Hoyte of Malabar.

Hoyte was killed on the night of January 6, 2008.

According to reports, Hoyte was at a christening when he was shot. He died later at Port of Spain General Hospital.

Fortune spent eight years in prison while his trial was being heard. An earlier report said that he was acquitted on the grounds that the case was fabricated against him. His defence attorney Mario Meritt argued that it was another man who had shot Hoyte dead.

Police sources described Fortune as a well-known criminal who had gang affiliations both in and out of prison. The murder toll stood at 215 up to press time yesterday.
Enterprise businessman shot dead

Police said that shortly before 3 pm, Basdeo was driving along Ruben Lane in Enterprise, Chaguanas accompanied by his wife and their daughter. Basdeo, co-owner of Joey and Laura Wholesalers of Enterprise Street, Enterprise, was about to proceed onto the Southern Main Road when death came on a bicycle.

Police said a the gunman rode alongside the car and opened fire at the drivers side of the vehicle, hitting Basdeo several times. His daughter was grazed by a bullet while wife Laura was not injured.

The gunman pedalled off while passers-by rushed to the aid of the Basdeo family, who were seated inside the car.

They were taken to the Chaguanas Health Centre where Basdeo succumbed to his injuries. Central Division police cordoned off the area where the shooting took place and also carried out a search for the gunman. Police said they are yet to determine a motive for the killing.

An autopsy is expected to be done today at the Forensic Science Centre in St James. No arrest has been made.
Dr Alexandrov sent to Tobago

This as he too agreed with the position taken by the outspoken pathologist.

On Saturday, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry Vel Lewis contacted Dr Alexandrov and asked him to go to Tobago to conduct autopsies on the bodies  two being murder victims and the third, a suspected suicide  which have been outstanding for several days.

Dr Alexandrov left for Tobago yesterday to carry out the autopsies today on the bodies of Iris Benjamin, 71, Dexter Providence and another man who has not yet been identified. Benjamin allegedly committed suicide while the two men were shot to death. Sources revealed that Alexandrov agreed to go to Tobago on the condition that Pathologist Dr Hughvon Des Vignes shoulder the workload of all autopsies scheduled for today at the Science Centre.

When Newsday attempted to reach Dr Des Vignes for a comment yesterday, calls to his cellular phone went unanswered. Dr Alexandrov said he told Permanent Secretary Lewis that he didnt mind going to Tobago because he felt the victims families were suffering unnecessarily in having to wait to get the bodies for final rites.

Alexandrov said he also is willing to meet with Lewis to discuss ways and means of dealing with delays in autopsies being done in Tobago, once and for all. At present, no pathologist is assigned to the Scarborough Mortuary and it is customary for pathologists to travel to Tobago to conduct autopsies.

Dr Alexandrov along with Dr Eslyn Mc Donald Burris have been travelling to Tobago to carry out autopsies. However, Burris is presently on leave and others at the Science Centre have refused to go to Tobago citing a shortage of mortuary attendants  a claim which Dr Alexandrov said is false.
Seabridge woes hurting livestock trade

He said he has grown weary of the current issues faced with the ferry and cargo vessels and the unreliable services at the ANR Robinson International Airport. We coming to Tobago, buying animals and have to keep them two days in a can because we cant get on the boat and by the time we reach Trinidad, the animals are sick.

They have been saying were going to get a better boat, for years.

Since we had the MV Panorama, they say all kinds of things wrong with it but now they bring something ten times worse. Theyve brought the Panoramas poor, sickly great-grandmother. It cant take passengers, it cant take much vehicles, it cant take much of anything, Campbell said.

He said Tobago is eating contaminated food because of this crisis with transporting livestock to and from the islands. I see a man remain with three containers of chicken in Trinidad and he had that chicken the day before in that can; so by the time that reaches Tobago and the chicken soaking in sea water and he distributes that...

is this what we want the people of Tobago and tourists to eat? (Prime Minister Dr Keith) Rowley needs to remember he is a Tobagonian and see that Tobago is in a crisis. After purchasing over 15 goats in Tobago, Campbell was prevented by Scarborough port officials from boarding the Atlantic Provider last Wednesday. He said he purchased a ticket to board the vessel but when he returned, there was a vehicle parked in the last spot available.

If we Trinidadians stop coming to Tobago to purchase animals, what would they do? Because the market is not in Tobago, its in Trinidad. And if the food stuff continues to come like this what will they do? They will end up like Venezuela killing each other and fighting for food, he warned. Campbell was forced to pay for a nights accommodation in a nearby guest house, leaving his sheep tightly packed in his 4x4 pick-up truck.

He says this could cost him thousands as the animals could become sick if they are left in such a position for too long. When I was coming from Trinidad they made it clear all livestock and food stock have first priority on the boat. When I come to the port in Tobago now they giving you a run-around. The animals suffering like that three days in a van...its not right. Its not humane, he said.
Support for family visits for prisoners

If we think of it in terms of liberalising the policies within the prisons, the calls for expanding the visitation for all inmates, it is a good move, he told Newsday over the weekend.

Saying that the issue was one of human rights, Husbands noted that the call was not new.

That has long been recommended in terms of keeping the bonds alive and in the new prison rules, while it has not been tabled in Parliament yet - those were issues that were also incorporated in terms of increasing the number of visits. Husbands support for the move came days after San Juan/ Barataria MP Dr Fuad Khan pledged to take a motion to the Parliament seeking to allow for increased visitation between inmates and their children. The former health minister said last week that he had already spoken to National Security Minister Edmund Dillon about the issue.

Khan also cited studies in San Francisco and other cities in the United States which showed that frequent visitation within the prison system benefited parents and children by reducing recidivism and the likelihood of youngsters engaging in a life of crime and delinquency.

Khans call was triggered by Superintendent of Prisons, Charmaine Johnsons plea, during the annual Mothers Day function at the Womens Prison, for all incarcerated mothers to spend time with their children.

At present, only selected inmates are allowed to bond with their children on Mothers Day.

Husbands said it has long been proposed that, at a minimum, parents should have special family visits on a weekend where they can have a sober and connected bond with their children.

So, while we support the Mothers Day and Fathers Day events, there is a broader policy in terns of redeeming broken lives and keeping the bonds alive. Husbands, a former chief prison welfare officer, said studies have shown that inmates who have had ongoing contact with their children were six times less likely to re-offend than those who have not been in contact with their families.

Therefore, we need to liberalise the visitation to reduce the potential for re-offending, he said. It calls for a structured programme, with the right kind of resources and staff and it will be open to all inmates, not only women but also males as well.

That is what we call a special approach to help reduce re-offending, because the research has indicated that the frequency of the contact and the kind of impact helps reduce the likelihood of that person re-offending. Husbands said the Prison Service should accept the recommendation in keeping with the movement toward restorative justice.

Acting Prisons Commissioner Cecil Duke, speaking through communications officer Krishna Bidaisee, has declined an interview on the issue.
There Was No Red Wave,

'That's for Darn Sure'
This years Indy 500 found its instant replay moment, and it looks like it could have come straight from a Michael Bay film. Driver Scott Dixon walked away Sunday from the nightmare crash captured in this video. (Replay starts about 47 seconds in.) It also can be seen in this tweeted video. The LA Times reports that the accident began when driver Jay Howard lost control of his vehicle a little more than a quarter into the 200-lap race. He collided with Dixon, whose car was sent flying through the air before smashing into an inner retaining wall.

Though Dixons vehicle was demolished, both drivers survived the fiery accident and were released after a check-up at the track's medical center. Afterward, Dixon said he was a little bit beaten up and glad everybody was OK," calling the incident "definitely a wild ride. The race continued on, with Takuma Sato later becoming the first Japanese driver ever to finish first, reports the AP. Sato held off Helio Castroneves, who was going for his fourth Indy win. (Read more Indianapolis 500 stories.)
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) is conducting searches on Monday at Kyiv and Odesa offices of Yandex.Ukraine, which is suspected of high treason.

"Within the framework of the criminal proceedings on high treason, searches are being conducted at the mentioned companies in Kyiv and Odesa," SBU spokesperson Olena Hitlianska told Interfax-Ukraine.

According to a report on the SBU website, the management of Yandex.Ukraine illegally collected, stored and transferred to Russia personal data of Ukrainian citizens, in particular data about their occupation, lifestyle, housing, residence, work, leisure, sources and amounts of income, telephone numbers, email addresses and accounts in social networks.

The special services discovered that the citizens, whose information was transmitted to Russia, included law enforcement and special forces officers, servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, other units participating in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) in the east of Ukraine, and employees of state authorities and government.

"The information was then passed on to special services of the Russian Federation for planning, organizing and conducting reconnaissance, sabotage, information and subversive operations in our country to harm Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability," the website reported.

During the searches the SBU employees found server equipment and documents, which will be sent for examination. Experts will check if Yandex.Ukraine was collecting, accumulating and transferring personal data of Ukrainian citizens to Russia. They will also analyze the redirection of Ukrainian users' traffic to Russian servers, as well as check the coordination of unlawful activities from Russian territory.

The Yandex press service has confirmed the information on the searches conducted by the SBU in the Odesa and Kyiv offices of Yandex.Ukraine.

"We currently do not have information on the reasons for today's actions by the SBU. Attorneys are on their way to our offices. We are ready to provide the necessary information to the agencies using legal procedures," the press service said.

As reported, on May 16 Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree enacting a resolution by the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) dated April 28, 2017 on the application of personal special economic and other restrictive measures (sanctions).

The Ukrainian president's decree imposing sanctions on the social networking sites VKontakte and Odnoklassniki, and also the companies Mail.ru, Yandex and their services took effect on Wednesday. User access to all Yandex and Mail.ru services has been banned for three years.
New details are emerging about the three victims of Fridays stabbing attack in Portland, two of whom died. People reports that Ricky John Best, 53, was killed at the scene of the attack while Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, died later at the hospital. Police say a third victim, 21-year-old student Micah David-Cole Fletcher, is being treated for serious injuries, but is expected to recover. The three men are being called heroes for coming to the aid of two teenage girls, described by witnesses as Muslim, who were allegedly being harassed by Jeremy Christian on a MAX train. Christian is accused of stabbing the men and is being held on multiple charges, including aggravated murder. According to the Oregonian, Best was a technician for Portlands Bureau of Development Services. The Army veteran and father of four was commuting home when the incident occurred.

"He was always the first person you would go to for help," says his supervisor. "I've talked to most of his coworkers today, and several of them said it's just like Rick to step in and help somebody out." The BBC reports that Namkai-Meche recently graduated from college with an economics degree. His mother wrote on Facebook that he was a hero and will remain a hero on the other side of the veil. During a vigil in Portland, she said his heart was as big as the world, and called on people to respond to the incident with love. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler praised the three men for their "brave and selfless actions" and hopes theyll "serve as an example and inspiration to us all." A GoFund Me campaign has been set up for Best and Namkai-Meche's families, while a separate one seeks to help Fletcher with his medical bills. (Read more hate crime stories.)
President Trump is dealing with another campaign-related legal headacheand it's got nothing to do with the Kremlin. White nationalist Matthew Heimbach is being sued by a protester who says he assaulted her at a rally in Kentucky last year and he, in turn, is suing Trump, saying he was acting at Trump's direction and "relied on Trump's authority to order disruptive persons removed," the New York Times reports. Heimbach is also suing for Trump to make good on his promise to pay the legal fees of anybody who ejected protesters from his campaign rallies. Three protesters who were removed from the Louisville rally are also suing Trump, alleging he incited the use of violence when he told supporters "Get 'em out of here."

Heimbach, founder of the Traditionalist Youth Network, which the Southern Poverty Law Center has called "virulently racist and anti-Semitic," denies shouting racial slurs at protesters and says he was acting to "remove a threat." The Indiana resident says he is no longer a Trump supporter because the president has "betrayed" the white working class too many times. In a legal filing earlier this month, Trump's lawyers rejected the argument that Heimbach and fellow rally attendee Alvin Bamberger have indemnity because Trump had some kind of control over their actions. They "are the ones alleged to have engaged in violence and who directly caused plaintiffs alleged injuries," the filing stated. (Read more President Trump stories.)
Minutes before 6am, Army nurse Martha Green woke with a jolt to a thunderous explosion half a mile away. It was the steamy morning of June 8, 1969, and she was in her bed at Chu Lai base at the height of the Vietnam War. Green's husband returned with tragic news: A Soviet-built rocket had struck the hospital, and Sharon Lane, 25, a fellow nurse from Ohio, had been killed instantly. "The news struck me like lightning," said Green, who'd chat with Lane while stationed on the same shift. "She was a very sweet, quiet young woman. The sadness was really palpable." Today, Lane is immortalized in books and statues: Among the roughly 11,000 American women stationed in Vietnam, Lane was the only one killed by hostile fire during the decades-long war, per the AP. Seven other women died in accidents and illnesses.

Among the hundred or so nurses at Chu Lai, Lane stood out. She was shy, several years older than most, and had volunteered to go to Vietnam instead of being ordered there. Her biographer, Philip Bigler, calls her "a symbol" of nurses at war. This Memorial Day, her friends and colleagues' thoughts drift back to that fateful day in June of 1969. But some would rather forget. Cannon Sample was a hospital corpsman who was in Lane's ward when she was killed. Forty-eight years later, he still has nightmares about that morning. "He doesn't go into details," said his wife, Joy Sample, by phone. "It's just bits and pieces." Still, every year, a group of veterans gather at her grave to pay respects to Lane, vowing to keep her memory alive. "Oh yes," says Pat Powell, leader of the veteran's association. "Until we die." Click for more on Lane. (Read more Memorial Day stories.)
British cops are investigating whether a serial killer locked up for nearly four decades could be behind two cold cases in Sweden. Police in the southern Swedish city of Malmo say a passenger ferry list shows that "Yorkshire Ripper" Peter Sutcliffe was apparently in the area in September 1980 when the body of 26-year-old Teresa Thorling was found dumped at a construction site, Kvallsposten reports via the Local. At the time, that murder was linked to the brutal killing one month earlier of Gertie Jensen, 31, in Gothenburg. Swedish sleuth Bo Lundqvist confirmed to the newspaper that Malmo cops told UK authorities in 1981 that the truck driver may have been in the city around the time of the murders. That lead went nowhere after Interpol reportedwrongly, it turned outthat Sutcliffe was not there.

Interpol later corrected that version in a telex that apparently wasn't spotted by UK cops until last year, when a cold case squad took another look at the two unsolved murders. They have another major clue to pursue: a hair recovered from Thorling's body that could identify her killer. Lundqvist confirmed that UK cops have asked his department for help. "They wanted answers," he tells Kvallsposten, including forensic evidence and "whether Sutcliffe was named in any investigations." Sutcliffe was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, per the Guardian, after being sentenced to life in prison in 1981 for the murders of 13 women in the UK in the late 1970s, and the attempted murders of seven others. Although the statute of limitations has lapsed for the two murders in Sweden, Sutcliffe could be prosecuted under UK law. (A letter reopened a very old case.)
Sofia Coppola scored a historic victory at the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday night when she became only the second woman in the event's 70-year history to win the best director award. The American, who won with Civil War drama The Beguiled, is the first woman to win since Soviet director Yuliya Soltsneva, who was awarded the prize in 1961 for World War II movie The Story of the Flaming Years, Slate reports. The coveted Palme D'Or prize went to Swedish writer-director Ruben Ostlund's comedy The Square, the AP reports. Diane Kruger won best actress and Joaquin Phoenix was named best actor.

Coppola, one of three women among the 19 directors in the competition this year, was not present to accept her prize but she released a statement saying it was an "exciting start" to be honored in Cannes. "I'm thankful to my great team and cast and to Focus and Universal for their support of women-driven films," she said, per the Hollywood Reporter. Beguiled star Nicole Kidman also missed the ceremony, where she was honored with a special prize to mark the festival's 70th anniversary. Jury member Will Smith collected it on her behalf, pretending to cry and saying, "Merci beaucoup madam and monsieurs!" (Read more Sofia Coppola stories.)
North Korea carried out its third missile test in as many weeks Monday, firing what is believed to have been a short-range Scud-type missile into waters Japan considers to be part of its exclusive economic maritime zone. Japanese government spokesman Yoshihide Suga says Tokyo has protested the "intolerable" action to Pyongyang in the strongest possible terms, the Guardian reports. The missile launch "is highly problematic from the perspective of the safety of shipping and air traffic" and is a clear violation of UN resolutions, Suga said. South Korean military leaders say the launch, the third since new South Korean President Moon Jae-in took office May 10, appears to be part of an effort to get Seoul to change its policies.

South Korean military officials also say the launch of the missile, which flew around 280 miles, may also have been an attempt to show that Pyongyang can strike American troops in the region, the AP reports. The White House says President Trump was briefed on the launch, which posed no threat to North America, reports Reuters. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, when asked on CBS News' Face the Nation how a war with North Korea might unfold, said it would be "probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes." "The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea," he warned. (Read more North Korea stories.)
Bad news for frequent fliers, good news for airport bookstores: Homeland Security chief John Kelly says officials are seriously considering banning laptops, tablets, and other large electronic devices from cabin baggage on all international flights to or from the US, reports the BBC. When asked on Fox News Sunday whether he would expand the ban, which currently applies to flights from 10 cities in Muslim-majority countries, Kelly said he might, adding that a "real threat" exists. Terrorists, he said, are "obsessed" with "the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if it's a US carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly US folks."

Kelly said the US plans to "raise the bar for, generally speaking, aviation security much higher than it is now." The ban now in place affects around 50 flights a day, none of them on US carriers, but there were reports earlier this month that the Trump administration was considering expanding it to flights to and from the European Union, which would affect around 65 million travelers a year, the AP reports. The airline industry is worried that an expanded ban on electronic devices could lead to a drop in demand, Reuters reports, though execs including United's Oscar Munoz say they are in close contact with Homeland Security on the issue and have thanked the administration for giving them a "heads up." (Officials say intelligence on al-Qaeda led to the original ban.)
It was a rocky opening day at a $43 million California water park after a 10-year-old boy careened off a water slide and hit the pavement. Miraculously, the boy was "just shaken up" after he sailed from the tube Saturday at The Wave park in Dublin, a park rep tells the East Bay Times. A harrowing video, per KRON, captures the moment the boy catapulted from the Emerald Plunge. Luckily, he was near the bottom of the three-story slide when he slapped down on concrete. "He got up immediately  and was stunned," eyewitness Linda Smith, the assistant city manager, tells the Times. "I was worried if he was mentally OK, but physically he just had some scrapes." The boy's parents declined medical attention at the scene.

Park officials closed the slide and two others while authorities investigate, including one called the Dublin Screamer, which boasts a "heart-pounding near vertical drop," per the park's website. Three of the slides remained open. The steepest slides are fully enclosed, but the Emerald Plunge has open sides and promises "a splash you'll never forget." Riders must be 48 inches tall and are told to cross their arms and legs. Park officials say the boy's legs were open, but the Mercury News counters that they appear closed. Were not going to open it until we know what happened, Smith says of the slide. (A boy's death closed the world's tallest water slide.)
President Trump is preparing his first Memorial Day address at Arlington National Cemetery. Trump is also set to lay a wreath Monday at the cemetery, the final resting place for many US military members and others who have served the country, the AP reports. Trump previewed the address Saturday before he flew home from Italy, the final stop on his first trip abroad since taking office. He addressed US service members stationed at a naval base in Sicily as "warriors of freedom" and the "patriots who keep the fires of liberty burning." Trump also noted his desire to boost spending on the military, and as commander in chief, pledged his "complete and unshakeable support" to the men and women in uniform. (Read more Memorial Day stories.)
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has done things a bit differently from the start, and Reuters reports on his latest break from tradition: Though Tillerson issued a statement Friday to mark the start of Islam's holy month of Ramadan, officials tell Reuters he declined a request from the State Department's Office of Religion and Global Affairs to host an event to mark its end, as secretaries of state have done since 1999 "with few exceptions." The office wanted Tillerson to host an Eid al-Fitr reception, which it explained could be scheduled in July at a time of day that wouldn't necessitate "a very late evening for the Secretary," as opposed to an iftarthe dinner that breaks the fast, and which some of Tillerson's predecessors have hosted.

A State Department rep offered this: "We are still exploring possible options for observance of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the month of Ramadan. US ambassadors are encouraged to celebrate Ramadan through a variety of activities, which are held annually at missions around the world." As for those exceptions, Reuters notes that in 2006 and 2015, the deputies of the secretary of state stood in as host; in 2014, John Kerry instead marked Eid al-Adha with a reception. CNN notes that Tillerson has been trying to downsize the agency, and observes that while a "final decision" hasn't been made, it's been assumed that the agency that deals with religious outreach is on the chopping block. (Read more Rex Tillerson stories.)
Ukraine insists on deploying a peacekeeping mission to the territories of Donbas uncontrolled by Kyiv, a prominent Ukrainian parliamentarian said.

"We have drawn the attention of our partners in the OSCE to the Ukrainian administration's position that it is very difficult to achieve demilitarization and de-occupation without deploying a peacekeeping mission to the occupied territory," Iryna Gerashchenko, first deputy chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada and Kyiv's representative in the humanitarian subgroup of the trilateral contact group, said on Monday.

Ukraine believes it is necessary to make "a positive decision on the peacekeeping mission in Donbas, Gerashchenko told reporters after meeting with the ambassadors of the OSCE countries on Monday.

She accused Russia for blocking the matter.

The issue of Crimea was brought up in the meeting with the ambassadors of the OSCE countries, Gerashchenko said. "The OSCE SMM [Special Monitoring Mission] should have access to the entire Ukrainian territory, and Crimea is Ukraine. We raised the issue that [human] rights violations in Crimea and the Russian Federation's failure to grant monitoring missions and human rights missions access to the occupied territory are unacceptable," she said.

"We believe that the issue of Crimea should be more actively addressed by all international organizations," she said.

The delegation of the OSCE representatives currently visiting Ukraine comprises 27 ambassadors of OSCE countries, Gerashchenko said. "On these days, they will not only visit Kyiv, but the delegation will also visit Donbas," she said.

The delegation of OSCE representatives will leave for Donbas on Monday evening, she said.
It's close but no cigar for British Airways. The airline has fully restored all its long-haul services out of Heathrow following Saturday's crippling IT failure, but Monday marks the third day of related delays and cancellations, particularly when it comes to short-haul flights. The AP reports BA axed 27 flights on Monday, and sister airlines Iberia and Air Nostrum cancelled more than 320. The airline didn't offer much in the way of details until Monday when in an interview with Sky News, CEO Alex Cruz faulted a power surge. The Independent reports Cruz also said the backup system didn't kick in as it should have. Cruz brushed away a British union's assertions that the root of the IT issue stretches back a year, when "hundreds" of IT staffers lost their jobs, per the union GMB, with the work outsourced to India.

Cruz countered that "they've all been local issues around a local data center who have been managed and fixed by local resources." But that doesn't stop the BBC from speculating that for BA's "Disaster Recovery Plan" to have worked, "veteran staff with knowledge of the complex patchwork of systems built up over the years" would be key, and it's possible some of those people left during last year's shift to India. GMB isn't the only one needling the airline. Mashable reports budget airline Ryanair has been poking fun on Twitter. In one tweet, it proclaims, "Breaking news: BA appoints new head of IT.... #ShouldHaveFlownRyanair"; the picture above features the line "computer says no." See its other tweet here. (Read more British Airways stories.)
For decades, the tiny, out-of-sight beach at the south end of Vermont's fjord-like Lake Willoughby has been known as much for its nudity as its views of the clear, cold lake. Now, regulars fear its charm could be the area's undoing. Concerned about the cars that park along the highway by the lake during summer, the state is offering a redevelopment plan that is being criticized by people who use the beach and the surrounding area, the AP reports. The plan includes clearing land to make way for parking, boardwalk trails, and restrooms. Shelah Vogel, of Newport Center, Vermont, says she fears the state's proposal could turn the area into a state park that could eventually require paid admission, forcing out the skinny dippers. "This beautiful natural setting, it kind of lends itself to that, just total freedom from stress and society, crowds," says Vogel, who says she visits the beach daily the summer.

For decades, the tiny beach at the south end of Lake Willoughby, the 5-mile, narrow body of water flanked by two steep mountains, located about 20 miles south of the Canadian border, has been a haven for people who like to frolic nude. Vermont has no state laws against nudity, although some communities have enacted anti-nudity ordinances. When the state held public meetings about the plans to redevelop the Lake Willoughby area last winter, some officials were shocked at the level of opposition. The outcry prompted the state to scale back the development plans. "It's a much loved place, locally, regionally, state-wide. It's beautiful," says Michael Snyder, commissioner of the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. "It's really quite something. It's used a lot. There are increasing pressures that really need to be addressed. It's not sustainable, it's not sufficient as is." (Read more nude beach stories.)
Head in hands, his voice strained, Vincent Mitchell sat outside his little yellow home and tried to make sense of how a family dispute led to a rampage that killed eight people, including the deputy who tried to keep them safe. "I'm devastated. It don't seem like it's real," Mitchell told the AP shortly after the arrest of his stepson-in-law, Willie Corey Godbolt. "Him and my stepdaughter, they've been going back and forth for a couple of years with that domestic violence." Godbolt showed up at Mitchell's home in the southern Mississippi town of Bogue Chitto shortly before midnight Saturday to demand that his estranged wife give up their two children. She and the kids had been staying with them for about three weeks, Mitchell says. "The deputy was called," and asked him to leave.

It seemed like Godbolt would comply at first, Mitchell says. "Then he reached in his back pocket and grabbed a gun." Mitchell escaped along with Godbolt's wife, but Mitchell's wife, her sister, and one of the wife's daughters were killed. Also slain was Deputy William Durr, a two-year sheriff's department veteran and former police officer in nearby Brookhaven, where authorities say Godbolt fled and killed four more people at two other homes. Authorities on Monday said Godbolt was related to or acquainted with all the victims except Durr. A member of Godbolt's church previously told the AP that everyone but the deputy was related to Godbolt by blood or marriage. Godbolt is hospitalized in good condition with a gunshot wound. (Read more Mississippi stories.)
French President Emmanuel Macron hosted Russia's Vladimir Putin at the sumptuous royal palace in Versailles on Monday to talk about cooperating on fighting terror. The visit demonstrated Macron's prowess in global politics, as he secured that goal but pulled no punches in a blistering attack on Russian state media outlets. The two leaders emerged from three-hour talks exchanging smiles and hailing historic ties between the two nations, but their comments at a news conference reflected some deep divides. Macron said he spoke to Putin about LGBT rights in Chechnya, for instance, and said any use of chemical weapons in Syriawhere Russia is propping up the government of President Bashar Assadis a "red line" for France and would be met by an "immediate riposte."

Speaking with remarkable frankness, Macron tore into two Russian media outletsSputnik and Russia Todaythat he said had spread "serious untruths" during the French presidential campaign that he won on May 7. "I will not give an inch on this," he said, per the AP. "Russia Today and Sputnik ... behaved as organs of influence, of propaganda, of lying propaganda." Putin strongly rejected accusations of meddling in the presidential vote. Macron portrayed the meeting as just a first step in resetting the country's relations with Russia. "Big things are built over time," he said. "It was an exchange that was extremely frank, direct, with a lot of things that were said. We have disagreements, but at least we talked about them," he added. (Read more Emmanuel Macron stories.)
Australia will deploy more troops in Afghanistan to conduct advisory and training missions to the Afghan security forces

Canberra : Australia will deploy more troops in Afghanistan to conduct advisory and training missions to the Afghan security forces following a request from NATO, Defence Minister Marise Payne said on Monday.

"Given the centrality of Afghanistan in the global fight against terrorism, an enhanced Australian contribution to the resolute support mission is both timely and appropriate," Payne told the Senate.

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said his government was open to the possibility of sending more troops to Afghanistan in response to a request made by NATO during his trip to the Middle East, Efe news reported.

According to the announcement on Monday, Australian authorities have confirmed the commitment to send an additional 30 troops to Afghanistan without specifying the date of deployment.

Australia has so far deployed 270 members of its Armed Forces in Afghanistan, with some 780 in Iraq and Syria, where they are assigned to provide assistance and training and to collaborate in aerial strikes, respectively.

Australia is currently conducting military training of the local army in Afghanistan, where the country deployed up to 1,500 soldiers for operations between 2001 and 2014, which was considered the largest military contribution of a country outside the Atlantic Alliance.
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Exclusive interview with head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine Hugues Mingarelli for the Interfax-Ukraine News AgencyFirst of all, we are very happy that the decision on the liberalization of a visa-free regime has been adopted because Ukraine fully deserves this. Ukraine has fulfilled 144 conditions. Second point, we hope that a large number of Ukrainians will be ready to visit 30 European countries, not only EU countries, but others too without any visas. They can go for business trips, tourism, short-term studies, so we really hope that we will be able to benefit from this regime. And in any case, this cannot be regarded as a threat because Ukrainians are not a threat to the EU. This is an opportunity. It should not be viewed as a threat. All Ukrainian citizens who hold biometric passports will benefit from this new visa-free regime. All of them, regardless of where they are: in Donbas, Crimea or Luhansk region, or in the territories under control of the Ukrainian authorities, can visit the EU countries.Travelling to Western Europe is a good way to get first-hand information on how people live in the EU. The EU Delegation is now conducting an information campaign on the rules and benefits of a visa-free regime. We found out that only 4-5% of citizens from the east visited the EU countries, while from the west  20-25%. So, our wish is that as many Ukrainian people as possible, especially from the eastern part of the country, could visit the EU, so that they could assess themselves and see what the EU is about, and the way how people live there. A visa-free regime is the best way to counter fake news because people can see themselves what the realities are.In my opinion, our joint priority task for Ukraine and the EU is to implement the Association Agreement on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA). This is in Ukraine's interest. It's not a good idea to start asking for a new agreement, but to implement the existing one. If you implement the DCFTA with the EU, you'll remove all obstacles to trade and investment between Ukraine and the EU. This means Ukraine's economy will join the EU single market. And this is the maximum you can get for today.We hope that it will be ratified by the Dutch Senate in the next few weeks. I cannot be more precise. But what you should know that although it has not been ratified by one of the EU states, the most important provisions of this agreement are already under recommendation. We are not just waiting for the Dutch to ratify this agreement, we are implementing this agreement on a provisional basis, as they say de-facto. I talked a lot with Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze [Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine] and Maria Ionova [the deputy head of the parliamentary committee on European integration] to implement the most important provisions of this agreement so that Ukraine could harmonize its legislation with the EU one in the most important sectors of economy in particular.First of all, you should take over the norms and standards of the EU as foreseen and provided for in the DCFTA and you will be able to export what you can export to the single EU market [] Once the DCFTA enters into force, these quotas will disappear. Let's not focus solely on quotas that relate only to a narrow group of agricultural products (36 types of products, of which only nine are used) and instead accelerate the work on opening up much larger EU markets by adopting EU standards.For the last three years the Ukrainian authorities have passed new laws and created new anti-corruption institutions like NABU, SAPO and NACP and a new system of the electronic declaring of assets has been created. So, a lot has been done to combat corruption, but this is not enough. The Ukrainian authorities, first of all, are to consolidate the independence of these bodies. And in this regard the way the audit of NABU has been prepared is a matter of concern for us. Second point, they should endue NABU with wire-tapping power. Third point, they should ensure that NACP is a real means to verify e-declarations which is not the case today. Then, they should move ahead with anti-corruption measures, and in this regard it is absolutely necessary to create anti-corruption courts as quickly as possible. This is something what should be done in the next few weeks. And finally, they should avoid backtracking on anti-corruption reforms. And in this regard I would like to note that the extension of the obligation on obligatory e-declaration for NGO members was a mistake. And we hope that this will be corrected as soon as possible. Because anti-corruption activists are not civil servants and they are not accountable in the same way as civil servants, they are not responsible for public money. So, if the authorities want to establish the transparency of NGOs  this is fine. And we are ready to help them put in place the necessary mechanisms to check the funding sources of NGOs, but they certainly should not subject anti-corruption activists to this kind of control.NABU is investigating high level corruption cases. So, if I had been a very rich Ukrainian citizen, who had been stealing money for years since the independence, I would not like NABU to be efficient and independent and I would have done everything to hinder its activities. There are many people in Ukraine who, as you know, present group and material interests, who are trying to prevent the work of NABU for these reasons.Sure. They are everywhere, they are in the Rada, the government, they are present in the civil society and their presentation is very strong in the Ukrainian media.It's clear there are individuals trying to put a number of limitations to the investigation power of NABU for the reasons we have just mentioned.PGO has had very strong power in Ukraine for a long time. A new institution  NABU  arrives on the same market and it is natural that there is some tension between them. And we, with G7 ambassadors, have already organized a number of meetings with Mr. Lutsenko [Prosecutor General of Ukraine Yuriy Lutsenko] and Mr. Sytnyk [NABU chief Artem Sytnyk] to try to look at the reasons of this tension and call on them to work together rather than fighting with each other. My conclusion is that it is possible for these people to find modus vivendi in the interests of the fight against corruption in Ukraine.For me it's not a question of individuals  it's a question of NACP's structure. We were told a few weeks ago by Justice Minister Petrenko [Pavlo Petrenko] that the NACP structure will be reviewed to make it more efficient. And this is what has to be done. I don't want to talk about the resignation of a person. We should look at the structure, not at the person.Yes, but there is no clear distribution of responsibilities and this is what we should change.First of all, we share the views expressed by many observers or players including the IMF that the current pension system is not sustainable. Therefore, there is no other option but to reform it. It is important to reform it, first of all, to get sound funding, and it should be reformed as well to protect the most vulnerable population group, because we know that many pensioners live in poverty and the reform of the pension system should not lead to even more poverty. But there are many so called best practices regarding reforming the pension system and I am sure that our IMF colleagues are well aware of them and will propose to PM Groysman a number of options and one of these options will be suited to the specific situation in Ukraine.There have been consultations. We are not on the frontline in this area because there are other international players such as the IMF, the World Bank, which are far more engaged than we are in this process, but we consulted as well and we are informed of those discussions.The European Union fully supports the reform promoted by Minister Suprun. We consider the current health system as collapsed in Ukraine and it is absolutely necessary to carry out the reform proposed by Minister Suprun and again for the sake of the poorest Ukrainians, the most vulnerable, not for those who can go to a private clinic.First point, the EU is a soft power and sanctions are restrictive measures and one of the most efficient tools when we face this kind of situation. Second point, my understanding is that these sanctions have had an impact on the Russian economy and the best evidence of it is that the Russian political leadership is doing its best to get these sanctions removed by all means. This means that these sanctions are effective, but clearly they are not an end in and of themselves. They are just a mean to pursue a political objective. Therefore, once the Minsk Agreements are implemented, sanctions should be removed.Ukraine is facing a hybrid war. Part of this hybrid war is a disinformation campaign by the 'big neighbor,' therefore we understand that Ukraine has to take a number of steps to counter this disinformation, this propaganda campaign. But at the same time this should not lead the Ukrainian authorities to restrict the freedom of information in the country. We have to look into the details and if these measures restrict the freedom of information, so we will ask the Ukrainian authorities to review these measures.It is a very thin line and I am not an expert who can say what this line should be. This is a very delicate and sensitive issue.From our side we are working on this issue which is relatively new to us. For instance, we have a team in Brussels which is working with the disinformation campaign to analyze the fake news, the disinformation campaign issue and the ways to counter it to be able to understand how we have to inform the citizens so that they know the truth about the EU and what the situation in Ukraine is.
Fairbanks, AK (99707)

Today

Variable clouds with snow showers. High 18F. Winds light and variable. Chance of snow 50%. Snow accumulations less than one inch..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. Low near 10F. Winds light and variable.
New Delhi:

The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) is all set to announce MSBSHSE Class 12th Result 2017 on 30th May at the official website of the board which is mahresult.nic.in.

Apart from the official website students may also log on to other website like examresults.net to avoid the crash.

Previously media report suggested that the board will publish the result by the end of this month.

However, this time the report has come only after official confirmation.

The MSBSHSE Class 12th examinations were conducted by its nine divisional boards at Pune, Mumbai, Aurangabad, Nashik, Kolhapur, Amravati, Latur, Nagpur and Ratnagiri in Maharashtra.

The board conducted the examination on March 25, however due to teachers protest the assessment of answer sheets got delayed.

The students who are waiting eagerly to get their results may go through the following steps.

Steps to check:

-Visit the official website mahresult.nic.in

-Click on HSC results 2017

-Enter the roll number and other details

-Download your results

-Take a print out of the same for future convenience.

Moreover, the class 10th Secondary School Certificate (SSC) results are expected in June.

Also Read: West Bengal Higher Secondary results 2017 to be declared by WBCHSE on 30th May at 10 AM, check details here

About Maharashtra Board

The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary & Higher Secondary Education was Founded on January 1966. Pune, is an Autonomous Body established under the provisions of the Maharashtra Act No. 41 of 1965. The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary & Higher Secondary Education, conducts the HSC and SSC Examinations in the state of Maharashtra through its nine Divisional Boards located at Pune, Mumbai, Aurangabad, Nasik, Kolhapur, Amravati, Latur, Nagpur and Ratnagiri.

The Board conducts examination twice a year and the number of students appearing for the main examination is around 14 Lacs for HSC and 17 Lac's SSC, for the supplementary examination around 6 Lacs students are expected HSC and SSC together. There are about 21000 schools (SSC) and 7000 (HSC) Higher Sec. Schools / Jr. colleges in the entire state.

Also Read: ICSE Class 10, ISC Class 12 results 2017 declared by CISCE; check your results at cisce.org
New Delhi:

A Manipur trial court on Monday awarded 5 years jail term to Ajay Meetai, the son of present Chief Minister N Biren Singh, in a 2011 road rage case. On May 11, the Supreme Court had sought responses from the Centre and the Manipur government on a plea by parents of a youth who was killed in a road rage case in 2011 by Meetai.

The parents alleged that they fear for their safety. A vacation bench comprising Justices L Nageswara Rao and Navin Sinha had asked the union home secretary and the chief secretary of Manipur to respond by May 29 on the plea by Irom Chitra Devi, mother of Irom Roger.

Meetai has been awarded five years jail term for firing at Roger in a road rage incident on March 20, 2011.

Irom Roger had allegedly not allowed Ajay Meetai, who was in his SUV, to overtake. The incident irked Meetai, leading him to fire at Roger who later died.

The plea, filed through advocate Utsav Bains, alleged that the parents of the Irom Roger were fearing for their safety in the state ruled by BJP through Biren Singh.

Moreover, no lawyer was willing to appear on their behalf in the high court which is hearing the appeal against conviction.

(With inputs from PTI)

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New Delhi:

At least 23 people lost their lives in separate incidents of lightning strike and wall collapse triggered by squall in Bihar on Sunday, even as hot weather conditions continued in many parts of the country and heat-related toll in Odisha climbed to 12.

However, in a good news, the onset of the southwest monsoon is likely to advance due to a deep depression over the Bay of Bengal. The MeT department said that rains were likely to begin in Kerala by May 30-31, marking the onset of monsoon in the country.

In parts of the national capital, the mercury was below the 40-degree mark with some areas in the city witnessing rainfall.

The Safdarjung observatory registered a high of 36.3 degrees Celsius while areas under Palam, Lodhi Road, Ridge and Ayanagar observatories recorded maximum temperatures of 39.7 degrees Celsius, 35 degrees Celsius, 35.8 degrees Celsius and 37.9 degrees Celsius respectively.

Rainfall recorded in the city during the last 24 hours till 8:30 am was 11.9 mm.

In Bihar, at least 23 people, including eight women, were killed in separate lightning and rain-related incidents.

Eighteen persons were killed after lightning struck them across eight districts, while five persons were killed in separate incidents of wall collapse during a storm that blew at a speed of 50-70 km per hour in different panchayat areas of the West Champaran district of the state.

Of the 18 people killed in incidents of lightning strike in eight districts, five persons were killed in East Champaran, four in Jamui, one in West Champaran, two each in Munger, Bhagalpur and Madhepura and one each in Vaishali and Samastipur districts, the states Disaster Management Department Additional Secretary Anirudh Kumar said.

Meanwhile, sunstroke toll climbed to 12 in Odisha even as rains triggered by the depression over the Bay of Bengal and a norwester in some areas brought respite from scorching heat.

Two more deaths were reported in Sambalpur and Bargarh district since yesterday.

With this, four heat-related deaths have been reported from Sambalpur, while three deaths each took place in Angul and Bargarh districts and one each in Balangir and Bhadrak, the office of the Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) said.

The mercury breached the 40-degree mark in only four places in the state. Angul was the hottest place, recording a maximum of 42.1 degrees Celsius while Hirakud registered a high of 40.8 degrees Celsius.

Heatwave continued unbated in Haryana and Punjab with Hisar being the hottest place in the two states, recording a maximum of 43.2 degrees Celsius.

In Punjab, Amritsar recorded a high of 39.3 degrees Celsius, while in Ludhiana and Patiala the maximum temperatures were 38.5 degrees Celsius and 37.6 degrees Celsius respectively.

Rajasthan too reeled under hot weather conditions with the mercury settling above the 43-degree mark in most parts of the state. However, maximum temperatures saw a dip by one to two degrees in comparison to yesterday.

Churu was the hottest place in the state, with a maximum of 47 degrees Celsius, followed by 45.6 degrees Celsius in Pilani and 44.6 degrees Celsius in Sriganganagar.

The mercury in Bikaner and Kota settled at 44.5 degrees Celsius and 44.4 degrees Celsius respectively.

Heatwave conditions also prevailed at a few places in Madhya Pradesh and Vidarbha region.

In Himachal Pradesh, hailstorm and rain lashed Shimla and its surrounding areas affecting normal life.

Una was hottest place in the state with a maximum temperature of 39.2 degrees Celsius, followed by Nahan at 35.5 degrees Celsius, Sundernagar at 33.7 degrees Celsius, Bhuntar 33.6 degrees Celsius and Dharamsala 32.4 degrees Celsius.

Rainfall also occurred in parts of Kerala, Lakshadweep, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, coastal Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Visuals from Bettiah, 23 people killed in separate rain-related incidents in Bihar. (May 28) pic.twitter.com/bGwzCi4TK7  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

Also read: Sri Lanka witnesses worst rainfall since 1970, heavy floods and landslides kill around 90 people in country

Also read: Heavy rain lashes parts of Delhi, brings relief from scorching heat



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New Delhi:

Dismissing reports that rodents had gulped more than nine lakh litres of liquor, as claimed by police officials, Bihar Chief Minister on Monday said that he gave orders to publicly destroy seized alcohol.



Nitish dismissed media reports that rats consumed liquor kept in police stations store saying, the reports were an attempt to defame Bihar.



I have ordered for destruction of liquor publicly. Keep sample of the seized liquor bottles and inform the courts about it. The seized nine lakh litres liquor have been destroyed, the Chief Minister said.



Nitish Kumar was addressing the 11th foundation day function of Mahavir Vatsalya cancer hospital in Patna. Reports of rats guzzling more than nine lakh litres of liquor seized in drives and kept in Malkhana (store room of police station) had ruffled feathers in Bihar recently.



With inputs from PTI.

ALSO READ: Nitish Kumar meets PM Modi at lunch a day after skipping luncheon hosted by Sonia Gandhi

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Srinagar:

The situation in Kashmir remained peaceful on the second day as authorities continued curfew-like restrictions at a number of places in the valley fearing protests over the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Bhat.

However, the two-day strike call given by the separatists against the militant's killing affected normal life in Kashmir for the second day." Situation remained peaceful and under control throughout the Kashmir valley," said a police spokesman.

He said there was a report about a stray incident of stone-pelting on a CRPF camp in Tahab area of south Kashmir's Pulwama district.

A group of miscreants pelted stones on the camp but police and security forces, using "maximum restraint", chased them away, the spokesman said. No one was injured, he added.

Curfew-like restrictions continued in parts of Kashmir as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order following the killing of Sabzar in an encounter with security forces on Saturday last.

ALSO READ: Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat says 'Dirty war in Kashmir has to be fought with innovative ways'



In Srinagar, curfew-like restrictions were in place in seven police station areas - Khanyar, Nowhatta, Safakadal, M R Gunj, Rainawari, Kralkhud and Maisuma.

Similar restrictions continued in Anantnag and Shopian districts and Pulwama town in south Kashmir and in the township of Sopore in north Kashmir.

In central Kashmir's Budgam and Ganderbal districts, restrictions on the assembly of people under Section 144 CrPc also continued for the second day.

The curbs in these areas were imposed as a pre-emptive measure to prevent violence like that witnessed on Saturday, immediately after Bhat was killed along with his associate in the encounter in Soimoh area of Tral in Pulwama district.

The separatist leaders - chairman of hardline Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah Geelani, head of moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and JKLF chief Yasin Malik -- have called for a march to Tral on Tuesday to pay tributes to the slain militants.

To prevent them from leading any protest marches, the authorities on Sunday arrested Malik from his residence here and put Geelani and Mirwaiz under house detention.

Mobile internet services in the valley have been suspended and the outgoing call facility on prepaid numbers has also been snapped as a precautionary measure.

The Kashmir University has postponed all examinations which were scheduled to be held on Monday and Tuesday A spokesman of the university said fresh dates for the deferred examinations shall be notified later.

Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST), Awantipora, also postponed the examination scheduled for today.

The university also suspended the class work for today in view of the prevailing situation. Schools and colleges have also been closed for two days in Srinagar and Pulwama.







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Pathankot:

A search operation was launched by the Punjab Police and the Army after an abandoned bag containing Army fatigues was found in Pathankot, a police official said on Monday.



A local resident informed the police about the bag on Sunday following which the search operation was conducted in Pathankot city and Mamoon Cantonment.



We conducted a search operation along with army officials here to look for any suspicious person, the official said.



Five shirts and two trousers were found in a wheat flour bag at a secluded place near the Defence Road here, the official said.

Read | Pathankot police recovers two unattended bags carrying mobile tower batteries near military base



In 2015, three heavily-armed terrorists wearing Army fatigues, had hijacked a car and stormed a police station in Dinanagar town of Gurdaspur district. They killed seven persons, including a Superintendent of Police, before they were gunned down.



Last year, four terrorists who had sneaked in from across the border had attacked the Pathankot Air Base on the intervening night of January 1 and 2, claiming the lives of seven security personnel.

Punjab:High alert in Pathankot, search Op being conducted by police SWAT team & Army after a suspicious bag containing 3 uniforms was found pic.twitter.com/WbeKEq6N6p  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

Punjab: High alert in Pathankot, after a suspicious bag containing a uniform was found near Mamun military station last night. pic.twitter.com/wnji6nTMjr  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017



Read | Pathankot attack martyr Kulwant Singhs family manhandled by agent after being denied Rs 5 lakh





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New Delhi:

Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday asked the Delhi Police chief to take stern action against those involved in beating to death an e rickshaw driver for stopping two persons from urinating in public.



Sad that an e rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping two people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting Swachh Bharat, the Union Urban Development Minister tweeted.



He said he has spoken with Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik and has asked him to take strongest action possible against the culprits.



On Saturday, 32-year-old e-rickshaw driver Ravinder was beaten to death allegedly by a dozen men after he objected to a few of them urinating outside the GTB Nagar metro station.

Read | Delhi: E-rickshaw driver beaten to death for stopping men from urinating outside GTB Metro station

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New Delhi:

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday asserted it was absurd to suggest that any member of his family could influence six secretaries of the central government who were part of the FIPB.

Strongly refuting allegations that his son Karti had influenced the decisions of the now-defunct Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) when he was the finance minister, Chidambaram said it was a despicable slur on the six secretaries of the government.

The FIPB used to vet FDI proposals requiring government approval.

The former finance minister said any one familiar with the working of the FIPB knows that no single officer could take a decision on any proposal and it was a collective decision of six secretaries.

Any one who has worked with me knows that no one would dare to influence my decisions. I had never allowed any family member to speak to me or to any officer of my ministry on any official matter, he said in a statement.

It was therefore, he said, preposterous to suggest that a member of his family, with or without his knowledge, influenced, by corrupt or illegal means, the six secretaries who constituted the FIPB.

Such an allegation is a despicable slur on the six secretaries of the government who constituted the FIPB at the relevant time, he said.

The CBI last fortnight had filed an FIR against Karti and INX Media founders Indrani and Peter Mukerjea on charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, receiving illegal gratification, influencing public servants and criminal misconduct.

Also Read: ED files PMLA case against former finance minister P Chidambaram son, Karti Chidambaram and others

The CBI claims that Karti received money from INX Media through a company indirectly controlled by him for using his influence to manipulate a tax probe against it in a case of violation of FIPB conditions to receive investment from Mauritius.

The Congress leader said the subject matter of the FIR was an approval granted by the FIPB and it was clear that he was the target, yet the FIR did not name him.

The former finance minister said as far as FIPB cases were concerned, he had approved only those cases that were recommended by the FIPB and put up to him by the secretary, economic affairs.

Chidambaram said the FIPB was serviced by a secretariat and chaired by the secretary, economic affairs and included four other secretariesindustry, commerce, external affairs and overseas Indian affairs and the secretary of the administrative ministry.

Five of them were among the senior-most IAS officers and the sixth was a senior IFS officer of the Ministry of External Affairs.

The Congress leader said each one of them had a long and distinguished record of service. The recommendations of the FIPB were submitted to the Ministry of Finance where they were once again examined by the junior officers and then by the additional secretary and the secretary before the file was put up to the minister, he said.

Each file put up to the minister would usually contain a number of cases and the recommendations of the FIPB and the secretary, economic affairs, he said.

At the relevant time, the FIPB was chaired by D Subba Rao, IAS, who later became the Governor of RBI. He was succeeded by Ashok Chawla, IAS, who later became Chairman of the Competition Commission of India. The other secretaries were equally distinguished civil servants, he said.

Chidambaram said in the last two weeks, leaks and insinuations have been deliberately fed to a section of the media and maliciously circulated in the social media.

Also Read | BJP's politics of 'revenge and vendetta' would not cow down opposition leaders: Congress after govt raids at Chidambaram premises

In fact, I have obtained a copy of the FIR from the social media. The origin of these leaks is Chennai in my home state of Tamil Nadu, he said.

The FIR alleges that there was a conspiracy involving public officials who were induced by corrupt and illegal means to grant the approval, yet the FIR does not name a single public official, he said.

Chidambaram said the most ridiculous allegation is that the so-called gratification was a cheque for Rs 10 lakh.

He said the cheque was in favour of a consulting company that had raised an invoice for work done, accounted for the income, and paid income tax on the amount.

The Congress leader said he can say with absolute certainty that Karti had never met any officer connected with the FIPB. Besides, he had no connection with the applicant companyINX Media and INX News.

Further, he said, Karti was never a director or shareholder of M/s Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt Ltd (ASCPL).

The promoters and directors of ASCPL have, on more than one occasion, made it clear that ASCPL is their company and they alone are responsible for the business of that company.

They are business friends of Karti and have normal relations that are common among business friends, he said.

I feel sad that my son and his business friends are being targeted. I am indignant that some of the most distinguished civil servants of the country have been humiliated by the FIR, he said.

Chidambaram said in the case, it was not one secretary but six secretaries and the FIPB secretariat who were being humiliated on a ridiculous charge of being induced by an alleged gratification of Rs 10 lakh.

I make this statement so that the misinformation emanating from Chennai is exposed. Ultimately, the course of law will expose the mischief makers. I have advised my son to fully cooperate with the investigation and he will do so, he said.

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New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks on four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France on Monday. PM Modi said that his four-nation tour is aimed at boosting Indias economic engagement with these nations and inviting more investment.

In the first leg of his six-day trip, he will visit Germany, where he will hold talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel under the framework of India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC).

He will also call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Modi said he and Merkel will chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine.

Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, German competencies fit well with my vision for Indias transformation.

In Berlin, Modi and Merkel will also interact with top business leaders of both the countries to further strengthen the trade and investment ties.

I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our Strategic Partnership, he said in a Facebook post.

On Tuesday, Modi will travel to Spain for an official visit, the first by an Indian prime minister in almost three decades.

He will call on King Felipe VI and hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy.

We will discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism, he said.

The prime minister said there is significant potential for deepening bilateral trade and investment ties.

We seek active participation of Spanish industry in various Indian projects including infrastructure, smart cities, digital economy, renewable energy, defence and tourism, he added.

He will also meet top CEOs of the Spanish industry and encourage them to partner in the Make in India initiative.

I look forward to their valuable recommendations for strengthening India-Spain economic partnership, he wrote.

Delhi: PM Narendra Modi departs for Berlin in Germany, on his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France pic.twitter.com/nYzhw8CU6s  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

From Spain, the prime minister will travel to St. Petersburg in Russia from May 31 to June 2 for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit.

...I will be conducting detailed discussions with President Putin to take forward our dialogue from the last Summit in Goa in October 2016, he said.

The two leaders will also be interacting with CEOs from the two countries.

On June 2, Modi and Putin will address the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) where India is the guest country.

In a first meeting of its kind, I will also have the opportunity to engage with Governors from various Russian regions to further broad base bilateral cooperation and more actively involve States/Regions and other diversified stakeholders, he said.

At the beginning of his visit, he will go to Piskarovskoye Cemetery to pay homage to those who perished during the siege of Leningrad.

He will also visit the world famous State Hermitage Museum and the Institute of Oriental manuscripts.

I greatly look forward to my visit to St. Petersburg in this special year for the bilateral relationship as both countries celebrate the 70th Anniversary of our diplomatic relations, Modi said.

In the last leg of the tour, he will visit France from June 2 to 3 for an official meeting with the newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

France is one of our most important Strategic Partners. I look forward to meeting President Macron and have discussions on issues of mutual interest, Modi said.

I would be exchanging views with the French President on important global issues including UN Security Council reforms and Indias permanent membership of the UN Security Council, Indias membership of the various multilateral export control regimes, counter-terrorism cooperation, collaboration on climate change and International Solar Alliance, he added.

France is Indias 9th largest investment partner and a key partner in its development initiatives in the area of defence, space, nuclear and renewable energy, urban development and railways.

I am committed to substantially strengthening and advancing our multi-faceted partnership with France, the prime minister said.

Also read: Bond between India, Mauritius extend to people who take pride in shared roots, says PM Modi

Also read: Sri Lanka floods: Death toll rises to 92; PM Modi condoles loss of lives, Indian ships dispatched with relief materials



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New Delhi:

BJP Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy claimed that the construction of a grand Ram temple in Ayodhya was a matter of faith for Hindus and that there could be no compromise on this issue.

He was addressing a public talk on 'Building Sri Ram Mandir in Ayodhya Through Legal Framework' organised by ViratHindustan Sangam at Hyderabad. "The Ram temple issue is very important for our (Hindus)existence and identity and there can be no compromise on this. I would like to tell you that Ram Mandir will be built at any cost and it will be built at the place where he (Lord Ram) was born and where 'pran prathistha puja' (consecration) has taken place.

"In a petition filed in the Supreme Court, I had said it was my fundamental right to pray to Ram. It is our faith that Ram was born there and hence the 'mandir' (temple) will come up only at that place...no one can question it," said Swamy.

ALSO READ: Centre might introduce bill to build Ram temple in Ayodhya: Subramanian Swamy

He said it had been proven by the experts of the Archaeological Survey of India that there existed a temple at that site. "Babri Masjid was built on the place where Ram was born and after demolishing the Ram Mandir, the Babri Masjid was constructed," claimed Swamy.

"In 1994, the then Narasimha Rao government in anaffidavit filed before the Supreme Court had submitted that ifit was proved that there was a mandir before the mosque came up at that place, all the land would be given to Hindus. Now I told (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi to cite this thing and give the land to Hindus.

"Masjid is only a place to read namaz and it can be readanywhere, but our temples, wherein once pran prathistha pujais done, it will forever remain a mandir," Swamy claimed.

READ: Subramanian Swamy on Ram Temple issue: If Muslims don't want compromise, court will resolve dispute

The saffron leader claimed that there have been instances where mosques have been demolished for road development works and shifted to other places in Saudi Arabia and Turkey. The Supreme Court will take up the case on the Ram temple issue soon, he said.

"I will request to take up the matter on a day-to-daybasis hearing and if it is done we will win the case in fourmonths by Diwali. "Now it is for the government and the Solicitor General to inform the Court that Swamy's fundamental right plea iscorrect. Ram Mandir will be definitely built by 2018," said the Rajya Sabha MP.

There is a need for Hindus to get united, Swamy stressed. On Kashmir issue, he said, "If Pakistan attacks India,its existence will be over and it will be divided into fourparts."

With PTI inputs

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New Delhi:

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh were on Monday granted bail by a special court in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case.



Special Judge Virender Kumar Goyal granted the relief to all the accused on a personal bond of Rs one lakh each and one surety of the like amount. The court, however, asked them not to leave the country without its prior permission.



Earlier in the day, the CBI had opposed the bail plea of the Chief Minister saying they may influence the witnesses and the ongoing probe in a disproportionate assets case against them.



The public prosecutor said Singh was the King of the state and if granted bail, no one will dare to come forward to depose before the court.



In their bail plea, Virbhadra Singh, who has not been arrested so far, and the other accused submitted that the investigation was complete as the CBI has already filed the charge sheet.



But the CBI said the investigation in the case was still on and granting of bail might hamper it. The 82-year-old politician had also cited several medical reports, saying he was suffering from serious ailments.



The accused persons also claimed that they will be able to look after their case in a better manner if they are out on bail. Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh on May 22 appeared as accused in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case and sought bail.



The CBI has charge sheeted Virbhadra Singh, his wife, Universal Apple Associate owner Chunni Lal Chauhan, stamp paper vendor Joginder Singh Ghalta, Managing Director of Tarani Infrastructure Vakamulla Chandrasekhar and co-accused Lawan Kumar Roach, Prem Raj and Ram Prakash Bhatia for the alleged offences including criminal conspiracy, forgery and corruption.



The charge sheet also names as accused LIC agent Anand Chauhan, who was arrested in the case and is currently in judicial custody. The court had on May 8 summoned them after taking cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the CBI.

ALSO READ | CBI opposes bail plea of royal couple Virbhadra Singh and wife in DA case



The CBI charge sheet, running into over 500 pages having the statements of around 225 witnesses and containing 442 documents, has claimed that Singh had amassed assets worth around Rs 10 crore which were disproportionate to his total income during his tenure as a Union minister.



Chauhan was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on July 9 last year in a separate money laundering case related to the DA case.



The matter was transferred by the Supreme Court to the Delhi High Court, which on April 6, 2016 had asked the CBI not to arrest Singh and directed him to join the probe.

ALSO READ | Virbhadra Singh spreading false stories regarding my alleged properties: P K Dhumal



On November 5 last year, the apex court had transferred Singhs plea from the Himachal Pradesh High Court to the Delhi High Court, saying it was not expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, but simply transferring the petition in interest of justice and to save the institution (judiciary) from any embarrassment.

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New Delhi:

Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Monday said that India will get its first bullet train by 2023. He said Railway is bound to serve the common people of India. Prabhu said the railway ministry is working to make track and services better.

While talking exclusively to News Nations Peenaz Tyagi, Prabhu said the NDA government is moving on the right track but yet it has to achieve the goal.

Here are the highlights of the interview

# The project is underway on Delhi-Mumbai-Kolkata route

# Responsibility of bullet train has been given to Japan

# Bullet trains will start by 2023

# We have taken initiative to end the role of middlemen in ticket reservations

# We are trying to give tickets through Aadhaar

# We have enhanced the capacity of IRCTC

# We will ensure trains should not get delayed

# it is necessary to bring change in pricing policy

# But we will take out solution of those problems

# There are a few problems on some tracks

# For the first time in three years, the number of passengers has gone up

# In last five years, railway witnessed drop in passengers

# We need to strengthen the railways instead of making poor

# Railway is for common people

# Not increased passenger fare since three years

# Initiated online process for recruitment

# We have reduced the dependency of Railways

# We are focusing on enhancing passengers facilities

# We have maintained the pace of Railway projects

The NDA government had promised to deliver bullet train in India and attempts have been made in this regard.

Last year in November, Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe had travelled in Japan's famed high-speed Shinkansen bullet train, which is being introduced in India on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad stretch

Modi and Abe had travelled in the train, whose speed ranges from 240 kms per hour to 320 kms per hour, from Tokyo to Kobe, a city on Osaka Bay in Japan.

The construction of the high-speed train corridor between Mumbai and Ahmedabad will start in 2018 and the train service will be operational from 2023.

Also Read | PM Modi in Japan: Construction of Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project to start by end of 2018

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New Delhi:

Vodafone India has announced Vodafone Red Shield, a complete device security solution for smartphones that guarantees a protection cover of up to Rs 50,000 on brand new handsets and even those up to six months old.



At present, this scheme is available only for Vodafone RED Post Paid customers, and Vodafone Red Shield is the only device protection contribution in the business that offers theft cover, beyond basic handset damage cover and extends free of charge insurance cover to handsets that have been purchased six months back.



The Vodafone Red Shield App, can be downloaded at Google Store and iOS, offers an all-inclusive security solution to smart phone devices. Additionally, apart from the theft cover, Vodafone Red Shield arrives with malware protection and other security features.



Vodafone Red Shield is being conveyed to the customers through a collaboration with Shotformats Digital Productions Pvt. Ltd. This insurance cover is offered via New India Assurance Company Ltd.



While Vodafone will be bearing the actual amount of the premium, the subscription charges has been kept at a pocket friendly price point to ensure that the maximum number of customers avail the benefits of Vodafone Red Shield. The annual subscription charges of Rs 720 will be debited from the customers monthly bill with the help of 12 equal instalments (Rs. 60 x 12). Vodafone Red Shield is valid for one year.



Another unique feature of Vodafone Red Shield is that customers can claim insurance protection up to two times in a single year.



To avail this facility Vodafone customers can download Vodafone Red Shield App and then message DSS to 199 from their handset. The app will detect the mobile handset and accept if it matches the norms.
Conflict on Korean Peninsula would be "worst" for most: U.S. defense chief

(Xinhua) 09:19, May 29, 2017

A conflict on the Korean Peninsula would be "the worst kind of fighting" in most people's lifetimes, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said in an interview aired on Sunday.

"We are working with the international community to deal with this issue," said Mattis in the interview with CBS News. "But the bottom line is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat if we're not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means."

Calling the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) a threat to Asian region, Mattis said the DPRK is also "a direct threat to the United States."

However, Mattis said that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump does not draw red lines on the DPRK nuclear issue "unless we intend to carry them out."

"The President needs political maneuver room on this issue," said Mattis.

Tension has remained high on the Korean Peninsula over the past months between the United States and the DPRK over the U.S. threat to stage military attacks against Pyongyang in response to its nuclear and missile programs.

The United States and South Koreaalso held their largest-ever joint military exercises in the past two months. At the end of April, the USS Carl Vinson nuclear aircraft carriertask group arrived in the waters off the Korean Peninsula for a separate joint naval exercise with South Korea.

However, a joint statement by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Mattis and National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said last month that Trump aims to use economic sanctions and diplomatic measures to pressure the DPRK to dismantle its nuclear and missile programs.

The statement also said that the United States remained "open to negotiations" toward peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula while staying "prepared to defend ourselves and our allies."
Berlin:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday dubbed terrorism as the "gravest challenge" facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the UN to deal with this menace.

Modi, who arrived here on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, in an interview to German newspaper Handelsblatt said, Europe has been hit hard by terrorism.

"To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace," he said.

Modis remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently. The latest terror attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.

PM Narendra Modi reaches Berlin in Germany, this is his first stop in the 4-nation trip pic.twitter.com/wwsa2k8Xl8  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

Speaking to the countrys leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people.

We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti-immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed, Modi said.

We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation, he said.

Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was as among the most open and fastest growing major economies in the world.

The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.

India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time...There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council, he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.

On the Indo-German ties, he said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Start-up India, Clean India and Smart Cities.

Also Read | Modi in Sri Lanka: PM hails shared Buddhist heritage, warns of growing arc of violence

In reference to the wider European Union (EU) and Britains impending exit, he said, The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security.

India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach.

On the German side, Merkel had recently said, The times when we could rely on the other have passed ... We Europeans, we must really take destiny into their own hands.

In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, Handelsblatt claimed.

The prime ministers visit to Germany has been described as a new chapter in the bilateral relations between the two countries.

I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership, Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit.

Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for Indias transformation, he said.

The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine.

Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to 9.54 billion dollars. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.

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Yangon:

Myanmar citizens were in uproar on Monday as world's biggest social media platform 'Facebook' seemingly banned word like 'kalar' and people sharing posts using such words would be blocked immediately.

The word 'Kalar' is often used as a slur against Muslims, at a time of rising Islamophobia in the country.

Facebook is under global pressure to clamp down on hates peech, violent threats or deliberately misleading informationon their platform -- with efforts showing varying degrees of success. Dozens of users in Myanmar reported being temporarily barred from the site recently after posting the controversial term kalar, which is frequently used as an insult for the country's embattled Muslim minority.

Some users said they were even blocked after writing other words that include the same sound in the Burmese alphabet, highlighting the difficulties Facebook has monitoring millions of posts in multiple languages.

Aung Kaung Myat said he had been prevented from liking, posting and sharing content on the site for 24 hours last week for writing about the apparent ban, as had many of his friends.

"It is ridiculous," he said. "I became a victim of it myself when I wrote: 'Facebook is deleting the posts thatinclude the word kalar'."

Yarzar Soe-Oo said he was barred on Friday after posting a jokey quip about eating Indian bean soup ("kalar pal hin")while sitting in a chair ("kalar htaing").

Facebook did not reply to emailed requests for comment while a spokesman for the Myanmar government said it had not pushed for a ban.

Kalar is a deeply controversial term in Myanmar, where it is used to refer to foreigners in general but most commonly to describe people of Indian origin and anything relating to their culture. Over the years it has also been turned into a derogatory slur by Buddhist nationalists against Muslims.

Two angry Facebook users have responded to the apparent ban by creating an event called "We own Kalar" in protest. By early afternoon some 1,400 people had said they were interested in attending the gathering, scheduled for Wednesday in Yangon.

"Even though no action is taken against fake account swhich share hate speech and spew abuse... action is taken over(words we use every day)," said the organisers.

"We own the word as we have been using it for decades and over the centuries." The push comes as Myanmar's government has been seeking to clamp down on hate speech after a spike in anti-Muslim actions by Buddhist hardliners.

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Islamabad:

Pakistan is taking a relook at its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance to be led by its former Army chief Gen Raheel Sharif to avoid further straining its relationship with neighbouring Iran, according to a media report.

The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan has decided to follow clear redlines in joining the alliance first announced by Saudi Arabia in 2015.

Its decision comes after statements by Saudi authorities at the Arab Islamic-US summit in Riyadh on May 20-21 suggested that the military alliance was meant primarily to counter Iran - a regional rival of Saudi Arabia.

The Riyadh summit focused on isolating Iran - which was kept out of the summit - and countering terrorism in the Middle East. Pakistani officials insisted that the Pakistan government in-principle agreed to be a part of the initiative if its sole purpose was to fight terrorism.

It was believed that the government had joined the alliance when in April it green-lighted Gen Sharif to leave Pakistan to lead the alliance. But the officials said a final decision will be made once the terms of reference (ToRs) of the alliance are finalised. The ToRs would be finalised during a meeting of the defence ministers of the participating countries in Saudi Arabia soon.

A senior official familiar with the development told the daily that Pakistan would present its set of proposals during the meeting. Pakistan, according to the official, would recommend that the military alliance should have clear objective, that is to fight terrorism.

ALSO READ: Pakistan approaches UN, international community to stop violence in Kashmir



Any deviation from this goal, he added, will not only undermine the alliance but lead to more divisions in the Muslim world. "We are very clear that we will join this alliance only to fight terrorism," the official emphasised. Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria has also indicated that Pakistan was yet to take a final decision.

"What we need to understand is that the Terms ofReference of the alliance are yet to be finalised. The defence ministers of the participating countries will meet and discuss the modalities of the coalition.

We must wait until we have all the information to comment on its outcome. We shouldn't indulge in speculations," Zakaria said in one of his briefings. The Pakistan government has already given a public commitment that it would not become part of any initiative whose aim is to target any other Islamic country, including Iran.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on the floor of the National Assembly has said that Pakistan would withdraw from the alliance if it turns out to be sectarian in nature. Even Gen Sharif had reportedly told the Saudis that he would lead the grouping only if its main purpose was to fight terrorism and not aimed at any other Islamic country.

To avoid any strain in its ties with Iran, Pakistan had pushed for mediation between Tehran and Riyadh. Islamabad even mooted the idea of inclusion of Iran in the military alliance.

However, those efforts could not succeed since SaudiArabia and Iran have serious differences on regional disputes, particularly the current hotspots in the Middle East.

Pakistan's main opposition parties, Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Peoples Party, have been calling for maintaining "neutrality" in the Arab-Iran rivalry. But given the longstanding strategic ties with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is unlikely to completely withdraw from the alliance. Nonetheless, officials stressed, Pakistan's participation would remain confined to counter-terrorism efforts.

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President Xi Jinping sent a message of condolence to his Sri Lankan counterpart Maithripala Sirisena on Sunday after flooding and a landslide left more than 150 people dead.

Xi expressed deep sorrow for the people who lost their lives and extended his sympathy to those affected by the disaster as well as the family members of those killed.

He also highlighted the friendly relationship between the countries and offered all-out support to the Sri Lankan government and help with the disaster relief effort.

Xi said he was confident the Sri Lankan government and the people will overcome the disaster and rebuild their country.

Premier Li Keqiang also sent a message of condolence to Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Sunday.

The message of support came as emergency teams rushed to distribute aid to half a million people who have been displaced by the flooding, as authorities upgraded the death toll to 151.

The official Disaster Management Centre said 111 people were still missing, with 95 injured in hospital, since torrential rain and landslides swept away entire villages.

Floodwaters were receding in some areas after a break in the rain, giving authorities a chance to deliver much-needed supplies to victims who lost everything in the deluge.

Heavy rains on Friday triggered the worst flooding and landslides in 14 years in the southern and western parts of the island.

Many villages were still underwater on Sunday, officials said.

Nearly 2,000 houses were damaged or completely destroyed. Almost half a million Sri Lankans had been forced from their homes, with most moving into temporary shelters.

The charity Save the Children said about a tenth of those displaced were children below the age of five years.

It said that the stagnant floodwaters provide the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and could exacerbate the dengue crisis that has seen an almost 150 percent increase in cases compared to the same period last year.

"The humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka right now is alarming. The impact of these early monsoon season downpours has been far more devastating than what we'd normally expect this time of the year," Save the Children's Chris McIvor said.

Medical teams have been dispatched to the worst-affected areas to help prevent an outbreak of waterborne diseases.

"We have the expertise to deal with this situation," Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne said, adding that cholera and diarrhea had been successfully prevented in past floods.

The government, meanwhile, has withdrawn an evacuation order for thousands of residents in the southern district of Matara as water levels subsided.

The United Nations said it will provide water containers, water purification tablets and tarpaulin sheets while the World Health Organization will support medical teams in affected areas.
(Xinhua) 09:28, May 29, 2017

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) test-launched a ballistic missile early Monday from the country's east coast, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The ballistic missile, which was believed to be of Scud type, was fired at about 5:39 a.m. local time (2039 GMT on Sunday) from the DPRK's Wonsan vicinity, the JCS said in a statement.

The missile flew some 450 km into eastern waters. The Scud missile is a short-range ballistic missile with a range of 300-500 km, which is known to target the South Korean territory.

The JCS said South Korea and the United Stateswere analyzing details on the missile launch.

It noted that South Korea's military was closely watching any possible provocation of the DPRK, while maintaining a full preparedness.

The Monday missile launch marked the third provocation of the DPRK since the new South Korean administration was launched earlier this month. It also logged the DPRK's ninth missile test-firing this year.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in ordered a meeting of national security council to be held. The meeting was presided over by Moon's top national security advisor Chung Eui-yong.
OTTAWA, May 29, 2017 /CNW/ - The Humanitarian Coalition and its seven member agencies welcome the Government of Canada announcement that for every eligible donation made by individual Canadians to registered Canadian charities between March 17 and June 30, 2017, it will contribute an equivalent amount to the Famine Relief Fund.

More than 20 million children, women and families in South Sudan, Yemen, Somalia, Nigeria, Ethiopia and Uganda are suffering and in need of urgent humanitarian aid and the Humanitarian Coalition's member agencies are on the ground providing life-saving assistance.

The Humanitarian Coalition is urgently calling on Canadians to donate to its joint fundraising campaign: "Stop Famine Together. Over the next month, the Canadian Government matches donations dollar for dollar into its Famine Relief Fund, meaning that donations will go twice as far to fight famine and save lives.

The characteristic resilience of the communities who live through regular cycles of drought, or survive despite harsh conflict conditions, has been pushed to its breaking point. Without help, they will not survive. Together, we can save more lives.

QUOTES

Martha Nyandit, a 42-year-old mother of six from South Sudan

"Sometimes I feel so weak, I worry I will not have enough milk for the baby. Sometimes I'm so weak I feel like I'm going to collapse; I can't see when I stand up."

Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie

"Over 20 million men, women and children are at risk of starvation if we do not act now. Canadians have always demonstrated great compassion when it comes to humanitarian crises. I encourage all Canadians to donate to the registered Canadian charities of their choice. Together, we can make a difference and bring relief to people who need urgent help."

Richard Morgan, Executive Director of the Humanitarian Coalition

"We are already seeing the devastating effects this crisis. There has been scattered media coverage showing the toll conflict and drought has taken on millions of people. We urge the Canadian media to raise awareness of this dire situation and help us encourage Canadians to take advantage of this matching fund and donate to our joint appeal. Together, we can save more lives."

Canadians can make a donation and find more information at www.together.ca

The Humanitarian Coalition is Canada's only joint appeal mechanism for international disasters and emergencies. It is made up of seven leading humanitarian agencies: Canadian Lutheran World Relief, CARE Canada, Islamic Relief Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Quebec, Plan International Canada and Save the Children Canada. Collectively, they are present in 150 countries. Together, saving more lives. www.together.ca

SOURCE Humanitarian Coalition

For further information: Humanitarian Coalition, Yose Cormier, 613-292-2687, [email protected]

Related Links

www.humanitariancoalition.ca


CALGARY, May 26, 2017 /CNW/ - Gemini Corporation (GKX-TSXV) ("Gemini" or the "Company") today announced first quarter 2017 results.

"The business environment in Western Canada continues to be fiercely competitive and although requests for proposals and bidding activity has been steady, Gemini's win rate has not been as good as we had hoped. Our first quarter was slower than expected", said Pete Sametz, Gemini's President and CEO.

"As we actively seek out new business opportunities and refine our estimating process, our key challenge for the remainder of the year continues to be securing new work with reasonable margins while maintaining the excellent execution and client satisfaction levels that were achieved in 2016. We have excellent employees who are working very closely with key clients to support them in this tough environment. We continue to manage our balance sheet carefully and we are very pleased to announce the closing of a $14 million credit facility for working capital needs with our new financial partner, ATB Financial."

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS



Three months ended

March 31, ($'000's) 2017 2016 Revenue $6,718 $30,821 Gross profit (loss) (266) 2,278 Net loss (2,898) (1,454) Net loss per share - basic and diluted (0.04) (0.02) Adjusted EBITDA(1) (2,595) (841)





($'000's) March 31, 2017 December 31, 2016 Working capital(1) $4,414 $8,334 Working capital ratio(1) 1.6:1 1.8:1 Total assets 16,932 23,089 Total equity 4,860 7,741 Total liabilities to equity ratio(1) 2.5:1 2.0:1







(1) Non-IFRS financial measure



FIRST QUARTER 2017 OVERVIEW

For the three months ended March 31, 2017 , Gemini recorded revenue of $6.7 million , a decline of 78% or $30.8 million from the same period in 2016. The Ponoka fabrication facility was inactive during the first quarter due to lack of significant projects, compared to the same period last year where modules were being constructed related to the Alberta Northwest Upgrader and Fort Hills projects.

, Gemini recorded revenue of , a decline of 78% or from the same period in 2016. The fabrication facility was inactive during the first quarter due to lack of significant projects, compared to the same period last year where modules were being constructed related to the Alberta Northwest Upgrader and Fort Hills projects. Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2017 was a loss of $2.6 million , compared to a loss of $0.8 million in the first quarter of 2016.

was a loss of , compared to a loss of in the first quarter of 2016. Administrative expenses for the quarter decreased by $0.9 million , a reduction of 27% compared to the same period in 2016. This reduction is a result of significant cost cutting measures and restructuring undertaken in 2016, the impact of which are now being realized.

, a reduction of 27% compared to the same period in 2016. This reduction is a result of significant cost cutting measures and restructuring undertaken in 2016, the impact of which are now being realized. Cash flow from operations was $0.5 million for the quarter. By comparison, Gemini's operations used $3.0 million of cash during the same period in 2016.

for the quarter. By comparison, Gemini's operations used of cash during the same period in 2016. Gemini ended the quarter with $1.8 million cash, up slightly from the year end cash balance of $1.6 million .

cash, up slightly from the year end cash balance of . On March 30, 2017 , the Company signed a term sheet for a two year committed senior secured revolving credit facility of up to $14 million plus an accordion feature for an additional $4 million as needed. The new credit facility was finalized and put in place effective May 25, 2017 .

, the Company signed a term sheet for a two year committed senior secured revolving credit facility of up to plus an accordion feature for an additional as needed. The new credit facility was finalized and put in place effective . The Company completed a corporate amalgamation effective April 1, 2017 . The amalgamation allows for the simplification of back office processes and realization of future cost savings and operating efficiencies.

OUTLOOK

The Company and industry adjusted to the reduced activity levels in 2016 and now Gemini is working to grow cash flow, personnel, project quality and capability, while competing fiercely for new business. The industry optimism that existed at the beginning of the year, based on improved economic activity, an increase in capital budgets and improved energy prices, has now given way to the sober realization that 2017 is recovering slower than anticipated.

Today the Company finds itself dealing with an environment where the lowest cost is the primary consideration when awarding new work. Requests for proposals and bidding activity remains high, however, the Company found it challenging to secure new work at profitable levels in the first quarter of the year despite positive feedback on our technical submissions and execution strategies. Having strengthened the balance sheet and secured a new credit facility, the Company will continue to balance the desire for work volume with a cautious risk management approach that seeks to avoid exposing the Company to financial loss by bidding unprofitable or excessively risky projects.

Gemini continues to focus on business development, rigorous estimating and controls, operational excellence and execution processes to find innovative ways to bring value to clients and secure new backlog. Interestingly, many of the proposals and requests for pricing are also associated with work not expected to commence until 2018 as clients attempt to lock in today's low prices for next year's work.

The Company is now expecting revenue for 2017 to be less than 2016 but expects activity to pick up in the second half of 2017 into 2018. Gemini's fabrication shop in Ponoka has recently started to ramp up activity with key long-term clients. Environmental and maintenance services are also seeing increased activity, while construction activity levels in the Fort Saskatchewan region remain challenging.

The Company experienced a higher than normal level of attrition in the first five months of 2017 and has decided to defer the replacement of all non-essential positions until backlog levels improve. On an annualized basis, approximately $2.1 million of salary costs have been eliminated through attrition and we expect to realize further savings in the second quarter. Processes have also been established to ramp back up quickly as necessary. The Company is confident that the quality and dedication of Gemini's personnel are best of class and our accessibility to the local workforce will allow us to bring on new personnel as required.

While the economic environment for Gemini remains highly competitive, the Company continues to have confidence in the teams' ability to secure new work with reasonable margins while maintaining the excellent execution standards and client satisfaction that was achieved in 2016. Gemini is fortunate to have solid, trusted relationships with a group of active, growth oriented clients that we value highly.

MD&A AND FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The 2017 Q1 Management's Discussion and Analysis, and the Consolidated Financial Statements provide a detailed explanation of Gemini's operating results for the three months ended March 31, 2017. Gemini's 2017 first quarter will be filed on SEDAR at http://www.sedar.com by May 26, 2017.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND NON-IFRS FINANCIAL MEASURES

This news release may contain forward looking information that represents Gemini's expectations, estimates or beliefs concerning, among other things, the timing of any recovery in oil and gas prices, the recovery of the markets for the Company's products and services, future operating results and various components thereof, or Gemini's future economic performance. All statements other than the statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may", "will", "should", "expects" and similar expressions. The estimates and beliefs contained in such forward-looking statements are based on management's assumptions relating to Gemini's performance and competition within the sectors in which it competes, the continuation of the current regulatory and tax regimes in the jurisdictions in which Gemini operates, and necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including risks and assumptions relating to client service demand, field service costs, labour rates and other factors that may cause actual performance and financial results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers are cautioned that events or circumstances could cause results to differ materially from those predicted or suggested. Gemini does not undertake to update any forward-looking information in this document whether as to new information, future events or otherwise.

This news release refers to certain Non-IFRS financial measures that are not determined in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). The measures used are "backlog", "working capital", "working capital ratio" and "adjusted EBITDA". These measures are used by our management to assist in making operating decisions and assessing performance. While we calculate these measures consistently from period to period, they likely will not be directly comparable to similar measures used by other companies because they do not have standardized meanings prescribed by IFRS. See the "Non-IFRS Measures" section of the March 31, 2017 MD&A. Investors are encouraged to evaluate each adjustment and the reasons Gemini considers it appropriate for supplemental analysis. Investors are cautioned, however, that these measures should not be construed as an alternative to net earnings determined in accordance with IFRS as an indication of Gemini's performance. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

ABOUT GEMINI

Gemini operates as an integrated project solutions company focused on energy and industrial facilities. Gemini offers services on either a stand-alone basis or in a combination, integrated to provide our clients with a single point of accountability. The Company will be celebrating its 35th anniversary in 2017.

Through an all-in commitment from every individual in the Company, Gemini is determined to change the client perspective of how project services should be delivered. The Company is uniquely qualified to provide a full spectrum of modular and integrated project solutions, leveraging a philosophy and approach that directly aligns with its clients' business objectives.

The Company is capable of servicing its clients through the full life cycle of their assets; from asset acquisition, environmental and regulatory support, engineering, fabrication, construction, maintenance, turnarounds, de-commissioning, reclamation and remediation. Gemini provides full project management to integrate any or all of these services. The Company's principal target markets are oil and gas, heavy oil, oil sands, midstream and pipeline facilities, hydrocarbon processing, power and other industrials.

The Company operates in western Canada and is headquartered in Calgary with offices in Ponoka, Fort Saskatchewan and Fort St. John.

Shares of Gemini trade on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "GKX". For more information about the Company and its services, go to www.geminicorp.ca.

The TSX Venture Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Gemini Corporation

For further information: Pete Sametz, President & CEO, (403) 781-9881, [email protected]; Chris Podolsky, CFO, (403) 301-4252, [email protected]

Related Links

www.geminicorp.ca


The "Allstate Insurance Safe Homeowners Study" highlights common risks to be aware of as it could help prevent major headache for potential buyers and homeowners

MONTREAL, May 29, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - Spring is a time of year when the real-estate market is booming. It is also a popular time for many homeowners to plan how they will invest their yearly renovation and home maintenance budgets. While keeping up with the latest decor trends may be every homeowner's dream, a new survey by Leger, conducted on behalf of Allstate Insurance Company of Canada, indicates that home maintenance tasks should perhaps be top of mind. According to the survey, 58 per cent percent of homeowners say they are planning to renovate in the coming year. Specifically, almost a third (32 per cent) say the work will take on cosmetic projects.

"Picking out a wallpaper pattern is much more fun than having to remove it after-the-fact, so taking a step back to see if there are risks brewing under the surface and taking care of those first may help avoid a lot of headache and heartache," says Andre Parra, Regional Claims Director at Allstate Canada.

The survey also showed that a quarter of homeowners (25 per cent) say they ran into issues after purchasing their property. Of those, over half (56 per cent) had repairs exceeding $1,500 in expenses. Almost a third (31 per cent) of homeowners say they would go about things differently if they could redo their house-buying experience. Homeowners and potential home buyers should be aware of and monitor common risks to help prevent any potential damages and invest in maintenance wisely.

Allstate Insurance Safe Homeowners Study Shows Which Areas are Most at Risk

According to the Allstate Insurance Safe Homeowners Study, which analyzed Allstate household incident claims data, there have been notable increases in certain types of claims in Quebec homes over the years. Damages due to water, especially burst pipes, are the most frequent and costly home insurance claims in Quebec. Other common damages are due to electrical fires, kitchen fires and water infiltration.

''It can be challenging to learn all the ins-and-outs of home maintenance, especially for first time or soon-to-be homeowners. We would like to help them understand some of the basics of what to keep an eye on, and remind them to call on the experts to do inspections and maintenance to help avoid dealing with a big mess down the road,'' adds Parra.

Homeowners and Property Hunters, Watch Out!

The Allstate Insurance Safe Homeowners Study can help inform current and future homeowners of some of the most common risks to their homes before they develop into costly incidents or home disasters. Here are some of the risks and what to include in your home maintenance checklist this spring:

Water sources  Water claims due to burst pipes are the most frequent (53 per cent) according to Allstate data, followed by toilet and shower leaks (35 per cent). Some leaks are often readily apparent, such as a burst pipe which can quickly cause major water damage, but other leaks like toilet drips or leaks from the supply tubes can go undetected for years if the source is not clearly visible. Older hot water tanks can also result in leaks and other problems, such as poor water quality, inefficiency, and breakdowns.

What to look for: Check if the toilet valve constantly emits a hissing or gurgling sound when the toilet is not in use. Verify the valve is still functioning properly and call a plumber if repairs are necessary or you are unsure. Take a look at the age of your hot water tank by checking the serial number. You may want to consider replacing your tank after 10 to 12 years. Have a specialist check for signs of rust, cracks, corrosion, leaks and sediment build-up.

Roof infiltration  Extreme temperature changes, wind and precipitation often cause roof damage, which can impact the frequency and volume of water infiltration into your home. With the amount of precipitation the province received this past winter, and the ups and downs in temperature from one season to the next, there could be signs of damage when snow melts. Roof infiltrations are the most frequent (53 per cent) in the wind and hail claim category according to Allstate data.

What to look for: Check for missing, curled or worn shingles. Pay special attention to the valleys, where two sections of roof meet, as these sections will deteriorate more quickly than other parts of the roof. Inside the house, look at ceilings in rooms on the upper floor for water damage (cracks, buckling or yellowing stains). If you see any of these, call a roof inspector to assess the damage.

Kitchen fires  Fires in the kitchen are more frequent than anywhere else in the home, according to Allstate data. Cooking with oil is particularly dangerous. An appliance with a worn or frayed cord could send heat onto combustible surfaces like curtains and rugs that can start a fire.

What to look for: Make sure electrical appliances are in excellent condition. Clean the interior of the oven and the cooking surfaces on a regular basis. Look under range hoods to check for grease build-up and clean as needed. Never leave cooking unattended, and avoid wearing loose clothing whenever cooking, as it can brush against heating elements and easily catch fire.

Electrical wiring and other fire hazards  Faulty wiring is one of the most frequent causes of electrical fires according to Allstate numbers. Sometimes fires are a result of poor workmanship and other times it's from wear and tear. Problems may also result from appliance failure or from overloading electrical outlets or extension cords. Other fire risks include overused or uncared for fireplaces and clothing dryers.

What to look for: Check the electrical panel in your home to ensure it is not overused. Look for warning signs like too many different coloured fuses in your fuse box. Call an electrician if you come across any of these warning signs. Avoid using faulty outlets and appliances. Don't run power cords under rugs, and never place portable space heaters too close to combustible materials such as curtains, beds, clothing, upholstery and rugs. Also look for clogged dryer ducts in the laundry room and clean them to help avoid dryer fires.

Allstate has developed an informative video series called "Who knew?" which discusses some of the most common household risks and how to avoid them. The videos are available here.

About the Leger Survey

The survey was conducted by Leger between March 27, 2017 and March 30, 2017 via omnibus online survey among a representative sample of 662 Quebec homeowners aged 18 and over. For comparison purposes, a probability sample of 662 respondents would have a margin of error of 3.8%, 19 times out of 20.

About the Allstate Insurance Safe Homeowners Study

Allstate Canada conducted an in-depth analysis of the company's property claims data to determine the most frequent cause of damages in Quebec households. The study is released annually and compares data over a 10-year period of claims experience. Households claims frequency refers to a percentage of homes insured by Allstate Canada involved in a property damage that resulted in a claim.

To ensure the data provides a realistic outlook for what is happening in the province and highlight any trends, claims information from all communities are analyzed in charts looking at 10 years of insured property data split between seven types of general perils. Each peril is then divided in up to 20 possible causes of loss.

Claims data is limited to damages for which there was a payout. The data ranks frequency of damage, not severity of loss. The study itself does not include personally identifying information of Allstate customers.

About Allstate Insurance Company of Canada

Allstate Insurance Company of Canada is one of the country's leading producers and distributors of home and auto insurance products, including usage-based insurance, serving Canadians since 1953. The company strives to keep its customers in "Good Hands" as well as its employees, and has been listed as a Best Employer in Canada for five years in a row. Allstate Canada is committed to making a positive difference in the communities in which it operates and has partnered with organizations such as the Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD Canada), United Way, Junior Achievement, and Old Brewery Mission. To learn more about Allstate Canada, visit www.allstate.ca. For more safety tips and advice, visit www.goodhandsadvice.ca.

SOURCE Allstate Insurance Company of Canada

For further information: Alida Alepian, Capital-Image on behalf of Allstate Canada, 514-739-1188, ext. 239, [email protected]

Related Links

http://www.allstate.ca


TORONTO, May 25, 2017 /CNW/ - On Saturday, May 27, 2017, media are invited to tour Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (Billy Bishop Airport) as part of Doors Open Toronto 2017. This is the second year Billy Bishop Airport will participate in the city-wide event, which last year saw more than 10,000 people visit the airport.

This year's Doors Open Toronto theme "Fifteen Decades of Canadian Architecture" is part of the larger citywide "TO Canada with Love" celebration, which is being held in honour of Canada's 150th birthday. As part of this celebration, Billy Bishop Airport will showcase more than 75 years of providing aviation services to the city of Toronto, including serving as a training base for both the Royal Canadian and Royal Norwegian air forces during WWII.

WHAT: Billy Bishop Airport welcomes media to tour the airport as part of the 18th annual Doors Open Toronto, presented by Great Gulf. Airport staff and partners will be onsite to answer questions and provide visitors with a unique behind-the-scenes glimpse of the airport, including:





Billy Bishop Airport's award-winning underwater pedestrian tunnel, as well as the mainland pavilion and island atrium which play host to a historical exhibit and sculptures relating to the airport's namesake and his role in World War I;

The airport's fire hall and maintenance facility, which will provide the opportunity for kids of all ages to explore the airport's state-of-the-art safety vehicles;

A staging area to view the airport's runway operations, the historic Terminal A building, new Ground Run-up Enclosure, and aircraft;

The opportunity to be one of the first to meet Billy Bishop Airport's new mascot;

The team of falcons who play an important role in the airport's wildlife management program;

Ornge aircraft and facilities that provides Medevac emergency services;

A historical photography exhibit in the island atrium depicting images of the airport and surrounding waterfront; and,

Airport partners and tenants, such as Porter Airlines and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), who will host displays, showcasing the full range of services that the airport provides. The Billy Bishop Airport self-guided tour map can be found here.



WHO: Gene Cabral, Executive Vice President of Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and PortsToronto



WHEN: Saturday, May 27, 2017 from 10:00 a.m.  5:00 p.m.





Note: Billy Bishop Airport is only participating in Doors Open Toronto on Saturday



WHERE: Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, 2 Eireann Quay, Toronto, ON

Information on getting to Billy Bishop Airport and parking can be found here.



PHOTO OP: Media are invited to tour Billy Bishop Airport as part of Doors Open Toronto, conduct interviews and take photos and/or video.



IMPORTANT: Access to behind-the-scenes areas will only be granted until 5:00 p.m. Last entry will be granted at 4:00 p.m.

About Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport

Billy Bishop Airport is Canada's ninth-busiest airport and welcomed 2.7 million business and leisure travellers in 2016. The airport is also Canada's sixth-busiest airport with passenger service into the United States. Offering service to more than 20 cities in Canada and the U.S., with connection opportunities to more than 80 international destinations via our airlines' networks, Billy Bishop Airport is an important international gateway and a key driver to Toronto's economy, accounting for more than $2.1 billion in economic output each year and supporting 6,500 jobs, including 1,960 directly associated with the airport operations.

About PortsToronto (http://www.portstoronto.com)

For more than 100 years PortsToronto has worked with its partners at the federal, provincial and municipal levels to enhance the economic growth of the City of Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area. PortsToronto owns and operates Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, which welcomed more than 2.7 million passengers in 2016; the Outer Harbour Marina, one of Canada's largest freshwater marinas; and, Terminals 51 and 52, which provide transportation, distribution, storage and container services to businesses at the Port of Toronto. PortsToronto is committed to fostering strong, healthy and sustainable communities and has invested more than $9 million since 2009 in charitable initiatives and environmental programs that benefit communities along Toronto's waterfront and beyond. PortsToronto operates in accordance with the Canada Marine Act and is guided by a nine-member board with representation from all three levels of government.

About Doors Open Toronto

Since its inception in 2000, Doors Open Toronto has attracted more than two million visits to over 700 unique locations across the city. It is Canada's largest Doors Open event and one of the three largest Doors Open events in the world. Doors Open Toronto is dedicated to celebrating built heritage, architecture and design. It is presented by Great Gulf and produced by the City of Toronto in partnership with the broader community. Look for information and updates at http://www.toronto.ca/doorsopen and on social media: Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/doorsopenTO, Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/Doors_OpenTO and Instagram at http://www.instagram.com/doors_opento. The event hashtag is #DOT17.

SOURCE PortsToronto

For further information: Media Contacts: PortsToronto, Sarah Sutton, Senior Manager, Communications and Media Relations, Cell: (647) 298-0544, E-mail: [email protected]

Related Links

https://www.portstoronto.com/home.aspx


OTTAWA, May 26, 2017 /CNW/ - The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on Ramadan:

"Tonight at sunset, Muslims in Canada and around the world will mark the start of Ramadan.

"Ramadan is a sacred time of the year for the Muslim community, and commemorates the revealing of the Qur'an to Prophet Muhammad. The month-long journey of fasting and prayer encourages spiritual growth, reflection, and compassion for those who are less fortunate.

"Ramadan is also a time of community, when Muslims gather with family and friends to pray and share iftar, the evening meal. For all of us, Ramadan is a reminder to appreciate the many gifts we are given, and to give generously to others, in our communities and around the world.

"This year, as we celebrate the 150th anniversary of Confederation, let us take the opportunity to honour the many cultures, traditions, and beliefs that make Canada such a wonderful place to live. Muslim Canadians help make Canada the strong, diverse, and inclusive country it is today.

"On behalf of our family, Sophie and I extend our best wishes to Muslim communities here in Canada and around the world.

"Ramadan Mubarak!"

This document is also available at http://pm.gc.ca

SOURCE Prime Minister's Office

For further information: PMO Media Relations: 613-957-5555

Related Links

http://pm.gc.ca/


OTTAWA, May 29, 2017 /CNW/ - Leonardo Helicopters and IMP Aerospace & Defence (IMP) are pleased to announce that "Team Cormorant" has been re-established to support the modernization of the Royal Canadian Air Force's (RCAF) fleet of EH101/CH-149 Cormorant Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopters and the expansion of the fleet through the conversion of AW101-519 helicopters.

Team Cormorant comprises Leonardo Helicopters, the Original Equipment Manufacturer of the EH101 and AW101 helicopters; IMP, the Prime Contractor for Cormorant In-Service Support; and other key Canadian companies who will supply and support critical aircraft components, technology, systems, simulation and training.

The Cormorant Mid-Life Upgrade (CMLU) and Conversion Program proposed by Team Cormorant will create a fleet of the world's most advanced and capable Search and Rescue helicopters available today, and to meet the RCAF's "no fail" Search and Rescue mandate for the next 25 years.

It combines the current fleet of 14 Cormorant helicopters with additional helicopters obtained by the Government of Canada when it acquired the assets of the U.S. VH-71 presidential helicopter program, currently in storage at IMP Aerospace in Halifax. The CMLU and Conversion Program offers a single, common fleet incorporating the latest avionic and mission systems, advanced radars and sensors, vision enhancement and tracking systems.

The Canadian Government recently cited the CMLU program and the critical importance of the Cormorant in providing a vital SAR service that Canadians rely on. The CMLU will provide capability improvements to enhance its overall mission effectiveness and return the primary Rotary Wing Search and Rescue (RWSAR) helicopter to CFB Trenton, covering the Great Lakes region up to the High Arctic.

Team Cormorant's CMLU program also offers significant reductions in cost of ownership and will deliver the conversion without reducing the current Search and Rescue aircraft availability, culminating in the expansion of service from three main SAR bases to four.

"Through Team Cormorant, Leonardo Helicopters will be able to deliver significant Industrial Technology Benefits and a Value Proposition that will transfer new skills and knowledge to Canada, creating and sustaining more than 360 high-skilled jobs across the country," said John Ponsonby, Leonardo Helicopters UK Managing Director. "The Cormorant CMLU will deliver to Canada the most advanced and capable, state-of-the-art Search and Rescue helicopter available anywhere in the world today or the foreseeable future and the best value for Canada."

"IMP Aerospace & Defence has provided full turn-key In-Service Support to the CH-149 Cormorant Search and Rescue fleet since its entry into service in the year 2000. The CH-149 fleet is actively operated by the RCAF across Canada delivering essential life-saving missions to Canadians in distress. The fleet has clocked more flight hours than any other AW101 fleet in the world and now requires an upgrade to ensure continued cost effective service into the future," said David Gossen, President of IMP Aerospace & Defence. "Canada has an amazing opportunity to further enhance SAR delivery to central and northern Canada and beyond through the conversion of VH-71 aircraft."

Leonardo and IMP will be show-casing the MLU and Conversion Program at the CANSEC Global Defence & Security Trade Show, May 31-June 1, 2017, in Ottawa. Visit us at Booth 1511 (Leonardo) and 813 (IMP).

About Leonardo

Leonardo is among the top ten global players in Aerospace, Defence and Security and Italy's main industrial company. As a single entity from January 2016, organised into seven business divisions (Helicopters; Aircraft; Aero-structures; Airborne & Space Systems; Land & Naval Defence Electronics; Defence Systems; Security & Information Systems), Leonardo operates in the most competitive international markets by leveraging its areas of technology and product leadership. Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (LDO), at 31 December 2016, Leonardo recorded consolidated revenues of 12 billion Euros and has a significant industrial presence in Italy, the UK and the U.S.

About IMP Aerospace & Defence

IMP Aerospace & Defence is a full service aerospace and defence organization with over 65 years of experience serving both national and international customers in the aerospace, naval, and land sectors. The organization comprises six operations with over 2,400 engineering, technical and support staff across Canada specializing in a diversified line of manufacturing, engineering and In-Service Support services.

Website: www.impaad.com

SOURCE IMP GROUP LTD.

For further information: IMP Aerospace & Defence: Carl Kumpic, Vice President International Marketing, IMP Aerospace & Defence, Direct: (902) 873-2250, e-mail: [email protected], Website: www.impaad.com

Related Links

http://www.impgroup.com


NANAIMO, BC, May 29, 2017 /CNW/ - Tilray, a Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-certified global leader in medical cannabis research and production, today announced that medical cannabis liquid capsules are now available for Tilray patients in Canada. Tilray is Canada's first GMP-certified facility to produce medical cannabis capsules, which can now be purchased by registered patients by phone or via the Company's online store.

"We are proud to offer patients one of the widest selections of GMP-grade medical cannabis products, including Tilray drops and capsules, on the market," said Philippe Lucas, Vice President of Patient Research and Access at Tilray. "Tilray capsules offer patients increased control over dosage and titration, providing a viable alternative or supplement to solid oral pharmaceuticals and to smoking or vaporizing cannabis."

At Tilray, state-of-the-art extraction methods preserve the delicate cannabinoid content of the plant and ensure Tilray capsules are precisely formulated. Capsules are vegetarian with a sunflower lecithin carrier oil and are currently available in two varieties, T200 (10mg THC per capsule) and TC100 (2.5mg THC and 2.5mg CBD per capsule), with more varieties in development.

Tilray currently supplies GMP-grade medical cannabis products  including whole flower, oils, and capsules  to tens of thousands of patients, physicians, pharmacies, hospitals, governments and researchers around the world for commercial, compassionate access and research purposes.

Tilray became the first medical cannabis producer in North America to be certified in accordance with the European Medicines Agency's (EMA) Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards in December 2016. GMP certification is the most rigorous standard that manufacturers of pharmaceutical products must meet in their production processes, and it provides regulators and health care providers in countries new to medical cannabis with certainty that Tilray products are the safe and smart choice.

GMP certification is enabling Tilray to expand international distribution of its products for commercial, clinical research and compassionate purposes. In 2016, Tilray made history by becoming the first company to legally export medical cannabis products from North America to Australia and the European Union. In 2017, the company is focused on expanding distribution of its products to additional countries in Europe and Latin America.

Tilray is committed to advancing the science and safety of medical cannabis products by supporting clinical research. The company is currently partnering with hospitals and universities to supply clinical trials focused on pediatric epilepsy at SickKids Hospital in Toronto, Canada, post-traumatic stress disorder at the University of British Columbia in Canada, and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting at the University of Sydney in Australia.

About Tilray

Tilray is a GMP-certified global leader in medical cannabis research and production dedicated to advancing the science, safety, and efficacy of medical cannabis. The company operates one of the largest and most sophisticated federally licensed medical cannabis cultivation facilities in the world, offering a range of products to patients, physicians, pharmacies, governments, hospitals and researchers in Australia, Canada, the European Union, New Zealand and Latin America.

SOURCE Tilray

For further information: Contact for Media: Chrissy Roebuck, 1-416-560-5712, [email protected]
MISSISSAUGA, ON, May 29, 2017 /CNW/ - World Vision Canada commends the Canadian Government for establishing a Famine Relief Fund to help those impacted by the hunger crisis. World Vision Canada joined other aid organizations in urging the Federal Government to match private donations for humanitarian efforts in South Sudan, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Yemen, Nigeria and neighbouring countries.

The world is facing the largest humanitarian crisis since the end of World War II. Famine has already been declared in one region of South Sudan while Somalia is on the brink, with children and families in surrounding countries facing severe hunger. Drought, violence and political instability mean more than 20 million people in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen are in need of immediate assistance; when other severely affected countries are included that number rises to 34 million.

QUOTE:

"An alarming funding gap is hindering the efforts of humanitarian aid organizations and we need more support to help those impacted by the hunger crisis. At World Vision, we are especially concerned about the children. Our teams have shared heartbreaking stories of death and despair as they work day and night to respond to the needs on the ground. Right now, more than 4 million children are at risk of starvation in East and West Africa.

This new Famine Relief Fund comes at a crucial moment. There's still an opportunity to pull millions of people back from the brink of starvation. We're encouraged because Canadians are more likely to donate when they know their generosity will be doubled by this government match program. However, an evolving crisis of this scale still needs more robust financial commitments from Canada that are timely, flexible and transparent."

-Jamie McIntosh, Vice President, Programs & Policy, World Vision Canada

FAST FACTS on the Hunger Crisis

20+ million people at risk across of starvation in Nigeria , Somalia , South Sudan and Yemen

, , and 10 million children are out of school due to the crisis

5.7 million displaced by conflict or the search for food across East and West Africa

A combination of conflict, drought, climate change, poor leadership and inflation has made food inaccessible for millions of people across Africa

For More Information Please Visit World Vision Canada's Website at www.worldvision.ca

World Vision is a relief, development, and advocacy organization working to create lasting change in the lives of children, families, and communities to overcome poverty and injustice. Inspired by our Christian values, World Vision is dedicated to working with the world's most vulnerable people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender. Visit our News Centre at worldvision.ca

SOURCE World Vision Canada

For further information: For interviews contact: Trisha Owens, Communications Officer, 613-286-1559 or [email protected]

Related Links

http://www.worldvision.ca


Suspect arrested after eight killed in U.S. state of Mississippi

(Xinhua) 09:32, May 29, 2017

A male suspect was arrested Sunday morning after eight people were shot and killed at three separate homes overnight in rural Lincoln County, the southern U.S. state of Mississippi.

The 35-year-old suspect, identified as Willie Cory Godbolt, was taken into custody after the shooting, and may have had a 16-year-old hostage for a time, according to local media reports.

The names of the victims, including a London County sheriff's deputy, have not yet been released.

The deputy went to a home for a resident wanting the suspect removed from the property before the shooting, according to a Dailyleader report.

Godbolt has a long criminal history, said the report. He was arrested in 2015 for disorderly conduct and failure to comply with request by local police.

Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said no charges have been filed and it would be "premature" to discuss a motive. Enditem
LYONS, N.Y. -- Giant beer tanks destined for the Genesee Brewery in Rochester stopped overnight in Lyons, Wayne County.

The 12 20-foot by 60-foot fermentation tanks are traveling along the Erie Canal, from Albany to Rochester. One set of tanks stopped at Lock E24 in Baldwinsville Saturday, while the other was in Lock E23 in Brewerton. They both continued traveling along the Erie Canal, reaching Lyons on Sunday. They are expected to reach Rochester by Tuesday.

The giant tanks will be installed at the Genesee Brewery, the oldest brewery in New York state. Their over 200-mile journey journey began May 19 in Albany, taking them through the heart of upstate New York via the Erie Canal.

The move is part of a $40 million project to create "one of the most advanced brewing systems in the world" at Genesee Brewing's headquarters in Rochester, according to the company. It is the final stretch of a journey that started 6,000 miles away in China, where the tanks were manufactured.

The barges carrying the first six tanks reached Lock E27 in Lyons Sunday night. They were expected to spend the night docked just before the lock.

"There is an outside possibility that the first set of tanks will be cleared to pass through Lock E27," according to a news release. "If that occurs, they will proceed further to Lock E28A (second Lyons lock) and will spend the evening there."

The second set of tanks passed through Lock E25 (Mays Point) around 2 p.m. Sunday. The tanks were continuing to proceed through the canal in the area of the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge, the release said.

"It's possible that they may reach Lock E27 in Lyons (Sunday) evening, although that is still to be determined based on canal traffic," the release said.

Crowds have gathered to watch the giant beer tanks travel along the Erie Canal.

"There has been considerable interest in when the tanks will enter Monroe County, especially the Fairport and Pittsford areas," a company news release said. "At this point, the timing of this is still to be determined. The tanks could enter Monroe County (Monday) late afternoon or this could take place early on (Tuesday). This will be decided based on what time of day the tanks reach Lock E30 (Macedon)."
GREECE, NY -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo took aim Monday at what he called "blunders" by a joint U.S.-Canadian commission that regulates water levels on Lake Ontario while he announced new steps the state is taking to assist those affected by flooding and shoreline erosion.

Although the lake levels have been impacted by record rainfall this spring all along the Great Lakes basin, Cuomo said the board known as the International Joint Commission should have made better decisions about lowering water levels earlier this year.

"There's no doubt but that the IJC blew it," he said in front of a flooded property in the town of Greece, in Monroe County near Rochester. "They blew it."

"I think the IJC has made a series of blunders," Cuomo said, adding, "Their methodology was flawed to begin with. They're doing tremendous damage and it has to stop now."

Debate has swirled since the flooding and erosion intensified a month ago over how much of the problem is due to record rain and how much should be blamed on the actions of the IJC, including a newly enacted water level management scheme called Plan 2014.

Cuomo was joined in his appearance in Greece by Monroe County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo and town of Greece supervisor Bill Reilich. Reillich also criticized the IJC actions.

Cuomo Monday announced three new measures to assist those affected by the flooding.

* The state is setting aside a new fund of $7 million to assist homeowners in rebuilding and repairing foundations, basements and other property damage. Cuomo said the state will assist those who cannot get insurance coverage, and will reimburse homeowners up to $40,000, based on a income scale. Senior citizens will be assisted regardless of income. Homeowners can get more information from the Office of Community Renewal by emailing ocrinfo@nyshcr.org or calling 518-474-2057.

* As of today, the state will enforce a 5 mph speed limit on boaters within 600 feet of the shoreline, anywhere from the Niagara River to the St. Lawrence River. That is meant to reduce wakes and waves that could cause further property damage.

* The state is speeding up the delivery of money to assist property owners through the Clean Water Infrastructure Act.

The governor also called attention to other assistance the state has pledged, including a mobile "command center" from the state Department of Financial Services, which helps property owners with insurance and other claims. He also noted the state Department of Environmental Conservation offices will be open on weekends to speed up the approval of permits needed for repairs and other work.

The lake level, which is at least 33 inches above normal for the end of May, may not have peaked yet and may not recede for another seven or eight weeks. Cuomo noted the devastating effect that would have on businesses that depend on the summer boating season. He said the state has pleaded $10 million to assist local governments and $5 million for small businesses affected by the flooding.

High waters have already caused millions of dollars in damages along the lakeshore.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has declared a state of emergency in six counties that border the lake.

About 8 inches of rain fell in the Lake Ontario basin in April and early May -- more than double the normal amount -- and caused the lake to hit record levels. As of last Tuesday, the average lake level was nearly 248.9 feet above sea level.

The weather continues to be rainy, not just in New York but further upstream. Most of the water that flows into Lake Ontario comes from Lake Erie.

To lower the lake level, the IJC is currently letting water out through the Moses-Saunders dam faster than at any point since 1997. The commission could not allow such a high flow earlier this spring because of flooding in Montreal and other points further downstream.
Auditor Uncovers More Arik Debts

Indications have emerged that the KPMG, the firm appointed to audit Arik Air following its takeover by the Asset management Corporation of Nigeria, has uncovered more debts owed by the airline.Sources at the auditing process told our correspondent on Friday that the 12 weeks given to the firm to complete the audit might no longer be feasible as fresh debts, both local and foreign, had continuously been uncovered since the process began.One of the sources also said more claims were being uncovered, making it difficult for the KPMG to complete its audit in good time.The new management of Arik Air in February announced the appointment of the KPMG to undertake a forensic and diagnostic audit of the finances of the airline to ascertain the true state of its finances, few days after it came under receivership.AMCON had said that the review would among other cover assets and liabilities and their utilisation; recording and utilisation of loans; and propriety of third party transactions as well as fraud controls over procurement, agents and business partners and financial reporting, and airlines financial position as of January 31, 2017.The management said the report of the audit, which was expected to be presented in 12 weeks, would also help the government to take necessary steps, either corrective or proactive, to reposition the airline.The Receiver Manager of Arik Air, Mr. Oluseye Opasanya, last month said in an affidavit filed in support of the airlines receivership by AMCON, before Justice Muhammed Idris of a Federal High Court in Lagos, that the embattled airline was indebted to its trade and finance creditors to the tune of N375bn.The spokesperson for the airline, Mr. Simon Tumba, told our correspondent that the KPMG was still working and could not give the timeline for the completion of the audit.There is no timeline at the moment for the completion of the report. The whole idea is to combine all the debts and give a fair status of the company in terms of what it owes and what it is being owed, he said.Recently, there were speculations that the airline might be given to foreign investors or liquidated. But Tumba dismissed the report, saying the Federal Government had not decided on what to do with the airline.AMCONs plan for Arik will depend on what the KPMG will find from the audit of the airlines operations, he said.The spokesman for AMCON, Mr. Jude Nwauzor, had earlier told journalists that the corporation underestimated the rot in the airline when it took over following a court injunction.Left to us, we will never touch Arik; we were mandated to take it over because there was no other vehicle the government would have used to intervene, he said.He said that since the takeover in February, AMCON had injected N1.5bn into the airline, adding that the corporation would not keep the airline for a long time.An aviation expert and Chief Executive Officer of Centurion Security and Safety Consults, Group Capt. John Ojikutu (retd), said that in the event of an outright sale, AMCON must be mindful not to sell the airline to a commercial competitor in the industry.
(Xinhua) 10:06, May 29, 2017

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's upcoming visit to Europe from May 31 to June 2 is expected to further deepen and enrich China's relations with the European Union (EU) at a time of increasing global uncertainty.

During the three-day visit, Li will travel to Germany and Belgium, where he will meet with European leaders in an effort to enhance mutual political trust and expand pragmatic cooperation between the two sides, to inject fresh impetus into China's relations with the two countries.

ROOT FOR A MULTIPOLAR WORLD

This will be Li's ninth visit to Europe and third to Germany since he took office as the premier in 2013. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is a frequent visitor to China. Both European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel visited China last year.

Such frequent high-level exchanges between China and the EU testify the common grounds and interests shared by the two sides despite an ever-changing international landscape, and showcase their common desire for cooperation and development.

One of the most prominent features of China-EU interaction is their regular meetings, which have served as an important platform for Chinese and European leaders to work together and steadily promote the China-EU ties, noted Mei Zhaorong, former Chinese ambassador to Germany.

In Berlin, Li is scheduled to attend an annual meeting between the Chinese premier and the German chancellor, a mechanism that has been in place since 2004. In Brussels, the Chinese premier will attend the 19th China-EU leaders' meeting.

"These regular meetings have played a very positive role in strengthening mutual political trust and deepening practical cooperation between the two sides, and have kept pushing forward the China-EU relationship," said Mei.

Currently, Europe is facing a multitude of challenges such as the debt crisis, terror threats and the refugee crisis. With the isolationism signaled by U.S President Donald Trump, the United States has yet been clear on its policy towards Europe.

Despite these challenges, China has been pursuing a consistent and positive policy towards the EU, and has remained confident in its cooperation with the bloc, noted Ruan Zongze, executive vice president of China Institute of International Studies.

China is a supporter of European integration -- the basis for a united, prosperous and stable EU and a strong euro -- which is conducive to the development of a multipolar world featuring economic globalization and cultural diversification.

CHAMPIONING FREE TRADE

Against the backdrop of a rising anti-globalization wave, the need for China and the EU to join hands in opposing trade protectionism and safeguarding an open world economy is more urgent now than ever, experts say.

China and the EU share broad common interests and a similar stand on free trade, investment and global economic governance, according to Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Wang Chao.

With Premier Li's visit, said Ruan, China will strive to work with the EU and send a positive signal to the world that the two large economies are committed to free trade and economic globalization. With such efforts, China and the EU could serve as stabilizers of world economy.

However, the development of China-EU economic ties has not always been a smooth sail. The EU has yet implemented its obligations under Article 15 of the protocol on China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO), seen as a "stumbling block" in their economic cooperation, as Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi put it.

In accordance with Article 15, WTO members should cease the surrogate country approach in anti-dumping investigations on China after Dec. 11, 2016, which expires exactly 15 years after China's admission.

The surrogate country approach allows an importing WTO member state to refer to prices or costs of the like product in a third country to calculate the value of Chinese products and determine whether it constitutes an act of dumping.

"As a member of the WTO, the EU has been refraining from fulfilling its international obligations, which is in fact a form of protectionism, and which goes against the notion of free trade advocated by the bloc," said Mei.

"Cooperation and competition coexist in the China-EU relations, yet cooperation and win-win is the theme," said Ruan, calling on the EU to abandon trade protectionism and fulfill its due obligations, so as to join hands with China in advancing free trade and globalization.

UNLEASH POTENTIAL FOR COOPERATION

Economic and trade ties between China and the EU, deemed as the cornerstone of their relations, are expected to top the agenda of Li's Europe tour.

In Brussels, the Chinese premier will attend a China-EU business summit and a signing ceremony of cooperation documents between small and medium-sized enterprises.

The EU is China's largest trading partner and China is the EU's second largest. In 2016, China overtook the United States and became Germany's largest trading partner, according to Germany's Federal Statistics Office.

With Li's visit, China and the EU seek to further unleash their potential for cooperation, with innovation cooperation being a new highlight, according to Ruan.

As the powerhouse of European economy, Germany is one of the most innovative countries in the world. Though being a small country, Belgium has unique advantages in fields such as the chemical industry, nuclear energy and biological medicine. By cooperating with the EU, China is poised to enhance its capacity for innovation.

"China needs Europe's advanced technology, while Europe needs China's vast market," said Ruan, adding that innovation cooperation would broaden the areas and enhance the level of the China-EU cooperation.

In Europe, Li will attend several innovation-themed activities and witness the signing of a series of cooperative deals covering areas such as new energy, inter-connectivity, banking, tourism and education.
* A new generation of Biafrans is now peacefully advocating for an independent Biafra. Muhammadu Buhari, the Muslim president of Nigeria, is fighting the nascent independence movement with military force.

* I saw one boy trying to answer a question. He immediately raised his hands, but the soldiers opened fire   Witness to the shootings, to Amnesty International.

* As for IPOBs leader, Nnamdi Kanu, director of London-based Radio Biafra, he was arrested in October 2015 and has been held since, illegally, despite meeting bail conditions.

* It is noteworthy that a peaceful situation, such as that of the pro-Biafra movement, apparently requires a military option, whereas a lethal terrorist group, such as the Muslim Fulani herdsmen, who murder innocent civilians, does not. This tactic, furthermore, brings into question whether Buharis efforts at curbing Boko Haram in the country are genuine or merely a play he puts on half-heartedly for the benefit of the international community.

On paper, the plight of Biafrans  whose state in what is today southeastern Nigeria, lasted for only three years, 1967-70, before the Nigerian authorities ended it with a genocide against them  should, for the international community, be an open-and-shut case.

Journalists, human rights activists, social justice warriors on campuses throughout the West, and organizations such as the United Nations and the European Union, all ostensibly claim to care deeply about human rights, especially for people whom the Europeans once colonized.

Biafra constitutes a textbook example of British colonization. The countrys brief existence was cut short by the Nigerian governments genocide, which crushed all hopes for independence and self-determination. Biafrans, today, are denied their fundamental rights of assembly and free expression  rights that are guaranteed by the Nigerian constitution. The Nigerian government continues murderously to oppress them and their movement for sovereign freedom.

The international community, headed by the UN, which preaches the gospel of human rights and self-determination, persistently ignores their national aspirations.

Pro-Biafra group, IPOB, leader Nnamdi Kanu speaks to his counsel at the Federal High Court in Abuja, Nigeria, January 20. Kanus lawyer says he has advised his client not to come to court on Wednesday over fears his life is in danger. | Afolabi Sotunde/Reuters

The territories that constitute present-day Nigeria came under colonial occupation as British protectorates around 1903. Nigeria is essentially an artificial construct, created as a colony by Great Britain in 1914, when it merged the protectorates. The country is made up of a number of different indigenous African peoples, among them the Biafrans, who are ethnically predominantly Igbo.

After Nigerias independence from Great Britain in 1960, Biafra seceded from Nigeria, and in 1967 declared its own state. The Nigerian government refused to accept the secession and responded by launching a war on Biafra. The assault included a blockade of the nascent state, and resulted in the murder of more than two million Biafrans, many of whom were children who starved to death because of the blockade.

The Biafrans, watching the dissolution of their young state, surrendered to Nigeria in January 1970. They realized, perhaps, that the worlds abandonment of them did not warrant any future for their cause.

Unlike others at that time, such as the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), Biafrans did not engage in hijacking and bombing airplanes, taking hostages and other forms of terrorist attacks against innocent civilians to further their cause. The international community responds obediently to terrorism. Whereas the PLO has now become the Palestinian Authority (PA) and is among the worlds largest per capita recipients of international foreign aid, with a plethora of human rights activists championing its cause (as well as a UN body, UNRWA, exclusively for Palestinians), it would be hard to find a diplomat at the UN who even knows how to pronounce Biafra.

Pro-Biafra activists, IPOB, wave flags in St. Peters Square at the Vatican, February 28. Pope Francis greeted spoke of the activists as indigenous peoples of Biafra during his Angelus address. | Vincenzo Pinto/AFP/Getty Images

The question inevitably comes to mind, why the ostensibly anti-racist, pro-self-determination international community of opinion makers and human rights advocates has neither the political goodwill, nor the treasure to spare for the Biafrans.

Although the genocide effectively ended Biafran independence, a new generation of Biafrans is now peacefully pressing for an independent Biafra again. In an example of extreme hypocrisy, Muhammadu Buhari, the Muslim president of Nigeria, has declared himself fully committed to a Palestinian state, while his military fights the Biafran movement for self-determination with brutal force.

On May 30, Biafrans commemorated Biafra Heroes Remembrance Day. According to Amnesty International, the only major human rights organization that has interested itself in Biafra,

An on-the-ground investigation has confirmed that the Nigerian army gunned down unarmed people ahead of last months planned pro-Biafran commemoration events in Onitsha, Anambra state.

Evidence gathered from eyewitnesses, morgues and hospitals confirms that between 29-30 May 2016, the Nigerian military opened fire on members of the Indigenous people of Biafra (IPOB), supporters and bystanders at three locations in the town.

Opening fire on peaceful IPOB supporters and bystanders who clearly posed no threat to anyone is an outrageous use of unnecessary and excessive force and resulted in multiple deaths and injuries. In one incident, one person was shot dead after the authorities burst in on them while they slept, said M.K. Ibrahim, Country Director of Amnesty International Nigeria. He continued, This is not the first time that IPOB supporters have died at the hands of the military. It is becoming a worrying pattern and this incident and others must be immediately investigated.

Also, according to Amnesty, some of the dead and injured IPOB supporters were shot in the back, an indication that they were fleeing the scene when they were shot. In addition, soldiers stormed St. Edmunds Catholic church, where hundreds of people, who had come from other parts to participate in the pro-Biafran commemoration events, were sleeping. According to one witness:

At about midnight, we heard someone banging the door. We refused to open the door but they forced the door open and started throwing teargas. They also started shooting inside the compound. People were running to escape. I saw one guy shot in the stomach. He fell down but the teargas could not allow people to help him. I did not know what happened to the guy as I escaped and ran away.

Another witness told Amnesty that on the morning of May 30, he saw soldiers open fire on a group of around 20 men and boys aged between 15 and 45. He said that five of them were killed. I saw one boy trying to answer a question. He immediately raised his hands, but the soldiers opened fireHe lay down, lifeless. I saw this myself. The witness described how military officers loaded men with gunshot wounds into one van, and what appeared to be corpses into another. Later that morning, another witness described how police shot a child bystander as a group of young men protested the shootings.

Following the shootings, the military told media sources that the soldiers only opened fire after being shot at first, but Amnesty Internationals research has found no evidence to support this. All the people the organization interviewed said that the protesters were not armed; one young man said that he threw stones at the police and military after they shot teargas at the IPOB members. He said the military then fired live ammunition in return. Information gathered by Amnesty International indicates that the deaths of supporters and members of IPOB was the consequence of excessive and unnecessary use of force. International law requires the government to promptly investigate unlawful killings with a view to bringing the perpetrators to justice. Amnesty International is also calling for those IPOB supporters still held in detention without charge to be either immediately charged or released.

Amnesty International began research into the violence and killings of IPOB members and supporters in southeast Nigeria in January 2016 and is expected to publish a comprehensive report on the matter in the near future.

Thus far, Amnesty says , its research shows that,

Since August 2015, there have been at least five similar incidents in Onitsha alone where the police and military shot unarmed IPOB members and supporters. Amnesty has documented cases of alleged unlawful killings by the Nigerian army between August 2015 and May 2016. In August 2015, military officers opened fire on peaceful supporters of IPOB calling for an independent Biafran state. The killings and mass arrests of members and supporters of IPOB by joint military and police operations continued. On 17 December 2015, for example, the military killed five people when they opened fire on members of the IPOB who were demonstrating in Onitsha in a celebration of a court order for the release of their purported leader, Nnamdi Kanu. In February 2016, the Nigerian military used excessive force to disperse a peaceful gathering in a school compound in Aba. At least nine people were killed and many more injured

As for IPOBs leader, Nnamdi Kanu, director of London-based Radio Biafra, he was arrested in October 2015 and has since been held, illegally, despite meeting bail conditions.

not use military force against Fulani herdsmen. The latter comprise a predominantly Muslim, semi-nomadic group, now deemed to be the fourth-deadliest terror group in the world According to Buharis Minister of Interior, Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau, however, by contrast, while President Buhari uses military force against the peaceful Biafran movement, including at events as innocuous as Biafran commemoration ceremonies, his government has stated that it willuse military force against Fulani herdsmen. The latter comprise a predominantly Muslim, semi-nomadic group, now deemed to be the fourth-deadliest terror group in the world according to the Global Terrorism Index (GTI). Between 2010 and 2013, they killed 80 people in Nigeria, but by the end of 2014, this figure had risen to at least 1,229 people, according to the GTI, which ranked the African nation as the worlds third most terrorized country.

This is a non-military issue that borders on law and order. It is not every security issue that you call in the military. It is the responsibility of the police to maintain peace. I believe that if we put the police in proper position in terms of discharging its functions, then there would be no need for military option. The police are equal to the task. In any case, I do not even have the power to deploy the military for anything. It is only when the situation gets out of hand that you invite the military.

It is noteworthy that a peaceful situation, such as that of the pro-Biafra movement, apparently requires a military option, whereas a lethal terrorist group, such as the Muslim Fulani herdsmen, who murder innocent civilians, does not. This tactic furthermore brings into question, whether Buharis efforts at curbing Boko Haram in the country are genuine or merely a play the Nigerian president puts on half-heartedly for the benefit of the international community.

The situation should at least give countries such as Germany serious reason to reconsider their involvement in the region. Germany has said that it will begin supplying military hardware to the Nigerian government to address security challenges in its North East and Niger Delta regions before the end of 2016. One has to wonder whether Germany, a country that has invited migrants into its country in order to show how tolerant it is, has considered that it risks supplying the Nigerian government with military hardware that could well be used to kill Biafrans.

Other countries in the process of selling, or planning to sell, weapons to Nigeria, include the United States , which refused  bizarrely, out of  human rights concerns  to provide the former Nigerian president, Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian, with weapons to fight Boko Haram, but apparently has no qualms about helping Buhari, a Muslim, whose murder of defenseless people in southeastern Nigeria is evidently considered unproblematic.

In short, the international community has a lot of explaining to do.

Judith Bergman is a writer, columnist, lawyer and political analyst. She tweets from @judithbergman. This article was originally published by This article was originally published by Gatestone Institute . It is republished with permission.

The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
IPOB members allegedly donate cow allegedly named Buharito Nnamdi Kanu

Following the May 30th declaration by Biafra agitators as sit-at-home Day in commemoration of the Biafra Independence Day, some members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) claimed to be based in Malaysia but travelled home for the planned Biafra Day have allegedly donated a live cow allegedly named Buhari to their leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, to be killed on Biafra Day.The story seen on an online news medium, The BreakingTimes, said that Mr. Kanu who has received hundreds of important visitors including high-placed politicians since he was released on bail by an Abuja High Court in April, accepted the gift warmly.The reports also claimed that the members named the cow before donating it to their leader.In the photo, two of the claimed IPOB members who donated the cow are seen standing with Nnamdi Kanu while another picture shows them standing beside the said cow.Recall that Fifty years ago, the Igbo people of southeast Nigeria seceded, declaring an independent Republic of Biafra and sparking a brutal civil war that left about one million people dead. Coups and secession On May 30, 1967, the military head of Nigerias eastern region, Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, declares the independent Republic of Biafra.His move comes two days after the head of Nigerias military government, General Yakubu Gowon, divided the federation into 12 states, including three in the east.Biafra, accounting for less than 10 percent of Nigerian territory, at the time had a population of 14 million out of 55 million nationwide.Its mainly Christian population was two-thirds Igbo.Since independence from Britain in 1960, Nigeria had managed to stay a single entity despite historic enmity between the mainly Muslim north and the largely Christian south.But the Igbos felt discriminated against by the two other main ethnic groupings, the northern Hausa-Fulani and the Yoruba in the southwest.In January 1966, Nigeria suffered its first military coup, led by the Igbo General Johnson Aguiyi Ironsi. A counter-coup launched in the north in July kills Ironsi and many of his senior Igbo officers.Thousands of Igbo civilians are killed in reprisals, especially in the north, and millions of survivors flee back to the southeast.The government rejects the secession of the southeast, which is rich in agricultural and mineral resources, especially oil. Bombardments and blockade Gowon announces a general mobilisation and denounces the independence declaration as an act of rebellion, saying it will be crushed. The military imposes a blockade on eastern Nigeria.On July 6 the army unleashes a general offensive with its first air bombardments.In October federal troops take Biafras capital, Enugu, then the port of Calabar. Onitsha and Port Harcourt are recaptured in the first months of 1968.Britain, the Soviet Union and the Organisation of African Unity (the forerunner to the African Union) side with the federal government.Only a few African countries and France back Biafra. Humanitarian drama On July 3, 1968 the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says that eight to 12 million people are affected by the conflict and that 200 people a day are dying of starvation in Biafra.One would think we were seeing ghosts marching past, thin and silent, wrapped in grey rags, an AFP special correspondent reports in August.Nearly all are women of all ages and old people there are no longer many children in Biafra.The refugees travel, their stomachs empty, fleeing the noise of federal cannon. The noose is tightening.In late August he writes of a million new refugees in 15 days as the army advances.One person dies every 15 minutes refugees are dying from starvation and exhaustion, he reports.The Biafra famine caused by the blockade makes headlines around the world, with heartrending photographs of children, stomachs bloated by malnutrition, their legs bent with rickets.A handful of French doctors working for the ICRC, including the future French government minister Bernard Kouchner, brush aside convention and political borders to launch an aid effort.In 1971, they go on to found Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders). No victor, no vanquished From August to September 1968 the army retakes several towns after a major offensive.In March-April 1969, the new Biafran capital, Umuahia, falls.After raids by secessionists on oil wells, Nigerian troops reinforce their blockade, and in June start preventing international Red Cross aid flights.Only Christian churches and the French Red Cross continue their aid flights in ever more dangerous conditions.In early January 1970 the army begins its final assault, and on January 15, Biafra ceases to exist.Ojukwu flees on January 11 to Ivory Coast, leaving his deputy, Philip Effiong, to officially surrender to Gowon in Lagos, the federal governments capital at the time.The east resumes its place in a united Nigeria.Gowon vows No victor, no vanquished, and pledges to work for national reconciliation.But resentment lingers and deepens over the decades, as the Igbo complain of a lack of investment in the southeast, which many view as a punishment for Biafra.The war invests considerable power in the army, with military coups becoming a feature of Nigerian political life for decades.
Irans Supreme Leader said Saturday that Saudi Arabia is a cow being milked by the U.S.Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, speaking at an event marking the first day of Ramadan, accused Saudi Arabia of trading its wealth with pagans and enemies, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.The stupid Saudi government thinks it can attract the friendship of enemies by giving them money, he said.Khamenei added that Saudi Arabias rulers faced certain downfall for aligning itself with the U.S., Reuters reported.They act cordially towards the enemies of Islam while having the opposite behavior towards the Muslim people of Bahrain and Yemen, he said. They will face certain downfall.The Supreme Leaders comments come a week after President Donald Trump signed a $110 billion weapons deal with Saudi Arabia during his visit to the kingdom.Meanwhile, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani earlier called for improved relations with Gulf nations during a phone call with the emir of Qatr, Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.We want the rule of moderation and rationality in the relations between countries and we believe that a political solution should be a priority, Rouhani was quoted as saying.The countries of the region need more cooperation and consultations to resolve the crisis in the region and we are ready to cooperate in this field.Source: Fox News
Weak External Reserves Driving Away Investors  Obi

A former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, has said Nigerias poor external reserves are the major reason why investors are shunning the country.He said it would be difficult for investors to bring their money to the country when a lot of other nations were safer havens owing to their huge external reserves.Obi said this at the 2nd Capital Market Summit organised by the Association of Stockbroking Houses of Nigeria in Lagos on Thursday.The summit had the theme: The Road to Nigerias Economic Recovery  The Capital Market Route.Our poor reserves are the reason our economy is currently dwindling. South Africa has over $800bn in reserves; Malaysia of yesterday has over $90bn in reserves; and Nigeria, which is one of the biggest economies in Africa, has reserves that are far less, the former governor stated.Nigerias external reserves are currently put at $30.5bn.How can foreign investors come to Nigeria when other climes are far attractive? Obi asked.He blamed Nigerians for the continued decay in the polity, saying even when leaders were underperforming, the people had continued to sing their false praises in a bid to get favours.The Director-General, Debt Management Office, Dr. Abraham Nwakwo, commenting on the state of the nation, said the capital market remained very critical to getting the country out of the current economic recession.But he expressed worry about the capacity of the various economic agents, stressing that there was aneed to build capacity for wealth creation.Stakeholders at the forum maintained that the country had neglected investment in industrial infrastructure for a very long time, stressing that such investments had the potential to make the country less import-dependent.They said the public sector had failed the people largely as it had not been able to adequately fund infrastructural development over the years.Capital market players were urged to take the lead in that regard to create more wealth and generate productive employment opportunities.
Over 15, 000 members of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Omala Local Government Area of Kogi Eastern senatorial axis have dumped the party for the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, in Kogi State.The decampees were assured of equal treatment by leaders of the APC who are working to ensure members welfare is a priority.Elder Simon Achuba who received the new APC followers gave the assurance at a ceremony in Abejukolo, headquarters of the LGA.He further described APC as a party that would reposition the state for growth and development, urging those yet to make up their minds in joining APC, to do so before it is late.Achuba commended the new members for taking the bold steps in joining the progressives, pleading with them to join hands with the governor and contribute their quota in the task of building a virile state.Democracy Day: APCs lack of governance skills leaves Nigerians with nothing to celebrate  PDPHe described the giant strides in infrastructure development recorded by the present administration in the state as a product of hard work, transparency and dogged commitment of the governor Bellos to impact on governance and the lives of the people; which has engendered the populace to him.
Justice Mary Abounu, wife of the Benue State deputy governor, Engineer Benson Abounu, reportedly slapped her police orderly, Inspector Jane Agbo, over an accusation that she was having a secret sexual relationship with her husband.According to reports, the assault took place at the deputy governors lodge, Makurdi.The newspaper reported that, the incident has made the Nigeria Police Command in the state to redeploy the officer back to Otukpo Division.Mrs Abounu had accused her police orderly, Inspector Jane Agbo, who started working with her as an Orderly since when she was a court judge, of sleeping with the deputy governor.Report has it that the Benue second lady had at several times confronted her police orderly, asking her to confess if the rumour she was receiving that she was sleeping with her husband was true or not.Inspector Jane Agbo, a single lady, has denied the allegation and tried on several occasions to make her madam believe that there was nothing between her and the deputy governor.The straw that finally broke the camels back happened recently when, the deputy governors wife couldnt hold her peace.It was gathered that, on that fateful day, Mrs Abounu allegedly asked the orderly to wait behind after their schedules for the day.While Inspector Agbo was waiting, Mrs Abounu came to her and threatened to assault her openly if she didnt confess to the lingering rumour that she was sleeping with her husband secretly.It was during a heated argument between the two, that Mrs Abounu slapped Inspector Jane Agbo several times, after which, she ordered her out of the deputy governors lodge.It was gathered that, Mrs Abounu left a serious instruction that the female Orderly shouldnt be allowed into the lodge again.As instructed, the security operatives at the deputy governors lodge turned the police orderly back when she came to resume her duties the following morning.On hearing that, Inspector Jane Agbo returned to Benue Command headquarters in Makurdi, where she was told of her immediate redeployment to Otukpo Divisional Police Headquarters.When contacted on Sunday, through telephone, Inspector Agbo confirmed her redeployment as a result of the heated argument and assault she got from the deputy governors wife, two weeks ago.She said it was sad that a woman she had been serving as police orderly since when she was a high Court Judge could be saying all sorts of rubbish about her.Jane stressed further that, she wondered why Mrs Abounu could be accusing her of dating her husband, adding that the deputy governor isnt her type of man.Her words: I wonder why this woman (Mrs Abounu) is saying all sorts of rubbish just to tarnish my image.I have never had any sexual relationship with her husband, and again the man is not even my taste if at all I want to date anyone.Although I am a single lady but I can take you or anyone to see my boy friend, and when you see him, you will quickly agree with me that the deputy governor is not my taste.Asked why she didnt force her way back into the Government House as Mrs Abounus Police Orderly, Inspector Agbo said, she didnt, because she was tired of working with her erstwhile boss.She added that, she had been tolerating Mrs Abounus excesses right from the time she was serving as her orderly at the high Court.Agbo said she believed the deputy governors wife was just telling lies and making false accusations against her over nothing.She said: It is a greater sin to maliciously lie against someone than to kill him or her. I have handed madam over to God to do the right judgment.I am glad about my redeployment because, I am tired of working with a devilish and wicked person like her.Let her continue her lies against me but I know at the right time, God will vindicate me. To God who made me, I didnt have any secret affair with her husband, the deputy governor.Meanwhile, the Deputy Governor, Engr. Benson Abounu has threatened to make life unbearable for his wife, if she failed to send her current Orderly packing and bring Inspector Jane Agbo back.According to Abounu in a heated argument he reportedly had with his wife last weekend, Jane has been a very trusted and reliable police officer over the years.The newspaper, however, reported that, the deputy governor only wanted the former orderly back, as a way to prevent her from divulging some of the family and government secrets at her disposal.
The Commissioner of Police in Anambra, Mr Sam Okaula, has warned Biafra agitators against unlawful activities following the May 30 sit-a...

The Commissioner of Police in Anambra, Mr Sam Okaula, has warned Biafra agitators against unlawful activities following the May 30 sit-at-home order by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). Okaula gave the warning on Monday in Awka in an interview with newsmen.We have always been prepared for this type of situation but one thing remains clear, we want to assure the people of the state to go about their lawful duties and businesses. There is no cause for alarm and I can assure you that all the black spots have been taken care of.We have enough manpower on ground and we have deployed them effectively to take care of all flash points. I dont expect anybody to prevent people from going about their lawful businesses.I will not allow anybody take laws into his hands. Anyone who does will definitely see the full wrath of the law, Okaula said. The commissioner said the command was determined to maintain the security position of the state as the safest in the country. He said the command had taken records of recent activities of undesirable elements operating on motorcycles, snatching hand bags and phones, mostly in Awka, Onitsha and environs.He warned that those, who have decided to make life unbearable for others should be prepared to face the consequences. We have achieved a lot to contain crimes and criminalities for the people and business to thrive; we shall not allow these elements to set us back again. IPOB had declared a sit-at-home on May 30 saying it was to remember those who lost their lives during the Nigerian Civil War and sectarian killings.
Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has attributed successes being recorded by the military against Boko Haram insurgency to the restoration of cordial relations with Nigerias neighbours, including Chad, Cameroon and Niger.Osinbajo, in a nationwide broadcast on Monday to commemorate the second anniversary of President Muhammadu Buharis administration, said the government had reorganised and equipped the armed forces, and inspired them to heroic feats.He said that in addition to mending broken relations with the countrys allies, the Buhari administration had also revitalised the regional Multinational Joint Task Force, by providing the required funding and leadership.He said that the terrorist group which openly challenged the sovereignty and continued existence of Nigeria through killing, maiming, and abduction, causing the displacement of the largest number of citizens had now been routed.With new leadership and renewed confidence, our gallant military immediately began to put Boko Haram on the back foot.We have restored broken-down relations with our neighbours  Chad, Cameroon and Niger  allies without whom the war against terror would have been extremely difficult to win.The positive results are clear for all to see. In the last two years, no fewer than one million displaced persons have returned home.One hundred and six of our daughters from Chibok have regained their freedom after more than two years in captivity, in addition to the thousands of other captives who have since tasted freedom.Schools, hospitals and businesses are springing back to life across the North-East, especially in Borno, the epicentre of the crisis. Farmers are returning to the farms from which they fled in the wake of Boko Haram.Finally, our people are getting a chance to begin the urgent task of rebuilding their lives.On agitations in some parts of the country, Osinbajo revealed that the Buhari administration had engaged with local communities with a view to understanding their grievances, and to create solutions to their challenges.He said, across the country, in the Niger Delta, and in parts of the North-Central region, we are engaging with local communities to understand their grievances, and to create solutions that respond to these grievances adequately and enduringly.According to him, President Buharis new vision for the Niger Delta is a comprehensive peace, security and development plan that will ensure that the people benefit fully from the wealth of the region.We have seen to it that it is the product of deep and extensive consultations and that it has now moved from idea to execution.Included in that New Vision is the long-overdue environmental clean-up of the Niger Delta beginning with Ogoniland, which we launched last year, he added.On persistent farmers/herdsmen unrest across the country, the acting president announced that the Federal Government had started working with state governments and relevant security agencies in designing effective strategies and interventions to end the menace.According to him, the Buhari administration is determined to ensure that anyone who uses violence or carries arms without legal authority is apprehended and sanctioned.
The management of the University of Ibadan on Monday has shut down the institution and directed the students to vacate the campus on or before 6pm.The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the students had earlier taken to the streets of Ibadan in protest, alleging insensitivity on the part of the university management.But the universitys Director of Communications and Publication, Olatunji Oladejo, told NAN that the closure became necessary in order to avert crisis.He said the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Idowu Olayinka, had convened an emergency meeting of the university Senate to review the circumstances surrounding the development.The University of Ibadan, in its wisdom, has decided to shift the examination earlier scheduled for June to July, 2017,  Oladejo said.He said that undergraduate students are to resume back in school on July 17, while the postgraduate students would continue to stay on campus for their research activities.The students at a congress on Saturday passed a resolution to disrupt the forthcoming examinations if students were not provided with identity cards.They also asked the authorities constitute the Students Welfare Board as well as allow use of cooking appliances that had been banned in the halls of residence.
The Peoples Democratic Party has attacked the ruling All Progressives Congress, saying the party has nothing to celebrate two years aft...

The Peoples Democratic Party has attacked the ruling All Progressives Congress, saying the party has nothing to celebrate two years after took over the mantle of leadership.The National Publicity Secretary of the Senator Ahmed Makarfi-led National Working Committee, Mr. Dayo Adeyeye, in a statement on Sunday claimed that the APC-led Government was marked by highhandedness, crass ineptitude and lack of tolerance for the opposition.He said the APC had endangered democratic foundation laid by the PDP which enabled the opposition to win elections.Adeyeye said that the activities of the ruling APC were suggestive of a bleak democratic outing for the country in the 2019 elections.He lamented that Nigerians had nothing to celebrate as the APC has plunged the vast majority of the people into this two years of despondency, ambiguity, repressed and depressed condition.He said, Beginning with the issue of corruption in this discussion is critical in line with the APC/President Buharis Change Agenda and hype in corruption chase which has left sour taste given the dishonesty and charade that have characterised the actions of this government so far.For the record, corruption is endemic in our system since the military era and using it to whip up citizens sentiments is absurd while playing ignorant of honest achievements made by the PDP government to combat this alarming menace.The question is what has the APC done to fight corruption? Nothing! Yes indeed nothing except noise, hounding, torturing, flouting of court orders and vilification of opposition leaders and members in and out of courts; incarcerations without proving anything; harassments, intimidation, indiscriminate arrests and detention of judges in order to cow them to desecrate the judiciary and deny the people justice; promote gestapo state and by extension, kill democracy.He added that Nigerians and the international community had lost confidence in the Independent National Electoral Commission as the APC allegedly prevented it from performing its electoral responsibilities without interference.On the economy, Adeyeye said that President Buharis utterances during his visits to foreign nations scared away investors who had withdrawn their money from the country which had earlier attracted $20bn worth of investors in three years.
A man touches a flexible display at the 2017 China International Big Data Expo in Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

A Top Ten Black Technologies list has been released at the 2017 China International Big Data Expo in Guiyang, capital of Southwest China's Guizhou province, stating how innovating the data industry helped to build a stronger, more intelligent life.

Ma Fang, senior media relations manager of Shenzhen-based Royole Corporation, said the structure and 0.01 micrometers of flexible display, seen at the event, can be applied to mobile phones, tablets, personal computers, smart home devices and intelligent transportation systems.

Much like the model, the flexible keyboard, released and featured at the event last year, was transparent, light and thin. It could expand and downsize into a stick no larger than a pen, which was easy for journalists to write stories everywhere, Ma said.

"The mobile phone, which can be worn on the wrist, was also released in the United States in January," she said.

"The display will go into production by the end of 2017, and has an estimated annual output of 20 billion yuan."

Ma added the company, Shenzhen-based Royole Corporation, recently signed a cooperation memorandum with China Southern Airlines and Shenzhen Bus, as an application of flexible materials in the aviation and automobile industries.

"There will be no buttons on the operating desk because orders of playing music, guiding roads or air conditioning can be given through touch control," she said.

Wang Hongan, software researcher of the China Academy of Sciences, added the black technology referred to innovative high technology, which was developed generally beyond common sense, and said it would potentially overturn the whole industry.

"The 3D commodity show of the JD Group was enrolled in due to the application of the augmented reality technology in its e-commerce platform," he said.

According to Zhao Gang, leader of visual and augmented reality business of JD, the image of a rice cooker could also be put into real-life circumstances, in order to see if a chosen color and size would suit a specific kitchen.

"Some online shop owners may beautify products, but the 3D technology can even help customers to its inside; which, thus, helps them to make decisions," he said.

Sun Xuhong, director of central air conditioner of Haier, said a driverless unmanned air conditioner, from the Haier Group, had also been significantly developed to detect the temperature of nearby people and could adjust itself.

"The unmanned control system, called Haier intelligent cloud, can design different operating process for companies due to the mass data collected from various industries," he said.

A big data service start-up in China, named Hydata, also developed lip-reading recognition technology, which featured a 70 percent accuracy rate for the Chinese language. It also had an 80 percent accuracy rate for the English language, and was on the way of industrialization, with public security departments, in some provinces.

The technological framework of human-machine emotional interference  put forward by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the China Electronics Standardization Institute and Guizhou Xiao I Robot Technology Co in February  won the title of black technology in the artificial intelligence field at the 2017 China International Big Data Expo.

"In the future, we expect to make robots which will be able to learn the emotions of humans, just by taking part in fluent and natural conversations," Wang Hao, CTO of Xiao I Robot, said.

"The technology could be used in customer service, as well as looking into the early diagnosis of mental disease, and personalized online learning courses."

A representative, and organizer, of the 2017 China International Big Data Expo added the awards were selected from products and services reported from the media worldwide, which were recommended by universities, based in China, and exhibitors at the expo.
A Lagos High Court has barred local government areas from conducting marriages across the country.

A Lagos High Court has barred local government areas from conducting marriages across the country.The court, in a judgment, declared that the Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate was unknown to law and therefore unconstitutional, null and void.A Certified True Copy of the judgment by Justice I. O. Harrison of Court 37, General Civil Division of the Lagos Judicial Division, dated May 15, 2017, in suit no LD/1343GCM/2016, was obtained by our correspondent on Sunday in Abuja.The plaintiff, Olamide Babalola, representing himself and other recipients of modified marriage certificates from the local governments, had dragged the Ikeja Local Government and Registered Trustees of Association of Local Governments of Nigeria before the court over the modified marriage certificate issued by the first and second defendants.The plaintiff had sought a declaration that the first defendant did not have the powers to issue modified or customised marriage certificates different from the one provided in Form E under Section 24 of the Marriage Act Laws of Federation of Nigeria,1990.Babalola also prayed for a declaration that the second defendants Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate was unknown to law and unconstitutional.He equally wanted a perpetual injunction restraining the defendants, their agents, officers, employees and representatives from further issuing modified or altered marriage certificates apart from the form as provided under Form E (1st schedule) and Section 24 of the Marriage Act, LFN, 1990.Harrison, in her judgment, declared that the first defendant did not have the powers to issue modified or customised marriage certificates different from the one provided in Form E under section 24 of the Marriage Act.She said, The court thus orders as follows: declaration that the second defendants Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate is unknown to our law, unconstitutional, null and void.A perpetual injunction, restraining the defendants their agents, officers, employees and representatives from further issuing modified or altered marriage certificates apart from the form as provided under Form E (1st schedule) and Section 24 of the Marriage Act, LFN, 1990.A perpetual injunction, restraining the second defendant, their agents, officers, employees and representatives from further issuing Modified Local Government Unified Marriage Certificates.Citing Imunze vs Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2014 LPELR 22354 (SC) and Onochie vs Odogwu, 2006 Nigeria Weekly Law Report, (Part 975) 65, Harrison stated that while registration of marriage is regulated by local government being under the concurrent list, formation of marriage is under the exclusive list within the domain of the Federal Government regulated by the Federal Ministry of Internal Affairs-item 6 of 2nd schedule of 1999 constitution.The judge pointed out that a marriage had been declared invalid by the Supreme Court on the grounds that it was not in line with Form E as provided by the Marriage Act.It is thus trite that the local and state government cannot make separate arrangements outside that provided for in the Marriage Act, that is Form E, Harrison ruled.The court however added that the marriages conducted by local governments and issued with the certificates, which are not in conformity with Form E, will by virtue of Section 34 of the Marriage Act be regarded as good and valid in law to all intents and purposes.It believes that there should be a re-issuance of the proper certificate to all persons in possession of the invalid certificates.The judgment read in part, The court will further consequentially order that all such modified marriage certificates issued by the first and second defendants be surrendered to the appropriate local government where the marriage was conducted and appropriate certificate, in line with Form E, should be reissued to the claimants herein and all other concerned persons.The judge said the second defendant and its branches issued their own form known as the Local Government Unified Marriage Certificate, which was also issued to the claimant by the first defendant.Following the judgment, the Federal Government has written to the various embassies in the country not to recognise marriages conducted by local governments.embassies were asked not to issue visas to applicants with local government marriage certificates in line with the court order.Most of the marriages conducted by local government registries are sham and were merely used to obtain visas by desperate Nigerians. We have written to the embassies not to give out visas based on such marriage certificates, he said.The Director of Press, Ministry of Interior, Willy Bassey, described the court judgment as a welcome development, which he said had put paid to the illegal acts by the local governments.
MMM-Nigeria, a group for mutual financial aid and donations, on Monday, organised a green party show in the Federal Capital Territory (F...

MMM-Nigeria, a group for mutual financial aid and donations, on Monday, organised a green party show in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to celebrate Nigerias Democracy Day. The party, which held at the Millennium Park, was opened to members of the group and non-members alike.Mr Seyi Bello, the President of Abuja Guiders Forum of the MMM-Nigeria said the gesture was part of solidarity by the group for Nigerias 18-years of uninterrupted democracy.This party is put together to celebrate our Democracy Day and since Nigerias flag is green-white-green, we decided to call it green party as a mark of solidarity.We invited everyone to be a part of this event because friendship and unity is what this community of mutual help represents. As a community, we do not only provide help to our members, we also extend that to the larger society as part of our social responsibility, he said. Musicians, comedians and other entertainers in the territory performed at the event. Bello explained that over three million Nigerians were members of the group.He explained that contrary to some peoples opinion about the scheme, its a community of people providing financial help to each other on the principle of reciprocity and benevolence. That is what defines us as a community of people providing financial help to each other on the principle of reciprocity and benevolence. In MMM, there are no lenders and no debtors. One participant asks for help, another one helps.He therefore called on leaders at all levels to deliver basic dividends of democracy to Nigerians, adding that the current recession was affecting ordinary Nigerians.As we celebrate democracy, let our leaders remember that we need change in all aspects of our lives, he said. Mavrodi Mondial Movement (MMM) is a Ponzi scheme, which was revived early this year after freezing participants accounts for a month in December 2016.
Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday said that the Social Investment Programmes (SIPs) being implemented by the Federal Government f...

Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday said that the Social Investment Programmes (SIPs) being implemented by the Federal Government for Nigerians are not favours but their right.He made the remark at an event showcasing the achievements of the National Social Investment Programmes (NSIP) of President Muhammadu Buharis administration at the second anniversary of the administration at the old Banquet Hall of the State House, Abuja. It was tagged A Smile for every NigerianNoting that the social Investment Programme is both a heart and a head programme, he said that it is heart because the pains of poverty cannot be ignored.He said: I want to say to all of you that we do not consider the programme as a favour done to you. It is not. You deserve this programme because you are citizens of this country.This country can provide and should provide all that is in need of help and we will do our very best to provide, he added.He recalled that the President during the campaigns had kept on saying that everything must be done to get Nigerians out of poverty.He said The programme is also a head or logical common sense issue. A countrys economic development is a function of the number living above poverty level; our levels of poverty are so alarming that clearly some fundamental interventions by government are necessary.Often our economic development plans and budgets assume a trickle down approach namely that if we put resources in promoting industry and commerce, jobs would eventually be created and the poorest will be reached.The other premise is that GDP growth should translate to jobs. Both premises are flawed. First the trickle down model has proved far too slow to stem the tide of poverty in one of the fastest growing populations in the world.Secondly, most of the Growth was on account of the oil sector which is capital intensive but not labour intensive. So while we were recording Growth levels of 7% because of the high oil prices unemployment figures grew.In developing the APC manifesto and later our economic development plans, we knew that government had to directly intervene with a massive social investment programme, that would tackle poverty and exclusion across the various spectra.We have heard a lot about the programmes already but I would like to emphasize some of what I am particularly proud of. First is that we have shown that a massive programme can be initiated and managed on-line. The NPower programme is the largest post tertiary jobs programme in Africa. We now know that we can train large numbers electronically.Secondly we have demonstrated that a transparent process of employment is possible. All of these young men and women have testified that they knew nobody, paid nobody to get the jobs they now have,Thirdly we have achieved great success in our financial inclusion efforts by bringing in many especially the extremely poor in the hinterlands into the formal banking system. Beneficiaries of the Conditional cash Transfer programme, home grown school feeding vendors and cooks, now have BVNs and bank accounts.We have also demonstrated that electronic payment on such a huge scale, across the nation is possible. Most importantly we have ensured that our programmes are in all States not just APC States, so much so that some of the Governors in non APC States even take credit for these FG programmes.We know that our children in public schools many from poor homes do not really care about whether the food is from one political party or the other. Most of the testimonies you have heard today, it is clear that our programmes have just simply gone.He pointed out that the N100b set aside for the Family Home Fund, a Social Housing Project under the SIPs is a yearly contribution to the N1 Trillion Naira Social Housing fund.Osinbajo said The largest in the history of the country. The World Bank, AFDB , are contributors to the fund. From this fund developers will borrow 80% of cost of project and counter fund with their own 20%. The same fund will enable us to provide inexpensive mortgages for hundreds of thousands across the country. Already the project has started in 11 States.We expect that this Family Housing Fund will jumpstart and expand construction exponentially across the country.The SIP is clearly one of the largest social intervention efforts anywhere in the world. It is complicated and diverse in its scale and scope. We are proud of the men and women led by the SA on Social investments, Mrs Maryam Uwais.That team is supervised by a very dedicated interministerial team. The Hon Ministers of Budget and Planning. Finance, he added.According to him, the next phase of the programme will be reopening the portals for NPower on the 13 of June.We are ramping up on the CCT, GEEP, and the Home Grown School FEEDING. Our targets are clear, soon enough we will put smiles on the faces of millions more, he stated.The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, John Odigie-Oyegun, noted that the APC has contributed majorly in solidifying democracy in Nigerian in comparison with all administrations since 1999.He recalled that the party in 2015 mobilized against a non-performing administration through the power of the votes.But he maintained that his party took over power with the economy base totally fractured as cost of producing a barrel of oil and selling price of oil per barrel were almost at the same level.He however assured that the President Buharis administration was determined to put smiles on the faces of Nigerians.He also assured that the Nigerian economy will soon come out of recession.Also speaking at the occasion the Senate Minority Leader and former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Senator Goodwill Akpabio, endorsed the programme and commended the Federal Government for Achaemenes recorded so far.He said We are always ever ready in the Senate to support any programme that will add smiles to the faces of Nigerians.The food programme will actually take the kids off the streets. All Nigerians must key into the programme so that things can change.We have never had this kind of programme before. We have a war in our hands, a war against poverty, so we must all support it, he added.While calling for the programme to be extended, he also jokingly said that it should be made to cover ex-politicians who presently dont have job at hand.
Five persons have been reported killed in a land dispute at Nteje, Oyi local government area of Anambra State.The traditional ruler of the community, Igwe Rowland Odegbo, disclosed this to newsmen in Awka, the state capital on Monday.He said 18 persons had been arrested from the community over the dispute, including a 70-year-old brother of a Nollywood actor, Pete Edochie.Odegbo said he escaped being arrested following Governor Willie Obianos intervention.He decried incessant harassment of his people by the police from outside the state, stating that his community was under police siege.He said some of the people killed were the morgue, while most youths in the area had fled the town and hidden in forests for fear of being arrested and taken to Abuja by the powers that be.He gave the list of the persons arrested and being detained in Abuja SARS as Chief Ikechukwu Edochie, Chief Cyril Nwankwo, Mr. Vincent Okongu, Pastor Vin Nnaemeka, Modilim Nwene, Anthony Ewenike, Dominic Oboh, Sunday Mobi, Paul Aghadinuno, the landMonday Nwafor and Nwoye Amamchukwu.Others were Obelagu Mobi, Koife Chukwuemeka, Ogwugwua Nweke, Fidelis Cordi, Ibe Kenneth, Chijioke Anyanti and Uchenna Oraegbunam.The monarch said the land dispute was engineered by land speculators who constituted themselves into a cabal and illegally sold communal land for many years.He said they were not making any returns to the villagers, hence trouble began which led to the death of three persons on 11th of March this year when two factions involved in the sale of the land clashed.He said when some soldiers intervened in the matter to quell the riot, one of the groups attacked the soldiers, leading to the death of one other person whose body was still in the mortuary.Calling on Governor Obiano to set up a panel of enquiry to look into the matter, Igwe Odegbo said: The major problem we have is that one policeman, who was at the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, Awkuzu and now an assistant commissioner of police in charge of SARS in Abuja, is being used to come into Nteje and arrest people and take them to Abuja without recourse to the Anambra State police command.His statement said There was even a petition that I, the traditional ruler, should be brought to Abuja and they would have carried me if the Anambra State governor had not intervened.I was addressing a village meeting when the policemen came and said that I was needed in Abuja. However, following the intervention of the governor, they asked me to come at my own time, but I knew that was a face-saving measure on their part.When one person was killed recently, the same Abuja SARS came to Nteje and arrested many people who are yet to be released.I dont know why Abuja SARS should be bypassing Anambra State police command to come and carry people to Abuja. What borders me is that when three people were killed in March, there was a petition to the police, while another group wrote another petition and included me.What has been happening here is that petitions have been flying and arrests made indiscriminately. I really dont understand why our people should be intimidated by a group and trying to rope in the traditional ruler because someone was opposed to my being crowned the Igwe of Nteje.Our community needs help because we are under police siege from Abuja. Those arrested were carried in two buses and taken to Abuja on thumped up charges and I would have been among them if I am not the traditional ruler.
The Director General of The Electoral Institute of the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC), Professor Abubakah Momoh has died in Abuja.He is expected to be buried today in Auchi, Edo State, according to Islamic injunction.Momoh in his lifetime was a close friend of the former governor of Ekiti State and current Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi.According to information gathered, the astute professor of Political Science passed on this morning after a brief illness and as at the time of filing this report, his body was being taken to his home town in Auchi for burial.Abubakah lost his father earlier in the year.However, the academic community has been thrown into mourning as his colleagues in the University of Ibadan expressed shock over his sudden death.They described his death as a monumental loss to Nigeria.Until his appointment, Professor Momoh was the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Lagos State University, LASU.He obtained his Ph.D in Political Theory and started his Lecturing career in 1988. He has served on various Boards and scientific committees including those of the Centre for Democracy and Development, CDD, and Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa ,CODESRIA.According to his bio-data obtained from the African Leadership Centre, Momoh was Vice President of African Association of Political Science, AAPS, and National Treasurer, Academic Staff Union of Universities, 1991-1995.He has been a researcher and lecturer at many universities across the world, including Visiting Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, University of Helsinki, Finland; Fellow, Department of Peace and Conflict Research, Uppsala University, Sweden; Visiting Scholar, Centre for African Studies, University of Cape Town, South Africa; Guest Researcher, Nordic Africa Institute, Sweden; Guest Lecturer, Summer Course on African Law, Catholic University, Brussels, Belgium; Senior Fulbright Scholar, James Coleman African Studies Centre, University of California, Los Angeles, UCLA; Guest Lecturer, African and African-American Studies Department, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA; Visiting Researcher and Tutor, Conflict, Security and Development Group, CSDG, Kings College, University of London; and Visiting Senior Research Fellow, International Development Centre, Open University, Milton Keynes, England, Post Graduate Research Supervisor, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, German, among others.Momoh also served as External Examiner to the University of Lagos, University of Ibadan and University of Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa and Nigerian Defence College, NDC since 2005.Momoh served on several government technical committees including being member and coordinator of Foreign Policy Subcommittee of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Vision 20:20 Technical Committee; he was also a member of the team that drafted the policy on Peace Support Operations, PSOS, for the Federal Government.Momoh has also been on several technical teams of the African Union Commission, AUC, and most recently was involved in designing the African Governance Architecture, AGA, and Elections Bench-Marking for the African UnionHe was an observer to several African countries on behalf of ECOWAS and African Union. He also served as Election Observer to some European countries.He is survived by a wife and a son.
It is a black Democracy Day in Lagos, as another three-storey building on Lagos Island collapsed on Monday morning with two people confirmed dead and several others still trapped.This is the fourth building to have collapsed in Lagos in less than months.It was gathered that the collapsed three-storey building was being renovated with people inside when it caved in.Rescue operation is still ongoing as emergency responders are working frantically to rescue trapped victims in the building located at Daddy Alhaja Street, Oke Arin, Lagos Island, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria.General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, Adesina Tiamiyu told newsmen that 14 people had so far been rescued alive.He confirmed that two people had so far died in the collapsed building while rescue operation continued to rescue other trapped victims.Last week, a two-storey building collapsed at Cole Street Ebute Metta with a woman injured.Three weeks ago, a three-storey building collapsed at Ilasamaja area of the state, with four people dead.Over a month ago, a two-storey building under construction collapsed in Lekki area1 of Lagos, killing two people.
Nigerian forward, Victor Moses on Sunday, got married to his long-time girlfriend and mother of his two kids.The marriage came a week after winning the Premier League and just a day after receiving a red card in Chelseas FA Cup final 2-1 loss to Arsenal.The Chelsea star wedded his long-time partner in London today, May 28, 2017.The pair exchanged marital vows in front of few family members, friends and colleagues.Moses has a five-year-old son, Brentley and a two-year-old daughter, Nyah.Moses has managed to keep this family very private, and not much is known about his wife but it is reported that his bride is an English woman of Nigerian descent.Recall that last Sunday, Moses brought out his family to celebrate the Premier League title win at Stamford Bridge.
Former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh (retd) says he is yet to visit his hometown, Vimtim, in Mubi North Local Gove...

Former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh (retd) says he is yet to visit his hometown, Vimtim, in Mubi North Local Government of Adamawa because he does not have a house to stay.Badeh said this on Monday in Yola in his goodwill message at a Public Forum organized by Adamawa Government to mark this years Democracy Day.Badeh, who lauded the transformation recorded in Yola town by the Bindow administration, said that he was unable to go to Mubi to see the much talked about transformation there because he has no where to stay.Badeh said that his house in Mubi had been destroyed by insurgents.I was not even able to go to Mubi because I have nowhere to stay; everything I have has been destroyed, Badeh said.While commending governor Bindow for his achievements in transforming the state within the past two years, Badeh criticized Adamawa leaders for not doing much for the state.He observed that Adamawa leaders were most of the time engaged in power tussle instead of working for the state.Adamawa state from independence has produced people that would have made the state better than Lagos but it is like we (leaders) have never liked ourselves.Badeh also lauded former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who he said had distinguished himself in bringing development to the state in terms of establishing companies and generating employmentMubi was taken over by insurgents in October 2014 before it was later recaptured by the military.
GLASSBORO -- Glassboro hosted its annual Memorial Day Parade festivities Monday.

The parade began at University Boulevard and Lehigh Road at 10 a.m., make its way to Whitney Avenue and then onto High Street before ending at the Glassboro Fire Department.

F-16 jets, flown by the New Jersey Air National Guard 177th Fighter Wing in Atlantic City, were scheduled to soar overhead at the Glassboro War Memorial located in the new town square at the corner of High and Main streets, but rainy weather grounded the squadron.

As for the rest of the parade, the 100-plus-year tradition included award-winning string bands, the popular kid's bike brigade, and various military veteran groups marching along.

This year's Parade Marshal was Ed Redmond, a retired member of the U.S. Navy.

A ceremony followed the parade at Town Square Veterans Memorial Plaza.

Caitlyn Stulpin may be reached at cstulpin@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitstulpin. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Former Hudson County conspiracy theorist and perennial political candidate Jeff Boss was charged with assault this weekend after harassing a woman on the subway, according to the New York Police Department.

Boss, 54, who has run for office under the banner "NSA did 9/11," was riding a southbound No. 2 train Sunday at about 3:15 p.m. when a woman asked him to stop taking pictures of her and he refused, an NYPD spokesman said.

That fight led to a physical altercation and Boss was subsequently arrested outside the subway stop at 72nd Street and Broadway, the spokesman said. The woman said she had cuts on two of her fingers, he said. A report in The New York Post says she cut her hand when she tried to grab Boss' phone.

Boss, who says he is running for mayor of New York City, is famous locally for touting his belief that the National Security Agency was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. The resulting wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were part of a plot for the NSA to control the nation and "take away our civil rights," he told The Jersey Journal in 2008.

His website -- bossforsenate.com -- indicates he wants President Trump impeached for "allowing or authorizing the NSA to kill Jeff Boss." He claims to have witnessed the NSA "arrange" the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.

Boss, who lived in Ridgefield Park last year, ran for Congress in November against Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr. He received 1,897 votes to Pascrell's 65,376.

When Boss lived in Guttenberg in 2014, he ran for U.S. Senate, and made a bid for governor in 2013.

In 2008, he ran for president under the slogan "Vote here."

Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.
Cosplayers pose for photos during the 2017 Anime North at the Toronto Congress Center in Toronto, Canada, on May 28, 2017. The three-day annual event kicked off on Friday to celebrate all kinds of anime culture with tens of thousands of fans from across the world. (Xinhua/Zou Zheng)
A lawsuit between a conservative group and the Jersey City teachers union will proceed after a judge denied the union's bid to dismiss the suit on Friday.

The legal spat focuses on "release time," a provision in the union's contract with the public-school district that allows two top union officials to devote all of their time to union activities while getting paid by the district.

Judge Barry Sarkisian dismissed the Jersey City Education Association's efforts to derail the lawsuit during a roughly 30-minute hearing on Friday morning.

JCEA President Ron Greco declined to comment. Greco is one of the two officials permitted to work full time for the union. The JCEA has argued that freeing Greco of his teaching duties allows him to resolve "potentially disruptive disputes" between the 28,000-student district and its staff.

The Goldwater Institute filed the lawsuit on behalf of two New Jersey residents who say release time violates the New Jersey Constitution's ban on local governments giving gifts of any kind to individuals or entities.

"Release time transfers public resources to a private labor union to use as it sees fit," said Jonathan Riches, general counsel for the Goldwater Institute. "On Friday, the court agreed that this important case should proceed so taxpayers can now work to uphold the Constitution and end this taxpayer abuse."

The JCEA, named as a defendant along with the school district, school board and Schools Superintendent Marcia V. Lyles, said that the lawsuit should be dismissed because the plaintiffs did not act in a timely manner, the gifts clause cannot invalidate collective bargaining agreements and the provision affects only two out of roughly 2,700 employees.

Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook.
RARITAN TWP. -- Rain on Monday morning forced the Memorial Day observance inside the Municipal Building. The event included a wreath-laying and several short speeches.

As they've done every Memorial Day since 1982, a group of people met in remembrance of all fallen service members but particularly Mike Baldwin and Fred Zyck, township residents killed in the Vietnam War while serving as Army sergeants. Their names are on the monument just outside the Municipal Building and the service was held by the display case inside dedicated to them.

The ceremony was one of many being held in Hunterdon County over the Memorial Day weekend.

Speakers included Raritan Township Committeeman Louis Reiner, and the Rev. Mark Spildooren of Flemington, a former Navy chaplain who is pastor of the First United Presbyterian Church of Amwell at Larison's Corner. He led the group in prayer and talked about the importance of remembering "all the sons and daughters of Hunterdon County who went off to serve their country" and especially those "who never came home."

Reiner noted of the military members: "we take them for granted" and said patriotic holidays such as Memorial Day and the Fourth of July are for more than picnics and having a good time.

Speaking of all our nation's veterans, "you just can't say enough for the American military personnel," Reiner added.

Bob Godown, the master of ceremonies, is a past commander of the Flemington Veterans of Foreign Wars and current commandant of the Hunterdon County Veterans Alliance. It was 49 years ago, 1968, when Baldwin was killed in action and 48 years when Zyck fell in battle, he noted.

Despite that they died almost five decades ago, "we don't forget them," Godown said. "They were our classmates," both attending Hunterdon Central High School.

"Thank you for their service," he said to family members at the event.

Also speaking was Joan O'Brien, a Navy veteran, daughter of a Vietnam veteran and wife of Committeeman Craig O'Brien, also a veteran. She told of the profound sense of loss she feels in the death of a man under her command, which was based in North Africa.

The ceremonies ended with the firing of a rifle salute and then taps by Mark Paradis, a Marine and former Lebanon mayor who is part of the group Taps for Veterans.

The monument was erected in 1982 near the Police Station. It was moved to its current location in front of the adjacent Municipal Building in 2011 and dedicated on Veterans Day that year as the Eagle Scout project of township resident Eddie Wheeler, then a member of Troop 194.

Other Memorial Day services held in Hunterdon County included Califon, Flemington, Franklin Township, Frenchtown, Glen Gardner, High Bridge, Lambertville, and Readington Township.

This item was courtesy of Terry Wright.
HAMILTON -- Today, the nation turns its attention to those who died while serving the country in the military with parades, wreath layings and other patriotic events.

U.S. Army Maj. Erhan Bedestani, a Hamilton native, will be in northern Virginia, enjoying a day off with his 8-year-old son Brandon.

At some point during the day something - a news story or Memorial Day event on TV - will give him pause. "And it will trigger something about someone who you served with, and you take a moment to reflect," he said.

This year, the list of people Bedestani served with who are gone include Gen. Zarawar Zahid, an Afghan police commander Bedestani's Special Forces group worked with - and fought with - a decade ago on one of his combat tours.

Zahid was killed in September in the Nangarhar Province in Afghanistan in a bomb blast claimed by the Taliban. An Afghan official told the New York Times that the hands-on commander was "one of the bravest commanders of Afghan police" who lost his life in the line of duty fighting terrorism.

The general was a colonel when Bedestani's unit worked with him in 2008 in the Wardack Province, and he recalled him as an unflinchingly tough and fearless leader who worked with American forces and was unparalleled in his patriotism for his country.

He also loved this country too, and wanted to see it, Bedestani said. One day years ago, Bedestani said to Zahid - who everyone called Col. Z - that if he ever wanted to visit the states to look him up.

It was genuine offer, but Bedestani thought it was unlikely to ever happen.

It did.

In early 2010, Zahid boarded a plane for New York City and gave Bedestani's name to customs officers when he landed. They called the Bedestani home phone in Hamilton's University Heights neighborhood.

They got Bedestani's father, Mehmet Bedestani, who agreed to pick him up. For the next week, while Erhan was on duty in another state, the two men enjoyed what only Erhan can describe as "bromance."

His father took Zahid to touristy places in New York City, the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, visited Washington, D.C. monuments and even did a little gambling at Parx Casino outside Philadelphia.

"They did all this stuff together," Bedestani says with a chuckle in his voice.

Mehmet Bedestani said his week with Col. Z seven years ago was among the most interesting experiences of his life, and he teared up recalling meeting him in Queens, N.Y. and seeing a picture of his son on a necklace the tall Afghan man wore.

On their trip to New York, he took him to the World Trade Center site, where the 9/11 memorial had yet to be built. "It was important to him," Mehmet Bedestani said.

When Erhan was able to finally get back to his childhood home, he arrived to Col. Z - a man who fought the Taliban - washing his father's car in the driveway in a borrowed bathrobe and pair of slippers.

When you're a Green Beret soldier with combat tours in Iraq, Afghanistan and deployments to Africa on your resume, these are the kinds of stories you have, Bedestani said.

And Bedestani's story is about as American as anyone wants to make it, he says.

Zarawar 'Col. Z' Zahid

University Heights

He was born to immigrant Turkish parents who are Muslim by faith, but moved to this country for education and opportunity, then pushed their two sons to succeed as Americans.

Bedestani said his family subscribes to the theory of American as the melting pot, and integration. Lately, though, many people do not actually melt as much.

"Somewhere that kind of got lost," he believes. People now want to identify more, which is fine. In his house, though, it was never overly about being Turkish, or Muslim.

"It was about being a good citizen," he said. He did joke though, that growing up in a heavily Italian American neighborhood, Hamilton's University Heights, they did stick out at times as the "oddball Turkish family."

As a kid, attending University Heights elementary and Crockett Middle School, he had no dreams of the military. That change occurred when he was accepted to The Lawrenceville School, where he met math teacher, David Schoor.

Schoor, a retired Army colonel and Vietnam Veteran, suggested Bedestani look into ROTC at Johns Hopkins University, where he was going to college.

"So I signed up. I wanted to see what it was about," he said. Plus, if he got a scholarship, the money would be nice for tuition. He was hooked in no time. He loved the confidence and structure, and was excited to serve, he said.

Going to War

Bedestani was a senior in college when terrorists attacked New York and Washington on 9/11, and was a foreign exchange student in Germany that day. "It was kind of surreal to see what was going on from over there" he said.

He knew he'd be in the fight soon, and less than a year after being commissioned a second lieutenant in 2002, he was leading an infantry platoon that provided security at Baghdad airport.

The mission was to manage the flow of Iraqis as the airport, which he says was like "the TSA on steroids." It was war, but his tour did not see heavy combat.

While he was in Iraq, he was informally recruited by Special Forces soldiers to try out for the elite service when he got back to the U.S.

It's where his ability to speak Turkish and German helped him, he says. He entered Special Forces training in 2006, eventually earning the coveted Green Beret and was assigned to lead a 12-man team.

The team was sent on multiple counterterrorism missions in Africa, where he trained foreign military forces among other missions. Then they were deployed to Afghanistan in 2008, which he says, was the most jarring environment change.

For seven months, his team worked among the mountainous, 10,000-foot peaks in the Wardack and Kapisa provinces, where assignments had them on hours-long, equipment-laden hikes that were grueling - as was the fighting.

"You didn't have to go very far to get into a firefight," he said.

They worked with Romanian and French forces, aided Afghans on growing crops, and tried to hold back the Taliban from entering Kabul. "It was a good hard deployment. They gave it to us good, and we dished it back out."

Along the way, he met Col. Z. Bedestani eventually rotated back to the states.

A Career Soldier

In 2010, as a captain, he was one of just 13 regular Army captains - out of 22,000 - awarded the 2009 Gen. Douglas MacArthur Leadership Award.

Bedestani is now a major and works an office job at the Pentagon, and he's since earned his master's degree at Georgetown University.

Looking back, he's packed a lot into his 15 years of service, he said, and at times cannot believe he's been in the military this long, which was not the plan.

"Never in a million years did I see this. I thought I'd do my four years and get out," he said.

He has served in an era of nearly constant war, and said despite being in combat zones, the Army's been an "absolutely great place to be." He is now making a career of it, and will stay as long as they'll have him, he says.

His free time these days are spent doting on his son, who he often brings to Hamilton to visit with family here, and father and son take trips to Mercer County Park.

Never far from his thoughts - on Memorial Day and beyond - are his enlisted Special Forces brethren, who are nearly always deployed and doing work which many will never hear about.

They are the soldiers who, when they arrive stateside, quietly get into their cars and drive home. "There is no ticker tape parade, nor is one wanted," Bedestani said.

As much as the Army has shaped him, Bedestani said his foundation was forged in his Mercer County, New Jersey upbringing. And wherever the Army sends him, he'll carry the moral compass pinned on him by his mother and father, Sadiye and Mehmet.

As he hunted, detained or killed the enemy for his country, his moral muscle memory always snapped to their teachings: you are a product of your family, your schooling and your hometown.

"Be a good American citizen, do your duty and do it well," was their message.

And now he's a product of his country, he said. He summed it up the Green Beret way: "I am a soldier who works on behalf of my nation."

Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
JEFFERSON -- A man was shot at his Jefferson Township home Sunday night by a New Jersey State Police trooper investigating a report of domestic violence.

The 35-year-old man, Matthew Gerndt, was injured in the shooting and taken to a hospital.

A woman walking along the shoulder of I-80 told police who came to aid her that her boyfriend assaulted her while driving and kicked her out of the car, the Attorney General's Office said Monday in a news release. She had injuries to her face and body, the release said.

Troopers went to the home Gerndt rents on Brady Road at about 11:30 p.m. to arrest him for the alleged assault. After identifying themselves, troopers said Gerndt went into the house and locked the patio doors behind him, according to the Attorney General's Office.

Troopers entered and attempted to arrest Gerndt in a hallway, when he "charged aggressively" at a trooper who then fired twice, striking Gerndt once in his lower body, according to the news release.

Gerndt was taken to Morristown Medical Center for treatment of a non-life threatening injury, authorities said. He was charged with assault and resisting arrest, and will be detained on the domestic violence assault charge when he's released from the hospital, the news release said.

No troopers were injured.

The Jefferson Township Police Department said earlier Monday that it had responded at about 11:30 p.m. to the shooting, but none of its officers were involved.

A neighbor, Christine Malloy, told NJ Advance Media she assumed the loud noise she heard was fireworks, but she soon spotted three State Police cars at the home next door.

As the night wore on, dozens of police officers arrived at the house. She and her husband were interviewed by police early Monday.

The house is owned by a woman who rents the downstairs to a man and his girlfriend, Malloy said.

"We were pretty close with the guy who lives downstairs," she said. "They're nice people, just your average neighbor."

Late Monday morning, Malloy maneuvered her way around caution tape surrounding her neighbor's house to get to her car. And officers were still on the scene.

"Anything can happen anywhere," she said.

Sara Jerde may be reached at sjerde@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SaraJerde.
JERSEY CITY--It may seem odd, but imagine if some guy in China looking for a quick path to U.S. citizenship could plunk down a half-million-dollar investment on a luxury apartment development in Jersey City, and get to the front of the line for a coveted green card.

Welcome to the EB-5 program

It's called a "golden visa," and has been in the spotlight in recent weeks following disclosures that the family of Jared Kushner sought to use the program to help finance a new luxury real estate development in Jersey City.

The EB-5 program: what's is it?

EB-5 visas allow foreign investors to obtain green cards for permanent residency--and a fast-track to U.S. citizenship--in exchange for putting big money into job-creating projects in this country. In recent years, it has become a source of funding for major hotels and real estate projects. Even the Pennsylvania Turnpike funded an expansion project through the visa program.

But the program has come increasingly under a cloud in recent years, even before the firestorm of criticism that came after the Kushner family made their pitch to Chinese investors in Beijing to secure $150 million in financing for a new Jersey City housing development known as One Journal Square.

Intended to spark development in economically distressed neighborhoods, it has instead been used in large part to fund luxury development projects. At the same time, allegations of fraud and abuse have been rife.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), a long-time foe of the program, wants it eliminated, complaining that it lacks a verifiable way to measure job creation and has led to many of the wealthiest areas of the country being inaccurately designated as places of "high unemployment," to enable investors to qualify with smaller investments.

In February, Grassley and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) introduced bipartisan legislation to kill the program.

"The EB-5 program is inherently flawed. It says that U.S. citizenship is for sale," said Feinstein. "It is wrong to have a special pathway to citizenship for the wealthy while millions wait in line for visas."

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and chairman Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. (Mark Wilson | Getty Images)

The EB-5 program: what's the price of admission?

The program was approved by Congress in 1990, which created the so-called "Employment-Based Fifth Preference," or EB-5 immigrant visa, aimed at promoting job creation and capital investment in the United States by foreign investors.

At its heart was basically a pay-to-play proposal. A foreign investor who put $1 million in a new business resulting in the creation of at least 10 full-time positions, could apply for a green card (along with their spouses and unmarried children under the age of 21), giving them permanent residence in the U.S.

If the investment is in a rural area or in a part of the country with high unemployment--what the government defined as a targeted employment area--the minimum investment dropped to $500,000.

Under the program, the initial EB-5 visa is valid for two years. If the investor can demonstrate his or her investment resulted in creating or preserving at least 10 permanent jobs in this country, they are then eligible to get a green card--a significant short cut over others seeking permanent residency.

Each year, officials say approximately 10,000 immigrant visas are made available to foreign investors and their eligible dependents, essentially providing a path to citizenship to those with money and connections. Those investors can choose where to invest on their own. More commonly, they pool their investment with those of other foreign investors and U.S. stakeholders within a "regional center."

Applicants from China are said to account for more than 75 percent of the EB-5 visas.

Where has it sparked development?

A study by the Government Accountability Office found three out of four petitioners were investing or planning to invest in various types of real estate projects.

Those included hotels and resorts, commercial and mixed use real estate and residential developments. Much of the rest of the money went into infrastructure projects, such as railways and highways, or transportation, restaurants, medical and education facilities.

In testimony before the House Judiciary Committee in March, Angelique Brunner, founder of EB5 Capital, a regional center operator based in Bethesda, said her investment group has more than $400 million of assets under management on behalf of investors from over 50 countries and investments in five states and the District of Columbia.

"EB5 Capital's investments have anchored more than $2.4 billion of development that has created more than 23,000 American jobs," she testified.

The Trump Bay Street high rise in downtown Jersey City, a Kushner Companies property built with the help of EB-5 financing. (Jersey Journal photo)

What's the picture in Jersey?

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which administers the visa program, does not provide state-by-state breakdowns of EB-5 funded projects, but said as of May 1, the agency had approved 883 regional centers, which are public or private organizations that pool foreign investor funds, often for multiple projects..

More than 90 of those centers operate at least in part in New Jersey, although many are based elsewhere.

According to Invest in the U.S.A., an industry trade association for the EB-5 Regional Center Program, $3 million was invested in New Jersey through regional centers in 2012, the association's most recent data, and $5.6 million the previous year. Those numbers, though, represent only a small percentage of the development funding that has come from EB-5 investments in New Jersey.

Kushner Companies relied on $50 million in EB-5 funding for a Trump-branded luxury high-rise apartment known as Trump Bay Street, in Jersey City, which opened last year.

A second Jersey City project by Kushner Companies, which is also seeking foreign investment, generated a storm of controversy earlier this month. Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump and is now a senior advisor to the president, divested his interests in his family's business after his father-in-law was elected. But his sister came under fire after a presentation in Beijing that used her brother's name, in seeking new investors for the One Journal Square project in Jersey City. The company later apologized.

Where did the program go wrong?

Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) said the EB-5 program was designed to bring jobs to underserved rural and urban communities, and for some time it did just that.

"But the program that exists today has strayed from these goals. It is a magnet for fraud," he told the House Judiciary Committee. "Securities violations are common. And the incentives that Congress created to promote investment in distressed areas have become obsolete due to economic gerrymandering."

Leahy noted that only 3 percent of EB-5 investors invest in rural areas and less than 10 percent invest in true high unemployment areas. He said almost every other EB-5 project use what is known as "gerrymandering" that join the tracts of a neighborhood considered prime territory for luxury housing with other neighborhoods plagued by substantial unemployment to qualify for a distressed area.

"The fact that a luxury hotel in Beverly Hills can use gerrymandering to claim it is located in a distressed community is troubling," said Leahy. "But the fact that this type of abuse now represents almost 90 percent of the entire EB-5 program is appalling. And an untold number of these luxury developments would be pursued regardless of EB-5 financing, casting doubt on whether the program is creating any jobs at all."

A lure for investment, or a vehicle for fraud?

But that stretching of the rules is just part of the problem, say critics, pointing to examples outright fraud involving phantom projects that exist only to provide visas.

The Securities and Exchange Commission in 2015 obtained a court order freezing the assets of a South Florida woman and her company, who were accused of purchasing a boat and luxury cars with money raised from investors seeking U.S. residency through the EB-5 program.

Earlier this year a Chicago developer was sentenced to three years in prison in connection with a scheme to defraud foreign investors out of millions of dollars in a failed hotel and convention center near O'Hare International Airport.

And just last month, the FBI raided a Los Angeles-area business over suspicions that a fund sought green cards for more than 100 Chinese investors for construction projects that were never built, said federal court filings. Authorities said at least three investors who obtained green cards through the program were fugitives wanted by the Chinese government.

David North of the Center for Immigration Studies, a Washington-based group that advocates significant reductions in immigration, said there is no need for an immigrant investor program.

"It is lodged in an agency that does not deal in high finance, and, of course, it involves the sale of visas to aliens who could not become U.S. immigrants in any other way," North told the House Judiciary Committee.

Trump recently extended the EB-5 program without making any changes urged by many in Congress. The White House says it is "evaluating wholesale reform of the EB-5 program to ensure that the program is used as intended and that investment is being spread to all areas of the country.''

Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Facebook: @TedSherman.reporter. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
We've already filled you in on New Jersey's top marching bands. Now, we want you to help us choose the best of the high school cheerleading teams that perform alongside them.

Weigh in on which team in each county has the best cheers, the most skilled dance moves and the most pep, and we'll post the results in a future story about the top teams across the state.

At the links below, you can learn more about what makes a cheer team great and tell us which one you think should win the top honor in each county. Drop us a line and let us know what makes that squad the best.

Marisa Iati may be reached at miati@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @Marisa_Iati or on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Caitlyn Stulpin may be reached at cstulpin@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @caitstulpin. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Dear Abby: I need your advice about my relationship with a very good friend who frequently humiliates me, breaks promises, refuses to take my advice, and won't let me help him even though I tell him how good I am at what I do. Never mind the polls. People really liked me once.

I know he is a good friend because he says so every time I ask. Sometimes he even tells reporters what good friends we are. We do talk frequently on the phone although neither of us says who calls who, but he doesn't seem to listen to what I say. It's breaking my heart.

And, Abby, it takes a lot to break my heart. In fact, some people say I don't have one. But I do, and it hurts when my good buddy ignores me. I've been through so much to support him and I feel I have a right to expect something in return.

Let me give you some background. When he was a big shot developer in New York and I was the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, we had some fun lunches when we'd swap stories of people we'd put one over on. We were close then.

Of course, the relationship fell apart a little bit when we both wanted the same job, and in all those debates he was brasher, louder, nastier than I was and people seemed to like him better. So I gave up my quest and agreed to support him.

And, oh boy, did I support him. I tried to channel that adoring look Kim used to give me when she stood behind me at the mic and I made those grand pronouncements. I never quite got the hang of the look, though, and the Internet laughed, but I hung in there. I vowed I'd be his sidekick, his secret-sharing pal, his wise counselor, and, of course, I expected to get something out of it.

He did give me a title at one point and I got a flurry of headlines, but somehow he forgot about the job that went with it. So while I did the work, he had others doing the same thing and their success was praised -- well, at least at the beginning -- while my work got tossed in the wastebasket.

But, Abby, I didn't give up. I still was faithful. I never criticized him. I was loyal to a fault. I did have to put the knock on his staff now and then when the screw-up was so bad everybody was talking about it. But never once did I say a bad thing about him.

So he gave me another assignment. I was excited. Finally, a real job. But then he cut funding and let that AG guy change the rules to lock up all the people I was planning to help. I could have cried. But I'm too tough to cry. I make others cry.

Then last week he announced he was cutting Medicaid. After all the promises, after all the pledges to take care of the middle class, after all the guff I took from fellow governors for expanding Medicaid here, he guts the darn program. And I built next year's budget on the premise he wouldn't dare cut Medicaid. It means millions in real money to us.

Please help me, Abby. I coulda been a contender, but I gave up everything for him. Now everybody else hates me and I'm beginning to think he does, too. -- Desperately, Chris in NJ

Dear Chris in NJ: Former President Harry S. Truman once said: "If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog." But Benjamin Franklin, another pretty good politician, wrote: "If you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas." Stop scratching, Chris. You picked the wrong kennel. Get out and get back to the real world where there are plenty of people looking for help, advice, and unconditional affection.

But, readers, what do you think? Should Chris dump his fair-weather friend?

A former assemblywoman from Jersey City, Joan Quigley is the president and CEO of the North Hudson Community Action Corp.

Submit letters to the editor and guest columns to jjletters@jjournal,com
By Yurou Liang (Xinhua) 11:59, May 29, 2017

The U.S. Pacific Command said Sunday it has found that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) had launched a short-range ballistic missile.

In a statement, the command said it had detected the launch at 10:40 a.m. Hawaii time on Sunday (2040 GMT) and tracked the missile for six minutes until it landed in the Sea of Japan. It added that the launch occurred near Wonsan on the east coast of the DPRK.

"We are working with our Interagency partners on a more detailed assessment," the statement said, adding that the command continues to monitor the DPRK's actions closely.

The South Korean military also said the DPRK had test-launched a ballistic missile early Monday local time from the country's east coast.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile flew some 450 km and was believed to be of the Scud type, which has a range of 300-500 km.

The DPRK has not made any announcement about the alleged launch.
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 29

Trend:

Lawmakers of the US State of California adopted a resolution on the occasion of the national holiday of Azerbaijan  Republic Day.

Initiators of the resolution are Senator Jeff Stone and Member of the California State Assembly Rocky Chavez, according to a message of the Azerbaijani Consulate General in Los Angeles.

The document says that for the first time in the Islamic world, a secular parliamentary state was established in Azerbaijan in 1918.

Azerbaijan over the past 26 years has strengthened its sovereignty and independence, has become a reliable ally and partner of the United States in such an important region as the Caspian region, according to the document.

Azerbaijanis living in California are actively involved in the social life of the state, they make a great contribution to intercultural harmony, stability and prosperity, says the resolution.
Once elected, members of the Public Service Commission typically have an easy time hanging onto their jobs. Voters dont know much about them or their work, and the only real money in the campaigns has traditionally come from utilities and others 
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 29

Trend:

Azerbaijans Defense Ministry has said in a message that rocket and artillery units of the countrys Armed Forces are holding live-fire drills.

Under the Armed Forces preparation plan for 2017, the exercises of rocket and artillery units are conducted with the purpose of improving the combat skills of military personnel.

During the exercises conducted in conditions close to combat, the artillery units carry out the tasks on reaching concentration areas, decision-making, occupying firing and starting positions, keeping stealth capability, as well as moving during battle and other tasks.
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 29

Trend:

On May 29, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev made a phone call to President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hassan Rouhani.

The head of state congratulated Hassan Rouhani on his re-election as President, and extended Ramadan greetings to him and the people of Iran. The President wished Hassan Rouhani success in his presidential activity and the people of Iran prosperity and development.

President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Hassan Rouhani thanked for attention and congratulations, and congratulated the President and people of Azerbaijan on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan and May 28  Republic Day.

The presidents exchanged views over a number of aspects of bilateral relations, as well as regional security, construction of North-South railroad, oil and gas cooperation, investment making, tourism, and agriculture.

They hailed successful development of Azerbaijan-Iran relations over the years of independence, noting that the bilateral ties have reached the highest level in the past four years. They emphasized numerous reciprocal visits at the level of presidents and the signing of several very important agreements. The presidents stressed successful execution of all agreements and documents.

The presidents expressed their confidence that friendly and brotherly relations between Azerbaijan and Iran will continue to successfully develop and strengthen.
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 29

By Anvar Mammadov  Trend:

Rufat Guliyev, Azerbaijani MP and a member of the countrys parliamentary committee on economic policy, industry and entrepreneurship, believes that the downgrade in ratings of the International Bank of Azerbaijan (IBA) by international ratings agencies Moodys Investors Service and Fitch Ratings is temporary.

According to Guliyev, the decline in IBA ratings was expected.

I believe that the downgrade is temporary, and will not affect other banks of the country, although the IBA is the largest bank in Azerbaijan. The economic and financial situation in Azerbaijan is quite stable and there are enough gold and currency reserves to fulfill all our obligations to foreign creditors, he noted.

The MP said that currently, the Azerbaijani economy continues to grow, despite the global processes and the changes in ratings will not affect the financial sector of the country.

Touching upon the process of restructuring of the IBAs foreign obligations, Guliyev stressed that this process will make the bank a healthy and strong financial institution.

Restoration of the IBAs financial stability is important in terms of providing relevant financial services to the economy. The steps that the bank is taking to ensure its financial stability are very important, noted the MP. I also believe that all retail and corporate clients of the IBA should be sure that the restructuring plan will not have any influence on them. Meanwhile, this will not affect other processes in the bank.

As it was previously reported, the IBA commenced a process of voluntary debt restructuring as part of its rehabilitation. The bank has filed an appeal to the New York court to aid the restructuring of $3.34 billion in debt. Under the courts decision made on May 12, 2017, foreign creditors will not be able to make claims against the IBA assets during the process of voluntary restructuring of the banks foreign liabilities.

Recently, a meeting of leadership of the IBA, Azerbaijans Ministry of Finance and Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FIMSA) with foreign creditors was held in London. The banks management offered creditors several options for restructuring its obligations. The IBAs total debt to foreign creditors is $3.3 billion.

The International Bank of Azerbaijan has been operating since 1992 and is one of the countrys two state-owned banks.
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, May 29

By Demir Azizov  Trend:

Uzbekistan has signed more than 320 trade and investment agreements and contracts worth $44 billion since September 2016, said Uzbekistans Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov addressing a meeting of the Uzbek Senate.

A report of the Uzbek foreign minister on the activities of the Ministry in developing foreign economic relations, attracting foreign investments and advanced technologies to the economy, developing tourism and strengthening the international image of Uzbekistan was read out for the first time at a Senate meeting.

As it was previously reported, the work on attracting foreign investments for the economy of Uzbekistan was defined by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev as the most important priority of the countrys foreign policy strategy.

The attraction of investments to the national economy is determined as one of important issues of implementation of the strategy on further development of Uzbekistan in the next five years. To date, about 320 agreements and documents have been signed for a total amount of $44 billion, said Kamilov.

He noted that only according to the results of state visits of President Mirziyoyev to Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Russia and China, 239 agreements and contracts totaling $37.7 billion were signed.

During the period, the Ministry continued its work on increasing the investment attractiveness of Uzbekistan abroad, on forming a positive image of the country in foreign business community, said the minister.

The European Parliament approved a textile protocol between Uzbekistan and the European Union.

The entry into force of this document will not only increase the export of Uzbek textile products to the EU markets, but will also send a positive signal to Western investors for putting capital in Uzbekistan, he added.

Moreover, Kamilov noted the resumption of Uzbekistans cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), as well as the preparation of an agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB).

The Ministry is working to facilitate the issuance of visas for big and reliable foreign investors, highly qualified specialists in order to increase tourist flow to Uzbekistan. Currently, there is a simplified visa issuance procedure with regard to citizens of 13 states visiting Uzbekistan for business purposes.

According to a survey conducted jointly by the Uzbek Foreign Ministry and diplomatic missions, a number of businessmen and experts from reputable financial institutions that have experience working with Uzbekistan have named factors that inhibit the flow of investments to Uzbekistan. The problems of currency conversion and repatriation of profits, imperfection of the banking and credit system, weak protection of investors rights, administrative and bureaucratic barriers and low investment ratings are among them.

The minister added that in order to improve the activities of the Foreign Ministry and institutions, operating abroad, in the foreign economic sphere, it is required, in particular, to approve the strategy of foreign policy and foreign economic activity of Uzbekistan for 2017-2021, to create an independent subdivision on international economic cooperation in the Foreign Ministry.
State of Origin is here and aside from being one of the most fiercely contested events in world sport, it is also a game of fine margins.

Origin is a perfect storm of individual brilliance, team work, passion in the Blue or Maroon jersey and the X-factor. Some would attribute the Queensland Maroons' recent dominance, where they have won 10 of the last 11 State of Origin series, to this X-factor.

But what exactly is that  is it the 'spine'? We dug into the numbers to find out.

- Teams with a settled combination of hooker, halfback, five-eighth and fullback  the spine  have a 42 per cent chance of winning in Origin.

- Teams that have new or unsettled spine combinations have a 28 per cent chance of winning.

A closer examination of the statistics reveals that in the 108 State of Origin matches played since 1980:

- NSW have fielded 74 different fullback, five-eighth, halfback, hooker combinations, losing 57 per cent of matches they played with an untried spine.

- Queensland have used 51 different spine combinations and won 58 per cent of matches in which they had a new quartet.

Video - l5eGliYjE66B6oplDGrW_IooKSwc4gVM

The Maroons' unprecedented era of domination coincided with their preferred spine of Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, Johnathan Thurston and firstly Darren Lockyer, then Cooper Cronk, playing together almost continuously for eight series. From 2009 until Lockyer's retirement in 2011, the former Australian captain's combination with Smith, Slater and Thurston yielded Queensland six wins in eight matches, and the most successful spine in Origin history also played together in the first two games of the 2005 series.

With Cronk taking Lockyer's place in the Queensland spine in 2012, the Maroons barely missed a beat  except in 2014 when the Melbourne halfback was injured in the opening game and missed the second match, both of which were won by NSW as the Blues ended an eight-year losing streak.

Get your Holden State of Origin tickets now

In addition to Queensland not being able to field the spine which has won them five of the eight Origins they have played together, NSW kept the same fullback, five-eighth, halfback, hooker combination of Jarryd Hayne, Josh Reynolds, Trent Hodkinson and Robbie Farah for the entire series. The only other series since 2005 in which NSW has kept the same spine for all three matches was in 2012 when they came very close, winning Game 2 and losing Game 3 after a late field goal from Cronk.

With Reynolds and Hodkinson also being the Canterbury Bulldogs halves, the NSW spine in 2014 were able to quickly develop an understanding of each other's games that the Blues have lacked for most of the past 12 years as they churned through 19 different halfback/five-eighth pairings alone. Farah was in career best form and the NSW selectors finally decided to leave Hayne in his preferred fullback position. In comparison, Thurston has played just five matches since 2005 without either Lockyer or Cronk as his scrum base partner due to injury, with Karmichael Hunt and Scott Prince filling the role during the 2008 series and Daly Cherry-Evans deputising in 2014. Smith has also missed just one Origin since debuting in the third match of the 2003 series.

Video - RueWliYjE6TsOq4lQI_tYZrbakCH4z6J

Given the importance of the spine, the 2017 State of Origin series presents fans with a major tipping conundrum. Both teams are trialling new combinations  NSW by choice and Queensland because of the injury that has ruled out Thurston.

The Blues have an opportunity to exploit an unsettled Maroons spine which is missing not only JT for the first time since 2004, but also Slater (seven series wins) after he was overlooked for Darius Boyd at fullback.

Will the NSW spine of James Tedesco, James Maloney, Mitchell Pearce and Nathan Peats settle quickly and put Queensland to the sword or will the Maroons adjust and take advantage of their two home games?

Whatever happens, Origin 2017 promises to deliver an enthralling contest between two very even teams. Is the spine the X-factor, or is it a piece of individual brilliance that will turn the series? Only one way to find out!
Northwest Indiana hospitals and safety-net clinics have their eyes on Washington, D.C., as federal lawmakers debate potentially severe cuts to Medicaid.

The U.S. House plan to repeal and replace Obamacare, the American Health Care Act, would reduce Medicaid spending by $834 billion (25 percent) over the next decade, according to an analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

In that same time period, President Donald Trump's proposed budget would decrease funding for Medicaid by $600 billion.

While neither the American Health Care Act nor Trump's budget is likely to be enacted as is, the threat to the health program that serves nearly 57 million low-income Americans has Region hospitals and clinics worried.

"While it is too early to tell how the proposed federal budget would impact our hospitals, undoubtedly the proposed cuts to health care access would hurt the states most vulnerable patients," stated Stacey Kellogg, a spokeswoman for Porter Regional, LaPorte and Starke hospitals.

She said the hospitals "will continue to provide medical care to the communities we serve, and remain committed to assisting anyone who needs help determining their eligibility for programs that offer health care coverage or medical assistance."

The Trump administration and Congressional Republicans have proposed turning Medicaid into a block-grant program, where states get a set amount of money per Medicaid enrollee to spend how they see fit. The lawmakers say this will give states more flexibility, ultimately reducing costs.

Medicaid expansion helped hospitals

The American Health Care Act would do away with the enhanced federal funding for states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, likely spelling the end of Indiana's expansion, the Healthy Indiana Plan 2.0. HIP 2.0 brought coverage to nearly 250,000 Hoosiers who previously had no health insurance or were underinsured, according to a state analysis. The program covers more than 400,000 people in total.

HIP 2.0 also has been a financial boon to hospitals, which agreed to fund part of the expansion through the state's hospital assessment fee.

"It's the right thing to do for patient care, to get people coverage so they can come in through the primary care physician's doors and not the emergency room," said Brian Tabor, president of the Indiana Hospital Association.

He said rural or safety-net hospitals in Indiana would be particularly affected by cuts to Medicaid, as a disproportionate share of those facilities' patients are covered by the program. In Northwest Indiana, Methodist Hospitals in Gary and Merrillville, Franciscan Health hospital in Hammond, and St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago are considered safety-net hospitals.

"In states like Georgia and others that didn't have a coverage expansion, we have seen a number of hospital closures," Tabor said. "If (expansion) went away here, I would be concerned we'd see situations like that."

First, though, facilities might cut services, he said. For instance, rural hospitals could shut down their labor-and-delivery units since half of births in the state are covered by Medicaid.

He also noted that HIP 2.0 has expanded access to substance abuse treatment in Indiana, gains that also stand to be lost if the program goes away.

Clinics, nursing homes could be affected

HealthLinc CEO Beth Wrobel estimates her clinics stand to lose about $6 million annually (out of a $28 million budget) if the cuts are enacted, and would probably have to stop taking new patients. HealthLinc, a federally qualified health center, has locations in East Chicago, Valparaiso, Michigan City, Knox, Mishawaka and South Bend.

"Even more than what HealthLinc is going to lose, because we'll be around, is what this would mean to our patients, to the health of our community," Wrobel said. "Healthy people are able to get jobs."

She has had patients who gained vision coverage through HIP 2.0 get glasses and go on to earn their commercial driver's licenses and become truck drivers.

She noted that biggest growth in Indiana Medicaid spending in recent years has been on nursing home stays for older Hoosiers, a growing part of the population.

"There's so much more to Medicaid than just pregnant women and kids and HIP," she said.
The Indiana Department of Transportation's Community Crossings grant program is back for a second year, with an application period opening next week for local governments to secure grants to pay portions of local road projects.

County and municipal officials across the state are gathering at INDOT-sponsored sessions this month, including one at the LaPorte District headquarters Wednesday, to learn about the program's requirements and several changes from last year.

Last year just under $145 million was awarded, according to INDOT. In Lake, Porter and LaPorte counties, grants to 27 local governments ranged from $35,141 for Beverly Shores to the $1 million maximum for Crown Point, Gary, Hammond, Hobart, LaPorte, Lowell, Valparaiso and Lake and Porter counties. East Chicago, Michigan City and Portage all received grants of more than $900,000.

Every community that submitted an application that met program requirements received a grant, according to INDOT, but about $47 million went unawarded that is rolling over into this year's program.

State Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso, urged local officials at the May meeting of the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission to take advantage of the funding opportunity this year, noting not all had last year.

"You need to get your applications in," Soliday said. "We cannot sit here and let money lay on the desk."

An INDOT spokesman said the state will determine how much money will be available for this round of grants as budgeting details are firmed up as the new fiscal year approaches July 1.

This year's changes to the Community Crossings program include an increase in the state's contribution to projects in smaller communities. Municipalities of fewer than 10,000 residents and counties of fewer than 50,000 can now have up to 75 percent of a project funded by a Community Crossings grant. Larger cities and counties will remain at the 50/50 split offered last year.

Another modification allows local governments to use any funds authorized for use on roads and bridges as the local match to the state grant. Last year, local funding sources were limited, and some local governments established or increased wheel taxes to fund their share of the projects.

The maximum grant amount remains $1 million per municipality or county. Half of the money available is reserved for local governments in counties with fewer than 50,000 residents.

The Community Crossings application period opens June 5 and closes July 14. Grants will be announced in August. Projects earning grants are required to begin before April 15, 2018.
VALPARAISO  Carl Specht was but 19 when the call to war grasped the Porter County teen.

The son of immigrants, Specht enlisted with Company H, 1st Illinois Cavalry in the U.S. Army with the intent of seeing battle in the Spanish-American War.

Specht, along with some 40 other Porter County and 60 other Lake County men, joined the call to arms after the sinking of the U.S. Maine in Havana, Cuba's harbor on Feb. 15, 1898.

The attack by the Spanish army pushed the U.S. to declare war against Spain in April 1898. Lasting less than nine months, the U.S. victory led to the independence of Cuba and the U.S. control of the Philippines.

Specht, the son of a Valparaiso businessman Claus Specht, who founded several Valparaiso businesses, never saw battle. While stationed at Camp Chickamauga, Georgia, Specht contracted malaria and typhoid fever. Home on furlough a few weeks later, Specht died from the illness on Sept. 16, 1898. He was the first casualty of the war from Porter County.

His funeral, according to news articles at the time, drew some 4,000 people to downtown Valparaiso.

He was one of two Porter County men counted as casualties. Little is known about the other, Carl Bremmer, also of Valparaiso.

A short-lived Spanish-American War Veterans Post was named after them following the war. When that post closed, a second was resurrected in 1931, named after just Specht, said Steve Mockler, a member of the David D. Porter Camp Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.

In total, the Spanish-American War claimed 3,289 military lives, according to the Spanish-American War Centennial website. Of those, 332 died in battle and 2,957 died of disease.

Mockler and his group are working to resurrect the memory of Specht and the war in which he served.

"It is one that we just don't talk about. It was short lived. It was nothing like the Civil War, which was so casualty driven," Mockler said about the Spanish-American War, adding people at the time were still healing from the Civil War and, in less than a decade, the world would be consumed by WWI.

Still, said Mockler, Specht and others who served during the Spanish-American War deserve to be remembered and recognized.

Specht was buried in the Old City Cemetery. A 1912 map compiled by the Grand Army of the Republic organization at the time indicates where Specht's burial plot is and that there was a family memorial, but never a military stone, said Mockler.

The local SUVCW camp works to find the graves of Civil War veterans and install new headstones to replace those in disrepair or missing.

Presently, said Mockler, they are working on getting headstones for 30 veterans, including Specht, and two local women who served as nurses during the Civil War.

He said it can be a long process, beginning with ordering official service records of the veterans and then applying to the Veterans Administration for a new headstone.

"The worst case scenario is that if we can't get it from the VA our backup plan is to purchase a stone, which costs between $500 and $600," Mockler said.
HAMMOND  Local residents who are considering a career in law enforcement may now be eligible for financial assistance from the city.

The City Council has approved an administration proposal known as Academy Bound that will provide $4,500 for eligible city residents to attend the Northwest Indiana Law Enforcement Academy.

The money for the program will come from the allocation of riverboat gambling money that is provided to Mayor Thomas M. McDermott Jr. to use for municipal projects and programs.

The program will be available to Hammond citizens who have been residents for three years prior to the application and who agree to remain residents of the city for three years following graduation from the academy. McDermott said state law otherwise allows police officers to live outside the municipality where they are employed after one year, which he said can be frustrating.

According to Corporation Counsel Kristina Kantar, a large number of more experienced Hammond police officers will be retiring from the department in the next few years. City officials say many residents who would otherwise be eligible and qualified to become police officers, however, are currently unable to afford the cost of attending the police academy.

Mayor wants to increase diversity on police force

McDermott said he wants to increase diversity through the program as he seeks more minority representation on the force.

"We are always trying to figure out how to increase diversity in the Hammond Police Department," he said.

In the past, the Police Department has gotten more than 200 people taking the test for a police officer when there have been openings, but McDermott said many of those making the top of the hiring list may be non-minorities coming from outside the city.

Applicants for the police force have to take a written test followed by an agility test and then must pass two review boards. From that information, a hiring list is created. Police Chief John Doughty said police will take people from the top of this list and conduct background checks and a Voice Stress test. If the applicant passes through these phases, they are sent for medical and psychological exams.

A new list will be created when Hammond police look for applicants eligible for the Academy Bound program, probably later this year. Doughty said in addition to the requirement that they be Hammond residents for at least three years, he will be looking for applicants who are between the ages of 21 to 25. He hopes to get at least 10 to 12 applicants for this list and said three applicants selected from this list could be attending the academy in January.

Doughty, a Hammond native, believes being a resident of the city gives potential officers a real leg up when it comes to the job. "There is no culture shock," he said.

Jail changes may provide chance for police hopefuls

McDermott also noted that one of the changes that will be taking part at the city jail as a result of the phasing out of the City Court is the hiring of more civilian correctional officers to replace regular police officers now being used there. He said this can provide an opportunity for Hammond residents wanting to become police officers to gain experience prior to applying for a job on the force.

The City Council sponsor of the ordinance, Councilman Dan Spitale, D-at large, said "this is a great opportunity for the Hammond young adults."

In addition to the $4,500 being provided for the school through the program, Doughty said the police department will provide up to another $500 for equipment those attending the academy would need.

Kantar suggested the program could be expanded in the future to fill other public safety positions, such as emergency medical technicians.

Councilman Robert Markovich, D-at large, voted for the measure, but earlier raised some concerns about using gaming money for the program. He said a lot of people have gone to the school in the past who paid for it on their own.
Monday is Memorial Day; a chance to reflect on all the sacrifices men and women have made to our country all through the years. For as we all know freedom has never been free and many have paid the price with life and limb for all of us over the years and will continue to do so for years to come.

Memorial Day was originated to honor those soldiers who were brothers and friends fighting for two different sides in our own country. In 1865, Henry C. Welles, a druggist in the village of Waterloo, New York, mentioned that honor should be shown for the patriotic dead of the Civil War by decorating their graves. In the spring of the next year, he mentioned it to General John Murray and he embraced the idea and proceeded to honor the fallen soldiers on May 5, 1866 as Decoration Day. The first official observance of Memorial Day was on May 5, 1868. Two years after the original ceremony at Waterloo and they chose to observe it on May 30 that year.

Something you can always count on in Portage is the Memorial Day Trail Run X-treme 12K at Imagination Glen Park East. Registration is from 7 to 8:30 a.m. The course is an extremely rugged 12K trail course traversing hills, log jumps, creek crossings, mud and switchbacks over single track mountain bike trails. There is a Kids Mile Course that is 2-lap easier version over a rolling course. Kids race starts at 8:15 a.m. and 12K starts at 9 a.m. The cost is $40 for the 12K. Kids Mile Run is $20. New this year is a 5K Walk on the Duneland Prairie Trail for $15.

All the proceeds for this event go to Gabriels Horn Homeless Shelter and the Outback Trail Commission.

As always, American Legion Post 260 will be honoring our servicemen and womens sacrifices with a parade that will line up at the Portage Mall at 11 a.m. and commence at noon. The parade will travel west to Calvary Cemetery. There will be a memorial service at the cemetery upon arrival and everyone is invited back to the Legion Post 260 on Mulberry for refreshments.

This Saturday come on out to the City of Portage Fire Department Safety Day held from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Willowcreek Middle School parking lot.

The event includes a skills course designed to practice bicycle safety. So bring a bike and your safety helmet. Free safety helmets will be fitted and given away to children without one while supplies last and there will be a free coupon from Portage Jimmy Johns for the first 100 children. Rusty the Rail Cat will be out there as well as the Indiana Conservation Police, the UCAN Medical Helicopter, the U.S. Coast Guard, Michigan City and Portage Police K9.

Thanks goes to the sponsors of event, Portage Firefighters Local 3151, Portage Police Department, Porter Healthcare System, Portage Jimmy Johns and Portage Kiwanis Club.

So come and have a great, safe time with all your favorite emergency professionals who hope to get the kids to wear safety helmets while enjoying one of their favorite activities.
Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, May 29

By Huseyn Hasanov  Trend:

Batyr Niyazliev has been appointed Turkmenistans Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Slovenia under a presidential decree.

Trade, communication, transportation, air communication, freight traffic, agriculture and food industry are among priority spheres of Ashgabat-Ljubljana partnership.

Negotiations are also underway on opening direct air communication between the two countries and expanding business relations.

Turkmenistan is one of main players on the energy market of the Caspian region and ranks fourth in the world for its gas reserves. The country is studying opportunities to export its gas to the European market.

Meanwhile, construction of Turkmen section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline is being carried out. Moreover, the project of the Trans Caspian gas pipeline through Azerbaijan to Turkey and Europe is being discussed.
Chicago police say the boy, who hasn't been identified, was killed Sunday about 6:35 p.m. in a shooting that left a 16-year-old girl grazed by a bullet. It happened in the Lawndale neighborhood on the city's West Side.

Police say the two teenagers were in an area between building when a vehicle drove by and someone opened fire. The teens were two of several shooting victims so far this holiday weekend, which has become one of the deadliest times of the year in the city.
Still, the best way to command a view of this strange and spectacular land is from the water. On a boat one can see the five snowy volcanoes of the Shiretoko range, as well as the wind-eroded cliffs that rise 600 feet or more from the sea and are painted white with all manner of fanciful designs by the droppings of sea birds. The second-tallest volcano, Mount Io, is one of the world's weirdest. When it erupts, as it last did in 1936, it belches pure sulfur. T here is a sightseeing boat from Otaru, which is supposed to leave five times a day in summer (three in spring and fall) and goes out near the tip of Shiretoko. A caution, however: on three beautiful October days we went to the docks only to be told that the trips were cancelled due to bad weather (and the imminent threat of seasickness, which the ship's captain obligingly pantomimed for us). Luckily, we managed to befriend a woman who worked at the souvenir shop next door. If we were willing to leave at 5 A.M., she told us, we were welcome to join her husband's crew the next morning on a salmon boat. This we did, and beat the sun. We were already well out to sea as it came out of the water, slowly spreading rays over the Shiretoko volcanoes, coaxing them out of the darkness. We were entranced by this brilliant show, though our dozen shipmates were oblivious to everything but the huge fishing nets and the salmon in them. By the end of the morning they had hauled in about 300 -not a very good day, said the captain.

Getting to and from Shiretoko is not the world's easiest proposition, though it is worth noting first that getting around is not the problem it might seem to be. Enough English is spoken in all of eastern Hokkaido that one need not worry about wandering around without speaking Japanese. Patience is the necessary virtue. Trains don't leave every 12 minutes, as they often seem to elsewhere in Japan, and there are no trains to Otaru or Rausu at all - one must take a bus.

The main cities by which one can pass into eastern Hokkaido are Abashiri in the north and Kushiro in the south. Both can be reached by long-distance express train from Hokkaido's capital city of Sapporo, or by air. Once there, pioneer days begin. A trip to Shiretoko from Abashiri, for instance, involves a one-hour local train to Shari (a beautiful route right along the sea), an hour and a half bus trip from Shari to Otaru, and a local sightseeing bus (or taxi) from Otaru. None of the schedules seem particularly coordinated with the others, although if you spend some time in Shari there is a Shiretoko museum worth seeing, with some interesting exhibits on the area's wildlife and geology. It is open from 8:30 to 5 April through September and from 9 to 4 October to March. Admission is 80 cents; it is closed holidays and Mondays.

An excellent way to dispense with all concern for timetables is to rent a car (an international driver's license is required). This allows one to make sudden stops to inspect, say, one of the dozens of varieties of wildflowers that bloom in eastern Hokkaido from spring to late fall. Another is to hitchhike. This is perfectly normal - and safe - in this part of Japan and is simple to do because there are so few roads.

There is a narrow coastal highway from Rausu all the way down, 100 miles or so, to Cape Nosshapu, the easternmost point of Japan. For much of the trip one has a clear and stark view of Kunashiri, a barren-looking land that seems close enough to swim to. This is the largest of the Soviet-occupied islands that the Japanese call their northern territories. The issue is a bitter one in eastern Hokkaido, since Japan's title to the islands had never previously been in dispute. Many Japanese were thrown off the islands when the Russians came and now live on the eastern shore. Their old homes, a few miles across the water, are utterly unreachable.

At Cape Nosshapu, there is a Monument for the Return of the Northern Territories, as well as a museum. The monument is a simple but bold arch on a cliff at ocean's edge, just 2.3 miles from the Soviet-held Kaigara island. The maps, photographs and displays in the museum refer to the history of the area and, most specifically, to the Soviet takeover of the islands and the sense of injustice that the Japanese have about it. Most of the exhibits are in Japanese, but there are enough maps, photographs and other displays to hold anyone's attention. We were at the cape on a rainy day, with visibility limited. Even then, there was no mistaking the markings of the Soviet warship on patrol a few hundred yards out.

One should encounter little trouble in finding either a place to stay or something to eat. Each town has a few reasonably priced Japanese-style inns. Nemuro, Nemuro-Shibetsu and Otaru all have inns that offer Western-style rooms and food. Seafood is the most popular fare: salmon (sha-kay in Hokkaido dialect) and shrimp (eh-bee) are particularly delicious.
Col. Larry Leonard quickly remembered the exact date he got the call in his Auburn home that his uncle had been found. It was Dec. 15.

Now, after almost 67 years of searching, his uncles remains have made the trip home to Alabama from North Korea.

Leonard and his wife, Marnie, longtime Auburn residents, will have the chance to bury their relative who was killed in the Korean War today, bringing closure to the son of a sister who longed to have her brother home.

The first inkling of an end to Leonards searching came in the early 1990s, when the North Korean government returned 208 boxes full of remains of soldiers who were killed in Korea. Documentation stated some of the remains were recovered from the same area Leonards uncle, Pfc. Thomas Clark Stagg, was killed, and Leonard for the first time had hope his uncle may be found in Leonards lifetime.

Stagg was a member of the Armys 187th Regimental Combat Team. While operating near the Hwandhae Province in Korea, he and 10 other paratroopers were on a reconnaissance patrol attempting to locate potential Chinese forces, according to an obituary published in the Birmingham News. His patrol was overwhelmed by the Chinese forces, and all 11 were killed and declared missing in action.

Theres a place for him

DNA testing by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory led to Staggs identification, and he will be buried today in Elmwood Cemetery in Birmingham at 1 p.m. with full military honors.

Theres a place there for him, Marnie Leonard said last week, referring to a spot next to Staggs mother, father and older brother who are buried at the cemetery. Theres a stone in his memory, but that will be changed now.

Leonard doesnt know much about the man he met for the last time when he was 4, but Leonards mother, Elsie Stagg Leonard, spoke about Stagg often before she passed away in 1981. While Leonards oldest uncle had died in World War II, he remembers their mother as always stoic.

I knew that she hurt, but she didnt say much about it, Leonard remembered. You just kind of carried on, so to speak.

Nevertheless, Leonard prepared remarks about his uncle through tones he picked up from the last letter Stagg wrote to his parents. It was getting close to Christmas, and he told them he would find presents to send them when he returned to Japan. He told them not to worry and mentioned the rough weather, but said nothing of the fighting he was in the middle of.

He was just thinking of them, Leonard said.

A continuing search

Leonards mother continued to search for Stagg her whole life, and asked Leonard to continue to do so after she passed.

In fact, that was one of the last things she asked me  Remember what you promised me youd do, Leonard remembered. You just want a place that if you chose to go you could sort of be with him in a spiritual way. When you dont know anything, thats very difficult.

These people lived out the remainder of their lives waiting for some news of this young man, Marnie Leonard said.

Larry Leonard wrote several letters to the government helping his mother search throughout his life. His first letter was written in 1967, and he was convinced he wouldnt make headway in his lifetime.

He even had doubts when North Korea sent back the boxes of remains, which were found to contain at least 400 U.S. servicemen who fought in the Korean War.

You can just imagine these 208 boxes of just bones and fragments of bones and teeth, and you look at them and how do you even begin? Leonard said.

He and his sister even traveled to South Korea last summer when they were invited by the government for a ceremony honoring those who were killed fighting Communism. Leonard was overwhelmed by their gratitude.

What impressed me truly was  on this wing on the walls  it was in raised letters, copper or brass  they had the name of every single soldier from every single different country who had died at war for them, Leonard said, remembering seeing his uncles name on the wall.

But once they received the news, Leonard said his emotions pulled between happiness and sadness, knowing that his mother wasnt there to see it. Hes now happy to have closure and to not have to pass down the burden of searching to his sons.

Everything Im doing, Im really doing for my mother, Leonard said. This is what I can do for her.

Since the news, Leonard said it has renewed his interest to help others help bring their loved ones home. Leonard recently spoke with the brother of a Montgomery man, Walter Sweatt, who was killed along with Leonards uncle. Leonard simply listened to stories of the brother who was missing his sibling and friend.
If there is such a place as heaven for farm animals, it must be a lot like Santuario Igualdad Interspecies, an incredible sanctuary for domestic animals destined for slaughter or left for dead. Here, not only do they get to live in perfect peace and harmony, but they receive all the love and affection they deserve.

A couple of days ago, I cam across this incredible video of a man cuddling with a grown cow. The animal seemed to be enjoying the human affection immensely, and responded by gently laying its head on the mans chest and closing its eyes in delight as he petted and kissed its neck. It was very touching, and I decided that I had to learn more about it. I soon discovered an entire YouTube channel full of similar videos of two people affectionately interacting with various farm animals, like pigs, goats or ducks. They were shot at Santuario Igualdad Interspecie, a small animal sanctuary, in Chile, where tending to the emotional needs of rescued farm animals is of the utmost importance.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

Located in El Monte, about 50 km from Chiles capital city of Santiago, Santuario Igualdad Interspecie is the brainchild of Ariel Maluenda (32) and Marisol de la Reguera, two vegan animal activists who decided that they needed to do something to help victims of human greed and cruelty.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

Ariel and Marisol came up with the idea for their sanctuary in 2011, when they were both members of Organizacion Veganismo, a national organization fighting for the rights of animals. They spent several months documenting what went on in the meat, poultry and dairy industries, traveling all over Chile and infiltrating farms and slaughterhouses so they could show the world the dark side of the food business. As vegans, it wasnt easy for them to face the harsh reality first hand, but they needed solid proof to convince more people to join their cause.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

Their work materialized in a couple of eye-opening documentaries called Orphaned Milk and McDonalds: Beyond the Hamburger, which caused public uproar and were covered by both national and foreign media. Their findings sparked heated debates on national television, and rallied people to their cause, so you could say that the two activists fulfilled their mission, at least in part.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

But witnessing what farm animals went through first hand, made Ariel and Marisol that they had to do more than raise awareness and expose bad practices. During their investigation, they saw newborn animals being left for dead, and those who were no longer profitable for farmers get sent to the slaughterhouse, and decided something had to be done to help them. Chilean rescue centers sometimes managed to saved these animals from their gruesome fate, but, most often than not, they had nowhere to take them, so they eventually had to be put down.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

Borrowing money from banks, family and friends, as well as all their savings, Maluenda and de la Reguera founded Santuario Igualdad Interspecie, a place where rescued farm animals could spend the rest of their natural lives happy and free.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

As word spread about this incredible place, animals began to arrive. Calves from the dairy industry that their owners deemed disposable, goats, pigs, ducks and chickens, any abandoned farm animal was more than welcome at the sanctuary of El Monte.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

Something that we learned during our research is that perfectly healthy newborn male animals are almost instantly killed or left to die, because they are not profitable, Ariel told Mestizos Magazine. We know that it is not easy to find a home for rescued farm animals, so if anyone knows of someone who needs a home, we are happy to receive them and give them all the love they deserve.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

Love and affection are really important at Santuario Igualdad, and, as you can see in the embedded videos, Ariel and Marisol dedicate a lot of their time to connecting with the animals. They believe that one of their main responsibilities is to ensure that the animals emotional needs are taken care of.

Photo: Santuario Igualdad Interspecie

Farm animals have no place in our society outside the centers of exploitation where they live a miserable life that usually ends with their death in a slaughterhouse. Victims who are lucky enough to escape this hell, usually have no safe place to go, the Santuario Igualdad website states. Our purpose as a sanctuary is to change this. We create a place for previously exploited animals to be free; a safe and permanent home where we return what was stolen from the moment they were born: their life and their freedom.

Inside the sanctuary animals are respected and cared for. We take care of giving the refugees all the veterinary and nutritional care they require, as well as attending to their emotional needs so that they can leave behind their past of cruelty and thus can develop as individuals and express their preferences and interests without them being inhibited.

Today, nearly 100 animals life at Santuario Igualdad Interspecie, but Ariel and Marisol hope to be able to expand their facility, so they can welcome hundreds more abandoned farm animals. To do this, they need the help of like-minded animal lovers. You can volunteer to work at the sanctuary for one day a week, or, more importantly, make a financial contribution, either as a one-time donation or monthly contribution. You can also become godfather to one or more of the animals, contributing to their needs, and in return you receive monthly pictures and updates about your godson(s), as well as the chance to visit them whenever you like.

For more incredible animal sanctuaries, check out The Promised Land of Pigs, a retirement home in the Netherlands where you can cuddle with friendly pigs, and this farm in Switzerland where you can interact with cows as a form of therapy.


GOP Should Back Away From Trump in 2024 Wed., Jul. 6, 2022 Trump has allegedly told his inner circle hes considering officially announcing his second run for the White House as early as this month. Heres why it would be a bad idea for the GOP to get behind him.
This year's 53rd annual WR Shaw Queen of the Land festival will take centre-stage in the Bridge House Hotel, in Tullamore from November 10 to November 12 with the return of WR Shaw as the main sponsor for a third time.

Following the WR Shaw Queen of the Land AGM, a new committee was elected earlier this year, with preparations now well underway.

Incoming re-elected chairperson Gerard Mahon, said, I'm absolutely delighted to have been re-appointed chairperson for this year and I would like to extend a warm welcome and best wishes to the new committee, especially the newly elected members. This year is going to be very exciting and action-packed, with new and fresh ideas set in motion for this year's festival.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Westmeaths Karen Elliffe crowned 2016 Queen of the Land

Speaking on WR Shaws return as main sponsor Gerard Mahon commented, The Queen of the Land festival committee is pleased to welcome WR Shaw back for this year's festival. We are very grateful to WR Shaw for their continued support to this festival and very much look forward to working with them during the year. WR Shaw has been in the tractor & farm machinery business for the past 30 years with their dedicated farm machinery team taking care of their New Holland tractor customer base throughout Ireland with New Holland Tractor Sales, Farm Machinery, Spare Parts and Service. WR Shaw has been very supportive to Macra na Feirme for many years and we welcome their continued support and commitment for a third year to the festival.

Further information for this year's festival can be found on the official website www.queenofthelandfestival.com or by visiting the WR Shaw Queen of the Land Festival social media Facebook/Twitter/Instagram pages. Alternatively you can contact Gerard Mahon on 085-2471416 or email queenofthelandfestival@gmail.com.
Almost 2 million was spent on private ambulances by the Midlands Regional Hospital, Tullamore last year.

Figures received by Sinn Fein TD for Offaly and North Tipperary Carol Nolan in response to a parliamentary question show that 4 million was spent by the Dublin Midlands Hospital Group for transportation by private ambulance operators in 2016 alone.

Of that figure, 1.91 million, almost half the total figure, was accounted for by the Midland Regional Hospital in Tullamore.

The Dublin Midlands Hospital Group consists of seven hospitals, St James Hospital Dublin, St Lukes Radiation Oncology Network, The Adelaide & Meath Hospital (Tallaght Hospital) Dublin, Midlands Regional Hospital Tullamore, Naas General Hospital, Midlands Regional Hospital Portlaoise and The Coombe Women & Infant University Hospital Dublin

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Deputy Nolan has called on the Minister for Health to clarify the increased spend on private ambulances by the HSE in the Midlands region.

Teachta Nolan commented, I recently submitted a number of parliamentary questions to the Minister and I have to say the figures are somewhat concerning.

According to correspondence from the HSE, the requirement for private ambulance use arises from the transfer of non urgent public patients for various clinical reasons.

The figures show that over 25 million has been spent on private ambulances to transport HSE patients since 2012. For some reason this figure has increased dramatically over that time period. In 2012 this figure was under 4 million but has jumped to almost 6.5 million in 2015 and 2016.

Deputy Nolan noted that at a time when the health service is 'bursting at the seams', it needs to questioned as to whether this is the best use of resources adding, in Offaly we know only too well the impact of cuts to the health budget.

A clear time frame must now be set out to establish when this will conclude and I will continue to raise this matter with the Minister until we get clarity, she concluded.
Tashkent, Uzbekistan, May 29

By Demir Azizov  Trend:

Uzbekistans President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has signed a decree On measures to further expand the comprehensive strategic partnership between the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Peoples Republic of China.

Under the document, it was adopted in order to ensure unconditional and full-scale implementation of the signed bilateral agreements and the agreements reached on further expansion of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

The Uzbek president has instructed to establish effective monitoring and strict control over the timely and unconditional implementation of the signed bilateral agreements and the agreements reached on further expansion of cooperation during the state visit of the Uzbek president to China on May 11-13.

The Uzbek head also approved practical action plans (road maps) for the implementation of signed documents and reached agreements.

Under the decree, a working commission has been created to monitor the timely and unconditional implementation of the signed bilateral agreements and agreements reached on further expansion of cooperation.

As it was previously reported, during the state visit of President Mirziyoyev to China, a joint statement on further deepening of comprehensive strategic partnership, more than 10 intergovernmental and interdepartmental documents, as well as a package of corporate agreements in the trade and economic sphere totaling $22.8 billion were signed.
Carolyn Aronson got caught not once, but twice, by tech-support scams, to the tune of $800.

The first time, she was trying to download Windows 10 for free back in 2015. But a dire-looking warning popped onto the screen.

All of a sudden, my computer just went nuts, said Aronson, 74. Im rattled at this point.

So she quickly called the number that showed up on her screen. The so-called rep politely convinced her to turn over control of her computer system to the company to fix it. The scammers had remote access to her computer for 15 hours, and she was out $600 on her credit card.

A couple of weeks later, what was supposedly Dells tech support contacted her to tell her that her computer files were corrupted. There went another $199.99.

I said OK, get it fixed,  said Aronson, who lives in a small town in Tennessee.

Its easy, of course, for anyone not taken for a ride by a con artist to wonder how people can fall for such scams. But the Federal Trade Commission estimates that more than $24.6 million has been lost to tech-support scams alone in the last two years. On average, a typical consumer can lose about $280 each to tech-support scams.

Aronson told her story at a media briefing held by the Federal Trade Commission and the Florida Attorney Generals Office. She ultimately got her money back after disputing the purchase with her credit card company and PayPal, and proving that she didnt receive any services for her money. Many consumers who wire money arent as fortunate.

In early May, the FTC and other regulators announced Operation Tech Trap, a nationwide and international crackdown on tech-support scams. Scammers are not only bilking people out of a couple of hundred bucks a pop, but con artists also can trick consumers into installing malware that gives them access to an individuals user names and passwords.

Tech-support scammers create an artificial emergency, said Tom Pahl, acting director of the FTCs Bureau of Consumer Protection. As part of the scam, your computer screen can flash threatening messages such as, Your hard drive will be deleted if you close this page.

While many of us are still getting phone calls from some dude who claims to be from Microsoft, the phony pop-up messages on computer screens are increasing.

The FTC said it continues to investigate how scammers reach consumers with the pop-up ads. But some problems occur after the consumer goes to a misspelled domain name involving fake sites, or other problems occur via search engines.

The scammers goal is to get the consumer to call a toll-free number where a telemarketer pressures the consumer to buy unnecessary repair services, service plans, anti-virus protection or software and worthless warranty programs.

The computer scan alerts warning of suspicious activity can look authentic because, many times, they claim to be from big-name companies, such as Microsoft, Apple or Dell.

Frank W. Abagnale, a security consultant and expert on identity theft, said scammers have the ability to turn a computer screen dark, make the images look fuzzy and convince a consumer there is a problem.

This pop-up shows up, and it all seems legitimate, said Abagnale, who visited Michigan recently to speak at an AARP event at the Macomb Center for the Performing Arts.

They can make it look very believable.

A survey released by Microsoft in 2016 indicated that millennials ages 18 to 34 are more likely than baby boomers to be tricked by online pop-up ads connected to tech-support scams. Microsoft and the AARP Fraud Watch Network published a booklet on how to avoid tech-support scams.

Its really not an age thing, Abagnale said. Its more about just being naive about whats going on.

In general, he said, consumers are honest and do not think about how con artists are trying to take advantage of people.

So when that pop-up comes, theyre not sitting there going Ooh, this might be a scam. Somebody is trying to get my money,  he said.

The pop-ups tell consumers to call a number to deal with a computer virus. No virus exists, of course, but many people jump into action because they are terrified of losing access to their photos, online banking, business records and the like.

If you call, the con artists on the other end of the phone can turn aggressive and argue that the consumer cannot turn to a friend or outside company because they wont even have the right tools to get this done. They keep repeating that the situation needs to be fixed now.

Small businesses and individuals who work from home are also vulnerable to tech-support scams.

Big news of a massive, coordinated cyber attack that hit computer networks across the globe earlier this month will no doubt only put more elderly consumers and tech novices on edge. The latest cyberattack  dubbed WannaCry  appears to have taken advantage of holes in the Microsoft Windows systems. Some experts said cybercrooks are infecting computers through a Microsoft Word document attached to a phishing email.

Some forms of malware can shut down your computer and delete important files. Ransomware can actually lock you out of your system until you pay the crooks who installed it.

Once something is in the news, scam artists play up even more on our fears.

Best bet: Never click on links in emails. If you get a pop-up message that tells you to call tech support, ignore it. Do not call a number provided on your screen via a pop-up that warns of a computer problem.

Dont agree to give control of your computer to someone connected with a pop-up. Dont send money. If worried, research a phone number online for Dell or Apple or the company that appears on the screen and call that number to be certain youre calling a legitimate company.
Parishioners of St. Stephen the Martyr Catholic Church are hoping a visit from the traveling statue of Our Lady of Fatima strengthens their faith by helping to establish a perpetual adoration program.

The statue, which is visiting all 50 states this year, depicts Mary, the mother of Christ, as she was seen by three children in 1917 in Fatima, Portugal.

We want to set people on fire with their faith and have them develop their relationship with Jesus, said Ernie Abbott, a deacon at the church.

Perpetual adoration is a practice within the Catholic Church whereby parishioners take turns being present for an hour of adoration before the body and blood of Christ used in Holy Communion, the most blessed sacrament.

The prayerful time at the church continues 24 hours a day. The church, near 167th and S Streets, has brought in two noted Catholic speakers, Tim Francis and the Rev. Declan Gibson, to help generate fervor for the program. Already, 600 people have signed up, Abbott said.

When we found out the Fatima statue was available in the area, we just kind of pulled that in to the entire event, Abbott said. With 3,200 families, 13,000 people, we have the basis there. What we need is to develop the culture.

The miracle of Fatima is celebrating its 100th anniversary. In 1917 the Blessed Mother is said to have appeared to three shepherd children once a month for six months. Lucia dos Santos, Jacinta Marto and Francisco Marto witnessed the appearances at a place called the Cova da Iria in Fatima. A statue was sculpted in 1947 and is considered an emblem of Marys message to the children.

Our Lady of Fatimas message has become known as the Peace Plan from Heaven and has been officially declared worthy of belief by the Catholic Church.

God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart, she told the children. If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace.

The International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Fatima is traveling across the western United States this summer, with two more stops in the Archdiocese of Omaha. It will be on display at St. Isidore Church in Columbus today and at St. Gerald in Omaha on Tuesday. Its next stops are Sioux City, Iowa, and Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Tom Ross, one of three custodians of the statue, gives a brief talk about the importance of Our Ladys message at each stop. He said the statue was created by the sculptor who designed the statue at Fatima.

In this case, (the sculptor) had the input of Lucia (dos Santos), Ross said. When she saw this statue, she said Thats the best likeness of how Our Lady really appeared. 

Janice and Jeff Lang of St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church brought their daughters, Matilda, 12, and Gretchen, 10, to see the statue. Our Ladys message of peace is important, Janice Lang said.

There are miracles happening every day from 100 years ago, she said. The message has not ever changed in 100 years. We need peace more now than ever. We need to rely on God for our strength.
Two Westside Community Schools teachers have been recognized for their top-notch talents in the classroom.

Carla Ohm and Leah Markley received the Schrager Distinguished Teaching Award, which includes a $10,000 prize. The two were surprised last week at a ceremony at Westside High School.

The award is sponsored by the Phillip and Terri Schrager Foundation. Two teachers have been chosen for the award every year since 1999.

Markley has worked at Westside High for the past eight years as a math teacher in a classroom described by one administrator as the most innovative and energetic she has ever seen. Markley has worked on creating an interdepartmental science, technology, engineering and math course that combines algebra, engineering and physics.

Leahs students, whether working individually or in small groups, are engaged, challenged and prepared to move into the future, a press release stated. Students past and present note Leahs patience and creativity to constantly encourage her students and inspire their success.

Ohm has been teaching in Westside for 37 years, as a special education teacher and most recently as a second-grade teacher at Paddock Road Elementary School. Ohm was described as a leader for other teachers in her school who sets high expectations for her students.

Learners in Mrs. Ohms classroom are constantly encouraged to challenge each others thinking through discussion, debate and questioning, a press release said. She has created a positive culture allowing students to push the envelope and dig deeper when they do not have the answers. Learners some would describe as challenging are embraced by and thrive under Carla Ohms teaching.
Tehran, Iran, May 29



By Mehdi Sepahvand - Trend:



Iran has said Turkey is responsible for an armed clash near the Iran-Turkey border, as a result of which two Iranian guards were killed.



We hold Turkey responsible in this case and it has to answer, Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said.



We have conveyed the issue via diplomatic channels to the Turkish government. We hope Turkey provides a proper response, based on which we will take action, the Iranian diplomat said.



Two Iranian border guards were killed and two more injured in an armed clash with terrorist groups along the countrys northwestern borders a night earlier.



Qassemi also dismissed claims by Turkish media which said Iran has lodged some members of the terrorist group Kurdistan Workers Party (aka PKK).



I deny these allegations. There is no anti-government group on Iran's territory, he said.
28 year old goes missing in Chennai, friends, family take to social media to find Gaanam Nair

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

The social media has been flooded with posts about a 28 year old model from Chennai who has gone missing. Gaanam Nair aka Jikki Padhoo was last seen on May 26 in the morning, when she left her home in Virugambakkam. A 'missing person' case has now been registered by the KK Nagar police.

The police say that Gaanam stays with her aunt and cousins in Chennai. On her Facebook page she describes herself as a photographer and fashion blogger. Her mother is no more and father resides in New Delhi.

On Friday she had told her relatives that she was going to work. She had left on her black Activa. She however did not reach her workplace at Nungambakkam.

The police meanwhile have got cracking on the case. The cops are looking for leads and are sourcing possible CCTV footage. There are multiple angles that are under probe which also include a possible discord with her family members. The police are also looking into her social media accounts to see if they are being operated.

The family members however say that there was no discord and she had left for work as normal. She always took the same route to work as it was the fastest, they also said. They say that she works in a salon at Nungambakkam as the marketing manager now.

Her friends and well-wishers have now taken to social media to express their anguish and anger. They suspect foul play and rule out an accident. Had it been an accident, we would have got to know by now, her friends say.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 15:51 [IST]
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3 Kerala Congress workers sacked for slaughtering ox in public

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Three Kerala Youth Congress workers were suspended on Monday for allegedly slaughtering ox in public in protest against Centr's notification banning the sales of cattle for slaughter.

Soon after the public slaughtering Kannur city police registered a case against Youth Congress leader Rijil Makkutty and some workers of the party.

The Congress workers slaughtered an ox in front of a huge crowd in Kannur Saturday during the 'Beef Fest' held by the Left and Congress parties in Kerala to protest against the Center's ban.

What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless,barbaric& completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.I strongly condemn the incident  Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) May 28, 2017

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi also condemned the butchering of a domestic ox in public. He termed the incident as "thoughtless and barbaric", and said that it was "unacceptable" to him and his party.

"What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric and completely unacceptable to me and the Congress Party. I strongly condemn the incident," he tweeted.

(With agency inputs)

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 11:42 [IST]
Final draft today

The wait for the lakhs of central government employees is set to get over. The employees have been demanding higher allowances after a meagre pay hike was recommended by the 7th Pay Commission. The E-CoS is set to meet on June 1 as per the assurance given by the Cabinet Secretary. The meeting would be held during which several proposals and demands being made by the central government employees will be discussed. The final draft which will be readied today will also be part of the June 1 discussions following which the final approval of the Union Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be sought.

What will be discussed today?

A panel headed by Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa had earlier proposed HRA in the range of 24 per cent, 16 per cent and 8 per cent of their basic pay for these central government employees. During the meeting increase in basic pay and arrears on revised allowances will be discussed today.

Central government employees had expressed their displeasure over the meagre hike and lower HRA. Measures would be taken to rectify this, sources say. Presently, there are as many as 196 allowances covered under the 6th Pay Commission, of which there was a recommendation to scrap 52 allowances from 7th Pay Commission which did not go down well with the employees.

Frustration building up

For the lakhs of central government employees it has been a frustrating wait. The inordinate delay in implementation of revised allowances under the Seventh Pay Commission has left Central government employees frustrated.

In a letter to Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha, the secretary of National Council (staff side) Joint Consultative Machinery said Central government employees were clueless about the recommendations of the Ashok Lavasa committee.

"The Committee on Allowances took longer time while finalising its recommendations, but it is a matter of deep regret that even after submission of the report by the said committee, the same has not been made available to the staff side (JCM), therefore we do not know what recommendations have been made by the said committee," said Shiv Gopal Mishra, secretary of staff side (JCM).

Make recommendations available

The JCM has requested the Cabinet Secretary to make the recommendations of the committee on allowances available to them. The JCM has made a strong demand that the government should implement revised allowances without further delay with effect from January 1, 2016.

Will E-CoS stick to 7th Pay Commission recommendations?

Meanwhile there are mixed reports that the committee would stick to the recommendations made by the pay panel. There are mixed reports that the E-CoS will stick to recommendations made by the pay panel. However sources in the Finance Ministry say that they should not believe reports and wait for the final announcement. The official said that the government is keen on addressing the concerns of the central government employees. In fact the final call will be taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has personally said that he wants the government employees to be happy.
'If I have nominated even one person using authority, I'll resign': Kerala governor on VC row

Adityanath questions opposition silence over Kerala beef fests

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

Lucknow, May 29: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday questioned the Opposition's silence on Kerala's beef fests held in protest agaisnt beef ban. Kerala celebrated beef fests where beef was cooked and served to protest against the BJP-led central government's new rules.

Terming the incident as unfortunate, Adityanath said that "despite the government's order there was a beef party held in Kerala and people celebrated it like a festival. But I wonder why the secular leaders in the country, remained silent when it came to respecting others' sentiments. He was speaking at a public felicitation function by Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad on Sunday.

There is a lot of talk in the country to respect each other's sentiment and several claim it as secularism. But why are they turning blind eye towards this incident, he questioned. Further he said that ABVP was the only student organisation that protested when such mischiefs were done on campuses.

Speaking on education system in the country, Adityanath said that Equality in education is the primary requirement to improve conditions in the society. It could resolve many problems. the best tool to counter conspiracies to divide the nation and social inequality could also be removed by achieving equality in education.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday evening condemned the incident, calling it barbaric and completely unacceptable.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 10:24 [IST]
'The Kerala Story': TN scribe asks govt to probe claims made in the movie

Morbi Bridge is not the only Incident - Quality of Bridges, roads and Highways in BJPs government!

Power cut in Chennai on Nov 10: These areas will be affected

Amid protest from BJP, Bengaluru to host beef festival

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

Bengaluru, May 29: The protest over beef ban is gaining momentum across the country, especially in the south. After Kerala and Tamil Nadu, Karnataka is set to host a beef festival to oppose the Centre's latest restrictions on sale of cattle across the country, on Monday evening.

The food event called--Mooment Bengaluru-- will be organised at Townhall, Bengaluru, on Monday at 4.30 pm.

According to the event organiser, Vyshakh Thaliyil, "The SFI, DYFI and students of Bengaluru are organising this event. Protestors can bring their own beef if they want and there will also be a few beef stalls which we will set up,"

"Of course, there will be opposition to our protest. We do expect a fallout but we have police protection," Varkey Parakkal, another organiser of the event, wrote on Facebook.

Earlier, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah opposed the restrictions on sale of cattle which deny permission to slaughter cattle including cow and buffalo across the country.

"It is not binding on the state to implement the Centre's curbs on sale of cattle for slaughter as it is a state subject," Siddaramaiah said. However, the CM said that the state would respond only after examining the newly notified rules.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party in Karnataka has voiced protest over CM Siddaramaiah's remarks. The BJP also condemned the plans to host a beef festival in the IT city.

"What kind of deranged and twisted minds want to organise a beef fest and slaughter innocent cows just to make a political statement?" CT Ravi of the BJP tweeted.

What kind of deranged & twisted minds want to organize a #BeefFest & slaughter innocent cows just to make a political point? #StopBeefFest  C.T.Ravi (@CTRavi_BJP) May 29, 2017

Ravi also asked Bengaluru City Police Commissioner, Praveen Sood, to put a stop to the event.

Request @CPBlr to stop this event as this is not only against the law but also a very sensitive subject. #StopBeefFest at any cost. pic.twitter.com/RV1cZU5E7s  C.T.Ravi (@CTRavi_BJP) May 29, 2017

Since the restrictions on sale of cattle were announced by the Environment Ministry on Friday, beef festivals were hosted in several parts of Kerala. In fact, four members of the Congress publicly slashed the head of an ox as part of protests in support of beef consumption.

On Monday, the four Congress men were suspended by the party for what vice president Rahul Gandhi called a "barbaric" act.

Students of the premier Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, Chennai, hosted a beef festival on Sunday.

OneIndia News
Bihar liqor ban: SC gives time till July 31 to firms to dispose stock

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, May 29: Liquor manufacturers from Bihar on Monday got an extension of two more months till July 31 from the Supreme Court for disposing of their old stocks of alcoholic beverages worth over Rs 200 crore outside the state.

Earlier, the court had extended till May 31 the deadline of April 30 for disposing of old stocks, including raw material, fixed by the Nitish Kumar government which had imposed a ban on liquor in the state from April one last year.

A vacation bench of Justices A K Sikri and Deepak Gupta took note of the submission of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies, that the firms would be incurring huge losses if they are not allowed to dispose of their existing stocks of alcoholic beverages outside Bihar.

The state government opposed the demand for extension of time, saying the firms were indulging in illegal liquor trade. "If they are engaging in illegal trade, then why don't you (state) check them? Do you think that once the stocks are cleared, there would be no illegal trade," the bench remarked. It, however, made clear to liquor firms that the deadline of July 31 would not be extended under any condition. The confederation, on May 24, had moved the apex court for extension of May 31 deadline.

The apex court had on March 31 granted time till May 31 to these companies to dispose of the old stocks and directed them to follow the resolution passed by the Bihar government with regard to disposal of stocks following the imposition of prohibition in the state.

The confederation, in its fresh plea, has said it was not possible to dispose of the old stocks worth over Rs 200 crore in such a short time as due procedure is to be followed for either destroying or exporting the stocks. It had said that the stock was lying in the ware houses of companies and the godowns of Bihar State Beverage Corporation which needed to exported to other states or destroyed.

Bihar government which has prohibited consumption, stocking and sale of liquor in the state had on March 30, passed a resolution by which it has allowed the companies to export their old stocks to other states. The state government had granted time to export the excisable and non-excisable articles till April 30, after which they will not be able to do so. On October 7, 2016, the apex court had stayed the operation of Patna High Court judgement quashing the state's law banning sale and consumption of all types of liquor, saying liquor and fundamental rights "do not go together".

Bihar government has challenged the high court verdict of September 30, 2016, which had quashed the notification banning consumption and sale of liquor in the state. However, after the law was set aside, Bihar government had come out with a new law banning sale and consumption of liquor which was notified on October 2, 2016. It had notified the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016 to ensure that the ban on sale and consumption of alcohol including Indian Made Foreign Liquor as well spiced and domestic liquor, continued in the state.

While assailing the September 30, 2016 high court verdict, the state government had urged the apex court to decide whether the state can impose absolute prohibition on distribution and consumption of liquor and whether an individual can claim the right to consume liquor as his or her fundamental right under the Constitution. It had claimed that as a consequence of the high court order, the state government's effort to bring in complete prohibition on liquor, in performance of its constitutional obligations, has been frustrated.

The high court had on September 30, 2016 quashed the notification banning consumption and sale of alcohol in the state, saying it was ultra vires to the Constitution. The order was passed on a batch of petitions filed by the Liquor Trade Association and others, challenging the liquor law which had stringent penal provisions.

Soon thereafter, the Bihar government brought in the new law banning liquor after including harsher provisions like arrest of all adults in a house where contraband was found. The Grand Secular Alliance government in Bihar had first banned manufacture, trade, sale and consumption of country- made liquor since April 1, 2016, but later imposed a blanket ban on all types of liquor, including foreign liquor, in the state.

PTI
North Korea fired an unidentified projectile on Monday from the region of Wonsan on its east coast in an easterly direction, South Korea's military said, coming after a series of test-launches of missiles in recent weeks, Reuters reported.

The launch was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who called a meeting of the National Security Council at 7:30 a.m. (2230 GMT Sunday), the South Korean office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

The projectile was likely a ballistic missile, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said citing an unidentified source.

The projectile is likely to fall within Japan's exclusive economic zone, Yonhap news reported citing an unidentified source in Japan as saying.

North Korea last test-fired a ballistic missile on May 21 towards the sea off its east coast and on Sunday said it had tested a new anti-aircraft weapon supervised by leader Kim Jong Un.
Censor Board wants PM Modis NOC on Kejriwal documentary before its final approval

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

New Delhi, May 29: The Central Board of Film Certification is back in news again. This time the CBFC (often referred to as the Censor Board) is hogging the limelight for asking the makers of a documentary on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to first get a "No Objection Certificate" from Prime Minister Narendra Modi before its final approval.

The documentary--An Insignificant Man--has been directed by Khushboo Ranka and Vinay Shukla, and produced by Anand Gandhi of Ship of Theseus fame.

The film traces the journey of Kejriwal from a member of the India Against Corruption movement to the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party. The documentary has got large-scale appreciation from critics and has been screened in various film festivals across the globe.

In spite of travelling across the world, now because of the Censor Board's "bizarre" demand, the film faces uncertainty over its release in India.

The board's controversial chief, Pahlaj Nihalani, insisted that the makers of the documentary get an NOC as the film shows footage from PM Modi's rallies (something that has already been broadcast on TV channels). The Board also wanted the filmmakers to delete references to the BJP and the Congress from the film.

The board said that the film would be cleared only if the makers abide by its diktat.

According to reports, the documentary has been rejected by both, the Examining Committee as well as the Revising Committee.

"Is Nihalani expecting the Prime Minister to do the Censor chief's job now? If any of the concerned parties, including Modi, Kejriwal or Sheila Dixit have a problem, they can challenge us in court. Why is the Censor Board acting as a watchdog for politicians and as the gatekeeper for the establishment? Its job is to certify films, not guard politicians," Ranka told Mumbai Mirror.

Nihalani justified his decision saying that Karan Johar got a NoC from Raveena Tandon name in a film when he used her name in a film and so did the makers of Jolly LLB 2 for a reference to Salman Khan.

"In this case, as they have referred to Modi, Kejriwal and Sheila Dixit, among others, they should get NoCs from them," he said.

In a Facebook post, Gandhi said, "The arbitrary board of India wants us to get a certificate from politicians to approve of their critique. Politicians, in their public roles, are open to reportage and journalistic scrutiny. Reporters, journalists, and documentarians don't need their permission for documenting them in their interactions with the people they intend to represent! Along with that, there is also a demand to mute the names Congress and BJP--from a journalistic piece of work!"

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 11:11 [IST]
Chennai, 5 other airports to do away with handbag stamping

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, May 29: Six more airports in the country, including Patna and Chennai, will do away with the practice of tagging and stamping domestic passengers' hand baggage from June 1.

CISF Director General O P Singh told that the new airports include Jaipur, Guwahati, Lucknow and Trivandrum, apart from Patna and Chennai. "We had run a trial at these six airports for a few weeks. After finding that an enhanced number of new gadgets, CCTVs and security paraphernalia has been put in place, the process of doing away with the tagging and stamping of domestic air passengers' hand baggage will begin from June 1," the DG said.

The Central Industrial Security Force had first initiated this new system at seven airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad from April 1. The force is tasked with guarding 59 civil airports in the country.

Singh said five more airports at Varanasi, Pune, Goa, Bhubaneswar and Vishakhapatnam would be next in line where the tagging and stamping of passengers' hand baggage will be done away with in the coming days.

"The trial will now begin at these five airports," he said, adding the force proposes to initiate this people- friendly measure at all the airports under its cover, by the year-end. By having the stamped tags on the hand baggage, the security personnel used to be assured that no weapon or ammunition-like material enters the aircraft with the passenger and now with the deployment of smart cameras and repositioning of security paraphernalia at the six new airports, the same objective is being achieved.

The procedure remained a major irritant for passengers and they have made many complaints in this regard to airport authorities saying this system poses hassles for them as it consumes time and in case they forget to get it tagged, security personnel would ask them to go back and get it done.

The output roller trays at the six airports, which will initiate the new drill, have now been extended in order to provide more visual clarity to the security personnel on each and every bag even as they have been instructed to minutely go through the x-ray images before clearing the handbags.

A committee comprising officials of the CISF, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the airport operators has been recently constituted to smoothen the roll-out of this new protocol at all the 59 airports guarded by the paramilitary force. This was done after a high-level meeting chaired by Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju and his counterpart in the civil aviation ministry, Jayant Sinha, in which the earlier BCAS order about stamping the hand baggage tags was stayed.

The meeting while staying an earlier BCAS order had sought a thorough review of the security apparatus before the new measure could be launched. The CISF said it had sought modifications in the airport security for doing away with the hand baggage stamping and "to make sure that passengers could not access bags containing restricted items which are segregated by CISF personnel for checking (after X-ray scanning)".

DG Singh had said the new measure will enhance "passenger experience and provide hassle-free security environment to them" while travelling through the airports. The new protocols are only meant for domestic passengers and those travelling to international destinations will have to get their hand baggage tags stamped as usual.

PTI
COMEDK counseling will be online this year

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

There is good news for students who appeared for the COMEDK this year. Students will not have to travel to Bengaluru as the allotment of engineering seats in private colleges is going online this year. Around 72,000 candidates, who registered for COMEDK exam this year, can pick seats from 147 engineering colleges.

The executive secretary of COMEDK, S Kumar said that all processes, except the document verification process, will go online. He also added that students will have to pay Rs 5,000 before the option entry process. This would be considered as part of the fees for the first term, he also said.

The online counselling process would be similar to the Karnataka Examinations Authority's process, where students will be given time to enter options of engineering colleges and combinations, following which there will be mock allotment of seats.

OneIndia News
CPM leader Mohammed Salim rebuts Army Chief's remark

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Communist Party of India- Marxist leader Mohammed Salim on Monday criticized Army Chief Bipin Rawat's message to the Army that fighting a 'dirty war' in Jammu and Kashmir needs 'innovative' methods.

Salim talking to media said he could not defend Army Chief's views on the fighting insurgency in Kashmir. He said, "This is not voice of Indian Army which I know from childhood, this is not one voice which as Indian we can defend.'

Further, he raised doubts over Rawat's idea of 'being innovative'. 'There is no lack of talent being innovative, but if Indian Army Chief says this is innovative way then I doubt his capacity and capability about the understanding of Indian society and what is being innovativeness,' added Salim.

General Rawat has backed Major Gogoi's decision to use a stone pelter as a human shield to protect his troops which were surrounded by over a thousand stone pelters. Speaking to news agency PTI, General Rawat said the objective of awarding Major Gogoi was to boost the morale of young officers who operate in difficult conditions.

In a strong message, Rawat said Army will leave no stone unturned to tackle the Kashmir problem and fighting a 'dirty war' in Jammu and Kashmir needs 'innovative' methods.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 11:02 [IST]
Don't need eating lessons from Delhi, Nagpur: Pinarayi on beef ban

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

I don't need eating lesson habits from Delhi or Nagpur, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said while commenting on the India-wide ban on sale of cattle.

Taking a dig at the BJP-ruled Centre and the RSS, Pinarayi Vijayan said he didn't need a lesson in food habits from New Delhi or Nagpur. The state government will give all facilities to people to have food of their choice. There is no need for Keralites to learn it from anybody in New Delhi or Nagpur, he also said.

The Kerala government is believed to be working on a new law to counter the ban imposed by the centre. This comes in the wake of a political slugfest in the state amidst a barbaric incident in which Congress workers slaughtered a cow.

Police have registered a case against a Youth Congress worker and his accomplices for the alleged ox slaughter in Kannur during a 'beef fest' organised across the state by the Congress and the Left to protest the Centre's ban.

"A case has been registered under Sect 120 A of the Kerala Police Act on the basis of a complaint of Yuva Morcha activist", Kannur SP Siva Vikram, told PTI. The offence deals with slaughtering any animal in a way that causes annoyance or inconvenience to the public and is punishable with imprisonment up to one year or a fine of up to Rs 5,000 or with both.

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Bomb materials stored by JMB terrorist at Electronic City, Bengaluru seized by NIA

Shift from the past: Pakistan terrorists using China made grenades in Valley

2 Army officers killed in accidental grenade blast along LOC in J-K's Poonch

Five injured in a grenade blast in Nagaland's Dimapur

India

oi-Madhuri

Five injured in a grenade blast in Nagaland's Dimapur on Monday which was lobbed by miscreants at a chemist shop at Nyamo Lotha Road this evening.

Intelligence officials said the bomb attack could be a fallout of non-payment of extortion money.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to eye witnesses, two people came in a car and lobbed the bomb targeting the pharmacy before escaping. It was possibly an IED (improvised explosive device) which went off.

OneIndia News
India's first uterus transplant caught in controversy, as ICMR says no nod sought

India

oi-Prabhpreet

By Prabhpreet

In what was considered a major achievement for the medical field in the country, as India's first uterus transplant was conducted in Pune last week, the procedure now seems to have come under the shadow of a controversy.

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has raised concerns about the procedure as it has reportedly said that prior permission for it was not taken from the council. ICMR director general Dr Soumya Swaminathan has reportedly told a leading national daily that no permission was sought by the hospital and that till now ICMR has approved of such a procedure only as an experimental procedure under a research protocol. And such a permission has only been granted to a Bangalore-based facility.

Swaminathan is reported to have added, "According to current guidelines, nobody needs ICMR's permission for any other established procedures. However, when it comes to a uterus transplant the protocol is otherwise. As it is mostly tried as an experimental procedure for research purpose in our country, for which permission is granted based on ethical protocols, and the transplant involves several risks with only a few procedures emerging successful, ICMR's approval is necessary before it is tried on any patient."

Earlier last week, the surgery was performed at the Pune's Galaxy Care Laparoscopy Institute (GCLI) in which a 21-year-old woman who suffers from a congenital absence of the uterus since birth, which rendered her incapable of conceiving, was operated on to transplant her 44-year-old mother's organ to her. It was conducted by a team of 12 doctors headed by Dr Shailesh Puntambekar, medical director of the hospital.

As per reports, the protocol for uterus transplant requires approval from a registered ethics committee as well as from ICMR. And it has been alleged that GCLI only got a licence from the Maharashtra's directorate of health services, and has not been approved from the ICMR.

Pune's GCLI, where the transplant was performed, has insisted that no such permission is required for clinical procedures. With Dr Puntambekar reported to have said, "ICMR's permission is required only in case of experimental procedures and not for clinical procedures as informed to me by ICMR itself. We have approval from the state government, hence, there has been no protocol violation. Several senior doctors from ICMR were informed about the transplant and following the state government's nod for the transplant, ICMR ensured we could go ahead with the procedure."

But another senior doctor from ICMR is reported to have said, "In case of other transplants like kidney, liver and heart, ICMR's permission isn't required and state governments can give direct approval under the Transplant of Human Organs Act (THOA). However, in uterus transplant, which is rare, less successful and risky, ICMR's permission should have been sought to ensure patients' safety."

This is not the first instance of the transplant conducted, which is considered a rare procedure around the world, to have been criticised.

Earlier Dr Mats Brannstrom, who was the first doctor to perform such a procedure in Sweden in 2012, which resulted in the birth of the world's first baby from a transplanted uterus in 2014, had reportedly criticised the Indian procedure for its lack of proper preparation and for the risk that it would put both donor and receiver at. He reportedly said, "What is planned in Pune is a dangerous escapade of surgical cowboys wanting to be the first in their country and to get publicity and fame easy."

On the risks of such a surgery, he pointed at the recipient's death following a similar procedure conducted two months ago in China by the country's top laparoscopy surgeon.

Though according to Dr Puntambekar, his team had travelled to Sweden to learn the transplant procedure and practised on human cadavers in Germany and the US. But Dr Brannstrom reportedly said that his own team had practised on various live animals for 15 years before taking their first human case, which has been totally ignored by the Indian doctors. "That is the great difference. We advise all groups around the world to choose one large animal for team and surgery training," he reportedly added.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 11:20 [IST]
Cong targets BJP, says no one apologised or resigned for Morbi tragedy

Karti had never met any officer connected with FIPB: Chidambaram

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, May 29: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday said that it was preposterous to suggest that any member of his family could influence six secretaries of the central government who were part of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board.

Rebutting allegations that his son Karti had influenced the decisions of the now-defunct FIPB, Chidambaram said it was a despicable slur on the six secretaries of the government.

"Anyone who has worked with me knows that no one would dare to influence my decisions. I had never allowed any family member to speak to me or to any officer of my ministry on any official matter," he said in a statement.

The CBI had a fortnight ago filed an FIR against Karti, INX Media founders Indrani and Peter Mukerjea on charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, receiving illegal gratification, influencing public servants and criminal misconduct.

The CBI claims that Karti received money from INX Media through a company indirectly controlled by him for using his influence to manipulate a tax probe against it.

The former finance minister said that as far as FIPB cases were concerned, he had approved only FIPB-recommended cases and put before him by the secretary economic affairs.

Chidambaram said that the FIPB was serviced by a secretariat, chaired by the secretary economic affairs. It included four other secretaries industry, commerce, external affairs and overseas Indian affairs and the secretary of the administrative ministry.

Five of them were among the senior most IAS officers and the sixth was a senior IFS officer of the Ministry of External Affairs. Each of them had a long and distinguished record of service, he said.

The recommendations of the FIPB would be submitted to the Ministry of Finance where they would be once again examined by junior officers and then by the additional secretary and the secretary before the file was put before the minister.

Each file put before the minister would usually contain a number of cases, and the recommendations of the FIPB and the economic affairs secretary, he said.

"At the relevant time, the FIPB was chaired by D Subba Rao who later became governor of RBI. He was succeeded by Ashok Chawla, who later became chairman of the competition commission of India. The other secretaries were equally distinguished civil servants," he said.

Chidambaram said in the last two weeks, leaks and insinuations have been "deliberately fed" to a section of the media and "maliciously circulated" on social media.

"In fact, I have obtained a copy of the FIR from social media. The origin of these leaks is Chennai in my home state of Tamil Nadu," he said.

PTI

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 16:03 [IST]
KPCC President: It's between G.Parameshwara and DK Shivakumar

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

The Congress High Command likely to announce the name of new Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee on Monday. The party cadres have kept their fingers crossed on the selection of the candidate as the consultations are on.

Chief Minister Siddaramiah was scheduled to meet High Command at 12 noon. Prior to his meeting, current KPCC President G. Parameshwara, KPCC working president Dinesh Gundurao and senior ministers DK Shivakumar, KJ George were to hold consultations with party top brass. According to sources, the High Command may choose leaders from dominant Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities to the top post.

However, political analyst has ruled out appointment of a Lingayat leader as KPPC president and presume the high command may go with either DK Shivakumar or current president G. Parameshwara.

So, why a Linagayat cannot be KPCC President?

At present, Congress party in the state does not have prominent face who can woo Lingayat voters cutting across sub-castes. Though Irrigation Minister MB Patil is a Linagayat, he belongs to a sub-caste called Koodu-vokkaliga, that cannot have a sway over other politically and economically strong sub-castes. Traditionally, Banajiga, Panchamasali and Reddy Lingayats are known to have considerable political and economic clout in the state.

Besides, Lingayat community is believed to be backing BS Yeddyurappa in the upcoming elections as BJP leadership has time and again announced him as CM candidate. Hence, Congress presume that en masse Lingayat voters may go with BJP. Therefore, Patil is not a favorite candidate.

After invoking Basaveshwar, does Modi need 'Yeddyurappa ka saath' in Karnataka ?

What advantage a Vokkaliga candidate has?

DK Shivakumar, a prominent Vokklaiga leader in Congress has proven track of dividing Vokkaliga votes. In 2004, he ensured the victory of Tejaswini as MP against former PM Devegowda. She humbled Gowda by over 1.22 lakh votes in Kanakapura Lok Sabha (now Bangalore Rural) constituency. He has money and muscle power nobody could ignore when it comes to power politics. His appointment may garner additional 2-3 % votes to the traditional 35 % vote share of Congress.

When asked about the likely candidate to the KPCC post, newly appointed Karnataka-in-charge, k Venugopal, said to give a cryptic answer. Sources said he was reportedly 'happy' with the present 'team'- Siddarmaiah and Parameshwra. So, it clearly leaves only G. Parameshwara and DK Shivakumar in the fray.

OneIndia News
Live 3 days with 1st wife, 3 with 2nd and 1 day alone, man in Bihar told by cops

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Three days with one wife, the next three days with the other wife and on day 7 stay alone. The man in question is Arun Kumar from Patna, Bihar. This was the compromise formula arrived at after both his wives fought over him and the number of days they get to spend with him.

The matter was taken to the police by both the wives who claimed to be legally married to him. The police patiently heard both the ladies before arriving at a compromise formula.

Meena and Pooja fought over this issue at the Phulwarisharif Police Station for almost 11 hours. Arun who runs a nursing home in the area too was present caught in the midst of both his wives. While the first wife said he married her in 1996 and had grown-up children, the second wife Pooja produced photographs, videos and voice clips to drive across her case.

Both the wives hurled allegations against each other. Arun was threatened with a case of bigamy by the first wife, if he did not admit the truth. He finally admitted that he was married to both the women.

The battle that began at 10 am on Sunday ended at 9 pm. The cops felt that enough was enough and decided that a compromise formula was the best way out. The cops told Arun to spend the first three days of the week with his first wife and the next three with the second wife. On the seventh day, he has been given a break from both the women and told to stay alone. The formula was accepted by all- all is well that ends well.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 7:43 [IST]
Scandal-plagued Brazilian President Michel Temer on Sunday named a new justice minister, placing a respected legal figure in the position as the leader defends himself against corruption allegations, Reuters reported.

The presidential palace gave no reason for naming Torquato Jardim as his new justice minister in a short written statement.

Since March, Jardim was the nation's transparency minister, a portfolio created by Temer. Before that, he had served as a justice on Brazil's top electoral court.

Jardim replacea Osmar Serraglio, a lawmaker from Temer's own party, who had been in that post for just three months. A source close to Temer told Reuters that Serraglio will soon be announced as the new transparency minister.

The Justice Ministry oversees Brazil's federal police, who along with federal prosecutors are leading massive corruption probes, including the "Car Wash" political graft investigation now looking at Temer.

Carlos Sobral, head of the national association of federal police inspectors, said the abrupt change in ministers was worrying.

"We were surprised with the news of the change," he said in an emailed statement. "Any changes in the Justice Ministry command create uncertainty and worry about possible interference in the work done by federal police."

Sobral called on Congress to approve a measure pending before the body that would grant autonomy to federal police.

Temer's change in ministers came as thousands of protesters gathered on the golden sands of Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro to demand the president's resignation and that direct elections be called.

Several of Brazil's most famous actors and musicians led the rally, which despite the star appeal drew a smaller crowd than the 50,000 demonstrators organizers expected. Police said they would not divulge an estimate on the number of people present.

Temer has refused to resign and denies any wrongdoing.

Recent polls show that 85 percent asked want a new election. But it is unlikely to happen as that would require a constitutional amendment be passed through Congress, where scores of politicians are under investigation for graft.

If Temer falls from office, the constitution mandates that Congress appoint a new president, who would finish the current term that ends on Jan. 1, 2019.
Maharashtra HSC Result 2017: 299 results to be withheld in Mumbai

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Maharashtra HSC Result 2017: The state board is likely to hold back the results of 299 students from Mumbai this year. The students whose results are likely to be withheld are studying Physics, Chemistry and Maths (PCM).

The show cause notice has been sent to colleges for allowing students who have taken general Maths in the School Secondary Certificate (SSC) exams and then went forward to opt for mathematics during HSC. These students will get their HSC results only after they will re-appear for SSC- higher Maths paper in July.

The rules state that students who chose general Maths - an easier version of Mathematics - in standards IX and X cannot opt for PCM in class XI and XII. The notice states that they will hold back HSC results of around 299 students from various colleges in Mumbai until they re-appear for Maths paper in SSC exams in July.

"There are 299 students who appeared for general maths as subject in their SSC exams but have opted for mathematics in HSC. Colleges should not have allowed such students to opt for mathematics. These students are namely from 150 odd colleges across Mumbai. The officials agreed that they should ideally never have been given an option in HSC and they bungled at it.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 11:46 [IST]
National-level shooter rescues her relative by shooting his kidnappers

India

oi-Prabhpreet

By Prabhpreet

In what seems to be a scene straight out of a movie, but the difference being it happened in real life and was a display of much more courage than anything required on screen, a national-level shooter used her skills to not only save her relative from the clutches of his kidnappers but also help the police nab them.

Ayisha Falaq, 33, a national level shooter and a medal winner at the North Zone Shooting in 2015 shot the two abductors of her relatives with her licensed revolver when she went to drop the ransom money as per directions of the perpetrators.

Earlier, her brother-in-law, 21-year-old Asif Falaq, who works part-time as a taxi driver was abducted when he picked up two clients on Thursday night. The two men had booked his cab online and were supposed to be dropped in Delhi's Shastri Nagar. After getting into the taxi at around 10 that night, they reportedly changed the destination and forced Asif to drop them there.

Following this, they allegedly overpowered him and took him to Bhopra village which is near the Haryana border. Within an hour of this, they called up Asif's family to ask for a ransom of Rs 25,000. The call was made to Ayisha's husband, and the couple informed the police of the incident before also deciding to go to the spot as asked by the kidnappers.

As per reports, the police were tailing the couple's vehicle when they went to drop the ransom at the decided rendezvous point near the village which they reached after midnight. It was decided that Ayisha, who was carrying her .32 bore revolver, would be the one handing over the money.

Ayisha is reported to have said, "They had started suspecting that we had the police with us." According to her, as soon as the couple parked their car next to that with the kidnappers in it, the couple heard the shouts of 'kill them'.

And as they came out of the car, she decided to take matters into her own hands in self-defence. She shot both the kidnappers, with the police reported to have said that two shots were fired by Ayisha and while one bullet grazed a man the other was shot in the foot.

According to reports, Ayisha said she often teaches self-defence to girls and was not scared by what happened that night. After the shooting, the police arrested the two men who have been identified as Mohammad Rafi and Akash.

A Police spokesman and senior officer, Ravinder Yadav, is reported to have said, "It is a very brave effort. It was past midnight and since she is a national-level shooter, her aim was real good."

Though her family must be proud of her shooting abilities and the prizes she has won in the sport before this Thursday night, post it, no one but Asif must be prouder and more thankful to have a relative with such a good aim.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 12:57 [IST]
Next President of India: Sonia to form committee to decide on candidate, says Lalu

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

New Delhi, May 29: As the opposition parties are yet to decide on a consensus candidate for the next President of India, Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav on Sunday revealed that Congress president Sonia Gandhi is all set to constitute a committee which will come up with names of possible candidates for the post.

Yadav added that the committee will also decide on the name of the candidate for the Vice-President. Leaders of 17 anti-NDA political parties took the decision to form the committee for the presidential and vice presidential polls.

The terms of the current President Pranab Mukherjee and Vice-President Hamid Ansari are ending in July. Thus the Opposition parties are regularly hosting meetings to come up with consensus candidates for both the highest posts in the country.

"Meeting took place in a good cordial atmosphere. This is the first time we all sat after completion of three years of Modi government. We discussed on election of President, Vice President; authorized Sonia ji to form committee," said Yadav after attending meeting with Gandhi.

Even the ruling BJP-led NDA alliance is yet to reveal the name of its candidates for the posts of President and Vice-President. In recent times, media reports suggested that the ruling alliance wants Rashtriya Sawayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat as the next President of the country.

However, Bhagwat clarified that he was not in the race. Several other names are also doing the rounds as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is yet to choose his candidates for the two important posts.

OneIndia News
No bridge for common man: Day Modi visited Assam, people faced trauma of VIP culture

India

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

Guwahati, May 29: It was a historic day for Assam, as the state got the country's longest river bridge--Bhupen Hazarika Setu--named after the famous cultural icon--over the mighty Brahmaputra river on Friday.

Official estimate stated that more than a lakh of people from various corners of Assam, especially the upper region of the state, through which the 9.15-km bridge passes through--came to witness the "momentous" occasion graced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

However, the happiness and excited of the commoners who wanted to have a glimpse of the bridge and the popular PM, had to trudge through various difficulties--including official apathy towards the public, massive traffic jams and bad roads leading to the main venue.

Several people who went to attend the event told the local media that it was a harrowing experience for them as they faced "discrimination" by the organisers. The locals were upset that while "VVIPs and VIPs" were given special treatment, the people of Assam for whom the bridge was constructed--as claimed by the government--were treated like second class citizens.

According to reports, four temporary roads to the pandal at the venue had been constructed--one for the VVIPs, two for the VIPs and the fourth one for the "common man".

The temporary road meant for the people was around 1.5 km and thus the visitors had to walk extra to reach the venue. Many complained that their return journey was quite a "horrible" experience, as they had to negotiate traffic congestion and there was no security measures arranged for the public.

Many, especially women and children, were forced to cross a flowing stream on foot to avoid massive traffic on roads close to the longest bridge.

The public faced immense difficulties in spite of the government spending around Rs 5 crore to construct the four temporary roads leading to the pandal at the venue. Reports say a huge amount of undisclosed public money was spent to host the mega-event that caused so much inconvenience to the tax payers.

The villagers, who had a terrible experience of government apathy towards the public, told reporters that the PM Modi government had to do a lot more to end the VIP culture.

"By removing red beacon from vehicles of the VIPs and doing away with the green corridor for ministers to evade traffic jams are not enough. Unless and until, the common man is not given due respect, the VIP culture is going to thrive," said a senior journalist, who works in a popular English newspaper in Guwahati.

OneIndia News
Now IIT Madras students organise beef festival

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Around 50 students of the IIT Madras took part in a beef festival. The festival was held at the IIT Madras campus to protest against the ban on sale of cattle for slaughtering.

The incident took place last night where scores of students were seen seated on the lawns of the campus eating beef. The incident comes a day after Congress and CPI(M) workers organised a beef festival in Kerala. The Kerala incident caused a lot of outrage for the brutal manner in which the Congress workers killed a cow before eating it.

Cases have been filed against the Congress workers in Kerala. While there has been widespread condemnation of the incident, Kerala Chief Minister P Viajayan has said that he did not need eating lessons from Delhi and Nagpur. Kerala also proposes to come out with a law to overcome the ban imposed by the centre.

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They killed a COW: An eye for an eye would do

India

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

No amount of condemnation or outrage is enough. In short those people from the Kerala Congress killed an innocent COW just to drive across their point. Is a condemnation from Rahul Gandhi sufficient. Is outraging the incident enough?

It was an an innocent animal for God's sake who was unaware of the new law and the politics behind it in Kerala. What did that animal even do to deserve this death? No animal deserves this death.

The question is what action should be taken against those inhumans? The law just does not prescribe enough punishment for such gory and mindless acts. Let us see what the law has to state:

Section 429 in The Indian Penal Code

Mischief by killing or maiming cattle, etc., of any value or any animal of the value of fifty rupees.-Whoever commits mischief by killing, poisoning, maiming or rendering useless, any elephant, camel, horse, mule, buffalo, bull, cow or ox, whatever may be the value thereof, or any other animal of the value of fifty rupees or upwards, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years, or with fine, or with both.

An eye for an eye:

Is five years sufficient for such an act? What on earth are these so-called animal rights groups doing? Why don't you unleash your army on these persons. Let them suffer and realise the pain that poor animal went through. Do you want any of us to believe that these persons will even get the maximum punishment as per the law?

They are Congress workers, influential people being backed by a government which does not go that extra mile to act against such cases. Kerala, is Gods Own Country no doubt, but it is a violent state. People are killed in bomb attacks and now we see this open defiance by a bunch of inhumans who killed an innocent animal.

I can't help but breakdown every time I read about the incident. I cant help but seethe in rage when I see the faces of those inhumans eating that poor animal after killing it. There are ways to protest if you are unhappy. But this was just brutal and if compared, the ISIS look like a bunch of angels in front of these brute, sickening, disgusting people who I am ashamed to even call my country men.

OneIndia News
Portals of Gangotri shrine close for winters, devotees can worship at Mukhba village now

Anand Mahindra's tweet about UPI at country's 'last tea shop' is every Indian's emotion

Uttarakhand to be open defecation-free by May 31: Rawat

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, may 29: Uttarakhand will be open defecation-free by the end of this month, Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat has asserted. He said that his government has laid maximum emphasis on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for a Swachh Bharat and has taken a number of steps for cleanliness.

"By the end of May, Uttarakhand will be open defecation-free, barring a few areas in Haridwar," Rawat told reporters.

"The confluence of the Song and Tons rivers is already free from smell. Birds have started drinking water there. It is an encouraging news," he said.

Earlier, the Centre had announced that Sikkim was the first state to become open defecation-free followed by Himachal Pradesh and Kerala. It was anticipating four more states Uttarakhand, Haryana, Gujarat and Punjab to achieve the target of open defecation free by this year.

Rawat assumed the charge of chief minister of Uttarakhand on March 18 after the BJP stormed to power winning 57 of the 70 assembly seats and ousted the Congress. He also highlighted the BJP government's transfer policy for state bureaucrats and police officers saying it was completely transparent and balanced.

"There has not been a single complaint regarding the transfers we have done. There was no corruption in the transfers, these were balanced and transparent," he said.

PTI

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 8:51 [IST]
Condition worsens:

The wired mesh erected on the boundary of the lake that runs along Whitefield Main Road, had kept foam from entering the streets till the rain aggravated the condition said Pravir B, a member of the citizen group Whitefield Rising. We noticed froth on the road on Saturday morning. There's a mesh on one side of the road, where foam has not escaped. But, the heavy winds resulted in foam getting blown from the other side of the lake and entering the road, disrupting traffic. In fact, the foam is entering helmets, and coming in contact with the skin," Pravir also said.

Stench unbearable:

The residents of the area said that the stench was unbearable. It only added to the woes of the commuters and residents who were seen dodging the foam. Strong winds also made matters worse.

Pictures all over:

Videos and pictures of the dreaded foam have been in circulation. Many citizens criticised civic bodies for their failure to address a recurring problem. Although the siphons and the mesh have restricted foam from entering the streets, froth continues to enter Varthur village.

Menace spreads:

Residents living around Subramanyapura Lake near Uttarahalli in south Bengaluru were shocked to see the western side of the lake foaming on Saturday morning. The residents alleged that some parts of the lake had been encroached upon. Other parts of the lake have turned into a dump yard the residents also alleged.

Inspection:

On Saturday morning, Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) commissioner Rakesh Singh carried out a routine inspection of Varthur Lake. The residents are however unhappy with the work and say that the civic authorities need to do much more to solve the problem.

Residents face trouble near Varthur lake again

Watch Video

The foam menace spreads again

Video:
Rushdie attack a reminder of how big a threat Iran is to the US, others

The two widows fighting for justice for the Munich victims

In India terror down by 34%, civilian deaths by 90% since Art 370 scrapped: Shah

23,000 terror suspects at large across Britain says intel

International

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

In a worrying development, intelligence agencies say that there are nearly 23,000 terror suspects at large across Britain. The report comes a few days after the deadly Manchester attack in which 22 persons died.

Reports that Libyan-origin Salman Abedi had been on the radar of intelligence services had added pressure on MI5 to reveal what they knew. Now, government sources have told sections of the UK media that they believe 23,000 people with extremist tendencies are living in the UK.

About 3,000 people from the total group are judged to pose a threat and are under investigation or active monitoring in 500 operations being run by police and intelligence services. The 20,000 others have featured in previous inquiries and are categorised as posing a "residual risk".

Meanwhile, fourteen locations are still being searched in connection with the attack and 11 men remain in custody on suspicion of terror offences.

A Greater Manchester Police statement said: "We have made significant progress in this fast moving and complex investigation working with the national counter terrorism policing network and UK intelligence partners and securing the arrests of 11 people who remain in custody.

OneIndia News
Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Paris on May 29 at the invitation of his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron to discuss a wide range of issues, including international agenda and the state of bilateral relations, Sputnik reported.

Earlier this week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the agenda of talks would be wide-ranging, including bilateral cooperation, coordination of efforts in the fight against terrorism and the settlement of crises in Syria and Ukraine.

At a press conference following the G7 summit in Italy's Taormina on Saturday, Macron said he was going to discuss cooperation on the resolution of crisis in Syria with Putin during his visit to Paris as well as to hold a "demanding dialogue" with Moscow over the Ukrainian issue.

A significant part of the talks will be dedicated to the Ukrainian conflict settlement, Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov stated.

Ushakov added that Putin and Macron would discuss Syria and the joint fight against international terrorism, the necessity of which has become more urgent following a terrorist attack in the UK city of Manchester.

Russian Ambassador to France Alexander Orlov called the upcoming meeting in an interview with Sputnik "an essential visit," while Thierry Mariani, a lawmaker from the French center-right The Republicans party and an incumbent member of the French parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, told Sputnik that Putin's visit to France was "very good news."
8 including deputy sheriff killed in Mississippi shooting

International

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Eight people, including a deputy sheriff, were killed in a shootout in Mississippi on Sunday morning, according to police. The suspect has been taken into custody. Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said the shootings occurred at three separate homes in the state's rural Lincoln County. The area is about 68 miles south of Jackson, the state capital.

The sheriff's deputy was responding to a distress call when he was shot and killed by the suspect, according to media reports.

Investigators are gathering evidence at all three locations and added that charges had not yet been filed against the suspect. The spokesperson said that it would be "premature" to discuss a motive. It was not clear whether the suspect knew his victims before allegedly killing them.

I ain't fit to live, not after what I done," Cory Godbolt told The Clarion-Ledger after his arrest. Godbolt said he was talking with his wife and members of her family when somebody called authorities. "I was having a conversation with her stepdaddy and her mama and her, my wife, about me taking my children home," the suspect says on the video. "Somebody called the officer, people that didn't even live at the house. That's what they do. They intervene. They cost him his life," the suspect said, apparently in reference to the slain deputy. "I'm sorry."

The suspect also said he did not intend for police to capture him alive. "My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets," he said. "Suicide by cop was my intention."

OneIndia News
Ukraine grain deal: UN says shipments are still going out

International Day of UN Peacekeepers: Salute 168 Indian bravehearts who died across the world

International

oi-Oneindia

By Oneindia Staff Writer

On the occasion of International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, celebrated across the globe on Monday, India remembered 168 soldiers, who died in various corners of the world, for the cause of peace.

"India is contributing around 6,900 military personnel among 115,000 peacekeepers in various missions," Vice Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Sarath Chand told ANI.

"168 Indian peacekeepers lost their lives since UN operations began. In 2016,117 peacekeepers from around the world lost their lives," he added.

On December 11, 2002, the UN General assembly designated May 29 as the International Day of UN Peacekeepers. The day was first observed on May 29, 2003. The International Day of UN Peacekeepers is a tribute to people who serve or have served in the UN peacekeeping operations.

Since the first UN peacekeeping mission was established in 1948 until April 2016, 3,400 military, police and civilian personnel have lost their lives in the service of peace as a result of acts of violence, accidents and disease.

"Peacekeeping is an investment in global peace, security, and prosperity. It is a flagship enterprise of the UN. Today, it deploys more than 113,000 military, police and civilian personnel in 16 peacekeeping operations on four continents. It is a flexible, evolving instrument that brings together political, security and technical tools to assist countries make the difficult transition from conflict to peace," read a statement of the UN.

"Over time, peacekeeping has grown from simply monitoring ceasefires to protecting civilians, disarming ex-combatants, protecting human rights, promoting the rule of law, supporting free and fair elections, minimizing the risk of land-mines and so much more.

They have also work to ensure that women are fully represented in peace processes, political life, and in branches of government including in uniformed services. All of these efforts are fundamental investments in building lasting peace," added the statement.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 12:18 [IST]
32,000 girls converted to Islam and sold as ISIS slaves: This is The Kerala Story

How Zahran Hashim converted the radical Islamists of South into violent Jihadists

Love from Manchester: Message on bomb from RAF to ISIS

International

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

Love from Manchester was a message from the Royal Air Force to the Islamic State. The message was posted on a bomb meant for air strikes against the Islamic State terror group following the concert attack, according to a media report.

A photograph, which has been widely shared on social media, showed the message "love from Manchester" on a Paveway IV bomb loaded on a British jet carrying out air strikes from Royal Air Force (RAF) Akrotiri in Cyprus, The Telegraph reported. An RAF spokesperson confirmed that the photo was genuine.

The report comes days after suicide bomber Salman Abedi blew himself up at a concert by pop star Ariana Grande at Manchester Arena last week, killing 22 people and 119 injured.

During World War II, army men wrote messages on bombs headed toward Japan after the Pearl Harbor attack. Messages were also written on bombs after the 9/11, with notes coming from New York City police and fire departments.

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 6:00 [IST]
North Korea fires unidentified projectile says South Korea

International

oi-Vicky

By Vicky

An unidentified projectile from the Wonsan region was fired by North Korea. The South Korean military said that the projectile was fired from the Wonsan region on its east coast in an easterly direction.

The launch was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who has called a meeting of the National Security Council, reported Reuters quoting the South Korean office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Meanwhile, Japan has reacted to the development saying the missile launch was "a clear violation of UN resolutions. According to Reuters, Japanese government spokesman Suga said, "Japan has strongly protested North Korea missile launch."

South Korean news agency Yonhap reported that the projectile was likely a ballistic missile. The projectile is also likely to fall within Japan's exclusive economic zone, the report further added, citing an unidentified source from Japan.

OneIndia News
Imran Khan discharged from hospital, to resume long march from same point where he was shot

This cop from Pakistan became a millionaire overnight: Here is how

Panama papers: Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif's son Hussain grilled

International

ians-IANS

By Ians

Islamabad, May 29: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's son Hussain Nawaz appeared before the Joint Investigation Team in connection with the Panama Papers probe into the family's assets, Pakistan media reported on Monday.

Headed by Federal Investigation Agency additional director General Wajid Zia, the JIT grilled Hussain Nawaz on Sunday for about two-and-half hours at the Federal Judicial Academy in Islamabad, according to the reports.

Though he has raised objections against two of the six JIT members, which will be taken up by the Supreme Court on Monday, Hussain Nawaz told the media that since the court had not issued a restraining order, he had complied with the team's directions and preferred to appear before it in person.

"I received a notice from the JIT on Saturday and was asked to appear on May 28," he said.

The JIT was formed by the Pakistan Supreme Court last month for the implementation of the Panama leaks verdict which said that there was not enough evidence to disqualify Nawaz Sharif. However, in a 3-2 judgement, the court ordered a fresh probe into allegations of financial irregularities and money laundering against Sharif.

The JIT did not allow a counsel to assist Hussain Nawaz during his interview and asked him to first seek permission from the court. Along with the Nawaz Sharif, the court also cleared his daughter Maryam Nawaz in the Panama Papers case.

Last year's Panama Papers leaks, which documented the offshore dealings of many of the world's rich and powerful, alleged that Maryam was the beneficiary owner of the London properties owned jointly by her brothers as well.

IANS

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Story first published: Monday, May 29, 2017, 12:49 [IST]
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The Turkish president marked the 564th anniversary of Istanbul's conquest by an Ottoman sultan on Sunday, Anadolu reported.

In a statement to mark the anniversary of the conquest by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed II, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said: Istanbul, which had been a capital for different states and cultures since its foundation, has become the center of peaceful coexistence and tolerance under the fair rule of Fatih Sultan Mehmed [also known as Mehmed the Conqueror].

The conquest of Istanbul, which is regarded as one of the most important milestones of world history in terms of its social, cultural and political consequences, is a victory full of lessons for us and for all humanity, Erdogan said.

In addition, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim issued a statement to mark the anniversary of Istanbul's conquest.

The conquest of Istanbul has set a new direction for the world history in terms of political, social and cultural consequences, Yildirim said.

Speaking at the 564th anniversary event of Istanbul's conquest by an Ottoman sultan on Sunday in Istanbul, Erdogan said Istanbul was the outline of Turkey.

"Istanbul is the outline of Turkey. All of Turkey's 80 provinces have human and physical connections with Istanbul. In this sense, to speak about Istanbul means to speak about Turkey. To serve Istanbul means to serve Turkey," the president said.

"Now it is a fact that while Ankara is the capital of Turkey, Izmir is the capital of the Aegean, and cities like Antalya and Mugla are tourism brands, Istanbul is the showcase of our country. The more beautiful this showcase is, the more glamorous it becomes, the more profitable Turkey becomes," he added.

"When I speak about Istanbul I am actually talking about Turkey. If people come for trade or visit, Istanbul is the first contact for those who come to our country," he said.

"I hope that in the coming period we will endeavor to take important steps towards important projects. We will do all of this together with you," he added.

"We will quickly complete the efforts that will prevent terrorist organizations, especially FETO, Daesh and PKK, from extending the damages they did to this city," he said.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim also spoke at the event.

"All elements of the Ottoman Empire that lived in friendship in this territory live in the same peacefulness today in the Republic of Turkey. As it was seen in history, those who want to ruin this peaceful climate will face disappointment," he said.

On May 29, 1453, Sultan Mehmed II conquered Istanbul, then called Constantinople, from where the Byzantines had ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for more than 1,000 years.

The conquest transformed the city, once the heart of the Byzantine realm, into the capital of the new Ottoman Empire.
Turkey on Monday evening strongly condemned a ballistic missile launch by North Korea earlier in the day, Anadolu reported.

"We condemn the ballistic missile launch conducted by the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) on 29 May 2017, which constitutes a flagrant violation of UN Security Council Resolutions," the Foreign Ministry said in a written statement.

The ministry said North Koreas 12 ballistic missile launches since the beginning of the year constitute a clear testament to its persistent lack of respect for its international obligations and norms of behavior.

"The DPRK must abide by the calls and expectations of the international community which are also expressed in the UNSC resolutions, and should refrain from any action that would lead to escalation in the region," the ministry added.

The country early Monday test-fired a ballistic missile, according to South Korea's military, and Seoul officials swiftly responded by convening a national security meeting.

The suspected Scud-type missile was launched at 5:39 a.m. (2039GMT Sunday) from the eastern Wonsan area before flying around 450 km and landing in open waters, the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
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They have so many things in common that it would take too long to list them. Ferdinand Berthoud and Louis Moinet had such similar careers that, at first glance, its easy to confuse the two. Their lives overlapped considerably  17271807 for the former and 17681853 for the latter. Berthoud was born in Neuchatel, where the Ateliers Louis Moinet are now located. They both travelled, Moinet in Italy, Switzerland and then to Paris, where Berthoud set himself up in 1745, and where Moinet later died. They both reached a very respectable age: Berthoud died at 80, Moinet at 85.

During their lifetimes, they each wrote a seminal treatise on watchmaking: Berthoud the Essai sur lhorlogerie and Moinet his Traite dhorlogerie. And both of them were known to the great and the good of their time. Berthoud rubbed shoulders with Louis XV and Napoleon, while Moinets client list included Napoleon, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe and Marechal Murat.

Generation gap

Nevertheless, Moinet and Berthoud never worked directly together, unlike Breguet and Arnold, for instance, and there is no evidence that they ever met. Berthoud was 40 years older than Moinet, and seems to have been his precursor on many occasions, having taken marine chronometers to a level of excellence never seen before.

Moinet probably drew inspiration from Berthouds work, which he cited extensively in his Treatise, before comprehensively taking it down. A sense of rivalry between them is implicit, but never stated openly. In his Treatise, Moinet wrote about the older watchmaker: Progress in horology has meant that his work now shows its age, and several parts of it have now been rendered obsolete. Our work will replace the books of Berthoud and older authors.

Moinet's Treatise  Louis Moinet

A respected artist and a horological specialist

Other points of divergence are clear in their work. Moinet was a complete artist. He studied painting, sculpture and engraving during his lengthy stay in Italy, learning directly from Romes greatest masters. On his return, he taught at the prestigious Beaux-Arts in Paris. He also developed a thorough knowledge of astronomy, physics and chemistry.

Berthoud was more of a specialist, becoming an eminent figure in horology, with a particular focus on marine chronometers, with which he is chiefly associated today. His single-mindedness won him many awards and titles: Horologist to the King (1770), Fellow of the Royal Society (1764) and a member of the Institute of France (1795).

Longitude clock, Ferdinand Berthoud, No. XXVIII, Paris, 1782-1783.  Ferdinand Berthoud

Berthoud also worked hard to make his work more widely known. He drafted several articles for Diderots Encyclopaedia, as well as a book entitled: The art of operating and adjusting clocks and watches for those who have no horological knowledge, which was published in 1759. Berthoud was also one of the most prolific horological authors of all time, with more than 4,000 published pages and 120 engraved plates to his name.

Career or way of life?

At the same time, Berthoud was also punctilious about registering his inventions by means of official covers deposited with the Academy of Science, which were the precursors of todays patents. His diligence was rewarded with the recognition of posterity for many of his inventions and also, more pragmatically, royal grants that enabled him to continue his work.

Moinet, on the other hand, cultivated a certain reserve where his craft was concerned, and remained fiercely suspicious of high-volume watch production and complacency. He deplored the negligent work of several high-volume manufactures or factories, which are the death of art and artists. Rigorous to a fault, he railed against horological fashions, mechanical artifice and lack of research: That which enchants at first glance does not always stand the test of time. Moinet lived for his art, but discreetly, without any official seals, patents or other legal recognition for his work, which is why it remains so difficult today to effectively circumscribe his achievements.

Counter of Thirds  Louis Moinet

Berthoud was eventually able to live off the proceeds of his royal chronometry business, which he had calculated to perfection. Moinet, however, died penniless and alone, having invested all his personal fortune (and energy) in publishing his Horological Treatise. He also died in relative obscurity. It was not until 150 years later, when his Counter of Thirds was rediscovered and formally acknowledged as the first chronograph in history (1816), that his name emerged once again from the shadows. Today, Berthoud and Moinet are united by the wonderful work of the watch companies that bear their names, and which continue to bring recognition to the work of the men who inspired them. .
Algeria Touat Project Panorama - Oil and Gas Upstream Analysis Report 2017-2022

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Market Research Hub's latest release, presents a comprehensive overview of the asset "Algeria Touat Project Panorama Industry - Oil and Gas Upstream Analysis Report". This upstream report includes detailed qualitative and quantitative information on the asset, provides a full economic assessment and reflects several parameters including (but not limited to) geological profile, asset development and specific challenges. Based on this analysis, future outlook for the asset is presented with possible trends and related scenarios identifying upside/downside potential.Request Free Sample Report@Scope:Overview of the asset based on an analysis of the economic indicatorsKey financial indicators including Net Present Value and Internal Rate of ReturnReview of factors affecting the economic outcome of the field including development overview, geology, challenges, reserves and production with qualitative perspective on of the overall assets life with GlobalDatas analysis on the assets future outlookDetailed production profile for the asset, giving annual output rates for each commodity producedCash flow statements from our economic analysis of the asset including capital expenditures, operating expenditures and tax liabilityIndividual valuations for equity holdersSensitivity analysis for asset value considering a range of factors.Read Full Report with TOC@Reasons to buy:Understand the economic and non-economic factors that affect production of an assetBenefit from an asset valuation derived from detailed research and modeling by our analystsBasic view of various scenarios and its effect on the asset for risk or strategy planningUtilize the quantitative and qualitative evaluation to ascertain trends within the region to inform decision makingIdentify economic trends of an asset to determine investment requirements.About Market Research Hub:Market Research Hub (MRH) is a next-generation reseller of research reports and analysis. MRHs expansive collection of Market research reports has been carefully curated to help key personnel and decision makers across industry verticals to clearly visualize their operating environment and take strategic steps.MRH functions as an integrated platform for the following products and services: Objective and sound market forecasts, qualitative and quantitative analysis, incisive insight into defining industry trends, and market share estimates. Our reputation lies in delivering value and world-class capabilities to our clients.Contact Details:90 State Street,Albany, NY 12207,United States,Toll Free: 866-997-4948 (US-Canada)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Email: press@marketresearchhub.comWebsite:
Co-founder of Sardina Systems wins UK DATA ENTREPRENEUR award at Data 50 Awards 2017

Dr. Kenneth Tan, co-founder of Sardina Systems, received the UK DATA ENTREPRENEUR award.

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www.sardinasystems.com

Tallinn, Estonia, 25 May 2017  Sardina Systems has been announced that co-founder Dr. Kenneth Tan was rewarded with the UK DATA ENTREPRENEUR title at Data 50 Awards 2017 in London, UK.The UK DATA 50 Awards event, organized by the Information Age, is the UKs premier initiative for celebrating data leadership and excellence among the sectors highest achievers. The main objective is to recognize the top individuals and companies creating business value and driving innovation from data in the enterprise.Sardina Systems is proud to have our co-founder rewarded with this prestigious title, among a list of more than 300 nominations submitted for 2017 Data 50 programme. The title is recognizing outstanding data innovation and achievements in the market.  said Anna Panchenko, VP of Marketing, Sardina Systems.The AI-driven technology in our product FishOS, churns through large volumes of operational data in driving highly efficient automation for OpenStack clouds. This enables data scientists at customers to distill insight to propel growth of their business through scalable, reliable clouds. We are able to provide customers a one-stop solution, from Concept, to Operation and Beyond.Data is now the beating heart of the British economy and the people we recognize as part of our Data 50 programme are the driving forces behind that. said Ben Rossi, editorial director of Information Age.The winners of the UK data entrepreneurs and global leaders categories of the Data 50 list for 2017, were decided by the Information Ages editorial team, while an independent judging panel met to decide the winners of the other ten Best in Class awards.For more info to goor contact us at info@sardinasystems.com.Sardina Systems () provides smart, efficient, super-scalable cloud automation technology, enabling organizations to rapidly experience the value of OpenStack cloud and maximizing the utility of their resources. Sardina Systems help customers to manage the full life-cycle of OpenStack environments, from Operation, to Deployment and Upgrade phases.Sardina Systems is headquartered in Estonia, with local presence in the UK, Germany, Romania and Russia.Press contacts: Katerina GumenkoE-mail: kgumenko@sardinasystems.comTel: +372 61 48 032Address: Pohja puiestee 21/2-47, Tallinn 10414, Estonia
Poland: More banking market growing but

Banking markets in CEE

http://www.inteliace.com/en/00153_Banking_market_in_Poland_2017-2019.html

www.inteliace.com

Banking sector in Poland benefits from a stable economy, however, taxation and regulatory constraints prevent the sector from growing faster, said Marcin Mazurek, director of Inteliace Research, during a presentation of Inteliace's latest report, Banking Market in Poland, 2017-2019.Banking volumes have continued to grow fast in Poland during 2016, despite relatively unfavourable regulatory environment. Deposits of non-financial clients at banks recorded a strong 11% YoY increase to nearly PLN 1.1 trillion while lending increased a bit slower, at 5% YoY to PLN 1.11 trillion. The growth of volumes was balanced across all client segments. As a consequence, total banking assets increased by 7% YoY to a record PLN 1.71 trillion as of December 2016.In our base-case scenario, we see Poland's economy growing faster in 2017 but decelerating in 2018 and 2019. Faster growth in consumer prices and increasing salaries and wages are likely to further benefit key banking volumes. We expect total banking assets to advance at 6% through 2019. As far as banks profitability is concerned, the banking industry is likely to see reduction in profits in 2017 as revenues are not expected to keep pace with accelerating operating costs. While automation will support higher efficiency at banks, it will require significant investments outlays in a rapidly changing environment.For more information on recent developments in the Polish banking sector, please refer to the publication Banking Market in Poland, 20172019 at:Inteliace Research is an independent consulting company that focuses on the financial markets in Central and Eastern Europe. Inteliace Research specializes in management consulting and custom research services, including market-entry strategies, product launches, and performance and benchmarking analyses.During 20052017, Inteliace Research provided its products and services to more than 60 clients, including major CEE banks and several The Banker top world banks. To learn more about the company, visit Inteliace Researchs webpage:Foksal 17B/3100-372 WarszawaPOLAND
The Best Fairytales for the Kids

Thanks to the technological progress, the humankind can achieve a lot because technologies offer a tremendous diversity of options. Probably, the most valuable one is to get information faster and easier. One can get whatever one needs due to such helpful invention as the Internet. With its help, people find the required information in a blink of an eye. Our service also offers its customers some kind of information.The services we offer are very helpful, as we provide people with the knowledge contained within a book that is so needed at any time. Moreover, we offer books for the little ones. You can find a great variety of fairytales for kids.Our online website welcomes all parents and their children to read various folktales for kids. We have decided to sell this kind of services because we honor and respect the power of a book. This is one of the oldest sources of knowledge and history of the entire human civilization. The necessity of reading books is proved by the fact that books are popular in the present days as well and the interest to books is not going to wither away. Regardless of their age, gender, nationality and world views all people will have a need for reading.However, getting the printed paper book was always a problem. Oftentimes, paper books were in deficit or their cost was unaffordable. Luckily, the modern progress invented electronic books (e-books). Thanks to the existence of digital format, people receive an incredible opportunity to download different books or read them online. This will not take a lot of your earnings. In addition, you can read the needed book right on our website.We offer fables for kids of all kinds. There will be no difficulties anymore for you to read the favorite fairytales for your beloved children. You can find all that you wish right here.The Meaning of Reading Books for KidsIt is really difficult to evaluate the importance of books in our life. One thing is clear  reading books makes us intelligent and educated. Therefore, all age groups needed it. First of all, reading is important for the youngest generations.One of the main objectives of all parents is to familiarize their children with a book. It is necessary to develop interest and love for reading books from the early days of childrens life. Your kids should be willing to listen and understand the literary texts. This would make a great beginning.Of course, the easiest and most interesting stories for any child would be the fairytales and various fables or folk stories. Therefore, parents should read fairytales for kids. Such stories are magic for the little ones. Their imagination paints amazing pictures of various scenes and the portraits of their favorite characters.A fairytale teaches a lot of positive things. Little children may feel a great variety of feelings and emotions. They can learn how to interact with other people. These may be joy, suffering, relationships, motives, thoughts, actions and something of the kind. Reading books develops the human and spiritual values.For children, reading leaves stronger traits and memories than for the grown-ups. In addition, scientists determined that children, who read systematically, accumulate a rich vocabulary.The adults should open the miracle world of reading for their children. This can be easily done with the help of our online service. We are capable of providing you with any types of fables for kids. You can select any story in accordance with the likings of your children. You can get all of this at a reasonable and cheap cost. We have the best offer for you.Original Books with Beautiful IllustrationsWhat can make reading folktales for kids more interesting? Of course, a colorful and intriguing book. We provide our customers with original books for boys and girls on various topics of the most popular authors. Our database has books of old and modern writers. In addition, all the books have nice and bright illustrations.Your kid will surely like such books. While listening to the stories, your kid will be likewise attracted by the beautiful pictures that will help to imagine the scenery of each fairytale. This is an excellent option for and your kids.Read more here: http://1fairytale.com/With its help, people find the required information in a blink of an eye. Our service also offers its customers some kind of information.435 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014435 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014
Top Digital Marketing Company Dot Com Infoway Launches Email Marketing Services

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Dot Com Infoway (DCI), one of the worlds leading digital marketing and IT services company, recently launched email marketing services to help its clients build stronger customer relationships through email marketing solutions optimized for their target markets.According to stats, there were over 3.73 billion Internet users in the world in March 2017. Coupling this fact with the steadily growing startup ecosystem across the world, it leaves no doubt that email marketing services are crucial for small and medium sized businesses to increase customer acquisition through personalized messages delivered to interested persons at the right time.From welcoming customers to abandoned cart recovery emails to regular newsletters to sharing offers and promotions based on users past shopping behaviour, the role of email in online marketing is steadily increasing. At DCI, we provide an array of email marketing solutions, templates, and design winning marketing campaigns for you by infusing the latest upgrades, trends and tactics with proven techniques, says Mr. C. R. Venkatesh, CEO & MD, DCI.Most marketers vouch for email marketing to be one of the most effective and pocket-friendly digital marketing solutions, delivering the highest ROI for marketers. The new service launch by DCI will ensure their clients have the edge over competitors through emails that are not only perfectly pixilated, dynamic and personalized but also responsive across devices. From pre-designed templates to contact management to integrating social media with email marketing campaigns and monitoring their performance, DCI will provide ace technology to its clients worldwide, serving them with reliable email marketing solutions.To avail this services check outAbout Dot Com Infoway:Dot Com Infoway, an award-winning, CMMI Level 3 multinational information Technology Company, is a pioneer in delivering software development, mobile application and Internet marketing solutions and technologies to business. With offices in India, the United States and Germany, DCI is positioned to become a leader in delivering advanced IT services for your business.189, Aarthy chamber, Mount road,Opposite to Raj Video Vision Building,Chennai  600 006
Indian Institute of Finance (IIF) signs MOU with RUSSIAs State University for Aerospace Instrumentation, (SUAI) Saint Petersburg, RUSSIA

www.suai.ru

www.iif.edu

www.financeindia.org

www.suai.ru

www.iif.edu

Indian Institute of Finance (IIF)-Delhi NCR-Greater Noida has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Saint-Petersburg State University for Aerospace Instrumentation (SUAI), Saint Petersburg, RUSSIA to further the cause of research and education in the field of Finance, Science, Technology and Management on 25th May 2017 at 10:00 hrs [10 AM Russia Time] at the SUAI (Main Campus) in Saint Petersburg, RUSSIA.The agreement was signed between Prof. Dr. Yulia A. Antokhina(SUAI) and Prof. Dr. Aman Agarwal (IIF). Prof Yulia A. Antokhina is the Rektor& Professor of Economic Sciences at Saint-Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation (SUAI), Saint-Petersburg, Russia () and Prof. Dr. Aman Agarwal is Professor of Finance and Dean International Affairs and Director, Indian Institute of Finance () & Executive Editor of Finance India (). Other Professors who witnessed the signing ceremony of the historic Academic Agreement - MOU (Academic Collaboration) were Prof. Dr. ArturBudagov, Director (SUAI-IET) and Prof. Dr. OlesyaKarelova (Department of International Affairs)The MoU signed between the Saint-Petersburg State University for Aerospace Instrumentation (SUAI) and Indian Institute of Finance (IIF) has been furthered in connection with our Director Prof. Dr. Aman Agarwal's and Professors visit towards the invite as Guest of Honour to deliver the Plenary Keynote Address at the SUAI International Week Scientific Conference at the Opening Ceremony on May 22nd, 2017 [ May 22-26th, 2017 ]The MOU signing ceremony gracing the historic moment between SUAI and IIF were Vice-Rectors, Directors and other senior professors from SUAI. Other International Professors from France, The Netherlands, Hungary, Russia and Germany also graced the Celebrations at the formal announcements made by Prof. Dr. ArturBudagov (SUAI-IET) immediately after the Signing Ceremony at the SUAI International Week were Dr. Nadine Hackmann, Westphalian University of Applied Sciences, GERMANY; Dr. Pascal Ricordel, Universite Le Havre Normandie, FRANCE; Dr. KseniiaBaimakova, State University of Aerospace Instrumentation, RUSSIA; Dr. Arthur Colin, Samara University, RUSSIA; Dr. Harm Hilvers, Christian University of Applied Sciences, THE NETHERLANDS; Dr. Peter Holicza, Obuda University, HUNGARY; Dr. Mikhail Krichevsky, State University of Aerospace Instrumentation, RUSSIA; Dr. Anna Sankina, State University of Aerospace Instrumentation, RUSSIA and many others.The academic collaboration would further the cause of enriching research in Financial Administration and Financial Economics, conduction of joint seminars, training programs and exchange programs at both faculty and student levels. This would also help build stronger Socio-cultural ties between the two nations and its people.It is a matter of pride for IIF and India for the addition of this 39th milestone in the history of IIF to get connected with academic collaborations,internationally. IIF already has signed MOU for academic collaborations with 38 Institutions/ Universities globally.The Saint-Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation (SUAI) has active co-operation with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA); Indiana State University (USA); State University of New York at Stony Brook (USA); Universite of Franche-Comte (FRANCE); Lappeenranta University of Technology (FINLAND); Instituto Superior Formacin Empresa (SPAIN); Budapest University of Technology and Economics (HUNGARY); Ben-Gurion University of Negev (ISRAEL); Beijing Aerospace University (CHINA); Nanjing Aerospace University (CHINA); Xian Aerospace University (CHINA); Riga Technical University (LATVIA); Turku University of Applied Sciences (FINLAND); Wageningen University (THE NETHERLANDS); University of Wolverhampton (UK).SUAI is one of the most prominent Institute of Russia. SUAI is a research-oriented university. SUAI, Saint Petersburg, Russia,was founded on January 25, 1941 as the Leningrad Aviation Institute (LAI) by the Decree of the Soviet government. In more than 76 years the University has grown from a narrowly-specialized restricted admission institute to become a major research and education center. We are particularly proud of the fact that at the same time we managed to maintain all our traditional educational fields. We have retained one of the unique education profiles, Aerospace Instrumentation. The first artificial satellite in 1957, Yuri Gagarins flight in 1961 and the successful launch of Buran spacecraft in 1988 are among the achievements of Soviet astronautics accomplished due to our staff, students and graduates. In 2011 SUAI headed the North West Aerospace Cluster. However, our University is nowadays not just about space and aviation. Its new educational fields include innovation studies and informatics, data protection and international relations, law, linguistics and many others. The University currently consists of 6 institutes, 6 faculties and more than 40 departments and it offers over 200 educational programs. We also develop new ways of educational organization. A number of further education, supplementary training and professional retraining programs are implemented by SUAI. The University also offers Applied Bachelors Degree programs, which appeared in Russia as recently as 2013. Degrees awarded by SUAI are appreciated in Russia and abroad. At the moment more than 600 students from 39 countries are studying at our University as well as our students and staff regularly participate in exchange programs and internships. USA, Canada, Italy, France, Spain, Finland and China are just a few countries we cooperate with. SUAI the lead University in Aerospace Engineernig and Scientific Studies.Indian Institute of Finance (IIF)founded in 1987, 31 years ago is NON-PROFIT, equal opportunity, research based, autonomous educational Institution to promote education, research, training and consulting. It is an Island of Excellence, unique and the only organization of its kind in India. IIF fosters management practice through experimental learning, creativity, innovativeness, analytical ability, a sense of hard work, commitment, devotion, discipline and nationalism with an appropriate blend of Indian ethos & values with western technology of Management to nurture talent. IIF is well connected with well known experts from world renowned institutions / Universities including Nobel Laureates.IIF is headed by an eminent economist as its Chairman, Board of Governor's - Prof. J. D. Agarwal. Students of Prof. Agarwal hold Cabinet Minister Positions in Government of India, Secretary Government of India, Senior Positions at International Agencies like World Bank, IMF, UN, ADB and others, Chief Justice Positions, CEOs of Banks, Financial Institutions and Companies Worldwide and Vice-Chancellors and Deans of Universities Globally and in India.Indian Institute of Finance45A, Knowledge Park IIIGreater Noida  201308Delhi NCR,INDIA
FireDaemon Technologies Releases FireDaemon Session 0 Viewer

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEFireDaemon Session 0 Viewer 1.3.0 allows users to manage specialised interactive Windows service applications running on Windows Session 0.FOR TRIAL COPYDownload a 30-day trial copy fromCambridge, UK - May 8, 2017 - Companies looking to manage interactive Windows services across their enterprise will benefit from FireDaemon Session 0 Viewer. Session 0 Viewer allows you to switch to and manage interactive services running on Session 0.Developed by FireDaemon Technologies Limited, FireDaemon Session 0 Viewer for Windows 7, 2008 R2, 8, 2012, 8.1 2012 R2, 10 and 2016 is designed to simplify interactive Windows service management. The program allows you to switch easily via a System Tray applet to Session 0 to allow you to interact with interactive service applications as well as provides an application task bar allowing you to restore minimised or iconised applications.KEY PRODUCT FEATURESThe FireDaemon Session 0 Viewer:- enables Interactive Services on Session 0- starts the Interactive Services Detection Service and a System Tray Notification Area applet- provides the ability for a user to 'steal' Session 0 control from another user- provides the ability for a user to 'kick' a user off an orphaned Session 0 session- redraws the Session 0 desktop to avoid artifacting- allows you to switch to Session 0 with no auto-logoff- starts a custom minimisable Session 0 Task Bar that allows you to find and bring to front applications running on Session 0- avoids the default nagging desktop popup 'warning' you that applications are running on Session 0- facilitates Session 0 desktop switching via regular control products such as RDC, TeamViewer, VNC and others.SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS32-bit or 64-bit Microsoft Windows Operating System7, 2008 R2, 8, 2012, 8.1, 2012 R2, 10, 20162.0Ghz CPU or better1GB RAM20MB of hard drive spacePRICINGFireDaemon Session 0 Viewer is priced at $US15 per OS instance (physical or virtual)Volume and pay-as-you-go pricing also available.FOR TRIAL COPYDownload a 30-day trial copy fromPRESS CONTACT DETAILSFireDaemon Technologies Limited Press Office contacts:James BourneMedia Liaison Officere: press@firedaemon.comw:p: +44 1223 655 441f: +44 1223 420 844FireDaemon Technologies Limited is a software development company located in Cambridge, UK. FireDaemon Technologies Limited specialises is system tools, specifically in regard to Windows service creation, management, monitoring and control written in C++/C# for Microsoft Windows operating systems.FireDaemon Technologies LimitedUnited Kingdom Cambridge St John's Innovation CentreFireDaemon Technologies Limited submit@firedaemon.com
Watches are not rocket science. Or are they? Watches are not rocket...

Perhaps you dont have a PhD. Well, thats a shame, because with some watches, youll need one to understand how to tell the time. Perhaps you dont have a PhD. Well,...
Healthcare Cloud Computing Market Assessment Till 2021

http://www.sa-brc.com/Global-Healthcare-Cloud-Computing-Market-Assessment--Forecast-2017-2021/up99

http://www.sa-brc.com/Global-Healthcare-Cloud-Computing-Market-Assessment--Forecast-2017-2021/upcomingdetail99

www.sa-brc.com

Integration of information and technology with healthcare systems has increased tremendously in the past decade. Large numbers of medical devices are connected to smartphones or hospital servers to continuously track and monitor vital parameters of patients. There has been a surge for medical data in digitalized form. This data is fed not only through hospital patient information systems, but through a plethora of smartphone apps used by billions of individuals globally. Images obtained from MRI, CT, PET, X-ray, ultrasound, endoscopy and others have also increased drastically. With increasing size of medical data being generated each day, there is an urgent need of efficient data storage and data management systems that can be accessed anytime during emergency. The healthcare cloud computing market has provided cost effective solutions in managing clinical trial data. Increasing application of DNA sequencing has also led to surge in amount of genetic data that needs to be analyzed and securely stored. Advent of 2nd and 3rd generation sequencers has enables cost effective sequencing and also allowed successful implementation of the sequencing technology in healthcare diagnostics. These factors have been a major drivers for the global healthcare cloud computing market.Efficiency in data management and sharing has increased many folds due to application of cloud in healthcare. One of the most important applications within the healthcare cloud computing market is in telemedicine. Doctors can access patient data placed in remote locations, and consult through video conferencing and telephonic interactions. To assure data security, The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights recently issued guidance on Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and cloud computing, that confirms cloud services providers are business associates under HIPAA. Other challenges that the healthcare sector is currently facing is the compatibility of currently installed infrastructure being incompatible with cloud setup required. This dictated extra investment in complete implementation of cloud computing.Request Free Report Sample@North America and Europe currently have widespread integration of information and technology services in medical sector. Hence the cloud computing market is rapidly growing in these regions. In Asia Pacific, healthcare IT services are been currently used majorly by larger hospitals. However penetration of smartphone and healthcare apps has been rapid. Healthcare cloud computing market is forecast to witness fastest growth in the Asia Pacific region considering rapid economic development in countries such as Japan, China, Australia, India, Singapore, Thailand and others. Increasing trend for adoption of new technology medical devices that produce medical results in digitalized form and simultaneously increasing per capita income has leveraged the overall healthcare cloud computing market growth.Key players in the healthcare cloud computing market include Allscripts Healthcare Solutions, Inc., Carestream Health, Inc., ClearDATA, GE Healthcare, IBM, Intel Corporation, Amazon Web Service, and others.Request For TOC@NOTE: This report is currently under research and will be made available to clients on request.About UsSpearhead Acuity Business Research & Consulting Private Limited (SA-BRC) is a premium Life Science business intelligence and data analytics firm. SA-BRC team offers a wide range of business intelligence services to multiple stakeholders such as Medical Device Manufacturers, Service Providers (Hospitals, Payers, etc.), Suppliers, Group Purchase Organizations, Distributors and all other individuals in the entire value chain of healthcare industry. Our research and consulting capabilities extend across several sub-domains within the sphere of Life Sciences such as Biotechnology, Healthcare IT, Medical Devices, Veterinary Sciences, Wellness Products and Pharmaceuticals.Contact UsJohn WhitmoreOffice No. 14,Hermes Kunj, Mangaldas Road,Pune, 411001IndiaPhone: +91-02041210872Email: sales@sa-brc.comWebsite:
Global Portable Concrete Mixer Sales Market 2017 - TORO, Liugong, Altrad, Multiquip Inc., Zhengzhou Changli

http://www.fiormarkets.com/report-detail/50574/request-sample

https://goo.gl/Piivlp

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Global Portable Concrete Mixer Sales Market 2017, presents a professional and in-depth study on the current state of the Portable Concrete Mixer Sales market globally, providing basic overview of Portable Concrete Mixer Sales market including definitions, classifications, applications and industry chain structure, Portable Concrete Mixer Sales Market report provides development policies and plans are discussed as well as manufacturing processes and cost structures. Portable Concrete Mixer Sales market size, share and end users are analyzed as well as segment markets by types, applications and companies.Download Sample Report @The Current global Portable Concrete Mixer Sales Analysis and opportunities are also taken into consideration in Portable Concrete Mixer Sales industry study. Portable Concrete Mixer Sales market report provides the feasibility of new investment projects is assessed, and overall research conclusions are offered.In this report, the global Portable Concrete Mixer market is valued at USD XX million in 2016 and is expected to reach USD XX million by the end of 2022, growing at a CAGR of XX% between 2016 and 2022.Geographically, this report split global into several key Regions, with sales (K Units), revenue (Million USD), market share and growth rate of Portable Concrete Mixer for these regions, from 2012 to 2022 (forecast), coveringUnited StatesChinaEuropeJapanSoutheast AsiaIndiaGlobal Portable Concrete Mixer market competition by top manufacturers/players, with Portable Concrete Mixer sales volume, Price (USD/Unit), revenue (Million USD) and market share for each manufacturer/player; the top players includingTOROLiugongAltradMultiquip Inc.Zhengzhou Great Wall Machinery Manufacture Co.,Speedcarfts LtdZhengzhou ChangliHenan DASION Machinery Co., LtdCrown Construction EquipmentKushlan ProductsRight Manufacturing SystemsGaode EquipmentJurong Topall Machinery Co., Ltd.ZZlianhuaGet Full Report With TOC @On the basis of product, this report displays the sales volume (K Units), revenue (Million USD), product price (USD/Unit), market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split intoBelow 0.2 M30.2-0.3 M30.3-1 M3On the basis on the end users/applications, this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, sales volume, market share and growth rate of Portable Concrete Mixer for each application, includingConstruction SitesRoads & Bridge ProjectsIndustrial UsedIf you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.Fior Markets is a leading market intelligence company that sells reports of top publishers in the technology industry.Our extensive research reports cover detailed market assessments that include major technological improvements in the industry. Fior Markets also specializes in analyzing hi-tech systems and current processing systems in its expertise.We have a team of experts that compile precise research reports and actively advise top companies to improve their existing processes. Our experts have extensive experience in the topics that they cover.Fior Markets provides you the full spectrum of services related to market research, and corroborate with the clients to increase the revenue stream, and address process gaps.Contact UsMark StoneSales Manager2566, Lincoln StreetPrinceton,New Jersey 08540USAPhone: (201) 465-4211Email: sales@fiormarkets.comWeb:Blog:
Global Data Center Rack Market to witness an Intense Price Competition between Local and Global Vendors

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The data center rack market is likely to witness a change in the coming years. The market, which is a major place of interest for many major IT companies, offers lucrative opportunities to global as well as local vendors.According to a research report by Beige Market Intelligence, the data center rack market will witness an intense price competition between local and global vendors during the period 20162022. This intensified price competition among vendors is considered as a major trend, which is expected to drive the data center rack market over the next five years.View the report here:The report Global Data Center Rack Market  Strategic Assessment and Forecast 2017  2022 states that the price war among data center rack market vendors is similar in every geography, except the US. According to the market research report, in the US the leading ten vendors are mostly the global players who have presence in other geographies. For instance, Eaton, BlackBox, Emerson Network Power, HP, IBM, Rittal, Schneider Electric, and Trip Lite dominate the market in the US due to their presence across geographies.In the US, these players account for almost 80% of the market share, whereas local players account for 20% market share. One of the common trends for last ten years in the US market has been that buyers mostly prefer providers that offer both data center rack and servers. The presence of local vendors who are pureplay as rack providers has moderate presence.However, the scenario is different in EMEA. In EMEA, the market is shared equally among global vendors and local vendors. Many cloud service providers and large telecom operators such as Telefonica, BT, EE, and Telenor are following the trend of selecting server vendors along with the rack vendors. Hence, they prefer single vendors. Several other data center owners prefer low-cost data center racks to minimize their initial investment. For instance, Eaton is a major provider for racks and servers for major data center owners in the Nordic region for operation of their social network sites in the European region.The competition in APAC varies significantly. In APAC countries such as China, India, and Singapore, the local vendors account for almost 5565% of the market share. Moreover, the price competition between local players and global players is intense.Click Here To View The Report:Many vendors are preferring to have standardized 41U and 48U racks and moderate price to compete with other global vendors as well as local vendors. Since 2015, the global vendors of 51U racks have been offering customized racks and have gained a significant momentum. For instance, Rittal has more than 20 customized 51U rack customers that are revamping their data centers by enhancing the height of data centers.Order a Free Sample:Source Link:About Beige Market IntelligenceBeige Market Intelligence is a new-age provider of competitive business intelligence, working across various industry verticals. Our expertise and knowledge ensures that the market analysis Beige provides is comprehensive, detailed and complete. The analysis helps our client organizations become aware and make educated decisions, as far as investing or devising a marketing strategy is concerned. The actionable insights delivered through our market research provide a comprehensive market analysis for every level of market segmentation in an industry. Beige Market Intelligence is a quality driven high end Market Research organization. Our team of experts ensure the analysis you receive is not just analyzed and smartly presented, but is completely customized based on the clients requirement. Our deliverables guarantee our current global client base does not look beyond Beige when it comes to any kind of industry and market analysis.You May Reach us atBeige Market IntelligenceChinnapannahalli Main Road, Bangalore - 560037contactus@beigemarketintelligence.comUS: +1 347 903 9949UK: +44 20 323 99499APAC: +91 99 012 75473
Cameroon: Mobile Market to Fuel Overall Telecom Growth as Operators Focus on Network Expansion and VAS

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"The Report Cameroon: Mobile Market to Fuel Overall Telecom Growth as Operators Focus on Network Expansion and VAS provides information on pricing, market analysis, shares, forecast, and company profiles for key industry participants. - MarketResearchReports.biz""Cameroon: Mobile Market to Fuel Overall Telecom Growth as Operators Focus on Network Expansion and VAS", is a new Country Intelligence Report by GlobalData, provides an executive-level overview of the telecommunications market in Cameroon today, with detailed forecasts of key indicators up to 2021. Published annually, the report provides detailed analysis of the near-term opportunities, competitive dynamics and evolution of demand by service type and technology/platform across the fixed telephony, broadband, and mobile, as well as a review of key regulatory trends.In 2016, Cameroon generated telecom service revenue of $1.1bn (equivalent to 3.5% of nominal GDP), an increase of 6.2% since 2015, primarily due to the growth in the mobile segment. The mobile market continues to be the largest contributor to the overall market revenue, accounting for 82.5% of overall telecom revenue in 2016. Mobile voice remained the major revenue-contributing segment in 2016, accounting for 64.3% of total service revenue. Mobile data will be the fastest revenue-contributing segment through 2021, driven by operators investments in 3G and 4G network expansion as well as growing adoption of mobile broadband services. Government and operator focus on improving fixed Internet penetration via submarine cables and fiber-optic expansion will improve broadaband connectivity in the country.Get Sample Copy Of This Report @The Country Intelligence Report provides in-depth analysis of the following -- Regional context: telecom market size and trends in Cameroon compared with other countries in the region.- Economic, demographic and political context in Cameroon.- The regulatory environment and trends: a review of the regulatory setting and agenda for the next 18-24 months as well as relevant developments pertaining to spectrum licensing, national broadband plans, number portability and more.- A demand profile: analysis as well as historical figures and forecasts of service revenue from the fixed telephony, broadband, mobile voice, and mobile data markets.- Service evolution: a look at changes in the breakdown of overall revenue between the fixed and mobile sectors and between voice, data and video from 2016 to 2021.- The competitive landscape: an examination of key trends in competition and in the performance, revenue market shares and expected moves of service providers over the next 18-24 months.- In-depth sector analysis of fixed telephony, broadband, mobile voice, and mobile data services: a quantitative analysis of service adoption trends by network technology and by operator, as well as of average revenue per line/subscription and service revenue through the end of the forecast period.- Main opportunities: this section details the near-term opportunities for operators, vendors and investors in Cameroon's telecommunications markets.View Report @Scope- Overall telecom service revenue in Cameroon will grow at a CAGR of 10.6% during 2016-2021, mainly driven by growth in the mobile voice and data segments.- Mobile services revenue will account for 90.1% of the total telecom service revenue in 2021; mobile data will witness a CAGR of 22.7% during 2016-2021.- The top two operators, MTN Cameroon and Orange Cameroon, which both provide mobile voice and data services, accounted for 72.1% of overall service revenue in 2016. Operators will continue to focus on expanding their 3G/4G network coverage and service quality to remain competitive.- Over the next five years, operators should seize opportunities arising from increased demand for data services. Operators are focusing on 3G/4G network expansion and offering VAS to drive additional revenue, which presents opportunities for vendors and investors.Reasons to buy- This Country Intelligence Report offers a thorough, forward-looking analysis of Cameroon's telecommunications markets, service providers and key opportunities in a concise format to help executives build proactive and profitable growth strategies.- Accompanying GlobalDatas Forecast products, the report examines the assumptions and drivers behind ongoing and upcoming trends in Cameroon's mobile communications, fixed telephony, broadband markets, including the evolution of service provider market shares.- With more than 20 charts and tables, the report is designed for an executive-level audience, boasting presentation quality.- The report provides an easily digestible market assessment for decision-makers built around in-depth information gathered from local market players, which enables executives to quickly get up to speed with the current and emerging trends in Cameroon's telecommunications markets.- The broad perspective of the report coupled with comprehensive, actionable detail will help operators, equipment vendors and other telecom industry players succeed in the challenging telecommunications market in Cameroon.About usMarketResearchReports.biz is the most comprehensive collection of market research reports. MarketResearchReports.Biz services are specially designed to save time and money for our clients. We are a one stop solution for all your research needs, our main offerings are syndicated research reports, custom research, subscription access and consulting services. We serve all sizes and types of companies spanning across various industries.ContactMr. NachiketState Tower90 Sate Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-621-2074Website:E: sales@marketresearchreports.biz
4th European Biopharma Congress

Biopharma Conferences

Biopharmaceuticals Conference SeriesConference Series has been instrumental in conducting international Biopharmaceuticals meetings for several years, and very excited to expand Europe, America and Asia Pacific continents. Previous meetings were held in major cities like San Francisco, Baltimore, with success the meetings again scheduled in continents. 4th European Biopharma Congress, is scheduled to be held during November 09-11, 2017; at Vienna, Austria.The opportunity in biopharmaceuticals is big and growing too rapidly to ignore. Today, biopharmaceuticals generate global revenues of $163 billion, making up about 20%of the pharma market. Its by far the fastest-growing part of the industry: biopharmas current annual growth rate of more than 8% is double that of conventional pharma, and growth is expected to continue at that rate for the foreseeable future.The world of Big Pharma is not only growing, it's standing on its head. Worldwide spending for prescription branded drugs and generic medicines will jump 30% from 2013-2018 at compound annual growth rate of over 5% leading to a jaw-dropping $1.3 trillion in annual global drug sales. The market is also radically shifting position, with traditional strongholds, such as Japan and Europe, flipping over, and emerging markets, such as China, becoming the head"Major proponents of business- or image-based definitions refuse to recognize biopharmaceuticals as a subset of pharmaceuticals, preferring to lump together and use the term to apply to all pharmaceuticals, associated R&D, companies and industry" says Ronald A Rader from nature biotechnology, Nature Publishing GroupI hope this message finds you well. I'm honored to request your participation as a speaker/delegate at 4th European Biopharma Congress during November 9-11, 2017 at Vienna, Austria. Euro Biopharma 2017 is a three day event with an audience from various areas of Pharma and Biopharma assembling experts from Academy and Research-Professors, Assistant Professors, PhD Scholars, Pharmaceutical Associations and Societies, Pharmaceutical Business Entrepreneurs, Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Companies, Medical Devices Manufacturing Companies, Directors, CEOs of Organizations, CROs and Clinical Data Management Companies.Our aim is to bring together bright minds to give talks that are idea-focused, and on a wide range of subjects, to foster learning, inspiration and provoke conversations that matter.Website: Biopharma ConferencesBenefits of speaker: Keynote sessions by worlds most eminent researchers. Networking with Experts in the field Being a part of global forum of Biopharma professionals Upon acceptance the abstract will receive DOI from CrossRef and published in conference proceedings book. Top Industry Representation by mostly C-level executivesWe also encourage your colleagues and you to come in a group to the conference and avail the best possible discounts on Registration and accommodation.We believe your voice would be a critical addition to the Euro Biopharma 2017 stage.Thank you for reading, and we look forward towards receiving your participation confirmation at the earliest convenience.Conference Series has been instrumental in conducting international Biopharmaceuticals meetings for several years, and very excited to expand Europe, America and Asia Pacific continents. Previous meetings were held in major cities like San Francisco, Baltimore, with success the meetings again scheduled in continents. 4th European Biopharma Congress, is scheduled to be held during November 09-11, 2017; at Vienna, Austria.Chris ChappellProgram Manager | Euro BiopharmaKemp House,152 City Road,London EC1V 2NXDirect:+1-800-216-6499Email:eurobiopharma@pharmaceuticalconferences.org
2017-2022 Ambulatory Surgery Center Report on United States and Global Market, Status and Forecast, by Players, Types and Applications

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This report studies the Ambulatory Surgery Center market status and outlook of global and United States, from angles of players, regions, product types and end industries; this report analyzes the top players in global and United States market, and splits the Ambulatory Surgery Center market by product type and applications/end industries.Fill the form for an exclusive sample of this report @The global ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) market is currently witnessing relatively fast growth mainly due to an increasing demand for quick, cost-effective, and high-quality medical services as a viable alternative to inpatient care. In terms of revenue the global ambulatory surgical centers market is projected to expand at a CAGR of 3.69% during the forecast period (20122022) and is expected to be valued at 92.1 B USD by the end of 2022. Market growth is likely to be driven largely by the rise in healthcare spending along with a growing number of ASCs.This report studies Ambulatory Surgery Center in Global market, especially in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, focuses on top manufacturers in global market, with revenue and market share for each manufacturer, coveringAmSurgTHCHCA HealthcareMednaxTeam HealthSurgical Care AffiliatesQHCSurgery PartnersMedical FacilitiesNOVENACommunityTerveystalo HealthcareSurgCenter DevelopmentElmhurstHealthway MedicalSCHEifelhoehen-KlinikMarket Segment by Regions, this report splits Global into several key Regions, with market size, market share and growth rate of Ambulatory Surgery Center in these regions, from 2012 to 2022 (forecast), likeNorth AmericaEuropeAsia-PacificRoWSplit by Product Types, with market size, market share and growth rate of each type, can be divided intoSingle-specialty CentersMulti-specialty CentersSplit by applications, this report focuses on consumption, market share and growth rate of Ambulatory Surgery Center in each application, can be divided intoGastroenterologyOphthalmologyPain ManagementOrthopedicsOthersBrowse Complete Report with TOC @Table of Contents1 Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Overview11.1 Ambulatory Surgery Center Product Overview11.1.1 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Status and Outlook11.1.2 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Status and Outlook31.2 Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Segment by Type41.3 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Product Segment by Type51.4 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Product Segment by Type72 Ambulatory Surgery Center Application92.1 Ambulatory Surgery Center Segment by Application92.2 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Product Segment by Application102.2.1 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Growth Rate by Application102.2.2 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Market Share by Application (2012-2017)102.3 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Product Segment by Application122.3.1 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Growth Rate by Application122.3.2 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Market Share by Application (2012-2017)133 Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Status and Outlook by Regions153.1 Global Market Status and Outlook by Regions153.1.1 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Growth Rate by Regions153.1.2 North America153.1.3 Europe163.1.4 Asia-Pacific173.1.5 United States183.2 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Market Share by Regions193.2.1 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Market Share by Regions (2012-2017)193.2.2 North America Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size, Cost, Gross and Gross Margin (2012-2017)223.2.3 Europe Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size, Cost, Gross and Gross Margin (2012-2017)223.2.4 Asia-Pacific Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size, Cost, Gross and Gross Margin (2012-2017)223.2.5 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size, Cost, Gross and Gross Margin (2012-2017)234 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Competition by Players/Manufacturers244.1 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Market Share by Players (2012-2017)244.2 Global Top Players Ambulatory Surgery Center Establish Date, Headquarters and Center Number274.3 Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Competitive Situation and Trends294.3.1 Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Concentration Rate294.3.2 Global Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Players304.3.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion315 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Competition by Players/Manufacturers345.1 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Size and Market Share by Players (2012-2017)345.2 United States Ambulatory Surgery Center Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Players37QYReseachReports.com delivers the latest strategic market intelligence to build a successful business footprint in China. Our syndicated and customized research reports provide companies with vital background information of the market and in-depth analysis on the Chinese trade and investment framework, which directly affects their business operations. Reports from QYReseachReports.com feature valuable recommendations on how to navigate in the extremely unpredictable yet highly attractive Chinese market.QYResearchreportsContact Us1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Web:Email: sales@qyresearchreports.com
Global Plastic Bag Market  Share, Size, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2017-2025

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IndexBox has just published a new report World: Plastic Sacks And Bags - Market Report. Analysis and Forecast to 2025. (This report has been designed to provide a detailed analysis of the global plastic bag market. It covers the most recent data sets of quantitative medium-term projections, as well as developments in production, trade, consumption and prices. The report also includes a comparative analysis of the leading consuming countries, revealing opportunities opened for producers and exporters across the globe. The forecast outlines market prospects to 2025.Countries coverage: Worldwide - the report contains statistical data for 200 countries and includes detailed profiles of the largest consuming and producing countries (United States, China, Japan, Germany, United Kingdom, France, Brazil, Italy, Russian Federation, India, Canada, Australia, Republic of Korea, Spain, Mexico, Indonesia, Netherlands, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Sweden, Nigeria, Poland, Belgium, Argentina, Norway, Austria, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Colombia, Denmark, South Africa, Malaysia, Israel, Singapore, Egypt, Philippines, Finland, Chile, Ireland, Pakistan, Greece, Portugal, Kazakhstan, Algeria, Czech Republic, Qatar, Peru, Romania, Vietnam).Product coverage: Sacks and bags, of plasticsData coverage:- Plastic bag market size and volume;- Plastic bag market trends and prospects;- Global plastic bag production and its dynamics;- Per capita consumption;- Breakdown of production by region and country;- Medium term outlook;- Plastic bag trade (exports/imports);- Prices for plastic bag;- Profiles of the main manufacturers.The report will help you:- Get a bigger picture of the market;- Rewire your business around market trends;- Devise your marketing strategy;- Operate with increased effectiveness.TABLE OF CONTENTS1. INTRODUCTION1.1 REPORT DESCRIPTION1.2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY2. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY2.1 KEY FINDINGS2.2 MARKET TRENDS3. MARKET OVERVIEW3.1 MARKET VOLUME AND VALUE3.2 CONSUMPTION BY COUNTRY3.3 MARKET OPPORTUNITIES BY COUNTRY3.4 MARKET FORECAST TO 20254. PRODUCTION4.1 PRODUCTION IN 2007-20154.2 PRODUCTION BY COUNTRY5. IMPORTS5.1 IMPORTS IN 2007-20155.2 IMPORTS BY COUNTRY5.3 IMPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY6. EXPORTS6.1 EXPORTS IN 2007-20156.2 EXPORTS BY COUNTRY6.3 EXPORT PRICES BY COUNTRY7. COUNTRY PROFILES8. PROFILES OF MAJOR PRODUCERSDownload a free sample of the report now!Browse Related Reports:World: Plastic Boxes, Cases, Crates And Similar Packing Articles - Market Report. Analysis and Forecast to 2025U.S. Plastic Bag Market. Analysis And Forecast to 2025EU: Plastic Sacks And Bags - Market Report. Analysis And Forecast To 2025IndexBox is a leading market research publisher in the world.You can find more than 25,000 research reports in our web store, which cover global industries and regional markets. All the worldwide marketing data you need is at your fingertips.We collect this data from hundreds of highly reliable sources, verify it and carry out market analysis, uncovering new business opportunities and empowering you with actionable insights.The structure of our reports is intuitive and clear. We do our best to allow you to make strategic decisions and take immediate action. If you want to go further and be a step ahead of the market, just tell us your goals and we will tailor a report to your needs.With IndexBox, simply take the data from our Box and think outside it.Company Name: IndexBoxContact Person: Kirill BezverhiEmail: kirill.bezverhi@indexbox.co.ukPhone: +44 20 3239 3063Adress: United Kingdom, 44 Main Street, Douglas, South Lanarkshire, Scotland, ML11 0QWWebsite:
2017-2022 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Report on Global and United States Market, Status and Forecast, by Players, Types and Applications

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Qyresearchreports include new market research report "2017-2022 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Report on Global and United States Market, Status and Forecast, by Players, Types and Applications" to its huge collection of research reports.This report, titled 2017-2022 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Report on Global and United States Market, Status and Forecast, by Players, Types and Applications has been prepared to serve as a dependable decision-making business document for the stakeholders connected to the value chain of the global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A market. The report provides in-depth assessment of all the major factors that may augment or hinder the demand for Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A in the near future, and projects the scenario of the market during the forecast period of 2017 to 2022. The report also highlights a few trends of this market, which must be noted by the stakeholders in order to gain ground over their competitors and stay a brisk with the latest opportunities in the market.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @The report not only evaluates the potential of each segment of the market on various basis such as type, services, application, and end-use, it also explores the potential of the global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A market in all the important regions including Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa. The report also takes a note of all the important country-wide market for Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A within those regions, providing regional trends and challenges. Government policies, if applicable, have been thoroughly studied as this factors often decides the true future of the market.Among the key features of the report on the global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A market is the chapter on company profiles, which has been carefully compiled in order to represent the true picture of existing competitive landscape among the leading players and the vie coming from other local and global vendors. The report also carefully notes the recent market developments such as mergers and acquisitions and new product launches.Browse Complete Report with TOC @Table of Contents2017-2022 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Report on Global and United States Market, Status and Forecast, by Players, Types and Applications1 Methodology and Data Source1.1 Methodology/Research Approach1.1.1 Research Programs/Design1.1.2 Market Size Estimation1.1.3 Market Breakdown and Data Triangulation1.2 Data Source2.1.1 Secondary Sources2.1.2 Primary Sources1.3 Disclaimer2 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Overview2.1 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Product Overview2.2 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Segment by Type2.2.1 Pharmaceutical2.2.2 Supplements2.2.3 Others2.3 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Product Segment by Type2.3.1 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Growth (%) by Types (2012, 2016 and 2022)2.3.2 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Market Share (%) by Types (2012-2017)2.3.3 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Revenue (Million USD) and Market Share (%) by Types (2012-2017)2.3.4 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Price (USD/Unit) by Type (2012-2017)2.4 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Product Segment by Type2.4.1 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Growth by Types (2012, 2016 and 2022)2.4.2 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Market Share by Types (2012-2017)2.4.3 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Revenue (Million USD) and Market Share by Types (2012-2017)2.4.4 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Price (USD/Unit) by Type (2012-2017)3 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Application/End Users3.1 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Segment by Application/End Users3.1.1 Male3.1.2 Female3.1.3 Kids3.1.4 Others3.2 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Product Segment by Application3.2.1 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and CGAR (%) by Applications (2012, 2016 and 2022)3.2.2 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Market Share (%) by Applications (2012-2017)3.3 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Product Segment by Application3.3.1 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and CGAR (%) by Applications (2012, 2016 and 2022)3.3.2 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Market Share (%) by Applications (2012-2017)4 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Status and Outlook by Regions4.1 Global Market Status and Outlook by Regions4.1.1 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Size and CAGR by Regions (2012, 2016 and 2022)4.1.2 North America4.1.3 Asia-Pacific4.1.4 Europe4.1.5 South America4.1.6 Middle East and Africa4.1.7 United States4.2 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales and Revenue by Regions4.2.1 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Market Share (%) by Regions (2012-2017)4.2.2 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Revenue (Million USD) and Market Share (%) by Regions (2012-2017)4.2.3 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units), Revenue (Million USD), Price (USD/Unit) and Gross Margin (%) (2012-2017)4.2.4 North America Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units), Revenue (Million USD), Price (USD/Unit) and Gross Margin (%) (2012-2017)4.2.5 Europe Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units), Revenue (Million USD), Price (USD/Unit) and Gross Margin (%) (2012-2017)4.2.6 Asia-Pacific Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units), Revenue (Million USD), Price (USD/Unit) and Gross Margin (%) (2012-2017)4.2.7 South America Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units), Revenue (Million USD), Price (USD/Unit) and Gross Margin (2012-2017)4.2.8 Middle East and Africa Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units), Revenue (Million USD), Price (USD/Unit) and Gross Margin (%) (2012-2017)4.2.9 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units), Revenue (Million USD), Price (USD/Unit) and Gross Margin (2012-2017)5 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Competition by Players/Manufacturers5.1 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Market Share by Players (2012-2017)5.2 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Revenue (Million USD) and Share by Players (2012-2017)5.3 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Average Price (USD/Unit) by Players (2012-2017)5.4 Players Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area, Product Types5.5 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Competitive Situation and Trends5.5.1 Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Concentration Rate5.5.2 Global Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Share (%) of Top 3 and Top 5 Players5.5.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion6 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Competition by Players/Manufacturers6.1 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Sales (K Units) and Market Share by Players (2012-2017)6.2 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Revenue (Million USD) and Share by Players (2012-2017)6.3 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Average Price (USD/Unit) by Players (2012-2017)6.4 United States Pharmaceutical Grade Vitamin A Market Share (%) of Top 3 and Top 5 PlayersAbout UsQYReseachReports.com delivers the latest strategic market intelligence to build a successful business footprint in China. Our syndicated and customized research reports provide companies with vital background information of the market and in-depth analysis on the Chinese trade and investment framework, which directly affects their business operations. Reports from QYReseachReports.com feature valuable recommendations on how to navigate in the extremely unpredictable yet highly attractive Chinese market.Contact Us1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948 (USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074Web:Email: sales@qyresearchreports.com
Baby and Child-Specific Products in Azerbaijan Market : Industry Trends, Analysis, Size

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SummaryThis report helps to analyze competitive developments In the Baby and Child-Specific Products in Azerbaijan MarketDescriptionBegim MChJ aims to increase its share within beauty and personal care by opening new outlets across the country and by advancing its own online retailing system.Local Company Profiles are a concise set of briefings detailing the strategic direction taken by a company. Discover key contact details, the company background and their competitive positioning through this collection of snapshot company profiles.Got any Query? Feel free to ask us at :Product coverage: Baby and Child-specific Products, Bath and Shower, Colour Cosmetics, Deodorants, Depilatories, Fragrances, Hair Care, Mass Beauty and Personal Care, Men's Grooming, Oral Care, Oral Care Excl Power Toothbrushes, Premium Beauty and Personal Care, Sets/Kits, Skin Care, Sun Care.Data coverage: market sizes (historic and forecasts), company shares, brand shares and distribution data.Why buy this report?1.Get a detailed picture of the Beauty and Personal Care market;2.Pinpoint growth sectors and identify factors driving change;3.Understand the competitive environment, the markets major players and leading brands;4.Use five-year forecasts to assess how the market is predicted to develop.Companies Mentioned:Begim MchjGet a PDF Sample of Report at:LIST OF CONTENTS AND TABLESStrategic DirectionKey FactsSummary 1 Begim MChJ: Key FactsSummary 2 Begim MChJ: Operational IndicatorsCompany BackgroundInternet StrategyPrivate LabelCompetitive PositioningSummary 3 Begim MChJ: Competitive Position 2016About Us:Orbis Research (orbisresearch.com) is a single point aid for all your market research requirements. We have vast database of reports from the leading publishers and authors across the globe. We specialize in delivering customized reports as per the requirements of our clients. We have complete information about our publishers and hence are sure about the accuracy of the industries and verticals of their specialization. This helps our clients to map their needs and we produce the perfect required market research study for our clients.Contact Information:Hector CostelloSenior Manager  Client Engagements4144N Central Expressway,Suite 600, Dallas,Texas  75204, U.S.A.Phone No.: +1 (214) 884-6817; +9164101019Follow Us on LinkedIn:
Manuka Honey Market Research Report 2017 (North America Portion from the Report) to its huge collection: Cyanco,DuPont ,Orica,Evonik

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Qyresearchreports include new market research report World Manuka Honey Market Research Report 2017 (North America Portion from the Report) to its huge collection of research reports.This market intelligence report is a highly descriptive analysis of the global market for World Manuka Honey. The report, for a better understanding of its readers, segments the market based on various criteria, including geography, end users, type, and application. It performs a methodical examination of the current and historic scenario to predict how the demand and supply charts would look in the forthcoming years.Get Report Sample and Customization:The industry chain structure of the global World Manuka Honey market is also explained in detail. It takes into account the data pertaining to the existing production capacities along with industry and government policies that impact them and the extent to which they are utilized. The cost and revenue structure analysis of prominent participants serves as an important tool to derive the overall revenue generation of the global World Manuka Honey market.There are various tools meticulously analyzed in the research report. One of them is SWOT analysis, which is vital in comprehending the competitive landscape of the global World Manuka Honey market. The report performs a detailed profiling of key players in the market and provides insights into the products and/or services offered by them. It also sheds light on the latest developments and business strategies of these players. It offers some invaluable recommendations by industrial experts, which can be helpful to both existing and emerging players in forming growth strategies. Analysts have made sure to do an in-depth analysis of the global World Manuka Honey market to reinforce the primary intention of the report, which is to provide its readers with means to have a better understanding of the market.Table of Contents1 Manuka Honey Overview11.1 Product Overview and Scope of Manuka Honey11.2 Manuka Honey Segment by Types21.3 Manuka Honey Segment by Applications/End Users41.3.1 Digestion and inflammation treatment41.3.2 Wound-care & skincare products41.3.3 Other uses41.3.4 Global Sales Market Share of Manuka Honey by Applications in 2015 and 201651.4 Manuka Honey Market by Regions6Browse Complete Report with TOC @2 Global Manuka Honey Market Competition by Manufacturers72.1 Global Manuka Honey Sales and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)72.2 Global Manuka Honey Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)92.3 Manufacturers Manuka Honey Manufacturing Base Distribution and Sales Regions112.4 Competitive Situation and Trends122.4.1 Expansions122.4.2 New Product Launches132.4.3 Other Developments143 Global Manuka Honey Analysis by Regions153.1 Global Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue and Market Share by Regions (2012-2022)153.1.1 Global Manuka Honey Sales Market Share by Regions (2012-2022)153.1.2 Global Manuka Honey Revenue Market Share by Regions (2012-2022)173.2 North America193.2.1 North America Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue and Price (2012-2022)193.2.2 North America Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue and Growth Rate (2012-2022)214 Global Manuka Honey Analysis by Types224.1 Global Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue, Market Share and Growth Rate by Types (2012-2022)224.1.1 Global Manuka Honey Sales and Market Share by Types (2012-2022)224.1.2 Global Manuka Honey Revenue, Market Share and Growth Rate by Types (2012-2022)254.2 UMF 5+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)294.2.1 North America UMF 5+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)304.3 UMF 10+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)314.3.1 North America UMF 10+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)324.4 UMF 15+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)334.4.1 North America UMF 15+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)344.5 UMF 20+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)364.5.1 North America UMF 20+ Sales, Revenue, Price and Growth (2012-2022)375 Global Manuka Honey Market Analysis by Application/End Users395.1 Global Manuka Honey Sales and Market Share by Applications (2012-2022)395.2 Major Regions Manuka Honey Sales by Applications in 2015 and 2016415.2.1 North America Manuka Honey Sales by Applications415.3 Global Manuka Honey Sales Growth Rate by Applications (2012-2022)425.3.1 North America Manuka Honey Sales Growth Rate by Applications (2012-2022)436 Global Manuka Honey Manufacturers Analysis456.1 Comvita456.1.1 Company Basic Information456.1.2 Manuka Honey Product Picture466.1.3 Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue, Price of Comvita (2015 and 2016)476.2 Watson & Son476.2.1 Company Basic Information476.2.2 Manuka Honey Product Picture486.2.3 Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue, Price of Watson & Son (2015 and 2016)496.3 Manuka Health496.3.1 Company Basic Information496.3.2 Manuka Honey Product Picture506.3.3 Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue, Price of Manuka Health (2015 and 2016)516.4 Pure Honey New Zealand516.4.1 Company Basic Information516.4.2 Manuka Honey Product Picture536.4.3 Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue, Price of Pure Honey New Zealand (2015 and 2016)546.5 Arataki Honey546.5.1 Company Basic Information546.5.2 Manuka Honey Product Picture566.5.3 Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue, Price of Arataki Honey (2015 and 2016)566.6 Streamland576.6.1 Company Basic Information576.6.2 Manuka Honey Product Picture586.6.3 Manuka Honey Sales, Revenue, Price of Streamland (2015 and 2016)596.7 Ora Honey59QYResearchReports.com is an unimpeachable source of market research data for clients that comprise acclaimed SMEs, Chinese companies, private equity firms, and MNCs. We provide market research reports on various categories such as Energy, Chemicals, Alternative and Green Energy, Manufacturing, Machinery, Pharmaceuticals and Materials, and Glass.1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United States
Algeria's President Abdelaziz Bouteflika sacked his tourism minister Sunday days after he was appointed to the post, the presidency said, with one television channel claiming he had a criminal record.

A terse statement from the presidency, carried by the APS news agency, did not say why Bouteflika had fired Messaoud Benagoun, who became minister of tourism and crafts just three days earlier.

Algerian media had criticised Benagoun's appointment, claiming that the 38-year-old had never had a job before joining the new government that was formed on Thursday.

On Sunday, private television station Enahar claimed Benagoun held a fake university diploma and a criminal record, with several convictions, but did not specify for what offences.

According to Enahar, the sacked minister had submitted a doctored curriculum vitae in order to stand in the May 4 parliamentary election.

Benagoun belongs to the Popular Algerian Movement (MPA) which won 13 seats. Bouteflika's party and its coalition ally won a clear majority while Islamists came in third place.

On Wednesday, Bouteflika appointed a new prime minister, Abdelmajid Tebboune, replacing his ally Abdelmalek Sellal in the wake of the election.

Tebboune formed his government the following day.

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Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Industry 2017 Annual Growth Value, Market Trends, Developments & Opportunities

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Qyresearchreports include new market research report Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market Research Report 2017 to its huge collection of research reports.The market intelligence report examines the global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market offers insights concerning the growth prospects over the next few years. The expected forecast and figures on the basis of value and revenue have been given in the scope of the research study considering 2017 to 2022 as the forecast period. The key factors that are anticipated to influence the overall development of the global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market have been discussed in the scope of the research study. In addition to this, the growth prospects, opportunities, and the current trends in the global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market have been provided in the report.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @In order to provide a strong understanding regarding the global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market, the research study has addressed several queries related to the growth prospects and limitations in the market. Some of these questioned have been mentioned below:What is the expected growth rate of the global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market in the next few years?Which regional segment is likely to experience a strong growth in the coming years?What are the key application of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software in the global market?Which latest trends and opportunities in the market are likely to accelerate the growth of the market?Which are the prominent players operating in the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market across the globe?Which factors are anticipated to encourage the growth of the global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market in the near future?Furthermore, the research report, in order to offer a clear picture of the global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market, throws light on the competitive landscape. A detailed list of the prominent players operating in the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software market across the globe has been provided in the scope of the research report.Table of ContentGlobal Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market Research Report 20171 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market Overview1.1 Product Overview and Scope of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software1.2 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Segment by Type1.2.1 Global Production Market Share of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software by Type in 20151.2.2 organizing an organizations documents1.2.3 storing an organizations documents1.3 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Segment by Application1.3.1 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Consumption Market Share by Application in 20151.3.2 Capture information1.3.3 Measure and store information1.3.4 Application 31.4 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market by Region1.4.1 North America Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.2 Europe Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.3 China Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.4 Japan Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.5 Korea Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.4.6 Taiwan Status and Prospect (2011-2021)1.5 Global Market Size (Value) of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software (2011-2021)Browse Complete Report with TOC @2 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market Competition by Manufacturers2.1 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.2 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.3 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Average Price by Manufacturers (2015 and 2016)2.4 Manufacturers Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area and Product Type2.5 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market Competitive Situation and Trends2.5.1 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market Concentration Rate2.5.2 Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Manufacturers2.5.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion3 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue (Value) by Region (2011-2016)3.1 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production by Region (2011-2016)3.2 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production Market Share by Region (2011-2016)3.3 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Revenue (Value) and Market Share by Region (2011-2016)3.4 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2011-2016)3.5 North America Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2011-2016)3.6 Europe Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2011-2016)3.7 China Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2011-2016)3.8 Japan Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2011-2016)3.9 Korea Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2011-2016)3.10 Taiwan Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue, Price and Gross Margin (2011-2016)4 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import by Regions (2011-2016)4.1 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Consumption by Regions (2011-2016)4.2 North America Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2011-2016)4.3 Europe Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2011-2016)4.4 China Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2011-2016)4.5 Japan Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2011-2016)4.6 Korea Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2011-2016)4.7 Taiwan Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Consumption, Export, Import (2011-2016)5 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by Type5.1 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production and Market Share by Type (2011-2016)5.2 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Revenue and Market Share by Type (2011-2016)5.3 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Price by Type (2011-2016)5.4 Global Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Software Production Growth by Type (2011-2016)QYResearchReports.com is an unimpeachable source of market research data for clients that comprise acclaimed SMEs, Chinese companies, private equity firms, and MNCs. We provide market research reports on various categories such as Energy, Chemicals, Alternative and Green Energy, Manufacturing, Machinery, Pharmaceuticals and Materials, and Glass.1820 AvenueM Suite #1047Brooklyn, NY 11230United States
Infrastructure Insight: Malaysia

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MarketResearchReports.Biz presents this most up-to-date research on "Infrastructure Insight: Malaysia"DescriptionThis report provides a detailed look into the infrastructure sector in Malaysia, including analysis of the state of the current infrastructure, the regulatory and financing landscapes and the major projects in the construction pipeline.The report covers all key infrastructure sectors: roads, railways, electricity and power, water and sewerage, communication, and airports and ports.SummaryMalaysia is expected to see some of the fastest infrastructure output growth rates in the world over the coming years to 2021, a continuation of trends seen in the first half of the decade.The total value of the infrastructure construction market reached US$10.6 billion in 2016, according to the Infrastructure Intelligence Center (IIC), up from US$6.0 billion in 2011.Output is projected to grow substantially to US$21.8 billion by 2021 (in nominal value terms), corresponding to a 15.5% annual average growth rate.This growth in spending is based on the assumption that a number of the large-scale transport projects move ahead as planned, including the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit System, the Pan Borneo Highway Upgrade and the East Coast Rail Link.ScopeA concise analysis of the administrative, economic and political context for infrastructure in Malaysia.An in-depth assessment of the current state of infrastructure in Malaysia, including roads, railways, electricity and power, water and sewerage, communications, airports and ports.A focus on main political and financial institutions involved in the infrastructure market, as well as the competitive and regulatory environment.For each infrastructure sector, an explanation of the key drivers of growth in new investment and an analysis of the project pipeline, with a detailed look at the prospects for major projects and the companies that have secured contracts.Request Sample Copy of This Report at:Reasons To BuyAssess the current state of Australian infrastructure, and the main drivers of investment, including the key institutions and financing methods.Investigate forecasts and gain an understanding of key trends in each of the main infrastructure sectors.Analyze the main project participants operating in each sector, to better understand the competitive environment.Identify top projects by sector, development stage and start date, to inform your expansion strategy.Key HighlightsThe IIC is currently tracking 86 large-scale infrastructure construction projects in Malaysia, at all stages of development from announcement to execution.These projects have a total investment value of US$124 billion. The railways sector accounts for the largest share of the project pipeline, with a total project value of US$53 billion.The 2017 budget includes a significant portion of funding for the various infrastructure sectors. Among a number of initiatives, US$244 million has been outlined for widening and improving broadband coverage, with US$1.4 billion and US$605 million set aside for the transportation and logistics and utilities sectors respectively.Malaysia currently has a well-developed physical infrastructure, scoring 5.7 for the overall quality of its infrastructure (within a range of 1 to 7, with a higher score reflecting a higher quality), corresponding to a global rank of 15th.Browse Latest Industry Press Release at:About usMarketResearchReports.biz is the most comprehensive collection of market research reports.MarketResearchReports.Biz services are specially designed to save time and money for our clients.We are a one stop solution for all your research needs, our main offerings are syndicated researchreports, custom research, subscription access and consulting services. We serve all sizes and typesof companies spanning across various industries.ContactState Tower90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207United StatesTel: +1-518-621-2074Website:E: sales@marketresearchreports.bizFollow us on LinkedIn:
Construction Industry in Ukraine Expected To Post A CAGR Of 16.59% Over The Forecast Period, 2021

Market Research Report

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Researchmoz added Most up-to-date research on "Construction Industry in Ukraine Expected To Post A CAGR Of 16.59% Over The Forecast Period, 2021" to its huge collection of research reports.In real terms, the Ukrainian construction industry recovered in 2015 after registering a gloomy performance in 2014 owing to the economic recession. Weak construction activity in 2014 was a result of various factors such as the countrys high public debt, widespread corruption and currency devaluation, which forced the economy into recession.However, the industry gained pace in 2015, supported by improvements in regional economic conditions. In addition, significant aid from financial organizations such as the International Monetary Fund added momentum to government efforts to boost economic growth. The industrys expansion continued in 2016 as the government announced plans to upgrade the countrys aging infrastructure.The industry is expected to continue to expand over the forecast period (20172021) as the government continues to implement major structural reforms to revitalize the economy. The governments large-scale investments in transport, energy and residential infrastructure projects are also expected to drive industry growth over the forecast period.The industrys output value in real terms increased at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.44% during the review period (20122016), and is expected to post a CAGR of 16.59% over the forecast period.SummaryTimetrics Construction in Ukraine Key Trends and Opportunities to 2021 report provides detailed market analysis, information and insights into the Ukrainian construction industry, including:The Ukrainian construction industry's growth prospects by market, project type and construction activityAnalysis of equipment, material and service costs for each project type in UkraineCritical insight into the impact of industry trends and issues, and the risks and opportunities they present to participants in the Ukrainian construction industryProfiles of the leading operators in the Ukrainian construction industryData highlights of the largest construction projects in UkraineMake an Enquiry of this report @ScopeThis report provides a comprehensive analysis of the construction industry in Ukraine. It provides:Historical (2012-2016) and forecast (2017-2021) valuations of the construction industry in Ukraine using construction output and value-add methodsSegmentation by sector (commercial, industrial, infrastructure, energy and utilities, institutional and residential) and by project typeBreakdown of values within each project type, by type of activity (new construction, repair and maintenance, refurbishment and demolition) and by type of cost (materials, equipment and services)Analysis of key construction industry issues, including regulation, cost management, funding and pricingDetailed profiles of the leading construction companies in UkraineReasons To BuyIdentify and evaluate market opportunities using Timetric's standardized valuation and forecasting methodologies.Assess market growth potential at a micro-level with over 600 time-series data forecasts.Understand the latest industry and market trends.Formulate and validate strategy using Timetric's critical and actionable insight.Assess business risks, including cost, regulatory and competitive pressures.Evaluate competitive risk and success factors.Key HighlightsAccording to the State Statistics Service of Ukraine, the countrys overall construction production index rose by 33.9%, from 87.7 in 2015 to 117.4 in 2016. This was preceded by a decline of 10.6% in 2014 and an increase of 10.2% in 2015. This indicates an improvement in the countrys construction activity and therefore contributes to a positive outlook for the construction industry in the coming years.The construction production index for residential buildings grew by 19.1%, from 98.9 in 2015 to 117.8 in 2016, while for non-residential buildings it rose by 44.2%, from 85.8 in 2015 to 123.7 in 2016. In terms of civil engineering activity, the construction production index registered an increase of 36.2% from 83.7 in 2015 to 114.0 in 2016.To Get Sample Copy of Report visit @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 @
Everything IT Offering Customised Cloud Storage and Data Backup Solutions in the UK

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Everything IT, an information communication technology service and solutions provider, is offering efficient, customised and cost-effective Cloud Storage and Data Backup Solutions in the UK and Ireland.Everything IT has the knack of delivering information communication technology (ICT) services and solutions as per the clients needs, business goals, and budget. Operating all across the UK and Ireland from its base in Dublin, Everything IT is a team of ICT experts who go beyond the established convention to maximise the value of the clients technology investment. While doing so, the experts seldom deviate from their commitment to quality, value, and customer delight. Thanks to its broad industry experience and familiarity with emerging trends, team Everything IT is empowering businesses and revolutionising regions and industries.Replying to a query related to Everything ITs core competencies, one of its executives recently stated, Everything IT is a profitable, reliable and dedicated operation that works with businesses of varied sizes and industries throughout Ireland and the UK. Our organically formed, multi-faceted team of ICT experts is happy to provide bespoke professional services, managed services, cloud computing, in addition to procurement and moving services. We bring to our clients the latest and an appropriate set of technologies, to fortify their infrastructure and pave way for a consistent business growth.Everything IT promotes the latest technologies available on the market with an aim to make the clients infrastructure efficient and future proof. With the suggested technologies, clients can ensure that the infrastructure can cater to all their key business processes, such as, but not restricted to, Systems availability, Performance, Information security and Data protection. Collaborating with the leading manufacturers and suppliers of IT is high at Everything ITs agenda. The strategic partnerships allow the ICT service provider to deliver top quality service and technical assistance, besides offering state of the art tools and materials available in the industry.Offering insights into the Cloud Storage solutions on offer, the executive further stated, One of the specialities of Everything IT is the provision of effective Cloud Storage and Data Backup Solutions. The said services come as a respite for modern day businesses that remain fearful of losing their critical business data. Their apprehension is justifiable, as any such development can be catastrophic to their business growth, or worse, can knock them out of the business. We have a reputation for reliable remote Cloud backup solutions for desktop and laptop computers without overstretching the clients budget.Everything IT has proficiency in providing a full spectrum of cloud backup services, including Mailbox level backups, File data backups and Database backups. Additionally, Exchange server level backups and Disaster recovery services are also there for the taking. The ICT service provider offers remote offsite backup services in the cloud to facilitate easy availability yet the optimal security of the clients crucial data. No wonder, Everything IT has emerged as an obvious destination for businesses seeking Cloud Data Backup , irrespective of their size or industry.About Everything IT:Everything IT is a credentialed information communication technology service and solutions provider since the year 2010. Calling Dublin, Ireland as home, the ICT service provider offers top quality, customised and affordable professional services, managed services, cloud computing, in addition to procurement and moving services. Of late, Everything IT is attracting the attention of businesses looking for the best Remote Support Online .Everything ITUnit 1A, Bracken Business ParkBracken RoadSandyford, Dublin 18Phone: +353 1 524 0755Fax: +353 1 443 0541E Mail: info@everythingit.ieWebsite:
Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market Size Is Expected To Reach USD 2.4 Billion By 2022

Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market

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The Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market Research Report 2017 renders deep perception of the key regional market status of the Healthcare Supply Chain Management Industry on a global level that primarily aims the core regions which comprises of continents like Europe, North America, and Asia and the key countries such as United States, Germany, China and Japan.The Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market Research Report 2017 is a professional and in-depth study on the current state of the Healthcare Supply Chain Management market. Health care is one of the notable, rapidly growing industries globally. It includes various segments such as medical devices, pharmaceuticals, information technology, and services, all of which are developing at a fast pace. This market is expected to reach 2.4 B USD by 2022 from 1.5 B USD in 2016, at a CAGR of 8.7%. On the basis of geography, the market is distributed over five regions: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa. North America was the dominant region in 2016 owing to the presence of top pharmaceutical companies here, along with the multiple government initiatives, and increased implementation of technologically advanced solutions.For Requesting a Sample Copy of This Report, Please Visit:The potential of this industry segment has been rigorously investigated in conjunction with primary market challenges. The present market condition and future prospects of the segment has also been examined. Moreover, key strategies in the market that includes product developments, partnerships, mergers and acquisitions, etc., are discussed. Besides, upstream raw materials and equipment and downstream demand analysis is also conducted.Report Includes:-The report cloaks the market analysis and projection of Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market on a regional as well as global level. The report constitutes qualitative and quantitative valuation by industry analysts, first-hand data, assistance from industry experts along with their most recent verbatim and each industry manufacturers via the market value chain. The research experts have additionally assessed the in general sales and revenue generation of this particular market. In addition, this report also delivers widespread analysis of root market trends, several governing elements and macro-economic indicators, coupled with market improvements as per every segment. Furthermore, the report contains diverse profiles of primary market players of Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market. McKesson SAP SE Oracle Corporation Infor HighJump Manhattan Associates JDA TECSYS Kinaxis BluJay Solutions Jump Technologies LogiTag SystemsTo Browse the Entire Report, Visit:The report is generically segmented into six parts and every part aims on the overview of the Healthcare Supply Chain Management industry, present condition of the market, feasibleness of the investment along with several strategies and policies. Apart from the definition and classification, the report also discusses the analysis of import and export and describes a comparison of the market that is focused on the trends and development. Along with entire framework in addition to in-depth details, one can prepare and stay ahead of the competitors across the targeted locations. The fact that this market report renders details about the major market players along with their product development and current trends proves to be very beneficial for fresh entrants to comprehend and recognize the industry in an improved manner. The report also enlightens the productions, sales, supply, market condition, demand, growth, and forecast of the Healthcare Supply Chain Management industry in the global markets.Every regions market has been studied thoroughly in this report which deals with the precise information pertaining to the Marketing Channels and novel project investments so that the new entrants as well as the established market players conduct intricate research of trends and analysis in these regional markets. Acknowledging the status of the environment and products up gradation, the market report foretells each and every detail.So as to fabricate this report, complete key details, strategies and variables are examined so that entire useful information is amalgamated together for the understanding and studying the key facts pertaining the global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Industry. The production value and market share in conjunction with the SWOT analysis everything is integrated in this report.Check for Discount @Some points from TOC:-1 Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market Overview 11.1 Healthcare Supply Chain Management Product Overview 11.2 Healthcare Supply Chain Management Segment by Types (Product Category) 21.2.1 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Sales Market Share by Types in 2016 21.2.2 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Introduction 21.2.3 Hardware 31.2.4 Software 31.3 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Segment by Applications 41.4 Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market by Regions 61.4.1 North America Status and Prospect (2012-2022) 61.4.2 Europe Status and Prospect (2012-2022) 71.4.3 China Status and Prospect (2012-2022) 71.4.4 Japan Status and Prospect (2012-2022) 81.4.5 Southeast Asia Status and Prospect (2012-2022) 81.4.6 India Status and Prospect (2012-2022) 91.5 Global Market Size (Value) of Healthcare Supply Chain Management (2012-2022) 92 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market Competition by Manufacturers 112.1 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Share by Manufacturers (2016 and 2017) 112.2 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Gross Margin by Manufacturers (2016 and 2017) 132.3 Manufacturers Healthcare Supply Chain Management Manufacturing Base Distribution, Sales Area 152.4 Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market Competitive Situation and Trends 162.4.1 Healthcare Supply Chain Management Market Concentration Rate 162.4.2 Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue Market Share of Top 3 and Top 5 Manufacturers 172.4.3 Mergers & Acquisitions, Expansion 183 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue by Regions (2012-2017) 223.1 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Market Share by Regions (2012-2017) 223.2 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Gross Margin by Regions (2012-2017) 243.3 North America Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Gross Margin (2012-2017) 263.4 Europe Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Gross Margin (2012-2017) 263.5 China Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Gross Margin (2012-2017) 263.6 Japan Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Gross Margin (2012-2017) 273.7 Southeast Asia Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Gross Margin (2012-2017) 273.8 India Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Gross Margin (2012-2017) 273.9 Global Healthcare Supply Chain Management Revenue and Gross Margin (2012-2017) 28Enquiry before Buying @About Us:QY Research Groups is a company that simplifies how analysts and decision makers get industry data for their business. Our unique colossal technology has been developed to offer refined search capabilities designed to exploit the long tail of free market research whilst eliminating irrelevant results. QY Research Groups is the collection of market intelligence products and services on the Web. We offer reports and update our collection daily to provide you with instant online access to the world's most complete and current database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, and trends.Contact us:Email- sales@qyresearchgroups.comWeb-
ThisWay Global launches strategic partnership with HireAbility to power recruitment with Artificial Intelligence

ThisWay Global

https://www.thiswayglobal.com/

ThisWay Global, a Cambridge-based technology company that has launched a software platform powered by machine learning for the recruitment industry, has joined forces with HireAbility, the provider of smart resume and CV parsing technology, to provide an artificial intelligence (AI) powered job vacancy matching service without equal in the recruitment industry.This partnership will combine two sophisticated products. HireAbilitys parsing technology makes human language understandable by computers and is highly compatible with ThisWays new AI-driven product Match-ic, which is matching as a service for the hiring market.The same deep machine learning technology that powers ThisWayGlobal and HireAbilitys solution for recruitment has already revolutionised other fields including gaming, FinTech and online dating.These ground breaking technologies will allow for resumes and CVs in more than 30 languages, as well as professional certifications, licenses and other documents, to be both parsed and automatically matched to suitable job vacancies via machine learning. Uniquely, this product partnership will provide equal benefit to both the candidates and the employers.Angela Hood, CEO at ThisWay Global, commented:Incorporating HireAbilitys sophisticated parsing technology, our innovative AI-powered recruitment platform can now decipher resumes and CVs in more than 30 languages, matching the right candidate for the employer and the right opportunity for the candidate.Following this step-change in capabilities, our HR tech, job board, recruiter and corporate customers will all benefit from the enhanced technology, helping individuals and businesses succeed in the new world of work.Steve Kenda, CEO at HireAbility, commented:HR Tech has become increasingly complex. Our parsing service handles millions of resumes and CVs annually for clients globally. Combining the strengths of two industry leaders specifically focused on their areas of expertise will result in a superior outcome for our clients.Our technology is now leveraged to provide the best results-driven outcome available. We are pleased to see it integrated with ThisWay Globals superior machine-learning algorithms and have it play a part in this significant advance in the talent acquisition process.ThisWay closed its European seed funding round at the end of 2016 and launched its Artificial Intelligence (AI) software platform, GPS, at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas in March 2017.Following high levels of customer interest on the back of the product launch, ThisWay is now raising a further funding round focused on North America, see separate release."ThisWays technology, including our machine learning Match-ic algorithm, helps businesses reach out to both passive and active candidates that are attracted to your role. Our engagement, selection, prescreening and optimization tools work for businesses of all shapes and sizes.However, ThisWays technology is not just for those who understand technology. B2B and consumer-facing startups, technology companies, SMEs and enterprise businesses simply tell us where their hiring pains are and our wide range of hiring tools cure them."ThisWay GlobalAddress: 3 Charles Babbage Rd., Hauser Forum, University of CambridgePhone: 07580 686431Website:
Global Biological Safety Cabinet Market - Global Trends, Market Share, Industry Size, Growth, Opportunities, and Market Forecast to 2022

Biological Safety Cabinet

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Biological Safety Cabinet in this report specifically refers to Biological safety cabinets (BSCs). Biological safety cabinets (BSCs) are designed to protect the operator, the laboratory environment and work materials from exposure to infectious aerosols and splashes that may be generated when manipulating materials containing infectious agents, such as primary cultures, stocks and diagnostic specimens BSCs, when properly used, have been shown to be highly effective in reducing laboratory acquired infections and cross-contaminations of cultures due to aerosol exposures. The Biological Cabinets divide to 3 classes: Class II Type A biological safety cabinets, Class II Type B biological safety cabinets, Class III biological safety cabinet.Feel the form to grain deeper insight of market @Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Biological Safety Cabinet 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.Major Players Included in Garage Door Replacement Parts Market:ESCOThermo Fisher Scientific IncAIRTECHTelstar Life-SciencesNuAire (Polypipe)The Baker CompanyKewaunee ScientificHeal Force Bio-MeditechBIOBASEDonglian Har InstrumentLabconcoMarket Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers:North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)South America (Brazil, Argentina, Columbia etc.)Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)Market Segment by Type, covers:Class II Type AClass II Type BClass III TypeMarket Segment by Applications, can be divided into:Pharmaceutical FactoryHospitalDisease Prevention and ControlAcademic ResearchOthers (Food Inspection Station, Chemical etc.)Browse full report with Table of Content and data tables for Garage Door Replacement Parts Market @There are 15 Chapters to deeply display the global Biological Safety Cabinet market.Chapter 1, to describe Biological Safety Cabinet Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, market driving force;Chapter 2, to analyze the top manufacturers of Biological Safety Cabinet, with sales, revenue, and price of Biological Safety Cabinet, in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 3, to display the competitive situation among the top manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 4, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Biological Safety Cabinet, for each region, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, to analyze the key regions, with sales, revenue and market share by key countries in these regions;Chapter 10 and 11, to show the market by type and application, with sales market share and growth rate by type, application, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 12, Biological Safety Cabinet market forecast, by regions, type and application, with sales and revenue, from 2017 to 2022;Chapter 13, 14 and 15, to describe Biological Safety Cabinet sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, Research Findings and Conclusion, appendix and data sourceCheck for discount @Some points from TOC:-1 Market Overview1.1 Biological Safety Cabinet Introduction1.2 Market Analysis by Type1.2.1 Class II Type A1.2.2 Class II Type B1.2.3 Class III Type1.3 Market Analysis by Applications1.3.1 Pharmaceutical Factory1.3.2 Hospital1.3.3 Disease Prevention and Control1.3.4 Academic Research1.3.5 Others (Food Inspection Station, Chemical etc.)1.4 Market Analysis by Regions1.4.1 North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)1.4.1.1 USA Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.2 Canada Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.3 Mexico Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2 Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)1.4.2.1 Germany Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.2 France Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.3 UK Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.4 Russia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.5 Italy Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3 Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)1.4.3.1 China Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.2 Japan Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.3 Korea Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.4 India Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.5 Southeast Asia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4 South America, Middle East and Africa1.4.4.1 Brazil Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.2 Egypt Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.3 Saudi Arabia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.4 South Africa Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.5 Nigeria Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.5 Market Dynamics1.5.1 Market Opportunities1.5.2 Market Risk1.5.3 Market Driving Force2 Manufacturers Profiles2.1 ESCO2.1.1 Business Overview2.1.2 Biological Safety Cabinet Type and Applications2.1.2.1 Type 12.1.2.2 Type 22.1.3 ESCO Biological Safety Cabinet Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.2 Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc2.2.1 Business Overview2.2.2 Biological Safety Cabinet Type and Applications2.2.2.1 Type 12.2.2.2 Type 22.2.3 Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc Biological Safety Cabinet Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.3 AIRTECH2.3.1 Business Overview2.3.2 Biological Safety Cabinet Type and Applications2.3.2.1 Type 12.3.2.2 Type 22.3.3 AIRTECH Biological Safety Cabinet Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.4 Telstar Life-Sciences2.4.1 Business Overview2.4.2 Biological Safety Cabinet Type and Applications2.4.2.1 Type 12.4.2.2 Type 2For more help speak to our Expert @About Us:GIR Market Research is a company that simplifies how analysts and decision makers get industry data for their business. 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Global Laser Interferometer Market Analysis, Market Size, Application Analysis, Regional Outlook, Competitive Strategies And Forecasts, 2022

Laser Interferometer

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Laser interferometer is a system which uses laser as a source of light because of the high intrinsic brilliance and monochromaticity of laser lights. These systems offer the advantages of nano scale and long distance measurements. Laser interferometers alse offer the combination of precise resolution and accuracy which makes it applicable for flat panel inspection, wafer steppers and nano scale micromachining. They were developed for meeting the growing demands of high precision displacement calibration in the automotive and semiconductor industries. However, the precision of these interferometer changes with the way they are used and time. Therefore, they are prone to errors if they are not calibrated on a regular basis.Feel the form to grain deeper insight of market @Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Laser Interferometer 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.Major Players Included in Garage Door Replacement Parts Market:RenishawAgilent (Keysight)OptodyneAPIJENAerTOSEI EngStatus ProOlympusFujifilmZYGOCTRIMarket Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers:North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)South America (Brazil, Argentina, Columbia etc.)Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)Market Segment by Type, covers:Homodyne Laser InterferometerHeterodyne Laser InterferometerMarket Segment by Applications, can be divided into:IndustryScientific ResearchOthersBrowse full report with Table of Content and data tables for Garage Door Replacement Parts Market @There are 15 Chapters to deeply display the global Laser Interferometer market.Chapter 1, to describe Laser Interferometer Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, market driving force;Chapter 2, to analyze the top manufacturers of Laser Interferometer, with sales, revenue, and price of Laser Interferometer, in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 3, to display the competitive situation among the top manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 4, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Laser Interferometer, for each region, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, to analyze the key regions, with sales, revenue and market share by key countries in these regions;Chapter 10 and 11, to show the market by type and application, with sales market share and growth rate by type, application, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 12, Laser Interferometer market forecast, by regions, type and application, with sales and revenue, from 2017 to 2022;Chapter 13, 14 and 15, to describe Laser Interferometer sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, Research Findings and Conclusion, appendix and data sourceCheck for discount @Some points from TOC:-1 Market Overview1.1 Laser Interferometer Introduction1.2 Market Analysis by Type1.2.1 Homodyne Laser Interferometer1.2.2 Heterodyne Laser Interferometer1.3 Market Analysis by Applications1.3.1 Industry1.3.2 Scientific Research1.3.3 Others1.4 Market Analysis by Regions1.4.1 North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)1.4.1.1 USA Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.2 Canada Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.3 Mexico Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2 Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)1.4.2.1 Germany Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.2 France Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.3 UK Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.4 Russia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.5 Italy Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3 Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)1.4.3.1 China Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.2 Japan Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.3 Korea Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.4 India Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.5 Southeast Asia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4 South America, Middle East and Africa1.4.4.1 Brazil Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.2 Egypt Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.3 Saudi Arabia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.4 South Africa Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.5 Nigeria Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.5 Market Dynamics1.5.1 Market Opportunities1.5.2 Market Risk1.5.3 Market Driving Force2 Manufacturers Profiles2.1 Renishaw2.1.1 Business Overview2.1.2 Laser Interferometer Type and Applications2.1.2.1 Type 12.1.2.2 Type 22.1.3 Renishaw Laser Interferometer Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.2 Agilent (Keysight)2.2.1 Business Overview2.2.2 Laser Interferometer Type and Applications2.2.2.1 Type 12.2.2.2 Type 22.2.3 Agilent (Keysight) Laser Interferometer Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.3 Optodyne2.3.1 Business Overview2.3.2 Laser Interferometer Type and Applications2.3.2.1 Type 12.3.2.2 Type 2For more help speak to our Expert @About Us:GIR Market Research is a company that simplifies how analysts and decision makers get industry data for their business. Our unique colossal technology has been developed to offer refined search capabilities designed to exploit the long tail of free market research whilst eliminating irrelevant results. GIR Market Research is the collection of market intelligence products and services on the Web. We offer reports and update our collection daily to provide you with instant online access to the worlds most complete and current database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, and trends.Contact us:+1-888-376-9998 (US)Email- sales@globalinforeports.com
Global Porous Filter Market - Global Industry Analysis, Segments, Major Geographies and Current Market Forecasts 2022

Porous Filter

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"This report studies the porous metal filter market. Porous metal filters have engineered, inter-connected porosity that are fabricated from metal powder particles using powder metallurgy techniques.For decades, porous filter has been widely utilized for separating soliFeel the form to grain deeper insight of market @Scope of the Report:This report focuses on the Porous Filter 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.Major Players Included in Garage Door Replacement Parts Market:EntegrisMottGKNPurolatorPallCapstan IncorporatedPorvairBaoji SagaApplied Porous TechnologiesSwift FiltersPMFMarket Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers:North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)South America (Brazil, Argentina, Columbia etc.)Middle East and Africa (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa)Market Segment by Type, covers:Stainless Steel MaterialNickel-Based MaterialTitanium-Based MaterialOther MaterialMarket Segment by Applications, can be divided into:Chemical IndustryPower IndustryMetallurgy IndustryElectronics IndustryOther IndustriesBrowse full report with Table of Content and data tables for Garage Door Replacement Parts Market @There are 15 Chapters to deeply display the global Porous Filter market.Chapter 1, to describe Porous Filter Introduction, product scope, market overview, market opportunities, market risk, market driving force;Chapter 2, to analyze the top manufacturers of Porous Filter, with sales, revenue, and price of Porous Filter, in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 3, to display the competitive situation among the top manufacturers, with sales, revenue and market share in 2016 and 2017;Chapter 4, to show the global market by regions, with sales, revenue and market share of Porous Filter, for each region, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9, to analyze the key regions, with sales, revenue and market share by key countries in these regions;Chapter 10 and 11, to show the market by type and application, with sales market share and growth rate by type, application, from 2012 to 2017;Chapter 12, Porous Filter market forecast, by regions, type and application, with sales and revenue, from 2017 to 2022;Chapter 13, 14 and 15, to describe Porous Filter sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, Research Findings and Conclusion, appendix and data sourceCheck for discount @Some points from TOC:-1 Market Overview1.1 Porous Filter Introduction1.2 Market Analysis by Type1.2.1 Stainless Steel Material1.2.2 Nickel-Based Material1.2.3 Titanium-Based Material1.2.4 Other Material1.3 Market Analysis by Applications1.3.1 Chemical Industry1.3.2 Power Industry1.3.3 Metallurgy Industry1.3.4 Electronics Industry1.3.5 Other Industries1.4 Market Analysis by Regions1.4.1 North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)1.4.1.1 USA Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.2 Canada Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.3 Mexico Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2 Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)1.4.2.1 Germany Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.2 France Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.3 UK Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.4 Russia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.5 Italy Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3 Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)1.4.3.1 China Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.2 Japan Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.3 Korea Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.4 India Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.5 Southeast Asia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4 South America, Middle East and Africa1.4.4.1 Brazil Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.2 Egypt Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.3 Saudi Arabia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.4 South Africa Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.5 Nigeria Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.5 Market Dynamics1.5.1 Market Opportunities1.5.2 Market Risk1.5.3 Market Driving Force2 Manufacturers Profiles2.1 Entegris2.1.1 Business Overview2.1.2 Porous Filter Type and Applications2.1.2.1 Type 12.1.2.2 Type 22.1.3 Entegris Porous Filter Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.2 Mott2.2.1 Business Overview2.2.2 Porous Filter Type and Applications2.2.2.1 Type 12.2.2.2 Type 22.2.3 Mott Porous Filter Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.3 GKN2.3.1 Business Overview2.3.2 Porous Filter Type and Applications2.3.2.1 Type 12.3.2.2 Type 22.3.3 GKN Porous Filter Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.4 Purolator2.4.1 Business Overview2.4.2 Porous Filter Type and Applications2.4.2.1 Type 12.4.2.2 Type 22.4.3 Purolator Porous Filter Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.5 PallFor more help speak to our Expert @About Us:GIR Market Research is a company that simplifies how analysts and decision makers get industry data for their business. Our unique colossal technology has been developed to offer refined search capabilities designed to exploit the long tail of free market research whilst eliminating irrelevant results. GIR Market Research is the collection of market intelligence products and services on the Web. We offer reports and update our collection daily to provide you with instant online access to the worlds most complete and current database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, and trends.Contact us:John+1-888-376-9998 (US)Email- sales@globalinforeports.com
Global Automotive Lubricant Market to Register a Robust Growth By 2021

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A lubricant is a substance introduced to reduce friction between surfaces in mutual contact, which ultimately reduces the heat generated when the surfaces move. It may also have the function of transmitting forces, transporting foreign particles, or heating or cooling the surfaces. The property of reducing friction is known as lubricity. In addition to industrial applications, lubricants are used for many other purposes. Other uses include cooking (oils and fats in use in frying pans, in baking to prevent food sticking), bio-medical applications on humans (e.g. lubricants for artificial joints), ultrasound examination, medical examinations, and the use of personal lubricant for sexual purposes.This report provides detailed analysis of worldwide markets for Automotive Lubricant from 2011-2015 and provides extensive market forecasts 2016-2021 by region/country and subsectors. It covers the key technological and market trends in the Automotive Lubricant market and further lays out an analysis of the factors influencing the supply/demand for Automotive Lubricant, and the opportunities/challenges faced by industry participants.To Receive a Sample Copy Global Automotive Lubricant Market @Global Automotive Lubricant Market Outlook 2016-2021, has been prepared based on the synthesis, analysis, and interpretation of information about the global Automotive Lubricant market collected from specialized sources. The report covers key technological developments in the recent times and profiles leading players in the market and analyzes their key strategies. The competitive landscape section of the report provides a clear insight into the market share analysis of key industry players. The major players in the global Automotive Lubricant market are Shell (Netherlands), Exxon Mobil (USA), Chevron (USA), TOTAL (France), BP (UK), Fuchs (Germany), CNPC (China), SINOPEC (China), among others.The report provides separate comprehensive analytics for the North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa and Rest of World. In this sector, global competitive landscape and supply/demand pattern of Automotive Lubricant industry has been provided.Buy a Copy of Global Automotive Lubricant Market for single user price of $ 2800 @Key ChaptersPart 1. Exclusive SummaryPart 2. Methodology2.1 Research Methodology2.2 Geographic Scope2.3 Years ConsideredPart 3. Introduction3.1 Definition3.2 Supply Chain Structure3.2.1 Raw Material Supply3.2.2 Traders & Distributors3.2.3 Key Customers3.3 Manufacture3.3.1 Manufacturing Process3.3.2 Production CostPart 4. Market Landscape4.1 Global Automotive Lubricant Market Size (Volume) 2011-20164.1.1 Overview4.1.2 Global Automotive Lubricant Production4.1.3 Top 10 Automotive Lubricant Companies (Volume Share)To View Full Report @Who we areResearch Trades has team of experts who works on providing exhaustive analysis pertaining to market research on a global basis. This comprehensive analysis is obtained by a thorough research and study of the ongoing trends and provides predictive data regarding the future estimations, which can be utilized by various organizations for growth purposes.We distribute customized reports that focus on meeting the clients specific requirement.Our database consists of a large collection of high-quality reports obtained using a customer-centric approach, thus providing valuable research insights. The research encompasses information gathered and examined by subject-matter experts, laying down growth opportunities and developmental strategies for enterprises.Reach at us:Flat No.10, Wing C,S. No. 245/4/2+245/5/1,Baner, Pune-411045Email: sales@researchtrades.comCall us: +91 7507349866Skype ID: researchtradesconWeb:
Five fishermen were reported missing after the crash on Sunday, with two survivors rescued at the scene

The Egyptian navy has retrieved the bodies of three fishermen who drowned after a collision in the Mediterranean Sea off Port Said on Sunday, the armed forces said.

The three bodies were picked up by naval personnel involved in the search operation on Monday, leaving two fishermen still missing one day after their boat sank.

The incident occured when a fishing boat collided with another vessel in the Mediterranea Sea and sank, according to a statement posted online by army spokesman Colonel Tamer El-Refai.

Five fishermen were reported missing after the incident, while two crew members were rescued by boats that were in the vicinity of the incident.

The military said in its Monday statement that the search operation was still ongoing.

Earlier in May, the navy rescued 23 tourists and eight crew members after their boat caught fire in the Red Sea off Hurghada.



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Comprion First with New GCF-Relevant NB-IoT USIM Test Bench

Narrow band-IoT (NB-IoT) is a low-power wide area network radio technology created for the Internet of Things (IoT) and machine-to-machine (M2M) world. The new Comprion NB-IoT USIM Test Bench will soon become mandatory for qualifying NB-IoT devices according to the Global Certification Forum (GCF). We are pleased to be the first test equipment vendor offering a validated NB-IoT USIM conformance test solution, explains Abdul Majid Malik, Head of Comprion SIMfony Test Solutions. Jurgen Fischer, the responsible Lead Technical Advisor adds: It ensures that IoT and M2M devices equipped with NB-IoT modules adhere to 3GPP standards avoiding any interoperability surprises.NB-IoT shall connect a wide range of devices and services in the IoT context by making use of low energy and a high radio range. The technology is designed for application fields where conventional M2M channels such as mobile networks, DSL, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth are unprofitable and for sites where the mobile network signals are too weak (for example, for transmitting smart metering data from cellars), explicates Fischer. As NB-IoT bases on 3GPP standards, it uses currently unused frequencies of existing mobile networks in a narrow band that guarantees efficiency, stability, reliability, and future security.The new tests for NB-IoT terminals are now part of the test specification 3GPP TS 31.121 Rel-13 Version 13.6.0, which became part of the new GCF Work Item 266. USIM/USAT conformance testing is as essential for proper operation in the 3GPP NB-IoT network as it is for the LTE network. The test bench is useful for everyone intending to accurately evaluate the required specification conformity  be it chip and chipset manufacturers, terminal and M2M module vendors, mobile network operators, network infrastructure providers, test houses, test service providers, or UICC and card vendors.The new test bench is immediately available. It can be run on the Comprion SIMfony test solution with either the conformance tester UT Platform or the pre-conformance tester Prove 2 in combination with the R&S CMW500 network simulator.About ComprionComprion is the worldwide leading manufacturer of test solutions for smart card interfaces, terminals and smart cards. Covering contact-based and contactless technologies, Comprion provides their expertise to multiple industries, especially telecommunications, payments and M2M. Our involvement in a number of standardization and certification bodies enables us to integrate the latest standards and requirements into our high quality products. As Comprion test systems are renowned for the most accurate measurement capabilities, the company serves all top mobile phone, terminal, card and chipset manufacturers as well as mobile network operators and test houses. Comprion also acts as technological consultant supporting many key players in the market.Press ContactKathleen KnievelCorporate Marketing ManagerTel: +49 5251 6859 0Fax: +49 5251 6859 999E-Mail: press@comprion.comLise- Meitner Str.333104 PaderbornGermany
Global Medical Refrigerator Market Size, Share, Analysis, Industry Demand and Forecasts Report to 2022

Mediacal Refrigerator

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Global Info Reports has published its new and latest market report based on thorough research on the Medical Refrigerator Market. This detailed, all-inclusive report renders an integrated approach to growth of the market along with an elaborate and accurate analysis of the complete competitive situation of this market on a global level with the key market trends and newest technologies, being a major part in the markets growth during the estimated period. Besides the current analytical and statistical account, the report cloaks the trends, market drivers, challenges, potential opportunities, which have an effect on the market. This market report discusses the present situation to predicted trends and aspects of the Medical Refrigerator Market. Furthermore, it gives a dynamic overview and insights related to the market at both global as well as regional scale.Request to Sample of This Report @Globally, the healthcare industry is garnering more attention in the last few years with new and latest technologies emerging. The prevalence of increasing diseases and rising awareness and concerns pertaining to the health are elements being contributive factors to revenue generation and overall growth of the healthcare sector and its associated industries. Escalated use of new inventions, and enhanced technologies along with ascending rate of investments in R&D, is encouraging the scope of the market and revenue growth of the global market.Distinguishing the increasing predominance of Medical Refrigerator Market, this market research report demonstrates to be a key source of management and thorough data on the market across the globe. In order to strategize the outlook and prospects, this report assesses the current market status along with the altering trends in the market. It is a methodical research depending on the market and examines the competitive framework of the global Medical Refrigerator Market industry. Comprehensive information attained from trusted sources from the industry and via proven research methodological analysis, this report gives the 360 degree data on this market. The report features market figures, graphs, and data and renders a superior level strategic plan of the global market.Browse full report with Table of Content @Several acknowledgeable tools based on analysis have been put to use to render an in-depth evaluation of the market. The report cloaks every aspect of the global market for Anthrax Vaccines. Starting from basic ground-level information to advanced market segmentation and classification depending on separate criteria. It studies the prime segments and the regional segregation of the market and assists in establishing the future of the market in the global arena.Prime countries, regions, and sub-sectors have been studied for giving improved knowledge of the market scope across the globe. The market report classifies the market by assessing the manufacturing chain, market manufacturers and their contribution in the industry, dominant policies and revenue structure, and regulatory aspects. The geographical markets of the Medical Refrigerator Market are thoroughly examined by assessing the profits garnered, product pricing, demand, logistics, production capacity, and supply, along with past performance of the market in the said region.The report renders penetrates into the competitive landscape of the global market industry along with major manufacturers profiled in the report. The Medical Refrigerator Market is extremely competitive and regulated. Lastly, trends, plans, company profiles, business strategies, M&As, financial metrics and strategical business planning of the leading market players in the global market of this industry have been analyzed in this study.Request For Discount @Some Point From TOC:1 Market Overview1.1 Medical Refrigerator Introduction1.2 Market Analysis by Type1.2.1 Between 2?and 8?1.2.2 Between 0?and -40?1.2.3 Under -40?1.3 Market Analysis by Applications1.3.1 Hospital1.3.2 Blood Bank1.3.3 Pharmacy1.3.4 Other1.4 Market Analysis by Regions1.4.1 North America (USA, Canada and Mexico)1.4.1.1 USA Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.2 Canada Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.1.3 Mexico Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2 Europe (Germany, France, UK, Russia and Italy)1.4.2.1 Germany Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.2 France Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.3 UK Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.4 Russia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.2.5 Italy Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3 Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia)1.4.3.1 China Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.2 Japan Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.3 Korea Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.4 India Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.3.5 Southeast Asia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4 South America, Middle East and Africa1.4.4.1 Brazil Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.2 Egypt Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.3 Saudi Arabia Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.4 South Africa Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.4.4.5 Nigeria Market States and Outlook (2012-2022)1.5 Market Dynamics1.5.1 Market Opportunities1.5.2 Market Risk1.5.3 Market Driving Force2 Manufacturers Profiles2.1 Haier2.1.1 Business Overview2.1.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.1.2.1 Type 12.1.2.2 Type 22.1.3 Haier Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.2 Panasonic2.2.1 Business Overview2.2.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.2.2.1 Type 12.2.2.2 Type 22.2.3 Panasonic Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.3 Helmer2.3.1 Business Overview2.3.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.3.2.1 Type 12.3.2.2 Type 22.3.3 Helmer Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.4 Follett2.4.1 Business Overview2.4.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.4.2.1 Type 12.4.2.2 Type 22.4.3 Follett Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.5 LEC2.5.1 Business Overview2.5.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.5.2.1 Type 12.5.2.2 Type 22.5.3 LEC Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.6 Thermo Fisher2.6.1 Business Overview2.6.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.6.2.1 Type 12.6.2.2 Type 22.6.3 Thermo Fisher Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.7 Vestfrost Solutions2.7.1 Business Overview2.7.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.7.2.1 Type 12.7.2.2 Type 22.7.3 Vestfrost Solutions Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.8 Felix Storch2.8.1 Business Overview2.8.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.8.2.1 Type 12.8.2.2 Type 22.8.3 Felix Storch Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.9 KIRSCH2.9.1 Business Overview2.9.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.9.2.1 Type 12.9.2.2 Type 22.9.3 KIRSCH Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.10 Meiling2.10.1 Business Overview2.10.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.10.2.1 Type 12.10.2.2 Type 22.10.3 Meiling Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.11 Migali Scientific2.11.1 Business Overview2.11.2 Medical Refrigerator Type and Applications2.11.2.1 Type 12.11.2.2 Type 22.11.3 Migali Scientific Medical Refrigerator Sales, Price, Revenue, Gross Margin and Market Share (2016-2017)2.12 Standex (ABSEnquiry Before Buying@About Us:GIR Market Research is a company that simplifies how analysts and decision makers get industry data for their business. Our unique colossal technology has been developed to offer refined search capabilities designed to exploit the long tail of free market research whilst eliminating irrelevant results. GIR Market Research is the collection of market intelligence products and services on the Web. We offer reports and update our collection daily to provide you with instant online access to the worlds most complete and current database of expert insights on global industries, companies, products, and trends.Contact us:John+1-888-376-9998 (US)Email- sales@globalinforeports.com
COMFORT360 - Business Mob App - Egypt Relocation & Real Estate Services

COMFORT RELOCATION & REAL ESTATE SERVICES IN EGYPT, CAIRO, HURGADA, ALEX, AIN-SOKHNA

An app designed to help you relocate to Egypt and find right propertyDesigned with the intent of helping people access relocation and real estate services, Comfort360 helps those who are looking for real estate help in Egypt. The app is meant to help all those who wish to avoid the hassle of going through real estate services and have it all in one place.With the use of the app, you can access a variety of features such as relocation and real estate services, relocation services include ( Destination/Orientation , All Settling Services and Departure Services)Its only one step, just fill our questionnaire online through the app which include all information we need to receive from your side and we start our mission.find the property of your choice in Egypt, market research services, buy and sell houses, calculate mortgage etc. The app is simple to use and allows you access to multiple functions. Not only can you find your ideal property but also have it appraised by our professional team, just fill online through our application , also you could calculate the mortgage of the property, find the location, find a suitable land and many other such property related information.Not only is it ideal for personal properties but also commercial properties. Corporate housing services can be attained through the app, as also commercial renting. Just with one click, you will have instant access to all the various listings and can pick to choose whatever suits your property needs. There is also an option to sort through the listing in order to manage them better.You can easily find a villa, apartment or a commercial space just by mentioning your specifications. Once you stumble upon the right property, you can click on it to display the details. From there on, you can contact the owner of the listing. You can just as easily list your own property on the app as well as request an appraisal.It is quite simple to have your property appraised through the app. You can click on the desired option and get a fair estimate for your property. If you are unsure of where exactly your chosen property lies, then you can click on the map provided to trace the exact location.Now in Egypt you can booking your services apartment online through our app after select the convenient one and then you need to file our questionnaire online to confirm and then you pay through PayPal Me to save time and effort.Also, app give you possibility to prepare professional lease agreement in case you need this services.The app comes with a user-friendly interface and can be used by just about anyone. Right from students looking to rent a place to families looking for villas, there is something on offer for everyone. For your convenience, all the properties listed on the app will be verified beforehand.The app is simple to download and use and requires iOS 8.0 and above. It is also available for android users and can be downloaded from the playstore.COMFORT360 is a professional business service app that helps you get all Relocation & Real Estate services in Egypt. Its an app, which is run by a company known as Comfort Relocation Services; a well-established company that has a network of operators all over Egypt who help you to perform various Relocation & Real-Estate services.COMFORT360 is made for those people who dont want to get into the hassle of Relocation & Real Estate Services. It can be quite difficult to deal with the various intricacies of real estate transactions but COMFORT360 makes it simple for you. All you have to do is use the app to find the service that you want. You dont have to spend a lot of time visiting other agencies/brokers when you can simply browse them all through the app. Simply browse them all through the app.Khaled FaroukSenior Relocations ConsultantEgypt (Cairo & Alexandria)Comfort Relocations ServicesMob: +201 001 407 375Email: khaled@comfort360.netSkype Name : khaled0020101407375
Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery Market Value chain and stakeholder analysis by 2024

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The lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP) battery refers to rechargeable lithium-ion battery which uses LiFePO as a cathode material. The energy density in LiFePO batteries are lower as compared to that of have common LiCoO design available in consumer electronic. However, better power density and longer lifetimes and safety are some of the benefits associated with these batteries..Lithium Iron Phosphate, also known as LFP has various features such as long cycle life, high safety and high temperature resistance. Lithium iron phosphate batteries find application in power tools, electric vehicles, energy storage devices and electric bicycles among others. But as of now, the main use of Lithium Iron Phosphate battery is its use power batteries for electric vehicles.The Lithium Iron Phosphate battery market is expected to grow as a result of various factors such as the ever increasing population due to which there has been a significant depletion of fossil fuel reserves.Obtain Report Details:This has led to a shift in the focus on the part of various countries towards have renewable power generation. Therefore, as a result of increasing focus towards renewable energy to address the serious concern of climate change and also improving upon the energy conservation is expected to contribute to the growth of the Lithium Iron Phosphate battery market during the forecast period.Moreover, there has also been a growing focus towards the integration of renewable energy resources with power grid networks which in turn is fuelling the growth of the market. These hybrid power systems and power grids use lithium iron phosphate batteries as a backup.As per trends it has been observed that the various manufacturers of Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries are continuously engaged in research and development activities. The market requires extensive investments and return on investment is a time taking process. This has resulted in the manufacturers to be heavily dependent on government funding in order to expand their their facilities.Moreover, as a result of favorable government policies in countries such as Japan, South Korea and China among others is helping the market to flourish. The government in these countries are in support of green and eco-friendly technologies, which is bound to result in many manufacturers to enter the market and develop their own manufacturing units.Currently, the Lithium Iron Phosphate battery market is highly competitive and product quality, brand recognition, durability, reliability, pricing and energy density are of prime importance for the manufacturers in order to stay afloat in the competition. Furthermore, manufacturers offering better quality products at a competitive price are expected to prefer.The lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP) battery on the basis of application can be segmented into; EVs and HEVs (electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicle), Renewable power and Consumer electronics. The EVs and HEVs is expected to dominate the market in terms of revenue.Unconventional energy storage systems that have the capability to enhance the performance and vehicle efficiency are an important area of focus for the EV manufacturers.As a result of long cycle time and high energy density, lithium iron phosphate batteries are expected to be the most preferred choice as far as alternative energy storage systems are concerned. Therefore, the growth in the demand for EVs in countries such as China is expected to fuel the demand for lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP) batteries.Fill the form to gain deeper insights on this market:Geographically, the lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP) battery market can be segmented into five regions, namely, North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa and Latin America.Some of the key players operating in the lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP) battery market are BYD, A123, Electrical Vehicle Power System Technology, OptimumNano Energy, K2Energy, Pihsiang Energy Technology and Victory Battery Technology among others.The report offers a comprehensive evaluation of the market. It does so via in-depth qualitative insights, historical data, and verifiable projections about market size. The projections featured in the report have been derived using proven research methodologies and assumptions.About TMRTransparency 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 TMR90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email:sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Global Market Study on Glycine: Asia Pacific and Europe Anticipated to Witness Significant Growth Between 2016 and 2024

MRRSE

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http://www.mrrse.com/glycine-market

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The U.S is a large consumer of glycine, while the largest producer of glycine is China. Persistence Market Research highlights that the cost of glycine depends largely on the cost of chemicals and energy. In addition, analysts of this market research company have also observed that volatile raw material prices are affecting the prices of glycine. While targeting different geographies in the drafting of a new report titled Glycine Market: Global Industry Analysis and Forecast, 20162024, Persistence Market Research analysts have come to a conclusion that the North America regions demand for glycine is very high, which creates opportunity for market players from different countries in the region. On the other hand, Asia Pacific holds a high market share and is expected to create high incremental opportunity in the global glycine market. Another observation is that by importing tech grade from countries where the cost of production is low and purifying it into food grade will help in significant reduction of cost. The analysts have also noticed further that importing glycine at low rates from China to the U.S. and routed through Canada can avoid anti-dumping duties.Request for Sample Report:The principal objective of this report is to present insights into the many advancements that have already been made in the global glycine market. The report provides updates on drivers, restraints, opportunities and trends in the global glycine market. The report demarcates market dynamics that are predicted to influence the current market situation and the future status of the global glycine market over the forecast period.Inclusion of primary verbatim data is the uniqueness of this reportA highly placed official in one of the key glycine companies in Eastern Europe has stated that prices of cheap drugs from the list of vital medicines may significantly increase in Russia this year due to a recent decision by the Russian government to refrain from implementing further state regulation of prices for drugs from this segment. This means that the government will allow pharmaceutical companies to set their own prices for such vital and cheap drugs as aspirin, ibuprofen, glycine, and water for injection. Another official from a leading glycine company from the APAC region has explained that the Chinese glycine industry has always witnessed overcapacity in the past few years, but the capacity of glycine in China will keep increasing in the coming five years. Another official further stated that glycine and glyphosate manufacturers already have their own ambitions in the global glycine market.Make an Enquiry:The report commences with a market overview that highlights the market scenario and provides key insights into the global glycine market. The report further discusses market dynamics including market drivers, restraints, opportunities, trends and key regulations in the global glycine market. This is followed by a comprehensive analysis of value and supply chain analysis along with the highlighting of key participants and associated process components. In addition, location analysis, production vs. consumption analysis and the listing of key producers, consumers and traders has been provided across all regional levels. The report provides detailed market share analysis, Y-o-Y growth and market attractiveness analysis on the basis of various segments. In the final section of the report, a competitive landscape has been provided to present the business operations of some of the key players along with a dashboard containing market share and competitive analysis. Detailed profiles of some of the manufacturers have also been included within the scope of the report to estimate their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats along with long-term and short-term strategies, recent developments and offerings in the global glycine market.Market SegmentationBy GradesTech GradeFood GradePharmaceutical GradeFeed GradeBy ApplicationChemicalFeedFoodPharmaceuticalOthersBy RegionNorth AmericaLatin AmericaEuropeAsia PacificMiddle East and AfricaBrowse Full Report with TOC:A detailed analysis has been provided for every segment in terms of market size for the global glycine market. It is important to note that in an ever changing economy, the report not only conducts forecasts in terms of CAGR but also analyzes the market based on key parameters like Y-o-Y (year-on-year) growth to interpret the predictability of the market as well as to identify the right opportunities for market players operating in the global glycine market. Another key feature of this report is that it includes the analysis of all key market segments in terms of absolute dollar opportunity. Absolute dollar opportunity analysis is critical in evaluating the level of opportunity that a provider can look to achieve in the global market. Absolute dollar opportunity analysis of the global glycine market will help identify potential resources from a sales and delivery perspective in the global glycine market. The report also provides strategic recommendations and key success factors for new entrants in the global glycine market.About UsMarket Research Reports Search Engine (MRRSE) is an industry-leading database of market intelligence reports. MRRSE is driven by a stellar team of research experts and advisors trained to offer objective advice. Our sophisticated search algorithm returns results based on the report title, geographical region, publisher, or other keywords.MRRSE partners exclusively with leading global publishers to provide clients single-point access to top-of-the-line market research. MRRSEs repository is updated every day to keep its clients ahead of the next new trend in market research, be it competitive intelligence, product or service trends or strategic consulting.ContactState Tower90, State StreetSuite 700Albany, NY  12207United States Telephone: +1-518-730-0559Email: sales@mrrse.comFollow Us on LinkedIn-Follow Us On Twitter-
Global Machine Condition Monitoring Market is expected to Hit at USD ~2,700 Million by 2022, at ~5% of CAGR by 2022.

Machine Condition Monitoring Market

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Global Machine Condition Monitoring Market, By End-User (Power, Oil and Gas, Chemical and Petrochemical, Pulp and Paper, Cement, Steel and Metal, Pharmaceutical, Automotive, Food and Beverage) - Forecast to 2022Market Synopsis of Machine Condition Monitoring Market:Market Scenario:Machine condition monitoring is the process of monitoring the condition of a machine with the commitment to predict mechanical wear and tear. Vibration, noise, and temperature measurements are often used as key indicators to determine the state of the machine. Trends in the data provide health information about the machine and help to detect machine faults early, which prevents unexpected failure and costly repair. It has been observed that an increase in need for reduced maintenance cost is boosting the machine condition monitoring. In this changing environment a shift from preventive to predictive maintenance is observed which has led to high adoption of machine condition monitoring.There has been a major shift in ideology as many companies are investing in predictive maintenance models, such as machine condition monitoring systems and solutions, to maintain standards of productivity and prevent breakdowns. Tight competition has compelled several industries to focus on reducing energy and resource expenditure, and minimize downtime, which decreases the overall operating expenditure and increases profits.The global machine condition monitoring market is expected to grow at USD ~2,700 Million by 2022, at ~5% of CAGR between 2016 and 2022.Get Sample Report @Study Objectives of Machine Condition Monitoring Market: To provide detailed analysis of the market structure along with forecast of the various segments and sub-segments of the Machine Condition Monitoring market. To provide insights about factors affecting the market growth. To analyze the Machine Condition Monitoring market based porters five force analysis etc. 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). 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 on the basis of end-user and region. To provide strategic profiling of key players in the market, comprehensively analyzing their core competencies, and drawing a competitive landscape for the market. To track and analyze competitive developments such as joint ventures, strategic alliances, mergers and acquisitions, new product developments, and research and developments in the Machine Condition MonitoringKey Players:The prominent players in the machine condition monitoring market are  Emerson Electric (U.S.), General Electric (U.S.), Honeywell International, Inc. (U.S.), National Instruments (U.S.), Rockwell Automation (U.S.), Azima Dli (U.S.), Bruel & Kjaer Sound and Vibration Measurement (U.S.), Flir Systems (U.S.), Fluke Corporation (U.S.), SKF (Sweden), among others.Get Browse Report @Machine Condition Monitoring Market Segments:The global machine condition monitoring market has been segmented on the basis of end-user and region.Machine Condition Monitoring Market by End-User:Power, Oil and Gas, Chemical and Petrochemical, Pulp and Paper, Cement, Steel and Metal, Pharmaceutical, Automotive, Food and Beverage, OthersIntended Audience Suppliers of machine condition monitoring systems Asset management consultants that specialize in physical asset management Associations and regulatory authorities related to plant maintenance Manufacturers of components used for machine condition monitoring Distributers Investors and Venture Capitalist Maintenance personnel System Integrators Government Organizations Research/Consultancy firmsRegional Analysis:The regional analysis of machine condition monitoring market is being studied for region such as Asia Pacific, Americas, Europe and Rest of the World. High technological advancements in automobile industry has driven the market of machine condition monitoring in North America. It has been observed that North America region is the leading in machine condition monitoring market. The study reveals that Asia-Pacific region is expected to show a positive growth in the machine condition monitoring market during the forecast period. Asia-Pacific countries like China, Japan and South Korea have a fair share in the Machine Condition Monitoring market.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.Contact:Akash Anand,Market Research Future+1 646 845 9312Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com
Global Direct Laryngoscopes Market projected to grow at a CAGR of 4.9% by 2022 at USD 522 Million

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Market Research Future adds new report of Global Direct Laryngoscopes Market Value & Sales, 2013-2022 it contains Company information, geographical data and Table of ContentGlobal Direct Laryngoscopes Market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 4.9% during the forecasted period at USD 522 Million. Among the various regions North America contributes the largest market share of 47.8% towards global direct laryngoscopes market.This large share is majorly attributed to growing patient base, rising number of endotracheal tube in U.S. for instance, every year on an average 20 million endotracheal tube are being performed in U.S. these factors helps the direct laryngoscopes market to grow in this region. The major threats including availability of new technologies such as video laryngoscopes, enhanced direct laryngoscopes, among others are expected to capture the maximum market share in near future and cannibalize the share of global direct laryngoscopes Market.Make an enquiry before buying this Report @The global direct laryngoscopy market on the basis of types of techniques, includes direct and indirect techniques. Direct laryngoscopy has proven to be a standard method for tracheal intubation procedures commanding the shares of 40.2% while indirect methods commands the maximum shares of 59.8% in the various region considered for study purposes.The global direct laryngoscopes market by region, market statistical report published by Market Research future contains a brief overview of global direct laryngoscopes market by region. The market has been segmented on the basis of regions as North- America, Europe, Asia- Pacific, Middle East and Africa region to provide a clear picture of direct laryngoscopes industry around the globe. The global direct laryngoscopes market has been significantly growing over a certain period of time concerning to the growing ageing population, increasing use of direct laryngoscopes in cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and rising number of laryngoscopy procedures along with improving economic conditions of consumers. The report analysis the global direct laryngoscopes market and presents systematic data of market share by region and its growth rate for 2013 to 2015, along with forecast till 2022.Browse Report Details @Through this report Market Research future aims to provide understanding of the global direct laryngoscopes market and assists identification of ongoing trends along with anticipated growth in the coming years. For this research extensive primary research was conducted to gain a deeper insight of the market performance. Various industry experts and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) were contacted from both supply side and demand side of global direct laryngoscopes market. The supply side industry experts consisted of CEOs, Directors, Marketing Managers, Sales Mangers, R&D Specialists, Country Manager, and Regional Managers direct laryngoscopes companies, Retailers, and Distributors amongst others.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.In order to stay updated with technology and work process of the industry, MRFR often plans & conducts meet with the industry experts and industrial visits for its research analyst members.Contact:Akash Anand,Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com
Peroxyacetic Acid Market Global Key Vendors, Manufacturers, Suppliers and Analysis Market Report 2027

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Peroxyacetic acid is also known as peracetic acid or PAA, is an organic compound having a formula of CH3CO3H which is a colorless and highly acidic liquid. In the manufacturing process of peroxyacetic acid acetic acid and hydrogen peroxide are used as principal constituent. Compared to parent acetic acid peroxyacetic acid is weaker acid.Make an Enquiry @Disinfectants are one of the major types of peroxyacetic acid which plays a major role in preventing and destroying infectious bacteria and fungus from food. Over the years, it has been experienced that the demand for packed food, frozen food and preservative food have increased, hence it has created a major scope for the peroxyacetic acid market for disinfectants to cover the global market. Europe has accounted the largest market for disinfectants due to the major driving factors such as increasing demand for frozen and packaged food and increasing preference for purified water.North America and Asia-Pacific holds the seconds and third position in global disinfectant market share for peroxyacetic acid. The demand for disinfectants has been increasing in these region due the driving factors such as increasing usage of peroxyacetic acid over other biocides, growing population and increasing demand for packaged food.Market Research future through this report aims to provide understanding of the Global Peroxyacetic Acid Market for Disinfectant and also assists identification of ongoing trends along with anticipated growth during the forecasted period. For this report, extensive primary research was conducted to gain a deeper insight of the market performance. Various industry experts and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) were contacted and interviewed to get an idea of global market.List of TablesTable 1 global disinfectant market: by region, 2014-2027 (usd million)Table 2 global disinfectant market: by region, 2014-2027 (kt)Table 3 north america disinfectant market: by country, 2014-2027 (usd million)Table 4 north america disinfectant market: by country, 2014-2027 (kt)Table 5 europe disinfectant market: by country, 2014-2027 (usd million)Table 6 europe disinfectant market: by country, 2014-2027 (kt)Table 7 asia-pacific disinfectant market, 2015 (usd million)Table 8 asia-pacific disinfectant market: by country, 2014-2027 (usd million)Table 9 asia-pacific disinfectant market: by country, 2014-2027 (kt)Access Report Details @List of FiguresFigure 1 global disinfectant market share for peroxyacetic acid: by regions, 2015 (% share)Figure 2 global disinfectant market: by region, 2015 (usd million)Figure 3 north america disinfectant market share for peroxyacetic acid: by region, 2015 (% share)Figure 4 north america disinfectant market, 2015 (usd million)Figure 5 europe disinfectant market share for peroxyacetic acid: by regions, 2015 (% share)Figure 6 europe disinfectant market, 2015 (usd million)Figure 7 asia-pacific disinfectant market share for peroxyacetic acid: by region, 2015 (% share)ContinueWe are thankful for the support and assistance from Global Peroxyacetic Acid Market for Disinfectant - Forecast to 2027 chain related technical experts and marketing experts during Research Team survey and interviews.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.Media Contact:Akash Anand,Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com
Automotive Lightweight Materials Market Forecast By 2024

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The global market for automotive lightweight materials has been rising exponentially over the last few years. The increasing need to improve the safety and fuel economy in automobiles has compelled automakers to shift to lightweight materials, which has reflected greatly on this market. The rising enforcement of stringent rules and regulations regarding emission control has only added to the uptake of lightweight designs from automobile manufacturers.Researchers expect the scenario to remain more or less same over the forthcoming years, with the automotive industry expanding at an amazing pace. However, the high cost of these materials may limit their uptake to some extent in the near future, impacting the growth of the worldwide automotive lightweight materials market.Obtain Report Details:The opportunity in the global automotive lightweight materials market was worth US$149.03 bn in 2015. Analysts estimate the market to swell at a CAGR of 8.30% between 2016 and 2024 and touch US$301.36 bn by the end of 2024.Plastic, metal, rubber, and composites are the main products available in the global lightweight materials market. Holding a share of more than 60%, metals were the most valued product in this market in 2015 and are expected to remain so over the next few years.The suitability of various metals, such as aluminum, steel, and magnesium in automobiles has emerged as the key factor behind the immense demand for metals in automobile manufacturing.The demand for steel is higher in automobile manufacturing than other metals, thanks to its innate properties, such as strength, rigidity, durability, and machinability. The innovation in various grades of steel, such as DP, UHSS, and CP to further reduce the weight, is anticipated to fuel its demand from automakers in the near future.The global automotive lightweight materials market has its presence across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Latin America, and Asia Pacific. With a share of more than 30%, North America dominated this market in 2015.Thanks to the swelling automotive industry and stringent government regulations to curb the carbon emission, this regional market is likely to retain its lead over the forthcoming years.Fill the form to gain deeper insights on this market:The technological advancements, extensive research to enhance the capabilities of lightweight materials, strong manufacturing base, especially in the U.S., and the presence of automakers in a large number are the key factors favoring the North America automotive lightweight materials market.Asia Pacific, on the other hand, is expected to present the most lucrative opportunities for lightweight material vendors over the next few years on account of the changing lifestyle of consumers, rising disposable income, and the immensely burgeoning automotive industry.About TMRTransparency 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 TMR90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email:sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Automotive Lubricants Market Forecast By 2024

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Automotive lubricants are predominantly used to reduce friction and gain smooth functioning of a vehicle. Examples of automotive lubricant products are engine oil, gear oil, transmission fluid, greases, coolants, bearing oil, brake fluid, etc.Engine oil is estimated to expand at a significant rate during the forecast period due to increasing number of vehicles. Stringent environmental regulations on emissions across the globe is estimated to influence use of synthetic or bio-based lubricants over mineral oil based lubricants. Asia Pacific is likely to have a major share in consumption of automotive lubricants during the forecast period.The report estimates and forecasts the automotive lubricants market on the global and regional levels. The study provides forecast between 2016 and 2024 based on volume (million tons / kilo tons) and revenue (US$ Bn / US$ Mn) with 2015 as the base year.Obtain Report Details:The report comprises an exhaustive value chain analysis for each of the segments. It provides a comprehensive view of the market. Value chain analysis also offers detailed information about value addition at each stage.The study includes drivers and restraints for the automotive lubricants market along with their impact on demand during the forecast period. It also provides key market indicators affecting the growth of the market.Further, the report analyzes opportunities in the automotive lubricants market on the global and regional level. Drivers, restraints, and opportunities mentioned in the report are justified through quantitative and qualitative data.These have been verified through primary and secondary resources. Furthermore, the report analyzes substitute analysis of automotive lubricants and global average price trend analysis.The report includes Porters Five Forces Model to determine the degree of competition in the automotive lubricants market. The report comprises a qualitative write-up on market attractiveness analysis, wherein end-users and regions have been analyzed based on attractiveness for each region.Growth rate, market size, raw material availability, profit margin, impact strength, technology, competition, and other factors (such as environmental and legal) have been evaluated in order to derive the general attractiveness of the market. The report comprises price trend analysis for automotive lubricants between 2016 and 2024.Secondary research sources that were typically referred to include, but were not limited to, company websites, financial reports, annual reports, investor presentations, broker reports, and SEC filings. Other sources such as internal and external proprietary databases, statistical databases and market reports, news articles, national government documents, and webcasts specific to companies operating in the market have also been referred for the report.In-depth interviews and discussions with a wide range of key opinion leaders and industry participants were conducted to compile this research report. Primary research represents the bulk of research efforts, supplemented by extensive secondary research.Key players product literature, annual reports, press releases, and relevant documents were reviewed for competitive analysis and market understanding. This helped in validating and strengthening secondary research findings. Primary research further helped in developing the analysis teams expertise and market understanding.The study provides a comprehensive view of the automotive lubricants market by dividing it into product, base oil, vehicle type, distribution channel, and geography segments. The products have been segmented into engine oil, gear oil and transmission fluid. The base oils are segmented into mineral oil, synthetic oil and bio-based oil.Fill the form to gain deeper insights on this market:Based on the vehicle type, the market is segmented into passenger car (PC), light-weight commercial vehicle (LCV) and heavy-weight commercial vehicle (HCV). The distribution channels are segmented into OEM and aftermarket. These segments have been analyzed based on historic, present, and future trends.Regional segmentation includes the current and forecast consumption of automotive lubricants in North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Middle East & Africa (MEA). Market segmentation includes demand for consumption in all the regions individually.The report covers detailed competitive outlook that includes market share and profiles of key players operating in the global market. Key players profiled in the report include Royal Dutch Shell plc, ExxonMobil Corporation, BP p.l.c., Chevron Corporation and Others.About TMRTransparency 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 TMR90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email:sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Boula Gorji died from his injuries on Monday at a Cairo hospital

One person died on Monday from injuries sustained in the Friday attack on Coptic Christians in the Upper Egyptian Minya governorate, raising the death toll to 30 people and making it the deadliest attack on Egyptian Christians in recent history.

Boula Jorji died from his injuries at a Cairo hospital, state news agency MENA reported.

The death toll from the Minya attack has exceeded the 29 deaths from the April suicide bombing at a church in the Nile Delta city of Tanta.

On Friday, gunmen driving three 4x4 trucks "fired randomly" at a bus carrying Coptic Christians in Egypts Minya governorate.

At least 21 people were injured in the attack.

The militant group Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack on Saturday.

In response to the Minya attack, the Egyptian air force has carried out intensive strikes on "terrorist bases" in Libya, which authorities say were involved in planning and executing the attack.

On 9 April, the same day of the Tanta bombing, a suicide bomber attacked St Mark's Cathedral in Alexandria, killing 18 people.

Daesh also claimed responsibility for the attacks on the two churches.

Cairo imposed a nationwide three-month state of emergency after the April attacks.

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Sri Lanka cement demand expansion aided by infrastructure investments

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Greenwich (CT), USA, May 29, 2017  According to CW Researchs 2017 Sri Lanka Cement Market Report, the countrys cement demand rose 13 percent per annum on average from 2010 to 2016. In the next five years, demand is expected to continue growing, albeit at a more moderate pace as public works and infrastructure investments slow.Between 2010 and 2016, the countrys cement demand was driven by investment in infrastructure and the countrys urgency for reconstruction work after the long civil war that ended in 2009. However, demand started to slow in 2015 as the newly elected government suspended work on large-scale infrastructure projects, following corruption concerns around the tendering process involving Chinese bidders.The long-term and latent need for cement is clear and present in Sri Lanka; much work is still to be done after years of unrest. The challenge will be to find the fiscal strength to implement projects while relying on still largely imported cementitious materials to meet demand, said Robert Madeira, CW Managing Director and Head of research.In 2016, cement demand levels improved after the government announced the construction projects could proceed based on the binding nature of the Chinese construction contracts. Following the decision green-lighting work on infrastructure projects, cement demand reached approximately seven million tons.Cement imports expected to rise due to lack of internal productionToday, Sri Lanka counts on one integrated and three grinding cement manufacturing plants, as well as several import terminals. Cement grinding capacity will increase 14 percent by 2021, but the additional cement production capacity will still be insufficient to meet domestic demand. The cement production units in the country are controlled by Tokyo Cement, HeidelbergCement, Siam City Cement and Ultratech, following recent M&A activity in the sector.As the fourth largest cement importing market in the world, Sri Lanka receives substantial supplies of cement and clinker from multiple countries, including India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. In the long run, given that no new integrated cement production capacity has been announced, manufacturers will remain dependent on imported clinker for their cement grinding operations. Consequently, Sri Lanka is expected to remain a major importer of cementitious materials in the coming years.As Raluca Cercel, Senior Analyst with CW Research highlights: poor limestone availability in the country is limiting the ability to effectively put in place domestic clinker production lines, leaving manufacturers subject to the fluctuations of clinker prices imported from India and Vietnam. This said, exploration work continues and the search is on for quality limestone.From 2016 to 2021, cement demand levels will continue to be supported by infrastructure projects and growing housing market in Sri Lanka. Construction activity is expected to grow at an annual average of eight percent over the next few years, encouraged by increasing homeownership, large government infrastructure projects, and surging demand for high-rise buildings.****For more information, placing an order, or interview inquiries, please contact Liviu Dinu, Market Services & Marketing Consultant, CW Group, by phone at +40-744-67-44-11, or e-mail at ld@cwgrp.com.About the ReportThe Sri Lanka Cement Market Report, part of CW Researchs Cement Industry Country Report series, meet the country-level cement market research needs of small and large businesses, analysts and governments. The reports cover cement volume trends in detail, analyzing trade flows, cement demand and production (historical and a five-year outlook), per capita consumption, and the competitive landscape, including company profiles, cement production facility details, including past and announced brownfield production increases and greenfield projects. Cement Industry Country Reports also cover demand drivers, including macro-economic and construction sector dynamics, for the specific country. Industry reports are presented in an objective, easy-to-understand format, providing hard-to-find answers to top market research questions.More information about the report can be found here:About CW GroupThe Greenwich (Conn.), USA headquartered CW Group is a leading advisory, research and business intelligence boutique with a global presence and a multi-industry orientation. CW Group is particularly recognized for its sector expertise in heavy-side building materials (cement), light-side building materials, traditional and renewable power & energy, petrochemicals, metals & mining, industrial minerals, industrial manufacturing, bulk cargo & shipping, among others. We have a strong functional capability, grounded in our methodical and quantitative philosophy, including due diligence, sourcing intelligence, feasibility studies and commodity forecasting.PO Box 5263, Greenwich, CT 06831, USALiviu DinuMarket Services & Marketing ConsultantM: +40-744-67-44-11E: ld@cwgrp.com
Hydrogel Market - Global Industry Analysis 2025 | Research Report

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Global Hydrogel Market: SnapshotHydrogels are a cross-linked, three-dimensional network of synthetic or organic polymer chains that contain 90% water. The capability of hydrogels of holding a significant amount of water and their softness make them flexible, hydrophilic in nature, and unique. Sodium polyacrylate, polyvinyl alcohol, acrylate polymers, and copolymers are ingredients widely used during the manufacture of hydrogels. Hydrogels are widely employed in soft contact lenses, disposable diapers, wound dressings, drug delivery, and components of medical electrodes. Rising use of hydrogel in a number of applications across the personal care and hygiene sectors is expected to present vast growth opportunities for the global hydrogel market in the next few years.This 200 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Hydrogel Market. Browse through 24 data tables and 75 figures to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Transparency Market Research states that the global hydrogel market was valued at US$10,084.9 mn in 2016. The market is expected to exhibit a healthy 6.3% CAGR from 2017 to 2025 and rise to a valuation of US$17,487.6 mn by 2024. In terms of volume, the market is expected to exhibit a 5.5% CAGR over the said period.Polyacrylamide- and Polyacrylate-based Hydrogels to Witness Strong DemandOn the basis of type, hydrogel can be broadly categorized into polyacrylate, polyacrylamide, silicone and others. Polyacrylate polymers, also known as water-lock polymers, are prepared by polymerizing acrylic acid via physical or chemical crosslinking. Sodium polyacrylate-based hydrogels are employed in product such as baby diapers, sanitary napkins, adult incontinence products, feminine hygiene products, and paper towels. Polyacrylamide is used in tissue engineering as well as in drug treatment, sanitary napkins, diapers, food packaging products, ophthalmic operations, wrinkle filling, and water purification. Silicone-based hydrogel is widely employed in soft and disposable daily wear contact lenses.Of these, the segments of polyacrylamide and polyacrylate are expected to expand significantly during the forecast period due to the rising adoption of disposable sanitary products by consumers. The segment of silicone-based hydrogel is also anticipated to develop rapidly over the reports forecast period owing to the growing demand for daily disposable soft contact lenses.North America Market to Remain DominateNorth America held significant share of hydrogel market in 2016 followed by Europe and Asia Pacific. The U.S. accounted for a significant share of the hydrogel market in North America in 2016. The U.S. has the highest standards for healthcare. Rising prevalence of chronic wounds such as diabetic foot ulcer, venous ulcer, and pressure ulcer is likely to increase the usage of hydrogel in healthcare industry.The rest of Europe held a significant share in the hydrogel market in Europe in 2016; however, Germany accounted for the dominant share. Owing to the immense demand for personal care & hygiene products such as baby diapers and adult incontinence products in Europe, the need for hydrogel has been experiencing a significant surge in the last few years. This trend is predicted to continue during the forecast period as well.In Asia Pacific region China led the hydrogel market in 2016. Rise in population in the region is anticipated to boost the usage of feminine hygiene products, adult incontinence products, and baby diapers in the near future. This, in turn, is estimated to drive the demand for hydrogel during the forecast period. The hydrogel market in Latin America and Middle East & Africa is likely to provide steady market demand during the forecast period.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Hydrogel Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @Some of the leading vendors operating in the global hydrogel market are Procyon Corporation, 3M Company, Conva Tec Inc., Johnson & Johnson Services Inc., BSN Medical GmbH, Medico Electrodes International Ltd., The Cooper Companies, Inc., H.B. Fuller Company, Altergon Italia Srl, R&D Medical Products Inc., Spes Medica Srl., Katecho Inc., Takiron Co. Ltd., Sekisui Plastics Co. Ltd., Alliqua Biomedical Inc., and Axelgaard Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Company.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Lime Market - Global Industry Analysis 2024 | Research Report

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Global Lime Market: SnapshotLime is an important element in civil engineering and construction materials. In chemical industry, lime is used as chemical reagent in the production of various chemicals. It is extensively used in the metallurgical industry and in numerous other downstream manufacturing industries including glass, and paper and pulp among others. Increase in usage of lime in the production of precipitated calcium carbonate is expected to drive the lime market during the forecast period. According to the research report, the global lime market was valued at US$44.84 bn in 2015 and is expected to be worth US$76.48 bn by the end of 2024. During the forecast period of 2016 and 2024, the global market is expected to surge at a CAGR of 6.2%.This 131 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Lime Market . Browse through 18 data tables and 56 figures to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Quick Lime to Remain Popular Over Forecast PeriodBased on type, lime can be classified as quick lime, slaked lime and others. Of these, quick lime held a prominent share and contributed more than 65% of the lime market in 2015 in terms of revenue. It is likely to remain dominant market during the forecast period, owing to its popularity of usage in metallurgical industry. However, increase in demand for lime in construction and environmental segment is anticipated to boost the demand for slaked lime during the forecast period. Slaked lime is forecasted to exhibit high CAGR of more than 5% by 2024.Lime can be classified based on end-use such as chemical intermediates, construction metallurgical, environmental and other end-use. On the basis of end-use, metallurgical segment held a major share of more than 50% in 2015 and is likely to remain dominant segment for lime for next few years. However, construction segment is anticipated to be more lucrative segment for lime and is forecasted to exhibit high CAGR of more than 5% during the projected period. Rapid urbanization and revival in construction industry in regions like Asia Pacific and Middle East & Africa are the major drivers which is likely to contribute the demand for lime during the forecast period.Asia Pacific Market Soars as Demand for Lime Increases with Rising Construction ActivitiesRising infrastructural development and building & construction activities especially in Asia Pacific and Middle East region to satisfy the need of ever increasing population propel the demand for lime during the forecast period. Asia Pacific held the largest market share of more than 70% of the global lime market in 2015, in terms of volume. As this growth remains steady, the region is expected to retain its dominance during the forecast period. Rise in demand for lime in environmental segment is anticipated to boost the market for lime in Europe region during the forecast period. Growth in the chemical intermediates end-use segment is estimated to be one of the key factors driving the market in North America. Slow and steady growth in construction and metallurgical segment in Europe region is expected to slightly hinder the lime market in the region. Nevertheless, the global lime market is projected to expand impressively in developing regions during the forecast period.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Lime Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @The global Lime market is highly fragmented with the major players dominating the global Lime market. Some of the key players operating in the global lime market are Carmeuse, Graymont, Lhoist, Mississippi Lime, Pete Lien & Sons, Inc., Cheney Lime & Cement Company, Cape Lime (Pty) Ltd, Linwood Mining & Minerals Corporation, Nordkalk, Sigma Minerals Ltd., Valley Minerals LLC, Cornish Lime, United States Lime & Minerals Inc., Minerals Technologies, and Brookville Manufacturing.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Turbine Inlet Cooling Systems Market - Industry Analysis 2022 | Research Report

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Increasing energy demand is boosting the construction of new power plants which has a marked impact on the global gas turbine market. Growth in the orders of gas turbines is expected to have a high impact on the gas turbine inlet cooling systems market, especially in areas with hot climate. Decrease in inlet air density during the hotter climates reduces the plant efficiency, which in turn, results in power shortages and monetary losses to plant owners. Turbine inlet cooling systems increase the power output by cooling the inlet air. Cooling of inlet air increases the air mass and hence the output of the plant. The mutual occurrence of high temperature and peak demand (due to air conditioning and refrigeration) boosts the requirement of turbine inlet cooling systems. Technological innovations and modifications done by the turbine inlet cooling system providers have made these systems more efficient and compatible with the turbine design. A large number of turbine manufacturers have given their approval to turbine inlet cooling technologies.This 119 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Turbine Inlet Cooling Systems Market. Browse through 37 data tables and 33 figures to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.The report analyzes the three inlet cooling techniques: inlet fogging, mechanical chillers, and wet compression. Inlet fogging systems increase the air density by spraying fog droplets over the inlet air. It is one of the most widely used evaporative cooling technologies. Low operational and maintenance costs and approval from all major turbine manufacturers have augmented the demand for inlet fogging systems. Wet compression is a relatively newer technology and can be used in combination with other inlet fogging technologies. Mechanical chiller is one of the most efficient as well as expensive turbine inlet cooling technologies. Mechanical chillers can attain a temperature drop in inlet air of about 45F, which is higher than most of the available technologies. Utilization of turbine inlet cooling technologies is assumed to improve the plant efficiency by as much as 10%. Installation of turbine inlet cooling systems has proven to be more economical than installation of additional turbines. As a result, a large number of power plant owners/operators are opting for turbine inlet cooling systems.Currently, North America and Rest of the World (RoW) have emerged as the two large markets for turbine inlet cooling technologies. A majority of inlet cooling system providers are based in North America, as a result of which, procurement of turbine inlet cooling systems and associated services (installation and repair) becomes easier for end-users located in the region. A majority of installations in North America are near the coastal areas of Texas, California, and other states. Moreover, the shale gas boom in North America which has led to the increased demand for gas turbines has further boosted the demand for turbine inlet cooling systems. As the production of natural gas is increasing, a large number of power utilities and independent power producers are shifting towards gas-fired power plants.The Rest of the World segment includes countries from the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. These countries witness a significant drop in plant efficiencies during hot climates. The simultaneous occurrence of peak demand and decline in plant efficiency increases power shortage in the region. As a result, turbine inlet cooling technologies are widely adopted by plant owners/operators. The market in Asia Pacific is also expected to experience a significant growth during the forecast period. Increasing power demand and the common occurrence of power shortages and blackouts are expected to drive the demand for turbine inlet cooling systems in the region in the near future.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Turbine Inlet Cooling Systems Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @Key participants in the global turbine inlet cooling systems market include American Moistening Company Inc., Caldwell Energy Company Inc., Cat Pumps Inc., Humifrio S.L., Mee Industries Inc., Score Energy Limited, Siemens AG, UTC Technologies Company, Camfil AB, and Baltec IES Pty. Ltd. This report provides an overview of these companies, followed by their financial revenues, business strategies, and recent developments.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Artificial Lift Systems Market - Industry Analysis 2020 | Research Report

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Artificial lift systems are used to increase the pressure of the reservoir when the bottomhole pressure is not sufficient enough to push the crude oil or natural gas to the surface of the well. Artificial lift systems can also be used to generate flow from a well, which does not have any flow. They are also used to increase the flow from a well to produce fluids at a higher rate. Majority of the oil wells require artificial lift systems at one point or other in the entire life of the reservoir. Large number of gas wells has benefitted from artificial lift systems to separate the liquids from the formation, so that gas can easily flow at a higher rate. Approximately 10% of the total oil and gas wells in the world posses the natural reservoir drive to bring crude oil to the surface, while the rest depend on artificial lift systems. Artificial lift systems are also employed in wells which have sufficient pressure in the beginning, but with the passage of time, the pressure in the well decreases, thereby generating demand for artificial lift systems.This 70 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Artificial Lift Systems Market. Browse through 14 data tables and 21 figures to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Artificial lift systems are broadly segmented into two types: pump systems and gas systems. Pump systems consist of electrical submersible pump, sucker rod pump or rod lift and progressive cavity pump. Gas systems include gas lift and plunger lift. Electrical submersible pump is one of the oldest types of artificial lift systems and is used for deepwater, subsea, offshore and onshore wells. The selection of artificial lift systems depends on numerous parameters such as geographic location, production flexibility, operating cost and capital cost. It also depends on operating practices, economic considerations, and site-specific conditions.Presently, electrical submersible pumps are widely used artificial lift systems for producing wells owing to their high extraction rate and low operational costs. These pumps can be easily operated by field workers due to their simpler design. Electrical submersible pumps have the potential to lift large volumes of crude oil. They are easily available in different sizes, and presence of scale and sludge formation does not hamper its work performance, hence high operational efficiency can be maintained. They can work efficiently in wells with crooked or deviated holes.Rod lift or sucker rod pump is the oldest type of artificial lift system utilized for the extraction of crude oil. They have the potential to lift heavy viscous crude oil at high temperatures, thereby incurring low operational expenditures. The applications of rod lift include multiple completions, down-hole pressure wells and lifting of heavy viscous oil.With the increase in number of offshore reserves, demand for gas lifts is expected to increase at a significant rate. Low operational cost, longer life span and high efficiency and are some of the key drivers that boost the demand for gas lifts in the artificial lift systems market.North America is projected to be the region with the highest potential for the artificial lift systems market by 2020. With the advent of shale gas discoveries, demand for artificial lift systems is projected to rise at a substantial rate in the near future in North America. Countries in North America such as the U.S. and Canada have large reserves of shale gas that present enormous opportunities for the artificial lift systems market. Plunger lifts are commonly used artificial lift systems for horizontal shale wells. Plunger lifts utilize the wells own energy, pressure or gas to lift the accumulated fluids from wellbore to wellheads.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Artificial Lift Systems Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @Baker Hughes, Inc., Borets Company LLC, Dover Artificial Lift, Flotek Industries, Inc., Halliburton Company, Kudu Industries, Inc., National Oilwell Varco, Inc., Schlumberger Limited, Superior Energy Services, Inc., and Weatherford International Ltd. are likely to dominate the artificial lift systems market in the coming future.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Carbon Nanotubes Market - Global Industry Analysis 2023 | Research Report

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Global Carbon Nanotubes Market: OverviewCurrent uses of carbon nanotubes lie in the strengthening of material used for mechanical or protective functions. Carbon nanotube-based films are rapidly replacing indium tin oxide coatings as the optimum top layer for touchscreens as the former is superior in strength and thermal stress endurance. The high mechanical strength and lower weight of wind turbine blades that include carbon nanotubes is creating a major scope in the renewables sector.This 204 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Carbon Nanotubes Market. Browse through to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Additionally, most key players are investing a lot into research and development efforts while simultaneously expanding production capacities. This is complemented by the growing demand for carbon nanotubes across major industry verticals owing to steady price reduction and increasing scope of applications.Due to these reasons and other minor factors, the global carbon nanotube market is expected to progress at a CAGR of 22.1% within a forecast period from 2015 to 2023, in terms of revenue. This market is expected to be valued at US$1.6 bn by the end of 2016, and US$6.8 bn by 2023. By volume, this market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 20.1% from 2015 to 2023.Carbon Nanotubes Players Attracted to Asia Pacific and its Rapid Industrial DevelopmentBy the end of 2016, the overall volume of carbon nanotubes is expected to reach 3.2 mn tons. This is expected to be the largest volume consumed by any of the major regions. Asia Pacific also shows the leading growth rate for carbon nanotube consumption and revenue till 2023.Carbon nanotube demand in Asia Pacific is expected to receive a massive boost through an accelerated increase in demand from nations of India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and China, in the industries of electronics and electrical components. The Asia Pacific polymers industry has found a large scope of use for carbon nanotubes, making it the largest application segment between 2015 and 2023.Major Preference for Multi-wall Carbon Nanotube Shown by Application IndustriesThere is a major disparity in demand for single-wall and multi-wall carbon nanotubes, which arises due to the scope of use of each product type and the properties that they enhance. Multi-wall carbon nanotubes possess enhanced thermal conductivity and mechanical strength, allowing it to gain high demand from the manufacturers of super-capacitors, batteries, construction materials, and coatings.Polymers Industry Absorbs Most of Global Carbon Nanotube ProductionBy 2023, the revenue generated by the global carbon nanotube player base will have crossed US$4.5 bn. The polymers industry has consistently held a high share in the overall demand for carbon nanotubes and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Most polymer producers see carbon nanotubes as excellent modern options to reinforce their current batches of polymers in terms of tensile strength, elasticity, and overall mechanical strength. These improved polymers are in high demand in most industries where the lightweight polymers can be used to replace traditional steel and glass while additionally increasing the strength of their product. Most of the reinforced polymers are currently being used in electronics, aerospace, defense, and construction.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Carbon Nanotubes Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @Key manufacturers of carbon nanotubes include Showa Denko K.K., Cnano Technology Ltd., Nanocyl S.A., Bayer MaterialScience AG, Arkema Inc., and Hyperion Catalysis International Inc.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Clear Brine Fluids Market - Global Industry Analysis 2023 | Research Report

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Global Clear Brine Fluids Market: SnapshotWith increasing oil and gas drilling activities worldwide, companies operating in the global clear brine fluids market are being presented with lucrative opportunities to expand their business. As developed nations are striving to gain energy security, they are focusing on the development of shale reserves as a part of their strategy. The rise in oil and gas drilling activities for this purpose is likely to drive the sales of clear brine fluids as they are used in the completion process of oil and gas extraction. The increased drilling activities for the exploration of unconventional resources is an opportunity that manufacturers of clear brine fluid can capitalize on. However, the unstable economic and political situation in the Middle East is likely to impede oil and gas exploration activities resulting in a dip in the sales of clear brine fluids.This 126 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Clear Brine Fluids Market. Browse through to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.As a result of all these factors, the global clear brine fluids market is likely to expand at a 6.2 % CAGR from 2015 to 2023. The market was worth US$891.3 mn in 2015 and is projected to touch a valuation of US$1,444.7 mn by 2023.Rise in Oil and Gas Drilling Activities to Enhance Sales of Clear Brine Fluids in North AmericaWith leading oil and gas companies operating in the region, North America emerged as the largest region in the global clear brine fluids market. As developed nations are motivated to gain energy security, the oil and drilling activities in the region are increasing rapidly. To maintain their position in the market and not be dependent on OPEC for energy sources, the countries in North America have increased their drilling activities to discover more shale reserves. North America accounted for 65.7% in terms of volume of the global clear brine fluids market in 2014 and is expected to hold a share of 64.8% by 2023.Asia Pacific emerged as the second largest region in the global clear brine fluids market owing to the presence of a large number of shale gas reservoirs in the region. China holds the largest share in the recoverable shale gas industry, which has made it the largest region in terms of consumption of clear brine fluids in Asia Pacific. The ongoing oil and gas drilling activities in Asia Pacific are subsequently boosting the sales of clear brine fluid in the region.Potassium Chloride Brine Fluids Products Segment to Witness Fastest GrowthPotassium chloride brine fluids are used for stabilizing water sensitive clays during the extraction completion process. It helps in controlling the formation damage and pressure in reservoirs during the extraction process, thus making it the most used clear brine fluid among various end-use industries. The global potassium chloride brine fluids segment is projected to expand at a CAGR of 6.5% in terms of revenue between 2015 and 2023.The calcium chloride brine fluids products segment is expected to witness the second fastest growth in the coming years. The single-salt composition of calcium chloride brine fluids makes it an effective component used in the formation of brine completion and workover fluids. Owing to the increasing demand for calcium chloride brine fluids in the oil and gas industry for preventing clay hydration during drilling, this product segment is likely to grow at a steady pace in the coming years.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Clear Brine Fluids Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @The leading companies in the global clear brine fluids market are Israel Chemicals Ltd., Great Lake Solutions, Albemarle Corporation, and TETRA Technologies Inc.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Sulfuric Acid Market - Global Industry Analysis 2023 | Research Report

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China Remains at Forefront of Sulfuric Acid MarketThe upswing in the chemicals market in China has been the primary growth driver for the sulfuric acid market. As other countries continue investing in this market, China will steer the overall sulfuric acid market towards a remarkable growth. Currently, the country is producing 45,000 chemicals and is positioned to lead the global market all the way through to 2023. According to the research report, the opportunity in the global sulfuric acid market will be worth US$85.4 bn by the end of 2023 as against US$67.9 bn in 2014, rising at a 2.6% CAGR between 2015 and 2023.This 133 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Sulfuric Acid Market. Browse through to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Sulfuric acid will continue to be in demand, especially in the developing countries as they majorly depend on agriculture that requires phosphate fertilizers. These fertilizers are biggest users of sulfuric acid as they accounted for about 50% of the sulfuric acid consumption in the world in 2014. The demand for phosphate fertilizers is anticipated to grow in the coming years as countries try to increase their yield of cotton, wheat, rice, and soya bean to cater to the demands of the ever-increasing population. Government policies will also support this demand in countries such as South Africa, India, and China.Chemical Synthesis to Take Over the Baton from Fertilizers SegmentNeedless to say, the fertilizer segment is the biggest application segment in the overall market. The report indicates that this segment held a whopping share of 60% in the overall market in 2014. However, this segment is expected to be stymied by the chemical synthesis segment in the near future. Usage of sulfuric acid in over 20 chemical processes will boost this application segment over others. Sulfuric acid is used in making chemicals such as for manufacturing nitric acid, sulfate salts, hydrochloric acid, explosives, and drugs amongst others.Asia Pacific will Remain Dominant RegionAsia held a 50% share in the global sulfuric acid market in 2014, clearly, a claiming a dominant position for itself. Analysts predict that this region will continue to remain the leading one due to the concentration of chemicals industry in China and other developing countries. Thus, the increasing adoption of sulfuric acid in the processing of chemicals, fertilizers, availability of cheap labor, increasing foreign investment, and flexible regulatory framework are all going to contribute towards the rising share of Asia in the global sulfuric acid market. On the other hand, North America and Europe will witness a plunge in the sulfuric acid consumption as the governments in these region has taken a strict stance towards this carcinogenic substance.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Sulfuric Acid Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @Among the players leading the vendor landscape in the global sulfuric acid market are The Mosaic Company, Eco Services Operations, LLC, The Chemours Company, Chemtrade Logistics Inc., Vale Fertilizantes S/A, Akzo Nobel N.V., PotashCorp, and BASF SE. Due to the slow but steady growth in the market, these players are focusing on developing alternative sulfur recovery technologies that will be less hazardous to the environment in the near future. Furthermore, several companies are also engaging in entering strategic mergers and acquisitions in order to gain technological advantage and an impressive market presence.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Nanocellulose - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share 2023 | Research Report

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Nanocellulose is a lightweight material obtained from wood pulp or plant cellulose. The term generally refers to cellulose derived nanofibrils that can be long ribbon-like, short rod-shaped or thread-shaped. Nanocellulose is obtained through mechanical or chemical treatment of cellulose, a biopolymer material abundantly available across the globe. Nanocellulose offers immense growth potential owing to its superior mechanical, thermal, rheological, and structural properties vis-a-vis other cellulose-based derivatives and nanomaterials. Unique properties of nanocellulose include high aspect ratio, biodegradability, high strength, and low density. Nanocellulose can be employed in virtually every field. It can be used as rheological modifier in oilfield chemicals and oxygen barrier in packaging films.This 190 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Nanocellulose Market. Browse through to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Nanocellulose is further classified into nanofibrillated cellulose, nanocrystalline cellulose, and bacterial nanocellulose. Nanofibrillated cellulose accounted for the largest share (over 50%) of the global nanocellulose market in 2014. Nanofibrillated cellulose is manufactured through a series of mechanical treatments. This includes homogenization, microgrinding, and microfluidization, followed by enzymatic treatment and oxidation. Nanofibrillated cellulose can be employed in various end-user industries such as paints & coatings, paper processing, composites, oil & gas and adhesives. Nanocrystalline cellulose accounted for the second-largest share of the nanocellulose market in 2014. It can be used in packaging films, textiles, and personal care products. Bacterial nanocellulose held the lowest share of the market in 2014; however, it is expected to be one of the fastest growing product segments during the forecast period. Bacterial nanocellulose offers immense potential in the fields of biomedical implants and drug delivery systems.Composites, paper processing, paints & coatings, and food & beverages were among the key end-users of nanocellulose in 2014. Composites was the largest end-user segment of the nanocellulose market and accounted for more than 35% of the market share in 2014. Nanocellulose is used in composites owing to its high strength and low density. Nanocellulose-based composites can be used in automotive, aerospace, and construction components. Nanocellulose is employed as rheological modifier and emulsion stabilizer in paints & coatings, food & beverages, and oil & gas industries. Other end-users of nanocellulose include electronics, biomedical, pharmaceutical, and textile industries. Nanocellulose can be used in the formation of flexible displays and drug delivery systems.Extensive support and funding from governments and organizations is primarily driving the nanocellulose market. Countries such as the U.S., Canada, Japan, Sweden, and Finland have been increasingly supporting the development of nanocellulose. Nanocellulose has the ability to lower carbon footprint, as it is a product of renewable sources. Despite its significant potential, factors such as scaling up issues, high energy consumption, lack of consumer awareness, and lack of product standardization and quality are expected to hamper market growth in the next few years. Nanocellulose is likely to provide numerous opportunities in flexible electronic displays, pharmaceutical formulations, and non-woven products and tissues.In terms of volume, North America is projected to exhibit the fastest growth rate in the nanocellulose market during the forecast period. Technological advancements and governmental support have been the key factors driving the nanocellulose market in the region. Europe accounted for the second-largest share of the global nanocellulose market in 2014. Market penetration in regions such as Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa is low as compared to North America and Europe due to lack of product awareness and technological issues. However, this scenario is likely to change in the near future.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Nanocellulose Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @Key manufacturers of nanocellulose include CelluForce Inc., American Process Inc., Innventia AB, UPM-Kymmene Oyj, STORA ENSO, DAICEL FINECHEM LTD., and Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Titanium Dioxide Market - Global and China Industry Analysis 2023 | Research Report

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Titanium dioxide is a white colored, solid, inorganic material with high thermal stability and poor solubility. Ilmenite and rutile are the major raw materials used in the production of titanium dioxide. Titanium dioxide is produced through two processes: sulfate process and chloride process. However, the sulfate process is used extensively across the globe.This 163 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Titanium Dioxide Market. Browse through to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Rising demand for lightweight vehicles and expansion in the construction industry are the major factors driving the global titanium dioxide market. Demand for lightweight vehicles has increased significantly in the last few years. Stringent environmental regulations have boosted the demand for fuel-efficient vehicles with low carbon footprint.Titanium dioxide is widely used for coating polycarbonates that are further used in the production of lightweight automobiles. Furthermore, demand for lightweight vehicles is expected to rise substantially in the near future due to increasing environmental concerns and shift towards environment-friendly alternatives. Additionally, expansion in the construction industry is anticipated to be one of the major factors propelling the titanium dioxide market globally. Asia Pacific is estimated to be at the epicenter of the construction industry boom, with countries such as China, India, and Indonesia investing in the construction industry. Growth in the construction industry is projected to further propel the paints & coatings industry and subsequently the titanium dioxide market.Titanium dioxide is employed in various applications. Major applications include paints & coatings, paper, plastics, and inks. Currently, paints & coatings is the largest application segment of the titanium dioxide market. Approximately half of the global titanium dioxide produced in 2014 was used in paints & coatings applications. Paints & coatings is also anticipated to be the major application segment during the forecast period. Demand for titanium dioxide in plastics application is anticipated to be the largest among all the application segments.Titanium dioxide is used in plastics to improve several characteristics such as opacity, color, and strength. It is primarily used in the production of high strength plastics to improve their efficiency. Furthermore, titanium dioxide is employed widely in the paper industry. It is employed in the production of high strength papers, which are further used in the packaging industry. The demand for titanium dioxide from the paper industry is anticipated to be moderate over the forecast period.Stringent environmental regulations are a major restraint to growth of the global titanium dioxide market. Several harmful solid and acid wastes are produced during the production of titanium dioxide. Various regulations have been implemented across the globe, primarily in developed economies, to control the emission and disposal of these wastes. The sulfate process of titanium dioxide production leads to large quantities of solid waste. Most China-based titanium dioxide manufacturers employ the sulfate process for the production of titanium dioxide. However, China-based producers are adopting various alternatives to lower the pollution caused by the titanium dioxide due to recent governmental regulations pertaining to emissions and waste disposal of titanium dioxide.In terms of region, Asia Pacific was the largest market for titanium dioxide in 2014 and accounted for over 40% of the market share in the same year. China was the largest market for titanium dioxide in terms of production and demand in 2014. Major titanium dioxide producers have established production facilities in China in order to cater to the rising demand for titanium dioxide in the country. Asia Pacific was followed by Europe and North America. Increasing demand for automobiles and recovery of the construction industry in North America are projected to drive the titanium dioxide market in the region.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Titanium Dioxide Market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market @Major players operating in the titanium dioxide market include The Chemours Company, CRISTAL, Kronos Worldwide Inc., and Tronox Limited.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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
A Cairo misdemeanour court has postponed to 3 July the first session in the trial of prominent rights lawyer and former presidential candidate Khaled Ali, who is facing charges of "offending public decency."

Last week, Ali, 45, was released on EGP 1,000 bail one day after he was detained "without questioning" and referred to trial, according to his lawyer.

The postponement on Monday was requested by Ali's defence team to have more time to prepare for trial.

Ali, who recently spearheaded a case challenging a government deal to transfer two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia, faces charges of "making an obscene action [that] offends public decency."

The charges stem from an incident last January when Ali allegedly gave a middle finger while being lifted up by a crowd during a demonstration outside the State Council headquarters.

The demonstration was celebrating a court ruling annulling the 2016 deal to hand over control of the Tiran and Sanafir islands to Saudi Arabia.

Ali did not attend the Monday court session.

The case against Ali was filed by independent lawyer Samir Sabry in January.

Ali ran for president in Egypt's 2012 presidential elections, which saw the election of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi.

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Global Chelating Resin market is expected to show a healthy growth-Forecast to 2027

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Market Research Future add new report of Chelating Resin Market Research Report- Global Forecast to 2027 it contains Company information, geographical data and Table of ContentMarket Synopsis of Chealting Resin MarketMarket ScenarioMajor growth factors of Chelating Resin Market includes increase demand from the pulp & paper industry, rising demand from the water treatment chemical industries, rapidly increasing urbanization and rising awareness among consumers. Increasing concerned about healthy lifestyle, and hastened population coupled with steady industrialization is also playing a significant role in driving the growth of Global Chelating Resin Industries Market.However, continuous acquaintances to non-biodegradable chelating agents which include EDTA have harmful effect on the environment, which might hinder the growth of the Chelating Market Resin.Request a Sample Report @Segments Segmentation by ProductSegmentation for Chelating Resin Industry involves the following Product such as Aminopolycarboxylate (APCA), Sodium Gluconate, Organophosphate, and Glucoheptonate among others. Segmentation by ApplicationsSegmentation for Chelating Resin Industry involves the following Applications such as pulp & paper industry, Household & Industrial cleaning, Agrochemicals, Water treatment, Chemicals, Consumer products, and Pharmaceuticals among OthersKey PlayersSome of the major players in Global Chelating Resin Industry include LANXESS, Purolite, Dow Chemical, Success, Mitsubishi Chemical, Sun resin, Akzo Nobel NA (Netherlands), Archer Daniels Midland Company (U.S.), BASF SE (Germany), Kemira Oyj (Finland), The DOW Chemical Company (U.S.), Cargill, Incorporated (U.S.).Browse Report Details @Chelating Resin Industry Objective Study: To provide detailed analysis of the market structure along with forecast for the next 10 years of the various segments and sub-segments of the global Chelating Resin Industry market To provide insights about factors affecting the market growth To Analyze the Chelating Resin Industry based on various factors- price analysis, supply chain analysis, porters five force analysis etc.Request Table of Contents for this Report @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.In order to stay updated with technology and work process of the industry, MRFR often plans & conducts meet with the industry experts and industrial visits for its research analyst members.Akash Anand,Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com
Spain fermentation ingredients market is projected to reach USD 1,530 million by the year 2023 with growth rate of 3.46%

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Market Research Future add new report of Spain Fermentation Ingredients Market Research Report- Forecast to 2023 it contains Company information, geographical data and Table of ContentReport DescriptionSpain fermentation ingredients market is projected to reach USD 1,530 million by the year 2023 with growth rate of 3.46%. Andalusia and Catalonia together holds more than 50% of market share in 2017 as large fermentation ingredients companies are located in Catalonia and Andalusia. Spain is the third major country for production of fermentation ingredients for chemical and pharmaceuticals application which is supporting the growth of the market in Spain. Madrid will witness higher growth rate during the forecast period.On the basis of type, Alcohol (i.e. Ethanol, butanol, BDO and Acetone) and Antibiotics (i.e. Beta-lactam, tetracycline and clavulic acid) fermentation ingredients holds more than 50% market share in the year 2017 as in Spain majority of fermentation ingredients is used for chemical and pharmaceutical application. Amino acid is projected to grow at higher rate during the forecast period. Polymers and organic acids together holds more than 30% of market share in the year 2017due to increasing demand of polymer over organic acid in Spain.Liquid form of fermentation ingredients holds more than 55% market share in the year 2017, as in Spain majority of fermentation ingredients such as alcohol and organic acid are produced in the form of liquid. Dry form is projected to grow at higher rate compare to liquid form during the forecast period due to increasing demand of polymer and industrial enzymes from last few years.Increasing awareness about application of fermentation ingredients in personal care and pharmaceutical products is driving the growth of fermentation ingredients market. Rising popularity of food and beverages products made by using fermentation ingredients is boosting the market growth in Spain. Introduction eco-friendly production system from fermentation ingredients manufacturers and advance technologies in fermentation process is also influencing the growth of the market. Rising production of sugar cane, beet, tapioca and corn is playing the major role in the growth of fermentation ingredients market in Spain.Request a Sample Report @Market Segmentation:Spain Fermentation Ingredients Market segmented as: By Type (Alcohol. Amino acid, Antibiotics, Polymer, Vitamins, Enzymes, Organic acid and Others) By Form (Dry, Liquid and Others) By Application (Chemical, Food & beverages, Pharmaceutical, Animal Feed and Others) By Feedstock (Sugar beet, Wheat, Corn and Other)Key PlayersThe leading market players in the Spain Fermentation Ingredients market primarily are Archer-Daniels-Midland Co., The Dow Chemical Co, Cargill, Incorporated, E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Evonik Industries AG, Novozymes A/S UquifaTarget Audience Fermentation Ingredients Manufacturers Food and beverage Industry Chemical Industry Pharmaceutical Industry Retailers and wholesalers Traders, importers and exportersBrowse Report Details @Key Findings The Spain Fermentation Ingredients market is projected to reach USD 1,530 million by 2023 of 3.46% In Spain, application of fermentation ingredients in pharmaceutical is growing at higher rate of 3.83% In Spain., Alcohol fermentation ingredients type holds the major market share for the year 2017Regional and State wise Analysis of Spain Fermentation Ingredients market Development and Demand Forecast to 2023 MarketThe reports also cover region level analysis:Spain Andalusia Catalonia Madrid Valencian Community Rest of SpainAt 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.In order to stay updated with technology and work process of the industry, MRFR often plans & conducts meet with the industry experts and industrial visits for its research analyst members.Akash Anand,Market Research FutureOffice No. 528, Amanora ChambersMagarpatta Road, Hadapsar,Pune - 411028Maharashtra, India+1 646 845 9312Email: akash.anand@marketresearchfuture.com
Automotive Telematics Market Research Report and Forecast up to 2027

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Global Automotive Telematics Market: OverviewThis market research study analyzes the automotive telematics market on global basis and provides estimates in terms of revenue (US$Bn) from 2016 to 2025. It describes the market dynamics affecting the industry and analyzes their impact through the forecast period. Moreover, it highlights the significant opportunities for market growth in the next eight years. The market is segmented on the basis of geography into Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (MEA), and Latin America. Thesesegments have been estimated in terms of revenue (US$Bn). In addition, the report has been segmented based on application, which includes, vehicle tracking, fleet management, satellite navigation, vehicle safety communication and others. By vehicle type the market is categorized into passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles and heavy commercial vehicles. For better understanding of the automotive telematicsmarket, the study comprises market attractiveness analysis, where vehicle types are benchmarked based on their market scope, growth rate and market attractiveness. Competitive rivalry is projected to be high among key players to acquire higher share of the market in the coming years.This 120 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Automotive Telematics market Browse through 18 data tables and 52 figures to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Global Automotive Telematics Market: Trends and OpportunitiesTelematics in vehicles involves the receiving, sending and storing information with the help of telecommunication devices ensuring effective control on remote objects. In addition, vehicular telematics is the combination of applications of telecommunication and informatics in vehicles. Telematics is a versatile field, which includes vehicular technologies, telecommunications, road safety and transportation, instrumentation, wireless communications, sensors, internet and multimedia services in automobiles.In telematics, global navigation satellite system (GNSS), which is an integral part of automotive navigation systems offers integrated services with the help of computers and mobile communications.The growing demand for advanced telematics components in automobiles is driving the automotive telematics market currently. Navigation technology, telematics, audio-video solutions, WiFi, Bluetooth, safety and security and intelligent driving solutions are few of the advanced telematics solution largely being demanded by the consumers. In addition, tracking of vehicles, trailer and container tracking, wireless safety communications, satellite navigation, mobile data, emergency warning system for vehicles and auto insurance are the major applications of telematics, which is driving the demand for the usage of telematics in vehicles, globally.Global Automotive Telematics Market: Key SegmentsThe global automotive telematics market is fragmented with few medium and large companies. Entry into this market is not restricted as there is no monopoly of business and the market has huge scope and opportunity. However, setting up of manufacturing units for automotive telematics require huge capital and resource, which is not feasible for most of the small and medium sized companies. Increasing private equity investments and merger and acquisitions of companies in the automotive sector has been of great influence to the automotive telematics market. Significant growth in the automotive sector coupled with economic reforms in major developing countries has been able to bolster the growth of this market. Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa, and Latin America are key markets for the future and are expected to provide huge opportunities to the global automotive telematics manufacturers because of the growth in the automotive sector and increasing demand for infotainment and wireless vehicle safety communication in vehicles.Global Automotive Telematics Market: Competitive LandscapeThe report also provides company market share analysis of the various industry participants. Acquisition is the main strategy being widely followed by leading market players. In case of an acquisition, the acquirer takes advantage of existing synergies. As a result, both companies are expected to emerge more profitable and stronger than before. Key players in the global automotive telematics market have been profiled and their company overview, financial overview, business strategies and recent developments have been covered in the report. Major market participants profiled in this report include: Trimble, Inc., Masternaut Limited, TomTom International B.V., Telogis, Visteon Corporation, Continental AG, Airbiquity, Inc. and Agero, Inc.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Automotive Telematics market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market.The global automotive telematics market is segmented as below:Global Automotive Telematics Market: By ApplicationVehicle TrackingFleet ManagementSatellite NavigationVehicle Safety CommunicationOthersGlobal Automotive Telematics Market: By Vehicle TypePassenger VehiclesLight Commercial VehiclesHeavy Commercial VehiclesGlobal Automotive Telematics Market: By GeographyNorth AmericaU.S.CanadaMexicoEuropeGermanyFranceU.K.ItalyRest of EuropeAsia PacificChinaIndiaJapanRest of Asia PacificMiddle East and Africa (MEA)IranSouth AfricaRest of Middle East and AfricaLatin AmericaBrazilArgentinaRest of Latin AmericaThe report provides a cross-sectional analysis of by application segment and by vehicle type segment with respect to the above mentioned regions.Request for Discount of this 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. 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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA  Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Antimicrobial Packaging Market SWOT Analysis Of Top Key Player Forecasts To 2024

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Global Antimicrobial Packaging Market: OverviewThe primary purpose of antimicrobial packaging materials and technologies is to prevent the packaged items from spoilage and contamination. The rising concerns about food-related infections have augmented the demand for antimicrobial packaging in the recent years. The research report states that the efforts to reduce food wastage in times of food scarcity are also likely to fuel the rise of the global market.The research report on the global antimicrobial packaging market presents a clear understanding of the various factors governing the market dynamics present in the market. Furthermore, it also studies the nature of the competitive landscape present in the global market and the threat from substitutes and new entrants. The publication provides a holistic outlook of the global antimicrobial packaging market due valuable insights.This 337 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Antimicrobial Packaging market Browse through 31 data tables and 116 figures to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.Global Antimicrobial Packaging Market: Key TrendsThe growing prevalence of foodborne diseases and infections due to cross-contamination in food items has led a significant demand for antimicrobial packaging. The growing urbanization and rapid rise in the population has also led to a shift toward eating packaged food items instead of fresh items, which, in turn, has augmented the growth of the global market. The growing disposable incomes, lack of time, and hectic lifestyles have collectively contributed to the global antimicrobial packaging market in direct and indirect ways.The trend of storing mixes, beverages, spices, and food in households has also spiked the demand for antimicrobial packaging in recent years. Furthermore, growing number of manufacturers vying for increasing the lifespan of various food items are also likely to opt for high quality antimicrobial packaging, predict analysts.Global Antimicrobial Packaging Market: SegmentationThe various materials used for antimicrobial packaging are plastic, paperboard, biopolymer, tin, and glass. Plastics have been predominantly used for making antimicrobial packaging solutions as they are chemically, physically, and mechanically better than the other types of materials. Additionally, plastics can be molded into desired shapes and are known to provide sufficient protection from tears. The elasticity of plastics and its affordable price has also made plastic an obvious choice amongst leading players of antimicrobial packaging market.However, the rising concerns about waste management and disposal of plastics are shifting the preference of manufacturers toward other materials. The non-biodegradability of plastics is likely to restrain its growth as a material for making antimicrobial packaging in the near future.Global Antimicrobial Packaging Market: Regional OutlookIn terms of geography, the global antimicrobial packaging market is segmented into the Middle East and Asia, Latin America, Asia Pacific, North America, and Europe. Of these, Asia Pacific is expected to dominate the global market as the regional market. An exponentially rising population base and rapid urbanization are expected to create a substantial demand for plastic packaging in the coming years. The growing needs of this population base such as convenience meals, packaged food and beverages, and other food items are projected to fuel the demand for antimicrobial packaging in the global market in the coming years.North America too has been a consistent contributor to the global antimicrobial packaging market. The high number of packaged food consumers who demand hygienic packaging quality are expected to be crucial to this regional market. On the other hand, the Middle and Africa and Europe are expected to be slow but steady consumers of antimicrobial packaging as the regions realizes the importance of quality packaging materials.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Antimicrobial Packaging market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market.Key Players Mentioned in this Report are:Some of the leading players operating in the global antimicrobial packaging market are Sciessent LLC, Takex Labo Co. Ltd, BASF SE, The Dow Chemical Company, Barr Brands International, LINPAC Senior Holdings Limited, Mondi PLC, PolyOne Corporation, BioCote Limited, and Dunmore Corporation.Global Antimicrobial Packaging Market, by MaterialPlasticPolyethylene (PE)Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET)Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE)High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE)BiopolymerPaperboardGlassTinOthersGlobal Antimicrobial Packaging Market, by TechnologyControlled Release PackagingActive PackagingGlobal Antimicrobial Packaging Market, by Antimicrobial AgentsOrganic AcidBacteriocinsEssential OilsEnzymesMetal Ion & OxidizersOthersGlobal Antimicrobial Packaging Market, by Package TypePouchesBottles & CansCarton PackagesTraysBagsCups & LidsOthersGlobal Antimicrobial Packaging Market, by ApplicationFood & BeveragePersonal CareHealthcareOthersGlobal Antimicrobial Packaging Market, by Geography: The market is broadly segmented on the basis of geography into:North AmericaU.S.Rest of North AmericaEuropeU.KGermanyFranceItalyRest of EuropeAsia PacificChinaIndiaJapanRest of APACMiddle East and AfricaUAESouth AfricaRest of Middle East & AfricaLatin AmericaBrazilRest of Latin AmericaRequest for Discount of this 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. 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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA  Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Hybrid Power Systems Market Research Report and Forecast up to 2024

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The research study is designed to analyze the global hybrid power systems market. The market is calculated in terms of revenue (US$ Mn) based on the annual sales of hybrid power systems. The market for hybrid power systems has been segmented on the basis of type, end-use, and country/region. The global hybrid power systems market, based on type, has been segmented into wind-solar-diesel-hybrid, PV-diesel-hybrid, and others. On the basis of end-use, the hybrid power systems market has been segmented into residential, rural facility electrification, and others.The regional segments included in this study are North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (MEA), and South and Central America (SCA). These regional segments are further divided into country-wise segments. The report provides a detailed growth forecast for the 20162024 period, considering 2015 as the baseline year. Projections have been provided for revenue (US$ Mn) through the annual sales of hybrid power systems.This 120 page report gives readers a comprehensive overview of the Hybrid Power Systems market Browse through 1 data tables and 85 figures to unlock the hidden opportunities in this market.The report includes the key market dynamics affecting the demand for hybrid power systems. As a part of our market dynamics analysis, we have analyzed the market drivers, market restraints, and market opportunities. A comprehensive competitive landscape, which includes company market share analysis and market attractiveness analysis, has also been provided in this report. The report also provides a detailed industry analysis of the global hybrid power systems market with the help of Porters Five Forces model. The Porters Five Forces analysis aids in understanding the five major forces that affect the industry structure and profitability of the global hybrid power systems market. The forces analyzed are the bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of new entrants, threat of substitutes, and degree of competition.The study also includes the value chain of the global hybrid power systems market which provides a glimpse of key suppliers, manufacturers, and distribution channel as well as interaction of suppliers and buyers with end-users. The company market share analysis has been done considering the revenue and global penetration of key market players in the hybrid power systems industry. The market attractiveness involves benchmarking and ranking each technology and region on the basis of numerous parameters. The parameters selected are likely to have a pronounced effect on the demand for each technology in the current scenario as well as in the near future.Key participants in the global hybrid power systems market include Bergey WindPower Co., BORG Inc., Guangzhou HY Energy Technology Limited Corp., Kestrel Renewable Energy, KYOCERA Corporation, Panasonic Corporation, Schneider Electric SE, Sharp Electronics, Siemens AG, and Suzlon Group. This report provides an overview of these companies, followed by their financial revenues, business strategies, technical information, and recent developments.Get accurate market forecast and analysis on the Hybrid Power Systems market. Request a sample to stay abreast on the key trends impacting this market.Global Hybrid Power Systems Market: Type AnalysisWind-Solar-Diesel-HybridPV-Diesel-HybridOthersGlobal Hybrid Power Systems Market: End-Use AnalysisResidentialRural Facility ElectrificationOthersGlobal Hybrid Power Systems Market: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.CanadaMexicoEuropeTurkeyKazakhstanRussiaRest of EuropeAsia PacificChinaJapanAustraliaIndonesiaRest of Asia PacificMiddle East and Africa (MEA)South AfricaTanzaniaEgyptUAERest of MEASouth and Central America (SCA)BrazilChileRest of SCARequest for Discount of this 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. 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.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, TMRs syndicated reports strive to provide clients to serve their overall research requirement.US Office Contact90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207Tel: +1-518-618-1030USA  Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453Email: sales@transparencymarketresearch.comWebsite:
Home Security System Market by Geographical Segmentation, Trends, Analysis and Forecasts to 2019

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The rising incidents of security concerns has led to increased safety measures by residential dwellings. As a result, the global home security system market is projected to grow at a remarkable rate of above 13% during the forecast period. Advancement in technology and emergence of smart homes has led to the rise of integrated home security systems, which can be connected to smartphones and enable the monitoring of residences from remote locations.For more information atWith improvement in network infrastructure, broadband and internet penetration has increased, and consumers are increasingly opting for wireless and technologically advanced products to ensure more security for their families. Therefore, vendors are expanding their distribution channels and R&D expenditure to improve their product offerings and leverage on the trend of home automation. As the trend towards home automation and smart homes grows, the market will gain traction.Segmentation of the home security system market by product- Electronic and smart locks- Alarms- Security cameras- Security solutions- DIY home security- Sensors and detectorsRequest Sample Copy:In 2014, the security cameras segment of the global home security system market noted the highest contribution of close to 22%, and this trend is expected to continue in the next five years. Security cameras are embedded with features such as Wi-Fi connectivity, rechargeable and replaceable batteries, accessibility on Android and iOS devices through apps.Geographical segmentation of the home security system market- Americas- EMEA- APACWith a market share of over 48% in 2014, the Americas dominated the home security system market, followed by APAC and EMEA. Following the burgeoning trend towards smart homes and smart products, people are investing increasingly on smart home security products and solutions.Competitive landscape and key vendorsThe home security system market is fairly concentrated with a few major players holding the majority of the market share. The innovation in technology and products among the leading vendors plays an essential role in the growth of the market. The market also exhibit a considerable influx of private labels and startups in the market, especially in the DIY home security products market.Make an enquiry:Contact Us:Call: +1-646-491-9876Email: sales@reportsweb.comReportsWeb.com is a one stop shop of market research reports and solutions to various companies across the globe. We help our clients in their decision support system by helping them choose most relevant and cost effective research reports and solutions from various publishers. We provide best in class customer service and our customer support team is always available to help you on your research queries.505, 6th floor, Amanora Township,Amanora Chambers, East Block,Kharadi Road, Hadapsar, Pune-411028
SaaS Based HRM Market Study, Europe Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends, And Forecast 2017 - 2025

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This report on the SaaS based HRM market provides analysis for the period 20152025, wherein 2016 is the base year and the period from 2017 to 2025 is the forecast period. Data for 2015 has been included as historical information. The report covers market dynamics including drivers, restraints opportunities, and trends expected to influence the Europe SaaS based HRM market growth during the said period. Trends that are playing a major role in the driving the Europe SaaS based HRM market have also been covered in the study. The study provides a comprehensive analysis on market growth throughout the forecast period from 2017 to 2025 in terms of revenue (value) estimates (in US$ Mn), across different countries.Software as a service (SaaS) based human resource management (HRM) alludes to the HR software carry out in cloud computing environment. SaaS based HRM solution enables to control and manage aspects of HR actions to maintain entirely employees details from the date of joining to the date of retirement. Moreover, SaaS based HRM solution incorporate HR activities such as directory management, application tracking, time & attendance management, electronic forms processing and others for instance payroll management and leave management. SaaS based HRM solution enables to develop the productivity of HR staff by providing self-service web interfaces.Request To Get Sample Copy Of This Report :Europe SaaS HRM Market: Segmentation AnalysisThe Europe SaaS based HRM has been segmented on the basis of enterprise size, solution and industry. Based on enterprise size, the market has been further classified into small and medium enterprise and large enterprise. By solution, the market is further classified into Time and Attendance Management, HR and Payroll, Workforce Management, Integrated Solutions, Others (Scheduling, Hiring, etc.). By industry, the market is further classified into Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI), Healthcare, IT and Telecom, Manufacturing, Others (Government, Logistics, etc.).Geographically, the report classifies the Europe SaaS based market into Germany, France, The U.K., Italy, The Netherlands, Scandinavia, Poland, and Rest of Europe. Countries are analyzed in terms of revenue generation. Furthermore, the study also includes quantitative analysis of the competitive scenario for country wise.View More :Europe SaaS HRM Market: Research MethodologiesThe report also includes key industry developments in the SaaS based HRM. Porter Five Force analysis is also included in the report. Ecosystem analysis which identifies the process of distribution between SaaS vendors and end users in the SaaS based HRM is also covered in the report. The report also covers segment wise, market attractiveness analysis and market share analysis, comparison matrix, market positioning of the companies for all countries covered in the scope of study. This report shows market attractiveness analysis for all the segments and for all the countries in the scope of study which identifies and compares segments market attractiveness on the basis of CAGR and market share index.The report also includes competition landscape which include competition matrix, market share analysis of major players in the Europe SaaS based HRM based on their 2016 revenues. Competition matrix benchmarks leading players on the basis of their capabilities and potential to grow. Factors including market position, offerings are attributed to companys capabilities. Factors including top line growth, market share, segment growth, infrastructure facilities and future outlook are attributed to companys potential to grow. This section also identifies and includes various recent developments carried out by the leading players.Key Players Mentioned in this Report are:The key players of SaaS based HRM market have been profiled with a focus on competitive details such as company and financial overview, business strategies, and their recent developments. The company profile of major players that have been incorporated in this report include as The Sage Group plc, IBM Corporation, ADP, LLC, SAP (SuccessFactor, Inc.), Oracle (Taleo Corporation), Rexx systems GmbH, SD Worx, Perbit Software GmbH, Jobvite Inc., Persis GmbH,.The Europe SaaS based HRM is segmented as below:Europe SaaS based HRM, By Enterprise SizeSmall and Medium EnterpriseLarge EnterpriseEurope SaaS based HRM, By SolutionTime and Attendance ManagementHR and PayrollWorkforce ManagementIntegrated SolutionsOthers (Scheduling, Hiring, etc.)Europe SaaS based HRM, By IndustryBanking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI)HealthcareIT and TelecomManufacturingOthers (Government, Logistics, etc.)Europe SaaS based HRM, By CountryGermanyFranceThe UKItalyThe NetherlandsScandinaviaPolandRest of EuropeMarketResearchReports.biz supports your business intelligence needs with over 100,000 market research reports, company profiles, data books, and regional market data sheets in its repository. Our document database is updated by the hour, which means that you always have access to fresh data spanning over 300 industries and their sub-segments.State Tower90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948(USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074E: sales@marketresearchreports.biz
Biogas Market (By Application - Electricity & Heat, Vehicle Fuel, And Others) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth Trends And Forecast 2015 - 2023

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The biogas market report by Transparency Market Research provides in-depth analysis of biogas production globally. The report segments the market on the basis of application and geography. The report analyzes the global production of biogas in terms of volume (Kilo Tons Oil Equivalent  KTOE) for the 20152023 period. The global biogas market report also analyzes the major biogas producing countries. For this research study, the base year is 2014, whereas the forecast is from 2015 to 2023. The report provides a comprehensive competitive landscape and features companies producing biogas. This report includes the key market dynamics affecting the biogas market globally. The analysis in the report provides detailed insights of the global biogas market. Major dynamics such as drivers, opportunities, and restraints of the market were analyzed in detail and are illustrated in the report through tables. The report also provides a detailed industry analysis of the global biogas market with the help of Porters Five Forces model.The biogas market has been segmented on the basis of application into electricity & heat, vehicle fuel, and others. Electricity & heat was the largest application segment of the biogas market globally, accounting for more than 50% of the global share, in 2014. Consumption of biogas for electricity and heat generation was augmented by the shift towards renewable sources of energy across the globe. However, the biogas market is hampered by high initial investments and installation costs. In 2014, others such as domestic use and supply to natural gas pipeline was the second-largest application segment of the biogas market globally. Consumption of upgraded biogas as a vehicle fuel is growing due to strict vehicle emission norms and low cost of fuel.Request To Get The Sample Copy Of This report :The biogas market was analyzed for North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Rest of the World (RoW). Volumetric production of biogas in few major countries such as China, South Korea, Canada, Brazil, the U.K., France, the U.S., and Germany is also provided in the report. Europe held the major share of the global biogas market, accounting for more than 60% of the global biogas production. In 2014, Germany was the major producer of biogas in Europe. Asia Pacific is anticipated to be the fastest growing market for biogas. Europe is anticipated to be the second-fastest growing market for biogas during the forecast period.Several companies in the biogas market have integrated operations with established components and feedstock supply channel. Some of the key market participants in the biogas market include Air Liquide Advanced Business & Technologies, Wartsila Corporation, Vanzetti Engineering S.r.l., Swedish Biogas International AB, Cryostar SAS, Gasrec Ltd., Biofrigas Sweden AB, Cryonorm BV, Scandinavian Biogas Fuels International AB, and EnviTec Biogas AG. The report provides an overview of these companies, followed by their financial details (if available), business strategies, and recent developments.The biogas market has been segmented as follows:Global Biogas Market: Application AnalysisElectricity & HeatVehicle FuelOthersGlobal Biogas Market: Regional AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.CanadaEuropeGermanyU.K.FranceRest of EuropeAsia PacificChinaSouth KoreaRest of Asia PacificRest of the World (RoW)BrazilOthersMarketResearchReports.biz supports your business intelligence needs with over 100,000 market research reports, company profiles, data books, and regional market data sheets in its repository. Our document database is updated by the hour, which means that you always have access to fresh data spanning over 300 industries and their sub-segments.State Tower90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948(USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074E: sales@marketresearchreports.biz
Wood Pellets Market Analysis By Application (Power Plants And Heating) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends And Forecast 2015 - 2023

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The research study is designed to analyze the global wood pellets market. The market is calculated in terms of volume (Million Tons) and revenue (USD Million) based on the consumption of wood pellets. The market for wood pellets has been segmented on the basis of application and geography. The global wood pellets market, based on application, has been segmented into power plants and heating.The regional segments included in this study are North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa, and Central and South America. These regional segments are further divided into country-wise sub-segments. The report provides a detailed growth forecast for the 2015-2023 period, considering 2014 as the base year. Projections have been provided for both volume (Million Tons) and revenue (USD Million), considering the consumption of wood pellets.The report includes the key market dynamics affecting the demand for wood pellets. As a part of our market dynamics analysis, we have analyzed the market drivers, market restraints, and market opportunities. A comprehensive competitive landscape, which includes market attractiveness analysis, has also been provided in this report. The report also provides a detailed industry analysis of the global wood pellets market with the help of Porters Five Forces model. The Porters Five Forces analysis aids in understanding the five major forces that affect the industry structure and profitability of the global wood pellets market. The forces analyzed are the bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of new entrants, threat of substitutes, and degree of competition.Request to get The Sample Copy :The study also includes the value chain of the global wood pellets market which provides a glimpse of key suppliers, manufacturers, distribution channel as well as interaction of suppliers and buyers with end-users. The market attractiveness analysis involves benchmarking and ranking each application and region on the basis of numerous parameters. The parameters selected are likely to have a pronounced effect on the demand for each application in the current scenario as well as in the near future.Key participants in the global wood pellets market include Andritz AG, Drax Group plc, Enito Singpellet Pte Ltd, Enviva LP, F.E. Wood & Sons, German Pellets GmbH, Georgia Biomass, LLC, Allance Pellet Machinery, The Westervelt Company, Pinnacle Renewable Energy Group, Rentech, Inc., Energex, and Wood Pellet Energy (UK) LTD. The report provides an overview of these companies, followed by their financial revenues, business strategies, and recent developments.View More :The global wood pellets market has been segmented as follows:Global Wood Pellets Market: Application Segment AnalysisPower PlantsHeatingGlobal Wood Pellets Market: Regional Segment AnalysisNorth AmericaU.S.CanadaEuropeU.K.ItalySwedenDenmarkGermanyRest of EuropeAsia PacificChinaJapanSouth KoreaRest of Asia PacificMiddle East and Africa (MEA)South AfricaRest of MEACentral and South America (CSA)BrazilRest of CSAMarketResearchReports.biz supports your business intelligence needs with over 100,000 market research reports, company profiles, data books, and regional market data sheets in its repository. Our document database is updated by the hour, which means that you always have access to fresh data spanning over 300 industries and their sub-segments.State Tower90 State Street, Suite 700Albany, NY 12207United StatesToll Free: 866-997-4948(USA-CANADA)Tel: +1-518-621-2074E: sales@marketresearchreports.biz
By Kay Jewett

Dawn broke on the rainy and sandy shores of Omaha Beach, and through the mist could be seen the ghostly shape of ships and small landing craft. The boats were manned with guns and fast approaching the shoreline. Suddenly the sky filled with shadowy human silhouettes. These were the paratroopers, thousands of them, dropping through the mist and into the winds of war.

We will soon observe the anniversary of World War II's D-Day, which celebrates the Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6th, 1944. Operation Overlord, as it was known, began in the wee hours of dawn. It sent our young men into the jaws of a fierce and bloody battle that would turn out to be the beginning of the end of the war. More than 9,000 American men -- boys, really -- perished that day and in the days that followed. Thankfully, we prevailed. If we hadn't, the world might now be a very different place.

I grew up hearing about D-Day, because it occurred on the day I was born. According to my mother, the hospital was in quite an uproar, with everyone glued to the radio and pretty much ignoring the mothers-to-be. My mother said the excitement and tension were palpable. Girl babies left and right were being named "Europa," "D-Day" and "Invasia"! Thankfully, I escaped that fate.

Because of my interest and that of my husband, who is a veteran, we decided to attend last year's D-Day ceremonies, which took place on the various beaches of Normandy and in the cemeteries. Northern France was a long way to go for such a solemn activity, but it turned out to be an enriching experience. There were a lot of reenactors about, but there were also some genuine articles. Real soldiers came from all over.

We were able to meet some of the soldiers from the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division, the same 82nd Airborne that sent its paratroopers on a descent from the skies over Normandy so many years ago. These young soldiers had completed a jump the day before and were beside themselves with excitement and pride because they felt like they were living the history of their division.

One of them was a medic, who reminded us of Al Turner, a D-Day survivor from Wilsonville. It seems Al, as a medic, had to carry ninety pounds of plasma and wade to shore in deep water. He somehow managed to make it to an orchard where he quickly fell asleep. The next morning he was awakened by a German soldier pointing a Mauser gun at his head. He and a fellow medic, who was lying next to him, were told to get up. The other medic was slow to respond and was quickly shot. So Al got up. He was then taken prisoner and made to march 50 miles, sometimes being strafed by our own aircraft because he was mixed in with the retreating Germans. Fortunately, he managed to survive.

We ended our visit with a trip to Coleville Cemetery, the American cemetery for soldiers killed in the invasion and its aftermath. There are more than 9,000 crosses in that cemetery, each one with a story. Our soldiers were mostly young, often teenagers or in their early twenties. Boys who never got to live their lives. When you stand in Coleville, listening to the silence, feeling the stillness and looking at all those crosses, it leaves a lasting impression: War should be avoided if at all possible.

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At the end of our stay we encountered some D-Day veterans, resplendent in their uniforms, but mostly using canes or wheelchairs. Sadly, they are rapidly disappearing from our midst.

One of the things I took away from this experience was a validation of my pride in being an American. Our soldiers gave their lives to save France and in doing so, made it possible for us to save ourselves.

Kay Jewett lives in Wilsonville.
Thirteen-year-old boy Youssef El-Araby died on Monday after being in a coma for almost two weeks after being struck by a stray bullet in Cairo's 6 October district, his mother Marwa Kenawy said on Facebook.

Youssef was standing with his friends in front of a famous restaurant in 6 October's El-Hosary Square when he collapsed. It was discovered later in the hospital that he had sustained a bullet wound to the head.

A few days ago, Egypt's interior ministry said it arrested a suspect in relation to the shooting, who reportedly confessed to involvement in the crime.

The prosecution has ordered the suspect detained for four days pending investigation into charges of "possessing an unlicensed gun and accidentally causing injury," according to Al-Ahram Arabic news website.

"Investigations showed that some people were firing guns during engagement celebrations at the time of the incident from the rooftop of a nearby building," read an official statement by the ministry released on Friday.

The prime suspect, a student from Fayoum, has implicated two other people in the shooting. The two suspects are currently at large.

The incident has sparked outrage on social media, with many calling for a swift investigation.

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By Noah Feldman

In a remarkable 10-to-3 decision, a federal appeals court on Thursday affirmed the freeze on the second iteration of President Donald Trump's executive order on immigration from six majority Muslim countries. The court said that national security "is not the true reason" for the order, despite Trump's insistence to the contrary. It's extraordinary for a federal court to tell the president directly that he's lying; I certainly can't think of any other examples in my lifetime.

The decision and the breakdown of the judges voting against the ban -- which includes a Republican appointee -- presages defeat for the executive order in the U.S. Supreme Court, should the Trump administration decide to seek review there. Faced with this degree of repudiation from the federal judiciary, Trump would be well advised not to go to the Supreme Court at all.

The decision for the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals was written by Chief Judge Roger Gregory, who has the distinction of having been appointed to the court first by Bill Clinton, in a recess appointment that would have expired, and then by George W. Bush -- a reminder of bipartisanship in the judicial nomination process that seems almost inconceivable today.

Gregory's opinion had three basic parts, of which the middle one was the most important.

First, Gregory found that the plaintiffs in the case had standing to challenge the executive order as a violation of the First Amendment's establishment clause. He pointed out that under the "endorsement test" first offered by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the establishment clause is violated when the government sends a message to some people that they are insiders, favored members of the political community, or a message to others that they are outsiders, disfavored as citizens.

In O'Connor's analysis, feelings count. As the 4th Circuit put it in the passage quoted by Gregory, "feelings of marginalization and exclusion are cognizable forms of injury" under the endorsement test. Thus, Muslim plaintiffs who alleged that they experienced a sense of exclusion and harm have the constitutional right to bring a lawsuit.

Although the 4th Circuit dissenters objected plausibly that this reliance on emotional experience would allow anyone "who develops negative feelings" to bring an establishment clause case, their objection isn't really to Gregory's reasoning, but to the endorsement test itself. And that's part of constitutional doctrine.

That led Gregory to the heart of his opinion -- and the condemnation of Trump as a liar. The strongest legal argument available to the Trump administration was based on a 1972 Supreme Court case called Kleindienst v. Mandel.

In the Mandel case, immigration authorities denied a visa to a Belgian Marxist who had been invited to give lectures in the U.S. The professors who invited him argued that his exclusion violated the freedom of speech.

The Supreme Court denied the claim, stating that when the executive branch excludes a noncitizen from the country "on the basis of a facially legitimate and bona fide reason," the courts would not "look behind the exercise of that discretion." That holding looked pretty good for the Trump executive order, which on its face asserts a national security interest in denying visas to people from the six majority Muslim countries.

Here's where the opinion got personal. Gregory acknowledged that the executive order was "facially legitimate." But, he said, "bona fide" literally means "in good faith."

And here, he reasoned, the plaintiffs had provided "ample evidence that national security is not the true reason" for the order. That evidence, the court said, came mostly from Trump himself, in the form of his "numerous campaign statements expressing animus towards the Islamic faith."

This was really the punchline of the opinion: Trump's own statements show that he lied when he said the purpose of the executive order was national security. Once that conclusion was on the table, Gregory easily went on to show that such animus violated the establishment clause by sending a message to Muslims that they are outsiders in the political community.

The judges who joined Gregory's decision were appointed by Democrats. The three dissents came from Judge Paul Niemeyer, appointed by George H.W. Bush, and two other George W. Bush nominees. (Two judges, J. Harvie Wilkinson III and Allyson Kay Duncan, recused themselves from the case.) Thus, the breakdown was mostly partisan.

As a result, it's plausible that Trump might get a few votes for the executive order at the Supreme Court. But he isn't going to win. Justice Anthony Kennedy will be moved by the argument that the executive order was adopted in bad faith. And even conservative Justice Samuel Alito is likely to be unsympathetic, given his strong record as a defender of religious liberty.

Trump's lawyers should be telling him right now that it would be a mistake for him to seek Supreme Court review. Not only is he likely to lose, he is likely to lose in a way that undermines his legitimacy and credibility. But it's doubtful whether he will listen. If Trump had been listening to his lawyers, he wouldn't be in the situation he's in now, where the judiciary is telling him to his face that he has bad faith.

(c) 2017, Bloomberg View

Noah Feldman is a Bloomberg View columnist and professor of constitutional and international law at Harvard University.
When I was young I left the ivory tower of Weatherford Hall on the Oregon State University campus for the valley of death - the A Shau Valley in Vietnam. Fortunately, I survived 11 brutal, bloody assaults up Hill 937, Hamburger Hill. I will never forget the courage and sacrifice of the men whom I served with in Vietnam.

The infantry platoon slowly wound its way through the jungle of the A Shau Valley to the base of Dong Ap Bia Mountain whose summit was shrouded in mist. The point man led the column with his best buddy behind him. I was next in line, when my rucksack snagged on a "wait-a-minute" vine hanging from a tree. While untangling my rucksack, another soldier passed by me.

After a while, I saw the man ahead of me disappear around a bend. Just as I reached the bend, I felt the concussion of exploding rocket-propelled grenades and heard automatic weapons fire. Bullets and shrapnel whistled past me ricocheting off the bamboo. After what seemed an eternity, I hit the dirt and crawled through some underbrush at the side of the trail. I positioned myself behind a tree and saw up ahead my three friends blown away. Charlie, the North Vietnamese, had broken contact and vanished, leaving the trail dead quiet.

I crawled up to the body of the man who had walked into the jaws of death in my place. Standing over the soldier's crumpled corpse, I hoisted him up onto my shoulders and carried him back down the trail. My shirt was soaked with blood from the man's wounds. After putting my friend down on the ground, I closed his eyes and said a prayer. The rest of the platoon moved up the trail and recovered the other two dead soldiers.

With the onset of darkness, the platoon sergeant told me to stay with the bodies. Swallowed up by the night, I hunkered down in the mud with death around me. My fallen brothers-in-battle, whom I loved, were silent reminders of how temporal life is. Together we had experienced joy and sorrow, endured heat and rain, shared food and water. Now, each personality has departed along with the breath of life.

Riley King, Corvallis
President Donald Trump spoke out for the first time Monday morning about the Portland MAX train attack, calling the incident unacceptable and praising the victims for standing up to the suspect who verbally harassed two teenage girls on the train.

"The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable," Trump wrote from his official presidential Twitter account. "The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are with them."

Since the attack on Friday evening, which left two men dead and a third wounded, people had been calling for Trump to weigh in on the incident.

Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, was allegedly berating a Muslim girl in a hijab and her friend, when three men on the train -- Rick John Best, 53, of Happy Valley, Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, of Southeast Portland, and Micah David-Cole Fletcher, 21 -- came to the two girls' defense. Christian slashed at all three men's necks, killing both Best and Namkai-Meche. Fletcher was wounded, but is recovering in a Portland area hospital. Christian is a felon known for hate speech.

On Sunday, former CBS news anchor Dan Rather asked Trump to acknowledge the attack and bravery of the Good Samaritans.

"I wish we would hear you say these names, or even just tweet them," Rather wrote on Facebook. "They were brave Americans who died at the hands of someone who, when all the facts are collected, we may have every right to call a terrorist ... I hope you can find it worthy of your time to take notice."

On Monday, U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer joined those calling for Trump to speak out.

"I implore you to condemn this atrocious act of terror in the strongest possible terms," Blumenauer wrote in a letter to Trump. "No amount of comfort can be given to the families who lost a loved one in this tragedy. You have an opportunity, however, to honor these selfless heroes for showing courage in the face of injustice. You must condemn this violent act and encourage Americans to stand together against hatred."

Trump had tweeted more than a dozen times from his personal account over the weekend, focusing on his first foreign trip as president, the "fake news media" and Republicans' recent Congressional win in Montana.

-- Hillary Borrud

503-294-4034; @hborrud
A normally quiet Portland neighborhood spent most of a sunny Sunday on lockdown as police conducted a door-to-door manhunt searching for a man believed to be armed with a handgun.

The 10-hour ordeal in the trendy Laurelhurst neighborhood began around 6:30 a.m. as gunshots jarred the neighborhood awake. It appeared to end around 4:30 p.m. when a man was arrested at Northeast 35th Avenue and Sandy Boulevard.

Police wouldn't immediately say if the man arrested was the suspect they had been hunting all day. But once the arrest was made, police loosened the restrictions that kept residents locked in their homes. The man arrested fit the description but was arrested outside the perimeter on an unrelated warrant. He was not armed and had no apparent injuries when he was arrested, police said.

Earlier in the day, dozens of police cars and armored vehicles rolled down the streets of the Laurelhurst neighborhood as officers in camouflage searched for the man. Police deployed air units and police dogs to aid in the manhunt.

Police urged residents to stay inside unless they had to leave for a medical emergency.

Officers responded shortly before 6:30 a.m. to reports that a man was walking around with a handgun in the vicinity of East Burnside Street and Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard.

Police encountered the suspect. Shots were fired as the man fled the neighborhood, according to police. Officers found him near Northeast Laurelhurst Place and Couch Street. Additional shots were fired by officers. The suspect again got away.

At least 60 police units were dispatched to the area, according to online dispatch records.

The search rattled residents of the neighborhood near the popular Laurelhurst Park, the Laurelhurst Theater and numerous eateries, cafes and shops.

Portland Police Bureau spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson said that it was unclear if the suspect fired a weapon at the officers. But police fired at him on two separate occasions. Residents in the neighborhood said they counted at least nine shots.

Peter Crofut and his family were terrified after hearing the second set of gunshots just feet from his home near Laurelhurst Place and Couch Street. He initially heard three gunshots from a distance and decided to walk outside.

Two or three police cars arrived with officers urgently telling Crofut and neighbors to go back inside their houses.

"No sooner did I get up the stairs to my home that we heard another volley of gunshots," he said. "They were really really loud. We heard the officer saying the commands, 'Come out from there. Show us your hands.'"

The incident woke up his frightened 9-year-old daughter. He believes he heard six or seven gunshots about five minutes after the initial three gunshots, he said.

Crofut said he saw a man later walking near his house, but he couldn't remember if the man matched the suspect's description.

The sound of the first three gunshots woke Julie Wells and her husband. They went downstairs to find bullet holes in their windows, doors and living room wall.

"If we had been in the living room or dining room, we could have been shot," Wells said.

Wells looked outside and saw police officers running down Laurelhurst Place, yelling, "Stop." More police cars arrived and officers wearing camouflage and carrying shields got out. At one point, Wells said at least 20 police cars were outside her house.

Wells and her husband briefly went outside to survey the damage to their home, but an officer told them to go back inside.

Wells spent the time pacing and worrying. Her husband searched for the bullets that struck their house.

"I feel very tense," she said. "It's just frightening to have all this activity around."

Bernice Lundgren said she has lived in her home at the northeast corner of East Burnside and Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard since 1961. She awoke to the first volley of gunshots.

"I was still in bed and I laid there and thought, 'that's a gun,' " Lundgren said of the sound she heard. "It's kind of scary."

Portland resident Jaime Gleason said officers allowed her into the perimeter around 10 a.m. because she was going to a friend's vacant home to check on a gas stove that was potentially left on. They escorted her to the home, and she was allowed to walk out with her friend's dog, she said.

As she crossed 32nd Avenue on Burnside, she said the officers could be seen searching the area.

Erik Salvail stood at the corner as Gleason approached. Salvail, who works part time at Music Millennium, told Gleason he arrived at the edge of the police perimeter around 8 a.m. Officers in tactical gear told him to stay put.

The music store normally sets up a sidewalk sale that includes tables with several boxes filled with CDs and vinyl records. He couldn't set up until 10 a.m., he said. By noon, a half dozen people were thumbing through the selection of music, just feet away from the police perimeter marked by yellow tape.

Police officers later drove on his street using a loudspeaker to tell neighbors to lock their doors and stay put. Soon after, tactical team members were going door to door and searching properties, Crofut said.

"We're going stir crazy because it's a three-day weekend and it's 85 and we can't get in and out."

 Tony Hernandez, Samantha Matsumoto and Kale Williams
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has asked the federal government to revoke a permit for what he described as an alt-right demonstration planned Sunday at Terry Schrunk Plaza across from City Hall.

Wheeler also said the city will not issue permits for such events, and appealed to the organizers to cancel them. He asked the federal government not to issue a permit for a second event, an anti-Muslim march planned for June 10th.

"Our city is in mourning, our community's anger is real, and the timing and subject of these events can only exacerbate an already difficult situation," Wheeler wrote on Facebook, referring to the stabbing attack on a MAX train Friday that left two men dead and a third wounded. "I urge them to ask their supporters to stay away from Portland."

Police have said the suspect in the stabbings was yelling slurs at two teenage girls on the train, one of whom was wearing a hijab, when the other men intervened to try to talk him down.

The purpose of the June 4th free speech rally in downtown Portland is to "bring back strength and courage to those who believe in freedom," according to the organizer's Facebook page. Vancouver-based Patriot Prayer has held other "free speech rallies," including one in Montavilla last month where the suspect in the Friday MAX train killings  Jeremy Joseph Christian  attended and reportedly yelled racial epithets and "Die Muslims!"

Event organizer Joey Gibson has distanced himself from Christian, and told The Oregonian/OregonLive "we were clearly asking (Christian) to leave" the April event.

But in a video posted to Facebook Sunday, Gibson discussed security for the June 4th rally and said "there's gonna be more intensity, there's gonna be more threats." Gibson anticipated counter protesters from an anti-fascist group called Antifa, who he accused of "using the deaths of these two people  and Jeremy Christian  they're using it to get Portland all rowdy about our June 4th rally."

Wheeler's statement that the city would deny permits to alt-right demonstrators could raise constitutional issues. According to the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, governments can require permits for peaceful protests as long as they "treat all groups the same."

"The government cannot impose permit restrictions or deny a permit simply because it does not like the message of a certain speaker or group," according to the ACLU of Oregon's website.

Mat dos Santos, ACLU Oregon's legal director, tweeted on Monday that "Our hearts are broken, but government censorship is not the answer. We must defend the constitution even when it is uncomfortable."

When asked whether Wheeler believes his refusal to grant permits is constitutional, spokesman Michael Cox responded that the mayor "believes it's right." He later wrote on Twitter that Wheeler is also concerned about the potential for violence.

-- Hillary Borrud

503-294-4034; @hborrud
The Portland Timbers have signed Congolese center back Larrys Mabiala, a team source confirmed to the Oregonian/OregonLive Monday.

Mabiala is expected to join the Timbers in June, but will not be eligible to play until the secondary transfer window opens on July 10.

The Timbers have been aiming to sign a new starting-caliber center back ever since Gbenga Arokoyo went down with a season-ending Achilles injury in preseason.

Portland had hoped to add a new center back during the primary transfer window and reports started to link the Timbers to the 29-year-old Mabiala back in March. But Mabiala remained under contract with Turkish Super Lig side Kayserispor and the Timbers were unable to acquire him earlier as his club remained in a relegation battle.

Mabiala spent his youth career with Paris Saint-Germain and turned pro with the French side in 2006. He made just three appearances for PSG before joining Nice in 2009. He left France for Turkey in 2012 and went on to make over 100 appearances for Turkish side Karabukspor before joining Kayserispor in 2015. Mabiala has served as captain for Kayserispor and has made more than 50 appearances during his time with the club.

The 6 foot 2 defender also has 11 caps for the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 2008.

Mabiala is expected to slot into a starting center back role alongside Liam Ridgewell in Portland. The Timbers have conceded 21 goals in 13 games this season as they've dealt with injuries on the backline and tried to find a stopgap at center back.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com

503-853-3761 | @jamiebgoldberg
WASHINGTON -- Federal authorities are investigating dozens of new cases of possible opioid and other drug theft by employees at Veterans Affairs hospitals, a sign the problem isn't going away as more prescriptions disappear.

Data obtained by The Associated Press show 36 criminal investigations opened by the VA inspector general's office from Oct. 1 through May 19. It brings the total number of open criminal cases to 108 involving theft or unauthorized drug use. Most of those probes typically lead to criminal charges.

The numbers are an increase from a similar period in the previous year. The VA has pledged "zero tolerance" in drug thefts following an AP story in February about a sharp rise in reported cases of stolen or missing drugs at the VA since 2009. Doctors, nurses or pharmacy staff in the VA's network of more than 160 medical centers and 1,000 clinics are suspected of siphoning away controlled substances for their own use or street sale -- sometimes to the harm of patients -- or drugs simply vanished without explanation.

Drug thefts are a growing problem at private hospitals as well as the government-run VA as the illegal use of opioids has increased in the United States. But separate data from the Drug Enforcement Administration obtained by the AP under the Freedom of Information Act show the rate of reported missing drugs at VA health facilities was more than double that of the private sector. DEA investigators cited in part a larger quantity of drugs kept in stock at the bigger VA medical centers to treat a higher volume of patients, both outpatient and inpatient, and for distribution of prescriptions by mail.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said AP's findings were "troubling." He urged Congress to pass bipartisan accountability legislation he was co-sponsoring that would give the agency "the tools needed to dismiss employees engaged in misconduct." The Senate is set to vote on the bill June 6.

"The theft and misuse of prescription drugs, including opioids, by some VA employees is a good example of why we need greater accountability at the VA," Rubio said.

In February, the VA announced efforts to combat drug thefts, including employee drug tests and added inspections. Top VA officials in Washington led by VA Secretary David Shulkin pledged to be more active, holding conference calls with health facilities to develop plans and reviewing data to flag problems. The department said it would consider more internal audits.

Criminal investigators said it was hard to say whether new safeguards are helping.

"Prescription drug diversion is a multifaceted, egregious health care issue," said Jeffrey Hughes, the acting VA assistant inspector general for investigations. "Veterans may be denied necessary medications or their proper dosage and medical records may contain false information to hide the diversion, further putting veterans' health at risk."

Responding, the VA said it was working to develop additional policies "to improve drug safety and reduce drug theft and diversion across the entire health care system."

"We have security protocols in place and will continue to work hard to improve it," Poonam Alaigh, VA's acting undersecretary for health, told the AP.

In one case, a registered nurse in the Spinal Cord Injury Ward at the VA medical center in Richmond, Virginia, was recently sentenced after admitting to stealing oxycodone tablets and fentanyl patches from VA medication dispensers. The nurse said she would sometimes shortchange the amount of pain medication prescribed to patients, taking the remainder to satisfy her addiction.

Hughes cited in particular the risk of patient harm. "Health care providers who divert for personal use may be providing care while under the influence of narcotics," he said.

AP's story in February had figures documenting the sharp rise in drug thefts at federal hospitals, most of them VA facilities. Subsequently released DEA data provide more specific details of the problem at the VA. Drug losses or theft increased from 237 in 2009 to 2,844 in 2015, before dipping to 2,397 last year. In only about 3 percent of those cases have doctors, nurses or pharmacy employees been disciplined, according to VA data.

At private hospitals, reported drug losses or theft also rose -- from 2,023 in 2009 to 3,185 in 2015, before falling slightly to 3,154 last year. There is a bigger pool of private U.S. hospitals, at least 4,369, according to the American Hospital Association. That means the rate of drug loss or theft is lower than VA's.

The VA inspector general's office said it had opened 25 cases in the first half of the budget year that began Oct. 1. That is up from 21 in the same period in 2016.

The IG's office said the number of newly opened criminal probes had previously been declining since 2014.

Michael Glavin, an IT specialist at the VA, says he's heard numerous employee complaints of faulty VA technical systems that track drug inventories, leading to errors and months of delays in identifying when drugs go missing. Prescription drug shipments aren't always fully inventoried when they arrive at a VA facility, he said, making it difficult to determine if a drug was missing upon arrival or stolen later.

"It's still the same process," said Glavin, who heads the local union at the VA medical center in Columbia, Missouri. The union's attorney, Natalie Khawam, says whistleblowers at other VA hospitals have made similar complaints.

Criminal investigators stressed the need for a continuing drug prevention effort. The VA points to inventory checks every 72 hours and "double lock and key access" to drugs. It attributes many drug loss cases to reasons other than employee theft, such as drugs lost in transit. But the DEA says some of those cases may be wrongly classified.

"Inventories are always an issue as to who's watching or checking it," said Tom Prevoznik, a DEA deputy chief of pharmaceutical investigations. "What are the employees doing, and who's watching them?"

A GLANCE AT SOME OF THE INVESTIGATIONS

Some recently prosecuted cases:

VIRGINIA

A registered nurse in the Spinal Cord Injury Ward at the VA medical center in Richmond was sentenced to four months' home detention and three years' probation after admitting to stealing 20 to 30 oxycodone 5 milligram tablets and 8 to 10 fentanyl patches from VA medication dispensers. The nurse said she would sometimes shortchange the amount of pain medication prescribed to patients, taking the remainder to satisfy her addiction.

TENNESSEE

A staff nurse at the Murfreesboro VA medical center was sentenced to 2 years' probation after pleading no contest to charges of fraudulently obtaining controlled substances. The IG's investigation found the nurse on at least 18 occasions took for her personal use oxycodone, hydrocodone, morphine and lorazepam that were intended for Community Living Center geriatric patients.

CALIFORNIA

An employee at the VA medical center in Long Beach was sentenced to three years in prison for selling heroin onsite to an undercover officer on multiple occasions. An investigation by the IG as well as law enforcement authorities determined the employee and others had been improperly selling oxycodone, Percocet, fentanyl and other drugs at the medical center. Separately in Livermore, a VA medical center employee was sentenced to 3 years' probation after admitting that he stole narcotics from the U.S. Postal Service. While investigating the possible theft of prescription medication packages, the IG's office observed the VA employee at his work desk smashing pills into powder form that he then inhaled.

MISSOURI

A licensed nurse at the Columbia VA medical center was sentenced to five years' probation and five years' prison time after pleading guilty to stealing more than 340 controlled substances for her personal use over a period of six months.
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump is considering overhauling his White House staff and bringing back top campaign strategists, frustrated by what he views as his team's inability to contain the burgeoning crisis involving alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Expanding teams of lawyers and experienced public relations hands are being recruited to deal with the drumbeat of new revelations about Moscow's interference and possible improper dealings with the Trump campaign and associates. The disclosures dogged the president during his first trip abroad since taking office and threaten to overwhelm and stall the agenda for his young administration.

As he mulls outside reinforcements to his operation, Trump returned late Saturday from his nine-day journey to a White House seemingly in crisis mode, with a barrage of reports hitting close to the Oval Office and involving Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and influential adviser.

A rally planned Thursday in Iowa was postponed due to "an unforeseen change" in Trump's schedule.

After maintaining a limited social media presence throughout his trip, Trump on Sunday unleashed a furious flurry of tweets, lashing out at what he called the "fake news" media. He focused heavily on leaks -- both those coming out of the White House and an intelligence leak blamed on Americans about this week's deadly bombing at a concert in England.

On the bombing investigation Trump said: "British Prime Minister May was very angry that the info the U.K. gave to U.S. about Manchester was leaked. Gave me full details!"

Trump also said that "many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies." He added that it is "very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers."

Even when authorized, however, top officials in the Trump White House frequently request anonymity to brief reporters "on background," meaning their names will not be disclosed.

The latest reports in the Russia matter said Kushner spoke with Russia's ambassador to the United States about setting up secret communications with Moscow during the presidential transition.

While overseas, Trump's longtime lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, joined a still-forming legal team to help the president shoulder the intensifying investigations into Russian interference in the election and his associates' potential involvement. More attorneys with deep experience in Washington investigations are expected to be added, along with crisis communication experts, to help the White House in the weeks ahead.

"They need to quarantine this stuff and put the investigations in a separate communications operation," said Jack Quinn, who served as White House counsel for President Bill Clinton.

During the Monica Lewinsky investigation, the Clinton White House brought on a dedicated group of lawyers and a created a separate media operation to handle investigation-related inquiries so they didn't completely subsume the president's agenda.

Trump, according to one person familiar with his thinking, believed he was facing more of a communications problem than a legal one, despite the intensifying inquiries. The person, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss private conversations.

As he mulls changes, Trump has entertained bringing his former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and former deputy campaign manager, David Bossie, formally back into the fold. Both Lewandowski and Bossie discussed the prospect with the president before his trip, according to one person told of the conversations.

Lewandowski's return would be a particularly notable development, given the fact that he was fired by Trump after clashing with staff and Trump's adult children. Nonetheless, Lewandowski has the trust of the president -- an advantage that many of Trump's aides lack.

Trump called his maiden trip abroad a "home run," but while the White House had hoped it would serve as a reset, attention on the Russia probe has only increased.

Recently appointed special counsel Robert Mueller, a former FBI director, is starting off an investigation with a broad mandate that will allow him to probe both the possible Russian influence and whether Trump attempted to obstruct the investigation by firing FBI Director James Comey.

Comey is expected to testify before Congress after Memorial Day about memos he kept on conversations with the president that pertained to the investigation.

The White House also grappled with reports that Kushner proposed setting up a secret back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team during a December meeting. Kushner spoke with Sergey Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the U.S., about creating the secret line to make it easier to hold sensitive discussions about the conflict in Syria, according to a person familiar with the discussions.

The back channel was meant to connect Michael Flynn, who later became Trump's first national security adviser, with Russian military leaders, said the person, who wasn't authorized to publicly discuss private policy considerations and spoke on condition of anonymity. Flynn was fired in February, officials saying he misled Vice President Mike Pence about whether he and the ambassador had discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia in a phone call.

Before departing Italy for the U.S., White House officials refused to address the reports about Kushner. But they did not dismiss the idea that the administration would go outside normal U.S. government and diplomatic channels for communications with other countries.

Other major issues await Trump at home. He has signaled he will make a decision on whether to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. And the search continues for an FBI director to replace Comey.

On the policy front, he must defend his budget plan, and the Republican health care bill that narrowly passed the House faces an uncertain future in the Senate.

Trump also has to decide soon on a Pentagon recommendation to add more U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, as well as boosting reinforcement for the beleaguered Afghan military.

-- Jill Colvin and Ken Thomas
Russias Defence Minister Sergei Shoygu and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed their country's keenness to develop strategic relations with Egypt during a meeting with President Abdel-Fatah El-Sisi on Monday, a presidency statement read.

The meeting in Cairo tackled boosting cooperation and joint counter-terrorism efforts as well as developments in the region, mainly in Syria.

The Egyptian president expressed Cairos keenness to consolidate partnership with Russia in economic, commercial and industrial fields.

El-Sisi praised the important projects that the two countries are cooperating on in Egypt, including the construction of the Dabaa nuclear power station and the establishment of a Russian industrial zone.

The two parties agreed to continue coordination on combating terrorism, and the Russian officials hailed Egypts efforts as chair of UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee.

Earlier on Monday, the Egyptian-Russian (2+2) talks kicked off. The talks focus on bolstering military cooperation between the two states.

Cairo has been engaged in talks with Russia for over a year to discuss the resumption of Russian flights to Egypt.

Russia suspended flights to Egypt in 2015 after a Russian airliner crashed shortly after taking off from Sharm El-Sheikh International Airport, killing all 224 people on board.

Tourists from Russia have traditionally been a key contributor to Egypt's tourism industry, a key source of hard currency for the country.

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Q: I served in the Air Force during the Vietnam War. My Illinois vehicle license will be expiring soon and I want to have my new license plates reflect my military service. I heard that Illinois was no longer issuing vehicle licenses indicating service. How do I go about getting a vehicle license plate that reflects my Air Force service and my service during the Vietnam War?

A: The universal veterans' automobile license plate is available through the Office of the Secretary of State. A veteran must show the Secretary of States Office a copy of the DD214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, which indicates service that was either honorable or general under honorable conditions, and award of medals consistent with theater of action or award. In addition, the vehicle registration must indicate that the veteran is the owner of record of the vehicle. A current valid Illinois drivers license is also required. Decals depicting branch of service and theater of action/awards to be affixed to these plates are available through the American Legion Headquarters.

These decals will not fit the motorcycle plate. There are no plans to produce a decal to fit the motorcycle plate. Theater of action/award decals cost $3 each and branch of service decals are $4 each. American Legion Department Headquarters is located at 2720 E. Lincoln St., Bloomington, IL 61704. The telephone number is 309-663-0361.

Q: I use the VA for my health care. Generally, I receive great care from the VA staff. However, scheduling appointments is really a pain. Is the VA ever going to address its problems with timely scheduling and ease of access to VA appointments?

A: New VA Secretary Dr. David J. Shulkin recently stated: The VA is making critical improvements to veteran health care, and will always look to leverage innovative tools that will put more capabilities in the hands of veterans." Dr. Shulkin, on April 14, awarded a contract for a commercially available off-the-shelf online patient self-scheduling system through a mobile application, or app, that will help improve access to care for veterans.

Self-scheduling apps are widely used in the private sector and will help create a better experience for veterans and their medical-care providers. This contract supports the Faster Care for Veterans Act of 2016, which requires VA to establish an 18-month trial program operational in at least three Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), during which veterans can use a cellphone, tablet, computer or mobile device to schedule and confirm primary care, specialty care and mental health appointments.

Update

In 2014, the VA investigated the appointment scheduling procedures in the Phoenix VA Medical Center. The investigation discovered that multiple VA executive employees were using fraudulent accounting processes that inaccurately showed that veteran health care appointments were meeting objectives for timeliness, when in actuality they were not. The Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014 had a provision for an expedited Senior Executive Service (SES) removal authority so that executives of the VA involved in such activities could more easily and expeditiously be removed.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Helman v. Department of Veterans Affairs ruled the provision unconstitutional. On May 9, H.R. 1259 was passed in the House of Representative as the VA Accountability First Act of 2017. Shulkin hailed the bill as a vital step toward providing the tools necessary to address misconduct while ensuring due process. The Senate will take up a similar bill in the near future.

Memorial Day

I have never been able to think of the day as one of mourning; I have never quite been able to feel that half-masted flags were appropriate on Decoration Day (Memorial Day). I have rather felt that the flag should be at the peak, because those whose dying we commemorate rejoiced in seeing it where their valor placed it. We honor them in joyous, thankful, triumphant commemoration of what they did.  Benjamin Harrison

Being American is not a matter of birth. We must practice it every day, lest we become something else.  Malcom Wallop

Enjoy the unofficial beginning of summer on this Memorial Day weekend and holiday. But among the festivities and cookouts, let us not forget those brave men and women who have gone before us, who have safeguarded our freedoms and our way of life, through their service. May God bless all veterans on this Memorial Day and may God continue to bless the United States of America.
BLOOMINGTON  On a day when Americans honor service men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice, the American Red Cross invites Central Illinoisans to consider making a potentially life-saving contribution.

The blood supply typically declines during summer so now would be a good time for people to make an appointment to make a donation.

"We are urging those who have never given before  and those who have  to give now," said Laura McGuire, Red Cross external biomedical communications manager for Illinois, Wisconsin and Iowa.

"Blood and platelet donations are going out to hospitals almost as quickly as they come in," said McGuire. "All blood types are needed."

While there is a need for blood now, Red Cross is concerned that it could become more acute as summer nears when donations typically decline while the need remains constant.

Many blood donors give less frequently during summer because of vacations and because there are no high school and college drives during summer, McGuire said. School and college drives account for 20 percent of blood donations during the school year.

While 38 percent of the population is eligible to donate blood, less than 10 percent of them do, McGuire said. People who are at least 17 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds and are healthy may be eligible to donate blood.

Red Cross supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood supply. Among people who may need blood are accident and burn victims, heart surgery and organ transplant patients, and people receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or sickle cell disease.

Because donated blood is good for only 42 days and platelets are good for only five days, "there always is a need," McGuire said.

Red Cross is celebrating 100 years of service in Central Illinois and is marking that occasion by turning its 18th annual Friends and Family drive into a 100 Pints for 100 Years Blood Drive.

That drive, conducted in partnership with The Pantagraph, will be noon to 6 p.m. June 7-8 in the JC Penney wing at Eastland Mall, 1615 E. Empire St., Bloomington. The goal is to collect 100 pints of blood.

"There is no better way to celebrate this occasion (the Red Cross Central Illinois centennial) than by helping the Red Cross maintain a sufficient blood supply," Lyn Hruska, Red Cross Central and Southern Illinois Region CEO, said in a prepared statement.

People can make an appointment for any Red Cross blood drive by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting www.redcrossblood.org or calling 800-733-2767.

Eligible donors who live in parts of Tazewell and Logan counties served by the Central Illinois Community Blood Center can visit www.cicbc.org or call 866-448-3253.
WAYNESVILLE  While Memorial Day is a time to remember veterans who gave their lives for our country, two Central Illinois sisters remind us that many others also made sacrifices to secure our freedom.

A lot of people risked their lives for the (World War II) effort, said Phyllis Granacher of Waynesville.

She and her sister, Mabel Houchens of Ellsworth, remember good times and bad growing up during the early 1940s. At the time, they were children about 5 and 6 years old.

Being a kid during the war wasnt good, Houchens said.

Their father, Phillip Park, was one of more than 10,000 Illinois residents employed at two ammunition plants built in the state in 1940. One was based near Kankakee, and the second, known as the Joliet Arsenal, was located near Elwood, south of Joliet.

While he went to work at Elwood, we waited with our mother in Colfax, Granacher said. When the government completed the trailer court for the workers and their families, we moved to Wilmington to join him.

According to the website devoted to the history of the Joliet Army Ammunition Plant, the Elwood facility loaded more than 926 million bombs, shells, mines, detonators, fuses and boosters during World War II.

The men and women who worked at these plants put their lives on the line every day, Granacher said. Each plants primary concern was safety.

But early on the morning on June 5, 1942, something went terribly wrong in Elwood.

The United Press reported on the incident a day later.

"An explosion shattered buildings of one of the units of the $30 million Elwood Ordnance plant and gave up the bodies of 21 workers Friday," the wire service reported. "Army officials said 36 more were missing from the blast that could be felt for a radius of 100 miles. Another 41 were injured, five of them critically, from the explosion that leveled a building... Not one of the 68 men inside the shipping unit when the blast occurred escaped death or injury."

According to a story published a week later in The Pantagraph, 49 people died from the blast and 67 were injured. Families of the dead received compensation of between $4,000 and $5,500, depending on the number of children in the family. Amounts of up to $4,000 were sent to those who were injured, depending on the severity of their injuries.

Following the war, the Army described the incident as one of the deadliest explosions at an ammunition plant during World War II.

The blast occurred at 2:45 a.m. but fortunately, for Park, he was assigned to the day shift and was not at the plant when the explosion happened. The blast put one of the 12 production units out of action temporarily, but operations continued in the others.

The memory of the explosion remains with both women, as they reflected on their childhood.

We have good and bad memories of that time, Granacher said.

During the war, everyone suffered because some products were rationed, Houchens added. It was a much different time. I remember walking on Old Route 66 when it was New Route 66.

But it was the hard work of Americans and the dedication of the American labor force behind the scenes that also should be recognized, in addition to those who fought in combat overseas, Granacher said.

All of the workers, men and women who were unable to join the Armed Forces were able to do their part and help win the war by supplying the materials our troops needed, she said.

Freedom is never free and I want to thank all of the workers in the ammunition plants during World War II and all of the workers employed in our plants today.
In a recent post, evangelical pastor Doug Wilson wrote the following:

Once we have all-together-now-agreed that statues of Robert E. Lee simply must come down because he-was-a-slaveowner-period-end-of-discussion-you-hater-and-any-moments-hesitancy-in-agreeing-with-our-most-righteousy-demands-reveals-a-seething-racismperhaps you are familiar with this line of argument?we will almost immediately discover that the very same rationale applies to the Washington Monument and the Jefferson Memorial.

Of course, Wilson being Wilson, he followed this up with his typical fare:

And there you are, looking pretty silly as you try to buy a new refrigerator on Presidents Day because the clerk tells you, with a knowing glance, that it is now the Supreme Leaders Refrigerator Day Sale. Furthermore, he is required by law to report you for the thought-crime of referring to our erstwhile presidents without so much as a hint of condemnation in your voice. No deal on a refrigerator andtime in the slammer. Slammer is perhaps a poor way of putting it. I meant Glorious Sunrise Camp for the Inspiration and Reeducation of the Ideologically Wayward.

Still, troll though Wilson may be, I thought it worth addressing the central argument he makesthat you cant take down statues of Confederate war heroes without also taking down statues of any figure who owned slaves.

I studied logic out of Wilsons textbooks. I mean that literally. Wilson has written logic textbooks, and my parents used these textbooks when homeschooling me. Ive been writing critically about Wilson for half a decade now, but Ive been increasingly bothered by his inability to use the principles of logic I learned from his materials.

To answer his objection, we need to ask why some communities have taken action to remove statues of Robert E. Lee and other Confederate heroes. The answer is not because they owned slaves. Wilson is correct that if that were the answer, we would need to take down statues of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson as well. He errs, however, in his unsourced claim that the statues slated for removal are being removed simply because the individuals depict owned slaves.

There are two distinctions to be drawn here. First, Lee is best known for leading an armed rebellion against his country in defense of the institution of slavery. There is a difference between slaveowners who played leading roles in the American Revolution, which was not about slavery, and slaveowners who played leading roles in the Civil War, a conflict begun expressly and solely to preserve slavery.

Second, the Confederate statues in question were not erected solely to commemorate individuals who played a significant role in our history, but rather to celebrate, commemorate, and prolong white supremacy. People dont usually put up statues of Washington to celebrate his keeping of human chattel, but statues of Lee have typically been erected to celebrate his role in attempting to preserve slavery.

To be sure, there are some people who likely want to see all statues of slaveholders removed, and there are things about monuments to slaveholding presidents that do need to change. The historical homes of individuals like Washington and Jefferson need to address what it means that these individuals owned slavesand the role chattel slavery played in our nations history at its founding. However, cities like New Orleans and Charlottesville are not removing statues of Confederate-era figures simply because they were slaveowners.

Ohand if youre here to say that the Civil War wasnt about slavery, it was about states rights, youre absolutely right! The Civil War was about states rights to practice slavery. Or in other wordsit was very definitely about slavery.

Lets talk about the four Confederate statues recently removed in New Orleans. One was a statue of Lee. Another was a statue of P. G. T. Beauregard, another Confederate general. A third was a statue of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy. The fourth monument was an obelisk tucked on a back street near the French Quarter that commemorated a Reconstruction Era white supremacist attack on the citys integrated police force. What happened there, you ask?

A pitched battle took place in the streets of New Orleans on September 14, 1874. In it, the Democratic-Conservative White League attacked the Republican Metropolitan Police for control of the city and to put an end to Reconstruction in Louisiana. Although the White League inflicted a stunning defeat on the Metropolitans and forcibly deposed Governor William Pitt Kellogg, its victory proved short-lived. President Ulysses S. Grant ordered the army to reinstate Kellogg three days later. Quickly dubbed The Battle of Liberty Place by the White League and its supporters, the clash not only marked a crucial turning point in the balance of power during Reconstruction in Louisiana, it served as a defining moment for a generation of elite, young white men in New Orleans.

What does the monument say? About that

Text: United States troops took over the state government and reinstated the usurpers but the national election November 1876 recognized white supremacy in the South and gave us our state.

I wrote several weeks ago about a statue of Robert E. Lee that is in the process of being removed in Charlottesville, Virginia. I noted in my piece that there was no reason for Charlottesville to have this statue in the first placethat there was no connection between Lee and Charlottesville. The statue was not erected until the 1920s, and when it was, it was erected as part of a celebration of the Confederacy. In other words, the statues creation and installation was not really about Lee to begin with, or even about history. It was about white supremacyand propaganda.

The four monuments removed from New Orleans last month were erected between 1884 and 1915 as part of this same Lost Cause mythology. Its worth noting that there is some truth on the text on the monument pictured above. In 1876, the presidential election was so close that it was thrown to Congress. Ultimately, politicians in the North agreed to end Reconstruction and withdraw federal troops from the South if their candidate was granted the presidency. In Louisiana, white supremacists promptly rewrote the states Constitution, disenfranchising freed blacks.

This isnt about Lee being a slaveholder. Its about his role in an armed rebellion to protect the institution of human slavery, and the role erecting statutes of Lee played in commemorating a society built upon white supremacy. But Wilson, the actual author of literal logic textbooks, apparently could not be bothered to take the time to look this up before posting his mockery.

Actuallynow might be the time to mention that Doug Wilson once co-authored a book titled Southern Slavery As It Was, in which he wrote that There has never been a multi-racial society which has existed with such mutual intimacy and harmony in the history of the world. So. Theres also that.

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Iran's President Rouhani urges peace, moderation as fasting month of Ramadan starts

05/27/17

Source: PRESS_UR

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has written to the leaders of Muslim countries on the occasion of the start of the holy month of Ramadan, calling on them to follow the path of peace and moderation to counter Islamophobia.



Iran's President Hassan Rouhani praying at Massoumeh shrine in Qom

(photo by ISNA)





In separate congratulatory messages on Saturday, Rouhani urged the Muslim leaders to present the face of moderate Islam to the world and to bring about a world free of violence and extremism.



"Undoubtedly, it is upon all leaders, intellectuals, and religious scholars in Muslim countries in this month of divine mercy and forgiveness to counter the false crises being created and the Islamophobia [being propagated] by enemies," he wrote.



That, he said, should be carried out "by explaining and promoting the lofty goals of Islam, employing moderation in behavior and action, and providing a vivid image of this holy religion."



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Trump's statement on Ramadan is almost entirely about terrorism

REPORT: Tillerson Declines To Host Ramadan Event At State Department



The Iranian chief executive also expressed hope that Muslim leaders would collaborate toward the establishment of peace, calm, and security.



He further wished the people and leaders of Muslim states success and happiness.



Ramadan, a holy month on the Islamic lunar calendar, began in several Muslim countries, including Iran, on Saturday.



Observing the moon at Milad Tower in Tehran

Ramadan starts with the first sighting of the new moon

(photo by Islamic Republic News Agency)

During the holy month, adult Muslims are required to fast from sunrise to sundown as an effective way of practicing self-discipline. They are also expected to avoid sinning and to strengthen their souls through praying, charitable deeds, and introspection.



Muslim people mark the Eid al-Fitr festival at the end of Ramadan.
Iranian Director Mohammad Rasoulof Takes Prestigious Cannes Prize

05/29/17

Source: RFE/RL

Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof has won a prestigious prize at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. Rasoulof, 45, was awarded the main prize in the Un Certain Regard competition on May 27 for his film A Man Of Integrity (Lerd), which tells the story of man working at a goldfish farm who becomes ensnared in corruption.



Soudabeh Beizaee at a scene in Lerd (A Man of Integrity) by Mohammad Rasoulof





In 2010, Rasoulof was sentenced to six years in prison for a documentary about the disputed 2009 Iranian presidential election. He was also barred from making films for 20 years. However, his sentence was subsequently reduced to one year in prison.



The same year he won the best director award in the Un Certain Regard competition at Cannes for his film Goodbye.



None of Rasoulof's films has been released in Iran.





Mohammad Rasoulof





After the award was announced, Rasoulof told Reuters: "I love Iran, but it is like an alcoholic father. Sometimes it hits me."



The winner of the Cannes Palme d'Or will be announced on May 28.



Based on reporting by AP, AFP, and Reuters

Copyright (c) 2017 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org
The National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has confiscated 10,000 litres of diesel in its recent crackdown on sellers of poor quality fuel in the Western Region.



The exercise focused on tabletop vendors of petrol and diesel in Takoradi Metropolis, Shama and Ahanta West Districts where fuel was being sold in jerrycans, barrels and gallons.



According to the Acting Chief Executive of NPA, Hassan Tampoli these dealers have no permits from the NPA to retail petroleum products.



They didnt have any documents to show that they received the products from a duly licensed oil marketing company, which clearly showed that they were getting the products from unauthorized sources. Upon further interrogation they informed our officers that they were getting the products from Takoradi Tanker Yard. At the Tanker yard there was no documentation to that effect, we all do know that ignorance of the law is not an excuse so we proceeded to confiscate all the products that we seized and thats about 10,000 litres of products which we currently have sitting at the offices of NPA in Takoradi.







Source: kasapafmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Egypts president Abdel-Fatah El-Sisi ratified on Monday a new law regulating the work of civil society organisations in the country which passed in parliament last November, state news agency MENA reported.

The cabinet will issue the bylaws of the new bill within two months from the date of its publication, according to article 6 of the law.

The new law will replace Law 84 of 2002, which previously regulated the work of NGOs.

The new NGO law gives civil society organisations one year to comply with its provisions. Those unable to do so will face dissolution, according to article two.

In the new NGO law, Article 70 stipulates that a new body -- the National Foreign NGOs Regulation Apparatus (NFNRA) -- will oversee all the activities of foreign NGOs in Egypt, including all forms of their cooperation with governmental and non-governmental institutions inside the country, as well as supervise all forms of foreign funding given to local Egyptian NGOs and civil society organisations."

In November, two-thirds of Egypt's MPs approved the new 89-article law, which was drafted by parliament's social solidarity committee.

The cabinet also presented a draft law on the topic to parliament, which did not include the establishment of the NFNRA, but MPs voted to pass the legislatures version.

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Ghana operates two thousand, nine hundred (2,900) petroleum filing stations and six hundred Liquefied Petroleum Product (LPG) dispensing centres across the country, the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has said.



According to the petroleum downstream regulator, these are the certified petroleum filing stations and LPG dispensing centres in the books of the NPA.



The NPA says it is working to rectify the licensing regime in accordance with the new guidelines for the acquisition of licenses for the petroleum downstream sector of the economy to ensure safety.



Mr. Ben Agyare, a representative of NPA, made this disclosure at a symposium organized by the Association of Oil Marketing Companies (AOMCs) as part of the associations safety week celebrations to sensitize the public on the need to ensure safety in the petroleum downstream sector of the economy.



He said the new guidelines for the acquisition of permits for the operation of filing stations will ensure sanity in the petroleum downstream sector.



According to him, the NPA, drawing power from its law (Act 691), will monitor the activities of the petroleum downstream sector of the economy and ensure safety.



He said per the law, Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have to apply for no objection letters together with a site plan for verification of the site by the NPA.



He said the fact that the guidelines, which came into being in August 1, 2016, calls for NPAs assessment of the site is paramount to the issuance of license to OMCs.



The NPA monitors the activities in the petroleum downstream sector in collaboration with the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Town and Country Planning Department to ensure OMCs adhere to safety standards.



Mr. Agyare explained that the rapid vehicular traffic in the country has resulted in the increase of the number of retail outlets especially in areas leading to the major towns and border areas.



In a welcome address, Mr. Kweku Agyeman Duah, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of AOMCs recognised that there are two schools of thought on the citing of fuel and LPG sale outlets.



In the first instance, certain people amongst the general public are of the view that retail outlets should not be constructed at the heart of the cities because of the wide-ranging effects fuel-related accidents can have on the public.



On the other hand, OMCs and Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketing Companies argue that there should be proximity of retail outlets to the public; thus, citing outlets in the heart of the cities to improve accessibility.



To find answers to these questions is why we are having the forum to create the platform for the panellists who are experts in their terrain to delve deep into the whys and hows of citing of retail outlets in the country, Mr. Kweku Agyeman Duah said.







Source: Business Day









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The Ministry of Health says it has not received any lawsuit from the former director of the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, Thomas Anaba.



This follows the confirmation from Mr. Anaba that his lawyers have sued the state for the wrongful termination of his contract.



The suit asked the Court to declare that the decision of the Minister of Health was unlawful, and therefore null and void. It also asked the Ministry to reinstate, Mr. Anaba as the Medical Director and prohibit the Health Minister and any other person from taking any unreasonable or unfair decision against the applicant.



But speaking Citi News, the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health, Robert Cudjoe said the Ministry will determine its next line of action once it receives the lawsuit.



I went to the hospital yesterday and there was no letter. I went to the administration and I was told there was no letter but we have heard from the media that he has sued us. I checked; the legal section, administration and we have not received any letter.



Monday, when we go to the office and we receive a letter, we will read the content and accordingly respond. Background Dr. Anaba was given a letter directing him to handover to the Public Services Commission three years short of the expiration of his tenure. He was expected to return to his former workplace at the University of Development Studies.



Although no reasons were given, the letter said the directive was from the Health Minister who has subsequently appointed Dr. Anabas predecessor, Emmanuel Kwabla Srofenyoh. But Dr. Anaba has vowed not to relinquish his post.



In his writ, Dr. Anaba argued in his reassignment was unlawful because the Minister [of Health] lacked legal authority to effect the release of the applicant from his position as Medical Director of the Greater Accra Regional, Hospital, Ridge. According to him, the directive from the Ministry was unfair and unreasonable and does not comply with the requirement of the Constitution and the Ghana Health Service and Teaching Hospitals Act, 1996 (Act 525 with respect to the appointment and removal of staff of the Ghana Health Service.



He also insisted that the purported action of the Minister in the letter dated May 10, 2017, constitutes an abuse of power as it amounts to a constructive dismissal of the applicant without just cause in contravention of article 191 (b) of the Constitution.

Source: The Daily Searchlight









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Ghana (ICAG), Mr. Christian Sottie has called for punitive actions to be taken against public officials cited in the Auditor Generals reports for misappropriation of funds.



He said such offence continued to thrive in the country due to lack of law enforcement and that if people were brought to book and made to refund the money they misappropriate, it will serve as deterrent to others.



He was speaking in an interview with the press on the sidelines of a thanksgiving service at the Calvary Baptist Church, Adenta, as part of the institutes annual Accountants week celebration.



Mr Sottie said the new Public Finance Management law had more sanctions including imprisonment and that law enforcement agencies should apply them if the situation demanded such sanction.



We hear it [Auditor General Report]. There is euphoria and after a while it dies off. And nobody knows what happens and it looks like people then go away with the booty and are enjoying it and that is why it is still persisting, he said.



Mr. Sottie said the public sector lacked accountants with requisite competences to handle finances and made a case for professionals, particularly members of the institute, to be engaged for efficient financial management.



Touting how competent members of the institute were, he advised government to be mindful of persons entrusted with finances and make sure qualified persons were employed to reduce the incidences of corruption.



He said none of the accountants cited in the Auditor Generals reports were members of the institute but cautioned that those caught in any case of corruption could either be suspended or their membership would be revoked.



In a sermon titled Stewardship Excellence, Senior Minister of the church, Rev. Francis Narterh advised accountants to be diligent in the discharge of their duties in their various organisations.



He said they should not allow themselves to be distracted by wealth and quick money to dent their image saying, You must excel in your stewardship. What is not yours is not yours.



He quoted Proverbs 4:25-27, saying Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.







Source: The Ghanaian Times









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The Police in the Eastern Region is on the lookout for one Emmanuel Jamartey, who is reported to have instigated last Fridays violent demonstration in Somanya.



Hundreds of angry residents in the town took over the offices of the Electricity Company of Ghana and vandalised parts of the building, after demonstrating over what they describe as outrageous electricity bills.



One of the affected residents said he was recently billed GH45,000 from the GH100 he last paid for his domestic power consumption.



The Police say Mr. Jamartey acted unlawfully rallying the demonstrated to embark on the demonstration that ended in the destruction of property.



According to the Eastern Regional PRO of the Ghana Police Service, ASP Ebenezer Tetteh, is a currently a suspect and his arrest will help the police carry out proper investigation into the matter.



So a manhunt is on. Following the incident, some personnel were deployed from the Regional police headquarters and we are looking for the prime suspect, ringleader, Ebenezer Jamartey. He was the brain behind the demonstration that turned riotous. It was a spontaneous action by the group we need to get this person arrested. We can get to the bottom of this matter. Somebody ought to be punished, he said.



ASP Ebenezer Tetteh also called on the public to volunteer information that will lead to the arrest of the suspect.



Meanwhile, the Electricity Company of Ghana has denied the responsibility of the abnormal electricity bill issued to residents in the area.



Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer of Tema area of ECG under whose jurisdiction Somanya falls, Theresa Osabutey told ECG that What we know is that they were being billed by VRA, and the meters they were using, at a point, they [VRA] came around to replace the meters and when they replaced the meters the customers started complaining that they are paying more than they used to pay, she said.

Source: citifmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Felix Kwakye Ofosu, a former Deputy Minister of Communications, has criticised government for discontinuing the case against eight members of the Delta Force who stormed a court and freed their colleagues standing trial.



A Kumasi Circuit Court struck out the case against the eight persons who aided the escape of the 13 Delta Force members arrested for assaulting the security coordinator of the Ashanti Region.



The court, presided over by Her Honour Patricia Amponsah, discontinued the case on Wednesday, May 17, because the prosecution lacked evidence against the accused.



The eight were charged with causing disturbances in court, resisting arrest, and rescuing persons in lawful custody.



According to the prosecutor, ACP Okyere Darko, the police did not have enough evidence to support the charges levelled against the accused persons.



However, Mr Ofosu does not understand why such injustice has occurred during the tenure of a President who is a lawyer.



Mr Ofosu, in a Facebook post, wrote: History will record that when three National Democratic Congress (NDC) activists sat on radio and verbally abused esteemed judges in a reprehensible manner, they received a most severe punishment  four months imprisonment and heavy fines.



He was of the view that history will yet record also that when militants of the NPP violently stormed a court, freed suspects on trial and threatened the presiding judge with assault, they did not receive even a slap on their wrists, they were in fact set free.



For him, History may well mock those who expected that an NPP government, led by the paragon of the rule of law, will take firm action against criminal elements who were recruited by the NPP to foment violence as part of the push for power.



It will be said that never was selectivity, impunity and injustice so frontally endorsed.







Source: classfmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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This audio recording circulating on social media has a voice believed to be that of the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto expressing anger over the line of questioning by a journalist.



The journalist had called him for a reaction to what Hilda Addo, a former Member of Parliament for Kwadaso had said about Dr Akoto.



Hilda Addo, a fierce opponent of Dr Akoto, himself also a former MP for Kwadaso was said to have alluded to Dr Akoto as incompetent and so the journalist had called for a reaction.



But Dr Akoto interjected and heavily criticized the journalist for repeating the word incompetent.



It is not certain when the audio was recorded, but the Vice President, Alhaji Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and his wife, Samira used the word incompetent a number of times during the 2016 campaign to describe former President John Mahamas administration.



Listen to the audio below-

Source: Daily Graphic









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Sniper-turned scuba diver and presidential candidate of the Convention Peoples Party (CPP) for the 2016 elections, Ivor Kobina Greenstreet, has urged the Akufo-Addo-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) government to seriously consider nuclear power by developing the countrys potential uranium deposits as part of the future energy mix.



The former CPP flagbearer, who spoke extensively about wind power during the 2016 electioneering campaign, gave this charge at Akwatia in the Eastern Region during the funeral of the partys constituency chairman, Samuel Kwabena Agyei.



Mr Greenstreet, a scuba diver, has recently returned from a trip abroad where he narrowly escaped an underwater mauling by Carribean Reef Sharks while scuba diving off the coast of Bahamas.



Present at the burial were former parliamentary candidates and constituency executives from 11 nearby constituencies, as well as the regional first and second vice chairmen, Justice Kofi Henaku and Nana Owusu respectively.



The national organizer, Nene Emmanuel Kwao Ogborgor aka Opele was also in attendance.



Mr. Ivor Greenstreet stated that in South Africa gold tailings normally also contain uranium and they are mined simultaneously. There is a relationship between gold and uranium and this has been proven in Ghana by research done by the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission. Nuclear power reactors also require enriched uranium fuel, he noted.



Ghana, he said, has significant potential uranium deposits and global demand is set to increase by 40% with nuclear plants being completed in Russia, China and India, with Europe also set to renew its interest in nuclear.



Great Consolidated Diamonds Ghana, located at Akwatia, has five concession blocks that contain diamonds and gold  with one yet to be explored  and three tailings dumps, situated along the Birim river.



Under the government of J.A. Kufuor, the former chairman of the Council of State, Prof. Adzei Bekoe  a renowned chemist  recommended that the country include nuclear generation in its energy mix.

The Graduate School of Nuclear and Allied Sciences was later established to develop the requisite manpower base, not only for the country, but also for other African countries, and the school currently trains nuclear engineers and physicists, medical physicists and other related technical staff.



A new bill for regulating the sector was also presented to Parliament for approval and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the international nuclear watchdog, was ready to assist the country in setting up its plant.



Mr Greenstreet said that Ghana was a potential Uranium hot spot and the nation could earn significant foreign exchange from its export



He said the fight against galamsey is critical, but there should be non-partisan discussions on potential earnings for the state and especially Ghanaians.







Source: Daily Guide









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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First Lady, Rebecca Akufo Addo has disclosed her husband will find it difficult to fulfill his campaign promises if he does not finish clearing the mess of the previous government of ohn Dramani Mahama.



Speaking to a gathering of Ashanti Regional Queen mothers Association, the First Lady said President Akufo Addos government is committed to creating enabling environment for job creation as part of efforts to reduce unemployment rate in the country.



According to first lady, Nana Addo has competent Ministers to help him fulfill his campaign promises but they have to fix a lot of problems caused by the John Mahama-led government.



When you go home tell your husbands to exercise patience because I know my husband will deliver and transform the lives of Ghanaians. There are some potholes and problems caused by NDC government which needs to be fixed first before implementing of campaign promises she said.



First Lady, Mrs. Rebecca Akufo Addo has therefore urged Queen mothers to support Nana Addos government to deliver.



Meanwhile the President of Ashanti Queen mothers Association, Queen mother for Asante Mampong, Nana Agyakomaa Dufie II said Queen Mothers are for development and so will give Nana Addos government massive support to transform Ghana.

Source: Abusuafmonline









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A teenager whose mother died in the Manchester Arena bombing says that if she hadnt misread a text message, its likely she would have died as well.

Charlotte Fawell, 15, was exiting the Ariana Grande concert at the time of the blast, which took 22 lives and injured scores more. She had been following directions from her mum Wendy, but left through the wrong door.

I read the text wrong. If Id have gone to the right door, I might not be here now, Charlotte says. She was around 45 metres away from the site of the explosion, which took place near the venues foyer.

Charlotte says she knew people were dead the moment the blast occurred, and that I was ringing and ringing my mum, hoping shed been knocked unconscious and she might wake up and answer  but she never did.



She was only informed of her mothers death by a detective after the incident. Charlotte she was my best friend, we did everything together.

Charlotte attended the concert with her boyfriend Lee Davis, whose own mother Caroline Davis Osborne was also seriously injured by the blast.

Greater Manchester Police have released an image of bomber Salmen Abedi captured by CCTV on the night of the blast.

Latest update from @CCIanHopkins and Deputy Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu of @MetPoliceUK pic.twitter.com/HPxNcjkWR5  G M Police (@gmpolice) May 27, 2017

Investigations are ongoing.

Source: The Sun.

Photo: Facebook.
A suspect is in custody in the US state of Mississippi after eight people, including a sheriffs deputy, were killed in a shooting spree on Saturday night.

According to authorities, the shootings occurred at three separate homes in the rural area of Lincoln County. The suspect, Willie Corey Godbolt, was arrested early Sunday after police released photos of him to the media.

The shootings reportedly started around 11:30 p.m. at an address in Bogue Chitto, where the deputy and three women were found dead. Another two bodies were found in nearby Brookhaven, and a further two were found at a third crime scene.

The motivation for the shootings is currently unclear, but footage captured of Goodbolt as he was handcuffed by officers seems to indicate some kind of custody battle.

I was having a conversation with her stepdaddy and her mama and her, my wife, about me taking my children home, he is heard saying on the video. Somebody called the officer  people that didnt even live at the house. Thats what they do. They intervene.

They cost him his life. Im sorry.

The suspect also indicated that he had not intended to be taken alive. My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets, he said. Suicide by cop was my intention.

Authorities are waiting on notifications being sent to the victims next of kin.

Source: CNN.

Photo: AP.
Six people in Zanzibar, including four foreign tourists, were stabbed and lightly injured by a young man at a restaurant in the capital of the east African archipelago, police said Monday.

Police spokesman Hassan Nassir Ali said the attack took place on Sunday evening as the restaurant bustled with patrons breaking their Ramadan fast on the semi-autonomous, predominantly Muslim archipelago off the coast of Tanzania.

"The attacker, aged between 20 and 25, entered into the restaurant and stabbed the people before running away," he said, adding that investigations indicated the suspect "has a mental disorder, caused by use of drugs."

"We are still hunting for the suspect before we can give details. We do not think it is related to terrorism, but it is bad for our tourism industry," said Ali.

Eyewitness Omar Hassan described how a man armed with a knife stormed into the Lukman restaurant in the capital Stone Town armed with a knife and attacked one local person and three foreign tourists "who were here for dinner."

"After the attack which caused panic in the restaurant, the attacker also stabbed two other people while running away," said Hassan.

The police spokesman said the injured included a Canadian man who was injured around his mouth, two German women aged 20 and 24 who both sustained head injuries and a 66-year-old French woman who had a stab wound near her eye.

All have been released from hospital except the French woman.

The injuries of the two Tanzanians were not detailed.

Zanzibar has experienced sectarian and political tensions in recent years -- including grenade explosions -- with the unrest affecting the key tourism industry.

In 2013 two British tourists and a Catholic priest were doused with acid in a series of attacks blamed on radical Islamists with ties to Somalia's Al-Shabaab, as the archipelago sees rising radicalisation.

Tourism is the main foreign currency earner for Zanzibar, famed for its white-sand beaches and historical buildings in Stone Town, listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO.

"A thorough investigation must be conducted to find out whether the attacker really has mental problems and why he targeted the tourists," said Tourism Minister Rashid Juma.

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Gay Australians have responded to a critical new appeal by the Red Cross Blood Service for O-type blood, saying theyd be happy to donate  if they were allowed to do so.

The Blood Service says their stocks of O-type blood  including the universally acceptable Type O negative  are likely to dwindle to just two days supply, as potential donors may be forced to postpone their appointments due to cold and flu in the winter months.

Theyre asking for around 8,000 extra donors to step up, but healthy men with O-Type blood have used the news to question current policies which restrict them from donating.

Ahh Red Cross reports a severe shortage in my blood type. Id donate but TGA wont let me.  Josh Taylor (@joshgnosis) May 22, 2017

Plenty of gay men willing to donate Type 0 blood. How urgent does it have to get for the Red Cross to drop their homophobic rules? https://t.co/LP5tTiqxRG  Dan Lives Here (@danliveshere) May 23, 2017

PEDESTRIAN.TV spoke about the issue with Luke McCarthy of Let Us Donate, a new student-run campaign focused on changing the way authorities respond to male blood donors who have sex with other men.

In his eyes, the problem is clear. McCarthy flat-out said theyre not letting queer people help, when thats all we want to do.

McCarthy outlined the personal impact of the issue by recalling the experience of a gay male acquaintance. The man, who himself has O-Type blood, underwent surgery; McCarthy said that at the time, doctors had difficulties securing blood supplies for the procedure.

If someone else was in his situation and needed that blood, even though now hes healthy, hes safe, hes someone who in every way should be able to give his blood to people in need of it, he couldnt do it, McCarthy said.

And he was so thankful to get that blood and be as healthy as he is now, but because he is a gay man, he hasnt been afforded that opportunity [to donate].

As it stands, the Red Cross Blood Service follows the guidelines of the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). They mandate that anyone who engages in male-to-male sex, with protection or not, wait twelve months after last having male-to-male sex before they can donate blood.

The Blood Service says that logic is based on the increased rates of HIV infection among those who practice male-to-male sex, and the need to ensure potential donors are HIV negative before donating.

via Red Cross Blood Service.

However, Let Us Donate argues that the twelve month deferral period is needlessly long, given that organisations like the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre state the window period for accurately detecting HIV infections first opens anywhere from 6 to 12 weeks after sex.

McCarthy believes that indefinitely excluding anyone who regularly engages in male-to-male sex from donating  and barring them for months after they could expect to receive an accurate HIV test result based on their last sexual contact  is off-putting, discriminatory, and untrusting of the LGBT community in Australia.

The issue is compounded in times when the Blood Service is desperate for donations  so, times like right now. McCarthy said there are so many gay men who want to be able to donate blood, and want to be able to help people.



And if there is O-Type blood that needs to be given, then there are queer men right now who have the blood that the Red Cross needs that cant do it  even though in every way, in health, in lifestyle, they should be able to do so.

Heres the kicker: in 2012, the Blood Service adopted a submission by a panel of experts, suggesting that the deferral period actually be lowered to six months, but the TGA knocked that one back. Now, the Blood Service is gearing up for another review of their practices later this year.

A Blood Service spokesperson told PEDESTRIAN.TV the review will seek input from epidemiologists, international authorities, and a whole slew of other relevant stakeholders, and that they believe Australias blood donation rules should be based on the most reliable and recent evidence.

Ideally, we would like to make it easier for more Australians to give blood, the spokesperson said.

It is our challenge to do this while fulfilling our obligation to keep blood and blood products as safe as possible for patients.

If the upcoming review finds that currently practices can be safely amended  and if the TGA takes heed of those findings  gay men might just be able to help out more readily.

Thatd be mighty handy, especially during blood shortages in flu seasons to come.

Photo: Joern Pollex / Getty.
Its not going to give you a headache to process the information that Gina Rinehart, an insanely wealthy person who once bemoaned the fact that Australians will not work for $2 per day unlike impoverished African workers, has some very big issues with how the Government does those extremely annoying things like protecting workers and regulating fair wages or minimises death on the job through safety standards.

Rinehart, who fell into her riches thanks to the passing of her father in 1992, is now having a conniption over the hugely controversial Adani coalmine, warning our Government that global Governments and business leaders now view Australia as quote a joke.

Speaking to The Australian, Rinehart lambasts the Government for their inability to cut red tape, and stated she now sees Australia as a high-taxing, high-cost country, and that the Government keep messing up.

She seemed utterly at sea as to why certain communities would ever view the use of coal and gas as dirty power methods

However, it is not just the politicians. Some of our communities see coal and gas as dirty words and then wonder why power costs are rising and wonder why investment goes overseas.

before, and this is the real kicker, suggesting Australia should follow in the footsteps of Donald Trump and make Australia great again.

Obama used to say yes we can but unfortunately he didnt. Donald is most certainly a doer. In the future youll be able to reflect on this president as yes he did.' When Donald says he is going to cut red tape and lower taxes and make America great again, he does it. Australia should adopt this.

Shocked she didnt outright refer to him as a winner and all others losers to be perfectly honest.

Rinehart expressed concern over politicians playing short-term populist routes that increase red-tape and dissuade international companies from investing in industries like oh, I dont know mining.

Perhaps it is mainly driven by power seeking, or a simple lack of knowledge of its impacts on business and jobs from governments that are becoming increasingly out of touch in our country. Unfortunately, most politicians are too busy playing populist short-term politics, making things difficult for businesses with increasing red tape  forgetting that it is businesses who create Australian jobs and provide the revenue for our defence, police, hospitals, elderly and roads and more, and are critical to enabling our very living standards.

Course itd also be extremely low-cost, low-regulation operations thatd allow Rinehart to increase her generated personal revenue of approximately $1million every half hour as well.

But, naturally, thats neither here nor there.

Source: The Australian.

Photo: Matt King/Getty.
Sisters Mercedes and Schapelle Corby are avin a laugh at Channel 7s expense in an Instagram video posted earlier this evening.

In the video, Mercedes shoots Sunrises special live coverage of Schapelle in transit from Brisbane International Airport, before wait for it, wait for it, the big reveal: her convicted drug smuggler little sis is in the room with her. Ha!

That car on the screen there, in that aerial shot, its a decoy! Its a gotcha moment!

In the video, Mercedes narrates: Theres the convoy pelles being chased by helicopter, in that car, but there we are. She then pans to Schapelle, who shrugs and gives a wry smile. Mercedes laughs, Still on chase. Theyre doing what they do best.

Doing what they do best factual news reporting!!! Thanks to our friend John for helping and Tom for the cars. Great work ??. @schapelle.corby @torasolutions @limosoaustralia #torasolutions #limoso A post shared by Mercedes Corby (@mercedescorby) on May 29, 2017 at 5:41am PDT

Schapelle posted the video on Instagram too, with the caption: Pelles being chased. Theyre doing what they do best #johnmcleod #torasolutions John Mcleod of @Torasolutions *turn up volume @mercedescorby Thanks for our friend John for helping & Tom for the cars. Awsome. Thankyou x

Also pictured in the video is John McLeod of Tora Solutions who organised all the security around Schapelles return, and obvs, the bait and switch in question.

Corby landed in Oz on Sunday, after serving three years on parole in Bali and an additional nine years in prison for attempting to smuggle cannabis into Indonesia.

Photo: Instagram

Source: News.com.au
The debate over the media circus surrounding Schapelle Corbys return to Australia has been playing out across social media all weekend (is it okay? is it problematic?), and at last its reached mainstream media  a.k.a. breakfast television.

Today host Karl Stefanovic went on an incredible rant this morning, blasting the media (including his own network) for its non-stop coverage of the convicted drug smuggler and accusing everyone of looking like idiots.

I realise theres interest but why oh why oh why, the Channel 9 host said. Schapelle Corby, rightly or wrongly, has been convicted of drug smuggling. Shes done her time and has the right to live her life in relative peace  if thats what she wants. Maybe she wants mayhem. Whatever. I do not care. There are far more important things in life that pursuing and losing Schapelle Corby. We in the media have a responsibility to inform, but I reckon we were all made to look like idiots yesterday.

There are far more important things in life than pursuing and losing Schapelle Corby. @KarlStefanovic #9Today pic.twitter.com/lZtxG7mY82  The Today Show (@TheTodayShow) May 28, 2017

Meanwhile, over on Channel 7, Sunrise host David Kochie defended the hyped-up media coverage.

We had family dinner at mums last night, three generation of adults, all saying the media coverage was over the top, he said this morning. Then for the next 25 minutes [we] discussed how shell settle back into Australia, was she guilty or not, what her Instagram was saying I said, I think we rest our case. Everyones so interested, its amazing.

Hes not wrong: Corby has wracked up 149k Instagram followers in the space of two days, which shes largely used to document her trip home, including turning the camera back on the media.

When the media dont like their own pic taken A post shared by Schapellecorby (@schapelle.corby) on May 27, 2017 at 8:02pm PDT

Basically, at the end of the day: were all way too interested in the Corby story, and should probably back the fuck off.

But for every online comment claiming nobody cares about this story theres another 500 people reading it, so in the end only one thing is certain: Corby is, absolutely, 100%, going to appear in Im A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! before the end of the decade.

Photo: The TODAY Show / Twitter.
Stop us if youve heard this one before: an ordinary Australian gets themselves into trouble (preferably overseas), the media reports, the public imagination goes wild, and the same media outlets scramble to secure a tell-all by allegedly paying their subject an eye-watering sum.

Schapelle Corbys recent release from a Bali prison falls within that very familiar pattern. But unlike those who were found not guilty of whatever nightmare charge they faced, legal pros have reaffirmed that Corby herself may not be able to financially benefit from that all-but-inevitable exclusive.

Boarded A post shared by Schapellecorby (@schapelle.corby) on May 27, 2017 at 7:04am PDT

Speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald, barrister Christian Juebner said that Corby wont stand to gain too much by selling her account. As Corby was found guilty of smuggling that marijuana all of those years ago, Juebner said any profits made from her story are liable to fall under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

That doesnt mean others cant turn a dollar from her story, though. Juebner posited that her fam could well sell their second-hand accounts of the whole deal, as long as they keep any of the likely financial benefits far away from Schapelle.

Juebner also told 9 News that if its proved that the money flowed back to Schapelle Corby or she received some benefit then the restraining order could be made. Take note: that restraining order refers solely to the cash raised, not Corby herself. Shes done her time, anyway.

The reminder of this interesting little pocket of Australian law comes after the proceeds of Corbys book My Story raised red flags a few years back, with the government eventually securing a cool $128,000.

Corby is now back in Australia following her release. Watch this space for when that fabled sit-down interview comes to pass.

Source: Sydney Morning Herald / 9 News.

Photo: Jason Childs / Getty.
In a wonderful turn of events, French President Emmanuel Macron has completely and utterly owned up to his mangling Donald Trumps hand, claiming it was absolutely on purpose and was a moment of truth.

The two world leaders met late last week at the NATO conference in Brussels, and their excruciating handshake made headlines around the world.

just a completely normal handshake between two men pic.twitter.com/H8ziROSPLv  David Mack (@davidmackau) May 25, 2017



My handshake with him, it was not innocent, he explained to French newspaper Le JDD. Its not the be-all and end-all of a policy, but it was a moment of truth.



The newly elected president appeared to be getting along quite well with Canadas Justin Trudeau and Germanys Angela Merkel, but had zero time for Trump or his ilk.



Donald Trump, the Turkish president or the Russian president see relationships in terms of a balance of power, he said. That doesnt bother me. I dont believe in diplomacy by public abuse, but in my bilateral dialogues I wont let anything pass.



The Washington Post reports that Frances ambassador the United States, Gerard Araud, had warned Macron to expect a handshake pissing contest with Trump  advice Macron clearly headed.



Thats how you ensure you are respected, he said. You have to show you wont make small concessions  not even symbolic ones.



Photo: Jonathan Ernst / Reuters.
The Evangelical Church in Hesse and Nassau have made themselves a robot priest to give automated blessings to the congregation as part of celebrations for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

BlessU-2 speaks German, English, French, Spanish, Italian and Polish; shoots light from his hands; and has a touchscreen on his belly, angry eyebrows, perfectly circular eyes which shift uneasily around the room, and an animated LCD mouth.

Also it is frankly terrifying. Not T-1000, strikes-fear-in-the-hearts-of-men-terrifying, but terrifying like in the early scenes of Get Out where there was something insidious and creepy going on but it wasnt yet clear what it was. Like that.

To be blessed by BlessU-2, first you choose a language, and a male or female voice. Then youre asked which blessing you want. And then you stand back and let BlessU-2 raise its arms, which begin to glow, narrow its eyebrows, and start reciting a Bible verse. And then you can print the verse and take it home with you!

Behold, the future:

Source: The Mirror

Photo: TriStar Pictures
Few of us ever see our nemeses own themselves in spectacular style. Fewer still manage to catch the moment on dashcam. Luckily for one Adelaide driver  and even more luckily for us  he managed to do so, and uploaded the whole thing.

Theres seriously not too much to this one. After approaching a pedestrian crossing at a considerable nip, a red-hatted dog-walker gives the driver a little what-for. Fingers wags. Piss off is muttered. The spaniel is oblivious.

Then, it happens. Still focussing his energies on being mad at the driver, the hatted man saunters head-on into a pole, to the delight of the invisible narrator. And to everyone else, really.

Were taking a no-harm, no-foul approach to this one. Just a casual bonk on the noggin, some fist-clenching, and a yacht rock outro. What else could you ask for?

Actually, you could ask for millions of views, which is exactly what this one has received. At time of writing, the clip has racked up over six million views, not including rips or the inevitable gif versions.

Source and photo: YouTube.
In the interests of full transparency, allow me to make a small personal disclaimer before launching into the story: I am insanely horny for Jason Momoa. The mere sight of him renders me incapable of both thought and action. If I ever met him, I would probably spontaneously combust or maybe my head would explode, like the guy from Scanners.

Im so horny for Jason Momoa that I even sat through the entirety of the Conan remake he was in, if that gives you any idea of how serious I am. He is beautiful and perfect, and one day I hope he hurls me into the sun with his powerful arms.

In news that isnt just me oversharing about my intractable lust for the dude who played Khal Drogo: the dude who played Khal Drogo has used his flawless mouth and body to perform a haka in support of a UFC fighter.

Momoa, who is Hawaiian-born, has been busy filming Aquaman on the Gold Coast, but took the time to pop in at Heartbreak Conditioning (an MMA gym in Burleigh Heads) and show support for Kiwi fighter Mark Hunt.

Its unclear how Momoa went from Gday to I will haka with you, but Hunt is training to go head-to-head with American fighter Derrick Lewis and getting very, extremely, deadly serious about it.

Wrap your eyes around this:

A post shared by The Super Samoan (@markhuntfighter) on May 27, 2017 at 9:29pm PDT

Good luck, Mark. Please marry me, Jason.

Source: Gold Coast Bulletin.

Photo: Instagram / @PrideOfGypsies.
Sofia Coppola has become the second ever woman to take out the hotly contested Best Director award at Cannes.

Coppola won the award for her upcoming film The Beguiled, following not very closely in the footsteps of Russian director Yuliya Solntseva, the first ever woman to win Best Director, who took out the prize in 1961  yes, the last winner predates the end of the Vietnam War.

Usually known for her dreamy, introspective movies about self-discovery (see Lost in Translation, Somewhere, and Marie Antoinette ), The Beguiled will be Coppolas first foray into horror, as an adaptation of both the novel and 1971 Southern Gothic horror film of the same name.

She was unable to accept the award in person but issued a statement thanking the jury, Universal Studios, Focus Features, her folks (directors Francis Ford Coppola and Eleanor Coppola) and director Jane Campion (the only woman to ever win the Palm dOr).

The Beguiled stars Colin Farrell, Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst and Elle Fanning and will be coming out in Australia on July 13, have a peek at the trailer below:

Fun bonus fact: Nicolas Cage, Jason Schwartzman and Sofia Coppola are all cousins.

Source: Huffington Post.

Photo: Getty Images / Stephane Cardinale.
Iraqi forces have launched a broad assault on parts of battleground second city Mosul still held by the Islamic State (IS) militant group, the military announced on Saturday.

The offensive is the latest push in the more than seven-month battle to retake Mosul, a linchpin in IS's now crumbling attempt to establish a cross-border Islamist militant "state".

Multiple security forces units are attacking "what remains of the unliberated areas" on the west bank of the River Tigris, the Joint Operations Command said in a statement.

"Army forces attacked Al-Shifaa neighbourhood and the Republican Hospital, federal police forces Al-Zinjili neighbourhood, and Counter-Terrorism forces attacked Al-Saha al-Oula neighbourhood," it said.

All three neighbourhoods are located north of the Old City, a warren of closely spaced buildings and narrow streets that has posed significant challenges to Iraqi forces seeking to oust IS.

The Joint Operations Command said later on Saturday that two colonels from the Iraqi army's 16th Division were killed in the Mosul area, but did not provide details about when or how they died.

On Friday, the federal police said they had bombarded IS positions with Grad rockets and field artillery in "preparation for attacking the Old City in the coming hours".

But the Joint Operations Command did not mention any attack on IS-held areas of the Old City on Saturday.

Earlier this week, the military said it had dropped "hundreds of thousands of leaflets" on IS-held areas of Mosul, urging "citizens to exit via safe corridors towards security forces".

International aid group Save the Children expressed concern that the call for civilians to leave could expose them to additional danger.

"The Iraqi government must ensure all exit corridors are genuinely safe for people to flee," it said.

"The call for civilians to leave their homes is a U-turn on former directives that compelled civilians to stay and wait for the battle to pass" -- instructions that also raised concerns about the risks.

IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained much of the territory they lost to IS.

Iraqi forces launched a major operation to retake Mosul in October last year, fighting their way to the city and retaking its eastern side before setting their sights on its smaller but more densely populated west.

The battle has taken a heavy toll on civilians, pushing hundreds of thousands to flee, while hundreds more have been killed or wounded.

On Thursday, the United States announced the results of an investigation into a deadly coalition air strike earlier this year.

The probe found that at least 105 civilians had been killed and 36 remained unaccounted for, but said most had been killed by the secondary explosion of IS munitions stored in a nearby house.

There have also been reports that members of an Iraqi interior ministry special forces unit tortured and killed detainees during the Mosul operation.

Iraqi photographer Ali Arkady recounted witnessing the abuse, which he also filmed, in an article for German magazine Der Spiegel. US network ABC News also reported on Arkady's footage.

The interior ministry has launched an investigation into the allegations.

Abuses such as those described in the reports could sow the seeds of future conflict even as security forces near the end of the battle for Mosul, IS's most emblematic stronghold.

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FILE - In this Friday, May 26, 2017 file photo, US first lady Melania Trump steps out of a car as she arrives at Chierici Palace, part of a visit of the G7 first ladies in Catania, Italy. Trump's first outing in the Sicilian sunshine was in a colorful floral applique jacket by Dolce & Gabbana that comes off the rack at $51,000. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis, File)
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the European Union had presented Turkey with a new 12-month timetable for renewing their relations, the Hurriyet daily said on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters on the return flight from this week's NATO summit in Brussels, Erdogan was cited by Hurriyet as saying that during the summit, Turkey and the EU had agreed on giving a new impetus to relations and added Turkey's foreign and EU affairs ministries would work towards the timetable.

Turkey's relations with the European Union, particularly Germany, have deteriorated sharply after a series of diplomatic rows.

Erdogan was quoted as saying he had put the issue of the visa liberalization on the agenda during meetings with EU officials, and that Turkish and EU officials would work together on the issue.

Turkey agreed in early 2016 to help curb a flood of migrants into Europe in return for visa-free travel for Turks to Europe and 3 billion euros ($3.35 billion) in EU financial aid. But Brussels first wants Ankara to modify anti-terrorism laws that it says are too broad.

Most recently, Turkey has expressed anger that Germany is granting asylum to Turks, more than 400 of them with diplomatic passports and government working permits, accused of participating in a failed coup in July. The failed putsch prompted a purge of the Turkish military, judiciary and civil service.

Western countries have criticized Turkey for what they say is the heavy-handed nature of the clamp-down following the coup attempt, and for the behavior of Turkish politicians while visiting their countries.

Turkey this month blocked German lawmakers from visiting the troops at Turkey's Incirlik air base, prompting Berlin to say it may consider moving the troops. Some 250 German troops are stationed at Incirlik, where they contribute to the U.S.-led fight against Islamic State.

Erdogan said Turkey would say "goodbye" if Germany decided to withdraw its troops from Incirlik, adding Ankara had not received any sign from Berlin on the possible withdrawal of troops stationed at the base in southern Turkey.

At their meeting in Brussels, Erdogan told German Chancellor Angela Merkel that a parliamentary delegation would be allowed to visit Incirlik if the German foreign minister presented a list of names to Turkey beforehand.

"There can be some among German lawmakers who openly support terrorists," Erdogan was quoted as saying.

The row has placed Europe in an awkward position with Turkey, which has seen its decades-old bid to join the bloc move at snail's pace due to concerns over its human rights record, ethnically-split Cyprus, and reluctance among some European countries to admit a largely Muslim nation.

Erdogan has suggested Turkey could hold a referendum on continuing EU accession talks, and possibly another on reinstating the death penalty. Restoring capital punishment, which Turkey abolished over a decade ago, would all but end Turkey's bid to join the EU.

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A flower and message are shown at a memorial in Portland, Ore., Tuesday, May 30, 2017, for the victims who were fatally stabbed while trying to stop a man from shouting anti-Muslim insults at two young women on a Portland light-rail train. The suspect in last week's attack, Jeremy Joseph Christian, made a first court appearance in Portland on charges of aggravated murder and attempted murder on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Gillian Flaccus)
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk from Marine One across the South Lawn to the White House in Washington, Saturday, May 27, 2017, as they return from Sigonella, Italy. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)
Norway's $950 bln investment fund commissions research on climate change





OSLO

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

The research arm of Norway's sovereign wealth fund has awarded grants for two projects on how climate change affects the economy and capital markets, it said on Friday.

The studies will be carried out at Columbia University and New York University, it added.

Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest with assets of $950 billion, has been built with revenues from the country's oil and gas industry.








Oil prices down after OPEC oil cut extension: Kemp





LONDON

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

Ministers from OPEC and non-OPEC oil-exporting countries agreed on Thursday to extend existing production cuts for a further nine months to the end of March 2018.

Front-month Brent futures prices reacted by closing down $2.50 per barrel or more than 4 percent, reversing around half of their gain the run up to the meeting ( tmsnrt.rs/2qVNoyz ).

The price decline was fairly predictable once OPEC decided to roll over existing production cuts rather than deepen them ("OPEC nears decision time: roll over or deepen cuts?" Reuters, May 19).

The market reaction was consistent with research showing prices tend to fall when OPEC leaves output unchanged ("The behaviour of crude oil spot and futures prices around OPEC and SPR announcements", Demirer and Kutan, 2010).

In this instance, the fall in prices reflects repositioning among market makers and short-term tactical traders rather than a re-evaluation of supply and demand fundamentals.

Many crude traders closed out short positions and bid up prices in advance of the meeting in case ministers surprised with a deeper cut ("Hedge funds shuffle positions as OPEC decision nears", Reuters, May 23).

OPEC and non-OPEC ministers signalled repeatedly that a rollover was the most likely outcome of the meeting but there was always the possibility, however small, of a deeper cut.

Most market makers and tactical traders will therefore have wanted to hold flat or a small long position during the meeting in case a surprise cut sent prices rising sharply.

Once the threat of a cut was removed and the rollover was confirmed many of those long positions became unnecessary and were liquidated.

The simultaneous attempt to liquidate so many long positions at the same time and create fresh short positions resulted in a classic crowded trade ("Predatory trading and crowded exits", Clunie, 2010).

In any event, the price decline was not especially large, equivalent to a daily move of just over 2 standard deviations and well within the normal range of daily fluctuations ( tmsnrt.rs/2qqwPXX ).

OPEC and non-OPEC ministers may be mildly disappointed with the response to their announcement but they are unlikely to be seriously concerned.






Total CEO confirms target of Iran South Pars gas deal before summer





LONDON

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

French oil major Total still plans to conclude the Iran South Pars gas deal before summer, its chief executive Patrick Pouyanne told journalists on the sidelines of the company's annual general meeting.

Pouyanne said the signing of U.S. sanctions waivers, among other hurdles, cleared the path for the deal to be signed.

Total said earlier in February that a final decision on the deal hinged on the new U.S. administration renewing the waivers.

Pouyanne also added he had met Iranian oil minister Bijan Zanganeh in Vienna on the sidelines of the OPEC meeting.






Oil market punish OPEC for promising too much





VIENNA

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

As OPEC's latest meeting wrapped up in Vienna on Thursday night, ministers congratulated each other on its rare spirit of amity and consensus. The talks were, without a doubt, a success.

But two hours later, one veteran delegate was staring in despair at the numbers flashing red on his smartphone showing crude down some 5 percent to $51 a barrel.

"That is a disaster," he said.

While OPEC has worked hard in recent years on improving communication to ensure the right message is delivered to financial markets, Thursday's experience showed the 14-member group and its non-OPEC allies still have a long way to go.

The problem was not what was delivered, but what appeared to have been promised beforehand, industry analysts said.

OPEC agreed on Thursday to extend its existing production cuts by nine months - more than the initially suggested six months - in tandem with non-OPEC producers, including Russia.

But hints from the group that it could deepen supply cuts, extend them by as long as 12 months, curtail exports and tell the market how exactly it would terminate supply curbs in 2018 had raised market expectations much higher.

"OPEC oversold the meeting to the market way too early," Amrita Sen, from the consultancy Energy Aspects, told Reuters in Vienna.

The market reaction was all the more disappointing given that from OPEC's perspective, the meeting went very well.

"I have been in OPEC close to 20 years. It's the first time that I witness 100 percent compliance (with cuts) from OPEC and close to 100 percent from non-OPEC," Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh told Reuters afterward.

OPEC's No.3 producer, Iran has repeatedly clashed in past meetings with OPEC's de-facto leader, its political arch-rival Saudi Arabia.

Russia, which effectively is fighting a proxy war with Saudi Arabia in Syria, said on Thursday its energy cooperation with Riyadh would last well into the future.

In its statement, OPEC said it could extend curbs further or cut more.

Normally, all this would be more than enough to trigger a bull rally.

"It's strange. I don't know why (the market crashed)" Zanganeh said.

WHATEVER IT TAKES

OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers first agreed to cut output in December 2016 - the first joint deal in 15 years - and said the curbs could be extended by a further six months.

The extraordinary move was aimed at battling a global glut of crude that halved prices from 2014, forcing Russia and Saudi Arabia to tighten their belts and leading to unrest in Venezuela and Nigeria.

The cuts helped push oil prices back above $50 per barrel but also spurred growth in the U.S. shale industry, which does not participate in the output deal. That slowed a rebalancing of supply and demand, with global inventories still near record highs.

As the price fell back towards $47 in early May, near a six-month low, Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said OPEC would do "whatever it takes" to rebalance the market, including a longer extension for the output cuts.

"If you declare nine months in advance, people are bound to expect more," Sen said. Russia also added to the expectations by saying this week that cuts could be prolonged by 12 months.

The market was also disappointed OPEC did not mention its previously stated plan to bring stocks down from a record high of 3 billion barrels to their five-year average of 2.7 billion, said Olivier Jakob from the Petromatrix consultancy.

"The December meeting was a breakthrough," he said. "The meeting yesterday gives us, however, a feeling that OPEC is fatigued by the lack of results so far and does not have a consensus anymore to have the five-year average in stocks as a policy target."

The fact that Iran, Libya and Nigeria remain exempt from cuts suggested OPEC was not yet ready to take additional measures, Jakob added.

Dave Pursell, managing director at Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co, a Houston-based bank working with U.S. shale producers, predicted markets would rebalance within six months.

"The market was hoping for deeper cuts," he said. "But I do think oil prices, three months from now, will be higher than they are now."






Oslo's Flex LNG signs deals to buy six new vessels





OSLO

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

Oslo-listed Flex LNG has signed contracts to buy six new liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels for its fleet by 2019, as it bets on increasing fuel demand from Britain and other countries, its chief executive told Reuters.

The gas shipping company said earlier this year it was considering buying the six vessels, each with around 170,000 cubic metres of capacity, subject to securing funding for the $1.2 billion transaction.

Geveran Trading, the private investment vehicle of billionaire shipping tycoon John Fredriksen, acquired 52 percent of Flex LNG earlier this year, enabling the necessary finance.

"All of the contracts have been signed and the initial payments have been processed during the course of this month," said Flex LNG chief executive Jonathan Cook.

Samsung Heavy Industries, Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering are commissioned with constructing the vessels.

"We expect the first two ships (to be delivered) in January (2018), and four more by August 2019," Cook said.

Flex LNG is aiming to charter out some of the vessels in multi-year deals and commit others to spot and short-term LNG shipping markets.

Flex LNG bought its first four LNG vessels this March, which have 660,000 cubic metres of capacity in total and are in operation.

"The LNG market in the UK is growing and it is one of the importers we are looking at," Cook said.

Consultancy Wood Mackenzie expect Britain's LNG imports to double in the coming winter, and analysts expect more 20 million tonnes of new global LNG supply to come online this year.

According to a report by the International Gas Union last month, there is a global LNG shipping fleet of 439 vessels as of January this year.

The market is undergoing huge changes as the biggest ever flood of new LNG supply is hitting the market, with volumes mainly coming from Australia and the United States.

The flurry of LNG production has resulted in global installed LNG capacity of more than 300 million tonnes a year, but only around 268 million tonnes were traded last year, Thomson Reuters data shows.






A spokesman for the Iraqi government-sanctioned paramilitary force says the troops are moving to capture a key town beyond the city of Mosul, near the Syrian border.

Shiite lawmaker, Karim al-Nouri, says the mainly Shiite Popular Mobilization Forces seeks to drive Islamic State militants out of the center of strategic Baaj, west of Mosul near the border with Syria.



Al-Nouri told The Associated Press on Monday that many of the surrounding villages have already been taken from IS.

He says once Baaj falls, the fight with IS will move to the Syrian border. He didn't elaborate.



The Iran-backed paramilitary force known as Hashed al-Shaabi in Arabic  has largely operated since October in the desert to the west of Mosul, trying to cut IS supply lines.

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U.S. will leave Paris climate deal -Axios





WASHINGTON

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

U.S. President Donald Trump has told "confidants," including the head of the Environmental Protection Agency Scott Pruitt, that he plans to leave a landmark international agreement on climate change, Axios news outlet reported on Saturday, citing three sources with direct knowledge.

On Saturday, Trump said in a Twitter post he would make a decision on whether to support the Paris climate deal next week.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A source who has been in contact with people involved in the decision told Reuters a couple of meetings were planned with chief executives of energy companies and big corporations and others about the climate agreement ahead of Trump's expected announcement later in the week. It was unclear whether those meetings would still take place.

"I will make my final decision on the Paris Accord next week!" he tweeted on the final day of a Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy at which he refused to bow to pressure from allies to back the landmark 2015 agreement.

The summit of G7 wealthy nations pitted Trump against the leaders of Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Canada and Japan on several issues, with European diplomats frustrated at having to revisit questions they had hoped were long settled.

Trump, who has previously called global warming a hoax, came under concerted pressure from the other leaders to honor the 2015 Paris Agreement on curbing carbon emissions.

Although he tweeted that he would make a decision next week, his apparent reluctance to embrace the first legally binding global climate deal that was signed by 195 countries clearly annoyed German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

"The entire discussion about climate was very difficult, if not to say very dissatisfying," she told reporters. "There are no indications whether the United States will stay in the Paris Agreement or not."






OAS countries support a peaceful resolution to the situation in Venezuela- US State Department





WASHINGTON

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

MODERATOR: Thank you very much, and thanks to everyone who's joined us this afternoon. This is a background conference call with a senior State Department official on Venezuela. I'll introduce our speaker, lay out the ground rules, and then turn it over to [Senior State Department Official].

This afternoon, we're joined by [Senior State Department Official]. As a reminder, this is a background call, so you can refer to [Senior State Department Official] as a senior State Department official. This call will be embargoed until the conclusion of the call, and with that I'll turn it over to our speaker.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Thank you very much. Good afternoon, everyone online. As you no doubt know, the Organization of American States has just completed two days of extraordinary permanent council sessions, permanent council being the meeting of all member-states, March 27 and 28.

The two days of meetings were devoted to the situation in Venezuela. These meetings revealed quite clearly that the Government of Venezuela continues to care deeply about its international reputation in the region, as it should, and its reputation in multilateral organizations such as the OAS. And within that forum in particular but also regionally, it is increasingly  it is becoming increasingly isolated and clearly so.

The Government of Venezuela resorted to procedural antics, ad hominem insults, and a combative stance, but they failed in both of the sessions to prevent member-states from stating their concerns about the state of Venezuela's democracy and failed to prevent member-states from proposing means by which the OAS can now support a peaceful resolution to the situation in Venezuela.

In that sense, the meetings were a clear and immediate success for the Organization of American States. Mexico in particular, joined by Canada, played extremely productive leadership roles on behalf of a clear majority of likeminded member-states.

We can get into some of the questions you may have thereafter, but let me just also start by reiterating a couple of key points from the United States formal intervention and yesterday's meeting, so let me just briefly hit a few of them. We share the concerns about the state of democracy in Venezuela. The secretary-general of the OAS, Luis Almagro, laid out in careful detail in his report released March 14th  I guess it was about a 74-page long document he released on the current situation, analyzing the current situation in Venezuela.

We continue to encourage Venezuela to participate in a productive discussion. You can call it a dialogue, call it negotiations  but a discussion on ways to solve the political, economic, and humanitarian crisis that besets Venezuela. Our support is  sorry. Our goal is to support the functioning of democracy and the rule of law in Venezuela, and not seek Venezuela's suspension from the OAS in the short term. We believe that dialogue is an important component for the Venezuelan people to address Venezuela's challenges, but for that dialogue to be effective, however, the government must follow through on the commitments it makes and indeed on those commitments it has already made.

President Maduro should permit the democratically elected national assembly to perform its constitutional functions, and it should hold elections as soon as possible. And lastly, the United States calls for the immediate release of all political prisoners, prisoners of conscience in Venezuela, including Leopoldo Lopez.

With that, let me just conclude the opening remarks and turn it back over to you for moving forward.

MODERATOR: Thank you very much. And, Operator, we'll take the questions now.

OPERATOR: Thank you, sir. And ladies and gentlemen, once again, if you do have a question or a comment today, please press * then 1. Our first question comes from the line of Ramon Sahmkow from AFP. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi, good afternoon. I just wanted to confirm that the 20 countries that signed this declaration were the  the 20  also the 20 countries that voted for the debate at the beginning of the session. And I want to ask you why wasn't it put to a vote to be officially a declaration by the permanent council?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I'm sorry. Could you repeat that last part once again?

QUESTION: Yes, I want  yes, I want to know why wasn't the declaration put to a vote at the permanent council.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: It was not put to a vote because a clear majority of the countries had already one-by-one agreed to sign on to the declaration, and so at that point, as much for expediency of time as anything else, and rather than get into a vote, it was already a majority, and that way people could simply sign up to it. That's often done in the OAS. It's a procedural tactic but not much more than that. I wouldn't put much substance on that, whether it was a vote or simply people signing up to the declaration. But again, it was a majority of the member-states.

QUESTION: And the 20 countries are the 20 that voted for the start of the debate?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We need  we were trying to double-check on that one country may have dropped off on that. I've asked, in fact, in the last hour for a confirmation on that. We can follow up with you on that. But it was definitely the original 18 that had called for the meeting plus one or two others.

QUESTION: Okay.

MODERATOR: Next question, please.

OPERATOR: Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Jose Diaz from Reforma newspaper. Please, go ahead. Mr. Diaz, your line is open, sir. Please check your mute button.

QUESTION: Yes. Thank you very much for doing the  I just wanted to check with you how you feel about the proposal by Mexico to establish some kind of review mechanism on the situation in Venezuela every month, as Ambassador de Alba proposed yesterday at the Permanent Council?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes. We heard a number of proposals yesterday, including that one from the Mexicans. We kind of like that idea, actually. It is  and in fact, it is probably the most likely  one of the most likely ways that the OAS will now formally engage, moving forward. We expect the Mexicans and others will follow up in the short term here, in the next couple of days, with a proposal for a follow-on meeting to concretize exactly that or similar mechanisms. But yeah, there were a number  as I mentioned earlier, there were a number of proposals that were floated yesterday, but that one in particular seemed to have gotten a lot of traction from member-states.

QUESTION: Thank you.

MODERATOR: Next question.

OPERATOR: Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Nicolas Alonso from El Pais newspaper. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. Good afternoon. Thank you very much for your time. I just had a couple of questions. Given the potential drop of a country from the list that you just mentioned and what I would consider some reluctance by some Caribbean countries to condemn the situation in Venezuela yesterday in their speeches as harshly as Mexico, for example, or the U.S. did, are you confident that this majority of countries is, indeed, united? Or could there be  could this  could it dissolve, maybe depending on what the next steps are?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Well, clearly always what is being put before the assembled nations  every country comes at it with their own national perspective, and it, quite literally, depends on the question being asked. But we did see  for those of you that don't track on a daily basis the OAS views and statements, we have seen actually significant movement in a number of the statements made by a number of countries yesterday, compared to, say, where some of the same countries were a few months ago.

Quite frankly, the situation on the ground in Venezuela is changing. And as we saw on Monday and Tuesday, the  not just the tone and tenor, but the content of the Venezuelan interventions or engagements were so dismissive that they did themselves, quite frankly, a lot of damage, and  no, we expect that we have a clear solid majority in the OAS, as was mentioned yesterday. And a majority has agreed now that the OAS is an appropriate vehicle for moving forward and trying to consider next steps and the whole range of tools and options available to the OAS, and I don't expect that to change fundamentally.

QUESTION: All right. Thank you.

OPERATOR: And ladies and gentlemen, once again, if you do have any questions or comments today, please press * then 1.

Our next question comes from the line of Haik Gugarats from Argus Media. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. Two questions, really. What's the current level of direct engagement between State Department or the administration and the Maduro government? Are there any talks similar to what we've seen last year? Secondly, do you have a view on a potential spillover of the crisis into neighboring countries? We saw reports of Venezuelan troops found in a border region of Colombia. You been talking with Colombia, Brazil, and others about spillover effects?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. We continue to have formal diplomatic relations with Venezuela, of course. We communicate bilaterally, we communicate multilaterally. They have  we have a charge d'affaires there; they have a full team here, both at the OAS as well as bilaterally. I won't go into the details of those diplomatic engagements at this time, though.

And with regards to the spillover potential, I think you said bombing across the border. I'm aware of a concern in recent days about possible encampment of some Venezuelan troops on the Colombian side of the border near a river that has been shifting its course over time. But we are  absolutely the United States is discussing the situation with  not only with Venezuela but the other neighboring countries most immediately affected, to include in the Caribbean.

OPERATOR: Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Luis Alonso from the AP. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Yes. Hi. Many thanks, again, for doing this for a second day in a row. This is something special, it seems. I would like to follow up on my question from yesterday about the format of the dialogue moving on. If you could please talk a little bit about how you see it changes compared to the format with the Vatican in it and the three former presidents. Thank you.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah, sure. I mean, that's all under discussion. How the international community engages to support this is one of the things we expect to hear from other member-states in coming days. The role of the Vatican, as you suggested, is a critical extra-regional role. But overall, the onus really is and remains on the Government of Venezuela to take action. They know what they need to do. The commitments that they've already made to permitting the national assembly to perform its constitutional functions, to hold elections as soon as possible, to immediately release political prisoners  that's where the onus and the focus really should be not only at this point, but moving forward. The structure that we all use to pursue that is, quite frankly, secondary and only comes into play if the Government of Venezuela refuses to do those things that are immediately in its power to do today.

QUESTION: Just to clarify --

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We are quite flexible, frankly, on the tactics moving forward and the  if you will, the organogram of engagement.

QUESTION: Okay. And just to clarify, the number of countries in the declaration are now 18, not 20, right?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: No, I believe it's 19. We're trying to confirm that number --

QUESTION: Nineteen.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: -- and exactly who did sign on.

QUESTION: Okay. Thank you.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: You're welcome. Thank you all very much.

OPERATOR: Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Cristina Garcia from EFE News. Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. Thank you for doing this call. So my question is: When United States says that it wants elections as soon as possible, as you're referring as the election that was postponed, the original ones, or, as Maduro said, like, general elections as soon as possible to resolve the situation in Venezuela? Thank you so much.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: At a minimum, those elections that were supposed to have been held last year. Secondly, they need to establish an electoral calendar for the municipal elections that are supposed to have been held by the middle of this year. We're already in March, practically April, and they have yet to even announce a electoral calendar. There need to be primaries and many other steps that need to move forward. It's not clear.

They've made no indication since these  I think it was last October the foreign minister announced the suspension of  or the electoral  the CNE announced the suspension of the vote last year. And of course, there's the referendum that was never held last year because it was squelched by the government.

They need to move forward with plans for all of that. And if all the parties within Venezuela seek, as part of their political discussions, dialogue or negotiations, if they want to advance the dates for presidential elections, that's  frankly, as long as it's consistent with the constitution and their own agreements within Venezuela, the international community, I'm sure, would support it. The goal here is a political solution to a political problem, and elections is the glide path; it is the roadway ahead for resolving this political crisis.

OPERATOR: Thank you. And our next question comes from the line of Isabel Fleck from Folha de Sao Paulo . Please, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi. You said that the U.S. Government is talking to other countries in the region. I'd like to  and President Trump also talked to Brazilian President Temer on Venezuela recently. What does the U.S. expect from Brazil and these countries in the region concerning the situation in Venezuela?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Just as Brazil and many other regional partners have done in recent days and weeks, we expect what they've demonstrated, which is solidarity with the Venezuelan people and their democracy, support for the OAS as the appropriate regional venue for pursuing a political solution to this political crisis. When and how Brazil and other member-states decide to take particular roles will be up to each of those countries. But we're very heartened by the role Brazil and many other countries, large and small, have taken a step forward at this time.

QUESTION: But what kind of role would it be? I mean, the U.S. expects any kind of role in the solution?

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We're not going to dictate a particular role to Brazil or anyone else.

QUESTION: Okay. Thank you.

OPERATOR: And [Moderator], at this time, there are no other questions in queue, sir. Please continue.

MODERATOR: All right. Thank you so much And thanks to all our listeners and participants. As a reminder, this was a background call. Our speaker should be attributed as a senior State Department official. And now that we have concluded the call, we'll lift the embargo. Thanks very much, everyone.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Wait. Excuse me.

OPERATOR: Yes, sir. Go ahead.

SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We can go back to that question as to how many countries signed on to this declaration yesterday: We can now confirm that there were indeed 20 member-states.

OPERATOR: Thank you, sir.

MODERATOR: Thank you very much, Operator. And with that, thanks to everyone for holding on. Apologies for the hiccup there, but thanks so much. And now, we are actually concluded and we will lift the embargo. Thanks so much.

Source: US Dept. State






Bolivia, Russia's to sign new agreements at St Petersburg economic forum





BUENOS AIRES

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

Bolivia and Russia's major producer of natural gas, OAO Gazprom, plan to sign new agreements on exploration of deposits as they hold talks on the sidelines of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum in the first days of June, the Bolivian Minister of Hydrocarbons and Energy, Luis Alberto Sanchez said on Friday.

"In the course of this forum, we plan to sign another three agreements on exploration of the promising blocks of San Telmo Sur, San Telmo Norte and Astillero deposits," the Ministry of Hydrocarbons and Energy said.

It also recalled that Gazprom International and the Bolivian State Oil and Gas Corporation YPFB signed an agreement last year on exploration of La Ceiba, Vitiaqua and Madidi.

"They told us they had interest in exploring and developing two of them - La Ceiba and Vitiaqua," Sanchez said. The signing of agreements on these two blocks will most likely take place during a forum of gas exporting countries in Bolivia from November 20 through to November 24, 2017.

Sanchez stressed Gazprom's future role as an operator in Bolivia, saying this would guarantee investment and successful boost of output.

Gazprom and the YPFB signed an agreement on strategic cooperation in 2016. It envisions collaboration in exploring, extracting and transporting Bolivian hydrocarbons, as well as building and modernizing oil and gas infrastructure facilities.

Also, Gazprom and the YPFB plan to build power generating units.

As part of a consortium of companies, Gazprom put on stream the Incahuasi deposit in Bolivia last September. The Russian gas giant's CEO, Alexei Miller, said it had invested $350 million in the project.

The St Petersburg International Economic Forum will gather from June 1 through to June 3. TASS is the general information parent and official photo host of the event. In addition, it is the operator of the presentation zone of the forum.






Saudi Arabia take aim at swollen U.S. oil stockpiles in strategy shift



Minister promises marked drop in Saudi crude sales to U.S.. Kingdom shipped more crude to U.S. so far this year than 2016

VIENNA

Petroleumworld 05 29 2017

After sparing its prized U.S. market from oil-output cuts, Saudi Arabia plans to "markedly" reduce exports to its political ally in the coming weeks in an effort to reduce swollen and highly visible crude inventories in the world's biggest consumer.

"Exports to the U.S. will drop measurably," Energy and Industry Minister Khalid Al-Falih told reporters after chairing a meeting between OPEC and other major producers in Vienna on Thursday. Saudi crude shipments to the U.S. will fall below 1 million barrels a day next month, said two people briefed on the kingdom's oil policy, a reduction of more than 15 percent from the average so far this year.

Al-Falih spoke after the group of 24 nations agreed to extend their production curbs for another nine months until the end of March 2018, a decision that in itself was a tacit admission that their first five months of cuts had failed to make a significant dent in oil stockpiles in developed economies.

By shifting the focus of Saudi export reductions toward the U.S. -- where customs data allow near real-time monitoring of shipments -- and away from less transparent markets in Asia and Europe, Al-Falih was putting his personal credibility on the line. It may be a necessary move, as the slump in oil prices after Thursday's agreement showed growing skepticism about the effectiveness of the cuts.

"The market has been given clear independent and verifiable metric of how Saudi cuts -- and hopefully broader OPEC -- are working out over the summer, Amrita Sen, chief oil analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd., said in an interview in Vienna.

Amrita Sen, chief oil analyst at Energy Aspects, discusses OPEC's oil production cut. - Watch enlarge video

Daybreak: Europe." (Source: Bloomberg)

Saudi Arabia has shipped 1.21 million barrels a day of crude to the U.S. on average so far this year, according to Bloomberg calculations based on official customs data. That's the highest for that period since 2014, despite the kingdom going beyond its commitment to curb output by 486,000 barrels a day to 10.06 million.

Export plans for June will reduce shipments to the U.S. below 1 million barrels a day, said two people briefed on the matter, who asked not to be identified because the plans aren't public. That wouldn't affect the American market until mid-July, because it takes between 35 and 55 days for a tanker to sail there from the Middle East.

Seasonal Shifts

To be sure, Saudi exports to the U.S. often drop this time of year because the kingdom has less crude to sell due to higher domestic demand. Oil consumption in the Middle Eastern country surges during the hot summer months as crude is burned to generate electricity to meet the spike in air conditioning needs.

The average reduction in U.S. imports from Saudi Arabia between May and July was 5 percent over the past five years, EIA data show, smaller than the cut implied by the Saudi plans.

The export curbs, if implemented, would affect big U.S. refiners such as Valero Energy Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp., forcing them to buy similar crude elsewhere, such as Mexico, Canada or Venezuela. It could also narrow the price differential in the Americas between heavy crude with high sulfur content and higher-quality light grades.

U.S. refiners will raise their light-crude intake if these cuts proceed, said Andy Lipow, a Houston-based independent oil consultant.

Fluctuations in U.S. crude imports and stockpiles have an outsize impact on the market because data are available on a weekly basis. In other regions oil traders only get official figures on a monthly basis, or not at all in the case of stockpiles in big consumers such as China and India.

The credibility of this shift in Saudi strategy will be easily monitored," said Roger Diwan, the oil analyst at consultant IHS Markit Ltd., who attended the OPEC meeting in Vienna.






An Iraqi Shia Muslim force backed by Iran said it pushed Islamic State out of a group of villages on the border with Syria on Monday, potentially reopening a supply route to send Iranian weapons to President Bashar al-Assad.

The manoeuvre could also be the prelude to a connection with the Iranian-backed forces of Assad, although they are yet to reach the Iraqi border from the Syrian side.

Syrian rebel sources have warned of advances by the Syrian army and Iranian-backed militia to reach the border.

The territory taken by the Popular Mobilisation force on Monday is located north of the Islamic State-held town of Baaj.

For Popular Mobilisation, it is a step towards achieving a linkup with Assad forces, giving him a significant advantage in fighting the six-year rebellion against his rule.

But the territory is connected with land held by U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish groups on the Syrian side.

They are more focused on fighting Islamic State than Assad and it is not known whether the Syrian Kurds would allow the Iraqi Shia force to use their territory to reach Assad's troops, deployed further south and further west.

In a statement on its website, Popular Mobilisation described its advance to the border with Syria as "a Ramadan miracle", referring to the Muslim fasting month which started over the weekend.

Popular Mobilisation is taking part in the U.S-backed Iraqi campaign to defeat Islamic State in the city of Mosul and the surrounding province of Nineveh.

Iraqi government armed forces are focusing their effort on dislodging insurgents from the city of Mosul, Islamic State's de-facto capital in Iraq.

While reporting nominally to Iraq's Shia-led government, Popular Mobilisation has Iranian military advisers, one of whom died last week fighting near Baaj. Iran has helped to train and organise thousands of Shia militia fighters from Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan in the Syrian conflict.

Fighters from Lebanon's Hezbollah are also working closely with Iranian military commanders in Syria.

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Pastor Clarence E. Wright outside the Love Zion Baptist Church in North Philadelphia on Thursday, May 25, 2017. His church is a block from where nine people were shot in one incident Saturday night. Read more

The prayers for the sick and the shut-in had just been read at Love Zion Baptist Church in North Philadelphia when a woman approached the altar and asked the congregation to pray for a young man critically injured in a shooting down the block the night before.

For Pastor Clarence E. Wright, the previous Sunday's request was no shock. He's all too familiar with the violence in the 2500 block of North 23rd Street, where his church has stood for 33 years. On one occasion, a bullet flew through his office window. He's lost count of all the shootings. "It's sad, but there's so much violence around the area, to hear of a shooting is unfortunately not out of the ordinary," he said. "It wasn't until after the service I learned of the magnitude of this one."

The magnitude, according to police: Nine people  eight men and a woman  between 17 and 25 years old were shot on 23rd Street near Huntingdon around 10:38 p.m. May 20, when two gunmen opened fire on as many as 30 people dancing at an outdoor graduation party on a warm Saturday. Some reportedly had been sharing photos and videos on social media.

Screams drowned out the music. Chaos replaced joy. Two men were critically injured; one of them was shot five times, police said. "The more I kept running, the more I kept getting shot at," said a man in his 20s who was hit four times, and spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear for his safety.

In a city inured to daily violence, the shooting of nine people at an outdoor celebration did not cause much consternation. No one stood up in City Council to decry the bloodbath. Few residents talked, police provided almost no details, and news reports were sketchy.

Ronald Crawford, an addiction counselor whose office is two blocks from the shooting scene, said the lack of outrage is frightening. "It happens so much, it's business as usual," he said. "If this happened in Bensalem, it would be called a mass shooting."

The North Philadelphia carnage was only the most glaring part of a bloody week in the city. In seven days starting Friday, May 19, at least 32 people were shot, four fatally. Twelve of the week's victims were shot within a mile in four incidents in North Philadelphia, including a 41-year-old man shot six times Wednesday afternoon, just two blocks from where the nine revelers were shot. Police have not said whether any of the cases were related.

"It's my job to encourage people, it's my job to give them hope, but, honestly, sometimes I feel the helplessness," Wright said. "We pray and we deal with issues of violence in the community and it just keeps happening. It keeps happening."

The man who asked to be unidentified said he'd been hanging out on the porch with his cousin when they heard people celebrating down the block and wandered over to the party. The neighbors get together like that regularly, he said.

But this time, a bullet struck his right hand, knocking his cellphone to the ground. "It flew out of my hand," he said. "That's when I started running."

Everything happened so fast, it was hard for him to remember: Three more bullets hit him, one in his left arm and one in each leg, as he ran to his cousin's house and then to his mother's house.

"A lot of blood was coming out of my arms and legs," he said.

The man's mother, who also asked not to be identified, said blood was "gushing" out of her son.

"My hand was shaking like a leaf," she said. She became nauseated and short of breath, she recalled.

The man ran outside and flagged down a police officer, who drove him to Temple University Hospital, where he was treated and released by Sunday afternoon.

He said he has no idea why someone shot at the group.

"We were just trying to chill, have a good time," he said. "I was just an innocent bystander minding my own business with my friends."

After a week, no arrests had been made, and police declined to offer specifics on the investigation. Rumors that the shooting was captured on Facebook Live have not been confirmed.

During the week, many residents declined to talk about the shooting, and police sources said they still were sorting through interviews.

Capt. Sekou Kinebrew, a police spokesman, said it was not uncommon for investigators to encounter hesitant witnesses or victims, whether out of fear that talking to police would result in additional violence or a reluctance to recount the trauma as a case wends its way through court.

"Just walking through the system  and having to relive what happened to you, that in itself is a stress," Kinebrew said.

Wright, the pastor, said residents often don't talk out of fear of retaliation.

"When you have to live on that block, you don't want to get wrapped up in whatever caused the original shooting," said Wright. "You have to balance safety of it happening again with the safety of it happening to you."

Crimes with multiple victims and a large number of witnesses can provide advantages to police, but also challenges, Kinebrew said.

"There's a greater pool of witnesses," he said. "But in terms of dissecting [the truth]  it does create a bit of a challenge of the investigation to weed out the stories."

9 or more have been shot before

If prior mass shootings of nine or more people in the city are any indication, there may be hope for an arrest  but little hope for public outcry.

In December 2000, four masked men stormed a drug house on the 800 block of Lex Street in West Philadelphia and shot 10 people, killing seven. Days afterward, the late Inquirer columnist Acel Moore wrote: "With the exceptions of a few antiviolence and community activists, there seems to be little overall outrage."

Four men initially charged with the Lex Street massacre were later let go, before another four were arrested and convicted.

In May 2011, two men fired 18 rounds from semiautomatic weapons into a crowd of patrons of the Felton Supper Club just as it was closing for the night. Nine people were hit, all of whom survived. The resulting ire from the neighborhood and from then-Mayor Michael Nutter centered more on the club, which was considered a nuisance, than on the perpetrators, One of the gunmen was arrested, convicted, and sentenced to 10 to 20 years in state prison. The other assailant was never identified.

In June 2015, 10 people  including three children  were shot when two men fired at dozens of people at a barbecue in Mantua. The Daily News reported at the time that "the resulting outcry was muted, at best." Two men were arrested, but charges against them were withdrawn, according to court records.

Crawford, a therapist with Stop and Surrender, a drug and alcohol recovery center two blocks from the shooting scene at 23rd and Huntingdon, lamented that victims and witnesses of such bloodshed rarely seek therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder.

"If somebody sees somebody getting shot and he gets PTSD, his symptoms could include becoming easily agitated, having hyper-arousal, and a shortened life expectancy," Crawford said. "So when somebody steps on my foot, I get my gun."

Crawford said he doesn't know what happened in this case, but he said that these days a lot of young, black men are using Percocets, PCP, and other drugs that numb them to the violence and "make you forget even about the code of street behavior."

"These weapons these kids have today, the caliber of bullets are bigger, and they do more damage," he said. "When people see someone's face shot off, it's a war scene. The drugs need to be harder to make you forget about that. I mean, this is so normal that guys see brain matter and then they go and get pizza."

Marla Davis, director of Philadelphia CeaseFire, said everyone who eats, sleeps, works, plays, and attends school in Philadelphia needs to take ownership in stemming gun violence.

"One of the stark differences between us and Chicago  is they know they have a problem, so everyone from Whole Foods to the Chicago White Sox does what they can," she said. "We are not there. I know some people have concern, but for whatever reason, it's business as usual for a couple days and we go on."

But the victim's mother remains shaken. If her son was not safe at a casual gathering of friends down the street, how could she ensure that all three of her sons could remain safe when they left home?

"I want to keep them inside, lock the door," she said. "But you can't."
FILE  George Soros speaks during a forum at the IMF/World Bank annual meetings in Washington in 2011. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) Read more

Not so long ago, civil rights lawyer Larry Krasner's platform in the Philadelphia Democratic primary would have seemed an unlikely winner. Stop seeking death sentences? No imprisonment for people who can't make bail? Ignore low-level drug crimes?

But prosecutors have increasingly won election on just such promises of reform across the country in the last couple of years, thanks to a political sea change in voter attitudes toward crime and justice  and big infusions of outside cash from liberal billionaire George Soros.

The hedge-fund tycoon has spent about $10 million since 2015 to back progressive candidates for prosecutor in places as diverse as Chicago, Orlando, Houston, and Shreveport, La., through a network of affiliated super PACs, according to campaign-finance reports.

"Mr. Soros has been a longtime advocate of criminal justice reform and ending mass incarceration," his spokesman, Michael Vachon, said last week. "District attorneys have a tremendous amount of influence and leverage as change agents."

Philadelphia Justice and Safety spent $1.6 million in Soros' money pushing Krasner in the last three weeks of the campaign. A 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling allows independent expenditure groups to raise and spend unlimited amounts if they do not coordinate with candidates or their campaigns.

Big money can have an outsize impact in local down-ballot races for DA, which have tended to be low-key affairs despite the impact the office has on a community, political strategists say.

Soros' efforts, along with some allied labor unions, and racial-justice and progressive organizations, have supercharged campaigns for prosecutor in at least 16 jurisdictions over the last year. The activists are capitalizing on what polls show is increasing skepticism of the death penalty and mandatory minimum prison sentences, as well as outrage over police shootings of unarmed black people.

"The U.S. has the highest rate of incarceration in the world, and people are turning against that chest-beating mentality on crime, and the policies built during the war on drugs," said Joe Dinkin, national spokesman for the Working Families Party, a leftist group that nominates political candidates in states where it has ballot access. "Voters increasingly see the system as expensive, punitive, and a failure."

The Pennsylvania chapter of WFP was with Krasner from the start, before the Soros PAC's independent spending. Dinkin said the group helped Krasner with strategy and organizing, and knocked on 70,000 doors for the Democrat in the last three weeks of the race.

A coalition of liberal groups also got behind Aramis Ayala of Orlando last year, when she knocked off the incumbent state attorney for Orange and Osceola Counties as a reform candidate, stressing, in particular, the need to stop arresting large numbers of juvenile offenders. It did not hurt, of course, that the Florida version of the Justice and Safety political action committee dropped $1.4 million for TV ads in the final weeks of the campaign.

Jeff Ashton, the incumbent, said the money was a "hostile takeover of the criminal-justice system" by Soros. He could not compete.

Stephanie Porta, executive director of Organize Florida, said Ayala's victory was the result of "a lot of pieces coming together," including a broad desire among voters for change. But she acknowledged that the late money, along with smaller independent expenditures by her group and others, such as Color for Change, played a role.

"It really let people know there was an alternative candidate," Porta said. "Most people don't focus as much on down-ballot races. Aramis was able to cut through the noise."

When she took office earlier this year, Ayala announced a moratorium on seeking the death penalty. Florida Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, transferred the upcoming trial of a man accused of killing his pregnant ex-girlfriend and a police officer to another state attorney's jurisdiction, prompting an uproar and a legal battle. Ayala had not explicitly campaigned against the death penalty, leading some to claim she misled voters. She did, however, say before the election that she was skeptical about the effectiveness of the penalty.

Overall in 2016, Soros spent money in 15 races around the country and his favored candidate won 12 of them. In Arizona, $2 million went to defeat county Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the tough-talking lawman famous for harsh tactics against illegal immigrants and for running an austere jail.

In Houston, Soros initially backed Morris Overstreet, an African American judge, in the Democratic primary for Harris County prosecutor. Overstreet lost, and the billionaire promptly funded a PAC that spent $500,000 helping nominee Kim Ogg defeat a GOP incumbent. She has moved to de-emphasize prosecutions of low-level marijuana offenses.

Democratic strategist Ken Snyder worked in the Philadelphia primary for former prosecutor Joe Khan, also a candidate promising criminal-justice reform, and he believes now that the Soros money was insurmountable. "It was like a python. It just suffocated the field," Snyder said, adding that the other campaigns didn't have as much flexibility the waged by Krasner, who knew he was getting air support and could concentrate resources elsewhere.

Joshua Marquis, an Oregon district attorney active in the national association of county prosecutors, said that big outside money drowns out other voices and risks politicizing an office that, while elected, needs to be apolitical in the administration of justice.

"No doubt he's sincere and believes he's doing God's work or some close equivalent, but Soros scares the hell out of me in the same way the Koch brothers scare me," said Marquis, a Democrat who supports the death penalty but has rarely sought it. "Anytime you get that much money coming in from people with no community ties, it distorts democracy."

But Dinkin, of the Working Families Party, said the money was not determinative. "The independent spending only amplified Krasner's platform," he said. "If his vision of transforming the criminal justice system wasn't resonating with voters, it wouldn't have mattered."

Sometimes, outside events drive a campaign and not outside spending, as Snyder discovered in the Cook County, Ill., Democratic primary last year.

Kim Foxx, an African American challenger who talked about cracking down on police abuses and diverting low-level drug offenders into treatment, knocked out two-term incumbent Anita Alvarez amid the furor over the 2014 officer-involved shooting of a black teenager, Laquan McDonald.

Alvarez decided not to prosecute the officers involved, and then a graphic video showing the killing  McDonald was shot 16 times as he walked along a street  was released late in 2015, just months before the vote.

"Anita got the blame, and she just went into freefall," said Snyder, who is based in Chicago and worked for Alvarez.

Another Soros PAC, Illinois Justice and Safety, spent $333,000 on behalf of Foxx, but the two candidates were evenly matched in spending. "There are events beyond your control," Snyder said.
They say the apple doesnt fall far from the tree, but they also say that some big trees tend to cast shadows on smaller ones. In the case of Ali Jahangir Siddiqui the former is definitely true while the latter is open to scrutiny. Ali grew up with an entrepreneur legend as a father, a tireless philanthropist as a mother and a business empire as his school and inspiration. Ali Siddiqui only got more motivated as a business person and his fathers success proved both inspiration and aspiration for him.

Education is indeed the great equalizer, not only for providing equal opportunity based on merit but because education does not discriminate. After being an exemplary student, leader and gaining top SAT scores; Ali Jahangir Siddiqui set out to gain the best education the world has to offer. He got accepted in to Cornell University and majored in Economics, and continued to be a student leader representing Pakistan proudly every step of the way.

Having a large corporation was in no way seen by Ali Jahangir Siddiqui as his birth right, especially as his father, Jahangir Siddiqui is a huge proponent of individuals earning their way and position. Siddiqui Senior, who had his humble beginnings selling Coca Cola as a fourteen year old instilled the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit in his son as well. Ali began his career in Hong Kong in the private equity industry where he managed funds for various Asian governments.

After gaining considerable business experience and savvy by working with various investments and companies, Ali Jahangir Siddiqui became ready to not only set up his own ventures but take on the heavy responsibility of managing his familys legacy as well. Since then he has co-founded or invested into a number of emerging market companies within the Agriculture, Aviation, Banking, Energy and Ports sectors.

According to Ali Jahangir Siddiqui the work he is most passionate about is giving back to communities. He is CEO of the the Mahvash and Jahangir Siddiqui Foundation, one of the largest private sector charities in Pakistan, which funds projects in healthcare, education, social enterprise and disaster relief. He is always trying to figure out the most effective and innovative solutions to bring seamless relief and development to marginalized communities so that their future may be brighter.

Investing in the future is very close to not only Alis heart but it is also a strategic plan for him. As a younger businessperson he understands that youth are brimming with ideas and energy for innovation that need to be effectively harnessed and guided to reach their potential. Thus, he is a Board Member of the Acumen Fund in New York, which invests in innovative businesses that serve the underprivileged in Africa and Asia. Fundamentally, Acumen is different from the rest of the sector. Its innovative & it tries to take risk and tries to fund companies that actually are changing the way business is done, boasts Ali Jahangir Siddiqui.

The young businessman also understands the importance of policy and government lobbying in affecting change in a sustainable and effective manner. His involvement as Member Board of Investment of the Government of Sindh, Member Community Development Board of the Government of Sindh and Member Corporate Advisory Council of the National University of Science and Technology is resounding evidence to that effect. He was also formerly a Board Member of the Privatisation Commission of the Government of Pakistan. It is not common that a young and successful businessman is so involved in government agencies, which sets a great example for the countrys youth that need more positive role models in both, government and business.

Only in his thirties, Ali Jahangir Siddiqui has garnered a lot of success and is one of the youngest to be on Bloomberg Business as an executive. He is an example for never resting on your laurels or good fortune. Greatness begets greatness; time will tell what greater feats will come out of the Siddiqui family!
President Donald Trump is assailing internal leaks as he considers an overhaul of his White House staff and grapples with a burgeoning crisis involving alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign.

Frustrated with what he views as his team's inability to push back against the drumbeat of new revelations, Trump is seeking expanded teams of lawyers and experienced public relations hands. While he has called his first trip abroad a "home run," it was shadowed by reports about Moscow's interference and possible improper dealings with the Trump campaign and associates.

The latest reports hit close to the Oval Office, alleging that Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner proposed secret back-channel communications with Russia during the presidential transition.

Trump struck back Sunday, after maintaining a limited social media presence throughout his nine-day trip. He unleashed a flurry of tweets, lashing out at what he called the "fake news" media. He focused heavily on leaks  both those coming out of the White House and an intelligence leak blamed on Americans about the deadly bombing at a concert in Britain.

On the bombing investigation Trump wrote: "British Prime Minister May was very angry that the info the U.K. gave to U.S. about Manchester was leaked."

Trump also wrote that "many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies." He added that it is "very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers."

Even when authorized, top officials in the Trump White House frequently request anonymity to brief reporters "on background," meaning their names will not be disclosed.

Trump, who made no public appearances Sunday, was expected to deliver remarks at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day.

Trump's longtime lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, has joined a still-forming legal team to help the president shoulder the intensifying Russia investigations. More attorneys with deep experience in Washington investigations are expected to be added, along with crisis communication experts.

During the Monica Lewinsky investigation, the Clinton White House brought on a dedicated group of lawyers and a created a separate media operation to handle investigation-related inquiries so they didn't completely subsume the president's agenda.

As he mulls changes, Trump has entertained formally bringing back his former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and former deputy campaign manager, David Bossie. Both Lewandowski and Bossie discussed the prospect with the president before his trip, according to a person told of the conversations.

Lewandowski's return would be notable, given the fact that he was fired by Trump after clashing with staff and Trump's adult children. Nonetheless, Lewandowski has the trust of the president  an advantage that many of Trump's aides lack.

Major issues await Trump. He has signaled he will soon make a decision on whether to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. And the search continues for an FBI director to replace the fired James Comey.

On the policy front, he must defend his budget plan, and the Republican health care bill that narrowly passed the House faces an uncertain future in the Senate. On that topic, Trump tweeted Sunday night: "I suggest that we add more dollars to Healthcare and make it the best anywhere. ObamaCare is dead  the Republicans will do much better!"

Trump also has to decide soon on a Pentagon recommendation to add more U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, as well as boosting reinforcement for the beleaguered Afghan military.

While taxes have taken a back seat in recent weeks, Trump tweeted Sunday: "The massive TAX CUTS/REFORM that I have submitted is moving along in the process very well, actually ahead of schedule. Big benefits to all!"

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Two Fryeburg, ME, police officers were seriously injured Saturday in a boat crash while searching for a missing woman on the Saco River.

Officer Nathan Desjardins is in critical condition while Officer Dale Stout is in stable condition.

They were injured while searching for a missing woman on a river. The Maine Warden Service said the officers' boat overturned and collided with something on, or near, the shore.

Both officers were airlifted to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston.

Wardens told WMTW News 8 the police boat sustained front-end damage, but they are still trying to figure out exactly how the crash happened.
Terry Lemons is accused of misleading donors about a police memorial. (Photo: Facebook)

A Farmington, Missouri, man is facing a lawsuit for allegedly misleading donors to a police memorial.

According to Attorney General Josh Hawley, Terry Lemons told donors that he was raising money for a memorial to honor fallen enforcement officers.

He used the fake name of "Thin Blue Line Tahoe" and claimed it was a nonprofit corporation, according to Hawley.

Instead, Hawley said Lemons used the money to make his personal Chevrolet Tahoe look like a police patrol vehicle. It has radar equipment, a shotgun, emergency lights, and a computer, KFVS TV reports.
LAPD Chief Charlie Beck and Los Angeles City Attorney Mark Feuer have expressed their opposition to nationwide concealed carry laws in the Los Angeles Times.

Heres an excerpt of what they wrote:

Californians have a lot on the line in the next congressional debate about Americas gun laws. Two bills stacked with legislative sponsors  HB 38 in the House, SB 446 in the Senate  would override our states longstanding rules governing who is allowed to carry a concealed, loaded firearm in public. These bills, both called the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, would dictate that if a person can carry a concealed weapon in any state, that person could carry it everywhere in America.

Our state laws require good cause for the issuance of a concealed weapon permit. Applicants must undergo a comprehensive background check. No one with a serious criminal conviction may receive a permit, nor may subjects of temporary or permanent domestic violence restraining orders.

But if concealed carry reciprocity were the law of the land, all this would change. Unbelievably, the House version would allow an individual denied a permit in California to cross the border to a more permissive state, obtain a permit there, then return to California  with a new right to carry here.

In addition to jeopardizing public safety, concealed carry reciprocity would endanger the lives of law enforcement. The mere presence of more concealed weapons on California streets would make police work here much more hazardous.

Because concealed carry reciprocity poses grave risks, the National Law Enforcement Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence, including the Major Cities Chiefs Assn. and the International Assn. of Chiefs of Police, along with the Assn. of Prosecuting Attorneys, the leaders of Prosecutors Against Gun Violence and many other partners in law enforcement, have strongly opposed it.

Read complete article at LATimes.com.
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This Memorial Day weekend is about paying tribute to the men and women who fought our wars. They deserve honor and respect that shouldnt be limited to one day.

These are men and women who gave the most valuable gifts they have in the name of protecting our values and our country. We may not agree with the politics behind the decisions by lawmakers to go to war. If youre like me, you do believe that war should ideally should be eliminated. However, if it must be a factor, war should be the very last option when all others have been tried.

That differs from respecting the sacrifices made by men and women who risked their lives, sacrificed time with family, missed birthdays and many of the firsts in their childrens lives  in the name of defending America.

I cant help but think about what Trumps proposed budget says to veterans.

Its bad enough that our troops are paid so badly that they are eligible for food stamps (which Trump also cut, with the added insult that he did it so benefactors would be less dependent.

In a statement, VoteVets.org said what this budget is really all about for vets  and for the rest of us. This is classic divide and conquer.

As those who served this nation in uniform, we cannot be more clear  we will not accept increases to the VA Budget and DOD Budget, on the backs of the poor, seniors, and the security and safety of the American people. We will not allow Donald Trump to pit veterans and the military against everyone else.

The hard numbers bear that out if you look at the hatchet job Trump did to programs that benefit Americans, including veterans.

Lets begin with acknowledging the budget does propose a spending increase of 6% for the department of Veterans Affairs.

The $82 billion total discretionary request is nearly twice as large as the departments entire budget in fiscal 2001, before the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

However, this increase when taking with the hatchet Trump takes to other programs is a 3 card Monty.

One notable example is the Individual Unemployability program. It allows the VA to award payouts at the 100% disable rate to vets who cant find work because of service connected injuries. Currently, this applies even if the individual is not deemed 100% disabled.

According to Military Times, the number of recipients has tripled since 2000. Thats roughly 339,000 people in 2016.

Trump wants to stop those payments once veterans are eligible for Social Security retirement benefits, affecting 225,000 vets, claiming the practice amounts to a duplication of benefits.

The budget adds insult to injury when one considers the effect of Trumps $70 billion in cuts to Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) over the next decade. In its analysis, the Washington Post points to the Trump hope that people who benefit from this program will be encouraged or required to re-enter the work force. The added salt in the wound lies in the fact, that Vets are, in many instances, disabled and unemployable as a direct result of service related injuries.

There just arent any words that adequately expressed the moral ineptitude of a President who financially penalizes people for getting hurt while fighting for our country.

And it doesnt stop there. The devastating effects of this budget cut disabled people off from food stamps and housing assistance. Because injuries sustained in war would be classified as pre-existing conditions for health insurance purposes, vets will be priced out of insurance under Trumpcare, that is if they arent blackballed.

Jason Easleys post on the Trump budgets consequences for disabled people says volumes about the so called values of Donald Trump.

Persons with disabilities could lose their heath care, income, food assistance, housing, independent living assistance, and access to programs to help them with their specific disabiliti

es.

No matter how his minions try to spin it, Trumps budget is nothing short of a cruel recipe for making life a living hell for disabled people and that includes vets.

This budget is as morally depraved as it gets, when even our vets are under those bus wheels in the name of increasing handouts to the Trump family and their rich friends.

Image: Military.com
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The White Houses public claims that the Russia scandal is no big deal are completely different from what is going on behind the scenes as the West Wing is growing increasingly paranoid while Trump is getting obsessed with the Russia scandal.

Politico reported:

Two White House officials said Trump and some aides including Steve Bannon are becoming increasingly convinced that they are victims of a conspiracy against Trumps presidency, as evidenced by the number of leaks flowing out of government  that the crusade by the so-called deep state is a legitimate threat, not just fodder for right-wing defenders.

The more people talk to him about it, the more he obsesses about it, said one outside adviser who is close to the president. The White House did not respond to requests for comment as to how Trump was spending his day after returning from the nine-day foreign trip the night before.

What Politico described above is a textbook example of White House that is being consumed by scandal. The Trump administration was dysfunctional before the Russia scandal blew up, but now a dysfunctional Executive Branch is obsessed with a scandal.

The result of this lethal political mixture has historically been paralysis and a lack of accomplishment, which is the last thing that the Republican Party can afford.

Congressional Republicans are already on edge because fears are growing that they might spend the entire first year of the Trump presidency getting nothing accomplished. The odds are growing each day that Republicans may have to face the 2018 midterms with no legislative accomplishments and a scandal-plagued unpopular president weighing them down.

The Trump White House is responding to a self-created crisis by collapsing into a pile of paranoia and obsession.

At a time when America needs leadership, the mentally and emotionally fragile Trump is obsessed with the Russia scandal.

In record time, Donald Trump has become a portrait of presidential failure.
Director Kaouther Ben Hania talks to Ahram Online about her film portraying the real-life story of a woman raped by police, highlighting the casual brutality of state institutions

Kaouther Ben Hanias second feature film Aala Kaf Ifrit (Beauty and the Dogs) was well received by critics and viewers at the Cannnes Film Festival, winning a standing ovation and positive reviews.

The film is based on the true story of a young woman raped by police officers in Tunisia after leaving a college party. In the film, the victim is called Mariam, a part played by Maria Al-Ferjani, while her male friend Youssef is played by Ghanem Zrelli.

After the attack, Mariam and Youssef spend the night roaming around Tunisias state institutions in search of justice.

My concern was just to provide a narrative of what happened that night. In reality, the story continues to courts and trial sessions, Ben Hania told Ahram Online.

I cared about what we might call the second rape, which was conducted by the state institutions during her confrontation with the police station and hospitals.

The film is divided into nine chapters, each consisting of a single scene shot in a single take. The technique gives the film a touch of realism, providing the characters with room not only to improvise but to develop either their agony or their awareness.

For example, Mariam is in shock due to the rape, but she doesn't react explosively to events during the first scene. Ben Hania gives Mariam room to first stutter, to think of going home, to doubt herself, to panic, and to finally reach a peak of consciousness and confront the perpetrators.

The film is based on true events, but the narrative is constructed in a free way, and the adaption was not word for word. I made some changes to the characteristics of the main characters and added my own reading and sense of the story, said the director.

Our idea was that a scene that isn't shown can still be understood by the viewers. For example, the scene of the rape; it is not seen but can be imagined."

Ben Hanias thesis or vision for the film is simple, and can easily be understood from the title. There is a beauty and there are the dogs. There is Mariam, the rape victim, and there are the police, the perpetrators.

With this in mind, the body langauage of actors playing police officers and their movement give us the feeling of how a pack of dogs, with their lawless attitude, would react if challenged.

The body-language of the actors is carefully conveyed through the camera-work of Johan Holmquist, showing the officers chasing and intimidating Mariam, in a very haunting image.

Ben Hania also gives her villains a chance to react to the accusation, starting with denial, an attempt to cover up, more denial, harassment, and looking for scapegoats.

At first the police officers are in denial, asking Mariam to go home as the police station is "closed".



Actor Mohamed Akkari plays a muscular, tattooed policemen in black t-shirt and moustache. The character is evil in every possible way, with Akkari's performance lending the character a cartoonish quality, a dark performance that fits well with the bizarre and horrendous situation.

He represents a security apparatus that is lacking in compassion and careless in the face of human suffering, even to the point of sadistically taunting the helpless victim.

We spent a lot of time on the process of casting. And I was lucky to have worked with actors and actresses who had a background in theatre, which made the longer shots easier, said Ben Hania.

Chedly Arfaoui puts in a distinguished performance as a well-built policeman who, in a patriarchal speech, tells Mariam to drop the charges. He argues that the accused officers have been arrested and will be interrogated by a police discipline committee.

Arfaouis monologue lasts more than seven minutes, with Mariam given the choice of either dropping the charges or signing a statement to the effect that she and Youssef had been practicing adultery.

The quality of the film can be seen in the amount of thought given to the issues surrounding the events. For instance, the question of blaming the rape victim comes up, accusing her of being provocative or wearing a revealing dress or walking on the beach with a man late at night.

The first scene of the film introduces Mariam: a college student in a disco bathroom, nervously changing into her party clothes, a revealing evening dress that shows her attractive, curvy body. We also learn that she comes from a conservative family with a strict father.

When she is being interviewed by the police, she is initially afraid to mention her fathers name. However, later on, she says she doesn't mind being "scandalised"  as the officer puts it  on the internet if this will help in the search for justice.

The police are not conservative; they don't mind her short dress or her being with a male friend. But they are using conservative rhetoric to pressure her, because they know that she is from the countryside, Ben Hania explains.

However, not all the police officers are viewed as dogs. Some are quite different from the villains, while a policewoman in the same station wants to help Miriam but is herself afraid and helpless.

One of the best parts of the film shows the policewoman pretending to be on the phone, standing with her back to Mariam, who the male officers are trying to bully. The policewoman wants to help, but her face shows the fear that prevents her from intervening.

The scene is reminiscent of a scene from Steve McQueens masterpiece Hunger, although with a completely different context and storyline, being set during the conflict between the Irish Republic Army and the British authorities in 1981.

The scene shows a British riot-policeman breaking down in the middle of a raid on Irish political prisoners, displaying the fragility of human emotions among those police officers performing tough duties.

Ben Hania says that her film is politically oriented.

As the two main characters roam around police stations, attempting to file a complaint, Youssef meets and fights an officer who arrested him in 2011 during a political protest in the Qasba area of Tunis.

The film here turns political. The officer abuses Youssef for daring to file a complaint against the police, the enmity heightened by the fact that he is a former adversary. The mention of the 2011 revolution is brief but powerful.

Ben Hania makes the link between political dissent and the night of the rape, hinting that the police have become a key political institution and the iron hand of the regime, rather than a governmental body staffed by public servants.

In one of her low moments, Mariam says, May God punish them. However, Youssef scolds her, asserting that the revolution happened so that justice would be possible.

The definition of justice in our societies is complicated. Do we accept living in oppression, hoping that justice will be achieved in the afterlife, in which case, this life has no place of judicial institutions? said the director.

The revolution happened to demand justice and dignity. State institutions should ensure justice in life  before the after-life."

One important question posed by the film is who is responsible for ensuring that law-enforcement bodies obey the law.

Arab states depend on police apparatuses to maintain their political power, and so it is often difficult for individual police officers who break the law to be brought to justice. And this often only occurs after the case has become public, causing uproar in the press and social-media.

Ben Hania hopes that the film will contribute to the debate over the possibility of creating a popular police force or peoples police in Tunisia. The debate has been ongoing since the revolution, with some seeking a law-enforcement body that is free of political influence and not involved in supporting the agendas of those in power.

This comes up even in torture stories or Amnesty International reports about violations in police stations. There should be some dialogue about how to train members of the former security apparatus to be adapted to a new system, Ben Hania says.

The film is partially sponsored by the Tunisian Ministry of Culture, a step Ben Hania describes as a turning point, something almost impossible seven or eight years ago.

She doesnt know whether she will be accused of "distorting the image of Tunisia"  an accusation often directed at filmmakers who tackle sensitive topics.

I dont work for the Ministry of Tourism. I have a powerful story to tell," she says. "It is better to show films and images in which we confront the unfortunate reality.

She adds that the story is not just relevant to Tunisia, but reflects cases in different countries, such as India, Egypt, Sweden and France.



For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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The gap between how much women and men are paid for full-time work has narrowed over the past decade in South Carolina, but it's still substantial, according a new analysis.
Parker Hendriks had 13 rides in his first season as a jockey in 2020, and gave up his apprentice status early this spring. His first race as a pro was April 2, at the Carolina Cup in Camden. Read moreYoung American set to be crowned jockey champ at Steeplechase of Charleston
The city of Charleston has an amazing opportunity to have a new urban park right in the heart of downtown, on Dominion Energys site between Meeting and King streets, roughly between the City Market and the Four Corners of Law. City leaders and others in the community should seize this chanc Read moreEditorial: Charleston should seize on this unique chance for a new urban park
Cecil Evans. Andrew Driezke. Orville Rodgers.

Those are just three of the more than 3,000 names etched into the granite Wall of Remembrance at Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial. On Monday, hundreds of people gathered at the Rochester memorial to pay tribute to these men and all the other service men and women who have died defending America.

"We're here because others cared more about our freedom than for their own lives. We're here because many have served and sacrificed," said the Rev. Doug Mathers.

Residents gathered for Memorial Day events across southeast Minnesota. Cities with Memorial Day events included Elgin, Eyota, Oronoco, Peterson, Pine Island, Zumbro Falls and Zumbrota.

Under an overcast sky, retired U.S. Army Col. Walter Franz told the crowd he had struggled with his speech.

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"It's difficult for me to find words that could possibly add to this sacred place on this day of remembrance," Franz said.

Earlier in the week, he visited the memorial when no one was there. As he looked at the memorial, Franz said he could hear nothing but the flapping of the flags overhead. In many ways, he said that is the best way to pay tribute to those honored at the memorial.

"Fellow patriots, I ask you just for a moment to pause and listen to the silence. Look at the statue. Look at the names on the wall. Look at the flags. Nothing else needs to be said," Franz said.

At the end of the service, a firing squad did a three-volley salute in honor of the dead. It was followed by the playing of "Taps."

Army veteran Chad Donovan was among those gathered at the ceremony. A member of the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association, Donovan helped post the group's flag at the ceremony. What was the Rochester veteran thinking about during the service?

"I think of the families  the families that never had a loved on return and just the ultimate sacrifice of the ones that passed away while serving," Donovan said.

Standing by Donovan after the program ended was Mike Felske, of Waterville. An Army veteran, Felske did four tours overseas that included serving in The Gulf War and two stints in Iraq. He said showing up at the memorial is a way to honor those who served their country and lost their lives.

He added, "I''m proud just because we're part of the lineage that helped America be what it is today and to be able to show respect to the people who came before us to get us here."
The mother of two began her expedition in April with a blessing from the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, who gave her a hug.

A 38-year-old Indian climber who made the fastest double ascent of Mount Everest and became the first woman to reach the highest point on earth twice in five days, says she will now turn her attention to smaller unclimbed peaks.

Anshu Jamsenpa, from India's mountainous northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, climbed Everest by its Southeast Ridge route on May 16. She repeated the feat on May 21, beating a record set by a Nepali woman, Chhurim Sherpa, who made the dual climb in seven days in 2011.

Anshu, who like many people in the Indian state is known by her first name, also climbed the 8,850 meter (29,035 feet) summit twice in 10 days in 2011. She climbed it again in 2013.

A motivational speaker and trainer in mountaineering, Anshu said she felt an emotional attachment to Everest.

"When I go high up I rediscover myself and can realize the strength of my mind," she told Reuters in Kathmandu over the weekend after returning from the mountain.

Now she has a new goal - to summit Kangto, the highest peak in Arunachal Pradesh, which is 7,042 meters (23,103 feet) tall and has never been climbed, and other unclimbed peaks.

She said people had been telling her to take on the so-called seven summits, the highest peaks on the seven continents.

"But before that I want to climb other virgin peaks in the Himalayas," she said.

The mother of two began her expedition in April with a blessing from the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, who gave her a hug.

"That long hug had a magic," she said. "I could not tell him anything. I became speechless."

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John Dickerson conducted an intensely interesting interview with Secretary of Defense James Mattis at West Point this past Saturday for broadcast yesterday (video below). RCP has posted video along with a transcript of the interview here.

Secretary Mattis discussed our progress in the war against ISIS. He noted a shift in our tactics that he describes as follows: We have already shifted from attrition tactics, where we shove them from one position to another in Iraq and Syria, to annihilation tactics, where we surround them. That is a memorable formulation. A little further on Mattis states: [W]e have got to dry up their recruiting. We have got to dry up their fund-raising. The way we intend to do it is to humiliate them, to divorce them from any nation giving them protection and humiliating their message of hatred, of violence.

Dickerson turned to the subject of North Korea. Mattis declined to draw a red line the crossing of which would provoke an American military response. Here he tacitly drew a contrast with the Obama administration: We do not draw red lines unless we intend to carry them out. However, as in the previous administration, we are looking for help from China.

Dickerson took up NATO and Russia. Here again Secretary Mattis highlighted diplomatic efforts to resolve what he described as a quandary: Right now, we are dealing with Russia, attempting to deal with Russia under President Trumps direction, in a diplomatic manner. At the same time, while willing to engage diplomatically, we are going to have to confront Russia when it comes to areas where they attack us, whether it be with cyber, where they try to change borders using armed force. And that is admittedly a strategically uncomfortable position

He expressed guarded optimism that diplomacy will do the job: [W]e are going to continue in this mode, and, hopefully soon, our diplomats will work their magic and start moving us out of this quandary we find ourselves in. If Secretary Mattis thought diplomacy would resolve the quandary, however, I doubt he would have referred to it as magic.

On the Paris Accord Secretary Mattis conveyed Trumps detachment: I was sitting in on some of the discussions in Brussels, by the way, where climate change came up, and the president was open, he was curious about why others were in the position they were in, his counterparts in other nations. I infer that were pulling the plug.

The interview concluded with what Chuck Ross calls the quote of the year (video below). Ross adds it to his catalog of classic quotes from Secretary Mattis.
Today, the Washington Post dedicated an entire section of the paper to airing Palestinian grievances and talking points. The section is called Occupied: Year 50.

One of the stories is about a Palestinian cancer patient whose children cant get into Israel to visit her. Another shills for a Palestinian real estate developer who is building a planned city on the West Bank but fears the Israel Defense Force will thwart this noble ambition.

The story I want to focus on is about the difficulties a Palestinian construction worker faces on a daily basis as he must pass through an Israeli checkpoint on his way from the West Bank to his job in Jerusalem. Given the anti-Israel bias that drips from almost every paragraph of the story by William Booth and Sufian Taha, the difficulties may be exaggerated. However, theres no denying that the checkpoints, as well as the occupation itself, create problems for ordinary Palestinians.

Whats missing from the story is context. The authors dont explain why Israel thinks it needs the checkpoints and, more generally, an intrusive presence on the West Bank.

The only terrorist acts referenced in the article are the massacre of 29 Palestinians by Baruch Goldstein in 1994 and young [Palestinian] stabbers and car-rammers who killed 35 Israelis last year.

The Post reporters seem to be positing an equivalence. But Goldsteins terrorism was virtually a one-off, thank God. Deadly Palestinian violence against Israelis is chronic. The checkpoints are intended to minimize opportunities to engage in such violence. Booth and Taha dont acknowledge this or even present it as a possible explanation.

Their article is biased in other key respects. They assert that Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama failed to find a two-state solution. But Clinton found one. He helped formulate a deal, agreeable to Israel, that would have created a Palestinian state consisting of nearly all disputed West Bank territory.

The Palestinians, through their hero Yasser Arafat, rejected it. They are the authors of whatever misery they experience. They are the ones who failed to find a two-state solution.

The Post reporters sniff that the West Bank is occupied by a country that boasts to be the only democracy in the Middle East. But theres no inconsistency between being a democracy and occupying hostile bordering territory. Democracy is not a suicide pact.

The U.S. has occupied foreign lands whose inhabitants posed no threat to our safety. Right or wrong, our occupations did not make us less of a democracy.

The Palestinians are not the first people to have a propaganda section in the Washington Post. China and Russia also get such sections from time to time.

The difference? Russia and China have to buy the space. For the Palestinians, its a gift from a newspaper on an ideological mission.

I know people, not all of them conservative, who are disgusted by the way the Post runs non-stop hit pieces on President Trump. They dislike seeing the U.S. president attacked so relentlessly.

What these people may not realize is that the hit pieces are not primarily the product of anti-Trump animus, though there certainly is some of that. The attacks on Trump are primarily the product of the Posts leftism against which Trump poses a barrier. The same leftism underlies the decision to devote a section of the paper to espousing the pro-Palestinian line.

NOTE: One good thing has come out of this. My non-conservative, pro-Israel wife, after seeing the Posts Occupied: Year 50 section, agreed that we will cancel our subscription to the paper as soon as I no longer need it for blogging.
Acting President Yemi Osinbajo said public resources that were looted in the past few years in the country would be accounted for by those involved.

Mr. Osinbajo stated this on Monday in a nationwide broadcast to mark the second anniversary of President Muhammadu Buharis administration.

He said that accounting for the funds had become imperative in view of the determination of the administration to bring persons accused of corruption to justice.

According to him, funds appropriated to build roads, railway lines, power plants, and to equip the military, that have been stolen or diverted into private pockets, must be retrieved and the culprits brought to justice.

We believe that the looting of public resources that took place in the past few years has to be accounted for.

Many have said that the process is slow, and that is true. Corruption has fought back with tremendous resources and our system of administration of justice has been quite slow.

But the good news for justice is that our law does not recognize a time bar for the prosecution of corruption and other crimes, and we will not relent in our efforts to apprehend and bring corruption suspects to justice, Mr. Osinbajo said.

He stated that the government had also started re-equipping the prosecution teams, and that part of the expected judicial reforms was to dedicate some specific courts to the trial of corruption cases.

The acting president disclosed that the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government was also institutionalizing safeguards and deterrents in the process.

He said, We have expanded the coverage of the Treasury Single Account (TSA).

We have introduced more efficient accounting and budgeting systems across the Federal Government. We have also launched an extremely successful Whistleblower Policy.

The Efficiency Unit of the Federal Ministry of Finance has succeeded in plugging leakages amounting to billions of naira, over the last two years.

We have ended expensive and much-abused fertilizer and petrol subsidy regimes.

We have taken very seriously our promise to save and invest for the future, even against the backdrop of our revenue challenges.

We have in the last two years added 500 million dollars to our Sovereign Wealth Fund and 87 million dollars to the Excess Crude Account.

This is the very opposite of the situation before now, when rising oil prices failed to translate to rising levels of savings and investment.

Mr. Osinbajo, however, acknowledged that the economy had proven to be the biggest challenge of all.

Let me first express just how concerned we have been since this administration took office, about the impact of the economic difficulties on our citizens.

Through no fault of theirs, some companies shut down their operations; others downsized. People lost jobs and had to endure rising food prices.

In some states, civil servants worked months on end without the guarantee of a salary, even as rents and school fees and other expenses continued to show up like clockwork.

We have been extremely mindful of the many sacrifices that you have had to make over the last few years.

And for this reason this administrations work on the economic front has been targeted at a combination of short-term interventions to cushion the pain, as well as medium to long term efforts aimed at rebuilding an economy.

The economy is no longer helplessly dependent on the price of crude oil.

According to him, the short-term interventions include putting together a series of bailout packages for state governments to enable them bridge their salary shortfalls, an issue President Buhari has consistently expressed his concerns about.

Mr. Osinbajo said the government had also begun the laying a framework for its Social Intervention Programme, which he described as the most ambitious in the history of the country. (NAN)

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A report released in the early hours of Monday reveals that 57 per cent of Nigerians say President Muhammadu Buhari has done well in office.

The report, released by the Centre for Democracy and Development was described as Buharimeter Citizens Scorecard on the performance of President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB), and the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), on the three broad campaign promises (Corruption, Economy and Security) in the first two (2) years in office.

Although 57 per cent of the sampled population of 4,097 across 111 local governments in Nigeria approved of the presidents performance, the result varied across regions.

While the North-West (85 per cent) and North-East (66 per cent) regions constitute the majority of those who approve of his job performance, respondents from the South-East (72 per cent) and South-South (60 per cent) regions make up those who do not approve his performance, the report stated.

On the fight against corruption, 52 per cent of Nigerians expressed satisfaction with the performance of the government regarding the fight against corruption, while 47 per cent expressed dissatisfaction, the report stated.

Overall, the report showed that the president got better approvals from the northern part of the country, particularly north-east and north-west while he got the least approval from the south-east and the south-south part of the country.

Read full summary of the report below.

The Centre for Democracy and Development, CDD, Abuja, today releases summary of its report titled Buharimeter Citizens Scorecard on the performance of President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB), and the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, on the three broad campaign promises (Corruption, Economy and Security) in the first two years in office. The report is a product of a National Survey on Buharimeter, which was carried in all states and senatorial districts (both rural and urban) in Nigeria. In each of the 109 senatorial districts, a Local Government Area (LGA) which represents headquarter of the senatorial district was selected for interview. As a result, three (3) LGAs were sampled per State, including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. A total of 4,097 face-to-face interviews were completed in 111 LGAs nationwide.

On a general note, the report reveals that fifty-seven per cent of sampled population approve of the job performance of PMB. However, there are clear regional differences observed in the Presidents approval rating. While the North-West (85 per cent) and North-East (66 per cent) regions constitute the majority of those who approve of his job performance, respondents from the South-East (72 per cent) and South-South (60 per cent) regions make up those who do not approve his performance.

On the fight against corruption, 52 per cent of Nigerians expressed satisfaction with the performance of the government regarding the fight against corruption, while 47 per cent expressed dissatisfaction. Similarly, over 4 in 10 respondents are of the opinion that corruption has decreased with the current administration in comparison to the past administration. On the other hand, 3 in 10 respondents say corruption has increased. 47 per cent of Nigerians say they are aware of the Governments whistle blowing policy; and of this proportion, 76 per cent believe it is a good measure that encourages the reporting of corrupt practices.

Almost 4 in 10 Nigerians (39 per cent) rate the current governments performance on the economy as Poor, particularly amongst South-East (82 per cent) and South-South (59 per cent) respondents. This was followed by 35 per cent of respondents who rate the economy as Fair. Furthermore, about 46 per cent of Nigerians consider the governments approach at tackling the economic recession in the country as somewhat Effective. On the contrary, 39 per cent consider the governments approach as Not Effective At All, particularly amongst respondents in the South-East (71%).

Also, when asked to rate the Presidents reform efforts on various sectors, significant proportions of Nigerians expressed some level of satisfaction with the Security reform with 54 per cent effectiveness; perhaps due to the relative success achieved in tackling the Boko Haram insurgency. However, the Economic reform (67 per cent), Housing reform (62 per cent) and Transport reform (62 per cent) have been considered NOT effective.

On promises relating to security, half of sampled population believe that the state of security in the country has improved compared to a year ago. However, 28 per cent say the security situation has remained the same, while 21 per cent say it has worsened. However, further analysis reveals that politically motivated conflicts (28 per cent), land ownership disputes (24 per cent), religious conflicts (23 per cent) and farmer & pastoralist conflicts (22 per cent) are amongst common causes of conflicts across Nigerian communities.

About 55 per cent of Nigerians believe the Government is doing enough to ensure that the Chibok girls are rescued and reunited with their families, particularly amongst respondents in the North-West region (73 per cent). On the contrary, 35 per cent do not believe government is doing enough. On what measures should be taken to address the issues of Boko Haram insurgency, herdsmen conflict and militancy, Nigerians have suggested a mix of Dialogue (37 per cent) and Use of force (34 per cent). About the plans for the creation of state police, roughly 6 in 10 Nigerians (61 per cent) support the creation of State Police in Nigeria. On the other hand, almost 4 in 10 (39 per cent) Nigerians do not support it.

The survey was conducted between April 3rd and 22nd, 2017 in collaboration with NOIPolls. The respondents are between the age of 18 and older, and belonging to different social class, literacy and income levels. Post-stratification weights for the gender and senatorial district variables were constructed and applied to the data to make it more representative of the population, allow for more accurate population totals of estimates and reduce non-response bias. The weights assigned were in proportion to the 2006 Nigerian population figures.

EDITORS NOTE: This story has been edited to reflect 57 (not 5) per cent approval rating after the authors of the report sent a corrected version of the earlier report sent.

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The Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, on Monday highlighted the various achievements of the Muhammadu Buhari administration since it came into office exactly two years ago on May 29, 2015.

In his speech sent to PREMIUM TIMES, Mr. Osinbajo highlighted areas of successes to include the anti-corruption war, war on terror, and the social intervention programmes like N-Power and School Feeding.

Our administration outlined three specific areas for our immediate intervention on assumption of office. These were Security, Corruption and the Economy, the acting president said.

Mr. Osinbajo admitted the government was having challenges dealing with the economic problems.

Admittedly, the economy has proven to be the biggest challenge of all, he said. Let me first express just how concerned we have been, since this administration took office, about the impact of the economic difficulties on our citizens.

He then asked Nigerians to continue to pray for the full recovery of President Muhammadu Buhari who is in London on medical vacation.

Read the full speech below.

Dear Nigerians, I bring you good wishes from President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, who as we all know is away from the country on medical vacation.

Today marks the second anniversary of our assumption of office. We must thank the Almighty God not only for preserving our lives to celebrate this second anniversary, but for giving us hope, strength and confidence as we faced the challenges of the past two years. Our administration outlined three specific areas for our immediate intervention on assumption of office. These were Security, Corruption and the Economy. In the Northeast of our country, the terrorist group Boko Haram openly challenged the sovereignty and continued existence of the state, killing, maiming, and abducting, causing the displacement of the largest number of our citizens in recent history. Beyond the North East they extended their mindless killings, as far away as Abuja, Kano And Kaduna. But with new leadership and renewed confidence our gallant military immediately began to put Boko Haram on the back foot. We have restored broken-down relations with our neighbours, Chad, Cameroon and Niger  allies without whom the war against terror would have been extremely difficult to win. We have re-organised and equipped our Armed Forces, and inspired them to heroic feats; we have also revitalised the regional Multinational Joint Task Force, by providing the required funding and leadership. The positive results are clear for all to see. In the last two years close to one million displaced persons have returned home. 106 of our daughters from Chibok have regained their freedom, after more than two years in captivity, in addition to the thousands of other captives who have since tasted freedom. Schools, hospitals and businesses are springing back to life across the Northeast, especially in Borno State, the epicentre of the crisis. Farmers are returning to the farms from which they fled in the wake of Boko Haram. Finally, our people are getting a chance to begin the urgent task of rebuilding their lives. Across the country, in the Niger Delta, and in parts of the North Central region, we are engaging with local communities, to understand their grievances, and to create solutions that respond to these grievances adequately and enduringly. President Buharis New Vision for the Niger Delta is a comprehensive peace, security and development plan that will ensure that the people benefit fully from the wealth of the region, and we have seen to it that it is the product of deep and extensive consultations, and that it has now moved from idea to execution. Included in that New Vision is the long-overdue environmental clean-up of the Niger Delta beginning with Ogoni-land, which we launched last year. More recent threats to security such as the herdsmen clashes with farmers in many parts of the country sometimes leading to fatalities and loss of livelihoods and property have also preoccupied our security structures. We are working with state governments, and tasking our security agencies with designing effective strategies and interventions that will bring this menace to an end. We are determined to ensure that anyone who uses violence, or carries arms without legal authority is apprehended and sanctioned. In the fight against corruption, we have focused on bringing persons accused of corruption to justice. We believe that the looting of public resources that took place in the past few years has to be accounted for. Funds appropriated to build roads, railway lines, and power plants, and to equip the military, that had been stolen or diverted into private pockets, must be retrieved and the culprits brought to justice. Many have said that the process is slow, and that is true, corruption has fought back with tremendous resources and our system of administration of justice has been quite slow. But the good news for justice is that our law does not recognise a time bar for the prosecution of corruption and other crimes, and we will not relent in our efforts to apprehend and bring corruption suspects to justice. We are also re-equipping our prosecution teams, and part of the expected judicial reforms is to dedicate some specific courts to the trial of corruption cases. We are also institutionalizing safeguards and deterrents. We have expanded the coverage of the Treasury Single Account (TSA). We have introduced more efficient accounting and budgeting systems across the Federal Government. We have also launched an extremely successful Whistleblower Policy. The Efficiency Unit of the Federal Ministry of Finance has succeeded in plugging leakages amounting to billions of naira, over the last two years. We have ended expensive and much-abused fertilizer and petrol subsidy regimes. We have taken very seriously our promise to save and invest for the future, even against the backdrop of our revenue challenges, and we have in the last two years added $500million to our Sovereign Wealth Fund and $87 million to the Excess Crude Account. This is the very opposite of the situation before now, when rising oil prices failed to translate to rising levels of savings and investment. Admittedly, the economy has proven to be the biggest challenge of all. Let me first express just how concerned we have been, since this administration took office, about the impact of the economic difficulties on our citizens. Through no fault of theirs, some companies shut down their operations, others downsized; people lost jobs, had to endure rising food prices. In some states, civil servants worked months on end without the guarantee of a salary, even as rents and school fees and other expenses continued to show up like clockwork. We have been extremely mindful of the many sacrifices that you have had to make over the last few years. And for this reason, this administrations work on the economic front has been targeted at a combination of short-term interventions to cushion the pain, as well as medium to long term efforts aimed at rebuilding an economy that is no longer helplessly dependent on the price of crude oil. Those short-term interventions include putting together a series of bailout packages for our State Governments, to enable them bridge their salary shortfalls  an issue the President has consistently expressed his concerns about. We also began the hard work of laying out a framework for our Social Intervention Programme, the most ambitious in the history of the country.

One of the first tasks of the Cabinet and the Economic Management Team was to put together a Strategic Implementation Plan for the 2016 budget, targeting initiatives that would create speedy yet lasting impact on the lives of Nigerians.

Indeed, much of 2016 was spent clearing the mess we inherited and putting the building blocks together for the future of our dreams; laying a solid foundation for the kind of future that you deserve as citizens of Nigeria.

In his Budget Presentation Speech to the National Assembly last December, President Buhari outlined our Economic Agenda in detail, and assured that 2017 -would be the year in which you would begin to see tangible benefits of all the planning and preparation work. It is my pleasure to note that in the five months since he delivered that speech, we have seen tremendous progress, as promised.

Take the example of our Social Investment Programme, which kicked off at the end of 2016. Its Home-Grown School Feeding component is now feeding more than 1 million primary school children across seven states and would be feeding three million by the end of the year. N-Power, another component has engaged 200,000 unemployed graduates  none of whom needed any connections to be selected. Beneficiaries are already telling the stories of how these initiatives have given them a fresh start in their lives. Micro credit to a million artisans, traders and market men and women has begun. While conditional cash transfers to eventually reach a million of the poorest and most vulnerable households has also begun. Road and power projects are ongoing in every part of the country. In rail, we are making progress with our plans to attract hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to upgrade the existing 3,500km narrow-gauge network. We have also in 2017 flagged-off construction work on the Lagos-Ibadan leg of our standard-gauge network, and are close to completing the first phase of Abujas Mass Transit Rail System. In that Budget speech in December, the President announced the take-off of the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative. Today, five months on, that Initiative  the product of an unprecedented bilateral cooperation with the Government of Morocco  has resulted in the revitalisation of 11 blending plants across the country, the creation of 50,000 direct and indirect jobs so far, and in the production of 300,000 metric tonnes of NPK fertilizer, which is being sold to farmers at prices significantly lower than what they paid last year. By the end of 2017, that Fertilizer Initiative would have led to foreign exchange savings of US$200 million; and subsidy savings of 60 billion naira. The Initiative is building on the solid gains of the Anchor Borrowers Programme, launched in 2015 to support our rice and wheat farmers, as part of our move towards guaranteeing food security for Nigeria. All of this is evidence that we are taking very seriously our ambition of agricultural self-sufficiency. I am delighted to note that since 2015 our imports of rice have dropped by 90 per cent, while domestic production has almost tripled. Our goal is to produce enough rice to meet local demand by 2019. In April, the President launched our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan which built on the foundations laid by the Strategic Implementation Plan of 2016. The plan has set forth a clear vision for the economic development of Nigeria. I will come back to this point presently. Another highlight of the Presidents Budget Speech was our work around the Ease of Doing Business reforms. As promised we have since followed up with implementation and execution. I am pleased to note that we are now seeing verifiable progress across several areas, ranging from new Visa on Arrival scheme, to reforms at our ports and regulatory agencies. The President also promised that 2017 would see the rollout of Executive Orders to facilitate government approvals, support procurement of locally made goods, and improve fiscal responsibility. We have kept that promise. This month we issued three Executive Orders to make it easier for citizens to get the permits and licenses they require for their businesses, to mandate Government agencies to spend more of their budgets on locally produced goods, and to promote budget transparency and efficiency. The overarching idea is to make Government Agencies and Government budgets work more efficiently for the people. The impact of our Ease of Doing Business work is gradually being felt by businesses small and large; its successful take-off has allowed us to follow up with the MSME Clinics -our Small Business support programme, which has taken us so far to Aba, Sokoto, Jos, Katsina, and we expect to be in all other states in due course. Let me note, at this point, that several of our Initiatives are targeted at our young people, who make up most of our population. From N-Power, to the Technology Hubs being developed nationwide, to innovation competitions such as the Aso Villa Demo Day, and our various MSME support schemes, we will do everything to nurture the immense innovative and entrepreneurial potential of our young people. We are a nation of young people, and we will ensure that our policies and programmes reflect this. One of the highlights of our Power Sector Recovery Programme, which we launched in March, is a N701 billion Naira Payment Assurance Scheme that will resolve the financing bottlenecks that have until now constrained the operations of our gas suppliers and generation companies. Let me assure that you will soon begin to see the positive impact of these steps. Our Solid Minerals Development Fund has also now taken off, in line with our commitment to developing the sector. Because of our unerring focus on Solid Minerals development over the last two years, the sector has, alongside Agriculture, seen impressive levels of growth  in spite of the recession. On the whole, just as the President promised in the Budget Speech, these early months of 2017 have seen the flowering of the early fruit of all the hard work of our first eighteen months. We opened the year with an overwhelmingly successful Eurobond Offer  evidence of continuing investor interest in Nigeria. We have also launched the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) 2017-2020, to build on the gains of last years Strategic Implementation Plan. And the implementation of our 2017 Budget, which will soon be signed into law, will bring added impetus to our ongoing economic recovery. In the 2016 Budget we spent 1.2 Trillion Naira on infrastructure projects, another milestone in the history of this country. Our 2017 Budget will double that investment. That budget also provides for substantial investment to implement the rollout of Industrial Parks and Special Economic Zones (SEZs), as well as our Social Housing Programme. The Industrial Parks and Economic Zones will fulfil our ambition of making Nigeria a manufacturing hub, while the Family Home Fund of our Social Housing Programme will provide inexpensive mortgages for low-income individuals and families across the country. These plans offer yet more evidence that we are ramping up the pace of work; the work of fulfilling all that we promised. In the next two years, we will build on the successes of the last two. We have demonstrated a willingness to learn from our mistakes and to improve on our successes. The critical points that we must address fully in the next two years are: Agriculture and food security, Energy, (power and Petroleum,) Industrialization and Transport infrastructure. Every step of the way we will be working with the private sector, giving them the necessary incentives and creating an environment to invest and do business. Our vision is for a country that grows what it eats and produces what it consumes. It is for a country that no longer has to import petroleum products, and develops a lucrative petrochemical industry. Very importantly it is for a country whose fortunes are no longer tied to the price of a barrel of crude, but instead to the boundless talent and energy of its people, young and old, male and female as they invest in diverse areas of the economy. And that vision is also for a country where the wealth of the many will no longer be stolen by or reserved for a few; and where the impunity of corruption  whether in the public or private sectors  will no longer be standard operating practice; a land rid of bandits and terrorists. As citizens, you all deserve a country that works, not merely for the rich or connected, but for everyone. And our promise to you is that we will, with your support and cooperation, take every step needed to create that country of our dreams. We also know that this journey will of necessity take time. But we will not succumb to the temptation to take short-cuts that ultimately complicate the journey. We did not find ourselves in crises overnight, and we simply do not expect overnight solutions to our challenges. The most important thing is that we are on the right path, and we will not deviate from it, even in the face of strong temptation to choose temporary gain over long-term benefit. As the President has summed it up: The old Nigeria is slowly but surely disappearing, and a new era is rising. And so, we commemorate this second anniversary of our administration with confidence and optimism. I firmly believe that we have put the most difficult phase behind us; and we are witnesses to the ever-increasing intensity of the light at the end of the tunnel. We ask for your continued cooperation and support, to enable us realise all our best intentions and ambitions for Nigeria. On our part, we will continue to carry you along on this journey, speak to you, explain the challenges, and share our Vision. And while we all daily pre-occupy ourselves with pursuing the Nigerian Dream  which is the desire to better our lives and circumstances vigorously and honestly  it is inevitable that grievances and frustrations will arise from time to time. This is normal. What is not normal, or acceptable, is employing these frustrations as justification for indulging in discrimination or hate speech or hateful conduct of any kind, or for seeking to undermine by violent or other illegal means the very existence of the sovereign entity that has brought us all together as brothers and sisters and citizens. Nigeria belongs to all of us. No one person or group of persons is more important or more entitled than the other in this space that we all call home. And we have a responsibility to live in peace and harmony with one another, to seek peaceful and constitutional means of expressing our wishes and desires, and to resist all who might seek to sow confusion and hatred for their own selfish interests. Before I end this speech, let me ask for your continued prayers for the restoration to full health and strength and the safe return of our President. I congratulate all of you on todays commemoration of this important day in the democratic calendar our country. Nigeria is on a journey of greatness, and together we shall arrive at the destination of our dreams. May God bless you all, and bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

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In the wake of the alleged N1 billion ransom demanded by abductors of six students from Igbonla Model School, near Epe, Lagos, the Lagos State Police Command has said it would not negotiate with the kidnappers.

The police spokesperson, Olarinde Famous-Cole, told PREMIUM TIMES on Monday that it is the statutory responsibility of the police to keep the children safe, which is paramount and thats what we are concerned about.

The Punch newspaper had reported that parents of the children were contacted on Saturday and allowed to briefly speak with their children.

They also stated that while two of the parents were asked to pay N400 million each, another two were told to raise N100 million per child.

The parents were reportedly told to meet with the school authorities and the state government to raise the money.

Since we are all a party to the incident that happened, we are playing our roles as security agents to get those kids out of the hands of those militants, said Mr. Famous-Cole.

We are certainly liaising with the school and the government and the parents as regards some of the things we can share with them as per security intelligence.

The kids are safe, but we are just trying to get them out and thats what important, the police spokesperson said.

The students were abducted at around 5 a.m. last Thursday by gunmen who arrived through a creek behind the school. The hoodlums broke through the schools fence to gain access into the premises.

The incident occurred seven months after gunmen kidnapped two teachers and four pupils of the same school. The victims were later freed.

The kidnappers reportedly broke the hostel doors, seized 10 senior secondary school pupils and led them to the shore where their boat was parked.

After profiling their family backgrounds, four pupils were released, while the men from the underworld whisked away the remaining six pupils identified as Peter Jonah, Isiaq Rahmon, Adebayo George, Judah Agbausi, Pelumi Philips and Farouq Yusuf.

It was reported that the gunmen had written the school authorities three days before the incident, informing them of the attack.

The police said it is still investigating the incident.

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A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos on Friday gave Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, and Paradigm Leadership Support Initiative a victory in round one of the groups attempt to secure the release of Federal Government audited reports from 1999 to 2015.

Justice Oluremi Oguntoyinbo gave SERAP and PLSI the permission to apply for judicial review and seek an order of mandamus directing and compelling the Federal Government and the Auditor General of the Federation to publish the audited reports for 1999-2015.

The order granting leave by the court followed the hearing of an argument in court on exparte motion by SERAPs deputy director, Timothy Adewale.

The order by Justice Oguntoyinbo has now cleared the way for SERAP and PLSI to advance their case against the government. The motion on notice is set for Wednesday June 28 for the hearing of argument on why the government should not be directed and compelled to release and publish the audited reports.

The suit number FHC/L/CS/57/2017 filed by SERAP in conjunction with the PLSI followed a Freedom of Information request to the Federal Government and the Auditor General of the Federation dated 21st December, 2016.

Mr. Adewale argued in court that the Federal Government and Auditor General of the Federation have failed, refused and/or neglected to provide SERAP and PLSI the details of the information requested.

Refusal to publish the audited reports so that Nigerians can have the opportunity to carefully review the reports goes far beyond the limitations allowed under the FOI Act and international law, and negates the principle of Open Government Partnership (OGP) to which Nigeria is a signatory, he argued.

The right to receive information without any interference or distortion should be based on the principle of maximum disclosure, and a presumption that all information is accessible subject only to a narrow system of exceptions.

The suit read in part: By virtue of Section 1(1) of the FOI Act 2011, SERAP and PLSI are entitled as of right to request for or gain access to information which is in the custody or possession of any public official, agency or institution. By the provisions of Section 2(7) and 31 of the FOI Act, the Defendant/Respondent is a public official/institution.

Under Section 4 (a) of the FOI Act when a person makes a request for information from a public official, institution or agency, the public official, institution or agency to whom the application is directed is under a binding legal obligation to provide the information requested, except as otherwise provided by the Act, within 7 days after the application is received. The information requested relates to the audited reports of the federation for the following previous years: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 (1999-2015).

The information requested does not come within the purview of the types of information exempted from disclosure by the provisions of the FOI Act. The information requested for, apart from not being exempted from disclosure under the FOI Act, bothers on an issue of national interest, public concern, social justice, good governance, transparency and accountability. The information is not privileged in any way or manner; and the Defendant/Respondent will not suffer any injury or prejudice if the information is released/published.

The suit is seeking the following reliefs:

A DECLARATION that the failure of the Respondent to provide and furnish the Applicants the audited reports of the federation for the following previous years: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 (1999-2015) is illegal and unlawful as it contradicts and in conflict with the duties of the Respondent under the Freedom of Information Act, 2011.

AN ORDER OF MANDAMUS compelling and/or mandating the Respondent to immediately provide and furnish the Applicants the audited reports of the federation for the following previous years: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 (1999-2015), and to publish same widely including on a dedicated website.

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While scientists may disagree on the computer simulations they overwhelmingly agreed that the warming the planet is undergoing now would be faster and more intense

Earth is likely to reach more dangerous levels of warming even sooner if the U.S. retreats from its pledge to cut carbon dioxide pollution, scientists said. That's because America contributes so much to rising temperatures.

President Donald Trump, who once proclaimed global warming a Chinese hoax, said in a tweet Saturday that he would make his "final decision" this coming week on whether the United States stays in or leaves the 2015 Paris climate change accord in which nearly every nation agreed to curb its greenhouse gas emissions.

Leaders of seven wealthy democracies, at a summit in Sicily, urged Trump to commit his administration to the agreement, but said in their closing statement that the U.S., for now, "is not in a position to join the consensus."

"I hope they decide in the right way," said Italy's prime minister, Paolo Gentiloni. More downbeat was German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who said the leaders' talks were "very difficult, if not to say, very unsatisfactory."

In an attempt to understand what could happen to the planet if the U.S. pulls out of Paris, The Associated Press consulted with more than two dozen climate scientists and analyzed a special computer model scenario designed to calculate potential effects.

Scientists said it would worsen an already bad problem and make it far more difficult to prevent crossing a dangerous global temperature threshold.

Calculations suggest it could result in emissions of up to 3 billion tons of additional carbon dioxide in the air a year. When it adds up year after year, scientists said that is enough to melt ice sheets faster, raise seas higher and trigger more extreme weather.

"If we lag, the noose tightens," said Princeton University climate scientist Michael Oppenheimer, co-editor of the peer-reviewed journal Climatic Change.

One expert group ran a worst-case computer simulation of what would happen if the U.S. does not curb emissions, but other nations do meet their targets. It found that America would add as much as half a degree of warming (0.3 degrees Celsius) to the globe by the end of century.

Scientists are split on how reasonable and likely that scenario is.

Many said because of cheap natural gas that displaces coal and growing adoption of renewable energy sources, it is unlikely that the U.S. would stop reducing its carbon pollution even if it abandoned the accord, so the effect would likely be smaller.

Others say it could be worse because other countries might follow a U.S. exit, leading to more emissions from both the U.S. and the rest.

Another computer simulation team put the effect of the U.S. pulling out somewhere between 0.1 to 0.2 degrees Celsius (0.18 to 0.36 degrees Fahrenheit).

While scientists may disagree on the computer simulations they overwhelmingly agreed that the warming the planet is undergoing now would be faster and more intense.

The world without U.S. efforts would have a far more difficult time avoiding a dangerous threshold: keeping the planet from warming more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels.

The world has already warmed by just over half that amount - with about one-fifth of the past heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions coming from the United States, usually from the burning of coal, oil and gas.

So the efforts are really about preventing another 1.6 degrees Fahrenheit (0.9 degrees Celsius) from now.

"Developed nations - particularly the U.S. and Europe - are responsible for the lion's share of past emissions, with China now playing a major role," said Rutgers University climate scientist Jennifer Francis. "This means Americans have caused a large fraction of the warming."

Even with the U.S. doing what it promised under the Paris agreement, the world is likely to pass that 2 degree mark, many scientists said.

But the fractions of additional degrees that the U.S. would contribute could mean passing the threshold faster, which could in turn mean "ecosystems being out of whack with the climate, trouble farming current crops and increasing shortages of food and water," said the National Center for Atmospheric Research's Kevin Trenberth.

Climate Interactive, a team of scientists and computer modelers who track global emissions and pledges, simulated global emissions if every country but the U.S. reaches their individualized goals to curb carbon pollution. Then they calculated what that would mean in global temperature, sea level rise and ocean acidification using scientifically-accepted computer models.

By 2030, it would mean an extra 3 billion tons of carbon dioxide in the air a year, according to the Climate Interactive models, and by the end of the century 0.3 degrees Celsius of warming.

"The U.S. matters a great deal," said Climate Interactive co-director Andrew Jones. "That amount could make the difference between meeting the Paris limit of two degrees and missing it."

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Most Nigerians observed on Monday that democracy has proved to be the best system of government for the country despite its challenges

They spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria across the country, with some expressing mixed feelings about the performance of democracy in the last 18 years.

For instance, Chika Aliyu, an economist, commended the Federal Government on the Economic Growth and Recovery Plan (ERGP) as President Muhammadu Buhari marked second year in office.

Mr. Aliyu, a professor at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, said the government did very well by coming up with the plan to take the country out of recession.

According to him, the ERGP aims at making significant progress to achieve structural economic change with a more diversified and inclusive economy in five key areas by 2020.

He, however, advised the government to ensure effective implementation of the plan, commending the government for investing in agriculture as well.

Also, in his view, Najeem Salaam, the Speaker of Osun House of Assembly, said democracy had come to stay in Nigeria and its worst form was better than the best of other options.

But the speaker urged politicians in power to show compassion to the poor populace and strive to bail out people in need as a mark of responsible leadership.

He also called on the people to engage the political class with issues of general interests, saying individual challenges fell within the bracket of societal challenges.

Applauding the success of democracy so far, Ibrahim Balarabe-Abdullahi, the Speaker, Nasarawa State House of Assembly, noted that Mr. Buhari and Governor Tanko Almakura of the state had achieved progress in their respective levels of leadership.

He said that democracy had proved to be the best form of government, considering the dividends of democratic government as well as the tremendous achievements the country had witnessed in it.

He urged Nigerians to continue to support a democratic government for continued peace and stability in the country.

The two years in office of Buhari are fruitful because he has been able to achieve his campaign promises.

This is visible especially in the areas of tackling insecurity, unemployment and the diversification of the nations economy through agriculture.

Peace has been restored in the country as no local government in the north-eastern part of the country is under the Boko Haram insurgents control as it was in the past.

Some Chibok girls have been rescued, there is employment of youths among other achievements that have direct bearing on the lives of Nigerians, he said.

In Lokoja, some residents lauded Mr. Buhari for improving agricultural practice, fighting corruption and insecurity.

However, some observed that the All Progressives Congress-led federal government performed below expectations in the areas of economy, power, job creation and education.

Godwin Tijani, the Chairman Nigeria Medical Association in Kogi, said Nigerias democracy was far from perfect as selfishness and greed was the order of the day, especially among the past leaders.

I want to remind the masses that 2019 is around the corner and I advise them to use their votes to elect their representative and to send bad ones packing, he said.

He urged the public to pray for leaders for good governance, appealing to them not to lose hope as God would rescue Nigeria from bad leaders.

But Kayode Dennis, a former Secretary to Mopamuro Local Government Area, Kogi, said even though government at all levels might have performed below expectations of Nigerians; there was a reason for celebrating the countrys Democracy Day.

We must educate the people on the importance of participating in the political process and to encourage younger people to value the rights for which so many people worked so hard.

The fact remains that we should not pretend to stay away from politics because that is the instrument of governance in Nigeria which has come to stay, Mr. Dennis said.

Irrespective of this, Joel Usman, a lawyer, said the APC-led federal government had recorded some successes in some areas like security, tackling corruption and recovery of some looted funds.

This administration has tried in addressing the insurgency in the north-eastern part of the country and theres decency in government today compared to the past governments.

Although the manner of fighting against corruption is not commendable but corruption has reduced in government at the federal level but very much alive at the state level.

Similarly, an engineer in Lokoja, Olabisi Alonge, insisted that Mr. Buhari has recorded an appreciable success in the area of security and fight against corruption and he should be commended.

I stayed in northern part of the country and I knew the hell of insecurity in that place in the past and corruption is being checked now.

Also, a parent in Mupamuro Local Government Area, Kogi, Obed Onibiyo, commended Mr. Buhari for his effort in the fight against corruption and insurgencies in the country.

He particularly commended the giant stride of Mr. Buharis government in securing the release of over 100 Chibok schoolgirls and urged him to intensify effort in the release of the remaining girls.

But in Plateau, Yusuf Gagdi, member representing Kantana state constituency in the Plateau House of Assembly, urged leaders at various levels to show good governance and better delivery of the dividends of democracy to the people.

He challenged Nigerian leaders to use this years Democracy Day to reflect on the need to give the electorate purposeful leadership.

Nigeria is today enjoying 18 years of uninterrupted civil rule; we have never had such a lengthy spell of democracy, so, it worth celebrating.

As a politician, I feel another time has come for leaders to begin to reflect as to whether or not we have truly given to the people dividends of democracy.

So, it is a time for us to draw a balance sheet and see areas we have not done well, so as to adjust and meet up with the yearnings and aspirations of the people.

Plateau today can boast of viable infrastructure, good socio-economic activities, virile work force as a result of prompt payments of salaries and incentives, he said.

He urged government to encourage more peoples oriented programmes that would have direct bearing on the lives of the citizens.

He also urged citizens of the state to support government in its bid to deliver on dividends of democracy for the betterment of the public.

To sustain democratic governance, Morenike Alaka, Caretaker Chairperson, Okitipupa Local Government Area of Ondo State, urged politicians to protect the nascent democracy in the country.

She said giving support to the masses was a way of extending the dividends of democracy which should be given utmost priority by politicians.

She also urged all Nigerians to continue to pray for the leaders for them to pilot the affairs of the country, states and local councils to enviable heights.

Our politicians have a huge task of protecting our nascent democracy because we do not have any other place than Nigeria.

Politicians should also make the masses to benefit from the dividends of democracy and the masses should endeavour to pray for leaders in piloting the affairs, she said.

Mrs. Alaka also said her administration was poised to roll out masses oriented programmes which would extend the dividends of democracy to the residents of the council.

(NAN)

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One of the drivers of the popular Nigerian phone retail outlet, Slot Nigeria Limited, has been arrested by the operatives of Rapid Response Squad of the Lagos State Police Command over the diversion of N5.95 million worth of laptops, mobile phones and its accessories.

The police also assisted in the recovery of N4,654,224 worth of goods from the suspect.

The suspect, Olumide Babajide, 42, from Kwara State, was tracked and arrested in Kaduna State, where he diverted the goods to after taking them from the Slot Nigeria Office based in Computer Village, Ikeja, Lagos.

The driver, who was engaged in March, 2017, by the company, was directed to move the consignment to Slot Outlet in Victoria Island, Lagos in May 2, 2017, when the incident happened.

According to Mr. Babajide, a diploma in computer science holder, I took the good from Slots outlet in Ikeja. I was to deliver it to another outlet in Victoria Island, Lagos, but instead I took the goods to Pam-Pam Hotel, Ikeja, while I returned the companys Hilux car to R & S hotel, where we normally park the companys vehicles.

This wasnt the first time I would be moving laptops, mobile phones and their accessories from one outlet to the other. Since I joined the company in March and I was assigned the job of a delivery man, it had been my idea to divert the goods and abscond.

He continued, as soon as it was 5:00 p.m. that very day, I took a drop from the hotel with the consignment to Ejigbo, where I boarded a Kaduna bound bus.

Before I got to Kaduna, I already contacted one of the buyers. She bought N1.4 million worth of phones, laptops and phone accessories while I also sold in unit to some other buyers as well.

Sources disclosed that the suspect at Kaduna dashed out about 10 mobiles to passers-by. He also gave out two phones to a new mistress while he bought a Peugeot 206, 1999 model with new registration number DKA 859 KA from the proceeds of his sales for N912, 000:00.

The father of three was also reported to have procured a 32 inch Samsung LCD for N62,000 while lodging in a hotel, abandoning his wife and children in Kaduna.

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The Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, says the federal government has earmarked N100 billion for the family home fund under its Social Investment Programme, SIP.

He stated this at the 2nd year commemorative event of the federal government of Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari, showcasing the achievements of the SIP, in Abuja.

At the event, also titled A Smile For Every Nigerian, Mr. Osinbajo stated that the fund is an aspect of the SIP that was not mentioned.

There is also an aspect of this SIP that has not be mentioned; this is N100 billion set aside for the Family Home Fund, our Social Housing Project.

The N100 billion is a yearly contribution to our N1 trillion social housing fund. This is the largest in the history of the country.

The World Bank, AFDB, are contributors to the fund.

From this fund developers of real estates for social housing will borrow 80 per cent of cost of project and counter fund with their own 20 per cent.

The same fund will enable us to provide inexpensive mortgages for hundreds of thousands across the country who want to own homes on their own.

Anyone who can afford 30000 a month will be able to buy a home under our new social housing fund scheme.

According to him, the Family Housing Fund is expected to start immediately and rapidly expand construction across the country.

Mr. Osinbajo stated that SIP is clearly one of the largest social intervention efforts anywhere in the world.

According to him, it is complicated and diverse in scale and scope.

He, however, expressed the governments pride in the men and women led by the Special Adviser on Social investments, Maryam Uwais, who he said, had dedicated so much time, resources and energy to deliver on it.

The acting president reacted to the praises made about SIP from the beneficiaries and said they deserved it

We do not consider that this programme is a favour that is done to you. It is not.

You deserve this programme because you are citizens of this country; this country can provide and we will provide for all those who need the help, he said.

He said the N30,000 stipend might not be much but could really assist anyone who was jobless for long.

He announced that the next phase of this programme would proceed on a surer footing as the government would be reopening the portals for N-Power on the June 13.

We are ramping up on the CCT, GEEP, and the Home Grown School Feeding; our targets are clear, soon enough we will put smiles on the faces of millions more.

The acting president noted that a countrys economic development was a function of the number living above poverty level noting that the nations levels of poverty were so alarming and clearly needed some fundamental interventions by government.

He said that often the countrys economic development plans and budgets assumed a trickle-down approach namely that if resources were put in promoting industry and commerce, jobs would eventually be created and the poorest would be reached.

He added that another premise was that GDP growth should translate to jobs but described the idea as flawed.

First the trickle-down model has proved far too slow to stem the tide of poverty in one of the fastest growing populations in the world.

Secondly, most of the growth was on account of the high oil sector which is capital intensive but not labour intensive.

So, while we were recording growth levels of 7 per cent because of the high oil prices unemployment figures grew.

He said in developing the APC manifesto and later governments economic development plans, government knew that it had to directly intervene with a massive social investment programme to tackle poverty and exclusion in the society.

Mr. Osinbajo said he was proud that Nigeria had demonstrated that a massive programme could be initiated and managed on-line.

The N-Power programme is the largest post tertiary jobs programme in Africa. We now know that we can train large numbers of people electronically.

We have demonstrated that a transparent process of employment is possible.

All of these young men and women have testified that they knew nobody, paid nobody to get the jobs they now have shown us that it is possible to run a programme that is transparent

We have achieved great success in our financial inclusion efforts by bringing in many especially the extremely poor in the hinterlands into the formal banking system.

Beneficiaries of the conditional cash transfer programme, home grown school feeding vendors and cooks, now have BVNs and bank accounts.

We have also demonstrated that electronic payment on such a huge scale, across the nation is possible.

He said the administration ensured that its programmes were in all states not just those being run by APC governors.

According to him, some of the governors in non- APC states have taken the credit for some of the federal government programmes.

Godwill Apkabio, former Akwa Ibom governor and minority leader in the senate, told State House correspondents that the opposition was happy to be invited to the event.

According to Mr. Akpabio, poverty, unemployment and hunger have no political party leanings.

He, therefore, said that his party would support any federal programme with the capacity to address such problems.

(NAN)

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The Director General of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, Suleiman Kazaure, said on Monday that the scheme would soon begin posting of corps members to farms.

Mr. Kazaure said this in an interview with journalists during his official visit to the NYSC Permanent Orientation Camp in Sagamu, Ogun State.

He said that the move to deploy corps members in farms as in line with the agricultural development programme of the NYSC.

According to him, the NYSC has concluded preparations to begin the posting at the conclusion of the three-week orientation exercise.

He said that Bauchi, Oyo, Kebbi and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, had been earmarked for the pilot phase.

It should interest you to know that the NYSC will soon begin its agricultural development scheme where corps members will be posted to farms for their primary assignments.

Already the NYSC has acquired active farmlands across the nations geopolitical zones with four already fully operational in Kwali, Bauchi, Oyo and Kebbi.

After this orientation programme for the Batch A corps members, we will begin posting some of them to these farms as a pilot phase.

Though we are starting with four states for now, we will integrate the other states as time goes, the project is ongoing, Mr. Kazaure said.

The NYSC boss had tasked the corps members not to seek white-collar jobs which were non-existent but rather develop their potentials for entrepreneurship excellence.

He said the corps members could begin their journey toward financial independence by tapping into and maximising the benefits of the NYSCs Skills Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) Programme.

The NYSC has provided all the tools and support you need to develop your capacity to the fullest, it now depends on you, there is no short cut to success but by hard work.

Of all the programmes outlined for you during the orientation, there is none more important that you must fully participate in than the SAED programme.

I want you to create your own jobs by being creative and innovative, you must strive to be labour employers rather than labour seekers.

Please dont look for white-collar jobs, your skills and potentials can serve you better in the way of realising your dreams, he said.

Mr. Kazaure said that the SAED programme was made possible by partnership with public and private sector organisations to build entrepreneurial capacity.

Gladys Mbachi, the Ogun Coordinator of the NYSC, thanked the director general for the visit and emphasis on SAED programme.

Already, we are helping the corps members with the SAED programme in earnest.

Our objective is to expose their talents to where they fit so that when they go out there, they will be able to build on what we have given them, Ms. Mbachi said.

Mr. Kazaures visit was to inspect facilities at the camp and to familiarise himself with the 2017 Batch A Stream I corps members undergoing orientation at the camp.

(NAN)

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A Bauchi State government delegation has arrived China to sign a partnership agreement worth $27.5 billion investment in solid minerals to explore selected minerals and establish a Pithead Power Plant project that will contribute 3,500 megawatts of electricity to the National grid in partnership with a Chinese consortium of investors.

A press statement signed and made available to journalists by the press secretary to Governor Mohammed Abubakar, Abubakar Al-Sadique, states that the governor stated this while presenting his score card in the second-year anniversary of his administration.

The statement which quoted Governor Abubakar of as saying his administration has delivered given the paucity of resources, unrealistic monthly wage bill of over N5 billion and corruption in the system, revealed that the projects when completed will generate 10,000 direct and indirect employments to unemployed youth in the State.

The statement further revealed that in addition to generating over $250 million annually from the project, the consortium will construct a 2,500 bed General Hospital with matching facilities worth $30 million to the host communities as its corporate social responsibility which will benefit the people of the state and entire north-east region.

Governor Abubakar said a special purpose vehicle, the Bauchi Mining Synergy and Exploration Limited, has been established to serve as framework for Public-Private-Partnership to acquire mining rights of virgin minerals terrain and take over all viable titles that failed to meet the Mineral and Mining Act of 2007 requirement.

The governor explained that a memorandum of understanding has been signed with the World Bank that will allow the state to access $50 million grant for rural roads construction, pointing out that all these are in tandem with the mission and vision of the administration anchored on the policy thrust of the APCs change mantra that mainly focuses on the provision of security, healthcare delivery, education, tackling unemployment through youth and women empowerment, infrastructural development, and human capital development.

He stressed that the influx of Internally Displaced Persons into the state as well as beehive of activities of government and non-governmental organizations in the State is a testimony of the peaceful disposition of the State, which was achieved through synergy and effective liaison with security agencies as well as non-conventional security outfits, traditional, religious and community leaders.

Governor Abubakar noted that in an effort to maintain security in the state, Bauchi State government in the last two years provided 624 hectares of land and paid compensation worth over N400 million for the establishment of the Nigerian Air Force Base in the state which provided employment opportunities to the people of the state.

The governor recalled that no meaningful development could be achieved without adequate security, which he said informed his administrations decision to provide 25 Hilux pickup vehicles equipped with modern communication gadgets to security agencies and distributed 30 motor cycles to the Nigerian Army to assist in them in reaching out to places where motor vehicles cannot access due to bad terrain.

Governor Abubakar said in spite of the huge monthly salary bill of over N5 billion for an over-bloated workforce on the payroll of the state, the government is up-to date in paying workers salaries, assuring that efforts are being made to reduce governments over-reliance on allocations from the federation accounts by diversifying the state sources of revenue.

He said government had committed 16 per cent of budgetary allocation in the 2016 and 2017 financial years to the health sector, stressing that the 5-point health agenda of the administration, Lafiya Garkuwa, was launched to strengthen primary healthcare services with particular emphasis on diseases affecting maternal, new born and child population as well as routine immunization.

Similarly, the statement quoted the governor as saying the administration had within the period under review established the Bauchi State College of Nursing and Midwifery and facilitated the accreditation of its courses in order to increase manpower in the health sector, while providing medical care to under-fives, maternal, neonatal, and child-health.

Governor Abubakar said his administration has been consistent in the release of counterpart funding in 2016 while 60 per cent of 2017 for the routine immunization basket funds for the memorandum of understanding with Bill and Melinda Gates and Dangote Foundations has been paid.

In the education sector, Mr. Abubakar said 400 teachers have been trained on improved teaching technique and train-the-trainers workshop on effective teaching and learning method, while other 5,414 teachers have been trained in 1,805 schools across the state that seeks to improve enrolment, retention and completion of the girl-child in schools.

Mr. Abubakar revealed that classrooms are being renovated in both primary and junior secondary schools to become learner-friendly, while another 799 classrooms have been constructed or renovated and supplied with 34,876 different categories of furniture under the State Universal Basic Education, SUBEB projects just as counterpart funds for 2016 UBE matching grants have been released.

He noted that construction of the Faculty of Agriculture of the State University and the permanent site of the university have all been completed and are awaiting commissioning, while massive infrastructural developments in tertiary institutions in the state through the TETFund intervention have been carried out in other institutions.

He said the state government had supplied over 25,000 metric tons of assorted fertilizer worth N2 billion and distributed to farmers across the state during the 2015-2016 farming season.

He further said efforts of the administration in other critical areas that have started yielding dividends are deals the administration sealed, through public-private-partnership with investors, for the establishment of sugar refinery plant and plantation in Warji Local Government Area worth $200 million which has the capacity to generate 7,000 jobs and contribute $50 million to the Internally Generated Revenue of the state, 53 megawatts power supply to the state.

He further revealed that about N24 million has released for reconditioning of 3.0 MVA power transformer to serve as standby to the 5.0 MVA power transformer at Gubi Dam, while laboratory reagents and other chemicals are being supplied for the treatment of water.

Governor Abubakar said through the State Rural Water and Sanitation Agency, RUWASSA, provision of rural water, including the construction of 1,248 hand pump boreholes across the 20 LGAs, construction of 15 solar/motorized power water supply schemes and rehabilitation of 72 existing motorized/solar powered water schemes and 1,268 hand pump boreholes have been carried out in various parts of the State.

He noted that 4,732 jobs have been created for Bauchi State indigenes through the public works components of the World Bank supported Youth Empowerment and Social Support Operation, with a monthly stipend of N7,500 and 11,615 are expected to be the next batch of beneficiaries.

The statement also quoted the governor as saying that conditional grants scheme of N600,000 was released as counterpart funding for the 2015 CGS projects under the sustainable development goals, with the construction of 19 primary healthcare centres with staff quarters and VIP toilets, drilling and installation of 33 solar-powered boreholes, drilling and installation of 57 hand pumps, and supply of hospital equipment to 19 PHC.

Governor Abubakar commended the federal government for the intervention in similar projects such as the recently flagged off road projects by Speaker of the House of Representatives, Honourable Yakubu Dogara traversing Dass-Wandi to end at Bundot, promising to push for the funding of the road linking Futuk to Mansur in Alkaleri Local Government Area by the federal government.

While calling for continuous support of the people of the state and all Nigerians to the APC governments at various levels, the governor urged Nigerians to remain steadfast in committing the quick recovery of President Muhammadu Buhari and the nation in their daily prayers and promised his administrations commitment to the execution of projects.

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The Archbishop of the Enugu Province, Anglican Communion, Emmanuel Chukwuma, said on Monday that the clergy is not in support of the sit-at-home declared by the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB.

IPOB and MASSOB urged Igbos to sit at home on May 30 to observe the groups anniversary.

Mr. Chukwuma, a most reverend, made this known at the Democracy Day celebration and second year anniversary of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi in Enugu on Monday.

The cleric, who spoke before offering the opening prayer of the Democracy Day, called on all people in South-East to go about their legitimate businesses, saying that the clergy were against the declaration.

Before I offer the opening prayer, let me first of all state the position of the clergy on the sit-at- home declaration by IPOB and MASSOB.

We are not in support of the call. We advise all to ignore it and go about their legitimate businesses, he said.

Mr. Chukwuma, whose clarification was applauded by the crowd, urged traders and workers to open their shops and ignore the call.

He said the people of south-east would fare well and enjoy more and better dividends of democracy in a united Nigeria.

(NAN)

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Two people were feared dead while 14 others were rescued alive by emergency respondents on Monday from a collapsed building that happened on Lagos Island, reports the News Agency of Nigeria.

The agency gathered from a reliable source at the scene of the incident that it happened around 7.30 a.m., at Daddy Alaja Street, Oke Arin on Lagos Island.

The source said that the two dead persons, a man and a woman, whose identities could not be confirmed by the respondents, were pulled out of the debris from the three-storey building.

The source said that the building, housing many occupants, was also under renovation when it crashed.

As at 1.30p.m., all the rescue operations had been concluded. Some of those rescued alive were treated at the scene.

Those with serious ones were taken to the General Hospital on Lagos Island, the source told NAN.

The source said that the rescued team include: men and officials from LASEMA, NEMA, Fire Service and the Police Force.

The spokesperson of the Lagos State Police Command, ASP Olarinde Famous-Cole, confirmed the incident.

Mr. Famous-Cole, however, said he could not ascertain the number of deaths as at press time.

Three buildings have collapsed in Ilasamaja, Ebute-Metta and on Lagos Island in the last three months, in which five persons lost their lives while more than 40 persons were rescued.

(NAN)

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Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State on Monday said he would unveil his successor in May 2018, urging the people to be patient.

The governor, who lives office in May 2019, also said he has identified five possible successors.

Mr. Ajimobi stated this in Ibadan during an interactive session with journalists to mark the `Democracy Day and his administrations sixth anniversary.

The governor is currently serving his second term as governor of Oyo State, which would end in May 29, 2019.

Mr. Ajimobi said that his administration has set the standard that makes the governorship seat of the state too big for just anyone to occupy.

According to him, Oyo is one of the best managed states financially. I am also the most prudent governor in Nigeria.

Our achievements are very glaring for the people to see.

Let me tell you that the standard we have set was a reason for 34 aspirants now jostling to succeed me under the platform of APC.

I have seen about five people who have the potentials to succeed me. I will let you know whoever will be my successor by May next year, he said.

The governor said whoever that would succeed him must be fearless, intellectually sound, courageous and compassionate, adding that the person must be ready to give priority to the welfare of the people.

However, the governor on Monday made U-turn as he said that he might consider contesting for Oyo South Senatorial District after completing his tenure as governor in 2019.

The governor had on several occasions stated that he would not contest any political position after his tenure as governor of the state in 2019.

The governor was a former Deputy Minority Whip of the upper chamber from 2003 to 2007 under the platform of Alliance for Democracy, AD.

The new declaration by the governor might pitch him against the incumbent, Adesoji Akanbi (APC-Oyo South), who was being rumoured to contest the governorship seat.

Mr. Ajimobi condemned the speculations that the state was indebted to the tune of N150 billion, saying that the debt profile of the state was not beyond N4.8 billion.

The governor stated that the federal government should encourage fiscal federalism, which allowed states to grow at their own pace.

Fundamentally, we need financial restructuring. The federal exclusive list should be reviewed. It is difficult to say five out of the 36 states are viable without federal allocation, he said.

He stated that the state government now received an average of N2.6 billion as monthly federal allocation, unlike the N5.2 billion it was receiving when his administration came on board.

Mr. Ajimobi said, the state receives N2.6 billion monthly federal allocations and generates between N2.2 billion to N2.5 billion as Internally Generated Revenue to take care of N4.5 billion wage bill.

The governor advocated for state police, saying there is the need to decentralise the security network in the country with the exception of the military.

(NAN)

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The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, on Monday said it had dismissed 20 of its personnel over corrupt practices.

LASTMAs head of public affairs, Mahmud Hassan, confirmed the dismissal to journalists in Lagos.

He said the action was part of efforts by the state government to reposition, and improve the agency so that it could continue to offer better services to the state.

The management of the agency has dismissed 20 traffic officials and sanctioned 20 others for offences ranging from extortion, misconduct to indiscipline.

The actions of those dismissed were considered not to be in tandem with the agencys new philosophy, rules and provisions of the Lagos State Civil Service.

The decision was taken by the Lagos State Civil Service Commission at the end of its Policy Meeting.

The meeting considered the minutes of the Personnel Management Board (Disciplinary) of LASTMA and representations made by the traffic officials involved in the unwholesome acts.

All the dismissed officials had been directed to hand over all government property in their possessions, including staff identity cards to the agencys head of administration and human resources, immediately, Mr. Hassan said.

He also said that 15 other officials were given letters of warning for minor misdemeanor.

He said they were admonished to be more diligent, be of good behaviour and desist from any act that could be inimical to the image of the service.

They were warned that future recurrence of acts of negligence against them could lead to their dismissal or termination of appointment from LASTMA and Lagos state civil service, he said.

(NAN)

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The Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, has expressed his support for the restructuring of Nigeria as a step towards overcoming the challenges facing the country.

In his remarks at the Democracy Day celebration in Akure on Monday, Mr. Akerdolu said democracy had never been about elections but the peoples ability to manage dissenting views for socio-political and economic development.

While also declaring June 12 as a public holiday, the governor said there was a need to improve on the practice of democracy in Nigeria.

According to him, his stand for restructuring remained unchanged, noting that it was necessary for surviving the current economic and political challenges.

The governor appreciated the people of the state for their support for his government since he was elected, saying his government would not fail in fulfilling his campaign promises.

Mr. Akeredolu said the celebration of Democracy Day on May 29 is still important, despite the declaration of June 12 as a public holiday.

While urging the people to have a rethink and rededicate themselves to nation building, he advised youth to actively participate in governance.

The guest speaker at the programme, Tunji Abayomi, however said however only the constitution could restructure Nigeria.

He said the constitution is an agreement by the people on how they want to be governed, adding that democracy is never a finished project, rather it is always evolving.

According to him, democracy requires exposing the people to the liberty to choose their leaders, but noted that the people should be ready to fight for their right.

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Polish President Andrzej Duda and his wife Agata Kornahuser - Duda are starting a three-day visit to Georgia on Monday. "It is a signal of Poland's return to politics in that region", the Polish president's chief aide, Krzysztof Szczerski, commented.

"In recent years we have travelled to Georgia under the EU flag; today we are going there with the Polish flag", Minister Szczerski said on Monday.

According to Krzysztof Szczerski, during his meetings with Georgian leaders, the president will discuss last week's summit of the North Atlantic Alliance in Brussels. As he said, during the summit Poland was one of the countries "insisting on an open-door policy" and continuing the partnership with countries such as Georgia and Ukraine.

In Tbilisi, Presidents Andrzej Duda and Giorgi Margvelashvili are also expected to accept a declaration on Polish-Georgian cooperation. The declaration will include a memorandum indicating the need for embracing Georgia with an individual programme of rapprochement with the EU, taking into account the country's advanced relations with the EU, the presidential aide announced.

According to Minister Szczerski, the declaration will include a statement that European policy instruments targeted at Georgia should go beyond the Eastern Partnership, creating a common platform for cooperation with six countries with a very different level of relations with the EU. In his opinion, today it is necessary to design individual programmes for each of the six Eastern Partnership countries that will take this diversity into account.

The Polish-Georgian declaration will also include Poland's assurance of Georgia's territorial integrity. According to Krzysztof Szczerski, in Tbilisi President Duda will very clearly say there can be no consent to forced changes of state borders.

"Any change of border by force, any occupation of the territory of another sovereign country, should not take place under any circumstances because it violates international law", Minister Szczerski said. He noted that late President Lech Kaczynski had warned of this in 2008 when a Russian military intervention took place in Georgia.

"Lech Kaczynski's thought has come true, because what we see today in Ukraine is an exact repetition of what happened in Georgia in 2008," Krzysztof Szczerski added.

In Szczerski's opinion, the Polish president's visit to Georgia is "a signal of Poland's return to politics in that region of the world".

"Over the last few years this policy was a bit marginalised, because Poland used only European Union policy instruments. We covered Polish-Georgian relations with a discussion on EU relations with Tbilisi. The ministers of previous governments went to Georgia under the EU flag, while President Duda is going to Georgia with the Polish flag", Krzysztof Szczerski said.

"We are intensifying Polish-Georgian relations, bringing back the dynamics we knew in the days of President Lech Kaczynski. We want Poland to be again a country which is an important reference point for the Georgians when it comes to the policy of approaching the Western world structures," Minister Szczerski remarked.

The official reason for Andrzej Duda's visit is the 25th anniversary of the establishment of Polish-Georgian diplomatic relations after Georgia gained independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

President Andrzej Duda and his wife Agata Kornhauser-Duda will be officially welcomed by Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili and his wife. Both presidents will hold a one-on-one meeting, followed by plenary talks of the delegations. The president will also meet with Georgia's Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili and the head of the Georgian parliament, Irakli Kobachidze.

Duda will also lay a wreath in front of Lech Kaczynski's monument in Tbilisi, unveiled in the Georgian capital on the second anniversary of the Smolensk disaster in 2012 . The monument stands on a square named after Lech Kaczynski, which in turn is located near a street named after Lech and Maria Kaczynski. Lech Kaczynski is one of the most recognisable figures for the Georgian people, who remember the support he gave their country during the war with Russia in 2008.

On Wednesday, President Duda will meet with Polish commanders, soldiers, police officers and border guards participating in the European Monitoring Mission (EUMM) aimed at monitoring the situation on the administrative line between Georgia and the separatist provinces of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. This is the aftermath of a few days of the Russian-Georgian war in August 2008, which led to the breakaway of the separatist regions from Georgia.

The Polish presidential couple will also take part in the opening of Jozef Pilsudski Avenue in Tbilisi. This year Poland celebrates Jozef Pilsudski Year to mark the marshal's 150th birthday.

The agenda also includes Andrzej Duda's talks with Zurab Pataradze, the Chairman of the Government of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara. (PAP)
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Mumbai: Film Studios Setting & Allied Mazdoor Unions Joint Secretary Shri.Rakesh Maurya was attacked on Thursday, 25th May 2017 when he was on his way to reach the union office in Malad (East). Around 8 to 10 people travelling in bikes and scooters accosted him near the Oberoi mall and attacked him and snatched his money, gold chain (total Rs. 1,80,000) too. They even warned of consequences to kill him and his entire families including that of Unions General Secretary Gangeshwarlal Shrivastav a.k.a Sanju. An F.I.R. was registered the same day at Kurar Village Police Station,Malad (E), Mumbai and Maurya underwent medical examination too. The Police are investigating the case.Of late, the Film Studios Setting & Allied Mazdoor Union had removed some dishonest members for attempting fraud case and corruption within the Union. These people ganging up with few others threatened the office bearers of the Union with dire consequences. Joint Secretary of the Union RakeshMaurya said, While attacking me they kept on saying to stay away from Premsingh Thakur and Khalidbhai. Leave the august company of the union and Sanju or else we will not spare you or your families. We will even kill Sanju and his families too. Then let us see what Ram Kadam will do thereafter.The office of the union is situated at Express Zone building, opposite Reliance Energy, Malad (East) express highway. The unions dashing Chairman is MLA Ram Kadam and its General Secretary is GangeshwarlalShrivastava.ka. Sanju. Under their leadership the union has made rapid progress and has received lot of appreciation from its workers. This has irked some unscrupulous members.Gangeshwarlal Shrivastav a.k.a Sanju, the General Secretary voiced his concern, We have been receiving threats since long time. We have officially filed complaints at all police stations including the Police Commissioner office. They have not taken any concrete steps and resultantly these elements found an opportunity and attacked our Joint Secretary. Tomorrow any big incident occurs and then only will the police and the governing bodies awake from their deep slumber. I earnestly appeal to all those concerned police officers and their department including the government to give us police protection which has been demanded time and again. I also request all our media fraternity to support us in our endeavor.The Film Studios & Allied Mazdoor Union has more than 43,000 members and is the Asias largest labour union.
ATLANTIC CITY  Vicky Gold Levi still remembers selling war bonds on the citys Boardwalk as a 5-year-old girl.

I was dressed in my (Womens Army Corps) uniform and worked with Miss America, she said.

Seventy-five years later, Gold Levi, a prominent Atlantic City historian, she knows she lived in the resort during one of the most important eras in its history.

In the summer of 1942, Atlantic City transformed from one of the nations premiere vacation resorts into a military stronghold as Americans prepared to fight Germany and Japan, which attacked Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in December 1941.

The United States had officially entered World War II, and thousands of Americans were sent to Atlantic City for advanced training.

At the time, it was known as Camp Boardwalk.

Many of those service members would come back wounded for treatment at the citys Thomas England General Hospital.

Decades later, that building would become the first legal casino in Atlantic City  and still stands today as Resorts Hotel and Casino.

Atlantic City went through one of the most dramatic changes of any American community during the war. Summertime parades were replaced by marching soldiers, while the beach was used for training. Hotels were taken over by the military and became barracks at the cost of $1 per room per day.

John Palmentieri, a World War II veteran who was wounded in the European theater, said his family kept pictures and told him stories of what the city was like while he was deployed.

All you saw up and down the Boardwalk was military uniforms. It was beautiful, he said. There were 2,000 guys doing calisthenics in Convention Hall and others on the beach. I really think they enjoyed their stay in Atlantic City.

There were nightly curfews, with all lights turned off so German submarines lurking off the coast could not see the city.

Bader Field was an important asset for the Army Air Force, which practiced maneuvers and war scenarios over the city while also searching for German submarines.

The most amazing wartime change among American towns is in Atlantic City, said a 1943 article in the Saturday Evening Post. That cluster of plush hotels and salt-water-taffy stores on the Jersey coast, where once horse-betting parlors played to capacity crowds and the biggest Easter parade in the world took place every year. Atlantic City has shucked its perpetual sports-coat and donned the grey-green jacket of the Army Air Forces. The military has taken over the big hotels, and the best accommodations civilians can get are smaller side-street rooming houses.

Six aircraft crash rescue boats were stationed at what is now called Gardners Basin. They also served as rescue boats for seamen who survived torpedo attacks from the German subs.

Dozens of U.S. ships were sunk by German submarines right off New Jersey.

Bess Myerson, then Miss America, visited wounded soldiers in the hospital. The Miss America pageant was still held during the war because it embodied the spirit of America and boosted soldiers morale, according to reports at the time.

Palmentieri said a friend of his named George met his wife while being treated at the hospital. She belonged to the United Services Organization and came to visit him in the hospital every day, Palmentieri said.

Life carried on like this in Atlantic City until the war ended in 1945. All that remains is a plaque in Resorts commemorating the hospital and pictures around the city.

In 1992, a major summer celebration marked the 50th anniversary. Nothing has been scheduled so far for the 75th anniversary this year.
BUENA VISTA TOWNSHIP  Township veterans and politicians honored the areas fallen soldiers on Monday during a Memorial Day ceremony at the township municipal building.

Dennis McGee, the senior vice commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 158, read the names of township residents who died while serving in the military. The veterans names are listed on a plaque on a large stone in the front lawn of the municipal building.

We are assembled here today to pay tribute to the men and women of our community who have served in the U.S. armed forces, our neighbors who have fought in defense of our country and for the preservation for our way of life, McGee said.

Township mayor Chuck Chiarello and Committeeman John Armato also spoke to a small crowd of residents gathered around the plaque and a flag post.

Citing U.S. Marine Corps. General Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chiarello said more than a million Americans have lost their lives in military conflicts over the last century. And no death is less than another, he said.

Armato, who is running for state Assembly in the 2nd Legislative District, said veterans need more support and better health care.

Its a pretty sad affair if you think about how prisoners in prison get better medical care than our veterans, he said. That should not be.
NORTH WILDWOOD  Dozens showed up outside Tom Corcorans house Sunday to watch the burial flag of his brother  stolen last year and returned anonymously  hoisted high once again.

Patrick Corcoran was a 19-year-old Navy seaman who died in 1969 with 73 other sailors when his ship and an Australian aircraft carrier collided in the South China Sea during the Vietnam War.

Its quite amazing to see this amount of people here, said Tom Corcoran, 57, of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, who was a boy when his older brother was killed. We really appreciate it.

Corcorans body was never found. The flag was draped over his empty casket.

The family normally flew it once a year, on Memorial Day weekend, at Corcorans second home, but last year they delayed it until the Fourth of July due to rain.

It was taken from Corcorans neighbor Tom Schaffers flagpole between midnight and 5:30 a.m. July 4. The theft drew national media attention.

Eight days later, a woman ran up and dropped the flag on the Schaffers front porch. She jumped into a waiting car and left, Schaffer told The Press of Atlantic City.

On Sunday, local veterans participated in a flag-raising, something Tom Corcoran hopes will become an annual Memorial Day event.

Its not all about Patrick, Corcoran said. Its about those 74 families. Its about the veterans who are here today.

We will make sure this flag is protected, said Joe Griffies, a local Vietnam veteran who spearheaded the effort to retrieve the flag. No terrorist, no al-Qaeda, no ISIS, no Taliban and no thief will ever stop us from flying the American flag.

Tom Corcoran and his older sister, Suzanne Meissler, said the flag means even more to them after the theft.

It always meant a lot to us because Patrick and those 74 sailors never came back, Corcoran said. That (the flag) is all we have.

Does it mean a little bit more? Yes, he added.

The Corcorans and others are pushing to get Patricks and his shipmates names on the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. Their deaths occurred outside the combat zone.

They wouldnt be there if it wasnt from the Vietnam War, Corcoran said. Our government cant chisel 74 names on a piece of granite. Its a disgrace.

Were still going to fight the fight, said Meissler, 64, of Laurel Springs, Maryland.
To people who dont have a gambling problem, having to forfeit a big win because of that problem must seem like an additional, ironic misfortune. Even when you win, you lose.

But thats the point with problem gambling  there is no winning, except to stop losing by getting the desire to bet under control.

Last month, the state Division of Gaming Enforcement ordered a person who had asked to be excluded from gambling in New Jersey to give up $15,527 in winnings.

The forfeiture of winnings has happened many times since the state created gambling self-exclusion in 2001. A player who won a $54,000 jackpot at Ballys Atlantic City in 2011 was barred from collecting it when the routine check of his identification found he had put himself on the self-exclusion list eight years earlier.

What was different about last months losing winner was that the $15,000 had been won online, through an authorized gaming site run in partnership with Resorts Casino Hotel. The state has self-exclusion lists for the casinos and for internet gambling.

Negating the possibility of winnings is just one aspect of self-exclusion. Casinos are prohibited from allowing those on the list to gamble  although its tough to catch them all  from extending them credit, cashing their checks or providing them with comps.

Those seeking help controlling their gambling impulses have the option to exclude themselves from gambling in New Jersey for a year, five years or a lifetime. Once done, theres no going back for the duration chosen.

In 2008, a Delaware man who chose lifetime self-exclusion  a foolish decision, he said, after losing back a lot of money he had won at craps one day  challenged the irreversibility of self-exclusion. A New Jersey appellate court ruled unanimously that holding gamblers to their voluntary choice is proper law and public policy.

Of course it is. A temporary, self-reversible ban from gambling would be exactly the same as simply deciding not to go to a casino for now. Anyone can do that anytime.

Self-exclusion is a proven, effective way for people, in their periods of greater self-control and understanding, to get help overcoming a susceptibility that can financially destroy the lives of themselves and their families.

Whats needed now is a national or even international gambling self-exclusion list, since the internet has expanded gaming opportunities to nearly everywhere and always. Australia is considering such a list after data suggested that online gaming might triple the rate of problem gambling.

But even then, gaming on illegal websites beyond the reach of list or law would remain possible. Before descending into that pit of despair, problem gamblers should call the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jerseys help line at 800-GAMBLER.
"The Attorney" broke even by attracting over three million viewers within a week of its release. According to the Korean Film Council, the film lured 446,747 cinemagoers on the Christmas Eve and 640,546 on the Christmas Day nationwide.

As of Wednesday, the film has been seen by 3.11 million people, surpassing the three-million mark just a week after it was released on Dec. 19. The total production cost of W7.5 billion meant that "The Attorney" needed 2.5-2.6 million viewers to break even.

The film is the story of a man who despite his humble background becomes a successful tax lawyer in Busan in the early 1980s, but when he learns that a student activist is in trouble, he decides to defend him.

The film was inspired by the "Boolim Incident" in the early 1980s when Roh Moo-hyun, later to become president, defended student activists who were tortured and tried for possessing banned literature.
HELSINKI, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Caverion Corporation Investor news - May 29, 2017 at 9.00 a.m. EEST

Caverion is launching further actions to address the remaining utilisation and performance challenges in Sweden. These actions include reductions in workforce, combining of existing units, better usage of shared resources and integration of its Swedish industrial and building systems operations.

Overall, these actions are estimated to lead to personnel reductions affecting approximately 160 employees in Sweden.

In the integration of industrial and building systems operations all of approximately 350 employees from the Swedish industrial operations will be transferred to Division Sweden.

In February Caverion estimated that it has a potential further risk of up to EUR 10 million related to utilisation rate during 2017. The now announced performance and utilisation improvement actions are expected to amount to restructuring costs of approximately EUR 6.3 million. The estimated total savings impact of these actions is approximately EUR 2.7 million in 2017 and EUR 5.5 million in 2018.

"If necessary, we are ready to implement further cost savings during 2017. However, I see that the risk related to utilisation for the full year should not exceed the level identified in February," says Ari Lehtoranta, CEO and President of Caverion Corporation."

For additional information, please contact:

Ari Lehtoranta,

President and CEO

please contact Paivi Alakuijala,

VP, Marketing and Communications,

Tel. +358-40-8400-251

paivi.alakuijala@caverion.com

Milena Hggstrom,

Head of Investor Relations,

Tel. +358-40-5581-328,

milena.haeggstrom@caverion.com

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

http://news.cision.com/caverion/r/caverion-to-launch-further-performance-and-utilisation-improvement-actions-in-sweden,c2274728

The following files are available for download:

SOURCE Caverion
Connections is a well-known international event organizer focusing on luxury travel, health industry and conference industry. Furthermore, Connections Luxury is dedicated to offering the leaders of the luxury travel industry an opportunity of getting together for the business negotiations and discussing the industry trends and marketing challenges at the same time.

For each event at Connections, at most 80 delegates may be invited, ordinarily including 30 to 40 luxury travel industry vendors and sponsors. The participating vendors are the world's top luxury travel companies, in such fields as hotel, aviation, yachts, private aircraft, destination-customized travel, etc.

Moreover, 30 to 40 top purchasers were also present at this exhibition. To get the invitation, they need to undergo rigorous research, including a recommendation from existing buyers and suppliers, who represent the most important and emerging luxury travel market. This time, the Connections Luxury exhibition was held in Europe, and half of the purchaser representatives were from Europe.

As the industry leader in the Chinese market, L'AVION was invited to attend the luxury travel exhibition in Ireland this year. L'AVION has already been specializing in anti-aging industry for 11 years, and has become an important bridge connecting China's high-end customers and the global luxury travel resources. The supplier representatives also presented their recognition of L'AVION's insistence in providing customers with the best travel experience in overseas anti-aging travel while expressing their appreciation if this.

During the communication with L'AVION, Micaela Giacobbe, the founder and the business director of Connections expressed that nowadays, more Chinese clients are paying attention to overseas luxury travel, and luxury travel vendors in Europe and other places are making efforts to cater to the Chinese clients. Micaela is very optimistic about this, "the more frequent contacts with Chinese customers the vendors make, the more possibilities they will have to seek out the most suitable services."

With regard to the efforts that L'AVION made, Micaela expressed that it's always a challenge for building a connection between two different groups, and L'AVION holds the position of pioneer and leader owing to its courage of blazing new trails. "Connections is willing to cooperate with L'AVION to provide more possibilities," Micaela said.

Photo - http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/516857/LAvion.jpg

SOURCE L'AVION
Latest Funding Will Support Pivotal Randomized Controlled Study and Global Commercialization of Evoke, the First Intelligent, Closed-Loop Spinal Cord Stimulation System

ARTARMON, Australia and BLOOMINGTON, Minnesota, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Saluda Medical Pty Limited, a medical device company developing a platform of closed-loop neuromodulation technologies based on neural response to stimulation, announced today that it has secured AU$53M (USD$40M) in an all-equity financing round led by new investor, Action Potential Venture Capital (APVC), a GSK fund that invests in companies developing bioelectronic medicines. Existing investors, including Medtronic PLC, also participated in the round.

Saluda Medical is developing the first intelligent Evoke Spinal Cord Stimulator (SCS) System. It is designed to use the patient's own neural fingerprint to monitor and adapt the dose of electrical stimulation automatically and tailor the therapy to meet each individual patient's needs in real-time. Long-term clinical data from the first chronic implant study of closed-loop SCS conducted in Australia was presented at the International Neuromodulation Society (INS) 13th Annual World Congress in Edinburgh by Dr. Marc Russo, Director-at-Large, Neuromodulation Society of Australia and New Zealand. At 6 months, subjects with axial back pain experienced an average sustained improvement of 80% relief. In addition, the 32-patient cohort showed clinically meaningful improvements in function, disability, and sleep. The data from the Australia clinical study was presented in the morning plenary session on May 29th as part of a larger program on evoked compound action potentials (ECAP) in neuromodulation that included lectures from Dr. Robert M. Levy, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal Neuromodulation, Dr. Timothy Deer, President of the INS, and Professor Jan Vesper, President of the German Neuromodulation Society.

"Saluda Medical is advancing and expanding the field of bioelectronic medicines. Saluda has developed the first therapeutic device that is designed to both constantly read and modulate signals on the spinal cord to treat chronic pain," said Juan-Pablo Mas, partner at Action Potential Venture Capital. "We are encouraged by the international clinical results to date, and believe Saluda's technology can potentially provide various clinical benefits to patients. We are very pleased to have Saluda among our portfolio of innovative bioelectronic companies."

This latest round of funding will support the current U.S. pivotal randomized, double-blinded clinical trial now enrolling patients at 11 sites across the country. This financing will also allow Saluda Medical to commercialize the Evoke SCS therapy in Europe and Australia.

"Action Potential Venture Capital shares our vision and enthusiasm for bringing innovative neuromodulation devices to market, and we welcome them at this critical time for Saluda Medical as we make progress toward our regulatory and commercial milestones," said Saluda's Chief Executive Officer John Parker. "With support from our engaged investors, we remain committed to developing new approaches to bring relief to patients suffering from chronic pain and other disorders that may be treated with our technology."

About EvokeSpinal Cord Stimulator (SCS) System and Evoke Pivotal Randomized Controlled Clinical Study

Evoke is an intelligent, closed-loop SCS System that is designed to continuously measure the electrical response to stimulation on the spinal cord in the form of the Evoke Compound Action Potential (ECAP) and adjust the stimulation dose automatically and in real-time to the patient's preferred stimulation level. In contrast, current SCS devices provide an output of stimulation that is fixed without regard to the response of the neural tissue and rely on the patient to manually adjust stimulation dose to treat chronic pain.

The Evoke Clinical Study is a prospective, multicenter, randomized, double-blinded study being conducted by pain specialists at up to 20 U.S. clinical sites. The study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the Evoke Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) System with feedback, for the treatment of chronic pain of the lower back and legs. More information is available at www.EvokeStudy.com.

* The Evoke Spinal Cord Stimulation System is an investigational device and is limited by US Federal law to investigational use only.

About Action Potential Venture Capital (APVC)

Action Potential Venture Capital Limited is a strategic venture capital fund of GSK created to invest in companies that are pioneering bioelectronic medicines and their enabling technologies. Launched in 2013, the US based team invests globally and has made seven investments to date. Learn more about APVC at www.actionpotentialvc.com.

About Saluda Medical

Saluda Medical is a global medical device company developing a platform of closed-loop neuromodulation technologies, based on the neural response to stimulation, that has the potential to transform the lives of people suffering from chronic back pain and other debilitating conditions. The company's first device is the Evoke Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) System, a first of its kind intelligent, closed-loop SCS that is currently being evaluated in a randomized, double-blinded clinical trial. The company is pursuing CE mark approval in Europe and TGA approval in Australia, and is currently conducting a pivotal clinical trial in the U.S. to seek FDA approval.

Saluda Medical is a privately held company with headquarters in Artarmon, New South Wales, Australia and offices in Bloomington, MN, USA and Harrogate, UK. To learn more, visit http://www.saludamedical.com.

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/516888/Saluda_Medical_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Saluda Medical
MADRID, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ -- ATRESERIES is looking forward to its third anniversary on the air with the VIVE OTRAS VIDAS campaign, in which it focuses  with a touch of humor  on one of the most salient values of the ATRESMEDIA channel: the best productions 100% in Spanish.

"The success of series in the Hispanic market is due to the fact that besides telling universal and meaningful stories, we reach the audience without the need for dubbing or subtitling." [Mar Martinez Raposo, Director of Atresmedia Internacional].

For the launch of this campaign, aided by the agency Mama Team, and which starts up today, May 29, three extreme situations have been chosen; classic scenes from television series in which the spectator and the language barrier are protagonists.

Thus the unyielding discipline of a jail, the emergency room of a hospital, and the tension during a police raid support the campaign's slogan: "The best series allow you to live other lives; with Atreseries, you can live them in your language."

The first international campaign of ATRESERIES is comprised of three spots, which will be broadcast on screen and shared on the channel's social networks.

This first initiative is the result of a broad technical rollout in which nearly 40 people have participated, including technicians and actors, with more than 60 hours in real locations being recorded.

The first episode of the campaign is the emergency room at a hospital, where a team of doctors strives to save the life of a person who has been shot. In the middle of the instructions  in English  from the head doctor to her colleagues, a television viewer appears, remote control in hand, who does not understand what is going on.

Similar moments also occur in a jail, as well as in the middle of a police raid in which the misunderstandings due to the different languages make it difficult for the viewer to understand the story.

Download links:

http://oficinaprensa.atresmedia.com/Policias_30_SHD.m4v

http://oficinaprensa.atresmedia.com/Hospital_30_S_HD.m4v

http://oficinaprensa.atresmedia.com/Carcel_30_S_HD.m4v

Logo - http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/285679/atres_series_logo.jpg

SOURCE Atresmedia

Related Links

http://www.atresmediainternacinal.com


The U.S. says it has succeeded in testing a defense system intercepting intercontinental ballistic missiles from North Korea or Iran in the exosphere. The exosphere is the outermost layer of Earth's atmosphere at an altitude of more than 500 km.

In a Boeing-run Ground-based Midcourse Defense system on Sunday, a 5-feet-long (about 152 cm) "kill vehicle," detached from a ground-based interceptor missile precisely hit a target missile launched from a test site on Kwajalein Atoll west of the Marshall Islands in the Pacific toward the U.S. mainland, the Pentagon said.

The interceptor was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. A kill vehicle must fly at a speed of more than Mach 20 to intercept an incoming missile.

It was the first time in six years that the U.S. has succeeded in a GMD test. The interceptor made by Raytheon is an improved version of an earlier kill vehicle that failed in two tests in 2010.

To counter the threat of intercontinental missiles from North Korea and Iran, the U.S. conducted 16 GMD tests between 1999 and 2013, but it had a poor success rate of 50 percent despite costing more than US$40 billion.

The latest success will boost Washington's plans to build a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, which it is likely to pressure Seoul to join.


SANDUSKY, Ohio, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Frances M. Vuletich, R.N., B.S.N., M.S.A., is recognized by Continental Who's Who as a Pinnacle Lifetime Member as a result of her career of over 50 years in Healthcare.

Vuletich serves as a Registered Nurse at the Good Shepherd Home, which specializes in Expert Long Term Nursing. Her own areas of expertise include long term nursing as well as working with elderly people.



According to its website, the Good Shepherd Home invites residents to "discover the joys of living in a welcoming community where neighbors can share good food, good conversation, hearty laughter and Christian fellowship." It prides itself on serving as a "continuing care retirement community, with a comfortable, relaxed atmosphere," where "people greet [you] by name and offer friendship freely."



The website continues to state that, "Good Shepherd's concern for [your] well-being extends beyond basic physical requirements. Staff members get to know [you] well, caring about [you] and for [you]."

In addition to her work with the Good Shepherd Home and her practice of nursing, Vuletich is an instructor for the Central Ohio Technical College Network.



Vuletich earned her Registered Nurse designation, as well as a Bachelor of Nursing Science degree from Franklin University and a Master of Science degree in Administration from Central Michigan in 1997. To further her professional development, she is a member of the American Nurses Association and the Ohio Nurses Association.



When not working, Vuletich enjoys listening to music, reading and spending time with her family, including her two children. She dedicates this recognition to the loving memory of her mother, Helen M. Grubel, who was a great role model and strong believer in her abilities; and to her husband.



For more information, visit http://goodshepherdhome.com.

Contact: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, [email protected]

SOURCE Continental Who's Who

Related Links

http://www.continentalwhoswho.com


DUBLIN, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Growth Opportunities in the Global Automotive Glass Fiber Composites Market" report to their offering.

Glass fiber in the global automotive composites market is expected to reach an estimated $2.7 billion by 2022 and it is forecast to grow at a CAGR of 5.7% from 2017 to 2022.



The future of global automotive glass fiber composites market looks good with opportunities in various applications such as exterior, interior, power train system/engine components, chassis system, electrical and electronics, under body system, and others. The major growth drivers for this market are increasing automotive production and growing demand for lightweight and durable materials due to stringent government regulations to increase fuel efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Emerging trends, which have a direct impact on the dynamics of the industry, include strategic alliances between OEMs, glass fiber, and resin suppliers in the automotive composites industry.

Automotive glass fiber composites companies profiled in this market report include Owens Corning, Jushi Group Co, CPIC, Johns Manville, and Lanxess.

On the basis of its comprehensive research, the author forecasts that the power train system/ engine component is expected to be the largest market and the under the body is expected to show the highest growth rate during the forecast period of 2017 to 2022.

Within glass fiber market for automotive, sheet molding compound (SMC) and bulk molding compound (BMC), glass mat thermoplastic (GMT), short fiber thermoplastic (SFT), long fiber thermoplastic (LFT), continuous fiber thermoplastic (CFT), phenolic molding compound (PMC) and others are the intermediate materials to manufacture automotive components. SFT is expected to remain the largest market by value and volume, mainly driven by applications such as small complex shaped components in power train system/engine components applications.

Europe is expected to remain the largest market due to higher penetration of composites in automotive than other region. Government regulations, such as CAFE Standards in the US and carbon emission targets in Europe, are putting pressure on OEMs to incorporate light-weight materials to curb the overall vehicle weight, and this is the key driver for glass fiber in the automotive industry.

Automotive glass fiber composites market by Application Type (Value ($M) and Volume (M lbs) from 2011 to 2022):

- Interior

- Exterior

- Under the body systems

- Chassis System

- Power train system/Engine Components

- Electrical and Electronics

- Others

Automotive glass fiber composites market by Intermediates Type (Value ($M) and Volume (M lbs) from 2011 to 2022):

- Sheet Molding Compound (SMC)

- Bulk Molding Compound (BMC)

- Glass Mat Thermoplastic (GMT)

- Short Fiber Thermoplastic (SFT)

- Long Fiber Thermoplastic (LFT)

- Continuous Fiber Thermoplastic (CFT)

- Phenolic Molding Compound (PMC)

- Others

Automotive glass fiber composites market by Product Type (Value ($M) and Volume (M lbs) from 2011 to 2022):

- Chopped

- Roving

Automotive glass fiber composites market by Region Type (Value ($M) and Volume (M lbs) from 2011 to 2022):

- North American

- Europe

- Asia Pacific (APAC)

- Rest of the World (ROW)

Key Topics Covered:

1. Executive Summary



2. Glass Fiber in the Global Automotive Market: Market Dynamics



3. Market Trends and Forecast Analysis from 2011 to 2022



4. Regional Analysis



5. Competitor Analysis



6. Growth Opportunities and Strategic Analysis



7. Company Profiles of Leading Players



- CPIC

- Johns Manville

- Jushi Group Co

- Lanxess

- Owens Corning

For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/798btq/growth

Media Contact:

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900



U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

http://www.researchandmarkets.com


"This company was founded from the ashes and rubble of Enron, a company synonymous with scandal, corporate fraud and bankruptcy," said Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs. "Today these same reckless cowboys are trying to convince gullible investors to plow cash into a pipeline they know will never be built."

Kinder Morgan is hoping to raise C$1.75 billion next week through an initial public offering, after failing to find a partner, bank or institutional investor willing to share the risk. The company has yet to finalize the route of the pipeline, fulfill dozens of federal conditions or obtain essential provincial permits  a feat they know will be difficult with the Green Party now holding the balance of power in the legislature.

"Influential advisors are warning investors: do not invest a penny in this dead project," said Sophie Harrison, coordinator of the long-running No Tankers campaign. "Today Kinder Morgan is bluffing, but our movement isn't. We have all the legal and political tools we need to stop this risky pipeline and tanker project."

The Public Health Association of B.C. notes that Kinder Morgan's proposal has never undergone a comprehensive public health impact assessment.

"They've skipped many steps," said Harrison. "But the lack of a public health plan may be their Achilles' heel. If Kinder Morgan tries to push ahead with a project we know will put the health of First Nations and local communities in jeopardy, the province of B.C. has the power to force a public health review and stop construction."

"We will do whatever is necessary to shut down Kinder Morgan in our territories," said Grand Chief Stewart Phillip. "That means Indigenous land rights lawsuits, land defence strategies and environmental stewardship legislation. We're ready for all three. Now the question is, do investors have the stomach for a protracted, losing battle?"

About UBCIC:

The Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs was founded in 1969 to fight Canada's White Paper and to defend Indigenous Title, Rights & Treaty Rights.

About Dogwood:

Dogwood is B.C.'s largest non-partisan citizen group, uniting more than 260,000 supporters in the province against oil tanker expansion on the West Coast.

SOURCE Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs

Related Links

http://www.ubcic.bc.ca


LOS ANGELES, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Samuel Garcia, a decorated US Marine Corp. Sargent and father of four, has filed suit against Coaster Company of America for harassment and discrimination due to his veteran status. Garcia interviewed for a management position with Coaster Company's Manager Alan Putis, who invited Garcia to a second interview with Human Resources Vice President, Matthew Chen. During that second interview, Chen interrogated Garcia about his service record and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, intentionally humiliating Garcia, the lawsuit filed by Abrolat Law pc alleges. After Garcia complained in writing about the harassment, Coaster Company refused to hire Garcia, the suit claims.

Garcia served the United States in two tours in Iraq between 2003 and 2007 and deployment to Afghanistan in 2009. While Garcia did not anticipate an easy transition back into civilian life, he remains shocked and deeply saddened by Chen's harassment.

During the interview, Chen neglected to ask Garcia about his skills and qualifications for the job, the lawsuit alleges. Instead, Chen interrogated Garcia about whether he killed anyone during his service, how he felt about killing people, details of the violence Garcia encountered overseas, what Garcia thought about PTSD and whether he had it, Garcia reports.

Garcia described the interview: "What should have been a regular job interview turned into Chen harassing me based on my veteran status and his assumption that I have PTSD. Chen's questions humiliated me. Making it all worse, Chen first summoned a young female employee into the interview who Chen said had a significant other in the Marines about to be deployed. Chen then interrogated me about the brutalities of war in front of her." Garcia concluded: "I am proud of my commitment to the security of our country, and the personal hardships I have endured are a price I willingly pay for a safer world for my children in the United States."

Discrimination is not an uncommon experience for veterans returning home from war. According to United States Veterans Affairs, about 11-20 out of every 100 Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom veterans have PTSD in a given year. According to American Psychological Association, there is a tremendous amount of stigma with PTSD among veterans. The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that 20% of all veterans had service-connected disabilities in August of 2015, and their labor force participation rate was a full 6% below veterans without disabilities.

Garcia's attorney, Nancy Abrolat, stated: "Although Mr. Garcia got another job with an employer who honors our anti-discrimination laws, his lawsuits seeks an injunction to prevent future harassment and discrimination against other veterans." On this Memorial Day, we honor our veterans and want to ensure that our soldiers who risk their lives for our protection and freedoms, regardless of injuries they suffer while serving, return home to gratitude and opportunity.

Abrolat Law pc

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (866) 884-4228

SOURCE Abrolat Law pc

Related Links

http://abrolatlaw.com


NEW YORK, May 28, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP, a leading national securities law firm, is investigating potential securities fraud at Petrofac Limited ("Petrofac" or the "Company") (OTC:POFCF; OTC:POFCY).

The investigation focuses on whether the Company and its executives violated federal securities laws. On May 12, 2017, the U.K.'s Serious Fraud Office announced that it had launched an investigation into the Company's activities, on suspicion of "bribery, corruption and money laundering." The investigation is linked to an ongoing probe of bribes paid by Monaco oil contractor Unaoil SAM for government contracts around the world.

Then, on May 25, 2017, Petrofac announced that it had suspended its chief operating officer, Marwan Chedid, after UK prosecutors accused the Company of refusing to cooperate with the investigation. UK prosecutors announced that Chedid and the Company's chief executive office, Ayman Asfari, were arrested, questioned, and released without being charged in the ongoing investigation.

On this news, the Company's stock price has decreased, damaging investors.

If you invested in Petrofac OTC stock or options and would like to discuss your legal rights, click here : www.faruqilaw.com/POFCF. There is no cost or obligation to you.

You can also contact us by calling Richard Gonnello toll free at 877-247-4292 or at 212-983-9330 or by sending an e-mail to [email protected].

CONTACT:

FARUQI & FARUQI, LLP

685 Third Avenue, 26th Floor

New York, NY 10017

Attn: Richard Gonnello, Esq.

[email protected]

Telephone: (877) 247-4292 or (212) 983-9330

Attorney Advertising. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP (www.faruqilaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your particular case. All communications will be treated in a confidential manner.

SOURCE Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP

Related Links

http://www.faruqilaw.com


TSX -NYSE: RIC

Positive First Step in a Multi-Phased Transformation of the Island Gold Mine;

Low Industry Cash Costs and Robust Cash Flow Stream

TORONTO, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ - Richmont Mines Inc. (TSX: RIC) (NYSE: RIC) ("Richmont" or the "Corporation"), is pleased to announce positive results from an Expansion Case Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") completed on the Island Gold Mine, located in northern Ontario, Canada. The study confirms the increase in underground mine and mill productivity to 1,100 tonnes per day will support strong production growth of 22% at low industry cash costs and a robust cash flow stream over the eight-year Phase 1 period, with low incremental capital of $28.2 (US$20.9) million required. The ramp-up to 1,100 tonnes per day is currently underway and the operation is anticipated to achieve the target run rate in the latter part of 2018. (All amounts are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise indicated).

"The strong outcome of the Expansion Case PEA represents a key milestone and the next step in our phased approach to unlock the full potential of the Island Gold Mine. With minimal capital we are positioning the mine as a low cost operation that is anticipated to generate strong cash flow streams after funding all project and sustaining capital." stated Renaud Adams, CEO. He continued, "It is important to consider that the PEA incorporates only 24% of the current inferred resources as of December 2016. All resources outside the main area of interest, below the 1,000 metre level and east of the PEA area, were excluded but will eventually be considered in a potential Phase 2 expansion as we continue to grow the resource inventory through our strategic drilling programs."

Island Gold Mine Expansion Case PEA Highlights

The operation is expected to produce an average of 125,000 gold ounces per year, excluding the 2017 and 2018 ramp-up period, or 115,000 ounces over the 8-year period considered in the PEA.

Low industry cost profile over the PEA period, including cash costs of approximately $650 (US$480) per ounce, All-in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") of approximately $835 (US$620) per ounce and All-in Costs ("AIC"), which includes all project and sustaining capital, of approximately $910 (US$675) per ounce.

per ounce, All-in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") of approximately per ounce and All-in Costs ("AIC"), which includes all project and sustaining capital, of approximately per ounce. Minimal incremental capital investment of $28.2 (US$20.9) million is estimated to support a productivity increase from 900 to 1,100 tonnes per day, which would contribute to a strong pre-tax cumulative net cash flow stream after all capital expenditures of $749 (US$555) million at a spot gold price of $1,700 (US$1,260) per ounce, or $615 (US$456) million at a downside case gold price of $1,550 (US$1,150) per ounce over the eight years considered by the PEA.

is estimated to support a productivity increase from 900 to 1,100 tonnes per day, which would contribute to a strong pre-tax cumulative net cash flow stream after all capital expenditures of at a spot gold price of per ounce, or at a downside case gold price of per ounce over the eight years considered by the PEA. Additional opportunities remain for further expansion scenarios and mine life extension as the PEA only incorporates approximately 24% of the current total inferred resources (as at Dec. 31, 2016 ), which excludes more than 750,000 inferred resource ounces and does not take into consideration the most recent drilling success laterally to the east and at depth below the 1,000 metre level.

Expansion Case PEA Summary (1,100 tpd) Tonnes Milled (Mt) 3.1 Head Grade (g/t) 9.68 Mine plan (years) 8 Daily mine and mill production (tpd) (excl. 2017-2018 ramp-up) 1,100 Gold recovery (%) 96.5 Total Production (Koz) 926 Avg. annual gold production (Koz) 115 Avg. annual gold production (excl. 2017-2018 ramp-up) (Koz) 125

Expansion Case PEA Summary (1,100 tpd) (CAD:US exchange rate of 1.35:1) CAD$ Gold Price US$ Gold Price Spot Gold $1,700/oz Downside Case $1,550/oz Spot Gold US$1,260/oz Downside Case US$1,150/oz Average operating unit cost ($/t)(1,4) 191 189 141 140 Cash Costs ($/oz)(1,2,4) 652 646 483 479 AISC ($/oz)(1,2,4) 837 832 620 616 Sustaining capital ($M) 168 168 124 124 Project capital ($M)(3) 68 68 50 50 AIC ($/oz)(1,2,3,4) 910 906 674 671 Cumulative Net Cash Flow ($M)(5,6) 749 615 555 456 Pre-tax NPV5%(6) 580 473 430 350 After-tax NPV5%(6) 452 379 335 281 (1) The Expansion Case PEA assumes a gold price of $1,700 (US$1,260) and $1,550 (US$1,150) per ounce and an CAD:US exchange rate of 1.35

(2) Non-IFRS performance measure. Refer to the Non-IFRS performance measures section contained in the Q1 2017 MD&A.

(3) Project capital includes incremental expansion capital of $28.2 million and accelerated mine development/infrastructure capital of $40 million.

(4) Including royalties.

(5) Net cash flow is pre-tax cash flow after all operating costs, project and sustaining capital.

(6) All calculations assume the Dec. 31, 2016 cut-off grade and do not incorporate any adjustments related to different gold price assumptions.

Pre-Tax Net Cash Flow Sensitivity Table

The table below provides the estimated impact on pre-tax net cash flow at various gold prices and currency exchange rates, which demonstrate that the PEA mine plan generates positive pre-tax net cash flow even at a gold price of US$1,000 per ounce and a Canadian to U.S. currency exchange rate at parity.

Pre-tax Net Cash Flow(1)(2) (CAD$M) Sensitivity US$ Gold Price CAD:US

1,000 1,100 1,200 1,300 1,400 1.00 123 212 302 391 481 1.10 212 311 409 507 606 1.20 302 409 516 623 731 1.30 391 507 623 740 856 1.35 436 556 677 798 918 1.40 481 606 731 856 981 1.45 525 655 784 914 1,043 (1) Net cash flow is pre-tax cash flow after all operating costs, project and sustaining capital.

(2) All calculations assume the Dec. 31, 2016 cut-off grade and do not incorporate any adjustments related to different gold price assumptions.

"The PEA represents only the first step in a disciplined multi-phased strategy that will continue to build on our successful track record of growing production and reducing costs as we execute on our vision to position the Island Gold Mine as a world class, low-cost gold producer with additional production growth over a minimum mine life in excess of 10 years." stated Renaud Adams. He continued, "In the near term, there are additional opportunities to increase productivity and improve our cost structure that were not considered in the PEA, which could provide further upside beyond the strong PEA results. The success of our strategic exploration programs will continue to be a high priority as we continue to transform Island Gold into a multi-million ounce district."

TECHNICAL HIGHLIGHTS (click here for the technical and financial portion of the corresponding PEA presentation)

The PEA was developed through the combined efforts of the Corporation's internal technical team and the independent consultant, Soutex Inc. The independent consultant, InnovExplo Inc., provided input to the internal technical team during the preliminary stages of the study relating to the mine design. The internal technical team developed the detailed mine plan, costs and schedules, and completed the December 2016 Resource modeling and Reserve and Resource estimates. Soutex Inc., with the collaboration of WSP Global Inc. provided mill upgrade, expansion designs and estimated costs.

The objective of the PEA was to consider the most cost and capital effective strategy to mine the portion of the mineral resources that is located within the main area of interest over four mining horizons, to a maximum depth of 1,000 metres below surface, using the current mine infrastructure. Management remains focused on transforming the high-grade Island Gold Mine into one of the lowest cost underground gold producers located in low-risk jurisdictions in the Americas.

Reserves and Resources (December 31, 2016)

Current Mineral Reserves and Resources as of December 31, 20161 for the Island Gold Mine include:

Proven and Probable Reserves of 752k ounces (2.6MT at an average grade of 9.17 g/t).

Measured and Indicated Resources of 91k ounces (0.5MT at an average grade of 5.94 g/t).

Inferred Resources of 996k ounces (3.0MT at an average grade of 10.18 g/t).

Mineral Resources presented are exclusive of Mineral Reserves.

Total Mineral Resources included in the PEA:

All Dec. 31, 2016 Reserves (incl. Upper Mine) were used in the PEA. For the purpose of this PEA all Mineral Reserves included in the mine plan were considered at the Measured and Indicated Resource level.

Reserves (incl. Upper Mine) were used in the PEA. For the purpose of this PEA all Mineral Reserves included in the mine plan were considered at the Measured and Indicated Resource level. All Dec. 31, 2016 Measured & Indicated Resources were included in the PEA.

Measured & Indicated Resources were included in the PEA. Only the Dec. 31, 2016 Inferred Resources within the main continuous structure at depth between the 450 metre and 1,000 metre levels were incorporated in the PEA, primarily located in the fourth mining horizon. Only approximately 24% of the total Dec. 31, 2016 Inferred Resources were incorporated in the PEA.

Inferred Resources within the main continuous structure at depth between the 450 metre and 1,000 metre levels were incorporated in the PEA, primarily located in the fourth mining horizon. Only approximately 24% of the total Inferred Resources were incorporated in the PEA. Total undiluted resources used in the PEA:

Measured and Indicated Resources of 879k ounces (2.6MT at an average grade of 10.65 g/t).



Inferred Resources of 238k ounces (0.5MT at an average grade of 14.95 g/t).

The Dec. 31, 2016 mining dilution, mining recovery and cut-off grade criteria were used to estimate a total 3.1MT at 9.68 g/t gold diluted material used in the PEA mine plan for a total of 964k gold ounces.

Underground Mining

The PEA primarily considers long-hole mining over four mining horizons, down to a maximum depth of 1,000 metres using the current dual ramp system. Alimak mining is also considered in the study for the small isolated western reserve block. The Corporation is currently advancing the development of the dual ramp system, which will support multi-stope mining beginning in 2018. As of the end of the first quarter of 2017, the main ramp has reached a level of 860 vertical metres. Mineral Resources have been developed and exposed down to the 800 metre level and long-hole mining is currently ongoing in the first and second horizons down to the 740 metre level and in the upper part of the third horizon. The PEA considers the use of the dual ramp system over the 8-year period with no additional infrastructure required.

In late 2014, the Corporation launched an accelerated underground development strategy with the objective of supporting increased mining rates at the lower levels of the mine (down to a maximum depth of 1,000 metres) without need of additional infrastructure. During 2015 and 2016, the ratio of waste to ore mined was maintained at approximately 1:1 in order to advance the dual ramp system prior to the launch of stope mining activities, thereby minimizing the total tonnes (ore and waste) needed to be mined in the future. The PEA indicates that all waste development will be completed in early 2021, resulting in a very low average waste to ore ratio of 0.33 going forward over the eight-year period considered by the PEA, which will largely de-risk the 1,100 tonnes per day mining rate in the lower horizons of the mine. Higher capacity trucks will be phased in as mining activities transition to the lower areas of the mine, which will also add to productivity enhancement while optimizing the unit cost structure at depth.







1 For more information about the current Reserve and Resource estimate, please refer to the press release dated January 31, 2017 available at www.richmont-mines.com.

Mill Upgrade

A conceptual study prepared by Soutex Inc. in collaboration with WSP Global Inc. was considered for the PEA, which supports an increased mill capacity to a minimum 1,200 tonnes per day. The additional capacity requires an incremental investment of only $15.7 million. The mill is currently operating above the base case 900 tonnes per day (926 in Q1, 2017) and is expected to ramp-up to an average 1,100 tonnes per day in the latter part of 2018. The mill expansion relates primarily to upgrading the grinding circuit with an additional ball mill, which is currently being sourced. Basic engineering is ongoing with detailed engineering expected to begin in June.

PEA COST HIGHLIGHTS

Operating Costs $ US$ Mining costs ($/t) 129 95 Milling Costs ($/t) 28 21 General & Administrative ($/t) 16 12 Total operating unit costs per tonne milled ($/t) 173 128

The Corporation has been operating the Island Gold Mine since 2007 and the PEA has utilized currently realized cost data including mining, milling, site G&A and royalties, as well as underground development and infrastructure capital costs.

Mining unit costs are expected to decline over the life of mine as the higher cost development in ore is completed in early 2022, partially offset as mining transitions at depth to the fourth mining horizon as well as higher costs associated with Alimak mining. Mining unit costs will average $129 (US$95) per tonne over the 8 years considered in the PEA.

Milling unit costs are expected to decline by up to 8% to $28 (US$21) per tonne once the mill achieves the 1,100 tonne per day run-rate in the latter part of 2018.

G&A costs are expected to benefit from the economies of scale beginning in 2019 and will average $16 per tonne.

Total Capital Investment $ US$ Sustaining Capital ($M) 168 124 Project Capital ($M) 68 50

Incremental Expansion Capital ($M) 28 20

Accelerated Development/Infrastructure ($M) 40 30 Total Capital ($M) 236 174

The PEA considers sustaining capital requirements of $168 (US$124) million over the eight-year PEA period, which remains elevated in the first four years as the operation advances underground ramp development, lateral development for Alimak mining, surface infrastructure, upgrades to higher capacity mobile equipment and an increase in tailings capacity. Sustaining capital will decrease to normalized levels beginning in 2021. Annual sustaining capital is expected to average $21 (US$16) million over the PEA period.

The project capital requirements of $68 (US$51) million are comprised of accelerated underground ramp development ($29 million) to support multi-stope mining as well as infrastructure ($11 million), both of which would have been advanced on a sustaining basis under a 900 tonne per day scenario. Project capital also includes incremental expansion capital ($28 million) to support the increase in productivity to 1,100 tonnes per day. Project capital will be completed in 2018 at which point the operation will return to sustaining capital levels.

Incremental Expansion Capital $ US$ Total Incremental Capital ($M) 28.2 20.9

Mill Expansion ($M) 15.7 11.6

Mobile Equipment ($M) 7.3 5.4

Infrastructure ($M) 5.2 3.9

Permitting

In December 2016 the Corporation received all required Amendments of both Air and Wastewater Environmental Compliance Approvals ("ECAs") from the Ontario Ministry of Environment and Climate Change for the Island Gold Mine located in northern Ontario. These Amendments support a potential ore mining and processing rate increase to an average of 1,100 tonnes per day as contemplated in the Expansion Case PEA. The Amended ECAs allow processing of up to 401,500 tonnes of ore per year (1,100 tonnes per day), with flexibility for up to a maximum of 38,480 tonnes per month.

Royalty and Taxes

Royalty payments will incrementally increase as mining activities transition to lower levels of the mine and average approximately 3.5% over the life of mine.

The PEA indicates taxes payable will gradually increase over the life of mine and Island Gold will become fully taxable beginning in 2021. The effective tax rate over the mine life covered in the PEA is expected to average 22%.

Future Upside Opportunities:

There are additional opportunities that could positively impact operational and cost performance that were not incorporated in the PEA, including the implementation of ongoing operational efficiency strategies and cost reduction initiatives, as well as the optimization of supply chain management systems, all of which could drive additional cost reductions. The PEA also does not consider any exploration success that could positively impact the mine plan, including the delineation of additional resource ounces, primarily from the lateral eastern corridor. The PEA does not consider the potential conversion of the 750,000 inferred resources that were not included in the study.

The Corporation will continue to evaluate a potential Phase 2 growth scenario with the objective of positioning the Island Gold Mine as a low cost producer with an annual production profile of between 150,000 and 200,000 ounces, over a mine life of more than 10 years. The Phase 2 strategy is contingent upon the success of our drilling programs to grow our resource inventory beyond two million gold ounces, net of depletion. With more than 450,000 ounces of new resources discovered in 2016 at a low cost of $35 per ounce, the Corporation is confident that the exploration potential of Island Gold will continue to be unlocked over the years to come.

Technical Disclosure & Qualified Persons

The production and cost estimates contained in this report are partly based on Inferred Resources and are therefore preliminary in nature. Inferred Resources are considered too geologically speculative to have mining and economic parameters applied to them, or to be categorized as Mineral Reserves. There is no certainty that the conversion of Mineral Resources to Mineral Reserves or the production and cost forecasts on which this PEA is based, will be realized. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

Qualified Persons

The PEA was developed through the combined efforts of the Corporation's Internal Technical Team and an independent consultant, Soutex Inc.

The Corporation will file a NI43-101 Technical Report within 45 days.

All work for the PEA was performed under the direct supervision of Daniel Adam, P.Geo., Ph.D, Vice President, Exploration and Leon LeBlanc, P. Eng., Chief Engineer of the Island Gold Mine; both are employees of Richmont. Both are members of a professional association and are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101 requirements and have reviewed the technical information included in this press release.

Information relating to the mill upgrade, expansion designs and estimated costs was prepared under the supervision of Mathieu Belisle, P. Eng. Mr. Belisle, a senior metallurgist with Soutex Inc., and a qualified and independent person as defined in NI 43-101. He has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this press release pertaining to the mill facility.

The Expansion Case PEA will be filed on Richmont's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com within 45 days.

Conference Call and Webcast

The Corporation will host a webcast technical session on Monday, May 29 starting at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time, also accessible via conference call. Senior management will be on the call to discuss the study results.

Webcast access:

To access the webcast and technical presentation slides directly, please follow this link:

https://event.on24.com/wcc/r/1431128/2F7F8C08FDECB050D4E6128D4A9F3F4E

Telephone access:

Toll free ( Canada & U.S.): 1-888-390-0546

& U.S.): 1-888-390-0546 Toronto local & International: 1-416-764-8688

A telephone replay will be available for 90 days by dialing 1-416-764-8677 (Toronto local and international) or 1-888-390-0541 (toll free in Canada and U.S.), using pass code 821941#. The webcast and presentation slides will also be archived for 90 days on the Corporation's website at www.richmont-mines.com.

About Richmont Mines Inc.

Richmont Mines currently produces gold from the Island Gold Mine in Ontario, and the Beaufor Mine in Quebec. The Corporation is also advancing development of the significant high-grade resource extension at depth of the Island Gold Mine in Ontario. With 35 years of experience in gold production, exploration and development, and prudent financial management, the Corporation is well-positioned to cost-effectively build its Canadian reserve base and to successfully enter its next phase of growth.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements that include risks and uncertainties. When used in this news release, the words "estimate", "project", "anticipate", "expect", "intend", "believe", "hope", "may", "objective" and similar expressions, as well as "will", "shall" and other indications of future tense, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and apply only as of the date on which they were made. Except as may be required by law or regulation, the Corporation undertakes no obligation and disclaims any responsibility to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in such forward-looking statements include the ability to ramp up productivity to 1,100 tonnes per day in a timely manner, the ability to achieve the enhanced production levels expected, the ability to realize further expansion scenarios, any increases in capital and development/infrastructure costs changes in the prevailing price of gold, the Canadian-United States exchange rate, grade of ore mined and unforeseen difficulties in mining operations that could affect revenue and production costs. Other factors such as uncertainties regarding government regulations could also affect the results. Other risks may be set out in Richmont Mines' Annual Information Form, Annual Reports and periodic reports. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date of this news release.

Cautionary note to US investors concerning resource estimates

Information in this press release is intended to comply with the requirements of the Toronto Stock Exchange and applicable Canadian securities legislation, which differ in certain respects with the rules and regulations promulgated under the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended ("Exchange Act"), as promulgated by the SEC. The requirements of National Instrument 43-101  Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") adopted by the Canadian Securities Administrators differ significantly from the requirements of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC").

U.S. Investors are urged to consider the disclosure in our annual report on Form 40-F, File No. 001-14598, as filed with the SEC under the Exchange Act, which may be obtained from us (without cost) or from the SEC's web site: http://sec.gov/edgar.shtml.

National Instrument 43-101

The scientific or technical information in this news release has been reviewed by Mr. Daniel Adam, Geo., Ph.D., Vice-President, Exploration, and Leon LeBlanc, P. Eng., Chief Engineer, both employees of Richmont Mines Inc., who are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101.

SOURCE Richmont Mines

Related Links

http://www.richmont-mines.com


As the last of several late-race cautions bunched the field after a multi-car crash on Lap 179, Sato was running second to fellow Honda driver Max Chilton, with Castroneves third and outstanding rookie Ed Jones, fourth. When the green flag waved for the final time to start Lap 189, Sato quickly worked his way to the front in his Andretti Autosport Honda. The battle for the victory became a two-driver duel with six laps to go, with first Castroneves taking the lead, then Sato making an outside pass for the lead going into Turn 1 with just five laps remaining, holding on for the win by just two-tenths of a second at the checkers.

Finishing in third, 2016 Indy Lights champion Jones made the most of his Indianapolis 500 debut. Despite twice sustaining damage to his Dale Coyne Racing Honda due to debris from two of the four crashes in today's race, Jones worked his way into the lead group in the final 20 laps, and closed on Castroneves on the final lap. His third-place finish was best among the four rookies in this year's race.

The third Honda contender for the win today  Chip Ganassi Racing's Max Chilton  led a race-high 50 laps after going a lap down to the leaders with handling issues early in the race. Adjustments made during early pit stops put Chilton back on a pace with the overall leaders, as he demonstrated by leading on four separate occasions in the 200-lap contest.

Mechanical issues eliminated two other Andretti Hondas, with Ryan Hunter-Reay dropping out on Lap 136 after leading 28 laps, second only to Chilton in a race with a record 15 different leaders. Two-time Formula One world champion Fernando Alonso continued his impressive rookie performance at the "Brickyard", leading for 27 laps  third highest today before dropping out on Lap 180.

In the first and most spectacular of the day's crashes, pole-starter Scott Dixon struck the car of Jay Howard after the latter had made impact with the Turn 1 wall. Dixon's car vaulted high into the air and landed upright on top of the infield retaining wall, but he escaped injury in the Lap 53 collision, as did Howard.

Video recaps from this month's Honda racing activities at Indianapolis, including today's Indianapolis 500, are being posted on the "Honda Racing/HPD" YouTube channel. Produced by the Carolinas Production Group, the video packages can be found in the 2015 HPD Trackside Video Playlist at: https://www.youtube.com/HondaRacingHPDTV.

IndyCar Series teams and drivers now prepare for a hectic schedule of three races over the next two weeks, starting with next weekend's June 3-4 double header weekend with races both Saturday and Sunday on the Belle Isle street circuit in Detroit, Michigan.

Takuma Sato (#26 Andretti Autosport Honda) 2017 Indianapolis 500 winner: "I won! I won the best race in the world! Unbelievable feeling. I cannot thank this whole team [enough]. Look at these guys. Fantastic. It was obviously a tough, tough race. But Helio [Castroneves] really drives fair. I can trust him. I can really [trust him] coming from the outside. It was fantastic race. What a race. Hopefully, the crowd enjoyed it. It's beautiful. I dreamed of something like this since I was 12. I can't thank everyone enough for their support. Until three laps to go, you really didn't know [who would win]. Me and Helio went side by side with three laps to go. You've got to go for it, run it flat. And we did it, and we pulled away. Fantastic."

Ed Jones (#19 Dale Coyne Racing Honda) top rookie finisher, 3rd: "It was a great race for us. I've had a great car the whole month, really. But the race was so up and down for us. We had a solid start and were running in the top 10 for most of the first half of the race. Then, when Dixon had his crash, I ran over some debris. It damaged the floor and the rear wing. We had to change the rear wing. That sent me to the back of the field, and we had to claw our way back up again. Then we got some luck back. The last yellow, we pitted right before it, so it put us near the front [of the field]. But then I had some bad luck again. I damaged my front wing, had a big hole in it. My legs got pretty cold, to be honest. I had wind blowing into them like crazy, and it created a lot of drag. That [made it] difficult in the straights. I couldn't pull up to the leaders. We lacked that straight line speed for the last laps. It was really hard for me to defend or even attack, which was really a bit frustrating, because I think we had the car to win today. Great job to [Takuma] Sato and Helio [Castroneves]. But also a bit frustrating. I don't know how many opportunities you get to be in that battle [for victory at Indianapolis]."

Fernando Alonso (#29 McLaren Honda Andretti Autosport Honda): "Obviously, I'm disappointed not to finish the race, because every race you compete, you want to be at the checkered flag. Today, it was not possible. But it was a great experience, the last two weeks. I came here basically to prove myself, to challenge myself. I know that I can be as quick as anyone in a Formula One car. I didn't know if I can be as quick as anyone in an Indy car. It was nice to have this competitive feeling, even leading the Indy 500, you know. You lead just one lap here, it was already a nice feeling. I was passing, watching the tower, saw the 29 on top of it. I was thinking at that moment if Zak [Brown, McLaren team principal] or someone from the team was taking a picture, because I want that picture at home. Congratulations to Sato-san, to Andretti [Autosport]. We have been sharing the last two weeks, all the meetings in the morning, the meetings in the afternoon. Takuma was a lot of help, coming from F1. The last two laps I was on my knees really pushing Sato [for the victory]. I'm extremely happy for the final result. Last thing: thanks to IndyCar, amazing experience. Thanks to Indianapolis. Thanks to the fans. I felt at home. I'm not American, but I felt really proud to race here. Thank you, the media. I didn't win, but I will drink a little bit of [Takuma's victory] milk! You followed me for two weeks, every single minute, but I really enjoy. Thanks for the welcoming. See you in Austin [for the US Grand Prix]."

Art St. Cyr (president, Honda Performance Development) on Honda's 12th Indianapolis 500 victory in the last 14 years: "Indianapolis never fails to deliver an exciting event, and this was yet another year that will go down in Indy 500 lore. For Takuma Sato, this is redemption of a sort following his near-win in 2012, and he'll prove to be a popular champion for race fans everywhere. Unfortunately, not all of our cars made it to the finish today. We're grateful that Scott Dixon escaped serious injury in his crash. Mechanical failures took out two other leading contenders; however, that is sometimes the price that must be paid for gains in performance, and we clearly had speed all month, by any objective measurement. We definitely had some very well-performing engines in today's race, and are very pleased with taking four of the top five finishing positions, and our 12th Indy 500 win in last 14 years. Congratulations again to Takuma, the entire Andretti Autosport organization, and everyone at Honda Performance Development for a fantastic result."

Indianapolis 500

Circuit: Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2.5-mile oval), Indianapolis, IN 2016 Winner: Alexander Rossi (Andretti Autosport Honda) 166.634 mph average Weather: Mostly sunny at start, increasing clouds and wind gusts, 75 degrees F

Results:

Fn. St. Driver Team Manufacturer Laps Notes 1. 4. Takuma Sato Andretti Autosport Honda 200 155.395 mph average, led 17 laps 2. 19. Helio Castroneves Team Penske Chevrolet 200 +0.2011 seconds, led 9 laps 3. 11. Ed Jones-R Dale Coyne Racing Honda 200 Top rookie finisher 4. 15. Max Chilton Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 200 Led race-high 50 laps 5. 7. Tony Kanaan Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 200 Led 22 laps 6. 18. Juan Pablo Montoya Team Penske Chevrolet 200

7. 3. Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport Honda 200 Led 23 laps 8. 8. Marco Andretti Andretti Autosport Honda 200

9. 25. Gabby Chaves Harding Racing Chevrolet 200

10. 24. Carlos Munoz A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet 200

11. 2. Ed Carpenter Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 200

12. 14. Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda 200 Led 2 laps 13. 13. Mikhail Aleshin Schmidt Peterson Mtspts Honda 200

14. 23. Simon Pagenaud Team Penske Chevrolet 200

15. 31. Sebastian Saavedra Juncos-AFS Racing Chevrolet 200

16. 6. JR Hildebrand Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet 200

17. 28. Pippa Mann Dale Coyne Racing Honda 199 Running 18. 29. Spencer Pigot Juncos Racing Chevrolet 194 Running 19. 22. Josef Newgarden Team Penske Chevrolet 186 Running 20. 33. James Davison Dale Coyne Racing Honda 183 Did not finish  crash 21. 12. Oriol Servia Rahal Letterman Lanigan Honda 183 Did not finish  crash 22. 17. James Hinchcliffe Schmidt Peterson Mtspts Honda 183 Did not finish  crash 23. 9. Will Power Team Penske Chevrolet 183 Did not finish  crash 24. 5. Fernando Alonso McLaren Honda Andretti Honda 179 Did not finish  mechanical 25. 16. Charlie Kimball Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 166 Did not finish  mechanical 26. 32. Zach Veach-R A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet 155 Did not finish  mechanical 27. 10. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti Autosport Honda 136 Did not finish  mechanical 28. 21. Sage Karam Dreyr & Reinbold Racing Chevrolet 125 Did not finish  mechanical 29. 30. Buddy Lazier Lazier Racing Partners Chevrolet 118 Did not finish  crash 30. 26. Conor Daly A.J. Foyt Racing Chevrolet 65 Did not finish  crash 31. 27. Jack Harvey-R Michael Shank Racing Honda 65 Did not finish  crash 32. 1. Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing Honda 52 Did not finish  crash 33. 20. Jay Howard Schmidt Peterson Mtspts Honda 45 Did not finish  crash

R  Indy 500 Rookie

SOURCE Honda Racing/HPD
The U.S. Homeland Security chief says he's considering banning laptop computers from the passenger cabins of all international flights to and from the United States.

John Kelly says there are signs of a "real threat" against civilian aviation from carry-on electronic devices.

Speaking on the Fox News Sunday television program, Kelly said terrorists are "obsessed" with the idea of "knocking down an airplane in flight."


Lucknow, May 22 : Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati is scheduled to visit Shabbirpur village in Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, where a caste conflict had erupted in April and many Dalits were targeted.

She will drive down from Delhi to Saharanpur on Tuesday, a party leader said on Monday.

Zonal coordinator of BSP Naresh Gautam said the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister would be accompanied by party leaders Satish Chandra Mishra and Munqad Ali.

En route to the village in Saharanpur, she would also meet party workers at Mansoorpur, Maleera village and Rampur Tiraha. She would spend two hours with the victims and talk to them before returning to the national capital.

Informed sources said Mayawati's visit, the first of its kind in a long time, is owing to the recent inroads made by a regional Dalit outfit Bheem Army, which took up the caste conflict issue and had also held a demonstration at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.

The party has suffered huge electoral reverses in the 2014 parliamentary elections and the 2017 state assembly polls.
New Delhi : On May 29, the United States and the world will celebrate the 100th anniversary of John F. Kennedy's birth.

Tragically, President Kennedy, or JFK as he was known universally, did not live to see the ripe old age of 100 or even get close to it. He was assassinated on November 22, 1963 -- when he was only 46 years old -- as he sat with his wife Jackie in an open top convertible in a Dallas motorcade.

Kennedy's premature and horrific demise caused professor of history Robert Dallek to title his brilliant biography on JFK "An Unfinished Life". While Kennedy's life was unfinished, his legacy lives on through the works and lives of others.

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum is devoting one year to a centennial celebration of the President. On its website, the Library states, "John F. Kennedy's legacy is a vision of political action and public service based on courage, service, inclusion and innovation."

Let me highlight Kennedy's legacy in five areas: Public service, civil rights, peace & diplomacy, arts & culture, and science & innovation.

Public Service: In 1961, Kennedy established the Peace Corps to encourage mutual understanding between America and people of other nations and cultures. The Peace Corps thrives today. Since its inception, some 200,000 Peace Corps volunteers have served in over 139 countries.

Civil Rights: Kennedy advocated full legal equality for African Americans. A comprehensive Civil Rights Bill was drafted in the fall of 1963. It was passed after Kennedy's death as the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The civil rights movement moved forward from there, breaking barriers and tearing down walls.

Peace & Diplomacy: In October 1963, Kennedy signed a Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty among the US, Russia and Great Britain. Thirty-three years later, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty signed by 71 nations. President Clinton signed it but the Senate rejected it by a vote of 51 to 48.

Arts & Culture: JFK's effect as a leader for arts and culture in the US is unparalleled and unmatched. During his presidency, he took the lead in raising funds for a National Cultural Museum. After his assassination, Congress designated the National Cultural Museum as a "living memorial" to Kennedy. In 2017, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is one of the foremost venues of its type in the world. The Kennedy Center exemplifies the legacy of our country. He reminded us when he said: "Art nourishes the roots of our culture."

Science and Innovation: As part of the space race against Russia, in 1961 Kennedy called upon the nation to commit to the ambitious goal of landing a man on the moon by the end of the decade. On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American to travel in space. In February of 1962, astronaut and future Senator John Glenn orbited the earth. On July 20, 1969, the Apollo 11 crew set foot on the moon and came back safely. America's record in exploring the galaxy has grown exponentially since then.

In addition to his accomplishments and legacy in these areas, President Kennedy also had a substantial and positive influence on relations between the US and India and on religious tolerance and ecumenism.

During his presidency, he sent two of the US' top thought leaders, John Kenneth Galbraith and Chester Bowles, to India as ambassadors. His wife Jacqueline visited India and Pakistan in March 1962.

Most importantly, in terms of economic development, he ensured a commitment of nearly $1 billion annually in aid to India -- the largest amount for any nation at that time. Important US projects in India, in addition to food aid, included IIT Kanpur fashioned after MIT, Nagarjuna Sagar Dam in Andhra Pradesh; and the Premier automobile factory in Mumbai.

Finally, even though he was a practising Catholic, Kennedy held all religions in high regard. In speaking before the Protestant Council of New York City in November 1963, he said, "The family of man is not limited to a single race or religion, to a single city, or country... the family of man is nearly three billion strong. Most of its members are not white and most of them are not Christian."

President Kennedy went on to say, "The members of this family should be at peace with one another."

I remember those words of President Kennedy as we approach his centenary anniversary. I also remember the words from Camelot, the Broadway musical of his era:

Don't let it be forgot

That once there was a spot

For one brief shining moment that was known

As Camelot

President Kennedy brought America its Camelot. By remembering him and his legacy now -- perhaps it will be possible to bring that once upon a time spot and shining moment back again.

(Frank Islam is an Indian-American entrepreneur, philanthropist and thought leader. He is on the Board of Trustees of the Kennedy Center. The views expressed are personal. He can be contacted at ffislam@verizon.net)
Washington, May 27 : Donald Trump had set out to make history on his first sojourn as President of the United States. But pundits of the left had other things on their mind -- Russia, Russia, Russia!

The brash billionaire, who had once proclaimed that "Islam hates us", received a red carpet welcome "beyond anything anyone has seen" in Saudi Arabia, the land of Islam's birth.

Calling it "a battle between good and evil" he had without mincing words asked leaders of 50 Muslim nations to confront the "crisis of Islamic extremism" and drive terrorists out of their "holy land" and out "of this earth".

Then on an upbeat visit to Israel, Trump had in his quest for the "ultimate peace deal" implored both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas to put aside the "pain and disagreements of the past".

Ending frosty ties with the Vatican, he also had a "cordial" meeting with Pope Francis as they discussed cooperation on "health care, education and assistance to immigrants" with Trump focusing on "extreme terrorism threats".

But in no hurry to temper his confrontational style, the "America First" President who had once declared NATO "obsolete" and then "no longer obsolete", also asked stony faced allies in Brussels to pay up their fair share.

As many as 23 of the 28 NATO members owed "massive amounts" from past years, Trump complained even as he vowed that "we will never forsake the friends who stood by our side" after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the US.

He faced more clashes at his first summit of G-7 rich nation's club in Italy as they discussed contentious issues of climate change, trade and immigration. but agreed to hear them out before finally deciding to pull out or not from the Paris climate accord.

But to the "fake news media", as the President loves to call his left-liberal detractors, Trump might have been playing hooky as they diligently kept barking up the Russian tree.

They went to town with Obama's CIA Director John Brennan telling a House panel that "worried by a number of contacts that the Russians had" with Trump associates he had alerted FBI as early as the summer of 2016.

He had even warned the top Russian spy that Moscow's meddling in US presidential elections would damage US-Russia relationship, claimed Brennan. But he did not say what he and other American spooks did to stop Russia.

The media also buried way down in their stories Brennan's acknowledgment that he did not see any proof of "collusion" between Trump associates and Russia before he left on inauguration day in January.

Pundits also crowed about a Washington Post story that two intelligence chiefs had declined as "inappropriate" Trump's call to publicly deny that his team had colluded with Russia.

But when spymaster Daniel Coats told a Congressional panel that as the President's top intelligence adviser, he could not talk about his conversations with the boss, they were quick to suggest that he had not "denied the story."

And the day Trump asked NATO allies to pay up, talking heads were still going gaga over a Post story about his son-in-law and key adviser Jared Kushner being under FBI scrutiny for his post-election meetings with the Russian ambassador.

Even as they acknowledged that Kushner was not a suspect or accused of any wrong doing, some suggested that the Russia probe had reached too close to the White House for Trump's comfort.

And when in response to outrage in Britain over "deeply troubling" US intelligence leaks of Manchester bombing probe, Trump vowed to "get to the bottom of this", the New York Times offered a cheeky response.

"Is there something particularly American about leaking? Some national allergy to protecting government secrets?" asked the beneficiary of spilled secrets.

"Yes, in fact there is," it asserted. "And whether you denounce that as a dangerous trait or accept it as an underpinning of democracy it is unlikely to change."

Meanwhile, with protests going up by a massive 30 per cent since Trump's inauguration, another "leak" industry is flush in the capital with port-a-potty major "Gotta Go Now" reporting a 40 percent growth in revenue.

But it's time pundits let the Russia story go unless they want to keep playing into Vladimir Putin's hands!

(Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in)
Imphal, May 27 : People across sections in the northeastern states are more or less unanimous in their opinion that enforcement of the cattle slaughter rules issued by the central government on Friday will have little or no impact in the region.

In a bid to regulate the hitherto unregulated cattle trade, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre issued a notification which bans sale of cattle, including cows, bulls, buffaloes, camels, heifers, calves and camels, for slaughter through animal markets.

Speaking about the new rules, A. Romenkumar, an Advocate and former Additional Director General of Police, told IANS that those opposing the ban on cattle slaughter may cite the right to food guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution.

"But the same Constitution also ensures the right to life. The Supreme Court had ruled in a 2014 case that all forms of animal life are included in the expanded meaning of 'life', as enumerated under the Article 21 of the Constitution."

Referring to irregularities by abattoirs, Romenkumar said: "Clause (i) of the Police Act, 1861 says that slaughterhouses should possess a licence and a veterinarian should certify the quality of the meat... Clause (ii) says that there shall be no cruelty, inhuman torture of the animals...

"During my stint as a police officer, several abattoirs and meat shops in and around Imphal city were closed, as they did not possess licence or health certificate from veterinarians."

Nimaichand Luwang, a former minister who had unsuccessfully contested the March 2016 assembly elections on a BJP ticket, said: "The ban (new rules) can never be implemented in Manipur where there are Christians, Muslims and others, who relish meat. Vaishnavite Hindus constitute only a small percentage of the population. The move will be counter-productive for the BJP."

Advocate and human rights activist Khaidem Mani asserted: "The meat ban cannot be enforced in Manipur. One state has already registered a strong protest and Manipur may follow suit."

L. Haokip, who has been slaughtering cattle for selling meat in the market in Churachandpur district, said: "Our forefathers were hunters and we kill cows and buffaloes for meat on all festive occasions and for day-to-day sale. The new rules are something incomprehensible."

Brajamani Sharma, a devout Vaishnavite, said: "Personally, I have no objection to meat eating by others. But cruel ceremonial killings of trussed buffaloes by dancing tribals, who pierce the helpless animals with spears, is something reprehensible and it must be stopped."

All tribal markets in Manipur sell beef, venison and other kinds of meat, including that of migratory birds, every day. Even the meat of wild animals is on sale.

Similar is the scenario in other states like Mizoram, Meghalaya and Nagaland.

According to the law enforcers, "there's not much we can do" towards implementing the new rules.

Officials of the police and forest departments said that apart from the fact that slaughtering of animals has been a tribal tradition for generations in the region, there is a only a skeleton government staff in the hill areas and police personnel have not been issued even the necessary firearms.

(Iboyaima Laithangbam can be reached at imphalreport@gmail.com)
Gandhinagar, May 28 : With a vast untapped potential in agriculture, African countries are keen to gain from India's experiences, including the "green revolution", to bring about a transformation and enable their 420 million poor people to come out of poverty.

Africa is estimated to have 65 percent of world's uncultivated land but only about 10 percent of global food output.

African Development Bank (AfDB) officials said after their annual meeting here last week that its focus on "transforming agriculture to create wealth" has sparked interest among a vast section, including youth, researchers and the private sector to treat agriculture as a business.

The meeting boosted Africa's partnership with India in agriculture as also in several other areas, including infrastructure, electricity generation, skill development and healthcare.

Officials said that AfDB will invest $24 billion in African agriculture in the next 10 years and the sector is estimated to generate $1 trillion in business by 2030.

Chiji Ojukwu, Director, Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department, AfDB, said that India experienced a "green revolution" using improved seed varieties and best agronomic practices, and was able to lift large sections of its population out of poverty -- and Africa has a lot to learn from India in order to achieve similar success.

"We can leapfrog, taking advantage of the successes of India, to borrow their technologies and to bring Indian experts to assist Africa," Ojukwu told IANS.

He said India has made advances in irrigation solutions, milk production, cooling and processing, in solar for generating power for agriculture and Information and Communication Technology.

"African companies and governments can collaborate with Indian agricultural systems and companies to bring these experiences to Africa, to help Africa achieve its agricultural transformation, and lift its 420 million that live on less than $1.25 a day out of poverty," he said.

Indian officials said that AfDB's five key priority areas -- Light Up and Power Africa, Feed Africa, Industrialise Africa, Integrate Africa and Improve quality of life for the people of Africa -- had similarity to some of the thrust areas of the Narendra Modi government.

They said that Industrialise Africa is similar to the Make in India initiative and Light Up and Power Africa to the government's goal of electricity for all and its efforts to boost renewable energy.

They said that Africa and India had several commonalities in terms of a shared history, challenges as also demographics, with youth comprising over 60 percent of the population.

Indian companies have been investing in Africa in areas such as telecommunications, hydrocarbon exploration, IT, education, water treatment, petroleum refining, retail, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, coal, automobiles, floriculture and engineering.

India is also pursuing long-term arrangements for supply of agricultural products, specially pulses. Its cooperation with Africa is demand-driven and free of conditions.

Former Foreign Secretary Shashank said India should move much more strongly in Africa.

"India is seen as an alternative to Chinese investment and the kind of conditionalities being imposed on African countries either by the international institutions or Western countries," Shashank, who was at the conference, told IANS.

He said India can increase its exports to African countries.

"In many cases, we find that our exports are not that competitive but in Africa we can try to make our exports more competitive. Already our bilateral rade has gone fairly high," he said.

Africa-India trade was estimated at $56 billion in 2015-16, accounting for about 10 percent of India's total trade.

Shahank said it was "very significant" that the AfDB meeting was held in India for the first time. The five-day annual meeting of AfDB was attended by 54 African members and 27 non-regional member-countries of the organisation. It came almost 18 months after India hosted the third India Africa Forum Summit in New Delhi which was attended by all 54 African countries.

He said it will also help neutralise any negative perception about isolated incidents that had cropped up between the African students in India and the local community.

He also welcomed the Asia-Africa corridor supported by India and Japan, saying the two countries can do quite well in Africa by going together.

"India has that political acceptability, goodwill is there. India goes there, people are happy. Japan's technology, its finances, Indian fiances and technology and its technical expertise, if they go together, they can do quite well in Africa," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his inaugural address, had said that Africa was a top priority for his government's foreign and economic policy.

(Prashant Sood can be contacted at prashant.s@ians.in)
New Delhi, May 28 : Activities of "gau rakshaks" (cow vigilantes) or views of Hindutva organisations like the RSS should not be taken as the policy of the Narendra Modi government for whom the Constitution is Bible, says Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan.

If one has to analyse the performance of the Modi government, then it has to be done on the basis of what it has achieved and not by "elements and atmospherics outside", Paswan told IANS over telephone from London in a chat on three years of the government.

Paswan, who is London for a medical check-up relating to a problem of occasional breathlessness, has dismissed criticism by detractors that the Muslim community has been pushed to the status of second-class citizens.

"Muslims have faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi because he has said the only religion for him is the Constitution which provides for equality and a life of honour and dignity for all communities irrespective of the religion.

"Modi talks only of development. He never talks of religion, article 370, Babri masjid or Ram janambhumi," Paswan added.

Even on triple talaq, the government has said that it will only implement what the Supreme Court would say in its judgment. "We have only said that we will protect the rights of Muslim women in consonance with what the court says in its judgment."

Asked about the activities of Hindutva fringe elements like the gau rakshaks, who were involved in incidents in which people have been killed for allegedly transporting cows for slaughter, the minister demanded that the state governments act tough against such elements "who break the law in the name of cow protection."

He said that the Centre has made it clear that there will be no goondaism allowed in the name of gau rakshaks.

To a question about views of organisations like he RSS and other outfits on sensitive issues, Paswan said if RSS says something in accordance with its policies then it does not mean they are the policies of the government.

"Even my own party, Lok Jansakti Party, has got its own manifesto and views on issues like Dalits, Muslims and backward classes. Everyone has the right to say what he wants to say. But what is important is what the government does.

"The Modi government has not said or done anything that can be called as discrimination against one religion or community," he asserted.

Paswan maintained that the last three years have been a golden era for the country with Modi providing decisive leadership which has rescued the economy and brought back macro-economic stability.

"In Britain whoever you talk to has only admiration and respect for the Indian government. Modi has been described as bold leader who is prepared to take risks like the demonetisation undertaken last year," he said.

Paswan, whose portfolio of consumer affairs has been temporarily given to Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh, plans to return home early next month after check-ups.

(V.S. Chandrasekar can be contacted at chandru.v@ians.in)
Iran's Supreme Leader has said that Saudi Arabia is a "cow being milked" by the United States.

A Saturday report by the semi-official Fars news agency quotes Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as saying that Saudi Arabia trades its wealth with "pagans and enemies."

"The stupid Saudi government thinks it can attract the friendship of enemies by giving them money," said Khamenei. Khamenei added that bastion of Islam Saudi Arabia is "cruel toward believers and kind toward pagans."

President Donald Trump signed a $110 billion weapons deal with Saudi Arabia during his visit to kingdom last week.

Majority Shiite Iran and predominantly Sunni Saudi Arabia support opposite sites in the conflicts in Syria, Yemen and elsewhere in the Middle East.


Thiruvananthapuram, May 28 : Pitching for a candidate with secular credentials the presidential poll, the CPI on Sunday said the Delhi meeting of opposition parties to discuss a joint candidate could well be the beginning of a joint front against the BJP.

"The time has come to move with a united programme against the Bharatiya Janata Party. We see meeting in Delhi when leaders of these parties discussed a consensus presidential candidate as the beginning," said CPI General Secretary S. Sudhakar Reddy, on a visit to Kerala capital to participate in party meetings.

The Communist Party of India is the second biggest constituent of the ruling Left Democratic Front, after the CPI-M.

Reddy said it was good to know that BJP President Amit Shah is speaking about a consensus candidate.

"But we do not know how much weight Shah carries, as everything is decided by (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi. We are open if a person with secular credentials is put up. We will wait for 15-20 days to hear from the BJP. If nothing happens, we could well make the next move to field a candidate. We can look for others willing to join this move," the CPI leader said.

Reddy flayed the Modi government on the BJP's poll promise of creating two crore new jobs every year. "By their own admission, all they say is that only 1.40 crore jobs have been created in three years," he said.

"The Kashmir issue has turned from bad to worse during this period -- unrest is growing. Judiciary is getting suffocated, democracy has been scuttled in Manipur and Goa, and a recent rule change in the guise of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals...," Reddy said.

He said the resurfacing of the beef issue has been done as part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's agenda.

On Friday, opposition parties led by the Congress held discussions in Delhi on the presidential poll. Leaders of the Janata Dal-United, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, DMK, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Trinamool Congress, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Kerala Congress, Indian Union Muslim League, CPI-M, CPI, All India United Democratic Front, Revolutionary Socialist Party, and Janata Dal-Secular were among those who attended.
Kolkata, May 29 : Criticising West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for not approaching the Centre for the state development when necessary, the state Congress leadership on Monday claimed that her recent meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not solely for Bengal's sake.

"Any Chief Minister can meet the Prime Minister. But I refuse to believe that her meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi was solely for the sake of Bengal's development," state Congress chief Adhir Chowdhury told reporters.

"If Banerjee was so concerned about the development of Bengal she should have attended the Niti Aayog and the Inter-State Council meetings. She should have also gone to Delhi before the budget session to ask for better budgetary allocations for the state but she hasn't," he claimed.

Referring to Banerjee's meeting with Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Chowdhury claimed that there is no discord between the party's state and central leadership.

"There is no discord between the central and state leadership of Congress. It is a separate issue who is talking to who in Delhi. The meeting does not mean that we cannot talk against Mamata Banerjee in Bengal," he claimed.

The Congress leader said that it is not just Banerjee but 17 opposition parties have come together recently to discuss about a favourable candidate in the upcoming presidential elections.

"The fight within Bengal's political premises is a separate issue from the dialogues between the two parties at the centre," he said.

Chowdhury also announced that the state Congress would organise a protest rally in the city against the policies of the central and the state government on July 12, terming the state government's claims of several achievements in the last one year as "immaterial and hollow".
Berlin, May 30 : Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Germany, attended a private dinner hosted by German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday, soon after he arrived in Berlin.

"The bonds of a fruitful partnership. Chancellor Merkel receives PM @narendramodi at Schloss Meseberg before a private dinner," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay tweeted along with pictures of the two leaders.

Schloss Meseberg, around 65 km from Berlin, is the country retreat of the German Chancellor and the official state guest house of the German government.

Earlier on Monday, Modi arrived in Berlin on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Europe.

Modi is accompanied by Minister for Science and Technology Harsh Vardhan, Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Seetharaman and Minister of State for External Affairs M.J. Akbar.

On Tuesday, Modi and Merkel will head the fourth round of the biannual Inter-Governmental Consultations. Germany is the only country with which India has such an arrangement. Both the leaders will then address the India-Germany Business Summit.

Later, Modi will call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

From Germany, Modi will travel to Spain, Russia and France.
Credico UKs Annual Gala Raises 35,000 for Deserving Causes Through both the silent auction and the casino, Credico UK was thrilled to raise 15,000 for Railway Children

Credico UK recently held an Annual Awards Gala in Mayfair, London, with over 400 delegates from the sales and marketing industry in attendance, the event was a welcome celebration of the sectors growth and an opportunity for professionals to share their experiences of the previous 12 months in business.

About Credico UK: http://www.credico.com/

Through their field marketing services, Credico UK works closely with a number of charities and non-profit organisations to help them generate wider awareness and secure consistent funding. As such it was important to Credico UK to make this years event much more than an industry celebration and utilise it as an opportunity to help deserving causes across the globe.

Opening the event, Credico UK was honoured to be able to present 10,000 to the National Deaf Childrens Society (NDCS), an organisation that is working to create a world without barriers for deaf children and young people. They also donated a further 10,000 to The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB)- a leading force in providing practical and emotional support to people affected by sight loss.

The funds raised during the Gala were donated to Railway Children, a charity that provides protection and an opportunity for children in the UK, India and East Africa with nowhere else to go and nobody to turn to. Every year, thousands of children find themselves in unbearable situations and Railway Children is working both on the ground and in communities to meet the immediate needs of these at-risk children.

Throughout the Gala, Credico UK ran a silent auction with all the proceeds going to Railway Children. Delegates were encouraged to bid on a wide range of special prizes. A significant amount was also raised through the Galas Casino, which brought the evenings festivities to a close.

Through both the silent auction and the casino, Credico UK was thrilled to raise 15,000 for Railway Children. Speaking after the event, Anuradha Chandran, Head of Corporate Partnerships, from Railway Children stated The money that you have donated tonight will change children's lives for good. The amount raised could support 250 families in East Africa trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty. Without enough to eat, their children run away from home in search of food and end up on the streets where they face violence, abuse and exploitation every day. Railway Children can provide these families with the tools and training needed to start bio-intensive farming on their own land. Then, with enough to eat, and even some surplus to sell, the family can face a safer, stronger future - together.
The West Palm Beach population can have specific glass repair issues that other Florida cities dont normally deal with

Express Glass & Board Up, an expert sliding glass door service in West Palm Beach, is proud to announce a new posting schedule to better serve Floridas historic home community. The company is announcing ambitious new blog posts focused on West Palm Beach glass repair issues, just in time for the busy summer 'do it yourself' season.

The West Palm Beach population can have specific glass repair issues that other Florida cities dont normally deal with, commented Yaniet Santos, General Manager of Express Glass. For instance, many districts have historical homes that need special care and attention, including windows and sliding glass doors. We want to serve residents in the best possible way by getting out information to their specific glass problems quickly. Our new commitment to blogging for summer, 2017, makes an exciting bookmark for area residents hungry for up-to-date tips circa 2017.

To keep up with the new blog posts, area residents are urged to visit the West Palm Beach informational page at http://www.expressglassfl.com/west-palm-beach-glass-window-repair/. There, they can bookmark the location, and/or click up to the company's lively blog. Look for new posts in May, 2017, with a focus on tips and tricks for glass repair. Information about patio door repair, window glass replacement and upgrading windows to hurricane resistant glass can also be found. Another good way for area residents to browse posts in this series is to bookmark, http://www.expressglassfl.com/blog/tag/west-palm-beach/, which focuses on West Palm Beach issues.

Sliding Glass Door Repair in West Palm Beach has Made History

Florida may be known as a vacation destination to many, but it is also a place of historical monuments and special residences. People looking to view the best in Mediterranean revival-style homes can visit the El Cid neighborhood in West Palm Beach. The homes can be a great source of pride for homeowners in the West Palm Beach area. Special attention and great care may have to be used in order to maintain the beauty of a revival-style bungalow. Maintenance can include frequent care of window glass and patio doors. Outside sliding glass door repair services may not have the tools or skills to properly care for a broken window in a historical home. A unique home may require a glass technician sporting specialized skills to handle sliding glass door repair properly.

Express Glass & Board Up has recently announced an upgrade to the sites blog posting schedule. Extraordinary neighborhoods such as El Cid and Grandview Heights can require special information about sliding glass door repair. Revival-style homes may have to retain specific standards yet require modern glass repair technology. Types of glass such as high-impact glass, plate glass and wired glass may prove to help maintain the safety of a cherished historical home. Homeowners may also have questions about fixing, replacing and cleaning windows. A more robust blog posting schedule for sliding glass door repair in West Palm Beach can help get answers out quicker. Residents may be proud of living in an uncommon historical home. Locals can also be certain to find an exceptional glass repair service to match.

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Sources told Voice of America on Friday that the Nimitz has completed 27 months of maintenance and test operations and will depart from a naval base in Bremerton in Washington state on Thursday. It will join other vessels in the carrier group in San Diego, California and head out to the western Pacific.

The USS Nimitz will join two other supercarriers, the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Ronald Reagan in a rare show of overwhelming force.

The U.S. is sending another aircraft carrier strike force to the western Pacific region as a warning to North Korea to halt its missile and nuclear programs.

But the destination of the armada is unclear. Japan's Asahi Shimbun reported Saturday that the Nimitz was originally scheduled to be deployed to the Middle East but the destination was moved to the western Pacific for a six-month stint in order to respond to the "changing international political situation."

But a government source here said, "The Nimitz is passing through the western Pacific on its way to the Middle East and is not expected to reach waters off the Korean Peninsula."

The Vinson armada, which has been participating in naval drills with the South Korean Navy for a month since arriving in late April, is to pass the baton to the Regan strike group once the Nimitz group arrives in the western Pacific.

The Reagan sailed from a naval base in Yokoska, Japan earlier this month following four months of repairs. The Vinson and Regan are to conduct a dual-carrier training exercise on the East Sea early next month.

A diplomatic source said, "The Regan strike group will enter waters off the Korean Peninsula, not through the Korea Strait as usual but through the Tsugaru Strait" south of Japan's Hokkaido Island. "This will add more pressure on North Korea to halt its provocations."

Another source at the U.S.-South Korean Combined Forces Command said the Reagan armada will head to Australia after the exercise.


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DAVENPORT  Sept. 18, 6:45 p.m.

The date and time are not memories for Rod Becker. He learned the details after the fact.

Mr. Becker and his wife, Kathy, were walking around Vander Veer Botanical Park in Davenport only a block from their home. They were crossing Harrison Street when a car going about 35 miles per hour struck both of them

Rod Becker suffered life-threatening injuries.

I don't remember any of this," he said. "I always walked closest to the traffic, but Kathy got hit, too. I was up on the cars windshield. Kathy looked like she went 10 rounds with Mike Tyson.

Mr. Becker, 55, sustained a traumatic brain injury and was in a coma. He was airlifted to University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City where he was diagnosed with a skull fracture, bleeding in his brain and a blood clot.

The day after the accident, his wife, his son, Zachary, and his niece, Gillian, a nurse, heard a frank, disheartening prognosis.

The doctors said he might not ever wake from the semi-coma, he may never recover from the brain injury, or he may need months of inpatient rehabilitation and still might not gain full function," Kathy Becker recalled. It was a frightening conversation. We didnt know what to expect."

Slowly, Mr. Becker regained consciousness. The pressure on his brain from swelling gradually was reduced.

After 12 days at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, he was transferred to the inpatient rehabilitation unit at Genesis Medical Center, West Central Park, in Davenport. University of Iowa Hospitals often transfer rehabilitation patients to the inpatient rehabilitation unit, one of the largest in Iowa.

I thought I was ready to go on about the second day in rehabilitation, Mr. Becker said. I thought I was fine.

"The treatments were tough," he said. "I had no idea what was in front of me.

Mr. Becker spent 15 days in the Genesis inpatient rehabilitation program, working at least three hours per day on improving his balance, being aware of deficits and increasing his ability to engage in familiar daily tasks and work-related tasks.

After being discharged from the inpatient unit, he began extensive outpatient therapies  including physical, speech therapy and occupational  at Genesis Physical Therapy at Devils Glen in Bettendorf.

For three months  four days a week, 6 1/2 hours a day  Mr. Becker participated in the Learning Independence For Tomorrow (LIFT) program to regain cognitive skills.

It was a lot more than I expected and harder than what I had expected," Mr. Becker said. "Some days I didnt want to go at all."

Through neurofeedback treatments, powerful non-invasive rehabilitation that retrains the brain through exercises to improve function. It's a common treatment for people who have suffered a traumatic brain injury.

Where he started (compared) to where he is today is amazing," Kathy Becker said. He would not be where he is had he not done all of the therapies.

"He wanted to be done, but his own stubbornness motivated him to keep going."

His rehabilitation included an outing to his workplace to determine his readiness to perform his duties directing 35 employees as manager of Roberts Buffet at Rhythm City Hotel and Casino. Members of his rehabilitation team also went to his workplace with him to explore what his job required on a daily basis. They looked for ways to change how he had previously completed tasks and gave him aid when he returned to work.

He had one more major motivator: He wanted to drive again. He believed driving was one of the remaining hurdles to full recovery.

It was the longest 45 minutes Ive ever spent driving a car," he said.

"She (the rehabilitation driving instructor) talked the entire time we were driving," he recalled. She was doing it on purpose ... trying to distract me and see if I was ready to safely drive again."

On Friday, Mr. Becker was honored by the Quad Cities River Bandits through the team's Home Runs for Life program.

All I can say is to get all the help you can, keep fighting and rely on the people around you to help you," Mr. Becker said. "Kathy was there for me the entire way and kept me going when I might have otherwise quit. And the people at Rhythm City have been fantastic the whole way supporting me."

The Genesis physical rehabilitation inpatient unit at Genesis Medical Center, West Central Park, serves people of all ages experiencing a physical disability and/or cognitive impairment. The 39-bed comprehensive inpatient program and the the LIFT program are accredited by CARF, the Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission, for brain injury, spinal cord injury, stroke and comprehensive rehab. An inter-disciplinary team of rehabilitation professionals works together to provide services individually designed for each patient's unique needs.

For more details, visit genesishealth.com/rehabilitation.
Today is Monday, May 29, the 149th day of 2017. There are 216 days left in the year.

1867  150 years ago: THE ARGUS suggested that the city purchase a steam fire engine, with businessmen paying part and the city appropriating the balance.

1892  125 years ago: L.C. Blanding was elected temporary chairman of a group which planned to organize a young mens Democrat club.

1917  100 years ago: Ivy and Louise Burt had leading parts in a play presented by the senior girls of St. Josephs School.

1942  75 years ago: Frank Vicroy, executive secretary of the Rock Island Community Chest, resigned to enter the Army.

1967  50 years ago: Sirens sounded, three huge letters J, F and K lighted up and Caroline Kennedy today christened a huge aircraft cattier the USS John F. Kennedy, named for her martyred father.

1992  25 years ago: The Stars and Stripes soon will fly year round in Sherrards village park, thank to an anonymous donor and Trustee Treva Pierson. Ms. Pierson told the village board Monday night that the research is almost completed for the plan to create an avenue of flags in Sherrard. Fourteen galvanized poles and 14 American Flags will be purchased for a cost of about $700, she said. In March, an anonymous donor offered the village a gift of $5,000 to establish an avenue of flags.
Samsung will launch its Galaxy S8 in Japan early next month. The electronics giant initially released the new premium smartphone in about 150 countries at the end of April. Japan is the last country in which it is being rolled out.

Apple's iPhone has a strong grip on the Japanese smartphone market, with a more than 50 percent share, compared to a mere 3.4 percent for Samsung, which ranks fifth after Sony, Fujitsu, and Sharp. Samsung hopes to start turning this around with the release of the Galaxy S8.
WASHINGTON (AP)  President Donald Trump is considering overhauling his White House staff and bringing back top campaign strategists, frustrated by what he views as his team's inability to contain the burgeoning crisis involving alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Expanding teams of lawyers and experienced public relations hands are being recruited to deal with the drumbeat of new revelations about Moscow's interference and possible improper dealings with the Trump campaign and associates. The disclosures dogged the president during his first trip abroad since taking office and threaten to overwhelm and stall the agenda for his young administration.

As he mulls outside reinforcements to his operation, Trump returned late Saturday from his nine-day journey to a White House seemingly in crisis mode, with a barrage of reports hitting close to the Oval Office and involving Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and influential adviser.

A rally planned Thursday in Iowa was postponed due to "an unforeseen change" in Trump's schedule.

After maintaining a limited social media presence throughout his trip, Trump on Sunday unleashed a furious flurry of tweets, lashing out at what he called the "fake news" media. He focused heavily on leaks  both those coming out of the White House and an intelligence leak blamed on Americans about this week's deadly bombing at a concert in England.

On the bombing investigation Trump said: "British Prime Minister May was very angry that the info the U.K. gave to U.S. about Manchester was leaked. Gave me full details!"

Trump also said that "many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies." He added that it is "very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers."

Even when authorized, however, top officials in the Trump White House frequently request anonymity to brief reporters "on background," meaning their names will not be disclosed.

The latest reports in the Russia matter said Kushner spoke with Russia's ambassador to the United States about setting up secret communications with Moscow during the presidential transition.

While overseas, Trump's longtime lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, joined a still-forming legal team to help the president shoulder the intensifying investigations into Russian interference in the election and his associates' potential involvement. More attorneys with deep experience in Washington investigations are expected to be added, along with crisis communication experts, to help the White House in the weeks ahead.

"They need to quarantine this stuff and put the investigations in a separate communications operation," said Jack Quinn, who served as White House counsel for President Bill Clinton.

During the Monica Lewinsky investigation, the Clinton White House brought on a dedicated group of lawyers and a created a separate media operation to handle investigation-related inquiries so they didn't completely subsume the president's agenda.

Trump, according to one person familiar with his thinking, believed he was facing more of a communications problem than a legal one, despite the intensifying inquiries. The person, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss private conversations.

As he mulls changes, Trump has entertained bringing his former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and former deputy campaign manager, David Bossie, formally back into the fold. Both Lewandowski and Bossie discussed the prospect with the president before his trip, according to one person told of the conversations.

Lewandowski's return would be a particularly notable development, given the fact that he was fired by Trump after clashing with staff and Trump's adult children. Nonetheless, Lewandowski has the trust of the president  an advantage that many of Trump's aides lack.

Trump called his maiden trip abroad a "home run," but while the White House had hoped it would serve as a reset, attention on the Russia probe has only increased.

Recently appointed special counsel Robert Mueller, a former FBI director, is starting off an investigation with a broad mandate that will allow him to probe both the possible Russian influence and whether Trump attempted to obstruct the investigation by firing FBI Director James Comey.

Comey is expected to testify before Congress after Memorial Day about memos he kept on conversations with the president that pertained to the investigation.

The White House also grappled with reports that Kushner proposed setting up a secret back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team during a December meeting. Kushner spoke with Sergey Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the U.S., about creating the secret line to make it easier to hold sensitive discussions about the conflict in Syria, according to a person familiar with the discussions.

The back channel was meant to connect Michael Flynn, who later became Trump's first national security adviser, with Russian military leaders, said the person, who wasn't authorized to publicly discuss private policy considerations and spoke on condition of anonymity. Flynn was fired in February, officials saying he misled Vice President Mike Pence about whether he and the ambassador had discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia in a phone call.

Before departing Italy for the U.S., White House officials refused to address the reports about Kushner. But they did not dismiss the idea that the administration would go outside normal U.S. government and diplomatic channels for communications with other countries.

Other major issues await Trump at home. He has signaled he will make a decision on whether to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. And the search continues for an FBI director to replace Comey.

On the policy front, he must defend his budget plan, and the Republican health care bill that narrowly passed the House faces an uncertain future in the Senate. On that topic, Trump tweeted Sunday night: "I suggest that we add more dollars to Healthcare and make it the best anywhere. ObamaCare is dead  the Republicans will do much better!"

Trump also has to decide soon on a Pentagon recommendation to add more U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, as well as boosting reinforcement for the beleaguered Afghan military.

While taxes have taken a back seat in recent weeks, Trump tweeted Sunday: "The massive TAX CUTS/REFORM that I have submitted is moving along in the process very well, actually ahead of schedule. Big benefits to all!"
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Oldest Russian management company declared bankrupt in Moscow

MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI)  The Moscow Commercial Court had declared Pallada Asset Management, oldest management company in Russia, bankrupt, RAPSI learnt in the court on Monday.

The company, founded in 1996, is an acting manager of retirement savings for a non-state pension fund (NPF) Mechel-Fund. The court has found that there are indications of the organizations bankruptcy because its accumulated debt is larger than the amount of financial assets at its disposal.

In the summer of 2016, the Central Bank revoked the companys license for management of investment funds, mutual funds, and non-state pension funds. All mutual funds opened before and during the procedure of bankruptcy are to be transferred to a special deposit account of Rosbank.
Russian fieldstone manufacturers ex-owner appeals detention in case on abuse of office

MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI, Lyudmila Klenko) - Ex-owner of Russias fieldstone manufacturer Pavlovskgranit, Sergey Poymanov, who stands charged with abuse of office resulted in a 930 million ruble damage (about $16.5 million) to a managing company, has filed an appeal against his detention, Moscows Presnensky District Courts spokesperson Anastasia Pylina told RAPSI on Monday.

The court has earlier ruled to place Poymanov in jail until July 7.

Reportedly, Poymanov stripped share of Pavlovskgranit-Invest managing company in the capital of PNH Limited in 2011. As a result, the managing companys equity stake initially decreased from 100 to 40 percent, and then to 1 percent.

Later, the businessman allegedly ordered the head of Pavlovskgranit-Invest to sign a contract with Rosgranit company on the sale of 150 railway vehicles worth 257.3 million rubles ($4.5 million). However, the sum was not paid in full and Pavlovskgranit-Invest therefore lost 170 million rubles ($3 million). General damage caused to the company was estimated at 930 million rubles, according to Kommersant newspaper.

Moreover, Poymanov is involved in a criminal case over resale of a batch plant in the city of Voronezh that led to a damage amounting to 10 million rubles ($177,300).

As previously reported, in November 2016, the U.S. company PPF Manegment LLC filed a lawsuit with the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of Poymanov and his ex-wife Irina Podgornaya seeking to collect $750 million from Russias Sberbank, Sberbank CEO German Gref, Promsvyazbank and several other individuals and companies. The plaintiffs demanded $500 million in compensation for the loss of control over Pavlovskgranit and $250 million in compensation for moral damages.

The Moscow Commercial Court declared Poymanov bankrupt on July 21, 2016. Pavlovskgranit-Invest managing company was declared bankrupt 4 years earlier.
A documentary about former President Roh Moo-hyun drew a record 78,737 viewers on opening day last Thursday and is being screened in 579 theaters across the country.

"Our President" is being distributed by CGV Arthouse, a subsidiary of CJ-owned theater chain CGV, and 42 percent of the 579 screens belong to CGV.

The conglomerate defended itself against accusations that it is pandering to new President Moon Jae-in, who was Roh's right-hand man, by choosing to open the film on such a scale.

Another Roh-inspired film, "The Attorney," also attracted big crowds at the time of its CGV release in 2013 but landed CJ in hot water with Cheong Wa Dae, which tried to pressure the food and media conglomerate to fire those responsible, apparently because President Park Geun-hye had been irked by the film's progressive slant.

"We didn't suddenly decide to distribute the film just before the presidential election in May," a CGV spokesman said.

Director Lee Chang-jae said, "We decided to make the documentary in April last year, but we faced a lot of difficulties until it was finally released this year. If we couldn't find theaters, we were going to distribute the film on the Internet."

He thanked the millions who took part in candlelight protests last autumn and winter calling for Park's impeachment and indirectly paved the way for a friendlier climate for the movie.

Based on interviews with Moon and other Roh aides, "Our President" details the dramatic process of Roh winning the primary of what was then the Millennium Democratic Party, rising from a mere two-percent approval rating to become the party's presidential candidate in 2002.

Roh was president from 2003 to 2008 and killed himself amid a corruption scandal shortly after he left office.


Suspect in murder of Russian lawyer arrested in Moscow

MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI)  Law enforcement officers have arrested a suspect in the murder of a Moscow attorney, the Investigative Committee announced on its website on Monday.

The arrested Marat Yanbukhtin has been transferred to an investigative department for investigatory actions, the statement reads.

The woman, who had been working as a lawyer, was shot dead on entering her apartment in the north-east of Moscow on April 26. Investigators consider different versions of the murder including those connected with the victims professional activity.

Reportedly, the victim is the 40-year old Natalya Vavilina. However, this information has not been officially confirmed.

According to the Federal Chamber of Lawyers, the woman became the seventh attorney killed in Russia in the last two years. Since 2001, 45 Russian lawyers have been murdered. Most of crimes have not been detected, the Chamber reported earlier.
Ukrainian offices of Yandex raided as part of treason case  official

MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI)  Searches are being conducted at Ukraines offices of the Russian Internet giant Yandex in Odessa and Kiev in relation to a treason investigation, the Ukrainian Security Services (SBU) spokesperson Elena Gitlyanskaya wrote on her Facebook page on Monday.

According to Gitlyanskaya, a criminal case has been opened under Article 111 of the Ukrainian Criminal Code (High treason).

More detailed information will be later published on the official website of SBU, the statement reads.

The Yandex press office confirmed that SBU officers are carrying out searches in the companys offices. However, the company does not hold information on possible reasons for the raid.

Yandex is prepared to provide all required information to the Security Service of Ukraine, according to the companys press service.

On May 16, Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko signed an order on extension of sanctions against 1,228 Russian citizens and 468 companies. In particular, Ukraine introduced restrictive measures against such Russian giants as Yandex, Kaspersky Lab, Vkontakte and Odnoklassniki social networks, Mail.ru and others.
VTB asks U.S. courts permission to notify defendant by Russian mail service

MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI)  Lawyers representing interests of Russias VTB bank have asked the Supreme Court of the state of New York to allow the bank to notify a defendant living in the Voronezh Region Robert Martirosyan by DHL or Pochta Rossii (Russian Post) mail services, the documents available to RAPSI read on Monday.

The bank seeks to recover debt from the co-owners of Yashma group. The groups companies are involved in the wholesale distribution of jewelry, precious stones and metals, custom jewelry and other similar products.

Earlier, the court has granted a motion filed by the bank to notify two of the defendants in the case, Igor Mavlyanov and his ex-wife Stella, by DHL and Russian Post, noting that this method is in accordance with the state legislation.

In mid-May, VTB filed a lawsuit against Mavlyanov, his ex-wife and children as well as Martirosyan and several companies registered in the United States with the sought debt estimated at about 4.9 billion rubles (about $86.7 million). The bank claims that defendants signed several real estate deals in the United States in order to deceive it. VTB seeks to annul these deals and to receive compensation for its losses by collecting funds of firms related to Mavlyanov.

The need in alternative methods for notification of Russian respondents involved in the U.S. lawsuits, both defendants themselves and other participants, arose in 2003. Back then, Russia refused to transfer the notification documents through an authorized entity  the Ministry of Justice, although it is prescribed by the Convention on the Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters (the Convention).

The reason for refusal lays in introduction of a special fee for processing of applications related to documents and notification, with the goal to compensate losses of a private company contracted by the United States Ministry of Justice for the processing. The fee was introduced on June 1, 2003 for all countries including Russia. Since then participants of litigation in the United States were recommended to find other ways to notify people in Russia including court notifications.
President Putin signs law on supervision of released criminals

MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI)  Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law envisaging post-prison supervision over criminals, who had served terms for serious crimes including terrorism and extremism, the document published on the official website for judicial information reads on Monday.

The State Duma passed the law on May 17 and the Federation Council has approved it on May 24.

Under the law, compulsory administrative supervision would apply to individuals of majority age convicted of committing serious and particularly serious crimes of a terrorist and extremist nature, connected to infringement on life of law enforcement officers, public officials and persons executing justice or investigation, after their release.

A similar measure would touch people sentenced to imprisonment for murder, tortures, involvement of children in a criminal gang or committing serious and particularly serious crimes as well as causing grievous bodily harm if the crime had been committed on grounds of political, ideological, racial, national and religious hatred and enmity or animosity against any social group.

Moreover, the law stipulates oversight for individuals served prison sentence for certain administrative violations repeatedly committed throughout the year including drunk driving, refusal to undergo medical examination for establishment of the fact of alcoholic, narcotic and drug abuse intoxication.

Convicts without a permanent home or place of temporary residence and child molesters would be also supersized after their release from prison.
Former employee of Roscosmos convicted of treason asks for pardon

MOSCOW, May 29 (RAPSI)  Former employee of the Central Research Institute of Machine Building (the head institute for Roscosmos space corporation) Vladimir Lapygin, sentenced to seven years in prison for treason, has asked for pardon, RIA Novosti reported on Monday.

According to Lapygins lawyer, the petition was filed back in March.

In December 2016, the Supreme Court of Russia upheld the sentence for Lapygin. Investigators said that the scientist was transferring technological data abroad. Specifics of the case were not published because of secrecy.

The Constitution of Russia reads that only the President has the right to pardon.
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The U.S. State Department on Friday slammed plans by the new South Korean government to resume package tours to North Korea.

State Department spokeswoman Katina Adams told Voice of America that tourism revenues could flow into North Korea's weapons development programs and urged potential visitors to the North to think about where their money may be headed. Adams said Pyongyang draws money from "various sources" to fund its nuclear and missile development programs.

The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a bill aimed at prohibiting American tourists from visiting North Korea.

But President Moon Jae-in is keen to return to exchanges with North Korea, and his special adviser on diplomacy and security, Moon Chung-in, last week said tours to the scenic Mt. Kumgang resort in the North should resume.

The tours were halted in 2008 when North Korean soldiers shot and killed a South Korean tourist, but the adviser in a baffling outburst declared the reason for stopping cross-border business "null."

The U.S. Congressional Research Service projects that the Moon administration could clash with the U.S. over approaches to North Korea. In a report last week, the CRS said Moon has been opposed to the policy of dealing with North Korea through sanctions and vowed in his election campaign to visit the North if elected and reopen the inter-Korean Kaesong Industrial Complex.

"If South Korea takes some of these moves, it remains unclear whether they will clash with the Trump administration's call to apply 'maximum pressure' on North Korea," the report said.

The report highlighted a pending bill called the Korean Interdiction and Modernization of Sanctions Act, which will expand secondary U.S. sanctions against companies and other entities that conduct some types of business with North Korean enterprises. That would make it difficult for Seoul to follow through on any plans to reopen the Kaesong complex, which was shut in 2016 following the North's nuclear test.

The CRS pointed out that Moon "said that he will pursue inter-Korean dialogue and projects only following 'a shift in North Korea's attitude or under the right circumstances,'" but added, "a key question is whether this conditioning will apply to all forms of inter-Korean cooperation."


Prospects are grim for many, as humans and organisations aren't keeping up with the pace of technology. Shyamal Majumdar ponders the future of employment.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

It's difficult to understand the recent hype over automation taking away jobs.

Everyone knew all along that this was coming, but when it did come, most seemed to have been taken by surprise. The number of such lay-offs in the information technology sector this year isn't much, but the future can be disturbing if companies and the government don't take retraining and skilling efforts seriously.

In the absence of that, employment prospects are grim for many, as humans and organisations aren't keeping up with the pace of technology. For example, the computer processor doubles in power every 18 months, 10 times greater every five years. So technological unemployment is a term one has to be ready for.

There isn't any doubt that technological progress has deep consequences for skills, wages and jobs.

Faster, cheaper computers and increasingly clever software are giving machines capabilities that were once thought to be distinctively human-like -- understanding speech, translating from one language to another and recognising patterns. No wonder, yesterday's ubiquitous call centre operators are gradually being replaced by question-answering, automated systems.

Artificial intelligence (AI) or automation is rapidly moving beyond factories to areas that provide most jobs in the economy.

Our everyday experience shows how technological change over the last two decades has wiped out many low- and middle-skill jobs. Has any company (except for the Air India variety) retained its big army of secretaries, typists, telephone and computer operators and payroll clerks?

Infosys Managing Director Vishal Sikka has been warning about this automation-induced obsolescence for some time now.

That explains the company's Zero Distance programme, a grassroots effort to encourage, tee-up and vet the best innovative ideas emerging at the points where its people interacted with their clients. It identified around 300 champions across the company, who would serve as initial evangelists.

In his first New Year message to Infosys employees, Sikka had a serious warning for the staff: The biggest disruption that's taking place is the "tidal wave" of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) that can easily replace tech jobs. So in order to stay ahead, they must shed their "lackadaisical" attitude and bring "greater value" to customers, instead of just mechanically executing the jobs.

"We will not survive if we remain in the constricted space of doing as we are told, depending solely on cost arbitrage, and working as reactive problem solvers," he said.

The buzzwords now are big data and data analytics, forcing the traditional IT recruits and managers to diversify their skill sets or be in the firing range.

It is now starkly clear that given this digital transformation of our world, the traditional services industry of the past is in real danger. In their report The Future of Employment, Carl Benedikt Frey and Michael A Osborne from Oxford Martin School and faculty of philosophy in the United Kingdom have predicted AI techniques of today can automate half of the jobs that exist in the US now within a couple of decades.

"According to our estimate, 47 per cent of total US employment is in the high-risk category, meaning that associated occupations are potentially automatable over some unspecified number of years, perhaps a decade or two."

As industrial robots are becoming more advanced, with enhanced senses and dexterity, they will be able to perform a wider scope of non-routine manual tasks. From a technological capabilities point of view, the vast remainder of employment in production occupations is thus likely to diminish over the next decade.

But the point is that AI/automation can't be stopped because it provides companies with attractive returns and because non-humans can do things humans cannot, and often do them more efficiently. For example, Boston Consulting Group estimated that in the US, a human welder is about three times more expensive per hour of employment than a robotic welder. So, companies will recruit, but only those who have the required skill for a higher-end job.

The issue is particularly serious for countries like India where more than 10 million people enter the job market every year. When people cannot support themselves with work at all -- let alone with work they find meaningful -- there can be serious social problems.

There is no option but to go in for a dramatic shift in skilling and retooling the job aspirants.
'We are looking at a model with which we can reduce the cost, so that we can bring down the fares drastically and still make money.'

Disruption is the key to success. From mobile telephony to cab aggregators, a business model has always redefined the market and created winners. Indian airlines have been quite dull in that respect with dominant low-cost ones happy exploring the domestic market and short-haul international destinations.

SpiceJet, on the verge of a shutdown two years ago, is now looking at joining a burgeoning global league of low-cost long-haul airlines by providing a Rs 30,000 to-and-fro fare to western European destinations. Chairman and managing director Ajay Singh elaborates. Excerpts:

You think a low-cost model for long-haul routes is feasible for India?

We feel there is huge demand for this. As the country becomes rich, personal incomes increase. Therefore, people want to travel. Today, most of the foreign travels from India are with foreign airlines, through hubs like West Asia.

In India, we have a low-cost model. As people become rich, it is easier for them to take a flight abroad, provided the fares are low. Imagine the demand a fare of Rs 10,000-15,000 would have for a Delhi-London flight.

Now, an airline has to make money while keeping the fares low. So, the cost, too, has to be low. We are looking at a model with which we can reduce the cost, so that we can bring down the fares drastically and still make money.

How will an airline like SpiceJet bring down the cost?

We are looking at various steps through which we can bring down the cost. Look, we can have a lot of economy seats. Therefore, increase the number of seats in the aircraft and bring down the cost per seat. It also depends on what kind of deals you get. We will look towards reducing the leasing cost.

At the same time, we are looking at airports where charges are low. When a passenger flies overseas, the common model of a full service airline includes food, beverage and Wi-Fi.

Can we unbundle that and ask a passenger to pay for the services? I feel people will want to see it unbundled, like in domestic routes. You decide what you want to buy and pay for that.

So, a long-haul model was on your mind when you finalised the aircraft order. Which model will you be looking at?

Yes. We have an option of converting 50 aircraft of the order into wide body. We have wide flexibility in selecting the model.

At present, either the 787 or 777 Boeing are feasible. We will take a call depending on unit economics. Our narrow body order (737 Max) also has a larger range than our existing aircraft. That will get us to some destinations where we do not fly currently.

Which ones?

We will look at a lot of eastern European destinations. On the eastern side, we will look at Far East Asia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam.

We always explore new markets. With smaller planes, we had gone to destinations where there used to be no flight. Internationally, we will look at places not explored much by other players.

Have you decided whether it should be Max 8, 9 or 10?

It will be a mix of both 8 and 9. Max 8 and 9 have a larger range whereas Max 10 has a lower range. Then, there is an option of a 50 wide body aircraft.

That means a mixed fleet that can increase your cost.

Max 8 and 9 are similar aircraft. The difference is the number of seats. A wide body will be different but you have to think out of the box.

Previously, the notion was one-model fleet is ideal. Why have a different model for regional? We showed this could be profitable and others are also going for that. I think an aircraft model should be decided case-by-case, based on merits. Not get stuck to one theoretical model.

Will joining global alliances be an option?

First, travellers need to fly directly to the Western destinations. After starting operations, if we find there is a demand for destinations beyond our range, we will certainly look at alliances. Let us first start.

Photograph: PTI Photo
The travel agents have demanded refunds for customers

Teenagers may have paid a higher price for travel from the UK for over a year as airlines did not inform agents of a tax exemption.

All passengers departing from airports in the UK pay air passenger duty (APD), which varies according to distance and class of travel. While economy class passengers till the age of 12 are exempted from the duty, the UK authorities extended the exemption to those below the age of 16 from March 2016.

Economy class passengers from London to India are charged 75 and it is included in the ticket price.

The Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) has claimed that airlines did not inform them about this. The agents have also demanded refunds for customers.

The issue came to light last month after a customer complained to an agent. Following this, the TAFI raised the issue with airlines.

Air India, Jet Airways, British Airways (BA) and Virgin Atlantic (VA) operate non-stop flights between India and London. A large number of passengers travel on these airlines as well as Emirates and Etihad Airways on this sector.

There has been no circular from your airline to travel agents informing about this tax abolishment. Neither have any procedures been informed to collect the tax refund for passengers.

It is quite clear that mechanisms exist with the global distribution systems used by agents for ticketing to deduct this tax at the time of ticketing. However, no efforts have been made on that front either, the TAFI said in a letter to airlines.

Even now some airline websites are not equipped to provide exemption to passengers. Also the airlines are silent on the issue of refund, said Rajat Bagaria, the TAFIs joint secretary.

While a passenger can book a ticket through an airline website, travel agents use global distribution systems such as Amadeus, Travelport and Sabre. Ticket prices are preset on these systems and it is an airlines responsibility to ensure that the correct break-up of fare and taxes is available following any price revision.

Tickets are available in three age categories: Infants (less than two years), children (2-12 years) and adults (above 12 years).

Websites of BA, Emirates and VA have options for booking passengers between the ages of 12 and 15 years if travel is from an UK airport. Jet Airways website mentions the tax exemption will be applied if a passenger is between 12 and 15 years of age.

Following the complaint, Air India, Emirates and Amadeus issued circulars to inform agents about the procedure that allows for tax exemption while booking.

In its response to the TAFI, Jet Airways said it had issued a circular in 2016. The airline did not respond to a query from Business Standard.

In its response to the TAFI, BA said since 2016 its systems allowed the exemption at the time of booking and there should ideally be few or no tickets where this tax was charged wrongly. These changes are in the public domain, BA said.

Photograph: Toby Melville/Reuters
British Airways passengers are facing a third day of disruption at Heathrow after an IT glitch blamed on outsourcing to India grounded scores of planes, leaving thousands of travellers stranded over the weekend.

The airline said it intends to run a full schedule at Gatwick on Monday and to operate a full long-haul schedule and a "high proportion" of its short-haul programme at Heathrow.

BA passengers have been told to check the status of their flights before travelling to the airports where scenes of chaos unfolded over the weekend.

The airline claimed it was making "good progress" in recovering from the worldwide IT glitch.

We operated a full schedule at Gatwick on Sunday. At Heathrow, we operated virtually all our scheduled long-haul flights, though the knock-on effects of Saturday's disruption resulted in a reduced short-haul programme, Sky News quoted a BA spokeswoman as saying.

We apologise again to customers for the frustration and inconvenience they are experiencing and thank them for their continued patience.

Thousands of passengers had their travel plans disrupted as a result of the problem, with one workers union blaming the outsourcing of IT jobs to India for the chaos, a claim denied by the airline.

The company said there was no evidence the failure was the result of a cyber attack.

Experts predict the knock-on effect could continue for several days and BA is facing huge compensation costs, with reports suggesting the bill could top 100 million pound.

Passengers faced hours-long lines to check in, reclaim lost luggage or rebook flights at Terminal 5, BA's hub at Heathrow.

Alex Cruz, the airline's chairman and CEO, issued a video message on Twitter to reassure passengers about their lost luggage and apologise.

In a video message on Twitter Cruz said, I know this has been a horrible time for customers. Some of you have missed holidays, some of you have been stranded on aircraft, some of you have been separated from your bags. Many of you have been stuck in long queues whilst you waited for information.

On behalf of everyone at BA I want to apologise for the fact that you had to go through these very trying experiences.

BA operates hundreds of flights from Heathrow and Gatwick on a typical day -- and both are major hubs for worldwide travel.

Image: People wait with their luggage at the British Airways check-in desks at Heathrow Terminal 5 in London, Britain, on May 28, 2017. Photograph: Neil Hall/Reuters.
Indias full membership of the grouping would extend its reach to the Central Asian region in whose peace and stability it is a major stakeholder, says Sana Hashmi.

With the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, on June 7-8, 2017, India is poised to become a permanent member of the regional grouping.

Along with India, Pakistan will also become a full member of the SCO.

This is the first time the organisation will elevate observers as permanent members.

The SCO will be the second regional grouping after SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) to have both India and Pakistan as permanent members, the move serving to integrate the Eurasian region with the South Asian region.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be attending the SCO summit, making it his third since assuming office in 2014. India has been an observer at SCO since 2005 and applied for full membership in September 2015.

Seemingly, differences with Pakistan and China over the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor which passes through Pakistan Occupied Kashmir would not make Indias participation easier. India is likely to be confronted with the China-Pakistan partnership in the SCO, which is a smaller organisation and where other members have cordial relations with both China and Pakistan.

Secondly, India has not joined Chinas ambitious One Belt, One Road project. In all likelihood, China would use the SCO as a vehicle to promote its massive connectivity and infrastructure project, and put more diplomatic pressure on India.

Given that all other members of the SCO are welcoming of such overtures by China, it will not be easy for India to sidestep the subject in entirety.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev attended the first Belt and Road Forum held in Beijing on May 14-15. It goes without saying that Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was also in attendance at the high-profile forum.

However, despite challenges, the forthcoming SCO summit will be important for India and its presence is vital for India for several reasons:

First, inclusion in a Eurasian body will improve Indias international standing given that SAARC is a non-starter. Indias entry into the SCO would help India get greater access to regional markets and its politico-strategic dynamics.

Second, SCO membership will give a boost to Indias Connect Central Asia Policy, which has been on a steady path for some time now. The policy was drafted in 2012 during the first India-Central Asia Dialogue. So far, four rounds of the dialogue have taken place, with the last one held in New Delhi in 2016.

In fact, Prime Minister Modi visited all five Central Asian countries in July 2015.

Indias full membership of the grouping would extend its reach to the entire Central Asian region where India has established itself as a major stakeholder in its peace and stability. That India is poised to play a constructive role in the heart of Asia is demonstrated by its interest in joining the SCO as full member.

Third, Indias foreign policy has become visibly proactive. It is attempting to leave its mark in regions such as Southeast Asia, Central Asia and Africa, as evidenced by Prime Minister Modi having visited as many as 45 countries since 2014. Apart from bilateral ties, India has been attempting to engage countries at the multilateral level, too. Recently, for instance, India hosted the annual meet of the African Development Bank in Gandhinagar.

Africa is just one example. India is keen to further integrate with the Eurasian region as well. Prime Minister Modi will also be attending the 21st StPetersburg International Economic Forum from June 1-3, the annual business summit organised by Russia.

Fourth, the SCO summit will provide an opportunity to address the menace of terrorism which has affected the peace and stability of the entire region. Most importantly, since the SCO has a mechanism to deal with the issue of terrorism, the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure, it will provide India with a platform to highlight terrorism and push Pakistan to address the problem.

Fifth, SCO membership will be Indias gateway to Central Asia, which is considered as one of the resource-rich regions in the world. The membership will allow India to have greater access to the regions resources and facilitate further cooperation with countries of the region.

In sum, given that India has boycotted the Belt and Road Forum, being in SCO allows India to skip isolation.

Also, as India does not have a physical border with any of the Central Asian countries, its presence in SCO would be helpful in increasing its sphere of influence in the region.

Image: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, in June 2016. Photograph: PIB.

Sana Hashmi is a research scholar at the Centre for East Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University.
'China held a meeting on the One Belt One Road and India boycotted it.'

'However, all of India's neighbours attended, except for one, Bhutan.'

'India warned those attending that the partnership with the Chinese would come at a heavy price, but almost nobody heard us.'

'The question is: Why not?' asks Aakar Patel.

A little under 30 years ago, after Vishwanath Pratap Singh became prime minister, he met with Sri Lanka's then president Ranasinghe Premadasa.

Singh, a polite man, says he was surprised when the first thing Premadasa said to him was: 'When are you taking your army back?'

The reference was to the Indian Peace Keeping Force, a group of soldiers from the Indian Army sent to Lanka to fight the Tamil Tigers.

India had deployed tens of thousands of its jawans (over 1,000 of whom would die fighting the Tamilians) and we had thought of it as a sacrifice for the Lankans.

However, the Lankans, according to Singh, saw it as interference after a point and wanted the Indians out of their country.

The civil war in Lanka ended with a victory of the Sinhalese nationalists, and today Lanka is no longer in India's influence as it was 30 years ago.

If there is a nation that many Lankans see as interfering, it is China.

The giant ports bring developed by the Chinese in Colombo and Hambanthota are projects of a scale India cannot compete with.

However, they come with a compromise, which the China model of development brings with it. There is no time here for details, but to some extent it means more or less like having Chinese colonies on your land.

And to a larger extent, it means having to take on debt from the Chinese that you may or may not be able to afford.

The Chinese are executing today the most important and largest infrastructure project of the world. It is called One Belt One Road.

The belt is a series of highways and the 'road' is a network of ports and sea routes.

China held a meeting in May to show its vision and India boycotted it. However, all of India's neighbours attended, except for one, Bhutan.

Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bangladesh, the Maldives and Nepal all attended, leading to fears of encirclement in the community that thinks about strategic affairs in India.

India warned those attending that the partnership with the Chinese would come at a heavy price, but almost nobody heard us. The question is: Why not?

The answer, to return to the original point of this article, is that almost all of India's neighbours either dislike or suspect us.

Even in Hindu Nepal, Indians are not particularly popular.

We have no neighbour with whom we have a relationship like the United States has with Canada. All our borders seem to be like the US and Mexico's, or worse.

Perhaps the fault is entirely that of our neighbours'. Certainly the average Indian holds the impression that we are victims of other nations' mischief.

This is coupled with the prejudiced view many of us have of our neighbours. We believe Bangladeshis are illegal immigrants, Nepalis are watchmen and Pakistanis are terrorists.

Anti-India riots broke out in Nepal a few years ago in which people were killed and property was damaged.

This came after a report alleged that actor Hrithik Roshan said he hated Nepalis. Roshan had said no such thing, and the report was false, but the thing to ask is: Why did the Nepalis believe it immediately?

Today Nepalis in the northern part of the country think India is playing games by dividing their country into hill-people and plains-people and instigating a long and painful blockade against the former (who are the elite).

They also think India is interfering with their constitutional processes.

It is possible that India has legitimate concerns and interests in Nepal. However, we must ask ourselves why our relations with a Hindu country are in such tatters that we could not get them to side with us against the Chinese.

Even with Bhutan, our only 'friend' against the Chinese, our relationship is not one of equals.

Under Nehru, India imposed on Bhutan something called a Friendship Treaty, which actually was nothing of the sort. The treaty gave India a veto on Bhutan's foreign policy.

The exact words are 'the Government of Bhutan agrees to be guided by the advice of the Government of India in regard to its external relations.'

This was removed only a few years ago, I think under Vajpayee.

Nehru inherited an aggressively expansionist imperial State which had tentative borders. Neighbouring States feared the India of the British Raj, and legitimately.

Our failure has been that we have not been able to overcome that fear and distrust and build relationships that are meaningful and based on respect and mutual interest.

That failure showed in our isolation at the belt and road summit.

India will not be able to match for a long time China's economic influence on our neighbours. But that does not stop us from being real friends with them.

Aakar Patel is Executive Director, Amnesty International India. The views expressed here are his own.

You can read Aakar's earlier columns here.

IMAGE: Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, with Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' in Beijing, March 2017. Photograph: Lintao Zhang/Reuters
'The CPI-M workers first destroy houses of our people and then kill them.'

'There is anarchy in Kannur.'

IMAGE: Union Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy, centre, and Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan, right, meet family members of RSS worker Choorakkad Biju who was murdered on May 12 in Kannur, Kerala.

On May 12, 34-year-old Choorakkad Biju, a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh worker, was hacked to death by unidentified assailants at Payyannur, a town in Kerala's Kannur district.

He was an accused in the murder case of Dhanaraj, a Communist Party of India-Marxist worker.

According to Kummanam Rajasekharan, the Bharatiya Janata Party's Kerala president, this is the 19th political murder in Kannur since the Pinarayi Vijayan government came to power in May 2016.

In an interview with Rediff.com's Shobha Warrier, Rajasekharan said his party has lost faith in the chief minister.

An RTI (Right to Information) query revealed that from 2000 to 2016, 31 RSS workers and 30 CPI-M workers have been killed in Kannur. Does it not show that both parties are responsible for the killings?

Why statistics of only the last 16 years? Political clashes started in Kannur in 1969.

If you want to talk about numbers, you either have to talk from 1969, or, talk about how many were killed in the last one year, since the LDF (Left Democratic Front) government came to power.

In 1969, it began with the murder of Vadikkal Ramakrishnan, a sweet maker in Thalassery.

In Kannur district alone, 87 BJP-RSS workers have been murdered so far.

In the last one year, there were 19 political murders in Kannur, out of which 13 were RSS-BJP workers and six were from other political parties.

All these 19 people were mercilessly hacked to death by CPI-M workers.

Why did the BJP ask for the imposition of AFSPA (the Armed Forces Special Powers Act) in Kannur?

Because the police is not able to protect our workers.

The CPI-M workers first destroy the houses of our people and then kill them.

There is anarchy in Kannur.

When the police and state government are not able to protect our people, who are we supposed to turn to?

It is to get back our right to live that we want AFSPA in Kannur.

What is the Centre's reaction to your request?

The proposal has not been sent yet. It is the governor who has to send the proposal to the Centre. That is why we met the governor.

After this incident, a couple of BJP leaders criticised the governor and said if he was scared of the CM, he should quit.

In the assembly, (BJP MLA) O Rajagopal made a statement that the sentiments expressed against the governor should only be seen as an emotional outburst of a few who are coming to terms with the loss of a young party worker.

Do you feel it was necessary to attack the governor?

You don't have to see the outburst as unnecessary.

You should understand that when a political party loses 13 of their workers to violence, when the party members are fearful of losing many more lives, is it not natural for them to feel that only the governor could help them?

In such an atmosphere, what else could they do but speak strongly?

Were they not criticising the governor?

No, they only said if the governor was scared of the CM...

You should note the 'if' in the statement. They didn't say the governor was scared of the CM.

Is it not because of such statements that the focus shifted from the murders to the criticism of the governor in the assembly and Rajagopal had to clarify?

The focus has not shifted from the murder; the focus is still on the political murders that are happening in Kannur.

No political party would approve of another party attacking its members and killing them.

One of the accused in the murder has even left the country.

People of Kerala see all this and understand the magnitude of the situation.

CPI-M leader Kodiyeri Balakrishnan has said the party denounces those workers who were involved in Biju's killing. Is it not a positive step?

They have been saying the same for a long time. After each murder, they say, the police would catch the criminals, they would be punished and they would see to it that it would not occur again.

Still, murders are happening regularly. What does this mean?

If they were really serious about the issue, they would have stopped their party workers from indulging in such violence.

So you don't believe what Kodiyeri says?

Whether I believe him or not is not the question. Murders should not happen in Kannur.

But they are happening and it is disturbing. We are the sufferers most of the time.

You showed a video clip related to Biju's murder, but Kodiyeri accused you of spreading misinformation. Even (Chief Minister) Pinarayi Vijayan said the video was not authentic.

What else do you expect them to say?

If he (Vijayan) felt it was not authentic, why did he ask the police to investigate the case?

But even before he asked the police to investigate the case, he gave the verdict too. He didn't say he would find out the truth.

Remember he is not the party secretary; he is the chief minister of the state.

Do you expect the sub-inspector investigating the matter to give a report that contradicts the chief minister? He will not.

In such a situation, how do you expect me to get justice?

The fact is that we will not get justice.

Biju was an accused in the killing of CPI-M worker Dhanraj in July 2016. In all these clashes, it is the workers from both parties who get murdered. How long will this go on?

You have to ask the question to the chief minister. I am also asking the same question.
The U.S. is planning a missile defense test in California on Tuesday to prepare for an intercontinental ballistic missile attack from North Korea, the Associated Press reported Friday.

"The goal is to more closely simulate a North Korean ICBM aimed at the U.S. homeland," AP said.

This aim is to prepare for a time when the North has developed a full-range intercontinental ballistic missile that can strike the U.S. It recently tested a Hwasong-12 ballistic missile with a range of 4,500 to 5,000 km.

"The target will be a custom-made missile meant to simulate an ICBM," but "not a mock-up of an actual North Korean ICBM," AP quoted a spokesman for the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency as saying. "It will fly faster than missiles used in previous intercept tests."

Any intercontinental missile would need a range of at least 10,000 km if it is to strike the U.S. mainland. In that case it would fall at a speed of Mach 24 to 25 when it re-enters the atmosphere and its warhead would need to withstand a heat of 7,000 to 8,000 degrees Celsius.
Bharatiya Janta Party stalwarts Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti will appear before a special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Lucknow on Tuesday for framing of charges in the Babri Masjid demolition case.

Besides them, Special CBI judge S K Yadav had asked BJP leader Vinay Katiyar, Vishwa Hindu Parishad's Vishnu Hari Dalmia and a one-time firebrand Hindutva preacher Sadhvi Ritambara to present themselves before the court in person.

While directing the accused to present themselves in person, the judge had said no application for adjournment or exemption from personal appearance shall be entertained.

The court, which is hearing two separate cases relating to the demolition of the Babri masjid, would also frame charges against Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, Mahant Ram Vilas Vedanti, Baikunth Lal Sharma alias Prem Ji, Champat Rai Bansal, Mahant Dharma Das and Satish Pradhan in the second matter.

The Supreme Court had on April 19 ordered prosecution of Advani, Joshi, 58-year-old Bharti, and other accused for criminal conspiracy in the politically sensitive case. It had also ordered day-to-day trial to be concluded in two years.

The top court had called the destruction of the medieval-era monument a "crime" which shook the "secular fabric of the Constitution" while allowing the CBI's plea seeking restoration of criminal conspiracy charge against the four BJP leaders, including Katiyar, 62, and others.

However, the Supreme Court had said that BJP leader Kalyan Singh, who is the Rajasthan Governor and during whose tenure as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh the disputed structure was razed, is entitled to immunity under the Constitution as long as he holds the gubernatorial office.

It had transferred the case against Advani, Joshi, Bharti and three other accused from a Raebareli court to Lucknow for a joint trial in the demolition case.
Kerala, West Bengal, Puducherry slam the governments decision to ban sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter; meat traders fear spike in cow vigilantism, reports Aditi Phadnis.

IMAGE: States slammed the Centre's move of banning the sale of cattle for slaughter saying that it was an attempt to destroy the secular fabric of the country. Photograph: Cathal McNaughton/Reuters

The Opposition seems to have found a common plank in the ban on animal slaughter to rally against the central government, with some states even planning to move court against it.

Senior ministers in Kerala and West Bengal, ruled by traditional rivals the Left Front and the Trinamool Congress, respectively, have raised their voices in unison. Puducherry, which has a Congress government, has also slammed the Centre over the ban. Meat traders, too, have begun to lobby with various state governments to contest it, while political parties have expressed fears that the Centres move would only embolden cow vigilantes.

On Friday, the Union ministry of environment and forests banned the sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter. This move is likely to hurt the buffalo meat export industry in the country, which has been in steady decline since 2014, when the National Democratic Alliance came to power.

In a Facebook post, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan urged the people of the country to act against the uncivilised decision of the Centre and claimed it was an attempt to destroy the secular fabric of the country. His cabinet colleague and the states agriculture minister, V S Sunil Kumar, said, This subject is in the state list; the Centre has interfered in this. This decision has got implications for the future. Cattle rearing will become very difficult. Who will take care of aged cattle?

Another minister said the state government was planning to move court against the ban.

Beef fests were held in various parts of Kerala to protest the ban. Activists from the Left as well as the Congress-led United Democratic Front took out marches and hosted these fests where beef was consumed. The UDF will observe a black day on Monday.

A senior minister in West Bengal said regulation of cattle markets was a state subject and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee would protect the right to food.

Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy was quoted as saying the ban as autocratic and a clear case of infringement on the rights of people relating to food habits.

Vishva Hindu Parishad, on the other hand, demanded that a law should be passed banning cow slaughter and life imprisonment for such acts.

Union Minister of State Pon Radhakrishnan said the ban was aimed at protecting and increasing the revenue of the farm sector. Cow is the foundation for the farming sector we need to protect local cow species. If cows are sold there will be scarcity of milk, he said.

Radhakrishnan added, No farmer would like to sell his cattle and resorts to such measures only due to family circumstances.

The Opposition leaders continued to criticise the government for the move. Communist Party of India General Secretary S Sudhakar Reddy said this was an attempt by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat to make India into a Hindu Rashtra.

Forcible vegetarianism will do no good to the nation, he added.

Mohammed Saleem, vice-president, All India Jamiat-ul-Quresh, said, No government in the past did such things. It concerns not only minorities; poor Hindus are also dependent on it (meat). The government receives the highest revenue from meat and leather trading.

Meat traders, about 80 per cent of whom are Muslims, are also unhappy with the Centres move. The All India Meat and Livestock Exporters Association claimed the governments decision would eventually hit all farmers, regardless of religion.

It is unproductive cattle that arrives in large number for sale, as their maintenance cost goes up, said the spokesperson of the association, Fauzan Alavi, in Lucknow. The high-yielding animals rarely arrive at the cattle market.

He explained the per day cost of maintaining a buffalo was about Rs 120-150 and the wholesale price of milk was about Rs 40 per litre. When the production of milk falls, the animals become unproductive, Alavis said.

According to one set of calculations, only 10 per cent of old cattle are sold at farm gate. Most are brought to agricultural markets and fairs, where prices are determined.
Three youths were allegedly thrashed on suspicion of possessing beef by some cow vigilantes, who also circulated a video of the act on social media, in east Maharashtra's Rajora village.

The incident took place on May 26 in Washim district and seven suspected cow vigilantes were arrested from the village on the same day. The police have also booked the three victims for the possession of "beef", a police officer said.

As the video of the incident was doing rounds on social media, the police were maintaining a strict vigil to avert any untoward incident during the festive season of Ramzan, Washim Superintendent of Police Mokshada Patil said.

The incident occurred last Friday when the three youths were allegedly carrying the meat to sell it in their community for consumption, she said.

After some cow vigilantes got wind of this, they went to the village, beat up the youths and also shouted slogans, the SP said.

The activists seized the meat and took the youths to Malegaon Police Station which is 12 km away from the village.

The police registered a case against the cow vigilantes under various sections of the IPC, including rioting and voluntary causing hurt.

Patil said one of the cow vigilantes filmed the incident on his mobile phone and circulated the video in various groups.

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The police also booked the three youths for possessing "beef" under various sections of the amended Maharashtra Preservation and Security of Animals Act, the officer said.

The police also added section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings or any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the IPC in the FIR against the cow vigilantes.

"We added section 295 A of IPC as the video of the incident was shot and circulated on social media with an intention to spoil the communal peace and harmony during the festival season in the state and the country," she said.

A local court released all the accused on a bond, she added.

The SP said the police have sent the sample of the seized meat to a laboratory in Nagpur to verify whether it was indeed cow meat.

The situation in the area was under control as police took immediate action, the SP said.

In the wake of the incident, the police searched slaughter houses in Malegaon and Shirpur areas to chek whether any beef was stored there.

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A group of students at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras conducted a beef festival, showing their agitation against the Centre recent order against selling cattle thus imposing an indirect beef ban.

More than 50 students supported the cause by participating in this fest late on Sunday night.

Earlier on May 27, Students Federation of India staged similar protest in Kerala by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum.

Similar fests were also organised at different locations across Kerala.

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan on Friday ordered that the ministry has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes.

Aim of the rules is very specific. It is only to regulate the animal market and the sale of cattle in these markets, and ensuring welfare of cattle dealt in market. And the rule provides for a strict animal monitoring committee and an animal market committee at the local level, Vardhan said.

He said the seller and buyer both have to ensure that the cattle is not being bought or sold in the market for slaughter purposes.

An undertaking to this effect has to be given to the member secretary of the animal market committee from the seller as well as the buyer, Vardhan added.

As per the notification, cattle is defined as bulls, bullocks, cows, buffalos, steers, heifers and calves and camels.

The rules also state that the purchaser shall not sacrifice the animal for any religious purpose or sell it to a person outside the state without permission and must keep in with the states cattle protection laws.

Protests were held in several parts of Tamil Nadu, including Madurai, Coimbatore, Erode and Hosur. Several activists of a little known pro-Tamil outfit were detained in Madurai where they had organised a beef eating contest. Tamil Nadu's main opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has planned a protest on May 31.

Raising the pitch on the issue, opposition parties urged the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government to enact a law against the ban.

The DMK slammed the E K Palaniswami government for "keeping mum" on the matter when neighbouring Kerala and Karnataka had vehemently opposed the ban.

DMK working president M K Stalin will lead a protest on May 31 in Chennai against the ban, the party said, adding "the fundamental right to choice of food granted by the Constitution has been snatched away".

The Congress-led United Democratic Front observed a 'black day' in various parts of Kerala and took out protest marches. The ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist said it would organise 'evening dharnas' in 2000 places across the state on June 2.

The protests will be held from 4 pm in public places in panchayats, municipalities and corporation areas, The CPI-M state secretariat said in a press release.

The new rules were part of centre's move to implement the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh agenda, it said.
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Monday said it was preposterous to suggest that any member of his family could influence six secretaries of the central government who were part of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board.

Strongly refuting allegations that his son Karti had influenced the decisions of the now-defunct FIPB when he was the finance minister, Chidambaram said it was a despicable slur on the six secretaries of the government.

The FIPB used to vet FDI proposals requiring government approval.

The former finance minister said any one familiar with the working of the FIPB knows that no single officer could take a decision on any proposal and it was a collective decision of six secretaries.

Any one who has worked with me knows that no one would dare to influence my decisions. I had never allowed any family member to speak to me or to any officer of my ministry on any official matter, he said in a statement.

It was therefore, he said, preposterous to suggest that a member of his family, with or without his knowledge, influenced, by corrupt or illegal means, the six secretaries who constituted the FIPB.

Such an allegation is a despicable slur on the six secretaries of the government who constituted the FIPB at the relevant time, he said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation last fortnight had filed an FIR against Karti and INX Media founders Indrani and Peter Mukerjea on charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, receiving illegal gratification, influencing public servants and criminal misconduct.

The CBI claims that Karti received money from INX Media through a company indirectly controlled by him for using his influence to manipulate a tax probe against it in a case of violation of FIPB conditions to receive investment from Mauritius.

The Congress leader said the subject matter of the FIR was an approval granted by the FIPB and it was clear that he was the target, yet the FIR did not name him.

The former finance minister said as far as FIPB cases were concerned, he had approved only those cases that were recommended by the FIPB and put up to him by the secretary, economic affairs.

Chidambaram said the FIPB was serviced by a secretariat and chaired by the secretary, economic affairs and included four other secretaries--industry, commerce, external affairs and overseas Indian affairs and the secretary of the administrative ministry.

Five of them were among the senior-most Indian Administrative Services officers and the sixth was a senior Indian Foreign Service officer of the Ministry of External Affairs.

The Congress leader said each one of them had a long and distinguished record of service. The recommendations of the FIPB were submitted to the Ministry of Finance where they were once again examined by the junior officers and then by the additional secretary and the secretary before the file was put up to the minister, he said.

Each file put up to the minister would usually contain a number of cases and the recommendations of the FIPB and the secretary, economic affairs, he said.

At the relevant time, the FIPB was chaired by D Subba Rao, IAS, who later became the governor of RBI (Reserve Bank of India). He was succeeded by Ashok Chawla, IAS, who later became Chairman of the Competition Commission of India. The other secretaries were equally distinguished civil servants, he said.

Chidambaram said in the last two weeks, leaks and insinuations have been deliberately fed to a section of the media and maliciously circulated in the social media.

In fact, I have obtained a copy of the FIR from the social media. The origin of these leaks is Chennai in my home state of Tamil Nadu, he said.

The FIR alleges that there was a conspiracy involving public officials who were induced by corrupt and illegal means to grant the approval, yet the FIR does not name a single public official, he said.

Chidambaram said the most ridiculous allegation is that the so-called gratification was a cheque for Rs 10 lakh.

He said the cheque was in favour of a consulting company that had raised an invoice for work done, accounted for the income, and paid income tax on the amount.

The Congress leader said he can say with absolute certainty that Karti had never met any officer connected with the FIPB. Besides, he had no connection with the applicant company--INX Media and INX News.

Further, he said, Karti was never a director or shareholder of M/s Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt Ltd.

The promoters and directors of ASCPL have, on more than one occasion, made it clear that ASCPL is their company and they alone are responsible for the business of that company.

They are business friends of Karti and have normal relations that are common among business friends, he said.

I feel sad that my son and his business friends are being targeted. I am indignant that some of the most distinguished civil servants of the country have been humiliated by the FIR, he said.

Chidambaram said in the case, it was not one secretary but six secretaries and the FIPB secretariat who were being humiliated on a ridiculous charge of being induced by an alleged gratification of Rs 10 lakh.

I make this statement so that the misinformation emanating from Chennai is exposed. Ultimately, the course of law will expose the mischief makers. I have advised my son to fully cooperate with the investigation and he will do so, he said.
With United States President Donald Trumps signature handshake managing to make highlights almost every time, the newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron described his recent encounter with him as the moment of truth.

IMAGE: Donald Trump shakes hands with French President Emmanuel Macron before a working lunch ahead of a NATO Summit in Brussels, Belgium. Photograph: Peter Dejong/Pool/Reuters

My handshake with him -- it wasnt innocent. Its not the be-all and the end-all of a policy, but it was a moment of truth, said Macron.

Trump and Macrons handshake was white-knuckle prolonged one, with as usual fierce, crunched bones, tightened jaws and both had a fixed smile and as per the French president was entirely intentional.

As per reports, during the handshake both the leaders were shared a gaze a little longer than a moment, and was ended when Trump after two attempts were able to disengage himself.

Macron further stated that he doesnt see relationships in terms of a balance of power, neither believe in diplomacy by public abuse.

Donald Trump, the Turkish president or the Russian president see relationships in terms of a balance of power. That doesnt bother me. I dont believe in diplomacy by public abuse, but in my bilateral dialogues I wont let anything pass, Macron said.

The French president recently elected for the very first time after defeating far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

IMAGE: During the handshake, which has now been described as Macron to be intentional, it looked liked Trump was trying to take his hand back. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters

In his three-day visit in Brussels, Macron and Trump met for the first time for lunch before a gathering of European and Nato leaders last Thursday.

During this meet, Macron pointedly turned past Trump to embrace German chancellor Angela Merkel and later shook hand with the NATO secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, and Belgian Prime Minister, Charles Michel, before greeting the US President.

Trump responded by yanking the French Presidents hand hard towards, which he has been seen applying in the past, notably with the Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe possible to establish dominance.

According to reports, Macron was particularly outspoken, but was not very successful in urging Trump to announce at the G7 that he would not to pull the US out of the Paris climate change accords.

I have good hopes that having considered the arguments put forward by various people and his countrys own interest he will confirm his commitment in his own time. I saw someone who listens and who is willing to work, Macron said.
China on Monday asked India to maintain a "restrained and measured" approach to resolve the boundary dispute through negotiations, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a strategic bridge linking Assam with Arunachal Pradesh, claimed by Beijing as South Tibet.

Asked for its reaction to the inauguration of India's longest bridge, the first major infrastructure project in Arunachal Pradesh, the Foreign Ministry said China's position on the eastern part of the China-India boundary is consistent and clear.

"We hope that the Indian side on the relevant issues will take a restrained and measured attitude on the boundary issue before the final solution, and work together with the Chinese side to control disputes, safeguard regional peace and tranquillity along the border," the ministry said.

"China and India should resolve the territorial dispute through negotiation and consultation," it said, without directly referring to the bridge.

Over the years, China has been ramping-up infrastructure including massive construction of rail, road and airports in Tibet, sparking concerns in India as it could enable speedier and easier movement of troops.

India in recent years has stepped up its infrastructure in border areas.

The 9.5-km long bridge inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi on May 26 is India's longest bridge. Besides connecting Assam with Arunachal Pradesh it can facilitate movement of heavy military equipment including battle tanks to frontier areas.

While China has so far claimed Arunachal Pradesh as South Tibet, India asserts that the dispute covers Aksai Chin area which was occupied by China during the 1962 war.

The two sides have so far held 19 rounds of talks with Special Representatives to resolve the boundary dispute.
Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan urges his counterparts to stand up against Centre's 'anti-federal, anti-democratic and anti-secular move'.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday urged the chief ministers of other states to raise their voices against restrictions imposed on cattle trade, while saying that the Centre's 'anti-democratic' notification is an attempt to usurp the state governments' powers in the guise of rules under a Central Act.

Vijayan wrote a letter to the chief ministers saying that the restrictions imposed on cattle trade would adversely affect the livelihood of the millions of people, especially, those in the agriculture sectors.

"I am sure that you are already conversant with the notification containing the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 issued by the ministry of environment, forest and climate change on 23rd May, 2017. The rules impose a number of restriction on cattle trade which would have serious repercussions on the livelihood of millions of people, especially those in the agricultural sector, in our country," the letter read.

Vijayan further said that the Centre's new rule is an impermissible encroachment into the domain of the State legislatures which is a clear 'violation of the spirit of federalism.'

"It appears strange that the rules are promulgated under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 since they have nothing to do with the objects of the act. Neither are the rules covered by the express delegation of legislative powers contained in the act. Hence, it is nothing but a covert attempt to usurp the powers of State legislatures in the guise of rules under a Central Act," he said in the letter.

The chief minister further said that the Centre's new rule violates the basic right of a person to freedom of choice regarding his food.

"The rules, by imposing unreasonable restriction on the fundamental right to carry on any trade or occupation under Article 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution, will not stand the test of constitutionality," he added.

He further said that it was unfortunate that such a drastic measure, producing serious consequences, was introduced without any public debate.

"This is nothing but a negation of the democratic principle which is indisputably accepted as forming part of the basic structure of the Constitution," he said.

Asserting that the move would produce a chaotic situation in the rural agricultural economy in all the states, Vijayan said, "Apart from the Constitutional and legal infirmities of the rules, the disastrous consequences which are likely to arise if these rules are brought into force make one shudder."

Urging the chief ministers to stand up against Centre's 'anti-federal, anti-democratic and anti-secular move', Vijayan said that they need to request Prime Minister Narendra Modi to withdraw the rules introduced without any consultation with the states.

"I would therefore fervently appeal to you to convey your objection to the 2017 Rules under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act to the prime minister, and to request him to withdraw the rules introduced without any consultation with the States. Since the matters dealt within the rules squarely fall within the purview of State legislatures, the state governments may be allowed to formulate necessary policies and laws to suit the socio-cultural and economic milieu of the State," he said.

Earlier, criticizing the Centre's order, Vijayan said that he didn't need a "lesson in food habits from New Delhi or Nagpur."

"Those sitting in Nagpur and Delhi cannot decide the food habits of Malayalis," he said.

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan ordered that the ministry has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes.

He said the seller and buyer both have to ensure that the cattle is not being bought or sold in the market for slaughter purposes.

The rules also state that the purchaser shall not sacrifice the animal for any religious purpose or sell it to a person outside the state without permission and must keep in with the state's cattle protection laws.

Youth Congress organised beef festival in front of Ernakulam BJP office in Kochi. Photograph: PTI Photo
A 21-year-old Kashmiri man, who was allegedly trying to join the terror group Islamic State, has been deported from Turkey to India after being picked up by Turkish authorities, official sources Srinagar said on Monday.

Srinagar resident Afshan Parvaiz was deported from the Turkish capital of Ankara on May 25 and whisked away to an undisclosed destination by security agencies in Delhi, the sources said.

He was being assessed by various security agencies, they said.

Parvaiz had left home after an argument with his father, who wanted him to join a college while the son was interested in religious studies, the sources said.

They said he booked himself a seat on a flight to Teheran on March 23. He was scheduled to return to Delhi on April 9 after exploring avenues for religious studies in Europe, they said.

The Kashmiri man, who is the second person to be deported from Turkey in the last two months, apparently sent a message to his family to tell them that he was facing some 'problems', the sources said.

When the police and other agencies in Kashmir were informed about this, a probe was launched to locate him, they said.

According to the sources, the security agencies then got in touch with their Iranian counterparts, who found out that Parvaiz was travelling to Ankara.

The authorities in Ankara were contacted and he was picked up while he was travelling in a bus in the Turkish capital, they said.

He was sent to India on May 25 by a Turkish Airlines flight, the sources said.

In March, Mohammed Taha, a resident of Srinagar, was deported from Turkey and sent to India. He has been put in preventive custody, they said.

Security agencies in India have viewed their alleged plans to join the IS with concern. They believe that some Kashmiri youths are getting radicalised by 'jihadi' propaganda material shared by the IS on the Internet.

The agencies feel that if the growing influence of the IS is not checked, it can be detrimental to the situation in the Valley.

Recently, an audio clip had surfaced on social media sites in which Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) terrorist commander Zakir Moosa could be heard talking about establishing an Islamic caliphate in the Valley.

The police had carried out an analysis of the clip, comparing the voice with that of Moosa's in earlier videos and audios.

The 5.40-minute audio warned Kashmir's separatist leaders against interfering in the HM's plan to establish a caliphate as the IS has done in parts of Syria and Iraq.

The call for a caliphate is being seen as a worrying twist to militancy in Kashmir, which has largely revolved around a demand for independence or secession to Pakistan, without an overtly religious subtext.

During the recent protests in the Valley, IS flags were waved in certain areas, and slogans supporting the terror group were painted on walls.

However, Hizbul Mujahideen leader Syed Sallahuddin had said there was no place for groups such as the IS, Al Qaeda or the Taliban in Jammu and Kashmir.
Three Youth Congress activists were on Monday suspended in connection with the public butchering of a calf in Kannur district as part of a protest against the Centres ban on sale of cattle for slaughter.

Youth Congress Kannur district president Rijil Makkutty and activists Joshi Kandathil and Sharafuddin were suspended both from the organisation and the Congress, party sources in Thiruvananthapuram said.

The action came a day after party vice president Rahul Gandhi condemned the public slaughter of the animal.

Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president M M Hassan said that the action had dented the Youth Congress protest and the activists were suspended from the party.

The public slaughter of the calf by the YC activists is against the Congress culture. The party condemns the incident, Hassan told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.

The All India Congress Committee in-charge of communications, Randeep Surjewala, said such an action by Congress workers was completely unacceptable and was alien to the civil society, our culture and founding principles.

Anybody who has done so will have no place in the party and thats why the workers have been already suspended by the Youth Congress, he said.

Such elements have no place in the Congress or in our culture. Indian culture is not to cause harm to any living being, much less to the holy cow which we all celebrate and revere, he also said.

Triggering a widespread row, the Youth Congress workers had allegedly butchered the 18-month-old animal in full public view in an open vehicle two days ago and raised slogans against the Centres decision to ban sale of cattle for slaughter.

The meat was later distributed free of cost to onlookers.

Cutting across party barriers, a number of political leaders and cultural activists had come out against the gory protest.

On the basis of a complaint from a Yuva Morcha worker, the police registered a case against the YC activists under Section 120 A of the Kerala Police Act.

The offence deals with slaughter of any animal in a way that causes annoyance or inconvenience to the public and is punishable with imprisonment up to one year or a fine of up to Rs 5,000 or both.

Hassan also demanded that the government convene a special assembly session and formulate a new legislation to overcome the Union governments notification.

Congress workers would stage a protest march before the Raj Bhavan here on June 1, demanding withdrawal of the Centre's notification, he said.

The Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president also alleged that the Centre was trying to snatch away the fundamental rights of the people to eat food of their choice through its latest decision.

IMAGE: A screenshot from the video of slaughter posted on social media.
'That the commandments to officialdom were issued by a BJP functionary and not a minister is a reflection of the Yogi government's work style.'

Radhika Ramaseshan reports.

IMAGE: Yogi Adityanath arrives to attend a meeting with officials at Lok Bhavan in Lucknow. Photograph: Pawan Kumar/Reuters

From Day One, Yogi Adityanath has wanted to do away with a practice scrupulously pursued whenever there is a regime change in Uttar Pradesh -- wholesale transfers and postings.

Over the years, the 'transfer-posting industry' had spawned formidable lobbies in various sectors, including the media and private business.

The thumb rule was that those overtly or tangentially marked as the preceding government's favourites had to be banished.

Come a new chief minister and his information secretariat issued a voluminous handout each day of transfers and postings, with vested interests making a killing when their recommendations were accepted.

"Our government is in no hurry to remove officers who were close to the Samajwadi Party or the Bahujan Samaj Party or both. There is no bias. We will observe and give everyone an opportunity," says Sunil Bansal, the Bharatiya Janata Party's Uttar Pradesh general secretary, counted among the dispensation's go-to men.

"The CM's directive to us is nobody should be transferred on the suspicion that the previous government might have protected him," says Sulkhan Singh, the newly appointed director general of police, adding, "Cases will be considered on merit."

135 IAS and provincial civil service officers were shuffled around after Adityanath took over; nine have been kept without work.

"The choice was deliberate; such persons are not role models in any administration," says a BJP official.

That list has former chief minister Akhilesh Yadav's movers and shakers -- his principal secretary, Anita Singh and Navneet Sehgal, seen as his handyman.

The BJP has construed the 'punishment' to the nine as a warning to the bureaucracy that recalcitrance and shifty loyalties will not be countenanced.

That the commandments to officialdom were issued by a BJP functionary and not a minister is a reflection of the Yogi government's work style.

Fashioned not so much by the saffron-robed CM as the BJP functioning as a parallel and equally forceful apparatus.

Irrigation Minister Dharampal Singh underlined the party's place in the government's scheme, saying, "Do district officers ever listen to farmers and other aggrieved sections? Never. That's why we have asked a BJP functionary and a senior minister to spend two hours by turn at the party headquarters daily, to hear people."

Additionally, every minister has been tasked to mind one or more districts, and monitor the working of welfare schemes through local party representatives.

And, if necessary, tick off defaulting officers, even on peril of breaching protocol.

IMAGE: UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath with state Health Minister Siddharth Nath Singh at the inauguration of a Japanese encephalitis eradication drive at Musahar village in Kushinagar. Photograph: PTI Photo

Yogi's nascent regime has tried to message that it meant business in capital letters in other ways too.

Dinesh Sharma, the deputy CM in charge of secondary and higher education, said on the day he took the oath of office, six million students wrote the Class 12 exam and 10,000 were caught cheating.

A former university professor, he says: "The offenders are chiefly private schools, run by bureaucrats and politicians through their proxies. The management committee members, in conjunction with the police, abet cheating to get good results. I video-conferenced with 20 district magistrates and senior police superintendents, ordered them to install CCTVs in the exam centres and see that no management committee member was present within 200 metres."

"A couple of such members were arrested. From the fourth day of the exams, copying complaints ceased," Professor Sharma adds.

When a scam where petrol stations were found using electronic chips to short-change consumers was unearthed, the owners threatened to strike.

"We were determined not to relent," says Health Minister and government spokesperson Siddharth Nath Singh. "A delegation met us a day before the threatened strike. We said either go back and open your pumps or face arrest because the CM will invoke ESMA (the Essential Services Maintenance Act). They fell in line."

Lucknow's establishment has not picked up the 'signals' in the way Yogi had intended.

A senior bureaucrat's take is: "If Akhilesh was a non-starter from the word go because his father had packed the CM's office with his persons, Yogi's hands are also tied by the prime minister's office."

P K Mishra, the additional principal secretary in the PMO, he claims, had tapped officers hailing from UP in his parent Gujarat cadre, asking if they would want to be deputed to Lucknow.

That Yogi couldn't have his way was evident when Avinish Awasthi did not become the chief secretary as he had hoped. As the DM of Gorakhpur, Awasthi had impressed the CM.

Yogi did the next best thing, appointing Awasthi principal secretary, vesting in him the mandate Sehgal had in Akhilesh Yadav's government.

"He wanted to convey that Awasthi, like Sehgal, is a power centre," a bureaucrat says. Rahul Bhatnagar, a hangover from the Akhilesh era, continues as chief secretary.

Two months into his tenure as CM, Yogi on May 19 finally got a principal secretary.

Shashi Prakash Goyal, who was repatriated to UP from the Centre, has been appointed principal secretary to the CM.

Goyal, an IAS topper of the 1989 batch, served as an understudy to Mayawati's cabinet secretary Shashank Shekhar Singh, from 2007 to 2012.

In all, 74 transfers were carried out on May 19, taking the number of reshuffles to 209.

To date, Yogi has not constituted his CMO, an exercise his predecessors accomplished within a week of taking over.

Apparently, the Centre has shortlisted eight UP cadre officers, including Sanjay Bhoosreddy and Alok Tandon, to be sent "any day" to Lucknow and fill slots in the CMO.

As incumbents in the police and administration mill around the DGP's headquarters and Lucknow's Sachivalaya every day, wanting to know their next destination, a police officer says, "There is tremendous confusion. When the Yogi government came in, all of us had packed our bags. Now, we are in a state of flux and if postings are inordinately delayed, there could be policy paralysis."

A bureaucrat was a tad harsher and says, contrary to expectations, Yogi failed to "instil fear" down the administrative line.

"This government's iqbal (integrity)) was compromised the day a BJP MP (Saharanpur's Raghav Lakhanpal) broke into the home of a senior police officer and threatened his family, the day a Gorakhpur MLA (Dr Radha Mohan Das Aggrawal) publicly rebuked a young policewoman," he says.

When Mayawati was the CM, a minister, Jamuna Prasad Nishad, and his goons had attacked a police station in Maharajganj. Mayawati instantly sacked him and there was no such incident during the rest of her tenure.

No action has been taken against the Saharanpur MP or the Gorakhpur MLA. The first political direction from the top has not been good, the bureaucrat said.

A recent migrant to the BJP, who went on to become a cabinet minister under Yogi, concedes a "shaky, if not hostile" bureaucracy has impeded his functioning."

"The bureaucracy is reluctant to share information with me. I never get the files I summon. I have had to set up my independent research apparatus to get on with my job," the minister said.

Another government official says the nub of the politician-bureaucrat dialectic was the BJP's return to power after 15 long years.

"Nobody bothered to cultivate the RSS or the BJP. A generation of bureaucrats don't know what they are about. Their committed officers have retired. So, the BJP is finding it hard to pick its people," he says.

The whir in the secretariat is that rather than work on upper caste officials, the BJP is looking closely at Dalit bureaucrats to build a loyal following.

Over the decades, the Dalits have emerged as a pillar in holding up UP's officialdom. "With mentor Mayawati down and out, they are looking for a patron in the BJP," a bureaucrat said.

As the BJP's search for its faithful in the system begins, the line between politics and governance, always fuzzy in UP, might stay that way in the new order.
Title Guide on Article 4 of Protocol No. 4 to the European Convention on Human Rights - Prohibition of collective expulsions of aliens

Publication Date 31 December 2020

Cite as Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, Guide on Article 4 of Protocol No. 4 to the European Convention on Human Rights - Prohibition of collective expulsions of aliens, 31 December 2020, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592be3c84.html [accessed 10 November 2022]

Comments For the latest updated version of 30 April 2022, please see https://www.refworld.org/docid/62ea31ee4.html
Russia: Fines, vandalism follow Jehovah's Witness liquidation

Publisher Forum 18 Author Victoria Arnold Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Forum 18, Russia: Fines, vandalism follow Jehovah's Witness liquidation, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592be6894.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

As Jehovah's Witnesses challenge the Supreme Court liquidation of all their organisations as "extremist", their Centre is closed, police have sealed some Kingdom Halls and bank accounts are frozen. Individuals continue to face fines, children face pressure, and places of worship face increased vandalism.
Iraq: Pentagon probe of Mosul airstrike underscores urgent need to protect civilians

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 25 May 2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Iraq: Pentagon probe of Mosul airstrike underscores urgent need to protect civilians, 25 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592be8a34.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

As the Pentagon reports on its findings following the investigation into the US-led coalition airstrike that killed at least 100 civilians in West Mosul's Jadida neighbourhood on 17 March 2017, Samah Hadid Amnesty International's Middle East Deputy Director of campaigns said:

"The attack on the Jadida neighbourhood was a tragedy that alerted the world to the horrors being inflicted upon Iraqi civilians. Entire families are being killed inside their homes, where they are stuck between ground fighting and airstrikes.

"As the battle for Mosul draws to an end, there is no doubt that, once uncovered, the civilian death toll will raise alarm bells about the conduct of hostilities on all sides. Recent field visits to Mosul by Amnesty International have revealed that, Iraqi forces and the US-led coalition did not refrain from using explosive munitions in heavily populated areas, where civilians were being used as human shields by the group calling itself the Islamic State.

"While we welcome the US investigation into the Jadida airstrike, we are curious to know whether any lessons were learned and what steps were taken to ensure such horrors do not occur again.

"We are in no position at this stage to confirm or deny the results of the US investigation. But as long as the conflict in Iraq is still raging, we call on Iraqi and US-led coalition forces to desist from using explosive weapons with wide area effects, including artillery and mortars in crowded residential areas and to take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian casualties." https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/03/iraq-civilians-killed-by-airstrikes-in-their-homes-after-they-were-told-not-to-flee-mosul/

Copyright notice:  Copyright Amnesty International
Execution of man arrested at 16 exposes Iran's disregard for child rights

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 25 May 2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Execution of man arrested at 16 exposes Iran's disregard for child rights, 25 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592bea1b4.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Iran has demonstrated its utter disregard for children's rights by executing a man arrested for a crime committed while he was 16 years old in a brazen violation of international human rights law, said Amnesty International.

The man, who has been identified in state media only by the name "Asqar", was sentenced to death by public hanging nearly 30 years ago. He was executed at Karaj's Central Prison near Tehran on 23 May 2017.

"With this execution, the Iranian authorities' repeated claims to the UN and EU that they are moving away from the use of death penalty against juvenile offenders ring horrifically hollow. It is absolutely appalling that two decades after it ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Iran continues to display such a chilling disregard for children's rights," said Philip Luther, Amnesty International's Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

"This is the third execution this year of someone arrested as a child in Iran, demonstrating the authorities' clear determination to continue flouting international human rights law. The authorities should halt any further plans for executions and amend Iran's Islamic Penal Code to abolish the use of the death penalty against juvenile offenders once and for all."

"Asqar" was originally sentenced to death in 1988 after being convicted of the fatal stabbing of his 12-year-old neighbour, according to state media. The sentence was later upheld by the Supreme Court. He was due to be executed at the age of 18 but escaped from prison shortly before the scheduled execution date; he was on the run until his re-arrest in April 2015.

Iran is one of the last few countries in the world that still executes juvenile offenders. International human rights law strictly prohibits the use of the death penalty against a person who was under 18 at the time of the crime.

Amnesty International opposes the death penalty at all times - regardless of who is accused, the crime, guilt or innocence or method of execution. The organization has consistently called on all countries that still use the death penalty to establish an official moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the punishment.

Copyright notice:  Copyright Amnesty International
Tunisia: Changes to passport law will ease arbitrary restrictions on travel

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Tunisia: Changes to passport law will ease arbitrary restrictions on travel, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592bea984.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Key legislative amendments approved by the Tunisian Parliament this week are a positive step towards ending some of the discriminatory and disproportionate restrictions on freedom of movement in Tunisia, said Amnesty International.

The changes to the 1975 Law on Passports, passed on 23 May, include new provisions requiring that reasons are provided for decisions to impose travel bans or withdraw passports, that people affected by a travel ban are informed of the decision promptly, and guaranteeing that they have the right to challenge the decision. The law also limits travel bans to a maximum of 14 months in all circumstances, after which the ban has to be lifted.

"The draft law adopted this week is a positive development that will help lift some arbitrary restrictions on the right of individuals in Tunisia to travel outside of the country and grants them the right to challenge such restrictions," said Heba Morayef, North Africa research director at Amnesty International.

"Parliament should now go further and review the arbitrary application of orders by the Ministry of Interior which restrict freedom of movement inside the country."

The Tunisian authorities have restricted the movement of thousands of people without charge or trial as part of a pattern of arbitrary measures taken in the name of security in recent years.

In a meeting with Amnesty International in December 2016, Minister of Justice, Ghazi Jeribi, highlighted the need for reforms, explaining how historically travel bans of up to five years could be imposed by an investigative judge and that individuals had no way of challenging such decisions. He said some people face such restrictions for years without being able to appeal, adding that "there is no oversight over the investigative judge".

In February 2017, Amnesty International's report 'We want an end to the fear': Abuses under Tunisia's state of emergency, detailed how Tunisian security forces are still relying on repressive security measures, including restrictions on travel for suspects.

Following the release of this report Amnesty International presented its findings to the Parliamentary Committee on Rights and Liberties. The Minister of Justice was also invited to a hearing held by the committee to discuss the draft law to amend the 1975 Law on Passports where he highlighted that Amnesty International's report included recommendations to repeal or amend the 1975 Law, given its infringement of the right to freedom of movement.

Individuals facing restrictions on their movements must be able to effectively access and challenge any evidence against them and have the right to be represented by a lawyer of their own choosing at all stages of the process.

Further measures are necessary to ensure that the new law is enforced and other arbitrary restrictions imposed by the authorities are eliminated. For example, the administrative practice of requiring a father's authorization to travel abroad for adult men and women aged under 35 has no legal basis; and there is no possibility of appeal for those banned from travel under this measure.

Amnesty International calls the Tunisian authorities to enforce these legislative reforms and to repeal or reform other arbitrary restrictions, such as the border control known as "S17", which is used to restrict travel within the country. This is another measure that has no clear legal basis.

A comprehensive set of reforms regarding these border control orders should be considered by the Tunisian Parliament to ensure they comply with Tunisia's obligation to respect the right to freedom of movement of all individuals.

Copyright notice:  Copyright Amnesty International
Kenya: Ruling in Ogiek case gives hope to Indigenous peoples everywhere

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Kenya: Ruling in Ogiek case gives hope to Indigenous peoples everywhere, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592beb314.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Following today's ruling by the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights that the Kenyan government violated the rights of the Indigenous Ogiek people when it evicted them from their land, Muthoni Wanyeki, Amnesty International's Regional Director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes, said:

"Today's ruling is a historic victory for the Ogiek community, and gives hope to all Indigenous peoples everywhere.

"In this one ruling, the court has both affirmed the Ogiek's right to live freely on their ancestral land, and proved to the continent that regional justice mechanisms work.

"But a ruling is not enough, it must be respected. The Kenyan government must now implement the ruling and let the Ogiek live freely on their ancestral land."

The Ogiek, who live mostly in Kenya's Mau and Mt Elgon forests, are a hunter-gatherer community. They have fought for a long time in the national courts, and now at the African Court, to live on their land of their ancestors, but the government has routinely subjected them to arbitrarily evictions citing the need to conserve the environment, claims the court rejected.

The case was initially lodged by Ogiek Peoples' Development Programme, Minority Rights Group and the Centre for Minority Rights Development (CEMIRIDE) at the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, before being referred by the Commission to the Court in 2012.

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Zambia: Adjournment of opposition leader's treason case is "persecution through prosecution"

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 29 May 2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Zambia: Adjournment of opposition leader's treason case is "persecution through prosecution", 29 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592bee6e4.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

In response to the Lusaka Magistrate Court's decision to adjourn the case of United Party for National Development (UPND) leader Hakainde Hichilema and five of his employees until 12 June, Deprose Muchena, Amnesty International's Regional Director for Southern Africa said:

"Hakainde Hichilema and his five employees are currently undergoing persecution through prosecution and the charge against them must be dropped. Their arrest and detention is part of a cynical ploy to silence all political opposition in Zambia.

"This treason charge is designed to intimidate Hichilema and stop him and others in the opposition from taking part in public affairs. The Zambian authorities must stop misusing the criminal justice system to target and harass the political opposition."

Background

Hakainde Hichilema is the president of the main opposition political party, the United Party for National Development (UPND) in Zambia.

The six were arrested on 11 April after they allegedly failed to give way to a Presidential convoy in Mongu district. They claim they were beaten, teargassed and pepper sprayed on their genitals by the police.

Hichilema was initially charged with treason, "disobeying lawful orders" and using insulting language towards the police after a confrontation with a convoy carrying President Edgar Lungu.

The Lusaka magistrate court later dropped all charges except treason.

Copyright notice:  Copyright Amnesty International
Philippines: Martial Law Threatens Escalation of Abuses

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 25 May 2017 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Philippines: Martial Law Threatens Escalation of Abuses, 25 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592bf1794.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The Philippine government's declaration of martial law in the southern island of Mindanao threatens to widen the scope of abuses under President Rodrigo Duterte, Human Rights Watch said today. On May 23, 2017, the Duterte administration declared martial law and suspended habeas corpus after the Islamist armed group Maute attacked Marawi City and killed three security force officers and burned several buildings, including a hospital and school. Maute fighters reportedly took a priest and several others hostage.

The imposition of martial law in the midst of Duterte's "war on drugs," in which more than 7,000 people have been killed since June, raises grave concerns of ever-widening human rights violations in the country, Human Rights Watch said. The day following the declaration, Duterte told the media, "Martial law is martial law. It will not be any different from what the president, [Ferdinand] Marcos did. I'd be harsh." He later said that he "might declare martial law throughout the country to protect the people."

"Duterte's martial law threatens military abuses in Mindanao that could rival the murderous 'drug war' in urban areas," said Phelim Kine, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "It's crucial that the country's security forces abide by international law at all times and hold rights violators to account."

Placing Mindanao under martial law empowers the Philippine military to supersede civilian authorities in enforcing the law. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said that the military will have "control of movement, searches and arrest of detained people, [and] suspension of writ of habeas corpus." On May 24, the Department of National Defense appropriately issued a statement that all military personnel are "enjoined that the rule of law and human rights should prevail" wherever martial law is in effect.

In 1972, then-President Marcos imposed martial law and suspended habeas corpus throughout the Philippines, which facilitated widespread abuses by the military and other security forces, including detention without charge, torture, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings. These abuses did not end when martial law was lifted in early 1981. The 1987 Philippine Constitution, which was drafted after Marcos's overthrow during "people power" revolution in 1986, places restrictions on the proclamation of martial law and the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, as well as on their implementation.

Article VII, section 18 of the Constitution empowers the president in the event of "invasion or rebellion" to impose martial law and suspend habeas corpus for up to 60 days. A majority of members of both houses of Congress can revoke - or extend - the proclamation or suspension without the president's approval.

Also under section 18, the Supreme Court may review a case brought by any citizen contesting the factual basis for martial law, and must hand down its decision within 30 days.

The Constitution also provides some important due process protections during martial law, Human Rights Watch said. A state of martial law does not suspend the Constitution, nor replace the functioning of the civil courts or Congress. It only permits military courts to try civilians when civil courts are unable to function. Suspension of habeas corpus applies only to people judicially charged for rebellion or offenses linked to invasion, and those arrested or detained must still be charged by the courts within three days or be released.

Maute and the Islamist armed group Abu Sayyaf threaten the security of people in parts of Mindanao, Human Rights Watch said. Both groups have pledged support to the Islamic State (also known as ISIS). However, the imposition of martial law throughout Mindanao for at least 60 days could also affect the Philippine armed forces' handling of other armed conflicts on the island, including with the communist New People's Army (NPA) and various Moro insurgent groups.

Expanding the military's legal authority in these conflicts opens the door to increased human rights violations against civilians, including leftist activists, indigenous leaders, and environmental activists, who have long been targets of military abuses.

"The Philippine government has a responsibility to protect the population from armed militants, but gaining the backing of affected people means abiding by the rule of law," Kine said. "Martial law is not a free pass for abuse."

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Saudi Arabia: Counterterrorism Apparatus Targets Rights Activists

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Saudi Arabia: Counterterrorism Apparatus Targets Rights Activists, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592bf5a24.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

A United Nations official who recently visited Saudi Arabia has criticized the country's use of its terrorism tribunal and counterterrorism law to unjustly prosecute human rights defenders, writers, and peaceful critics, Human Rights Watch said today. Ben Emmerson, the UN special rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism, issued his statement on May 4, 2017, following a visit to the country from April 30 to May 4.

"King Salman should immediately pardon and release anyone imprisoned merely for peacefully expressing their opinions," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "In combating terrorism within its borders, Saudi Arabia should engage with rights activists and offer them a seat at the table rather than a bed in a prison cell."

Saudi Arabia's counterterrorism law and a series of related decrees are used to criminalize a wide range of acts as "terrorism" including intending to "insult the reputation of the state," "harm public order," or "calling for atheist thought."

Emmerson said that Saudi authorities denied him access to people jailed under the counterterrorism law and expressed concern regarding Saudi Arabia's "unacceptably broad definition of terrorism." He also called on Saudi Arabia to set up "a new independent mechanism to re-examine all cases where people had been jailed for exercising their rights of free speech, thought, conscience, religion or opinion, and of peaceful assembly or association."

In his statement, Emmerson urged Saudi officials to limit the legal definition of terrorism to "acts or threats of violence that are committed for religious, political or ideological motives, and that are aimed at putting the public or section of the public in fear or to coerce a government or international organization to take or refrain from taking any action."

Since 2014, Saudi authorities have tried nearly all peaceful dissidents facing broad, catch-all charges in the Specialized Criminal Court, which the authorities set up in 2008 to investigate terrorism-related crimes.

Human Rights Watch research has found that the court often convicts suspects on charges that are not recognizable crimes. Some speech-related charges have resulted in prison sentences of between 10 and 15 years.

Saudi activists and dissidents currently serving long prison terms based solely on their peaceful activism include Waleed Abu al-Khair, Mohammed al-Qahtani, Abdullah al-Hamid, Fadhil al-Manasif, Sulaiman al-Rashoodi, Abdulkareem al-Khodr, Fowzan al-Harbi, Saleh al-Ashwan, Abdulrahman al-Hamid, Zuhair Kutbi, and Alaa Brinji.

In other cases Human Rights Watch analyzed, the court convicted defendants solely on confessions that the defendants later retracted in court, saying that they only confessed under torture and duress. Some of these cases resulted in the death penalty.

On January 2, 2016, Saudi Arabia carried out a mass execution of 47 men for "terrorism offenses." Forty-three were associated with Al-Qaeda attacks in the 2000s, and four were Shia allegedly involved in protest-related crimes in 2011 and 2012. It was Saudi Arabia's largest mass execution since 1980. Among those executed was Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent Shia cleric sentenced to death in 2014 after the Specialized Criminal Court convicted him on a host of vague charges, apparently based largely on his peaceful criticism of Saudi officials.

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Uganda: Set Independent Inquiry in November Killings

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Uganda: Set Independent Inquiry in November Killings, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592bf7674.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The Ugandan government should facilitate independent and transparent investigations with international expertise into the November 2016 killings of civilians in Kasese, Uganda and hold security forces accountable, a coalition of 40 organizations said today. The groups urged the government to invite relevant African Commission experts and United Nations special rapporteurs to participate in investigations.

Six months after the joint police-military operations in Kasese, western Uganda that led to many deaths, there have been no investigations into the security forces' operations. While no military or police have been charged for their conduct during the violence on November 26 and 27, 2016, at least 180 civilians, including at least six children currently on remand, face charges of murder, treason, and terrorism, among other crimes.

"The Ugandan government took significant steps to charge almost 200 civilians for their alleged involvement in the violence in Kasese," said Maria Burnett, East Africa Director at Human Rights Watch. "But six months after this unexplained and overwhelming use of lethal force by the police and military, the government has taken no steps at all to investigate their role or to provide justice for the many victims."

Killings by Ugandan military and police during joint operations in Kasese, western Uganda on November 26-27, 2016, warrant an independent, impartial fact-finding mission with international expertise.

The death toll remains unclear. On March 16, 2017, the government increased its previous figures and stated that the death toll was 103, but didn't specify over what time period. Human Rights Watch research throughout the sub counties of the Kasese district indicate that at least 55 people, including 14 police officers, were killed on November 26, and that more than 100 people were killed by police and the military during the attack on the palace compound of the region's cultural institution on November 27. Human Rights Watch spoke to families of 15 children who were there and are presumed dead. The government has refused to investigate specific allegations that the military assault on November 27 killed children inside the palace compound.

"We are suffering, absolutely suffering," a woman whose husband and son were inside said. "My children ask every day about their father and their young brother. Sometimes we just sit down with the family and mourn and cry."

The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights, the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, and the United Nations Special Rapporteurs on Extra-judicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions should request an invitation to Uganda to examine violence in the Kasese region, the groups said.

"At a time when the public trust in many inconclusive investigations into several murders in Uganda continues to wane, the government ought to accept international cooperation and support to restore trust in its commitment to investigate and act on these atrocities," said Arthur Larok, Country Director of ActionAid Uganda.

At the time of the killings, there were multiple calls for investigations into the security forces' conduct by local and international entities. Among those calling for an investigation were the Buganda kingdom, another Ugandan cultural institution that had its own political tensions with the central government that led to police and military killing at least 48 civilians in September 2009. In a Christmas message, the kingdom urged the government to "do everything in its power to investigate and punish all those involved in the mass killings."

The Uganda Law Society, and Human Rights Network (HURINET) called for a commission of inquiry involving both parties involved in the clashes in November. Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI), Human Rights Watch, individuals and organizations of Uganda's women's movement, and many other groups have urged accountability for the killings over the past six months.

"These calls for justice will not go away without a commitment to transparency by the Ugandan government," said Livingstone Ssewanyana, Executive Director of FHRI. "We remain deeply concerned that the November violence is yet another example of an unnecessary use of lethal force by Uganda security forces that violates UN standards."

On March 16, the European Union and member states with embassies in Uganda issued a statement calling on the "competent authorities to immediately conduct the necessary field investigations, ensuring strong witness protection and protection of evidence." The EU also offered to support those efforts. A December 16 statement by the EU heads of mission had urged the government to investigate the Kasese killings in a "timely, inclusive and transparent manner, according to due process and the rule of law," and to make the findings public. Expand

Women whose loved ones were killed when Ugandan security forces attacked the palace of Charles Wesley Mumbere, king of the Rwenzururu,in Kasese, Western Uganda, continue to look for answers since the killings.

 2017 Maria Burnett/Human Rights Watch

The United States, a significant contributor to Uganda's military, also issued a statement on March 15, stating that it was "deeply troubled by the reported disproportionate use of force by security officials on November 27." The US further urged the government to "conduct or permit a fair and independent investigation into this incident."

"Victims in Kasese deserve answers about what happened in November and why," said Nicholas Opiyo, Executive Director of Chapter Four Uganda. "The hallmark of a professional military is a willingness to scrutinize the conduct of its soldiers, and Uganda should not seek to avoid that responsibility."

Government spokespeople told the media, and issued a statement on March 15, stating that Uganda "does not lack independent investigative capability." But it has deflected calls for an independent investigation, saying that the matter was before court and therefore sub-judice, or pending litigation. Given there are no court cases involving crimes allegedly committed by soldiers or police pending, any sub-judice claim is not relevant and should not be used to obstruct such investigations, the groups said.

"The world is watching how the government of Uganda responds to the Kasese killings," said Kerry Kennedy, President of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. "Nothing less than a comprehensive, credible, and independent investigation is acceptable - particularly into the role played by security forces in the deaths of over one hundred Ugandans."

Signed On:

Action Aid Uganda, Kampala

Advocates for Research in Development (ARiD), Pader District

Akina Mama Wa Afrika (AMWA), Kampala

Anti-Mines Network-Rwenzori (AMNET-R), Kasese

Center for Constitutional Governance (CCG), Kampala

Chapter Four Uganda, Kampala

Citizens' Coalition for Electoral Democracy in Uganda (CCEDU), Kampala

Community Development and Child Welfare Initiatives (CODI), Luweero, Wobulenzi

Defenders Protection Initiative (DPI), Kampala

Development Network of Indigenous Voluntary Associations (DENIVA), Kampala

Dr. Zahara Nampewo, Director, Human Rights and Peace Centre (HURIPEC), Kampala

Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI), Kampala

FIDA Uganda - The Uganda Association of Women Lawyers, Kampala

Global Forum for Development - GLOFORD Uganda, Lira

Global Rights Alert, Kampala

Global Support Development Initiative (GDI - Uganda), Lira

Good Hope Foundation For Rural Development, Kasese

Great Lakes Institute for Strategic Studies (GLISS), Kampala

Human Rights Network (HURINET), Kampala

Human Rights Focus (HURIFO), Gulu

Human Rights Watch, Nairobi and Washington, DC

Kabayo Zakayo, Creations Forum Afrika (CAF), Kasese

Kotido NGO Forum (KONGFO), Kotido

Ladislaus Rwakafuuzi - Advocate, Kampala

Legal Aid Service Providers Network (LASPNET), Kampala

Moses Khisa, Kampala

Network for Public Interest Lawyers (NETPIL), Kampala

NGO Forum, Kampala

Northern Uganda Human Rights Partnership (NUHRP), Kampala

Pader NGO Forum (PNF), Kampala

Public Affairs Centre (PAC)-Uganda, Soroti

Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, Washington DC

Rwenzori Consortium For Civic Competence (RWECO), Kasese

Rwenzori Coalition for Peace, Kasese

Rwenzori Peace Bridge (RPBR), Kasese

The Network of Ugandan Researchers and Research Users (NURRU), Gulu

Uganda Young Democrats, Kampala

Umbrella for Journalists, Kasese

Western Ankole Civil Society Forum, Bushenyi

Youth Legal Relief (YLR), Kampala

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Pakistan: Internet Crackdown Intensifies

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Pakistan: Internet Crackdown Intensifies, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c0c124.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The Pakistani government should immediately end its crackdown on peaceful speech on the internet, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should cease intimidating internet critics of the military and government, and release those arbitrarily detained for non-violent comments on social media.

On May 25, 2017, Pakistan's interior minister announced new rules that would severely restrict online anonymity. These new measures threaten greater censorship, arbitrary arrests of critical internet voices, and violence by militant groups against activists and members of religious minorities.

"Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's government is leading an all-out assault against free speech on the internet," said Brad Adams, Asia director. "The authorities need to cease harassing and prosecuting citizens for critical speech and urgently revise laws to meet international free expression standards."

On May 20, Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested six people for comments made on the internet. An FIA official told Reuters that, "We have received a huge list of suspects, active against national institutions, but we have identified 18 out of over 200 social media activists. They are accused of spreading negative material against the army and other institutions."



On May 25, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan announced expanded suppression of social media and the government's intention to clamp down on online anonymity by linking the social media accounts of each user to their cell phone number. This follows previous government efforts to ensure mobile phones are registered with fingerprints so that they can be linked to specific individuals. Khan said he was acting on instructions from Prime Minister Sharif.

Oppositional political parties in Pakistan have alleged that their workers and party members are being intimidated, harassed, and detained for making comments on social media. The Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) party has claimed that at least two of its members, Owais Khan and Salaar Kakar, had been detained by the FIA for many days before being released without charges being made public. The FIA allegedly picked up Dr. Faisal Ranjha, a supporter of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) on May 21.

According to media reports, the FIA has interrogated at least 40 people and seized their laptops, mobile phones, and tablets for forensic evaluation. This followed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) sending a text message on May 10 to millions of citizens warning against sharing "blasphemous" content on social media and directing them to report such content. On May 14, Nisar Ali Khan ordered the FIA to take immediate action against "all those dishonoring the Pakistan Army through social media."

The authorities have also cracked down on journalists. On May 18, Taha Siddiqui, a journalist and the Bureau Chief for World Is One News (WION) received a call from an official of the FIA's counterterrorism wing demanding that he appear at the FIA headquarters for questioning about opinions expressed in his journalistic work. According to Siddiqui, when he asked for the legal basis for being summoned, the FIA official threatened him. On May 23, the Islamabad High Court issued an order to restrain the FIA from harassing Siddiqui. The FIA then posted an undated notice directing Siddiqui to appear before the FIA's counterterrorism wing on May 26.

Pakistani authorities have a long history of abuses against peaceful critics of the government and state security forces. Pakistani and international human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, have extensively documented intimidation, torture, enforced disappearances, and killings of activists and journalists. The Taliban and other armed groups have also threatened media outlets and assaulted and killed journalists and activists for their work.

Pakistani law already adds to the hostile climate faced by journalists and activists,. In August 2016, the government enacted a vague and overbroad cybercrimes law that threatened rights of privacy and freedom of expression. The law included provisions that allow the government to censor online content, criminalize internet user activity, and access internet user data without prior judicial authorization.

Five activists - prominent poet Salman Haider, bloggers Waqas Goraya, Aasim Saeed, and Ahmad Raza Naseer, and social rights activist Samar Abbas - went missing or were taken away from different cities between January 4 and January 7. All five men were vocal critics of militant Islamist groups and Pakistan's military establishment, and expressed their views on the internet. Four out of the five - all but Samar Abbas - have since been released. Waqas Goraya went to the Netherlands after his release and alleges that the security forces tortured him "beyond limits," by punching, slapping, and forcing him into stress positions.

The recent measures by the government are having a chilling effect on freedom of expression in an already very restricted environment in Pakistan. Human Rights Watch has received reports of individuals deactivating and deleting social media accounts to avoid prosecutions and arrests.

"Pakistan's government should realize that punishing peaceful dissent will cause greater damage to its image than the criticism itself," Adams said. "The government's recent actions are making a mockery of Pakistan's claims of democratic rule."

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Yemen: Ramadan an Opportunity for Detainees

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Yemen: Ramadan an Opportunity for Detainees, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c0c624.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which begins on May 27, 2017 in Yemen, provides the parties to the armed conflict an opportunity to remedy the wrongful treatment of detainees, Human Rights Watch said today.

Houthi-Saleh forces, Yemeni-government forces, and forces backed by the United Arab Emirates should free those arbitrarily held, ensure detainees have access to lawyers and family members, and reveal the fate or whereabouts of those forcibly disappeared. The forces should also release children and others being needlessly held and hold to account officials responsible for mistreatment. It is common for governments in predominantly Muslim countries to release or pardon prisoners during Ramadan.

"Yemen's warring sides can both meet their legal obligations and do what's right by the Yemeni people by releasing those held arbitrarily during the holy month of Ramadan," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "They should also be informing detainees' family members where and why their loved ones are being held."

Human Rights Watch has documented arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances by Houthi-Saleh forces and pro-Yemeni government and UAE-backed security forces in the southern and eastern parts of the country, including in Aden, Abyan, and Hadramawt governorates. Human Rights Watch has also found that forces are detaining children suspected of loyalty to enemy forces, abusing detainees and holding them in poor conditions, and forcibly disappearing people perceived to be political opponents or security threats.

Related Content

Human Rights Watch is not able to determine the total number of people currently detained by parties to the conflict, but Yemeni nongovernmental groups estimate it is in the thousands. In May 2016, the government of President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi and Houthi-Saleh forces agreed to exchange half of all prisoners in early June before Ramadan as part of ongoing peace talks. On May 30, 2017, the United Nations special envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, announced that he had received lists of prisoners from both sides, later reported to include 2,630 on the government side and 3,760 on the Houthi-Saleh side. While some prisoner exchanges were facilitated at local levels, a full exchange never occurred, and it is likely that thousands remain detained.

Houthi-Saleh Forces

Yemeni rights groups have documented hundreds of cases of people arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared by Houthi forces or forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Human Rights Watch has documented 65 cases in which Houthi-Saleh forces arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared people, including two deaths in custody and 11 cases of alleged torture or other ill-treatment, including the abuse of a child.

Houthi-Saleh forces appear to have arrested many people because of their perceived links to Islah, a Sunni opposition party. They include Muhammad Qahtan, a senior Islah leader forcibly disappeared in April 2015. However, journalists, such as Salah al-Qaedi and Abdul-Khaliq Imran, as well as activists, have also been detained without charge for apparently political reasons.

Houthi-Saleh forces have also harassed and arbitrarily detained members of the Baha'i religious community, which the UN special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief referred to as a "persistent pattern of persecution." In April 2017, the authorities arrested Walid Ayyash, Mahmood Humaid, and Badi'u'llah Sanai, all members of the Baha'i community. Sanai was released one week later, but was rearrested in May. All three remain detained, their whereabouts unknown. Keyvan Qadari, an Iranian national who was born and lived his entire life in Yemen, has been detained since August, the last of five dozen Baha'is arrested en masse on August 10, apparently on account of their religion. Officials have threatened to deport Qadari to Iran, despite the clear risk he would face persecution or abuse.

Scores of detainees are being held at unofficial detention sites in territory controlled by Houthi-Saleh forces. Human Rights Watch has documented detentions at the Political Security Organization headquarters, at Zain al-Abdeen mosque in Hiziyaz, and at the National Security Bureau in Sanaa's Old City.

Pro-Yemeni Government Forces; UAE-Backed Security Forces

In areas of the country effectively controlled by the Yemeni government, backed by the Saudi Arabia-led coalition, Yemeni human rights groups and lawyers have documented hundreds of cases of people arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared.

The southern port city of Aden is currently home to multiple, often competing, security forces and militias. These forces are arresting and detaining people, and operating unofficial detention sites, local activists, journalists, and lawyers say. Given the rise in the number of security forces detaining people and the proliferation of detention facilities, families who know that their relatives have been taken into custody may not know why or where they are being held. A number of lawyers and activists have intervened to help families locate detained loved ones, but it frequently takes up to two months for a family to even determine who carried out the arrest, a local journalist said. Even after months of effort, some families have been unable to locate detained relatives.

Government officials and other sources reported that there are numerous informal detention facilities and secret prisons in Aden and the eastern governorate of Hadramawt. The UAE operates at least two detention facilities, including at al-Riyan airport in Mukalla. Various smaller detention facilities are located in military camps controlled by various security forces.



Yemen's warring sides can both meet their legal obligations and do what's right by the Yemeni people by releasing those held arbitrarily during the holy month of Ramadan.

Sarah Leah Whitson

Middle East director at Human Rights Watch



In Aden, many of those arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared were arrested by "the Security Belt," a force created in spring 2016. It is officially under the Interior Ministry but is funded, trained, and directed by the UAE, said several activists, lawyers, and government officials. The UN Panel of Experts on Yemen and the Center for Civilians in Conflict found that the Security Belt operated largely outside the Yemeni government's control.

In Hadramawt, the UAE-backed "al-Nukhba," also known as the Hadrami Elite Forces, has arbitrarily detained and forcibly disappeared dozens of men since spring 2016, when the Saudi-led coalition, in an effort led by UAE forces and supported by the United States, pushed Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) out of Mukalla, the governorate's capital. The UN Panel of Experts investigated the forced disappearance of six people allegedly arrested by al-Nukhba between May and November 2016, including one who said he had been detained at al-Riyan airport. In May 2017, more than a dozen prisoners who had been held at the airport were released, according to family members, but dozens are believed to remain detained.

Under international human rights law, an enforced disappearance occurs when the authorities take someone into custody and deny holding them or fail to disclose their fate or whereabouts. "Disappeared" people are at greater risk of torture and other ill-treatment, especially when they are detained outside formal detention facilities, such as police jails or prisons.

While parties to Yemen's armed conflict may take appropriate measures to address security concerns, international humanitarian and human rights law protect against mistreatment in custody, including not to be arbitrarily detained, tortured, ill-treated, or forcibly disappeared. At a minimum, those detained should be informed of the specific grounds for their arrest, be able to fairly contest their detention before an independent and impartial judge, have access to a lawyer and family members, and have their case periodically reviewed.

"War provides no justification for torture and 'disappearance' of perceived opponents," Whitson said. "Yemen's warring parties are putting themselves at risk of future prosecution if they don't account for the people who are wrongfully detained and return them to their families."

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Algeria: Ensure Fair Trial for Minority Rights Activists

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 29 May 2017 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Algeria: Ensure Fair Trial for Minority Rights Activists, 29 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c0ce94.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The Algerian authorities should drop all charges against a leading activist and his 40 co-defendants that are based on their peaceful activism for the rights of the Amazigh, or Berber, minority, Human Rights Watch, EuroMed Rights, Amnesty International, and Front Line Defenders said today. Kamaleddine Fekhar and most of his co-accused have been detained since July 2015.

Regarding other violence-related charges that the defendants face, the authorities should immediately release them from pretrial detention unless there is individual justification in each case of the necessity for their continued detention after nearly two years. All the detainees are entitled to a trial within a reasonable time. The defendants face very similar charges, including murder, terrorism, and other serious offenses that could result in the death penalty, for their alleged role in the deadly ethnic clashes that erupted in the Mzab region between 2013 and 2015.

"If Algerian authorities are to try those suspected of instigating and participating in deadly violence in Ghardaia Province, it should be on the basis of solid, individualized evidence," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.

The accusation chamber, a pretrial chamber tasked with confirming or rejecting charges based on a report by an investigative judge, issued its 150-page decision to refer the case to trial on February 14, 2017. The signatory organizations have reviewed the report. Algeria's High Court rejected the defense's appeal of the decision, and the trial opened on May 25.

Fekhar headed the section of the Algerian League for Human Rights in the city of Ghardaia from 2004 to 2014. In late 2013, he founded the Movement for the Autonomy of the Mzab, a northern Sahara region, and has condemned the government for what he called a policy of apartheid and discrimination against the Mozabites, an Amazigh ethnic minority in the region. Most of the co-accused are also pro-Amazigh activists who favor autonomy for the Mzab.

"No one should be prosecuted for his peaceful advocacy for rights of minorities, including for regional autonomy and independence, in compliance with international obligations of Algeria," declared Michel Tubiana, president of EuroMed Rights.

Under international human rights law, governments may penalize incitement to violence, hatred, or discrimination. But laws prohibiting incitement must be defined in a clear, narrow, and specific way consistent with protecting the right to freedom of expression. Prosecuting incitement to violence should be limited to cases in which the incitement is intentional and directly linked to the violence. Prosecutions for incitement to hatred or discrimination should never include peaceful advocacy for the rights of a segment of the population or regional autonomy or independence.

The court rejected requests by the defense lawyers to have their clients released on bail pending trial, most recently on February 14. The judicial authorities did not provide specific facts or circumstances to justify the rejection, as required under international human rights law and standards.

In addition to the flawed charges and evidence, the lengthy pretrial detention of the accused, without providing a justification in each case of the necessity for continued detention, violates their rights to liberty and due process, which include the presumption of release pending trial.

Article 14.3(c) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ratified by Algeria along with its Optional Protocol, states that "in the determination of any criminal charge, everyone shall be entitled to be tried without undue delay." The Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Fair Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa, adopted by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights in 1999, stipulate that "unless there is sufficient evidence that deems it necessary to prevent a person arrested on a criminal charge from fleeing, interfering with witnesses or posing a clear and serious risk to others, States must ensure that they are not kept in custody pending their trial."

"The victims of the tragic events in the Mzab deserve justice, which a deeply flawed trial cannot serve," said Heba Morayef, North Africa research director at Amnesty International.

Background information

Fekhar started a hunger strike on January 3, 2017, to demand his release but suspended it on April 20. Authorities arrested Fekhar and 30 co-defendants on July 9, 2015, at a house he owns in the city of Ghardaia following the intercommunal violence that erupted in Ghardaia Province earlier that month, the latest flare-up in this ethnically tense region. The rest of the accused were arrested in 2016, on July 26 and December 12.

Violence has erupted sporadically between Mozabites and Arabs in Ghardaia Province since 2013.One of the deadliest episodes, from July 7 to 10, 2015, left about 25 people dead and more than 70 injured from both communities, most from gunfire, according to media reports.

The accusation chamber approved charges against Fekhar that include terrorism, incitement to hatred or discrimination, distributing material harmful to the national interest, and defamation of state institutions, all under the penal code. In addition to those charges, some of his co-defendants were also accused of forming a criminal gang to commit crimes and premeditated murder. Several of these offenses are punishable by death.

The accusation chamber's report, which set out the charges, is problematic for three reasons: first, the report fails to cite incriminating evidence against the defendants for the offenses that criminalize violence, such as specific "terrorism" provisions, murder, and arson; second, it includes offenses that should be abolished because they criminalize peaceful speech that is protected by international human rights conventions, such as "defaming state institutions" and "distributing material harmful to the national interest"; and third, it includes offenses that are recognizable, such as incitement to hatred, discrimination, or violence, but that need to be proven according to narrow and precise definitions of these offenses, consistent with Algeria's obligation to respect the right to freedom of expression.

The accusation chamber report cites no evidence indicating that Fekhar or any co-defendant planned or carried out any act of violence. Instead, it justifies the charges on the basis of recordings of their speeches, without providing evidence that they contained incitement to violence; the fact that they held meetings; and their membership in Amazigh movements. The chamber also considered the fact that an unidentified individual in the vicinity of Fekhar's house had targeted the judicial police agents by aiming a firearm and throwing homemade explosive devices during the arrest operation as evidence that the defendants were part of a criminal gang. The individual did not injure any of the police and evaded capture so is therefore not among the defendants.

The accusation chamber's report cites a video of a meeting between Fekhar and several of the co-accused, dated October 5, 2013. According to the report, in this video, Fekhar declares that a "divorce" between the Mozabites and the Arabs is inevitable. He chastises the police for not pursuing those responsible for violence targeting the Mozabite community, calls the Arabs "invaders" and "hypocritical," and declares that the "authorities are dictatorial, corrupt, criminal, repressive" and partial towards the Arab populations.

The report cites another video in which Fekhar reportedly says, "We are in our land and the lands of our ancestors, the Arabs are not guests but invaders; we have to get them out of our land and from all of North Africa, Daesh [Islamic State] is the root of the corruption and the crimes."

As for the others accused, the accusation chamber cites police reports identifying them as among those attending the meeting shown in the October 2013 video. The chamber also cites statements that the accused made to the police acknowledging that they are pro-autonomy activists, their presence in Fekhar's house during the July 9, 2015 arrest operation, and their participation in marches or demonstrations for the rights of the Mozabites.

In presenting evidence of belonging to a criminal gang and attempting to destabilize state security, the court lists pro-autonomy groups in which Fekhar and others were active.



Copyright notice:  Copyright, Human Rights Watch
Burma: Army Investigation Denies Atrocities

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 24 May 2017 Related Document(s) Report of OHCHR mission to Bangladesh: Interviews with Rohingyas fleeing from Myanmar since 9 October 2016 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Burma: Army Investigation Denies Atrocities, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c0d854.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The Burmese army announced on May 23, 2017, that its investigation into alleged military abuses in Rakhine State uncovered no wrongdoing except in two minor incidents, Human Rights Watch said today. The army's failure to find its troops responsible for any serious abuses against ethnic Rohingya since October 2016 in northern Rakhine State demonstrates the urgent need for Burma's government to allow unfettered access to the United Nations international fact-finding mission.

"The Burmese army's denials of well-documented abuses shows unvarnished contempt for truth, accountability, and respect for human rights," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director. "The army's approach highlights the need for Aung San Suu Kyi's government to allow the UN fact-finding mission into Burma, and to call on the army to provide full access to conflict areas."

The army investigation team, led by Lt. Gen. Aye Win of the Office of the Commander-in-Chief, reportedly interviewed approximately 2,875 villagers in 29 villages in Rakhine State's Maungdaw Township from February 10 to March 4. The team said it recorded the testimonies of 408 villagers, and interviewed more than 200 soldiers and members of the border guard police. However, to have interviewed the number of villagers it claims to have spoken to, the team would have had to interview at least 125 people each day while in Rakhine State.



The army investigation reported finding two cases of abuse. One involved the theft of a motorbike, for which a soldier was sentenced to one year in jail and received a fine. The other involved military personnel who beat villagers for allegedly not helping to extinguish a fire, for which one officer was "penalized and warned" and two soldiers were sentenced to a year in jail. The investigation team also concluded that the allegations against the army in a report by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights were either "totally wrong" or "found to be untrue due to false accusations and exaggerations."

The UN, Human Rights Watch, and others have documented numerous serious human rights violations committed by Burmese security forces against the Rohingya in Rakhine State following the October 9, 2016, attacks on three police outposts. Human Rights Watch documented extrajudicial killings, the rape of women and girls, and the burning of at least 1,500 structures. The violence caused massive displacement, with more than 70,000 fleeing to Bangladesh and more than 20,000 temporarily internally displaced. A report issued by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on February 3, concluded that the attacks against the Rohingya "very likely" amounted to the commission of crimes against humanity.

The Burmese government established four separate commissions to investigate the violence, none of which have been credible or impartial. In March, the UN Human Rights Council passed a resolution establishing an independent international fact-finding mission with a mandate to investigate allegations of recent human rights abuses in Burma, especially in Rakhine State. The Burmese government has not said whether it will grant access to the mission.

Past Burmese government investigations have exposed deep methodological flaws and lack of care for victims and the collection of accurate testimonies. The Union-level investigation commission, led by Vice President Myint Swe, has used methods that produced incomplete, inaccurate, or false information. According to reports, testimony, and publicly released footage, the Burmese investigators badgered villagers, argued with them, told them not to say things, accused them of lying, and interviewed victims - including rape survivors - in large groups where confidentiality was not provided.

The Union-level commission released an interim report on January 3 that summarily dismissed allegations of genocide, religious persecution, and states that it was unable to find sufficient evidence of other abuses. The commission has yet to issue its final report and there is no set date for its release.

"Despite overwhelming evidence of mass atrocities, the Burmese army has again failed to credibly investigate itself," Robertson said. "For there to be any hope of uncovering the truth, the Burmese army can no longer be standing in the way of a serious international fact-finding mission."

Copyright notice:  Copyright, Human Rights Watch
Kenya: Ensure Free, Fair August Poll

Publisher Human Rights Watch Publication Date 24 May 2017 Cite as Human Rights Watch, Kenya: Ensure Free, Fair August Poll, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c0e644.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Kenyan authorities should ensure a level playing field, free from abuse for voters and candidates, in the elections scheduled for August 8, 2017, Human Rights Watch said today. The campaigns begin on May 28, amid concerns of political and ethnic tension as well as the lack of accountability for current and past human rights abuses - all precursors to election-related violence since 1992.

President Uhuru Kenyatta is seeking re-election for a second five-year term on his Jubilee party ticket, running against long-time opposition candidate, Raila Odinga, who will be representing the newly formed National Super Alliance (NASA). At least 14 other candidates are running, either for smaller parties or as independents. Kenyans will be voting for six positions - president, county governors, senators, members of parliament, women representatives, and members of county assembly - in the August election.

"The campaign should be a time for Kenyans to openly engage with candidates about a range of important national issues, with opportunities to ask questions and comment without intimidation or fear," said Otsieno Namwaya, Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch. "Lack of accountability for electoral offenses, abuses by police, and violations of free expression and assembly in the campaign period could potentially undermine the credibility of the election."

Throughout Kenya's campaign period, Human Rights Watch will monitor, document, and analyze human rights issues on a blog that begins later this week.

Kenya has a history of political violence. The December 2007 elections left an estimated 1,100 people dead and another 650,000 displaced. Although largely peaceful, the 2013 elections were characterized by pockets of ethnic and interclan violence as well as police use of excessive force against opposition supporters in Kisumu protesting a court decision reaffirming the election of Kenyatta. In western Kenya, during and after the 2013 election, Human Rights Watch documented police failure to respond or adequately investigate gang attacks.

Earlier in 2017, campaigns leading up to the party primaries were marred by abuse. In at least two instances in March, police in Kwale county broke up opposition meetings led by the current Mombasa governor, Ali Hasan Joho, and later openly defended ruling party supporters who disrupted an opposition meeting in Mpeketoni, Lamu county. The Kwale county police commander later told the media that he had orders to ensure that the opposition meeting did not take place.

During and after the 2007 and 2013 elections, Human Rights Watch, other organizations, and government-sponsored commissions found that Kenyan police used disproportionate force against opposition supporters in Nairobi and, among others, in the western Kenya counties of Kisumu, Siaya, and Kakamega. During the 2016 opposition party led protests for reconstitution of the electoral management body, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), police used excessive force against protesters in opposition strongholds in western Kenya, killing and injuring scores of protesters. Police should exercise restraint and remain impartial at all times, Human Rights Watch said.

Despite a raft of legislative reforms since 2011, police investigations into election-related violence also remain very limited. Police have failed to investigate violence in Mombasa during an opposition rally and during opposition events in Migori, western Kenya, both in April. Nor have police investigated or held to account those responsible for similar violent incidents during party primaries across the country in early 2017.

Recent research by Human Rights Watch found that free expression is under threat ahead of the elections, negatively impacting the ability of Kenyans to gather, receive, and share information on governance concerns. Kenyan authorities should ensure that journalists and activists can work without fear of reprisals, and report on a range of important electoral issues such as corruption, land acquisition, and accountability, among other concerns. Acts of violence should be promptly investigated and those responsible held to account.

State institutions such as the police, judiciary, and the electoral management body also require freedom and independence to do their jobs to ensure a free and fair elections period. This is crucial if Kenya is to address challenges that have bedeviled its recent election history and for Kenya to put the specter of violence behind it, Human Rights Watch said.

Kenya's Commission of Inquiry into 2007-2008 post-election violence found that the use of organized criminal gangs for political ends was a significant factor in that bloodshed. Government information indicates that the number of gangs has increased since 2007. A 2013 report by Kenya's National Crime Research Centre, in the office of the Attorney General, identified 46 criminal gangs and current Interior Ministry statistics indicate that there are now at least 90.

Despite expressions of concern by government agencies about the threat of criminal gangs and the adoption by parliament of the Prevention of Organized Crimes Act of 2009 to help fight such criminal groups, gangs remain active ahead of the August elections. In 2016, Police Inspector General Joseph Boinett warned of the risk of the gangs being used to cause violence during the 2017 elections. The ability of Kenya's police to respond effectively and lawfully should violence occur before, during, or after the 2017 elections remains a concern, Human Rights Watch said.

"The threat of violence and obstructions to free expression remain the biggest challenges to the credibility of Kenya's 2017 elections," Namwaya said. "The key is for all institutions responsible for managing this election to equitably enforce the law and protect the right of Kenyans to participate freely in the electoral process."

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Turkey's imprisoned journalists pin hopes on European Court

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 29 May 2017 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Turkey's imprisoned journalists pin hopes on European Court, 29 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c14594.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Members of Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the well-known Parisian street artist C215 painted the portraits of ten imprisoned Turkish journalists and deployed a #SaveTurkishJournalists banner outside the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg today to urge the court to intercede on behalf of journalists detained in Turkey.





C215, whose real name is Christian Guemy, used stencils to paint the portraits of Murat Aksoy, Sahin Alpay, Ahmet Altan, Kadri Gursel, Nazl Ilcak, Musa Kart, Inan Kzlkaya, Tunca Ogreten, Aysenur Parldak and Ahmet Sk outside the court. They have been held for between five and ten months. Two of them are more than 70 years old.





Turkey's journalists are turning to the ECHR because of the politicization of their country's judicial system. The court is an offshoot of the Council of Europe, of which Turkey is a full member.





"Our presence here is an appeal for help," RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire said. "Scores of media professionals, who include some of the most famous names in Turkish journalism, have been languishing in prison for months just for doing their job. President Erdogan's draconian policies and arbitrary measures under the state of emergency have trampled on their rights. In the face of this denial of justice, all hope rests with the ECHR."





Erol Onderoglu, RSF's Turkey representative, said: "We respectfully appeal to the judges to examine the cases of these journalists as quickly as possible. This is an emergency. What these prisoners and their families are experiencing is tragic. They have been attacked economically and psychologically."





ECHR - court of last resort





With more than 100 journalists detained, Turkey is now the world's biggest prison for media personnel. Most of the detained journalists were arrested under the state of emergency that was declared immediately after the abortive coup attempt in July 2016. They are all being held pending trial.





The use of pre-trial detention is supposed to be exceptional. It is supposed to be limited to specific circumstances and to the existence of specific dangers. But the Turkish judicial system is using pre-trial detention in a systematic and arbitrary manner that amounts to a form of political punishment and revenge. Legal appeals against the detention of journalists are rejected automatically, without receiving any serious consideration.





The ten-month-old state of emergency and a mass purge of the judiciary have resulted in a judicial system in which the politicization and lack of independence have reached an unprecedented level. Turkey's constitutional court, which once played a key role in trying to ensure respect for free speech, is now paralyzed. It has yet to issue any decision on the many cases of detained journalists that have been referred to it.





Because of the absence of any effective recourse in Turkey, the lawyers of many imprisoned journalists have turned directly to the ECHR, whose decisions are binding on the Turkish authorities.





The ECHR has announced that it is examining some 15 cases as a matter of priority, including Deniz Yucel's, but it has yet to

issue any ruling. A decision must first be taken on the admissibility of each case before detailed examined of its substance can begin.





Three days of action for Turkey's imprisoned journalists





Today's demonstration concludes three days of action by RSF and C215 in support of journalists imprisoned in Turkey, in which the famous street artist used stencils to reproduce the ten portraits across the Parisian urban landscape.





More than 500 #SaveTurkishJournalists stencils were distributed in Paris with the aim of allowing anyone to use them to show their solidarity and support for journalists imprisoned in Turkey. Their photos were also shared on Twitter with the #SaveTurkishJournalists hashtag.





Turkey is ranked 155th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2017 World Press Freedom Index. The media freedom situation was already worrying but has become critical under the state of emergency in effect since the July 2016 coup attempt and the country is now experiencing an unprecedented crackdown.





Nearly 150 media outlets have been eliminated at the stroke of pen, reducing media pluralism to a handful of low-circulation newspapers. Even journalists who not been jailed are being subjected to arbitrary treatment that includes judicial proceedings, withdrawal of press cards, cancellation of passports and seizure of assets. Censorship of the Internet and social networks has also reached unparalleled levels.
Press freedom violations recounted in real time January 2017

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 26 May 2017 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Press freedom violations recounted in real time January 2017, 26 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c15174.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

24.05.2017 - Magazine editor Morad Saghafi released on bail

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has learned that Morad Saghafi, the editor of the magazine Goft o Gu (Dialogue in Persian), was released on payment of bail on 20 May pending trial. He had been arrested at his Tehran home on 16 March.

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18.05.2017 - Hengameh Shahidi suspends hunger strike

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) was relieved to learn today that imprisoned

journalist Hengameh Shahidi decided to suspend her hunger strike after receiving a visit from her family in 16 May and a promise from the Tehran prosecutor's office that her appalling prison conditions will be improved and that she will be given complete medical examinations.

According to her family, she is suffering from several heart and respiratory ailments, along with other conditions. She had not been eating any food since 10 May.

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12.05.2017 - Journalist freed after ten years in prison

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is pleased to learn that Mohammad Sedegh Kabodvand, the editor of Payam-e mardom-e Kurdestan (a regional newspaper closed by the authorities in 2004), was granted a conditional release today on completing ten years in prison.





Held since July 2007 in Tehran's Evin prison, Kabodvand was sentenced to a total of 11 years in prison in connection with his journalistic activities and his creation of a human rights organization in Iranian Kurdistan, the northern region where he lived.





He has been freed provisionally pending a judicial decision on the application of article 134 for the new Islamic criminal code to the rest of his sentence. Under a 2013 amendment to the code, a person convicted on several charges should serve only the most important sentence. By this token, he should have been freed four years ago.

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27.04.2017 - Two journalists freed conditionally

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has learned that two imprisoned journalists, Kaivan Karimi and Issa Saharkhiz, have been released conditionally in the past week.





Karimi, a young documentary filmmaker, was freed on 20 April after completing half of the one-year sentence he received in November 2016 . Saharkhiz, the editor of several reformist newspapers was released on 25 April. His lawyer, Mahmoud Alizadeh-Tabatabaie, said he had completed his sentence.





One of the victims of a wave of arrests in early November 2015, Saharkhiz was sentenced by a Tehran revolutionary court in August 2016 to three years in prison on charges of anti-government propaganda and insulting Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. While held, he staged several hunger strikes in protest against his imprisonment and had been hospitalized since March 2016. The sentence was reduced last September.

Ranked 165th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2017 World Press

Freedom Index, Iran is one of the world's five biggest prisons for

media personnel, with a total of 28 journalists and citizen journalists

detained.



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19.04.2017 - Narges Mohammadi begins serving second jail term

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is outraged by the continuing persecution of journalist and leading human rights defender Narges Mohammadi, who has just started serving a ten-year prison sentence on completing a six-year one. She received the ten-year sentence a year after her most recent arrest, on 5 May 2015.





Mohammadi has a long history of persecution by the judicial authorities and has been arrested several times. During her spells out of prison, she has worked closely with Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi at the Centre for Human Rights Defenders.





The six-year sentence followed her arrest at her home on the evening of 10 June 2010. She was convicted two months later on charges of "meeting and plotting against the Islamic Republic," "anti-government publicity:" and "collaborating with the Centre for Human Rights Defenders" and was given an 11-year jail term that was reduced to six years on appeal in March 2011.

Mohammadi suffered muscular paralysis as a consequence of the heavy-handed interrogation sessions to which she was subjected after her arrest in 2010. As a result, she was paroled in July 2012.

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17.03.2017 - More journalists arrested

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) yet again condemns the persecution of journalists in Iran after at least three more were arrested in the past week.





The latest victims include Morad Saghafi, the editor of the magazine Goft o Gu ("Dialogue" in Persian), who was arrested at his Tehran home yesterday and was taken to an unknown location. His lawyer, Hamed Zargar, said neither he nor Saghafi's family have been told why he was arrested.





Meanwhile, Ali Motahari, the deputy speaker of Iran's parliament, yesterday asked the minister of intelligence to explain why a military unit recently arrested 12 editors of pro-reform information pages on the instant messaging service Telegram.

Motahari also criticized the detention of Ehssan Mazandarani, the former editor of the newspaper Farhikhteghan, on 12 March (see RSF's 13 March release). His wife, Malieh Hossieni, a journalist with the newspaper Farhikhteghana, was fired the day after his arrest.





Although banned, apps and social networks such as Telegram, Facebook and Twitter nowadays play an important role in providing Iranians with news and information. Telegram says it has more than 15 million users in Iran.

According to the Kalameh news website, Ali Ahmadinia, the administrator of the Eslahat News (Reform News) channel on Telegram, was arrested on 14 March and was taken to an unknown location.





RSF is currently very concerned about the health of two journalists who have been on hunger strike since their arrest. One is Mazandarani, who was arrested on 12 March (see above). The other Henghameh Shahidi, who was arrested on 9 March.

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15.03.2017 - Former editor gets six-month jail term

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the six-month prison sentence that has been passed on Hossein Karoubi, the former editor of Etemad Meli (a newspaper closed since August 2009) for circulating the open letter that his father, Mehdi Karoubi, wrote to President Hassan Rohani.

In the April 2016 letter, published in mostly foreign-based media outlets and on social networks, Mehdi Karoubi asks to be tried before a public court "in order to present the evidence I possess about massive fraud during the 2005 and 2009 presidential elections and to show what has happened to young Iranians in the country's legal and illegal detention centres."





Etemad Melli's owner and a former parliamentary speaker, Mehdi Karoubi has been under house arrest since February 2011, a fate he has shared with former Prime Minister Mir Hossein Mousavi (the owner of the closed newspaper Kalameh Sabaz) and Mousavi's wife, the writer Zahra Rahnavard. Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi, who are both former presidential candidates, are being held illegally and are being denied their rights. Their state of health is very worrying.





RSF has meanwhile learned that Samna Safari, a journalist with the monthly Andisher Poya, was released on 11 March after the authorities determined that he had served his two-year jail sentence. Detained along with three other journalists in a wave of arrests in November 2015, he was sentenced by a revolutionary court in March 2016 to five years in prison for "anti-government propaganda activities." This was reduced to two years on appeal.

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28.02.2017 - City of Qom suspends newspaper

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns the decision by the city of Qom's public prosecutor to suspend the newspaper Shakheh Sabz on 26 February, a day after it ran a story criticizing the level of violence in one of its poorest districts, which it likened to a "jungle." The suspension was ordered after 136 parliamentarians supported a resolution accusing the daily of "insulting the population of the Holy City of Qom." The newspaper's name means "Green Branch."

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22.02.2017 - Ahmad Montazeri returned to prison

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) firmly condemns progressive cleric Ahmad Montazeri's arrest yesterday. The editor of the website of his late father, Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, he was returned to prison after being summoned before a special court for clerics.

Tried behind closed doors and without a defence lawyer on 20 October, Montazeri was sentenced on 27 November to ten years in prison for endangering state security, ten years for publishing a "classified audio recording" and another year for anti-government "propaganda."

He was prosecuted for posting an old recording on the website on 9 August 2016 in which his father could be heard criticizing the wave of executions of political prisoners in the 1980s.

For more information: Ahmad Montazeri gets 21-year jail term as part of bid to suppress history





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17.02.2017 - Editor freed on completing jail term

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has learned that Ehssan Mazndarani - the editor of the newspaper Farhikhteghan and one of the victims of a wave of arrests in November 2015 - was released on 9 February. He had been given a seven-year jail sentence that was reduced to two years on appeal, His lawyer said he was freed as a result of a decision that he had completed his sentence. While in prison, he was hospitalized several times with heart and chest problems after a three-week hunger strike.

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10.01.2017 - Website reporter flogged for getting facts wrong

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is appalled to learn that Hossien Movahedi, a local news website reporter, was flogged last week in Najafabad, a city 450 km south of Tehran, for getting one of his facts wrong in a story about the confiscation of mopeds from female students at a technological secondary school in the city.





Movahedi reported on the Najafabad News website on 14 June 2016 that the police seized 35 mopeds when, according to the police, it was only eight. Although he apologized for his mistake and although the police were allowed to publish their version on the website, the police pressed charges against him and a Najafabad court sentenced him to 40 lashes for "publishing false information." This inhuman and medieval sentence was carried out on 4 January.





Iran has yet to ratify the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment.

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06.01.2016 - Woman journalist freed on completing one-year jail term

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has learned that Rihaneh Tabatabai, a journalist who has worked for several reformist newspapers, was released yesterday on completing a one-year jail term on charges of endangering national security and anti-government publicity. She was arrested on 12 January 2016 to begin serving the sentence, which was originally imposed in November 2014 and was confirmed by a Tehran appeal court a year later. The sentence also includes two-year ban on political and journalistic activity in the media and online following her release. In all, Tabatabai has been jailed four times since 2010 in connection with her journalistic activities.





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Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January -December 2016)



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Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January -December 2015)

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Press freedom violations recounted in real time ( January-December 2014)

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Press freedom violations recounted in real time ( January-December 2013)

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Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January-December 2012)

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Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January-December 2011)

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Press freedom violations recounted in real time (July-December 2010)

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Press freedom violations recounted in real time (January-July 2010)

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Press freedom violations recounted in real time (June-December 2009)
Liberal MEPs write to imprisoned Turkish columnist Kadri Gursel

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 25 May 2017 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Liberal MEPs write to imprisoned Turkish columnist Kadri Gursel, 25 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c1ac64.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Guy Verhofstadt, the leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Group (ALDE) in the European Parliament, and two other members of the group, Nathalie Griesbeck and Marietje Schaake, have written a joint letter to Kadri Gursel, a Turkish journalist who has been imprisoned since October 2016.





It is the latest letter to be sent by various MEPs to imprisoned Turkish journalists as part of a campaign proposed by Reporters Without Borders (RSF).





The letter to Gursel, a well-known newspaper columnist, was preceded by letters to Musa Kart, Ahmet Sk and Nazl Ilcak from members of three other European Parliament groups - the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), the Greens-European Free Alliance (Greens-EFA) and European United Left-Nordic Green Left (GUE-NGL).





The European People's Party Group (EPP) is also expected to send a letter soon, bringing to five the number of European Parliament groups taking part in this solidarity initiative.





Read the ALDE letter





One of the many journalists now detained in Turkey, Gursel was arrested along with nine colleagues at the daily Cumhuriyet on 31 October 2016 on a charge of complicity with "the FETO terrorist organization" - the government's name for the movement led by US-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen that is blamed for the July 2016 coup attempt. He is currently in a high security prison in the Istanbul suburb of Silivri, where he is subjected to a severe regime of isolation.





After being fired from the newspaper Milliyet in 2015 over a tweet blaming President Erdogan for Islamic State terrorism in Turkey, Gursel joined Cumhuriyet, now one of the few opposition newspapers that still survive in Turkey. As president of the Turkish committee of the International Press Institute, he is free speech champion who has participated in many demonstrations and advocacy missions alongside RSF.





Ranked 155th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2017 World Press Freedom Index, Turkey has experienced an unprecedented crackdown under the state of emergency that was declared after the July 2016 coup attempt.





With more than 100 journalists detained, it is now the world's biggest prison for media personnel. Since July 2016, nearly 150 media outlets have been closed by decree and more than 775 press cards have been rescinded.
Turkey: Concern over detained French photographer now on hunger strike

Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 24 May 2017 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, Turkey: Concern over detained French photographer now on hunger strike, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c1ba14.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is extremely concerned about Mathias Depardon , a French photographer held for the past two weeks in Turkey and now on a hunger strike, and reiterates its call for his immediate release.





Based in Turkey for the past five years, Depardon was arrested on 8 May while reporting in the southeast of the country for National Geographic magazine. Although an order for his deportation was issued on 11 May, he is still being held at a detention centre in Gaziantep, a city near the Syrian border.





RSF has learned from his lawyer, Emine Seker, that he began a hunger strike on 21 May.





"The ordeal to which Mathias Depardon is being subjected is unacceptable and has lasted for too long," said Johann Bihr, the head of RSF's Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk. "The Turkish authorities, who are responsible for his safety, must end this grotesque situation. We again urge the French government to intervene firmly to protect this photographer and obtain his release."





RSF, two other media freedom organizations and 19 media outlets sent a joint letter to Turkish interior minister Suleyman Soylu on 19 May calling for Depardon's immediate release.





Turkey is ranked 155th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2017 World Press Freedom Index.
Opinion of Advocate General Sharpston: Mossa Ouhrami

Publisher European Union: Court of Justice of the European Union Publication Date 18 May 2017 Citation / Document Symbol Case C225/16 Cite as Opinion of Advocate General Sharpston: Mossa Ouhrami, Case C225/16, European Union: Court of Justice of the European Union, 18 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/cases,ECJ,592c1dd84.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

OPINION OF ADVOCATE GENERAL

SHARPSTON

delivered on 18 May 2017 ( )

Case C225/16

Mossa Ouhrami

(Request for a preliminary ruling from the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden (Supreme Court of the Netherlands))

(Area of freedom, security and justice - Return of illegally staying third-country nationals - Directive 2008/115/EC - Article 11(2) - Historic entry ban - Starting point - Public policy derogation to the five years' maximum length of entry ban)















1. In this reference from the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden (Supreme Court of the Netherlands), the referring court seeks guidance on the interpretation of Directive 2008/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals ( ) ('the Return Directive') and in particular Article 11 thereof.

2. The request has been made in the context of an appeal brought by a third-country national against his conviction and imprisonment for the offence of being present in the territory of the Member State concerned (the Netherlands), knowing that he had been declared an undesirable third-country national against whom a decision had been taken requiring him to leave the national territory and imposing a 10-year entry ban on his (re)entry. Whether the conviction is upheld or quashed turns on whether the 'historic entry ban' (that is, an entry ban imposed before the entry into force of the Return Directive) ( ) was still in force when the third-country national was prosecuted. The answer to that question depends on the point in time at which an entry ban is deemed to commence and the effect (if any) which the Return Directive has on the duration of a historic entry ban in the particular circumstances of the case.

European Union law

The Schengen acquis

3. The Schengen area ( ) is founded upon the Schengen Agreement of 1985, ( ) by which the States signatory agreed to abolish all internal borders and to establish a single external frontier. Within the Schengen area, common rules and procedures are applied in relation to, inter alia, border controls.

4. The Schengen Information System ('the SIS') was established under Article 92 of the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement ('the CISA'). ( ) It has since been replaced by the SIS II which allows the Member States to obtain information relating to alerts for the purpose of refusing entry or stay to third-country nationals. ( )

5. Article 24 of Regulation No 1987/2006 concerns the conditions for issuing alerts on refusal of entry or stay. It provides that:

'1. Data on third-country nationals in respect of whom an alert has been issued for the purposes of refusing entry or stay shall be entered on the basis of a national alert resulting from a decision taken by the competent administrative authorities or courts 

2. An alert shall be entered where the decision referred to in paragraph 1 is based on a threat to public policy or public security or to national security which the presence of the third-country national in question in the territory of a Member State may pose. 



3. An alert may also be entered when the decision referred to in paragraph 1 is based on the fact that the third-country national has been subject to a measure involving expulsion, refusal of entry or removal which has not been rescinded or suspended, that includes or is accompanied by a prohibition on entry or, where applicable, a prohibition on residence, based on a failure to comply with national regulations on the entry or residence of third-country nationals.

'

6. Council Directive 2001/40/EC of 28 May 2001 on the mutual recognition of decisions on the expulsion of third-country nationals builds upon the Schengen acquis and aims to ensure greater effectiveness in enforcing expulsion decisions. ( ) Recital 5 notes that cooperation between Member States on return of third-country nationals cannot be sufficiently achieved at Member State level. The directive therefore aims to make possible the recognition of expulsion decisions issued by one Member State against a third-country national present within the territory of another Member State. ( )

The Return Directive

7. The Return Directive traces its origins to two European Councils. The first, held in Tampere on 15 and 16 October 1999, established a coherent approach in immigration and asylum. ( ) The second, the Brussels European Council of 4 and 5 November 2004, called for the establishment of an effective removal and repatriation policy, based on common standards, for persons to be returned in a humane manner and with full respect for their fundamental rights and dignity. ( ) The Return Directive, promulgated as a result of those policies, lays down a horizontal set of rules applicable to all third-country nationals who do not or who no longer fulfil the conditions for entry, stay or residence in a Member State. ( ) The common standards and procedures introduced by the Return Directive must be applied in accordance with, inter alia, fundamental rights as general principles of EU law. ( )

8. An overarching aim of the Return Directive is to establish clear, transparent and fair rules required 'to provide for an effective return policy as a necessary element of a well-managed migration policy'. The expulsion of an illegally staying third-country national from a Member State's territory should be carried out through a fair and transparent procedure. ( ) In accordance with general principles of EU law, decisions taken under the Return Directive should be adopted on a case-by-case basis and founded on objective criteria, implying that consideration should go beyond the mere fact of an illegal stay. ( ) It is however legitimate for Member States to return illegally staying third-country nationals, provided that fair and efficient asylum systems are in place which fully respect the principle of non-refoulement. ( )

9. Recital 14 is particularly important. It states that:

'The effects of national return measures should be given a European dimension by establishing an entry ban prohibiting entry into and stay on the territory of all the Member States. The length of the entry ban should be determined with due regard to all relevant circumstances of an individual case and should not normally exceed five years. In this context, particular account should be taken of the fact that the third-country national concerned has already been the subject of more than one return decision or removal order or has entered the territory of a Member State during an entry ban.'

10. The following definitions in Article 3 are relevant:

'

1. "third-country national" means any person who is not a citizen of the Union within the meaning of Article 17(1) of the Treaty and who is not a person enjoying the [EU] right of free movement, as defined in Article 2(5) of the Schengen Borders Code;

2. "illegal stay" means the presence on the territory of a Member State of a third-country national who does not fulfil, or no longer fulfils the conditions of entry as set out in Article 5 of the Schengen Borders Code or other conditions for entry, stay or residence in that Member State;

3. "return" means the process of a third-country national going back - whether in voluntary compliance with an obligation to return, or enforced - to:

- his or her country of origin, or

- a country of transit in accordance with [EU] or bilateral readmission agreements or other arrangements, or

- another third country, to which the third-country national concerned voluntarily decides to return and in which he or she will be accepted;

4. "return decision" means an administrative or judicial decision or act, stating or declaring the stay of a third-country national to be illegal and imposing or stating an obligation to return;

5. "removal" means the enforcement of the obligation to return, namely the physical transportation out of the Member State;

6. "entry ban" means an administrative or judicial decision or act prohibiting entry into and stay on the territory of the Member States for a specified period, accompanying a return decision;

'

11. The Member States retain the right to adopt more favourable provisions provided these are compatible with the Return Directive. ( )

12. Article 6(1) requires Member States to issue a return decision to any third-country national staying illegally within their territory. ( ) Article 6(6) gives Member States the possibility to adopt a decision on the ending of a legal stay together with a return decision and/or a decision on a removal and/or entry ban in a single administrative or judicial decision or act as provided for in their national legislation. ( )

13. Article 11 provides that:

'1. Return decisions shall be accompanied by an entry ban:

(a) if no period for voluntary departure has been granted, or

(b) if the obligation to return has not been complied with.

In other cases return decisions may be accompanied by an entry ban.

2. The length of the entry ban shall be determined with due regard to all relevant circumstances of the individual case and shall not in principle exceed five years. It may however exceed five years if the third-country national represents a serious threat to public policy, public security or national security.

3. Member States shall consider withdrawing or suspending an entry ban where a third-country national who is the subject of an entry ban issued in accordance with paragraph 1, second subparagraph, can demonstrate that he or she has left the territory of a Member State in full compliance with a return decision.

'

National law

14. Under Article 67(1) of the Vreemdelingenwet 2000 (Law on Foreign Nationals; 'the Vw') a third-country national ( ) may be declared undesirable, insofar as is relevant here: (i) if he is not lawfully resident in the Netherlands and if he has repeatedly committed acts punishable under the Vw; (ii) if he has been convicted by a judgment which has become final for an offence in respect of which he is liable to a sentence of imprisonment of three years or more; or (iii) if he represents a danger to public policy or national security. These conditions are alternative.

15. Under Article 68 of the Vw, the declaration of undesirability will be lifted at the request of the third-country national if he has stayed outside the Netherlands for an uninterrupted period of 10 years during which none of the grounds referred to in Article 67(1) of the Vw has arisen.

16. The Vw was amended in order to transpose the Return Directive into the national legal order. Article 61(1) of the Vw provides that a third-country national who is not, or is no longer, legally resident must leave the Netherlands voluntarily within the period laid down in Article 62 or Article 62c of the Vw. Article 62(1) of the Vw further provides that, after a return decision has been issued against him, the third-country national must leave the Netherlands voluntarily within four weeks.

17. Articles 66a(1) of the Vw and 6.5a(5) of the Vreemdelingenbesluit 2000 (Decree on Foreign Nationals 2000; 'the Vb') were adopted specifically in order to transpose Article 11 of the Return Directive into national law.

18. According to Article 66a(1) of the Vw, an entry ban will be issued against a third-country national who has not left the Netherlands voluntarily within the applicable period. Under Article 66a(4) of the Vw, the entry ban will be issued for a specified period, which should not exceed five years, unless the third-country national represents a serious threat to public policy, public security or national security. That period is to be calculated from the date on which the third-country national actually left the Netherlands.

19. Under Article 66a(7) of the Vw a third-country national to whom an entry ban applies cannot be lawfully resident, inter alia: (i) if he has been convicted by a judgment which has become final for an offence in respect of which he is liable to a sentence of imprisonment of three years or more; (ii) if he represents a danger to public order or national security; or (iii) if he represents a serious threat to public policy, public security or national security.

20. Under Article 197 of the Wetboek van Strafrecht (Code of Criminal Law; 'the Sr'), in its version applicable at the material time, a third-country national who remains in the Netherlands, while knowing or having serious reason to suspect that he has been declared an undesirable third-country national pursuant to a statutory regulation, is liable, inter alia, to a term of imprisonment not exceeding six months. Under the current version of the same article, a third-country national who remains in the Netherlands, while knowing or having serious reason to suspect that he has been declared an undesirable third-country national pursuant to a statutory regulation or that an entry ban has been imposed on him pursuant to Article 66a(7) of the Vw, is likewise liable to, inter alia, a term of imprisonment not exceeding six months.

21. Under Article 6.6(1) of the Vb, in the version applicable at the material time, a request for the lifting of the declaration of undesirability will be granted provided that the third-country national was not subject to criminal prosecution and declared undesirable, inter alia, as a result of violent crimes or drug-related crimes and provided that, since the declaration of undesirability, he has left and stayed outside the Netherlands for 10 consecutive years.

Facts, procedure and questions referred

22. Mr Ouhrami is probably an Algerian national. He entered the Netherlands in 1999 but he has never held a residence permit. Over the period 2000 to 2002 he was convicted on five occasions for offences of aggravated theft, handling stolen property and possession of hard drugs and sentenced to a total of approximately 13 months' imprisonment.

23. By Decision of 22 October 2002 ('the Minister's decision') the Minister voor Vreemdelingenzaken en Immigratie (Minister for Immigration and Integration) ruled on those grounds that Mr Ouhrami represented a danger to public order and declared him to be an undesirable third-country national. The Minister's decision reads as follows:

'The person concerned has been sentenced to a total of over 6 months' unconditional imprisonment. In view of this it is believed that the person concerned, who is not lawfully resident in the Netherlands within the meaning of Article 8(a) to (e) or (l) of the Vw, represents a danger to public order.



Legal consequences of that decision



Having regard to the provisions of Article 6.6(1) of the Vb, the person concerned, because he was declared undesirable under Article 67 of the Vw on the basis of, inter alia, a drugs-related offence, should remain outside the Netherlands for 10 consecutive years from the moment he was declared undesirable and left the Netherlands.'

24. The Minister's decision was served on Mr Ouhrami on 17 April 2003. He did not challenge it. The Minister's decision became final on 15 May 2003.

25. Although he knew he had been declared an undesirable third-country national, Mr Ouhrami remained in Amsterdam in 2011 and 2012 contrary to the Minister's decision. ( ) That is a punishable offence under Article 197 of the Sr and Mr Ouhrami was sentenced to eight months' imprisonment.

26. On appeal, Mr Ouhrami argued before the Gerechtshof Amsterdam (Court of Appeal, Amsterdam, the Netherlands) that the return procedure laid down in the Return Directive had not been exhausted.

27. That court examined the return procedure followed in Mr Ouhrami's case. It noted that: (i) the Dienst Terugkeer en Vertrek (Repatriation and Departure Service) had conducted 26 departure interviews with him; (ii) he had repeatedly been referred to the authorities of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, but that no positive report was forthcoming from any of those countries; (iii) various investigations were conducted through Interpol, particularly with regard to fingerprints; (iv) efforts were made to conduct a language analysis with him; (v) the Repatriation and Departure Service's procedures with regard to repatriation had been exhausted; but (vi) all of the above had not resulted in the repatriation of Mr Ouhrami because he had not cooperated in any way. On the basis of those elements, the Gerechtshof Amsterdam (Court of Appeal, Amsterdam), in its judgment of 22 November 2013, ruled that the return procedure had been exhausted and that the prison sentence imposed on Mr Ouhrami was not therefore contrary to the Return Directive. It did, however, reduce that sentence to two months' imprisonment.

28. Mr Ouhrami appealed on a point of law to the referring court. Without challenging the ruling that the return procedure has been exhausted, he argued that the Minister's decision adopted in 2002 declaring him to be an undesirable third-country national should be deemed to be an entry ban that entered into force when it was issued or, at the latest, when he became aware of it. Since Article 11(2) of the Return Directive provides that the duration of an entry ban should not normally exceed five years, it followed that the entry ban was no longer in force in 2011/2012.

29. The referring court notes that according to this Court's case-law, a decision of undesirability adopted before the entry into force of the Return Directive is to be regarded as equivalent to an entry ban as defined in Article 3(6) of that directive, and that, in accordance with Article 11(2) thereof, its normal maximum duration may not exceed five years. ( ) The question then arises as to when that period commences. According to Article 66a(4) of the Vw, the duration of an entry ban is to be calculated from the date on which the third-country national actually left the Netherlands.

30. Against that background, the referring court asks whether Article 11(2) of the Return Directive governs not only the duration of an entry ban but also the point in time at which the ban commences. It expresses the view that, by its very nature, an entry ban is relevant only after the third-country national has left the country.

31. The referring court observes that if the starting point for the entry ban is other than the moment of departure from the national territory, questions arise as to whether the Minister's decision still had legal effects when the prison sentence was imposed on Mr Ouhrami.

32. In those circumstances the Hoge Raad (Supreme Court) decided to stay the proceedings and seek guidance on the following questions:

'(1) Must Article 11(2) of the Return Directive be interpreted as meaning that the period of five years mentioned therein is to be calculated:

(a) from the moment at which the entry ban (or, with retroactive effect, the equivalent declaration of undesirability) was issued, or

(b) with effect from the date on which the person concerned actually left the territory of - essentially - the Member States of the European Union, or

(c) from some other point in time?

(2) For the purposes of applying the relevant transitional provisions, must Article 11(2) of the Return Directive be interpreted as meaning that decisions taken before that directive entered into force, the legal effect of which is that the addressee must remain outside the Netherlands for 10 consecutive years, where the entry ban was determined having regard to all the relevant circumstances of the individual case and was open to challenge on legal grounds, can no longer have any legal effect if, at the time by which that directive had to be transposed or at the time at which it was established that the person to whom that decision was addressed was present in the Netherlands, the duration of that entry ban exceeded the period laid down in that provision?'

33. Written observations were submitted on behalf of Mr Ouhrami, Denmark, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the European Commission. With the exception of Switzerland, all the above made oral submissions at the hearing on 16 March 2017.

Assessment

Preliminary observations

34. The Return Directive constitutes a development of the Schengen acquis in relation to third-country nationals who do not fulfil or no longer fulfil the conditions of entry under the Schengen Borders Code. ( ) That directive replaces Articles 23 and 24 of the CISA concerning the return of third-country nationals who do not fulfil or no longer fulfil the short-stay conditions applicable within the territory of parties to the Schengen Agreement. ( )

35. In that context, the Return Directive sets out common standards, procedures and legal safeguards to be applied in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals and for persons to be returned in a humane manner, with full respect of their fundamental rights and dignity. ( ) The 'Europeanisation' of the effects of national return measures is intended to foster the credibility of a truly European return policy. ( )

36. It follows from the definition of the concept of 'illegal stay' laid down in Article 3(2) of the Return Directive that 'any third-country national who is present on the territory of a Member State without fulfilling the conditions for entry, stay or residence there is, by virtue of that fact alone, staying there illegally, without such presence being subject to a condition requiring a minimum duration or an intention to remain on that territory'. ( ) It is initially for Member States to determine in accordance with their national law what those conditions are and hence whether a particular person's stay on their territory is legal or illegal. ( ) The interaction of the Return Directive with the Schengen acquis as well as the scheme of that directive highlight the European dimension of return decisions and entry bans put in place in order to ensure an effective return policy.

37. Return decisions impose on third-country nationals illegally staying in the territory of the Member States ( ) the obligation to 'return', that is to go back to their country of origin, to a country of transit or to another third country. ( ) It follows that the third-country national cannot remain in the territory of the issuing Member State. Other Member States may recognise and enforce return decisions in accordance with Directive 2001/40.

38. An entry ban cannot be issued independently but can only accompany a return decision. ( ) It is clear from the wording of recital 14 and Article 3(6) of the Return Directive that an entry ban, even though issued by one Member State, is intended to prohibit entry into and stay on the territory of all Member States. It therefore gives a European dimension to the effects of national return measures. ( ) The European dimension of entry bans is also clear from the fact that, where a Member State considers issuing a residence permit or other authorisation offering a right to stay to a third-country national who is subject to an entry ban issued by another Member State, it is required first to consult with that Member State and take account of its interests. ( ) In that context, it is important that Member States have rapid access to information on entry bans issued by other Member States via SIS II. ( )

39. It follows from the above that from the date when the Return Directive entered into force, entry bans adopted by the national authorities acquired a European dimension and must therefore comply with the rules laid down by that directive.

40. The present case concerns a 'historic' entry ban, that is to say a national measure equivalent to an entry ban adopted by a Member State before the transposition of the Return Directive.

41. The Court's case-law has already addressed the issue of the temporal effects of the Return Directive. In Filev and Osmani the Court considered settled case-law that new rules apply immediately, absent any express derogation, to the future effects of a situation which arose under the old rules. ( ) It follows that the Return Directive 'is applicable to those effects which occur after the date of its applicability in the Member State concerned of entry-ban decisions taken under national rules which were applicable before that date'. ( ) In order to assess 'whether the continuation of the effects of such decisions is consistent with Article 11(2) of [the Return Directive] in relation in particular to the maximum length of five years in principle under that provision for an entry ban, account should also be taken of the period during which that prohibition was in force before [the Return Directive] became applicable'. ( )

42. Therefore, in the case of a historic entry ban of unlimited length, as was the case in Filev and Osmani, the Court found that the Return Directive precluded the effects of that ban from continuing beyond the maximum length of five years specified by Article 11(2) of that directive except where that entry ban was adopted against third-country nationals constituting a serious threat to public order, public security or national security. ( )

43. That case-law is the obvious starting point for the analysis of the issues raised by the present case, namely the moment when an entry ban commences and the conditions under which a historic entry ban can exceed five years. It does not, however, in itself resolve the questions posed by the referring court.

The first question

44. By its first question the referring court in essence seeks guidance as to the interpretation of Article 11(2) of the Return Directive concerning when entry bans commence.

45. The text of that provision specifies that entry bans should not exceed five years in principle. It does not, however, specifically identify the starting point of that period. The Danish Government maintains that that matter is therefore left to the Member States to define under national law.

46. I do not agree with that analysis.

47. It follows from the European dimension of the return policy, ( ) as well as from the objectives of the Return Directive, namely 'to establish common rules concerning return, removal  and entry bans', ( ) that a coherent EU-wide approach is necessary when implementing that directive.

48. That coherent approach is particularly important in the context of the Schengen area establishing a single external frontier. It follows that, when classifying a measure as falling within the Schengen acquis or as a development of that acquis, the need for coherence and the need - where that acquis evolves - to maintain that coherence must be taken into account. ( ) Exchange of information between Member States on return decisions and entry bans appears currently to be imperfect. ( ) Indeed, the European Commission explained at the hearing that there are several proposals for improvement, ( ) in particular by making it compulsory for Member States to enter an alert in the SIS II in all cases where an entry ban has been issued. ( ) Such exchange of information is crucial to manage the single external frontier and needs to be based on precise and reliable data. In the case of entry bans, that information should logically include both the duration of the ban and its starting point.

49. In that context, it is also clear from the express wording of the Return Directive that it intends to harmonise the length of entry bans. Thus, a maximum duration of five years is set, except for cases where the third-country national represents a serious threat to public policy, public security or national security. Inconsistency on that matter would jeopardise the stated objectives of the Return Directive, the EU-wide effects of entry bans and the management of the Schengen area. To accept that an entry ban, whose legal foundation is a set of harmonised rules at a European level, should start to produce its effects at a different point in time depending on different choices exercised by Member States through their national legislation would undermine the efficient functioning of the Schengen area.

50. Here, I emphasise that Articles 3(6) and 11 of the Return Directive, which define the concept of 'entry ban', make no reference to the law of the Member States. An entry ban is therefore clearly an autonomous concept of EU law. It follows from the need for uniform application of EU law and from the principle of equality 'that the terms of a provision of [EU] law which makes no express reference to the law of the Member States for the purpose of determining its meaning and scope must normally be given an autonomous and uniform interpretation throughout the Union, having regard to the context of the provision and the objective pursued by the legislation in question'. ( )

51. That principle also applies to the constitutive elements of an entry ban, namely its temporal dimension (starting point and duration), territorial dimension (Member States' territory) and legal dimension (prohibition to enter and to reside within the territory of the Member States).

52. I therefore do not see the silence of the EU legislature on that matter as a deliberate and explicit choice. Rather it is a lacuna that it is permissible for the Court to fill having regard to the wording, the scheme and the objective of the Return Directive. The EU legislature of course remains at liberty to modify the Court's solution should it consider that desirable - for example, in order to enhance the efficiency of the SIS II and thus strengthen the Schengen acquis.

53. Several possible starting points have been canvassed before the Court. Mr Ouhrami submits that the starting point of an entry ban should be the moment that it is notified to the person that it affects. The Netherlands, Switzerland and the Commission submit that it should be when the third-country national actually leaves the territory of the Member States. Denmark explained at the hearing that under Danish law an entry ban becomes effective when the third-country national actually leaves the country, but that the starting point for calculating its duration is the first day of the first month after the third-country national left the country. The permutations could be multiplied almost infinitely: the date when the decision was adopted; the date when the decision became definitive; the day after the actual departure of the third-country national; the date when he is put in detention for the purpose of removal; the date when he is proven to have arrived in a third country and so on. A further possibility might be the date when an alert was entered into the SIS II. ( )

54. It appears from my own informal research, as confirmed by the Commission at the hearing, that there is significant disparity between the solutions that have been adopted by the Member States in that respect. It seems that three choices are recurrent in Member States' legislation, namely (i) the date when the entry ban was notified; (ii) the date when the entry ban became definitive and (iii) the date when the third-country national actually left the territory of the Member State in question.

55. All present the advantage of defining a specific point in time when the entry ban starts to produce its effects. It seems to me that using the date of notification has the disadvantage of attaching the legal effects of the entry ban to a moment in time when that measure is not yet definitive (and could, at least in theory, be altered or even annulled). Using the date on which the entry ban became definitive links the legal effects of a measure with EU dimension(s) that concerns the territory of all Member States to a point in time that depends on national procedural rules. These may vary substantially between the different legal systems.

56. Furthermore, both those arrangements fail to recognise that entry bans are not standalone measures but always accompany a return decision, as is apparent from the wording of Articles 3(6) and 11(1) of the Return Directive. It follows that the first step in the procedure is the adoption of a return decision whose legal effect is to require the third-country national to 'return'. The second step, the adoption of an entry ban, is optional. It may be taken at the same time as the first step under Article 6(6) of the Return Directive. The entry ban produces a double legal effect: (i) a prohibition on entering and (ii) a prohibition on staying after a second illegal entry in the territory of the Member States. The legal effects of the entry ban can commence only when the return decision has been complied with. Until then, the third-country national's illegal stay is governed by the effects of the return decision.

57. It follows that providing for an entry ban to start at the moment of its notification or when it became definitive would invert the logic of the EU return policy. It would also compromise its efficiency, since a third-country national who is present illegally in the territory of the Member States could avoid the legal effects of an entry ban merely by avoiding complying with the return decision for the duration of that ban. That would tend to encourage third-country nationals not to comply with return decisions, whereas one of the stated objectives of the Return Directive is to give priority to voluntary departure. ( )

58. The third arrangement is to treat the moment when the third-country national actually left the territory of the Member States as the starting point of the entry ban. In what follows I proceed from the assumption that the return decision and accompanying entry ban have been duly notified to the third-country national and have become definitive under national law.

59. That approach is supported by the objective, the scheme and the wording of the Return Directive as well as by the legal nature of entry bans. As I have explained, entry bans are not autonomous measures but always accompany a return decision. ( ) Taken in conjunction with the use of the word 'entry', that implies that the third-country national must first leave the territory of the Member States. Only then does the entry ban (which is actually a re-entry ban) take effect.

60. The legislative history of the Return Directive reinforces that view. In English, French, German and certain other linguistic versions the Commission's Proposal, ( ) the Council's Proposal ( ) and the European Parliament's Report ( ) use the term 're-entry ban'. Only at a later stage did the term 'entry ban' appear. ( ) That term was retained in the final version of the text. It seems, however, that the initial term ('re-entry ban') is still reflected in the implementing legislation of some Member States. ( )

61. The texts adopted after the Return Directive relating to the EU return policy confirm that the European legislator intended to define the starting point of entry bans as the moment that the third-country national actually leaves the territory of the Member States. The most recent Recommendation confirms that Member States should make full use of entry bans and ensure that they commence 'on the day on which the third-country nationals leave the EU so that their effective duration is not unduly shortened'. ( ) The Commission's Return Handbook adopts a similar approach: 'the moment at which the clock starts ticking  needs to be determined in advance: normally the clock should start ticking from the moment of departure or removal to a third country and not from the issuing date of the entry ban, since the EU entry ban cannot [yet] develop its effect in a situation in which the person has not yet left EU territory'. That handbook also takes into consideration 'those cases in which it is not possible in practice to determine in advance a concrete date of departure'. In such cases, 'Member States may use another date (e.g. the issuing date)'. ( ) At the hearing, the Commission stated that the Return Handbook should not be interpreted as suggesting that the starting point of an entry ban should normally be other than the moment of departure of the third-country national. Only in exceptional cases, where it is impossible to establish when the third-country national actually left the territory of the Member States, should another date be used as the starting point of an entry ban. ( )

62. The objective of the Return Directive is to establish an effective return policy based on uniform, clear and fair rules and to give an EU-wide dimension to the return measures by establishing an entry ban prohibiting entry into, and stay on, the territory of all Member States. That also suggests that the starting point of an entry ban should be the moment when the third-country national leaves the territory of the Member States. Such an approach uses a point in time that depends on an objective factual element (departure) and not on the procedural rules of each Member State. ( ) It also may encourage third-country nationals to comply with return decisions.

63. I therefore conclude that the starting point for the duration of an entry ban as provided for by Article 11(2) of the Return Directive should be the point when the third-country national actually leaves the territory of the Member States.

The second question

64. The referring court's second question is relevant only in the event that the Court should hold that the starting point of an entry ban is other than when the third-country national leaves the territory of the Member States. I have just indicated that I do not consider that to be the case. I shall nevertheless examine the second question for the sake of completeness.

65. The second question essentially asks whether a historic entry ban may exceed the maximum period of five years laid down in Article 11(2) of the Return Directive, when it is of fixed duration, has become definitive and was adopted on the grounds that the third-country national represented a danger to public order.

66. Article 11(2), final sentence, of the Return Directive permits an entry ban to exceed five years if the third-country national represents a 'serious threat to public policy, public security or national security'.

67. In Filev and Osmani the Court extended that rule to historic entry bans. It held that Article 11(2) of the Return Directive precludes the effects of historic entry bans continuing beyond the maximum length of entry bans laid down by that provision, except where such a ban was imposed on a third-country national constituting a 'serious threat to public order, public security or national security'. ( )

68. It is therefore clear both from the wording of Article 11(2) of the Return Directive and the case-law that a historic entry ban may exceed the maximum of five years laid down in principle by that provision. It is however necessary to address the conditions under which that is possible.

69. A Member State may avail itself of that possibility where the third-country national represents a 'serious threat to public policy, public security or national security'. In the present case it is the concept of 'public policy' (more accurately, 'public order') that is relevant. ( ) That concept must be interpreted in the specific context of the Return Directive by reference to its wording, purpose, scheme and context. ( )

70. Member States essentially remain free to determine the requirements of public policy in accordance with their national needs, which can vary from one Member State to another and from one era to another. ( ) However, I consider that a derogation, such as Article 11(2), final sentence, of the Return Directive, is not to be construed broadly rather than restrictively merely because it concerns individuals who do not have residence rights within the European Union. Furthermore, third-country nationals (including those whose presence on the territory of the Member States is illegal) to whom EU law applies come for that reason within the scope of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. The fundamental rights that the Charter guarantees are to be observed with equal respect for all who come within its scope. What constitutes public policy requirements cannot therefore be determined unilaterally by each Member State without any control by the institutions of the European Union. ( )

71. The rules of criminal law are all public policy rules in the sense that they are imperative rules. An infringement of those rules therefore causes a disturbance to Member States' public policy. The magnitude of that disturbance will be lesser or greater depending on the nature of the act committed. The severity of the penalty laid down by the national legislature to sanction the prohibited conduct will normally reflect the perceived impact of that disturbance. A breach of a Member State's criminal law therefore equates to an act contrary to public policy. ( )

72. However, the mere fact that such an act is, by definition, contrary to public policy is not enough to warrant imposing an entry ban that exceeds five years. Two additional elements are necessary. First, there should be a 'serious threat' to public policy. Second, as recital 14 of the Return Directive makes clear, the length of the entry ban should be determined having due regard to all relevant circumstances of the individual case.

73. I construe the term 'threat to public policy' as connoting that public policy may be endangered by a future act of the third-country national. ( ) By using the adjective 'serious', the legislature implied that the threshold for justifying an entry ban exceeding five years is higher than the threshold for reducing the period for voluntary departure under Article 7(4) of the same directive. ( ) Not every (past) breach of criminal law constitutes a (future) 'serious threat to public policy' within the meaning of Article 11(2). ( ) The national authorities must carry out an assessment of the perceived future risk to society from the individual in question. The onus is on the Member State relying upon the derogation to show why public policy interests are likely to be seriously endangered unless a longer entry ban is imposed. The procedure must be 'in accordance with fundamental rights as general principles of [EU] law as well as international law'. ( )

74. The assessment must be carried out in concreto, with 'due regard to all relevant circumstances of an individual case', on 'a case-by-case basis and based on objective criteria, implying that consideration should go beyond the mere fact of an illegal stay'. ( ) Thus, a Member State may not rely upon its general practice or mere assumptions in order to determine that there exists a 'serious threat to public policy'. The requirement for an individual examination and the principle of proportionality oblige the Member State to have due regard to the third-country national's personal conduct and the perceived future risk that that conduct poses to public policy. It follows that the fact that a third-country national is suspected, or has been convicted, of an act punishable as a criminal offence under national law cannot, in itself, justify a finding that that person poses a 'serious threat to public policy' under Article 11(2) of the Return Directive. ( ) The presence of several previous convictions for criminal offences may however suffice to invoke the derogation in Article 11(2) of the Return Directive, to the extent that those demonstrate an established pattern of behaviour on the part of the person concerned.

75. A further aspect is whether there is any limitation to the length of an entry ban exceeding five years that is imposed on the grounds of a 'serious threat to public policy, public security or national security'.

76. Article 11(2) of the Return Directive is silent in that regard. This Court's case-law seems to accept the possibility of imposing an entry ban of unlimited duration. In Filev and Osmani the Court ruled that 'Article 11(2) of Directive 2008/115 precludes a continuation of the effects of entry bans of unlimited length made before the date on which Directive 2008/115 became applicable,  beyond the maximum length of entry ban laid down by that provision, except where those entry bans were made against third-country nationals constituting a serious threat to public order, public security or national security'. ( )A contrario, that would suggest that, at least for historic entry bans, when a third-country national constitutes such a threat the continuation of the effects of an entry ban of unlimited length is possible.

77. I do not agree with that approach. Article 11(2) of the Return Directive should be read in the light of Article 3(6) of that directive which defines entry bans as administrative or judicial decisions adopted for a 'specified period'. That excludes, in my view, the possibility of adopting entry bans of unlimited duration. ( ) In the case of historic entry bans of unlimited duration, it may be necessary for the national authorities to review the file in the light of Article 11(2) of the Return Directive and substitute an appropriate fixed duration for the entry ban. However, the Court has not heard argument as to the possible variants on the length of entry bans and I therefore express no view on that question.

78. I conclude that it is for the national court to ascertain, according to national procedural rules, whether, when the historic entry ban was adopted, the national authorities assessed the personal conduct of the third-country national concerned and concluded on that basis that he posed a serious threat to public policy. In that context, the presence of several previous convictions for criminal offences may suffice to invoke the derogation in Article 11(2) of the Return Directive, to the extent that these demonstrate an established pattern of behaviour on the part of the person concerned. It is for the national court to ascertain that the procedure for imposing the entry ban was in accordance with fundamental rights as general principles of European Union law.

Conclusion

79. In the light of the foregoing considerations I am of the opinion that the Court should answer the questions referred by the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden (Supreme Court of the Netherlands) as follows:

- The starting point for the duration of an entry ban as provided for by Article 11(2) of Directive 2008/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals should be the point when the third-country national actually leaves the territory of the Member States.

- Article 11(2), final sentence, of the Directive 2008/115 should be interpreted as meaning that a historic entry ban may exceed the limitation of five years if the conditions there laid down are satisfied. It is for the national court to ascertain, according to national procedural rules, whether, when the historic entry ban was adopted, the national authorities assessed the personal conduct of the third-country national concerned and concluded that he posed a serious threat to public policy. In that context, several previous convictions for criminal offences may suffice to invoke the derogation in Article 11(2) of Directive 2008/115 to the extent that these demonstrate an established pattern of behaviour on the part of the person concerned. It is for the national court to ascertain that the procedure was in accordance with fundamental rights as general principles of European Union law.

Original language: English.

- OJ 2008 L 348, p. 98.

- This is the term used by the European Commission in the Commission Recommendation of 1 October 2015 establishing a common 'Return Handbook' to be used by Member States' competent authorities when carrying out return related tasks, C(2015) 6250 final, Annex, p. 64, and in the Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on EU Return Policy, 28 March 2014, COM(2014) 199 final, p. 27.

- The Schengen acquis as referred to in Article 1(2) of Council Decision 1999/435/EC of 20 May 1999 (OJ 2000 L 239, p. 1). The 'Schengen area' comprises most EU States, except for Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Ireland, Romania and the United Kingdom. Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein have also joined the Schengen Area.

- Agreement between the Governments of the States of the Benelux Economic Union, the Federal Republic of Germany and the French Republic on the gradual abolition of checks at their common borders (OJ 2000 L 239, p. 13).

- Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement of 14 June 1985 between the Governments of the States of the Benelux Economic Union, the Federal Republic of Germany and the French Republic on the gradual abolition of checks at their common borders (OJ 2000 L 239, p. 19).

- Regulation (EC) No 1987/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 December 2006 on the establishment, operation and use of the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II) (OJ 2006 L 381, p. 4), recital 10. The SIS II is in operation in all EU Member States and Associated Countries that are part of the Schengen area. Bulgaria, Ireland, Romania and the United Kingdom only operate the SIS II within the context of law enforcement cooperation.

- OJ 2001 L 149, p. 34, see recital 3. That directive was followed by Council Decision 2004/191/EC of 23 February 2004 setting out the criteria and practical arrangements for the compensation of the financial imbalances resulting from the application of Directive 2001/40/EC on the mutual recognition of decisions on the expulsion of third-country nationals (OJ 2004 L 60, p. 55).

- Article 1.

- Recital 1.

- Recital 2.

- Recital 5.

- Recital 24 and Article 1.

- Recital 4.

- Recital 6.

- Recital 8.

- Article 4.

- That obligation is without prejudice to the limited exceptions listed in Article 6(2) to (5). None of those exceptions appear to be relevant to the national proceedings giving rise to the present reference.

- Without prejudice to the procedural safeguards available under Chapter III and under other relevant provisions of EU law and national law.

- The Dutch legislation uses the term 'foreign national'. In my analysis in this Opinion I shall refer to such a person as a 'third-country national' (the term used in the Return Directive).

- The order for reference provides no information as to Mr Ouhrami's whereabouts between 2003 and 2011. At the hearing his representative stated that to the best of his knowledge Mr Ouhrami had never left the Netherlands.

- See judgment of 19 September 2013, Filev and Osmani, C297/12, EU:C:2013:569, paragraph 26 et seq.

- Regulation (EU) 2016/399 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2016 on a Union Code on the rules governing the movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders Code) (OJ 2016 L 77, p. 1). That regulation repealed and replaced Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 establishing a Community Code on the rules governing the movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders Code) (OJ 2006 L 105, p. 1), which in turn repealed Articles 2 to 8 of the CISA with effect from 13 October 2006. See further recitals 25 to 30 of the Return Directive.

- Article 21.

- See to that effect recitals 2 and 11 and Article 1. See also judgment of 5 June 2014, Mahdi, C146/14 PPU, EU:C:2014:1320, paragraph 38.

- See to that effect the Commission's Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 1 September 2005 on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals, COM(2005) 391 final ('the Commission's Proposal'), p. 7.

- See judgment of 7 June 2016, Affum, C47/15, EU:C:2016:408, paragraph 48.

- The conditions of entry as set out in Article 5 of Regulation 2016/399 must be borne in mind. The broad definition in Article 3(2) of the Return Directive covers any third-country national who does not enjoy a legal right to stay in a Member State. Member States' national law in this area must respect rights conferred by EU law in relation to (for example) EU citizens and their family members, family reunification and third-country nationals who are long-term residents. See, respectively, Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the right of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States amending Regulation (EEC) No 1612/68 and repealing Directives 64/221/EEC, 68/360/EEC, 72/194/EEC, 73/148/EEC, 75/34/EEC, 75/35/EEC, 90/364/EEC, 90/365/EEC and 93/96/EEC (OJ 2004 L 158, p. 77), Council Directive 2003/86/EC of 22 September 2003 on the right to family reunification (OJ 2003 L 251, p. 12) and Council Directive 2003/109/EC of 25 November 2003 concerning the status of third-country nationals who are long-term residents (OJ 2004 L 16, p. 44).

- The term 'territory of the Member States' used by the Return Directive in order to define its territorial scope is inaccurate. The Return Directive does not apply to the United Kingdom and Ireland. Conversely, it does apply to Denmark (notwithstanding that Member State's particular status in this area of EU law) and to the Schengen associates (Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Lichtenstein). See to that effect recitals 25 to 30 and Article 23. References to the 'Member States' territory' should be construed accordingly.

- Article 3(3) and (4) of the Return Directive.

- Article 11(1) of the Return Directive.

- Recital 14 of the Return Directive. See, to that effect, judgment of 1 October 2015, Celaj, C290/14, EU:C:2015:640, paragraph 24.

- In accordance with Article 25 of the CISA. See also Article 11(4) of the Return Directive.

- Recital 18 of the Return Directive.

- Judgment of 19 September 2013, C297/12, EU:C:2013:569, paragraph 40 and the case-law cited.

- Paragraph 41.

- Paragraph 42.

- Paragraph 44.

- See points 35 to 39 above.

- Recitals 5 and 20. See also the Commission's Proposal, p. 5.

- Judgment of 26 October 2010, United Kingdom v Council, C482/08, EU:C:2010:631, paragraph 48.

- Thus, for example, whilst Directive 2001/40 deals with the mutual recognition of expulsion decisions, including return decisions, there is presently no obligation for a Member State to inform other Member States of the existence of such a decision by entering an alert concerning it in the SIS II.

- See, inter alia, Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the use of the Schengen Information System for the return of illegally staying third-country nationals, 21 December 2016, COM(2016) 881 final;Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the establishment, operation and use of the Schengen Information System (SIS) in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters, amending Regulation (EU) No 515/2014 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1986/2006, Council Decision 2007/533/JHA and Commission Decision 2010/261/EU, 21 December 2016, COM(2016) 883 final; Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing an Entry/Exit System (EES) to register entry and exit data and refusal of entry data of third-country nationals crossing the external borders of the Member States of the European Union and determining the conditions for access to the EES for law enforcement purposes and amending Regulation (EC) No 767/2008 and Regulation (EU) No 1077/2011, 6 April 2016, COM(2016) 194 final; and Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on a more effective return policy in the European Union - A renewed action plan, 2 March 2017, COM(2017) 200 final.

- Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the establishment, operation and use of the Schengen Information System (SIS) in the field of border checks, amending Regulation (EU) No 515/2014 and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1987/2006, 21 December 2016, COM(2016) 882 final, p. 4.

- See, by analogy, judgment of 17 July 2008, Kozlowski, C66/08, EU:C:2008:437, paragraph 42 and the case-law cited.

- Whilst that might accord with the Europe-wide logic of the SIS II system, there is presently no obligation on a Member State to enter an alert regarding an entry ban to that system. See Article 24(3) of Regulation No 1987/2006.

- Recital 10.

- See point 56 above.

- Articles 3(g) and 9.

- Council of the European Union, Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals, 6 October 2006, 13451/06, Articles 2(g) and 9 of the proposed directive.

- European Parliament, Report on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals, A6-0339/2007 final, Article 9 of the proposed directive.

- See for instance the amended Council Proposal following discussions on 7 February 2008, Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals, 15 February 2008, 6541/08, Articles 3(g) and 9.

- For example, in France, Article L. 511-1 of the Code d'entree et du sejour des etrangers et du droit d'asile (Code on the entry and stay of foreign nationals and the right to asylum) uses the term 'interdiction de retour' and in Poland, Articles 318 to 320 of the Ustawa o Cudzoziemcach (Law on foreign nationals) uses the term 're-entry ban'.

- Commission Recommendation of 7 March 2017 on making returns more effective when implementing Directive 2008/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, C(2017) 1600, point 24.

- Commission Recommendation of 1 October 2015 establishing a common 'Return Handbook' to be used by Member States' competent authorities when carrying out return related tasks, C(2015) 6250 final, Annex, p. 60. According to the Court's case-law, even if recommendations are not intended to produce binding effects, they still have certain legal effects. For instance, national courts are required to take them into consideration for the purpose of deciding disputes submitted to them, in particular where the recommendations cast light on the interpretation of national measures adopted in order to implement them or where they are designed to supplement binding EU provisions. See to that effect judgment of 15 September 2016, Koninklijke KPN and Others, C28/15, EU:C:2016:692, paragraph 41.

- I note that within the Schengen area, the third-country national's travel document will be stamped on exit in accordance with Article 8 of the Schengen Border Code (Regulation 2016/399). In non-Schengen Member States, national law may well contain a similar provision. Thus, provided the third-country national did not leave in a clandestine manner, he should be able to demonstrate when the entry ban should be deemed to have begun.

- For the SIS II to work effectively, this requires Member States to create alerts, as provided for by Article 24 of Regulation No 1987/2006, in respect of entry bans even though they may not yet know the third-country national's actual date of departure. This is indeed what the Netherlands currently do, as was explained at the hearing.

- Paragraph 44.

- The English version of the Return Directive uses the term 'public policy', whereas the French and other linguistic versions use the term 'ordre public'. I have already addressed that difference in wording in my Opinion in Zh. and O., C554/13, EU:C:2015:94, points 28 to 33. As I explained in point 33 of that Opinion, 'It is evident, from looking at both the EU legislation and the case-law of the Court, that the term "public policy" is here used as an equivalent for the French term "ordre public"'. For ease of reference I shall nevertheless refer here to 'public policy', the term used in the English version of the Return Directive.

- See my Opinion in Zh. and O., C554/13, EU:C:2015:94, point 57.

- Judgment of 11 June 2015, Zh. and O., C554/13, EU:C:2015:377, paragraph 48.

- See my Opinion in Zh. and O., C554/13, EU:C:2015:94, points 46 and 59.

- See my Opinion in Zh. and O., C554/13, EU:C:2015:94, points 61 and 62.

- Point 39.

- The adjective 'serious' was not in the Commission's Proposal. It was added to the text of the Return Directive during the legislative process following a Belgian suggestion in 2008. See, to that effect, the amended Council Proposal following discussions on 7 February 2008, Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals, 6541/08, Article 9(2) of the text of the directive as included in that proposal and footnote 52.

- See my Opinion in Zh. and O., C554/13, EU:C:2015:94, paragraph 62, and, by analogy, judgment of 27 October 1977, Bouchereau, 30/77, EU:C:1977:172, paragraph 27.

- Article 1 of the Return Directive.

- Recitals 14 and 6 of the Return Directive, respectively.

- Judgment of 11 June 2015, Zh. and O., C554/13, EU:C:2015:377, paragraph 50.

- Judgment of 19 September 2013, C297/12, EU:C:2013:569, paragraph 44.

- An entry ban is never a standalone measure but always accompanies a return decision. Even if it is not enforced, the latter could become time-barred under national rules on limitation. For that reason, I doubt that an entry ban applied to a third-country national who never leaves the territory of the Member States can be a 'perpetual entry ban', as Mr Ouhrami suggested.

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South Korea: UN body declares detention of trade unionist arbitrary, orders his release

Publisher International Federation for Human Rights Publication Date 24 May 2017 Cite as International Federation for Human Rights, South Korea: UN body declares detention of trade unionist arbitrary, orders his release, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c1ffa4.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

South Korean authorities must immediately release trade unionist Han Sang-gyun, in accordance with a recent Opinion by the United Nations (UN) Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (an FIDH-OMCT partnership) said today.

On April 25, 2017, the WGAD declared Han Sang-gyun's deprivation of liberty arbitrary because it resulted from the exercise of his right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. These rights are guaranteed by Articles 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and Articles 19 and 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). South Korea is a State party to the ICCPR. The Opinion, which was communicated to the Observatory on May 5, 2017, followed a communication submitted by the Observatory on October 31, 2016.

The WGAD called on the South Korean authorities to immediately release Han, President of the Korean Confederation of Trade Union (KCTU), and award him "compensation and other reparations" for the deprivation of liberty to which he has been subjected.

"President Moon Jae-in has a golden opportunity to mark a clear break with his predecessor and show that his administration conforms with international human rights standards and jurisprudence. Moon should heed the UN's ruling and order Han's immediate release," said FIDH President Dimitris Christopoulos.

The WGAD further urged the South Korean Government to conduct a "full and independent investigation" into the circumstances surrounding Han's deprivation of liberty and to take "appropriate measures" against those responsible for the violation of his rights.

Finally, the WGAD urged the Government to bring its legal framework and practices concerning the right to freedom of peaceful assembly, including the Assembly and Demonstration Act, into conformity with the recommendations made by the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association in the report on his mission to South Korea in January 2016.

"Han should have never been prosecuted and deprived of his liberty for peacefully exercising his rights," said OMCT Secretary General Gerald Staberock. "The Supreme Court should take heed of the Working Group's recommendation and overturn Han's conviction."

On July 4, 2016, Han Sang-gyun, was sentenced to five years in prison and fined 500,000 Won (approximately 400 Euros) in connection with a demonstration organized by KCTU against proposed labor reforms in Seoul on November 14, 2015. During the rally, police used excessive force to disperse demonstrators. Authorities had previously issued arrest warrants against Han for his participation in peaceful demonstrations that had taken place in April and May 2015 to express solidarity with the victims of the Sewol Ferry disaster in April 2014. On 13 December 2016, a Court of Appeals reduced Han's sentence to three years in prison. South Korea's Supreme Court is expected to rule on the appeal on Han's case on May 31, 2017.

In its opinion, the WGAD also discussed the case of KCTU Secretary General Lee Young-joo. Lee has been living in self-imposed house arrest at the KCTU headquarters in Seoul since December 2015 in order to avoid being arrested by police in connection with her participation in the November 14, 2015 demonstration. While the WGAD was unable to express an Opinion in relation to Lee's case because the arrest warrant against her had not been served and she was not being detained, it noted the "factual similarities" between Han and Lee's cases and recalled that the Government had a responsibility to prevent arbitrary arrest and detention in the context of peaceful assemblies.

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and OMCT. The objective of this programme is to prevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. FIDH and OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.
Opinion of Advocate General Sharpston: K v. Staatssecretaris van Veiligheid en Justitie

Publisher European Union: Court of Justice of the European Union Publication Date 4 May 2017 Citation / Document Symbol Case C18/16 Related Document(s) K. v Staatssecretaris van Veiligheid en Justitie Cite as Opinion of Advocate General Sharpston: K v. Staatssecretaris van Veiligheid en Justitie , Case C18/16, European Union: Court of Justice of the European Union, 4 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/cases,ECJ,592c209c0.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

OPINION OF ADVOCATE GENERAL

SHARPSTON

delivered on 4 May 2017 ( )

Case C18/16

K.

v

Staatssecretaris van Veiligheid en Justitie

(Request for a preliminary ruling from the rechtbank Den Haag zittingsplaats Haarlem (District Court, The Hague, sitting at Haarlem, the Netherlands))

(Asylum policy - Standards for the reception of applicants for international protection - Directive 2013/33/EU - Article 9 - Detention - Points (a) and (b) of the first subparagraph of Article 8(3) - Verification of identity or nationality - Verification of elements on which application for international protection is based - Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union - Articles 6 and 52 - Proportionality)











1. By this request for a preliminary ruling the rechtbank Den Haag zittingsplaats Haarlem (District Court, The Hague, sitting at Haarlem, the Netherlands), asks the Court whether points (a) and (b) of the first subparagraph of Article 8(3) of Directive 2013/33/EU laying down standards for the reception of applicants for international protection ( ) are valid. Essentially, the referring court wishes to know whether those provisions are compatible with the right to liberty and security enshrined in Article 6 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. ( ) That question has arisen in a dispute concerning a decision of 17 December 2015 ordering the detention in the Netherlands of Mr K., an asylum applicant who had been stopped and detained at Schiphol airport for using a false passport while en route to the United Kingdom.

International law

The Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees

2. Article 31(1) of the Geneva Convention ( ) prohibits the imposition of penalties on refugees coming directly from a territory where their life or freedom was threatened on account of their illegal entry or presence (or where they are present without authorisation), provided they present themselves without delay to the authorities and show good cause for their illegal entry or presence. Article 31(2) states that restrictions must not be applied to the movements of refugees other than those which are necessary. Any such restrictions must only be applied until the refugee's status in the country is regularised or the refugee obtains admission elsewhere.

The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms

3. Article 5(1) of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms ( ) guarantees the right to liberty and security of person. That right is qualified by a number of exceptions also laid down in Article 5(1), each of which must be 'subject to a procedure prescribed by law'. At issue in the present matter is whether the right to liberty is here, properly to be regarded as being qualified by the exception in Article 5(1)(f), which applies in cases of 'the lawful arrest or detention of a person to prevent his effecting an unauthorised entry into the country or of a person against whom action is being taken with a view to deportation or extradition'.

4. Interference with the right to personal liberty and security on the basis of the exceptions listed in Article 5(1)(a) to (f) must, in order to be legitimate, also comply with the guarantees laid down in Article 5(2) to (5) of the ECHR. In relation to an applicant for asylum, those guarantees include the prompt provision of information on arrest; the entitlement to take promptly proceedings challenging detention before the courts which are capable of securing his release (if that detention is unlawful); and an enforceable right to compensation where the provisions of Article 5 of the ECHR are contravened. ( )

EU law

The Charter

5. Article 6 of the Charter corresponds to Article 5(1) of the ECHR. It states that 'everyone has the right to liberty and security of person'.

6. Article 52 of the Charter is entitled 'Scope and interpretation of rights and principles'. It states:

'1. Any limitation on the exercise of the rights and freedoms recognised by this Charter must be provided for by law and respect the essence of those rights and freedoms. Subject to the principle of proportionality, limitations may be made only if they are necessary and genuinely meet objectives of general interest recognised by the Union or the need to protect the rights and freedoms of others.

2. Rights recognised by this Charter for which provision is made in the Treaties shall be exercised under the conditions and within the limits defined by those Treaties.

3. In so far as this Charter contains rights which correspond to rights guaranteed by the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, the meaning and scope of those rights shall be the same as those laid down by the said Convention. This provision shall not prevent Union law providing more extensive protection.



7. The explanations drawn up as a way of providing guidance in the interpretation of this Charter shall be given due regard by the courts of the Union and of the Member States.'

The Return Directive

7. Directive 2008/115/EC on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals ( ) aims to provide a horizontal set of rules that apply to all third-country nationals who do not meet the conditions for entry, stay or residence in a Member State. ( ) Pursuant to Article 1, the directive 'sets out common standards and procedures to be applied in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals, in accordance with fundamental rights as general principles of [EU] law as well as international law, including refugee protection and human rights obligations'.

8. Article 2(1) states that the Return Directive applies to third-country nationals staying illegally within the territory of a Member State. A 'third country national' is defined in Article 3(1) as 'any person who is not a citizen of the Union within the meaning of [Article 20(1) TFEU] and who is not a person enjoying the [EU] right of free movement as defined in Article 2(5) of the Schengen Borders Code'. ( ) A 'return decision' is defined in Article 3(4) as 'an administrative or judicial decision or act, stating or declaring the stay of a third-country national to be illegal and imposing or stating an obligation to return'.

The Qualification Directive

9. Directive 2011/95/EU ( ) lays down the standards for the qualification of third-country nationals or stateless persons as beneficiaries of international protection. ( ) Under Article 2(h), an application for international protection is defined as 'a request made by a third-country national or a stateless person for protection from a Member State, who can be understood to seek refugee status or subsidiary protection status, and who does not explicitly request another kind of protection, outside the scope of [that directive], that can be applied for separately'.

10. Article 4(1) provides that Member States may consider it to be the duty of applicants to submit as soon as possible all elements needed to substantiate an application for international protection. In accordance with Article 4(2), those elements consist of the applicant's statements and 'all the documentation at his disposal regarding his age, background, including that of relevant relatives, identity, nationality(ies), country(ies) and place(s) of previous residence, previous asylum applications, travel routes, travel documents and the reasons for applying for international protection'. Under Article 4(3), the assessment of applications for international protection is to be carried out on an individual basis and is to take account of: relevant facts relating to the country of origin at the time of taking a decision on an application; relevant statements and documents presented by an applicant; and his individual position and personal circumstances, including background, gender, and age. ( ) In that regard, recital 22 states that 'consultations with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees may provide valuable guidance for Member States when determining refugee status'.

11. The grounds for exclusion from refugee status are listed in Article 12. The effect of applying those grounds is to deprive an applicant of the protection of refugee status. They therefore constitute an exception to the right to asylum in relation to a person who would otherwise fall within the scope of that protection. ( )

The Procedures Directive

12. Pursuant to Article 9(1) of Directive 2013/32/EU on common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection, ( ) applicants must be allowed to remain in a Member State pending examination of requests for such protection.

13. Article 10 lays down certain requirements for that examination. These include the need to examine, first, whether applicants qualify as refugees and, if not, whether they are eligible for subsidiary protection; to ensure that there is an appropriate examination of the application; and to ensure that any such examination and subsequent decision is taken individually, objectively and impartially. ( )

14. In accordance with Article 13, Member States must impose on applicants an obligation to cooperate with the competent authorities with a view to establishing their identity and other elements referred to in Article 4(2) of the Qualification Directive.

15. Particular guarantees are provided for certain applicants by Article 24, and the position of unaccompanied minors is covered by Article 25.

16. Article 26(1) echoes Article 31 of the Geneva Convention, in so far as the general position is that Member States are prohibited from holding a person in detention for the sole reason that he is a third-country national requesting international protection while any such application remains pending. Where an applicant is detained, the grounds and conditions for his detention and the guarantees available must be in accordance with the Reception Directive.

17. Pursuant to Article 33 of the Procedures Directive, Member States may consider an application for international protection to be inadmissible in certain circumstances, including where another Member State has already granted international protection as set out in Article 33(2)(a).

The Reception Directive

18. The following statements are made in the recitals to the Reception Directive:

- A common policy on asylum, including a Common European Asylum System ('the CEAS'), is a constituent part of the European Union's objective of progressively establishing an area of freedom, security and justice open to those who, forced by circumstances, legitimately seek protection in the territory of the European Union. ( )

- The CEAS is based on the full and inclusive application of the Geneva Convention. ( )

- Member States are bound by obligations under instruments of international law to which they are party in respect of the treatment of persons falling within the scope of the Reception Directive. ( )

- The detention of applicants should be applied in accordance with the underlying principle that a person should not be held in detention for the sole reason that he or she is seeking international protection, particularly in accordance with the international legal obligations of the Member States and with Article 31 of the Geneva Convention. Applicants may be detained only under very clearly defined exceptional circumstances laid down in this Directive and subject to the principle of necessity and proportionality with regard to both the manner and the purpose of such detention. Where an applicant is held in detention, he or she should have effective access to the necessary procedural guarantees, such as judicial remedy before a national judicial authority. ( )

- The notion of 'due diligence' requires as a minimum that the administrative procedures relating to the grounds for detention are carried out in the shortest possible time, particularly as regards taking 'concrete and meaningful steps' to verify the grounds for detention. An applicant's detention should not exceed the time reasonably needed to complete the relevant procedures. ( )

- In order to better ensure the physical and psychological integrity of the applicants, detention should be a measure of last resort and may only be applied after all non-custodial alternative measures to detention have been duly examined. Any alternative measure to detention must respect the fundamental human rights of applicants. ( )

- The Reception Directive respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in particular by the Charter. ( )

19. Article 2(a) incorporates the definition of an 'application for international protection' set out in the Qualification Directive into the Reception Directive. An 'applicant' is defined in Article 2(b) as 'a third-country national or stateless person who has made an application for international protection in respect of which a final decision has not yet been taken'. ( ) Article 2(h) defines 'detention' as the 'confinement of an applicant by a Member State within a particular place, where the applicant is deprived of his or her freedom of movement'.

20. Pursuant to Article 3(1), the directive applies to 'all third-country nationals and stateless persons who make an application for international protection on the territory, including at the border, in the territorial waters or in the transit zones of a Member State, as long as they are allowed to remain on the territory as applicants, as well as to family members, if they are covered by such application for international protection according to national law'.

21. In accordance with Article 8:

'1. Member States shall not hold a person in detention for the sole reason that he or she is an applicant in accordance with [the Procedures Directive].

2. When it proves necessary and on the basis of an individual assessment of each case, Member States may detain an applicant, if other less coercive alternative measures cannot be applied effectively.

3. An applicant may be detained only:

(a) in order to determine or verify his or her identity or nationality;

(b) in order to determine those elements on which the application for international protection is based which could not be obtained in the absence of detention, in particular when there is a risk of absconding of the applicant;



The grounds for detention shall be laid down in national law.

'

22. Certain guarantees for detained applicants are provided by Article 9. These include requirements that:

- applicants must be detained only for as short a period as possible and kept in detention only for as long as the grounds in Article 8(3) are applicable (Article 9(1));

- the detention of applicants must be ordered in writing by the competent authorities and the detention order must state the reasons in fact and in law on which it is based (Article 9(2));

- Member States must provide for a speedy judicial review of the lawfulness of detention pursuant to (Article 9(3));

- detained applicants must be immediately informed in writing in a language which they understand (or might be supposed to understand) of the reasons for detention and the procedures for challenging such decisions (Article 9(4));

- detention is subject to review by a judicial authority (Article 9(5)); and

- applicants should be entitled to free legal assistance and representation in order to lodge a challenge under Article 9(3) (Article 9(6) and (7)).

National law

23. Article 59b(1)(a) and (b) of the Vreemdelingenwet 2000 (Law on Foreign Nationals of 2000; 'the Vw') states:

'1. A foreign national who is legally resident on the grounds of Article 8(f) , [ ( )] in so far as it relates to an application for the issue of a residence permit of limited duration issued to persons granted asylum, may be detained by [the Minister for Security and Justice], if:

(a) detention is necessary in order to determine the identity or nationality of the foreign national;

(b) detention is necessary in order to determine those elements required for the assessment of an application for the issue of a residence permit of limited duration as  in particular if there is a risk of absconding;



2. The detention under paragraph 1(a) [or] (b)  shall not last longer than four weeks '

Facts, procedure and questions referred

24. The main proceedings concern Mr K. ('the applicant'), an Iranian national. He arrived at Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam (the Netherlands), on 30 November 2015 on a flight from Vienna (Austria). His intention was to fly to Edinburgh (United Kingdom) on the same day. Checks at passport control carried out before he boarded the Edinburgh flight raised suspicions that he was using a false passport. Those suspicions were confirmed by further checks which established that his passport was indeed false.

25. He was placed in detention whilst criminal proceedings were taken against him in relation to the false passport that he had presented to the Netherlands' authorities. The referring court states that there is nothing to suggest that he was placed in detention in order to prevent his unlawful entry into the Netherlands. Rather, his initial detention related to his arrest on suspicion of having committed a criminal offence (or criminal offences). The exact nature of the charge(s) against him is not set out in the order for reference. Nonetheless the referring court does explain that the criminal proceedings were based on the following: irregular entry into the Netherlands; contravention of the immigration legislation; failure to cooperate or a lack of cooperation as regards establishing identity and nationality; failure to demonstrate good reason for discarding travel and identification documentation; and use of false or falsified documents. Those reasons are described as 'substantial grounds'. The following 'insubstantial grounds' relating to Mr K. are also cited: failure to comply with one or more of the other obligations applicable under Chapter 4 of the Vreemdelingenbesluit 2000 (Decree on Foreign Nationals 2000); being of no fixed abode; not having adequate financial resources; and being suspected, or having been found guilty of, an offence.

26. While in detention, Mr K. indicated that he intended to apply for asylum in the Netherlands because he feared for his life in Iran. According to his account, that request was made on 9 December 2015.

27. On 15 December 2015, the national criminal court declared that Mr K.'s criminal prosecution was inadmissible. It appears that, as a result, the competent authorities decided not to proceed against him. ( ) By virtue of an 'Immediate release' order dated 16 December 2015, the public prosecutor ordered his release from detention. On 17 December, Mr K. made a formal application for asylum. On the same date, he was detained pursuant to Article 59b(1)(a) and (b) of the 'Vw' ('the detention decision').

28. The detention decision was based on the grounds, first, that detention was necessary in order to determine the identity or nationality of the applicant ( ) and, second, that it was required for the purpose of obtaining data necessary for the assessment of his application for asylum. It was considered in particular that there was a risk that he might abscond. ( )

29. On 17 December 2015, Mr K. lodged an appeal against the detention decision and requested compensation at the same time. Mr K. argues that, in the light of the Court's judgment in N., ( ) his detention was contrary to Article 5 of the ECHR, that the provisions of Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive are contrary to that rule and also contravene Article 6 of the Charter.

30. The referring court makes the following observations. First, Mr K. is not subject to a return decision. Second, Article 9(1) of the Procedures Directive lays down the basic rule that an applicant (within the meaning of that directive) must be allowed to remain in the Member State concerned until a decision has been made regarding his request for international protection. Thus, such a person cannot be considered to be illegally staying in the territory of a Member State within the meaning of the Return Directive. Third, both the Procedures Directive and national law appear to preclude the deportation of an applicant in such circumstances. Fourth, that position is confirmed by the decision of the Strasbourg Court interpreting Article 5(1)(f) of the ECHR in Nabil and Others v. Hungary. ( ) Fifth, detention on the basis of the grounds set out in Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive ('the provisions at issue') would appear not to be aimed at the removal of a third-country national. The referring court is of the view that the position described would be incompatible with Article 5(1)(f) of the ECHR. It therefore considers that it is necessary to examine the validity of Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of that directive.

31. The referring court acknowledges that it follows from the judgment in Foto-Frost ( ) that a national court does not have the power to declare the acts of the EU institutions invalid. Accordingly, it has referred the following question to the Court for preliminary ruling:

'Is Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive valid in the light of Article 6 of the Charter:

(1) in a situation where a third-country national is detained under Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive and, under Article 9 of the [Procedures Directive], has the right to remain in a Member State until a decision on his asylum application has been made at first instance, and

(2) given the Explanation (OJ 2007 C 303, p. 17) that the limitations which may legitimately be imposed on the rights in Article 6 of the Charter may not exceed those permitted by the ECHR in the wording of Article 5(1)(f), and the interpretation by the [Strasbourg Court] of the latter provision in, inter alia, [Nabil], that the detention of an asylum-seeker is contrary to the aforementioned Article 5(1)(f) if such detention was not imposed with a view to deportation?'

32. Written observations have been submitted by Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, and the Netherlands, as well as the Council of the European Union, the European Parliament, and the European Commission. No hearing was requested and none was held.

Assessment

Admissibility

33. The Parliament is of the view that the referring court's question is inadmissible. It argues that the question posed and the underlying reasons are in substance identical to the issues raised by the Raad van State in N. ( ) In essence, the applicant in that case was subject to a return decision, whereas Mr K. is not. The Parliament submits that the matters set out in the order for reference here are not relevant to determining whether the provisions at issue are in conformity with the Charter.

34. I disagree with the Parliament's view for the following reasons.

35. First, it is settled case-law that where a national court has doubts as to the validity of an EU act, it is incumbent upon it to make a reference to the Court for a preliminary ruling. ( ) Second, when a question on the validity of an EU measure is raised before a national court, it is for that court to decide whether a decision on the matter is necessary to enable it to give judgment and consequently, whether it should request the Court to rule on that question. Accordingly, where the national court's questions relate to the validity of a provision of EU law, the Court is obliged in principle to give a ruling. It is possible for the Court to refuse to give a preliminary ruling on a question submitted by a national court only where, inter alia, it is quite obvious that the ruling sought by that court on the interpretation or validity of EU law bears no relation to the actual facts or purpose of the main action or where the problem is hypothetical. ( )

36. Third, the referring court explains in the opening paragraph of its order for reference concerning the 'Grounds' for the request for a preliminary ruling that if the provisions at issue are invalid, Mr K.'s detention is without any legal basis and his appeal must succeed. The outcome of the present proceedings is also relevant to his claim for compensation for an alleged illegal detention. It is therefore clear that the validity of the provisions at issue has a direct bearing on the proceedings before the national court.

37. Fourth, Article 6(3) TEU confirms that fundamental rights recognised by the ECHR constitute general principles of EU law. In that regard, the Explanations to the Charter make it clear that the rights laid down in Article 6 of the Charter correspond to those guaranteed by Article 5 of the ECHR. ( ) Thus, if the provisions at issue are incompatible with the Charter as seen through the prism of the ECHR, they cannot be valid; and Mr K.'s detention which was based on the national rules implementing Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive cannot be lawful.

38. Fifth, the referring court essentially requests a preliminary ruling because it reads the judgment of the Strasbourg Court in Nabil as meaning that the detention of persons (including asylum seekers) will be justified within the meaning of Article 5(1)(f) of the ECHR only for as long as deportation or extradition proceedings are in progress. The referring court is of the view that Article 9(1) of the Procedures Directive precludes the removal of an asylum applicant during the period while his request for international protection is pending. It points out that Mr K. is not subject to a return decision within the meaning of the Return Directive. The referring court states that his detention under the provisions at issue is not based on reasons relating to his removal from EU territory.

39. Given that the rights in Article 6 of the Charter are also those guaranteed by Article 5 of the ECHR and that in accordance with Article 52(3) of the Charter, they have the same meaning and scope, ( ) I consider that it is necessary to examine the Strasbourg Court's decision in Nabil in order to assess whether that case has implications for the interpretation and validity of Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive. It is clear that that assessment relates to the facts set out in the order for reference, as do the reasons given for the request for a preliminary ruling. The Court's answer will be decisive for the issue at the crux of the main proceedings - whether Mr K.'s detention was lawful. The question posed by the referring court is also manifestly not hypothetical. The reference for a preliminary ruling is therefore admissible.

Preliminary remarks

40. As Article 78(1) TFEU makes clear, the common policy on asylum must be in accordance with the Geneva Convention and other relevant treaties. Pursuant to Article 78(2)(c) and (f) TFEU, the EU legislature is empowered to adopt measures for that system which comprise, inter alia, 'standards concerning the conditions for the reception of applicants for asylum '.

41. Article 31 of the Geneva Convention prohibits the imposition of penalties imposed, on account of their illegal entry or presence, on refugees coming from a territory where their life or freedom was threatened. That principle applies where refugees enter or are present without authorisation, provided the persons concerned present themselves without delay to the authorities and are able to show good cause for their illegal entry or presence. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' Detention Guidelines ( ) state that 'detention in the migration context is neither prohibited under international law per se, nor is the right to liberty absolute'. The following general principles are set out in those guidelines: detention in that context must (i) be in accordance with and authorised by law; (ii) not be arbitrary and be based on assessment of the particular circumstances of the individual concerned; (iii) be used as an exceptional measure and can only be justified for a legitimate purpose, including for initial verification of identity and to establish the elements on which an application for international protection is based that could not be obtained in the absence of detention; and (iv) be proportionate. ( )

42. The Court referred to an earlier version of those Guidelines in its decision in N. ( ) In that case, however, the applicant was detained under Article 8(3)(e) of the Reception Directive (on grounds of protection of national security and public order). He was subject to a return order (that is, an order to leave the European Union) and a 10-year entry ban which had been issued following the rejection of an earlier asylum application. Those measures had been imposed pursuant to national rules implementing the Return Directive. ( ) Mr N. was indeed detained at the time when his case was referred to this Court for preliminary ruling.

43. Mr K.'s circumstances are very different. It is not at issue that his detention constituted a deprivation of liberty. ( ) However, the grounds for detention in his case were Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive. The referring court does not suggest that measures pursuant to the Return Directive were ever taken in his case. He is not subject to an order to leave EU territory, nor has an entry ban been issued against him; and no such measure is therefore in abeyance pending the outcome of his request for international protection.

44. That said, I consider that the Court should apply the same methodology in the present case as it followed in N. Thus, the assessment should be undertaken solely by reference to fundamental rights guaranteed by the Charter. ( )

Validity in the light of Article 52(1) of the Charter

45. All parties submitting written observations to the Court in the present proceedings - which did not, however, include Mr K. - agree that the validity of Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive is not in doubt.

46. I am of the same view.

47. According to the order for reference, the applicant was initially detained on suspicion of having committed a criminal offence. Recital 17 of the Reception Directive states that the grounds for detention laid down in Article 8(3) are without prejudice to other grounds, such as detention within the framework of criminal proceedings. Thus, the applicant's initial detention by the Netherlands authorities on the ground that he was suspected of having committed a criminal offence - presenting a false passport - is not at issue in the present proceedings.

48. After the criminal prosecution was declared inadmissible, Mr K. was detained in the context of his request for asylum. It is common ground that his confinement constituted detention within the meaning of the Reception Directive. ( ) The Netherlands authorities gave two reasons for detaining Mr K: first, in order to determine his identity and/or his nationality and, second, because his detention was necessary to establish those elements required for assessing his application and it was considered that there was a risk that he might abscond.

49. The fundamental right to liberty guaranteed in Article 6 of the Charter has the same meaning as in Article 5 of the ECHR, although the latter does not form part of the EU acquis. ( ) The ' limitations which may legitimately be imposed on the exercise of the rights laid down in Article 6 of the Charter may not exceed those permitted by the ECHR'. ( ) It is also a general principle of interpretation that an EU measure must be construed, as far as possible, in such a way as not to affect its validity and in conformity with primary law as a whole and, in particular, with the provisions of the Charter. ( )

50. In as much as Article 8(3)(a) and (b) allow Member States to detain applicants for asylum, those provisions authorise a limitation on the exercise of the right to liberty enshrined in Article 6 of the Charter. ( ) That limitation is derived from a directive - a legislative act of the European Union. It is therefore provided by law for the purposes of Article 52(1) of the Charter. ( )

51. Are the provisions at issue compatible with the right to liberty laid down in Article 6 of the Charter?

52. In my view the answer is 'yes'.

53. First, the starting point set out in Article 8(1) of the Reception Directive is that Member States are prohibited from detaining individuals for the sole reason that they have made a request for international protection. ( ) Second, under the Reception Directive detention is regarded as being a particularly 'drastic measure against an applicant for international protection', ( ) which may be adopted only in 'clearly defined exceptional circumstances'. ( ) Third, in accordance with Article 8(2), detention is permissible in prescribed circumstances: (i) when it proves necessary; (ii) on the basis of an individual assessment of the case concerned; and (iii) if other less coercive alternative measures cannot be applied effectively. Fourth, an applicant may be detained only where one of the grounds listed in Article 8(3) exist. Each ground meets a specific need and is self-standing. ( )

54. Those strict conditions are also subject to the requirement that the grounds for detention must be laid down in national law and the procedural guarantees for detained applicants are met. ( ) Those guarantees include the condition that if an applicant is detained it must be for as short a period as possible and that his liberty can be restricted only for as long as the grounds set out in Article 8(3) are applicable (Article 9(1)).

55. The actual wording of Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive as such, is not contrary to the right to liberty enshrined in Article 6 of the Charter. ( )

56. It follows from Article 78 TFEU that the establishment and the proper functioning of the CEAS is an objective of general interest recognised by the European Union.

57. It is then necessary to examine whether the interference with the right to liberty permitted by the provisions at issue exceeds the limits of what is appropriate and necessary in order to attain the legitimate objectives pursued by the legislation in question. That is because the disadvantages caused by the legal rules must not be disproportionate to the aims pursued. ( )

58. The elements of the CEAS include provision for a uniform status for persons eligible for international protection based on the full and inclusive application of the Geneva Convention. ( ) The system is based on the concept that Member States should apply common criteria to identify persons genuinely in need of such protection. ( )

59. As regards Article 8(3)(a) of the Reception Directive, determining or verifying an applicant's identity or nationality is a key part of ascertaining whether that applicant meets the conditions for obtaining refugee status. It is necessary to ascertain for the purposes of the definition of 'a refugee' in Article 2(d) of the Qualification Directive whether an applicant has a ' well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group, is outside the country of nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country, or [is] a stateless person, who, being outside of the country of former habitual residence for the same reasons as mentioned above, is unable or, owing to such fear, unwilling to return to it '. An applicant's nationality is an important criterion that is taken into account in the assessment conducted pursuant to Article 4(3) of that directive. Information as to the situation in the applicant's country of origin is precisely the sort of detail that Member States might seek to verify with organisations such as the UNHCR. ( ) Such enquiries cannot, however, be made unless the applicant's nationality (or stateless status) is known.

60. Furthermore, it is also necessary for Member States to consider whether the person concerned does not merit international protection because he is excluded from the benefits of refugee status by virtue of Article 12 of the Qualification Directive. That cannot happen unless the person's identity is first established.

61. More generally, an applicant's identity is a significant element under the CEAS and is particularly relevant as regards the operation of what is known as 'the Dublin system'. ( ) That system provides a process for determining the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national. Without information as to an applicant's identity, it would not be possible for Member States to apply the criteria laid down in Regulation No 604/2013 for establishing the responsible Member State in any particular case.

62. Identity is also relevant to establishing whether an application is inadmissible pursuant to Article 33 of the Procedures Directive. A request for asylum would be barred under Article 33(2)(a) of that directive where another Member State has already granted international protection.

63. Finally, an applicant's identity is also relevant to the issue of whether special procedural guarantees should apply in accordance with Article 24 of the Procedures Directive or in the case of unaccompanied minors (Article 25 of that directive).

64. Given those systemic features of the CEAS, it seems to me that detaining an applicant in order to verify his identity or nationality on the basis of Article 8(3)(a) of the Reception Directive may, in a particular case, be an appropriate measure.

65. Article 8(3)(b) of the Reception Directive relates to determining the 'elements on which the application for international protection is based which could not be obtained in the absence of detention.' Here, I recall that Article 4(1) of the Qualification Directive provides that, for the purposes of assessing the facts and circumstances relating to an application for international protection, Member States may consider it to be the duty of an applicant to submit as soon as possible all elements necessary to substantiate his request. In many cases it will be the applicant himself who is the main source of information, as the Member States' assessment is primarily to be based on his account of his history, which may be verified by reference to other sources. ( ) Member States are required to examine all applications for international protection individually, objectively and impartially. ( ) In so doing, Member States must also verify the credibility of an applicant's account. ( )

66. Thus, if an individual claims asylum based on fear of persecution because of his political opinions, Member States' authorities are required to verify such claims in accordance with the Qualification Directive and the Procedures Directive. Article 13 of the latter also, in effect, imposes on applicants an obligation to cooperate with the competent authorities with a view to establishing their identity and other elements referred to in Article 4(2) of the Qualification Directive.

67. If an applicant does not cooperate with the competent authorities and a fortiori if he refuses to make himself available for interview or if he absconds, that assessment cannot take place.

68. I therefore consider that, in order to achieve the general CEAS objective of applying common criteria for identifying those who are genuinely in need of international protection and distinguishing them from applicants who do not qualify for such protection, Article 8(3)(b) of the Reception Directive is an appropriate measure.

69. The Court has stressed that, in view of the importance of the right to liberty enshrined in Article 6 of the Charter and the gravity of the interference with that right which detention represents, limitations on the exercise of the right must apply only in so far as is strictly necessary. ( )

70. Both of the provisions at issue are subject to compliance with a series of conditions whose aim is to create a strictly circumscribed framework in which each measure may be used. ( )

71. Article 8(3)(a) and (b) are each self-standing grounds for detention. I shall therefore examine each measure separately to see whether it satisfies the necessity test.

72. Given that applicants for asylum are in flight from persecution, it can be expected that many will travel with false or incomplete documents. It is implicit in the wording of Article 8(3)(a) of the Reception Directive, read together with Article 8(1) and (2), that detention of an applicant based on that ground is to take place only where he does not give his identity or nationality or if the competent authorities do not accept his account. Not every applicant may be detained in order to verify his identity or nationality. Moreover, Article 8(3)(a) must be applied by reference to the aims of the Reception Directive. These include the principles of proportionality and necessity and the objective that the time needed to verify the grounds for detention should be as short as possible. ( )

73. Article 8(3)(b) is expressly limited to cases where the information in support of the application 'could not be obtained in the absence of detention'. Thus, the wording used indicates that the legislature wished to emphasise that Member States cannot make arbitrary use of that ground. That limitation is underlined by the words 'in particular when there is a risk of absconding of the applicant'. Likewise, the aims set out in recitals 15 and 16 confirm that that provision should be used only when strictly necessary.

74. Furthermore, the statutory safeguards set out in Article 8(1) and (2) both reflect Recommendation Rec(2003)5 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe and the UNHCR Detention Guidelines that detention must be reserved to exceptional cases.

75. It should also be remembered that the Reception Directive is to be read together with the procedural requirements laid down in the Procedures Directive. Article 26 of the latter prohibits detention for the sole reason that the person concerned is an applicant. The wider context of the CEAS also makes it clear that the provisions on detention in Article 8(3) of the Reception Directive are intended for exceptional cases, rather than the general rule.

76. The legislative history of the Reception Directive confirms that the issue of detention was considered by reference to the general scheme and objectives of the CEAS and that detention is only permissible where it is consistent with fundamental rights and where it is necessary and proportionate. ( )

77. Lastly, it seems to me that the provisions at issue strike a fair balance between the individual interest and the general interest of providing for a properly functioning CEAS which grants international protection to those third-country nationals who meet the criteria, rejecting claims that do not satisfy the criteria, and that they enable Member States to deploy their limited resources in meeting their international obligations, including the requirements of EU law which have evolved in the light of the principles laid down in the Geneva Convention as well as the ECHR. ( )

Validity in the light of Article 52(3) of the Charter

78. As I have indicated above, Article 6 of the Charter corresponds to Article 5(1) of the ECHR. ( ) In accordance with Article 52(3) of the Charter, the meaning and scope of the right to personal liberty and security guaranteed by Article 6 of the Charter are therefore the same as those laid down in the ECHR. ( ) The Court must therefore take account of Article 5 of the ECHR as interpreted by the Strasbourg Court in examining the validity of the provisions at issue in the light of Article 6 of the Charter.

79. Article 5 of the ECHR has provided a rich seam of case-law from that Court. The right to liberty and security guaranteed by that provision is not absolute. It is subject to an exhaustive list of permissible grounds on which persons may be deprived of their liberty. ( ) Article 5(1)(f) has been described as the ground that allows States to detain 'a foreigner' (or a third-country national) in the context of exercising functions in relation to immigration or asylum. There are two limbs to that particular ground. First, detention may be permitted to prevent an unauthorised entry into a country. Second, a third-county national may be detained with a view to deportation or extradition.

80. Given the facts set out in the order for reference, it seems to me that it is necessary to examine the validity of the provisions at issue in relation to the first limb of Article 5(1)(f) of the ECHR alone.

81. The Strasbourg Court interpreted that limb for the first time in Saadi. ( ) It recalled that 'subject to their obligations under the Convention, States enjoy an "undeniable sovereign right to control aliens' entry into and residence in their territory"  It is a necessary adjunct to this right that States are permitted to detain would-be immigrants who have applied for permission to enter, whether by way of asylum or not. It is evident that  the detention of potential immigrants, including asylum-seekers, is capable of being compatible with Article 5(1)(f) [of the ECHR]'. ( )

82. The Strasbourg Court went on to state that ' until a State has "authorised" entry to the country, any entry is "unauthorised" and the detention of a person who wishes to effect entry and who needs but does not yet have authorisation to do so can be, without any distortion of language, to "prevent his effecting an unauthorised entry". [The Grand Chamber] does not accept that as soon as an asylum seeker has surrendered himself to the immigration authorities, he is seeking to effect an "authorised" entry, with the result that detention cannot be justified under the first limb of Article 5(1)(f). To interpret the first limb of Article 5(1)(f) as permitting detention only of a person who is shown to be trying to evade entry restrictions would be to place too narrow a construction on the terms of the provision and on the power of the State to exercise its undeniable right of control referred to above.' ( ) The Strasbourg Court expressed the view that such an interpretation would be inconsistent with Conclusion no. 44 of the Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' Programme, the UNHCR's Guidelines and Recommendation Rec (2003)5 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe. ( ) Those texts accept that applicants for asylum may be detained in certain circumstances, in order for identity checks to be carried out or to establish the elements on which the request for international protection is based.

83. It follows that the first limb of Article 5(1)(f) is capable of applying as an exception to the general rule which guarantees liberty in cases concerning applicants for asylum who are not subject to an order expelling them from the territory of the European Union. In principle, it is not incompatible with that provision, and therefore with Article 6 of the Charter, to detain an applicant for asylum at the point when he attempts to enter EU territory in order to determine or verify his identity (Article 8(3)(a) of the Reception Directive). It is likewise not incompatible with that provision to detain an applicant in order to determine the elements on which his application is based which could not be obtained without his detention, in particular where there is a risk of absconding (Article 8(3)(b) of the Reception Directive).

84. In relation to the possibility that an applicant might abscond, it seems to me that it is not imperative to show that detention is necessary to prevent the individual's flight. ( ) What is required is that the action be taken to ensure that the competent authorities are able to discharge their functions under Article 4 of the Qualification Directive and Article 10 of the Procedures Directive in order to assess the application for international protection, and that there should be a possible risk that the applicant may otherwise abscond.

85. However, the Strasbourg Court has ruled on several occasions that any deprivation of liberty must, in addition to falling within one of the listed exceptions in Article 5(1)(a) to (f), be 'lawful'. In that regard, the ECHR 'refers essentially to national law and lays down the obligation to conform to the substantive and procedural rules of national law'. ( )

86. Detention under Article 5(1)(f) cannot be compatible with the ECHR if it is arbitrary. ( ) There is no global definition as to what might constitute arbitrary conduct on the part of national authorities. A key concept applied in a case-by-case examination is whether the detention, despite complying with the letter of national law, has an element of bad faith or deception on the part of the authorities. ( ) Where an applicant for asylum is detained, his detention 'must be closely connected to the purpose of preventing his unauthorised entry to the country'. The Strasbourg Court has also stated that the place and conditions of detention should be appropriate, bearing in mind that 'the measure is applicable not to those who have committed criminal offences, but to aliens who, often fearing for their lives, have fled from their own country'. Thus, the length of the detention should not exceed that reasonably required for the purpose pursued. ( )

87. It follows from my examination of Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive in relation to Article 52(1) of the Charter that I consider the use of detention to be a proportionate restriction of the right to liberty in an appropriate case in the circumstances stipulated in those provisions. That assessment applies equally for the purposes of Article 52(3). ( )

88. I would add that the restrictions set out in Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive must also be read in the light of Article 9 thereof, which reflects the safeguards for applicants which Article 5(2) to (5) of the ECHR provide. These comprise prompt provision of the reasons for arrest, prompt judicial scrutiny of arrest or detention, an entitlement to take proceedings challenging the lawfulness of detention and an enforceable right to compensation for wrongful arrest or detention. Corresponding guarantees are provided in Article 9 of the Reception Directive, in particular in paragraphs 1 to 5. As I stated in my View in N., although there is no equivalent to Article 5(5) of the ECHR in that directive, it nonetheless 'leaves Member States all the leeway necessary to comply with the requirement to provide for an enforceable right to compensation'. ( )

89. Thus, the restrictions on the right to liberty set out in Article 8(3)(a) and (b) of the Reception Directive, read together with the safeguards guaranteed for detained applicants, ensure that the right to liberty, which has been described as being 'of the highest importance in a "democratic society"' ( ) applies in accordance with both the meaning and the spirit of Article 5 of the ECHR.

90. Finally, I would observe that the referring court frames its question by reference to the judgment of the Strasbourg Court in Nabil. In that case, the applicants for asylum were subject both to an order expelling them from Hungary and to an entry ban. The two measures had been issued before they filed claims for asylum. The applicants' cases were examined in order to determine whether the use of detention was compatible with the right to liberty on the basis of the second limb of Article 5(1)(f) - detention in relation to a person against whom action is being taken with a view to deportation or extradition. ( )

91. As Mr K.'s asylum application remains pending and because there is no information in the order for reference indicating that any action has been taken against him under the Return Directive, there is nothing to suggest he is at present subject 'to deportation or extradition'. He is therefore in a very different position to the applicants in Nabil. That being the case, and in the light of the account of the facts given by the referring court, his circumstances cannot fall within the second limb of Article 5(1)(f) of the ECHR. Accordingly, the interpretation of that provision by the Strasbourg Court in Nabil has no bearing on the assessment of the validity of Article 8(3)(a) for present purposes.

92. I would add for the sake of good order that, in view of this Court's ruling in N. to the effect that it does not necessarily follow from Nabil that a pending asylum case means that the detention of a person who has made such a claim is no longer detention 'with a view to deportation', the position is in any event more nuanced than the referring court suggests. ( )

Conclusion

93. In the light of all the above considerations I am of the opinion that the Court should declare that:

Consideration of the question put by the rechtbank Den Haag zittingsplaats Haarlem (District Court, The Hague, sitting at Haarlem, the Netherlands) to the Court of Justice of the European Union has disclosed no factor of such a kind as to affect the validity of points (a) and (b) of the first subparagraph of Article 8(3) of Directive 2013/33/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 laying down standards for the reception of applicants for international protection in the light of Articles 6 and 52(1) and (3) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

- Original language: English.

- Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 (OJ 2013 L 180, p. 96) ('the Reception Directive').

- OJ 2010 C 83, p. 389 ('the Charter').

- The Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, signed in Geneva on 28 July 1951, which entered into force on 22 April 1954 (United Nations Treaty Series, Vol. 189, p. 150, No 2545 (1954)), as supplemented by the Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, concluded in New York on 31 January 1967, which entered into force on 4 October 1967 (together, 'the Geneva Convention'). The Protocol is not relevant to answering the present request for a preliminary ruling.

- Signed at Rome on 4 November 1950 ('the ECHR').

- See, respectively, Article 5(2), (4) and (5). Article 5(3) concerns individuals arrested or detained in accordance with Article 5(1)(c) where there is a reasonable suspicion that they have committed an offence or when it is necessary to prevent crimes from being committed. The European Court of Human Rights ('the Strasbourg Court') has ruled that that provision applies only in the context of criminal proceedings (see judgment of 31 July 2000, Jecius v. Lithuania, CE:ECHR:2000:0731JUD003457897, 50). It is clear from the order for reference that Mr K.'s detention did not relate to criminal proceedings (see points 24 to 28 below). Therefore neither Article 5(1)(c) nor Article 5(3) of the ECHR is relevant to the present proceedings.

- Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 (OJ 2008 L 348, p. 98) ('the Return Directive').

- Recital 5.

- The categories of individuals enjoying the right to freedom of movement within EU territory for the purposes of Article 3(1) of the Return Directive are defined in Article 2(5) of Regulation (EU) 2016/399 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2016 on a Union Code on the rules governing the movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders Code) (OJ 2016 L 77, p. 1). That act repealed and replaced the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006, which was the earlier version of that code. Those categories include EU citizens within the meaning of Article 20 TFEU and their third-country national family members where the EU citizen concerned exercises rights to freedom of movement. They also include third-country nationals and their family members who, under agreements between the European Union and its Member States and the relevant third-country, enjoy rights to freedom of movement equivalent to those of EU citizens (those countries are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland).

- Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on standards for the qualification of third-country nationals or stateless persons as beneficiaries of international protection, for a uniform status for refugees or for persons eligible for subsidiary protection, and for the content of the protection granted (OJ 2011 L 337, p. 9) ('the Qualification Directive').

- Article 1.

- See Article 4(3)(a),(b) and (c) respectively.

- I have not listed the individual grounds, since only the concept of exclusion from refugee status is relevant to the case at issue.

- Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 (OJ 2013 L 180, p. 60) ('the Procedures Directive').

- See, in particular, Article 10(2) and (3)(a).

- Recital 2.

- Recital 3.

- Recital 10.

- Recital 15.

- Recital 16.

- Recital 20.

- Recital 35.

- The same definition is also used in Article 2(i) of the Qualification Directive and Article 2(c) of the Procedures Directive.

- I understand from the order for reference that under Article 8(f) of the Vw a third-country national who applies for asylum is considered to be lawfully resident in the Netherlands while a decision on his application for a residence permit is pending, and that, on the basis of his application (or a court order), his deportation is to be deferred until a decision on the asylum request is taken.

- From my own research based on the national file, it seems that the finding of 'inadmissibility' was because Mr K. had applied for refugee status. The Netherlands authorities therefore treated him as being subject to protection under the Geneva Convention, in particular pursuant to Article 31 thereof.

- Article 59b(1)(a) of the Vw.

- Article 59b(1)(b) of the Vw.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84.

- Judgment of 22 September 2015, CE:ECHR:2015:0922JUD006211612 ('Nabil').

- Judgment of 22 October 1987, 314/85, EU:C:1987:452, paragraphs 15 and 16.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84.

- Judgment of 10 January 2006, IATA and ELFAA, C344/04, EU:C:2006:10, paragraphs 30 and 31.

- Judgment of 12 July 2012, Association Kokopelli, C59/11, EU:C:2012:447, paragraphs 28 and 29 and the case-law cited.

- Article 6(1) TEU and Article 52(7) of the Charter. See also, the Explanations relating to the Charter of Fundamental Rights (OJ 2007 C 303, p. 17) ('the Explanations').

- Explanation on Article 6 - Right to liberty and security, p. 19 of the Explanations.

- Detention Guidelines - Guidelines on the applicable criteria and standards relating to the detention of asylum-seekers and alternatives to detention, published by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2012) ('the UNHCR Detention Guidelines').

- See further the United Nations General Assembly Report of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention published on 4 May 2015, 'Guideline 21. Specific measures for non-nationals, including migrants regardless of their migration status, asylum seekers, refugees and stateless persons'.

- United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees' Guidelines on Applicable Criteria and Standards Relating to the Detention of Asylum Seekers of 26 February 1999.

- In the light of Mr N.'s pending application for asylum, his expulsion from the Netherlands remained in abeyance under national law and in accordance with Article 9 of the Procedures Directive.

- Judgment of the Strasbourg Court of 23 February 2012, Creanga v. Romania, CE:ECHR:2012:0223JUD002922603,  92.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 46.

- See Article 2(h) of the Reception Directive.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 45 and the case-law cited.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 47.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 48 and the case-law cited.

- See, by analogy (in respect of Article 8(3)(e)), judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 49.

- See, by analogy (in respect of Article 8(3)(e)), judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraphs 50 and 51.

- See also Article 9 of the Procedures Directive.

- See my View in N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:85, point 113, see also recital 20 of the Reception Directive.

- See recital 15 of the Reception Directive.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 59.

- See Articles 8(3) in fine and 9 of the Reception Directive.

- See, by analogy, judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 52.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 54 and the case-law cited.

- See Article 1 of the Qualification Directive and recital 3 of the Reception Directive.

- Article 4 of the Qualification Directive.

- See recital 22 of the Qualification Directive.

- The 'Dublin system' refers, inter alia, to the rules in Regulation (EU) No 604/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 establishing the criteria and mechanisms for determining the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national or a stateless person (OJ 2013 L 180, p. 31). There is specific provision in Article 28 of that regulation for detaining applicants for the purposes of transfer. That provision, however, is not relevant here.

- Article 4 of the Qualification Directive.

- Article 10(2) and (3)(a) of the Procedures Directive.

- See, for example, judgment of 2 December 2014, A and Others, C148/13 to C150/13, EU:C:2014:2406, paragraph 55 et seq.

- Judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 56 and the case-law cited.

- See, by analogy (in relation to Article 8(3)(e)), judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 57.

- See, respectively, recitals 15 and 16 of the Reception Directive.

- See Commission proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down minimum standards for the reception of asylum seekers COM(2008) 815 final, pp. 6 and 8; see also recital 35 of the Reception Directive.

- See, by analogy, judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraph 68.

- See point 5 above.

- See points 49 and 50 above.

- See Nabil,  26.

- Judgment of the Strasbourg Court of 29 January 2008, Saadiv.TheUnited Kingdom, CE:ECHR:2008:0129JUD001322903 ('Saadi').

- Saadi,  64.

- Saadi,  65.

- Saadi,  34, 35 and 37.

- See, by analogy, judgment of the Strasbourg Court of 15 November 1996, Chahal v. The United Kingdom, CE:ECHR:1996:1115JUD002241493,  112.

- Saadi,  67.

- Saadi,  67.

- Saadi,  69 to 73.

- Saadi,  74.

- See points 57 to 77 above.

- See my View in N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:85, point 136.

- See judgment of the Strasbourg Court of 29 March 2010, Medvedyev and Othersv. France, CE:ECHR:2010:0329JUD000339403,  76.

- Nabil,  28 and 38 et seq.

- All that is required is that action should be being taken with a view to deportation or extradition (see judgment of 15 February 2016, N., C601/15 PPU, EU:C:2016:84, paragraphs 79 and 80). That position is confirmed by the case-law of the Strasbourg Court (see, for example, judgment of the Strasbourg Court of 23 October 2008, Soldatenko v. Ukraine, CE:ECHR:2008:1023JUD000244007,  109). That Court has also ruled that detention may be justified under the second limb of Article 5(1)(f) of the ECHR even if a formal request or an order for extradition has not been issued, see Decision of the European Commission on Human Rights of 9 December 1980, X. v. Switzerland, CE:ECHR:1980:1209DEC000901280.

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Iran: Re-elected administration must make rhetoric reality for free expression online

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 25 May 2017 Cite as Article 19, Iran: Re-elected administration must make rhetoric reality for free expression online, 25 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c21c94.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Following his re-election for a second term in Irans 19 May Presidential elections, ARTICLE 19 urges President Hassan Rouhani to take seriously this opportunity to address failures and gaps in guaranteeing the right to freedom of expression and access to information, particularly online, in line with the administrations proposed commitments at this and the previous election, and with international human rights standards.

After the results, there were nation-wide eruptions of joy and hope, as Iranians celebrated the election as a recognition of their desire for reform and moderation of the countrys isolating and repressive tendencies. Rouhanis contender, the hardline cleric Ebrahim Raisi, had amongst his policies further curbs to freedom of expression and rights online. While the election of Rouhani is not a guarantee of fundamental freedoms, it is an administration that is more inclined towards the values of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 19, and the election clearly shows the desire among Iranian voters for a new approach to guarantee these fundamental rights.

While Rouhani followed through on certain promises during his first term as President, such as the Iran-US nuclear deal, others, such as his Charter of Citizens Rights, were more rhetorical than tangible, and saw little or no real progress to improve Iranians ability to freely express themselves.

As ARTICLE 19 noted in our recent Tightening the Net briefing in the lead up to 19 May, the Rouhani administration claimed to have made great strides towards Internet freedoms in its first term. While it did improve access online through improved Internet speeds, it has otherwise only achieved prevention of further censorship, and only on certain platforms. Thousands of websites remained or became censored throughout the previous term, alongside numerous arrests for freedom of expression online, and efforts to centralise user data into the hands of the government. Initiatives by the Rouhani administration such as intelligent filtering, targeted censorship and articles promoting an end to Internet filtering in the Charter of Citizens Rights have proven to be ineffective and baseless, given the reality in Iran of continued online repression, violations of user privacy, and restrictions on access to information online.

Additionally, the work of Irans conservative Judiciary and Revolutionary Guards has continued to strengthen the states powers of intimidation, arrest, surveillance and censorship. One of the more dispiriting cases against freedom of expression this past year has been the case against social media user Sina Dehghan, who has spent this past year fighting a death sentence for posting immoral content on social media. The continued imprisonment of political prisoners, journalists, minorities, and the increased executions under the watch of Rouhani is an onus on this administration to acknowledge and remediate.

In his last campaign speech on 17 May, Rouhani reiterated his promise to confront these powers, criticizing the nations powerful unelected bodies who are appointed to their positions by the countrys Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. He promised he would be the nations lawyer who defends peoples rights in the face of injustices by these powers.

However, it remains to be seen if Rouhani can enact his promises to hold these powers to account. He commences this new term with the weight of a popular vote and a majority reformist and moderate parliament behind him. Rouhanis re-elected administration can no longer hide behind a veil of powerlessness and promises. The ability of people in Iran to freely access information and exercise freedom of expression online without fear of repression, in line with international human rights standards, remains severely restricted. We urge the new administration to prioritise the rights of Iranians to free expression online and make its promises to safeguard these rights a reality.

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Brazil: ARTICLE 19 and partners report violations of freedom of expression and independence of Brazilian judges to the OAS

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 24 May 2017 Cite as Article 19, Brazil: ARTICLE 19 and partners report violations of freedom of expression and independence of Brazilian judges to the OAS, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c223b4.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Brazilian civil society organizations are today attending a hearing at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), linked to the Organization of American States (OAS), to address disrespect for judicial independence and freedom of expression of judges.

The hearing is to bring to the attention of the commission information concerning judges who, because of their judicial decisions or comments on the guarantee of rights, have been subject to investigation procedures, informal warnings and criticisms, and other forms of harassment.

ARTICLE 19 and partner organizations will demonstrate that violations of the exercise of freedom of expression and the functional independence of members of the judiciary are recurrent in Brazil and represent serious violations of the American Convention on Human Rights.

For ARTICLE 19, targeting judges in this way for seeking to guarantee rights in their decisions harms the protection of human rights in Brazil and should be denounced at the international level.

Freedom of expression for the judiciary must be protected, not only in their judicial decisions, to ensure judicial independence in interpretations and guarantees of rights, but for their comments outside of these decisions.

The petitioning organisations at the hearing are ARTICLE 19, the Association of Judges for Democracy, Justice and Human Rights Campaign (JusDh), Conectas Human Rights, Due Process of Law Foundation and the Brazilian Institute of Criminal Sciences (IBCCrim).

The hearing will be broadcasted at the IACHRs website: http://www.oas.org/en/iachr/

Copyright notice: Copyright ARTICLE 19
Uganda: Media Council bans screening of film for "glorifying homosexuality"

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 23 May 2017 Cite as Article 19, Uganda: Media Council bans screening of film for "glorifying homosexuality", 23 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c22ea4.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

ARTICLE 19 is concerned by the recent censorship of the film The Dinner Club, following the denial of a classification by the Media Council of Uganda. The film had been submitted as the Dutch entrance for this years European Film Festival in Uganda, however its screening was cancelled following the Councils decision. The Media Council has subsequently prohibited the exhibition of the film anywhere in Uganda.

Among the comments made by the Council regarding the ban are that the film depicts and glorifies homosexuality, and that the film contains profanity, listing as an example a scene where one gay man calls another a hot chick. The decision to censor the film on this basis is in violation of international standards on freedom of expression, which require the right to be guaranteed for all without discrimination, and limit the grounds on which expression can be restricted based on morals.

Censorship of this kind by the Media Council is not only discriminatory, but unconstitutional. The Ugandan Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 29, and this decision denies that right. This is not only a significant blow to artistic expression in Uganda, but a worrying example of discrimination against LGBT expression, which is likely to cause further self-censorship among LGBT people in the country, said Henry Maina, Regional Director of ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa.

Uganda has previously banned films depicting sexual scenes, however this most recent ban is particularly concerning given the existing repression of LGBT expression in the country. Uganda criminalises consensual relations between people of the same sex, and LGBT people are subject to violence and threats.

While CSOs and other civic actors fight to push back against the shrinking civic space in the region, censorship continues across Eastern Africa, particularly through restrictive and punitive film regulation policies aimed at curtailing production of works that could elicit critical discussion on the status of governance, human rights and equality in the region.

In November 2016, attempts by the Kenya Films and Classification Board (KFCB) to introduce a repressive film policy were thwarted following sustained opposition by the creative and media industry. In 2014, KFCB had banned the exhibition and distribution of Stories of Our Lives, a film about the queer community in Kenya, supposedly for production without a licence.

Freedom of expression includes the freedom to make works that can shock or offend, and while there is no single definition of what constitutes an acceptable restriction based on morality, international standards are clear that limitations based on public morals must not be applied in a discriminatory fashion. Equally, the decision to censor the expression must meet the three part test of legality, legitimacy, and necessity.

It is important to note that in an increasingly repressive and conservative environment for freedom of expression, censorship of creative and artistic works is being increasingly used to stifle freedom of expression. Censoring expression which depicts or is related to LGBT people only serves to further stigmatise them and promote discrimination. It also curtails their representation and participation in public discourse.

The transparency of the film licensing process in the region must be addressed to prevent its use for these restrictions, and the Ugandan government must ensure it abides by its international obligation to protect the right to free expression for all, without discrimination added Maina.

ARTICLE 19 asks the Media Council of Uganda to:

Revoke the censorship of the film and issue an appropriate classification for the film in line with its role as regulator.

Ensure greater transparency in its decision-making process by involving film makers, distributors and public, and make public all its detailed decisions banning any film.

We also call on the Ugandan government to review of the Press and Journalist Act 1995 Section 105 to ensure that it conforms to Ugandas international human rights obligations. The Act gives the Council too much arbitrary latitude to exercise any function that may be authorized or required by law.

Copyright notice: Copyright ARTICLE 19
Mexico: End impunity for attacks on the press after six killed this year

Publisher Article 19 Publication Date 29 May 2017 Cite as Article 19, Mexico: End impunity for attacks on the press after six killed this year, 29 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c25154.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

ARTICLE 19 is concerned by the recent censorship of the film The Dinner Club, following the denial of a classification by the Media Council of Uganda. The film had been submitted as the Dutch entrance for this years European Film Festival in Uganda, however its screening was cancelled following the Councils decision. The Media Council has subsequently prohibited the exhibition of the film anywhere in Uganda.

Among the comments made by the Council regarding the ban are that the film depicts and glorifies homosexuality, and that the film contains profanity, listing as an example a scene where one gay man calls another a hot chick. The decision to censor the film on this basis is in violation of international standards on freedom of expression, which require the right to be guaranteed for all without discrimination, and limit the grounds on which expression can be restricted based on morals.

Censorship of this kind by the Media Council is not only discriminatory, but unconstitutional. The Ugandan Constitution guarantees the right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 29, and this decision denies that right. This is not only a significant blow to artistic expression in Uganda, but a worrying example of discrimination against LGBT expression, which is likely to cause further self-censorship among LGBT people in the country, said Henry Maina, Regional Director of ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa.

Uganda has previously banned films depicting sexual scenes, however this most recent ban is particularly concerning given the existing repression of LGBT expression in the country. Uganda criminalises consensual relations between people of the same sex, and LGBT people are subject to violence and threats.

While CSOs and other civic actors fight to push back against the shrinking civic space in the region, censorship continues across Eastern Africa, particularly through restrictive and punitive film regulation policies aimed at curtailing production of works that could elicit critical discussion on the status of governance, human rights and equality in the region.

In November 2016, attempts by the Kenya Films and Classification Board (KFCB) to introduce a repressive film policy were thwarted following sustained opposition by the creative and media industry. In 2014, KFCB had banned the exhibition and distribution of Stories of Our Lives, a film about the queer community in Kenya, supposedly for production without a licence.

Freedom of expression includes the freedom to make works that can shock or offend, and while there is no single definition of what constitutes an acceptable restriction based on morality, international standards are clear that limitations based on public morals must not be applied in a discriminatory fashion. Equally, the decision to censor the expression must meet the three part test of legality, legitimacy, and necessity.

It is important to note that in an increasingly repressive and conservative environment for freedom of expression, censorship of creative and artistic works is being increasingly used to stifle freedom of expression. Censoring expression which depicts or is related to LGBT people only serves to further stigmatise them and promote discrimination. It also curtails their representation and participation in public discourse.

The transparency of the film licensing process in the region must be addressed to prevent its use for these restrictions, and the Ugandan government must ensure it abides by its international obligation to protect the right to free expression for all, without discrimination added Maina.

ARTICLE 19 asks the Media Council of Uganda to:

Revoke the censorship of the film and issue an appropriate classification for the film in line with its role as regulator.

Ensure greater transparency in its decision-making process by involving film makers, distributors and public, and make public all its detailed decisions banning any film.

We also call on the Ugandan government to review of the Press and Journalist Act 1995 Section 105 to ensure that it conforms to Ugandas international human rights obligations. The Act gives the Council too much arbitrary latitude to exercise any function that may be authorized or required by law.

Copyright notice: Copyright ARTICLE 19
Kazakhstan: Activist Recantation Demoralizes Civil Society

Publisher EurasiaNet Author Aktan Rysaliev Publication Date 24 May 2017 Other Languages / Attachments Russian Cite as EurasiaNet, Kazakhstan: Activist Recantation Demoralizes Civil Society, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c28344.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Only two years ago, civic rights activist Olesya Khalabuzar was proclaiming ambitiously that her grand ambition for Kazakhstan was to promote a change in the population's mindset. The country's citizens, she told EurasiaNet.org, had to change from "slaves into masters" and "demand our rights."

But in a public statement that has shocked many among the political opposition and in the rights community, it is Khalabuzar who has now performed a stark volte-face.



"Looking back [on my life], I have decided to take a very important step and declare: I AM RENOUNCING PUBLIC ACTIVISM," Khalabuzar wrote on her Facebook account on May 17.



Khalabuzar, 39, is a veteran on Kazakhstan's rights scene. Even so, her declared intent to get into politics in 2015 pumped fresh air into a scene that had been deprived of oxygen due to restrictive measures carried out by the government.



In her statement, Khalabuzar performed a groveling mea culpa, describing the work of her Spravedlivost rights movement as "short-sighted" and "counterproductive," and admitting to unspecified attempts to "blackmail government bodies."



The self-criticism exercise bore hallmarks of a Soviet- or Maoist Chinese-style exercise in recantation that other activists have argued represents a pernicious trend in Kazakhstan's ever-shrinking space for independent thought. Her now-erstwhile allies believe Khalabuzar was pressured into making the statement.



At the end of February, Khalabuzar was detained by the police and taken to a police station in Almaty to face questions about her involvement in protests against recent constitutional reforms affecting land ownership rights.



The script then unfolded in a manner familiar to anybody in Kazakhstan who has concertedly contravened the official line. At the start of March, police officers searched Khalabuzar's office and apartment as part of a criminal investigation into suspected extremism. The searches followed a criminal complaint by a citizen identified only by the initials A.A.



Opposition journalist Sergei Duvanov, who was sentenced to more than 3 years in jail for statutory rape in 2003 following a trial that rights groups said was marred by irregularities, said Khalabuzar's plight was "familiar and understandable."



"The threat of being put behind bars for 10 years is serious grounds for recanting and renouncing public activism," Duvanov wrote on his Facebook account. "It has already become a trend when people opposing the authorities, bumping up against threats of persecution and reprisals, decide either to disappear into the shadows or repent, thereby ensuring themselves freedom and security."



Kazakhstan's history is no stranger to such cases.



In August 2011, another activist and trade union lawyer, Natalia Sokolova, was sentenced to six years in jail by a court in the city of Aktau for purportedly inciting social unrest and calling for illegal protests. Her criminal trial stemmed from her involvement in the long-running oil worker strike in the city of Zhanaozen that culminated in December 2011 with police shooting dead more than a dozen unarmed laborers.



The extent of Sokolova's involvement in that episode was to argue through her legal office for workers in Zhanaozen to be paid higher salaries to compensate for their work and living conditions. After spending a little over 10 months in prison, Sokolova had a change of heart and accepted her guilty verdict, admitting in effect that offering legal advice was tantamount to inciting violence. Following that declaration, her penalty was reduced to a three-year suspended sentence and she was released from prison.



Yevgeny Zhovtis, the country's best-known rights activist and also a former convict, said he had no doubt that Sokolova was forced to change her mind under duress.



By way of illustrating his point, he recalled an exchange during the 2012 trial of opposition leader Vladimir Kozlov, who was also jailed for his alleged role in the Zhanaozen unrest. Sokolova was called to the trial as a witness, Zhovtis remembered, and was at one stage cross-questioned by her former associate Kozlov.



Was Sokolova convinced, Kozlov asked, that her calculations for salaries due to Zhanaozen workers were correct during the strike or now that the protest was over?



"When I did the calculations, I was 100 percent convinced that they were right. And now I think that the General Prosecutor's office is right," Zhovtis recalls Sokolova answering bitterly.



According to Zhovtis, Kazakhstani authorities embrace what he described as a form of "half-soft" authoritarianism. Authorities provide an extremely limited space for nongovernmental groups, rights activists, independent media and some opposition politicians to operate, but deny them any access to national television stations or state-owned publications, he said.



Zhovtis said that the function of this limited civil society is to prove to the international community that the regime is committed to democratic development. At the same time, all political processes are closely monitored to stamp out any signs of threat to the ruling elite, he added. The policy of attempting to extort public recantations is a favored way to demoralize critics of the state.



"The measure is not intended so much to stop the work of a particular activist as to send a signal to society at large, to say: We are a strong state and we can neutralize any opponent," Zhovtis told EurasiaNet.org.



Zhovtis said he too was offered a way out in 2009, when he was facing prison time for accidentally killing a pedestrian while driving his car on a dark highway in southern Kazakhstan. Even though the victim's family publicly accepted that the death was an accident, the authorities pursued the case aggressively and Zhovtis was eventually sentenced to four years in jail.



"When I was in the penal colony, they offered me to ask for an amnesty and to 'behave well' in exchange for freedom, but I refused," he said.



These forms of psychological pressure are a legacy of the Soviet era, when the KGB often coerced recantations as a heavy-handed form of propaganda. The practice also bears hallmarks of China's Maoist-era "struggle sessions" in which ideologically suspect individuals would be compelled by their peers, or Communist Party agitators, on pain of violence, to publicly catalogue their political and moral shortcomings.



Zhovtis cautioned that the government, in smothering proponents of liberal values, may be opening a door for radicals. "This could have negative consequences," he said. "If you clear the field of secular, moderate, non-violent and reliable democratic opposition forces, a vacuum will form, and that will be filled by the representatives of radical movements. And there is no joking around with them."

Copyright notice: All EurasiaNet material  Open Society Institute
Title Comments of the Government of Norway on the Fourth Opinion of the Advisory Committee on the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities by Norway - received on 24 May 2017

Publication Date 29 May 2017

Country Norway

Citation / Document Symbol GVT/COM/IV(2017)006

Cite as Council of Europe: Secretariat of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, Comments of the Government of Norway on the Fourth Opinion of the Advisory Committee on the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities by Norway - received on 24 May 2017, 29 May 2017, GVT/COM/IV(2017)006, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c2ca04.html [accessed 10 November 2022]
Sri Lanka: Act now to prevent further anti-Muslim violence

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 25 May 2017 Reference ASA 37/6361/2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Sri Lanka: Act now to prevent further anti-Muslim violence, 25 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c30984.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Sri Lankan authorities must act immediately to end attacks on Muslims in the country, and to rein in violent groups that target religious minorities, and take action against perpetrators, Amnesty International said.

Since 16 April, human rights defenders in Sri Lanka have recorded at least 18 alleged incidents of violence and intimidation against Muslims, including petrol bomb and mob attacks on mosques, businesses and homes that have resulted in extensive property damage. Activists say that the police have failed to prevent these attacks or to arrest perpetrators. On 23 May, President Sirisena ordered the Law and Order Ministry to take action. We urge authorities to follow through.

Buddhist monks affiliated with the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) a hardline Buddhist group, are also alleged to have attempted forcible land grabs in eastern Sri Lanka, and the media has reported a series of provocative and religiously charged speeches by BBS leader Gnanasara Thero.

On 8 May, Gnanasara Thero claimed at a press conference that Muslim Rohingya refugees fleeing persecution in Myanmar were trying to invade Sri Lanka. On 21 May, assailants threw petrol bombs at the Mallawapitiya mosque in Kurunegala after a BBS procession was stopped by police. BBS leaders blamed Muslims for obstructing their procession and allegedly encouraged the gathered crowd to attack them. It was the fourth attack on a mosque since mid-April.

In June 2014, anti-Muslim violence in the town of Aluthgama after a speech by the BBS leader claimed four lives and caused substantial property damage. The re-emergence of violence against Muslims in Sri Lanka is alarming. As we have seen before in Sri Lanka, there is a real risk of it spreading if the government doesn't act to end it immediately. Those responsible for violence must be held to account, and at risk Muslim communities given the protection they need.

Copyright notice:  Copyright Amnesty International
Opinion of Advocate General Campos Sanchez-Bordona: Moussa Sacko v. Commissione Territoriale per il riconoscimento della Protezione internazionale di Milano

Publisher European Union: Court of Justice of the European Union Publication Date 6 April 2017 Citation / Document Symbol Case C348/16 Cite as European Union: Court of Justice of the European Union, Opinion of Advocate General Campos Sanchez-Bordona: Moussa Sacko v. Commissione Territoriale per il riconoscimento della Protezione internazionale di Milano, 6 April 2017, Case C348/16, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c30be4.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

OPINION OF ADVOCATE GENERAL

CAMPOS SANCHEZ-BORDONA

delivered on 6 April 2017 ( )

Case C348/16

Moussa Sacko

v

Commissione Territoriale per il riconoscimento della Protezione internazionale di Milano

(Request for a preliminary ruling from the Tribunale di Milano (District Court, Milan, Italy))

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Asylum - Interpretation of Articles 12, 14, 31 and 46 of Directive 2013/32/EU - Right to effective judicial protection - Administrative refusal, following a hearing of the person concerned, of an application for refugee status - Possibility of dismissing the legal action without a hearing of the person concerned)

















1. The Court of Justice is being asked for the first time (unless I am mistaken) whether Directive 2013/32/EU ( ) is compatible with national legislation which allows for a finding of inadmissibility, or the dismissal, without preparatory inquiries of an action brought by an asylum seeker against the refusal of his application for international protection.

2. The referring court states that the application of the person who has requested asylum in this case is 'manifestly unfounded' and that 'the administrative authority's refusal' of his application is 'therefore insurmountable'. Although, in that case, national legislation would authorise it to find inadmissible, or to dismiss, the application without preparatory inquiries, the question arises whether that solution is in accordance with Directive 2013/32. Specifically, the referring court wishes to ascertain whether such a rejection of the action would deprive the applicant of the right to an effective remedy as guaranteed by Article 46(3) of the directive.

I. Legal context

A. EU law

Directive 2013/32

3. The aim of Directive 2013/32, according to Article 1 thereof, is 'to establish common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection pursuant to Directive 2011/95/EU'. ( )

4. In recitals 18, 20 and 60 of the directive it is stated:

'(18) It is in the interests of both Member States and applicants for international protection that a decision is made as soon as possible on applications for international protection, without prejudice to an adequate and complete examination being carried out.

(20) In well-defined circumstances where an application is likely to be unfounded or where there are serious national security or public order concerns, Member States should be able to accelerate the examination procedure, in particular by introducing shorter, but reasonable, time limits for certain procedural steps, without prejudice to an adequate and complete examination being carried out and to the applicant's effective access to basic principles and guarantees provided for in this Directive.

(60) This Directive respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised by the Charter. In particular, this Directive seeks to ensure full respect for human dignity and to promote the application of Articles 1, 4, 18, 19, 21, 23, 24 and 47 of the Charter and has to be implemented accordingly.'

5. Article 2(c) of the directive states that:

'"applicant" means a third-country national or stateless person who has made an application for international protection in respect of which a final decision has not yet been taken.'

6. Included in Chapter II ('Basic principles and guarantees'), Article 12 provides:

'1. With respect to the procedures provided for in Chapter III, Member States shall ensure that all applicants enjoy the following guarantees:

(a) they shall be informed, in a language which they understand or are reasonably supposed to understand of the procedure to be followed and of their rights and obligations during the procedure and the possible consequences of not complying with their obligations and not cooperating with the authorities. ;



(d) they and, if applicable, their legal advisers or other counsellors  shall have access to the information referred to in Article 10(3)(b) and to the information provided by the experts referred to in Article 10(3)(d), where the determining authority has taken that information into consideration for the purpose of taking a decision on their application;

(e) they shall be given notice in reasonable time of the decision by the determining authority on the application ;

(f) they shall be informed of the result of the decision by the determining authority in a language that they understand or are reasonably supposed to understand when they are not assisted or represented by a legal adviser or other counsellor. The information provided shall include information on how to challenge a negative decision ...

2. With respect to the procedures provided for in Chapter [IV], Member States shall ensure that all applicants enjoy guarantees equivalent to the ones referred to in paragraph 1(b) to (e).'

7. Article 14 ('Personal interview') of the directive provides, in paragraph 1:

'Before a decision is taken by the determining authority, the applicant shall be given the opportunity of a personal interview on his or her application for international protection ...'

8. Under Article 17 ('Report and recording of personal interviews') of the directive:

'1. Member States shall ensure that either a thorough and factual report containing all substantive elements or a transcript is made of every personal interview.

2. Member States may provide for audio or audiovisual recording of the personal interview. Where such a recording is made, Member States shall ensure that the recording or a transcript thereof is available in connection with the applicant's file.

3. Member States shall ensure that the applicant has the opportunity to make comments and/or provide clarification orally and/or in writing with regard to any mistranslations or misconceptions appearing in the report or in the transcript, at the end of the personal interview or within a specified time limit before the determining authority takes a decision. To that end, Member States shall ensure that the applicant is fully informed of the content of the report or of the substantive elements of the transcript, with the assistance of an interpreter if necessary. Member States shall then request the applicant to confirm that the content of the report or the transcript correctly reflects the interview.

...

5. Applicants and their legal advisers or other counsellors ... shall have access to the report or the transcript and, where applicable, the recording, before the determining authority takes a decision.

...'

9. Under the title 'Examination procedure', Article 31, with which Chapter III ('Procedures at first instance') opens, provides:

'1. Member States shall process applications for international protection in an examination procedure in accordance with the basic principles and guarantees of Chapter II.

2. Member States shall ensure that the examination procedure is concluded as soon as possible, without prejudice to an adequate and complete examination.

3. Member states shall ensure that the examination procedure is concluded within six months of the lodging of the application.

...

Member States may extend the time limit of six months set out in this paragraph for a period not exceeding a further nine months, where:

(a) complex issues of fact and/or law are involved;

(b) a large number of third-country nationals or stateless persons simultaneously apply for international protection, making it very difficult in practice to conclude the procedure within the six-month time limit;

(c) where the delay can clearly be attributed to the failure of the applicant to comply with his or her obligations under Article 13.

...

8. Member States may provide that an examination procedure in accordance with the basic principles and guarantees of Chapter II be accelerated and/or conducted at the border or in transit zones in accordance with Article 43 if:

(a) the applicant, in submitting his or her application and presenting the facts, has only raised issues that are not relevant to the examination of whether he or she qualifies as a beneficiary of international protection ...; or

(b) the applicant is from a safe country of origin within the meaning of this Directive; or

(c) the applicant has misled the authorities by presenting false information or documents or by withholding relevant information or documents with respect to his or her identity and/or nationality that could have had a negative impact on the decision; or

(d) it is likely that, in bad faith, the applicant has destroyed or disposed of an identity or travel document that would have helped establish his or her identity or nationality; or

(e) the applicant has made clearly inconsistent and contradictory, clearly false or obviously improbable representations which contradict sufficiently verified country-of-origin information, thus making his or her claim clearly unconvincing in relation to whether he or she qualifies as a beneficiary of international protection ...; or

(f) the applicant has introduced a subsequent application for international protection that is not inadmissible in accordance with Article 40(5); or

(g) the applicant is making an application merely in order to delay or frustrate the enforcement of earlier or imminent decision which would result in his or her removal; or

(h) the applicant entered the territory of the Member State unlawfully or prolonged his or her stay unlawfully and, without good reason, has either not presented himself or herself to the authorities or not made an application for international protection as soon as possible, given the circumstances of his or her entry; or

(i) the applicant refuses to comply with an obligation to have his or her fingerprints taken ...; or

(j) the applicant may, for serious reasons, be considered a danger to the national security or public order of the Member State, or the applicant has been forcibly expelled for serious reasons of public security or public order under national law.

9. Member States shall lay down time limits for the adoption of the decision in the procedure at first instance pursuant to paragraph 8. Those time limits shall be reasonable.

...'

10. Under Article 32(2) of the directive:

'In cases of unfounded applications in which any of the circumstances listed in Article 31(8) apply, Member States may also consider an application to be manifestly unfounded, where it is defined as such in the national legislation.'

11. Chapter V ('Appeals procedures') of the directive contains a single article (Article 46), entitled 'The right to an effective remedy', according to which:

'1. Member States shall ensure that applicants have the right to an effective remedy before a court or tribunal, against the following:

(a) a decision taken on their application for international protection, including a decision:

(i) considering an application to be unfounded in relation to refugee status and/or subsidiary protection status;

(ii) considering an application to be inadmissible pursuant to Article 33(2);

(iii) taken at the border or in the transit zones of a Member State as described in Article 43(1);

(iv) not to conduct an examination pursuant to Article 39;

(b) a refusal to reopen the examination of an application after its discontinuation pursuant to Articles 27 and 28;

(c) a decision to withdraw international protection pursuant to Article 45.

2 Member States shall ensure that persons recognised by the determining authority as eligible for subsidiary protection have the right to an effective remedy pursuant to paragraph 1 against a decision considering an application unfounded in relation to refugee status.

...

3. In order to comply with paragraph 1, Member States shall ensure that an effective remedy provides for a full and ex nunc examination of both facts and points of law, including, where applicable, an examination of the international protection needs pursuant to Directive 2011/95/EU, at least in appeals procedures before a court or tribunal of first instance.

4. Member States shall provide for reasonable time limits and other necessary rules for the applicant to exercise his or her right to an effective remedy pursuant to paragraph 1. The time limits shall not render such exercise impossible or excessively difficult.

Member States may also provide for an ex officio review of decisions taken pursuant to Article 43.

...'

B. National law

12. According to the order for reference, Italian law has introduced, in relation to international protection, an administrative stage during which, after interviewing the applicant, a panel of experts examines the application - and a judicial stage, when an applicant whose application has not been granted may challenge the administrative body's decision to refuse it.

13. Article 19 of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011, ( ) as amended by Legislative Decree No 142 of 2015, ( ) provides:

'1. Proceedings concerning appeals brought against the decisions to which Article 35 of Legislative Decree No 25 of 28 January 2008 refers, are governed by the accelerated procedure, unless otherwise provided by this article.

...

3. To be admissible, the appeal shall be brought within thirty days of notification of the decision or sixty days if the applicant is resident abroad; ...

4. Appeals have suspensive effect, except when brought:

...

(b) against a decision declaring that an application for international protection is inadmissible;

(c) against a decision rejecting the application as manifestly unfounded ...;

...

6. The registrar shall notify the person concerned and the Ministry of the Interior ... and also the Public Prosecutor's Office of the appeal and also of the order fixing the hearing.

...

8. The panel which has adopted the contested decision may lodge all the records and documents it considers necessary for the purpose of the investigation and the court may, including of its own motion, take the investigative steps necessary to rule in the case.

9. Within six months of submission of the application, the court shall decide, on the basis of the evidence available at the time of the decision, to issue an order rejecting the application or granting the applicant refugee status or subsidiary protection status.

...'

II. Facts and the course of the main proceedings

14. On 20 March 2015, Mr Sacko reached Italy, from Mali, and lodged an application for asylum. On 10 March 2016, he was interviewed by the Commissione Territoriale per il riconoscimento della protezione internazionale (Regional Commission for the grant of international protection; 'the Commissione territoriale').

15. On 5 April 2016, the Commissione Territoriale informed Mr Sacko that it was not going to grant his request for international protection and, consequently, was refusing to accord him refugee status or to consider him eligible for subsidiary protection. The reason it gave for its decision was that the application was based on strictly economic reasons and that he did not have any well-founded fear of persecution.

16. On 3 May 2016, Mr Sacko appealed against the decision of the Commissione Territoriale before the referring court. He reiterated the reasons for his initial application and referred, in abstract terms, to the situation in Mali, but without in any way linking it to his personal circumstances.

17. The national court considers that the application is manifestly unfounded. It takes the view, in its own words, that 'it has become clear (and indeed indisputable at the end of the examination) that Sacko applied for international protection as a result of his own situation of extreme poverty. The mere fact of being in a state of poverty does not, however, even confer entitlement to the measures provided for by domestic law, namely what is known as humanitarian protection ... In the final analysis, this court considers that it may reject the application without measures of inquiry, that is without arranging for a fresh hearing of the applicant'.

18. The referring court maintains that, if the applicant has already been interviewed at the administrative stage, his application for judicial review may be rejected or granted without the need for a further hearing. This interpretation of legality has been ratified by the Suprema Corte di Cassazione (Supreme Court), supported by the updated version of Article 19 of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011.

19. According to the order for reference, Article 19(9) of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011 designs an alternative 'new decision-taking model', namely the option of 'a decision without preparatory inquiries' based on the 'evidence available at the time the decision is taken'. This means that, as an alternative to the procedure set out in Article 19(6), the court may directly uphold or dismiss the application, in particular where it considers that the solution at which evidence in the existing case file points would be no different even if a further interview were conducted with the applicant.

20. However, the referring court harbours doubts as to the compatibility with EU law of the national legislation which allows it to dismiss the action or find it inadmissible without a prior hearing, which is why it has made a reference for a preliminary ruling.

III. Consideration of the question referred

21. The wording of the question referred for a preliminary ruling, registered in the Registry of the Court of Justice on 22 June 2016, is as follows:

'Must Directive 2013/32/EU (in particular Articles 12, 14, 31 and 46) be interpreted as permitting a procedure, such as the Italian procedure (under Article 19(9) of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011), whereby a judicial authority seised by an asylum-seeker - whose application has been rejected by the administrative authority responsible for considering applications for asylum after it has conducted a full examination, including an interview - may, in cases where the application for judicial review is manifestly unfounded and the administrative authority's rejection of the application is thus incontrovertible, dismiss the application for judicial review without preparatory inquiries and without being required to afford the applicant a further opportunity to be heard?'

IV. Proceedings before the Court of Justice and arguments of the parties

22. Written observations have been submitted by Mr Sacko and the Italian Government, and also by the Belgian, Czech, French, Hungarian and Polish Governments and the Commission. It has not been considered necessary to hold an oral hearing.

23. For Mr Sacko, Article 19(9) of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011 does not allow an application for review to be rejected without preparatory inquiries and without a hearing, but only requires, for the benefit of the applicant, that his challenge is examined and decided quickly, but without undermining the guarantees inherent in an effective remedy. In his view, the right guaranteed by Article 46 of Directive 2013/32 does not authorise, in the interest of a speedy procedure, abandoning the substantive examination or dispensing with the hearing of the applicant in order to assess the circumstances of his case.

24. The Member States which have appeared in the proceedings agree that, just as it is essential to give the applicant a hearing at the administrative stage, it may be possible, in certain limited circumstances, to eliminate it during the judicial stage.

25. However, this agreement between the Member States is not unqualified.

26. Accordingly, the Italian Government argues that Article 19 of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011 establishes a procedure which, although it does not expressly envisage a hearing, constitutes an effective remedy and does not preclude the court from deciding, giving reasons for its decision, to hear the applicant, if it considers it necessary.

27. For the Italian Government, neither Directive 2013/32 nor the general principles of the European Union concerning a fair hearing impose the general and indiscriminate obligation to grant a hearing at the judicial stage. This, furthermore, must be concluded within a reasonable time.

28. According to the Belgian Government, irrespective of whether or not the application or the appeal are manifestly unfounded, Directive 2013/32 does not require a hearing at the judicial stage. Given the safeguards provided by the directive itself to ensure the transcription of the interview conducted at the administrative stage, the European legislature has considered (logically) that it was unnecessary to require a further hearing at the judicial stage in order to ensure a rigorous examination of the pleas of fact and law relied on by the applicant.

29. The Czech Government takes the view that the right to be heard is exercised at the administrative stage of the procedure, without it being inferred from Article 46 of Directive 2013/32 or from Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union ('the Charter') that the right to effective judicial protection requires, in each case, a second interview, especially when the application for judicial review is manifestly unfounded. To believe otherwise would only serve to prolong the procedure artificially.

30. The French Government considers that it is clear, both from the general scheme of Directive 2013/32 and from its preparatory works, that it is not mandatory to hear the person concerned at the judicial stage, and the Member States are left the option of introducing it in the exercise of their procedural autonomy. Furthermore, it adds, it would be inappropriate to invoke the principle of equivalence, given that there was no comparable national remedy. As for the principle of effectiveness, the safeguards in Article 46(3) of the directive are to be respected in every case; also in the situation of dismissal without a prior hearing, a procedure which would not be a prerequisite for respecting those safeguards.

31. The Hungarian Government cites the case-law of the Court of Justice relating to Directive 2008/115/EC. ( ) It argues that a hearing at the judicial stage is not mandatory and may be dispensed with in situations such as that of the main proceedings. In any event, the Italian legislation is compatible with that of the Union if it does not preclude the possibility of the court hearing the applicant, if it considers it necessary.

32. The Polish Government maintains that the option of conducting a hearing at the judicial stage is left open to the Member States, which are required to respect the principles of equivalence and effectiveness, and also the right to effective judicial protection. These are principles which this Government believes would not be infringed, in principle, by any dismissal of the application for review without a prior hearing, provided that the applicant has been heard at the administrative stage. All this, furthermore, is in the interests of the objective of speed pursued by Directive 2013/32.

33. For the Commission, no EU rule lays down the circumstances in which the right to be heard in proceedings must be guaranteed. It is for the national legal order to establish them, ensuring respect for the principles of effectiveness and equivalence. It argues that, in order to determine whether it is mandatory to hold a hearing at the judicial stage, it is necessary to take into account the characteristics of asylum proceedings as a whole and the circumstances likely to justify dispensing with that hearing.

34. The Commission maintains that, according to the European Court of Human Rights ('ECtHB'), the right to be heard is a general principle which may only be omitted in exceptional circumstances. The fact that the administrative authority may have refused the application as manifestly unfounded does not constitute one of those circumstances. Nor does the slow progress of the procedure or the additional financial costs of holding a hearing.

35. Ultimately, the hearing must constitute, according to the Commission, the rule, although not an absolute rule. Exceptionally, when only economic reasons are invoked as a basis for the application for asylum, the facts are simple and uncontested and the proper guarantees have been respected at the administrative stage, the exception to that rule meets the objective of speed stated in recital 20 of Directive 2013/32.

V. Analysis

36. The question raised by the Tribunale di Milano (District Court, Milan, Italy) is, on first reading, quite specific: it is sought to determine whether national legislation permitting applications for judicial review brought against the administrative refusal of claims for international protection to be dismissed or found inadmissible without preparatory inquiries is compatible with Directive 2013/32.

37. As the reasons for referring it are developed, however, the question becomes more complex. It appears that the doubts do not appear to refer in general to the 'right to a hearing' or, if preferred, to the 'right to be heard', but to a specific type or variant of that right, which consists in the 'right to be interviewed' or 'to be heard in person'. ( )

38. The referring court's question focuses on the possible need to hear the asylum seeker again, in person, in the judicial proceedings with which he seeks to challenge the administrative refusal to grant his application.

39. As I shall try to explain below, the 'right to be heard in person', as a species of the genus 'right to a hearing', has its place in the administrative stage of the asylum procedure. At the judicial stage, however, the applicant has the right to set out (and, to that extent, to be heard) before the court the arguments in support of his claim, a right which cannot be equated to the right to be heard in person.

40. The referring court and the governments which have submitted written observations have absolutely no doubt that a personal interview of the applicant is mandatory at the administrative stage.

41. Indeed, Article 14(1) of Directive 2013/32 is categorical when it states that, at that administrative stage, 'the applicant shall be given the opportunity of a personal interview on his or her application for international protection'. ( ) This was done with Mr Sacko, who was interviewed by the Commissione Territoriale.

42. However, Article 46 of Directive 2013/32, the subject matter of which is judicial review proceedings against the refusal of the application, does not provide for such an interview. That provision guarantees the 'right to an effective remedy before a court or tribunal' (paragraphs 1 and 2 which 'provides for a full and ex nunc examination of both facts and points of law' (paragraph 3). It also requires reasonable time limits which shall not render such exercises impossible or excessively difficult (paragraph 4) and that the remedy shall have, in principle, a suspensory effect (paragraph 5). But at no point does it say that those judicial proceedings must include a personal interview of the applicant.

43. Furthermore, Article 46(4) of Directive 2013/32 not only leaves it to the Members States to set 'reasonable time limits' for challenging the decisions to which paragraph 1 refers, but also authorises them to introduce the 'other necessary rules for the applicant' to be able to exercise the right to an effective remedy against those decisions.

44. In this context, the configuration of the judicial review proceedings against administrative refusals of applications for asylum comes within the framework of the procedural autonomy of the Member States. ( ) Their freedom to introduce the procedural rules they consider appropriate is not, however, absolute, because it is subject to a categorical obligation as to the result to be achieved: the national proceedings must guarantee, in each case, a remedy capable of effectively ensuring the right to judicial protection enshrined in Article 47 of the Charter.

45. Directive 2013/32, as is stated in recital 60 thereof, 'respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised by the Charter', and seeks to ensure, in particular, 'full respect for human dignity and to promote the application', inter alia, of Article 47 of the Charter, and has to be 'implemented accordingly'. ( )

46. The Court of Justice has affirmed that 'the right to be heard forms an integral part of the rights of the defence' ( ) and that this 'guarantees every person the opportunity to make known his views effectively during an administrative procedure and before the adoption of any decision liable to affect his interests adversely'. ( )

47. This doctrine has been proclaimed in the sphere of relations between individuals and the public authorities and, very especially, in administrative proceedings for granting international protection. ( ) Its transposition to the sphere of judicial procedure is one of the components of the right to effective judicial protection, an example of which is the right to an effective remedy guaranteed by Article 46 of Directive 2013/32.

48. In order for the right to appeal before the courts to be considered effective, 'the national court must be able to review the merits of the reasons which led the competent administrative authority to hold the application for international protection to be unfounded or made in bad faith, there being no irrebuttable presumption as to the legality of those reasons'. ( )

49. On that basis, a person's right to be heard at the administrative stage of the proceedings includes the ability to address the public authority in defence of his own rights and interests, before that public authority adopts a decision on the application for international protection. ( ) Once the decision has been taken, the right to an effective judicial remedy comes into play, if the determining authority reject the applicant's claim.

50. This is precisely the situation with which we are concerned: it is a question of charting the course to be followed by the procedure which gives access to the court which will establish, finally, whether the administrative refusal of international protection was in accordance with the law.

51. In that context, the effectiveness of the appeal provided for in Article 46 of Directive 2013/32 will be ensured when the applicant (normally, through his legal adviser or other counsellors) is able to set out before the judicial authority the reasons why the contested decision is unlawful and if the judge is able to assess whether that decision is well founded.

52. The first condition is, then, that the applicant for international protection (where appropriate, the person giving him legal assistance or advice or representing him in the proceedings) shall be able to exercise his defence with all the procedural safeguards inherent in a fair hearing. If this is so, the applicant will have been heard by the court, since he has been allowed to express - not necessarily orally, since the procedural rules may, validly, provide for only written procedures - the arguments which he considers necessary in defence of his claim.

53. The right to be heard by the judicial authority does not, however, include a presumed 'right to be interviewed' during the judicial proceedings. It includes, I reiterate, the right to explain before the court the reasons on which it bases its claim against the administrative decision, which is challenged as adversely affecting the rights and interests of the person concerned, but not the right to be interviewed in person by the court reviewing the administrative action.

54. However, this statement must immediately be qualified. It must not be assumed to preclude the adoption of certain procedural investigative measures, ( ) both at the request of a party and of its own motion, which the court may decide on when it considers it necessary for the better administration of justice. These include interviewing the applicant during the judicial proceedings.

55. That interview may, of course, be appropriate for fulfilling the mandate of Article 46 of Directive 2013/32, that is, so that, in accordance with paragraph 3 of that provision, 'a full and ex nunc examination of both facts and points of law' is carried out.

56. If Article 46 of Directive 2013/32, unlike Article 14 of that directive in relation to the administrative stage, does not expressly refer to the personal interview in the judicial proceedings, the national law which transposes the directive is not required to introduce that procedure into its procedural rules.

57. Article 46 is to be interpreted, furthermore, in the context of the mechanism for examining applications for international protection governed by Directive 2013/32, that is, taking into account the close link between the application for judicial review and the administrative stage which precedes it and in which it has been mandatory to give a hearing to a person who lodges an asylum application.

58. If the administrative stage has been conducted correctly, there will be a reliable record of the interview of the applicant, ( ) who will have been able to add his own comments, and provide clarification or make corrections to the report. ( ) As this report, or the transcript of the interview, must be incorporated into the file which is made available to the court, its contents must constitute an important factor in the assessment made by the person who has to conduct the 'full and ex nunc examination of both facts and points of law' to which Article 46(3) of Directive 2013/32 refers. The directive, which is respectful of the procedural autonomy of the Member States, has not sought to limit, beyond as has been stated, the proceedings of the courts, to whose prudent assessment it entrusts the delicate task of ultimately deciding whether the negative administrative decision is in accordance with the law.

59. In short, whether the applicant is interviewed by the judicial authority must depend on whether this is necessary in the context of the 'full examination' which the court is required to conduct, in the interests of effective judicial protection of the rights and interests of the asylum seeker. Directive 2013/32 has not wished to make it mandatory, but nor has it precluded the possibility that a decision to interview him may be taken, if the court which has to settle the matter considers it essential for giving judgment.

60. The above is applicable to all judicial proceedings for reviewing compliance with the law of administrative decisions refusing applications for international protection. However, there are some borderline cases in which the inadmissibility of an application for review is so obvious and manifest that the 'full examination' of Article 46(3) of Directive 2013/32 is completed merely by considering either the pleadings submitted to the court (that is, during the proceedings), or the objective information contained in the administrative file.

61. In these cases of manifest inadmissibility of the application for review, or evident insufficient substantiation, of the applicant's claim, the requirement for a (second) personal interview, in addition to that at the pre-judicial stage, is both inappropriate and disproportionate.

62. Indeed, there may be cases in which the judicial action is wholly unfeasible ( ) and in which it would make no sense nor be of any use to conduct an interview. I cannot see why applications for judicial review concerning this issue would be excluded from a possible decision of inadmissibility, where they are manifestly unfounded or lack the minimum procedural conditions. And in such circumstances, ( ) I repeat, it is legitimate for the court's decision to be adopted without the need for further investigative measures during the proceedings.

63. However, apart from those situations, where the possible unfeasibility of an action hinges on more questionable assessments of the substance of the claim, the inadmissibility (or dismissal) of the claim must inevitably be preceded by the 'examination' of its substance which, to be 'full', within the meaning of Article 46(3) of Directive 2013/32 must have sufficient evidence. Inter alia, if it were necessary, the personal interview of the applicant might be appropriate for establishing the decision-making criterion of the judicial authority.

64. Classification of an action as inadmissible or unfounded must always be the result of an assessment made on the basis of an analysis of the factual and legal circumstances of the contesting claim. That result will necessarily depend on the nature of the cause of the unfeasibility of the action. And in the assessment of that cause or causes, the appropriate evidence may sometimes be found directly in the application itself and in the previous administrative case file, whereas, at other times, it will have to be obtained by means of preliminary (evidential) inquiries.

65. As Directive 2013/32 requires an interview to be held at the administrative stage of processing of the application for international protection, I consider that it need only be repeated in judicial proceedings if the (first) interview turns out to be insufficiently informative for the court which is hearing the judicial action and has doubts as to the outcome of the action.

66. In my view, in the circumstances to which I have just referred, the interview of the applicant, which the court decides to conduct at its own discretion, is a formality which cannot be dispensed with for the reason of speed to which recital 20 of Directive 2013/32 refers.

67. Nor do justifications of an economic nature (such as those indicated by the referring court) ( ) prevent, in those same situations, the holding of the interview during the proceedings. Although recital 20 of Directive 2013/32 allows Member States to accelerate the examination procedure, it does not authorise the elimination of procedures which are essential in order to guarantee the applicant's right to effective judicial protection. In fact, that same recital refers to the possibility of fixing 'shorter ... time limits for certain procedural steps', respecting in each case the need to carry out a full examination of the application and safeguarding the fundamental principles and guarantees established in the directive.

68. Article 46 of Directive 2013/32 is therefore to be interpreted as meaning that, although it does not require an interview to be conducted, it does not permit the national legislature to prevent the judicial body from deciding to conduct one, when it considers it necessary in order to carry out a full examination of the factual and legal circumstances of the asylum application, after considering the information gathered during the interview held at the administrative stage to be insufficient. The procedural rules of the Member States should give the court the opportunity to hear the applicant in person, in that case, if it considers it necessary.

69. Turning to the matter which is the subject of the reference for a preliminary ruling, the national court has no doubt - quite the contrary - concerning the manifestly unfounded nature of the action brought by Mr Sacko, whose application is clearly not based on reasons justifying the grant of international protection. If that is so, the way is open to dismiss it or find it inadmissible without preparatory inquiries, without interviewing the applicant (now the appellant) again. Logically, that decision will be valid in so far as it is the result of a full examination of all the circumstances of the case which must include the 'appropriate and effective expression of the point of view' of Mr Sacko, set out in the personal interview held at the administrative stage of the procedure.

70. A reading of the national legislation (Article 19(9) of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011), as set out by the referring court, shows that it does not preclude an interview at the judicial stage of the procedure, from the moment that rule authorises the court to adopt the investigative measures it considers necessary. There is no reason, therefore, to consider that it does not comply with the appeals system laid down by Directive 2013/32.

71. However, it is not for the Court Justice to choose one or other interpretation of the relevant Italian legislation. Specifically, it cannot intervene in the controversy, which may be inferred from the order for the reference, which has arisen in relation to the approach taken in that regard by the Suprema Corte di Cassazioni (Supreme Court) and by the referring court, especially since, as the Italian Government suggests, ( ) it cannot be ruled out that there is an alternative interpretation which is compatible with the one which I propose for Directive 2013/32. In any event, it is for the national court to resolve that matter.

VI. Conclusion

72. In the light of the foregoing, I suggest that the Court of Justice reply to the Tribunale di Milano (District Court, Milan, Italy) as follows:

'Directive 2013/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection, in particular Articles 12, 14, 31 and 46 thereof are to be interpreted as allowing the competent judicial authority to decide without preparatory enquiries, without the need for a personal interview of the applicant, appeals brought against the rejection of applications for international protection where:

a) the appeal is manifestly unfounded and therefore has no possibility of succeeding; and

b) that decision is adopted after carrying out a full examination of the factual and legal circumstances of the applicant's situation, including the information contained in the personal interview conducted at the administrative stage which, in the view of the court, is sufficient for deciding the appeal.'

Original language: Spanish

Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 June 2013 on common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection (OJ 2013 L 180, p. 60) ('Directive 2013/32').

Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on standards for the qualification of third-country nationals or stateless persons as beneficiaries of international protection, for a uniform status for refugees or for persons eligible for subsidiary protection, and for the content of the protection granted (OJ 2011 L 337, p. 9) ('Directive 2011/95').

Legislative Decree 'Disposizioni complementari al codice di procedura civile in materia di reduzioni e semplificazione dei procedimenti civile di cognizione, ai sensi dell'articolo 54 della legge 18 giugno 2009, n. 69' (Additional provisions to the Code of Civil Procedure relating to the reduction and simplification of civil declaratory proceedings, within the meaning of Article 54 of Law No 69 of 18 June 2009), GURI No 220 of 21 September 2011.

Legislative Decree 'Attuazione della direttiva 2013/33/UE recante norme relative all'accoglienza dei richiedenti protezione internazionale, nonche della direttiva 2013/32/UE, recante procedure comuni ai fini del riconoscimento e della revoca dello status di protezione internazionale' (Transposition of Directive 2013/33EU laying down standards for the reception of applicants for international protection, and of Directive 2013/32/EU on common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection), GURI No 214 of 15 September 2015.

Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals (OJ 2008 L 348, p. 98).

The semantic (and translation) pitfalls of these expressions were referred to by Advocate General Mengozzi in the Opinion in M. (C560/14, EU:C:2016:320, footnote 6): 'In the Italian version of the Court's case-law at times the term "diritto al contraddittorio" is used (see, for example, the judgment of 22 November 2012 in M.M. (C277/11, EU:C:2012:744, paragraph 82, 85 or 87)), at other times the term "diritto di essere sentiti" is used (see, for example, the judgment of 10 September 2013 in G. and R. (C383/13 PPU, EU:C:2013:533, paragraphs 27, 28 or 32) or 17 March 2016 in Bensada Benallal (C161/15, EU:C:2016:175, paragraphs 21 or 35)), and at yet other times the term "diritto di essere ascoltato" is used (see, for example, the judgment of 11 December 2014 in Boudjlida (C249/13, EU:C:2014:2431, paragraph 1, 28 or 30); the latter term corresponds to that used in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union ('the Charter') and corresponds literally to the abovementioned terms in the French, English, German and Spanish versions). The right at issue, which is linked to the Latin brocards "audi alteram partem" or "audiatur et altera pars", is a procedural right expressing the more general right of defence ...'

Article 34(1) of Directive 2013/32 also expressly imposes the obligation to 'conduct a personal interview on the admissibility of the application', where the determining authority considers that it may be inadmissible for one of the reasons laid down in Article 33 of the directive.

As the Court of Justice points out in the judgment of 17 March 2016, BensadaBenallal (C161/15, EU:C:2016:175, paragraph 24), 'in the absence of EU rules on the matter, it is for the national legal order of each Member State to establish them in accordance with the principle of procedural autonomy on condition, however, that those rules are not less favourable than those governing similar domestic situations (principle of equivalence) and that they do not make it excessively difficult or impossible in practice to exercise the rights conferred by EU law (principle of effectiveness) (judgment in Eturas and Others, C74/14, EU:C: 2016:42, paragraph 32 and the case-law cited').

With regard to Article 39 of Council Directive 2005/85/EC of 1 December 2005 on minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing refugee status (OJ 2005 L 326, p. 13), which is the immediate legislative precursor to Article 46 of Directive 2013/32, the Court of Justice has stated in its judgment of 17 December 2015, Tall (C239/14, EU:C:2015:824, paragraph 51), that 'the characteristics of the remedy provided for in Article 39 of that directive must be determined in a manner that is consistent with Article 47 of the Charter, which constitutes a reaffirmation of the principle of effective judicial protection and provides that everyone whose rights and freedoms guaranteed by EU law are violated has the right to an effective remedy before a tribunal in compliance with the conditions laid down in that article'. See, to that effect, among many, the judgment of 18 December 2014, Abdida (C562/13, EU:C:2014:2453, paragraph 45).

Judgment of 9 February 2017, M (C560/14, EU:C:2017/101, paragraph 25), mentioning the judgments of 5 November 2014, Mukarubega (C166/13, EU:C:2014:2336, paragraphs 49 and 50), and of 11 December 2014, Boudjlida (C249/13, EU:C:2014:2431, paragraphs 39 and 40).

Judgment in Mukarubega (C166/13, EU:C:2014:2336, paragraph 46). As Advocate General Bot emphasised in his Opinion in M (C277/11, EU:C:2012:253, point 81), this enables 'the authority concerned effectively to take into account all the relevant information'.

This was reiterated by Advocate General Mengozzi in the Opinion in M (C560/14, EU:C:2016:320, point 48), with regard to subsidiary protection: 'in the light of the particular nature and objectives of the procedure for examining whether the conditions for awarding subsidiary protection status have been fulfilled, for access to the rights conferred by that status to be effective the applicant must be placed in a very effective position to exercise the right to be heard in that procedure. It is only when the applicant has an actual opportunity to set out effectively what has happened to him and the background against which it has taken place, by explaining to the competent authority, in a complete and appropriate manner, all the facts and evidence in support of his application, that he can have effective access to the rights conferred by that status as laid down in Directive 2004/83'. Emphasis not added.

Judgment of 28 July 2011, Samba Diouf (C69/10, EU:C:2011:524, paragraph 61).

The magnitude of the interests at stake at the administrative stage of the proceedings explains why the European legislature has opted for a model which provides for a personal interview. In the words of Advocate General Mengozzi in his Opinion in M (C560/14, EU:C:2016:320, point 58), 'the personal hearing constitutes the fullest possible expression of the right to be heard. For the applicant, it is the sole occasion to explain what has happened to him and to speak with the person who is best qualified to take account of his personal situation'.

I recall that Article 19(8) of the updated version of Legislative Decree No 150 of 2011, transcribed in point 13 of this Opinion, provides that the national court 'may, including of its own motion, take the investigative steps necessary to settle the case'.

According to Article 17(1) of Directive 2013/32, 'Member States shall ensure that either a thorough and factual report containing all substantive elements or a transcript is made of every personal interview'. Paragraph 2 of that article acknowledges the possibility that Member States may provide for 'audio or audiovisual recording of the personal interview', in which case they 'shall ensure that the recording or transcript thereof is available in connection with the applicant's file'.

Article 17(3) of Directive 2013/32 offers the applicant 'the opportunity to make comments and/or provide clarification orally and/or in writing with regard to any mistranslations or misconceptions appearing in the report or in the transcript, at the end of the personal interview or within a specified time limit before the determining authority takes a decision'. To that end, - the paragraph continues - Member States 'shall ensure that the applicant is fully informed of the content of the report or of the substantive elements of the transcript, with the assistance of an interpreter if necessary. Member States shall then request the applicant to confirm that the content of the report or the transcript correctly reflects the interview'.

For example, appeals which are indisputably out of time, or which lack the minimum mandatory procedural formalities, which should be declared inadmissible a limine. This kind of action may also be rejected for substantive reasons, with no need to complete the usual procedural formalities, where the appellant's claim is based, for example, on arguments which are wholly unconnected with the conditions for being granted international protection, amongst other situations.

The Court of Justice has adopted the doctrine of the ECHR, that a hearing may be dispensed with 'when it raises no questions of fact or law which cannot be adequately resolved on the basis of the case-file and the parties' written observations'. See, inter alia, the judgment of 4 June 2015, Andechser Molkerei Scheitz v Commission (C682/13 P, not published, EU:C:2015:356, paragraph 46), with reference to the judgment of the ECHR of 12 November 2002, Doryv. Sweden, ECLI:CE:ECHR:2002:002JUD112839495,  37.

Paragraph 2, page 4 of the original Italian of the order for reference.

- Paragraphs 24 and 25 of the written observations of the Italian Government.

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Honduras: justice still in jeopardy in Berta Caceres murder case

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 24 May 2017 Reference AMR 37/6335/2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Honduras: justice still in jeopardy in Berta Caceres murder case, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c31dc4.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

The preliminary hearing for four of the eight people accused of involvement in the killing of the Lenca human rights defender Berta Caceres was scheduled for 24 May at the Criminal Court in Tegucigalpa. The hearing marks the formal start of the prosecution of these four people.

The hearing was originally scheduled for 19 April this year but was postponed at the request of the lawyers of the accused and the legal representatives of the defender's family, on the grounds that the public prosecutor had not made all the evidence for the prosecution available. The hearing was rescheduled for 28 April but was again postponed due to the unavailability of the required information.

The hearing has now been postponed again, this time until 7 June, because the public prosecutor did not make the evidence - which the representatives of the families need to exercise their right to truth, justice and reparation and which the lawyers of the accused need to exercise their right of defence - available with enough advance notice in accordance with the standards of due process. According to the International Advisory Group of Experts (GAIPE), the public prosecutor should have made all the evidence available with sufficient notice given that it is impossible to review such a large amount of information and prepare adequately for the hearing if it is made available just a few days before the hearing.

In addition to concerns about due process and the right to justice, truth and reparation for the family of the human rights defender Berta Caceres, there is uncertainty about whether the Honduran Public Prosecutor has made any progress in identifying the intellectual authors of the killing; about which Amnesty International has been repeatedly inquiring for months.

On 18 May 2017, the Inter-American Human Rights Commission convened a working meeting in Tegucigalpa to review compliance with the precautionary measures granted to the family of Berta Caceres and the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (Consejo Civico de Organizaciones Populares e Indigenas de Honduras - COPINH). However, representatives of the public prosecutor, which is in charge of the investigation into the assassination of the human rights defender and attacks against several COPINH members which provided the grounds for the precautionary measures, did not attend this meeting.

Impunity for attacks against human rights defenders continues to be one of the major challenges facing Honduras. The Honduran authorities must conduct a serious, impartial and thorough investigation to identify all those materially and intellectually responsible for the killing of Berta Caceres, and if there is enough admissible evidence against them, bring them before the courts for a fair trial that observes due process.

The authorities responsible for the investigation must also adhere to international human rights standards and respect, protect and guarantee the right to due process of the accused, as well as the right of the human rights defender's family to justice, truth and reparation. Amnesty International calls on the authorities to ensure that the evidence is made available so that the parties involved in the case can exercise their rights and so that a thorough and impartial investigation into the killing can take place.

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Cote d'Ivoire: Authorities must urgently conduct an independent investigation into unlawful killings and injuries during mutiny

Publisher Amnesty International Publication Date 24 May 2017 Cite as Amnesty International, Cote d'Ivoire: Authorities must urgently conduct an independent investigation into unlawful killings and injuries during mutiny, 24 May 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/592c33744.html [accessed 10 November 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

Authorities in Cote d'Ivoire must urgently open an independent investigation into the deaths of eight people and more than ten injured this month and bring those responsible to justice in fair trials, Amnesty International said today. The events occurred over two periods of violence about disputed bonus payments.

The international community should also continue to monitor the human rights situation closely as the United Nations Operations in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) and the mandate of the UN Independent Expert on capacity building and technical cooperation in the country are due to end on 30 June.

A four day mutiny beginning on 12 May left four people dead, including a demobilised soldier, and at least nine injured. Violence ended as the government agreed to meet the mutineers' payment demands. It was the third mutiny in Cote d'Ivoire in 2017.

A week later, on 23 May, the Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that four protestors died following a confrontation in Bouake between police and demobilised soldiers, who had created roadblocks protesting for an agreement equivalent to the one obtained by mutineers the previous week. The Ministry of Internal Affairs claims the protestors were killed when one of them used a grenade, but a spokesperson for the demobilised soldiers denies that they were armed and claims that the police opened fire on them.

Four killed and more than 10 injured following 12 May mutiny

The 12 May mutiny began in the city of Bouake before quickly spreading to other cities including Korogho and Abidjan, where shots were also fired. It lasted for four days and was carried out by soldiers who had been integrated into the army in 2011 and were demanding the payment of bonuses, mirroring similar uprisings earlier in the year. On 17 May, Bruno Kone, spokesperson for the government announced that mutinying soldiers killed four people and injured nine others.

According to information collected by Amnesty International, the situation deteriorated on Saturday 13 May in Bouake when a group of mutineers went to the office of the "Cellule 39", an association of demobilised soldiers, and shot at them with live ammunition after they published a statement condemning the mutiny. Several were wounded including demobilised soldier Issoufou Diawara, who later died. One of his friends told Amnesty International that Issoufou was conversing with the members of his organisation when he was shot and injured.

One of the demobilised soldiers told Amnesty International:

"On Saturday 13 May, there were 40 of us in the courtyard of the "Cellule 39" association building, which leads out to a road, when around 10 mutineers arrived in vehicles. They parked up and started firing at us in the courtyard. We ran. One of us, Issoufou Diawara, was shot in the back. The bullet came straight through his stomach. He died of his injuries the next day."

According to an eyewitness, the same day, mutineers also patrolled the northern city of Korhogo in pickup vehicles equipped with heavy artillery and shot in the air with rifles. 19 year-old Traore Siaka was shot in the lower abdomen and died from his injuries. Several others received gunshot wounds. The mutineers hit people who had gathered to protest against the mutinies over the weekend with batons and rifle butts.

Similar protests were held in Bouake on Sunday 14 May, at a place known as "quartier commerce", nearby the city's cathedral. The mutineers fired tear gas and live ammunition, injuring two people including Souleymane Mamadou, President of the organisation "Rassemblement des Enseignants Republicains".

A protester told Amnesty International:

"The mutineers arrived in civilian vehicles and attacked protestors with batons, tear gas and live ammunition. At least 11 people were wounded. I myself was shot in the arm we don't understand what the mutineers want."

During the mutiny one witness explained to Amnesty International how movement in Bouake was severely restricted: "Bouake has become a prison, nobody is allowed to go out".

Accountability needed

On Monday 15 May, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces issued a statement acknowledging the abuses and damages committed by the mutineers including significant damage to property, injuries and deaths.

Amnesty International considers that while the statement warned the mutineers of potential disciplinary sanctions, it failed to clarify that suspected perpetrators would be investigated and brought to justice for human rights violations in an ordinary criminal court. The authorities have to date not conducted an independent investigation into two deaths that occurred during the prior mutinies in January. The frequency of the mutinies - this is the third mutiny in 2017, and the fourth since 2014 - raises serious concerns about the ability of the government to exercise civilian control over parts of the military and to hold members of the armed forces accountable for human rights violations.

Copyright notice:  Copyright Amnesty International
From 2-7 to sectional champs, Monrovia has one question: 'Why not us?'
Authorities in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong have held a prominent labor rights campaigner and veteran of the 1989 pro-democracy movement for more than a year following his trial on subversion charges, with no verdict or sentence, his lawyer said.

Liu Shaoming, 58, was criminally detained on May 30, 2015 on suspicion of "picking quarrels and stirring up trouble," a charge frequently used by police to target dissidents and rights activists.

He was tried in April 2016 by a court in the provincial capital Guangzhou on the more serious charge of "incitement to subvert state power," but there has been no movement on his case since, defense attorney Wu Kuiming told RFA.

Liu is currently being held in the police-run Guangzhou No. 1 Detention Center, in a special section set aside for political prisoners, Wu said.

Many Guangzhou-based rights activists, lawyers and NGO staff have been held there, including lawyer Tang Jingling, known as "China's Gandhi," but Liu is the only one to remain there still, he said.

"His case came to trial around the same time as those of Tian Li and Su Changlan, and I had thought that the sentencing would be at the same time too," Wu said. "But it never came."

"The rules of court procedure state that sentencing should happen within two months, after which time the court may apply for one extension to the next-highest court, and to the Supreme Court in particularly complex cases," he said.

"But in this case, the Supreme Court has already granted four extensions," he said. "If this carries on, the whole thing could drag on indefinitely ... I cannot accept this."

Pressure on civil society

Liu had been active in a number of industrial disputes in recent years, including speaking out on behalf of cleaners at Guangzhou's University City, striking workers at the Xinsheng Shoe Factory, and many others, he said.

The jailing of rights activists is part of a broader campaign by the ruling Chinese Communist Party to exert political pressure on civil society groups, which include those campaigning for the rights of women, migrant workers, consumers, students in education, sex workers, and those with disabilities and diseases.

Fellow rights activist Wu Lijuan said Liu's case appears to be being held up at a pretty high level in the Chinese leadership, rather than locally.

She said the delay could be linked to Liu's role in the 1989 student-led pro-democracy movement.

"Liu Shaoming was also jailed around the time of June 4, 1989," Wu Lijuan said. "But he has always refused to plead guilty or make a confession."

"He has remained steadfast in his attitude, which is pro-freedom and pro-democracy," she said. "He has never compromised and never given in."

Wu said the authorities likely lack strong evidence against it.

"They have no evidence, so they are dragging this out instead," she said.

EU arms embargo

In 2014, the authorities launched a nationwide crackdown on activists and family members of victims of the 1989 military crackdown on the Tiananmen Square student-led pro-democracy movement in the run-up to the 25th anniversary on June 4.

The government bans public memorials marking the event, and has continued to ignore growing calls in China and from overseas for a reappraisal of the 1989 student protests, which it once styled a "counterrevolutionary rebellion."

The number of people killed when People's Liberation Army tanks and troops entered Beijing on the night of June 3-4, 1989, has never been confirmed.

In March, a court in the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan handed down a four-year jail term to veteran rights activist Chen Yunfei, who was detained after visiting the grave of a 1989 Tiananmen massacre victim in 2015, finding him guilty of a public order offense.

The Wuhou District People's Court in Sichuan's capital Chengdu found Chen guilty of "picking quarrels and stirring up trouble," a charge that is increasingly used to target peaceful dissent and criticism of the ruling Chinese Communist Party.

Meanwhile, rights groups called on the European Union to make human rights a priority during a forthcoming bilateral human rights talks, which will take place three days ahead of the anniversary.

"The EU retains an arms embargo against China because of these mass killings and EU leaders should stress the need for a thorough, transparent investigation into the massacre, accountability for the crimes, and adequate compensation for victims and their families," more than a dozen rights groups said in a joint letter to the EU at the weekend.

Lotte Leicht, EU director at Human Rights Watch, warned the EU not to engage in "window dressing" on human rights.

Its not clear whether EU leaders have the foresight and courage to push for real change with Chinas leaders," Leicht was quoted as saying in the letter, which was signed by HRW and Amnesty International, among other groups.

"A failure to do so would suggest that EU human rights pledges are window dressing aimed to make Europeans feel good about themselves  rather than a principled and consistent policy," she said.

Reported by Yang Fan for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Rights activists march in Hong Kong ahead of the 28th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, May 28, 2017.

Rights activists in Hong Kong said they will press ahead with mass public events commemorating the military crackdown on the 1989 pro-democracy movement in Beijing in spite of growing political influence from the ruling Chinese Communist Party in the city.

"For as long as the authorities refuse to overturn the official verdict on June 4, 1989, our work will remain unfinished," Richard Choi, deputy chairman of the Alliance in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China, which organizes an annual march and candlelight vigil on the anniversary of the massacre, told reporters.

He called on Hong Kong citizens to take to the streets to make clear their dissatisfaction over Beijing's authoritarian style of government, dismissing concerns that the events have lost the support of the younger generation.

"We are still seeing a lot of young people turning out for June 4 events, whether as part of another organization or not," he said. "And various student groups have held their own memorial activities in various forms over the past two or three years."

"I think the younger generation do still care about June 4," he said.

Hong Kong was promised the continuation of its traditional freedoms of speech and association by a mini-constitution drafted by U.K. and Chinese officials ahead of the 1997 handover to Chinese rule.

But many say those freedoms are rapidly being eroded, and recent charges against peaceful demonstrators have sparked fears of a politicized "purge" aimed at discouraging further popular protests.

Vigil to greet Xi Jinping

Alliance leader Lee Cheuk-yan said the candlelight vigil is also a chance to show public anger at Beijing ahead of the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover to Chinese rule.

"Nobody is happy with this regime, so they should come to the candlelight vigil as a way of showing our displeasure to President Xi Jinping," he said.

Xi is likely to visit Hong Kong for lavish official ceremonies marking the July 1 handover, and activists have accused the Hong Kong authorities of rounding up prominent figures in the city's own 2014 democracy movement and charging them with public order offenses ahead of his visit.

Nine activists, academics and lawyers, including the three founders of the Occupy Central movement face criminal charges in a trial scheduled for June 15.

"We won't estimate how many will come to the vigil in advance, but we don't believe that people have cooled on this issue: they still care a lot," he said.

Hundreds of rights activists marched in Hong Kong on Sunday ahead of the 28th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre that put an end to weeks of peaceful protest around the country and saw the downfall of then premier Zhao Ziyang and a nationwide political crackdown on participants.

Carrying banners calling on Beijing to overturn the official verdict of "counterrevolutionary rebellion" on the movement, the activists marched to the Communist Party's liaison office in the city, scuffling briefly with police before posting a letter at the gates.

But local media said turnout was at its lowest since 2008, with few students joining the march, possibly because of a lack of interest in mainland China.

Thousands to rally

While organizers said around 1,000 people joined the march, police said the crowd numbered around 450.

Organizer Richard Choi said campaigners are now gearing up for a crowd of thousands at the city's annual candlelight vigil for the victims of the bloodshed.

"The Alliance's attitude is basically that we will continue to organize this event regardless of how many people show up," Choi told reporters following suggestions that support for the event is waning as Beijing extends its political influence in the former British colony.

"But I think the people of Hong Kong know that the most important thing is that we send out a strong and public message to China's leadership that we want them to overturn the verdict on June 4, 1989, especially as President Xi Jinping gets ready to visit Hong Kong [for the 20th anniversary of the city's handover to China on July 1]."

"We want them to know that the people of Hong Kong will not forget June 4, and also that we will continue to fight for our own freedom," he said.

The Occupy Central, or Umbrella, Movement for fully democratic elections rejected Beijing's insistence that any move to universal suffrage in the city must include the vetting of candidates by its supporters, and called for "real universal suffrage."

At its height, hundreds of thousands of people poured onto the city's streets in protest, using umbrellas to protect themselves from sun, rain, and pepper spray, and giving the Umbrella Movement its nickname.

But the movement ended with no political victory, and amid accusations from Beijing that the protests were being orchestrated by "hostile foreign forces" behind the scenes.

Reported by Wong Si-lam for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by Ding Wenqi for the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
When Jeff Rock and Garrett Ross first toured the Saunders Station Post Office in Richmond a few years ago, the 12,000-square-foot building was showing its age.

The federal government was looking to sell the Depression-era building, while Rock and Ross were looking for a new headquarters for their growing technology company, Mobelux.

The post office, which opened in 1937 on West Broad Street, had a lot of wear and tear. As Ross recalls, the basement was full of trash and soot.

But they loved it anyway. It is a unique building, and it is built like a tank, Ross said.

Even in that state, we were excited about it, he said. We were just looking at each other and thinking, This could be so cool.

So Mobelux acquired the building at 1635 W. Broad St. in October 2015 for just over $800,000. The company has invested more than $2 million into buying and renovating the building.

After more than a year of extensive work, the former post office that stands as part of Richmonds history is now home to a company that represents local ambitions for a future built on technology.

Mobelux designs and develops computer platforms, websites, mobile apps and brands for clients including businesses and nonprofits.

The company, which has been named among the Richmond areas fastest-growing by revenue, has moved its 35 employees into the office. Rock and Ross are expecting to hire more employees and bring the staff to about 50 within a few years.

Rock and Ross hope the new office will become an anchor in what they see as a promising tech hub developing along West Broad Street near Virginia Commonwealth Universitys academic campus and the nearby, revitalized Scotts Addition area. For instance, Mobelux is just a few doors from the 804RVA shared workspace, which offers co-working spaces for startup businesses.

We picked this intentionally, Rock said of the location. We are trying to create a center for technology and community on this part of Broad Street, and we understand that to be a long-term commitment.

***

Rock and Ross co-founded Mobelux in 2008. They had previously worked together for several years at two technology companies in Hampton Roads, and they had often discussed starting their own business.

When the iPhone came out in 2007, Jeff was one of the first to get one, said Ross, recalling that Rock told him this is what we should do  develop apps for the iPhone.

They formed Mobelux on a shoestring budget while still working at their full-time jobs and, after a few months of work, developed an app that let users of the blogging site Tumblr update their blogs on their smartphones. It worked so well that Tumblr offered Mobelux a business partnership, and the startup company became Tumblrs mobile development provider for three years.

Since then, Mobelux has added clients and employees and has expanded its services to include not just mobile app development but websites, brand development and content creation such as photography and writing.

We have continued to evolve slowly, Ross said. We have never taken an investment from anybody. We have been very frugal in how weve developed and grown.

In 2014, Mobelux was among 23 companies from the Richmond region that made Inc. magazines list of the nations 5,000 fastest-growing companies. The company was No. 1,215 with a revenue growth rate of 360 percent in 2013.

Rock and Ross said they would probably still make the Inc. 5000 list now, but they have not applied again.

The companys local clients include Outdoor Access, a startup company that offers a Web-based tool for landowners to connect with people looking to rent property for such outdoor activities as camping and hunting. Mobelux is building a mobile application for the company.

They have got a great team, said Jamie Christensen, co-founder and president of Outdoor Access. We have known their work for some time, and known some of their staff members. They are one of the few outfits in Richmond that has done mobile work in the consumer space. Most are business to business.

Another local client is World Pediatric Project, a nonprofit founded in 2001 as International Hospital for Children that has provided more than $100 million worth of surgical, diagnostic and preventative health care to about 20,000 children by sending volunteer medical teams to developing countries. The organization also brings children with surgical needs to Richmond for care.

Mobelux is building a new website for the World Pediatric Project. As part of the project, Mobelux recently sent two of its staff members to the Caribbean island of St. Vincent to document the organizations work.

They are building both a technology solution as well as a messaging strategy, said Sue Farley, senior vice president for development for World Pediatric Project. When you combine that with good design and good graphics and stellar photography, we feel like we have gotten a very holistic partner.

***

The staff members at Mobelux include Web developers and designers, project managers, a photographer and a writer.

They work in an open-plan office washed in natural light, surrounded by remnants of the post offices 70-year residency there.

The design plan for the renovation of the building was done by Richmond-based BOB Architecture, which has created plans for many other historic restoration and renovation projects.

Among the elements that were preserved is the original vault and the vestibule in the front lobby. Most of the post office boxes also remain. Mobelux bought them from the federal government for $1.

We have had people come in here and say, That was my box,  Ross quipped.

We did everything we could to bring back the historical elements and dovetail in the modern architecture, Rock said.

Under the covenants for the building, Mobelux had to keep the postal inspectors walkway  a hidden catwalk along the ceiling that was part of the Postal Services security system, enabling an inspector to enter the building unseen and observe activities from the second floor without anyone knowing. The walkway, along with the facade of the building, the lobby and its vestibule, and its marble and terrazzo floor, are all considered historic elements.

The basement has been completely transformed. Along with a photography studio and darkroom, there is a locker room for employees who bike to work and an employee lounge with a billiards table. The space also includes a 24-seat movie theater with a 120-inch screen.

The seats came from the venerable Regal Westhampton Cinemas, which closed in March 2016.

We were able to rescue them before the Westhampton was demolished last year, Rock said.

Mobelux is using the theater for client presentations, employee meetings and community programs.

One day when I was leaving at about 6:30 p.m., one of our employees showed up with his wife for a date night, Ross said. They brought their dinner and watched a movie. I dont think there are too many places where you go back to work with your spouse for a date night.

The former loading dock has been turned into an enclosed lunchroom with tall windows and natural light. The postmasters office, adjacent to the lobby, is now a conference room named for the acclaimed Powhatan County artist Julien Binford, who lived from 1909 to 1997.

Binfords name, along with photographs of the artist, figure prominently in the restoration because of one of the more striking additions to the lobby area: a re-creation of a planned mural by Binford that never came to fruition.

Not long after Saunders Station opened, Binford was chosen to create a mural for the lobby as part of the New Deal-era Works Progress Administration. One wall of the lobby is now graced with a large re-creation of Binfords original sketch for the mural, which depicted the burning of Richmond near the end of the Civil War.

He took inspiration from historic tales of how the soldiers burned the city, and the chaos that ensued, said Johnny Hugel, production lead at Mobelux who consulted with local historians on the re-creation of the mural.

When Binfords sketch was made public in a Richmond Times-Dispatch article in 1942, the subject matter created some controversy. The inclusion of a nude female figure in the mural did not help.

It touched off a months-long series of complaints, Hugel said.

Binford eventually made some revisions, including putting some clothes on the female figure.

But by the time he submitted the final sketches, the money had been diverted to the war effort in World War II, so it was never completed, Hugel said.

Its there now.
Patricia Williford didnt know Virginia State Police Special Agent Michael T. Walter, but she says the troopers killing in her neighborhood is still painful.

Williford, the president of the Mosby Court tenants council, joined hundreds gathered at a vigil Monday in Walters memory at the public housing community in Richmonds East End.

She told those gathered that the law enforcement veterans killing was senseless.

This mans life, he was here trying to help us, and it really, really hurts, Williford said, her voice breaking with sadness as she spoke. It really hurts to know that someone comes into your community to try and help, and this happens to them.

The vigil was just feet from where Walter was shot about 7:25 p.m. Friday while on a joint patrol with a Richmond police officer. He died about 5 a.m. the next morning. It was among a string of violent occurrences in Mosby Court, where there have been seven homicides this year and several other shootings.

Knowing that certain neighborhoods in the city have been plagued by violent crime, Mike volunteered to partner with the Richmond City Police Department to do his part to make the Richmond community a safer place to be, state police Capt. Timothy Ring told vigil attendees.

Deputy Richmond Police Chief Steve Drew said residents and police have to work together to share information to combat crime, and he credited community tips for leading to the capture of Travis A. Ball, 27, a Mosby Court resident.

Ball, who was captured at a home in Northumberland County on Saturday morning, was arrested on a charge of malicious wounding, as well as firearm counts. State police have said other charges are pending.

Mikes name will be etched on a wall here in our city and our Capitol, Drew said. Dont let it ever be forgotten. Keep it etched on your hearts.

Charles Willis, the executive director of United Communities Against Crime, told the crowd that he grew up in Mosby Court.

The trooper wasnt here because this was where he was coming to get lunch. He wasnt here because he wanted to hang out. This was not where he lived. This was where he worked, Willis said of Walter, who lived in Powhatan County with his wife and three children. This is where he cared about us.

Law enforcement officers from agencies across the region, including departments in the counties of Henrico, Chesterfield and Hanover, came to the vigil. Black and blue balloons were released into the air and flew over the apartment buildings before becoming specks that remained clustered together as they flew away in the clouded sky.

Councilwoman Ellen F. Robertson, whose district includes Mosby Court, said after the vigil that she has been to prayer vigils all over the neighborhood in the years she has been on the council.

Officers that come and provide us with opportunity to have a safe community certainly shouldnt be losing their lives as well, Robertson said.

Meanwhile, Virginia State Police announced Monday that funeral arrangements have been finalized for Walter, who also served in the Marine Corps and was a coach at a youth wrestling club in Powhatan.

Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at Powhatan High School, followed by a funeral at the school at 1 p.m.

Immediately after the service, a reception will be held at the high school, located at 1800 Judes Ferry Road in Powhatan County, for all those in attendance.

Interment will be a private, graveside service.

For those wishing to support the Walter family financially, contributions are being accepted through the Virginia State Police Associations Emergency Relief Fund at www.vspa.org.

Donations can also be made by check. Checks, which should be made payable to VSPA-ERF with Mike Walter noted in the memo area, can be mailed to the Virginia State Police Associations Emergency Relief Fund at 6944 Forest Hill Ave., Richmond, VA 23225.
Dennis Patrick Pat Mullins, who served as the chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia from 2009 to 2015, was identified Monday as the victim of a single-vehicle crash a day earlier in Hanover County.

Mr. Mullins, who lived in Bumpass in Louisa County, was 79.

He took over chairmanship of the state GOP the same year that Bob McDonnell led a sweep of the states top three offices  governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general.

Mr. Mullins announced his retirement in late 2014 and was replaced by John Whitbeck early the following year.

I cant count the number of people that have reached out, Whitbeck said Monday. This is a sad, sad day for the Virginia Republican Party.

We were so shocked to hear, Whitbeck added. Hes been fairly quiet and spent a lot of time with his family over the last few years. But he was a constant source of advice for me and really beloved by the Republicans across the commonwealth.

Whitbeck said Mr. Mullins had a wonderful family who Im sure are grieving terribly this weekend, and were all just kind of feeling close to them because we all loved Pat as much as Im sure they do.

Rep. Barbara J. Comstock, R-10th, wrote in a Facebook post that Pat was a friend and activist who helped Republicans throughout the commonwealth to build and grow the Republican Party. Pat was a natural leader who brought people together and was always in good humor.

Mr. Mullins, who also served as GOP chairman in the counties of Louisa and Fairfax, rose to become the state partys leader in May 2009 after his predecessor, then-Del. Jeffrey M. Frederick of Prince William County, was ousted.

After the McDonnell-led sweep in the election later that year, Virginia Republicans did not win a statewide race for the rest of Mr. Mullins tenure  and have not to this day.

When Mr. Mullins announced that he would retire, he said in a statement that serving as chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia since 2009 has been one of the greatest honors and privileges Ive had in my life. Ill be forever thankful to the Republicans across Virginia who have placed their trust and support in me.

But the time comes when retirement is at hand. Im 77 years old, and its time to turn the reins over to someone else.

A son, Steve Mullins, posted on Facebook that his father will be greatly missed by his four children and their spouses, his six grandchildren, his brother, his cousins, and the many friends and family that he has impacted over his 79 years on the Earth.

Mr. Mullins wife, Jackie Mullins, died in 2010, according to the post.

We take peace that Pat is with his Lord and Risen Savior and reunited with his wife and our mother that he married in 1963, Steve Mullins wrote.

Sundays crash occurred about 1:30 p.m. near the intersection of Mountain and Waltons Tavern roads in the northwestern part of the county, the Hanover Sheriffs Office said.

The Sheriffs Offices preliminary investigation revealed that a 2015 Buick sedan was traveling west in the 16000 block of Mountain Road when it ran off the left shoulder of the roadway and struck a tree.

Mr. Mullins, who was the vehicles only occupant, was taken a hospital, where he died.

Investigators were still collecting information Monday and consulting with the state medical examiner to determine the circumstances of the crash, the Sheriffs Office said.
Regulating internet ensures free speech

Editor, Times-Dispatch:

Recently, comedian John Oliver directed his viewers to file their complaints with the new administrations stance toward net neutrality. This led to an array of comments on the FCCs website, some of which were obscene and unhelpful to the conversation. The question still remains on net neutrality.

Net neutrality should be protected by the government under the freedom of expression clause. The internet in the modern era is the new medium of speech. As the innovation of the printing press allowed for the proliferation of ideas that eventually led to the American Revolution, so is the internet used to spread ideas that have sparked movements like Black Lives Matter and its counterpart, All Lives Matter.

It also allows for fringe movements to thrive on the left and right. It is a virtual cradle for ideologies. The changes that the current administration has proposed would allow Internet Service Providers, or ISPs, to give preference as to what content is available to their customers. While most have interpreted the move to benefit the companies financially and constrict the market, it is more serious as it is an infringement on freedom of expression. The internet as media should be regulated to ensure that ISPs cannot restrict what we see. Other media, such as television, have the equal-time rule: regulation that requires them to be willing to sell commercial time to both candidates regardless of the broadcast political preferences. Without pure net neutrality, ISPs should be subjected to the same, if not greater, regulation to ensure free speech.

Benjamin Ellis.

Chester.

Illegal immigration

is wrong

Editor, Times-Dispatch:

Americans, not only in the states most heavily affected by illegal immigration but almost everywhere in the U.S., are rightly disturbed by the large numbers of illegal aliens entering our country.

The jobs they hold might otherwise be held by citizens or legal immigrants. The public services they use impose burdens on our taxpayers. Thats why the Trump administration has moved aggressively to secure our borders by hiring a record number of new border guards, by deporting twice as many criminal aliens than ever before, by cracking down on illegal hiring, and by barring welfare benefits to illegal aliens.

Read these words: In the budget I will present to you, we will try to do more to speed the deportation of illegal aliens who are arrested for crimes, to better identify illegal aliens in the workplace as recommended by the commission headed by former Rep. Barbara Jordan. We are a nation of immigrants, but we are also a nation of laws. It is wrong and ultimately self-defeating for a nation of immigrants to permit the kind of abuse of our immigration laws we have seen in recent years, and we must do more to stop it.

Sound familiar? President Trump, you say? No. William Jefferson Clinton at his 1995 State of the Union Address for which he received a standing ovation by most of the members in his party, some of whom are still in Congress today. I guess President Clinton and perhaps his wife evolved in their feelings about illegal immigration once the Democratic Party became the party of identity politics and globalism. My question to those who call Trump and his supporters racists for thinking our immigration laws should be followed: Would you also call President Clinton the same thing? Somehow, I think not.

Bryan S. Rogers.

Richmond.

Formal diversity training unnecessary

Editor, Times-Dispatch:

A Duke University Divinity School professor was disciplined for calling diversity training a waste of time.

Diversity training lessons, learned by liberal impressionable millennial college students in the classroom, have not been successful when applied in real time. Rules of diversity training lose power and are rejected before they are realized when they get preempted by unexpected natural selection instincts.

Confusion reigns about diversity trainings benefits beyond school and workplace. Diversity was not on the dais at Harvard when it held a separate graduation for black students.

As a Case Western Reserve University alumni ambassador, I interview students from many cultures. Few have expressed interest in pledging a fraternity. Most are curious about how many students from their home countries are on campus. These students seem to have rejected the raison detre of fraternities as having any importance in their college extracurricular social life.

Like people socialize, eat and study together in look alike groups in dining halls and student unions on university campuses. Occasionally, they hang out with folks who look, act and talk different from them, but not for long.

At Starbucks, I sat next to a table of University of Richmond coeds. A young man in a yarmulke zeroed in on a girl who appeared to be Jewish. He had her phone number before I finished my coffee. Two things were clear: Diversity was not on his radar and the other girls had no chance with him.

Engaging with people of other cultures adds interest to our lives. All that is required is that we have an open mind, a warm heart and a gut that honors our best human instincts. No formal diversity classes are required.

Elizabeth H. White.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
Q: Our 18-year-old daughter is a month away from high school graduation and she is failing nearly every class! About six months ago, she took up with a group of young adults who are less than desirable, to say the least. Some of them are dropouts. I suspect drugs and alcohol. The more we tried to prevent her from running with this lowly bunch, the more rebellious she became. Finally, in desperation, we took her car and her smartphone away and told her she cant have them back until she possesses a high school diploma. If she fails to graduate, she can go to summer school or get a G.E.D. from our community college. She says shes not even going to go to school at all until we give her the car and phone back. And she adamantly refuses counseling. Help!

A: A principle that every parent needs to commit to memory: If a child does the wrong thing, and parents respond with a right and proper thing, the child may keep right on doing the wrong thing anyway. I call it the Jeremiah Principle because in the eponymous book of Scripture, the Lord of Israel laments that no matter what he does, his chosen people keep right on misbehaving. Fact or myth (I simply report, you decide), the story illustrates that proper consequences do not necessarily produce proper behavior.

In my view, youve done the right thing by stripping two of her most coveted privileges from her. In so doing, youve done your best to illustrate to her that freedom and personal responsibility are the yin and yang of life (my attempt to honor diversity). You cant enjoy the former without the latter. And when I say, youve done your best, I mean theres really nothing else you can do. Im sure you already know that. You may simply be looking for a straw to grasp. Youve no doubt tried grounding her, lecturing her  the usual approaches  and things have only gotten worse. So, stop trying to find the magic straw and stay the course.

Do not give her the car and phone back until she has possession of a high school diploma with her name on it. Do not waver. Do not cave in the face of her blatant attempt to blackmail you. Stop trying to talk reason into her thick little head. Just love her and know that loving a child often involves heartache and even heartbreak. Know also, however, that far more often than not, things eventually come around and the sun comes up again in the parent-child relationship. In the meantime, the two of you should focus on enjoying the later years of your lives together.

If your daughter doesnt graduate with her class, so be it. Youve done your job. Its time for her to take over. Furthermore, she is letting you know that she is going to take over and theres nothing, absolutely nothing, you can do about it. She is doing so in a self-defeating manner, but her self-righteousness blinds her to that, and theres nothing but time and real life experience thats going to instill that insight and understanding.

By the way, the next likely ploy on her part is to promise to go to counseling if you give her car and phone back. Dont fall for that. She may be doing stupid things, but shes still capable of being as clever as the proverbial fox.

Visit family psychologist John Rosemonds website at www.johnrosemond.com; readers may send him email at questions@rosemond.com; due to the volume of mail, not every question will be answered.
DUBLIN  Mary Catherine Stout has lived on a battlefield most of her life, literally. Stouts farmland was once the hot spot of the Civil War Battle of Cloyds Mountain, where a bloody 60-minute clash left 1,226 casualties on the field.

Stout has collected reminders of the 1864 battle  a chain from a Union cannon, chunks of cannonballs, and scary, fat bullets with their inner makers mark stars exposed. She grew up on the farm and acts as keeper of its history; her home is always on the ready to double as a museum, especially for groups of schoolchildren.

I just love it when someone comes to the door and starts out by saying, Are you the lady who knows about the battle? Stout said. Yes, I am. If someone comes here to learn about the history, Ill stop whatever Im doing to give them a tour.

The May 9, 1864, battle was a victory for Union Gen. George Crook, although it resulted in heavy casualties for both sides. The Union went on to what is now Fairlawn to destroy the railroad bridge over the New River, the Confederacys crucial link to East Tennessee.

From her kitchen window, Stout, 73, can see the 1847 house where she started life as well as the 1790 house known as Cloyds Mansion, where she grew up. Her father, George Farris, bought the Cloyd farm in the early 1950s. Although Stout is not related to the Cloyds, she feels deeply connected to them through the land she holds.

In the Cloyd Mansion, bloodstains still mark the floor of an upstairs bedroom where wounded soldiers were treated during the battle. A corner of the farms stone barn bears the scar of a cannon ball fired by U.S. artillery. Legend has it that an underground tunnel surfaces in one of the outbuildings. No tunnel has ever been discovered, but Stout thought it would be fun to incorporate a secret door in the house she built on a ridge above the farm. Its a hit with schoolchildren.

Stout left Pulaski County for about a decade, studying nursing at the University of Virginia and moving to Pennsylvania with her first husband. But when that marriage ended, she returned home with her two sons. The house she designed and built on the family farm nudges up against a 250-year-old oak, a tree she has groomed and nourished like a thoroughbred horse. From her deck, she can see an even larger oak, the largest tree in Pulaski County.

The Witness Oak, estimated to be centuries old, also benefits from Stouts care and protection. The tree is about 72 feet tall and measures a little more than 20 feet around the trunk. Scars show that lightning struck the tree at least once, but it appears to be healthy and benefiting from Stouts care.

Stouts home itself is a monument to her love of the land, rocks, and forest of the county. The wall and ceiling of the family room incorporate an ancient corncrib, possibly made by slaves, that she salvaged from the Cloyd farm. Local rock is featured in paths, outbuildings, and interior and exterior walls of the house.

More than 40 years ago, furniture manufacturing executive Jim Stout asked the young divorcee what shed like to do on their second date. Dinner? Perhaps a movie in Radford? Nothing so conventional, it turned out.

I told him what Id really like to do was to go pick up rocks over the mountain on Little Creek, Mary Catherine Stout said. And he was willing. He doesnt really love picking up rocks, but hes helped me collect about 300 pickup loads of them. Im always looking for the next rock, and Jims always looking for what he hopes will be the last rock.

Her favorite rock is the pebbly Cloyd conglomerate. She developed her love of rocks, she says, from playing along the rock wall of the Cloyd cemetery and in the antebellum stone Cloyd barn.

When the Stouts married, they added a 600-square-foot room and deck to the house, both faced in local rocks that they collected, then Mary Catherine scrubbed with a toothbrush . Together they designed kitchen cabinets, a pantry, and furniture.

Jim did the building, even though he began some discussions declaring a particular project wasnt do-able, not physically possible. But, as Vaughan-Bassett Furnitures manufacturing technology director, Jim was knowledgeable enough to figure out a way to construct whatever project Mary Catherine dreamed up.

In between projects, they had a son, built more stone buildings, and decorated the house with antique tools and handmade crafts. It looks like a beautiful museum, made to live in.

Stout says she plans to leave all her artifacts to a real museum some day, but she hasnt yet determined where. In addition to the objects her family has found, she has relics donated by others to help with her educational efforts.

These include a bullet pounded into a poker chip, a patched lunch pail, and a lead bullet riddled with small dents, possibly teeth marks by a unanesthetized soldier undergoing an operation .

I feel blessed to live here, to walk these beautiful fields, to have grown up playing along Back Creek and in the old Cloyd cemetery, Stout said. I want to share its history.
RADFORD  Memorial Day in Radford doesnt begin so much as it unfurls  in a solemn, yet amiable, stars-and-striped-draped tribute to the nations war dead.

On Monday, the citys 19th annual Memorial Day Program drew several hundred people to the banks of the New River in Radfords Bisset Park. From a gazebo hung with red-white-and-blue bunting and the flags of the branches of the armed forces, speakers urged the crowd to remember those who fought and died in the service of the United States  and of the continuing price paid by families, friends and communities.

All wars end chronologically  but the casualties of war in their many forms never end, Dana Jackson of American Legion Post 30 said.

Speaking over a muted drum roll, Jackson finished the program by reading the roll of the fallen: in all, 59 Radford residents who died in conflicts reaching back a century to World War I.

A bagpiper in kilt and full regalia strode slowly across the grass in front of the bandstand playing Amazing Grace. Then a lone trumpeter began Taps and onlookers stood, with some veterans holding salutes until the sad notes faded. A gray-haired honor guard provided by Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 776 fired three rifle volleys, prompting starts from some in the crowd.

It was a powerful end to a program that in almost two decades has found its footing in Radford, said Bob Thomas and Laurie Buchwald, who served as co-chairman and co-chairwoman of the Memorial Day Committee.

Years ago, the committee that coordinates the event had to meet every other week for months to bring things together, Thomas recalled. Since then, an array of local businesses, civic and veterans groups and others joined the city to produce the program  and the coordinating committee had to meet just twice this time around, Thomas said.

Mondays ceremony included the Radford High School Choir singing the national anthem and the high school band playing the official songs of the Marines, Air Force, Navy and Army. Vice Mayor Dick Harshberger welcomed the crowd.

Del. Joseph Yost, R-Pearisburg, was introduced by Buchwald, his Democratic opponent in the 2015 election. He urged the audience to remember that Memorial Day wasnt about sales and cookouts and the opening of swimming pools, but the sacrifice of soldiers, sailors, airmen and airwomen.

They gave us all their tomorrows so we could enjoy ours, Yost said.

Lt. Col. Alicia Masson, who is concluding her term as commander of the Radford Army Ammunition Plant, quoted President Ronald Reagan, saying, Freedom is never more than one generation from extinction. She read a letter from a friend whose husband was killed in Iraq.

Onlookers had their own memories of those who dedicated their lives to their country.

My father served in the Army and passed away last June, said Becky Dangerfield of Radford.

David and Joanne Geiss of Radford said they were thinking of an array of relatives.

I had two uncles who were in the war. They didnt lose their lives but I think of them. And my parents, David Geiss said. He nodded toward his wife. Her father was in the Army.

Radford resident Maj. Jim Newman of the Virginia Defense Force, the reserve of the Virginia National Guard, said that on Monday, he was recalling two longtime defense force members whod died since the last Memorial Day.

We had two funerals this year  Master Sgt. Frank Dillon and Staff Sgt. Eddie Turman, Newman said.

Dennis Kitts of Christiansburg said that he was remembering My father and his five brothers  five of the brothers served in World War II and the sixth brother served in the Korean War. All survived, Kitts added.

When the ceremony ended, Hazel Smith Venable of Fairlawn made her way past the flower wreaths and the war memorials with their empty boots and helmets slung on the butts of upside-down rifles. She peered into rows of plain white crosses carrying the names of Radfords dead.

My brother was killed in the Second World War and I came to put a rose on his marker, Venable said.

She said she came to Radfords Memorial Program every year.

They do a good job here, Venable said.

She walked between the crosses and bent to lay a flower by the one marked Thurston E. Smith.
Dozens of community members gathered Sunday at the Daughters of Zion Cemetery to lay flowers in honor of Decoration Day, the 19th-century holiday that became Memorial Day.

The celebration began as a way to recognize those who fought in the Civil War and evolved to encompass all veterans.

Although initially honoring only those lost while fighting the Civil War, as a consequence of the United States involvement in World War I, the holiday evolved to commemorate American military personnel who died in all wars, Bernadette Whitsett-Hammond, a member of the Preservers of the Daughters of Zion, said.

Preservers of the Daughters of Zion Cemetery, a group dedicated to the rehabilitation of the historic African-American cemetery in Charlottesville, sponsored the event with the Charlottesville Office of Human Rights.

I see Charlottesville as a tapestry, and all stories, all aspects of a persons life, when we become aware of it, should be able to be shared if we can do so, Whitsett-Hammond said. This has long been a forgotten area, so were hoping that we can highlight the educators, the business people, the soldiers, especially on Memorial Day, who were interred here.

Prior to laying the flowers, attendees met at CitySpace to hear about the ongoing restoration project at the cemetery, and to view displays from the recent Gone But Not Forgotten exhibit at the University of Virginias Special Collections Library. The group is currently working on repairing the grave markers at the cemetery and on other projects.

When they cleaned out the western boarder we found two markers, so that was great. We have hopes that there are others buried underneath, Preserver Edwina St. Rose said.

Steve Thompson with Rivanna Archaeological Services gave a presentation on the ground-penetrating radar that in 2016 was used to look for more unmarked burials at the cemetery. He estimated that in a certain area where only a handful of graves currently are marked, there are at least 250 more graves.

There are people buried in this part of the cemetery even though therere no stones there, he said. The number and the precise locations cant be known exactly, but the cemeterys almost certainly far fuller of people than you would see just by looking at the stones.

Rivanna Archaeological Services hope to use the ground-penetrating radar down the west side of the cemetery to try to determine whether graves extend up to the edge of the property.

New state legislation could also give the organization a leg up. House Bill 1547, signed by Gov. Terry McAuliffe, directs state funds to nonprofit organizations for preserving historic black cemeteries and graves. The funding formula is $5  or the average actual cost per grave of routine maintenance  multiplied by the number of graves, monuments and markers of African Americans who lived at any time between 1800 and 1900 and are interred in the cemetery.

Former city councilor Dede Smith spoke to the attendees about an audio tour of the cemetery that she helped create. It can be found on the website izi.Travel, or downloaded through the companys mobile app, and viewed anywhere.

Mayor Mike Signer read a proclamation from the city declaring the day Decoration Day, and said seeing the results from the ground penetrating radar were exciting.

In a time when so many people have so many different opinions about whether to move and remove things like memorials and monuments, its nice to have something that we can all celebrate with virtual unanimity and consensus here, he said .
A teenager was shot and killed at a high school graduation party in Axton around 1 a.m. Sunday, according to event space owner Eva Willis and the Pittsylvania County Sheriffs Office.

A total of three people were shot, according to authorities. Two were taken to Memorial Hospital of Martinsville by private vehicles.

One of those victims was airlifted to a Carilion hospital in Roanoke for surgery, authorities said. Both were listed in stable condition.

Authorities have not released the name of a 17-year-old who was killed, pending notification of family members.

Willis, who owns the Axton Lodge where the party was held, said the banquet hall was reserved by a parent who had security and other chaperones on hand.

The parent also told her there would be no alcohol at the party, but Willis said police found trash cans full of beer and liquor bottles as they collected evidence Sunday.

Willis said she was not at the event but lives nearby.

She said she heard a series of rapid pops.

Ive just never had anything like this, Willis said. Im a very naive person. This is my heaven out here. Its just Gods country. Its quiet; its beautiful. Then to have someone do this. Ive always felt safe out here.
Justice Devan Ramachandran also expressed hope that the KSRTC in the future would be self-sufficient to meet its expenditure.
By Abraham Dayan



The beginning of commercial mining at the Gahcho Kue diamond mine in Canada's Northwest Territories at the start of March put the spotlight again on the issue of the scarcity of significant diamond mines coming on stream. Together with the depletion of large mining operations around the world, the industry is starting to try to estimate when the shortfall will come into play.

Before the financial crisis of late 2008, many analysts thought the shortfall would start in approximately the middle of the following decade. However, it took the industry several years to recover from the blow to diamond jewelry sales from the crash and the severe recession in the United States, Europe and elsewhere that followed.

At Gahcho Kue, first diamond production at the mine in the Arctic region and the world's largest and highest grade new diamond mine, began last year and has been gradually increasing. Annual average production is forecast to be 4.5 million carats over the expected 13-year life of the mine, around 54 million carats in total. De Beers owns 51 percent of the project, with the rest held by Mountain Province Diamonds.

And the way to developing the mine was no less easy. Securing government approval for Gahcho Kue ended up needing in excess of 15,000 pages of environmental reviews.

De Beers CEO Bruce Cleaver said the event was a "significant landmark for De Beers in Canada". And Mountain Province Diamonds President and CEO Patrick Evans said the deposit "secures Canada's position as one of the world's leading diamond producers".

Given the location of the mine, its development  which took more than a decade  is all the more remarkable. It is so far north that is beyond the tree line. For most of the year, there is heavy snowfall and the mine's neighbors are wolves, bears and caribou. Only an ice road built year after year serves to bring in supplies, and then only for a short period of time. All this in order to unearth 12,000 carats of diamonds each day. It is the biggest new mine in the world in over a decade, and could well be a defining moment for the diamond business.

There are, quite simply, fewer new diamonds. And De Beers, judging from the ongoing reduction in its exploration budget  around $35 million this year  does not seem convinced that it is going to find any exciting new finds.

A look at the figures provides a stark reminder of the difficulty of finding diamonds. Exploration companies have investigated fewer than 7,000 kimberlite pipes, with only about 15 percent being diamond-bearing and a measly 1 percent  about 60 locations  holding enough to justify mine construction. De Beers is exploring in Canada, South Africa, Botswana and Namibia, using the latest technology to find changes in magnetic fields below Earths surface which could be a pointer that there kimberlite in present.

And even when a deposit is found that is commercially viable, it is a long and tiring process to get it up and running. Mountain Province Diamonds, which owns 49 percent of the project, with De Beers Canada owning the rest, discovered Gahcho Kues first pipe 22 years ago. One billion dollars worth of investment later, Gahcho Kue is producing diamonds.

Looking for economies of scale, De Beers has focused for some years on getting more diamonds from existing large operations in Botswana and South Africa rather taking a gamble on building new ones. Although new technologies may help in the discovery of diamonds more efficiently, Bain & Co, for example, estimates that output will peak in 2019. Supplies of new diamonds will then start to fall, sinking by 1-2% each year until 2030, according to a report The Economist.

Of course, it is not certain that the shortfall will come about. Consumer demand for diamond jewelry cannot be taken for granted. As De Beers' CEO Bruce Cleaver said: Long-term demand is only going to be there if we continue to generate it. After a decade of failing to agree on a strategy for promoting diamonds, the industry has only in the last two years created the Diamond Producers Association (DPA). The main aim that the DPA has set itself is attracting Millennial buyers aged 20-35. Although it's possible that the DPA will agree a move to raise its annual budget to $60 million from the current $6 million, the task ahead is incredibly complicated.

And then there is the issue of synthetic diamonds which some industry analysts forecast will take an increasing share of the diamond jewelry market. Given the many unknowns, it can come as little surprise that mining firms are somewhat nervous about investing huge sums when they really have no idea about what the market will look like 10-20 years down the road.


Mumbai-based Rajesh Bhagat, India Consultant of Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) who oversees HKTDCs operations across India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, has been assisting companies, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the region to promote their goods and services internationally through Hong Kong since June 2009. Bhagat had initiated talks with the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) which culminated in the signing of a MoU between HKTDC and ITPO. He was also awarded the Best Branch Award 2015 by HKTDC, the first Consultant of HKTDC to receive this honour.

Rajesh Bhagat is a qualified Chartered Accountant and a graduate in Commerce and Economics from the University of Mumbai. He has been awarded the Commendable Service Award by the Western India Regional Council (WIRC) of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI).

An entrepreneur in his own right, Rajesh Bhagat is the Managing Director of Worldex India Exhibition & Promotion Pvt. Ltd., a company dedicated to organising international B2B trade shows in India. Another vertical of his company also publishes various professional magazines and books for tax professionals, chartered accountants, solicitors & advocates, finance professionals and trade bodies.

Worldex India has been co-operating with The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) in India for the last 12 years for organising the China Products Fair in India. Worldex India has also been representing the Taiwan Textile Federation in India and South Asia since 2009.

Here, in an interview with Rough&Polished, Rajesh Bhagat speaks about the recently concluded Hong Kong Jewellery Shows; and also gives an insight into the general demand pattern of polished diamonds at the Shows.

Excerpts :

What was the scene at this year's HKTDC's twin jewellery shows? Given the current global slowdown, was it up to expectations in terms of participants and visitors?

The two shows attracted over 85,000 buyers from 144 countries and regions, up 6 per cent over last year. More than 33,000 buyers visited the Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show, while some 52,000 visitors attended the Jewellery Show.

Despite economic challenges, especially in the luxury goods market, the two shows attracted a record number of buyers. The exhibitors are also generally satisfied with the results at the two shows. This demonstrates that the jewellery industry remains confident about business prospects this year, reinforcing Hong Kongs position as a proven global promotion and sourcing hub for the industry, as well as the success of our two shows, two venues format. Analysing the buyer statistics this year, we can see that buyer attendance from emerging markets recorded a considerable increase, such as the Chinese mainland as well as Malaysia and the Philippines from ASEAN and Russia, Turkey and Iran on the Belt and Road. The double-digit percentage increase of buyer attendance in these regions reflects their market potential.

Imran Khan, CEO of Sparkle Gems exhibiting at the Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show, said that they completed a number of orders during the show period, including an order of more than US$2 million worth of tanzanite by a Chinese mainland buyer. He said that the demand for tanzanite and emerald is strong, especially for buyers from the mainland and across Asia.

MKS Jewelry International Co., Ltd. from Thailand is also a long-time exhibitor at the Jewellery Show. Farhan M. Baqri, Sales Manager of the Company, said that their products attracted many buyers from Europe, Middle East, South Africa and the United States, and 10 buyers placed orders on the spot on the first two days of the show.





What sizes, colour, quality of polished diamonds move well during Shows in Hong Kong generally? In the recent Show, what stones and in which category were in high demand?

The HKTDC commissioned an independent onsite survey during the Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show and the Hong Kong International Jewellery Show, interviewing more than 1,300 buyers and exhibitors about their views on market prospects and product trends. The survey indicates that 41 per cent of the respondents believe diamonds will have the greatest potential in 2017, the highest among gemstones. This is followed by aquamarine (14%) and emerald (13%).

For product materials, 43 per cent of the respondents expect karat white gold to be in greatest demand this year, followed by karat rose gold (33%) and karat yellow gold (23%). Meanwhile, 19 per cent of the respondents favour pure gold and 10 per cent of them prefer platinum.

As to polished diamonds, solitaire (40%) is the favourite among respondents, followed by solitaire/melee (33%). Prong (27%) is still the most popular setting, and the most popular design for solitaire diamonds is 1 carat, D  J colorless, ideal/perfect cut and VVS/VS clarity.

What's the scene with coloured diamonds as of today in Hong Kong in terms of demand for these stones which are looked upon as a good investment vehicle?

Investors are increasingly eyeing on the rarity of coloured diamonds and see these gems as an alternative investment instrument. The hot demand is reflected in record auction prices in Geneva in 2016, including a 14.62-carat blue diamond sold for US$57.5 million in May  the most expensive gem ever sold at auction  and another 12.03-carat Blue Moon sold for nearly US$50 million in November, making it the only diamond sold for more than US$4 million per carat.

Statistics from the Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF) show that the prices of blue diamonds were driven to an all-time peak in 2016. Demand for highly saturated yellow rough diamonds, especially vivids, was also reported to have improved, resulting in high prices in tenders.





How has India performed of late at the HKTDC organised twin jewellery Shows? Now, with US showing signs of a turnaround, do you think Indians saw success in the shows? Your views, please.

Exhibitors and buyers from India were found to have benefitted from and made deals at our global jewellery marketplace.

At the Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show, Gemetrix Pty Ltd which sources loose diamonds in Australia met new suppliers from India and negotiated orders worth around US$500,000.

Another loose diamonds buyer Thein Than Yadana Gems and Jewellery from Myanmar was also in touch with exhibitors from India for a selection of diamonds in different sizes, and would place orders worth up to US$100,000.

Buyers from India also purchased the premium natural pearls they liked from Shanghai Gems SA from Switzerland on the first day.

What is the current trade scenario between Hong Kong and India, in terms of finished goods, especially studded jewellery as well as plain gold?

India was the second-largest supplier of fine jewellery to Hong Kong in 2016. The exports value to Hong Kong reached US$2.7 billion, which saw an impressive increase of 27.1 per cent year on year, and more than doubled the value in 2013. Fine jewellery imports from Hong Kong valued at US$79 million.

As customer preferences differ a great deal, in which area should Indian jewellery manufacturers focus on or improve to increase their competitiveness when catering to overseas markets?

Most of the respondents are optimistic about the Chinese mainland market (63%), followed by the North American market (54%) and Western Europe market (52%).

In Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, jewellery demand is expected to remain active. Among other things, according to the Chinese lunar calendar, this year of the rooster has a double spring with a leap month which is believed to be auspicious for marriage, and should encourage the demand for jewellery. Domestic demand for jewellery in the mainland is also expected to remain high despite projections of slower economic growth. At this years shows, 58 per cent of the respondents are optimistic about the prospects of jewellery for weddings and special occasions. It is thus advisable for jewellers to leverage on these jewellery types to stay ahead of the competition.

Jewellery demand in the United States is significant. According to Rapaport Group, the diamond and jewellery trade there will benefit from tax reduction measures and economic boosts under the Trump administration.

With India as one of the biggest consumer markets for jewellery, the demand for gold is projected to be on the rise as the countrys economy keeps growing. Domestic demand for gold jewellery therefore has a high potential as well.

As far as product categories are concerned, apart from the aforementioned wedding jewellery, survey respondents are mostly optimistic about the prospects of trendy fashion jewellery (72%), precious jewellery (58%) as well as collectible investment items (46%).

In terms of price range, 54 per cent of the respondents expect products priced from US$101-US$500 to have the greatest potential this year, followed by products in the US$501-US$1,000 (51%) price range.

Can you run us through briefly about the Shows; and the special events that are being organised simultaneously? An award event is to be held as well. Please elaborate on these events.

The 34th Hong Kong International Jewellery Show showcased a wide range of finished fine jewellery, including top-tier jewellery pieces, famous brands, new designer collections, as well as collectable jewellery art pieces and antique jewellery, while the concurrent fourth edition of the Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show featured various raw jewellery materials. Both shows altogether attracted about 4,480 exhibitors from 53 countries and regions, forming the worlds largest jewellery marketplace.





We arranged more than 30 exciting events during both shows for industry players to gather the latest market intelligence and expand their business networks. The biennial International Jewellery Design Excellence Award (IJDE) returned this year to recognise outstanding jewellery designers and facilitate information exchange in design, professionalism and craftsmanship. The competition received 165 submissions from winners of various jewellery design competitions from 27 countries and regions. Japanese designer Natsumi Odate won the highest honour Champion of the Champions with her necklace Rhythm, which is made using 3D technology.

We also jointly organised the 18th Hong Kong Jewellery Design Competition with Hong Kong Jewellers & Goldsmiths Association, Hong Kong Jewellery & Jade Manufacturers Association, Hong Kong Jewelry Manufacturers' Association and Diamond Federation of Hong Kong, China. This year, the design theme is Follow Your Heart, and a total of 260 entries were received. Three Best of Show Awards and a Craftsmanship & Technology Award were presented for the Open Group, and three prizes for the Student Group were awarded.

On 28 Feb at the Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show, the International Institute of Diamond Grading and Research (IIDGR) De Beers launched their diamond detection instrument. On 4 Mar at the Jewellery Show, Paola De Luca, Creative Director & Forecaster of TRENDVISION Jewellery + Forecasting, revealed upcoming mega trends in jewellery design. Other featured events included buyer forums on opportunities in mature markets and countries along the Belt and Road Initiative, jewellery craftsmanship demonstration, various jewellery parades and networking sessions.

Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished


TAGS presents around $23mn South African production to over 120 companies in Nov 2022 The reopening of factories in India post-Diwali was generally delayed by 2 weeks in response to sluggish market conditions. The challenges that faced the market in the lead-up to the Diwali holiday remain unchanged. Global economies are still facing...

Zim boosts gold output Zimbabwes gold output rose 34,1% in the first 10 months of the year to 29,5 tonnes as operations normalise following two years of COVID-19 restrictions. Newsday reports, citing figures from Fidelity Printers and Refiners (FPR), that the...

The 1st stage of the auction of natural diamonds for small and medium-sized enterprises held in Yakutsk The display of jewelry diamonds weighing from 2 to 10 carats as part of an auction for Russian small and medium-sized enterprises ended on November 8 in Yakutsk. The second stage is the show in Moscow, then the winner of the auction will be determined...

2022 US holiday sales estimated to grow amid concerns about inflation The US National Retail Federation (NRF) says it expects holiday retail sales will grow 6%8% over last years record holiday season, but the organization also says that consumers will spend cautiously amid a high-inflation and high...
Biocorp SA, a French manufacturer of medical devices and smart-drug delivery systems, announced Monday that it has signed an industrialization contract with Virbac, the 7th veterinary company worldwide. The contract successfully concludes the R&D program custom-developed by the companies.

The investment deal was closed after a 24-month collaboration between BIOCORP and Virbac for the development of a delivery device adapted to the needs of the veterinary laboratory. This device, an innovative administration and closure system for vials, is reusable and offers an optimal administration for products selected by Virbac.

The first deliveries are expected between the 1st and 2nd quarter of 2018. BIOCORP will then be responsible for the production of the industrialized product.

The company said the deal is in line with its strategy of creating new opportunities and manufacturing programs through specific developments implemented since 2015. Virbac, an animal company, employs over 4,800 people and has a global presence with subsidiaries in 31 countries, production centers in 11 countries and R&D centers on 5 continents.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Salina Veterans Day Parade planned for this weekend

Interim Healthcare and Hospice, a home health and hospice provider in Salina, has organized a Veterans Day parade for this weekend.
A late Mothers Day celebration for members of the first Assembly Of God Church at Puipaa was held at Paddles Restaurant on Friday night.

Pastor Ramona Tominiko said it was all about honouring mothers in the ministry.

This was planned for Mothers Day but the restaurant was fully booked until tonight.

We are the First Assembly Of God church at Puipaa village, a mission church.

Tonight is a special night to honour mothers who are serving faithfully at our church.

Their spouses escorted them to a formal dinner at Paddles Restaurant to show their support and how important and special they are to their families, and the church.

The dinner was funded by the families and friends of the Missionaries from Hawaii who are still labouring and ministering in the church at Puipaa and the transportation was provided by Sola Sililo Lafaele and Lasei Paulo.

We invited the men to join us. We also want to thank Giovanni and the Rossi family here at Paddles Restaurant for everything.
There are people out there who are saying you have to work in order to have access to water and electricity, but maybe they should ask themselves about what its really like to have a home without water and electricity?

Paulo Iosefo from Faleasiu is a person who knows what it is like and he was in a reflective mood as he told Village Voice about being in this situation.

Aged 63, Mr. Iosefo pleads for help in this matter.

Water is life and I think that tells a lot about my situation because we dont have a tap, he says to the Village Voice.

Adding on to that is having no electricity and you know for most people, when they dont have electricity, it feels like the end of the world.

This is our home, this is our own land and I want everything to work here instead of us relying on other people for the things we need.

For water, we get it from my wifes sisters place and we basically prepare everything from there.

For instance; cooking our every meal there because we dont have most of the things we need here at our home.

Nobody wants to have that kind of life, even my wife gets tired of it sometimes so she just goes and stays at her sisters place sometimes.

I dont want to stay at anybody elses place because this is my home and I find freedom here, so I stay here by myself most of the times. I want to develop these lands for our family.

Its better for me to try and do something here on our lands, you know to try and develop it for the future.

And you know in the Samoan life, if you dont stay on your own land, you dont get any peace of mind at all.

Mr. Iosefo has five children, they have their own families now and they are staying on their own.

I need help with water because as you can see, these are the buckets I use to fetch water all the way from my sister in-laws house.

I also need help to have access to electricity because I cant afford to pay for big things like that.

I only have cucumbers and beans from my plantation to sell to earn a little money and thats all I have together with this land.
Lets be totally frank about this one. The idea that someone had worked at the nations busiest hospital for more than 19 years as a doctor before it was discovered he is only a traditional healer is not just alarming; it is absolutely shocking.

Anywhere else, there would be widespread outrage. But here in paradise we hope this case will not just slip by the radar as just another case of only in Samoa.

Folks, this is the stuff that deserves an Inquiry. Heads should roll.

We are not medical experts but even we know there is a gulf between a certified physician and a traditional healer.

This is serious. We are talking about peoples lives here.

On the front page of the Sunday Samoan, a story titled Council revokes doctors license, patients in limbo raised alarm. And rightly so.

According to the Chairman of S.M.A, Lealiifano Dr. Iopu Tanielu, Dr. Lee, who is a Chinese national, cannot work at the hospital anymore as a doctor because he is a only a traditional healer.

We have concrete evidence, Lealiifano delcared. The certified documents we have is evidence that Lee is not a certified physician.

With that said, will it be correct to say that 19 years members of the public have been misled?

Asked why it has taken nearly 20 years for the Council to pick this up, the Chairman said: Yes, its true Lee has been working for a very long time but he was registered by the previous Medical Council.

There were some problems that arose which led to the Council to investigate. We also sought the legal opinion of the Attorney General on this matter.

Now if only Lealiifano would go further to elaborate on what those problems were. It would also be interesting to see the legal advice from the Attorney General.

Alas we are not able to access these. Assistant Attorney General Galumalemana Noumea L. Teueli denied the request when she was asked.

The legal advice is confidential information and cannot be disclosed, she said, nor can we comment on anything else pertaining to the said advice as that would breach our duty of confidentiality to our client.

Now back to Dr. Lee, he is obviously an unhappy man.

I feel sorry for my patients, he said. But I dont know, all these Samoan doctors ganged up against me.

He added that there have been a lot of unfounded allegations against him.

I have been accused of malpractice and investigations were underway but that was it, nothing more.

Dr. Lee went on to reveal that one particular Board member wrote to him regarding a wrong diagnosis.

Who is this doctor? Hes just a regular doctor and I dont answer to him, hes not my boss.

Sometime later when Dr. Lee received his termination letter, he said he threw it in the rubbish.

At this point, some of us might be wondering how did Dr. Lee start at the hospital? Well in 1995 he arrived as an Aid for the Chinese government.

It was in 1998 when I started working in the Medical Ward and over the years I was the only Neurologist left. Even when I was terminated from the hospital, there was no other Neurologist.

A Neurologist by the way treats disorders that affect the brain, spinal cord, and nerves, such as: Cerebrovascular disease, such as stroke. Demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system, such as multiple sclerosis.

Whatever it is, Dr. Lee is obviously well liked by his patients.

One in particular who had a stroke 10 years ago is unhappy about his treatment.

I have been going to the hospital three times already to try and get another prescription for my medication but I was turned away because Dr. Lee is no longer working, he said.

Hes the only Neurologist thats currently working at the hospital and its disturbing because this deals directly with my health. Life is health and health is life, so what about other patients who suffered strokes and have worse conditions than me... how are they coping with it?

To be fair to the doctor in question, Dr. Lee, lets acknowledge all his good work over the years. In a country where the chronic shortage of health workers, especially doctors, is a major issue, we cannot ignore the fact Dr. Lee has helped a lot of people.

But if the claim by the Samoa Medical Council (S.M.C) as to their reason for revoking his license is anything to go by, someone in the Ministry of Health should tell us how on earth this was allowed to continue for nearly 20 years.

What is going on folks?

Have a great Tuesday Samoa, God bless!
The Supreme Court has denied a strike out motion by the Office of the Attorney General against a claim from a Sogi family targeting the government.

The decision in the lawsuit filed by Nanai Tokuma and his family was delivered by Supreme Court Justice Vaepule Vaemoa Vaai yesterday.

The courtroom was packed, well attended by the Tokuma family who is represented by lawyer, Pau Tafaogalupe Mulitalo.

The Tokuma family is fighting for what they claim is their land.

They are seeking an interim order from the Supreme Court to stop the government from evicting them. The claim is against the Samoa Land Corporation, Ministry of Public Enterprises and the Land Board.

Yesterday, Justice Vaepule indicated the proceedings identified three issues for the Court to rule on.

The first two motions sought the Court to remove the Ministry of Public Enterprises and Land Board from being parties to the case.

The Attorney Generals third motion sought for declaratory orders with affidavit and statement of claims to be struck out.

According to Justice Vaepule, the issue of ownership of the land should be determined at a hearing.

Is there evidence, documentary or otherwise to prove or support an alleged gift or an agreement the applicants claim as the basis of their ownership of the land at Sogi?

Now despite Counsel for the Applicants admission during the strike out motion, that there is no documentary evidence to support the applicants claim, that the land was a gift to their ancestor, this in my opinion is a matter of evidence and should be dealt with and determined on the substantive hearing.

He granted the motion to remove the Ministry of Public Enterprises and the Land Board from the proceedings but declined the motion to strike out the statement of claims completely.

The Tokuma family claims that the land they live on now in Sogi was gifted to their predecessor Turore Tokuma by the then Commissioner of Crown Estates of Samoa who was also the Public Trustee and a member of the Legislative Council of Samoa, the late Percival Ernest Patrick in the 1920s.

The late Turore Tokuma was a driver and was treated as a member of the household of Mr. Patrick.

The family also claims the gifted land they now occupy was given to their predecessor and his wife and children in recognition of his service, loyalty and compensation for the execution that almost killed Mr Tokuma for the crime he did not commit.

The Tokuma family is arguing that their continuous occupation of the same land was endorsed by the first Prime Minister of Samoa, Mataafa Fiame Mulinuu.

The deed through his words reaffirmed lawful ownership and occupation of the land by the Tokuma family when Mataafa said your mother and children can live on the land where you are now as the government cannot afford to pay your father.
UPDATE: PNAS has now placed the study online.

The frightening spread of antibiotic-resistant superbugs threatens to return medicine to the pre-antibiotic era, with the return of deadly infectious diseases long thought vanquished.

Each year, more than 2 million people in the United States get antibiotic-resistant infections, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At least 23,000 of them die. Unless breakthroughs are achieved, that toll will keep rising.

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If a new version of an antibiotic of last resort lives up to its promise, that date with doom may be averted. A study on this bolstered form of vancomycin by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla was released Monday.

Researchers led by Dale Boger, co-chair of TSRIs Department of Chemistry, introduced three modifications to vancomycin, all lethal to bacteria and independent of each other. Superbugs need to overcome all three changes to survive, which is extremely unlikely, the study said.

The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Boger was senior author and Akinori Okano, also of TSRI, was first author.

PNAS has placed the study online at j.mp/bogervanco.

While fear of losing antibiotics has made doctors restrict their use, Boger and colleagues contend this doesnt solve the problem, it just slows down the process. Better science is the solution, they say, to engineer antibiotics to anticipate and thwart resistance from the start.

The modified vancomycin needs further development so it can be tested in people to prove its safety and efficacy. Moreover, Bogers team made the drug through a lengthy, 30-step process, which limits yield. He and colleagues are working on shortening that process.

Even with the current synthesis method, the new vancomycin should be medicinally useful, the study said. Its more than 10 times as potent as an earlier version that introduced two lethal modifications. With the third lethal change, the altered vacomycin is more than 1,000 times as potent as standard vancomycin itself.

Synthetic symphony

Two scientists praised the study as chemical synthesis of the highest order.

Medicinal chemist Derek Lowe said hes excited about the report and looking forward to seeing the new form of vancomycin developed further.

In a 2015 post on his blog, In the Pipeline, Lowe praised a previous study on the research that introduced the two lethal modifications.

That achievement arose from Bogers work in total synthesis of complex organic molecules. Its one of his specialties, and also something other TSRI scientists have been noted for.

Bogers previous work on vancomycin is the kind of feat that requires intense human creativity, something that cant be captured in automated synthesis, Lowe wrote in 2015.

The new study adds even more chemical tricks, he said.

Vancomycins original odd mechanism of action is why its lasted so long in the first place. It doesnt bind directly to a bacterial protein, which would engage the evolutionary battle directly, but instead vacuums up a key oligopeptide that the bacteria need to function, Lowe said in an email.

Throw these new functions in on top of that, and you not only get a big boost in potency, which this (latest) paper demonstrates, but you make it far, far less likely that a bacterium will emerge that will be able to deal with all of this at once.

Exciting though the new research is, it must be followed up with studies in animals, Lowe cautioned.

I would expect them to work, but that has to be proven, and it may be that they need to be tweaked in other ways for improved activity in a whole organism, Lowe wrote.

Theyll also have to be checked carefully for toxic effects in a whole animal as well - - the usual drug development path. I very much look forward to seeing this! I wouldnt celebrate until whole-animal tox and efficacy studies are completed (Ive been burned too many times!), but this is a really promising approach and needs to be pursued vigorously, he said.

Dan Kahne, a Harvard University professor of chemistry and chemical biology, described Bogers work as spectacular.

To be able to engineer a molecule of the complexity of vancomycin is a feat that few synthetic groups in the world could even attempt, Kahne said. We need to continue to support these kinds of research programs because resistance will develop to any antibiotic, because death is a powerful selection.

Countering antibiotic guilt

Bacteria exist in astronomical numbers, mutate often and freely swap genes with others, even between species. So when theyre confronted with antibiotics, classic Darwinian evolution by natural selection ensures that when resistance occurs even once, it rapidly spreads.

Vancomycin foiled this evolution for decades because it indirectly attacks bacteria, by removing the oligopeptide Lowe referenced. substance needed for their survival. But even so, some bacteria have by chance lucked onto resistance.

This process has spurred the rise of vancomycin-resistant enterococci, or VRE, three letters that strike fear into hospital staffs the world over. VRE has spread relentlessly, despite the best efforts of medical professionals.

Enterococci are a group of bacteria known for their hardiness; their origin was recently traced back to at least 425 to 450 million years ago. They have survived multiple planetary catastrophes, which has left them well-defended against human attacks.

Given the power of natural selection, the emergence of VRE and other resistant organisms appears inevitable. So doctors have become more cautious in prescribing antibiotics, hoping to reduce the pressures of natural selection that fuel resistance.

Boger and colleagues say in the study that approach is too defeatist.

Although sounding attractive, the effort to restrict antibiotic use seems counter to their importance, introduces guilt into even their most legitimate of uses, challenges the prevailing practices of initial empirical best guess therapy and prophylaxis deployment, and produces additional disincentives to antibiotic development, the study stated.

Moreover, restricting antibiotic use doesnt do anything to generate greater understanding of how resistance arises and how it might be thwarted, it said.

And the study posed a question:

As an alternative to championing the restricted use of antibiotics or conceding that bacteria will always outsmart us, can durable antibiotics be developed that are capable of continued or even more widespread use?

The modified vancomycin provides a positive answer, the authors say, not only by itself, but as an approach to generating other more durable antibiotics.

Research funding was supplied by the National Institutes of Health.

Science Playlist  On Now In a first, scientists rid human embryos of a potentially fatal gene mutation by editing their DNA On Now Space station flyovers visible from San Diego this week 0:55 On Now UCSD's 'ghost drivers' begin testing people's reaction seemingly empty cars 1:29 On Now 10 interesting facts about Mars On Now Kids can add years to your life On Now LA 90: SpaceX launches recycled rocket On Now Big passions, big giving: Malin Burnham 2:30 On Now Big passions, big giving: Darlene Shiley 2:40 On Now Big passions, big giving: Joan and Irwin Jacobs 2:45 On Now Ocean temperatures warming at rapid rate, study finds

bradley.fikes@sduniontribune.com

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President Trump faces continuing political complications from the shifting explanations he and his staff have given for the recent termination of FBI Director James Comey, even though Comey correctly has conceded that the president had the right to fire him for any reason or for no reason at all.

Employers other than the president who provide shifting explanations for an at-will employees termination cause themselves avoidable legal problems by giving the dismissed employee ammunition to claim that the decision was unlawfully motivated.

Consider the California timeshare company that decided to terminate an employee after discovering the employee was making plans to compete with the employer. The company thought the decision would be reinforced by papering the employees file with a series of infractions occurring long after the termination decision was made. That didnt work.

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These kinds of efforts to preempt or defeat an employees later challenge to the termination actually strengthen the employees challenge by undermining the credibility of otherwise defensible reasons for the decision. One federal appeals court has written that an employers multiple, implausible explanations for terminating an employee may justify a judge or jurys finding that the employer is hiding something  that is, that the true explanation is unlawful discrimination or otherwise illegal.

To be sure, courts have distinguished between an employer who offers contradictory reasons for a termination and an employer who elaborates on the reason given for a termination. For example, an employer properly may tell an employee he is being dismissed for performance reasons and then identify the specific performance deficiencies if the employee challenges the decision. And yet the line between a contradictory and a supplemental explanation may be unclear.

To avoid this self-inflicted legal wound, an employers initial and subsequent explanation for a termination decision should be honest, consistent, and well-framed.

First, honesty is essential no matter how much an employee is told about the reason for dismissal. In an article last year, attorney Ricardo Granderson advised employers terminating at-will employees to say only six magic words: Your services are no longer needed. An employer may limit its risk honestly without embracing that one-size-fits-all approach. An employee laid off due to a drop in business who was selected as part of the layoff group because of unsatisfactory performance should be told so. The law considers a decline in business and unsatisfactory performance to be independently acceptable reasons to dismiss an employee, even where the employee disputes the employers assessment of his job performance relative to that of those spared from the layoff.

Second, an employer should be consistent in communicating the reason for dismissal. The decision-maker should not communicate one reason for termination to the employee and a lower-level manager or human resources official communicate a contradictory reason for termination internally or externally. Courts generally will focus on the consistency of the decision-makers explanation and motive, not the explanation and motive of those not involved in the decision. A courts view of those in the decision-making chain, however, may differ from the employers. And that difference may have legal consequences.

Third, the decision should not be framed as being motivated exclusively by a single specific aspect of conduct or performance, unless the dismissal is triggered by specific and serious misconduct. This needlessly boxes an employer in if the decision is challenged. Better to frame the explanation in terms that are sufficiently specific to be understandable (for example, performance reasons that include . . .), yet not so specific to preclude later amplification.

All but the most reckless employers make termination decisions carefully. The most well-considered decision to terminate may be challenged successfully if the rationale for the decision is communicated dishonestly, inconsistently, or too narrowly.

 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 Fowler College of Business where he teaches classes in business ethics and employment law. He may be reached at eaton@scmv.com. His Twitter handle is @DanEatonlaw.
North Korea on Monday fired what appeared to be a ballistic missile that landed in waters off Japan, eliciting new objections from its neighbor.

The U.S. militarys Pacific Command said the early morning launch  the ninth such test this year by North Korea  occurred near an airfield in the eastern coastal town of Wonsan.

American officials tracked the missile for six minutes. It landed in the Sea of Japan, and never posed a threat to North America.

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We are working with our interagency partners on a more detailed assessment, the Pacific Command statement said. We continue to monitor North Koreas actions closely.

The incident angered Japan, which said the launch violated United Nations Security Council resolutions.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters that the projectile flew into Japans exclusive economic zone, a maritime buffer zone where shipping and fishing vessels are active. There were no reports of damage or injuries.

This ballistic missile launch by North Korea is highly problematic from the perspective of the safety of shipping and air traffic, Suga said.

Japan absolutely cannot tolerate North Koreas repeated provocative actions. We have strongly protested to North Korea and condemn its actions in the strongest terms.

U.S. military officials, who said the device appeared to be a short-range missile, werent specific about where it landed in the sea. But South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile traveled about 280 miles and could have reached the Japanese zone.

The North has conducted dozens of missile tests in recent years, raising alarm about its emerging technical capability.

The North already has the ability to strike U.S. allies in the region, such as South Korea and Japan. But the long-term concern is that the North might acquire the capability to put a nuclear warhead on a missile that can strike American military targets in Asia  or even the U.S. mainland.

In a televised speech this year, the Norths leader, Kim Jong Un, said the country was making progress toward deploying an intercontinental ballistic missile. Such a capability is now a national goal, and the North recently paraded dozens of missiles through the streets of Pyongyang in a show of strength and defiance.

President Trump was briefed about Mondays launch, a National Security Council spokesman said without elaborating.

Stiles is a special correspondent. Times staff writer W.J. Hennigan contributed to this report.

ALSO

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UPDATES:

7:15 p.m.: This article was updated with no reports of damage or injuries.

4:45 p.m.: This article was updated with staff reporting.

3:35 p.m.: This article was updated with information about the type of projectile that was fired, where it landed and more background.

This article was originally published at 2:40 p.m.
Philippine forces control of most of a southern city where militants linked to Islamic State launched a bloody siege nearly a week ago, authorities said Monday, as the army launched airstrikes and went house to house to crush areas of resistance.

More than 100 people, including 24 civilians, have been killed in six days of fighting, the government said. Many more were believed to be trapped inside the city.

I have to rescue my grandfather even at the risk of my life, Khana-Anuar Marabur Jr. said Monday after police stopped him for speeding through a checkpoint. He said his grandfather had been sending him text messages asking to be saved.

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Get me out of here alive, not dead, one message said. This war is taking too long.

The crisis in Marawi, which is home to some 200,000 people, has raised fears that extremism in the southern Philippines is increasing as smaller militant groups unify and align themselves with Islamic State.

Government troops aboard armored personnel carriers head to the front line to continue their offensive against Muslim militants in Marawi, southern Philippines, on May 29, 2017. (Bullit Marquez / AP)

Only small areas of Marawi remain under militants control after six days of fighting, said Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla, the military spokesman. In recent days, gunmen have managed to fend off attack helicopters, armored vehicles and scores of soldiers.

We can control who comes in and who comes out, who moves around and who doesnt, and we are trying to isolate these pockets of resistance that have remained, Padilla said.

Philippine National Police Chief Ronald de la Rosa said the operation takes time because the gunmen take advantage of the urban environment, moving quickly from building to building to evade capture.

I cannot give operational details, but I am sure they are also human, they will also get tired, he said.

According to government figures Monday, the death toll was 105 people  61 militants, 20 government forces and 24 civilians.

The bodies of several civilians were found on the streets Sunday as soldiers cleared neighborhoods. In one area, the bodies of eight men who appeared to have been executed by militants were found in a ravine, police said. The bodies of four other men, three women and a child were found near a road close to Mindanao State University in Marawi.

The violence prompted President Rodrigo Duterte last week to declare 60 days of martial law in the southern Philippines, where a Muslim separatist rebellion has raged for decades. Marawi is a mostly Muslim city.

The violence erupted Tuesday night when the government launched a raid to capture Isnilon Hapilon, who is on Washingtons list of most-wanted terrorists. But the operation went awry and militants rampaged through the city, torching buildings and battling government forces in the streets.

A priest and several worshipers were taken hostage. There was no word on their condition.

Hapilon, an Islamic preacher, was once a commander of the Abu Sayyaf militant group who pledged allegiance to Islamic State in 2014. He now heads an alliance of at least 10 smaller militant groups, including the Maute, which has a heavy presence in Marawi and has been instrumental in fighting off government forces in the current battles.

All of the groups are inspired by Islamic State. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana told reporters that Hapilon has received funds from the terrorist group.

Washington has offered a $5-million reward for information leading to Hapilons capture.

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Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Crosby is finally at rest.

Remains of the U.S. Navy pilot from San Diego, known to family by his middle name Peter, had been missing since 1965 when he was shot down in Vietnam when he was 31. Through the efforts of his daughter and military investigators, bone fragments, pieces of his uniform, a cigarette lighter and his wedding band were discovered near the crash site.

Roughly 200 people  including Crosbys two siblings, four children and four grandchildren  attended his burial Sunday at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery with full military honors, featuring a flyover by four F/A-18 Hornet jets.

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His son, Doug, who was 8 when his father died, said having a place to visit was special for the whole family, many of whom still live in San Diego County.

It gives me a place to come and remember him, he said. Now I actually have a point where I can sit down and reflect on my dad and everything he loved.

Crosby, now 60, said his fathers death was extremely difficult on his mother, Mary, who was left to raise four children on her own. She never remarried and died in 2002. Her ashes had already been spread at the Whispering Winds Catholic retreat in Julian, so they took dirt from the site to put in her husbands grave.

A copy photo of Navy pilot Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Crosby. (K.C. Alfred / San Diego Union-Tribune)

The procession was led by the Patriot Guard Riders motorcyclists, a nonprofit that attends funerals of members of the U.S. military and other law enforcement. Fredrick Crosbys remains were carried in a horse-drawn carriage, with family members walking behind it.

At the ceremony, Navy Chaplin Paul Hyder addressed the crowd near the casket.

God, I pray that you would give us strength from those you have placed around us and your word, he said, even concerning so great an enemy as death.

1 / 14 With his four adult children walking behind his casket, Final Honor, the horse drawn funeral carriage carries the casket of their father, Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 2 / 14 At Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, the casket of Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby is carried by a U.S. Navy honor guard. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 3 / 14 Family and friends attend funeral services for Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 4 / 14 A flyover by U.S. Navy pilots in the missing man formation over Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, where Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby will be buried. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 5 / 14 At Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, the casket of Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby is carried by a U.S. Navy honor guard. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 6 / 14 The Navy honor detail passes the folded U.S. flag that covered Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby casket. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 7 / 14 Cpt. Robert Nowakowski carries the U.S. flag to present to Deborah Crosby, daughter of Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 8 / 14 Funeral services for Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 9 / 14 John Crosby wore a military dog tag with a photo of his father, Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 10 / 14 At Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, Cpt. Robert Nowakowski presents the U.S. flag to Deborah Crosby. L-R, Deborah Crosby, Steven Crosby, Douglas Crosby and John Crosby. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 11 / 14 The Navy honor detail stands graveside where Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby will be laid to rest at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 12 / 14 Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby is carried by a U.S. Navy honor detail to his final resting place at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 13 / 14 Family and friends stood graveside at Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby funeral services at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune) 14 / 14 With his four adult children walking behind his casket, Final Honor, the horse drawn funeral carriage carries the casket of their father, Lt. Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune)

Rep. Susan Davis, D-San Diego, also spoke, stressing the importance of the U.S. military leaving no man behind.

To those American families still missing a loved one, I would hope that you are lifted by the news of Lt. Cmdr. Crosbys return home to the United States, she said.

Fredrick Crosbys DNA was matched using a sample from his sister, Sharon. She said at the burial that her brothers love of water prompted him to take up sailing, teach her to water ski and spend summers as a youth on Lake Ontario.

This would have been his favorite spot, Sharon Crosby, 79, said of the grave site, with views of the (San Diego) Bay and (Naval Air Station) North Island.

Cpt. Robert Nowakowski presents the U.S. flag that covered her fathers casket to Deborah Crosby. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune)

The search for Fredrick Crosbys remains was a labor of love for his daughter, Deborah Crosby, who researched Library of Congress documents, searched maps online and reached out to POW/MIA groups.

The significance of getting the remains, found in the bottom of a fish pond in North Vietnam, had a big impact on many who heard his story, prompting members of the public, veterans and active service members to attend the ceremony.

Its an honor and a privilege to be here today, said Chief Petty Officer Brian Bartlett. Today is what this weekend, Memorial Day, is all about.

Cemetery groundskeeper Blake Gilbert helped dig Fredrick Crosbys grave, and while it isnt the first time he buried bone fragments in his 18 years on the job, he felt the importance of his task.

The family has been waiting a long time for this, he said. You want to give them a proper burial.

There are still more than 1,600 Americans who served in the Vietnam War who are missing or unaccounted for. Since 1973, the United States has recovered the remains of 1,035 service members from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and China.

The casket of Lt Cmdr. Frederick Peter Crosby is carried by a U.S. Navy honor guard. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune)

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phillip.molnar@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1891 Twitter: @phillipmolnar

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President Abraham Lincoln perfectly captured the essence of Memorial Day in November 1863 when dedicating a new cemetery in rural Pennsylvania for members of the military killed in the then-raging Civil War. In his powerfully evocative 272-word speech, which everyone now knows as the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln characterized a dedication ceremony to honor fallen American soldiers as altogether fitting and proper, then said, But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract.

In the Lincoln tradition, Americans continue to pay tribute to the brave men and women who shall not have died in vain in service to their nation, each Memorial Day and all year round. This is especially true in moments of national division, such as America is now witnessing. And this is evident in editorials from troubled times in our antecedent newspapers, which merged to form The San Diego Union-Tribune in 1992.

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On Memorial Day in 1973, with the nation reeling from the Vietnam War, an editorial in the San Diego Evening Tribune noted that under a federal law, the holiday was being celebrated for the first time on the last Monday in May instead of on May 30: But the form and precise time of remembering those who momentarily shared with us the adventure of life may be less significant that the gift of remembrance. Those we loved and those who gave their lives so that our lives might be freer and fuller are not forgotten. Memory cannot sleep.

On Memorial Day in 1974, as divisions over Vietnam persisted, the Watergate scandal built and President Nixons hold on office weakened, the Evening Tribunes editorial offered a nod to the nations discord: Were well aware that cynics abound in this confused and bitter age. ... They speak knowledgeably of trends and the movement away from old traditions.

But if we insist on destroying the value of everything we may ultimately come to know the worth of nothing. Memorial Day ... is part of the inherent human sentiment and understanding that prompts the living to place flowers on the grave of a departed relative or a wreath on the tomb of an unknown soldier. It is a mark of honor and respect. And, of course, love.

On Memorial Day in 1987, with the Iran-Contra scandal casting the deepest shadow over the Reagan administration that it would face, a melancholy San Diego Union editorial looked away from our shores to note how many Americans were buried at battlefields around the world:

Memorial Day survives because something faraway calls us to remember; something that gives a very special meaning to the idea of freedom. It is expressed in the sound of Taps, echoing across the continents of the world where repose some of the best and brightest ever raised on American soil.

Today and every day we are called not only to remember them but to keep faith with them as well.

On Memorial Day in 2017, America is enmeshed in partisan rancor that colors too many parts of our lives. But today all Americans should be able to agree on this: We owe a debt to the brave men and women who have died seeking to protect our nation. When it comes to honoring their ultimate sacrifice, memory cannot sleep, remembrance is a gift.

Twitter: @sdutIdeas

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ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Four-time Iditarod champion Susan Butcher,who in 1986 became the races second female winner and broughtincreased national attention to its grueling competition, has died.She was 51.

Butcher died Saturday in a Seattle hospital of a reoccurrence ofleukemia after a recent stem-cell transplant, her doctor said.

She dominated the 1,100-mile sled dog race from Anchorage toNome in the late 1980s. Her other victories came in 1987, 88 and'90, and she finished in the top four through 1993.

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What she did is brought this race to an audience that had neverbeen aware of it before simply because of her personality,"Iditarod spokesman Chas St. George said.

In 1979, Butcher helped drive the first sled-dog team to the20,320-foot summit of Mount McKinley, the highest peak in NorthAmerica.

Dr. Jan Abkowitz said that after a stem-cell transplant May 16,Butcher developed graft-versus-host-disease, in which transplantedcells attacked her digestive system.

Then to our dismay and surprise, about a week ago, when we dida routine bone marrow test, we found that her leukemia had comeback, Abkowitz said.

Butcher received chemotherapy for the leukemia and was moved tointensive care Friday at the University of Washington MedicalCenter.

At the time she had the transplant, her leukemia was inremission. She was feeling absolutely fine, Abkowitz said.

Three years ago, when she was considering a comeback, doctorsfound Butcher had polycythemia vera, a rare disease that causes thebone marrow to produce excess blood.

Butcher was known as a focused and confident competitor, wholoved her dogs, and insisted they remain fit and disciplined.

Anything she did shed do with real intensity, said JoeRunyan, who broke Butchers three-year winning streak in 1989. Shewas really able to focus on the job and thats what made her reallygood at her sport.

Runyan said the rivalry was always good-natured and that Butcherwas more willing than many mushers to share dog-care tips andtraining methods. During recent Iditarods, she would fly along thetrail to chat with old opponents and visit the many friends she hadin the Alaska Native villages that serve as checkpoints.

One of the last times Runyan saw Butcher was during this yearsIditarod in the Yukon River town of Ruby.

We were talking about who was winning the race, said Runyan,who was working as a race commentator. Shes pretty comical, shesaid, '(Winner) Jeff Kings team has left Ruby the best Ive everseen, except for when I left Ruby.

Butcher ran her last Iditarod in 1994 when she and husband DavisMonson decided to have children. They have two daughters, Tekla andChisana.

Butcher planned to compete in a 300-mile race last winter, butwas unable to compete after she was diagnosed with leukemia inearly December.

Now my goal is to try and stay alive and fight leukemia, shetold The Associated Press. No questions asked, thats what I amgoing to do.

During her chemo treatments, Butcher daydreamed about land inthe White Mountains she and her husband bought last fall. Theyplanned to build a bigger cabin on the land that comes with 300miles of groomed trails _ perfect for mushing dogs _ right out theback door.

I got the cutest, lovingest group of well-trained females. Theyare easy to handle and I just enjoy them, she said. They will bewaiting for me.

Associated Press Writer Donna Gordon Blankinship in Seattlecontributed to this report.

On the Net:

https://www.susanbutcher.com

A service of the Associated Press(AP)
A Sacramento jury has convicted a woman who initially said her husband was shot during a carjacking and later said she killed him because she feared for her life.

The Sacramento Bee reports ( https://bit.ly/11XVNNR ) the jury decided that even if Shajia Ayobi had been abused by her husband, as she testified, he did not present an immediate threat to her the night she either killed him or had him killed as he laid his head back to rest in their car.

Ayobi, 46, first told police that she and her husband had been carjacked on their way home from a Natomas dinner party, and that a robber who had concealed himself in the backseat shot and killed Ghulam Rabani Ayobi.

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Later, she said the CIA had her husband killed. She finally said she had done it as a result of post-traumatic stress disorder from the domestic abuse she suffered at the hands of her husband, as well as her experiences living in Afghanistan during the Soviet war in the 1980s.

The panel ultimately did not have enough evidence to conclude that she pulled the trigger in her husbands killing but did rule that he did not present an imminent danger to her that night.

The Sacramento Superior Court jury convicted Ayobi of first-degree murder on Wednesday in the Dec. 18, 2011, shooting death of her husband, who was 53. She faces 25 years to life in prison.

We believe that there is another judgment coming up, and hopefully it will be more severe than this one, said Ghulam Ayobis niece, Ferishta Kulaly, of the jurys verdict. She has to face (God), too, and explain to him what she did to herself, her family, the kids, the mom, the community - for selfish reasons.

A second defendant, Jake Clark, 30, said in a jailhouse interview that Shajia Ayobi had offered him $500 to kill her husband, but he refused. Clark, a criminal justice classmate of Ayobis at Kaplan College, has yet to enter a plea and is scheduled to appear in court on May 17.

Defense attorney Pete Kmeto said he was disappointed that the jury had not acquitted her on the basis of self-defense.

What this woman went through in her life, and the domestic violence that occurred - all your sympathies go to her, he said.

---

Information from: The Sacramento Bee, https://www.sacbee.com
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I am a member of a once despised minority group, American Japanese, who spent three-and-a-half years incarcerated in an American concentration camp during World War II. Although that ordeal ended 72 years ago, the impact of that experience on my life and its broader implications for American society resonate deeply to this day.

At the beginning of the war, roughly 10 percent of the adult alien men on the West Coast (Japan-born persons being ineligible for citizenship) were picked up by the FBI as potentially dangerous and interned by the Justice Department, effectively robbing the community of leadership. We had been under surveillance for quite a while, and these men were singled out. My father, who was an alien, was not picked up, though many of our friends were. None ever were convicted of a crime or act of sabotage, though many were held for years in captivity.

I was a U.S. citizen by birth, but the distinction meant nothing at the time. My entire family  my parents, two sisters, and I  was sent to Poston in southwestern Arizona, geographically the largest of the 10 War Relocation Authority (WRA) camps where American Japanese were held. At the time, I had just turned 12. By the time we were permitted to leave, I was 15.

We, along with approximately 120,000 others, spent the better part of four years in desolate areas where we were monitored, our movements restricted. We ate in mess halls, and our tar-paper barracks were so flimsy I remember wind and dust storms so strong that rooftops were torn off, debris flying around like crumpled paper.

Perhaps even more of a shock to me than the prison-like conditions was the fact that for the first time in my life, I was living totally surrounded by others of Japanese descent. In my early school years, most of my classmates were white, with a scattering of Mexican-American kids. Although I was one of the few American Japanese in my small town, I never experienced any prejudice there. But at Poston, my farm upbringing contrasted sharply with the sophistication, manners, and clothes of the American-Japanese kids from Los Angeles and other cities.

Here we were, all locked up together, doing our best to be normal teens. My mother disapproved of the camps faster growing-up process, driven by the city kids. She wasnt sure about my going to the parties and dances that were a big part of teen life at the camp, and she did not want me to have a brassiere or wear makeup. I missed my white classmates, my home, my town, and my less-pressured life. I felt like an ugly duckling.

We had the trappings of society like schools, jobs, a camp government, a police and fire department. My father did some woodcarving while my mother took sewing lessons, making our dresses. I spent a lot of time reading books from the library. But life was far from normal. The usual social hierarchy was turned upside down, with the elders stripped of power and the young freer to pursue their interests.

It was the pettiness of life in camp that got to me. Almost every aspect of everyones life was known to all, and this promoted a culture of gossip and rumor mongering, with whispers and speculations about others filling our time. The meanness, the nastiness exhibited, the way we picked on one another, was an ugliness I hadnt known before. Of course, it was a manifestation of the cramped living conditions, the forced idleness, and the insecurity of our situation.

A group formerly known for hard work and pride in our accomplishments was reduced to committing little acts of rebellion aimed generally at the government and administration who were oppressing us. People stole wood scraps to make furniture and pilfered food from the mess halls. Many did not feel that manual work was worth doing and slacked off, held strikes, and quit their jobs. My father borrowed a tractor and took a mob of kids to the Colorado River, a couple of miles from the camp.

I was too young and naive to understand the bigger picture, but the smaller world I inhabited was beset with contradictions. In eighth grade, a white schoolteacher from Massachusetts ordered us to memorize a Marc Antony speech from Shakespeares Julius Caesar. Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears, it began. I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones. We labored mightily to master those lines and dozens more. But, alas, most of us had trouble doing it, and she castigated us as ignorant, lazy know-nothings.

There were those, particularly older men, who listened to Japanese propaganda broadcasts on smuggled-in radios. Reports of Japanese victories would elicit some cheers. Clumps of men would discuss the latest news, sneering at those who didnt believe, severely criticizing those who remained loyal to the U.S.

Our community was caught up in this international war at a particularly sensitive period. My parents generation was still culturally old country. Some, like my mother, never learned to speak English. Their children, including me, were rapidly becoming Americanized. I joined the Girl Scouts and edited the junior high newspaper, The Desert Daze.

In prewar times, it was customary to send children to Japanese school because many believed that eventually they were going to return to their home country. In some places, it was a Saturday-only class, but in my case, we attended an hour of Japanese lessons each day, after American school, and our teachers were brought from Japan. I perfected my calligraphy and reading and writing, but the authoritarian style and emphasis on obedience went against what we were learning in the American school. Even though most of us spoke Japanese at home with our parents, we werent interested in it. English was becoming our main language.

These intergenerational conflicts, typical of the American immigrant experience, intensified in the camp. In the beginning, because no Issei (immigrant generation) were allowed any leadership roles in the camps, the block managers and elected members of the camp councils were all young people who had been born on American soil. This powerlessness of the older men was manifest in continuous grumbling about how callow and ill-prepared for leadership the young were.

A call by the Japanese American Citizens League (composed of young men and women who acted as the liaison between the people and the government) to allow young men to serve in the American military to prove their loyalty provoked intense conflict. I had no brothers, but I know that my parents thought that to send our youth to fight for this country, the very country that had imprisoned us, was absolutely unacceptable. I had cousins who resisted, refusing to comply with draft orders, and I also had an uncle who served as an officer in the Army, fighting in Europe.

These divisions in the camp were reflected in my family. Several years into our incarceration, my father decided that he would apply for repatriation. He had had enough of the mistreatment, feeling that prospects would be better in Japan, where the family had some property. I was astounded and angry. America was my home, and I knew that I was not Japanese. I had no interest in going to Japan. Id seen enough of the patriarchal, authoritarian style of Japanese society in my own family and others to know that I didnt want to be a Japanese woman, subservient and under the control of men.

I fought with my parents, even writing letters to magazine editors, but nothing I did would change their minds. As the war wound down I watched as friends left, moving to eastern parts of the U.S. and then back to the West Coast. I was feeling trapped. But when Japan was defeated, my father learned that there was nothing to go back to. He changed his mind and we resettled in Oceanside.

For the rest of my fathers life, we never talked about the camp experience in a serious way. It was too painful. He started farming again but wasnt very successful. Two years later my mother died of bleeding ulcers. My father became more passive and quiet.

For my part, I was relieved that the ordeal was over and determined to put it out of my mind. I went to college, married a white man, raised a family, lived mostly in white society. I protested the Vietnam War and was active in the civil rights movement. And in the course of these activities, I began to think about my own background.

The wars against Korea and Vietnam made me very aware of American attitudes toward Asians, and the topic of camp came up from time to time. I ran into a therapist at a party who questioned me about my experience, and I brushed it off as not very important. But she pressed on, telling me how formative those early adolescent years were, that I should reexamine those times. This stuck with me, and when a movement for redress began to take shape, I joined in and worked at the legislative level and as a named plaintiff in a court case that went to the Supreme Court.

I learned that the most damaging event that occurred in the camps was a so-called loyalty questionnaire administered in 1943, mandatory for everyone 17 and older. It was used to separate the loyal from the disloyal. It was a poorly designed instrument, resulting in divided families, friends. On the question of agreeing to serve in the American military, to say no was to automatically designate disloyalty. My cousins said no and were charged with being draft dodgers. A sympathetic judge fined them one penny.

After the government turned the camp at Tule Lake into a segregation center for all disloyals and troublemakers, I watched friends loaded onto trucks to be taken there. By the flimsy logic of the day, our family should have been sent there as well  I never learned why we were not. Perhaps a fortunate oversight kept us out.

The government seemed hell-bent on tarnishing all of us as aliens  and enemy aliens at that. How could we remain loyal to a country that had held us captive for years, impoverishing us in so many ways? How were we to

respond to these humiliations and victimization? We were expected to disallow our Japanese heritage and submit to the demands of our captors. And we did. But it left us with a badly damaged community, an ever-present split between the loyals and disloyals, and a deep understanding about how vulnerable we were.

Ironically, we were very good at adapting and melting into the American middle class, earning the label of model minority. In my own case, I lost my primal language, distanced myself from the American-Japanese community, and for many years didnt look back. We paid a heavy emotional price, and the issue of identity has always dogged us: Can we truly be American?

Its been a long time since World War II, and one would think that Poston would be a fading memory, but it is not. I have made pilgrimages to Tule Lake, seeking a better understanding of our history. Though I have spent my years in white society and my children are half white, I am certain that given particular circumstances, I could be targeted again for my political views, ethnic background, for my religion or being a member of a group identified as other.

I am not bitter, but I remain quite angry. I am a liberal, a believer in equality, but I am also a cynic. I dont think that our Founding Fathers really meant to extend equality to everybody, but the words and sentiments remain part of our Constitution. The struggle for our ideals continues, and it is necessary to remind us about what happened to me and 120,000 other Americans, because without that memory, it could easily happen again.

Chizu Omori is a freelance journalist and co-producer of the documentary Rabbit in the Moon with her sister Emiko Omori, chronicling the experiences of Japanese Americans in WWII internment camps. This essay is part of What It Means to Be American, a partnership of the Smithsonians National Museum of American History and Zocalo Public Square.

This article is featured in the May/June 2017 issue of The Saturday Evening Post. Subscribe to the magazine for more art, inspiring stories, fiction, humor, and features from our archives.

Originally published at Zocalo Public Square (zocalopublicsquare.org).
Herpetologists are claiming they have discovered a new species of frog living in the Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador.

The glassfrogs, or glass frogs, are amphibians of the family Centrolenidae, with more than 150 species.

They are found in the Neotropics, from southern Mexico, through Central America, into the northern half of South America, and along the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil and the extreme northeastern margin of Argentina.

The glassfrogs are generally small, ranging from 0.8 to 3 inches (2-7.5 cm) in length.

While the general background coloration of most glassfrogs is primarily green, the abdominal skin of some species is translucent.

The internal viscera, including the heart, liver, gastrointestinal tract, bones and even eggs are visible through the skin, hence the common name.

In a paper published recently in the journal ZooKeys, a team of scientists led by Dr. Juan Guayasamin of the Universidad San Francisco de Quito describes the new glassfrog species that they call the Yaku glassfrog (Hyalinobatrachium yaku).

The new species is a very small glassfrog at just 0.8 to 0.9 inches (2-2.2 cm) in length.

Hyalinobatrachium yaku can be distinguished by the relatively large dark green spots at the back of its head and the foremost part of the body, the researchers said.

Additionally, the new species has a characteristic long call.

The reproductive behavior is also quite unusual in this species: males are often reported to call from the underside of leaves and look after the egg clutches.

The Yaku glassfrog is only known from three localities on the Amazonian lowlands of Ecuador at elevations between 985-1,180 feet (300-360 m).

The two most-distant sites, Kallana in province of Pastaza, and San Jose de Payamino in province of Orellana, are approximately 68 miles (110 km) from one another, while Ahuano, province of Napo, is midway between them, Dr. Guayasamin and co-authors said.

Given the geographic distance between the localities where the new species has been found, it is likely that Hyalinobatrachium yaku has a broader distribution, including areas in nearby Peru.

_____

J.M. Guayasamin et al. 2017. A marvelous new glassfrog (Centrolenidae, Hyalinobatrachium) from Amazonian Ecuador. ZooKeys 673: 1-20; doi: 10.3897/zookeys.673.12108
The loss of bees peaked at an alarming survey result of 33.2 percent across the United States covering April 2016 to April 2017. The annual survey of bees lost during the period declared the second highest loss of bee colonies since the survey started eleven years ago. The loss rates were based on winter and summer losses that summed the overall loss of bees for the fiscal year.

The annual monitoring survey is conducted by the Bee Informed Partnership in Collaboration with the Apiary Inspectors of America. The study involves commercial and small scale honey bee producers to track losses of honey bee colonies throughout the country. The lowest loss on record was back in 2011 to 2012 when results show the figure at 29 percent loss of honey bee colonies. More information with these records are available in the Bee Informed Website.

Dennis Van Engelsdorp, assistant professor of entomology at the University of Maryland and Project Director of Bee Informed Partnership said that the past years saw lower losses of bee colonies in the country. The 33.2 percent loss of honey bee colonies is not good for business and the environment as well.

Honey bee colonies are indicators that the environment suits the habitat of bees in general. The loss of honey bee colonies is not a good sign of the wellness of bees' habitat that affects human settlements as well, reports Physics.Org.

The year 2015 to 2016 experienced the highest loss of honey bee colonies. The figure hit the 40.5 percent mark, although this year's decrease is a good sign for the honey bee industry, the present figure is still a considerable loss of honey bee colonies.

Researchers are continuously studying the factors regarding the loss of honey bee colonies. They identified factors that contribute to the rate of loss of honey bee colonies such as diseases and parasites that were the top culprits. The ultimate cause of the colony destruction is the parasite known as the "Varroa Mite." a lethal parasite that easily spreads across colonies causing havoc and death among honey bees. The awareness and utmost care of beekeepers kept the parasites at bay with the help of mite control and eradication products and preventive mite control measures, reports Los Angeles County Beekeepers.

Natalie Steinhauer, a graduate student at the UMD Department of Entomology is heading the data collection of the annual survey. She says that the loss of honey bee colonies indicate the wellbeing of the natural landscape that bees dwell. The environment affects the honey bees existence that could be disrupted by contaminants, parasites, and pests. They also encourage flower diversity in areas where they settle. Honey bee health is as important as the community.
As Vanguard America sees it, a white person these days just can't catch a break.

"We hear it every day: 'Whiteness' is evil, and must be destroyed," says the group on its website. "Our religion, our traditions and our identity are dragged through the mud by the globalist establishment while millions of nonwhites flood our nation every year."

Geez, these guys make Donald Trump sound like Bernie Sanders.

"If current trends continue, White Americans will be a minority by 2044," their statement babbles on. "It's time to take a stand."

Right. Whatever happened to lifting yourself up by your own bootstraps?

Why do these so-called "alt-right" white nationalist groups (I think neo-Nazi or neo-Ku Klux Klan is more accurate) tirelessly complain about intolerant, hypersensitive "snowflake" liberals even as they clutch their pearls and whine at the slightest offense to white male privilege?

I have tried mightily to ignore this latest surge in white supremacist activism that happens to have coincided with the rise of President Trump, until our son came home with one of the flyers that American Vanguard has distributed on the University of Maryland campus in College Park in the past academic year.

He was visibly upset. One of his closest white friends was falling for the white-Christian-supremacist bulljive.

"It's like I don't know him anymore, Dad," he said.

I sympathized. Some people are going to disappoint you in life, I counseled. Maybe your friend is just going through a phase. Maybe he is insecure and confused about growing up. That's the sort of easy mark that these crackpot groups try to enlist.

The University of Maryland fliers appeared three times on the campus this year. Similar fliers popped up at George Washington University in nearby Washington, where the FBI stepped in recently to help American University investigate the hanging of bananas in little nooses on campus. The strange fruit was found the same day that a black woman took office as student government president for the first time in the university's history.

The Anti-Defamation League says more than 140 such incidents have happened this academic year at more than 100 campuses in 33 states, with more than half of them since January. The newer groups go by such names as America Evropa, the Right Stuff and Traditionalist Worker Party.

The dangers in this national hate crusade poked through with bracing clarity on Friday as mourners gathered at the funeral of Richard Collins III, 23, a newly commissioned U.S. Army lieutenant.

Last weekend, three days before he was to graduate from Maryland's Bowie State University, he was stabbed to death while waiting for an Uber at 3 a.m. with two friends who were University of Maryland students at a bus stop on that campus.

A 22-year-old Maryland student named Sean Christopher Urbanski walked toward them, according to witnesses, and said gruffly, "Step left, step left if you know what's best for you."

Collins stood his ground. "No," he said.

With no more provocation than that, witnesses said, Urbanski stabbed Collins in the chest and fled. Collins died at the hospital. Urbanski was arrested a short distance away from the scene.

The story went viral nationally after police found on Urbanski's Facebook page that he was a member of an online hate group called "Alt-Reich Nation," a website that was later taken down.

Urbanski is white and Collins was black.

Campus police chief David Mitchell asked the FBI to assist after learning of Urbanski's connection to Alt-Reich, which Mitchell described as "despicable" in its extreme bias against women, Latinos, Jews and "especially African-Americans."

Yet Urbanski was charged with first- and second-degree murder and first-degree assault but not a hate crime. Evidence was insufficient to link Urbanski's racial attitudes to his alleged actions. His lawyer said drugs and alcohol may have been a factor.

At least we can see the claims of alt-right snowflakes proved wrong once again. White people still get the benefit of the doubt when suspected of a hate crime, as they should  just like anybody else.

As I tell my son for whatever good it does, students and university officials should push back against the racist right's recruitment drives, as long as they keep their actions peaceful. Bad speech must be met by better speech. Good people can't hide from hate, whether on campus or anywhere else.

Email Clarence Page at cpage@chicagotribune.com.
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A special open day is soon to take place in the Isle to highlight a new project in the area.

The event, taking place on Saturday, June 3, at St Andrew's Church, Epworth, is being hosted by the Isle of Axholme and Hatfield Chase Landscape Partnership and is highlighting the Castles and Manors Project.

Everyone is welcome to attend between 10am and 2pm to learn about upcoming archaeological investigations at Vinegarth in Epworth and how to get involved.

The Castles and Manors project is one of a number of projects being delivered by the partnership, with the aim of reconnecting people with their landscape and heritage. Robert Fish, from the partnership, is leading the project.

He said: "Epworth's prominence in medieval England has never been fully realised.

"Home of William de Mowbray, the most resolute of the 25 barons who held King John to account over Magna Carta and John de Mowbray, who gave his tenants free use of the fenlands around Epworth, it has been a fortress refuge and a focus for non-conformism and rebellion for centuries.

"To the east and south of St Andrew's Church stood the family's Manor House on land we know as Vinegarth. "Excavations in 1975 to 1976 revealed the foundations and flooring of the manor complex.

"According to informed opinion, there is more to be revealed and this project aims to fulfil these theories."

Robert Fish will be giving visitors tours of the Vinegarth site at the open day. The partnership will be on hand to talk to visitors about the project, volunteering opportunities, workshops and training.

There will be an interactive talk at 2pm on the Mowbray family by well-known historian and author Marilyn Roberts.

Local historian Melvyn Rose will also be taking people on a tour of St Andrew's Church and telling them about the history of the church.

Free fun craft activities will be taking place between 10.30am and 2pm for families to get involved in, including design your own medieval tile and stained glass window. For more details about the open day, contact the Landscape Partnership project team on 01724 297536 or email here .
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Scunthorpe Scorpions produced a terrific performance to take a losing bonus point from their away match with Newcastle.

After a traumatic 24 hours, where the Scorpions received the news that both Josh Auty and Josh Bailey had quit the club, Auty retiring and Bailey to take time out the sport, the team pulled together to salvage a 46-44 loss which gave them a losing bonus point on a track where they have traditionally struggled.

It was a great result, given the Scorpions had only five of their own riders, and they could have easily taken a win.

Promoter Rob Godfrey described the result as a "real tonic to the whole club."

The scores were close all night, with never more than four points separating the two sides, and Scorpions were two points ahead in the mid-stages of the meeting.

Lewis Kerr again led the way for Scorpions and won five of his six outings on his way to a 16-point-tally, including the only defeat of the evening of British under-21 Champion Robert Lambert.

Michael Palm Toft (12) and reserve Tero Aarnio (10+1) were also in double figures for Scorpions.

Godfrey said: "I know everyone who sees the final score of last night's meeting at Brough Park will think this is a great result for us, but there's also a part of me that realises that we could have won the meeting! So, while it's a big positive for us, it could have so easily been even better.

"Lewis Kerr and Michael Palm Toft were superb again. They have both demonstrated this season that they can beat the best in this league. Lewis beat Robert Lambert in heat 15 and Michael nearly did that in heat 13 as well.

"It's re-assuring to me, that given what's happened over the last few days, to know that we still have real quality in the team in the shape of Lewis and Michael.

"Plus whatever we do with the team, we're going to end up with at least one reserve who can still a lot of points, like Tero did at Brough Park.

"Young Jack-Parkinson Blackburn also put in a tremendous performance as our guest at number seven.

"Now we've had two riders quit, I'm more focused on what the club needs to do going forward. Our performance at Newcastle reiterated to me what our strengths are, and also our weaknesses that we need to work on.

"Newcastle is traditionally a track where we fare very poorly, where we've taken some pastings, but we've now laid that bogey.

"Given off-track events, it was a real tonic to the whole club."

The Scorpions scheduled home meeting with the Diamonds this afternoon has now been called off.

NEWCASTLE 46: Robert Lambert 14, Ashley Morris 5+1, Lewis Rose 6+2, Ludvig Lindgren 7, Steve Worrall 9, Ben Hopwood 5+2, Connor Coles 0.

SCUNTHORPE 44: Michael Palm Toft 12, Carl Wilkinson 4+1, Lewis Kerr 16, Ryan Douglas 0, rider replacement for Josh Auty, Tero Aarnio 10+1, Jack Parkinson-Blackburn 2+1.
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The Conservatives have a good chance of winning Scunthorpe, according to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government.

Sajid Javid was visiting Scunthorpe on the election trail to look at the proposed new market site on Ashby High Street.

Plans have been submitted to relocate the existing market onto Ashby Broadway.

Mr Javid said that the Tory candidate for the seat, Holly Mumby-Croft, was a good local champion for the area and had a chance of taking the seat.

"I think we have a good chance at this election," he said.

"Holly is a fantastic local candidate and there is an opportunity here to elect a good local champion."

He added that the 800,000 market relocation plans show that the Conservatives have helped encourage business in Scunthorpe.

"I've seen projects like this being done up and down the country," he said.

"We have been encouraging councils to help fresh thinking in business."

The visit comes as the Conservatives are looking to make gains in northern Labour seats.

Along with the Prime Minister, the Chancellor, Philip Hammond, has also paid a visit to Scunthorpe.

Despite the targeting of the town for the upcoming election, Mrs Mumby-Croft has said the local party is taking nothing for granted.

She said: "We would never be complacent about where people choose to give their support, local people will think carefully about who they want to be their prime minister after the election and who they want representing us all on important issues such as the Brexit negotiations."

She added that the local party has had a good response on the doorstep.

"Our teams have had a great reaction on the doorstep, people are really keen to talk about local issues and their support for Theresa May and the Conservative Party nationally," she said.

"The most important message is that we must not be complacent."

Meanwhile, opinion polls have shown a decrease in the Conservatives lead in recent weeks.

The party has seen Labour cut its lead to single figures in some polls.

Labour currently holds a majority of 3,134 in the Scunthorpe constituency.

During his visit in support of Labour candidate, Nic Dakin, deputy leader Tom Watson said the party is 'fighting every day' to close the polling gap.

Voters will be going to the polls on June 8 for the General Election.
The ITS, which has been effective since 3 May, will provide transit times and direct services between Thailand, Singapore Port Klang and Indonesia. The port rotation is Port Klang, Singapore, Semarang, Surabaya, Port Klang, Singapore, Bangkok, Laem Chabang, and back to Port Klang.

From 11 June, the VJS will start operation providing sailing schedules and direct services between Northern Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia. The port rotation will be Port Klang, Singapore, Pasir Gudang, Haiphong, Pasir Gudang, Singapore and back to Port Klang.
Sembmarine will supply and be a trained installation partner for the patented De Nora BALPURE slip stream electrochlorination system, which is ideally suited to large vessels with high ballast flow rates and utilizes unique self-cleaning electrodes.

The collaboration between De Nora and Sembmarine will enable the BWTS to be made available through a turnkey offering from the yard which includes project management vessel survey, integration design engineering, ballast water management system equipment selection, and retrofit installation services.

This partnership will also allow Sembmarine to offer both leading types of ballast water treatment, UV and electrochlorination, as full end-to-end turnkey supply and installation solutions for shipowners.

Don Stephen, managing director, BALPURE systems at De Nora Water Technologies commented: It has long been recognised that no ballast water treatment system provides a one size fits all solution. Different vessel types, sizes and routes have differing demands and requirements from a ballast water treatment system.

Being able to offer a full solution to customers with high ballast flow rates in conjunction with Sembmarine, gives peace of mind to customers on their choice of ballast water treatment retrofit in a challenging time for the industry, Stephen said.

The De Nora BALPURE equipment is IMO type approved with US Coast Guard (USCG) Alternate Management System (AMS) Acceptance and is currently progressing through both land-based and shipboard testing for compliance with USCG ballast water management legislation and renewal of its IMO certification.
The venue alone was different  the briefing was held onboard the ferry Vision of the Fjords - but the promise that none of the assembled 30 journalists would be taking notes for the first 10 minutes was an intriguing one.

The reason was that the first part of the briefing was to prove to be more immersive than most with the journalists donning virtual reality headsets for a VR experience with a tour of the containership Shanghai Express which included a drone flight over the engine room.

It was certainly an innovative and suitable way to present on digitalisation and certainly left a more lasting impression than yet another powerpoint presentation.
DNV GL is set to launch a new data management platform  Veracity  which has been running as pilot for 18 months. Veracity is a data management platform where DNV GL is the neutral data management custodian, DNV GL group president and ceo Remi Eriksen told a media briefing on Monday in Oslo.

We have to trust the sensors generating the data, we have to trust , we have to trust the people and partners who have access to the data, Eriksen stated.

With digitalistion referred to as the fourth industrial revolution Eriksen is looking for DNV GL to provide its customers with something he dubbed Trust 4.0.

We have always been entrusted with data by our customers in the analogue world and I believe it is now time to bring this into the digital world, and I like to think of that as Trust 4.0 and the driving force behind our new data programme Vercacity, Eriksen stated.

We know many of our customers struggle to manage their data supply chains. Many times the users of the data do not know the origin of the data, the context in which it was born, the legal and contractual frameworks and the obligations that goes with the data. These are the problems and this lack of knowledge is the key barrier to unlocking the data and those are exactly the challenges we relish at DNV GL.

There also needs to be trust in the quality of the data and Eriksen noted that they had seen more issues with quality of data than they originally had expected.

DNV GL  Maritime ceo Knut rbeck-Nilssen, explained: Veracitys data quality assessment service is based on the fact that we have seen too many datasets with low quality. Our new unique service is based on a Recommended Practice and embeds 17 different data quality dimensions which are numerically checked and displayed in a dashboard and heatmap. This lets us not only understand the quality of the data, but improve it.

Veracity has been on an 18 month pilot project with Japan's NYK and an undisclosed OEM.

DNV GL is currently offering what it terms private previews of the new services with a wider rollout at the of Q3 and in Q4 this year.
Press Release

May 29, 2017 PRC DISPLAYS POWER OF HUMANITY AMID MARAWI CITY SIEGE - GORDON As government troops and members of the ISIS-inspired Maute group and Abu Sayyaf engage in gunfights for the sixth day after the latter placed parts of Marawi City under siege, the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) continues to extend humanitarian assistance to the city's internally-displaced persons (IDPs). Senator Richard J. Gordon, concurrent PRC Chairman and chief executive officer, commended PRC's staff and volunteers for becoming the light for the affected residents in the city's dark hour. "So immensely proud of Red Cross Volunteers. This is the power of humanity. It ain't easy. PRC Volunteers do a lot of heavy lifting for suffering humanity in Lanao. They do it because they want to be part of the solution," he said. Gordon said that at least 90 personnel, six staff and 84 volunteers, have been deployed to assist some 40,357 families that were affected by the siege. The services provided include medical and relief assistance, psychological services and welfare desks to advise and assist IDPs. As of 8 am today, PRC has supplied 18 units of blood to the Adventist Medical Center where the wounded are admitted. PRC's health assistance also included first aid management, administering vaccinations, transporting patients to hospitals, and providing cadaver bags, among others. In the evacuation centers, PRC has provided water to IDPs in the evacuation ventersfor drinking and other sanitary requirements (5,800 liters of water distributed to date). In addition, PRC has been providing hot meals and other food items to IDPs. Welfare desks have been set up along highways, gymnasiums and hospitals. Some individuals were assisted in finding their families, while others were also given psychological support. "I advise everyone to keep safe and be alert at all times. Let us take this dark hour in our history as a time to reflect on our country. Let us work together in Mindanao as one to ensure everybody's safety! In this dark hour, let's be the light for our fellow countrymen. Regardless of religion, remember we are one people and one country," Gordon stressed.
Press Release

May 29, 2017 Legarda: We Need a Roadmap for Paris Agreement Implementation Senator Loren Legarda today said the Paris Agreement on climate change will be mere ink on paper without a roadmap of what government agencies and the private sector must do to help achieve the goals of the treaty. Speaking at the Tripartite Conference on the Philippine Roadmap for the Paris Accord at the Manila Hotel, Legarda said the Philippines' accession to the Paris Agreement is a testament of the country's strong commitment to work with the rest of the world in ensuring the survival of this generation and the generations to come, and the ability of the Earth to sustain life. "But even as the Paris Agreement has been hailed by many as a landmark agreement, its aspirations will not happen on its own. Effective enforcement emanates from everyone's understanding and appreciation of responsibility and accountability," she stressed. "Now that we are officially a Party to the Paris Agreement, we need to ensure that we are able to determine our path towards sustainable, low carbon development through Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) that are transformational and ambitious," she added. Legarda, Chair of the Senate Committees on Climate Change and Finance, said that the government must create sectoral roadmaps especially in the energy, transport and agriculture sectors. The budget of government agencies should support the NDC goals and al government projects, including those foreign funded, must be aligned with the Agreement as well as with other international frameworks for development such as the Sustainable Development Goals and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. Local government units should carry out climate resilience initiatives and access the People's Survival Fund. Moreover, the Climate Change Commission should promote an energy efficiency rating system for residences and business establishments, and carbon offsetting, and initiate capacity development in strengthening understanding of climate change and disaster risk for resilient and sustainable development planning. "It is also important that the Philippines continues to champion climate justice for the climate vulnerable. We must monitor the implementation of the Paris Agreement especially in operationalizing financing for mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage, technology transfer and capacity building," said Legarda. "We are called upon to pursue a development path consistent with the 1.5 degrees Celsius goal to protect our people and the environment. We are challenged to do more, to do better, and to be more innovative. We cannot be forever vulnerable. Let us not just live with the risks; let us deal with it," Legarda concluded. The Tripartite Conference on the Philippine Roadmap for the Paris Accord was organized by civil society conveners group led by former Senators Heherson Alvarez and Joey Lina in partnership with the government and the international community. Legarda was the forum's Keynote Speaker.
Press Release

May 29, 2017 MINORITY SENATORS TO CONGRESS: CONVENE JOINT SESSION ON MARTIAL LAW IN MINDANAO MANILA - After the declaration of martial law in Mindanao last week, Minority Senators Bam Aquino, Leila De Lima, Frank Drilon, Risa Hontiveros, Francis Pangilinan, and Antonio Trillanes on Monday filed Senate Resolution No. 390 calling on Congress to perform its "sacred duty and peremptory obligation" and hold a joint session. The joint session seeks to deliberate President Rodrigo Duterte's Proclamation No. 216 entitled "Declaring a State of Martial Law and Suspending the Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus in the Whole of Mindanao." Citing Section 18, Article VII of the Constitution, the senators said, "Congress has the sacred duty and peremptory obligation to seek information surrounding and assess the factual basis for the proclamation and, if warranted, revoke the same." Earlier, several lawmakers said that there is no need for a joint session, and that it is unlikely for Congress to revoke the President's martial law declaration. But, the minority senators said the four bases for the conduct of the joint session are: 1. The Supreme Court decision in Fortun v. Macapagal-Arroyo (G.R. No. 190293, March 20, 2012) explains that the President and the Congress "act in tandem" in exercising the power to proclaim martial law or suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus. "They exercise the power, not only sequentially, but in a sense jointly since, after the President has initiated the proclamation or the suspension, only the Congress can maintain the same based on its own evaluation of the situation on the ground, a power that the President does not have," according to the Supreme Court decision. "Consequently, although the Constitution reserves to the Supreme Court the power to review the sufficiency of the factual basis of the proclamation or suspension in a proper suit, it is implicit that the Court must allow Congress to exercise its own review powers, which is automatic rather than initiated. XXX The constitutional validity of the President's proclamation of martial law or suspension of the writ of habeas corpus is first a political question in the hands of Congress before it becomes a justiciable one in the hands of the Court," read the same decision. 2. The senators also cited the nation's "painful experience with the imposition of martial law under the Marcos dictatorship." They said this history "became impetus for the clear limitations on the President's exercise of the extraordinary powers, including the discretion granted to Congress to make an independent determination if the constitutional grounds for the limited curtailment of the people's rights are followed." 3. As the President exercises the most extensive of government powers as head of state, head of government, and the commander-in-chief, his extra powers to declare martial law and suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus must strictly comply with the Constitution. 4. Moreover, they noted the "constitutional mandates of transparency and accountability in government, respecting the right of the citizen to information of public interest, and the fundamental underlying principle of checks and balances amongst the separate branches of government." Thus, the minority senators said, a joint session of the Senate and the House of Representatives should determine the constitutional and factual validity of the proclamation, prevent abuses in its implementation, and ensure the safety of the people of Marawi and the whole of Mindanao. Attachement: PSR No. 390
Press Release

May 29, 2017 Villar urges protection of Philippine Rise Sen. Cynthia Villar pushed for the protection of the Philippine Rise as the latest addition to Philippine territory. The chairperson of the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources and on Agriculture and Food, said "the territory of the Philippines nearly doubled in size with the addition of resource-rich waters and spawning ground of assorted fish species." "That there is a vast amount of natural resources there and that those resources can adequately provide the food requirements of Filipinos-are just two very important reasons why we need to defend and protect the Philippine Rise. And why I support the call of Oceana and other concerned groups for its immediate protection," Villar said. Villar also said that recent developments such as President Duterte's order to rename it as Philippine Rise and the planned actions of establishing a permanent facility are clear efforts to assert our territorial rights at Philippine Rise. "The protection of Philippine Rise stresses the need to protect the oceans, the source of wild catch, given the experts' prediction that if oceans are not given time to recover from rampant illegal fishing and destruction of marine habitat, they could become 'virtual deserts' by 2050," Villar said. Originally called Benham Rise, the Philippine Rise is a 24.4-million hectare undersea region located east of Luzon. Executive Order No. 25 issued on May 16, 2017, states that the region is located within the Philippine exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, as well as the outer limits of the continental shelf in accordance with the recommendations of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf issued on April 12, 2012. To drum up support for the protection of the new territory, Villar, together with Sens. Sherwin Gatchalian and Juan Miguel Zubiri, and Atty. Gloria Estenzo Ramos, vice president, Oceana Philippines, led the opening today of an exhibit on the Philippine Rise at the Senate. The event also included a 20-minute film showing on the expedition done at Benham Bank, the shallowest part of the undersea feature. The expedition was composed of a team of scientists from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, University of the Philippine Marine Biological Society and Oceana. The team documented a vast coral reef ecosystem and at least 170 fish species, including tiger sharks and tuna. They also documented the highest recorded coral coverage in the country.
A plan to open up BART stations to everything from Dunkin Donuts to Ghirardelli Chocolate outlets has gone off the rails, with the firm that was behind the idea now suing the transit agency for alleged breach of contract and claiming tens of millions in damages.

The lawsuit clearly demonstrates that BART was an unreliable partner and did not participate in good faith, nor did it make its internal decisions in a timely manner, said Evette Davis, spokeswoman for TransMart, the company that promised to attract a range of franchise outlets for BARTs 43 stations.

BART has a different view: Our position is that TransMart failed to comply with its contractual obligations, said agency spokesman Jim Allison.

It all started back in 2008 when BART received an unsolicited bid from San Francisco housing developer Alexis Wong, whose political connections had landed her appointments to various state boards and commissions over the years. She told BART she could fill the stations with businesses, creating boatloads of cash for the agency.

TransMart, the company Wong formed to undertake the effort, landed the deal on an 8-1 vote of the BART Board of Directors in 2011. Three years later, about the only thing the firm had to show for its efforts were a couple of pop-up Blinq stores at the Embarcadero and Montgomery stations. The stores  aimed mostly at promoting Wongs online business, selling everything from clothing to electronics  have since closed.

BART eventually let TransMarts contract expire, saying the firm had failed to meet a deadline to deliver at least nine retail stores to stations by August 2016.

It was in everyones best interest, we felt, to end the relationship, Allison said.

Now TransMart has sued in Alameda County Superior Court, claiming BART failed to act in good faith on a deal that Wongs lawyers say was worth as much as $95 million to the company.

The suit alleges that BART held up the firms store designs, drastically cut the amount of space it was promised and acted inappropriately in rejecting TransMarts financial plans.

These guys dragged their feet, Darius Ogloza, an attorney for TransMart, told us. Or alternatively, they lost interest and just decided to kill this thing.

San Francisco Chronicle columnists Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross appear Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Matier can be seen on the KPIX TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call (415) 777-8815, or email matierandross@ sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @matierandross
Some came for their boots and hard hats. Others for their final paycheck. They stood outside the shipyard gates at Pier 70 with trash bags full of work clothes and talked about stuff people usually talk about when the boss lays everyone off.

Medical insurance. Pensions. Job prospects. Who was responsible for messing up their lives.

At 8 oclock, a horn blasted in the yard. Break time! joked Eric Lee, who spent 12 good years at the shipyard. Of course, there was nobody left to take a break.

After 150 years of continuous operation, the shipyard at Pier 70 shut down Friday, the victim of a legal squabble between a multinational corporation and a much smaller company. The big boy no longer wanted to operate the business while the little guy thought better of taking it over when it became apparent the repair facility itself was in need of millions of dollars of repairs.

Stuck in the middle was the Port of San Francisco, which owns the dry docks, and the men and women for whom the shipyard  and the majestic vessels they repaired  was both a living and a way of life.

Paul Chinn/The Chronicle

For a dozen years, BAE Systems, which has a $27 billion market cap, operated the repair facility, which consists of two dry docks. One, Dry Dock No. 2, is a monumental steel cradle capable of lifting sparkling white 900-foot cruise ships weighing 60,000 tons. The other, named Eureka, is smaller: at 528 feet long, it can hoist ships weighing 14,500 tons.

For most of that time, BAE kept the bigger of the two dry docks busy  it was the largest working dry dock on the West Coast and the only one capable of hoisting the late-model, jumbo cruise ships out of the water. But then a bigger dry dock, with larger cranes, opened near Portland, Ore., and the cruise ships migrated north.

Meanwhile, BAE decided San Francisco didnt fit into its ship repair plan, which consists mostly of multibillion-dollar contracts with the U.S. Navy at facilities adjacent to Navy yards in the southern United States, Hawaii and Southern California. It sold the Pier 70 business to Puglia Engineering, which is based in Washington state. Puglia paid just $1 for the business but assumed $38 million in pension liabilities.

When Puglia took over, there had consistently been 250 employees at the shipyard, a number that went up when things were busy and down during slow periods. In February, six weeks after assuming control of the yard, Puglia filed notice of imminent closure. In a deal with the port, it agreed to keep it open for 90 days but laid off many workers in February and more in March. On Friday, it was goodbye to the bare-bones crew  fewer than a dozen  that had stayed on to wind things down. But others who had been previously pink-slipped showed up to witness the sad conclusion.

Its painful, and its frustrating, said Gerry Roybal, maritime marketing manager for the port. Ive developed these relationships with these people. I worry about their future. These people were really harmed by what happened. The port was really harmed by what happened.

Shipyard workers say Puglia never really showed up at Pier 70. Representatives from company headquarters appeared only a handful of times after taking over the lease. The signs on the property still say BAE. After the U.S. Navy ship Carl Brashear, which was in dry dock when BAE was still in charge, the only business that came in was a minor barge job.

We dont know what a person from Puglia looks like, said Carlisa Coleman, who worked as a painter and sandblaster for 18 years. We never even met one.

Instead of putting the shipyard employees to work, Puglia put a team of lawyers to work, suing BAE and alleging in court that it had been misled into thinking the two dry docks were well-maintained and could be put to immediate use.

Instead, Puglia said, it discovered the smaller of the two dry docks had deteriorated to an extent that it would cost $9 million to make it operational. In addition, the lawsuit says an additional $12 million in dredging is needed.

In a cross complaint, BAE called Puglia a sophisticated buyer that spent more than a year conducting its own due diligence of the business and its assets. Puglia would not comment.

Paul Chinn/The Chronicle

Workers say they blame both companies.

We got caught up in a bad business deal, Coleman said. We got played by people with money and power. How do you buy a company on Jan. 2 and before the end of May you close it? Who does that? If Puglia didnt have the money to run the shipyard, they should have left us alone.

Eric Lee, a San Francisco native who lives in Ingleside Heights, said being a maritime worker is his life. As a high school graduate, he has been able to make a middle-class living  upward of $70,000 and $80,000 a year. He is a homeowner.

Were human beings. Were workers. Were residents of San Francisco. I was depending on my pension. I was depending on retiring as a maritime worker in San Francisco, Lee said.

Workers said they will miss the ships as much as the shipyard. On Friday, Lee was wearing a hat with the Carl Brashear insignia on it  one of his favorite vessels along with the Amelia Earhart and the Jeremiah OBrien.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

James White, who grew up in the Sunset Districts Oceanside neighborhood, said that he was in state prison in 2010 when he saw a program about the dry dock on the National Geographic Channel show Worlds Toughest Fixes. It was about a cruise ship, the Sea Princess. Despite being a city native, he didnt realize there were still blue-collar jobs on the waterfront. When he was released, he made getting a shipyard job his top priority.

This yard changed my life, he said. I went from sitting in a box to being able to walk around with the captain of a ship and actually know exactly what I was talking about. I understand the language of the shipping industry.

Coleman said the workers are in a tough spot, going from steady work to no work in a short period of time.

I dont have a Plan B, a lot of us dont have a Plan B, she said. We dont know how we are going to pay our bills, feed or families or get medical insurance.

But port Director Elaine Forbes said there is some hope for the workers. She said several shipyard operators are interested in taking over the yard. The port hopes to have a new request for proposal issued before the end of July.

Its a sad situation, but Im hoping its only temporarily sad, Forbes said. We are getting calls from operators who think there is a viable market for ship repair in San Francisco.

J.K. Dineen is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jdineen@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @sfjkdineen
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Two people were killed and six injured, some critically, Monday morning when a truck and a minivan collided in Alameda, police said.

Shortly after 8 a.m., Alameda police and fire personnel were called to Park Street and Lincoln Avenue in response to a 911 call of a rollover vehicle collision.

The minivan had moderate damage, and the driver was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The other vehicle, a full-size truck, was badly damaged, and two of the seven occupants were killed, Alameda police said in a statement.

One woman was pronounced dead at the scene, and a man died from his injuries at Highland Hospital. The other five people in the truck were taken to hospitals, with critical injuries.

No information has been release about the victims of the crash.

Eva Padgett, a nurse who lives in an apartment above the crash site on Park Street, had just finished a night shift, walked her dog and was putting together dirty laundry when she heard the worst possible sound Ive ever heard in my life.

I have a big dog, and shes not scared of anything, she said. And she just absolutely went crazy.

She ran outside to find several people had been ejected from the truck, including one young man facedown on the asphalt.

Paramedics arrived quickly and cut the roof off the truck, inside of which several occupants were trapped, Padgett said.

The Alameda Police Departments Major Accident Investigation Team was called to the scene. Police said the truck was speeding down Park Street from Oakland when it clipped the front of the minivan, causing the truck to spin out of control and roll over down the block, toppling several light poles and a tree as it went.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The silver truck came to a stop in front of Alameda Bicycle on Park Street, one of the main thoroughfares in Alameda filled with shops and restaurants.

Broken glass, shoes and debris surrounded the truck on the street, as did the felled tree.

Throughout the morning and into the afternoon of Memorial Day, passersby exchanged stories and rumors about what happened as they queued up in front of nearby brunch spots and snapped photos of the scene under the overcast sky.

Police tape closed several blocks of Park Street and adjacent roads throughout the day as traffic investigators gathered evidence to piece together a picture of what happened.

No pedestrians were injured.

Kimberly Veklerov

is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @KVeklerov
If youve driven past the Moscone Center lately, you might have noticed something missing  the big hall that hosted the 1984 Democratic National Convention. Its now a giant hole in the ground, soon to be the site of an even bigger hall.

In the meantime, however, its also a hole in the local economy.

Cratering the convention hall is part of a $500 million, 3-year makeover of the Moscone Center. When its done, the city will be able to host as many as a dozen more conventions annually than it did with the old building.

But it comes at a short-term cost: Convention bookings at Moscone have dropped from 61 two years ago  before the construction began  to 38 this fiscal year, which ends next month.

We have definitely seen the hotel tax cooling off in the city in the current year, driven almost entirely from room rates coming down, said City Controller Ben Rosenfield. Hotel tax revenue has fallen $16 million from last year and looks to remain flat next year, he said.

The controllers office is also bracing for a sales tax slump from restaurants and stores that cater to conventioneers.

Still, San Francisco remains second only to New York in hotel occupancy, said Joe DAlessandro, head of the convention and visitors bureau San Francisco Travel. He said 86 percent of rooms in the city have been filled so far this year, only a slight drop from 2016.

Room prices are down, but not by a lot, DAlessandro said  to an average of $221 a night so far in 2017, compared with $229 a year ago.

DAlessandro said convention planners were able to blunt the impact of the Moscone rebuild by booking smaller events that could be hosted in hotel conference rooms rather than at a convention hall.

The project broke ground in May 2015, but the real effects werent felt until both Moscone South and North were closed in April. Portions of the new complex will open this fall  in time to host the big Salesforce and Oracle conventions  but the last dab of paint wont be applied until December 2018.

Still, DAlessandro insists the disruption will pay off big. Moscone South and North will be better connected, and the corridors beneath the street will include 500,000 square feet of contiguous meeting space. The two buildings will also be linked by a pair of new pedestrian bridges over Howard Street, one of which will be enclosed.

Once completed, Moscone will have a total of 1.5 million square feet of space  still less than convention centers in places like Las Vegas and Orlando, but enough to keep tourism San Franciscos No. 1 industry.

No sale: A plan to open BART stations to everything from Dunkin Donuts to Ghirardelli Chocolate outlets has gone off the rails, with the firm that was behind the idea now suing the transit agency for alleged breach of contract and claiming tens of millions of dollars in damages.

The lawsuit clearly demonstrates that BART was an unreliable partner and did not participate in good faith, nor did it make its internal decisions in a timely manner, said Evette Davis, spokeswoman for TransMart, the company that promised to attract a range of franchise outlets for BARTs 43 stations.

BART has a different view: Our position is that TransMart failed to comply with its contractual obligations, said agency spokesman Jim Allison.

It all started back in 2008, when BART received an unsolicited bid from San Francisco housing developer Alexis Wong, whose political connections had landed her appointments to various state boards and commissions over the years. She told BART she could fill the stations with businesses, creating boatloads of cash for the agency.

TransMart, the company Wong formed to undertake the effort, landed the deal on an 8-1 vote of the BART Board of Directors in 2011. Three years later, about the only thing the firm had to show for its efforts were a couple of pop-up Blinq stores at Embarcadero and Montgomery stations. The stores  intended mostly to promote Wongs online business, selling everything from clothing to electronics  have since closed.

BART eventually let TransMarts contract expire, saying the firm had failed to meet a deadline to deliver at least nine retail stores to stations by August 2016.

It was in everyones best interest, we felt, to end the relationship, Allison said.

Now TransMart has sued in Alameda County Superior Court, saying BART failed to act in good faith on a deal that Wongs lawyers say was worth as much as $95 million to the company.

The suit alleges that BART held up the firms store designs, drastically cut the amount of space it was promised, and acted inappropriately in rejecting TransMarts financial plans.

These guys dragged their feet, Darius Ogloza, an attorney for TransMart, told us. Or, alternatively, they lost interest and just decided to kill this thing.

San Francisco Chronicle columnists Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross appear Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Matier can be seen on the KPIX TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call (415) 777-8815, or email matierandross@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @matierandross
Editor s note: Here are five Bay Area startups worth watching this week.

In a booming real estate market like San Francisco, BuildZoom attempts to make it easier for homeowners to find a contractor that fits their needs.

The data is already available, we just make it easier, CEO and co-founder Jiyan Wei said as he sat in his 14th-floor office, a view of San Franciscos burgeoning skyline behind him.

BuildZoom, founded in 2013, is one of a number of startups that put public data in a format thats easier to search and retrieve. It faces stiff competition from established services, such as publicly traded Angies List and San Franciscos privately held Thumbtack, which connect people with workers.

The company gets its data from state licensing boards and local building departments around the country. Homeowners can search the database and find details about contractors, such as when they obtained their license and if it has ever been suspended. Users can also search an address to learn its permit history, which can reveal which contractor did the work.

There are about 3 million contractors listed on the BuildZoom site, along with 100 million permits. The San Francisco company could have seen increased attention last week on Crunchbase, a startup database, because of a recent a report by BuildZooms chief economist about the slowing expansion of U.S. cities.

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The company has about 75 employees, 25 of them in Manila. It has raised $12 million in funding. While some similar sites charge contractors for leads, BuildZoom takes a 2.5 percent commission when contractors win a bid for a project through its site. CEO Wei declined to comment on how many projects BuildZoom has been paid for.

Bay Area contractor Adam Barnum of Barnum Building and Design said BuildZoom has helped connect him to two big projects over the year and a half hes used the service. Barnum is currently in the midst of remodeling a home in Sausalito.

A lot of opportunities that come through my desk come through BuildZoom, Barnum said. The opportunity just shows up on my phone, and I can see if its a good match for what I do and a good match for my schedule.

Also trending:

Mezi

An artificially intelligent bot that helps users book travel plans, from flights to dinner reservations.

What happened: The company recently announced it hired Johnny Thorsen, a former CEO of mobile services company ConTgo who has 20 years of experience in the travel technology industry.

Why it matters: CEO Swapnil Shinde said Mezi streamlines the fragmented travel industry, where flights, dinner reservations and events are typically booked on different websites.

Headquarters: Sunnyvale

Funding: $12 million

Employees: 60

Expensify

An app that automates the filing of expense reports using credit card data and receipt images.

What happened: It released a new mobile app last week.

Why it matters: Most human resources software has yet to get a makeover. Expensify has adapted design and user interface techniques from consumer apps to expense reports.

Headquarters: San Francisco

Funding: $27 million

Employees: 110

Cricket Health

Offers software and services for dialysis care.

What happened: Won a startup competition at a national health care conference in Chicago last week.

Why it matters: This company is attempting to reshape the $100 billion chronic kidney care industry, a space that not many people in Silicon Valley have tackled.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Headquarters: San Francisco

Funding: $2.6 million

Employees: 12

Yup Technologies

A chat-based mobile tutoring company that connects students to tutors on demand, 24/7.

What happened: It recently acquired a Harvard startup called Quickhelp, which connects graduate and undergrad students with affordable tutors.

Why it matters: Education technology services can make tutoring more accessible for families who cant afford the extra cost.

Headquarters: San Francisco

Funding: $7.5 million

Employees: 17

Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadadni

How we pick the companies

Every week, The Chronicle and Crunchbase, a San Francisco firm that tracks key businesses in technology, analyze private Bay Area companies based on their financial backing, employees and activity on Crunchbase. We feature five that are moving up in the ranks. For more information on the companies: www.crunchbase.com
PORTLAND, Ore.  Muslims in Portland thanked the community for its support and said they were raising money for the families of two men who were killed when they came to the defense of two young women  one wearing a hijab  who were targeted by an anti-Muslim rant.

I am very thankful as a Muslim, I am very thankful as a Portlander ... that we stand together here as one, said Muhammad Najieb, an imam at the Muslim Community Center.

He said the two young women could have been the victims, but three heroes jumped in and supported them.

Najieb said a fundraising page launched by his group for the families of the dead men, the surviving victim and the two young women had raised more than $300,000 by Sunday evening.

Police said theyll examine what appears to be the extremist ideology of suspect Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, who is accused of killing the two men Friday. Christians social media postings show an affinity for Nazis and political violence.

Christian was being held on suspicion of aggravated murder, attempted murder, intimidation and being a felon in possession of a weapon. He was arrested a short time after the attack on a light-rail train when he was confronted by other men.

Alvin Hall said had just stepped off the train on Friday when he saw a man bleeding from the neck, KATU-TV reported. Hall said his instincts kicked in and he went after the suspect.

My first process was, What can I do? Where did he go? and someone said, He ran over to the bridge, Hall said.

He said he met Chase Robinson and Larry Blackwell, and the three men confronted the suspect, who turned on them with a knife.

The minute he saw me he started coming after me. Hes like, You want some of me, youre a snitch, Hall said.

Police arrived and took the suspect into custody.

The men killed were identified as Ricky John Best, 53, of Happy Valley, and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23, of Portland.

Police say Micah David-Cole Fletcher, 21, of Portland, was also stabbed and is in serious condition at a hospital. His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

Christian will make his first court appearance in the case Tuesday. The FBI said its too early to say whether the slayings qualify as a federal hate crime. However, Christian faces intimidation charges, the state equivalent of a hate crime.

Gillian Flaccus is an Associated Press writer.
The evening at Baker Beach was a postcard scene of San Francisco: bare-foot couples strolling on the beach, the golden-orange sun setting over the Pacific, a fog-free view of ships passing under the Golden Gate Bridge.

And 40 people in yoga pants dancing in the sand.

This is a really great way to experience San Francisco, especially if you like to be active and want to do something in a really iconic place, said Julianne Aiello, founder of Outdoor Yoga SF, who leads yoga sessions for tourists and locals on Baker Beach. But also its a way to connect with other people.

To be sure, waves of visitors still line up for cable car rides and Alcatraz cruises, but a growing number of vacationers here and elsewhere are signing up for experiential tourism, combining lesser-known sites with a healthy dose of interactions with other travelers and locals.

The workout-slash-dance party (creatively titled Sunset Silent Disco Yoga) is one of dozens of options offered in the Bay Area by home-share giant Airbnb as part of Trips, its new platform for finding local experiences to go along with lodging. With the move here and in 24 other cities, Airbnb becomes the newest player in an evolving segment of the tours industry that is targeting savvy travelers and Millennials looking for experiences that offer more personal connections. Instead of the traditional sightseeing bus or walking tour, these travelers are becoming craft brewers for a day, getting a crash course in glass-blowing and seeing top London sites whilst learning the ukulele.

In Aiellos 90-minute class about 20 feet from the waves, for instance, participants move through positions, listening to music and her instructions through wireless headphones. A break for dancing draws stares and smiles from people walking on the beach. Cost: $29 through Airbnb.

Spud Hilton/The Chronicle

While the bulk of travelers still wants to see popular landmarks and attractions, the trend toward immersive experiences is gaining momentum, said Ken Frohling, vice president of global partnerships for travel review site TripAdvisor, which owns tour-booking site Viator.

A lot of travelers really want to feel or experience the culture of a destination, and weve seen a whole crop of tour providers, professional companies, come about that are doing just that. That are giving the traveler a real local experience, and even a hands-on experience, Frohling said.

Theres plenty of incentive for companies to branch out. Tours and attractions, a subcategory of the $129 billion travel activities market worldwide, accounted for $55 billion globally in 2016, according to marketing research company Phocuswright. The subcategory includes a broad range, from sightseeing tours, cruise shore excursions and walking tours, to attractions, such as museums, zoos and amusement parks. During the same year, 25.1 million visitors to San Francisco spent $8.98 billion, according to San Francisco Travel.

It seems unlikely, however, that Airbnb will be a disrupter in this field the way it has been in lodging, according to industry experts.

Despite Airbnb dubbing its Trips concept as revolutionary when it was unveiled in November, the shift toward immersive experiences and community connections had been in motion for years. As early as 2011, San Francisco startup Vayable was offering offbeat and immersive experiences, including a Homeless for a Day tour of the Tenderloin, led by a homeless guide. By 2012, Vayable was offering 2,500 unique travel experiences in 600 cities. Similarly, the San Francisco booking site If Only started pairing luxury-experience-seekers with high-end trips, meals and lessons back in 2012.

Among the other companies that have branched out are Urban Adventures, SideTour (picked up by Groupon), and Trip4Real, which Airbnb bought a month before unveiling Trips. Of the two largest tour booking sites, Viator began to add immersive offerings in earnest last year, but GetYourGuide doesnt show any sign of veering away from mainstream tours.

As of last week, Airbnb had about 1,100 experiences in more than 25 cities. Beyond yoga on Baker Beach, experiences include coffee roasting in Cape Town, mixing perfumes in Florence, and exploring an organic farm in Bangkok.

One of the better examples of what Airbnb wants, said company spokesman Andres La Mesa, is Madame Renaissance, a two-day encounter with a retired college art professor that includes creating art and discussing culture over a meal. We dont want cookie-cutter, non-authentic, impersonal experiences where youre just walking around and seeing things, but youre not connecting with a person.

In the future, whenever someone is traveling somewhere, we would like them to be able not only to stay in the home with the host, but also to find an experience that really matches their passion, La Mesa said. Hopefully, these experiences can complement what people are already doing, which is seeing the main landmarks or the main monuments. This is just a way to create more local type of travels.

Last week, Airbnb released its own travel magazine, Airbnbmag  the pilot issue focuses on some lesser-known destinations, immersive experiences, personal stories and, predictably, a roundup of lakeside villas that can be booked on Airbnb. (Note: The magazine is published by a division of Hearst Corp., the company that owns The Chronicle.)

The industry is taking note, said Deanna Ting, hospitality editor for travel news site Skift.com.

It has a ripple effect on the industry overall. Its showing there is an importance to destination experiences, she said, and that the accommodation industry should be thinking more about what guests are doing when theyre not in the hotel room.

According to industry experts, Airbnb is facing a couple of hurdles, including that the great majority of tours are still booked offline, in person and often last-minute once travelers get to the destination. In this case, however, said Ting, Airbnbs brand recognition and user base make them better suited to succeed.

Another hurdle is one that all tour-related companies face, and that is more of a variable with Airbnbs peer-to-peer philosophy  ensuring that experience hosts are qualified and can provide a consistent experience. Put another way: Subletting your apartment doesnt require a lot of special training or qualifications, but tours are generally considered a professional service. How many people would get a haircut from a peer-to-peer barber?

With a tour, peoples expectations are higher. The logistics are much more challenging, said Ting. Theres a lot more stuff you have to consider when youre hosting a trip than when youre hosting a home.

La Mesa said Airbnb is committed to a more strenuous vetting process than was necessary for home hosts. He points to the companys vetting protocol, which includes that hosts have any required licensing necessary for their experience. Most hosts qualify for

$1 million in liability insurance coverage, except for certain trips, such as experiences like helicopter rides and other motorized vehicles, according to a company statement.

Of the 34,000 people who have applied to be experience hosts on Airbnb, 6,000 have completed their submissions.

The goal of the vetting protocol is to make sure that every single host hits the same standard, he said. We want to make sure that quality is the most important thing.

Consensus among industry watchers  especially as booking tours continues to shift from on-site to online  is that quality and consistency are maintained through reviews, something with which Airbnb members are already familiar.

On Baker Beach, if yoga-body-language is any indication, the reviews were positive. Instructor Aiello said having Airbnb as an outlet has provided a new way to reach people interested in a nontraditional yoga experience.

It tends to attract people who want to do something different, who want to connect with other travelers, meet new people. Theyre open-minded, she said. The last class I had on Sunday, I had someone from Sweden, Poland, Australia. I had people from all over the world here.

Yoga participant Carly Holthaus, an airline attendant and travel blogger based in Minneapolis but with family in the Bay Area, said she decided to try it because it was something different.

I look for local and community events. Im always searching and trying to find the latest thing, she said after the class. Definitely I would have my friends come to this.

And, supposedly, make a few friends along the way.

Spud Hilton is the editor of Travel. Email: shilton@sfchronicle.com Twitter and Instagram: @SpudHilton

Not your average tour

Be a Las Vegas Stripper

Company: Vayable.com

City: San Francisco, Las Vegas

Cost: $269 for two days and consultations

Guide: Ex-stripper Genevieve Jackson

Summary: Genevieve will help you choose a club for you and tell you what you need to do to get ready for the trip. She will then meet you at your destination and provide helpful guidance  makeup tips, dance moves, and clothing advice. ... She will come with you to your audition and even work alongside you for the first shift if you like. After your first shift, youll debrief together over breakfast.

Build a Burning Man Art Car

Company: Vayable.com

City: Alameda

Cost: $10 per day

Guide: Greg, builder of functional art

Description: Join the monthly crew of my burning man camp members and friends as we hammer, weld, shape and adorn a life-size sea vessel into existence for this years burning man.

Learn acrobatic stunts

from an A-list body double

Company: Airbnb

City: Venice Beach, Muscle Beach

Cost: $69 for 2 hours

Guide: Soop, a body double for A-list actors, including Sylvester Stallone, Dwayne the Rock Johnson and Jason Statham.

Description: Whether you are alone or with a partner, basing or flying (proper acrobatic terminology), you will learn to use your entire body as a tool to create Cirque du Soleil-type sculptures. Alongside the locals, I will safely guide you through each step and lead you further than you ever thought you were capable of going.

See top London sites whilst learning

the ukulele

Company: Airbnb

City: London

Cost: $128 for 3 hours

Guide: Sarah, a uke enthusiast.

Description: Well spend the afternoon catching all the top attractions  but this isnt any normal walking tour: every place we visit will be linked to a chord or technique on the ukulele. By the end of the afternoon youll be able to play a whole repertoire of songs.

Taipei Taxi Diary

Company: Urban Adventures

City: Taipei, Taiwan

Cost: $124 for 3 hours

Guide: Professional full-time cabdrivers

Description: Ride along in the passenger seat of a taxi, not as a customer but an observer, as the driver picks up fares and chats about the city. Theres no standard route, just wherever customers need to go.
Jacom Stephens/Getty Images

Coast Guard officials suspended a search Sunday for a man who jumped off a boat into the water near the Antioch Bridge to retrieve a lost hat.

The man, identified by the Coast Guard only as in his mid-50s, jumped off a 20-foot recreational boat Saturday evening after his hat flew off. The boats operator circled back to pick up the man but could not find him, said Coast Guard spokeswoman Loumania Stewart. He was reported missing at 6:40 p.m.
I used to think it was so simple, that the most obvious, overarching problem facing fundamentalist Christian Americans, pseudo-macho politicians and puny, big-stick dictators alike was largely one of gross sexual ineptitude, all that angry old-male megalomania and grim saber-rattling stemming merely from gloomy carnal repression and warped Puritanical anxiety, all resulting in a desperate need to compensate, to prove their value and their sad macho mettle in pretty much any way possible.

Buy some guns, get a Hummer, forsake your soul to a megachurch, start a war with Iraq, worship Fox News, whine about female empowerment, never think for yourself, turn Republican and fear and hate upon just about everything that doesnt conform? Just for starters.

To be sure, all those were certainly hallmarks of the Bush era, and it led to the concomitant trope that if only the repressed conservatives of America would free themselves from the tepid chains of fundamentalist Christian panic and, you know, get well and happily laid once in a while, theyd surely calm the hell down and the world would might survive a few more generations.

Ah, youth.

I dont quite believe that anymore, and not only because my understanding of the world has become more sophisticated, or because all those brittle conservative males have become any less oppressed, or any less ignorant of god.

Exactly the contrary. Its because the modern political world  white conservative males in particular  have taken a turn for the worse, the darker, the more spiritually hostile. As the world these men inhabit contacts and shrivels, as their influence decreases, their actions only turn more ruthless, their souls more dim.

Translation: There is no longer any room for quaint notions about sexual oppression and getting laid. No more jokes about furtive gay hookups in the bathroom, senator. The tepid sexual anxiety that was at the root of so much damning scandal for the GOP and fundamentalist Christianity in the 90s and 00s has given way to something far more gruesome, and far more devastating. And Trump is leading the charge.

So, what now? If vile Trumpism is no longer only about old white guys compensating for raging feelings of inadequacy, if all their hateful trolling not just pushback against their own increased cultural irrelevancy, then surely they are on the verge of true and violent collapse, threatening to take us all down with them. And so maybe what these lost boys really need, is a far more intense sort of... cracking open, before its too late.

They need to see Earth from space. They need to volunteer in a slum in India. They need to imbibe large amounts of peyote and spend a week in a sweat lodge in the desert, crying out to the ancestors. They need to drop ayahuasca with master shamans in a Brazilian jungle, and have a personal reckoning with the One True Mother. They need to witness their own bloated egos explode into a million fractal shards and reassemble into the shape of a giant, undulating butterfly with wings of blood. Hey, its a start.

Too much to ask? Of course it is. So maybe they could just dive into the latest trend of, say, microdosing. Maybe some intrepid D.C. interns could, I dont know, spike the congressional coffee with sufficient micrograms of LSD, psilocybin or MDMA, just a little bit, every single day, for the next few years. And the entire White House, too. And see what happens.

After all, microdosing is in. Its the freshest, most viral pathway to heightened awareness. It reportedly reduces depression, aids creativity, tickles the animas synapses just so; it just might be the magic elixir, the thing mystics have known for millennia and science is now beginning to understand, the idea that hallucinogens (and, increasingly, various strains of THC), even in tiny, barely perceptible doses, can soften the egos roughest edges, aid in perception and generate feelings of delight and ease. Whats not to like?

Of course it makes sense. Of course millennia of deep hallucinogenic experience across myriad cultures and millions of humans would translate directly to the notion that a small bit of same, every few days, could help a person, you know, reconnect. With spirit. With nature. With the planet. With his or her fellow man.

Could it maybe, just maybe, help the viciously maladjusted, spite-filled modern GOP relocate the one human quality thats most lacking in Trumpland today: empathy? Of course it could.

Longshot, I realize. And of course, Trump himself is way too far gone for any such transformation. Never has an American president been so sadistically, so enthusiastically lacking in basic concern for humanitys well-being. Never has an American leader been so entirely bereft of warmth, fundamental decency or moral literacy. And never have so many Republicans gleefully followed him right into the bleak abyss.

But then again, who knows? Its worked for anxious moms. Its worked for business types, yogis, teachers, mechanics, doctors, writers, students, athletes and authors, ancient masters and modern intellectuals, gurus and saints and gods.

Jesus almost certainly enjoyed a great deal of hallucinogens, if he wasn't one himself. Buddha was a walking indica cookie. The gurus who channeled the Vedas, the most ancient, most mystical spiritual literature on human record? Come on.

So then, a humble call-out to the D.C. interns, the disgruntled White House staffers, the furious FBI agents, the beleaguered reporters, the miserable wives and daughters of congressional Republicans, et al. Let us happily conspire to perhaps start dosing the most hateful and morally egregious among you with various (increasingly legal) compounds of wow, and see what transpires.

And of course, save a good amount for yourself, too. We're all in this together. That's what the mushrooms tell me, anyway.
Back in 2014, Jeremy Meek was arrested and convicted for felony weapon charges at the age of 30 and his mugshot shared by the Stockton Police Department went viral.

Three years later, Meek, 33, is out of jail, modeling for a career, has a happy family, lives in a California mansion and hanging with celebrities like Nicki Minaj at Cannes Film Festival events. Story continues below.
CHICAGO  How can you get a gourmet Italian pizza delivered right to your door for no more than $7? Get locked up at Cook County Jail in Chicago.

Inmates in the jails medium-security Division 11 can now order pizzas made with the finest ingredients in the kind of ovens found in pizzerias. Its all part of Sheriff Tom Darts ongoing effort to make jail a bit more humane while providing inmates skills that might help keep them from returning once theyre released.

Pizzas have been served and prepared behind bars before. A few institutions allow inmates to order from nearby restaurants. At one Massachusetts jail, inmates make pizzas that guards can buy and take home and heat themselves.

But its safe to say Dart is the first jail administrator to bring into his facility an Italian chef to oversee an operation in which inmates bake a couple hundred pizzas a week in a $16,000 oven and deliver them piping hot to the cells of captive customers.

Were teaching skills to make them more marketable when they get out of here, Dart said.

At the same time, by giving inmates a break from the bland jail food, hes employing what experts say is an effective tactic to keep inmates in line.

If any detainee assaults staff or engages in misconduct theyre moved out of that division, and theyre not able to purchase the pizzas, said Cara Smith, the departments chief policy officer. So its an incentive to behave.

Other programs Dart has introduced include using chess to teach inmates about problem-solving and patience, and sending inmates from the jails boot camp to tear down abandoned buildings.

The pizza delivery service is an outgrowth of a program called Recipe for Change thats run by Bruno Abate, a chef and owner of trendy Chicago restaurant Tocco , that teaches inmates about cooking and nutrition. Abate said theres no overstating the effect gourmet pizza has in a place where the drab food only reminds inmates of where  and what  they are.

This is treating people with dignity and respect as a human and not (an) animal, he said.

The pizza also might be the best food some of the desperately poor inmates have ever eaten.

When the inmates bring the pizzas to the cells, the effect, inmates say, is immediate.

Their eyes light up like its Christmas, said Jonathan Scott, whose nametag reads Chef Jonathan, as he waits for trial on an armed robbery charge.

Don Babwin is an Associated Press writer.
John Severson, a pioneer of modern surf culture who founded Surfer magazine in 1962 and created paintings, films and photographs depicting the surfing lifestyle, died Friday at his home outside Lahaina on Maui. He was 83.

His wife, Louise, said he had leukemia.

Surfing was a niche sport in the United States when Mr. Severson, having surfed on a redwood board in his native Southern California as a teenager, set out to portray its essence as a counter to the 1959 Hollywood film Gidget (a forerunner of the 1960s beach party films with Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello) and the early music of the Beach Boys, which he regarded as a cheap, honky look at surfing.

He believed that the popular portrayal of surfing spawned an image that led to municipal restrictions on serious wave riders.

The Gidget-inspired kids wanted to go surfing, or at least be a part of this underground culture, Mr. Severson recalled in his 2014 book, John Seversons Surf.

Their role models were Hollywood stereotypes, and the sport quickly picked up a bad name. Wannabes came into the sport as rebels, pranksters, vandals, and thieves, wearing Nazi imagery  helmets and iron crosses. Surfers hated those Hollywood surf films, and I could see that Surfer could create a truer image of the sport.

Drew Kampion, editor of Surfer magazine from 1968 to 1972, said in an interview Saturday that he viewed Mr. Severson, who preceded him as its editor, as the first to treat surfing as a worthy subject matter for fine art.

Surf journalist Sam George wrote in 1999, Before John Severson, there was no surf media, no surf industry and no surf culture  at least not in the way we understand it today.

Mr. Severson likened the surfing experience to a beautiful sensation of dance with the added dimension of being in nature.

Theres this whole force of moving water, and as you ride, you harness this water, he told the contemporary culture magazine 032c in a 2014 interview. Then, as your abilities increase, you can go farther and deeper into the wave, and into more radical positions  like off the top, off the bottom  and there are these weightless sensations. Its another dimension.

Surfer, the first major magazine devoted to wave riding, began as an annual publication, then became a quarterly and finally a monthly. As long as I had enough money to make the next issue and pay the little staff I had, I was pretty stoked, Mr. Severson said in 2014.

The magazine thrived, and by the early 1970s he had about 100,000 readers and plentiful advertising. But his publishing obligations were becoming excessively consuming, and he was confronted by restrictions on his favorite surfing spot.

President Richard Nixon had bought an estate alongside Mr. Seversons home in San Clemente (Orange County), looking out on the popular Cottons Point surf break. The Secret Service, citing security concerns, sought to close public access there when Nixon was visiting. Mr. Severson spoke with top White House aides to discuss a compromise on surfing hours but remained discouraged at having to battle for unfettered access.

He sold Surfer magazine in the early 1970s for an undisclosed amount, then returned to Hawaii to pursue his artwork, to ride big waves and to relax with his family.

His films included Surf, Surf Safari, Surf Fever and, perhaps most notably, Pacific Vibrations. The posters he designed for them became collectors items.

Mr. Seversons Surf BeBop, a semiabstract painting of surfers lounging on a beach, which appeared on a 1963 cover of Surfer, was cited by Communication Arts magazine as the most outstanding cover painting of the year.

Mr. Severson was born on Dec. 12, 1933, in the Los Angeles area, where his father owned a gas station. The family moved to San Clemente when he was 13 or so. He majored in art education at Long Beach State, where a faculty member encouraged him to pursue artwork focusing on what he already knew: beach life.

Mr. Severson was drafted into the Army in 1956 and sent to a base in Oahu, Hawaii, assigned to illustrative work with a focus on creating maps. He also joined an Army surfing team there that created new techniques, and while on active duty he filmed surfing sites, creating material for his first film, Surf. He was discharged in 1958.

Upon returning to Hawaii in the 1970s, he began to windsurf and then edited the magazine Wind Surf. Demand grew for his paintings, and he designed prints for Hawaiian shirts. He was still riding waves at 80.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Seversons survivors include his daughters Jenna and Anna.

With the passing of decades, Mr. Severson lamented the increased commercialization of surfing and especially its marketing to the wealthy.

I always felt like surfing belonged to everyone, he said in 2014, not the guy with the most money.

Richard Goldstein is a New York Times writer.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.  Lucy McBath is afraid many more people will die if Florida Gov. Rick Scott signs a bill making it harder to prosecute when people claim they commit violence in self-defense.

She already lost her son, an unarmed black teenager, when a white man angry over loud music and claiming self-defense fired 10 times at an SUV filled with teenagers.

The measure before Scott would effectively require a trial-before-a-trial whenever someone invokes self-defense. Florida would be the first state in the nation to spell out that prosecutors, not defendants, have the burden of proof in pre-trial stand your ground hearings. If prosecutors cannot show clear and convincing evidence that rules out self-defense, then the defendant would be given immunity and never face trial.

Scott hasnt revealed his intentions, but hes a National Rifle Association supporter, and the bill is an NRA priority.

If it passes in Florida, then they take that same legislation and they push it on the legislative floors across the country, said McBath, whose 17-year-old son Jordan Davis was killed by Michael Dunn outside a Jacksonville convenience store in 2012.

Many states have long invoked the castle doctrine, allowing people to use even deadly force to defend themselves in their own homes.

Florida changed that in 2005, so that even outside a home, a person has no duty to retreat and can stand his or her ground anywhere they are legally allowed to be. Other states followed suit, and stand your ground defenses became much more common in pre-trial immunity hearings and during trials.

Florida Republicans made this bill a priority after the state Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that the defendant has the burden of proof before trial. Only four of the 22 or more state stand your ground laws mention the burden of proof and all place it on defendants.

Brendan Farrington is an Associated Press writer.
WASHINGTON  Congressional Democrats demanded Sunday to hear directly from top White House adviser Jared Kushner over allegations of proposed secret back-channel communications with Russia, saying the security clearance of President Trumps son-in-law may need to be revoked.

Trump, having returned from a nine-day overseas trip, immediately railed against administration leaks, calling them fabricated lies, in a flurry of tweets.

And Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly defended the idea of establishing that kind of communication as a smart thing and said he didnt see any big issue here for Kushner.

But to the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee, its obviously very concerning that a key Trump campaign figure was possibly seeking secret communications with a country that intelligence experts say intervened in the 2016 election.

Rep. Adam Schiff of Burbank said the government needed to get to the bottom of the matter and urged a review of Kushners security clearance to find out whether he was truthful.

If not, then theres no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance, Schiff said.

The Associated Press and other news organizations reported that Kushner in December proposed a back channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team. Kushner spoke with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak about facilitating sensitive discussions to explore the incoming administrations options with Russia as it developed its Syria policy. The intent was to connect Trumps chief national security adviser at the time, Michael Flynn, with Russian military leaders, a person familiar with the discussions said.

The White House did not acknowledge the meeting or Kushners attendance until March. At the time, a White House official dismissed it as a courtesy meeting.

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, described the latest allegations involving Kushner as serious and called for a thorough investigation.

He needs to answer for what was happening at the time, Booker said. Whats worrying me are the patterns were seeing. So one is this administration not talking about our values, cozying up to authoritarian leaders. And the other pattern we have is just a continuous drumbeat of inappropriate contacts with the Russians.

Lawyers for Kushner said he was willing to talk with federal and congressional investigators about his foreign contacts and his work on the Trump campaign.

The disclosure of the back channel put the White House on the defensive. Just back from visiting the Middle East and Europe, Trump on Sunday dismissed recent reports as fake news.

It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies, Trump tweeted.

Federal investigators and several congressional committees are looking into any connections between Russia and the Trump campaign.

Kelly appeared on Fox News Sunday, NBCs Meet the Press and ABCs This Week, Schiff also spoke on ABC, and Booker was on CNNs State of the Union.

Hope Yen and Vivian Salama are Associated Press writers.
WASHINGTON  President Trump, in his first public remarks since returning from a nine-day overseas trip, paid tribute to fallen U.S. troops in a traditional Memorial Day ceremony Monday, saying they died in war so we could live in peace.

In one of the annual rites of every presidency, Trump traveled the short distance over the Potomac River to Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia to honor the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who were killed in service to their country.

Words cannot measure the depth of their devotion, the purity of their love or the totality of their courage, Trump told an audience that included relatives of slain service members. We only hope that every day we can prove worthy, not only of their sacrifice and service, but of the sacrifice made by the families and loved ones they left behind. Special, special people.

Trump was accompanied by Vice President Mike Pence and preceded at the podium by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The president, who has been under siege by investigations into contacts between Russia and his associates, including his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, smiled and seemed to enjoy the enthusiastic welcome by a supportive crowd.

Sticking closely to his prepared text, Trump offered no insight into his thinking about how to proceed in the various wars that the United States is currently fighting, including the battle against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria or the war in Afghanistan. The Pentagon has proposed sending an additional 5,000 troops to Afghanistan to bolster the force that has been fighting there since shortly after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Some of Trumps political advisers, including Steve Bannon, worry about a slippery slope into nation building, but the president has not publicly indicated which way he is leaning.

Instead, Trump used the occasion to single out several service members who have died in combat in recent years and also honored former Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan., who was wounded in Italy during World War II and attended Mondays event.

They were all angels sent to us by God, and they all share one title in common, and that is the title of hero, real heroes, he said. Though they were here only a brief time before God called them home, their legacy will endure forever.

Like his three most recent predecessors, Trump never served in combat nor the active-duty military, and at one point during his campaign last year he offended veterans by denigrating the service of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a Navy pilot who spent 5 years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. Hes not a war hero, Trump said at the time. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who werent captured.

Trump has never apologized for those remarks, but in his speech Monday he lavished warm praise on other veterans. He singled out John Kelly, a retired four-star general now serving as secretary of Homeland Security whose son, 2nd Lt. Robert Kelly of the Marines, was killed when he stepped on a land mine in 2010 in southern Afghanistan.

Trump also cited Spc. Christopher Horton, a member of the Oklahoma National Guard, who died in a gunbattle with insurgents in Afghanistan in 2011, and Maj. Andrew Byers, a member of the Green Berets who was killed during an attack on a Taliban bastion last year.

Chris sacrificed his life to protect his fellow soldiers and to protect all Americans, Trump said. Addressing Hortons weeping widow, Trump added, Jane, America grieves with you.

The president said that Byers raced through gunfire to save other soldiers. To his parents, Trump said, We stand in awe of your son and his courageous sacrifice.

Peter Baker is a New York Times writer.
Two men were hospitalized after being shot as they were walking on the Newhall Bike Path in Santa Rosa, police said Monday.

The shootings occurred shortly before 10 p.m. Sunday. Officers were sent to the 1300 block of Grand Avenue in response to a report of a gunshot victim. As they were on their way to the site, they learned of a second gunshot victim in the 500 block of Colgan Avenue, police said in a statement.
Bay Area political events

Thursday

Elizabeth Warren event: A conversation with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid at the Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, 3301 Lyon St. in San Francisco. The discussion is part of an all-day event organized around opposition to President Trump. Tickets cost $100 and can be purchased at www.joyouspersistence.com.

Friday

Gun violence: For National Gun Violence Awareness Day, activists are asking people to wear orange to stand against gun violence. For more information: https://wearorange.org.

Saturday

Gun violence awareness march: A march across the Golden Gate Bridge to stand against gun violence. Participants are asked to wear orange. The event begins at 9:30 a.m. at the Golden Gate Bridge plaza. For information: www.facebook.com/events/1324576680972179.

LGBT rally: As part of Sonoma County Pride weekend, a rally to support LGBT rights, womens rights, immigration rights and other causes. The rally is from 1 to 4 p.m. at Guerneville Lodge, 15905 River Road in Guerneville. For information: www.facebook.com/events/1420477121307743.

Peace and Freedom: The Peace and Freedom Party is hosting a forum, Peace and Freedom: Fifty Years of Struggle, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the party. The free event will be from 2 to 4:30 p.m. at the Starry Plough Pub, 3101 Shattuck Ave. in Berkeley. For information, contact (510) 332-3865 or cuyleruyle@mac.com.

Anti-Trump marches: Marchers are demanding an independent investigation into President Trumps Russia connections in a March for Truth. In San Jose, the march will begin at 11 a.m. at City Hall, 200 E. Santa Clara St. For information: www.indivisibleeastsanjose.org/march-for-truth. In San Francisco, a march will begin at 2 p.m. at Justin Herman Plaza. For information: www.facebook.com/events/1978572495762727.

June 11

Sierra Club: The Sierra Club is seeking volunteers to recruit new members and educate people on environmental issues at Sunday Streets, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Golden Gate Park. The exact location is to be determined. For information, contact Katherine Howard at sfoceanedge@earthlink.net.
UC Berkeley is teaming up with Google to document a rare solar eclipse set to happen this August  with help from over 1,000 volunteer photographers and amateur astronomers.

The total solar eclipse will cross the United States from west to east on Aug. 21 and scientists are looking for volunteers to record and upload time-coded images of the eclipse via a special app. The resulting photos will then be stitched together into a 90-minute movie.

The aim is to learn more about the sun, specifically the corona. The eclipse is being dubbed the Great American Eclipse, and is expected to be the most-viewed eclipse due to its path running from Oregon to South Carolina. Anyone along the path of totality will see the full, nearly three-minute eclipse, while others will see only a partial solar eclipse.

The last time an eclipse like this moved across the United States was in 1918.

Along with the eclipse, the teams are looking to capture the Diamond Ring effect seen just before and after totality, where a ring of sunlight can be seen around the moon, with one spot being significantly brighter than the rest  hence, a diamond ring. Scientists also want to document multiple bright spots along the edge of the moon, which are known as Baily's beads.

The Astronomical Society of the Pacific is also lending help by training volunteers on how to capture and share useful data on the eclipse via an hourlong webinar.

The eclipse is also expected to temporarily affect California's solar power plants, and state officials asked that residents unplug appliances and shut down unnecessary lights.

To learn more about the eclipse and the project, head here.
WASHINGTON  Myanmar was supposed to turn away from China and toward the West when the United States helped the Southeast Asian country make the transition to a civilian government after five decades of military rule.

The opposite is happening: The new government is failing to attract Western investment and Beijing is on a charm offensive. China is offering economic and political support and a relationship free of the human rights concerns straining Myanmars ties elsewhere.

Myanmar, also known as Burma, was a foreign policy success for President Barack Obama. He helped coax its powerful generals into ceding power by normalizing diplomatic relations and rolling back years of economic penalties, paving the way for Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to take power after winning elections.

Suu Kyis historic struggle for democracy still evokes deep respect in Washington and Europe, but running a civilian government for the past 14 months has exposed her inability to bring peace to a country riven by ethnic conflict. She also has struggled to produce economic growth, hobbled by a lack of control over the nations still powerful military and a rigid management style.

Finding less love among the Western democracies, Suu Kyi is cautiously embracing closer ties to China.

Amid the unpredictable challenges of this democratic transition, Western influence on Burma is waning, while Beijing is becoming more assertive, Myanmars Irrawaddy news website said in an editorial.

Recent weeks have seen a flurry of China-Myanmar engagement. Suu Kyi met Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a Beijing summit in mid-May, her second visit there in the past year. Earlier, Myanmars titular president, Htin Kyaw, received a six-day state visit. Suu Kyis trip ended with an agreement with China to create an economic cooperation zone as part of the Asian giants Belt and Road initiative to connect with Asian and European markets.

Last weekend, Myanmars Navy held drills with Chinese warships. Chinas state-run Global Times said the military cooperation demonstrated political trust.

That trust was expected to develop between Suu Kyi and the U.S.-led West.

Myanmars enduring fear of being dominated by its much larger neighbor, China, was one reason it improved ties with the United States in the first place. The Obama administration seized the opportunity while trying to pivot American foreign policy focus to Asia, hoping deeper relationships with its booming economies would provide the U.S. long-term strategic and economic advantages.

Katina Adams, a State Department spokeswoman for East Asia, said the U.S. remains committed to consolidating democracy in Myanmar and is helping the government address many inherited challenges, including the disproportionate role of the military in the economy and the need for responsible investment.

Matthew Pennington is an Associated Press writer.
1 Flights grounded: British Airways said many of its computer systems were back up and running Sunday, but some travelers will probably face cancellations and delays for another day Monday after a global computer failure grounded hundreds of flights. Chief executive Alex Cruz said Sunday the airline was running a near-full operation at Londons Gatwick Airport and planned to operate all scheduled long-haul services from Heathrow. But he said there would still be disruptions. British Airways canceled all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick on Saturday after the computer outage, which it blamed on a power-supply problem. The glitch upset the plans of thousands of travelers on a holiday weekend in Britain.

2 North Korea launch: Pyongyang fired an apparent ballistic missile Monday off its east coast that landed in the waters of Japans economic zone, South Korean and Japanese officials said, the latest in a string of recent test launches. A statement by the Souths Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea fired a suspected Scud-type ballistic missile that flew about 280 miles. North Korea is thought to be several years away from its goal of being able to target U.S. mainland cities with a nuclear ICBM, but each new test puts it closer to success. The North has a strong arsenal of short- and medium-range missiles that target Japan and South Korea and U.S. forces in the region, and it is working to perfect its longer-range missiles.
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SEOUL  North Koreas latest missile test Monday may have less to do with perfecting its weapons technology than with showing U.S. and South Korean forces in the region that it can strike them at will.

South Korean and Japanese officials said the suspected Scud-type short-range missile flew about 280 miles Monday morning before landing in Japans maritime economic zone, setting off the usual round of condemnation from Washington and the Norths neighbors.

Its the latest in a string of test launches by North Korea as it seeks to build nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the U.S. mainland, a drive that puts North Korea high on the list of foreign policy worries for Japan, Washington and Seoul.

North Korea already has an arsenal of reliable short-range missiles. While North Korean scientists could be updating them  for instance, developing a new solid-fuel short-range missile  the North tests such shorter-range missiles much less than it does its less dependable, longer-range missiles.

This sets up the possibility that North Korea hopes to use the test to show it can hit U.S. targets near and far and emphasize its defiance of U.S.-led pressure on its missile and nuclear programs, which has included vague threats from President Trump and the arrival in Korean waters of powerful U.S. military hardware. Scuds are capable of striking U.S. troops in South Korea, for instance, and the two newly developed missiles tested earlier this month have potential ranges that include Japan, Guam and even, according to some South Korean analysts, Alaska.

The missile was launched from the coastal town of Wonsan, the Souths Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. It landed in Japans exclusive maritime economic zone, which is set about 200 nautical miles off the Japanese coast, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said. He said there was no report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.

North Korea is still thought to be several years from its goal of being able to target U.S. mainland cities with nuclear ICBMs.

South Korea says North Korea has conducted nine ballistic missile tests this year, including one in which four missiles were launched on the same day.

North Koreas state-controlled media had no immediate comment on Mondays test, but released a statement, without mentioning the launch, that accused Seoul and Washington of aggravating the situation on the Korean Peninsula by conducting joint military drills and other reckless acts.

On Sunday, North Korea also said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a separate, successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. The report didnt say when the test took place.

The official Korean Central News Agency cited Kim as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system around the country.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters that North Koreas provocation by ignoring repeated warnings from international society is absolutely unacceptable.

Foster Klug and Hyung-Jin Kim are Associated Press writers.
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MARAWI, Philippines  Government forces control most of the southern city of Marawi where militants linked to the Islamic State group launched a bloody siege nearly a week ago, authorities said Monday, as the army launched air strikes and went house-to-house to crush areas of resistance.

More than 100 people, including 24 civilians, have been killed in six days of fighting, the government said. Many more were believed to be trapped inside the city.

I have to rescue my grandfather even at the risk of my life, Khana-Anuar Marabur Jr. said after police stopped him for speeding through a checkpoint. He said his grandfather had been sending him text messages asking to be saved.

Get me out of here alive, not dead, one message said. This war is taking too long.

The crisis in Marawi, home to 200,000 people, has raised fears that extremism in the southern Philippines is increasing as smaller militant groups unify and align themselves with the Islamic State group.

Only small areas of Marawi remain under militants control, said Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla, the military spokesman. In recent days, gunmen have managed to fend off attack helicopters, armored vehicles and scores of soldiers.

We can control who comes in and who comes out, who moves around and who doesnt, and we are trying to isolate these pockets of resistance that have remained, Padilla said.

Philippine National Police Chief Ronald de la Rosa said militants were taking advantage of the urban environment, moving quickly from building to building to evade capture.

According to the government, the death toll is 105 people  61 militants, 20 government forces and 24 civilians.

The violence prompted President Rodrigo Duterte last week to declare 60 days of martial law in the southern Philippines, where a Muslim separatist rebellion has raged for decades.

Jim Gomez is an Associated Press writer.
Cutting New Zealand's 28 percent corporate tax rate is "not a panacea in the way business groups sometimes market it," says Prime Minister Bill English.

Responding to criticisms from the business community that the Budget had ignored the trend in other developed economies for lower corporate tax rates, English said New Zealand's was an unusually "comprehensive, fair" tax system.

Not only did the New Zealand tax system not double-tax company earnings, because of the imputation credits system, taxpayers in many other OECD countries paid far higher rates of personal income tax on their dividends than New Zealanders, where the top tax rate is 33 percent.

"They might pay a lower intermediate tax rate in the company but once the money comes out of the company they pay a much higher personal tax rate."

Cutting the New Zealand company tax rate was also more valuable to foreign owners than to New Zealand shareholders.

"A lower company tax is ... most beneficial to foreign owners because they just get a straight cut whereas in New Zealand it just reduces their intermediate tax rate," he said. "You need a pretty high threshold to show there's going to be equity benefits for it."

He was not ruling out a move on the corporate tax rate, saying it "can have benefits in an economy like this, which is basically cooperatives and small businesses where retained earnings matter as a source of investment more than publicly raised capital".

"The point I'm making is those are fairly involved, complex discussions," said English, who would not be drawn on whether the issue might be covered in the National Party's election manifesto.

"You'll have to wait and see for a manifesto," he said.

(BusinessDesk)





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NEW DELHI: India and Mauritius on Saturday signed an agreement for maritime security as New Delhi extended a $500-million credit line to the Indian Ocean island nation following delegation level talks here headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Mauritian counterpart Pravind Jugnauth.

"As frontline states of the Indian Ocean, Prime Minister Jugnauth and I agree that it is our responsibility to ensure collective maritime security around our coasts and in our EEZs (exclusive economic zones)," Modi said while jointly addressing the media with the visiting dignitary following the talks.

"We agree that effective management of conventional and non-conventional threats in the Indian Ocean is essential to pursue economic opportunities, protect the livelihood of our communities and provide security to our people," he said.

He said that both countries must be vigilant against piracy that impacted trade and tourism, drugs and human trafficking, illegal fishing and other forms of illegal exploitation of marine resources.

"The conclusion of the bilateral Maritime Security Agreement today will strengthen our mutual cooperation and capacities," Modi said.

"We have also agreed to further strengthen our wide-ranging cooperation in hydrography for a secure and peaceful maritime domain."

Modi also said that India would support the National Coast Guard (NCG) of Mauritius in augmenting its capacity through Project Trident, an integrated development project of the NCG.

"We have also taken a decision to renew the life of the Coast Guard Ship Guardian, that was provided to Mauritius, under a grant assistance programme," he stated.

The Indian Prime Minister said that the agreement on a $500-million LoC from India to Mauritius was "a good example of our strong and continuing commitment towards the development of Mauritius".

"It will also help in the implementation of priority projects," he said. "Prime Minister Jugnauth and I welcome the progress in ongoing projects."

Apart from the agreements on maritime security and the LoC, two memorandums of understanding were signed on research and education in marine sciences and technology and setting up of a civil services college in Mauritius.

Mauritius also submitted its instrument of ratification of the India-initiated International Solar Alliance, conceived as a coalition of solar resource-rich countries to address their special energy needs and provide a platform to collaborate on dealing with the identified gaps through a common, agreed approach.

"The signing and ratification of the framework agreement on International Solar Alliance by Mauritius has opened up new vistas of regional partnership for both countries in this field," Modi said.

The Indian Prime Minister also expressed pride in the contribution of the people of Indian origin to the national life of Mauritius. Jugnauth is one among this huge number of people in Mauritius who are descendants of indentured Indian labour brought in the 19th century to work in sugarcane plantations.

On his part, Jugnauth said that both Mauritius and India agreed that there can be no compromise when it came to sovereignty and territorial integrity

"We have developed a strong bilateral cooperation between Mauritius and India in the field of defence and security," he said.

Jugnauth also expressed Mauritius's "unwavering support" to India's bid for permanent membership in the UN Security Council.

Apart from this, he said he discussed with Modi the signing of a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) between the two countries.

Earlier on Saturday, Jugnauth was accorded a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan here following which External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj called on him.

Jugnauth arrived here on Friday on a three-day state visit to India. This is Jugnauth's first visit abroad since assuming office this January.

Read Also:

Microsoft Programme Features 238 Indian Educators

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A man was shot inside the West Brighton Houses and rushed to an area hospital Sunday night, according to an NYPD spokesman.

At approximately 8:09 p.m., the victim, a 23-year-old male, was inside the New York City Housing complex at 780 Henderson Ave. when he was shot in the hand, police said.

The victim was then transported via EMS to Richmond University Medical Center in serious, but stable condition.

According to police, the victim's injures did not appear to be life threatening.

Police added that the victim was being "uncooperative with the investigation."

NYPD Investigators were seen roping off the staircase of the first floor inside the West Brighton building where the shooting took place.

It remains unclear what prompted the shooting.

According to police, no arrests have been made the investigation is still ongoing.

Check back on SILive.com for updates on this breaking news story.
What is a robocall anyway?

According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), if you answer the phone and hear a recorded message instead of a live person, it's a robocall. You've probably gotten robocalls about candidates running for office, or charities asking for donations. These robocalls are allowed, the FTC says. But if the recording is a sales message and you haven't given your written permission to get calls from the company on the other end, the call is illegal. In addition to the phone calls being illegal, the pitch most likely is a scam.

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Robocalls are on the rise

If you think you've been getting a lot of anonymous telemarketing or robocalls, lately, it's not your imagination. According to the FTC, companies are using technology to send out thousands of phone calls every minute for an incredibly low cost. The companies that use this technology don't bother to screen for numbers on the national Do Not Call Registry. If a company doesn't care about obeying the law, you can be sure they're trying to scam you, the FTC warns.

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How do they pull it off?

According to the FTC, many different companies use the same, or very similar, recorded messages. Robocallers fake the caller ID information that you see on your phone. That's called caller ID spoofing. In some cases, the fraudulent telemarketer may want you to think the call is from your bank, or another entity you've done business with. Sometimes, the telephone number may show up as "unknown" or "123456789." Other times, the number is a real one belonging to someone who has no idea his or her number is being misused. Robocallers often place the calls through internet technology that hides their location.

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What to do when you get a robocall?

If you get a robocall, the FTC advises to first hang up the phone. Don't press 1 to speak to a live operator and don't press any other number to get your number off the list. If you respond by pressing any number, it will probably just lead to more robocalls. Consider contacting your phone provider and ask them to block the number. Remember that telemarketers change Caller ID information easily and often, so it might not be worth paying a fee to block a number that will change. You can report your experience to the FTC online or by calling 1-888-382-1222.

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What automated calls are allowed?

Some prerecorded messages are permitted by the FTC, including messages that are purely informational. That means you may receive calls to let you know your flights been cancelled, reminders about an appointment, or messages about a delayed school opening. But the business doing the calling isnt allowed to promote the sale of any goods or services. Prerecorded messages from a business that is contacting you to collect a debt also are permitted, but messages offering to sell you services to reduce your debt are not. Other exceptions include political calls and calls from certain health care providers. For example, pharmacies are permitted to use prerecorded messages to provide prescription refill reminders. Prerecorded messages from banks, telephone carriers and charities also are exempt from these rules if the banks, carriers or charities make the calls themselves.

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What is the 'do not call' list?

There is only one Do Not Call Registry, operated by the FTC, with information available at donotcall.gov. There is no separate registry for cell phones. Registering your phone number is free; if someone asks for a fee to register, that's fraud. The Do Not Call Registry accepts registrations from both cell phones and land lines. To register by telephone, call 1-888-382-1222 (TTY: 1-866-290-4236). You must call from the phone number that you want to register. To register online (donotcall.gov), you will have to respond to a confirmation email. If you have registered a mobile or other telephone number already, you don't need to re-register. Once registered, a telephone number stays on the Do Not Call Registry until the registration is canceled or service for the number is discontinued.

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What are other phone scams?

Perhaps even trickier than robocalls are live scammers who operate by phone. They dont want to give you time to think about their pitch; they just want you to say "yes." But some are so cunning that, even if you ask for more information, they seem happy to comply. They may direct you to a website or otherwise send information featuring satisfied customers. Don't be afraid to interrupt and just hang up. Never give any personal information, such as bank or credit cards, or Social Security numbers over the phone, the FTC advises.

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Why are they calling you?

According to consumer agencies and law enforcement, everyone's a potential target. Fraud isn't limited to race, ethnic background, gender, age, education, or income. That said, some scams seem to concentrate in certain groups. For example, older people may be targeted because the caller assumes they may live alone, have a nest egg, or may be more polite toward strangers. Follow your first instinct; if it sounds too good to be true, it likely is a fraud. Don't engage the caller with questions; don't give him or her an opening. Hang up immediately.

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Other phone pitches to avoid

Just about everyone would love to take a vacation, especially to a place out of financial reach. But don't be lulled by phone pitches offering "luxury" vacations. Beware of scammers who tell you you've won a free vacation, or try to sell you on a timeshare or vacation plan. The same applies to callers informing you you've won a free car. Do not give out your driver's license ID number, or other information.

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Here's how to report phone scams and robocalls

Kati Daffin, attorney at the FTC, explains what a robocall is, when they are illegal, and gives consumers tips on what to do when they get robocalls. To learn more about what the FTC is doing to stop robocalls visit http://www.ftc.gov/robocalls

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Bill proposed to block robocalls

A bill sponsored by Sen. Charles Schumer would require phone companies to provide a service, free of charge, to its clients to allow blocking robocalls. (Associated Press Photo)
UPDATE: SURGEONS SAVE LEGS OF MOTHER STRUCK IN HIT-AND-RUN

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.-- Police are searching for an unidentified driver who reportedly crashed into a mother and her infant son early Monday morning in New Brighton.

The woman, 37, was pulling the four-month-old boy out of the rear passenger seat of the car when they were struck by an SUV, believed to be a Jeep, according to a NYPD spokesman.

Police responded at about 12:11 a.m. to the incident, reported near the intersection of Westervelt and Hendricks Avenues.

The woman suffered severe leg injuries and was listed in critical condition at Richmond University Medical Center, as of Monday morning.

The infant was not injured, police said.

The incident remains an ongoing investigation.
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Canberrans using internet service provider iPrimus had no connectivity for several hours today.

According to the iPrimus system status website, the unplanned outage began at 4am on Monday.

A screenshot from the iPrimus website showing a system-wide internet outage in the ACT.

The interruption was described as a "degradation", meaning "intermittently unavailable or partially unavailable".
A Canberra mother whose daughter allegedly stabbed her in the chest with a kitchen knife two weeks after her husband died told police she inflicted the wound herself and the accused was "clean like a baby".

Mary Ivanisevic, 45, was charged with attempted murder after her elderly mother was found on the floor of her Curtin home still attached to her oxygen machine and with a deep knife wound in 2015.

She pleaded not guilty and has emphatically denied the allegations. Her ACT Supreme Court trial began last week.

Prosecutors will argue Ivanisevic stabbed her mother, then aged 74, before she forced her to record a false confession on her mobile phone, saying she'd caused the wound, as a neighbour came to her aid the afternoon of December 6.

The jury on Monday heard a recording of the frantic triple-0 call made by Ivanisevic as she said her mother had stabbed herself "in her heart" and was bleeding heavily.
Australia's corporate insolvency laws are among the most favourable to banks in the world, but this mantle could be threatened by looming changes to wrestle power away from lenders.

The federal government is expected to soon publish legislation it hopes will "reduce the stigma associated with business failure", and one aspect of this will be an overhaul of insolvency laws.

Of particular relevance to banks, changes proposed in an exposure draft of the legislation would make it much harder for lenders to appoint receivers, which act on behalf of banks in taking charge of troubled companies.

The banking industry's peak body and National Australia Bank, the largest lender to small businesses, are warning that may make banks less likely to lend against business assets.
#first lady First lady meets with family of additional victim of Itaewon tragedy First lady Kim Keon-hee on Thursday visited a hospital in Seoul to meet with the family of a soldier who was pronounced brain dead the previous day after being injured in the Itaew...

#football S. Korea coach not yet planning alternatives for Son Heung-min's potential World Cup absence As South Korea's captain Son Heung-min tries to work his way back from a facial surgery in time for the FIFA World Cup, his national team head coach Paulo Bento does not yet have a...
A national recall of faulty electrical cabling has only captured 54 per cent of the total 4313 kilometres that were installed, putting thousands of homeowners at risk of house fires or electrocution.

The recall of Infinity electrical cables was launched in August 2013, after it was found the cabling could become prematurely brittle and break when placed under stress near heat sources and roof access areas.

However, four years into the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission-led recall, almost half of the dangerous cabling remains in Australian homes.

In NSW, 2384 kilometres of Infinity cabling was laid between 2010 and 2013. Since then, 433 properties have been declared safe, however 74 per cent of the dangerous cabling is yet to be remediated in homes.
He said he believed mining companies should pay compensation, such as medical bills, to affected workers. "It's got to be fixed up, especially for the younger generations. I don't want them to finish up like me," he said. Mr Verrall, who broke into uncontrollable coughing minutes into an interview with Fairfax Media, said he had his good days and his bad days, mostly bad days. "It's that bad it wakes me up early in the morning, coughing my insides out and trying to get all that muck off my lungs," he said. "Some days I wish it'd just stop altogether, I mean, I just get that bad."

The Coal Workers' Pneumoconiosis Select Committee made 68 recommendations, including a new independent authority to be based in Mackay. It recommended using coal and mineral royalties to fund the authority and its health and safety activities; the reduction of Queensland exposure limits for coal dust and silica; and a mobile health assessment van. A medical examination process should be introduced  with costs paid by insurers  for former or retired coal workers with concerns they have the disease, and clarifications made so people with disease progression can reopen their workers' compensation claims, the committee said. It also recommended the Public Service Commissioner review the transcripts of committee hearings involving Queensland public servants to examine whether they co-operated or misled the committee, following complaints officers were "argumentative" and resistant to acknowledging failures in the Department of Natural Resources and Mines. But Mines Minister Anthony Lynham defended his staff and said they were working hard.

"Everyone has failed - doctors, workers representatives, the resources sector, government, there has been a complete failure over 30 years but my public servants, most of them weren't there at that time," he said. "They have been working tirelessly to fix up this problem." Dr Lynham said workers had common law rights for compensation and also workers' compensation. Maurice Blackburn dust diseases law expert Jonathan Walsh said there were concerns black lung was just the tip of the iceberg for workplace dust disease exposure. "The findings of today's report are damning and we know only scratch the surface when it comes to identifying the true extent of dust disease exposure risks for workers in Queensland," Mr Walsh said.

Mr Walsh said the state's workers' compensation scheme was best placed to help workers. Many workers did not believe they could report health or safety concerns without risking reprisal, the report said. But Shine Lawyers dust diseases principal Roger Singh said workers had legal protections under the Fair Work Act. Mr Singh said following the report there were no excuses for poor dust level monitoring or inadequate personal protection. "This is a line in the sand for the big mining companies which ave a duty of care to provide a safe workplace," he said.

"The recommendations amending the Workers' Compensation and Rehabilitation Act are very welcome. Insurers have a role to play in dealing with black lung and should be footing some of the bill." CFMEU Mining and Energy Division Queensland district president Stephen Smyth welcomed the report but called for a black lung victims fund. "There are a very large number of miners, many of whom are dying right now, who are getting no compensation at the moment because the limitations and shortcomings of the workplace compensation regime," Mr Smyth said. "These workers, like Percy Verrall ... are currently languishing with little or no support." The CFMEU has demanded mining companies contribute 10 cents for every tonne of coal produced in Queensland to a support fund for victims.
The cash-strapped Western Australian state government will ask Rio Tinto and BHP to pay an upfront multi-billion dollar fee in exchange for cancelling an ongoing levy on their iron ore production.

The revenue push by the mineral-rich state, which has run up more than $30 billion ($23 billion) in debt following the end of a mining boom, sets the stage for talks with the miners, who are seen as unlikely to agree unless they win significant benefits.

Under the proposal, the two mining houses would pay as much as $4 billion in exchange for cancelling a A$0.25 a tonne ongoing levy on iron ore from their mines, some of which could be running for another 50 years.

State treasurer Ben Wyatt, whose centre-left Labor party won a state election in March, said the proposal was still in its early stages.
But the more vexing threat to our democracy is the manipulation of information to shape public opinion before election day. Every vote cast in an election is the product of the information ecosystem of the preceding months. Unsurprisingly, political actors place great effort on shaping the nature and volume of information available to the public in the lead-up to an election to influence voter decision-making and election outcomes. But as the fake news pandemic during the 2016 US presidential election demonstrated, shaping the information landscape can go well beyond political spin.

As systems become increasingly digital, the technical vulnerabilities of elections are an increasingly attractive target for malicious actors. The reported breach of voter registration databases in Arizona, Illinois and Florida, plus efforts against many more, showcased cybersecurity weakness and sparked a protracted public dialogue about the reliability of the US election. The US experience offers a small insight into the destabilisation of public confidence that can come from an isolated election infrastructure incident.

Two critical elements of the democratic process are under assault. The security of our election infrastructure (think hacked voting machines) and the integrity of our public debates (think fake news). The ASPI International Cyber Policy Centre report out today, Securing Democracy in the Digital Age, looks at the risk to democracy posed by actors such as Russia and what we have to do to protect our system of government.

Winston Churchill famously said democracy is "the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time". But what happens if fundamental elements of the democratic process are undermined and public trust collapses? Around the world, from the US to the French elections, we are witnessing this very threat unfold as dedicated efforts are made to undermine electoral processes through the exploitation of our digital weaknesses.

False stories and half-truths were created frequently and many of them by foreign actors. Their take-up by the general public was high. Analysis of Facebook users' engagement with fake news and mainstream news in the lead up to the election reveals users' engagement with fake news surpassing mainstream news in the critical period right before election day. This was amplified by the nature of social media, which entrenches partisan points of view. Newsfeed algorithms are designed to offer people what they want to read, based on their demonstrated preferences, resulting in partisan online echo chambers.

Technology was also used to create an artificial consensus. In the US election both candidates were supported by the voices of bot accounts. More than one-third of pro-Trump tweets were automated, while almost one-fifth of pro-Clinton tweets were from bots. An automated pro-Trump bombardment was also used to sway polling done by trusted institutions such as Time, Fortune and CNBC to give the impression Trump won the first presidential debate in September.

Information doesn't have to be false to influence voters' decision-making. Acquiring and distributing true, but previously unavailable information can change the way people make choices during an election. The US intelligence community has broadly concluded that Russia was behind the efforts to influence the course of the 2016 US election by leaking emails from key figures. A similar eleventh hour effort was undertaken to derail the election of Emmanuel Macron in France. The ultimate effect of the release of the stolen information isn't clear, but the link to Russian intelligence services has concerning implications for the integrity of democratic process.

Of course, efforts to influence election outcomes are nothing new. Russia's attempts to influence operations don't represent a new strategy, but old tricks achieved by different means. The differentiating factor is how cyber operations have made such interference much more effective. Modern technology has enabled the execution of this sort of campaign at a scale and scope previously unseen. Regrettably, evidence suggests the targeting of the US presidential election by malicious cyber actors wasn't an isolated blip. Subsequent elections in Europe are under threat from the same Russian-linked hacking group, and the precedent for others to follow is obvious.

Some private-sector companies are stepping up to support governments to deal with this challenge. Google and its sister company, Jigsaw, have released a free suite of cybersecurity tools called Protect Your Election. However, there are also areas of growing friction between government and industry on this issue. Germany is considering legislation that makes social media companies responsible for monitoring and removing hate speech and fake news from their platforms. The debate over how to simultaneously defend freedom of speech and prevent the spread of fake news is likely to intensify in liberal democracies in the near term. Ultimately, the two must be balanced to ensure that democracy is protected from threats to its legitimacy.
Since I decided not to engage with lunatics on the internet, my mood, and therefore my quality of life, has improved markedly.

I made the decision a while ago but it was confirmed when I read Lindy West's explanation of why she'd decided to leave Twitter. For her, it turned out to be a huge waste of space, where the ignorant and the cruel played with her emotions and valuable time. Unlike West, I didn't leave any social media platforms but I now engage very differently to how I engaged even a year ago. I don't reply to the poorly conceived or to the badly brought up.

Are Australian insurer's doing enough to protect our personal information from cyber criminals?

But a few weeks ago, I received an email in response to a column I wrote on women not being recognised in the Australian honours system. In the realm of rude emails, this one wasn't so bad. No threats of violence. No use of words beginning with c. No use of the word "leftard" (awful for so many reasons).

It just had a message for me in the subject line. "Shocking whinger". So not too bad really. Take it on the chin along with all the other bad behaviour.
Compassion for the situations of Dr Scott and others like him is a compelling argument for his plea to have the option of assisted dying. Not to grant this condemns any of us who may face a similar situation or have witnessed a dreadful death to bear all the associated grief and costs involved. Surely it's a question of having the right to choose a peaceful death rather than one by ordeal. Vicky Marquis Glebe Recognition the key to Middle East peace Tony Walker writes that Israel's defensive war in 1967 didn't entitle it to permanently occupy the territory captured ("The Six Day War has endured for 50 years", May 29) . In fact, Israel immediately offered to return most of the territory in return for peace, but the Arab League responded with its infamous "three no's"  no recognition, no negotiation, no peace. UN Security Council 242 required Israel to withdraw from "territories occupied", not all the territories occupied, in exchange for peace. When Egypt agreed to peace, Israel withdrew from the entire Sinai, more land than the rest of Israel and the territories combined. Sadly, the Palestinians walked away from what were generally regarded as generous deals in 2000/01 (followed by mass terrorism) and in 2008, and when Israel unilaterally withdrew from Gaza, it received thousands of rockets for its trouble.

If the Palestinians genuinely accept Israel's right to exist, all other issues, including the settlements (which, as even the Palestinians admit, take up less than two per cent of the West Bank) can be resolved. Danny Samuels Malvern (Vic) Tony Walker asserts that Israel trebled the size of its territory after the 1967 war. Nowhere does he mention the not insignificant fact that Israel subsequently returned the Sinai Desert and Gaza Strip which together formed, overwhelmingly, the greatest part of the captured territory, and it did so at its own peril. Michael Jaku Double Bay For broad support, keep referendum question simple

I agree with George Williams that the Referendum Council must settle on a model for Aboriginal recognition that is capable of winning broad support. The secret to success is to keep any referendum question simple ("Uluru statement offers up different set of priorities", May 29). Malcolm Turnbull's republic referendum failed because it should have asked one simple question: Do you support a new law for an Australian republic, yes or no? Turnbull has learnt his lesson. As Prime Minister, he suggested one simple question for the proposed same-sex marriage plebiscite: Do you support a new law for same-sex marriage, yes or no? Now that the Uluru statement has charted a different course to the one previously identified in the recognition discussions, why not proceed with a referendum question that has the best chance of success: Do you support a new law for an agreement with Australia's Indigenous people, yes or no? Peter Breen Byron Bay Phil Johnson (Letters, May 29) is mistaken. Many countries have a treaty with indigenous people. As George Williams stated in his 2013 article, the United States of America, Canada and New Zealand have such treaties ("Treaty long overdue," November 12, 2013). Australia is the only Commonwealth nation that does not have a treaty with its Indigenous peoples. It is about time the current situation was changed. However, the typical weak-kneed response by the Prime Minister to the Uluru conference proposal for a treaty makes its adoption unlikely in the near future. Brian Neligan Canada Bay Law must target threats of violence

Neither the government nor the opposition has so far proposed that which the Keep NSW Safe Alliance seeks, namely, a criminal law that targets intentional and reckless promotion of violence against minorities ("'We are all at risk': community leader in push to amend race hate laws", May 29). The new law would not restrict robust public debate. It is focused on threats of violence, something that our society abhors. No one should be free to promote violence against people on the basis of their race or religion or sexual identity. David Knoll Coogee Why is it that any mention of tightening up race hate laws always ends up with those least likely to be victims of racism trotting out that old furphy of our "freedom of speech" being threatened? Con Vaitsas Ashbury Liberal MP Damien Tudehope thinks that cracking down on hate speech is an attack on free speech. I wonder if he thinks that shouting "Fire!" in a crowded cinema is free speech?

Dave Horsfall North Gosford Education views outdated Ross Gittins denigrates intellectual achievement in our country and says nothing about how we need to prepare ourselves for the highly competitive Asian century ("Our universities aren't earning the money we're giving them", May 29). His arguments, such as the claim that universities do not care about students or good teachers, are demonstrably outdated. At UNSW we are investing in enhancing teaching and the student experience, overhauling our promotion guidelines to ensure that we promote more academics on the basis of their teaching. Gittins is behind the times if he is unaware that teaching and student satisfaction is increasingly measurable and academics are accordingly devoting more of their efforts to ensuring they deliver excellent teaching. There is a world of innovation, invention and discovery out there. Harvard, Oxford and Cambridge are at the top because they make huge contributions. Australia's top universities are not far behind. We should applaud the fact that Australia is a player on the world stage and consider how and whether we want to make our country stronger.

I ask Gittins to do the thought experiment. Does cutting investment in knowledge make us better or worse? Professor Merlin Crossley deputy vice-chancellor education, University of New South Wales, Sydney Homophobia and same-sex marriage The reason why Alan Joyce is praised and Margaret Court "pilloried" for their respective views on same-sex marriage, Ken Farrington (Letters, May 29), could be that Joyce is promoting equality while Court is promoting continued discrimination, and perhaps the large majority in favour of change appreciate the difference. Similarly, I suggest to Ivor Davies (Letters, May 29) that speaking out against same-sex marriage is, contrary to his assertion, homophobic, and is clearly making a discriminatory statement against homosexuals. Alynn Pratt Killara

My father fled 1950s communist Hungary after he was branded a "reactionary". The brand "reactionary" along with "enemy of the people" was the regime's favourite tool for condemning someone who spoke their mind without fear. It's interesting that proponents of same-sex marriage (Letters, May 29) resort to the language of totalitarian regimes when trying to suppress opposing views. I hope Margaret Court won't have to flee intolerance in this country. Andras Hidas Arcadia Metro will undo heritage station upgrades The claim the Sydenham to Bankstown rail privatisation project will "upgrade 11 stations along the 13.5km rail line" needs to be rebutted on two counts ("Battle brews over 'unsafe' $20b train station plan", May 29). First, existing stations will need to be significantly modified. This will not be an upgrading but heritage destruction. Second, a number of these stations, such as Marrickville, Sydenham and Belmore, have recently been upgraded. Great attention was paid to the heritage of these stations. The destructive requirements of the proposed Metro will undo much of this work.

The Sydenham to Bankstown line is a functional part of Sydney's rail network. Cannibalising and privatising it is a missed opportunity to provide rail services elsewhere. Peter Olive Marrickville Killing with kindness While every death caused by a preventable fall in a nursing home is an individual tragedy we must also take care not to kill our elders with kindness, by wrapping them in cotton wool ("Residents fall victim to preventable deaths", May 29). We watched our already frail but still active father lose physical strength, and interest in life, as he sat in his chair, gently persuaded against any effort to stand or walk unassisted. The staff in the nursing home were wonderful  they would do anything for him except let him do things for himself.

Bureaucracy run rampant is largely at fault here. Every fall in a nursing home requires reams of paperwork to be completed as well as the possibility of fielding complaints from grieving families. No wonder managers and staff are cautious in the face of this intractable dilemma. Allowing residents to remain active means risk of falls but confining them to a life wrapped in cotton wool is also deadly. We need to develop strategies to manage these conflicting issues of care. Without challenge and activity, life becomes a living death. Jennifer Killen St Peters Corby coverage over the top? You bet it is

Is the coverage of the Schapelle Corby "story" absurdly over the top (Letters, May 29)? That question can easily be answered by pondering whether the coverage would be the same had the protagonist been a young Indigenous man from the far west, or a tough-as-nails, obese 60-year-old grandmother.Martyn Yeomans Turramurra Corby was convicted on May 27, 2005 with importing to Indonesia 4.2 kilograms of marijuana. This is now reported as either 4.1kg or 4kg. What happened to the rest? I suspect the media smoked it. John Simpson Tapitallee Flogging a dead horse There is no letter published in the Herald on this year's Sydney Writers' Festival. Is it because the letter writers who attended are now busy beavering away at their hoped-for publishing success? Everyone thinks they've got a book inside them. Reality is, writing is an art. A good writer can flog a dead horse to make it pull a load; a bad one overloads. Hendry Wan Alexandria Perfect name for new bub
The CeBIT technology conference in Sydney last week. Credit:CeBIT Australia

No one doubts that the government needs to collect information, but people have a right to feel this will be protected. If personal knowledge is then sold to companies, it allows discrimination on the basis of simply assigning people to particular demographic datasets. This is taking place anyway. It's crucial vital that government doesn't abuse people's trust by selling such information to organisations that exist solely to make a profit.

These problems are easy to comprehend. Everyone's now become accustomed to the idea of Qantas using analytics to charge customers different prices for seats on the same aeroplane. But this doesn't mean we want government to provide companies with even more data that would allow the market to be further diced and sliced, until every cent has been extracted from the consumer.

At least there's evidence the (federal) government is finally getting ahead of the new critical issues that emerged at the conference. There was, on the sidelines, a key meeting between Russian hacking expert Eugene Kaspersky and the Prime Minister special adviser on cyber-security, Alistair MacGibbon. This signals an understanding that there's recognition at the highest levels that the current state of confusion about hacking attacks isn't good enough. If another country dropped a bomb on a highway, destroying the road, we'd expect the government to take action. Exactly the same issues are at stake if a cyber-attack threatens to take out critical infrastructure, such as the electricity grid or communications. While banks are big and ugly enough to look after themselves, government should be prepared to delineate exactly what it's prepared to defend. Unfortunately, as the conference clearly demonstrated, no one nobody is out there explaining and outlining exactly what responsibility government is prepared to accept in the cyber-domain.

We are caught in a new wave of this technologically driven revolution that's transforming society. We will never return to "business as usual". The concern is that the cultural and political ramifications of what's taking place are not understood. Instead, confusion reigns. Most worryingly, these issues are not even being probed by the politicians who will need to deal with the fallout. It's time for some focus.
Health department bosses have described their radical proposal to remake hospital funding as "future gazing" after the Turnbull government declared it would never adopt the controversial policy.

The private health insurance rebate would be abolished, consumers would be charged more for extras cover and the states would be forced to find more money for public hospitals under the plan.

As revealed by Fairfax Media on Monday, the nation's most senior health bureaucrats  Department of Health Secretary Martin Bowles and his deputy Mark Cormack  are members of a secretive taskforce formed to develop the policy around a "Commonwealth Hospital Benefit" (CHB).

Health Minister Greg Hunt immediately ruled out adopting the policy.
One of the key lawyers in the Mabo case, Bryan Keon-Cohen, has described the proposal to enshrine an Indigenous voice in the constitution as modest and conservative, and challenged "gutless politicians" to support it.

"It doesn't in any way challenge the basic power structures of the constitution," said Mr Keon-Cohen. "It provides advice only and Parliament can do what it likes with that advice, including ignoring it.

"What are we worrying about, apart from politicians being gutless?"

Prominent constitutional lawyer, Professor Adrienne Stone, has also supported the proposal as consistent with Australia's constitutional culture.
Treasury secretary John Fraser has defended his budget forecast for economic growth, saying there are indications "the long period of growth undershooting forecasts is beginning to come to an end".

In the past three budgets the Treasury has forecast a lift in economic growth of 3 per cent and has been disappointed.

But Mr Fraser told a Senate estimates hearing on Monday there were indications that this time economic growth would climb to 3 per cent by 2018-19 after climbing to 2.75 per cent in 2017-18.
There's a Maori word, mana, which found its way into a celebration of Aboriginal Australia at Parliament House on Monday.

Difficult to translate, it refers to a person's rare, natural authority. Their powerful charisma. And according to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Ken Wyatt - the first Indigenous member of the House of Representatives - has it.

Turnbull was reflecting on his colleague at the unveiling of a portrait of the West Australian Liberal MP, who has also brought his Noongar, Yamatji and Wongi heritage to the ministry as the first Indigenous frontbencher.

As heated debate beckons over the next, historic step in the reconciliation process, the bipartisan audience for this addition to the parliamentary art collection was all smiles and warmth.
I just want to share some comments the Foreign Minister made earlier which I didn't have a change to bring to you.

Ms Bishop was asked whether she agrees with US senator John McCain's assessment that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a greater threat than ISIS.

In an interview with ABC's 7.30 program on Monday night, Senator McCain said: "I think ISIS can do terrible things. But it's the Russians who tried to destroy the fundamental of democracy and that is to change the outcome of an American election."

Ms Bishop said the senior Republican, in his address to today's Coalition party room meeting as part of his Australian visit, put the two threats in context as "apples and oranges".

"The ISIS threat is present, it is dangerous and we are addressing it. His comments in relation to Russia were about the long-term ambitions of President Putin to restore the Soviet Union or some kind of Russian empire and undermine the international rules-based order that has existed for the last 70 years."


Is there anything more disruptive to the workplace than hormones? I mean, I'm all for equal opportunity, but someone needs to play devil's advocate, acknowledge the elephant in the room and be the voice of reason in the whole gender-workforce debate.

Basic biological facts can't be ignored in hiring practices, and if the practice of hiring based on merit happens to favour women, well, we all just have to accept that it's the nature of the beast.

Is there anything more disruptive to the workplace than hormones? Credit:Stocksy

Face it. Testosterone and work just don't mix.

We all know women are inherently stronger collaborators than men, and collaboration is what makes humans the dominant species.
When Hillary Clinton returned to Wellesley College to deliver her third commencement address, listeners hailed her not-so-veiled jabs at President Donald Trump as a dispatch from the resistance, her jokes about the healing powers of chardonnay as Hillary unleashed.

Though Clinton mixed her sombre warnings with hopeful exhortations, the speech left me feeling glum and out of step.

I understand why it's revitalising to see that the 2016 election didn't break the woman at the centre of it. But her Wellesley speeches feel like a chronicle of Clinton's diminishing expectations and increasingly sombre acknowledgments of what a woman has to endure if she's going to persist.

Plenty of college students have dreamed that the world might be transformed, and not merely those who graduated into the turbulence of the 1960s and early '70s. When Hillary Rodham took the stage in 1969, she sounded so buoyant that you could be forgiven for wondering if, unlike her husband, she had actually inhaled.
In a finding that will have broad implications for drug design, scientists have learnt how golden staph changes its shape to thwart last-line antibiotics.

Scientists based at Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute used a giant microscope to document at a molecular level the changes that occurred in the bacteria when they became resistant to antibiotics.

The study, published in the journal mBio, found a "surprising, unorthodox method of resistance".

Nearly 1500 patients contracted golden staph in Australian public hospitals in 2014-15 and one in five cases were resistant to antibiotics, according to the latest government statistics.
Russia's leader Vladimir Putin is a bigger threat to the United States than islamist terrorism, US senator John McCain says.

Speaking to the ABC's 7.30 program on Monday night, Mr McCain - who is in Canberra for security talks - said Mr Putin is "the premier and most important threat, more so than ISIS".

"I think ISIS can do terrible things, and I worry a lot about what is happening with the Muslim faith," Mr McCain said.

"But it's the Russians who tried to destroy the very fundamental of democracy, and that is to change the outcome of an American election. I have seen no evidence they succeeded but they tried and they are still trying."
Only a fortnight after failing in their last-ditch attempt to have their committal hearing delayed, former Labor powerbroker Eddie Obeid and his son Moses have waived their right to a committal hearing.

Eddie and Moses Obeid and former mining minister Ian Macdonald have been charged with conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office over a $30 million coal deal involving the family's rural property at Mount Penny in the Bylong Valley near Mudgee.

Eddie Obeid (inset) and Moses Obeid.

The three-week hearing, which was due to start on May 29, was for a magistrate to determine whether there was enough evidence for the matter to go to trial.

The Obeids have waived their right to have a committal and to test the evidence of the 19 witnesses who were to be called.
A lack of support and resources to teach children with disabilities or special needs has resulted in unsafe classrooms for teachers and students, a survey has revealed.

The survey of principals of more than 200 primary schools in south-western Sydney also found breaches of disability discrimination laws "occur on a regular basis".

A survey of principals of more than 200 primary schools in south-western Sydney found breaches of disability discrimination laws "occur on a regular basis". Credit:Glen McCurtayne

Eighty-nine per cent of principals rated the funding for students with a disability or special needs was either poor or very poor, according a submission from South Western Sydney Primary Principals to a NSW parliamentary inquiry into students with a disability or special needs in NSW schools.

Their submission contained examples of how inadequate resources had left schools unable to cater for some children with disabilities and special needs, including one student whose high anxiety led to outbursts of physical aggression.
Three siblings travelling home from a NSW fair have been killed in a "split second" in a horrific crash between two trucks and a car in northern NSW.

The head-on collision occurred on the Newell Highway, about 30 kilometres south of the NSW town of Boggabilla, near the Queensland border, about 6am on Monday.

Jack Pink, 19, and his sisters Marina, 17, and Destiny, 15, were killed instantly while travelling in two of the three vehicles involved in the collision.
Payroll tax should be eventually scrapped in Queensland and infrastructure spending increased by $6 billion, the state's peak group for small business has argued.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland says the payroll tax threshold should be lifted from $1.1 million to $1.5 million to deliver tax relief to about 15,500 Queensland businesses, arguing it discourages small businesses from creating additional jobs.

Payroll tax should eventually be scrapped in Queensland, CCIQ argues. Credit:Louise Kennerley

CCIQ modelling shows raising the payroll tax threshold to $1.5 million would deliver 2000 direct jobs and flow-on effects for indirect jobs across Queensland.

But in the future, the industry group wants the threshold progressively raised in increments of $100,000 to $2 million over five years - at which time it should be abolished.
When the first stage from Broadbeach to our university at Parkwood opened it was well received. But the behaviour change we all hoped for was rather modest at first. After opening in 2014, patronage did not surge compared to bus ridership on the route in earlier years. The Gold Coast light rail route. New passengers got on board, but it was an uphill climb for the new system. Fare increases of almost 50 per cent from 2010 to 2014 pushed passengers off public transport across southeast Queensland, especially on rail. Not all passengers enjoyed improved service for their particular journeys either. Those who used to travel through the corridor in a bus now had to break their journey at the light rail terminus and transfer, adding travel time and annoyance. In the second year of operation, however, patronage jumped 16 per cent and our contacts suggest third-year patronage is tracking well. Subsidies per passenger are falling. The decision to add the connection to Helensvale looks a sound one.

But, seemingly, other changes everyone expected werent there. The Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics analysed property values in the corridor from 2000 to 2013 using a coarse geography and didnt find much evidence of any uplift. This gave many cause for concern. Reassuringly, Cameron Murray used valuation data for a similar period using a different geographical scale and found a 10 per cent increase for properties within 400 metres of the new stations. But there was still uncertainty. Our new research backs up and expands on Murrays findings, suggesting there was substantial positive impact. What did our research look at? Our research team in the Funding on the Line Australian Research Council Linkage Project took a different approach.

In a peer-reviewed paper, which will shortly be presented at the World Symposium on Transport and Land Use Research, led by Barbara Yen, we used sales data for residential properties along the corridor. Our study compared areas within 800 metres of the stations with a control area containing locations a little further away but still in the same vicinity. We used a longitudinal methodology to see when the value uplift occurred from back in 1996, when planning of the system first started, through to the latest 2016 data. Property prices in the catchment areas started to increase very early in the planning phase. The property value uplift was highest in the locations between 100 and 400 metres from the stations. Values went up 11.9 per cent in these locations compared to our control areas between 1996 and the feasibility studys announcement in 2002. They increased a further 26.3 per cent from 2002 to 2006 over the control areas when the feasibility study was completed. Prices rose only 2.3 per cent from 2006 to 2011 when the formal funding commitment was made and construction began, and then by another 5.4 per cent after the line opened to the end of the study period in 2016. The areas less than 100 metres from the stations, and between 400 and 800 metres also recorded strong increases compared to the control areas, though not quite as much. This is to be expected. Sites closest to the stations received some nuisance from the light rail and road corridor; sites further away obtain fewer advantages in travel time savings for passengers.

What are the funding implications? The property value gains attributable to the project from 1996 to 2016 of more than 30 per cent are very significant. Yet its pretty much only the landowners who benefit. The City of Gold Coast recoups some of its $120 million investment in the light rail through its rates and its public transport levy on urban residents. The Queensland government may end up getting a little slice via stamp duty as properties are sold. The few pieces of government-owned land likely rose in value. But the state and federal governments generally have no other mechanisms to take a small sliver of the increased property value their investment generated to help pay for the light rail system or reinvest in public transport elsewhere. Weve written about this previously in The Conversation and suggested ways we could change the system. A recent federal parliamentary inquiry and moves to set up value sharing units in the Queensland and New South Wales governments suggest we are now getting serious about generating alternative funding for public transport.
The inquiry, headed by ombudsman Kate Carnell, found almost half of all small businesses have more than $20,000 owing to them in late payments and that small businesses are being used as a form of "cheap finance". Carnell advocated for legislation requiring on time payments to small businesses following the lead of Britain and Ireland. Kate Carnell will call for legislation within a year if the code does not deliver. Credit:Jeffrey Chan, Fairfax Media But BCA chief Jennifer Westacott says rather than being an attempt to avoid legislation the voluntary code is "an attempt to say let's try self-regulation and get a cultural change". "This is about getting a behaviour change not getting a piece of law in place," she says. "It's something that has come from the companies themselves wanting to get ahead of this sense of frustration of small business with payment terms."

Small Business minister Michael McCormack. Credit:Josh Robenstone A step forward Carnell says the code needs to deliver. "We think it's a step forward," she says. "What we have said is we will closely monitor it, there is a review at 12 months and we will review it every three months. It's one thing signing one of these and it's another thing delivering it." It's one thing signing one of these and it's another thing delivering it. Kate Carnell

Carnell says it's good to see a number of businesses signed up to the code who were "major offenders", such as BHP, Rio and Lendlease. "There are some important companies that were offenders on the list but there are a whole range that aren't on the list," she says. Major construction companies such as John Holland have so far failed to sign up alongside major transport companies and multinational food manufacturers such as Mars, Kelloggs and Fonterra, which have come under fire for payment terms of up to 90 days and finance arrangements "pretty close to extortion". "Lion and Coca Cola are a start but the others aren't there," Carnell says. "If a significant majority haven't signed up in 12 months we will be asking the government to legislate or regulate like the UK. I'm always keen on having less legislation and regulation if you can deliver without it so the challenge now is for big business to deliver without it. It hasn't worked in other parts of the world but that's a message to big business here that they have seen what has happened if businesses don't deliver on voluntary codes, governments get in and regulate." The Council of Small Business of Australia has backed the BCA code and chief executive Peter Strong says he is positive about the code's potential

"It is creating change and you can't be negative about that," he says. "Thirty-two people have signed up now, which somebody said to me wasn't a lot but it's still 32 more than we had a year ago. A year ago I wouldn't have dreamt of this." Small Business Minister Michael McCormack will also be monitoring the signatories to the code. "While I welcome this code as a positive first step, I will be keeping a close eye on how the code is adopted, its take-up rate, how it works in practice and the encouragement it provides to big businesses throughout Australia," he says. More businesses to sign up Westacott says the focus shouldn't be on the number of businesses that have or haven't signed up.
Gregory Keith Davies has admitted the rape and murder of six-year-old Kylie Maybury. Credit:Eddie Jim "And all the other victims out there who have lost their children, I can understand exactly where they are and where they stand." On November 6, 1984, Kylie, her little sister and their mother had been at a pub with a neighbour for the big race and afterwards went back to the friend's flat for a cuppa. The body of six-year-old Kylie Maybury was found here, in Donald Street, Preston. Credit:Fairfax Photographic While there, Kylie was asked to go to a nearby shop to buy sugar.

With a handful of small change and her Strawberry Shortcake handbag, she left, with instructions to buy the sugar and come straight back. Gregory Keith Davies, 74, has pleaded guilty to Kylie Maybury's murder. According to documents released by the court, Kylie bought the sugar about 5.30pm and was seen  in her red skivvy and fawn pants  by another woman, who was concerned the little girl didn't know where she was going. About 10 minutes after Kylie left the flat, her mother became concerned and went looking for her. Kylie Maybury's mother Julie and her grandfather, John Moss, at a press conference in November 1984. Credit:John Lamb

Within the next two hours, police had been called and a search had been organised. About 12.45am the next day, Kylie's body was found in a gutter, about 650 metres from her home. Kylie Maybury disappeared after walking to this Food Plus store in Plenty Road, Preston, in November 1984. Credit:Fairfax Photographic Davies' admissions came on the first day of his committal hearing, before any evidence had been heard, and came as a shock to Ms Ryan, who had not expected him to plead guilty. She will now be spared from giving evidence in court about her daughter's disappearance and death.

Police released this picture of Kylie Maybury as she would have looked on the day she went missing. Ms Ryan tearfully embraced supporters after the short hearing and, outside court, said Davies' admissions would let her and her family "live our lives again". "It makes a lot of difference," she said. "It makes [things] calmer. "We all can move on and we don't have to look in the darkness again.

"The darkness is nearly over." In 1984 Davies was a houseman at the Windsor Hotel and was living three streets away from where the Maybury girls lived. Two days after Kylie's body was found, Davies was spoken to by police investigating the murder. He told them he had been at a barbecue on Cup Day and returned home in his white Holden station wagon about the same time Kylie went to the shop, but that he spent the night at home alone, as his mother and sister stayed with a relative. He denied having ever interacted with Kylie, though Ms Ryan told police she believes she once delivered pamphlets to his address.

As DNA technology advanced in the years after the murder, samples taken from Kylie's clothing were analysed in 1995 and again last year, eventually leading investigators to Davies, who was living in Waterford Park, north of Melbourne. He initially denied the charges when arrested last June, but his admissions mean he will front the Supreme Court on Tuesday, when a date for a plea hearing will be set. Davies arrived in Waterford Park, near Kilmore, in the late 1990s. His brother, Alf, had been doing handiwork for a widow, and been living in a caravan at the rear of the house. Alf eventually asked if Davies could also live there, and the pair helped paint the house, among other chores. When Alf died of throat cancer a few years later, Davies kept living there.

A short time after that, he married the widow  despite being 17 years her junior. A relative of Davies' wife said the 90-year-old had moved out of the house after his arrest, partially because she had relied on Davies to help care for her. The relative had not spoken to Davies' wife on Monday about the guilty plea. On the day he was arrested last June, Davies' wife was "completely devastated", a relative said at the time, "and she's in two minds. She doesn't want to believe it, but knows she has to believe it too." Loading Neighbours told Fairfax Media that Davies had always made them feel uneasy.
Rebel Wilson may have been fired from movies Kung Fu Panda III and Trolls before magazine articles she claims have damaged her acting career were published, lawyers for Bauer Media say.

The actress' defamation trial against the publisher of Woman's Day entered its second week on Monday, with revelations that she is currently planning to work on new movies following the articles.

Rebel Wilson heading to court on Monday. Credit:AAP

Georgina Schoff, QC, for Bauer Media, cross-examined Ms Wilson about a "termination document" for Trolls that was dated "as of" April 2015.

This was about a month before a series of articles were published by several Bauer magazines including Woman's Day. Ms Wilson claims the articles suggest she is a serial liar.
West Australian Premier Mark McGowan says personal drug possession won't be decriminalised, after the Australian Medical Association WA called for a debate on addiction being treated as a health, rather than criminal issue.

Mr McGowan said he supported treatment options for prisoners with substance abuse issues, but was not open to a debate on decriminalising any drug offences.

Portugal reformed their drug laws 2001 so drug users are dealt with outside the courts.

"You need to have a mix of solutions, and what we want to have is that mix of education, treatment, as well as the force of law," he told reporters on Sunday.

"What I hate is people going into prison, coming out worse than when they went in
Versailles: French President Emmanuel Macron called for improved ties with Russia at his first meeting with Vladimir Putin, even as he rebuked Kremlin-run media for engaging in "propaganda" during the election brought him to power.

Macron, standing alongside Putin at the Versailles Palace near Paris, also staked out tough positions on sanctions and the civil war in Syria. The French leader said he'd support new sanctions against Russia if there's an escalation in the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where he has condemned Russia's role as an "invasion".

Fighting terrorism is the main priority for both nations, Macron said at a joint news conference on Monday local time, though he warned that Russian-led efforts to broker a cease-fire in Syria wouldn't succeed without a political process.

"I want us to win the fight against terrorists in Syria and build together lasting political stability," Macron said. "We have laid the ground for that work together today. I believe we've had an extremely frank and direct exchange. We have told each other everything."
Bangkok: Foreign fighters were among militants who besieged a southern Philippines city, intensifying fears that Islamic State is gaining a foothold in South-east Asia.

Bodies found in Marawi, 830 kilometres south of Manila, after almost a week of fighting include Malaysians, Indonesians, Saudis, an Indian, Chechen and Yemeni, according to Rohan Gunaratna, a terrorism expert from the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.

The Philippines is now Islamic State's epicentre in the region, he said.

Zachary Abuza, another expert on terrorism in South-east Asia, said that while there is no evidence that Islamic State has sent significant support to a dozen militant Islamist groups operating in the southern Philippines, "increasingly South-east Asians are being drawn to Mindanao".
A police officer wipes away tears as he looks at flowers and tributes left in St Ann's Square in Manchester, England. Credit:PA/AP Shoreham Airfield said that they did not have anyone available to comment. Police released a new image of the bomber on Monday that showed him wheeling a blue suitcase through Manchester city centre days before he carried out the attack. Members of the British Muslim Forum and religious leaders from Christian and Jewish faiths pay their respects at St Ann's square in Manchester on Sunday. Credit:AP Detective Chief Superintendent Russ Jackson has made an appeal to the public, asking whether anyone had seen Abedi with the suitcase on May 22. He said the authorities were particularly interested in his whereabouts in the four days leading up to the attack as investigators continue to track down his final movements.

"We believe Abedi was in possession of this case in the days before the attack at Manchester Arena on Monday 22 May," he said in a statement. "I want to stress that this is a different item than the one he used in the attack." Salman Abedi in an unknown location of the city centre in Manchester, England. Credit:Greater Manchester Police Investigators suspect that Abedi received extensive training in Libya before returning to Britain, where he is thought to have received assistance from a local network in the days before the attack. The bombing, at Manchester Arena at the end of an Ariana Grande concert, was Britain's deadliest since 2005. "The suspect would have received training abroad, without a shadow of a doubt," said David Videcette, a former detective for the Metropolitan Police. "To acquire these skills you can't sit in your bedroom and watch a YouTube video. It takes practice." Police appealed to locals for information on anyone who saw Abedi carrying a suitcase like this in Manchester. Credit:Police

Initial analysis of the attack pointed to a sophisticated cell that probably supplied logistical, technical and emotional support to the bomber "in order to keep him in a place where he is willing to blow himself up," Videcette said. With the intense series of police operations showing no signs of abating. On Sunday, counter-terror officers stormed addresses in Gorton, Rusholme and Moss Side. Explosions were reported at several of the searches, but police would not comment on whether controlled blasts were used to gain entry. Members of the British Muslim Forum with religious leaders from Christian and Jewish faiths pay their respects at St Ann's square in Manchester on Sunday. Credit:AP Three people were arrested - and quickly de-arrested - during the afternoon's operation at Quantock Street, Moss Side, leading them to post an outraged sign on their front door. It read: "This is what the police has caused and we have nothing to do with what happened in the bombing attack".

One Moss Side resident, who did not want to be named, said he heard a loud explosion "like a bomb going off" and saw a number of police vans in the street. He said a group of young Middle Eastern men moved into the address around six months ago. "There's a group of them knocking about with each other - they're from the Middle East," he added. "A couple of them dress in the traditional Muslim robes. "There was always a lot of coming and going in and out of that building.

"Every time I've been outside my flat there's someone there or a group of them sitting outside in a car." The developments came hours after the Home Secretary said members of Abedi's circle could still be at large, despite a wave of arrests leading to the country's terror threat level being de-escalated. Ms Rudd told BBC One's Andrew Marr Show: "The operation is still at full tilt, in a way. "Until the operation is complete, we can't be entirely sure that it is closed." Seven children were among the dead in what was the most costly terror attack to hit Britain since the July 7 bombings in 2005. A total of 116 people required hospital care in the wake of the massacre.
A US missile defence system called Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, is installed at a golf course in Seongju, South Korea. Credit:AP On Sunday, Defence Secretary Jim Mattis argued that the United States could not wait for North Korea to complete its testing program before responding forcefully. "It is a direct threat to the United States," he said on CBS's Face the Nation. People sit in front of the TV screen showing a news program reporting about North Korea's missile firing, at Seoul Train Station in Seoul, South Korea. Credit:AP "They have been very clear in their rhetoric -- we don't have to wait until they have an intercontinental ballistic missile with a nuclear weapon on it to say that now it's manifested completely."

In its latest provocative move, North Korea early Monday test-fired a short-range ballistic missile, a launch that violated United Nations Security Council resolutions but was not of great concern to the United States. Missile launchers stand on the deck of the US Navy's USS Coronado littoral combat ship. Credit:Bloomberg The US response so far to the North's nuclear and missile programs has included a secret campaign of cyber- and electronic-warfare strikes that President Barack Obama accelerated three years ago, after concluding that traditional missile defences were insufficient. The covert program is known as "left of launch," since the cyberattacks begin before missiles reach the launching pad, or as they blast off. The Pukguksong-2 missile lifts off as it is test-launched at an undisclosed location in North Korea on May 22. Credit:AP

President Donald Trump has declined to publicly talk about the "left of launch" effort, though he has made comments that seemed to acknowledge its existence. The test scheduled for Tuesday is of the more classic anti-missile defences that the United States has struggled to make work since the Eisenhower administration. Yet it is the first since Trump took office vowing to "solve" the North Korea problem, and since he began talking about ratcheting up economic sanctions and raising military pressure on the North. But Trump is discovering what Obama learned before him: Intercepting intercontinental missiles over the Pacific is exquisitely hard, even when the tests, like the one scheduled for this week, are designed to give the interceptor its best shot. Incoming warheads move extraordinarily fast -- more than 6 km a second. In war, the interceptors in Alaska and California would race skyward and release speeding projectiles meant to obliterate incoming warheads by force of impact -- what experts call hitting a bullet with a bullet. Huge amounts of cash have been spent on this challenge: more than $US330 billion by the estimate of Stephen I. Schwartz, a military analyst at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California.

Yet neither the high cost nor the poor performance has dampened enthusiasm in Congress or at the Pentagon -- or among military contractors -- for deploying missile defences. The defence Department hopes to spend billions more dollars on the interceptors, including perhaps on a new site on the East Coast. Since the Bush administration began moving the system into operational mode in 2004, it has had a failure rate of 56 per cent in tests against mock warheads. While the official tally is five misses in nine attempts, critics say that a test in 2006 was only a partial success, since the interceptor struck just a glancing blow. "Close only counts in horseshoes, not in nuclear war," said Philip E. Coyle III, a former White House official and former head of weapons testing at the Pentagon who has long faulted the system as unreliable and misleading. If the glancing blow counts as a miss, the system's failure rate is 67 per cent. Critics warn that the system would do worse in war, since the flight tests are highly scripted. They note that no mock weapon has moved nearly as fast as a true enemy warhead. In the past, the North's reliance on liquid-fuelled missiles eased the targeting job for anti-missile interceptors. US military surveillance planes and satellites could track missile transporters and convoys of fuel trucks. The process of fuelling a missile takes several hours, making it vulnerable to a pre-emptive strike, and giving the anti-missile systems on the West Coast time to lock in on expected trajectories.

With the new generation of weapons, the solid fuels are packed into the missile body in the factory, eliminating the need for fuelling in the field. So the preparation time for an attack can drop from hours to minutes. "It's concerning," Coyle said. "It can give you less warning time." Missile experts say the North's shift to solids came as a surprise. Jeffrey Lewis, an expert in North Korean rocketry at the Middlebury Institute, noted last year that Washington had given two kinds of submarine missiles -- one fuelled by liquids, and a newer one by solids -- the same identifier code. The lack of a distinction, he said, suggested that the North had "caught the US unaware." The CIA disputes that, saying it has been tracking solid-fuel developments closely. Nonetheless, when the new CIA director, Mike Pompeo, took office, his first organisational step was to create a unit to unify all analysis and covert operations against North Korea's nuclear and missile systems, a recognition, officials say, that the efforts had been fractured.
Sean Spicer had been hoping to meet Pope Francis on the foreign trip, but his name was not on the list. Credit:Andrew Harrer Even the president's family is not immune. In a news conference at Trump Tower shortly after he won the White House, Trump announced that he would be putting his companies into a trust that his two older sons would run during his presidency. "I hope at the end of eight years, I'll come back and say, 'Oh, you did a good job,'" Trump said, as his sons looked on. But, then, he couldn't resist a final tweak - half joke, half warning: "Otherwise, if they do a bad job, I'll say, 'You're fired.'" The president has described House Speaker Paul Ryan in theory one of his top allies on Capitol Hill, as a "Boy Scout". Credit:AP The White House says that Trump, who came of age professionally running a family business, is simply joking with his staff, part of a warm, familial leadership style that makes everyone feel included.

"President Trump has a magnetic personality and exudes positive energy, which is infectious to those around him," Hope Hicks, Trump's communications director, said in a statement. "He has an unparalleled ability to communicate with people, whether he is speaking to a room of three or an arena of 30,000. He has built great relationships throughout his life and treats everyone with respect. He is brilliant with a great sense of humour ... and an amazing ability to make people feel special and aspire to be more than even they thought possible." Trump sometimes refers to his 45-year-old chief of staff, Reince Priebus, as "Reince-y," a diminutive nickname that some aides and outside rivals recount with gleeful relish. Credit:AP Many disagree with that assessment. Critics say the president often demeans those in his orbit, a tendency they say reflects a broader fragility beneath his bluster. "Trump is so deeply insecure that not even becoming president of the United States quenched his need to make others feel small to build himself up," said Tim Miller, a former spokesman for an anti-Trump super PAC. "Choosing to work for him necessitates a willingness to be demeaned in order to assuage his desire to feel like a big, important person." Trump even joked that his Vice President-to-be Mike Pence couldn't pull in a big crowd. Credit:AP

Trump's management style - whether good-natured ribbing or withering comments, depending on one's perspective - dates to his days as a Manhattan real estate developer, when Trump enjoyed operating in an environment of competing factions. Now, he has transplanted that executive philosophy into his White House. When he decided to fire his FBI director, James Comey, the president did so in an especially humiliating way. Like a scene out of The Godfather, Trump first sent Keith Schiller, his former head of security, to deliver the message to Comey at FBI headquarters. His allies maintain that Trump simply wanted the job done well, so he dispatched Schiller, whom he trusts deeply, in a sign of respect for how seriously he took the moment. Allies say the president's quips are simply good-natured teasing. Credit:AP But Comey, who was across the country visiting a Los Angeles field office, ultimately found out in embarrassing fashion - in public, from television, in full view of his staff. As Comey was delivering a speech to FBI field employees, he initially laughed as news flashed across the TV screens that he had been fired. "How'd you guys do that?" he asked, according to someone briefed on the moment. The FBI director assumed he was being pranked by his underlings - and had to be told by his team that the headlines were no joke. He had been dismissed, effective immediately.

Many disagree with the assessment that Trump is simply joking with his staff, and say that he demeans those closest to him. Credit:AP During a February prayer breakfast in Washington, Mark Burnett, the creator of The Apprentice, introduced Trump, who went on to make a few tone-deaf jokes about Arnold Schwarzenegger, who had replaced him as the show's host. "The ratings went down the tubes," the president said. "It's been a total disaster and Mark will never, ever bet against Trump again. And I want to just pray for Arnold if we can, for those ratings, OK?" Trump's friends and allies reject the notion that he diminishes those around him, saying the businessman-turned-president is simply trying to bring out the best in his employees. "I think it's more New York swagger than he's trying to belittle them," said Christopher Ruddy, the chief executive of Newsmax, a conservative media company, and a longtime friend of Trump's. "I always say he makes people feel like a million bucks."

The approach, however, frequently leaves Trump's top team open to some of his more cutting digs. At a private dinner shortly before he was inaugurated, Trump took aim at his incoming vice president and his incoming secretary of state, Rex Tillerson. Complimenting his vice presidential choice, Trump also reminded the crowd - and Pence - that he could have just as easily chosen someone else. "Oh, I had a couple of beauties I could have picked," Trump said. "They were good, too, but maybe they wouldn't have worked out like Mike." Turning his attention to his secretary of state pick at the same gathering, he hinted that Tillerson - a former chief executive of ExxonMobil - might be in for a steep learning curve in the Trump administration. "Where's our Rex?" Trump asked. "Wow. What a job. Thank you very much, thanks Rex. I think it's tougher than he thought. He's led this charmed life. He goes into a country, takes the oil, goes into another country. It's tough dealing with these politicians, right?" Trump also sometimes reminds even his senior advisers, in ways big and small, that he has the power to demote them at any time. During an Oval Office meeting about trouble spots abroad, a relatively junior foreign policy staff member prepared to take a seat on the periphery as the president's top aides, including chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon, surrounded him in chairs around the Resolute Desk. But the president soon ordered up a change, said someone who witnessed the moment, telling Bannon to give up his seat for the junior staff member and relegating his top strategist to the couch.

More recently, during a lunch with ambassadors from countries on the UN Security Council, Trump jokingly polled those in the room on whether they thought UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, seated directly to his right, was doing a good job. "How do you all like Nikki?" he asked, as Haley looked on. "Otherwise, she can easily be replaced." Close foreign allies are also targets of Trump's public and private dressing-downs. During an early call with Australia, one of nation's staunchest allies, the president got into a testy exchange with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, blasting him over a refugee deal, bragging about the size of his electoral college win and abruptly ending the call. When news from the conversation emerged, Trump's team readily confirmed details of the exchange. The president was livid about the leak - but had no problem being viewed as a bully, believing he was simply standing up for his nation's best interests.

The pattern continued in his trip overseas last week, when he gushed about the autocratic Saudi royal family even while insulting European allies. At a stop in Brussels, the president chastised NATO members for not meeting their financial responsibilities, shoved aside a Balkan prime minister to get in front for a group photo and needled his allies about the price tag on a new building for the alliance. During his first in-person meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump's typically aggressive greeting became a duel of one-upmanship as the two men clenched their jaws and tightened their faces during an intense, white-knuckled handshake. Macron, France's newly elected 39-year-old leader, later said he wanted to show Trump that he would not be pushed around or demeaned. Loading "I don't believe in diplomacy by public abuse," he said.
Welcome home Mr President. It's got worse while you were away.

Problem-plagued presidents love to travel abroad, to be welcomed by overhead jets, sword dances and lots of pomp and photo-ops.

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump walk from Marine One across the South Lawn to the White House in Washington on their return from Italy on Saturday. Credit:AP

But then they have to return.

President Donald Trump, who came home this week, will have to confront the reaction to his widely ridiculed budget. He'll have to deal with the struggle by congressional Republicans to patch together a politically unpopular healthcare bill, a government with scores of high-level vacancies and a White House racked by dissension and leaks.
PHILIPSBURG:--- A large fire ravaged at least two homes and a shack in Cape Bay Saturday night and a Taxi. SMN News learned that the Taxi 97 belongs to a woman of Haitian descent. Her vehicle it is understood is completely destroyed

According to fire officer, Nico Van Zand at least said a building that has several apartments and a shack behind that building were completely destroyed. Van Zand said that they police and firemen were unable to locate all the occupants of the apartments. He also confirmed that there was a vehicle with "T" license plate that was also destroyed. He said that he could not say exactly how many families were left homeless but based on unconfirmed reports he understood it is about 8 to 10 people all of whom were referred to the Red Cross. Van Zand said some 12 fire officer is on the scene trying to save the surrounding homes. Van Zand said that the police are busy assisting them with keeping the people in the surrounding area away since they are all concerned about losing their belongings.

In the meantime, Police Spokesman Ricardo Henson said that the fire started just before 9 pm and that police closed off the roads in order to control the traffic and crowd.



Fire destroys home completely

Several police patrols and Fire Department were sent to Elder Drive 7-B in Cape Bay on Saturday, May 27th at approximately 08.45 p.m. in connection with a home that was on fire. On the scene, it was clear to see that the fire was quite large and it had spread throughout the entire structure. This building was divided into three parts and was occupied by a couple and two other persons. This large fire caught a lot of public attention. The fire department brought the blaze under control shortly after Nevertheless the building was totally destroyed by the fire. The fire also caused minor structural damage to the building next door and two vehicles that were parked. One of these vehicles was TAXI-97 which was completely destroyed. Luckily there were no injuries. What was the cause of the fire is unknown.

KPSM Press Release
Foundation INFOBIZZ hosts project to better support creative entrepreneurs in the fashion industry

Great Bay:---- Eight emerging fashion designers from Caribbean Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) will be in St. Maarten from June 4  9, 2017 for a weeklong training called Dominate the Runway, which culminates with a fashion show. Inspired by Project Runway and led by Cristal Le Grand, the project manager, Dominate The Runway seeks to equip emerging designers to dominate in business and in fashion by providing experiential learning in both areas. Though Caribbean designers are extremely talented and provide quality fashion, most lack the support and knowledge in the area of business that can assist them to achieve extraordinary success.

According to Fashion United, the international fashion industry network, the fashion industry is valued at US $3 trillion and is expected to experience an 8% compounded annual growth rate between 2015 and 2025. However, the Caribbean region is grossly underrepresented on the international fashion scene in a time where multiculturalism and globalization are expressed as fundamentals in fashion. For this reason, Foundation INFOBIZZ, which has the aim of developing successful entrepreneurs, decided to coordinate Dominate The Runway.

Under the leadership of project manager, Ms. Le Grand, INFOBIZZ was able to gain funding from the Caribbean Organization of Small Medium Enterprises (COSME) to facilitate the participation of 8 emerging designers. During the week, emerging designers from St. Maarten, Curacao, Cayman Islands, Anguilla, and Tortola, will participate in intense workshops with local and regional experts on topics such as negotiations, marketing & media, networking, and taking their ideas from concept to market. Trainers such as designer Norma Ebanks (Cayman Islands), Ife Badejo, founder of INFOBIZZ, serial entrepreneur and Caribbeans #1 Business Connector, May Ling Chun, hotelier and entrepreneur, and Renae Quinton (Barbados), marketing and media executive, will challenge these designers while providing them with practical information that can be easily incorporated to grow and expand their businesses.

Lastly, the project will end with a fashion showcase on June 8, 2017, where the public can experience the local and regional talent, and see the amazing fashion that will Dominate The Runway. The admission to the fashion show is limited and available for $20 with a complimentary drink & goodie bag.

INFOBIZZ encourages the public to come out and support all the designers. For admission to the fashion showcase or more information about Dominate The Runway, contact Cristal Le Grand at +1721 586 5855.
PHILIPSBURG:--- On this occasion of the grand opening of the MotorWorld showroom in Cole Bay, the Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunrise would like to congratulate the Amjad Family, management, staff, and friends of MotorWorld on the accomplishment of this huge milestone. The club would also like to thank MotorWorld for the generous donation of 450 back to school backpacks for school children on the island. As a community-minded corporation, MotorWorld has played a critical role in not only providing job opportunities for the community but also helping create the right environment for the education of young people. Since 2013, MotorWorld has consistently provided pack to school items for young people through the Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunrise. During this current school year, the club in collaboration with Motorworld distributed 800 school bags with school supplies to the Methodist Agogic Center (MAC) school at both locations, Browilia F. Maillard campus( St. Johns Estate)and Rev. John A Gumbs campus (Bettys Estate). With MotorWorlds continued donations, other schools will be supported as beneficiaries for this upcoming 2017-2018 year.

The back to School Project has been a signature project of the Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunrise for the last five years headed by the immediate past president Ms. Marcellia Henry. Club President, Mrs. Okama Ekpe Brook, along with four other club members received the donation from the management of MotorWorld handed over by Mrs. Rena Amjad, Mr. Reza Amjad, and Mr. Lorenzo Gomez.

In her speech, President Okama Ekpe Brook thanked the Amjad family and MotorWorld management for the continued support which helps the club to strengthen innovations in education. Quality education is closely linked to entrepreneurship development and as a proud partner of MotorWorld, we are enabled to contribute to sustainable education and economic developments on St. Maarten, she said. We came for the opening and were heart warmed when the donation of 450 school packs was announced by MotorWorld. We are very grateful for your corporate social responsibility in providing needed equipment for young people at the beginning of the school year. There is no better way to start the school year for students than with a smile on their faces and this relationship enables us to continue to make a difference in the lives of many young people. Congratulations for an excellent job on the new showroom MotorWorld, and thank you so very much for your generous support. She concluded.

The Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunrise meets every Tuesday at the Ginger Bread Cafe Restaurant, Belair Beach Hotel from 7:00 AM to 8:00 AM. For more information on the club, visit our website at sxmsunrise.org or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . We are also on Facebook: Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunrise.
PHILIPSBURG:--- On Friday, May 26th at approximately 09.35 p.m. a police patrol and paramedics were sent to Delta Mart Gas Station in Dutch Quarter to investigate a case involving a man that was leaning against the wall of the building and was bleeding. On the scene, the patrol and paramedics encountered the victim who after been checked by paramedics seemed to have suffered tow stab wounds to his back from which he was bleeding. The victim was treated on the scene and then taken to the Sint Maarten Medical Center for further treatment. The victim was not in the condition to give any statement at the time.

Detectives and Forensic Department were called in and are presently investigating this case to determine who is responsible for this stabbing and why.

KPSM Press Release.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The Sint Maarten Police Chief Carl John attended the 32nd Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police (ACCP) Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Conference which was held on the island of Aruba from May 1st through May 4th, 2017. This annual meeting and conference were represented by numerous commissioners of police within the Caribbean region.

The Mission of the ACCP is to be the regional organization for promoting and facilitating:

a. collaboration and co-operation in the development and implementation

of policing strategies, systems, and procedures in the region;

b. the professional and technical skills development of police officers

throughout the region; and,

c. proactive measures to prevent crime and improve police-community

relations.

During this conference, many topics regarding law enforcement and crime, in general, were discussed. The crime rate among the islands in the Caribbean was among others one of the main topics discussed. The crime rate on Sint Maarten, statistically, compared to many other countries within the Caribbean region is relatively low. This is something that the community of Sint Maarten should be very proud of. At the same time, they should continue to exercise their civil duty in continuing to cooperate and assist the law enforcement authorities in the battle against crime and other criminal activity throughout the country.

A noticeable difference with a crime committed on the island is that the intensity of violence used during these criminal offenses has increased. This is unfortunate nevertheless this situation has the fullest attention of the police chief who has ordered plans of actions to be drafted on how, together with cooperation and collaboration of external partners, tackle and deal with this situation.

In the meanwhile, the police department continues to exchange information with other stakeholders and external partners, with the intention of improving and enhancing these working relations and in doing so create a safer Sint Maarten. As part of the crime prevention efforts, the police department has been providing a Robbery Awareness Training and presentations in CEPTED (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design). The police have also entered the schools introducing the TAPS (Teen And Police Services Academy) and Cops and Kids programs.

Terrorism was also one of the topics on the program that was discussed. Terrorism is a global threat and the exchange and sharing of information, mainly on the island in the Caribbean, is definitely one of the most important means of combating this criminal act.

The ACCP 2017 Annual General Meeting and Conference are deemed as a very informative and successful one.
Thunderstorm, lightening and heavy rainfall cause flooding

MARIGOT:--- Due to the heavy rainfall, thunderstorm and lightening the Prefecture of St. Martin has closed all schools on the French sides. The L Esperance Airport is also closed since flights from Guadeloupe to St. Martin were all canceled due to the severe flooding in many areas on the French side of the island.

Also on the Dutch side schools are also closed with some major offices such as SZV, and TELEM who also closed their doors due to the heavy rainfall.
Claim: Swallowing active dry yeast before drinking alcohol will prevent you from getting drunk. Rating: About this rating Unproven

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In April 2014, Esquire magazine published an interview with billionaire Jim Koch, the co-founder and chairman of the Boston Beer Company. In that interview, Koch divulged his secret for how to "drink beer all night long and never get drunk"  the secret being to swallow one teaspoon of active dry yeast per beer prior to imbibing:

"You wanna know my secret? How I can drink beer all night long and never get drunk?" In fact, I had always wondered that. Though this was the first time I'd ever formally met Koch, I'd "met" him in the past at a few beer festivals. Those sorts of events are always kind of Bacchanalian shit shows, with people imbibing dozens of beer samples in a short period and soon stumbling around large convention halls drunk of their asses. Brewers included. But not Koch, who Id long noticed was always lucid, always able to hold court, and hold his own with those much younger than him. This billionaire brewing raconteur was doing likewise with me at 4 PM on a Thursday afternoon despite the fact we were both now several beers deep. So what was the secret? "Yeast!" "Yeast?" "Active yeast. Like you get at the grocery store." Koch told me that for years he has swallowed your standard Fleischmann's dry yeast before he drinks, stirring the white powdery substance in with some yogurt to make it more palatable. "One teaspoon per beer, right before you start drinking."

To understand the purported science behind this claim, however, it is first necessary to review the basics of how alcohol breaks down in the human body once it has been imbibed. According an article on hangovers in Scientific American, this process is aided by a specific alcohol-altering enzyme, ADH:

Shortly after a person starts consuming an alcoholic drink, the liver gets to work. The enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) metabolizes the ethanol (that's the type of alcohol in alcohol) into toxic acetaldehyde. From there the liver enzyme aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) metabolizes acetaldehyde into acetate, a less toxic compound that breaks down into water and carbon dioxide.

ADH is produced naturally in the human body and can be found in high concentrations in the lining of the stomach wall and in the liver. It is also  and this is where the science gets a bit confusing  added to beer in order to produce alcohol in the first place. When added to beer, it is done so via the addition of yeast.

Yeast are single-celled, microscopic fungi that have been used for millennia to create alcoholic beverages through fermentation. In beer brewing the process utilizes yeasts natural ability to produce ADH, but this ADH-mediated reaction can go in both directions: non-booze chemicals into booze, or booze into non-booze chemicals -- it depends on the specific chemistry of ADH, as discussed by pharmacologist David Kroll in a Forbes article about this claim:

In the brewing process, that's how we get alcohol from the sugars that are released from the malted barley and other grains. But it can also work in the reverse direction to metabolize the alcohol back into its precursor, acetaldehyde. Yeast also have multiple forms of the enzyme the predominate in one direction or another.

What it all boils down to is this: an enzyme exists that is capable of both converting stuff into alcohol (which is its role in brewing) and also of converting alcohol into something else (its role when found in your stomach and liver). Kochs claim rests on the assertion that eating a tablespoon of Fleischmann's bakers yeast adds enough ADH to your system, and in the right manner, to increase the rate of alcohol breakdown in the stomach, leaving less booze to enter your bloodstream.

The scientific community has, for the most part, reacted with skepticism to Kochs claims. Speaking to NPR, microbiologist Benjamin Tu argued that while yeast can degrade alcohol, they prefer sugars, making it unlikely that yeast delivered via a sugary spoonful of yogurt would be interested in breaking down the alcohol instead:

"Yeast can degrade ethanol," says [Tu]. "But they love other sugars  glucose, maltose  more. When those sugars are around, the cells turn off the genes needed for alcohol degradation." Many beers contain some leftover sugars that don't get fermented. Yogurt has sugars, too. So if Koch is eating the yeast with yogurt, that offers the fungi something more tempting than alcohol.

Another issue raised by Tu was the amount of time the yeast would be in contact with the alcohol before being absorbed by the digestive tract -- not enough, in his view. "I think the exposure time of the alcohol to the yeast is too low," he told NPR, "Any effect of the yeast [on BAC] will be marginal."

That issue would perhaps be compounded by another one raised in both online debates and in articles: Whether or not the yeast able to remain active at all in the highly acidic environment that is the stomach. In the Forbes piece, Robert Sclafani, a professor of biochemistry at the University of Colorado Denver's School of Medicine, argued that the pH would likely reduce many of the purported ADH breakdown in the stomach: "The pH of the stomach varies from 2-4 but will be at 2 when you are eating. My guess is that the combination of pH 2 and active digestive enzymes will make it unlikely that yeast ADH can work well (its pH optimum is about 8.6)."

From a larger standpoint, only 10% of the alcohol breakdown process takes place in the stomach to begin with. That means that even if that yeast were breaking down alcohol in the stomach, Koch is only increasing the effectiveness of a minor component of a larger system that breaks booze down. The remainder of the breakdown process happens almost entirely in the liver over a longer time period.

According to George Koob,director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, If the yeast had any effect on intoxication at all, it would most likely be from the fact that any food residing in the stomach prolongs the amount of time alcohol will be absorbed by the digestive tract (and therefore lower the speed at which it would be entering your bloodstream). Anything you take that occupies the stomach lining is going to impede the absorption of alcohol he told NPR.

While the scientific communitys reaction to Kochs claim was one of bemused skepticism, many in the media have used it as an opportunity to brush up on the scientific method. Aaron Goldfarb, the author of the original Esquire interview with Koch, tried it out:

So the next day I grabbed a six-pack of beer and a packet of Fleischmann's and went to work. The older I get, the more of a lightweight I surely become, but after shoveling down six teaspoons and tilting back six bottles I felt nothing more than a little buzzed. Koch told me he keeps a breathalyzer around at all times just to assure he's never too drunk. He never is. And, though I had no tangible "proof," besides the fact I was still awake, I was pretty sure I wasn't all that drunk either.

Likely the most systematic (but still quite limited) attempt was made by the writers of NPRs The Salt blog, who performed their own yeast-booze experiment with a still admittedly small dataset. By drinking beer and wine in combination with yeast/yogurt, with water, and with nothing, they found nearly no difference between yeast and and just drinking without anything else. The largest difference came from the water: "A few conclusions were clear: Yeast in yogurt doesn't slow down the absorption of alcohol very much  perhaps only a tad. But drinking a bunch of water before and between beers might have a slightly bigger effect on peak BAC than the yeast-yogurt combo."

Unfortunately, the only other data to refute or support these informal experiments come from a non-peer reviewed patent filing. That patent was submitted by a man Koch cites as both a mentor and as the source of the hot tip about yeast-based inebriation prevention: The late fermentation expert and biochemist Joseph L. Owades. These experiments were conducted in a similar way to the NPR experiment, but resulted in much more compelling results ranging from 28% to 38% reductions in BAC which he attributed to the yeast.

Kroll, in his Forbes article, took issue with the quality of these data, however:

Owades' experiments in the patent application have never been published in a peer-reviewed journal. In fact, I doubt that any journal reviewers would let the work be published as presented. First of all, the earliest breathalyzer reading, and highest alcohol concentration, is at 10 minutes. But alcohol remaining in the mouth can make this appear artificially high. Ideally, breath should best be measured beginning at 20 minutes after the last drink. Also, we don't know how many times the analysis was repeated at each time. Finally, Owades mixed the types of alcoholic drinks, subjects, and even the yeast, used across only eight subjects.

Ultimately, however, the lack of peer reviewed data or research on this topicfor or against the claimprevents us from making a concrete ruling on the topic at this time.
What does a 'Strengthen Our Schools' win mean for Penn-Harris-Madison?

One of three candidates backed by a conservative-leaning group has flipped a seat on the Penn-Harris-Madison school board. Here's what we know.
On Aug. 21, the continental U.S. will be treated to a total solar eclipse that will dazzle the nation as it progresses from coast to coast , starting in Oregon and ending in South Carolina.

The event will be a great opportunity to revisit a groundbreaking experiment that occurred during a total solar eclipse, and helped confirm Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity. The European Space Agency has referred to this celestial event as "probably the most important eclipse in the history of science."

That historic experiment was carried out on May 29, 1919, exactly 98 years ago today. [Einstein's Theory of Relativity Explained (Infographic)]

Albert Einstein was a global celebrity for much of his life, but it was a total solar eclipse that helped launch the scientist to international fame. (Image credit: Central Press/Stringer/Getty)

Newton versus Einstein

In 1915, Einstein published four groundbreaking papers that introduced his theory of general relativity. But at the time, the German-born theoretical physicist was hardly known to the public, and members of the science community were fighting his new theory head-on, according to reports in the New York Times. Around this time, Sir Isaac Newton's model of classical mechanics  formulated in his 1687 book "Philosophi Naturalis Principia Mathematica"  ruled, and Einstein's work was met with utmost skepticism.

One of the key tenets of general relativity is that space is not static. The motions of objects can change the structure of space. By contrast, in Newton's view of the universe, space is "inert."

In Einstein's view, space is combined with another dimension  time  which creates a universewide "fabric" called space-time. Object travel through this fabric, which can be warped, bent and twisted by the masses and motions of objects within space-time.

An example of where these two theories diverged was regarding the influence of gravity on light. Although classical dynamics predicts that the gravity of a star can deflect the path of a photon, Einstein viewed this as a crude approximation of what was really going on. It wasn't the gravity of the star that was pulling on the photon (as Newton saw it), but rather that the star created a curve in space, sort of like how a person standing on a trampoline creates a curve in the surface. The photon is like a ball rolling across the trampoline, and will simply follow the curve. From the photon's perspective, it was always traveling in a straight line; it's the warping of space-time that causes its deflection. Therefore, gravity is a manifestation of the curvature of space. [In Photos: The Most Amazing Solar Eclipses from Around the World]

All masses cause a curvature of space-time, but the effect is subtle, and testing Einstein's theory would require very massive objects, like stars. Today, astronomers looking deep into the cosmos observe massive objects like galaxies as they warp space-time and alter the path of passing photons, in an effect called gravitational lensing. The light from objects that lie beyond the massive object literally appears in a different location in the sky.

But in the early 20th century those observations weren't yet possible. Europe was in the middle of World War I, which kept Einsteins work isolated mainly to the German-speaking science community. Without being able to experimentally test his new theory, Einstein's idea might have languished indefinitely in a journal on a dusty library bookshelf.

However, British astronomer Sir Arthur Eddington was paying attention to Einstein's outlandish yet powerful new ideas after getting word from Dutch physicist Willem De Sitter (Holland was a neutral nation during WWI) and realized he could lead an experiment to test the theory.

The May 29 total solar eclipse in 1919. (Image credit: Public Domain)

The eclipse test

As the sun is the most massive object in our solar system, its curvature of space-time would be the most noticeable example in the local universe. But to test Einstein's theory, astronomers would have to study the positions of background stars close to the sun's edge (it's limb). As the sun is so bright, this would normally be a fool's errand  the sun's glare would make such an observation impossible.

And then the 1919 eclipse happened.

During a total solar eclipse, the moon orbits directly in front of the sun, completely blocking the light from the sun's disk. These beautiful events allowed Earth dwellers to get their first glimpse of the sun's magnetized atmosphere  the corona  before the invention of the telescope. The moon acts as a natural occulter that blocks the sun's glare, revealing structures in the relatively weak glow of coronal gases.

In 1917, Sir Frank Watson Dyson, Astronomer Royal of Britain, had conceived an experiment that would plot the positions of background stars close to the sun's limb during an eclipse  an experiment that Eddington would lead two years later. If the positions of the stars could be precisely measured during the 1919 eclipse and then compared with their normal positions in the sky, the effects of warped space-time could be observed  beyond what Newtons classical mechanics would predict. If the position of the stars were altered in exactly the way that Einstein's theory predicted they should be, then this might be just the test general relativity needed. Eddington most likely knew that if this test confirmed general relativity theory, it would turn the view of the Newtonian universe on its head.

This photograph from the May 29, 1919 total solar eclipse shows one of the stars used to confirm Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity. The red dot shows where the star would have been without the sun's interference. (Image credit: Royal Observatory, Greenwich)

Following Eddington's lead, the Royal Society and the Royal Astronomical Society organized expeditions to the tropics of Brazil and to the island of Principe, off the west coast of Africa, where the total eclipse would be visible. It just so happened that the period of totality (the length of time that the moon blocks out all of the sun's surface) for the 1919 eclipse was one of the longest of the 20th century, spanning around 6 minutes. This proved to be ample time for astronomers to measure the relative locations of stars in the Hyades cluster that was usefully located near the solar limb at the time.

Although the warped space-time deflected the starlight by a minuscule amount (invisible to the naked eye), the observations from Brazil and Principe were analyzed by Eddington and the general relativity predictions agreed with the observation. The warping of space-time by the sun's mass was real and Newton's inert space had been superseded by a new theory. When the New York Times published the news on Nov. 7, 1919, Einstein became known not only to scientists, but to non-scientists as well.

Since "the most important" eclipse 98 years ago, general relativity has been tested in many other ways, each time proving that Einsteins warped view of space-time is very much the universe we live in.

Follow Ian O'Neill @astroengine. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
President John F. Kennedy called for an ambitious U.S. space program during a joint session of Congress on May 25, 1961, and announced the goal of landing astronauts on the moon by the end of the decade.

He was the American president who aimed an entire country at the moon, and for that NASA will always remember.

President John F. Kennedy, born 100 years ago today (May 29), wasn't the first U.S. president to oversee NASA, but it was he who in 1961  amid a space race with the Soviet Union  set the country firmly on a path to the moon for the next giant leap for human spaceflight. To honor Kennedy's vision and space legacy, NASA is celebrating with a special JFK centennial website: http://www.nasa.gov/specials/jfk100/. The website features images of Kennedy's biggest moments with NASA and astronauts, as well as excerpts from "Ten Presidents and NASA" by space policy expert John Logsdon, which originally appeared in the "NASA 50th Anniversary Magazine."

"This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of President John F. Kennedy," NASA officials wrote on the centennial page. "Though NASA was formed by Dwight Eisenhower, President Kennedy gave the infant agency its early focus with his famous challenge to land astronauts on the moon by the end of the decade." [ Photos: JFK's NASA Legacy ]

President John F. Kennedy called for an ambitious U.S. space program during a joint session of Congress on May 25, 1961, and announced the goal of landing astronauts on the moon by the end of the decade. (Image credit: NASA)

The year 1961 was a transformative one for human spaceflight. On April 12 of that year, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to fly in space. (Alan Shepard, the first American in space, would launch just a few weeks later on May 5.)

On May 25, 1961, Kennedy issued his moon challenge to a joint session of Congress, where he called for increased funding for space exploration and clearly set the moon as a human spaceflight goal by the end of the decade.

"First, I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth," Kennedy told Congress. "No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish."

You can read Kennedy's full speech to Congress.

Later that year, Kennedy again pitched the moon goal on Sept. 12, this time before a crowd of 40,000 at Rice University in Texas, where he gave one of his most famous and stirring speeches.

"We choose to go to the moon," Kennedy said during the speech. "We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too."

Kennedy would not live to see NASA, and the entire country, achieve the lunar goal the president set out in 1961. The president was assassinated in Dallas by Lee Harvey Oswald on Nov. 22, 1963. Six years later, on July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon, winning the space race and kicking off what would ultimately be six crewed lunar landings during the 17-mission Apollo program. [Presidential Visions for NASA Throughout History]

President John F. Kennedy and Mercury astronaut John Glenn ride together in a parade celebrating Glenn's historic orbital flight in February 1962. (Image credit: NASA)

"What might have happened to Apollo and NASA overall, had Kennedy spent another five years in the White House, can only be a matter of speculation," Logsdon wrote in "Ten Presidents and NASA." "We know the public's association of the space program with Kennedy was so strong that six days after Kennedy was assassinated, the new president, Lyndon Johnson, announced in a nationwide television address that the NASA center from which our moon voyagers would launch would be named in Kennedy's honor."

NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida was the launch site for the agency's massive Saturn V rockets that launched Apollo missions to the moon. The spaceport also served as the home for NASA's space shuttle fleet.

According to Logsdon, on the day Armstrong and Aldrin landed their Apollo 11 lander on the moon, an anonymous citizen placed flowers and a note on Kennedy's gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.

The note read simply: "Mr. President, the Eagle has landed."

Email Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
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SPIEGEL: The European Court of Justice is also demanding greater democratic control of EU trade policies. According to a new legal opinion, in the future -- unlike the present -- national parliaments will have to give their approval to, for example, the controversial arbitration courts.

Malmstrom: We had asked the court to give us clarity on the matter: What is within the competence of the EU and what is not? We recently had debates over a number of trade agreements. The European Commission was of the opinion that agreements should be ratified by the 28 governments and the European Parliament, while the member states said that this was also a matter for the national parliaments. Now the competencies have been clarified: The key components, the most important parts, of the agreements will be democratically decided at the EU level, while the part concerning investments will be ratified nationally. Now we have to discuss within the Commission and with the member states: Are we going to split up agreements in the future? Are we no longer negotiating at the EU level about the protection of investments?

SPIEGEL: Member states' parliaments will have to be involved at an earlier date.

Malmstrom: That is true, and therein lies an opportunity. If the EU member states want us to negotiate trade agreements for them that include a reformed investment tribunal, for instance, then they will have to make sure that their parliaments are on board. This way, we ensure that the agreements that we negotiate over a period of up to 10 years have democratic legitimacy right from the start.

SPIEGEL: This week, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang will make an official visit to Brussels. China's President Xi Jinping said at the World Economic Forum in Davos that his country will assume America's role of championing free trade. How credible is this pronouncement?

Malmstrom: The speech was very good. In reality, however, we have unfortunately seen very little action. On the contrary, many European companies have the impression that things have become even more difficult. They increasingly complain in China about corruption, legal uncertainty and poor internet connections. It is time for the Chinese to make good on their word.
Despite the directness of Merkel's Sunday speech, however, there are several open questions that need to be answered:

1. Why did her comments cause such a stir around the world?

On the eve of Trump's trip to Saudi Arabia, Israel and Europe, heads of state and government around the world were eager to put on a veneer of harmony. That effort, though, is over -- and Merkel is one significant reason why. Since Trump's victory last November, many see the German chancellor as the leader of the free world and her appearance on Sunday was a sharp break with the careful Trump-related rhetoric she had thus far employed. To be sure, she reminded him in her congratulatory message after he won the election of the values that form the basis for the trans-Atlantic relationship, but she had nevertheless consistently sought to emphasize commonalities rather than divisions. Merkel's comments on Sunday are a turning point because she cast doubt on past convictions -- and provided a clear indication that she is losing hope that she can ever work constructively together with Trump. Or -- a slightly different interpretation -- she is now willing to express those doubts that have been building for some time. Either way, she did so in a manner which was, for her, unusually blunt.
Bir Lehlou, 29 May 2017 (SPS)  The Frente POLISARIO has strongly condemned the proposal of the European Commission, the Council of the European Union is expected to decide on, for a mandate to negotiate a revision of the 2000 EU-Morocco Association Agreement, which would include Moroccan products originating illegally in Western Sahara under the trade preferences of that Agreement.

The Frente POLISARIO affirmed in a statement on Sunday As the UN-recognised representative of the people of Western Sahara, the Frente POLISARIO strongly condemns this new proposal of the European Commission, which, if endorsed by the Council of the European Union, would violate both the ruling of the EU Court and fundamental tenets of international law.

The Frente POLISARIO therefore calls on the European Union and European Governments to reject the European Commissions proposal to renegotiate the EU-Morocco Association Agreement under the current terms for the serious legal and political consequences that it would have on the question of Western Sahara.

In the meantime, the Frente POLISARIO remains determined to pursue all legal venues, under EU and international law, to defend the supreme interests of the people of Western Sahara and their inalienable right to self-determination in all its aspects including their permanent sovereignty over their natural resources and the territorial integrity of Western Sahara.

Given the separate and distinct status of Western Sahara under international law, Morocco therefore cannot conclude international agreements applicable to the Sahrawi territory, which it occupies illegally. For the same reason, Morocco cannot express the consent of the Sahrawi people, a foreign people to Morocco and a third party to the EU-Morocco relations, to an international agreement applicable to Western Sahara, which is located outside of Moroccos international recognised borders.

By proposing to modify the rules of origin in order to treat products originating illegally in Western Sahara as Moroccan under the Association Agreement, the European Commission aims at legalising the plunder and the illegal commercialisation of the Sahrawi natural resources in violation of the inalienable right of the people of Western Sahara to self-determination and permanent sovereignty over their natural resources. In doing so, the European Commission is not only failing its obligations to implement in good faith the ruling of the EU Court but it is also encouraging the Council of the European Union to endorse a proposal that contradicts the long-standing policy of the European Union on Western Sahara.

The proposal of the Commission, by encouraging Morocco to pursue its illegal exploitation of the natural resources of Western Sahara, will also undermine the United Nations efforts to re-launch direct negotiations between Morocco and the Frente POLISARIO with a new dynamic and a new spirit as called for recently by the UN Security Council.

In this respect, the Court of Justice of the European Union delivered a landmark judgement on 21 December 2016 in which it recalled that Morocco had never gained sovereignty over Western Sahara. The Court consequently ruled that, according to the principle of self-determination, the EU and the Kingdom of Morocco cannot include, either de jure or de facto, Western Sahara in their trade relations without the prior consent of the Sahrawi people, added the statement. (SPS)

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STAMFORD  About 30 local CrossFitters kicked off their Memorial Day with an intense, 90-minute workout to raise money for the families of fallen Navy Seals.

Crossfit Affinity on Fairfield Avenue hosted the Murph workout Monday morning in honor of Navy Lt. Michael Murphy, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2005. Organizers said proceeds from the event would go to the Navy Seal Foundation.
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STAMFORD  A city cemetery with a history of mystery has raised one more.

Its about a check that was supposedly in the mail.

Susan Kramss said she sold two graves she owns in Fairfield Memorial Park but, for four weeks, did not receive the $4,500 payment.

The cemetery manager told Kramss, a Stamford native who now lives in Massachusetts, she could pick up the check in the mailbox outside the office of the Oaklawn Avenue cemetery. When it wasnt there, Kramss said he told her it was in the mail.

When none of that succeeded, Kramss searched for someone else to help. All she could find was the email address of a man who appeared to be a member of the cemetery board of directors. But when she sent the man a note, it came back undeliverable. Turns out, he moved out of state several years ago.

I worry about whether or not these plots are actually empty, available, clear to sell, or whether there are more dark secrets in what lies below the surface, Kramss wrote in her May 21 email that went nowhere.

Her note was a reference to problems that made headlines for five years, beginning in 1993.

An Advocate investigation that year revealed some bodies at Fairfield Memorial Park were buried in the wrong graves; the cemetery sometimes sold the same grave more than once; remains were disturbed when new graves were dug; the cemetery charged grave owners for services it did not provide, and other problems.

In 1994, then-Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, now a U.S. senator, filed a civil suit against the cemetery. Workers testified the cemetery office didnt seem to know which bodies were in which graves. When it was discovered that a grave was unusable because a body was already in it, workers were told to give the family another grave and say rock was found in the original one. Sometimes, though, the body was buried a few feet away but the marker was placed on the original grave as if everything were in order, workers testified.

Records were poor, but other than that, no one quite knew what had created the problems.

Blumenthal eventually settled the lawsuit on conditions that included removing the owner, Phyllis Dowd, and creating a fund for long-term care of the cemetery. A family that took the cemetery to court was awarded $657,000 in 1998, the same year another family settled for an undisclosed amount.

Family plots

Kramss family began buying plots in Fairfield Memorial Park soon after it opened in the 1960s. Fifteen family members are buried in the Cedar Crest section of the cemetery, Kramss said, and she inherited two plots, each with four graves, in the Rippowam section.

Her family will not need all eight of the graves, Kramss said, so she contacted the cemetery manager, Charles Hair, to try to sell some of them.

He told me, You can sell them privately, but first lets try this  I have a list of people looking to sell their plots, and if someone comes in looking for one, I can refer them to you. I told him OK, Kramss said.

Hair told her if she wanted to sell the graves back to the cemetery, she would get only what her family paid for them in the 1960s, which is common practice. But if she wanted to sell them to another family, she could set the price.

I said, Whats the market value? He said $2,750 apiece. Then he said the cemetery charges the buyer a $500 deed-transfer fee. I decided to take off that amount and sell the graves for $2,250 apiece, Kramss said.

A few days later, Hair called to say a family was interested in buying two graves in one of her plots and would be coming in the following day. But he never contacted her about the transaction, Kramss said.

I called a week later and he said, Oh yes, the family is coming in tomorrow. But he didnt call back that time, either, Kramss said.

She eventually reached him, and Hair said the family had been delayed and he would see them on the upcoming weekend.

It didnt make sense that a family would be burying a loved one four weeks later, Kramss said. I didnt know what to make of it.

Empty mailbox

So she called Hair again to say she would be in Stamford May 20 and would like to pick up the check at the cemetery. He told her he would put it in the office mailbox. It wasnt there, Kramss said. She checked three times the following day, but no check.

Back home in Massachusetts, she reached Hair again.

He said he put the check in a different mailbox on the side of the building, and he probably just forgot to tell me, Kramss said. Then he said he would FedEx me the check. I said OK, but call me with the tracking number. He said he would.

But no call, no tracking number, Kramss said.

I talked to him again and he said, Oh, didnt you get it? I mailed it. I will have to talk to my mailman so he can track it, she said. But mailmen are the Postal Service  they dont do FedEx.

Hair could not be reached for comment, but Thomas Bo Hickey, a cemetery manager by trade who worked with Blumenthal in the 1990s to straighten out Fairfield Memorial Park, said he recently rejoined the board of directors.

After the state removed the Dowd family as owners, Fairfield Memorial Park became a not-for-profit organization. A five-member volunteer board formed in 2011 and established bylaws, a code of ethics and checks and balances for record-keeping.

After a lot of time put in by a lot of people squaring up the records, things are in order now, Hickey said.

No middle man

Grave transactions should involve the seller and the buyer, he said, and Hair should have just given (Kramss) the interested partys phone number.

Contacted by The Advocate, Hickey made some calls and Kramss received her check over the Memorial Day weekend.

Because of the cemeterys history, customers are sometimes wary, Hickey said, but the board of directors is a watchdog. Hickey said he will look into posting an email address on the cemeterys website for customers whose problems are not resolved by the office.

Kramss said she feared the worst about the mystery check.

Miracles do happen, she emailed after receiving it.

acarella@stamfordadvocate.com; 203-964-2296; stamfordadvocate.com/angelacarella
She has been somewhat of a sartorial sensation since arriving in the Riviera less than two weeks ago, but while Elle Fanning's red carpet gowns have landed her in every best dressed list going it's her off-duty wardrobe that has cemented her position as one of Cannes Film Festival's most stylish guests.

Aided by her stylist Samantha McMillen - who also works with Brie Larson - the 19-year-old pulled off looks by some of the fashion world's biggest names.

Arriving in Nice kitted out in Miu Miu, Fanning got to know the area in the loose rolled-up jeans and buttoned-up shirt before stepping out a day later in a dramatic strapless Vivienne Westwood gown to walk the red carpet at the 'Ismael's Ghosts' premiere.

Forgoing the red carpet for the next few nights the young actress thrilled yet again with her casual wardrobe, donning a yellow and cream Miu Miu sundress before returning to her favoured uniform of loose denim jeans and a blouse.

Rex Features

During a photocall for the film 'How to Talk to Girls at Parties' a few days later, Fanning plumped for a more risque hemline in the form of a 60s Prada mini dress embellished with a female portrait before stepping out for the film's premiere later that evening in a mint green Gucci gown with sequin detailing and a floral hemline.

48 hours later the younger sister of fellow actress Dakota Fanning arrived at the festival's 70th anniversary in an effortless Dior gown with thin spaghetti straps and multicoloured floral appliques.

On her last day at the festival, Fanning attended a photocall for 'The Beguiled' in a white Alexander McQueen midi dress, before changing into a dramatic lilac tulle gown by Rodarte for the film's red carpet premiere.

Cannes Film Festival 2017: the best dresses 1 /98 Cannes Film Festival 2017: the best dresses May 24, 2017 Hailey Baldwin wearing Ralph & Russo Getty Images May 24, 2017 Izabel Goulart wearing Roberto Cavalli Getty Images May 24, 2017 Elle Fanning wearing custom Rodarte AFP/Getty Images May 24, 2017 Nicole Kidman EPA May 24, 2017 A guest Getty Images May 24, 2017 Cindy Bruna Getty Images May 24, 2017 Jasmine Tookes AFP/Getty Images May 24, 2017 Toni Garrn wearing Galvan Getty Images May 24, 2017 Doutzen Kroes wearing Balmain Getty Images May 24, 2017 Maria Borges Getty Images May 24, 2017 Neelam Gill Getty Images May 24, 2017 Lara Stone wearing Balmain Getty Images May 24, 2017 Sonia Ben Ammar wearing Dolce & Gabbana Getty Images May 24, 2017 Elsa Hosk AFP/Getty Images May 23, 2017 Irina Shayk Getty Images May 23, 2017 Nicole Kidman wearing Armani Prive AFP/Getty Images May 23, 2017 Elle Fanning wearing Dior Getty Images May 23, 2017 Uma Thurman wearing Prada AFP/Getty Images May 23, 2017 Naomi Campbell wearing Atelier Versace Getty Images May 23, 2017 Diane Kruger wearing Dior Getty Images May 23, 2017 Salma Hayek wearing Gucci Getty Images May 23, 2017 Laetitia Casta Getty Images May 23, 2017 Lara Lieto Getty Images May 23, 2017 Marion Cotillard wearing Armani Prive AFP/Getty Images May 23, 2017 Barbara Meier Getty Images May 23, 2017 Isabelle Huppert Getty Images May 23, 2017 Charlize Theron wearing Dior AFP/Getty Images May 23, 2017 Kristin Scott Thomas Getty Images May 22, 2017 Sara Sampaio wearing Francesco Scognamiglio AFP/Getty Images May 22, 2017 Nicole Kidman wearing Calvin Klein AFP/Getty Images May 22, 2017 Kristin Scott Thomas wearing Schiaparelli AFP/Getty Images May 22, 2017 Jourdan Dunn wearing Elie Saab Getty Images May 22, 2017 Izabel Goulart wearing Ralph & Russo Getty Images May 22, 2017 Ana Cleveland wearing Jean Paul Gaultier Getty Images May 22, 2017 Andie MacDowell wearing Roberto Cavalli AFP/Getty Images May 21, 2017 Nicole Kidman wearing Rodarte and Harry Winston jewellery AFP/Getty Images May 21, 2017 Elle Fanning wearing Gucci Getty Images May 21, 2017 Anja Rubik wearing Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello Getty Images May 21, 2017 Coco Rocha wearing Georges Hobeika couture Getty Images May 21, 2017 Araya A. Hargate wearing Alexis Mabille couture Getty Images May 21, 2017 Jessica Chastain wearing Christian Dior couture Getty Images May 21, 2017 Kendall Jenner Getty Images May 21, 2017 Bella Hadid wearing Roberto Cavalli couture Getty Images May 21, 2017 Kimberley Garner Getty Images May 20, 2017 Sara Sampaio wearing Armani Getty Images May 20, 2017 Kendall Jenner wearing Giambattista Valli couture Getty Images May 20, 2017 Elizabeth Olsen Getty Images May 20, 2017 Kristen Stewart wearing Chanel Getty Images May 20, 2017 Paz Vega Getty Images May 20, 2017 Arizona Muse Getty Images May 20, 2017 Liya Kebede Getty Images May 20, 2017 Lottie Moss Getty Images May 19, 2017 Rihanna Getty Images for Kering May 19, 2017 Bella Hadid wearing Roberto Cavalli couture AFP/Getty Images May 19, 2017 Kendall Jenner Getty Images for Chopard May 19, 2017 Adriana Lima Getty Images for Chopard May 19, 2017 Lily Collins Getty Images May 19, 2017 Bella Hadid wearing Dior AFP/Getty Images May 18, 2017 Julianne Moore wearing Chanel Getty Images May 18, 2017 Emily Ratajkowski wearing Peter Dundas AFP/Getty Images May 18, 2017 Amber Valletta wearing Mulberry Getty Images May 18, 2017 Adriana Lima wearing Naeem Khan Getty Images May 18, 2017 Lily Donaldson wearing Dior AFP/Getty Images May 18, 2017 Winnie Harlow wearing Zuhair Murad Getty Images May 17, 2017 Sara Sampaio wearing Zuhair Murad AFP/Getty Images May 17, 2017 Susan Sarandon wearing Alberta Ferretti Getty Images May 17, 2017 Uma Thurman wearing Atelier Versace Getty Images May 17, 2017 Lily-Rose Depp wearing Chanel Getty Images May 17, 2017 Bella Hadid wearing custom Alexander Vauthier Getty Images May 17, 2017 Emily Ratajkowski wearing Twinset Getty Images May 17, 2017 Elle Fanning wearing Vivienne Westwood couture Getty Images May 17, 2017 Coco Konig wearing Ralph & Russo Getty Images May 17, 2017 Julianne Moore wearing Givenchy couture Getty Images May 17, 2017 Naomie Harris wearing Gucci Getty Images

See more from Cannes Film Festival, including red carpets and film reviews, here
T wo men have been rushed to hospital after separate stabbings streets from each other in east London.

The two attacks happened less than a mile apart in the Homerton area of Hackney on Monday afternoon.

Officers on patrol came across a man, believed to be in his 20s, suffering from stab wounds in Marsh Hill just after 2.30pm.

His condition is not currently known and no arrests have been made, Scotland Yard said.

Photos posted on social media showed a blue forensics tent was put up and a large part of the road cordoned off.

Half an hour later, emergency services rushed to the scene of a stabbing less than a mile away in Brenthouse Road.

A man, believed to be in his 50s or 60s, suffered injuries that are not believed to be life threatening during the attack outside Exbury House at about 3pm.

A 17-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, police said.

A spokesman for the Met said: Both parties are known to each other and have gone to hospital with injuries that are not believed to be life threatening.

Any witnesses, or anyone with any information, can contact police in Hackney via 101, or via Twitter @MetCC.

To give information anonymously call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or visit crimestoppers-uk.org.
A family on a bank holiday weekend trip to the Kent seaside were pelted with stones by a mob of youths yelling "Jews".

The Stamford Hill parents and their five young children came under attack at Minster beach on the Isle of Sheppey on Sunday afternoon.

It is claimed two boys and three girls aged from 16 to 18 launched the assault just after 4pm, hurling pebbles from the shoreline.

The family were forced to take shelter during the ordeal and call 999 for help.

However, the family claims police refused to come to the scene even though the attackers were still there.

Police insisted on Monday that officers had deemed there was no further risk to the family after the person who dialled 999 left the scene.

The Campaign Against Anti-Semitism branded the handling of the incident "appalling" while local Conservative candidate Tom Tugendhat said the attack was "disgraceful".

The family have since returned to London where they are being supported by the north east London branch of the Shomrim community group.

They tweeted on Sunday: "Jewish family from #StamfordHill were enjoying bank holiday weekend at the beach before being pelted with pebbles by youths shouting 'Jews'."

A spokesman for Kent Police said: "Kent Police was called at 4.10pm on Sunday, 28 May, to a report of an assault at Minster Beach, Isle of Sheppey.

"During the call the informant left the scene and officers deemed there was no further risk.

"As the informant is from outside of the county, police are arranging a suitable time to speak to the informant in due course. No arrests have been made."

Anyone with information about the incident can call Kent Police on 01795 419119 quoting reference 28-0929.
P olice have warned people not to approach a blue suitcase that Salman Abedi was seen carrying just before the Manchester bombing atrocity.

A CCTV image of Abedi carrying the suitcase in Manchester city centre has been released by detectives probing the bombing.

The footage was filmed just hours before he killed 22 people and himself at the Manchester Arena.

The force has urged people to contact them immediately if they spot the blue case.

Salman Abedi in Manchester hours before the bombing / Greater Manchester Police

Detective Chief Superintendent Russ Jackson, from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit, said: "We believe Abedi was in possession of this case in the days before the attack at Manchester Arena on Monday 22 May.

"I want to stress that this is a different item than the one he used in the attack."

He added: "We have no reason to believe the case and its contents contain anything dangerous, but would ask people to be cautious."

The type of suitcase Abedi was spotted carrying / Greater Manchester Police

Mr Jackson continued: "The public should not approach the case if they see it but contact police immediately on 999."

As well as the CCTV image of Abedi, detectives have released a picture of a replica case, as they continue to piece together the terrorist's movements in the lead-up to the attack.

It is known that the 22-year-old visited the Wilmslow Road area of Manchester and was also seen in Manchester city centre with the wheeled case.

GMP are urging anyone with details about the suitcase to get in touch and let them know.
A kind-hearted Heathrow pilot drove a stranded cancer sufferer home from the airport after the British Airways IT outage caused bank holiday havoc.

BA pilot Stephen Wearing had to park his plane for hours after a half-day flight from Rio to London on Sunday.

Finding one elderly passenger who was too frail to walk, Captain Wearing tried to call the person who had been meant to pick him up.

When they werent available, the 61-year-old helped the elderly man, called Victor, through the airport and drove him home to Chelsea.

Airport chaos as BA cancels all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick

He told the Telegraph: Victor was ill with cancer. He'd had two strokes and we'd had to move him to Club (class) to lie down.

"It was an unbelievable situation. It was the worst I've experienced. That's why we thought it was maybe malicious.

He explained: There was a two-hour wait for the people who transport wheelchair passengers, so I got my two bags and Victor, and I pushed him through."

The pilot said his passenger was incredibly grateful for the help.

The GMB said the disruption could have been prevented if the beleaguered airline had not cut "hundreds of dedicated and loyal" IT staff and contracted the work to India in 2016.

There was a third day of disruption on Monday as both Heathrow and Gatwick warned Bank Holiday travellers they should check the status of their flights before travelling to the airports where scenes of chaos unfolded over the weekend.

Travellers spent the night sleeping on yoga mats spread on terminal floors on Saturday after BA cancelled all flights leaving the London hubs, while disruption continued into Sunday with dozens more services from Heathrow axed.

The IT outage had a knock-on effect on BA services around the world, while passengers who did get moving on the limited number of flights to take off from the UK reported arriving at their destinations without their luggage.

The disruption also hit transport systems on the ground, with hundreds of travellers flooding London's Kings Cross station in hope of boarding a train north instead.

Experts predict the knock-on effect could continue for several days and BA is facing huge compensation costs, with reports suggesting the bill could top 100 million.
B ritish Airways passengers faced a third day of disruption at Heathrow on Monday as the beleaguered airline continued to tackle the fallout from a global IT crash.

Both Heathrow and Gatwick warned Bank Holiday travellers to check the status of their flights before travelling to the airports where scenes of chaos unfolded over the weekend.

Union officials blamed BA cost-cutting for the havoc, after the airline laid off hundreds of IT staff last year and outsourced the work to India.

"This could have all been avoided," said Mick Rix, national officer for aviation at the GMB union.

BA said it will run a full schedule at Gatwick on Monday and intends to operate a full long-haul schedule and a "high proportion" of its short-haul programme at Heathrow.

The airline said it was continuing to make "good progress" in recovering from the worldwide IT glitch that grounded scores of planes, leaving thousands of passengers stranded.

A spokeswoman said: "We operated a full schedule at Gatwick on Sunday. At Heathrow, we operated virtually all our scheduled long-haul flights, though the knock-on effects of Saturday's disruption resulted in a reduced short-haul programme.

"As our IT systems move closer to full operational capacity, we will again run a full schedule at Gatwick on Monday and intend to operate a full long-haul schedule and a high proportion of our short-haul programme at Heathrow.

"We apologise again to customers for the frustration and inconvenience they are experiencing and thank them for their continued patience."

Airport chaos as BA cancels all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick

Travellers spent the night sleeping on yoga mats spread on terminal floors on Saturday after BA cancelled all flights leaving the London hubs, while disruption continued into Sunday with dozens more services from Heathrow axed.

The IT outage had a knock-on effect on BA services around the world, while passengers who did get moving on the limited number of flights to take off from the UK reported arriving at their destinations without their luggage.

The disruption also hit transport systems on the ground, with hundreds of travellers flooding London's Kings Cross station in hope of boarding a train north instead.

Experts predict the knock-on effect could continue for several days and BA is facing huge compensation costs, with reports suggesting the bill could top 100 million.

The airline blamed the computer blackout on a "power supply issue" and said there was no evidence of it resulting from a cyber attack.

Issuing an apology on Sunday, the airline's chief executive, Alex Cruz, admitted it had been "a horrible time for our customers".

Passengers slept on yoga mats overnight at Heathrow / Getty Images

On Monday a Heathrow Airport spokeswoman said: "Following a worldwide IT system issue, there continues to be some disruption to British Airways flights from Heathrow.

"All British Airways passengers due to fly should check the status of their flight before travelling to the airport, via Heathrow.com, ba.com and British Airways' Twitter account.

"All passengers whose flights have been cancelled should not travel to the airport unless they have already rebooked onto another flight. Passengers looking to re-book flights should go to ba.com"

Meanwhile Gatwick Airport tweeted: "Today, Monday 29th May, British Airways are planning to operate a near normal schedule at Gatwick, following the British Airways IT system failure.

"We continue to advise customers travelling with British Airways over the Bank Holiday Weekend to check the status of their flight with British Airways before travelling to the airport. Customers should not travel to the airport unless they have already rebooked onto another flight."
A young man has died after being struck down by a van on a leafy road in Ealing.

Police and paramedics raced to the scene of the crash on Whitton Avenue East in Greenford shortly after 4pm on Saturday.

The 21-year-old pedestrian had been hit by a white Volkswagen van, police said.

He was rushed to a north London hospital where he died in the early hours of Monday.

A Met Police spokesman said: His next of kin have been informed.

A post-mortem examination will be held in due course.

The driver of the van stopped at the scene.

Enquiries continue into the full circumstances of the collision. There have been no arrests.

Detectives from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit (SCIU) based at Alperton Traffic Garage are investigating.

Anyone with any information, who witnessed the collision or who stopped to assist should contact the SCIU on 020 8991 9555. To remain anonymous you can contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
J eremy Corbyn promised the Labour Party would not soften Britains foreign policy after he was grilled over his links with the IRA and views on nuclear weapons.

The Labour leader took questions from broadcaster Jeremy Paxman in a fiery exchange as part of live TV interviews with him and Theresa May ahead of the General Election.

Mr Corbyn was pressed by Mr Paxman over why he had been unable to get his long-held belief in nuclear disarmament into the Labour manifesto, which backs the renewal of the Trident deterrent system.

The Labour leader said: "This manifesto is the product of the views of the Labour Party - party conference decisions and the views put forward by individuals in the shadow cabinet."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, right, walks on stage as he is introduced by Sky News political editor Faisal Islam / Sky News

The renewal of Trident was "a conference decision by the Labour Party and as the leader of the party I accept the democracy of our party", he said.

And when challenged over why some of his "core beliefs" - such as nationalising banks - did not feature in the Labour manifesto, he said: "I'm not a dictator who writes things to tell people what to do."

Mr Corbyn confirmed that benefits would not be frozen under a Labour govnerment, saying that they would "of course" be uprated.

Following last weeks Manchester bombing, Mr Corbyn linked British involvement in military interventions overseas and terrorism at home, causing outcry among senior Conservative politicians.

Some of the politicians accused him of making excuses for extremists.

But on the Sky News/Channel 4 "Battle for Number Ten" general election TV special, Mr Corbyn condemned the bomber for his "appalling, abominable and atrocious act".

The two party leaders were being interviewed after the Prime Minister refused to go head-to-head with other party leaders in a debate.

Challenged over whether he would "soften" the UK's foreign policy, Mr Corbyn said: "It's not about softening our foreign policy. It's about absolutely condemning what happened in Manchester."

He added: "We have to have a foreign policy around the world that doesn't leave large areas without any effective government - such as in Libya at the present time - which can become a breeding ground for enormous danger for all of us.

"My point was absolute condemnation. My point was that we need more police not less - that's why we've pledged to provide 10,000 more police on our streets.

Mr Corbyn was challenged by an audience member who claimed the Labour leader had "openly supported the IRA in the past" by attending a commemoration for eight IRA members killed by the SAS in Loughgall.

He said there was a period of silence for "everyone who died in Northern Ireland" at the 1987 event.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn arrives at Sky studios in London / PA

When pressed further, Mr Corbyn said: "The contribution I made to that meeting was to call for a peace and dialogue process in Northern Ireland.

"It's only by dialogue and process we brought about peace in Northern Ireland and I think that's a good thing. And I think going forward, we need to make sure in the Brexit negotiations there is no return to any kind of hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic."

The Labour leader also rejected suggestions he would abolish the British monarchy, saying: "It's not on anybody's agenda, it's certainly not on my agenda."
A loyalist gunned down in a busy supermarket car park as his three-year-old son looked on had recently relocated amid concerns he would be targeted in a paramilitary feud.

Colin Horner, 35, was shot dead by a lone gunman among crowds of shoppers outside Sainsbury's on the outskirts of Bangor, Co. Down, on Sunday afternoon.

Detectives said the "barbaric" killing took place inches away from the victim's young son.

It is understood Mr Horner, from Carrickfergus, Co. Antrim, moved to Bangor amid fears he would be targeted in the same loyalist feud that claimed the life of his friend George Gilmore two months ago.

Mr Gilmore, 44, was shot dead in Carrickfergus in March.

Police Service of Northern Ireland Detective Superintendent Richard Campbell confirmed a link between Mr Horner's murder and the long-running Carrick feud between rival loyalists was one line of inquiry.

He said officers were trawling through CCTV footage from the store car park in a bid to catch the killer.

The detective said the victim had just strapped his son into the back seat of his black Nissan Pulsar car at 2.45pm when a lone gunman approached and fired at least three shots from a handgun.

He added: "His three-year-old son was in the car and was immediately beside his father when he was shot dead in front of him.

"So it's a hugely barbaric act and something that will undoubtedly live with this young boy for the rest of his life."

Confirming Mr Horner was known to police, Mr Campbell said the victim had left the home he shared with his partner on the Rathgael Road in Bangor at around 1.30pm.

He said detectives were trying to establish what he had been doing in the hour between then and arriving at the supermarket at 2.30pm.

Officers believe the gunman, who was wearing a dark hoody and some sort of mask, escaped in a red Ford Mondeo driven by an accomplice. The car was displaying false plates.

This vehicle was later found burned out in the Kerrs Road area between Bangor and Newtownards.

Mr Campell appealed for information about the movements of the Pulsar and Mondeo on Sunday afternoon and urged witnesses in the car park to come forward. He said vital clues could have been captured on mobile phone videos or dashcams.

"This was a completely reckless act in a public car park in Bangor on a bank holiday weekend, there were a large number of people in this car park," he said, revealing that one stray bullet struck another shopper's car.

"There was a huge degree of recklessness shown by the people who did this."
P olice investigating the Manchester bombing have arrested a 23-year-old man on the south coast on suspicion of terror offences.

The man was held after a raid at an address in Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, in the early hours of Monday morning, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.

As counter-terror officers swooped in the desirable seaside town, searches were also launched 260 miles away at properties in Manchester and Cheshire.

Fourteen men are being held in custody with the massive operation to dismantle suicide bomber Salman Abedi's network showing little sign of slowing.

On Monday morning, police remained at the property in Shoreham-on-Sea, one of the country's most expensive seaside towns.

Manchester Arena Terror Attack: Victims 1 /21 Manchester Arena Terror Attack: Victims Nell Jones, 14, who died in the Manchester attack PA Jane Tweddle, 50 of Blackpool, was also killed 'Inseperable couple' Chloe Rutherford, 17, and Liam Curry, 19 Scottish teenager Eilidh MacLeod, 14, was confirmed to have been killed in the blast PA Michelle Kiss died in the blast. Her family have said they are "absolutely devastated" PA Saffie-Rose Roussos eight, from Lancashire, had been at the concert with her mother and sister when she was killed in the blast Wendy Fawell died in the attack Collect Olivia Campbell, 15, is also confirmed among the dead after a desperate search to find her Ariana Grande superfan Georgina Callander, 18, was one of the first victims to be named Lisa Lees and Alison Howe were killed while waiting in the foyer to collect their children Facebook Kelly Brewster died shielding her niece from the blast John Atkinson, 26, was also killed in the suicide blast Polish couple Angelika and Marcin Klis are confirmed among the dead in the Manchester attack Credit: Family photograph Victim: Martyn Hett has been confirmed as one of those killed in the attack Confirmed dead: 14-year-old Sorrell Leczowski Facebook Victim: Elaine McIver, an off-duty police officer Greater Manchester Police

Officers from Cheshire Police and Counter Terrorism Policing North West also searched an address in Chester in connection with the attack.

And police said they had also executed a search warrant in the Whalley Range area of south Manchester.

The Bank Holiday raids followed a flurry of police activity in Manchester over the weekend, with the arrest of a 25-year-old man in Old Trafford and a 19-year-old man in Gorton in connection with attack.

Police have been working round-the-clock since Abedi killed 22 people, seven of them children, and injured more than 100 in the worst terrorist atrocity since the July 7 bombings in 2005.

The race to round up a suspected network connected to the terrorist has seen a total of 16 arrests made in connection with the attack, although two people have since been released.

Amber Rudd says members of Manchester bombing terror network could still be at large

It has been reported that MI5 has launched two urgent inquiries into whether it missed the danger posed by Abedi, 22, amid allegations it was warned of his deadly aspirations.

The domestic security service is said to be investigating whether any glaring errors were made in the handling of intelligence concerning Abedi before he launched the attack last Monday night.

Spy chiefs are believed to have held an emergency review in the days after the atrocity, while a separate in-depth inquiry is being conducted to look at the decision making surrounding his case before the massacre, the Guardian reports.

A senior Whitehall source previously revealed the mass murderer was a "former subject of interest" to the security services whose risk "remained subject to review".

On Sunday Home Secretary Amber Rudd said she would "not rush to conclusions" that agents "somehow missed something".

In the wake of the Manchester attack it emerged that British counter-terror authorities were grappling with 500 investigations into 3,000 individuals.

Security sources later confirmed to the Press Association that a further 20,000 individuals were said to have been considered "subjects of interest" in the past,

It means as many as 23,000 people have appeared on the radar of counter-terror agencies, although the period the figures cover is unclear.

Additional reporting by the Press Association.
P olice in South Africa have launched an investigation after a man claimed he was held for three days and repeatedly raped by a trio of women who forced him to down energy drinks.

The 23-year-old claimed his ordeal began when he got into a taxi with young female passengers inside.

During Fridays journey, the vehicle abruptly changed direction and the man was injected with an unknown substance before passing out.

When he woke up, he was lying in a strange room on a single bed.

Captain Colette Weibach told Times Live: The female suspects then allegedly forced the man to drink an energy drink before taking turns raping him numerous times a day.

After three days of assaults, the man said he was eventually dropped off in an open field in Benoni.

Captain Weilbach urged anyone with information, or who had experienced a similar ordeal to come forward.
Hiltons Hot Stuff, a unique Standardbred whose markings resemble a paint horse, will be on hand at Kawartha Downs on Saturday night in her role as an ambassador for the Ontario Standardbred Adoption Society.

The eight-year-old mare, who is registered as a bay, was bred in England and exported to Canada in 2014. Her sire is Out Of Nowhere, whose father is the Falcon Seelster horse Million To One, who was campaigned on the WEG circuit by Joe Hudon and Harry Poulton.

Hiltons Hot Stuff, then spent some time with Karin and Blair Burgess. She is one of the kindest Standardbreds we ever had, said Karin. She was never in a bad mood or did anything wrong.



Hiltons Hot Stuff (third from L), pictured in action (OSAS) Hiltons Hot Stuff (third from L), pictured in action (OSAS)

However, Hiltons Hot Stuff wasnt going to be a world beater on the racetrack, so the couple found her a home with OSAS and Tara Hills Stud, serving as a tease mare for their stallions over the 2017 breeding season.

Hiltons Hot Stuff won't be a tease tonight, posing for photos with fans as Kawartha Downs kicks off its 45th season of harness racing.

OSAS is partnering with Willow Song Meadows Horse Rehabilitation Centre for a joint fundraising event at Kawartha on Saturday night. There will be food available at the track kitchen area with all monies raised going toward supporting horses in the OSAS program as well as the Willow Song Meadows program.

(with files from OSAS)
A white University of Kentucky student accused of physically assaulting a Black student worker while repeatedly using racial slurs says she will withdraw from the school. The decision announced Tuesday by a lawyer for 22-year-old Sophia Rosing came after hundreds of students rallied on campus the night before. News outlets report the students called for unity and for the university to quickly address the situation. Officials say Rosing has been charged with assault, public intoxication and disorderly conduct. She pleaded not guilty during an arraignment Monday afternoon. The altercation at Boyd Hall was captured on video and posted to multiple social media platforms.
Ein offener Brief an die EU zum Entwurf der neuen ePrivacy-Verordnung

Privatsphare im Netz Ein offener Brief an die EU zum Entwurf der neuen ePrivacy-Verordnung

Anfang des Jahres hat die EU-Kommission den offiziellen Entwurf der neuen ePrivacy-Verordnung vorgestellt. In einem offenen Brief wendet sich Gruner + Jahr gemeinsam mit vielen europaischen Verlagen gegen die Initiative. Wir dokumentieren den Brief sowie die Unterschriftenliste im englischen Original.

We support the objective of the Commissions draft "ePrivacy" regulation, which has the potential to clean up the digital economy, and to restore citizen trust in how their data is used online. Citizens are rightly concerned about the use of their personal data by third party companies of whom they have never heard, and have no idea about the role that they play in their digital lives online. News organisations depend on the trust of our readers, and we support a system of regulation that restores trust, and cleans up the digital environment. But news organisations also use data generated by readers to improve their products and services by offering readers journalism that is relevant to them, and serving display digital advertising that is relevant to readers.

As a result of digital distribution, more digital citizens are accessing high quality news and quality information than ever before. But the increasing trend towards consumers accessing news content via third party gateways such as Google News, Facebook, Yahoo, Apple News, MSN (Microsoft) and Amazon Alexa is changing the way that European citizens consume news [Source], making publishers ever more reliant on a small number of global platforms as a consequence. Through the current ePrivacy proposals, the Commission proposes that digital citizens must consent to non-strictly necessary tracking on a global basis when they connect to the Internet via a browser interface. Given that 90 per cent of usage across Europe is concentrated in the hands of just four companies: Google, Apple, Microsoft and Mozilla [Source], this focus on obtaining user permission via the browser interface has the potential to exacerbate the asymmetry of power between individual publishers and these global digital gateways.

The ePrivacy proposals contrast with the implication of the Commissions General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)  due to come into force in May 2018 - which aims to empower user privacy by forcing sites themselves to make sure that users understand and are empowered to control the gathering of data about their browsing behaviour in context of each site that they visit. By creating a single global permission within the browser interface, the Commissions ePrivacy proposals will make it more difficult to ensure transparency and meaningful user empowerment in practice, and remove any distinction between publishers who place a high value on the trust of their users, and those who do not. While the explanatory memorandum accompanying the ePrivacy proposals does not place an outright ban on publishers communicating with readers in order to seek consent for the use of 3rd party cookies, in practice, publishers are concerned that it will be incredibly difficult to persuade readers to change their browser settings to allow 3rd party cookies. As a consequence, individual news organisations would be unable to provide readers with personalised content and marketing, or serve relevant digital advertising within their environments.

The practice of serving relevant advertising to readers is now an established norm in the advertising industry, and is essential to ensure that publishers can compete with Google and Facebook who already control 20% of total global advertising spend in 2017[Source]. If as a result of these proposals, news publishers were unable to serve relevant advertising to our readers, this would reduce our ability to compete with the capabilities of dominant digital platforms for digital advertising revenues, ultimately undermining our ability to invest in high quality journalism across Europe.

The current ePrivacy proposals will result in the data of European digital citizens being concentrated in the hands of a few global companies, as a result of which, digital citizens will become less protected. It will give those global companies: a tighter grip on the personal data of European digital citizens; further strengthen their dominance in the European digital economy, and; introduce further complexity for individual publishers, despite the European Commission acknowledging these issues are already covered by the regulation that will enter into force in 2018.

By shifting consent to the collection of data from each individual news site that they visit, to providing a global consent via a small number of powerful gateways, the Commissions proposals threaten to prevent news organisations from delivering basic functionality such as the marketing of products and services, the tailoring of news products to the needs and desires of news consumers, and relevant and acceptable advertising. The impact on news organisations would be to reduce their ability to deliver high quality products and services, and undermine their ability to generate advertising revenues to reinvest in journalism.

Therefore it is essential that in implementing the objectives of the "ePrivacy" proposals, the European Parliament / Council must work with the news industry to ensure that the directive provides flexibility of implementation to encourage a direct relationship between each internet user and the trusted news organisations that they visit, not further undermine it.

Athesia Druck



Bernhard Paris, Manager Medien



Class Editori

Davide Fumagalli, CDO

DER SPIEGEL

Thomas Hass, Managing Director

Jesper Doub, Managing Director SPIEGEL Online

Die Zeit

Dr. Rainer Esser, Managing Director Zeitverlag Gerd Bucerius GmbH & Co. KG

Christian Ropke, Managing Director ZEIT ONLINE GmbH

Enrique Tarragona, Managing Director ZEIT ONLINE GmbH

DMG Media

Kevin Beatty, CEO

Editoriale Bresciana

Laura Airaghi, Marketing Director

EPC

Angela Mills Wade, Executive Director

Financial Times

John Ridding, CEO

Frankfurter Allgemeine

Thomas Lindner, CEO

Gazzetta di Parma

Mario De Stefano, CDO

GEDI Gruppo Editoriale

Monica Mondardini, CEO

Groupe Bayard / La Croix

Georges Sanerot, President du Directoire

Groupe Figaro CCM Benchmark

Marc Feuillee, Directeur general

Groupe LEquipe

Cyril Linette, Directeur general

Groupe Le Monde

Louis Dreyfus, President du Directoire

Groupe Les Echos / Le Parisien

Francis Morel, CEO

Gruner + Jahr

Julia Jakel, CEO

Arne Wolter, CDO

Grupa Wirtualna Polska

Michal Branski, Board Member and VP Product Strategy

Gruppo 24 Ore

Franco Moscetti, CEO

Guardian Media Group

David Pemsel, CEO

IMPRESA

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His Royal Highness Charles, Prince of Wales, was bestowed Monday the title of Doctor Honoris Causa of the "Babes-Bolyai" University (UBB) in western city of Cluj-Napoca. He was welcomed at the entrance of the University by two young people in Romanian folk costumes, who were waiting with bread and salt from which the Prince tasted. The rector of Babes Bolyai University, Ioan Aurel Pop and the Senate chairman, Ioan Chirila also welcomed Prince Charles.

Rector Ioan-Aurel Pop evoked in his speech upon bestowing the title of Doctor Honoris Causa to his Royal Highness Charles, Prince of Wales, the latter's links with our country, mentioning his kinship with the Basarab dynasty and that of Queen Maria of Romania. "Here, in Romania, you are at home and we hope you always feel at home. The reasons are both objective and subjective. There are countless threads attaching you to this country, including distant allegiances (coming from the Basarab dynasty of Wallachia, namely by prince Vlad's descendants or less remote ones (coming from Queen Maria - granddaughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom - whose bust is watching us in the hall of this university), but you are mostly connected through the soul's affinity, your love for places and people, for these realms' succession of hills and valleys, its fields covered with flowers, its forests and waters still home to wildlife and fish, but especially for its welcoming people, as you have often said," the Laudatio.

Among the personalities who have received the title of Doctor Honoris Causa from Babes-Bolyai University are Mario Vargas Llosa, Chancellor Angela Merkel, King Michael I of Romania, Pope Benedict XVI, Bartholomew, the Ecumenical Patriarch, Bronislaw Geremek, Jacques Le Goff, Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein.

Agerpres .
His Royal Highness, Charles, Prince of Wales confessed, upon receiving the title of Doctor Honoris Causa of Babes-Bolyai University (UBB), that some of the reasons he often visits Romania are "my Romanian friends, your cultural and natural heritage, your traditions, but also your ability to innovate and change." Everything you stand for after centuries of history - your identity and your whole potential. The energy that you can set in motion in order to change something. These are the things that make you truly special throughout the world."

His Royal Highness Prince of Wales began his speech in Romanian, thanking those present for the honour of awarding him the title of Doctor Honoris Causa of the "oldest university in Romania." Mr. Rector, ladies and gentlemen, I am deeply moved and very grateful for the great honour that you are bestowing on me this afternoon, said the Prince of Wales. He specified that 20 years sharp have passed since his first visit to Romania, in Transylvania in 1997, and evoked the beauty of this region and the strong impression it left on him at that time.

It is rare, perhaps even unique in Europe, to find productive realms so well preserved and functional, on such a scale, further said the Prince of Wales, who stressed his astonishment over Romania's natural richness, reminding that in this area there are 200 species of butterflies, while in the UK there are only 40.

He also mentioned in his speech the importance of small farms in Romania or the rest of Europe, which, as some EU studies have shown, produce twice as much per hectare than large farms, but also the importance of their sustainability on the market, through the necessary connections so that they can withstand, given their importance in maintaining a prosperous and environmentally friendly agriculture. We, the rest of the world, have something to learn from these cultivated areas of Transylvania. They hold as much a spiritual as well as a social, economic and ecological significance. (...) The essence is that in those landscapes the human being still lives in harmony with nature, said the Prince of Wales.

Agerpres .
JEFFERSON CITY  Nearly $63 million in construction projects throughout Missouri could be shelved in the coming year because state lawmakers failed to approve a spending bill in their regular session.

From port improvement projects along the Mississippi River to new science labs at Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis, the projects affect a swath of the state.

The measure was among a dozen high-profile pieces of legislation that failed to win approval during the four-month legislative session, which was marked by dysfunction among Senate Republicans and GOP infighting with new Gov. Eric Greitens.

While the states overall $27.8 billion budget is intact, House Bill 19 called for scores of construction projects across the state.

The legislation zoomed out of the House with only seven no votes but was not taken up in the Senate before the session ended on May 12 amid concern that the states $27.8 billion budget was already too tight.

Among the casualties was $2 million sought by the Missouri Department of Transportation for grants to various port authorities in the state. Without the money, the department wont be able to fund two rail upgrade projects at the Municipal River Terminal in St. Louis worth a total of $300,000, according to Cheryl Ball, administrator of MoDOTs Waterways and Freight division.

Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis was in line for $750,000 to overhaul laboratory space on campus.

Unfortunately, we will not receive the funding included in HB 19, but Harris-Stowe will use and pursue other funding options to continue the planning, design, renovation and construction of the laboratory space, said Leslie Holloway, special assistant to the president.

The state money would have provided a new laboratory for biology and renovations to the chemistry and physical science labs.

The Missouri School for the Blind, near Tower Grove Park, had been set to get $1.5 million to begin designing major renovations to the facility, which was opened in 1906.

Some agencies believe they will be able to maneuver through the fiscal year without the money.

At the Department of Conservation, which was set to receive $30 million, Deputy Director Aaron Jeffries said money in other budget bills would help the agency navigate through the upcoming year.

But he said another natural disaster such as the flooding that occurred last month could hurt the agency. For example, a boat ramp on the Gasconade River will probably be shuttered rather than reopened after flooding opened a new channel on the river, cutting off access to the ramp.

The bill earmarked money for spending on various land and lake acquisition and development and repairs to buildings, roads, hatcheries and other structures.

For the Department of Natural Resources, the bill had called for $3.6 million for state park and historic site improvements, including parking upgrades, trail restoration, repairs to parks and other facilities.

Were still evaluating the bills awaiting determination from the governor, DNR spokeswoman Connie Patterson said.

We will adjust our priorities and our projects based upon the appropriation funding that will be available pending the governors decision on the budget bills, Patterson added. Anything essential or critical in nature, we will work to find a way to address, which is what we always do.

Also left without funding were projects designed to improve facilities for veterans, including a $2 million chapel at the St. James Veterans Home and the $3.1 million construction of a wall to store ashes at Bloomfield Veterans Cemetery.

Daniel Bell, spokesman for the Missouri Veterans Commission, said the lack of funds meant the state wouldnt be reimbursed for the project by federal dollars. That means the agency will wait until next year before moving forward with projects.

The Missouri National Guard will not get $10 million requested for facility upgrades .

Harris-Stowe wasnt the lone institution of higher education facing a lack of money. Three Rivers Community College in Poplar Bluff was expecting $1 million for the renovation and expansion of a technology center, while officials at Crowder College had been awaiting $1.3 million for upgrades to the schools Cassville campus.
Despite what they say, Republican actions in the Legislature prove that they are not the party of law and order. And Republicans most certainly do not Back the Blue.
Justified or not, hardcore cigar enthusiasts will often ignore brands from huge companies like General Cigar and Altadis in favor of offerings from small, boutique operations. Perhaps in an effort to combat this treatment, the two industry giants have both partnered with cigar makers whowhile certainly not smallmanage to maintain a solid rapport among the most dedicated segment of the cigar smoking community.

A few notable examples: In 2015, Altadis tapped Pete Johnson of Tatuaje to help craft Henry Clay Tattoo, a limited run of 2,500 boxes that quickly sold out. In 2016, General chose to partner with A.J. Fernandez, well-known for his operations in Nicaragua, to develop a four-vitola line called La Amistad.

These days, A.J. Fernandez has switched teams from General to Altadis to launch his versiona Nicaraguan version, of courseof the famed H. Upmann brand. It is made at the Tabacalera A.J. Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua factory with an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, Nicaraguan Corojo 99 binder, and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. The three sizesChurchill (7 x 54), Toro (6 x 54), and Robusto (5 x 52)retail in the affordable $7.25-$7.75 range.

I recently bought a five-pack of the Robustos for $36.25. This cigar makes a great first impression with its smooth, silky, milk chocolate-colored wrapper, well-constructed cap, and firm packing of tobaccos. The foot yields savory pre-light aromas of peanut, hay, and cocoa, and the cold draw is effortless.

After establishing an even light, the first thing you notice is the chalky, powdery texture of the smoke. The flavor is best characterized by cocoa, sweet cedar, cream, and a gentle white pepper spice. The body is medium and the smoke production is above average.

As the Robusto nears the midway point, the minimal spice recedes even further, and the profile becomes a little woodsier. Oak takes center stage, though theres still a nice backdrop of creamy sweetness. The final third exhibits a slight increase in intensity. Throughout, the combustion properties are absolutely flawless. The burn is straight, the ash holds well off the foot, and the draw remains easy with abundant smoke output.

It has only been about a week since H. Upmann by A.J. Fernandez shipped nationally (it was initially distributed to about 30 strategic retail accounts on May 8, with a wider distribution commencing on May 22).

It seems to me A.J. Fernandez was aiming for a tamer Nicaraguan blend thats consistent with the traditional H. Upmann profile. In other words, I dont think he sought to bring the full-bodied Nicaraguan spice and strength to this Dominican brand. Whatever the intent, the result works. This is a balanced, tasty, medium-bodied treat that smokes like a gem. In my book, its worthy of four stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]

Patrick A



photo credit: Stogie Guys
Lara Jeffries, the newly-appointed headteacher for Heathcote Primary School with Andy Mitchell, headteacher of Woodloes Primary in Warwick, who has been leading the development of the new school on Harbury Lane. (Submitted photo)

TEMPLE GRAFTON woman Lara Jeffries has been appointed as headteacher for the new Heathcote Primary School in Warwick.

Lara was previously deputy head at The Willows CE Primary in Stratford, as well as a short stint as acting head, and comes to Heathcote with an excellent reputation.

Lara will shortly be arranging to meet with Heathcotes new parents, which will allow her the opportunity to share her vision and listen to the ideas of the community.

She said it was a privilege and an honour to be appointed headteacher. Together we will build this brand new school into a beacon of excellent education in Warwickshire.

Firstly, I think it is important to acknowledge the responsibility that comes with leading a school and how honoured I am to have been chosen by the Community Academies Trust to lead Heathcote Primary School.

This incredible opportunity is one that a teacher will rarely encounter in their career and I am very much looking forward to the future challenges and adventures it presents.

Being a brand new school Heathcote will become a focus and hub of the community it is within, I want to build a brilliant, creative and exciting school with the community, alongside meeting the needs of all.

It is important that developing Heathcote as a centre of excellent education in Warwickshire is a journey we can take part in together, as a community, Lara said.

Her vision is to ensure all children are provided with a rounded, creative and rigorous education so that when they leave they will be life-long learners and will thrive in an ever-changing world. I feel we need to nurture the whole child, academically, socially, morally and creatively.

"I am passionate about education and eager to shape a school that will provide the best start in life for our children. I look forward to meeting our new reception parents very soon and in September welcoming our reception, year 1 and year 2 children into our brand new school, said Lara.
A three-member special bench of the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the reservations raised by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifs son, Hussain Nawaz regarding two members of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) formed to probe Panama Papers case as per the apex courts instructions.

In an application filed to the SC, Hussain had raised objections against two of the six members of the JIT: Bilal Rasool of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and Amer Aziz of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

He had alleged that Rasool is a nephew of Mian Mohammad Azhar, whose family are ardent Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) supporters.

Hussain also objected to the inclusion of Aziz, who was also part of a National Accountability Bureau investigation which was carried out into the Hudabiya Paper Mills scam under former president retired Gen Pervez Musharrafs regime.

Read more: Panama case: Hussain Nawaz records statement before JIT

A day earlier, the JIT, headed by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Additional Director General Wajid Zia, grilled Hussain Nawaz for about two-and-a-half hours at the Federal Judicial Academy (FJA).

Sources in the JIT said the investigation team questioned Hussain Nawaz with regard to his ownership of the London flats.

They said the JIT also asked him why he kept changing his stance over the source of income for those properties in interviews telecast by different television channels, including the BBC in 1999, where he said he was a student and could not own any property, and was rather living in rented premises.
According to sources, the Ministry of Finance has prepared a summary for an appointment of the auditor general. The summary will be sent to the president for approval. Bajwa has also served as Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and Secretary Finance Punjab.

Tariq Bajwa is said to be a close aide of the prime minister, sources added. The audit of projects worth over Rs300 billion is to be carried out this year.

Currently, an ad hoc auditor general is working on this post. The opposition parties have expressed their reservations over the ad hoc auditor general. Bajwa is going to retire in June from his current post.
North Korea fired what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast, South Korea's military said, the latest in a series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions.

The launch was immediately reported to South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who called a meeting of the National Security Council at 7:30 AM (3:30 AM Monday), South Korea's Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

The missile was believed to be a Scud-class ballistic missile and flew about 450 km, the Joint Chiefs said in a statement. North Korea has a large stockpile of Scud missiles, originally developed by the Soviet Union.

Modified versions have a range of up to 1,000 km.

North Korea last test-fired a ballistic missile on May 21 off its east coast and on Sunday said it had tested a new anti-aircraft weapon supervised by leader Kim Jong Un.

Read more: Trump calls N. Koreas Kim Jong-Un madman with nuclear weapons

Pyongyang has conducted dozens of missile tests and tested two nuclear bombs since the start of 2016 in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions. It says the program is necessary to counter US aggression.

The United States has said it was looking at discussing with China a new UN Security Council resolution and that Beijing  the main diplomatic ally of Pyongyang  realises time was limited to rein in the North's weapons program through negotiations.

Experts say the North appears to be gaining meaningful data that is fed into its effort to build an intercontinental ballistic missile.

'Did not pose a threat'

The US Pacific Command said it tracked what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile for six minutes and assessed it did not pose a threat to North America.

"We continue to monitor North Korea's actions closely," the Pacific Command said, adding that it was working on a more detailed assessment of the launch from near the country's Wonsan Airfield.

"US Pacific Command stands behind our ironclad commitment to the security of our allies in the Republic of Korea and Japan," it in a statement.

Also read: North Korea test-fires what appears to be ballistic missile

"The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) assessed that the missile launch from North Korea did not pose a threat to North America."

US 'government is aware'

US President Donald Trump has been briefed about North Korea's firing of a projectile reported to have been a missile test, a White House official said on Sunday.

"The United States government is aware," the White House official said. "The president has been briefed."

'Highly problematic'

Japan lodged a protest against the North's latest missile launch, which appeared to have landed in Japan's exclusive economic zone, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said.

"This ballistic missile launch by North Korea is highly problematic from the perspective of the safety of shipping and air traffic and is a clear violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions," Suga told reporters in televised remarks.

Read more: North Korea test-fires ballistic missile in defiance of world pressure

While no damage to planes or ships was detected, Suga added, "Japan absolutely cannot tolerate North Korea's repeated provocative actions. We have strongly protested to North Korea and condemn its actions in the strongest terms."

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also vowed action along with other nations to deter Pyongyang's repeated provocations. "As we agreed at the recent G7, the issue of North Korea is a top priority for the international community," Abe told reporters in brief televised remarks.

"Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea."
Russias President Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with Irans President Hassan Rouhani, greeted him with the new presidential term and discussed the situation in Syria, the Kremlins press service said on Saturday.

The Russian leader congratulated Hassan Rouhani with the new term and wished him success, the press service said.

The parties confirmed the aspirations for development of the multifaceted bilateral cooperation in line with the agreements achieved during the Iranian presidents visit to Russia in March.

They paid special attention to trade and economic cooperation, including to implementation of major joint projects in the sectors of oil and gas and peace use of nuclear power, the statement reads.

Besides, Putin and Rouhani discussed the situation in Syria.

During the discussion of the situation in Syria the parties stressed importance of developing joint efforts to favor the political-diplomatic settlement of the conflict in that country, including in the framework of the Astana process and by means of implementing the Memorandum on de-escalation zones, the Kremlin said.

The leaders agreed to continue contacts both in bilateral and multilateral formats.

Irans presidential election was on May 19. Hassan Rouhani won the election to take the office for the second term. His candidature received support from 57% of the voters on the day.
Tauranga man Luke Dickinson has won second place in the NZCB Apprentice Challenge final, held on Friday.

Fifteen regional apprentices gathered in Auckland for the final, in which Otagos Chris McLean claimed the top honour.

Alongside finalists from across the country, the 27-year-old was judged on his dedication to his apprenticeship, examples of his work and a five minute presentation to NZCB members at their annual conference. Third place was awarded to Alexander Cholewa, 26, from Wellington.

Chris heads home with over $3,000 worth of prizes including trade quality tools and an Outward Bound Scholarship.

The NZCB Apprentice Challenge final took place at the 19th NZCB Annual Conference at the ANZ Viaduct Events Centre in Auckland, following a series of regional challenges where apprentices from 14 locations built a difficult outdoor table and bench seating.

In the 10th year of the NZCB Apprentice Challenges, NZCB Chief Executive Grant Florence says he is impressed by the skill base and attitude of the apprentices.

Perseverance and passion are vital skills for any apprentice, and its great to see this in the competitors in the NZCB Apprentice Challenges over the last 10 years, says Grant.

NZCB is the only building trade association that requires formal trade-qualification as a prerequisite for membership. In this context, fostering more quality apprentices and guiding them through the early stages of their careers is hugely important. In the New Zealand context, this is vital given current and projected skills shortages in the industry and associated build quality issues.

The NZCB Apprentice Challenge is run by NZCB in association with the Industry Training Association Building (ITAB) and industry training providers across New Zealand.

During the NZCB Annual Conference, all 15 apprentices also had the opportunity to compete in the annual Great Apprentice Race  a fun building-related challenge that involved designing, building and racing a soap box trolley, around an obstacle circuit by the ANZ Viaduct Events Centre. Tools and supplies were generously provided by Mitre 10 for the challenge, which helped the apprentices with everything they needed to compete.

Damian Thompson from Northland impressed judges and delegates alike, and the 23-year-old returns home as the race winner of the Great Apprentice Race.

Another regular feature of the NZCB conference is a charity auction for their Apprenticeship Scholarship Trust, which this year raised over $15,000. The Trust supports apprentices in times of personal hardship that would otherwise prevent them from completing their training.
He lived through two World Wars, the 1918 flu epidemic and the Great Depression before inspiring a generation of Tauranga schoolboys.

Tributes continue to flow after the remarkable life of Garth Sim ended over the weekend, well on the way to his 103rd birthday.

Former staff and students at Tauranga Boys College (TBC), where he was headmaster from 1959-1966, have called him one of the most innovative, respected, visionary educators the city has seen.

Family and friends recall a dignified, sagacious man who had a great sense of fair play. A lover of sports, gin, firm handshakes and cryptic crosswords, he had an expansive network of old boys; former students were welcomed into the Sim home for half a century.

As he eased off to sleep for the final time on Saturday, wife Nen was - as always in the last 77 years - by his side, about to celebrate her own 97th birthday. Earlier in the day, they had shared lunch with three daughters and Garth, appetite intact until the end, managed three courses.

However, it was his appetite for education that propelled him to Tauranga, from his beloved Otago.

Born in 1914 on a Waikaka sheep-run in West Otago, he spent his formative years in Balclutha and Heriot, in the days when a bloke lit gas streetlights from the back of a pony each evening.

He represented South Otago at schoolboy rugby level, then Otago Juniors and watched George Nepia and the 1930 All Blacks beat the touring British Lions at Carisbrook.

By the Depression years, he was working on the land and occasionally panning for gold until his father encouraged him to further his studies. After marching into Otago University in 1936, his love affair with education launched in earnest and his courtship of Nen began when the pair met on a train in 1938.

Stints at Scots College in Wellington, Tokomairiro District High School in Milton and South Otago Boys High followed, punctuated by the arrival of four daughters - Helen, Kay, Marg and Judy.

The Sim family moved north when Garth secured the top job at Tauranga Boys, starting in 1959, in what was a tumultuous period. The co-ed Tauranga College had split just a year earlier, stripping TBC of half its senior staff.

Garth Ian Napier Sim, 14/11/1914 - 27/05/2017

The new headmaster worked tirelessly to recruit and train high calibre staff and gave the students a simple mantra.

All that is expected of any boy is his very best at all times, he wrote in 1960.

His innovative approach would see him implement a mentoring and training programme for young teachers. He was also was the first secondary school principal in New Zealand to appoint a full-time guidance counsellor. Under his watch, academic achievement and school pride rocketed as the school offered more subjects, more competition, more awards, more support and he insisted younger boys study both music and drama.

Former Tauranga Boys College deputy principal Rob Naumann is a former student who recalls Garths practice of personally delivering students mid-year and final reports.

Each boy in each class was required to leave his desk to receive his report and with the handover came a perceptive comment relating to the students progress or lack of it,  Rob says.

Regardless of the achievement level, each boy was left in no doubt that the principal cared about his performance and wanted him to do what he was capable of. It taught students accountability and, at the same time, made all students feel that they were valued at the highest level of school leadership.

He was educationally innovative, a superb manager of people, a leader who never shied away from the difficult tasks, a man of humility, a warm personality and who possessed a determination and energy that would not be denied. He inspired so many through taking an interest in their lives and encouraging them to look at the possibilities ahead.

Ill health forced Garth to step down from his college role but he continued to work until age 83. Initially, he was employed to manage training and education at Tasman pulp and paper mill in Kawerau and he went on to share his meticulous book keeping skills for accountancy, law and engineering firms around Tauranga.

But, for three quarters of his 102-plus years, Garths heart remained in education.

For hundreds of boys he was the epitome of a man who valued respect for self and for others, values that are still very much central to Tauranga Boys College in 2017. What a legacy he has left.

# A celebration of Garth Sims life will be held at 11am on Friday, June 2, at Olive Tree Cottage, 247 Joyce Rd in Tauranga.
A Tauranga man found himself at the centre of a daring rescue near Mount Everest on Saturday.

Andrew Roy is currently working as a Flight Paramedic for Air Dynasty Helicopter service, and was called to the scene when a cargo plane crashed.

The plane hit 20 metres below the runway of the Tenzing Hillary Airport at Lukla, the gateway to Mount Everest, government administrator Umesh Pandey said.

The plane was carrying two pilots and an air hostess, all were Nepali nationals.

One of the pilots died en route to hospital while the other was in a critical condition.

Two other Kiwis, Andrew Gutsell and Alyssa Lowe, also assisted in the rescue.

Andrew Roy, 24, helped cut open the planes cockpit and pulled the pilots out, while Mr Gutsell jumped in to attempt to shut the engines off.

Despite the rescue efforts, the planes pilot likely died on impact, while the co-pilot died while being treated.

"The plane was a complete wreck but after making sure it was safe and secure I was able to find my way to and assess both pilots, says Roy.

"One pilot was dead, most likely on impact, but I was able to reach the co-pilot from the underside of the plane.

"He was alive, though trapped and unconscious. I found a small opening and was able to cut through obstructing metal to free the co-pilot."

The flights hostess was flown to Kathmandu the next morning.

Air Dynasty nurse Ms Lowe praised her colleagues on Facebook.

"Mero Babu Andrew Roy, leading the rescue like a boss and getting the passengers out quickly and safely and Mero Dai captain Andrew Gutsell who gave me palpations jumping in the plane in attempt to shut down the engine," she wrote.

-Stuff and Newsie
Every year between 300 to 400 people are diagnosed with HIV at Malagas hospitals, according to doctor Javier de la Torre, who specialises in infectious illnesses and works at Marbellas Hospital Costa del Sol.

De la Torre revealed the figures at a conference held at Malagas Palacio de Ferias y Congresos last Friday, where he was joined on the panel by Dr Jose Antonio Perez Molina, the president of Gesida, which is a Spanish association dedicated to the study of AIDs, infectious illnesses and microbiology.

The purpose of the conference was to promote an informative booklet that reportedly contains everything a patient with HIV needs to know about the virus, which has been written by De la Torre and Piedad Arazo, another doctor with expertise in infectious illnesses.

The doctors also described Malaga as a hotspot for the virus as there are currently 5,000 people known to be HIV positive in the province, but the true number is thought to be much higher as it is estimated that up to 40 per cent of people who are infected do not know they are carrying the virus.

De la Torre stressed early detection of the virus is imperative so that patients can be treated successfully with antiretroviral drugs, as the period of time between contracting the virus and it developing into AIDs can be as little as three years. Antiretroviral drugs do not cure the illness, but are very effective in inhibiting the virus from developing into AIDs and preventing its transmission into other people.

In fact, if HIV is diagnosed and treated with these drugs early enough, he says, the patient can live a normal life and enjoy the same life expectancy as someone who does not carry the virus.
Visitors to the Caminito del Rey gorge walkway were taken back in time at the weekend when they came across the incongruous sight of a royal party from the 1920s - wearing modern-day hard hats.

Fifteen actors from the Ardales amateur dramatics society marked the 96th anniversary of the inauguration of the hydroelectric power plant at El Chorro by reenacting the visit by King Alfonso XIII in 1921 to sign off the works.

It was that visit that gave the path, built around the side of the steep gorge to provide access for the hydroelectric companys workers, its name - the Caminito del Rey.

The modern-day dramatisation of those events, repeated over two days, included the signing of the documents to mark the end of the works at the spot known as the Sillon del Rey, complete with a speech from the king, before the group set off around the walkway. As in the original visit, the king was accompanied by Rafael Benjumea, the engineer in charge of the hydroelectric works, the mayor and bishop of Malaga of the period as well as other dignitaries.

The visit was faithful to the reports of the time, with Alfonso XIII describing the plant as a technological wonder, pioneer in Spain and Europe. The group stopped, as documented in 1921, near the dam where the engineer offered the king technical explanations of the works that would take supplies of drinking water and electricity for the whole province.

The reenactment of the signing of the papers. / F.T.

The reenactment helped the visitors lucky enough to have tickets for the special dramatised tours understand the significance of the visit for Ardales and the entire province.

The modern-day royal party ended their trip at the Cueva del Toro bridge although in the 1921 visit, the king went on to Pizarra, where he spent the night, before going to Malaga the next day for more official engagements.

Last weeks drama had been organised by Ardales town hall and the Caminito management. Pedro Cantalejo, archaeologist, director of the Ardales Museum and one of the actors, said that their aim was for future anniversaries to be marked with more activities. The reenactment, he said, had settled a debt with the people and the province.

The kings visit changed and boosted the area both in terms of industry and tourism, he said. The reopening of the renovated path in 2015, he added, had revived this beauty spot and it was fitting to pay tribute to the monarch who gave it its name.

The mayor of Ardales, Maria del Mar Gonzalez, who took part in the visit dressed in period costume as a member of high society, praised the enthusiasm with which the group had prepared the event.
The hotel sector of Torremolinos has invested more than 150 million euros in reforms and improvements to several of its key hotels.

During an informative meeting attended by hotel directors, tourism professionals and travel agents, Jose Ortiz, mayor of Torremolinos, praised the efforts of the industry in their joint effort to make the town a leading tourist destination.

The mayor claimed that the extensive works carried out on the hotels would help the town halls drive to revitalise Torremolinos. Today has reflected the commitment of the hoteliers of our town and now we can compete in a high-level market, which is something we could not do previously, the mayor explained.

He emphasised the importance of the commercial heart of Torremolinos; claiming that the remodeling and pedestrianisation of the Plaza Costa del Sol had generated a lot of interest from investors.

Torremolinos is transforming and it needed this remodeling so that we can recover some of the ground lost to other competitors, he said.

Several directors and representatives of large hotel chains installed in Torremolinos presented varying refurbishment projects, and these include the transformation of the Hotel Melia Costa del Sol and the Hotel Don Paquito.

The director of the former, Carlos Franco, announced the opening of the hotels new convention centre, the renovation of the thalassotherapy centre, as well as reforms in the restaurant, bars and solarium.

The 19-million-euro project is due to be finished in 2018 and will include the installation of two roof-top terraces with swimming pool, restaurant and bar service.

After an investment of six million euros, the former Hotel Don Paquito is preparing to reopen as The Essence Boutique Hotel and Spa. This 1970s hotel has been completely transformed and will offer a solarium and Turkish baths.

Jaime Floyer, director of the Sol Don Hotels, said that the company would invest more than 22 million euros in a three-year strategic plan to reform their hotels in Playamar. Major refurbishments have already been carried out on the Sol Don Pedro and the Sol Don Pablo, and work is due to begin on the Sol Don Marco next year.

The Medplaya Pez Espada - a landmark hotel in Torremolinos that opened its doors in 1959 and launched the concept of luxury hotels on the Costa del Sol - has also undergone extensive work recently and will shortly open a new annex with 30 junior-suites.

The MS Hotels chain has presented a project to convert the former Aguamarina Aparthotel into a complex of 130 suites, complete with indoor swimming pool, solarium and Jacuzzi.

The director of the establishment, Andres Lombardi, said, We have made a commitment to quality rather than quantity.

As well as major reforms, Torremolinos has witnessed the opening of several new establishments, like the recently inaugurated Luxury Boutique Hotel.

This 36-room hotel is especially focused on Muslim-friendly tourism and offers certified Halal cuisine and prayer rooms.

The new Club Hotel Riu Costa del Sol also opened for business at the start of the summer season. This all-inclusive family resort on the seafront in Playamar, which has 596 rooms, incorporates the old Riu Belplaya and the Riu Costa Lago hotels.

Torremolinos has also seen the opening of the Ritual Hotel, the first hotel in Torremolinos to specifically target gay men. This 138-room aparthotel, which has a strict adult only policy, offers a roof top infinity pool, complete with nudist area and cocktail bar. Pets are also allowed.

Torremolinos, one of the top European destinations to celebrate a honeymoon, according to the American Travel and Leisure Magazine, is striving to become the main cultural and touristic destination on the Costa del Sol. The recent renovation of many of its tired looking hotels, not to mention the rehabilitation of the town centre, should bring them a step closer to achieving this.
When passengers go to catch their flight at Malaga airport, theres no way for them to escape the duty-free shopping these days as the route from security control snakes past rows of glittering shelving. However, for the 16.6 million people that pass though every year it seems they just cant get enough of it.

IN CONTEXT 16.6 million passengers used Malaga airport last year, and had the opportunity to shop or visit the restaurants which take up 15,000 square metres of space in the terminal building.

The Spanish airport authority, Aena, has said that Malaga airport tops the list of the most spent per passenger in shops and restaurants in all the countrys airports.

The main duty free shop is now the epicentre of a lively, bustling shopping plaza, and the number of shops and eateries is increasing in line with passenger numbers.

Malaga has a high proportion of foreign passengers who love to go shopping

It is of special interest to exclusive brands, because they consider this the ideal way to have a presence in Malaga. In fact, some products can only be found at the airport because shops elsewhere on the Costa del Sol do not stock them.

The steady trickle of customers brings the total turnover of shops, restaurants and rental car offices at the airport to about 300 million euros a year, which is about one-third of the airports overall income, says Jose Manuel Fernandez Bosch, director of commercial services at Aena.

Most of this money is spent by travellers in nearly 15,000 square metres of retail space, of which about 7,000 square metres are taken up by cafes and restaurants. Food sales are becoming increasingly important.

The rest of the space is almost equally divided between the general shopping area and the duty free section. In total, passengers can choose between 25 stores, seven of them offering tax-free shopping.

The reason so much money is spent here per passenger is the profile of the customer. Fernandez Bosch says a high percentage of foreign tourists use these airports, and many are travelling for holidays and leisure purposes. This means that they are in the mood for spending, buying gifts for the family or going home with local produce which they have enjoyed during their stay and want to take back to their own countries. That is why passengers in Malaga spend more than those in the busier airports in Madrid and Barcelona, where more people travel regularly on business and are not interested in shopping. Alicante airport also has a high spend per passenger for the same reasons.

Last year 14,341,618 passengers at Malaga airport flew to or from a foreign city, which was 16.4 per cent more than in 2015. Of those, nearly 5.5 million were from the UK, and it is the British who spend most at the airport overall. However, it is the Russians who spend more per person.

A third of the passengers are British, and they love shopping here. They spend more at the airport than the Germans. Scandinavians also spend quite a bit, but the Russians spend the largest amounts of money individually. We are also seeing that the ruble is beginning to recover after falling for a year. It is a very interesting market, and in fact there are signs in Russian in the duty free shop, says Fernandez Bosch.

Walking through the shopping area, it is striking that the shops seem so empty, but they are not worried about that. Thats what this business is like, says one shop assistant. The stores are never crowded. In the central duty free shop, a Dutch couple pick up some chocolates and a bottle of Malaga wine. We want our family to try it, the couple say.

Fernandez Bosch continues, The way people shop here is different. Its another concept, and the shops make money. The ones which sell the most here take about 2.5 million euros, and some of the restaurants can take as much as five million.

Although there are shops in the check-in area, more people use the ones in the departure lounge, after passing through security.

People are anxious to get that stage over and done with, and when they have been through security they are more relaxed and inclined to have a coffee or a drink and buy perfume, he says.

The shops and restaurants generate 1,000 of the 6,000 jobs at the airport, and while sales in the restaurant sector in Spain as a whole are increasing by 1.9 per cent, in airports the increase is 15 per cent, which is why there is plenty of demand for airport premises.

Fernandez Bosch also says that new services are being incorporated into the airport, and the first slot-machine gambling arcade has just opened in Malaga. A similar one is being considered in Alicante.

In this unit you can use slot machines or play electronic roulette. We thought hard about the project and decided to use Orenes, which is a highly specialised operator. The room is 180 metres in size, he says.

The product that sells the most is...vodka, reveals the Aena director. And the busiest month? Although the highest numbers of passengers use the airport in July and August, surprisingly more sales are made in September.
Pedro Sanchez is back. After eight months as a political outcast, the former Socialist leader once again took control of his party on Sunday, defeating establishment favourite Susana Diaz - head of the PSOE in Andalucia - in doing so.

Some commentators are expressing concerns that the reinstated PSOE leader will prove an obstacle to the passing of legislation, in particular the annual budget. But while its undoubtedly true that Mariano Rajoys job is about to become harder, equally true is the fact that Sanchez has plenty to sort out within his own party before he can present a credible opposition to the conservatives or effectively challenge their economic policies.

In any case, those concerned that Spains macroeconomic recovery may be derailed by further governmental paralysis can look to last year to assuage their fears.

In 2016, Spain trundled along for 10 months without a proper administration, yet still posted GDP expansion of 3.2% - the same as in 2015.

The shambles that was Spanish politics last year tells us that, on a macro-level at least, Spains economy can run itself. And it will do so again if renewed, Sanchez-led opposition to Rajoy creates more political deadlock.

That is not to excuse the impasse of last year - politically and reputationally-speaking, it was very damaging for Spain - but simply to remember that its economic impact barely registered.

Even if that werent true, though, a party in as much internal disarray as the PSOE doesnt present much of a threat to the PP.

Though Sanchez won the leadership contest with 50% of the vote last Sunday, 40% of Socialists voted for Susana Diaz, who is favoured by the more pragmatic, rank-and-file party members.

It was mainly her supporters who stood back to allow Rajoy back in as prime minister last autumn, thereby opening up a chasm within the Socialist party.

On one side of this deep gorge are the centrist pragmatists, whilst facing them across a so-far-unbridgeable gap are the grassroots hardliners who want Rajoy out at any cost.

This camp is closer to radical Podemos - whose loathing for the PP boss sometimes seems more visceral than political - than moderate Socialists would like; indeed, for such members, Pablo Iglesias party is little more than a collection of leftist loonies whom the PSOE leader should keep at arms length.

Only if Sanchez can somehow unite these two sides of his own party will Rajoy face a robust adversary in congress; until he does, passing legislation and approving budgets will be no more difficult for Rajoys government than it already is.
INFORMATION When: From 1 until 30 June. Where: Arte y Cocina Restaurant Gallery. Free entry.

Popular Irish artist, Roger Cummiskey, will inaugurate his latest exhibition in Fuengirola next week.

Sabor de Espana (Taste of Spain) is a solo exhibition of paintings with Spanish-related themes.

This colourful collection of oils, acrylics and watercolors demonstrates the artists unique style and includes several paintings of Don Quixote in different guises.

Cummiskey, president and founder member of the Andalusian International Artists Group, specialises in paintings that take their themes and titles from the wanderings and writings of James Joyce, Samuel Beckett and Miguel de Cervantes.

His paintings have been exhibited in galleries all over the world, including the International Art Exhibitions in London, Stockholm and New York.

The exhibition, which runs from Friday 2 until Friday 30 June, will be held in the Arte y Cocina Restaurant Gallery in Fuengirola, a relatively new establishment that combines fine dining with creative art.

A special inauguration party to launch the exhibition will be held between 6pm and 7.30pm on Thursday 1 June. The exhibition can be visited Tuesday to Sunday between the hours of 6pm and 11pm.

More information on www.rogercummiskey.com
A unique and exciting ceremony Monday afternoon at the Lincoln Theatre introduced the first class for Emory & Henry Colleges Department of Physician Assistant studies.

This class of 30 students will undertake the graduate program at the colleges new Marion campus, established in the former Smyth County Community Hospital.

A unique aspect for this new class was the inaugural white coat ceremony taking place before the students even begin their studies.

This is the first white coat ceremony in Southwest Virginia outside of Roanoke, so we could not be more excited about that, said Dr. Scott Richards, program director. Students also heard from E&H President Jake Schrum and Dean Lou Fincher.

The ceremony is relatively new for some medical study programs, including physician assistant. It marks the students transition from the study of preclinical to clinical health sciences, and some students consider it a rite of passage. At some colleges where students will meet patients during their studies the ceremony is conducted at the beginning of the program.

Such is the case with the E&H PA program. Students will be working with staff at the Mel Leaman Free Clinic located on the college campus.

Students coming in will be learning skills and beginning patient assessment and treatment, said Harry Howe, PA-C, medical provider and chair of the clinics board of directors.

The outcome of that is they will be better prepared when they go out to do their clinicals than most other programs because theyll already have that experience behind them, Howe said. So were excited. Its going to boost the clinic and our ability to serve others but also in the training process increase the capability of the students who come through the program to be better prepared.

Howe also said the presence of the students will increase providers at the clinic so more patients can be seen and hours can be extended. We can have at least one more night clinic and hopefully have another one probably within the next month, he said.

Jim McDowell, MD, also a medical provider at the clinic, said this coordination between the clinic and the college fulfills a need that exists in Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee, the hands-on training of healthcare providers, and will be beneficial to the students.

They should be able to go out and practice, and theyll practice in a variety of different settings, so some will be in primary care and some will be in specialties, said McDowell. Southwest Virginia doesnt have that many PAs; they have a lot of nurse practitioners, so I think it will help quite a bit.

McDowell also said he believes the patients will appreciate the students.

I think theyll adjust very well, he said. This is a very professional group. A pretty impressive group, really.

The students themselves are looking forward to the challenge of the coursework as well as the lab simulations and real-life training working with the clinic patients.

The free clinic is what really drew my attention here, said Amanda Livolsi from Troy, NY. I volunteered in a free clinic at home so it made me feel like home so I came here and interviewed in a small town. It was amazing. Ive felt like that ever since.

Her roommate, Hanna Ouellette from Richmond, feels the same way.

I am so excited, said Ouellette. I want to live in Appalachia and this was absolutely perfect for me. It seemed like the perfect fit.

Both want to serve the underserved and they love the area and would love to work here.

Its funny, said Ouellette, because both are from big cities and went to college in small towns. And we fell in love there. And weve already fallen in love here, she said.

I was really excited because I want to serve with underserved individuals and I thought this was the perfect fit for me as well, said Livolsi.

Both were looking forward to the white coat ceremony.

Were really excited about this, said Ouellette. It gives us something to look forward to the whole time. Like, we got this. Were gonna be PAs. We can do this together.

While the PA students had just completed orientation the previous week, they participated in the ceremony as they prepared to begin supervised practice in a clinical setting. The students also recited the Physician Assistant Professional Oath near the end of the ceremony, led by Richards.

Richards says the program has been designed to be student-centric and mission-focused. Emphasis will be placed on rural primary care for the underserved and clinical activities will be embedded throughout the educational phase of the program.

Ryan Short of Abingdon was attracted to the graduate program because of where it is located.

Originally from Harrisonburg, Short is a graduate of E&H with a double major in psychology and sociology.

To be able to be a part of the first program of my alma mater was really important to me and the fact that you get to be a little more hands-on with the PA profession than you do in the psychology profession, so Im really hoping to bridge that gap between the hands-on and the psych side of things, he said.

I think its really a good thing, Short said of the PA program. I love that they have started the graduate school in general to try and bring programs, especially the medical professions which we all know in Southwest Virginia are kind of limited. We have trouble getting people to this area so Ive noticed that as being a resident for the past eight years now that it can be a trouble sometimes to get younger folks to come in here so I think that will be a great addition, too.

Like his fellow classmates, Short was excited about the white coat ceremony, especially coming at the beginning of the program.

Im a little nervous, he said that evening. I think its really cool the fact that we get to do our white coat ceremony before we really get going because that doesnt happen very often. And since well be seeing people in the clinic, at the Mel Leaman Free Clinic here in Marion, that we get to do that before we really start getting off in classes, so I think thats a good part of it.

Students will attend the PA studies program year-round for 27 months and earn a master's degree. Physician assistants are advanced practice health professionals who practice clinical medicine as members of a team.

The curriculum will feature evidence-based teaching and evaluation methods with emphasis on case-based and experiential learning and will incorporate active learning strategies, including flipped classrooms and team-based learning.

Richards states the program will be relatively unique among other PA programs in the U.S.

The program, housed in new state-of-the-art facilities on the Marion campus, will utilize a 10-room simulation suite with both standardized patient examination rooms and high-fidelity simulation mannequin hospital rooms. Students will have access to a dedicated state-of-the-art cadaver lab.

The program is accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). For more information, contact the PA program at ldowell@ehc.edu or 276-944-6493.
Kenneth Nassoiy

Kenneth Nassoiy

(Provided by New York State Police)

MEXICO, N.Y. -- State police say an Oswego County man was driving drunk when he crashed into an Amish buggy this weekend in the town of Mexico, causing two adults and a baby to be ejected from the buggy, troopers said.

Kenneth G. Nassoiy Jr., 60, from 492 Manwaring Road in Richland, was charged with second-degree vehicular assault, a felony, and driving while intoxicated, a misdemeanor.

State police say Nassoiy was driving a 1990 Jeep north on state Route 3 in Mexico at 8:15 p.m. Saturday when he struck the back of the Amish buggy. Nassoiy's Jeep then overturned on the east shoulder of Route 3.

The two adults and infant in the Amish buggy were taken to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse.

The driver of the Amish buggy, Enos D. Yoder, 23, suffered head and shoulder injuries. A passenger, Ida E. Yoder, 25, had arm and leg injuries. And the 3-month-old, Moses E. Yoder, suffered multiple skull fractures, state police said in a news release.

Nassoiy was not injured in the crash, Trooper Jack Keller said Monday.

Nassoiy's blood-alcohol content was 0.12 percent after the crash, state police said.

He was arraigned in Mexico Town Court and sent to the Oswego County Justice Center on $1,000 bail, state police said. He was no longer in jail Sunday, jail records showed. Nassoiy is scheduled to return to court at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
toasttanksbville.JPG

A group toasts the passage of the Genesee Brewery beer tanks through Baldwinsville. Photo submitted Sunday by Pam Ingersoll.

(Pam Ingersoll)

LYONS, NY -- The first set of giant beer tanks headed to the Genesee Brewery in Rochester via the Erie Canal are leaving Lyons, Wayne County this rainy Memorial Day, and should make it to at least Lock 30 (Macedon) this afternoon.

The tugboat and barge carrying Genesee Brewery beer tanks to Rochester, shot near Jack's Reef in Lysander Sunday afternoon by Jim Green.

The barge operators will determine later today whether to push these six tanks on today to the Rochester suburbs of Fairport and Pittsford. A second set of six tanks started today in Clyde and will make it to at least Lock 28 in Lyons today.

A crowd estimated at 1,000 people came out to see the tanks Sunday night in Lyons, a Genesee spokesman said.

If the first set of tanks remain in Macedon tonight, they will move through Fairport and Pittsford Tuesday.

The 12 20-foot by 60-foot tanks are too large to be be trucked down the state Thruway. Once they arrive at 150 Lee Road in Rochester in the next day or so, they will be taken individually by truck to the brewery on St. Paul Street.

The tanks are part of a $49 million modernization project at Genesee Brewery in Rochester, the state's oldest brewery.

Don Cazentre writes about craft beer, wine, spirits and beverages for NYup.com, syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. Reach him at dcazentre@nyup.com, or follow him at NYup.com, on Twitter or Facebook.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- This morning, watch or march in one of the many Memorial Day parades held in honor of soldiers who gave their lives serving our country.

Cities, towns and villages across Central New York and the rest of the nation will be holding parades and other remembrances.

Click the link below to see our full guide to Memorial Day parades across Central New York.

If you're heading out to a parade, pack an umbrella or raincoat. A chance of showers are possible across the region, with highs reaching the low 70s. The rain has caused the cancellation of the East Syracuse parade.

Where: Across Central New York

When: Various times.

How much: Free.

What to know:

Many of the parades start or conclude with a formal ceremony. Banks, government offices and many libraries are closed today. Street parking in the city of Syracuse is free today.

Back-up plan:

If you're tuckered out from staying up for the Watchfire last night, but still want to do something outside this Memorial Day, lace up your hiking boots and head to Clark Reservation State Park in Jamesville for a guided ecosystem tour, led by the Council of Park Friends. The tour starts at the park's nature center at 2 p.m and is included in regular weekend park admission ($5 per car.)

Other things to know today

Check out our full SummerCuse coverage
Even if youre a newcomer to Linux, youve probably figured out that it is not a single, monolithic operating system, but a constellation of projects. The different stars in this constellation take the form of distributions, or distros. Each offers its own take on the Linux model.

To gain an appreciation of the plethora of options offered by the range of distributions, it helps to understand how Linux started out and subsequently proliferated. With that in mind, heres a brief introduction to Linuxs history.

Linus Torvalds, Kernel Builder

Most people with any familiarity with Linux have heard of its creator, Linus Torvalds (pictured above), but not many know why he created it in the first place. In 1991, Torvalds was a university student in Finland studying computers. As an independent personal project, he wanted to create a Unix-like kernel to build a system for his unique hardware.

The kernel is the part of an operating system that mediates between the hardware, via its firmware, and the OS. Essentially, it is the heart of the system. Developing a kernel is no small feat, but Torvalds was eager for the challenge and found he had a rare knack for it.

As he was new to kernels, he wanted input from others to ensure he was on the right track, so he solicited the experience of veteran tinkerers on Usenet, the foremost among early Internet forums, by publishing the code for his kernel. Contributions flooded in.

After establishing a process for reviewing forum-submitted patches and selectively integrating them, Torvalds realized he had amassed an informal development team. It quickly became a somewhat formal development team once the project took off.

Richard Stallmans Role

Though Torvalds and his team created the Linux kernel, there would have been no subsequent spread of myriad Linux distributions without the work of Richard Stallman, who had launched the free software movement a decade earlier.

Frustrated with the lack of transparency in many core Unix programming and system utilities, Stallman had decided to write his own  and to share the source code freely with anyone who wanted it and also was committed to openness. He created a considerable body of core programs, collectively dubbed the GNU Project, which he launched in 1983.

Without them, a kernel would not have been of much use. Early designers of Linux-based OSes readily incorporated the GNU tools into their projects.

Different teams began to emerge  each with its own philosophy regarding computing functions and architecture. They combined the Linux kernel, GNU utilities, and their own original software, and distributed variants of the Linux operating system.

Server Distros

Each distro has its own design logic and purpose, but to appreciate their nuances it pays to understand the difference between upstream and downstream developers. An upstream developer is responsible for actually creating the program and releasing it for individual download, or for including it in other projects. By contrast, a downstream developer, or package maintainer, is one who takes each release of the upstream program and tweaks it to fit the use case of a downstream project.

While most Linux distributions include some original projects, the majority of distribution development is downstream work on the Linux kernel, GNU tools, and the vast ecosystem of user programs.

Many distros make their mark by optimizing for specific use cases. For instance, some projects are designed to run as servers. Distributions tailored for deployment as servers often will shy away from quickly pushing out the latest features from upstream projects in favor of releasing a thoroughly tested, stable base of essential software that system administrators can depend on to run smoothly.

Development teams for server-focused distros often are large and are staffed with veteran programmers who can provide years of support for each release.

Desktop Distros

There is also a wide array of distributions meant to run as user desktops. In fact, some of the more well-known of these are designed to compete with major commercial OSes by offering a simple installation and intuitive interface. These distributions usually include enormous software repositories containing every user program imaginable, so that users can make their systems their own.

As usability is key, they are likely to devote a large segment of their staff to creating a signature, distro-specific desktop, or to tweaking existing desktops to fit their design philosophy. User-focused distributions tend to speed up the downstream development timetable a bit to offer their users new features in a timely fashion.

Rolling release projects  a subset of desktop distributions  are crafted to be on the bleeding edge. Instead of waiting until all the desired upstream programs reach a certain point of development and then integrating them into a single release, package maintainers for rolling release projects release a new version of each upstream program separately, once they finish tweaking it.

One advantage to this approach is security, as critical patches will be available faster than non-rolling release distros. Another upside is the immediate availability of new features that users otherwise would have to wait for. The drawback for rolling release distributions is that they require more manual intervention and careful maintenance, as certain upgrades can conflict with others, breaking a system.

Embedded Systems

Yet another class of Linux distros is known as embedded systems, which are extremely trimmed down (compared to server and desktop distros) to fit particular use cases.

We often forget that anything that connects to the Internet or is more complex than a simple calculator is a computer, and computers need operating systems. Because Linux is free and highly modular, its usually the one that hardware manufacturers choose.

In the vast majority of cases, if you see a smart TV, an Internet-connected camera, or even a car, youre looking at a Linux device. Practically every smartphone thats not an iPhone runs a specialized variety of embedded Linux too.

Linux Live

Finally, there are certain Linux distros that arent meant to be installed permanently in a computer, but instead reside on a USB stick and allow other computers to boot them up without touching the computers onboard hard drive.

These live systems can be optimized to perform a number of tasks, ranging from repairing damaged systems, to conducting security evaluations, to browsing the Internet with high security.

As these live Linux distros usually are meant for tackling very specific problems, they generally include specialized tools like hard drive analysis and recovery programs, network monitoring applications, and encryption tools. They also keep a light footprint so they can be booted up quickly.

How Do You Choose?

This is by no means an exhaustive list of Linux distribution types, but it should give you an idea of the scope and variety of the Linux ecosystem.

Within each category, there are many choices, so how do you choose the one that might best suit your needs?

One way is to experiment. It is very common in the Linux community to go back and forth between distros to try them out, or for users to run different ones on different machines, according to their needs.

In a future post, Ill showcase a few examples of each type of distribution so you can try them for yourself and begin your journey to discovering the one you like best.
Up to 36.5 million Android devices may have been infected with a newly discovered piece of malware that generated fraudulent ad revenue for its creators. The malicious code was spotted in in 41 apps developed by a Korean company named Kiniwini and registered on Google Play as ENISTUDIO Corp., which produces a series of casual cooking and fashion games under the "Judy" brand.

According to CheckPoint Security, most of these apps have been on the Play Store for a long time but they were all recently updated so it's unclear as to when the malicious code was added.

In order to circumvent Google Play's Protection, the hackers only downloaded the actual malicious payload after the app had been installed by connecting to a C&C server (Command and Control). This includes JavaScript code, a user-agent string and URLs controlled by the malware authors. Once a connection is established, the malware opens said URLs in the background and starts generating clicks.

Although this is potentially the most widely-spread malware yet found on Google Play, it isn't the first nor the most damaging. CheckPoint says it did not find any evidence of compromised user data.

Google has removed the apps after being notified by CheckPoint but you can find the complete list of the affected apps here, and of course, if any of them are on your phone you should uninstall right away.
Germany will pass a new law that will oblige kindergartens to report to authorities parents of children who fail to provide evidence that they have been given advice on vaccinating their kids, the country's health ministry revealed on Friday, May 26.

Fines For Parents Refusing Vaccination Advice

Parents who refuse the advice can be fined up to 2,500 euros, or about $2,800, under the new law.

German authorities can already impose fines on parents who persistently refuse to attend vaccine consultations, which is required for children attending kindergarten, but they did not know which parents avoided the consultations.

Children May Be Expelled From Kindergarten

Under the law, which will be voted on by the Parliament on Thursday, June 2, the children of parents who were not able to seek vaccination advice may be expelled from the kindergarten or daycare centers. The Bundesrat, the German parliament's upper house, though, said that forcing kindergartens to report parents could be a breach to data protection laws.

Declining Vaccination Rates In Europe

Vaccination rules are now being tightened across Europe as the region experiences decline in immunization. Drop in vaccination rate here is blamed for the increase in cases of infectious diseases such as chicken pox, mumps and measles.

In the first two months of this year alone, the number of measles cases in 10 European countries has doubled that of the previous year, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) said last month.

The spread of measles, which is known to cause blindness and encephalitis, is preventable with vaccination but some parents refuse to get their children vaccinated. Falling vaccination rates have been attributed to some theories that link autism and the MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccine.

Anti-Vaccination Advocates

The association between autism and vaccines has long been discredited by health experts, but many are still concerned over the safety of vaccinating their kids, as anti-vaccine activists continue to advocate that the vaccines being administered may not be safe.

Amid the measles outbreak in Minnesota, for instance, anti-vaccine activist Mark Blaxill spoke at a gathering of 90 people about the dangers of measles vaccine, claiming that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lied about the results of a 2004 study that investigated the link between MMR vaccine and autism.

Preventing Measles And Other Infectious Diseases With Immunization

While vaccines have dramatically reduced the number of people infected by potentially fatal diseases, the World Health Organization said that 1.5 million more deaths could be prevented worldwide if more people get immunized.

Health experts are particularly concerned of measles because it is highly contagious. Measles pathogens can easily spread when infected people sneeze and cough.

"Nobody can be indifferent to the fact that people are still dying of measles," said Germany's health minister Hermann Groehe. "That's why we are tightening up regulations on vaccination."

WHO said that children need to be screened for measles vaccination history once they start school. Those who have not received two doses also need to be vaccinated.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
When beekeepers check the colonies of bees, they also check for mites in the hives. Keepers particularly look for the varroa mite, a red parasite that is about the size of a deer tick.

Number 1 Enemy Of Bee Colonies

The presence of these mites apparently pose dangers to the pollinating insects. While there are a range of other factors that influence the declining population of bees in the country, these mites are being considered as the number one enemy of bee colonies.

The varroa mites bite into the honeybee larvae, pupa, worker bees, and adult drones, they transmit viruses that can kill honeybee colonies.

A 2017 Winter Loss Survey conducted by the Pennsylvania State Beekeepers Association, which involved 831 beekeepers, revealed that only 2,593 colonies of the 5,443 colonies alive in November 2016, managed to thrive in April this year, which is equivalent to 52 percent colony loss.

Of the colonies that were lost, the beekeepers said that more than a quarter were due to mites while 62 percent of the lost colonies were of unknown causes that may also been possibly linked to these parasites.

"Absolutely mites may have played a role," said Steve Repasky, who has been a beekeeper for 30 years. "It's agreed nationwide that varroa mites are the number one enemy for bee loss."

Transmits 25 Diseases And Viruses

Repasky said that keepers had healthy bees before the arrival of the mites, which transmit 25 different diseases and viruses. Loss of bee colonies because of mites started about three decades ago when the varroa mite first appeared in the United States.

Over the next decade, the parasite, along with a range of other factors such as viruses, use of pesticides, nutritional deficiencies and habitat loss resulted in a massive decline of wild bee colonies in the country, a problem that poses threat to food supply and comes with economic implications.

An assessment of bee colony parasites and diseases published in Apidologie in April 2016 showed an unprecedented increase in the number of varroa mites. The study likewise revealed that small-scale beekeepers with less than 50 colonies tend to be the ones affected by the parasites.

While the number of colonies and beekeepers appear to make a comeback and a new survey showed that U.S beekeepers only saw a 30 percent drop in bee population in 2016, the varroa mite remains a main concern.

Saving The Bees From The Varroa Mite

Fortunately, there appear to be ways to fight the problem. Bees, for instance, are evolving to better fight the threat. In 1997, entomologists discovered that about 3 percent of bees attack the mites and chew the parasites' legs off, which kill the mites. Bee breeding programs managed to boost the prevalence of this behavior by up to 80 percent.

West Central Ohio Beekeepers Association President Dwight Wells said that beekeepers in Ohio are currently working with researchers to build a critical number for the chewing bees that are also called the "Purdue anklebiters." Related studies are also being conducted to produce bees that are resistant to these virus and disease-carrying mites.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
U.S. President Donald and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Chief Scott Pruitt both share the belief that the United States should exit the climate agreement, despite scientific evidence showing the country's huge contribution to carbon dioxide emissions.

It is no secret that the Trump administration is not a fan of the Climate Change Agreement, which was signed by almost 200 countries in 2015, and Trump is already close to officially withdrawing from the deal. The pending decision is a cause for concern to many, especially scientists and experts who worked on models and predictions on what could really happen if Trump turns his back on climate change.

Possible Effects Of A US Exit

The climate change agreement seeks to limit the global temperature rise to less than 2 Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels but, if the United States exits the deal, scientists and experts believe that the country could undo what other parts of the world are working hard to prevent.

According to reports, the world already warmed more than half of the target and the United States is responsible for one-fifth of the emissions that led to the temperature rise. Scientists predict that the exit could lead to an additional 3 billion tons of carbon dioxide annually, enough to ensure that the ice sheets and glaciers would melt faster and weather would become more extreme.

Expert groups ran several simulations that would show the possible effects of the said exit. One group came up with a worst case scenario showing every other country but the United States lowering their emissions. The model showed that, by the end of the century, the country will have contributed a 0.3 C (0.54 F) temperature rise. Other similar simulations resulted between 0.1C (0.18F) and 0.2C (0.36F).

"Developed nations - particularly the U.S. and Europe - are responsible for the lion's share of past emissions, with China now playing a major role... This means Americans have caused a large fraction of the warming," Jennifer Francis, a Rutgers University climate scientist, claims.

A Domino Effect?

Some fear that more than the country's direct effect, Trump's actions could create a domino effect and other countries could follow suit. Not all agree with this, however.

Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research Director John Schellnhuber believes that a U.S. exit would not have a great impact on the decision of other countries.

"Ten years ago (a U.S. exit) would have shocked the planet... Today if the U.S. really chooses to leave the Paris agreement, the world will move on with building a clean and secure future," Schellnhuber said.

While this could be true, Texas Tech climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe believes the United States is still a major influence because the country's choices after an exit would create ripple effects that will affect the world.

Both make good points but, perhaps we should not forget that there are already many people within the United States who actively fight climate change, such as the state of California, which is keen on upholding its strict auto emission standards.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Construction of the Extremely Large Telescope started on Friday, May 26. Once completed, the instrument will be the world's largest optical and infrared telescope.

Five Times Larger Than Top Observing Instruments Today

The E-ELT, which is funded by the European Southern Observatory, an organization consisting of researchers from European and southern hemisphere nations, will be about five times larger compared with the top observing instruments currently used today. It's big enough that scientists look forward to its significant contributions in the field of astronomy.

With its main mirror measuring about 39 meters across, scientists hope that the instrument can find more smaller planets and image larger ones. With its size, the telescope's main mirror will be able to gather unprecedented amount of light to image objects deemed too dark and distant for current observatories.

Role In Mankind's Hunt For Alien Life

The telescope is deemed powerful enough to play a crucial role in mankind's hunt for alien life as it can directly image extraterrestrial planets the size of Earth, allowing astronomers to gather vital information such as the composition of the atmosphere and surfaces of extraterrestrial worlds. These data could then be used to identify the most probable places in the cosmos to find alien life.

"The ELT will tackle the biggest scientific challenges of our time, and aim for a number of notable firsts, including tracking down Earth-like planets around other stars in the 'habitable zones' where life could exist  one of the Holy Grails of modern observational astronomy," the ESO website reads.

Search For Life-Supporting Exoplanets

Simone Zaggia, of the Inaf Observatory of Padua, has said that the telescope will play an important role in the search for exoplanets, particularly Earth-like worlds that can support life. He explained that the biggest telescopes today can only spot big exoplanets as big as Saturn and Jupiter.

"We really want to know about the smaller worlds that make up the solar systems in our galaxy," Zaggia said. "We want to find out if there are many Earth-like planets in our part of the universe. More importantly we want to find out if their atmospheres contain levels of oxygen or carbon dioxide or methane or other substances that suggest there is life there. To do that, we need a giant telescope like the E-ELT."

Gerry Gilmore, from Cambridge University, explained that while scientists are able to see exoplanets, they cannot study them in detail since these worlds appear very close to their host stars from a distant perspective.

The magnification that the E-ELT will give though will allow researchers to look at these worlds directly and clearly. In the future, researchers could get a picture of planets around another star with color changes that are similar to what happens with season changes on Earth. This may indicate the presence of vegetation in these worlds which could mean the existence of alien life.

The telescope, which will be located on a 3,000-meter-high mountain of the Atacama desert, is expected to start its operation by 2024.

 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Brazil: Lula Meets With the Presidents of the House and Senate
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What started as a seemingly simple bill to change the name of a school has mushroomed into a mini-drama that has sparked anger, tears and charges of double dealing in the Louisiana Legislature.

One side is led by allies of Sen. Gerald Long, R-Winnfield, who fervently wants his colleagues to name the state's lone residential high school after his late brother and "humble servant," former state Rep. Jimmy Long Sr.

Jimmy Long played a huge role in getting the school launched in 1983, and the Senate voted 31-2 on May 17 to endorse the name change.

It was a victory for Gerald Long amid the recent deaths of Jimmy Long, plus another brother who was Gerald Long's twin, and his wife, whose funeral a few weeks ago was attended by the state Senate.

On the other side, and waging a furious lobbying campaign, are the alumni of the Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts in Natchitoches, which serves up to 360 gifted students in a college-like setting.

They want Long honored by naming the school's new, $23 million residential dormitory after him and thought they had a deal to do just that after a meeting of the school's board of directors on Dec. 5.

But all that changed when Sen. Francis Thompson, D-Delhi, a friend of Jimmy Long, Gerald Long and the second-longest-serving member of the Legislature, filed Senate Bill 1.

That measure, which faces a showdown hearing at 9 a.m. Wednesday in the House Education Committee, would rename the school, not the new dormitory, after Jimmy Long.

"We are very respectful as to where the idea came from and what its intent is," said Jamie Smith, president of the LSMSA's alumni group. "But it still doesn't make it right."

The intensity of the dispute over a name change has shocked even veterans of the Legislature.

Members of the House committee are being deluged with letters, emails, postcards and other messages from many of the roughly 5,000 graduates of the school urging panel members to revamp the measure or kill it.

How far has the controversy gone?

Rep. Chris Broadwater, R-Hammond, a member of the committee, was on a flight out of Atlanta this month when he struck up a conversation with a professor from upstate New York.

Broadwater told his new acquaintance he was an attorney and a member of the Louisiana Legislature.

"He said, 'Oh, I have a bill I want to talk to you about,' " the lawmaker recalled.

"It was the Senate bill," he added.

"It turns out, years ago, he graduated from that school," he said. "He was living in upstate New York, but even he was aware of it."

In the center of the battle is Thompson, 75, a gregarious politician first elected in 1974 and already planning to run for the state House when his Senate term expires in 2020.

He said the bill is under fire from a "vocal minority" of alumni and noted that a poll showing 74 percent of graduates oppose the legislation got responses from only 44 percent of those surveyed.

School officials say their network is extensive, with 34 percent of those questioned living out of state, 18 percent in the New Orleans area, 15 percent in Baton Rouge and 14 percent in Lafayette/Lake Charles.

Thompson views the issue as simple: Jimmy Long Sr. all but created the school, is clearly its father and deserves to have his name on it.

"No one can contest that," he said. "There are just a few of us still around who were at those meetings."

Thompson also rebutted criticism that he has been less than honest on how the bill was rolled out.

"I don't lie about legislation," he said. "Gerald Long doesn't lie."

Opponents of the bill say the Dec. 5 meeting of the LSMSA's board of directors  held in the Jimmy D. Long Boardroom  makes clear that the plan was to honor Long by naming the dormitory after him.

Gerald Long was at the meeting.

"He expressed gratitude for the proposal to name the residence hall in honor of his brother and added that Sen. Francis Thompson had requested to draft the legislation to honor Rep. Long's legacy," according to the board minutes.

School leaders thought it was all set.

"Unbeknownst to us, Senate Bill 1 was written," Smith said.

Smith said that while he believes Thompson genuinely sought to honor Jimmy Long, Gerald Long knew that naming the dormitory after his older brother was the plan.

Asked about arguments that naming the dormitory after his brother makes more sense, Long said, "I just completely disagree."

He said more than 700 state entities are named after former lawmakers and others. "We are not plowing new ground," he said.

Critics of the bill contend the new name would be unworkable: the Jimmy D. Long Sr. Louisiana School for Math, Science, and the Arts.

They say it would diminish and regionalize the school, and set it apart from similar schools in North Carolina and elsewhere.

Opponents have time on their side, with the committee vote set to take place just eight days before the June 8 adjournment.

Thompson, a savvy legislative veteran, hopes to amend the bill Wednesday in hopes of making it more palatable to the 15-member committee.

Others remain puzzled that a name change could spark such an uproar.

"It is hard for me to understand the rationale for their opposition to it," said Broadwater, who said he is inclined to support the bill.

"It still maintains all of their name but certainly gives a nod to one member of an entire family that has been the greatest champion that school has ever had," he said.
"We were initially interested in the vineyard and winery next door [Lake George Winery], because I found they were making some very attractive wine, and there were very few people making wine of that kind in Australia at the time, that was with pinot noir grapes.

The couple originally planted the vines for the winery, which faces Lake George, back in the late 90s' when it was "just a paddock".

After 20 years at the helm, Jim Lumbers and Anne Caine have sold Lerida Estate.

"I had recently returned from living in France and had become quite interested in French Burgundies, which are pinot noir [grapes], and was then struck by the quality of the pinot noir here."

Initially the plan was to purchase Lake George Winery, but the couple ended up with a plot of land subdivided from the winery. Since then, Lumbers and Caine have won numerous awards for their cool climate wines, and Lerida Estate has been a James Halliday Companion Five Star Winery since 2010.

Lumbers, who is about to turn 72, said the sale was purely down to the fact he thought it was time to retire.

The vineyard's new owner is Michael McRoberts, who is an accountant by profession.

"I wanted to invest in something I cared about and was passionate about, and I like drinking wine so that's how it came about," he says.
Gungahlin suburbs dominate a list of Canberra's fastest-growing communities. The top three suburbs are all in the Gungahlin region, Emma Kelly reports .

Former owner Jim Lumbers, new owner Michael McRoberts and operations manager Andrew McFadzean at Lerida Estate. Credit:Jil Hogan

Jim Lumbers and Anne Caine have sold Lerida Estate. The couple originally planted the vines for the winery, which faces Lake George, back in the late 1990s when it was "just a paddock", Jil Hogan writes.

Raiders have learnt from sledging

Canberra Raiders' Jordan Rapana of the Raiders heads for the try line during the weekend's clash with Sydney Roosters. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images) Credit:Mark Nolan

It was a case of sledging that bit the Canberra Raiders in the backside. But the NRL's leading try-scorer Jordan Rapana believes the Green Machine have learnt to bite their tongues, as David Polkinghorne reports.
Citi last year removed cash from its six Australian retail branches , and figures published on Friday showed an acceleration in the decline of cash and cheques throughout 2016.

As cash and cheque usage slide, an executive from Commonwealth Bank said cash would probably "disappear" from more branches, or cash transactions would be conducted through machines rather than over the counter.

Consumers can expect to see more bank branches without cash, as the boom in digital finance pushes banks to use their retail stores to sell more complex financial products.

"We will probably see cash disappearing out of branches more and more," CBA's general manager of everyday banking and payments, Michael Baumann, said on Friday.

Cash withdrawals from automated teller machines have fallen 22 per cent in the past five years. Credit:Jessica Shapiro

The bank would still need to be able to accept cash from small businesses, suggesting some cash would remain in branches in some form, he said, but there could be less need for staff to handle cash transactions.

"I could see absolutely that for security purposes but also because the demand is not there, that actually cash will disappear, or more [cash] will go into a deposit machine and ATM machine rather than actually doing it over the counter," he said at the Australian Retail Banking Summit in Sydney.

Figures published on Friday underlined the rapid decline in the use of cheques, which plunged 20 per cent in 2016, the largest drop recorded by the Australian Payments Network to date.
China's government has copped what Scott Morrison is so desperate to avoid: a credit rating downgrade.

But in the discussion about Moody's surprise move last week to cut its rating for our biggest trading partner, there's one word that has been notably absent, even though it's a risk of growing importance to investors and officials. That word is "fintech".

Nowhere are the large potentially huge benefits of fintech  and longer-term risks  clearer than in China.

This realisation comes as financial regulators everywhere, including in Australia, start to turn their attention to how these risks could eventuate, if fintech one day grabs a larger share of the financial services market.
Taking on the chief executive role at Wesfarmers is akin to becoming the president of the People's Republic of China. You can safely count on a 10-year tenure unless the peasants revolt.

So maybe we shouldn't pay too much attention to the news that Richard Branson's former lieutenant  the flashy David Baxby  is joining Wesfarmers to run its industrials division.

Sir Richard Branson and former Virgin Group executive David Baxby. Credit:Peter Braig

He has been picked to replace the current boss, Rob Scott, who does not take up the Wesfarmer's CEO job until November.

That's a long time for Baxby to wait if he plans to emulate Scott's leap from the daggy industrials business  which includes the Hard Yakka workwear brands  to a role that would be a step up from Baxby's former job as global CEO of Branson's Geneva-based Virgin Group.
Western Australia may ask Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton to pay potentially billions of dollars to end a mining rent tax to help patch a budget decimated by lower commodity prices.

The state government is seeking advice on a proposal that would see the nation's two biggest miners pay out an iron-ore levy early in a one-off lump sum, Premier Mark McGowan said on Sunday.

US miner Cliffs looks set to close its Australian iron ore business. Credit:Michele Mossop

The opposition National Party last week said in parliament that such a plan could raise as much as $4 billion for the state, which hosts the giant Pilbara iron ore mines.
Major Australian corporations and businesses will support a new $27 million NSW government program to help up to 6000 refugees and 1000 asylum seekers get jobs.

AMP Foundation helped develop the new refugee employment support program which is supported by Telstra, Harvey Norman, NRMA, Australia Post, First State Super, Business Council of Australia, Clubs NSW, Crescent Wealth, Henry Davis York, IAG, Master Builders Association of NSW and TransUrban.

Peter Shergold Credit:Darrian Traynor

NSW Coordinator-General for Refugee Resettlement Peter Shergold said the state government has committed $6.83 million per year over the next four years to help refugees and asylum seekers move into the skilled workforce.

The overall package includes the $22 million Refugee Employment Support Program.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce has rejected a push from Aboriginal community leaders for a constitutionally-enshrined Indigenous body to influence policy in Canberra, predicting "it's not going to happen".

As Mr Joyce called for "substantive" but practical progress on Aboriginal reconciliation, two of Australia's most senior Indigenous politicians rallied behind the importance of a national referendum on the issue, warning it must be done right or could set the cause back for generations.

Last week's national convention of Indigenous community leaders at Uluru rejected symbolic recognition on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the constitution, instead calling for a "First Nations Voice" and a plan for treaties between Aboriginal people and the government.

"If you overreach in politics and ask for something that will not be supported by the Australian people such as another chamber in politics or something that sort of sits above or beside the Senate, that idea just won't fly," Mr Joyce said on Monday.
Australia's nursing homes are increasingly deadly places for their residents, with a 400 per cent increase in preventable deaths over the past decade despite billions of dollars of federal and private money being spent on them.

Falls, choking and suicide were the main causes of preventable deaths, according to a new study by Monash University researcher Joe Ibrahim, in a trend he says shows we are "not looking hard enough" for ways to reduce the risks for elderly Australians.

Sarah Russell's mother, Joan, died after a fall in a nursing home. Credit:Penny Stephens

Sarah Russell's mother, Joan, died in a nursing home in September 2015. She believes the death was premature.

"When my mother was engaged, she was terrific. When she was alone and not engaged, she'd suffer anxiety ... [and] she would get up and walk," Dr Russell, a public health researcher, said.
The federal government's "wilful neglect" of Australia's national museums, galleries and libraries is putting the nation's shared history and heritage at risk, according to a new academic study.

Years of budget cuts had heaped pressure on staff and limited public access to collections including in regional areas, researchers said in a paper published by the Australian Journal of Public Administration this month.

An exhibition at the National Museum of Australia. A new research paper warns that Australia's national heritage is at risk after years of budget cuts. Credit:Karleen Minney

The article, by Community and Public Sector Union researchers, said a $36.8 million government budget cut starting in 2015 2016 had made it harder to acquire and preserve items, slowed efforts to digitise historical documents and put artefacts at risk of deteriorating.

About $30 million in further cuts had hit museums, galleries and libraries since 2013.
Public servants at the Bureau of Meteorology have decisively rejected a pay and conditions deal for the second time in a clear sign that the Coalition's government's industrial problems with much of its workforce have not gone away.

The proposed workplace agreement, which had been described as "harsh" by the main workplace union, was defeated by a 58 per cent no-vote in a result announced on Monday morning.

CPSU National Secretary Nadine Flood has welcomed the breakthrough. Credit:Jamila Toderas

The ballot result comes as 17,000 public servants at the Defence Department, who have already knocked back three EBA proposals, prepare to vote again in mid-June.

Top Defence officials are hopeful that a front-loaded wages offer, which will see six per cent increases in the first 18 months of the agreement, will get their proposal over the line.
Staff numbers will be cut and less space provided to teach visual art students under the University of Sydney's plan to shut down its art school at Rozelle and relocate students to its main campus.

But the plan to house the Sydney College of the Arts in the Old Teachers' College at Camperdown will offer "greater opportunities" for visual arts students, according to Professor Stephen Garton, the university's provost and deputy vice-chancellor.

Sydney University plans to shut down its Sydney College of the Arts campus at Rozelle and house the art school in the Old Teacher's College at its main campus. Credit:Peter Rae

"The move enables the university to continue to offer a world-class visual arts education that is financially sustainable," he said.

The closure of the Rozelle campus, which has angered staff and students, is expected to reduce the art school's annual operating deficit from $5.1 million to $1 million a year, according to the university's Final Change Plan for the SCA.
The Brisbane Metro rapid transit system will operate 24 hours a day on weekends, Lord Mayor Graham Quirk announced ahead of the release of the long-awaited business case on Tuesday.

The business case for the $944 million project was set to be unveiled at City Hall at 10am, with just two days to spare before the council's May release deadline.

Cr Quirk said metro services would run non-stop on weekends and at least 20 hours on weekdays once it was operational in 2022.

"The Brisbane Metro will demonstrate our credentials as a vibrant 24-hour, new world city with services operating around the clock on weekends," he said.
Unions have warned of potential traffic chaos after Brisbane City Council locked 25 electricians out following a dispute over a new roster they said would have them permanently on call.

The workers were locked out of the council's Stafford depot at 12.01am on Sunday, according to the Electrical Trades Union, following industrial action undertaken by the workers on Friday, which aimed to have their claims heard during enterprise bargaining negotiations.

State Development Minister Anthony Lynham with locked-out electrical workers outside Brisbane City Council's Stafford depot. Credit:ETU

In a sign of at least some state government support of the workers, State Development Minister Anthony Lynham joined them outside the depot in his electorate on Monday morning.

ETU organiser Brenton Muller said the council's response to a day of what he called "minor" action could potentially put public safety at risk.
Police are investigating a second major privacy breach at a Melbourne high school which saw the personal information of families illegally accessed by a student.

The breach at Camberwell High School follows a similar but unrelated incident at Blackburn High School two weeks ago where the personal information of families was illegally obtained and published online.

The breaches have left parents feeling vulnerable and raised questions about how the Department of Education and individual schools deal with cyber security issues.

A Department of Education spokesman on Monday confirmed a student at Camberwell High School gained unauthorised access to Compass  a school management software system  and accessed the personal information of families.
A dozen Country Fire Authority crews have battled a blaze at Shadowfax Winery next to the historic Werribee Mansion at Werribee Park.

Emergency services were called to the blaze at K Road about 7am on Tuesday after reports of a building fire at the winery.

According to a CFA spokeswoman, the fire broke out in the mezzanine level of the Shadowfax building and was contained to the kitchen.

It took crews 40 minutes to bring the fire under control. The cause of the fire is not yet known.
A man accused of the murder of six-year-old Kylie Maybury in 1984 will face a committal in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Monday.

Gregory Keith Davies, 73, was charged last June with the abduction, rape and murder of Kylie on Melbourne Cup Day in Preston 32 years earlier.

Julie Maybury, mother of Kylie, outside Melbourne Magistrates Court, after an earlier hearing. Credit:Tammy Mills

It is alleged that Mr Davies, then 42, abducted and raped Kylie on November 6, and murdered her the following day.

The court hearing on Monday will determine whether there is enough evidence for Mr Davies to face trial.
Professor Mann, who is a medical researcher, says the project is not linked to Monash University but the mice would be used for biomedical research, selling to universities and medical-research institutions across Victoria. Plans show a 75-square-metre granny flat with a vivarium - an enclosed, climate-controlled area - where the mice would be locked in ventilated boxes. The flat also features a bathroom, washroom and workroom. Professor Mann claimed the total weight of the mice combined would be no more than two or three ordinary-sized rabbits. He also said the daily excrement of all 600 mice would weigh less than that of two labradors.

He said the mice would not attract vermin as they would be locked away, with air filters reducing the risk of any odour. Impacts outside the breeding building would be "trivial" and much less than a pet or companion animal such as a dog, he said. But neighbours are not convinced. Up to 75 residents have lobbied together to write a joint statement rejecting the VCAT proposal. Sue and Mick Blackburn have lived in Albert Street, directly behind Professor Mann's property, for 33 years.

But they are considering relocating if the application goes ahead. "We have absolutely nothing against medical research," Ms Blackburn said. "But it should be done further away, in the countryside, or inside a university or proper medical-research institution. "It is completely inappropriate in a residential area because the risks of something going wrong are just too high." The couple has an asthmatic son with severe allergies.

His bedroom is just five metres away from the proposed breeding facility. "For us, it's the mental stress of knowing it is there, even if he has systems in place to control it," she said. "Even if just one mouse escaped it could attract vermin. We've had foxes already in our street. He says there will be no sound but there will be a 24-hour air conditioner running and how can he possibly ensure that all the air coming out is adequately filtered?" Residents are also concerned that the number of mice being bred would not be regularly monitored. A report submitted to the council said up to 50 mice would be culled each week.

Their remains would be wrapped and frozen before being transferred to the household garbage bin just before the weekly pick-up. "We were horrified by the sheer amount of mice that would be killed," Ms Blackburn said. "We have countless, hygiene, health and amenity concerns." Glen Eira City Council director of planning and place Ron Torres said the council had twice refused planning applications due to non-compliance with the purpose and decision guidelines of the Neighbourhood Residential Zone and non-compliance with Glen Eira's Non Residential Uses in Residential Zones Policy. The VCAT hearing will commence on September 15.
Police are searching for a man who is on the run following a shooting and the discovery of a clandestine laboratory at a rural property in Castlemaine.

Police said a man presented at a Castlemaine hospital about 3pm last Friday with a gunshot wound to the neck.

Dean Guest and the type of car he was believed to be driving.

He remains in hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

A clandestine laboratory has since been located by police at the same property in McGregor Street where the victim was believed to have been shot last week.
"Combined (AM and PM peak), a return trip between the Princes Freeway (Kororoit Creek) and the central city (Spencer Street and Dudley Street) may be up to 15 minutes faster in 2031," the EES states. Spaghetti junction, West Melbourne. Artist's impression. Image Credit:Western Distributor Authority The EES predicts the tunnel will bring a more than 10 per cent cut to vehicle numbers on the West Gate Bridge, which already strains to carry up to 220,000 vehicles a day, has peak-hour speeds of less than 30 km/h and causes congestion as far back as Hoppers Crossing. It will also ease the burden on the Bolte Bridge by about 22,000 vehicles a day. The project's impact on inner city traffic would be mixed.

Traffic on King Street and Spencer Street in the CBD would reduce by up to 2500 cars a day, but it would be made worse on Dynon Road, Queensberry Street, Curzon Road and Victoria Street just north of the CBD. Traffic volumes would reduce on roads in the inner west including Francis Street, Somerville Road, Buckley Street and Ballarat Road. Tolling structures were also revealed, although what motorists will pay has been kept secret. There will be four toll points, including two on the widened West Gate Freeway, one at the entrance to the tunnel and one at the city access ramps to Footscray Road, Dynon Road and Wurundjeri Way.

Night-time discounts will be considered, as will toll exemptions over the Bolte Bridge for heavy vehicles with origins and destinations in the inner west. All lanes of the West Gate Freeway will be kept open at peak times during construction. The freeway will be widened from eight lanes to 12 between the Western Ring Road and the new tunnel entrance as part of the project. The public now has 30 working days to respond to what the 10,000 page Environment Effects Statement says about the project. Roads Minister Luke Donnellan and Peter Sammut, chief executive of the Western Distributor Authority, in Yarraville on Monday. Credit:Jason South

Asked why the community was being given only 30 working days to respond to the design of the project, Mr Donnellan said there had been two years of extensive consultation already. "No-one would suggest we have hidden this project under a bushel. We have been out there for many years consulting with the community ensuring we get it right," he said. The state government is concerned that it will have to fight for the support of either the Greens or the Coalition to get the financial arrangements for the West Gate Tunnel through Parliament. It will hand Transurban an extension of tolls on CityLink for at least a decade, in return for the toll road operator building and partly financing the new tollway. Greens MP Colleen Hartland said it was not acceptable that community groups would only get 30 working days to respond to the Environment Effects Statement.

"It's disgusting. It totally eliminates community consultation. If they are genuine about community consultation, you give people at least 60 days to do this," Ms Hartland said. Pedestrian and cycle bridge over Footscray Road to Docklands. Artist's impression. Source: Western Distributor Authority Credit:vic98t3 Coalition roads spokesman Ryan Smith said that the government would struggle to get support for the project through Parliament unless it was more transparent about the financial deal being done with Transurban. "Until we see financial statements for this project, we're not supporting it," Mr Smith said. "My personal position is that Transurban is gouging motorists and Daniel Andrews has backed himself into a corner  it's the worst negotiating position possible for taxpayers."



The tunnels would be dug at a depth of around 50 metres, a report into contamination from the excavation finds.
Premier Li Keqiang greets Federica Mogherini, the European Union's high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, before their meeting at the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in Beijing on April 18. Feng Yongbin / China Daily

Premier Li Keqiang will visit Germany and Belgium for the annual EU-China leaders' meeting from May 30 to June 2. It has been a hectic period of diplomatic activity for the European Union. On Thursday, US President Donald Trump visited the EU headquarters in Brussels and over the weekend EU leaders will take part in the G7 summit in Italy.

As Li will have experienced in his talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the EU is in a more confident mood than six months ago. The defeat of populist leaders in the French and Dutch elections, and the expected victory of Merkel in the German elections in September have changed the political outlook in the EU.

Brexit remains a problem but no other EU member state is talking about leaving the bloc. On the contrary, Brexit and Trump's election as US president seem to have brought the remaining 27 EU member states closer. And while Merkel and newly elected French President Emmanuel Macron are expected to agree policies later this year to deepen the integration process, the EU economy is recovering faster with growth expected to reach 1.5 percent this year.

Another byproduct of the changed international environment is a closer alignment between the EU and China on many issues. When senior officials from both sides recently reviewed progress toward the EU-China agenda 2030, there was a remarkable degree of progress to report.

Brussels and Beijing have emerged as the two most important defenders of the multilateral system, especially on free trade and the Paris climate agreement. At their meeting, EU and Chinese leaders will discuss how to deepen cooperation in the run-up to the G20 meeting in Germany in July. This will also be a major theme of the Li-Merkel talks in Germany.

The EU also looks forward to working with China on a growing Asia-Europe Meeting agenda.

On trade and investment there is a large measure of agreement but also some problem areas. But both sides are committed to concluding the negotiations on a bilateral investment treaty as soon as possible.

The EU remains supportive of the Belt and Road Initiative and will look to develop new projects through the connectivity platform. But as European Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen said in Beijing recently, EU support will depend on the initiative meeting the highest international standards in transparency, procurement and social and environmental sustainability.

The problem areas relate to market economy status for China and market access for EU enterprises in China. China believes the EU should recognize it as a market economy automatically as it was enshrined in its World Trade Organization accession protocol. And the EU argues China is still not a market economy as much of its industry and most banks are under State control.

Besides, Brussels is preparing new trade defense legislation which it claims is not targeted against any country.

And while Brussels complains that China does not offer a level playing field and that EU companies face unfair discrimination in trying to enter the Chinese market, Beijing points to the large profits European companies make in China. But these are unlikely to derail a meeting which seems destined to further boost EU-China relations.

The author is the director of the EU-Asia Centre in Brussels.
It was a sight to behold as an extraordinary display of colourful aurora australis lights swept across and illuminated the night sky.

From behind the lens of his camera, Point Lonsdale photographer and avid aurora chaser Lachlan Manley captured bursts of red, blue and green light as it danced over the sky near Queenscliff just before 6.30pm on Sunday night.

Sunday night's aurora australis peaking through a gap in cloudy conditions over Point Lonsdale Pier. Credit:Lachlan Manley

Images and video of the event which appeared above Tasmania, New Zealand's South Island and parts of south west of Melbourne have flooded social media.
A 61-year-old physical education teacher has pleaded guilty in a Perth court to four child sex charges after police found photographs on a computer seized from his home late last year.

Peter Bernard McCormick pleaded guilty in Perth Magistrates Court on Monday to three counts of indecently recording a child and one count of possessing child exploitation material.

The teacher admitted to recording a child and possessing child exploitation material. Credit:Simon Schluter

McCormick's bail was renewed and he will face the West Australian District Court for a sentencing hearing on July 28.

- AAP
Members of Perth's Muslim community have taken to the streets with a message of love and tolerance in the wake of the Manchester terror attacks.

On Saturday a group of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community members stood in Perth CBD wearing shirts saying 'I'm Muslim Ask Me Anything'.

Ask me anything: a hopeful new message from Perth's Muslim community.

They sought permission from the City of Perth and once it was was received, went to the CBD wearing their T-shirts to spread their message: 'Love for all and hatred for none'.

Imam Kamran Tahir said the group had been thinking of doing this for a while but after the attacks in Manchester "thought it was time".
French President Emmanuel Macron says his now famous white-knuckle handshake showdown with US counterpart Donald Trump was "a moment of truth"  designed to show that he's no pushover.

Macron told a Sunday newspaper in France that "my handshake with him, it wasn't innocent."

Macron added: "One must show that you won't make small concessions, even symbolic ones, but also not over-publicise things, either."

Macron's office confirmed to The Associated Press the veracity of the president's comments in Le Journal du Dimanche.
Seoul: North Korea has fired an unidentified projectile from the region of Wonsan on its east coast in an easterly direction, South Korea's military says, coming after a series of test-launches of missiles in recent weeks.

The launch was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in, who has called a meeting of the National Security Council, the South Korean office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

The South Korean military said it was believed to have been a Scud-type missile that flew 450 km (280 miles) and landed in the sea, the latest in a series of North Korean test launches in recent weeks.

US authorities tracked the six-minute flight of what was believed to be a North Korean short-range ballistic missile until it crashed into the Sea of Japan, the US Pacific Command said on Sunday.
Sara Connor can finally rest easy that her five-year sentence for the fatal group assault of a Bali police officer will not be increased again after the prosecution ruled out one last appeal.

A scared-looking Connor had already told Denpasar District Court clerk Nengah Sanjaya last week: "I don't want to appeal, I don't want to appeal," after the High Court increased her sentence from four to five years.

Australian Sara Connor, listens to an Indonesian interpreter during her trial in Bali, in February. Credit:AP

Now the prosecution has also decided against a final appeal to Indonesia's highest court - the Supreme Court.

The conclusion of the court proceedings will mean that Connor can start to accrue remissions to her sentence on Independence Day and religious holidays.
TOKYO, May, 26 2017 - (JCN Newswire) - Toyota Motor Corporation will exhibit a booth at the International Tokyo Toy Show 2017, where parents and children are able to have hands-on experience in driving the Camatte concept car. The event will be held at Tokyo Big Sight from June 1 to 41.Out of a desire to convey the joy and dreams of motor vehicles to the next generation and to encourage parents and children to become more familiar with cars, Toyota has been exhibiting a series of "Camatte" concept vehicles at the Tokyo Toy Show every year since 2012.At this year's show, Toyota will establish the Camatte School. Here, children will have the opportunity to experience the process of obtaining a driving license: they will learn how to operate the steering wheel, accelerator and brake of a car, and will be able to drive a car around a course set up inside the booth2. This year will be the first time that Toyota will be establishing a booth where children can actually experience driving a car.The car that will be driven around the Camatte School course is the "Camatte Petta,"3 the latest addition to the Camatte line-up. Magnets in various shapes and colors can be attached to the outer panels of the Camatte Petta, enabling children to decorate the vehicle according to their individual preferences.A separate program has been established for younger children. They will learn how to operate a car in a driving simulator, then, after sitting in the "Camatte 57s" (first exhibited in 2013), they will be issued with a provisional driving license that Toyota has created.Concept Image of the Camatte School at the Toyota BoothDescription of the hands-on experience and procedureThe Camatte School-a driving school for children1) Children will learn how to operate the steering wheel, accelerator and brake in a driving simulator2) Children will be able to choose from five design patterns to decorate the outer panels of the car3) Children will be able to decorate the Camatte Petta in their own unique style by sticking each of the items in their chosen pattern onto the car4) Children will then be able to drive the car they have decorated around the driving course which will be set up in the booth5) After driving, children will receive a driving license issued by Toyota which is complete with their photographOverview of the Camatte PettaReference: Overview of the Camatte series to dateToyota exhibited the first Camatte vehicle in 2012. The first Camatte Sora could be driven by children, who could also customize its colors and style using easily removable and installable body panels. In 2013, Toyota debuted the Camatte 57s, whose exterior body consisted of 57 detachable small panels that could be assembled like a puzzle. Then, in 2014, Toyota displayed the Camatte Lab, which allowed children to display pictures they had drawn on the hood of the car while getting an up-close look at the inner workings of the car throughout the entire booth. In 2015, Toyota exhibited Camatte Hajime along with Camatte Vision, which employed AR4 in order to enable children to enjoy a simulated experience of driving through town in a car specified to their liking. The Camatte Capsule, a trailer with a customizable interior space, was exhibited in 2016.(1) Buyer's days: June 1-2; Public days: June 3-4(2) Requirements for driving the Camatte Petta: children must be at least 130 cm tall. Booth staff will evaluate whether a child is capable of driving the Camatte Petta based on their ability to operate the steering wheel, accelerator and brake while using the driving simulator.(3) The name Camatte is based on the Japanese word for caring, and is meant to signify "caring for others" and "caring for cars."The name "Petta" was chosen out of a desire to enable children to touch and become more familiar with cars in an easy manner. Petta is taken from the Japanese words "pettanko" ("squashed"), like the charming front design of the car, and "petta petta" (an onomatopoeic phrase meaning "to stick"), since various magnets can be stuck to the vehicle.(4) Augmented Reality is technology that displays virtual information in addition to real world imagery.
Thirty-Five Brand New 2017 Toyota Vehicles Unveiled as Part of a Renewed Partnership with the City of San Diego Lifeguards

San Diego, Calif., May 26, 2017  Summer beach season in sunny San Diego kicks off this Memorial Day Weekend. Toyota and the City of San Diego celebrated accordingly with the announcement of its continued partnership and unveiling of 35 2017 Toyota vehicles for lifeguard rescue and operations.

The multi-year partnership agreement includes Toyotas promise to maintain and service the 35 vehicles in the fleet, providing monthly detailing on each vehicle during the peak summer months, and saving the City of San Diego tens of thousands of dollars in maintenance and service fees.

The partnership renews Toyotas commitment to creating safer communities through supporting safe practices in the water and on the beach. Since 2011, Toyota has served as an integral partner of the lifeguards, supporting the citys efforts to promote beach safety. In addition to the fleet vehicle donations over the years, Toyota also sponsors the lifeguards Water Safety Days program, designed to promote beach safety.

San Diegos lifeguards are responsible for the safety of thousands of beachgoers every single day, especially in the summertime, said Bernie Perri, president, San Diego Toyota Dealers Association. Toyota is committed to championing these efforts and providing the City of San Diego with the best possible resources to ensure beach days include sand, surf and safe practices.

Toyotas vehicles are off-road capable and extremely durable, built to withstand rough sand and marine environments. The 2017 lineup features a variety of SUVs and pick-up trucks, including Tacoma, Tundra, 4Runner and Sequoia.

The newest addition is the 2017 RAV4 Hybrid, launched for the first time in 2015. This hybrid grade is the most fuel-efficient vehicle the lifeguards have utilized to-date, offering 34 miles to the gallon. The RAV4 also comes equipped with the new standard Toyota Safety Sense package  helping to keep both the lifeguards behind the wheel and the surrounding pedestrians safer than ever.

For more information on the City of San Diegos lifeguard program and Water Safety Days, presented by Toyota, please visit http://www.sandiego.gov/lifeguards.
Memorial Day History

Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an organization of Union veterans  the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR)  established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the war dead with flowers. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. It is believed that date was chosen because flowers would be in bloom all over the country.

The first large observance was held that year at Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.

The ceremonies centered around the mourning-draped veranda of the Arlington mansion, once the home of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Various Washington officials, including Gen. and Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, presided over the ceremonies. After speeches, children from the Soldiers and Sailors Orphan Home and members of the GAR made their way through the cemetery, strewing flowers on both Union and Confederate graves, reciting prayers and singing hymns.

Local Observances Claim To Be First Local springtime tributes to the Civil War dead already had been held in various places. One of the first occurred in Columbus, Miss., April 25, 1866, when a group of women visited a cemetery to decorate the graves of Confederate soldiers who had fallen in battle at Shiloh. Nearby were the graves of Union soldiers, neglected because they were the enemy. Disturbed at the sight of the bare graves, the women placed some of their flowers on those graves, as well.

Today, cities in the North and the South claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day in 1866. Both Macon and Columbus, Ga., claim the title, as well as Richmond, Va. The village of Boalsburg, Pa., claims it began there two years earlier. A stone in a Carbondale, Ill., cemetery carries the statement that the first Decoration Day ceremony took place there on April 29, 1866. Carbondale was the wartime home of Gen. Logan. Approximately 25 places have been named in connection with the origin of Memorial Day, many of them in the South where most of the war dead were buried.

Official Birthplace Declared In 1966, Congress and President Lyndon Johnson declared Waterloo, N.Y., the birthplace of Memorial Day. There, a ceremony on May 5, 1866, honored local veterans who had fought in the Civil War. Businesses closed and residents flew flags at half-staff. Supporters of Waterloos claim say earlier observances in other places were either informal, not community-wide or one-time events.

By the end of the 19th century, Memorial Day ceremonies were being held on May 30 throughout the nation. State legislatures passed proclamations designating the day, and the Army and Navy adopted regulations for proper observance at their facilities.

It was not until after World War I, however, that the day was expanded to honor those who have died in all American wars. In 1971, Memorial Day was declared a national holiday by an act of Congress, though it is still often called Decoration Day. It was then also placed on the last Monday in May, as were some other federal holidays.

Some States Have Confederate Observances Many Southern states also have their own days for honoring the Confederate dead. Mississippi celebrates Confederate Memorial Day on the last Monday of April, Alabama on the fourth Monday of April, and Georgia on April 26. North and South Carolina observe it on May 10, Louisiana on June 3 and Tennessee calls that date Confederate Decoration Day. Texas celebrates Confederate Heroes Day January 19 and Virginia calls the last Monday in May Confederate Memorial Day.

Gen. Logans order for his posts to decorate graves in 1868 with the choicest flowers of springtime urged: We should guard their graves with sacred vigilance. ... Let pleasant paths invite the coming and going of reverent visitors and fond mourners. Let no neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic.

The crowd attending the first Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery was approximately the same size as those that attend todays observance, about 5,000 people. Then, as now, small American flags were placed on each grave  a tradition followed at many national cemeteries today. In recent years, the custom has grown in many families to decorate the graves of all departed loved ones.

The origins of special services to honor those who die in war can be found in antiquity. The Athenian leader Pericles offered a tribute to the fallen heroes of the Peloponnesian War over 24 centuries ago that could be applied today to the 1.1 million Americans who have died in the nations wars: Not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions, but there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men.

To ensure the sacrifices of America s fallen heroes are never forgotten, in December 2000, the U.S. Congress passed and the president signed into law The National Moment of Remembrance Act, P.L. 106-579, creating the White House Commission on the National Moment of Remembrance. The commissions charter is to encourage the people of the United States to give something back to their country, which provides them so much freedom and opportunity by encouraging and coordinating commemorations in the United States of Memorial Day and the National Moment of Remembrance.

The National Moment of Remembrance encourages all Americans to pause wherever they are at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day for a minute of silence to remember and honor those who have died in service to the nation. As Moment of Remembrance founder Carmella LaSpada states: Its a way we can all help put the memorial back in Memorial Day.
A recent survey shows that Australians are feeling more time-poor than ever, with 45% of women and 36% of men feeling always or often rushed, or pressed for time. Meanwhile, research has identified that almost one in four shoppers (23%) are willing to pay a premium for same day delivery.

In other words, consumers expectations are changing. Speed is becoming a point of difference, a new front of competition, between retailers. And many Australian retailers are lagging behind.

When a quarter of your customers are willing to pay a bit extra to have their online purchases delivered that afternoon, it is surprising more retailers are not investing in the last-mile  from the warehouse to the customer.

The threat

The advantage physical stores always had over online was immediacy. Walk in, grab it and go. While online retail had an endless range of choice and often lower prices, shoppers had to wait.

But same day delivery undermines that, combining the convenience of online shopping with the immediacy of bricks n mortar.

New retailers and logistics companies are selling us time and convenience just as much as they are selling products or services. Take Ur-bit, a delivery provider operating in Sweden, Paris and London; shop online and get them to pick up and deliver to your home, office, and even your car.

Many in the US and UK have teamed up with third party providers like Lyft and Uber to achieve a same-day delivery. British supermarket Sainsburys has more recently begun trailing an app allowing shoppers to order up to 20 products and have them delivered in an hour.

Meanwhile, Australian supermarkets are still only offering next day delivery, with up to 3 hour delivery windows. Although admittedly, Coles has started trialling same-day delivery in some Melbourne stores.

The opportunity

While Australian retailers are threatened by speed, it is also an incredible opportunity. Australian retailers may not be able to complete against the likes of Amazon on product range and price, but speed may level the playing field.

Australian retailers have struggled with this since they started selling through multiple channels  stores, online and catalogues. In most cases today, Australian retailers are still pushing products to stores from warehouses, unpacking them, only to have those same products re-packaged and forwarded to a customers home.

This isnt very cost effective, and it also doesnt work in a context where stores are shipping smaller, individual orders directly to customers homes.

What Australian retailers should be focusing on is building fulfilment centres, such as The Iconics new facility. These are facilities that are located close to customers, making it very quick and easy to deliver to homes and offices. No repacking required.

The construction of such fulfilment centres has become something of an arms race among online retailers, led by Amazon. Its time for Australian retailers to join in.

But its not just speed that can give an advantage. In the past, delivery was dominated by a few companies, but today there are myriad new players who offer more than speed. They can arrange not only when a product is delivered, but how it arrives in a customers hands  with flexible locations and timing.

Customers expectations for flexible, fast and cheap same-day delivery is both a threat and an opportunity for Australias major retailers. It is currently unclear who will win this race, but retailers must wake up to the demands of customers. Their competitors already have.

>> BACK TO THE NEWSLETTER: Click here to read other articles from this weeks newsletter

Author: Gary Mortimer, Associate Professor, Queensland University of Technology
Varasto returns with designs from Bluemarlin

Finnish beer brand Varasto has returned to the market with a tongue-in-cheek design by Bluemarlin New York. The Sinebrychoff-owned brand launched in early May with sights set on becoming one of the top beer brands in Finland by the end of the year.

Sinebrychoff, Finlands leading brewery, recognised the opportunity to add a new product to its portfolio that includes beer brands, Koff and Karhu.

Looking into the Finnish past, specifically in the city of Kerava, Sinebrychoff rediscovered Varasto, a beer originally brewed in the early 1900s.

Bluemarlins challenge was to pay homage to Varastos heritage whilst also giving the brand a more contemporary feel that would appeal to a modern audience. For inspiration, they were provided with Varastos original label.

Katie Eaton, creative director at Bluemarlin says: Our task was to explore how far the design needed to be refined to be relevant while also still staying true to the original. As the label was created over 100 years ago, the design and lettering was all done by hand, thus inherently there are slight imperfections as well as a certain amount of aging. This, however, just adds to its charm and we didnt want to lose that.

To maintain the integrity of the original design, Bluemarlin suggests it was key to not be overly stylistic. So the seal keeps those slight imperfections in the type as well as bleeding of the ink to capture the brands nostalgia and convey its character. The starburst behind the badge provides depth and dynamism while also contributing to the designs overall retro-feel.

The direct translation of the copy is Storage Beer, thus the juxtaposition between the craft design and the seemingly generic copy gives the brand a dry sense of humour.

Alexander Sneen, vice president marketing at Sinebrychoff says: It is extremely exciting to bring Varasto back to market as it is genuinely good beer that will undoubtedly appeal to consumers looking for a refreshing, easy drinking experience. The fantastic design successfully balances the brands rich heritage with its bright future with wit and style that will resonate with consumers in a real way.

Varasto is the first project to launch since Bluemarlin was selected as an agency of record following a restructuring of Sinebrychoffs agency roster. Providing support in brand strategy and design solutions, the international network has been slated to work on numerous upcoming Sinebrychoff projects including a brand creation as well as initiatives across its pillar brands.

Mark Gandy, global brand director, Bluemarlin, says: Sinebrychoff has an impressive portfolio of brands with rich stories to tell along with the enthusiasm to do something strikingly different in the market. We look forward to partnering with Sinebrychoff as we draw upon our diverse team of creatives, strategists, and provocateurs to shape and elevate the exciting future of this established brewery.

The oldest brewery in Northern Europe, Sinebrychoff is part of the Carlsberg Group.

29 May 2017 - Sam Coyne The Drinks Report, news editor
Texas Tech University's on-again, off-again plans to open a veterinary school in Amarillo might just be on again.

Buried in the 900-plus page budget approved Saturday by state lawmakers is $4.1 million allocated to Tech for "veterinary medicine." That money appears to be start-up funding for a new vet school  even though Tech started the legislative session saying that plans for the school were "on pause."

Tech originally announced in late 2015 that it wanted to open a school in Amarillo 2019. But the idea was met with fierce resistance by Texas A&M University, which has the only veterinary school in the state. Despite the "on pause" declaration, lawmakers from the Lubbock area never gave up. A line providing the funding was included in the House's version of the budget  but not the Senate's. The budget conference committee tasked with crafting a compromise decided to leave it in.

The Tech system has said the school would help West Texas address a shortage of large-animal veterinarians. In a short emailed statement late Saturday, Tech System Vice Chancellor Brett Ashworth said that the system appreciated the Legislature's support but didn't provide any further details.

Meanwhile, a group of four West Texas legislators  Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, Rep. John Frullo, R-Lubbock, and Rep. John Smithee, R-Amarillo  celebrated the decision in a joint statement.

"Rural Texas depends on agriculture as an economic driver, and the lack of large-animal veterinarians in Texas can have a devastating effect on our communities," the statement said. "The inclusion of $4.1 million in the state budget to establish a veterinary school at Texas Tech University will go a long way in addressing this need."

They added, "The overwhelming support for the funding of a veterinary school at Texas Tech University goes to show that both chambers and both political parties understand how important this is to rural Texas. This school will ensure students receive high quality veterinary skills and education for large animal practice in high need areas."

It's unclear whether a 2019 goal is still realistic. And Tech will still likely need approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board before any plans are finalized. The staff of the coordinating board said last year that the state doesn't need another traditional veterinary school, arguing the cost would outweigh the benefits. Tech, however, has said that its school would be unique and focus largely on bringing veterinarians to rural areas. The coordinating board was receptive to that possibility.

Meanwhile, Texas A&M University System officials have said that expanding their school's reach would be a more efficient way of meeting the state's needs.

A&M System Chancellor John Sharp reiterated those concerns late Saturday night.

"My congratulations to Sen. Charles Perry for getting it in the appropriations bill," Sharp said. "The Coordinating Board study was against it. Even the Tech board opposed it. But he came in 'guns up' and got it for Tech."
WACO gets a crack at the first state championship game in school history

WACO will play top-ranked Remsen-St. Mary's in the 8-Player state championship game at 9:30 a.m. Nov. 17 at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls
A tear welled up in Hals eye, a deep sadness etched across his face as he recalled the moment.

At Omaha Beach, the day after the D-Day invasion, Hal had been tasked by his company commander to go back down onto the beach and retrieve some equipment. A farm boy from Iowa now deep into his 60s, he shared this memory with me, his words below.

It was a beautiful day  the sun was out, the sky blue, the water calm. But there on the sandy beach stretching out before me on down the beach were the bodies, the carnage from the day before. It was so peaceful and quiet and...and....

Hals voice trailed off into muted silence as he slowly shook his head, his emotions overwhelmed by that graphic, gripping image from 40 years earlier, still as real to him as the day he had experienced it. All gave some, some gave all.

If Memorial Day is about remembering the past sacrifices of our men and women in the military, Hals five minutes of emotional recall was the best and most real Memorial Day Ive ever had. On that day in June of 1944 when Hal stood alone on the beach at Normandy  alone in the company of fallen comrades  I was 5 years old, my mother preparing me for kindergarten that fall.

I would be free to go to school, salute the American flag in the corner of our classroom, and sing My country tis of thee, sweet land of liberty. But only because, while all gave some, some did give all, making the ultimate sacrifice that allowed fathers to go to work, mothers to care for their children, and kids like me go to school.

The wars that purchased our freedom at the price of the blood and bravery of men and women we likely never knew were largely fought overseas. 130,000 American soldiers, sailors, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, and airmen are still there, buried under foreign soil or waters where they repelled an enemy intent on taking away the freedom we enjoy today.

Thats paying forward like no other debt was or ever could be  their sacrifice measured starkly in numbers. 116,500 died in World War I; 405,300 in World War II; and another 101,000 in Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, Iraq and Afghanistan.

But behind the numbers are the faces. An article about the USS Arizona on the 75th anniversary of Pearl Harbor last December ran in several papers with a sketch of that massive ship sinking, a large grey cloud in the background. But only when you looked more closely at the sketch could you see that the cloud was composed of faces, perhaps a hundred or more, symbolizing the thousand-plus men who went to a watery grave that day and still lie entombed there.

Personalizing such faces makes Memorial Day deeper if you have the honor of being linked to someone who served. My link was remote  my parents bought our first house in Ohio from a man who lost two sons, his only children, on the Arizona. They were still teenagers, robbed of the rest of their lives that we might have ours free and clear.

And I also think about David Acheson and Jeffrey M. Wershow, both outstanding college leaders who left school to serve their country. David died at Gettysburg at age 23. He surely would have been a leader, likely a lawyer and judge like his father and grandfather, had he lived. And Jeff, who died in Iraq in 2003 at age 22, was nicknamed the General because of his confident and purposeful manner. He would have excelled in any field  had he only lived.

These two fine young men and thousands more represent the true cost of war  what might have been.

Make this Memorial Day as personal as you can by visiting a grave and leaving flowers, a flag, or a prayer; by asking a veteran, perhaps a family member or neighbor, to share what theyre willing to share about their service experiences. My friend Hal, who has since passed away, gave me a rare gift by sharing a vivid memory of historic sacrifice for our country.

Greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. Many did just that for the country they loved. May we never forget.

James F. Burns is a retired professor at the University of Florida.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 16:20 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2ee7af 1 Health tilapia,tilapia-skin,Brazil,treatment,health,#health,burns,traditional-medicine Free

Doctors in Brazil have discovered an unconventional method for treating severe burn victims: tilapia skin.

While frozen animal skin and human tissue are often used to treat burns, as they keep the wound moist and help transfer collagen, the resources in Brazil for such treatment are lacking. The gauze bandages that are used instead must be frequently -- and usually painfully -- changed.

As tilapia is widely found in Brazils rivers and fish farms, doctors believe it can be a cost effective way to treat burns.

The use of tilapia skin on burns is unprecedented, said Odorico de Morais, a professor at Ceara University, as quoted by Reuters. The fish skin is usually thrown away, so we are using this product to convert it into something of social benefit.

Read also: China increases use of traditional medicine to tackle AIDS

Researchers at the Federal University of Ceara found that the tilapia skin had many properties similar to human skin, such as moisture, collagen and disease resistance, that would aid in healing.

Chinese researchers have also tested the effects of tilapia skin on rodents, but have yet to move to human trials.

But in Brazil, technicians at the University treat the fish skin to sterilize it before sending it to Sao Paulo for irradiation to kill viruses. After processed and refrigerated, it no longer smells like fish and can last for up to two years. (sul/kes)
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Linkedin Glenn Chapman (Agence France-Presse) San Francisco, United States  Mon, May 29, 2017 13:48 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2e3c50 2 Science & Tech Google,advertising,google-attribution Free

Google is testing a way to tie online ads to brick-and-mortar store purchases, a move whetting marketing appetites while fueling privacy worries.

A product called "Google Attribution" was unveiled at a marketing conference this month in San Francisco by the internet giant. Google has long been able to determine when users click on an ads and make a purchase, but linking online and offline habits takes its analytics a step further.

Google senior vice president Sridhar Ramaswamy, who announced that Attribution is in test mode with a limited number of partners and will be rolled out to more advertisers in coming weeks, touted the tool as being able to answer the long-challenging question of whether marketing campaigns are working.

"Google Attribution makes it possible for every marketer to measure the impact of their marketing across devices and across channels," Ramaswamy said.

"Data-driven attribution uses machine learning to determine how much credit to assign to each step in the consumer journey -- from the first time they engage with your brand for early research down to the final click before purchase."

Real-world customer email addresses or loyalty plan information can be woven with Google data from services such as AdWords, Google Analytics and DoubleClick Search to provide "a complete view" of marketing performance, according to the company.

Using artificial intelligence, or machine learning, to better analyze and understand consumer behavior to target ads and promote sales was a major theme of the conference.

Ad 'holy grail'

For several years now, AdWords has enabled advertisers to measure visits to real-world stores stemming from online campaigns, Ramaswamy noted.

"Still, measuring store visits is just one part of the equation," Ramaswamy said.

"You also need insights into how your online ads drive sales for your business."

Real-world transactions matched back to Google ads are handed in "a secure and privacy-safe way," with store sales information reported in aggregated and anonymized forms to protect individual privacy, according to the company.

Tying online activity to offline shopping decisions has been a "holy grail" for advertisers for quite some time, and comes with worrisome privacy implications, according to ACLU senior policy analyst Jay Stanley.

Attribution threatens to intrude on a core tenant of privacy, that people can have dealings with one party not spill over into affairs with other parties they interact with, Stanley contended.

Read also: Chinese fans trash blackout as Google AI wins again

"This is an evolution, not a revolution; another step toward increased monitoring of individuals," Stanley said.

"Each step raises the question 'Where does this all stop?'"

Stanley expected Google to be on its best behavior when it came to handling the growing trove of information about users, but that even the best of intentions could crack under the "enormous hydraulic pressure of the profit motive."

"We have the full fury and genius of the capitalist system being driven toward monitoring people in ever increasing detail and companies are competing to do so," Stanley said

"It will not stop without some sort of rules in which we as a society express our values through legal protections."

More tempting ads?

Google and Facebook dominate the online ad world, and what one does to prove its worth to advertisers is likely to be copied by the other, according to Silicon Valley analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group.

Attribution promised to give Google a way to assure advertisers they are getting their money's worth at the firm's online venues.

"The big problem is that showing conversion from ad consumption to purchase has been horrible," Enderle said of online marketing.

"This has been a problem for a long time. Google is trying to make a metric so they get credit for it when you do purchase after viewing an ad."

Data showing which ads are translating into real sales should mean that the relevance of ads people see online will improve as marketers abandon mis-aimed or ineffectively tailored messages, the analyst reasoned.

"You are going to be hit with ads for things that you might actually want to buy, so you are going to spend a lot more money," Enderle predicted.

Worries about privacy sparked by linking offline and online activities are a decade or so late, because the time to protest was when collection began of the troves of data about people, the analyst argued.

"There really is no downside to this application," Enderle said while discussing Google's marketing metrics move.

"This is the good side of collecting data; it is what else is being done with the data that should be unnerving and that we really don't know."
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Linkedin Jessicha Valentina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 11:48 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2db8d3 1 Food restaurant,restaurant-guide,#restaurant,iftar,ramadhan,Ramadhan-2017,#Ramadhan,#RamadhanFastingMonth,#JakpostGuideTo,Jakpost-guide-to,Jakpost-Guide-To-Iftar,food,#food Free

After a long day of fasting, iftar (breaking the fast meal at dusk) is the most anticipated time of the day for Muslims.

Those seeking local foods may want to visit Menteng in Central Jakarta. Menteng is recognized as a luxurious residential area in the capital and is home to several of Jakartas finest Indonesian restaurants.

Heres our list of recommended places for iftar in Menteng.

Kaum Jakarta

Kaum Jakarta offers refined versions of local dishes. (Kaum Jakarta/File)

After opening two outlets in Bali and Hong Kong, Kaum finally made its way to the capital. Officially opened last week, the new kid on the block has gained popularity among food lovers. Though Kaum Jakarta has yet to offer Ramadhans specials, guests can enjoy the eaterys signatures dishes, such as lumpia basah Bandung (veggie wrap a la Bandung), bebek betutu (Balinese slow-cooked duck), gulai udang Aceh (prawns cooked in Acehnese style curry) and kue lumpur bubur ketan hitam (mud cakes served with sticky black rice porridge).

Kaum Jakarta also offers a space for private events. Dubbed Colonial House, the private dining area can accommodate 30 to 50 people.

Where: Jl. Dr. Kusuma Atmaja No. 77-79

Plataran Menteng

Iftar corner is available at Plataran Menteng during Ramadhan.(Plataran Menteng/File)

Occupying a three-story Dutch Colonial house, Plataran Menteng is a newly opened restaurant located in the area. For Ramadhan, Plataran Menteng is offering a special menu featuring Al Hambra (goat curry served with roti canai), kebuli (spiced rice) with chicken and paella with chicken with prices starting from Rp 215,000++ (US$16.14). In addition to the special Ramadhan menu, guests can also enjoy complimentary iftar corner, which serves five selected traditional sweets. Private rooms are available for those wanting to have more intimate gatherings.

Where: Jl. H. O. S Cokroaminoto No. 42

Read also: Introducing the new communal dining style 'liwetan'

Seribu Rasa

Private rooms at Seribu Rasa Menteng. (Seribu Rasa/File)

Situated in Jl. H. Agus Salim, Seribu Rasa is a popular spot for gatherings as they provide private rooms for nine to 20 people. Those wanting to break the fast with their loved ones may want to try the set menus with prices starting from Rp 1,500,000 for five people. The packages include Seribu Rasas signature dishes, such as fried chicken mango sauce, dendeng balado dua rasa (fried beef cooked in two flavors), dried scallop string bean and more.

Where: Jl. H. Agus Salim, No. 128

Tesate Menteng

For Ramadhan, Tesate is offering four special iftar treats, namely wedang secang (traditional drink), bongko kopyor (traditional dessert made from coconut milk), nasi kebuli ayam (spiced rice served with chicken) and nasi kebuli kambing (spiced rice served with mutton).(Sari Rasa Group's website/File)

Tucked inside Jl. Sam Ratulangi, Tesate is one of the upscale Indonesian restaurants in Menteng. For Ramadhan, the restaurant is offering four special iftar treats, namely wedang secang (traditional drink), bongko kopyor (traditional dessert made from coconut milk), nasi kebuli ayam (spiced rice served with chicken) and nasi kebuli kambing (spiced rice served with mutton). The restaurant is also equipped with private rooms for 10 and 20 people with a minimum charge starting at Rp 1,000,000.

Where: Jl. Sam Ratulangi, No. 39

Lara Djonggrang

Lara Djonggrang is known for its interesting design, which, somewhat, resembles a spooky house.(Tugu Group/-)

Located in Jl. Teuku Cik Ditiro, Lara Djonggrang is known for its interesting design, which, somewhat, resembles a spooky house. For this Ramadhan, the restaurant has geared up with iftars set menus with price starting from Rp 275,000++ per person. The set menus include warm and cold tajil (sugary snacks and drinks consumed to break the fast), soup, main courses, rice and desserts.

Lara Djonggrang has private rooms that can accommodate eight to 30 people with a minimum charge starting at Rp 2,000,000. (asw)

Where: Jl. Teuku Cik Ditiro, No. 4
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Linkedin Katy Lee (Agence France-Presse) Cannes, France  Mon, May 29, 2017 13:14 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2e08cc 2 Lifestyle Cannes-Film-Festival,red-carpet,fashion,aishwarya-rai,susan-sarandon,uma-thurman Free

After 12 days of red carpet glamour, political fashion statements and wardrobe malfunctions, here are the looks that turned heads at the Cannes film festival.

Beware the thigh-split

Gowns slashed almost to the hip were omnipresent at this year's Cannes, with Susan Sarandon -- at 70, the same age as the festival -- giving a masterclass in the genre when she turned up on opening night in a green velvet number that also made the most of her ample cleavage.

US actress Susan Sarandon poses as she arrives on May 17, 2017 for the screening of the film 'Ismael's Ghosts' (Les Fantomes d'Ismael) during the opening ceremony of the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Alberto Pizzoli )

But the dangers of the thigh-split were also on display, with US supermodel Bella Hadid repeatedly flashing her underwear due to the daring cut of her dress by Alexandre Vauthier.

US model Bella Hadid poses as she arrives on May 17, 2017 for the screening of the film 'Ismael's Ghosts' (Les Fantomes d'Ismael) during the opening ceremony of the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Alberto Pizzoli)

My skirt is bigger than yours

Big nights call for big dresses and there was many a full skirt on the red carpet, from R&B superstar Rihanna's vast white Dior number to Nicole Kidman's giant puffball skirt for "The Killing of a Sacred Deer".

Australian actress Nicole Kidman poses as she arrives on May 22, 2017 for the screening of the film 'The Killing of a Sacred Deer' at the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Alberto Pizzoli)

But Bollywood queen Aishwarya Rai Bachchan stole the show in a pale blue ballroom gown so big it took a team of five assistants to help her up the stairs.

Tweetstorm dress

Israeli Culture Minister Miri Regev set the internet alight with her choice of frock for the opening gala, emblazoned with the Jerusalem skyline, which she said was intended to mark 50 years since the city's "liberation and reunification" -- a view its Palestinian residents would dispute.

Israeli Culture Minister Miri Regev wearing a dress featuring the old city of Jerusalem arrives on May 17, 2017 for the screening of the film 'Ismael's Ghosts' (Les Fantomes d'Ismael) during the opening ceremony of the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Antonin Thuillier)

Web users delighted in Photoshopping the image, with one redesigning it to feature the separation wall dividing Israel and the West Bank.

Read also: Winners at the 2017 Cannes film festival

Butch is back

Harder-edged looks made a comeback amongst all the frills this year, with "Mad Men" actress Elisabeth Moss and Uma Thurman both opting for leather jackets over their evening dresses.

US actress and President of the Un Certain Regard jury Uma Thurman poses as she arrives on May 18, 2017 for the screening of the film 'Barbara' at the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Alberto Pizzoli)

Kristen Stewart also premiered a butch new haircut, bleached and buzzed close to the scalp.

Director/Screenwriter Kristen Stewart poses as she arrives on May 20, 2017 for the screening of the film '120 Beats Per Minute (120 Battements Par Minute)' at the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Valery Hache)

Hair today, gone tomorrow

One new hairdo wasn't enough for Mexican actress Salma Hayek. She turned chameleon this week, showing off no less than three radically different styles in 24 hours, starting with pink-tinted curls one evening, a black bob the morning after and straight brown locks just hours after that.

Mexican-Lebanese actress Salma Hayek (L) and her husband French businessman Francois-Henri Pinault pose as they arrive on May 23, 2017 for the '70th Anniversary' ceremony of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Alberto Pizzoli)

That she ostensibly managed to grow out her fringe in the space of just a few hours was particularly impressive.

Age of the transparent jumpsuit

Less is more, apparently? This Cannes was marked by red carpet guests leaving the very minimum to the imagination. From the front, Portuguese model Sara Sampaio's lace dress for a premiere this week was a rather demure affair, but the back proudly displayed a thong for all to see.

Portuguese model Sara Sampaio poses as she arrives on May 22, 2017 for the screening of the film 'The Killing of a Sacred Deer' at the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France. (AFP/Valery Hache)

US model and Instagram queen Emily Ratajkowski also opted for lace with a jumpsuit by Norwegian designer Peter Dundas that relied on thicker parts of the fabric to cover her modesty.

US actress and model Emily Ratajkowski poses as she arrives on May 18, 2017 for the screening of the film 'Loveless' (Nelyubov) at the 70th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France.(AFP/Alberto Pizzoli)
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Linkedin Duncan Graham (The Jakarta Post) Malang  Mon, May 29, 2017 10:22 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2ce198 4 Books book-review,#bookreview,history,Indonesia,journalist Free

Back in the 1970s there were very few books to guide newcomers to Indonesia.

Texts about the 1965 coup that felled first president Soekarno were mainly academic.

More relevant was American travel writer Bill Daltons Indonesia Handbook and the translated works of Pramoedya Ananta Toer, made more exciting because theyd been banned by the second president, Soeharto, although few outsiders could understand why.

Read also: Remembering the legacy of Pramoedya Ananta Toer

Blanche dAlpugets Monkeys in the Dark and Christopher Kochs The Year of Living Dangerously both featured reporters in Jakarta.

Koch, surprised by success, mused that the public wanted to see the Australian imagination cross that little bridge into Asia.

There was another must-read: Australian journalist Bruce Grants Indonesia, published in 1964 and revised in 1996, proving its enduring relevance.

Looking back, he describes it as a young mans book [] with a brash and critical tone.

Although now eclipsed by time, events and Elizabeth Pisanis Indonesia Etc., Grants book was once essential for any Westerner trying to wrap her or his mind around this complex, compound nation.

Read also: Examining Indonesia's collective trauma

Now Grant, 92, has released his autobiography, Subtle Moments.

The author is a polymath with the enviable knack of locating himself at the center of major events as a reporter, diplomat, academic, novelist and lover during his zigzag life.

Above all he is an informed prose master from a pre-Facebook time when Australian newspapers demanded excellence and editors debated viewpoints with their contributors.

Born in Western Australia, Grant won scholarships that took him to university and a world wider than the wheatbelt, where space and heat [] the baked earth and lack of rain meant that growth was sparse and low. The hills were worn down.

As an only son he could have inherited the family farm.

Instead, his inquiring mind lured him into a world of learning and adventure as a foreign correspondent covering the Hungarian Uprising and the Suez Crisis, both in 1956.

He worked for The Age, where his elegant style suited the quality Melbourne broadsheet.

He found journalism a useful antidote to daydreaming while deadlines helped sharpen his natural skills.

Covering Southeast Asia out of Singapore he became friends with the late Ananta Toer (they were the same age) and the Indonesians nemesis, journalist Mochtar Lubis.

Read also: 12 Indonesian books you should add to your reading list

Later Grant was appointed high commissioner to India and was close to the then reformist Australian prime minister Gough Whitlam (1972 to 1975); the two men realized their country needed to refocus its interests from Europe to Asia.

Grant had studied the sardonic, mocking, fatalistic message of Australian history so he understood its fears and foibles.

As a public intellectual involved in statecraft, he took part in pivotal debates about Australias mates and neighbors.

He cites the joint Australian-Indonesian police co-operation approach to terrorism after the 2002 Bali bombing as a model to follow, rather than the aggressive military action taken in Iraq by the United States with Australia riding pillion.

This is a book that many important Indonesians will rush to read because Grant doesnt shy away from details about his complex personal life  including painful correspondence from his son about remarriage.

After divorcing his Australian sweetheart Enid Walters he settled down with American poet Joan Pennell, but that relationship became essentially an intellectual commitment to reforming the world.

He then wedded Kompas correspondent Ratih Hardjono  they had worked together on assignment in Croatia. She wrote another essential volume, although this time for Indonesians: The White Tribe of Asia, an analysis of Australian history, politics and culture.

When the marriage started to crumble and his wife turned to Islam, Grant sought advice from Indonesias fourth president, Abdurrahman Gus Dur Wahid.

By then Hardjono was running the State Secretariat and had fallen for a much younger man in the Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama.

After Gus Dur passed away in 2009, Grant wrote a newspaper obituary disclosing the Indonesian leader had asked for details of their correspondence to be kept confidential.

Now Grant reveals the intimate contents of this and other letters: May God bless us together in finding our different targets in life although with the same aim: To make other people happy while we ourselves are suffering, wrote Gus Dur.

Grants fiction includes a trilogy about affairs between older Australian men and younger Asian women, which start well but end badly.

As academic Alison Broinowski has noted: The metaphor for the relationship between Australia and Asia is overt.

Writes Grant: The novels are hopeful in tone and neighborly in disposition, but in recognition of reality, none has a happy ending.

In Crossing the Arafura Sea ( 2015 ) the principals are an Australian businessman hoping his nation will count for something important in its region while she is the daughter of an Indonesian mystic whose secret hope is that she will become the countrys president.

Grant parallels his autobiography, which he subtexts as Scenes on a Lifes Journey, with Australia seeking its international role.

He concludes his nation, first settled by Europeans in the late 18th century and only federated in 1901, is still a kid in its relationships with Asia as he said in a recent broadcast.

Adventurers heading to the archipelago who are concerned they might be seduced by Indonesia should consult this splendid book before jumping the next jet to Ngurah Rai.

__________________________________

Subtle Moments

by Bruce Grant

Monash University Publishing 2017

438 pages

(Cartoon from the book of Australian PM Gough Whitlam discovering Asia by Indian cartoonist Abu Abraham.)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 12:50 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2df1f8 1 Books William-Wongso,food,#food,culinary,#Culinary,Indonesian-culinary,Gourmand-World-Cookbook-Awards,cookbook,#cookbook,Book,#books Free

Flavors of Indonesia: William Wongsos Culinary Wonders, a culinary book by local food expert and chef William Wongso, was named Best Book of the Year at the 2017 Gourmand World Cookbook Awards

Announced in Yantai, China, on Sunday, the book competed with culinary books from Austria, Australia, France, Germany, Israel, Sweden, United Kingdom and the United States.

Flavors of Indonesia: William Wongso's Culinary Wonders was launched in April last year. The 198-page book contains William's culinary experience while exploring the archipelago and information about local spices, vegetables and fruits.

Read also: Four great Indonesian cookbooks for your kitchen shelf

I wanted to explore the mystery of the local culinary, said William regarding the idea behind the book.

In addition to Flavors of Indonesia: William Wongsos Culinary Wonders, Jakarta Bites: Exploring Vibrant Street Food from the Heart of Indonesia by local chef Petty Elliott was also named the winner of the street food category.

The Gourmand World Cookbook Awards is recognized as the Oscars of the culinary industry. Founded in 1995 by Edouard Cointreau, the fifth generation of the French liqueur Cointreau family, the annual event gives awards to the best food and wine books, printed or digital, and food television programs from across the globe. (asw)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 16:18 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2edaea 1 National e-ID,bribery,KPK,setya-novanto,Andi-Narogong Free

During his testimony in the e-ID graft case trial on Monday at the Jakarta Corruption Court, businessman Andi Agustinus, aka Andi Narogong, said he gave a total US$ 1.5 million to former Home Ministry official Irman, a defendant in the case.

Andi said he gave the money as an "operational fund" to Irman. He added that he learned about the e-ID project from former ministry secretary-general Diah Anggraini in 2010.

"I knew Diah and she told me about the project. She told me that Irman would lead the project," he said.

He further said the operational fund was delivered in four installments; US$ 500,000 was handed over at Cibubur Junction shopping center in East Jakarta; $ 400,000 was given at a Holland Bakery outlet in Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta; $ 400,000 was handed over at a gas station in Kemang, South Jakarta; and $ 200,000 was given at another gas station in Cibubur.

He said he was willing to bribe officials to attain jobs from the project.

"I hoped that by giving the money I would get jobs from whichever party won the e-ID project tender," he said.

He added that he also tried to bribe the technical team leader of the project at that time, Munawar, who is also a Bandung Institute of Technology lecturer, but Munawar rejected the bribe. (rdi/wit)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 14:13 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2e4f13 1 National e-ID,graft Free

While giving testimony in the e-ID graft trial on Monday at the Jakarta Corruption Court, businessman Andi Agustinus, also known as Andi Narogong, claimed he only knew House of Representatives Speaker and Golkar Party chief Setya Novanto through a business cooperation they had in 2009.

Andi, a suspect in the case, said he met Setya when the politician asked him to make campaign supplies in 2009.

"I only met Setya Novanto two times in relation to the ordering of campaign supplies in 2009. I was introduced to Setya by a guy named Herman," he said.

Andi denied he met with Setya at the Gran Melia hotel.

In a previous case hearing when Setya testified as witness, Irman, a defendant in the case, said a meeting had taken place at the Gran Melia hotel between him, Setya Novanto, Andi Agustinus and former Home Ministry officials Diah Anggraini and Sugiharto, to discuss the e-ID project in 2010.

Andi further said he never met former Democratic Party politicians Anas Urbaningrum or Muhammad Nazaruddin.

Andi's name was brought up during Nazaruddin's testimony in the same case. Nazaruddin said he had a meeting with Andi and Anas to discuss the e-ID project in 2010. (rdi/wit)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29 2017

President Joko Jokowi Widodo was recently in a buoyant mood after the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) declared his administrations financial report status as unqualified, the first such appraisal for a government institution in the last 12 years.

The report, presented to Jokowi at the Bogor Presidential Palace on May 23, gave an unqualified opinion on 74 out of 87 government institutions that the agency assessed last year.

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 12:08 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2dca35 1 City jakarta Free

A top official of the Jakarta Financial Management Body (BPAD) has said the value of Jakarta's fixed assets in five municipalities across Jakarta, depreciated by Rp 32.8 trillion (US$2.46 billion) in 2016.

BPAD head Achmad Firdaus said the calculations had only just been released as the value of the assets continued fluctuating.

"The figure was the result of assets calculation up to Dec. 31, 2016. We only calculate them once every year so we need at least half a year to find the total value," Achmad said as quoted by beritajakarta.com on Sunday.

He said that as of December 2016, asset depreciation had occurred in equipment and machinery by Rp 0.9 trillion; buildings by Rp 8.7 trillion; road networks and irrigation and city networks by Rp 13.04 trillion and other assets by Rp 162 billion.

"As for each municipality, we have yet to find out their total depreciation value. We are still calculating it," he said. (dea/wit)

Topics : jakarta
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Linkedin Suherdjoko (The Jakarta Post) Blora, Central Java  Mon, May 29, 2017 20:31 1990 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2f5704 1 National Jokowi-Undercover,author,verdict Free

Blora District Court in Central Java sentenced on Monday the author of the book Jokowi Undercover, Bambang Tri Mulyono, 45, to three years in prison for insulting the President.

The panel of judges ruled that Bambang, who was arrested on Dec. 31, was proven to have insulted and defamed President Joko [Jokowi] Widodo and also to have triggered disunity and feuds between ethnic, religious, racial or social groups, chief judge Makmurin Kusumastuti said.

Makmurin said that Bambang has violated Article 28 paragraph 2 and Article 45a paragraph 2 of the Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law of 2016 and Article 64 paragraph 1 of the Criminal Code. The verdict was lighter than the prosecutors demand of a four-year prison term.

The court also seized 38 pieces of evidence, including a copy of Jokowi Undercover, which reportedly contained libelous statements, screen shots of Bambangs Facebook timeline containing insulting posts about Jokowi, communication tools and several bank accounts.

Bambang said he planned to file an appeal without his lawyers as he said they did not defend him enough.

Bambangs posts on Facebook were tracked by the Central Java Police's cybercrime team. From Nov. 13 to Nov. 28, 2016 Bambang wrote several posts on his account that contained insults of Jokowi, describing the President as the son an Indonesian Communist Party member, accusing him of fabricating his biography and uttering several other insults related to his position as President.
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Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Surakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 10:38 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2d3ca9 4 National HIV,Klaten,health Free

The Klaten administration issued a new regulation that could result in jail time of up to six months and a fine of Rp 50 million for people who discriminated HIV patients.

Klaten Health Agency disease control and prevention division head Herry Martanto said the regulation, Regional Bylaw (Perda) No. 6/2017, prohibited of any form of discrimination and prejudice toward people living with HIV.

The regulation is part of our effort to protect people living with HIV. Of course, issuing sanctions is our last resort, he said Sunday.

He added that the administration would start educating residents and relevant institutions on the regulation.

The Klaten AIDS Commission recorded 524 people living with HIV from 2007 to March 2017.

HIV activist Dewi told The Jakarta Post that people with HIV still experienced discrimination, including when seeking medical services.

There are medical practitioners who isolate people with HIV when they provide services, Dewi said. (rdi/wit)

Topics : HIV Klaten health
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Linkedin Indra Budiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 20:20 1990 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2f49f6 1 City ramadhan,mosques,activities Free

In an attempt to enliven Ramadhan month, mosques in Jakarta are holding various events, including a jazz music festival, bazaars and a series of events for children, over the next several weeks.

South Jakartas Pondok Indah Mosques worship unit head Fatah said on Monday that since the first day of Ramadhan on Saturday, dozens of bazaar stalls had been opened in the mosque parking area, drawing some 500 to 700 people to visit the mosque.

Soon, we will start other events including workshops and Islamic study classes for children, he told The Jakata Post. For many years the mosque has been a popular spot for sharing a light meal to break the fast.

He added that besides Ramadhan events, the mosque would continue its regular activities such as intellectual discussions and sermons. With its strategic location, Fatah said the mosque was very popular for residents living outside Pondok Indah area.

Meanwhile Cut Meutia Mosque in Central Jakarta is set to hold its annual Jazz Ramadhan Music Festival on June 9 and 10. The events project officer M. Derisman Nugraha said that various artists were set to perform on the stage in the mosques parking area.

Prior to the festival, a series of events dubbed the Youth Creative Exhibition are set to be held in Menteng Park on June 3, including a band audition, Saman traditional dance audition, art exhibition and social activity alongside the 1,000 Guru (1,000 teachers) community.

Topics : ramadhan mosques activities
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Linkedin Grace D. Amianti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017

Following the recent issuance of a regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) that allows tax officers to access and scrutinize banking data, domestic lenders are concerned about whether such a policy could increase costs and paperwork for their side.

Issued earlier this month, Perppu No. 1/2017 on financial information access for taxation purposes gives full freedom to tax officers to directly access bank accounts owned by both Indonesian citizens and foreigners.

The regulation paves the way to put an end to banking secrecy in the country, a necessary development for the implementation of the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI), a global initiative to fight tax avoidance practices.

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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 17:24 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2f134a 1 Business Religious-Affairs-Ministry,haj,umroh,permits,revocation Free

For various reasons, between 2015 and 2017 the Religious Affairs Ministry revoked the permits of 24 travel agencies that arrange haj and umroh (minor haj) to Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Among the agencies that had permits revoked were those that did not provide pilgrims with air tickets home from Saudi Arabia, those that cheated their customers, those that violated immigration regulations and those that owed money to hotels in Saudi Arabia.

Mostly, they were involved in fraud. Before having their permits revoked, they were warned, said Arfi Hatim, head of the umroh division at the ministrys haj and umroh directorate general as reported by kontan.co.id.

Arfi said his office was now watching many agencies that were accused of violating regulations. He, however, declined to mention the names of the agencies.

Members of a team are discussing the issue, he said, adding that his office could only intensify its monitoring of a number of other haj and umroh agencies because the ministry did not have a regulation on standards for the establishment of agencies.

We have cooperated with other institutions because the Religious Affairs Ministry has no legal instrument to crack down on delinquent agencies, he added.

A member of House of Representatives Commission VII for religious affairs, Achmad Mustaqiem, said that the ministry had to be serious in cracking down on unprofessional haj and umroh agencies.

The ministry has to quickly take action against delinquent agencies to prevent them from repeatedly cheating people, Achmad added. (bbn)
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Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Karanganyar, Central Java  Mon, May 29, 2017 21:54 1990 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2f5780 1 National terrorism,arrest,Central-Java Free

The National Police's counterterrorism squad Densus 88 have arrested a man suspected to be the terrorist known as Triyono in Plumbon village, Tawangmangu subdistrict, Karanganyar regency, Central Java, on Monday.

According to police, Triyono, 31, was allegedly involved in the terror attack at the Surakarta Police headquarters in July last year.

Karanganyar Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Ade Safri Simanjuntak confirmed the arrest by Densus 88, who received backup from the Karanganyar Police.

He added that Triyono had been brought to the Surakarta Police headquarters to undergo further interrogation.

He was arrested at 6 a.m. on Monday at his house in Tawangmangu, Ade said.

Police also confiscated several pieces of evidence from the home, including a motorcycle, two cellular phones, pesticides, red and green colored fertilizers, aluminum foil and duct tape.

Ade said police would further investigate whether Triyono was involved in the recent terror attack in Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta. (dis)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 17:49 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2f1f8e 1 National counterterrorism Free

Human rights watchdog Setara Institute has reiterated its call to give the nations leading counterterrorism role to the police instead of the military, an option also supported by the majority of political factions at the House of Representatives.

Setara executive director Hendardi asserted that the Indonesian Military (TNI) was not a law enforcement agency with its own regulations, arguing that granting the military a leading counterterrorism role risked legal uncertainty.

Thus, a statement by Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto that aimed to brush aside concerns over the involvement of the TNI in counterterrorism, as well as a claim by Gerindra politician Muhammad Syafii saying that all House factions had agreed on granting such a role to the TNI should be seen as an effort to weaken counterterrorism, Hendardi said in a statement.

In a move to win public support, Wiranto previously said the TNI would not misuse the power should a bill on counterterrorism, which is currently under deliberation, grant the military institution a leading role.

His statement came days after last weeks twin suicide bombings in East Jakarta that left three policemen dead. The incident has also brought the deliberation of the bill, which aims to amend the 2003 Terrorism Law, back into the spotlight, with President Joko Jokowi Widodo asking lawmakers to speed up the deliberation. (msa/wit)

Topics : counterterrorism
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 16:45 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2f020f 1 City #FPI,Rizieq-Shihab,pornography Free

The Jakarta Police named Islam Defenders Front (FPI) leader and firebrand cleric Rizieq Shihab a suspect in a pornography case on Monday.

Rizieq was named a suspect without having undergone police questioning under his previous capacity as a witness as he had failed to answer police summons twice in April and May.

At 12 a.m. today [Monday], investigators of Jakarta Polices special crimes unit increased Rizieqs status from witness to suspect, said Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Argo Yuwono.

Argo said investigators had gathered adequate evidence to name Rizieq a suspect. He will be charged under articles 4, 6 and 8 of the 2008 Pornography Law, he said.

Meanwhile, Rizieqs lawyer, Sugito Atmo Pawiro said he had received the update on his client from the police.

It is true. We will fight back against the police, Sugito, who was in Saudi Arabia along with Rizieq, said in reply to a text message from The Jakarta Post.

(Read also: Rizieq is in Jeddah: Police)

Sugito lamented that the police did not make an effort to pursue the uploader of the steamy chats that allegedly took place between Rizieq and Firza Husein, who was named a suspect in the same case on May 16, which led to the pornography charges against Rizieq and Firza.

The investigators are being unfair and forcing their will [upon Rizieq]. Habib [Rizieq] has not even been questioned yet. They have gone too far, he said.

Sugito did not give information regarding whether Rizieq, who is currently in Saudi Arabia, will return to Indonesia soon. (dea/dan)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 12:03 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2dc048 4 Business skytrain,soekarno-hatta-airport,operation Free

Skytrain  driverless train  has arrived at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Baten, awaiting the commencement of operations next month, connecting the three terminals of the airport.

The skytrain  which is also known as an automated people mover system (APMS)  is now parked at Terminal 3 of the airport.

State-owned construction firm PT Wijaya Karta (Wika) corporate secretary Puspita Anggraeni said the construction of the skytrain track had reached 88 percent completion and the company would begin trial operations on June 20.

Initially, a two car train with a capacity of 176 people will connect Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 in June, said Puspita as reported by tribunnews.com on Monday.

(Read also: Skytrain to connect terminals at Soekarno-Hatta airport)

Beginning in August, the skytrain will be fully operational, with three trains with a combined capacity of 528 people connecting Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and Terminal 3, Puspita added.

Previously, state-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura II (AP II) president director Muhammad Awaluddin said the headway of the skytrain would be 5 minutes, with 7 minutes needed to get from Terminal 1 to Terminal 3.

The train would move at 60 kilometers per hour and would be equipped with automated guideway transit (AGT) technology.

Investment for the project is estimated at Rp 950 billion (US$71.25 million), which includes the construction of infrastructure and the procurement of moving stock.

The skytrain itself is built by state-owned company PT LEN in cooperation with Woojin from South Korea, while the infrastructure is handled PT Wijaya Karya Tbk and PT Indulexco. (bbn)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 14:48 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2e73d2 1 National NahdlatulUlama,Rizieq-Shihab,Facebook,Fiera-Lovita Free

The countrys largest Islamic organization, Nahdatul Ulama (NU), has asked all mass organizations, including religion-based ones, to stop persecuting anyone accused of insulting religion or religious figures on the internet.

NU secretary-general Helmy Faishal Zanini encouraged people to instead hold dialogue to settle differences, saying that Islam also promoted such a peaceful way of problem solving.

For us it is clear that preaching shall be carried out in a wise way. The Quran says Ask the people to come to Gods way wisely and through good teachings. It even suggests to settle differences with good manners, Helmy said as quoted by kompas.com.

He emphasized that using intimidation and terror in dealing with differences went against the teachings of the Quran. The Quran clearly prohibits the use violence or terror in settling different opinions.

Helmy was addressing growing incidents of online persecution against people who posted statements deemed defamatory against Islam, a phenomenon that emerged following the blasphemy conviction of non-active Jakarta governor Basuki Ahok Tjahaja Purnama.

The issue has raised the concerns of rights campaigners, particularly after one netizen, Fiera Lovita, a 40-year-old physician in West Sumatra, faced intimidation by the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), which accused her of insulting its leader, Rizieq Shihab. (msa/wit)
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Linkedin Fachrul Sidiq (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 13:18 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2e1378 1 City theft,pretrial-motion,South-Jakarta Free

Three men claiming to have been tortured until they confessed to stealing a motorcycle last year are challenging the charges they have been slapped with by the Jakarta Police.

The men--Herianto, 21, Aris, 33, and Bihin, 39--were arrested last month and have been named suspects for stealing a motorcycle in June last year. A pretrial motion hearing took place at the South Jakarta District Court on Monday.

Bunga Siagian from the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), who represents them in the case, said the suspects were not in Jakarta, but in their hometown of Palembang, South Sumatra, when the theft occurred,

They were beaten, electrocuted and spit on [by investigators] prior to confessing to the accusation, Bunga said during a press briefing at LBH Jakarta in Menteng, Central Jakarta, on Sunday.

Lastri, 29, Heriantos sister, who was also present in the briefing, showed pictures of her brothers injuries. She added that family members were notified about the arrests a week after they were detained. (wit)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 08:38 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2ca6a3 1 National bribery,KPK,BPK Free

Villages, Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration Minister Eko Putro Sandjojo has said he was shocked when he found out about the arrest of two ministry officials as part of a graft case.

The two officials, Sugito and Jarot Budi Prabowo, were reportedly caught red-handed by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in the case relating to the Supreme Audit Agencys (BPK) appraisal of the ministry's financial reports last year.

Eko told a press conference on Saturday that he did not expect that his officials would be implicated in any corruption cases as his ministry was very strict with them.

He said that he still could not believe that Sugito, the ministrys inspector general, was involved in the alleged bribery case. Eko said Sugito was known as "a simple man living a simple life."

He is a good person. He lives in a small neighborhood, Eko said, as quoted by tribunnews.com.

He added that Sugito was vocal in fighting against corruption.

Eko, however, said he would support the KPK during the ongoing legal process. He added that he would give the KPK the opportunity to audit his ministry.

The purpose is not to arrest my officials, but to carry out preventive action, he said.

He also commented that his ministry would cooperate with the KPK in solving the alleged bribery case by giving the KPK any information that it needed.

He said that he would meet with Sugito to ask him directly about what had happened and give him support. (rdi/wit)

Topics : bribery KPK BPK
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 13:25 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2e2c51 1 News bali,tourist-village,award,Tourism-Ministry-Pesona-Indonesia,tourism-ministry-wonderful-Indonesia,tourism,#tourism Free

Twenty nine villages were recognized at the Tourist Village Awards at Stage Taman Nusa in Gianyar, Bali, on Friday.

Though currently there are 104 tourist villages in Bali, only 36 villages participated in the selection process and only 29 made it to the next round. Out of the 29 villages, 17 were awarded in the silver category and 12 were recognized in the bronze category.

Read also: A touch of Bali in the heart of Jakarta

Two villages in Gianyar won an award, namely Batubulan and Mas in Ubud.

Unfortunately, not a single village in Bali took home an award in the gold category due to legality issues. (kes)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 12:22 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2dd13a 1 News Tourism-Ministry-Pesona-Indonesia,tourism-ministry-wonderful-Indonesia,France,Wonderful-Indonesia,tourism-promotion,tourism,#tourism Free

Starting June 1, the Wonderful Indonesia tourism brand will be plastered on 40 taxis in Marseille, a port city in southern France.

The promotional ads will run for one full month in a bid to attract French tourists to the archipelago.

There are also brochures about tourist destinations in Indonesia that we put inside the taxi, said Dewi M Kusumaastuti, consul general at the Indonesian Consulate in Marseille.

Taxis in Marseille can transport up to 1,000 passengers and travel through 500 routes every month. The ads are being exposed to around 1.06 million people of Marseille and 4 million tourists who travel to the city, said country manager for France of the Visit Indonesia Tourism Office (VITO), Eka Moncarre.

Read also: Djakarta Bali: A love story once unrequited

The ads show images of Indonesias famed tourist attractions, such as Bali, Lake Toba, Komodo Island and Borobudur Temple.

Prior to Marseille, the tourism brand had been seen in other popular places across the globe, such as the Times Square in New York, Dubai Mall in the Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in the Netherlands.

Such a marketing move was previously conducted in United Kingdom in 2015 and 2016. In 2015, there were 200 black cabs in London that displayed the Wonderful Indonesia brand, and in 2016 the number increased to 400 taxis, said Tourism Minister Arief Yahya. (kes)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 29, 2017 10:55 1991 4065a5a8898c7cc661d4adf97a2d4f60 1 News Tourism-Ministry,Tourism-Ministry-Pesona-Indonesia,tourism-ministry-wonderful-Indonesia,China,sales,Chinese-tourists,tourism,roadshow,#tourism Free

The Tourism Ministry conducted a sales mission road show from May 22 to 25 in two cities in China, namely Shanghai and Chengdu.

The ministry brought along 10 tourism players hailing from Jakarta, Bali, Yogyakarta and Surabaya to the event and partnered up with Garuda Indonesia representatives in Shanghai to meet with potential buyers.

Read also: Attracting Chinese tourists through Weibo and WeChat

Destinations promoted in the sales mission were none other than the 10 priority destinations, also known as the 10 New Bali, consisting of Lake Toba, Tanjung Kelayang, Tanjung Lesung, the Thousand Islands, Borobudur temple, Mount Bromo, Mandalika Lombok, Komodo Island, Wakatobi National Park and Morotai.

Up to 1.45 million Chinese tourists arrived in Indonesia in 2016. This year the ministry is targeting to attract 2.45 million visitors from Greater China (China, Taiwan and Hong Kong), 2 million of which from China alone.

As of March this year, the number of Chinese tourists coming to Indonesia reached 525,035.

One of the things that reportedly contributed to the high number was the partnership between the ministry and Chinese web services company Baidu, which has more than 300 million monthly users, as well as online travel information provider Qunar.

Read also: Action needed to lure 10 million Chinese tourists to Indonesia

Almost every country in the world have eyes on Chinese tourists; their outbound travelers reach 120 million people per year and 70 percent of Chinese travelers do their traveling preparation online, said Tourism Minister Arief Yahya, adding that the average spending of Chinese tourists reaches US$1,057 per person per visit.

Arief has already asked several airlines, such as Sriwijaya Air, to add more direct flights from China to Indonesia. He also paid a visit to the Garuda Indonesia office at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport to ask for more direct flights to destinations in China.

Im asking Garuda [Indonesia] to add more direct flights to China. Seven secondary cities in China already use charter flights; if we change it to scheduled flights Im sure it will attract more tourists, said Arief. (kes)
Amateur photographers are being encouraged to try different angles after new research claimed more than a third of photos of famous landmarks are identical.

According to Sony Mobile, of the top 30 most photographed landmarks in the world  a list topped by the Eiffel Tower  more than half are shot from the same three angles.

(Sony Mobile/Mikael Buck)

Some of the most common photography takes place at Machu Picchu in Peru, where the research of Instagram data shows 85% of photos are taken from the same places, meaning more than half a million images on Instagram of the landmark are identical.

In an effort to spark more imaginative and interesting photo-taking, Sony Mobile has created a new image series alongside award-winning travel photographers using the tech giants new Xperia XZ smartphone.

(Sony Mobile/Mikael Buck)

The photographers have captured images using the phones high-end camera of landmarks including Big Ben and the Burj Khalifa, from unusual angles to try and inspire smartphone photographers.

(Sony Mobile/Mikael Buck)

The images even come with their own hashtag  #XperiaNewPerspectives.

The desire for good photo opportunities is apparently strong among users, according to the research, with 55% of those asked saying they would plan a travel itinerary based on photo opportunities.

(Sony Mobile/Mikael Buck)

Instagram users also said they were more likely to like a photo of a landmark if the image was different and interesting.
This June sees the return of Chinas controversial Lychee and Dog Meat Festival, known internationally as the Yulin Dog Meat Festival.

Dogs being butchered in Guangdong, China

First held in 2009, in the city of Yulin in the south-eastern province of Guangxi, the festival takes place between the 21st and 30th June and sees festival goers eat dog meat and lychees.

Somewhere between 10,000-15,000 dogs are consumed over the week and a half. Organisers claim the dogs are killed humanely and compare the eating of dog meat to the consumption of beef, chicken and pork.

However, animal rights organisations have criticised the festival, claiming dogs are tortured and sadistically paraded. Some have even claimed household pets are stolen without the permission of their owners and eaten at the festival.

A "dog meat hotpot" in Yulin

But what do Chinese young people think about the festival?

One Chinese owner, Heather Lan, had her dog stolen last year, whilst she does not think it was related to Yulin, she can emphasise with owners who have had dogs stolen.

Her views on the festival are clear: I dont like it.

Indeed, she says the people in the area she lives, in Sichuan province, also do not like it: I dont know what people from Yulin think about the festival, but my friends and people I know, dont like it. Theyll always be shocked and ask, how can someone eat dogs?

As for her own dog, Lan, 19, explained her dog was sleeping next to her mother. Then Lans mother left and came back to notice the dog was gone.

She expresses deep sorrow at the events: My dog was young, around two months old. She was really cute and when she was stolen, it broke my heart.

Lan believes it was a case of a young girl seeing a cute puppy and making a mistake, however, she says that whilst some of the dogs at Yulin are strays, other dogs are kidnapped from their owners: Every year, some trucks will appear from nowhere and load up dogs for Yulin. But theres always news that a dog lover is trying to rescue them. I appreciate that.

"In China, Weibo is a lot like Twitter, reading the comments, most people do not want this festival to exist. However, dealing with this is a lot like dealing with racism, it takes time.

The student admits shes never met someone who has attended this festival but she tells me, I believe more and more young people will try to prevent this from happening.

I ask her about claims its no different from eating other forms of meat:

Dogs are different for me. You have to admit dogs play an important role in society. You see guide dogs for the blind, but you cant see that with chickens or cows.

When asked if the Government should intervene, Lan admits, I want them to, but I dont think they will do.

however vendors told BBC reporters they had heard nothing about a ban Activists have reportedly claimed this years festivals has been banned after a petition calling for its ban gained 11,000,000 signatures,

this reported ban is only temporary from the 15th June Humane Society International has said, which could mean dogs are still killed earlier and preserved for the festival.

However, dog meat has been decreasing in popularity in China in recent years, and with a growing amount of people in China voicing opposition, the festival could die on its own, in spite of claims from organisers that it is an integral part of Chinese culture.

Before she leaves our conversation, however, Lan stresses to me: The world is wrong to think that the Yulin Dog Meat Festival is part of Chinese culture. It is not really, it is organised by the private sector and is not officially recognised.
Ahead of the voter registration deadline for the upcoming election, Operation Black Vote (OBV) has launched a campaign  Blacks Dont Vote - to encourage more people of colour to register to vote.

According to OBV CEO Simon Woolley, the campaign was designed to mobilise black and minority ethnic communities to stand up and be counted.

He says: When Theresa May announced that she would have a snap election, I thought to myself theres an opportunity here to put our issues on the political agenda and demand that the political parties acknowledge them and have a solution. In particular, to close those persistent race and equality gaps.

The campaign cites that 1.4 million potential votes were not used by BME individuals, 28% of whom arent registered to vote (compared to 6% of white people). Among BMEs of African descent, specifically, that is closer to 50%.

Actor Riz Ahmed and Entrepreneur Jamal Edwards are the faces of Blacks Dont Vote.

In a promotional clip, Jamal says: its a fact  blacks dont vote. But if we do, wed have the power to decide who wins the election and that is big.

Riz says, in a separate video: The reason were making this film is because blacks dont vote.

And by black people I mean ethnic minorities, of all backgrounds.

Woolley speaks highly of both ambassadors:

People like me, the older generation, we seek to hand over the baton to the next generation of black activists.

"I see Jamal Edwards as one of them. Yes, hes an entrepreneur, yes he has lots of cultural intersections but within that strain, there is a desire for social and racial justice. I applaud him and Riz Ahmed and I deplore anyone that seeks to divide our communities and attack one above the other.

The last point is a direct answer to a few critics of the Blacks Dont Vote campaign, who have taken issue with its use of the word black in reference to all minority ethic communities and implication that all of these groups face the same challenges.

Woolley says: I make no apologies for Operation Black Vote. It was formed in 1996 to address the concerns of African, Asian, Caribbean and other ethnic minority communities. To address systemic racism.

I implore our communities to not go down the divide and rule route. When racism is played out by the state, in regards to stop & search, immigration, the lack of jobs, they dont distinguish between our communities. To some of them, were all black b******s.

When you look at our post-colonial history of independence, our internationalism, that gave us the strongest, legislative mandate for tackling race and inequality thats ever, ever existed  why would we tear that down now?

Is political blackness, of the 1970s, a thing in 2017?

Simon said: We cannot be so insular; this would be a monumental mistake. This is not a zero sum game which says that if we join together, we lose. On the contrary  we can be both.

That doesnt mean to say that within the African continent there arent a kaleidoscope of different views that need to be articulated. What Im saying is, the individual countries, cultures and communities are strengthened by the collective.

Woolley draws upon the example set by the recently departed activist Darcus Howe:

We lament about the sad loss of Darcus, the renegade, the warrior and he comes from that internationalist, post-colonial, international movement that saw unity in oppressed people  particularly of post colonial societies.

And if we lose that in a narrow, them and us, its all about us way, then we cannot then celebrate the life of Howe, Mandela, King and Malcolm X.

Encouraging ethnic minority communities to utilise their suffrage is only the beginning, Simon acknowledges.

Registering to vote is an important element but its also about being active and holding the political class and political parties to account. You dont wait for them to give you crumbs, you lobby and engage in activism that demands an equitable slice of the political and economic cake. That means being pro-active.

"Thats why weve written a black manifesto; a manifesto for race equality that demands a plan to close some of the gaps in education, health, employment and more.

Find out more at blacksdontvote.com
Since the snap general election was called in April, the majority of the British public have, once again, been in a fit of division, debate, and protest.

I have extremely mixed opinions on the calling of the election; I have tried to read up on the issues at hand and form an opinion based on the facts, and as a result I feel more confident in my involvement in politics. However I also feel calling a general election so soon after the EU Referendum was irresponsible on our prime minister's part.

The aftermath of the referendum was the most divided I've seen Britain in my lifetime, and I'm not so sure we have recovered from the shock result.

All the same, it is an important decision for the British people to make, and I have come to the conclusion that my vote will firmly go to Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour party.

I was too young to vote in the 2015 General Election, and I will admit I probably would have voted Conservative. This is because I didn't have a voice of my own, and I allowed myself to form my opinions based on what I read in mainstream media. However since the EU referendum, I have set about trying to become more clued up on British politics, how it affects me, and how I can affect it. I have since taken to social media, like many young people, to show support for the party of my choosing, and here's why...

To put it simply, it's down to a matter of principle. Corbyn has proven himself to be a passionate and loyal advocate for young people. He has consistently spoken on how he wants to provide us with the opportunities that will benefit the whole of society.

Corbyn is the only leader in this election who I believe understands what young people want. He wants to scrap tuition fees, save our National Health Service, make a tariff free trade deal with the EU, introduce more bank holidays, support LGBT rights, and help those with mental illness.

The Conservatives, on the other hand, plan to increase tuition fees yet again, and have made it clear they want a "hard Brexit", whatever that means. They have spoken of controlling how we use the internet, they plan to leave us with the cost of care for our parents and grandparents, and they intend to put fox-hunting to a vote. All of the above mentioned in an appalling manifesto, that not only failed to address how they plan to fund their policies, but was also heavily based around the infamous phrase "strong and stable". I fail to see how a manifesto is any place for propaganda.

Our current prime minister changed her mind on Brexit, called a snap election after promising not to, refuses to debate live on television, has threated war with Spain, and has openly supported animal cruelty.

Right wing media has tried, and failed, to convince us that Corbyn is weak. If this man is so weak, why is he willing to debate live, why is he attracting crowds far greater than May is, why is he tackling every debate and criticism head on instead of cowering away?

I trust that Corbyn will fight for a more opportunistic future for myself and those worse off than me, whereas the Conservatives have done nothing but limit the opportunities available to young people over the last seven years.

Of course I'm not only voting Labour because of their commitment to providing a better future for my demographic; it's their consideration and empathy for the majority.

I'm voting Labour because I have a voice, and I will not let right wing media tell me it won't count for anything. I'm voting Labour because I don't believe society is best when it only benefits the elite. I'm voting Labour because I can empathise with those who are in unfavourable situations.

I have never relied on a food bank for survival, I have never been homeless, I have never suffered from anxiety or depression, I do not have a physical disability, I have never needed benefits. I am part of a nuclear family, I am hetrosexual, middle class, I completed high school, and I attend university; in fact all of things that our current political system favours, but I cannot stand by whilst people freeze to death on the streets, have to sell their homes to afford care, have to rely on food banks, or are treated differently because of their race, gender, sexuality or ability.

Granted I could do more to support these causes, couldn't we all? But voting for a political party that has them in mind is a start. A vote for Labour is a vote for compassion, equality, and support.

The bottom line is, I can't be sure on whether Jeremy Corbyn will be any more effective in implementing the policies in his manifesto than Theresa May will with hers, but I would rather have an honest, consistent politician, and an overall decent human being fighting to achieve them, than a dishonest, and in my eyes imcompetent one, who produced an embarrassing manifesto that is full of policies that may harm millions of people.

Mainstream media has been attacking Corbyn since his appointment as Labour leader, and Theresa May may have called this election to push Labour MPs out of parliament, but they have seriously underestimated the power of the British public... and we love an underdog.
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Book looks into 52 cases unsolved murders with ties to South Dakota

Christine Wevik started researching cold cases in South Dakota thinking there were about 30. She found 155.
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.
British Airways has not blamed any Indian IT firm for the massive flight disruption over the last weekend that hit more than 1,000 flights.

Reacting to the incident that saw most services cancelled from London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports on 27 May, British Airways told The Registrar that the problem occurred due to "power failure" and not because of any IT company.

"We would never compromise the integrity and security of our IT systems. IT services are now provided globally by a range of suppliers and this is very common practice across all industries," British Airways CEO Alex Cruz told The Registrar.

The unions had blamed the airline's decision last year to outsource IT jobs to India for the mass disruptions.

The GMB union, which had cautioned against outsourcing jobs, said BA laid off hundreds of IT staff and gave away the work to India. The union blamed cost cutting for the travel chaos.

According to Cruz, many of the airline's IT systems were back on 28 May "and my colleagues across the airline are working very hard to build back our flight programme and get as many of our customers as possible away on their travels.

"The airline's IT teams are working 'tirelessly' to fix the problems," Cruz added.

According to The Guardian, British Airways could face a bill of at least 100 million pounds in compensation, additional customer care and lost business resulting from the incident.
With both the main political fronts in Kerala opposing the ban on cattle slaughter, the state cabinet will on Wednesday announce a date for an all-party meeting to discuss the issue, Agriculture Minister V S Sunilkumar said on Monday.

"This is a question of livelihood for thousands of farmers in the state and has been in practise for ages. We will take up this issue in the cabinet meeting and don't be surprised if Kerala initiates legal steps against the new law," he told the media here.

There have been widespread protests against the new law. Youth Congress have taken to the streets in the state but caused outrage by publicly slashing the head of an ox during one such protest.

The ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist held over 300 "beef festivals" across Kerala where cooked beef was freely served.

Forest and Animal Husbandry Minister P. Raju said the new law cannot come into effect in Kerala.

"This is a ridiculous law. Kerala cannot implement it. We will look into all angles on how to tackle this," Raju said on Monday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears to be the only party in Kerala which has accepted the central government's directive on cattle slaughter.

"The new law has been misunderstood by the other parties," BJP state General Secretary K. Surendran said.

For the Congress, what has come as a dampener was the manner in which their activists in Kannur slashed the head of an ox.

The police on Sunday night registered a case against the Youth Congress activists, whose action has been strongly condemned by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

Youth Congress leader Regil Makutty and three others were suspended on Monday by the national leadership and the state Congress followed suit.

State Congress President M.M. Hassan told reporters that the state government should call a special session of the assembly to override the central law.

"Today we are observing a black day to protest against the anti-people law of the Centre. But we do not approve of what happened in Kannur. Hence we have suspended them from the party," said Hassan.
Kenji Hiramatsu, the Japanese Ambassador to India, graduated from University of Kyoto in March 1979 and joined the prestigious Foreign Ministry a month later. Born in 1956, he has served his country in various capacities both at home and abroad. He has been Japans envoy to India since November 2015. In this interview to Ashok Tuteja and Debdeep Mukherjee at his residence at the Japanese Embassy in New Delhi, he spoke extensively about India-Japan ties, UN reforms, and the South China Sea.

What was the reason for your recent visit to Imphal?

My visit was mainly to the historic site of the fierce battle of World War II to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of the Battle of Imphal and pay condolences to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives. It is estimated that 5,000 soldiers of Indian National Army, 15,000 soldiers of the British Commonwealth Force and 30,000 soldiers of the Japanese Army sacrificed their lives. The people of Manipur and Nagaland suffered greatly from these battle and aerial bombings which preceded.

With me, a delegation of 30 enthusiastic Japanese businessmen of various companies based in India went on the visit.

The other reason was that we want to attach ourselves with the development of Northeast. Japan stands ready to support the overall development of the region.

How do you look at the current state of India-Japan relations?

The relations are best in the history.There is a very strong friendship and trust between our two leaders. In the last fiscal year (2016-17), the volume of trade between the two nations stood at $ 4.7 billion, up from $ 2.6 billion in the previous year. Our relationship is expanding not only in trade but also in political and strategic areas with enhanced peopleto- people contacts. This is one of the best moments for JapanIndia relationship.

India has opposed China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) on the ground that it runs through Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK). Do you endorse Indias stand?

As a strategic partner, Japan has been discussing all issues with India, including CPEC. We have been informed about Indias position and concern with regard to CPEC. We understand and respect the position taken by India based on the principle of territorial integrity and sovereignty.

India boycotted the recent OBOR Forum hosted by China to register its protest over the CPEC. Do you think India should have participated and registered its protest?

It is a sovereign countrys decision. We must respect it.

Why did Japan participate in the OBOR Forum?

We are watching carefully Chinas OBOR initiative. We are focusing on the connectivity and infrastructure projects. We participated with the hope and basic idea that this project would be open to all and based on international standards. China is Japans neighbour and we would like to have a constructive relationship with it.

Japans House of Representatives recently approved the India-Japan civil nuclear deal. By when do you think Japanese Parliament will give approval and by when would it come into force?

It was approved by the Lower House of Parliament on 16 May and it has been handed to the Upper House. Japan has a very rigid division of power so it is very difficult to predict when but we hope it will be passed by the Upper House as soon as possible.

How do you look at the situation in South Asia with relations between India and Pakistan touching a new low?

As a strategic partner, we have been watching the situation in Kashmir and ties between India and Pakistan very closely.

Do you think Japan can play a role in lowering tension in the region?

We have been informed by India about the situation in Kashmir. Based on that, we should have more dialogue with the Indian side to see what Japan can do to enhance connectivity in this region, especially with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Japan and India can collaborate in the region for stability and connectivity as strategic partners.

Why do you think China is opposing Indias admission to the Nuclear Suppliers Group?

Please ask this question to China. Our position is that we are working together closely with India on this issue and we want India to become a member of the NSG as soon as possible.

How do you rate the prospects of the G-4 (India, Japan, Brazil and Germany) becoming permanent members of the UN Security Council?

I have been personally a part of the G-4 business for many years. I strongly think India and Japan are entitled to be permanent members of the Security Council. We are working very hard to attract other countries to give a momentum to the reforms process. We are having discussions with African countries and we hope there will be some progress in Inter-Governmental Consultations in the current session. We hope Japan and India will become members in the very near future.

Is the India-Japan-US trilateral dialogue aimed at containing China?

We share the same values like rule of law, open societies, and democracy. Japan, India and the US are very important players. It is very natural for us to join hands for peace and stability. I am a firm believer of the dialogue.

Why is China adopting such a rigid position on the issue of navigation in the South China Sea?

Difficult to explain Chinas position. Our position is very clear that the issue of the maritime domain should be in accordance with international law. We expect to resolve and settle the conflicting issues peacefully. Any action that escalates tension should be avoided. Based on these principles, we are working closely with like-minded nations like India and are raising our voices in global platforms.

When is the next India-Japan annual summit?

Last year Indian Prime Minister traveled to Japan. Prime Minister of Japan would come to India to attend the summit this year. Dates have not been decided yet.
"I don't just dance. I perform. I breathe. I watch the world disappear. I release my feelings. I lead with my heart. I tear down walls. I stop feeling sad. I lose the pain. I let go. I smile. No, I don't just dance, I do so much more." This quote describes the essence of dance succinctly. It was no different with Yama ~ a contemporary dance show presented by Alliance Francaise de Delhi. The piece, inspired by the Buddhist philosophy around yoga, is choreographed by Laura Arend, inspired by her travel in India.

Five artistes performed the piece including Arend, who studied at the National Dance Conservatory in Lyon, followed by a study at the Merce Cunningham School. She was also part of the Judith Sanchez Ruiz Company before joining the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company.

The Sanskrit word yama means self-control, austerity, restrain and moral duty; however, the piece opens onto a sombre world ~ a reflection of the shortcomings of daily life, of the loss of what is essential. It explores our reality as a mirror of society, of our ways of life; our selfishness that is particularly capable of making us and others suffer; our capacity to judge and ignore the views of others; our need to own that makes us dream everyday about what we cannot obtain, and this despite the bitterness that it evokes.

So, how was Yama conceptualised? "Yama is an intriguing title. My first trip to India was to Agonda, with the objective of being a yoga teacher. In India, I found peace, and it was during one of my philosophy classes with a monk, that I learnt about the five yama ~ nonviolence, sincerity, probity, moderation and detachment. When I came back to Europe, the time I would devote to meditation dropped over a period of time, making me question myself about how I could find peace in such a fast-paced world. So, actually, the piece is a journey of understanding, that yama is here surrounding us, but we cannot understand it, unless we open our hearts, minds and eyes for real," says Arend.

The dance is very physical and techno-centric, with high energy and clear form, drawing great influence from the Israeli dance scene.

How has her journey in India turned out? Arend replies candidly, "Initially, it was a shock, but the multifaceted aspects of the country left me wanting to come back for more and more. Four weeks in Agonda were just not enough."

The message of the piece is pretty clear: Be the change you want to be. Arend elaborates, "You see, everyone wants to change the world. What needs to be understood is that life is short, and instead of trying to change the world, the change has to be initiated with oneself and within oneself. This message was understood by the audience very clearly, and that was very surprising and satisfying."

So, what next? "Dance and travel are two of my passions. From India, we proceed to Israel, where we will focus on our piece titled 'Five'. This piece will be performed by five dancers, who worked in Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company. In 2018, I plan to create a duet with a former dancer of the Lyon Opera Ballet."

Journeys of creativity and passion are almost always nostalgic and remind one of the thought: Oh, music! Won't you be my soul tonight? Won't you teach me another dance?
"Buddhism is not a religion, but a way of life." Nothing sums up the essence of this religion more aptly. Vesak or Buddha Purnima is observed across diverse dates, by Buddhists, throughout the world, with each culture celebrating the day according to its own traditions. The day marks the three momentous events in Buddha's life ~ his birth, enlightenment and departure from the human world.

In New Delhi, the Vesak celebrations organised by the High Commission of Sri Lanka, had another objective: to further augment the historic Indo-Sri Lanka socio-cultural linkages and the time tested goodwill between the two peoples. This was also amply manifested during the visit of Prime Minister Modi to Sri Lanka for the UN Vesak celebrations.

The first ever Vesak Pandal in New Delhi was inaugurated as the final phase of the celebrations to mark Vesak 2017 by the High Commission of Sri Lanka.

The ceremony was attended by dignitaries, officials, diplomats, members of the academia and a cross-section of the general public, and saw the inauguration of the glittering artwork of the 40 feet high Pandal, erected overlooking a park along the Shanti Path, which is also known as the Ceremonial Route in the diplomatic enclave in New Delhi. The Pandal attracted local crowds in large numbers, soon after its 15,000 multi-coloured bulbs illuminated the night skies.

The ceremony commenced with the invoking of blessings by the Maha Sangha led by the Chief Incumbent of the Varanasi Centre of the Mahabodhi Society of India Ven K Medhankara Thero and the Chief Incumbent of the New Delhi Centre of the Mahabodhi Society of India Ven R Sumiththananda Thero. The traditional oil lamp was lit by the Minister of Education of Sri Lanka Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in India Chitranganee Wagiswara, Minister of State for Home Affairs of India Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment of India Rajesh Athawale, New Delhi Municipal Council Chairman Naresh Kumar and the Joint Secretary of the Indian Ocean Region Division of the Ministry of External Affairs of India Sanjay Panda.

High Commissioner Chitranganee Wagiswara welcomed the gathering and outlined the importance of the Vesak day and the extensive arrangements made by the High Commission in collaboration with the city authorities to celebrate Vesak in New Delhi. She spoke of Buddha's universal message of peace which is internationally recognised by the United Nations following the initiative taken by the former Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar. She also referred to the Prime Minister Modi's remarks in Sri Lanka on "limitless possibilities of our shared future" and our "friendship that lives in the hearts of our people and is the fabric of our societies."

The Staff of the High Commission and their family members, joined by a group of Sri Lankan expatriates, sang Bhakti Geet. As the lights were switched on by the Ministers, the High Commissioner and Colonel Kumara ~ the leader of the Sri Lanka Army Engineering Corps team which erected the Pandal ~ the Hindi translation of the story of the Pandal ~ Angulimala ~ was played in the background.

A special 16-member team from the Engineering Services Corps of the Sri Lanka Army erected the Pandal and the main structure which was brought from Sri Lanka while the necessary facilities and assistance was secured in India. The High Commission of Sri Lanka had been facilitated to carry out this task by a group of well wishers and sponsors both from Sri Lanka and India. They include the Sri Lanka Navy, Sri Lankan Airlines, ITC Maurya Group in India, RITES in India, Indian Railway Construction Company (IRCON) and the Indian Oil Company (IOC).
The special Terrorist And Disruptive Activities Act (TADA) court in Mumbai will pronounce its orders against gangster Abu Salem and others in 1993 Mumbai blasts case on Monday.

Salem, who is facing dozens of criminal cases in India, is currently lodged in Taloja jail in Mumbai. He was extradited from Portugal in 2005. He has been named in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case and is an accused in a slew of other cases related to murder and extortion.

He was sentenced to life imprisonment by a special court in the 1995 murder of Mumbai builder Pradeep Jain in February 2015.

The other accused in the 1993 Mumbai blasts includes Karimullah Khan, Feroze Abdul Rashid, Tahir Merchant and Mustafa Dossa.

According to reports, 13 blasts had ripped through Mumbai on 12 March, 1993, killing over 257 people. Around 713 people were injured in the incident.

(With inputs from agencies)
Protesting against the Centres order to ban the sale of cattle for slaughter, students in IIT-Madras on Sunday held beef festival on the campus.

Around 80 students organised the event with beef curry and bread being served as a mark of protest against the governments decision.

In a similar incident on Saturday, Students Federation of India (SFI) and activists of Youth Congress organised beef party outside Trivandrums University College. Elsewhere, Youth Congress activists too organised a similar event.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday said that the people of his state didnt need a lesson on food habits from New Delhi or Nagpur.

The state government will give all facilities to people to have food of their choice. There is no need for Keralites to learn it from anybody in New Delhi or Nagpur (headquarters of RSS), Vijayan said.

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan on May 26 said that the government has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017, to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes.

An undertaking to this effect has to be given to the member secretary of the animal market committee from the seller as well as the buyer, Vardhan.
The Congress in Kerala on Monday suspended four members for publicly slashing the head of an ox as part of protests in support of beef consumption.

The Kannur police on Sunday night registered a case against the Youth Congress activists. The killing of the animal has been condemned by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi.

Youth Congress leader Regil Makutty and three others was suspended by the national leadership and the state Congress followed suit, a party leader said.


In an effort to boost bilateral ties, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left on a six-day four-nation tour starting with Germany.

Apart from Germany, he will visit Spain, Russia and France to boost economic engagement, defence and nuclear cooperation with these countries.

My visits to these nations are aimed at boosting Indias economic engagement with them and to invite more investment to India, the Prime Minister tweeted.

We will discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism, he said.

Prime Minister Modi will on Monday arrive in Berlin, where he would have discussions of regional and global importance with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Modi and Merkel on will hold the fourth India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) 30 May to review the state of both nations bilateral relationship.

Modi will travel to Spain on 30 May. This would be the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister to Spain in almost three decades. Modi will meet President Mariano Rajoy on 31 May to discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism.

PM Modi will be visiting Russia from 31 May to 2 June for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit at St Petersburg. Both countries would also celebrate the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.

PM Modi on 1 June will hold detailed discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin to take forward the dialogue from the last summit in Goa in October 2016. With a spotlight on economic ties, both leaders will be interacting with CEOs from both countries.

He will be addressing the St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) together with Putin on 2 June.

He will be reach Paris on 2 June and stay there till the next day during which he will hold talks with the 39-year-old French President Emmanuel Macron.
The kidnapping in April 2014, that had shocked the world, has come to a merciful end, but only partly. The heartbreak is over for the families of the 82 schoolgirls of Chibok in Nigeria, who were kidnapped by the countrys Islamist entity, Boko Haram. Just as the Taliban in Pakistan has targeted girls in search of learning, pre-eminently Malala Yousufzai, so too did the Boko Haram resort to this large-scale abduction. Sad to reflect that the enormity of the tragedy has been somewhat overshadowed over the past three years by another Islamist variant, ISIS, which has killed and killed with abandon across the world.

Considering that Nigeria witnessed the mass kidnapping of 300 girls, the enormity of the tragedy now boils down to the fate of the 300 minus 82 girls cut off for as long as they have been from their parents and school. They have sacrificed their childhood at the altar of the Islamist fundamentalist. More accurately, less than one-third of the children have been freed.

A distressing thought when one reflects that the release translates to a degree of very partial freedom at best and horribly belated at worst. Nor for that matter must the freedom be confused with a belated expression of profound sympathy on the part of the militants. On closer reflection, the release was the outcome of a give-and-take deal, in which the militants would appear to have dictated the terms of engagement. It took the Nigerian government three years to play the honest broker; the 82 children were freed only after the authorities agreed to release the detained Boko Haram detainees. The swap has been confirmed by the office of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Details of whether the government had to pay a ransom are still rather hazy; it is improbable that further details will emerge this Sunday when the freed girls are scheduled to meet President Buhari in the capital, Abuja. The mass abduction had exposed the mounting threat posed by the Islamic Statelinked fighters; by releasing the militants, the government has of course taken a calculated risk ~ an unnerving thought that must temper what has been described as the amazing joy of families across Nigeria. No less distressing is the fact that two-thirds of the abducted children are still in the custody of Boko Haram.

The April 2014 abduction had brought the extremist groups rampage in northern Nigeria to world attention, and since then it has been a horrendous experience for the families of the schoolgirls.

Some parents did not live long enough to see their daughters released. Many of the captive girls, predominantly Christians, were forced to marry their captors and give birth to children in remote forest hideouts without ever knowing if they would see their parents again. Other girls were strapped with explosives and sent on missions as suicide bombers. The ordeal must now end for all.
A Kuwaiti recipient, a Pakistani donor; an Israeli recipient, a Ukrainian donor; an American recipient, an Indian donor, an so on  the global dimensions of organ trafficking were exposed in shocking detail at an international summit on the subject at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences at the Vatican in February.

Every region, encompassing more than 50 countries, was represented; disturbing accounts emerged of organs being traded in every corner of the world, with medical professionals, police, middlemen (agents), immigration officials etc, all playing a role.

There are two elements that underpin this transnational racket  greed and poverty.

There is no shortage of either in the subcontinent. A woman in Karachi looking for a liver donor for her father was horrified to find that a prospective candidate had already sold one of his kidneys.

In India, a labourer was persuaded to sell a kidney by three doctors at a private hospital who told him it was like donating blood. He went ahead and over time, became an agent himself. In the Bangladeshi village of Tebaria, the body of a six-yearold boy was discovered some days after his kidnapping, with both his kidneys removed.

Yet all these countries have laws against organ trafficking.

In India, the practice has been illegal since 1994; in Bangladesh since 1999, where punishment for organ trade is between three to five years imprisonment and a fine of around $3,850.

Pakistans legislative history on the issue began with an ordinance in 2007 that was legislated upon by the parliament in 2010 as the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act 2010.

This law prescribes imprisonment of up to 10 years, and loss of licence for the medical personnel involved. The problem in all these countries, where the state does not expend itself in protecting the poor, is lack of implementation.

That has had a number of adverse consequences, of which the situation in Pakistan is a good illustration. For one, pushing the racket underground has made it ever more lucrative. From $5,000 earlier, transplants now cost between $15,000 to 20,000. And that is only for locals: those who come from outside Pakistan to buy an organ and undergo the procedure here  known as transplant tourists  can expect to pay up to $100,000.

Not realising that he was speaking to an undercover journalist, a doctor at Rawalpindis Kidney Centre, long notorious for organ trafficking, said: Unrelated donors becomes a complicated issue, there are lots of legal aspects which we have to cover. Because of all this, the cost has gone up. A number of creative solutions have been found to evade the law in Pakistan.

The transplants usually take place in the dead of night, in rented villas where rooms are kitted out as operation theatres. Agents, who scour the countryside looking to lure people into selling their organs, change their mobile numbers frequently and smuggle people to the locations where their transplants are to be carried out.

At the same time, the clandestine nature of the business means that the quality of transplantation has deteriorated sharply.

In an email exchange with Dawn, Dr Mustafa al-Mousawi, president of the transplantation society in Kuwait, said that most Kuwaiti patients who have been transplanted in Pakistan are sent home soon after surgery, often with catheters and drains still in place.

Needless to say, such a modus operandi is extremely dangerous for transplant patients whose immune systems are deliberately suppressed to reduce the chances of the bodys natural response of rejecting the transplanted organ.

However, the treatment meted out to the so-called donors is far worse.

These are desperately poor people, many of them bonded labourers trying to pay off crushing debts that keep them in servitude for generations. The unscrupulous individuals in the organ trade consider them no more than mere commodities.

Unbeknown to her, Halima was in her third month of pregnancy when she sold her kidney.

However, no one bothered to give the young married woman a pregnancy test; if they did discover that she was with child, they did not bother to inform her.

Also, donors are usually dispatched  by public transport  to their home village between 48 to 72 hours after their kidneys have been harvested, with no more than a few painkillers.

If their stitches become septic, or some other complications occur, they are on their own. Health facilities in most rural parts of Pakistan are substandard, if they exist at all. What better evidence can there be of the callousness of organ traffickers?

For urologists such as Dr Adib Rizvi, who heads the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation in Karachi that is at the forefront of the campaign for ethical transplantation practices in Pakistan, the donor is even more important than the recipient.

At SIUT, donors are discharged after no less three days, that too only if they are healthy and have easy access to medical facilities. Nevertheless, SIUT sees donors as a lifelong responsibility and continues to monitor their health through regular checkups so that their remaining kidney continues to function properly.

Meanwhile, the impunity with which organ traffickers operate means that those who need a transplant often opt for purchasing an organ (sometimes at the suggestion of their doctors themselves), rather than testing for a compatible donor within the family, the legally permissible route.

Organ trade also undermines efforts by advocacy groups to promote deceased organ donation, which is the way forward to ensure that more organs become available for ethical transplantation. In fact, the shortage of organs is used by unscrupulous doctors to cloak their breathtaking contempt for humanity in the garb of social service.

Objections to deceased organ donation on religious grounds are unfounded: many Muslim countries, including Saudi Arabia, allow the practice. There have been a number of fatwas by religious scholars stating that the medical procedure does not violate Islamic tenets.

Despite this, there have so far been less than 10 instances of deceased organ donation in Pakistan, where 150,000 people every year die of end-stage organ failure. In Bangladesh, there is no deceased organ donor programme as yet.

India, that sees 500,000 people dying each year while waiting for transplants, is showing some results, even though the overall rate at 0.5 donors per one million is far below that of many countries in the West.

In Pakistan, there have been of late some encouraging developments after the countrys Federal Investigation Agency, less prone to being compromised than the local police, acquired the mandate to take action against this crime.

On April 29, an FIA team carried out a raid on a rented house in the city of Lahore while two transplants were in progress. Two doctors and paramedics were arrested at the scene.

The two patients were Omani nationals and their donors were, not surprisingly poverty-stricken Pakistanis  one a labourer and the other a 20-year- old woman, both of whom had sold their organs to pay off debt. The ruthless greed of the traffickers can be gauged from the fact that the doctor who was caught red-handed carrying out the operation was not even a kidney specialist: he was a plastic surgeon.

The writer heads Dawn's investigation unit. This is a series of columns on global affairs written by top editors and columnists from members of the Asia News Network and published in newspapers and websites across the region.
If you need a breath of magical fresh air, the landlocked Lahaul valley could be your must-visit place this summer. Also known as the "cold desert" of Himachal Pradesh, Lahaul Spiti remains cut off from the world most part of the year. Hence, only a few visit this home to hidden gems. But, from temples, monasteries to towns steeped in folklore, from tribal villages to beautiful hills and lakes, the cold desert has it all.

The climatic conditions of the place are harsh as much of the land forms part of a cold desert where the mercury drops below minus 20 degrees Celsius during winter. The tribal district remains cut off from human contact for about six months owing to heavy snow accumulation from December onwards on the Rohtang Pass (13,050 feet), the only connection with Manali in Kullu district. The road links to the tribal area are restored only by mid-May when the snow melts. Otherwise, helicopters are the only mode of transportation for the locals, mostly tribal, during winter. The ambitious Rohtang tunnel project, which is under construction and will run beneath the Rohtang Pass, would ensure connectivity between Lahaul Valley and Manali throughout the year.

The tribal locals here are mostly Buddhists, hence the place is also known as Little Tibet. Here is a list of some of the hill stations, remote villages and lakes which might help in planning your travel to Lahaul Spiti.

Tandi

The confluence (Sangam) point of Chandra and Bhaga rivers, Tandi village is a town situated close to Keylong. The village has only 34 houses and the total population of the place as per 2011 census is 95 persons.

It is believed that the place got its name from the phrase Tan Dehi meaning giving up of the body. Draupadi, the wife of Pandavas from the Mahabharata is believed to have given up her body in this place and her mortal remains were immersed in this river.

The confluence point is sacred for both Hindus and Buddhists as the Sangam is considered to be the one of eight Mahashamshans (cremation place) in India which includes Varanasi.

Besides, the mythological importance, Tandi village is famous for its green valleys and the natural beauty of the place cant be expressed in few words, for you can only experience it.

The majestic valleys of both Chandra and Bhaga rivers add beauty to this place and it is the perfect place for spending some hours close to nature.

Dhankar

Set amidst lush green pastures at an elevation of 3,894 meters (12,774 feet), Dhankar village was the capital of erstwhile Spiti Kingdom during the 17th century.

The place derives its name from Dhang or dang means cliff and kar or khar means fort, hence Dhankar means fort on a cliff.

The Dhankar monastery complex is built on a high spur overlooking the confluence of the Spiti and Pin Rivers, making the place one of the worlds most spectacular settings for a Gompa. The monastery was built approximately one thousand years ago and now belongs to the Gelugspa School of order since the 1450's.

The major attractions of Dhankar Monastery is statue of Vairochana (Dhayan Buddha), consisting of four figures seated back to back and it is recognised by the World Monuments Fund as one of the Hundred Most Endangered Sites in the world.

The place also has a fresh water lake, located around 1.5 km from the village at a height of 13500 ft and it provides water supply to the village.

The Dhankar Lake offers a perfect idyllic camping site but locals do not allow camping at the lake anymore.

Kibber

Locally called Kyibar, Kibber is one of the most picture perfect hilly hamlets in Spiti valley and it is surely one of the most picturesque yet challenging places to visit.

Located at an altitude of 4205 m, Kibber has its own monastery and Gompa and the place has the distinction of being the highest motorable village in the world.

The village is known for its scenic mountains, barren splendor and monasteries and its landscape and that of the entire Spiti Valley resembles Ladakh and Tibet.

The Key Monastery is the most important Buddhist center in Spiti Valley and it is located close to Kibber.

Besides this, Indias wild life sanctuary in a cold desert, the Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary is located here and it is home to the ibex, blue sheep, red fox, Tibetan woolly hare, Himalayan wolf, lynx, pika, Tibetan wild ass and the snow leopard.

The high altitude and pollution free atmosphere is a boon for sky gazers, making it photographers paradise and Kibber is also home to a large amount of fossils.

Tabo

Tabo, the first village of Spiti Valley from Kinnaur side in Himachal Pradesh is one of the holiest places in the remote and barren landscape of Lahaul and Spiti district.

It is home to the ancient Tabo Monastery that was built in the 10th century and Tabo Caves that used to serve as dwelling place for monks during harsh winters.

The monastery houses a rich collection of thankas, frescoes, manuscripts, well-preserved statues, murals and paintings.

Tabo village is a must visit place during the Kalachakra Festival of Buddhists which is held in the month of July every year.

Chandra Tal Lake

The crescent shaped lake called Chandra Tal lake is located at an altitude of 4300 m on the barren landscape of the Samudra Tapu plateau. It is a sweet water lake that can be accessed via Kunzum Pass.

The lake is a popular hub for trekkers and campers and it flaunts a wide range of wildflowers carpeted over the surrounding meadows during spring time. It is believed that the source of Chandra Tal lake lies underground as there is no visible inlet but has a visible outlet.

Suraj Tal Lake

One of the beautiful high altitude lakes in the Indian Himalayan region, Suraj Tal lies in the lap of the Bara-lacha-la Pass on the Manali-Leh Highway at an altitude of 4,883 m.

The lake is the source of the Bhaga River that joins the Chandrabhaga River and thereafter meets the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir.

The 5th highest lake in India, Suraj Tal lake pulls in travellers from all over the world and it makes for a refreshing stopover for travellers.

Pin Valley National Park

Amid the backdrop of semi frozen streams and mighty Himalayas, Pin Valley National Park is a rich bio reserve of rare to endangered flora and fauna, making it the one of the most thrilling places to see in Spiti valley.

The National Park amidst the cold desert is home to snow leopards, snowcocks, chukar partridges and Siberian ibex. It is also home to many medicinal plants, alpine vegetation, cedar and deodar trees.

Though the tribal district of Lahaul Spiti makes for must visit places, tourists should keep in mind that there are no hotels and resorts. Only locals provide rooms or home-stays on rent.
North Korea has fired a short-range ballistic missile on Monday morning that landed in the ocean, the US military said.

South Korea and Japan immediately protested the missile launch, the most recent test-firing by North Korea as it seeks to develop nuclear weapons that can reach US military bases, CNN reported.

The missile was fired from an area near Wonsan, Kangwon province, towards the eastern part of the Korean Peninsula, according to a statement from South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The missile was "assumed" to be one of the Scud series, the statement said.

"It flew about 450 km," the statement said.

"South Korea and the US are currently closely analyzing for additional information. Our military is closely monitoring North Korean military and maintaining readiness posture."

US officials said it flew for about six minutes.

Japan said the missile landed within its Exclusive Economic Zone, an area of water extended 200 nautical miles from the Japanese coast.

"This launch is extremely problematic act for the safety of airplanes and ships and is clearly violating the UN resolution. The repeated provocative acts by North Korea is absolutely not acceptable," Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said in a statement.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said a "firm protest" was lodged with North Korea.

"In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action together with the US," he said. "We will maintain high vigilance in coordination with South Korea and the international community and take all possible measures to secure the safety of the people of Japan."

South Korean President Moon Jae-in ordered a national security council meeting for 7:30 a.m. Monday, the South Korean statement said.

Monday's missile launch was North Korea's third in just over three weeks.

On May 14, North Korea fired what analysts called its most successful test ever in its quest to develop ballistic missiles that can carry nuclear warheads.

That test reached an altitude of more than 2,100 km, according to North Korea.

Analysts said that test gave North Korea critical information on developing a re-entry vehicle for nuclear warheads and showed Pyongyang had a missile capable of striking the US territory of Guam.
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Bilateral cooperation on economic, defence, science and technology, and nuclear fronts, parleys on EU-India Free Trade Agreement, and fight against terror will top Prime Minister Narendra Modi's agenda during his four-nation tour of Europe starting today.

Modi will visit Germany for the biannual Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC); Spain on what will be an Indian Prime Minister's first visit in nearly 30 years; Russia for the annual bilateral summit; and France for his first meeting with newly elected President Emmanuel Macron.

Berlin will be Modi's first port of call, where he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will head the fourth biennial Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) on Tuesday.

India and Germany have over 25 Working Groups, including in areas like climate change, energy, infrastructure, and tourism.

According to German Ambassador to India Martin Ney, like in the last IGC in 2015, there will be a "series of substantial MoUs (memorandums of understanding) and joint declarations of intent" after the talks in Berlin.

One of the most important areas in which these agreements are likely to be signed is business.

"The Indo-German Chamber of Commerce is the biggest German bilateral chamber outside Germany. It has more than 7,000 German and Indian member companies," Ney said, adding that over 1,800 German companies are doing business in India.

"India is interested in German technology and knowhow, and we are interested in sharing this," he said.

Speaking ahead of Modi's visit, Randhir Jaiswal, Joint Secretary (Europe West) in the External Affairs Ministry, said Germany is the largest trading partner of India in the European Union.

"German economic profile, support, excellence, and expertise match with our development priorities, be it 'Make in India', 'Skill India', 'Clean India', 'Digital India', and 'Smart Cities'," Jaiswal said.

According to Ambassador Ney, both countries cooperate closely in terms of G20 coordination, UN Security Council reforms, freedom of navigation, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos), strategic importance of the Indian Ocean region, the fight against terrorism, and stability in Afghanistan.

"Germany supports India's membership in different export control regimes, including the NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group)," he said.

After a meeting with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Modi will leave for Spain on May 30. The last prime ministerial visit to the country was by Rajiv Gandhi in 1988.

On May 31, the Prime Minister will hold a bilateral summit with Spanish Premier Mariano Rajoy.

Modi will also call on Spanish King Felipe VI and interact with a select group of Spanish CEOs keen to invest and expand their businesses in India. Around 200 Spanish companies are operating in India.

Stating that economic partnership formed an important pillar of the bilateral relationship, Jaiswal said: "Spain enjoys a reputation in the fields of renewable energy, high speed rail, infrastructure, tunneling, technology solutions, including civil aviation air space management, and waste water management."

Cooperation in counter-terror will be an important element of the agenda in Spain.

From Spain, Modi will travel to Russia on May 31 and hold the 18th annual bilateral summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 1 in St Petersburg.

The following day, the Prime Minister will for the first time attend the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), a business event.

G.V. Srinivas, Joint Secretary (Eurasia) in the Ministry of External Affairs, said Modi's participation in SPIEF signals that there will be emphasis on trade and investment during the Russian leg of the tour.

Stating that while India-Russia cooperation in the areas of defence, nuclear and space was "very, very ahead", Srinivas said that bilateral trade has, however, come down for a variety of reasons from $10 billion to around $7 billion now.

Science and technology cooperation and people-to-people contacts are also areas that will come up for discussion during the Modi-Putin meeting.

From Russia, Modi will fly to Paris on June 2 evening and hold a bilateral meeting with French President Macron the next day.

Stating that France was a leading strategic partner of India, Jaiswal said that the two countries have very strong cooperation in the areas of space, civil nuclear, defence, and economy.

According to Jaiswal, during the France, Germany and Spain legs of the tour, the ongoing discussions between the European Union and India on a Free Trade Agreement would also figure prominently.

European nations are among those with which India has terminated bilateral investment protection treaties (BITs) following a new BIT model New Delhi released in December 2015.

Stating that EU member-states have passed on the responsibility of investment protection negotiations to the EU, Ambassador Ney said that the European Commission and the Indian government should "sit down as soon as possible" to negotiate a free trade agreement.
A modest slowdown is expected in India's growth with the GDP expected to fall to 6.8 per cent in 2016-17 as a result of temporary disruption caused by the government's demonetisation initiative, the World Bank said on Monday.

"India's economy was slowing down in early 2016-17, until the favorable monsoon started lifting the economy, but the recovery was temporarily disrupted by the government's demonetisation initiative. As a result, a modest slowdown is expected in the GDP growth in 2016-2017 to 6.8 per cent," World Bank said in its bi-annual India Development Update released in New Delhi.

"Demonetisation caused an immediate cash crunch, and activity in cash reliant sectors was affected. GDP growth slowed to 7.0 per cent year-on-year during the third quarter of 2016-2017 from 7.3 per cent in the first quarter," it said.

While limited data is available, demonetisation may have had a disproportionate impact on poorer households, which are more likely to work in construction and informal retail, the report noted.

"Greater data availability, especially on labor markets, is needed to better gauge the social impact of policies in the future," it said.

"Despite this, there was a relatively modest slowdown in the economy."

The report attributes it to coping mechanisms, including greater usage of digital transactions, higher rural incomes, and robust public consumption. The pick-up in rural wages in November and December, 2016, and the growth of agricultural output suggests the positive impact of the monsoons substantially dampened the disruption from demonetisation.

The report said demonetisation has the potential to accelerate the formalisation of the economy in the long-term leading to higher tax collections and greater digital financial inclusion.

It also said the country's growth is expected to recover in 2017-2018 to 7.2 per cent and is projected to gradually increase to 7.7 per cent in 2019-2020.

The World Bank also noted that India remained the fastest growing economy in the world with strong economic fundamentals and ongoing reform momentum.

"India remains the fastest growing economy in the world and it will get a big boost from its approach to GST which will reduce the cost of doing business for firms, reduce logistics costs of moving goods across states, while ensuring no loss in equity," said Junaid Ahmad, World Bank country director in India.

The implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST) could also be a complementary reform that will support formalisation, as firms have a strong incentive to register with GST to obtain input tax credits, the report said.

"GST is on track for implementation in the second quarter of the fiscal year, and is expected to yield substantial growth dividends from higher efficiencies and raise more revenues in the long term.

"Timely and smooth implementation of landmark reforms such as the GST and a new code to deal with bankruptcies, as well as decisive action to resolve the non-performing assets (NPAs) challenge of public sector banks, is crucial to enhance the economy's potential growth," the report said.

"Private investment growth continues to face several impediments in the form of excess capacity, regulatory and policy challenges, and corporate debt overhang. However, the recent push to increase infrastructure spending and to accelerate structural reforms will eventually drive a sustained rebound of private investments," said Frederico Gil Sander, Senior Country Economist and the main author of the India Development Update.

While agriculture growth delivered in 2016-2017, the report notes that investment growth remains subdued, partly because of banking sector stress.

The report also highlights the low and falling participation of women in the labour market. "For India to achieve higher growth, it needs to create safe, flexible and well-paying jobs for a large number of women who are currently not in the labour market."
In the wake of stiff opposition from some states, including Kerala, the central government is said to be having a rethink on its order restricting the sale of animals, including cows and buffaloes.

The government is likely to exempt buffaloes from the 'no slaughter' list, an official said on Monday.

"We have received some representations over the list of animals included (in the new cattle slaughter rules). We are working on it," A.N. Jha, Secretary in the Union Environment Ministry, told IANS.

The Union Environment Ministry on May 26, modified the rules to prevent cruelty to animals, making it mandatory to ensure that cattle are not bought or sold for slaughtering.

The list of animals that cannot be bought or sold for slaughter through cattle markets includes cows, bulls, buffaloes, heifers, calves and camels.

However, a day after notifying the modifications, the ministry said that the animals for the purpose of slaughtering could be procured directly from the farmers at their respective farms.

After notifying the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules-2017, the ministry clarified that the aim was to regulate the animal market and prevent cruelty to animals.

To ensure the rules are implemented, undertakings would have to be taken in the market by the 'District Animal Market Monitoring Committee' at the district level and the 'Animal Market Committee' at the local level.

Ever since the notification of the modified rules, there have been widespread protests against the new norms in various states, especially Kerala. Youth Congress activists took to the streets in the state, but caused outrage by publicly slashing the head of an ox during one such protest.

The state's ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist held over 300 "beef festivals" across Kerala where cooked beef was freely served.

Kerala is one of the states in the country where cow slaughter is not banned.
The CBI on Monday questioned former RJD MP Mohammed Shahabuddin over the murder of Bihar-based journalist Rajdeo Ranjan.



The questioning began after a special court sent Shahabuddin, lodged in the Tihar Jail here, to eight days custody of the Central Bureau of Investigation.



Shahabuddin's questioning was going on at the CBI headquarters here, CBI spokesperson R.K. Gaur told IANS.



The former MP was on May 26 named one of the 10 accused in the murder of Ranjan, who hailed from Bihar's Siwan district, by the CBI.



The probe agency was also preparing to file a chargesheet on the basis of evidence collected by it, official sources said.



The case was handed over to the CBI in September 2016 after the slain journalist's widow Asha Ranjan and his father Radhe Krishna Chaudhary repeatedly alleged that Shahabuddin was behind the murder.



The suspicion over Shahbuddin's involvement deepened after names of two of his henchmen, Mohammad Kaif and Mohammad Javed, surfaced during investigation.



A chargesheet has been filed against six of the accused. Javed and Kaif are on bail and Shahabuddin has been made the 10th accused.



Police in Bihar had earlier claimed that the murder was the result of "premediated conspiracy".



The sources claimed that the slain journalist had become a "threat" for criminals because of his news reports against the deteriorating law and order condition in Siwan.



Shahabuddin was in jail when the journalist was gunned down in Siwan while returning from office on May 13, 2016.



Shahabuddin, facing 39 criminal cases including those of kidnapping and murder, was shifted to Tihar Jail on February 18.


With both the main political fronts in Kerala opposing the ban on cattle slaughter, the state cabinet will on Wednesday announce a date for an all-party meeting to discuss the issue, Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunilkumar said on Monday.

"This is a question of livelihood for thousands of farmers in the state and has been in practise for ages. We will take up this issue in the cabinet meeting and don't be surprised if Kerala initiates legal steps against the new law," he told the media here.

There have been widespread protests against the new law. Youth Congress have taken to the streets in the state but caused outrage by publicly slashing the head of an ox during one such protest.

The ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist held over 300 "beef festivals" across Kerala where cooked beef was freely served.

Forest and Animal Husbandry Minister P. Raju said the new law cannot come into effect in Kerala.

"This is a ridiculous law. Kerala cannot implement it. We will look into all angles on how to tackle this," Raju said on Monday.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears to be the only party in Kerala which has accepted the central government's directive on cattle slaughter.

"The new law has been misunderstood by the other parties," BJP state General Secretary K. Surendran said.

For the Congress, what has come as a dampener was the manner in which their activists in Kannur slashed the head of an ox.

The police on Sunday night registered a case against the Youth Congress activists, whose action has been strongly condemned by Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi.

Youth Congress leader Regil Makutty and three others were suspended on Monday by the national leadership and the state Congress followed suit.

State Congress President M.M. Hassan told reporters that the state government should call a special session of the assembly to override the central law.

"Today we are observing a black day to protest against the anti-people law of the Centre. But we do not approve of what happened in Kannur. Hence, we have suspended them from the party," said Hassan.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday attended a private dinner hosted by German Chancellor Angela Merkel soon after he arrived in Berlin on a two-day visit to Germany.

"The bonds of a fruitful partnership. Chancellor Merkel receives PM @narendramodi at Schloss Meseberg before a private dinner," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay tweeted along with pictures of the two leaders.

Schloss Meseberg, some 65 km from Berlin, is the country retreat of the German Chancellor and the official state guest house of the German government.

Earlier on Monday, Modi arrived in Berlin on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Europe.

Modi is accompanied by Minister for Science and Technology Harsh Vardhan, Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Seetharaman and Minister of State for External Affairs M.J. Akbar.

On Tuesday, Modi and Merkel will head the fourth round of the biannual Inter-Governmental Consultations. Germany is the only country with which India has such an arrangement. Both the leaders will then address the India-Germany Business Summit.

Later, Modi will call on resident Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

From Germany, Modi will travel to Spain, Russia and France.
Prime minister Narendra Modi has left for a packed trip to Europe, covering four countries in five days.

His journey starts at Meseberg near Berlin, where he will have a private dinner with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday night.

Modi, in his pre-departure statement, elaborated the nature of his engagements in Germany, Spain, Russia and France. The talks in Germany, Spain and Russia are largely to extend the economic aspect of the relationship with these nations.

In Spain, the first India Spain CEOs Forum will be held on the sidelines of his visit. The St Petersberg stop will see him interact with President Vladimir Putin to take forward the dialogue from the last interaction in Goa in October 2016. Modi will also be the special guest at the St Petersberg International Economic Forum.

The PM will inveterate with state governorsa first of its kind engagement that hopes to have state-to-state links between Russia and India in the future. This is the 70th year of India's diplomatic relations with Russia.

The Paris stop to meet the new French President Emmanuel Macron doesn't have any business agenda. It is more to get acquainted with Macron. France is an important strategic partner and officials say that in these relationships, it is always better to establish rapport with new leaders soon after they take over.

Modi said he will be exchanging views on important global issues including UN Security Council reforms and India's permanent membership of the UN Security council and India's membership to the various multilateral export control regimes.''
Government troops have found eight bodies of civilians who were allegedly executed by militants in Marawi city in southern Philippines, bringing the death toll in the six-day clashes between army and militants to 95, a military spokesman said on Sunday.



Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said the eight bodies, including women and a child, were found on Saturday night and Sunday morning in Marawi city, which has been under siege by Maute militants since Tuesday, Xinhua reported.



"The bodies (found) consist of four males, three females and a child," Padilla said, adding that the discovery of the eight bodies "validates" reports that militants have indeed killed civilians.



"We are still validating other reports of atrocities by militants," Padilla said. To date, he said, 19 civilians have been confirmed to have been executed by militants.



Padilla said so far, 61 militants have been killed in the firefight and that 11 soldiers and four policemen have also been killed.



Padilla said in a statement that the troops will continue "precision" air strikes and artillery fire at specific targets in the city where the Maute militants are hiding.



Padilla said the ongoing military air strikes and military actions focus on freeing a still undetermined number of civilians trapped in the city's interiors.



"Precision airstrikes and artillery fire will likewise continue at specific targets to hasten the clearing," Padilla said.



The Philippine media reported on Sunday that heavy fighting, explosions and airstrikes continued as troops sealed the city of Maute militants.



Hundreds of Marawi city residents have fled as the military operations to flush out the militants intensified.



"Our forces are working overtime to hasten the restoration of the rule of law and Marawi's return to normalcy," Padilla said.



President Rodrigo Duterte, who declared martial law on the island of Mindanao in the southern Philippines on Tuesday night, vowed to crack down on local militants who have alleged links with ISIS and seek to carve out a caliphate out of Mindanao.



"Until the police and armed forces say the Philippines is safe, this martial law will continue," he told soldiers in Iligan City on Saturday.



The violence that broke out on Tuesday afternoon on the southern island left 95 people dead, the military said. The military has earlier said that some of the dead militants are foreigners from neighbouring countries.



Mindanao is home to a number of Muslim insurgent groups seeking more autonomy. The insurgents have been fighting the government for decades.
Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina on Monday left for Austrian capital Vienna to attend an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) conference.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali said, "Various global issues, including bilateral cooperation in implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), migration, refugee crisis, climate change and the situation in the Europe after Brexit will come up for discussions during the two-day visit."

The two countries are likely to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) during the visit.

During her two-day visit, Sheikh Hasina will hold talks with Austrian Federal Chancellor Christian Kern and meet Austrian Federal President Alexander Van Der Bellen. She will also hold a meeting with IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano.

The Prime Minister will return home on May 31.

Marking the 60th anniversary of the IAEA's Technical Cooperation programme, the international conference on the 'IAEA Technical Cooperation Programme: Sixty Years and Beyond' will take place in Vienna from May 30 to June 1.

The conference will bring together representatives from member states and other partners to further develop partnership to enhance the delivery of the technical cooperation, said the organisers.
Last week in Berlin, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel hosted an international conference for religious leaders on the topic of Responsibility of Religions for Peace, bringing together Moslem, Christian and Jewish scholars, as well as representatives of various faith groups, traditions and movements.

At the end of the Conference, Gabriel met personally with Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal, Rabbi of the Jewish community of Berlin. During the meeting, Gabriel requested that Teichtal relay his personal message to Germans Jewish community: A Conference of this sort manifests that, contrary to what people may believe, various faiths can coexist together in peace. Mutual respect and dialogue are the keys to peace.

The Conference, which took place on Monday, was attended by representatives of religions from 53 countries. This first conference on the topic of Responsibility of Religions for Peace symbolizes a new trend at the German Foreign Ministry of integrating interfaith dialogue as an indistinguishable aspect of its agenda and policies.

According to the German Foreign Ministry, the basis of this initiative is the fact that nearly all religions emphasize peace as part of its fundamental dogma; while a large portion of international conflict is ignited by religious strife.

In his opening address at the Conference, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel, himself a Protestant, called upon all listeners to rise to a challenge Simultaneously, he noted that the purpose of the Conference is not to discuss theology, or the struggle to advance religious freedom; but to assess how various religious groups can foster peace and stability in their respective regions by having their delegates communicate with each other as opposed to about each other.

Germany is glad that the religions are now at peace in our country. We are a country in which the state maintains neutrality on matters of religion. But it is not secular. Religion has its place in our country. And we are glad to see the return of some of the religious life lost during the campaign of terror and extermination waged by the Nazis against Jewish citizens. We are very glad that Jewish communities have re-established themselves in our country, because it is by no means self-evident that they should. Gabriel expressed in his speech.

Rabbi Yehuda Teichtal, one of the prominent Jewish delegates at the Conference, remarked in response, The fact that religious leaders are meeting in order to engage in practical dialogue and not religious dialogue is, in my opinion, the biggest news of this Conference. Its what makes it stand out among other interfaith conferences and increases its chances of minimizing conflict and positively impact the world.

Photo: Foreign Minister Gabriel with Rabbi Teichtal at the event.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Minister-without-Portfolio Ayoub Kara has been appointed Minister of Communications, becoming the first Druse tapped for the post. The appointment must be approved by the cabinet, which is seen as a formality at this point.

The appointment follows a petition to the High Court against PM Netanyahu serving as communications minister in light of one of the police investigations against him, Case 2000, citing there is a conflict of interests

The appointment is sudden and a surprise to most, obviously the response to the court petition against the prime minister.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Israel Police report that they will soon be using a traffic balloon as part of its fleet of vehicles monitoring traffic and combating accidents on the nations roadways.

At present, helicopters, which are expensive to operate, record major traffic violations but the balloon will be deployed in their place, operating more efficiently and far less expensive.

It is explained the balloons are a very cost-effective method of monitoring traffic as the device can be folded and placed in a trunk of a vehicle and deployed when required, using limited manpower and providing a wider range of vision that on receives from choppers. The balloon will document vehicles crossing a white line of engaging in a dangerous pass or making an illegal U-turn. The images will be transmitted to police working with the unit, appearing on their smartphones.

The head of the Traffic Enforcement Unit, Doron Yedid, is hopeful the balloon will serve as another tool in the departments arsenal of weapons to prevent accidents and road deaths.

It is reported that police in the first quarter of 2017 issued 60,000 traffic summonses, 20,000 more than the corresponding time period last year. Driving while under the influence is sharply on the rise; registering a 28% increase in Q1 of 2017. Police suspended 3,000 licenses during the first quarter of 2017 as well.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for the Five Towns Jewish Times

Beloved. Loves. Shares the Pain of Others.

These three of the 48 manners in which to acquire Torah have a special Shavuos connection. The Torah, explains Rav Olshin, was given to the masses  the Klal  not to individuals. If you want Torah to remain with you to be niknais by you  you need to connect to the Klal. All this is from the Maharal and can be found on pages 108 and 109 of the latest volume of Yareach LaMoadim.

Yes, every so often, a Sefer comes along on a particular Yom Tov or topic that creates a strong demand for that Sefer on other Yomim Tovim.

The demand for Rav Yeruchem Olshins Sefer, Yareach LaMoadim on Sukkos and Pesach created a demand for a sefer on Shavuos. Rav Olshin shlita, is one of the four Roshei Yeshiva of Beis Midrash Gavoah in Lakewood.

The problem was that the remarkable editors of this fabulous series could not get out a full sefer in time. What they did do, however, was issue a kuntrus  not a full sefer.

Following its predecessors, the Sefer is divided into halachic/Talmudic sugyas as well machshava and ruchniyus. In this kuntrus there are seven topics to each of the two sections.

THE FIRST SECTION

The first topic in section one deals with delaying Maariv on Shavuos because of Temimus  a full 49 days. The second deals with the debate as to whether there is an additional Mitzvah and bracha of Sefirah for the Shemita and Yovel. Tosfos, the Raavad and the Rash MiShantz hold that there is even a bracha for it, while the Rambam holds there is not. The third deals with the two obligations of Sefira that Bais Din has. The fourth deals with counting in the daytime if one forgot to count at night. The fifth deals with the nature of the counting when it is done before night time (this is the one when the Rabbi counts early  a fascinating debate between the TaZ and other achronim). The sixth deals with a debate between Rav Chaim Volozhin and the first Lubavitcher Rebbe as to whether there exists a prohibition of forgetting ones Torah in modern times. The seventh deals with the obligation of learning Torah ones entire life and how that interacts with vasafta deganecha and the prohibition of Greek wisdom.

THE SECOND SECTION

The second section deals with machshava, hashkafa and matters of Yiras Shamayim. The first topic deals with why Shavuos is named Shavuos. The second topic deals with accepting the Ol Torah and the special nature of Torah learning at night. The third topic deals with the Simcha that one feels during Shavuos. The fourth deals with the trees and other things judged on Shavuos. The fifth deals with the ideal of saying Chidushei Torah on Shavuos. The sixth deals with the Teshuvah element of Shavuos. The seventh deals with the Achdus and Ahavas Yisroel aspects of Shavuos.

Though short, it is a wonderful Kuntrus and will provide excellent material for growth this Shavuos. A big yasher koach to Rabbi Moshe Gruen and Rabbi Yaakov Londinsky and the others who worked very hard on producing this kuntrus. It also gives a taste of what will come next year, bezras Hashem.

The author can be reached at [email protected]

This article is dedicated for a complete and speedy refuah shleima for Shoshana Elka bas Ettl Dina, a former talmida and congregant of the author. Please have her in mind in your tefilos and tehillim.
North Koreas latest missile test Monday may have less to do with perfecting its weapons technology than with showing U.S. and South Korean forces in the region that it can strike them at will.

South Korean and Japanese officials said the suspected Scud-type short-range missile flew about 450 kilometers (280 miles) on Monday morning before landing in Japans maritime economic zone, setting off the usual round of condemnation from Washington and the Norths neighbors.

Its the latest in a string of test launches by North Korea as it seeks to build nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles that can reach the U.S. mainland, a drive that puts North Korea high on the list of foreign policy worries for Japan, Washington and Seoul.

North Korea already has an arsenal of reliable short-range missiles. While North Korean scientists could be tweaking them  for instance, developing a new solid-fuel short-range missile  the North tests these shorter-range missiles much less than it does its less dependable, longer-range missiles.

This sets up the possibility that North Korea hopes to use the test to show it can hit U.S. targets near and far and emphasize its defiance of U.S.-led pressure on its missile and nuclear programs, which has included vague threats from President Donald Trump and the arrival in Korean waters of powerful U.S. military hardware. Scuds are capable of striking U.S. troops in South Korea, for instance, and the two newly developed missiles tested earlier this month have potential ranges that include Japan, Guam and even, according to some South Korean analysts, Alaska.

The missile was launched from the coastal town of Wonsan, the Souths Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. It landed in Japans exclusive maritime economic zone, which is set about 200 nautical miles off the Japanese coast, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said. He said there was no report of damage to planes or vessels in the area.

North Korea is still thought to be several years from its goal of being able to target U.S. mainland cities with nuclear ICBMs.

South Korea says North Korea has conducted nine ballistic missile tests this year, including one in which four missiles were launched on the same day.

North Koreas state-controlled media had no immediate comment on Mondays test, but released a statement, without mentioning the launch, that accused Seoul and Washington of aggravating the situation on the Korean Peninsula by conducting joint military drills and other reckless acts.

On Sunday, North Korea also said leader Kim Jong Un had watched a separate, successful test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system. The report didnt say when the test happened.

The official Korean Central News Agency cited Kim as ordering officials to mass-produce and deploy the system all over the country so as to completely spoil the enemys wild dream to command the air.

Trump has alternated between bellicosity and flattery in his public statements about North Korea, but his administration is still working to solidify a policy on handling the Norths nuclear ambitions.

Mondays launch was Norths Koreas third ballistic missile launch since South Korean President Moon Jae-in was inaugurated on May 10. He has signaled an interest in expanding civilian exchanges with North Korea, but its unclear if hell be able to push anytime soon for major rapprochement while the North continues to make serious advances in its nuclear and missile programs.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters that North Koreas provocation by ignoring repeated warnings from international society is absolutely unacceptable.

Suga, the Japanese Cabinet secretary, said the missile fell about 300 kilometers (190 miles) north of the Oki islands in southwestern Japan and 500 kilometers (310 miles) west of Sado island in central Japan.

Suga said Japanese officials will discuss North Korea with a senior foreign policy adviser to Chinese President Xi Jinping, Yang Jiechi, who was scheduled to visit Japan later Monday. China is North Koreas only major ally.

Besides its regular ballistic missile test-launches, North Korea carried out two of its five nuclear tests last year  in January and September. Outside analysts believe North Korea may be able to arm some of its shorter-range missiles with nuclear warheads, though the exact state of its secretive weapons program is unknown.

(AP)
Senior security officials in Germany said Monday they are optimistic about intelligence sharing with the United States and Britain, despite friction in other policy areas in recent months.

Speaking at a gathering of intelligence experts in Berlin, Germanys top security official said cooperation with the Trump administration was excellent when it came to combating terrorism.

While a meeting in Sicily exposed deep differences between the United States and other members of the Group of Seven on issues such as climate change and trade, Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said there was relative unanimity when it came to joint anti-terrorism measures.

The issue of security brings everyone together, he said.

De Maizieres comments echoed those of Germanys domestic intelligence chief, Hans-Georg Maassen, who told public broadcaster ARD that we have always viewed the Americans as reliable partners, despite all the problems we had in recent years  a reference to U.S. spies eavesdropping on German government phones.

We need the Americans because the Americans have good and reliable information, Maassen added. On the other hand  the Americans need the information of German and European intelligence services.

Germany saw a number of violent attacks by Islamic extremists last year, including the deadly truck attack on a Berlin Christmas market that left 12 victims dead. The attack, carried out by a young Tunisian man who had been denied asylum in Germany, was later claimed by the Islamic State group.

Maassen told reporters in Berlin the threat posed by Islamic extremists hasnt lessened and authorities now believe there are 10,000 adherents of Salafist ideology  a fundamentalist interpretation of Islam  in Germany alone. A year ago that figure stood at 8,650, he said.

Both officials said they expected intelligence cooperation with Britain also to remain good, even after the country leaves the 28-nation European Union.

Im confident that the issue of security wont be the most difficult in the Brexit negotiations, said de Maiziere.

One issue that has plagued intelligence cooperation even among close partners is the fact that countries keep separate records on suspected extremists, meaning people who are under surveillance in one country can often travel freely in another.

The Manchester concert bomber Salman Abedi transited through Duesseldorf Airport four days before the May 22 attack without German authorities being aware that he had been on the radar of British security services.

We have to dissolve the national data silos, said Maassen.

(AP)
President Donald Trump is preparing his first Memorial Day address at Arlington National Cemetery.

Trump is also set to lay a wreath Monday at the cemetery, the final resting place for many U.S. military members and others who have served the country.

Trump previewed the address Saturday before he flew home from Italy, the final stop on his first trip abroad since taking office.

He addressed U.S. service members stationed at a naval base in Sicily as warriors of freedom and the patriots who keep the fires of liberty burning.

Trump also noted his desire to boost spending on the military, and as commander in chief pledged his complete and unshakeable support to the men and women in uniform.

The event is scheduled to start around 11 a.m.

Today we remember the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in serving. Thank you, God bless your families & God bless the USA!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2017

I look forward to paying my respects to our brave men and women on this Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery later this morning.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2017

(AP)
In the fourth session of the appeal in the case of IDF Sgt. Elor Azariya, the court called on defense attorney Sheftal to address the reality that his client changed is story five time during the trial. Sheftal however fired back rather than be put on the defensive, stating the company commander who testified during the trial changed his story nine times and Private T fourteen times!

Sheftal added that while the other changes in versions were accompanied by major variations and contradictions, in Elors case, there were only additions. After Sheftal completed his statements and he responded to questions posed by the court, prosecutor Nadav Weissman began presenting his case.

The videos were viewed again and clearly the prosecution have different explanations. The court then suggested adopting Sheftals explanation and to turn to mediation but the prosecution objected.

Weissman: When you reach deals and compromises, at the end no one knows what happened. A defendant can be acquitted or convicted but via judicial decision [and not mediation].

Justice Segal: There is a side of hearings in which no one wins, but both sides lose.

Weissman: We view this of paramount importance, that the court decides what did and did not occur in this case.

Sheftal: There will not be compromise here and this is clear because mediation was suggested twice, and both time, the prosecution objected.

The court instructed prosecutor Weissman to confer with higher-ranking superiors and not to rule out the possibility of mediation.

The sides will respond regarding their willingness to try mediation in a weeks time.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Security forces during the night of 4 Nissan (Sunday to Monday) arrested 12 suspects in Issawiya allegedly responsible for firebomb and rock attacks in the area, primarily on the Maale Adumim  Jerusalem Highway. They are also linked to disturbances with law enforcement agencies in the Jerusalem district.

After gathering intelligence evidence and video footage against the suspects, police and border police during the night moved in and made the arrests. Police were attacked with stones as they left the Arab area. Bchasdei Hashem there were no reports of injuries. The suspects are being questioned and they will be arraigned.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Jerusalem Councilman Moshe Leon is among the 14 persons close to Aryeh Deri to be questioned in by police of the 443 Lahav Unit. Leon is a former director-general of the Ministry of Galil & Negev Development, which is directly connected to allegations of tax evasion against Deri, who is currently Minister of that ministry along with serving as Interior Minister.

After hours of questioning, Leon explained he cooperated totally with police and responded to all questions. He added he was not asked or does he have any question to the matters appearing in the media. He stressed questioned were directed only to a period during which Deri was a private businessman.

Police in recent months have been checking and monitoring bank accounts maintained by Deri and his brother, and some of the persons questioned are connected to family real estate dealings.

Former Shas party leader Eli Yishai was interviewed by Galei Yisrael Radio on Thursday, 4 Nissan, asked to comment on the latest police probe against Deri. Yishai responded I prefer not to address this at the moment. We are busy with municipal elections and working with all our might.

Deri is Yishais political nemesis, grabbing control of Shas from him after over a decade of a hiatus from politics due to his bribery conviction, three-year jail term, and seven-year cooling down period mandated by the law before being permitted to return to public life.

HaGaon HaRav Bentzion Mutzafi commented on Deri being questioned, explaining He is a shaliach of Gedolei Hador and the hate of amei haaretz for Bnei Torah is well known, and they are rooting for his fall chas vsholom.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Call it eccentric, but for people in the area on Thursday, 4 Nissan, they tried cashing in on the one hundred dollar bills.

In this video, we see Chilean philanthropist Leonardo Farkas at the Kosel distributing one hundred dollar bills to persons in the area. Needless to say, it did not take long for him to attract a crowd.

Farkas is no stranger to attracting crowds in similar stunts. In 2013 for example, he entered the Grill on Lee restaurant in Williamsburg on a random day, ate lunch, and then paid for dozens of people to eat lunch. He also gave each employee $400.

Farkas is known for his habit of distributing 5,000 peso bills to strangers on the street.

Farkas is in Israel where he attended Fridays dedication of 180 Ambucycles to United Hatzalah.

(YWN  Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
by Rabbi Yair Hoffman for the Five Towns Jewish Times

for the refuah shleimah of Shoshana Elka bas Ettel Dina

It is the practice throughout Klal Yisroel to wait to daven Maariv on Shavuos until it is certainly dark. This means that we daven Maariv after Tzais HaKochavim  stars coming out  either 42 or 50 minutes past sundown. The Mishna Brurah rules conclusively in this way (494:1) and it is has become the accepted custom in Klal Yisroel.

COMPLETE WEEKS

The reason is explained by the TaZ, Rabbi Dovid HaLevi in his commentary on chapter 494 in Orech Chaim. The counting of the Omer must be complete. It must be seven perfect and complete weeks in order to fulfill the verse Sheva Shavuos Temimos  seven complete weeks. If we daven Maariv early on Shavuos then it is not complete. This, it would seem, is the reason why we wait.

Also, in discussing Shavuos the Torah uses the term BEtzem Hayom Hazeh  on this very day which seems to indicate that Shavuos should be on the exact time of Shavuos, and not earlier. Whether this is a second and different reason than the one just discussed by the TaZ is a matter that needs further clarification.

PROBLEM

The problem is that there is a Mitzvah in general of adding onto the Shabbos and adding on to Yom Tov. This is why we generally make Shabbos early and end it later. The Chofetz Chaim (in Biur Halacha 261:2) rules that most Rishonim are of the opinion that Tosefes Shabbos on Shabbos itself is a biblical Mitzvah. It applies equally to men and women. Indeed, the Avnei Naizer in a responsa (Orach Chaim 316:12) rules that Tosefes Yom Tov is actually a biblical Mitzvah. If so, by waiting on Shavuos then we are not fulfilling the Mitzvah of adding onto the Yom Tov!

ADD LATER?

One could, of course, answer that we could accomplish the adding on after the Yom Tov. In other words, we can add on to it at the end. But it does seem to be a little bit strange though. Do we find a distinction between Shavuos and the other Yomim Tovim in regard to the Mitzvah of Tosefes Yom Tov? Also, even if we were to find such a difference based upon the Omer  what would be the halacha in modern times  when most authorities hold that counting the Omer is only a Rabbinic Mitzvah?

The Maharsham in his work Daas Torah (494:1) cites a responsa from the Masais Binyomin that the issue of Tmimus only applies to the recitation of Kiddush, but not to the prayer service of Maariv. Indeed, the Siddur of the Yaavetz (entitled Bais Yaakov in Shavuos note #4) writes that a person who davens early on Shavuos is called a Zariz (a person who is quick to do Mitzvos) and is rewarded. Rav Dovid Tzvi Hoffman in the Melamed LeHoil (Volume 1 responsa 108) rules that they should wait at least until Bain HaShemashos  twilight.

It seems that these authorities would hold that the Temimus is accomplished anyway because the Omer has been completed until the arrival of Shavuos. So what if Shavuos has arrived early  the Omer was still counted the entire time through Shavuos!

BECAUSE IT LOOKS AS IF WE DIDNT

The Klausenberger Rebbe zatzal in Divrei Yatziv (OC #226) writes that the reason why we are stringent is not because it does not complete the forty nine days of the Omer, but rather because it appears as if we have not completed the complete forty nine days of the Omer! He adduces this reading also from the wording of the Rav Shulchan Aruch (the first Lubavitcher Rebbe).

It is interesting to note Rav Chaim Berlin (the son of the Netziv and the Chief Rabbi of Moscow from 1865) in Kovaitz Shaarei Torah Volume eight (9:68) has an entirely different reading of this TaZ. He writes that the TaZ is not dealing with any special aspect of Shavuos. Rather, he explains, just as every day of the Omer the counting must be perfect without the internal contradiction of having to count it on a different day, the same is true with Shavuos too. The Omer may not be counted on a day that the latter part of it is shared with Shavuos.

The Tzitz Eliezer (Volume 13 responsa 59) however, rejects Rav Chaim Berlins interesting rereading of the Taz and maintains that the idea of BEtzem Hayom Hazeh makes it uniquely a Shavuos Halacha.

Another issue is of course on the second day of Shavuos. There is an enactment of course to keep two days of Yom Tov in Chutz Laaretz on account of something called Sfaikah DYoma  an uncertainty in the day that Rosh Chodesh was called. In a case when the second day would fall on Shabbos, can we daven early on Friday night or do we have to wait until star-out just like we do on the first night of Shavuos?

On the one hand, on the second day of Yom Tov Shavuos there never would have been a Sfaikah dYoma, we would have found out already when the Rosh Chodesh was called. Yet on the other hand we are enjoined to treat second day Yom Tov exactly like we would treat the first day of Yom Tov. So what should we do?

Some authorities explain that the reason why we keep the second day of Shavuos is not because of a Sfaika DYoma but rather because of a Lo Ploog  that the Rabbis did not differentiate this Yom Tov from other Yamim Tovim. Since this is the case, one can make a good argument that it would not take away from the Tmimus  the perfection of the counting of the Omer on the previous day. It seems that the combination of both of these rationales would at least allow us to daven at Bain HaShemashos on Friday night on the second night of Shavuos.

May everyone have a wonderful Kabbalas HaTorah!

The author may be reached at [email protected]
STOP-OFF SALE

A group of ex-JP Morgan bankers are said to be in secret talks to buy 45 per cent of motorway services chain Welcome Break.

Their firm, Arjun Infrastructure Partners, would take the stake from investors including Dutch lender ING.

Life in the fast lane: Arjun Infrastructure Partners are looking to but into motorway services chain Welcome Break

DIVIDEND RISK

Oil giant Petrofac could suspend its dividend due to a corruption probe, analysts have warned.

The Serious Fraud Office is investigating its consultant Unaoil over deals in Kazakhstan from 2002 to 2009.

DRONE MARKET

Hire company Ashtead could start renting out drones to meet rising demand. Bosses said there had been a surge in interest for aerial photography.

PILOT TRAINING

Two European countries are in talks with Babcock over 1bn of fighter pilot training contracts. The defence firm refused to name the nations, but said that Germany was not one of them.

LENDER BOOSTED

Internet lender Ratesetter has been valued at 200m in a fresh fundraising drive. The business, which allows savers to lend their cash directly to small companies, secured an extra 13m from backers Artemis and star fund manager Neil Woodford.

GOLD SHUTDOWN

A gold mine run by Acacia could be shut after a row with the Tanzanian government. Officials claim it is producing up to ten times more gold than reported  potentially depriving the country of millions in royalties  and have limited its exports.
Taipei, May 29 (CNA) An Examination Yuan member has described as unconstitutional initial passage of an amendment in the Legislature that would create more posts for political appointees because a consensus on the bill has not yet been reached between the Yuan and the Cabinet.
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By Phil Orenstein

Two depraved individuals will be awarded high honors in New York City in June  one an unrepentant terrorist, a murderer of fellow New Yorkers, and the other is a vocal supporter of terrorist murderers.

On June 1, anti-Israel cheerleader of terrorists, Linda Sarsour, will have the honor of delivering the commencement address to the graduating class at CUNYs Graduate School of Public Health Policy, with the blessings of Mayor Bill de Blasio and the City Council.

Sarsour, co-organizer of the January anti-Trump Womens March in Washington and notorious for extreme vulgar rhetoric, is a strong voice for the Boycott, Divest and Sanctions movement to destroy Israel economically, and an advocate for Sharia law in the United States. She described Palestinian childrens violent attacks against Israelis as courageous, and praised convicted terrorists like Rasmea Odeh, who murdered Hebrew University students and participated in terrorist bombings in Israel.

On June 11, unrepentant terrorist leader Oscar Lopez Rivera will be honored as the National Freedom Hero at the annual Puerto Rican Day Parade. He will also be celebrated with a community march and street sign in his name in Brooklyn, attended by local politicians. Rivera, bomb-maker and terrorist trainer, is a leader of FALN, the former Puerto Rican nationalist terrorist group responsible for more than 120 bombings, including the deadly bombing of Fraunces Tavern in Manhattan. In 1981, he was convicted of federal charges for conspiracy to overthrow the U.S. government and sentenced to 55 years in prison. Just before leaving office, President Obama commuted his sentence, and he was recently released in May.

New York City officials who are celebrating these two dishonorable individuals have lost all sense and sanity. This is a non-political issue, a clear case of good vs. evil, that should have everyone, regardless of party, outraged, shouting from rooftops. We should see every single elected official declaring their condemnation of these two scoundrels.

However, here in de Blasios New York where the lunatic fringe is in charge, the opposite is happening  at least as far as our elected representatives and nearly all city council members are concerned.

In fact, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito made a grand announcement to the press and the public of Riveras honors as the National Freedom Hero at the site of the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks. Many New York politicians will be grinning and marching alongside this bomb-making murderer, singing his praises in the upcoming Puerto Rican Day Parade.

U.S. Sen. Kristen Gillibrand recently praised Linda Sarsour in Time Magazine and social media. De Blasio, a good friend of Sarsour, rewarded her with a $500,000 taxpayer grant, and nearly all City Council members stand behind her CUNY commencement address, where she will share the stage with First Lady Chirlane McCray, who will receive an honorary doctorate.

City Councilman Brad Lander and others recently spoke out in praise and defense of Sarsour. Otherwise, the silence is deafening, except for a small handful of politicians, as 99 percent of our New York elected officials either look the other way or outright praise these two thugs.

This folly has to stop. We need to speak out loud at the polls to vote the current crop of political flunkies out of public office and into retirement. They are the puppets of the mayor and only serve for their own interests, to go along and to get along.

We New Yorkers, who want freedom, safety and prosperity for our friends and families, will be the change agents of New York City. We must put a stop to the disgraceful plans of CUNY officials and the Puerto Rican Day Parade committee from honoring these two repugnant evil individuals.

Phil Orenstein

President, Queens Village Republican Club
A violent storm swept through Moscow area Monday, leaving 13 people dead and dozens injured as freak winds toppled hundreds of trees, officials said.

"The storm killed 11 people and 70 others have been seriously injured," Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said, according to Interfax.

"The victims are receiving proper care".

Two more deaths were reported later, with the investigative committee of the Moscow region saying that an 11-year-old girl and a 57-year-old man were killed, one by a falling tree and the other a flying fence.

Earlier, investigators said that the victims were mostly killed by falling trees and various structures, including a bus stop. Investigators travelled to the scenes of the accidents and questioned witnesses.

The injured were being treated at 10 different medical facilities in the capital, the local health department told AFP, warning that the death toll could rise.

Sobyanin expressed his condolences, saying the tragedy "is unprecedented".

"It\s due to the fact that the storm hit in the middle of the day, which is why there is such a large number of victims," he said.

Sobyanin had earlier written on Twitter: "Several hundred trees were felled," adding: "We are taking necessary measures to deal with the consequences."

Moscow emergencies services dispatched units to remove the downed trees but had no information about any serious material damage, a spokesman told AFP by phone.

The weather caused delays at Moscow\s airports and the express train service to Vnukovo airport was halted as workers removed a tree from the line.

The director of the Russia\s Gidromedtsentr weather service Roman Vilfand told Russian agencies that wind speed reached 22 metres (yards) per second during the hurricane and that another storm could hit the capital overnight.

SOURCE AFP
Bridgewater looks to become a regional nightlife hub in western PA

Bridgewater bars offer patrons a nightlife experience that is unique from any other in western Pennsylvania
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Albany

Eliminate 15 officers in the city's police force to save $1.6 million.

Reduce the number of firefighters by 27 over four years to save $1.2 million.

These are two of more than 50 recommendations in the long-awaited, state-ordered report completed by The PFM Group that aims to ease fiscal strains and ween the capital city off of state aid.

More Information Sworn police officers per 1,000 population Figures reflect the ratio for daytime populations versus those living in the communities. Albany Daytime population ratio: 2-1 Residential population ratio: 3-4 Buffalo Daytime population ratio: 2-3 Residential population ratio: 2-9 Syracuse Daytime population ratio: 2-4 Residential population ratio: 3-1 Yonkers Daytime population ratio: 3-7 Residential population ratio: 3-0 Rochester Daytime population ratio: 2-5 Residential population ratio: 3-4 Schenectady Daytime population ratio: 2-1 Residential population ratio: 2-2 Utica Daytime population ratio: 2-2 Residential population ratio: 2-6 Source: "FY2017-FY2020 Financial Options" report by The PFM Group See More Collapse

The final suggestion of the report received Friday is a more common one: raise property taxes.

"The report provides ideas to draw from as the city examines potential cost-saving measures," said Brian Shea, Mayor Kathy Sheehan's chief of staff. "The premise of the report is providing us cost-saving options that would reduce our need for state aid. Some of the ideas we may agree with, and some we may not."

PFM's recommendations to increase revenue and cut expenses  some of which Albany is already implementing  include putting purchasing and payroll under one department, increasing sponsorship for special events or scaling back to meet available funding, sharing services with other localities and determining appropriate tax status for nonprofits.

Shea said administration officials will discuss the options with the Common Council and residents.

"To ensure that revenues keep pace with natural expenditure growth," the report states, "the city should regularly increase property taxes to the state-permitted cap."

Shea said discussion of hiking taxes must take into account the distribution of aid to other upstate cities that rely on a larger percentage of state aid to balance their budgets. For example, Buffalo receives $161 million in state aid and collects $69 million in property taxes, while Albany receives about $12.6 million in state aid to municipalities and collects $58 million in property taxes.

Albany gets a $15 million from a payment in lieu of taxes for Empire State Plaza  separate from the state aid that all cities receive.

The capital city was required to complete a deeper dive into its finances after Albany last year closed a $12.5 million budget gap with a spin-up  an advance on payments the state owes the city for the state plaza. For 2017, Albany secured the $12.5 million in new state money, which doesn't borrow from future PILOTs on the plaza as it has in the past.

Albany's administration remains committed to ensuring the capital city gets its fair share, Shea said.

"For a number of cities in upstate New York, their No. 1 source is state aid. For us, it's No. 3," he said. "The burden that we place on our property owners has already reached its breaking point. That was the case we provided to the state, and they agreed with us."

Shea said Albany has been centralizing services like payroll and purchasing, while discussing with Albany County consolidation of the city's 911 dispatch. The city also is looking into another suggestion in the report: buying city streetlights through a grant and upgrading lighting to LEDs to save $2.75 million, he said.

Plans to cut police and fire department payrolls could meet resistance. The report recognizes that Sheehan, at the start of her four-year term in 2014, tried to cut the Ladder 1 unit to save $1.2 million in overtime. Instead, the city and firefighters union agreed to several measures to cut overtime, which did not result in the targeted savings.

To view the full report, click here.

afries@timesunion.com  518-454-5353  @mandy_fries
London

Until a week ago, two things were widely agreed about Britain's upcoming general election: it was producing the dullest campaign in recent memory and the result was a foregone conclusion. It would be a coronation march for Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May.

Then a bomb blast killed 22 people at a concert in Manchester, bringing campaigning to a shocked halt. When the debates, ads and stump speeches resumed three days later, they were delivered to a jittery nation on a transformed political landscape.

Security now is the dominant theme in a contest that was supposed to be about Britain's exit from the European Union, with the main parties battling over which can keep Britain safer.

History suggests the tragedy should further bolster May. Violent attacks usually produce a "rally-round-the-flag effect" that boosts support for government and state institutions, Manchester University political science Professor Rob Ford said.

While campaigning was suspended, May remained highly visible in her role as head of government, making several televised statements that were praised as somber and steadying.

Yet the pause also seems to have solidified concerns about the lackluster campaign May was running before the suicide bombing at Manchester Arena. Polls which had given the prime minister's Tories as much as a 20-point lead over the left-leaning Labour Party have narrowed into the single figures.

The Guardian newspaper noted that Conservative confidence has been replaced by "the palpable sense of a Tory wobble."

May is an unelected and relatively untested prime minister. The Conservative Party picked her to replace David Cameron after his unexpected resignation in the wake of Britain's vote last June to leave the EU. May called an early election in a bid to increase her parliamentary majority and strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations.
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59
THE ISSUE:

New York taxpayers picked up the tab for expensive dinners by private developers.

THE STAKES:

It underscores why independent oversight is needed for state development projects.

More Information To comment: tuletters@timesunion.com or at http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion See More Collapse

---

Lavish, wine-soaked dinners at expensive restaurants, paid for by the taxpayers, may not be the biggest reason we need to restore greater oversight to the New York state's economic development programs, but they sure make the point.

The long list of frequent and expensive meals totaled thousands of dollars, billed to state government by executives for LPCiminelli, a major player in the state's Buffalo Billions effort to reverse the decades-long economic decline of Western New York. The expenses, which would not have been allowed under the rules that govern state agencies, were revealed by an independent news organization, the Investigative Post, which reviewed a year's worth of payment applications covering April 2014 to March 2015 and submitted by LPCiminelli to the state.

The Buffalo-based company is the lead contractor in the project to build a sprawling solar panel factory, the signature project of the state economic development program there. Three LPCiminelli executives, who have since left the firm, are among eight people facing federal corruption charges that allege bid rigging in the state projects.

Also charged are Joseph Percoco, a former top aide of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and the former president and CEO of SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Alain Kaloyeros.

Fort Schuyler Management Corp., the nonprofit development arm of Albany-based SUNY Poly, was overseeing the factory project. Since 2012, it has not been subject to the scrutiny of independent state comptroller, Thomas DiNapoli. That year, the Legislature voted to limit the comptroller's authority to review contracts by nonprofits like Fort Schuyler.

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As for the reimbursements for the extravagant meals, Fort Schuyler maintains it is not bound by the state rules governing expenses for things like food and lodging. LPCiminelli defends its expenses, arguing that if they were reimbursed by the state, it must mean they were OK.

Removing the comptroller's option to review construction contracts for projects under certain nonprofits was intended to expedite the process. Instead, according to federal prosecutors, it made the process more secretive and allowed the awarding of lucrative contracts to companies that made significant campaign contributions to candidates and have close ties to elected officials.

John Kaehny, of Reinvent Albany, a group that lobbies for openness and accountability in state government, has a better explanation: These nonprofit entities like Fort Schuyler exist simply to get around the law.

The Cuomo administration now says Empire Development Corp., the state's economic development arm, will oversee such contracts. Having the executive branch oversee itself is just not good enough.

The Legislature has time in the remaining weeks of its session to fix its mistake and restore the independent state comptroller's ability to review such projects  before we have more such scandals.
Hundreds of mourners packed into the Church of St. Nicholas in Solohead, County Tipperary this morning for the funeral of baby Chloe Fogarty who passed away in a tragic accident last Thursday.

The church was filled to capacity with many mourners lining the yard outside to pay their final respects to Chloe who would have turned eight months old tomorrow.

In a heartbreaking tribute to her only child Chloe's mother Louise stood before the crowd with her husband Paul by her side and told those present how little Chloe's face could light up every room, bringing an instantaneous smile to the face of everyone she met.

"You switched on a happiness in us that we never knew we had," she said, adding that every day was a cherished gift, and "never taken for granted."

She described Chloe's wonderful inquisitive nature and how she would fill with joy when she saw each of her little friends arrive to creche.

She told the packed congregation that the couple would stay strong together as it is "what you (Chloe) would have wanted."

Only two years earlier Chloe's parents had stood in front of the altar of St. Nicholas Church, Solohead to celebrate their wedding vows, returning to the church last February for Chloe's christening.

Parish Priest Fr John Morris read some of the many messages of condolences posted to the RIP.ie website adding that the entire country was praying for little Chloe.

During the funeral procession, gifts representing Chloe's love of swimming were brought to the altar. A swimming togs and bath toys were carried to the altar by family members alongside a book of nursery rhymes including Row Row Row Your Boat - a story which Chloe never tired of hearing read to her by her loving parents.

Also included were two of Chloe's favourite teddy's including one specially knitted by Chloe's grandmother Helen and a combined Limerick/ Tipperary jersey

The heartbroken mum also described finding an "artifical flower petal" in Chloe's room in the days following her death explaining how it did not belong to anything in the house. She said the couple believed it was a sign that Chloe was still with them.

During the Prayers of the Faithful, prayers were also offered for the work of the emergency services.

Chloe of Springfield Crescent, Rossmore Village, Dundrum Road, Tipperary Town, was pronounced dead in University Hospital Limerick on Thursday afternoon last after she had been found in an unresponsive state in a car in Dundrum at 1.45pm. It is understood that baby Chloe had been in the car for a number of hours. It is believed that Mr. Fogarty was distracted by a phone call as he got out of his car and was unaware he had left her in the vehicle. He had been due to drop Chloe off at a creche. When Mr. Fogarty returned to the car he found Chloe unresponsive. She was airlifted from Kickham's GAA field to University Hospital Limerick however doctors were unable to save the infant.

She was cherished and loved baby daughter of Louise & Paul and is sadly missed by her heartbroken parents, grandparents Helen & Christy McInerney and Mai & Joe Fogarty and the extended McInerney & Fogarty families.

Reposing took place at the family home on Sunday evening when hundreds of mourners came to sympathise with the heartbroken family.
Mary Callanan from Bouladuff has been awarded a Sunflower Hospice Hero award for her outstanding dedication to North Tipperary Hospice (Thurles Branch).





Mary Callanan

Mary, mother of renowned Tipp hurler Seamus Callanan, is described as one in a million and was among 23 volunteers across the country recognised for their contribution to hospice care during the national launch of Hospice Sunflower Days.

This annual fundraiser for the hospice movement in Ireland is taking place on Friday, June 9th and Saturday, June 10th. It is hoped 1million will be raised.

The Irish Hospice Foundation (IHF) coordinates the event on behalf of the hospice movement including North Tipperary Hospice. All funds raised locally, stay locally.

A spokesperson for North Tipperary Hospice said: Mary is one of the kindest, most generous, most pleasant people you could meet. She has a fantastic personality with the most infectious laugh. She is well known to make people happy by just being in her company. Among her many, many gifts and talents is her ability to accept people as they are and she never ever has a bad word to say about anyone.



Seamie Callanan in action for Tipp against Cork

Mary has been involved in North Tipperary Hospice since it was founded back in 1990. She involved herself in a sub-committee at that time working tirelessly fundraising. She has never relented from being involved and is now on the board of North Tipp Hospice. Mary is one of the founding members of Suir Haven Cancer Support Centre and is totally committed to the successful running of that centre.

Mary is the most unselfish, willing and active fundraiser one could imagine. She has never been heard to say no to attend any function involving North Tipperary Hospice. She is just one in a million with no job too big or too small. Marys dad Jim died of cancer many years previous to having any home care services.

A national survey commissioned by the IHF revealed that 75% of Irish people want to die at home  however only one in four get to do so. This is where Sunflower Days funds will help with the provision of hospice services in your area.

Speaking at the launch, RTEs Mary Kennedy said: Hearing the heroes stories today was inspiring. The feeling of human kindness was tangible and their dedication uplifting. Without the commitment of these men and women end of life would have been very different for many people and loved ones. Im encouraging everyone to support Sunflower Days. By simply buying a sunflower from one of our volunteers you are helping to bring comfort and dignity to people at end of life.

Pat Quinlan, Chief Executive Officer of Milford Care Centre and Chair of the Voluntary Hospices Group, continued: People matter and Hospice Care improves the lives of many who have a life-limiting condition in allowing them to live their lives as fully as possible right up to the moment of death. Hospice care is also about supporting families and loved ones up to and through bereavement in what is clearly a most challenging period in their lives. Thousands of people receive hospice care annually and funds raised through Sunflower Days helps meet this growing need. Hospices therefore are more reliant than ever on the goodwill of wonderful supporters and volunteers.

We are asking people to please support their local hospice service so that patients and families can get help at a time of greatest need. Sunflower Days is a vital source of funding for local hospice services and every Euro received can make a difference so please donate or if you have a few hours to spare please consider volunteering for your local hospice on the day.

IHF Andy Caffrey, Acting CEO said volunteers are the iron will that keep local hospices going. Local hospices fill a need in society. Their impact is immeasurable. Hospices rely on public goodwill to deliver their services. Hospice Sunflower Days is a countrywide opportunity to help your local group mind your community. We are very proud to be coordinating Hospice Sunflower Days for the past 27 years, he said.

People can support their local hospice service on June 9th and 10th by purchasing various pieces of Sunflower merchandise - including sunflower pins for 2 each from collectors on the streets of cities, towns and villages across Ireland.

For more information on how to volunteer with your local hospice service for Hospice Sunflower Days visit www.sunflowerdays.ie or email Maria McGrath mariakillns@gmail.com.
[May 29, 2017] HUAWEI Canada Announces Participants of Third Annual 'Seeds for the Future' Program

20 third year engineering students from nine universities across Canada selected to travel to China on work study program OTTAWA, May 29, 2017 /CNW/ - HUAWEI, one of the world's largest manufacturers of ICT and telecommunications equipment, today announced the 20 University engineering students selected to participate in its 'Seeds for the Future' program. Students will be gathering in Ottawa for two days of preparation at HUAWEI Canada's Research Centre before departing for China on Thursday, June 1 for a two-week professional and cultural trip. Now in its third year, 'Seeds for the Future' provides students an opportunity to experience firsthand the incredible advancement taking place in China's technology industry. Designed for Canadian engineering students, the program aims to build links between Canada and China, promote a greater understanding of career opportunities in the telecommunications sector, and to encourage participation in the international ICT community. "We are proud to offer this opportunity to another talented group of engineering students from across the country," said HUAWEI Canada President, Sean Yang. "This award-winning program has grown in popularity and we're happy to see that nearly half the students participating this year are women. This hands-on experience provides students with a once in a lifetime work and cultural exchange, with an opportunity to see China and its industry-leading innovation." "Our partners at HUAWEI have been fantastic. We look forward to continuing to develop these bright young minds and set them on these promising future career paths," said Jose Pereira, Director, Engineering Career Centre, University of Toronto. Students selected for 'Seeds for the Future' will be given first-hand learning opportunities through interactions with HUAWEI staff and visits to HUAWEI laboratories where they will witness live demonstrations of advanced communications technologies. The program also includes an opportunity to experience Chinese culture, and will include a visit to some well-known landmarks, including the Great Wall of China and the Forbidden City. Feedback from students who have been through the program has been extremely positive. "This program was a life changing experience in every way," said Karl Tanguay-Verreault a student at Carleton University who participated in the program last year. "Not only did it open my eyes to the beauty of Chinese culture but it also gave me hands-on experience with the technologies that will power the future of ICT." Selected from an impressive list of student applicants, the full list of participants are as follows:







Name University Hometown Ann Gunaratnam Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario Allison Sherwin Carleton University Stittsville, Ontario Kyle Bjornson Carleton University Stittsville, Ontario Sandryne David Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal Sainte-Julie, Quebec Rodolphe Brossard Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal Montreal, Quebec Olivier Carpentier Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal Montreal, Quebec Rana Fouad Khalil University of Ottawa Ottawa, Ontario Mohammed Amin Shanti University of Ottawa Ottawa, Ontario Zhi Jiang Ye University of Toronto Toronto, Ontario Alireza Nickooie University of Toronto Thornhill, Ontario Dawn Chandler Simon Fraser University Burnaby, British Columbia Gabriel Soares Simon Fraser University Vancouver, British Columbia Sumreen Rattan Simon Fraser University Surrey, British Columbia Serena Chao University of British Columbia Vancouver, British Columbia Colin Armstrong University of Waterloo Aurora, Ontario Anna-Maria Nalepa University of Waterloo Mississauga, Ontario Anshuman Gehlan University of Waterloo Brampton, Ontario Cameron David Mulligan University of Western Ontario Oakville, Ontario Riel Castro-Zunti University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Elizabeth Adams University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

HUAWEI is committed to partnering with Canadian universities in areas of advanced communications research. In 2017 Huawei will invest $10 million directly into research projects with universities across Canada. HUAWEI's Canada Research Centre in Ottawa has played a central role in establishing HUAWEI as one of the global leaders in transformative 5G technology and innovative research supported by Canadian universities. The HUAWEI Canada Seeds for the Future Program was awarded by the Canada-China Business Council in December 2016 in the 'Investing in Canada' Category at the 5th Canada-China Business Excellence Awards. About HUAWEI and HUAWEI Canada HUAWEI is a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider. HUAWEI's 177,000 employees worldwide are committed to developing innovative products that support operator, enterprise and consumer customers around the world. Founded in 1987, HUAWEI is a private company fully owned by its employees, and has been named by Interbrand as one of the world's top 100 brands  the first Chinese company to receive this recognition. HUAWEI Canada has been in operation since 2008, and now employs over 700 people in Canada. HUAWEI's innovative wireless products and services support many of Canada's leading telecommunications companies, and the HUAWEI Canada Research Centre is a national leader in advanced communications research, including 5G. HUAWEI is proud to be a key part of Canada's ICT Ecosystem, and is recognized as one of the Top 30 investors in research & development. SOURCE Huawei

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[May 29, 2017] Jindal Global University Calls for Countering Online Crimes at UN Panel in Vienna

SONIPAT, India and VIENNA, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Even as the increasing penetration of online communication and digital transactions has revolutionized the world, it has also spawned a series of cryptic threats - the menaces of digital piracy, cyber stalking, sextortion and online infidelity. The Jindal Institute of Behavioural Sciences (JIBS) of O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) took the lead in highlighting these threats at the 26th session of Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) held recently in Vienna. JGU, the only university participant at the international convention, organized two side events titled 'Victims of Online Communication' and 'Psychosocial and Cultural Aspects leading to Digital Piracy' in collaboration with World Society of Victimology and Centro Nationale de Prevenzione e Difesa Sociale. Over 1,000 participants from 32 countries representing member states, civil society, academia and international organizations participated in the 26th session of the CCPCJ which functions as a governing body of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). The forum began with a high-level opening session followed by thematic debates, examining crime prevention strategies and public participation, social policies and education in support of the rule of law. Subjects covered at side-events at the CCPCJ included health and justice, migrant smuggling, fostering peaceful and inclusive societies, cybercrime, the sustainable development goals, urban crime prevention, prisons, container control and femicide. Dr. Sanjeev P. Sahni, Principal Dirctor, JIBS, spoke on various forms of online victims ranging from cyberstalking, cyberbullying, sextortion, pornography and online infidelity. He highlighted the complexities surrounding the act of digital piracy and the underscored need for extensive research and training to understand the nuances of digital piracy.



Michael O' Connell, Commissioner for Victims' Rights, Government of South Australia, discussed the legal and moral complexities of online communication and said adolescents were primary victims of online scams. Speaking at the forum, Sarah Fletcher, Deputy Commissioner at World Society of Victimology, deliberated upon the rights of victims of online communication. She stressed upon the importance of post scam interventions for the victims apart from assistance from financial institutions. Dr. Indranath Gupta, Associate Professor at Jindal Global Law School, reflected upon the legal measures available to curb digital piracy and about their inadequacies. He suggested creating general awareness amongst citizens alongside strong enforcement as the ways to deal with the problem of digital piracy.

Ms. Garima Jain, Assistant Director, Centre for Victimology and Psychological Studies of JIBS, presented an empirical study on 'Internet Infidelity: Victims of Digital Age' and 'Psychosocial and Cultural aspects affecting Digital Piracy in India, Serbia and China'. The study revealed that people indulge in online infidelity due to peer influence, social isolation or psychological distress in primary relationships. UNODC, a global leader in the fight against illicit drugs and international crime was established in 1997 through a merger between the United Nations Drug Control Programme and the Centre for International Crime Prevention that operates in all regions of the world through an extensive network of field offices. The Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) was established by the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) resolution 1992/1. The Commission acts as the principal policymaking body of the United Nations in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice. About Jindal Institute of Behavioural Sciences (JIBS): Jindal Institute of Behavioural Sciences (JIBS) is a value-based research institute of O.P. Jindal Global University which is dedicated to understanding, developing and applying human process competencies through continuous experimentation, research and learning related to applied and experimental behavioural science focusing on broad areas like social sciences, mental health, competency mapping, neurosciences, neural decision sciences, cognitive sciences, psychobiology management sciences, forensic sciences, social psychology, criminal behaviors etc.

Media Contact:

Kakul Rizvi

Additional Director, Communication and Public Affairs

O.P. Jindal Global University

[email protected]

+91-8396907273





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[May 29, 2017] Data Center Rack PDU Market Size Worth $2.04 Billion by 2025: Grand View Research, Inc.

SAN FRANCISCO, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The global data center rack power distribution unit (PDU) market is expected to reach USD 2.04 billion by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. In a data center environment, a rack PDU aids in supplying power to server racks. The rising need for reliable power solutions is one of the key factor that is anticipated to have a positive impact on the market growth over the coming years. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160524/371361LOGO )

The recent years have observed an increase in the number of data centers that have faced power outages. This has led to the disruption of business operations and induced operators to equip their data centers with redundant power units to ensure higher availability. Furthermore, the increasing espousal of cloud-based services has encouraged cloud service providers to make investments for renovating their existing data center facilities and building new facilities, thereby, driving the data center rack PDU market. The adoption of these PDUs with smart features and higher power ratings, especially switched PDUs that witnessed a substantial progress in 2015, is also expected to drive the market growth. The demand of remote control, capacity planning, and power provisioning is increasing with the rising need for automation within data centers. These functions along with environmental monitoring and security features that rack PDUs empower drive the market growth. Organizations are focusing on procurement of solutions for increasing energy efficiency and managing power consumption, owing to the increase in power usage. PDU manufacturers are offering solutions with monitoring capabilities to control power consumption and ensure better usage of resources. In addition to decreasing power usage and increasing the efficiency of a data center, the solutions are also anticipated to reduce an organization's carbon footprint. Browse full research report with TOC on "Data Center Rack Power Distribution Unit (PDU) Market Analysis By Product (Basic Power Distribution Unit, Metered Power Distribution Unit, Intelligent Power Distribution Unit), And Segment Forecasts, 2014 - 2025" at: http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/data-center-rack-power-distribution-unit-pdu-market



Further key findings from the report suggest: The global data center rack power distribution unit market exceeded USD 1,000 million in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6% from 2017 to 2025 owing to an increasing demand for energy efficient power distribution products.

in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6% from 2017 to 2025 owing to an increasing demand for energy efficient power distribution products. Intelligent PDU is expected to be the most popular product during the forecast period, as it aids in reducing power wastage in data centers, and generate revenue exceeding USD 400 million by 2025

by 2025 The Asia Pacific region is projected to witness substantial growth over the coming years, owing to increasing espousal of cloud offerings from the major cloud service providers and government initiatives that encourage global data center operators to establish or expand their presence in the region

region is projected to witness substantial growth over the coming years, owing to increasing espousal of cloud offerings from the major cloud service providers and government initiatives that encourage global data center operators to establish or expand their presence in the region The key players, such as Cyber Power Systems, APC Corporation,Server Technology,Raritan Inc., Vertiv and Eaton, dominated the market in 2016, with an increased focus on introducing novel and innovating products in a bid to face competition. Browse related reports by Grand View Research:

White Box Server Market - http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/white-box-server-market Enterprise 2.0 Technologies Market - http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/enterprise-2.0-technologies-market GPS IC Market - http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/gps-ic-market In-flight Entertainment (IFE) Market - http://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/in-flight-entertainment-ife-market Grand View Research has segmented the global data center rack PDU market based on products and regions: Data Center Rack PDU Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) Basic PDU Metered PDU Intelligent PDU Switched PDU

Data Center Rack PDU Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2014 - 2025) North America U.S. Canada Europe UK Germany Asia Pacific China India Japan Latin America Brazil Mexico Middle East & Africa

Read Our Blog: http://www.grandviewresearch.com/blogs/technology About Grand View Research Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare. Contact:

Sherry James

Corporate Sales Specialist, USA

Grand View Research, Inc

Phone: +1-415-349-0058

Toll Free: +1-888-202-9519

Email: [email protected]

Web: http://www.grandviewresearch.com SOURCE Grand View Research, Inc.

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[May 29, 2017]

DoorDash Launches Door To Door Restaurant Delivery In Calgary

SAN FRANCISCO, May 29, 2017 /CNW/ -- DoorDash -- the technology company connecting customers with the best local businesses through door-to-door delivery -- today announced its launch in Calgary, AB, Canada. This announcement marks DoorDash's expansion into its 39th major metropolitan market across more than 350 cities in the U.S. and Canada.

Today's expansion into Calgary is DoorDash's third market in Canada, which follows the success of the company's Vancouver and Toronto launches in 2016 and 2015 respectively. Door-to-door delivery is now available across numerous Calgary neighborhoods from Silver Springs to Deer Ridge, and from Aspen Woods to Inglewood.

Calgary residents can order in from hundreds of their favourite restaurants, with a vast selection of cuisine types available on the platform. Delivery through DoorDash is available from 10am until 11pm daily from many Calgarian favourites, including:







Calgary

Megan Sereda

"DoorDash's launch in Calgary marks our continued investment in Canada and we're incredibly happy to offer the convenience of delivery to both customers and restaurants alike," said Tony Xu, CEO and co-founder of DoorDash

At launch, delivery fees will range from $0.99 to $3.99. To celebrate the launch, customers can order in a free pint of gelato from Fiasco Gelato via DoorDash on Wednesday, June 21st from 2-5 pm, while supplies last. Plus, new DoorDash customers can enjoy $10 off an order of $20 or more with promo code "DASHYYC".

To search DoorDash for local favourites or to discover your next go-to, visit doordash.com or download DoorDash for Android or iOS.

About DoorDash

DoorDash is a technology company that connects customers with their favorite local and national businesses in more than 350 cities across the United States and Canada. Founded in the summer of 2013, DoorDash empowers merchants to grow their businesses by offering on-demand delivery, data-driven insights, and better in-store efficiency, providing delightful experiences from door to door. By building the last mile delivery infrastructure for local cities, DoorDash is bringing communities closer, one doorstep at a time. Read more on the DoorDash blog or at www.doordash.com.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/doordash-launches-door-to-door-restaurant-delivery-in-calgary-300464862.html

SOURCE DoorDash
[May 29, 2017] Launch of 'Digital Serbia' Initiative: Serbia to Become Regional Digital Innovation Hub

ZURICH, May 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- "Digital Serbia" is the non-profit private partnership initiative launched by Ringier Axel Springer Serbia and leading tech companies. Its mission is to focus on improving the framework and ecosystem required to enable tech entrepreneurship and digital innovation in both industry and education in Serbia. The founding members of the initiative are Infostud, Microsoft, Nordeus, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Ringier Axel Springer, Seven Bridges, Startit, Telekom Srbija and Telenor. (Logo: http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/516958/Digital_Serbia_Logo.jpg )

"Digital Serbia" has been established as an association, bringing leading technology, IT and telecommunication companies together to drive digital innovation for Serbia and for its people. The Steering Committee of "Digital Serbia" will be made up of representatives of the founding companies. The Committee will be headed by Branko Milutinovic, CEO and co-founder of Nordeus. All of the association's activities will be directed towards setting up an improved framework and investment climate to encourage technological entrepreneurship, innovations in the Serbian IT industry and a better level of digital literacy and education in the digital economy. Companies who want to participate in the realization of this goal, and to contribute to tDigital Serbia, are invited to join. "Digital Serbia" has been launched following the success of "digitalswitzerland", and builds on the efforts of digital hubs such as London, Tel Aviv and Berlin, which joined the digital tech and innovation bandwagon early on. Jelena Drakulic-Petrovic, General Manager of Ringier Axel Springer Serbia and founder and initiator of the Digital Serbia Initiative: "Technological development brings unprecedented change at a high speed. Innovation in business and education helps to increase productivity. It allows for new solutions in the development of products ad services. As a media company, we believe in the importance of enhancing digital innovative strength in Serbia, as this will be the driver that helps to create new jobs and grow our business. With "Digital Serbia", we are seeking to unlock the vast potential we envisage for the Serbian economy and its people."



Branko Milutinovic, CEO and co-founder of Nordeus: "Thanks to digitalization, success can now be boiled down to its essence: creativity, know-how and professionalism. This is our opportunity. Together, we will work hard so Serbian innovations and success stories may develop from a stronger foundation and gain more attention. That's why our decision to invest in digital education and tech entrepreneurship is so important to the future of our entire community." "Digital Serbia" will provide basic information and support to innovative companies, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises in the IT sector, on how to operate in these areas, and will provide assistance to companies and society in establishing contacts through various forums and fairs. In addition, "Digital Serbia" will actively participate in identifying and addressing legal restrictions that slow down the development of e-Business in Serbia, and will provide active support for technology startups.



The website http://www.dsi.rs has been launched with detailed information about the initiative. A kick-off event for "Digital Serbia" will be held today on May 29, 2017, at Dom Omladine in Belgrade at 3 PM. Founding members will present a "Digital Manifesto" including the mission and goals of the initiative. Also building on the success of "digitalswitzerland" is the initiative "Digital Poland", which will be launched on June 1, 2017 in Krakow during the Impact Conference (http://www.impactcee.com). The initiative will be supporting digitization for the economy, supporting education and the legal system around issues relating to digitization and innovation, and helping companies in Poland to transition from offline to online. About "digitalswitzerland" digitalswitzerland is a joint partnership between businesses, public authorities and the scientific community, which wants to shape Switzerland as the leading international hub for digital innovation. digitalswitzerland is already active in a wide range of fields such as knowledge transfer, education, start-up ecosystems, and political framework conditions. The association includes more than 70 of the most renowned companies and organizations as well as innovative locations throughout Switzerland. The initiative was launched in 2015 by Marc Walder, CEO of Ringier AG. More info can be found at http://www.digitalswitzerland.com About Ringier Axel Springer Media AG Ringier Axel Springer Media AG was founded in 2010 by the Swiss Ringier AG and the German Axel Springer SE. The company operates in the growth markets of Poland, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania with a broad range of media services, comprising more than 165 digital and print offerings. The company's registered offices are in Zurich and it employs a total of about 3100 employees. Press contact

Alexandra Delvenakiotis

Group Director Communications and Public Affairs

Director Digital Media Campus

Ringier Axel Springer Media AG

Phone +41 44 267 29 14

[email protected]

http://www.ringieraxelspringer.com



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November 2022 is Subscriber Appreciation Month

We're launching a full month of surprises to say thank you to our most loyal subscribers!
A rural Saunders County man died Saturday evening in a mowing accident.

Jim Christensen, 68, was killed after he was pinned under a mower in a ditch about 2  miles northwest of Mead.

An initial investigation by the Saunders County Sheriffs Department indicates Christensen was mowing along the ditch near his residence when the mower rolled into the ditch pinning him under it.

The Saunders County 911 Center received a call for help from Christensens wife at 6:07 p.m.

Fire and rescue personnel from Mead and Wahoo, along with a Saunders County deputy and a Nebraska State Patrol trooper responded to the scene.

Life Net helicopter also was dispatched to the area.

Christensen was given cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), but pronounced dead at the scene at 6:55 p.m.
The purpose is to honor a physician who exemplifies, in the tradition of family medicine, a compassionate commitment to improving the health and well-being of people and communities throughout Nebraska. Nominations may be made by any individual who is close to the physicianpatients, colleagues, friends, family, etc. Candidates must be AAFP and NAFP members in good standing.
Depending on your specific television tastes, you either know David Duchovny from his iconic role as Fox Mulder on The X-Files, or as slutty alcoholic novelist Hank Moody on Californication. Youve maybe also seen him in drag on of Twin Peaks, or hunting Charles Manson in Aqaurius, (or as Tea Leonis handbag in The Entire 90s) but youve most likely never heard his 2015 album Hell of Highwater. Its good, moody 70s-sounding rock, and he means it, man.



Duchovny has decided that a run of shows up the Australian east coast is the best way to road-test the tunes from his upcoming second album, and frankly, we tend to agree. So he has announced five such shows, for next February.

There are meet and greet packages available for all shows, and if you nab one of those be sure to ask him if he believes in aliens in real life. Hell love it!

Sign up here for pre-sale, which opens 9m Wednesday, or wait til Friday for general tickets. As Fox Mulder always said, Its up to you, kid! Dates below.

David Duchovny Tour Dates

FRIDAY 23 FEBRUARY  170 RUSSELL , MELBOURNE

SATURDAY 24 FEBRUARY THE METRO THEATRE, SYDNEY

SUNDAY 25 FEBRUARY -ANITAS THEATRE, WOLLONGONG

WEDNESDAY 28 FEBRUARY, NEX AT WESTS CITY, NEWCASTLE

THURSDAY 1 MARCH, EATONS HILL HOTEL, BRISBANE

Presented by Select Touring and Blue Murder
Rosatom, the atomic energy corporation in Russia, has reported that the Middle East regions first VVER-1200 reactors will be installed at Egypts El Dabaa NPP, which will feature four units of the type with a total gross power output of 4,800 MW.



The project, the final contracts for which are expected to be signed later in the year, has received praise and recognition from local and regional officials, said a statement from the company.



VVER stands for water-water power reactor  meaning that water is used both as a neutron moderator and as coolant. The-1200 prefix denotes a gross power output of 1,200 MW, making VVER-1200 one of the worlds most powerful nuclear reactors.



The development of a new nuclear reactor technology from initial research to commissioning and commercial use is a time- and effort-consuming process that normally takes years, if not decades, the company said.



This means that the launch of a next-generation reactor design is always a major milestone in the global energy industry.



With Generation IV designs still on the drawing board, the next step in nuclear reactor technology from Generation III is Generation III+, developed to have enhanced safety systems, a longer operational lifetime and decreased both core damage and large release frequencies, among other features.



Unit 6 of the Novovoronezh NPP in central Russia entered into operation in February 2017, becoming the first  and to date only  Gen 3+ reactor in commercial use. The unit features a VVER-1200 pressurised water reactor design developed by Rosatom, Russias nuclear power corporation.



VVER-1200s enhanced features include its extended operational lifetime (60 years for the reactor unit) and enhanced safety systems that comply with the most stringent international regulations introduced after the Fukushima NPP incident.



VVER-1200s key innovation is the use of both conventional active safety systems and additional passive safety systems that neither require the intervention of nuclear power plant personnel nor power supply nor act as an additional protection against any potential human error.



The unit is designed to withstand all sorts of catastrophic events such as earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes and plane crashes. The project was stress-tested under more extreme conditions than those that existed during the Fukushima NPP incident, which included an imitation of every hypothetical scenario imaginable as a total loss of power for up to 72 hours.



Even in a worst-case scenario where a meltdown-type accident does occur, VVER-1200s double containment and so-called core catcher will prevent a radioactive release into the atmosphere. Unit 6 of the Novovoronezh NPP passed more than 20 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safety inspections and was recognised by the agencys experts as one of the safest nuclear reactor designs in history. The unit also hosted six World Association of Nuclear Operators (Wano) inspections. Wano chairman Jacques Regaldo, who visited the unit shortly after its commercial launch, in March 2017, acknowledged the importance of the worlds first Generation 3+ unit going live and praised the achievement.



The reactor design was developed specifically with a view to being suitable for a wide variety of geographic locations, landscape features and types of soil. This will come in handy, seeing as several VVER-1200 units are already under construction or planned in countries as diverse as Russia, Belorussia, Finland, Hungary, Egypt, Turkey and Bangladesh.



Secretary general of Egypts Energy and Environment Committee Alaa Salaam also spoke publicly in support of the project, sayding the El Dabaa NPP will give Egypt a clean energy source.



The nuclear power reactors to be installed at the El Dabaa NPP do not emit gases that contribute to the greenhouse effect.



Former IAEA chief inspector Yousri Abu Shadi assured the people of Egypt that the El Dabaa NPP design will feature the most modern safety systems and is preferable to conventional thermal power stations.



He also noted that the each VVER-1200 unit of NPP will generate $1 billion per year for the countrys economy.  TradeArabia News Service
Pure Gold Jewellers has secured the immediate release of 400 insolvent prisoners in Bahrain following the expansion of its Forgotten Society initiative to help debt-laden prisoners, the company said.

Firoz Merchant, founder and chairman of Pure Gold Jewellers, met with Shaikh Khalid bin Ali bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, Bahrains Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowment, recently to implement the programme in Bahrain.

Forgotten Society aids in the release of insolvent prisoners irrespective of their religion and nationality, and Bahrain is now the second beneficiary of the programme, after the UAE.

As the first phase of the programme, Merchant has pledged BD120, 000 ($350,000) annually to buy air tickets for indebted prisoners in Bahrain who have completed their jail terms but have no financial means to return to their countries, said the statement.

In co-ordination with the government authorities in Bahrain, he has secured the immediate release of 400 prisoners, the statement added.

Merchant said: The first batch of prisoners will be released as soon as possible, so they can reunite with their families. This will be our Ramadan gift. We also plan to extend our Forgotten Society programme to reach out to more countries. By helping insolvent prisoners, most of them victims of circumstances, we are able to give them a second chance in life.

Pure Gold Jewellers is an award winning jewellery retailer recognised for excellent customer service. It is now one of the fastest growing jewellery brands with 125 stores in the UAE, GCC, Asia and Asia Pacific. It is the only D certified World Diamond Mark authorised diamond retailer in the GCC region, the company said.  TradeArabia News Service
Hyundai Motor Group aims to develop a stronger presence in Irans auto market, said an Iranian motor company official.



Hyundai, as a first step, intends to increase satisfaction among its Iranian customers and market its products in the country based on a more appropriate system of supply and demand, Saman Firouzi, managing director of Kerman Motor Company, was quoted as saying in an Iran Daily News report, citing Irna.



He said that Kerman Motor Company, a producer of some models of Hyundai cars, will continue its cooperation with the Chinese automotive companies as well.



Firouzi added that the support given to the Islamic Republic by Chinese companies during the Western-imposed sanctions against Iran will not be forgotten.
Royal Jordanian, the national carrier of Jordan, has appointed Stefan Pichler as president/chief executive officer of the company, succeeding Captain Suleiman Obeidat.



Pichler, who will take on the new role from June 1, comes with a broad experience that extends for over 30 years in the aviation industry, as he had previously occupied the position of chief executive officer of Air Berlin, the chairman and managing director of Fiji Airways, the chief executive officer of Al Jazeera airlines, the chief commercial officer and deputy CEO of the Australian Virgin airlines and the chief executive officer of Thomas Cook leisure group. Pichler had started his career in sales at Lufthansa Airlines working and gradually assuming the position of the chief commercial officer of Lufthansa.



The chairman, Said Darwazah, welcomed Pichler into Royal Jordanian expressing his confidence in Pichlers professional capabilities and rich experience directly related to the management and the operation of international airlines, highlighting that his selection for this position has come after a long process conducted by Royal Jordanians board of directors.



The chairman extended on this occasion his appreciation to Captain Suleiman Obeidat for having led the airline during this transitional stage since his designation by the board in October 2015.



Pichler holds an MBA from the Augsburg University in Germany and has participated in several specialised and multi-disciplinary courses and programs in the airline industry including commercial, operational, services, management, finance and tourism fields. - TradeArabia News Service


Including Somerset Ekamai Bangkok, Ascott currently has a portfolio of 18 serviced residences with over 3,300 units in Thailand

(TRAVPR.COM) Singapore, 29 May 2017  CapitaLands wholly owned serviced residence business unit, The Ascott Limited (Ascott), continues to expand its presence in Thailand with the opening of its 11th property  Somerset Ekamai Bangkok. The 262-unit property is in Ekamai, one of Bangkoks most attractive destinations for locals, expatriates and tourists. With Somerset Ekamai Bangkok, Ascott currently has a portfolio of 18 serviced residences with over 3,300 units across three cities  Bangkok, Sri Racha and Pattaya  in Thailand.

Mr Jean Keijdener, Ascotts Country General Manager for Thailand, said: Somerset Ekamai Bangkok is well-located in one of the citys trendiest districts  Ekamai, which is home to top-notch restaurants, bars, cafes, office buildings, and international schools. The place is also an upscale residential area popular with locals and expatriates working in the Central Business District and Thailands Eastern Seaboard, the countrys economic growth engine. Somerset Ekamai Bangkok offers great connectivity to other parts of Bangkok as it is only a few minutes walk from Ekamai BTS Skytrain station and a short drive from the Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang International Airports.

He added: Guests of Somerset Ekamai Bangkok will have easy access to a wide range of eateries, fashion and F&B outlets at nearby malls such as Gateway Ekamai Shopping Mall, Park Lane Community Mall and Major Cineplex Sukhumvit. With its multiconference centre, alongside its premium serviced apartments, recreational facilities and a restaurant, Somerset Ekamai Bangkok is one of the most ideal venues for business travellers who prefer the convenience of being able to work, live and play under the same roof. It will also appeal to leisure travellers looking for quality accommodation while discovering the interesting places in Bangkoks hipster enclave.

Somerset Ekamai Bangkok comprises three modern towers offering 262 studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments. Of these 262 apartments, 130 of them are premium serviced apartments, 81 are available for long-stay corporate leasing while 51 single-bedroom apartments are designed to facilitate meetings, discussions and collaboration between rooms.

Guests can take a leisurely dip in the swimming pool, enjoy a relaxing Thai massage at the massage parlour, keep fit at the gymnasium or dine at The Cured Chamber restaurant. For those with children, they can also keep them occupied at the indoor and outdoor playgrounds. Meanwhile, the multiconference room that houses an auditorium room and well-equipped meeting rooms also provide a conducive environment for meetings, seminars and training workshops. Guests can retreat to the comfortable and spacious apartments after a long day of business discussion or exploration of the city.

To celebrate the opening of the property, Somerset Ekamai Bangkok is offering special rates starting from THB 1,300++ per night for single-bedroom apartments and THB 2,800++ per night for premium serviced residence units from now till 31 October 2017.

Besides Somerset Ekamai Bangkok, Ascott is currently managing another 10 properties in Thailand, which include Ascott Sathorn Bangkok, Somerset Lake Point Bangkok, Somerset Park Suanplu Bangkok, Somerset Sukhumvit Thonglor Bangkok, Citadines Sukhumvit 8 Bangkok, Citadines Sukhumvit 11 Bangkok, Citadines Sukhumvit 16 Bangkok, Citadines Sukhumvit 23 Bangkok, Metropole Bangkok, as well as Citadines Grand Central Sri Racha. Another seven properties across the cities of Bangkok, Pattaya and Sri Racha are in the pipeline.

About The Ascott Limited

The Ascott Limited is a Singapore company that has grown to be one of the leading international serviced residence owner-operators. It has over 30,000 operating serviced residence units in key cities of the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East, as well as over 21,000 units which are under development, making a total of more than 52,000 units in over 300 properties. The company operates three award-winning brands  Ascott, Citadines and Somerset, along with The Crest Collection and lyf. Ascotts portfolio spans more than 100 cities across 29 countries.

Ascott, a wholly owned subsidiary of CapitaLand Limited, pioneered Asia Pacific's first international-class serviced residence with the opening of The Ascott Singapore in 1984. Today, the company boasts over 30 years of industry track record and award-winning serviced residence brands that enjoy recognition worldwide.

Ascotts achievements have been recognised internationally. Recent awards include DestinAsian Readers Choice Awards 2017 for Best Serviced Residence Brand; TTG China Travel Awards 2017 for Best Serviced Residence Operator in China; World Travel Awards 2016 for Leading Serviced Apartment Brand in Asia, Europe and the Middle East; Business Traveller Asia-Pacific Awards 2016 for Best Serviced Residence Brand; Business Traveller Middle East Awards 2016 for Best Serviced Apartment Company; Business Traveller UK Awards 2016 for Best Serviced Apartment Company and Business Traveller China Awards 2016 for Best Serviced Residence Brand. For a full list of awards, please visit www.the-ascott.com/ascottlimited/awards.html.

About CapitaLand Limited
Mohit Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 28

From teaching students to travelling over 20 km, the son of a school bus driver scored 92.6 per cent in non-medical stream without taking any tuition classes.

Ravi Singh, a student of Government Model School, Sector 16, overcame many obstacles during the course of his studies. Ravi used to travel all the way from Rajgarh village in Panchkula to attend school. He started teaching students of Classes X and XI to raise money so that his parents do not have to foot the expenses incurred on the education.

Teaching students used to consume a lot of my time. I was left with a few hours to revise what was taught to me in the school. Yes, preparing for exams without any external support is tough. But I motivated myself and continued to study, said Ravi looking at his father.

Kulwinder Singh, who was a proud father today, said: While ferrying schoolchildren in the bus, I always dreamt that one day my children will also do well in studies. He said Ravi was good at studies since childhood.

Medical and non-medical are expensive subjects. When Ravi decided to opt for non- medical, I felt helpless. Despite the hardship and financial constraints, Ravi cleared the exam with flying colours, said Kulwinder Singh. Ravi gave credit to his parents and teachers for his success. It is all due to my teachers. They used to help me a lot. They were always ready to offer help whenever I used to call them for any query, said Ravi. Ravi, who has cleared JEE (Main), says he is looking forward to pursue his career in computer engineering.

RAVI SINGH

92.6%

Non-Medical

Success story
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 29

A rickshaw-puller was found dead on Monday with his throat slit under a bridge at Sector 17 here.

The deceased has been identified as 40-year-old Sukhram. Police suspect that the murder was the result of an alleged fight on Sunday night.

A case has been registered at Sector 17 police station. Police are scanning the CCTV footage of the area. Cops have identified the accused saying they would soon arrest the accused.

In another case, a 70-year-old labourer was killed following a fight with his friend in Manimajra.

Police said they had arrested one of the accused. Three people are said to be involved in the case. The family of the deceased said the accused and victim had gone to Manimajra police station where the accused pushed the victim who died inside the police station. Police said the incident took place outside the station.
Our Correspondent

Patiala, May 28

Yashika Kakkar of Guru Nanak Foundation (GNF) Public School topped the district in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) senior secondary examination results declared today.

Yashika, a student of humanities stream, scored 97.8 per cent marks.

Simranjit Kaur of Budha Dal Public School (BDPS), here stood second with 97 per cent marks in commerce stream and Gursimran Kaur of GNF Public School bagged the third position with 96.6 per cent marks in commerce stream.

In the stream-wise results, Yashika topped in humanities, Simranjit in commerce, and Preeyati Chopra of Bhupindra International Public School (BIPS), Patiala, in medical stream with 95.8 per cent marks. In non-medical stream, Disha Singla of the BDPS and Katinder Kaur of Sri Aurobindo Public School, Patiala, jointly secured the title position with 96.4 per cent marks.

District topper Yashika, when asked about her career choices, said she wanted to become an IAS officer and had already started preparing for its test.

I want to serve the society by becoming an administrative official and pursue my graduation from a top-level institution, Yashika said.

She said the support of her teachers and parents helped her to achieve the desired results.

She said, I was confident of getting good marks in the examination. I am thankful to the Almighty, family and teachers for inspiring me to perform better.

Simranjit, who settled second with 97 per cent marks, said her teachers always inspired her to perform better and the unconditional support of parents helped her to obtain 485 marks.

Gursimran Kaur also thanked her teachers and parents for their help and support.

School-wise results at a glance

Guru Nanak Foundation Public School: Guru Nanak Foundation Public School again created history with Yashika Kakkar from the school topping Patiala district with 97.8 per cent in humanities stream. She scored 96 in political science, 98 in sociology, 96 in English, 99 in physical education and 100 in painting. Jyoteshwar secured 91 per cent and Parneet Kaur secured 88.2 per cent in humanities. In non- medical stream, Shivam topped by securing 94.8 per cent, Abhishek secured 93.8 per cent and Yashwika secured 93.4 per cent. In commerce stream, Gursimran Kaur topped by securing 96.6 per cent followed by Kirat Kaur Virk with 95.2 per cent and Jashanpreet Kaur secured 95 per cent. In medical stream, Navneet Kaur topped with 93.4 per cent, followed by Surneet Kaur at 92.8 per cent and Vidhu Arora secured 92 per cent.

Bhupindra International Public School: Bhupindra International Public School is in the limelight with Preeyati Chopra from the school topping Patiala with 95.8 per cent in medical stream. She scored 97 marks in Physics, 97 in Chemistry, 97 marks in Biology. Manbir Singh Bassan has scored 94.6 per cent  95 marks in physics, 95 marks in chemistry and 95 marks in biology. Harsha Singla got 93.6 per cent  92 marks in physics, 92 marks in chemistry and 95 in biology. Ashwini Sharma topped by securing 96 per cent in non medical by scoring 95 marks in physics, 98 marks in chemistry and 100 marks in mathematics. Devang Mahesh secured 95.8 per cent by bagging 97 marks in physics, 95 marks in chemistry, 100 marks in mathematics. Manavbir Singh Gill secured 95.6 per cent by scoring 95 marks in physics, 95 marks in chemistry and 95 marks in mathematics. Jyoti Singh topped in commerce with 96.2 per cent  95 marks in accountancy, 95 marks in economics and 95 marks in business studies.

Budha Dal Public School: The students of Budha Dal Public School have scored sky-rocketing marks in the CBSE Class XII Examination. In all, 410 students appeared for the examination and 15 students have scored 95 per cent & above, 52 scored more than 90 per cent and 133 have scored more than 80 per cent. The school topper is Simranjit Kaur with 97 per cent in commerce stream. In non-medical stream, Disha Singla topped with 96.4 per cent, Onkar Hothi secured the first position with 94.2 per cent and in humanities, Astha Dubey clinched the title position with 91.4 per cent.

Scholar Fields Public School: The students of Scholar Fields Public School brought glory to the school by proving their mettle in the CBSE Class XII Examination results. Rishika Jindal topped the school (medical stream) with 95 per cent, followed by Satvik Gupta with 93.6 per cent, Jaskanwal Singh with 92.4 per cent, Vakul Bansal with 92 per cent, Srisht Fateh with 91.8 per cent and Gunreet Kaur with 90 per cent in non-medical stream. Garima topped in commerce stream with 89.6 per cent and Harkiran Kaur dominated humanities stream with 89 per cent.

Narain Public School: From humanities stream, Peenahat got first position with 94.8 per cent and Karanbir Singh scored 84.6 per cent. From medical stream, Himakshi got 93.6 per cent, Rashanpreet got 91.8 per cent, and Anmol Kaur got 93 per cent. From non-medical stream, Kiranpreet got 93 per cent, Khushnuma got 91.8 per cent, Anoop Gopal got 92.6 per cent, Shivani Goyal got 89.6 per cent and Puneet got 88.6 per cent. From commerce stream, Harman Singh was first with 96.2 per cent, Gunjan was second with 95.2 per cent and Mankiran was third with 90.4 per cent.

Mata Gujri Senior Secondary School: Mata Gujri Senior Secondary School, Guthmara, Devigarh, bagged 20 merits. In all, 135 school students appeared for the examinations. The school management congratulated the students, staff and parents. In commerce stream, Suman got 92.2 per cent, Yuvraj Singh secured 90.8 per cent in humanities, and Navreet Kaur topped the school with 89.6 per cent in science stream.

Blossoms Senior Secondary School: The students of Blossoms Senior Secondary School have come out with flying colours in the CBSE Results. In all, 89 students had appeared for the exams and the overall pass percentage is 95.5 per cent. Suvidha has secured the first position in medical stream with 94.8 per cent, followed by Nehal with 93.2 per cent and Saksham Sharma with 91.2 per cent. In non-medical stream, Abhit Zakhmi has secured the first position with 94.6 per cent and Manavi has secured second position with 91.1 per cent, followed by Shreya with 87.8 per cent. In commerce stream, Harkomal Kaur has secured fist position by getting 86.8 per cent. Sarishti Goyal has secured the first position in humanities with 81.2 per cent.

Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Public School: The staff and students are overwhelmed with the outstanding performances in CBSE XII results. In non-medical stream, Mohit Gupta clinched the title position in school with 85.4 per cent marks; in medical stream, Jasnoor Kaur topped with 91 per cent; in commerce, Rohan Bansal with 92.6 per cent, followed by Sukhwinder Kaur with 91 per cent; and in arts, Gurnoor Kaur topped the school with 88.6 per cent.

St Peters Academy: Students of St Peters Academy have excelled in the 2016-17 CBSE Examinations. Top position was bagged by Ramneek Kalsi of medical Stream with 95.6 per cent, followed by Tanveer Kaur with 93.4 per cent. From non-medical stream, Nikhil Sharma scored 91 per cent and Preeti per cent. From commerce stream, Teesta Bhardwaj scored 92.6 per cent.

Akal Academy Reeth Kheri: In all, 65 students of Akal Academy Reeth Kheri appeared for the senior secondary CBSE examination. Principal Shaminder Pal Kaur congratulated all students and their parents. Medical stream topper is Harjinder Singh with 95.4 per cent, Navneet Kaur with 95 per cent in non-medical stream, Navdeep Kaur with 91.6 per cent in commerce stream and Lovekaran Singh with 93.8 per cent is the topper of arts stream.

St Xaviers School: In all, 42 students of the school appeared for the CBSE examination. Chirag Singla topped commerce stream with 95 per cent. In non-medical stream, Muskan Garg got the first position by scoring 94 per cent, followed by Aanchaldeep Kaur with 84 per cent.

Apollo Public Senior Secondary School: Apollo Public Senior Secondary School students registered outstanding result. A total of 121 students had appeared, out of which 15 students have scored more than 90 per cent, 35 students scored more than 80 per cent and 40 students scored more than 70 per cent. Mukul Goyal of science stream scored 96 per cent, followed by Ashima with 93.6 per cent, Bharti Goyal with 92.2 per cent, Hrithik with 91.6 per cent and Jagatjit with 91 per cent.

Modern Senior Secondary School: Muskan of science stream scored 94 per cent marks, Eshita Goyal of commerce stream scored 92.2 per cent marks and Navjot Kaur of humanities scored 91 per cent. School Principal Tripatjit Kaur congratulated the students, teachers and parents.

Police DAV School: Students of Police DAV Public School scored good marks in the CBSE Class XII results. In medical stream, Kartik Verma got 93.6 per cent, Komalpreet Kaur Brar received 82.6 per cent, Sonia Sharma got 82.6 per cent and Fatehvir Singh got 80.4 per cent. In non-medical stream, Yashasvi Goel scored 92.8 per cent, Komaldeep Kaur got 81 per cent and Jashandeep Sohal got 80 per cent. In commerce stream, Jasleen Kaur scored 91 per cent, Navleen Kaur got 90.4 per cent and Gursimran Kaur scored 89.2 per cent. In humanities, Harkamal Singh Nagra scored 88.2 per cent, Harmanveer Singh scored 87.6 per cent and Ajay Kumar got 80.8 per cent.

Ryan International School: In non-medical stream, Jaskirat Kaur topped with 91.4 per cent, followed by Shivanshu Kashyap with 91.2 per cent and Mohit Dhawan with 90.8 per cent. In commerce, the highest achievers are Kalindi Jindal with 90.6 per cent, Anmol Verma with 90.4 per cent and Bhushan Gupta with 81 per cent. In humanities stream, the top scorers are Kirat Dhillon with 89.8 per cent, Sandeep Kaur with 88.4 per cent and Hussanpreet Singh with 83.8 per cent.

DAV Public School: Students of Class XII of DAV Public School made the institution proud by excellent performance in the AISSCE-2017. The total of 177 students appeared in this examination, of which 21 passed with 90 per cent and above. In commerce stream, Harshita stood first with 96.2 per cent, followed by Aishwarya with 95.4 per cent and Yashica Rao with 95.2 per cent. In non-medical, Jashan Sanger clinched the title position with 95.2 per cent followed by Angelica with 95 per cent and Sampurna Patnaik with 94.8 per cent. In medical stream, Akanksha Aggarwal is first with 92.8 per cent, Parushi Garg is second with 90.2 per cent and Deepanshi Mittal settled third with 89 per cent.

Budha Dal Public School, Samana: Students of Budha Dal Public School Samana have excelled in the CBSE Class XII examination. Out of a total 145 students who appeared this year, 15 students have scored 90 per cent and above, 37 students have scored 80 per cent and above, 31 students have scored 70 per cent and above. School toppers are Himika with 95.2 per cent from humanities stream, Muskanjot Kaur with 94 per cent from medical stream, Bhabia Jain with 92.8 per cent from commerce and Pratham Sharma and Ramandeep Singh both with 92.2 per cent from non-medical stream.

District topper

"I want to become an IAS officer and have already started preparing for it. I want to serve society by becoming an administrative official and pursue my graduation from a top-level institution"

Yashika Kakkar

Class XII District topper
Vishal Joshi

Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, May 29



Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday cautioned youth against falling prey to the terror designs of global fundamentalist forces.



Addressing the 30th convocation address of Kurukshetra University here, Singh said the ancient Indian ethos were based on universalism and brotherhood and it must be retained for development of modern society.



He drew a contrast between the youths working in IT giant Infosys and terror outfit al-Qaeda, saying while one was working in the interest of society, the other was for its destruction.



Thomas L Friedman in his book The world is flat has written an essay on comparing Infosys with al-Qaeda. Friedman said Infosys has a global network and so does al-Qaeda. The youth are in Infosys as well as al-Qaeda. He also said that highly-talented youths are in Infosys and al-Qaeda. The difference is only their thinking. One believes in creative thinking while other believes in destructive thinking, he said quoting the article.



Singh told students the ultimate aim of education should not be to just get a job and make a living but maintaining values.



He said Indias contribution had been acknowledged worldwide for yoga, ayurveda, organic farming and other fields of science.



Panchang is among such ancient Indian heritage that shows penetration of science in the society. India has several other advancements in various sciences and mathematics but certain people unnecessarily cast doubt over wisdom on ancient Indian civilisation, said the minister.



Singh, who was honoured with Doctorate of Science, honoris causa, clarified he deserved it as a student of science and not as a politician.



Though scores of my research papers were published in various journals, it was my conscious decision to stay from getting a doctorate degree. My viva was scheduled when I was made Education Minister in Uttar Pradesh and I introduced stringent anti-copying Act. I did not want anyone to allege that I used my political position to influence my academic work, said the minister.






Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, May 29



Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khatar on Monday said the government would open at least 27 more colleges in the state.



At the Kurukshetra Universitys convocation function, Khattar said during mapping of colleges, 27 spots had been identified where colleges were located at a distance of more than 10-km radius.



Government has formulated a policy under which a student will have a college within 10-km distance, he said.



On being informed the Kurukshetra University was organising convocation after five years, Khattar advised university administration to make convocation an annual feature.



On the occasion, Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki, the ex-officio Chancellor of KU, honoured Khattar with Doctor of Literature, honoris causa, in Social Science.






New Delhi, May 29

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and wife Pratibha Singh were on Monday granted bail by a special court here in connection with a Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case.

Special Judge Virender Kumar Goyal granted the relief to all the accused on a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh each and one surety of the like amount.

The court, however, asked them not to leave the country without its permission.

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Earlier in the day, the CBI had opposed the bail plea of the Chief Minister saying they might influence the witnesses and the ongoing probe in a disproportionate assets case against them.

The public prosecutor said Singh was the king of the state, and if granted bail, no one would come forward to depose before the court.

In their bail plea, Virbhadra and the other accused submitted that the investigation was complete as the CBI had already filed the chargesheet.

But the CBI said the investigation in the case was still on and granting of bail might hamper it.

The 82-year-old politician had also cited several medical reports, saying he was suffering from serious ailments.

The accused persons also claimed that they would be able to look after their case in a better way if they were out on bail.

Singh and wife Pratibha Singh on May 22 appeared as accused in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case and sought bail.

The CBI has chargesheeted Virbhadra Singh, his wife, Universal Apple Associate owner Chunni Lal Chauhan, stamp paper vendor Joginder Singh Ghalta, Managing Director of Tarani Infrastructure Vakamulla Chandrasekhar and co-accused Lawan Kumar Roach, Prem Raj and Ram Prakash Bhatia for the alleged offences, including criminal conspiracy, forgery and corruption.

The chargesheet also names as accused LIC agent Anand Chauhan, who was arrested in the case and is currently in judicial custody.

The court had on May 8 summoned them after taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the CBI. PTI
Ishfaq Tantry

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, May 29

Curfew and restrictions continued on the second consecutive day of the separatist-sponsored shutdown in the Valley today. The overall situation in the Kashmir valley, however, showed a marked improvement today.

The separatists had given a two-day shutdown call on Saturday following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Ahmed Bhat and his associate in an encounter at Tral in Pulwama district on Saturday. Kashmir witnessed spontaneous protests and shutdown following Sabzars killing. The separatists have also called for a March to the Tral area tomorrow to show solidarity with the slain militants.

Taking no chances, the administration has decided to continue curfew and restrictions in notified areas tomorrow. There are signs of improvement but it has been decided to continue with the current law and order arrangement on Tuesday as well, District Magistrate, Srinagar, Farooq Ahmad Lone said, adding that it has also been decided to keep all educational institutions like schools and colleges in Srinagar closed on Tuesday.

As there was no immediate provocation today, the situation in almost all parts of the Kashmir valley, including the Tral area, remained peaceful. There were no reports of any major protests or stone-throwing till the filing of this report.

There was significant vehicular movement on the city roads today and the traffic on the inter-district highways also resumed to a greater extent. The train services, however, continued to remain suspended on the second consecutive day today for security reasons.

Fearing a repeat of the 2016-like situation when Hizb commander Burhan Wani was killed, the authorities this time imposed curfew and restriction in volatile parts, besides snapping mobile Internet and prepaid telephone immediately after the news of Sabzars killing was out on Saturday.

Appearing to have learnt lessons, the security forces, including the police and CRPF, deployed for maintaining law and order, showed restraint even as 24 incidents of stone-throwing were reported on Saturday, the day Sabzar was killed.

Schools, colleges to remain shut today

Srinagar: According to the Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, Baseer Ahmad Khan, the classwork in all schools, higher secondary institutions and colleges of the Kashmir valley shall remain suspended on Tuesday as a precautionary measure, an official statement said. TNS

Train services hit
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 29

The Congress today asked Home Minister Rajnath Singh to explain the contours of his so-called permanent solution to the Kashmir problem.

Referring to remarks by Rajnath that the government had come up with a permanent solution to the Kashmir issue and had begun implementing it, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said, The Home Minister says the government has thought of a permanent solution to Kashmir. He also said the initiative has begun. Will the Minister please inform the people what the contours and calculations of this permanent solution are? Anyone acquainted with history knows that the phraseology permanent and final solution has extremely dangerous connotations.

Tewaris unstated reference was to the Final Solution Nazi Germany evolved to exterminate Jews under the reign of Adolf Hitler. When asked if thats what he meant, Tewari escaped a direct reference to history but said he was only asking the government to reveal the nuances of its permanent solution.

Historically permanent solutions have had dangerous consequences, he said.

Tewari also wondered why the statement of Home Minister was coming at the time of increasing distance between partners BJP and PDP in the ruling J&K coalition.

When Mehbooba Mufti became CM, she said talks with Hurriyat and Pakistan were part of the alliance understanding with the BJP. The BJP, however, is playing a jingoistic nationalistic card. This ideologically incompetent alliance has driven J&K to the edge. We want to ask the CM why she does not pull out of the alliance when the BJP cant agree to anything she says and why cant the BJP withdraw when there is no meeting ground between allies? Tewari said predicting further dangers to national security fabric from the PDP-BJP alliance. He said it was high time the government woke up.

Winning hearts part of counter-terrorism

On Army Chief Gen Bipan Rawats defence of Maj Leetul Gogoi, who used a local Kashmiri as a human shield to protect his soldiers, Tewari said, The Army is dealing with a tough situation in Kashmir. But let us not forget the Indian Army has the widest experience in counter insurgency and a lot of countries take lessons from our Army. Fundamental to counter-terrorism operations is winning the hearts and minds of people. We would leave it at that. TNS
Shiv Kumar

May has been a lucky month for Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. After walking out unscathed from a crashed helicopter, Fadnavis showed he had what it took to cut troublesome ally Shiv Sena to size.

Deft political maneuvering by the Chief Minister ahead of elections to four important local bodies in the state ensured that the BJP stole a march over its regional ally. The CMs men kept the Shiv Sena hanging on till the last minute over sharing of seats for the newly constituted Panvel Municipal Corporation and finally decided to go it alone.

While the national party swept the polls in Panvel, the Sena, which rules both neighbouring Mumbai and Thane, scored a duck. The Congress and the NCP, too, had little to show in this new city where a slew of infrastructure projects, including the Navi Mumbai airport, are being constructed.

The Shiv Sena barely managed to mark its presence in the Muslim-majority townships of Bhiwandi and Malegaon despite party chief Uddhav Thackeray working hard to enrol members of the minority community into his outfit.

The recent civic elections have only shown us that the Shiv Sena is nothing outside Mumbai and Thane... It is sad to see that the ink of editorials from a Prabhadevi lane (where Saamana is located) has gone waste, Ashish Shelar, chief of the Mumbai unit of the BJP, said.

Minorities back with Cong

Unlike the Shiv Sena, the Congress is pleased as punch with the results from Bhiwandi and Malegaon, indicating that the Muslims are returning to it after a brief flirtation with other outlets.

The Grand Old Party managed to get 28 of the 84 seats in Malegaon while the NCP and the Janata Dal (Secular) came close behind with 27. In the former textile town of Bhiwandi, which has been transformed into a logistics hub due to its proximity to Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik, the Congress took 47 of the 90 seats.

Regional outfits such as the Samajwadi Party and the Owaisi brothers AIMIM, which had eaten into the Muslim vote share of the Congress in the last Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, returned to the fringes.

The BJP did try its best to woo the minority vote by fielding prominent Muslim leaders in both towns. While it won nine seats in Malegaon, it bagged 19 in Bhiwandi. BJP leaders were, however, not too disheartened by the results. We have improved our tally from 0 and 8 in Malegaon and Bhiwandi, respectively. The results show that Muslims are also coming to the BJP, party leader Shelar said.

Bhujbal gets Kasab treatment?

Chhagan Bhujbal, former Maharashtra minister jailed on corruption charges, is getting the treatment terrorist Ajmal Kasab received. The ruling dispensation is putting out that non-vegetarian food and alcohol are being smuggled in for Bhujbal and his nephew Sameer just when their supporters are gearing up for protests. The duo has sent out messages to journalists that they were being given the Kasab treatment. Just before his execution, stories planted in the media said the 26/11 terrorist had demanded biryani in prison.
Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 29

Signifying a new direction in military relations with immediate neighbours, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat is now on a visit to Myanmar, Indias eastern neighbour.

In the past two months he has visited Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan, making the neighbours his immediate priority. This even as Sri Lankan Navy Chief Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne was hosted at Indian Naval Academy (INA), Kerala, where he reviewed the passing out parade. This was his second visit, earlier one being in January. India is making two Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessels (AOPVs) for the Sri Lankan Navy.

Sources told The Tribune that the armed forces have been tasked to increase interaction with immediate neighbours in an effort to counter the growing influence of others (read China). Relations have to be substantial for the neighbours to be supported with training and facilities, an official said.

Besides meeting the top political and military leadership, General Rawat will also visit National Defence College and address students besides visiting Defence Services Academy.

General Rawat had kicked off his neighbour connect programme when he visited Nepal and Bangladesh from March 28 to April 2.
New Delhi, May 28

The Indian Army is facing a dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir which has to be fought through innovative ways, Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat has said, defending the use of a Kashmiri as a human shield by a young officer.

Rawat, in an interview to PTI, said the main objective of awarding Major Leetul Gogoi, when a court of inquiry was finalising its probe into the incident, was to boost the morale of young officers of the force who are operating in a very difficult environment in the militancy-infested state.

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This is a proxy war and proxy war is a dirty war. It is played in a dirty way. The rules of engagements are there when the adversary comes face-to-face and fights with you. It is a dirty war... That is where innovation comes in. You fight a dirty war with innovations, Rawat said.

The Army Chiefs Commendation medal to Gogoi, who had tied a man to an Army jeep and used him as a human shield from stone throwers last month, was criticised by human rights activists, Kashmiri groups and some retired Army generals.

A video of the incident triggered a row with many condemning it. Gogoi was awarded for his sustained efforts in counter-insurgency operations.

People are throwing stones at us, people are throwing petrol bombs at us. If my men ask me what do we do, should I say, just wait and die? I will come with a nice coffin with a national flag and I will send your bodies home with honour. Is it what I am supposed to tell them as Chief? I have to maintain the morale of my troops who are operating there, Gen Rawat said.

On the complexity of the security challenge in the state, he suggested it would have been easier for the armed forces had the protesters been firing weapons instead of throwing stones. In fact, I wish these people, instead of throwing stones at us, were firing weapons at us. Then I would have been happy. Then I could do what I (want to do), he said.

Gen Rawat, who had served in Jammu and Kashmir extensively, said if people in any country lose fear of the Army, then the country is doomed.

Adversaries must be afraid of you and at the same time your people must be afraid of you. We are a friendly Army, but when we are called to restore law and order, people have to be afraid of us, he said.

At the same time, he asserted, maximum restraint is being maintained while handling the situation in the Valley. As Army Chief, my concern is morale of the Army. That is my job. I am far away from the battlefield. I cannot influence the situation there. I can only tell the boys I am with you. I always tell my people, things will go wrong, but if things have gone wrong and you did not have malafide intent, I am there, he said.

Gen Rawat said there was a ploy to break the trust between various security forces, and Major Gogoi could not have refused to provide security when polling agents had sought security assistance.

Tomorrow elections have to be held in Anantnag and similar things may happen. If the Army does not respond to call for assistance, then the trust between the people whom we are protecting, police and Army will break.

That is something I cannot allow to happen. This is what the militants want. It can create a divide between the army and other security forces, he said.

The Army Chief said he had a broad idea about what was going on in the court of inquiry into the Gogoi incident, and that is why he went ahead with awarding the Major. I know what is happening in the CoI. It is being finalised. What do we punish him for?

He said armed forces had the right of self-defence and Major Gogoi could have opted for firing at the crowd but he chose not to.

The Army Chief said just four districts of south Kashmir were disturbed and it was incorrect to say the entire Valley had gone out of control.

It will have to be a composite solution. Everybody will have to get involved. Armys role is to ensure violence does not take place and the common man who is not indulging in this (violence) is protected, he said. He also emphasised the need for taking harsh measures to stop infiltration and counter-terrorism. General Rawat wondered why not much noise was made when young Army officer Lt Umar Fayaz was killed by militants.  PTI
Srinagar, May 29

A 21-year-old Kashmiri man, who was allegedly trying to join the terror group ISIS, has been deported from Turkey to India after being picked up by Turkish authorities, official sources here said on Monday.

Srinagar resident Afshan Parvaiz was deported from the Turkish capital of Ankara on May 25 and whisked away to an undisclosed destination by security agencies in Delhi, the sources said.

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He was being assessed by various security agencies, they said.

Parvaiz had left home after an argument with his father, who wanted him to join a college while the son was interested in religious studies, the sources said.

They said he booked himself a seat on a flight to Tehran on March 23. He was scheduled to return to Delhi on April 9 after exploring avenues for religious studies in Europe, they said.

The Kashmiri man, who is the second person to be deported from Turkey in the last two months, apparently sent a message to his family to tell them that he was facing some "problems", the sources said.

When the police and other agencies in Kashmir were informed about this, a probe was launched to locate him, they said.

According to the sources, the security agencies then got in touch with their Iranian counterparts, who found out that Parvaiz was travelling to Ankara.

The authorities in Ankara were contacted and he was picked up while he was travelling in a bus in the Turkish capital, they said.

He was sent to India on May 25 by a Turkish Airlines flight, the sources said.

In March, Mohammed Taha, a resident of Srinagar, was deported from Turkey and sent to India. He has been put in preventive custody, they said.

Security agencies in India have viewed their alleged plans to join the ISIS with concern. They believe that some Kashmiri youths are getting radicalised by 'jihadi' propaganda material shared by the ISIS on the internet.

The agencies feel that if the growing influence of the ISIS is not checked, it can be detrimental to the situation in the Valley.

Recently, an audio clip had surfaced on social media sites in which Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) militant commander Zakir Moosa could be heard talking about establishing an Islamic caliphate in the Valley.

The police had carried out an analysis of the clip, comparing the voice with that of Moosa's in earlier videos and audios.

The 5.40-minute audio warned Kashmir's separatist leaders against interfering in the HM's plan to establish a caliphate as the ISIS has done in parts of Syria and Iraq.

The call for a caliphate is being seen as a worrying twist to militancy in Kashmir, which has largely revolved around a demand for independence or secession to Pakistan, without an overtly religious subtext.

During the recent protests in the Valley, ISIS flags were waved in certain areas, and slogans supporting the terror group were painted on walls.

However, Hizbul Mujahideen leader Syed Sallahuddin had said there was no place for groups such as the ISIS, al-Qaeda or the Taliban in Jammu and Kashmir.  PTI
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 29

Aided by Cyclone Mora, southwest monsoon is expected to arrive over the Indian mainland in Kerala on May 30, two days before its normal onset date of June 1, and also over most parts of the northeastern states.

The IMD said conditions are favourable for monsoon onset over Kerala and simultaneously over most parts of northeastern states.

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Conditions are also favourable for further advance into some more parts of south Arabian Sea, Maldives-Lakshadweep area, most parts of Kerala and some parts of Tamil Nadu in the next 24 hours.

Cyclone Mora, a deep depression formed over the Bay of Bengal, is helping monsoon to advance rapidly.
Bhanu P Lohumi

Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 28

The Himachal Pradesh Government has pulled the plug on cellphone use in government colleges and high and higher secondary schools across the state, saying it creates nuisance and disturbs academic atmosphere.

In a letter to principals, Director of Higher Education BL Vinta has barred students from using mobile phones in classrooms or on campus, and imposed restrictions on teachers and staff. Vinta has directed principals to designate a zone on the campus such as staffrooms for the faculty to use phones without causing any disturbance.

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Failure to comply with the directives will be viewed seriously and defaulters will attract disciplinary action, he warned. The decision has been taken since the use of cellphones on campuses disturbs academic activities and affects the teaching-learning environment, the letter says.

Every teacher and staff member carries a phone and uses it either in the classroom or campus, causing disturbance, said a senior staff member of Government College, Sanjauli (Shimla).

Himachal Government College Teachers Association general secretary Dr RL Sharma welcomed the move, saying college students neglected studies by remaining busy on social networking sites.
New Delhi, May 28

Talented keyboard player Raksha Gopal struck all the right chords and ended up today with the highest score of 99.6 per cent marks in the Class XII examination conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) this year.

Raksha, a humanities student at Amity International School, Noida, said she was expecting a good result but was surprised to find that she was just short of a perfect 100  by a mere two marks.

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Raksha, who stood first among almost 11 lakh students across India, scored cent per cent marks in English core, political science and economics, and 99 per cent in psychology and history.

With 99.4 per cent marks, Chandigarhs Bhoomi Sawant, a science student, scored the second highest marks. Mannat Luthra, also from Chandigarh, and Aditya Jain from Panchkula  both from Bhavan Vidyalaya in Chandigarh  jointly bagged the third rank with 99.2 per cent in the commerce stream.

Sawant, a student of DAV School in Sector 8, scored 100 in physics, chemistry, mathematics and computer science and 97 in English.

HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar spoke to the toppers and congratulated them. The all-India pass percentage has gone down from 83.05 per cent to 82 this year. The board has also started a helpline with toll free number 18000118004 for psychological counselling post the results between 8 am and 10 pm.

Aiming to check high cut-offs in colleges, the CBSE had scrapped the moderation policy under which grace marks are given to students for difficult questions. However, following intervention of the Delhi High Court, the board decided to implement the change from next year.

According to CBSE, a total of 87.5 per cent girls passed the exams compared with 78 per cent boys. While 10,091 students scored more than 95 per cent marks, 63,247 got more than 90.  Agencies
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 28

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday began his Mann Ki Baat radio programme by reaching out to the nation and greeting people on the beginning of the holy month of Ramazan.

The Prime Minister said this was a country with people from all religions and communities. It has people who believe in God and those who dont.

People from all walks of life live here harmoniously, Modi said as he reached out to people across the country.

Modi remembered Veer Savarkar on his jayanti and recalled fondly his visit to the Andaman Islands where he visited the cellular jail where many freedom fighters had been lodged.

He expressed his happiness over the fact that todays youth was taking interest in learning about the freedom struggle of the country.

June 5 is observed as World Environment Day. This year, the United Nations has chosen Connecting People to Nature theme, he said, urging people to plant saplings during monsoon.

Referring to June 21, which is now celebrated as World Yoga Day, the PM said yoga was Indias gift to the world and it was now connecting the world also.

I have got a very interesting suggestion. Since its 3rd International Yoga Day on June 21, why not three generations of a family come together and practise yoga, Modi said, asking people to share their experience on his Narendra Modi app.

Swachhata has become a mass movement today. It has generated a spirit of competitiveness between the cities. Media, too, has played a vital role in furthering the message of cleanliness, he said.

He said the government soon plans to install blue and green-coloured waste baskets around the country so that liquid and solid waste can be discarded separately.

The Prime Minister said he was happy to see people evaluating the work of the government as it completed three years. He welcomed constructive criticism and said it strengthened the democracy.

Coloured baskets for waste management soon
New Delhi, May 29

With an aim to boost India's economic engagements and to invite more investments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi began a four-nation tour on Monday, starting with Germany.

Here is a list of the Prime Minister's itinerary, starting with Germany.

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On May 29, Prime Minister Modi will begin his visit from Meseberg near Berlin, where he would have discussions of regional and global importance with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

On May 30, Prime Minister Modi and Merkel will hold the fourth India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) to review the state of both nations' bilateral relationship.

Both the leaders will also be interacting with top business leaders of both the countries to further strengthen their trade and investment ties.

Later, Prime Minister Modi will call on Germany President Dr Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

From May 30, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Spain. This would be the first visit of an Indian prime minister to Spain in almost three decades. Prime Minister Modi will be calling on Spain King Felipe VI during this visit.

On May 31, the Prime Minister will meet President Mariano Rajoy to discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism.

The Prime Minister will also meet top CEOs of the Spanish industry and encourage them to partner with India in the 'Make in India' Initiative.

From May 31 to June 2, Prime Minister will be visiting Russia for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit at St. Petersburg. Both countries would also celebrate the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.

At the beginning of his visit, the Prime Minister will go to Piskarovskoye Cemetery to pay homage to those who perished during the siege of Leningrad.

On June 1, Prime Minister Modi will hold detailed discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin to take forward the dialogue from the last summit in Goa in October 2016. With a spotlight on economic ties, both leaders will be interacting with CEOs from both countries.

On June 2, the Prime Minister will be addressing the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) together with Putin. From June 2 to 3, the Prime Minister will be in Paris where he will hold official talks with the 39-year-old French President Emmanuel Macron.

Here, he will be discussing issues of mutual interest with a view to further strengthen India-France strategic ties. ANI
Singapore Airlines (SIA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) have partnered to offer customers travelling from US airports expedited security screening procedures under the TSA Precheck (Pre) programme. SIA is the first Asian airline to be participating in the TSA Pre programme.

TSA Pre enables low-risk known travelers to enjoy the programmes benefits while reducing checkpoint wait times. This provides a separate lane for security screening during departure, where the traveler does not have to remove jackets, belts, laptops, liquids and shoes.

Enrolment in the TSA Pre programme is open to US citizens and lawful permanent residents. However, non-US citizens may also enjoy the benefits of the programme through various Customs Border Protection (CBP) trusted traveler programmes, such as Global Entry, NEXUS and SENTRI. Singapore citizens are eligible to apply for the Global Entry Programme, which is also open to citizens from the following countries: Colombia, Germany, Netherlands, Panama, South Korea, UK, and Mexican nationals.

Successful applicants of the TSA Pre programme or other CBP trusted traveller programmes will receive a Known Traveler Number (KTN) which may be provided to the airline during booking or check-in. Once the customers KTN is recognized, the TSA Pre logo will be printed on their boarding pass, indicating that their KTN has been captured in their booking record. Customers can provide their KTN across SIA's various check-in or booking channels, including its call agents, online reservations system, and website check-in via singaporeair.com or SingaporeAir mobile app, in addition to checking in at the airport counter. Children aged 12 and under may also enjoy the benefits of TSA Pre if they are travelling with passengers who have a valid KTN.

As a partner airline under the TSA Pre programme, SIA will also be able to offer customers travelling to and from the US an option of having a Self-Printed Boarding Pass (SPBP) and/or Mobile Boarding Pass (MBP). This will enable travelers without check-in bags to check in online and proceed directly to the gate at the airport. Customers can expect this to be implemented in the coming months.
Vibha Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 28

Claiming that only the BJP-led NDA governments offered a corruption-free regime, the saffron party today expanded the charge of corruption right to the doorstep of the first Congress government led by Jawaharlal Nehru.

Interacting with mediapersons as part of celebrations of three years of the Narendra Modi-led government, BJP leader GVL Narsimha Rao said only two PMs gave corruption-fee and scam-free governance in modern India  Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi, both saffron leaders.

While the BJP has, as a matter of routine, levelled corruption charges against majority of Congress PMs, including Manmohan Singh, Rajiv Gandhi and Indira Gandhi, it is for the first time perhaps it tried to remind the nation of the Jeep scandal of 1948 in the regime of Nehru.

Who can forget the Jeep scandal in 1948 when Jawaharlal Nehru was the Prime Minister, Rao said as he went on to enlist other Congress PMs under whose regimes corruption cases came to light. The rest is history, he said.

As per archives, the Jeep scandal of 1948 was the first major corruption case in Independent India.

Rao said curbing corruption with citizen collaboration were among the top-most priorities of Modi. No one can deny that Modi has completely eradicated cronyism and corruption from the country, he added.

Invokes jeep scandal
Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 28

Indias delayed reporting of three cases of Zika virus disease to WHO has put question marks on the governments silence for well over months.

Health Research Secretary Soumya Swaminathan said the WHO wrongly recorded that the first case of Zika in India was confirmed in February 2016. We have pointed out to them (WHO). The first Zika case in India was confirmed in November 2016 and not February 2016. The second case was confirmed in January 2017 and the third in February.

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Asked why India decided not to declare Zika cases upfront, Swaminathan, who is part of the governments Zika monitoring mechanism, said: It wasnt something where we needed public engagement for containment. Also, there was no need to create panic because we were expecting the infection in India since the virus had been circulating in most of South East Asia for a while. Health authorities in Ahmedabad where the cases were reported were informed and containment measures taken. ICMR stepped up response. Fortunately, these were localised infections. Since the last case, we havent seen a single sample positive for Zika from among 40,000 human and mosquito samples we examined.

The Tribune has, however, learnt that there was a minority view in the Health Ministry to report Zika to WHO immediately. A call was later taken not to do that on account of the fact that health authorities were responding adequately. India informed the WHO of the cases on May 15 this year.

However, experts feel India should have intimated Zika to WHO instantly under its UN obligations.

Former head of communicable diseases at WHO South East Asia office JP Narayan says, India is one of the 193 signatories to the UNs International Health Regulations 2005 which require member states to immediately report new emerging infections of international public health concern for better control and response. All countries are expected to comply.

Another acclaimed health expert, on the condition of anonymity, said Indias decision not to share information for so long puts the country on a weak global footing. Concealment of such information can have serious public health implications. Pregnant women for instance should have been informed and educated about the preventive measures. Public information always helps create awareness. We have been lucky so far to see only a localised infection. But what if it had spread?

We should strive for transparency and openness in public health information sharing, he said.

Government sources, meanwhile, reported all previous Zika cases as cured and said there was no cause for concern.

Situation under control: Gujarat Govt
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 29

Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Monday ordered setting up of a one man judicial commission to probe the allegations of impropriety against Irrigation and Power Minister Rana Gurjit Singh in the multi-crore sand mining auctions.

The Tribune had reported on May 25 that employees of Rana Sugars Limited, a firm of Rana Gurjit, had allegedly bagged contracts worth crores in the e-auction of 89 sand and gravel mining sites conducted on May 19 and 20.

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Amit Bahadur, a cook allegedly working with the firm, successfully bid for one of the most expensive sand and gravel mines in the state. He outdid 32 bigwigs to bag a quarry at Saidpur Khurd village in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr) for a whopping Rs 26.51 crore.

Read: Punjab ministers cook is Rs 26-cr sand mine owner

The inquiry would be conducted by Justice (Retd) J S Narang and he would submit his report within one month.

The minister has meanwhile offered to resign in order to ensure a free and fair investigation. The chief minister has, however, asked Rana Gurjit to continue till the outcome of the judicial probe.

Asserting his stand of zero tolerance to corruption, the chief minister announced his decision to set up a Judicial Commission after taking suo motu cognisance of media reports charging the minister with acquiring certain mines in the names of his companys staff.

Though Rana Gurjit has denied any links of his company with the auctions and has categorically stated that his company has no stake in the sand mining business, the Chief Minister decided, in the interest of ethics and propriety, to get the matter probed at the highest level.

There was no question of allowing any deviation from his governments avowed policy of providing clean governance, said Captain Amarinder, adding that he would take all steps to ensure that there is no violation of the trust reposed by the people of Punjab in his government and the Congress party.

The two-day sand auctions, in which these bids are alleged to have been secured, related to 50 mines and they have already generated a revenue of nearly Rs 300 crores, leading to the highest ever earnings from the mining sector for the state government.

According to a government spokesman another 56 mines would be put to auction on June 11 and the government is expecting to generate another Rs 300 crores from them. Its worth mentioning that the state governments revenue from the mine auction last year was merely Rs 40 crores.
Ravi Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Gurdaspur, May 29

Punjab Police have sounded a high alert in the border areas following which four customised Armoured Personal Carriers (APCs) were requisitioned from PAP, Jalandhar, even as 300 police personal were deployed at the border police stations of Behrampur, Kalanaur, Dorangla and Dinanagar.

Senior officials said the cops had gone into an overdrive after footprints of four suspected infiltrators were seen near the international border at Bamial.

A top officer said there was possibility that Sikh hardliners operating in Pakistan might try to cause trouble ahead of the June 6 anniversary of Operation Bluestar.
THE London correspondent of the Englishman writing under the date of 19th April stated that Sir Satyendra Prasanna Sinha was likely to remain there for some weeks longer as he had been invited to serve on the Inter-departmental Conference on the question of Indian labour in Crown Colonies. But whether Sir Satyendra Prasanna was able to serve in any manner on the Inter-departmental Committee is not known. But the Bengalee says that Sir Prasanna left Bombay on the 10th instant, that he passed Aden about a couple of days ago, and that he is due to arrive at Bombay nearly this week. It also says that Sir Prasanna will proceed to Simla straightaway on invitation from the Viceroy and will spend sometime in Calcutta before taking his departure to Darjeeling to assume the office of the Executive Member of the Governors Council.
SMA KAZMI

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, May 29

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state has found itself on the wrong foot on the issue of a probe by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the distribution of compensation for widening the National Highway-74 in Udham Singh Nagar district.

Interestingly, the alleged scandal, which took place during the previous Congress regime, has given the Opposition Congress a chance to hit back at the BJP government for trying to scuttle the CBI probe.

Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, after coming to power with unprecedented majority in the state Assembly, had resolved to tackle corruption with an iron hand and recommended a CBI investigation into the major scam in the acquisition of farmland in Udham Singh Nagar district for the widening of NH 74. He also suspended seven officials for their alleged involvement in the case.

However, afterwards, there was nothing much as the Centre dragged its feet on the CBI probe into the matter and the state government decided to get the probe done from its own investigating agency. It was rumoured that the alleged involvement of some senior BJP leaders in the scandal had forced the state government to go slow.

But, a letter from Union Minister of Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari to Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat that a CBI probe into the scam would have an adverse impact on the morale of the National Highway officers and the ministry will have to re-examine the usefulness for taking up more projects in the state was a major embarrassment for the Chief Minister, who had professed a policy of zero tolerance towards corruption.

Gadkari even threatened, In this background, we would have to re-examine the usefulness for taking up more projects in the state. I am certain you will appreciate the significance of the issues that I have pointed out and take immediate corrective measures to resolve the impasse.

The publication of the letter in the media forced the embarrassed Chief Minister to rush to Delhi to have an audience with Gadkari. After the meeting, Rawat said his government would seek legal opinion on the issue.

The confusion on the issue within the state government continued with one minister claiming that the CBI would probe the scandal while others announcing that state would get it investigated by its own agencies.

All this has given the Opposition a chance to hit back at BJP on its professed stand against corruption.

Uttarakhand Congress chief Pritam Singh has announced to take up the issue in and outside the state Assembly. He said he would take up the issue in the budget session of the House starting June 8.
Islamabad, May 29

Pakistan has had a significant 40 per cent drop in the number of American visas granted to its nationals under the new Trump administration despite not being on the list of the US Presidents travel ban countries.

Interestingly, the number of non-immigrant US visas to Indians has increased by 28 per cent in March and April this year as compared to the monthly average of the previous year, according to the newly-released monthly official data.

Non-immigrant visas granted to Pakistanis are down by 40 per cent in March and April this year compared to the 2016 monthly average, a Pakistani media report said quoting data released by the US State Department.

Pakistanis were issued 3,925 non-immigrant visas in April and 3,973 visas in March 2017 under the Trump administration.

The Obama administration last year issued a total of 78,637 non-immigrant visas to Pakistanis with a monthly average of 6,553, which was 40 per cent higher than the current average.

Before March this year, the State Department did not release monthly breakdowns of visas and only annual figures were available.

The report compared the March and April 2017 figures with monthly averages for 2016. Even in 2015, monthly average remained 6,179 as a total of 74,150 Pakistanis had been granted visas.

A spokesperson of the State Department told the The News International: Visa demand is cyclical, not uniform throughout the year and affected by various factors at the local and international level. Visa issuance numbers tend to increase during peak travel seasons, such as during the summer and the winter holidays, though there may be different trends at the country, nationality, or visa-category level.

The data showed that Indian nationals received 87,049 visas in April and 97,925 visas in March this year. Last year, people from India received 72,082 non-immigrant visas each month on average with an annual total of 864,987 visas.

Pakistan is not the only Muslim-majority country experiencing decline in non-immigrant US visas. A similar analysis of 50 Muslim majority countries reveals that number of visas issued to their nationals has also declined by 20 per cent in April as compared to their monthly country average last year, the report said.

The six countries targeted by President Donald Trumps revised travel banIran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemenexperienced a 55 per cent decline in non-immigrant visas compared with last years monthly average.

Experts believe that drop in visas may indicate that more visa applicants are now subject to excessive scrutiny.

In January, Trump signed an executive order temporarily barring people from seven Muslim-majority countriesIraq, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen.

In March, he signed the revised travel ban excluding Iraq from the list. The order was challenged in a court and a judge had halted the travel ban.  PTI
Seoul, May 29

North Korea test-fired a missile on Monday into Japans maritime economic zonethe latest in a series of provocative launches that have heightened tensions over its nuclear weapons ambitions.

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It was the Norths third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this yearcarried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

US military monitors said the short-range missile flew for six minutes, while Japan said it fell into its exclusive economic zone, extending 200 nautical miles from the coast.

The launch went ahead despite tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised last week at the G7 summit that the big problem of North Korea will be solved.

Japans Prime Minister Shinzo Abe swiftly condemned the test and vowed concerted action with its US ally.

We will never tolerate North Koreas continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community, Abe told reporters.

As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international communitys top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States.

The North has been stepping up efforts towards its ultimate goaldeveloping an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental US.

Mondays test also marked the second time this year that a North Korean missile fell provocatively close to its neighbour Japan. South Koreas military said the Scud-type missile travelled for 450 km.

Despite Trumps strident warnings, Secretary of Defense James Mattis said in an interview which aired Sunday before the launch that a war with North Korea would be catastrophic.

The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea, he told CBS News.

This regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea. And in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well.

But the bottom line is, it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat, if were not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means.

Mattis declined to say what kind of action from Pyongyang would constitute a red line for Washington, saying the administration needs political manoeuvre room. The latest launch demonstrates the Norths determination to secure more leverage in any future negotiations with the US, said Cho Han-Bum, analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification.

The North, despite its series of provocations, has not crossed the ultimate red line, which would be staging another nuclear test or a successful ICBM test, Cho said.  AFP
Washington, May 29

The intelligence community in the US is believed to have informed the US Congress that Pakistan has by and large failed to curb militants and terrorists operating from its soil.

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It added that because of this failure, these (terror) groups will (continue to) present a sustained threat to American interests in the region, and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan.

According to the Dawn, during a Congressional hearing on Afghanistan and the ongoing war against terror elements there, the intelligence chiefs reportedly gave a candid assessment of the situation in war-torn Afghanistan to the Senate Armed Services Committee.

A transcript, released this weekend, shows that though much of the debate focused on Pakistan, there was a concern expressed that despite increased military efforts to defeat the Taliban, these militants would continue to make gains, especially in the rural areas of Afghanistan.

Afghan security forces performance will probably worsen due to a combination of Taliban operations, combat casualties, desertions, poor logistics support and weak leadership, warned National Intelligence Director Dan Coats.

Coats leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI.

Illinois Republican Senator Joni Kay Ernst asked the intelligence chiefs to spell out the measures that Washington would like Kabuls neighbours to take to help stabilise the region.

I think certainly an evaluation of how we work with Pakistan to address the situation of the harbouring of terrorist groups would be essential to a strategy that affects Afghanistan, Coats replied.

Because that is potentially a very disrupting situation, putting our own troops at risk and undermining the strategy of dealing with the Taliban and local groups that are trying to undermine the (Afghan) government. So its a very clear link that I think would have to be addressed in conjunction with whatevers done in Afghanistan.

Besides more troops, which I anticipate might be part of the plan that we see, we need to implement a different strategy on the ground in Afghanistan? Senator Ernst asked Defence Intelligence director Lt. Gen. Vincent Stewart Weve got to get a couple of things. One, very clear that Afghanistans security and stability is in the interest of all of the parties in the region and does not pose a risk to Pakistan, Lt. Gen. Stewart replied.

Weve got to convince Pakistan that if theyre harbouring any of the Haqqani network members that it is not in their interest to continue to host the Haqqani network. Lt, Gen. Stewart also urged the Trump administration to work with Afghanistans neighbours to go after the 20 terrorist organisations that were still active in the region.

They undermine not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but all of the region, he added.

Lt. Gen. Stewart also suggested pushing Pakistan to do more against the Haqqani network and urged US policymakers to separate the Taliban from the Pashtun, because Pakistan wanted a Pashtun-dominated Afghanistan.

So weve got to get the conversation going again with Pakistan about their role in not harbouring any of these terrorists, helping to stabilise Afghanistan and, I think, maybe, well have some progress, he said.

Lt. Gen. Stewart said he believed Pakistan still had some influence in bringing Taliban to the table. So weve got to get them to think about reconciliation, that the status quo is not in their best interest, he said.

The intelligence chiefs also flagged the issue of Pakistans concern over Indias influence in Afghanistan, and cautioned that the latter could look to China to offset this perceived imbalance in regional geo-politics and end its so-called global isolation.

They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to the state of Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations so that  if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan interests, he said.  ANI
Colombo, May 29

Indian Navy diving and medical teams have been deployed to assist Sri Lanka Navy operations in the flood-hit southwestern region, as the death toll from the disaster on Monday rose to 180 with 110 people still missing in the island nations worst torrential rains in 14 years.

Rescuers pulled out more bodies buried in the mudslides triggered by monsoon rains, taking the death toll to 180. The death toll is expected to rise further as 110 people are still missing, according to the Disaster Management Centre.

Sri Lankan Naval spokesperson Chaminda Walakauluge said two Indian ships INS Kirch and INS Shardul have arrived and they joined us (Sri Lanka Navy) in extending relief.

Indian Navy diving and medical teams arrived in INS Shardul yesterday and have been deployed to assist Sri Lanka Navy operations at Kalutara, Ratmalana and Galle.

Indian High Commission here tweeted images of Indian diving and medical teams deployed at Kalutara, Ratmalana (and) Galle with (Sri Lankan) navy relief (operations).

Indian Naval personnel of INS Kirch that arrived in the island on Saturday are currently engaging in flood relief operations at Udugama and Galapatha in the Kalutara District in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Navy.

They are here as part of Indias continued commitment to assist in flood relief efforts in Sri Lanka in response to a request from the Government of Sri Lanka, the Indian High Commission said.

Following Indias lead in sending out emergency relief to Sri Lanka, more countries have started pledging assistance to provide relief to the flood victims.

China is to donate relief items worth of USD 2.2 million.

The relief goods, to be dispatched to Colombo by a chartered flight soon, include tents, blankets, sheets, rain boots and life jackets.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang sent condolence messages to President Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe respectively on the loss of the lives and property in floods and landslides caused by heavy rain.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful Southwest monsoon, officials had said.

Sri Lanka, which has been heavily deforested for cash crops, often witnesses landslides during the monsoon season.  PTI
British Airways was hit by a worldwide computer system power failure on Saturday, causing cancellations and delays for thousands of passengers. More than a third of British Airways flights from Heathrow were cancelled on Sunday. All long-haul services left from Heathrow, but with delays, BA said.

The airline has urged people to check the status of flights before travelling to the airport.

On Monday, BA said, As our IT systems move closer to full operational capacity, we will again run a full schedule at Gatwick and intend to operate a full long haul schedule and a high proportion of our short haul programme at Heathrow. Our terminals at Heathrow are still expected to be congested so we ask that you do not to come to the airport unless you have a confirmed booking for today and know that your flight is operating.

If you are due to fly on Monday 29 May and no longer wish to travel, even if your flight is still operating, you can claim a full refund via our website/call centre or rebook to travel up to the end of November.

If you need to rebook your flight we strongly recommend using ba.com or the call centre rather than travelling to the airport to make any changes.

The airline is liable to reimburse thousands of passengers for refreshments and hotel costs.

Customers displaced by flight cancellations can claim up to 200 a day for a room (based on two people sharing), 50 for transport between the hotel and airport, and 25 a day per adult for meals and refreshments.
A new study reveals the changes in American vacation habits. Although taking time off from work continues to be a challenge in Americas always-on work culture, the study shows that starting from 2016 American work culture began to change.

GfK conducted an online survey from January 26-February 20, 2017 with 7,331 American workers, age 18+, who work more than 35 hours a week and receive paid time off from their employer. These data were weighted and scaled. The survey included 2,593 managers who are company decision-makers including 479 senior leaders and 2,083 middle managers.

In 2016, average vacation use climbed to 16.8 days per worker compared to 16.2 days the year before. The more than half-day shift changes the trajectory of Americas vacation trendline with the most upward movement seen since vacation usage started its rapid decline in 2000.

The amount of time off earned by employees in 2016 increased by nearly a full day (.7 days) to 22.6 vacation days. Even with this increase, a slightly smaller percentage of employees (54%) ended 2016 with unused vacation time than the prior year (55%).

Still, 16.8 days is a far cry from the 20.3 day long-term average from 1976 to 2000 and while Americans are using more vacation time, they are also leaving slightly more days unused than before. In 2016, 662 million vacation days were left on the table, four million days more than 2015. The rise in unused days can largely be attributed to employees earning more time off.

While unused days are up slightly, forfeited daysvacation days that cannot be rolled over, banked, or paid outare down to 206 million forfeited days, an eight percent decrease from 2015. This time has a cost. By forfeiting vacation days, American workers gave up $66.4 billion in 2016 benefits alone. That means that last year employees effectively donated an average of $604 in work time to their employer.

Unused vacation days cost the U.S. economy $236 billion in 2016, due to lost spending. That spending would have supported 1.8 million American jobs and generated $70 billion in additional income for American workers. If the 54 percent of workers who left time unused in 2016 took just one more day off, it would drive $33 billion in economic impact.

The good news is the jump in vacation usage from 16.2 to 16.8 days delivered a $37 billion impact to the U.S. economy. It also produced an estimated 278,000 direct and indirect jobs and generated $11 billion in additional income for employees.

The most effective remedy for American workers who want to use more vacation days is better planning. A majority (52%) of workers who say they set aside time each year to plan out their vacation days take all their time off, compared to just 40 percent of non-planners. They also tend to take longer vacations. While three-in-four (75%) planners take a week or more at a time, non-planners take significantly fewer dayszero to threethan planners at once (42% to 18%).

Americans are still worried about job security when it comes to taking time off. More than a quarter (26%) say they fear that taking vacation could make them appear less dedicated at work, just under a quarter (23%) say they do not want to be seen as replaceable, and more than a fifth (21%) say they worry they would lose consideration for a raise or promotion.

These findings, from Project: Time Offs State of American Vacation 2017 report, provide the most comprehensive annual look at Americas vacation habits based on GfK survey.
After beating out more than 50 elementary and middle-school rivals to become the youngest spelling bee champion in northeast Oklahoma history, 6-year-old Edith Fuller will become the youngest person ever to compete in the national competition this week.

Her family will travel to suburban Washington, D.C., for the Scripps National Spelling Bee starting Tuesday.

Representing the TBC Home Education Fellowship, Edith won the Scripps Green Country Regional Spelling Bee in March, when her final, victorious word was jnana, a term for knowledge in Indian philosophy.

The 90th national spelling bee is making history before it even begins with this pint-sized spellebrity, Scripps officials said. We have no doubt shell spell like a champ.

The national contest is open to contestants in the eighth grade or younger, and it does not have a minimum age.

The Fuller family discovered the girls knack for spelling last summer while having dinner together and quizzing each other on words.

Edith impressed her parents by correctly spelling restaurant  a word she had never been taught.

We knew there was something special there, Ediths mother, Annie Fuller, told the Tulsa World after the Green Country competition.

Edith prepared for the spelling bee by studying with her mom and looking up words anytime she misspelled one.

Learning the words was so educational, her mother told the World. She was able to learn about different countries and cultures and different kinds of food.

As a perk after winning the regional bee, Edith was invited to the state Capitol with her parents and three siblings, who were all introduced on the floor of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
So how did Twin Peaks perform for Stan?

Alas, the Streaming service declined to supply any Australian numbers from its premiere last Monday (including divulging to its own partner, Fairfax Media).

In the US Showtime drew 506,000 for the premiere broadcast, lower than HBOs The Leftovers (770,000) and Silicon Valley (844,000) in the same time slots.

Some media noted the contrast with the original shows 34 million viewers in 1990. But such comparisons are unfair given so many changes in the way we watch TV.

Since the premiere Deadline reports the audience total has grown to 804,000 viewers in Live +3 Day viewing.

But over 75 percent of the networks audience watches their original programming on delay, which the total for the two-part premiere to 1.7 million across platforms, including streaming and on demand.

Showtime also enjoyed a record number of signups, by offering episodes 3-4, the single biggest day and weekend of signups ever.

In the world that we live in now, offering original programming that attracts new subscribers is our primary business objective, said David Nevins, Showtimes chief executive, via a statement. By that standard, the Twin Peaks premiere is the biggest single-night driver weve ever had.
Udaku Special

NAFASI ZA AJIRA BONYEZA HAPA





Diamond Platnumz, Zari Hassan and her late ex-husband Ivan Ssemwanga who will be buried next week on Tuesday as his body is set to arrive in his native Uganda on Sunday from South Africa.





In Summary

Its alleged that the curvaceous, London-educated lass from Jinja, decided to walk out of a 12-year-old marriage she termed as toxic and abusive. Ivan was rumoured to have made a habit of physically abusing Zari.

He denied the claims, saying his baby mamas injuries were as a result of a car crash. In her interview with NTV Uganda in December 2015, Zari opened up to presenter Faridah Nakazibwe, saying that she did put in a lot of effort in trying to salvage the union to no avail.





Zari Hassans flamboyant baby daddy Ivan Ssemwanga will be buried next week on Tuesday as his body is set to arrive in his native Uganda on Sunday from South Africa, where he had been residing.





The death of Ivan, the business tycoon who was married to Zari for over 10 years and with whom he had three children, left many distraught. With his demise, the shaky relationship between him, Zari and her current husband Diamond Platnumz comes under the spotlight again.





Zari visited Ivan when he was in hospital, sharing the evidence on social media.





SPOT IN HIS HEART





In one of her interviews with NTV Uganda in 2015, Zari was quoted as saying:





Having been my husband for 10 years and the father of my children, he (Ivan) will always have a spot in my heart and I am sure that I also have a spot in his.





A number of Ugandan blogs have reported that Ivan, a flamboyant businessman and well-known party animal, died a lonely man. Some even suggest that he still pined for his ex-wife Zari. We trace the complex relationship from the time the two parted ways to date.





ZARI DUMPS IVAN





Its alleged that the curvaceous, London-educated lass from Jinja, decided to walk out of a 12-year-old marriage she termed as toxic and abusive. Ivan was rumoured to have made a habit of physically abusing Zari. He denied the claims, saying his baby mamas injuries were as a result of a car crash. In her interview with NTV Uganda in December 2015, Zari opened up to presenter Faridah Nakazibwe, saying that she did put in a lot of effort in trying to salvage the union to no avail.





I tried so much to mend the relationship but it failed. I was abused by Ivan even in front of my kids. Sometimes it happened in public places. I think everyone knows that now. Its a common thing in relationships so it shouldnt be a secret, said the mother of five now. Ivans attempts to reconcile with Zari were futile as she had already made up her mind to leave him.





ZARI MEETS DIAMOND





After dumping Ivan, Zari moved on and would then fall in love with another basket-baller, Farouk Sempala, with whom they had a short-lived relationship. Farouk then went on the rampage claiming that Zari aborted his kids and that was the reason for their breakup, according to Uganda Exposed.





In December 2014, a picture of Diamond, who had just broken up with his bongo movie actress Wema Sepetu, emerged showing him canoodling with Zari in South Africa. The two denied being in a relationship, with Zari saying that they were working on some music project which never materialised.





She said: Diamond is just a friend of mine. Its never been written that females and males cant be friends. It is backward people that use that kind of perspective to blow things out of proportion,  she insisted.





However, their union was confirmed a few weeks later when Zari graced the red carpet hand-in-hand with Diamond Platnumz during the Channel O Video Music Awards ceremony in South Africa.





IVAN FIGHTS DIAMOND





When news broke that Zari was pregnant with Diamonds first-born (baby Latifah Dangote) all hell broke loose, forcing Ivan, who had been quiet about his ex-wifes new love affair with a successful musician, decided to make his voice heard. .It was widely reported that Ivan was shocked and disgusted to find out his baby mama was pregnant again at her old age.





According to Uganda showbiz blog Big Eye, he said, Zari is an old woman who may not manage the stress that comes with bringing a new life into the world. It added that Ivan was surprised because they had agreed that even with their separation she should never bring someone else to the world but rather concentrate on co-parenting the three sons. With the aid of his close friend King Lawrence, Ivan started attacking Diamond via social media posts asking him to leave Zari alone.





In one of his Facebook posts in December 2015, King Lawrence offered Diamond $40,000 (Sh4 million) to leave Zari alone and allow her to return to South Africa from Tanzania to take care of her children, who he claimed were missing her mother. Diamond did not respond. A few weeks later Zari flew to Uganda and hosted the Zari All White party, which Ivan attended. Diamond, too, was supposed to attend the event but despite being in Uganda, he did not show up. This led to rumours that he didn't turn up to support Zari because he was afraid of a confrontation with Ivan.





Later, after returning home to Tanzania, Diamond was forced to address the claims, saying he wasnt afraid of Ivan:





Watu wanasema namuogopa (Ivan), mimi siwezi kumwogopa, hii code chafu kabisa kutoka Tandale mimi nimwogope mtu! Sijawahi kuwa na matatizo naye,nishakutana naye wakati naenda kwenye MTV alikuwepo, mara nyingi tulikuwa tunapishana hivi na hivi kabisa. Hatujawahi kusalimiana sababu sijawahi kuwa na mahusiano naye niseme nimsalimie ni uongo. Halafu nilikuwa nikipita, nipo na crew,security, yeye anakua anapita tu maskini ya mungu, Cloud FM radio, quoted Diamond as saying.





Explaining his absence, he said that he missed Zaris All White Party because he had an agreement with his promoter that required him to keep away from the public eye before his scheduled show with Patoranking in Kampala, which was to take place on the following day.





NEVER-ENDING BEEF





Diamonds beef with Ivan would never end, with both men flaunting their wealth on social platforms in a show of might. Sometime in September 2016, Diamond posted a photo of his new mansion in South Africa and when he unveiled it, he took a jab at Ivan, captioning the photo: They are busy bragging that they are rich yet their kids are still living in a rented house and now a person whom they abuse daily saying that hes broke and poor bought a house, so that their kids can have a better life. Later on, Ivan shot back terming it a rental home. In April 2017, Diamond posted a picture of him with his new ride, a Hummer, that he said cost him five million shillings. A few hours later, Ivan also posted a picture of himself with a Hummer.





Diamond seemed to have buried the hatchet, however, after Ivans death. He passed his condolences via an Instagram post accompanied by a picture of a lit red candle and wrote, Mbele yako, nyuma yetu... (You have gone ahead, we are right behind you).
February 4 2016

Threesixty Architecture has submitted a planning application for a programme of facade and public realm improvements to Glasgows Springfield Quay leisure park following its purchase by Strathclyde Pension Fund.The makeover will include new wayfinding, lighting and rationalised pedestrian and traffic routes to streamline the chaotic environment of the park at present with illuminated vertical aluminium/acrylic slats affixed to existing facades.Kieron Goodman, director of Threesixty Architecture, said: On a modest budget Threesixty Architecture have proposed a high impact branding strategy, appropriate to the leisure use. A bold and prominent lighting and signage ribbon knits various offers together around the north and north-west edge. This incorporates new leisure units and a new public space that aims to draw pedestrians to an area that has historically struggled with unit visibility and success.Proposed waterfront 'lantern' signage totems will offer a sculptural and signifying cue to the Quay from the city centre.
The Tenzing-Hillary Airport in Lukla is the main gateway to the Everest region but nicknamed the most dangerous airport in the world AFP/PRAKASH MATHEMA

The plane, which had departed from Kathmandu, broke into three pieces when it crashed in heavy fog while trying to land at Lukla airport on Saturday.

The two men and an air hostess were rushed to hospital in a serious condition.

"We received confirmation of the co-pilot's death this morning. The air hostess is out of danger," Sagar Acharya from Summit Air, the Nepal-based airline which operated the aircraft, told AFP.

"An investigation will be carried out to ascertain the cause of the accident," Acharya added.

The air hostess has been taken to Kathmandu for treatment.

Nepal has a poor air safety record largely blamed on inadequate maintenance, inexperienced pilots and poor management. All Nepal airlines are banned from flying to the European Union because of their safety standards.

Lukla airport - commonly nicknamed the most dangerous airport in the world - is the main gateway to the Everest region and sees thousands of trekkers and climbers pass through it each year.

Despite the risks, air travel is popular in Nepal, which has a limited road network. Many communities, particularly in the mountains and hills, are accessible only by foot or by air.

Two deadly plane crashes last year claimed at least 25 lives. The first involved a passenger plane slamming into a mountainside while the second saw a small aircraft crash land, killing the two pilots.
Vietnam received nearly 973,000 foreign tourists in May, up 27 percent from a year ago, according to figures from the General Statistics Office.

Arrivals increased from all major markets including those with visa exemptions such as Japan, Russia, South Korea and Western European countries, except for France whose arrivals dropped 2.5% from the same period last year.

China accounted for a third of all tourist arrivals, while visitors from the Republic of Korea rose 67% on-year.

By the end of May, foreign visitors to Vietnam had increased almost 30% to nearly 5.26 million, said the office.

Megacities Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh, the countrys biggest tourist destinations, expect further growth in the coming years with a lot of expansion planned in the hotel industry.

According to the Hotel Destinations  Asia Pacific report released this week by the JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group, the cities plan to continue promotional efforts in Japan and target further growth from France, India and Russia.

Hanoi, where foreign tourists grew 13% to 1.73 million in the first four months of this year, is expected to add more than 800 branded hotel rooms by the year end and another 2,000 rooms by 2020, 60% of which will be in the luxury segement, the report said.

Real estate consultancy firm Savills last month said Hanois hotel occupancy increased seven percentage points to 74% of its 9,200 hotel rooms in the first quarter.

Hotel room rates during the period also increased a staggering 41% from a year ago to US$156 a night for a five-star room.

Eyeing a 15% increase of foreign arrivals to six million this year, Ho Chi Minh City also plans to add 1,000 rooms by the year end and another 2,500 in the next three years, said the JLL report.

Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City were named among the fastest growing tourist cities by MasterCard last September, and many travel sites say they are ideal destinations for backpackers.
A spat with a customer turned into a legal battle, with developer Hyundai RNC Ha Tay on the losing end

In the latest court held on May 26, Hyundai RNC Ha Tay was ordered by the court to pay this fine to compensate customers for the delay on the villa hand over and arbitrarily terminating the contract.

According to the purchase agreement signed on June 24, 2010, Duong Thi Mai Thuy bought a 118.8-square metre villa from Hyundai RNC Ha Tay with the value of VND11 billion ($488,888).

Thuy has paid 70 per cent of the property value to the developer already, while the rest was agreed to be paid after the villa is handed over.

On August 11, 2011 the developer had announced to the buyer that it would hand over the villa on October 15-23, 2011 and the buyer must pay the remaining sum between October 24 and 30.

However, Thuy discovered that the developer had deviated from design they agreed on and requested them to revert the changes. Her request had not been met and Hyundai RNC Ha Tay handed over the villa to Thuy on December 15, 2013.

In response to the developer breaking its agreement, Thuy decided not to pay the remaining 30 per cent. Hyundai RNC Ha Tay therefore decided to terminate the contract and Thuy turned to the court.

On March 30, 2016 the Hadong Peoples Court announced that Hyundai RNC Ha Tays termination of the contract was illegal and ordered the company to pay a total compensation of VND6.3 billion ($280,000) to Thuy.

Hyundai RNC Ha Tay appealed to the Court of Appeals, which promptly ordered Hyundai RNC Ha Tay to continue its contract with the buyer and finish all items of the villa as originally committed.

Due to the delay in handing over the property, it had to pay a compensation of VND5 billion to the buyer. The buyer, in turn, was ordered to pay the remaining 30 per cent of the villas value.

Hyundai Hillstate is the first real estate project of South Korean Hyundai Group in Vietnam and overseas.

Hyundai Hillstate is a high-end apartment and villa complex which got off the ground in 2009. It covers 4.67 hectares and has the total investment capital of $200 million. Hyundai Hillstate comprises of two main components with 928 apartments in five buildings and 100 villas, all of which have already been sold out.
At the invitation of US President Donald Trump, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc will pay an official visit to the United States of America from May 29-31. The two leaders will hold bilateral talks focussing on trade and investment co-operation, according to Vietnams Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

Phuc is also expected to meet with 15 CEOs from some of the largest US companies. Enterprises of both countries will discuss co-operation deals worth around $10 billion, in sectors such as aircraft and engine production, as well as oil and gas.

It is expected that a joint statement on the two countries future relations will be released during the visit.

The MoFA said this visit will serve to continue the implementation the countrys diplomatic policy of independence, self-reliance, multi-lateralising and diversifying relations, and active international integration.

Vietnam persistently attaches great importance to developing its relations with the US, and stands ready to co-operate with Donald Trumps administration, further boosting the two countries bilateral relations, an MoFA document on the visit states.

A statement on the visit released last week by the White House also said, President Trump looks forward to discussing ways to strengthen our bilateral relationship and deepen regional co-operation with one of Americas most important partners in Southeast Asia.

On May 22, US Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius officially handed over six 45-foot Metal Shark patrol boats to the Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) in the south-central province of Quang Nams Region II, marking another important step in the expanding security co-operation between the US and Vietnam.

The patrol boats will assist VCG Region II in conducting coastal patrols, and policing smuggling, piracy and illegal fishing.

Osius said that apart from cementing the security co-operation with Vietnam, the US also wishes to further its investment and trade ties with the country.

According to Osius, the US withdrawal from Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) understandably left many in Vietnam with unanswered questions. My response to all has been consistent: US policies may change as a natural result of the democratic process, but our fundamental interests in Vietnam remain the same. The future of the US-Vietnam bilateral economic relationship remains as bright as ever, Osius stressed.

He said the two countries greatest interest, and the foundation of the future of that relationship, is their continued trade growth. With or without TPP, we live in a globally integrated economy, and within that system its simply not possible for two vibrant economies like ours to isolate themselves from each other.

Osius continued, With 93 million potential customers and one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, Vietnam presents enormous opportunities both for the export of American products and for the investment of American capital.

According to AmCham Vietnam, over the past two decades, bilateral trade has grown from about $500 million to over $52 billion as of last year. Still, the US maintains a trade deficit with Vietnam which totalled $32 billion in 2016.

Vietnam is the largest exporter to the US in the ASEAN region.

We will work with US investors so they can access the many opportunities that exist here in Vietnam. We will continue to advocate for measures to make it easier for small and medium enterprises to do business here, Osius said.

According to the Ministry of Planning and Investment, by late March 2017, the US was Vietnams ninth largest foreign investor, with 834 valid investment projects registered at $10.2 billion.

During his time in the US, Prime Minister Phuc will also meet with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and attend a ceremony to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Vietnams entry into the UN.

It is expected that President Trump will come to Vietnam to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit which will be held in the south-central city of Danang in November 2017.
High quality wooden furniture production at the KAISER Furniture Vietnam Jsc. in Binh Duong Province.-VNA Photo Danh Lam

With a view to achieve sustainable development of its exports, the wood industry has committed to refrain from illegal trading at a conference in Ha Noi late Friday, VIFORES chairman Nguyen Ton Quyen said.

Member companies of the VIFORES, Handicraft and Wood Industry Association of HCM City (HAWA), Forest Products Association of Binh Dinh (FPA Binh Dinh) and Binh Duong Forest Products Association of Binh Duong (BFPA) have all agreed to support the Government and management offices of the central and local administration in building, completing and implementing suitable policies and mechanism, in accordance with the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA/FLEGT) signed between Viet Nam and the European Union (EU).

This action aims to promote competition of Viet Nams wood and wooden products enterprises in the world market, developing a mechanism to manage wood in natural forests, and encourage sustainable development of planted forests.

The enterprises will promote the use, processing and trading of wood and wooden products that are made from trees of planted forests in Viet Nam and from legally-imported wooden material.

They will also commit to co-operation in building and developing comprehensive and transparent information system and database on local wood processing industry, Quyen said.

These commitments will encourage local enterprises, organisations and individuals to produce, process and trade only legal wood and wooden products, and promote plantation of forests in the nation to create active and legal wood material for local wood processing industry, he said.

The commitments will also provide solutions to building a brand for Viet Nams wooden products, and developing legal wood trading relationships with countries supplying wood material to Viet Nam and countries importing Vietnamese wooden products.

To Xuan Phuc, an expert from NGO Forest Trends, said wood material imported to Viet Nam has played an important role in the production and processing of Viet Nams wooden products for export and the home market.

Viet Nam has annually exported four million to 4.5 million cubic metres of wood, earning US$1.8 to $2 billion, so there are risks of illegal wood being exported, he said.

Quyen said the United States, European Union and Australia have strict rules to regulate imported wood material. Thus, it is difficult for local enterprises to export their wooden products to these markets.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said that in the first four months, Viet Nam had earned $2.4 billion, a year-on-year increase of 12.7 per cent in the export value of wood and wooden products. The US, China and Japan were the three largest export markets for local wooden products.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in front of the new MC-21 medium-haul jet, which has made a successful test flight. (AFP/Alexander Astafyev)

The plane, whose prototype was unveiled last June, flew for 30 minutes at a height of 1,000 metres and a speed of 300 kilometres per hour, said its makers, the Irkut Corporation aircraft manufacturer.

The plane took off from the Siberian city of Irkutsk where the Irkut company is based, said Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, writing on Twitter.

Rogozin, who oversees aviation and space, wrote as he watched at the scene: "We're flying!"

President Vladimir Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov told RIA Novosti state news agency that Rogozin "by phone reported to Putin that our medium-haul plane took wing, carrying out its first test flight."

The president of Irkut, Oleg Demchenko, said in a statement that "today is a historic day for our staff and for all the big team that worked on creating the MC-21."

The jet was piloted by two of the country's most decorated test pilots, Oleg Kononenko and Roman Taskayev.

Kononenko, who has been awarded the Hero of Russia medal, said that the "flight assignment was completed fully" and the "flight went normally."

"There were no negative points identified that prevented the continuation of the tests," Kononenko was quoted as saying by the company.

Rogozin posted on Twitter photos of workers tossing one of the test pilots into the air after the flight.

The MC-21 can carry up to 211 passengers and is designed for the mass-market travel industry. It can fly up to 6,000 kilometres, according to the manufacturers.

Russia has its hopes set on competing with the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737, which dominate the international civil aviation market.

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said last year he hoped the new plane "will compete with other countries."

The makers promise a "new level of comfort" for passengers thanks to the largest fuselage in the plane's class and large windows.

Irkut says it has signed contracts with a number of airlines, including Russian flagship carrier Aeroflot, UTair and the Kyrgyzstan Air Company.

Rogozin said last week the company has 185 firm orders for the plane, quoted by RIA Novosti.

The maiden flight comes six years after Russia's short-haul Sukhoi Superjet aircraft came into service in 2011. They have since suffered serious technical issues that have forced the plane's grounding.
The VN-Index has recorded five consecutive gaining weeks on the HCM Stock Exchange, expanding 1.31 per cent last week and closing Friday at 743.41 points.

The southern market index has increased 3.6 per cent this month and nearly 12 per cent since the beginning of this year.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange, the HNX-Index gained 1.64 per cent for the week, ending Friday at 93.69 points. The northern market index has climbed 17 per cent this year.

Money heavily flowed in the two markets, with a total of 303.6 million shares averaging over VN5.8 trillion (US$255.5 million) traded in the two markets in a single session. These figures represented increases of 74.6 per cent in volume and 100 per cent in value compared to the previous weeks levels.

Large-cap stocks, particularly banks, led the market rise following the information that the Government has submitted a new resolution on bad debts to the National Assembly. If approved, the resolution will ease bottlenecks and speed up the process of settling bad debts in credit institutions.

Price of BIDV shares (BID) leapt 13.4 per cent last week, while Military Bank (MBB) and Eximbank (EIB) shares increased 9.6 per cent and 5.4 per cent, respectively.

Though admitting the new resolution is a positive factor for bank stocks, Nguyen Ngoc Lan, head of the brokerage at Agribank Securities JSC, forecasts that bank stocks will likely stay in neutral position this week.

It should be noted that bad debt restructuring is a time-consuming and difficult period, involving many economic subjects. Therefore, it takes a long time for the new policy to translate into business results for banks, Lan told the website tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn.

She predicted that prices of bank shares would move around the current level with alternative up/down sessions.

Lan said cash inflows remain strong but the growth speed will likely slow down this week, as positive information has been reflected in the share prices.

The VN-Index may maintain its upward trend in the first week of June before facing a correction period in the following week, Lan said and noted money could flow in large-cap stocks, which have not increased much in the past period.

According to Nguyen Viet uc, a market strategist at MB Securities Co, foreign buyers will continue to support the market in the coming time.

Foreign investors were responsible for total net buy value of VN607 billion on the two exchanges last week, a rise of 110 per cent over the previous weeks figure.

uc said foreign investors have constantly collected local shares, making bets on strong economic performance of Viet Nam. Both two ratings agencies, Moodys Corporation and Fitch Group, upgraded their views on Viet Nams prospect to positive.

Meanwhile, in mid-June, Viet Nams stock market will likely be considered to enter the MSCIs watchlist to be upgraded to an emerging market status.

It is very important to have foreign investors confidence in the local market, because Viet Nams P/E (Price- Earnings) ratio is no longer cheap and is still able to grow thanks to strong GDP growth compared to other regional countries, uc said.

He suggested that investors pay attention to the shares which could be added to portfolios of exchange-traded funds in their Junes reviews, including petrol retailer Petrolimex (PLX), Sai Gon Thuong Tin Real Estate (SCR), Kinh Bac City Development (KBC) and Hoa Binh Construction and Real Estate (HBC).

Several securities companies have predicted that the VN-Index will move around 747-750 points.
Kuznetsova Oleg

According to a local relevant agency, Kuznetsova Oleg, aged 44, of the Russian nationality, came to Vietnam with his family years ago. They lived and ran a business in Nha Trang city.



After his mother passed away because of heart disease in 2013, Oleg and his sister continued to run their familys business but they experienced loses continuously. His sister left Nha Trang in mid-2016 due to their financial difficulties.



Since then, Oleg was mentally ill, and he often wandered about. He begged for food around the city and slept on the beach of Vinh Truong, Nha Trang city.



Reported on the case, the Khanh Hoa Foreign Affairs Department in collaboration with relevant agencies and Nha Trang Municipal Peoples Committee hospitalized the Russian man at Khanh Hoa psychiatric hospital for treatment, then transferred him to the Khanh Hoa social support center.



The Khanh Hoa Foreign Affairs Department is currently coordinating with the Consulate General of Russia in Vietnam to complete procedures to return Oleg back to Russia as soon as possible after a Vietnamese businessman has offered the Russian man an airfare to Russia.


Its beautiful landscape and abundance of fauna and flora have also made Pu Mat a popular tourist destination.

Pu Mat National Park is located on the eastern slope of the Truong Son mountain range, spanning the Con Cuong, Anh Son, and Tuong Duong districts of Nghe An province. Pu Mat, in the Thai language, means high slopes.

The park was established in 2002 and recognized by UNESCO as a World Nature Reserve in 2007,with a core area of 94,000 ha and a buffer zone of 100,000 ha.

At 1,840 meters above sea level, Pu May is cloudy the year around. It is one of Vietnams principal nature reserves, with 2,400 flora species that include numerous valuable herbal plants.

Of these flora species, 37 are listed in Vietnams Red Book and 20 which are in the world Red Book.

The forest also has 240 fauna species that include elephant, tiger, and a rare animal called a saola, that looks like a cross between an antelope and a goat or cow.

The saola, also known as the Asian unicorn is one of the worlds rarest species. It was completely unknown before 1992 and has been found living only in the Truong Son forest of Vietnam and Laos.

It is also on the Red List of Threatened Species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.

Cao Tien Trung, an official of Vinh University, said, Pu Mat Nature Reserves has great biological importance. Pu Mat National Park, Pu Huong Nature Reserve, and Pu Hoat Nature Reserve represent a rich source of rare and precious genetic material.

Running across Pu Mat National Park is the Giang River, whose magnificent waterfalls, channels, and caves draws many tourists and has boosted local incomes.

Nguyen Van Vinh, a tourism official in Nghe An province, said, Pu Mat National Park has a great tourism potential in mountain climbing, kayaking, and camping. Ecological tours are becoming increasingly popular in Vietnam as in the rest of the world.

In the buffer zone of the National Park are villages inhabited by Thai, Kho Mu, O Du, and Dan Lai ethnic minority people, who still cling to their traditional customs and culture.

Ngo Kim Hong, a tourist from Hanoi, said, Dancing over bamboo poles and drinking rice wine through bamboo tubes are impressive experiences. Visiting the Thai villages, I love to watch the locals weave their brocades. Its fun to pose for a photo in a beautiful Thai brocade dress while standing beside a waterfall or in the dense forest.

Pu Mat National Park is a place where scientists can explore a rich biodiversity of unspoiled nature while tourists explore the areas beautiful scenery and rich ethnic cultures.
Apart from Germany, VNPT is rolling out new services all over the world

Heavy dealing with foreign partners

A few days ago in Berlin (Germany), VNPT and MC Media, a video production company, introduced the product smartbox which can be connected to a television set to provide 50 Vietnamese channels for Vietnamese people living in Germany. This product resulted from the cooperation of VNPT and MC Media. In particular, VNPT provides the hardware (smartbox), while MC Media is responsible for the content.

In Cuba, technology company CubaTel said that the country Cuba has so far consumed 1.5 million kilometres of optical fibre produced by VINA-OFC, a subsidiary of VNPT.

At the middle of 2017, in Laos, VNPT and E-Government Centre signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU). The parties will team up to conduct a survey on demand for e-government and run tests for VNPT products E-Office and E-Portal. If these products prove efficient and favourable, VNPT will provide them for ministries, organisations, and agencies in Laos.

In Cambodia and Myanmar, VNPT is cooperating with local firms to introduce new products in the information technology industry. In particular, VNPT will provide the products of satellite phone VinaPhone S in both markets. Previously, on November 24, 2016, VNPT, Meridian, and Elite signed an agreement to establish a joint venture. On December 23, 2016, related agencies in Myanmar granted the establishment license to this joint venture.

Currently, VNPT's subsidiary VNPT International (VNPT-I) has signed the agreement to provide the ICT and VinaPhone S services for its partners Elite and Global Net in Myanmar and Telecom Cambodia and MekongNet in Cambodia. Also, VNPT is piloting its services VSAT-IP and VinaPhone S for Telecom Cambodia.

Since 2007, VNPT has been rapidly expanding its business. Its products and services are available in numerous countries over the world.

On the lookout for international investment opportunities

With the aim of expanding its markets and looking for international investment and business opportunities, VNPT has been enthusiastically promoting cooperation and actively seeking potential foreign markets, especially ones with good relationship with Vietnam.

At present, VNPT is studying and assessing the plan on entering foreign markets by mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in 2017. VNPT signed MoUs with plenty of partners in South Korea, Japan, Cuba, Latvia, Bangladesh, Iran, and Angola to provide them with its IPLC, IP-Transit, FTTX, VSAT, and ICT services.

Because industrial technology will be one of VNPTs core businesses, the company has reinforced research and development activities (R&D). After restructuring, VNPT has built an R&D centre and increased its innovation budget. Previously, VNPT spent about VND10-20 billion ($440,000-$880,000) per annum on R&D projects, but currently this figure has increased to VND250 billion ($11 million). Besides, VNPT established an R&D fund with a total investment sum of about VND600-700 billion ($26.4-30.8 million).

At present, VNPT has two manufacturing factories. In 2016, the company manufactured 2.4 million units of terminal equipment. VNPT is also the first Vietnamese company to invest in a glass fibre factory so that it can produce and export optical fibre. This factory broke ground at the beginning of February 2016 with a total investment sum of nearly VND300 billion ($13.2 million). It is expected that the factory will be completed and put into operation in 2018.

Pham Duc Long, general director of VNPT said that the company will continue its expansion in some Asian, African, Latin American, and European markets. VNPT will not only be a telecom provider, but it will also branch out to provide technological and industrial products, as well as other information technology and e-government services.

In VNPTs development strategy from now till 2020, industrial production will be the spearhead. It targets to boost its industrial production to meet 100 per cent of the demand of its entire global network, with enough left over to export.
[Editors note: Sebastian Strangio is a journalist focusing on Southeast Asia and the author of Hun Sens Cambodia, published by Yale University Press in 2014. The book takes a critical look at the prime ministers leadership since the fall of the Khmer Rouge in 1979. Strangio has also become one of the leading commentators on politics in Cambodia and in Myanmar. He recently wrote an article titled Welcome to the Post-Human Rights World. Strangio spoke to VOA Khmers Hong Chenda about the human rights situation in Cambodia and the region.]

VOA: What message are you trying to convey when you speak of a post human rights world?

Well, I guess Im trying to communicate the ideas that human rights and democratic values are not inevitable. I think that after the cold war, an idea to cope that following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the communist bloc that liberal democracy, western liberal democracy, free-market capitalism, and human rights were somehow poised to spread throughout the world and these ideas had a natural attraction and that they were a representative sort of end point to human evolution. I think there was a lot of complacency of this idea. A lot of people tend to assume that this idea was essentially inevitable and the end point of the logical process of human development it would come about essentially regardless of what anybody chose to actually do. I think that this twenty-year period following the end of the Cold War is not coming to an end with the rise of new global powers who are much more assertive in challenging the international norms and reasserting their rights of sovereign states and trying to put the ideas of national sovereignty back at the center of international relations.

VOA: When you say post human rights world, do you mean we are going backwards or we are going forwards?

I think that were going forward, but were going forward into a much more uncertain world. The idea of forward progress as this sort of inevitable characteristic of human development, I think, that idea has come to an end. So in a sense were going forward, but were also going back.

VOA: In your article you also mentioned more pragmatic and flexible tactics to improve human rights. What would you suggest are the tactics?

I think my main point here is to de-emphasize the focus on international laws. In the case of Cambodia, I think whether Cambodia develops in the democratic direction or authoritarian direction depends on its people and its peoples willingness to engage in political action. I think that ultimately what human rights does, it emerges from the power in the 1970s in the moral critics of power and politics. It stood above politics in a way and it provided more language to critique politics. I think human rights always did its best when it was political and when it was politically engaged and I think that ultimately what determines the future of countries like Cambodia will not be a legal marginalization at the international level but it would be the political mobilization of the people. I think that is how human rights becomes an actuality in Cambodia. I think the people stand up and demand those rights.

VOA: What could be the long-term effect of authoritarian governments turning away from the west?

Cambodia is a very good example of how this might go in certain parts of the world. The rise of China; China doesnt care about the state of democracy or human rights inside Cambodia. Chinas concern is the stability of economic development and is concerned above all with Cambodia supporting its own geopolitical claim in the region, particularly in the South China Sea. And so, you have a situation where large amounts of financial backing from China has allowed Hun Sen to wind back further the institution of democracy within Cambodia and increasingly dismiss human rights norms, relevant to Cambodias development. You know, Hun Sen always believes in this and Chinese support gives him the ability to openly defy Western demands about good governance and human rights in a way that he hasnt been able to do before. I think thats a really good example of what the effect could be.

VOA: The Trump administration has signaled that it wants to slash foreign aid budgets. What can Cambodia do but turn to China if this happens?

I think Cambodia has been quite clever in taking money from whoever is offering it. You know Cambodia has been very keen on investment and aid from Japan over the years. Japan is one of the traditional donors to Cambodia, but the Japanese have never been too hung up about democratic issues. They are more concerned with a clean government and an efficient administration. And so the Japanese are seeking in their own way to counterbalance Chinas influence in the region have been pouring money into infrastructure development across mainland Southeast Asia. And I think that Cambodias courting of other non-Chinese powers actually has a great benefit to them as well. And I think theyll continue to do that. And I think if the United States were to turn to Hun Sen and invite him to the White House and express a desire for a close relationship with Cambodia, I think that Cambodia would be very interested in that.

VOA: Where do you see Cambodia heading in terms of freedom of speech and human rights? Do you think young Cambodians are becoming more politically literate?

Its clear in Cambodia that there is a deep discontent with how the CPP runs the country, and there is a great desire for change among Cambodian people, especially among the young who have not really known civil war or serious instability in their lifetimes. I think, in Cambodia, despite the increasing Chinese presence in Cambodia and the relative decline of Western influence, we are going to see Cambodian people continuously pushing their desire for change. And if the government cannot satisfy those demands for change, the potential for social unrest could be quite serious. The rise of Facebook has given people the ability to share information and to share critical information of the government in a way that they didnt have five or 10 years ago. But the point I want to emphasize is that a lot of the information that is shared on Facebook and on the internet reflects these old political narratives. So you know the internet does not improve the state of political discussion in Cambodia at all, but simply magnifies it. So we are seeing an increase of political awareness. But a lot of that is happening, a lot is falling very much into the channels carved by generations of political thinking in Cambodia, so I think that more has remained the same. There is more continuity than change in recent years in Cambodia. But one important development I think that is worth emphasizing as well is the fact that the access to the Internet has given people access to information about the outside world and what it has done is to refocus Cambodians horizons a bit further afield and to give people an awareness of how far the country lags behind neighboring countries like Vietnam and Thailand.

VOA: Do you think this increased access to information will affect the result of the upcoming commune elections?

Well, if the election is free and fair, then I think that peoples access to this sort of information would definitely help the opposition party. The question is whether the election is going to be free and fair and the Cambodian Peoples Party has send the message that they have no interest in a free and fair election. Ordinarily, their definition of free and fair diverges from the internationally accepted standard. So, you have a situation where they are cracking down on the opposition, throwing people in prison, threatening the opposition about the slogan they have chosen for the election, saying that the oppositions election of vice presidents was illegal and government wont recognize them. They are producing all sorts of pretext to restrict the activities of the opposition and to ensure that the CPP emerges with a victory. So I think all teams are being equal. The rise of social media communication would help the Cambodia National Rescue Party to disseminate the message and to communicate with the Cambodian electorate. But in the current context, with the CPP seemingly committed to doing everything it can to secure itself a victory, that advantage would seem to be nullified. The bottom line is that it is very hard to say what the actual outcome of this would be.

Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
On May 29, America and the world mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of the late U.S. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, also known as JFK, whose 1963 assassination reverberated around the world. Less than three years in office, the 35th U.S. president left an indelible mark on the country's history and culture. VOA's Zlatica Hoke has the story.
Days after U.S. President Donald Trump told Muslim leaders of the need to unite to stamp out terrorism and extremism, a man on a train in the northwestern U.S. city of Portland, Oregon, targeted two teenagers with an anti-Muslim rant, then killed two people and wounded another who confronted him.

In a tweet Monday, President Trump called the attack "unacceptable."

"The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them," the Trump tweet read.

Portland Police have said one of the two young women on the train was wearing a hijab, and that the attacker ranted on many topics using "hate speech or biased language."

"Two men lost their lives standing up to somebody spewing hateful words directed at Muslim passengers on an afternoon commuter train," said Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler. "Our current political climate allows far too much room for those who spread bigotry. Violent words can lead to violent acts. All elected leaders in America, all people of good conscience, must work deliberately to change our political dialogue."

Oregon Governor Kate Brown said she was "heartbroken" by the attack.

"Safety while traveling through our community is a basic human right that we need to be able to guarantee to everyone, regardless of where they're from, or what they believe," she said.

U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, who represents Oregon, said such hatred is "unacceptable and un-American."

"We all stand with our Muslim brothers and sisters who've had to face discrimination and fear," he wrote on Twitter.

Trump said in his speech in Saudi Arabia that, "Young Muslim boys and girls should be able to grow up free from fear, safe from violence, and innocent of hatred." On Friday, he issued a statement condemning an attack on Coptic Christians in Egypt.

But the statements from others following the Portland attack have in the eyes of some highlighted the lack of any public mention of it by Trump.

Dan Rather was for decades one of the most prominent voices in American journalism as the anchor of the CBS Evening News. He wrote an open letter to Trump on Facebook, saying the attack may not fit into the president's campaign message that often singled out crimes by an undocumented immigrant or "radical Islamic terrorist."

"I wish we would hear you say these names, or even just tweet them. They were brave Americans who died at the hands of someone who, when all the facts are collected, we may have every right to call a terrorist," Rather said. This 'extremism' may be of a different type than gets most of your attention, or even the attention in the press. But that doesn't make it any less serious, or deadly. And this kind of 'extremism' is on the rise, especially in the wake of your political ascendency."

Since taking office, Trump has issued several executive orders on national security, including one seeking to ban people from six majority-Muslim nations from entering the country and another that targets so-called sanctuary cities and sets up a system for reporting on crimes by undocumented immigrants.

The suspect in the Portland attack is 35-year-old Jeremy Joseph Christian. Police say they are investigating what appears to be an extremist ideology, and social media postings he made showed an affinity for Nazis and political violence.

"He told us to go back to Saudi Arabia and he told us we shouldn't be here, to get out of his country," 16-year-old Destinee Mangum told Portland's KPTV. "He was just telling us that we basically weren't anything and that we should kill ourselves."

Mangum was on the train with her 17-year-old friend. She thanked those who came to their aid, saying "without them, we probably would be dead right now."

Ricky John Best and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche died after being stabbed. Micah David-Cole Fletcher was hospitalized with injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening.

Thousands of donors have contributed to online fundraising efforts to benefit the victims and their families, which as of Monday had brought in about $800,000.

"They saw injustice being committed, racism being practiced, and they intervened," said Rep. Keith Ellison, first Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress. "They exhibited the best qualities of American heroes. And they were killed for it."

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi said the attack was the latest in an increase in hate-driven acts against Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Latinos, African-Americans and others during the past year.

"I'm renewing my call for the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security to use their full powers to combat these attacks and their root causes," he said.
Cross-border fighting between Afghanistan and Pakistan has suspended trade worth millions of dollars and stranded hundreds of trucks loaded with fruits and vegetables at the border, where the produce stands to spoil in the rising heat.



Pakistan had temporarily closed the Chaman border crossing, across from Afghanistan's Spin boldak, after a frontier skirmish earlier this month between Afghan and Pakistani border guards left more than 10 people dead. Global economic institutions say South Asia is one of the world's least economically connected regions, and the periodic closures of border crossings complicate things further.



Summer is peak time for fruit and vegetable production in the two countries. Under normal circumstances around this time of the year, a significant portion of Afghanistan's grapes and pomegranates is ferried overland to Pakistan.



Pakistan's mangoes and vegetables go the opposite direction, along with bilateral trade in many other commodities  some legal and some otherwise.



Part of the Afghan fruit produce is sold in Chaman and nearby villages; the remainder finds its way to markets across Pakistan.



It's a long-established system that relies heavily on trust: Pakistani fruit traders send advance payments to their Afghan counterparts, who then send the fruit after it's harvested. But so far this year, the Chaman businessmen say they have not cut the usual deals because the border closure have created the risk of coming up empty-handed.



Amant Khan, a fruit trader in Chaman, said he suffered losses last year as tensions rose between the two countries.



"This season we did not give the grape or melon dealers anything," he said. "In fact, we decided not to do business with Afghanistan."



For traders in Waish Mandi, a thriving Afghan market town across from Chaman, these are hard financial times, too. Hundreds of people, who used to benefit from border trade, have lost work. Unable to move their merchandise across the border, goods worth millions of dollars are stranded in truck containers.



Apart from the fruit trade, bilateral trade between Afghanistan and Pakistanonce worth $3 billion a year has dropped to $1.2 billion, said Khan Jan Alkozai, president of the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry.



Pakistan's own fruit exports to Central Asia via Afghanistan, which usually average 2 million pounds, also suffer because of border closures, Alkozai said.



Daro Khan, former vice president for the Afghanistan-Pakistan Joint Chamber of Commerce, said Pakistani farmers and businessman have not recovered from losses due to border closures last year.
In Kenya, the official campaign period has begun as the electoral body clears candidates to run for the presidency. The commission is calling on the candidates to maintain peace during the August polls.

Kenyas presidential campaign has begun with 70 days to the August elections. So far the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has cleared seven candidates and rejected three because of logistical issues.

Addressing Jubilee Party supporters Monday in Nairobi, Deputy President William Ruto said he and the president would make a re-election bid.

As you are aware today President Uhuru Kenyatta is going to present his papers to the IEBC given to him by Jubilee Party so that he can compete for the presidency on August 8th and we thank you for coming to escort him to the commission, he said.

Kenyatta, who is seeking a second term, was the seventh candidate cleared by the IEBC.

The main opposition coalition led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga was one of the presidential hopefuls to be cleared Sunday. Odinga, running for president for the fourth time, is expected to be Kenyatta's main challenger.

Electoral commission chairman Wafula Chebukati warned leaders against incitement.

You have signed the accord of conduct both as political parties as well as candidates and as a commission we shall not hesitate to take any action if you breach that code of conduct. We want this country to be peaceful before, during and after this election, said Chebukati.

The opposition agreed to hold a peaceful campaign. Odinga called on the commission to deliver an election that represents the will of the people.

IEBC must leave up to its billing which is not only deliver free and fair but to ensure that those elections are truly free and fair, he said.

Kenya is still haunted by the 2007 presidential election, won by Mwai Kibaki in a hotly-disputed vote. Post-election violence killed more than 1,100 people and forced the top parties into a power-sharing government.

Kenyatta's election in 2013 was peaceful, but was marred by accusations that he and Ruto had helped to organize the 2007 violence. The International Criminal Court eventually dropped charges of crimes against humanity for both men, citing a lack of evidence.
China will keep working toward a stronger friendship with the Philippines, which it sees as a valuable new ally in Southeast Asia, despite the Philippine presidents comment that Beijings top leader once threatened war over a disputed tract of sea, analysts say.

Duterte told a Philippine coast guard unit on May 19 that Chinese President Xi Jinping this month had threatened war if the Philippines forced the issue over sovereignty of the Spratly Islands, an archipelago of tiny features in the South China Sea, according to widespread media reports in the Philippines.

They cannot say anything either way, because it would look bad for them, said Jay Batongbacal, director of the Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea at the University of the Philippines in Metro Manila. So I think its difficult for them and probably (they) wont say anything and just avoid it altogether.

Beijing claims about 90 percent of the 3.5-million-square-kilometer South China Sea, including the Spratlys. The claim overlaps the exclusive economic zones of the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam. Xi and Duterte were talking about oil drilling in the Spratlys at a meeting in Beijing when Xi made the comments, Philippine media say.

China probably did not want the war comment disclosed and political experts say Beijing may speak more cautiously with Dutertes government in the future.

But analysts say Beijing will avoid any retaliation for the disclosure because it sees Duterte trying to improve relations after a stormy past. The president has thundered against Chinas major global rival and former Philippine colonizer, the United States. He has visited China twice, and the two sides sat down this month to start working out their maritime differences.

Last week Duterte traveled to Russia to sign a series of agreements. Russia is a traditional Chinese ally that like China was not on Manilas roster of friends a year ago when Duterte took office.

Duterte, a populist known for being loose with language, also has a reputation for making comments against other countries. He has slammed the United Nations, the United States and the European Union over their criticism of an estimated 6,000 to 7,000 extrajudicial killings in the Philippine anti-drug campaign.

I think as long as theres not any substantive action on the part of the Philippines to follow through with any of its rhetoric, theyre willing to let it slide at least to some extent because Duterte seems to be badmouthing everyone, said Maxfield Brown, business intelligence associate at the consultancy Dezan Shira & Associates in Manila.

Its not like China is the sole recipient of this," Brown said.

A mellow Chinese response to the comment about war could in turn allay any fear in other countries about their own relations with Beijing. Each has its own way of handling China based on historical relations, Batongbacal said.

Beijing has increasingly valued its relations in Southeast Asia since July 2016, when a world arbitration court ruled against the legal basis to much of Chinas maritime claim. China had incensed countries in Southeast Asia with a half-decade of building artificial islands and passing coast guard vessels through contested waters.

China rejected the ruling, but to minimize its impact the government it wants to talk with the other countries, in some cases offering them aid. Duterte received pledges of $24 billion in aid and investment from China in October.

Beijing and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed last week after 15 years of resistance  largely because of China -- to a framework for a code of conduct that would eventually prevent mishaps in the sea thats prized for fisheries and fossil fuel reserves.

Its highly unlikely that there theres going to be an escalation of tension (that would) lead to physical confrontation regarding the territorial and sovereignty issues, said Andrew Yang, secretary-general with the Chinese Council of Advanced Policy Studies think tank in Taiwan.

All the intention and behavior taking place basically is trying to satisfy those disputes and try to find out what would be acceptable for a code of conduct, he said.

The presidential office softened Dutertes comment about war days after he made it. His spokesman Ernesto Abella said on the office website the two sides would keep seeking peace.

President Duterte was forthright about its economic rights awarded by the Arbitral Court in The Hague, a claim the Chinese leader said they would vigorously contest given their historic claims to the area, Abella said. Given this complexity, both parties agreed to pursue a more peaceful resolution to the matter that satisfies both our sovereign and economic rights.
Ecuador's new President Lenin Moreno described WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as a hacker but said he would continue to receive asylum in the South American country's embassy in London.

Mr. Assange is a hacker. That's something we reject, and I personally reject, Moreno told journalists on Monday. But I respect the situation he is in, which calls for respect of his human rights, but we also ask that he respects the situation he is in.

Moreno's tone is a sharp break from that of his predecessor Rafael Correa, who had said Assange was a journalist and granted him asylum in London in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations. And Moreno's right-wing opponent in the election had promised to kick Assange out of the embassy if he won.

Since taking power, Moreno has also warned Assange not to intervene in the politics of Ecuador or its allies.

Assange, who denies the allegations, feared Sweden would hand him over to the United States to face prosecution over WikiLeaks' publication of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents in one of the largest information leaks in U.S. history.

Even though Sweden dropped the charges earlier this month, authorities in London have warned Assange that he would be arrested if he left the embassy that his been his home for five years.
New French President Emmanuel Macron called RT (formerly Russia Today) television and Sputnik multi-media "propaganda" following his first face-to-face talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Macron called the outlets "organs of influence and propaganda" against him in this year's presidential elections, during which Putin was seen as supporting Macron's far-right rival Marine Le Pen. Alleged cyber attacks against Macron's campaign were also linked to Russia.

Putin denied the allegations during the news conference Monday at the palace of Versailles, saying the Kremlin did not try to influence the French vote, though he did defend a March meeting with Le Pen.

Macron said the two also discussed LGBT rights in Chechnya.

"President Putin told me ... he had undertaken several initiatives on the subject of LGBT people in Chechnya with measures aimed at establishing the whole truth about the activities of local authorities," Macron said.

Ukraine



On the subject of Ukraine, Putin reiterated that he believes Western sanctions will do nothing to solve the conflict.

"Here is the answer: in no way. Let's fight for all the restrictions in the global economy to be scrapped," he told the news conference. Paris has played an active role in the West's punitive response to Moscow's actions in Ukraine.

The two leaders agreed to work together more closely to combat terrorism around the globe. Putin said Macron had proposed exchanging official delegations to work toward that goal during their talks.

Syria



Macron told reporters he believes the two countries can work together to build peace in Syria, but that the use of chemical weapons in the war-torn country would be a "red line" for France.

Macron is the first European leader to meet with Putin following the meeting of the G-7 nations, where Macron said that "tough dialogue" with Russia was critical to Syria's future.

"It's indispensable to talk to Russia because there are a number of international subjects that will not be resolved without a tough dialogue with them," Macron told reporters at the end of the G-7 summit Saturday.
The widow of South Sudan liberation hero John Garang is calling on government soldiers to forsake President Salva Kiir.

Rebecca Nyandeng told VOA's South Sudan in Focus the country's internal conflict benefits mainly the president, who she said is amassing wealth while soldiers go without paychecks.

I am appealing to soldiers of the SPLA not to fight one another, to come back for peace, and leave this senseless war for President Salva, Nyandeng said Monday.

The SPLA, which fought for South Sudan's independence from Sudan, split into pro and anti-government factions at the start of the war in December 2013.

Nyandeng said if government solders put down their arms, Salva Kiir will not be able to stay in power.

According to the United Nations, more than 1.8 million South Sudanese have fled the country since fighting broke out in late 2013. Another 1.9 million are internally displaced from their homes.

Earlier this month, a U.N. report said South Sudanese pro-government forces killed at least 114 civilians between July 2016 and January 2017 in Yei town.

The Human Rights Division of the U.N. Mission in South Sudan said the crimes, including indiscriminate shelling of civilians, targeted killings and burning of civilian property may amount to war crimes.
As 28-year-old Renjumol punches tickets for customers at the newly inaugurated metro in the southern Indian city of Kochi, he cannot believe the complete turn life has taken.

"Happy, very happy, says the transgender person, who like others in the community, has had to beg, sing and dance at weddings to scrape together a living.

Renjumol is one of 23 transgender people who have landed a job at Kochi Metro Rail as part of a groundbreaking initiative by the government-owned company to integrate a community that has long suffered discrimination and survived at the margins of society.

It is the first government agency in India to open its doors to transgenders since a landmark 2014 Supreme Court ruling that recognized the countrys two million transgenders as the third gender. But although the court ordered that they should be eligible for job and education quotas like other minorities, little has changed on the ground for the ostracized community in the last three years.

That is why campaigners for trans rights hope that the Kochi metro action will show the way to others in the country. Kochi is a port city in Kerala on Indias southern tip  a palm-lined state with Indias highest literacy rate.

The 23 transgenders work in ticketing, customer care and housekeeping  giving them an opportunity to come face to face with the thousands who ride on the metro.

Common people like you and I will also get a chance to interact with these people and that will facilitate an understanding that there is nothing fundamentally different between we people and the transgenders, says Dilraj KR, project manager at Kudumbashree, an organization focused on poverty eradication and womens empowerment in Kerala that helped train the transgenders for the metro jobs. They are also human beings like everybody else.

The effort to secure jobs for the transgender community was born after a group landed in a police station following a brawl and explained to a sympathetic police commissioner that they would not be involved in illegal activities such as sex work or begging on trains and at traffic signals if they had respectful jobs to earn a living.

Talks that ensued with the Kochi Metro and Kudumbashree finally led to an endeavor that resulted in the job offers to the 23 transgenders. More are likely to follow.

A handful of transgenders in recent years have broken stereotypes  one has established a modelling agency, a group of six has made a music album for Bollywood and one became a police officer in Tamil Nadu last month after a long legal battle.

But most continue to be stigmatized and the few that have managed to get jobs in private companies with the help of voluntary groups do not find the going easy. The main problem: prejudice, ridicule and a society where changing mindsets continues to be a herculean challenge.

In the southern city of Bengaluru, the Solidarity Foundation that champions the cause of transgender people, has placed about a dozen with private companies over the last three years.

Pointing to the myriad challenges that come up at the workplace, the groups director, Shubha Chacko says, For instance women go out for lunch together and men go out and sit somewhere else and the trans person does not know where she is supposed to go.

The larger group placed at Kochi Metro will not only make it easier to overcome such challenges, but also send out a message to potential employers. That means the signal is coming out from the government that others can do it. Otherwise there are people who are always feeling  is it OK, is it not OK? So the norm starts to change, says Chacko.

Signs of such a change are already there in Kochi. Dilraj, an MBA from the prestigious Indian Institute of Management at Kozhikode says that after the Kochi Metro initiative, some people have already expressed their willingness to hire transgender people if the experiment goes well. He admits there will be challenges ahead, but is optimistic about spearheading change. Once it is successful, we will flag it to many people. I know it will not happen in one day, but every big journey has to start with a small step. We have taken that step.

It may represent a small step from the perspective of the two million transgender people waiting for social integration, but for Renjumol perched behind the ticket counter, it is a giant leap.

For the past week as he sat behind the ticket counter, he has experienced a sense of security he never had when he says he had to face discrimination in every field. Determined to make a success of the new path he has embarked upon, Renjumol explains haltingly, I changed my life now. My aim is I will have safe life.
Takuma Sato on Sunday became the first Japanese driver to win the Indianapolis 500, in a race that featured a horrific crash involving the driver who started from the pole position.

In the 101st running of the iconic U.S. auto race in the midwestern state of Indiana, Sato passed three-time winner Helio Castroneves of Brazil in the closing laps of the 200-lap drive around the oval track, and held on to win by the slim margin of two-tenths of a second.

"Unbelievable feeling!" a jubilant Sato, 40, declared. Five years ago, the Japanese driver had a great chance to win the prestigious event, but on the final lap collided with eventual champion Dario Franchitti of Scotland.

"He drove unbelievable," said Michael Andretti, head of the team Sato drives for, Andretti Autosport.

"I couldn't do what he was doing (on the closing laps)," said Castroneves, who barely avoided two crashes.

The most horrific crash involved pole sitter Scott Dixon of New Zealand, the 2008 Indy 500 winner. With just over a quarter of the 500-mile (805 km) race completed, Briton Jay Howard's car made contact with the outside wall after turn one and slid down into Dixon's.

Dixon's car was sent flying and sliding sideways on the inside safety barrier, flames shooting out as the back end of the car was ripped away. Miraculously, Dixon climbed out of the race car and walked away, as did Howard.

"I'm a little beaten up there. It was a bit of a rough ride," said Dixon.

Sunday's race featured 35 lead changes among a race record 15 drivers.

Twenty-two-year-old rookie Ed Jones of Britain placed third, and last year's winner, Alexander Rossi of the United States, ended up seventh. The only female driver in the annual event, Pippa Mann of Britain, climbed from 28th at the start and overcame a pit stop penalty to finish 17th in the 33-car field.
Indonesian police on Monday named an Islamist leader as a suspect in the exchange of pornographic messages and photos, a new legal threat to a cleric who helped organize mass Muslim rallies against Jakarta's former Christian governor.

Habib Rizieq, a firebrand cleric who heads the hardline Islamic Defenders Forum (FPI), has also been made a suspect in a separate investigation over allegations he insulted the secular state ideology in the Muslim-majority nation.

President Joko Widodo appears to be taking a tougher stance against fundamentalism and has said he would not tolerate any individuals or organizations that undermine the secular state ideology "Pancasila", or threaten Indonesia's tradition of pluralism.

Religious and political tensions have soared in the last six months with Islamist-led rallies targeting the Jakarta governor, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, an ethnic Chinese Christian who was jailed this month for insulting the Koran.

The government recently moved to disband Hizb ut-Tahrir, an Islamist group that calls for a state based on sharia and also backed the protests against Purnama, an ally of Widodo.

Rizieq, who has spent years preaching conservative Islamic values, is accused of violating Indonesia's strict anti-pornography laws by exchanging graphic messages and nude pictures with a woman.

Jakarta police spokesman Argo Yuwono confirmed Rizieq had been made a suspect, meaning the case is likely to go to court.

"The main crime is participating in and transmitting pornographic content," Yuwono said in a telephone text message.

Rizieq's lawyer, Sugitmo Atmo Pawiro, denied the allegations, saying they had been fabricated by supporters of Purnama.

Rizieq is currently overseas after flying to Malaysia and then to Saudi Arabia. He has not returned to Indonesia despite repeated summons for questioning by police.

His lawyer denied that the cleric had fled Indonesia because of his legal troubles.

An FPI spokesman said the legal complaints against Rizieq were "unfounded".

"This has all been engineered to criminalize the clerics," said Novel Bamukmin, head of the FPI's Jakarta chapter.

"The police need to investigate who really produced and distributed that transcript," he said.

Rizieq served prison terms in 2003 and 2008 for violence and disrupting public order.
An Iraqi government-sanctioned paramilitary force moved on Monday to capture a key town beyond the city of Mosul from the Islamic State group, tightening its grip on series of towns and villages near the Syrian border, officials said.

Backed by the U.S.-led international coalition, Iraq last October launched a wide-scale military offensive to recapture Mosul and the surrounding areas, with various Iraqi military, police and paramilitary forces taking part in the operation. The city's eastern half was declared liberated in January, and the push for the city's western section, separated from the east by the Tigris River, began the following month.





According to Shi'ite lawmaker Karim al-Nouri, the mainly Shi'ite Popular Mobilization Forces seeks to drive IS militants out of the center of strategic Baaj, west of Mosul near the border with Syria. Al-Nouri said the surrounding villages have already been taken from IS.



Once Baaj falls, he told The Associated Press, the fight with IS will move to the Syrian border. He didn't elaborate.



"Baaj is a strategical town for Daesh as it is the last supply line" linking IS with Syria, said Sheikh Sami al-Masoudi, a PMF leader, using the Arabic acronym for IS.



"Once we reach the border, we will erect a dirt barricade and dig a trench to derail their [IS] move," he added.



Hashim al-Mousawi, a leader with al-Nujaba militia, which is also part of the PMF, said the troops are ready to move inside Syrian territories but that this needs Iraqi government approval.



The Iran-backed PMF  known as Hashed al-Shaabi in Arabic  has largely operated since October in the desert to the west of Mosul, trying to cut IS supply lines.



In Mosul, Iraqi forces began a new offensive to drive IS militants from the remaining pockets of territory that the militants still hold in the Old City, in Mosul's western half. The IS hold on Mosul has shrunk to just a handful of neighborhoods in and around the Old City district where narrow streets and a dense civilian population are expected to complicate the fight.



Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul fell to IS in the summer of 2014 as the militants swept over much of the country's north and central areas. Weeks later the head of the Sunni extremist group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, announced the formation of a self-styled caliphate in Iraq and Syria from the pulpit of a Mosul mosque.
Egyptian and Libyan warplanes reportedly launched more airstrikes against Islamic militants who murdered 29 Egyptian Christians last week.

Witnesses say Monday's attacks targeted the Libyan city of Derna, where Egypt says the militants have camps.

Egyptian military officials have not confirmed Monday's attack. But a Libyan spokesman said two groups affiliated with al-Qaida were the targets.

Egypt's air force began attacking the camps Friday, just hours after militants rounded up Christians in the Egyptian province of Minya and opened fire, killing 29 and wounding 24.

A governing Libyan faction in the east allied with Egypt, is taking part in the airstrikes.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was in Cairo Monday, saying Moscow will back any initiative that will genuinely help in the fight against terrorism.

He met with Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry who said Cairo is closely coordinating with Russia in the fight, including stopping the terror financing and preventing countries from giving a safe haven to extremists.
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The mosque where the Manchester bomber prayed is coming under the spotlight after it emerged at least two other British recruits of the Islamic State also worshipped there.



One of the recruits, Khalil Raoufi, died fighting in Syria in 2014. The other, Ahmed Ibrahim Halane, is living in Denmark, where he holds citizenship and is banned from re-entering Britain.



Halane's sisters, Zahra and Salma Halane, who traveled to Syria to become "jihadi brides," are believed also to have worshipped at the mosque, say local Muslims.



Last week, trustees of the Didsbury Mosque and Islamic Center issued a statement condemning as an act of cowardice the Manchester Arena bombing by 22-year old British-Libyan Salman Abedi. The bombing left 22 people dead and 100 injured.





The trustees detailed clashes Abedi had with imam Mohammed Saeed over sermons he delivered denouncing IS in 2015. Saeed said Abedi looked at him "with hate" after he gave a sermon criticizing IS and militant Libyan group Ansar al-Sharia. Saeed said most of the mosque's members supported the condemnation of IS, although a few signed a petition criticizing him.



Saeed said he reported his worries about Abedi's friends to the police. Manchester police say the mosque is not under investigation.



Inconsistent statements



Mosque elders have been inconsistent in their remarks about Salman Abedi and his attendance at the mosque. Saeed acknowledged the suicide bomber was a regular worshipper until the 2015 argument over IS. But mosque chairman, Muhamad el-Khayat, said last week while other family members were regulars, Salman Abedi "himself we did not know, maybe we have seen him once."





The bomber's father Ramadan was a member of the anti-Gadhafi Libyan Islamic Fighting Group that had ties to Osama bin Laden but whose

leaders insist they never affiliated to al Qaida . Ramadan called worshippers to prayer at the Manchester mosque before he moved back to Libya after the ouster of Muammar Gadhafi. He is being held by a vigilante militia in Tripoli along with one of his sons, who the militia says has confessed to IS membership and was involved in a plan to assassinate U.N. envoy to Libya Martin Kobler.



Mosque elders have also appeared defensive. They have refused to allow the media into the mosque and tried to block a Muslim reporter from the BBC from entering to pray.



During Friday prayers, el-Khayat told worshippers the media interest in the mosque, which has been receiving threats and hate mail and is being guarded by police, had been overwhelming. He said the elders fear being misinterpreted.



"We strongly continue to condemn the horrendous crime that was committed," he said. He praised Britain as a hospitable country for Muslims.



But his remarks aren't silencing mounting criticism from Muslim activists opposed to militant Islamic ideologies. They say the mosque must bear some responsibility for Abedi's radicalization because of the conservative Salafi brand of Islam it espouses.





Providing platform for hate



Maajid Nawaz, who helped found the London-based counter-extremist group, Quilliam, has accused the Didsbury mosque of hosting preachers who expressed anti-Semitic and anti-liberal views.



Speaking on London radio station LBC, Nawaz, a British-Pakistani, refused to praise the mosque for its condemnation of IS, saying "the biggest danger to our community at the moment is extremist preachers like this, using mosques that tolerate extremist preachers like this, that breed jihadist terrorists."

"Until we can separate these extremists from our community and isolate them, don't blame the rest of society for wondering whether every Muslim is an extremist, when our mosques are hosting the extremists themselves," he added.



There has been fierce debate in Britain in recent years about the role mosques play, unwittingly or not, in the process of radicalization. In 2015, Conservative peer Baroness Warsi, a Muslim, claimed most radicalization is happening online and not at mosques.

But two British government reports have warned extremists take advantage of mosques and other institutions, including universities, to spread a "poisonous narrative."

In a recent study of British IS recruits for the Henry Jackson Society, British research institute analyst Emma Webb warned some mosques have "functioned as spaces in which extremists could socialize with each other and form relationships" and where extremists can begin the process of recruitment.

She told VOA some family members of British IS recruits complain that by providing a platform, even for non-violent Salafi ideology, some mosques are playing a role in the radicalization process.

"It isn't so much that they recruited them," she argued, "but that they gave them an ideology that allowed them to think it was okay to kill Shi'ites and okay to hate certain people, so it made it easier for them to be recruited subsequently."
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday paid tribute to "a new generation of American patriots" who, he said, "are fighting to win the battle against terrorism."



They are "risking their lives to protect our citizens from an enemy that uses the murder of innocents to wage war on humanity itself," added Trump.

He made the remarks in a Memorial Day speech at the 253-hectare Arlington National Cemetery just after he laid a wreath to honor the more than 300,000 military veterans who are buried there.



Trump is expected at any time to announce a decision on a Pentagon request for an increase in the number of U.S. troops for the continuing war in Afghanistan.

Barack Obama, in the final months of his presidency, did not make a decision on the Defense Department request, preferring to hand it off to the incoming president who would be commander-in-chief by the time any additional forces would head to what has become America's longest-running military campaign.



The United States invaded Afghanistan following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaida, which had been given protection by the Taliban-led government in Kabul.

While the Taliban were driven from the capital and Afghanistan now has a democratically-elected government, strongly backed by Washington diplomatically and militarily, the hardline Islamic militancy is still fighting and recently has been inflicting heavy casualties on Afghan forces.

The conflict, overall, has killed nearly 2,400 American military personnel plus more than 1,100 coalition soldiers. That death toll pales in comparison to the estimated 170,000 fatalities among local fighters and civilians in Afghanistan and across the border in Pakistan.

There are currently about 8,400 U.S. troops in Afghanistan and commanders have requested an additional 5,000.



Although NATO's formal combat role in the country ended in 2014, it has a total of 13,000 troops in Afghanistan and is considering an increase in the number.

"Sending a few thousand more U.S. and other NATO troops to Afghanistan will have at most a marginal effect. It may stabilize the front lines of a war where the main battles are in the rear, politics, governance, geo-economics, and diplomacy," said Barnett Rubin, associate director of the Center on International Cooperation at New York University.

He added that a troop increase could be helpful if there is also an aggressive push for a political settlement, "but instead the military wants to postpone negotiation until we and the government are in a better position."



Afghan defense officials and military commanders say they do not need more foreign fighters, rather more advisers for training, better equipment and engineering technology.



Rubin, a former top adviser on Afghanistan at both the State Department and United Nations, told VOA that Washington's "priority is not the stability of Afghanistan, but maintaining a long-term military presence there to strike threats in the region, and the countries of the region will keep the war going as long as necessary to make the U.S. withdraw."



The Taliban currently control about 40 percent of Afghanistan.
Developments over the weekend concerning President Donald Trump include his discussions with the Group of Seven over climate change, trade and North Korea, as well as his return to turmoil in Washington; while fallout from G-7 meeting leaves Merkel saying Europe can't count on U.S. or Britain; and North Korea tests another missile:

Europe Left Uneasy by Trump's Message  White House press spokesman Sean Spicer declared Saturday night Donald Trumps first overseas trip as U.S. president had been a success in a tweet posted as the American leader was flying back to Washington after very productive 9 days. Just hours earlier President Trump told American troops stationed in Sicily he had strengthened bonds with allies. That isn't how Europe leaders and most of the continents media see it.

Merkel: Europe Must Stay United in Face of Ally Uncertainty  German Chancellor Angela Merkel is urging European Union nations to stick together in the face of new uncertainty over the United States and other challenges. Merkel said Sunday at a campaign event in Bavaria that "the times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days."

WATCH: Trump returns after nine-day foreign trip

Back Home, Trump Assails News Reports of White House Turmoil  President Donald Trump returned to the life he is accustomed to in Washington Sunday, assailing news media reports on the White House turmoil linked to investigation of his aides and their ties to Russia. On his first morning back from a 9-day trip to the Middle East and Europe, Trump declared on Twitter that his "trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!" Then, he quickly turned to long-standing grievances against the media.

WATCH: Top agenda items at Group of Seven meeting in Italy

Climate Change Among Most Contentious Issues at G-7 Summit  Climate change was among the most contentious agenda items Friday at the Group of Seven (G-7) summit in Sicily, but both American and British government officials are publicly denying any major discord. The leaders had a very good discussion about climate issues, British Prime Minister Theresa May told reporters, adding there was no doubt around the table -- which included U.S. President Donald Trump -- about how important the issue is.

US Splits With G-7 Counterparts on Climate Change  In an unprecedented move, a Group of Seven summit communique has carved out a unique place for the United States to break with its counterparts on a major issue. In a pared-down final communique, all G-7 nations, except the United States, pledged action to mitigate climate change.

Scuffles Break Out, Tear Gas Fired at End of G-7 Protest  A group of protesters sought to break through a police cordon at the end of a protest march against world leaders meeting on the island of Sicily on Saturday, scuffling with security forces, who fired tear gas to disperse them.

Report: Trump Tells 'Confidants' US Will Leave Paris Climate Deal  U.S. President Donald Trump has told "confidants," including the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Pruitt, that he plans to leave a landmark international agreement on climate change, the Axios news website reported Saturday, citing three sources with direct knowledge.

National Security Adviser: 'Not Concerned' About Kushner Back-channel Reports  Asked about reports that U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law had tried to set up a clandestine communication channel with Russia before the president took office, U.S. National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster said Saturday that so-called "back-channeling" was normal.

Iran's Supreme Leader: Saudi Arabia is 'Cow Milked' by US  Iran's Supreme Leader has said that Saudi Arabia is a "cow being milked" by the United States. A Saturday report by the semi-official Fars news agency quotes Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as saying that Saudi Arabia trades its wealth with "pagans and enemies."

N. Korea Unwilling to Act on Seoul's Conciliatory Moves, Experts Say  North Korea appears determined to make headway in its nuclear and missile programs, despite South Korea's diplomatic overture aimed at restoring peace on the divided peninsula, U.S. experts say.

North Korea Test-fires Another Ballistic Missile  North Korea test-fired another short-range ballistic missile early Monday, just days after the G-7 demanded that Pyongyang give up its nuclear ambitions. The Trump administration, while serving up strong words against the North and its leader Kim Jong Un, has yet to come out with a firm policy on how to react to Pyongyang.

Sources: 3rd US Naval Strike Force Deployed to Deter North Korea  The United States is sending a third aircraft carrier strike force to the western Pacific region in an apparent warning to North Korea to deter its ballistic missile and nuclear programs, two sources have told VOA. The USS Nimitz, one of the worlds largest warships, will join two other supercarriers, the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Ronald Reagan, in the western Pacific, the sources told VOA's Steve Herman.

US Considering Laptop Ban on All International Flights  The U.S. Homeland Security chief says he's considering banning laptop computers from the passenger cabins of all international flights to and from the United States. John Kelly says there are signs of a "real threat" against civilian aviation from carry-on electronic devices.

Tillerson Declines to Host Ramadan Event at State Department  Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has declined a request to host an event to mark Islam's holy month of Ramadan, two U.S. officials said, apparently breaking with a bipartisan tradition in place with few exceptions for nearly 20 years.
2 In this photograph released by the Sri Lankan Air Force Media division, flooding is seen in the country's Matara district. Heavy monsoon rains in Sri Lanka triggered flooding and landslides that killed at least 91 people and left another 110 missing, authorities said.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel remains committed to strong trans-Atlantic relations, her spokesman said Monday, after the German leader suggested that the United States is no longer a reliable partner.



"Because trans-Atlantic relations are so important to this chancellor, it is right from her viewpoint to speak out honestly about differences," spokesman Steffen Seibert said Monday during a news conference.

"The times in which we can fully count on others are somewhat over, as I have experienced in the past few days," Merkel said, addressing a campaign rally in Bavaria.

Merkel, among other European leaders, was sharply critical of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision at the recent G-7 meeting in Sicily not to reiterate support for the 2015 Paris agreement to combat climate change. In a pared down final communique, all G-7 nations except the U.S. pledged action to mitigate climate change. Merkel has said the climate agreement is so important there should not be any compromise on it.

While acknowledging that Germany and Europe should strive to maintain good relations with the U.S. as well as Britain, which is leaving the European Union, Merkel also said, We need to know we must fight for our own future as Europeans for our destiny.
North Korea is declaring its latest ballistic missile test a success, leaving the United States and its allies fuming.

Pyongyang's state-run news agency Monday called it a test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapons system.

It said the defects discovered in previous tests have been worked out, and that the system should be deployed across North Korea "like forests."

Monday's test-firing came just days after world leaders at the G-7 economic summit demanded that Pyongyang give up its nuclear ambitions.

Missile tracked for six minutes

The U.S. Pacific Command says the launch came near the town of Wonsan on North Korea's east coast. The command tracked the missile for six minutes before it fell into the Sea of Japan, in what is known as Japan's exclusive economic zone.

The command says the missile posed no threat to North America. But an angry Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to respond.

"Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea," Abe said on Japanese television.

U.S. President Donald Trump said in a Twitter comment, "North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbor, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile." But Trump gave Beijing credit for "trying hard" to rein in Pyongyang's military ambitions.

Warning from Mattis

The Trump administration, while serving up strong words against North Korea and its leader Kim Jong Un, has yet to produce a firm policy on how to react to Pyongyang.

U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis, however, warned Sunday that if a diplomatic solution cannot be found for the situation with North Korea "it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat."

"The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea," Mattis told the CBS News show Face the Nation. "This regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea, and in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia, as well."

The secretary said conflict with North Korea would be "probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes."

Second test in a week

This was North Korea's second missile test in a week, coming after the United Nations threatened more sanctions and G-7 leaders condemned the North for its previous launch.

North Korea apparently is determined to develop a missile capable of carrying a nuclear weapon and able to reach the U.S. mainland. But it is nearly impossible to know how much progress it has made towards that goal.

Along with the threat of more sanctions, Trump has dispatched a naval strike force to waters off the Korean peninsula and held joint military exercises with South Korea as warnings.
An Afro-feminist group in France says it expects a public apology from the mayor of Paris, after she condemned the group's plan to hold a festival in late July.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo characterized the event as "forbidden to whites" in a series of comments on Twitter, adding that she reserved the right to "prosecute the organizers for discrimination."

The Mwasi Collective says the festival is aimed at "organizing and building black feminist strategies to end racial, patriarchal, colonial and capitalist violence." It plans workshops, presentations and performances with certain areas reserved for black women, another area for black people of any gender, and another space that is open to everyone.

The group said in Twitter comments Monday that it both expects the apology from Hidalgo, and that the festival can neither be forbidden or canceled.

La Generale, another group working with Mwasi, says their efforts are the target of a "misinformation campaign," pointing to a record of more than a decade of defending constructive debate as well as against exclusion.

It added that feminist discussion groups set aside just for women without the mention of race have not been a problem, and that defining certain forums has been a demonstrated method for encouraging free speech and reflection.

Several rights and anti-Semitic groups have joined the Hidalgo in criticizing the event as divisive, while supporters of Mwasi used social media to speak in support of the festival as an important space for people of color to organize and address inequality in France.
U.S. Senator John McCain said Monday he views Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, as the "greatest challenge we have," even more so than that posed by the Islamic State group.

Speaking during a visit to Australia, McCain told the Australian Broadcasting Company Russia has tried to "destroy the very fundamental of democracy" with efforts to influence the U.S. presidential election and others elsewhere in the world.

The comments come as U.S. President Donald Trump's administration faces investigations into whether it had links to Russia, including reports that Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and a senior White House adviser, attempted to establish a back-channel communications link to Russian officials in the weeks before Trump's inauguration.

"I know that some administration officials are saying, 'Well, that's standard procedure,'" McCain said Monday. "I don't think it is standard procedure prior to the inauguration of a president of the United States by someone who is not in an appointed position."

The New York Times quoted White House spokeswoman Hope Hicks as saying Kushner "was acting in his capacity as a transition official," and that he has agreed to discuss the meetings with congressional investigators.

Trump has rejected any allegations that his campaign colluded with Russia.

"Jared is doing a great job for the country," Trump told Times late Sunday. "I have total confidence in him. He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programs that will save our country billions of dollars. In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person."

The 36-year-old Kushner, a New York real estate executive before joining Trump's White House staff, is married to Trump's oldest daughter Ivanka, who also is a White House adviser.

Kushner, according to several news accounts, sought to create the secret communications link with Moscow as he met with the Kremlin's ambassador to the U.S., Sergey Kislyak, early last December. Some foreign affairs experts said the move, while former president Barack Obama had weeks left in his term, worried them that it could undermine U.S. security and some opposition Democrats have suggested that Kushner's security clearance should be revoked.

Kushner's lawyer has said that he is willing to cooperate with congressional probes of Trump campaign links to Russian officials. One key lawmaker, Senator Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Sunday, "He seems to be a very open person. I'd let him speak for himself when the time is right."

Two Trump administration officials, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, both said they saw nothing wrong with Kushner's overture to Moscow.



Trump hits back

Kushner's connection with the Russia probe was alleged in a Washington Post report while Trump was on a nine-day trip to the Middle East and Europe. Trump, when he returned to Washington, quickly assailed news media reports of White House turmoil linked to investigations of his aides and their ties to Russia.

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," Trump said. "Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names, it is very possible that those sources don't exist, but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!"

He later added a defense of his use of Twitter, saying the media "works hard at disparaging & demeaning my use of social media because they don't want America to hear the real story!"

Trump and White House aides face months of investigations into alleged ties to Russian officials during the presidential campaign and afterwards. There also are accusations from opposition Democrats that Trump has tried to obstruct justice and curtail the probes.

A special counsel is investigating whether Trump aides colluded with Russian officials to help him win the November election, while congressional committees have called on numerous current and former Trump aides to testify.

The White House is bracing for the upcoming congressional testimony of former FBI chief James Comey. Trump fired Comey after allegedly asking him to drop the probe into former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn and his close ties to the Kremlin.

Some U.S. news reports, citing Trump aides, say the president could soon establish a White House "war room" to deal with the burgeoning number of questions about his administration's links to Russia. The reports say Trump has hired a New York lawyer to advise him in handling the various investigations.

Trump has frequently dismissed his campaign's connection with Moscow as an excuse by Democrats to explain his win over Democrat Hillary Clinton. She has blamed Russian meddling in the election as one of the reasons she lost. She has also blamed Comey for public announcements during the campaign that she was under FBI scrutiny for her use of email.

Democrats want to know whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Russians in hacking into unflattering Democratic Party emails and leaking them to the media through WikiLeaks to embarrass Clinton.
The U.S. celebrates Memorial Day. Officially, Memorial Day, observed on the last Monday in May, has been set aside to honor all who died during military service throughout U.S. history. Congress declared Memorial Day a national federal holiday in 1971.
Since 1971, when the U.S. Congress declared Memorial Day a national federal holiday, Americans have spent the final Monday in May honoring all who died during military service throughout U.S. history.



But it all began in 1865, just after the end of the Civil War, when a group of freed American slaves held what came to be seen as the first commemoration of the nation's war dead.

According to historical accounts, in an expression of gratitude to those who died fighting against slavery, the freed slaves exhumed the bodies of more than 250 Union soldiers from a mass grave at a Confederate prison camp in Charleston, South Carolina, and gave them a proper burial. A few weeks later, about 10,000 people marched on May 1 to commemorate the war dead.

Historian and author David Blight, writing in The New York Times about the events in Charleston in 1865, cited a newspaper account the New York Tribune that described a procession of friends and mourners as South Carolina and the United States never saw before.

Decoration Day



In 1868, the commemoration become known officially as Decoration Day, a day to clean up and place flowers on the graves of the war dead.

Two decades later, U.S. states had adopted it as an official holiday. But for more than 50 years, the holiday only remembered those killed in the Civil War, not in any other American conflict.

It wasnt until Americas entry into World War One that the tradition was expanded to include those killed in all wars.



What is now celebrated as Memorial Day was not officially recognized nationwide until that act of Congress in 1971.

Nearly, thirty years later, in 2000, Congress passed the National Moment of Remembrance Act, encouraging all citizens to pause for a minute of silence each year on Memorial Day to remember those who sacrificed their lives in all American military conflicts.


FOREST CITY | Osage High School students recently competed in the Top of Iowa Conference Art and Creative Writing Contest at Waldorf University.

In the Creative Writing Contest, results were as follows - Courtney Lewis, first place; Klaire Chisholm, second place; and Madison Eagen and Abi Arciniega, honorable mention, all in creative non-fiction. A second place in fictional prose went to Sara Murphy.

At a special awards ceremony, Lewis was able to share her story with other winners.

In the Visual Arts Contest, results were as follows  Korey Moreno placed second with his ceramics piece; Caleb Anderson and Julia Ringhofer each received honorable mentions with their ceramics pieces; and Sophia Meyer placed second with her Digital Animation.

For placing first, Lewis received a special honor of having her non-fiction story titled, The Not So Happy Birthday, being published in the universitys publication, the Waldorf Literary Review.

The following is a paragraph from her story, "As I took my last bite of food I felt a hand on my shoulder and a womans voice say, I know this isnt the best time Courtney, but I wanted to tell you happy birthday and give you your card. I turned my head to see my Aunt Dawn smiling at me. I swallowed my last bite, mumbled a thanks, and took the card. As she left my grandpa walked over to our table. Happy birthday Courtney. He said smiling holding out my card."

Lewis' entire story can be found at www.mcpress.com by clicking on this story.

Lewis story deals with the death of her favorite great-uncle Dean, which happened on her 18th birthday. The story takes the reader through a series of flashbacks between the present and the past, recalling how his death has affected her life.

Lewis said she surprised to learn she had won first place. She said she decided to enter the contest, for extra credit, after writing the story as an assignment for her Composition I class.
The Underwoods. Photo: Netflix

Its fashionable to say that politically driven shows like Veep and House of Cards have been made irrelevant by the Trump administration, because no scheme the shows writers dream up could be nuttier than whatever headline you read right before you clicked on this review. But that thought never occurred to me while watching the bugnuts fifth season of Netflixs potboiler. I keep seeing the same joke recycled on social media: that the current White House is House of Cards as performed by the cast of Veep. But that doesnt seem right, because it fails to capture the creeping dread and incipient chaos of 2017 that this show mirrors so perfectly, though coincidentally (it began production before last years election). The Veep characters are dangers mainly to themselves, and they tend to get humiliated or at least reprimanded when the karmic wheel comes around. They might not learn anything from their experiences  nor should they; drama is about people changing or failing to change, while comedy is about how people revert to type  but their destructive idiocy doesnt trouble us, because theres never any risk that the shows fictionalized United States will end up isolated and despised as a result of Selina Meyers tomfoolery, or burn in nuclear hellfire sparked by a tweet. Reality has caught up with House of Cards black-comic political noir in its fifth season  the first without original showrunner Beau Willimon, the show is helmed now by Melissa James Gibson and Frank Pugliese (who have been writers on the show since its third season). Its actually a tad more reassuring than reality because here, at least, when the key players arent acting like petulant children with bodyguards, they appear to know what theyre doing.

House always seemed less ridiculous to international viewers whose governments have been corroded or dismantled by goons whose brazenness is another source of power; but the shows warlords-eye view of governance seems less ludicrous now that every day brings new reports of abuse of executive power, naked corruption, boastful cruelty, and bottomless greed. The slowly unfurling Russia investigation, the reports of the First Family leveraging its influence for profit, and the widespread encouragement of violence against protesters and reporters are but a few developments that mightve been dismissed as far-fetched had House of Cards introduced them earlier in the shows run. In its fifth season, House of Cards plotting is goofier than ever. But it connects with reality in a more unsettling way, as if it is somehow feeding on the unease that accompanies its debut.

Jumping off from last seasons cliffhanger, the premiere finds the Macbeths of South Carolina, Frank and his running mate and First Lady Claire (Robin Wright), sweating a tight presidential race against Republican Will Conway (Joel Kinnaman), a war hero turned governor of New York, and his loyal second fiddle, General Brockhart (Colm Feore). The country is teetering on the brink of second global war on terror, sparked by the beheading of a U.S. citizen by domestic terrorists who pledge allegiance to an ISIL-like army of fundamentalists. Anybody whos spent even one episode in Franks company wont be surprised to learn that he aims to leverage xenophobic panic into patriotic bloodlust. None of his plotting is really about the fate of the United States, no matter how righteously he fumes about the despoiling of our borders and his wish to liberate the citizens from fear. (Franks actually fine with fear as long as hes generating it.) He wants to prove that hes still the most powerful man on earth, win the election, and divert attention from the journalists and political enemies who are digging up his old bad deeds and want to see him investigated and impeached.

Spaceys honeysuckle drawl and flinty-eyed leer are as amusing as ever. Hes almost always the broadest performer in any given room, but thats part of the shows design  a way of drawing us into the characters almost omnisciently evil mindset. Watch House of Cards long enough and you start to think the way Frank does, studying the playbooks of friends and foes and deducing how to neutralize or destroy them. Spacey contracts Franks center of gravity, as if to make him seem prematurely old. Hes like an aging fighter who cant dazzle his opponents with footwork anymore but still knows how to end a fight with a single, well-placed punch.

Around season three, when Claire became her husbands equal in treachery, Wrights Ice Queen Jackie performance became as riveting as Spaceys (it was always subtler). Theyre more of a team here than ever before, a power couple bonded by their desire to stay in the White House indefinitely, as well as by the knowledge that theyll never find a mate more suitable than the one that (sometimes) sleeps next to them. Claires fourth-wall breaking close-up at the end of season four  the first such close-up shed been given  hinted at a deeper self-possession. There are more where that came from. This new run of episodes does a great job of making us wonder if Claire could decisively turn on Frank or if shes playing us as skillfully as she plays everyone else. Even her relationship with her side piece, novelist turned speechwriter Tom Yates (Paul Sparks), is plugged into whatever is roiling beneath Claires masklike face. Somethings happening here, and its not love; we wont know exactly what until she shows us.

Theres a methodical madness to this new season that feels of the moment. Its the underlying sense of slow-burn panic that puts it across  and not just on Franks side; mid-season contrivances put every major player on the defensive, including Frank, whos spun one of those fiendishly elaborate movie-bad-guy schemes where if one element doesnt go as planned, the whole thing will collapse like a you-know-what. Its a grand unraveling, recounted with the twists and turns of one of those Frank Underwood historical anecdotes that invariably concludes with the same moral: Dont underestimate me.

Frank is still a maestro of skullduggery. The show indulges his hambone theatrics in some of House of Cards most memorable confessional interludes. One is staged as a long, uncut take of Frank walking around a freeze-framed gathering, pointing at allies and obstructionists and describing them like a bitchy museum docent riffing on bad paintings. Another sees him visiting a series of tourist-friendly landmarks while holding forth on the cosmic wisdom of the coin flip  a montage that could double as an ad for Washington, D.C., if the goal were to convince everybody to stay away.

But there are also hints that years of winning have deluded Frank into thinking hell never really lose. There are even suggestions that both he and Claire have cast themselves as the stars of their life movies for so long that theyve failed to really think about what kind of movie theyre in. Billy Wilder and Raymond Chandlers film noir classic Double Indemnity is the subject of a major sequence that puts a new frame around the Underwoods marriage and makes us wonder if Claire hasnt been the shows secret motor all along (though its too calculating to pull the trigger on that notion). Film noir often revolves around scheming, egocentric lovers who think theyre evenly matched when one is secretly smarter and more brutal than the other. Which one is the alpha, though? We used to assume it was Frank, but now that they both can confide in us with their eyes, we arent so sure. But even if one of the Underwoods is smarter than the other, thats no guarantee that theyre smarter than the rest of the world combined. Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck thought they could get away with murder, but they didnt count on Edward G. Robinsons insurance investigator, Keyes, whose nose for deception manifested itself as a little man gnawing at his belly.

Not since season four of Boardwalk Empire has a season of a fashionably grim, popular drama made me want to go back and reconsider every withering thing Ive written about it. Cards seems to have freed itself of the obligation to obey even cursory rules of realism, save for certain parliamentary ones, and those are observed only so that we can follow along as Underwood plays chess with human pieces. Whats onscreen feels a little bit like Ridley Scotts batty gothic legal drama The Counselor or Denis Villenueves kidnap thriller Prisoners, where a big part of the fun came from watching solid actors navigate drastic shifts in tone while making you believe in the emotional reality of things that cant happen.

In that spirit, season five of House of Cards is a paranoid fantasy with dollops of Veep-like farce. One scene plays like a twisted hat tip to Game of Thrones, and theres another where a man screws his lover on top of the podium in the White House briefing room. The cold openings are genuinely surprising: One is so tonally bizarre that for a second I assumed Id clicked on the wrong series by mistake, and others zigzag so playfully from whatever the last episode led me to expect that I laughed out loud in wary admiration. There are unexpected time jumps, surreal interludes, and moments of tenderness and insecurity (mostly, though not always, between Frank and Claire). The subplots of key supporting characters  Michael Kellys Doug Stamper, Kinnamans roided-up Mr. Smith of a governor, and Boris McGivers alternately cocky and morose Washington Herald editor Tom Hammerschmidt  connect with Frank and Claires arcs, not just through the crackpot intricacies of the main story line, but through their shared sense of helplessness in the face of the dark forces that Frank has unleashed.

Im not saying that House of Cards has become great popular art all of a sudden  only that it was always a fun show, and that in its fifth season its so addictive, and knows itself and its audience so well, that I cant in good conscience label it a guilty pleasure anymore. Its a self-actualized spider realizing for the first time that it can hang upside down from the ceiling and savoring the change in perspective. So many shoulders to fall on, so little time.
Brady Jandreau in The Rider. Photo: Protagonist Pictures

This review first ran at the Cannes Film Festival.

As visceral and violent as many films have been this year at Cannes, few have been as tied to the body itself as Chloe Zhaos The Rider. The film, which won the top prize this year at the Directors Fortnight sidebar, is primarily concerned with the body and brain of Brady (Brady Jandreau) a rising rodeo champ whose career is cut short by a major head injury. We see his freshly stapled skull, a grisly sight treated tenderly by the camera: The body is a conveyance for the mind, and deep existential heartbreak occurs when one wants something that the other just isnt up to anymore.

The film follows Bradys reluctant struggle to walk away from the rodeo, the horses he loves so much, and the way of life he had pinned his identity on. The mixed messages of his community and peers  be a man, suck it up, but dont kill yourself  find him in a quietly tortured back and forth. Hes resolved to do the prudent thing one minute, then finds himself involuntarily drawn toward the saddle the next. He sells his beloved horse, Gus, but cant bring himself to let go of his riding gear. His close friend Lane, another former rodeo star, is in the hospital suffering acute brain damage, and Brady still tries to convince him  and himself  that he will ride again.

The connection between men and horses is one of the most enduring themes in cinema, if an increasingly abstract and nostalgic one. But Zhaos framing of Bradys story is unmistakably contemporary; she gets so close up that the screen practically exudes the smell of hay and sweat. It helps that her star has the best method training possible: Jandreau is a real former cowboy Zhao met while filming her last feature, Songs My Brothers Taught Me, who underwent a similar injury. When Brady tries his hand at breaking horses for a living (a considerably safer job than riding bucking ones) were watching Jandreaus own intuition and physical awareness onscreen, a careful, wordless dance with a jittery colt.

The film also stars Jandreaus own family and friends as themselves, and theres an easygoing naturalism to the scenes among the cowboys, talking shop, drinking beer, and praying for each other. But there could be no mistaking The Rider for a veiled documentary: Zhaos sense of lyricism and emotional rhythm is all her own. There are moments that soar  Bradys last ride on Gus is a visual aria  and others, especially those with Lane, that are quietly wrenching.

And thats whats so subtly special about The Rider  the way it takes what easily could have been reportage and turns it into modern American myth. Brady and his friends live in a milieu both quintessentially American and completely obscure to most 21st-century Americans. And yet, their story feels universal to any person  or country, for that matter  that has ever had to accept a fundamental change or loss or blow to their sense of self. Its never a clean break, and the push and pull to go back to the way things were can be agonizing and occasionally blissful. In telling the story of a disappearing slice of America, Zhao has created a portrait of resilience, and the bonds that last even after the rodeos over.
Doug Rozendaal has been flying airplanes for more than four decades, but when he took off from Mason City Airport on Friday it was a first for
Some McLennan County leaders are looking for new options to shake up the way road and bridge decisions are handled after the state Legislature killed a bill that would have allowed a change.

The House bill, if approved, would have given McLennan County the option of moving to a unit road system overseen by an engineer and away from the precinct-based operations managed by commissioners.

However, that bill and more than 100 others were eliminated in what was dubbed the Mothers Day Massacre, Precinct 4 Commissioner Ben Perry said. Members of the Texas Freedom Caucus got in a political shoving match with House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, and opted to derail the legislation, Perry said.

One of those bills killed was aimed only at McLennan County, didnt affect anyone else and only gave the county an option to consider, Perry said. Rep. Charles Doc Anderson, R-Waco, wrote the bill.

There are a few options left for McLennan County commissioners.

They could wait until the next legislative session and hope another bill makes it through, get a unit road system measure on the ballot or adopt a modified version, Perry said.

County Judge Scott Felton started discussions on a unified road-and-bridge department in November, saying the move could save money and take politics out of road work. Felton is the sole member of the court who does not oversee an individual road and bridge department.

Felton said he would like the court to make a decision about which direction it wants to go before it adopts the 2018 fiscal year budget, which it is scheduled to do Aug. 22.

However, before a decision, there needs to be a good, honest evaluation of what it does financially and how it works in communities, he said.

The county operates on a precinct road-based system, in which commissioners are responsible for road-work decisions in the precinct they represent. A unit road system would place responsibility for road-work operations with the county engineer or a dedicated department head.

Lubbock and Nacogdoches counties have a modified unit road system worth reviewing, Perry said. Those counties have a county road administrator who is in charge of road and bridge work throughout the county, but the administrator reports to commissioners, who vote on projects, Perry said.

The idea is to eliminate duplication of equipment and effort and create teams of more skilled employees to handle a particular task throughout the county, he said.

The key to this is getting four commissioners willing to pull the wagon in the same direction, Perry said.

He said he doesnt think it would be wise to spend taxpayers money to host a November election just to move to a unit road system. He expects commissioners will discuss in the next few weeks what kind of work it would take to move to a modified system, how they could get there and what all it would entail.

In April, commissioners voted 3-2 to move hire a consultant to determine the best system to manage roads. Precinct 1 Commissioner Kelly Snell and Precinct 2 Commissioner Lester Gibson cast the dissenting votes.

However, no one responded to the countys request, Felton said.

Felton said he would still like to see an outside consultant review and report back best options for McLennan County. Either way, the commissioners need a thorough understanding of options and possibilities before making any decisions, he said.

Commissioners in December revised the job description for the county engineer after Steve Hendrick retired from the position. The new description includes knowledge of a unit road system as a requirement.

Commissioners started interviewing candidates for the vacant county engineer position Tuesday.
COLLINGWOOD 5.5 9.10 11.16 18.21 (129)

BRISBANE LIONS 4.3 6.3 10.6 13.6 (84)

Goals: Collingwood: J Elliott 4 D Moore 3 A Fasolo 2 D Wells 2 A Treloar B Maynard J Smith L Dunn S Sidebottom T Adams T Broomhead. Brisbane Lions: D Beams 3 D Zorko 2 A Smith D Rich E Hipwood J Barrett J Berry M Hammelmann R Mathieson T Cutler.

Best: Collingwood: Sidebottom, Pendlebury, Elliott, Treloar, Moore, Goldsack, Grundy, Adams, Maynard. Brisbane Lions: Zorko, Beams, McLuggage, Hipwood, Mathieson, Mayes.

Umpires: Ray Chamberlain, Andrew Stephens, Robert O'Gorman.

Official Crowd: 32,750 at MCG.

Collingwood's game against Brisbane was a microcosm of their season. Good in parts, dominant in others, frail at times, and architects of their own misfortune at others.

Eventual 45-point winners, the Magpies were five goals up in the biting cold and rain approaching half-time. The Lions got a goal back on the siren from Matthew Hammelmann, but the contest had about it a sense of inevitability, which was only reinforced after the break when Darcy Moore booted the first goal.

Then Collingwood kicked six straight behinds and teased out in Brisbane minds the idea of the comeback as the Lions in contrast kicked four goals. It also teased out in Collingwood minds the frailty in their game all year.
Consider this. There are more than 2 million small businesses in Australia and more than two out of five small business owners have a taxable income below $35,000 a year.

How would you rate the chances of those business owners having any, let alone adequate, superannuation?

Small Business Ombudsman Kate Carnell says women business owners are particularly at risk of ending up without adequate super savings. Credit:Louie Douvis

"When your taxable income is below the minimum wage it's hard enough to pay yourself a reasonable wage let alone make contributions to super," the Small Business Ombudsman Kate Carnell says.

There is no way of knowing an exact average super balance of small-business owners but from what we do know, it's unlikely to be sufficient.
East Fremantle has got the jump on its neighbours Fremantle, to become the first council in WA to outlaw plastic bags.

Early in the week, the tiny municipality voted to introduce the Town of East Fremantle Plastic Bag Reduction Local Law 2017, which if given the tick of approval by the new McGowan government will come into effect in 180 days.

East Fremantle council could soon wave goodbye to plastic bags. Credit:Tamara Voninski

Any business caught selling or providing single-use plastic bags in the town after the law comes into affect could be slugged with a $2500 fine.

East Fremantle council shouldn't have too much trouble getting the town to become a plastic bag free zone, with Environment Minister Stephen Dawson earlier this month saying the Labor government was keen to phase them out or make customers pay a levy for using them.
London: German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday declared a new chapter in US-European relations after contentious meetings with President Donald Trump last week, saying that Europe "really must take our fate into our own hands."

Offering a tough review in the wake of Mr Trump's trip to visit EU, NATO and Group of Seven leaders last week, Ms Merkel told a packed Bavarian beer hall rally that the days when Europe could rely on others was "over to a certain extent".

"This is what I have experienced in the last few days," she said.

It was a stark declaration from the leader of Europe's most powerful economy, and a grim take on the trans-Atlantic ties that have underpinned Western security in the generations since World War II.
At the invitation of Mr. Albert Muchanga, Commissioner for Trade and Industry, African Union, WCO Secretary General, Dr. Kunio Mikuriya attended the First Extraordinary Meeting of the African Union Sub -Committee of Directors General of Customs (AUSCDGC), hosted by Nigeria Customs Service in Abuja, Nigeria, from 23 to 25 May, 2017.

Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, Minister of Finance of Nigeria, Col. Hameed Ibrahim Ali (Rtd), Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Ms. Treasure Maphanga, Director of theAfrican Union Commission's Department of Trade and Industry, Mr. Happias Kuzvinzwa, Commissioner General for Zimbabwe Revenue Authority and Chair of the AUSCDGC, Mr. Jerry Alagbaoso, House of Representatives, Committee on Customs, Senator Hope Uzodimma, and Secretary General Mikuriya addressed the delegates and highlighted various topics in their respective domains that were the subjects of subsequent presentations and discussions.

In particular, the meeting recognized the need to: 1) develop a common strategic approach to maximise African impact internationally; 2) work actively towards the establishment and implementation of the Continental Free Trade Area; 3) boost Intra- Africa Trade by facilitating trade through predictable customs procedures, mutual administrative assistance, information exchange and enhanced co-ordinated border management including active engagement with the private sector; 4) address the challenges of the implementation of the WTO TFA, and make progress to increase the number of accessions to the TFA bearing in mind that the content of the TFA is largely based on the Revised Kyoto Convention (RKC); 5) continue to increase the role of Customs in security and the fight against crime, terrorism and illicit financial flows; and 6) increase the use of digital technology to handle increased trade flows.

Were heard updates on current developments in the Nigeria Customs Service including security initiatives, the current state of play in the establishment of the Continental Free Trade Area, the implications of the WTO TFA for African Customs and the WCO response including the Mercator programme, current developments in Regional organisations, and the ongoing negotiations on the import levy (0.2 per cent) for financing the African Union Commission.

Delegates also endorsed the outcomes of the recent Regional meetings on WCO governance matters whereby the decision of the 2016 Council should be respected and that status quo would continue to apply for both Secretary and Deputy Secretary Generals elections.

Secretary General Mikuriya and the Heads of Customs paid a courtesy call to the Acting President of Nigeria, Honourable Yemi Osinbajo. The Acting President underlined the importance of Customs in driving regional integration through facilitating trade and also contributing to border security. He therefore emphasized the critical role of Customs cooperation that the AUSCDGC will work to enhance.

The Secretary General joined with delegations to thank the Nigeria Customs Service for the excellent arrangements and hospitality extended to all delegates.
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With the sponsorship of the Japanese Customs Cooperation Fund, a WCO National Workshop on Customs Laboratory and Chemical Analysis was held at the headquarters of Myanmar Customs Department in Yangon, Myanmar, from 15 to 18 May 2017.

At the opening of the Workshop, Mr. Aung San Tun, Deputy Director General of the Myanmar Customs Department, highlighted the importance of Customs Laboratories. He emphasized that Myanmar Customs has been undertaking reform and modernization measures as a Member of the AEC (ASEAN Economic Community) through trade facilitation with the aids of international organizations. In this context, establishing a modern Customs Laboratory would enhance the process of cargo clearance, support trade facilitation and efficient revenue collection. He concluded by thanking the representatives from the WCO Secretariat's Tariff and Trade Affairs Directorate and from Japan Customs Administration for facilitating the discussions on the Customs Laboratory and Chemical Analysis that were new to the Myanmar Customs.

During the Workshop, a wide range of topics relating to the establishment and use of Customs Laboratories for HS classification as well as for enforcement purposes, including identification of drugs were addressed. Participants were also informed about the infrastructures and designs of different sized Customs Laboratories in Japan, including so-called satellite Laboratories located in the main airports. Moreover, participants discussed and evaluated their analysis needs and considered possible future actions for the establishment of a Customs Laboratory in Myanmar.

The Workshop was closed by Mr. Moe Kyaw Aye, Director of Thilawa SEZ Customs, and Ms. Aye Aye Htoo, Deputy Director of the Administration Division of Myanmar Customs Department. In their closing remarks, they thanked the WCO and Japan for their contributions to the modernization of Myanmar Customs. They emphasized again the importance of the establishment of a Customs Laboratory with a view to ensuring the correct collection of revenue and promoting international trade and investment while controlling the international movement of certain commodities.
Under the auspices of the WCO-INAMA project (funded by Sweden, US Department of State, GiZ and CITES Secretariat) the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) received further support from the WCO in strengthening its intelligence function. The primary objective of this activity was to improve MRAs risk management capacity with a focus on the illegal wildlife trade.

This support was the follow up to two previous WCO-INAMA missions held in October (2016) and March (2017). As a consequence of the mission held in March, MRA adopted a business case to strengthen its intelligence function. Therefore this recently carried out mission, held from 24th to 28th April, focused on implementing said business case.

The WCO experts supported the MRA team appointed for the project, in developing the business processes and the job profiles for the intelligence unit.

This mission will be followed up by other similar WCO missions the aim of which will be to strengthen the intelligence function, enabling it to support and strengthen the capacity of the MRA to enforce the CITES Convention.

This mission was funded by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GiZ).

For more information about this mission and the WCO-INAMA Project, please contact the WCO-INAMA project manager, Marco Foddi (marco.foddi@wcoomd.org).
A Regional Workshop on API PNR for Members in the East Europe Sub-region took place in Lviv (Ukraine) from 22 to 25 May 2017. Nine Members, namely Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan and Ukraine, participated in the Workshop. In his opening remarks Mr. Igor Kalamuniak, Head of Customs Control Division in Lviv Customs, said that Customs in the Sub-region had a long history of cooperation. The Workshop provided a great opportunity for the participants to work hand-in-hand to develop capability in passenger facilitation and control through the use of passenger data in their administrations.

The WCO pointed out that the challenge for Customs in undertaking passenger facilitation and control is likely to increase over time, taking into account the many developments that could attract passenger flow such as the opening of new flight routes, low-cost flights as well as the creation of new tourist resorts. In addition, Customs has a new security-related role in the prevention of transnational organized crime, such as the smuggling of drugs, weapons and explosives as well as cash, and stemming the flow of terrorists from and to conflict zones. In this regard, a new approach to passenger control involving passenger data is considered to be a smart option for making the work of Customs more efficient.

The WCO provided information about several international instruments that refer to the importance of Advance Passenger Information (API) data. In particular, it was pointed out that a set of guidance and technical standards developed and maintained by the WCO/IATA/ICAO API PNR Contact Committee is available online on the WCO Members website, ready to be used as a reference for the implementation of the API PNR programme.

An expert from Netherlands Customs kindly facilitated the Workshop at the WCOs invitation, providing participants with practical knowledge of passenger risk management based on actual working experience.

The Workshop concluded with a round-table discussion in which participants took stock of the status of the passenger control approach applied in their respective administrations, the potential need for the use of passenger data, possible support required, and foreseeable challenges related to the implementation of the API PNR programme.
The State Fiscal Service of Ukraine (SFS) in cooperation with the Ternopil National Economics University (TNEU) held from 11 to 12 May the 3rd International Competition of Canine teams, in Ternopil, Ukraine. The invited canine teams from Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Moldova, Poland, Slovakia, and Ukraine demonstrated their skills on finding concealed drugs, weapons and tobacco products.

Mr. Andriy Krysovatyy, Rector of the University, welcomed the SFS and all participants to this event at the premises of the TNEU, referring to the cooperation with the SFS in different areas, including the training of future Customs officers. Mr. Myroslav Prodan, Acting Commissioner of the SFS also welcomed the guests. He remarked upon the strong political support to the SFS programmes and stressed the importance of cooperation between countries and the WCO and other international organizations for improving capabilities to fight trans-border crimes.

The event included a visit to the WCO Regional Dog Training Centre in Khmelnytskyi. The current training programme with more than 50 courses includes training in classroom, the use of online and offline modules and practical specialised training. In addition, the centre is paving its way to develop and implement even more modern methodology of continuous training of Customs officers. The centre also functions as a training hub for different national enforcement services, which enhances the cooperation of services in combating smuggling and movement of illegal goods across the country.

The competition in Ternopil, the main objectives being to improve professional skills of canine units, to strengthen dog handlers skills on timely detection of illegal products and to exchange experience and knowledge, presented strict criteria for the evaluation of sniffing work by canines on searching for drugs, weapons and tobacco products in passenger cars, buildings, trucks and luggage.

The WCO congratulated SFS on its achievements in providing high quality training to canine units. In a short note the WCO explained the role to support Administrations in achieving higher levels of performance and praised the cooperation between Customs and the Academia as an invaluable partnership for continuous research on Customs matters.
Under the auspices of the WCO-INAMA project (funded by Sweden, US Department of State, GiZ and the CITES Secretariat) the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) continue receiving support from the WCO in strengthening its intelligence function. The primary objective of this follow up mission was to go ahead in the process of enhancing the Intelligence capacity of the Zambia Customs administration to collect, process and disseminate intelligence with a focus on illegal trade in endangered species.

This support was provided through a WCO experts mission to the ZRA headquarters in Lusaka, held from 24th to 28th April 2018.

The support provided in the framework of this mission was based on the findings of a diagnostic developed during the previous WCO-INAMA mission to ZRA held in December 2016. This diagnostic report outlined a range of key findings and recommendations across the range of intelligence capabilities assessed. Building on these findings the WCO experts provided strategic advice on the next steps to be accomplished by ZRA to streamline the intelligence function.

This mission was funded by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GiZ).

For more information about this mission and the WCO-INAMA Project, please contact the WCO-INAMA project manager, Marco Foddi (marco.foddi@wcoomd.org).
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Engagement Ideas & Rings

When You Give A Girl A Ring In Santorini, Greece Magic Happens

When You Give A Girl A Ring In Santorini, Greece Magic Happens

When you give a girl a ring in Santorini, Greece magic happens! Jacob and Selena rented an amazing Airbnb apartment and from its rooftop terrace they had this breathtaking view over the city Oia. They met early in the morning to start shooting. In the mornings the city is enjoyably quiet, only some fisher boats and straying cats cross your path through the charming alleys of Oia.



It sounds like perfection waiting to happen, and perfection did indeed happen! The beautiful images from Melanie Nedelko Photography speak for themselves and you'll understand why we're drooling over this engagement session and wishing we could be there! Get an even closer look at all the images in the full gallery.



The Perfect Pictorial Engagement Session Location



Words from Melanie Nedelko Photography: For me there's no other location for an engagement shoot that's more beautiful and more unique than Santorini! This wonderful, quaint Greek island with its blue church domes definitely is one of the most gorgeous locations I've ever seen in real life. Pictorial wind mills, cute kittens and the most amazing sunsets await you. So when I got an email from Selena and Jacob from L.A. this April where they told me about how they are going to travel Europe including Santorini for some weeks my heart just skipped a beat.

Celebrate Your Engagement With An Exciting Journey



Shortly before their departure Jacob surprisingly proposed to Selena and it became clear pretty quick that they wanted to have an engagement shooting on Santorini. After traveling through Italy, Croatia, Slovenia and Montenegro they arrived full of unforgettable impressions on the Greek island to meet me there. I was more than just excited and ever since I met them in person I couldn't wait for this day to come.

Greece is amazing for engagements, and for all you already engaged couples out there it's also the perfect place for a wedding!



Once You Go You Might Never want to Come Back



This engagement shooting was just incredible. Jacob and Selena interacted so lovingly and easily in front of my camera, it was a pleasure taking their pictures. I could have continued photographing them all day long if the sun hadn't become too hot and tourists hadn't spread out into the city. Within an hour Oia awakes and its bustle takes its usual course. I really hope that I may return to Santorini some day. Because if you have been there once, it is all over with you This island won't let you go again.
Little sign of relief expected in October US inflation data
By The Associated Press May. 23, 2017 | 04:27 PM | PADUCAH, KY

The Kentucky Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing will hold a regional outreach program next week in Paducah.

The program starts with a community forum from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. June 6. Staff will accept appointments to meet with individuals after the forum or the following day. They will visit local businesses on June 7 and June 8.

People from counties near the Paducah meeting site are invited. For more information, call (502) 573-2604 voice/TTY or (502) 416-0607 videophone.

The commission said in a news release the purpose of the project is to try to work directly with deaf and hard of hearing individuals, their families and the community.

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Online: http://www.kcdhh.ky.gov
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By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 27, 2017 | 11:20 AM | WESTERN KENTUCKY

June is the peak of Relay for Life season in western Kentucky, and thousands of participants are preparing for their local events to help battle cancer.Seven more Relays will take place in June, part of the nationwide campaign that has become a major fundraiser for the American Cancer Society.Teams can still be formed for each event (click the link below for information), and everyone is welcome to simply drop in that night to enjoy the food, music and activities provided by dozens of local teams.The remaining Relay for Life schedule:Crittenden County - 6 p.m. at Marion City Park.Graves County - 3 to midnight at Mayfield High School.Lyon County - 6 to 10 p.m. at City Park in Eddyville.Hickman County - 5 to 9 p.m.at the Hickman County Courthouse Square in Clinton.McCracken County - 4 to 10 p.m. at McCracken County High School west of Paducah. (rescheduled from May)Marshall County - 4 to 11 p.m. at Marshall County High School in Draffenville.Ballard and Carlisle Counties - 5 to 10 p.m. at Ballard County Fairgrounds in La Center.Relays have already taken place for Calloway County, Fulton County, and in Massac County representing the seven southernmost counties of Illinois.For more information on a Relay For Life near you, click the link below.

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By The Associated Press

May. 29, 2017 | ARLINGTON, VA

By The Associated Press May. 29, 2017 | 12:15 PM | ARLINGTON, VA

President Donald Trump is expressing his nation's "boundless and undying" gratitude to Americans who have fallen in battle and to the families they left behind.



Trump hailed heroes in his first Memorial Day remarks as president at Arlington National Cemetery. He told the stories of two soldiers who died in Afghanistan, Green Beret Capt. Andrew D. Byers of Colorado Springs and Christopher D. Horton of the Oklahoma National Guard.



He also hailed Bob Dole, the former senator who suffered lifelong injuries in World War II and attended Monday's ceremony.



And Trump singled out his homeland security secretary, John Kelly, for whom military sacrifice is close to home.



Kelly led the U.S. Southern Command and lost his son, Robert Kelly, who stepped on a land mine on a Marine patrol in Afghanistan. John Kelly's other son, Johnny, is preparing for his fifth military deployment. And Kelly's son-in-law Jake is a wounded warrior.



Earlier in the dayon social media, Trump thanked the men and women who died in service to the United States.



In a tweet Trump sent out on Monday, he said, "Today we remember the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in serving. Thank you, God bless your families & God bless the USA!"


By The Associated Press May. 28, 2017 | 06:01 PM | ANNVILLE, PA

While millions of Americans celebrate the long Memorial Day weekend as the unofficial start of summer, some veterans and loved ones of fallen military members wish the holiday would command more respect.

Veterans groups say a growing military-civilian disconnect contributes to a feeling that Memorial Day has been overshadowed.

More than 12 percent of the U.S. population served in the armed forces during World War II. That's down to less than one-half of a percent today, guaranteeing more Americans aren't personally acquainted with a soldier, sailor, airman or Marine.

Allison Jaslow is a former Army captain and Iraq War veteran. She says the country's "lost sight of what the day's supposed to mean."

Her group, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, is encouraging Americans to pause for a moment of silence at 3 p.m. Monday.
Wexford photographer Declan Roche is back among the best with stunning shot of hare on Curracloe Beach
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

wfpvideo:bmdnXBqa:wfpvideo

City police say their AIR1 helicopter is vital and saves money and lives, but critics wonder if the expensive eye in the sky is earning its keep.

At a news conference Monday, the Winnipeg Police Service issued the 2016 annual report on its flight operations unit, showing a 27 per cent decrease in its use from 2015  the result of a "catastrophic failure" of its infrared high-definition camera last August, Insp. Jon Lutz said. A loaner was used until it was replaced in December at a cost of $483,370.

Having AIR1 is like having access to a medical MRI device, Lutz said.

"Its expensive, and many in the community will never need one," Lutz said, referring to its $1.9-million operating budget.

"At some point, you or I may need it to save someones life," Lutz said before showing video clips from Air1. One example showed police tracking down someone whose family was concerned they might harm themself. The helicopter located their vehicle outside the city in a forested area, and help was dispatched. Other clips showed the heat-sensing camera tracking suspects on foot and in vehicles trying to evade police. Having an eye in the sky is saving money by helping to find and apprehend people more quickly and safely, said Lutz, divisional commander of operational support for specialty units.

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But other than anecdotal examples, the police review of Air1 doesnt provide any cost-benefit analysis, said criminologist Steven Kohm.

"I have the same conversation with my relatives: If it saves one life, isnt it worth it? Unfortunately, that isnt a very reasonable or rational metric to assess whether or not its good value for the money," said Kohm, a professor at the University of Winnipeg.

"Its the same old case, with police arguing that It has value that the public cant see  they dont understand its part of an integrated approach  that kind of thing."

The question of whether or not its worth the cost of running Air1  nearly $2,600 an hour for every hour it was operational in 2016  hasnt been answered, Kohm said.

"It does seem to be a lot of money for something that isnt in the air a lot," said Kohm. "I dont think the police have done a really good job (of providing empirical evidence) of what value it adds to the department."

Kohm said the city is experiencing "a real crunch."

"Infrastructure is crumbling, and a huge proportion of tax dollars are going to emergency services. The helicopter really seems like an expense that seems hard to justify given the scarcity of dollars," he said.

The future of Air1 was put in doubt last year when the former NDP government announced it wanted an independent operational review to ensure taxpayers are getting good value from it. The Pallister government committed to ensuring the review takes place.

The helicopter  an EC120B from Eurocopter Canada  was publicly unveiled in December 2010 and cost the Winnipeg Police Service $3.5 million. It also receives funding from the City of Winnipeg, but the province covers the operating cost each year.

The province would only say Monday its up to the City of Winnipeg to decide how its funding for public safety is spent.

This map, included in the Winnipeg Police Service's 2016 report on the Flight Operations Unit's activities, shows the density of flights over city neighbourhoods between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2016.

We are continuing to provide significant and appropriate funding support to municipalities that is sustainable," a spokeswoman for Indigenous and Municipal Relations Minister Eileen Clarke said.

"Budget 2017 includes a strong provincial commitment to support municipal operating expenses, including public safety," Caitlin MacGregor said by email. "Overall funding to Winnipeg for public safety will continue at the same level as last year ($24 million). Under our new basket funding approach, the city will have more choice in how to allocate funding to respond to local and emerging needs rather than constraining the city to specific activities.

When asked to weigh in on whether or not AIR1 is worth the cost, the new chairman of the Winnipeg Police Board refused, saying his opinion doesnt matter at this stage.

"Were very early in the budget process, and what matters more to me is what the police service thinks about Air1 in the context of the totality of its budget and the strategic plan of the board and service that reflects community needs and values," David Asper said by email. "I suspect its something that may evolve over the duration of the budget process. Todays news doesnt lead me to any conclusion."

As a criminologist, Kohm said he wonders if the nearly $2 million spent on Air1 could be better spent on other initiatives.

"At the operational level, they could hire another civilian analyst to help police target resources more strategically in terms of reducing crime," said Kohm.

Kohm says more questions need to be asked, such as, "What actually prevents crime?" He said the province and the city need to work together on a strategy.

"The province is freezing funding to neighbourhood-renewal organizations that give youth a place to go and meaningful engagement with the labour force  it should all be seen as part of a strategy," said Kohm.

"Weve invested heavily in more boots on the street," Kohm said. "Some tough questions need to be asked about the helicopter," he asked. "A lot is based on common sense, and people just assume that its doing a good thing," he said.

"Im skeptical, like everyone else here who pays taxes," Kohm said.

carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca

Full annual report
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Independent MLA Mohinder Saran has accused the Pallister government of discrimination against members of the overwhelmingly East Indian taxicab industry.

Saran said in the estimates hearings of Indigenous and Municipal relations Minister Eileen Clarke that the province will allow Uber to operate in the province as early as this year because it cares nothing about what happens to people in an industry that is 90 per cent East Indian.

Manitoba Hansard has published his comments.

WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Mohinder Saran

We dont care. We can take care of farmers, we can take care of fishery people, but (taxi drivers are) only immigrants. Who cares about them? Saran said. You brought money from the other country; you spent over here; hell with you guys we are going to make you again poor.

This is totally unfair for the owners, especially, 90 per cent of people are East Indian; its discrimination on the East Indian and we will fight up to tooth and nail and we would not let it happen does not matter if we have to go on hunger strike, well do it. We will do everything possible.

Clarke did not respond to Saran during the estimates hearing, but issued a statement Monday: The accusations of racism are repugnant and undeserving of comment.

Saran also said in estimates that East Indian drivers who work overnight often ask for fares in advance, and in response some passengers complain that theyve been harassed.

Sometimes people dont want to pay the fare, they will accuse for harassment; they accuse for something else. So theres no fairness there, no balance, he said.

Unicity Taxi president Gurmail Mangat could not be reached Monday.

University of Winnipeg economics Prof. Manish Pandey said he and a group of friends were sitting in the public gallery at the legislature  there for the introduction of a private members bill proposing Indo-Manitoban heritage recognition  when Saran unleashed his allegations against the government, and were taken aback by the charges.

I was there. All of us looked at each other and said, This is not coming from racism,' Pandey said. I dont think this would be racism  that would be going too far.

Businessman Amenjeet Warraich, founder of the Punjab Cultural Centre, said hes heard from taxi owners whove made substantial investments and now fear the arrival of Uber.

I dont believe its racism, but its going to hurt the community, he said, adding that when provincial legislation is passed later this year to allow Uber into the market, there must be a fair and level playing field for everyone.

Saran is the three-term MLA for The Maples, who was a New Democrat until being thrown out of caucus several months ago after a second allegation of sexual harassment against staff became public.

Meanwhile, New Democrat Jim Maloway is pushing Clarke in the ongoing estimates hearing to compensate any taxi licence holder who is adversely affected by Uber.

Maloway cited as a precedent in the early 1970s the Schreyer NDP government compensating members of the insurance industry after the creation of Autopac. The Manitoba Historical Society describes that case in detail at http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/mb_history/59/autopac.shtml.

nick.martin@freepress.mb.ca
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg-based charities are hailing the federal governments decision to match Canadian donations for famine relief.

In response to what the United Nations has called the greatest humanitarian crisis since the Second World War, the government will contribute $1 to Global Affairs Canadas new Famine Relief Fund for every dollar donated to registered charities responding to famine and hunger in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.

The federal governments dollar-for-dollar matching is retroactive to March 17 and runs until June 30.

In this Monday, Aug. 29, 2016 file photo, a doctor feeds a malnourished child at a feeding centre run by Doctors Without Borders in Maiduguri, Nigeria. As many as 75,000 children will die over the next year in famine-like conditions created by Boko Haram if donors dont respond quickly, the U.N. Childrens Fund is warning. (AP Photo/Sunday Alamba, File)

Mennonite Central Committee and the Canadian Foodgrains Bank both have global projects addressing hunger and famine, and both issued news releases applauding the federal governments creation of the matching program.

Mennonite Central Committee is responding to famine and hunger in countries such as Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Uganda with emergency food assistance, clean water and cash transfers as well as supporting malnutrition treatment centres, school feeding programs, and long-term nutrition and food security projects. This month, MCC distributed emergency humanitarian supplies in South Sudans Unity State, where the UN recently declared a famine.

Through its members, including MCC, the Canadian Foodgrains Bank has provided more than $2.5 million worth of assistance to more than 72,000 people in Nigeria, Somalia and South Sudan since January. Donations to the Foodgrains Bank that are designated to these crises are also eligible to be matched on a four-to-one basis through its regular ongoing grant agreement with the Canadian government.

To donate to MCC, go to its website or call 204-261-6381. You can also donate through to the Foodgrains Bank.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Manitoba nurse has been fined $1,000 for inappropriately accessing confidential patient information, the latest in a string of privacy breaches in recent years.

The College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba isnt releasing details about what information the female nurse looked at or why, but makes clear in a written decision posted online late last week that she was trained on what constitutes appropriate use of the database system and what she did not qualify.

This is probably about what we have seen before, the colleges executive director Katherine Stansfield said when asked about the severity of the privacy breach. Its certainly not at the extreme end of either of the continuums.

AP Photo/ Khalil Hamra

The nurses employer discovered the inappropriate access through an audit and, per regulations, passed the information along to the college, which took action. While some past snoopers have admitted being motivated by a desire to send out greeting cards or sheer curiosity, Stansfield said confusion could also be to blame.

Unfortunately, there are times when members do not have a clear understanding of their responsibilities and act outside of what they are authorized to do, she said.

Theres no evidence to suggest the nurses actions caused any particular harm to the public, the college said in its decision, but there is potential for harm to the profession a whole. Inappropriate access undermines the publics trust. Any breach of this trust, even inadvertent, damages the general trustworthiness of the profession of nursing.

As such, the nurse was fined and her censure published online in order to act as a deterrent to other health-care workers. She is the first nurse to be censured by the college this year. In 2016, the college censured a nurse for providing a volunteer with unauthorized access to private medical records.

The year before that, four nurses were censured for similar privacy breaches: one for providing one patient with anothers confidential information, another for looking up confidential information and then sharing it with others, a third for failing to abide by the Personal Health Information Act and a fourth for sharing unauthorized personal information with other health-care workers. While nurses have mostly avoided being publicly implicated in some of Manitobas more high-profile privacy breaches, one was disciplined last year by the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority after 67 confidential patient records were stolen from her car during a house call.

Its crucial health-care workers maintain the privacy of their patients, a spokeswoman for the Manitoba Ombudsman said via email, saying intentional privacy breaches such as snooping are particularly serious.

Although the Ombudsmans office has no real method of detecting whether such breaches are on the rise or decline, she said audits of electronic systems help officials find and publicize breaches.

Before we had automated health records, we probably wouldnt have had as clear a trail of individuals who might actually have accessed information, Stansfield said. Because we have audits, we have a system thats very vigilant, and I think the public is well-served by the kind of work were able to do to ensure that when there are breaches, were able to find them.

jane.gerster@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @Jane_Gerster
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The union representing city police say its disappointed its members will be prohibited from wearing their uniforms if they chose to take part in this weekends Pride parade.

Maurice Sabourin, president of the Winnipeg Police Association, said he recognizes the parade organizers have the right to determine the rules for the event, but he said the no-uniform and no-weapons position stings.

I do find it a little disappointing because we do have many members that are part of that community, and they are being discriminated against, Sabourin said. They are very proud members to be police officers and part of that community.

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Winnipeg's Pride Parade in 2016. This year's event won't see any off-duty officers wearing uniforms or carrying their weapons.

Winnipeg Police Service officers have been participating in the local Pride parade since 2012, but their participation this year has been in doubt for the past several months after some groups within the LGBTTQ* community expressed concerns.

The results from a survey from community members show the community was divided on police participation. While the Pride flag was being raised at city hall Friday, organizers released a statement on their website issuing a compromise decision  police can participate but not in uniform.

When I see police, I correlate police with safety, however there are members of our community who have the opposite reaction  they have fear and anxiety when they see police and will go out of their way to avoid them out of fear theyre going to have a negative interaction with them, said Jonathan Niemczak, president of Pride Winnipeg, as he explained the rationale for the no-uniform decision, which was based on feedback from the survey.

Niemczak said concerns over police interactions and participation in the parade were most profound within the trans, two-spirited, and queer and trans people of colour communities, where the survey found those individuals stayed away from the parade because of uniformed police officers.

The only display of official WPS symbols in the parade will be with WPS-branded clothing or WPS banners. The prohibition does not apply to police officers providing escort duty and blocking intersections.

Niemczak said organizers have been in discussions with the WPS, adding there is also an agreement police will improve and broaden their diversity training for recruits and veterans and engage more with the LGBTTQ* community.

The WPS, meanwhile, is taking the mild rebuke in stride.

We respect that the uniform/weapons may trigger a stress response/anxiety in some people within the LGBTTQ community as was identified in Pride Winnipegs recent online survey, said Insp. Gord Friesen, head of the WPS community support division, in an email exchange with the Free Press. The WPS will be participating in the Pride parade as an identifiable group albeit not in our uniforms.

Chief Danny Smyth sent an email Monday to all WPS members advising off-duty officers participating in the parade not to wear their uniforms or weapons.

This request is not unprecedented, Smyth stated in his email. This stress response is also reported with some newcomer groups, and as a result we often arrange our initial meeting, with them, to be out of uniform. Off-duty members of the WPS who would like to walk in support of our LGBTTQ* community are encouraged to do so. Anyone who would like to participate (WPS employees and supporters) can walk as a WPS group within the parade.

This year is the 30th anniversary of the local Pride parade. To commemorate the milestone, the parade route is longer and will wind its way through downtown Portage Avenue and through Portage and Main.

The question of police participation in local Pride parades has been an issue across the country, prompted by an incident at last years Pride Toronto parade that was interrupted by Black Lives Matter protesting the inclusion of uniformed police.

Toronto Pride, acting on the complaint from Black Lives Matter, prohibited uniformed officers from participating this year. Niemczak said Halifax Police decided they wont be marching in this years parade, while Pride organizations in Vancouver and Edmonton agreed to allow police to march.

Pride Winnipeg had been consulting LGBTTQ* communities over their experience with the WPS. Pride Winnipeg received more than 600 responses to a survey sent to community groups, which in turn distributed to its members, asking whether theyve had any interaction with the WPS, if those experiences were positive or negative, and gauging support for continued police participation in the annual parade.

Through our review of feedback from community consultations and an online survey, we agree that there is a clear desire to improve the relationship between the LGBTTQ* community and the (WPS), Pride Winnipeg said in its statement posted on the organizations website. A number of LGBTTQ* individuals in Winnipeg have reported that they have been subject to negative lived experiences with the local police, and that this is a serious issue that must be addressed.

Over one-third of survey respondents either did not want WPS officers to participate in the June 4 parade or, if they did, to do so not in uniform.

One-third of respondents were comfortable with uniformed police officers participating but wanted a firm commitment from the WPS to improve its relationship with the LGBTTQ* communities.

The survey found the remaining third either had no views on the issue or are comfortable with uniformed police participating.

Friesen said the WPS was informed of the Pride survey results and recommendations on how to improve relations with identified groups within the LGBTTQ* community.

The WPS will be engaging in consultation with members of the LGBTTQ community, and what we learn will help guide our efforts moving forward as we work toward improving communication and our quality of service, he said.

aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Its hard to know who was more disappointed with the upset result in last weekends Conservative Party of Canada leadership vote: Maxime Bernier, the front-runner going into the weekend who stumbled at the finish line, or the Liberal government in Ottawa.

Bernier raised the most money of any candidate and seemed unstoppable going into the leadership convention last Saturday. He held the lead over the first 12 ballots.

However, once an overly complicated and elongated vote-counting process was completed, Saskatchewan MP Andrew Scheer triumphed on the bakers dozen ballot. Bernier was gracious in defeat, but the crushing disappointment of the final result was plain to see.

FRANK GUNN / THE CANADIAN PRESS Andrew Scheer seems to have the retail skills to compete head to head with Justin Trudeau.

That disappointment might have been matched by the mood in the Liberal party. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his team had to be crossing all their fingers and toes that Bernier would capture the Conservative helm. Berniers Libertarian rhetoric, robustly embraced by some of the more absurd and dangerous elements on the far right of the political spectrum, made him the perfect foil for Trudeau and the Liberals.

Throughout the leadership campaign, Bernier offered Conservative party members an odd mix of free-market economics and awkward social and environmental policies. He was committed to slowing immigration and severely curtailing the flow of government-sponsored refugees. He also expressed alarming concerns about the accuracy of climate change science, urging scientists to stop politicizing environmental policy.

That is the kind of raw political material the Liberals could have exploited in the lead up to the 2019 federal election.

However, Bernier did not win. Instead, the Conservatives elected Scheer, a leader who will not be as easily assailed or typecast by the Grits.

Scheer is a modestly bilingual MP from Saskatchewan who is, remarkably, only 38 years old, seven years younger than Trudeau. After spending so much time in the 2015 election assailing Trudeau for being too young and not ready to govern, electing an even-younger leader must be some sort of political karma.

In terms of policy, Scheer is often referred to as Stephen Harper-lite  a fiscal conservative who would rather focus on balancing the budget, lowering taxes and reducing the overall footprint of government than on debating abortion or same-sex marriage. In fact, Scheer has said he will not revisit either of these, the two most compelling issues for social conservatives.

Notwithstanding those policy stands, Tory social conservatives rallied behind Scheer on the weekend after the more vocal so-con candidates  Brad Trost and Pierre Lemieux  were eliminated.

Although that support may have been the difference, it also comes at a cost. Both Trost and Lemieux warned Scheer not to forget social conservatives when he begins to rebuild the partys brand in the lead up to the next election. If hes wise he will (pursue issues important to social conservatives), Trost told The Hill Times. If he doesnt, well, they can stay home, they can vote for minor parties. There are a lot of things that can be done.

Those comments serve as a sobering reminder for Scheer his principal goal  uniting the various contentious constituencies within the party  will be hard to achieve.

The Tories were left disoriented and fractured in the wake of the 2015 federal election after Harper, desperate to slow the Trudeau juggernaut, made a hard turn to the right. Harper forced issues such as the niqab and barbaric cultural practices into the campaign to mobilize the social conservative base of the party. The Tories also launched an unrelenting personal attack on Trudeau, making fun of his appearance, his lack of experience and relatively tender age.

When all the votes were counted, however, the strategy had backfired in spectacular fashion. Instead of slowing the Liberal campaign, Harpers blunt and sloppy strategy only amplified Trudeaus attempt to represent himself as a kinder, gentler and more optimistic leader. And in an election where the Tories needed to suppress voter turnout, their attacks on Trudeau drove a surge that carried the Liberals to a majority.

Over the past two years, the Tories have been involved in a non-stop debate over the consequences of Harpers election strategy. Many within the party, including interim leader Rona Ambrose and former MPs such as Peter MacKay, claimed those hardline policies had driven voters to the Liberal brand. Others, including some of the more controversial leadership contenders such as Kellie Leitch, felt Harpers mistake was not going far enough to the right.

Scheer has not ventured near any of the most contentious issues, and as such, has much less baggage. However, he still has some steep hills to climb as he searches for a new identity for his party.

Case in point: Scheers most popular policy has been his steadfast commitment to kill Trudeaus national carbon tax. If there is one thing most Tories agree on, it is the fact that the carbon tax is the single worst policy to come out of Ottawa since the National Energy Program.

However, in his opposition to this policy, Scheer is steering his party against the current of public opinion. More than three quarters of Canadians already live in provinces with some form of carbon pricing, and none has experienced the economic apocalypse predicted by federal Conservatives. Rolling back carbon pricing may play well to the base, but its unlikely to have broad appeal come election time.

Scheer is young, articulate and seems to have the retail skills to compete head to head with Trudeau. He is also widely liked and respected by his colleagues in the federal caucus, support that will be extremely important.

Still, it is not clear Scheer has the capacity to heal the divisions within his party and create a true national conservative coalition. His party is still a mash-up of Prairie populists, hardline social conservatives, resilient but diminished Ontario and Atlantic progressive conservatives and freelance Quebec nationalists.

Previous Tory leaders have had some success whipping those often-competing constituencies into a unified force, but could not make it last. Eventually, their differences always overwhelmed the tenuous common purpose that brought them together in the first place.

Can Scheer build a new and lasting conservative coalition to challenge the Liberals? Its far too early to tell, but one thing is certain. Given the two candidates left on the final leadership ballot, Conservative party members clearly made the best choice.

dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The next time youre at the park or on the fairway and you end up with greenish goo on your sneakers, blame Fort Whyte.

Back in the 1980s, my career path landed me at what is now called FortWhyte Alive, a long-running project to get Canada geese to nest on the property was starting to take hold. This was one of many efforts occurring across the country to restore geese to places where they had not nested for decades. Through the spring, Ken, the site manager, would provide updates around the coffee table. Each report spoke to progress and, perhaps, we felt a little ennobled by the centres efforts. Back then, the only geese we knew to be nesting in the city were at Fort Whyte.

Fast-forward to 2017, and we have hundreds of nesting pairs and, during fall migration, more than 200,000 birds have been estimated inside the Perimeter Highway at peak times.

JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Thousands of Canada geese converge on the open water at Fort Whyte Alive during a spring cold snap in 2015.

What happened? First off, Fort Whyte is not the culprit, as much as I enjoy teasing my old boss. While it was encouraging a few birds to become something more, geese had their own ideas. Breeding populations across the continent were starting to explode. Considering that nesting geese had been eliminated in many of the same areas about a century ago, the turnaround is both remarkable and telling of how the landscapes we have created result in a few wildlife winners.

Wild geese gravitate to water, good grazing and, when it comes to potential threats, a good view. A nesting duck relies on camouflage and being motionless to avoid predators. A nesting Canada goose may start off with that strategy but, if you get too close, theres a good chance you will face a charge, a good whack from its wings, and perhaps a bite to boot. Having experienced all three, when it comes to goose taunting, I recommend abstinence.

Look at our parks, retention ponds, manicured lawns and fastidiously pruned vegetation through goose eyes and what you see is a little bit of nesting heaven. Throw in a lack of predators, and you have a recipe for the population to take off. If that werent enough, when autumn arrives, our new-look goose habitat is surrounded by miles of ideal food plots in the form of harvested grain fields. Arctic-born birds join their urban cousins to take advantage of secure resting habitat and a reliable buffet only a short flight away.

Humans have changed great swaths of the planet and many wild species have declined as a result. But there is a significant minority that just loves what we have done with the place. Many, like the robin hunting worms on my lawn, are pretty innocuous. White-tailed deer numbers have also exploded across the continent, but they have become significant pests in rural and urban settings. During the fall, when the males become very mobile and pretty darn stupid, many rural folks dread driving at dusk. Further south, high deer numbers have led to larger populations of ticks that carry Lyme disease.

Is Winnipeg at the point where some judicious goose pruning is required? There are areas  Waverley Street comes to mind  where ideal goose-nesting habitat surrounds high-speed traffic corridors. While its just human nature to veer or stop to avoid goose families that just dont get the speeding-car thing, accidents are happening. In such situations, authorities can reduce the problem ahead of time by repeatedly removing eggs from nests until Ma and Pa finally give up trying.

Newer subdivisions are adopting a let-it-grow landscaping approach. Retention ponds with thick fringes of cattails and banks of tall native grasses are pretty unfriendly to geese. Its a vast improvement over the old mow-it-to-the-shore strategy.

I think we all suffer varying degrees of urban goose fatigue but, on balance, I remain thrilled to have them around. I will shift my gaze skyward to catch sight of a honker fly-by pretty much every time. For that, I say, Thanks, Fort Whyte!

Tim Sopuck is chief executive officer of the Manitoba Habitat Heritage Corp., which has conserved more than 80,000 hectares of habitat in rural Manitoba.
Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When more than 16,000 young Canadians applied to be members of the prime ministers youth council, they hoped to advocate for their generation and have a say on the important issues facing young people across Canada.

They probably didnt plan on being a talking point for the opposition. A recent Macleans article highlights several opposition members criticisms of the prime ministers youth council and argues that public funds are being (mis)used to groom young Liberals.

As members of Boys and Girls Clubs of Canadas national youth council, we understand the need for this criticism, but we believe that the article does not engage with the real value of youth councils: the vital skills and experience that youth gain from learning and working with their peers.

Beyond the fact that these skills are beneficial to the youth directly involved with the councils, they also have a positive ripple effect that reaches communities, organizations, families and other young people.

The message is simple: spending on youth councils benefits everyone.

The national youth council is made up of 11 youths from across the country who serve as ambassadors and role models and ensure youth input into the organizations national initiatives and activities. We also get the opportunity to run a youth conference every two years.

For the past year, we have been planning Get Loud 2017, this years national youth forum. Last week, 140 Boys and Girls Club members from across Canada joined us at the University of Ottawa to learn, collaborate and have their voices heard.

When we attended previous youth forums, we were inspired by other young Canadians. We wanted to be more involved in the kind of work they were doing to shape our future. We decided on the theme Get Loud because we wanted to explore the importance of youth voices in Canada, educate on social issues and share how young people can promote change in our communities and the world.

We designed and executed the entire conference. We chose the theme, selected the keynote speakers and organized skill-building workshops that cover a range of topics, including communications, coding, entrepreneurship and political engagement. As organizers, we have learned about communications, teamwork and government relations and we have gained valuable leadership skills in the process.

Everything we have learned in the past year will serve us well as we enter the world as young adults. Even better, by spending this week with 140 smart, curious youths, we will be expanding our networks and discussing the diverse issues that youth in our country face today. We will develop new ideas that we can bring back to our communities and forge new connections that will support us moving forward.

The work weve done to plan this event, which is by youth and for youth, gives us confidence in our opinions and ideas, and it should assure all Canadians that when youth come together with a common goal, great things can happen. We are eager to hear more about the work that the prime ministers youth council is doing and we look forward to hearing the voices of youth at all levels of government.

This week, we will invite youth to get involved in their communities, to advocate for themselves and to work together to achieve change. We are living proof that investing in youth councils benefits all Canadians.

Co-authors Rachel, Filmon, Victor, Benita, Brittany, Jarrod, Lauren, Shane, Kyle, Nick and Shanel are members of Boys and Girls Clubs of Canadas national youth council.
Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 29/05/2017 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

From Saskatoon, to Washington D.C., to Liberia, and most recently South Pointe, Jason Kindrachuks inquiry into infectious disease hasnt allowed for a sick day.

Kindrachuk, an assistant professor at the University of Manitoba, was recently named Canada Research Chair in Molecular Pathogenesis of Emerging and Re-Emerging Viruses after moving to the city in December.

Kindrachuk, who hails from Saskatoon, had been working at the National Institutes of Health in Washington D.C. as a senior researcher, studying the worst of the worst bugs including Ebola, Zika virus, and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus for the past seven years, when a job posting came up at the U of M.

Danielle Da Silva - Sou'wester Jason Kindrachuk, an assistant professor at the University of Manitoba and South Pointe resident, was recently named Canada Research Chair in Molecular Pathogenesis of Emerging and Re-Emerging Viruses.

I felt very much at that point that this was probably the only opportunity for me in Canada where I would be able to do what I wanted to do, Kindrachuk, 40, said.

The big advantage for me and my own research interests is we have the National Microbiology Lab here in Winnipeg, and I think its one of the resources Canada has that is widely recognized outside of the country, but within the country and within Winnipeg a lot of people dont know the level of research being done at that facility.

Supported by Canada Research Chair funding, Kindrachuk will continue his investigations into the process of cell signalling  how the circuitry of a cells defence system responds to viruses and pathogens  and whether a better understanding of cell signalling can lead to novel treatments.

For us it gives us this dual advantage: we get to understand how these cells respond to these viruses during infection, but we also get to potentially identify therapeutic targets as well, he said.

Mounting a multi-pronged research program  one that directs basic research questions towards clinical applications  is a priority for Kindrachuk. Over the years, the two research streams have split apart, rather than coalescing, he said.

While in Liberia during the worst of the Ebola epidemic in 2014, Kindrachuk said seeing the devastation of viral outbreaks refocused the need to find new therapies to deal with them through basic research. According to the World Health Organization, the Ebola outbreak in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea killed 11,300 people and infected over 28,500.

You suddenly realize that everything youre doing in terms of research should actually be focused on curbing that, he said.

If we can tailor our basic research ideas towards clinical disease, perhaps we can create an environment where we are more prepared, he added. Were never going to get a point where we ever actually defeat all the infectious diseases that there are  bacteria, viruses evolve far faster than we do.

But we do have the opportunity to contain these a lot better than we have in the past, he said.

The Canada Research Chair appointment is a five-year term. Other University of Manitoba professors who received research chairs are: Andrew Halayko, Chair in Chronic Lung Disease Pathology and Treatment; Ties Boerma, Chair in Population and Global Health; Robert Lorway, Chair in Global Intervention Politics and Social Transformation; Michael Pickles, Chair in Mathematical Modelling and Global Public Health; Marcelo Urquia, Chair in Applied Population Health; Tamra Werbowetski-Ogilvie, Canada Research Chair in Neuro-oncology and Human Stem Cells; and Zhenyu Wu, Chair in Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Facebook.com/TheSouwesterWPG

Twitter: @SouwesterWPG
Hope Lutheran High School student of the week is junior Chelsea Merchlewitz, daughter of Sheila Johnson and Dan Merchlewitz and sister of Nicole and Danny.

Chelsea describes herself as shy yet outgoing, funny and generous. Her favorite subject is English. Her role models are her mom and her grandma Chris.

Her favorite Bible verse is Revelation 22:14, Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.

Chelseas plan after high school is to travel to London, England. Chelseas favorite things to do in her spare time are to read, write, draw/sketch, and be with friends and family.

When asked about what she likes best about Hope LHS, Chelsea said, I like the small class sizes and how the teacher are always willing to help.
When Jim Frankard built his detached garage off his home on East Lake Boulevard in Winona, he made sure there was enough space to store a boat.

He built an airplane there instead.

Specifically, he built a Glasair III, a low-winged airplane with a 300 horse power engine. He and his plane have set seven air records for the planes weight class.

The garage is now used as Frankards woodshop where he builds just about anything he can think up, but if given the chance, Frankard said he would always keep his head in the clouds.

You really go fast, Frankard said. Up above and looking down at everything  part of it [is] being able to go beyond places where youd normally drive in a day.

The Air Force

The quiet 87-year-old from Whitefish Bay, Wis., first started flying when he joined the Air Force as the Korean War started.

After two years at Marquette Universitys engineering school, he began his military career by attending airplane, engine and propeller schools and worked as a propeller mechanic before being accepted into the Aviation Cadet Program.

After a year, Frankard found his home in the sky as a second lieutenant, assigned to an Air Force Base in Austin, Texas, as a KB-29 copilot. He also flew B-29s and KC-135s during his career and was sent with the 6th Refueling Squadron to Guam to support B-50 bombers.

While in Guam on a night navigation, an engine failure landed him on Iwo Jima, where he had to wait a week for repairs. This gave the man who always explored new heights a chance to discover the island and climb Mount Suribachi, where U.S. Marines had raised the flag in 1944.

His 11 years in the Air Force also took him to Hawaii, Midway Island, Japan, Okinawa Island, Alaska and Iceland.

He was eventually assigned to the Walker Air Force Base in Roswall, N.M. During his tenure, he was also promoted to captain and became an instructor pilot.

Her smile

After 10 years in the Air Force, Frankard was on leave in Whitefish Bay, a suburb of Milwaukee.

It was there that he met the love of his life, Jean, whose last name was Bambenek at the time. She was always smiling, Frankard remembered.

Jean had been working as a social worker focusing on adoptions when she met Frankard. His brother is actually credited with introducing the two.

He had a girlfriend, so he willed me to her, Frankard laughed.

The couple was married in June 1960 and were together for nearly 57 years before Jean died, just two days after Valentines Day in 2017.

After a year of marriage, Frankard left the Air Force and began work in Winona with Peerless Chain, where he was employed for 25 years, moving up throughout his tenure to serve as vice president of the company.

In 1963, the couple moved into their home on East Lake Boulevard, and a week later, their eldest daughter, Cathy, was born.

Cathy was a good baby, so we decided to have some more, Frankard said.

At their home on the bluff, the Frankards raised four kids, two girls, Cathy and Carrie, and two boys, Scott and Mark. Jean stayed home to raise the kids, while Frankard worked and built chairs, dressers, their dining room table and other furniture pieces for their expansive home.

Life was good for his family, Frankard recalled.

Frankard still lives in the home he and Jean built. Its quieter now, but the memories it holds still echo through the halls, as photos line the mantel, and mementos of achievements hang on the walls.

The hobbyist

A paling map of the U.S. hangs in Frankards home office among the piles of work and photos of his plane. Yarn zigzags across the map, charting the records Frankard has set in his hobbyist plane that began with Frankard taking a chance.

Peerless Chain Co. sold its company to new owners in 1986, and Frankard saw the sale as an opportunity to fly again.

He retired, began work on his own plane and set out for the sky.

The first flight wasnt eventful, Frankard recalled, but he said he was prepared in case it had been, borrowing a parachute from a friend.

His seven records include flights from Pheonix to Oshkosh, Wis., from Winona to Seattle, from Chicago to Washington, D.C., from Chicago to Kitty Hawk, N.C., and from Kitty Hawk to Chicago. Frankard was able to make these flights with records for his weight class  sometimes as the first one to even fly the routes.

His love of flying extended beyond his own plane, as he also flew sailplanes, or gliders. He flew in Colorado to fly the Mountain Wave, which is the result of high ground disturbing the air flow and causing in back and forth motions.

Frankard has since donated his plane to Southeast Technical College, and it has been moved around as a donation for education, so other high-flying enthusiasts and mechanics can learn from it.

And flying records are not the only feats Frankard has accomplished in that garage. As a woodworker, Frankard has been awarded blue ribbons and was featured in the woodworking magazine American Woodworker.

Hes built dressers, chairs, carvings and even a small replica of Thomas Jeffersons writing desk.

I like making things, Frankard said. As a hobbyist theres more opportunity with wood.

Frankard converted his garage into purely a woodshop and has tables and stations lined with all the tools and machinery he needs to configure all his pieces together.

Frankards most recent project is cutting two-by-four wood pieces to 24 inches long, fastening the pieces together to make a rectangle board and carving into it. He programs a computer to specify to the machine the directions it needs to create famous images, such as The Last Supper or Washington Crossing the Delaware.

He has also turned his passion for building into a benefit for the community, working with Harley Antoff to build wooden cars for Toys for kids and 13 free libraries around Winona.

Antoff first heard of Frankard when he read an article about Frankard in the local paper. Interested in building himself, Antoff said he wanted to meet Frankard and saw the chance when he saw Frankard dining out one night.

The man is 87 years old, and he just goes and goes and goes, Antoff said.

The two struck up a friendship, and Antoff began helping Frankard with his projects, including building wooden vehicles for Toys for Kids and little free libraries.

As for his next project, only the hobbyist Frankard knows. Maybe the detached garage will finally have a boat.
Its hard to read the news these days.

Every day something shocking is in the news, whether its natural disasters, tragedy, politics or, as of recently, a terrorist attack.

Its emotional, upsetting, frustrating and at times infuriating. It makes a person want to turn the news off, not pay attention and only concentrate on good things. To shut out the rest of the world and only focus on whats happening in the inner personal life.

It just plain hurts too much hear about it.

But we need to, because the stories  no matter what subject  make us feel for others, makes us feel for ourselves, makes us feel for the world. The bottom line is it makes us feel connected to the rest of the human race.

Without the news, we may be secluded in our own little world concentrating only on the positive things around us, but in reality were actually hiding. We all know theres a bigger world brewing, and someday the taste of that brew will likely reach us and be much more bitter than we expected.

But before I go any further, let me quick switch topics to something a little more lighthearted  but dont worry its still connected.

Did you know apparently its good for the skin to turn the water on cold at the end of a nice warm shower? The only reason I know is because my husband tells me all the dang time. Its good for the skin because the cold water closes the pores after the heat has opened them and it helps keep dirt out and good oils in. Ever since my husband read that, at the end of his shower he turns it on cold, lets out a howl at the shock, and then gets out invigorated and all hyped up.

It makes sense why its good for you, so I tried it, and as I suspected, it was horribly cold and unpleasant. For the first handful of times I did it, the cold shock made me furious at myself for even attempting it and I got out all peeved with my husband for mentioning it.

But a month or so later Ive gotten a bit more used it and have found that it is indeed invigorating. Yes its still shocking, but now Im prepared and I let the feelings that surface roll off my back  pun intended.

Long story short, reading the news is like turning the water on cold in the shower. Its shocking, unpleasant to varying degrees, and sometimes make us howl, cry and curse.

But it also invigorates us, empowers us, connects us.

After the attack in Manchester and hearing about the lives affected, I wanted to turn the news off, disconnect, and hide in my world, fearing that Id be pushed into tears by more news of parents waiting to be reunited with their children outside the concert.

Had I done that though, I would have disconnected myself from a story that made all the difference. On my way home I listened to the BBC news and heard a musician in Manchester say how the city is very solemn and destitute, but that theres also a feeling of unity. He said strangers are asking each other how theyre doing and are even giving each other hugs. He believes musicians will be even more determined to play live music in the wake of the attack, and said that music-driven fundraisers are being planned. Through the despair, the multicultural city has found a reason to unite.

This was such an uplifting silver lining to hear and I wont lie it made my eyes well up. It reminded me of the good that can still come from tragedy.

How no matter what the news is, its always an opportunity to bind together.

Thats how news connects us.

It lets us open our hearts to other humans outside our personal circle, helps us to expand our awareness of whats going on, and gives us knowledge about how to help  whether thats by donating, praying or reaching out a physical hand.

And in the end, is that not what brings us happiness and satisfaction? To help another human, to make a difference, to see our kindness impact others?

Even though it hurts, pay attention. Listen to the news. Connect back with the world.

It may be shocking at first, but soon the body  and heart  will get used to it.

Thats not to say to dwell in the news  I certainly wouldnt suggest only taking cold showers.

But to rather enjoy the warmth showered down from other avenues so were a little more prepared for the cold shock of our world.

Because once were used to it  used to paying attention  well find moments we can help or connect with others, and believe me, that can be quite invigorating as a human being.
All across our state, families gather each Memorial Day to remember those members of our military weve lost. Its a time to reflect on how we honor these fallen heroes and how to best treat those heroes still with us.

This year marks the 100th Anniversary of our nation entering World War One. It was a war that thousands of Minnesotans had a part in  Minnesotans like Sergeant Louis Cukela.

In the summer of 1918, Sergeant Louis Cukela and his company were stopped by a large enemy force in the woods of Northern France. Ignoring the potential danger, the Sergeant crawled and fought his way toward the enemy, facing heavy resistance. He was even able to get behind German lines. That display of determination saved lives and earned him the Medal of Honor.

Sergeant Cukela is just one of many courageous men and women from our state who put their lives on the line for something greater than themselves. No matter where or when our veterans served, they all deserve to be honored for their sacrifice.

So how can we best honor those weve lost? One answer is by better caring for those who follow in their footsteps.

Take Amie Muller, who tragically passed away in February, nine months after being diagnosed with Stage III pancreatic cancer that was potentially linked to inhaling toxic fumes during her service. She left behind her husband and three children.

Amie enlisted in the Air Force in 1998 and joined the Minnesota Air National Guard in late 2001. While in Iraq, her quarters were right next to one of the most notorious burn pits  it operated 24/7 and consumed about 100 to 200 tons of waste each day. The fumes constantly floated to Amies camp nearby.

Amie wasnt the only one who suffered from toxic exposure to burn pits. An increasing number of our servicemembers returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan have illnesses potentially caused by burn pit exposure.

Theyre the reason that Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina and I introduced the Help Veterans Exposed to Burn Pits Act, which would create a center of excellence at the VA to better understand and begin to address the health needs of these veterans.

Weve seen this kind of tragedy before. During the Vietnam War, the U.S. sprayed 80 million liters of Agent Orange, contaminating water and exposing more than two million members of the military. But it took the government years to recognize that there was a link between Agent Orange and the devastating health effects on our soldiers.

We cant let that history repeat itself. Our veterans deserve better.

They also deserve the best healthcare we can provide, a clear path to a good job, and the peace of mind that their families are cared for. I think we can all agree that theyve more than earned it.

Last year, we lost an inspiring American: General John Vessey. General Vessey started his military career in the Minnesota National Guard at 16 and went on to become the tenth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. And like so many of our veterans, when he retired, he didnt stop serving our country. He worked tirelessly to account for those who were listed as missing in action after the Vietnam War and worked with Minnesota veterans groups.

I had the honor of attending his funeral. Despite being one of the foremost military leaders of our time, his service wasnt lavish or full of fanfare. It was simple and heartfelt. It reflected the kind of man General Vessey was  the kind of people all our veterans are. Theyre defined by service  service without expecting much in return.

So to all the veterans throughout Minnesota, thank you for your service, your sacrifice, and your patriotism.

To all others, let us remember what these men and women have done for our country. Let us give them the respect theyve earned. And let us work to provide them the care they have never asked for  but have always deserved.
Any veteran of World War II can tell you stories. But for Frank E. Bryer, his storyone he could never forgetwas a terrible one. It began the moment his ship, called the Rohna, was sunk. When that ship went down on November 26, 1943, Franks life changed forever. And very few people beyond the men tossed into the sea ever knew what happened.

The HMT Rohna was an 8,600-ton British troopship carrying mostly an American crew to the Far East theatre. It went down the day after Thanksgiving, in the Mediterranean, off the coast of North Africa, the victim of a German missile. But it was not just any German missile. This was, it seems, the first known successful hit of a vessel by a German rocket-boosted, radio/remote-controlled glider bombi.e., one of the first true missiles used in combat. It was, in effect, a guided missile, and the Nazis had achieved it first.

And the results were immediately destructive: According to the website that today serves as the official online gathering spot for the Rohna Survivors Association, more lives were lost on the Rohna than on the USS Arizona at Pearl Harbor.

Over one thousand boys lost their lives, and their government kept the entire episode a secret out of fear of information being leaked about the power of the German guided missile. The government feared the effect on the morale of the U.S. military and the wider population.

The hit was so devastating, states the Rohna Survivors Association, that the U.S. Government placed a veil of secrecy upon it. The events which followed were so shameful that the secrecy continued for decades until recently, when documents were grudgingly released under pressure of the Freedom of Information Act. The government still does not acknowledge this tragedy, thus most families of the casualties still do not know the fate of their loved ones.

The German attack was such a terrible success, and the American tragedy so severe, that what happened with the Rohna was completely hushed up during the war and still has not made its way into history books. Only in the last decade or two is it starting to get attention. A Wikipedia page exists, which is better than what existed only a few years agowhich was nothing. History.com has a short entry on the calamity. A search at Amazon yields a few self-published memoirs or small-publisher historical works.

It is very sad that only now, long after the few survivors are even fewer, the Rohna survivors are attempting to hold reunions, over 70 years after the event.

The secrecy was so tight that Frank Bryers daughter, Mary Jo Palmer, spent painstaking years with her dad trying to tug out details and piece together what occurred. Dad was haunted frequently by this, Mary Jo told me, but it was not so much the sinking of the ship, but his inability to save many men.

Those awful moments of fire remained seared in Franks brain. As the ship burst into a giant fireball, Frank manned the ropes of a lifeboat packed with injured soldiers. He was ordered to hold the ropes tight and lower the boat with the soldiers into the water below. This was no simple task, especially in a chaotic, panicked situation. A lifeboat filled with men isnt light. That was proven quickly as the ropes broke and Frank watched the men below him in his care fall to their death in the sea. The image of those men slipping from his hands into the abyss horrified him.

But the nightmares would come later. In the meantime, Frank, too, was forced to abandon ship, which submerged within merely an hour. For his own crowded lifeboat, he and five other men seized a floating wooden bench. As the darkness slowly enveloped them, with night setting in, and with the fear of still more German missiles, Frank led the group in reciting the Lords Prayer. Frank would later write of this dark evening:

Destroyers were ordered to put thick smoke screens up to help camouflage the area. Other German planes flew over with orders to shoot to kill men floating in the water. I can remember as we floated in the ocean watching other soldiers hanging onto the ship for dear life. We watched as the ship went down to the very end. The back of the ship went down first and the bow (front) was pointed straight up sky. It then just went down slowly until we could no longer see it. It is something that I will never forget.

There were other ships in the convoy that passed by, not seeing or hearing Frank and his crewmates. It was the worst feeling you could possibly have, said Frank. I was sure that it was the end. I told the group of men that we better start to pray. ... We were scared, shaking, and moaning.

Those that had survived the explosion were scattered everywhere, yelling and crying for help. My mind was on the life boat that fell into the ocean, said Frank. All I could do was ask God to take them fast so that they would not have to suffer. He and his group with their floating wooden bench took turnsfour of them would float on the bench and two would hang on the ropes.

They feared not only Germans but sharks, and for good reason. Anyone familiar with the horror story that was the USS Indianapolis knows how the sharks slowly but steadily devoured the boys floating in the water over a course of several long days.

This time alone in the water at night was a hard time, said Frank. They ached for their families. They talked about home. Frank told his crewmates about his time in his youth living and working at the Villa Maria convent in Erie, Pennsylvania, where he spent much of his time because of a difficult family life. He later laughed at how the guys didnt understand how I could be living with nuns.

They say there are no atheists in foxholes. And there were none on that wooden bench in the water that night either. Two of the men didnt think that they would go to Heaven, but I told them they would if they asked God for His mercy and forgiveness, said Frank. We would wrap around each other and I would say the Our Father and Act of Contrition. We just talked to God. It was a long night.

The crew of six tried to get some sleep while floating in the cold water, but couldnt. They needed to stay focused on holding on to their floating devicethe bench. To their great fortune, they were in the water only for about six hours. Just as the sun started to rise, they spied a rescue boat on the horizon. It was a Minesweep that picked them up.

I thanked God for saving us, said Frank. I asked the men if they thought that our prayers had been answered.

They were taken to a facility in Algeria to recover. But for Frank, there was little emotional comfort. All he could think about was the wounded soldiers that he could not save: I thought of the pain they must have endured. A sergeant told me that there was nothing that I could have done. I couldnt sleep and had bad dreams, sometimes jumping out of bed and yelling for help.

But worst of all, Frank could not share what he was going through. They were ordered not to write or talk about the Rohna with their family or even among themselves. The military censorship was so strict that they were threatened with court martial if they disobeyed.

And like so many World War II soldiers, Franks ordeal did not earn him a ticket home after having experienced enough trauma for a lifetime. He was ordered to heal up and return to the service, which he did through the duration of the war, and then some. He was officially discharged on March 21, 1946 after an endless bout of island-hopping throughout the Pacific theater.

That, too, was no day at the beach.

I thank God that I am still alive because I should have been dead a hundred times, he said in his 90s.

Frank Bryer died on January 4, 2016 at age 92, seven decades after the sinking of the Rohna. He now at long last rests in peace. And perhaps only now has he been reconciled with those wounded boys who lives plunged to their death below him on November 26, 1943.
Memorial Day was once Decoration Day. Families used to go to grave sites, plant flowers, remember and care for their dead. Decoration Day began during the terrible Civil War as so many American families, North and South, remembered their war dead.

Memorial Day evolved from Decoration Day and includes a familys non-war dead, along with those lost in wars and conflicts. It is a national holiday.

When I was young, we would take a trolley to the cemetery. Someone would tend the grave, my brother and I would play; a sort of a family picnic.

After the end of World War II, martial Memorial Day parades became fairly common through the mid-1950s. Units from U.S. armed services and military schools paraded on our streets to drum and bugle corps and marching band cadences.

As I grew up, I met many veterans, widows and mothers who had lost loved ones in war. Eventually, I learned there were other heroes in conflicts; heroes who had not perished on battle fields. As I approached adulthood, I learned more of them and some became heroes of mine, even though, at the time, they still lived among us.

One hero I cherish to this day was a meek man by the name of OLeary. OLeary was a Christian Brother at St. Marys College. He taught economics and also taught ethics and philosophy courses. Known as BKB  Brother K. Basil FSC. He also became known for being one of the Milwaukee 14.

The Milwaukee 14 broke into a draft office and burned the draft records in public to protest the murderous Vietnam War. All were arrested, convicted, and jailed. A little, quiet guy who stood tall. Quiet BKB walked his talk.

Another quiet giant civilian hero was Swedish envoy Raoul Gustaf Wallenberg. Wallenberg saved thousands of Hungarian Jews from Hitlers death camps. Wallenberg perished post war in a Soviet prison, at the hands of Stalins NKVD.

Some other non-military heroes were unharmed, as was courageous industrialist Oskar Schindler. Schlindler was a daring National Socialist Party member who saved 1,200 or more Czechoslovakian Jews from doom  and did it right under the oppressors nose.

Both braved certain death to save unknowns who could do little for themselves and their families.

Yad Vashem (Hall of Names), the Holocaust Museum, enshrines both men: Righteous Among Nations.

Memorial Day today may not have so many visiting our dead. as we have gradually become a media society instead of a family society.

Memorial Day is a day set aside as a national holiday to honor all our dead, not just our armed forces dead. Memorial Day is one day set aside to officially reflect on true hero peers; regardless of race and age.

Are we being righteous among men, when we forsake the lessons of honesty and trustworthiness these many heroes died for?

As Basil OLeary/Socrates remind, the unexamined life is not worth living. Be beholden to life  and yourself. Make the other guy look good. Be a quiet hero  every day.
A proposed apartment project in Reedsburg will get a boost from the state.

The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority has agreed to extend tax credits to the Walnut Street Flats, a 33-unit multi-family complex slated for construction at 201 Walnut St. Ground is may be broken this fall.

According to the State, the project will receive the full amount requested in credits: $497,352. The state received $25 million in requests for projects throughout Wisconsin and awarded $13.6 million in credits.

The $6.3 million project would draw from several sources for funding, including a TIF loan, bank loans and credits, according to City documents.

The three-story development would extend between Vine and Walnut streets and would sit next to the Reedsburg Police Department. Units with 1, 2 and 3 bedrooms will be available, according to developer Cohen-Esrey Development Group of Overland, Kansas.

Proposed rents for market-rate apartments are $675 for a one bedroom, $765 for a two bedroom and $900 for a three-bedroom, according to City documents. Income-restricted apartment rents will range from $303 to $765. Average rent for all units would cost $620.

Cohen-Esrey is eager to work with the City of Reedsburg, according to a statement by Brian Sweeney, a Madison native who will oversee the project.

Given the enormous competition for housing tax credits, this project couldnt be moving forward without the strong support of the City of Reedsburg and we are grateful for their partnership, he said.

Reedsburg Mayor David Estes also issued a statement, saying the apartments are an important development for Reedsburg. He said hes grateful to everyone for their efforts to secure the credits and move forward with construction.

The state received 43 applications for tax credits, of which it awarded 26 this year. Credits are provided based on several factors, including a communitys support for a project. According to the City of Reedsburg, it provided a $315,000 Tax Increment Finance loan, which helped secure the tax credit.

Credits are awarded over 10 years through the federal housing tax credit program. Those who receive credits are required to reserve a portion of their units for lower- and middle-income households for up to 30 years. Market-rate units are also part of the project, according to the City.
A boost for student food programme

Wits alumni have donated a quarter of a million rand to the Wits Food Programme.

Wits alumni have donated a quarter of a million rand to the Wits Food Programme, which caters for student threatened by food insecurity due to disadvantaged backgrounds.

Wits alumni, through the South African Student Solidarity Foundation for Education (SASSFE), have raised and donated R250 000 for the Masidleni Daily Meal Project at the University. Masidleni means lets eat in isiZulu.

The Masidleni Daily Meal Project supports hundreds of students with a hot, nutritional lunch from Monday to Friday every week. This project falls under the Division of Student Affairs and is run by Wits Citizenship and Community Outreach (WCCO).

Archbishop Thabo Makgoba, Chairperson of SASSFEs Board of Trustees, says, Our objective is to bolster and strengthen programmes at Wits which aim to provide students in need with the kind of dignified and caring environment so necessary for students academic success.

SASSFE has focussed on mobilising funds from alumni in order to show solidarity with, and to find ways of materially supporting, the current generation of students. We have found that many alumni are keen to assist the thousands of students in need at South Africas tertiary education institutions. The older generation is very keen to lend a hand, as they have seen the transformative power that access to good quality higher education has had in their lives, continues Makgoba.

SASSFE was set up in April 2016 with its first chapter based at Wits University. The Foundation has plans to expand its activities nationally. It envisages that SASSFE chapters, made up of and driven by alumni, will be established at many other tertiary education institutions around South Africa.

In addition to Makgoba, SASSFEs trustees are retired Judge Richard Goldstone, Judge Azhar Cachalia, and Professor Mamokgethi Phakeng. Tiego Moseneke chairs the SASSFE Management Committee.

We are making a clarion call for alumni across South Africa to dig into their pockets and make a contribution. Small, regular contributions by a large number of alumni will make a big difference to the lives of bright young minds, who require support. Through our contributions we can provide students with basic, yet essential, needs that will allow them to fulfill their dreams for the future, says Moseneke.

Contact SASSFE or donate at http://sassfe.org.za/contribute/

About Student Food Programmes at Wits

Wits University through the Division of Student Affairs, and in particular, the Wits Citizenship and Community Outreach (WCCO) has several programmes across its campuses aimed at combating student hunger and assisting students with basic hygiene needs.

The Wits Food Programme consists of two key projects which ensure that students receive support. A students circumstances have to be assessed to be added to these projects.

Established in 2013, the Wits Food Bank provides non-perishable food packs to students. The packs consists of starch, protein, and dried and canned vegetables. Depending on the availability, the Food Bank also provides toiletries and stationery to students.

The Masidleni project was established in 2016 and provides a nutritious hot meal to more than 800 students.

The University is able to provide this service through its own limited resources and the contribution of individuals, alumni and corporate donors.
Where Africa fits into Chinas massive Belt and Road Initiative

Chinese President Xi Jinping made it clear at the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos that the world should abandon protectionism.

And commit itself to an open global economy.

A recent summit in Beijing that focused on Chinas most ambitious foreign policy to date  the Belt and Road initiative  added texture to this call.

The grand vision was launched in 2013 originally as the One Belt, One Road initiative. It involves China underwriting billions of dollars of infrastructure investment in countries along the old Silk Road, linking it with a network of countries in Europe, Asia and Africa.

At the centre of the plan are two physical routes. The Silk Road Economic Belt, stretching from Asia to Europe, and the Maritime Silk Road that begins in China and passes along the Indian Ocean littoral to East Africa and then Europe.

Because of its high ambitions, the initiative has been criticised for being unachievable. Critics are also questioning the impact it may have on countries that are not officially linked to the routes.

For some countries, including BRICS stalwarts like India, the project challenges the current global order, replacing it with a Sino-centric one. Others believe the initiative presents an alternative approach to globalisation in an era where powers like the US seem intent on increasing protectionism and retreating from their global leadership role.

China has maintained that its committed to taking an inclusive approach to trade and diplomacy. In a 2015 white paper it reiterated that the development of the initiative was open, and welcomed the active participation of all countries and international organisations.

Thanks to the initiatives massive financial ambitions, its likely to have a ripple effect on a number of regions. For example, the impact could be felt across Africa, although its significance, in relation to other regions, remains unclear. It could help the continent plug its infrastructure deficit, a necessary step for economic growth on the continent, and in particular industrialisation.

Meeting of minds

This isnt the first attempt to revive the ancient trade routes. There have been attempts by the EU, US, Russia and even India to reconstruct the ancient Silk Road that linked Asia and Europe in particular.

What makes Chinas attempt different is the commitment of President Xi, as well as the numerous agreements  such as the 130 transport pacts  it has already signed with partner countries along the route.

China made clear from the beginning that the initiative wouldnt get off the ground without widespread participation. As such, the summit was positioned as an opportunity to build consensus.

The overall plan aims to provide a commitment of some $1 trillion in future funding. And China used the summit as an opportunity to increase the Silk Fund from $40 to $100 billion.

China is using the Belt and Road initiative as an opportunity to position itself diplomatically on the global stage. This was clear from the summit which provided a platform for the country to amplify its voice on the world stage. Over 50 countries took part. This included the presidents of Argentina, Chile, Indonesia, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey, Vietnam and Uzbekistan. Representatives of the United Nations, International Monetary Fund and World Bank also attended.

As scholar Gregory Chin explains in Chinas Bold Economic Statecraft, global relations are under constant negotiation. They are increasingly characterised by shifting alignments rather than fixed alliances.

China understands the opportunities presented by this state of flux.

How does Africa feature in Chinas grand plan?

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta attended the summit, along with the prime minister of Ethiopia; as well as the Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry and Tunisian Minister of Culture.

Kenyas presence was particularly significant because East Africa has been the main focus of the initiative on the continent.

While this may be of concern to other African countries, China is also supportive of Africas homegrown development plan as set out in the African Unions Agenda 2063. There are clear synergies with the Belt and Road initiative that support greater connectivity. And as African countries have expressed interest, China has responded, at least rhetorically, in favour of their inclusion.

Yet this wont be enough. Support from African countries is key. And success depends on them providing adequate security to protect the investment environment. More broadly, African governments will need to promote an enabling environment for projects to succeed, particularly if, as envisaged, the private sector plays a key role in Belt and Road projects.

Yu-Shan Wu, Senior Researcher, Foreign Policy, South African Institute of International Affairs, University of the Witwatersrand; Chris Alden, Professor of International Relations, London School of Economics and Political Science, and Elizabeth Sidiropoulos, Chief Executive Officer at the South African Institute of International Affairs, University of the Witwatersrand. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
Family Lodges Claim Against Mining Companies for Rape & Murder of Binkey Mosiane

The Mosiane family has lodged a civil claim against Anglo American Platinum Ltd (Anglo) and Kern Industrial Enterprises (Pty) Ltd (Kern) in relation to the rape and murder of Binkey Mosiane in 2012.

Binkey Mosiane was employed by Rustenburg Platinum Mines Limited  a subsidiary of Anglo as an underground mine worker. In 2012 she was raped and murdered underground and in 2014, Tutu Oliphant, an employee of Kern was found guilty of those crimes. The damages claim is brought by Mrs Mary Mosiane, Binkey Mosianes mother, assisted by the Centre for Applied Legal Studies (CALS), on behalf of herself and Binkey Mosianes daughter. It consists of claims for:

Medical expenses for Binkey Mosianes mother and daughter; Loss of support for Binkey Mosianes daughter and General damages for emotional and psychological harm for Binkey Mosianes mother and daughter.

For the past four years as part of the Binkey Mosiane Campaign, the 1in9 Campaign and Workers World Media Productions have monitored, advocated and brought to media attention the details of the criminal case and the importance of holding Anglo and Kern accountable for the safety of women workers underground.

This case is only one example of the large scale war waged on womens bodies on a day-to-day basis in this country; the lodging of the claim comes at a time when the South African society as a whole is forced to awaken to the realities of the violence we face as women in both our public and private lives says Mpumi Mathabela, Campaign Coordinator for the 1in9 Campaign.

Violence against women is not limited to the streets or the home but also takes place in the workplace, says Dibuseng Phaloane of Workers World Media Productions. Employers should be mindful of societys construction and take steps of ensure that women are safe in the workplace.

CALS hopes that a resolution can be found for the family that avoids the need for further harm. It is also hoped that the Department of Mineral Resources and mining companies take steps to ensure the safety of women, who are incorporated into the core functions of the mining sector, in terms of the Mining Charter.

For more information, please contact:

Nomonde Nyembe

Attorney, Centre for Applied Legal Studies

nomonde.nyembe@wits.ac.za

076 100 6156

Mpumi Mathabela

Coordinator, One in Nine Campaign

coordinator@1in9.org.za

079 265 3490




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Countries Where Working Women Are Least Likely to Be Boss

Women across the globe have always been marginalized, from the wages they receive to the positions they hold in the workplace. Although several organizations including the International Labor Organization have been advocating for equality in the workplace, it has yet to be achieved. Below are some of the countries with the least number of employed women in executive positions.

Moldova

According to a 2015 survey by World Bank, only 0.5% of employed women in Moldova are employers. This minuscule number is due to various factors including lack of access to funds, discrimination in the labor market, and lack of government support. The low number of female employers has led to slow economic growth and a widening gender wage gap.

Romania

Romania ranks second with only 0.7% of its female workforce being employers, a significant drop from 3.6% registered in 1991. One of the contributing factors mentioned in a world bank report is the punitive laws that discourage women from starting businesses in particular sectors. The low percentage has also led to slow economic growth in the country.

Norway

This report reveals that in 2014, 0.8% of women in the labor force were employers, and as of 2016, the figure had risen by 0.1% to 0.9%. According to PWC, women employment in Norway was higher than in other European countries. Organizations had implemented legislation that required them to have 40% of their board members as women, yet more women preferred being employees rather than employers.

Ukraine

Ukraine registered 0.8% of its female labor force as employers. According to the ILO, women are still marginalized in Ukraine, a factor that not only discourages them from seeking higher positions, but also from running their own businesses. This marginalization has led to a wider gender wage gap and has discouraged many women from venturing into business.

Cyprus

Only one percent of women in the labor force are employers in Cyprus which is the lowest in 15 years. Occupational segregation is still practiced in the country and women are yet to be considered equal to men thus limiting their involvement in business ventures. Although the employment ratio of women in the labor market stood at 49.2%, more women were employees.

Iran

Female employers in the Islamic Republic of Iran represent 1.1% of the women in the labor force. The low number is not shocking news considering that women accounted for a mere 11.62% of the work force in the country. Cultural practices resulting in the discrimination of women in nearly all aspects is to blame for the low percentage.

Luxembourg

Female employers represent 1.2 % of women in the labor force in Luxembourg. According to Secretary of State for Economy, Internal Security and Defence, and Francine Closener, the rate of women entrepreneurs in the country has risen from 5% to 9% in a period of three years. The number is expected to increase considering that the rate of women in the labor force has been on the rise from 31.8% in 1978 to 50.6% in 2015.

Turkey

Just like Luxembourg, 1.2% of women are employers in the countrys female labor force, a slight increase from the 0.8% the country registered in 1998. The slight increase is partly due to the drop in the rate of women in the labor force from 35.6% in 1990 to 27.5% in 2015. The low percentage of women employers has led to gender wage gap discrimination and slow economic growth.
Kaliningrad is a Russian territory which is Kaliningrad Oblasts administrative center on the Baltic Sea between Lithuania and Poland. The seaport city was founded on September 1st, 1255, and its area was 86.11 square miles in 2013. It had a population estimate of 448,402 inhabitants in 2014. The territory was previously known as Kyonigsberg/Konigsberg until 1946.

Overview Of The History Of Kaliningrad

The territory used to be the site of Fort Twangste and the ancient establishment of Old Prussians. The Teutonic Knights built a new fortress during the religious wars of the Northern Crusades in 1255 and named it Konigsberg to honor Ottokar II, the King of Bohemia. The King led two crusade campaigns against pagans of Old Prussia. Successively, the territory became part of the State of the Teutonic, a monastic order which belonged to the former Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Later, it belonged to Germany until 1945 when it finally became a part of Russia. During World War II, the city was severely damaged, prompting the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federation Socialist Republics to occupy the ruins on April 9th, 1945. As a result, the German population that had remained was either forcefully removed or opted to flee.

On July 4th, 1946, in honor of Mikhail Kalinin (a notable Soviet luminary who had passed away the month before), the territory was named Kaliningrad. The city was later re-established as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics westernmost territory, becoming a significant zone throughout the Cold War due to its geographical position. During the 1950s the city was the headquarters of the Russian Navys fleet, and because Kaliningrad was strategically significant, the USSR closed it off to foreign visitors. Later on, an agreement that was signed in 1957, delimiting the boundary between the Soviet Union and Poland.

The Geographical Location Of Kaliningrad

Kaliningrad is located on the River Pregolya, which drains its waters into the Vistula Lagoon. The Baltic Sea and the Bay of Danzig are accessible by sea vessels through the Strait of Baltiysk and the Vistula Lagoon. Up until 1900, ships that drew over six feet of water were not allowed to pass. Sea vessels that were larger than the required size were expected to dock at Pillau, where the cargo would be transferred to other smaller vessels. A ship canal was constructed between Pillau and Konigsberg which was completed in 1901 at the cost of approximately 13 million German Marks, enabling 21 feet vessels to dock along the town. The areas Khrabovo Airport - which is about 15 miles north of Kaliningrad - has several charter services scheduled to various destinations in Europe.

Arts And The Culture Of Kaliningrad

Kaliningrad is home to some museums Including the Kaliningrad Amber Museum, the Regional Museum of History and Arts and the Immanuel Kant. The city equally has several theaters that play a significant role in the development of arts in the region. The most famous theater in the region is the Kaliningrad Puppet Theatre whose seating has been in existence since 1975. The famous monuments in the city include the Statue of Immanuel Kant, the mother of Russia Monument, the Statue of Duke Albert, among many others.
Levittown refers to the seven large suburban developments of a planned community initially created on Long Island in the United States. Levittown was a post-war housing project consisting of mass-produced homes. The development consisted of more than 17,000 detached homes that were built to house thousands of veterans who returned after World War II. The project was undertaken by the home-building firm of Levitt and Sons who had specialized in creating dwellings for upper middle-class on New Yorks Long Island. The newly built suburban communities offered attractive alternatives to the cramped central city locations. Abraham Levitt, the founder of the Levitt firm, and his two sons Alfred and William were the main entrepreneurs of this suburban housing project which started in 1947.

The origin of Levittown

Like any shrewd business move in the mid-20th Century, the home-building firm of Levitt and Sons had focused mainly on building homes for the upper middle-class in New Yorks Long Island. Because of second World War conflict, construction resources became scarce and alternative means of house production had to be found.

William Levitt, one of the founders sons, returned home from the navy with an idea that became an iconic entrepreneurship story - every young veteran returning from the war would need a home. In addition to this brilliant idea, he realized the mass production strategies hed learned while putting up military housing would help and allow rapid recovery costs.

The first suburban development took place in Nassau County, Long Island, where previous potato and onion farmland was turned into a suburban community that housed thousands of people. The Levitt housing firm would go on to build other communities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania while creating a new legend in the history of American suburban developments. The housing projects were not only a story of iconic entrepreneurship but also a representation of American spirit of hopefulness and wholesomeness.

The Construction of the Levittown

The Levittown construction was famous for building a single house every 16 minutes during its construction peak. The production was done in an assembly-like manner where thousands of identical homes were produced easily and effectively. The houses were standardized to have a white picket fence, house appliances and well landscaped outdoors. The Levitts implemented wholly new methods of construction by taking the division of labor to the extreme. The construction of each home included 27 steps from the laying of a concrete base. Each construction worker was trained to perform a single step to each house as opposed to building a single house from scratch until completion. They would then move on to the next house which was located 60 feet away and do the same task.

Levitt, who was the operation's mastermind, referred to the company as manufacturers of houses and not builders. He declared his company as the General Motors of the housing industry providing the basic element of the American dream.

Controversies

The Levittowns famously involved a lease policy which stated: the tenant agrees not to permit the premises to be sued or occupied by any person other than members of the Caucasian race. Minorities were not allowed to purchase homes or live in the suburban communities. Thankfully, the provision was later struck as unconstitutional.
Panama is a small Central-American country which gained independence from Colombia in 1904. Panama has a constitutional representative democratic system of government with three arms of government comprised of the executive, legislature, and judiciary. The country had a troubled history including a 1968-coup which brought in a military dictatorship government to power. However, democracy was restored in 1991 through US-led international interventions. Panama City is the nations capital and is the seat of government.

Constitution

The Constitution of Panama is the supreme law of the country and all other laws are subordinate to the Constitution. It is comprised of 312 articles. Panama uses a Constitution which was promulgated in 1972 but has had numerous amendments over the years. The Constitution outlines the branches of the government as the executive, legislature, and the judiciary and elaborates the powers and privileges of each branch. The Constitution also elaborates all rights and freedoms guaranteed to all Panama residents, and it indicates Spanish as the national language.

Executive

The Executive is comprised of the president, vice president, and the cabinet. According to the Constitution, the president is both head of government and the head of state and exercises executive power. The president and the vice president are both democratically elected on a single ballot through the direct popular vote and are limited to serve one five-year term. The cabinet is comprised of various ministers who head their respective ministries as well as the Attorney General, The Manager of the National Bank of Panama and the Permanent Representative to the United Nations. The Cabinet is appointed by the president and is mandated to implement government policies.

Legislature

In Panama, the National Assembly is accorded all legislature authority by the Constitution. The National Assembly consists of a single-chambered (unicameral) parliament which has 71 members. The National Assembly is tasked to make new laws and amend the existing laws. The members are elected through party-list proportional representation voting system, drawn from the existing political parties to serve five-year terms. Parliamentary elections are conducted concurrently with the presidential elections. The Parliament is led by the President of Parliament and is deputized by the First Vice-President and the Second Vice-President.

Judiciary

The Judiciary of Panama is the arm of government tasked to administer justice. The Constitution provides for the independence and impartiality of the judiciary. The Judiciarys highest court is Supreme Court of Justice which is comprised of nine magistrates who serve ten-year terms after being appointed by the Cabinet Council and approved by the National Assembly. Other courts include the five Superior Courts of Judicial District, Municipal Courts, and the Circuit Courts.

Administrative Units

The country is divided into three indigenous regions (known locally as comarcas indigenas) and ten administrative units known as provinces. Each of the ten provinces has its own provincial government. The provinces include Bocas del Toro, Panama Oeste, Chiriqui, Veraguas, Cocle, Colon, Darien, Los Santos, Herrera, and Panama while the indigenous regions or comarcas indigenas are comprised of Guna Yala, Ngabe-Bugle, and Embera. These provinces are further divided into smaller administrative subdivisions known as districts.
Swaziland's government can be defined as an absolute monarchy. The Swazi King or Ngwenyama serves as the head of state. The colonial history of Swaziland featured British control until September 6, 1968, when the state gained independence. King Sobhuza II ascended into leadership as the head of state, and he oversaw the drafting of a new constitution that was adopted in 1977. The Constitution currently in use in Swaziland was passed in 2005. The monarchy system of government in Swaziland has been opposed by several groups who advocate for democracy.

Monarchy Of Swaziland

The monarch in Swaziland has supreme legislative, executive, and judicial powers. The position for the Ngwenyama (lion) is hereditary, and he governs the state assisted by a national legislature and council of ministers. The mother of the King is titled Ndlovukati, and she oversees national rituals. The Ndlovukati serves as regent if the King dies and the heir is indisposed or has not executed royal adulthood rituals. Both the King and the Queen Mother enjoy legal immunity. The King also serves as the Commissioner of Police as well as the Commander-in-chief of the Swazi Defence Forces. The Swazi King does not appoint his successor but rather, a traditional Council referred to as Liqoqo decides on which of the wives will be Ndlovukati and Great Wife.' The next king is the son of the Great Wife.' To unify all parts of the country, the Swazi King takes a wife from every clan.

Executive Branch Of The Government Of Swaziland

The Swazi King elects a Prime Minister from the members of Parliament. Swaziland's Prime Minister cannot serve for more than two five-year terms. The prime minister is mandated to chair cabinet meetings and advises the King on members of the Cabinet. These members are chosen from either Houses of Parliament. Swaziland's Ministers head their respective ministries.

Legislative Branch Of The Government Of Swaziland

Swaziland has a bicameral Parliamentary system which features the House of Assembly and the Senate. The House of Assembly has 65 seats, 55 of which are elected by popular vote to serve for five years, and the rest ten are appointed by the country's Monarch. 30 members sit in the Senate, 20 of whom are appointed by the Monarch, and ten are nominated by the House of Assembly. The King dissolves Parliament after five years triggering elections. The Swazi King retains the right to approve legislation adopted by Parliament before it is proclaimed law.

Judicial Branch Of The Government Of Swaziland

Swaziland has a dual judicial structure characterized by a network of courts which adhere to the western law and another network which is based on Swazi law and custom. The western model is composed of a Court of Appeal as well as a High Court in addition to magistrate courts in every district. Traditional courts give audience to cases of minor violations to Swazi law, and the verdict can be appealed to the High Court or Swaziland's Court of Appeal. The King can appoint a special tribunal in sedition and treason cases.

Administration Of The Country

For administration purposes, Swaziland's territory is subdivided into four regions namely Manzini, Hhohho, Shiselweni, and Lubombo. An administrator appointed by the Swazi King governs each region. A traditional government system is also well established in Swaziland featuring the King and his advisors in addition to traditional courts and 55 tinkhundla or districts.
The Flak Towers were constructed by the Nazi Germany after Adolf Hitler was angered by an attack in the capital of Berlin. Adolf developed interest by making some sketches of possible flak towers and even ordered the change of the rail schedule to enable transportation of timber, steel, and concrete to construction sites. In an attempt to stop major cities from been attacked, several flak towers were built in Vienna, Hamburg, and Berlin. They consist of concrete towers above the ground that prevented aerial bombardment. In other cities important to Germans, smaller flak towers were also built.

Purposes Served By The Flak Towers

The Flak Towers were constructed primarily for two purposes. First, they contained the cannons that could enable Germans to fight the airplanes belonging to their enemies from the ground. It also served as a place to store valued materials kept in times of attacks. The flak towers were always in abundance of water, air, and electricity so that in a case of an attack people would have their basic needs fulfilled.

Components Of The Flak Towers

Each Flak Towers consisted of two units; one large tower, called G-Tower, and a slightly smaller tower, L-Tower. The G-Tower (Gefechts- Turm) acted as storage for the weapons used in the anti-aircraft defense. The L-Tower (Leit-Turm) were used as a command center, fire-control center and a place where people could run for safety in case of an attack. It also housed hospitals and military quarters.

Flak Towers After World War ll

Hamburg had two Flak Towers, both of which are now demolished. One was a nightclub, and other one a power plant house that is the largest in Europe. Berlin had three Flak Towers (6 towers) - three of them partly destroyed, and the other three destroyed completely. Vienna had three Flak Towers (6 towers) - all these have survived up to now. Two are empty, one houses an aquarium, the other is a place for Austrian army, one contains arts, and the last one is a data center.

Flak Towers Not Built

In Bremen, two towers were never built. In Berlin, there were plans to build towers in Reichstag though research determined it was not suitable for construction, one in Hasenheide and two towers in Tiergarten. In Vienna, the original places of the three towers were Prater, Floridsdorf, and Schmelz. In Munich around the railway station, eight towers were not built. In East Hamburg, one tower was built.
The list below offers a closer look at the top 10 most visited museums in the United Kingdom. It is based on the number of visitors recorded for 2015.

10. Scottish National Gallery

The Scottish National Gallery.

The Scottish National Gallery is located in Edinburgh, Scotland and is the countrys national art gallery. It received 1,377,710 visitors in 2015.

Construction of this neoclassical building began in August of 1850 - it opened to the public in 1859. This gallerys origins lie in the Royal Institution for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts, established in 1819, which first began acquiring paintings. In 1828, the organization opened its first building and by 1838, some artists from the Institution formed the Royal Scottish Academy with the intention of procuring a national collection.

Today, some of the famous works found at the Scottish National Gallery include: Portrait of Diego Martelli (by Edgar Degas), El Medico (by Francisco de Goya), The Big Trees (by Paul Cezanne), and Haystacks (by Claude Monet).

9. Saatchi Gallery

The Saatchi Gallery is located in London, England, where it holds a large contemporary art collection. In 2015, 1,413,605 visitors came to view its art.

This gallery was first opened in 1985 by Charles Saatchi in an old paint factory with a total area of 30,000 square feet. Since opening, the gallery has moved several times and exhibited a wide range of rotating art. Some of these exhibits have included US artists, young British artists, and abstract art.

Some of the many artists showcased at this gallery include: Alex Katz, Boris Mikhailov, Laura Owens, Elizabeth Peyton, and Jessica Stockholder.

8. National Museum of Scotland

The exterior of the National Museum of Scotland.

The National Museum of Scotland is located in Edinburgh, Scotland and is part of the public entity National Museums Scotland. It received 1,810,948 visitors in 2015.

This museum is comprised of 2 buildings: the Museum of Scotland and the Royal Museum. It showcases a wide variety of collections, including: medieval objects, archaeological discoveries, geological artefacts, art exhibits, and objects from various cultures around the world. The origin of the National Museum of Scotland dates back to the founding of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 1780. Its collection was handed over to the Scottish government in 1858, leading to the formation of the National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland.

Today, this museum houses several noteworthy pieces, including: the flags raised by the Jacobites and the Hanoverians at the Battle of Culloden, Celtic brooches, the stuffed body of Dolly the Sheep, and The Maiden (an example of early guillotines).

7. National Portrait Gallery

National Portrait Gallery, London.

The National Portrait Gallery is located in London, England, where it houses the portraits of many famous and historically significant people. In 2015, it received 2,145,486 visitors.

This gallery opened in 1856 as the first portrait gallery in the world after Philip Henry Stanhope, a Member of Parliament, made several proposals to the legislative body. Queen Victoria approved the idea and the project was financed with approximately $2,500. Since opening, the gallery has been added to on 2 separate occasions, the most recent of which was in 2000 with the Ondaatje Wing.

Some of the works here include representations of Queen Victoria, Edward VI, Prince Albert, William Shakespeare, and Charlotte Bronte.

6. Science Museum

In 2015, the Science Museum was the 6th most visited museum in the UK, receiving 3,356,212 visitors. This museum is located in London, England and is known for its collection of more than 300,000 items.

This museum was originally founded in 1857. At that time, it held a collection from the Royal Society of Arts and was combined with the present-day Victoria and Albert Museum to form the South Kensington Museum. In 1885, the collections at this museum were separated and those belonging to the scientific category were renamed the Science Museum. In 1931, this museum added one of the first childrens galleries with interactive learning exhibits.

Today, some of the most noteworthy artefacts housed here include: the first jet engine, Jame Watsons original DNA model, plans for the first typewriter, and some of the earliest known steam engines.

5. Victoria and Albert Museum

The Victoria and Albert Museum.

The Victoria and Albert Museum received 3,432,325 visitors in 2015. It is located in London, England and once made up part of the South Kensington Museum along with the Science Museum.

This museum sits on 12.5 acres of land and has 145 distinct galleries. A visit to this museum allows visitors to view art and artefacts from a 5,000-year period of time and from various cultures around the globe. Its collections of paintings, jewellry, ceramics, costumes, ironwork, prints, and medieval objects are some of the most complete in the world. Additionally, it has the largest collection of Italian Renaissance artefacts found outside of Italy.

4. Tate Modern

The Tate Modern Museum is the 4th most visited in the UK, with 4,712,581 visitors received in 2015. It is located in London and is the countrys national gallery of international modern art.

This museum was opened by the Queen in May of 2000 and is considered one of the largest modern and contemporary art museums in the world. Because the site has been more popular than previously expected, expansion plans began in 2004. Three large, underground oil tanks have since been converted to additional art areas and a 10-floor tower was built over the tanks as additional gallery space. The tower was opened to the public in 2016.

The Tate Modern Museum is the 4th most visited in the UK, with 4,712,581 visitors received in 2015. It is located in London and is the countrys national gallery of international modern art.

This museum was opened by the Queen in May of 2000 and is considered one of the largest modern and contemporary art museums in the world. Because the site has been more popular than previously expected, expansion plans began in 2004. Three large, underground oil tanks have since been converted to additional art areas and a 10-floor tower was built over the tanks as additional gallery space. The tower was opened to the public in 2016.

3. Natural History Museum

The 3rd most visited museum in the UK is the Natural History Museum in London, which received 5,284,023 visitors in 2015.

This museum got its start when the British government purchased the extensive collection of Sir Hans Sloane in 1756, storing it in the then-British Museum. The Natural History Museum officially separated from the British Museum in 1963, when it formed its own, independent Board of Trustees.

The collection at this museum encompasses over 80 million artefacts in the following categories: mineralogy, paleontology, botany, entomology, and zoology. It also houses a research department that focuses on identification, conservation, and taxonomy. Its most famous exhibit is perhaps the dinosaur skeletons on-site.

2. National Gallery

National Gallery, London, England.

The National Gallery is the second most popular museum in the UK. In 2015, 5,908,254 visitors came to London to see the collection offered by this museum.

This museum got its start in 1824, when the British government bought 38 paintings from the estate of John Julius Angerstein. It continued growing over the years with the help of private donations and under the management of Sir Charles Lock Eastlake. Since 1989, it has exhibited paintings from various artists, including: Ana Maria Pacheco, Peter Blake, John Virtue, Alison Watt, and George Shaw.

1. British Museum

By far the most visited museum in the UK is the British Museum, which received 6,820,686 visitors in 2015.

This museum was established in 1753 with most of its collections having previously belonged to Sir Hans Sloane. It has continued growing over the last 250 years and today, this museum has over 8 million works of art, culture, and human history from around the world. The British Museum is divided into 9 departments, including: Greece and Rome; Ancient Egypt and Sudan; Asia; Middle East; Africa, Oceania, and the Americas; Coins and Medals; Prints and Drawings; and Conservation and Scientific Research. It is considered to have one of the most complete documentations of human development from ancient times to present.
Migrants who set homeless man on fire

By: William Martin WorldWideWeirdNews.com

(Scroll down for video) A group of refugees set fire to a homeless man and laughed about it while traveling on a train, according to police in Germany.

Berlin police said that they have charged six of the young men with attempted murder and the seventh suspect is facing one count of failure to assist.

According to the police investigation, six suspects came from Syria while the seventh refugee was from Libya.

The group of men, who ranged were between 16 and 21 years old, went to the U-Bahn train station, where they saw a 37-year-old homeless man sleeping on bench.

One of the refugees lit a tissue and placed it on the victimas head. Within seconds, the victims clothes caught on fire.

Luckily, a train arrived and passengers extinguished the flames.

The victim did not suffer serious injuries. The suspects then boarded a train, where they laughed about what they had done.

The entire incident was recorded on the security surveillance system of the train station. Police released video, showing the suspect laughing while traveling on the train.
Car Torched in Early Morning Arson Attack

This article is old - Published: Monday, May 29th, 2017

A vehicle has been torched in an early morning arson attack in Wrexham.

Shortly before 12:30am there were reports of a loud bang in the Alexandra Road area  near Victoria School.

A spokesperson for North Wales Fire and Rescue Service confirmed was crew from Wrexham was called to a vehicle fire on Alexandra Road at 12:34am.

One hose reel jet and one breathing apparatus was used to extinguish the blaze. The cause of the fire was deliberate ignition.

*Pictures  Oli Tobin
Police Investigate After Swastika Flag Displayed At Car Boot Sale

This article is old - Published: Monday, May 29th, 2017

An investigation has been launched after a car boot sale trader, now banned from the venue, was displaying a Nazi flag.

In a widely shared public Facebook post, that included the above picture, Tasha related the encounter, however in a later statement Bryn Y Grog disputed elements of her account in terms of the action organisers took.

Tasha said: The staff at Bryn-y-Grog after complaints, asked him to take the Nazi flag down, which he did, but allowed him to continue trading.

When challenged it is claimed the man said the display of the flag was for Manchester.

Tasha added: I think it is very important in this day and age to report hate crimes, to hold people accountable to their words and actions and to show these people where we as a community will draw the line.

On the table by the man a Confederate Flag was also on display, a flag that has associations with slavery and hatred.

Bryn Y Grog made their statement later yesterday, saying that Mrs Price the proprietor of Bryn Y Grog was made aware this morning of a trader who was displaying an inflammatory flag.

The statement said: She went to speak with the trader to request that he remove it as it was offensive on every level. Unfortunately the trader was abusive to Mrs Price and unwilling to remove the offensive flag. As it was towards the close of the Car Boot Sale it was decided not to pursue the matter. Mrs Price was later informed that the trader did remove the offensive flag.

The decision was made instantaneously that the trader would no longer be welcome at any event or establishment as part of the Bryn Y Grog group. We would like to apologise to anyone who was in close proximity of any of this mornings events and look forward to seeing you all again soon.

North Wales Police said they were aware of the incident and are progressing with an investigation.
Hundreds of Amazon workers have signed up for the International Amazon Workers Voice newsletter in recent days. Workers continue to send in their horror stories of exploitation, and workers in fulfillment centers in North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa are discussing the need for an international strategy to fight back.

Here is what workers are saying:

Amazon to worker on verge of heatstroke: keep working

Amazon tries to keep the lid on scenes like this one, described by an ex-Amazon worker who feared he would die on the job.

I worked there [for Amazon] for a year and I was treated like complete trash, the young worker said. One day I actually got really bad heat exhaustion from there when I was trying to keep myself hydrated. I was on water bottle number seven by lunchtime and that still wasnt cutting it. Everyone agreed at my fulfillment center that it was hotter than usual, and the managers werent doing anything about it.

The company only cared about shipping its goods and making profit.

The worker continued, I almost passed out while rebinning. I was taken to Amcare [the company medical team] and was told I was only allowed there for 20 minutes because I had to get back on the floor when they knew I was getting very close to having a heat stroke. They even said I was very close to having a heat stroke. So I left Amazon that night and never returned because I felt like my life was more important than dying at the job. If I died there that night I would be number four on the list of people who died while working at my fulfillment center, and I didnt want that.

Why not share the benefits of industrial progress, instead of accepting our fate as slaves for the rich?

One former warehouse worker in the UK explained: I worked in a warehouse in Manchester as a picker for XPO/Missguided under conditions very similar to those recounted by Amazon workers. Workers were demeaned with a barrage of dictatorial policies and pushed to the limit of physical and mental endurance. A few workers passed out due to overexertion.

The worker continued, Why shouldnt society share equally the benefits of productive development? After all, it was the workers who built the warehouses, and the means of production and operations, not Bezos. Why not share the benefits of industrial progress, instead of accepting our fate as slaves for the rich? The social condition today is appalling and given the productive forces available, entirely medieval.

No to nationalism! Unite Amazon workers across the world!

One worker in the UK messaged the International Amazon Workers Voice to report stressful and dangerous conditions at their facility. The worker thanked the IAWV for exposing Bezos wealth, but said that part of the problem is that English workers are mistreated while Polish workers are favored.

The International Amazon Workers Voice responded:

The rich want you to compete with workers of different national origins so that all workers dont unite and fight the real enemy: the rich. We are socialists, that means were for the international unity of the working class, regardless of national origin. English workers have much more in common with workers from Poland than they do with David Cameron, and the Polish workers have more in common with you than they do with Polish oligarchs, too.

Imagine how much power Amazon workers would have if they united in the US, UK, Poland, Germany, Mexico, China, Germany, India, and all over, in a common struggle for social equality. Divided by nationality, the workers are powerless. But united across the world, the working class is a powerful force that can change the course of history.

The worker responded with a thumbs-up.

Amazon workers, if you have stories to share, sign-up for our newsletter and send them in the comments field. We keep all sources anonymous to protect from arbitrary firing.
The Trump administrations proposed 2018 budget, released last Tuesday, includes drastic cuts to federal spending on public education, which if enacted would affect everyone involved in public K-12 and higher education. In total, the Department of Education (DoED) faces a $9.2 billion cut in spending, or 13.5 percent of the DoED budget, through the elimination or reduction in funding for more than 30 discretionary programs.

As with the overall 2018 budget proposal, Trumps Department of Education budget takes a wrecking ball to many foundational programs. The budget entirely eliminates funding for 22 major programs, including the following:

 Supporting Effective Instruction State grants ($2.3 billion), which fund professional development programs and seek to reduce class sizes.

 21st Century Community Learning Centers ($1.16 billion), which fund K-12 after-school programs serving 2 million students at roughly 11,500 centers nationwide.

 Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant ($732 million), which provides grant aid to low-income undergraduate students.

 School Improvement Grants ($449.1 million), which allocate money to the lowest-performing schools.

 Preschool Development Grants ($249.5 million), which fund preschools in low-income communities.

 Comprehensive Literacy Development Grants ($189.6 million), which fund K-12 literacy programs.

 Mathematics and Science Partnerships ($152.4 million), which seeks to improve math and science education.

 Strengthening Institutions ($86.4 million), which provide infrastructure funding for K-12 schools.

 Public Service Loan Forgiveness, Subsidized Stafford loans, and the payment of Account Maintenance Fees to guaranty agencies, which subsidize undergraduate student loans.

Programs also slated for complete elimination include those promoting foreign language learning, Alaska and Hawaiian Natives Education, Arts in Education, Special Olympics Education Programs, and multiple programs that seek to recruit and retain high-quality teachers and principals at struggling schools.

In addition to these eliminations, the budget proposes the reduction of funding for several key programs by double-digit percentages, including:

 $487.8 million (50 percent) cut from the Federal Work-Study Program, which provides grants to enable low-income students to work part-time to pay for college.

 $103.1 million (32 percent) cut from the GEAR Up program, which supports early college preparation and awareness activities for low-income elementary and secondary school students.

 $166 million (13 percent) cut from the Career and Technical Education Grants program.

 $142 million (15 percent) cut from the TRIO program that helps disadvantaged K-12 and higher education students.

 $95 million (16 percent) cut from the Adult Education program.

Each of these significant cuts represents a separate attack against core programs that provide the scaffolding for public education in the US. The cuts target programs that predominantly serve lower-income communities, and in combination seek to drastically undermine the quality of public schools in these areas.

Through this assault, the Trump administration is deepening the decades-long drive to create the conditions that justify increased federal funding for private charter and religious schools, which are promoted by billionaires such as Trumps Education Secretary Betsy DeVos as an alternative to failing public schools.

Thus, in tandem with the savage cuts listed above, the line item receiving the most substantial budgetary increase involves a $1 billion grant for the Title I Furthering Options for Children to Unlock Success (FOCUS) program, a front organization dedicated to funding school voucher programs nationwide.

As the DoED budget proposal explains, The proposed FOCUS grants would provide supplemental awards to school districts that agree to adopt weighted student funding combined with open enrollment systems that allow Federal, State, and local funds to follow students to the public school of their choice.

The real purpose of school vouchers is to starve already desperate public schools of their resources, in order to funnel money to private and parochial schools, which are constitutionally prohibited from receiving direct federal funding.

The DoED budget also allocates $500 million (a 46 percent increase) to the Charter Schools Grants program, as well as $370 million (a whopping 370 percent increase) to the Education Innovation and Research Fund, which will be retooled to support efforts to test and build evidence for the effectiveness of private school choice.

During his election campaign, Trump took up the mantle of school choice, vowing last fall to provide $20 billion for school voucher programs while in office. Last weeks budget proposal thus represents a down payment on this promise.

The decades-old school choice campaign dates back to the 1950s, when the right-wing economist Milton Friedman began promoting the concept that the free market should dictate allocations of federal funding for education. Support for such policies only started to become mainstream in the 1980s, after being taken up by Ronald Reagan. Their direct implementation, however, began in full force under Democratic President Bill Clinton, who oversaw the creation of the first 1,700 charter schools in the US.

Under both presidents George Bush and Barack Obama, school choice policies thrived under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and Race to the Top (RTTP), successive standardized testing frameworks that dictated whether schools would be forced to close or turned into charter schools.

The Obama administration carried out the most sweeping attacks on public education, overseeing the permanent firing of more than 300,000 public school teachers and staff members and the doubling of the number of charter schools in his first term alone.

Throughout this time, Betsy DeVos, heiress to the Prince family fortune and wife of the heir of the Amway pyramid scheme fortune, has been a zealot for the cause of charter and religious schools. She has headed or founded numerous pro-charter organizations, including the Acton Institute (which also promotes the repeal of child labor laws), Education Freedom Fund, All Children Matter, Alliance for School Choice and American Federation for Children.

While the Trump budget cuts will likely be pared back, they have shifted the baseline for future cuts even further to the right and will embolden the most right-wing, pro-privatization elements to step to the fore.

Leading Democrats such as Senator Elizabeth Warren have mouthed hypocritical opposition to the proposed DoED budget, which she deemed an all-out assault on Americas kids, teachers, college students & student loan borrowers. Over the past eight years under Obama, however, during which Warren served on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, she directly facilitated the processes that have laid the groundwork for the current budget proposal.

The fight to defend public education must be waged against both capitalist parties, which support the drive to war and the privatization of public education. Public education workers and students must unite with the working class internationally to put an end to war and rebuild society in the interests of the vast majority, which includes a massive expansion in funding for public education.
Indias decision to boycott the May 14-15 One Belt, One Road (OBOR) forum in Beijing underscores the escalating geo-political frictions between India and China, mostly bound up with New Delhis growing relations with Washington.

The forum was the international launch of the OBOR project initiated by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013. Invoking the history of the Silk Road of medieval times, OBOR envisages the construction of ports, railway lines, roads, pipelines and power plants connecting the major economic centres of China and Europe.

Under the Hindu supremacist Bharatiya Janatha Party (BJP) government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has increasingly lined up with the US military-strategic offensive against China.

By opening Indias air bases and ports for use by US warplanes and battleships last August, the Modi regime transformed India into a veritable frontline state in the US war preparations against China. Ships of the US Seventh Fleet, the armada at the centre of US war plans against China, will be serviced at an Indian shipyard.

Washington also designated India as a major defence partner, allowing New Delhi to purchase advanced US weapons systems, on a par with Washingtons most trusted allies.

This closer relationship between India and the US has caused deep fissures between India and China, and India and Pakistan, Indias historical arch-rival. In response to the US strategic favours to New Delhi: Beijing and Islamabad have strengthened their own strategic ties.

The $US50 billion China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a flagship OBOR initiative. Rail, road and pipeline links will connect western China with Gwadar, Pakistans newly-built Arabian Sea port in southwestern Baluchistan. India has maintained its opposition to the project, citing sovereignty issues because it passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, which New Delhi claims is part of India.

Just hours before the Beijing forum started, Indian external affairs spokesman Gopal Baglay stated: No country accepts a project that ignores its core concerns on sovereignty and territorial integrity.

To legitimise Indias stance, the statement raised suspicion over Chinas mega-project, claiming it violated international norms, good governance, rule of law, openness, transparency and equality. Allegedly, it would create an unsustainable debt burden for communities, breach balanced ecological and environmental protection and preservation standards and lack a transparent assessment of project costs.

New Delhis real concerns are that the CPEC will boost Pakistans beleaguered economy and allow China to substantially boost its strategic influence in South Asia, which the Indian capitalist class views as its own region of hegemony and exploitation.

At the same time, India is acting on behalf of Washington, which sees the CPEC as a means for China to circumvent US plans to blockade Chinas economy by seizing Indian Ocean and South China Sea chokepoints in the event of a war or crisis.

US Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Scott Swift visited India on May 5 amid Chinas attempts to get India to participate at the Beijing forum. There is little doubt that Swift discussed the forum issue with Indian officials. He said both countries want to counter Chinas increasing presence in the Indian Ocean.

After meeting with civilian and military leaders, Swift publicly questioned the intent of OBOR. Complaining that Chinese warships were making an OBOR tour in the Pacific Ocean, he declared: Right now there are more questions than answers.

Swift claimed Chinese actions were adding a sense of anxiety to the region, with uncertainty about the goals of the OBOR being raised in every country I visit. Swift said his discussions with Indian officials covered what India and the US could do to provide stability in the region.

Talking about the annual US-Japan-India Malabar naval exercises, Swift added, There would be a deepening of our understanding on how to operate those platforms on anti-submarine warfare. This emphasis on anti-submarine warfare obviously targets Chinas increased naval presence in the Indian Ocean.

On March 13, the South China Morning Post reported that Chinas Peoples Liberation Army will increase its fighting force to 100,000 personnel, allowing for deployment at Gwadar in Pakistan and Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. On March 16, the Hindu reported that Masood Khalid, Pakistani ambassador to China, said Pakistan had deployed more than 15,000 troops to protect the CPEC, as well as a naval contingent for the protection of Gwadar Port.

US National Security Advisor Lieutenant General Herbert McMaster met with Prime Minister Modi on April 18Modis first meeting with a senior member of the Trump administration. According to the India Strategic web site, McMaster shared his perspective with Modi on the security situation across Asia and in the extended region, including in Afghanistan, West Asia and North Korea.

Confronted by Indias intensifying alignment with Washington, Pakistans reactionary bourgeois elite, which for decades served as a satrap for US imperialism, is today tightly holding Chinas hand. At the same time, cross-border firings between India and Pakistan, both of which have nuclear weapons, point to the danger of a confrontation that would have grave consequences for millions of people across the Indian sub-continent.

India has been at loggerheads with China on three other fronts. One is Indias bid to secure membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which regulates the global nuclear trade. While the US has backed Indias bid, China has objected that India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Secondly, New Delhi has demanded China end its opposition to the Indian governments attempt to add someone to the UN international terrorism blacklistMasood Azhar, the chief of Jaish-e-Mohammed, a Pakistan-based Islamist insurgent group active in Indian Kashmir.

Thirdly, India continually promotes the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama, whom China regards as a dangerous separatist. Fresh tensions arose in April when India invited him to visit disputed Arunachal Pradesh, which Beijing calls southern Tibet. The US further stoked the conflict when a congressional delegation led by House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi visited the Dalai Lama on May 9.

A significant layer of the Indian ruling elite seem worried by Indias failure to participate in OBOR. Jayshree Sengupta from the Observer Research Foundation, an Indian think tank, published an opinion column titled Missing OBOR a big mistake on May 20. The main thing is that the Chinese, and not Indian, firms will become more prominent in the neighborhood, cashing in on their willingness and urgency to join OBOR, he wrote.

Nevertheless, New Delhi, acting in concert with the US, is aggressively seeking to block Chinas activities, sending unmistakeable signals of escalating tensions.

On May 22, Reuters noted: The failure of Chinas efforts to bring India on board, details which have not been previously reported, shows the depths to which relations between the two countries have fallen over territorial disputes and Beijings support of Pakistan.
As President Donald Trump returned to Washington from his nine-day foreign trip, the political warfare between his administration and sections of the intelligence establishment allied with the Democratic Party erupted once again, with the focus shifting to Trumps son-in-law and top adviser, Jared Kushner.

The new turn in the conflict between the fascistic president and his cabinet of oligarchs and generals, on the one side, and state forces opposed to Trumps supposed softness toward Russia, on the other, comes the same week that the White House released a budget proposal calling for $1.7 trillion in social cuts, including the virtual destruction of Medicaid, the government health program for the poor.

This declaration of war on the working class was relegated within days to the background by the Democratic Party and the bulk of the corporate-controlled media, underscoring the fact that the conflict within the political establishment has no democratic content and nothing in common with the opposition to Trump among working people and youth.

There is little that separates the Democrats from Trump when it comes to savage cuts in social programs and new windfalls for the rich. The Democrats chief concern is to preempt the emergence of mass opposition to Trump and divert social anger behind the drive of US imperialism to subordinate Russia to Washingtons drive for domination of Eurasia.

The escalation of the campaign against Trump coincides with his failure at the Brussels summit to clearly affirm support for NATO and its military-strategic offensive against Russia, and his attack on Germany at the G7 meeting in Italy. These actions were roundly condemned by media outlets that have been leading the attack on the Trump White House, particularly the New York Times and the Washington Post .

On Sunday, the interview programs were dominated by allegations, first published Friday by the Post, that Kushner, at a December 2016 meeting with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, proposed the establishment of a back channel for communications between Russian military officials and the Trump transition team. According to the Post, the idea was to allow Trumps chief national security adviser at the time, retired Gen. Michael Flynn, to discuss with confidentiality options for collaboration between the two countries in the Syrian war as well as other sensitive issues.

Citing unnamed officials who had reviewed US intercepts of communications between Kislyak and Moscow, the newspaper reported that the Russian ambassador told his superiors that Kushner had suggested the talks utilize secure Russian facilities. The back channel was never established, however.

Even as the Post, followed by the New York Times and most of the print and broadcast media, sought to portray this proposal as an extraordinary and sinister breach of diplomatic and political norms, the newspaper acknowledged: The State Department, the White House National Security Council and US intelligence agencies all have the ability to set up secure communications with foreign leaders, though doing so for a transition team would be unusual.

The Democratic Party and elements within the intelligence apparatus seized on the press reports to escalate their anti-Russian campaign and suggest that Kushner, if not Trump himself, had committed treason. The Democratic National Committee issued a statement declaring: Trump has no choice but to immediately fire Kushner, whose failure to report this episode on his security clearance is reason enough for a criminal investigation. The next question is whether the president authorized this, because no one stands between Trump and Kushner in the chain of command.

Susan Hennessey, a national security fellow at the Democratic-aligned Brookings Institution and former National Security Agency lawyer, wrote: Hard to fully convey the gravity of this Unthinkable Kushner could stay in the White House The most significant question seems to be whether Trump was aware of and/or directed Jared and Flynns contacts w/Kislyak.

Michael Hayden, former director of the CIA and NSA and a prominent Trump critic, told CNN on Saturday: This is off the map. I know of no other experience like this in our history, certainly within my life experience.

The hue and cry over Kushners alleged proposal for a secret line of communication with Russia is a red herring. There is nothing extraordinary about it. Such arrangements are made with other countries with regularity, especially where tensions are running high. There are, moreover, many precedents for back channel, secret talks with foreign countries by incoming administrations and even presidential campaigns prior to Election Day.

To cite a few well-known examples:

 In December of 1960, President-elect John F. Kennedy approved a secret meeting between a trusted adviser and a Soviet agent to discuss the possibility of improving relations between the two super-powers. The close aide was Robert Kennedy.

 Less than two years later, ABC News reporter John Scali met secretly with Soviet emissary Aleksandr Fomin to set up a back-channel line of communication that was used to negotiate a resolution to the Cuban missile crisis.

 Ronald Reagans presidential campaign negotiated a secret deal with Iran in 1980 to prevent the release of the US hostages being held in Tehran until after the November election, so as to deprive Democratic incumbent Jimmy Carter of a boost that would have likely led to Reagans defeat. Reagans emissary was his campaign chairman, William Casey, who went on to become CIA director in the Reagan administration.

That this allegation is being seized on to escalate the campaign against Trump highlights the fact that the political conflict centers on issues of US imperialist foreign policyin particular, the efforts, led by the Democrats, to whip up an anti-Russian frenzy so as to justify an escalation of the war in Syria and a possible military conflict with nuclear-armed Russia, which could quickly lead to a nuclear Third World War.
South Korea reported at 5.39 a.m. today that North Korea fired what is believed to have been a short-range ballistic missile some 450 kilometres toward Japan. Japanese authorities claimed that the projectile came down in the sea within Japans exclusive economic zone.

Japanese chief cabinet secretary Yoshide Suga told news agencies that Tokyo cannot tolerate repeated provocations.

The newly formed South Korean government of President Moon Jae-in held an emergency meeting of the national security council within hours. Its military Joint Chiefs of Staff issued a press release declaring that its forces are maintaining full preparedness for the possibility of war.

North Koreas missile launch was preceded by a test on May 28 of an anti-aircraft system, which was reportedly watched in person by its leader Kim Jong-un. On May 21, his regime tested a suspected medium-range missile, which also came down in the Sea of Japan.

The North Korean actions follow a series of diplomatic and military steps by the Trump administration, backed by allies regionally and internationally, that can only have heightened fears within the Pyongyang regime of the possibility of an all-out US-led attack.

At an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on May 23, the US, Britain and France denounced North Korea and demanded increased economic sanctions to force it into abandoning its nuclear and missile programs.

In a press conference on May 26 after bilateral talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, before the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy, Trump asserted that North Korea was a big problem. Its a world problem and it will be solved. In a threatening tone, he repeated: At some point, it will be solved. You can bet on that.

The G7 as a wholewhich consists of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Canada, as well as the US and Japanendorsed this menacing rhetoric. Its communique on May 27 declared North Korea was a threat to world peace and demanded that Pyongyang immediately and fully comply with all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions and abandon all nuclear and ballistic missile programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner.

The US military has made several threatening announcements alongside the diplomatic demands for Pyongyangs total capitulation to the dictates of US imperialism.

On May 26, the Pentagon announced it will carry out a missile defence test this Tuesday, simulating the intercept and destruction of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) fired at the US by North Korea. Such a test has not been carried out since mid-2014.

The same day, US Pacific Command (PACOM) revealed that the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and its battle group will leave port on the American west coast on June 1 bound for the Sea of Japan. The Nimitz will operate in the western Pacific for six months and is being deployed ostensibly to replace the USS Carl Vinson battle group which is currently operating in waters off the Korean Peninsula. The Japan-based USS Ronald Reagan has also put to sea.

When the Nimitz arrives around mid-June, the US Navy will therefore have three aircraft carrier battle groups in the region, capable of unleashing devastating firepower from aircraft, missile-guided destroyers and ballistic missile submarinesnot to mention submarines armed with nuclear missiles.

In South Korea, the US and South Korean air forces are continuing daily exercises involving dozens of jet fighters and ground-attack aircraft.

The most ominous statements over recent days, however, have been made by retired US military leaders and by Defense Secretary General James Mattis.

On May 23, four former PACOM commandersAdmiral Dennis C. Blair , Admiral Timothy J. Keating , Admiral Samuel Locklear and Admiral Joseph W. Prueherwere the panel of a National Committee on US-China Relations meeting in New York.

Discussing whether the purported threat posed by North Korea could be dealt with militarily, Keating stated: There are a wide range of options all of them are classified so we cant go into them here, but you should know that there are a wide range of options available to the president and secretary of defense, resident in the planning warrens of Pacific Command.

Locklear added: Just because its tragic [war on North Korea] doesnt mean he [Trump] wont do it. I think this is the mistake Kim Jong-un needs really to think about... That regime needs to be very careful, and the partners in the region who need to help manage expectations in North Korea and the outcome, need to be aware how fast this thing has changed over time. And it could be tragic.

A range of strategic analysts predict that casualties in a second Korean War could run into the hundreds of thousands just in 24 hours.

In an interview on May 28 with CBS News, Mattis made chilling remarks. A conflict in North Korea, he stated, would be probably the worst kind of fighting in most peoples lifetime. He highlighted the North Korean artillery that is positioned within range of the South Korean capital Seoul, whose greater metropolitan area has a population some 25 million.

The bottom line, he said, is it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into combat, if were not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means.

Mattis was asked by CBSs John Dickerson: What is the line in North Korea? That if the regime crosses that line, in your view, the US should take action?

The defense secretary replied: Id prefer not to answer that question, John. The president needs political manoeuvre on this issue. We do not draw red lines unless we intend to carry them out. Weve made very clear that were willing to work with China and we believe China has tried to be helpful in this regard.

A pretext is being carefully scripted in Washington to justify a devastating pre-emptive war on North Korea. The scenario that will be outlined to the American people and the world is that the Chinese government proved incapable of reining in a rogue regime in Pyongyang and action had to be taken because North Korea was on the verge of acquiring the capacity to launch nuclear attacks on the continental United States.

A second Korean War, however, as Admiral Keating indicated last week, has been under continuous planning, update and review by US Pacific Command for decades. Its immediate aim would be the overthrow of the Pyongyang regime and occupation of the North with US-backed South Korean forces. The objective has always been to drastically alter the balance of forces in North East Asia, by eliminating North Korea as a buffer between China and the US and its allies.

The greatest danger in the situation is that a decision will be taken by US imperialism to once again try and use war to push back against the strategic challenges it faces in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, and to divert from its immense internal political, economic and social crises.

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Prominent analyst predicts imminent US war on North Korea

[25 May 2017]
Quebecs government is once again criminalizing a strike by construction workers. The Quebec National Assembly is convening this morning to adopt emergency legislation stripping the provinces 175,000 unionized construction workers of the right to strike and threatening them with harsh sanctions if they do not immediately return to work.

In 2013, a Parti Quebecois (PQ) government outlawed a strike of 75,000 construction workers. This time, it is the PQs federalist rivals, the Liberals of Premier Philippe Couillard, who are coming to the support of the construction bosses in their drive to impose major rollbacks, including flexible schedules and cuts to overtime pay.

Construction workers are the immediate target of the Liberals antistrike law, but it is the entire working class that is under attack. In Quebec, across Canada and around the world, big business and the political establishment are pursuing a class war agenda of austerity and war. While big business makes never-ending demands for concessions and speedup, its political hirelings are dismantling vital public services such as health care and education while they slash pensions and unemployment benefits.

When workers resist, their strikes are outlawed. Or, as was the case with the striking Quebec students in 2012, riot police are unleashed against them. Federal and provincial governments of every political stripe have adopted a battery of strikebreaking lawsincluding against Canada Post and Air Canada workers, CP Rail workers, Toronto Transit workers, and Ontario and British Columbia teachers. For all intents and purposes, Canadas ruling elite has repudiated and abolished the most elemental of worker rights, the right to strike.

Workers face a political struggle

The Couillard Liberal governments intervention in support of the construction bosses underscores that construction workers face a political struggle. It is a struggle against not just the rapacious building contractors, but the entire big-business elite, its political parties and its state apparatus.

Construction workers, as with any other section of the working class, cannot defeat the joint big business-state assault on their basic rights simply through collective bargaining and strike action, no matter how militant and self-sacrificing.

The ruling class assault must be answered by the mobilization of the entire working class as a political force.

Construction workers should defy the Liberals strikebreaking law and appeal to workers in Quebec, across Canada and internationally to join them in a working-class counteroffensive against capitalist austerity and in defence of decent-paying jobs, public services and worker rights.

A defiant stand against the employers concessions demands and a Liberal government antistrike law would win powerful support from workers across Canada, in the US and around the world.

The demands of the construction bosses echo those of employers in every sector of the economythe ripping up of established rights, the lowering of wages and the imposition of flexibility, by which they mean straitjacketing workers lives even more to produce still greater profits. Everywhere, workers are confronting governments that are trampling on democratic rights.

Defy Couillards antistrike law

To implement this program of struggle, construction workers will need to seize the leadership of their struggle from the Alliance Syndical de la construction [Construction Union Alliance], a coalition of five right-wing building union federations that have connived with the bosses for years.

The Alliance Syndicale and the larger Quebec, Canadian and US labour federations with which it is affiliated have time and again ordered workers to obey antiunion laws. They have made it crystal clear that they will do the same this time.

In 2013, the Alliance Syndicale leaders declared that nothing could be done when the PQ legislated construction workers back to work. The following year, with the Liberals threatening to pre-empt any job action by construction workers with their own antistrike law, the Alliance Syndicale prevailed on construction workers to accept concessions-filled contracts.

In 2017, the unions have again done everything to demobilize workers. It has been obvious since the very beginning of the negotiations that the employers are relying on the governments support in pushing through their concessions demands. Yet the unions kept a radio silence about the threat of a strikebreaking law until Couillard spelled out the governments intention to outlaw any strike on May 12. They then condemned the governmentin words, while signalling that they would order workers to surrender before such an attack.

Due to their nationalist, pro-capitalist program, the unions in Canada, as around the world, have been transformed over the past three decades into appendages of big business. They systematically suppress worker resistance while harnessing workers politically to ostensibly left partiesthe PQ in Quebec, the New Democratic Party in Canada, the Democrats in the US, the Socialist Party in Francethat are entirely committed to the ruling elites agenda of austerity, attacks on democratic rights and war.

More and more openly integrated into corporate management through various corporatist schemes, the unions have developed interests different from and opposed to those of the members they purport to represent.

The largest of the five Quebec construction union federations, the Quebec Federation of Labour, manages the Solidarity Fund, which, with more than $10 billion in assets, is Quebecs largest venture capital fund. On a daily basis, QFL leaders negotiate deals with the banks and corporate bosses, including the big engineering and construction firms, aimed at boosting investor profit and building globally competitive Quebec-based firms.

Build rank-and-file committees to spearhead the strike and a working-class offensive

If construction workers are to prevail in their anti-concessions struggle, they must establish rank-and-file action committees independent of, and in opposition to, the pro-capitalist union apparatuses. Led by the most militant workers, these committees first task would be to organize defiance of the Liberal back-to-work law and rally support from other sections of workers in Quebec and across Canada.

The Socialist Equality Party does not issue such a call lightly. The Liberal government and the Canadian ruling elite will respond with venom to such defiance. They will seek to use the police and courts to attack and intimidate the strikers.

But if Quebec construction workers have powerful forces arrayed against them, they have even more powerful alliesthe working class in Quebec, Canada and around the world.

Over the past week, Couillard, the Conseil de Patronat (Quebec Business Council) and other big-business representatives have railed against the strikers for costing the Quebec economy $45 million per day. In so doing, they are admitting, albeit backhandedly, that the workers produce vast wealthwealth that is appropriated by the construction bosses, banks and other sections of big business in the form of huge profits.

The working class has immense social power. But this social power can be mobilized and its creative potential realized only if the working class constitutes itself as an independent political force.

An organizational break with the unions must be coupled with the adoption of a new political perspectiverejection of the subordination of workers livelihoods to capitalist profit, and the struggle for workers political power to reorganize economic life and make social need the driving principle.

We urge all workers and young people who want to discuss the urgent issues raised in this statement to contact the Socialist Equality Party and read the World Socialist Web Site.
A report released in January by Michigan State University (MSU) projects that over one third of American households will not be able to afford their water bills over the course of the next five years. Another report shows a 4 percent increase for the average US household just last year alone, the slowest rate since Circle of Blue began the study recordings seven years ago.

Mass shutoffs in Detroit, Michigan have resulted in the termination of service for 50,000 households since the start of the campaign in 2014 to shut off water for delinquent residents, the MSU report states. The city of Detroit has implemented a 10-30-50 payment plan scheme, forcing residents who are behind on their water bill to actually pay more than what they owe or face immediate shutoff.

The Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) announced its resumption of mass shutoffs for nearly 18,000 households in April this year, a DWSD spring tradition once the danger of freezing has passed. One in six homes in Detroit do not have running water.

A large part of the affordability crisis facing many major American cities is a lack of resources allocated to funding infrastructure repair, maintenance and replacements. Estimates of the cost to replace aging infrastructure in the United States alone project over $1 trillion are needed in the next 25 years to replace systems built circa World War II, which could triple the cost of household water bills, the MSU report states.

However, this same report notes that it is not a lack of willingness of average people to pay for infrastructure updates, but rather this willingness to pay [taxes for better infrastructure] may conflict with their fundamental ability to pay for water.

The poisoning of the water supply in Flint, Michigan has garnered international media coverage over the last three years. Since then, it has come to light that other cities have placed their residents at risk of lead and other toxic poisoning in the name of profit. But the problem of water affordability is the major issue looming on the immediate horizon for millions of US households.

Prices could go higher if cities look to private providers for water services, who have a tendency to charge higher rates than public providers.  More dramatic rate increases could place an even larger segment of the population at risk. The privatization of water services could also mean much higher rates for water customers. The privatization of water services is one of the factors behind the high water costs in Atlanta, Georgia, which at $325.52 per month has the most expensive water rates in the nation, the MSU report states.

Over 8,000 residents of Cleveland, Ohio were foreclosed on last year due to tax liens placed on homes over nonpayment of water bills. Authorities have attempted, and temporarily failed, to implement this policy in Flint.

Residents of Detroit are all too familiar with the struggle for clean and affordable water.

The World Socialist Web Site spoke to workers on Detroits impoverished east side, one of the neighborhoods where mass water shutoffs are prevalent and a factor of everyday life for many people. I work for the city of Detroit and my water got shut off last year, said Joe, a 12-year resident of the citys east side. Im still paying for it.

He explained the financial scheme he and his family have witnessed in their neighborhood. What happens is, they [DWSD] wont send you a bill for a month. Thats the trick to it, thats how they get you. So if you dont follow up on it, they say you never paid your bill, because you never got one! So youre looking for a water bill that never came in, and the next thing you know, theyre in your front yard shutting your water off.

Then they put you on this payment plan where you have to pay 10 percent, then 50 percent, and the third bill you have to pay it in full. I owed $1,500 the first time they shut me off. Same thing happened to my sister and she pays her bill every month.

As a city worker, Joe also explained that he knew how to turn his water back on after it was shut off by DWSD. If residents get caught turning their own water supply back on illegally, they face arrest, jail time and fines.

Edna and John have lived in Detroit for over 20 years. While discussing the water crisis in Detroit, they immediately raised the situation facing residents in Flint. I heard theyre going to try and lift that moratorium, John said, referring to the temporary concession the Flint city council was forced to make after an explosive town hall meeting. They shouldnt be forced to pay for that. They shouldnt have to pay for water thats poisoned.

You know that poisoning came from General Motors and their toxic dumping, right? Edna said. But why is no one saying that? Its all financial.

Both were critical of the comeback in the city of Detroit, largely touted by the media as a renaissance, but at the expense of the poor and working class residents of the city who cannot afford to pay their water bills and get kicked out of the more profitable areas of the recently developed districts. How does Gilbert get the chance to monopolize the whole downtown? Edna asked. Is that fair?

While Edna and John themselves have not had their water shut off, most of their family members, neighbors and coworkers have struggled. Our congress people, the city council of Detroit, theyre being paid to play, she said.

Edna pointed reporters to a block of abandoned homes across the street. These were once beautiful, immaculate areas, she said. Take a drive and see for yourself. Go to Outer Drive, to Gratiot. Its horrifying.
The only genuine moment in the overflow of artificial ceremonies and empty speeches during US President Donald Trumps visit was actually provided by the first ladies of the United States and Israel. It was a particularly pleasant moment, when Melania Trump took Nechama Rivlins hand and intertwined her fingers with hersand the two women slowly walked the red carpet hand in hand.

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This image was so touching because of its authenticity. A quiet alliance between two outsiders, who are strangers to this position and definitely hate it. A soft moment between two women who have one thing in common: Their commitment to the position by virtue of their husbands duties. From the look on their faces, it was evident that they would have rather been in any other place during those moments, as long as it was far from the cameras, from the commotion, from the heat and from the hundreds of strange faces surrounding them.

Melania Trump and Nechama Rivlin walk the red carpet hand in hand. The only genuine moment of the visit (Photo: Reuters)

The tenderness in this meeting was especially noticeable in light of the hyperactivity of the prime ministers wife, Sara Netanyahu. Her effort to see, to be seen, to talk, to stand out. A sort of mania that threatened to turn into depression at any given moment. That unstoppable flow of words that overshadowed everyone elsefrom the way she trashed the Israeli media on the Ben-Gurion Airport runway to the embarrassing and repulsive apology for the condition of the walls at the prime ministers residence. This time, the highlight was a testimony provided by businesswoman Nicole Raidman, who supplied Mrs. Netanyahu with dresses from her luxury store at Tel Avivs Kikar Hamedina plaza.

Raidman posted heartrending images from the shabby kitchen at the prime ministers residencethe exact same images we were exposed to in designer Moshik Galamins encounter with the veneer and the marble countertop. So it may be about time to impose a kitchen fee on Israels residents to pay for a new kitchen for our prime minister, if only to stop us from degrading ourselves in front of foreign guests that way.

There may have been more important things to deal with in the royal visit, but I must confess that I didnt find them. Its not just that the trivial things overshadowed the rest. Even those who talk about a successful visit, about a wonderful Zionist speech , about a president who is fantastic for Israel, are finding it difficult to see any achievements beyond the warm words, apart from vague promises about some peace process, without saying a single word about its essence: Neither the two-state vision nor the 1967 borders or the Palestinian right to self-determination. There was even no mention of Trumps election promise to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.

From the Israeli side, the visit was an example of provincialism, of lack of class. Its enough to look at the English menu handed to the guests who attended at the festive meal at the prime ministers residence to feel embarrassed. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was given the title H.E.His Excellency, while the prime ministers wife was referred to as First Lady, which is definitely not her official title. Sara Netanyahu is in fact the third lady, after President Reuven Rivlins wife, Nechama, and Irina Nevzlin, the wife of Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein. What an urge to adorn themselves with incorrect titles. So much ego, pursuit of honor, immodesty. Can anyone imagine late Prime Minister Menachem Begins wife, Aliza, insisting on the title First Lady? Or late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin approving His Excellency?

Americas first couple dining with His Excellency and First Lady. So much ego, pursuit of honor and immodesty (Photo: Avi Ohayon/GPO)

If all this was just to get a hug, to hear what we are so fond of hearing and to enjoy the empty compliments the American president generously showered us withwe got that. One can also understand the prime minister, who was intoxicated by Trumps comments. For eight years, Netanyahu waited for a president who would affirm the fears of a nuclear Iran, who would speak firmly against terror, who would present himself as Israels No. 1 friend and who would promise dramatically that Israels destruction would not take place on Donald J. Trumps watch. According to Netanyahus applause and body language, one might have thought that the State of Israelthe strongest power in the Middle Easthad just been rescued from a nuclear disaster.

As we sank into this ocean of praise, we forgot what America is not forgetting: That this president is suspected of ties to the Kremlin, that more and more Americans see him as a crook who tried to obstruct the investigations against him, and that his days as president may be numbered.

No one raised an eyebrow at the fact that the president arrived in Israel from Saudi Arabia, where he signed $110 billion arms deals, and that he developed particularly warm relations with Saudi King Salman. And this is a country considered until recently, even by Trump, the No. 1 exporter of terrorism and the funder of the worlds most radical mosque. One can only imagine what the Prime Ministers Office and the right-wing camps speakers would have said had the deal with Saudi Arabia been signed by former US president Barack Obama.

Look at how fast we have devoted ourselves to a man who until a few months ago we didnt believe would sit in the most important seat in the world, who apart from a variety of repulsive traits, is also known for his short temper, penchant changing his mind in an instant and a total lack of commitment.

Its possible that there are things going on behind the scenes that we are not aware of. If that is happening, its thanks to special envoy Jason Greenblatt, a thorough and diligent person who has been busy studying the situation since being appointed a few months ago and forming a full and detailed picture of the problem. The question is how this hard-working and sensible envoy will connect to a short-tempered president like Trump, who is so concerned about his image, and who will reach Trump first: Special envoy Greenblatt or the special prosecutor in Washington.
More than anything else, the Six-Day War has turned into a rewritten war. A sea of publications deal with what happened at the time. Gamal Abdel Nassers Egypt, the revisionists assert, had no ability to fight Israel, and anyway, he had no intention to do so.

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Its true that he made threats. Its true that he sent more and more divisions to Sinai. Its true that he expelled the United Nations observers. Its true that he incited the masses in Arab countries. Its true that the Arab regimes rattled their sabers and prepared for war. Its true that he closed the Straits of Tiran. Its true that Israel was besieged from its southern side. Its true that this was a serious violation of international law. Its true that it was a casus belli (a case of war).

IDF forces at the Western Wall during Six-Day War. When there is a narrative, who needs facts? (Photo: Bamahane)

All that doesnt matter, however, because there is a mega-narrative that obligates the forces of progress to exempt the Arabs from responsibility and point the accusing finger at Israel. And when there is a narrative, who needs facts? After all, according to the mega-narrative, Israel had expansionist plans, so it seized the opportunity. Different scholars are distorting the facts in a bid to turn the Arabs into victims and Israel into an aggressor.

Excuse us for winning

I was a child, an elementary school student. I remember fear, a lot of fear. There were no shelters in the house I lived in. It was clear that there would be bombings, so we dug pits in the yard.

Occasionally, we are reminded of the sound of thunder from Cairo to remind us of the annihilation threats. But in fact, they were much more serious. Both the Arab League and the leaders of all neighboring states announced in an unequivocal manner that the plan was annihilation. I repeat: Annihilation. Arrogant talk? Considering the fact that the Arab and Muslim world was engaged in endless self and mutual massacres, it was pretty clear that what they were doing to themselvesand its still going onthey would also do to Israel.

We must remember one thing, therefore: The alternative to victory was annihilation. So excuse us for winning. Because an occupation without an annihilation is preferable to an annihilation without an occupation.

Our goal is clear: To wipe Israel off the map

The Arab states never accepted the State of Israels existence, not for a moment. There was no occupation from 1949 to 1967, but a Palestinian state wasnt established, because the leaders of the Arab world didnt want another state. They wanted Israel. They didnt hide their intentions for a minute.

The new stage began in 1964. On the backdrop of a conflict over the water sources, the Arab League convened in Cairo and announced: ... collective Arab military preparations, when they are completed, will constitute the ultimate practical means for the final liquidation of Israel.

Two years went by, and then-defense minister Hafez Assad, who went on to become Syria's president, declared: "Strike the enemys settlements, turn them into dust, pave the Arab roads with the skulls of Jews. And to erase any doubt, he added: "We are determined to saturate this earth with your (Israeli) blood, to throw you into the sea.

Six-Day War. Those who rewrite history are winning

Nine days before the war broke out, Nasser said: The Arab people want to fight. Our basic aim is the destruction of the State of Israel. Two more days passed before Iraqs president, Abdul Rahman Arif, joined the threats: This is our chanceour goal is clear: To wipe Israel off the map.

Two days before the war broke out, PLO founder and leader Ahmad Shukieri said: Whoever survives will stay in Palestine, but in my opinion, no one will remain alive. Yes, that was the atmosphere. Does anyone still seriously think that those were just declarations? Does anyone think that their intention was an enlightened occupation? Does anyone think that there would not have been a mass slaughter like the one Egypt carried out in Yemen and later on in Biafra?

Hussein: No annihilation orders, 'as far as I know'

In order to understand that these were not false statements, it should be noted that in a meeting held after the war between Israels Ambassador to London Aharon Remez and British Foreign Secretary George Brown, Remez said that Israel had seized documents of the Jordanian army on operational orders, from May 25 and 26, about two weeks before the war's outbreak, which included orders to exterminate the civil population in the communities that were planned to be occupied as well. They believed at the time that it was indeed going to happen.

It isnt clear, Remez said at the time, whether Hussein was aware of these orders, but they were very similar to the annihilation orders issued by the Egyptian army. This appears both in Michael Orens book about the Six-Day war and in Miriam Joyces book about Husseins relations with the United States and Britain, as well as in Dr. Moshe Elads book (Core Issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict). At first, Hussein rejected the claims about the annihilation orders out of hand, but later added: As far as I know.

Clear and simple facts

The days passed. The threats increased. More and more forces were sent to Sinai. More Arab countries joined the war coalition. Its unclear whether Nasser really wanted a war, Oren wrote in his book. But he and the Arab countries did everything in their power to deteriorate the situation. Nassers appetite kept growing, and immediately after blocking the straits, he declared: If we managed to restore the conditions that existed before 1956 (the Straits of Tiran are blocked), God will surely help us and urge us to restore the situation that existed in 1948.

The late Yitzhak Rabin, who served as IDF chief of staff at the time, told the government that it will be a difficult war There will be many losses. He estimated that 50,000 people would be killed. And Oren, who had read almost every document that had been declassified, concluded: The documentation shows that Israel wanted to prevent a war with all its might, and that up to the eve of the battles it tried to stop the war in every possible wayeven at a heavy strategic and economic cost for the state. These are the facts. But those who rewrite history are winning.

The political debate over the Israeli control of the territories has led to a situation in which political opinions disrupt the factual research. The political debate is important. Its certainly legitimate. But there is no need to rewrite history to justify a political stance. It should be the other way around: Facts should influence political views. And the facts are clear and simple: The Arab states leaders did not only settle for declarations on an expected annihilation, they even prepared operational orders.
In honor of the 50th anniversary of the unification of Jerusalem, the government approved the cable car project in Jerusalem on Sunday, led by Tourism Minister Yariv Levin.

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The cable car will provide a solution to the problem of difficult access to the Western Wall and will provide quick and convenient access to about 130,000 visitors and tourists visiting the Western Wall every week.

Cable car in Jerusalem

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The cable car will run between the station compound, through the Mount of Olives, all the way to the Dung Gate, and it will be visible from the height of the city of Jerusalem and its sites.

The planned route is about 1,400 meters long, with 40 cars able to carry 10 passengers each, at 21 kilometers per hour. The four stations through which the cable car will pass are the railway station, HaMefaked Street, Mount Zion and the Western Wall station. The price of a cable car ride will be the same as bus fare.

Cable car project in Jerusalem (Photo: Chen Wagshall)

Politically speaking, this is a very sensitive project, since the cable car crosses the Green Line and one of its stations is supposed to be built in an area controlled by the Elad settler association (which will also help finance part of the project) at the Givati parking lot.

The French company that was supposed to carry out the project withdrew from it following political pressures and an order from the Paris Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The plan also raises objections because of the dozens of giant pillars that will be built at short distances from the most religious and scenic sitesincluding the walls of the Old City, churches and the Temple Mount.

The Ministry of Tourism said that the cable car will be used by all residents of Jerusalem, Jews and Arabs, as well as the tens of thousands of tourists who arrive in Jerusalem, and will shorten their time of arrival in the Old City.

Currently, the access roads to the holy sites are narrow, steep and overloaded due to the topographical structure of the Old City, making it practically impossible to expand the existing routes or pave additional roads.

The cable car will also serve as an accessible transport solution to people with disabilities, and it will be "green" due to the use of non-polluting electricity. As published in Yedioth Ahronoth, the government will also approve the construction of an elevator to the Western Wall.

The cost of the entire project is NIS 200 million, most of which will come from the Ministry of Tourism, and the cable car is expected to begin operations in 2021. "The cable car will change the face of Jerusalem," said Minister Levin, "to provide easy and convenient access to tourists and visitors at the Western Wall  There is no better time than the marking of the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem to commence such a revolutionary project."
29 May 2017, Limassol, Cyprus

SeaBird Exploration is pleased to announce that it has signed a letter of award for some 2D work in NW Europe for an undisclosed client, subject to contract. The project is due to commence in third quarter and will have a duration of approximately two to three weeks. SeaBird will be using the Harrier Explorer for the project.

SeaBird is a global provider of marine acquisition for 2D/3D and 4D seismic data, and associated products and services to the oil and gas industry. SeaBird specializes in high quality operations within the high end of the source vessel and 2D market, as well as in the shallow/deep water 2D/3D and 4D market. Main focus for the company is proprietary seismic surveys (contract seismic). Main success criteria for the company are an unrelenting focus on Quality, Health, Safety, Security and Environment (QHSE), combined with efficient collection of high quality seismic data. All statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict, and are based upon assumptions as to future events that may not prove accurate. These factors include SeaBird`s reliance on a cyclical industry and the utilization of the company's vessels. Actual results may differ substantially from those expected or projected in the forward-looking statements.

This information is subject of the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

For further queries contact:

Christophe Debouvry

CEO SeaBird Exploration

Phone: +4722402705

or

Nils Haugestad

CFO SeaBird Exploration

Phone: +4722402717
CANBERRA -- Australia announced on Monday it would send an additional 30 military advisers to train Afghan troops and expected other countries to increase their contributions to the restive Central Asian country.

Defense Minister Marise Payne said the increase was requested by NATO and supported by the United States. It would bring Australia's commitment in Afghanistan to 300 military personnel in non-combat roles.

"Their role will be to continue in the train, advise and assist roles," Payne told a Senate committee.

"We expect other partners to also enhance their contribution to the Resolute Support Mission," she added.
Israel carried out a test launch of a rocket propulsion system Monday morning. The test was conducted from a base in the center of the country and was planned in advance.

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There was no comment on whether or not the test was successful.

Missile test launch Monday morning

The propulsion system could be used to launch Israel's strategic ground-to-ground or ground-to-air missiles, such as the "Arrow," which is an anti-ballistic missile system, or the "Jericho," which according to foreign reports can support a nuclear payload.

Given Israel's advances in missile technology, particularly systems designed to create a multi-layered defense umbrella, similar tests are not uncommon.

Photo: Shlomo Pasha

In 2013, a test launch of a rocket propulsion system was conducted which foreign media reported was part of the development of the Jericho ballistic missile. The trail created by the projectile was easily visible in the center of the country, with foreign outlets speculating that the missile had a range of nearly 4,000km.

In 2015, during testing of advanced versions of the Arrow system, the Ministry of Defense announced that one test had failed, while another was called off at the last moment.

Following a test of the Arrow 2 system, defense officials did not confirm that the target was intercepted, prompting Russian reports that the missile had landed in the sea, 300km off of the Tel Aviv coast. Israeli defense officials described the Russian reports as "inaccurate."
Police detained 14 suspects related to an undeclared income and assets scandal involving Chairman of Shas and Interior Minister Aryeh Deri, along with his wife, Yaffa. Deri was investigated by the Tax Authority and the Israel Police's Lahav 433 unit Monday morning for 11 hours.

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"I have cooperated fully and answered all of the interrogators' questions," Deri said after the pronlonged grilling. "Like I said, I have full faith in the law and enforcement systems and I ask the public to be patient and respect the investigation. With God's help, I will keep serving the public with all my strength."

Two of those detained for questioning included a director-general of a government ministry and a senior businessman. Police are investigating funds being siphoned from the ministry to the Deri family and associates.

Aryeh Deri and his wife, Yaffa (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

The new developments are expected to surprise Deri and his wife, who are being investigated as part of a Tax Authority probe into money laundering and false reports about income and assets.

Following new findings from the investigation, the Deri couple may also be investigated for bribery.

The police's decision to keep the Deris at the station for hours was intended to surprise them, along with the other suspects interrogated. At the center of the couple's interrogation were at least two cases: "the NGO affair" and "the mediation affair."

At the center of the NGO Affair, is Yaffa Deri, who heads the educational organization Mifalot Simcha, as well as other non-profit organizations, such as the charity Yehuda Ya'ale. The police asked to examine the nature and legality of large sums of money that were transferred to these organizations, for suspicion of tax evasion.

The police also examined one case in which money was not ultimately transferreda NIS 590,000 pension from the Ministry for the Development of the Negev and Galilee, headed by Aryeh Deri, was stopped at the last minute by the ministry's accountant. In addition, it was reported that billionaire businessman Mikhael Mirilashvili, one of the owners of Channel 20 and a close associate of Deri's Shas, who contributed to the funeral of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, also donated large sums of money to the Deris' NGO, together with his son Yitzhak. One of the Deris' daughters, Shefi Sananes, is the NGO's CEO, and two other daughtersSimcha Avitan and Dasi Iluzare employed there.

During the investigation, Tax Authority investigators and Lahav 433 officers checked bank account records of Deri and his family. Among other things, they found an unusually high amount of money transferred to Deri's account from a company headed by Moshe Lion, a friend of Deri who serves as a member of the Jerusalem city council. Lion was also summoned to be questioned.

Deri after the interrogation (Photo: Gil Yohanan)

In his interrogation, Lion admitted to transferring the money to Deri, claiming it was payment for mediation. According to him, Deri was owed the money after convincing a business man to invest in a Hedge Fund headed by Lion several years ago.

Lion said that, at the time, Deri was not a government official, meaning that the money that was transferred to him was not only legal, but required. "It was payment for mediation that anyone would have deserved for the work they did," said Lion.

Deri and Moshe Lion (Photo: AFP and Ohad Zwigenberg)

This is not the first time Aryeh Deri has been implicated in financial "irregularities." However, this is the first time Yaffa Deri has been under the strain of police and Tax Authority investigators. At the request of the Justice Ministry, forensic accountants have begun checking the books of several non-profit organizations associated with her, finding suspicious transactions worth hundreds of thousands of shekels in the early 2000s.

Police issued a statement Monday morning confirming the detaining of the suspects as part of a joint operation between Lahav 433's National Fraud Investigations Unit and the Tax Authority.

"This is an investigation that began in April 2016 and was originally based on reasonable suspicion of tax offenses mainly in the area of property. Following a broadening of suspicions, more suspects were identified including public officials and the minister's wife."

One incident in particular that has drawn heavy scrutiny from police involves a real estate deal conducted by Deri in which assets were transferred by Deri himself to his brother Shlomo.

Another incident being investigated centers on the construction of a Deri family vacation home in the northern community of Kfar Hoshen. Deri claims his whole family contributed to the construction of the home, not just himself.

Aryeh Deri's vacation home

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According to estimates, the value of the home is roughly NIS 4 million. It was built in 2013 following permits being granted to Deri's daughter and her husband. The Tax Authority suspects that Deri and his family financed construction of the home through undeclared assets.

In addition to real estate in the north, the investigation into Deri and his wife also includes the Givat Shaul neighborhood in Jerusalem.

According to suspicions, Deri had rights to land containing a building with five apartments. Tax Authority officials suspect that Deri illegally transferred the apartments to his brother Shlomo just before his return to politics.

Police and tax investigators have questioned Deri's brother, his daughter and several Jerusalem-area contractors in connection with the case.

In response to his questioning with police, a statement was issued on behalf of Deri saying, "The Interior Minister has said from the beginning that he is willing to fully cooperate and answer all questions. He trusts the law enforcement system to do its job responsibly and properly."
The Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel in Lebanon (CBSI) is continuing to work toward a boycott of the Hollywood film Wonder Woman, starring Israeli actress Gal Gadot. But at least for the time being, these attempts have been unsuccessful, and the film is due to be screened in theaters across Lebanon.

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As Wonder Woman trailers reach critical mass and Gadot makes the rounds on daytime and late-night talk shows, ahead of the film's release in June, the Lebanese campaign published a second post on Sunday. In it, the campaign warned that since the film stars an Israeli actress, its screening is against Lebanese law. Lebanese movie theaters that had screened trailers for the movie were tagged in the post.

Gadot on Kelly and Ryan

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The campaign against Wonder Woman began in April, when the movement sent a letter to the Bureau for the Boycott of Israel within Lebanon's Ministry of Economy and Trade. The letter noted that Gadot is the former beauty queen of Israel, who served in the IDF and publicly supported Operation Protective Edge in 2014. Since then, however, Lebanese filmmakers have promoted the film and called on the public to buy tickets in advance.





The post warning Lebanese theaters not to screen Gadot's Wonder Woman

Gadot at the Mexico premiere (Photo: AP)

The Lebanese news network Al-Mayadeen, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, issued an article was published on the subject titled "An Israeli Assaults the Cinema in Beirut."

Photo: AP

The Lebanese BDS movement opposes any expression of normalization with Israel. In April, it strongly came out against Belgian electronic music festival "Tommorowland", which this year is scheduled to be broadcast in eight countries simultaneouslyincluding in Israel, Lebanon and Dubaiunder the slogan "Creating bridges between the peoples of tomorrow."

Gadot and the original Wonder Woman, Lynda Carter, at the film's Los Angeles premiere (Photo: AP)

Gadot playing Box of Lies with Jimmy Fallon, as part of the film's promotional tour

In the meantime, Gadot continues to promote the filmboth at press conferences and on television appearances. After the premiere in Los Angeles, she went to Mexico. A day before, she was interviewed for "Live With Kelly & Ryan" and told them that she threw out her back "at the worst time," just before the film was released.

Wonder Woman in action

"I tried to save the world one more time," laughed the 32-year-old star, who stood for the duration of the interview. The facilitator offered her muscle relaxation, to which Gadot jokingly replied: "A massage would be great."
Jerusalem Daymarking the 50th anniversary of reunification of the city following an Israeli victory in the 1967 Six Day Warwill be celebrated for the first time in the American Congress.

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The celebration is the result of efforts made by Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein and Israeli Ambassador to the US, Ron Dermer. The two approached Speaker of the House Paul Ryan with the proposal, who informed the two that their initiative had been fondly accepted.

Paul Ryan and PM Netanyahu (Photo: Reuters)

The event will take place on June 7th, the date on which the Old City was liberated.

The event, which is expected to include hundreds of congressmen and women, will be streamed by video conference to the Knesset, which will also hold an event featuring speeches by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Edelstein.

Both Ryan and Vice President Mike Pence will speak at the event.

Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein (Photo: Yoav Dudkevich)

While the Israeli embassy hopes President Trump will participate in the celebration and even speak, the event is still significant as the two houses of parliament will simultaneously salute the capital of Israel and its liberation in the Six Day War.

Edelstein commented on the event Sunday, saying, "It is very exciting to see the House of Representatives mark the unification of Jerusalem. This signifies the strong and close friendship between the Knesset and Congress and I am convinced that these collaborations will work to the benefit of both countries."
BENGHAZI -- Warplanes launched three air strikes on the Libyan city of Derna on Monday, a witness said, days after Egypt attacked camps there, saying it was targetting militants responsible for killing Egyptian Christians.

There was no immediate confirmation of Monday's strikes from officials in Libya or neighbouring Egypt, nor any claim of responsibility for the raid on the city at the eastern end of Libya's Mediterranean coast.

The witness said one attack hit the western entrance to Derna and the other two hit Dahr al-Hamar in the south.
President Donald Trump said late Sunday that he had 'total confidence' in his embattled son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, it was reported.

'Jared is doing a great job for the country,' the president was quoted as saying by The New York Times.

'I have total confidence in him. He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programs that will save our country billions of dollars.

'In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person.' the president said.
A secret and very politically sensitive tour was scheduled to take place last Thursday, under the medias radar. Jason Greenblatt , US President Donald Trumps Middle East envoy, requested to tour an area in northern Samaria which Israel had evacuated during the 2005 disengagement from Gaza.

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The Trump administration has already marked northern Samaria as a possible area for an Israeli move, which would convey to the Arab world that Israel is committed to recognizing the two states. The move involves the transfer of lands that are under full Israeli sovereignty to partialmerely civilPalestinian sovereignty. In more familiar words, transferring lands from Area C to Area B. The Americans see this move as a possible mission for the Israeli government, as part of the big package deal with the Arab world.

Greenblatt asked Major-General Yoav Mordechai, the coordinator of government activities in the territories, to accompany him on the tour. Mordechai would have never thought of joining the tour without receiving the approval of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who knew exactly what Greenblatt was checking. So the denials coming out of the Prime Ministers Office about the Americans raising the possibility of moving lands from Area C to B are far from the truth.

Trump and Netanyahu. Israel may find itself under heavy pressure, which will be exerted by the prime ministers great friend in the White House of all people (Photo: Avi Ohayon/GPO)

The news that the American administration had raised the idea of handing lands over to civil Palestinian responsibility was leaked to Channel 10 on Wednesday evening, and Greenblatts tour of Samaria was called off. The following day, the special envoy met with Netanyahu, and the two likely discussed ideas on the role Israel will play in the deal taking shape in the Middle East.

Greenblatt and his cohorts have already presented to the Saudis, the emirates and the Palestinians what appears in their working papers as a redefinition of West Bank lands. They are not talking about definition changes in large areas, but in small areas. Something symbolic that will indicate to the Arab world that Israel is willing to make progress towards the two-state solution not just through words, and that it has no intention to annex all the territories.

Alongside the idea to transfer Samaria lands to Area B, the Americans have raised another idea which was already discussed in the defense establishment around the time Lieberman took office, as part of the carrots and sticks policy he spearheaded whitewashing illegal Palestinian construction, which has spilled over from Area B to Area C, to prevent an explosion on the ground. This includes about 20,000 structures in hundreds of different points. Demolition orders have already been issued against 13,000 of them, and 3,500 have been executed. The idea that the army sold to Lieberman was adopted by the Americans, who took it one step further: Israel will both whitewash and declare that Area C lands are being transferred to Area B. Its not a large territory, and at this stage it will suffice.

The whitewashing of houses was presented to the cabinet on the eve of Trumps arrival as an Israeli gesture towards an unpredictable president. The cabinet ministers, however, distorted the American intention. While they agreed to stop the house demolition for humanitarian reasons, when it comes to transferring Area C lands to Area Bmums the word. It seems that the prime minister, with the current coalition, will find it difficult to deliver the minimum that the United States has promised the Arabs.

What the Americans are demanding from the Palestinians seems impossible at the moment too: To bring the security coordination with Israel to light, to stop handing out money to terrorists jailed in Israel, etc. From the Saudis, according to the Wall Street Journal, the Americans demanded initial moves of normalization with Israel, like opening direct telephone lines between the two countries, allowing Israelis to do business in Saudi Arabia and letting Israeli planes fly over Saudi Arabia on their way to the Far East.

Now each side must bring its part to the table. Greenblatt is staying in the region to make sure that no one tries to get out of it. In the next stage, the Americans are planning a summit in Washington, followed by simultaneous negotiations between Israel and the Sunni world, led by Saudi Arabia, and between Israel and the Palestinians. Trumps close associates are pressing him to hold the summit in Washington within a month, in a bid to present an achievement in the international arena. If this approach is accepted, Israel may find itself under heavy pressure, which will be exerted by Netanyahus great friend in the White House of all people.
American fast-food chain KFC is attempting to make a comeback in Israel.

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Ynet's financial publication, Calcalist, has learned that the chainwhich belongs to international fast-food company Yum! has already met in Israel with a number of potential franchisees and real estate agents for property tours. The company has even started negotiations with poultry suppliers.

Photo: AP

KFC has an aggressive expansion plan, with the company planning to set up 100 franchises in Israel within five years of the first restaurant.

The company is looking for a concessionaire who will agree to take the brand and develop it in Israel by granting sub-franchises to branch owners. If no master concessionaire is found, the company is considering splitting the entire franchise in Israel up between several business owners, each of whom will be responsible for a different area in the country.

The undertaking of such a strategy in Israel requires significant financial resources and a concessionaire with deep pockets that can present the company with equity.

Despite being a popular fast-food chain around the world, KFC has not enjoyed commercial success in Israel.

The franchise first came to Israel in the end of the 1980s, opening a lone branch in Tel Aviv, which eventually closed. In 1993, the company was revived by the Clal Group before changing hands again in 2003 to businessman Dudi Weissman of the Dor Alon Group.

At its peak in Israel, the restaurant had eight locations in the country, with the last of them closing in 2012.

If the company wants to succeed in Israel this time, it may have to undergo product-level changes, such as the coating of the batter to the chicken, which did not stick properly due to the salting required in the process of koshering.
WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said North Korea showed disrespect to its major ally China after it fired a short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast.

"North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbor, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile ... but China is trying hard!" Trump said in a post on Twitter.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed his Likud faction Monday afternoon during a party meeting that US President Donald Trumps recent visit to Israel had not resulted in the US granting of a blank check in regards to our policies.

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We are a sovereign nation and can decide and declare a lot of things, Netanyahu continued. It is true that relations are warm and that there is a great understanding of our position, but a blank check? That is far from reality.

Netanyahu and Trump (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

In that vein, the prime minister urged his party members to act responsibly, apparently so as to avoid rocking what appear to be stable relations.

That is why we are required to act with great diligence and with responsibilityWe need this especially now, he warned his listeners.

You heard President Trump. He came here, did extremely important things and touched us deeply, but he also said that he believes that Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas) wants peace, and that I want peace. He also said that he believes that it is possible and necessary to arrive at an agreement, he reminded the Likud members.

Netanyahu also touched on a factor which he has repeatedly attributed to the inability of the two warring parties to come to a peace agreement, which Donald Trump has often referred to as the ultimate deal.

There is one fundamental thing that I always say: The reason there is no agreement is because they (the Palestinians) educate their children, generation after generation, that there will not be a State of Israel in any borders whatsoever, he said.

That is why, the only way to ensure our future is to have control over security. That is our position and it has been stated in the clearest fashion. There is still, I would unambiguously say, a desire and even attempts to reach an agreement on the belief that the Palestinians are not ready to give up on their desire to destroy the State of Israel in stages, on a piecemeal basis, over time, he stated.

Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg

However, he indicated that he remained committed to pursuing peace regardless of the Palestinians long-term goals to erase Israel from the map.

That isnt important. I am telling you this because we need to deal with this. I have to deal with this.

Regarding the security assistance agreement with the Americans, the prime minister added: We received extra security assistance in the amount of NIS 300 million. According to the security agreement with the US, if Congress approves extra sums to the budget and also the government approves it, there is no need to pay it back.

Last September, Israel and the US signed the terms of a new $38 billion aid package for Israel during a State Department ceremony shortly before Barack Obama left the White House as president.
An Iraqi Shi'ite Muslim force backed by Iran said it pushed Islamic State out of a group of villages on the border with Syria on Monday, potentially reopening a supply route to send Iranian weapons to President Bashar al-Assad.

The manoeuvre could also be the prelude to a connection with the Iranian-backed forces of Assad, although they are yet to reach the Iraqi border from the Syrian side.
The UN says it has stopped supporting a Palestinian community center in the West Bank that was named for a woman who participated in a deadly 1978 attack in Israel.

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres's office says the UN withdrew its support after learning the center was named for Dalal Mughrabi.

Guterres's office says: "The glorification of terrorism, or the perpetrators of heinous terrorist acts, is unacceptable under any circumstance."

Mughrabi, a member of the Fatah faction of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), participated in a 1978 bus hijacking on Israel's main coastal highway in which 38 civilians were killed.

The UN announcement, which removes a sign from the site, came a day after Norway pulled its funding. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Norway and the UN for their actions.
The Lebanese Hezbollah-affiliated newspaper Al-Akhbar published an article Monday attacking the Lebanese Ministry of Education for not being anti-Israeli enough.

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"The Ministry of Education scandalHistory book without Palestine," was the newspaper's main headline in an article which identifiedand not for the first timesigns that the Education Ministry's treatment of Israel is in a process of "normalization."

A caricature from the Al-Akhbar article

The article noted that subjects teaching about the emergence of Zionism, Palestine under the British Mandate, the 1948 Palestinian exodus, the 1956 Sinai Campaign (Operation Kadesh) and the Six-Day War in 1967 have all been stricken from the curriculum, leaving only the subject of Jordan and the Palestinian cause up until 1967. This, the paper points out, constitutes only half a page worth of material taught to ninth grade students.

It is also suggested in the article that this policy began "in 2014, when the British government granted the Ministry of Education a donation to cover the cost of textbooks for students," with the exception of geography textbooks, apparently because they included the word "occupied Palestine" on the map, rather than the word Israel.

No mention was made of what came of the conditional donation, but the article did claim that Britain started working via another channel, funding education in Lebanon through an institute called "religions," which it says promoted "religious diversity" and "a culture of peace," alleging that the former education minister's change in policy is the result of these events.

Former British Prime Minister David Cameron and former Minister of Education Elias Bou Saab, visiting a school in Beirut (Photo: Gettyimages)

This is not the newspaper's first article panning the Education Ministry's apparent lenience with Israel.

In April 2016, the newspaper published an article reporting that the ministry is deliberating whether or not not to define Israel as an enemy of the state as part of the official curriculum. According to the report, some officials in the government insisted that education shouldn't be mixed with politics, and that children shouldn't be taught to hate.

Al-Akhbar, though, claims that this is merely part of the efforts to remove the issue of Palestine from the curriculum, writing that "the deletion of the Palestinian cause from the history books was done in complete silence," adding that it was "dropped earlier from exam questions," and saying that, due to this, students are not incentivized to learn about the subject.

(Translated & edited by Lior Mor)
Former minister and member of the Irgun Mordechai Tzipori, who carried out numerous key operations before and after Israels establishment and served as a high-ranking military official, passed away at age 92 Monday.

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Tzipori, who acted as the deputy defense minister and minister of communications during Menachem Begins Likud government, died in Sheba Medical Center in Tel HaShomer.

Mordechai Tzipori (Photo: David Eldan/GPO)

The military warrior filled a host of senior positions in the IDFs Armored Corps in the first decades after Israels establishment. Toward to the end of the 80s, he served as Director General of the National Insurance Institution.

In 1939 when Tzipori was just 15, he joined the underground Irgun movement and at age 20 began participating in operations against the British Mandate.

Tzipori with Menachem Begin (Photo: Hanina Harman/GPO)

One year later, in June 1945, Tzipori was captured and sent to Sudan from where he was transferred to Eritrea and then onto Gilgil in Kenya. There, he was one of the main diggers of escape tunnels from the detention camps.

On his 80th birthday, his son Shlomi, who is an attorney, organized a trip to Africa where his father searched for the escape tunnels which led to his freedom, along with his friend who also served in the underground more than 60 years prior. I was here for a third of my time, Tzipori said during an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth.

Courtesy of the Tzipori family

In the summer of 1948, the former Irgun fighter returned to Israel where he drafted into the IDF and eventually reached rank of Brigadier General and Chief Armored Officer. He would also hold a number of other positions in the IDF.

Photo: David Rubinger

His illustrious career eventually brought him into the political sphere, where he served two terms as a Likud MK between 1977 and 1981, holding the position of deputy defense minister during Likuds first government headed by Menachem Begin, who also headed the Irgun, and as communications minister during Begins second government.

Tzipori in the Knesset (Photo: David Rubinger)

During his tenure as deputy defense minister, Tzipori oversaw the famous June 1981 secret operation, known as Operation Opera, in which Israel stunned the world when it destroyed Iraqs nuclear reactor in a rapid surprise airstrike.

Photo: Shaul Golan

Tzipori was known for his courage to speak up when he felt necessary, rarely shying away from challenging even the most domineering personalities in the Israeli establishment. Indeed, he was one of the few who dared to criticize Defense Minister Ariel Sharon over his handling of the First Lebanon War.

Notably in 2015, Tzipori derided Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and announced that he would not be voting for the Likud. This Bibi is the biggest bluffer in the world. Perhaps he speaks well, especially in English, but if psychologists and other experts ever analyze all his speeches, from the first to the last, it would become clear that everything is just a balloon with hot air, he scorned during an interview with Yedioth Ahronoth.

His funeral will take place on Tuesday during which he will be buried in the Irgun fighters' section in the Segula Cemetery in Petah Tikva.
The government's ministers approved Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request to add Energy and Water Resources Minister Yuval Steinitz and Minister of Jerusalem Affairs and Minister of Environmental Protection Ze'ev Elkin as new members in the Security Cabinet.

Their addition will take effect starting June.
As a homeowner, you probably already know that you should be working to maintain your home. But, chances are, you Read More
New Delhi: Exposing the Pakistani establishment, Hafiz Abdul Rehman Makki, head of Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) has said that the countrys Army was a puppet of the terror organisation.

He also said that Pakistan's former Army chief Raheel Sharif was heading an Islamic coalition because of his support to our jihad.

According to a video accessed by CNN-News18, Makki can be further seen slamming former Pakistan military ruler Pervez Musharraf.

He has said that Musharraf was forced to flee the country because of the JuD.

At the same time, in the video, Makki is seen saying that Pakistans jihad defeated America in Afghanistan.

We kicked the US out of Afghanistan. We will defeat the NATO and will also destroy India. Even Russia asks Pakistan for help today. Both the US and Russia are dud superpowers. They are nothing in front of our global jihad, Makki says.

Hafiz Saeed's brother-in-law Makki was given the charge of the head of JuD after the Mumbai terror attack mastermind was put under the house arrest by Pakistan's Punjab government.

"Makki has officially been made head of JuD in the wake of house arrest of Saeed," a JuD 'official' had told PTI in March this year.

He was the second in command of JuD and he took over the reins of the group soon after Saeed's detention, he had said.

The Punjab government on January 30 had put Saeed and four other leaders of JuD and Falah-e-Insaniat (FIF) under house arrest for a period of 90 days in exercise of powers under section 11-EEE (1) of Anti Terrorism Act 1997.

Various offices of both JuD and FIF were closed following the house arrest of Saeed.

Both organisations were also put on observation under the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.

JuD has rebranded under the new name of 'Tehreek Azadi Jammu and Kashmir', just days after Saeed's house arrest.

The names of Saeed and 37 other members of JuD and FIF have also been placed on exit control list, preventing them from leaving the country.

As Saeed, the mastermind of 2008 Mumbai attack, carrying a US bounty of USD 10 million on his head, Makki has also USD 2 million on his head.

(With Agency inputs)
Colombo: Indian Navy diving and medical teams have been deployed to assist Sri Lanka Navy operations in the flood-hit southwestern region, as the death toll from the disaster today rose to 177 with 104 people still missing in the island nation's worst torrential rains in 14 years.

Rescuers pulled out more bodies buried in the mudslides triggered by monsoon rains, taking the death toll to 177. The death toll is expected to rise further as 109 people are still missing, according to the Disaster Management Centre.

Sri Lankan Naval spokesperson Chaminda Walakauluge said two Indian ships INS 'Kirch' and INS 'Shardul' have arrived and "they joined us (Sri Lanka Navy) in extending relief".

Indian Navy diving and medical teams arrived in INS Shardul yesterday have been deployed to assist Sri Lanka Navy operations at Kalutara, Ratmalana and Galle.

Indian High Commission here tweeted images of "Indian diving and medical teams deployed at Kalutara, Ratmalana (and) Galle with (Sri Lankan) navy relief (operations)."

Indian Naval personnel of INS 'Kirch' that arrived in the island on Saturday are currently engaging in flood relief operations at Udugama and Galapatha in the Kalutara District in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Navy.

"They are here as part of India's continued commitment to assist in flood relief efforts in Sri Lanka in response to a request from the Government of Sri Lanka," the Indian High Commission said.

INS 'Shardul' has nearly 200 personnel on board, including specialized rescue, diving and medical teams, as well as a large amount of relief material and Gemini inflatable boats.

INS 'Kirch' was carrying 125 personnel. It had diving teams, relief supplies, inflatable gemini boats and a mobile medical teams.

The Indian ships brought in rice, atta (flour), dal, sugar, bed sheets, blankets, durries, rain coats, milk, biscuits etc.

The rescue, diving and medical teams on board were deployed in coordination with the Sri Lanka Navy and other authorities, in the worst affected areas in the south and the Western regions of Ratnapura and Horana, Sri Lankan Navy said.

A third Indian ship, INS Jalashwa, with additional relief material, is also expected to arrive today with more relief.

Lankan Foreign Minister Ravi Karunanayake thanked India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing assistance within hours of a request being made.

Karuanayake said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's gesture demonstrated the new level of Indo-Lanka relations under the current government of the President Maithripala Sirisena.

Meanwhile, the Meteorology Department today warned of more rains followed by strong winds and people residing in low lying areas in the south were advised to evacuate to safer locations as all the major rivers are overflowing.

More rains are expected in the next two days as the depression in the east central Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm 'MORA' and is now moving away from the island, it said.

The incessant rains experienced since Thursday night have driven nearly half a million people out of their inundated homes in the southern and western regions.

Police said a Sri Lankan Airforce helicopter (SLAF) MI-17 carrying relief aid for flood victims crashed in the southern Galle district, the worst hit of the 14 districts by flash floods and earth slips in the on going monsoonal rains, while carrying out relief operations in the flood-stricken areas.

There were no casualties and Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena telephoned Squadron Leader Bhanuka Delgoda, the pilot of the MI-17, to congratulate him for his bravery.

The pilot lost control of the helicopter due to bad weather and crashed into woods, police said.

On Saturday, a Lanka Air Force airman, Y M S Yaparatne, 37, died while carrying out relief operations in the Galle district as he fell off from the helicopter.

Flood waters were receding in the worst affected districts of Ratnapura and Kalutara but the authorities said cleaning up operations could take weeks.

Some 412 houses were fully damaged with over 4,200 houses suffering partial damage. Some 471,000 people remain displaced while over 75,000 people are currently being housed in over 330 temporary relief accommodation.

Following India's lead in sending out emergency relief to Sri Lanka, more countries have started pledging assistance to provide relief to the flood victims.

China is to donate relief items worth of USD 2.2 million.

The relief goods, to be dispatched to Colombo by a chartered flight soon, include tents, blankets, sheets, rain boots and life jackets.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang sent condolence messages to President Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe respectively on the loss of the lives and property in floods and landslides caused by heavy rain.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful Southwest monsoon, officials had said.

Sri Lanka, which has been heavily deforested for cash crops, often witnesses landslides during the monsoon season.
New Delhi: The story of a young Hindu Pakistani soldier who died fighting has gone viral on social media.

According to the Hindustan Times, 27-year-old Lance Naik Lal Chand Rabari was killed in the line of duty whie serving on the Mangla front near the PoK.

The exact cause of his death was not immediately known.

Lal Chand hails from Ismail Khan Nautkani village in Sindh province's Badin district.

Citing his elder brother, the report said Lal Chand had earlier served in the Waziristan tribal region.

I would take revenge for every drop of blood from those who have inflicted loss to the children and people of our country, Lal Chand was quoted as saying after his return from Waziristan.

The country we are living in is like our home and whosoever would attack it would have to face serious retaliation till the last breath in my body, he had reportedly said.

Lal Chand reportedly graduated while serving in the army.
Patna: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took custody of former RJD MP Mohammad Shahabuddin in connection with a case relating to murder of journalist Rajdeo Ranjan.

The CBI had on May 26 named Mohammad Shahabuddin as an accused in the journalist Rajdeo Ranjan murder case.

As per the CBI Special courts order, Shahabuddin was produced in the court of Special Judge Anupam Kumari through video-conferencing facility. Shahabuddin is the 10th accused in the murder case.

The CBI Special court had on May 22 issued the production warrant against Shahabuddin on the plea of CBI to produce him through video-conferencing for trial.

The CBI had also filed the application the same day for making Shahabuddin as an accused in the case.

The CBI had counsel submitted that it would soon file chargesheet against Shahabuddin, who is currently lodged in high-security Tihar jail in the national capital.

The premier investigating agency has already filed charge-sheet against seven accused persons in the case while two accused persons - Mohammad Javed and Mohammad Kaif- are on bail. Javed and Kaif are active members of Shahabuddin gang.

The four-time RJD MP from Siwan is alleged to have been involved in the murder of Rajdeo Ranjan, a journalist of a prominent Hindi daily in Siwan last year. Shahabuddin is facing trial in more than 45 criminal cases and was moved to Tihar Jail in February this year on a Supreme Court order on a plea by Siwan native Chandrakeshwar Prasad, whose three sons were killed in two separate incidents.

Rajdeo Ranjan, district bureau chief of a Hindi daily was gunned down on May 13 last year and his wife has accused Shahabuddin of having a role in the killing. The Special court fixed June 9 as the next date for production of Shahabuddin in the case.

With PTI inpus
New Delhi: Liquor manufacturers from Bihar today got an extension of two more months till July 31 from the Supreme Court for disposing of their old stocks of alcoholic beverages worth over Rs 200 crore outside the state.

Earlier, the court had extended till May 31 the deadline of April 30 for disposing of old stocks, including raw material, fixed by the Nitish Kumar government which had imposed a ban on liquor in the state from April one last year.

A vacation bench of Justices A K Sikri and Deepak Gupta took note of the submission of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies, that the firms would be incurring huge losses if they are not allowed to dispose of their existing stocks of alcoholic beverages outside Bihar.

The state government opposed the demand for extension of time, saying the firms were indulging in illegal liquor trade.

"If they are engaging in illegal trade, then why don't you (state) check them? Do you think that once the stocks are cleared, there would be no illegal trade," the bench remarked.

It, however, made clear to liquor firms that the deadline of July 31 would not be extended under any condition.

The confederation, on May 24, had moved the apex court for extension of May 31 deadline.

The apex court had on March 31 granted time till May 31 to these companies to dispose of the old stocks and directed them to follow the resolution passed by the Bihar government with regard to disposal of stocks following the imposition of prohibition in the state.

The confederation, in its fresh plea, has said it was not possible to dispose of the old stocks worth over Rs 200 crore in such a short time as due procedure is to be followed for either destroying or exporting the stocks.

It had said that the stock was lying in the ware houses of companies and the godowns of Bihar State Beverage Corporation (BSBCL) which needed to exported to other states or destroyed.

Bihar government which has prohibited consumption, stocking and sale of liquor in the state had on March 30, passed a resolution by which it has allowed the companies to export their old stocks to other states.

The state government had granted time to export the excisable and non-excisable articles till April 30, after which they will not be able to do so.

On October 7, 2016, the apex court had stayed the operation of Patna High Court judgement quashing the state's law banning sale and consumption of all types of liquor, saying liquor and fundamental rights "do not go together".

Bihar government has challenged the high court verdict of September 30, 2016, which had quashed the notification banning consumption and sale of liquor in the state.

However, after the law was set aside, Bihar government had come out with a new law banning sale and consumption of liquor which was notified on October 2, 2016.

It had notified the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016 to ensure that the ban on sale and consumption of alcohol including Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) as well spiced and domestic liquor, continued in the state.

While assailing the September 30, 2016 high court verdict, the state government had urged the apex court to decide whether the state can impose absolute prohibition on distribution and consumption of liquor and whether an individual can claim the right to consume liquor as his or her fundamental right under the Constitution.

It had claimed that as a consequence of the high court order, the state government's effort to bring in complete prohibition on liquor, in performance of its constitutional obligations, has been frustrated.

The high court had on September 30, 2016 quashed the notification banning consumption and sale of alcohol in the state, saying it was ultra vires to the Constitution.

The order was passed on a batch of petitions filed by the Liquor Trade Association and others, challenging the liquor law which had stringent penal provisions.

Soon thereafter, the Bihar government brought in the new law banning liquor after including harsher provisions like arrest of all adults in a house where contraband was found.

The Grand Secular Alliance government in Bihar had first banned manufacture, trade, sale and consumption of country- made liquor since April 1, 2016, but later imposed a blanket ban on all types of liquor, including foreign liquor, in the state.
New Delhi: Manipur Governor Najma Heptulla has been unanimously elected as Chancellor (Amir-e-Jamia) of Jamia Millia Islamia for five years by the university's court in a special meeting held on May 25, a varsity statement said on Monday.

"Heptulla succeeds Lt. Gen. M.A. Zaki (retd.) who has completed his five-year term. Heptulla's tenure begins with effect from May 26," Jamia Millia Islamia said in a press release.

After her new appointment, Heptulla will have to resign as Governor.

Vice Chancellor Talat Ahmad expressed his happiness over Heptulla's appointment.

"The university will be greatly benefited from her rich experience in both political and public life. It will be our privilege to work with her and to learn from her distinguished career in parliament and internationally," he said, also thanking Zaki for his support and guidance.

Grand-niece of India's first Education Minister, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Heptulla has been a five time member of the Rajya Sabha between 1986 and 2012 and was Deputy Chairman of the upper house of the Indian parliament for 16 years.

Heptulla also served as the Minister of Minority Affairs in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet before resigning on age grounds as the BJP in an unwritten code had fixed the maximum age for ministers at 75.

She was subsequently appointed as Governor of Manipur.
New Delhi: India will levy a 5 percent tax on all equipment required for generating solar power compared with nil duty now, a government official clarified, putting an end to confusion about the new taxation policy for the industry after its landmark tax reform.

"All solar equipments and its parts would attract 5 percent GST only," Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said in a tweet on Sunday, contrary to the initially planned two tax slabs of 5 percent and 18 percent.

India, the world`s third biggest greenhouse gas emitter, has set a target to produce 100 gigawatts of solar power in five years to fuel its economic expansion while reducing its carbon footprint.

A flat 5 percent tax on all solar power equipment will put the sector on par with domestic coal from July 1 and make solar energy generation more expensive.

The 5 percent tax, however, is in contrast to a previous notification that had fixed an 18 percent tax on photovoltaic cells and panels, which account for a bulk of solar power generation costs.

Domestic coal sales now attract a 11.69 percent duty.

State-run Coal India Ltd , saddled with millions of tonnes of unsold coal, is expected to be the biggest beneficiary of the decision.

A tax on solar parts could hurt the young and booming industry, which relies heavily on cells imported from China. Solar tariffs in India had fallen to a record low of Rs 2.44 (USD 0.0378) per unit earlier this month.

India is extending capital subsidies and cheaper loans for clean energy to help meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi`s goal of raising renewable energy capacity by more than five times in the next five years to fight climate change.

Solar power generation capacity in India has more than tripled in less than three years to over 12 GW, helped by lower module prices and borrowing costs.
New Delhi: The Yamuna river is a sacred water body in India and has always been in the news for the way it's being polluted. Conscious efforts by various NGO's, till date, are being made to keep it clean.

Over time, the panel at the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has banned many practices that were affecting the river and has ordered the Delhi government and civic bodies to seriously look into the matter.

Now, taking them to task once more, the green panel has called out the Delhi government and civic bodies for not ensuring compliance of its order that no blood should directly seep into the Yamuna due to cattle slaughter.

A bench headed by Justice Jawad Rahim directed the AAP government and Delhi Pollution Control Committee to submit a detailed status report on the issue and sought their reply before July 11.

"You people talk of Yamuna and Ganga all the time. We are regularly hearing the cases with regard to pollution in these rivers. We had passed an order in 2015 asking you to ensure that no blood flows in Yamuna. Nothing has happened till date. That's not fair," the bench, also comprising Expert Member Nagin Nanda, said.

The observations came after a self-styled Swami, Om, appearing on behalf of a religious outfit, sought immediate action into the matter saying that the authorities have failed to ensure compliance of the NGT order.

The lawyer appearing for East Delhi Municipal Corporation told the green panel that currently one slaughterhouse was operating in Ghazipur area which has already installed online monitoring system which is linked to Central Pollution Control Board for treating its effluent.

The directions came during the hearing of a plea of the religious grouping, Ojasvi party, which has approached the green panel against the pollution caused to the Yamuna river due to slaughter of cattle.

(With PTI inputs)
England: Members of Manchester suicide bomber Salman Abedi's network are still potentially at large, British interior minister Amber Rudd said on Sunday, after the terrorism threat level was lowered because of significant progress in the investigation.

Police said they have arrested a large part of the network behind the bombing, which killed 22 people at a concert hall, and four more men were arrested over the weekend as police continued to close in on the group.

Asked during an interview on BBC television whether some of the group were still at large, Rudd said: "Potentially. It is an ongoing operation. There are 11 people in custody, the operation is still really at full tilt in a way."

Greater Manchester Police said on Sunday they had arrested a 25-year-old man and a 19-year-old man on suspicion of terrorism offences, taking the total number of people arrested in connection with the attack to 15.

Prime Minister Theresa May said developments in the investigation into the bombing meant that intelligence experts had decided to lower the threat level from its highest rating "critical", meaning an attack could be imminent, to "severe".

Police have issued a photograph of Abedi, a 22-year-old Briton born to Libyan parents, taken on Monday night before he blew himself up and said they believed he had assembled his bomb in an apartment in the city centre.

British officials have confirmed he had recently returned from Libya and the officers said that police needed information about his movements since his return to Britain on May 18.

Abedi was known to British security services before the bombing, the government has said, but Rudd declined to comment on exactly what had been known about him.

Media have reported that people who knew Abedi had raised concerns about him and his views as long ago as five years before he carried about Monday's attack.

"The intelligence services are still collecting information about him, but I wouldn't rush to conclusions, as you seem to be, that they have somehow missed something," Rudd said.

"TOP LIST" OF MILITANTS

When asked how many potential militants the government was worried about, Rudd said the security services were looking at 500 different potential plots, involving 3,000 people as a "top list", with a further 20,000 beneath that.

"That is all different layers, different tiers. It might be just a question mark about one of them or something serious with that top list," she said.

The government has previously complained that technology companies are not doing enough to tackle the use of their networks both to promote extremist ideology and for communication between militant suspects via encrypted messages.

Rudd said Britain was making good progress with internet companies on this but that more could be done. Technology companies such as WhatsApp say they cannot break end-to-end encryption.

"I believe we can get them to be more successful in working with us to find a way of getting some of that information," she said.

"The area that I am most concerned about is the internet companies who are continuing to publish the hate publications, the hate material that is contributing to radicalising people in this country."

Security minister Ben Wallace also told the BBC that the government was looking at a range of options to put more pressure on Internet companies to take down extremist material and change their algorithms to stop such posts from linking to similar material elsewhere online.
New Delhi: A CBI court on Monday granted bail to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh in connection with the Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case.

Both were granted bail on a personal bond of Rs one lakh each and one surety of the like amount.

Apart from Singh, the others accused in the case are Life Insurance Corporation agent Anand Chauhan, his associate Chunni Lal, Joginder Singh Ghalta, Prem Raj, Lawan Kumar Roach, Vakamullah Chandrashekhar and Ram Prakash Bhatia.

A probe had allegedly found that Singh had accumulated assets worth Rs. 6.03 crore in his name and in the name of his family members, which were disproportionate to his known sources of income, during his tenure as the Union Steel Minister from 2009 to 2011.

The CBI, in its chargesheet said that the Chief Minister was in possession of assets worth Rs 10,30,47,946.40 in his own name as well as in the names of his family members.
New Delhi: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Monday termed as "political vendetta" the disproportionate assets case against him and his wife.

Moments after the 82-year-old politician was granted bail by a special court, Singh told mediapersons that it was going to be a long battle.

"It's a political vendetta. It's a long battle and I will fight and win the case," the Chief Minister said.

The Congress leader and his wife Pratibha Singh were granted bail by a special court here in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case on a personal bond of Rs one lakh each and one surety of the like amount.

The court, however, asked them not to leave the country without its prior permission.
New Delhi: It's a very detailed interview of National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) Limited's Chairman and MD AK Mittal.

This week AK Mittal will be the guest in Zee Regional Channels' popular and special show 'A Dialogue with JC'.

NBCC Chairman and MD A K Mittal spoke to Jagdeesh Chandra, Executive Director, Zee Media in a special show A Dialogue with JC.

In his conversation with Jagdeesh Chandra, AK Mittal talked on a number of issues.



Mittal joined NBCC in the year 1985.

In the year 2013, when Mittal became CMD, the market capital of NBCC was Rs 1,270 crore but today under his leadership it has reached to Rs 12000 crore.

Commenting on the coordination among governments and various organisations, the NBCC CMD said it is not very challenging for them as a PSU to take permissions and NOCs.

Currently, NBCC is working on the redevelopment projects in Delhi.

NBCC has worked in New Moti Bagh and now the work is in progress in East Kidwai Nagar under self-finance scheme.

Government has also assigned Rs. 25000-crore projects to NBCC in Nauroji Nagar, Netaji Nagar and Sarojini Nagar in Delhi.

According to Mittal, NBCC is also developing an integrated township worth Rs. 12000 crore on DDA's Karkardooma land in Delhi.

Mittal also shared the Pragati Maidan redevelopment plan in detail and said NBCC was developing a 7000 capacity convention centre and a 5 star hotel in Pragati Maidan.

Also, Mittal said that in two years the Pragati Maidan area would be signal-free as 7 tunnels were also being built there.

NBCC is also working on a housing project in Gurugram, Alwar and Faridabad.

Mittal added that various ministries are working in close coordination to fulfil the dream of 'Housing for All'. He said PM has also agreed to some of the suggestions given by NBCC.

According to Mittal, government has nominated NBCC as a land management agency to identify surplus land with PSUs.

NBCC is active in 26 states and he named Manipur as a difficult area to work in.

Mittal said that he got threats in Naxal areas too. But he also said that NBCC got the full support from the local government agencies.

He also said that NBCC was trying to enter in Uttar Pradesh in coming days with various projects.

Answering a question on his contribution in NBCC, he said that he worked much on digitisation and quality control. When asked about the road map of next 3 years, he shared a dream of making a few buildings which were never made anywhere. He also praised the quick decisions that were being taken by Modi government.

The detailed interview can be watched on all regional channels of Zee Media on 3rd of June.

WATCH FULL INTERVIEW on Saturday at 9.30 PM on all the regional channels of Zee Media.
Kolkata: A day after Indian Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat called for innovation in fighting what he called a 'dirty war' in Jammu and Kashmir, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Monday questioned the former's capability to understand the Indian society.

CPI (M) Mohammed Salim said this is not the voice of the Indian Army which he had heard since his childhood, according to ANI.

Expressing concern over the Indian values, Salim said such actions can erode the age-old rich value system.

"This is not the voice of the Indian Army which I have been hearing since my childhood. This is not one voice which we as Indians can defend. There is no doubt about Indians being innovative, but if Indian Army Chief terms it as innovative, then I doubt his capacity and capability about his understanding of the Indian society and what is innovativeness," Salim said.

Salim, however, maintained that they, like all, are proud of the Indian security forces.

"Normally we don't have issues with the serving army officers and we are proud of our security forces who are risking their lives. Our civilisation, administration, society rests on certain values and high morals of the Indian Army and security forces are there because of this rich value system. So one stroke, and this is being eroded," he said.

Army Chief Rawat had on Sunday came to the rescue of Major Gogoi, and said such "innovative ways are required to counter the dirty war" underway in Kashmir.

Indicating his firm approach to counter the insurgency, Gen Rawat said Army would take steps, which would break the clutches of militancy in South Kashmir.

Rawat added that the situation prevalent in Kashmir makes it mandatory for the Army to resort to tough measures.

With ANI inputs
New Delhi: The Council for Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE) will declare the ISC Class 12th Result on Monday, 29th May 2017.

Check www.cisce.org to access ISC Results 2017, ISC 12th Results 2017, CISCE Board Results 2017, ISC Class 12th Board Results 2017, CISCE Results 2017, ISC XII Results 2017, ISC Class XII board result,

How to check CISCE Board 12th Class Result 2017:

- Log on to the official website

- Click on link 'Results 2017'

- Enter your Roll No and Date of Birth

- Click on 'Submit'

- Your result will be displayed on the screen.

The results will be made available on the career portal of the council and its website, as well as through SMS.

To receive the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) or Indian School Certificate (ISC) results by SMS, the candidate will need to type ICSE or ISC followed by their seven digit unique ID code and send the message to 09248082883.

The Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations will introduce a DigiLocker facility to store digitally signed certificates and marksheets.

In another first, the Council has also made a provision for candidates to apply for rechecking of marks.

"The Council will announce the results at 3 pm on May 29," a statement by CISEC Chief Executive and Secretary Gerry Arathoon said.

Zee Media wishes all the students best of luck.
New Delhi: Students who appeared for the CISCE Board ICSE class 10th examination 2017 can breathe a sigh of relief as the ICSE results 2017, CISCE Class 10th Result 2017 will be made available on Monday at 3 pm.

The Council for Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE) will release the ISC 12th Board results 2017, ISC class 12 Result 2017, ISC Class 12th Board Results 2017, CISCE Results 2017, ISC XII Results 2017, ISC Class XII board result on official website cisce.org.

For receiving ICSE Results 2017/CISCE Results 2017, ICSE Class X Results 2017 through SMS, the candidate needs to enter his/her Unique ID in the following way in the 'New Message' Box: ICSE 1234567 (Seven digit Unique ID)

- Send the message to 09248082883

The council came into existence in December 1967. It was registered as a Society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. In 1973, the Council was listed in the Delhi School Education Act 1973, as a body conducting "public" examinations.

The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education has been designed to provide an examination in a course of general education, in accordance with the recommendations of the New Education Policy 1986, through the medium of English. Private candidates are not permitted to appear for this examination.

The Council has been so constituted as to secure suitable representation of: Government of India, State Governments/Union Territories in which there are Schools affiliated to the Council, the Inter-State Board for Anglo-Indian Education, the Association of Indian Universities, the Association of Heads of Anglo-Indian Schools, the Indian Public Schools Conference, the Association of Schools for the ISC Examination and members co-opted by the Executive Committee of the Council.
Islamabad: Alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav, who has been sentenced to death by a military court, "can never be released or acquitted", a Pakistani lawyer said on Monday.

Khawar Qureshi, the lawyer who represented Pakistan at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Jadhav case, said ICJ would neither acquit the spy nor release him.

The Nation newspaper quoted him as saying: "Jadhav case is a very clear case. Jadhav can never be released or acquitted."

Qureshi also told the Pakistani media men to "behave responsibly and give Pakistani officials the respect they deserve".

Pakistani lawyers came under widespread criticism after the ICJ told Islamabad not to hang Jadhav, who has been sentenced to death on charges of spying and fuelling terrorism in Balochistan.
Raipur: Expressing anger over extending the monetary assistance to families of CRPF jawans killed in Naxal ambush in Sukma, Maoists have warned Bollywood star Akshay Kumar and ace badminton player Saina Nehwal.

The local units of banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) have distributed pamphlets in Bastar, Chattisgarh and asked celebrities and well-known personalities to stand by the oppressed tribals and raise a voice against the violation of their human rights, according to a report in TOI.

The Naxalite pamphlet reads that Akshay and Saina should not have stood by the side of jawans.

Noteworthy, Akshay Kumar had donated Rs 9 lakh each to the accounts of the dependents of the 12 jawans killed in Sukma ambush in March.

After Akshay Kumar, badminton star Saina also came forward to help martyrs' families.

She had donated Rs50,000 each to families of 12 jawans killed in the Naxal ambush in Sukma.

Moreover, Akshay Kumar also launched the Indian government portal 'Bharatkeveer.com'. It's a website where citizens can directly donate money to the families of martyrs.
New Delhi: With an aim to boost India's economic engagements and to invite more investments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday embarked on a four-nation beginning from Germany.

Here is a list of the Prime Minister's itinerary, starting with Germany.

Delhi: PM Narendra Modi departs for Berlin in Germany, on his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France pic.twitter.com/nYzhw8CU6s  ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

Germany

-On May 29, Prime Minister Modi will begin his visit from Meseberg near Berlin, where he would have discussions of regional and global importance with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

-On May 30, Prime Minister Modi and Merkel will hold the fourth India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) to review the state of both nations' bilateral relationship.

- Both the leaders will also be interacting with top business leaders of both the countries to further strengthen their trade and investment ties.

-Later, Prime Minister Modi will call on Germany President Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Spain

From May 30, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Spain. This would be the first visit of an Indian prime minister to Spain in almost three decades. Among the engagements include

-Here, Prime Minister Modi will be calling on Spain King Felipe VI during this visit.

-On May 31, the Prime Minister will meet President Mariano Rajoy to discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism.

-The Prime Minister will also meet top CEOs of the Spanish industry and encourage them to partner with India in the 'Make in India' Initiative.

Russia

From May 31 to June 2, Prime Minister will be visiting Russia for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit at St. Petersburg. Both countries would also celebrate the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.

-At the beginning of his visit, the Prime Minister will go to Piskarovskoye Cemetery to pay homage to those who perished during the siege of Leningrad.

-On June 1, Prime Minister Modi will hold detailed discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin to take forward the dialogue from the last summit in Goa in October 2016. With a spotlight on economic ties, both leaders will be interacting with CEOs from both countries.

-On June 2, the Prime Minister will be addressing the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) together with Putin.

France

From June 2 to 3, the Prime Minister will be in Paris where he will hold official talks with the 39-year-old French President Emmanuel Macron.

-Here, he will be discussing issues of mutual interest with a view to further strengthen India- France strategic ties.
Berlin: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived here on Monday on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, described terrorism as the "gravest challenge" facing humanity.

At the same time, he urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace.

In an interview to German newspaper 'Handelsblatt', he pointed out, "Europe has been hit hard by terrorism".

"To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace," PM Modi said, as per PTI.

His remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently.

The latest terror attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.

Meanwhile, on reaching Berlin PM Modi tweeted, "Reached Germany. I am sure this visit will lead to beneficial outcomes and deepen India-Germany friendship."

Reached Germany. I am sure this visit will lead to beneficial outcomes & deepen India-Germany friendship. pic.twitter.com/RdYLWUYeMn  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 29, 2017

He attended a private dinner hosted by German Chancellor Angela Merkel at Schloss Meseberg, some 65 km from Berlin, which is the country retreat of the German Chancellor and the official state guest house of the government.

The bonds of a fruitful partnership. Chancellor Merkel receives PM @narendramodi at Schloss Messeberg before a private dinner pic.twitter.com/s8xyjszEE2  Gopal Baglay (@MEAIndia) May 29, 2017

Earlier, ahead of his visit, he had said in a Facebook post, "I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership."

PM Modi is accompanied by Minister for Science and Technology Harsh Vardhan, Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Seetharaman and Minister of State for External Affairs MJ Akbar.

(With Agency inputs)
New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has found strong evidence against Kashmiri separatists Farooq Ahmad Dar, Javed Ahmad Baba and Nayeem Khan, who have been alleged to have received funds from Pakistan-based terrorist groups to create tensions in the valley.

Sources said, the separatist leaders were summoned on Monday in the national capital over the same.Earlier this month, the NIA had questioned them in the national capital for four consecutive days.

The NIA went to Srinagar to probe into the alleged funding by Pakistan for illegal activities in Kashmir.

The agency continued questioning the separatist leaders regarding their involvement in raising, collecting and transferring funds through Hawala and other channels for terror funding in Kashmir.

The agency has collected details of 13 accused who have been chargesheeted so far in the cases in the Valley in the recent past, pertaining to the damage caused to schools and public property as part of the larger conspiracy to perpetuate violence and chaos in Kashmir.

The development came after the Hurriyat Conference suspended Nayeem Khan from the organisation after he allegedly confessed to receiving money from Pakistan and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) for Kashmir unrest.

Khan was allegedly heard admitting in a TV sting operation that he had received money from Pakistan to create unrest in the Valley.

He, however, claimed that the sting operation was fake and doctored.

After the video surfaced, the NIA registered a preliminary probe against Khan, Tehreek-e- Hurriyat leader Gazi Javed Baba and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (R) chairman Farooq Ahmed Dar.
New Delhi: Three Kashmiri separatists today appeared before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) here for questioning in connection with a case related to the funding of terror and subversive activities in Jammu and Kashmir.

Agency sources said Farooq Ahmad Dar alias 'Bitta Karate', Nayeem Khan and Javed Ahmed Baba alias 'Gazi' of Tehreek-e-Hurriyat have arrived here for questioning by NIA sleuths.

Dar, Ahmed and Khan were asked to bring certain bank and property documents, besides other papers, before the NIA team that had questioned them here for four consecutive days earlier this month.

The questioning comes after the central probe agency, formed in the wake of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, named Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Taiba chief Hafeez Saeed, hardline Kashmiri separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani and Jammu and National Front Chairman Nayeem Khan in a Preliminary Enquiry (PE).

Khan has since been suspended from the Geelani-led Hurriyat Conference.

The case is based on a sting operation, aired on a news channel, in which Khan was purportedly shown confessing to receiving money from Pakistan-based terror groups through hawala channels.
Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday slammed the Modi-led government for enforcing the unconstitutional cattle slaughter directive and said that the move is anti-secular and anti-federal.

My government will fight this unilateral measure legally because it stands to destroy the country's federal structure, she said at a brief press meet here.

The chief minister said, the government cannot decide what we eat and I request the centre not to interfere.

She said all secular parties have backed her stance on the issue and ready to fight it legally. She said the directive is unconstitutional.

Mamata also cautioned the centre not to play with democracy and destroy federal structure.

The reaction comes a day after the Kerala government criticised the Centre's move and announced to challenge it with an alternate legislation.

The state government suggested that it could bring in a law to counter the central ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter.

Hitting out at the BJP-led government at the centre and the RSS, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said there was no need for the people of the state to draw lessons from New Delhi or Nagpur on their food habits.

Vijayan had earlier shot off a letter to the prime minister to protest the Centre's decision.

Opposition Congress-led UDF, meanwhile, decided to observe Monday as a 'black day' against the ban.

Amid the raging debate over the issue, police on Sunday registered a case against Youth Congress worker Rijil Makulti and his accomplices for slaughtering a calf in public in Kannur during 'Beef fest' organised across the state by the Congress and the Left to protest the Centre's ban.

Latching onto the issue, the NDA in Kerala decided to observe Tuesday as a day of protest against the incident.

Kerala BJP president Kummanam Rajasekharan posted the video of the gory Kannur incident on twitter, calling it "cruelty at it peak" and said no normal person can behave in this manner.

"A case has been registered under Sect 120 A of the Kerala Police Act on the basis of a complaint of Yuva Morcha activist", Kannur SP Siva Vikram, told PTI.
Washim: In a viral video circulating on the social media, cow vigilantes can be seen shouting slogans and assaulting two youth for allegedly possessing beef in Malegaon tehsil of Maharashtra`s Washim.

The cow vigilantes or `Gau Rakshaks`, in the video can be seen beating up the young men and accusing the duo of being in possession of cow meat.

The vigilantes can also be heard asking the two men to accompany them to Malegaon Police Station.Nine people have been arrested in connection with the incident, the police officials informed.

Seven of them who attacked the two men were booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).The two youth, too, have been booked under Section 295a of the IPC.

Superintendent of Police of Washim said the situation was under control as immediate action had been taken.The samples of the seized meat from the spot had been dispatched to a state laboratory in Nagpur for verification.Malegaon is investigating the matter.
Mumbai: Shares of mobile carrier Reliance Communications Ltd fell as much as 20 percent to an all-time low on Monday, after it reported a USD 150 million fourth-quarter loss and worries about its heavy debt load resurfaced.

The company, controlled by billionaire Anil Ambani, over the weekend posted its second straight quarterly loss, dragged down by a price war in what is the world`s second-biggest mobile market by number of users.

The Economic Times newspaper on Monday reported that the company had delayed repayment of loans to more than 10 banks.

Reliance Communications declined to comment on the Economic Times report.

In its quarterly results statement, however, Reliance Communications said that "pending formal confirmation by the lenders for waiver of certain loan covenants", some loan amounts would continue to be classified as non-current liabilities.

The company plans to repay Rs 250 billion (USD 3.9 billion) worth of loans to its lenders with proceeds from its deals with Aircel and Canada`s Brookfield Infrastructure, the newspaper cited a company spokesperson as saying.

Reliance Communications is merging its wireless business with rival Aircel, and is also selling a 51 percent stake in its radio masts business to Canada`s Brookfield Infrastructure Group for Rs 100 billion.

Following a sell-off last week due to debt concerns, shares in Reliance Communications plunged further on Monday, falling to their maximum daily limit and hitting a record low of Rs 20.60. They were down 13 percent at Rs 22.40 at 0440 GMT.

A sell-off in its 2020 bonds also resumed on Monday with yields spiking to 17.2 percent after ending at 12.3 percent last week.
New Delhi: Every Sunday actor Amitabh Bachchan waves over to his fans and well-wishers for all their love and support from his residence in Juhu in Mumbai.

The doting grandfather of little baby Aaradhya shared pictures of him addressing his fans with her.

Abhishek and Aishwarya's bundle of joy later told Big B that she was a little afraid.

The 74-year-old actor took to Twitter to share the pictures and captioned it saying the Sunday well wishers .. and an introduction to the little one .. she confessed later: 'I was a little afraid'!!"

Check out his post:

T 2439 - .. the Sunday well wishers .. and an introduction to the little one .. she confessed later : 'I was a little afraid'!! .. pic.twitter.com/85era6zQZL  Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) May 29, 2017

Aaradhya joining Big B for his Sunday waves is surely making our hearts melt.
New Delhi: Irrfan Khan recently graced the social media site- Instagram and his throwback pictures are just a proof of how he was always meant to be in the movie business.

The 'Hindi Medium' actor posted pictures from his childhood and addressed to the fact that he had a major filmy influence growing up.

In the first post he is seen re-creating the poster of the famous movie 'Sholay'.

In the second picture, Irrfan is seen horse riding, with a caption- Somebody told me that to be an actor you must know horse riding  so whenever I went to ride (or learn to ride - which I didn't at that time), I made it a point that when I sat on the horse  my look would be inspired by Rajesh Khannaji . ;) Hero toh banna hi tha!

Now we know who was the source of inspiration for Irrfan to be an actor- none other than the legendary Rajesh Khanna.

Check out these pictures shared by Irrfan on his Insta account which prove that he has always been filmy at heart:

Irrfan Khan has given many splendid performances over the years and now he is finally on Instagram to give us an insight of his childhood too.
Mumbai: Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone have never admitted to being in a relationship but they have often been spotted together walking hand-in-hand at various events. The couple has remained tight-lipped about their personal equation but their PDA paints an obvious picture.

Fans of this jodi, who address them collectively as DeepVeer will be happy to know that the couple is setting major relationship goals. According to a report in MissMalini.com, Deepika may have shifted to Ranveers apartment in the outskirts of the city to travel easily to the sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansalis Padmavati.

If this speculation turns out to be true, then the duo will get ample time to spend with each other. They will also save time travelling to the sets and ensure they devote quality time to one another.

Ranveer essays the role of Alauddin Khilji in SLBs hugely debated Padmavati while Deepika plays the titular role. Shahid Kapoor, who has joined forces with Bhansali for the first time will portray the character of Rawal Ratan Singh, the King of Chittor.
Mumbai: While Brahma and Vishnu had found their consorts in Saraswati and Lakshmi respectively, Lord Shiva remained a bachelor for years. He was engrossed in his deep meditation and cared the least about his singlehood. Lord Brahma was concerned because it was important to bring Lord Shiva into the marital or Grihasta fold. Hence, after expressing his concern to Vishnu, Brahma decided to get his grand-daughter Sati married to Shiva. Thus Sati was born to Brahmas son Daksha.

Since childhood, Sati was fond of Shiva. Since she was born to a king, she had a number of impressive alliances coming her way but she rejected all of them because she wanted to marry Shiva.

She did penance for many years. Despite being raised in a royal family, Sati chose to observe rigorous penance by giving up on food and water. Her sincere devotion and love won Shivas heart and he appeared before her to accept her proposal.

Thus, Sati was able to bring Shiva from the Bairagya to Grihasta fold.
New Delhi: As the world was still recovering from the "WannaCrypt" ransomware attack, a malware called "Judy" hit over 36.5 million Android-based phones, making its way through Google Play Store.



According to cyber security firm Check Point, dozens of malicious apps have been downloaded between 4.5 million to 18.5 million times. Some of the malware-affected apps have been discovered residing on Google Play for several years.



"Judy" is one such case of how an open and free mobile operating system (OS) can be exploited by malicious app developers.



"The entire ecosystem of free mobile OS is built around generating advertising revenues, and the operating systems grants apps with certain privileges to display these ads," Amit Jaju, Executive Director, Fraud Investigation and Dispute Services, EY India, said in a statement.



According to Jaju, they noticed certain Indian apps with a potentially malicious code when displaying ads.



"Therefore, users should review all installed apps to have proper security settings and tools in place. One should avoid installing free apps and those from unknown sources," he suggested.



After the malware-affected apps were discovered by Check Point, Google removed them from the Play Store.



The malicious apps primarily included a series of casual cooking and fashion games under the "Judy" brand, a name borrowed for the malware itself.



"Judy" is an auto-clicking adware which was found on 41 apps developed by a Korean company that uses infected devices to generate large amounts of fraudulent clicks on advertisements, generating revenues for the perpetrators behind it.



The nefarious nature of the programmes went unnoticed in large part because its malware payload was downloaded from a non-Google server after the programmes were installed.



The code would then use the infected phone to click on Google ads, generating fraudulent revenue for the attacker.



It is unclear how long the malicious code existed inside the apps, hence the actual spread of the malware remains unknown.



Previously, Android-based devices were hit by similar malwares like "FalseGuide" and "Skinner" that also infiltrated through Google Play.
Rampur: In yet another incident suggesting the growing lawlessness in the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh, at least 14 men allegedly tried to molest two women in the Rampur district.

The incident occurred on 22 May.

According to ANI, the accused also made a video of the incident and posted it on the social media, which later became viral.

The video shows a group of men trying to grope two women on a deserted road.

In the video, one of the accused can be seen pulling the dupatta of one of the women and picking her up. The men are also seen molesting the woman as her companion pleads with them to let them go.

Besides manhandling and molesting the girls, the boys were laughing and making jokes the whole time, while the distraught girls kept on begging to be spared.

Taking prompt action, the Uttar Pradesh Police, however, arrested four prime accused in the Rampur molestation case, while a massive manhunt is underway to nab the remaining absconding perpetrators.

While three men were arrested by yesterday night, the fourth was nabbed today.

"All the four prime accused have been arrested. Till yesterday night, the police had arrested three. The search is on. Our four teams are out in search of the others accused," Rampur Superintendent of Police (SP) Vipin Tanda told ANI.

According to police, all accused have been identified and an FIR against them have also been registered.

Shah Nawaz, the man arrested by UP police, was among the 14 who molested two girls on a city road, filmed the incident and then posted it on social media sites.

While no complaint has been filed by the victims, UP Police has taken suo moto cognisance of the matter and lodged the FIR against Named, Farman, Jahan-e-Alam, Saddam and others, all residents of Kuva Kheda village of Rampur, according to a Home Department official.

The Rampur police, after noticing two women being harassed by a dozen men in a video uploaded on social media, had lodged the complaint, Rampur SSP Vipin Tanda told IANS.

Meanwhile, former urban development minister Azam Khan, who is also the local legislator, drew outrage after he suggested that to avoid such crimes against them, women should sit at home and remain protected.

Watch the horrific video here.
Muzaffarnagar: The police have arrested two men who, along with five others, allegedly raped two minor sisters at Nawla Village in the Mansurpur area here.

Superintendent of Police Rakesh Kumar Singh identified the two as Sachin and Rajan.

The accused told the police they were in a relationship with the sisters, Singh said.

The men were in a group of seven who had allegedly raped the minors at gunpoint on May 22.

The others mentioned in the complaint filed by the sisters are still to be arrested.

The police, Singh said, had registered a case and started investigations.
Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday evening sought an explanation from a woman minister in his government after her pictures inaugurating a beer bar in the state capital went viral in the social media.



Pictures show Minister of State for Women Welfare Swati Singh - accompanied by two senior IPS officers Gaurav Pandey (SSP, Rae Bareli) and his wife Neha Pandey (SP, Unnao) -- inaugurating the beer bar by the name of `Be the Beer` in Gomtinagar on Saturday.



The political circles were taken by surprise, as that there has been no such precedence and that the bar she inaugurated does not even have a valid licence so far.



Swati Singh is a new entrant to politics and came into the limelight last year after she launched a blistering campaign against BSP chief Mayawati, who in retaliation to her husband Daya Shankar Singh`s objectionable remarks made similar comments about Swati and her daughter.



She won from the Sarojini Nagar assembly constituency in Lucknow and went on to become a minister.



Explanation has also been sought from the IPS couple as to how they left headquarters without the permission of their reporting authorities. Both officers were marked present on duty when they were attending the bar inauguration.



Inspector General of Police - Lucknow J.N. Singh has sought explanation from the two police officers.



While BJP spokespersons refused to comment on the matter, some even saying they were not aware of it, opposition parties have blasted the minister for her conduct.



Ajay Kumar Lallu, the Leader of the Congress Legislature Party in the state assembly, said the incident had further exposed the "double character of the BJP leaders".
Kolkata: West Bengal Speaker Biman Banerjee today urged Trinamool Congress members to not only praise the government, but also question it during an Assembly session for effective functioning of the government.

In his thanksgiving speech at the concluding day of the session, Banerjee said that he was particularly happy at the Trinamool members questioning ministers and making them uncomfortable.

Banerjee said that this was required for the effective functioning of government and added that their job is not just praising the government.

As the Opposition Left Front and the Congress MLAs boycotted the House since morning today, Banerjee said it was their duty to stay present in the Assembly as they have been sent as people's representatives.

Banerjee said that the Opposition has a role to play in preserving the democratic character of the Assembly and staying outside the House was not desired, so they should return.

He also said that the number of questions raised by the Opposition should increase.
Siliguri: Defying Centre's ban on using the red beacon, a senior West Bengal minister has refused to remove the red light atop his vehicle, saying there is no such ban imposed by the Mamata Banerjee government in the state.

"Our government has not yet banned red beacon. So we are not bound to follow the other instructions," Arup Biswas, PWD Minister in the WB government, said.

The Centre has allowed emergency vehicles on duty for maintaining law and order, including those of the police, defence and paramilitary forces, to use multi-colou red beacon lights having red, blue and white colours.

Seeking to end the VIP culture, the Union Cabinet last month had decided that beacon lights will be removed from all vehicles from May 1, except emergency vehicles, like ambulances and fire brigade.

The notification issued in pursuance of powers conferred on the Central Government under sub-rule 4 of rule 108 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 said that the multi-coloured light shall not be put to use when the vehicle is not on the designated duty.

The notification mentioned that every year, the transport department of the state or union territory administration, as the case may be, shall issue a public notice bringing to the notice of the general public the list of authorities to whom the permission to use the vehicles specified.

The ban applies to union ministers, chief ministers, state cabinet ministers, bureaucrats and judges of the High Court and Supreme Court while President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and the Lok Sabha Speaker are exempted from the ban.
Kolkata: After he was caught on camera using a red beacon on his vehicle on Monday, West Bengal Minister Arup Biswas justified it the state government had not banned it yet.



"Unless and until the state government bans it, how can we do it (stop using red beacon)," Biswas told the media in Siliguri.



In April, the Centre announced a ban on red beacons atop official vehicles of VVIPs, effective from May 1. Ambulances, fire services, police and Army can still use blue flashing beacons.
Beijing: China's anti-drug authorities will offer their full support to operations carried out by their Filipino counterparts, following a joint operation in which 604 kilogrammes (1,331 pounds) of methamphetamine were seized, officials said on Monday.



The spokesperson of the National Narcotics Control Commission of China (NNCC) described the operation as a major victory in cooperation between the two countries, which are determined to combat drug-related crimes following the signing of a bilateral agreement in October, Efe news reported.



The raids ended with the arrest of 13 members of a network of cross-border traffickers.



Twelve suspects were arrested in Xiamen city on May 12, and one in the Philippine city of Valenzuela along with the seized drugs on May 26, after Chinese authorities told their Philippine counterparts about their findings.



The war on drugs, spearheaded by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, started in June 2016 and has resulted in more than 7,000 deaths so far, according to Human Rights Watch.



Duterte has repeatedly pledged to rid the Philippines of drug traffickers and addicts on the grounds that drugs, and especially methamphetamine locally known as "shabu", are destroying the country's younger generations.
Jerusalem: Israeli Interior Minister Aryeh Deri and his wife were being questioned by fraud squad detectives today as part of a major corruption investigation, Israeli media reported.

Police confirmed an investigation was ongoing involving a "public official and his wife," but did not provide further details.

Public radio tweeted that Deri, who was freed in 2002 after 22 months in prison for bribery and fraud, entered the offices of the police serious crimes and fraud unit with his wife Yaffa on Monday morning.

Privately owned Channel 2 television said the couple were being interviewed in separate rooms.

Haaretz newspaper said police were questioning another 14 suspects, including the director general of a government ministry.

In Israel, the interior ministry is not responsible for law enforcement, which is under the control of a separate public security ministry.

Haaretz said the Deris were "expected to be asked, among other things, to explain how he financed real estate he bought in recent years, such as his house in Safsufa," a village in northern Israel.

A police statement confirmed the investigation, without identifying the suspects.

"This morning police detained 14 suspects from all over the country as part of an investigation conducted by the national unit for investigations and in cooperation with the Tax Authority," it said.

"This investigation began in April 2016 based on suspicions of tax offences mainly in the field of assets and was expanded to additional suspicions that expanded to other suspects, including a public official and his wife."

Contacted by AFP, a police spokesman declined to elaborate.

Deri founded the ultra-Orthodox Jewish Shas party, which is part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing coalition government.
Versailles (France): French President Emmanuel Macron hosts Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Monday in their first meeting since he came to office with differences on Ukraine and Syria in full view.

After playing handshake power games with US President Donald Trump at his first international summit last week, 39- year-old Macron hosts the Russian leader in the splendour of Versailles outside Paris.

It is Macron's latest test of his diplomatic mettle after the G7 talks in Sicily last week and the NATO summit in Brussels where he turned the tables on Trump by refusing to release his hand for several seconds during the handshake for the cameras.

"It is essential to talk to Russia because there are many international issues that will not be resolved without a tough exchange with the Russians," Macron said in Sicily.

Russia's powerful ambassador to France, Alexander Orlov, said he hoped the meeting could help turn the page on the fraught relationship between Putin and Macron's predecessor Francois Hollande.

"Many things in the future will depend on the first meeting," Orlov told Europe 1 radio.

"It is very important that we begin to dissipate the mistrust that has built up in recent years."

As a candidate, Macron had tough words for Russia, accusing it of following a "hybrid strategy combining military intimidation and an information war".

Since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2014, Russia has flexed its muscles with a series of war games involving tens of thousands of troops in areas bordering NATO Baltic states.

Macron told a French weekly that he was "not bothered" by leaders who "think in terms of power ratios", citing Putin as an example along with Trump.

But Macron, who became France's youngest president just three weeks ago, said he does not believe in "the diplomacy of public invective but in bilateral dialogue".

Macron said he would make "not a single concession" to Russia on the long-running conflict in Ukraine as he and his G7 counterparts said they were prepared to strengthen sanctions against Moscow.

Government forces have been battling Moscow-backed insurgents in eastern Ukraine for over three years.

Western powers charge Russia with failing to honour its commitments under the Minsk accords framework for ending the hostilities.

France helped spearhead the sanctions, which have seriously dented EU-Russia trade, with a retaliatory Russian embargo on European agricultural products hurting French farmers.

The six-year-long Syrian conflict will also be high on the agenda, with Macron saying he was in favour of "building an inclusive political solution in a much more collective way".

He regretted that none of the G7 states is party to Syria peace talks under way in the Kazakh capital Astana initiated by Russia, Iran and Turkey.

Separate UN-backed negotiations have become bogged down in Geneva.

Russia is a strong supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad whereas, as Putin adviser Yuri Ushakov said before the visit, France "is among the countries with a very severe stance towards (Assad's) regime".

Coming so soon after an election in which the Kremlin was widely seen as backing Macron's far-right rival Marine Le Pen -- with Putin hosting her during a surprise visit to Moscow -- the encounter in Versailles will have an added personal edge.

Moscow has also been blamed for a raft of cyberattacks on Macron's election campaign, with aides accusing the Kremlin of mounting a "smear campaign" against him.

Putin was quick to congratulate Macron on his election, urging him to "overcome mutual distrust" and "join forces to ensure international stability and security".

The visit comes seven months after Putin cancelled a trip to Paris for the opening of a Russian cathedral complex near the Eiffel Tower in a spat over Syria with Hollande, who had said Russia's bombing of Aleppo could amount to war crimes.

In Versailles, Macron and Putin will inaugurate an exhibition marking 300 years of Franco-Russian ties since the visit of Russia's modernising tsar Peter the Great to France in 1717.

After the talks and a joint news conference, Putin will visit the Paris Orthodox cathedral complex on his own.
Versaillies (France): France's President Emmanuel Macron and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin today vowed to improve the strained relations between their countries, while admitting to disagreements during talks at Versailles palace described by Macron as "extremely frank".

Their first meeting since Macron took office provided another test of the Frenchman's diplomatic skills after his memorable first encounter last week with US President Donald Trump that Macron sealed with a vice-like handshake.



This time the handshake was warmer but the tone guarded after an hour of talks on the 300th anniversary of a visit to Versailles by tsar Peter the Great.

Putin admitted to some differences of opinion in the talks which covered issues including the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine, but insisted that Franco-Russian ties withstood "all points of friction".



"We disagree on a number of things but at least we discussed them," Macron said.



"Our absolute priority is the fight against terrorism and the eradication of terrorist groups and Daesh in particular," he said, using an alternate name for the Islamic State group that has claimed several deadly attacks in France.



The newly elected French leader called for a stronger partnership with Russia on Syria, one of the sticking points in relations between the West and Moscow which backs the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.



Macron advocated "a democratic transition that preserves the Syrian state", warning that "failed states" in the Middle East were a threat to the West.

But in an apparent warning to Assad and Russia, he said the use of chemical weapons in Syria would be a "red line" for his presidency and would draw an "immediate response" from France.



The pair discussed the Western sanctions imposed on Russia over its military involvement in Ukraine as well as allegations of Russian meddling in France's election campaign.



Putin declared that the sanctions were "in no way" helping to end the fighting between government forces and Kremlin-backed rebels in Ukraine's east.



The Russian strongman, who hosted Macron's far-right rival Marine Le Pen for talks during the election race, also shrugged off allegations that Russian hackers infiltrated Macron's campaign.



"Maybe they were Russian hackers, maybe they were not," he said, dismissing the claims as unsubstantiated.



Macron, for his part, expressed anger at reports by pro- Kremlin media during the election questioning his sexuality and links to high finance.

He took aim at the Russia Today broadcaster and Sputnik agency, calling them "organs of influence and propaganda".
Seoul: North Korea test-fired a missile Monday into Japan`s maritime economic zone -- the latest in a series of provocative launches that have ratcheted up tensions over its nuclear weapons ambitions.

It was the North`s third ballistic missile test in as many weeks and the 12th this year -- carried out in defiance of UN sanctions warnings and US threats of possible military action.

US military monitors said the short-range missile flew for six minutes, while Japan said it fell into the country`s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) -- waters extending 200 nautical miles from its coast.

The launch comes in fresh defiance of tough talk from US President Donald Trump, who promised last week at the G7 summit that the "big problem" of North Korea "will be solved".

Japan`s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe swiftly condemned the test and vowed concerted action along with its US ally.

"We will never tolerate North Korea`s continued provocations that ignore repeated warnings by the international community," Abe told reporters.

"As agreed during the G7 summit, the North Korean problem is the international community`s top priority. In order to deter North Korea, we will take concrete action with the United States."

The North has been stepping up efforts towards its ultimate goal -- developing an intercontinental ballistic missile that can deliver a nuclear warhead to the continental US.

The isolated but nuclear-armed North has test-fired a missile almost every week for the past three weeks.

The latest, a short-range Scud, flew about 450 kilometres (280 miles) before landing in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) between the Korean peninsula and Japan, the US Pacific Command said.

Monday`s test also marked the second time this year that a North Korean missile fell provocatively close to its neighbour Japan.Despite Trump`s strident warnings, Secretary of Defense James Mattis said in an interview that aired Sunday before the launch that a war with North Korea would be "catastrophic."

"The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea," he told CBS News.

"This regime is a threat to the region, to Japan, to South Korea. And in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well.

"But the bottom line is, it would be a catastrophic war if this turns into a combat, if we`re not able to resolve this situation through diplomatic means."

Mattis declined to say what kind of action from Pyongyang would constitute a "red line" for Washington, saying the administration needs "political manoeuvre room."South Korea`s new president, Moon Jae-In, ordered a meeting of the national security council to assess the launch, which came a day after North Korea said its leader Kim Jong-Un had overseen a test of a new anti-aircraft weapons system.

The South condemned the test as a "grave threat" and a challenge to the new leader who advocates dialogue with the North in a break from his conservative predecessors.

"That the North repeated such provocations after the inauguration of our new leadership... is a direct challenge to our demand for peace and denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula," the foreign ministry said.

The missile launches, and Pyongyang`s threat to stage its sixth nuclear test, have prompted calls for tougher UN sanctions and a warning from Trump that military intervention was an option under consideration.

Following North Korea`s test-firing of what analysts said was its longest-range rocket yet earlier this month, the UN Security Council vowed to push all countries to tighten sanctions against Pyongyang.

But China, the North`s main trade partner and ally, has made it clear that the push for diplomatic talks -- and not imposing more sanctions -- is the priority.

The US has said it is willing to enter into talks with North Korea -- but only if it halts its missile and nuclear tests.
Washington: The US intelligence community has informed Congress that Pakistan does not want heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan and will likely turn to China to offset New Delhi`s sway in Kabul, the media reported on Monday.



During a recent hearing on Afghanistan at the Senate Armed Services Committee, US intelligence chiefs assessed the situation in the war-torn country, and discussed Pakistan`s interests in Kabul, Dawn reported.



The Trump administration is finalising a new policy for Afghanistan and the ongoing consultations in the White House have generated much interest in the US media and think tanks.



Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger recently suggested resuming air strikes on terrorist targets in Pakistan.



Observers in Washington said the Trump administration might do so if terrorists targeted US military personnel and installations in Afghanistan.



"Pakistan is concerned about international isolation and sees its position through the prism of India`s rising status, including New Delhi`s expanded foreign outreach and deepening ties to the US," said National Intelligence Director Dan Coats, who leads a team of more than a dozen spy agencies, including the CIA and FBI.



"Pakistan will likely turn to China to offset its isolation, empowering a relationship that will help Beijing to project influence in the Indian Ocean," the Dawn quoted Coats as saying.



Coats said Islamabad had failed to curb terrorists in Pakistan and because of this failure, "these groups will present a sustained threat to the US interests in the region and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan".



"Pakistan desires for Afghanistan some of the same things we want: a safe, secure, stable Afghanistan. One addition -- there no has heavy Indian influence in Afghanistan," said Defence Intelligence Director Lt General Vincent Stewart.



"They view all of the challenges through the lens of an Indian threat to Pakistan. So they hold in reserve terrorist organisations... so that -- if Afghanistan leans towards India, they will no longer be supportive of an idea of a stable and secure Afghanistan that could undermine Pakistan`s interests," the General said.



Coats told the Senate committee that despite increased military efforts, the Taliban continues to make gains in Afghanistan.



Senator Joni Kay Ernst, an Illinois Republican, asked the intelligence chiefs to spell out the measures that the US would like Afghanistan`s neighbours to take to help stabilise the region.



"I think certainly an evaluation of how we work with Pakistan to address the situation of the harbouring of terrorist groups would be essential to a strategy that affects Afghanistan," Coats replied.



"Because that is potentially a very disrupting situation, putting our own troops at risk and undermining the strategy of dealing with the Taliban and local groups that are trying to undermine the (Afghan) government," Coats said.



"Besides more troops, do we need to implement a different strategy on the ground in Afghanistan," Senator Ernst asked General Stewart.



"We`ve got to convince Pakistan if they`re harbouring any of the Haqqani network members that it is not in their interest to continue to host Haqqani network," Stewart said.



The General urged the Trump administration to work with Afghanistan`s neighbours to go after the 20 terrorist organisations that were still active in the region. "They undermine not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but all of the region."



Stewart also suggested "pushing" Pakistan to do more against the Haqqani network and urged US policymakers to "separate the Taliban from the Pashtun", because Pakistan wanted a Pashtun-dominated Afghanistan.



"So we`ve got to get the conversation going again with Pakistan about their role in not harbouring any of these terrorists, helping to stabilise Afghanistan," he said.



Stewart said he believed Pakistan still had some influence in bringing Taliban to the table. "So we`ve got to get them to think about reconciliation, that the status quo is not in their best interest."
YEREVAN, MAY 28, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan on May 28 hosted the representatives of Club de Madrid (CdM) and the Aurora Prize Selection Committee which included CdM members Benjamin Mkapa, former President of Tanzania, and Festus Mogae, former President of Botswana, as well as Ernesto Zedillo, former President of Mexico, who is a member of the Aurora Prize Selection Committee, press service of the Presidents Office told Armenpress.

They arrived in Armenia to participate in the Aurora Prize awarding ceremony which will be held on May 28 in Yerevan.

The President welcomed the guests in Armenia, stating that their participation in the Aurora Prize awarding ceremony speaks about the fact that the Aurora Humanitarian Initiatives international reputation increases year by year, and that its ideology is truly based on universal values.

Stating that progressive humanity makes significant efforts to establish peace, stability, solidarity in the world, Serzh Sargsyan at the same time said with pain that today people regularly witness mass killings and massacres, xenophobic propaganda, religious, national, language discrimination, targeted destruction of cultural heritage. This hints us that it is necessary to give new impetus to the fight against such crimes and definitely encourage those people who fight against similar crimes. We thank you personally that you with your activity contribute to this universal fight, the President said, adding that both the meeting participants and all nominees of the Aurora Prize deserve greatest respect and admiration since their stories, as unique examples of courage and sacrifice, are all very exciting and at the same time are encouraging and inspiring.

During the meeting the sides exchanged views on Armenias foreign and domestic policy priorities, the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement process, a number of contemporary international affairs, Armenias current level of cooperation with other states and international organizations and the prospect of relations.

The guests also shared the experience of reforms carried out in different sectors of their countries.

President Sargsyan answered to questions of meeting participants.






YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. North Korea has launched a short-range ballistic missile which flew around 450 kilometers before landing in the Sea of Japan, some 300 km off the Japanese islands, RT reports.

Tokyo and Seoul strongly condemned Pyongyangs move, the latest in a series of recent missile tests.

South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said Pyongyang launched at least one projectile in the eastern direction from Wonsan, Gangwon Province at dawn.

It is estimated to be a Scud type [missile], the JCS said, adding, that the projectile flew about 450 kilometers. The president was immediately notified of the situation, and the president ordered the NSC Standing Committee at 7:30 am.

Pyongyang announced earlier this month that it had successfully tested the Pukguksong-2 intermediate range ballistic missile after a projectile was detected landing in international waters off Japans east coast. The allegedly nuclear-capable missile was launched just a week after North Korea launched its Hwasong-12 rocket.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Ara Babloyan  Speaker of the Armenian parliament, held a meeting with H.E. Petr Mikyska  Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Armenia on May 29.

Upon welcoming the Ambassador in the Parliament, Mr. Babloyan attached significance to the role of inter-parliamentary relations, namely parliamentarian friendship groups, in the development of bilateral relations.

Mr. Babloyan thanked Czech Republics Chamber of Deputies (lower house) for passing the resolution on condemning and recognizing the Armenian Genocide and other crimes against humanity, finding it to be yet another victory of justice in the world.

In this context the Speaker said : I am proud that by surviving the Genocide, not having statehood for many years, my people were able to create a stable and democratic state, which today is helping others to overcome similar issues which they face.

Mr. Babloyan mentioned that Armenia and Azerbaijan are proceeding by different paths: Armenia has chosen the path of democracy, while Azerbaijan, on the opposite, is gradually weakening democracy.

On the occasion of being elected as Speaker of Parliament, the Czech Ambassador handed over the congratulation letters of Milan Stech  president of Czech Republics Senate, and Jan Hamacek  Speaker of the lower house  the Chamber of Deputies to Ara Babloyan.

The Ambassador also talked about the development of Armenian-Czech relations and inter-parliamentary ties and reaffirmed Jan Hamaceks invitation to the Armenian Speaker of Parliament to visit the Czech Republic.

His Excellency Petr Mikyska attached importance to the role of mutual visits, students and doctors exchange programs for the development of cooperation between the two countries.

At the end of the meeting, the sides also discussed the constitutional changes of Armenia, the advantages of a parliamentary administration system, and the activities of the opposition in the new Parliament.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Armenias Minister of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies Vahan Martirosyan on May 29 held a meeting with Alexander Misharin, First Vice-President of Russian Railways JSC, and Sergey Valko, Chief Executive Officer of South Caucasus Railway CJSC, press service of the Ministry told Armenpress.

Welcoming the guests, the Minister stated that Armenias government is ready to listen to the companys all proposals and show assistance to any issue.

Alexander Misharin said he appreciates the firm partnership between the Ministry and South Caucasus Railway CJSC.

As for the transportation of passengers, Minister Martirosyan specifically highlighted the importance of increasing the service quality, stating that the talk is both updating the wagons, increasing the transportation speed, investing new technologies.

Alexander Misharin said during the development of new strategy for the work of the company they plan to attach major attention to the transportation of passengers.

He presented to the Minister the companys works of the previous year and the investment programs, as well as summarized the programs of first quarter of this year.

Misharin stated that currently there is a great trend of growth of cargo transportations via railway, and he believes that in this sense Armenia has great potential as a transit country.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Kvirikashvili says Georgia has all practical tools to prepare for NATO membership, RIA Novosti reported.

Georgia for the first time hosts the spring sitting of NATO Parliamentary Assembly which is being held from May 26 to 29.

This is the fifth case in NATOs history when the Assembly holds its session in non-member state of the alliance.

We have hosted the spring session of NATO PA. Georgia has all practical tools to prepare for NATO membership, Kvirikashvili said on Twitter.

On May 29 the NATO Parliamentary Assembly adopted a decleration on assisting Georgias Euro-Atlantic integration. The declaration says NATO PA urges the Georgian parliament and government to strengthen the independent judicial system, maintain freedom of speech in media, deepen dialogue and ease the tension with opposition parties.

It is stated in the document that NATO PA welcomes Georgias desire to become member of NATO and EU, as well as acknowledges the progress of Georgian side in terms of carrying out reforms.








YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Officials of military unit located in the northern direction of the Artsakh Defense Army were held accountable after 3 soldiers drowned in a reservoir adjacent to the military unit, Movses Hakobyan, Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces, told reporters, reports Armenpress.

The commander and two deputies of the military unit were dismissed from their posts. Some servicemen have been subjected to disciplinary punishment, he said.

A tragic incident took place in the Republic of Artsakh on May 8: UAZ-315195 vehicle fell into a reservoir near Mataghis military unit as a result of which the driver and 2 passengers drowned.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. The situation in the Artsakh-Azerbaijan line of contact continues to remain stable despite certain tension, Movses Hakobyan, Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces, told reporters, reports Armenpress.

Although there is certain tension, but this is not concerning for us. Today the Armed Forces fully control the situation in the frontline, he said.

Movses Hakobyan also informed that Artsakhs border area is fully equipped with cameras. The direction of Artsakh completely, and the Armenian-Azerbaijani border partially are provided with cameras.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Karen Karapetyan received First Vice-President of Russian Railways OJSC Alexander Misharin and South Caucasus Railway CJSC Director General Sergey Valko, Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Government of Armenia.

The interlocutors touched upon the activities of the South Caucasus Railway, the results of 2016 and the upcoming projects. Alexander Misharin noted that all the obligations, including those of investment projects, assumed in the sidelines of the trust management contract have been implemented. 4% rise in passenger and 3% rise in freight transportations have been recorded. It was also mentioned that the new development program of the South Caucasus Railway is currently being developed.

Prime Minister Karapetyan noted that Armenia is interested in the development of the South Caucasus Railway, adding that improvement of infrastructures will promote both freight and passenger transpirations, considering also the continuous increase of tourists.
The Democrat leadership has made constant, profound and incredible pronouncements that one's supportive vote for Republicans is tantamount to surrendering Democracy forever. Understanding their sincere thinking in their extreme position: How will you still vote on this election day?

Democrat; because the continuance of this Democracy from the existential threat of extreme Republicans is paramount.

Republican; the process of having a choice is the democratic method within what so called "Democracy" does exists.
"Ambush at Hoc Mon - In 1968, 92 American soldiers of C Company, 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 25th Division began a search-and-destroy mission near Saigon. They were looking for a Viet Cong force that had been firing rockets into their Tan Son Nhut Air Base. As they rushed along a road without flank security to catch up with their battalion, they ran into an ambush. Within eight minutes, 49 American soldiers were dead or dying, and 29 were wounded". Lost Battles of the Vietnam War

"Please wait while I get something. I have something for your friend".

"Give this to your friend".

" He offered his amends with outstretched hands to a family he had never met. This aging veteran of a war he didn't choose, a war he abhorred, a war that killed his loved ones, reached out his arms to the family of his enemy, reached with a gift, the only gift that could matter, a gift that survived time and distance, the offering of his battle flag, the symbol of his county, his honor, his duty. A peace offering, an absolution."

A Toast

Eddie: wanted you to know that for the past 6-7 years the platoon has had a reunion. The first order of matters is to drink a toast to you & Lundley. Lt Ford (who passed away in 2004) Glass, Coulter, Counts, Abney, Morrill, Nevers, Belue, Quesnoy and a couple more. Miss you buddy Andy (doc) Wahrenbrock

Jun 1, 2007.

It attaches a real person to the memory in your mind.

It only takes a few seconds but it may give some comfort to the grieving relative or friend.

It provides a personal hard copy memory of a fallen soldier.

You will not remember it later and it will not change the world, but it will take a few moments away from the current hustle and bustle of life.

It makes it a personal tribute and I think they earned and deserve those few moments.

Lastly, it requires you to make a decision later when you decide what to do with the 3 x 5 index card with a fallen soldier's name. My solution is simple. I put the cards in a 3 x 5 box and every year on Memorial Day, I review the cards.

Research sites used for this article

Today, I am writing my most difficult book report ever at 70 years old. It is about another GI I did not know, and an enemy I never wanted to know. Yet we were all in the same place forty eight years ago along with a bunch of others, with us trying to kill him and his comrades and he trying to kill us. Of the three of us two of us survived and one did not. Many others on both sides also did not make it. But the real story is not about the battle. It is about warriors, love, hate, and eventually forgiveness and absolution if you will. As we approach Memorial Day 2016, I implore you to take more than a few minutes to acknowledge those who are no longer with the living as a result of their service to this country. Perhaps you can find some sympathy for the dead of our former enemies as well. Bear with me on this. Sometimes forgiving your enemies takes more than a Bible verse.I arrived in Vietnam on February 6, 1968. The Tet offensive was probably the worst battle of the entire Vietnam War. It started during what was a traditional truce period on January 31, 1968. After in country processing, I was assigned to Alpha Company of the Second Battalion, Twelfth Infantry Regiment (2/12) of the 25th Infantry Division. I joined the company in the field on or about February 19. I met up with the company on Highway 1 which runs from Tay Ninh to what was then Saigon (Now Ho Chi Minh City, because the winners get to rename the place). The battle was still raging in the countryside and the cites. We convoyed down Highway 1 toward the village of Hoc Mon, a reportedly deserted village just north of Saigon. Hoc Mon was the source of intense shelling of Tan Son Nhut air base which is southeast of Hoc Mon. Google says it is 16 KM (about 10 Miles) and about a 26 minute drive. It took us a bit longer to make the trip due to certain obstacles along the way.On March 4, 1968 the battle of Hoc Mon took place between our units and entrenched Viet Cong and NVA. (Here is a list of our KIA and WIA that day) Since I was so new to the unit, I did not know the names or faces of the wounded and killed. A FNG in Vietnam was generally shunned until they made their bones. No one wants to know your name, where you are from and what you did back in the world. Just do you job and try not to get any of the old-timers killed. The 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment was also in the battle and took the brunt of the losses that day. Here is one description of the battle:In mid to late March, I was transferred to Bravo Company to reallocate the unit's authorized strength. With no personal attachment to the members of the other companies, I never gave it much thought. One of the first things you learn in an infantry unit is not to make too many friends outside of your unit. It is easier on the mind when the word comes down that Company B, C or D lost a few guys the other day. Keeping a tight circle is the grunt's way of self-defense against war's carnage. You're stuck with the friends you have but you don't make no new ones.What has all this have to do with the book report? Well recently one of my 'Band of Brothers' posted a notice on Facebook about a book published in 2015 by the niece of one of our KIA during the March 4th battle. PFC Edward A. Schultz (21) of San Luis Obispo, CA along with others died that day. I did not know Eddy nor did I have any recollection of him. Eddy was a member of Charlie Company and I was with Alpha Company. But the fact that we were both probably within a few yards of each other 48 years ago is enough reason for me to buy the book. In remembrance of him I ordered the book from Amazon. Paying homage to fallen brothers is a lifelong duty. You can buy the book here: The Box: A Memoir I know that most will not order the book but it is a very moving story told by his niece, Lynne Lorine Ludwick. Eddy was only three years older than Lynne and she describes him as more like brother. She tells the story of Eddy and his family before his 55 days in Vietnam. This is not a war story. It is a story of a people dealing with life, death, redemption and possibly closure. It encompasses both sides of the war, the residual effects on the survivors and their relatives and friends.The book would never have been written or published were it not for the anguish of one of Eddy's combat brothers trying to close a chapter in his life. Andy Wahrenbrock was a medic in Eddy's unit and since they were both from California, they became fast friends from the start.The book tells the story of two parallel lives. One is the all American farm boy drafted during the Vietnam War. The other is her narrative of the real Vietnamese boy raised in a country that has been at war for centuries. She has a firsthand knowledge of Eddy but she does a creditable job of describing the feelings of the enemy VC soldier. I was always amazed how the Vietnamese people endured the hardships of life in general as well as life during what to them was an endless war. Most children in Vietnam saw more in their first 10 years than an American sees in a lifetime.It is normal for families to wonder about the specifics of how their loved ones die. It is also a driving compulsion for some veterans to contact the families of their dead buddies and tell them the story. Like most combat veterans, Andy put the war and the memories in a metaphorical "box" for twenty-five years, but unlike a fine wine, the memories do not mellow with age. They ferment into bitter vinegar. At some point, you must taste of the rancorous liquid, if for no other reason but to remind yourself of your own good fortune and the sacrifice of others. (Matthew 27:48)In 2008 Andy made contact with Lynne and made plans to visit her and tell the story of Eddy. Suffice it to say that Eddy did not suffer but died instantly from a head shot.Lynne met Jim Peterson in June 1968, three months after Eddy was killed. Jim did not know Eddy. Jim and Lynne were married but later divorced. They remained friends. In 2009, Jim called Lynne and told her he was traveling to Vietnam. She asked him if he were in the area of Hoc Mon could he stop by and take a few pictures of the village just for closure.Modern Vietnam is very accommodating to visiting US Veterans. Any country that has endured as much war as the Vietnamese have can put things in a perspective that most Americans thankfully do not have to learn. Jim was able to visit Hoc Mon area during his trip.Through the translators, he told the villagers that he was visiting the area because the uncle of one of his friends had been killed in the area. During the back and forth through interpreters, one of the older villagers began to cry silently. He was a veteran Vet Cong soldier and a participant of the battle on March 4, 1968. He was our enemy and a relatively uneducated peasant then. He told of his losses of family and his fiance during the war. He told of how his only wish was for his country to have freedom from the Chinese, Japanese, French and Americans. There was no politics involved in his thoughts; he just wanted the foreigners gone.As Jim prepared to leave the village, the old man pleaded,He pedaled away on his bicycle. After twenty minutes, Jim was not sure if he was going to return but soon he did with a small metal box in his hand. He handed the box to Jim and said simply,I guess he too had tried to put the memories in a "box", which indicates that human nature is remarkably the same everywhere.I cannot do justice to the emotion or narrative of this book or maybe it is just the old grunt in me getting sentimental. But when Lynne received the box from Jim and opened it up it contained the orange, blue and yellow Viet Cong battle flag that was flying at the scene of Eddy's death. The military tradition is to protect the flag at all cost. It is a symbol of the dedication and sacrifice soldiers are willing to make for the cause of their country. The symbolism of lowering the flag of the losing side and raising the flag of the winning side is a long honored tradition. Also, the presentation of the flag at the funeral of a veteran is an acknowledgement that they did their duty. For this Viet Cong warrior to present his honored flag to Lynne as a gesture of respect is way beyond what one would expect from a former enemy.This flag is not a war trophy and the picture below is not a bunch of older Combat Veterans holding a captured enemy flag. It is a present from a former enemy. An enemy, who perhaps understands that at some point you must make peace with your adversaries.Here are Lynne's words describing the meaning of the old VC veteran's giftIf you follow this link you see the comments about Eddy that have been posted on the Vietnam Wall website including this post by Andy: Eddy Schultz Panel 42 line 72 This picture from 2012 shows four of the Combat Veterans holding the VC Flag that was offered by their VC counterpart 44 years after they met in combat. Click here for enlarged Picture of the Flag Only A suggestion: When you hear someone mention someone or had a friend or relative who has died in combat, stop and ask him or her "what was their name"? If possible, get a pen and paper and write the name down. I always carry 3 x 5 index cards in my pocket (a lifelong habit for notes pre-computer age). I ask the dead person's name. I write it down on the card and I may make some notes on the back. There are several reasons for doing this.Don't you think they deserve at least that much time and effort out of your busy day. Any combat veteran has some dates and names embedded in their memory. It may be some solace to them to know that others take a few seconds to pay respect and honor to the memory of someone they did not know. However, rest assured that there is always someone somewhere who has a chasm in their heart for a fallen soldier.
Kathy Manos Penn

In Flanders Field John McRae



In Flanders Fields the poppies blow,

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky,

The larks, still bravely singing, fly,

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead.

Short days ago,

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved and now we lie,

In Flanders Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe

To you, from failing hands, we throw,

The torch, be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us, who die,

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow,

In Flanders Fields.

Most of us have plans for the upcoming Memorial Day Weekend, but I wonder how many of those plans include anything to do with the true meaning of the day. As the wife of a Viet Nam veteran, I can count on my husband to remind me to take time to "remember, reflect and honor those who have given their all in service to their country," as described on the website, USMemorialDay.org . Where we live, we're always reminded when we see VFW members handing out poppies at the Kroger. Why poppies? "In Flanders Fields," written in 1915, inspired University of Georgia professor Moina Michael with the idea to sell silk poppies to raise money to assist disabled American veterans. The American Legion was the first organization to adopt the poppy as their official symbol of remembrance, but they shifted briefly to the daisy in 1921. The next year, the VFW became the first veterans' organization to organize a nationwide poppy distribution, and the rest is history.Disabled or needy veterans in VA hospitals assemble the poppies and receive remuneration for their work. The VFW gives the poppies away and accepts donations then used to support our military in a variety of ways. Our local VFW uses some of these funds to provide assistance to deployed troops and their families at home through the "Adopt-A-Unit" program. At one point, they had adopted four separate Units deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and sent hundreds of care packages to the Troops. They supported the families with financial assistance, food vouchers, transportation and special events -- Easter egg hunts, picnics, and Welcome Home parties. Organizing these and other activities takes commitment and dedication from VFW members.There's no limit to the ways you can choose to honor those who gave their lives in service to our country. You can proudly display poppies and American flags. You can view The National Memorial Day Concert, broadcast live from Washington, DC Sunday evening on PBS. You can likely find a local ceremony to attend. Later in the day, you can observe the "National Moment of Remembrance" at 3 p.m. by pausing for a moment of silence or listening to "Taps."Whatever your plans for the weekend, if you find yourself at a Kroger where veterans are handing out poppies, be sure to pick one up and take a moment to remember and reflect. And, if you can also give a donation to this worthy cause, your generosity will be much appreciated.
Diane Rufino: Above.

This Memorial Day week-end, we remember the greater than 1,448,900 servicemen who fought and died in our wars and battles over the many years. Beginning with the American Revolution (a war originally begun over the colonists' right to have and bear arms for protection of their person, property, and rights), to the Civil War (where over 620,000 young men were slaughtered over one man's zeal for the federal government and his determination for the role of the States), to WWI (when the United States became a world power) and WWII (when we liberated Europe from tyranny and the evil ambitions of a single man who believed in an empire of ethnically pure and engineered people living in service and in fear of their leader), to the Korean and Vietnam Wars (although they were politically unpopular, they were intended to contain the spread of communism, where the government has total control of the individual), to the current War on Terrorism (a war for the right to life itself, as well as for the luxury of living safely and securely as Americans on our own soil and when traveling abroad), these men put service before self for a country they love, for ideals that were more important than any single life, and for a better and more secure future for their family, friends, and even total strangers. My hope is that I will always conduct myself, in words and deeds, worthy of their sacrifice.Please remember that Memorial Day is not about bombs and battleships and aircraft and war memorabilia. It's not about the American flag (which, as we all know, at times stood for oppression) or about burgers or beers. Memorial Day is a holiday set aside to honor individuals... American brothers, sisters, fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, uncles, aunts, cousins, friends, classmates, neighbors, relatives, and ancestors who died in military service. We honor every American who gave their life for this country in order to protect the freedoms we often take for granted and are blessed to wake up with every morning, as well as to secure the image of the United States as the most powerful bastion of freedom in the world. Whether we realize it or not, every American reflects their sacrifice. Memorial Day is not about barbecues, parades, a holiday week-end, or family reunions. It's about courage under fire and about the ideals and values that a young man in uniform was willing to sacrifice his life for.As I look at pictures of the caskets of our fallen soldiers and the many grave sites marked with white crosses, and I realize that each one of those dead had a mother and a father, family, and friends, I am reminded that each life is a costly sacrifice that has been laid at the altar of freedom.It's true, whether we realize it or not, as Americans we reflect their sacrifice. Every Memorial Day should remind us to wear that badge proudly, responsibly, and honorably. And always in our mind should be the goal to live our lives, to raise our families, to educate our children, and to be responsible in our civic duty as if we are deserving of their sacrifice.


Click here for enlarged version of above

Photo  Tony Adams



Photo  A. Krause



Photo  A. Krause

Photo  A. Krause



I woke up this morning to find an Email in my inbox from an old combat brother. It tipped the scale about whether I should post my story on BCN. Here is an extract of the Email:This is an excerpt from my Vietnam Battle Dairy. It covers the battle of Ap Bao Go. It is part of a longer 36-page narrative that I compiled from ten (10) participants in the battle in 2009. It is interesting to me that I never knew any of the guys who contributed to the personal narrative of that battle. That is not unusual as the units often worked as either Company sized units or sometimes only Platoon sized. You did not go out of you way to befriend too many people due to the potential of them getting killed. I made contact with them through our Unit Website, and asked each to give me their memories of the battle. Apparently, many of them were haunted by that day, as was I. Perhaps one day, I will publish the narrative on the Unit Website for historical reference. The narrative was compiled by email and then combined by me into one document. Each remembrance was offered without knowledge of the contents of the other submissions beforehand.That compilation is far too long to include here, but suffice it to say, it was not a good day for the 2nd 12th Infantry or the 199th Infantry. The Army Daily Staff Journal summarizes the action in less than one paragraph.The complete Staff Journal is 11 pages long with details on location and hour to hour contacts. That is not a criticism of the Daily Staff Journal. The journal is a contemporaneous account from the officer of the day from Radio intercepts of S2, S3. It is a narrative that is devoid of the emotion of the battle and is a historical record of the details and statistics that the Army created for almost every unit action in Vietnam. All pictures except the last two are courtesy of A. Krause, Charlie Company 2nd 12th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division. It should be noted that the Shultz noted in the pictures was David Schultz. Eddy Schultz died a month earlier from the same unit. It was the subject of another post. Here is the link to that post. See below for the last page summary:Below is the map of the AO with notations of various battles during that time frame.Below is a Google Earth shot of the same area:In 2010, The Web Master made a return trip to Vietnam and visited the site of this battle along with two others from our unit. Here are a few pictures from his trip.
Porch Chairs and Hurricanes Trilogy-Part 2

I Was So Shocked I Almost Ran Off The Road...Part 1

Written May 19, 2011

Updated May 28, 2017

I was driving along the other day and I looked to my right and there it was something I don't think I have seen in 45 years. There was a man sitting on his porch in one of his porch chairs. Don't you get it? Ok, I'll say it again but more slowly this time...



There ... was ... a ... man ... sitting ... on ... his ... porch ... in ...



one ... of ... his ... porch ... chairs.

Stop and think about this sight. Ask yourself when the last time you saw someone sitting in a porch chair. Been quite a while has it not?



Everyone who has a porch has porch chairs. They are everywhere. They are probably a billion dollar industry but they are not for sitting in. They are for looking at. Porch chairs are probably one of the most useless things we have in the good ole USofA.



*******************************************************************************

Life before TV...



 People would sit outside after supper on their porch chairs and wait for the neighbors to come walking by.



 My family did not have a porch or porch chairs but we did not let that stop us. We did have concrete area in front of the plate glass window of our family grocery store and that served as our porch. For chairs, we brought out four kitchen chairs to serve as substitute porch chairs.



 This routine was usually initiated by my father saying, "Time to set up the kitchen chairs".



 As we sat, the neighbors would come walking by and make chit chat... "Nice night", "How are you doing this evening", "President Truman sure made a big mistake by sending our boys to Korea", "Dat (I was raised in New Orleans) hurricane (New Orleans is in Louisiana) will be here tomorrow this time. Don't forget to put the masking tape on your front plate glass window", etc.



 At some point in the evening it was our turn to get up from our kitchen chairs and walk around the neighborhood to chit chat to the neighbor who had returned from their walks or had yet to walk their walks.



 We left our chairs setting there without giving them a second thought that someone would steal our kitchen chairs while we were gone. There was no need to put chains around the chairs like Wal-Mart has to do with everything not nailed down outside their stores today.



I know I have confused you, my dear readers, by using a term in this posting that you are completely unfamiliar with and for that I apologize. I will now explain myself.



As you read above you most certainly said to yourself, "Self, what is a neighbor?" (Educating my readers is one of the greatest pleasures I get from blogging)...



Neighbors are the people who live in the houses around your house who you never see because they are inside their houses watching Dancing with the Stars content in the knowledge that their porch chairs are on their porch making them look neighborly.

*******************************************************************************

Getting back to the beginning of this Foolishness, is it possible that that guy I saw sitting on his porch in his porch chair is not the beginning of a comeback for sitting out after supper, walking and chit chat? Or could it be that his TV was broken and he was waiting for the Best Buy delivery truck?



That second thought about Best Buy in the paragraph above is a sobering one. I wish I had not thought it.



On the other hand, Televisions and Unnecessary Porch Chairs just might be conclusive evidence of the progress our society has made since I was a kid...Or is it?



Would I kid u?

Smartfella


major John McCrae

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.



We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.



Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.



A Belgian poppy field near at or near Flanders.

We Shall Keep the Faith



Oh! you who sleep in Flanders Fields,

Sleep sweet - rise anew!

We caught the torch you threw

And holding high, we keep the Faith

With All who died.



We cherish, too, the poppy red

That grows on fields where valor led;

It seems to signal to the skies

That blood of heroes never dies,

But lends a lustre to the red

Of the flower that blooms above the dead

In Flanders Fields.



And now the Torch and Poppy Red

We wear in honor of our dead.

Fear not that ye have died for naught;

We'll teach the lesson that ye wrought

In Flanders Fields

In 1920, the American Legion adopted the red poppy as the symbol of remembrance of those who gave their lives in war. Yet many don't know why the flower was chosen.In 1915, Allied and German forces met for the second time near the Belgian city of Ypres, in the northern region (known as the "Flanders" region). This bloody battle would inspire one of the most memorable war poems "In Flanders Fields." Major John McCrea, a surgeon attached to the 1st Canadian Field Artillery Brigade, tended to the wounded for 17 long days. He was overwhelmed by the carnage, the suffering, the screams, the blood, and the broken bodies. There would be 6000 Canadian casualties alone in just the first 48 hours. One death particularly affected McCrae. A young friend and one of his former students, Lieutenant Alexis Helmer of Ottawa, had been killed by a shell burst on May 2nd. Helmer was buried later that day in the little cemetery outside McCrae's dressing station and McCrae himself performed the funeral ceremony in the absence of the chaplain. The next day, overcome by anguish, he sat outside his dressing station and looked out over the cemetery. He could see wild red poppies springing up where there were once ditches that were filled with the battle's dead.And so he wrote:In 1918, just before the Armistice of World War I was signed, Moina Michael, a US humanitarian, was working at the YMCA Overseas War Secretaries' Conference and came across John McCrae's poem. She was deeply inspired by the imagery of the poppies. She responded with a poem of her own "We Shall Keep the Faith" and promised to wear a red poppy in remembrance of those who had fallen.It was Ms. Michael who began the tradition of wearing red poppies in remembrance and honor of those who had given their lives for their country.And so, in 1920, the American Legion adopted the red poppy as its official symbol for fallen servicemen, to be handed out and worn on Memorial Day.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan talks to reporters on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Monday, May 29, 2017. Photo from CP Images

Canada is extending its commitment to an international maritime security mission in the waters off the Middle East for another four years, Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan announced today.

"It is a clear display of our solidarity with partners and allies in the global fight against terrorism," Sajjan said of Operation Artemis, Canada's contribution to a multinational maritime security force in the region.

The federal government has approved up to $131.4 million to support the extension, which will see the deployment of up to 375 military personnel.

The Canadian Forces will also send a CP-140 Aurora patrol aircraft as part of the mission, and plan to deploy a Halifax-class frigate every other year starting in 2018.

Combined Task Force 150

Combined Task Force 150 is a U.S.-led multinational mission bringing together 31 countries in the waters around the Middle East and East Africa.

The multinational force deploys ships and surveillance operations to deter and intercept illegal shipments of weapons and narcotics used to fund terrorist groups.

"By denying terrorists a method of conducting operations and moving personnel, weapons and narcotics, Canada makes a direct contribution to increased maritime security and international counterterrorism efforts," Sajjan said.

Covering more than five million square kilometres, the task force's purview spans the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Oman and the Western Indian Ocean. The maritime region is strategically important not only in terms of its place in the global fight against terrorism, but also as a vital trade route between the Far East, Europe and North America.

The planned deployment of a Halifax-class frigate to the Middle East next year is in contrast to when Canada last led the multinational force.

While Canadian warships were deployed as part of Operation Artemis between 2012 and 2014, Canada was unable to send a frigate for its command in December 2016, the third time Canada had led CTF 150 since its launch in 2001.

Story continues

Canada has since handed command of the operation to France. Sajjan said Canada could seek to lead the multinational force every other year.

Liberals playing a shell game: Conservative

Conservative defence critic James Bezan welcomed the extension of Operation Artemis, but said it comes at the expense of other Canadian commitments in the fight against Daesh.

"It's a bit of a shell game coming from the government as to what's really happening in the fight," said Bezan. "They're doing less, not more."

Bezan condemned the government's December 2015 decision to withdraw Canada's CF-18 fighter jets from the Middle East, as well as its more recent decision to bring home one of two CP-140 Aurora surveillance planes.

"If you want to be back on the world stage, you have to do everything," Bezan said, accusing the government of offloading Canada's responsibilities onto its NATO allies. "You have to stand shoulder to shoulder and sometimes that means doing the heavy lifting  and Liberals under Justin Trudeau continue to step back."

'Eyes and ears on the ground'

The decision to extend Operation Artemis is hardly surprising, said Thomas Juneau, a former strategic analyst for the Department of National Defence who now teaches Middle East security at the University of Ottawa.

"What matters mostly from our perspective is that we're there," Juneau said.

Considering Canada's already "limited" participation in the international task force, Juneau said a decision to withdraw would have been poorly received by Canada's allies  perhaps none more than the United States, given Donald Trump's continued calls on NATO allies to up their defence spending.

"From a Canadian perspective, our interest is in being there, in being part of the coalition, in being able to tell the U.S. that we are contributing," Juneau said. "It's one of those many small things that  in the bigger picture  allows Canada to go to the table to the U.S. and say, 'We are carrying our responsibilities.'"

Canada will also benefit from having "eyes and ears on the ground," Juneau said, especially with the deployment of an aircraft or frigate.

"For our presence in the Middle East as a whole, for our role in counterterrorism missions, that's useful," Juneau said. "They develop links with allies: the U.S and others. They develop links with partners on the ground: Bahrain and other regional countries. They can send useful information back to the country."

4 years allow flexibility: Sajjan

Sajjan said the four-year extension will allow the military greater flexibility in planning its operations, with this mission connected to Canada's broader efforts to counter terrorism worldwide.

The deployment of a CP-140 Aurora as part of Operation Artemis is "not related at all whatsoever" to the government's decision earlier this month to pull a similar aircraft from the U.S.-led coalition against ISIS, Sajjan told reporters.

The defence minister also did not provide further details on the government's expected commitment to international peacekeeping operations.

"When it comes to peace support operations, we want to make sure we take the time to get this right, because it's not done in isolation" Sajjan said.
As tick season hits, Lyme disease patients say they need better care

When Arlene Rill was bitten by a tick in Montreal three years ago, she knew nothing about Lyme disease.

She had no idea she would become so ill, and she never imagined enduring the kind of pain she's been living with ever since.

"I live with huge stomach issues, terrible [headaches], pain in my ears, ringing in my ears, inflammation in my joints," said Rill, a 66-year-old retired teacher.

"My legs are in pain. My knees are in pain. Sometimes my feet are killing me."

Rill says she blames her suffering on a lack of knowledge about Lyme disease in Canada and a lack of willingness to treat long-term sufferers.

According to Montreal's public health department, cases of Lyme disease in Quebec jumped to 180 in 2016 from just 32 five years earlier. In the vast majority of those recent cases, the disease was acquired within the province.

Lyme disease advocates insist those numbers would be dramatically higher if diagnosis methods were improved.

Shortly after being bitten, Rill said she visited an infectious disease doctor in the city who told her there is no Lyme in Montreal. She tested negative at that time.

After six months of debilitating symptoms, she says, she consulted another infectious disease doctor who was convinced she had Lyme disease.

Rill says she was prescribed antibiotics for six weeks, which helped, but once that treatment stopped, symptoms returned.

She says she needs more antibiotics, but most Canadian doctors won't prescribe a longer stretch of antibiotics to Lyme disease patients.

Doctors refuse to prescribe

"Doctors refuse to prescribe for more than two to four weeks because the available standard medical evidence suggests harm, and no benefit to extended treatment," said Dr. Michael Libman, infectious disease specialist and director of tropical medicine centre at the McGill University Health Centre.

Libman also has concerns about laboratories in the U.S. where many Canadians, including Rill, have sent their blood to be tested. He says too often those tests produce false positive results.

Story continues

"A lot of people who  carry a diagnosis of Lyme disease and are getting treated for [it], do not have Lyme disease by standard scientific medical criteria," he said. "This is the source of the problem."

Rill says the U.S. laboratory that tested her blood concluded she has Lyme disease and she is well aware of skepticism from medical doctors in Montreal.

"A lot of doctors will call you crazy," she said.

Turning to the U.S.

Rill's difficulties sound familiar to another Montrealer, whose identity CBC agreed to withhold in order to protect his access to the medication he depends on.

Trevor was bitten by a tick while working in Ontario in 2012. Like Rill, he didn't think much of it at and knew little about Lyme disease at the time.

He too tested negative for Lyme disease early on.

After living with debilitating symptoms for about two years, being unable to work or get out of bed and seeing several doctors who ruled out heart failure, lupus and multiple sclerosis, Trevor returned to Montreal to live with family members who helped care for him.

Trevor then turned to his childhood family doctor, who suspected he had Lyme disease.

After a three-month run of antibiotics, Trevor improved but his family doctor said he could not prescribe more medication without risking disciplinary action.

Re-writing U.S. prescriptions

Trevor then tracked down a Lyme specialist in the U.S. who sees him every three months and put him on antibiotics for about two years.

Unable to afford the thousands of dollars it costs to fill those U.S. prescriptions, Trevor found a Canadian doctor who was willing to rewrite them.

It's an underground route some Canadians are taking to access antibiotics for Lyme disease.

Now, nearly five years after being bitten, Trevor has returned to work part-time and is slowly regaining his strength and his life.

Trevor says the Canadian guidelines that restrict doctors from prescribing more than four weeks of antibiotics to Lyme patients do not make sense.

"I wish [Canadian] doctors were allowed to just treat the patients without fear of losing their licence," he said.

Alternative approach

At least one Canadian doctor says he is prescribing longer runs of antibiotics to Lyme patients and is not afraid of jeopardizing his practice.

"The treatment protocols that are being employed [in Canada] are regrettably too short and the diagnostic criteria that are being applied are regrettably too narrow," said Dr. Ralph Hawkins, clinical associate professor at University of Calgary and a physician at Calgary's South Health Campus hospital.

As a result, he said "there are substantial number of patients who either don't get a diagnosis or don't get appropriate treatment."

Hawkins recently accompanied a Lyme advocacy group, Ticking Lyme Moms, to Ottawa. The group is pressuring the federal government to improve diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease.

Hawkins, who has been treating Lyme patients since 2012, says longer stretches of antibiotics are showing positive results.

'Too much pain'

"The treatment protocols that I employ and the protocols that are used are all published in the literature," Hawkins said.

"It is an alternative approach, it doesn't follow the main guidelines, but it is certainly a legitimate secondary approach I am using. I don't feel in any jeopardy," he said.

That's why Rill is willing to fly to Calgary to see Dr. Hawkins.

She's been on a waiting list since last September and just found out she may have to wait another year or longer.

Hawkins has more than 200 people on his waiting list, and he has decided to temporarily stop adding new patients.

"Canada is not coming through for us," Rill said, fighting back tears.

Rill's symptoms are worsening and she's feeling desperate. She's now considering spending some of her retirement savings on a trip to the U.S. to seek faster treatment.

"I don't think I can wait much longer, I'm in too much pain."
The number of lay judge trials in Japan for which interrogations of suspects have been recorded in full is increasing after police introduced new guidelines to avoid forced confessions, the National Police Agency says.





In fiscal 2016 through March 2017, a total of 2,324 lay judge trials had the possibility of referring to complete recordings of interrogations, up by 759 from a year before, the agency said.





Interrogations in criminal cases that go to lay judge trials, which represent some 3 percent of all trials in Japan, are subject to being recorded under an amended law on criminal procedure.





The amendment requires all interrogations involving lay judge trials to be recorded in their entirety by June 2019, but the agency introduced the practice ahead of schedule by setting the new guidelines in October.





In the half-year period between October and March, 1,108 court cases representing 77.4 percent of all lay judge trials could draw on complete recordings of interrogations.





Recording of interrogations for lay judge trials, which involve serious criminal cases, first started in 2008 on a trial basis in major prefectural police jurisdictions such as Tokyo and Osaka. The practice spread nationwide in 2009.





According to the agency, the average total length of audio or video recordings per trial was 25 hours and 9 minutes in the latter half of fiscal 2016, up from 23 hours and 58 minutes in the first half-year period.





Among 1,432 lay judge trials in the latter half of fiscal 2016, the number of cases that did not employ any recording at all stood at 89, of which 88 involved organized crime syndicates.





The number of cases in which interrogations were not fully recorded stood at 235 due to such reasons as suspects refusing to be recorded, malfunctioning of the recording devices and other emergency situations.





The amended law on criminal procedure mandates recordings of interrogations in all lay judge trial cases in principle so as to prevent illegal interrogation methods and ensure the credibility of confessions.





Exceptions can be made if suspects object to being recorded, devices malfunction, members of crime syndicates are involved and if the police believe suspects or suspects' families could be at risk if they are recorded.





The agency's new guidelines added another exception in the case of emergency situations in which there is an insufficient number of recording devices available when there has been a surge in arrests.





As of the end of March 2017, there were some 2,000 recording devices available for police interrogations at police departments and other locations. The agency is trying to deploy more equipment as there are around 10,000 interrogation rooms in Japan.





Concerning police interrogations of suspects with mental disabilities, recordings were made in 3,399 cases, including those involving lay judge trials.





The figure represents an increase of 2,150 from the previous year as the recording target under the new guidelines covers suspects with impaired development and psychological disorders.

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Rumours have it that wife of former Edo state governor; Iara Oshiomhole is expecting her first baby.

In a picture which has gone viral on the internet, Iara Oshiomhole was seen with a protruding tummy which many immediately translated to be a baby bump.

Legit.ng gathered that Adams Oshiomholes wife was seen with an alleged baby bump at the private 65th birthday ceremony held in honor of her husband on Sunday, May 28, in Edo state.

Adams Oshiomhole cutting his birthday cake with his wife

READ ALSO: Wawu! Woman who gave birth to a girl and a python refuses to let go of the snake

In celebrating the former governor, in attendance at the birthday party is the Minister of state for Petroleum Resources Dr Ibe Kachikwu, business mogul Ayiri Emami among other well reputable Nigerians and politicians.

Beautiful Iara Oshiomhole was dressed in a peach long dress as she stood by her husband to cut his birthday cake.

Adams Oshiomhole and wife at his birthday paty

PAY ATTENTION: Get all the latest gossips on NAIJ Gossip App

Cutting of the birthday cake

Watch Legit.ng video below:

Source: Legit.ng
Melania Trump has continually wowed while on her first foreign trip abroad as First Lady of the United States. Over the last week, the former model has shown off her fashion credentials in the Middle East, Rome, Belgium and yet again on Friday during her visit to Sicily. President Donald Trumps wife made a floral statement stepping out in a $51,500 jacket by Dolce & Gabbana.

CLICK FOR FULL GALLERY

VER GALERIA The first lady brought high fashion to the streets of Sicily Photo: GIOVANNI ISOLINO/AFP/Getty Images

melaniaitalycoat

Melania, 47, exuded glamour as she arrived to the Chierici Palace City Hall of Catania on the sidelines of a G7 summit of the Heads of State and of Government in Taormina wearing the piece that features 3D floral details over a sleeveless creme brocade sheath dress, which she paired with a matching Dolce & Gabbana floral pouchette clutch, pumps and shades.

GALLERY: MELANIA TRUMP'S FIRST LADY STYLE

Scroll below for video

The first lady has worn a number of stunning pieces by the Italian design house during her first official international trip. Melania looked elegant on Thursday donning an off-the-shoulder midi lace gown for a reception with Queen Mathilde of Belgium in addition to other partners of the NATO chiefs. Barron Trumps mother also donned a D&G black lace coat for her highly-anticipated meeting with Pope Francis.

VER GALERIA Melania wowed wearing a $51,500 D&G coat Photo: GIOVANNI ISOLINO/AFP/Getty Images

melaniacoat

The first lady has a loyal fan in designer Stefano Gabbana, who shut down Internet trolls earlier this week. After sharing an explicit illustration guide as to what haters can do with their opinion, Stefano praised Melania for wearing his designs while sarcastically telling haters to boycott his label. He posted, @flotus  #melaniatrump #DGWoman THANK YOU  Haters!!!! Remember #boycottdolcegabbana please  ." The designer also added that they should refer to his "previous" explicit meme. Stefano lauded the first lady's high fashion ensemble choice for her visit to Sicily writing,  THANK YOU  @flotus #melaniatrump @corriere  #DGWoman #DGStyle ."
Latin Americans originate from a mix of people with Native American, European and African ancestry. A new study finds that different types of original Native American ancestry can be associated to different causes of death. Justo Lorenzo Bermejo and Felix Boekstegers from Heidelberg University in Germany, and their Chilean colleagues report these findings in a new study published May 26th, 2017 in PLOS Genetics.

Indigenous peoples in Latin America are genetically diverse. Genetic differences among Native Americans become obscured when researchers lump together the ancestry of all groups as "Native American" in biomedical studies. In the current study, researchers examined genetic data from 2,039 Chileans with mixed ancestry to investigate possible associations between top causes of death and the two major types of Native American ancestry in Chile, the Mapuche and the Aymara. They found and validated a link between Mapuche ancestry and gallbladder cancer, with each 1% increase in the Mapuche proportion representing a 3.7% increase in the risk of death from the disease. Mapuche ancestry was also associated with an increased risk of asthma, and with a decreased mortality by diabetes. Increasing proportions of Aymara ancestry were linked to greater risk of skin, bladder, larynx, bronchus and lung cancers.

The findings highlight the importance of taking into account the genetic contributions of different ancestral groups when researching ethnically diverse populations. Mapuche and Aymara ancestry show associations with different diseases, and grouping them together cancels out differences in risk. By separately considering genetic contributions from individual indigenous populations, scientists can better estimate a patient's risk and identify genetic variants underlying certain diseases.

Justo Lorenzo Bermejo adds: "The genome of Latin Americans is the result of a genetic mixture between Europeans, Africans and Native Americans from different indigenous peoples. The identification of health disparities among ethnic groups may have important implications for personalized prevention and disease management. This study demonstrates that considering the origin of the Native American component of ancestry can be crucial to identify existing associations with human disease. We plan to exploit this finding in future studies on Latin American health, in particular common cancers and infectious diseases in South America."

###

In your coverage please use this URL to provide access to the freely available article in PLOS Genetics: http://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/article?id=10.1371/journal.pgen.1006756

Citation: Lorenzo Bermejo J, Boekstegers F, Gonzalez Silos R, Marcelain K, Baez Benavides P, Barahona Ponce C, et al. (2017) Subtypes of Native American ancestry and leading causes of death: Mapuche ancestry-specific associations with gallbladder cancer risk in Chile. PLoS Genet 13(5): e1006756. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgen.1006756

Funding: This study was financially supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF, grant 01DN15021), Germany's Excellence Initiative of Heidelberg University within the program "Mobilitatsmanahmen im Rahmen internationaler Forschungskooperationen 2015-16", the support program "Stiftungen und Preise" of the Ruprecht-Karls-Universitat Heidelberg, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and the Ruprecht-Karls-Universitat Heidelberg within the funding program Open Access Publishing, and the German Research Foundation (DFG, grant LO 2061/1). Sample collection and storage was supported by the Biobank of University of Chile. JSS is partially funded by USA NIH Grant GM053275. This work was partially supported by general funds from the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG) and the Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
News, analysis, and archives on the grassroots in Haiti. Nouvel, analiz, ak achiv sou baz yo an AYITI. Noticias, analisis y archivos sobre el pueblo de Haiti.
Growing human skin in a petri dish isn't the first thing that pops into your mind when you hear the name L'Oreal (Euronext Paris: OR-FR). Yet the French cosmetics giant, whose other brands include Lancome, Maybelline New York, Ralph Lauren Fragrances and The Body Shop, also produces gelatinous, dime-sized blobs called EpiSkin.

The company's researchers use the lab-produced tissue to test the efficacy of ingredients and tolerance of products before they go to market. This is part of a larger, ongoing effort within the scientific community to reduce and replace the use of live rabbits, mice and other laboratory animals in tests and experiments.

But besides sparing lab animals pain and suffering, and often death, EpiSkin also represents a revenue source for L'Oreal, which sells the product to cosmetics, pharmaceutical, chemical and household products manufacturers that conduct similar tests. Simultaneously, the company is tempering the public outcry over animal testing that's plagued the cosmetics industry, among others, for decades.

Meanwhile, L'Oreal is partnering with San Diego-based Organovo to engineer 3-D bioprinting of human skin. "We're also developing technologies that will 3-D print hair follicles in vitro," said Bouez. "We see great potential for this in terms of tissue engineering and the development of future products."

EpiSkin's biggest competitor

The proliferation of 3-D reconstructed tissue models, as EpiSkin is technically known, in product testing is relatively recent, coinciding with wider regulatory approval, yet the biotechnology behind it dates back to the 1980s. Among the pioneers is MatTek, based in Ashland, Massachusetts, and founded in 1985 by two chemical engineering professors from MIT. In 1993 the private company launched its first commercial product, EpiDerm, which today is EpiSkin's major competitor.

MatTek produces about two adult humans' worth of skin every week at its Massachusetts facility and another site in Slovakia. The raw material for EpiDerm is actual human skin cells retrieved from surgical waste following cosmetic surgeries and circumcisions. Cells are also procured through commercial sources or tissue banks.

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"We start with cells in a petri dish," a process generally referred to as in vitro, said senior scientist Michael Bachelor. Over several weeks the cells are fed nutrients "to promote the growth of the tissue to resemble what it's like in the normal human body," he added. EpiDerm is sold in kits, comprising 24 individual tissues, for about $1,000.

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L'Oreal acquired the EpiSkin biotechnology in 1997 and has since used it to test hundreds of ingredients and finished products, including L'Oreal Paris pure clay mask and La Roche-Posay's Lipikar body milk. "EpiSkin models are also available to the global scientific community to support academic and corporate research and development activities across industries," said Charbel Bouez, vice president of advanced research at L'Oreal's America Zone and president of EpiSkin.

In 2011, L'Oreal opened its Predictive Evaluation Center in Lyon, France. The 12,000-square-foot facility, staffed by more than 60 scientists, grows more than 100,000 human skin tissue samples annually, most about 0.5 square centimeter in size. Last year L'Oreal invested more than $900 million in research and innovation.

The use of animals for all sorts of product testing, as well as for medical, military, agricultural and other areas of research, has long been a contentious issue. On one side are proponents who contend that animal testing is essential to human health and safety, pointing to numerous lifesaving discoveries. Opponents counter by claiming that differences between animal and human biology make many tests unreliable. Perhaps more powerful, though, are the moral and ethical quandaries that animal testing raise, and ultimately whether animals have rights that supersede the benefits to humans.

The confluence of the business and scientific interests and animal rights have helped spur the development of EpiSkin and EpiDerm. And while reducing animal testing makes good business sense, it's also giving companies a valuable public relations boost.

The cosmetics industry, in particular, has been the target of animal cruelty charges stemming from skin tests. Images of rabbits having various substances applied to their shaved skin to see if they develop irritations, corrosion or other harmful effects have led to public outrage. A 2015 Gallup poll found that 67 percent of Americans are "very concerned" or "somewhat concerned" about animals used in research. A Pew Research poll taken the same year found that 50 percent of American adults oppose the use of animals in research.

The condemnation has fostered legislation, too. Animal testing for cosmetics has been banned in the European Union, Israel, India, Norway, Turkey, Australia, New Zealand and, most recently, Taiwan. In the United States the FDA requires animal testing of cosmetics sold in countries that still demand it by law, China being the prime example. Most major cosmetics companies, including L'Oreal, have discontinued animal testing unless it's required by law.

Even so, several animal-rights groups, including the Humane Society and New England Anti-Vivisection Society, have organized "cruelty free" shopping campaigns and guides. They've formed the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics, which promotes a comprehensive standard and an internationally recognized Leaping Bunny logo. Separately, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) maintains a cruelty-free shopping database on its website that identifies companies that do and don't use animal testing.

The cosmetics industry is the largest market for EpiDerm, reported Bachelor. But its use is expanding to other sectors "as companies are trying to develop more cost-effective methods for in vitro screenings, both as an alternative to animal testing and as a prior screening to their clinical work."

It's difficult to estimate the impact that EpiSkin and EpiDerm have on reducing animal testing and related deaths. In the United States, for instance, animal use per endpoint is not publicly available, said Amy Clippinger, director of PETA's regulatory testing department. Clippinger has extrapolated data available from the U.K., however, indicating that the number of animals used for skin irritation and corrosion testing worldwide has gone down significantly over the past 15 years.

Through its International Science Consortium, PETA collaborates with researchers in cosmetics and other industries to promote non-animal testing, Clippinger said. The organization teamed with MatTek in 2015 on a contest for researchers to suggest ways to use EpiDerm to reduce such experiments.

Lab-produced skin is just the first breakthrough in this emerging biotech market. MatTek already produces and sells other skin products, as well as 3-D tissue models related to the human eye, mouth, airways and intestines. "We're also looking toward organizing various tissue models in a 'cross-talk' system in order to evaluate the effects of something you put on a skin in terms of liver toxicity and absorption by the small intestine," MatTek's senior scientist Bachelor said.

The next step is to connect EpiDerm to so-called organs on a chip, a revolutionary technology under way to synthesize an entire liver, brain, kidney or other human organ onto a microchip the size of a microscope slide. The Holy Grail is to link together an entire human body on a series of chips.

 By Bob Woods, special to CNBC.com





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john kelly meet the press chuck todd

Department of Homeland Security secretary John Kelly defended President Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kusher on Sunday, as Kushner came under increased scrutiny following new revelations about his contacts with Russian officials immediately after the 2016 election.

"I know Jared. He's a great guy, decent guy," Kelly told NBC's Chuck Todd on "Meet The Press."

"His number one, number one interest, really, is the nation. So you know there's a lot of different ways to communicate, back-channel, publicly with other countries," Kelly said. "I don't see any big issue here relative to Jared."

Kelly was referring to a Washington Post report on Friday in which US officials said Kushner and former national security adviser Michael Flynn met with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak in early December to discuss setting up a secret back-channel of communication between the US and the Kremlin. According to officials, Kushner proposed setting up the line of communication through Russian facilities, which would shield it from US monitoring.

Todd pressed Kelly on why Kushner would want to set up a channel with Moscow, which US intelligence agencies concluded meddled in the 2016 election.

Kushner wanted a back-channel "even with an adversary, someone that was, at the time, our own intelligence community had collectively said, 'This is a country that had infiltrated our election,'" Todd said. "Did this show good judgment?"

"Well you know, it was before the government was in place during the transition period, I think," Kelly replied. "And I think any time you can open lines of communication with anyone, whether they're good friends or not so good friends, it's a smart thing to do."

Kushner, who did not disclose the meeting on his security clearance form, is now a subject in the FBI's investigation of Russia's election interference, and whether the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow to undermine Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

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Jared Kushner

He also had two previously undisclosed phone calls with Kislyak between April and November of last year, according to Reuters.

Kushner's attorney Jamie Gorelick responded to the Reuters story Friday evening via CNN, saying "Mr. Kushner participated in thousands of calls in this time period. He has no recollection of the calls as described. We have asked (Reuters) for the dates of such alleged calls so we may look into it and respond, but we have not received such information."

National security adviser H.R. McMaster also defended Kushner's actions on Saturday, saying that he was not bothered by the news.

"We have back-channel communications with a number of countries. So, generally speaking, about back-channel communications, what that allows you to do is to communicate in a discreet manner," he told reporters as the president rounded out his first foreign trip.

'Another puzzle piece'

But former intelligence officials and legal analysts threw cold water on that assessment.

While it's not uncommon for low-level staffers to bypass bureaucracy to build consensus in advance of higher-level negotiations, what Kushner did was "substantially different," said Scott Olson, a recently retired FBI agent who ran counterintelligence operations and spent more than 20 years at the bureau.

Kushner "is not seeking a back-channel for a low-level staff exchange," Olson said. "He wants high-level direct-contact communication. This is extremely dangerous because it results in verbal (and therefore undocumented and unwitnessed) agreements, which are binding on governments. Free governments do not work this way. They can't. If they do, they are no longer free."

Olson also added that Kushner's reported request to use Russian facilities goes "way beyond a private server" because it's a conversation "recorded by the opposing party. ... This shows a staggering lack of understanding of the US and its place in the world."

Donald Trump Jared Kushner

"If you are in a position of public trust, and you talk to, meet, or collude with a foreign power" while trying to subvert normal state channels, "you are, in the eyes of the FBI and CIA, a traitor," said Glenn Carle, a former top counterterrorism official at the CIA for more than two decades.

This latest bombshell is yet "another puzzle piece," said Keith Whittington, a professor of politics at Princeton University. "It provides more reason to worry about the president's motivations when he made inquiries into the progress of [congressional and FBI] investigations."

Whittington added that it will also "presumably be harder for the president to distance himself from his son-in-law than it would be in the case of other staffers like Flynn," which will complicate the administration's efforts at damage control.

"The question isn't whether this line of communication was appropriate or not," said Jens David Ohlin, an associate dean at Cornell Law School and an expert on criminal law. "The question is why Kushner wanted it. Presumably the secret channel would allow the administration to talk to the Russians without the State Department, intelligence agencies, or the rest of the federal bureaucracy knowing about it. Why the need for secrecy from our own government?"

Ohlin suggested that recent developments may point to a "nefarious motive: a radical realignment of US-Russia relations in exchange for Russia intervening in the election to get Trump elected."

He continued: "I sincerely hope that isn't true, because that would be profoundly disturbing."

Natasha Bertrand contributed to this report.

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Following the Washington Post report on Friday that top White House adviser Jared Kushner had approached the Russian ambassador to the US about opening a secret line of communications between Moscow and the Trump transition team in the months prior to his father-in-laws inauguration, the White House has been trying to beat down the story.

The administration sent out National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly, one a current Army general and the other a retired Marine Corps general, to deliver a similar message over the weekend. Their goal was to convince the public that the apparent attempt by Kushner to set up a communication channel with Russia that would be shielded from US intelligence agencies was nothing surprising. This, even though Kushner was a private citizen at the time, the Obama administration was still in charge of US foreign policy, and Kushner reportedly asked if it would be possible to use secure communications facilities within the Russian embassy.

Related: The Trump-Russia Investigation Could Clog Up DC for Years

Asked about it on Fox News Sunday, Kelly said, I dont see the big deal.

He explained, I think any channel of communications back or otherwise with a country like Russia is a good thing. I mean, multiple ways to communicate back and forth is a good thing with a country I think, and particularly a country thats like Russia. So, it doesnt -- it doesn't bother me.

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This doesnt pass the laugh test. Imagine the reaction if President-elect Hillary Clinton had brought both her daughter Chelsea and son-in-law Mark Mezvinsky onto her transition. Then imagine that Mezvinsky had tried to conduct secret freelance diplomacy with Moscow from inside the Russian embassy.

Once the mess from all the Republican heads exploding had been cleared up, any members of the GOP left standing would have been screaming for a treason prosecution.

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But theres a more coherent reason to question how serious the allegation against Kushner is, and that was articulated Sunday morning by South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham who, in an appearance on CNN, rightly pointed out that We're chasing our tails as a nation when it comes to the Russians.

Related: Trump Does Have Real Connections to Russiaand Heres Why

Point one, Graham said, is the provenance of the story.ThePost report cited senior US officials who claimed that American intelligence officers had intercepted a discussion between Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak and his superiors in the Kremlin in which he informed them of Kushners request to open up the secret line of communication.

Kislyak is widely considered to be a top Russian intelligence operative with decades of experience, which plays into the first of Grahams questions about the story.

I don't know who leaked this supposed conversation, but just think about it this way, Graham told CNNs Dana Bash. You have got the ambassador to Russia reporting back to Moscow on an open channel, Hey, Jared Kushner is going to move into the embassy. I don't trust this story as far as I can throw it.

He added, It makes no sense that the Russian ambassador would report back to Moscow on a channel that he most likely knows we're monitoring. The whole storyline is suspicious.

Related: Heres Why Intelligence Professionals Are Horrified by Trumps Russia Leak

Grahams suggestion was that Kislyak had made the comments on the call knowing they would be intercepted and had therefore potentially made them up or made Kushners request appear more outlandish than it really was.

Others who tend to believe the Kushner allegations are true, argue that the Russian government would have had no incentive to burn the Trump administration that way. The Kremlin, according to US intelligence officials, actively interfered in the November presidential election on Trumps behalf, and appears to have believed the US-Russia relationship would be warmer under the new administration.

But Graham also pointed out that the goal of Russian operations all along has been to sow doubt about what can and cant be believed, sometimes by planting false information in the hope that foreign media or intelligence services would pick it up and run with it.

He cited another Washington Post story from early last week, in which it was alleged that some in the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including former director James Comey, may have been taken in by a fake message that intelligence officials believe originated with Russian intelligence. The message, an email, purportedly described an agreement between former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and the Hillary Clinton campaign under which Lynch agreed to quash an ongoing investigation into Clintons use of a personal email server while secretary of state if an indictment looked likely.

Related: The Real Problem With Trumps Russian Revelation

The email reportedly spurred Comey to make a highly unusual public statement about the conclusion of the FBI investigation without informing DOJ.

However, the consensus opinion in the FBI, ThePost reported, is now that the message was fake.

If that was fake, why don't you think this is fake? Graham asked, referring to the Kushner allegations. I'm not so sure the e-mail that Comey relied upon was fake. But I can tell you this. He never briefed the Congress, the Judiciary Committee, about any fake e-mail.

What he told the Intelligence Committee about this e-mail, he never suggested it was fake. So, if he intervened in the election  [the] election based on fake information generated by the Russians -- that was an incredibly incompetent thing to do. So, I don't really know who to believe anymore.

Whether the story about Kushners secret communication request are true or not, it appears the Russian disinformation campaign has been successful at sowing doubt, at least in the mind of one prominent senator.

Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
Uber CEO Travis Kalanicks mother was killed and his father was injured in a boating accident Friday in California.

The deadly accident occurred at Pine Flat Lake in Fresno, Calif., after his parents boat hit a rock, the Fresno Sheriff Department said in a statement. Kalanicks mother, Bonnie, was 71.

Last night Travis and his family suffered an unspeakable tragedy, Uber said in a statement. His mother passed away in a devastating boating accident near Fresno and his father is in serious condition. Our thoughts and prayers are with Travis and his family in this heartbreaking time.

An investigation into the accident is underway, the sheriffs department said. Officials found the couple on shore, where Kalanicks mother had already died and his father had moderate injuries.

On Mothers Day two weeks ago, Kalanick shared photos of him and his mother from his childhood on Facebook.

As time goes on, I appreciate my mom, her infinite love and huge [heart] more and more, Kalanick wrote.

Uber did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fortune.

See original article on Fortune.com

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U.S. National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster speaks to reporters in the briefing room at the White House in Washington, U.S. May 16, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts

The White House's credibility crisis continues to deepen, and experts say it may now reach one of the few remaining independent voices in the Trump administration: national security adviser H.R. McMaster.

After former national security adviser Michael Flynn was forced to resign in February when it emerged that he misled Vice President Mike Pence about contacts he'd had with Russian officials during the 2016 campaign, McMaster arrived to right the ship.

His selection was especially notable because many saw him as the antithesis to Flynn.

He was brought in as someone who was beyond reproach.

"He was brought in as someone who was beyond reproach, who wasn't in [President Donald] Trump's inner circle, had a stellar reputation, and was supposed to be distanced from Trump," said Jon Michaels, a professor and expert on national security at UCLA Law.

Like Secretary of Defense James Mattis, McMaster was revered by his troops while serving in the army and earned a great deal of respect from soldiers. He is an expert on military strategy, counterinsurgency, and history, and is not known for being a 'yes' man. "Put simply: McMaster isn't a political guy, unlike other officers who are trying to jockey for position and move up their careers," Business Insider's Paul Szoldra wrote after Trump chose him.

McMaster has historically "been willing to risk an awful lot to speak truth to power," said Claire Finkelstein, a professor and Director at the Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

But the former Army Lieutenant General has come under fire in recent days, as the White House was hit with a flurry of news stories that raised more questions about the Trump camp's ties to Russia.

Now, experts are beginning to question if McMaster's role has become dangerously politicized, and whether that could pose a threat to the US' national security.

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Typically an apolitical position

Donald Trump H.R. McMaster

When The Washington Post broke an explosive report in which intelligence officials alleged that Trump shared highly-classified information with Russian officials during an Oval Office meeting, McMaster went in front of cameras to call the story false as reported and to defend the president's actions as "wholly appropriate."

His defense came as intelligence officials expressed deep concerns about Trump's handling of sensitive information, as well as the risks it posed to Israel, the source of the intel and a key US ally.

Though the national security adviser is a political appointee  in that he is chosen by the president  the role has historically been relatively apolitical when compared to that of other White House staff. This is because the national security adviser has "enormous influence" over issues of war and peace, and presidents of both parties have tried to keep political concerns away from that area, according to Robert Deitz, a former top lawyer for the National Security Agency and the CIA.

Experts say there is some justification for McMaster speaking out in this case, because he was brought out to address a national security concern.

"The Trump-Russia controversy touches international politics in a way that others do not. ... If you're talking about whether Russia influenced the US elections, if you're talking about the US president meeting with Russian officials and giving them classified information  that is hardcore foreign policy stuff, and McMaster has, or at least had, very high credibility in that area," Deitz said. "So it seems logical that he would be pushed out to lead that parade."

Did it assuage concerns our allies may have had about sharing intelligence? Probably not.

But choosing him as a spokesperson may have done more harm than good.

In this case, McMaster's "going before the press didn't do anything to limit" fallout from revelations that Trump disclosed code-word information to the Russians, Michaels said.

"At the end of the day, are we now all saying, 'Oh, OK, everything's all hunky-dory because McMaster stood up there'? Did it assuage concerns our allies may have had about sharing intelligence? Probably not."

Deitz concluded that Trump doesn't have many alternatives to McMaster.

"If you look at people in this White House and compare them to people in the Obama or Bush White House," he said, "there are not that many people who have terribly high credibility."

Michaels echoed that assessment and highlighted the unique circumstances the Trump administration faces.

"Almost everything right now feels new and different," he said. "The fact that McMaster has to go out and talk about what the president may or may not have said about [former FBI director] Comey ... all of this stuff feels weird and unusual, and I doubt many national security advisers have been called in to do this particular type of rebuttal or contextualization."

Donald Trump H.R. McMaster

"There are only so many people in the White House who are taken credibly at this point, and McMaster is one of them," he added. "So it's a trade off."

If anything, experts say McMaster's selection as the White House's point man following the Post's report likely diminished his credibility and the credibility of the US in the process, and it also appeared to politicize a national security issue.

Glenn Carle, a former CIA operative and national security expert, compared McMaster's selection to former President Bill Clinton's decision to have female Cabinet members speak out on his behalf during the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

"A lot of the women involved resented that and thought it was inappropriate, and Clinton was widely criticized for politicizing them because they were females," Carle said. "Here, McMaster was politicized because he's a general."

And while the credibility of White House operatives like Kellyanne Conway and press secretary Sean Spicer has taken a hit since Trump assumed office, the risks of McMaster losing credibility are significantly greater given his position as the chief national security consultant.

'Not McMaster's finest moment'

Experts say that McMaster is likely aware of the delicate situation he's in.

McMaster's loyalties are "naturally divided," Finkelstein said. "He probably feels like he owes the president, as commander-in-chief, the greatest loyalty he can summon up under the circumstances. But I'm also guessing that standing in that room with the Russian foreign minister and ambassador, he felt that he himself was in a fairly compromised position."

James Comey

There have been other instances where that internal discrepancy may have been evident. Shortly after news broke that Trump had reportedly called Comey a "real nut job," and said firing him had taken "great pressure" off during the Oval Office meeting with Russian officials, McMaster appeared on ABC's "This Week" on May 21. The White House has not disputed the report.

When host George Stephanopoulos asked McMaster about why Trump made comments about the FBI's Russia probe to Kremlin officials, McMaster said Trump "feels as if he is hamstrung in his ability to work with Russia" because of media coverage around the topic.

"It's very difficult to take a few lines, to take a paragraph out of what appear to be notes of that meeting, and to be able to see the full context of the conversation," he added.

That interview was "not McMaster's finest moment," Finkelstein said, adding that it likely reflected his need "to act within the military chain of command, while also being aware that these actions and remarks by the president are extremely dangerous for the country."

'If the national security adviser is seen as a stooge or lackey ...'

McMaster is still the most independent voice in the White House, experts say, but if he continues ceding ground to the political wing, it may affect the relationship between the administration and the military.

"The go-between on military matters are the joint chiefs and the national security adviser," Michaels said. "If the national security adviser is seen as a stooge or lackey of an administration that the military may be wary of, it's going to diminish [McMaster's] capacity to be seen as a reliable person to call in the White House for critical issues."

And that logic applies to foreign affairs, too.

"It's not surprising when a politician or statesman presents a favorable interpretation of an issue for the administration," Carle said. But when the national security adviser goes in front of cameras and says something that is "just not true, that harms the US' ability to interact successfully and win the support of our foreign interlocutors."

mcmaster

"Truly, your word is very important" when dealing with national security, Carle said, adding that credibility is among the chief concerns allies consider when deciding which and how much intelligence to share with another country.

The US' national security apparatus relies not just on heads of state calling each other, Michaels said, but on networks of high-ranking bureaucrats like McMaster whose credibility is crucial to keeping things running.

"There's no more critical moment for that than now," he said, "given the lack of credibility and expertise of the commander-in-chief."

And in the event that the US is thrust into a genuine national security crisis and McMaster comes out to talk to the public or to the US' allies about it, Deitz said, "the question people are going to have in the back of their minds is, 'Are we getting this straight or is this just a political job?'"

McMaster is still a very respected figure, Finkelstein said.

"But he will lose all efficacy as a protector of national security if he simultaneously loses that independent voice he was known to have."

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Bone Therapeutics strengthens Board with the appointments of Steve Swinson and Damian Marron as Non-Executive Directors

Senior executives with international experience in orthopaedics and cell therapy

Gosselies, Belgium, 29 May 2017, 7am CEST - BONE THERAPEUTICS (Euronext Brussels and Paris: BOTHE), the bone cell therapy company addressing high unmet medical needs in orthopaedics and bone diseases, today announces the appointment of Steve Swinson and Damian Marron to its Board of Directors as Non-Executive Directors.

The appointments of Steve Swinson and Damian Marron, effective 26 May 2017, complement an already strong Board of Bone Therapeutics bringing in specific public company, orthopaedic and cell therapy understanding and expertise and will provide ongoing support to the leadership team. Steve Swinson and Damian Marron will replace Jacques Reymann and Jean-Jacques Verdickt.

Steve Swinson has served in a number of senior roles in orthopaedic medical technology and electronics companies, including general management, senior strategy, sales, marketing and commercial operation positions at Medtronic International, a global leader in medical technology. At Medtronic, he led the Spine and Biologics division for Canada and Western Europe, and was Vice President and General Manager for the international spine divison with substantial revenue responsibility. In a 30 year international business career covering Asia, US, Europe and Africa, he has also held senior positions at the diagnostic and medical departments of the blue chip engineering multinationals, General Electric and Hewlett Packard. Steve has a PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Manchester and a MBA from the University of Chicago.

Damian Marron is an experienced life sciences executive with a successful track record of value creation through public and venture capital financing, portfolio planning and turnaround, M&A, licensing agreements and research and marketing collaborations. He has particular competencies in cell therapy, immuno-oncology and orphan diseases. Damian served most recently as Chief Executive Officer of Agalimmune and has also served as Chief Executive Officer of TxCell, a France-based specialist in personalised T-cell immunotherapies, where he led the Company's IPO on Euronext Paris. As Chief Executive Officer of Trophos, France, he helped raise EUR 34 million in financing and positioned the company for a subsequent acquisition by Roche for EUR 700 million. Damian also served as Executive Vice President, Corporate Development, for NiCox, where he supported the CEO in financing rounds raising over EUR 175 million.

Michel Helbig de Balzac, Chairman of Bone Therapeutics, commented: "We are delighted to welcome Steve and Damian to the Board of Bone Therapeutics. Their collective track record in leadership and value creation in the healthcare sector and their industry knowledge and expertise in orthopaedic medical technology and cell therapy respectively will be a major asset to the Company. They will be a valuable sounding board to the leadership team as it focuses on advancing our innovative allogeneic cell therapy platform towards commercialization. We would like to thank Jacques Reymann and Jean-Jacques Verdickt for their many years of dedication to Bone Therapeutics and wish them the best in their well-deserved retirement."

Commenting on his appointment, Steve Swinson said: "Bone Therapeutics leads the field in regenerative approaches to orthopaedics and bone diseases, and its allogeneic cell therapy platform has the potential to transform medicine in these areas. I'm delighted to have the opportunity to use my deep experience in orthopaedic medical technology to help support this Company as it advances its technology towards commercialization."

Damian Marron added: "I am very excited to be joining Bone Therapeutics. I look forward to bringing my experience in strategic development and my expertise in cell therapy to support the Company as it approaches key value inflection points with its innovative allogeneic cell therapy platform."

About Bone Therapeutics

Bone Therapeutics is a leading cell therapy company addressing high unmet needs in orthopaedics and bone diseases. Based in Gosselies, Belgium, the Company has a broad, diversified portfolio of bone cell therapy products in clinical development across a number of disease areas targeting markets with large unmet medical needs and limited innovation.

Our technology is based on a unique, proprietary approach to bone regeneration which turns undifferentiated stem cells into "osteoblastic", or bone-forming cells. These cells can be administered via a minimally invasive procedure, avoiding the need for invasive surgery.

Our primary clinical focus is ALLOB, an allogeneic "off-the-shelf" cell therapy product derived from stem cells of healthy donors, which is in Phase II studies for the treatment of delayed-union fractures and spinal fusion. The Company also has an autologous bone cell therapy product, PREOB, obtained from patient`s own bone marrow and currently in Phase III development for osteonecrosis and non-union fractures.

Bone Therapeutics` cell therapy products are manufactured to the highest GMP standards and are protected by a rich IP estate covering nine patent families. Further information is available at: www.bonetherapeutics.com.

Certain statements, beliefs and opinions in this press release are forward-looking, which reflect the Company or, as appropriate, the Company directors` current expectations and projections about future events. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and assumptions could adversely affect the outcome and financial effects of the plans and events described herein. A multitude of factors including, but not limited to, changes in demand, competition and technology, can cause actual events, performance or results to differ significantly from any anticipated development. Forward looking statements contained in this press release regarding past trends or activities should not be taken as a representation that such trends or activities will continue in the future. As a result, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any update or revisions to any forward-looking statements in this press release as a result of any change in expectations or any change in events, conditions, assumptions or circumstances on which these forward-looking statements are based. Neither the Company nor its advisers or representatives nor any of its subsidiary undertakings or any such person`s officers or employees guarantees that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors nor does either accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release or the actual occurrence of the forecasted developments. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.

Contacts

Bone Therapeutics SA

Thomas Lienard, Chief Executive Officer

Wim Goemaere, Chief Financial Officer

Tel: +32 (0)2 529 59 90

investorrelations@bonetherapeutics.com

For Belgium and International Media Enquiries:

Consilium Strategic Communications

Amber Fennell, Jessica Hodgson and Hendrik Thys

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3709 5701

bonetherapeutics@consilium-comms.com

For French Media and Investor Enquiries:

NewCap Investor Relations & Financial Communications

Pierre Laurent, Louis-Victor Delouvrier and Nicolas Merigeau

Tel: + 33 (0)1 44 71 94 94

bone@newcap.eu
May 29, 2017: Oslo, Norway, Petroleum Geo-Services ASA ("PGS" or "the Company") today announce that President & CEO Jon Erik Reinhardsen (60) has informed the Board of Directors that he wishes to retire, in accordance with his employment contract. The Board has accepted August 31, 2017 as his last day of service, and initiated the process to find his successor.

Chairperson Walter Qvam said in a statement:

"We are grateful for Jon Erik Reinhardsen's strong and very capable leadership of PGS during 10 important years for the Company. He has led the Company through the challenging years of the financial crisis and recently the oil price fall. During this period PGS has become the world's leading marine seismic acquisition company through a strategic decision to upgrade the Company's Ramform fleet with the most productive acquisition vessels in the world, equipped with the state of the art GeoStreamer technology. PGS has as well taken a leadership position within its MultiClient and Imaging businesses through efficiency gains and quality improvements.

After the recent successful refinancing and with the considerably reduced cost base, the Company is now well-positioned to take advantage of future market opportunities."

Jon Erik Reinhardsen commented:

"I am honored to have met and worked with so many great people during my tenure at PGS. I thank colleagues and the Board for all their support and great cooperation and look forward to following their future success."

FOR DETAILS, CONTACT:

Bard Stenberg, VP IR & Corporate Communications

Mobile: +47 992 45 235

Walter Qvam, Chairperson of the Board of Directors

Mobile: +47 905 25 226

****

Petroleum Geo-Services ("PGS" or "the Company") is a focused Marine geophysical company that provides a broad range of seismic and reservoir services, including acquisition, imaging, interpretation, and field evaluation. The Company's MultiClient data library is among the largest in the seismic industry, with modern 3D coverage in all significant offshore hydrocarbon provinces of the world. The Company operates on a worldwide basis with headquarters in Oslo, Norway.

PGS has a presence in 17 countries with regional centers in London, Houston and Kuala Lumpur. Our headquarters is in Oslo, Norway and the PGS share is listed on the Oslo stock exchange (OSE: PGS).

For more information on Petroleum Geo-Services visit www.pgs.com.

****

The information included herein contains certain forward-looking statements that address activities, events or developments that the Company expects, projects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future. These statements are based on various assumptions made by the Company, which are beyond its control and are subject to certain additional risks and uncertainties. The Company is subject to a large number of risk factors including but not limited to the demand for seismic services, the demand for data from our multi-client data library, the attractiveness of our technology, unpredictable changes in governmental regulations affecting our markets and extreme weather conditions. For a further description of other relevant risk factors we refer to our Annual Report for 2016. As a result of these and other risk factors, actual events and our actual results may differ materially from those indicated in or implied by such forward-looking statements. The reservation is also made that inaccuracies or mistakes may occur in the information given above about current status of the Company or its business. Any reliance on the information above is at the risk of the reader, and PGS disclaims any and all liability in this respect.
ENDEAVOUR DISCOVERS AN AREA WITH MULTIPLE HIGH-GRADE TRENDS AT ITY MINE

View News Release in PDF Format

Several targets identified at the Le Plaque area  Maiden resource expected by Q4-2017

LE Plaque Discovery Highlights:

- The 100%-owned Le Plaque area, covering 4km2, is located 5km south of the Ity mining complex and has a similar footprint

- Several high-grade mineralized trends were identified at the Le Plaque area, with the largest being a 2km long anomaly

- Mineralization at the Le Plaque trends occurs from surface for the main lense and all trends are open along strike and at depth

- A maiden inferred resource estimate, for some of the targets identified in the Le Plaque area, is expected in Q4-2017

- In addition to Le Plaque, exploration activities are on-going at several other targets in proximity to the current Ity mining complex

Abidjan, May 29, 2017 - Endeavour Mining (TSX:EDV)(OTCQX:EDVMF) is pleased to announce the discovery of several high-grade mineralized trends at its Ity gold mine in Cote d'Ivoire, at the 100% owned Le Plaque area, situated 5 kilometers south of the Ity mining complex.

Patrick Bouisset, Executive Vice-President Exploration and Growth at Endeavour, said: "The Le Plaque discovery continues to demonstrate the highly prospective nature of the Ity area. The complexity of the geology requires more drilling and interpretation, but we are very encouraged by the multiple trends discovered which exhibit the potential to host significant resources. Our follow up drilling will focus on the multiple identified targets in the La Plaque area and we look forward to publishing a maiden inferred resource by year-end."

"We are equally excited about both the ongoing exploration on the other targets located in proximity to the Ity mining complex and on conducting interpretative work to generate new greenfield targets in the wider 80km Ity corridor that was secured last year," added Mr. Bouisset.

To date the Le Plaque area has been covered by 3,450 meters of Auger drilling totaling 228 holes, by 1,756 meters of Reverse Circulation ("RC") drilling totaling 22 holes, and by 6,559 meters of Diamond Drilling ("DD") totaling 53 holes.

Some of the selected best DD and RC drill intercepts to date from mineralized zones include (estimated true widths):

- Hole FL15-004: 3.08m @ 36.94 g/t

- Hole FL15-007: 13.09m @ 22.36 g/t

- Hole FL15-523: 4.41m @ 5.70 g/t

- Hole FL15-524: 5.02m @ 7.90 g/t

- Hole FL15-527: 10.05m @ 3.16 g/t

- Hole FL15-529: 4.04m @ 11.87 g/t

- Hole FL15-531: 8.09m @ 28.96 g/t

- Hole FL15-533 15.90m @ 2.19 g/t

- Hole FL15-534: 7.99m @ 11.83 g/t

- Hole FL15-535: 5.40m @ 16.43 g/t

- Hole FL15-536: 6.97m @ 5.09 g/t

- Hole FL15-547: 2.61m @ 9.30 g/t

- Hole FL15-567: 2.94m @ 61.23 g/t

- Hole FL16-570: 2.80m @ 5.85 g/t

- Hole FL16-588: 4.90m @ 4.72 g/t

As shown in Figures 1 and 2 below, the Le Plaque area covers 4 square km, is of similar size as the multiple-deposit Ity mining complex to the north, and hosts several large high gold-in-soil anomalies. Several high-grade mineralized trends stretching over 400 meters were identified, with the largest being a 2km long geochemical anomaly with best values >1,000ppb. The trends are all open along strike and at depth.

In addition to exploring the Le Plaque area, exploration is also on-going on several other targets (as per the blue circles in Figure 1) located within 5km from the current Ity mining complex, which represents a small portion of the 80km corridor controlled by Endeavour.

Figure 1: Ity Mine Area and Surrounding Exploration Targets

Figure 2: Le Plaque Area

As shown in the Figure 3 below, the main mineralization starts from surface with secondary shear structures occurring below the surface.

Figure 3: Le Plaque Cross-Section

The gold mineralization at La Plaque is intersected by drilling and is associated with arsenopyrite and to a lesser extent with pyrite. Gangue mineral phases include galena and sphalerite. The mineralization has a strong structural control, and may have developed where secondary shear structures have exploited the contact between contrasting lithologic units (See Figure 3). Due to sparse outcrops and high vegetative cover, data from airborne and ground geophysical surveys contributed strongly to structural interpretations. The prospect area has recently been covered by a detailed ground IP survey conducted by Sagax Afrique SA (Burkina Faso) and is currently part of a high-resolution helicopter borne combination Magnetic/Radiometric/VTEM survey being flown by Geotech Ltd (Canada) over the Grand Ity project permit areas.

GEOLOGICAL SETTING

As shown in Figure 4, the Ity district is located within the preserved Toulepleu-Ity klippe, a northeast trending belt of Lower Proterozoic aged B1 Birimian terrane thrusted and floating on an older portion of migmatitic gneissic Archean basement of the West African Craton. The core of the klippe is the granitic/gneissic Guiamapleu intrusive suite. The B1 units are affected by a strong polyphase tectonic regime and sealed by the younger B2 Toulepleu conglomerate that lies unconformably on the rocks of the B1 unit. All formations have been subjected to greenschist to lower amphibolite facies regional metamorphism. The B1 Birimian formations within the Ity area are characterized by a series of volcano-sediments interlayered with carbonate bands. These sedimentary sequences are largely crosscut by granodiorite and diorite intrusions of variable thickness.

Figure 4: Endeavour Controlled 80km Ity Mine Corridor

The Le Plaque Prospect is mostly underlain by felsic and mafic units of the central granitic/gneissic Guiamapleu intrusive suite, with subordinate carbonate, skarn and volcanosedimentary units. Regional scale structures transect the area in northeast, north and northwest orientations, and some of these are interpreted as being associated with mineralization.

NEXT STEPS

- A RC and DD campaign is expected to start in Q3-2017 on Le Plaque to delineate the extent of mineralized potential.

- A maiden inferred resource estimate for some of the targets identified in the Le Plaque area is expected in Q4-2017.

- Exploration is on-going on other exploration targets in vicinity to the Ity mining complex.

- On the greater Ity Area, an interpretation of high resolution helicopter borne geophysical survey (Mag/Spectro/VTEM) will also be reviewed and placed into target ranking and testing.

QUALIFIED PERSONS

The scientific and technical content of this news release has been reviewed, verified and compiled by Gerard de Hert, EurGeol, Senior VP West Africa Exploration for Endeavour Mining. Gerard de Hert has more than 19 years of mineral exploration and mining experience, and is a "Qualified Person" as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101").

ASSAYS AND QUALITY ASSURANCE/QUALITY CONTROL

The Le Plaque drill samples were prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Drill core (HQ and NQ) and Reverse Circulation percussion hammer chip samples were prepared on site at the SMI (Societe des Mines Ity) exploration mechanical preparation facilities. The prep samples were analyzed using a standard 50-gram gold fire assay with an Atomic Absorption finish at Bureau Veritas Laboratories (Abidjan). Core sampling and assay data were monitored through a quality assurance/quality control program designed to follow NI 43-101 and industry best practice.

Auger samples were directly collected on site. A composite sample was taken for each lithology (laterite, duricrust and mottled zone) except for saprolite where one or two composites of two meters long were taken at bottom hole. Samples were crushed and pulverized on site at the SMI Ity exploration mechanical preparation facilities. The pulverized samples (pulps) were analyzed using a standard 50-gram gold fire assay with an Atomic Absorption finish at Bureau Veritas Laboratories in Abidjan (independent lab). ICP-ES analysis was completed by ACME Laboratories Ltd. in Vancouver. Core sampling and assay data were monitored through a quality assurance/quality control program designed to follow NI 43-101 and industry best practice.

Only results issued from saprolite composites are represented in the Figures.

CONTACT INFORMATION

Martino De Ciccio



VP - Strategy & Investor Relations

+44 203 011 271

mdeciccio@endeavourmining.com DFH Public Affairs in Toronto



John Vincic, Senior Advisor

(416) 206-0118 x.224

jvincic@dfhpublicaffairs.com





Brunswick Group LLP in London



Carole Cable, Partner

+44 7974 982 458

ccable@brunswickgroup.com

ABOUT ENDEAVOUR MINING CORPORATION

Endeavour Mining is a TSX-listed intermediate gold producer, focused on developing a portfolio of high quality mines in the prolific West-African region, where it has established a solid operational and construction track record.

Endeavour is ideally positioned as the major pure West-African multi-operation gold mining company, operating 5 mines in Cote d'Ivoire (Agbaou and Ity), Burkina Faso (Karma), Mali (Tabakoto), and Ghana (Nzema). In 2017, it expects to produce between 600koz and 640koz at an AISC of US$860 to US$905/oz. Endeavour is currently building its Hounde project in Burkina Faso, which is expected to commence production in Q4-2017 and to become its flagship low-cost mine with an average annual production of 190koz at an AISC of US$709/oz over an initial 10-year mine life based on reserves. The development of the Hounde project is expected to lift Endeavour's group production +900kozpa and decrease its average AISC to circa $800/oz by 2018, while exploration aims to extend all mine lives to +10 years.

Corporate Office: 5 Young St, Kensington, London W8 5EH, UK

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" including but not limited to, statements with respect to Endeavour's plans and operating performance, the estimation of mineral reserves and resources, the timing and amount of estimated future production, costs of future production, future capital expenditures, and the success of exploration activities. Generally, these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "expects", "expected", "budgeted", "forecasts", and "anticipates". Forward-looking statements, while based on mana gement's best estimates and assumptions, are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: risks related to the successful integration of acquisitions; risks related to international operations; risks related to general economic conditions and credit availability, actual results of current exploration activities, unanticipated reclamation expenses; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; fluctuations in prices of metals including gold; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, increases in market prices of mining consumables, possible variations in ore reserves, grade or recovery rates; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labour disputes, title disputes, claims and limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining industry; delays in the completion of development or construction activities, changes in national and local government regulation of mining operations, tax rules and regulations, and political and economic developments in countries in which Endeavour operates. Although Endeavour has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Please refer to Endeavour's most recent Annual Information Form filed under its profile at www.sedar.com for further information respecting the risks affecting Endeavour and its business. AISC, all-in sustaining costs at the mine level, cash costs, operating EBITDA, all-in sustaining margin, free cash flow, net free cash flow, free cash flow per share, net debt, and adjusted earnings are non-GAAP financial performance measures with no standard meaning under IFRS, further discussed in the section Non-GAAP Measures in the most recently filed Management Discussion and Analysis.
The war between both the Muslims and Christians does not seem to come to an end soon one will keep threatening the other.

This time around a Muslim man has threatened to kill any Biafran Christian who comes visiting in Kaduna. Legit.ng gathered that this threat took place after a Christian sent a friend request to a Muslim man on Facebook.

The Christian man identified as Tonye Felix decided to make new friends on the social media network when he sent Adams Yusuf, a friend request but got a death threat in return.

READ ALSO: Wawu! Woman who gave birth to a girl and a python refuses to let go of the snake

Felix posted the thread of conversation on his profile with the caption: Sent a request to one Adams Yusuf on Facebook earlier today. See what he sent to me in my inbox.

See post below:

However, instead of Felix being threatened about what the man sent to him he replied that he is would rather make Yusuf experience Jesus and cant do anything to him.

PAY ATTENTION: Get all the latest gossips on NAIJ Gossip App

Watch Legit.ng video below:

Nawa o!

Source: Legit.ng
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
After announcing it would be shuttering all but three historic aviation beacons in the state due to funding, the Montana Department of Transportations division of Aeronautics is now convening a working group to study and make recommendations on the beacons future.

Montana is the only state to operate a system of airway beacons, with 17 allowing pilots to fly by sight through the western mountains.

The practical use of the beacons and whether the annual cost of maintenance is worth their benefit has been a recurring question since the 1960s. At that time, the FAA decided the beacons no longer served a great public purpose, and by 1972 Montana was the last state to maintain a beacon system.

In late 2015, Aeronautics allowed several of the beacons to burn out and received little feedback. Late last year and after dialogue with pilots, the division said it would only maintain three of the beacons going forward. The remaining beacons would light a path from MacDonald Pass to Helena to Townsend to Bozeman.

The decision irked some pilots and historic preservationists, but the $30,000 annual savings was better served elsewhere, Aeronautics said at the time.

In a recent Aeronautics newsletter, administrator Debbie Alke announced that the beacon language had been stricken by the Legislature. A following meeting between Lt. Gov. Mike Cooney, legislators and department staff led to a request for the working group, the newsletter says, consisting of industry representatives.

The department will also hold public hearings to gather feedback.

"At the request of some legislators and hobby pilots, I facilitated a discussion and suggested that all voices be represented from the broader pilot community in future conversations, Cooney said in a statement. It's my hope that we can gain a better understanding of the impact of a decommission to the general public before making final decisions."

The news was welcomed by Helena pilot Mike Korn, who had penned an opinion piece that ran in the Independent Record and other newspapers critical of the process. Due to the beacons' historic nature and current use, Korn wrote that Aeronautics had failed to fully engage the public in making the decision to shutter 14 of them.

I think its great they decided to revisit the issue, Korn said in an interview, adding thanks to Alke and Transportation director Mike Tooley. I think well get a really good evaluation out of this and I think well be pleased with what comes out the other end.

The beacons have a lot of fans beyond pilots, including people interested in historic preservation and even some of the landowners where the beacons reside, he said.

Kate Hampton at the Montana Historical Society is currently working on registration of the entirety of the beacon system on the National Register of Historic Places. The MacDonald Pass beacon is the only site currently registered.

Alke says the working group is expected to start meeting next month. While they have no timeline for delivering recommendations to the department, September was floated as a possibility but that might be ambitious, she said.

In the meantime, Aeronautics does not plan any additional maintenance on the 14 beacons it initially decided to shutter, she said, and will work toward the final decision.

There are differing opinions and were a public agency and want to do whats the right thing, Alke said, adding her confidence in the working group.
On 3-5 October 2017 Kyiv is going to host the Space and Future Forum to network international experts and youth, many of whom will also participate at the first CosmoHack in the world. Joinfo provides media coverage of the Forum, and some of its topics were already discussed ...


Several hundred students spent last week building robots in Dakar, the capital of Senegal.

The students are from middle schools and high schools in Senegal and neighboring countries.

The robotics competition takes place once a year. Contest organizers say their goal is to urge governments and private donors to invest in science and mathematics education throughout Africa.

Teams of young people gathered in Dakar for the Pan-African Robotics Competition. The theme of this year's competition was Made in Africa.

The sound of machinery could be heard during the event. The students built small robots and used them to search for natural resources in the ground.

Sidy Ndao created the competition. He says the students were asked to show how robotics developed in Africa can help local economies.

We have noticed that most countries that have developed in the likes of the United States have based their development on manufacturing and industrialization, and African countries, on the other hand, are left behind in this race. So we thought it would be a good idea to inspire the kids to tell them about the importance of manufacturing, the importance of industry and the importance of creation and product development



During the week, the students were separated into three groups. The first group created robots that would work in and organize storage centers. The second group created machines that would mine natural resources. The third one was asked to create an African product and tell how to build it.

Seventeen-year-old Rokyaha Cisse is from Senegal. She helped her team develop a robot that sends sound waves into the ground to search for metals and then begins digging.

She says it is very interesting, fun, and they are learning new things, as well as having their first chance to operate robots.

Aboubacar Savage from Gambia was part of a younger team. He said his teams robot communicates with computers.

It is a robot that whatever you draw into the computer, it translates it and draws it in real life. It is kind of hard. And there is so much competition, but we are trying. I have learned how to assemble a robot. I have learned how to program into a computer

Seventeen-year-old Marieme Toure and her team built a robot that would be able to work in a mine.

She said, this helps us get more involved in science. Learning to program robots allows us to develop a certain aptitude in robotics that will serve us in the future.

Ousmane Lo competed against Toure. He is also from Senegal. He says robots could solve agricultural problems in Africa.

Right now, its machines that dominate. What we cant do, machines can do, Lo said.

Sidy Ndao, who is from Senegal, is now a professor at the University of Nebraskas Lincoln College of Engineering.

I have realized how much the kids love robotics and how much they love science, and you can tell because when it is time for lunch, we have to actually convince them to actually leave, and then [when] it is time to go home, nobody wants to leave...

Ndao said he hopes the event will persuade African governments and private individuals to invest in science and mathematics education, especially in universities.

He said, the idea is that we would have African universities that have similar or perhaps better standards than European and American universities so that the students who -- the thousands or the millions of them in Africa -- have the chance to have a higher, state-of-the-art education in the continent.

Im Phil Dierking.

Ricci Schryock reported this story from Dakar for VOANews.com. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted her report for Learning English. George Grow 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

natural resources  n. natural materials or substances that can be used for economic gain

theme  n. a subject of a musical or artistic work; the main subject being discussed

focus  v. to direct ones attention on something

inspire  v. to influence

translate  v. to change words into ones own or another language

assemble  v. to put something together

aptitude  n. the ability to learn something

dominate  v. to have power over; to be the most important part of something
Intels Compute Cards are basically tiny PCs stuffed into a case thats not much larger than a credit card. Theyre the spiritual successor to the companys Compute Stick line of devices but instead of plugging into the HDMI port of a TV or monitor, the Compute Card is designed for modular systems.

Theoretically you could buy a TV, desktop PC, or laptop shell that comes with a Compute Card. Then you can eject the card and carry it with you or replace it with a different model to change the user experience or upgrade to newer hardware.

First unveiled at CES in January, the first Compute Cards are expected to launch this year. But we hadnt seen detailed specs for those cards until now.

Update: Intel has confirmed that Compute Cards will start shipping in August.

CNX-Software has published some block diagrams and specs for four different Compute Card models. Two feature Intel Apollo Lake processors, while two have Kaby Lake chips.

All four feature low-power processors. A 15 watt Kaby Lake-U series chip would overheat in such a confined space. But the 4.5 watt Kaby Lake-Y series processors used in the higher-end Compute Card models should offer significantly better performance than the Apollo Lake models, even though they consume less power.

The Kaby Lake models will also likely be more expensive. The last Id heard, Apollo Lake Compute Cards would probably cost around $150, while top-of-the-line models would be closer to $500. But the cards arent really aimed at consumers at this point. Theyd most likely be sold to device makers and developers. Keep in min, they dont have any standard USB or HDMI ports and instead use a special connector for USB and display connectivity.

Anyway, heres a run-down of what to expect from the first four models:

CD1C64GK  Celeron N3450 quad-core CPU/4GB RAM/64GB eMMC storage

 Celeron N3450 quad-core CPU/4GB RAM/64GB eMMC storage CD1P64GK  Pentium N4200 quad-core CPU/4GB RAM/64GB eMMC storage

 Pentium N4200 quad-core CPU/4GB RAM/64GB eMMC storage CD1M3128MK  Core M3-7Y30 dual-core CPU/4GB RAM/128GB PCIe SSD storage

 Core M3-7Y30 dual-core CPU/4GB RAM/128GB PCIe SSD storage CD1IV128MK  Core i5-7Y57 dual-core CPU/4GB/128GB PCIe SSD storage

Again, these have the guts of a standalone computer, but since they lack standard ports theyre only designed to work with compatible hardware. If you want to use a display, mouse, keyboard, wireless internet, or other hardware youll need gadgets that can hook up to the proprietary Compute Card connector.

But at least one company plans to offer a consumer-friendly laptop shell thats powered by a Compute Card.
The researchers' model looked a dynamic system in which cells' ability to break bonds in the surrounding extracellular matrix influenced their ability to grip their environment and spread throughout it. Credit: University of Pennsylvania

One area of research within mechanobiology, the study of how physical forces influence biological processes, is on the interplay between cells and their environment and how it impacts their ability to grow and spread.

Many studies have shown that stiffness of the extracellular matrix, the fibrous network of collagen that surrounds cells, promotes cellular mobility; cells can get a better grip on stiffer surfaces and thus invade neighboring tissue.

New research by scientists in the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science is diving deeper into this relationship, showing that stiffness is not the only factor researchers should consider when studying this process.

The relationship between cellular adhesion and spread is a key factor in cancer metastasis. Better understanding of this dynamic would improve diagnosis of the disease and provide a potential target in combating it; reducing the ability of cells to grip their environment could keep them contained.

The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was led by Vivek Shenoy, professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and co-director of Penn's Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, along with Xuan Cao and Ehsan Ban, members of his lab. They collaborated with Jason Burdick, professor in the Department of Bioengineering, Boston University's Christopher Chen, the University of Michigan's Brendon Baker and the University of Hong Kong's Yuan Lin.

This collaboration reflects work of The Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, a National Science Foundation-funded Science and Technology Center that supports interdisciplinary research on the way cells exert and are influenced by the physical forces in their environment.

Previous work from Shenoy's group has shown that the relationship between cancer cells and the extracellular matrix is dynamic, containing feedback mechanisms that can change the ECM's properties, including overall stiffness. One earlier study investigated how cancer cells attempt to strike a balance in the density of the fibrous netting surrounding them. If there are too few fibers to grip, the cells can't get enough traction to move. If there are too many, the holes in the net become too small for the cells to pass through.

Their research has shown that feedback between the cells and extracellular matrix reshapes this network of fibers and is a key mechanism in cancer's spread. However, existing model systems for observing this process in the lab do not capture this feedback dynamic.

Cells are often cultured on top of hydrogel films. These gels are good for simulating tissues with different levels of stiffness, but they lack the fibers that are characteristic of extracellular matrix.

"It's widely believed," Shenoy said, "that stiffness is the only things that cells care about, but we're saying that's there's another dimension to this. Cells are constantly pulling on what is surrounding them, but," Burdick said, " when they are pulling on a static material like a hydrogel, that material doesn't change its stiffness in response."

Shenoy and his colleagues were interested in the points where cells actually bond to the surrounding matrix, known as focal adhesions. They developed a computer model that better simulates how the cells recruit new ligands that eventually form focal adhesions by altering the geometry of the matrix's component fibers.

In their model, cells are able to change the properties of the surrounding matrix when they pull on it. Specifically, they can break the crosslinks that hold the fibers together, allowing cells to change fiber density near their edges.

"Some fibers are drawn closer to the cells, which increases ligand density. Those are the parts they can grab onto," Shenoy said. "This means that the cell has more handles to hold on to. This is what doesn't happen if the model is static."

Working with Burdick and Chen, who have experience in creating custom three-dimensional hydrogels and fibrous networks with varied crosslinking, the research team ran physical experiments to validate their computer model. They created the fibrous hydrogels through an electrospinning process with subsequent photocrosslinking to link the polymers together. By creating fibrous hydrogels with different levels of crosslinks, the team was able to show that cells surrounded by matrices with fewer crosslinks were better able to draw in fibers and increase the number of focal adhesions around them.

"When you're engineering a synthetic matrix," Burdick said, "you have a degree of control over various properties of the material. For example, it is possible to tune the fiber mechanics by altering the level of crosslinking within and between the fibers."

Further research from the group will look into the timescales over which these dynamic processes occur.

"Natural physiology is extremely complex," Shenoy said, "so we need to break it down to smaller pieces. Unless you get these smaller pieces right, the rest of the model is not going to be accurate."

More information: Xuan Cao et al. Multiscale model predicts increasing focal adhesion size with decreasing stiffness in fibrous matrices, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2017). Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Xuan Cao et al. Multiscale model predicts increasing focal adhesion size with decreasing stiffness in fibrous matrices,(2017). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1620486114
Genes help shape intelligence, period. That's not new news, even though it continues to be a source of dispute for a number of reasons, mostly historical.

It's also not new news that no single gene, or even a small group of genes, govern intelligence. In past years, researchers identified a dozen genes associated with intelligence. Now a huge meta-analysis of studies on some 6  and 20,000 children has unearthed 40 more. So the total is now 52.

Six takeaways from the massive new study of genes for intelligence, published in Nature Genetics.

1. This study was not about genes for "intelligence," however you define "intelligence." It was about genes that influence the ability to do well on standardized tests aimed at quantifying cognitive abilities.

At earlier points in the history of Homo sap, "intelligence" might have meant being able to remember where and what time of year a particular tree would be festooned with fruit, or to read the landscape so as to track prey animals. Today, in much of the world, intelligence tests are a not-unreasonable surrogate for that squidgy concept, "intelligence."

For one thing, test scores correlate with other measures of success in modern life, such as educational achievement and good health and longevity. For another, let's be practical here, test scores were one kind of data available to the researchers who were studying another kind of data in their subjects: their genes.

2. There's still quite a way to go. Researchers believe thousands of genes could be involved in intelligence. (Not to mention thousandsmillions?of equally important environmental factors, nearly all of which await discovery.)

The researchers describing their new study think that the current haul of 52 genes accounts for less than 5% of variation in IQ scores, Ian Sample tells us at The Guardian. Each gene appears to have only a tiny effect on the ability to do well on intelligence tests.

3. Despite the massive number of people included, data obtained by merging 13 different past studies, all 78,308 study subjects were of European descent, Stephanie Pappas pointed out at LiveScience. Patterns of intelligence genes will probably be at least somewhat different in other ethnic groups.

4. What do these genes do? Lots of stuff. Not surprisingly, many are active in the human brain. "A couple seem to be involved in the controlled death of neurons that takes place as the brain is developing. But many others were more generally involved in development, either of the brain or other organs," says John Timmer at Ars Technica.

One puzzle is how genes active very early in development can contribute to test scores decades later. It appears that, to understand human cognitive abilities, we'll need to understand a lot more not just about neurons and the early brain but also about how the environment shapes intellectual development.

5. Some of the genes possess variants that figure in human disordersor protect against them. "Seven genes for intelligence are also associated with schizophrenia; nine genes also with body mass index, and four genes were also associated with obesity. These three traits show a negative correlation with intelligence. So, a variant of a gene with a positive effect on intelligence has a negative effect on schizophrenia, body mass index, or obesity," first author Suzanne Sniekers told GEN. Some of these genes seem even to discourage smoking or make it easier to quit.

Some genes were associated with the autism spectrum and height. Others seem somewhat protective against Alzheimer's, depression, and neuroticism. "So these clearly aren't "genes for intelligence," per se; they're genes that influence a broad range of biology, some of which influences how we perform on intelligence tests," Timmer observed.

6. Not likely to be possible for a long time but always fun to ponder: Future consequences of intelligence gene studies might include drugs and maybe other treatments to boost intelligence or prevent its opposite, Sample speculated. Or what about delaying cognitive aging and identifying learning strategies most suitable for particular students?

And, of course, a topic discussed here just last week: designer babies. With designer IQs.

Provided by PLOS

This story is republished courtesy of PLOS Blogs: blogs.plos.org.
Fatal shootings of civilians by police officers are less common in states with stricter gun laws than they are in states that take a more relaxed approach to regulating the sale, storage and use of firearms, new research says.

A study published this month in the American Journal of Public Health has found that fatal police shootings were about half as common in states whose gun laws place them in the top 25 percent of stringency than they were in states where such restrictions ranked in the bottom 25 percent.

The new findings draw from an analysis of 1,835 firearms-related deaths involving a police officer in the United States - all such fatalities reported in the 22 months following Jan. 1, 2015. It found that, of 42 laws enacted by states, the ones most strongly linked to lower fatal police shootings were those that aimed to strengthen background checks, to promote safe firearm storage and to reduce gun trafficking.

"We suspect that because these states have more robust gun laws, they're better able to keep guns out of the hands of the wrong people," said the study's lead author, University of Indianapolis psychology professor Aaron Kivisto. The likely result, he suggested, is that police in such states "are just less likely to encounter people in circumstances where they shouldn't have a gun."

The association held up even after researchers accounted for state differences in the density and demographics of its citizens.

The study results add to a broad pattern of findings about states' rates of gun ownership, which largely rise and fall along with gun-related suicides, accidental firearm injuries and domestic violence deaths.

New Mexico, Wyoming, Alaska, Oklahoma and Arizona led the country in rates of fatal police shootings, which were calculated as the number of such deaths per 1 million state residents. All but Oklahoma had among the most relaxed gun laws on their books.

Rhode Island, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Illinois were among the states with the lowest rates of officer-involved fatal shootings. All had gun laws that placed them among the nation's most restrictive states.

But not all states fit the pattern. California was especially unusual, Kivisto said: Though the state claimed the No. 1 position for stringency of gun laws, its rate of fatal police shootings during the study period was much higher than the national average. In fact, the rate of officer-involved gun deaths in California fell between those of South Dakota and Alabama, two states with some of the scantest restrictions on the sale, ownership and use of guns.

Kivisto suggested that for some states, including California, statutory efforts to stanch the supply of guns on the streets were probably being undermined by gun trafficking from neighboring states. Arizona and Nevada have gun laws that are among the nation's least restrictive (as well as rates of fatal police shootings that are well above the norm).

"A state can have the strongest gun laws possible, but it can't stop guns from flowing across state boundaries," Kivisto said. "One of strongest arguments for federal gun laws would be that some uniformity may be needed to stop guns flowing in from other states."

Other states bucked the national pattern by maintaining both few gun restrictions and low rates of officer-involved fatal shootings. This group included Maine, North Dakota, New Hampshire and Indiana.

Kivisto and his co-authors did not rely on Justice Department statistics of police-related shootings, since states are not required to report those.

Instead, the researchers relied on a running tally of officer-involved fatalities maintained by the British newspaper the Guardian, a source that is considered comprehensive.

In addition to verifying and chronicling the time, location and circumstances of the shootings, the Guardian's database, called "The Counted," also documents the gender, race and ethnicity of those killed, whether he (96 percent of those killed during the study period were male) was armed, and by what mechanism the person was killed (for instance, by Taser, by firearm or struck by a car).

Of 2,021 fatalities during the study period, 1,835 were killed with an officer's gun. And in 53 percent of those cases, the person killed was also armed with a gun. Individuals from racial or ethnic minorities made up just more than one-third of those slain.

2017 Los Angeles Times

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The United States might ban laptops from aircraft cabins on all flights into and out of the country as part of a ramped-up effort to protect against potential security threats, US Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly said on Sunday.

In an interview on Fox News Sunday, Kelly said America planned to raise the bar on airline security, including tightening screening of carry-on items.

Thats the thing that they are obsessed with, the terrorists, the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if its a US carrier, particularly if its full of US people.

Washington imposed restrictions, in March, on large electronic devices in aircraft cabins on flights from 10 airports.

Kelly said the move would be part of a broader airline security effort to combat what he called a real sophisticated threat. He said no decision had been made as to the timing of any ban.

We are still following the intelligence, he said, and are in the process of defining this, but were going to raise the bar generally speaking for aviation much higher than it is now.

Airlines are concerned that a broad ban on laptops may erode customer demand. But none wants an incident aboard one of its airplanes.

Whatever comes out, well have to comply with, Oscar Munoz, chief executive officer of United Airlines, told the companys annual meeting last week.

Airlines were blindsided in January when President Donald Trump issued an executive order banning entry for 90 days to citizens from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, sending airlines scrambling to determine who could board and who could not. The order was later blocked in the courts.

In the case of laptops, the administration is keeping the industry in the loop. Delta Air Lines said in a statement it continues to be in close contact with the US Department of Homeland Security, while Munoz applauded the administration for giving the company a heads up.

Weve had constant updates on the subject, he said. We know more than most. And again, if theres a credible threat out there, we need to make sure we take the appropriate measures.

Among the enhanced security measures will likely be tighter screening of carry-on items to allow Transport Security Administration agents to discern problematic items in tightly stuffed bags.

Kelly said that in order to avoid paying fees for checking bags, people were stuffing them to the point where it was difficult to see through the clutter.

The more stuff is in there, the less the TSA professionals that are looking at whats in those bags through the monitors can tell whats in them.

The TSA has begun testing certain new procedures at a limited number of airports, requiring people to remove additional items from carry-on bags for separate screenings.

Asked whether the government would expand such measures nationwide, Kelly said: We might, and likely will.

Al Jazeera
Japanese minister caught in scandal for talking about death penalty

UN General Assembly draft resolution requires Russia to pay reparations to Ukraine

Deputy: Russian side is informed about importance of withdrawal of Azerbaijani units from the territory of Armenia

State Duma deputy: We can't imagine Russia without Armenia

Georgian PM and Armenian Ambassador discuss cooperation issues

FLYONE ARMENIA to start flights between Yerevan, Dubai

Kyodo: Emperor of Japan revealed to have prostate hyperplasia

Iranian intelligence urges Saudi Arabia not to test Tehran's strategic patience

Kazakhstan intends to ship 1.5 mln tons of oil via Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline

Former Ombudsman: 2,700 ha of Kapan community of Armenia's Syunik Province are under occupation by Baku

Japan and the US begin major joint exercise

Armenia soldier sustains gunshot wound from Azerbaijan shooting

PM: If anyone thinks peace agenda is peaceful annihilation of Armenia or Karabakh Armenians, they are sorely mistaken

Armenia Premier: We have 16 missing persons since September 13 military aggression by Azerbaijan

Bitcoin is trading just above $16,000

Armenias Pashinyan: Spreading of fake news by Azerbaijan becomes prelude to new aggression

Armenia PM: Azerbaijan, with its practices, reminds of Al Qaeda and Islamic State, which discredit Islam

PM: Armenia, Karabakh propose Azerbaijan to create demilitarized zone

Pashinyan: There is no Armenia army in Karabakh

Pashinyan: Armenia is going to present new proposal to Azerbaijan

Biden says he will discuss Ukraine conflict at G20 summit

Pashinyan: Armenia has no obligation to construct new roads

Pashinyan: Aliyev not only threatens but is already preparing genocide of Karabakh Armenians

Armenias Pashinyan: Azerbaijan president is attempting to create invented grounds for closing Lachin Corridor

Erdogan tells what relations between Turkey and Armenia depend on

Iran says it has developed first hypersonic ballistic missile

Armenias Pashinyan: Russia peacekeepers are deployed in Karabakh indefinitely

FM Lavrov to head Russia delegation at G20 summit

Erdogan: Ankara continues mediation efforts to resolve Ukrainian crisis

IAEA head: Talks on Iran's nuclear program ended inconclusively

Armenia PM: Aliyev grossly violated tripartite written agreement of Sochi

This year 320 people seek asylum in Armenia, 213 are from Ukraine

Erdogan speaks on trusting relationship with Putin

Gold prices remain stable

Ombudsperson in Brussels, reflects on top Azerbaijan leaderships policy of Armenophobia

Indonesian authorities: Putin won't come to G20 summit in Bali

World oil prices falling

Washington demands part of Israeli Arrow 3 for sale to Germany, be produced in the U.S.

Armenia Security Council chief meets with Lithuania officials

Armenia FM heading for Paris

Egypt launches Tax Free system for foreign tourists

Washington, Brussels don't approve German plan to resume transatlantic trade talks

Newspaper: Armenias Mirzoyan makes it clear to Blinken that wording Artsakh should be included

Newspaper: Armenia parliamentary opposition decides to return to legislative body

Volkswagen releases office chair with electric motor and klaxon

Israel reveals Pulcinella secret, admitting that it used drones not only for surveillance

Poland and Slovakia will increase defense spending

Audi presents new crossovers Q8 e-tron

Benny Gantz: Israel has an opportunity to strike Iran's nuclear facilities

France National Assembly speaker reaffirms solidarity with Armenia, Armenians

Samvel Babayan: Russia will withdraw peacekeepers from Nagorno-Karabakh

Hungarian government sets price ceiling on eggs and potatoes

Benny Gantz: Israel does not have the production capacity to supply Ukraine with air defense systems

Germany must adopt energy-saving measures in face of skyrocketing inflation

Beglaryan: Azerbaijan continues and will continue its policy of genocide and hatred against the Armenian people

Kiev believes it is too early to talk about withdrawal of Russian troops from Kherson

Raisi: Relations between Tehran and Moscow have a bright future

Taliban virtue representative kills minor for refusing to marry

Meeting held at Ministry of Defense

Kaljurand: A fair peace agreement, that will guarantee the rights and security of the Nagorno-Karabakh people, is needed

ATMs closed at night in Germany because of increasing number of break-ins

Moldova to request 450 million from EU amid fears of stopping Russian gas supplies

Kazakhstan plans to make knowledge of Kazakh obligatory for obtaining citizenship

Vladimir Putin to visit Armenia

Ayoob Kara: Israel and Azerbaijan must act together against Iran

Macron: France ends its military mission in Africa

Military forces of Georgia, Azerbaijan and Turkey take part in Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline protection exercise

Shoigu orders withdrawal of troops across Dnieper River

Swedish parliament will vote to change constitution for NATO membership on November 16

Reactor at nuclear power plant in southern Sweden stops unexpectedly due to turbine malfunction

Margaret Thatcher's dressing table case sells for $145

Zakharova comments on Azerbaijani attacks on Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh

Israel may reconsider its position on military aid to Ukraine because of threat from Iran

Tehran expresses readiness to play role in resolving conflict between Russia and Ukraine

Zakharova: Russia closely coordinates with Armenia and Azerbaijan on preparation of peace treaty

U.S. cut its oil production forecast in 2023

Gen. of Justice: Armenia is already going to abyss

MFA says Russia promotes comprehensive settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani relations

Australia to ban former military pilots from working in China

Ministry: 1,034 participants of 44-day Karabakh war declared disabled

Russian Security Council Secretary accuses Western intelligence services of organizing unrest in Iran

Niagara Falls is illuminated in colors of Azerbaijani flag through efforts of Azerbaijani Embassy to U.S.

'Armenia' bloc: Authorities going to peace at any cost legitimize change of power

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FT: Taiwan plans to establish drone production, allocated $1.6 billion

Azerbaijan's 'Horst Wessel' for Iran: Baku media replicates 'murder story'

Tesla recalls 40,000 electric cars because of problems with power steering

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Stoltenberg says NATO summit will be held in Vilnius on July 11-12, 2023

Iranian Interior Ministry: Organizers of riots in Iran were trained in 8 unfriendly countries

Europe fills its gas storage facilities almost 100% before cold season

Greece MPs visit Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Strasbourg city council adopts resolution on supporting Armenia

Ohanyan: We see hope in Armenia-Russia-Azerbaijan format regarding Karabakhs future

Turkey says it will not focus only on Russian gas

David Babayan says Azerbaijan makes propaganda against Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh

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AraratBank underwrites FINCA UCO bonds
CHICAGO  A 23-year-old woman rescued after a week lost in the Montana wilderness says she hesitated to retrace her path after seeing bear tracks over her old footprints.

Madeline Connelly was found May 10 after disappearing in the Great Bear Wilderness on May 4. She said in interviews this week that she drank water from creeks and ate glacier lilies for food. She says her dog, Mogi, kept her warm at night and woke her up in the morning.

The Chicago-area native was visiting her uncle in Montana on the way to a job at an Alaska bakery and said she saw a search helicopter at one point, but it flew off. Connelly, who isn't a camping and hiking novice, said she cried but tried to stay positive even though she was often freezing and had to hike through thigh-deep snow.

"I tried to keep myself calm," she said. "I think that first night was the scariest. But the moon was out and I wouldn't let myself get sad or scared. It was so beautiful. There were times I woke up screaming  and it must have been my subconscious  but I never let myself feel that."

Her parents, John and Laura Connelly of River Forest, Illinois, went to Montana to look for their daughter. They found her camping equipment in the back of her car parked at the trailhead.

"It was just brutal because we knew she was out there in the wilderness," John Connelly said. "It really hit us."

The day she was rescued Madeline Connelly said she saw the tops of searchers' heads at the bottom of a hill. She yelled to them and asked if they were hikers. She said she was stunned when one asked if she was Madeline Connelly and became emotional when they told her, "The whole world is looking for you."

One rescuer, Flathead National Forest worker Jacob Jeresek, said Connelly wanted to hike out of the woods herself but eventually agreed to be flown to safety.

"I think her mindset was that she had been on this great journey and wanted to end it on her own terms," Jeresek said.

Connelly said she was crying and hugged and kissed her family when she saw them after she was rescued.

"I definitely was apologizing for putting them through this," she said.

She has scrapped her plans to work in Alaska and is spending rest of her summer in Montana instead.
By Maria Hovsepyan

In an interview with Armenian News-NEWS.am Armenian-American rock musician, keyboardist Derek Sherinian tells about his reconnection with his Armenian relatives, his music career and Armenian rock bands.

Which visit is this to Armenia?

I think its the fifth or sixth one.

You started visiting Armenia once you found and reconnected with your family here due to the famous 100-year-old photo of your grand-grandmother Elizabeth Yazidjianshowing two young women from a band of fighters during the Turkish massacres in 1915. Is that right?

No. Thats actually wrong. I played here a few times with concerts and then three years ago when I was here during the 100th commemoration of the Genocide. I always posted the famous photo of my great grandmother with the gun and I posted it on Facebook and the following day I got a message on Facebook from a woman saying that she believed that she is my cousin and that that woman on the photo was her grandmother and so we talked a little bit and I realized that she really was a relative and she told me that my great grandmother was buried in a cemetery here in Yerevan and so we met the next morning and she took me up there. I was leaving back to America that day and it was magical that I connected with my family and I was able to go see the cemetery. I saw them again last year when I came for Aurora and this year I saw them again. It was very nice.

What has this reconnection changed in your life?

Its just nice to know I have a family half way across the world and even though Ive never met these people there is love and connection and its great to be able to come here and spend time with them whenever I come back to Hayastan.

What stirred inside you a desire to find out your deep roots?

The picture speaks loudly for anyone if you are Armenian and you see that image to see a woman have to fight is a pretty heavy duty. That photo has been with my family for years and it had a lot of meaning to me. WE always wondered what happened to her and never knew. So to be able to go to her grave is very special.

Are you happy about your Armenian identity? What does it mean to you?

Absolutely yes. Im just very proud of my heritage and being Armenian and I love coming here. The country is always very warm, people are always very warm to me. Its what I am.

Has it somehow influenced your music?

I think the Armenians are strong people and we are resilient. We dont give up. That was very powerful to me trying to make it in music, and I would always thin about the struggle my great grandmother had to go through and to be strong and it gives me strength. I think we are strong people and that always helps in life.

You were tapped by Keyboard Magazine as a Keyboard Hero for A New Generation. You worked with Alice Cooper, Billy Idol, YngwieMalmsteen, played keyboard instruments for five years at Dream Theatre and performed in Black Country Communion supergroup. You were very successful in your career as a rock keyboard player. What would you define as success? What played a key role in your success?

I think the determination and the love for what I do and the fact that I consistently stayed at it and never gave up. And I would say that to anyone who wants to go to music or any field that if you really love what you do and you work really hard at it, if you stay with it long enough in time something good will happen. Might be faster for some people and might take long time but youll eventually get there.

What are your priorities for life and yourself? Are you a demanding person? Is that also part of your success?

Im demanding to myself. I have high expectations of my performance and Im demanding to people that I work with. I expect them to work as hard as I do and I think thats important.

What would be your message to young keyboard players and musicians in general?

As I said, stay with it. If you really love what you do and believe in yourself stay with it and make sure you play the style, the music that you love. Thats the most important.

What is a keyboard for you? Why have you chosen that instrument?

Its just me. I started with a piano from my parents house and grew into keyboard.

What are your political preferences? What do you think America will gain or lose with Trumps presidency?

Honestly I think they are all horrible. None of them impress me. Ive seen a lot of presidents come and go and whether its a Democrat or a Republican, it really doesnt make a difference on how much money I make. If I work hard, I will do well and the President doesnt really make a difference. Its really tough our country is really divided now because of Trump. There are people who hate the guy and there are people who love him. Its tough but Ive learned to not really discuss politics because my attitude is if there are 100 fans I want all of them and once I take a position I lose half of them.

You collaborated with the Dream Theatre. How does your collaboration with them look like now? Do you still have any connections with the Dream Theatre?

I was in the band may be 20 years ago but Ive recently reunited the ex-drummer Mike Portnoy, the ex-founder of the band and we have a new project or a new band thats going to be launched in August. I cant really talk many details but we are very excited about it and its going to a progressive metal music in the style of the Dream Theatre but more attitude and we are very excited to put this record on in August. This is the latest project Im doing and Im very excited about it. We are ready to announce it.

Are you familiar with the local Armenian rock bands?

I sure am. I had the pleasure in 2008 to work with the Dorians, a great Armenian band. Gor is fantastic, a great talent and Id like to see him become a great success even beyond here in Armenia because I think that he has the rare gift of beautiful voice and Ive seen how he is with crowds and people love him and he needs to be heard.

Ive also had the pleasure of collaborating with the great DjivanGasparianwho has played on one of my records and he invited me for his 80th birthday party and I was able to perform and that was awesome.

Do you have any plans of collaborating with them in the future?

No plans but Im always open to hearing and working with new talent whether Armenian or not doesnt matter. Im always attracted to working with a talent.

Your wish and your message to Armenian people in general.

Im honored to be here. I wish everyone happiness and good health and I look forward to playing here again.
YEREVAN.  Vice President of the National Assembly (NA) Armenia, Eduard Sharmazanov, on Monday received Belarusian Ambassador Igor Nazaruk.

Sharmazanov underscored the need for a consolidated work between Armenia and Belarus and supporting each other at international platforms, the NA informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

Also, he stressed that Armenias parliamentary delegation to the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) supports an exclusively pacific settlement of conflicts, especially of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflictwithin the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. In this context, Sharmazanov expressed the conviction that the MPs of the CSTO member countries need to adhere to the CSTO official position.

As per the NA deputy speaker, the deepening of parliamentary relations will enable to further develop Armenia-Belarus economic ties, as well.

Ambassador Nazaruk, for his part, assured that the collaboration between the parliaments of the two friendship countries will continue to develop further.

The Belarusian diplomat likewise highlighted the need for the Karabakh conflicts pacific resolution within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group.
Typing of key words of certain kind and number is no longer a guarantee for the upward advancement of a website in Google.

Founder and CEO of Simple Solutions, Gor Karapetyan, told the aforementioned to Armenian News  NEWS.am at BarCamp IT forum held in Yerevan.

Google periodically updates its strategy of website search priority that is why those who can skillfully play with key words and used to ride on the wave, are now sliding down. Google is switching from key words to key concepts and is trying to better distinguish naturally written texts, he said.

The attempts to deceive the search engine also do not live long, Karapetyan added. There are methods to do so that the user sees one thing, whereas the Googlebot gets a set of key words for the website to have a high ranking. Such attempts were made in Armenia as well, but the search engines discover them and move the websites down.

As to the choice between a website and Facebook page, businesses, especially startups, limit themselves to the second.

There it is possible to create an actually fully-fledged page for business with the parts About company,Services, Feedback, etc. That is, a totally free page, which, however, can be seen only within Facebook. The search engine can show it but without any additional information. Therefore, less people will visit it.

Thus, it is necessary to study ones target audience. It is highly unlikely that your potential clients use only Facebook or search engines, Karapetyan said.
Canada Aids Antimicrobial Resistance Research Work

Health Canada also this month announced changes to the Food and Drug Regulations that will better protect Canadians against the risk of antimicrobial resistance by better controlling access to veterinary antimicrobial drugs for food-producing animals.

Saying "superbugs" are among the most significant health threats to Canadians and others around the world, the country's health minister, Jane Philpott, last week announced $1.39 million is being provided by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to support five research teams working to advance innovations in point-of-care diagnostics, with the goal of implementing the best diagnostic tools in health care settings and the right use of antibiotics.

The money is part of the investments the government of Canada has made in the past year on research to address the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR)

For example, Health Canada this month announced changes to the Food and Drug Regulations that will better protect Canadians against the risk of antimicrobial resistance by better controlling access to veterinary antimicrobial drugs for food-producing animals.

The government also has endorsed the Global Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance and is working with provincial and territorial partners to finalize a Pan-Canadian Framework on Antimicrobial Resistance and Antimicrobial Use in Canada. It will guide collective action in tackling AMR and identify opportunities for action under four pillars: surveillance, stewardship, infection prevention and control, and research and innovation.

"Addressing AMR requires sustained efforts across multiple sectors and organizations domestically and internationally. It is only through our collective actions, including this investment in diagnostic research, that we will make real progress in mitigating the threat of AMR," Philpott said. "The government of Canada is committed to ongoing collaboration with our partners and to taking action to ensure that antimicrobials will continue to be an effective tool in protecting the health of Canadians."

With no action, it is estimated that by 2050, annual worldwide human deaths attributable to AMR could reach 10 million, according to the agency.
This is the third in a five-part Madison365 series highlighting Wisconsin residents of Latino heritage who have accomplished great things and made a real impact in business, education, government, media and the nonprofit sector. Read part 1 here and part 2 here.

Para leer en espanol, haga clic aqui.

Dr. Victor Macias Gonzalez

Dr. Victor Macias Gonzalez is a professor of history at UW-La Crosse focused on Latin American, Mexican, Latina/o, and Gender and Sexuality History and cultural history, especially 19th century Mexico. In addition to teaching, advising, research, and service duties in the Department of History, he is affiliated with the Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. From Fall 2009 to Summer 2016, he directed the Eagle Mentoring Program, a retention initiative for historically underrepresented, underprivileged second-year students majoring in the College of Liberal Studies. He was named Wisconsin Professor of the Year in 2013.

Jessica Cavazos

Jessica Cavazos took the helm at the Latino Chamber of Commerce of Dane County last fall. She was formerly the president of the Milwaukee-based Eleva Group, an organization whose mission was to create social programs, help nonprofits with governance issues and assist for-profit and nonprofit entities in implementing initiatives aimed at promoting actions that are both economically and socially beneficial. In addition to her work with the Eleva Group, Cavazos has extensive experience in government relations, policy, community engagement and business development. She also worked as a Congressional Liaison for eight years in the office of Congresswoman Gwen Moore.

David Muhammad

David Muhammad is a violence prevention manager in the City of Milwaukee health department, working to help young people interact with each other  and with law enforcement  in a productive and nonviolent manner. He helps organize events and programs to build what he calls a "holistic response to community trauma." He came to the City after a stint at the Greater Milwaukee Boys and Girls Club. Muhammad, who is of Puerto Rican heritage, is also one of the very rare Latino Muslims in Wisconsin.

Olivia Villarreal

Olivia Villarreal is a business partner in  and a driving force behind  Milwaukee-based El Rey Foods. Shes been working alongside her husband Ernesto, his brother Beto, and Betos wife Criselda since the company started as a small grocery in 1978. With revenue now over $74 million and more than 400 employees, its one of the largest Hispanic-owned corporations in Wisconsin. Olivia and her partners have grown El Rey from a small family-owned grocery store to a Hispanic food wholesaler and popular destination for groups of students and adults to learn about Hispanic culture.

Fred Gutierrez

Fred Gutierrez is a senior program officer at Greater Milwaukee Foundation, which provides more than $40 million in grants to community organizations and programs all around Milwaukee and the surrounding communities. Gutierrezs influence in the area goes all the way back to 1979, when he was instrumental in the founding of La Casa de Esperanza in Waukesha. He was La Casa executive director when it secured its first major grant in 1982 to build housing for the elderly  and faced serious opposition from neighbors. Gutierrez helped La Casa navigate those challenges, and the center continues to make an impact in lives each day through a charter school and many other programs for Latino children and families in the area.

Andres Gonzalez

Andres Gonzalez is vice president and chief diversity officer for Froedtert Health, responsible for overseeing the integration of diversity initiatives throughout the organization, including expanding workforce diversity and strengthening community relationships. Prior to joining Froedtert Health, Gonzalez was chief diversity and inclusion officer at Baystate Health System in Springfield, Massachusetts. He also spent five years at Cleveland Clinic as director of diversity, community outreach and supplier diversity. In both positions, Gonzalez created and championed programs and processes to foster and sustain cultural competence. Gonzalez has a masters degree in education and a bachelor of science degree in biology, both from Cleveland State University. He also has served as a diversity consultant for a number of national companies and organizations.
Maria Gonzalez bounced back and forth between stirring the Mexican hot chocolate and crushing peppers for the chicken mole for the volunteers helping renovate her house.

Gonzalez has lived in her Clarke Square home with her two children for more than 10 years. Without the means to repair her house on her own, she was excited to find out it was chosen to receive major repairs during the second annual Block Build MKE.

"People used to sell drugs on the corner, and when the cops would come for them, they would run through my backyard, and it ruined my fence," she said.

In addition to installing a new fence and a motion-sensor light, volunteers made minor beautification repairs to Gonzalezs house. She believes the home improvements will increase her safety. "My house was broken into three times in one month, so hopefully if they see a light, they will be scared away," she said.

Block Build MKE, an extension of Revitalize Milwaukee, brought together dozens of local sponsors and more than 400 volunteers on a recent weekend. Together, they rehabilitated and revitalized 30 homes on one block in Clarke Square. The homes benefited from everything from yard cleanup and painting, to repairs of plumbing, windows, electrical systems and flooring.

Revitalize Milwaukees mission is "to stabilize vulnerable neighborhoods and revitalize communities by providing free, critical home repairs, accessibility modifications and comprehensive services for low-income homeowners who are senior citizens, veterans and/or persons with disabilities."

For more than 15 years, Revitalize Milwaukee, formerly known as Rebuilding Together Greater Milwaukee, has completed home updates for about 1,700 homes and invested more than $12.5 million in Milwaukee-area housing.

"The work weve done hand in hand with the community has been life changing for the organization, the volunteers and the homeowners. It has been a great opportunity for people to come to collaboratively make change in the neighborhood," said Chief Executive Officer Lynnea Katz-Petted.

Alderman Jose G. Perez has called the project a "big win," adding, "Its a blessing to have an organization like Revitalize Milwaukee that is willing to help communities like Clarke Square. This type of community engagement is a powerful tool that brings people together, lets them know  that were in this together."

Of the 30 homes, 15 received critical repairs or accessibility modifications. Rhonda Cruzs home was modified to improve its accessibility.

Cruz has lived in Clarke Square with her husband, Ruben Cruz, for more than 30 years. Currently, her daughter and two grandchildren live there as well.

"We have been trying to remodel our house ourselves, but its hard. My 5-year-old grandson was just diagnosed with sensory autism, so we have a lot of other priorities that come before remodeling our house."

Volunteers installed alarms on the windows on the second floor or her house, where her grandson spends most of his time. "My grandson knows how to open the windows up there, and because of his autism, it scares us," said Cruz.

Tracy Johnson volunteered at the event with REACH (Real Estate Alliance for Charity). She said it felt good to work with volunteers in a neighborhood she doesnt visit often. "Ive heard about the Clarke Square neighborhood, but after today I have a new appreciation for how much people care about their houses and the neighborhood," added Johnson, president and CEO of Commercial Real Estate of Realtors Wisconsin.

"Events like this show people are involved in the community and that they want to see positive change," said Eliel Contreras, patrol officer for the Milwaukee Police Department. "When people participate in the community and show that they care, it helps reduce crime."
The Angelshark (Squatina squatina) typifies the fish most at risk of extinction: it grows to a large size and is cartilaginous, so it has characteristics which make it less resilient. Once common throughout Europe, it is now only found in the Canary Islands. Credit: Tony Gilbert

An international team of scientists led by the University of Aberdeen have discovered that large fish, which include many of the sharks, rays and skates of Europe, are the most at threat from extinction.

Marine fish are a diverse group of animals that play important roles in marine ecosystems, but are also a major food source for marine and terrestrial mammals, most notably humans.

A new study, published today (Friday, May 26) in Nature Ecology & Evolution, has shown that the bigger the fish, the more likely it is to be threatened with extinction. This is because they are more susceptible to threats such as overfishing due to growing slower, taking longer to mature and having fewer offspring, as well as being more sought after for food consumption or sport.

The team, which was made up of 44 researchers from all around the world, received funding from the European Commission (DG Environment) and the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland (MASTS) to carry out the study.

The study was part of a major effort to assess the extinction risk of fish carried out by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to produce the European Red List of Marine Fishes and saw the team assess over 1000 different species and the status of commercial fish 'stocks'. Further to this, the team aimed to find out if their data agreed with advice received from other government fisheries agencies.

Fishery agencies assess whether fish stocks are overfished or not, and provide advice on how much fish can then be taken from a stock to ensure that the stock is sustainable. This is when fishing quotas or catch limits are implemented.

The scientists studied the status of commercial fish stocks all around Europe and found a remarkable geographic contrast.

Dr Paul Fernandes from the University of Aberdeen's School of Biological Sciences, explains: "In the northeast Atlantic in 2014, almost twice as many stocks were sustainably fished as overfished, 8 stocks were recovering (the fishing rate is not high, but their populations are small); and 19 were declining (their populations are healthy, but the fishing rate is now too high).

"However, in the Mediterranean Sea, almost all stocks examined in our study were overfished (36 of 39) and not one was sustainable. This comes down to how the areas are managed and the unique nature of the fishing communities in the two areas.

"In the northeast Atlantic, there is a complex - and expensive - fishery monitoring and enforcement system, which sets quotas and other regulations to keep fish stocks healthy.

"In the Mediterranean, however, such monitoring and enforcement would be even more expensive, because there are many more fishermen scattered in many small fishing ports. Hence there are largely no quotas in the Mediterranean, only some protected areas and some limits on the amount of fishing time; the area also has more pressing economic and food security concerns.

"Through this study, we have highlighted two major issues for Europe's fish: the threats to large fish, and the overfishing problem in the Mediterranean. Europe is proceeding with a Blue Growth agenda, aiming to expand its use of marine space in aquaculture, mining, renewable energy, tourism and biotechnology, but as it does so it needs to take care of the large fish, the so-called 'megafauna', and improve fishery management in the Mediterranean."

More information: Paul G. Fernandes et al. Coherent assessments of Europe's marine fishes show regional divergence and megafauna loss, Nature Ecology & Evolution (2017). DOI: 10.1038/s41559-017-0170 Journal information: Nature Ecology & Evolution
A court order requiring the Los Angeles Zoo to exercise its elephants on soft ground and barring the use of electric shock was overturned Thursday by the California Supreme Court.

In a unanimous decision, the state's highest court said the taxpayers who obtained an injunction against the L.A. Zoo used the wrong legal vehicle to obtain results.

The highly technical ruling said a taxpayer lawsuit, which relies on rules of civil law, cannot be used to stop criminal conduct. The suit that led to the injunction against the zoo accused it of violating a criminal law against animal cruelty.

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge issued the injunction in 2012, ordering the zoo to exercise is three Asian elephants at least two hours a day on rototilled soil to reduce the impact on their legs and pads.

The injunction also banned the use of electric shock and a barbed stick known as a "bull hook" - disciplinary tools the zoo said it wasn't using and will not use now.

David B. Casselman, a Tarzana lawyer who worked on the case for more than five years without charge, said he would return to trial court to see if there is another way to obtain a similar injunction or ask the Legislature to overturn the ruling.

"What they are saying is, the taxpayer waste statute does not allow civil cases to pursue criminal conduct," he said.

Casselman said the injunction was necessary to ensure the zoo cared for its elephants properly.

"This is heartbreaking," he said. "I thought we had done something here to move the ball forward and instead the Supreme Court has allowed the zoo to take a step into the dark ages."

John Lewis, director of the L.A. Zoo, said, "We will continue to exercise them and provide the best care for our elephants."

The elephants are Billy, 32, and Tina and Jewel, who are in their early 50s, Lewis said. The average life span for an elephant in the wild or at a zoo is 45 years.

The Los Angeles deputy city attorney who represented the zoo was not immediately available for comment.

2017 Los Angeles Times

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Slavery has been illegal in every country since the last country to do so, Mauritania, criminalised the practice in 2007. But while slavery is illegal, it has not disappeared. Contemporary slavery in the form of indentured labour, debt bondage or domestic servitude still exists in many places  including the richest countries of the world.

In a startling personal piece, US journalist Alex Tizon recalled how when he grew up in the Philippines, an impoverished young woman named Eudoica Pulido, known as Lola, was brought to live with the family as their domestic help. Emigrating with them to the US, with no room of her own, no pay, and no way of returning to her homeland, she suffered verbal and physical abuse from Tizon's parents. Others were told she was a visiting relative, and she had no one to turn to for help save for her employers' children. She was effectively the family's slave.

If this sounds like an exceptional case, research on the conditions for migrant domestic workers in the UK reveals that the reality of domestic work should make us all uncomfortable.

Perspectives from the Philippines

Domestic work is difficult to regulate. Employers often describe workers as "one of the family", but this often hides unpaid wages, restricted movement and forced overtime. In the Philippines, domestic workers like Pulido are not bought and sold, but they are as effectively indentured as slaves. They work for their food and lodging and receive a small allowance, but this is never enough for them to leave their employer. Most is sent back to their own family.

Migrant domestic workers, in contrast, rarely owe money to their employers directly. They pay brokers, agents, and governments for services, and repay loans to banks, finance companies, loan sharks and relatives instead. Like Eudocia Pulido, to repay these debts they must often forgo a personal life, intimate relationships, raising children and honouring family obligations.

Pulidio's family still lives in poverty in rural Tarlac. They thought Pulido was living a comfortable life in America. Perhaps she was working to repay the cost of her ticket? Perhaps she had forgotten them?

Pulido only sent money home years after her departure, when Alex Tizon, her employers' son, gave her a weekly allowance. Following the death of Tizon's mother, she lived with Alex and his family in the US until her death. Her relatives in Tarlac never saw the money or boxes of goods and gifts they anticipated. Hoping to better their own lives, they intend to migrate for domestic work, too.

As Filipinos debate reparations for Pulido's family, they are also considering the way they treat their own domestic workers. Tizon's story took an unflinching look at the sacrifices middle-class families require from their "help". Despite the risks, other Filipino women continue to seek similar domestic work situations overseas, and of the potential destinations, the UK is reputed to offer the highest wages.

Lian Buan interviews Eudocia Pulidos family.

Irregular migrants

In the UK there are limits on jobs in domestic work for migrants from outside the EU. Domestic Worker visas allow non-European workers to enter with their employer and stay for only six months. Migrants on this visa often experience non-payment of wages, abuse and exploitation. The six-month limit makes it very difficult for them to change employers. And not all Filipino migrants doing domestic work hold visas.

When I interviewed Filipinos in London between 2009 and 2012, only two of 61 people I met held this visa. Most of my interviewees worked in London's informal economy for domestic services, but had arrived on student or tourist visas and then disappeared.

An estimated 32,000 Filipinos in the UK have irregular immigration status, augmenting 218,126 working visa holders, permanent residents and citizens, and their dependants. Irregular migrants are predominantly women and do in-home, cash-in-hand housekeeping, babysitting, cleaning and caregiving work. Their earnings go towards servicing debts, or to their families to send their children to school, provide medical care, improve their housing, and starting businesses. Some are still repaying debts incurred for previous contract domestic work in Hong Kong or Singapore, or care-giving in Israel.

Their irregular status means they struggle to access healthcare, are often underpaid, rent outside regulatory controls, and live in fear of being stopped, held and quickly deported by the UK Border Agency. Informal landlords, employers, and other migrants manipulate them by threatening to report them to the authorities. Facing low wages and precarious work, they depend on the goodwill of employers to sustain them  a situation that leads to them being exploited.

Irregular migrants can change employers to search for better-paid work and more generous conditions. A few of my interviewees received higher wages than workers in equivalent formal sector jobs, but across the group their situations varied widely. One, a teacher turned nanny-housekeeper, earned over 37,000 a year. Another, an accountant-cum-caregiver, faced destitution after her employer died. Both were servicing large debts to support families they hadn't seen in years, and if caught would be deported, unable to return to the UK for a decade.

Irregular migrant domestic workers are not quite slaves. Yet their circumstances may be closer to slavery than we'd like to acknowledge. The full life denied to Pulido is something Britain's irregular migrant workers also forego, because their debts limit their choices.

Working with Filpino NGO Kanlungan, our project team is exploring ways to improve conditions for Filipino migrants. Beginning with community arts workshops, the aim is to increase their financial literacy so they can avoid debt, while showing workers and politicians just how much  and how widely  their debt-fueled migration contributes to national development in the Philippines.

Here in the UK, we need to end systems that tie migrants doing domestic work to their employers so they have freedom to seek better working conditions. Where there is demand for migrant domestic and caregiving work, it should only be under formal, regulated working conditions. After all, post-Brexit the UK may find it needs to rely even more heavily on migrants from outside Europe.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

House and Senate lawmakers are hoping to push legislation to replace recently repealed Obama-era internet privacy regulations, a move by the Federal Communications Commission that has led to a tide of consumer complaints.

At least two Senate bills are being drafted to address the regulatory void and public outcry created last month when congressional Republicans repealed internet privacy rules issued by the FCC last year, using the Congressional Review Act. With the repeal, internet service providers such as Comcast and Verizon can use and sell their customers' online internet activity for marketing purposes unless consumers specifically request to opt out.

Republican Sens. Mike Lee of Utah and Steve Daines of Montana are working separately on legislation but may team up if their objectives align, according to a Lee spokesman.

"It's an issue that needs to be addressed," said the spokesman for Lee, a member of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. The panel's chairman, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., recently called for a bipartisan legislative compromise on internet privacy and the larger internet regulatory issue of net neutrality, which treats all internet traffic equally. The FCC has also started the process to roll back net neutrality.

At stake is a reshaping of the business model underlying the internet economy, which relies on advertising targeted to users based on information collected about their location and how they use the web. Stricter privacy rules would limit the ability to collect and share that information.

Rep. Marsha Blackburn, who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, roiled the internet industry last week with a bill that would require all internet firms to obtain advance consent before collecting and selling or sharing their users' information, such as the websites they visit.

The Tennessee Republican introduced the bill on May 18 to restore some of the internet protections.

Last year's FCC rules required internet service providers to obtain advance consent from users before collecting and using their information to sell advertising. Broadband providers complained, however, that this opt-in requirement put them at a sharp disadvantage to other sellers of internet advertising, such as Google and Facebook, which are allowed by the Federal Trade Commission to collect and use such information unless users object, or opt out.

Blackburn's bill would level the playing field by putting all internet firms under FTC jurisdiction but at a higher level of opt-in consumer protection. But the bill's stricter protections have sparked strong opposition from the Internet Association, a lobbying group representing Amazon, Facebook, Google and other major internet firms regulated under the FTC's looser privacy requirements.

Lee is considering whether to take the FTC's opt-out or the FCC's opt-in approach, according to his spokesman. "It's still too early," he said.

Daines is said to be working with Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., who also sits on Senate Commerce. Their press offices did not respond to requests for comment.

Blackburn's bill surprised the industry because it is similar to the FCC privacy rules whose repeal she advocated earlier this year.

"This bill has the potential to upend the consumer experience online and stifle innovation," the Internet Association said in a statement this week. "Policymakers must recognize that websites and apps continue to be under strict FTC privacy enforcement and are not in an enforcement gap, unlike other stakeholders in the ecosystem."

Lobbyists for the Internet Association met with Blackburn on Thursday to discuss her bill.

"I thought the Internet Association would be more supportive of protecting consumers," Blackburn said in a statement before the meeting. "If you ask the American people if they're ok with having less control over their online privacy so companies can sell their data - they'd say no."

The FCC is precluded by the Congressional Review Act from issuing new internet privacy rules that are substantially similar, and it has started a regulatory process to turn its current jurisdiction over internet privacy to the FTC.

No matter what the FCC does, legislation could be vital to resolving the issue because the FTC's ability to regulate internet providers has been thrown into doubt. A federal appellate court earlier this month upheld the controversial net neutrality rules, leaving Congress and the agencies to grapple with internet oversight.

2017 CQ-Roll Call, Inc., All Rights Reserved

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have developed a method which determines not only whether a chemical or substance is allergenic, but also how strong its potential for causing hypersensitivity is. This will aid in the establishment of so-called threshold values  or how much of a substance is safe to use in a product. Until now, the only way of achieving similar results has been through animal testing.

"We have to deal with the fact that industrial chemicals are present and necessary in our society, as are natural substances, some of which can also make us allergic. Testing their effects on health before using them in cosmetics, paint, cleaning products and others, allows us to replace them with safer substances and thereby avoid clinical symptoms. This way you can avoid making the corrections later on", says Malin Lindstedt, professor of Immunotechnology at Lund University.

There are gaps in our knowledge of how chemicals affect our health and environment. In recent years, the EU has therefore tightened legislation. The new rules will require companies to demonstrate that they have improved knowledge of up to 30 000 chemicals  without using animal testing. In addition to allergy testing these substances, the requirements include determining exactly how allergenic they are.

Malin Lindstedt and her colleagues expose human cells to various chemical substances. Using their own genetic analysis, called GARDpotency, they are able to determine how the cells of the body's immune system react: a strong allergic reaction, weak, or none at all.

"We have identified 52 biomarkers which can predict how potent an allergenic substance actually is. Based on how the genetic expression changes after exposure to the substance, we are able to make a comprehensive assessment. This predicts the strength with high accuracy", says Malin Lindstedt.

The researchers themselves are motivated by ethics  reducing animal experimentation  but also basic scientific curiosity. It is not only for ethical reasons that there is much to be gained by leaving animal experiments out, according to Malin Lindstedt:

"We want to know more about what triggers allergy at the genetic level. We are often asked 'how good is your model compared with the mouse model?' We don't want to compare ourselves with that model, for ethical reasons, but also because animal models are not sufficiently good at predicting allergy in humans."

The test is already being used to a limited extent. However, it has not yet been validated by the OECD, which is necessary for chemical producers to roll it out fully.

Food additives are the next area that Malin Lindstedt wants to examine more closely. According to her, we know far too little about whether additives affect genetic regulation in our immune cells.

The EU's Reach regulations tighten the requirements for registration, evaluation, permission, limitation and use of chemical substances. Since 2013, it is not permitted to allergy-test cosmetics on animals. Among other things, this also requires the potency of chemicals classed as allergenic to be determined. There is currently no other equivalent test available.

More information: Kathrin Zeller. The GARD platform for potency assessment of skin sensitizing chemicals, ALTEX (2017). DOI: 10.14573/altex.1701101
Photograph of Paisley Caves by Dr Lisa-Marie Shillito. Credit: Newcastle University

A Newcastle University expert is leading a new study which aims to resolve a longstanding debate about how and when people first came to the Americas.

Dr Lisa-Marie Shillito, a lecturer in landscape archaeology, is using a microscopic technique to analyse organic matter and sediment at the Paisley Cave archeological site in Oregon's Lake County, USA.

She is part of an international team including University of Oregon archeologist Dennis Jenkins, who is well known for his work in the caves.

He uncovered long-dried-out faeces, known as coprolites, that were later identified as being from humans based on the DNA they contained.

The coprolites, radiocarbon dated to as much as 14,300 years ago, distinguish the Paisley Caves as one of the earliest human occupation sites in North Americaone that predates by at least 1,000 years the Clovis culture, long considered the continent's oldest cultural tradition.

However, questions remain, particularly among archaeologists who advocate for the 'Clovis First' model for the peopling of the Americas.

Answering questions

The new study, funded by the UK's Natural Environment Research Council, aims to find the answer to those questions.

Dr Shillito will analyse organic matter and sediment in the soil of Cave 2 to confirm the age of the coprolites. By examining the concentration of certain types of lipidsorganic matter left by biological organismsthroughout the cave's sediment layers, Shillito and the team will assess how much movement has occurred over time in the archaeological deposits.

"Think of it as an archaeological excavation under the microscope," she said. "Intact blocks of sediments are set in resin and turned into slides for viewing under a microscope. This way we can visually examine the processes by which sediments have been deposited, and whether they have been subsequently altered. We can resolve the fine layers and establish precise sequences of events."

In addition to the lipid study, the team will take extensive sediment samples for additional analysis.

Well documented

Dr Shillito and project co-investigator Ian Bull, a chemist at the University of Bristol, have used this new combination of methods in past projects, including at the famous Catalhoyuk site in Turkey.

Shillito, Bull and Jenkins are joined on the project by University of Copenhagen geologist Thomas Stafford, who has been a key figure in developing the evidence for pre-Clovis North American settlement. Geoarcheology research associate Dr John Blong from Newcastle University's School of History, Classics and Archaeology, will be carrying out laboratory work.

"Thanks to years of detailed excavation data on the Paisley Caves' stratigraphy and archaeologynot to mention an archive of 1,800 coprolites curated by Jenkins at the Museum of Natural and Cultural Historywe have a well-documented context for conducting this investigation," said Dr Shillito.

"Based on the site's stratigraphy, we know there were a lot of people visiting the caves between 12,600 and 12,000 years ago," Jenkins said. "Did some of their DNA get flushed to deeper sediments via water activity in the cave? Is the DNA as old as the 14,000-year-old layer we found it in? Did the human DNA enter the cave by some other means like animal activity? These are the kinds of questions we'll be able to answer as a result of this project."
Osama bin Laden and his advisor Ayman al Zawahiri. Credit: Hamid Mir/wikipedia, CC BY-SA

What went though the mind of the suicide bomber Salman Abedi just before he blew himself up in Manchester this week, killing 22 people? We often dismiss terrorists as non-humans, monsters, at first. But when we learn that they were seemingly normal individuals with families and jobs, it's hard not to wonder about how their minds really work.

The search for a terrorist "personality" or "mindset" dominated psychological research in the 1970s and 1980s and remains a significant area for research today. A new study published in Nature Human Behaviour, which assessed the cognitive and psychological profiles of 66 Colombian paramilitaries imprisoned for committing terrorist acts, now argues that poor moral reasoning is what defines terrorists.

The idea behind such research is obvious  it's to identify stable, predictive traits or "markers" of terrorist personalities. If we could do that, we may be able to predict who will become a terrorist  and perhaps prevent it. But this type of research is viewed by many psychologists, myself included, with extreme caution. Researchers carrying out such studies typically use a myriad of psychometric measures, personality and IQ tests in various contexts. But there's no consensus on how useful these tests are.

And even if we did manage to pin down terrorist markers, what would we do with this knowledge? Would we all be tested across our lifespan? What would happen if we had a marker?

The term "terrorist mindset" is also problematic because it fuels the notion that terrorists are abnormal, resulting in knee-jerk endeavours to uncover the abnormality. For psychologists, abnormal suggests presence of a disorder, deficit or illness which makes terrorists "sick" or different. This idea seems plausible because it helps us come to terms with extreme behaviour.

But terrorist atrocities are undoubtedly the end of a chain of events which only achieve significance with the benefit of hindsight. By focusing on the event itself, how the terrorist was behaving at that time or how he/she may have been thinking in the immediate run up, our understanding becomes distorted. This is because the process of becoming a terrorist has been overlooked.

Study on Colombian paramilitaries

Of course it's not easy to get hold of terrorists prior to an attack. Most research therefore concerns terrorists that have been caught or are suspected terrorists. The new study did just this. Imprisoned Columbian paramilitaries completed a battery of social-cognitive tests, creating individual profiles  including assessments of moral cognition, IQ, executive functioning, aggressive behaviour and emotion recognition. They were then compared with 66 non-criminals.

The researchers found terrorists had higher levels of aggression and lower levels of emotion recognition than non-criminals. However, no differences were found between the groups for IQ or executive functioning. The biggest difference between the terrorists and the other group was seen in moral cognition  they found that terrorists are guided by an abnormal over-reliance on outcomes. The authors argue that this distorted moral reasoning  that the ends justify the means  is the "hallmark" of a terrorist mindset. They assessed moral judgement by asking participants to rate various stories according to levels of unjustified aggression.

The so-called Islamic State (IS). Credit: Alibaba2k16/wikipedia, CC BY-SA

The results are intriguing and seem intuitive. But we cannot be sure that this profile wasn't a result of their incarceration  we know that prison distorts cognition. If not, was it present from birth or did it develop in the run up to becoming part of a terrorist group?

These questions cannot be answered, yet they are fundamental. Headline statements from high-profile research of this nature can be misleading and counter-productive. Despite its appeal, there is no scientific support for the idea that terrorists are psychopaths or have a personality disorder. Often research is contradictory  some researchers argue that their findings show terrorists to be suicidal while others claim they are extrovert, unstable, uninhibited, aggressive, defensive or narcissistic.

In fact, psycho-pathological behaviours are more likely to conflict with a terrorist agenda than aid it  it after all relies on commitment, motivation and discipline.

The psychology of radicalisation

Many psychologists believe that the events which occur in the years before a terrorist attack, referred to as radicalisation, offer most in terms of trying to answer why a person might turn to political violence. However, the psychology of terrorism is not well advanced. There is little empirical evidence to support existing conceptual models  and they are often limited to particular extremist groups and ideologies.

More and more psychologists are now beginning to believe that a number of key psychological components are fundamental to the radicalisation process. These include motivation, group ideologies and social processes that encourage progressive distancing from former friends, for example. Rather than measuring to predict, we might be better off devoting resources to improve understanding of what motivates individuals to join the ranks of violent extremists. Is it the fundamental human need to matter that makes people seek out others who share their reality? Psychological evidence indicates the quest for significance may indeed be an important driver of extremist behaviour.

However, it is clear that a number of complicated factors are directly and indirectly related to radicalisation. Personality and cognitive performance may change over time and therefore seem irrelevant for prediction purposes. But it is important to note that many in society are vulnerable to being manipulated and managed by terrorist groups to perform terrorist acts because of a cognitive impairment, disability or mental illness.

Accepting that prediction may never be possible because of the complex, evolving nature of terrorism might improve the nature of research in this domain. Quality psychological research aimed at searching for markers of the radicalisation process, such as changes in dress, behaviour and social circles  which appear to have been present in the case of Abedi and others  may be fruitful. Indeed de-radicalisation schemes are increasingly important in the fight against terrorism.

Luckily, the more we find out about terrorists' quest for significance the better we can understand the identity and social issues that are fundamental to radicalisation. So there's every reason to be optimistic that psychology can be a powerful tool in the fight against terrorism.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
Once theyre ready, electronic sniffer dogs and neutron-emitting machines will quickly be able to check containers for illegal substances. Credit: Flickr/GlynLowe.com

Criminals who want to smuggle dangerous or illegal substances into Europe could soon find themselves foiled by a new set of high-tech anti-smuggling tools including an electronic sniffer dog and a machine that fires part of an atom at shipping containers.

The shipping industry is key to Europe's economy, with 3.8 billion tonnes of cargo loaded and unloaded at European Union ports per year. But it is facing a growing security risk as smugglers transport everything from drugs and explosives to counterfeit goods via the sea.

Now, a group of scientists are developing a set of inspection technologies that can check containers for illegal substances, radioactive material, weapons and chemical warfare agents. They can even spot if stowaways are concealed among the contents.

'The idea came about because customs officials need to check an ever-increasing number of containersfor this they need to check them fast without opening them,' explained Guillaume Sannie of France's Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA).

He coordinates the EU-funded C-BORD project, which is developing five tools for custom agents to inspect containers by building on technologies that are already in use, expanding their scope and developing new methods.

Evaporation-based testing is one tool in the C-BORD toolboxan electronic device made up of multiple highly sensitive sensors, each attuned to detect a different chemical substance. This is used to analyse the contents of the container, allowing the operator to detect illegal drugs, explosives, chemical agents. It can also detect people.

Electronic sniffer dog

Sannie likened the technology to an electronic sniffer dog. 'We sniff the particles inside the container and analyse them as a sniffer dog wouldexcept that unlike a sniffer dog the machine doesn't get tired.'

The team is also investigating an experimental technology for use when customs officers are still in doubt after using traditional methods such as X-rayswhich reveal the shape of an object but not its compositionand the electronic sniffer dog.

They use a machine known as a neutron generator to emit neutronsparticles that help make up the nucleus of an atomand then fire them at the container, in a similar way to taking an X-ray. By measuring the gamma rays produced as a result, customs officers can glean more information about the chemical composition of what's in the container.

The researchers are also investigating using high-energy imaging made possible by photofission, the process by which a nucleus splits after absorbing a gamma ray, to detect nuclear material. By measuring miniscule timings between high-energy pulses, it's possible to detect whether uranium or plutonium are present in the container.

Before the project finishes in October 2018, Sannie says the team will be testing its range of technologies at two portsRotterdam in the Netherlands and Gdansk in Poland as well as in Hungary, where the tests will take place on a land border.

Safe ports

With about 90 % of the European Union's external trade and 40 % of internal trade transported by ship, keeping Europe's ports safe from threats such as terrorist attacks or organised crime is also a challenge for authorities.

Here, IT and communications systems can play a role, according to the EU-funded SUPPORT project, which brought together 20 European organisations, including businesses, academia and port operators, with the aim of improving security.

The idea was to act as a forum for port stakeholders and security experts to form new standards for port security by sharing information and best practices on issues such as threat and vulnerability assessments, access control, inspections, monitoring and surveillance. The project also looked at standards for fence systems, alarms and CCTV that could be fine-tuned for individual ports, and came up with a set of guidelines and options for port operators to follow.

During the project, the researchers also developed and tested a new IT platform in the ports of Gothenburg in Sweden, Lisbon in Portugal, and Piraeus in Greece. This allows ports to share information on how their security officers can maintain or upgrade security measures and promote security awareness.

'In the end, a lot of the benefits of SUPPORT were about stopping theft and pilfering,' said David Griffiths, Research Information Manager at BMT Group Ltd, the UK-based company that coordinated the project.
- The Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has chided the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led federal government

- Akpabio said the APC failed to deliver on the basic needs of Nigerians in the last two years

- He said the party lacked the experience and technical-know-how to administer the country

The Senate minority leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has chided the APC-led federal government for failing to deliver on the basic needs of Nigerians in the last two years.

The former governor of Akwa Ibom state, who stated this in an interview with Thisday, said that rather than focus on how to fulfil its campaign promises to the Nigerian people, the ruling party spent two years blaming Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for its failure to perform.

Senator Akpabio advised the APC to stop the blame game and focus on delivering its campaign promises to Nigerians

He said: I believed that if it were PDPbetween 2015 and 2017, we would have made more significant progress.

A lot of plans have been outlined but, not much has actually been seen in terms of progress and delivering of campaign promises; most of the campaign promises have actually not been met.

But from a politicians point of views, I am just imagining that probably, we could have handled the recession better, if it were PDP and that is how I looked at it.

PAY ATTENTION: Read the news on Nigerias #1 news app

Akpabio accused the APC of lacking focus and experience adding that they were never prepared for the task before them.

His words: Before you go into government you must do a critical analysis of what you intend to do. You cant go and promise free education when you are not sure of whether you are ready.

Before you make promises to the people you must have done not just the detailed analysis of the economic situation of the government, but a review of the economic policies of the government.

So, if they say they underestimated the mess created or left behind by the PDP that means they, on their own part, were not prepared for governance.

He advised the federal government to place little emphasis about what happened in the past, turn things around and stop blaming the past administrations, saying there was no need for blame games.

We must accept that we have not been able to get the policies right. It is one thing to have the policies and its another to implement them well, he added.

APC national chairman, John Oyegun and the party members have always insisted that the party has done well

He continued: The summary is that many things have not stopped till today, a lot of unnecessary waivers are still being given by the federal government; importation of so many things is still going on. We cannot be producing rice in Sapele and importing rice from Thailand and expect the rice factory in Sapele to continue to work.

I think one of the things they have not done right, is the fact that, they are wasting human resources. We have so many reservoirs of experienced people who could have assisted the government.

READ ALSO: Nigeria inching towards another civil war  Pastor Tunde Bakare

Akpabio accused APC of not running an inclusive government and by extension not been able to follow strictly the issue of federal character to ensure that they tap the brains of all sections of the country.

Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo state is optimistic that President Muhammadu Buhari will be Nigeria's president for many years.

Governor Ajimobi made this known on Thursday, May 25 at the inauguration of the Ibadan Zonal office of EFCC.

His words: We are very lucky that we have a sincere and incorruptible man in President Muhammadu Buhari.

Buhari is the one Nigeria needs now. We thank God that he is there and he would be there for many years."

Watch Acting President Yemi Osinbajo talk about the Biafra war on Legit.ng TV below:

Source: Legit.ng
Qatar has deported a Saudi human rights activist who was on his way to Norway where he hoped to seek asylum, a watchdog said on Monday. Mohammed al-Otaibi, 49, fled to neighbouring Qatar in March after he had faced in Saudi Arabia charges related to his human rights work and was referred to an anti-terrorism court, the Gulf Center for Human Rights said in a statement. "At dawn, on 28 May 2017, Otaibi and his wife were forcibly deported to Saudi Arabia while on their way to Norway," said the Gulf Center, which has offices in Copenhagen and Beirut. It said Oslo had agreed to provide them with travel documents and the right to seek asylum as soon as they arrived. Qatari authorities confirmed the deportation, but said it had taken place on "Wednesday May 24". The official Qatar News Agency (QNA) said that the deportation had been confirmed by a foreign ministry source. "The extradition was... based on legal procedures and regional and international agreements relating to the extradition of accused persons and criminals," the agency said. First arrested in 2009, Otaibi in 2013 co-founded the Union for Human Rights in Riyadh. Authorities ordered it shut after about one month, but he continued his work, issuing reports and giving television interviews, the Gulf Center said. New York-based Human Rights Watch warned in April that Otaibi would be at risk of a long prison sentence and possible ill-treatment if forcibly returned to Saudi Arabia. On a visit to the kingdom early this month, a United Nations special rapporteur, Ben Emmerson, strongly condemned Saudi Arabia for using counter-terrorism legislation and penal sanctions "against individuals peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression", religion, or association. Saudi Arabia says that human rights are a matter of definition and "values" from one country should not be imposed. It says the kingdom has made great strides in rights to education, healthcare and other areas. The move to deport Otaibi comes at a particularly sensitive time in relations between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Reports last week said Qatar's leader, Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, made explosive remarks on state media criticising Gulf policy towards Iran, essentially putting Doha at odds with Riyadh. But Doha maintains the Qatar News Agency website was hacked and no such comments were made by the emir. The incident has pushed relations between the two countries to the lowest level for several years. Qatari news sites were subsequently blocked in countries across the region, including Saudi Arabia. In a further sign of a deepening rift between the two countries, the Saudi newspaper Okaz has reported that members of a prominent Saudi family demanded Qatar's state mosque, the Sheikh Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab Mosque, be renamed. The demand came amid questions over the Qatari royal family's link to Abdul Wahhab, co-founder of the Saudi state.
DECATUR  A Decatur woman told police she crawled on her hands and knees into a convenience store to escape a gun battle going on in the store's parking lot Friday night.

The 49-year-old woman had been parked in the lot of the Monroe Quick Stop, 1810 N. Monroe Street, about 9:20 p.m when she saw a black Chevrolet Tahoe sport utility vehicle with tinted windows pull in. The driver and several other men got out and began walking towards a parked car nearby and told the men inside it to get out and not drive away.

She said an occupant of the vehicle began to shoot at the driver of the Tahoe, said Sgt. Josh Sheets. The male driver of the Tahoe then began to shoot back at the occupants of the other vehicle. The woman witnessed this from her own vehicle and, after the first couple of gunshots, she opened her car door and crawled into the store to avoid being shot herself.

Witnesses who had seen the crawling woman thought she had been hit but Sheets said she was unhurt. She said she heard approximately 10 to 15 shots altogether and believed there were only two shooters, Sheets added.

Police swept the location for evidence and found five spent .45 caliber shell casings on the ground outside the store. Another four shell casings were recovered from the roadway in the 1800 block of North College Street; two were of .380 caliber and two were 9mm.

They did not locate any blood or any damage to nearby buildings, Sheets added. And at the time our report was filed, there had not been any reports from the hospitals of gunshot victims.
American Oriental Bioengineering, Inc. engages in the development, manufacture, and commercialization of various pharmaceutical and healthcare products. The company primarily provides prescription pharmaceutical products, including Shuanghuanglian Lyophilized Injection Powder under the SHL brand for the treatment of flu symptoms, such as high fever, cough, and sore throat, as well as upper respiratory infections, mild pneumonia, bronchitis, and tonsillitis; and Cease Enuresis Soft Gel under the CE Gel brand to alleviate bedwetting. It also offers over-the-counter pharmaceutical products comprising Cease Enuresis Patch for the treatment of bedwetting and incontinence; Jinji Capsule for the treatment of endometritis, annexitis, and pelvic inflammations; Jinji Yimucao for the treatment of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and other PMS and menopause-related symptoms; and Boke Nasal Spray for the treatment of sinus congestion from common cold, stuffy nose, chronic rhinitis, allergic rhinitis, and nasosinusitis. In addition, the company provides various nutraceutical products, such as soybean peptide based drinks, tablets, powder, and instant coffee. Further, it is involved in the wholesale and retail of pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products. The company sells its products directly and through distributors to hospitals, clinics, pharmacies, supermarkets, fitness centers, specialty nutraceutical stores, and other retail outlets in the People's Republic of China. American Oriental Bioengineering, Inc. is headquartered in Beijing, China.
National Bank of Canada provides various financial products and services to retail, commercial, corporate, and institutional clients in Canada and internationally. It operates through four segments: Personal and Commercial, Wealth Management, Financial Markets, and U.S. Specialty Finance and International. The Personal and Commercial segment offers personal banking services, including transaction solutions, mortgage loans and home equity lines of credit, consumer loans, payment solutions, and savings and investment solutions; various insurance products; and commercial banking services comprise credit, and deposit and investment solutions, as well as international trade, foreign exchange transactions, payroll, cash management, insurance, electronic transactions, and complimentary services. The Wealth Management segment comprises investment solutions, trust services, banking services, lending services, and other wealth management solutions. The Financial Markets segment offers corporate banking, advisory, and capital markets services; and project financing, debt, and equity underwriting; advisory services in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, and financing. The U.S. Specialty Finance and International segment provides specialty finance products; financial products and services to individuals and businesses in Cambodia; and investment solutions, guaranteed investment certificates, mutual funds, notes, structured products, and monetization. It provides its services through a network of 384 branches and 927 banking machines. National Bank of Canada was founded in 1859 and is based in Montreal, Canada.
The Sherwin-Williams Company develops, manufactures, distributes, and sells paints, coatings, and related products to professional, industrial, commercial, and retail customers. It operates through three segments: The Americas Group, Consumer Brands Group, and Performance Coatings Group. The Americas Group segment offers architectural paints and coatings, and protective and marine products, as well as OEM product finishes and related products for architectural and industrial paint contractors, and do-it-yourself homeowners. The Consumer Brands Group segment supplies a portfolio of branded and private-label architectural paints, stains, varnishes, industrial products, wood finishes products, wood preservatives, applicators, corrosion inhibitors, aerosols, caulks, and adhesives to retailers and distributors. The Performance Coatings Group segment develops and sells industrial coatings for wood finishing and general industrial applications, automotive refinish products, protective and marine coatings, coil coatings, packaging coatings, and performance-based resins and colorants. It serves retailers, dealers, jobbers, licensees, and other third-party distributors through its branches and direct sales staff, as well as through outside sales representatives. The company has operations primarily in the North and South America, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, and Australia. As of February 17, 2022, it operated approximately 5,000 company-operated stores and facilities. The Sherwin-Williams Company was founded in 1866 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.
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Did you know that happy employees are more productive? There are many reasons to put a lot of effort into making your employees happier including improving overall efficiency, building self-motivated team and turning them into brand advocates.

Surprisingly, money cannot buy employees happiness, so how to bring happiness into your office?

How to Build a Happier Team

Here are three things you can do to help your employees get more done in a day by making them happier.

1. Set up a More Productive, Healthier Working Environment

In America, we sit an average of 7.7 hours per day. This figure is similar in most Western countries, and at their highest in offices. This is also extremely unhealthy, and besides the obesity epidemic, it is causing a number of other health concerns such as debilitating, even fatal diseases.

To keep employees healthy and working effectively, invest into ergonomics office furniture, carefully plan the office design and decor.

Knoll is one of the leading ergonomics furniture advocates providing a lot of tools and resources for properly planning your office furniture.

Open office spaces have been found to be productivity killers again and again. Ideally, you could provide a private office for every employee, but this isnt possible for many companies. Instead, consider offering multiple spaces where employees can work, outside of their cubicle.

Overhead lights and computer screens are some of the most insidious health concerns facing people who work in offices. Human beings are meant to be exposed to natural light, not synthetic light. A study by Northwestern University even found that natural light in an office environment led to better sleep quality, duration, and other health benefits.

For Remote and Distributed Teams, Give Your Employees a Place to Meet and Collaborate

These days an efficient team doesnt have to be placed in one office, even in one city. You can unite global team within one team giving them access your company email from home, using document management solutions like Zoho and managing their time using a shared business dashboard like Cyfe.

But you may still want to consider giving your remote employees a place to regularly meet. One of the most cited studies by Nicholas Bloom and graduate student James Liang claims that remote employees working from home outperform the office workers.

But effeciency doesnt always mean happiness. Its been found by UN International Labour Organization that working from home may have negative outcome because longer working hours, higher work intensity and work-home interference may result in insomnia and stress.

Allowing people to work from home hasnt worked well for many companies including Yahoo and IBM. According to Yahoos Marissa Meyer:

People are more productive when theyre alone, but theyre more collaborative and innovative when theyre together

Employees can be fully engaged in offices, and for many companies that can be a key job performance enhancer.

So if the nature of your companys routine requires a lot of working together and youll find your remote team in need of more face-to-face communication, consider setting up a meeting place or remote office space where they can get together on a regular basis. To provide your distributed teams with alternative working environment, try sites like Offices.net allowing to find a comfortable fully set-up working place for your remote employees all over the world:

2. Keep the Employees Morale High with Company Outings

The company that plays together, stays together. There are numerous examples showing that field trips, company lunches, and nights-out have had the greatest effect on employee engagement levels.

At Internet Marketing Ninjas we make sure to have at least 1 company trip and multiple company outings a year. This have proved to boost companys morale and nurture more engaged and loyal employees.

Company outings may very well be combined with productivity too. As an example, Mustard Creative makes sure to get as many important things done at the company field trips as possible. They make plans about the future, define their goals and brainstorm new initiatives allowing all their employees to feel important part of the community.

we set some time aside to take a good ol field trip to reflect, set some goals and make commitments to our customers and each other moving forward.

3. Make Sure Your Employees Efforts Are Appreciated

Employees who feel appreciated are more engaged. Each employee beats to a different drum but most employees appear to strive public recognition.

According to a Westminster College study, when asked what leaders could do more of to improve engagement, almost 60% of respondents replied give recognition.

A study by online career site Glassdoor revealed that 69% of employees would work harder if they felt their efforts were better appreciated.

And whats a better way to make your team feel valued at work than to share their efforts with the whole world? Your website and social media accounts are the best places to share your team results.

Work on your companys About page to list as many employees as you can there.

Encourage employees to provide the author byline for each article they write on your website

Share your employees stories on your site. For example, Brafton regularly features their new and old employees in the blog spotlights

Include featured employees on your home page

Regularly thank and recognize employees in your social media streams. Here are a few business WordPress themes that help introduce your companys human talent to your audience in a fluid, elegant presentation. My favorite one is Allegiant which is free.

Having engaged and happy employees means a highly motivated self-driving team that is willing to contribute to the companys success as much as they can. Dedicate time and resources to making your employees happy and youll easily turn them into your most loyal brand advocates.
Canada  May 29, 2017  Richard Fidler

As expected, the 500 delegates to the congress of Quebec solidaire (QS), held in Montreal on May 19-22, voted to work toward a fusion with Option nationale, debated and adopted the remaining part of the partys draft program with few major amendments, and elected a new leadership headed by co-spokespeople Manon Masse and Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois.

Most of these achievements, however, were overshadowed by the debate on a proposal by some of the outgoing leadership that the party attempt to negotiate an electoral pact with the Parti quebecois (PQ) for the 2018 Quebec general election, as offered by PQ leader Jean-Francois Lisee, that would entail an agreement to abstain from standing candidates against each other in some counties (ridings) deemed winnable by the other party. After a passionate debate the congress voted by more than two-thirds to reject this proposal (Option B, as amended) and in favour of a resolution (Option A, as amended) proclaiming that Quebec solidaire aims for a genuine united front against austerity, for energy transition and for independence. [Ed.: for more information on these options see Bullet No. 1416.]

But no sooner was this debate over than Quebec solidaire was confronted with the need to clarify its own scenario for achieving independence and the strategic forces it looks to for this purpose. More on that later, below.

Sovereigntist Debate

In six points, the adopted resolution sets out these goals, which it presents as the QS response to a debate recently opened among the parties promoting independence, a debate usually referred to as one on sovereigntist convergence. That debate, conducted within a coalition of parties (including QS) in OUI Quebec (Organisations unies pour lIndependance), is not addressed specifically to electoral strategy in 2018, however. Instead, it is focused on developing a common strategy for a long-term fight for independence, the PQ having postponed debate on its pro-sovereignty option to a future election, probably in 2022.

Quebec solidaire, the adopted QS resolution says, takes the opportunity offered by the debate on sovereigntist convergence:

to reaffirm the principles underlying its existence as an alternative to the neoliberal policies implemented for the last 30 years in Quebec; to reaffirm that it rejects policies of cultural, ethnic or racial exclusion; to reaffirm that its political project aims not for the separation of a country but for the independence of a people through a political project that cannot be totally realized within the framework of Canadian federalism; and to reaffirm that it will link the national question with the issues of reform of our democratic institutions, the energy and climate transition, the protection of public services and social programs, and the fight against poverty and inequality on the basis of a feminist, inclusive and civic vision of the Quebec nation and in solidarity with the First Nations and their right to self-determination.

The resolution adds:

Quebec solidaire announces forthwith its intention to make the independence of Quebec one of the issues in its struggle during the 2018 general election and invites Option nationale to ally with it around this perspective. Quebec solidaire rejects the proposal of the PQ and its scheduled postponement of the fight for independence for many years; Failing a mutual agreement with Option nationale, Quebec solidaire will run candidates in all 125 Quebec ridings promoting parity of women candidates, including in major ridings. It will not form an alliance with parties that subscribe to neoliberal practices or policies of exclusion.

No Pact This Time, or Ever?

Much of the debate on the respective options centered on the record of the Parti quebecois, both in and out of government, as a party that since its founding in 1968 had abandoned its promise of making Quebec an independent sovereign and inclusive country with a progressive social agenda. Many delegates, particularly young women from minority ethnic communities and activists in the partys anti-racism committee, denounced the PQs sponsorship while in government recently of a charter of Quebec values that was designed primarily to impose a dress code on Muslim women if they were to be eligible for social services that are otherwise available to all Quebec citizens.

As I reported in a recent article, the debate on these options in the party in recent months has revealed a deep and wholly understandable reluctance of QS members to any association with the PQ which, they say, would tend to mask Quebec solidaires identity as a progressive alternative to the neoliberal parties, including the PQ, and undermine the QS attempt to build alliances between the party and some social and political movements that share the same inclusive vision.

This vision, as defined by the partys National Council in November 2016, included:

Quebec independence, an end to austerity, equality between men and women, recognition of the diversity of Quebecs population, support of First Nations and Inuit self-determination, an ecologist transition including an end to hydrocarbons development, and reform of the electoral system that would include representation of parties in the National Assembly in proportion to their respective share of the popular vote.

For many members this list of criteria, consistent with the pursuit of broader links to the indigenous population and progressive social movements, simply excluded the Parti Quebecois as a partner in an agreement like the one proposed by the PQ and the Option B supporters.

During the debate, a young delegate wearing the Muslim hijab said this was her first party congress but now, for the first time with the adoption of Option A, I can see myself as an independentist. A young woman of East Asian origin said she was a former PQ supporter but Option B was just a bet. Urging other delegates to vote for Option A, she said to tumultuous cheers that if it prevailed Im sure [PQ leader] Jean-Francois Lisee will blame it on the ethnics.

The QS congress was preceded by a very public campaign by the PQ and its supporters  not least the daily newspaper Le Devoir  to influence the QS debate in support of Option B.

What the PQ Proposed

Early in May, PQ leader Jean-Francois Lisee issued an open letter to Quebec solidaire signed by the PQs executive council promoting his proposal of an electoral pact between the parties that would help to elect the PQ to government with the promise that if elected the PQ would introduce a proportional representation regime for subsequent elections similar to the one proposed by Quebec solidaire, although without providing any details. However, since the 2018 election would be held under the existing first-past-the-post electoral regime, he said, the parties should sign his proposed pact.

This pact, he said, would be made around some common well-identified proposals, in particular the rejection of lower taxes, a reinvestment in health, social services, education for families, and justice; rejection of the proposed Energy East pipeline, and the establishment of robust measures to accelerate the ecological transition away from oil; ratification of the UN convention on aboriginal rights, strengthening of French as the language of work, and, as mentioned previously, reform of the electoral system.

Noting that an Option C in the QS debate proposed postponing a decision on an electoral pact to the QS convention next November, Lisee urged Quebec solidaire members to adopt his proposal at its May congress. Any delay, he said, would pose almost insurmountable obstacles since the PQ hoped to endorse the promised agreement at its congress in September when it would be adopting a revised program for the party that had already been adopted by its leadership.

Amir Khadirs Position

Shortly before the QS congress Amir Khadir, a QS member of the National Assembly and a supporter of Option B, published his own conception of the possible division of seats under an agreement with the PQ. It would have QS refrain from running in 21 ridings that the PQ considered winnable, while the PQ would not run candidates in nine ridings that QS deemed winnable  five in Montreal and four in regions outside the Metropole. This, Khadir said, was a one-off tactical proposal for 2018 aimed at possibly winning a proportional representation regime for subsequent elections. Quebec solidaire would be free at any moment to break this agreement if the political context and the decisions of the PQ, which he admitted could be problematic, necessitated it. However, he argued that the electoral mathematics had forced the PQ toward a less toxic progressivism on the identitarian plane and sometimes seems to make important concessions. (As to the claim of the PQs less toxic appeal to identity politics, see my note 3 below.)

Khadir acknowledged the fear by many QS members that an alliance with the PQ such as the one he supported would be perceived by many QS allies as an opportunist compromise, but he compared this maneuver to two recent experiences. One was French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchons probe of a possible agreement between his party France insoumise with the Socialist party candidate Benoit Hamon prior to the first round in the 2017 election. Although unsuccessful, France insoumise had demonstrated that the Socialist party, with its disastrous record in office, could not represent an alternative to Frances catastrophic political situation.

Khadirs other example of electoral maneuvers was Bernie Sanders campaign within the Democratic partys presidential primaries which he said, had brought many issues and progressive demands into public debate. And Sanders had never refrained from criticizing the record of the Democrats and the Clintons while they were in office. Similarly, he thought, Quebec solidaire could maintain an uncompromising critique of the PQ before, during and after the election.

All to no avail. Speaking midway through the congress debate, Khadir repeated these arguments but without the passion and determination for which he is known, admitting that he had been strongly affected by the members critique of the PQ during the debate and the confidence they displayed as to Quebec solidaires potential to project a real alternative to the neoliberal parties.

A Will for Real Change

That was also the spirit conveyed by the partys new leaders after the vote on alliances. Our congress, said Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois (GND),

opted for change. Our members decided to create a vast movement to transform Quebec. They decided to work with people who want a real change, working to achieve a government that is really progressive and independentist. The members dont want Quebec solidaire to serve as a stepladder to the Parti quebecois to help it attain power.

GND did not speak for or against either option during the congress debate, although he had earlier indicated his support for Option B, adding that he was prepared to await the next congress to settle the matter.

Manon Masse added that,

by voting for Option A [as she did at the last minute] the members told us today that it is not through electoral calculations that we will beat the Liberals in 2018. In some ways it is a vote of mistrust toward the Parti quebecois and its leader Jean-Francois Lisee. But it is also a vote of confidence toward Quebec solidaire as a party of the future. During our weekend debates, the delegates who rejected pacts with the PQ did so mainly on the basis of principled arguments. Those present noted this. Now we are aware of the responsibility that falls to us to explain this decision and to propose a new way to dislodge the neoliberals from power. That is why we hope to build a vast political movement that brings together the progressives well beyond Quebec solidaire. It is time to turn the page on the idea of electoral pacts.

Reactions to the Vote

Predictably, the congress decision was met with a storm of criticism, even derision, by PQ leaders and their supporters in the media. Le Devoir editorials and columnists speculated that now the PQ would be inclined to turn in its search for allies to the right-wing Coalition Avenir Quebec, a party with a large clientele among former PQ and Liberal supporters  an indirect acknowledgement of the opportunist nature of Lisees failed proposal to Quebec solidaire.

The critics also included some liberals of a progressive disposition who have worked with QS on election reform, such as the Mouvement Democratie nouvelle (MDN), which maintained a booth at the congress. Among others were two members of the panel headed by Nadeau-Dubois (Karel Mayrand and Alain Vadeboncoeur) that had toured Quebec months earlier to hear ideas from ordinary Quebecois on how Quebec could advance in the coming months and years. Mayrand, who is Quebec head of the David Suzuki Foundation, told Le Devoir that he was enormously disappointed with a party that wants to do things differently but reacts exactly like all the others.

In a Le Devoir op ed piece Jean-Pierre Charbonneau, a former PQ minister and speaker of the National Assembly, expressed his feeling of betrayal by Quebec solidaire. He had worked for a year with the MDN to get the PQ and CAQ leaders to agree to put proportional representation in their platforms for the next election, and now QS was renouncing a pact with them on the grounds that beating the Liberals was not a radical social agenda (projet de societe). Well, scrapping the old election procedure and creating a new political culture that would induce more collaboration through governmental coalition was for me a change of paradigm, indeed a projet de societe.

Some critics were more measured in their response to the QS congress decision.

Feminist blogger and columnist Francine Pelletier saw the debate on alliances as one between Idealists and Pragmatists, awarding them respectively a score of 1-0. Although she seemed more sympathetic to the QS realists who favoured an alliance with the PQ  a recurring debate like the cuckoo in the clock  she noted that more women than men held to the hard line against the PQ.

If ever you were still looking for proof that the PQ made the error of its life by playing the identity card, it was fully on display here. How can we ally with a party that arrays a part of the population against the others?, they said. More than mere wariness, among these women  notably racialized, and among the Anglophones  there was a palpable feeling of anger, fully shared by the meeting. And that was certainly the best argument for rejecting an alliance. Eleven years after its founding, the little left party has some solid bases where the Parti quebecois is lacking: among the minorities, among more and more Anglophones and among young people. It casts a wide net although not a deep one. Forming an alliance with the PQ risked endangering this diversity in addition to demotivating members who have laboured in the shadows for many moons. And agreeing to do the big mambo with the PQ, wasnt that precisely making the error charged against it? To turn ones back to ones principles out of pure electoral calculation.

On the other hand, Pelletier said, the men tended more to advance strategic arguments: the proposed alliance would bring electoral reform that in the long run would get Quebec solidaire into the temple of power. Between Options A and B it was, she thought, a Hobsons choice (une dilemme parfaitement cornelien).

QS activist Pierre Mouterde, writing in the pro-QS online journal Presse-toi a gauche immediately after the congress, expressed concern over the emotional attacks on the PQ. Mouterde was a supporter of Option B although he had urged the vote be postponed until the next QS congress.

Whatever the option each may have finally privileged it must be recognized that the debate, in the little time available (100 minutes), took a strange turn, swept and then engulfed by the identitarian questions raised by the militants of the anti-racist committee, who exacerbated a visceral anti-PQ sentiment that cut short any political, cool and deep thinking about the type of relationships it would be possible to have with it in the circumstances of 2018. This emotional drift over identity issues, moreover, could in the medium term  if it is not skilfully handled  be rather problematic for QS. For after all, this appeal by the anti-racist committee members to take into account the aspirations of the so-called racialized cultural minorities also has its necessary obverse: how to achieve this concretely when at the same time we are an independentist party that is fighting for a common language, secular values shared collectively in favour of the same positive vision of life in common and the sharing of economic resources? And on that, apart from the blackmail about tearing up ones membership card if Option B passed [a reference to a threat by one participant in the debate], it was radio silence!

Mouterde thought the congress, in adopting Option A, had missed an opportunity. By voting to go it alone, we also shut ourselves off from the hopes for unity and social change that exist outside the QS ranks.

And the Social Movements?

What, then, of the other side of the November QS national council resolution, which had proposed not only an opening of discussions with other pro-sovereignty parties about electoral alliances but also an attempt to consult progressive social movement activists outside Quebec solidaire on their ideas about how to overcome the obstacles they encounter in the present political context?

QS member and social housing activist Francois Saillant reported to the congress on the work of the partys committee on Political Renewal. It had held two regional meetings in late March in Sherbrooke and Saguenay. Although they attracted only 25 persons, the majority were not QS members. They came from trade unions, community, feminist and ecologist organizations, municipal politics, and cultural and farming communities. Overall, the participants response was very positive to Quebec solidaires initiative, Saillant reported.

They identified the principles and issues that could be contained in common platforms In terms of principles, a green and interdependent [solidaire] economy, redistribution of wealth, participative democracy, inclusion, recognition of the rights of indigenous peoples. Among the concrete issues identified were reform of the electoral system and a Constituent Assembly. In Saguenay there was a consensus on strong advocacy of Quebec independence but not in Sherbrooke where the pertinence of advancing this issue in the next election campaign was openly questioned.

In both locations, Saillant reported, possible agreements with other parties were discussed. Some participants were keen on this, others more critical.

A committee member had also led a workshop on The Spring of Alternatives at a Quebec City regional social forum.

Attendance at these events has been modest, but participants were positive to the QS approach, and the committee intends to continue its consultations with social and political movements, the next stage being a national (Quebec) meeting on June 13, Saillant said.

A Disconcerting Moment

That the debate over relations with other pro-sovereignty parties is not finished was brought home in the closing minutes of the congress, on May 22, when outgoing co-spokesman Andres Fontecilla reported on the partys participation in OUI Quebec, the coalition of pro-sovereignty parties (PQ, ON, QS and the Bloc quebecois) working to develop a convergence on a common strategy in the fight for independence beyond 2018. For reasons that were unclear to most delegates, they were asked to vote that the session be held behind closed doors, and media observers were excluded. A written report was handed out, and then recollected following the report, which was read aloud by Fontecilla.

The gist of the report was that Quebec solidaire had been successful in convincing the other parties that a popular referendum on sovereignty should be accompanied by the appointment of a Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution, a proposal championed by QS for years. Fontecilla alluded to some outstanding differences over the nature of this Constituent Assembly, but gave few details. We were isolated, he said.

That evening, after the congress had closed, Radio Canada revealed that all four parties in OUI Quebec had reached an agreement several weeks previously on a road map (feuille de route) for accession to independence. It had been signed by the representatives of all the parties, including Andres Fontecilla and Monique Moisan for Quebec solidaire. According to the chair of OUI Quebec, Claudette Carbonneau, Quebec solidaire had requested that the agreement be kept secret until after the QS congress vote on electoral pacts for the 2018 election, which was not the subject of the road map. However, Quebec solidaire had not yet disclosed the existence of that agreement.

The Parti quebecois leaders now turned their anger at Quebec solidaire against the party leaderships alleged concealment of the road map toward sovereignty. Sabotage, chimed in Le Devoir . Some QS members too were disconcerted. The partys proceedings in OUI Quebec had not been discussed during the pre-congress debates, and the party leadership had issued no report on them prior to the congress. And why the secrecy about the report?

On May 24 Radio-Canada disclosed the existence of an email by Andres Fontecilla on behalf of Quebec solidaire informing OUI Quebec that the QS national coordinating committee was opposed to the agreement he had signed in good faith. And on May 25 the chair of OUI Quebec, expressing her exasperation, released the text of the agreement as duly signed by Fontecilla and Moisan on behalf of Quebec solidaire. I have translated the full text into English; it is appended to this article.

Manon Masse Offers a Clarification

Also on May 25, QS spokeswoman Manon Masse released a statement explaining that in the national leaderships opinion the partys co-signatories of the agreement had misjudged the situation in signing it in good faith. The question of an electoral pact was one thing, the question of convergence on the process of accession to independence was another. The congress had addressed the first issue and left the second for later debate. Even the PQ, by relegating the question of a referendum on sovereignty to a second mandate, had removed that issue from the proposed 2018 pact. Option A, she implied, had confused the issue by presenting its response to the proposed electoral pact as a general response to the debate on sovereigntist convergence.

As to the party leaderships objection to the all-party agreement, Masse explained, it does not require a sovereigntist government to hold the constituent assembly during its first term in office and it does not propose a projet de societe, for example. Masse urged supporters of Quebec independence to follow the example of Catalonia, to conduct a real campaign to promote a projet de societe for a sovereigntist Quebec.

We should stop putting the cart before the horse. We must all do better, QS included, on this front. We must first convince the Quebecois of the benefits of independence, thats the real urgency and that is why in our opinion the question of a projet de societe is essential if we are to win those who are not convinced.

Once Again, the Mandate of the Constituent Assembly

But are these the only reasons why the QS leadership rejected the text their representatives had signed? With one exception, there is really nothing in the text to which QS could object. That one exception, however, directly contradicts the QS position on the Constituent Assembly, which Manon Masse aptly describes as one of the pillars in our project. And that is the texts assertion that the Assemblys mandate is to develop the constitution of an independent Quebec. That phrase appears four times in the text. QS has consistently refused to impose such a mandate on the Assembly, preferring to leave the question open as to whether the constitution to be drafted is that of an independent state or merely of a province within the federal system, however reconceived. On this it differs with all the other independentist parties.

This issue is now clearly on the agenda for debate within Quebec solidaire. The QS representatives who signed the proposed road map are experienced politicians who must have known what they were doing. As I explained in an earlier article, the issue will come up again if Option nationale accepts the QS invitation to engage in a rapprochement pointing toward fusion in one party. And the partys new spokesman Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois has indicated he favours assigning the Constituent Assembly with a clear mandate to design the constitutional framework of an independent state.

In fact, the adopted resolution on the proposal of fusion between QS and Option nationale states (point 4) that in this process of discussion leading to fusion, QS undertakes to discuss in its authoritative bodies the development of political campaigns on the independence of Quebec and the means by which to accede to it. The move toward closer relations with ON is a clear indication that QS is prepared to collaborate with other political forces genuinely committed to building an independent Quebec with a professed interest in doing so around a progressive social agenda.

Manon Masse reiterated Quebec solidaires commitment to continue working within OUI Quebec. But she said she agreed with Claudette Charbonneau, who had proposed putting these discussions on hold for now. We hope that in the near future we will be in a position to agree with the partners in OUI Quebec and that we will be able to table a work proposal which, I hope, will be adopted by our members.

After 11 years, QS now has a program, or almost

As to the debate on the final tranche of the partys program, which occupied most of the congresss time, the draft programs covering justice issues, agriculture, regional development and international policy and solidarity were largely adopted with few major amendments. In the haste to process many proposed amendments, however, it was hard to avoid some confusion on what exactly was being proposed.

An unfortunate example was the fate of a section of the international policy draft resolution that called for an independent Quebec to withdraw from the imperialist military alliances NATO and NORAD. A proposed amendment by QS Gouin riding would replace this demand with the words will exclude participation in international bodies contributing to militarism and to interventionism without a UN mandate. NATO does in fact act sometimes under UN mandate, as it did recently in its bombing of Libya, to cite only one example. The delegates adopted this amendment by majority vote. But then they adopted, also by a majority, an amendment proposed by QS Capitale-Nationale (Quebec City) that denounced the growth in Canadian military budgets and called for Canadas immediate withdrawal from NATO and NORAD.

After some debate a much-anticipated proposal that an independent Quebec be a country without an army, with differing options as to whether a proposed national civil defense force should include a military component, it was agreed to postpone further debate on this until after the 2018 Quebec election.

By adopting (finally) an international component to its program the party adds an important dimension to its perspective, one that reinforces its identity as a pro-sovereignty party.

The party hopes to publish its complete program by September of this year. A QS congress in November will select which demands it wishes to highlight in the platform it will present in the 2018 election.

A final thought

This was an important congress for Quebec solidaire. But it left hanging many issues that the party will have to confront in the near future, and not only the ongoing issue of sovereigntist convergence. There is still a naive illusion in the party that majority support for independence can be won largely through advancing compelling arguments, and there is a dangerous tendency to discuss the independence project without reference to the inevitable opposition by the federal state and the need for a strategy to confront it. Bernard Rioux, an editor of Presse-toi a gauche , alluded to this toward the close of his report on the congress. I quote:

We need a party that understands the need to confront the domination of the economic and political oligarchy and that conceives its construction and alliances starting from that imperative. A party that understands that victory against the oligarchy depends on the unity and mobilization of the social movements and their capacities to put an end to the neoliberal offensive. Building a political alternative to neoliberalism and the Canadian state means participating in a reconfiguration of civil society and the strengthening of all the anti-systemic forces so they can oppose the demands of the ruling class. For real power is not confined to government services or the parliament. It is concentrated as well in the economic apparatus, the banks and the major corporations, in the state bureaucracy, the apparatuses of repression and the state ideological apparatuses. A true resistance front posing an end to austerity can only be achieved through strengthening capacities for struggle of the various social movements and expressing this readiness to struggle in a party that is capable of resisting the pressures  of the ruling class.

The congress vote on alliances was a step in that direction, said Rioux. 
The Slovak Spectator brings you a selection of hoaxes that appeared over the past week.

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Towers on Mars are a hoax

The NASA pictures show three huge towers on Mars, standing in line, coincidentally in the same configuration as the pyramids at Giza, Egypt, which are allegedly positioned according to the stars in the constellation Orion.

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This is one of the hoaxes that the Czech website AC24.cz spreads, also through social networks where they have hundreds of comments and shares. One of the places where they frequently appear is the group on Facebook Stop media manipulation.

It would take much less than buildings on Mars to attract a great deal of attention from all global media and the scientific community. The information published by AC24.cz is clearly non-sense.

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Such claims are not only impossible to verify, but they also refer to the discoveries of the Mars Global Surveyor, that does exist but which NASA lost contact with in 2006 and officially closed its mission in 2007. The website published this hoax early this year and it is still being spread on Facebook.

The article links the alleged towers on Mars with the Egyptian pyramids. The alleged correlation of the position of the pyramids with the stars in Orion is a popular topic among fans of mysteries. The problem is that it does not hold up when faced with detailed measurements.

The position of the stars was different thousands of years ago than it is today. Also, at that time, Egyptians did not link the stars in the same patterns as we do. The constellations are not a natural phenomenon but rather a product of human imagination. The stars they contain are often very far from each other and only seem close when projected on a two-dimensional surface, our firmament. Even if the tips of the pyramids really did point to stars, it could still be an accidental relation, correlation.

This article is an example of state-of-the-art pseudo-science, very frequently occurring on the internet. Articles like this are important because they help us tell which websites are conspiracy-based. Websites that write about pseudo-scientific astronomy also very often publish alternative news about politics.

Czech defence minister sold the army to Germans is a hoax

Czech alternative media repeatedly publish the hoax, in several variations, that there is a secret deal between the Czech defence minister and the Germans that practically allows Germany to command part of the Czech armed forces. They label it as high treason and a return to the times before 1939.

The information was published on the Parlamentni Listy website, later also by the Czech version of the Russian state website Sputnik, or the known fake news website Aeronet.cz.

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It was inspired by news about the contract that attaches the Czech 4th brigade to a German tank division, the Czech website Stream.cz explained in a video.

It is non-sense, the spokesperson of the Czech Defence Ministry, Petr Medek, explains in the video. The contract between the two countries is not legally binding and it is a general expression of the will to cooperate. Both military units will hold joint training missions, share experiences, and jointly test military equipment.

The Czech army is not the only one that has signed such a contract, Medek added.

Slovakia may become the first country to exit NATO after 2020 is a hoax

Slovakia could become the first country to announce its decision to leave the Alliance in 2020. There is a petition currently in circulation, collecting signatures to exit NATO, the Russian newspaper Izvestia commented on the initiative by the extremist party of Marian Kotleba, which is collecting signatures to hold a referendum about Slovakia exiting the NATO.

There really is such a petition, but there is a very long way from a petition organised by one political party to the actually leaving NATO.

The Peoples Party - Our Slovakia (LSNS) claims that they have already collected half of the necessary 350,000 signatures. But even if they collected all the needed signatures, it is very questionable that citizens would support the exit in a referendum.

Of all the referendums that ever took place in Slovakia, only one was officially valid - about entering the European Union. No other referendum ever met the condition that the turnout should exceed 50 percent of all the registered voters.

Izvestia did use accurate information to start, but then deformed it to fit the voice of those who are against the NATO membership.

The antipropaganda.sk website noted that Izvestia did write about Slovakia pondering to leave the EU in the past, based on the same petition by the party of Marian Kotleba.

At that time the Russian newspaper also wrote that the Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) and Sme Rodina parties were in favour of leaving the EU. The two parties are often critical towards the EU, but none of them explicitly talks about leaving the union. The extremist LSNS is the only parliamentary party in favour of leaving both the EU and NATO.

The Slovak Spectator brings a selection of hoaxes that were published on the internet and shared by Slovak users on social networks in cooperation with the Sme daily, which runs the project aimed at spotting hoaxes and confronting them with facts.
More constitutional can be less democratic, and it is not clear that it always has the intended result. Perhaps the clearest historical case came with the rise of the Nazis in Germany.

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Though reasonable people agree that Marian Kotlebas LSNS party is bad for democracy and bad for Slovakia, it does not directly follow that banning the party  as the countrys prosecutor general has now set out to do  is good for democracy and good for Slovakia.

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Putting legal specifics aside, and distasteful as certain kinds of speech can be, banning a political party is a limitation on free speech  a core principle of liberal democracy. At the same time, constitutions and other institutions are designed to channel political energy and limit the excesses of electoral politics  a core principle of constitutional democracy. A potential ban on a political party means these two principles clash.

More constitutional can be less democratic, and it is not clear that it always has the intended result. Perhaps the clearest historical case came with the rise of the Nazis in Germany. In the estimation of historian William Shirer, the Weimar Republics constitution in force from 1919 to 1933 was said to be the most liberal and democratic document the 20th century had ever seen which seemed to guarantee the working of an almost flawless democracy.

In hindsight we know it did not end up this way, and there were also flaws that Hitler exploited to aid his rise, not least of which was Article 48  which allowed him to declare a state of emergency and suspend civil liberties. As the chief Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels once said: It will always remain one of the best jokes of democracy that it provided its mortal enemies with the means through which it was annihilated.

However, the Nazi party was banned in Bavaria during the 1920s and their paramilitary unit the Sturmabteilung (SA) outlawed well into the 1930s throughout Germany  and yet they grew and gained power anyway. Furthermore, who is to say that a more thorough ban, and then a reconstituted Nazi party, would not have led to the same result, or helped generate even more public support? Certainly that is the exactly the case with Mr Kotleba, who had an earlier, marginal party banned in 2006, formed a new one and then was elected as a regional governor and saw his party enter parliament.

In the United States  admittedly not the best model for a healthy democracy at the moment  there is a particularly high legal bar for limiting speech, so much so that huge financial donations to political candidates are considered legally protected speech. Limiting speech requires that it present a clear and present danger. This is why the KKK is allowed to exist, though their members are arrested if they engage in violence. It also keeps them a fringe organization with marginal influence.

Like LSNS supporters, they have a right to be racist, but their rights end when they begin to impede on the rights of others. Banning the LSNS may well be a good idea, but someone still needs to beat Kotleba in Novembers regional election.
In compliance with treaty rules, an unarmed Russian military plane will make a surveillance flight over Slovak territory

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To comply with the 2002 international Treaty on Open Skies, the flight should take place between Monday, May 29, and Wednesday, May 31, and the plane should depart from the Sliac airport, the TASR newswire wrote. The treaty is one of the tools for checking the conventional armed forces and military activities of its 34 signatory countries, TASR wrote, citing the Defence Ministry spokesperson Danka Capakova.

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According to the treaty, each state attached to the treaty has to announce such a flight 72 hours before landing on the territory of the state that will be checked.

The surveillance plane follows a determined route that is announced to the checked state 24 hours before the flight and must be approved by both sides, Capakova explained, adding that the Russian Federation makes a surveillance flight in Slovakia once per year. During this time span, Slovakia and Poland are scheduled to make similar surveillance flights above Ukraine.
Three coalition MPs and one independent have proposed changes to the Nations Memory Institute (UPN) that would remove its current head, Ondrej Krajnak

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MPs Jaroslav Paska (SNS), Maria Janikova (Smer), Edita Pfundtner (Most-Hid) and Martina Simkovicova (independent) said that allowing a single person to manage the formal constitutional power of the Institute is ineffective and unjustifiable. The MPs have filed a draft amendment to the UPN law for the June parliamentary session, the TASR newswire wrote.

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According to their amendment, the current head of the Institute, Ondrej Krajnak, would step down on October 15, 2017 but remain a member of the Board until his term ends in 2019.

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The four MPs said that the original principles on which the UPN was established had linked the roles assigned to the Institute with its statutory bodies. At the time that the UPN was created, it was expected to be connected to the Slovak constitutional institutions and remain under their control, the TASR quoted the report. The report continued, Fifteen years later, it is evident that this goal of the legislation has not been fulfilled  particularly in relation to the determination of a statutory body which has come, after the amendment from 2003, under the power of the chairman of the board. This fundamental change, the legislators said, has changed the spirit of the original law and has put the decision-making of the direction and activities of the UPN in the hands of a single person  which goes against standard democratic principles.

The drafted amendment proposes that the UPN statutory body operate as a collective and that the Committee of the Institute be abolished, with the Board and Supervisory Board remaining. The amendment also includes a proposal for the replacement of some positions with other forms of work related to the fucntioning of the UPN and a proposal of a change in salaries. The MPs also wrote that the body which appoints members of the Board should have the power to recall any member who is found guilty of misconduct by the Supervisory Board or who is found guilty of a crime. Any member who has not worked for six months could also be recalled under the proposed amendment. The coalition MPs said that their goals in changing member eligibility are to improve the effectiveness and transparency of the UPN.

The Nations Memory Institute responded to the drafted amendment with a statement that the proposal and its reasoning reflect the motives of its writers, with its first goal as the removal of Krajnak from his post, the SITA newswire wrote. The effort to dismantle the chairman of the UPN Board comes at a time when the Institute has gained new respect at home and abroad for its actions, spokesman Peter Juscak wrote, as cited by SITA.

Juscak said that the amendment is tailor-made to suit the former UPN leadership, who are now represented in the bodies of the Board and Supervisory Board.

According to the amendment, the future Chair would become a straw man controlled and elected by the current Board. This would be the end of the independent operation of the institution, Juscak said.

Juscak suggested that the amendment was motivated by the recent decisions and actions of the Insitute, citing the names of Babis, Hudzovic and Petransky, as well as the Institutes recent activity in publishing the names of judges, prosecutors and investigators who were involved in killing those who crossed the borders of communist Czechoslovakia and proposing the cancellation of service pensions for former members of the communist-era secret service.

Alojz Hlina, the chairman of the non-parliamentary Christain-Democratic Movement (KDH), said that the ruling Smer party wants Krajnak recalled to impact the October parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic. Hlina said that this move could be seen as a way to improve the image of Andrej Babis, who the UPN had found to be an agent of the communist-era secret service. Slovak-born Babis is now involved in a lawsuit with the Institute. Hlina explained that if Krajnak is dismissed as head of UPN, the claim against Babis could more easily be overturned, making the current Czech Finance Minister and party chair a stronger candidate in an election. Our ruling coalition wants to impact the Czech elections, Hlina said as the reason behind the MPs amendment to the law.
Ive discussed a variety of topics with composer, conductor Alexander Iradyan over the years.

After graduating from the Komitas State Conservatory of Yerevan and having an interesting period of musical activity in Armenia, Iradyan continued his education at the Royal Conservatory of Belgium.

In summer 2016, when we were sitting together at a Yerevan cafe, he said he was thinking about quitting his education in Belgium and moving to Berlin. I said it was foolish, as he didnt speak German, and Europe is Europe in any case. He looked at me. Two frowns appeared on his wide forehead, and said hed decided to go to the Berlin University of the Arts (UDK):

Germany welcomed him with a few concessions. Iradyan had passed through a comprehensive competition process. Out of hundreds of applicants, only two managed to become university students, Iradyan and an ethnic Chinese conductor. At the time of the below long-distance interview, Iradyan is preparing for his Berlin premiere of "The Last Night".

When we were talking about you moving from Belgium to Germany, I couldnt really believe it was possible. You did as you said. Can you talk about the reasons more specifically now?

I think its a very individual question, a question of aspirations and benchmarks of a person. I strive for more. I can only say that I was going through a stagnation phase in Belgium and I realized I was not going anywhere. I was in the center of Europe. We talked about it. You have seen it. Unfortunately, the Royal Conservatory wasnt what I expected. There was an issue of care. In terms of my musical activities in Belgium, obstacles were created for a simple reason; the cultural and musical community did not show any support. The last time I received a project rejection from the Conservatory elite, I decided that was the end, I couldnt see myself a student there anymore.

In other words, it was first the environment that made you move to another country.

Yeah, it was like that. I was alone. Had the loneliness only been physical, it might have caused no problems. But I'm used to, or, we can say, I have an internal belief that people should gather around a good idea, get inspired. Big politics of the big world shouldnt inhibit young peoples dreams.

Theres also an issue of specialization. A conductor is a single soul. He comes with his music scores, on which hes worked a lot, he practices, then closes his scores and stays alone in the hotel again. These two issues made me shrivel up. I realized that I needed to seek out new shores.

And?

And it happened that out of a few hundred applicants, I was selected as a student in one of the best European universities. They could have chosen from hundreds of applicants, say, ten or twenty, but they are satisfied with one or two. Its because they can assure a perfect environment and education for these one or two. The structure of the educational system is the best example of that. I have a professor, Steven Sloane, who has an assistant, Harry Curtis. This assistant treats us like his own children, our issues are his issues, our day is his day. And it's a gorgeous advantage.

I found an institution where they prepare first class conductors. Such an education is quite difficult to find elsewhere. Its a very expensive education in all senses. I cannot say how much money is spent for two years of conductor training, but the investment is quite large. One or two days per week, we have an intensive orchestra course, which means that a whole orchestra is paid just for us, so that we can conduct a new work that has been our assignment for that week. In Belgium, I conducted only four projects in two years. In Berlin, its been 17 projects during six months.

You were saying that after moving to Europe you had an acute feeling (you called it "art suicide") and if you put an equal sign next to it, then it would be the same as capitalism.

Now I can stress it even more, because day by day, I see, feel, and acutely realize where the commerce and "labeled" collaborations lead. The problem of pure art and artistic environment are even left out of the agenda. Unfortunately, when you offer to collaborate with a musician, an artist, they first ask how much they will be paid, without even listening to the proposals true meaning or potential.

This situation scares me. Every day I feel on my skin, how buying and selling ideas is akin to selling cheese. It costs 20 euros. Its yours if you have the money. If not, a respectful goodbye and see you.

Any accomplished, invited musician, conductor or someone else from the musical world, however, has a clear mathematical approach, a market price, set by themselves or their agents.

Yes, I also have such definitions.

In that case, why are you so afraid and irritated. It happens to everyone. Its nothing new. Judging from the quality and workload of your education in Germany, I can say that this very institution already defines a "price" for you, which is quite high.

I understand what you mean, but what I say is a little different.

At a professional level, everything, indeed, has a price. The definition of the price is important and competitive. But if you are a real artist, if you havent become a technical or political model that performs, receives, leaves, then you can still analyze, still believe that there are ideas and things that are of value in themselves, and you cant get into the market mood when dealing with them.

My professor says there is a golden triangle for accepting a proposal, where every corner has a meaning. One is financial, the other is career development, the third is aesthetics. If there are at least two out of those three, you must agree to the proposal. In Armenia, for example, the financial angle is almost always missing, but its more or less good for career development, and as for aesthetics, its where it should be. I got convinced of it when we performed a ballet at the National Academic Theater.

What other concerns do you have there in Germany?

Everywhere, I have time to rid myself of anxiety. Its been half a year that I am here, but it seems it was yesterday that I arrived. I realize, of course, that Ive gained many things, but at the same time I cannot separate myself from time. I often think about justice. Both here and in Armenia. Wherever I am, there are matters that make me think about justice. As for loneliness, weve already talked about it.

Can you imagine yourself working as a conductor in Germany?

Definitely. Armenias limitations and many other concerns will have me travelling for quite a while. I feel Im in the right place now, and I also realize that this place needs me.

Its not only the limitations that concern me, I just dont want to go in details of other aspects of Armenian reality which are the results of capitalism, finances, ambitions, and things like that.

I dont say you can magically have everything here, but whatever is proposed, is being discussed and often implemented. Thats when you realize the positive sides of the Academy. You feel that you are in a highly respected place and that you cant leave unaffected. That's why I appreciate being here.

Lets talk about the "The Last Night" ballet, scheduled to premiere on June 26. Why has this historical night of 1917, the night when Russian Emperor Nicholas Romanovs family is anxiously awaiting the decision on their fate, been selected?

The choice was not mine. I received an offer from a Russian opera theatre to write a new ballet. I started working on the idea and got so inspired by the events of the historical night, that I started to work on the ballets concept.

Unfortunately, the partnership didnt work out, but I held on to the idea. Already having creative freedom, I linked it to another topic about a family placed in a Nazi concentration camp in 1943. This family also awaits a decision about their fate. This waiting and the accompanying hope are at the core of the ballet.

Why did you include this familys waiting?

Totalitarian power, which can kill people and their dreams, should be a historical example for any new government to avoid. Perhaps the planned crimes are not so obvious to us any more, perhaps they have another context, other methods, but human emotions and the horror of expectation are expressed in the same way.

Sometimes, to prove their worth, I see people strangling and squashing others. This is a great tragedy for me. Clashes that arise among people usually result from their emptiness or evil. I can never tolerate this hatred.

The premiere, if I got it right, is not about the ballet performance, but the music.

Yes, on June 26 there will be a premiere of a 17-minute ballet suite in the UDK hall. Besides the orchestra, there is also a choir whose recording we've already done. Its wonderful. This is the first step. I might start thinking about the ballet performance afterwards.

Its interesting how the music, containing those historical layers, will be received by the audience.

If you transform all the notes into words and letters, youll receive information, a part of which is hidden in a way that is difficult for anyone to guess. There is a lot of risky information that is of historical and political nature.

You cannot write about revolution until you go deep in those layers. We often know the ending and the consequences of the historical act, its victims and participants, but the real motive and the base are often hidden. This ballet needs a lot of work to be decrypted, but thats not the aim, of course. I've got it exactly the way I imagined. The audience should feel how horrible it is when theres the possibility of the crime repeating.

For us, the story that happened is not a tragedy if the same does not happen to us. In other words, its the crime that continues to be perfected, and not humanity, which already knows that something like that has already happened. The music written on that basis cannot be simple and primitive.

Do you remember, the last time you were in Yerevan, you said that Kafka's "The Trial" amazed you because you could not understand what happened.

Yes, of course I remember. I havent stopped thinking about it. Now I feel like Kafkas K. in the Berlin underground.

Being convicted is a given from the start. The question is how to skirt the absurdity in which you daily find yourself. Or, rather, can you really evade it without losing yourself and your values?
For three days, he only had time to take calls and answer emails. Almost all the important global media outlets called or emailed Vladimir Cicmanec.

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The picture of a Girl Scout talking to a right-wing extremist became  for a while  a symbol of the disapproval of neo-Nazi ideology. The photo taken by Slovak, Vladimir Cicmanec, appeared on CNN and in The New York Times, The Independent, The Guardian and The Washington Post. For a while, it defied his status of amateur photographer, just a single year after he bought his first camera.

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What is it like when the global media start contacting you?

Bizarre. I did not have time to edit more photos, as I was constantly answering questions from the media for three days. My phone kept ringing the whole day. I answered emails and Facebook messages from dozens of media companies.

You wrote to some of them yourself, asking them to delete your photo. Did you actively monitor where it appeared?

No. I learned about The Telegraph from a journalist who wrote to me from Sweden, saying that they wanted to publish my photo which was in The Telegraph. That's why I contacted them. The people from The Daily Mail contacted me by themselves. It is a racist rag that has no par here. They constantly take an extremely right-wing racist line, writing something against refugees every day, so I refuse to be connected with them. All in all, I refused three offers from the media.

The photograph of Girl Scout Lucie Myslikova, aged 16, confronting an extremist was taken in the Czech city of Brno, during the May 1 protest called Those Who Play Do Not Salute the Nazi Way. The participants tried to block a neo-Nazi march, in a light-hearted way. (Source: Vladimir Cicmanec)

Did people outside the media contact you?

Sure. At first, many people wrote to me saying that it was a good picture which was pleasing. Then those from the other side also started writing  but there were not too many of them.

Did you at first publish the photo just for your friends?

Yes. It was Shooty who wrote to me to ask me to put it on public view. Then it all exploded. It was shared by the global website of the Scouts, then it got on Reddit, and the US media started to get interested in it.

You wrote on your blog that you actually failed to see the shot and someone else had drawn your attention to it. Where were you looking at that moment?

It was happening behind my back. There were constant petty conflicts but at that very moment, I was facing the stage.

How long did the situation last?

Lucia (Lucia Myslikova, the Girl Scout in the picture, ed. note) carried on talking with the neo-Nazi for about one minute after I arrived.

Did you feel it as something exceptional when shooting it?

When bubbles started to flow, I thought it was nice and it fitted the overall image... And that it would look good on Facebook and would probably bring me some Likes. I also remembered the photos from Birmingham and America where there were several strong women facing such people.

You also mentioned that someone hit you. Where did you got hit?

I got a punch in the face.

Why?

The neo-Nazis disliked the fact that I was there with a camera from the very beginning. They made various threatening gestures and shouted at me. At one point a friend of mine started handing out hummus for free and a guy in the crowd shouted at him to pick it up so I told him he could not give orders to my friend. Then he swiped at me, first hitting the camera and then my face.

So, you stopped being a photographer and suddenly became a protester; you had a double role.

Yes, I left the role of photographer. For the whole time, I had tried not to do that and to keep silent but at that moment, I failed but having a camera in your hand means you have some kind of an exemption. The police let me go everywhere and people perceived me differently.

You call yourself an amateur photographer. What does that mean in your case and what kind of photography do you focus on?

I have had the camera for just slightly more than a year and I take photos mostly of such demonstrations. So far, I have been to about four of them. I enjoy shooting the things that happen and where I don't have to invent or create anything, as the scenes happen themselves, more or less.

Did you go to such events earlier, before you got the camera?

Yes. It is the same  only that now I take my equipment with me, too.

What kinds of demonstrations do you prefer?

Political, concerning human rights, hatred, racism or injustice.

Why demonstrations? Do you expect something specific from them?

I did not expect anything. I was inspired by the Czech photographer Petr "Zewlakk" Vrabec who attended only such events.

Many hobby photographers take pictures to have nice photos and to be able to put them, for example, on a computer screen background. Your case appears to be different. Where should your photos be put?

Only on Facebook and I have my private archives from them. It brings me the same joy. Now and then, they get picked up by the media but this is not my goal.

Are your photos good?

Not very good, I would say.

Could they be better?

Sure.

What is wrong with them?

In this case, the photograph is not quite focused as I thought I was shooting with an aperture of 5.6, and in fact, I was using 2.8. I also have to learn to work more with composition. A demonstration is the kind of environment when you need to react quickly and know your camera well.

Thanks to this experience, have you learned something you can use to improve at the next demonstration?

I learned to pay more attention  and what to pay attention to, after failing to notice the shot for myself.

Were there any professional photographers?

There were many of them. Some were angered that the best photo was taken by an amateur. That says something about Czech photo-journalism. I will not comment on that. I don't want to and cannot criticise professional photographers.

After all, now anyone can take such a photo with a mobile phone  anyone who is in just the right place.

Yes, there were many coincidences behind this.

How do you make your living?

I am a programmer. I graduated from a course in international relations and European studies but I have been programming since I was a kid. Maybe programmer is too strong a word, however.

How do you remember the protest itself?

It was great. I thought there would be too few people but ultimately there were more of them than the extremists. They had interesting ideas and everyone did some kind of activity. It was non-violent and natural, we had fun  and at the same time, we stood up against them. A few people got hit, cyclists got their bikes kicked and someone was detained by the police. There were conflicts all the time but we did not provoke them.

How long did it last?

For about three hours.

Can photography change anything?

It can. Not by capturing something that happened in a moment but by the interpretation. My picture became a symbol but people have given it their own meanings.
This variant is more environmentally friendly compared with the surface variant originally planned.

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Construction of the last, problematic stretch of the D1 cross country highway, Turany-Hubova, has moved forward. The Environment Ministry has finally issued a final opinion in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process and approved the construction of the D1 highway stretch Turany-Hubova in the variant with the Korbelka tunnel. This variant bypasses the valleys of the Lower Fatra mountain range and is more environmentally friendly than the originally planned surface variant.

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The final position of the Environment Ministry will be binding for the Transport Ministry.

The Environment Ministry agrees with the variant with the Korbelka tunnel, said Tomas Ferencak, spokesperson for the Environment Ministry, as cited by the SITA newswire. There are several factors in favour of this solution.

This solution represents the smallest risk in terms of landslides and construction of the tunnel is more suitable for this route and for nature itself.

Read also:

Read also: Korbelka tunnel is the best highway variant for man as well as nature Read more

The Turany-Hubova stretch of the D1 Bratislava-Kosice highway connecting the Turiec and Liptov regions is very demanding from the viewpoint of the protection of nature and geology as well as financing. So far the state has pushed for the cheaper surface variant which would have a more harmful impact on the nature reservations of the Lower and Higher Fatras mountains but after a landslide during construction of the surface highway near Sutovo in 2013, it began reconsidering the final route, and the oldest variant with the Korbelka tunnel was again under consideration.

Construction of this stretch, 13.53 km long, should start in 2021 and be complete in 2026 but the stretch still does not have financing secured.

The investor, the National Highway company, is now preparing all the steps necessary for construction work to be launched as soon as possible and securing finances for the preparation and then for the construction of this stretch would be of key importance, said Karolina Ducka, spokesperson of the Transport Ministry, as cited by the TASR newswire. It will be possible to publish an exact timetable of individual steps only after the decision about the financing of the further construction of the highways and dual carriageways is made.

Environmental activists have already hailed the Environment Ministrys decision.
The main topic of the Slovak pavilion is the energy of the future.

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Slovakia will promote itself at the EXPO 2017 fair in Astana, Kazakhstan. The opening of the fair is planned for June 10. In total 155 countries will present their ideas at the fair for the following three months.

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The theme of EXPO 2017 is to show successes in the field of green energy. Slovakia is going to present itself as a country of good ideas for the energy of the future.

We want to focus mainly on cooperation in the energy sector, said Patricia Zacikova, general commissioner of Slovakia's exposition as quoted by the SITA newswire.

The goal of the Slovak pavilion is to present Slovakia as a country with developed industry, innovative potential and highly-qualified labour and scientific power. The Exposition, with an area of 359 square metres, has five thematic fields and will be presented as a piece of art.

We have chosen an unconventional attitude to present the topic of energy of the future, explained architect Jozef Danak, as quoted by SITA, who cooperated on the project with the Kvant company.

Read also:

Read also: Slovakias pavilion at Milan EXPO looks to the future Read more

The Slovak exhibition will promote the country in the field of innovation, science, culture, sport and tourism.

Ecocapsula, an energetically self-sufficient, intelligent micro-house which represents a sustainable intelligent household using only solar and wind power energy, will be part of Slovakia's exhibition.

We decided to show at EXPO 2017 how Ecocapsula could look furnished, so we used some products for everyday use, from the best Slovak designers and producers, inside, said Tomas Zacek, director of design for the Ecocapsula company, as quoted by SITA.

Slovak experiences in the energy field are really important for Kazakhstan, said the ambassador for Kazakhstan, Serzhan Abdykarimov, as quoted by SITA.

The organizers expect five million visitors and Kazakhstan launched a no visa access scheme for 30 days for all OECD countries at the beginning of this year.

The Slovak pavilion will present two business missions, with the support of the government, where Slovak entrepreneurs can make contacts in the Asian market. As part of the show it will also celebrate the National Day of the Slovak Republic on July 18.

The budget of Slovakia for the Expo in Astana is 2.66 million. Slovakia will be promoted under the Energy & Slovakia Good Idea brand during the whole fair.
The quality of work in the competition is improving each year, and those disqualified because of its lack are fewer and fewer.

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As well as students and amateurs, professional photographers are invited to join the competition in the sixth year of Slovak Press Photo, guarantor of the project and jury member Jana Hojstricova  professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bratislava and herself a photographer  said.

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There are six categories for Slovak photographers, differentiating the genres; while there are three categories open also to foreign contestants: The Central-European Photographer and Students and Young Photographers under 25. Photographers from Slovakia, The Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Austria and the Ukraine can vie for victory and this year, Slovenia can also participate. The category Short Video is also international, and it has been organised in cooperation with the public television station RTVS, that will broadcast not only the awarded videos but also the winners of the photo competition.

The jury in the photography competition should have been presided by US professional, co-founder of the NOOR agency, Stanley Greene and it will feature Russian Maria Turchenkova and Greene's colleague from NOOR, professor at Cilumbia University, Nina Berman, and Czech Jindrich Streit. Representing Slovaks, Hojstricova will be evaluating the competing works, head of Slovak press Photo Jana Garvoldtova said. The video jury will feature Slovak and Czech film-makers Pavol Barabas, Zdenek Samal and Tomas Stanek.

However, Green, who was in the jury already in the past and whose exhibition was shown in summer 2016 in the Palffy Palace of GMB, died in the meantime - on May 19 (aged 67), and so a new chair of the jury will have to be found.

Stanley Greene in Bratislava, 2016 (Source: TASR)

Photographers can send their works  photos or videos made within last year between May 17 and August 29. Beginning in September, the juries will select the winners and then an exhibition composed of their works will be presented first in the capital and then in other venues around Slovakia, in a year-round tour.

Already, the exhibition of works from last year is being shown across the country, while the exhibition of one of the former winners, Boris Nemeth, is also on shown and an overview of works of Nina Berman, Seeing America 2002  2017 showing the shadowy side of US politics will open in the Bratislava City Gallery on June 28, to be displayed during the summer.

The content is definitely crucial  as is the form, Jana Hojstricova noted, adding that the proportion between their importance including the conceptual idea, varies from one category to another, depending also on individual works and on the opinions of jurors. The visuality is very strong, and so it is also crucial in the evaluation.

More updated and detailed informaiton can be found at www.slovak-press-photo.sk.
40MW Floating PV Power Plant. Credit: Sungrow

(Tech Xplore)China is addressing its environmental future. One sign is a floating solar farm power plant built on a former coal-mining area, and the floating power plant has been successfully connected to the grid, in Huainan.

The announcement came from Sungrow earlier this month. According to designboom it can now start supplying solar energy to homes in the area.

The Sungrow press release said that the power plant was based "in a subsided area of mining which is flooded due to the rainy weather with depth of water ranging from 4 to 10 meters in Huainan, a coal-rich city in south Anhui province." The release pointed out that "the seriously mineralized water makes this area valueless."

The facility takes the title of the world's largest floating solar plant, said designboom, overtaking other floating farms in India and Australia.

Sungrow is a Chinese photovoltaic inverter manufacturer.

A number of sites carried a picture of the 40 MW-capacity facility.

Sungrow's central inverter unit SG2500-MV was used in the project, as were its combiner boxes.

What is this "inverter system"? It's the inverter, transformer and switchgear, as a turnkey station. Also, Sungrow noted the combiner box SunBox PVS-8M/16M-W, which was customized for floating power plants. The release noted stability in environments with high levels of humidity and salt spray.

Sungrow works on research and development in solar inverters, and has a product portfolio of PV inverter systems as well as energy storage systems for various applications.

Founded in 1997 by University Professor Renxian Cao, Sungrow, said pv magazine, has more projects in the pipeline

"Renewable energy and clean tech are very big business in China and India right now," said Sami Grover in TreeHugger.

Why put a solar farm out on the water? Cleantech Canada highlighted three key advantages of the floating farms.

1-Floating solar farms can reduce water evaporation and restrain the growth of algae. 2. Water can cool down modules and cables; improves the efficiency of power generation. 3. These farms have an advantage of not taking up valuable land.

In the bigger picture, the floating farm points to China's resolve to carry out projects that address clean energy. A report in iDrop News:

"The Huainan facility is part of Beijing's quest to transform China one of the world's worst polluters into a clean energy giant and a world leader in the fight against climate change."

Actually, a report in Digital Trends said, "This is just the first of many solar energy operations popping up around China. In 2016, the country unveiled a similar 20MW floating facility in the same area. China is also home to the Longyangxia Dam Solar Park, a massive 10-square-mile, land-based facility touted as the largest solar power plant on earth."

 2017 Tech Xplore
When we set off backpacking around South East Asia, doing a PADI course to become qualified open water SCUBA divers was one of the first things we added to our list of things to do! After doing a taster session over 10 years ago on a family holiday to Turkey and also having friends who raved about it, it seemed like the perfect way to begin to explore our underwater world further. Everyone and I mean everyone does it in Thailand, its reportedly the cheapest and unofficially one of the most lax. In all honesty some of the tales of being herded like cattle, close calls and just passing anyone made us put it off long enough to think we might just not do it. However after arriving in the stunning Kota Kinabalu and having a few days spare whilst waiting for our slot to climb the mountain we saw so many posters and images of the stunning islands and their diving potential for our interest to be reignited. In the end we found a personal, safe, beautiful and also unique place to learn to dive with a professional and fun company in Borneo Dream. SCUBA diving in Borneo and doing our scuba diving course Malaysia was for us a travelling highlight and the Kota Kinabalu diving scene one we really enjoyed.

Kota Kinabalu diving: The desire to learn to explore our underwater world

10 years ago in a shallow area of the mediterranean we tried SCUBA for the first time. We were on a family holiday, I was only 18 and didnt really know what all the fuss was about. Looking back with the hindsight of now being PADI open water qualified I can see that this was a haphazard and not particularly well run tour, taking us down to 10m for example with the only information being how to equalise our ears??? So when we began our Kota Kinabalu diving experience I was a little wary at first in all honesty!

However despite the obvious failings of that particular tour it did open our eyes to the beautiful world hiding below the waves, a colourful and alien landscape that many of us have never really had the chance to explore with such freedom as SCUBA provides. Swimming inside a flash of new colours, shapes and mind blowing sights was something we longed for once again, to be able to do it ourselves and begin to take our desire to see and explore our world as we do on land and take that under water! It was time for our next big adventure, but it would prove to be more than we anticipated as we set off SCUBA diving in Borneo!







Why do a PADI in Borneo and what is scuba diving in Malaysia like?

Why not!! Everyone who does a PADI does one in Thailand and as a result the quality has dropped. Over in Thailand a PADI might be marginally cheaper but you get what you pay for and SCUBA diving might be a fun sport to get involved with but it is also a serious and hazardous adventure activity too.

For us we dont want our instructor to tick boxes and tip us off the boat 50 at a time like cattle!! We actually wanted to learn and to be allowed the time, space and direction in order to do that and do it properly SCUBA diving in Borneo fit the bill for us! Plus the Kota Kinabalu diving options for us offered a much better preserved reef with the waters also being much less crowded, so scuba diving in Malaysia seemed like a good fit all round!

SCUBA diving in Borneo is a scene of professional divers who take their jobs seriously when it comes to teaching and keeping their students and customers safe whilst also having good fun. Here with Borneo Dream you have small groups, we had an instructor between 4 of us, meaning we each had enough one on one time for him to be able to really assess how we were doing as well as speaking to us individually about our questions and concerns. Our Kota Kinabalu diving experience as a result was pretty relaxed!

Not only that, but unless you hadnt realised, Borneo is stunning! Its not just jungles, monkeys and creepy crawlies out here but much more. Its not just that this area of untamed land teeming with unique life exists above water, but that also extends below the warm waves and into another hidden world! In fact scuba diving in Malaysia offers so much more diversity and adventure of that in Thailand given the unique ecosystems in Borneo and was one of the reasons our Kota Kinabalu diving experience was so enjoyable.

The turquoise waters off the mesmerizingly perfect islands just a short boat ride away from Kota Kinabalu in the Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park are the perfect setting for SCUBA diving in Borneo. A protected area of diverse coral and sea life they form part of the Coral Triangle, and are recognised as some of the most important marine sites on Earth.

The area also provides both the confined water and open water needed to gain confidence and progress as well as some amazing beaches to relax after a day of incredible Kota Kinabalu diving! With this in mind SCUBA diving in Malaysia and specifically Borneo has to be some of the best in the world!

Besides, doesnt it make you sound more interesting to be the only one on the boat who bucked the trend and did their PADI course in Malaysia and went SCUBA diving in Borneo! I know everyone else Ive met didnt go SCUBA diving in Malaysia and instead did it in Thailand!

SCUBA diving in Malaysia: How much theory is involved in a PADI?

The short answer is a lot less than it looks at first! For some reason I had never really considered the theory to doing a PADI course and just thought it involved doing a few dives and off you go! The good and bad news is that you have to do a bit of studying in order to gain your qualification. I say good and bad because firstly, I am not sure any of us considered we might be back sitting exams whilst backpacking around Asia (ok, its not that formal but Im trying to be dramatic!) but if you consider the fact that this isnt just about ticking it off the bucket list, but about actually becoming a competent diver who has to keep themselves and their diving partners safe. Now that is the most important part for me and something we kept in mind during our Kota Kinabalu diving course.

However, that being said, on your first day you will be presented with a hefty looking book to work through and youll wonder when you can actually start SCUBA diving in Borneo! But once you begin actually dissecting each section you will realise that it really isnt hard to take in or to pass. We watched a video for the first day which really made it so much quicker, on the others we did our exams whilst eating lunch, plus, once you get into the water most of it makes much more sense! The theory side might seem intimidating but trust me it actually makes you feel more safe in the water and made our time SCUBA diving in Malaysia much more enjoyable.

Kota Kinabalu diving: Day by day progressions that took us from panicked to confident

The first day in the water loomed, we were chatting away on the dock and I will be honest with you I was a little nervous as well as being excited. After reading through our theory we had all realised there is so much more to SCUBA than we had ever anticipated; decompression sickness, setting up equipment wrong, running out of air. It all seemed a bit more scary than the images of backpackers frolicking underwater had conjured up but at the same time we knew a lot more about what SCUBA diving in Malaysia entailed and at this point we were eagerly awaiting our Kota Kinabalu diving experience to begin!

But here we where, kitting up and getting into our wetsuits with the heavy and claustrophobic BCD that seemed to entirely surround us. None of us felt comfortable and on diving to the grand depth of 1.5 metres we each had a panic and sprang to the surface gasping for air. I cant breath! My mask is filling up! I feel like Im in a straight jacket! This isnt for me! These were all shouted in frustration in just the first morning, we all honestly considered just packing it in and sticking to the snorkel set rather than SCUBA diving in Borneo! Our Kota Kinabalu diving experience started abruptly but doing a PADI course is a steep learning curve for sure!

But thankfully our instructor Amir is well used to the shock factor of not just SCUBA diving for the first time but also the idea of performing tasks which seem pretty scary whilst in a situation completely out of your comfort zone! Over the next few days we all went through a complete transformation, that first day, grasping at the regulator and fighting the urge to hold our breath as we frantically flailed our arms searching for it felt a long way away. During this intense Kota Kinabalu diving experience we all came such a long way in such a short amount of time!

As the 3 full days SCUBA diving in Borneo went on our feelings of confidence and comfort rose to levels we could never have imagined. Taking our masks off 15m below, simulating out of air situations with composure and learning to control our buoyancy was a liberating feeling. Upon reaching our target depth of 18m we were all in amazement of how calm we all were and how natural it felt! SCUBA diving in Malaysia was now a dream rather than a nightmare!

At Borneo dream they really do structure the course to allow you to progress in well planned stages that allow you to enjoy the process rather than find it stressful, by the end we ventured out for our last dive of the course, freshly qualified to just explore the ocean and enjoy SCUBA diving in Borneo, it was a monumental moment of achievement for all four of us! From something that felt impossible just a few days earlier to SCUBA diving in Malaysia with absolute confidence, the transformation throughout our Kota Kinabalu diving experience was incredible!

SCUBA diving in Malaysia: What exactly is involved in a PADI?

Ok, so what do you really do on a PADI course. Well in truth there are quite a lot of tasks to complete and prove you can do competently in order to pass. This usually takes the form of them being explained above water, performed by your instructor in confined water (shallow and near the beach) before you have to repeat them both in confined and then open water.

These are broken down into each stage and each dive and explained in full before and whilst in the water meaning that its not all that overwhelming or challenging in reality. You are given ample time to try again and your instructor is always there to make sure everything is safe.

These tasks mostly range from removing your regulator (what you breath through) underwater and replacing it, simulating out of air situations where you then share air with your buddy or make an emergency ascent. Removal of mask and replacing it underwater, removing your gear and weight belt and putting it all back on. Safety descending and ascending, learning general safety and communication and of course setting up and changing your gear before and after a dive. There is also a navigation section as well as learning how to control your buoyancy more effectively and of course just getting used to breathing properly underwater! None of it is overly difficult or scary, especially with the structure of the course building up slowly.

For me the worst part was removing my mask as I always had the urge to breath through my nose and opening your eyes in salt water stings a little! I wont lie, there were times when I felt totally uncomfortable doing these tasks whilst SCUBA diving in Malaysia but doing a course like this IS about pushing yourself and learning new things!







Kota Kinabalu diving: Feeling safe in the hands of Borneo Dream

Owned by a British couple and managed by one of the UKs most experienced and accomplished divers you know you are in good and reliable hands for SCUBA diving in Malaysia. The company was set up to provide a 5* service that prides itself on giving the customer a quality experience, high safety standards and of course fun, making sure that their absolute passion for SCUBA diving in Borneo is infectious! They have two specially built boats to provide for different experiences, from various levels of PADI qualifications to simple fun dives or recreational Kota Kinabalu diving for those already qualified. You are guaranteed a great atmosphere on board these state of the art boats as everyone gears up for a great day in the water.

For me the main concern when embarking on what is a sport with many elements of danger is safety. Many people tell us climbing is dangerous, and it is, but if you do everything right then it really isnt as risky as you might imagine. This was a huge factor in choosing this location and also Borneo Dream.

They dont cut corners, they offer small groups and the most up to date equipment and years of experience. They also know the area well, where to dive and where not too making them the perfect Kota Kinabalu diving company. Any concerns you might have about the safety of this region are a non issue and instead you can get on with enjoying SCUBA diving in Borneo! They also have comprehensive cover to protect against any accidents, but we do recommend you to get insurance for yourself anyway especially when doing an activity such as SCUBA diving, but be sure to check you are covered for it first!

Kota Kinabalu diving: Check out Borneo Dream and read more about them here:

www.borneodream.com

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Find them at G27 in Wisma Sabah in the heart of KK!

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How to get to Kota Kinabalu

Kota Kinabalu is assessable pretty much entirely by air travel, it is possible to get here via a ferry if you are in Brunei as we did the trip there and back.

However for most you will have to arrive via a plane. Flights are cheap, frequent and short from Kuala Lumpur and Kuching (Another city on the other side of Malaysian Borneo)

Book your flight for Kota Kinabalu here:

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Where to stay in KK for your Kota Kinabalu diving trip!

We recommend the Faloe Hostel for backpackers and those on a budget, its a family run modern, clean and friendly hostel with a low key vibe. It is also out near Kota Kinabalu Times Square in an apartment block so its a short distance from the city centre but it has a mall nearby and is in a quiet area.

Getting around is easy as the city is pretty small and walkable. UBER and GRAB are great ways to get around too and are really cheap. We would often take an UBER in the morning to SCUBA and then walk back in the afternoon once we were done. It took us 10 mins in the morning to drive down and around 30 mins walk back.

There though are many reasonably priced places to stay in KK with also many chain brand hotels too and smaller guest houses. However some of the main streets with bars and restaurants, specifically Jalan Gaya can be pretty loud at night, we stayed in Fat Rhino for one night and it was ridiculously loud with live acts playing well into the night right below us! However if you are after a party atmosphere are youre planning on being at said bars all night then its a convenient location!

If diving is your main activity in Kota Kinabalu then staying as close to the harbour as possible is ideal, however as we said above the city especially in the centre is very walkable so you dont necessarily need to worry about location for diving. Its also possible to pay for a pick up too each morning if needed.

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Would you recommend Kota Kinabalu diving above Thailand?

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Travelling and especially backpacking is a wild adventure, but make sure you are covered just incase something goes wrong, which if youre living it up to the fullest its always a possibility!

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Related posts:

Things to do in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, Borneo: The Ultimate Kota Kinabalu Itinerary

Penang Itinerary: What to do in Penang in 3 days. A Guide to this Beautiful & Historic Town in Malaysia

Seeing Orangutans in Borneo: A magical experience

Exploring the Bako National Park Borneo

Experiencing the unique culture of Borneo up close and personal at the Mari Mari culture village

The two day trek up the 13,435 ft Mt. Kinabalu

A day in Bandar Seri Begawan: The capital of the tiny country of Brunei on Borneo

How to get to Brunei from Kota Kinabalu

Hiking in through the dramatic tea plantations of the Cameron Highlands, Malaysia.

A guide to the bustling, diverse and fascinating Malaysian capital: Kuala Lumpur

See more from this country:

See more from our backpacking adventures:

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Disclaimer: This post was in partnership by Borneo Dream. As always, all opinions are our own!
General Motors (NYSE: GM) CEO Mary Barra has led the automaker since 2014, and in that relatively short period of time, she's put her stamp on the way that the century-old vehicle manufacturer does business. With the pace of innovation and globalization still accelerating, GM has had to adapt quickly, and Barra has done a good job of leading the automaker forward to help produce record sales years for the industry. In particular, these five things that Barra has said reveal a lot about the future direction for General Motors and the auto industry, as a whole.

1. On autonomous vehicles

We are running our autonomous vehicle program like a start-up to give us the speed that we need to stay focused at the forefront of these technologies and the market applications.

Barra is excited about the prospects for autonomous vehicles in the near future, and she's adamant that General Motors must play a leadership role in the space. The company's Cruise Automation unit in San Francisco is looking to expand, and Barra believes that the facility's location will give it access to top talent in the Bay Area to help drive the program forward. With the recent announcement of the Super Cruise hands-free highway driving system, GM is staking its claim to what will be a rapidly growing market in the years to come.

2. On connectivity and entertainment in vehicles

We have over 20 years of experience in vehicle connectivity, with more than 12 million vehicles connected at the end of last year [2016] across the globe. That's more than the next 7 original equipment manufacturers combined.

General Motors was a first mover with its OnStar system, and the automaker has done its best to leverage the lead that it built through that initial connectivity offering. Since then, vehicle owners have asked for greater levels of connectivity, whether it be voice and data access for business drivers on the go, or streaming audio and video opportunities for passengers. Barra knows the importance of keeping the driving experience both practical and fun, and GM will keep working to enhance its in-vehicle offerings to keep its customers loyal.

3. On the ride-sharing revolution

We launched Maven, our personal mobility brand, and scaled it up very quickly. It is operating in 16 cities, and its Express Drive program for Lyft drivers has about 5,000 vehicles, with plans to add several hundred Bolt EVs in California.

Many have seen ride-sharing services as a threat to General Motors and other automakers, as the ability to share vehicles might lead some would-be buyers to choose, instead, to use services like Uber and Lyft, and never buy their own cars. GM hasn't tried to thwart that trend; instead, it's looking to take advantage of changing consumer preferences through a close partnership with Lyft. By working with ride-sharing rather than trying to stop it, General Motors hopes it can sustain and enhance its brand's value and eventually win over more customers if their needs change and they suddenly require their own personal vehicles.

4. On being the first woman to lead a major automaker

I never want to get a job because I'm female. I want to get it because I earned it and I deserve it.

Barra is the first woman to be CEO of a major player in the auto industry, but she's not interested in defining herself that way. Instead, she has stressed how women shouldn't go out of their ways to hurt their own career paths. Rather than deciding early on that the need to balance family and work life will make ambitious career aspirations impractical, Barra believes that women shouldn't pull themselves out of the fast track prematurely. By remaining open to various possibilities, the General Motors CEO believes that women can take advantage of opportunities that arise, and capitalize on them.

5. On GM's leadership role

We've made very important and strategic investments in key technologies that have put us in a leadership position in the areas where this industry is being transformed. In fact, we plan on leading in that transformation.

When times change, many established industry players tend to dig in and defend their existing turf rather than look for ways to innovate. But Barra has resisted any such impulse at General Motors, instead seeking to expand its leadership role and define the course forward for the entire industry. By staying at the forefront of change, GM avoids the risk of being left behind, and Barra wants to make sure that never happens.

Mary Barra has been a pioneer at General Motors, and the automaker will continue to play a pivotal role in the future of the global auto industry. Under Barra's direction, GM has the opportunity to take advantage of its leadership position and continue to drive innovation in the years to come.

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By Yuddy Cahya GARUT, Indonesia (Reuters) - With their heads covered with Islamic headscarves, the three members of the Indonesian band VoB ("Voice of Baceprot" or "Noisy Voice") do not look like your typical heavy metal group. Formed in 2014, the band of teenagers met at school in Indonesia's most populous province of West Java, and use their music to combat the stereotype of Muslim women as submissive or voiceless. Wearing a hijab, or Islamic head scarf, should not be a barrier to the group's pursuit of its dream of being heavy metal stars, said Firdda Kurnia, 16, who plays guitar and sings. "I think gender equality should be supported, because I feel I am still exploring my creativity, while at the same time, not diminishing my obligations as a Muslim woman," she added. Invited to perform at a recent graduation ceremony at another school, the trio quickly had fans dancing and head-banging at the front of the stage. "I don't see anything wrong with it," said one fan who attended, Teti Putriwulandari Sari. "There's no law that bars hijab-wearing women from playing hardcore music. "This also relates to human rights. If a Muslim girl has a talent to play the drums or a guitar, should she not be allowed?" Besides covering classics by groups such as Metallica and Slipknot, the band perform their own songs on issues such as the state of education in Indonesia. Muslims make up nearly 90 percent of a population of 250 million, the vast majority practising a moderate form of Islam, although there are some conservative strongholds. Not everyone in the town of Garut, where the band was formed, and which is home to several Islamic schools, feels the community is ready for them, or that their music is appropriate for performance by young Muslim women. "It is unusual to see a group of hijab-wearing girls playing metal music or even women shouting," said Muhammad Sholeh, a teacher at the town's Cipari Islamic boarding school, adding that religious pop music was popular with many young Muslims. "But we're talking about metal here, which is loud." Maudya Mulyawati, a student at the school, felt the band should focus on singing "Salawat", an invocation to the religion's founder, Prophet Mohammad. An official of a top clerical body said although the group might trigger a culture clash in a conservative area, he did not feel it broke with Islamic values. "I see this as part of the creativity of teenagers," added Nur Khamim Djuremi, secretary general of the Islamic Art and Culture Division of Indonesia's Ulema Council. (Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
Police have released an image of Manchester bomb suspect Salman Abedi carrying a blue suitcase as they try to trace his movements.

The CCTV still picture was taken in Manchester city centre on the day of the attack last Monday.

Detective Chief Superintendent Russ Jackson from the North West Counter Terrorism Unit said: "We continue to track the final movements of Salman Abedi and are particularly interested in his whereabouts between 18 and 22 May 2017.

"Today, we are releasing an image of Abedi carrying a distinctive blue suitcase and an image of a replica of the case.

"We know he visited the Wilmslow Road area of Manchester and was also seen in Manchester city centre with the blue suitcase.

:: Victim's family: Government must 'open its eyes'

"If you have any details about the suitcase we need you to get in touch and let us know.

"This is a different item than the one he used in the attack.

"We have no reason to believe the case and its contents contain anything dangerous, but would ask people to be cautious."

It came as it emerged that police with dogs have been searching a house that has been cordoned off in the Rusholme area of south Manchester.

A resident said that four Malaysian students live at the property, which is in the city's famous Curry Mile area.

A major search linked to the Manchester terror attack is also under way at a landfill site on the outskirts of Bury, Greater Manchester.

A large number of police officers dressed in white suits have been seen searching the industrial premises at Pilsworth.

Greater Manchester Police tweeted: "Officers investigating the attack on the Manchester Arena are searching a site in Pilsworth, Bury. The search is currently on-going."

Investigators have been at Viridor Waste Management, close to the M66 motorway, "for around three days", according to one resident.

It comes as police continue their search of a flat in Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, that was raided earlier.

Story continues

The force said a 23-year-old man was arrested in the coastal town by officers investigating last Monday's suicide bombing.

:: Timeline: Salman Abedi's last-known movements

The hairdresser of a man who lives at the flat, above a parade of shops in Brunswick Road, said he was training to be a pilot.

Violet Mainda said: "He was a normal bloke, very jovial.

"I think he had finished, or was still training, to be a pilot.

"He told me, but I can't quite remember what he said, he was from Libya."

It brings the number of people in custody in connection with suicide bombing of Manchester Arena to 14.

:: Bomb victim: 'It felt like fire in my back'

Officers also raided addresses in Whalley Range, south Manchester, and Chester.

Salman Abedi killed 22 people, seven of them children, and injured more than 100, minutes after the end of a concert by Disney star Ariana Grande.

NHS England said 50 people are still being treated across eight hospitals, including 17 patients in critical care.

Meanwhile, the Home Secretary has told Sky News an internal MI5 investigation looking into possible intelligence failings over the Manchester bomber is the "right first step".

The Security Service has launched an urgent inquiry into how it missed the danger posed by attacker Salman Abedi.

The move comes amid claims he was repeatedly reported to authorities by teachers and religious leaders concerned that he might become a terrorist.
By Tom Allard MARAWI, Philippines (Reuters) - The Philippine military said on Monday it was close to retaking a southern city held for a seventh day by Islamist militants, as helicopters unleashed more rockets on positions held by the rebels aligned with Islamic State. The occupation of Marawi city by the Maute, a group hardly heard of a year ago, has become the biggest security challenge of Rodrigo Duterte's 11-month presidency, with gunmen resisting air and ground assaults and controlling central parts of a city of 200,000 people. The military said the rebels may be getting help from "sympathetic elements" and fighters they had freed from jail during the rampage that started on Tuesday and caught the military by surprise. "Our ground commanders have assured that the end is almost there," military spokesman Restituto Padilla told reporters. "We're trying to isolate all these pockets of resistance." More than 100 people have been killed, most of them militants, according to the military, and most of the city's residents have fled. The military said the Maute group was still present in nine of the city's 96 barangays, or communities. The Maute's ability to fight off the military for so long will add to fears that Islamic State's radical ideology is spreading in the southern Philippines and it could become a haven for militants from Southeast Asia and beyond. Malaysians and Indonesians were among the rebels killed. The government believes the Maute carried out their assault before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan to capture the attention of Islamic State and earn recognition as a regional affiliate. BLACK-CLAD FIGHTERS According to witnesses, men with black headbands typical of Islamic State have been seen on city streets in recent days. A photograph taken by a resident shows 10 men carrying assault rifles and dressed entirely in black. A Reuters photographer saw an Islamic State flag in an oil drum in an abandoned street on Monday, where chickens roamed in front of damaged shops and homes. Some troops tried to eliminate Maute snipers on Monday as others guarded deserted streets, taken back block by block. Helicopters circled the lakeside city and smoke poured out of some buildings. Artillery explosions echoed. Nearby Iligan City was in lockdown over fears that Maute fighters had sneaked out of Marawi by blending in with civilians. "We don't want what's happening in Marawi to spill over in Iligan," said Colonel Alex Aduca, chief of the Fourth Mechanized Infantry Battalion. Sixty-one militants, 20 members of the security forces and 19 civilians have been killed since Tuesday, when Maute rebels went on the rampage after a botched military operation to arrest Isnilon Hapilon, who the government believes is a point man for Islamic State in the Philippines. Though most people have left, thousands are stranded, worried they could be intercepted by militants if they tried to flee. CNN Philippines reported that 10 people taken hostage while fleeing Marawi had escaped their Maute captors during an air strike on Monday and were in safe hands. The report said they witnessed the beheading of another hostage a day earlier. A video of several of the men was circulated online on Monday, showing them begging Duterte to stop military operations, otherwise they would be decapitated. Reuters could not verify the authenticity of the video or the accounts given in the news report. The military has warned that atrocities may have been committed by the Maute. The bodies of what appeared to be eight executed civilians were found in a ravine outside Marawi on Sunday, some with their hand bound. Zia Alonto Adiong, a politician involved in evacuation efforts, said civilians stuck in Marawi wanted air strikes to stop. "The anticipation of death is worse than death itself," he told news channel ANC. "We appeal to our military forces to do a different approach." Army spokesman, Colonal Edgard Arevalo, said "surgical strikes" were taken on "known and verified enemy positions". Duterte imposed martial law last week on Mindanao, an island of 22 million people where both Marawi and Iligan are located, to quell the unrest and try to tackle radicalism. He made an unconventional offer on Saturday to Muslim separatists and communist rebels to become "soldiers of the Republic" and join his fight against extremists. (Additional reporting by Erik de Castro in MARAWI and Neil Jerome Morales, Karen Lema and Manuel Mogato in MANILA; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Robert Birsel)
New Second City cast walks in the footsteps of comedy giants
Herein David Frum, a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, examines the catastrophe which Donald Trump has inflicted upon American relations with Europe. President Trump's trip to Europe has managed in a few short days to undermine what seven decades of bi-partisan foreign policy have accomplished. He has not only left a trail of wreckage in his wake that he cannot easily repair, but he probably doesn't even notice the mess.At least for the moment, the link between America and a democratic Europe which shares its most basic political values has been weakened and all but broken. Our bull-in-a-China-shop President has for once taken a giant step for a change toward a goal he clearly articulated during the campaign: isolating us from our allies and from other democratic nations and thus freeing us from our obligations around the world. He and those who blindly follow him seem unable to comprehend that doing so leaves us not merely alone, but vulnerable to itches in places we cannot scratch; as I pointed out in my post on the debt we owe to foreign intelligence services , the spies and even soldiers of our allies serve our interests by proxy in ways which keep Americans out of harms way and even bring our influence to bear indirectly in places beyond our direct reach.Alienating our NATO allies and forfeiting our position of influence in the European region weakens us. The siren song of isolationism which was the theme of the American Right in the years leading up to World War II struck the same chords: the alleged self-interest of the United States in shedding obligations even if it means shedding influence and foreclosing options. The result was Hitler and the most catastrophic war the human race has ever seen.Twice in the previous century, we've been able to use our privileged position on the other side of the Atlantic to delay entry into world wars we could not finally avoid, allowing our allies to bear the brunt of the burden. But this is a different world. In 1917, we were literally almost untouchable; by 1941 a Japanese carrier fleet had to travel most of the breadth of the Pacific Ocean to attack us at Pearl Harbor. Today a far more devastating attack by nuclear weapons is always literally minutes away. Even second and third-rate powers like Iran and North Korea may soon present threats to major American population centers which cannot easily be stopped and which allow no opportunity for delay.Globalism has become a dirty word at both extremes of American politics. But today's global economy makes events in Europe and Asia anything but irrelevant to the health of the American economy. There is simply no hot spot in the world in which the United States does not have vital interests- interests which, absent NATO and our other alliances, we would simply be unable to defend.A major part of the President's appeal was his embrace of the violently un-conservative, un-Republican and historically discredited notion of protectionism. American jobs are not finally safeguarded by keeping foreign goods out of the United States, or by putting obstacles in the way of their ability to compete with American goods domestically; such a policy by all historical precedent simply invites retaliation and of equal obstacles being erected to American goods being sold overseas. Nobody wins a trade war; the net result is jobs more likely being lost than gained, and the ability of the American economy to thrive in the era of globalism being crippled. The trade unions and the Left have embraced that foolish notion for decades, and it is no less counterproductive when a nominally Republican president buys into it. The answer to our unfavorable balance of trade with Germany, which President Trump last week used as an excuse to call an important ally "bad." is not to keep German goods out of the United States, but precisely to seek ways to make American goods more competitive in Germany and the rest of Europe.There was a time not so very long ago that Americans instinctively sensed that, and responded to competition by competing harder ourselves. Now, under Donald Trump, we are choosing to run away from competition instead.Some conservative administration!Chancellor Merkel, as Mr. Frum points out, has left no doubt that she (and, by implication, the European Union) had given up on Donald Trump's America. The president whose desire to boast undermined the confidence of our most critical Middle Eastern ally in its ability to share intelligence with us without compromising its assets has effectively walked away from America's role at the head of the Western alliance, and the rest of the alliance is responding accordingly. In terms of both our economic and national security, there is a huge price to be paid, and we have begun to pay it. It's not just that our allies will now have to do things for themselves which we have done for them in the past (but done to a much, much less of than Mr. Trump's rhetoric not only implies but openly claims), but thatare going to have to start doing for ourselves things our allies have in the past done- or, in many cases, simply leave them undone.Fortunately, as a British correspondent of mine on Reddit has pointed out, our European allies are well aware that Trump is an aberration, a temporary glitch in the timeline of post-war relations between the United States and Europe which will be removed when, whether by impeachment, resignation or electoral defeat, Mr. Trump leaves the White House no later than January of 2021. And as Frum points out, Chancellor Merkel's pointed statement does not preclude the possibility of the post-war order being restored once he leaves office. But America will be crippled in the meantime by leadership which, far from blazing a path bravely and courageously into the future, has chosen to run away from responsibilities it is in our interest to meet and flee from the competition upon which our greatness was built.America, candidate Trump chided a year or so ago, "doesn't win much anymore." But you can't win if you don't play. And as long as Donald Trump is in the White House, we will win even more seldom than before.
I, Jeff Spiegel, opened my first restaurant in New York when I was in my mid-30s.

In 23 years, I opened 11 restaurants. When my wife, Katie Gardner, and I concluded that it was time to move to New Mexico, we had no way to keep the restaurants alive without us, except to sell them. Its not that we didnt think about it, we did. But by the time we were ready to let go, we didnt have the people to succeed us. It was too late: We hadnt laid the groundwork.

In 2013, we planned to open a single Italian restaurant in Albuquerque. We made John Haas, our new chef who was then in his early 30s, our partner. At the time, it was a gamble. We didnt know him well, though we thought he had enormous potential. But our NYC experience was fresh on our minds. Now we had someone who could keep the business going.

The result is a model for business succession that would work in any industry, not just the restaurant industry. We didnt invent the model. Its similar to the structure that law firms use to assure their longevity.

The restaurant business tends to be a churn-and-burn industry. Restaurants that successfully transition to the next generation are often family-owned. It is unusual to use the same structure when it is not a family-owned business. None of Mtuccis new partners are family members. All were employees, unknown to us before we hired them. Their performances, though, stood out. We realized that we had big talent on our hands, and that we should lock them in.

Our plan looks out 25 years and creates the next generation of leadership and ownership. We hand-picked the best and put them on a three-year track to partnership. Its a win-win model for all of us  the founders, the business and the new partners.

Making this move was logical for us. We felt confident that we knew our new partners well enough to bring them in. Now we could assure that the business we were building would survive our retirement, and do it while maintaining the quality that is our hallmark.

For all business, no matter the industry, it takes great talent to grow and succeed. If you hire great people and give them opportunity, they not only will be great at what they do, they will make your business great in the process.

This seems self-evident to us. It has become apparent to us that our view is not shared by others. While implementing our succession plan, we were also in discussions with potential investors. Most of them could not understand why we would dilute our ownership, potentially diluting theirs if they became investors. To us, it was just the opposite. We were buoying the companys long-term future. It seemed apparent that a company with young owners would be in business far longer than one with old folks at the helm. To us, the investors profit share would last far longer with young people in ownership positions, than in a company whose future leadership is not clear once the founding 70-year-olds are gone.

So far, our results have been stellar. The new partners are proud to be owners and are helping us take the company to the next level.

Sherry Rivenburgh, one of the new partners, explained it best: I, along with other key employees, now have a financial stake in the success of Mtuccis Restaurants, which gives us all a different perspective on how the company functions. The most notable change, which happened without discussion, is how we work as a team. We no longer count on only the original owners to make decisions, we rely on each other for advice and solutions. This gives us a sense of empowerment, and we know that our work and commitment not only makes a difference in the companys bottom line, but affects our personal bottom line as well.

Too often, New Mexico leads the nation in bad results. One index that is frequently cited is the number of people leaving the state. By investing in key employees, we give them a powerful reason to plant their roots in New Mexico. And they will bring new creativity, new ideas, new products and the future to your company.

It is about doing the right thing. In this case, doing the right thing will produce these results: The employee/partners thrive, the company thrives and the owners thrive. Its about building a business the right way.

NAMES: Jeff Spiegel and John Haas

TITLES: Founding partners

ORGANIZATION: MTuccis Italian
NEW YORK  Clinton Smith hires veterans because he knows military service has helped them become dedicated and hard-working staffers.

When you say, I need you to do this right now, they get it done and get it done well, says Smith, a former Marine who is CEO of Government & Civil Employee Services, a financial planning company in the western Pennsylvania borough of Indiana.

Smith also finds that veterans are ideal for his company, whose clients are mostly federal workers; anyone whos been in the service has spent years understanding and navigating government-supplied benefits.

The military experience in these individuals truly comes back in positive ways throughout the rest of their adult lives, says Smith, who with his partner Galen Bargerstock has six employees, three of them veterans.

Many small businesses make it a point to hire veterans. Often the owners have military experience themselves, and believe that years in the service make people dependable and industrious workers. Some appreciate service members for the sacrifices they make. And others want to help veterans who struggle with homelessness, addiction and other problems.

There are plenty of veterans looking for work. The federal government counted 453,000 unemployed veterans in 2016, with a 5.1 percent unemployment rate for veterans who were on active duty at any time since September 2001. The unemployment rate for all veterans was 4.3 percent, compared to the national rate of 4.9 percent.

Paul Huszar hires veterans because he learned firsthand that many employers dont recognize the value former service members bring to a workplace. Huszar, a West Point graduate who served as dean of the U.S. Army Engineer School, had a hard time finding a job when he retired in 2013.

People didnt know my capabilities, Huszar says. He did find work with VetCor, a company based in Sebring, Fla., that repairs water and mold damage in homes and commercial property, and he ended up buying the business. He has 26 veterans in his companys three offices.

We show up when requested and our technicians are fit, polite, in uniform, treat everyone with dignity and respect, and are willing to do whatever is required to complete the mission, Huszar says.

Steve Myers decided not only to hire veterans for construction, electrical contracting and computer networking jobs, but to also help them readjust to being civilians. He put together a training program, giving veterans a two-year apprenticeship. Between their benefits under the GI Bill of Rights and what Myers pays them, they take home money comparable to what they made in the service.

We dont ask people that are typically in their mid-20s to start over at entry-level pay, says Myers, owner of True North Management Services, a Fenton, Mo.-based company that builds and manages cellphone networks.

Myers is aware that while veterans have spent years in uniform, their classmates have gone to college and graduate school and started moving ahead with their careers.

Theyve truly put their lives on hold for us, says Myers, who served eight years in the Coast Guard. He describes himself as having been behind the eight ball when he left the service. By the time he finished his service and college, he was 10 years behind his contemporaries in experience and pay.

Companies cannot have a policy of hiring only veterans, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Because women historically were excluded from military service or work within the military, a smaller number of veterans are women and they therefore are at a disadvantage when it comes to hiring, the EEOC has said. A veterans-only policy could be seen as discriminating against women.

Employers report few downsides to hiring former service members. Some veterans use a military vocabulary thats laden with acronyms unfamiliar to civilians, and it can take a while for them to give up that habit. But many colleagues are happy to be working alongside team players.

Veterans come from an organization that teaches team members to look out for each other in large ways and small, placing service above self, says Josh Broder, CEO of Tilson, a Portland, Maine-based engineering, construction and information technology company. Broder, who served with the Army Signal Corps in Afghanistan, has 240 employees, about half of them veterans. The company seeks out veterans because they work well together and are used to sometimes difficult work conditions, Broder says.

But veterans can encounter some would-be employers who assume that people join the military because they werent smart enough to get other work, says Sherrill Curtis, a career counselor and consultant based in East Rutherford, N.J..

Some people know zero about what vets can do, she says. There are people who have come through the military with not one but two degrees.

Employers might also be reluctant to hire veterans who are members of the reserves, and thus must be on duty one weekend a month and spend two weeks each year in training. As employers discovered when troops were called up for conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, members of the reserve can be called to active duty. Employers generally must hold their jobs for them while they are serving.

There are other challenges, including the perception that veterans will suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, Curtis says. She points out that many people who have never been in the service have had PTSD, and that employers usually havent known that in advance.

Eric Basu has worked with Wounded Warrior Project to find some of the employees for his cybersecurity and information technology company, Sentek Global. Wounded Warrior Project helps veterans with service-related injuries or illnesses including PTSD.

You need to accommodate them, Basu says of wounded service members. Veterans have made up between 50 percent and 70 percent of the San Diego-based companys workforce since Basu, who served in the Navy, started it in 2001.
Denver-based Baceline Investments recently acquired the Shoppes at San Mateo for $7.1 million.

The Albuquerque center totals 52,480 square feet.

Shoppes at San Mateo is at the northwest corner of San Mateo Boulevard and Osuna Road NE, an intersection that sees nearly 50,000 vehicles per day. Key tenants include Schlotzskys, Pizza Hut, Weight Watchers, Saigon Kitchen and a mattress retailer. Baceline acquired the property from LS Capital.

Bringing the Shoppes at San Mateo into our high-yield income fund portfolio is exciting on many fronts, said David Puchi, Bacelines managing partner. Based on location and community, Baceline sees significant opportunity for producing high levels of income and seeing growth from the property.

Puchi adds, Unlike the fallout in big-box retail that is occurring today, well-located, neighborhood-based shopping centers are continuing to gain momentum as excellent investment opportunities as they provide the venue for neighborhood residents to buy their everyday necessities, whether these are goods or services.

Main Bank has first tenant

Main Bank has a new tenant sharing space in its Uptown headquarters.

Pearson VUE, a for-profit electronic testing company, will relocate to the second floor of the locally owned bank, which is located at 7300 Menaul NE.

Randy Dallman, Pearsons real estate manager, said the company will lease about 3,800 square feet of the 6,000 square feet available for tenants on the second floor. Tenant improvements are planned to outfit the space for testing purposes, especially in the areas of sound attenuation and climate control.

We put a lot of time and effort in providing a comfortable space for our clients in what can be a high-stress environment, Dallman said of the testing for certifications and professional licensure exams in the health care, finance, information technology, academic and admissions markets.

Dallman said the company is shooting for a July opening. He expects 8 to 12 employees to staff the testing center, many of them retired schoolteachers well versed in proctoring exams.

The two-story, 17,000-square-foot building, which was constructed for $6 million, opened last March.

The right fit

The Allen Sigmon Real Estate Group recently helped broker deals for office space on behalf of an insurance company and a firm that sells elevators.

The firm said it represented Farmers Insurance in the purchase of a new district office in Rio Rancho at 1350 Jackie Rd. SE.

Buying a shell building allowed me the opportunity to build out the interior office the way I wanted, to have the office layout flow, said Randy Johnson, district manager. My main goal was to reduce my space from 3,000 to around 2,000 square feet, but we didnt want to lose any amenities such as private offices, a conference room, consultation rooms, and a break area for agents to have lunch and take breaks. 

Austin Tidwell and Daniel Kearney, associate brokers for Allen Sigmon, represented Johnson and Farmers Insurance. Anne Apicella of Colliers International represented the seller.

Tidwell also helped honcho the purchase of a new showroom space for Quality Elevators and Lifts at the Venture Commerce Center which is located at 680 Eagle Ranch NW. Allen Sigmon owns the majority of the Centers commercial condo suites.

DPS on top firms list

Dekker/Perich/Sabatini has again been ranked among the 2017 ENR Top 500 Design Firms, climbing the list by 36 spots since last year. Engineering News-Record, a design and construction publication, ranks the U.S. top firms based on revenue from the prior year and includes firms in architecture, engineering, planning, landscape architecture and other design professions.

The Albuquerque-based company moved from No. 446 to No. 410 in this years ranking.

We have seen continued improvement in the business climate with work taking us across the country and adding to our strong presence in the Southwest, said Steven Perich, senior principal at D/P/S.

This is the 14th year that D/P/S has been ranked as a Top 500 Design Firm.

Steve Sinovic is the Journals real estate reporter. He can be contacted at ssinovic@abqjournal.com. Or call 505-823-3919.
WASHINGTON  The Manchester terror attack by an alleged Islamic State soldier will accelerate the push by the U.S. and its allies to capture the terror groups strongholds in Mosul and Raqqah. But it should also focus some urgent discussions about a post-IS strategy for stabilizing Iraq and Syria.

For all President Trumps bombast about obliterating the Islamic State, also known as IS, the Raqqah campaign has been delayed for months while U.S. policymakers debated the wisdom of relying on a Syrian Kurdish militia known as the YPG that Turkey regards as a terrorist group. That group and allied Sunni fighters have been poised less than 10 miles from Raqqah, waiting for a decision.

All the while, the clock has been ticking on terror plots hatched by IS and directed from Raqqah. U.S. officials told me a few weeks ago they were aware of at least five IS operations directed against targets in Europe. European allies have been urging the United States to finish the job in Raqqah as soon as possible.

The horrific Manchester bombing is a reminder of the difficulty of containing the plots hatched in IS  and the cost of waiting to strike the final blows. IS is battered and in retreat, and its caliphate is nearly destroyed on the ground. But a virtual caliphate survives in the network that spawned Salman Abedi, the alleged Manchester bomber, and others who seek to avenge the groups slow eradication.

The Raqqah assault should move ahead quickly, now that the Trump administration has rejected Turkish protests and opted to back the YPG as the backbone of a broader coalition known as the Syrian Democratic Forces. These are committed, well-led fighters, as I saw during a visit to a special forces training camp in northern Syria a year ago.

The Trump administration listened patiently to Turkish arguments for an alternative force backed by Ankara. But the Pentagon concluded this force didnt have any real battlefield presence and that the real choice was either relying on the Kurdish-led coalition to clear Raqqah or sending in thousands of U.S. troops to do the job.

The White House rightly opted for the first approach several weeks ago. To ease Ankaras worries, the United States is offering assurances the Kurdish military presence will be contained and that newly recruited Sunni tribal forces will help manage security in Raqqah and nearby Deir el-Zour.

The endgame is near in Mosul, too. Commanders say that only about 6 percent of the city remains to be captured, with 500 to 700 IS fighters hunkered down in the old city west of the Tigris River.

Once Raqqah and Mosul are cleared, the challenge will be rebuilding the Sunni areas of Syria and Iraq  with real governance and security  so that follow-on extremist groups dont quickly emerge. This idea of preparing for the day after IS has gotten lip service from U.S. policymakers for three years, but very little serious planning or funding. It should be an urgent priority for the U.S. and its key Sunni partners, such as Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Intelligence services from several key allies are said to have met in recent weeks with Sunni leaders from Iraq to form a core leadership that can take the initiative. But so far, this effort is said to have produced more internal bickering than clear strategy, a depressing rewind of failed efforts to build a coherent Sunni opposition in Syria.

CIA Director Mike Pompeo told me and several other journalists in an interview Tuesday that he plans to move the agency to a more aggressive, risk-taking stance. Heres a place to start.

The Kurds are the wild cards in both Iraq and Syria. The Syrian Kurds are already governing the ethnic enclave they call Rojava. That should be an incentive for Syrias Sunnis to develop similar strong government in their liberated areas. Meanwhile, Iraqi Kurds have told U.S. officials they plan to hold a referendum on Kurdish independence soon, perhaps as early as September.

U.S. officials feel a deep gratitude toward Iraqi Kurds, who have been reliable allies since the early 1990s. But the independence referendum is a potential flashpoint, and U.S. officials may try to defer the Kurdish question until well after Iraqi provincial elections scheduled in September.

Iraq and Syria need to be reimagined as looser, better governed, more inclusive confederal states that give minorities room to breathe. The trick for policymakers is to make the post-IS transition a pathway toward progress, rather than a continuation of the sectarian catastrophe that has befallen both nations.

Email: davidignatius@washpost.com. Copyright, Washington Post Writers Group.
FORT WASHINGTON, Md.  Lt. James Downing steered his motorized scooter through a crowd of leather-clad bikers who stared in awe as he approached a soundstage. The rumble of mufflers groaned in the distance as the 103-year-old Downing parked his three-wheeler in front of a man holding out a microphone, inviting him to speak.

Downing is the second-oldest known survivor of the Pearl Harbor attack. Thats why, even at an event that prides itself on the earthshaking roar produced by countless Harleys, Downings ride was one of the biggest head-turners on Saturday. It was carrying a living witness to World War II history.

We have to keep America so strong that no aggressor would even think about attacking us, Downing, seated in his scooter, said to rousing applause in the parking lot of a motorcycle dealership in Fort Washington, Maryland.

Downings speech to hundreds of bikers was part of a five-day event that makes up the annual Memorial Day gathering called Rolling Thunder. It will culminate on Sunday with thousands of motorcycles making their now-familiar pilgrimage from the Pentagon across the Memorial Bridge to Franklin D. Roosevelt Park to commemorate soldiers who were prisoners of war or missing in action.

Like Downing, the Rolling Thunder event has aged well. It is celebrating its 30th year.

Its gotten bigger and bigger, said Sgt. Artie Muller, one of a handful of founders who organized a ride with 2,500 participants in Washington in 1998. That number has swelled to an estimated 900,000 participants, according to the organization.

Last year the event featured then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.

For Downing, of Colorado Springs, this was the first trip to Rolling Thunder. And he found a receptive audience as he told his story.

On Dec. 7, 1941, he was on shore enjoying a relaxing breakfast with his wife of five months when the Japanese attack began. He rushed to the dock, where his ship, the USS West Virginia, was under siege.

Everything above water was on fire, he said.

A low-flying Japanese plane passing overhead rained machine gun bullets in the direction of his group but missed him. As the West Virginia sank, Downing rushed to memorize the names inscribed on dog tags worn by the deceased. He was the postmaster for the West Virginia, and he knew he would need to write letters to the families of the deceased.

As Downing spoke, Kathryn Kent, a 46-year-old veteran from St. Louis, stood in the audience nodding her head. When Downing was finished, she walked up to the stage and knelt down in front of the scooter. She took his hand and thanked him.

Thats living history, she said. The kind of thing our youngest generation needs to know about.

Downing is doing his best to spread the word. He wrote a book about his experience at Pearl Harbor that was published in November. Hes done nine book speaking tours since then, said his full-time caretaker Carol Lucke Dodge. That included 36 speaking events in one two-week span.

How he gets this energy I can no longer explain, Dodge said, as a procession lined up to thank Downing.

The event also paid tribute to those not as fortunate as Downing.

Jim and Dianna Beardsley have been attending Rolling Thunder since they lost their son, William B.J. Beardsley, in Iraq on Feb. 26, 2007. Beardsley was killed when his vehicle hit an improvised explosive device.

They buried him in Arlington National Cemetery on his 25th birthday.

The biggest thing youll hear out here is Please dont forget,  Dianna Beardsley said. So when we see these people out here, its huge to us as a community.

A little while later, Downing was thinking about the friends he lost more than 75 years ago. There were 105 from the West Virginia who died, he said.

He had maneuvered his scooter across the parking lot to a semi-truck painted to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the attack. Painted on one side of the cab was a reproduction of a photograph of Pearl Harbor taken from a U.S. plane only hours before the Japanese attacked.

Darrell Plonk, materials manager for Freightliner Truck Manufacturing, the North Carolina company that built the commemorative truck, said the photograph had been recovered from a U.S. plane that was later shot down in the attack.

The photo captured six of the more than 160 ships in the harbor that day.

Plonk pointed out the USS Arizona. Downing looked up and marveled with recognition.

Thats my ship right there, he said pointing to the one next to it. Thats the USS West Virginia right there.
If Dear White People wants to make us laugh, its only to make the sting of truth a little easier to bear.
Copyright  2017 Albuquerque Journal

More than 71 years ago, J.W. Joe Herman, watertender first class, disembarked from the heavy cruiser USS New Orleans at Philadelphia and put World War II astern.

He went back to Topeka, Kan., his hometown, and to Barbara, the girl he met there, the girl hed mailed an engagement ring to from Hawaii.

World War II was his past. Barbara was his future. She still is. They celebrated their 70th anniversary in September.

Herman took part in at least 11 battles during his time on the New Orleans, one of the most combat-tested and highly decorated ships of the war. But he did not bring home any medals for his service.

Men like Herman, enlisted men, men who fired up the boilers in a ships bowels and swabbed up the heavy oil that dripped from those boilers onto the floor beneath, men such as that, didnt think about medals.

During the war, the only ones who got medals were big captains, Herman said last week.

He was sitting on a sofa, next to Barbara, also 93, in the Northeast Albuquerque home they have lived in since the Santa Fe Railway transferred them here in 1968.

Barbara smiled.

The only thing they were thinking about getting was getting back home, she said of men like her husband, men separated from loved ones by too many miles and too many months.

But there on the sofa between Joe and Barbara was a packet containing six medals with colorful ribbons and two military lapel buttons, decorations Herman had not thought much about over the years, if at all.

Brigitte Herman, a daughter-in-law, urged Herman to get his medals because she believes his descendants  five children, 20 grandchildren, 38 great-grandchildren (and two on the way) and one great-great grandchild  should have something to remind them of the sacrifices Herman and other men and women of his generation made, some tangible evidence that World War II is not just something you see in movies.

It is our desire that our children and grandchildren not forget that our freedom has come at great cost, Brigitte Herman said.

It took six months of phone calls and paperwork, but now, more than 71 years after he was discharged from the Navy and just in time for Memorial Day, Herman has his medals. Hes always had the memories. You cant leave those behind.

Say your prayers

One time, Herman said, there was an airplane attack, and the officer of the day gets on the speaker and says, You guys better say your prayers because there are too many damn planes. 

They were Japanese planes and this was somewhere in the Pacific. Somebody must have been praying, because the combined anti-aircraft fire of the New Orleans and accompanying ships repulsed the attack.

Twenty-eight planes came in, and three got away, Herman said.

He said the New Orleans is credited with destroying 17 enemy aircraft during the course of the war.

One time, I saw a plane coming right in on us and this guy wheeled a five-inch gun around and knocked the plane right out of the air, Herman said.

He remembers another time the New Orleans sank an enemy ship during a late-night battle, and he remembers bodies in the water following another engagement in which a 16-inch shell from an American battleship  the USS Iowa or the USS New Jersey  destroyed a small Japanese transport ship.

The first (Japanese) I saw was just half of one, he said.

The New Orleans was docked at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked on Dec. 7, 1941, but the cruiser suffered only minimal damage. However, during the nighttime Battle of Tassafaronga, on Nov. 30, 1942, near Guadalcanal, a torpedo detonated the New Orleans forward ammunition storage area and gasoline tanks, severing 150 feet of the ships bow.

Herman was just 17 when Pearl Harbor was attacked. He was inducted into the Navy in March 1943 and joined the New Orleans after it had been refitted with a new bow. He said only three men died on the ship after he joined the crew.

One died of natural causes, Herman said, if an excessive affection for alcoholic beverages can be considered natural.

Another, a radio man, was killed when he fell from the wing of one of the scout planes the New Orleans launched by catapult. The third man was killed on April 22, 1944, when a disabled plane from the American aircraft carrier Yorktown flew into the New Orleans main mast and then slammed into the ships gun mounts as it tumbled into the sea.

Fire room duty

Herman was below deck when the Yorktown plane crashed into the New Orleans. As the man in charge of fire room No. 1, he was often below deck.

A fire room is a boiler room. The New Orleans had four fire rooms and there were two boilers in each of them.

And there were 2,705 tubes in each boiler, Herman said. I know because I had to clean all of them.

As the name might suggest, it was hot in the fire rooms.

Itd be 120 degrees, Herman said. Wed go around with our shoes unlaced just to get a little air. But you didnt want to work without a shirt because if anything backed out of those boilers, you were burned.

It was pretty noisy down there, too, especially during battles.

Those eight-inch guns do make a noise, he said.

Thinking back over the years, however, Herman remembers some of the good things about serving on the New Orleans, things important to a young man who had been a child during the stark years of the Great Depression.

We had some of the best men at making coffee, he said. That was good coffee. And when we were working (night duty), at midnight, everybody got something to eat. Two little sandwiches with good (made-from-scratch) bread and three little Vienna sausages. I still like Vienna sausages.

They all came back

If you ask Joe Herman about his worst day on the USS New Orleans, he will probably not tell you about bodies in the water, or planes crashing into the deck, or the fierce heat in the fire room. Likely, hell tell you about the day in the summer of 1944 that he got the telegram telling him his mother had died.

I didnt get to go home, he said. The chaplain told me that if it had happened a month later, he could have got me home. But at the time, it was too dangerous to get a seaplane in. She was only 51. No, 52. I think she died of hard luck.

His mother had endured the trying times of the Depression and given birth to 12 children  eight boys and four girls. Herman, four of his brothers and a brother-in-law served in World War II and all of them survived to return home.

Joe was the only one of the Herman brothers to serve in the Navy. Peter Augie Herman and Edward Herman were in the Army. Lawrence Herman was in the Coast Guard and Sylvester Herman was with the Merchant Marine. Clarence Stedler, the brother-in-law, was a Navy man.

Back then, it seemed as if everyone was in the military service. Herman said the first time he went below deck on the New Orleans, he ran into Jack Hewitt, a friend who lived just two miles from the Herman home in Topeka.

Joe met Barbara at her home during a 1942 going-away party for her brother, Ambrose Bud Artzer, and Joes brother Lawrence, both of whom had just joined the Coast Guard.

They started dating before Joe went into the Navy, and then for more than two years Barbara wrote to Joe, addressing the letters to the USS New Orleans.

Six months after he was discharged from the Navy, they got married.

Guess where we went on our honeymoon, Barbara said.

Yeah, thats right. It was New Orleans.

The USS New Orleans received 17 battle stars for her service in World War II. She was decommissioned in February 1947 at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and sold for scrap in 1959.

Joe Herman moves slowly now and with the aid of a cane. His hearing is not what it once was and neither is his eyesight. But hes not ready for scrapping.

Hes still got Barbara and his memories, and now, all these years later and just in time for Memorial Day, hes got his medals.

This is the Occupation medal WWII Navy Veteran J.W. Herman received. The Asiatic Pacific Campaign medal WWII Navy veteran J.W. "Joe" Herman received. The Honorable Discharge pin WWII Navy veteran J.W. "Joe" Herman received. This is the WWII Victory medal WWII Navy veteran J.W. "Joe" Herman received. A lapel button for honorable service WWII Navy veteran J.W. "Joe" Herman received. The China Service medal WWII Navy veteran J.W. "Joe" Herman received. The Good Conduct medal WWII Navy veteran J.W. "Joe" Herman received. The American Campaign medal WWII Navy veteran J.W. "Joe" Herman received. Prev 1 of 8 Next

Medals from the past

At the urging of his family, Albuquerque resident J.W. Joe Herman, a World War II Navy veteran, applied for the decorations he earned during his service on the USS New Orleans.

Earlier this month, Herman received:

 American Campaign medal

 Asiatic Pacific Campaign medal

 World War II Victory medal

 Navy Good Conduct medal

 Navy China Service medal

 Navy Occupation medal

 Honorable Service lapel button

 Honorable Discharge lapel button
Sandoval County sheriffs deputies said early on that alcohol was a factor in a fatal and fiery crash near Cuba, but a recently released crash report says a front tire blowout triggered the crash that killed four members of the Crawford family from Aztec.

While the tire blowout sent the truck swerving into oncoming traffic, an investigator with the Sandoval County Sheriffs Office traffic unit wrote in the report that interviews with a tire expert indicated a sober reasonable person would have been able to gain control of this vehicle if the tire blew up.

Witnesses said the head-on impact with the Freightliner utility truck, which was towing a Bobcat, caused the Crawfords SUV to burst into flames almost immediately. Medical investigators later found the severely burned bodies of Jimmie and Melissa Crawford and their children Grant, 4, and Chace, 2, inside.

Paul Ortega, 47, the driver of the utility truck, was also pronounced dead at the scene, and deputies are awaiting the results of his autopsy, which will show whether he was intoxicated. But deputies wrote that his body smelled of alcohol and listed him on the report as being under the influence of alcohol.

His three passengers  Amador Jacquez, 49, Jacob Martinez, 25, and Daniel Gonzales, 34  were traveling back to their homes in small northern New Mexico towns after working a landscaping job in Albuquerque. All three were injured and transported to a local hospital. They each reported drinking while Ortega drove, in addition to eating and drinking at a Hooters restaurant before leaving Albuquerque, according to the crash report. None of them said if Ortega had also been drinking in the vehicle. Deputies found Corona and Dos Equis bottles scattered at the crash site.

The case was forwarded to the 13th Judicial District Attorneys Office, but prosecutors did not recommend charges against the passengers, deputies said.

Federal court documents show that Ortega, who lived in Coyote, had in 2012 been accused of driving an off-highway vehicle drunk on federal Forest Service land in Rio Arriba County. Prosecutors dropped that charge in a plea agreement in exchange for his guilty plea to being a felon in possession of a firearm. He had a previous felony drug conviction, according to court documents.

His family declined to speak with the Journal, but on social media, his friends and loved ones shared memories and favorite photos of the fun-loving, avid motorcyclist. An online obituary said Ortega served in the Army National Guard.

Meanwhile, friends and family of the Crawfords continue to mourn. Jimmie Crawford, 45, recently retired from the Farmington Fire Department and, never one to sit still, had taken a job with a refinery. Melissa was a college athlete who worked as a teacher before becoming a stay-at-home mom.

She is survived by two young sons, who were not in the SUV that night.

Donations are still pouring in to a GoFundMe account, the Melissa and Jimmie Crawford Memorial, which has raised nearly $49,000.
WASHINGTON  President Donald Trump is assailing internal leaks as he considers an overhaul of his White House staff and grapples with a burgeoning crisis involving alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 campaign.

Frustrated with what he views as his teams inability to push back against the drumbeat of new revelations, Trump is seeking expanded teams of lawyers and experienced public relations hands. While he has called his first trip abroad a home run, it was shadowed by reports about Moscows interference and possible improper dealings with the Trump campaign and associates.

The latest reports hit close to the Oval Office, alleging that Trumps son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner proposed secret back-channel communications with Russia during the presidential transition.

Trump struck back Sunday, after maintaining a limited social media presence throughout his nine-day trip. He unleashed a flurry of tweets, lashing out at what he called the fake news media. He focused heavily on leaks  both those coming out of the White House and an intelligence leak blamed on Americans about the deadly bombing at a concert in Britain.

On the bombing investigation Trump wrote: British Prime Minister May was very angry that the info the U.K. gave to U.S. about Manchester was leaked.

Trump also wrote that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies. He added that it is very possible that those sources dont exist but are made up by fake news writers.

Even when authorized, top officials in the Trump White House frequently request anonymity to brief reporters on background, meaning their names will not be disclosed.

Trump, who made no public appearances Sunday, was expected to deliver remarks at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day.

Trumps longtime lawyer, Marc Kasowitz, has joined a still-forming legal team to help the president shoulder the intensifying Russia investigations. More attorneys with deep experience in Washington investigations are expected to be added, along with crisis communication experts.

During the Monica Lewinsky investigation, the Clinton White House brought on a dedicated group of lawyers and a created a separate media operation to handle investigation-related inquiries so they didnt completely subsume the presidents agenda.

As he mulls changes, Trump has entertained formally bringing back his former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and former deputy campaign manager, David Bossie. Both Lewandowski and Bossie discussed the prospect with the president before his trip, according to a person told of the conversations.

Lewandowskis return would be notable, given the fact that he was fired by Trump after clashing with staff and Trumps adult children. Nonetheless, Lewandowski has the trust of the president  an advantage that many of Trumps aides lack.

Major issues await Trump. He has signaled he will soon make a decision on whether to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. And the search continues for an FBI director to replace the fired James Comey.

On the policy front, he must defend his budget plan, and the Republican health care bill that narrowly passed the House faces an uncertain future in the Senate. On that topic, Trump tweeted Sunday night: I suggest that we add more dollars to Healthcare and make it the best anywhere. ObamaCare is dead  the Republicans will do much better!

Trump also has to decide soon on a Pentagon recommendation to add more U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, as well as boosting reinforcement for the beleaguered Afghan military.

While taxes have taken a back seat in recent weeks, Trump tweeted Sunday: The massive TAX CUTS/REFORM that I have submitted is moving along in the process very well, actually ahead of schedule. Big benefits to all!

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Associated Press writers Julie Bykowicz, Vivian Salama and Darlene Superville contributed to this report.

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On Twitter, follow Thomas at https://twitter.com/KThomasDC and Colvin at https://twitter.com/colvinj
Close on the heels of the Delhi High Court refusing to grant any injunction to Bennett, Coleman & Co Ltd (BCCL) against Republic TV in the IPR infringement case, industry sources said that Arnab Goswami and Prema Sridevi, former employees of BCCL, have said that they would comply with their employment contract.

Justice J Manmohan hearing the case was of the view that the employment agreement between the parties would have to be upheld and the defendants (Arnab Goswami and Prema Sridevi) could not be permitted to breach that. Industry sources said that the lawyers for the defendants stated that the ex-employees have no intention of violating the same. The Judge took this statement on record.

In his order, Justice Manmohan said, Since a grievance has been raised with regard to a publication of a story in the plaintiffs (BCCL) newspaper in connection with the present case, this Court directs that till the present suit is pending, none of the parties to the suit shall report or publish any news item with regard to it except reproducing the Court order. He also clarified that the present restraint order shall not operate against third party publication or news channels or social media.

The court, while admitting the matter against ARG Outlier Media Asianet News and Arnab Goswami, granted them six weeks time to file their written statement in the matter.

As is known, BCCL on May 16, 2017 had lodged a complaint against Republic TVs Arnab Goswami and Prema Sridevi for theft, criminal breach of trust, misappropriation of property and infringement of IPR of BCCL by using the audio tapes containing phone conversations between Lalu Prasad Yadav and Shahabuddin, as well as phone conversations between Prema Sridevi and late Sunanda Pushkar and their house help Narayan.
In its continuous endeavour to strengthen the professional and ethical standards in the advertising industry and ensure responsible advertising and thereby protect the interests of the consumers, The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has introduced an Independent Review Process. This procedure facilitates an independent mechanism to review the recommendations made by Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) if either the advertiser or the complainant is dissatisfied with such recommendations.

The new Independent Review Process will have a Chairman, who will be a retired Judge of the Honourable Supreme Court/High Court, assisted by the Secretary General/Chief Complaints Officer, along with the Chairman or Co-chairman who was involved in the CCC recommendation and a Technical Expert, where necessary. Currently, Justice Mukul Mudgal (Retd. Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana, High Court) has been appointed by the self-regulatory organisation as the Chairman for all Independent Review Process cases henceforth.

ASCI has been rapidly progressing on various initiatives for upholding self-regulation in advertising, safeguarding consumers interest and partnering with various Government bodies in restraining misleading advertisements. This has led to a substantial increase in ASCIs responsibilities and work load. In this background, ASCI appoints Dr. CBS Venkataramana, IAS (Retd.), as the Chief Complaints Officer (CCO), who will play a vital role in driving efficient complaint redressal and 360 degree stakeholder interactions. Serving as an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer for about 33 years, Dr. Venkataramana has undertaken several important assignments at the State Govt. and Central Govt. level. In his role as the CCO, Dr. Venkataramana will be responsible for managing complaint lodging, investigation, redressal and follow up processes for effective compliance of ASCI codes.

Commenting on these initiatives, ASCIs Chairman, Mr Srinivasan K. Swamy said, ASCI is constantly evolving and seeking effective measures to enable self-regulation in advertising and compliance to ASCI codes. The inclusion of the Independent Review Process mechanism creates transparency for both advertiser and complainant in further facilitating fair judgement of complaints. Further, the appointment of Dr. Venkataramana will go a long way in ensuring speedier and more effective complaint redressal process.

Further details on Independent Review Process:

The Independent Review Process is applicable where the CCC recommendations are made after considering the response received from the Advertiser and on fulfilling the following conditions by the party seeking review:

A written application, in the prescribed form, (available on the website www.ascionline.org ) has to be submitted within 10 business days of the receipt of CCC recommendations. The application is accompanied by a non-refundable prescribed Fee plus applicable taxes. The Parties will be at liberty to provide additional information/material not submitted earlier together with the application as per (a) above. Additional information/material submitted by the complainant seeking a review will be sent to the advertiser who shall send his response to the ASCI secretariat in 5 business days from the date of receipt of such additional information/material. The advertiser seeking review confirms suspension of the offending advertisement, pending the Independent Review Process recommendations. By submitting the Independent Review Process application, it is understood that the advertiser shall accept and comply with the recommendations made by the Chairman of the Independent Review Process.

The Independent Review Process meeting will be convened once in a Fortnight/Month. Both the complainant and the advertiser will be intimated as to the date, time and venue of the meeting at least 5 business days prior to the date of the meeting.

Proceedings under the Independent Review Process are not adversarial or adjudicatory in nature and hence parties may be represented in the meeting by their company officials only.

The Chairman of the Independent Review Process, after hearing both parties, will give his/her recommendations within two business days thereafter. In case, additional information or clarification is required from either party or the technical expert, the Chairman may, as per his/her discretion, continue the hearing on another convenient date.

In the event either of the parties do not wish a personal hearing, the Chairman of the Independent Review Process may complete the review based on the additional information/material submitted and his/her findings would be conveyed over email to both the parties within a period of 2 business days.

Independent Review Process shall not be applicable in case of ex-parte CCC recommendations. However, Re-examination of such recommendations will be undertaken by the CCC on payment of prescribed fee plus applicable taxes (which at the discretion of ASCI maybe reduced/ waived off in deserving cases) and adhering to the conditions laid down in clause (a) (d) & (e) above.
There's a new agency model going global and today it launches in New Delhi's tech hub, Gurgaon.

Human. is not a just another digital "ad agency". Human. is a people experience agency. Working at the intersection of art + code, creating an alchemy of connected human experiences in design, data, technology and digital transformation.

"Human. is structured for today's brands seeking to connect with digital natives. And India is a dynamic growth opportunity with a fast growing digital savvy population."

"Launching into India is definitely the next logical step in the growth of Human. Outside of Europe. India also has a sizable array of technology talent to tap into." says Andrew Berglund, founder and Chief Digital Officer of Human.

Designed for the experience economy, Human. builds creative solutions for digital transformation; from branded utility, connected digital tools and products to connected Omni-channel retail solutions and retail theatre experience environments. From handheld smart devices to large physical spaces, mixed reality environments and other emerging technology. Creating new business solutions in brand experience.

Anywhere digital needs a presence, Human. guides clients through the landscape of digital transformation.

Human. is present wherever a brand needs to deliver an immersive and interactive people experience. This could be via online branded utility or via connected physical and digital environments combined. What Andrew Berglund calls, "phygital" solutions. A convergence of Physical + Digital business solutions.

Ultimately, Human. is about providing a platform for branded utility. Providing strategic solutions so brands can provide a connected product or service with a purpose, a function, a benefit that can make the lives of people, better. Human. exists to humanize the brand through technology alchemy, creating immersive human experiences.



Human. is currently a network agency of digital natives based out of Amsterdam and Brussels, supported by production partnerships in Seoul, South Korea.

As of today, Human. will be opening in Delhi (Gurgaon) in partnership with Naresh Gupta and Prathap Suthan, founders of Bang In The Middle. Andrew and Prathap have previously worked together at Cheil Worldwide.

"We are very excited to form a partnership with Andrew and his agency, Human. The synergy with BITM is perfect to help grow and diversify our digital offering to service our local and international clients." says Naresh Gupta, co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at Bang in the Middle.

BITM's co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Prathap Suthan adds, "we have been exploring ways to collaborate with Andrew for a few years now. And very recently we have decided to partner with Human. Naresh and I are very excited to be involved with such a dynamic growth opportunity in pushing the creative boundaries for digital."

Berglund remarked "Naresh and Prathap are a wonderful blend of personalities and bring diverse wealth of wisdom in connecting brands with people. There's a positive synergy with their skills in strategy and creative storytelling."

Human is the brainchild of Human's Founder and Chief Digital Officer, Andrew Berglund. Prior to Human., Berglund comes from a background of digital innovation at various WPP agencies JWT, Ogilvy in EMEA and APAC. Most recently he was Global ECD of Geometry Global in London and Seoul. Previous to this he was the digital Global ECD at Cheil Worldwide, where he was also based in Seoul, working for the Samsung Group.
PR veteran Ameer Ismail has been promoted to President by MullenLowe Lintas Group, effective immediately. He has led the groups PR firm GolinOpinion (formerly LinOpinion) for over 20 years and built the agency into one of the top players in the PR industry. He was also instrumental in bringing Golin on-board as JV partner in India in 2014. GolinOpinion operates as a part of the marketing services offerings of MullenLowe Lintas Group.

Ismail continues to report to Vikas Mehta, Group CMO & President, Marketing Services for the group. Announcing this elevation, Vikas Mehta said, Ameer is just the right mix of Vintage and Vision. In a time when the practice of PR is more important than ever, but the business of PR is getting highly commoditised, hes the kind of leader the industry needs. PR is an integral part of our re-bundled offering and GolinOpinion occupies a great position in the market today. Reinventing yourself from a position of strength is a rare and valuable opportunity and Im delighted to have Ameer lead that agenda for us.

Founded in1996, LinOpinion was amongst the first PR offerings by a communications group (Lintas) in India, and remains the most successful of any agencys PR offerings to date. Since 2015, the agency has been on a journey to evolve its model, structure, and offerings. The agency is now fully structured around Golins world-renowned G4 model. It was also one of the first PR firms in the country to offer a social media practice in the form of brand newsrooms, called the Bridge.

Speaking of the promotion, Ameer Ismail commented, I am so proud to be a part of this great institution  the MullenLowe Lintas Group and I am looking forward to this new phase in my journey with a renewed focus and dedication towards delivering great work. GolinOpinion is recognised as a premium and leading player in the PR industry. We have today some of the best brands represented in our portfolio. As the business evolves, I am tasked to work closely with our management team to take GolinOpinion to even greater heights by building scale and new competencies that will continue the brave work that has been our trademark so far.

GolinOpinion manages the PR mandate for some leading global and Indian companies and brands, including Tata Starbucks, Dubai Ports World, Budweiser, Texas Instruments, HUL (multiple brands), Seiko, Etihad Airways, Marriott International Inc, Porsche, Lamborghini, Cinepolis and Sony Pictures Networks India.

Ismail is a part of the Golin global leadership group and works closely with the regional and global MDs. He serves on the advisory committee board of several management forums. He has served as a jury for several award shows, including Sabre and Goafest. He has worked with the Centre of Change Management in successful seminars like International Brand Summit and The Asia Pacific HR Conference. He was also awarded the CMO Asia Award for Outstanding Contribution to Corporate Communications in Singapore in 2011 and recently named one of the top 10 leaders in the PR industry in India by Reputation Today magazine.
Sony India today announced the appointment of Initiative Media, part of IPG Mediabrands network, as its new media agency for India market following a comprehensive pitch process. Initiative Media will be responsible for managing the media planning for the brand going forward. The scope of services will also include providing media planning and buying across platforms.

The contract will officially kick-start from 01st June 2017 for a period of two years and will involve the agency to serve the gamut of product categories which includes BRAVIA, Xperia, Audio, Digital Imaging and Professional Solutions. This association will be an opportunity for Initiative Media to leverage strategic capability, to implement integrated strategies and drive impactful positioning of world class campaigns.

Our decision to appoint Initiative Media is reflective of the agencys capability of understanding brand Sony and providing a strategic approach to widen audience and strengthening the market position of our brand portfolio. We look forward to working with Initiative Media and have a strong belief that together we can create success and drive our premium brand story forward said Yuichi Hasegawa, Head of Marketing Communication & Retail, Sony India.

On the appointment, Shashi Sinha, CEO IPG Mediabrands, India said, We are delighted that Sony, an extremely prestigious marketer and brand is back with Initiative. We would like to thank Sony India for reposing their faith in us. Initiative stands committed to delivering the very best for Sonys success.

The appointment of Initiative Media is the result of a competitive and stringent selection process in alignment with Sony Indias requirements. The exhaustive procedure witnessed the participation of some of the very best in the industry like Initiative, Mediacom and Carat, the incumbent agency.
Vodafone India has conceptualised its first-ever motor cycle rally - the Vodafone Data Strong Ride, wherein 10 bikers are riding across over 3,300 kms from Mumbai in Maharashtra to Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, traversing 6 states in India over a period of 12 days.

Vodafone Data Strong Ride with 10 avid Bikers, commenced from Mumbai on 25th May 2017 made a halt at Mahabaleshwar, moving on from there to the next halt at Panjim, Goa. The ride demonstrates Vodafones Data Strong Network across the route with riders using Google maps to identify their location, staying in touch with their loved ones through calls, sms and Whatsapp, posting their updates and pics on FB and Instagram at stops along the way, tweeting their experiences. The Riders also engaged with locals en route, sharing the uses of mobile internet and clicking pictures with them to be posted on their social media platforms.

After crossing Goa, Vodafone Data Strong Ride will proceed to Mangaluru and thereon to Kozhikode, Kochi, Kanyakumari, Rameshwaram, Puducherry, Tirupati, Vijayawada and Vishakhapatnam. The Ride is expected to conclude at Vishakhapatnam on 5th June, 2017.

The group of bikers includes a mix of working professionals, entrepreneurs and Vodafone employees, both men and women, with a keen interest in biking.

Enthusiasts from across the country can join this exciting ride virtually via the Vodafone Data Strong contest, in which they can win super biking gear and accessories by posting pictures of themselves with their bikes, either on Twitter

https://twitter.com/VodafoneIN/status/867317721289154560 or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/zoozoo/photos/a.92689869817.87661.73855584817/10154965241044818/?type=3&theater
The Group of Seven (G7) on Friday publicly pressured Google and a number of other Internet giants including Facebook to ramp up their efforts against combating online terror campaigns. The G7s Sicily meeting saw leaders of the United States, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Canada, ant the United Kingdom call for more participation from global social media companies in their fight against hate speech and other online media activity of extremists, shortly after a terror attack in Manchester that resulted in 22 fatalities on Monday. UK Prime Minister Theresa May asserted that Google, Facebook, Twitter, and other companies running popular social media platforms ought to develop tools that would allow them to automatically identify and sanction material that is associated with extremists.

A similar sentiment was recently expressed by the European Union whose ministers voted to go through with a regulatory proposal that would legally oblige social media giants to sanction illegal videos posted on their platforms in a timely manner. In addition to censoring extremist content, the G7 called for Internet companies to get more actively involved in their efforts to identify and apprehend extremists operating in their jurisdiction. The fight is moving from the battlefield to the Internet, May said on Friday, adding that terrorists took advantage of the World Wide Web to spread their ideas, recruit individuals, and generally advance their alarming efforts. Mays latest comment on the matter indicates that the UK will continue pressuring social media companies to provide more cooperation in the countrys fight against terror even in a post-Brexit world.

Representatives of many major social media giants previously stated that theyre always evolving their anti-terror tools and have already been cooperating with authorities in their fight against online extremism. It remains to be seen whether the G7s Friday appeal will be elaborated in the future, as the group didnt clarify on what its latest call for cooperation entails. UK authorities recently clashed with Twitter after the San Francisco-based platform cut them off from its user data in a move that was reportedly harshly criticized by the British government. An update on the global fight against online terror is expected to follow later this year.
Google is still resisting requests for providing salary data to the United States Department of Labor (DOL) that previously accused the company of gender pay discrimination. Representatives of the Mountain View, California-based tech giant on Friday told a federal court that complying with the DOLs latest request would cost the firm approximately $100,000 and 500 working hours, implying that the federal agencys request is too expensive and logistically demanding to be carried out in an efficient manner. The DOL previously claimed that the data its requesting from Google will help it prove that the Alphabet-owned company is systematically discriminating against its female employees by underpaying them relative to how much their male colleagues are earning.

The latest turn of events is yet another milestone in the months-long dispute between Google and the DOL, the latter of whom sued the Silicon Valley giant in January after Google refused to provide it with comprehensive employee data as part of its mandatory compliance review. The Mountain View Internet company is subject to reviews by the DOL due to its status of a government contractor that forbids the company from discriminating against its employees in any form, intentionally or not. The federal agency now mocked Googles latest defense, with its legal representative Ian Eliasoph pointing out that Google is one of the most profitable companies in the country and shouldnt have any issues with devoting $100,000 to comply with the DOLs data request.

Google previously denied all allegations of gender pay discrimination, repeatedly claiming that the company is committed to having an equal and diversified workforce. One of the Internet giants representatives on Friday said that the firm already spent 2,300 working hours and close to $500,000 to comply with a portion of the DOLs request that it labeled as unconstitutional, adding that the San Francisco-based federal court should stop the agencys abuse of power in this case. Google is currently being pressured to provide employee data that precedes its 2015 salary snapshot which is said to hint at some systemic compensation disparities across positions, as the DOL previously put it. An update on the situation is expected to follow in the coming months.
Samsung Electronics started distributing the May Android Security Update for unlocked variants of the Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy Note Edge. The Galaxy Note 4 is receiving the firmware version N910FXXU1DQE2, while the Galaxy Note Edge is being updated with the build number N915FYXXS1DQE1. The South Korean consumer electronics manufacturer reportedly started rolling out the patch over the weekend and is initially only targeting European countries. The new software package is being distributed as an over-the-air (OTA) update thats launching in a staged manner and likely wont be available for all compatible devices for at least several more days. Both the Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy Note Edge will periodically scan for the patch and notify their owners about its availability through a push notification, prompting them to download the new software package. Users are also able to scan for the update manually by opening the Settings app on their devices, navigating to the About phone section and tapping the option to search for software updates on the following screen. This course of action will trigger the download, provided that one is already available in your territory.

The May 2017 security patch for the Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy Note Edge is approximately 345MB in size, with Samsung recommending that the update is downloaded over a Wi-Fi connection. Likewise, users are encouraged to charge their devices before triggering the installation procedure or at least leave them plugged in to avoid any potential complications that could be incurred in scenarios in which their handsets shut down during the update. Apart from 65 vulnerability fixes  11 of which were made by Samsung  the latest software package for the Galaxy Note 4 and Galaxy Note Edge doesnt bring any major improvements.

The Seoul-based tech giant is unlikely to ever release another major Android upgrade for its 2014 Galaxy Note-series devices, both of which are still running Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, having originally launched with Android 4.4.4 KitKat two and a half years ago. Most Galaxy Note 5 units have already received or are in the process of receiving Android 7.0 Nougat, while the upcoming Galaxy Note 8 is expected to ship with either the 7.0 or 7.1 version of Googles ubiquitous operating system. More details on Samsungs mobile software efforts are expected to be available in the coming weeks.
Another render of whats said to be Nubias upcoming bezel-less smartphone surfaced online on Sunday, depicting a thin handset with small top and bottom bezels and almost no side bezels. The device shown in the newly leaked render is seemingly identical to the one that surfaced online last week and presumably has the same origin seeing how the two handsets even feature similar lock screens. While depicting the device in its entirety, the latest leak is partially redacted and therefore not completely revealing, though it does indicate that the mysterious smartphone boasts a circular red capacitive Home key thats a hallmark of handsets created by the Chinese consumer electronics manufacturer. The render also shows what may be a volume up button or the top of a volume rocker on the right side of the devices body.

While some of the recently leaked renders indicate that the Shenzhen, China-based phone vendor is working on a bezel-less device thats somewhat similar to the Samsung Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus, the company is seemingly not copying Samsungs design language seeing how both renders of the alleged Nubia-branded device show a screen that seems to feature a standard 16:9 aspect ratio. Likewise, the top bezel of the phone is approximately twice slimmer than the bottom one, presumably because the latter is meant to house a capacitive Home button, which is yet another difference between the device that can be seen above and Samsungs latest Android flagship series. Both renders of the mysterious Nubia handset that have been revealed so far show a smartphone with a black glossy finish which may be one of the available color variants of the device, provided that it actually exists and hits the market at some point in the future.

The Chinese original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is currently expected to launch the Nubia Z17 on Thursday, June 1. The companys upcoming flagship likely isnt the one shown here as numerous previous leaks suggested that the Nubia Z17 will sport a more conventional design. An update on Nubias other future products including their availability and pricing is expected to follow in the coming months.
Motorola Mobilitys Moto E4 will launch on July 17 and be priced at $149.99 CAD ($185) in Canada, industry insider Roland Quandt said on Sunday. The same source also shared a snapshot of the supposed specifications of the upcoming handset, corroborating many previous reports about Motorolas upcoming Android device. According to the screenshot, the Moto E4 will be powered by the MediaTek MT6737M system-on-chip (SoC), a 64-bit of silicon boasting the Mali-T720MP2 GPU and four Cortex-A53 cores clocked at a maximum frequency of 1.25GHz. The device is also said to sport 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal flash memory expandable by up to 128GB via a microSD card slot. Its currently unclear whether the Lenovo-owned consumer electronics manufacturer will also release a variant of the Moto E4 with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage or whether those specs will perhaps be reserved for a more expensive model of the upcoming Moto E4 Plus.

According to the newly leaked listing, the Moto E4 will ship with a 5-inch IPS LCD display panel with a resolution of 1280 by 720 pixels protected by Cornings Gorilla Glass 3. Previous renders of the device and the supposed pixel count of its screen indicate that the handset will feature a panel with a conventional 16:9 aspect ratio. The rear side of the Moto E4 is said to house an 8-megapixel sensor with autofocus support and an LED flash unit, while its top bezel should feature a 5-megapixel sensor. Motorolas upcoming entry-level smartphone is said to be powered by a 2,800mAh battery that will be removable and the handset will initially only be offered in Lunar Gray, the leaked listing indicates, adding that the phone will sport a 3.5mm audio jack and Bluetooth 4.2 support. Some Moto E4 models are also said to be NFC-enabled, depending on the market, though no other information on the matter has yet been revealed. Finally, the Moto E4 will allegedly run Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box that will likely be similar to a stock build of Googles operating system.

The Moto E4 is just one of seven devices that the Lenovo-owned phone maker is expected to launch by the end of the year. More details on the companys upcoming products should be available shortly.
YEREVAN, MAY 29, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Economic Development and Investments of Armenia Suren Karayan met with the business representatives of St. Petersburg on May 29. The visit was organized by the initiative of the Committee for external relations of St. Petersburg. Representatives of leading companies were comprised in the delegation.

As Armenpress was informed from the press service of the Ministry of Economic Development and Investments, the representative of the "AGROPOLIS" center presented their functions and activities to the Armenian Minister, noting that they are interested in cooperating with Armenian companies, particularly in the sphere of agricultural products and processed food. The businessman noted that the label Made in Armenia is rather demanded in Russia.

The representative of GEROPHARM company noted in the meeting with Minister Karayan that their company is engaged in medicine development and production. According to the businessman, their company is interested in establishing production in Meghris free trade zone. Minister Karayan introduced the advantages of doing business in Meghris free trade zone, as well as the opportunities as a result of the preferential trade regimes granted to Armenia by the EU and other countries. The Minister added that the state is ready to assist the businessmen in providing them with necessary information and some other issues.

Cooperation opportunities were discussed with each of the Russian companies and specific agreements were reached to implement them.
Concern about personal liability among chief compliance officers and directors remains high, a new DLA Piper survey reveals.The law firms 2017 Compliance & Risk Report 2017 shows that 67 per cent of COOs are somewhat concerned and say there is significant scope for improvement in compliances relationship with boards of directors."With two-thirds of CCOs and 82 per cent of directors at least somewhat concerned about personal liability, it's important and appropriate for organizations to watch the compliance landscape very closely," said Brett Ingerman, co-chair of DLA Piper's Global Governance and Compliance practice.Most respondents this year said that they have made changes to their compliance programs due to recent regulatory events; a year ago that was true for just a fifth."Political events around the world  including Brexit and the election of Donald Trump  mean the compliance picture is fluid, another reason why organizations should be vigilant about developing and maintaining strong compliance programs," added Ingerman.CCOs say that they have increased confidence in their ability to effect change and believe that they have the resources to do their jobs.Stephenson Harwood (Singapore) Alliance has advised global valuation and corporate finance adviser on its acquisition of Quantera Asia Global Holding.The deal involved the Quantera businesses in Australia, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam; and the restructuring of the Quantera business in the Philippines, Japan and the People's Republic of China .Lawyers from across Stephenson Harwoods network of offices in Asia were involved. The Stephenson Harwood (Singapore) Alliance team was led by corporate partner Tom Platts, with support from corporate associate Penelope Davey.President Trumps love of social media may soon face new scrutiny with lawyers deciding whether to allow the presidents thoughts to make it onto Twitter.The Wall Street Journal reports that White House officials are considering the move according to an unnamed adviser although they admit it may be hard to implement. Other measures being considered is greater use of external law firms.The shake-up is being discussed due to allegations of the Trump campaigns links to Russia.
Lester Wiese, left, and Marvin Kruse, both Korean War veterans and members of Hillpoint VFW Post 3434, were selected to take part in the May 13 Badger Honor Flight.
The R8, a first-generation V10 Spyder, duked it out with not one, but two units of the 991 Porsche 911 GT3 RS. And no, such a fight isn't fair, but this didn't keep the man behind the wheel from delivering drag racing thrills.And, if you're willing to talk about the reasons for which a brawl involving such an Ingolstadt machine and a Rennsport Neunelfer has a predictable outcome, we can think of at least three.For one thing, back in the day of the first R8, Audi still limited the supercar compared to its Sant'Agata Bolognese sibling . And while this V10 fighter doesn't make full use of the platform's potential, we're also looking at an early, pre-revamp example. Did we mention the bulkier open-top form of the machine?If we are to look at the numbers, we can use the quarter-mile times of the two German beasts - while the Zuffenhausen track special can complete the 1,320 feet sprint in 11.1 seconds, the R8 V10 Spyder requires an extra 0.6 seconds to complete the task.Nevertheless, the straight line shenanigans you'll find in the piece of footage below showed the drag racing event hosting the said battles didn't have too many limits.For one thing, the vehicles taking part in the event were as diverse as a C5 incarnation of the Chevrolet Corvette and, of course, a Tesla Model S.Oh, and the atmosphere was so effervescent that the adventures mentioned above weren't the only ones that involved a first-gen Audi R8 duking it out with a Porsche 911 GT3 RS PDK . A family portrait it is, then.
NHTSA

The same company recalled the same model back in 2012 over a similar issue , when a software error was to blame for the possibility of doors opening unpredictably during driving.As Automotive News reports, about 7,500 7 Series units were repaired at the time to resolve the situation. However, all of them are now incorporated into the new recall procedure, which focuses on cars that are equipped with Comfort Access or Soft Close Automatic doors, and does not seem software-related.BMW has decided to file a voluntary recall to respond to complaints from owners who said that their doors opened while driving. Thehad received those complaints, and investigated the situation on behalf of the consumers.The blue-and-white roundel decided to do a recall to prevent a civil fine that may have been issued if the automaker had not responded to a defect in the legally permitted interval.BMW will notify clients of the affected cars when a fix is available, and those who have acquired the cars in the meantime are requested to contact their local dealer to find out if their automobiles are part of the action.If one of the two optional types of equipment mentioned above is fitted to the doors of a 745i/745Li, 750i/750Li, 760i/760Li, or a B7 Alpina from the 2005 to 2008 model years, your 7 Series could be a part of the recall.Please note that two generations of the flagship sedan are involved in this service action , which includes the E65/66 and the F01/02 BMW does not have any knowledge of any injuries or accidents related to any 7 Series doors opening during driving. The corporation was informed of the existence of complaints this April, and its representatives decided to go ahead with the recall in early May.Since then, the papers have been registered with the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, the institution that handles this issues in the USA.Regardless of the problem, the German automaker will inspect the vehicles, and the fix will be entirely free for the owners.
Citing an undisclosed insider source, Car & Driver magazine says the CT 200h has reached the end of the line. The sales are partly to blame, with just 8,903 examples shifted in 2016 compared to the 31,538 of the Audi A3.Of course, we have no quarrel with the posh hatchback, but America isn't known as fertile ground to plant hatchback seeds in. There's also the tiny matter of the hybrid drive in the Prius now being much more efficient.But dealers could have easily stocked and continued to sell the car for many more years. So the CT 200h being discontinued this year is a good sign that production will also end.And it's about time, with the entry-level model being introduced way back in 2011. Other markets might or might not get a replacement. But it's clear that the UX baby crossover, which has already been previewed by a concept, will fill the gap. UX 200, UX 250 and UX 250h names were trademarked a year ago. Think of it as the Toyota C-HR with an L badge. Heck, it might even by ready by the end of the year.Until the UX arrives, the $36,260 NX crossover will be the cheapest Lexus, marginally more so than the IS 200t. There's also talk of the GS being replaced by a new, bigger ES sedan. So Lexus is changing things up.If we were in charge of product planning, we'd still give the CT 200h a successor and perhaps consider offering the 2.0-liter turbo as well. This hatchback has been popular in Europe, raising brand awareness.Originally introduced six years ago, the CT 200h received mid-life cosmetic changes in 2014. However, no mods were made since then except for some extra trim.
One brilliant answer comes from a guy called Dale Lomas, whom Ring fans should be familiar with - from driving an M3 Ring Taxi to delivering random Touristenfahrten laps where he trolls supercars in a Caterham, Dale constantly provides Nurburgring adventures that can serve as driving lessons.However, with the Nurburgring 24H race having taken over the circuit the past weekend, the aficionado was able to leave behind the Bridge to Gantry configuration that defines tourist drives, going for the full length of the track inside a Toyota GT86 racecar.The Toyobaru managed to climb to the third place of its class podium, with Dale delivering one hell of a doing-the-Nurburgring-in-the-wet lesson in the process.When you're out there chasing victory on slicks, you have no other choice than to deliver your A-game and, thanks to the in-car camera and the post-race comments the gearhead provides, even novice drivers will understand the basics of tackling the Green Hell in the wet.With aquaplaning, oversteer and understeer being the main course, the laps you're about to see should serve as a guide even when you're not on slicks.And those of you wondering just how much the weather can impact one's Ring adventure should check out what happens in Kallenhard , one of the bends whose grip levels change dramatically once the skies open up.P.S.: After a storm-infused chase, the said Toyota GT86 managed to grab third place in its class, passing some much angrier GT3 racers on the way.For reasons that escape us, the video of the GT86 battling the wet Nurburgring on slicks is down, at least for now.As such, we've added another clip below, namely a track-prepped E36 BMW stint that sees the same driver going for a Touristenfahrten (Tourist Days) experience. And the title of the clip is self-explanatory: RWD Nurburgring Nordschleife Wet Lap Guide.The video that brought us here is back, this time around coming via Facebook.
Introduced exclusively for the Japanese domestic market, the Camry TRD and Camry Modellista act as the showpieces of the range. But before anything, it must be highlighted that there are subtle exterior design differences between the Japan- and the USA -spec Camry.Beyond the clear indicator lenses instead of amber units on North American models, the JDM Camry brags with somewhat different taillights and a more in-your-face front bumper. The TRD and the Modellista variants, however, are less subtle than a Marvel movie.With the TRD body kit , Toyota ups the visual ante with cool alloy wheels, more prominent side skirts, and a deep front splitter that integrates lamps down low. The front fascia puts an emphasis on black, with the same treatment applied to the side windows. Toyota has yet to detail if the TRD package is more than skin deep, though.The Modellista , on the other hand, builds on the TRD but features a bit more sophistication to its name. Thus, the front bumper features silver and polished chrome detailing, while the wheels ooze prestige rather than performance. Having said these, Toyota continues to keep its mouth shut on the subject of offering the TRD package in the United States.In the worst case scenario, that leaves us with a 3.5-liter free-breathing V6 thats good for at least 295 horsepower, an engine that's teamed up with an eight-speed automatic transmission. Underpinned by the TNGA platform, the XV70-generation Camry will start production in June 2017, with sales slated to kick off late in the summer. Toyotas Kentucky plant received a $1.3 billion investment to make the all-new Camry happen.
Usually, Russian mechanic Arthur Tussik is asked to bring luxury cars imported from America back to life after significant damage. But this old M3 doesn't look too bad. By the look of things, the car slid on the track and scraped its left side on the crash barrier.Of course, the damage isn't minor by any major, but it's mostly cosmetic, compared to that 7 Series horror story we found , which had a basically two halves welded together. And if you hit a wall in the old M3, you're probably going to die anyway, so crashworthiness isn't the issue here.You could almost call it by-the-book, were it not for the occasional appearance of old blankets. Various panels are removed, including the front fender, door, and rear, which only comes off when you take an angle grinder to the D-pillar. The cool think is that this M3 appears to be rust-free, which is rare for a car of this era. Could this be imported from sunny California?Why is the donor part full of little holes? Because they had to bore out all the welds. After checking the alignment, Arthur fuses the back of the Bimmer back together. One new fender and one repaired one are matched to the new hood and other accessories. After paint, the E46 looks good, but it looks like they weren't able to source the molding for the door.The E46 version of the famous M car has been around since 2000. So looking at this repair is like your high-school sweetheart frozen in time. Under the bulging hood is the equally famous inline-6 S54 engine, making 333 horsepower when pushed to 8,000rpm. It's even more old-school than the 1 Series M Coupe , and a good example will set you back $20,000 to $30,000, depending on options. Of course, you can have one for half that money if you're willing to go dumpster diving.
US Navy file photo

A member of the U.S. Navys skydiving team, the Leap Frogs, died on Sunday afternoon after his parachute malfunctioned during a Fleet Week airshow in Jersey City, N.J., the Navy has confirmed. The skydiver, whose name has not been released, landed in the Hudson River and was immediately retrieved by U.S. Coast Guard members who were standing by in vessels in support of the event. He was taken to a hospital and declared dead. His main parachute, which had become separated from the jumper during his descent, was found in a nearby parking lot. The rest of the team landed safely in Liberty State Park.

One spectator told The New York Times that few spectators were aware of any problem with the team, because buildings blocked the view of the water. The last fatal accident for the team was in 2015, according to The New York Times, when Master Sgt. Corey Hood, of the Armys Golden Knights parachute team, was killed during a joint demonstration with the Leap Frogs in Chicago. The team has been performing since 1964. Officials from the Navy are investigating the accident.
Russias newest airliner took its first flight Sunday with little fanfare but a reportedly substantial order book. The Irkut MC-21-300 will compete directly with the Boeing 737 MAX, Airbus A320 Neo and Bombardier CSeries for the increasingly crowded single-aisle airliner market. It will carry 163 to 211 passengers and is projected to be 12 to 15 percent more efficient than current airliners in that segment. It will come with a choice of either Pratt & Whitney PW1400G or Russian PD-14 engines. There are 175 firm orders from Aeroflot and UTAir.

The aircraft took off from Irkut headquarters in Irkutsk, in central Russia, on a first flight that was not announced in advance. The flight only lasted 30 minutes and it was carried out below 10,000 feet, at about 160 knots with the landing gear deployed, and included a missed approach. The manufacturer said the limited scope of the first flight was according to plan. Test pilot Oleg Kononenko told Russian media the flight went in the normal mode. There are no obstacles revealed preventing the tests continuation.
Regional airlines say the FAA is vastly understating the cost of a proposed AD that will require them to replace 10,482 passenger seats in various small airliners. The FAA said the AD will only cost the airlines a total of $900,000 because it is only tallying the labor cost of removing the Slim and Slimplus seats from their fleets ($85 each) and not including the cost of replacing them with new seats. Calculating these numbers would make the part cost in the millions just for our fleet, Daniel Burkhard, SkyWestsengineering manager for compliance, reportedly told the FAA when the fix was proposed. He said replacing the seats will cost between $250,000 and $500,000 for each of the 120 affected aircraft in its fleet.

The FAA says the seats, made by Zodiac Seats California LLC, pose a risk of neck or head injury in passengers in survivable crashes. The agency says videos studied by the FAA and Brazils civil aviation organization show that in a crash a passenger might slide down the seat with his or her chin on the seat ahead of them and hit the tray table. Airlines have disputed the findings but the FAA has stuck to its order. The intent of this (airworthiness directive) is to provide a safe outcome for passengers during a survivable crash by preventing serious injuries, USA Today reported the AD as saying. The seats are installed in Boeing 717-200s, MD-90-30s, Bombardier CRJ700s, CRJ900s and Q400s and Embraer E170s and E190s.
John Travolta is hanging up his four-barred Qantas uniform and donating his personal Boeing 707 to an Australian museum, which will restore it. Travolta said he plans to personally deliver the Boeing to the Historic Aircraft Restoration Society (HARS) in Illawarra, New South Wales, after some maintenance on the aircraft. Travolta discussed the possibility of sending the aircraft to the museum in 2009 when he was invited to fly the HARS Super Constellation. He decided to let the jet go this year and the museum was happy to take it off his hands. I am truly excited by this project and am just so pleased that this beautiful aircraft, for which I obviously have very fond memories, will continue to fly well into the future, Travolta said in a statement.

Travolta bought the old airliner in 1998, a few years after he chartered it for a fast trip to Europe. It was originally delivered to Qantas in 1964, one of 13 shortened, long-range versions of the venerable design. It was outfitted with the executive interior in 1973 and had previously been owned by Frank Sinatra and billionaire Kirk Kirkorian. Travolta operated it himself for a few years before striking a deal with Qantas to paint it in historic livery and fly it as an ambassador for the airline in exchange for maintenance. Even a movie superstar couldnt justify the maintenance costs on the thirsty jet. Any plane this size is too pricey, Travolta told The Australian. I did it for four years on my own and it was much easier to do a barter system and promote the airline. Travolta still owns a GII, an Eclipse, a Yugoslavian Soko fighter and a couple of ultralights.
After a week abroad that gave him at least physical distance from the chaos in his West Wing, President Trump this week will confront decisions on three questions that will affect the rest of his term:

Whether to embrace the Paris climate accord, dial back U.S. commitments, or renounce it. How to structure a crisis-communication apparatus to contain the Russia response, so it doesn't preoccupy the entire West Wing, and how it'll interact with legal and P.R. operations on the outside. What additions to make to his senior staff, and whether anyone should go.

A ton of juice in a N.Y. Times front-pager, "Kushner's Role In White House Is Under Strain: Family Ties Tested as Russia Case Grows," by Glenn Thrush, Maggie Haberman and Sharon LaFraniere:"[T]he Trump-Kushner relationship, the most stable partnership in an often unstable West Wing, is showing unmistakable signs of strain.""The most serious point of contention between the president and his son-in-law ... was a video clip this month of Mr. Kushner's sister Nicole Meyer pitching potential investors in Beijing on a Kushner Companies condominium project in Jersey City.""In the following days during routine West Wing meetings, the president made several snarky, disparaging comments about Mr. Kushner's family and the visas that were clearly intended to express his annoyance ... Kushner did not respond, at least not in earshot."Trump, in a statement to The Times last night: "Jared is doing a great job for the country. I have total confidence in him. He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programs that will save our country billions of dollars. In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person."P.S. Merkel say Europe must go it alone:
A well-placed Senate Democratic aide emails this tip: "Expect many Senate Dems to push for the Senate to not do Iran sanctions without Russian sanctions."

What this means: Democratic leaders will exploit the ties between Iran and Russia  and the administration's weak position with regard to anything concerning Russia  to demand that no new sanctions are imposed on Iran without additional sanctions to Russia.

Our thought bubble: Democrats who support the Iran nuke deal, like former Secretary of State John Kerry, are worried about a bill that passed through the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week. The bill imposes new sanctions on Iran over its ballistic missile tests and other destabilizing behavior. These additional sanctions don't relate to the nuclear deal, but some Democrats are anxious that imposing these sanctions could unravel the Iran deal.
29 May 2017 10:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Muhammad Asif Noor

While glancing over the relationships between the two countries, there are a number of political, diplomatic, strategic understandings which form the solid foundation of shared beliefs, values, and sentiments towards each other while economic parameters help to test the level of closeness and congeniality. Obviously, every state in the international system pursues its national interest to build the levels of partnerships. This level of interest is defined through the vision and approach of the foreign policy elements that has been set up by the state apparatuses in having a certain posture and dimension in the global arena. Pakistan and Azerbaijan are among the most important players of their geographical regions. Need not to say about the weight of Pakistan in South Asia as a leading lynchpin of the regional peace posture and Azerbaijan as Tiger of Caucuses under the new, energetic and visionary leadership in its region with bright dimension and outlook towards the future.

Pakistan being the first country after Turkey to have recognized independence of Azerbaijan in 1992 and its the diplomatic edge too that Pakistan is among few of the countries of the world, till writing of these lines, has not yet recognized the aggressor Armenia as a sovereign state. Reason being the states unjust hostility and human rights violations in the Nagorno-Karabakh region and Pakistan supported Azerbaijans principled stand over the issue at all international and regional debates to the best possible diplomatic manner. Last year, Pakistan was at the forefront in supporting of the establishment of the contact groups connected to the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict within the important international organizations which includes first and foremost at the Organizations of Islamic Cooperation and second is the Non Aligned Movement hence proved the strength of the support and glorious efforts of both states to stand by each other on such important issues. While on the other hand, Azerbaijan supported Pakistan on the international and regional forums on the issue of Kashmir. This presence of each others support on such matters had made both states closer to each other since the beginning of the relations 25 years ago.

Both Pakistan and Azerbaijan are facing similar kind of long standing territorial disputes with their neighboring countries. Pakistan is confronting more than six decades old conflict with India over Kashmir- the heaven on earth while Azerbaijan over the beautiful Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia. Hence the commonality of sufferings and pains of humanity in the regions has connected both states into somewhat bond of togetherness to oppose the resilience, fear and injustice. Both states stood by each other on the issues and faced the test of the times together. For Pakistan, Azerbaijan stand out amongst the committee of nations as a country sharing not only religious belief system but also the stand point towards the promotion of justice, fairness and integrity of values that provides each human being the value to grow, develop and have fair access to the basic necessities of life.

The energy rich Azerbaijan has redefined itself over the past two and half decades as leading economy of the Caucasus region with positive and transformative outlook towards regional and international energy politics and has an important place in Pakistans foreign and strategic policy outlook. Pakistan and Azerbaijan over the decades have made substantial headways in terms of developing new avenues of cooperation in the economic, political, energy and strategic field. Bilateral trade is standing at around the startling 7.3 USD million which is significantly not reflecting the will of both sides as there is an urge at the high level to improve this figure to 500 million USD. Joint cooperation at the level of Chamber of Commerce is on the rise including regular contacts of trade and economic commissions. Cooperation at the military has also been enhanced quite recently with presence of the Azerbaijani companies in the IDEAS military exhibition in Karachi. Both sides are working on to develop mechanisms for improving ties in the energy field also. Although there is recent focus on the arms trade and energy sector but the diversification of cooperation in different sectors has also been explored including trade, education, people to people contacts.

It is heartening to note here that Baku State University, one of the largest University of Azerbaijan, has established the Urdu Department. President Mamnon Hussain during his visit in 2015 visited the University and hailed the Ministry of Education of Azerbaijan for making this important department. Prime Minister was also conferred with the honorary doctorate degree during his visit. First ever Urdu-Azeri phrase book has also been published by the bright faculty members of the Urdu department of Baku State University. Other related publications highlighting the connections between the two languages are in process. Pakistans Foreign Services Academy and National Defence University receive several young diplomats and cadets of several cadres of armed forces of Azerbaijan on regular basis, as well as on the basis of exchange. Both states are encouraging investments so that both states can take benefit of the potentials of each other. Pakistan is looking towards Caucasus especially southwards with the vision to import various energy collaborative projects to end the dearth for the economy that the state is facing today. Azerbaijan being Tiger of Caucasus in terms of economic and political development pose as an opportunity for Pakistan to get involved in mutually beneficial cooperative engagements.

Azerbaijan touched people of Pakistans hearts as a result of their phenomenal support during the earthquake in 2005 and later on with continuous philanthropic work across the length and breadth of Pakistan at various levels, schools and medical assistance in any emerging calamity. Since 2012, the First Lady of Azerbaijan H.E. Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva, the Vice President and First Lady of Azerbaijan, the head of Heydar Aliyev Foundation took several important philanthropic initiatives in support to the series of projects related to healthcare, education, cultural, sports, scientific-technological, environmental and social fields that have been implemented in all provinces of Pakistan in collaboration with different similar local organizations. On the special festive occasions like Ramzan, Eid ul Adha, iftar dinners and related supporting events are organized on regular basis to support the deserving people of Pakistan.

The Heydar Aliyev Foundation also constructed a high school for 500 pupils in Muzaffarabad after the devastating earthquake in 2005 and continues supporting the school since then. The school has been recently renamed in the honor of Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva. The school is a symbol of love, care and special affection of People of Azerbaijan for the people of Pakistan. As a result and in recognition of the great philanthropic work by the lady with heart of gold in Pakistan during the visit of President Mamnoon Hussain, the first lady was presented with the highest honor of Hilal-i-Pakistan has been conferred.

In case of cultural exchanges and promotion of values of great poet Nizami Ghanjavi, a corner was recently established in the premises of the National Book Foundation while Azerbaijan corner was dedicated at the premises of National Library of Pakistan. These are the monuments of the togetherness which will be harnessed over the course of the coming years between both the nations.

Azerbaijan is a beautiful mix of east and west and reflection of unity in diversity where several religions and cultures are coexisting in harmonious relations with each other. The Heydar Aliyev Foundation reconstructed several mosques and churches. A project of the foundation Azerbaijan-Home to Tolerance reflects the priority the country is posing towards building tolerance and peace not only at domestic level but also at regional and international level as well. Both Azerbaijan and Pakistan can learn and share from their experience be that of living with equality and harmony, fighting with the challenges that of terrorism or aspiring to improve the standards of the living of humanity in each others states.

At the eve of celebrating silver jubilee between Pakistan and Azerbaijan, both states hope to rise in togetherness for betterment of the people, promoting peace, prosperity at the regional level and endorsing justice at the international level.

The writer is Director, Institute of Peace and Diplomatic Studies and President, Azerbaijan-Pakistan Friendship Forum

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29 May 2017 12:30 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Ashgabat hosted a meeting with Head of Regional Office of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Marcel Wassen and National Disaster Response Adviser Ashot Sargsyan, says a message from Turkmenistans State Customs Service.

The sides discussed emergency preparedness and preparation of an agreement between the Turkmen government and the United Nations on measures to simplify and accelerate the import, export and transit of relief supplies and property of personnel to provide assistance in the case of disasters and emergencies.

Turkmenistan is located in a seismically dangerous zone. On the night of October 6, 1948, Ashgabat experienced a catastrophic 10-magnitude earthquake, which led to human casualties.

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29 May 2017 16:00 (UTC+04:00)

By Trend

Iran has signed a contract with Dutch NACO and Swiss ADI firms for construction of the first logistics town in the Islamic Republic, IRNA news agency reported.

Under the contract, ADI will carry out design of a comprehensive plan for logistics town of Imam Khomeini Airport City (IKAC).

Accordingly, NACO will be in charge of providing consulting services for the project.

An Iranian expert team will also cooperate in the project, Hossein Tajik, an official with the IKAC said.

Iran earlier awarded a deal to NACO over the development of IKAC, a town in the vicinity of the country's biggest airport in southern Tehran.

Phase 1 of the project includes a passenger terminal named "Salam" with capacity of around five million passengers a year, a passenger terminal named "Iranshahr" with a capacity of 20 to 22 million passengers a year as well as a section of free trade zone.

Upon the completion of the first phase of the IKIA Airport city, the passenger capacity of the airport will reach 30 million passengers from the current 8 million in the next five years.

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Seven rows of seven crosses were carefully placed at the DeForest Veterans Memorial Park last week in preparation for todays Memorial Day observance. Each of the 49 crosses bears the name of a DeForest-area veteran who died serving in the U.S. military since the Civil War.

The white foam crosses stand on a grid toward the back of the park, placed so the names of the veterans advance in the order of the day they died.

The cross for John Vincent, who died during the Civil War, is in the back left corner. The cross for Kevin Krist, who died in 2006 during Operation Iraqi Freedom, is at the front right.

The display is symbolic of the rows and rows of crosses at the St. Mihiel American Cemetery in France, the resting place of thousands of Americans who died in World War I.

DeForests fallen veterans will be honored with a ceremony at 11:30 a.m. today in the park maintained by the DeForest Veterans Memorial Foundation, which also hosts events commemorating veterans and educating civilians.

The foundations co-founder and president, Jeff Unger, engineered the event down to each detail with the help of the foundation, American Legion Post No. 348 and its Auxiliary.

Unger, 55, who is a disabled Air Force veteran, spoke passionately about the need to honor the lives of fallen veterans as he led a team of about half a dozen volunteers to arrange the crosses on Friday.

(Memorial Day) is something that we do as a national remembrance and memorialization, Unger said. Its not a celebration. Its a commemoration of these gentlemens service and sacrifice on behalf of our freedom and liberties that we enjoy every day.

This is the 11th year a Memorial Day commemoration has been held in the park, and each year, Unger develops a new theme. Last year, the DeForest Veterans Memorial Foundation created a replica of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which drew thousands of people, including Gov. Scott Walker, to the village park.

Special attention will be given to each cross during the Memorial Day observance. The name of each fallen veteran and the cause and place of his death will be read aloud while flowers and an American flag are placed at the cross.

Unger will emcee the ceremony, which also will include a choir of men from Windsor United Church of Christ and St. Olafs Catholic Church who will sing the National Anthem and In Flanders Fields and a bugler to play taps. Women from the American Legion Auxiliary will present remembrance poppies.

The ceremony is expected to last 45 minutes, Unger said, and the crosses will remain in place through the week.

It really brings it home

On Friday, Jacob Miller, 33, was adding finishing touches by attaching flag holders on the back of each cross and gluing the crosses into place. Miller, the owner of Against the Grain Woodworking in DeForest, volunteered his time to construct the foam crosses himself.

To him, this years ceremony emphasizes the cost that DeForest veterans paid to uphold the American ideals of freedom and liberty.

It really brings it home as far as the local and the town. To include myself, I didnt know there were 49 people since the Civil War who had perished, Miller said.

Miller is a veteran himself. He decided to join the National Guard after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and remains active in the Guard.

Reiterating Ungers call for community education, Miller said it was important for him to help out in his community with the Legion. This is Millers second year assisting with the DeForest Memorial Day commemoration.

I do a lot of it for my son to help him and the community not forget what were all here for. Why were here, how were here, Miller said. Its important for people to remember. Its not a grill-out weekend, you know. A lot of people gave their lives.

Wayne Noltemeyer, 77, who helped place the crosses on their posts, served in the Navy during the Vietnam War era, though he was stationed in the Mediterranean as a response to the Cold War. He said he was never in a combat zone, but he understood the impact of war as he had many family members fight in wars before him.

Noltemeyer said he was convinced to join the Legion years ago, and now enjoys the camaraderie that goes along with being a part of the military group. As they worked together, they made jokes about each others military branches  none of which would make much sense to a civilian.

Even as they enjoyed their time, those setting up the temporary monument to DeForests fallen soldiers maintained a solemn respect for the lives lost from DeForest and across the country.

That could have been me, said Unger, who served in conflict zones nine times. But it wasnt. So when I come back as a veteran  Im sure just like Wayne (Noltemeyer)  we feel like we have a connection to these guys. We got to go home. They didnt.
Modified On Jun 06, 2017 11:39 AM By Khan Mohd. for Maruti Dzire 2017-2020

Launched on May 16 at Rs 5.45 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi), the all-new Maruti Suzuki Dzire has received an overwhelming response in the country. This is evident from the fact that it has already crossed 44,000 bookings in mere 13 days of its launch. The compact sedan is being hailed for its contemporary design, updated interiors, hi-tech features and increased dimensions. With such a magnificent acclamation, the vehicle now attracts a waiting period of eight to ten weeks depending on the variants you opt for.

The third-generation Dzire was first premiered on April 24 before being officially launched earlier this month. In its major overhaul, the compact sedan gets radical changes inside-out. Based on the light-weight Heartect platform, the new Dzire is lighter by 85kg and 105kg in its petrol and diesel versions, respectively.

To know how the new Dzire is different from the old one, check Maruti Suzuki Dzire New Vs Old

The Maruti sedan features increased practicality this time around with an extended width of 40mm and a 20mm longer wheelbase. However, its shorter by 40mm. On the flip side though, the ground clearance has gone up by 7mm and now stands at 163mm. All these tweaks have led to an increase in the cabin and boot space, which now stands at 378 litres (62 litres more)!

The Dzire continues to carry the same set of a 1.2-litre 83PS/113Nm petrol engine and a 1.3-litre 75PS/190Nm diesel unit. Both engines are linked to a five-speed manual transmission or a five-speed automated manual transmission (AMT). The updated sedan ditches the earlier 4-speed automatic gearbox. With the petrol motor, the Dzire returns an excellent mileage of 22.0kmpl (up by 5.5kmpl), while with the diesel, it delivers a class-leading fuel efficiency of 28.4kmpl (up by 6.8 per cent).

With respect to the waiting period, its rivals Tata Tigor and Hyundai Xcent, also call for a waiting period of 3-4 weeks and 1-2 weeks, respectively. However, the period further depends on the variant you opt for.

What do you think about the new Dzire, is it better than its predecessor? Let us know your views via the comments section below.

Recommended: 2017 Maruti Suzuki Dzire: 5 Things We Like

Disclaimer: The waiting periods are tentative, please contact your nearest dealer to know precise timeline in your location.

Read More on : Swift Dzire on road price
Modified On May 29, 2017 12:02 PM By Rachit Shad

Other automakers are still contemplating about their attendance

In what can be tagged as a shocking piece of news, many automakers have decided to pull out of the upcoming 2018 Auto Expo. According to a report published by The Times Of India (TOI), the India Expo Mart in Greater Noida, which has been hosting the Auto Expo since 2014, will be missing some key automotive players to set up their galleries this time around. The confirmed list of names include Volkswagen, Skoda, Audi and Chevrolet. Other carmakers who are expected to skip the 14th Auto Expo to be held February 2018 include Nissan and Ford.

The report added that other carmakers too are considering skipping the event next year. The key reasons behind the above mentioned companies move hover around the return on investment and effectiveness of participation. In other words, these carmakers have identified that there isnt enough traction at the event to justify the money they put just to show up.

Speaking to TOI, Thierry Lespiaucq, MD of Volkswagen Group sales India said, The Volkswagen Group has taken a decision for not participating in the forthcoming Auto Expo 2018. We have enjoyed participating at the expo in the past and hope to be back in 2020 on the basis of our brand promotion strategy.

As far as General Motors (GM) is concerned, it recently announced that it will stop selling its products in India from December 31, 2017. The company said that this decision is part of a series of actions taken to re-evaluate business performance on a global level. However, its Indian manufacturing plant in Talegaon will continue to run operations as it will be transformed as a production hub for export markets.

Also Read: Chevrolets India Exit  How Will You Be Affected?

On a positive note, new carmakers that are gunning to enter India are expected to show up at the 2018 Auto Expo. The list includes PSA Groupe (Peugeot), Hyundai-owned Kia Motors and SAIC, which is in talks with GM to purchase its Halol plant and become the first Chinese carmaker to set up shop in India.
Once a month during the school year, Mary Warfield reads a book to the 3- to 5-year-olds in the East Madison Head Start program, then gives each child their own copy with their name on a bookplate inside the front cover.

Last week at the final reading for the year, Warfield led the children in a song about books and then read Too Tall Houses as the children listened intently. Then each student came up to get their book.

Giavonnia Ridley, 4, did a little spin pretending to be a ballerina, she said, because she was so happy.

JayDen Cole, 5, performed another move he called his new swag when he accepted his book.

For Warfield, the book handout is one of the best parts of her volunteer stint with the Wisconsin Bookworms program.

Its like graduation, said Warfield, of Madison. Theyre so excited to get their own book. It has their own name in it.

The Wisconsin Bookworms program, which now operates in 42 counties in the state, was started in 1998 as a collaboration of the Wisconsin Association of Home and Community Education (HCE), UW-Extension Family Living Programs and Wisconsin Public Television. Since 2009, the Dane County program has been coordinated and supported by the University League. A nonprofit organization, the University League has been instrumental in expanding the program by at least one classroom each year.

Warfield is one of the readers who visit preschool classes of students from low-income families in Dane County.

It is one of the volunteer opportunities available for members of the University League, which was founded in 1901 for the wives of faculty members at UW-Madison. The organization has evolved over the years and is now open to all men and women. A main thrust of the organization is awarding scholarships for UW-Madison students, but it also offers educational and social activities for its members.

This year Wisconsin Bookworms has served 420 children in 23 Dane County classes, most of which are Head Start programs. There is more demand than funding allows, said Warfield, who applies for grants as part of her role as the programs coordinator.

Warfield said a survey taken in Dane County showed that for some children, the books they receive through the program are the only ones they own.

Kavara Moore, 5, said her favorite book this year is The Mitten. Victor Stendahl, 4, said he liked that book and Paddle Pug, which was also the favorite of Louis Wells, 5.

Whitney Dryer, lead preschool teacher for the 3- to 5-year-old classroom, said the children love Warfield, who has gotten to know families since she has read to siblings over the six years she has been reading at East Madison Head Start.

Its really nice because we want the kids reading at home and to gain that love of reading and it helps foster that and it helps grow a home library, which is so important at this age, Dryer said.
InterXion Holding N.V. provides carrier and cloud-neutral colocation data center services in France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland. The company enables its customers to connect to a range of telecommunications carriers, cloud platforms, Internet service providers, and other customers. Its data centers acts as content, cloud, and connectivity hubs that facilitate the processing, storage, sharing, and distribution of data between its customers. The company offers colocation services, including space and power to deploy IT infrastructure in its data centers; a range of output voltages and currents; connectivity services that enable its customers to connect their IT infrastructure to exchange traffic and access cloud platforms; and systems monitoring, systems management, engineering support, and data backup and storage services, as well as installs and manages physical connections running from its customers' equipment to the equipment of its telecommunications carriers, Internet service providers, Internet exchange customers, and other customers. It provides its services to telecom operators, Internet service providers, and content delivery networks; content and cloud providers; and enterprises through direct sales forces, as well as through tradeshows, networking events, and industry seminars. As of December 31, 2018, it operated 51 carrier and cloud neutral colocation data centers in 13 metropolitan areas in 11 countries. The company is also involved in real estate management/holding businesses. InterXion Holding N.V. was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in Hoofddorp, the Netherlands.
Teleflex Incorporated designs, develops, manufactures, and supplies single-use medical devices for common diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in critical care and surgical applications worldwide. It provides vascular access products that comprise Arrow branded catheters, catheter navigation and tip positioning systems, and intraosseous access systems for the administration of intravenous therapies, the measurement of blood pressure, and the withdrawal of blood samples through a single puncture site. The company also offers interventional products, which consists of various coronary catheters, structural heart therapies, and peripheral intervention and cardiac assist products that are used by interventional cardiologists and radiologists, and vascular surgeons; and Arrow branded catheters, Guideline and Trapliner catheters, the Manta Vascular Closure, and Arrow Oncontrol devices. It provides anesthesia products, such as airway and pain management products to support hospital, emergency medicine, and military channels; and surgical products, including metal and polymer ligation clips, and fascial closure surgical systems that are used in laparoscopic surgical procedures, percutaneous surgical systems, and other surgical instruments. The company also offers interventional urology products comprising the UroLift System, an invasive technology for treating lower urinary tract symptoms due to benign prostatic hyperplasia; and respiratory products, including oxygen and aerosol therapies, spirometry, and ventilation management products for use in various care settings. It provides urology products, such as catheters, urine collectors, and catheterization accessories and products for operative endourology; and bladder management services. The company serves hospitals and healthcare providers, medical device manufacturers, and home care markets. The company was incorporated in 1943 and is headquartered in Wayne, Pennsylvania.
WestRock Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides fiber-based paper and packaging solutions in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. It operates through two segments, Corrugated Packaging and Consumer Packaging. The Corrugated Packaging segment produces containerboards, corrugated sheets, corrugated packaging, and preprinted linerboards to consumer and industrial products manufacturers, and corrugated box manufacturers. It also provides structural and graphic design, engineering services and custom, and proprietary and standard automated packaging machines, as well as turn-key installation, automation, line integration, and packaging solutions; distributes corrugated packaging materials and other specialty packaging products, including stretch films, void fills, carton sealing tapes, and other specialty tapes; operates recycling facilities that collect, sort, grade, and bale recovered paper; and provides lithographic laminated packaging products, as well as contract packing services. The Consumer Packaging segment manufactures and sells folding cartons that are used to package food, paper, beverages, dairy products, tobacco, confectionery, health and beauty, other household consumer, and commercial and industrial products; and express mail packages for the overnight courier industry. It also offers inserts and labels, as well as rigid packaging and other printed packaging products, such as transaction cards, brochures, product literature, marketing materials, and grower tags and plant stakes for the horticultural market; and secondary packages and paperboard packaging for over-the-counter and prescription drugs. In addition, this segment manufactures and sells solid fiber and corrugated partitions, and die-cut paperboard components principally to glass container manufacturers and the automotive industry, as well as producers of beer, food, wine, spirits, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. WestRock Company is based in Atlanta, Georgia.
Donald Trump Muslim ban could head to Supreme Court

The fate of President Donald Trump's order to ban travelers from six predominantly Muslim nations, blocked by federal courts, may soon be in the hands of the conservative-majority Supreme Court, where his appointee Neil Gorsuch could help settle the matter.

After the Richmond-based 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals declined on Thursday to lift a Maryland federal judge's injunction halting the temporary ban ordered by Trump on March 6, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the administration would appeal to the Supreme Court.

A second regional federal appeals court heard arguments on May 15 in Seattle in the administration's appeal of a decision by a federal judge in Hawaii also to block the ban. A ruling by the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals is pending.

The Justice Department has not made clear when the administration would make its formal appeal or whether it would wait for the 9th Circuit ruling before appealing.

If they take it up, the justices would be called upon to decide whether courts should always defer to the president over allowing certain people to enter the country, especially when national security is the stated reason for an action as in this case. They also would have to decide if Trump's order violated the US Constitution's bar against the government favoring one religion over another, as the ban's challengers assert.

Gorsuch's April confirmation by the Republican-led Senate over Democratic opposition restored the court's 5-4 majority, which means that if all the conservative justices side with the administration the ban would be restored regardless of how the four liberal justices vote.

During his Senate confirmation hearing, Gorsuch was questioned about Trump's criticism of judges who ruled against the ban. Gorsuch avoided commenting on the legal issue, saying only that he would not be 'rubber stamp' for any president.

While the justices could decide in the coming weeks whether to hear the case, they likely would not hold oral arguments until late in the year, with a ruling sometime after that. A final resolution may not come until perhaps a year after Trump issued the executive order.

The justices are not required to hear any case, but this one meets important criteria cited by experts, including that it would be the federal government filing the appeal and that it involves a nationwide injunction.

The administration could file an emergency application seeking to put the order into effect while the litigation on its legality continues. At least five justices must agree for any such request to be granted.

While the court could split 5-4 along ideological lines, it also is possible some conservative justices could join the liberals in overturning the travel ban, libertarian law professor Ilya Somin of George Mason University said.

'Conservatives in other contexts often take a hard line against any kind of government discrimination (based) on race or religion or the like, even if the motivation may be benign. Also conservatives have concerns about government infringements on religion,' Somin said.

The 4th Circuit said the ban's challengers, including refugee groups, in the case argued by the American Civil Liberties Union were likely to succeed on their claim that the order violated the Constitution's prohibition on the government favoring or disfavoring any religion. In the 10-3 ruling, three Republican-appointed judges dissented.

The Republican president's March 6 order, replacing an earlier Jan. 27 one also blocked by the courts, called for barring people from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for 90 days while the government implements stricter visa screening. It also called for suspending all refugee admissions for 120 days.

The travel ban's challengers may take some comfort from the appeals court ruling's reliance on a concurring opinion in a 2015 Supreme Court immigration case by Justice Anthony Kennedy, a conservative who sometimes sides with the court's liberals in big cases.

In the 2015 case, Kennedy wrote that in the immigration context, the government's actions can be questioned if there is evidence of bad faith.

'As with any opinion by Justice Kennedy, I think the million-dollar question is just what he meant in his concurrence, and this may be a perfect case to find out,' University of Texas School of Law professor Stephen Vladeck said.

In Thursday's ruling, 4th Circuit Chief Judge Roger Gregory wrote that the plaintiffs had shown there was 'ample evidence' of bad faith, which gave the green light to probe whether there were reasons for the order other than the administration's stated national security rationale.

The administration has argued the temporary travel ban was needed to guard against terrorist attacks. Gregory wrote that the order uses 'vague words of national security, but in context drips with religious intolerance, animus, and discrimination.' Trump during the presidential campaign called for a 'total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.'
Egypt's Copts: Our government is failing us after fourth ISIS attack in six months

Egyptian Christians are accusing the government of failing to protect them after an ISIS-claimed attack killed at least 29 and injured at least 20 more.

The shooting happened after a bus convey of Coptic Christians en route to the Saint Samuel monastery near Minya refused to renounce their Christian faith after being halted by Islamist gunmen.

Pope Francis led prayers for those killed in 'another act of ferocious violence', describing those massacred as martyrs.

Speaking to thousands gathered in St Peter's Square, the pontiff said: 'May the Lord welcome these courageous witnesses, these martyrs, in his peace and convert the hearts of the violent ones.'

But relatives of those killed say the attack undermines Egypt's ongoing state of emergency declared after a previous attack in April.

ISIS claimed the attack on Friday  it's fourth since December with more than 100 killed and many more injured.

Egypt's government has previously promised to increase security after separate attacks targeted the country's Christian population.

Kirollos Mahrous, 19, and his 25-year-old cousin Guirguis Mahrous were among the dead as they travelled to a monastery for work.

Another cousin, Eid Fares Ishak, said: 'The state of emergency isn't making anything better, it's as if it's not there.'

He added according to the Guardian: 'The government is supposed to take more precautions and be more firm in case of such attacks, like doing an immediate search following the attack and not waiting for hours like they did.'

Guirguis had tried to join the police force but was turned down because he was a Christian, his friend Mina Adel said.

Talking of the government's response to the attack, he said: '"It's all talk and no action.

'Even this state of emergency: they announced it to calm public opinion, but it's not really helping. Even the priests, bishops and parliament members don't have the same respect from people any more  now no one takes their 'soothing' words seriously. We're fed up. Plus, the government isn't doing anything extra, in fact it's worse than it used to be in terms of how the police treat people.'

The bus was halted by three vehicles and dozens of militants opened fire. Video footage showed the bus raked with bullets.

In response Egypt launched a wave of airstrikes against suspected militant bases in Libya where the perpetrators are thought to have trained. A manhunt for the gunmen is also ongoing in the vast deserts to the west of the site of the attack but no arrests have yet been made.
Is religion the root of terror?

The appalling terrorist attack in Manchester has reignited a debate about the roots of such violence.

Liberals are accused of downplaying religion. Rod Liddle was quick off the mark to do this in a Spectator blog, attacking the BBC for taking this view. As far as the BBC was concerned, Liddle alleged, Salman Abedi might just as well have been a Methodist as a Muslim. Liberals hit back, arguing that to emphasise religious motives runs the risk of accusing all Muslims of being somehow guilty, a danger underlined by Alex Massie in another Spectator blog. Tell MAMA, which records hate crimes against Muslims, says there has been a rise in Manchester.

Is it primarily religion that motivates young men like Salman Abedi to carry out there terrible deeds or should we see them as damaged individuals, alienated from society, suffering from depression, convinced that the Western world is against them?

A debate between two prominent French intellectuals casts light on the issue. Gilles Kepell has spent a lifetime studying Islam in France, particularly life in the banlieues, the poorer outer suburbs for Parish. In his book Terror in France he has chronicled the arrival of Salafist preachers, supported by Saudi Arabia, with a message that politics was 'haram', forbidden by Islamic law. This reinforced a failure of French Muslims to seek a political solution to their grievances, a failure that was further encouraged by their disillusion with Francois Hollande.

Oliver Roy places less emphasis on religion. He has famously said that what we are seeing is not the radicalisation of Islam but the Islamification of radicalism. He points out that most recruits to ISIS have only a very basic understanding of Islam.

'A typical radical', he writes, 'is a young, second-generation immigrant or convert very often involved in episodes of petty crime, with practically no religious education but having a rapid and recent trajectory of conversion/reconversion, more often in the framework of a group of friends or over the internet than in the context of a mosque.'

Roy seeks to explain the growth of fundamentalism in terms of what he calls the 'deculturation of religion'. First generation immigrants stick to their culture, speaking the language or eating the food of home. Mosques cater to family groups and are made up of people from the same area of Pakistan, Bangladesh or Algeria.

Second generation Muslims are more conscious of belonging to the 'umma'. They have no interest in speaking Urdu and are ready to eat of variety of foods as long as they are 'halal'. Their identity comes from their religion and this makes them vulnerable to adopting a fundamentalist interpretation of their faith.

In his latest book Jihad and Death Roy does suggest that in some ways Britain may not conform to the pattern he has outlined. He warns that in this country there is a network of militant mosques frequented by members of al-Muhajiroun which gave birth to the even more radical group Sharia4UK.

Kepell and Roy have criticised each other's work. It may be a mistake to seek to impose one particular pattern. Each case of terrorism has its own features. But in many cases we do seem to be confronted by a lost young man or woman who has drifted into drinking and taking drugs, possibly, as in the case of Abedi, formed links with criminal gangs and then in an attempt to convert and find meaning in life taken up religion. Within a short time the young convert is going to Syria or Libya and being taught that the source of all the world's troubles is Western domination.

Once the imagined vehicle of liberation was communism, now it is a twisted version of Islam.

Paul Richardson worked for 17 years as a missionary in Papua New Guinea, and is now a Catholic priest in the Diocese of Westminster.
Portland attack: Donald Trump under pressure to condemn anti-Muslim murders

Pressure is mounting on Donald Trump to condemn a racist anti-Muslim attack that left two men stabbed to death on Friday.

Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23, of Southeast Portland and Ricky John Best, 53, of Happy Valley, Oregon were killed after intervening to stop an Islamophobic rant against two young women.

The pair have been described as heroes by the FBI and Portland's mayor but President Trump has not commented, despite tweeting 10 times about other topics on Sunday.

Police identified the assailant, who was arrested soon after the Friday afternoon attack, as Jeremy Joseph Christian of Portland, a 35-year-old convicted felon.

Christian started shouting ethnic and religious slurs, apparently at the two young women, one of whom wore a Muslim head-covering, the Portland Police Department said in a statement.

A senior researcher with the Southern Poverty Law Center, in a blog post, said Christian's Facebook page showed he held 'some racist and other extremist beliefs'.

The attack unfolded hours before the start of Ramadan, Islam's holy month, when most of the world's 1.6 billion Muslims observe a daily religious fast.

'It's too early to say whether last night's violence was an act of domestic terrorism or a federal hate crime,' said Loren Cannon, special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Oregon.

A veteran American journalist Dan Rather led calls for Trump to condemn the attack, saying although the case 'may not neatly fit into a narrative you pushed on the campaign trail and that has followed you into the White House', the men were 'not killed by an undocumented immigrant or a "radical Islamic terrorist"'.

'This 'extremism' may be of a different type than gets most of your attention, or even the attention in the press. But that doesn't make it any less serious, or deadly,' he wrote on social media.

Christian was booked on two counts of aggravated murder and charges of attempted murder, intimidation and being a felon in possession of a restricted weapon, and was ordered held without bail.

The women, who had left the train before officers arrived, were later in contact with authorities, according to police, who have not released their identities.

Dyjuana Hudson, the mother of one of them, told The Oregonian newspaper her 16-year-old daughter, who is black, boarded the train with a Muslim friend, also a teenager, who was wearing a hijab.

The attacker approached the girls while screaming at them, Hudson told the newspaper, relaying an account her daughter had given her. 'He was saying that Muslims should die,' Hudson said.

On Friday, police said detectives wanted to speak to the two women. A detective later took a statement from her family, Hudson told the paper. She could not be reached for comment.

Police declined to release details of Christian's criminal history, but the newspaper reported he had been convicted of robbery, kidnapping and weapon charges, citing court records. It was not immediately clear if he had obtained an attorney.

The suspect had no known affiliation with a criminal gang member nor any mental health history, police said.

In a statement, the Council on American-Islamic Relations blamed an increase in anti-Muslim incidents in part on President Donald Trump's focus on militant Islamist groups and anti-immigrant rhetoric.

The administration has said that while it strongly opposes Islamist militants, it has no quarrel with Islam.

'There is too much hatred in the world right now and far too much violence. Our current political climate allows far too much room for those who spread bigotry,' Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler told a news conference.

Additional reporting by Reuters.
The victim in a Sunday morning homicide in Janesville has been identified as Eddie Lee Jones, the Rock County Medical Examiner's Department said Monday afternoon.

Jones, 28, of Markham, Illinois, died from a gunshot wound, according to preliminary autopsy results. The medical examiner's office said additional testing is underway.

Janesville Police said Jones was shot in the face by Barquis Odom of Beloit after an argument Sunday morning.

About 12:25 a.m. Sunday, officers were called to 116 S. Franklin St. for reports of gunshots, police said. A caller at the location said a man needed medical attention after being shot in the face.

Jones was taken to Mercy Hospital where he died, according to police.

Police said Jones had what appeared to be heroin on him when he was shot. Jones has a lengthy criminal record for assaults and weapons and drug crimes, police said.

Witnesses identified Odom as the shooter, and said the two had been arguing when Odom pulled out a handgun and shot Jones, then fled the scene, police said.

Janesville officers located Odom driving on the city's west side at about 9:15 p.m. Sunday. He was arrested without incident after a high-risk traffic stop, police said.

Odom is tentatively charged with first-degree intentional homicide and possession of a firearm by a felon.

The incident was Janesville's first homicide in more than three years, police said.

Odom's criminal record in Wisconsin includes felony convictions for the manufacture and delivery of heroin and cocaine and failure to pay child support. His misdemeanor convictions include disorderly conduct, battery and possession of amphetamines, LSD or psilocybin mushrooms, according to Wisconsin criminal records.
Advance Auto Parts, Inc. provides automotive replacement parts, accessories, batteries, and maintenance items for domestic and imported cars, vans, sport utility vehicles, and light and heavy duty trucks. The company offers battery accessories; belts and hoses; brakes and brake pads; chassis and climate control parts; clutches and drive shafts; engines and engine parts; exhaust systems and parts; hub assemblies; ignition components and wires; radiators and cooling parts; starters and alternators; and steering and alignment parts. It also offers air conditioning chemicals and accessories; air fresheners; antifreeze and washer fluids; electrical wires and fuses; electronics; floor mats, seat covers, and interior accessories; hand and specialty tools; lighting products; performance parts; sealants, adhesives and compounds; tire repair accessories; vent shades, mirrors and exterior accessories; washes, waxes and cleaning supplies; and wiper blades. In addition, the company offers air filters; fuel and oil additives; fuel filters; grease and lubricants; motor oils; oil filters, part cleaners and treatments; and transmission fluids for engine maintenance. Further, it offers battery and wiper installation; engine light scanning and checking; electrical system testing; video clinic; oil and battery recycling; and loaner tool program services. Additionally, the company sells its products through its website. It serves professional installers and do-it-yourself customers. The company operates stores under the Advance Auto Parts, Autopart International, and Carquest brands, as well as branches under the Worldpac name. As of April 23, 2022, it operated 4,687 stores and 311 branches in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Canada; and served 1,318 independently owned Carquest branded stores in Mexico, Grand Cayman, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, and the British Virgin Islands. The company was founded in 1929 and is based in Raleigh, North Carolina.
AutoZone, Inc. retails and distributes automotive replacement parts and accessories. The company offers various products for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans, and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products. Its products include A/C compressors, batteries and accessories, bearings, belts and hoses, calipers, chassis, clutches, CV axles, engines, fuel pumps, fuses, ignition and lighting products, mufflers, radiators, starters and alternators, thermostats, and water pumps, as well as tire repairs. In addition, the company offers maintenance products, such as antifreeze and windshield washer fluids; brake drums, rotors, shoes, and pads; brake and power steering fluids, and oil and fuel additives; oil and transmission fluids; oil, cabin, air, fuel, and transmission filters; oxygen sensors; paints and accessories; refrigerants and accessories; shock absorbers and struts; spark plugs and wires; and windshield wipers. Further, it provides air fresheners, cell phone accessories, drinks and snacks, floor mats and seat covers, interior and exterior accessories, mirrors, performance products, protectants and cleaners, sealants and adhesives, steering wheel covers, stereos and radios, tools, and wash and wax products, as well as towing services. Additionally, the company provides a sales program that offers commercial credit and delivery of parts and other products; sells automotive diagnostic and repair software under the ALLDATA brand through alldata.com; and automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products through autozone.com. As of August 27, 2022, it operated 6,168 stores in the United States; 703 stores in Mexico; and 72 stores in Brazil. The company was founded in 1979 and is based in Memphis, Tennessee.
North Korea has fired one ballistic missile of short range Monday that landed off the countrys east coast in the sea, just the latest in a series of fast-paced missile tests that defy world pressure and the threat of additional sanctions.

The missile is believed to have been a ballistic missile that was Scud-class and flew about 280 miles, said officials from neighboring South Korea and was likely developed originally by the former Soviet Union.

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The launch Monday followed two tests of both medium- and long-range missile over the past two weeks by the secretive nation, which had conducted tests of this type at a pace unprecedented in its effort to develop an ICBM or intercontinental ballistic missile that is capable of hitting the U.S. mainland.

A spokesperson from the government of South Korea said that North was likely trying to show determination to push forward even though they are facing pressure internationally to rein in the missile program and is pressuring the South to change its foreign policy with the North.

The test-launch was the third since a new president in South Korea has taken office May 10 and pledged to engage in dialogue with its reclusive neighbor.

The South Korea president said that just sanctions failed to bring a solution to the increasing threat from the advancing missile and nuclear program of the North.

The missile launched on Monday reached a 75-mile high altitude.

North Korea since the start of last year has launched dozens of missile and tested a pair of nuclear bombs in defiance of resolutions from the United Nations Security Council.

North Korea claims its programs are necessary to counter aggression by the United States.

The White House administration said U.S. President Donald Trump was briefed prior to the launch of the missile. The Pacific Command of the U.S. said that it had tracked what appeared was a ballistic missile for over 6 minutes and assessed no threat was made to the U.S.

The U.S. has said it wanted to hold discussions with China about a new resolution in the UN and that Beijing, a major diplomatic ally of North Korea and its neighbor realizes that time is limited in reining in the weapons program via negotiations.

Jim Mattis the U.S. Secretary of Defense warned Sunday that a military conflict with North Korea would probably be the worst type of fighting in the majority of peoples lifetimes.
Some people will call it surprising that a reporter was reportedly assaulted Wednesday night by a political candidate. Truth is, it is not surprising in the least.

For those who hadnt heard: Greg Gianforte, a Montana Republican running for Congress, was charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly body-slamming Ben Jacobs, who works for the British newspaper The Guardian, hard enough to break his glasses. This, because Jacobs tried to ask for Gianfortes opinion of the GOP health care bill in the wake of an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office that it would leave 23 million Americans without health care.

In a statement, Gianfortes campaign sought to paint the incident as a result of Jacobs aggressiveness:

Tonight, as Greg was giving a separate interview in a private office, The Guardians Ben Jacobs entered the office without permission, aggressively shoved a recorder in Gregs face, and began asking badgering questions. Jacobs was asked to leave. After asking Jacobs to lower the recorder, Jacobs declined. Greg then attempted to grab the phone that was pushed in his face. Jacobs grabbed Gregs wrist, and spun away from Greg, pushing them both to the ground. Its unfortunate that this aggressive behavior from a liberal journalist created this scene ...

Problematically for Gianforte, his version of events is at odds with audio captured by Jacobs recorder. In it, Gianforte is heard declining to answer Jacobs question. Jacobs tries again, and Gianforte tells him to speak with Shane  meaning his flack. Immediately, there is a loud crash, and Gianforte is heard ranting: Im sick and tired of you guys! The last guy who came in here, you did the same thing. Get the hell out of here!

Gianfortes story is also refuted by eyewitnesses, a crew from  you cant make this stuff up  Fox News, who describe the candidate grabbing Jacobs neck with both hands, slamming him to the floor, and punching him.

Many adjectives might apply to all this. The incident is appalling, infuriating, disturbing. But no, it is not surprising.

Not after a congressman threatened to throw a reporter from a balcony. Not after the arrest of reporters covering a protest in Baton Rouge and the arrests and intimidation of reporters covering unrest in Ferguson. Not after a West Virginia reporter was jailed for shouting questions.

And especially not after Donald Trump declared journalists enemies of the people. That was not unlike a home invader declaring the family Doberman an enemy of the house, but his fans bought it, snarling at reporters and dismissing as fake news every fact that intruded upon their fantasies.

Rope. Journalist. Tree, read a T-shirt spotted at Trump rallies. Some assembly required.

Perspective is important here. After all, this is not yet Mexico, where journalists are killed with frightening regularity.

Still, Gianfortes alleged assault is the latest addition to a growing body of evidence suggesting right-wing intolerance, not simply for inconvenient facts, but also for impertinent questions. Of course the one is a tool of the journalists trade, the other a part of her job description. So this should trouble you, whatever your partisan loyalties.

Power that answers no questions has no conscience. Power unconstrained by facts is unconstrained by anything. And a nation where asking questions or reporting facts leads to assault or arrest cannot be America. Down this path, then, lies potential disaster.

Many adjectives will apply to that, too. Once again, surprise will not be one of them.
Talk to business leaders throughout Wisconsin and you will hear a recurring theme: There is a real need for skilled workers to fill jobs in just about every industry and in companies of all sizes. A survey by Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, for example, says 70 percent of state businesses are struggling to find qualified workers, and some are delaying expansions because of the problem.

That is why workforce development is a key component of Gov. Scott Walkers two-year state budget proposal, and why the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), along with the state Department of Workforce Development and other agencies, is aggressively developing initiatives to meet the workforce demands of today  and tomorrow.

Gov. Walkers budget includes $140 million for workforce development over the next two years. That is on top of the $212 million the state has invested over the last four years in workforce readiness.

Those efforts involve ensuring that those who are already in the workforce have the skills they need to adapt to an ever-changing economy as well as providing students with the necessary tools to compete in the job market once they leave high school or college.

One of the initiatives aimed at K-12 students is Wisconsins Fab Lab network, which provides students in public schools in every region of the state with hands-on learning in areas of science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM). Gov. Walker, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch and I recently joined other leaders from around the state in awarding nearly $500,000 in grants to help outfit public schools with the type of equipment that helps students master the skills that are in high demand.

WEDCs Fab Lab Grants provide up to $25,000 to each district to establish or expand the labs, which are high-technology workshops equipped with the latest computer-controlled manufacturing components. Over the last two years, WEDC has invested $1.1 million in Fab Labs by awarding grants to 34 school districts  including those in Waunakee, Stoughton and Edgerton.

Wisconsins Fab Labs initiative is helping schools provide students with hands-on learning in STEAM-related areas of study. Those students will develop skills that will be invaluable once they graduate from high school  whether they are heading straight into the workforce, going to a technical college or attending a four-year university.

Beyond the technical skills, students in Wisconsins Fab Labs are also learning about problem-solving, collaboration and teamwork, all important lessons that will last a lifetime.

It is not just students who will benefit from the grants, because many Wisconsin Fab Lab schools offer community members, businesses and entrepreneurs the opportunity to use the labs after school hours. Opening school Fab Labs to local innovators is an aspect of the program that will spur more economic development throughout the community.

Wisconsin is well known as a state that rises to a challenge, pooling the collective talents of its people to overcome obstacles and create new possibilities. Were also a state that is respected for its ingenuity and manufacturing leadership. Our growing network of Fab Labs is a testament to Wisconsins long and celebrated history of innovation. That history will be carried forward by the students and communities throughout the state who will explore new ways to express their creativity and passion with the latest technology housed in their local schools.
This article is part of a series on graduates of Spring Convocation 2017. Read more grad profiles or, to learn more about the ceremonies, visit the Convocation website.

At Spring Convocation on Monday, Dalhousies Faculty of Computer Science will graduate the next generation of technology leaders and innovators. Below, four of CS's 114 new graduates share highlights from their time at Dal and give their advice to current students.



Jennifer Terpstra graduates from the Bachelor of Computer Science program and has secured a job with Lixar IT in Halifax, her co-op employer.

The thing I enjoyed most about studying within the Faculty of Computer Science is the friends I made, especially during my time in the Learning Centre where I got the opportunity to meet a wide range of students. I specialized in Communication Technologies and Cyber Security and Graphics, Gaming and Media. I would advise current students to try and spread the more difficult courses over multiple terms if you can. I didnt do this but wish I did!

Ryan Gosse leaves his studies with a Bachelor in Computer Science with a Communication Technologies and Cyber Security specialization but will not be leaving Dal completely.

I have a job within the Steele Oceans Building working with oceanographic data as a data manager. This is an area that is rapidly developing. The wealth of Computer Science theory courses at Dalhousie is fantastic; the courses have helped me immensely as a programmer and during my current role.



Students should also really take the opportunities available to learn outside the classroom. I recommend undertaking personal programming projects. This is a great way to stay on top of emerging and popular technologies, giving you more experience and an edge when applying for jobs.

Jacquie Saloum is using her experience outside the classroom to search for a job now that she is graduating from the Bachelor in Informatics.

One of my big highlights from my time at Dalhousie was co-op. Beyond gaining work experience and networking with professionals within the field, it really helped me to figure out what I do and dont want to do.



The other thing which has helped and I would highly recommend is to just GET INVOLVED! Get involved within your Faculty and the greater Dalhousie community; there are so many opportunities. You will learn so much from each person and experience you encounter.



Within my 5 years at Dalhousie, I have been a TA and a marker for Computer Science, a volunteer at ShiftKey Labs, a receptionist and a tutor at the Writing Centre, and the VP of the DalDance Society. Each position offered such a unique experience with life lessons that I will continue to apply to my life in the future, and I have met some of my closest friends.

Graduate student Nabil Hannan is working as a technical solutions specialist for local start-up Pineapple Bytes in Dartmouth and graduates with a Master in Computer Science.

There are so many opportunities inside and outside of the classroom in the Faculty of Computer Science. I have engaged with so much activity and had an amazing experience the Computer Science Graduate Society, the in-house conference (DCSI) and ShiftKey Labs. Attending the events and Hackathons, and volunteering at ShiftKey is a must for all Computer Science students, even if you are unsure if it is for you. The experiences on offer for students there will help you improve your technical and soft skills through real-life problem solving and networking.



Another big highlight for me has been publishing research papers. I recently presented my work in Intelligent User Interfaces (IUI) at a conference in Limassol, Cyprus. Overall, an amazing experience.


German chancellor Angela Merkel has gone on the offensive against the US and Britain following last week's G7 talks, saying that the European Union must not rely on its longstanding allies any longer.

During an election rally in Munich on Sunday, Merkel issued an impassioned rallying cry for the benefits of the bloc, urging European states to stand together at a time of political upheaval.

"The times in which we could completely depend on others are, to a certain extent, over," Merkel said. "I've experienced that in the last few days. We Europeans truly have to take our fate into our own hands."

World leaders met last week in Sicily for a G7 summit, with several fledgling leaders such as US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron struggling to reach agreements on a variety of key issues.

Merkel's passionate speech comes as she faces into key elections in Germany

Merkel did little to hide her feelings during Sundays speech, referring to discussions on issues such as climate change as "unsatisfactory".

"The times in which we could completely depend on others are on the way out. I've experienced that in the last few days," she added.

"We Europeans have to take our destiny into our own hands."

Trump was the only leader present at the summit who did not give assurances that his country would back the Paris climate accord, with the Republican expected to make a decision on US involvement in the coming days.

Merkel's passionate speech comes as she faces into key elections in Germany later this year, where her CDU party is expected to face stiff competition from the SPD and AfD parties.
The White House is considering expanding a ban on laptops and other tech devices to all flights entering and leaving the US.

John Kelly, the head of the Department of Homeland Security, told Fox News that the ban may be introduced globally in order to combat terrorism.

Earlier this year Donald Trump's administration introduced a ban on electronic devices larger than smartphones on flights coming from Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, with the UK following suit with a similar ban shortly after.

Kelly was asked directly by the Fox presenter if he had plans to ban laptops from all international flights, to which he replied, "I might. That's a quick answer."

Expanding, he added: "Well, there's a real threat. Numerous threats against aviation, that's really the thing that they are obsessed with, the terrorists, the idea of knocking down an airplane in flight, particularly if its a US carrier, particularly if it's full of mostly U.S. folks, people."

Passengers on flights from the affected states must check in any device which is larger than a standard smartphone, and Kelly said the final decision about whether the ban will be extended will be taken "when the time is right."
British Airways passengers have been left stranded at Heathrow airport for a third day following a crash in the airlines computer systems.

Passengers faced disruption at both London Heathrow and Gatwick over the bank holiday weekend following the crash, with several flights being cancelled and others being delayed.

BA said on Monday that it would be operating a full schedule at Gatwick, as well as its long-haul flight programme, but several short-haul flights would still be cancelled.

A statement from the airline apologised for the disruption, and added that it expects to be running at full capacity soon.

The statement read: "We operated a full schedule at Gatwick on Sunday. At Heathrow, we operated virtually all our scheduled long-haul flights, though the knock-on effects of Saturdays disruption resulted in a reduced short-haul programme.

"As our IT systems move closer to full operational capacity, we will again run a full schedule at Gatwick on Monday and intend to operate a full long-haul schedule and a high proportion of our short-haul programme at Heathrow."

Frustrated passengers criticised BA, which is part of parent company International Airlines Group, via Twitter on Monday.

Just gets worse + worse for @British_Airways. A flight they have assured all day wld leave on time they've now delayed for 3 hours #midnight  Andrew Neil (@afneil) May 28, 2017

I'm tempted to buy a share in BA when they're in freefall next trading day, then come to the next shareholders meeting!   Ian Sanderson (@Dalboyne) May 28, 2017
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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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Over the past 40 years, microelectronics have advanced by leaps and bounds thanks to silicon and CMOS (Complementary metal-oxide semiconductors) technology, making possible computing, smartphones, compact and low-cost digital cameras, as well as most of the electronic gadgets we rely on today.

However, the diversification of this platform into applications other than microcircuits and visible light cameras has been impeded by the difficulty to combine semiconductors other than silicon with CMOS.

This obstacle has now been overcome. ICFO researchers have shown for the first time the monolithic integration of a CMOS integrated circuit with graphene, resulting in a high-resolution image sensor consisting of hundreds of thousands of photodetectors based on graphene and quantum dots (QD). They operated it as a digital camera that is highly sensitive to UV, visible and infrared light at the same time. This has never been achieved before with existing imaging sensors. In general, this demonstration of monolithic integration of graphene with CMOS enables a wide range of optoelectronic applications, such as low-power optical data communications and compact and ultra sensitive sensing systems.

The study was published in Nature Photonics, and highlighted on the front cover image. The work was carried out by ICFO researchers Stijn Goossens, Gabriele Navickaite, Carles Monasterio, Schuchi Gupta, Juan Jose Piqueras, Raul Perez, Gregory Burwell, Ivan Nitkitsky, Tania Lasanta, Teresa Galan, Eric Puma, and led by ICREA Professors Frank Koppens and Gerasimos Konstantatos, in collaboration with the company Graphenea. The graphene-QD image sensor was fabricated by taking PbS colloidal quantum dots, depositing them onto the CVD graphene and subsequently depositing this hybrid system onto a CMOS wafer with image sensor dies and a read-out circuit. As Stijn Goossens comments, "No complex material processing or growth processes were required to achieve this graphene-quantum dot CMOS image sensor. It proved easy and cheap to fabricate at room temperature and under ambient conditions, which signifies a considerable decrease in production costs. Even more, because of its properties, it can be easily integrated on flexible substrates as well as CMOS-type integrated circuits."

As ICREA Prof. at ICFO Gerasimos Konstantatos, expert in quantum dot-graphene research comments, "we engineered the QDs to extend to the short infrared range of the spectrum (1100-1900nm), to a point where we were able to demonstrate and detect the night glow of the atmosphere on a dark and clear sky enabling passive night vision. This work shows that this class of phototransistors may be the way to go for high sensitivity, low-cost, infrared image sensors operating at room temperature addressing the huge infrared market that is currently thirsty for cheap technologies".

"The development of this monolithic CMOS-based image sensor represents a milestone for low-cost, high-resolution broadband and hyperspectral imaging systems" ICREA Prof. at ICFO Frank Koppens highlights. He assures that "in general, graphene-CMOS technology will enable a vast amount of applications, that range from safety, security, low cost pocket and smartphone cameras, fire control systems, passive night vision and night surveillance cameras, automotive sensor systems, medical imaging applications, food and pharmaceutical inspection to environmental monitoring, to name a few".

This project is currently incubating in ICFO's Launchpad. The team is working with the institute's tech transfer professionals to bring this breakthrough along with its full patent portfolio of imaging and sensing technologies to the market.

###

This research has been partially supported by the European Graphene Flagship, European Research Council, the Government of Catalonia, Fundacio Cellex and the Severo Ochoa Excellence program of the Government of Spain.

Link to the video of the sensor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szL-ejdpNgU

Link to the research group led by ICREA Prof. Gerasimos Konstantatos: https://www.icfo.es/research/groups-details?group_id=30

Link to the research group led by ICREA Prof. Frank Koppens: https://www.icfo.es/research/groups-details?group_id=31

Video: ICFO researchers have developed the first graphene -- quantum dots -- CMOS integrated based camera, capable of imaging visible and infrared light at the same time. The camera will be useful for many applications that include night vision, food inspection, fire control, vision under extreme weather conditions, to name a few. The imaging system is based on the first monolithic integration of graphene and quantum dot photodetectors with a CMOS read-out integrated circuit. It has proven to be easy and cheap to fabricate at room temperature and under ambient conditions, allowing for low-cost mass-production.

About ICFO

ICFO was created in 2002 by the government of Catalonia and the Technical University of Catalonia as a centre of research excellence devoted to the science and technologies of light with a triple mission: to conduct frontier research, train the next generation of scientists, and provide knowledge and technology transfer. Today, it is one of the top research centres worldwide in its category as measured by international rankings.

Research at ICFO targets the forefront of science and technology based on light with programs directed at applications in Health, Renewable Energies, Information Technologies, Security and Industrial processes, among others. The institute hosts 400 professionals based in a dedicated building situated in the Mediterranean Technology Park in the metropolitan area of Barcelona.

ICFO participates in a large number of projects and international networks of excellence and is host to the NEST program that is financed by Fundacion Privada Cellex Barcelona. Ground-breaking research in graphene is being carried out at ICFO and through key collaborative research partnerships such as the FET Graphene Flagship. ICREA Professor at ICFO and NEST Fellow Frank Koppens is the leader of the Optoelectonics work package within the Flagship program.
EDINBURGH, Scotland (May 29, 2017) - The International Neuromodulation Society (INS) has selected six best scientific abstracts that represent insights that may facilitate expanded, increasingly tailored care. The winners are being announced May 29 at the INS 13th World Congress in Edinburgh, Scotland.

"These accomplishments represent rapid progress in our field, and offer potential to expand and improve patient care," commented INS President Timothy Deer, M.D. "We are proud to acknowledge such stellar and promising research."

Neuromodulation entered use in the 1980s to manage chronic pain, treat bladder dysfunction, improve sensory deficits, and limit motor symptoms of movement disorder. The techniques and targets continue to evolve with potential to treat an expanding array of health conditions.

The scientific abstracts being recognized reflect the field's overall trends toward personalized care that tailors therapy to address underlying conditions.

The abstracts were selected for quality, originality, and ingenuity from among more than 470 accepted abstracts. The abstract competition began in 2015.

The six winning research projects represent innovative therapy approaches or basic research, providing knowledge that can improve treatment or help clarify mode of action.

New functional treatment for chronic low back pain - Vivek Mehta, MD, FRCA, FFPMRCA, a consultant in Pain Medicine and Neuromodulation; and director, Pain and Anaesthesia Research Centre at St. Bartholomew's Hospital, Barts Health NHS Trust, London, is presenting on behalf of collaborators an innovative neuromodulation treatment option that was demonstrated in 53 patients who have disabling localized chronic lower back pain. These patients had undergone medication and pain interventions without any demonstrable benefit and were not found suitable for spinal surgery. This new treatment stimulates the multifidus muscle, a core muscle group, which causes it to contract, thereby strengthening it and stabilizing the lower back. The method targets functional stability as well as pain. After 90 days of treatment, most participants improved in at least one of three measures - pain, disability, or quality of life. At one year, more than 80 percent of patients expressed satisfaction with the treatment. The study indicated this innovative therapy could be safe and effective option for patients with chronic disabling low back pain who are not suitable candidates for surgery.

Earlier in its development, the method was featured four years ago in an Innovations Day panel at the INS 11th World Congress.

Stimulation effects on postural instability in Parkinson's disease - Stephanie Tran, a neuroscience master's candidate at the University of British Columbia, submitted results of a study that showed non-invasive galvanic vestibular stimulation improved postural stability in 13 patients with Parkinson's disease, a movement disorder marked by postural instability. The vestibular system is part of the inner ear involved in maintaining balance. Its stimulation had been shown to affect motor responsiveness in individuals with neurodegenerative disease. She tracked patients' degree of sway as they stood with their eyes closed, taking measurements while they were on their normal medication to target treatment-resistant symptoms. She compared two stimulation directions and found stimulation from the middle to side was particularly helpful in the patients. By contrast, the stimulation did not change measurements nine healthy control subjects.

She also was a winner in the INS 12th World Congress abstract competition in 2015 for related research.

Combined stimulation method for pain control - Eugene Mironer, M.D., managing partner of the Carolinas Center for Advanced Management of Pain in North Carolina and South Carolina, will present results of a comparative prospective study in 40 patients who have lower back or leg pain and received a combination of spinal and peripheral nerve stimulation. Patients were randomly administered three different stimulation interaction patterns for two weeks apiece. He found 82 percent of the patients preferred an interaction in which the spinal cord stimulator had a positive charge and, across the lower back, a peripheral nerve stimulator had a negative charge. The remainder of the patients preferred the reverse polarity. No patients chose the third option, in which the leads were used independently.

The patients' preferred spinal-peripheral stimulation supports findings in an earlier study from Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface that evaluated that configuration.

High-frequency spinal cord stimulation for intractable leg pain - Jan Willem Kallewaard, M.D. of Rijnstate Hospital, Arnhem, the Netherlands, is presenting interim results from a prospective multicenter study in 42 pain patients whose intractable leg pain was treated with high-frequency spinal cord stimulation. This method does not produce tingling sensations of paresthesia like conventional spinal cord stimulation. Data are being collected on pain intensity and quality, functionality, quality of life, psychological assessments, opioid usage and return to work. In six-month results, the study showed clinically meaningful improvements in pain scores, disability and catastrophizing.

High-frequency stimulation capabilities were the subject of an Innovations Day presentation at the INS 10th World Congress.

Preliminary results from a prospective, multicenter study of high-frequency spinal cord stimulation in intractable, painful peripheral polyneuropathy - Sean Li, M.D. will present preliminary results from the first prospective, multicenter clinical study to use high-frequency spinal cord stimulation in patients with painful peripheral polyneuropathy of the arms or legs. At one month, the 16 participants experienced 70.5 percent pain relief overall. Six of the patients had painful diabetic neuropathy, a relatively common complication that is hard to treat. This subgroup experienced 67.5 percent pain relief.

Pain-relieving spinal cord stimulation is associated with the activation of progenitor nerve cells - A scientific study by Clinical Associate Professor Chi Wai Cheung, M.D., director of Hong Kong University's Laboratory and Clinical Research Institute for Pain, and his research team provide rare cellular evidence of spinal cord stimulation effects. The study in laboratory rats showed spinal cord stimulation that relieves pain from spinal injury is associated with an increase in neural progenitor cells. About half the progenitor cells carried a marker for GABA-expressing neurons. GABA is a neurotransmitter associated with inhibition of pain signals.

Repetitive spinal cord stimulation provided a long-lasting and incremental analgesic effect, based on hypersensitivity results from touching the hind paw with a microfilament. The pain-relieving effect might be associated with increased progenitor cells since many showed characteristics of GABA neurons. This study provides evidence for a central mechanism of pain relief from spinal cord stimulation.

All abstracts submissions accepted for presentation at the congress will be published online in the INS journal Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface.

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About the International Neuromodulation Society

The nonprofit International Neuromodulation Society presents up-to-date information about the full breadth of neuromodulation therapies through an interactive website, its journal Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface, annual regional meetings, and its biennial world congress.

About Neuromodulation

Neuromodulation therapy, sometimes referred to as bioelectric medicine or electroceuticals, is one of medicine's fastest-growing fields, driven by rising neurological disease in an aging population, and the need for non-pharmacological approaches to manage symptoms. The first use of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) to treat chronic pain of neuropathic origin was reported in 1967 by C. Norman Shealy, M.D., Ph.D. Neuromodulation devices, such as SCS and deep brain stimulation systems, leverage technology developed for cardiac pacemakers and cochlear implants to re-balance neural activity. Neuromodulation therapies help relieve chronic pain or restore function. Existing and emerging devices operate through targeted application of electrical, magnetic, chemical, or optical stimulation. Current or emerging neuromodulation therapies address deficits in vision, hearing, breathing, mobility, grasp or gait, motor function, mood, memory, and digestion.
The first comprehensive study of deaths in Australian nursing homes has been published today (29 May), revealing a more than 400 per cent increase in the incidence of premature and potentially preventable deaths of nursing home residents over the past decade.

These deaths - from falls, choking, suicide and homicide - account for almost 3,300 deaths of nursing home residents over a 13 year period.

The study, led by Professor Joseph Ibrahim, from the Monash University Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences and published in the Medical Journal of Australia, used coronial data to review the deaths by external causes of all of nursing home residents between 2000 and 2013.

The study found that - of the 21,672 deaths of nursing home residents reported to the Coroners Court during the 13 year period, 3,289, or 15.2 per cent, were from external or preventable causes, almost all unintentional.

Unintentional Deaths: Four out of five of those who died from external causes died from falls (81.5 per cent) while one in 12 died of choking (7.9 per cent). Somewhat surprising was the small number who died from complications of clinical care (1.2 per cent).

Intentional Deaths: Almost one in 18 people who died from preventable causes in aged care facilities were killed, either from suicide (4.4 per cent) and resident-to-resident assault (1.0 per cent).

The study found that the 400 per cent increase over the 13 year period in the number of preventable deaths in nursing homes is in part due to better reporting. However, Professor Ibrahim cautions that this figure is probably an under estimate owing to some deaths being misclassified as "natural" due to the tendency for health professionals and society to downplay the significance of the injury-related factors tending to assume old age and any underlying illness are the explanation for deaths.

Professor Ibrahim has called for a national strategy to reduce unnecessary harm including deaths in nursing homes:

"Professionals from governments and the nursing home sector should develop strategies for preventing these deaths and establish a lead authority, responsible for reducing harm by improving practice in nursing homes," Professor Ibrahim said.

"Currently no one entity is responsible for reducing harm by improving practice."

This national study is the first in the world to look at potentially preventable deaths in nursing homes using information from medico-legal investigations.

"Improving the quality of care for nursing home residents requires a better understanding of how, why, where and when they die. The global population is ageing rapidly, and the need for aged care services is consequently increasing," Professor Ibrahim said.

"With this study we have our first real understanding of how many deaths are occurring in nursing homes that shouldn't be happening. However, there is a paucity of information about the cause and manner of premature deaths of nursing home residents from which we can review how these operations are run."

Professor Ibrahim acknowledged that the increased number of preventable deaths identified may be, in part, due to increased scrutiny of aged care facilities by the community and government.

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In the Neotropics, there is a whole group of so-called glassfrogs that amaze with their transparent skin covering their bellies and showing their organs underneath. A recently discovered new species from Amazonian Ecuador, however, goes a step further to fully expose its heart thanks to the transparent skin stretching all over its chest as well as tummy.

The new amphibian is described by a team of scientists led by Dr. Juan M. Guayasamin, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Ecuador, in the open access journal ZooKeys.

It can also be distinguished by the relatively large dark green spots at the back of its head and the foremost part of the body. Additionally, the species has a characteristic long call.

The new frog is named Hyalinobatrachium yaku, where the species name (yaku) translates to 'water' in the local language Kichwa. Water and, more specifically, slow-flowing streams are crucial for the reproduction of all known glassfrogs.

The reproductive behaviour is also quite unusual in this species. Males are often reported to call from the underside of leaves and look after the egg clutches.

Having identified individuals of the new species at three localities, the researchers note some behavioural differences between the populations. Two of them, spotted in the riverine vegetation of an intact forest in Kallana, have been calling from the underside of leaves a few metres above slow-flowing, relatively narrow and shallow streams. Another frog of the species has been observed in an area covered by secondary forests in the Ecuadorian village of Ahuano. Similarly, the amphibian was found on the underside of a leaf one metre above a slow-flowing, narrow and shallow stream.

However, at the third locality - a disturbed secondary forest in San Jose de Payamino - the studied frogs have been perching on leaves of small shrubs, ferns, and grasses some 30 to 150 cm above the ground. Surprisingly, each of them has been at a distance greater than 30 metres from the nearest stream.

The researchers note that, given the geographic distance of approximately 110 km between the localities where the new species has been found, it is likely that the new species has a broader distribution, including areas in neighbouring Peru.

The uncertainty about its distributional range comes from a number of reasons. Firstly, the species' tiny size of about 2 cm makes it tough to spot from underneath the leaves. Then, even if specimens of the species have been previously collected, they would be almost impossible to identify from museum collection, as many of the characteristic traits, such as the dark green marks, are getting lost after preservation. This is why the conservation status of the species has been listed as Data Deficient, according to the IUCN Red List criteria.

Nevertheless, the scientists identify the major threats to the species, including oil extraction in the region and the related water pollution, road development, habitat degradation and isolation.

"Glassfrogs presumably require continuous tracts of forest to interact with nearby populations, and roads potentially act as barriers to dispersal for transient individuals," explain the authors.

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Original source:

Guayasamin JM, Cisneros-Heredia DF, Maynard RJ, Lynch RL, Culebras J, Hamilton PS (2017) A marvelous new glassfrog (Centrolenidae, Hyalinobatrachium) from Amazonian Ecuador. ZooKeys 673: 1-20. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.673.12108
RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Engineers at the University of California, Riverside have developed a new way to recover almost 100 percent of the water from highly concentrated salt solutions. The system will alleviate water shortages in arid regions and reduce concerns surrounding high salinity brine disposal, such as hydraulic fracturing waste.

The research, which involves the development of a carbon nanotube-based heating element that will vastly improve the recovery of fresh water during membrane distillation processes, was published today in the journal Nature Nanotechnology. David Jassby, an assistant professor of chemical and environmental engineering in UCR's Bourns College of Engineering, led the project.

While reverse osmosis is the most common method of removing salt from seawater, wastewater, and brackish water, it is not capable of treating highly concentrated salt solutions. Such solutions, called brines, are generated in massive amounts during reverse osmosis (as waste products) and hydraulic fracturing (as produced water), and must be disposed of properly to avoid environmental damage. In the case of hydraulic fracturing, produced water is often disposed of underground in injection wells, but some studies suggest this practice may result in an increase in local earthquakes.

One way to treat brine is membrane distillation, a thermal desalination technology in which heat drives water vapor across a membrane, allowing further water recovery while the salt stays behind. However, hot brines are highly corrosive, making the heat exchangers and other system elements expensive in traditional membrane distillation systems. Furthermore, because the process relies on the heat capacity of water, single pass recoveries are quite low (less than 10 percent), leading to complicated heat management requirements.

"In an ideal scenario, thermal desalination would allow the recovery of all the water from brine, leaving behind a tiny amount of a solid, crystalline salt that could be used or disposed of," Jassby said. "Unfortunately, current membrane distillation processes rely on a constant feed of hot brine over the membrane, which limits water recovery across the membrane to about 6 percent."

To improve on this, the researchers developed a self-heating carbon nanotube-based membrane that only heats the brine at the membrane surface. The new system reduced the heat needed in the process and increased the yield of recovered water to close to 100 percent.

In addition to the significantly improved desalination performance, the team also investigated how the application of alternating currents to the membrane heating element could prevent degradation of the carbon nanotubes in the saline environment. Specifically, a threshold frequency was identified where electrochemical oxidation of the nanotubes was prevented, allowing the nanotube films to be operated for significant lengths of time with no reduction in performance. The insights provided by this work will allow carbon nanotube-based heating elements to be used in other applications where electrochemical stability of the nanotubes is a concern.

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In addition to Jassby, contributors include Alexander Dudchenko, the first author on the paper and a former graduate student in Jassby's lab who earned his Ph.D. in 2016; and undergraduate students Chuxiao Chen, Alexis Cardenas and Julianne Rolf.

The paper is titled "Frequency Dependent Stability of CNT Joule Heaters in Ionizable Environments and Their Use in Membrane Distillation." The work was supported by grants from the Office of Naval Research, Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and the Petroleum Research Fund.
A University of Utah-led team has discovered that a class of "miracle materials" called organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites could be a game changer for future spintronic devices.

Spintronics uses the direction of the electron spin -- either up or down -- to carry information in ones and zeros. A spintronic device can process exponentially more data than traditional electronics that use the ebb and flow of electrical current to generate digital instructions. But physicists have struggled to make spintronic devices a reality.

The new study, published online today in Nature Physics, is the first to show that organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites are a promising material class for spintronics. The researchers discovered that the perovskites possess two contradictory properties necessary to make spintronic devices work -- the electrons' spin can be easily controlled, and can also maintain the spin direction long enough to transport information, a property known as spin lifetime.

"It's a device that people always wanted to make, but there are big challenges in finding a material that can be manipulated and, at the same time, have a long spin lifetime," says Sarah Li, assistant professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy at the U and lead author of the study. "But for this material, it's the property of the material itself that satisfies both."

The miracle material

Organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites is already famous in scientific circles for being amazingly efficient at converting sunlight into electricity.

"It's unbelievable. A miracle material," says Z. Valy Vardeny, distinguished professor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy and co-author of the study, whose lab studies perovskite solar cells. "In just a few years, solar cells based on this material are at 22 percent efficiency. And now it has this spin lifetime property. It's fantastic."

The material's chemical composition is an unlikely candidate for spintronics, however. The hybrid perovskite inorganic frame is made of heavy elements. The heavier the atom, the easier it is to manipulate the electron spin. That's good for spintronics. But other forces also influence the spin. When the atoms are heavy, you assume the spin lifetime is short, explains Li.

"Most people in the field would not think that this material has a long spin lifetime. It's surprising to us, too," says Li. "We haven't found out the exact reason yet. But it's likely some intrinsic, magical property of the material itself."

Spintronics: That magnetic moment when...

Cellphones, computers and other electronics have silicon transistors that control the flow of electrical currents like tiny dams. As devices get more compact, transistors must handle the electrical current in smaller and smaller areas.

"The silicon technology, based only on the electron charge, is reaching its size-limit," says Li, "The size of the wire is already small. If gets any smaller, it's not going to work in a classical way that you think of."

"People were thinking, 'How do we increase the amount of information in such a small area?'" adds Vardeny. "What do we do to overcome this limit?"

"Spintronics," answers physics.

Spintronics uses the spin of the electron itself to carry information. Electrons are basically tiny magnets orbiting the nucleus of an element. Just like the Earth has its own orientation relative to the sun, electrons have their own spin orientation relative to the nucleus that can be aligned in two directions: "Up," which represents a one, and "down," which represents a zero. Physicists relate the electron's "magnetic moment" to its spin.

By adding spin to traditional electronics, you can process exponentially more information than using them classically based on less or more charge.

"With spintronics, not only have you enormously more information, but you're not limited by the size of the transistor. The limit in size will be the size of the magnetic moment that you can detect, which is much smaller than the size of the transistor nowadays," says Vardeny.

The experiment to tune electron spin

Tuning an electron spin is like tuning a guitar, but with a laser and a lot of mirrors.

First, the researchers formed a thin film from the hybrid perovskite methyl-ammonium lead iodine (CH3NH3PbI3) and placed it in front of an ultrafast laser that shoots very short light pulses 80 million times a second. The researchers are the first to use light to set the electron's spin orientation and observe the spin precession in this material.

They split the laser into two beams; the first one hit the film to set the electron spin in the desired direction. The second beam bends through a series of mirrors like a pinball machine before hitting the perovskite film at increasing time intervals to measure how long the electron held the spin in the prepared direction.

They found that the perovskite has a surprisingly long spin lifetime -- up to nanosecond. The spin flips many times during one nanosecond, which means a lot information can be easily stored and manipulated during that time.

Once they determined the long spin lifetime, the researchers tested how well they could manipulate the spin with a magnetic field.

"The spin is like the compass. The compass spins in this magnetic field perpendicular to that compass, and eventually it will stop spinning," says Li. "Say you set the spin to 'up,' and you call that 'one.' When you expose it to the magnetic field, the spin changes direction. If it rotated 180 degrees, it changes from one to zero. If it rotated 360 degrees, it goes from one to one."

They found that they could rotate the spin more than 10 turns by exposing the electron to different strengths of magnetic field.

The potential for this material is enormous, says Vardeny. It could process data faster and increase random-access memory.

"I'm telling you, it's a miracle material," says Vardeny.

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Li and Vardeny conducted the research with first authors Patrick Odenthal and William Talmadge, Nathan Gundlach, Chuang Zhang and Dali Sun from the Department of Physics & Astronomy at the University of Utah; Zhi-Gang Yu of the ISP/ Applied Sciences Laboratory at Washington State University; and Ruizhi Wang, who is now at the School of Electronic and Optical Engineering at Nanjing University of Science and Technology.

The work was supported by a start-up grant from the University of Utah and the United States Department of Energy Office of Science grant DES0014579. The National Science Foundation Material Science and Engineering Center at the University of Utah (DMR-1121252) supported perovskite growth and facilities.
The amount of land farmed organically in the United Kingdom fell by more than three per cent last year, according to figures released by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Defra's annual organic statistics for 2016 show that fully organic land in the UK amounted to 483,000 hectares - down by 3.6 per cent on the 500,000 hectares the previous year.

It is the latest in a series of falls that have seen the area of land farmed organically reduce by 12.5 per cent since 2013, when the total amounted to 552,000 hectares.

Since 2008, when the area of land farmed organically peaked, the area of organic land has declined by some 32 per cent.

Land conversion

However, the figures show that the area of land in conversion to organic surged by 22 per cent last year to 25,000 hectares - a statistic that was seized upon as a hopeful sign by the organic sector.

The amount of land in conversion shows that farmers are recognising the huge potential from the sector to make a profit from farming organically," said Roger Kerr, chief executive of certification body Organic Farmers & Growers (OF&G).

The surge in the amount of land being converted to organic was even more marked in England, where there was a 47 per cent increase in the area of land in conversion compared with 2015.

The figure for 2016 was 14,700 hectares compared with 10,000 hectares in 2015. There are plenty of things to be cheerful about in these latest statistics from Defra, said Roger Kerr.

Industry figures show that the UKs organic food sector is the only food sector showing consistent growth, with increases of between seven per cent and 10 per cent reported this year.

The three main crop types grown organically are cereals, vegetables including potatoes, and other arable crops

And with demand for organic products in the UK and globally predicted to grow again this year, we know UK farmers, growers and processors are attracted to organic production.

These figures show there is much to be positive about.

2.9% of total farmed area

Organic now accounts for 2.9 per cent of the total farmed area on agricultural holdings in the United Kingdom.

Permanent pasture makes up the biggest share of the organic area (66 per cent) followed by temporary pasture (18 per cent) and cereals (7.6 per cent). Permanent organic pasture land fell by 3.5 per cent between 2015 and 2016, from 347,000 hectares to 335,000 hectares. Temporary pasture land remained fairly static, whilst the organic area sewn with cereals was down by 3.2 per cent year-on-year - from 39,600 hectares to 38,400 hectares.

The three main crop types grown organically are cereals, vegetables including potatoes, and other arable crops.

All have shown a decline since the late 2000s. Organic land growing vegetables was down by 1.2 per cent year-on-year. The biggest fall was in herbaceous and ornamentals. Acreage was down by 7.5 per cent.

The figures for livestock farming showed some significant gains for the organic sector in 2016.

Organic poultry farming increased by 10.2 per cent in 2016. The number of birds increased from 2.56 million to 2.82 million. The number of pigs farmed organically rose by five per cent compared with 2015.

The increase in the number of organic pigs in England was as high as 32 per cent - increasing from 22,000 in 2015 to 29,000 in 2016. Numbers of organic cattle were up by 1.7 per cent across the United Kingdom, whilst sheep numbers were down by half of one per cent.

Organic producers increase

The number of organic producers and processors in the United Kingdom has increased by just over five per cent, according to the figures.

In 2016, there were 6,363 producers and processors registered with the organic certification bodies in the United Kingdom - an increase from 6,056 in 2015, although Defra said that the number of producers had declined by 35 per cent since 2007. This mirrored the decline in the land area farmed organically, said the report's authors.

The number of producers only and producer/processors continued to decline, they said. The number of solely processors rose for the third year running and now stands at 2,804, the highest number since 2008.

Aside from the manufacture of other food products, most processors in the United Kingdom were engaging in the processing and preserving of meat, the production of meat products and the processing and preserving of fruit and vegetables, said the authors.

Roger Kerr said that the increase in the number of processors certified by Organic Farmers & Growers was higher than the increase recorded by Defra.

Overall, UK organic processors are up 14 per cent but at OF&G weve seen an increase of nearer 20 per cent, he said. That growth is hugely encouraging for everyone in the organic sector working hard to fulfil increasing demand."

He said that more domestic production was needed to meet a growing demand for quality food. Organic production had a critical part to play in that, he said.

Figures for the different parts of the United Kingdom show that Wales has the largest percentage of land in organic production. Some 4.9 per cent of land in Wales is organic. In England the figure is 3.3 per cent, in Scotland 2.2 per cent and in Northern Ireland just under one per cent.
Scientology Volunteer Ministers trained in the wake of two of the island nations worst disasters now serve as a permanent force for hope and help.

Rebuilding Haitian VMs set out in a village outside Port Salut to rebuild a home decimated by Hurricane Matthew.

Although the Caribbean nation of Haiti, on the western part of the island of Hispaniola, serves up plenty of scenic vistas, 80 percent of its residents live below the poverty line, with more than half living on less than $2 per day. Even in the best of times, the electricity in their homes is spotty so they carry flashlights at night. Haitis oppressive tropical climate makes life there difficult, and the islands unfortunate location, which seems to attract Mother Natures wrath, can make the nation seem doomed.

Who can forget the 7.0 earthquake that struck about 16 miles west of Port-au-Prince, the capital, in January 2010claiming more than 250,000 lives, destroying 100,000 homes and adversely affecting more than 3 million residents in all. And in October 2016, Hurricane Matthew tore across the island, leaving more than 1,000 dead and 1.4 million in need of humanitarian aid.

In the wake of both disasters, Scientology Volunteer Ministers (VMs) helped to alleviate the tragic history of Haiti by providing spiritual aid. By the time the 2010 earthquake hit, native Haitian Wibens Lorzeme had read Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbards seminal book, Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health, and had read his practical guide to living, The Way to Happiness, 15 times. The quake and the death of so many of his fellow Haitians devastated him. After that day I felt despair, he says. There was no hope possible in my eyes. Fortunately, that lasted only a week, because I met the Volunteer Ministers of Scientology who were not only telling me, but proving to me that there was hope for Haiti.

Lorzeme made the decision to join with the VMs to help the victims and his time commitment soon grew. In Port-au-Prince, he said, he went to meet with VMs with the idea of spending two weeks with them. But when I saw how those awesome people from all over the world were working without asking for something, Lorzeme said, I said to myself, If those people are not Haitian, and they are helping without limit, what about me? Should I leave or stay helping my Haitian brothers and sisters? The answer was yes, but for one month.

Along with other VMs, Lorzeme began to improve the lives of the people who were affected by the quake by delivering food and water to tent cities and medicine to hospitals. He also acted as a translator between French and English speakers. He then began training on the signature skills of a Volunteer Minister, including seminars on Mr. Hubbards Study Technology to improve literacy and on Scientology assistsmental and spiritual techniques that alleviate discomfort and help a person to speed recovery and healing. Lorzeme created a group with his two cousins to deliver VM training seminars and opened the first training center in Haiti in March 2010. After delivering scores of seminars in multiple towns and villages, to as many as 1,200 individuals at a time, Lorzeme found that his help was so well received, people were asking him not to leave. The experience served to increase his understanding of the importance of the work these philanthropists do. A VM never closes his eyes on something bad, he said, because we believe that something can always be done about it.

Healing Volunteer Ministers deployed to towns across the island to heal communities with hands-on work and conduct training seminars in the practical Scientology tools employed by VMs.

When Hurricane Matthew assaulted the nation in October 2016, Haiti had a significant VM force in place to draw upon for response. Lorzeme once again was an integral part of relief efforts, this time in Les Cayes and Jeremie, the two hardest-hit areas. Knowing that the people wearing the bright yellow shirts were onsite to help, residents approached Lorzeme and others asking for our support on cleaning, rebuilding, cutting trees and delivering assists, he says.

In the aftermath of Matthew, VMs reported the villages were devoid of life or buildings, and three feet of sand covered the foundations on which houses once stood. People who had very little to start with, read one log from the relief effort, they now had nothing at all.  No source of income, no source of food and just a scrap of shelter. Houses were put together with random pieces of sheet metal, which were obviously blown in by the hurricane from other parts of the country. Mismatched sheet metal, tarps and odd-shaped tree branches were what held these houses together.

Restoring order Volunteer Minister teams create order out of storm chaos in villages surrounding Port-au-Prince.

The VM teams undertook the work to create order out of chaos. We were able to build homes for several families who lost everything, reported one VM. Within a couple of weeks, after having been uplifted, inspired and shown practical skills of the Volunteer Minister, the locals rebounded, and the entire village was completely changed into action and production.

Haitian Force Through partnerships and training seminars, VMs have built a network of more than 1,000 volunteers at the ready in times of need.

Sara Borja, who served as a Volunteer Minister in Ecuador, arrived in Haiti and found people protesting for lack of help, burned tires, looting of vehicles in search of anything to eat, water or something to sell. That insecurity I felt at the moment is an experience not very easy to confrontfeeling vulnerable. And yet she did what VMs do: She overcame the emotions that might hold back others who have not received VM training, then got to work, successfully administering hundreds of assists.

Borja says, We arrived and we settled in a space to give assists, and soon we would be full with locals awaiting their turn to be helped. People thanked us for this simple but powerful technology that changed many lives.

Today, Volunteer Ministers in Haiti like Wibens Lorzeme continue to render their help in any of lifes emergencies. Then there are those like Borja who answered the call and returned home, knowing that I was part of this team that now continues to do great things and change lives.
Spreading the Word Commander Edgar Salazar drives The Way to Happiness across Margarita Island

Venezuelans are starving, prompting desperate people to ransack grocery stores and raid school cafeterias in search of food. The governments failed policies are directly responsible for the nations misery. On top of that, gangs, militias and guerrillas have contributed to a murder rate that is 14.5 times higher than that in the United States.

North of this brutalized mainland, in the azure waters of the Caribbean Sea, lies Margarita Island, whose seemingly endless pristine beaches punctuated by palm trees draw sun-seeking tourists annually. Although this scenic isle is not immune to the nations troubles, one brave, impressive man has helped reverse the islands humanitarian decline.

Edgar Salazar is the commander of the Control Directorate for Meetings and Demonstrations, the tactical unit on Margarita Island responsible for riot control and other high-risk situations. I can tell you that the riots and crime are better here than the rest of Venezuela, he says, adding, but in itself its bad.

Decades ago, Salazar was shocked when he witnessed Margarita Island police officers attacking protesters and tourists. Subsequently, this man of action began to teach police officers the non-violent martial art of aikido, which he calls a survival tool.

Salazar has risen through the ranks and weathered his islands political storms. When he was the commander of a poor neighborhood called Cardboard City, some junior officers protecting two drug dealers told him to leave the criminals alone. He put them in jail instead. Community members then gathered 900 signatures on a petition to fire him because the drug dealers were part of the economy of the town and they wanted me gone, he says. But he managed to hold on to his job.

Before long, Salazar was introduced to L. Ron Hubbards The Way to Happiness (TWTH), a booklet and corresponding book-on-film featuring 21 common-sense precepts that help people lead more prosperous, fulfilling lives. He was so touched by the film that he cried. TWTH was exactly what he was looking for. Not just for me, but for the peopleto get respect and ethics back to them, he explains. He shared the film with some 500 people, including his colleagues and 130 who were locked up in the local jail. Many of the inmates were likewise moved to tears. If we had seen this when we were kids, we wouldnt be here, Salazar quoted some of them as saying.

Having seen the transformative powers of Mr. Hubbards words, Salazar continued to distribute TWTH material. About 1,000 people received the booklets in Cardboard City in one year, which he noted dramatically reduced the factional wars for which the area is notorious.

During a riot in a particularly brutal juvenile prison, Salazar proved to the prisoners that for all his humanitarianism, he was no pushover. Not only did he put an end to the violence, but he made the inmates clean up the mess they had created. And then he showed them the TWTH film and read out the booklet.

Salazar and his officers have distributed 150,000 TWTH booklets so far, helping make Margarita Island a much better place.




Haiti - Politics : Former Senator Turneb Delpe, Coordinator of MOPOD passed away





Saturday, 27 May, former Senator Turneb Delpe, Coordinator of the "Mouvement Patriotique Populaire Dessalinien" (MOPOD) died in a hospital in New York after a long illness, confirmed members of his family.



Turneb Delpe, a militant of all the struggles to allow the Haitian people to live democracy, made themselves known within the Communist Party of Haiti (PCH) by militating against the exactions of the Duvalier regime during which he underwent 43 interrogations by various police and political authorities. Known as the promoter of the "National Reconciliation", he unfortunately did not see his dream fulfilled during his lifetime.



Reacting to the news, President Moise decalred "I am appalled by the death of former Senator Tunerb Delpe. I extend my sincere condolences to his family and loved ones."



"Turneb Delpe, the apostle of the national dialogue, died. His departure will leave a great vacuum in the political landscape. My sympathies with his family," said the Delmas Deputy Gary Bodeau.



S/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Politics : Mayor Chevry honors the mothers of PAP's town hall





On Friday as a prelude to Mother's Day, Mayor Ralph Youri Chevry honored the mothers of the Communal Administration.



For Ralph Chevry, "the valiant mothers of the town hall" of the capital, play a leading role in the functioning of the communal administration, recalling that "Mothers in general, those of Haiti in particular, are symbols of courage, determination, love, respect and sacrifice," reiterating his desire to work for the improvement of the working environment of the mothers of the Town Hall.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















This will be Mr Baigueras fourth appointment in the Middle East. He joins the award-winning property from the 292-room Movenpick Hotel Beirut, which he successfully led for three years. With more than three decades in the hospitality industry, Mr Baiguera brings a wealth of knowledge with a focus on proactive leadership, strategic management, sales skills and revenue development. Apart from his Middle East experience, he has had roles in Denmark, Finland and Italy with other five-star brands.Just a two-minute walk from Bahrain International Airport, the 106-room Movenpick Hotel Bahrain is only 15 minutes from the business centre in Manama. It was voted the Middle Easts Best Airport Hotel for three consecutive years by The Skytrax Awards. Overlooking the sprawling Arad Bay, which is one of Bahrains natural protected habitats, the hotel offers atmospheric dining experiences and rejuvenating treatments in Rimal Spa.
What Employers Should Know About Generation Z

What Employers Should Know About Generation Z

David Stillman and his Generation Z son, Jonah Stillman, have written a book to help sort out the generational gap between younger people. They discussed their book, Gen Z At Work: How the Next Generation Is Transforming the Workplace, on the Knowledge@Wharton show, which airs on Wharton Business Radio on SiriusXM channel 111. And just who makes up Generation Z? While there is disagreement over the definition of Generation Z, most demographers include people born between 1995 and the early 2000s. In the United States, those years include nearly 79 million people close to entering the workforce or in the first stage of their careers. But the Stillmans warn that employers shouldnt confuse Zers with millennials, who are a generation older. (Listen to the podcast at the top of this page.)

The following are three key points from the conversation.

1. Generation Z is ambitious and hardworking.

Compared to the millennial generation, Gen Z is more competitive and independent. Millennials were raised to believe in collaboration and inclusion, which are positive traits that extend to their work ethic. However, the view that everyone wins if everyone works together isnt necessarily realistic.

I was told that theres winners and losers, and if Im not willing to work my butt off there are 70 million other Gen Zers that are going to come right up behind you and take your job, Jonah Stillman says. We are a very competitive and driven generation.

Its important for millennial managers to realize they need a different approach with their youngest charges.

Now weve got a generation thats going to be much more independent and very competitive, David Stillman says. I think we run the risk that millennials will dismiss this generation as not loyal, not team players, and its just not true. Theyre coming and looking through a completely different lens. I think step one is that we need to train those who are going to be on the frontlines just how different Gen Z will be from millennials.

2. Generation Z babies are digital natives.

Employees who belong to Generation Z have never known life without the internet or social media, and they are comfortable with rapidly changing technology. Its a trait that the Stillmans identify as phygital.

Phygital has sort of blurred the lines between physical and digital, David Stillman says. They see no line at all. This generation has only known a world where their phones are smart.

Because Zers are digital natives, they can serve as authority figures on the technology that is so imperative to the modern workplace. They are quick to streamline processes, and they have less hesitation or fear to try something new.

One thing we heard again and again in researching for the book was Gen Z felt the other generations over-thought a lot of things and took too long, David Stillman says. So, they are going to be good to say, Lets just try it, lets get out there, lets do it and maybe cut out a lot of the deep, long processes.

At the same time, we have to be careful because this generation can act too quickly. You dont want them having a company spend all these resources to move something that is only just a quick fad that came and went.

3. Generation Z is looking for alternatives.

Economic and political events  including Sept. 11th and the Great Recession  have critically shaped the worldview of Gen Zers. While millennials are often seen as having an undeserved sense of entitlement, Zers have an attitude more in line with their Generation X parents. David Stillman describes it as the difference between, Wow, this job is lucky to have me, and Wow, Im so lucky to have this job.

That switch up, because of the Recession as well as Gen X parents with some tough love, 76% of Gen Z said they are willing to start at the bottom and work their way up, he says. I think its going to be great.

Jonah Stillman describes his peers as the do-it-yourself generation, partly because the internet provides unprecedented opportunities for self-education.

If I wanted to learn how to re-tile my bathroom floor or speak Russian, I could do all of that and anything in between by logging onto YouTube, he says.

His generation is more willing to think beyond the traditional path to that first job. Like Harvard-bound Malia Obama, more Zers are weighing the idea of a gap year between high school and college to travel, intern, learn a skill or simply hone in on what they want to be when they grow up.

The reason for the change lies partly with the increasing burden of college debt. The younger set is hyper-aware of the debt that millennials have, and they dont want to be saddled with the same load. They want to find a deeper connection between an expensive education and what they will do with it.

We know that 75% of Gen Zs believe that there are other ways of getting a good education than by going to college, Jonah Stillman said.

This article is reprinted with permission from Knowledge@Wharton.


7 Ways to Drive Great Candidates Away

Posted by Yen Tran on Monday, 05-29-2017 12:47 am

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Recruiting is always easier said than done. It's time to stop blaming for skills shortage and revise your own hiring practices that drive good candidates away! There remains a paradox in the labor market: employers struggle to fill job openings while candidates are available everywhere. 89% of Glassdoor users are either actively looking for jobs or would consider better opportunities. (Glassdoor U.S. Site Survey, January 2016). Have you ever wondered why? Lots of employers and recruiters blame it for so-called talent shortage as they do think that it's objective problem. However, you may change your mind after knowing that the real problem belongs to yourrecruitment processin most cases. Let's have a look at 7 most common mistakes driving talented candidates away: 1. Boring job ads Let's start with the very first ingredient of any recruitment campaign: job ads. It seems a piece of cake for recruiters to write a typical job ad but attracting top candidates witha winning job adis ...

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Montreal and Kiev, 26 May 2017  The President of the ICAO Council, Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, was honoured by his alma mater earlier this week when and Honourary Doctorate was bestowed upon him by Mr. Volodymyr Isaienko, Acting Rector of the National Aviation University of Ukraine.

In receiving his honourary degree, President Aliu expressed his heartfelt appreciation for all that the school has meant to his life and career, noting that its teachers and his fellow students had instilled in him a profound excitement for civil aviation which has only been amplified in the decades since.

I can clearly attest to the fact that, once you have become involved in global aviation, its infectious and pioneering spirit will never leave you, he commented. The Council President also stressed that each and every day in the course of my duties I am fully engaged by the intensive multilateralism and determined spirit of cooperation which are the hallmarks of international air transport progress, and I can certainly attest to how the National Aviation University of Ukraine had imparted in me the important lessons and values which have been so essential to my career.

Acknowledging that he was accepting his degree only partly for myself, and also on behalf of ICAO given the importance of the Organization to his life and accomplishments in global aviation, President Aliu ended his words of thanks by expressing that it was his greatest hope that by his example he might encourage and motivate future graduates of Ukraines pre-eminent global civil aviation institute.

I will forever be proud to serve as this schools most enthusiastic ambassador and champion, wherever my travels may take me, he concluded.

Resources for Editors

ICAO and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

ICAO's No Country Left Behind initiative



About ICAO

A specialized agency of the United Nations, ICAO was created in 1944 to promote the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation throughout the world. It sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency, capacity and environmental protection, amongst many other priorities. The Organization serves as the forum for cooperation in all fields of civil aviation among its 191 Member States.



Contacts



Anthony Philbin

Chief, Communications

aphilbin@icao.int

+1 (514) 954-8220

+1 (438) 402-8886 (mobile)

Twitter: @ICAO



William Raillant-Clark

Communications Officer

wraillantclark@icao.int

+1 514-954-6705

+1 514 409-0705

Twitter: @wraillantclark






Page Content

Montreal and Kiev, 29 May 2017  The President of the ICAO Council, Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, highlighted the need for determined cooperation supporting international airspace safety while on mission in the Ukraine earlier this week.



The Council President was accompanied on his visit by ICAOs European and North Atlantic Regional Director Mr. Luis Fonseca de Almeida, and his points were stressed during a series of high-level bilateral meetings held with the Vice-Prime-Minister of Ukraine, Mr. Volodymyr Kistion, the States Minister of Infrastructure, Mr. Volodymyr Omelyan, the Chairman of the State Aviation Authority of Ukraine (SAAU) Mr. Oleksandr Bilchuk, and Director of the Ukrainian State Air Traffic Services Enterprise, Mr. Dmytro Babeichuk.



The roles and responsibilities of ICAO Member States are clearly delineated in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and its Annexes, President Aliu remarked, and have served to help ensure the safety and security of international civil aviation for many decades. ICAO is presently reviewing some associated regional concerns through its Black Sea Task Force, and we look forward to the collaboration of our Member States in resolving the current challenges of civil operations over the Black Sea.



Discussions focused on ICAOs global role and the assistance and capacity building it could provide the Ukraine under the Organizations ongoing No Country Left Behind initiative. Highlighted in this regard was the need to assure the State maintains a strong, efficient and autonomous civil aviation authority in order to assure the effective safety and security oversight functions which all ICAO Member States are responsible for.



This support is essential for States to effectively set out and adhere to ICAOs global Standards and Policies, the Council President stressed, but it also requires substantial local political will and concrete commitments. The Ukraine can count on ICAOs assistance and capacity under our No Country Left Behind initiative to help it achieve these objectives, and thereby optimize air transports unique socio-economic benefits, and for our part ICAO will be counting on the Ukraines closer cooperation and support for our global and regional programmes.



President Aliu also encouraged the Ukraine to accelerate efforts towards the liberalization of its air transport sector and simplifying its visa regime.



Separate visits were also held with the Acting Rector of the National Aviation University of Ukraine, Mr. Volodymyr Isaienko, on the occasion of President Aliu receiving an Honourary Doctorate, and to the Antonov manufacturing and services company facility in Kiev, where the Council President was given a detailed tour.

Resources for Editors

ICAO and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

ICAO's No Country Left Behind initiative



About ICAO

A specialized agency of the United Nations, ICAO was created in 1944 to promote the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation throughout the world. It sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency, capacity and environmental protection, amongst many other priorities. The Organization serves as the forum for cooperation in all fields of civil aviation among its 191 Member States.



Contacts



Anthony Philbin

Chief, Communications

aphilbin@icao.int

+1 (514) 954-8220

+1 (438) 402-8886 (mobile)

Twitter: @ICAO



William Raillant-Clark

Communications Officer

wraillantclark@icao.int

+1 514-954-6705

+1 514 409-0705

Twitter: @wraillantclark


We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector

We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector

We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector

We work towards an equitable,

gender-just, self-reliant and

sustainable fisheries,

particularly in the small-scale,

artisanal sector
In Person The Was Zhao Guo An: Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Wants to Achieve Peace in Her Lifetime

Zhao Guo An / Kyaw Kha / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYIDAW  Seven ethnic armed groups based close to the China-Burma border area led by the United Wa State Army (UWSA) attended the second session of the 21st Century Panglong held in Naypyidaw last week.

Were it not for China, they would have left Naypyidaw immediately after their arrival because of problems over the status in which they joined the conference.

In an exclusive interview with Irrawaddy reporter Kyaw Kha, Zhao Guo An, head of UWSA external affairs and secretary general of the Wa-led committee known as the Federal Political Negotiation and Consultative Committee (FPNCC), talked about difficulties in attending the peace conference, talks with Burmas State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), Burma Army Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaings opening speech, and the role of China in Burmas peace process.

What did ethnic leaders discuss with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi?

The discussion did not focus on serious matters; it was to cultivate a relationship.

Did you present the bloc of northeastern armed groups policy [adopted at the 4th Panghsang Summit in April] to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi?

We presented it to her through Dr. Tin Myo Win on May 25. She did not have time to study it, not to mention to respond to our policies. She has to make a goodwill visit to Canada on June 2. We understand she is busy. So, I dont think she has had time to read it all. Her stand is that she wants to achieve peace while she is alive. She said we are old and over 70 now and we dont know how long we are going to live. Therefore, she will work resolutely to build peace while she is still alive.

What has changed since you last came to Naypyidaw for the peace conference?

There was not much difference. Last time, we walked away because of the observer card. This time we got a delegation card, but, in the end, we could not take part in discussions like the last time. Though we got delegation card, there was a problem with the seating plan. The seats they [the government] arranged for us carried labels reading special guest. So, we decided to leave the conference hall. But then, the organizer removed those labels. The organizer said they attached those labels to prevent others from sitting there.

What were the demands of the UWSA-led bloc in order to join the 21st Century Panglong peace conference?

We clarified our demands to China before coming. China said our demand would be fulfilled. We said we would not go [to Naypyidaw] if we were not officially invited and if we were not allowed to talk at the conference, and that we would not sign a deed of commitment (DoC).

Can you explain how China mediated the attendance of the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA), the Arakan Army (AA), and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance (MNDAA)?

We dont know how China handled this. We are subject to frequent lies concerning this. While we were arranging for a visa at the Burmese Consulate in Chinas Kunming, we said we would not attend unless we were invited as the FPNCC. China promised to try, and said we would be able to attend as fully-fledged delegates, and not observers or guests.

China also promised it would make sure we were able to give an opening address and that we neednt sign the DoC. China negotiated with us on May 21, but the conference was scheduled to start on May 24, and we needed time to make preparations. They [Burma government] usually play that trickthey only made arrangements when the conference was too close. This made it difficult for us to attend. Our assessment is that they wanted to create a situation in which they invited us, but we did not attend.

On the evening of May 22, we went to the Burmese Consulate in Kunming for our visas. An officer at the consulate said the invitations for those three groups (the TNLA, the MNDAA, the AA) had arrived. Those groups were addressed as observers on the invitations. So, they said they would not go. Then we held a meeting, and China said it would make sure we would get official [delegate] cards and speak at the conference, and that Burmese officials would not pose an obstacle.

As we support the One Belt One Road project jointly implemented by State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Chinese President Xi Jinping, and appreciate Chinas mediation, and as a manner of cooperating with the National League for Democracy-led governments peace efforts, we decided to go to Naypyidaw first, anyway, and act according to the circumstances there.

When we arrived in Naypyidaw on May 23, we found that they played the same trick as the first conference [in August last year]. The invitations were similar to those of the first time; we knew that they were still playing us. So, we told China that we would not attend. China, through its embassy to Burma, negotiated with the Burmese government until 1 a.m. on May 24, and then we got invitation cards as official delegates. In the end, we could come here as a group for the first time, and we view this as a success, and a step forward to future negotiations.

We understand that the peace issue cant be solved within one or two years. Eight groups signed the NCA under U Thein Sein government. But we have our own version of the NCA, which we designed by changing some provisions in the original NCA. If the government would agree to our version of the NCA, we would consider signing it.

The NCA that those eight groups signed does not guarantee peace. Take a look at the RCSS [Restoration Council of Shan State]according to [RCSS leader] General Yawd Serk, more than 200 clashes and skirmishes broke out even after signing NCA. Though we didnt sign the NCA, we have been at peace with the government for some 28 years. The NCA is just a paper agreement, but in essence it contradicts its provisions.

Therefore, there is a need for long-term negotiations. There will be continued debate and political struggle. I believe that all the people in Burma want to lead a stable and peaceful life.

Is it true China pressured some leaders to attend the conference against their will?

China didnt pressure us. Only when there is peace and stability in the region, will the One Belt One Road project be implemented and will there be regional development. If everyone understands this, highways and hydropower projects, for example, will bring about mutual benefits. If the One Belt One Road project is implemented successfully, there will be great benefits for not only our country, but also our region.

Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing implied in his address to Panglong that the only way to peace is through the NCA. What is your view?

It is not a problem. He has his own stand and we have our own stand. If we have the same stands, there wont be conflicts. It is not strange. We will meet frequently and negotiate in the future to find an answer. The negotiations ahead to ensure internal peace and a stable life for people will be more difficult. If both sides are willing to meet the other half way and strike a deal, then we will be able to reconcile.
Burma Burma Army Accused of Torturing, Killing Three Kachin Civilians

Locals find the bodies of three Kachin civilians who were allegedly killed by the Burma Army near Hka Pra Yang village in Kachin State. / Supplied

MANDALAY  The bodies of three Kachin men allegedly tortured and killed by Burma Army troops were returned to their families on Monday after undergoing post mortems, according to a village administrator.

Nhkum Gam Awng, 31, Maran Brang Seng, 22, and Labya Naw Hkum, 27, from Maihkawng IDP camp in Mansi Township, Kachin State, were arrested by Battalion 319 on May 25 and their bodies were found on May 28.

Maihkawng village administrator U Naw Bauk said one of the men had a bullet wound in his leg and described extensive head injuries to all three men.

We also found knife wounds on their bodies, he said. We believe they were violently tortured.

The men were arrested at Hka Pra Yang village, about three miles from the IDP camp, while they were collecting firewood, according to camp officials.

A boy who accompanied them came back and told us that they were arrested by the soldiers of Battalion 319, said U Brang Nu, an official of Maihkawng IDP camp.

As the villagers told us they heard the gun shots later that day, the mens families and friends went searching for them and found their bodies, which were buried about five miles from Hka Pra Yang village, he added.

Police investigating the crime took the bodies to a hospital in Mansi Township on Monday morning for post mortems and returned them on Monday afternoon. Officials did not say when the post mortem results would be available.

Locals said this was the first incident of murder in their area.

There are no other armed groups moving in this area besides the army. We are now very afraid to live here. We believe the army will take action against the ones who committed this crime, said U Brang Nu.

The Burma Army Light Infantry Battalion 502, based in Mann San village in northern Shan States Kyaukme Township, were accused of killing three men on April 9, following fighting in the area between the Burma Army and the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA).

Sources said the causalitiesan ethnic Bamar from Shwebo Township in Sagaing Division and two ethnic Shan from Kyaukmewere not members of the TNLA but were in fact local villagers who often worked as drivers in the township.
Burma Ma Ba Tha Lay Members Announce Plan to Form Political Party

Buddhist monks arrive at the Ma Ba Tha headquarters in Rangoon on Saturday for a meeting. / Chan Son / The Irrawaddy

RANGOON  Leading laypersons from Burmas biggest Buddhist nationalist group, the Association to Protect Race and Religioncommonly known as Ma Ba Thahave announced that they will soon form a political party.

Maung Thway Chon, one such Ma Ba Tha member, revealed the plan on Sunday after the associations two-day meeting in Rangoon.

We will set up a party named 135 United Patriots. We came to a consensus from all the laymen who attended today, he told the media on Sunday. He is also the president of Dhamma Wunthanu Yakhita, a Ma Ba Tha sub-chapter.

He explained that the party aims to work for national interests, unity and sovereignty. Maung Thway Chon also said that the party would provide Burmese citizens with different faiths equality with Buddhistsyet leading Ma Ba Tha monks, such as U Wirathu, are notorious for engaging in anti-Muslim hate speech.

Due to these practices, the state Sangha committee, Ma Ha Na, recently ordered that Ma Ba Tha cease all activities, including use of its name.

We have agreed to Ma Ha Nas request, as we respect them, Maung Thway Chon said. But if there are more accessions, it will have an impact on nationalism. We have to protect religious associations as well as Buddhists, he told The Irrawaddy.

When asked about the meaning of the number 135, he explained: One stands for Buddha, three for Three Gems [the three cornerstones of Buddhism: Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha], and five represents the five infinite venerable entities [Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha, Parents and Teacher].

On Sunday after the two-day meeting with members from across the country, the association released an announcement that they would no longer use [the name] Ma Ba Tha, but would go by the Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation, rebranding themselves as a charity group.

We urge all Ma Ba Tha groups across the country to keep carrying out the interests of country, race and religion under the Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation name, the statement read.

Maung Thway Chon said Ma Ba Th has a membership of 10 million people in nearly 300 townships across the country.

It doesnt mean that they all have to be members [of the new political party]. If they want to protect race and religion, they are welcome. Non-members are encouraged to join as well, he said.

On Monday, Ashin Sopaka, a leading monk from Ma Ba Tha, said the political party in the pipeline is a separate movement initiated by patriotic forces and has nothing to do with Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation or Dhamma Wunthanu Yakhita.
Burma Phaung Daw Oo Monastic School Wins Citizen of Burma Award

Sayadaw U Nayaka, principal of the Phaung Daw Oo Monastery School. / Te Za Haing / The Irrawaddy

RANGOONPhaung Daw Oo Monastic School in Mandalay, led by Buddhist monk Sayadaw U Nayaka, has been named this years recipient of the Citizen of Burma Award.

The award is given annually by Burmese living abroad in honor of those who work for the benefit of Burmese society. It was announced on Sunday in Colorado, US.

The school principal and abbot of Phaung Daw Oo Monastery, Sayadaw U Nayaka, is known for developing a teaching method radically different from what is often encountered in Burmas moribund public education system.

Phaung Daw Oo Monastic School provides free education and health services to some 9,000 students. The center is well known for its child-centered approach.

The US-based Citizen of Burma Award organization also honored three other individual and community-based organizations: social worker Ko Soe Htike, who cofounded the single mother support center Myint Mo Myittar; Save the Library in Myanmar; and Ko Aye Kyaw Kyaw, an electrical engineer based in Rangoon.

The Citizen of Burma Award comes with a US$10,000 prize, while the special award winners receive $1,000 from the award committee.

Sayadaw [U Nayaka] is happy to receive the award. He said its a recognition for his work and a strength to continue, Buddhist monk, U Tayzaw, an assistant to Sayadaw U Nayaka, told The Irrawaddy. The monk added that the prize would be spent on their work in Burmas education system.

The first recipient of the award, which was inaugurated in 2010, was Free Funeral Services Society founder Kyaw Thu. Last year, it was given to Dr. Than Min Htut, who provides health care and promotes reproductive health access in rural villages in Shan State.

Thirty-seven people and organizations were nominated for the award. The nominees include assassinated NLD legal advisor U Ko Ni; taxi driver Ko Nay Win, who gave his life trying to apprehend the assassin of U Ko Ni; Burmese journalist Ko Swe Win; U Myat Thu Win, chairman of the Shwe Minn Tha Foundation, which helps people with disabilities; human rights activist U Aung Myo Min and others.

A formal award ceremony will be held on June 4 in Rangoon.
Burma State Counselor: Peace Conference Agreements A Significant Step for Burma

Union Peace Conference representatives from the government, the Parliament, the Burma Army, political parties, and ethnic armed groups that are signatories to the nationwide ceasefire agreed to 37 of 41 basic federal principles and signed part 1 of the Union Accord on Monday. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYIDAW  The stakeholders negotiations at the Union Peace Conference (UPC) mark a significant step toward future democratic federalism, said the State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at the closing ceremony of the second 21st Century Panglong in Naypyidaw.

Despite encountering disagreements over the basic federal principles of equality and self-determinationamong the government, the political parties, the Tatmadaw and the ethnic armed organizationsthe members of the Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC) who organized the event are optimistic that the conference achieved its aims to some extent.

Over the weekend, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who is also the chairperson of the UPDJC, participated in negotiating the key terms of the federal principles, such as those concerning secession from the Union and equality between the Tatmadaw and the ethnic armed organizations.

The agreements that we have been able to sign today mark a significant step on our path toward peace, national reconciliation, and the emergence of a democratic federal Union, said the State Counselor. Reaching these agreements has not been easy; we have encountered moments of disappointment as well as inspiration along the way.

Yet I am greatly encouraged that despite our many different views and perspectives, we have been able, through frank discussion and negotiation, to reach common positions, she added, stating that the foundations for democracy and federalism for future generations have been laid through dialogue.

After the negotiations, stakeholder representatives from the government, Parliament, the Burma Army, political parties, and ethnic armed groups who were signatories to the nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA) agreed to 37 of 41 basic federal principles and signed part 1 of the Union Accord on Monday.

The first part of the accord was signed by Dr. Tin Myo Win, the chairman of the Peace Commission; U Tun Tun Hein, the chairman of Lower Houses bill committee; Lt-General Tin Maung Win; Padoh Saw Kwe Htoo Win, the vice chairman of Karen National Union; and U Thu Wai, the representative of the political parties.

However, key principles regarding equality, self-determination and federalism have not yet been included in the accord, and delegates said further discussion would continue in this regard.

U Yaw Thet, the chairman of the Lahu National Development Party said that the UPC at this point served as a forum to collect perspectives. It is not yet easy to make any concrete decisions as not every group is participating in the process yet.

The debate about the term non-secession from the Union was not settled and the Tatmadaw wants a commitment from the ethnic armed organizations that they pledge not to separate from the state.

Daw Saw Mra Yar Zar Lin, a UPDJC secretary and member of the Arakan Liberation Party said they had agreed to the signing of the first part of the Union accord, but that each of the armed groups did not need to sign on its own.

She said, It cannot be said that ALP is pleased about the outcomes, because we are being suppressed, and we could not fully bring our peoples desires [to the UPC], referring to not being able to conduct the ethnic-based national level political dialogue in Arakan and Shan states.

But we contributed to the discussion over general principles, which reflected the peoples desires, she explained, adding that Mondays agreement is just a part of the Union accord, which can be further reviewed and revised.

The eight ethnic armed organizationsthe NCA signatoriesalso discussed during the six-day conference how they will move forward in the peace process, despite holding different opinions than the Tatmadaw.

Lt-Col Sai Ngern of the Restoration Council of Shan State said that they had compromised with understanding, in order to keep the peace process ongoing.

We have also begun to learn how we might be able to create unity out of diversity, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said, adding that we can find similarities despite our differences and we can identify common ground through peaceful negotiation.

She urged the public to continue actively along the path of peace and to remain focused on the future, to end the decades-long conflict in the country.
Burma UWSA Steadfast in Stance on NCA Amendments

United Wa State Army soldiers parade through the Wa capital of Panghsang. / Soe Zayar Tun / Reuters

The United Wa State Army (UWSA) remains steadfast in its stance that the current nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA) needs to be amended regardless of Burma Army statements to the contrary.

The countrys most powerful ethnic armed group released a paper to the media at the start of the second session of the 21st Century Panglong peace conference on May 24 about its attempts to negotiate with the Burma Army regarding the NCA.

The UWSA sent a draft NCA to the Burma Army and the National Reconciliation and Peace Center (NRPC) in March, following an ethnic summit hosted in Panghsang, the Wa administrative capital.

Wa sources say the Burma Army never responded to the draft.

Efforts to expand the current number of NCA signatories have faltered and conflict persists in the north, despite previous bilateral ceasefire agreements with some groups in the region.

The Wa did not participate in the initial drafting of the NCA as it had a longstanding ceasefire with the Burma Army and did not see the efficacy of signing the new agreement.

However, China has placed pressure on the group to accept the NCA and change its political stance, and the Wa sees stability in the region as a path to development.

If there is no stability in northern Shan, development in the Wa region will be hindered. We call for a stop to fighting between ethnic armed groups and the Burma Army, the statement said.

The Wa was discouraged by the lack of response to their NCA draft and the armys public discourse on the issue.

Burma Army Vice Senior General Soe Win spoke to media in early May and stated, Not even one word of the current NCA can be changed.

The Wa statement said the armys public statements had shamed them in the media.

The Wa will not begin fighting easily. We have already expressed our wishes for peace. But if you ignore our wishes, we will have nothing to say about fighting, the statement said.

It continued that the army should have replied privately, as opposed to airing its disagreement publically, showing its disrespect for ethnic groups.

The Burma Army has also expressed its stance that the country only needs one army, which the Wa opposes based on Burmas history.

The Wa paper added that this was a longstanding conflict that will be difficult to solve in a short time.
Commentary The UNFC: From High Hopes to an Uncertain Future

The UNFC says top leaders have different views on how to proceed with the peace process. / Saw Yan Naing / The Irrawaddy

On its founding in 2011, the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) was one of the most formidable blocs of ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) Burma had ever seen, with the grand ambition of representing almost all of the countrys EAOs during peace talks with the government.

Resignations and suspensions have eroded the alliances original 13-strong membership to seven since 2014, with further plans for the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and the Wa National Organization (WNO) to leave.

Arguments over which way to approach Burmas peace making process are rattling the bloc. Five of its membersthe New Mon State Party (NMSP); the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP); the WNO; the Lahu Democratic Union (LDU); and the Arakan National Council (ANC)are in favor of signing the nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA). But the KIO wants to abandon the NCA.

A trail of criticism followed the Karen National Union (KNU) when it left the bloc in 2014, including accusations of an uneasy proximity to the Burma Army and a lack of solidarity with the UNFC leadership under the KIO.

The KNU argued for a decentralization of power away from the KIO, but the leading member rejected the KNUs proposal, triggering KNU leaders to walk out of the meeting and quit the bloc the next day.

In 2015, the bloc dismissed the Chin National Front (CNF) and the Pa-O National Liberation Organization (PNLO) when they signed the NCA.

In the same year, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), the Taang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Arakan Army (AA)resigned from the bloc because they said the UNFC could not offer them protection or help them negotiate with the government.

Leader of the UNFC, the KIO, has shown interest in leaving the bloc to join the China-backed Northern Alliance, which includes powerful EAOs such as the United Wa State Army, the TNLA, and the MNDAA. The departure of the KIO would significantly diminish the military might of the UNFC.

Members of the bloc rejected an invitation to attend the 21st Century Panglong peace conference in Naypyidaw as special guests, dismissing the status as that of observers who could not participate in the conferences discussions, in contrast to the Northern Alliance, which attended unexpectedly.

The Burma Army and the government will continue to reap political benefits from the discord with the UNFC, as its members are pressured and pushed aside.

As the NCA signatories negotiate with the government and the Burma Army, and the Northern Alliance attempts to carve an alternative way to peace for itself, the future of the bloc remains uncertain.
Borisova Receives Phi Beta Kappa Award

Boryana Borisova '17

May 29, 2017

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. Boryana Borisova (Elgin, Ill.) has received this years Phi Beta Kappa Liberal Arts Scholar Award at Illinois Wesleyan University.

Phi Beta Kappa is the nations oldest academic society and recognizes excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. Illinois Wesleyans Phi Beta Kappa Liberal Arts Scholar Awards foster and celebrate student research that engages, translates and bridges academic disciplines and/or crosses traditional boundaries. Applicants submit a senior-level research paper or a work of art, music composition, film, collection of poetry or research that stems from experiential learning. The award-winning project is published in CrissCross, the IWU chapters online journal of undergraduate interdisciplinary work.

Boryana Borisova '17 presented her research on Soviet era children's literature at the Midwest Undergraduate Conference in the Humanities.

Borisovas winning essay was entitled Aesopian Language of Soviet Era Childrens Literature: Translation, Adaptation, and Animation of a Western Classic, the same title as her research honors project. An International Studies major, she graduated summa cum laude with research honors on May 7.

As a student, Borisova received the Robert S. and Nell B. Eckley Scholars and Artists Fellowship for a comparative analysis between the original English text of Winnie-the-Pooh and its retelling by Russian writer Boris Zakhoder. She also received a Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship for study abroad in St. Petersburg, Russia.

During her time at IWU, she was a member of Alpha Gamma Delta sorority, a Russian and Spanish language tutor, and a research assistant to Isaac Funk Professor of German and Russian Marina Balina, who served as Borisovas advisor for the Eckley and research honors projects. Borisova was also selected for the International Studies Outstanding Senior Award.

She will enter the Master of Library Science program at Indiana Universitys School of Informatics and Computing this fall. She will receive a full-ride research fellowship  the Information and Library Science (ILS) Merit Scholar Fellowship  along with the ILS Technology Scholarship.
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By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) |  

Angela Merkel, the Chancellor of Germany, certainly knew what she was doing when she made her otherwise cautious statement.

The times, she said, in which we can entirely depend on others, are gone. This, I have experienced in the last few days. We Europeans must take our destiny in our own hands.

The adverb is important here. Entirely depend on is not the same as depend on. She is signalling that Europe has in the past perhaps been completely dependent on the US in certain regards. Under Trump (the meaning of her experience in the the last few days), Europe can no longer afford to do so.

Her annoyance is understandable. Europe faces dire challenges.

One is climate change, which Trump refused to help with.

Another is the refugee crisis. Since many refugees go north from the drought-stricken Sahel, which has been desertifying under the impact of human-caused climate change from toxic carbon dioxide emissions, these two crises are inter related.

The European economy, and especially employment rates, still has not recovered from the 2008-2009 crisis. Instead of promoting trade, Trump is talking up protectionism. He called Germans very wicked for running a trade surplus with the US and selling cars to Americans. Having Trump plastered on front pages next to quotes about evil Germans while Merkel was meeting with him at the G7 must have been poisonous.

Then Germany was convinced by Obama to slap sanctions on Russia because of its unilateral annexation of Crimea, something that had not happened in post-war Germany and which looked sinister to Western Europe. Trump seems to be in Russias back pocket, so that the whole sanctions policy is up in the air. (Frankly German interests were getting tired of it even last year.). Germany will have to make its own decisions about how to deal with Vladimir Putin, and can no longer simply follow Americas lead, given that Americas lead now has all the consistency of a terrified bumblebee.

The good news is that you wouldnt want European leaders blindly following Trumps need. And at least there will be some adults acting independently on the world stage.



Related video:

IBTimes UK: Angela Merkel: Europe must take its fate in its own hands
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By Salma Essam | ( Globalvoices.org) |  

The Egyptian governments efforts to crack down on critical media platforms reached news heights this week when authorities blocked access to the Cairo-based independent news website, Mada Masr.

An independent and progressive news outlet that covers a variety of topics including politics, culture and the economy, Mada Masr routinely published stories of critical interest to the public that are seldom reported by other outlets. They have covered the ongoing crackdown on activists and journalists, attacks on Egypts Coptic minority and the plight of refugees in Egypt.

As of 25 May, users inside Egypt were unable to access the website on the networks of most local Internet service providers. State-run news agency Al-Ahram stated that 21 news websites were banned in Egypt for supporting terrorism and spreading lies, according to a high-level security source quoted by the agency. These websites include the Arabic-language edition of Huffington Post and website of the Qatar-based Aljazeera network.

The type of communication blockage used to interrupt Mada Masr is known as a RST injection attack. According to a note from their editors posted on Facebook, this technique uses a third party to monitor and interfere with Internet traffic moving to and from the target website.

While websites have been blocked in Egypt before, this marks the first time the government has publicly announced their decision to do so.

Is this kind of censorship legal?

Under the patronage of President Abdelfattah El Sisi, Egypt has taken great measures to curb dissent, through targeting of individual journalists and online activists, and by imposing pro-government media policies. And while officials did not give the Mada Masr team a precise explanation of the blocking, the legality of this act remains in question.

In consultation with Mada Masr, technology and human rights researcher at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, Amr Gharbeia, explained that restrictions on websites can be legally enforced in two ways, either by an order issued by a high authority or by enforcing anti-terrorism law. The first mechanism can be implemented through a decree by a prosecutor, an investigating judge or by the president during a state of emergency (which is currently in place in Egypt). The second can be applied using Article 29 of Egypts anti-terrorism law, which prescribes a five-year prison term for anyone who establishes a telecommunications or internet site to promote ideas or beliefs that encourage committing terrorist acts or to broadcast [information] to mislead security agencies or influence the course of justice with regard to a crime of terrorism.

However, as Mada Masr was not officially informed of any legal measures being taken against them, Gharbeia speculates that the government may have asked Internet service providers to block the website extrajudicially. With this presumption at hand, Mada Masr said in their Facebook note:

If that is the case, there are two violations, according to Gharbeia: one against freedom of expression and one against the sovereignty of law.

Egypts deteriorating media climate

This most recent crackdown on an already-muzzled press will unquestionably leave independent media outlets and anyone who voices criticism against Sisi even more vulnerable than before, all supposedly in the interest of national security.

The decision of blocking 21 websites including Qatar-funded Al Jazeera and Huffpost Arabic have left journalists and activists incredulous. Mada Masrs editor in-chief Lina Attalah told Reuters:

Nothing explains this blockade more than a very clear intention from the authorities to crack down on critical media in ways that bypass the law.

Attalah further told the Guardian:

the main focus now is to try and get the site back up online without it being blocked easily, but in the long run I dont really know what this kind of fight means for our survival. My gut feeling is that this is not the end, and theres a way to carry on. But I dont know how exactly this will happen yet.

Activist Ramy Raoof tweeted:

Despite the tense situation, Mada Masr says that it will continue publishing on its website, and via Facebook. Journalist Jack Shenker praised Madas vision, while tweeting a screenshot of their statement:

Egyptian lawyer and human rights activist Gamal Eid supported Mada Masr:

Join Mada Masr page on Facebook after being blocked by the enemies of enlightenment, freedom and democracy. One of the most professional and credible websites.

Meanwhile, public life in Egypt continues to be fraught with incidents of violence and conflict. On May 26, gunmen attacked a bus killing 25 Egyptian Coptic Christians. The Sisi regime in response launched an attack on the Libyan town of Derna, reasoning that it is home to terrorist organizations. In a moment like this, and in the persistent turmoil that many Egyptians face each day, free and independent media that cover events in the public interest  not in the interests of politicians  is more important than ever.

Written by Salma Essam

Creative Commons License

Globalvoices.org



Related video added by Juan Cole:

Wochit News: Egypt Blocks 21 Websites Including Al Jazeera
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - May 28, 2017) - Banro Corporation (the "Company" or "Banro") (NYSE MKT:BAA)(TSX:BAA) reports with great relief the safe release of its four colleagues after a long and difficult ordeal of being held in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Banro extends its heartfelt thanks to all those in the community and government and so many others who supported our efforts to gain our colleagues' safe return. The priority now is to reunite our colleagues with their families and provide them with support. Banro asks all well-wishers to respect our colleagues' privacy and allow them the time and space to reunite with their families.

Banro Corporation is a Canadian gold mining company focused on production from the Twangiza mine, which began commercial production September 1, 2012, and on production at its second gold mine at Namoya, where commercial production was declared effective January 1, 2016. The Company's longer term objectives include the development of two additional major, wholly-owned gold projects, Lugushwa and Kamituga. The four projects, each of which has a mining license, are located along the 210 kilometre long Twangiza-Namoya gold belt in the South Kivu and Maniema provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. All business activities are followed in a socially and environmentally responsible manner.

For further information, please visit our website at www.banro.com.
May 29, 2017  Altamira Gold Corp. (TSXV: ALTA) (FSE: T6UP) (USA: EQTRF), formerly Equitas Resources Corp. (Altamira or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has commenced a program of trenching on several gold-in-soil geochemical anomalies at the Cajueiro project in advance of drilling. A total of 610m from a planned trenching program of 1200m has already been completed and is aimed at better defining drill targets in advance of the planned drill program.

The principal objective of the mechanical trenching program at Cajueiro is to identify the source of the as yet untested gold-in-soil anomalies, most of which are currently unexplained. The Baldo East area, which is outside the current resource is of particular interest, since grab samples from exposed structures on surface (20 samples) previously returned values of 3.4  118.4g/t gold.

FIGURE 1 - MAP OF CAJUEIRO PROJECT





Thus far, the bulk of the previous drilling at Cajuiero was directed towards the Crente and Baldo target areas which together comprise the bulk of the existing resource which comprises 8.64Mt @ 0.77 g/t Au (for 214,000oz) in the Indicated Resource category and 9.53Mt @ 0.66 g/t Au (for 282,000oz) in the Inferred Resource category with an additional 1.37Mt @ 1.78 g/t Au in oxides (for 78,400oz in saprolite) in the Inferred Resource category.

A total of ten gold-in-soil anomalies have been identified thus far at Cajueiro of which four have only been partially tested. Several previously unrecognised structures have already been mapped at Crente as a result of the current trenching program and samples have been sent for gold assay to SGS Geosol in Belo Horizonte.

FIGURE 2 CURRENT TRENCHING AT CAJUIERO





The Company is also pleased to announce that it has selected a drill contractor to complete the planned drill program at Cajuiero which is expected to commence using two rigs during early June 2017.

Everett Makela, P. Geo., a consultant to the Company as well as a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, supervised the preparation of the technical information in this news release.
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - May 29, 2017) - INV Metals ("INV Metals" or "Company") (TSX:INV) is pleased to announce that it has successfully reached agreement with the Ministry of Mining on the terms and form of the Mining Exploitation Contract ("Exploitation Contract") for Loma Larga ("Loma Larga" or "Project"), the Company's 100% owned gold project located in Ecuador. The Company anticipates the Exploitation Contract will be executed after the successful completion of the feasibility study ("FS") and other key milestones.

Ms. Candace MacGibbon, CEO, stated, "We are extremely pleased to announce the Company and the Government of Ecuador have agreed on the form and terms of the Exploitation Contract for the Company's flagship Loma Larga gold project. When executed, the Exploitation Contract will govern certain fiscal and other matters relating to the development and operation of Loma Larga. The Company may now move forward incorporating the fiscal terms of the Exploitation Contract into the FS."

She added, "The agreement on the terms and form of the Exploitation Contract marks a major achievement and milestone for the development of the Project and the Board of Directors and Management wish to thank the Ministry of Mining for its continued support of INV Metals and the mining industry. With the completion of our successful $27.6 million financing in March, the Company is fully financed to complete the FS, undertake ramp development and fund planned exploration at Loma Larga and our regional properties."

The Company commenced formal negotiations with the Ministry of Mines in early March. With the Exploitation Agreement negotiations substantially complete, INV Metals is advancing its plans to develop the underground mine with anticipated annual gold production of approximately 150,000 ounces over a 12 year mine life. Management is in the final process of selecting consultants to prepare the FS to advance the engineering design, support environmental permitting, provide information for community engagement, and determine financing requirements. The FS is expected to commence in early June and it is anticipated to be completed in up to 18 months.

Concurrent with the commencement of the FS, the Company intends to complete the engineering required to design and permit the development of the mine adit, related infrastructure and underground ramp to access the Loma Larga ore body. Depending on permitting requirements and timelines, management plans to commence the underground development in 2018, to engage in an advanced exploration program, confirm geotechnical conditions and provide employment and training opportunities for the local work force.

Exploration is ongoing at Loma Larga and on the Company's Tierras Coloradas and Las Penas greenfield properties. The Company's exploration budget for 2017 is $5 million.

Summary of Key Terms

A summary of the key items of the Exploitation Contract are noted below.

INV Minerales Ecuador S.A. INVMINEC ("INV Minerales"), the Company's wholly owned Ecuadorian subsidiary, has the right to develop and operate Loma Larga for a period of 25 years, subject to renewal.

INV Minerales will pay a royalty of 5% on the net income ("Royalty" or "Royalties") of precious metals and related by-product sales.

INV Minerales will pay US$15 million of the Royalty in advance ("Advanced Royalty") to primarily support community development and social programs.

Payments of the Advanced Royalty will be subject to the following schedule and milestones: US$5 million on the execution of the Exploitation Contract; US$5 million on the first anniversary of the execution of the Exploitation Contract; and US$5 million on the second anniversary of the execution of the Exploitation Contract.

The Advanced Royalty is deductible against future Royalties payable in the amount that is the lesser of 50% of the Royalties payable in a six month period or 20% of the total Advanced Royalty calculated annually.

Additional Taxation Matters

INV Minerales is also expected to be subject to the following taxes, which are currently in effect:

22% corporate income tax;

12% state profit sharing;

3% employee profit sharing;

Value added taxes ("VAT") which will be refundable on expenditures incurred after January 2018 when, and if, INV Minerales generates export sales;

An extraordinary revenue tax ("Windfall Tax") payable if the market price exceeds a stipulated base price for gold, silver and copper. The Windfall Tax will be calculated at 70% of the difference between INV Minerales' gross revenue and the theoretical revenue at a base price ("Base Price"). The Base Price will be determined on a monthly basis as the 10-year trailing average of the daily price of gold, silver or copper, adjusted for the US Consumer Price Index, plus one standard deviation. The Windfall Tax will not apply until 4 years after INV Minerales has recovered the undiscounted value of the cumulative investment in Loma Larga since the concession was granted.

INV Minerales will be subject to a "Sovereign Adjustment" in the event that the cumulative benefit derived from Loma Larga to the Government of Ecuador is not equal to at least 50% of the total benefits from the Project. The benefits to INV Minerales will be calculated annually as the net present value of the cumulative free cash flows of Loma Larga since the concession was granted. The benefits to the Government of Ecuador will be calculated as the net present value of the cumulative sum of corporate income tax, Royalties, Windfall Taxes, state profit sharing taxes, non-recoverable VAT and previous Sovereign Adjustment payments, if any, over the same period.

About INV Metals

INV Metals is an international mineral resource company focused on the acquisition, exploration and development of precious metal projects in Ecuador. Currently, INV Metals' primary assets are: (1) its 100% interest in the Loma Larga gold property in Ecuador, (2) its 100% interest in the Las Penas, Tierras Coloradas, and La Rebuscada exploration projects in Ecuador, and (3) its 35% interest in the Kaoko property, located in Namibia.
TORONTO, May 29, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - Richmont Mines Inc. (TSX: RIC) (NYSE: RIC) ("Richmont" or the "Corporation"), is pleased to announce positive results from an Expansion Case Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") completed on the Island Gold Mine, located in northern Ontario, Canada. The study confirms the increase in underground mine and mill productivity to 1,100 tonnes per day will support strong production growth of 22% at low industry cash costs and a robust cash flow stream over the eight-year Phase 1 period, with low incremental capital of $28.2 (US$20.9) million required. The ramp-up to 1,100 tonnes per day is currently underway and the operation is anticipated to achieve the target run rate in the latter part of 2018. (All amounts are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise indicated).

"The strong outcome of the Expansion Case PEA represents a key milestone and the next step in our phased approach to unlock the full potential of the Island Gold Mine. With minimal capital we are positioning the mine as a low cost operation that is anticipated to generate strong cash flow streams after funding all project and sustaining capital." stated Renaud Adams, CEO. He continued, "It is important to consider that the PEA incorporates only 24% of the current inferred resources as of December 2016. All resources outside the main area of interest, below the 1,000 metre level and east of the PEA area, were excluded but will eventually be considered in a potential Phase 2 expansion as we continue to grow the resource inventory through our strategic drilling programs."

Island Gold Mine Expansion Case PEA Highlights

The operation is expected to produce an average of 125,000 gold ounces per year, excluding the 2017 and 2018 ramp-up period, or 115,000 ounces over the 8-year period considered in the PEA.

Low industry cost profile over the PEA period, including cash costs of approximately $650 (US$480) per ounce, All-in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") of approximately $835 (US$620) per ounce and All-in Costs ("AIC"), which includes all project and sustaining capital, of approximately $910 (US$675) per ounce.

per ounce, All-in Sustaining Costs ("AISC") of approximately per ounce and All-in Costs ("AIC"), which includes all project and sustaining capital, of approximately per ounce. Minimal incremental capital investment of $28.2 (US$20.9) million is estimated to support a productivity increase from 900 to 1,100 tonnes per day, which would contribute to a strong pre-tax cumulative net cash flow stream after all capital expenditures of $749 (US$555) million at a spot gold price of $1,700 (US$1,260) per ounce, or $615 (US$456) million at a downside case gold price of $1,550 (US$1,150) per ounce over the eight years considered by the PEA.

is estimated to support a productivity increase from 900 to 1,100 tonnes per day, which would contribute to a strong pre-tax cumulative net cash flow stream after all capital expenditures of at a spot gold price of per ounce, or at a downside case gold price of per ounce over the eight years considered by the PEA. Additional opportunities remain for further expansion scenarios and mine life extension as the PEA only incorporates approximately 24% of the current total inferred resources (as at Dec. 31, 2016 ), which excludes more than 750,000 inferred resource ounces and does not take into consideration the most recent drilling success laterally to the east and at depth below the 1,000 metre level.

Expansion Case PEA Summary (1,100 tpd) Tonnes Milled (Mt) 3.1 Head Grade (g/t) 9.68 Mine plan (years) 8 Daily mine and mill production (tpd) (excl. 2017-2018 ramp-up) 1,100 Gold recovery (%) 96.5 Total Production (Koz) 926 Avg. annual gold production (Koz) 115 Avg. annual gold production (excl. 2017-2018 ramp-up) (Koz) 125

Expansion Case PEA Summary (1,100 tpd) (CAD:US exchange rate of 1.35:1) CAD$ Gold Price US$ Gold Price Spot Gold $1,700/oz Downside Case $1,550/oz Spot Gold US$1,260/oz Downside Case US$1,150/oz Average operating unit cost ($/t)(1,4) 191 189 141 140 Cash Costs ($/oz)(1,2,4) 652 646 483 479 AISC ($/oz)(1,2,4) 837 832 620 616 Sustaining capital ($M) 168 168 124 124 Project capital ($M)(3) 68 68 50 50 AIC ($/oz)(1,2,3,4) 910 906 674 671 Cumulative Net Cash Flow ($M)(5,6) 749 615 555 456 Pre-tax NPV5%(6) 580 473 430 350 After-tax NPV5%(6) 452 379 335 281 (1) The Expansion Case PEA assumes a gold price of $1,700 (US$1,260) and $1,550 (US$1,150) per ounce and an CAD:US exchange rate of 1.35

(2) Non-IFRS performance measure. Refer to the Non-IFRS performance measures section contained in the Q1 2017 MD&A.

(3) Project capital includes incremental expansion capital of $28.2 million and accelerated mine development/infrastructure capital of $40 million.

(4) Including royalties.

(5) Net cash flow is pre-tax cash flow after all operating costs, project and sustaining capital.

(6) All calculations assume the Dec. 31, 2016 cut-off grade and do not incorporate any adjustments related to different gold price assumptions.

Pre-Tax Net Cash Flow Sensitivity Table

The table below provides the estimated impact on pre-tax net cash flow at various gold prices and currency exchange rates, which demonstrate that the PEA mine plan generates positive pre-tax net cash flow even at a gold price of US$1,000 per ounce and a Canadian to U.S. currency exchange rate at parity.

Pre-tax Net Cash Flow(1)(2) (CAD$M) Sensitivity US$ Gold Price CAD:US 1,000 1,100 1,200 1,300 1,400 1.00 123 212 302 391 481 1.10 212 311 409 507 606 1.20 302 409 516 623 731 1.30 391 507 623 740 856 1.35 436 556 677 798 918 1.40 481 606 731 856 981 1.45 525 655 784 914 1,043 (1) Net cash flow is pre-tax cash flow after all operating costs, project and sustaining capital.

(2) All calculations assume the Dec. 31, 2016 cut-off grade and do not incorporate any adjustments related to different gold price assumptions.

"The PEA represents only the first step in a disciplined multi-phased strategy that will continue to build on our successful track record of growing production and reducing costs as we execute on our vision to position the Island Gold Mine as a world class, low-cost gold producer with additional production growth over a minimum mine life in excess of 10 years." stated Renaud Adams. He continued, "In the near term, there are additional opportunities to increase productivity and improve our cost structure that were not considered in the PEA, which could provide further upside beyond the strong PEA results. The success of our strategic exploration programs will continue to be a high priority as we continue to transform Island Gold into a multi-million ounce district."

TECHNICAL HIGHLIGHTS



The PEA was developed through the combined efforts of the Corporation's internal technical team and the independent consultant, Soutex Inc. The independent consultant, InnovExplo Inc., provided input to the internal technical team during the preliminary stages of the study relating to the mine design. The internal technical team developed the detailed mine plan, costs and schedules, and completed the December 2016 Resource modeling and Reserve and Resource estimates. Soutex Inc., with the collaboration of WSP Global Inc. provided mill upgrade, expansion designs and estimated costs.

The objective of the PEA was to consider the most cost and capital effective strategy to mine the portion of the mineral resources that is located within the main area of interest over four mining horizons, to a maximum depth of 1,000 metres below surface, using the current mine infrastructure. Management remains focused on transforming the high-grade Island Gold Mine into one of the lowest cost underground gold producers located in low-risk jurisdictions in the Americas.

Reserves and Resources (December 31, 2016)

Current Mineral Reserves and Resources as of December 31, 20161 for the Island Gold Mine include:

Proven and Probable Reserves of 752k ounces (2.6MT at an average grade of 9.17 g/t).

Measured and Indicated Resources of 91k ounces (0.5MT at an average grade of 5.94 g/t).

Inferred Resources of 996k ounces (3.0MT at an average grade of 10.18 g/t).

Mineral Resources presented are exclusive of Mineral Reserves.

Total Mineral Resources included in the PEA:

All Dec. 31, 2016 Reserves (incl. Upper Mine) were used in the PEA. For the purpose of this PEA all Mineral Reserves included in the mine plan were considered at the Measured and Indicated Resource level.

Reserves (incl. Upper Mine) were used in the PEA. For the purpose of this PEA all Mineral Reserves included in the mine plan were considered at the Measured and Indicated Resource level. All Dec. 31, 2016 Measured & Indicated Resources were included in the PEA.

Measured & Indicated Resources were included in the PEA. Only the Dec. 31, 2016 Inferred Resources within the main continuous structure at depth between the 450 metre and 1,000 metre levels were incorporated in the PEA, primarily located in the fourth mining horizon. Only approximately 24% of the total Dec. 31, 2016 Inferred Resources were incorporated in the PEA.

Inferred Resources within the main continuous structure at depth between the 450 metre and 1,000 metre levels were incorporated in the PEA, primarily located in the fourth mining horizon. Only approximately 24% of the total Inferred Resources were incorporated in the PEA. Total undiluted resources used in the PEA: Measured and Indicated Resources of 879k ounces (2.6MT at an average grade of 10.65 g/t). Inferred Resources of 238k ounces (0.5MT at an average grade of 14.95 g/t).

The Dec. 31, 2016 mining dilution, mining recovery and cut-off grade criteria were used to estimate a total 3.1MT at 9.68 g/t gold diluted material used in the PEA mine plan for a total of 964k gold ounces.

Underground Mining

The PEA primarily considers long-hole mining over four mining horizons, down to a maximum depth of 1,000 metres using the current dual ramp system. Alimak mining is also considered in the study for the small isolated western reserve block. The Corporation is currently advancing the development of the dual ramp system, which will support multi-stope mining beginning in 2018. As of the end of the first quarter of 2017, the main ramp has reached a level of 860 vertical metres. Mineral Resources have been developed and exposed down to the 800 metre level and long-hole mining is currently ongoing in the first and second horizons down to the 740 metre level and in the upper part of the third horizon. The PEA considers the use of the dual ramp system over the 8-year period with no additional infrastructure required.

In late 2014, the Corporation launched an accelerated underground development strategy with the objective of supporting increased mining rates at the lower levels of the mine (down to a maximum depth of 1,000 metres) without need of additional infrastructure. During 2015 and 2016, the ratio of waste to ore mined was maintained at approximately 1:1 in order to advance the dual ramp system prior to the launch of stope mining activities, thereby minimizing the total tonnes (ore and waste) needed to be mined in the future. The PEA indicates that all waste development will be completed in early 2021, resulting in a very low average waste to ore ratio of 0.33 going forward over the eight-year period considered by the PEA, which will largely de-risk the 1,100 tonnes per day mining rate in the lower horizons of the mine. Higher capacity trucks will be phased in as mining activities transition to the lower areas of the mine, which will also add to productivity enhancement while optimizing the unit cost structure at depth.

1For more information about the current Reserve and Resource estimate, please refer to the press release dated January 31, 2017 available at www.richmont-mines.com.

Mill Upgrade

A conceptual study prepared by Soutex Inc. in collaboration with WSP Global Inc. was considered for the PEA, which supports an increased mill capacity to a minimum 1,200 tonnes per day. The additional capacity requires an incremental investment of only $15.7 million. The mill is currently operating above the base case 900 tonnes per day (926 in Q1, 2017) and is expected to ramp-up to an average 1,100 tonnes per day in the latter part of 2018. The mill expansion relates primarily to upgrading the grinding circuit with an additional ball mill, which is currently being sourced. Basic engineering is ongoing with detailed engineering expected to begin in June.

PEA COST HIGHLIGHTS

Operating Costs $ US$ Mining costs ($/t) 129 95 Milling Costs ($/t) 28 21 General & Administrative ($/t) 16 12 Total operating unit costs per tonne milled ($/t) 173 128

The Corporation has been operating the Island Gold Mine since 2007 and the PEA has utilized currently realized cost data including mining, milling, site G&A and royalties, as well as underground development and infrastructure capital costs.

Mining unit costs are expected to decline over the life of mine as the higher cost development in ore is completed in early 2022, partially offset as mining transitions at depth to the fourth mining horizon as well as higher costs associated with Alimak mining. Mining unit costs will average $129 (US$95) per tonne over the 8 years considered in the PEA.

Milling unit costs are expected to decline by up to 8% to $28 (US$21) per tonne once the mill achieves the 1,100 tonne per day run-rate in the latter part of 2018.

G&A costs are expected to benefit from the economies of scale beginning in 2019 and will average $16 per tonne.

Total Capital Investment $ US$ Sustaining Capital ($M) 168 124 Project Capital ($M) 68 50 Incremental Expansion Capital ($M) 28 20 Accelerated Development/Infrastructure ($M) 40 30 Total Capital ($M) 236 174

The PEA considers sustaining capital requirements of $168 (US$124) million over the eight-year PEA period, which remains elevated in the first four years as the operation advances underground ramp development, lateral development for Alimak mining, surface infrastructure, upgrades to higher capacity mobile equipment and an increase in tailings capacity. Sustaining capital will decrease to normalized levels beginning in 2021. Annual sustaining capital is expected to average $21 (US$16) million over the PEA period.

The project capital requirements of $68 (US$51) million are comprised of accelerated underground ramp development ($29 million) to support multi-stope mining as well as infrastructure ($11 million), both of which would have been advanced on a sustaining basis under a 900 tonne per day scenario. Project capital also includes incremental expansion capital ($28 million) to support the increase in productivity to 1,100 tonnes per day. Project capital will be completed in 2018 at which point the operation will return to sustaining capital levels.

Incremental Expansion Capital $ US$ Total Incremental Capital ($M) 28.2 20.9 Mill Expansion ($M) 15.7 11.6 Mobile Equipment ($M) 7.3 5.4 Infrastructure ($M) 5.2 3.9

Permitting

In December 2016 the Corporation received all required Amendments of both Air and Wastewater Environmental Compliance Approvals ("ECAs") from the Ontario Ministry of Environment and Climate Change for the Island Gold Mine located in northern Ontario. These Amendments support a potential ore mining and processing rate increase to an average of 1,100 tonnes per day as contemplated in the Expansion Case PEA. The Amended ECAs allow processing of up to 401,500 tonnes of ore per year (1,100 tonnes per day), with flexibility for up to a maximum of 38,480 tonnes per month.

Royalty and Taxes

Royalty payments will incrementally increase as mining activities transition to lower levels of the mine and average approximately 3.5% over the life of mine.

The PEA indicates taxes payable will gradually increase over the life of mine and Island Gold will become fully taxable beginning in 2021. The effective tax rate over the mine life covered in the PEA is expected to average 22%.

Future Upside Opportunities:

There are additional opportunities that could positively impact operational and cost performance that were not incorporated in the PEA, including the implementation of ongoing operational efficiency strategies and cost reduction initiatives, as well as the optimization of supply chain management systems, all of which could drive additional cost reductions. The PEA also does not consider any exploration success that could positively impact the mine plan, including the delineation of additional resource ounces, primarily from the lateral eastern corridor. The PEA does not consider the potential conversion of the 750,000 inferred resources that were not included in the study.

The Corporation will continue to evaluate a potential Phase 2 growth scenario with the objective of positioning the Island Gold Mine as a low cost producer with an annual production profile of between 150,000 and 200,000 ounces, over a mine life of more than 10 years. The Phase 2 strategy is contingent upon the success of our drilling programs to grow our resource inventory beyond two million gold ounces, net of depletion. With more than 450,000 ounces of new resources discovered in 2016 at a low cost of $35 per ounce, the Corporation is confident that the exploration potential of Island Gold will continue to be unlocked over the years to come.

Technical Disclosure & Qualified Persons

The production and cost estimates contained in this report are partly based on Inferred Resources and are therefore preliminary in nature. Inferred Resources are considered too geologically speculative to have mining and economic parameters applied to them, or to be categorized as Mineral Reserves. There is no certainty that the conversion of Mineral Resources to Mineral Reserves or the production and cost forecasts on which this PEA is based, will be realized. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.

Qualified Persons

The PEA was developed through the combined efforts of the Corporation's Internal Technical Team and an independent consultant, Soutex Inc.

The Corporation will file a NI43-101 Technical Report within 45 days.

All work for the PEA was performed under the direct supervision of Daniel Adam, P.Geo., Ph.D, Vice President, Exploration and Leon LeBlanc, P. Eng., Chief Engineer of the Island Gold Mine; both are employees of Richmont. Both are members of a professional association and are qualified persons as defined by NI 43-101 requirements and have reviewed the technical information included in this press release.

Information relating to the mill upgrade, expansion designs and estimated costs was prepared under the supervision of Mathieu Belisle, P. Eng. Mr. Belisle, a senior metallurgist with Soutex Inc., and a qualified and independent person as defined in NI 43-101. He has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this press release pertaining to the mill facility.

The Expansion Case PEA will be filed on Richmont's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com within 45 days.

Conference Call and Webcast

The Corporation will host a webcast technical session on Monday, May 29 starting at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time, also accessible via conference call. Senior management will be on the call to discuss the study results.

Webcast access:

To access the webcast and technical presentation slides directly, please follow this link:

Click Here

Telephone access:

Toll free ( Canada & U.S.): 1-888-390-0546

& U.S.): 1-888-390-0546 Toronto local & International: 1-416-764-8688

A telephone replay will be available for 90 days by dialing 1-416-764-8677 (Toronto local and international) or 1-888-390-0541 (toll free in Canada and U.S.), using pass code 821941#. The webcast and presentation slides will also be archived for 90 days on the Corporation's website at www.richmont-mines.com.

About Richmont Mines Inc.

Richmont Mines currently produces gold from the Island Gold Mine in Ontario, and the Beaufor Mine in Quebec. The Corporation is also advancing development of the significant high-grade resource extension at depth of the Island Gold Mine in Ontario. With 35 years of experience in gold production, exploration and development, and prudent financial management, the Corporation is well-positioned to cost-effectively build its Canadian reserve base and to successfully enter its next phase of growth.
VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - May 29, 2017) - East Africa Metals Inc.(TSX VENTURE: EAM) ("East Africa" or the "Company") is pleased to announce newly received results from recently completed infill diamond drilling at the Adyabo Project, Mato Bula deposit in Ethiopia.

Highlight intersections include:

At Mato Bula - 12.60 metres grading 12.59 grams per tonne gold, 0.66% copper, and 1.5 grams per tonne silver, from 77.40 metres drill depth (WMD085), and;

At Mato Bula - 7.60 metres grading 14.59 grams per tonne gold, 0.62% copper, and 1.5 grams per tonne silver, from 150.40 metres drill depth (WMD086).

Adyabo Project Mato Bula work program

The Mato Bula infill diamond drill program was concluded on May 15, 2017. A total of 7,025 metres in 49 holes were completed. Geophysical I.P. survey work continues on site, and is expected to be completed in early June 2017. The most recent drill results received are outlined below.

Mato Bula infill diamond drill intercepts

Hole ID From (m) To (m) Interval (m) 1 Gold g/t2,3 Copper % Silver g/t Zinc % Local Azimuth Dip Prospect WMD076 16.24 19.00 2.76 5.13 0.04 1.7 0.01 270 -45 Mato Bula 40.01 46.00 5.99 2.29 0.26 8.0 0.30 WMD077 30.00 36.00 6.00 1.36 0.55 1.2 0.02 270 -69 Mato Bula 63.80 67.00 3.20 0.92 0.21 4.1 1.11 71.80 93.00 21.2^^ 0.28 0.23 4.7 1.02 including 88.00 93.00 5.00 0.47 0.32 6.3 0.57 WMD078 40.23 41.00 0.77 1.90 0.14 0.0 0.01 270 -49 Mato Bula 143.26 147.00 3.74 4.22 1.13 1.2 0.00 151.30 154.90 3.60 0.51 1.70 2.6 0.00 228.00 232.73 4.73^^ 0.25 0.28 6.8 1.57 WMD079 34.30 40.64 6.34 0.54 0.01 1.7 0.00 270 -45 Mato Bula 50.00 53.80 3.80 4.84 0.52 5.9 0.06 WMD080 105.00 110.00 5.00 0.61 0.90 1.8 0.00 270 -63 Mato Bula 129.00 135.00 6.00 5.39 0.06 1.1 0.00 including 133.00 135.00 2.00 14.95 0.06 2.0 0.00 WMD081 22.86 25.91 3.05 2.24 0.00 0.2 0.00 270 -47 Mato Bula WMD082 47.00 50.00 3.00 0.81 0.93 0.6 0.00 270 -47 Mato Bula 81.00 81.58 0.58 2.17 0.37 0.0 0.00 WMD083 214.91 218.30 3.39^^ 0.68 0.18 11.8 2.41 270 -62 Mato Bula 216.30 220.30 4.00 0.76 0.25 11.2 0.34 WMD084 96.07 97.30 1.23 1.89 0.86 1.1 0.00 270 -49 Mato Bula 125.00 127.00 2.00 4.25 0.21 0.0 0.00 135.48 135.93 0.45 12.30 0.95 19.3 0.05 WMD085 77.40 90.00 12.60 12.59 0.66 1.5 0.03 270 -56 Mato Bula 146.22 153.53 7.31 0.80 0.45 3.3 0.08 WMD086 150.40 158.00 7.60 14.59 0.62 1.5 0.03 270 -58 Mato Bula including 153.00 155.65 2.65 37.12 1.44 3.6 0.03 WMD087 101.53 108.40 6.87 3.74 0.29 0.7 0.02 270 -48 Mato Bula WMD088 108.70 123.00 14.30 2.39 0.26 0.6 0.01 270 -51 Mato Bula including 108.70 115.00 6.30 4.59 0.44 1.2 0.02 131.00 135.00 4.00 2.64 1.14 2.8 0.01

1True thicknesses are interpreted as 60-90% of stated intervals.

2No topcut has been used on analyses

3Intervals use a 0.3 gram per tonne gold cutoff value

^^Zinc interval, not subject to gold cutoff criteria

Harvest Project Update

Diamond drilling results were also received for the Lihamat drill program, as described below.

Hole ID From (m) To (m) Interval (m) 1 Gold g/t2,3 Local Azimuth Dip Prospect LD001 49.00 51.00 2.00 9.840 90 -59 Lihamat LD002 35.00 36.00 1.00 4.300 90 -54 Lihamat 61.00 62.00 1.00 4.370 LD003 No Significant Results 90 -56 Lihamat LD004 15.50 17.00 1.50 3.300 90 -61 Lihamat

1True thicknesses are interpreted as 60-90% of stated intervals.

2No topcut has been used on analyses

3Intervals use a 0.3 gram per tonne gold cutoff value

Diagrams illustrating recent drilling results are attached and available on the website.

Lihamat Drill Collar Map



MB Main LongSection



Mato Bula Drill Collar Map



Mato Bula Upper LongSection





Quality Control

The planning, execution, and monitoring of East Africa's drilling and quality control programs at the Harvest and Adyabo Projects has been conducted under the supervision of Jeff Heidema, P.Geo., East Africa's Vice President Exploration. Mr. Heidema is a "Qualified Person" as defined by NI 43-101, and has reviewed and approved the geological information contained in this news release. Diamond drilling was coordinated by East Africa's contract geologists who also managed the preparation, logging, and sampling of core and rock samples, in addition to carrying out bulk density measurements. During sampling, quality control standards and blanks were introduced at pre-determined intervals to monitor laboratory performance. A system of field, reject, and pulp sample duplicates was also incorporated, as were specific programs of re-assaying and umpire lab assaying to both monitor laboratory performance and also characterize potential mineralization; all consistent with industry best practice.

Drill core samples have undergone preliminary preparation at the Bureau Veritas Mineral Laboratories facility in Ankara, Turkey, and are crushed to 80% passing 10 mesh, and pulverized to 85% passing 200 mesh (PRP70-1KG package). Analyses are conducted at both the Turkey facility and the Bureau Veritas Mineral Laboratories in Vancouver, Canada, with diamond drill core analyses utilizing Aqua Regia digestion and ICP-ES for base metal and silver analyses (AQ370 package), and Infill sample program utilizing Aqua Regia digestion and ICP-MS/ICP-ES (AQ270 package) for base metal and silver analyses. Gold analyses are conducted at the Turkey Bureau Veritas Mineral Laboratories facility via Fire Assay Fusion with AA finish, and gravimetric analyses are completed for over-limit samples (FA430, FA530-Au packages).

Information recorded from diamond drill core assaying was integrated using industry standard data management software (Maxwell Datashed).

More information on the Company can be viewed at the Company's website: www.eastafricametals.com
Abidjan, May 29, 2017 - Endeavour Mining (TSX:EDV)(OTCQX:EDVMF) is pleased to announce the discovery of several high-grade mineralized trends at its Ity gold mine in Cote d'Ivoire, at the 100% owned Le Plaque area, situated 5 kilometers south of the Ity mining complex.

Patrick Bouisset, Executive Vice-President Exploration and Growth at Endeavour, said: "The Le Plaque discovery continues to demonstrate the highly prospective nature of the Ity area. The complexity of the geology requires more drilling and interpretation, but we are very encouraged by the multiple trends discovered which exhibit the potential to host significant resources. Our follow up drilling will focus on the multiple identified targets in the La Plaque area and we look forward to publishing a maiden inferred resource by year-end."

"We are equally excited about both the ongoing exploration on the other targets located in proximity to the Ity mining complex and on conducting interpretative work to generate new greenfield targets in the wider 80km Ity corridor that was secured last year," added Mr. Bouisset.

To date the Le Plaque area has been covered by 3,450 meters of Auger drilling totaling 228 holes, by 1,756 meters of Reverse Circulation ("RC") drilling totaling 22 holes, and by 6,559 meters of Diamond Drilling ("DD") totaling 53 holes.

Some of the selected best DD and RC drill intercepts to date from mineralized zones include (estimated true widths):

Hole FL15-004: 3.08m @ 36.94 g/t

Hole FL15-007: 13.09m @ 22.36 g/t

Hole FL15-523: 4.41m @ 5.70 g/t

Hole FL15-524: 5.02m @ 7.90 g/t

Hole FL15-527: 10.05m @ 3.16 g/t

Hole FL15-529: 4.04m @ 11.87 g/t

Hole FL15-531: 8.09m @ 28.96 g/t

Hole FL15-533 15.90m @ 2.19 g/t

Hole FL15-534: 7.99m @ 11.83 g/t

Hole FL15-535: 5.40m @ 16.43 g/t

Hole FL15-536: 6.97m @ 5.09 g/t

Hole FL15-547: 2.61m @ 9.30 g/t

Hole FL15-567: 2.94m @ 61.23 g/t

Hole FL16-570: 2.80m @ 5.85 g/t

Hole FL16-588: 4.90m @ 4.72 g/t

As shown in Figures 1 and 2 below, the Le Plaque area covers 4 square km, is of similar size as the multiple-deposit Ity mining complex to the north, and hosts several large high gold-in-soil anomalies. Several high-grade mineralized trends stretching over 400 meters were identified, with the largest being a 2km long geochemical anomaly with best values >1,000ppb. The trends are all open along strike and at depth.

In addition to exploring the Le Plaque area, exploration is also on-going on several other targets (as per the blue circles in Figure 1) located within 5km from the current Ity mining complex, which represents a small portion of the 80km corridor controlled by Endeavour.

Figure 1: Ity Mine Area and Surrounding Exploration Targets





Figure 2: Le Plaque Area





As shown in the Figure 3 below, the main mineralization starts from surface with secondary shear structures occurring below the surface.

Figure 3: Le Plaque Cross-Section





The gold mineralization at La Plaque is intersected by drilling and is associated with arsenopyrite and to a lesser extent with pyrite. Gangue mineral phases include galena and sphalerite. The mineralization has a strong structural control, and may have developed where secondary shear structures have exploited the contact between contrasting lithologic units (See Figure 3). Due to sparse outcrops and high vegetative cover, data from airborne and ground geophysical surveys contributed strongly to structural interpretations. The prospect area has recently been covered by a detailed ground IP survey conducted by Sagax Afrique SA (Burkina Faso) and is currently part of a high-resolution helicopter borne combination Magnetic/Radiometric/VTEM survey being flown by Geotech Ltd (Canada) over the Grand Ity project permit areas.

GEOLOGICAL SETTING

As shown in Figure 4, the Ity district is located within the preserved Toulepleu-Ity klippe, a northeast trending belt of Lower Proterozoic aged B1 Birimian terrane thrusted and floating on an older portion of migmatitic gneissic Archean basement of the West African Craton. The core of the klippe is the granitic/gneissic Guiamapleu intrusive suite. The B1 units are affected by a strong polyphase tectonic regime and sealed by the younger B2 Toulepleu conglomerate that lies unconformably on the rocks of the B1 unit. All formations have been subjected to greenschist to lower amphibolite facies regional metamorphism. The B1 Birimian formations within the Ity area are characterized by a series of volcano-sediments interlayered with carbonate bands. These sedimentary sequences are largely crosscut by granodiorite and diorite intrusions of variable thickness.

Figure 4: Endeavour Controlled 80km Ity Mine Corridor





The Le Plaque Prospect is mostly underlain by felsic and mafic units of the central granitic/gneissic Guiamapleu intrusive suite, with subordinate carbonate, skarn and volcanosedimentary units. Regional scale structures transect the area in northeast, north and northwest orientations, and some of these are interpreted as being associated with mineralization.

NEXT STEPS

A RC and DD campaign is expected to start in Q3-2017 on Le Plaque to delineate the extent of mineralized potential.

A maiden inferred resource estimate for some of the targets identified in the Le Plaque area is expected in Q4-2017.

Exploration is on-going on other exploration targets in vicinity to the Ity mining complex.

On the greater Ity Area, an interpretation of high resolution helicopter borne geophysical survey (Mag/Spectro/VTEM) will also be reviewed and placed into target ranking and testing.

QUALIFIED PERSONS

The scientific and technical content of this news release has been reviewed, verified and compiled by Gerard de Hert, EurGeol, Senior VP West Africa Exploration for Endeavour Mining. Gerard de Hert has more than 19 years of mineral exploration and mining experience, and is a "Qualified Person" as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101").

ASSAYS AND QUALITY ASSURANCE/QUALITY CONTROL

The Le Plaque drill samples were prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Drill core (HQ and NQ) and Reverse Circulation percussion hammer chip samples were prepared on site at the SMI (Societe des Mines Ity) exploration mechanical preparation facilities. The prep samples were analyzed using a standard 50-gram gold fire assay with an Atomic Absorption finish at Bureau Veritas Laboratories (Abidjan). Core sampling and assay data were monitored through a quality assurance/quality control program designed to follow NI 43-101 and industry best practice.

Auger samples were directly collected on site. A composite sample was taken for each lithology (laterite, duricrust and mottled zone) except for saprolite where one or two composites of two meters long were taken at bottom hole. Samples were crushed and pulverized on site at the SMI Ity exploration mechanical preparation facilities. The pulverized samples (pulps) were analyzed using a standard 50-gram gold fire assay with an Atomic Absorption finish at Bureau Veritas Laboratories in Abidjan (independent lab). ICP-ES analysis was completed by ACME Laboratories Ltd. in Vancouver. Core sampling and assay data were monitored through a quality assurance/quality control program designed to follow NI 43-101 and industry best practice.

Only results issued from saprolite composites are represented in the Figures.

ABOUT ENDEAVOUR MINING CORPORATION

Endeavour Mining is a TSX-listed intermediate gold producer, focused on developing a portfolio of high quality mines in the prolific West-African region, where it has established a solid operational and construction track record.

Endeavour is ideally positioned as the major pure West-African multi-operation gold mining company, operating 5 mines in Cote d'Ivoire (Agbaou and Ity), Burkina Faso (Karma), Mali (Tabakoto), and Ghana (Nzema). In 2017, it expects to produce between 600koz and 640koz at an AISC of US$860 to US$905/oz. Endeavour is currently building its Hounde project in Burkina Faso, which is expected to commence production in Q4-2017 and to become its flagship low-cost mine with an average annual production of 190koz at an AISC of US$709/oz over an initial 10-year mine life based on reserves. The development of the Hounde project is expected to lift Endeavour's group production +900kozpa and decrease its average AISC to circa $800/oz by 2018, while exploration aims to extend all mine lives to +10 years.
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - May 29, 2017) - Aurania Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:ARU) ("Aurania" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of current Board member Richard Spencer, as its new President, effective immediately. Dr. Spencer will be responsible for the financial and operational performance of the Company. Dr. Keith Barron will maintain the role of CEO and will continue as Chairman of the Board.

Dr. Spencer brings both corporate and technical experience relevant to Aurania and to its Lost Cities - Cutucu Project in Ecuador, the flagship asset of the Company. Richard is a PhD geologist with 10 years of experience in Ecuador, having led Gencor Ltd.'s exploration team that made the grassroots discovery of the San Carlos, Mirador and Panantza porphyries that contain an estimated 24 billion pounds of copper and 3 million ounces of gold. These deposits lie in the area immediately south, and along trend of the Lost Cities - Cutucu Project. Dr. Spencer also worked at Iamgold Corp. where his team discovered the Quimsacocha - Loma Larga deposit in Ecuador, containing resources of 3 million ounces of gold and 23 million ounces of silver. He later joined Crystallex International Corp. as VP-Exploration, working on the Las Cristinas gold deposit in Venezuela, where his team increased gold reserves by 6.6 million ounces. Richard was appointed to the Company's Board of Directors on March 6, 2017. In addition, Richard will continue to serve as President, CEO and Director of U3O8 Corp., a TSX-listed exploration company with resources of uranium and battery commodities in deposits in Argentina, Colombia and Guyana.

"It is a privilege to be exploring in Ecuador again," Richard commented. "I look forward to integrating the exploration techniques that were so successful in the area immediately adjacent to Aurania's project area with more modern techniques to identify targets more efficiently."

"We are very pleased to welcome Richard as President of Aurania," Dr. Barron said. "His previous involvement with exploration in Ecuador will be very beneficial in implementing the company's strategy of building the relationships between the Company and the communities and employing ethical exploration practices in the region."

About Aurania

Aurania Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:ARU) is a junior exploration mining company engaged in the identification, evaluation, acquisition and exploration of mineral property interests, with a focus on precious metals.

At the Annual and Special Meeting held on Friday May 26, 2017, the Shareholders of Aurania passed all Resolutions placed before them at the Meeting including the approval of the acquisition of EcuaSolidus, S.A., a related party company that holds all rights, title and interest in 42 mineral exploration licences covering 207,764 hectares (approx. 2,080 square kilometres) over the core of the Cordillera de Cutucu, a mountain range in the foothills of the Andes, in Ecuador (the "Lost Cities - Cutucu Project"). An exploration program is planned consisting of airborne geophysics and a regional stream silt sampling program with reconnaissance geological work. Further information about the Lost Cities - Cutucu Project can be found on Aurania's website at www.aurania.com. Closing of the acquisition of EcuaSolidus, S.A. is expected shortly and a further announcement will be made.
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - May 29, 2017) - Aurania Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:ARU) ("Aurania" or the "Corporation") is pleased to announce that its shareholders have approved the previously announced acquisition of EcuaSolidus S.A. ("ESA"), a company incorporated under the laws of the Republic of Ecuador, from Dr. Keith Barron, the President and CEO of Aurania (the "Transaction") at the annual and special meeting of shareholders of the Corporation held on May 26, 2017 (the "Meeting"). ESA is the holder of the Lost Cities - Cutucu Project comprising 42 mineral exploration licences covering 207,764 hectares (approx. 2,080 square kilometres) over the core of the Cordillera de Cutucu, a mountain range in the foothills of the Andes, in Ecuador.

The Transaction was approved by 100% of votes cast in person and in proxy, at the Meeting.

Dr. Barron, Chairman and CEO, commented: "This acquisition provides Aurania with a very exciting exploration asset that I have been researching and developing over several years. Some of the fascinating historical context of this property in Ecuador is highlighted in a video that is available on our website that I would encourage you to watch (http://www.aurania.com/episode-1-lost-cities-cutucu-project/). It includes information on some of the background knowledge that I've assembled on the Lost Cities in this eastern part of Ecuador, that has seen little to no modern mineral exploration." Dr. Barron continued, "It has been 11 years since the discovery of the Fruta del Norte gold deposit and we're itching to start exploration along trend in the new project area. To that end, I want to welcome Dr. Richard Spencer to the position of President. His hands-on experience in Ecuador will serve our shareholders well in spearheading our exploration program."

As previously announced, on April 20, 2017, the Corporation announced the completion of a $6.4 million oversubscribed brokered and non-brokered offering of Subscription Receipts (the "Offering"). The brokered offering was co-led by Maison Placements Canada Inc. together with Red Cloud Klondike Strike Inc.

The proceeds from the Offering will be used to fund the Transaction and for property exploration, loan repayments and working capital. The gross proceeds of the Offering less offering costs have been released as the escrow release conditions have been met.

Each Subscription Receipt has been exchanged for one unit of the Corporation (a "Unit"). Each Unit of the Corporation consists of one common share of the Corporation (a "Share") and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"). Each whole Warrant entitles the holder thereof to acquire one Share at a price of C$3.00 until October 19, 2018. If the volume weighted average trading price of the Shares on the Corporation's principal stock exchange exceeds C$3.00 for a period of 20 consecutive trading days, the Corporation may accelerate the expiry date to the date which is 30 days following the date upon which notice of the accelerated expiry date of the Warrants is provided by the Corporation to the holders of the Warrants.

Debt Settlement

At the Meeting, Shareholders approved settling the outstanding debt owed by the Corporation to Bambazonke Holdings Ltd., a company owned and controlled by Dr. Barron (the "Creditor") by issuing 375,000 common shares of the Company to the Creditor at a price of $2.00 per common share in an aggregate amount of $750,000. The indebtedness settled relates to cash advances and service cost agreement monthly payments. The securities issued are subject to a hold period of four months and one day.

Additional Business of Meeting

At the Meeting, shareholders also approved the appointment of auditors, election of directors, confirmation of the Corporation's stock option plan, and adoption of a restricted share unit plan (the "RSU Plan"). Details of these matters are disclosed in the information circular for the Meeting which is dated April 25, 2017 and posted under the Corporation's profile on www.sedar.com (the "Circular").

As a result of all of these transactions, the Corporation currently has 27,335,625 common shares issued and outstanding and 1,600,445 common shares subject to issuance.

About Aurania

Aurania Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:ARU) is a junior exploration mining company engaged in the identification, evaluation, acquisition and exploration of mineral property interests, with a focus on precious metals.
VANCOUVER, BC--(Marketwired - May 29, 2017) -Dolly Varden Silver Corporation (TSX VENTURE: DV) (OTC PINK: DOLLF) (the "Company" or "Dolly Varden") is pleased to announce that the exploration teams have mobilized for the 2017 program on the Dolly Varden Silver Project in the Golden Triangle of northwestern British Columbia. This season's program will have a minimum budget of $3.5 million.

The 2017 exploration program will consist of approximately 5,000 metres of diamond drilling, with two-thirds allocated to resource validation and expansion and one-third allocated to reconnaissance drilling on targets beyond the current resource estimates. There are over 50 exploration targets on the property. Geological mapping, plus geophysical and geochemical surveys, are planned for both the main Dolly Varden Ag-Pb-Zn Project, as well as the adjacent Big Bulk Cu-Au Project.

"It is an exciting time to start a new diamond drilling program in this historic mining district," said Gary Cope, President and CEO of Dolly Varden.

About Dolly Varden

Dolly Varden Silver Corporation is a mineral exploration company focused on exploration in northwestern British Columbia. Dolly Varden has two projects, the namesake Dolly Varden silver property and the nearby Big Bulk copper-gold property. The Dolly Varden property is considered to be highly prospective for hosting high-grade precious metal deposits, since it comprises the same structural and stratigraphic setting that host numerous other, on-trend, high-grade deposits (Eskay Creek, Brucejack). The Big Bulk property is prospective for porphyry and skarn style copper and gold mineralization similar to other such deposits in the region (Red Mountain, KSM, Red Chris).

The current mineral resource estimate at Dolly Varden, effective date August 27, 2015, consists of four deposits with an Indicated Resource of 3.07 million tonnes grading 321.6 g/t Ag, for 31.8 million ounces of silver, plus an Inferred Resource of 0.9 million tonnes grading 373.3 g/t Ag, for 10.8 million ounces of silver. These resources were estimated at a cut-off grade of 150 g/t Ag. For more details, please refer to a NI 43-101 compliant Technical Report filed on www.sedar.com and on the Company's website.

Ben Whiting, P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration for Dolly Varden, who serves as a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101, has approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release.
People walk near a screen showing a file image of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un with a report of North Korea's missile launch, in Osaka, western Japan, Monday. North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile that landed in Japan's maritime economic zone, in the latest in a string of test launches as the North seeks to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can reach the U.S. mainland. / AP-Yonhap



By Kim Rahn





North Korea test-fired another ballistic missile Monday, defying the Moon Jae-in government's call for the resumption of dialogue and humanitarian aid.

The missile, presumed to be a Scud, flew about 450 kilometers eastward from a site in Wonsan, Gangwon Province, at 5:39 a.m., according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

This was the North's third missile launch since Moon took office May 10, and the ninth this year.

Moon ordered a National Security Council meeting, which was presided over by National Security Office head Chung Eui-yong.

Tokyo also confirmed and denounced the missile test, saying it fell into Japan's exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The U.S. Pacific Command said the ballistic missile flew for about six minutes before landing in the East Sea.

North Korea's Scud missiles are known to have a range of 300 to 500 kilometers, mainly targeting South Korea. Pyongyang has been developing a variant of the Scud as well as intermediate-range ballistic missiles and intercontinental ballistic missiles.

The missile tests are embarrassing South Korea's liberal President who has taken a softened stance toward the North compared to his predecessors Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye.












Former Unification Minister Park Jae-kyu, now Kyungnam University president, speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at his office in Samcheong-dong, Seoul, Friday. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul



The Korea Times interviewed former Unification Minister and Kyungnam University President Park Jae-kyu, an architect of the first inter-Korean summit in June 2000 between then-President Kim Dae-jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Park gave advice to the Moon Jae-in administration, which is expected to uphold the legacies of former liberal leaders Kim and Roh Moo-hyun.  Ed.



Ex-Unification Minister urges President Moon to send special envoy to North korea

Q. President Moon Jae-in emphasizes that he will carry forth the late Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun's engagement policy toward North Korea. Considering the difference between North Korea under Kim Jong-il and under Kim Jong-un, what points should be taken into account when dealing with today's situation?

A. During the Kim Jong-il regime, the nuclear and missile issues were less menacing, and negotiations were underway to resolve the issues.

However, since 2008, the Republic of Korea (ROK)and U.S. governments have taken a hardline toward North Korea, with no policy space or flexibility to pursue dialogue and negotiations, and a two track' policy variously could not be promoted.

The new government should restore trust between the two Koreas through step-by-step measures such as inter-Korean dialogue, and improve inter-Korean relations in a comprehensive manner.

In particular, in the Kim Jong-un era, various measures should be taken to solve the North Korean nuclear and missile issues, and efforts should be made in close cooperation with neighboring countries such as the U.S. and China.

Q. President Moon Jae-in referred to his government's top priority in formulating its North Korea policy as normalizing and restoring inter-Korean relations. Please explain the normalization and restoration' level that is being considered.

Do you think it is possible to normalize and restore' relations in view of the North Korean provocations and the situation in Northeast Asia? When do you expect such to be possible?

A. It is desirable that normalization and restoration of inter-Korean relations should be accomplished with confidence through a step-by-step and comprehensive approach, as the Moon Jae-in government emphasizes, rather than through a breakthrough and grand bargain.

It is important not to rush the inter-Korean relations so that we do not become disheartened, and it is important to push ahead continuously.

In other words, it is relatively less problematic to go ahead with sociocultural and humanitarian activities like providing medicines for the vulnerable such as infants and the elderly in North Korea, humanitarian aid, and reunions of separated families.

Normalization and restoration of inter-Korean relations is impossible without a basis of mutual trust. It is desirable to distinguish between issues that need to be addressed in the short term and issues that need to be strategically approached from a long-term perspective.

In order to begin to improve relations through restoration of trust, low-level sociocultural exchanges and cooperation should be restarted and gradually expanded in scale and scope.

The Panmunjom communication channel between the two Koreas should be restored and put into operation as soon as possible.

Following these measures and the dispatch of special envoys to the U.S., China, Japan, and Russia, a special envoy should be dispatched to North Korea to discuss inter-Korean relations issues, including the nuclear issue. In order to move toward normalization and restoration of full-fledged inter-Korean relations, talks should be held between the authorities of the two Koreas.

Q. There is a proposal of a two-track' approach to contribute to resolving the nuclear issue through humanitarian assistance, cultural exchange, and reunion of separated families, as well as through cooperation with the U.S. and China in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue. What do you think should be kept in mind to balance this?

A. As the Moon Jae-in government works to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue, we will be able to make a significant turning point in the progress of inter-Korean relations as well as foreign policy.

The North Korean nuclear issue should be approached in a two-track' way, where negotiations along with sanctions and pressure are used to find a solution.

Recently, former U.S. Secretary of Defense William J. Perry and even experts from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington emphasized that the U.S. should resolve the North Korean nuclear issue in a two-track' manner.

If North Korea's nuclear and missile problems are not resolved, the Moon Jae-in government will not be able to strongly pursue exchanges and cooperation between the two Koreas, given the international community's robust sanctions on North Korea and the sentiments of the Korean people.

If Pyongyang cannot make a breakthrough in solving the nuclear and missile issues, it will not be easy for large-scale inter-Korean economic cooperation projects to go forward, especially the restart of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex (GIC) or the resumption of tourism to Mt. Geumgang.

Therefore, through low-level exchanges and cooperation that do not directly finance North Korea's nuclear and missile development, it is necessary to first establish a trusting atmosphere between the two Koreas, to lead the progress of resolving the nuclear and missile issues, and to enhance the level of exchanges and cooperation. We can find a method to balance how to raise the level of cooperation.

Q. During the George W. Bush administration in the U.S., the Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun governments experienced relatively rough relations with the U.S. on the North Korea issue. Do you think the current Moon Jae-in administration will inevitably clash with the U.S. on North Korea policy? Based on past experience, what strategies should be used to avoid friction?

A. Since the door is open for dialogue to achieve peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and the denuclearization of North Korea, I do not think the Donald Trump administration will unilaterally close that door.

So far, the Donald Trump government's North Korea policy does not seem to be contrary to the two-track policy of the Moon Jae-in government of pursuing sanctions and pressure alongside dialogue and cooperation.

In particular, the Donald Trump administration has a strong will to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.

Through negotiations for the denuclearization of North Korea we should look for a turning point in the resolution of the nuclear and missile issues by establishing points of mutual trade-off, such as the halting of North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile tests and controlling of the level of U.S.-ROK military exercises.

President Donald Trump also told South Korea's special presidential envoy that Washington is willing to make peace through engagement with Pyongyang if the conditions are right, which shows willingness to resolve the problem.

In the wake of U.S. publically-made promises to guarantee North Korea's system, North Korea should develop momentum for its own development and resume dialogue while suspending its nuclear and missile tests.

If North Korea trusts South Korea and the U.S. and comes to the dialogue with earnest attitude, there will be a new start, and it is necessary to make good use of this opportunity for change.

Q. The U.S. and South Korea have agreed to hold a summit at the end of June and President Donald Trump has raised issues including increasing defense and THAAD cost sharing, and the renegotiation of the U.S.-ROK Free Trade Agreement. Can you provide possible scenarios to resolve these issues?

Do you think it is possible for the U.S. to pursue U.S.-DPRK Peace Agreement or opt to put pressure on the Moon government with "Korea passing" if no agreement is reached during the summit? Do you agree or disagree? Please explain.

A. The ROK and U.S. governments will continue to consult on a number of issues, but most importantly, policy should be decided and pursued based on the general consensus of the people.

These issues should not serve as obstacles to the ROK-U.S. relations, especially the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue and establishing the peace process on the Korean Peninsula.

I think that the two countries will find a way to resolve these issues that secure their own national interests, but at the same time make appropriate compromises that take into account the long-term bilateral partnership.

Regardless whether these issues are well negotiated or not, it is unlikely that the Trump administration will make unilateral decisions related to the Korean Peninsula by negotiating with North Korea or China directly, excluding South Korea.

President Donald Trump told the South Korean special envoy that he looked forward to working closely with President Moon to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue.

The issues pertaining to the Korean Peninsula can no longer be swayed by a unilateral decision  compromise or pressure  of any one country.

If the negotiations are based on public interest and support during the mutual negotiation process, it is unlikely to result in a biased and unilateral negotiation.

A reasonable compromise can be reached if the negotiation process is carried out through the public opinion and consensus-building efforts domestically.

Q. Both South Korea and the U.S. have expressed the possibility of resuming dialogue with North Korea, but there are controversies over its conditions. Do you think there is room for narrowing the gap between South and North Korea, South Korea and the U.S., and North Korea and the U.S.? Why do you think so?

A. The U.S. is five months into the Donald Trump administration. The administration has displayed a visible intention to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue. With this fact and the new Moon Jae-in administration in South Korea, I believe a feasible condition can be created to switch to a policy of dialogue and negotiations.

Recently, a 1.5-track dialogue between the U.S. and North Korea took place. Comments from senior U.S. officials suggest that there is a change in attitude  from one-sided sanctions and pressure to making peace with North Korea by providing regime security and intervention  to engender change in North Korea and for the suspension of nuclear and missile tests.

Q. There are concerns that U.N. sanctions on North Korea currently in force may become an obstacle to reopen the GIC and the Mt. Geumgang tourism. Do you think we should resume these programs from the standpoint of normalization and restoration of inter-Korean relations? What mechanism do you think should come first in order to alleviate international concern over the resumption of these programs?

A. Normalization and restoration of inter-Korean relations should be progressively pursued through step-by-step measures to restore trust and improve relations between the two Koreas.

In order to promote normalization and restoration of inter-Korean relations, step-by-step and comprehensive approaches are needed to restart the GIC and resume tourism to Mt. Geumgang.

North Korea has suffered U.N. sanctions put in place by the international community including the U.S. due to the North's nuclear program and provocations. However, the GIC and Mt. Geumgang tourism are a difficult question because the two Koreas have agreed to establish a foundation for peace and unification.

If GIC operations are not reopened and if Mt. Geumgang tourism is not resumed, my sense tells me that inter-Korean relations will not be restored.

If the complex does not reopen and the tours do not resume, then it may demonstrate the limits of the two Koreas' capabilities toward unification, and thus makes it difficult to say what will happen with relations in the future.

In order to resume the operation of the GIC and tourism to Mt. Geumgang, it is necessary to establish a situation in which inter-Korean issues are resolved to some extent.

In this way, it will be possible to dispel concerns and persuade the international community of the importance of inter-Korean relations.

Progress in inter-Korean relations can play a role in promoting resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue and change in North Korea.

In order to induce positive change, methods need to change to seek developmental alternatives different from the past.
By Yi Whan-woo





Organizing Committee Chairman and Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong

The 12th Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity can provide a breakthrough in Korea-China relations following Beijing's economic retaliation against Seoul over deployment of a U.S. missile shield, according to Organizing Committee Chairman Won Hee-ryong.

Won also says his special dialogue session with France's former Minister of State for State Reform and Simplification Jean-Vincent Place, scheduled from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on June 2, can provide momentum for Korea to capitalize on the Fourth Industrial Revolution to bolster democracy.

"I believe we, through this forum, can find a breakthrough on Seoul-Beijing ties frayed by the installation of a U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in Korea," he said during a recent interview.

Beijing views THAAD as U.S. deterrence against a rising China, not against Pyongyang's ballistic missile threats, as Washington has assured.












By Kim Hyo-jin





Anibal Cavaco Silva Megawati Sukarnoputri Punsalmaagiin Ochirbat

Former heads of state are expected to share their visions to tackle global issues and promote cooperation at the World Leaders' Session of the 12th Jeju Forum for Peace and Propserity on June 1.

During the session scheduled for 11 a.m. to noon, Portugal's former President and Prime Minister Anibal Cavaco Silva will discuss how to understand the current trends that are uniquely characterized by growing calls for nationalism and protectionism.

Attention is high on the message to be delivered by the ex-leader who backed European integration, especially as Britain's exit from the bloc looms.

Silva, while prime minister in 1986, led Portugal to join the 12-nation European Community (EC), the predecessor of the European Union (EU). The former EC president played a leading role in drawing up the Maastricht Treaty that laid the groundwork for the EU in 1992.












By Steve Tharp





Since the early 2000s, South Korea has been awash in its new friendly relations with China as Koreans rapidly increased their contacts with the Middle Country through the study of Mandarin and the increase in commercial and cultural contacts. Some good will hunting took place at the expense of the Korean-American alliance which reached an all-time low in December 2002. Koreans were ready to rethink the issue of alliance partners as pointed out in March 2005 by Chan Yul Yoo in his article "Anti-American, pro-Chinese sentiment in South Korea" (East Asia: An International Quarterly). By the middle of the first decade of the 21st century, it was becoming harder for South Koreans to distinguish between friend and foe with regards to the Chinese and Americans.

Lately, however, friction has become the norm for many reasons. China appeared to side with North Korea's deadly attacks on the South in 2010. Poaching by Chinese fishermen in South Korean waters has become not only more widespread but has led to violent clashes with deaths on both sides. Other issues include the bad behavior of Chinese tourists and the Chinese repatriation of North Korean defectors back to the North. These issues pale in comparison to the recent Chinese retribution over the South's decision to deploy U.S. THAAD units here to defend against the North's missile threat. Accordingly, China, South Korea's largest trading partner, has targeted South Korean businesses in China, especially Lotte, for punishment via boycotts and business shutdowns in order to pressure the South Korean government to reverse its decision on the THAAD deployment. This has been accompanied by a shutdown of Chinese tourists to South Korea which is dealing a blow to the local service economy vis-a-vis duty-free shops, restaurants and hotels in South Korea. Myeong-dong's empty cosmetic shops clearly exemplify the effect of this tourist boycott. The Korea Export-Import Bank estimates these Chinese actions might cost Korea economic losses amounting to over 16 trillion won. Anti-China protests have occurred in the South in response but it is still uncertain how deep these feelings run.

The irony here is that South Korea has a million reasons to be thankful to China. According to Ministry of Justice figures, there are around one million Chinese residents in the South. About two-thirds are ethnic Korean-Chinese and one-third Han Chinese with most residing in the Greater Seoul Metropolitan Area within range of North Korean artillery and rocket systems. By contrast, there is only a small Chinese community of perhaps 10,000 to 20,000 living in North Korea in either Pyongyang or near the Sino-Korean border; not a significant wartime factor.

Among the many reasons for China to deter North Korea from starting a war, protecting its citizens is certainly near the top of the list. Regardless of the type of weapons used, many Chinese citizens will surely be killed and wounded during any large-scale conflict on the peninsula. If North Korea dips into its suspected stockpile of more than 5,000 tons of chemical weapons, chemical attacks on Seoul, where very few of the population have protective masks, could cause millions of casualties within a very short period after the initiation of conflict. Kim Jong-un has already shown a capacity to use nerve gas as illustrated by the recent murder of half-brother at the Kuala Lumpur Airport. The sheer number of Chinese living in and around Seoul might deter North Korea from use of WMD weapons rather than risk a northern front via a Chinese attack.

Civilian casualties are not the only issue for China. The PRC and ROK Ministry of Justice will also have to tackle the problem of evacuating one million Chinese citizens prior to or during combat operations on the Korean Peninsula? The United States, the only foreign country with troops on the ground in Korea, has about 140,000 total citizens here (3rd behind China and Vietnam). The U.S. military periodically practices evacuating its non-combatants and understands the different aspects of the issue and how long the evacuation might last. The Chinese would need to evacuate more than seven times that of the Americans but with no one on the ground to facilitate planning and execution simultaneous with other nations evacuating their citizens. Although China has a large civilian fleet nearby, an evacuation effort would take time and result in a significant loss of life in light of ongoing ground, air and naval combat in the area.

By contrast, there is only a small Chinese community in North Korea according to the World Fact Book. While difficult to find an exact number, it appears to be perhaps 10,000 to 20,000 who mostly live in either Pyongyang or near the Sino-Korean border; a factor that facilitates their evacuation and limits their exposure to the violence of war. Their presence will have a minor impact, at most, on the ROK-U.S. alliance's military operations.

Given the deterrence factor that this large number of local Chinese residents could represent, I think South Koreans have a million reasons to be thankful to China.

Steve Tharp is a retired U.S. Army officer who served 26 years with the U.S. military in Korea, to include six years as a U.N. Command negotiator at Panmunjeom. He is currently writing a series of DMZ tourism books. Write to daraemm@gmail.com.
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Crew Energy Inc. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (NGL) in Canada. It primarily holds interests in Septimus, West Septimus, Groundbirch/Monias, Tower, and Attachie, areas located in the southwest, south, and west of Fort St. John in British Columbia. As of December 31, 2021, the West Septimus area had proved plus probable reserves of 51,559.2 thousand barrels (Mbbl) of NGL and 893,110 million cubic feet (Mmcf) of conventional natural gas; the Septimus area comprised of proved plus probable reserves of 4,257.6 Mbbl of light and medium crude oil, and 11,568.9 Mbbl of NGL along with 368,407 Mmcf of conventional natural gas; the Groundbirch/Monias area had total proved plus probable reserves of 9,500.5 Mbbl of NGL and 461,168 Mmcf of conventional natural gas; the Tower area comprised proved plus probable reserves of 1,599.2 Mbbl of light and medium crude oil, 619.2 Mbbl of NGL, and 23,364 Mmcf of conventional natural gas; and the Attachie area comprised proved plus probable reserves of 6,753.4 Mbbl of NGL and 164,970 Mmcf of conventional natural gas The company was incorporated in 2003 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.
Ghanaian celebrity lawyer, Sandra Ankorbiah, has been featured on Morgan Lewis' online portal as one of the young emerging women leaders of the world.

Morgan Lewis & Bockius is a global law firm with large followers. It is the largest firm in America and one of the five largest firms in the world.

Among its clients, they serve as tax counsel to United States President Donald Trump and the Trump Organisation since 2005. The firm received the 2016 Russia Law Firm of the Year Award.

Morgan Lewis Chair Jami McKeon welcomed the Ghanaian lawyer Sandra Ankobiah to the firm earlier this month as part of Fortune's annual Global Women's Mentorship programme, a public-private partnership with the US State Department and the Vital Voices Global Partnership.

The programme connects leading female executives from around the world to help empower the next generation of women to bring positive change to their companies and communities.

One of only 21 international businesswomen selected to participate in this year's initiative, Ms Ankobiah serves as a legal aid officer for the International Federation of Women Lawyers, a non-governmental organisation that promotes and enhances the welfare of indigent women and children through legal aid and counselling services.

Morgan Lewis portal spoke about Sandra as the CEO and co-founder of SN Media Learning Tree, a media training facility.

Ms Ankobiah spent two weeks in Morgan Lewis's Philadelphia, Boston, and New York offices meeting with executive leadership, as well as lawyers from across the firm to share best practices and organisational and management skills and discuss a range of key topics, from the importance of leadership, business development, and financial planning in law firm management, to developing a pro bono portfolio.

I am proud to have supported the Global Women's Mentorship programme as a mentor for the third straight year, Ms McKeon said.

Women like Sandra are critically important to the future. We stand in awe of what she and the programme's other mentees already have accomplished. Our investment in them is an investment in all of us, and in a more cohesive and unified world.
29.05.2017 LISTEN

Granted that we have all the requisite tools in fighting corruption in all sectors of the Ghanaian economy, combined with the inadvertent tool that is wittingly or unwittingly been added to our arsenal, we have no excuse if we fail to fight and eliminate corruption in our midst. We have the BNI, EOCO, POLICE, ARMY and a willing mass of people that can march to present evidence of corruption to an institution set up to fight the same menace of corruption as we all saw on Friday the 26th May, 2017.

In the presence of all these tools, the questions we need to ask ourselves is this, why have successive governments failed to fight and reduce corruption? Why is corruption so prevalent in our society? The answer, I believe is simple, "a thief cannot catch a thief man" All the institutions set up to fight corruption are corrupt themselves, so how can they function well in their assigned roles?

Look at the so-called BNI, it is so corrupt that it was willing and managed to protect a criminal, yes not an ordinary criminal but a murderer of a sitting MP. We all saw and read what happened when the killer of J.B. Danka Ado was arrested by the police, this guy started singing like a canary bird ( To borrow but Kuku Anidoho's term). He confessed that they were contracted to kill the man by somebody in high place who hired his accomplice and drove him to show him where the MP lived. Sexy dondon said that his accomplice then after being shown the house of JB by the so-called man in high place, came to recruit him to help him execute the task. He even mentioned what he used some of his recruitment fee for. Then all of a sudden, the BNI took over the case and the next day, sexy dondon started changing his story as was directed by the BNI, now nobody hired them to kill JB but rather it was an attempted robbery that went bad. How on earth can an institution that was set up to unearth hidden truth itself help people who wanted to tell the truth conceal the truth? This one case shows the extent to which the BNI is a rotten institution undeserved of the tax payers money. In fact, I am even surprised that all the top brass are still at post given the way they have proven to be corrupt.

In fact, one of the major tools we have at our disposal in fighting corruption which we have failed to deploy is something called surplus labor. If I am not mistaken, I would say that, people seeking job are more than those employed by the government now. For every one accountant employed now, there are about three equally qualified accountants unemployed. This tool is so sharpened that, we even have unemployed graduate association in Ghana that we can tap into to replace corrupt guys.

It is up to the government to be firm and tell those lucky to be employed that they are privileged to be where they are and if they can not endear themselves very well and adhere to the basic tenets of their jobs, then they risk being fired and replaced with a willing unemployed person. In fact, with the slightest perception of corruption, people must be interdicted and immediately replaced whiles investigation goes on. This is the only way people would sit up and be serious with their jobs.

Government, if they were serious in fighting corruption would begin to issue ultimatum to agencies to work to clear all backlogs in two months or risk mass termination. If any serious government issues a two months ultimatum to ECG to clear all outstanding meter and billing issues or risk mass firing, I bet you that ECG would become a profitable institution in two months. The same must go to Lands commission, passport office, regitrar of companies, SIC, TOR, and indeed all government agencies and departments.

If a teacher is not going to school to teach and yet getting his/her paycheck alright, fire him/her and replace him with an unemployed teacher, after all, there are thousands of qualified teachers seeking jobs. The same must go for our nurses,

I do not see why we all cry loud about corruption yet we leave corrupt people at post whilst some good people equally qualified roam the street unemployed. The solution is to crack the whip. fire and replace people and those lucky to be working would know that they cannot take their jobs for a spin.
Minister of Aviation, Ms Cecilia Abena Dapaah, has asked foreign companies that supply high-tech equipment to the airline industry in Ghana to train Ghanaians in the maintenance of such equipment to cut down cost.

Many a time, we have to fly down technicians from abroad to come and fix the least problem when there is a fault with an equipment, she said.

Ms Dapaah said this during an interaction with the Spanish Ambassador to Ghana, Ms Maria Alonso, and the Head of the Economic and Commercial Office of the Spanish Embassy, Ms Celia Perez, when they paid a courtesy call on her in her office in Accra.

Reason for visit

The Spanish delegation had approached the Minister for Aviation about a Spanish multinational technology company, Indra, which has been contracted by the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) to deploy an automatic air traffic management and surveillance systems at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA).

The air traffic and surveillance devices installation is part of efforts by the government to modernise the countrys air traffic management system.

The automated management system is to cover air traffic control en route, on approach and landing, as well as the entire oceanic sector.

It will also support search and rescue operations within the Accra Flight Information Region (FIR) and check-in services for airlines.

The government contracted Indra in 2016 to install a number of workstations for use as stimulators for the training of air traffic controllers.

It also provided the GCAA Training Academy with an air traffic simulator, featuring 3D control tower visuals and en-route air traffic control workstations, and has been helping the GCAA to maintain and improve air traffic management safety standards in the country.

Safe airspace

Ms Dapaah said Ghanas aerospace was currently one of the best in the world and the country was not ready to compromise on its air safety record and standards.

Indra

The Spanish Ambassador said Indra, one of the leading providers of air traffic management and surveillance systems in the world, had over the years built a strong relationship with the GCAA as its main technology provider.

She said in the past, the Spanish Embassy had worked with the Ministry of Transport and the GCAA, but following the establishment of the Aviation Ministry, it had become necessary to build a relationship with the new ministry.

She accepted the proposal to include training and maintenance service in the contract arrangement.
Umuahia (Nigeria) (AFP) - Gabriel Ukuwagi was only 14 when he joined the Biafran army in 1967 to fight against Nigeria in a combat that was a foregone conclusion.

"They had jet fighters, we had machetes," he recalled.

The rebel province in southeast Nigeria declared independence on May 30, 1967, triggering a bitter civil war that would leave more than one million dead, most of them from famine and disease.

The head of Nigeria's military government, General Yakubu Gowon, vowed to crush the secessionists within three months and imposed a ruthless blockade.

In the end it would take him nearly three years to achieve his aim: the enemy would prove tough opponents for the federal troops, despite being outnumbered and under-equipped.

Many preferred to die rather than surrender.

The Igbo people, who are in the majority in the southeast, were traders, civil servants, doctors, engineers. Biafra gave them a new vocation: fighter.

The first bombardment of the federal army and the sight of "shredded bodies" and women crying made up Ukuwagi's mind.

He left for the front with thousands of other boys hardly older than him.

Pictures of famished children in Biafra stunned the world

"I never had a weapon in my hands. I had to learn from one day to the next," Ukuwagi, who is now a grandfather, recalled with a smile.

They had no inkling that the worst was yet to come.

The blockade prevented the fledgling nation from acquiring arms and food.

Thousands starved to death each day. Photographs of children with bulging eyes and skeletal bodies shocked the world, decades before the same images from famine in Ethiopia led to Live Aid.

Victories, disappointments

Fifty years on, a handful of civil war veterans still meet in the shade of a mango tree to sing the anthem of what was once their country: "The Land of the Rising Sun."

It's also the occasion to remember their victories and disappointments.

"It was an ugly experience," said major Ugboaja Onyemauchechukwu.

Now in his 70s, the proud former soldier lost the use of one arm from shrapnel and has undergone several operations. But he says he has "no regrets".

"At the beginning, most of weapons we used were captured from (federal troops)," he said.

Cut off from everything, the short-lived republic became resourceful.

A "red devil" armoured car used by Biafran forces during the Nigerian civil war

It created its own money, the Biafran pound, and made its own weapons.

Biafrans needed to be creative to hold out. Lorries were fitted with rusty sheets of metal to make armoured cars; small, two-seater tourist planes were reconfigured to drop bombs.

A research and production department was created, made up of engineers and scientists who made innovative home-made weapons.

They included mines, rifles, munitions, grenades and supposedly armoured vehicles that were dubbed "red devils", which are still on display in the war museum in Umuahia.

But the difference in firepower was too great. Nigeria, backed by the Soviet Union and Britain, won territory every day.

General Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, the head of the Biafran forces, had to move his headquarters twice, first from the capital, Enugu, to Umuahia, then to Owerri.

At the end of 1969, Biafra, secretly backed by France and a handful of African states, was a miniscule pocket of resistance barely a few square kilometres in size.

Colonel Levi O. Nosiri, 72, was at the last battle.

"We had no fear, we are Igbo," boasted the old man, who still wears his Biafran army uniform.

He was in charge of S Battalion, an infantry brigade. He lost his left eye and his younger brother.

"He died under my command...," he said.

Owerri fell on January 9, 1970 and with the subsequent surrender, Biafra was wiped off the map.

Separatism revival

Nosiri and his former brothers-in-arms still want independence from Nigeria, claiming they have been abandoned, despite Gowon's oft-repeated slogan of "no victor, no vanquished".

The old soldiers say the government in Abuja has never reconstructed the towns devastated by the war, where the slightest rain causes massive flooding and buildings threaten to collapse.

"Our children have no jobs, no hope here," said Nosiri, accompanied by the youngest of his daughters, aged 16. Such a view is fuelling the revival of the separatist calls.

"I'm ready to pick up arms," he said, his hand trembling and supporting himself with a stick.

"I cannot fight anymore but I can train young people."

Sitting next to him, major Marc Okoro nods his head nervously.

"No, I don't want them to suffer what I suffered," he says. "I don't want war any more."
Umuahia (Nigeria) (AFP) - Nnamdi Kanu walks slowly across the courtyard of his family home in Umuahia, southeast Nigeria, as a crowd of supporters in the red, black and green of the Biafran flag hail him as their saviour.

Eighteen months in custody does not appear to have affected his fight against Nigeria.

"I am more determined than ever," Kanu, who heads the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) movement, tells AFP calmly.

Kanu, who was released on bail at the end of April, still faces trial on treason charges.

But there is no question of his remaining silent as a key date approaches on Tuesday: the 50th anniversary of the declaration of an independent Republic of Biafra.

The secession of the Igbo people in the southeast sparked a bloody civil war that lasted nearly three years until 1970. More than one million people died of the effects of war, famine and disease.

Kanu says his aim is "civil disobedience until we get a referendum (on self-determination)", calling it "the only way forward".

'Deliberate' retribution

After the war, Biafra was reintegrated into Nigeria, an ethnic and religious hotch-potch of nearly 190 million people where sectarian tensions regularly flare.

But in "Igboland", the dream of independence never really disappeared, fuelled by a sense that the Nigerian government had abandoned them -- perhaps deliberately -- after the conflict.

Veterans and young supporters crowd around in turn to hear the bespectacled Kanu speak.

In the living room where he receives guests, a life-size painting covering an entire wall depicts the prodigal son in military uniform.

He variously denounces what he says are the "killings" and "rapes" of Igbos by the security forces, and President Muhammadu Buhari's "deliberate policy to impoverish the people".

Kanu, who is in his 40s, spent his childhood in Umuahia, which was the former Biafran capital, a stone's throw from the separatist forces' bunker, and was clearly no stranger to politics.

He refuses to give his exact age but as the eldest of five children, he grew up from a young age with stories from his father, who gave logistic support to the resistance.

'Demi-god persona'

Unknown to most Nigerians even two years ago, Kanu had long launched virulent diatribes against Nigeria from London, where he settled after his studies and founded the pirate radio station Radio Biafra in 2009.

He worked in real estate and campaigned on the airwaves at night. For a time he was a member of another pro-independence group, the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra.

He left MASSOB and founded IPOB in 2013.

Two years later at the World Igbo Congress in Los Angeles, Kanu crossed a line with an apparent call to take up arms. "We need guns and we need bullets," he said.

He was arrested at his hotel during a visit to Nigeria in October 2015.

Fred Anibeze, a Nigerian political scientist, called the arrest "unwarranted and uncalled for".

"He is using the Biafra struggle to garner cheap publicity for himself via broadcast from Radio Biafra, and this has been further buttressed with the demi-god persona he has been getting since his release," he told AFP.

Kanu's detention caused widespread anger among Igbos, and a series of protests calling for his release ended in bloodshed.

According to Amnesty International, Nigerian security forces killed at least 150 IPOB supporters in 2016. Abuja flatly rejects the claim.

For Don Okereke, a security analyst, Kanu "embodies aspirations of a new generation, more activist, more radical" than their elders, who fought in the war.

"He tells people just what they want to hear," he added.

Lost tribe of Israel

The extent of Kanu's support in the southeast of the country is difficult to gauge but his followers have virtually worshipped him since his release on bail.

Kanu does not do anything to stop the myth-making and is protected round the clock by an impressive security detail, who thoroughly search all his visitors.

Religion is ever-present in his speeches, and Kanu now wears the talit (Jewish prayer shawl) and observes the sabbath.

IPOB followers also wear the kippah (skullcap).

It all dates back to a "divine revelation" Kanu says he had during a trip to Jerusalem: the Igbo -- most of whom are Christian -- are descendents of a lost tribe of Israel, he says.

Biafra is the "promised land" and it is his mission to restore it.
OH GRANTED, OWUSU BEMPAH IS A PARAGON OF VIRTUE AND A SAINT OF OUR TIME! ALL AND SUNDRY MUST APPLAUD HIM FOR ESTABLISHING A CORRELATION BETWEEN THE ALLEGED GIFT OF PRESIDENT MAHAMA AND HIS BROTHER, IBRAHIM TO CAPTAIN SMART OF ADOM FM AND ELECTION 2016. I AM EQUALLY CURIOUS TO KNOW; IS THERE ANY SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OWUSU BEMPAHS INTRASINGENT STANCE AGAINST THE LATE PRESIDENT MILLS AND EX-PRESIDENT MAHAMAS GOVERNMENTS UNDER THE PRETEXT OF FONKAR AND LATER NDP AND HIS CURRENT POSITION UNDER PRESIDENT AKUFU-ADDO?

Joan of Arc otherwise known as Maid of Orleans was born in 1412 at the village of Domremy in northern France. She was born during the 100 Years War between France and England. England was defeating France and the latters hope of victory appeared to be a bootless errand due to a peace treaty concluded in 1420. Per this treaty, Charles of Valois, a crown prince of France lost legitimacy to rule France. Henry V was therefore crowned a ruler of both England and France. He was succeeded by his son Henry VI in 1422. Under the alliance with French allies led by Phillip of Good, duke of Burgundy (in France), England occupied northern France near Domremy (Joans hometown) which compelled the villagers to leave the place.

Joan of Arc who was without any military training told the embattled French crown prince, Charles of Valois that she had received a divine direction from God to lead France to victory. Joan was a devout catholic. Joan translated her vision into reality and, in a war that ensued, France inflicted a catastrophic defeat on England and captured city of Orleans under her command. After she assisted in crowning Prince Charles as French monarch: Charles VII, Joan was captured by Anglo-Burgundian forces and accused of witchcraft and heresy. She was burnt at stake in 1431 at the age of 19. Burgundians were French citizens who took solace in the fall of France. They accused Joan of witchcraft for liberating her country. They also master-minded her death. Today, Joan is cerebrated as a Saint in France. Discerning readers can follow this link: http://www.history.com/topics/saint-joan-of-arc

There are a lot of Burgundian spirit Ghanaians who have a registered oath in heaven (Abraham Lincoln) to destroy the country. Captain Smart with the spirit of Joan of Arc is attempting to liberate his country and what is Owusu Bempah saying? That he has no locus standi to preach against corruption because he received a gift from President Mahama and his brother? Owusu Bempah, which moral philosophy posits that individuals alleged to engage in corruption have no moral right to complain about corruption? Why did you wait to accuse the broadcast journalist now as sanctimonious and priggish as you claim to be? Mr. Bempah, you cannot just be trusted: this is a mere character assassination! I suggest to you!

Oh granted, Owusu Bempah is a paragon of virtue and a saint of our time! All and sundry must applaud him for establishing a correlation between the alleged gift of president Mahama and his brother, Ibrahim to Captain Smart of Adom fm and election 2016. I am equally curious to know; is there any significant relationship between Owusu Bempahs intransigent stance against the late President Mills and ex-president Mahamas governments under the pretext of Friends of Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings (FONKAR) and later National Democratic Party (NDP) and his current position under president Akufu-Addo? What exonerates Owusu Bempah from the fact that he is not attacking Captain Smart under the behest of some unscrupulous and unseen cretins in our national discourse? The journalist is acting on Auditor-Generals report and what a hell are you talking about? Some of us are interested in the substance of the issue not his (Captain Smart) private relationship with ex-President Mahama and his family. Receiving gift is his (Captain Smarts) personal choice Owusu Bempah has no control over.

Apart from financial misappropriation charges against some officials per age-long Auditor-Generals report, just look at the salaries of Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of State institutions in a country which struggles to support her own budget. In my article entitled: President Akufu-Addo and Ghost Names: Observers Appraisal, I hinted that The CEO of COCOBOD takes home GHS 75,102 ($18,096.7), his deputy GHS 42,000 ($10,120) per month. Other monthly salaries are, The Governor of Bank of Ghana: GHS 89,909 ($21,664.8), the CEO of Ghana Revenue Authority: GHS 88,102 ($21,229.3), SSNIT CEO: GHS 76,606 ($18,459.2), CEO of Agricultural Development Bank: GHS 68,707 ($16,555), CEO of National Investment Bank: GHS 65000 ($15662), CEO of Bulk oil storage and transportation company limited: GHS 62,000 ($14,939.7), CEO of TOR:GHS 56,000 ($13,493.9), CEO of Ghana Commercial Bank: GHS 55000 ($13,253.0) and CEO of EOCO: GHS 44909 ($10821.4). (Source: Nana Yaw Osei, peacefmonline.com May 4, 2017). The author went further to compare the monthly salary of the Governor of South African Reserve Bank with Bank of Ghanas Governor. The Governor of Bank of Ghanas monthly pay is $ 21664.8 while his counterpart in Republic of South Africa takes home about $6500 a month. Even the President himself takes home about $7000 a month. Inspite of these huge salaries which they retire with, every year Auditor-Generals report indicts them of financial misappropriation and overspending.

Teachers, Police officers, army officers, Prison officers and nurses after 25 years of serving Ghana receive a pension lumpsum less than one month salary of the CEO of social security and national insurance trust (SSNIT). How many unemployed youths/graduates could be employed by simply reducing the salaries of the CEOs of public institutions? You may disagree with Captain Smart but he must be commended. Ghana media is now doing fantastic job. Let us correct our systems and give hope for the unborn generation.

Owusu Bempah, Silence is golden. Owusu Bempah: Boys abr3 Girls Abr3 your national effusion about Captain Smart is needless! Besides, Certitude is not the test of certainty. We have been cocksure of many things that were not so (Oliver Wendell Holmes Jnr, US Supreme Court Judge). Suffice it to observe that in the general qualities of rational thinking and justice no Ghanaian is above the other teaming compatriots. Somebody steals a goat and he is condemned into incarceration. Others duped the country millions of dollars and we treat them with kid groves.

There are more jobs to be done in the country. One CEO receives a huge salary that not even F. W Taylor (Father of scientific management), or Henri Fayol will deserve while graduate nurses and teachers are told, there is no money to employ them. Captain Smart must be treated as a liberator. If he dies today, like John Brown of American history fame, his body will lie a-mouldering in the grave but his soul will go marching on! The soul of patriotism and political correctness in Ghanaian national discourse. Captain Smart, Aluta Continua!!!!!!! God Bless Our Homeland Ghana and Make Us Cherish Fearless Honesty.

By Nana Yaw Osei (Padigo)
Timeline: 2335 hours, May 28, 2017, City of Ogden, State of Utah, USA. Ensconced in the comfortable cranny of this hotel, Nigeria is on my mind.

In about 24 hours from now, President Mohammadu Buhari would have spent exactly 730 days in office. Yes, two solid years of anomie.

As usual the "Administration" would make efforts to celebrate. The representatives, officials, sympathizers and apologists of this tragedy euphemized as an "Administration" would grasp any type of straw, wrap such in tritely and tasteless stew of tortuous propaganda to convince the rest of us that we have never had it so good!

But what History has taught us is that the success or otherwise of a government, whether in a democracy or not, is measured by the welfare of the ordinary man on the street. And what the evidence says is that the people have never had it so bad! As far as this writer is concerned, that is the only measurement that counts.

However, one would take a look at other interesting areas, lest we forget the tormenting trajectory of the last 730 days.

ECONOMIC WOES:

It doesn't really matter what someone like me writes on this subject, the taste of the pudding is always in the eating. The ordinary people on the streets of Itire, Mushin, Ijebu Ode, Akure, Benin, Port Harcourt, Calabar, Uyo, Enugu, Owerri, Gboko, Makurdi, Kano, Zaria, Kaduna, Gombe, Ilorin, Jebba and all over the country are the true judges of Buhari's government in this respect as in many others.

The worsened and still worsening conditions of their daily lives are attestations to the fact that they have been befallen by unfathomable tragedies. Hunger, want, chronic poverty, misery, frustration and desperation are all over the corners and crevices of the country. Buhari and his gang of bandits did not only fail to meet Nigerians' aspirations, they have destroyed hope and confidence in the country called Nigeria.

In the absence of salaries, prices have skyrocketed. Untimely death caused by hunger is now rampant. Increase in suicide of different natures by different age groups has reached a disturbing level. Buhari still has no answer, two years on.

WAR ON CORRUPTION:

The template on which former President Goodluck Jonathan was roundly rejected by Nigerians who opted for a Candidate they had previously rejected three times is fight against corruption. It turned out that Nigerians made one of the greatest mistakes since 1960 by giving President Buhari a chance.

It also turned out that Nigerians have chased away pickpockets, ordinary street urchins in exchange for organized crime organization akin to a mafia. The Buhari led "administration" turned out to be armed bandits, stealing left right and centre. Using a word such as "impunity" to describe their unrestrained kleptomania is to unwittingly ascribe a different meaning to that disconcerting word.

Buhari who admitted that he came into office, sponsored with stolen money insisted he would not probe his ATM. And we all know who that is!

President Buhari himself, invested with fake integrity, turned out to be odiously untruthful in his dealing with Nigerians. He failed to publicly declare his assets as he promised.The snippets released by his spokesman, Garba Shehu showed that, with due respects, Buhari is a liar. Buhari who was sold to Nigerians as having no landed properties outside Katsina or Daura suddenly have them in Abuja, Kaduna and Port Harcourt!

Buhari had told Nigerians that no one would serve in his government if such would or could not declare their assets. He could not even make a dog in his "administration" declare any bone, not to speak of making his Cabinet members declare their assets as he promised to do. He broke so many promises and even denied making some.

The man, falsely believed by many to have high octane intolerance for corruption, (though many Nigerians such as this writer knew Buhari has always been corrupt from the get-go), became the public defender-in-chief for crooks, thieves and criminals in his government. For someone who told the world that Sanni Abacha never stole a dime of Nigeria's money, this could not have been a strange behavior.

President Buhari refused to sack those responsible for budget padding and redeployed the culprits to different desks so they could continue their heinous acts. He let his Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari be after receiving N500m bribe. But that's what Nigerians focused on. Mr. Kyari is reportedly engaged in a more egregious acts as an influential Board Member of the NNPC!

Buhari defended Tukur Buratai, his Chief of Army Staff. He vouched for Abdurahman Dambazzau, the man who reportedly took over $450 m while serving GEJ and never accounted for a dime of it. Then, there was

Babichir Lawal, the grass cutter Secretary to the Federal Government. Buhari wrote a 13 page defence of this alleged thief to the Senate!

Up till tomorrow, Buhari, the so-called "man of integrity," who promised an open government, is yet to tell Nigerians whether he has paid the N25m loan he took to buy his nomination form or not. And if he did, when and with how much interest? If not, what is the status of the loan and how much interest has climbed it? Though, it turned out that he was not as poor as he made the world believed because Shehu Garba told Nigerians that Buhari had tens of millions in the Union Bank!

THE EFCC CHARADE:

President Buhari and his anchor man at Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu are now the butts of jokes across the planet wherever you find Nigerians or "friends" of Nigeria discussing the unfolding malady on the Nigerian pedestal of opprobrium.

All Buhari and his EFCC have done so far are media trials of suspected corrupt people. After two years of what appeared to be a fake War on corruption, not a rat has been convicted so far. Magu and his henchmen have demonstrated over and over, their dexterity at losing corruption cases, ingenuity at withdrawing them from courts, and confounding but shameless disinterest in trying many cases at all.

The EFCC has become an instrument of political persecution of those who are not members of his party. Those smart thieves in PDP have begun to decamp to APC to escape persecution and or prosecution. It is now widely agreed that the War on Corruption is the greatest joke ever played on Nigerians.

TYRANNY:

President Buhari, true to his character has been tyrannical in the last two years. He acted above the law several times by engaging in and or encouraging extra judicial acts of killing as in the cases of Kaduna Shiites, IPOB freedom fighters, Southern Kaduna Christians among many others. He flouted Court orders several times on Sambo Dasuki, Nnamdi Kanu and seem comfortable on the invasion of judges' homes in the name of fake War on Corruption.

He also appears to enjoy the mayhem, murders, maiming, raping and arson being inflicted by his Fulani tribesmen across the country. As this is being written, President Buhari has not deemed it fit to address the Country on these issues that have taken the lives of many Nigerians. He has no sympathy or any modicum of humaneness to show any of the victims, many of those who probably voted for him.

The Yoruba in particular, have never had it so bad on their land. Many Yoruba were burnt alive in Ketu and their properties vandalized without any reprieve. Yoruba were attacked in Ile-Ife, the spiritual home of Yoruba and innocents beheaded in and on our own land as if we are in Iraq or Afghanistan. Chief Olu Falae was kidnapped. His security was murdered in a follow up attack. Farms acro Yoruba land and elsewhere in the East and Middlebelt were destroyed at will.

The Ile-Ife attacks on Yoruba people, on their land, saw only Yoruba youths being arrested with one of our Obas tow, while the Hausa Fulani culprits who fermented and fostered the Ife Massacre were let off the hook. If this is not TYRANNY, please, help me out!

FASHOLA, A MERCHANT OF DARKNESS:

It is a matter or disappointment for millions of Nigerians that their hope of getting stable electricity has receded into Neverland. The incompetence of Buhari could not have been better emblematized by Babatunde Fashola.

Fashola is at pain to explain how 5000mgwts have disappeared. Yet, acting without any let or hindrance, he exuded a disturbing level of coldness, cruelty and crookedness as he championed a conscienceless increase in tariffs for services that are not being delivered.

NEPOTISM:

Buhari does not believe in Nigeria as a country. He sees Nigeria as the inheritance of his Fulani tribesmen. Of the first 35 appointments, 25 of them went to the North. To boot, all the heads of security outfits are Hausa Fulani to further extend their hold on Nigeria and use the power of state to subjugate other Nigerians.

His relatives are the only competent hands he could find in Nigeria. It was, and still is, so bad that some Northern elites called it "the worst in Nigerian History." The following are the relatives of Buhari in government:

First, the most influential person in the Presidency today is one Mamman Daura whom as you know, is a nephew of the President. His father was Buharis elder brother;

Mamman Daura was the one who single handedly brought up Abba Kyari, the current Chief of Staff to the President. In fact, Abba Kyari knows Mamman Daura more than he knows his own father;

The Personal Assistant to Buhari himself is the son of Mamman Daura;

The SCOP, State Chief of Protocol, is also a son-in-law to Mamman Daura because he is married to Mamman Dauras daughter;

The Minister they unilaterally chose, against the interest of the party and against the wishes of Sokoto people, happens to be the daughter of the younger sister of Mamman Dauras wife. Both of them are daughters of Sultan Dasuki, who was sacked by General Abacha;

Aisha Abubakar  Minister for Trade, Industry and Investment. Her mother is Buharis sister.

The Aide De Camp to Buhari himself, Colonel Abubakar is Buharis nephew  in- law. He is married to the granddaughter of one of Buharis elder sisters.

The woman who represents Kaduna in the Federal Executive Council, she is a cousin to Kaduna State governor, Nasir el-Rufai. It is well known that el-Rufai is one of the closest governors to Muhammadu Buhari;

The Minister for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is the man called Musa Bello, who used to be the Managing Director of the Northern Nigeria Development Corporation, which used to be the biggest holding company that belonged to all the northern states. His only qualification to be FCT minister is the fact that his father has been Buharis friend over the years;

There is a young man called Sabiu Yusuf, nicknamed Tunde  probably because of late General Tunde Idiagbon. He is another PA to President Buhari. He is also a grandson of another sister of Buhari;

Hadi Sirika is the Federal Minister of Aviation. He is the son of Buharis elder sister.

Hadi Sirika has an elder sister  a niece of President Buhari. Her name is Amina Zakari. Amina Zakari, was and still a national commissioner in the Independent National Electoral Commission representing the entire seven states in the North-West. It is being claimed that Buhari knows nothing about her appointment (before he became President), it is a lie. When President Goodluck Jonathan was re-organising the INEC and he was bringing in Prof. Attahiru Jega, he reached out to Buhari and asked Buhari to nominate somebody from the North-West so that that person would be a national commissioner. Of all the people in the North-West, Buhari decided to nominate his own niece, the daughter of his elder sister- Amina Zakari. She has been there; when Jega left, Buhari was determined to make her chairman, it was because of the massive backlash that he dropped the idea like hot potatoes.

Today, that woman is a national commissioner which means she is one of the principal election umpires.  I have never heard of any dictator or any tyrant under any system of government whether totalitarian or fascist, appointing his own niece to conduct elections in which he was either a party or going to be a party to; Buhari has done that," Dr. Junaid Mohamed complained,

The immediate younger brother to Amina Zakari is currently the Minister for Water Resources representing Jigawa State in the same Buhari government.

The eldest sister of both of them is now the Commissioner for Education in the All Progressives Congress government in Jigawa State.

The Security appointments under the Buhari led APC government is nothing but corrupt. According to the PUNCH newspaper the following are self evident:

Army  North

NSA  North

EFCC  North

Defence  North

Airforce  North

Police  North

SCDC  North

DSS  North

NIS  North

NIP  North

FRSC  North

Fire Service  North

NEMA  North

Customs  North

Defence Staff  North

NIA  South

Navy  South and, if by any chance, you consider the Ports Administration as important to Security of the country  North.

BETRAYAL OF BOLA TINUBU:

This is one of the noxious feats attained by Buhari in the last two years. His divide and rule tactics have been deployed to castrate Tinubu politically.

One detests Tinubuism as a political idea and this is public knowledge. But one's heart still goes out to Alhaji Bola Ahmed Tinubu in commiseration for the current challenges he is facing. It could be very saddening and depressing to work so hard and be denied the fruits of your labour. But the unfolding tragedy is not unanticipated. He and his group were warned of the possible outcome of the gamble and the gambit deployed in producing the Buhari Presidency. He was so blinded by the pursuit of power that he failed to take cognisance of the lessons of history and take caution.

In the mercantilist environment that Tinubuism fosters, unhealthy competition is normally the order of the day. Backbiting, subversion, treachery, undermining, lies, deception, greed, avarice, covetousness, morbid and inordinate ambitions often rule the day. It is an every man for himself and God for us all kind of environment. There is no enduring loyalty. There is no perseverance and commitment. There is no sacrifice. There is no principle. Or if there is any principle at all, it is what is in it for me? This is why it is easier for his beneficiaries to break away from him without possible consequences as we are presently witnessing.

All this made it possible for Buhari to be ungrateful to Tinubu without any remorse. The cabal put together by Buhari has lined up "disciplinary measures" for Bola Tinubu, if he should show any "unwanted hand."

CONCLUSION:

On the whole, the last two years witnessed an uncoordinated demystification of the man called Buhari. All the tapestry of scintillating tissues of lies have been torn to tatters. The deodorized drapes of deception, duplicity and dubiousness have been drawn off the dizzying gazes of many gullible Nigerians.

Buhari's fake integrity, his duplicitous anti corruption stance, his condensed incompetence, contused (not confused) tribalism, the vacuity of his intellect and his glowing ignorance; all permeated with and by his unfettered but lacerating cruelty, coldness as well as meanness, generously sprinkled with odious and nauseating arrogance, conjoined with and or to catalytic contumacious sense of entitlement, have all combined to inflict untold misery and decapitating tragedy on Nigeria and it's peoples.

Nigerians are now divided more than ever. The future of the country has become more uncertain. There is mental and emotional agony on the streets. Apprehension pervades the entire atmosphere. Unless one is a party hack and or a direct or indirect beneficiary of the social, economic, religious and political anarchy that Buhari has engendered, there are causes for serious concern.

In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility  I welcome it.

- John F. Kennedy, in his Inaugural Address January 20, 1961

Please, follow me on Twitter: @OyeyemiRemi.
The systemic mistreatment and unlawful secret killings of African maids in general and Ghanaian maids in particular, in the Gulf States, is becoming much of a great concern warranting international investigation and condemnation. The Gulf States are Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The mistreatment and intentional killing of these innocent but vulnerable people by their cruel rich employers for the least or no offence committed is too obnoxious and beggars belief.

The Saudis are the worst of all yet, Islam, a religion that preaches love and admonishes the show of concern and care for the poor originated from their country. They believe in Allah and Prophet Mohammed yet, some of them mistreat and kill innocent law-abiding poor people come to their country to seek a better life by doing decent jobs. What a bunch of hypocrites they are in the faith that they submit to?

They have petroleum so they are filthy rich to have their way in everything, even to the point of killing and enslaving innocent poor African maids. However, they have forgotten that death also awaits them at a point in their life. Again, they have forgotten that petroleum could be an exhaustible commodity. They have further forgotten that there is a time and season for everything and that time changes.

It is pointless for me dwelling on chastising these Arabs that have no respect for the Blackman or Black African. I will rather turn the guns on my fellow African or Ghanaian leaders, the cause of all the ills the African suffers throughout the world. Most of our leaders, if not all of them, are corrupt, incompetent, lack farsightedness and inept at handling situations of critical concern like that of our enslaved, tortured, and murdered Ghanaian maids in the Gulf States.

If they had not misappropriated public funds as if tomorrow never comes, and continue to deplete the public coffers for their selfish ends, Africa which is naturally endowed with rich minerals, fertile lands, forests etc., wouldnt have her sons and daughters so poor to want to migrate to seek greener pastures in the Gulf States only to end up meeting their worst nightmares.

Again, is it worth apportioning blame to our leaders or among our highly-placed but inherently corrupt Civil Service officials at this crucial life or death situation scarily faced by our fellow Ghanaian sisters unfortunately found themselves in the Gulf States instead of prescribing solutions?

Is it not said in an Akan proverb that the moment you cut off the head of a snake, the rest of its body is a rope? Subsequently, I shall suggest in the order of importance as following to dealing with the murderous situation in which our dear sisters, daughters and nieces do find themselves in in the land of plenty but abounds in wicked employers.

1. The government must as a matter of urgency suspend the licences of all the recruitment agencies in Ghana involved in recruiting these females promised better lives but only to be faced with slavery, mistreatment and death on arrival in the Gulf States.

2. The offices of the agencies must be raided to obtain evidence to how many people they have sent to which of the Gulf States and when and who employed them on their arrival.

3. The agencies failing to disclose the requested vital information must face prosecution for human trafficking, deceitful employment and purposeful enslavement of fellow Ghanaians abroad.

4. The Ghana media houses advertising for the recruitment agencies must instantly be obliged to cease airing such advertisements or face joint prosecution with the recruitment agencies for aiding and abetting crime. The owners of the radio stations, TV stations, and the newspapers that carry the advertisements must have the moral obligation to assist with stopping the plight faced by our loved ones in the Gulf States by ceasing to air or publish any further recruitment advertisements for the agencies.

5. The embassies of the affected Gulf States in Ghana must be officially notified about the plight of our citizens in their countries. The government must not be scared to raise our concerns about the catastrophic situation of the Ghanaian or African maids in their countries with them.

6. The issue must be flagged to the international bodies like the United Nations, Amnesty International, Office of the Human Rights Court, the European Union etc. (I shall be able to do this provided a few of the instances captured on video could find their way on to the YouTube as I will have to attach such web links as evidence).

7. With the location of the victims known as may have been disclosed by the recruitment agencies, arrangement must be made as quickly as possible to get the suffering Ghanaians or Africans out of the said rich but wicked nations.

8. The videos on the plight of the maids must be shown on our national, regional and private television stations to highlight why Ghanaians should not be enticed by the richness of these States only to end up in total misery and death at the hands of wicked rich men and women.

9. The videos on the fate of our maids in the Gulf States must be shown to the students of our Junior Secondary School, Senior High School and Universities who must spread them or carry the news to their cities, towns and villages. They must be requested to pass the news on to their families and the people they know to persuade them not to fall victims to selfish criminals who visit them with promises to secure better life for their young daughters and sisters in the Gulf States only to have them thrown into slavery, mistreatment and untimely death.

10. Radio stations or the media as a whole must join in to disseminate the information on the plight of our Ghanaian/African maids in the Gulf States. They should let the public understand that all that glitters is not gold. With the abundance of wealth in the Gulf States, most people there have not human hearts but are overflowing with sheer wickedness.

Is it not said money is the root cause of all evil? Because they are rich, they think they can get away with blue murder; they can do whatever they like when they want with impunity. God is not asleep, He is watching them and what goes around comes around. Inshah Allah!

This must be an all hands on deck job to stop or save our dear ones from further abuses and killings under the hands of these heartless rich Saudis, Kuwaitis, etc. This must invigorate our resolve to stop our leaders from further embezzling public monies so as to free money for the development of our countries to create jobs for citizens to stop them from being deceitfully lured into their painful and untimely death in the lands of plenty but teeming with heartless super rich individuals.

Rockson Adofo

(Written on Monday, 29 May 2017)
Al-Hoceima (Morocco) (AFP) - Protesters have rallied for a third night running in Morocco's city of Al-Hoceima, in a northern region of the country where there has been growing social unrest.

An AFP journalist saw several hundred mainly young demonstrators gathered in two neighbourhoods of the city on Sunday night, chanting "The state is corrupt!" and "Dignity!".

They also shouted "We are all Zefzafi!" in reference to protest leader Nasser Zefzafi, who is on the run after authorities last week ordered his arrest.

The protesters attempted to make their way to the city's central square but were blocked by security forces. After an hour-long face-off with police the youths dispersed without incident.

"We cannot take a single step, the police are everywhere," an activist in the city told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Moroccan police face protestors during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

The activist said a solidarity rally had taken place in the nearby city of Imzouren.

Protests were also reported in two other northern cities, Nador and Tanger, as well as in Casablanca and the capital Rabat, where some 300 people took part.

Morocco's northern Rif region has been shaken by more than six months of social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, soon evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement".

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he on Friday allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque and called for further demonstrations.

Evening protests followed on Friday and Saturday, with demonstrators clashing with police.

As of late Sunday police had arrested 22 people in connection with the disturbances, according to officials.

Local sources have reported significantly more arrests and said many of those detained have been transferred to Casablanca.

Chanting protestors crowd the streets during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Morocco's central authorities and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.

The protests subsided following a series of political reforms including constitutional changes that saw King Mohamed VI give up some of his wide-ranging powers.
Change is here at last! The change many have desired for so long has finally come to pass. And what a tsunami it was! The political tsunami was as devastating as it was revealing. It was devastating because of the destruction and damage caused. The casualties included President Ogwanfunu and his political appointees. It has, no doubt, caused many of them severe psychological trauma. No wonder the likes of Koku Anyidoho and Murtala continue to engage in verbal diarrhea.

On the other hand, the tsunami was revealing because it has unearthed the bad deeds of many members of the Ogwanfunu administration. Many rotten create, loot and share schemes buried under the belly of the earth have been unearthed by the tsunami. Indeed, the strong tsunami winds have revealed the messy faecal matter stashed in the anus of the goat.

But for political change, who would have known that President Ogwanfunu's brother, Ibrahim, had an outstanding amount of GH12 million to pay to the state? But for the emergence of a new powerful fetish priest, who would have dared to tell the old fetish priest that he had a coloured dentition? Indeed, who at the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) would have dared to tell Ibrahim to pay import duty plus penalty for defaulting, if President Ogwanfunu had won a second term? But for power shifting hands, no one at GRA would have had the nerve to strangle Ibrahim's neck and make him cough a whopping GH12 million? Tell me political change is not good, and I would tell you President Ogwanfunu is the chairman of the ruling Elephant party!

As was expected, the propagandists could not stop singing the witch-hunting chorus. Frankly, if retrieving monies owed the state is what they want us to believe as witch-hunting, then I pray that state institutions engage in witch-hunting galore. After all, is it not only witches and wizards who are afraid of a witch-hunter? Again, but for the political tsunami that occurred on December 7, 2016, who would have known the create, loot and share that took place at the National Communication Authority (NCA)?

A whopping $4 million dollars was said to have been shared among some former members of the board of NCA under the Ogwanfunu administration. It is refreshing to hear that some of them have started refunding the loot after admitting to the thievery. For sure, retrieving the loot with interest wouldn't be enough. They must also be prosecuted and jailed to serve as a deterrent to others.

Abusuapanin, it must be made clear that the create, loot and share scheme at NCA is not corruption. It is rather pure thievery. Stealing state money has only one name: STEALING. Its other synonyms are thievery, pilfering and larceny. One who steals from the state is the worst kind of thief because he denies the poor the opportunity to a better livelihood. If I were in the shoes of any of the looters, my first thought would be how to outwit the system and fly out of the jurisdiction. So, while we try to entice them to pay their various share of the loot, the surveillance on their movement must be intensified. The looters may have been stupid in not covering their tracks, but trust men when I say their stupidity would not stop them from running if they get the slightest opportunity. I hear the change tsunami has also uncovered a $1.2 million kick-back scandal at the Ghana Standard Authority (GSA).

The chief architect of the scandal is a former Director of GSA. If he has indeed not denied accepting the gargantuan amount, then why is the state delaying in strangulating him to vomit the loot? I just can't think far! As I write, many such deals are being uncovered. But for the political change we all voted for, many of such rotten deals will never have seen the light of day. How then can anyone convince me that political change is not good?

It is heart-warming to hear the President on the corruption issue. He has promised to deal ruthlessly with all the looters and stealers. And why not? If they say he is a witch-hunter, then we will support him to hunt the witches and wizards.

Sooner than later, the looters and stealers would be forced to dance to the discordant tune their ears detest. Their necks would be strangled to compel them to vomit all the loot. The tragedy of it all is that the poor, who should be cheering the government, would be transported to the courts by hidden political figures to shed crocodile tears for the looters. How my heart bleeds anytime I see the downtrodden supporting greedy bastards and plain-faced nation-wreckers. What a tragedy!

See you next for another interesting konkonsa, Deo volente!
Flashback: L-R Ivor Kobina Greenstreet, Hajia Ham Datu Haruna (key figure of the CPP) and S. K. Agyei

Sniper-turned scuba diver and presidential candidate of the Convention People's Party (CPP) for the 2016 elections, Ivor Kobina Greenstreet, has urged the Akufo-Addo-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) government to seriously consider nuclear power by developing the country's potential uranium deposits as part of the future energy mix.

The former CPP flagbearer, who spoke extensively about wind power during the 2016 electioneering campaign, gave this charge at Akwatia in the Eastern Region during the funeral of the party's constituency chairman, Samuel Kwabena Agyei.

Mr Greenstreet, a scuba diver, has recently returned from a trip abroad where he narrowly escaped an underwater mauling by Carribean Reef Sharks while scuba diving off the coast of Bahamas.

Present at the burial were former parliamentary candidates and constituency executives from 11 nearby constituencies, as well as the regional first and second vice chairmen, Justice Kofi Henaku and Nana Owusu respectively.

The national organizer, Nene Emmanuel Kwao Ogborgor aka Opele was also in attendance.

Mr. Ivor Greenstreet stated that in South Africa gold tailings normally also contain uranium and they are mined simultaneously. There is a relationship between gold and uranium and this has been proven in Ghana by research done by the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission. Nuclear power reactors also require enriched uranium fuel, he noted.

Ghana, he said, has significant potential uranium deposits and global demand is set to increase by 40% with nuclear plants being completed in Russia, China and India, with Europe also set to renew its interest in nuclear.

Great Consolidated Diamonds Ghana, located at Akwatia, has five concession blocks that contain diamonds and gold  with one yet to be explored  and three tailings dumps, situated along the Birim river.

Under the government of J.A. Kufuor, the former chairman of the Council of State, Prof. Adzei Bekoe  a renowned chemist  recommended that the country include nuclear generation in its energy mix.

The Graduate School of Nuclear and Allied Sciences was later established to develop the requisite manpower base, not only for the country, but also for other African countries, and the school currently trains nuclear engineers and physicists, medical physicists and other related technical staff.

A new bill for regulating the sector was also presented to Parliament for approval and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the international nuclear watchdog, was ready to assist the country in setting up its plant.

Mr Greenstreet said that Ghana was a potential Uranium hot spot and the nation could earn significant foreign exchange from its export

He said the fight against galamsey is critical, but there should be non-partisan discussions on potential earnings for the state and especially Ghanaians.
After several unsuccessful attempts to fish out the suspected assailants believed to be shooting and killing innocent residents of Nkonya and Alavanyo, a crack team of investigators from the Police Headquarters has been deployed to the area.

Members of the team were drawn from the Homicide Unit of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service. it is expected to undertake in-depth investigations into the recent killings and bring the perpetrators for prosecution.

This was revealed by the Volta Regional Security Council (REGSEC) over the weekend when another person was reportedly shot dead last Friday.

According to the chairman of the REGSEC who happens to be the Volta Regional Minister, Dr. Archibald Letsa, the invitation of the investigators had become necessary because he believed the killings would stop when the assailants were arrested and prosecuted.

He expressed disappointment that despite the dialogue and calls for calm, the shootings had not ended. He recounted how distraught he was with last Friday's shooting which left a 35-year-old man dead at Alavanyo-Dzogbedze.

Anane Dewu was killed by unknown assailants, in what appeared to be a targeted killing at Alavanyo.

The incident happened when a group of mourners were on their way to bury the 13-year-old boy, Prince Kwawukutse, who was also shot dead two weeks ago at his home at Alavanyo minutes after he had returned from school.

Just last week at Alavanyo-Kpeme, a 62-year-old woman, Elizabeth Anku, was also shot dead on her farm  100 meters away from her house  when she reportedly went to pick some mangoes.

An assembly member of the area, Raymond Tsokor, who has been speaking to the media, noted that in all of the incidents, the gunmen fled the scenes after the shooting, making it difficult for the security personnel in the area to apprehend them.

He said the latest incident that happened last Friday had thrown the entire community into a state of shock, fear and panic, especially when it happened during the burial of a victim of the dastardly act.

There has been a recent resurgence in hostilities between the two neighbours  Nkonya and Alavanyo  over a century old land dispute. This year, the first killings were recorded in April involving three persons, at Nkonya. Since then there have been about four killings.

The extension of the dusk to dawn curfew and the presence of the police and the military in the two towns seem to be having little impact as far as peace and stability are concerned.

From Fred Duodu, Ho ([email protected])


Infraloks Development Limited (IDL), the local company cited in the $4 million National Communications Authority (NCA) alleged looting case, has complained about how the Authority sidelined it in the execution of the contract that brought in 'spying and phone tapping' gadgets from Israel for the National Security Secretariat (NSS).

IDL Sidelined

According to George Oppong, who represented IDL in the $8 million deal and was said to have benefitted from the alleged scandal, indicated that he was sidelined in the execution of certain aspects of the contract and was contemplating suing the NCA.

IDL was not involved in the operational side of the transaction for what was said to be genuine national security reasons, he said in a rejoinder.

IDL believes in due process in the democratic dispensation and accordingly have our lawyers in readiness to, in due course, assert my rights and those of the company under the contract with the Republic through the appropriate lawful forum, should same become the inevitable resort.

The contract was meant to buy 'spying and phone tapping' equipment for the National Security Secretariat, but $4 million out of the total contract sum of $8 million ended up in private accounts, with $1.5 million of the money allegedly going to the former NCA board of directors who were appointed by the Mahama-led National Democratic Congress (NDC) government.

NSO Group Deal

Information Minister Mustapha Hamid has already said that John Mahama's administration had contracted NSO Group Technology Limited of Israel to supply eavesdropping gadgets worth $6 million and the equipment were meant to help the government monitor the calls of suspected terrorists.

However, in the course of the transaction, according to the information minister, a local agent  Infraloks Development Limited  headed by George Oppong, charged $2 million as facilitation fee, bringing the total amount to $8 million instead of $6 million.

Mr. Oppong in his explanation in the rejoinder, stated that there is a binding contract executed on December 17, 2015 between IDL and the NCA as well as between NSO Group Technologies Limited of Israel.

He confirmed that the contract sum total was $8 million and that $6 million was to be due to NSO with certificate of end-user from the Ministry of Defence of Israel, adding that The duties and responsibilities of NSO and IDL were clearly embodied in the contracts with minimal role by the NCA representing the Republic of Ghana as the end-user.

Aggura Connection

Mr Oppong said, Initially, the payment to NSO by IDL was to be made minus a commission agreement to be paid by IDL to another Israeli company  Aggura  but amendments by way of addendum to the original contract with NSO required full payment to NSO and for NSO to deal directly with Aggura.

He said that the NCA did make a first tranche payment of $4,000,000 in accordance with the terms of the contract with it (NCA) and they followed the agreed payment terms in the contract.

According to Mr. Oppong, although the NCA had taken delivery of the gadgets and promised to supply IDL with Customs documentation covering the delivery of the hardware equipment as agreed between the IDL and the Bank of Ghana, NCA has since June 2016 when it cleared the equipment, not provided the Customs documentation covering the clearance to IDL, despite persistent demand.

After the clearance, IDL facilitated a visit of a team of technicians from NSO to Ghana to install and commission the system, and that I was informed, two weeks later, by NCA that the installation and the commissioning of the system had been completed.

Operational Side

It is significant to note that IDL was not involved in the operational side of the transaction for what was said to be genuine national security reasons, informing the bank's requirement for written confirmation by NCA to IDL on completion of each phase of the project, he said.

Mr. Oppong maintained, In spite of this, it would be discovered that NCA, curiously, had written only to the bank and NSO to confirm, among others, delivery of equipment and installation of same by NSO.

The local representative underscored that the sponsor (NCA), In the meantime, sought through its signatory to the contract and obtained sums in amounts allowed by forex transaction regulations and same reaching a cumulative gross amount of about $1,500,000.

Strange Transfers

I have informed the authorities that out of the total amount of $4,000,000, NCA transferred to IDL $1,000,000; was successfully transferred to NSO. NCA's signatory to the contract has sought and obtained a cumulative gross of about $1,500,000 and that IDL still held $1,500,000 which NSO's portion could not be transferred for the stated reasons.

According to Mr. Oppong, although NCA informed NSO through IDL that it had paid $2,000,000, the NSO continued to demand payment from IDL for completion of the second phase of the project using and relying on a letter from NCA to NSO which maintained that the installation and commissioning phase of the project was complete, and that NSO insists that payment obligations were undertaken by IDL, threatening a suit as the overdue amount is subject to a late payment fee at a daily rate of 0.04%.

I am very disappointed to discover, courtesy the National Security Minister, in the most shocking fashion that contrary to representations by NCA, including via said letter of June 10, 2016 from NCA to NSO that the system was sitting in someone's garage.

He said details about the transaction had been made available to the BNI in utmost good faith and without prejudice as I give my fullest cooperation in its investigations.

By William Yaw Owusu
29.05.2017 LISTEN

The recent Transform Africa Summit (TAS 2017) hosted by Mr Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda and held in the capital, Kigali, from 10-12 May 2017 took place under the theme: Smart Cities: Fast Forward,a topical themeas the next wave of innovative, integrated technologies is already helping cities around the world to become self-reliant and sustainable.

One of the most significant and even revolutionary technologies today is the Blockchain, as it is the technology most likely to have the greatest impact on the future of the world economy. Smart cities can use information technology to integrate and manage physical, social and business infrastructures to provide better services to city citizens while at the same time ensuring the efficient and optimal utilisation of the available resources. With the proliferation of technologies such as Internet of Things (IOT), cloud computing, and interconnected networks, smart cities can deliver innovative, better and more efficient services to their citizens.

Laurent Lamothe, former Prime Minister of Haiti, chairman of the Board of Directors of Global Voice Group, distinguished entrepreneur and champion of socio-economic development in emerging economies through Innovative Financing for Development (IFD), spoke at the Summit in a session: Internet of Value: Blockhain and the Internet of Things (IOT)

Against the background of the Summit and its underlying theme, this session was particularly pertinent as Lamothe believes the combination of Blockchain and the Internet of Things has the power to ignite socio-economic development in African countries. In his address he went even furtherto say: If your government, county, municipality, town, city or jurisdiction is not thinking about the Blockchain, they should be.

He highlighted what cities and countries have already done using the most obvious and immediate application areas for the Blockchain:

Delaware is moving its archives into an open transparent ledger on Blockchain

is moving its archives into an open transparent ledger on Blockchain Singapore is developing initiatives using Blockchain to prevent traders from defrauding banks after a major incident where traders got away with over 200m dollars

is developing initiatives using Blockchain to prevent traders from defrauding banks after a major incident where traders got away with over 200m dollars United Kingdom initiatives to manage the distribution of grants through Blockchain to mitigate potential fraud and abuse

initiatives to manage the distribution of grants through Blockchain to mitigate potential fraud and abuse Estonia has developed the e-Residency programme using Blockchainanyone in the world can apply to become an e-resident of Estonia which gains revenue through the various initiatives linked to this anda healthcare initiative on Blockchain to track medical recordsputting patients in control of their own data and giving them transparency about their own medical care

has developed the e-Residency programme using Blockchainanyone in the world can apply to become an e-resident of Estonia which gains revenue through the various initiatives linked to this anda healthcare initiative on Blockchain to track medical recordsputting patients in control of their own data and giving them transparency about their own medical care Ghana28 communities are experimenting with land titles on the Blockchain

Most importantly, perhaps, Lamothe covered how the Blockchain can bring about better government service deliveryoften a bone of contention for the citizens in many cities around the world.

What can a government entity do with the Blockchain? The Blockchain is the perfect keeper of the chain of custody for any physical asset. There are four main categories of activity relating to:

verification (licences, proofs of records, transactions, processes or events)

the movement of assets (transferring money from one person/entity to another, and enabling direct payments once work has been performed)

ownerships (land registries, property titles and any type of real estate ownership)

identities (an e-identity would allow its holder access to a variety of services and rights that need verification e.g voting)

He called on government leaders to get up to speed on the Blockchain and commit to exploring its potential. A dedicated effort needs to be made to develop a Blockchain strategy and government must be commit ted to introducing innovative Blockchain-based solutions to cut costs and provide more efficient services for citizens.

Coupled with Blockchain, the IOTthe inter-networking of physical devices, buildings and other items embedded with electronics and network connectivityenables data collection and exchange. The IOT has tremendous potential for cost containment and encompasses technologies such as smart grids, virtual power plants, smart homes, intelligent transportation and smart cities. Africanand cities in general must continuously seek to establish new infrastructure and city systems so as to position their cities as next generation cities.

The Summit focused on the role of technology in delivering the urban infrastructure and solutions to ensure economic success and prosperity for Africa now.
Victor Smith, the career freeloader and economic parasite who was made High Commissioner to Britain by former President John Dramani Mahama, if memory serves yours truly accurately, says that he cannot forgive Chairman Jerry John Rawlings because the founding-father of the countrys main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) threw his weight behind then-Candidate Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in the lead-up to the 2016 general election (See I Cant Forgive Rawlings  Victor Smith Adomonline.com / Ghanaweb.com 5/26/17). The fired Special Assistant and Director of Public Affairs for the retired Ghanaian strongman, also says that he could not bear the sight of Chairman Rawlings cracking jokes and laughing with our [political] opponent.

It is quite clear from the preceding that Mr. Smith, who also once served as NDC-Member of Parliament, by default, for Akyem-Abuakwa-North Constituency, woefully lacks the sort of emotional and psychological balance and maturity that ought to come with age and political experience. It is also rather amusing that the man who is widely believed to have gotten the boot from Chairman Rawlings for backing the Vice-Presidential Candidacy of Mr. Mahama against, in retrospect, the better judgment of the infamous Butcher-of-Sogakope, somehow, believes that his former boss had absolutely no inalienable democratic right to have hedged his bet around then-Candidate Akufo-Addo in the lead-up to Election 2016.

Not that it would have made much of an epic bit of a difference because by then, the Bole-born former Rawlings Communications Minister had already more than amply demonstrated his gross administrative incompetence to turn off the average Ghanaian voter. In a quite remarkable sense, though, Mr. Smith has a point in wanting to see Mr. Rawlings back the reelection bid of Mr. Mahama because, even as some of us have remarked time and time again, Chairman Rawlings ought to bear the brunt of the blame for recruiting and grooming pathologically corrupt party operatives and politicians like Messrs. Mahama, John Evans Atta-Mills, Koku Anyidoho, Kofi Portuphy, Betty Mould-Iddrisu, Tsatsu Tsikata, Kwame Peprah and Johnson Asiedu-Nketia, among a phalanx of others.

But, of course, what has raised my hackles is this neo-slavocratic practice whereby the staff of the office of any former president is salaried on the public payroll. If this practice still exists, it ought to be promptly discontinued, as it unnecessarily exacerbates the financial burden of the State. More so, when most of our former presidents and vice-presidents presided over the criminal fiscal regime of judgment debts which continue to seriously regress the development of the country. People like Mr. Smith need to find real jobs and stop pretending as if the rest of us ordinary Ghanaian citizens and working people owe them their livelihood.

If anything at all, socioeconomic parasites like Mr. Smith need to first forgive themselves for their corrupt and mischievous ways, before they can even begin to talk about forgiving others who owe them absolutely nothing, but whom these self-righteous freeloaders, somehow, believe owe them their very lifes breath. Indeed, I vividly recall Mr. Smith skipping the NDCs parliamentary primary in the run-up to Election 2016, and then bumping off the winner to have his name placed on the ballot as his partys candidate for Akyem-Abuakwa-North Constituency. Is such a rascal one with adequate credibility to presume to impugn the political bona fides of Chairman Rawlings?

*Visit my blog at: kwameokoampaahoofe.wordpress.com Ghanaffairs
Rabat (AFP) - Authorities in Morocco on Monday arrested the fugitive leader of a protest movement that has shaken the country's northern Rif region for months, officials said.

A government source and another official from the interior ministry said Nasser Zefzafi, who had been on the run since Friday, had been taken into custody.

Further details of his arrest were not immediately available.

Morocco's northern Rif region has been shaken by social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement", based largely in the coastal city of Al-Hoceima.

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he on Friday allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque and called for further demonstrations.

Prosecutors said the arrest was ordered after Zefzafi "obstructed, in the company of a group of individuals, freedom of worship" at the mosque in Al-Hoceima.

The protest leader later appeared in footage broadcast on social media saying he was "safe and sound" and calling for further demonstrations.

He faces between six months and three years in prison on charges of insulting the imam, making provocative speeches and sowing disturbances.

Evening protests in Al-Hoceima, a city of some 56,000 residents, were held on Friday and Saturday, with demonstrators clashing with police. Three members of the security forces were reported to have been seriously hurt on Friday.

Protestors chant during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

An AFP journalist saw hundreds of mainly young demonstrators gathered in two neighbourhoods of the city again on Sunday night, chanting "The state is corrupt!" and "We are all Zefzafi!"

Widening protests

The protesters attempted to make their way to the city's central square but were blocked by security forces. After an hour-long face-off with police the youths dispersed without incident.

"We cannot take a single step, the police are everywhere," an activist in the city told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The activist said a solidarity rally had taken place in the nearby city of Imzouren.

Demonstrations were also reported in two other northern cities, Nador and Tanger, as well as in Casablanca, Marrakesh and the capital Rabat, where some 300 people took part.

As of late Sunday police had arrested 22 people in connection with the disturbances in Al-Hoceima, according to officials.

Local sources have reported significantly more arrests and said many of those detained have been transferred to Casablanca.

Moroccan police face protestors during a demonstration against corruption, repression and unemployment in the northern city of al-Hoceima on May 28, 2017

Authorities have accused protesters of receiving money and other support from abroad "to carry out propaganda activities".

The mainly ethnically Berber Rif region has long had a tense relationship with Morocco's central authorities and was at the heart of Arab Spring-inspired protests in 2011.

The protests subsided following a series of political reforms including constitutional changes that saw King Mohamed VI give up some of his wide-ranging powers.

Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit led a large government delegation to Al-Hoceima last week, the latest in a series of government trips to the region.

Officials have promised increased support for the local economy, in particular the crucial fishing industry.

Zefzafi, 39 and unemployed, emerged as the leader of the movement by broadcasting passionate speeches online in the local Tarifit dialect from his home or the street.

Zefzafi and other activists insist the movement is not seeking independence for the region, despite its long history of resistance to central rule and the fact that some protesters have waved the flag of the short-lived Rif republic that existed from 1921 to 1926.
Daniel Batidam

29.05.2017 LISTEN

The chairman of the African Union Advisory Board on Corruption Daniel Batidam has expressed worry over increasing cases of corruption being recorded in the country, urging government to crack the whip.

Mr. Batidam, who advised former President John Mahama on corruption when he was in power, thus urged the Akufo-Addo led government to prosecute corrupt former government officials found culpable of the nefarious act.

Speaking Monday on Accra-based Radio XYZ, the anti-corruption campaigner stated the high demand to fight corruption recently is a good step, observing that corruption at any level is not acceptable.

He added: I worry a lot about corruption in our country. Not just because of its continuous existence but because of the approaches we are adopting in dealing with corruption.

It appears to me as we sit today, if you ask me Ill say corruption is getting worsebecause there was corruption before January 2017, everybody talked about it, the examples are there and there is still corruption since January till now. That means it is getting worse because the new corruption has added to the old corruption.

Addressing a meeting of Ghanaians resident in Sierra Leone as part of his one-day working in that country, President Akufo-Addo pledged to deal ruthlessly with the canker, noting that he will not shield any public official found to be engaged in acts of corruption or malfeasance.

Citing the recent news of the arrest of some Customs officials responsible for the loss of some GHc1.2billion in revenue to the state, Akufo-Addo said: When people get up in the net, I am imploring people not to come to me and say that Oh! Nana, this man is my relative, so spare him.

That is the problem in Ghana. You find people going to speak to your wife with the hope trying to influence you. I am not going to listen to that, because my concern is Ghana and not one or two individuals, he added.
The Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA) has flatly debunked media reports suggesting that each elected assembly member would receive a saloon car.

According to the KMA, the reports were meant to throw dust into the eyes of the public and also create unnecessary tension and enmity towards the assembly.

The report indicated that KMA, under the leadership of the Osei Assibey Antwi, the Chief Executive is to purchase cars for each elected assemblyman in Kumasi.

It said the assembly was in talks with Hyundai Motors and Investment Ghana to procure the saloon cars for the assembly members.

It also stated that the KMA would deduct allowances of the beneficiary assemblymen to defray the huge cost of the vehicles to boost their work in their respective electoral areas.

KMA, in a press release authored by the PRO Godwin Okumah Nyame, said the information is not only misleading and fabricated, but well drafted to throw dust into the eyes of the public and dent the positive image of the KMA and the Kumasi Mayor.

Okumah Nyame added that the KMA Chief Executive cannot unilaterally take a decision to purchase vehicles for the assemblymen without the prior approval of the KMA General Assembly, saying the story is palpably false.

He added that the public must therefore take note that the KMA has not entered into any agreement with any company to purchase cars for the elected assemblymen in the KMA, as being purported in the media.

Automobile Companies Visits

Okumah Nyame said even though it is true that officials of the Hyundai Motors and Investment Ghana visited the KMA recently, the visit had nothing to do with a vehicle deal.

According to him, Hyundai Motors officials, during the visit, explained to the KMA management that they sell their cars to credible institutions and individuals on high purchase basis and that was all, we did not agree on any car deal terms with them.

Mr Nyame indicated that Hyundai Motor and Investment Ghana is not the only automobile company that had visited the KMA in recent times to showcase their products.

It will be recalled that Kantanka Automobile Company Ltd also visited the KMA some few days ago to showcase its products to the KMA management, the KMA PRO noted, urging the public to reject the false reports.

He said the KMA, under the leadership of Osei Assibey Antwi, has adopted an open-door policy to help journalists crosscheck their information with the assembly before publication to avert preventable blunders.

From I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi


The Paramount Chief of Sefwi Anhwiaso Traditional Area, Nana Ogyeahoho Yaw Gyebi ll, has publicly condemned the recent killing of a retired educationist and others in the area.

On April 20, 2017, 58-year-old retired educationist Samuel Benson Kwakye went to his cocoa farm at Sefwi Ahwiaso, but did not return home.

The following day, a search party, including policemen from Bibiani District and some civilians found Samuel Benson Kwakye dead on the farm, with multiple injuries on the body.

A divisional chief in the area, Nana Donkor Okyere Siabuor, who was implicated in the alleged contract killing involving GHc5,000, has been arrested.

Four other suspects, who allegedly aided in killing of the educationist, have also been arrested.

They are Adu Yaw, 35; Kweku Ntim, 38; Kofi Mduro, 57 and Kofi Jamal Attah, 26.

The suspects are in police custody pending further investigations.

Apart from that, one Kwabena Anane, 24, beheaded Kwame Subre, a taxi driver openly at Sefwi Nambro and took to his heels.

Commenting on the development at a traditional council meeting in the area, the Paramount chief remarked that we condemn these murders in the strongest possible terms.

He revealed that since the name Sefwi is used as a prefix for all the Sefwi towns when ever such killings take place in any of these areas, it dents the image of all people from Sefwi.

The paramount chief, who is also the President of the Western Regional House of Chiefs, indicated that the suspects arrested in connection with the murder case had admitted committing the crime.

He also pointed out that the police were taking all the necessary steps to make sure that the perpetrators were dealt with.

Even though a traditional ruler in the area is among the suspects in one of the murder cases, we distance ourselves from these cruel acts, especially the killing of Nana Donkor, the retired educationist who taught most of the government officials in this area in primary school, he mentioned.

The Paramount chief, who is also a board member of the Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC), gave assurance that the chiefs in the area would support the government to succeed in the fight against illegal mining also called 'galamsey.'

The District Police Commander, Supt Nana Kumi accused some of the elders in the traditional council of planning to have him transferred from the district because he arrested the suspects in the murder of the retired headmaster.

However, the chiefs assured the police commander of their total support.

The District Chief Executive (DCE) for the area, Alfred Amoah explained to the chiefs that the governments 'one district one factory' policy would soon begin to create jobs for the youth in the area.

He promised to collaborate with the chiefs to help move the district forward.

The district Forestry Commission officer also appealed to the chiefs and elders of the traditional council to help protect the forest and clamp down on illegal chainsaw activities and galamsey.

From Emmanuel Opoku, Bibiani




President Akufo-Addo has paid glowing tribute to Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf for the role she had played in that country in particular and the West African sub-region in general.

Noting that she assumed office at a very difficult period in that country's history, President Akufo-Addo applauded Madam Sirleaf's efforts in fostering a spirit of national reconciliation amongst Liberians, and restoring law and order since 2006.

Ghana's leader made these remarks last Friday during a dinner held in his honour by President Johnson Sirleaf, who happens to be Africa's first female head of state, and an investiture ceremony at the commencement of his two-day visit to Liberia.

Eulogy

Your efforts in this regard were recognised. You won the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, along with two others, for your role in contributing to securing peace in Liberia, promoting economic and social development and also strengthening the position of women, President Akufo-Addo eulogized.

Again, during the outbreak of the Ebola virus in Liberia which resulted in the death of thousands, your resolve and that of all Liberians were tested. However, at the end of the day, the people of this resilient nation prevailed under your guidance, and ensured an end to the outbreak of this deadly disease, he recounted.

President Akufo-Addo further commended his Liberian counterpart  who is serving her last five months in office  for the strong leadership she has also exhibited in promoting the development of an economy still reeling from the aftershocks of Ebola which had compromised the economic gains made by Liberia in recent years He also recalled, Last year, your colleague heads of state voted unanimously to elect you as Chairperson of ECOWAS; we are all proud of the work you have done and continue to do in service to God, country and region.

Ahead of the conduct of October's presidential election in that country, Nana Akufo-Addo applauded Johnson Sirleaf for her efforts at entrenching democracy and the rule of law in the body politic of Liberia. That process will be enhanced to the admiration of all in our region and beyond by the quality of the arrangements for October's electoral contest, and by the quality of the democratic transition which Liberia is about to witness, he said, whiles wishing the government and people of Liberia Godspeed.

Relations

It was the desire of President Akufo-Addo that Ghana and Liberia would continually search for ways to co-operate, irrespective of who is at the helm of affairs in the two countries, stressing that it is important that the two countries forge a new, strong partnership for cooperation for the mutual benefit of their nationals.

He recounted the history of Ghana's bilateral relations with Liberia, dating back to the times when President William V.S. Tubman of Liberia and Ghana's Kwame Nkrumah helped to facilitate the establishment in 1963 of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which has now metamorphosed into the African Union (AU).

President Akufo-Addo also referred to the involvement of Ghana in the consolidation of peace and security in Liberia in the last decade, as well as playing host to several thousands of Liberian refugees who fled the civil war in that country. Through the efforts of Ghana's Volta River Authority (VRA), he indicated that electricity was extended to Monrovia for the first time in 2006 after the war.

It was for this reason he emphasised, Co-operation in the development of our agriculture, education, science and technology, infrastructure, health, energy and the co-ordination of the exploitation of our mutual natural resources, such as iron ore, diamonds, gold, timber and rubber, would be of immense benefit to our two countries. Despite the good relations that exist between the two countries, there are still a number of outstanding matters, in the areas of fisheries, provision of support for technical and vocational education, military co-operation, health and finance, for which President Akufo-Addo assured, I promise you, they will now be addressed.

Honours

President Akufo-Addo was decorated with Liberia's highest national award, the Grand Order of the Most Venerable Order of the Knighthood of Pioneers. This award was for his contribution towards the sustenance of lasting peace in Liberia and helping to set the country on the path to recovery. The president was also enstooled chief by the paramount chiefs of Monrovia, and given the stool name Kandakai Gbogba, (to wit: (a good man who brings peace) at the ceremony.

Earlier on his arrival in Monrovia, President Akufo-Addo was given the key to the city of Monrovia by the mayor, Clara Doe.

By Charles Takyi-Boadu, Presidential Correspondent
Parliament will be reconvening tomorrow to do its arranged business for the second meeting of the first session after rising for the Easter celebration.

A major issue to be considered during this session will be the bill that will create the Office of the Special Prosecutor to deal with various corruption cases.

The creation of the Office of the Special Prosecutor was one of the campaign promises of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP); and already some members of the minority National Democratic Congress (NDC) have registered their strong reservations about the creation of that special position.

The NDC MPs, including the former deputy Attorney General and MP for Bolgatanga East, Dr Dominic Ayine, as well as the MP for Bolgatanga Central, Isaac Adongo, have said that the office is being created to witch-hunt political opponents of the NPP, but the majority NPP MPs think that the office will help reduce the incidence of corruption by making it unattractive to public office holders.

The bill is therefore expected to generate hot debate in the house.

The Appointments Committee of Parliament will also be vetting the newly appointed Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, who would be replacing Georgina Theodora Wood at the end of June.

The new Chief Justice is also expected to go through grueling vetting by the committee, chaired by the first deputy speaker, Joseph Osei-Owusu.

New bills are also expected in the course of the session.

The speaker, Prof Mike Oquaye, had commended the MPs before the Easter break for their cooperation in steering the affairs of the first meeting and had also asked that MPs be punctual and regular for the consideration of business at their disposal.

Parliamentary News Africa, in collaboration with the Center for Democratic Development-Ghana (CDD-Ghana) is organising a review session for the first meeting of the Seventh Parliament today at the premises of CDD.

It would be attended by the leadership of parliament to take stock of the last session and look at where they fell short in the discharge of their duties.

By Thomas Fosu Jnr
Dear Youth Corper of our Dear Nation Nigeria,

I really must congratulate you for going through school and getting to this point in your life. It is indeed a feat that many undergraduates look forward to.

So, here you are, serving your nation, in this mandatory stretch of a year and the possibilities of the experience is meant to impact your lives and that of those who come in contact with you during the period.

In the course of preparing to write this letter to you, I had to re-examine the youth service scheme all over again and consulted Wikipedia for a grasp of its original intention.

According to Wikipedia, The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is an organization set up by the Nigerian government to involve the country's graduates in the development of the countrysince 1973 graduates of universities and later polytechnics have been required to take part in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) program for one year. This is known as national service year.

Please, note with me that the core objective of your service year is to Develop the country.

I read further down on the Wikipedia website and below is an addition to this:

"Corp" members are posted to cities far from their city of origin, although this posting has recently been marred with series of favouritism.

They are expected to mix with people of other tribes, social and family backgrounds, to learn the culture of the indigenes in the place they are posted to. This action is aimed at bringing about unity in the country and to help youths appreciate other ethnic groups.

Please also note that the reason for your service year aims to bring about unity in the country as well.

Lastly, the definition on Wikipedia cited one merit to the program and said it has helped in creating entry-level jobs for many Nigerian youth.

With these three things in view, now, lets delve into the NYSC program of our day and how we stand right now.

You see, I recall that back in my secondary education we had a few corpers serving the nation in my school. We had so much respect for them and this respect transcended on to every other corper I got to meet right before I got into the university.

Back then, corpers were seen as some sort of aliens but were well respected and treated with so much regard. There is a particular female corper we had in our school that carried herself with so much dignity and had a lot of respect from amongst the staff and students of my school.

She was indeed a good representative of the program and her carriage and goodwill went a long way in developing our minds in the right direction. I recall enrolling in extra lessons with her and having her teach me and some friends some subjects we had difficulties in and even the one we didnt have difficulties in. I personally ensured I was in her lesson classes.

Today, the headlines that we have come to see about corper-student relationships have been quite perturbing.

Sadly, we have seen such headlines like SS1 Boy Impregnates Female Youth Corper and Randy Male Corper who Impregnated 3 Female Students while serving in their school.

These sad tales have obviously bothered more on sexual escapades which become scandals in a little time.

This brings me to the question, what are our corpers these days doing with their time during service year?

Do they think it is just a waste of their time and resolve to indulge in sexual activities with pupils, politicians, fellow corpers and whomsoever they see just to while away time or explore their sexuality in a place they think no one knows them?

The public narrative is that youth corpers are very promiscuous. People also warn spouses to be wary of the camp as anything goes and lays around there.

Permit me to point out that this trend was started by particular persons and is being subsequently adopted by serving corpers. It has given them a bad name and the once sterling reputation they had is not like it used to be.

Again, back to the question, what are our corpers doing with their time during their service year?

From the first thing pointed out, the program is supposed to aid the development of the nation. Yes, we have seen stories of corpers that embarked on projects that helped communities and from time to time, we get to see sign posts of what certain corpers did while serving.

Our corpers need to take this more seriously. I believe where we serve ought to be impacted by our presence and not contaminated by nefarious activities carried out while serving. If a corper cant come up with developmental projects, atleast he/she should know well not to contaminate the minds and lives of the people he is supposed to help develop.

The second aim of the program is said to aid the bringing about of unity in the country. Nigeria has got too many tribal and ethnic divisions that breed disunity amongst us.

Of a truth, this has been one of the factors that cause our underdevelopment. It has made ethno-religious and community crisis hinder our true development as a nation and a people.

Many people have issues with a particular set of people because they havent gotten the chance of interacting with them or with the right persons from there.

The youth service program truly gives a chance for young Nigerians to be ambassadors of their tribes and ethnic groups and to also have first-hand experience with other ethnic groups in a way that might make them change the narrative about the people of the place they serve in.

This ofcourse will go a long way to eliminate prejudices and foster unity. Our corpers should have this at the back of their minds and ensure they serve knowing fully well that they are ambassadors of their places of origin and that whatever it is they do might and will be seen as a summary of their people.

Lastly, the NYSC program helps create entry-level jobs for graduates. This, I must say, is an advantage for the corper.

Besides the allowee and loans a corper can obtain, the service year is a good time to gain some job experience and get a shot at prospective establishments a graduate would want to be employed in.

We have heard of graduates who got jobs that would never have been possible without the help of the program.

Indeed, the NYSC service year is a period that is supposed to be of impact on the nation through the efforts and input of our corpers.

Every corper must see his/her service year as a period of ambassadorship and thus uphold the ideals and aims of the program while serving.

If we lose sight of this, we not only cheat our nation but also ourselves and every other corper after us as what we do or not do during our service year either develops or under-develops the nation. It also casts a perception in the minds of people whenever they see another corper according to what the last corper they came in contact with did.

Dear corper, be an ambassador for the nation and also be an ambassador for the NYSC program. Nigeria and the NYSC vision is counting on you.

Best Regards,

Philip Asuquotes.

ABOUT THE WRITER

Philip Asuquotes Asuquo is a frontline media and strategy consultant who believes that the African continent will be advanced by Africans through their intellect and committed endeavors. You can reach him via [email protected] on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram via @Philasuquotes.


Vincent Blaychie Essien, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Ahantaman Rural Bank Limited, says the huge corporate taxes imposed on rural banks are adversely affecting their operations in the country.

He said per their mandate, rural banks are supposed to alleviate poverty and improve the livelihoods of the rural and peri-urban inhabitants.

Mr Essien consequently appealed to the government, Minister of Finance and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to consider reducing the 25 percent corporate tax to enable rural banks to stay in business and continue to support rural folks.

He made the appeal during the 29th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Ahantaman Rural Bank at Agona-Nkwanta in the Ahanta West District.

I am also appealing to government to consider channeling the funds earmarked for projects such as the 'Planting for food and jobs,' one district-one factory, and one constituency- one million dollars funding through the rural banks he said.

During the year under review, total deposits increased from GH41.7 million in 2015 to GH54.1 million, representing a growth of 29.7 percent.

Mr Essien further indicated that total assets of the bank grew from GH52.6 million in 2015 to GH68.9 million in 2016.

He explained that the significant improvement of 31.1 percent increase was mainly due to increases in short term investments, loans and advances, cash and bank balances and properties, as well as plants and equipment.

According to Mr. Essien, the bank had earmarked GH45 million as loans to its customers, this year, stressing that the bank was ready to support all traders, contractors, rubber, cocoa, rice and vegetables farmers, to meet their financial needs.

Mr Blaychie Essien disclosed that total income was GH18.9 million in 2016 as against GH14.8 million in 2015, representing an increase of 28.1 percent while operating expenses also increased from GH12.9 million in 2015 to GH16.3 million in 2016.

He said as of December 31, 2016, the total paid-up capital stood at GH1,630,846.00 compared to GH1,520,744.00 the previous year, which showed a marginal increase of 7.2 percent.

He maintained that the banks capital position remained strong with a capital adequacy ratio of 20.7 percent at the end of December 31, 2016.

Based on that strength, he said, the board had proposed a dividend of GH0.050 per share, representing 67 percent increase and a cash dividend of GH0.040 per share and a bonus share of GH0.010 per share.

From Emmanuel Opoku, Agona-Nkwanta


The deputy chief executive officer of the Youth Employment Agency (YEA), Ibrahim Bashiru, has officially resigned from his position as the Upper East Regional Youth Organizer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), in line with the partys recent decision over government appointees holding party positions.

In an obvious attempt to address what seemed to be power struggle between the Northern Regional Chairman of the NPP, Bugri Naabu, and the Minister for Gender and Social Protection  who doubles as National Women's Organizer  Otiko Afisa Djaba, the National Council of the party directed that all (party0 officers who have been appointed to serve in government must resign from their party positions.

The deputy YE'sA boss has been commended widely for his role towards the NPP's victory in the 2016 elections.

Mr Ibrahim Bashiru has met with a cross-section of the youth in the region to thank them for their support which eventually brought the NPP to power.

He charged the youth to prepare themselves to be able to grab job opportunities that may come their way in the course of the year. I am in the region for three reasons; first of all, to thank the youth of Upper East Region for the massive support they gave me during my tenure as the Regional Youth Organizer. Secondly, to meet the youth so as to outline my vision, first of all, as someone coming from this region and also occupying the position of the deputy CEO for YEA. Finally, to take advantage of the situation to get in touch with the grassroots, because we have just won power and people are agitating and complaining that they have been neglected. I thought it wise that as a senior government official, there was the need for me to be here to touch base with the youth and share with them the vision of His Excellency the President. I needed to also tell them what this government intends to do not only to YEA beneficiaries, but the entire youth of Ghana, Ibrahim Bashiru indicated.

He called on Ghanaian youth to be calm, as government works towards fulfilling its vision of recruiting 80,000 of them under the Youth Employment Agency as announced by President Akufo-Addo during an event to mark his100 days in office.

FROM Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Bolgatanga




West Blue Consulting, operators of the Ghana Single Window project, has given assurance that the directive by Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia for Ghana to operate a 100 percent paperless system at the country's ports is very feasible even before the September deadline.

Valentina Mintah, Chief Executive of the company, however, suggested that all the systems at the ports ought to be integrated immediately to make the paperless dream a reality.

The good news is that GPHA, GCNet, West Blue all have excellent systems in place as well as Customs. We just have to see how we integrate which is very possible. We must all work together and respect the data to achieve paperless transaction at the ports.

We already have the e-payment platform in place where everybody is sharing. We have the registration for a number of key agencies, GSA, FDA to ensure that we have that shared as well.

The next thing that we need is the declaration and the post clearance all coming in. And we must work together to make this happen. We all need to identify our documents and procedures, Ms. Mintah noted.

The West Blue Chief Executive made the comments during an interaction with members of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Finance when they paid an official visit to the company last week.

West Blue explained its operations to the Committee after which both teams shared ideas on the best way forward as far as boosting trade facilitation and increasing government revenue at the ports were concerned.

After the explanation from officials of West Blue, Member of Parliament (MP) for New Juaben South and Chair of the parliamentary committee, Dr. Mark Assibey-Yeboah, also called for an integration of the systems at the ports.

Dr. Assibey-Yeboah said, Both GCNet and West Blue are complementary. What I want to see is for them to be working together, integrating their networks and operations for the benefit of the country.

We have learnt about their operations. I think they are doing something good but I want to see their system integrate with that of GCNet to achieve the paperless at portsOnce revenues are increasing we are fine.

The call for integration was backed by Dr. Anthony Akoto Osei, a member of the Committee and Minister of Monitoring and Evaluation, Dr. Anthony Akoto Osei.

He reiterated the need for West Blue and GCNet to integrate to achieve paperless transactions at ports and said the Parliamentary Select Committee on Finance would do its best for the country.

Single Window Good News

Ms Mintah presented verifiable facts to show that the implementation of the Single Window led to 28.7 percent increase in GRA-Customs revenue in 2016.

She expressed excitement that the Single Window system has brought some efficiency at the ports, reduced time and cost of doing business and minimized corruption at the port.

Since the introduction of the GNSW's PAARS last year, traders are able to access Customs Classification and Valuation Report (CCVR) within 48 hours. In some cases, just within an hour. That is a substantial improvement from the previous situation whereby it used to take traders more than a week or two weeks just to get their CCVR, Ms. Mintah disclosed.

A Business Desk report


Former President J.A Kufuor has lauded Raising Readers initiative for supporting children in the country to improve their learning and broaden their minds through the reading of books.

He said reading is the first tool of education and he was excited that children will benefit from the initiative by the Tigo Shelter for Education programme and Raising Readers Foundation to encourage and cultivate reading among Ghanaian children.

Hosting some 50 children from the Odododiodio constituency at his residence in Accra to read with them, Mr Kufuor said, the wisdom of elders is captured in books and in reading, we learn wisdom through what others have put in books. If you want to be a bright student or pupil, you must learn to read.

The former President, who applauded the progress made so far by the initiative, urged the children to take up reading seriously as it was one of the ways for them to gain wisdom and insights into the world around them.

He called on parents and teachers to assist children in cultivating the habit of reading at an early-stage.

Language is changing but let us not rush children through the early stages of education on abbreviated words and slangs. Let them learn to read properly the traditional way and then learn to do their Maths properly before we resort to the use of IT, he said.

He also used the occasion to donate books to the children and encouraged them to make good use of the resources.

The Raising Readers initiative is a partnership between Tigos Shelter for Education programme and Raising Readers Foundation, a non-governmental organisation that is committed to encouraging children to read and supported by Cowbell, Zoomlion and the EIB Network.

Since launch in April 2017, the initiative has benefited over 800 children in the Odododiodio constituency and seeks to reach out to children in other constituencies in the coming weeks.

It has also received support from journalists, authors, child advocates and head of public institutions.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com
29.05.2017 LISTEN

The President of Ghana Zabrama Association, a veteran Journalist who doubles as the Greater Accra Zabrama Chief and a philanthropist, Alhaji Pro Umar Tanko has appealed to government to consider the empowerment of women as its top most priority in the development agenda of the country.

He said empowerment of women is as well as empowering the community, adding that no community or family could be better off if women were not empowered.

He urged the government to ensure the welfare of the girl child and women through various empowerment programs such as sewing, fashiohn design, hair-dressing, telephony and hospitality industries.

Alhaji Pro-Umar Tanko made this appeal in an exclusive interview with the media in Accra, and revealed that for a country to move forward, there was the need to create productive avenues for women.

This he said would directly and indirectly build a stronger economy for the country.

Many women mostly in the rural and urban areas he said have fallen victims of disrespect, and are often despised, empoverished, misused and abused. More often than not, these poor and helpless women become and end up single mothers who become a burden on the society.

He said due to lack of empowerment of women in the country most young ladies risk traveling to the Middle East to seek greener pastures which resulted in all forms of abuse with sexual abuse in the lead. According to him, that cannot be prevented without good policies on girl child and the ultimate empowerment of women with employable skills.

Alhaji Pro-Tanko further appealed to the government to support individuals and Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which are into empowerment of girl child and women in the country to help motivate others to join the chain in assisting women in various skill training.

According to him the time has come for the society, stakeholders and government to come to the aid of these less empowered women and assist them with loans of lower or no interests and among other means of wealth creation.

He advised the government to apply the policy of Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) which would enable government to support women financially to build their own businesses and transfer it back as empowerment adding that government would directly retrieve it's investment and also capture them within the National Tax Net.
Tema based, Delhi Public School (DPS) International Ghana has held a colourful ceremony as part of its activities to mark Africa Union Day Celebrations.

The event had parents and teachers displaying some musical talents with unique songs and dancing.

Prior to that, the students had the opportunity to showcase the cultures of countries they represented and gave some brief history about their tradition.

In honour of the African Day, the pupils also showcased the various African flags in a well-staged choreography.

The celebration of the day commemorates the establishment of the African Union as well as celebrating the achievements made by various leaders on the continent.

AU day was initiated as a platform to acknowledge and celebrate African history, heritage and culture. The day which represents African Unity was celebrated with joy and passsion by pupils and students of the school who were joined by some guests and dignitaries.

The annual event aims at portraying the rich African culture, and to also help the kids cherish their unique traditional identity and understand the significance of the AU day.

Director of DPS International Ghana, Mr. Mukesh V. Thakwani expressed gratitude to parents for honouring the invitation, as well as B5 Plus Limited, a leading steel manufacturing company for its contribution towards the success of the celebration.

He urged Africans to appreciate themselves as the most blessed people on the planet earth and must overlook anything that attempts to divide them as African people and unite in moving African forward with the conviction that they are one people with a common destiny.

He called on Africans to come together in recommitting themselves to the continuous struggle for a better life for all as well as the development of the continent since Africa is blessed with numerous resources.

The director was of the view that there is the need to reflect on the people and cultures across the African continent, all of which contributed to the uniqueness of the continent.

According to him, the celebration provides the kids with the opportunity to experience the cultures of other African countries; how they work together and why they should get-together and the roles they are expected to play.

Kwadwo Odame Antwi, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Tourism Development Company (GTDC) was full of praise for the management of the school for their output and successes chalked within a short period.

The CEO urged parents to inculcate African culture and tradition in their children by eating and wearing made in Ghana products.

He pledged governments full support for any investor in the country, urging Ghanaians to take up entrepreneurial skills to change the face of Africa.

The Indian High Commissioner in Ghana, Birender Singh Yadav congratulated DPS International Ghana for celebrating African Day, adding that it will go a long way to enhance the diplomatic relationship between Ghana and India.

According to him, there is the need for Africans to fight on to bring development onto the continent to make it a better place and not to return to the colonial era; by looking at the future as they celebrate the past.

The school celebration was climaxed with a number of activities such as exhibitions, cultural performances, recitals, fashion show; showcasing African fabrics and designs and awards for best couples among others.

A beautiful drama enacted passionately by the students about the emancipation of Africa put the icing on the cake; a day that will for a long time be remembered.
Two persons have been injured in violent protests over the arrest of the ringleader in last week's demonstration in the Eastern regional town of Somanya.

Joy News Kofi Siaw reports that there is a lot of tension in the town as the residents demand the release of the Assemblyman who is said to have instigated the demonstration.

The unplanned demonstration last Friday was to protest 'outrageously' high utility bills charged residents by the Electricity Company of Ghana.

The Assemblyman, Jones Tetteh was arrested after the Eastern Regional office of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) came under attack from some residents who were dissatisfied with what they described as 'outrageous' utility bills.

He is said to have orchestrated the protest following his increasing inability to pay utility bills for his block factory.

The residents, wielding sticks and stones damaged the office of the company in protest after they waited for hours to get a response from ECG officials without success. They left behind broken glasses and dirty ECG walls .

He was subsequently picked up by the police, although the Member of Parliament for the area Magnus Kofi Amoatey cautioned against any arrest.

The MP expressed fears any arrest could lead to an escalation of the already volatile situation.

He would feel vindicated as the arrest appears to have triggered fresh violence.

The protesters have set fire into a police vehicle.

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Naa Sakwaba Akwa | [email protected]
Awutu Beraku, (C\R), May 29, GNA - The Crop Research Institute under the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has introduced three new improved varieties of cassava seeds this year for farmers to support planting for food and jobs programme.

The new improved plants are purposely meant for production of highly industrial starch and for consumption and would be released to farmers for planting in July this year.

Professor Joe Manu Aduening, Deputy Director of Crop Research Institute and Crop Bleeder made this known at a day's sensitisation programme against cassava brown virus streak at Awutu Beraku.

The farmers were drawn from Agona West, Gomoa East, Effutu Municipality, Awutu Senya East and Awutu Senya districts.

It was organised by the West Africa Virus Epidemiology (WAVE) of Ghana and sponsored by Bill Gates in the United State of America.

Prof Aduening said the move by the Crop Research Centre was given a boost for the Planting for food and Job programme instituted by government to improve the agricultural sector.

He said the introduction of the new improved cassava seeds would receive final certification by National Variety committee, who would give final approval and certify to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA).

According to Prof Aduening the committee after certifying the seeds, the Ministry of Agriculture would release and distribute to cassava farmers.

He said the new improved variety cassava could yield more production and earn more money for farmers, adding that it is a good step to create enabling environment to reduce poverty among farmers.

Prof Aduening called on the District, Municipal and Metropolitan Assemblies to support the publicity of planting for food and jobs programme to ensure its success.

He called on the government to create ready market for cassava production to encourage more especially the youth to go into farming to reduce rural-urban drift.

The Deputy Director of Crop Research Institute urged private institutions, financial and corperate bodies to support Planting for food and jobs aimed at increasing food production and creating wealth.

Dr Allen Oppong, Research Scientist of Crop Research Institute of the centre for Scientific and Industrial research said the sensitisation programme was to educate farmers about the cassava brown virus streak diseases which affected cultivation of cassava.

He said it would also avert danger of the diseases facing cassava farmers that affected production, adding that farmers be sensitised to reduce infection of cassava.

Dr Oppong who is also Programme Coordinator of West Africa Virus Epidemiology (WAVE) in Ghana said the disease that affected cassava production was reported in other Countries such as Tanzania, Kenya, DR Congo, Uganda , Nigeria , Togo and Benin hence the need to create awareness for Ghanaian farmers to curb it.

GNA
Bamako (AFP) - A threat by radical Islamists in northeast Mali to punish an unmarried couple with death by stoning finally was not carried out, local officials told AFP on Monday.

Officials had told AFP on May 17 that the couple had been stoned to death in public the previous day in the Taghlit valley, in the remote Kidal region.

It would have been the first such incident since jihadist groups were driven out of the region in 2013 by a French-led military intervention.

The report was queried on social media but could not be checked independently as the area is difficult to access and a haven for smugglers, drug-traffickers and other criminal gangs and militia fighters.

"Finally they weren't lapidated," said a local official who asked not to be identified. "They were arrested and threatened and then some people pretended to lapidate them."

"There was no lapidation," he added. "People went to see but there was no stoning."

A Malian security source confirmed the report, saying the execution by stoning had been cancelled.

Last week, the Group to Support Islam and Muslims (GSIM), a fusion of several jihadist groups with previous Al-Qaeda links, issued a statement denying any involvement in the stoning and questioning whether it ever took place.

Jihadists seized key northern cities in Mali in March 2012, and though they were driven out the next year, Islamist groups continue to make their presence felt with frequent attacks on domestic and foreign forces.

During their brief control of key towns in the vast north, jihadist groups imposed a version of Sharia law which forced women to wear veils and set whipping and stoning as punishment for transgressions.
Brussels (AFP) - The European Union imposed sanctions Monday on nine more officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo amid unrest after President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step aside, a statement said.

The people targeted by asset freezes and travel bans "hold positions of responsibility in the state administration and in the chain of command of the security forces," the EU said.

They join seven people targeted by EU sanctions in December after clashes with protesters against Kabila last year left more than 50 people dead.

Brussels had warned in March that it could impose fresh measures if political and military leaders blocked a deal with the opposition over Kabila's refusal to step down at the end of his term late last year.

"The European Union remains seriously concerned by the deterioration of the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo," the EU statement said.

The new sanctions hit the former and current DRC ministers for the interior, the governor of Central Kasai province, the former governor of Haut-Katanga, two senior officers, a militia leader, and the director of the National Intelligence Service, the EU said.

They were listed for "having contributed to acts constituting serious human rights violations in the DRC, by planning, directing or committing them."

The DRC's communications minister and government spokesman was also sanctioned "for the repressive media policy" in the country, it added.

Kabila, who first took office in 2001 after the assassination of his father Laurent, holds onto power despite a transition agreement brokered by the Catholic church which provides for elections later this year.
New Patriotic Party (NPP) Deputy General Secretary Obiri Boahen has told former President John Dramani Mahama to zip it up following his criticism of government for sacking more than 830 public sector workers.

Nana Obiri Boahen pointed out, the sacking was because their employment late December 2016, was fraudulently done and therefore invalid.

Mass dismissals have been free-flowing in fulfilment of an NPP vow to disengage public sector employees it believed were hastily employed while the National Democratic Congress (NDC) was exiting power in 2016.

Describing it as 'last-minute' appointments, the Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Maafo minced no words about a fearless purging and pruning of persons on the pay roll believed to be political hangers-on.

Since then, government has sacked 205 workers at the National Service Secretariat, 525 National security operatives and more than 100 employees at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA).

Irked by these happenings, former President John Mahama took to social media to register his disappointment.

The NDC has been re-echoing the president's disappointment with the sacking.

Builsa South MP Dr. Clement Apaak speaking on the late afternoon political show Ekosii Sen on Asempa FM, Monday, believes the President was very measured in his 'bad governance' criticism

The first-timer in parliament chose to describe the move as 'winner sacks all' policy of a triumphant party eager to give jobs for its desperate supporters.

Aware of the NDC's own record of sacking of some perceived NPP sympathisers after it won power in 2009, Apaak suggested that two wrongs do not make a right.

He said the NPP was 'accentuating a blemish' done by the NDC and questioned the value of political retaliations inspite of a promised difference in the style of governance.

'Where is the change the NPP promised,' he wanted to know.

According to Apaak, the sacking was a negative devolution in the process of governance.

A party dye-in-the-wool, Obiri Boahen has rejected Dr. Apaak's criticisms and sent one over to the former president.

Pointing out his deep roots in politics since 1992, Obiri Boahen said Apaak needs the benefit of living in Ghana to appreciate the genesis of sackings in Ghana's politics of give-and-take.

Dr. Clement Apaak

Apaak, who confessed his territorial absence, needs to ask for explanations since he was 'cooling off' in Canada from 2009.

He explained that President John Agyakum Kufuor in a gesture of all inclusiveness appointed non-party people into positions of power.

An example of this magnanimity was the choice of CPP leader Prof. Hagan as National Commission on Culture boss.

Obiri Boahen said the NPP had hoped that the NDC after wining power would continue to allow suspected sympathisers of other parties to keep their post.

But the sacking was ruthless, he explained and pointed out the forensic sacking under NDC included managers of public toilets suspected to be NPP supporters.

The NPP Deputy General Secretary said a man while easing himself in a public facility was interrupted and driven out in a brazen show of political change

In a continuous citing of further examples, Obiri Boahen said some perceived NPP sympathisers were sacked under Mahama as recent as 2014.

Obiri Boahen said as legal counsel for the grieved and affected COCOBOD staff, he has been leading efforts in court to have that decision over-turned.

There appears to be light at the tunnel for them as there are indications from court they could be reinstated, he said.

He explained that far from being an example of bad governance, the dismissal is a sign that institutions are being allowed to operate without interference.

"Fraud vitiates everything" the legal practitioner said.

Obiri Boahen said in this matter, he would prefer that the former leader adopts the proverb 'silence is golden'.

But if the former President wants to comment on political developments, he should pay attention to the corruption revelations involving appointees in his government.

He said former President Mahama should have commented on corruption stories at National Communications Authority (NCA) and National Standards Authority.

Story by Ghana|myjoyonline.com|Edwin Appiah|[email protected]
Kigali (AFP) - There will be no spur of the moment Twitter rants by Rwanda's presidential candidates, as the election commission has ruled that it must pre-approve all of their social media updates.

"We are asking (candidates) to present us their messages, their drafts to verify that they are not against the law," electoral commission head Kalisa Mbanda told AFP on Monday.

The measure, published in the government gazette earlier this month, will be effective as from the start of the official campaign on July 14 and concerns "messages, photographs and other campaign material" published on social networks.

Any social media messages will have to be submitted to the seven election commissioners at least 48 hours before their publication.

"If the message is not accepted it cannot be published," said Mbanda.

He said the goal was to "prevent declarations, words, acts that can lead the population to acts of insecurity that could divide the Rwandan population."

The measure has been criticised by the opposition, who fears it is a tool to prevent criticism of President Paul Kagame who is seeking re-election in August after the constitution was changed to allow him to run again.

"It is unfair because we think social media should be something spontaneous so if someone wants to control it or to approve it first it is going to make our work very difficult," said Frank Habineza, leader of the tiny opposition Democratic Green Party.

"If there is some message that is very critical to the ruling party maybe they can stop it saying it is against national security or something like that," he added.

Rwandan president Paul Kagame has been in charge since taking power at the head of a rebel army in 1994 and has already served two seven-year terms as president

Habineza, who is one of only four candidates who have declared their intention to run against Kagame -- pending the election commission's approval -- said he was considering legal action.

Since the end of the 1994 genocide in which around 800,000 mostly Tutsi people died, Rwanda has been praised for its stability and economic performance. However it often comes under fire for a lack of political freedom.

Rwanda is constitutionally a multi-party system but there is practically no opposition within the country.

All recognised parties generally support the policy decisions made by the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) -- with the exception of Habineza's Democratic Green Party which was the only one to object to the 2015 constitution changes allowing Kagame to seek re-election.

Kagame has been in charge since taking power at the head of a rebel army in 1994 and has already served two seven-year terms as president.

Kagame won previous elections with well over 90 percent of the vote.
Manhyia (A/R) May 29, GNA - The First Lady, Mrs Rebecca Akufo-Addo has called on all individuals and institutions to contribute towards the building of a new Mother and Child Unit for the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in the Ashanti Region.

She invited all kinds of donations in support of her 'Save a Child, save a Mother Project' aimed at constructing a one-story maternity building at KATH to help save the lives of mothers and children in the region and beyond.

The First Lady made the call in Kumasi during a fund raising event held at the Manhyia Palace under the patronage of Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the Asantehene, to solicit additional funds for the construction of the new GHE10 million worth Maternity Unit for the Hospital.

She said the current situation at KATH was disturbing as a number of avoidable deaths of both mothers and babies were being recorded daily, partly due to inadequate facilities to cater for them.

She said it would be prudent if everybody donated something urgently towards the construction of the new maternity unit.

She said the maternity unit would involve a modern facility that would cater for five times the current number of clients, becoming a major life saving measure to 'bring hope not only to families in Ashanti, but also those in the Brong Ahafo, the three Regions of the North and parts of the Central and Western Regions, who are served by the Komfo Anokye Hospital.'

Mrs Akufo-Addo noted that 'being a Ghanaian means being our brother's keeper as well as taking the initiative to make things happen to correct the wrong' and therefore many Ghanaians like herself had taken to various activities to stem the tide of avoidable deaths at KATH.

She said: 'when a mother dies, a vacuum is created in the family, which never gets filled. When a child dies we always wonder. Maybe if this child were alive, he or she would be in the university, married or even be the President.'

She therefore urged all to join in and contribute generously towards the project, reminding them that though the fundraising was necessitated by the construction of the maternity unit at KATH, there was a bigger intention for the event, saying 'we are not only building a maternity unit for Komfo Anokye, but we intend to improve other health facilities across the country.

'Your contributions would enable us to do so' she added.

She however commended all individuals, companies and organizations for their contribution during the Accra fundraising noting that it was 'highly successful.'

The First Lady also indicated that though 'the Accra event yielded some considerable amount, we have not met our target yet therefore the Kumasi event is to ask the wonderful people of Kumasi and its environs to help us raise enough to build this maternity unit.'

She said she wished to see a fully functional modern maternity unit at the Hospital in four months' time so that 'space would no longer be an impediment to the well- being and survival of our mothers and children.'

Also at the Kumasi fundraising event were; the Second Lady Samira Bawumia, the host Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and his wife Lady Julia Osei Tutu, other traditional and religious leaders from the Region, representatives from Hospital and other dignitaries.

GNA

By Lydia Asamoah, GNA
29.05.2017 LISTEN

Accra, May 29, GNA - An E-judgement Library for judges was on Monday inaugurated in Accra to provide judges with easy access to judgement delivered in all the jurisdictions and various specialised courts in the country.

The library would also provide judges with the available data-base to obtain particularised search results while being able to highlight and copy portions of a particular judgement, paste it on another document and have the means to print the judgement.

Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, the Chief Justice, in a speech read on her behalf, said the platform would be an improvement on the Judicial Training Institute System.

She said it would be available to judges anywhere, anytime, and at no cost.

'As an equivalent of a major research library on the desk of every judge, with research capabilities beyond what currently exists in the judicial service, the research task of judges would become easier and impact on the ability to deliver judgement speedily,' the Chief Justice said.

She said legal research formed an important component of judgement writing and that the library would foster easy and speedy sharing of knowledge among judges.

The Chief Justice said, over the years, judges and lawyers had resorted to doing research manually using hard copies of law reports but the time had now come for them to migrate to a more effective and efficient system.

'We in the judiciary acknowledge that we can no longer rely on the age-old methods of legal research. Rather we need to harness the power of the electronics and the internet to make our work simpler, faster and more efficient,' she said.

The Chief Justice later commended the effort of the committee who worked tirelessly to create the library and urged all judges to endeavour to make use of the platform to achieve a more effective and efficient justice delivery system in Ghana.

GNA

By Hafsa Obeng, GNA
The Council of State has dismissed reports that it has held talks with the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament (MP) to drop their case against government over the $2.25 billion local bond issued.

The Council in a statement Monday said neither its Chairman, Nana Otuo Siriboe II nor any of its members have engaged the Minority over the matter.

"The Council is indeed scandalised that any media organisation can concoct a story to deceive the citizens of Ghana and to seek to tarnish the hard-won reputations of its members."

Chairman of Council of State, Nana Otuo Siriboe II

Read the full statement below:

COMMUNIQUE

RE: COUNCIL OF STATE BEGS NDC TO DROP CASE

The attention of the Council of State has been drawn to a false publication on the front page of The Informer newspaper of Monday, May 29  Tuesday, May 30, 2017, which subsequently became the subject of various media discussions on Monday, May 29, 2017.

The Council of State wishes to state categorically and unequivocally that neither its Chairman Nana Otuo Siriboe II, nor any of its members has been approached by the Minister of Finance or the President of Ghana to negotiate with any group of people on the matter of the $2.25 billion bond transaction.

The Council is indeed scandalized that any media organisation can concoct a story to deceive the citizens of Ghana and to seek to tarnish the hard-won reputations of its members.

For emphasis, as at the time of reading the above-referenced publication, there had been no meeting between the Council of State and any minority group.

The Council wishes to counsel all who want careers in journalism to first educate/train themselves on the ethics and principles of journalism in order to be useful to themselves and to society.

PEACE A. P. OKANTEY (MRS.)

AG. SECRETARY TO THE COUNCIL

Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com |
BHP Billiton Ltd [ASX:BHP] fell 0.7% this morning, to $23.81 per share.

What happened?

Over the past week, BHP CEO Andrew Mackenzie has been traveling up and down Collins Street and Martin Place. Hes been talking to fund managers explaining why US activist hedge fund firm Elliott Management has been wrong about the business.

If you havent heard, Elliott Management has been pressuring BHP to sell off its petroleum assets and unify its dual British and Australian listing. The activist hedge fund believes it will significantly improve shareholder value.

But while Mackenzie is pumping up the company on the east coast of Australia, BHP is trying to look weak in the west.

The threat of a new tax in Western Australia could see BHP pay 25- or 30-years rent on their iron ore product upfront. So dont be surprised if you see Mackenzie or other executives tell Western Australians that the company is in no financial position to come up with $2 billion it would need for 30 years worth of rent.

What now for BHP?

BHP is adamant about increasing shareholder value. While they disagree with Elliotts approach, the company plans to improve the value of the group by 50% over time.

To achieve this goal, the company will need to continue to invest in profitable divisions. Yet a large portion of growth will likely come from commodity prices. And if they continue to stay depressed, BHP will be fighting an uphill battle to pump up production for the sake of its profits.

Regards,

Harje Ronngard,

Junior Analyst, Money Morning

PS: If you want the inside scoop on which commodities have the best potentially to rocket up resource analyst Jason Stevenson can help.

A number of Jasons active investments in his advisory service, Resource Speculator, are up 52.4%, 57.6% and 100%!

If youre looking to match these returns, check out Jasons free report, The Top 10 Australian Mining Stocks for 2017.

Jason will introduce you to 10 cheap, top-quality Aussie mining stocks that look set to soar this year.

To get your free copy of Jasons report, click here.
In todays Money Morningwhat Chinas new wave of renewable energy means for Aussie investorsan Indian construction boomthe clock that could tell you when to investand more

Shortly before the Chinese New Year festivities (back in February), China announced it will spend 2.5 trillion yuan  US$361 billion  on renewable power generation. The funds are to be spent before 2020.

The announcement gained very little press coverage in Australia.

Renewables are designed to shift Chinese energy production away from dirty coal, as they described it, towards cleaner fuels.

The Chinese government expects to create 13 million jobs in the sectors involved.

13 million. Over half the population of Australia.

This was laid out in the Chinese National Energy Administrations blueprint document.

Its a lot of money. Estimates suggest that US$72 billion will be spent each year to complete the task.

Of course, the Chinese government is always big on announcements and statements like this. We see such things often.

Is it realistic? Will it happen? Could the Chinese government really do it?

Who can say? But credit is deserved for the attempt.

Its the third year of Chinas war on pollution. If youve been there, youll know why it can certainly be called a war.

Significantly, it creates a lot of new jobs as the more polluting plants are phased out.

But the Chinese have even more ambitious plans afoot. Such as the Chinese One Belt, One Road initiative. This could really get the real estate cycle moving further.

No doubt youve heard a lot about the New Silk Road. So we wont bore you with all the details.

The important things is that the Chinese are committed to spending $1.6 trillion over the next decade to get the project underway throughout Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

The funds will feed straight into land value in the areas where the money is spent.

And the Chinese are not the only government spending big money.

Indias Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, wants to bring far more affordable homes to half a billion Indian citizens.

Bloomberg reports that some 60 million new homes are to be built between 2018 and 2024.

60 million new homes.

The article says:

In a country where slums sit cheek-by-jowl next to palatial luxury  including whats been reported as the worlds most expensive private home  Indias unhoused may soon become a more potent economic growth driver. Prime Minister Narendra Modis drive to bring homes to the countrys 1.3 billion people, rising incomes and the best affordability in two decades will unleash a $1.3 trillion wave of investment in housing over the next seven years, according to CLSA India Pvt.

And goes on to say:

The housing sector is at a tipping point and will be the economys next big growth driver, Mumbai-based analyst Mahesh Nandurkar and his colleagues wrote in a note last week. The catalyst is the governments big push for an ambitious housing program. Modi has been on a mission to expand affordable housing in Asias third-largest economy. In February, the government granted affordable-housing builders infrastructure status, making them eligible for state incentives, subsidies, tax benefits and institutional funding.

This will create about two million jobs per year. And it should add as much as 0.75% to Indias gross domestic product.

The volume of social and affordable housing will rise almost 70%, to 10.5 million annually by 2024.

Thats a US$1.3 trillion wave of investment in Indian housing over the next seven years.

This clock tells more than time

The world runs in 18.6 year real estate cycles. Historically, weve been led into and out of them by the sheer size of the US economy.

Heres the real estate clock we use over at Cycles, Trends and Forecasts. It helps to guide our investment decisions.

Click to enlarge

Cycles, Trends and Forecasts subscribers get a real estate clock labelled with the dates of the turns. And the cycle turns, well, like clockwork.

Now we havent even talked about the infrastructure that President Trump wants to get started. If indeed he ever does. It probably doesnt matter, really.

The biggest boom of all time is still ahead of you. It could run through the entire century, broken only by the usual land price-led downturns.

You can know the dates when these downturns will occur well in advance.

If youd like to know how, watch your inbox this week for a new video report.

Meanwhile, Chinese company Xiaomis sales of smartphones in India surpassed US$1 billion in annual revenue last year.

Xiaomi has only been in India for two years.

Three quarters of these phones are assembled in India as the company follows the Indian governments request to help the Made in India campaign.

More jobs, more money.

All the more that can go into land value over the next decade, worldwide.

This is how your real estate cycle turns. A really big one is unfolding. Can you afford to not be aware of this cycle?

Regards,

Phil Anderson
I have fond childhood memories of sitting on the couch with my little brother, watching the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fight bad guys and eat pizza.

I didnt care for other 90s TV franchises (Im looking at you, Power Rangers), but the turtles held a special place in my heart.

So when I came across the following essay from Mark Ford, I was intrigued. What exactly is the Ninja Turtle marketing strategy  and how can it help you?

The Ninja Turtle Marketing Strategy

Mark Ford

About 15 years ago, travelling to California with my wife and our youngest son, I met one of the originators of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

He was sitting next to my son. We got to talking. My son was a big fan of the turtles back then. This guy, I forget his name, drew a turtle for him.

I asked him how he came up with such a creative idea.

It wasnt creative at all, he said. It was a calculated marketing strategy.

This young man was in his early 20s at the time. He and his friends had developed the concept when they were in their teens. It didnt seem likely to me that they could be so calculating, as he put it, at that age. I figured he was pulling my leg.

But then he explained.

We were sitting around one day talking about how cool it would be to have a bestselling comic strip. To do that, one of us said, youd need to pick something that was really cool with kids who read comic books.

So then we talked about what the coolest things were. We made a list and we decided that the three coolest things were mutants, ninjas and turtles. We made them teenagers because we knew it would be teenagers who wed be selling to.

Wow! I thought. That is a calculated marketing strategy.

In the years since that conversation, Ive thought about it many times when brainstorming new products. What is really hot right now? I always ask, to get the ball rolling.

By What is hot?, I mean two things:

What are the products our prospects are buying now?

What are the topics they are talking about?

The purpose of these questions is to discover their most current thoughts, feelings and desires.

Finding out what prospects are buying now tells you about their recent past. Finding out what they are thinking about gives you a perspective on the near future.

When I brainstorm like this, I am usually searching for a single, powerful idea that I can use to create a new product or promotion. But sometimes I see an opportunity to do something like those kids did with the Ninja Turtles: to create one super-powerful mutant product or promotion by combining two or three hot topics or ideas.

Let me give you an example:

The iPhone  one of the most brilliant marketing coups in recent memory.

The iPhone is a beautiful mutant. It is a state-of-the-art mobile phone, a sophisticated MP3 player, and an easy-to-use mobile web browser, all in one.

Of course, its much more than that. But these three functions were particularly positioned in the marketing. And for good reason. They are must-haves for everybody from students to business travellers to retirees.

Finally, let me tell you about a business Ive noticed here in Delray Beach.

Its a restaurant that offers a large selection of microbrew beer, caters to the foodie crowd with gourmet menu items, and restricts itself to tapas-style dining by featuring appetiser-size portions.

If you know anything about the restaurant business, you know that these are three big trends. By combining them in a cohesive way, this restaurant became an instant success during a time when many restaurants have been foundering.

But three ideas at once? Doesnt this violate my much-touted Rule of One?

Yes and no. The Rule of One states that a marketing campaign does best when it begins with an emphasis on a single idea or benefit. When I see marketers and copywriters throw a bunch of ideas/benefits into the headline and lead of a promotion, I know its because they cant decide which one will pull people in.

The Ninja Turtle strategy is different. It doesnt come from doubt about which idea/benefit is strongest. It comes from recognising that there are two or three really hot trends in the market at the moment. And it takes advantage of them.

You cant always use this strategy. Most of the time, the product you are selling cannot be connected with two or three super-hot trends. But when it can  and you can find some way to put them all together in a single package  well, then you can have the Ninja Turtle effect.

In using the Ninja Turtle strategy, be sure your promotional copy follows all the tested and true rules of good promotional writing:

Make sure there is a primary benefit for your reader contained in the principal idea.

Make sure the copy makes that benefit real, with specific examples of how your reader will experience it in their own life.

Make sure it makes claims and proves them  being as specific as possible.

The Ninja Turtle strategy wont work if your product doesnt genuinely provide the benefits needed, or if the two or three ideas cant be coherently linked together.

But when it works, you will sense the power of your copy as you are reading through it yourself. And you will see the benefit of it when your prospects respond to you in droves.

*****

Thanks for sharing, Mark. Youve certainly shed new light on the Ninja Turtles! Who knew there was so much marketing genius behind this famous foursome?

Cheers,

Michelle Hammond,

Director, Wealth Builders Club Australia

Editors Note: Mark has spent more than three decades dispensing wisdom like thisand now hes compiled it into the most comprehensive wealth-building program in existence

Its called the Wealth Builders Club. It includes everything from extra income blueprints (which have the potential to generate thousands of dollars per month) to investment strategies outside the stock market, plus several of Marks bestselling books. Click here to learn more.
Ramadan can be your perfect chance to lose some weight! It`s the best time to improve your body! How to lose weight while fasting during Ramadan? Follow our 5 steps guide!

How to lose weight during Ramadan in 5 steps?

Step 1. Hydrate

It may sound impossible during the holy month, but hydration is a key element to losing weight during Ramadan! If you don`t want to become dehydrated  you must drink enough water! Enough water during Ramadan can also help you to control your sugar level! How much should you drink during a day? Scientists inform that people should drink two liters (or eight glasses) of water per day! When can you drink it?

- Drink two glasses (half a liter) at Iftar;

- Drink four glasses (one liter) in between Iftar and Suhur (Do not drink in between Suhur and Iftar!);

- Two glasses (half a liter) at Suhur.

Do not drink coffee or black tea! Try herbal teas! They can be a great alternative to water. If you drink at least two liters of water per day  it will help your digestion!

Step 2. Balanced Iftar

How to lose weight during Ramadan fasting? Do not eat too much during Iftar. In the holy month, your metabolism slows down. It needs the energy decrease! The Iftar meal shouldn`t be the period when you overeat! Just try to eat according to your daily regime.

Date fruit can be your perfect meal and a quick source of sugar. Sugar provides energy to your body. Ramadan 2017 is not the time when you need to lose energy! A vegetable soup is also a nice addition to your Ramadan! Do not forget to skip cream based soups! Another good option for you is a mixed vegetable salad! Vegetables can fill you with energy for the whole day!

Do not forget that Ramadan is not a time to overeat! Do not overwhelm your digestive system with food!

Step 3. Balanced Suhur

Your eating hours during Ramadan fasting are pretty limited. Still, there is no excuse to miss your Suhur meal. If you skip Suhur, you will only become hungry. What does it mean for your body? It means that you are losing energy! Also, it may lead to overeating during Iftar! You don`t want to do that, right?

READ ALSO: When does Ramadan start 2017?

Avoid salty food during Suhur! It will only make you thirsty the next day! When you choose your meal  do not forget about carbs! A whole grain bread can be your choice for Suhur. You may also try to mix a salad with vegetables and eggs. This combination will help you to keep a stable level of proteins and carbs in your body.

Step 4. Stay Active

According to the rules of Ramadan, it`s time when we need to improve ourselves. Do not be lazy during Ramadan! Still, do not overheat and avoid the sun during its peak hours! Do not forget that you will burn more fat on an empty stomach! In the early morning hours, you can try some jogging! Cardio exercises will make your life healthier.

You can also ask help from a professional trainer. This specialist will help you to maintain your body in shape during Ramadan 2017!

Step 5. Sugar Is Your Enemy!

How to lose weight when fasting in Ramadan? Avoid eating too much sugar. It`s a good time to skip sugary products. They can only cause you to gain weight during Ramadan!

Ramadan Challenge!

You can lose some weight during Ramadan! It`s only the matter of your willpower! Do not forget to follow the saintly rules of this holy month! Eat healthy and in time! Stay active during Ramadan! Avoid Sugar and drink more water!

READ ALSO: Ramadan Fasting Rules 2017

Source: Legit.ng
- (Dr) Ahmad Abubakar Gumi, an Islamic scholar says the president has failed Nigerians

- He also urged Nigerians to reject both the APC and PDP

- Gumi argued that in the administration of President Buhari, senior officials were getting away with stealing and corruption

An Islamic scholar, Sheikh (Dr) Ahmad Abubakar Gumi has insisted that the President Muhammadu Buhari APC-led administration has failed woefully.

Sheikh Gumi said this while assessing the administration of President Buhari and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last two years.

READ ALSO: Acting President Osinbajo, former VP Sambo, disagree over Zaria water project

According to the cleric, the president and the party performed below expectations.

Gumi argued that in the administration of President Buhari, senior officials were getting away with stealing and corruption

Going further, the cleric urged Nigerians to reject the ruling party and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as well.

He said: The problem is that no matter how good you are as a leader, you should have a team. If you put Maradona in a bad team, no one will pass the ball to him in order to score a goal. The APC government has failed for lack of a team.

Every failure has reasons. When a patient dies in the hospital, there is usually a post mortem examination to determine the direct cause of death. We have symptoms but they may not be the cause of death.

The widespread suffering in the country is a symptom of an underlying disease afflicting the nation that needs to be tackled. But if the government has been listening all along, it could have alleviated the problem or it could have done more than it is doing.

I can imagine somebody who has nothing. How is he surviving? How is he paying his childrens school fees? How can he treat his children when they are sick? How can he feed? So, when you look at all these indices, you will know that it is a miracle that we are still existing.

So, if we want to do a post mortem on this government, you have to look far beyond the inception of the administration. Like I said, they inherited some of the defects and the solution would have been to manage Nigeria as a critically ill patient.

Sheikh Gumi lso faulted the leadership qualities of the ruling party.

Now, there is too much hostility and bad blood in the country. All I know is that all Nigerians are one. What we need was someone to correct us, he told New Telegraph.

This is the time to bring people together, the kind of leader that Nigeria needs at this critical time is the one that can pacify. Not one that will show that he is clean and the other person is dirty. No. He should show that we are all dirty, let us all come and clean ourselves.

So, the so-called clean party which has the broom, who is it trying to sweep? It is so antagonistic. It is so provocative that it has divided the country. If your house is also dirty, you cannot clean someones house. People thought that change is coming when it was not possible to effect that change," he said.

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Speaking on corruption, Gumi reflected that even in the administration of President Buhari, senior officials were getting away with stealing and corruption.

The allegations of corruption are already been made against the (suspended) Secretary to the Government of the Federation, of a government that is fighting corruption. And the government cannot do anything besides suspension.

The present administration came to rule Nigeria using the slogan of war against corruption and this is disrupting the unity of the country. The unity of the country is more important than the money that people stole; more important than the current underdevelopment that we are witnessing, he said.

Meanwhile, acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Saturday, May 27, appointed a new Director General for the National Pension Commission (PENCOM).

Legit.ng gathered that Funso Doherty the new appointee whose appointment is subject to senate confirmation replaces Mal. Dikko Aliyu AbdulRahman.

Osinbajo has also approved the following appointments for some Federal Government Parastatals, Agencies and Commissions.

Source: Legit.ng
There are a lot of different art courses that can be studied in Universities in Nigeria. You can choose different languages, arts, design, music or anything that you prefer - as long as you have enough points! We will tell you about all of the courses that are taught in various Nigerian Universities.

Art Courses in Nigerian Universities

Art courses are becoming more popular among Nigerian students. And no wonder - a lot of them are more marketable than some other courses. Usually English, Foreign Languages, Music or Law are in high demand among employers.

If you choose an English course, you can work as an editorial assistant, newspaper or magazine journalist, writer, primary or secondary teacher. If you go for Law, you may apply to work as an investment banker, police officer, probation officer, commodity broker, MOD police officer, trading standards officers, pension scheme manager, company lawyer and a lot of others. Choosing Music will give you the opportunity to become a record producer or an actor.

After graduating in any foreign language, you can work at embassies or as a teacher. You can also travel abroad and find a job there - it will be easier.

It is worth mentioning that the courses listed below are accredited and approved.

1. African & Asian Studies;

2. Arabic and Islamic Studies;

3. Arabic Language;

4. Arabic Language and Literature;

5. Arabic Studies;

6. Archaeology;

7. Archaeology and Tourism;

8. Arts (Combined Honours);

9. Arts Education;

10. Chinese Studies;

11. Christian Religious knowledge, Studies or Theology;

12. Classical Studies;

13. Communication and Language Arts;

14. Communication Arts;

15. Communication Studies;

16. Comparative Religious Studies;

17. Counseling and Psychology;

18. Creative and Visual Arts;

19. Creative Arts;

20. Criminology and Security Studies;

21. Drama, Dramatic or Performing Arts;

22. Economics;

23. Economics and Development Studies;

24. Education Arts;

25. Efik-Ibibio;

26. English and International Studies;

27. English and Literary Studies;

28. English Language;

29. English Language and Communication Studies;

30. English Language and Literature;

31. English Studies;

32. European and Nigerian Language;

33. Film Arts;

34. Fine Art and Applied Arts;

35. Fine Arts and Design;

36. Foreign Languages and Literature;

37. French;

38. French and International Relations;

39. French and International Studies;

40. French with German or Russian;

41. Fulfulde;

READ ALSO: Imo State University Owerri courses 2017

42. Geography;

43. Geography and Environmental Studies;

44. German;

45. German Combined with French or Russian;

46. Guidance and Counselling;

47. Hausa;

48. History;

49. History or Sociology;

50. History and Archaeology;

51. History and Archeology;

52. History and Diplomacy;

53. History and Diplomatic Studies;

54. History and International Relation;

55. History and International Studies;

56. History and Political Science;

57. History and Strategic Studies;

58. Igbo;

59. Igbo or Linguistics;

60. International and Comparative Politics;

61. International Relations and Diplomacy;

62. International Studies and Diplomacy;

63. Islamic Studies;

64. Kanuri;

65. Kiswahili;

66. Languages;

67. Languages and Linguistics;

68. Languages and Literature;

69. Languages Arts;

70. Languages Arts and Yoruba;

71. Library and Information Science;

72. Linguistics;

73. Linguistics or Edo;

74. Linguistics or Urhobo;

75. Linguistics or Yoruba;

76. Linguistics and African Languages;

77. Linguistics, Igbo and other African Languages;

78. Literature in English;

79. Mass Communication;

80. Media Studies and Mass Communication;

81. Modern and European Language;

82. Modern Language and Translation;

83. Music;

84. Nigerian Languages;

85. Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution;

86. Performing Arts;

87. Performing Arts and Culture;

88. Philosophy and Religious Studies;

89. Philosophy;

90. Political Science;

91. Political Science and Conflict Resolution;

92. Portugues;

93. Psychology;

94. Psychology and Human Development;

95. Religion and Science;

96. Religious and Cultural Studies;

97. Religious and Human Relations;

98. Religious and Philosophy;

99. Religious Studies;

100. Religious Studies or Theology;

101. Russian with French or German;

102. Russian;

103. Sociology;

104. Sociology and Anthropology;

105. Theatre and Film Studies;

106. Theatre and Media Arts;

107. Theatre and Performing Arts;

108. Theatre Arts;

109. Theology;

110. Visual and Applied Arts;

111. Yoruba;

112. Yoruba and Communication Arts.

Whew! A huge list, right? At least you have a lot of options and can choose anything as long as you have enough points. Now you know the Art Courses that different Universities can offer. But wait! Do you know the Universities that offer these courses this year? Dont worry, you can find the list of some of the Universities below.

Delta State University, Abraka;

University of Nigeria, Nsukka;

Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma;

Uthman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto;

Covenant University, Ota - the American University of Nigeria;

Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port-Harcourt;

Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso;

Ahmadu Bello University Zaria;

University of Ibadan, Ibadan;

Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education, Owerri;

University of Benin, Ugbowo;

University of Uyo, Uyo;

Bayero University, Kanol;

National Open University of Nigeria;

University of Ilorin, Ilorin;

Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.

Remember that in order to study a course in Nigeria you need to pass the cut-off mark in your UTME. You need to have at least 180 points (the cut off mark of the University), but courses may require different points. So its better to have about 200-220 in order to feel safe in your position. Try hard, learn and you will be successful. Good luck, applicants!

READ ALSO: Unilorin post UTME cut off mark

Source: Legit.ng
Education has many challenges and choosing a University is one of them. The best option is to read the latest ranking of the Universities. It will help you to make the right choice. Today we will tell you about the top 10 Universities in Nigeria.

Top 10 of Universities in Nigeria

The Education system in Nigeria is rapidly changing. So no wonder that its Universities are in the South Africa Top 8. These Universities were ranked by the National Universities Commission (NUC).

10. Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger.

The FUTMINNA is the first one in our list. It was established in 1983 as a governmental post-secondary educational institution. It's main specialization is technological education. It is well known for its competence in developing medicines and vaccines. There are 9 schools that are mostly concentrated on either engineering or technology education. Today, there are about 13000 undergraduates and 2000 postgraduates.

9. University of Port Harcourt, Rivers

This University was established as a University College in 1975. There are twelve faculties since 1982 such as Dentistry, Health Sciences, Social Sciences, Law, Agriculture, Phrmacy, Management Sciences, Humanities, Education, Engineering, Basic Medical Sciences, Natural and Applied Sciences. There are 44,500 undergraduates in the University and above 10,500 postgraduates.

8. University of Abuja, Abuja

The University of Abuja is known to have one of the most Organised Student Representative Councils in Nigeria. The school was established in 1988. It runs three programs - regular degree, diploma and postgraduate. There are two campuses - the main and the mini in Gwagwalada. The latter is a temporary location for the faculty of education, social science and law.

7. University of Benin, Ugbowo

READ ALSO: Yabatech cut off marks for courses 2017-2018

This University offers courses and different levels - Diploma, Certificate, Postgraduate, and Undergraduate. There are a lot of Units, Departments, Faculties and Institutes and the University is still growing. Today, there are more that 40,000 of both full-time and part-time students. Isnt that impressive? In addition, the University was founded in 1970 as an Institute and a year later, on the 1st July, the National Universities Commission accorded the schools a new status of a full-fledged University.

6. University of Nigeria, Nsukka

This Federal University was established in 1955 and it is one of the oldest Universities in Nigeria. However, it was opened in 1960. There are three main campuses - Ituku-Ozalla, Nsukka, and Enugu. All of them are located inEnugu state. The University is quite big - there are 15 faculties and 102 departments. There are both postgraduate and undergraduate programs. There are more than 36 000 students in the university.

5. University of Ilorin, Ilorin

Unilorin is very popular among Nigerians. There are 30 000 students currently studying at the University. If you are willing to apply, you need to have very high points - the competition is crazy! The cutoff mark is 180 but some courses may have cut off marks of more than 220 points. The University also made it to the top 10 best Universities in Nigeria. And our top 5!

4. Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria

The Ahmadu Bello University, also known as ABU was established in 1961. It is a federal government research university with two campuses in Samaru and Kongo in Zaria. There are a lot of faculties such as arts, education, languages, sciences, agricultural sciences, environmental design and many others. At the Faculty of Administration, you may find the courses, like: Development Studies, Accounting, Business Administrations, Local Government, etc.

3. Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife

The federal government university was founded in 1961. It has both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. There are a lot of specialization such as arts, natural sciences, social sciences, medical sciences, technology, and engineering. However, there are only 13 faculties and two colleges.

2. University of Lagos, Lagos

The federal government research University was established in 1962. The main campus is in Akoka, and the Medical Campus is in Idi-Araba. There are 13 faculties with numerous departments. It made a significant impact on the development of Nigeria. It is one of the popular universities and made it to the top 3!

1. University of Ibadan, Ibadan

The premier University of Ibadan is the best University in Nigeria for the year 2017. There are a lot of students that are willing to attend it, but admission is very competitive. It is the oldest university in Nigeria (established in 1948). There are 11 faculties: Science, Agriculture, and Forestry, Arts, Social Sciences, Education, Law, Veterinary Medicine, Public Health, Phrmacy, Technology, Dentistry. The Ibadan University is a high-level university - it makes it to the top 1000 in the Times Higher Education rankings.

Now you know the top 10 universities in Nigeria. But remember - the rankings are changing every year, so check them to know if anything changes. Choose the university you like, choose the preferable courses and good luck!

READ ALSO: Unilorin post UTME cut off mark

Source: Legit.ng
- Atiku Abubakar called on Nigerians to use democracy to their advantage

- The former vice president said wise selections should be made in selection of leaders

- He described the worst democratic government as better than a military government

Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar has called on Nigerians to exercise patience with those in government till the end of their administration and make better choices in subsequent elections.

Vanguard reports that in his Democracy Day message to Nigerians, the chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) described democracy as the best form of government and said the citizens should take advantage of it to make wise selections.

READ ALSO: Osinbajo calls for sacrifices, prays for Buhari in Democracy Day message

He also prayed for President Muhammadu Buharis quick recovery and return to the country saying the worst form of democracy was better than a military government.

Read the statement below:

Former vice-president and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Atiku Abubakar, congratulates Nigerians of all political persuasions on the occasion of this years Democracy Day, which coincides with the second anniversary of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Turakin Adamawa says Nigerians should be proud of themselves for doing away with military governments in 1999, in favour of democracy, which the world over, gives voice and a sense of belonging to more people in society.

He counsels all those who may be contemplating alternatives to perish such thoughts as the worst form of democratic rule has been adjudged far better than the best form of military dictatorship.

Among the virtues of democracy, aside public discussion, is the culture of patience with the leadership which informs that once an election has taken place, and a leader is elected, the populace has to be patient with the leader until he completes his tenure.

The implication of this, says the Turaki, is that a democratic system imbues the people with political wisdom, to improve on their mode of selection of leaders with each election that takes place.

The best guarantee for the peace, progress and development of plural societies like Nigeria, and even homogeneous entities, is democracy because popular political participation and inclusiveness in government helps to develop patriotism in the citizenry and this galvanises the best endeavours of the people for the development of the society.

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Noting that the beauty of democracy is the opportunity it gives to the people to elect their leaders, the former Vice President acknowledges the improvements in the electoral processes over the years since 1999 and calls on the Independent National Electoral Commission not to rest on its oars in making credible and transparent elections possible in the country.

While wishing the government and people the best of this period, which coincides with the second anniversary of this administration, and the days ahead, the former vice president and recipient of the Hero of Nigeria Democracy award, urges Nigerians to pray for the quick recovery and safe return of President Muhammadu Buhari to continue with the work of entrenching democracy and development in the country.

If you had the choice of Buhari or Governor Fayose for president in 2019, who will you vote for? Watch the video below to see what other Nigerians think

Source: Legit.ng
Prayer points for spiritual growth are of great importance. They are required during the Holy month of Ramadan.

The Holy month of Ramadan is the month not only of giving up food in the daytime but, most importantly of all, the month to desisit from all forbidden actions. At this time a believer should be especially vigilant and control his eyes, ears, and tongue.

The month of Ramadan is not only a month of abstinence from food. It is a month of the heart purification with the help of fasting and prayer.

The Messenger of Allah (DAR) said: "Verily, the heavenly gates open on the first of the nights of Ramadan, and do not close until the last of the nights of the month" (Al-Bihar, 96/34/8).

He also said: "If the servant of God is in charge, what blessings are sent in Ramadan, he would wish Ramadan will be lasting a whole year" (Al-Bihar, 96/346/12).

There are three necessary conditions of fasting in the month of Ramadan:

- The first is Intention. A person should tell himself he will keep fasting for Allah's sake during this month.

- The second is abstention from eating food and drinking water during the daylight hours (from the morning azan to the evening).

- The third is to pay the zakat-fitr after the end of the fast.

The main prayer points in Ramadan

There are many prescriptions for the desired amal (actions) this month. We should underline the main thing, the crucial prayer points:

1. You must read the Quran. Those who cannot read Arabic can listen to a record.

2. After each obligatory prayer, read this dua:

O High, O Great One,

O Forgiving, O Most Merciful,

You are the great Lord,

There is no one like Him,

And He is the Hearing, the Seeing.

You created this month and extolled,

And exalted over all the months.

In this month You made the post mandatory for me.

It is the month of Ramadan,

When the Quran was sent down -

A guide for people and an explanation of the true path and distinction, -

And he installed it the Night of Power (Laylat ul-Kadr),

And He did it better than a thousand months.

O The One who endows and does not need to be endowed!

Put me on protection from the Fire,

Among those you have given to,

And lead me into Paradise,

O Most Gracious and the Most Merciful!

READ ALSO: #Ramadan: Hunger, thirst, abstinence, any effect so far?

3. You should praise Allah a lot. You must read dhikr, give the Salavat to the Prophet (DABAR) and remember his purest Ahl al-Bayt (A). They say in the month of Ramadan Imam Sajjad (A) did not utter other speeches except spiritual prayers, praise of Allah and repentance.

4. You must give a lot of Sadaqah.

5. You should read two rak'aats every Ramadan night. In each rak'aat you must read Surah "Ihlias" after "Fatihi".

6. Three times within the month of Ramadan you have to read the dua "Great Armor" ("Jaushan Kabir").

They say Allah will assign 70,000 angels praising Allah to a person who reads this dua with a pure intention at the beginning of the Ramadan month. Allah will make Hell forbidden and prescribe Paradise for the one who reads it three times during the Holy month. Allah will place two angels to such a person. They will protect him from any evil of this world and take him under His protection for the rest of his days.

7. You must spend at least three nights  the 19th, the 21st and the 23rd of Ramadan in wakefulness and prayer Laylat ul-Kadr (Night of Power).

8. During all the nights of Ramadan, you should make 1000 rakaats of additional prayers. As Imam Javad (A) said, they are considered as namaz 2 rak'aat each (that is, 500 prayers total). Do it as follows: The first 20 nights of Ramadan, perform 10 prayers per each night (4 prayers after the evening prayer and 6 prayers after the night prayer). The last 10 nights of the month, every night you have to carry out 15 prayers: 4 prayers after the evening prayer and 11 prayers after the night prayer. Finally, the last 150 prayers you must perform at the night of Lailiat ul-Qadr (the 19th, the 21st, and the 23d of Ramadan) - 50 prayers per each night.

9. The desirable prayers recommended being read at night of the month of Ramadan are dua "Iftitah" from Imam Mahdi (A), dua "Mujir", "Imajam Ali (A) in the Kufa mosque" and "Makaremu ahlyak".

10. The desirable prayers recommended to be read before dawn: Dua "Bach" ("Shining") and Dua Abu Hamza Sumali.

The special prayers before meals

Before the morning and evening meals, Muslims say special prayers. Here it is in text:

The intention to fast: Navata savma gadin an 'ada'i Ramadan hazihi-s-sanati' imanan wa-htisaban liallahi ta'ala - I am going to hold the Fast of tomorrow Ramadan day of this year in accordance with faith and sincere for the sake of Allah.

Or for a whole month, thats why the intention is made on the first night of Ramadan: Nawayta Siyama Salasina Yavman 'an Shahri Ramadan Hazihi-s-sanati - I am going to hold the thirty-day Fast of the Ramadan month this year.

Children's prayer in Ramadan

Before eating, you should say: Ya Vasi'a-l-magfirati, igfir li Bismi-llahi-r-Rahmani-r-Rahim - O Allah! You are the All-Merciful, Forgiving. I begin with the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful for all in this Light and only for the believers - in that Light of the World.

After the meal, you must read the following dua: Allahumma laka sum of va-'ala rizkka 'aftartu - O Allah! I fasted and received the food You gave me for your sake.

Namaz and powerful prayers during fasting in the month of Ramadan are very significant.

Among the instructions of Allah Almighty there are such duties followed by believers scrupulously, without any omissions. Only in this way a Muslim can become closer to the Lord. Such a prescription is to fulfill five obligatory prayers during the day and night period.

Tarawih

The collective night prayer takes place after the prayer of Isha is called Tarawih. Usually, Kur'an Hafiz - a person who knows the Quran by heart (in Arabic) - directs the prayer. He reads the Quran in small parts, in the correct order, every night. By the end of the month, the whole Quran is read. Every Muslim who constantly visits such prayers can listen to the reading of the entire Holy Quran.

If there is no Qur'an Hafiz in the area, the prayer is led by a Muslim who knows the greatest number of suras from the Quran. Many Islamic scholars, referring to the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who prayed at night alone in Ramadan, advise us to do the same. By the way, many of the great companions of the Allahs Messenger did the same.

Prayer In the Mosque

As you see, the powerful prayer points play an important role during the whole month of Ramadan. Do it sincerely and Allah blesses you.

READ ALSO: When Was Ramadan First Celebrated?

Source: Legit.ng
- The General Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has issued a stern warning

- Bakare warned that Nigeria is on the verge of another civil war

- He attributed this to the activities of Fulani herdsmen

The General Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, Lagos, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has issued a stern warning to the authorities in Nigeria.

According to Daily Post, Bakare warned that Nigeria is on the verge of another civil war following the yet-to-be addressed incessant killings of other Nigerians by Fulani herdsmen.

Bakare spoke during his sermon on Sunday, May 28 where he declared that Nigeria is moving towards another collapse with the division among different groups and violence in the country.

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Pastor Bakare warned that the activities of the herdsmen could endanger the nation's unity

Bakare's titled All Things are Ready, warned that Nigerians might be forced to retaliate against the rampaging herdsmen.

His words: We are at the verge of another collapse, if care is not taken. We are pushing ourselves into the (edge of the) precipice of another civil war.

All these marauders, called herdsmen; if you dont checkmate them quickly, and the people begin retaliation against what they are doing, we will begin to kill ourselves again.

And violence and corruption will rob us of the great future which God has for us.

READ ALSO: 'BRAVE' Nnamdi Kanu disobeys court order, addresses pro-Biafra crowd in his father's compound

Meanwhile, Kogi state governor Yahaya Bello has said that Nigerians should be grateful for the coming of President Muhammadu Buhari into power.

According to him, Nigeria would have become a failed state had President Buhari not emerged victorious at the 2015 elections.

Watch Acting President Yemi Osinbajo talk about the Biafra war on Legit.ng TV below:

Source: Legit.ng
- Professor Yemi Osinbajo delivered the Democracy Day speech in the absence of President Muhammadu Buhari

- The acting presidents highlighted some of the successes recorded in the administration

- He said the administration was focused on delivering its campaign promises

Acting president, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, has delivered the Democracy Day address to Nigerians where he highlighted some of the successes recorded in the administration.

In the address, Osinbajo noted that the Buhari administration came to power on the promise of effecting changes in the areas of security, corruption and the economy.

He said the Buhari administration has focused on fulfilling the promises it made and urged Nigerians to pray for the president.

Read the address below with the highlighted successes recorded.

READ ALSO: Osinbajo calls for sacrifices, prays for Buhari in Democracy Day message

Dear Nigerians, I bring you good wishes from President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, who as we all know is away from the country on medical vacation.

Today marks the second anniversary of our assumption of office. We must thank the Almighty God not only for preserving our lives to celebrate this second anniversary, but for giving us hope, strength and confidence as we faced the challenges of the past two years.

Our administration outlined three specific areas for our immediate intervention on assumption of office: these were Security, Corruption and the Economy.

1. In the Northeast of our country, the terrorist group Boko Haram openly challenged the sovereignty and continued existence of the state, killing, maiming, and abducting, causing the displacement of the largest number of our citizens in recent history. Beyond the North East they extended their mindless killings, as far away as Abuja, Kano And Kaduna.

But with new leadership and renewed confidence our gallant military immediately began to put Boko Haram on the back foot. We have restored broken-down relations with our neighbours, Chad, Cameroon and Niger  allies without whom the war against terror would have been extremely difficult to win. We have re-organized and equipped our Armed Forces, and inspired them to heroic feats; we have also revitalized the regional Multinational Joint Task Force, by providing the required funding and leadership.

The positive results are clear for all to see. In the last two years close to one million displaced persons have returned home. 106 of our daughters from Chibok have regained their freedom, after more than two years in captivity, in addition to the thousands of other captives who have since tasted freedom.

Schools, hospitals and businesses are springing back to life across the Northeast, especially in Borno State, the epicentre of the crisis. Farmers are returning to the farms from which they fled in the wake of Boko Haram. Finally, our people are getting a chance to begin the urgent task of rebuilding their lives.

2. Across the country, in the Niger Delta, and in parts of the North Central region, we are engaging with local communities, to understand their grievances, and to create solutions that respond to these grievances adequately and enduringly.

President Buharis New Vision for the Niger Delta is a comprehensive peace, security and development plan that will ensure that the people benefit fully from the wealth of the region, and we have seen to it that it is the product of deep and extensive consultations, and that it has now moved from idea to execution. Included in that New Vision is the long-overdue environmental clean-up of the Niger Delta beginning with Ogoni-land, which we launched last year.

3. In the fight against corruption, we have focused on bringing persons accused of corruption to justice. We believe that the looting of public resources that took place in the past few years has to be accounted for. Funds appropriated to build roads, railway lines, and power plants, and to equip the military, that had been stolen or diverted into private pockets, must be retrieved and the culprits brought to justice. Many have said that the process is slow, and that is true, corruption has fought back with tremendous resources and our system of administration of justice has been quite slow. But the good news for justice is that our law does not recognize a time bar for the prosecution of corruption and other crimes, and we will not relent in our efforts to apprehend and bring corruption suspects to justice. We are also re-equipping our prosecution teams, and part of the expected judicial reforms is to dedicate some specific courts to the trial of corruption cases.

4. We are also institutionalizing safeguards and deterrents. We have expanded the coverage of the Treasury Single Account (TSA). We have introduced more efficient accounting and budgeting systems across the Federal Government. We have also launched an extremely successful Whistleblower Policy.

READ ALSO: Dont wish me dead, you still need me to mentor you  Obasanjo begs Nigerian youths

The Efficiency Unit of the Federal Ministry of Finance has succeeded in plugging leakages amounting to billions of naira, over the last two years. We have ended expensive and much-abused fertilizer and petrol subsidy regimes.

We have taken very seriously our promise to save and invest for the future, even against the backdrop of our revenue challenges, and we have in the last two years added US$500m to our Sovereign Wealth Fund and US$87m to the Excess Crude Account. This is the very opposite of the situation before now, when rising oil prices failed to translate to rising levels of savings and investment.

5. In his Budget Presentation Speech to the National Assembly last December, President Buhari outlined our Economic Agenda in detail, and assured that 2017 -would be the year in which you would begin to see tangible benefits of all the planning and preparation work. It is my pleasure to note that in the five months since he delivered that speech, we have seen tremendous progress, as promised.

6. Road and power projects are ongoing in every part of the country. In rail, we are making progress with our plans to attract hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to upgrade the existing 3,500km narrow-gauge network. We have also in 2017 flagged-off construction work on the Lagos-Ibadan leg of our standard-gauge network, and are close to completing the first phase of Abujas Mass Transit Rail System.

6. In that Budget speech in December, the President announced the take-off of the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative. Today, five months on, that Initiative  the product of an unprecedented bilateral cooperation with the Government of Morocco  has resulted in the revitalisation of 11 blending plants across the country, the creation of 50,000 direct and indirect jobs so far, and in the production of 300,000 metric tonnes of NPK fertilizer, which is being sold to farmers at prices significantly lower than what they paid last year. By the end of 2017, that Fertilizer Initiative would have led to foreign exchange savings of US$200 million; and subsidy savings of 60 billion naira.

7. All of this is evidence that we are taking very seriously our ambition of agricultural self-sufficiency. I am delighted to note that since 2015 our imports of rice have dropped by 90 percent, while domestic production has almost tripled. Our goal is to produce enough rice to meet local demand by 2019. In April, the President launched our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan which built on the foundations laid by the Strategic implementation Plan of 2016. The plan has set forth a clear vision for the economic development of Nigeria. I will come back to this point presently.

8. Let me note, at this point, that several of our Initiatives are targeted at our young people, who make up most of our population. From N-Power, to the Technology Hubs being developed nationwide, to innovation competitions such as the Aso Villa Demo Day, and our various MSME support schemes, we will do everything to nurture the immense innovative and entrepreneurial potential of our young people. We are a nation of young people, and we will ensure that our policies and programmes reflect this.

9. One of the highlights of our Power Sector Recovery Programme, which we launched in March, is a N701 billion Naira Payment Assurance Scheme that will resolve the financing bottlenecks that have until now constrained the operations of our gas suppliers and generation companies. Let me assure that you will soon begin to see the positive impact of these steps.

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Nigeria belongs to all of us. No one person or group of persons is more important or more entitled than the other in this space that we all call home. And we have a responsibility to live in peace and harmony with one another, to seek peaceful and constitutional means of expressing our wishes and desires, and to resist all who might seek to sow confusion and hatred for their own selfish interests.

Before I end this speech, let me ask for your continued prayers for the restoration to full health and strength and the safe return of our President.

I congratulate all of you on todays commemoration of this important day in the democratic calendar our country. Nigeria is on a journey of greatness, and together we shall arrive at the destination of our dreams.

May God bless you all, and bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Watch a Legit.ng TV video below of the acting president delivering a lecture on Biafra:

Source: Legit.ng
Every Muslim looks forward to the holy month of Ramadan. Even though it is a tasking period due to fasting, Muslims greet themselves, Ramadan Kareem, to remind themselves of the blessing they receive during this time of the year. Continue reading to learn more about the month of Ramadan.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. The Islamic calendar is also known as the Hijri calendar. It consists of twelve months and 354 or 355 days in a year. This calendar is used by Muslims to calculate the exact dates of Islamic holidays and rituals. It is also used to decide the time for the pilgrimage to Mecca known as Hajj. The month of Ramadan has twenty-nine to thirty days depending on the appearance of the crescent moon.

Muslims believe that the Quran was firstly given to the Prophet Mohammed during the month of Ramadan. For this reason, the month of Ramadan is known as the best of times. According to the Quran, fasting is a means of attaining the fear of God. The instruction to make the month of Ramadan a fasting period was given to Mohammed in the second year of Hijra. It is known as the event which led to the establishment of the first Muslim community.

READ ALSO: Why is Ramadaan the month of forgiveness?

Fasting is one of the five pillars of Islam. So, fasting in the month of Ramadan is one of the many things a Muslim must always practice once he or she passes puberty. In the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast from daybreak till sunset. They are allowed to eat only before sunrise and after sunset. The meal eaten before sunrise, is known as the Suhur while the meal used to break the fast after sunset is called the Iftar.

It is a period of spiritual reflection and improvement. A time for Muslims to increase their devotion and worship. They are expected to spend more time praying and reciting the Quran. They are to show their generosity by charity giving and good deeds. Muslims also try to be more self-disciplined in the month of Ramadan. During the hours of fasting, he or she must refrain from food, sexual relationships, smoking, and alcohol consumption. These practices help Muslims to cleanse their souls and to draw closer to Allah.

Fasting during Ramadan is compulsory for adult Muslims. Adults who are sick, traveling, pregnant, chronically ill, diabetic or very old people can choose not to fast. Women going through menstrual bleeding are also exempted from fasting. However, these people are to take food to the poor and homeless or give money to them so they can provide for themselves for the whole month.

During the month of Ramadan, a Muslim must abstain from sinful practices that will prevent him or her from receiving the reward of fasting.

Ramadan Kareem is the one the Ramadan greetings. It means Generous Ramadan or Generous Month. This expression means that in this holy month most of the Muslims intensify their prayers and do their fasting to obey Allah. They experience the feeling of hunger so they know how poor people who have no food feel and that will motivate them to help poor people. The generosity of the month refers to the rewards that Allah will grant blessings to Muslims who makes faithful and intense worship during Ramadan.

Some people believe it is more proper to say, Ramadan Mubarak because it is Allah who is both generous and good, not the month itself. Ramadan Mubarak is wishing the recipient of the greeting a blessed Ramadan.

READ ALSO: Hajj policy changes as pilgrims are now to pay N38,000 for rams

Source: Legit.ng
- The golden jubilee celebration of Lagos state is currently ongoing

- The celebration witnessed a gala night which took place over the weekend in Ikeja, Lagos

- At the event, a Peoples Democratic Party governor, Ayodele Fayose was seen celebrating with leaders from the All Progressives Congress (APC)

The golden jubilee celebration of Lagos state has witnessed various activities including the Lagos@50 gala night which took place on Saturday, May 28.

Photographs from the event has shown the governor of Ekiti state Ayodele Fayose amid some leader from the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The golden jubilee celebration of Lagos state is currently ongoing

READ ALSO: What a shame: Osinbajo receives the lashing of his life for asking Nigerians to sacrifice more

The event featured the unveiling of books on the Lagos perspective.

These individuals who were spotted celebrating with Fayose at the Lagos@50 event include: the acting president Yemi Osinbajo, national leader of the APC Bola Tinubu and the governor of Imo state Rochas Okorocha.

READ ALSO: PDP suffers setback as 15,000 members dump party for APC

Other APC leaders present were: The governor of Lagos, Gombe, Oyo and Ogun states, Akinwumi Ambode, Ibrahim Dankwambo, Abiola Ajimobi and Ibikunle Amosun respectively.

Fayose present amid these APC leaders comes at a time when the Ekiti state governor had threatened to dump his political party Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

At the event Peoples Democratic Party governor Ayodele Fayose was seen celebrating with leaders from the All Progressives Congress (APC)

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Legit.ng had earlier reported that Fayose said he will dump the PDP if the Supreme Court affirms the factional leader of the PDP Ali Modu-Sheriff as the party's national chairman.

You can watch this Legit.ng video of APC official telling how his party can loose election in 2019:

Source: Legit.ng
Editors note: May 29th is celebrated annually as democracy day in Nigeria since 1999. The date ushered in the beginning of the current democratic dispensation. Prior to that time, the Military government held sway before General Abdul Sallam Abubakar relinquished power on May 29th, 1999 to the then President Olusegun Obasanjo.

In the article sent to Legit.ng, a Facebook user, Oluwayemi I. Adebayo explains why May 29th will always remain a momentous date in Nigerias history.

With over 170 million people, hundreds of ethnic languages, diversity in culture, gender and philosophy, we keep the faith that unity in diversity is the only way forward.

This historic day redeems our democratic freedom to govern our own selves as the genesis of democracy was not a pandemonium but rather, a blessing to the people. Definitely, the labour of our heroes past shall never be in vain.

REASON ALSO: BREAKING: 2 dead, 14 rescued as three-storey building collapses in Lagos

In accordance with Section 14 (1) of the 1999 CFRN (as amended) 'The Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a state base on the principles of democracy...'

President Muhammadu Buhari

The Nigerian state assumed a distinct administration profile on 29th May, 1999 following the discontinuation of the sixteen (16) years military regime in Nigeria. The military regime was retrieved by a civilian government; as a result, the Fourth Republic was given birth to, connoting the ascension of an elected president in the person of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo whom served previously as the military head of state from 1976 to 1979.

Furthermore, history has it that the civilian administration ensured the principles of democracy, by promoting the fundamental human rights, the fundamental human rights, freedom of the press and most exclusively the sovereignty of the people. In addition to, since the reclamation of democratic rule in Nigeria, there have been four consecutive transmutations of administration.

In the picture, the Olusegun Obasanjo's Administration being the premier, Yar'adua's Administration, consequently, Jonathan's Administration and the present day Muhammadu Buhari's Administration.

Abraham Lincoln conveyed the breviloquent definition of democracy 'the government of the people, by the people and for the people'. Of course, it's an exposition that summarizes a chunk, and conveys the message very exceptionally without reinforcing.

Democracy is about the people from whom the government through the provisions of the constitution derives its powers and authority. In this structure, the active participation of citizens is indispensable, likewise the protection of human rights, equality before the law, free and fair elections, among others.

The pivotal questions we need to ask ourselves as we commemorate the restoration of democracy in Nigeria include: In the first place, has the government been able to put into practice the principles of democracy?. Truly, we certify that no democracy adopted in any nation is faultless. Notwithstanding, the principles coupled with democracy are achievable.

The second question is: as citizens of this great nation, have we been good ambassadors and law abiding citizens? Have we summoned courage to say no to lawlessness? Have you ever pondered on the number of lives lost in scrimmage for liberty and freedom to prevail?

In spite of the fact that as citizens our interests vary, however, the love for one's country is unshaken. We cannot abide to ruminate on the same old issues of this nation knowing full well that solutions to solving the challenges have been provided.

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Solutions such as the recommendations of 2014 National Conference, propagating the seeds of patriotism, transparency, protection of interests of the citizens to name a few.

As a final point, the quest for democracy should elevate and let us never dismiss from mind that government constitutes the citizens. The future lies in your hand.

Watch this Legit.ng video of Nnamdi Kanu visiting Femi Fani-Kayode in his home:

Source: Legit.ng
- MMM-Nigeria organised a green party show in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to celebrate Democracy Day

- The party was opened to members of the group and non-members

- The President of Abuja Guiders Forum said the gesture was part of solidarity by the group for Nigerias 18-years of uninterrupted democracy

MMM-Nigeria, a group for mutual financial aid and donations on Monday organised a green party show in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to celebrate Nigerias Democracy Day.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the party, which held at the Millennium Park, was opened to members of the group and non-members alike.

Mr Seyi Bello, the President of Abuja Guiders Forum of the MMM-Nigeria said the gesture was part of solidarity by the group for Nigerias 18-years of uninterrupted democracy.

READ ALSO: 2 dead, 14 rescued as three-storey building collapses in Lagos (photos)

MMM-Nigeria throws a party to celebrate Nigerias 18-years of uninterrupted democracy.

This party is put together to celebrate our Democracy Day and since Nigerias flag is green-white-green, we decided to call it green party as a mark of solidarity.

We invited everyone to be a part of this event because friendship and unity is what this community of mutual help represents.

As a community, we do not only provide help to our members, we also extend that to the larger society as part of our social responsibility, he said.

Musicians, comedians and other entertainers in the territory performed at the event.

Bello explained that over three million Nigerians were members of the group.

He explained that contrary to some peoples opinion about the scheme, it scheme was a community of people providing financial help to each other on the principle of reciprocity and benevolence.

That is what defines us as a community of people providing financial help to each other on the principle of reciprocity and benevolence.

In MMM, there are no lenders and no debtors. One participant asks for help, another one helps.

He therefore called on leaders at all levels to deliver basic dividends of democracy to Nigerians, adding that the current recession was affecting ordinary Nigerians.

As we celebrate democracy, let our leaders remember that we need change in all aspects of our lives, he said.

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Mavrodi Mondial Movement (MMM) is a Ponzi scheme, which was revived early this year after freezing participants accounts for a month in December 2016.

Below is what Nigerians think about the scheme:

Source: Legit.ng
The Treasurys schedule of financing this week includes Mondays regular weekly auction of new three- and six-month bills and an auction of four-week bills on Tuesday.

At the close of the New York cash market on Friday, the rate on the outstanding three-month bill was 0.93 percent. The rate on the six-month issue was 1.07 percent, and the rate on the four-week issue was 0.73 percent.

The following tax-exempt fixed-income issues, valued at $50 million or more, are scheduled for pricing this week:

MONDAY

Florida Management Services Department, $187.8 million of revenue bonds. Competitive.

WEDNESDAY

Arlington County, Va., $185.1 million of unlimited tax general obligation bonds. Competitive.

Boston, $59.3 million of unlimited tax general obligation refinancing bonds. Competitive.

East Side Unified High School District, Calif., $72 million of unlimited tax general obligation bonds. Competitive.
I once interviewed a guy who sells single cigarettes  loosies  along a few blocks of Eighth Avenue. He is known far and wide as Lonnie Loosie. I wrote a feature story about him back in 2011.

Lonnie had spent considerable time in prison and was having trouble finding any work steadier than selling loose cigarettes. But he said that someday he hoped to land a job hawking tickets for sightseeing tours. He made it sound as if it were the best work available to ex-cons.

When I heard about a shooting in broad daylight near Battery Park a couple of weeks ago, I remembered that conversation. The authorities described it as a turf war among men selling tickets for sightseeing boats, which carry tourists who want an up-close view of the Statue of Liberty. There have been a number of assaults  and a marked uptick in the last two years  all revolving broadly around Lady Liberty.

Who are these ticket sellers? How is their business organized? It sounded like a newspaper story.

I was only more curious after I read court documents related to the shooting, including a partial transcript of what the defendant, an ex-convict who had previously been imprisoned for manslaughter, had said under interrogation.
WATERFORD, N.Y.  It has been 200 years since a corps of men and mules started to dig what was known as Clintons ditch across hundreds of miles of farmland, forests and other decidedly dry terrain in upstate New York, creating the Erie Canal and, with it, a range of prosperous towns from Albany to Buffalo.

The canals heyday has long passed, and in recent decades it has been relegated as a recreational byway, drawing pleasure boats, fishing lines and the occasional canal fan.

Lately, however, there has been a curious sight along the Erie Canal and some of its offshoots: commercial shipping  a small rebound pegged to the canals use as a niche waterway for cargo whose size or weight make it impossible, impractical or too expensive to haul any other way. All told, the state anticipates more than 200,000 tons of shipping on the canal system in 2017, a milestone not reached since 1993, according to state officials. Still, that is a far cry from the millions of tons of cargo the canal regularly trafficked during the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Unlike the frontier farm goods that once headed east to market, these new shipments often have a distinctly modern feel. They have included electrical transformers and turbines, Navy sonar equipment, and huge pedestals to support the New York Wheel, a towering Ferris wheel being built on Staten Island.
Dear Diary:

The news of the planned demise of the Sheridan Expressway reminded me of a cab ride my wife and I took in the late 1970s.

We were living in Parkchester in the Bronx and had hailed a cab after having dinner on the East Side of Manhattan. As was my practice, I did not mention our destination until we were in the cab and the doors were closed.

When I said, Parkchester, the cabby was adamant that he could not take us there: It was the end of his shift, he was low on gas, he would never get a fare back, and so on.

But I knew he was required to take us, and I stood my ground. Grumbling, he took the F.D.R. Drive to the Bruckner Expressway. As we approached the exit for the Sheridan, I could see that traffic was barely moving up ahead on the Bruckner. I told him to take the Sheridan.
Today, if you want to rent a house, get a drivers license or open a bank account, you must first show your passport or produce evidence that youre in the country legally. A crackdown on employers means that uniformed immigration raids have become a regular feature of life in multiethnic neighborhoods. Public bodies that previously had no role in border control are being roped in, too. Since 2016, schools have been asked to collect data on pupils nationality and country of birth, which was supposed to be shared with the government department responsible for immigration enforcement until public criticism made officials water down the policy. (An earlier proposal had been to make teachers actually carry out immigration checks.)

A senior health ministry official announced plans last November to make people show their passports before receiving medical treatment from the National Health Service; already, migrants from outside the European Union are being charged for treatment that would once have been free. And those controls extend to people in highly vulnerable situations: Some of Britains leading charities have been handing over the details of homeless people who come from overseas to immigration enforcement teams. The Metropolitan Police in London has been doing similarly with victims and witnesses of crime.

Most of the measures were not in place a decade or even five years ago. Mrs. May first put forth the idea of a hostile environment in 2012: enact rules that would either make it difficult for people with irregular immigration status to go about their everyday lives, thus encouraging them to leave, or that would bring them to the attention of the state so that it can deport them.

This crackdown, encoded in the 2014 Immigration Act, was in part the result of political expediency. The governing Conservative Party was elected in 2010 with a promise to cap immigration at the tens of thousands. For as long as Britain remains part of the European Union, this cap cant apply to migrants from within the union because of the common agreement on free movement. But around half the immigrants to Britain  net migration was 273,000 in the year ending September 2016  come from elsewhere. To make up the numbers, the government has been making life as difficult as possible for would-be migrants from outside Europe. Visa fees are charged at punitive rates, while there is a hefty minimum income requirement for anybody who marries a non-European Union citizen and wants to bring them to live in Britain. Another act, passed last year, has introduced even tougher penalties for those with irregular status, including the new crimes of illegal working and driving when unlawfully present in the U.K.
Alas, the history of communism is littered with failed attempts by communists to be better at capitalism than the capitalists themselves. As Ms. Adamczak argues, this is because most communist criticisms of capitalism take one idealized aspect of capitalist society and pit it against the others, unwittingly perpetuating the framework communism sets out to abolish. This recipe for disaster recurs throughout history, and the only way to stop it is for everyone to learn about the unsuccessful attempts at revolution, so as not to repeat those mistakes in their current struggles. Hence, Communism for Kids.

In the vast sea of hogwash that flooded the conservative mediasphere after the book appeared in English, the same talking-point detritus floated to the surface over and over again: The book indoctrinates children with propaganda; it promotes an evil ideology that led to the death of millions; it is published by a prestigious university that should have known better; it is hypocritical, because it costs money; and it is fundamentally anti-American, anti-Christian and anti-family (and by implication, its foreign, Jewish and queer). One reviewer even called it the most dangerous book on economics ever written for kids.

One hundred percent of these criticisms are based on a misunderstanding of the title, a basic denial of the fact that all commodities cost money in capitalism and a misconceived view of how academic publishing functions. None of this concerns the books actual content.

That didnt stop the internet swarm, the proper expression of digital communication today, as the philosopher Byung-Chul Han puts it. Ms. Adamczaks original German edition was just called Communism: A Little Story About How Everything Could Be Different. In fact, its not a childrens book at all, but a book written for everyone in a language that, for the most part, children, too, could understand. The title we chose for the American edition was an elegant way to convey this aspect of the book. There is no propaganda, no brainwashing and no rose-tinted stories of happy-go-lucky communist do-gooders tricking kids into drinking the Marxist Kool-Aid.

When the book first appeared in Germany, which was over a decade ago, there was no such rage. So what is it about the word communism that frightens Americans so much from left to right? Did the Red Scare ever end? I think, rather, that in America the fear of the word communism is tied to a fear of the word capitalism, another no-go word in polite discourse. Its easy to talk about markets, industry, the middle class, job creators, lean start-ups, globalization and the gig economy, but to identify our entire society as capitalist and to call our economic system capitalism is to hint at the possibility of an alternative organization of life. And that is dangerous, un-American, perhaps even communist.

Naming the problem may be the first step toward curing the illness, but it doesnt yet tell us how to proceed. For that, we need ideas, experiments and dreams. Is it wise to dream about utopia while living in the dystopia of the present?
He is intensely proud of his accomplishments in the private sector and has repeatedly suggested his tenure in Washington will hurt, not help, his brand and bottom line.

That unfailing self-regard has not endeared him to the rest of the staff. Resentful Trump staff members have long talked about Jared Island to describe the special status occupied by Mr. Kushner, who, in their view, is given license to exercise power and take on a vague portfolio  Middle East peace and innovation are its central components  without suffering the consequences of failure visited by the president on mere hirelings.

Adding to the animus is Mr. Kushners aloof demeanor and his propensity for avoiding messy aspects of his job that he would simply rather not do  he has told associates he wants nothing to do with the legislative process, for instance. He also has a habit, they say, of disappearing during crises, such as his absence on a family ski trip when Mr. Trumps first health care bill was crashing in March.

Mr. Bannon, a onetime Kushner ally turned adversary known for working himself into ill health, has taken to comparing the former real estate executive to the air, because he blows in and out of meetings leaving little trace, according to one senior Trump aide. Just as Mr. Trump does, Mr. Kushner quickly forms fixed opinions about people, sometimes based on scant evidence. But Mr. Kushner is quicker to admit when he has misjudged a situation, and to change course.

Despite the perception that he is the one untouchable adviser in the presidents inner circle, Mr. Kushner was not especially close to his father-in-law before the 2016 campaign. The two bonded when Mr. Kushner helped to take over the campaigns faltering digital operation and to sell a reluctant Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of Fox Newss parent company, on the viability of his father-in-laws candidacy by showing him videos of Mr. Trumps rally during a lunch at Fox headquarters in mid-2015.

When asked by friends and associates to describe the source of his influence over the president, Mr. Kushner has offered explanations rooted in loyalty, family and, above all, his acceptance that Mr. Trump is a 70-year-old man of fixed habits who cannot be easily diverted from a course of action.

Mr. Kushner is fond of telling friends that he does not have any vested interests beyond seeing his father-in-law succeed. Many of the people working for Mr. Trump are not looking out for the boss, but I am, Mr. Kushner told a visitor recently.
Over all, the C.D.C.s budget would be cut 17 percent. Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, who recently retired as the director of the C.D.C. and led its 2014 Ebola response, sent more than a dozen bullet points on Twitter last week cataloging how the proposed budget was Unsafe at Any Level Of Enactment.

Trump administration officials say they are trying to refocus scientific research in an era of domestic austerity. Too much federal science is competing with work that could be done in the private sector, they say. Under the presidents budget, the National Institutes of Health at large would be cut 18 percent. Within that, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which handles Zika, Ebola and H.I.V./AIDS vaccine research, would lose 18 percent of its budget.

The administration wholeheartedly believes in the commitment to research, Mr. Mulvaney said Wednesday at the House budget hearing. Wed like to see more focus on what they call basic research, which is research further away from the marketability of products because that is one of the gaps that the government can and should fill.

The targeting is remarkably specific. At the N.I.H., the Fogarty International Center, a small program that in part trains foreign leaders in pandemic response, would be eliminated. Thousands of scientists and global health professionals rallied on Capitol Hill in April to protest the plan after a list of programs targeted for eradication was released.

Theyre making a very radical statement, Dr. Morrison said. The big picture is a movement toward suspicion of international programs. The administration is threatening to abandon multilateralism in a big way.
It will be a journey of discovery for Canadians when it comes to Andrew Scheer, said Tim Powers, the vice chairman of Summa Strategies, a polling and lobbying firm that was formerly an adviser to governments held by the Progressive-Conservatives, one of the predecessors of the current Conservative movement.

Mr. Scheer, 38, emerged from a field of 14 candidates through an unusually complex voting system to take 50.95 percent of the available points. And while Mr. Bernier laid out a detailed and often provocative platform, Mr. Scheer offered few campaign promises that often dealt with small issues. His most significant vow was to end carbon taxes  but that stance was shared by most of the candidates, and such taxes are ultimately a responsibility of provinces, anyway.

Two factors add to the difficulty of predicting what Mr. Scheer will do as party leader now  or what he might do in 2019 if his party defeats Mr. Trudeaus Liberals and makes him prime minister.

Mr. Scheer was elected to Parliament at age 25 and never served in any of Mr. Harpers cabinets, which kept his public profile to a minimum. And from 2011 to 2015, he was the speaker of the House of Commons  a job that not only required him to be nonpartisan but also meant he could not propose or vote on legislation.

Scheers advantage is that no one can define him, said Peter Woolstencroft, a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Waterloo who has written often about Canadas conservatives. But his weakness is that he has no defense against people who will try to define him.
In terms of whether Id ever pick the phone up, Ive never shut off the phone to anyone that wants to talk or have a productive conversation, Mr. Tillerson said.

The Trump administration appears to have grasped an important point about Iran: The very thing that the administration complains and worries about  Irans expanding influence in the region  makes it imperative that the two countries maintain at least a working relationship.

The United States will have a hard time solving problems in the Mideast without Tehrans cooperation: in Lebanon, where it backs the Shiite militant group Hezbollah; in Syria, where it is propping up the government of President Bashar al-Assad; in Iraq, where it supports the government of Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and trains powerful Shiite militias; and in Yemen, where to some extent, it is backing the Houthi rebels against the government.

That is why some analysts are saying there would be room for compromise if the two countries ever sat down to talk, with the United States trading its control over the Iranian economy for concessions in regional affairs from Iran.

The Trump administration did impose a series of sanctions on individuals and companies after Iran conducted a missile test in February. But that was in line with policies set out by President Obama.

And on Thursday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved a sweeping set of sanctions against Iran for human rights violations and its support of terrorism.

The senators did so over the objections of the former secretary of state, John Kerry, who negotiated the nuclear deal. In a series of Twitter posts on Wednesday, Mr. Kerry called on the Senate committee to refrain from imposing sanctions and warned against confrontation without conversation.
The library declined to disclose the purchase price.

The archive also contributes to a small resurgence in the conversation around Mr. Rollins, who has not performed publicly for the past four years because of ailing health. A campaign recently began to have the Williamsburg Bridge, where he practiced in isolation almost daily from 1959 to 1961, renamed for him. And on June 9, at Flushing Town Hall, his longtime confidant Jimmy Heath will lead the Queens Jazz Orchestra in a tribute concert.

It could take years to digitize and catalog the Rollins archive, which includes some notes from the bridge period; then the archive will be spread across four of the centers five divisions and made searchable online. The center does not have plans for major exhibitions of the material, but Mr. Rollinss home and studio recordings will become part of the Moving Image and Recorded Sound Division, which is to be renovated soon.

When Mr. Rollins hit the national jazz scene in the early 1950s, he seemed to possess a new kind of energy. Unlike Coleman Hawkins or Lester Young, whose mantle he picked up, Mr. Rollins rarely purred into his horn. He sounded as if he were trying to push himself fully into every note, intentionally and bodily and without guile  as if it were the only way he would have any shot at getting his point across.

Mr. Rollins almost never performed with a large ensemble, preferring to maximize his direct contact with the listener. He introduced the saxophone-bass-drums trio before almost anyone else, and, in concert, his solos could often run well over 10 minutes.
Shonda Rhimes applies her touch to Shakespeare in Still Star-Crossed. And Navi, who calls himself the No. 1 Michael Jackson interpreter, makes his acting debut as the King of Pop.

Whats on TV

STILL STAR-CROSSED 10 p.m. on ABC. Shondaland imagines what happens after Romeo and Juliet meet their demise and a monumental feud erupts between the Montagues and Capulets. (Read The New York Times review.) At the heart of the story, spun from the young-adult novel by Melinda Taub, are the Capulet sisters: the fierce Rosaline (Lashana Lynch), mired in a political play to save Verona, and the dreamy Livia (Ebonee Noel), hoping to marry her way into her hearts desires. Benvolio Montague (Wade Briggs), now the sole heir to the family name, must partake in a sinister scheme to propel his clan up the social ladder  and knock the Capulets off the highest rung. The Bachelorette, in which Rachel Lindsay, the franchises first black lead, continues her pursuit of romance, leads in at 8.
As he did in his best-selling 2011 book, The Black Banners, Soufan writes with immense knowledge and authority. He was the lead investigator of the bombing of the American destroyer Cole and a supervisor of counterterrorism operations and the investigation of events surrounding Sept. 11. He was instrumental in identifying the Sept. 11 hijackers and Khalid Shaikh Mohammed as the architect of those attacks, and he extracted such crucial information not by torture or enhanced interrogation techniques (E.I.T.s), but by building a rapport with his subjects, sparring with them over interpretations of the Quran, and using old-fashioned logic and psychology.

Soufan, who left the F.B.I. in 2005, has been an outspoken critic of the Bush administrations so-called E.I.T.s, arguing that torture is both morally wrong and ineffective and dangerous  generating false leads and unreliable information, and helping terrorists find new recruits.

Image Ali Soufan Credit... Laura Cutri

In The Black Banners, Soufan provided a compelling insiders account of American efforts to track down the perpetrators of Sept. 11, and recounted the story of Al Qaeda up through the death of bin Laden. His new book covers some of the same ground, but focuses on that terrorist group after bin Ladens death, and how it and the Islamic State have evolved since  their different philosophies and divergent trajectories, and how the personalities of their leaders have shaped the organizations. Of the relationship between the soft-spoken bin Laden and Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, the fiery militant who founded the group that would become the Islamic State, Soufan quotes an intelligence officer: It was a case of loathing at first sight.

Much of this has been covered in books like Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS by Joby Warrick, ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror by Michael Weiss and Hassan Hassan, and ISIS: The State of Terror by Jessica Stern and J. M. Berger. But Soufan brings firsthand, on-the-ground experience hunting down and interrogating Qaeda members. Anatomy of Terror not only tells a gripping story but is filled with insights that put todays terror attacks by the Islamic State and Al Qaeda in perspective with the history and complicated geopolitics of the region.
Frankens staff, as he tells it, has been his best ally in stifling his funny side, sternly responding O.K., thats for inside the car to his quips, and nixing his hilariously offensive responses to constituent letters. (He once composed a 110th birthday note to Ruth Anderson of Marshall, Minn., that read simply, You have a bright future.) They ruthlessly edit out his efforts to slip in The Funny during speeches, as when he attempted to state, in a nuclear-disarmament speech, A wise man once said, Trust but verify. That man was quoting Ronald Reagan. Frankens press secretary once threatened to write her own campaign memoir, entitled Oh, Cmon! Said Franken.

Still, Frankens clever asides cant always salvage his stale recitations of liberal talking points, which seem likely to persuade precisely no one who isnt already a member of the choir. (Even with jokes, is anyone buying this book because he wants to read a seven-page argument against media consolidation?) In the end, this is a book your liberal aunt will love and your Republican neighbor will never pick up, much less enjoy. Its not as funny as the best humor books, including Frankens  but its a whole lot funnier than your average political memoir.

Theres surprisingly little here about the current president; Franken presumably began writing the book when Donald Trump wasnt expected to win the election. In one chapter, he notes that he, too, is a former entertainer whos had tax issues and been accused of degrading comments about women  making the case, of course, that Trumps example is far worse. Another chapter is devoted to a faintly pathetic attempt to convince progressives they shouldnt lose hope and can still make a difference.

More interesting than Frankens political points is his description of the value of humor as a force for bringing people together. He devotes a lot of space to his friendly relationships with Senate Republicans, from the cranky Kansan Pat Roberts to Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the funniest Republican in the Senate. (Informed that Franken is taking a vacation in Puerto Rico, Graham deadpans, Do two fund-raisers: one with the folks for statehood, one with the folks against statehood. They never talk to each other.)

Hes found common ground with such staunch conservatives as David Vitter of Louisiana, considers the present attorney general, Jeff Sessions, a personal friend and once wrote a country song with the Utah senator Orrin Hatch. Hes made McConnell laugh out loud: Try to imagine what that looks and sounds like! You cant! After years of railing against George W. Bush while he was in office, Franken even manages to share a laugh with the former president when they run into each other. Maybe, he implies, wed all be better off if we could dial back the partisan outrage and learn to take a joke.

Being in the Senate, Franken admits, has softened his own partisanship, though not everyone is treated gently. I like Ted Cruz more than most of my other colleagues like Ted Cruz, Franken writes. And I hate Ted Cruz. In the chapter on Cruz, entitled Sophistry, Franken describes him as an absolutely toxic co-worker, singularly dishonest and a sociopath.

The publication of Al Franken, Giant of the Senate marks a major break with Frankens previous political persona, one that is sure to stoke speculation about his future in a party that is desperately bereft of future prospects. Up to now, as Franken observes, his dogged unfunniness has been the default angle of every article about his political career, to wit: No Joke: Franken Running for Senate. The cliche has become so pervasive, Franken wryly notes, that when he dies, his obituary will surely be titled No Joke: Former Three-Term Dead at 93.

And yet it somehow never gets old: Just a couple of months ago, a column in National Journal was headlined No Joke: Al Franken for President? Now that would be hilarious.
Mr. Guo is one of more than 1,000 patients that one company based in Beijing, Hope Noah Health Company, says it helped last year  a number it says was double that of the year before. Upon arriving in the United States or Japan, the two countries to which Hope Noah sends people, patients are greeted at the airports by Hope Noah employees and whisked off to a rented apartment. When they head to the hospital, a Hope Noah translator is by their side.

As recently as the 1970s, Chinas health care system provided cradle-to-grave medical support. But despite a huge health care reform plan, its public hospitals are overburdened, with too few beds and doctors to deliver the kind of care that many in the West take for granted. A 2015 study by The Lancet based on United Nations criteria found that China ranked 92 out of 188 countries, after Cuba and Mexico.

The government has increased spending and encouraged private investors to address the problem. A total of about 4.3 million cancer cases were diagnosed in China in 2015, or almost 12,000 cases a day, compared with 2.4 million in 2010, according to the state-run news media. The five-year survival rate of Chinese cancer patients is around 30 percent, compared with about 70 percent in the United States, according to Chinas National Cancer Prevention and Research Center.

Patients often have to travel to Hong Kong and Macau  regions of China governed by their own laws  to buy foreign drugs, which on the mainland face an approval process that takes three to five years. The drug that Mr. Guo is using, Keytruda, was approved for use only last year in a medical tourism pilot zone in the southern Chinese island of Hainan.

In top public hospitals in the top-tier Chinese cities, lines begin forming just after midnight. Appointments for the best doctors are snapped up before dawn. For those who can afford it, tickets can be bought from scalpers hawking appointment numbers. In March, the authorities in Beijing said that they would bar public hospitals from imposing consultation fees on patients, in a bid to reduce public discontent.

By contrast, Mr. Guo said his experience at Dana-Farber was more humane. Mr. Guos doctor let him speak. There was easy access to food and beverages. The waiting area had a couch.
Do doctors need to know their patients sexual orientation and gender identity?

A growing number of federal agencies has been pushing health care providers to ask. Federally funded community health centers, which treat millions of patients, have begun to collect the data. Electronic health software must be able to store it. And blueprints for national health goals recommend collecting the information from all patients.

By knowing whether a patient is lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or straight, say public health experts, clinicians can be more alert to a persons medical needs and more thoughtful in interactions. If hospitals report statistics on all patients, health care disparities among L.G.B.T. patients can be identified and redressed more effectively.

But most doctors and nurses are in no rush to comply. In several studies, they have said they feel uneasy about asking because they dont want to make patients uncomfortable.

Research now suggests those assumptions may be wrong.

A new study of both patients and providers in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine looked at the feasibility of gathering such information in emergency departments. Nearly 80 percent of providers surveyed believed that patients would refuse to disclose their sexual orientation.
The scandal has gained traction among good-government groups and op-ed columnists, in large part because it is so easily understood: money for nothing, seemingly without approval from anyone other than the lawmakers themselves.

Whether its legal or not, the larger issue is whether its ethical and does it cast a further pall on the Legislature itself? And it certainly does, said Gerald Benjamin, a professor of political science at the State University at New Paltz, who has observed decades worth of scandals in the Capitol. Its one more piece of evidence that we are dealing with a corrupt and self-serving institution.

It also appears to be gaining traction in the Legislature. Senator Pamela Helming, a Republican who represents the Finger Lakes region, said last week that she returned two checks, uncashed, for stipend money for a position she did not hold.

A state law, dating to the 1970s, prescribes more than $1.2 million in lulus for the Senate every year, and nearly $1.6 million for the Assembly. And each year, the legislative chambers dole out dozens of lulus, with the richest payments being decided by the ruling party, and generally going to the most experienced and loyal members.

New York is one of only a handful of states that rewards stipends to so many committee chairs and other leaders, and only Pennsylvania is more generous, giving a $47,880 perk to its president pro tem, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Such a system, of course, seemingly has the potential to be used to curry favor by leaders, causing some legislative bodies to ban it. Last year, for instance, the New York City Council did away with lulus as part of a deal to raise its members salaries to $148,500, a large pay increase that towers over the base pay for state legislators: $79,500.
Crowds. Delays. Fraying tempers.

All-too-familiar problems with New York Citys overloaded subways have now made their way aboveground to the citys newest transit option: ferries.

For the same price as a subway ride, $2.75, the city-subsidized NYC Ferry service offers trips along two routes, one on the East River and one between Lower Manhattan and the Rockaways, in Queens. Less than a month after the service began operating, however, passengers faced crawling lines as they tried to board packed vessels at popular destinations like Brooklyn Bridge Park and Governors Island during the bustling Memorial Day weekend.

Its a nightmare, said Solenne Vervisch, 28, who lives in the Greenpoint neighborhood of Brooklyn and gave up in frustration on Saturday afternoon after waiting in line at Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Every single weekend has been the same.

Alex Tavis, an actor from Brooklyn Heights, waited for 90 minutes with his wife and their two young sons before reaching the front of the line  only to be told there was no more room on the departing ferry. They planned to wait another 45 minutes for the next ferry, Mr. Tavis said as he complained about the gate attendants. And then were going to call their superiors because its a circus out here, he said.
It was the scribbled footnote that did it, rippling across social media networks from northern New Jersey to Washington, revealing a pugnacious side of a low-key lawmaker.

In a fund-raising letter to a board member at a New Jersey bank, Representative Rodney Frelinghuysen, Republican of New Jersey, said he wanted to combat well-organized opponents who had mobilized after the election of President Trump.

P.S.  One of the ringleaders works in your bank! Mr. Frelinghuysen, the chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, wrote in blue ink. The person to whom he was referring, a senior vice president, resigned after being confronted with the letter by her boss.

The episode has drawn an ethics complaint against Mr. Frelinghuysen, who worked behind the scenes in Washington for 22 years before rising to a key post that places him at the center of the battle over Mr. Trumps budget.
In late September 2016, Turkish police arrived at Dr. Kunis home in Cizre. He was not home, but on learning that the police were looking for him, he went to the prosecutors office in Cizre. I was thinking, all I have done is treat people and help them survive difficult times, Dr. Kuni told me. The prosecutor accused him of being a member of a terrorist organization. Dr. Kuni spent the next six months in prison, waiting for his trial.

Dr. Kuni is a member of the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey, an old, respected rights group. For 79 days, from Dec. 14, 2015, to March 2, 2016, Turkish security forces locked down Cizre to push out the militants controlling the city. Reports indicate that in early February 2016, Turkish security forces surrounded three buildings in the Cudi and Sur neighborhoods in Cizre and killed between 130 and 190 people sheltering in the buildings basements, including unarmed civilians. Dr. Kuni had assisted the Human Rights Foundation with some of the first human rights reports to emerge from Cizre after the curfews, including the deaths of the people in Cizres basements, which had yet to be investigated.

Increased hostility toward Kurds in the aftermath of the fighting and the purge in the judiciary after the coup have had a terrible effect on the already shaky process of justice in the country. Kurdish lawyers are struggling with getting prosecutors to investigate killings of civilians during the fighting by Turkish security forces. Families of victims are withdrawing complaints because of the fear of retribution from the police and the prosecutors.

In June 2016, Turkeys Parliament passed a new law providing immunity from prosecution for members of Turkeys security forces involved in counterterrorism operations. The law requires prosecutors to obtain permission from political or military leadership and expands jurisdiction of military tribunals to handle criminal cases concerning service members. It is one of the factors that has effectively rendered the criminal justice process in southeastern Turkey defunct.

Sitting through Dr. Kunis trial was a vivid illustration of that. The prosecutor read from his notes: There is an anonymous witness who says the suspect has been working as a physician in the district of Cizre, he said, at a public health clinic operated by the municipality. Protesters in the street went to this center instead of state-run public health centers. He has treated people injured in illegal incidents.

Dr. Kunis attorney argued that the testimony of an anonymous witness could not be accepted without his appearance in court and without any opportunity for cross-examination. The witness did not name Dr. Kuni or identify him from a photograph. I have been a practicing physician in Cizre for 12 years, Dr. Kuni told the court. I have no connection with armed groups. I have always simply practiced my profession and given medical help to those who needed it.

After two hours of arguments, the three-judge bench convicted Dr. Kuni and sentenced him to four years in prison. In a surprising twist, the judges decided to release him until his defense lawyers could file an appeal of his conviction in a higher court. His lawyers interpreted it as a sign that the judges did not believe the charges against Dr. Kuni but did not want to risk their jobs by acquitting someone accused of terrorism. The courtroom burst into applause and cheers.
The commanders have put their proposition to President Trump, and so far he has said nothing. Despite the cost of the American presence, $3.1 billion per month, the matter is not among his priorities and indeed hardly seems to be on his radar. The war received scant attention during the presidential campaign and his only recent acknowledgment of its existence was a meeting last week with the Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, in which he commended Mr. Ghanis leadership and praised the bravery of Afghan troops.

The White House is reportedly divided over the issue. Some experts argue that a surge would allow American advisers to train and assist a greater number of Afghan forces and place American troops closer to the front lines. The Afghans still need help with such basics as managing their motor pool, supplying bullets and gasoline to troops in the field, and administering payrolls. They also need help with intelligence.

Washington concluded long ago that a military solution is out of the question. What a surge could do is buy time for what ultimately has to happen  a political agreement between the Taliban and the Afghanistan government. While previous efforts to launch negotiations came to naught, some experts say there are signs that the Taliban could be persuaded to talk if Afghan and American forces ratchet up the military pressure.

But that presupposes a coordinated strategy that combines military, diplomatic and economic initiatives. There is no indication that the Trump administration, overwhelmed on many fronts, led by a president with no government experience and with few experienced foreign policy experts in senior positions, has even begun to devise such a strategy.

Meanwhile, Afghanistans political leadership remains deeply flawed and divided; corruption is rampant and heroin is the dominant export. Pakistan continues to be a troublesome neighbor as it works to offset Indian influence in Afghanistan by providing a haven or other support to militant groups fighting there.
Last week, when voters in Montana elected Greg Gianforte to fill the states lone seat in the House of Representatives, even after he was recorded in a physical altercation with a reporter, many Americans  like me  were left to look on in astonished bewilderment.

There was an audio recording of the altercation. The reporter, Ben Jacobs of The Guardian, says Gianforte body-slammed him while he was simply doing his job, asking questions on the eve of the election. Gianfortes camp issued a bogus statement basically blaming Jacobs for the incident, but that statement was not at all backed up by the audio.

There were witnesses. A Fox News crew was there, and as Foxs Alicia Acuna wrote of the altercation:

Gianforte grabbed Jacobs by the neck with both hands and slammed him into the ground behind him. Faith, Keith and I watched in disbelief as Gianforte then began punching the reporter. As Gianforte moved on top of Jacobs, he began yelling something to the effect of, Im sick and tired of this! 
Unamuno believed that it was not Quixote but Sancho who was delusional, firm in his belief that windmills are not worth charging, and, more broadly, that unwinnable battles are not worth fighting. The result of this type of thinking will usually be paralysis, since most enemies are windmill-size instead of human-size. Sancho believed that tilting at windmills was dangerous. Today, we might just call it a waste of time, and since common sense also tells us that time is money, we had better steer clear of anything unprofitable.

According to the political theorist Joshua Dienstag in his 2006 book, Pessimism, Quixotes loss of common sense offered him a more meaningful metric for deciding which battles are worth fighting. Quixote didnt charge the windmill because he thought he would defeat it, but because he concluded it was the right thing to do. Likewise, if we want to be legitimate actors in the world, Unamuno would say that we must be willing to lose the fight. If we abandon the common-sense belief that deems only winnable fights worth fighting, we can adopt Unamunos moral courage and become quixotic pessimists: pessimists because we recognize our odds of losing are quite high, and quixotic because we fight anyway. Quixotic pessimism is thus marked by a refusal to let the odds of my success determine the value of my fight.

On Unamunos Marxist interpretation of the windmill scene, Quixote recognized that, though they might look harmless, the long-armed giants kept the townspeople sated and distracted enough to forget their oppression at the hands of the modern bread factories. Unamuno complained that instead of asking whether they would ultimately benefit the towns they invade, the townspeople ended up venerate[ing] and pay[ing] homage to steam and electricity. Contemporary windmills might look like a small town getting a Walmart, or like kindergartners getting free iPads. Common sense fails us in two ways: first and most often, it uncritically believes that technology equals progress, and second, even in cases in which people recognize the potential harm to the community, they generally dont believe that they can resist it. Common sense calls it a waste of time and energy. Quixote rejected this calculus, instead favoring a moral metric to decide who and what to fight. Thus freed, Quixote was left open to fight for lost causes  and lose.

Warning: quixotic pessimism will not go over well in public. If you choose this life, Unamuno says you will face disbelief, judgment and ridicule. He writes that moral courage confronts, not bodily injury, or loss of fortune, or the discredit of ones honor but rather ridicule: ones being taken for a madman or a fool. In a real-life context, quixotic pessimism will look like constantly face-planting in public, and we will need moral courage to accept it. People will laugh at us as they do at Quixote. People will mock our decision to fight big machines, but we must do it neither to win nor to impress. We will eventually grow accustomed to ignoring the criticism of our saner colleagues and friends who seem to follow the adage if you cant beat em, join em.
On April 23, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford delivered an address at Tulane University in New Orleans. As the president spoke, more than 100,000 North Vietnamese troops were approaching Saigon, having overrun almost all of South Vietnam in just three months. Thirty years after the United States first became involved in Southeast Asia and 10 years after the Marines landed at Danang, the ill-fated country for which more than 58,000 Americans had died was on the verge of defeat.

We, of course, are saddened indeed by the events in Indochina, the president told the crowd. The United States could soon regain the sense of pride that existed before Vietnam, he said, but only if we stop refighting the battles and the recriminations of the past. The time had come, the president concluded, to unify, to bind up the nations wounds and begin a great national reconciliation. Just seven days later, North Vietnamese tanks smashed through the gates of the Presidential Palace in Saigon. The Vietnam War was over.

Its been more than 40 years now, and despite Fords optimism, we have been unable to put that war behind us. As one Army veteran, Phil Gioia, told us, The Vietnam War drove a stake right into the heart of America.

For more than a generation, instead of forging a path to reconciliation, we have allowed the wounds the war inflicted on our nation, our politics and our families to fester. The troubles that trouble us today  alienation, resentment and cynicism; mistrust of our government and one another; breakdown of civil discourse and civic institutions; conflicts over ethnicity and class; lack of accountability in powerful institutions  so many of these seeds were sown during the Vietnam War.
Larry and Cathy Roppelt, 44 years married, made a nearly two-hour trek into Manhattan from Medford, Long Island, on a recent evening for a rare occasion: a Broadway show. They chose A Bronx Tale for one reason.

Its our era, Mr. Roppelt remarked during intermission, in a gruff accent that could have fit right onstage at the doo-wop heavy musical set in the 1960s. This is the music that we grew up with.

A Bronx Tale, a $10 million show based on the 1993 movie, is not a musical that will win plaudits for innovation. It wont win anything at all at the Tony Awards on June 11 because it went unrecognized in the recent nominations. But in a highly competitive season that featured 13 new musicals, a show that many critics called forgettable has turned out to be much like its protagonist: a scrappy survivor.

Even without a star like Bette Midler in Hello, Dolly! or the acclaim and box-office juice of a Dear Evan Hansen, the show has been a solid seller since its December opening.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch always uses topical and local references written just for the cities where it plays. So its natural that when the musicals national tour finishes in Washington next month, Hedwig, played by Euan Morton, will save her wrath for the most topical local of them all: President Trump.

John Cameron Mitchell, who created the show with Stephen Trask, explains that Hedwig, an East German transgender glam-rocker who escapes Communism, will be identifying with another Eastern European gold digger.

The line? I sit in my mobile home watching the Berlin Wall come down, recalling with envy Mothers escape to sunny Yugoslavia with the help of her close friend Melania. We are all Melania now.

Other typical targets include local celebrities, conservative politicians, hipster enclaves and the rough street in town, explained Mr. Morton, who along with Mr. Mitchell, wrote most of the material for this part of the tour. They get advice from Michael Rudd, the assistant company manager, who from city to city collects suggestions from residents on references that might click.
STEPTOE, Wash.  David Benscoter honed his craft as an investigator for the F.B.I. and the United States Treasury, cornering corrupt politicians and tax evaders. The lost apple trees that he hunts down now are really not so different. People and things, he said, tend to hide in plain sight if you know how and where to look.

Its like a crime scene, Mr. Benscoter, 62, said as he hiked down a slope toward a long-abandoned apple orchard planted in the late 1800s. You have to establish that the trees existed, and hope that theres a paper trail to follow.

About two-thirds of the $4 billion apple industry is now concentrated in Washington State  and 15 varieties, led by the Red Delicious, account for about 90 percent of the market. But the past looked, and tasted, much different: An estimated 17,000 varieties were grown in North America over the centuries, and about 13,000 are lost.

From New England through the Midwest and the South to Colorado and Washington, where small family farms were long anchored by an orchard, most apple trees died along with the farms around them as industrial-scale agriculture conquered American life a century ago.
WASHINGTON  The Constitution does not answer every question. It includes detailed instructions, for instance, about how Congress may remove a president who has committed serious offenses. But it does not say whether the president may be criminally prosecuted in the meantime.

The Supreme Court has never answered that question, either. It heard arguments on the issue in 1974 in a case in which it ordered President Richard M. Nixon to turn over tape recordings, but it did not resolve it.

Reports that President Trump asked James B. Comey, then the F.B.I. director, to shut down an investigation into his former national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, prompted accusations that the president may have obstructed justice. Robert S. Mueller III, the former F.B.I. director who has been appointed special counsel to look into ties between the Trump campaign and Russia, will presumably investigate the matter.

But would the Constitution allow Mr. Mueller to indict Mr. Trump if he finds evidence of criminal conduct?
Sticking closely to his prepared text, Mr. Trump offered no insight into his thinking about how to proceed in the various wars that the United States is currently fighting, including the battle against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria or the war in Afghanistan. The Pentagon has proposed sending another 5,000 troops to Afghanistan to bolster the force that has been fighting there since shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Some of Mr. Trumps political advisers, including Stephen K. Bannon, worry about a slippery slope into nation building, but the president has not publicly indicated which way he is leaning.

Instead, Mr. Trump used the occasion to single out several service members who have died in combat in recent years and also honored former Senator Bob Dole, Republican of Kansas, who was wounded in Italy during World War II and attended Mondays event.

They were all angels sent to us by God, and they all share one title in common, and that is the title of hero, real heroes, he said. Though they were here only a brief time before God called them home, their legacy will endure forever.

Like his three most recent predecessors, Mr. Trump never served in combat or the active-duty military, and at one point during his campaign last year he offended veterans by denigrating the service of Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican, a Navy pilot who spent five and a half years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. Hes not a war hero, Mr. Trump said at the time. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who werent captured.

Mr. Trump has never apologized for those remarks, but in his speech on Monday he lavished warm praise on other veterans. He singled out John F. Kelly, a retired four-star general now serving as secretary of homeland security whose son, Second Lt. Robert M. Kelly of the Marines, was killed when he stepped on a land mine in 2010 in southern Afghanistan.
WASHINGTON  As the Pentagon prepares to conduct its first test in three years of the multibillion-dollar effort to intercept a North Korean warhead, it hopes to demonstrate that it has fixed a system that has worked in fewer than half of its previous nine tests.

But just as the Defense Department seeks to prove that it can strike a speeding target launched over the Pacific  in this case, an interceptor rocket is set to lift off from the California coast on Tuesday to try to smash a mock warhead  the North Koreans have delivered a new challenge.

The North has recently test-fired a series of missiles based on a technology that would give the United States little warning of an attack. The new generation of missiles uses solid fuels, enabling them to be rolled out from mountain hideaways and launched in minutes. That makes the job of intercepting them  already daunting  far harder, given that the American antimissile system works best with early alerts from satellites that a launch is imminent.

Even more worrisome is that these missiles actually seem to be functional, unlike older missiles that kept exploding or falling prematurely into the sea in past tests. Recent major tests were clearly successful, teaching the North Koreans a lot about how to fire missiles into space and drop warheads on distant targets. While the North has not yet flight-tested an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of crossing the Pacific, it has repeatedly claimed that it can strike the United States with a nuclear warhead.
ROSWELL, Ga.  In the northern suburbs of Atlanta, where what is likely to be the most expensive House campaign in history is being waged, a band of conservative advocacy groups is grappling with a question that may decide whether the Republican Party keeps its House majority after 2018: Do you run with President Trump or against him?

Somehow, the groups are discovering, they will have to do both.

The race between the Republican Karen Handel and the Democrat Jon Ossoff in this reliably Republican district has become a proving ground for the surrogates tasked with defending the partys majority. Both sides together could spend more than $40 million on the race to fill a seat that had been held by Tom Price, now the secretary of health and human services.

So far, Republicans have chalked up single-digit victories in Montana and Kansas special elections to replace other House Republicans tapped by Mr. Trump for his cabinet. Democrats made gains in both races from their 2016 showings. But for Republicans, a win is a win.

Georgias Sixth Congressional District, however, is different: an affluent, educated cluster of suburbs that barely went for Mr. Trump in November and could foretell the hazards in other suburban battleground contests in 2018.
The target of the suit is the Defense P.O.W./M.I.A. Accounting Agency, an arm of the Pentagon with a $115 million annual budget that is tasked with accounting for the roughly 45,000 recoverable lost service members dating back to World War II. For years, the agency and a group of agencies that preceded it have been plagued by reports of waste and dysfunction.

Despite its hefty budget, the recovery effort has averaged fewer than 90 bodies annually in the past five years. Congress, frustrated by the low numbers, mandated that the agency increase the number to at least 200 per year by 2015, but it has yet to meet that total.

The agency said connecting remains with lost fighters was a meticulous process that often took years. It has tried to streamline the effort, and identified a record 164 remains in 2016, but staff members warned in recent interviews that extracting usable DNA from 70-year-old remains damaged by the chaos of battle would continue to be a plodding endeavor.

We completely understand there is frustration and pain of families, said John Byrd, the director of the agencys lab. We are going to do the best we can to ramp up the most robust capability while trying to do the work properly.

But many families have run out of patience. Lieutenant Niningers family has been rebuffed by the agency for decades, even though the family claims it can literally draw a map to his grave site and has provided DNA to make a match.

Were not talking Sherlock Holmes here. Were not even talking Murder, She Wrote. Many of these cases are imminently solvable, said Rick Stone, a former police chief and forensics professor who was deputy of the agencys World War II branch from 2011 to 2012. But the system is so dysfunctional that they resist all efforts.
Wiggin wrote that the student essays and recitations at the commencement were precisely like all others that have been since the world began. She went on to say, We yawn desperately at the essays, but our hearts go out to the essayists, all the same, for the vision splendid is shining in their eyes, and there is no fear of th inevitable yoke that the years are so surely bringing them.

(Writing in an era when memorization played a bigger role in education, Wiggin probably assumed that her readers would recognize those quotes from Wordsworths Ode: Intimations of Immortality From Recollections of Early Childhood. My mother, born in 1927 and educated in the Brooklyn public schools, was big on learning poetry by heart, but her tastes ran more to Whittier and Poe.)

Commencement, and I wanted my mother. I wanted my father as well, but we lost him before my childrens graduations began, so I am more accustomed to his absence. I picture him at my own medical school graduation, another singularly wet commencement, with a sodden tent that sagged ever closer to the seated parents in their graduation finery.

My parents were exactly as old that year as I am right now, watching my own child graduate. Commencement ceremonies put you in your generational place. If your child is graduating, why then, you must be one of the parents. Is this how my parents felt, when I was graduating? Yes, probably, they were absorbed in their own work and their own lives, proud of their children, and perhaps occasionally struck with wonder to find themselves as old as they had already become.

And were they thinking of their own parents, and did their parents feel as close and yet as far away as mine do, right now? My parents had both traveled far from the patterns of their immigrant parents; they were the first generation of their families to go to college, and their graduations were momentous for that reason. They both went on to become college professors, living lives their own parents could not have imagined.

For my mother, college graduation also represented a victory over her parents, who had wanted her to take a commercial course in high school and then get a secretarial job; against their wishes, she moved out, took a job as a live-in babysitter, and attended Brooklyn College. Into her 80s, she was still capable of working up some anger about their belief that education was unnecessary for a woman.

If she were around, she would probably have told my son that story, one more time, in honor of his graduation. And then she would have remembered her own father at that Brooklyn College graduation; he hadnt wanted her to go, but he was very, very proud.
SEOUL, South Korea  Set on 250 sprawling acres in North Koreas capital, the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology abides by the cult of the Kim family.

Atop its main building, large red characters praise General Kim Jong-un, the countrys provocative young leader. At the front of lecture halls hang smiling portraits of his father and grandfather, who led the nation before him.

Yet the school is different in one striking way. In a country that bans religion, it is run by evangelical Christians.



Founded seven years ago by a South Korea-born American, the school has thrived because of a deal with the leadership. It provides children of the North Korean elite with an education they cannot get elsewhere  computer science, agriculture, international finance and management, all conducted in English by an international faculty. Its teachers, half of them American, are forbidden to preach.
TAIPEI, Taiwan  Lee Ming-cheh, a human rights advocate from Taiwan who was detained in China in March, has been formally arrested on a charge of subverting state power, the Chinese government has announced, amid a continuing crackdown on civil society organizations.

His arrest, announced on Friday, marks the first time the Chinese authorities have charged someone from Taiwan with subversion. Many people in Taiwan fear it will not be the last, and it has added a new strain to the tensions between Beijing and Taipei.

Chinas ruling Communist Party has never administered Taiwan but claims it as Chinese territory, to be annexed by force if necessary. The Nationalists who once dominated China fled to the island after losing to the Communists in a civil war in 1949. Today more residents of Taiwan identify themselves as Taiwanese than Chinese, and few support unification with China.

The rift between the two sides has widened since last year, when Tsai Ing-wen was elected president of Taiwan. The Democratic Progressive Party, led by Ms. Tsai, has historically favored formal independence from China.
In The Old Man and the Sea, Hemingways protagonist battles for three days to pull in his prized catch. For Terry Selwood, it came a little more suddenly.

Mr. Selwood, 73, was less than a mile offshore near the town of Evans Head, New South Wales, in Australia when a great white shark jumped into his boat.

He had been fishing for snapper with hand lines on a calm sea when the far bigger catch appeared without warning.

I just caught a blur coming in the corner of me eye, he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Just out of instinct I threw my right arm up, and this thing hit me in the forearm and spun me around and knocked me off my feet, and I fell on the floor on my hands and knees.
In the end we had to make a difficult decision, Mr. Weaver said at a news conference on Monday in Victoria with the New Democrats leader, John Horgan. A decision that we felt was in the best interest of British Columbia today. That decision was for the B.C. Greens to work with the B.C. N.D.P. to provide a stable minority government over the four-year term of this next session.

Mr. Weaver and Mr. Horgan plan to announce the details of their power-sharing agreement on Tuesday.

The deal does not mean they will automatically be able to form a government. Because no party won a majority of seats in the election this month, the provincial political system gives the first right to form a government to the current premier, Christy Clark, the leader of the British Columbia Liberal Party, which won the largest number of votes.

Unless Ms. Clark can persuade opposition members of the Legislature to support her in a confidence vote, her government would fall.

Before Mr. Weaver made his deal with the New Democrats, he recognized the opportunity for the Greens to reshape politics in the province.

Were determined to show we can be productive holding the balance of power, Mr. Weaver, 55, said in an interview last week. A North American magnifying glass is going to be on every move we make. Being a climate scientist is good training for that kind of scrutiny.
ATHENS  Constantine Mitsotakis, a former conservative prime minister who engaged in fierce confrontations with Greeces liberal and socialist parties and tried to loosen state control of the economy in a 60-year political career, died on Monday. He was 98.

His family announced his death but did not say where he died.

Mr. Mitsotakis was prime minister from 1990 to 1993, a relatively brief departure from two decades of dominance by his Socialist rivals. He retired from active politics in 2004 but remained honorary chairman of the center-right New Democracy party.

He was credited with starting unpopular free-market policies, which were quietly continued by later governments, and with improving relations with Turkey. But he was often considered a divisive figure in a country struggling to escape its volatile political history.

Mr. Mitsotakis was born in the port of Hania on the Greek island of Crete on Oct. 18, 1918. He was a nephew of the liberal statesman and prime minister Eleftherios Venizelos, Greeces most prominent political figure of the early 20th century.
VERSAILLES, France  Frances newly elected president, Emmanuel Macron, came out of his first meeting with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Monday with a message of stark challenge, promising French military reprisals for any use of chemical weapons by Russias allies in Syria and saying he would closely monitor the curtailing of civil rights for gay people in Chechnya.

Against the gilded backdrop of the Palace of Versailles, Mr. Macron and Mr. Putin pledged to work with each other to fight terrorism. But their body language was at times tense, and the sometimes confrontational tone of the meeting was made clear in Mr. Macrons comments afterward during a joint news conference, where he signaled his intent to play a forceful role on the global stage and not be cowed by other world leaders.

With Mr. Putin standing beside him, he accused two news organizations with ties to Russia of acting as organs of influence rather than as true outlets for journalism. And he publicly warned the Russian leader that the use of chemical weapons was a red line for France. The use of chemical weapons by anyone will be the object of reprisals and immediate retaliation on the part of France, he said.

Mr. Putin has strongly backed President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, whose forces have been accused of using chemical weapons as recently as April. The Russian president did not respond directly to Mr. Macrons implicit challenge.
MOSCOW  A fierce windstorm caused by an extreme cold front killed 12 people here on Monday.

Billboards creaked over on their steel poles, trees crashed to the ground and roof tiles blew about like scraps of newspaper as gusts of at least 49 miles per hour lashed the city. It was the worst spring wind in Moscow since 1998, when gusts killed nine people in a similar burst of natural fury.

Falling trees and construction materials caused the deaths, an official in the city health department told Interfax. More than 50 people sought medical help. Eleven of the deaths were in the city limits; just outside them, a falling tree killed an 11-year-old girl.
There is a lot of information coming out at the moment  about what happened, how this occurred, what people might or might not have known, Ms. Rudd said in an interview with Sky News. And I think it is right that the MI5 takes a look to find out what the facts are.

What we consider before using anonymous sources. Do the sources know the information? Whats their motivation for telling us? Have they proved reliable in the past? Can we corroborate the information? Even with these questions satisfied, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. The reporter and at least one editor know the identity of the source. Learn more about our process.

She emphasized, however, that while the investigations into possible security failures would be useful, the main focus should be on the terrorism investigation that is also underway.

Detectives investigating the attack said Friday that they had arrested most of the members of the network believed to have assisted Mr. Abedi on his suicide mission.

The police carried out a series of armed raids across Greater Manchester over the weekend that ended with the arrest of a 25-year-old man in the Old Trafford area of the city. The operation expanded on Monday to Shoreham-by-Sea, on the southeastern coast of England, where counterterrorism police officers arrested a 23-year-old.

That brought the number of arrests in the case to 16, the Greater Manchester Police said in a statement on Monday. Of those, two people have been released without charge.

The police released a new image of the bomber on Monday that showed him wheeling a blue suitcase through Manchester city center days before he carried out the attack.
Czech Republic's New Online Gambling Laws Come Under Scrutiny as GVC Exits the Market

Published May 29, 2017 by Elana K

While 2017 dawned bright and hopeful for the Czech online gaming market, we find ourselves in the middle of the year looking at a bleak and dreary situation, with a number of large companies having exited the market altogether.

While 2017 dawned bright and hopeful for the Czech online gaming market, we find ourselves in the middle of the year looking at a bleak and dreary situation, with a number of large companies having exited the market altogether. What happened to the market between January and now? What caused this full-of-potential industry to crumble in a matter of months?



Disappointing New Laws

The new Czech online gaming laws were implemented on January 1, 2017, unanimously adopted by the Czech Senate with the primary goals bringing the country up to speed with the rest of the EU countries and as attracting both local and international companies to apply for iGaming licenses.



When these laws were implemented on January 1, UK-based operator William Hill withdrew immediately. It was anticipated that the international powerhouse would return to the Czech market, but instead of returning, it has lead other brands out the door.



Who Else Is Out?

GVC Holdings, the owner of bwin, PartyPoker, and many other online casino and sportsbetting brands, recently announced that they are leaving the Czech market. The withdrawal, unfortunately, does not come as a surprise, as the company had temporarily suspended its operations in the Czech Republic earlier this year, while it prepared to apply for new licenses.

PartyPoker released the following statement to its customers:

"Our goal is to always offer our customers a reliable and safe gaming experience and ensure that we offer our gaming products only if we are sure that everything is in full compliance with the law.



As already mentioned, we asked about the release of a few licenses that allow you to use our services in the Czech Republic.



However, the processing of these requests has revealed that the recent changes in the laws in force in the Czech Republic, along with their application in practice by the Czech authorities are incompatible with the principles of the European Union, and should not therefore be used."

The Real Reasons Behind the Withdrawal

Behind the scenes, GVC Holdings complained that the Czech government did not implement punishments for unlicensed operators, while licensed operators were expected to pay heavy taxes ranging between 23 percent to 35 percent.

Another sore spot was the controversial Czech Point program, which requires new online account sign-ups to take place at designated public administration centers. International operators complained that this unfairly favors local operators such as Fortuna and Sazka, while putting international operators at a disadvantage.



Is There Hope?

While Playtech debuted its products with Czech-licensed online operators in March, only one international operator has launched operations under a new Czech license, despite the new laws having gone into effect nearly six months ago.

It seems that if the Czech government wants international operators to stay and/or re-enter the market, it will have to reconsider some of its new laws and address these very-real complaints. The tax rate must come under special scrutiny, since that is a sore subject for both international and local operators.



Hopefully, the exit of GVC Holdings will be the wake-up call the government needs to get things back on track.


graffiti artists at Graffiti Pier in Philadelphia, PA

(Image by Rob Kall) Details DMCA



Reprinted from www.truthdig.com

The deep malaise, rage and feelings of betrayal that have enveloped American society are rarely captured and almost never are explained coherently by the press. To grasp the savage economic and emotional cost of deindustrialization, the destruction of our democratic institutions, the dark undercurrent of nihilistic violence that sees us beset with mass shootings, the attraction of opioids, the rise of the militarized state and the concentration of national wealth in a tiny cabal of corrupt bankers and corporations, it is necessary to turn to a handful of poets, writers and other artists. These artists, who often exist on the margins of mass culture, are our unheeded prophets.

"What Kierkegaard, Dostoyevsky, Nietzsche, and most other prophets have in common is a strong ethical outlook and a heightened sensitivity to attitudes and morals--the obvious ones as well as those that lurk beneath the surface," the painter Enrique Martinez Celaya said in an essay. "They also share urgency. Prophets are not inclined to wait for the right time. Their prophetic vision demands action, leaving little room for calculation and diplomacy. Truth, for the prophets, is not merely a belief but a moral imperative that compels them to speak and act with little regard for convenience or gains. But prophets need to do more than speaking and acting, and it is not enough to be apocalyptic. Something must be brought forward."

All despotisms, including our own, make war on culture. They seek to manipulate or erase historical memory. This assault on memory, Martinez Celaya said, is "philosophical violence." It leaves us with a "sense of being a stranger, displaced, a sense of having no way to check where one comes from because something has been cut and removed."

"If you can't take its measure then you can't judge it," he said. "You can't evaluate it. You can't take a moral position with regards to it."

Randall Jarrell in his essay "A Sad Heart at the Supermarket" calls our consumer culture "periodical."

"We believe that all that is deserves to perish and to have something else put in its place," he wrote. This belief, Jarrell said, is "the opposite of the world of the arts, where commercial and scientific progress do not exist; where the bone of Homer and Mozart and Donatello is there, always, under the mere blush of fashion, where the past--the remote past, even--is responsible for the way we understand, value, and act in, the present."

"An artist's work and life presuppose continuing standards, values stretched out over centuries of millennia, a future that is the continuation and modification of the past, not its contradiction or irrelevant replacement," he went on.

"The past's relation to the artist or man of culture is almost the opposite of its relation to the rest of our society," Jarrell wrote. "To him the present is no more than the last ring on the trunk, understandable and valuable only in terms of all the earlier rings. The rest of our society sees only that great last ring, the enveloping surface of the trunk; what's underneath is a disregarded, almost hypothetical foundation."

In his novel "Cloudsplitter," Banks tells the story of John Brown through the eyes of Owen, a son who survived the assault on Harpers Ferry and the aborted slave uprising.

"White Americans always say that John Brown was well intended but insane," he said in the interview. "Black Americans don't think that at all. They think he was heroic. From Malcolm X to Baldwin to whomever you want to ask. W.E.B. Du Bois' biography of Brown was the first biography of Brown that was sympathetic in any way. It's very interesting there's a racial divide on this man that is so extreme, yet no one disagrees about the facts. The facts have been known since 1859. No one has uncovered any new facts. But diametrically two views of history."

"It began in the 15th century with this power grab that required genocidal relations to people who were not white Europeans," he said. "It continues all the way to our present. You think of Shakespeare. The Moor becomes Caliban. The rise of the slave trade coincides exactly with that 10-year period [in which 'Othello' and 'The Tempest' were written]."

The artist makes the invisible visible. He or she shatters the cliche's and narratives used to mask reality.

"Whenever they talk about unemployment figures or the state of the economy, you read the comments [about the article]," the poet Linh Dinh said when I interviewed him earlier this year. "The comments are people howling and cursing the article. Most people know these articles are nonsense. If you're not fighting for your livelihood you tend to believe these articles."

"What's most disturbing is the hatred for these people, [the working class]," he told me. "The left always pretends to talk about the masses, the working class, but it really hates the working class. It doesn't pay any attention to the working class. It mocks their values."

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Reprinted from www.dailykos.com by ursulafaw

"Now I'm gonna tell 'em you lied to me, ok, and Donald's gonna fire you. We got our stories straight?"





Mike Pence lost all plausible deniability about his alleged ignorance of all things Russian today, if the Washington Post is correct that Pence benefactor and mentor Erik Prince is the "representative of Trump" named in an anonymous letter received by the Post in December; and moreover that Prince was a member of the Trump transition team all along.

The letter said among other things that Jared Kushner had talked to Sergei Kislyak about setting up a secret and secure communications channel between the Trump administration and the Kremlin. The letter also made reference to a "Trump representative" meeting with a Russian contact to set up the communications channel and the Trump representative is Erik Prince. If The Washington Post is correct, and it certainly appears that way, there is absolutely no way that Pence can maintain he didn't know everything about Flynn and Trump-Russia, and that he learned it first hand from Mike Flynn, Jared Kushner, Steve Bannon, and Erik Prince. This could be more than a leak, this could be a deluge, where Mike Pence and his credibility are concerned. The Washington Post said this:

In addition to their discussion about setting up the communications channel, Kushner, Flynn and Kislyak also talked about arranging a meeting between a representative of Trump and a "Russian contact" in a third country whose name was not identified, according to the anonymous letter. The Post reported in April that Erik Prince, the former founder of the private security firm Blackwater and an informal adviser to the Trump transition team,met on Jan. 11 -- nine days before Trump's inauguration -- in the Seychelles islands in the Indian Ocean with a representative of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Could Erik Prince be the representative of Trump that is referred to? It certainly seems that way. And take a look at what else the Post reported on April 3:

Click Here to Read Whole Article
Since ancient times the ideal Mission of the Warrior Path is two-fold:

* Protect and Defend the Weak and the Innocent.

* Uphold and Promote the Good, the True, and the Beautiful.

World myths and actual history is filled with stories of noble warriors who did just this. King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table spring to mind, as does the Celtic warrior queen Boudicca. Hindu prince Arjuna chose the higher path on the battlefield of the Mahabharata stories, and Genghis Khan, though brutal in battle established well-run systems throughout his vast empire. Others include the noble Zulus who fought the British at Roark's Drift, the Samurai and the Japanese Bushido warrior code, the female Amazon warriors, and among the Incas, Pachacuti.

It is a noble path and is an essential part of any human system.

No doubt most of those who serve today in the Armed Services, particularly those in direct contact with threats, strive to be on-mission and do so valiantly and with honour.

However, too many of the supposed support systems, both military and civilian, are neither constructed to nor can function to realize these higher ideals. Go as far back in history as you like and you'll find ambition, profiteering, and fevered dogma sending the actual warriors off to face and fight and commit horrors, to shed blood, and to bring death and destruction.

The Warrior Path needs to be redeemed. Absolutely.

But the place to start is not with the boots-on-the-ground but closer to the top, where decisions are made and passed down to those who serve. Where strategies are decided by well-attired chess players distantly directing moves on the muddy, bloody battlefields. Where arms manufacturers and dealers influence military acquisitions requiring tax-payer monies. Where abundant funds get directed not to the welfare of the actual war-fighters but to suppliers and influencers. Where support and care that is supposed to be focused on the individual soldiers and their families gets lost in labyrinthine bureaucracies and corruption.

Again, this has been happening since Oog collected a bunch of sharp rocks and traded them to Moog for a larger share of mastodon meat from the hunt. It happened horribly so in World War I when millions died in the trenches because of leaders' stubborn refusal to admit the facts. It is also painfully obvious in the US's current bloated defense budget, while the actual warfighters must go on food stamps to feed their families and too often end up homeless on the streets they fought to keep safe.

The problem, like many we face, is systemic. To focus on just one part of it almost guarantees you won't get change because like the mythical hydra, when you cut off one head, others spring up in its place.

So what's to be done?

"The Defense system ignores at its peril the turning tides of public opinion and action. A "Pew Research Center poll shows a substantial percentage of Americans [40%] are dissatisfied with capitalism. We would be foolhardy to assume that the defense industry, along with other large corporations, will cruise through the next few decades unaffected by the rise of citizens' demands for economic and judicial fairness, social systems that provide services for all citizens, and intolerance for purposeless or corrupted military conflicts. The non-corporate economy is growing alongside disgust and distrust for corporate and political malfeasance. To presume that the restive populace will accept business-as-usual indefinitely is to ignore history and the cyclical nature of life as evidenced in economics (boom and bust), politics (conservative and liberal), national policy (imperialism and isolationism), and personal engagement in the armed services (rejection and affinity).

Addressing this disparity would better prepare us for the Future of Land Warfare without a dependency on fallible equipment, political wind-shifts, and a world economy likely to remain shaky for years to come.

To assure any workable future for warfare requires changing the way that Congress and the defense industry work with the military."

[from "Men Who Walk Into Battle", McMillan & Smith]

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Julian Assange

(Image by espenmoe) Details DMCA



Reprinted from consortiumnews.com

The long legal ordeal of Julian Assange -- and the continuing threats against the WikiLeaks founder -- make a mockery of the West's supposed commitment to press freedom and the public's right to know.

Nearly five years ago, Ecuador granted WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange political asylum at its London embassy. The original purpose of the asylum was to avoid extradition to the United States. Two years earlier, Swedish authorities had launched an investigation of Assange for sexual assault. Sweden has now dropped that investigation.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. (Photo credit: Espen Moe)

Assange called the Swedish decision to end the investigation an "important victory for me and for the U.N. human rights system." But, he said, the "proper war was just commencing," because the London Metropolitan Police warned if Assange leaves the Ecuadorian Embassy, they would arrest him on a 2012 warrant issued after he failed to appear at a magistrate's court following his entry into the embassy.

The original reason for granting asylum to Assange remains intact. The U.S. government has been gunning for Assange since 2010, when WikiLeaks published documents leaked by whistleblower Chelsea Manning. Those documents, which included the Afghan and Iraq war logs and U.S. State Department cables, were ultimately published in the New York Times, the U.K. Guardian, and the German magazine Der Spiegel.

The leaked reports exposed 20,000 deaths, including thousands of children, according to Assange. Many of them contain evidence of war crimes. [Among the leaked material was the "Collateral Murder" video, a gruesome view from the gun-barrel of a U.S. helicopter gunship as it mowed down a group of Iraqi men, including two Reuters journalists, as they walked on a Baghdad street -- and then killing a man who stopped to help the wounded and also wounding two children in his van.]

It was never clear what role Sweden played in the Assange saga. Criminal charges were never filed there and Swedish authorities never took Assange up on his offer to make himself available for interviews with Swedish authorities in London. The Swedish prosecutor insisted that he travel to Sweden to be interviewed. Assange declined, fearing that if he went to Sweden, that country would extradite him to the United States.

The Swedish investigation of Assange may have been instigated at the behest of the United States. Journalist John Pilger documented political pressure by the U.S. government on Swedish authorities: "Both the Swedish prime minister and foreign minister attacked Assange, who had been charged with no crime. Assange was warned that the Swedish intelligence service, SAPO, had been told by its U.S. counterparts that U.S.-Sweden intelligence-sharing arrangements would be 'cut off' if Sweden sheltered him."

Although the Swedish investigation has now been dropped, the threat of arrest persists. The London police have indicated they will arrest Assange for failure to appear in a London Magistrates Court if he leaves the embassy. Britain would then likely extradite Assange to the United States for possible prosecution.

Arresting Assange a U.S. 'Priority'

Attorney General Jeff Sessions declared in April that arresting Assange is a "priority" for the Department of Justice, even though the New York Times indicated that federal prosecutors are "skeptical that they could pursue the most serious charges, of espionage." The Justice Department is reportedly considering charging Assange with theft of government documents.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions. (Flickr U.S. Customs and Border Protection)

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Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121

"Rob Kall's book Bottom-Up: Tapping the Power of the Connection Revolution is both a welcomed manifesto and a guide for rethinking the power of human agency, understanding the connections that both make us human and legitimate human planetary relations. Moreover it is a powerful call for providing the ideas, social practices, and relations that make human connections possible, enable them to work together from the bottom up, and to transform such connections into a powerful movement in which people take control of their lives and create a better future for everyone."



Henry Giroux, Director of the McMaster Centre for Research in the Public Interest, author of Zombie Politics and Culture in the Age of Casino Capitalism, Americas Education Deficit and The War on Youth, and dozens more.
Capitalism has worked well in various countries over time; in fact, we can say that it once worked quite well in America. But those days are coming to an end and we can conclude that the form of capitalism currently practiced in America is no longer working in the best interests of this country and a large portion of its people.

However, it still works beautifully for those at the top of the income spectrum; the powerful Corporatists who we might say "manage" it and use their power to acquire more and more personal income and wealth. Americans watch with a sense of trepidation as the lion's share of new income generated flows to those at the top, and an increasing number of the American people no longer receive their fair share.

Capitalism; a Love Story, was a hilarious, very cynical portrayal of America's system of capitalism. I thoroughly enjoyed how Michael Moore portrayed the masters of Corporatism. But what was portrayed in that movie is no laughing matter for the many millions of Americans whose quality of life has been greatly diminished over decades because of the way this system has been rigged to work against them.

The beginning of the transformation of the U.S. manufacturing sector from one that utilized the skills of American workers to one now greatly dependent on foreign workers had its roots in the late 1970's and early 1980's when huge corporations such as GE began to move jobs overseas.

GE's CEO Jack Welch strongly argued that corporations owed their primary allegiance to stockholders and not to employees; and that companies needed to seek lower labor costs and maximize their profits wherever such labor was the cheapest. His corporate colleagues quickly embraced that management philosophy.

Mr. Welch showed he had no allegiance to U.S. workers but he still wanted those same workers to be loyal to him and buy the products that GE was producing in other countries. Nothing like being a complete hypocrite is there? That trend in outsourcing jobs continued to escalate in the 1990's and really took off when America made the turn into the 21st Century. America's world class manufacturing system was decimated and has never been the same.

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So youre in Cabo and youre tired of the beach. (What, it could happen) Put away your bathing suit and call an Uber to take you to downtown San Jose Del Cabo where you can experience a more hidden culture there: the art scene. Its a little known fact about Cabo, but it has the largest historic art district in Mexicowhich is astounding all on its own because its really only two square blocks of galleries.

The Gallery District stretches out behind the main square and historic church in San Jose Del Cabo. Visitors will walk on cobbled streets to a selection of 16 galleries in historic buildings. And more artists are moving in every year as the art districts popularity grows. Theres even an association of artists in the area, the Gallery District Association. In 2001, the association championed an art walk through the district, which is now one of the most popular events in town. The main street in the district is shut down to car traffic at the time, to make the event even more peaceful.

Want to experience the Gallery District yourself? Head to San Jose Del Cabo on any Thursday night between November and June. The walk runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., goes to 16 galleries and passes by five restaurants for a dinner break. Every gallery considers the walk a special eventsome will serve champagne or wine, others use it as an opportunity to open new exhibitions and showcase an artist-in-residence. The gallery owners are generally available as well, to provide tours and show off the creation spaces and workshops behind the art.

Follow in the footsteps of Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck, who once tread the cobbled streets of San Jose Del Cabo finding inspiration for their work; weve compiled the best of the best galleries to see where you can find your own spark of inspiration.

This gallery is one of the most visited in the district, boasting a multi-artist collection of sculptures and paintings. The work rotates in the gallery, and owner Mendoza prides the space on showcasing the artwork in a museum-quality setting. If you want to get a good handle on the Gallery District and the history behind it, start your tour here. The current artists represented are: Aidee de Leon, Mario Martin del Campo, Sofia Echeverri, Xavier Esqueda, Luis Filcer, Javier Guadarrama, Carlos Jaurena, Jorge Luna, Jorge Marin, Victor Mora, Jose Parra, Claudia Rodriguez, Joao Rodriguez, Marco Vargas, Rita Vega and Barry Wolfrynd.

Here, youll find a wide selection of traditional and contemporary Mexican art. The gallery is split into sections. One side has beaded sculptures and handicrafts, the other has jewelry and sculptures, and in the back youll find whimsical animals, pottery and plates, and paintings. This gallery is a great stop to learn about folk art and modern trends throughout Mexico, and the colors and fanciful forms throughout will brighten your day.

Hailed by Fodors as possibly the best gallery space in town, Arnolds gallery focuses on his own work of abstract oil paintings and bronze sculptures. His studio is in the same building as his galleryand if you ask nicely, hell take you on a tour. He describes his work as pieces of self-examination, little micro documentaries that he creates to preserve a moment in time.

Bascon comes from Spain to exhibit his art in Cabo, which usually focuses on people and can be quite controversial. He does his best to capture the spirit of a personlike colorful Andy Warhol-esque paintings of Frida Kahloor to hit the essence of an event or moment, like a portrait of an artist flying a kite in protest of 43 students that went missing in Mexico. All of his art is emotional and raw, with an uncluttered and visible point of view.

If you want interactive art, this is the gallery to hit. Guaderramas specialty is contemporary Christian art, but the interactive pieces are really something to behold. One of the coolest is a painting you touch at the same time as another person. While youre both touching the painting, you can tap your fingers on the other persons arm and the painting plays music. Its like using your date as a human piano.

Jennifer Billock is an award-winning writer, bestselling author and editor, focusing on culinary travel. She has written for The New York Times, Yahoo Travel, National Geographic Traveler, Porthole Cruiser, Midwest Living and Taste of Home Magazine. She is currently dreaming of an around-the-world trip with her Boston terrier. Check out her website at www.jenniferbillock.com and follow her on Twitter @jenniferbillock.
A day of rain turned the dusty trails to golden slime come race time.

Tire choice and pressures were an important thought process overnight. The experienced Frenchie Francois Bailly-Maitre makes a last check before heading for the start ramp.

Isabeau Courdurier takes a moment to get in the zone this morning. It wasn't her day but she has time to regroup before the next round in more familiar climes back home in France.

The defending champ's bike ready to go.

Greg Callaghan will always be the people's champion in Ireland whether he finishes first or last.

Sorry Dave, you're not getting through.

With all the banter on the internet right now about 27.5" vs 29" wheels it's safe to say this is a fair statement.

Richie Rude muscling rocks out of the way like a boss.

A win on Stage 3 had Jared Graves looking good, but a mechanical later in the day would dash his hopes.

Just a fraction off the podium today in 4th for Anita Gehrig.

Adrien Dailly is so effortless on the bike it tricks you into thinking he is taking it easy. The clock says otherwise.

Another young racer coming to the fore is the rising talent of Raphaela Richter who bettered her top ten from Madeira with an amazing ride to 6th place.

Katy Winton meant business today coming out the gate hard and fast.

Richie Rude is riding as hard as ever but it just isn't falling into place for him at the moment.

Thomas Lapeyrie looking for leprechauns in all the wrong places on Stage 1.

Florian Nicolai storms down the Irish hillside packed to capacity with race fans.

Another strong ride for Bergamont's Joe Nation who snuck into the top twenty.

Adrien Dailly was in control of the race all day and becomes the first repeat winner this season. The top 3 in the overall are only separated by 60 points, and with another four rounds to go we are in for one heck of a race for the championship.

Off her podium pace seen last round in Madeira, Noga Korem would end the day in 9th.

An off day for Isabeau Courdurier had her in a disappointing 7th.

Unfortunately, Ines Thoma would add to a couple of knocks and bumps from practice.

Ines Thoma's helmet bore the full brunt of her crash, she hobbled to the finish in 10th before heading for a check up at the hospital.

After missing the first few rounds, Andreane Lanthier-Naeau was on fire today.

Mid-track Guinness poured by the Pope? Who could say no to that?

Chainsaws, flames, and helicopters buzzing overhead. That'll be stage 3 in Wicklow, Ireland, then.

All the lads screaming for their man Greg Callaghan.

Robin Wallner had his best ever EWS finish today with a 6th place.

Just 5 seconds off the podium for Canadian Jesse Melamed.

An up and down season for Isabeau Courdurier who slipped back to 7th today.

Keegan Wright having a wild ride atop stage 3, he continued after buzzing his manhood for a few seconds.

Martin Maes dodged spectators left and right to get on the podium for the second round in a row.

Jerome Clementz rode consistently throughout the day and left Wicklow with a 7th place in his pocket.

No one else was even close to Cecile Ravanel who won every stage this weekend.

5th for Caro Gehrig.

After coming back from injury and it being her first race of the season, a 3rd place for ALN is perhaps the ride of the weekend.

Zakarias Johansen was somewhat of an unknown quantity to the wider audience coming into this season, not so now after breaking into the top ten.

Jesse Melamed didn't linger on his Madeira heartbreak too long, a stage win and 4th place finish was a good day in the office for the Canadian.

Foot out, flat out and fast as for Sam Hill in the slippery Irish dirt.

Number one once again for Cecile Ravanel.

Cecile's bike picked up a few extra pounds throughout the day as the mud began to dry out and stick to everything like glue.

So close to both the win and the overall points lead. Sam Hill will surely turn that frustration into motivation when the series picks up next month in France.

Back inside the top 10 for Florian Nicolai.

It wasn't the end result Greg Callaghan had wished for having looked to take three wins in a row in Wicklow. He still retains the overall however.

Martin Maes is by far one of the friendliest guys on the circuit and spent time long after the race hanging with the many young fans.

A day of nothing but crashes left Yoann Barelli a bit bloody and in need of a few stitches.

Katy Winton is on one hell of an upward curve this season, who knows where a little extra confidence will take her.

After a day of racing the Gehrigs would finish back to back just 12 seconds apart.

Mark Scott would have been looking for more than a 16th place finish today.

The battle scars of a hard fought win for Adrien Dailly, the youngster is really coming of age and limbering up for the overall tile battle.

An ecstatic Andreane Lanthier Nadeau after clinching the final spot on the podium in Ireland.

The fastest ladies in Ireland.

Katy Winton rode with determination and self belief today and it showed. First podium and smashing it into second.

Cecile Ravanel's lead has begun to stretch out from the chasing pack.

This is shaping up to be the one of the tightest title campaigns yet.

The fastest teams at the Emerald Enduro making it rain in an otherwise dry day.

Cheers, Ireland. The third time was definitely a charm.

After a day of rain turned dust into mud, riders came into race day unsure of what they would find hiding in the Irish hills. Would it be tacky or maybe a bit slimy and sticky? The answer was all of the above. The ever-changing conditions made each stage a bit of a mixed bag full of unique challenges, and it was riders who could adapt and react on the fly that were able to exploit weakness from their rivals throughout the day. And that's not even taking into account the added pressure piled on by the Irish fans who came out in the thousands to both cheer and heckle all day long.For Cecile Ravanel and Adrien Dailly the challenges on and off the track were no distraction and they put in nothing short of dominant performances. Cecile won each and every stage handily, and Adrien won three of the six (and finished 2nd, 3rd, and 6th in the other stages). The same could not be said for Ireland's golden boy and two-time winner here, Greg Callaghan. Even the massive Irish crowd that seemed to carry him to victory the previous two years was of little help, and when a rider has an off day there's really nothing one can do but try to survive...and survive Greg did. Despite finishing a few stages back in the teens and twenties he still rallied back hard enough to earn valuable points and leaves Ireland with his series lead intact, but only by the skin of his teeth.With four rounds down and four to go, the EWS has come to its midpoint as we head into a short break before picking this back up in France next month. For the women it looks like Cecile will be hard to beat, but the remaining podium spots will certainly be up for grabs as riders like Katie Winton and Isabeau Courdurier continue to charge at the front. For the men, things are about as tight as they can get with only 60 points separating Greg Callaghan, Sam Hill, and Adrien Dailly, ensuring that this season things will most certainly come right down to the wire in Finale Ligure in October.
Last week's episode, Extremis, set up a cliffhanger that we all knew would be difficult to pay off. With the impending threat of an evil monk invasion, and the realization that they have knowledge of future events derived from ridiculously accurate computer simulations, the stage was set for a let down. Historically, Doctor Who has done this a few times (Sound of Drums vs. Last of the Time Lords, Heaven Sent vs. Hell Bent), where part one has created more expectation than part two can live up to. However, with the exception of a couple of minor niggles, The Pyramid at the End of the World has delivered on its predecessor's promise.

Picking up from last week's events, Bill is interrupted on her date by the chief of the UN trying to get in touch with the Doctor. She and the Doctor are then promptly whisked away to a Middle-Eastern country where the Chinese, Russian, and American armies stand at an impasse. A five thousand year old pyramid has suddenly appeared between them. The monks from Extremis are inside. They ask for humans to give them permission to rule the Earth, otherwise they will not prevent a cataclysm that is about to occur. The Doctor and Bill must race against time to find out what the event is, and how they can stop it. Of course, the Doctor still being blind makes this harder to do

Pyramid at the End of the World presents the Doctor with a seemingly impenetrable puzzle. This is always a good start for an episode of Doctor Who. Over the course of the hour, various attempts are made to resolve it that fail, finally culminating in an "all is lost" moment, followed by a last minute dash to try and save everything. It's screenwriting structure 101, but it is perfectly executed here by Peter Harness and Steven Moffat.



"The creepiness of the Monks, from the way they are filmed, down to the way they use the word 'consent', is spine-tingling"

The monks' evil scheme is refreshingly original, and their aesthetic feels reminiscent of Death to the Daleks, which is pleasing. Seeing the events that may lead to the cataclysm taking place in parallel to the Doctor facing off against the monks gives the story a 'butterfly effect' feel, which is also elative. As a cherry on top, Rachel Denning (a dwarf actor) is cast in a role as a scientist and never has her stature commented on once. So we can add positive representation to the long list of this episode's achievements.

I have to say, however, I'm still not a fan of the Doctor being blind. To call it lazy writing isn't fair, but it's a twist that invites far too many questions. If the Doctor is able to access all of space and time, why doesn't he simply find a future hospital to fix himself up? We know this can be done. We've seen cyborgs in past episodes (A Town Called Mercy, Voyage of the Damned), robots stealing and using human eyes (The Girl in the Fireplace), and, heck, Davros has always had a bionic eye that seems to work pretty well. It is nigh on impossible to believe that the Doctor couldn't find a new pair of eyes somehow. So the fact that his blindness forms a crucial plot twist in this episode is somewhat frustrating.

That said, pointless blindness aside, The Pyramid at the End of the World is an excellent episode of Doctor Who, and promises even better things for next week. Its toying with the scientific concepts of determinism, fate, and choice are fascinating and provide an enriching new strain to Whovian folklore. The creepiness of the Monks, from the way they are filmed, down to the way they use the word 'consent', is spine-tingling. On the face of it, their creature design looks generic, but the way they are shot, played, and written sells it. Can't wait to see how this three parter concludes next week
|&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892122/980x.jpg" id="e8996" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="O9OPHC1496077278" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;When taken to the refugee camp, a disgraced doctor named Stern (&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0632457/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Merab Ninidze&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;) discovers Aryan's talent while examining him. Stern immediately sees this as a way to make money, thinking that the hopelessly religious society he lives in (at one point in the film he shames a patient for thanking God for his recovery and instead tells him to thank him) will buy into the awe-inducing acts Aryan is able to perform. For the remainder of the film, Aryan then becomes somewhat of a puppet at the hands of Stern's desires and motives for finding fulfillment out of a world that he feels has wronged him. Aryan only regains agency at the conclusion of the film, when in a Christ-like allusion he levitates into the sky and disappears, as if to absolve Stern and the others who have used him for their sins.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The message of the film never strives to be that direct with the viewer. The religious imagery, the comments of European immigration, and the reoccurring theme of levitation hang in the air (in some cases literally) but do not make the efforts to come to a conclusion as to what audiences are to conclude from the film as a whole. It therefore must rely on its cinematic work in order to keep audiences hooked.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892125/980x.jpg" id="9dd35" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="3LWT7R1496077278" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;It certainly comes close in this regard. Mundruczo's camera handling is incredibly detailed from the first scenes in the film, where we see Aryan and his father in the forest. Viewers' hearts will race in the way they can in any classic war film when they witness the family members trudging along together. One dimly lit moment in particular that involves the two desperately trying to stay afloat in a water-logged truck back alongside other refugees and chickens will hook your heart and attention easily.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Similar stature of work continues throughout the film, particularly in the scenes where Aryan is able to levitate. The first time, in the forest, close-ups of the blood droplets pouring out of his body help audiences to examine the scene in the same way Stern will later do in his makeshift hospital room. Each time we witness Aryan's abilities, we are given more and more knowledge. What first is something only affecting his body moves to his clothing items and later to entire spaces he can control. In one visit to a dying woman's house, we see that he is even able to turn the room upside down and defy gravity, an action that starts with Aryan himself before slowly encapsulating the objects around him.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;In his official press interview (see below), Mundruczo has stated that the heart of this film lies in the idea he had for the character to levitate. The thought process behind this is quite clear. And outside of the levitation, there is one, long car chase scene that sticks out not only from all of the others in the film, but also from all of the others of similar thematics I saw at Cannes &amp;amp;amp;mdash; trust me, there were many.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892127/980x.jpg" id="bd891" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="R0BEBU1496077278" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-verified="redactor"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Beyond the script, however, a few cinematic elements could have used the same level of attention that Mundruczo gave the levitation. The characters could feel a bit stilted in their actions at times, perhaps because the actors have admitted that they were alarmed by the intensity of the script throughout the filming process. Additionally, many of their voices were dubbed, a clear distraction that became more of a nuisance throughout the film.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Overall, the work Mundruczo does is a great leap for Hungarian cinema. The fact that this film is able to perform alongside much more complex and better produced works speaks for his abilities. In the coming years, he will hopefully be able to take the criticism he is receiving and shape up his next work in the vein of equal intensity and clarity.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;A complete list of films in competition for the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, the &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palme_d%27Or" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Palme d'Or&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;, is available on the festival's &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/festival/selection/competition-1" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;website&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;, as is a &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds1gJFygvWo" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;press conference&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; with the team behind "Jupiter's Moon."&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;em&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/community/rachelaggilman" target="_self"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Rachel A.G. Gilman&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; is a writer, a radio producer, and probably the girl wearing the Kinks shirt. Follow her on &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://twitter.com/rachelaggilman" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Twitter&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/em&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr color="red" width="100%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;READ MORE ABOUT FILM/TV...&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/how-to-talk-to-girls-2424934299.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;REVIEW |&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892122/980x.jpg" id="e8996" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="O9OPHC1496077278" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-verified="redactor"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/how-to-talk-to-girls-2424934299.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;When taken to the refugee camp, a disgraced doctor named Stern (&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0632457/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Merab Ninidze&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;) discovers Aryan's talent while examining him. Stern immediately sees this as a way to make money, thinking that the hopelessly religious society he lives in (at one point in the film he shames a patient for thanking God for his recovery and instead tells him to thank him) will buy into the awe-inducing acts Aryan is able to perform. For the remainder of the film, Aryan then becomes somewhat of a puppet at the hands of Stern's desires and motives for finding fulfillment out of a world that he feels has wronged him. Aryan only regains agency at the conclusion of the film, when in a Christ-like allusion he levitates into the sky and disappears, as if to absolve Stern and the others who have used him for their sins.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The message of the film never strives to be that direct with the viewer. The religious imagery, the comments of European immigration, and the reoccurring theme of levitation hang in the air (in some cases literally) but do not make the efforts to come to a conclusion as to what audiences are to conclude from the film as a whole. It therefore must rely on its cinematic work in order to keep audiences hooked.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892125/980x.jpg" id="9dd35" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="3LWT7R1496077278" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-verified="redactor"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;It certainly comes close in this regard. Mundruczo's camera handling is incredibly detailed from the first scenes in the film, where we see Aryan and his father in the forest. Viewers' hearts will race in the way they can in any classic war film when they witness the family members trudging along together. One dimly lit moment in particular that involves the two desperately trying to stay afloat in a water-logged truck back alongside other refugees and chickens will hook your heart and attention easily.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Similar stature of work continues throughout the film, particularly in the scenes where Aryan is able to levitate. The first time, in the forest, close-ups of the blood droplets pouring out of his body help audiences to examine the scene in the same way Stern will later do in his makeshift hospital room. Each time we witness Aryan's abilities, we are given more and more knowledge. What first is something only affecting his body moves to his clothing items and later to entire spaces he can control. In one visit to a dying woman's house, we see that he is even able to turn the room upside down and defy gravity, an action that starts with Aryan himself before slowly encapsulating the objects around him.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;In his official press interview (see below), Mundruczo has stated that the heart of this film lies in the idea he had for the character to levitate. The thought process behind this is quite clear. And outside of the levitation, there is one, long car chase scene that sticks out not only from all of the others in the film, but also from all of the others of similar thematics I saw at Cannes &amp;amp;amp;mdash; trust me, there were many.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892127/980x.jpg" id="bd891" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="R0BEBU1496077278" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-verified="redactor"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Beyond the script, however, a few cinematic elements could have used the same level of attention that Mundruczo gave the levitation. The characters could feel a bit stilted in their actions at times, perhaps because the actors have admitted that they were alarmed by the intensity of the script throughout the filming process. Additionally, many of their voices were dubbed, a clear distraction that became more of a nuisance throughout the film.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Overall, the work Mundruczo does is a great leap for Hungarian cinema. The fact that this film is able to perform alongside much more complex and better produced works speaks for his abilities. In the coming years, he will hopefully be able to take the criticism he is receiving and shape up his next work in the vein of equal intensity and clarity.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;A complete list of films in competition for the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, the &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palme_d%27Or" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Palme d'Or&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;, is available on the festival's &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/festival/selection/competition-1" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;website&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;, as is a &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds1gJFygvWo" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;press conference&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; with the team behind "Jupiter's Moon."&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;em&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/community/rachelaggilman" target="_self"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Rachel A.G. Gilman&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; is a writer, a radio producer, and probably the girl wearing the Kinks shirt. Follow her on &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://twitter.com/rachelaggilman" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Twitter&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/em&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr color="red" width="100%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;READ MORE ABOUT FILM/TV...&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/how-to-talk-to-girls-2424934299.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;REVIEW | "How to Talk to Girls at Parties" will succeed despite debut at Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/review-happy-end-marks-the-return-of-michael-haneke-to-the-cannes-film-2424644715.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;REVIEW | "Happy End" marks the return of Michael Haneke to the Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/latelier-the-workshop-2423630658.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;REVIEW | "The Workshop" at Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr color="red" width="100%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/div&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div style="position:relative;height:0;padding-bottom:56.25%" rel="position:relative;height:0;padding-bottom:56.25%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M-yRm5eBHYI?ecver=2" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" style="position:absolute;width:100%;height:100%;left:0" allowfullscreen=""&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;| "The Workshop" at Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr color="red" width="100%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/div&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div style="position:relative;height:0;padding-bottom:56.25%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M-yRm5eBHYI?ecver=2" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" style="position:absolute;width:100%;height:100%;left:0" allowfullscreen=""&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;|&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892122/980x.jpg" id="e8996" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ZLKHDU1496006781" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;When taken to the refugee camp, a disgraced doctor named Stern (&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0632457/?ref_=tt_cl_t1" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Merab Ninidze&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;) discovers Aryan's talent while examining him. Stern immediately sees this as a way to make money, thinking that the hopelessly religious society he lives in (at one point in the film he shames a patient for thanking God for his recovery and instead tells him to thank him) will buy into the awe-inducing acts Aryan is able to perform. For the remainder of the film, Aryan then becomes somewhat of a puppet at the hands of Stern's desires and motives for finding fulfillment out of a world that he feels has wronged him. Aryan only regains agency at the conclusion of the film, when in a Christ-like allusion he levitates into the sky and disappears, as if to absolve Stern and the others who have used him for their sins.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;The message of the film never strives to be that direct with the viewer. The religious imagery, the comments of European immigration, and the reoccurring theme of levitation hang in the air (in some cases literally) but do not make the efforts to come to a conclusion as to what audiences are to conclude from the film as a whole. It therefore must rely on its cinematic work in order to keep audiences hooked.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892125/980x.jpg" id="9dd35" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="1A4DCJ1496006781" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;It certainly comes close in this regard. Mundruczo's camera handling is incredibly detailed from the first scenes in the film, where we see Aryan and his father in the forest. Viewers' hearts will race in the way they can in any classic war film when they witness the family members trudging along together. One dimly lit moment in particular that involves the two desperately trying to stay afloat in a water-logged truck back alongside other refugees and chickens will hook your heart and attention easily.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Similar stature of work continues throughout the film, particularly in the scenes where Aryan is able to levitate. The first time, in the forest, close-ups of the blood droplets pouring out of his body help audiences to examine the scene in the same way Stern will later do in his makeshift hospital room. Each time we witness Aryan's abilities, we are given more and more knowledge. What first is something only affecting his body moves to his clothing items and later to entire spaces he can control. In one visit to a dying woman's house, we see that he is even able to turn the room upside down and defy gravity, an action that starts with Aryan himself before slowly encapsulating the objects around him.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;In his official press interview (see below), Mundruczo has stated that the heart of this film lies in the idea he had for the character to levitate. The thought process behind this is quite clear. And outside of the levitation, there is one, long car chase scene that sticks out not only from all of the others in the film, but also from all of the others of similar thematics I saw at Cannes &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;mdash; trust me, there were many.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;img src="https://assets.rbl.ms/9892127/980x.jpg" id="bd891" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ZA91UZ1496006781" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" data-verified="redactor"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;small placeholder="add photo credit..." class="image-media media-photo-credit"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;COURTESY OF THE CANNES FILM FESTIVAL&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/small&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Beyond the script, however, a few cinematic elements could have used the same level of attention that Mundruczo gave the levitation. The characters could feel a bit stilted in their actions at times, perhaps because the actors have admitted that they were alarmed by the intensity of the script throughout the filming process. Additionally, many of their voices were dubbed, a clear distraction that became more of a nuisance throughout the film.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Overall, the work Mundruczo does is a great leap for Hungarian cinema. The fact that this film is able to perform alongside much more complex and better produced works speaks for his abilities. In the coming years, he will hopefully be able to take the criticism he is receiving and shape up his next work in the vein of equal intensity and clarity.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;A complete list of films in competition for the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival, the &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palme_d%27Or" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Palme d'Or&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;, is available on the festival's &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/festival/selection/competition-1" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;website&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;, as is a &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds1gJFygvWo" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;press conference&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; with the team behind "Jupiter's Moon."&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;em&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/community/rachelaggilman" target="_self"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Rachel A.G. Gilman&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt; is a writer, a radio producer, and probably the girl wearing the Kinks shirt. Follow her on &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://twitter.com/rachelaggilman" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Twitter&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/em&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr color="red" width="100%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;READ MORE ABOUT FILM/TV...&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/how-to-talk-to-girls-2424934299.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;REVIEW | "How to Talk to Girls at Parties" will succeed despite debut at Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/review-happy-end-marks-the-return-of-michael-haneke-to-the-cannes-film-2424644715.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;REVIEW | "Happy End" marks the return of Michael Haneke to the Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="https://www.popdust.com/latelier-the-workshop-2423630658.html" target="_blank"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;REVIEW | "The Workshop" at Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed 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class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div style="position:relative;height:0;padding-bottom:56.25%" rel="position:relative;height:0;padding-bottom:56.25%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M-yRm5eBHYI?ecver=2" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" style="position:absolute;width:100%;height:100%;left:0" allowfullscreen=""&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;| "The Workshop" at Cannes Film Festival&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/h4&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;hr color="red" width="100%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/div&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div class="rm-embed embed-media"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;div style="position:relative;height:0;padding-bottom:56.25%"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M-yRm5eBHYI?ecver=2" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" style="position:absolute;width:100%;height:100%;left:0" allowfullscreen=""&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;
With the recent release of the new Real Estate album In Mind, this March, Real Estate has had several new and exciting announcements. The album, which stays true to the band's beachy and road trip-esque sound, features a new and more current electronic element in the music. Journalist Laura Snapes described them best in her review of In Mind for Pitchfork when she said

" The New Jersey band captured the way that a few square miles can feel like the whole world, but also intensify feelings of isolation. Their softly woven guitars had never sounded more wistful, the perfect accompaniment to Courtney's ruminations of the divide between post-adolescent uncertainty and watching his life codify into an adulthood that millennials like him were never meant to achieve."





The first, and perhaps the most exciting, of the announcements was of the release of the new Stained Glass colored vinyl. The small, 7 inch Vinyl, comes in a variety of different colors - and the color of which you will receive upon ordering is a surprise. The band recently posted a video on their Instagram showing the different colors of the vinyl.









The video showed vinyl coming in marbled pink, white, and red, clear blue, yellow, and orange, and opaque white, and baby blue. The vinyl, which sells for $8.50 on the band's website, is available now. The A Side of the vinyl contains "Stained Glass", and the B Side contains the instrumental track "Two Part, Part Two." The vinyl comes packaged in a clear, square envelope, with the gold painted letters of "Stained Glass."

Real Estate has also released the new music video for "Stained Glass." The music video, which has its own website, is a very psychedelic and undeniably trippy video. The video is an immersive, do-it-yourself style customizable video. The video shows the (cartoon) band hatching out of eggs, and the viewer (or, player), gets to customize the band and the scenery with different colors. The video is definitely worth a watch, and a fun and interactive experience. The band's frontman, Martin Courtney, recently shared his customization of the video on the band's Instagram.









The band has also announced two more things - the first being a national tour that begins on 06/13 in London at Roundhouse, the dates of which are available on the band's website. Real Estate also collaborated with Keep Company on a new blue and white shoe, which is summery and aligns very much with the band's aesthetic.
I Chalan Mona

One of my greatest joys is being a parent to two wonderful kids. I must admit that raising my toddler son gives me some anxiety. Raising him o Read morePondering CHamoru manhood
PR-Inside.com: 2017-05-29 14:30:13

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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Canadian Zeolite Corp.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Vancouver, British Columbia (FSCWire) - Canadian Zeolite Corp. (TSX Venture:CNZ). has issued a press release with the following headline:Canadian Zeolite Announces Canadian Distribution AgreementTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Canadian Zeolite Corp., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Canadian Zeolite Corp.Source: Canadian Zeolite Corp. (TSX Venture: CNZ, ISIN: CA1368001097, WKN: A2AEE1, OTCQB: CNZCF, FWB: ZEON)Date: May 29, 2017Time: 8:30 AM EDT--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Canadian Zeolite Corp. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Eagle Plains Resources Ltd.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Cranbrook, British Columbia (FSCWire) - Eagle Plains Resources Ltd. (TSX Venture:EPL). has issued a press release with the following headline:Eagle Plains Commences Geophysical Program on Iron Range Project, Southeastern British ColumbiaTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Eagle Plains Resources Ltd., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Eagle Plains Resources Ltd.Source: Eagle Plains Resources Ltd. (TSX Venture: EPL, ISIN: CA2699062022, WKN: 588696)Date: May 29, 2017Time: 11:39 AM EDT--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Eagle Plains Resources Ltd. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
Embedded Security For Internet Of Things Market

PR-Inside.com: 2017-05-29 07:00:32

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Increasing number of devices that are being connected through IoT networks is cited as a crucial factor fueling the demand for embedded security for IoT. In addition, rising intensity of cyber-attacks on IoT devices and networks coupled with the introduction of revised industry guidelines to implement embedded hardware solutions are observed as other key factors driving the sales of embedded systems for IoT. In the near future, embedded security for IoT is likely to move towards providing security to hyper-connected technologies. Future Market Insights (FMI) delivers such crucial findings in its latest outlook title Embedded Security for Internet of Things (IoT) Market Global Industry Analysis and Opportunity Assessment, 20172027.As per the report, the global market for embedded security for Internet of Things stood at US$ 2,525.0 Mn in 2016 and is estimated to reach US$ 11,123.6 Mn by 2027-end. In terms of revenue, the market is expected to witness a CAGR of 14.6% forecast period (20172027). Embedded security for Internet of Things market in Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) is projected to witness a relatively higher growth in terms of value over the forecast period.Ask For Report Sample @ http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-2410 Key Highlights of the Report include:By the end of 2027, controller chip components will account for nearly 83% revenue share of the global market for embedded security for IoT, reflecting a CAGR of 14.7% over the forecast period.Application of embedded security for IoT in connected cars is expected to increase significantly throughout the forecast period. In 2016, around US$ 686.7 Mn worth embedded security systems for IoT were installed in connected cars.On the basis of vertical, the automotive industry is estimated to dominate the global embedded security for Internet of Things market, with 29.5% revenue share by 2027-end.In addition to APEJ, North America is projected to be one of the most attractive markets for embedded security for Internet of Things during the forecast period. In 2016, the regions market was valued at US$ 772.7 Mn and accounted for 30.6% revenue share. This region is expected to remain dominant in terms of revenue throughout the forecast period. Increasing adoption of IoT devices has resulted in increased security concerns, hence a number of government regulatory bodies in the U.S. have issued security guidelines for IoT solution providers across different verticals. Meanwhile, the Western Europe embedded security for Internet of Things market is estimated to reach US$ 1,676.9 Mn by 2027 end, registering a CAGR of 13.1% during the forecast period. Government authorities in many of the countries in the region are trying to ensure that device manufacturers implement better security features in order to prevent cyber-attacks on IoT devices and networks.Ask For More Information @ http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/askus/rep-gb-2410 Vendor InsightsSome of the key companies profiled in the FMI report include Intel Corporation, Cisco System Inc., NXP Semiconductors N.V., Infineon Technologies AG, Gemalto N.V., Check Point Software Technologies Ltd., Palo Alto Networks Inc., ARM Holdings Plc. (SoftBank Corp), Synopsys, Inc., Inside Secure, Trend Micro Incorporated. In order to strengthen their presence in the market many of these companies are implementing mergers and acquisitions strategies.
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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Great Atlantic Resources Corp.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Vancouver, British Columbia (FSCWire) - Great Atlantic Resources Corp. (TSX Venture:GR). has issued a press release with the following headline:Great Atlantic Enters into Exclusivity Agreement with Fort St. James Nickel Corp.To view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Great Atlantic Resources Corp., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Great Atlantic Resources Corp.Source: Great Atlantic Resources Corp. (TSX Venture: GR, WKN: A1JZ4T, ISIN: CA3900871045)Date: May 29, 2017Time: 9:15 AM EDT--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Great Atlantic Resources Corp. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Minfocus Exploration Corp.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Toronto, ON (FSCWire) - Minfocus Exploration Corp. (TSX Venture:MFX). has issued a press release with the following headline:Minfocus Exploration Announces Debt Settlements of over $462,000 with Related PartiesTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Minfocus Exploration Corp., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Minfocus Exploration Corp.Source: Minfocus Exploration Corp. (TSX Venture: MFX)Date: May 29, 2017Time: 12:00 PM EDT--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Minfocus Exploration Corp. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
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FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Wi2Wi Corporation--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Toronto, Ontario (FSCWire) - Wi2Wi Corporation (TSX Venture:YTY). has issued a press release with the following headline:Wi2Wi announces WC7220B0 the Best in Class Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) ModuleTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Wi2Wi Corporation, or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Wi2Wi CorporationSource: Wi2Wi Corporation (TSX Venture: YTY, WKN: A1KCTZ, ISIN: CA9774862085)Date: May 29, 2017Time: 9:00 AM EDT--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Wi2Wi Corporation and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2017 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.)
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.




An exclusive line-up of Georgia packages has been launched for history lovers, culture buffs, oenophiles and more.

Georgia

Media Contact

Manoj Tulsani

***@raynatours.com

+971 42087444 Manoj Tulsani+971 42087444

End

-- Rayna Tours has moved into organizing tours and holiday packages in Georgia. This helps guests to experience Georgia's authentic culture and heritage, alongside the quaint natural attractions, beautiful art and architecture, and well-conserved UNESCO World Heritage Sites."We want our esteemed guests to experience more than the splendors of the Middle East and Southeast Asia, and the launch of these exciting excursions and holidays is to make our guests' date with Georgia - one of Europe's beautiful destinations  absolutely hassle-free and affordable at the same time," said a spokesperson of Rayna Tours. Incorporating a host of in-depth experiences with access to a knowledgeable guide and roundtrip transfers, these new tours showcase both contemporary attractions and ancient architectural delights such as forts, castles, churches and cathedrals that date back to pre-historic times."In order to serve the growing interests in exclusive Georgia travel, we've joined hands with some of the most sought after names in the industry, ensuring the most conversant, quirky, and fun-filled itineraries at unbeatable rates." Explore Georgia's ancient and present day capital cities in a single day with Tbilisi and Mtskheta Tour; set out on Kazbegi Day Tour to take in one of the region's highest mountains; see the historic cave town of Uplistsikhe Tour and visit the Joseph Stalin Museum on a single trip; take a tour to the country's oldest wine producing center in Kakheti; and relish the authentic Borjomi mineral water and experience the wonders of Vardzia's cave monastery.As for Georgia holiday packages, Rayna Tours' representative stated they are handcrafted with an eclectic selection of tour programs and accommodation options. "Travelers can expect to be introduced to the best of Georgia's landscape, culture, history, and cuisines, with a journey through the awe-inspiringly lush mountains, centuries-old wineries, and remarkably preserved primeval and medieval sights. The whole holidaying experience is enriched by a quality blend of customizable lodging, activities, and logistic solutions."To make a booking of tours and holidays in Georgia, visit the following links:Rayna Tours, founded in 2006, is an ISO-certified destination management company with offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Singapore, Malaysia, Pune (India). With over a decade of combined experience in different facets of tours and travel industry, Rayna Tours offers an advanced online reservation system with customized solutions and instant confirmation  all backed by a team of tour consultants with deep-rooted local knowledge and expertise.
Move aims to unlock the potential of electronic payment platforms to improve financial access and inclusion

By: TRACCS jordan

End

--Marking a further milestone in its efforts to expand financial inclusion in Middle East and Africa (MEA) through accelerating the acceptance and adoption of electronic payments, Mastercard, a leading technology company in the global payments industry, today signed a long-term strategic partnership agreement with Bank of Jordan, one of the largest banks in Jordan.Aimed at promoting electronic payments as a viable and cost-effective alternative to cash, the partnership will see Bank of Jordan issue Mastercard payment solutions, including debit and credit cards, to its customers across the Kingdom, bringing them greater payment security and convenience.The signing of the agreement comes at a significant juncture for Mastercard, as the move coincides with the opening of the company's first office in Amman as part of efforts to strengthen its relationships with local partners and industry stakeholders in Jordan."Jordan's vision for a cashless and inclusive economy will only become a reality if all stakeholders  including government, financial institutions, merchants and technology providers  work together with a sense of common purpose and shared commitment. Mastercard has been collaborating with a broad network of partners to develop a robust electronic payment ecosystem that supports Jordan's cashless ambitions, and the determination shown by Bank of Jordan, who is an influential player in the domestic banking industry, to speed the adoption of electronic payments will help bring more of the country's citizens into the formal financial system," said Basel Eltell, General Manager  Saudi Arabia & Levant, Mastercard.He added, "Mastercard has been innovating solutions driven by data and insights to increase the safety and security of electronic payments, and the strategic partnership agreement will enable Bank of Jordan customers to take advantage of the benefits offered by these solutions, which provide a safer, simpler and smarter way to pay for goods and services."Saleh Hammad, Acting General Manager of Bank of Jordan, expressed the importance of this strategic partnership, which is aimed at upgrading the bank's electronic payment system and providing advanced banking solutions to customers, thus enhancing the level of ease and security of their banking transactions."Bank of Jordan is constantly working to strengthen its position in terms of providing products and services that encourage customers to increase their banking transactions through various electronic payment channels in line with its efforts to enhance financial inclusion in Jordan," Hammad concluded.
The Warsaw office market belongs to tenants and gives a wide range of options in terms of selection and negotiation the office space with landlords. At the same time, the changes on the labour market bring new challenges for companies, says the latest publication Project Office prepared by AXI Immo.

[]
Commerz Real celebrated the expansion of the Orio Centre in Bergamo, which is part of its open-ended real estate fund hausInvest. It consists of 105,000 square metres, 35,000 square metres more than to date, and 280 stores, more than 50 bars and restaurants, a 4 star hotel, an IMAX cinema

[]
Along with rising temperatures and the start of summer Fridays, the Gay Pride Marchor simply Pride, as it is commonly knownis one of the essential markers of summer in New York City. For one day every June, New Yorkers of all ages and backgrounds flock to the streets to celebrate and show support for LGBTQ people. Since its beginning in 1970, on the first anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in Manhattans Greenwich Village, the parade has always been as much an advocacy event as a celebration of the citys rich LGBTQ legacy.

Unsurprisingly, New York Pride is the subject of a book in The New Presss new series documenting the LGBTQ experience around the world. The book, by New York Citybased designer and photographer Jurek Wajdowicz, is titled Pride & Joy: Taking the Streets of New York City. [The pride parade] is a joyous celebration, a visual feast, Wajdowicz says, discussing the inspiration behind the book. I wanted to convey the exuberance, the spontaneity, the creativity, the irreverence of the city that I love, and New York Pride is a concentration of that playful, sexy energy.

In addition to being one of the photographers for the series, Wajdowicz is also its artistic director. The series as a whole is the brainchild of Wajdowicz and philanthropist Jon Stryker, the founder of Arcus Foundation, a leading global funder of organizations working to advance LGBTQ equality, and conservation of the world's great apes and their habitats. Over the years, [Jon and I] had many conversations about the power of photography as a medium to transform peoples understanding of the world and their awareness of social-justice issues; the series grew out of those conversations, Wajdowicz explains.

Pride & Joy includes more than 400 color photos from the New York City Pride parade, including the 2015 march, which took place days after the historic Supreme Court ruling on Obergefell v. Hodges legalized same-sex marriage throughout the country. The photographs vividly capture the frenetic vitality of the paradethe rainbow flags draped across the buildings, the balloons and streamers trailing the floats, the Chihuahuas in capes and sequined head dresses. According to Wajdowicz, who came to New York from Poland in the 1970s, the challenge of photographing such an event is finding those private moments, those moments of intimacy that occur amid the commotion and excitement of the day.

To find those moments, Wajdowicz zoomed in on the individuals in the crowd. In one image, a police officer takes a selfie with a woman in a rainbow bow tie. Another shows a man in a wheelchair handing out water amid onlookers holding rainbow flags. In another, two friends wear rainbow yarmulkes. In yet another, a priest holds a rainbow sign.

The goal of The New Presss series is to show the diversity of experience in LGBTQ communities around the world and depict the ways these communities are challenging traditional notions of family, gender, and relationships. Other titles in the series include Bordered Lives: Transgender Portraits from Mexico by Kike Arnal and Edges of the Rainbow: LGBTQ Japan by Michel Delsol and Haruku Shinozaki, as well as books that document subcultures in Australia, Russia, and India. There are currently six books available with additional volumes in the works. The photo collections invite readers into the lives of LGBTQ people while simultaneously providing the photos subjects an opportunity to express themselves with dignity and respect. According to Wajdowicz, the images are also meant as a source of inspiration.

Wajdowicz reflects on the 2015 parade and creating Pride & Joy with a sense of wistfulness but also determination: With the political landscape as it is right now, I look at the images in the book and they give me hope.
Although pay-TV piracy is slowing down, it still accounts for over 300,000 subscribers in Chile, according to a report from the Camara Nacional de Comercio (CNC).





Along with a growing pay-TV market, which closed 2016 with 3.05 million subscriptions , piracy is also rising, though not at the same rate as in the past.In fact, after years of strong anti-piracy measures, Chile is said to have Latin Americas lowest piracy rate However, the CNC report shows that there are still about 300,000 pirate pay-TV accesses in the country, accounting for just 100,000 less than the markets fourth largest player, Claro. Such piracy rates cause the country to miss out on over $70 million in taxes per year.Its outrageous that pay-TV piracy is positioned as a relevant player within the telecom industry, as the fifth largest pay-TV operator, said Nicole Kuppenheim, executive director of the illegal trade observatory, CNC, speaking to the Chilean newspaper La Tercer According to VTR, the markets largest pay-TV provider, users are the biggest losers when it comes to piracy. On a national level, pirate connections still mean service deterioration for those subscribing to legal platforms, said Pablo Cereceda, communications manager of VTR, in a recent interview.PIC: tv-paga-26-april-2017 (server)
Australia says it will increase its troop numbers by 30 to help train Afghan soldiers in the battle against the Taliban and other militant groups.

Defense Minister Marise Payne on May 29 told a Senate committee the increase in military advisers had been requested by NATO and supported by the United States.

"Given the centrality of Afghanistan in the global fight against terrorism, an enhanced Australian contribution to the resolute support mission is both timely and appropriate," Payne said.

The move would increase Australia's contingent in Afghanistan to 300 military personnel, all in noncombat roles.

The NATO-led coalition in Afghanistan consists of 39 nations with around 13,500 troops, tasked with training, advising, and assisting Afghan forces.

The U.S. military is considering lifting its troop levels by up to 3,000 personnel from the current 8,400.

Australian troops have been in Afghanistan since the start of the U.S.-led invasion in 2001.

Based on reporting by AP, AAP, Reuters, and ABC
Vladimir Putin heads to France today to meet France's new President Emmanuel Macron.

A step toward ending Moscow's estrangement from the West? Or a chance for Europe to read Russia the riot act?

On this week's Power Vertical Briefing, we look ahead to what promises to be a much-watched meeting in Versailles.

Joining me is RFE/RL's News Editor Steve Gutterman.

Enjoy...

NOTE: The Power Vertical Briefing is a short look ahead to the stories expected to make news in Russia in the coming week. It is hosted by Brian Whitmore, author of The Power Vertical blog, and appears on Mondays.
Did you ever notice that Russia's oh-so-mild criticisms of North Korea always come with a little twist, a little hedge, and a little yeah, but?

Just this morning, for example, Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Titov offered the obligatory condemnation of Pyongyang's latest missile launch.

He felt compelled to add, however. that Moscow is "calling on the partners with whom we are working to show restraint, including toward military activity in this region."

It was the same song and dance after another North Korean missile launch earlier this month, when Vladimir Putin said we need to "stop intimidating" Kim Jong-un's regime and find "peaceful ways of resolving these issues."

Now a little context here is useful. Because lately the Kremlin's been quite busy courting Pyongyang.

Shortly after Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, for example, Putin wrote off most of North Korea's $11 billion debt to Russia.

About 50,000 North Koreans are working on construction sites in the Russian Far East. And since most of their pay is taken by the North Korean state, it's not a stretch to call them slave laborers.

And a new ferry route was recently opened between Vladivostok and the North Korean port of Rason.

Kim Jong Un, it appears, is fast joining Bashar al-Assad as an honorary member of Putin's gallery of rogues.

And as it becomes the protector of some of the world's most odious regimes, the Kremlin also gains valuable new tools to extort concessions from the West.

It's just another aspect of Putin's global protection racket.

Keep telling me what you think on The Power Vertical's Twitter feed and on our Facebook page.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has ordered Russian troops to withdraw from the west bank of the Dnieper River in the partially occupied Kherson region of Ukraine, another retreat amid a number of setbacks for Moscow on battlefields in Ukraine's east and southeast.

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.

"Begin to pull out troops," Shoigu said at a televised meeting with the commander of Russian troops in Ukraine, Army General Sergei Surovikin, on November 9, adding that the withdrawal must be implemented in "the nearest future."



"The lives of the Russian military personnel are always a priority for us. We must also take into account threats imposed on the civilian population and make sure that all civilians who chose to leave can do so," Shoigu said. "We also need to start withdrawing the troops and undertake all necessary measures to secure the move of military personnel, arms, and equipment to the other side of the Dnieper."



Kherson was the first city fully captured by Russia during what Moscow calls a "special military operation" and the only regional capital controlled by the Russians since the offensive began on February 24.



Ukraine's forces for weeks have been capturing villages as they advance toward the city, and Kremlin-installed leaders in Kherson have been evacuating civilians.

Earlier on November 9, the Moscow-installed deputy head of the Kherson region, Kirill Stremousov, died in a car crash.



Shoigu's order came after Surovikin said it was impossible to deliver supplies to the city of Kherson and other areas on the western bank of the Dnieper River.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukrainian forces were strengthening their positions "step by step" in the south.



"There is a lot of joy in the information space today, and it is clear why, but...the enemy will make no gifts to us," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address.



Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior adviser to Zelenskiy, said earlier on Twitter that the Ukrainian side sees "no signs that Russia is leaving Kherson without a fight."



Part of the Russian group remains in Kherson city, he said, adding that additional reserves are being sent to the region. Ukrainian forces, meanwhile, are "liberating territories based on intelligence data, not staged TV statements," he said.



Zelenskiy has suggested that the Russians could fake a retreat in order to lure the Ukrainian Army into an entrenched battle in Kherson city.

Speaking to reporters in Washington, U.S. President Joe Biden said Moscow's order to withdraw from Kherson was "evidence of the fact that they have some real problems with the Russian military."

Moscow and Russian-installed officials in Kherson have said for weeks that they are evacuating residents of Kherson -- both the city and the region -- to "other parts of the Russian Federation" for their safety. Ukraine has said the Russian move amounted to their forced deportation.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that the withdrawal announced by Shoigu is "part of an overall pattern or picture we have seen over the last month that Russia has absolutely lost the momentum."



But Stoltenberg also cautioned against underestimating Russia.



"They still have capabilities," he said in an interview with Sky News during a visit to London. "We have seen the drones. We have seen the missile attacks. It shows that Russia can still inflict a lot of damage."

Kherson is considered by many military analysts as the most important of the four partially occupied Ukrainian regions that Russia announced as annexed in September.



It controls both the only land route to Ukraine's Russia-annexed Crimean Peninsula and the mouth of the Dnieper River that bisects Ukraine.



Earlier on November 9, Russia launched multiple suicide drones on Ukraine's southeastern Dnipropetrovsk region, wounding people and damaging civilian facilities, the head of the regional military administration said, as fierce battles were under way in the eastern Donetsk region and in the south.



"The occupiers attacked the area massively with kamikaze drones, said Governor Valentyn Reznichenko. Ukrainian air defense destroyed some of the drones, but others hit targets. The Russian forces also used drones in an attack on the city of Dnipro, targeting a logistics enterprise. Reznichenko said four employees were wounded, and three of them are in serious condition in hospital.



Russian forces also bombarded the Nikopol district in the region with Grad missiles and heavy artillery. Reznichenko said the shelling damaged private houses, a factory, and a power line, but people were not injured.



Zelenskiy vowed Ukraine will not surrender a single centimeter of our land in Donetsk, where heavy fighting has been under way, and he thanked Ukrainian troops who are holding positions in the Donbas region.



The epicenter of the battle for the industrial region of Donetsk is around the towns of Bakhmut, Soledar, and Avdiyivka.



"The activity of the occupiers remains at an extremely high level -- dozens of attacks every day," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address late on November 8.



"They are suffering extraordinarily high losses. But the order remains the same -- to advance on the administrative boundary of the Donetsk region. We will not yield a single centimeter of our land," he said.

Donetsk is one of four Ukrainian regions Russia said it annexed in September following referendums deemed as sham by Kyiv and its Western allies.



Fighting had been going on there between the Ukrainian military and Russian-backed separatist forces since 2014, the same year Russia illegally annexed Crimea.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, and CNN
French President Emmanuel Macron accused Russian state news outlets of spreading "fake news" and "propaganda" against him during May's presidential election, after holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Versailles Palace outside Paris.

The meeting on May 29 was the first between the two men since Macron's decisive May 7 victory over right-wing rival Marine Le Pen, a Putin admirer whom the Kremlin and its surrogates appeared to favor, and came amid bilateral ties that remain strained.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Putin, Macron said RT and Sputnik were "organs of influence and propaganda" and "behaved like structures of the government."

Macron's team alleged that Russian hacking and disinformation efforts aimed to derail his campaign.

Putin denied that Moscow meddled in France's presidential election and said that by meeting Le Pen in Moscow in March the Kremlin had not tried to influence the vote.

Macron, 39, said the two leaders had a "frank exchange" over their "differences" on a number of issues, including the Ukraine standoff and Russias support for President Bashar al-Assad in Syria's civil war.

Macron has said he supports the continuation of Western sanctions targeting Russia over its 2014 seizure of Ukraines Crimean Peninsula and backing of armed separatists in eastern Ukraine, whose war with Kyiv's forces has killed almost 10,000 people.

WATCH: Putin Welcomed By New French President At Versailles

He said last week that he wanted to bring together the "Normandy format," which groups the leaders of Russia, Germany, France, and Ukraine and which met first in Normandy, France.

On May 29, Macron said he and Putin agreed the time was right for a new round of peace talks on Ukraine, adding that the talks should take place "in days or weeks."

Putin, 64, said sanctions imposed by Western countries on Russia over its activities in Ukraine would not help stabilize the situation in the east of the country, where it borders Russia.

On Syria, Macron said the use of chemical weapons is a red line for France and would result in reprisals.

France and Russia back different sides in the Syrian conflict, with Putin supporting Assad and Macron part of a Western coalition that supports rebel groups and has accused Assad of using chemical weapons in the past.

Macron said he wanted Paris and Moscow to improve intelligence sharing on Syria and to cooperate on finding a political solution to the conflict, though he gave no details on what he thinks a deal would look like.

Putin questioned France's independence in its Syria policy because it was part of a U.S-lead alliance, adding that the two leaders had agreed the fight against terrorism was their top priority, even if his views on Syria had not changed.

"Any use of chemical weapons would result in reprisals and an immediate riposte, at least where France is concerned," Macron said.

"Our two countries will cooperate on Syria, this is essential.  We need strong cooperation because we have a joint priority, which is the fight against terrorism," he added.

Macron also said that Putin had promised "the whole truth" about an alleged campaign of abuse, including murder, targeting gay men in Chechnya, a mainly Muslim region in Russias south ruled by Kremlin-backed strongman Ramzan Kadyrov.

"President Putin told me... he had undertaken several initiatives on the subject of LGBT people in Chechnya with measures aimed at establishing the whole truth about the activities of local authorities," Macron said, adding he would be "vigilant" on the issue.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, and dpa
BISHKEK -- President Almazbek Atambaev has announced that Kyrgyzstan will hold a presidential election on October 15.

Atambaev made the announcement in Bishkek on May 29, at a ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the Kyrgyz Army.

The election was due to be held in the fall, but no date had been set.

Atambaev, who was elected in 2011, is barred by the Central Asian country's constitution from running for a second consecutive presidential term.

He initiated a referendum in December that strengthened the authority of the prime minister at the expense of the president.

Opposition politicians say they suspect the referendum was an attempt by Atambaev to increase his chances of maintaining a hold on to power after leaving the presidency.

Atambaev has said that he does not intend to become prime minister, but that he will remain in politics.


French President Emmanuel Macron accused Russian state news outlets of spreading "fake news" and "propaganda" against him during May's presidential election campaign. Macron's comments came during a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 29 following a meeting at the Versailles Palace outside Paris. It was the first encounter between the two men since Macron's decisive May 7 victory over right-wing rival Marine Le Pen, a Putin admirer whom the Kremlin and its surrogates appeared to favor. (Reuters)
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel has cast further doubt on how much Europe could rely on the United States after a G7 summit over the weekend highlighted the difficulties in successfully implementing the Paris climate accord.

Speaking at a conference on sustainable development in Berlin on May 29, Merkel doubled down on comments from a day earlier, saying that while it is important to maintain friendly relations with the United States and Britain, the days of Europe relying on others "are somewhat over."

"Recent days have shown me that the times when we could rely completely on others are over to a certain extent," Merkel said, adding she was still a "convinced transatlanticist."

"We also know that we Europeans must really take our fate into our own hands," she added, underlining growing frustration with U.S. President Donald Trump, especially on climate policy.

Merkels comments come after the G7 meeting in Sicily failed to end in a deal to uphold the Paris climate accord, while there was also a split on trade and the question of refugees.

At the same time, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel slammed Trump's "short-sighted" policies, which he said have "weakened" the West and hurt EU interests.

"Anyone who accelerates climate change by weakening environmental protection, who sells more weapons in conflict zones, and who does not want to politically resolve religious conflicts is putting peace in Europe at risk," Gabriel said.

"The short-sighted policies of the American government stand against the interests of the European Union," he said, adding that "the West has become smaller. At least it has become weaker."

Stephan Bierling, an expert on transatlantic relations at Germanys University of Regensburg, told The Washington Post that "the belief in shared values has been shattered by the Trump administration."

"After the inauguration, everyone in Europe was hopeful that Trump would become more moderate and take into account the positions of the G7 and of NATO. But the opposite has happened. Its as if he is still trying to win a campaign," Bierling said.

Merkels comments came a day after the G7 meeting in Sicily failed to end in a deal to uphold the Paris climate accord, while there was also a split on trade and the question of refugees.

During a meeting with European Union leaders in Brussels on May 26, Trump sharply criticized NATO members that have not met defense spending targets, including Germany, and reportedly complained about German auto exports.

Martin Schulz, Merkel's challenger for the chancellor job in September elections, appeared to find common ground with the German chancellor.

He told broadcaster ARD that European countries must bond ever closer together in response to Trumps attitude.

"Europe is the answer," he said. "Stronger cooperation among the European countries at all levels is the answer to Donald Trump."

Schulz said Trump resembled an "authoritarian leader" who wants to "humiliate others."

Meanwhile, Trump, upon his return from Europe, issued an upbeat assessment of his first trip abroad as president.

"Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!" Trump wrote on May 28 on Twitter.

With reporting by Reuters and dpa
Russia's ambassador in Chisinau says five members of Russia's embassy in Moldova have been expelled by authorities.

Farit Mukhametshin said the five Russian diplomats were declared persona non grata and ordered to leave the country in 24 hours. No details were given.

Moldovas pro-Russian President Igor Dodon condemned the move by the country's pro-Western government.

"The government has taken an outrageous act toward the Russian Embassy," he wrote on Facebook on May 29.

The government has expressed desires to join the EU and NATO. Dodon has opposed membership and is looking to move closer to Moscow.

The breakaway Moldovan region of Transdniester has long been a source of tension between Chisinau and Moscow.

Moscow-backed Transdniester declared independence from Moldova in 1990. The two sides fought a brief war in 1992 that ended when the Russian military intervened on the side of Transdniester.

Transdniester's independence is not recognized by any country.

Based on reporting by Reuters, Interfax, and TASS
Montenegro has protested the "inappropriate" treatment of a lawmaker who was prevented from changing airplanes at a Moscow airport.

Miodrag Vukovic, a prominent deputy from the ruling Democratic Party of Socialists (DPS), said he was kept overnight in a transit zone at Domodedovo International Airport while on his way to Belarus. He returned to Montenegro on May 29.

In a statement on May 29, the Montenegrin Foreign Ministry said the incident "represents a breach of basic international rules and diplomatic practices."

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the Kremlin imposed a ban on Vukovic because Montenegro had joined Western sanctions against Moscow over its aggression in Ukraine.

"It's not a secret that Montenegro joined the European Union's anti-Russian sanctions, including against [Russian] individuals," Zakharova said on the Foreign Ministry's website.

"We have always said that we reserve the right to take retaliatory measures on the basis of reciprocity, as is customary in diplomacy," she said. "We will provide a relevant explanation to the Montenegrin side."

Vukovic claims the incident was politically motivated.

Montenegro was previously a close ally of Russia but is set to join NATO in June.

That decision has drawn derision and outrage from NATO critics in the Balkan country and Russia, which has threatened economic and political retaliation.

Montenegro claims Russia was behind a foiled coup attempt in October 2016, which Moscow denies.

Based on reporting by AP, TASS, and Reuters
Russian President Vladimir Putin was welcomed at the Palace of Versailles outside Paris by French President Emmanuel Macron. The May 29 meeting is the first between the two men since Macron's decisive victory over right-wing rival Marine Le Pen, a Putin admirer whom the Kremlin and its surrogates appeared to favor. (Reuters)
MOSCOW -- It's the latest viral sensation sweeping the Russian web: a video of police dragging a Shakespeare-admiring boy away screaming after reciting poetry in public.



The video, which follows police as they forcibly remove the boy from one of Moscow's most popular tourist areas to a waiting squad car, was posted on May 27 on Facebook and within days had been watched over 2.6 million times.



The chattering classes expressed shock over the polices rough handling of the child, who had been publicly reading lines from William Shakespeares Hamlet. But others called into question whether his parents should have allowed him to perform publicly in the first place. And some, including a top United Russia lawmaker, even suggested the incident was an elaborate setup to tar the reputation of the police.



The boy, who RFE/RL is not identifying by name because he is a minor, can be heard loudly protesting his detention, shrilly screaming "Help!" as three police officers lead him away as the boy's stepmother shouts agitatedly at the police.



The police claimed they detained the boy because he was not accompanied by his parents and was begging. The video shows the boys stepmother -- who only identifies herself to police as his "acquaintance" -- filming the May 26 incident and calling on police to free the boy.



Ilya Skavronski, the boy's father, said his wife had her clothes ripped and her tablet broken while struggling with the police. She could face 15 days on misdemeanor charges for resisting the police.



The boy, who was taken to a police station, was eventually handed over to his father and released.



Skavronski told RFE/RLs Russian Service that his son has a speech defect and that "his therapist advised him to recite poetry publicly" as part of his treatment.



On May 28, several activists filmed by the Meduza news site protested the boy's treatment by standing outside the local police station in Moscow's central Arbat district and reading lines from Hamlet and holding a sign saying: "Im reading Shakespeare for free for Arbats police officers."







An online petition -- which has no political weight and is little more than symbolic -- is calling for the dismissal of the police officers responsible for the arrest and had garnered almost 22,000 signatures by the evening of May 29.



The Investigative Committee said on May 27 they would probe the incident, while Tatyana Solomina, a lawyer for the family, said the deputy head of the regional police had apologized to the father. Russian media reported on May 29 that there had been no apology.



Over the weekend, discussion raged online.

"The country has been horrified and, it seems, has started to think. The consequences of this two-minute clip are entirely unpredictable for the regime. Or rather, they are entirely predictable. Not now, but tomorrow," wrote Andrei Chernov, a poet, on Facebook.



Leonid Gozman, an opposition-minded politician, wrote on Facebook that he sees some good consequences of the episode: "The boy and the many others who hadn't yet realized will now better understand the country they inhabit. ... The cops obviously will be punished -- this was too big a scandal -- and others will be more careful."
A 76-year-old former space researcher who was sentenced to prison on a treason conviction has asked President Vladimir Putin for clemency.

Vladimir Lapygin's lawyer, Vasily Protsyk, said on May 29 that his client has been awaiting a decision from Putin on a possible pardon since March.

Former tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky's nongovernmental organization Open Russia said on May 29 that Lapygin has also appealed his verdict and sentence with the Supreme Court.

Lapygin was sentenced to seven years in prison in September after a Moscow court found him guilty of handing secret information to foreigners.

Before his arrest, he worked for a research branch of the Russian space agency Roskosmos.

Lapygin's case is one of several in recent years in which academics have been accused of disseminating sensitive information.

He denies any wrongdoing, saying he never had any access to classified information.

With reporting by Interfax


Russian prosecutors are seeking a five-year suspended sentence for the former head of Moscow's Ukrainian Literature Library, who is accused of extremism and embezzlement in a case that has been denounced by rights activists.

Prosecutors made the request during a May 29 hearing at Moscow's Meshchansky District Court, where the trial of Natalya Sharina is in its final stages.

Sharina was detained in October 2015 and charged with inciting extremism and ethnic hatred because her library's collection allegedly included books by Ukrainian ultranationalist and author Dmytro Korchynskiy, whose works are banned in Russia.

Sharina, who has rejected all the allegations against her as politically motivated, was placed under house arrest.

In April 2016, investigators charged her with misallocating library funds, allegedly because she used library funds to pay for her legal defense in another extremism case against her that was dismissed in 2013.

A suspended sentence would mean that Sharina would not be imprisoned.

Her lawyer said the authorities had "trumped up" new charges after realizing their initial case against his client was too weak.

The respected Russian human rights group Memorial considers Sharina a political prisoner.

Based on reporting by TASS, Interfax, mskagency.ru, and RFE/RL's Russian Service
U.S. Democrats demanded to hear from key White House adviser Jared Kushner over allegations he tried to establish secret communications with Russia before the inauguration of his father-in-law, President Donald Trump.

Representative Adam Schiff (Democrat-California), who sits on the House Intelligence Committee, said on May 28 that it was "obviously very concerning" that a key Trump transition team member was possibly seeking secret links with a country accused of interfering in the 2016 election.

Some Democrats said Kushner's national security clearance might have to be revoked.

The allegations first surfaced in reports by The New York Times and The Washington Post. Other news outlets also reported on Kushner's alleged attempt to establish a back-channel line to the Kremlin.

Trump took to Twitter to label the leaks coming out about his administration as "fabricated lies."

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," he wrote.

"Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names it is very possible that those sources don't exsist [sic] but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!" Trump wrote.

News reports said Trump was meeting with attorneys at the White House on May 28 over matters related to Russia, possibly to set up a so-called "war room" to respond to the controversy.

Kushner, senior presidential adviser Steve Bannon, and White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus could lead the team, the reports said.

'Inappropriate Contacts'

Democrat Schiff said the government needed to "get to the bottom" of the matter. He said a review of Kushner's security clearance was necessary to determine "whether he was truthful."

"If not, then there's no way he can maintain that kind of a clearance," Schiff said.

U.S. media reported that Kushner in December spoke to Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak about setting up a secret communications channel between the Kremlin and the Trump transition team.

The White House has confirmed the meeting and Kushner's attendance in March but said it was only a brief courtesy call.

Senator Cory Booker (Democrat-New Jersey), who is on the Foreign Relations Committee, described the allegations as "serious" and called for a thorough investigation.

"He needs to answer for what was happening at the time," Booker said. "What's worrying me are the patterns we're seeing. So, one is this administration not talking about our values, cozying up to authoritarian leaders. And the other pattern we have is just a continuous drumbeat of inappropriate contacts with the Russians."

Kushner's lawyers have said he was willing to talk with investigators about his foreign contacts and his work on the Trump campaign.

With reporting by AP and AFP


KYIV -- Ukrainian authorities are blaming Russia-backed separatists for a hail of artillery fire that injured at least eight civilians, damaged buildings, and interrupted water supplies in the front-line town of Krasnohorivka over the weekend.

The incident underscored a warning last week by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which said that the rate of violence in the Ukraine conflict so far this year had more than doubled on a year earlier.

Central Krasnohorivka was hit by at least 12 Grad (Hail) rockets and other heavy artillery fired from territory controlled by separatists early on May 28, according to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry.

The ministry said as many as 14 buildings were damaged or destroyed, including apartment buildings and residential houses.

Donetsk Governor Pavlo Zhebrivskiy posted images on Facebook early on May 28 showing damaged brick buildings and suggesting a hospital and school had been struck.

More than 9,940 people have been killed since fighting broke out between central Ukrainian authorities and Russia-backed separatists in April 2014.

A shaky cease-fire brokered in Minsk regularly gives way to fighting, and the OSCE said at least 44 civilians had been killed and 175 more injured in the Ukrainian conflict zone between January 1 and May 24, before last weekend's violence.

Moscow and Kyiv have each blamed the other for failing to uphold their end of the 2-year-old truce.

Deputy foreign ministers from Germany, France, Ukraine, and Russia are scheduled to meet in Berlin on May 30 "to review the current situation on the ground with regard to the cease-fire and with regard to all other commitments under the Minsk agreements," according to a German government spokesman.

Germany and France brokered the Minsk deal and have held numerous meetings with representatives of Ukraine and Russia, part of a four-way process known as the Normandy Format,

The planned meeting comes a day after talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron at the Palace of Versailles on May 29.

The EU and United States have imposed sanctions on Russia over its actions in eastern Ukraine, where Kyiv and NATO say Moscow fomented unrest in 2014 and has given strong military backing to the separatists who hold parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces.
Deputy foreign ministers from Germany, France, Ukraine, and Russia are to meet in Berlin on May 30.

A German government spokesman announced the planned meeting, part of a four-way process known as the Normandy Format, on May 29.

Germany and France have been seeking to help end the war between Russia-backed separatists and Ukrainian government forces that has killed more than 9,900 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014.

The EU powerhouses brokered a February 2015 cease-fire and peace deal known as Minsk 2, but the conflict persists and progress on political aspects of the pact has been slow.

The purpose of the meeting "is to review the current situation on the ground with regard to the cease-fire and with regard to all other commitments under the Minsk agreements," German government spokesman Martin Schaefer told a regular news conference.

The planned meeting comes a day after talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron at Versailles Palace on May 29.

The EU and United States have imposed sanctions on Russia over its actions in eastern Ukraine, where Kyiv and NATO say Moscow fomented unrest in 2014 and has given strong military backing to separatists who hold parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces.

Based on reporting by Reuters and TASS
KYIV -- The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) says that searches of the Kyiv and Odesa offices of Russian Internet giant Yandex as part of a treason investigation found that company management had "illegally collected" personal data on local citizens.



The May 29 searches came less than two weeks after President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree banning Yandex and several other Russian sites, including the popular social networks VK -- formerly VKontakte -- and Odnoklassniki.

"Law enforcement agents found that the management of the company illegally collected, accumulated, and passed on the personal data of Ukrainian citizens," the SBU said in a statement on its website.

The data included information about users' "occupation, lifestyle, location, residence, work, leisure, sources and amounts of income, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, and accounts in social networks.

"The information was transmitted to [Russian] security services for planning, organizing, and conducting reconnaissance, sabotage, and information-subversion operations in the country at the expense of Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and inviolability," the statement said.

Treason is punishable by 12 to 15 years in prison in Ukraine and the confiscation of property.

Asya Melkumova, a Yandex spokeswoman, confirmed the searches and told RFE/RL: "We have no information about reasons of today's SBU action. Our lawyers are on the way to the offices. Yandex is ready to provide all information regarding its operations in Ukraine, according and limited by Ukrainian legal procedures."

WATCH: SBU releases video of Yandex search

According to Ukrainian IT news site AIN.ua, staff of both offices were ordered by the SBU to leave the premises while the searches were conducted.



Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists he could not comment, saying, "We do not have complete information yet."

Yandex said it has been developing its services for Ukraine since 2005, providing its Ukrainian users with search engines, maps, navigation, online education, and other services.

We have conducted our business in strict accordance with Ukrainian legislation and have focused on creating high quality local products," the company said in a statement. "While Ukraine is a small part of our business and the sanctions will not have a material negative impact on our consolidated results, we regret that this new legislation affects our 11 million Ukrainian users who rely on our services every month, and the thousands of Ukrainian organizations that use our technologies and services to grow and develop their businesses."

In signing the decree, which was published on May 16, Poroshenko cited the need to combat what he called Russian instruments of information warfare.

The move, which came at the request of Ukraines National Security and Defense Council and the SBU, added the companies to a long sanctions list that includes 1,228 individuals and 468 legal entities. It also sparked a public debate between critics who condemned it as censorship and a blow to freedom of expression and supporters who called it a long-overdue move in defense of national security.

Russia seized the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in March 2014, after sending in troops and staging a referendum widely denounced as illegal, and has given strong support to separatists whose war against Kyiv's forces has killed more than 9,900 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014.
Fitness trackers accurately measure heart rate but not calories burned, Stanford study finds

Millions of people wear some kind of wristband activity tracker and use the device to monitor their own exercise and health, often sharing the data with their physician. But is the data accurate?

Such people can take heart in knowing that if the device measures heart rate, it's probably doing a good job, a team of researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine reports. But if it measures energy expenditure, it's probably off by a significant amount.

An evaluation of seven devices in a diverse group of 60 volunteers showed that six of the devices measured heart rate with an error rate of less than 5 percent. The team evaluated the Apple Watch, Basis Peak, Fitbit Surge, Microsoft Band, Mio Alpha 2, PulseOn and the Samsung Gear S2. Some devices were more accurate than others, and factors such as skin color and body mass index affected the measurements.

In contrast, none of the seven devices measured energy expenditure accurately, the study found. Even the most accurate device was off by an average of 27 percent. And the least accurate was off by 93 percent.

"People are basing life decisions on the data provided by these devices," said Euan Ashley, DPhil, FRCP, professor of cardiovascular medicine, of genetics and of biomedical data science at Stanford. But consumer devices aren't held to the same standards as medical-grade devices, and it's hard for doctors to know what to make of heart-rate data and other data from a patient's wearable device, he said.

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A paper reporting the researchers' findings will be published online May 24 in the Journal of Personalized Medicine. Ashley is the senior author. Lead authorship is shared by graduate student Anna Shcherbina, visiting assistant professor Mikael Mattsson, PhD, and senior research scientist Daryl Waggott.

Hard for consumers to know device accuracy

Manufacturers may test the accuracy of activity devices extensively, said Ashley, but it's hard for consumers to know how accurate such information is or the process that the manufacturers used in testing the devices. So Ashley and his colleagues set out to independently evaluate activity trackers that met criteria such as measuring both heart rate and energy expenditure and being commercially available.

"For a lay user, in a non-medical setting, we want to keep that error under 10 percent," Shcherbina said.

Sixty volunteers, including 31 women and 29 men, wore the seven devices while walking or running on treadmills or using stationary bicycles. Each volunteer's heart was measured with a medical-grade electrocardiograph. Metabolic rate was estimated with an instrument for measuring the oxygen and carbon dioxide in breath -- a good proxy for metabolism and energy expenditure. Results from the wearable devices were then compared to the measurements from the two "gold standard" instruments.

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"The heart rate measurements performed far better than we expected," said Ashley, "but the energy expenditure measures were way off the mark. The magnitude of just how bad they were surprised me."

Heart-rate data reliable

The take-home message, he said, is that a user can pretty much rely on a fitness tracker's heart rate measurements. But basing the number of doughnuts you eat on how many calories your device says you burned is a really bad idea, he said.

Neither Ashley nor Shcherbina could be sure why energy-expenditure measures were so far off. Each device uses its own proprietary algorithm for calculating energy expenditure, they said. It's likely the algorithms are making assumptions that don't fit individuals very well, said Shcherbina. "All we can do is see how the devices perform against the gold-standard clinical measures," she said. "My take on this is that it's very hard to train an algorithm that would be accurate across a wide variety of people because energy expenditure is variable based on someone's fitness level, height and weight, etc." Heart rate, she said, is measured directly, whereas energy expenditure must be measured indirectly through proxy calculations.

Ashley's team saw a need to make their evaluations of wearable devices open to the research community, so they created a website that shows their own data. They welcome others to upload data related to device performance at http://precision.stanford.edu.

The team is already working on the next iteration of their study, in which they are evaluating the devices while volunteers wear them as they go about a normal day, including exercising in the open, instead of walking or running on a laboratory treadmill. "In phase two," said Shcherbina, "we actually want a fully portable study. So volunteers' ECG will be portable and their energy calculation will also be done with a portable machine."

The work is an example of Stanford Medicine's focus on precision health, the goal of which is to anticipate and prevent disease in the healthy and precisely diagnose and treat disease in the ill.
Global leaders in cancer research have called for the worldwide sharing of cancer data to save lives. The Global Alliance for Genomics and Health argue how the 'freeing of data' for a disease that knows no borders will enable researchers to find better treatments that increase survival and improve quality of life for cancer patients.

Professor Mark Lawler at the Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (CCRCB) at Queen's University Belfast and lead author of the study said: "Current restrictions on data sharing across borders limit the data that can be used by researchers to carry out a comprehensive analysis of cancer.

"This is particularly pertinent when researching rare types of cancer. If data is limited to a particular region or country, low patient numbers can make clinical research impossible. But it can also pose challenges with common cancers such as breast cancer, which is made up of different subtypes. We need as much information as possible to help develop new diagnostic tests and treatments for these different subtypes."

Charles Sawyers of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and co-author of the paper said: "If we get this right, we can really use the data to help us in our aspiration to improve outcomes in this deadly disease."

Taking the lives of over 8.5 million people every year, cancer is a global challenge demanding a global response. The paper, published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) was conducted by a coalition of world leading cancer experts under The Global Alliance for Genomics and Health and led by Queen's University Belfast.

World-leading cancer researchers highlight the urgent need to foster a more collaborative culture, to work together and share data for the benefit of cancer patients around the world. Professor Lawler said: "Such an aspiration depends on both effective collaboration as well as dedicated resources. We hope that our call for a 'global cancer knowledge network' energises the community to act decisively and provide the resources to embed data sharing for the benefit of cancer patients globally. If we do, then big data really can save lives.

"Our experience shows that patients want to get involved to make a positive difference so we need to help them to do that."

Recently, a group of patients with a rare gene mutation called ROS 1 that can cause different cancers came together online, frustrated about the lack of progress in the treatment of their disease. The online group involving over 130 individuals from eleven different countries approached a disease foundation and they are now involved in the first steps of developing a clinical trial that targets the particular genomic abnormality that causes their disease.

Professor Lawler added: "We are working with the disease foundation to help make this clinical trial a reality. This exemplifies why accessing data is so vital to enable researchers to carry out their work and ultimately to help patients."

Margaret Grayson, a breast cancer survivor and Chair of the patient group, the Northern Ireland Cancer Research Consumer Forum explained: "Research is vital to improve the quality of life as well as life expectancy for cancer patients. Many patients will be more than willing to get involved and share their clinical information to bring us one step closer to tackling this global health issue."
In the New England Journal of Medicine, the team from University Health Network in Toronto that developed the organization's protocol for medical assistance in dying (MAiD) describes UHN's approach and experience. This comes a year after Canada decriminalized medically assisted dying throughout the country.

Author Dr. Madeline Li, a psychiatrist in the Department of Supportive Care, UHN, writes that in Canada the legal responsibility to implement MAiD required creating an institutional framework for patient assessment and provision of service, as well as a plan for educating staff about engaging in conversations with patients.

At UHN, a three-team MAiD model was adopted comprising clinical, assessment and intervention teams. Death is by injection of intravenous drugs in the hospital. A multidisciplinary quality committee provides oversight, reports metrics annually to the medical advisory committee, and stewards data for use in quality assessment and research.

In the first year of reporting (March 8, 2016 to March 8, 2017), at UHN there were 74 MAiD inquiries, 74 per cent of which were for patients whose primary diagnosis was cancer. Twenty-nine proceeded to assessment; 25 were approved, and 19 received MAiD.

Dr. Li writes: "Just prior to delivery of MAiD, all patients who reached this stage were evaluated by intervention-team physicians to determine whether they currently met criteria for informed consent for MAiD."

Amid the many checks and balances described in detail, Dr. Li concludes: "Just as advocacy from outside mainstream medicine brought palliative care 'from the margins to the centre', so has it brought MAiD into the mainstream of medicine. It is now clear that MAiD education must be included in undergraduate medical education curricula in Canada, and in the training for a variety of specialties including general medicine, family medicine, oncology, neurology, respirology, palliative care, pharmacy, psychiatry, social work, spiritual care, and bioethics."
The invasion of nonnative species has widespread and detrimental effects on both local and global ecosystems. These intruders often spread and multiply prolifically, overtake and displace native species, alter the intended interactions between flora and fauna, and damage the environment and economy. A particularly pesky invader is the zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha). Given its abundancy, fecundity, and heartiness, zebra mussels frequently outcompete native bivalves. Their dominance interrupts the natural cycle of nutrients and disrupts the structure and function of infested waterworks. These so-called "ecosystem engineers" generate substantial removal costs for individuals, corporations, and towns; estimates indicate that zebra mussels cause $1 billion in damages and control costs every year.

While some species can easily spread upstream in unidirectional river environments, not all invasive species are able to do so. In a paper publishing on May 25th in the SIAM Journal on Applied Mathematics, Qihua Huang, Hao Wang, and Mark Lewis present a continuous-discrete hybrid population model that describes the invasive dynamics of zebra mussels in North American rivers. "We wanted to develop and apply a mathematical model to understand the interaction between population growth and dispersal, environmental conditions, and river flow in determining upstream invasion success of zebra mussels," Huang said.

Since its introduction to North America in 1986, the zebra mussel has invaded several large rivers, including the Mississippi, Hudson, Ohio, and St. Lawrence. "Rivers are key natural resources, and once zebra mussels invade the consequences can be disastrous," Lewis said. "Not only are the rivers themselves affected, they can spread the zebra mussels to new downstream locations." The mussels consume algae that is otherwise meant for native fish populations, and are considered unsafe for human consumption because they accumulate pollutants and toxins when filtering.

Three main phases -- larvae, juveniles, and adults -- characterize the mussel's life cycle. Larvae are planktonic, and drift through the water for a few days or weeks before setting on a surface and activating the juvenile stage. Upon sexual maturation in their second year of life, juveniles are considered adults and can reproduce once water temperatures are warm enough. "The larval life stage is relatively short compared to the zebra mussel lifespan," Huang said. "As a result, a model for the spread of zebra mussels in a river requires the introduction of different time scales." The authors chose to assume that settled larvae, juveniles, and adults all have the same survival rate.

Zebra mussels' survival in North American rivers is contingent upon a myriad of physical, biological, and chemical factors, including -- but not limited to -- water temperature, flow rates, salinity, turbidity, and pH levels. They are most heavily affected by unidirectional water flow, which shifts river sediment, sweeps mussel larvae downstream, and inhibits attachment to the benthos -- the river bottom. "The dynamics of unidirectional water flow found in rivers can play an important role in determining invasion success," Huang said. "The alteration of hydrodynamic regimes associated with water management has direct effects on river ecosystem dynamics." As a result, it is difficult for zebra mussels to spread upstream in high flow rivers.

Because the zebra mussel has unusual dynamics, classical models do not suffice. Instead, the authors develop and employ a novel, impulsive, spatially-explicit population model. "In the model, the dynamics of the dispersing larvae stage are governed by an advection diffusion-reaction equation, while juvenile and adult growth are described by two difference equations that map the population density in the current year to the population density in the next year," Huang said. These equations combine the process-oriented population growth model with a hydrological model, based on available data about river flow dynamics.

Past researchers have proposed three measures of population persistence that reflect reproductive output of zebra mussels. The measures denote the fundamental niche of the population, the source-sink distribution, and the net reproductive rate (R 0 ) -- the average number of adult mussels produced from a single adult throughout its lifetime. If R 0 >1, a population will grow; if R 0 <1, it will shrink. The authors extend these three traditional population measures to their hybrid model to investigate the impact of flow regime on distribution, profusion, and ultimate upstream spread.

"We determined conditions for persistence of zebra mussels in rivers as a function of temperature and flow rate," Huang said. "The population persists in a river only when the flow velocity is low and the water temperature is moderate. We found that the population cannot persist in a river if it is unable to spread upstream."

The authors' successful model offers multiple opportunities for further analysis. For example, one could adapt the model to study other environmental factors that affect population persistence, such as seasonality. "The living conditions for an invasive species and the hydrodynamics environment in a river can vary seasonally," Huang said. "The theory developed here could be extended to more general models by including seasonal variations in population growth and temporal variations of flow rate."

Additionally, the active nature of rivers makes them prone to variable landscapes and inconsistencies. "Deep pools and shallows in a river are examples of heterogeneities that typically occur on shorter spatial scales than the whole stretch of a river," Huang said. "It would be interesting to further investigate how the heterogeneous landscapes affect the successful invasion of zebra mussels." The authors believe that these heterogeneities might make it possible for zebra mussels to persist in rivers even without upstream spread.

Finally, the researchers could use their hybrid model to monitor the dynamics of other invasive species in rivers, such as the quagga mussel (Dreissena bugensis). "Quagga and zebra mussels possess similar morphologies, life cycles, and functional ecologies, but different sensitivities to environmental factors," Huang said. "Patterns of relative dominance and competitive exclusion amongst these species may vary over space and time. As a future effort, we plan to extend our single-species model to a competition model to understand how the interaction between flow rate and environmental factors impact the persistence, extinction, and competitive exclusion in rivers."
That's wind country. The blue band runs east from the Rockies to just south of the Great Lakes, then around Arkansas and down to south Texas. It shows where there's potential capacity for wind turbines 80 meters (about 262 feet) above the ground. That height is the current standard. You can see those towers all over Iowa.

But look at another map, said Sritharan, the Wilkinson Chair in Iowa State University's College of Engineering, a professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering and the interim assistant dean for strategic initiatives. When turbines are 140 meters (about 459 feet) off the ground, that blue band expands to the Southeast, moves around the Appalachians and covers parts of the Northeast, according to studies by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory based in Golden, Colorado.

"These slides are starting to create a lot of interest," Sritharan said. "Taller turbine towers can enable wind energy production in all 50 states, including those in the Southeast."

Winds at higher elevations, generally, are stronger and more consistent, even in wind-rich states such as Iowa and Texas. In fact, Sritharan said a 20-meter increase (about 66 feet) in tower height creates a 10 percent boost in Iowa energy production.

And so Sritharan has been leading development of new concrete tower technology capable of reaching those heights.

He calls the technology "Hexcrete," which can also be combined with steel tubular technology to create hybrid wind turbine towers.

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The basic idea of Hexcrete is that it's assembled from precast panels and columns made with high-strength or ultra-high-performance concrete. Those panels and columns can be cast in sizes that are easy to load on trucks. They are tied together on-site by cables to form hexagon-shaped cells. A crane can stack the cells to form towers as high as 140 meters.

Sritharan has just completed an 18-month study of Hexcrete supported by $1 million from the U.S. Department of Energy, $83,500 from the Iowa Energy Center and $22,500 of in-kind contributions from Lafarge North America Inc. of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The project's industry partners also include the Siemens Corp.'s Corporate Technology center in Princeton, New Jersey; Coreslab Structures (OMAHA) Inc. of Bellevue, Nebraska; and BergerABAM of Federal Way, Washington.

Lab tests, economic studies

Sritharan and his research group have pushed and pulled an assembled test section with 100,000 pounds of force for more than 2 million cycles. The test section passed that fatigue test. The researchers have also tested a full-scale, cross-section of a tower cell for operational loads and extreme loads for a 2.3 megawatt Siemens turbine. Again, Hexcrete passed the tests.

"The testing was very successful," Sritharan said. "The testing did show the system will work as we expected. There are no concerns about the cable connections or the concrete panels and columns."

The technology also looked good in economic studies.

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"Our study shows the Hexcrete option at heights of 120 to 140 meters (about 394 to 459 feet) will be cost competitive," he said.

The Iowa State researchers used models from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to calculate the levelized cost of energy. The levelized cost is the total cost of installing and operating an energy project over its expected life.

The researchers also worked with about a dozen wind energy companies to evaluate the models and confirm the economic findings were realistic.

Sritharan said the models show using Hexcrete technology to build 120- to 140- meter wind turbine towers could drop the levelized costs 10 to 18 percent under the costs of current 80-meter technologies.

A prototype tower

With the lab and economic studies showing positive results, Sritharan said he's working to form a university-industry partnership to build a prototype Hexcrete tower. He said the tower would likely be 100 to 120 meters high (about 328 to 394 feet). And it could be entirely Hexcrete or it could be a hybrid tower with a Hexcrete base and a tubular steel top.

With appropriate financing, Sritharan said a prototype tower could be built in about a year. It could even be built in the Southeast.

That could be a good demonstration of the wind maps that, for example, show little potential for Alabama wind energy at 80 meters, a little potential in the northeast corner of the state at 110 meters (about 361 feet) and nearly statewide potential at 140 meters.

"Tall towers," Sritharan said, "can add more capacity for renewable energy in all states across the nation."
Abu Dhabi, May 29 (IBNS): Etihad Guest, the loyalty programme of Etihad Airways, has celebrated reaching five million members by gifting 500,000 miles and an upgrade to Gold status to the milestone member, Rashid Al Shehhi.

Al Shehhi joined Etihad Guest while applying for an ADIB credit card. Guests can earn miles on everyday spending through their ADIB Etihad Guest cards and use their points to purchase flights, upgrades and multiple items from the online Reward Shop.

I am really looking forward to spending the miles on flights and upgrades, and seeing where I can travel to over the next few months, he said.

It was a great surprise to be told that Id been picked out as the five millionth member because I fly with the airline all the time so to be rewarded in this way will help me continue my travels around the world, said he.

Al Shehhi added that he would also donate some Etihad Guest Miles to relief efforts in Somalia, in line with the spirit of the Holy month of Ramadan and in support of the UAEs Year of Giving initiative.

The award-winning Etihad Guest programme offers thousands of opportunities to earn miles through more than 150 retail partnerships and co-branded cards with major UAE banks including NBAD and ADCB.
Chemists at the University of Amsterdam's Van 't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences have discovered a new class of molecules. This week they report in Nature Communications on their synthesis method leading to 'quasi[1]catenanes': pretzel-like molecules consisting of two molecular rings 'oppositely' coupled at a central carbon atom. The discovery is an important step towards synthesis of lasso peptides; new molecules with a potential use as medicines.

The Nature Communication article is the crowning achievement of a five-year research effort at the Synthetic Organic Chemistry research group of professor Jan van Maarseveen, with PhD student Luuk Stemers in the lead. He has developed a method that paves the way for synthesis of so-called lasso peptides.

Lasso peptides are small proteins that, as their name indicates, consist of a molecular 'loop' around a molecular 'rope'. They were first isolated from bacteria at the turn of the current century. Recently, DNA analysis has revealed that lasso peptides are quite common in the realm of bacteria. Their biological function is to act as an antibiotic against other micro-organisms, which makes them a potential new class of antibiotics.

The fact that 15 years after the discovery of lasso-peptides synthetic chemists have not yet been able to develop a strategy leading to their unique molecular architecture underpins the complexity of these molecules.

The bottleneck here is that the rope is usually tightly bound within the loop. This distinguishes lasso peptides from rotaxanes for which Scottish chemist Sir Fraser Stoddart shared the Nobel prize for chemistry last year. During rotaxane synthesis the rope is 'pulled' through the loop.

Since this is impossible for lasso peptide synthesis, the Amsterdam chemists used a different approach, forcing the loop to close in the right place around the rope. This turned out to be quite an undertaking. Eventually Luuk Stemers managed to create a molecular scaffold assisting the synthesis in such a way that the loop correctly forms around the rope.

The new synthesis method is a major step forward in the synthetic route towards functional lasso peptides. To demonstrate the power of the method Stemers applied his scaffold to also force both ends of the rope to form a second loop.

This resulted in the synthesis of a whole new class of pretzel-like molecules that the Amsterdam researchers coined quasi[1]catenanes. ('Real' catenanes consist of two loosely intertwined molecular ring-like structures. The French chemist Jean-Pierre Sauvage developed catenanes and shared the Nobel prize with Stoddard, and Dutch chemist Ben Feringa.)

The next step in the research effort of the Amsterdam researchers towards lasso peptide synthesis will be to introduce easily breakable bonds in the quasi[1]catenane, so that the rings can be unlocked.
For years, the common narrative in human developmental neuroimaging has been that gray matter in the brain -- the tissue found in regions of the brain responsible for muscle control, sensory perception such as seeing and hearing, memory, emotions, speech, decision making, and self-control -- declines in adolescence, a finding derived mainly from studies of gray matter volume and cortical thickness (the thickness of the outer layers of brain that contain gray matter). Since it has been well-established that larger brain volume is associated with better cognitive performance, it was puzzling that cognitive performance shows a dramatic improvement from childhood to young adulthood at the same time that brain volume and cortical thickness decline.

A new study published by Penn Medicine researchers this month and featured on the cover of the Journal of Neuroscience may help resolve this puzzle, revealing that while volume indeed decreases from childhood to young adulthood, gray matter density actually increases. Their findings also show that while females have lower brain volume, proportionate to their smaller size, they have higher gray matter density than males, which could explain why their cognitive performance is comparable despite having lower brain volume. Thus, while adolescents lose brain volume, and females have lower brain volume than males, this is compensated for by increased density of gray matter.

"It is quite rare for a single study to solve a paradox that has been lingering in a field for decades, let alone two paradoxes, as was done by Gennatas in his analysis of data from this large-scale study of a whole cohort of youths," said Ruben Gur.

"We now have a richer, fuller concept of what happens during brain development and now better understand the complementary unfolding processes in the brain that describe what happens."

The study was led by Ruben Gur, PhD, professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Radiology in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Raquel Gur, MD, PhD, a professor of Psychiatry, Neurology, and Radiology, and Efstathios Gennatas, MBBS, a doctoral student of neuroscience working in the Brain Behavior Laboratory at Penn.

According to Gur, the study findings may better explain the extent and intensity of changes in mental life and behavior that occur during the transition from childhood to young adulthood.

"If we are puzzled by the behavior of adolescents, it may help to know that they need to adjust to a brain that is changing in its size and composition at the same time that demands on performance and acceptable behavior keep scaling up," Gur added.

In the study, the researchers evaluated 1,189 youth between the ages of 8 and 23 who completed magnetic resonance imaging as part of the Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort, a community-based study of brain development that includes rich neuroimaging and cognitive data, to look at age-related effects on multiple measures of regional gray matter, including gray matter volume, gray matter density, and cortical thickness. Neuroimaging allowed the researchers to derive several measures of human brain structure in a noninvasive way.

Observing such measures during development allowed the researchers to study the brain at different ages to characterize how a child's brain differs from an adult's. "This novel characterization of brain development may help us better understand the relationship between brain structure and cognitive performance," Gennatas said.

"Our findings also emphasize the need to examine several measures of brain structure at the same time. Volume and cortical thickness have received the most attention in developmental studies in the past, but gray matter density may be as important for understanding how improved performance relates to brain development."

Further study is required to fully characterize the biological underpinnings of different MRI-derived measures by combining neuroimaging and brain histology. The study's findings in healthy people can also help researchers understand the effects of brain disorders in males and females as they evolve during adolescence.
Research led by the University of Portsmouth has identified a new way to improve how we measure the age of planetary evolution in our solar system.

The study, published in Nature Communications, uses a new atomic-scale imaging approach to locate and count individual atoms in planetary materials. Directly linking the structure and chemistry of minerals in this way opens up new opportunities to understand the spectacular complexity of planetary samples.

Meteorites provide samples that can be used to measure the timing of major planetary events, including lunar magma ocean crystalisation, Martian volcanism and asteroid bombardment of the inner solar system. However, due to shock metamorphism -- extreme deformation and heating that occurs during impact events -- samples often give a mixed age between the formation of the rock and timing of shock metamorphism. This makes it difficult to build an accurate timescale of when planetary events occurred.

Using atom probe tomography (APT), the researchers were able to accurately date such events in baddeleyite (ZrO 2 ), a relatively common but small uranium bearing mineral in planetary igneous rocks. Atom probe tomography provides 3D atom-by-atom imaging of materials with a uniquely powerful combination of spatial and chemical resolution. It takes tiny grains of the mineral, approximately 1,000th the width of a human hair, and energises atoms one at a time using a laser. This allows researchers to reconstruct 3D atom scale models of the material, and visualise the extent of deformation. Counting individual uranium and lead atoms within these domains enables accurate radiometric dating of the associated planetary events. The samples were taken from a 1.85 billion year old impact structure at Sudbury, approximately 400 km north of Toronto, Canada.

The research was led by PhD student, Lee White. Lee said: "Because of the challenges scientists face in dating these complex materials, many meteorites could be older than previously thought. This could affect what we think regarding the age of the major planetary events in our solar system.

"The ability to generate targeted, high-precision ages with APT shows great promise when examining tiny baddeleyite grains in meteorites. As we are able to identify and sample at the nanoscale, it opens up new avenues for dating highly deformed materials and provides an exceptional opportunity to accurately measure timings of major solar system events."

Co-author and Lee's supervisor Dr James Darling, Senior Lecturer in Geology in the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, said: "By imaging the location of individual atoms, this new approach provides the incredible ability to resolve how deformation can affect the chemistry of materials. In this case, we have imaged uranium and lead isotopes to essentially see complex patterns of time itself."
A new study by WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) has revealed how mining for valuable minerals in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is a major driving factor in the illegal hunting of great apes and other wildlife for food.

The majority of individuals surveyed at mining camps during the 3-month study period said they hunted mostly out of necessity in the absence of any alternative protein, and would much prefer to eat beef, chicken, and fish instead of chimpanzee or gorilla if it were available.

The new study titled "The socio-economics of artisanal mining and bushmeat hunting around protected areas: Kahuzi-Biega National Park and Itombwe Nature Reserve, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo" appears in the online version of the journal Oryx. The authors are: Charlotte Spira, Andrew Kirkby, Deo Kujirakwinja, and Andrew Plumptre of WCS.

Eastern DRC is known for its exceptional biodiversity and its assemblage of large charismatic species, including threatened great ape species such as the endangered eastern chimpanzee and the critically endangered Grauer's gorilla. The region also contains globally significant deposits of valuable minerals such as gold, cassiterite (used to make tin), and coltan, a mineral in high demand for use in cell phones and other technology.

Artisanal and small-scale mining represents a significant source of livelihoods in the DRC, where an estimated 8-10 million people (14-16 percent of the country's population in 2008) take part in the industry. In the eastern part of the country, mining operations have had devastating impacts on wildlife, even within the confines of protected areas such as Kahuzi-Biega National Park and the Itombwe Nature Reserve. Grauer's gorilla numbers have declined by 77 percent over the past 20 years due to hunting, which the presence of mining sites continues to fuel.

Wildlife rangers trying to protect these natural resources face extreme danger as armed militias and insurgent groups inside national parks occupy vast swaths of wildlife habitat in order to illegally control and exploit access to minerals. Many sites visited during the survey were controlled by armed groups and indeed more than 20 percent of tin and coltan mines in the region are thought to be controlled by armed groups. The presence of armed groups results in a proliferation of arms that facilitates both the hunting of great apes and a general breakdown in rule of law for local communities.

"Our analysis shows that although mining attracts people due to the opportunity to get quick cash, most miners were in favor of leaving the sector for better and safer economic opportunities," said WCS researcher Charlotte Spira, the lead author of the study. "We also found that most miners who participated in the survey hunt wildlife out of necessity, and many would stop hunting if they had a secure income, if domestic sources of meat were made available, and if hunting laws were strongly enforced."

The authors of the study suggest that a better regulated mining sector in forests outside of protected areas would improve local governance, social wellbeing and economic opportunities whilst reducing negative environmental impacts.

International measures, such as the US government's Dodd-Frank Conflict Minerals Rule that require transparency by companies and businesses in sourcing conflict minerals -- which is currently being contested by the US Securities and Exchange Commission -- are important and should be encouraged.

"Mining in the region can be greatly improved through the demilitarization of mining sites along with law enforcement to prevent bushmeat hunting, and more access to domestic sources of protein that would reduce the need for bushmeat," said Richard Tshombe, Director for WCS's Democratic Republic of Congo Program. "Developing sustainable business opportunities that can compete with the economic benefits of mining could support miners to pursue other avenues of employment and at the same time help ease the burden of mining in DRC's most biodiverse landscapes."

WCS is urging members of the public to demand an end to conflict minerals by taking action at https://www.wcs.org/get-involved/conflict-minerals-pledge.
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have made another important advance in HIV vaccine design. The development was possible thanks to previous studies at TSRI showing the structures of a protein on HIV's surface, called the envelope glycoprotein. The scientists used these structures to design a mimic of the viral protein from a different HIV subtype, subtype C, which is responsible for the majority of infections worldwide.

The new immunogen is now part of a growing library of TSRI-designed immunogens that could one day be combined in a vaccine to combat many strains of HIV.

"All of this research is going toward finding combinations of immunogens to aid in protecting people against HIV infection," said TSRI Professor Ian Wilson, Hanson Professor of Structural Biology and chair of the Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology at TSRI.

The research, published recently in the journal Immunity, was led by Wilson and TSRI Professor of Immunology Richard Wyatt, who also serves as Director of Viral Immunology for the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) Neutralizing Antibody Center at TSRI.

The new study was published alongside a second study in Immunity, led by scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, which showed that the vaccine candidate developed in the TSRI-led study can elicit neutralizing antibodies in non-human primates.

"Together, the two studies reiterate how structure-based immunogen design can advance vaccine development," said Wyatt.

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Solving the Clade C Structure

HIV mutates rapidly, so there are countless strains of HIV circulating around the world. Of these strains, scientists tend to focus on the most common threats, called clades A, B and C.

Like a flu vaccine, an effective HIV vaccine needs to protect against multiple strains, so researchers are designing a set of immunogens that can be given sequentially or as a cocktail to people so their immune systems can prepare for whatever strain they come up against.

In 2013, TSRI scientists, led by Wilson and TSRI Associate Professor Andrew Ward, determined the structure of a clade A envelope glycoprotein, which recognizes host cells and contains the machinery that HIV uses to fuse with cells. Because this is the only antibody target on the surface of HIV, an effective HIV vaccine will have to trigger the body to produce antibodies to neutralize the virus by blocking these activities.

Building on the previous original research, the scientists in the new study set out to solve the structure of the clade C glycoprotein and enable the immune system to fight clade C viruses.

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"Clade C is the most common subtype of HIV in sub-Saharan Africa and India," explained study co-first author Javier Guenaga, an IAVI collaborator working at TSRI. "Clade C HIV strains are responsible for the majority of infections worldwide."

The scientists faced a big challenge: the clade C envelope glycoprotein is notoriously unstable, and the molecules are prone to falling apart.

Guenaga needed the molecules to stay together as a trimer so his co-author Fernando Garces could get a clear image of the clade C glycoprotein's trimeric structure. To solve this problem, Guenaga re-engineered the glycoprotein and strengthened the interactions between the molecules. "We reinforced the structure to get the soluble molecule to assemble as it is on the viral surface," Guenaga said.

The project took patience, but it paid off. "Despite all the engineering employed to produce a stable clade C protein, these crystals (of clade C protein) were grown in very challenging conditions at 4 degrees Celsius and it took the diffraction of multiple crystals to generate a complete dataset, as they showed high sensitivity to radiation damage," said Garces. "Altogether, this highlights the tremendous effort made by the team in order to make available the molecular architecture of this very important immunogen."

With these efforts, the glycoprotein could then stay together in solution the same way it remains together on the virus itself. The researchers then captured a high-resolution image of the glycoprotein using a technique called x-ray crystallography.

The researchers finally had a map of the clade C glycoprotein.

Vaccine Candidate Shows Promise

In a companion study, the scientists worked with a team at the Karolinska Institute to test an immunogen based on Guenaga's findings. The immunogen was engineered to appear on the surface of a large molecule called a liposome -- creating a sort of viral mimic, like a mugshot of the virus.

This vaccine candidate indeed prompted the immune system to produce antibodies that neutralized the corresponding clade C HIV strain when tested in non-human primates.

"That was great to see," said Guenaga. "This study showed that the immunogens we made are not artificial molecules -- these are actually relevant for protecting against HIV in the real world."
Larger, heavier wheat kernels -- that's how associate professor Wanlong Li of the SDSU Department of Biology and Microbiology seeks to increase wheat production. Through a three-year, $930,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture grant, Li is collaborating with Bing Yang, an associate professor in genetics, development and cell biology at Iowa State, to increase wheat grain size and weight using a precise gene-editing tool known as CRISPR/Cas9.

South Dakota State is one of seven universities nationwide to receive funding to develop new wheat varieties as part of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture's International Wheat Yield Partnership (IWYP) Program. The program supports the G20's Wheat Initiative, which seeks to enhance the genetics related to yield and develop varieties adapted to different regions and environmental conditions.

The goal of IWYP, which was formed in 2014, is to increase wheat yields by 50 percent in 20 years. Currently, the yearly yield gain is less than 1 percent, but to meet the WYYP goal wheat yields must increase 1.7 percent per year. "It's a quantum leap," he said. "We need a lot of work to reach this."

Humans consume more than 500 million tons of wheat per year, according to Li. However, United States wheat production is decreasing, because farmers can make more money growing other crops. He hopes that increasing the yield potential will make wheat more profitable.

First, the researchers will identify genes that control grain size and weight in bread wheat using the rice genome as a model.

The CRISPR editing tool allows the researchers to knockout each negatively regulating gene and thus study its function, according to Li. "CRISPR is both fast and precise," he added. "It can produce very accurate mutations."

This technique will be used to create 30 constructs that target 20 genes that negatively impact wheat grain size and weight. From these, the University of California Davis Plant Transformation Facility, through a service contract, will produce 150 first-generation transgenic plants and the SDSU researchers will then identify which ones yield larger seeds. One graduate student and a research assistant will work on the project.

"The end products are not genetically modified organisms," Li emphasized. "When we transfer one of the CRISPR genes to wheat, it's transgenic. That then produces a mutation in a different genomic region. When the plants are then self-pollinated or backcrossed, the transgene and the mutation are separated."

The researchers then screen the plants to select those that carry the desired mutations. "This is null transgenic," Li said, noting USDA has approved this process in other organisms. Yang used this technique to develop bacterial blight-resistant rice.

As part of the project, the researchers will also transfer the mutations into durum wheat. Ultimately, these yield-increasing mutations, along with the markers to identify the traits, can be transferred to spring and winter wheat.
Scientists using a high-resolution global climate model and historical observations of species distributions on the Northeast U.S. Shelf have found that commercially important species will continue to shift their distribution as ocean waters warm two to three times faster than the global average through the end of this century. Projected increases in surface to bottom waters of 6.6 to 9 degrees F (3.7 to 5.0 degrees Celsius) from current conditions are expected.

The findings, reported in Progress in Oceanography, suggest ocean temperature will continue to play a major role in where commercially and recreationally important species will find suitable habitat. Sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Maine have warmed faster than 99 percent of the global ocean over the past decade. Northward shifts of many species are already happening, with major changes expected in the complex of species occurring in different regions on the shelf, and shifts from one management jurisdiction to another. These changes will directly affect fishing communities, as species now landed at those ports move out of range, and new species move in.

"Species that are currently found in the Mid-Atlantic Bight and on Georges Bank may have enough suitable habitat in the future because they can shift northward as temperatures increase," said lead author Kristin Kleisner, formerly of the Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC)'s Ecosystems Dynamics and Assessment Branch and now a senior scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund. "Species concentrated in the Gulf of Maine, where species have shifted to deeper water rather than northward, may be more likely to experience a significant decline in suitable habitat and move out of the region altogether."

The researchers used bottom trawl survey data collected between 1968 and 2013 on the shelf to estimate niches for 58 demersal and pelagic species. A high-resolution global climate model known as CM2.6, developed by the NOAA Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) in Princeton, New Jersey, was used to generate projections of future surface and bottom ocean temperatures across the region. The future temperatures were then used to project where marine species would find suitable habitat.

"Similar studies in the past used a coarse model with a roughly 100-kilometer or 62-mile ocean resolution, while the new model has a 10-kilometer or 6.2-mile ocean resolution, making the simulation of oceanic and atmospheric features much more accurate," said Vincent Saba of the NEFSC's Ecosystems Dynamics and Assessment Branch, who works at GFDL and is a co-author of the study.

Saba has compared the difference between the coarse model and the new high-resolution model as being similar to the difference between an old standard definition television set and today's ultra high definition screens.

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Researchers looked at species distributions in spring and fall in the Gulf of Maine on the northern part of the Northeast Shelf and those on the southern end, from Georges Bank to the Mid-Atlantic Bight. They also examined what the shifting distributions might mean for fishing communities by looking at the current and potential future distance between the main fishing port in each state and the center of the distribution of suitable thermal area for the top-landed species by weight in each state.

Key northern species including Acadian redfish, American plaice, Atlantic cod, haddock, and thorny skate may lose thermal habitat, while spiny dogfish and American lobster may gain. Projected ocean warming in the Gulf of Maine may create beneficial conditions for American lobster populations, and they may continue to be accessible to fishing ports in the region.

In contrast, species like monkfish, witch flounder, white hake and sea scallops may remain accessible to major local fishing ports but could experience strong declines in habitat due to ocean warming. Atlantic cod, which is at the southern end of its range, may find suitable thermal habitat off the shelf entirely or in more northern waters in Canada.

In states south of New York, the distance to the centers of species distribution from ports may increase for some species, including summer flounder, which is currently the third most-landed species in Virginia. In North Carolina, the distance from ports to the center of distribution may increase for all six of the top landed species. Among the top six species landed in Virginia, only Atlantic croaker and striped bass are projected to have more suitable habitat.

"Warming waters may have a positive effect on smooth dogfish, Atlantic croaker, and striped bass in the southern part of the Northeast Shelf, with increases in suitable habitat in terms of area and species abundance, " Kleisner said. "But these species are also shifting northward and the bulk of the biomass of some species may be further from the main ports in southern states, making it more costly for fishermen to access these species. Conversely, as species move into new regions, fishermen may have new opportunities."

The projections indicate that as species shift from one management jurisdiction to another, or span state and federal jurisdictions, increased collaboration among management groups will be needed to set quotas and establish allocations.

"These changes will depend on the pace of climate change and on the ability of species to adapt or shift elsewhere to maintain a preferred habitat," said Kleisner. "We did not examine fishing pressure, species interactions and other factors that may influence future distributions. However, given the historical changes observed on the Northeast Shelf over the past five decades and confidence in the projection of continued ocean warming in the region, it is likely there will be major changes within this ecosystem."

"Those changes will result in ecological, economic, social, and natural resource management challenges throughout the region," Kleisner said. "It is important to understand large-scale patterns in these changes so that we can plan for and mitigate adverse effects as much as possible."
Ashkenazi Jewish women are known to have a predisposition to the inherited breast cancers BRCA1 and BRCA2, but currently genetic testing in this group is limited to women affected by breast and ovarian cancers and those who are unaffected but have a family history of the disease.

Ms Sari Lieberman, a genetic counsellor at the Shaare Zedek Medical Centre, Jerusalem, Israel, will tell the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics that offering open-access BRCA testing to Ashkenazi women unaffected by cancer, regardless of their family history, enables the identification of carriers who would otherwise have been missed. Carrying one of the mutations for the BRCA genes means that women affected have a 50-80% risk of developing breast cancer and a 20-50% risk for ovarian cancer.

"We knew that half of these carriers have no family history of cancer, and therefore would not have been identified had the test been offered on the current personal and family history criteria," she says. "As a genetic counsellor, it is frustrating and saddening to see the results of this policy, where patients are often only identified as BRCA carriers once they have been diagnosed with cancer."

The researchers streamlined the pre-test process so that traditional genetic counselling, which can be time-consuming and difficult, was excluded. Instead they provided written information about the BRCA genes, the genetic test, and about the implications of being a carrier.

"Current strategies for testing focus on women who are 50 and older, which is not the optimal age for effective prevention. In order to address this, we would like to continue this study and look for other approaches that could include younger women," says Ms Lieberman. participants in the study either referred themselves or were recruited by health professionals. Two-year follow up of the 1771 women tested included looking at psychosocial outcomes and health behaviours. Both groups reported a high level of satisfaction (94%) and low stress. Those who had referred themselves tended to be more knowledgeable about breast cancer issues than those who were recruited.

"Among the 25 women carriers we identified, 94% expressed satisfaction and 92% endorsed the idea of population screening. Their stress was understandably higher, but it declined over time, and their knowledge was greater than in non-carriers. All of them had breast surveillance, and three underwent risk-reducing bilateral mastectomy. Of those aged over 40, fifteen out of a total of 16 had their ovaries and Fallopian tubes removed in order to reduce risk," Ms Lieberman reports.

The researchers say that their study provides convincing evidence that open access genetic testing overcomes major barriers; not just lack of family history, but also referral and bureaucratic barriers, and that it is acceptable to those likely to be affected and their families.

"We were concerned that 'low risk' participants, with no family history, might not be able to cope with being offered BRCA testing and particularly with positive test results. We also worried that being found not to be a carrier might provide false reassurance and cause women to think they had no cancer risk and therefore avoid standard surveillance. We were pleasantly surprised on both counts," Ms Lieberman will say. In fact, mammography screening rates did not decline post-test in non-carriers, and even increased in some.

Falling prices for genetic sequencing and new techniques to avoid evaluating irrelevant gene variants will most likely make mutation screening available to wider populations in the near future. "We believe that our results are useful and highly relevant for other populations. On a personal note, I hope that this new approach means that one day I will not have to counsel someone with no family history and therefore no awareness of increased risk who says to me that she only wished she had known before," Ms Lieberman will conclude.

Chair of the ESHG conference, Professor Joris Veltman, Director of the Institute of Genetic Medicine at Newcastle University, Newcastle, United Kingdom, said: "This important study highlights the importance of population-wide genetic screening to identify women at risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer because of a genetic predisposition. The study also showed that most people cope very well with this genetic information; carriers of these mutations undertake breast cancer surveillance, whereas non-carriers are aware they can still develop breast cancer.''
In the Neotropics, there is a whole group of so-called glassfrogs that amaze with their transparent skin covering their bellies and showing their organs underneath. A recently discovered new species from Amazonian Ecuador, however, goes a step further to fully expose its heart thanks to the transparent skin stretching all over its chest as well as tummy.

The new amphibian is described by a team of scientists led by Dr. Juan M. Guayasamin, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Ecuador, in the open access journal ZooKeys.

It can also be distinguished by the relatively large dark green spots at the back of its head and the foremost part of the body. Additionally, the species has a characteristic long call.

The new frog is named Hyalinobatrachium yaku, where the species name (yaku) translates to 'water' in the local language Kichwa. Water and, more specifically, slow-flowing streams are crucial for the reproduction of all known glassfrogs.

The reproductive behaviour is also quite unusual in this species. Males are often reported to call from the underside of leaves and look after the egg clutches.

Having identified individuals of the new species at three localities, the researchers note some behavioural differences between the populations. Two of them, spotted in the riverine vegetation of an intact forest in Kallana, have been calling from the underside of leaves a few metres above slow-flowing, relatively narrow and shallow streams. Another frog of the species has been observed in an area covered by secondary forests in the Ecuadorian village of Ahuano. Similarly, the amphibian was found on the underside of a leaf one metre above a slow-flowing, narrow and shallow stream.

However, at the third locality -- a disturbed secondary forest in San Jose de Payamino -- the studied frogs have been perching on leaves of small shrubs, ferns, and grasses some 30 to 150 cm above the ground. Surprisingly, each of them has been at a distance greater than 30 metres from the nearest stream.

The researchers note that, given the geographic distance of approximately 110 km between the localities where the new species has been found, it is likely that the new species has a broader distribution, including areas in neighbouring Peru.

The uncertainty about its distributional range comes from a number of reasons. Firstly, the species' tiny size of about 2 cm makes it tough to spot from underneath the leaves. Then, even if specimens of the species have been previously collected, they would be almost impossible to identify from museum collection, as many of the characteristic traits, such as the dark green marks, are getting lost after preservation. This is why the conservation status of the species has been listed as Data Deficient, according to the IUCN Red List criteria.

Nevertheless, the scientists identify the major threats to the species, including oil extraction in the region and the related water pollution, road development, habitat degradation and isolation.

"Glassfrogs presumably require continuous tracts of forest to interact with nearby populations, and roads potentially act as barriers to dispersal for transient individuals," explain the authors.
New Delhi, May 29 (IBNS): A strong cyclonic storm is centred over east-central Bay of Bengal, about 660 km south-southeast of Kolkata and is likely to make landfall in Chittagong (Bangladesh) in the next 24 hours, according to met department reports on Monday.

Cyclonic storm 'MORA' over east-central Bay of Bengal is said to have moved northward in the past six hours, the department said in its afternoon release.

At 8.30am, the storm was centred about 660 km south-southeast of Kolkata and 550 km south-southwest of Chittagong.

The department has warned that the system is likely to intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm during the next 12 hours.

It is very likely to move north-northeastwards and cross Bangladesh coast near Chittagong around Tuesday forenoon.

The government has issued a series of warnings, including that of heavy rainfall.

Rainfall warning has been issued for the period from Monday to Wednesay.

Rainfall at many places with heavy rainfall at isolated places very likely to commence over Tripura and Mizoram from Monday evening.

For Tuesday, rainfall at most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places and isolated extremely heavy rainfall very likely over Assam and Meghalaya.

Rainfall warning has been issued for Tuesday for most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places very likely over Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

There is also rainfall for most places on Wednesday with heavy to very heavy rainfall at isolated places very likely over Assam and Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

The department on Monday said that squally winds speed reaching 40-50 kmph gusting to 60 kmph would prevail along and off Andaman Islands and adjoining Sea areas during next 48 hours.

Squally winds speed reaching 45-55 kmph gusting to 65 kmph would prevail over South Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura onTuesdayand along and off West Bengal coast on Monday and Tuesday.

Sea condition would be rough to very rough along and off Andaman Islands during next 48 hours and along and off West Bengal Coast on Tuesday, the department warned on Monday.



Fishermen have been advised not to venture into sea along and off Andaman Islands during next 48 hrs, the department said on Monday.

Fishermen along and off West Bengal coast are advised not to venture into sea on Mondya nd Tuesday and those out at sea are advised to return to the coast.

Image: UNISDR
A policeman broke down in tears as hundreds gathered at a makeshift memorial for vigils in memory of the victims of the Manchester bombing.

Mourners gathered at two vigils a week after 22 people killed in the bombing at a pop concert at the Manchester Arena.

People met at St Ann's Square, which has become the site of hundreds of bouquets of flowers, balloons, scarves and hand written notes honouring those killed on Monday.

The vigils were heavily guarded by armed officers, one of whom broke down in tears at the site of the flowers and well-wishers.

People look at flowers and tributes left in St Ann's Square in Manchester / PA

Eliot Leeming, 20, was among those visiting St Anns Square after his brother Jonathan was caught up in the blast at the Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena on Monday.

He said there was a nervous wait of up to 45 minutes before he was able to get confirmation his 17-year-old brother had escaped uninjured.

Mr Leeming said: Im here for the families who lost somebody.

My brother was at the gig and there was a period where we didnt hear from him, which was obviously really worrying.

So Im just really grateful Im not mourning my dead brother.

Crowds gather in Manchester city centre / PA

Greater Manchester Police are continuing to investigate the attack at the arena after Salman Abedi detonated a bomb as revellers left an Ariana Grande concert.

On Monday morning, police arrested a 23-year-old man on the south coast on suspicion of terror offences after a flurry of raids in Manchester over the Bank Holiday weekend.

Festival worker Mr Leeming, from Rossendale, near Blackburn, said: It was really scary  my girlfriend was scrolling down her phone and saw a bomb had gone off.

It was really hard knowing what to believe, looking on Facebook it was really scary.

It was half an hour, 45 minutes til we got hold of him and obviously during that time it was really scary.

We felt nothing but relief, and I cant imagine what some of the families felt. Hes so shocked and he feels so bad for those who have been affected.

Helen Hayward, who has lived in Manchester for seven years, said she was proud to call the city home in the wake of the tragedy.

The 25-year-old said: Ive heard stories about people opening their doors to victims, offering free lifts. It makes me really proud to live here and be part of such a strong community.

Its very sombre, people are very quiet and respectful.
The Pirate Bay, Kickass Torrents and others see a big surge of users after ExtraTorrent.cc shut down

ExtraTorrent unceremoniously shut down last week leaving thousands without the favourite place to get torrents from. This made it 3 shut down in recent memory following KickassTorrents and Torrentz in about one year. As a consequence, this has led to a surge in the number of people migrating to other sources.

Traffic Migration

The shut down has led to a surge in people across the globe looking for newer avenues of torrents with the searches for the term  torrent sites  seeing an unprecedented surge as evident in the graph below:

Usually in such scenarios, quite a few users migrate to other established websites. TorrentFreak has spoken to several people connected to top torrent sites who have confirmed that they had witnessed a significant visitor boost over the past week and a half. With most people familiar with The Pirate Bay after its own struggles to stay alive  earning it the moniker of the worlds most resilient torrent site  most people obviously see it as the best alternative to ExtraTorrent as did we in our ET alternatives list.

If we needed a confirmation, a staffer of The Pirate Bay has confirmed that theyve been witnessing a huge wave of users coming in to such an extent that it caused  gateway errors  for the site that left it temporarily unreachable. Though the number of new users has been massive, the site has not seen an increase in any other activity with forum participation and new user registration not experiencing the same bump.

Registrations havent suddenly increased or anything like that, and visitor numbers to the forum are about the same as usual, TPB staff member Spud17 informed TorrentFreak.

In addition to The Pirate Bay, another torrent site that has asked not to be identified, has also witnessed a massive uptick in new users with the source saying that their website handled around 100,000 extra unique visitors than usual. While that is a big number, from the sites own estimates, that is approximately 10% of the ExtraTorrent traffic.

Of all these new visitors moving onto other torrent sites, nearly 40% are said to be from India  a country where ET enjoyed popularity. The site operator has also noted that nearly two third of these new users have an Adblocker active which effectively translates to 0 add revenue for the site.

The Opportunists

This bring us to the opportunity sniffing copycats who have been trying to lure the ExtraTorrent community. In the past week, we had reported on a website named ExtraTorrent.cd, which had claimed that they had a copy of the ET database. As time went on however, it became clear that the site was simply a TPB mirror with the skin of the ET. The other popular opportunist has been ExtraTorrent.ag, a site promoted by the same people who have earlier been successful in using the popularity of EZTV and YIFY/YTS brands.

This was the reason that ExtraTorrent operator SaM had asked people not to fall for copycats and fakes such as these. But one thing is clear, the section of the torrent community that was reliant on ExtraTorrent has begun moving away onto other torrent sites. It has also become evident that these users have not all migrated onto one particular site, giving us the possibility of another behemoth rising up to fill the void left by the shut downs in the past year.

Source: TorrentFreak
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.
Kolkata, May 29 (IBNS): Park Clinic of Kolkata, whose community health services include a range of activities, including providing subsidised health care to economically poor patients to health camps in remote areas of Sunderbans, to name a few, recently celebrated its 20th Foundation Day recently.

The function was presided by Justice Chittatosh Mookerjee and attended by Professor Bhabatosh Biswas, Vice Chancellor, West Bengal University of Health Sciences. Sri Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, West Bengal's Minister-in-charge, Department of Power and Non-Conventional Energy Sources, among others

The Park Clinic, with a modest base of 137 beds and a relatively small turnover, ensures that the profit earned from regular clinical support is ploughed back into the services of the society, said the organisers.

According to Dr Sudip Chatterjee, "Those seeking treatment in the outdoor patient department (OPD) pay Rs 12 per visit and can get all tests done at a 20 per cent discount. There are patients who have been coming continuously to the OPD for the past twenty five years, initially as children and now as adults."

Dr Chatterjee also said that on Sundays, the Day Care Unit offers free service to thalassemia patients who need blood transfusions.

Since 2009, in collaboration with Operation Smile, the Park Clinic is offering surgical facilities for patients who need treatment for cleft lip and cleft palate for free.

According to the clinic, it has provided Rs 70 lakh worth of free service for this project, where the doctors render free services while Operation Smile covers up for the remaining cost.

Around Rs 5 to 6 lakhs are waived as treatment charges for patients undergoing complex brain and spine surgery every year, according to the clinic.

The clinic said that it holds health camps in the Sunderbans in areas such as Sagar and Basanti as well as in remote areas of Burdwan and Murshidabad every year.

Kolkata Traffic Police personnel get trained here in basic life support.

Spine Treatment Camps are held at the clinic on Sundays for police officers.

Every year 8 to 10 scientific articles are published in national and international journals based on work done in the various departments, according to the clinic.
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. operates as a specialty retailer that provides clothing, accessories, and personal care products under the American Eagle and Aerie brands. The company provides jeans, and specialty apparel and accessories for women and men; and intimates, apparel, activewear, and swim collections, as well as personal care products for women. It also offers graphic tees and other clothing products under the Tailgate brand name; and menswear products under the Todd Snyder New York brand name. As of January 29, 2022, the company operated 880 American Eagle stores, 244 Aerie brand stand-alone stores, and five Todd Snyder stores in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Hong Kong. It also ships to 81 countries through its Websites; and offers its merchandise at 260 locations operated by licensees in 28 countries, as well as provides products through its Websites ae.com, aerie.com, and toddsnyder.com. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Kannur, May 29 (IBNS) : Three Youth Congress workers have been suspended in Kerala for slaughtering an ox in public, media reports said.

According to reports the action has been taken after a video showing a group of men slaughtering an ox in public in Kannur went viral.

The group of young men shouted anti-Government and pro-youth Congress slogans.

The incident comes as an embarrassment for the Congress amid its political battle with the BJP that makes fierce attempt to become a potent political force in the state.

The reports quoted police as saying that police have registered a case for creating public nuisance.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has condemned the incident. "What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless,barbaric& completely unacceptable to me &the Congress Party.I strongly condemn the incident," he said in a tweet.
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.
Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol. It produces conventional, premium, and reformulated gasolines; gasoline meeting the specifications of the California Air Resources Board (CARB); diesel fuels, and low-sulfur and ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuels; CARB diesel; other distillates; jet fuels; blendstocks; and asphalts, petrochemicals, lubricants, and other refined petroleum products, as well as sells lube oils and natural gas liquids. As of December 31, 2021, the company owned 15 petroleum refineries with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 3.2 million barrels per day; and 12 ethanol plants with a combined ethanol production capacity of approximately 1.6 billion gallons per year. It sells its refined products through wholesale rack and bulk markets; and through approximately 7,000 outlets under the Valero, Beacon, Diamond Shamrock, Shamrock, Ultramar, and Texaco brands. The company also produces and sells ethanol, dry distiller grains, syrup, and inedible corn oil primarily to animal feed customers. In addition, it owns and operates crude oil and refined petroleum products pipelines, terminals, tanks, marine docks, truck rack bays, and other logistics assets; and owns and operates a plant that processes animal fats, used cooking oils, and inedible distillers corn oils into renewable diesel. The company was formerly known as Valero Refining and Marketing Company and changed its name to Valero Energy Corporation in August 1997. Valero Energy Corporation was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas.
New Delhi, May 29 (IBNS) : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for Berlin in Germany on his six-day four nation Europe tour, reports said.

Besides Germany, Modi will visit Spain, Russia and France.

"My visits to these nations are aimed at boosting India's economic engagement with them & to invite more investment to India," the Prime Minister tweeted.

In Berlin Modi will hold bilateral meetings with Chancellor Angela Merkel and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

He said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."

On Tuesday, Modi will travel to Spain to pay the first visit by an Indian prime minister in almost three decades. He will call on King Felipe VI and hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy.

"We will discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism," he said.

"I will also meet top CEOs of Spanish industry and encourage them to partner with us in our 'Make in India' Initiative."

From Spain, Modi will travel to St. Petersburg in Russia on May May 31. He will be there till June 2 for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit.

"...I will be conducting detailed discussions with President Putin to take forward our dialogue from the last Summit in Goa in October 2016," the PM said.

In the last leg of the tour, he will visit France from June 2 to 3. He will hold a meeting with the newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

"France is one of our most important Strategic Partners. I look forward to meeting President Macron and have discussions on issues of mutual interest," Modi said.
Chennai, May 29 (IBNS) : A group of students of IIT Madras participated in a "beef festival" in the institution premises on Sunday night protesting what they said "BJP's imposition of communal agenda on the masses," NDTV reported.

According to reports, the protesting students, belonging to the Progressive Students' Union of the IIT, also discussed the Central government's recent ban on sale of cattle for slaughter at cattle markets.

There is no ban on beef in Tamil Nadu.

The AIADMK government has not formally responded to the new notification from the Union Environment Ministry, which comes under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and is applicable across India. Over the weekend, Chief Minister Edapadi Palaniswami said, "I can only respond after reading the full order. I cannot react to media reports".

The new Central rule that was made known in a notification is being opposed by few south states, including Kerala.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the Centre's decision was intruding into the rights of states.

Image: www.iitm.ac.in
Kolkata, May 29 (IBNS): A major fire reportedly broke out in a restaurant near Kolkata on Monday morning, killing one and leaving another person injured.

According to reports, the fire was first noticed at around 11 am inside the restaurant, which was closed that time.

Two tender engines and local police rushed to the spot. Firemen fought for hours to bring the blaze under control.

Two staffers of the restaurant were seriously injured in the accident and were rushed to a hospital, where one of them was pronounced dead.

A fire and emergency services official said that the fire might have started due to a leakage in gas cylinder.

"The blaze possibly started due to a LPG cylinder leakage and the restaurant's kitchen was the centre of the fire," the official told IBNS. "No gas cylinder exploded here during the fire."

The officer also alleged that there was no adequate fire extinguishing system in the restaurant.

"The restaurant had neither sufficient fire extinguishing systems nor fire department's NOC," the official added. "We will definitely take action against the owner after completing investigation."

Police and fire department have started a probe into the incident.



(Reporting by Deepayan Sinha)
Kolkata, May 29 (IBNS): Several protesters and few policemen were injured during a clash between city police and SUCI protesters in Kolkata's downtown Esplanade area on Monday afternoon, reports said.

According to reports, demanding step to bring back pass-fail system in state government-run and aided schools' exams till class-VIII, leader-activists of SUCI and its students' wing AIDSO held a protest rally in the city and staged demonstration near state assembly (Vidhan Sabha Bhawan)'s gate no.: 6.

The agitation turned violent when police intervened and tried to disperse protesters from the area.

Protesters reportedly clashed with the security forces and police and Rapid Action Force (RAF) restored to lathicharge to bring the situation under control.

SUCI leadership alleged that several of their protesters were injured as police brutally lathicharged them while few leader-activists of the party has been booked.

However, a heavy police force along with RAF have been deployed to the area to avoid further untoward incident.

(Reporting by Deepayan Sinha, Image from archive)
Berlin, May 29 (IBNS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Germany as he commenced his four-nation European tour on Monday.

MEA spokesperson Gopal Baglay tweeted: "Guten Tag Berlin! PM @narendramodi arrives in Germany for the Fourth #IndiaGermany IGC."

Modi will also visit Spain, Russia and France during this tour.

"My visits to these nations are aimed at boosting India's economic engagement with them & to invite more investment to India," the Prime Minister tweeted earlier.

In Berlin Modi will hold bilateral meetings with Chancellor Angela Merkel and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

He said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."

Image: Gopal Baglay Twitter page
Guwahati, May 29 (IBNS): Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Monday ordered an enquiry into the death of two students from Mizoram who were studying at Down Town University in Guwahati.

The dead bodies of the students were found near railway crossing at Panikhaiti area on Sunday morning.

Sonowal directed the Assam Education department Principal Secretary Ajay Sankar Tiwari to conduct a detailed enquiry to find out the cause of death of the two students.



Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sonowal spoke to his Mizoram counterpart Lal Thanhawla and expressed his condolence on the death of the two students.



Sonowal also assured his Mizoram counterpart that a high level enquiry into the death of the students would be carried out and cause of their death would be brought to light.



Guwahati city police said that, the victims were identified as Lalhmangaihsanga and Lalmalsawma and they were studying two years diploma course in technician and physiotherapy at Assam Downtown University.



According to the reports, the victims were studying at the university under the sponsorship of NERLP.



Local people believed that, both students have struck to death by train.



(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)

Assam,SarbanandaSonowal,MizoramStudentsDeath,CMOrdersProbe
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MILANU.S. First Lady Melania Trump opened a window onto the luxury world over the weekend when she wore a $51,000 (U.S.) designer jacket to a lunch on the sidelines of a global summit in Sicily.

While the revelation sent many into sticker shock, the reality is that those kinds of prices belong to the most exclusive high end of haute couture that operate at the highest level of hand craftsmanship, accessible only to the very few.

For the brands, they need to do it, to have the attention and to keep the research and development high, said Claudia DArpizio, a senior partner at Bain & Company consulting. There is not a real public for that. I would say very few women in the world are buying haute couture. While for the rest, I think people are spending money, but they are more cautious about value.

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A floral applique jacket like the one Mrs. Trump purchased for the G-7 outing, for example, would require many seamstress hours of hand embroidery. Dolce&Gabbana did not release any details of the materials, but Stefano Gabbana celebrated its high-profile outing on Instagram.

Looking beyond the uppermost tiers of indulgence, a new Bain study shows that sales of global luxury goods levelled off last year from a period of Chinese-fueled euphoria. They are expected, however, to grow again this year, despite uncertainty generated by the recent Manchester attack and changing U.S. travel policies.

Sales of luxury apparel, jewelry, accessories and beauty products last year totalled 249 billion euros ($280 billion U.S.), compared with 251 billion euros in 2015. They are expected to grow by 2 per cent to 4 per cent this year.

The forecasts reflect improved confidence in Europe, which suffered declines after the terror attacks in Paris, and a solid performance in China. They will offset a slowdown in the United States due largely to the strong dollar and uncertainty over travel policy.

Local customers are buying again, both in Europe and China, DArpizio said.

While sales in Paris are back to pre-attack levels, DArpizio said new uncertainties can affect the outlook. In Europe, that includes the impact from the more recent terror attack in Manchester. And in the United States, that includes the new administrations moves to impose a travel ban on some Muslim nations and even widen the ban on laptops in the carry-on luggage on inbound overseas flights, which she dubbed the Trump Slump.

These restrictions are not helping when planning holiday trips, she said.

While the impact on luxury sales of Trumps travel policies have yet to be calculated, DArpizio said the strong dollar is hurting sales to tourists to the United States, in particular from China, Argentina and Brazil.

For 2017, European sales are expected to increase 7 per cent to 9 per cent, while formerly double-digit China is expected to grow by a more moderate 6 per cent to 8 per cent. A slight contraction is forecast for the Americas and Japan.

The eye-popping price of Melania Trumps floral applique jacket goes against overall pricing trends in the luxury world.

DArpizio said high-end consumers are more price conscious than ever, and they wont accept an annual price increase for the same products. Innovation is key.

They are happy to pay for newness or innovation or extreme quality that is durable, but not for the same product that is inflated 6 per cent every season, she said.

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13 Reasons Why, the bleak new Netflix show about teen suicide, is dangerous.

But school bans on discussion of the show are ill advised and not practical  forbidden fruit just becomes more attractive. Kids watching this program need dialogue to challenge its inadvertent message that suicide is a good option, and a way to get revenge on bullies.

As a psychiatrist who works with vulnerable teens, Ill be the first to acknowledge there are some good parts to the show. It brings very difficult topics out of the shadows and into the open: bullying, both in person and cyber; sexual assault, and teen suicide. The series is certainly stimulating conversation about these topics, which is great. My patients tell me the show makes them feel less alone and not as badly off as Hannah.

Its also a wake-up call to parents, because most adults are portrayed as inept, even stupid. On the show, too many assume everything is OK, or blame serious depression and anxiety on normal teen moodiness. Too few bother to check in with their kids, or put in the time to build trust.

The shows producers have defended its bleakness, saying they wanted to be very realistic. But I think theyre naive about how teens think  especially teens with underlying depression or other mental illness who are vulnerable to suicidal thoughts.

In the show, Hannah kills herself and leaves behind 13 tapes, one addressed to each of the people who contributed to her anguish. It focuses on how badly everyone feels and how much they suffer as a result of her death, and realizing their part in it.

But heres the problem: Suicide is very often an act of despair and hopelessness, not just anger and revenge. This show not only portrays suicide as a valid, logical option, but it shows suicide as a highly effective way to get even with people whove hurt you. Kids dont realize that, if theyre dead, they wont be around to watch their tormenters suffer.

Certainly, a lot of people experience high school in these dark terms, and theres a place for exploring that. But in 13 Reasons, the pain vastly outweighs the hope. It shows Hannah having no way out of her suffering. And this is simply not realistic  almost every teen has at least one adult in their lives they could turn to for help, or if not, there are resources like KidsHelpPhone.ca.

Theres been a lot of buzz about the graphic nature of the show  the rape scene, and especially the suicide, when Hannah slits her writs in a bathtub. Frankly, I dont think this scene is graphic enough. Shes depicted as dead after just a few minutes. She has a smile on her face. In reality, if you cut your wrists, you would bleed to death slowly and painfully. You would not be at peace and calm. You dont look like youre at the spa.

When we inadvertently give power, even glamour, to suicide, its doubly dangerous because of the copycat effect, which is very real in suicide. Already, Im starting to hear anecdotal reports about a higher volume of teens taken to Toronto hospital emergency departments than usual this spring. Recently, a colleague at a Toronto hospital told me six young people taken to the ER for suicidal behaviour on a recent weekend specifically cited 13 Reasons as part of their motivation.

Although I wish the show were much different, I do think its very difficult to stop kids from watching it. For that reason, its essential that schools take leadership and open discussions of it. Im not seeing schools make any effort to do anything other than warn parents about its dangers. The story is such a morality tale  I think it would be good for English classes to compare it to Lord of the Flies, because both show that bad things happen when adults arent around.

The first thing parents and educators need to understand is that many teens, unfortunately, do experience bullying and sexual assault but very few kill themselves. Thats because in 80 to 90 per cent of teen suicides, theres a pre-existing mental illness  usually untreated depression. And when youre in the midst of a depression, you often cant see a way out. Its essential to identify those kids. I ask suicidal teens if we could remove your pain, or make it tolerable, would you still want to die? They always say no.

Parents need to create an environment in the home where its safe to talk about tough things.

If your teen confides in you, listen without judgment. Empathize (i.e. that must have been very hard for you).

If your child is watching the show, try to watch it with him or her. Ask questions like: What do you take from the show? How did it make you feel? Do you think its realistic? Have you ever felt this way? Have you ever been bullied? Please dont ever hesitate to tell me about it.

For Hannah, I would have suggested she switch schools and get treatment for her depression. But every kid is different. Consider your own teens temperament and what solutions might work best for them.

Sometimes its good to bring the school in. But if theyre terrified of that option, talk to them about options that dont involve contacting the school. Demonstrate you care about them, and promise to do your best.

With a show like 13 Reasons out there, now is the time to check in with your kids, look for signs of depression and open dialogue about their emotional health. Depression and trauma are highly treatable, but only if you ask for help.

Marshall Korenblum is an associate professor in the Faculty of Medicines Department of Psychiatry and Psychiatrist-in-Chief at the SickKids Centre for Community Mental Health (formerly the Hincks-Dellcrest Centre). Doctors Notes is a weekly column by members of the U of T Faculty of Medicine. Email doctorsnotes@thestar.ca .

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Guwahati, May 29 (IBNS): At least three persons were injured in an explosion in Nagalandas Dimapur city on Monday evening, officials said.

According to the reports, the persons injured while miscreants lobbed a hand grenade targeting to a chemist shop in Dimapur town at around 7-15 pm.

An official of Dimapur police said that, two employees of the chemist shop and a customer received serious injuries in the explosion.

The injured persons had immediately rushed to nearest hospital.

Top police and army officials had rushed to the area and launched operation against the attackers.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)


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One of Andrew Scheers first and most delicate assignments as Conservative leader will be to find a proper place in his team for runner-up Maxime Bernier. That may be easier said than done.

That Scheer has an interest in keeping Bernier happy is not really debatable.

The Beauce MP may not have a lot of die-hard fans in the Conservative caucus. But the fact remains that about one in two party members supported Bernier for the leadership, including a majority in Alberta and Quebec.

In Berniers home province, the big news out of Saturdays leadership vote was his defeat, not Scheers victory.

Bernier is one of the partys most valuable players on the fundraising circuit. None of his caucus rivals, including Scheer, came close to matching the amount of money his campaign collected over the past year.

By all accounts he will not be an easy fit for one of the leading economic critic roles. Beyond his understandable disappointment at the outcome of the leadership vote, Bernier has never been good at following a party script.

This is a politician who has admitted to having had decidedly mixed feelings about being assigned the prestigious foreign affairs post in Stephen Harpers government.

Bernier would rather have had a portfolio that allowed him a larger measure of independence from the Prime Ministers Office. And in his time out of the cabinet, he did not always toe the government line.

He has also spent the past year promoting policies that are unlikely to be part of Scheers election game plan.

Would, for instance, the new Conservative leader want a finance critic who would like the federal government to replace the health transfer with tax points so as to leave the future of medicare entirely at the discretion of the provinces?

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And who would push for the federal approach to equalization to be revisited so as to give the have-not provinces more incentives to grow their economies?

The party spent the Harper decade ensuring that it did not get labelled an advocate of a two-tier health-care system. And few issues have more potential to bring the political class of Atlantic Canada to the barricades than a debate over equalization.

Or would Scheer, whose victory was facilitated by a lobby of dairy farmers, be comfortable with Bernier as an international trade critic, after the latter has urged Canada, on the record, to do away with its supply management system in exchange for a deal with the U.S. on softwood lumber?

Could Bernier serve as industry critic if his long-held contention that the federal government should get out of corporate welfare is not Conservative policy? At the time of the global financial crisis, Harpers decision to bail out the Ontario auto industry went a long way to pave the road to a Conservative majority in the 2011 election. And Bombardier, for all its woes, is still an apple of the eye of many Quebec voters.

One job Bernier is unlikely to be vying for is that of Quebec lieutenant. He has never had much of a collegial relationship with his Quebec colleagues, and he is a polarizing figure in his home province.

The quasi-certainty that his former rival will not want the lead political role in Quebec should come as a relief to Scheer, for rarely has a Conservative leader had more need for a bridge-building lieutenant.

The new leaders profile in Quebec is virtually non-existent. His social conservative roots will not stand him in good stead in a province whose collective take on issues such as abortion rights, same-sex marriage and medically assisted suicide is decidedly liberal.

The notion that Scheer is a smiling version of Harper will do little to commend him to an electorate that has consistently given the former prime minister and his policies the cold shoulder.

The Conservatives may have won a majority government in 2011 with only minimal Quebec support, but that was back in the days when the province had soured on the Liberals.

Over the Harper years, the Bloc Quebecois, and then the New Democrats, dominated the province. Today the first is in an irreversible tailspin and the second is about to trade a leader with a big Quebec profile for a successor with a much smaller one.

If the Conservatives want to return to power, they must prevent Justin Trudeau from rebuilding the Quebec fortress that ensured his fathers political longevity.

On that score Scheer has his work cut out for him.

The last Leger Marketing poll, done shortly before the leadership vote, gave the Liberals a 40-point lead on the Conservatives in Quebec.

The gap increased by three points under the tentative scenario of a Scheer leadership victory.

Chantal Hebert is a national affairs writer. Her column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

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OTTAWAAid agencies are urging Canadians to respond generously to the federal governments matching fund for famine relief in Africa and the Middle East, calling it a response to the worst humanitarian crisis in decades.

The Liberal government said Monday it would match donations made by Canadians to registered charities to create a famine relief fund for more than 20 million men, women and children who are at risk of starvation.

International Development Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said the fund would support Canadian and international organizations working to provide assistance in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen and neighbouring regions.

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Conrad Sauve, the president of the Canadian Red Cross, said he recently returned from East Africa, where a cholera outbreak is adding to the misery.

Children cant go to school and adults cant go to work because their days are devoted to one thing: survival, Sauve said.

Life has become a daily struggle for food and water.

Gillian Barth, the president of CARE Canada, said the search for water and food is driving people to the brink in affected countries.

Make no mistake, people have been dying, people are dying and people will continue to die. But thousands, if not millions, of lives can be saved.

Bibeau said the governments window to match donations is from March 17 to June 30.

Millions of people in the four affected countries and neighbouring regions are in need of necessities including water, sanitation services, shelter and urgent food assistance, Bibeau added.

Bibeau urged Canadians to donate to the registered Canadian charities of their choice.

As we gather among friends and family to celebrate Canadas 150th birthday, lets take a moment to think about the role and the difference we want to make in the world.

Prior to the G7 summit in Taormina, Italy, Oxfam issued a statement suggesting political failure has led to the hunger crisis facing millions of innocent people, and that leadership would be required to resolve it.

The international development agency called directly on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his fellow G7 leaders to fund nearly half  $2.9 billion  of the UNs $6.3 billion plea to avoid hunger and more deaths.

Canadas leadership cannot come at a more critical time, said Julie Delahanty, executive director of Oxfam Canada.

A massive injection of aid is needed so that responding organizations like Oxfam can get life-saving supplies to those who need them the most, including women and children, often the most at risk.

Meg French of UNICEF Canada said the matching funds would allow aid to reach twice as many children and families in the affected areas.

In March, Canada announced $119.25 million in humanitarian funding to respond to food crises in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.

As it made the announcement, the federal government said insecurity caused by conflicts and a lack of respect for international humanitarian law hindered the response by groups looking to deliver life-saving assistance on the ground.

It is a human tragedy that the situation has deteriorated to the extent where we have over 20 million people facing starvation, Bibeau said at the time.

This assistance will be disbursed immediately to the most affected areas. We urge all actors in the affected countries to facilitate humanitarian access so that assistance can reach those most in need.

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Conservative leadership data shows social conservatives had a strong showing in suburban Toronto ridings, where anti-abortion and anti-gay marriage candidates were the first choice of a significant percentage of party members.

Social conservatives were credited with providing the final push to secure Conservative Leader Andrew Scheers victory at the partys Etobicoke convention Saturday.

According to data released by the party, that victory took place virtually in the backyard of a lot of social conservatives.

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In six Scarborough ridings, either of two social conservative candidates, Brad Trost or Pierre Lemieux, was the first choice of between 20 and 55 per cent of Conservative members. In Scarborough-Agincourt alone, Trost took in more than 49 per cent of first choice picks.

In Mississauga between 17 per cent and 24 per cent of members listed Trost or Lemieux as their first choice.

These ridings are mostly represented by Liberal MPs, so while social conservatives are a force among conservative members in these ridings, they dont appear to have the same sway with the general electorate.

The surprising support for social conservatives in Toronto is just one of the insights that can be drawn from voting data released by the Conservative Party.

The Star analyzed the first choice of all 141,000 Conservative members who voted in the partys leadership contest  essentially a 141,000-person focus group on where members want their party to go.

For the analysis, the Star grouped the 14 leadership candidates into five categories based on their policy pitches: progressive conservatives; social conservatives; big tent conservatives; law-and-order conservatives; and Maxime Bernier supporters.

The Star then mapped support for each category, measured by the percentage of support the candidates received in the first round of voting.

The results are imperfect, but offer a snapshot of the Conservative grassroots.

1. Social conservatives  Brad Trost, Pierre Lemieux

Theres been a lot of talk of the social conservatives strong showing in Saturdays contest, and their down-ballot support looks to be what sealed Andrew Scheers victory.

According to the data, social conservative voters are strongly concentrated in the Prairies but also in Ontario, where the two avowed social conservative candidates combined for 20.2 per cent members first preference.

Aside from Scarborough and Mississauga, the data suggests concentrations of social conservatives in southern Manitoba, western parts of Saskatchewan and a handful of other ridings across the country.

2. Maxime Bernier (and Kevin OLeary)

Maxime Bernier doesnt fit easily into any of the other camps, as befits a self-styled libertarian. Berniers tax cutting and small government platform played well in Alberta where he finished first. He also managed strong support in his native Quebec, although not as strong as expected.

Aside from those two regional centres, Bernier had little broader support  almost none in Atlantic Canada, B.C. or Saskatchewan. He did passably well in Ontario, taking in 24 per cent of support in the first round of voting, but losing it to Scheer by the end.

3. Progressive Conservatives  Michael Chong, Lisa Raitt, Chris Alexander

The more progressive side of the conservative movement has taken a back seat in the modern party, and this leadership race was no exception.

These candidates did best in Atlantic Canada  particularly Lisa Raitts native Cape Breton  and in urban GTA and Vancouver ridings. But together they combined for just 11.95 per cent of members first choice for leader.

4. Law and order Conservatives  Kellie Leitch, Steven Blaney

Kellie Leitchs major campaign promise  values testing for new immigrants  was lambasted as dog-whistle politics. It flopped with the Conservative membership with only seven per cent of members choosing her as their first choice. Former public safety minister Steven Blaney barely registered in the race, being the first choice of slightly more than 1 per cent.

5. Big tent Conservatives  Andrew Scheer, Erin OToole, Andrew Saxton, Rick Peterson, Deepak Obhrai

Big Tent candidates could also be called continuity candidates, here  as in, those candidates who offered a similar vision of conservatism as Stephen Harper.

Unsurprisingly, given their more broad appeals, Andrew Scheer and Erin OTooles support was spread out geographically, with strong support in Saskatchewan and in Quebec  which likely meant the difference between a Scheer leadership and a Bernier leadership.

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MONTREALFormer Quebec student leader Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois strolled to victory for Quebec Solidaire in a provincial byelection in the Montreal riding of Gouin on Monday.

Nadeau-Dubois, 26, dominated the field, capturing just over 69 per cent of the popular vote to cement the win in the riding where hed been heavily favoured.

He was up against 13 candidates to replace Francoise David, a Quebec Solidaire member who resigned her seat in January, citing fatigue.

Parti Quebecois leader Jean-Francois Lisee chose not to run a candidate in the riding in order to ensure the seat remained with Quebec Solidaire.

The move was part of an ill-fated attempt to create an electoral alliance between the PQ and the other, smaller sovereigntist party.

Lisee wanted to create a pact where the two parties would run one candidate in select ridings in order to increase the chances the Liberals would be booted from office.

The alliance crumbled, however, after members of Quebec Solidaire largely rejected the deal at the partys convention earlier in May.

It was the subject of the week so we heard a little bit about it on the ground, Nadeau-Dubois said Monday night of the PQ rejection.

But I think the result tonight could not be clearer: there is a real deep support for Quebec Solidaire in Gouin.

Quebec Solidaire, which describes itself as a progressive, sovereigntist party, has no leader.

Instead, the party is represented by one male and one female spokesperson.

Earlier this month, Nadeau-Dubois was named male spokesperson.

He became a household name in the province after his stint as spokesman for the student strike movement in 2012.

Nadeau-Dubois, who celebrates a birthday on Wednesday, said he worries his new job will mean limited time for family and friends.

My life just changed radically, but I have a wonderful team that was around me during that election and that is around me since 2012 now, and I know those people will be there for me to help me go through this new stage in my life, he said.

David first won the riding of Gouin in 2012 and repeated in 2014, winning almost 51 per cent of the vote.

Gouin had long been considered a PQ stronghold before that, with the last Liberal victory coming in 1973.

Following Mondays results, the governing Liberals have 68 of the 125 seats in the legislature, compared with 28 for the PQ, 20 for the Coalition Avenir Quebec and three for Quebec Solidaire.

There are five Independent members and one vacant seat.

Read more:Parti Quebecois is no longer the natural home of young sovereigntists: Hebert

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Toronto is fighting a developers plan to build a highrise tower right next to a downtown rail corridor because city planners say it would put office workers lives at risk if a freight train derailed.

Freed Developments wants to build a 19-storey tower directly next to the rail corridor property line. Unusually, the tower would be split down the middle, with the north and railway-facing side of the tower containing office space, and the south side of the tower containing condominiums.

But the city says the office portion of the building is too close to the rail corridor, would present an unacceptable risk to life and insists a bigger buffer zone is needed to protect the office tower and its occupants from a derailment.

However, the proposed buffer zone leaves less room for the developer to build. The developer argues the office tower will act as the buffer for the condo and its residents.

The fight, which has drawn references to the 2013 disaster in Lac Megantic, Que., is now at the Ontario Municipal Board after Freed Developments appealed the citys refusal of their building application on Dupont St. The city is citing rail safety as a major concern, which was the focus of arguments at a hearing that concluded Friday.

The city says the proposal both represents bad planning and does not create an appropriate buffer from the railway line that carries up to 40 trains daily at speed upwards of 80 kilometres per hour.

Office workers spend the majority of their day at their place of employment. If a train were derailed, the consequences would be no different than for a resident in its unit, senior city planner Giulio Cescato wrote in an often frank witness statement submitted as evidence at the board hearing. In laypersons terms; the lives of residential users are not more valuable than those of commercial office workers.

The application was first submitted in 2010 by the Wynn Family Trust for three mixed-use buildings of varying heights, between eight and 29 storeys.

Staff refused that plan in May 2011, with a report noting several problems with the design, including that it fails to address serious rail safety matters.

A statement from Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), which operates the line, said the company was not in favour of residential uses adjacent to our right-of-way as this land use is not compatible with railway operations.

Since then, Freed has taken over the site and submitted revised applications, including the current configuration in 2016: A nine-storey office building linked to the 19-storey combined office and condo building.

With no setback from the rail corridor property line, the design includes whats called a crash wall, meant to deflect a derailing train.

The developer says they are following nationally-accepted guidelines on rail safety by protecting residential uses from the threat of derailment.

But the city's rail infrastructure expert said best practice would be to set back any high-occupancy building, which he said includes offices, and argued the development as proposed presented an unacceptable risk to life.

There is no legal requirement for how far a building must be set back from the rail corridor.

National guidelines produced by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities in cooperation with the Railway Association of Canada, recommend residential uses be set back 30 metres from a railway corridor with an earthen berm separating those buildings and the rail line.

When staff studied the Dupont St. area in 2014, the citys consultants recommended residential and office uses be set back a minimum 30 metres from the rail corridor and have a berm.

But after several appeals at the OMB along the southern edge of the rail corridor, a settlement between the city and developers required a minimum 20-metre setback and alternative safety measures found acceptable by the city, such as a crash wall.

Bousfields Inc. partner and land use planner Peter Smith, hired by Freed, wrote in a witness statement that the office is not a sensitive land use and argued there could be more people in a retail space than the same sized office space, so office spaces could be allowed closer to the rail corridor.

Though the developer has not said so outright, the setback impacts how much it could construct on the land and therefore how much profit it could make. Because parts of the irregularly-shaped site are 35 to 38 metres deep, a setback of 20 or 30 metres would complicate what could be built, Smith told the OMB.

I dont think its about whether one loses 50 people in the case of a catastrophic event or 500 people, Smith said under questioning from the citys lawyer Abbie Moscovich. We all collectively have made decisions through this process, including putting more residential units closer to the rail corridor than what the purest default position would say. I dont think any of us have done that thinking were putting people in harms way. The reason that were recommending that is because of the crash wall design and mitigation measures, which are designed so that theres no loss of life. And so, if theres no loss of life, it doesnt matter if we save 50 people or whether we save 500.

Smith said he was relying on evidence from the developers other experts on rail safety measures that the wall would hold and it was not necessary to build an office further back from the rail line.

One of those experts, Lawrence Rutledge, a senior engineering technologist with Johnson Sustronk Weinstein + Associates made the following conclusion in his written statement: Based on the design of the proposed building and crash wall, the proposed office use is an appropriate buffer from the perspective of rail safety.

The citys rail infrastructure expert Patrick OConnor disagreed that the wall alone would protect whats behind it against a derailment and therefore the office should not be used as a buffer.

Should the crash wall fail so could the structure above it resulting in an unacceptable risk to life, OConnor , an engineer with consulting firm Hatch, wrote in his witness statement.

He added that the crash wall would do nothing to protect the office workers from other health hazards, such as smoke, fire, release of hazardous gases or fumes and explosion.

OConnor said a derailment on a main line like the CPR route running along Dupont can occur for a number of reasons, in any direction, at any time.

In concluding their case and urging the board to approve their proposal, Freeds lawyer David Bronskill, a partner at Toronto firm Goodmans LLP, said: What is before you is safe . . . It will not just be safe, but it will be safer than the existing situation.

The citys lawyer, Moscovich, outlined that no evidence was provided that a wall of any kind could be designed to be impenetrable.

In light of what you heard the rail infrastructure expert say, that yes a wall can be breached, you cant say unequivocally that it wont be breached and in light of that you should have some space to spare . . . do you really want to take that risk? And Id submit to you that you dont.

The final decision on whether to approve the development application is now up to the OMB member. A decision is expected in August at the earliest.

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Two men are suffering from life-threatening injuries after a stabbing outside a Subway restaurant in Ajax on the weekend.

Police responded to a disturbance call at around 7 p.m. Sunday, after a group of people outside the restaurant on Harwood Ave. S., near Bayly St. W., confronted some customers seated inside.

The altercation between the two groups moved outside when three Ajax men were stabbed, Durham Region police said.

Two 18-year-old men were transported to hospital with life-threatening injuries and are now in stable condition. Police say a 19-year-old who was hurt has since been released from hospital.

Detectives say four males, all between the ages of 15 and 16 years of age, were seen fleeing from the scene. Three of the teens were wearing hoodies, police say.

Investigators are asking anyone with new information about this incident to contact the West Division Criminal Investigations Bureau at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 2521.

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Aarti Patel has been told, a few times, to go back to where she came from.

Patel, a student of R.H. King Academy, has brown skin, looks like an Indian and speaks with a Canadian accent.

She translated her confusion about her cultural identity into words at her school newspaper, the Kingsley Voice.

She and the student staff came together to create a powerful graphic with people of different backgrounds standing in the shape of a maple leaf, with a graffiti-like font that read Go Back Home.

The edition with the graphic won the Best Newspaper (over 15 staff) honour at the Toronto Stars high school journalism awards held at the Toronto Reference Library on Monday.

This year, judges sifted through about 600 submissions in 21 categories ranging from comics to critical writing, and from humour to best electronic newspaper.

Marc Garneau Collegiate Institute won the most awards with eight first place awards followed by North Toronto Collegiate Institute with four.

This was the 21st year of the awards that give student journalists a voice and recognition.

A number of students identified with the editorial written by Patel, said Ali Javeed, co-editor in chief of the Kingsley Voice.

As second-generation immigrants, which is most of us in Scarborough and in our school, this is relevant for the majority of us, he said.

Patels editorial was the resultof a recent trip to India where she said her identity came to the fore. She said she was considered a foreigner in India not just because of her accent, but also because of how she dressed and how she thought.

I didnt exactly feel like I fit in Indian society, she said. But while Im in Canada, sometimes, Im told to go back home, go back to the country I came from.

A person can have both  the culture adopted from their parents and Canadian culture, Patel said.

And they dont have to be mutually exclusive, they can be a bit of both, she said.

Sahar Abdalla, a student of Leaside High School, won first place in feature writing (short) for a feature that showed people may be superficially different but are human at their core. Abdalla, senior editor at the Leaside Chronicle, wrote a feature about a Syrian refugee family she met, and their journey to Canada.

Even though they seem different, they have the same needs as us, they have the same feelings as us and they are human, too, she said.

This was the first time the Leaside Chronicle entered the competition.

Marc Garneaus the Reckoner, which has become the Meryl Streep of high school journalism awards, walked away with the prize for best electronic newspaper.

The edition that was submitted featured a lengthy analytical piece on U.S. President Donald Trumps win, said Grade 11 student Varun Venkataramanan, incoming editor of the Reckoner. The piece was a product of data mining and graphics heavy, he said.

Apart from telling stories, students said working on the student newspapers helped them learn life skills, how to manage people and the importance of interpersonal communication while getting a glimpse into the world of journalism.

We learned new techniques, learned about ourselves, said Faith Rahman, another senior editor at the Leaside Chronicle.

Correction  May 30, 2017: This article was edited from a previous version that referred to racial slurs in the background image of a graphic in R.H. King Academys the Kingsley Voice. In fact, the graphic showed text of statements by students regarding their cultural identity.

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One gets the impression Mayor John Tory woke up one day this spring and discovered that Toronto has a housing crisis, especially when providing affordable units for citizens on fixed income and low salaries.

Suddenly, hes after Queens Park to help the city fix the crumbling social housing stock. Or else! For a long time it has been transit; now, hes found out that housing is as much an imperative.

Some 110,000 Torontonians live in subsidized housing. Another 181,000, are on the waiting list. The current stock is crumbling, in need of $2.6 billion in repairs. Instead of fixing them, the city has sold off $71 million worth of stand-alone homes and is closing broken-down homes at a rate of 600 this year and a further 400 next year.

Read more:

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Councillors urged to spare citys vulnerable from effects of budget freeze

Half of Toronto Community Housing homes to hit critical status within five years

Mayor Tory keeps pressure on the province as he continues his social housing tour

Its unconscionable  and has been a blight on our consciousness since 1998 when it became the City of Torontos responsibility.

The Mike Harris government dumped the units on the city as part of the damnable amalgamation download almost two decades ago. Every mayor since Mel Lastman has groused about social housing. None has done more than raise a voice and evoke high-sounding moral arguments.

The time for action is now. In fact it was before now, because repairing social housing is a moral, economic and social imperative, Tory said last week.

Really? Why, then, do you not increase the citys allocation of funds to repair the damaged buildings? Why are you promoting a freeze in property taxes instead of a dedicated 1 or 2 per cent increase to build a fund that stops the closures?

The rehearsed answer is that the city has spent nearly $1 billion on the housing units. This claim glosses over the fact that much of that money comes from mortgage refinancing, asset sales, forgiveness of property tax and development charges. When it comes to real money  tax dollars that are in the competition for important services  housing isnt at the top of the food chain.

So, its not a moral imperative at all; its a political one. And, as a political issue, social housing has fallen to the bottom of the heap.

In the mayoralty election leading to the amalgamation of Toronto-area cities in 1998, the eventual winner, Mel Lastman, flubbed the issue by claiming there were no homeless people in North York. The words barely escaped his lips when a homeless woman froze to death in a bus shelter in, yes, North York.

Then-city councillor Jack Layton seized the opportunity, became Lastmans housing lieutenant, taught the mayor about the issues and before long Lastman had declared housing a national disaster. The housing file was at the top of the agenda. And news of a pending catastrophic social housing repair bill filled every newspaper.

The Mike Harris government had downloaded the housing units to Toronto without providing the cash to repair the units  all the while claiming the stock was in good shape and the province was handing the city a gift of considerable benefit. Lastman was apoplectic.

Im saying cover the costs. Dammit, whats wrong with saying cover the costs? Lastman said.

Twenty years have gone by and nothings changed  except the repair bill is nearly 10 times bigger. Internal documents reported on by the Stars Jennifer Pagliaro show half the properties will fall into critical disrepair in the next five years, under current repair programs. And now we hear that homeless people are dying on the streets at a rate of two per week this year.

Be skeptical of elected representatives who wax loud and passionate about another level of government spending money on services and issues that the local council ignores for years  until they decide its politically expedient to holler and shout.

Of course, a wise politician uses election time to extract promises from governments that need public approval and votes. And Tory is doing so  ahead of the upcoming provincial election. But when he holds a news conference with Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown who offers nothing by way of promised funding for social housing, except he wants to get criminals out of social housing, Tory risks exposing his campaign as anti-Liberal. (The NDPs Andrea Horwath, meanwhile, has promised to fund a third of the housing repair bill).

Yes, council should send a list to all Toronto-area MPPs showing the social housing in their wards that are in danger of collapse.

Yes, city council should advocate for increased funding for social housing  push to the point of embarrassing their colleagues who are too comfortable with the crisis.

Yes, the mayor is right to call on the province to partner in putting social housing in a state of good repair.

But the advocacy will have more impact when city council commits more of the citys own tax dollars to resolving the vexing problem.

Let me be clear on this, any closure of such units would be a direct result of inaction of the other governments to partner with us in carrying out those repairs, Tory says. We have shown our leadership in good faith on this.

Only if you save the units, mayor.

The people are with you on this. They will join the righteous campaign to pressure Ottawa and Queens Park, if they realize your actions match your rhetoric.

Better to say, No, we wont close the housing units when our vulnerable citizens need every one we have. We will house our poor. We will not abandon you and throw you overboard and then scream at province and federal governments to stage a rescue.

Join us in the campaign and together we will fix the 20-year-pld problem.

Royson James column appears weekly. rjames@thestar.ca

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Driving transport and dump trucks is all Ahmad Al Rasoul has known to make a living.

The 50-year-old Toronto man has worked as a truck driver in his native Syria, as well as Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon, where his family had stayed for four years before they arrived in Toronto in 2016 as government-sponsored refugees under Ottawas massive Syrian resettlement program.

My family is grateful to Canada. We dont want to be a burden to the country. We just want to start working and support our family as soon as possible, Rasoul, who fled Homs in 2012 with his wife and six children, said through an Arabic interpreter.

Everywhere I had been, I got my licence and worked right away. I expected it would take some time for lawyers and engineers to get licensed, but I didnt expect its going to take this long just to get my full licence to work as a driver in Canada.

In Ontario, because of a 12-month wait period before a G2 licenseholder can take a road test for a full G licence, Rasoul is unable to work in food deliveries and transport industry to supplement his income.

Despite a provision that allows an exemption to the waiting period for foreign-trained drivers, the required paperwork is almost impossible for refugees to obtain, especially those from war-torn countries.

With help from volunteer Omar Khan, Rasoul is taking the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO) to the human rights tribunal after officials refused to accommodate him and other refugees in similar circumstances. A hearing date is pending after a failed mediation session in May.

The exemption for foreign-trained drivers applies only to applicants who can provide written authentication of their foreign licensed driving experience from the original licensing agency or from the local embassy or consulate.

Many refugees, however, are unable to obtain such documentation from the officials of the country they fled.

In Rasouls case, he was fast-tracked for his intermediate G2 licence last June after providing a notarized translation of his still-valid Syrian truck drivers licence. However, without a functional diplomatic mission in Canada from his homeland, Rasoul cannot provide the written authentication from Syrian authorities to go directly for his G licence.

A G licence is the minimum requirement to pursue a commercial licence to drive tractor-trailers, school buses and transport trucks.

The issue for me is, we are seeing all these guys who do not want to be on social assistance and do want to work but are faced with this barrier, said Khan, a computer engineer by profession, who encouraged Rasoul to file his human rights complaints last winter.

If you arent a refugee or have some access to an embassy, you dont need to wait this one year. You can just get a stamp from your embassy saying the license you have is valid. We think this policy amounts to discrimination.

An MTO spokesperson said the ministry cannot comment on the case as it is before the human rights tribunal.

In a written response to the tribunal, however, the ministry said the waiting period was meant to provide an opportunity for drivers to practice and incrementally refine their driving skills while subject to a diminishing degree of regulatory oversight.

This regulation and policy do not create distinctions on the basis of place of origin and are not discriminatory. . . The applicant has indicated that the discrimination in this case arises because it is not possible for him to obtain the documentation set out in the policy from any Syrian authority, it said.

However, the application provides no statement as to the evidence that he relies upon to demonstrate that he has held a drivers licence in the applicable license class for at least 24 months in the last three years. Without knowing the nature of this evidence, Ontario is unable to provide a more detailed response to the application.

Abdel Al Dibel, whose family was sponsored by the Canadian government to Toronto from Lebanon in January 2016, said he too wanted to work as a driver to supplement his income from government assistance. He wont be able to take the test for a G licence until July.

I worked in construction and drove taxi in my four years in Lebanon with no issue. We love to work. We dont like to sit around, said the 50-year-old, who is not part of the human rights complaint. Ive been looking for jobs. One employer said to me, show me your G licence and I will give you a job tomorrow.

Although Rasouls 12-month wait will end soon and the individual portion of his human rights complaint will then become moot, Khan said they hope to proceed with the hearing so the circumstances of Syrian and other refugees can be accommodated and they can benefit from the current government exemption of the 12-month wait for the G licence.

We are not asking the MTO to just hand them the G licence. All we are asking is for experienced refugee drivers, the MTO waive the one-year requirement between G2 and full G testing, so these drivers can continue their testing right away, said Khan.

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Guwahati, May 29 (IBNS): Arunachal Pradesh governor P.B. Acharya addressed the 66th Plenary of North Eastern Council in New Delhi on Monday.

Speaking on the occasion the Arunachal Pradesh governor said that since 1971, the North East Council as a forum has been a significant and effective platform for discussing and deliberating upon the developmental issues of the region.

Acharya briefed the adjust gathering on the initiatives under taken by him towards preservation and protection of indigenous tribal culture, tribal scripts, rituals and identity.

The Arunachal Pradesh governor urged the members present to consider the proposal of remaining the council as NAMASTE as this acronym includes the names of all the North Eastern States of the country.

Recalling the recent visit of the 14th Dalai Lama to Arunachal Pradesh, where Dalai Lama had expressed that India is a model for others to follow with a potential to combine its ancient knowledge with modern education in the interest of developing inner peace, the governor said that rapid development in the State, which will go a long way in socio-economic empowerment of the frontier people and the State.

It will, in turn will guarantee reinforced National Security, optimum harnessing of natures bounty and economic prosperity of my State, region and the Nation as a whole. The State of Arunachal Pradesh being one of significant strategic border area States, and in light of the recent developments in relation with China. It is high time to strengthen the infrastructure including road, rail and air connectivity. Unless and until communication network and telecommunication are not up graded, the State cannot progress and this is true for the whole of North East of India, Acharya said.

The governor appreciated the efforts of the Union Ministry of Railways, in connecting Arunachal Pradesh on the railway map of India and also its recent initiative of flagging off the Naharlagun Shatabdi Express, as this has brought smile on the faces of every Arunachali.

He exhorted that railways will provide all weather and reliable transportation up in the hills.

He urged the Ministry of Railways to also expedite the remaining railways projects including the railway lines up to Tawang, Aalo and Parashuramkund. It will facilitate in transportation of organic horticultural produce, tourists and pilgrims to religious places like Malinithan and Parasuram Kund and safeguarding the frontiers.

At the very outset, the governor conveyed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for inaugurating the countrys longest (9.15 Km) bridge , i.e. Dhola Sadiya Bridge as it will instil sense of security and promote economical development of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

He also said that this bridge would be more helpful to the people of Arunachal Pradesh than those of Assam.

He highlighted that the roads are the blood artilleries for peace, development and prosperity of any State. Even though Arunachal Pradesh is the largest State of North Eastern Region, it has the least road density in the country.

The governor urged upon the Union Ministry of Road and Transport to expedite the much awaited Trans Arunachal Highway and requested the union government to actively consider the proposed Arunachal Frontier Highway and East West Corridor.

The governor briefed that Arunachal Pradesh is one of the few States without civilian air connectivity for fixed wing aircrafts. He appreciated the efforts of NEC in funding the Tezu airport project being implemented by Airports Authority of India (AAI) and urged the forum to start flight service to Tezu airport as it will connect the far eastern districts of Lohit, Namsai, Anjaw, Lower Dibang Valley and Changlang.

He briefed that the State Cabinet has approved to forward the proposal for construction of Greenfield airport at Itanagar as recommended by the Technical Committee constituted by Union Ministry of Civil Aviation and urged the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation to expedite the implementation of this project.

The governor added that Inland waterways have always been the cheapest means of transportation and the northeast region has many large and small rivers providing facilities for water transport, especially in their plains sections. In Arunachal Pradesh the rivers Siang, Lohit, Subansiri, Burhi Dihing, Noa Dihing, and Tirap are used for navigation by small country boats in those stretches where there are no rapids. This sector needs to be explored and harnessed by reviving the use of waterways- National Waterway 2 running along the Brahmaputra river.

The governor recalled the statement of Late Nanaji Deshmukh, (the then BJP Secretary in the Union Government under the leadership of Atal B. Vajpayee,) in one of the core committee meetings of the BJP, in the presence of P.B.Acharya, (the then BJP Secretary and In-Charge of North East of India) who had then stated, that the State of Arunachal Pradesh could be the Power house of the country as it has a very high Hydro-Power potential, and everyone was surprised by this statement including Atal B. Vajpayee, the then Prime Minister of India.

He added that in order to harness the Mega Hydro-Power potential of the State, the impasse due to environmental and social issues has to be resolved at the earliest. Once these projects become a reality, the State of Arunachal Pradesh would be the Power House of the country, and as a result, huge revenues would flow to the State, which can be used for its socio-economic development.

The governor apprised the gathering that the people of Arunachal Pradesh is pleased to learn about the recent step of Honble Union Minister of State for Power and Coal Piyush Goyal that the Central Government is going to plead the pending Subansiri Dam case before the National Green Tribunal to resolve the matter so that the project work can be started at the earliest.

The governor emphasised that Arunachal Pradesh is a important seat of Buddhism and Hinduism as it has the 400 years old Ganden Namgyal Lhatse Monastery at Tawang, the magnificent Golden Pagado at Tengapani and the sacred Parashuram Kund along the banks of river Lohit, the Malinithan associated with legend of Sri Krishna and his consort Rukmini, the nature gifted Siva Lingam at Ziro, and Bhismaknagar to name a few. Therefore, the Governor requested the Union Ministry of Tourism to promote Arunachal Pradesh through all the forums and include the State in the National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spirituality Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) Scheme.

Reiterating his concern on monitoring, the Governor advised on including the organized Dormant energy in the State, such as Senior Citizens, Women groups, Ex-military personnel, University Professors, University students Organizations, Red Cross Societies, NCC and NSS, Bharat Scouts and Guides, Empowered House wives as independent third party for identifying, motivating, implementing, monitoring and auditing of State and Central Government projects.

Through the NE forum, he requested the Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship for setting-up of Skill Development projects in the State, as the country needs to equip its workforce with employable skills and knowledge to make India a developed economy.

The governor also highlighted that as per the norms of UGC, it is mandatory to include Skill Development in the curriculum. Skill building is a powerful tool to empower individuals and improve their social acceptance. The challenge lies not only in a huge quantitative expansion of facilitiesafor skill training, but also in raising their quality. He added that

The State has empanelled 54 Vocational Training Providers (VTPs), have 6 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), conducted training for Capacity Building & Skill Development and organised other Short term Employable Skill Development Training sponsored by NEC and other agencies and organisations.

Arunachal Pradesh has a roadmap for skill development in the State and proposes to set up ITI in every District, Livelihood Mission School in every assembly constituency, 100 Multi Skill Development Centres (MSDCs), i.e. One Each in Every Block, setting up of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), setting up of Institute for Training of Trainers (IToT) and to organize Special Skill Development Training Programme for Self Employment for International Border Area Youth Under Border Area Development Programme (BADP).

Focusing on healthcare and education, the Governor said that the Union Government should consider providing adequate amount of funds and resources to create ample state-of-the-art institutions in the field of Science, Medical Science, Engineering, Arts, Management and other specialized streams in the State.

The governor strongly advocated for Private Public Partnerships (PPP) in the field of education, health, agriculture and allied sectors, as it will make the projects reach the beneficiaries to encourage positive participation of the private individuals.

The Arunachal Pradesh governor briefed about the history and condition of the Puroik community till 1994, and the initiatives taken by the State Government through him in empowering the Puroik Community and constitution of Autonomous Puroik Welfare Board for the Puroik community that happens to be one of the most downtrodden and backward community.

The governor called the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment to have a compassionate approach while addressing the issue of social welfare and NEC should coordinate so as to ensure that the desired benefits reach the targeted people.

Drawing attention to plights of labourers working in the State under various agencies, the Governor stressed that the Central Government, North Eastern Council and State Government must provide reasonable accommodation, drinking water, health facilities for the labourers, workers and recreation and educational facilities for their children. These labourers must be covered under Food Security Act. They must be provided the basic provisions, granted under the Act.

Highlighting on the challenges of drug menace in the State, the governor requested the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for modernizing the existing Drug de-addiction Centers at Pasighat, Tezu, Namsai, Changlang, Papum Pare and to establish a new drug de-addiction Center at Khonsa.

Sharing inputs on militancy activities in the State and challenges in mitigating it, the Governor urged the Central Government for rehabilitation package and peace bonus to end this menace of insurgency.

(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)
MARAWI, PHILIPPINESInside this lakeside city dotted with hundreds of mosques, a powerful militant designated by Daesh as its leader in the Philippines has managed to unify a disparate group of gunmen under a single command.

Over the past week, his fighters have shown their muscle, withstanding a sustained assault by the Philippine military and increasing fears that the Daeshs violent ideology is gaining a foothold in this countrys restive southern islands, where a Muslim separatist rebellion has raged for decades.

The army insists the drawn-out fight is not a true sign of the militants strength, and that the military has held back to spare civilians lives.

They are weak, Gen. Eduardo Ano, the military chief of staff, said of the gunmen, speaking at a hospital where injured soldiers were being treated. Its just a matter of time for us to clear them from all their hiding places.

As of Tuesday morning, he said the military working house-by-house had cleared 70 per cent of the city and the remaining militants were isolated.

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Still, the fighters have turned out to be remarkably well-armed and resilient.

Attack helicopters were streaking low over Marawi on Monday, firing rockets at militant hideouts, as heavily armed soldiers went house to house in search of fighters.

The Islamic gunmen have held the Philippine army at bay, burning buildings, taking at least a dozen hostages and sending tens of thousands of residents fleeing. Ano said Tuesday that the militants commander, Isnilon Hapilon, is still hiding somewhere in the city. Authorities were working to confirm that another top militant had been killed.

President Rodrigo Duterte declared martial law in the south through mid-July after the militants went on a deadly rampage in Marawi last week following an unsuccessful military raid to capture Hapilon.

In recent years, small militant groups in the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia have begun unifying under the banner of Daesh, also known as ISIS or ISIL. Jose Calida, the top Philippine prosecutor, said last week that the violence on the large southern island of Mindanao is no longer a rebellion of Filipino citizens.

Ano said three Malaysians, an Indonesian and possibly Arab extremists have been killed in the Marawi fighting, citing the latest intelligence on the matter.

Rohan Gunaratna, a terrorism expert at Singapores S. Rarajatnam School of International Studies, believes that Daesh and the smaller regional groups are working together to show their strength and declare a Philippine province part of the caliphate that Daesh says it created in the Middle East.

He said the fighting in Marawi, along with smaller battles elsewhere in the southern Philippines, may be precursors to declaring a province, which would be a huge success for the terrorists.

Last week, two suicide bombings in Jakarta, Indonesia, killed three police officers, an attack claimed by Daesh. While Indonesia has been fighting local militants since 2002, the rise of Daesh has breathed new life into those militant networks and raised concern about the risk of Indonesian fighters returning home from the Middle East.

Experts have warned that as Daesh is weakened in Syria and Iraq, battered by years of American-led attacks, Mindanao could become a focal point for regional fighters.

Southeast Asian fighters fleeing the Middle East could look to Mindanao to provide temporary refuge as they work their way home, said a report late last year by the Jakarta-based Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict, predicting a high risk of regional violence. Marawi is regarded as the heartland of the Islamic faith on Mindanao island.

Ano, the military chief, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the extremists had plotted to set Marawi ablaze entirely to project ISs influence. The extremists wanted to kill Christians in nearby Iligan city on Ramadan, the Muslim holy month of fasting, to mimic the violence seen by the world in Syria and Iraq, Ano said.

The fighters support network in Marawi remains unclear, though the power of one militant group  the Mautes  has grown in recent years. Led by members of the citys Maute clan, the group has become increasingly active in a number of towns across Lanao del Sur province, where Marawi is located, and has been instrumental in the fighting this past week.

Muslim rebels have been waging a separatist rebellion in the south of the predominantly Roman Catholic nation for decades. The largest armed group dropped its secessionist demands in 1996, when it signed a Muslim autonomy deal with the Philippine government. Amid continuing poverty and other social ills, restiveness among minority Muslims has continued.

Hapilon is an Islamic preacher and former commander of the Abu Sayyaf militant group who pledged allegiance to the Daesh group in 2014. He now heads an alliance of at least 10 smaller militant groups, including the Maute.

Maute militants flew an Daesh flag in one of the citys mosques last year, a local resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity, fearing for his safety. He said they also pressured local Muslim preachers, accustomed to a less-strict form of Islam, not to speak out against them.

But Acmad Aliponto, a 56-year-old court sheriff who decided not to flee the city, said that while the militants were well-armed, he believes they have little local support, and that the recent violence could turn more people against them.

In the end their relatives and everyday people may be the ones who will kill them, he said. Look at what they did. So many were affected.

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VERSAILLESFlexing his diplomatic muscles, French President Emmanuel Macron said he had extremely frank and direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday and launched an extraordinary attack on two state-funded Russian media outlets he accused of spreading lying propaganda during Frances presidential campaign.

Macrons full-on blast at the state news agency Sputnik and broadcaster Russia Today came at a news conference with Putin standing at his side. His comments underscored the clear differences between the two men on multiple issues and fulfilled the French presidents campaign promises to pull no punches with Russia when needed.

But after more than two hours of meetings  their first since Macrons May 7 election and longer than scheduled  both leaders also signalled a shared desire not to let disagreements define their fledgling relationship. The fight against terrorism, in particular, appeared to offer common ground.

Putin said Macron proposed a framework for French and Russian anti-terror experts to meet and work together. And both leaders agreed they dont want Syria  where Russia is propping up the government of President Bashar Assad  to collapse into a failed state.

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Progress in Syria will happen by a joint effort, which today we laid the foundations for, Macron said.

Speaking through a translator, Putin said the two countries were totally capable of trying to progress together on world affairs.

What unites us allows us to hope that the possibility exists to improve our ties, he added later.

But there was no disguising the rifts.

Macron said he spoke to Putin about LGBT rights in the Russian republic of Chechnya and about the rights of embattled non-governmental organizations in Russia, vowing to be vigilant on these issues. Earlier Monday, human rights activists protesting near the Eiffel Tower displayed a banner that said, Stop homophobia in Chechnya.

Any use of chemical weapons in Syria is a red line for France and would be met by reprisals and an immediate riposte from the government, Macron said.

He did not specify the form of such reprisals, but France flies warplanes over Syria and Iraq, striking Daesh targets as part of an international coalition.

On Sputnik and Russia Today, Macron showed little restraint, saying the two organizations spread untruths about me and my campaign during the French election.

I will not give an inch on this, he said. Russia Today and Sputnik ... behaved as organs of influence, of propaganda, of lying propaganda.

Putin, seemingly unfazed, pushed back any suggestion that Russia sought to influence the election. Russian meddling became a concern in France after allegations that Russia sought to interfere in the U.S. presidential contest that elected Donald Trump and after a document leak hit Macrons campaign in the final hours of the French race.

Putin also hosted Macrons far-right rival, Marine Le Pen, at the Kremlin in March. On Monday, he defended that gesture as simple good manners, saying it would have been strange to rebuff Le Pens Russia-friendly overtures.

That doesnt mean that we tried to influence the results of the election. Besides, that is almost impossible, he said.

Macron was the first Western leader to speak to Putin after the Group of Seven summit the French leader attended over the weekend, where relations with Russia were a key topic. These first forays into world diplomacy by the French president who has never before held elected office have shown the 39-year-old to be a quick learner and self-confident, willing to take the calculated risk of voicing firm views on thorny issues.

Macron portrayed the Putin meeting as just a first step in resetting relations with Russia.

Big things are built over time, he said. It was an exchange that was extremely frank, direct, with a lot of things that were said.

We have disagreements, but at least we talked about them, he added.

After the deterioration in ties under Macrons predecessor, Socialist Francois Hollande, Putin expressed the hope that in Macron and his team there will be more people who understand us.

The body language Monday was good. Their first handshakes  relatively brief and cordial  were far less macho than Macrons now-famous who-will-blink-first handshake showdown with Trump when the two leaders met last week for the first time. Macron and Putin also hugged goodbye and shook hands, both smiling, after ending their meetings with a visit to an exhibit about the 300th anniversary of Russian Czar Peter the Greats trip to Paris.

The venue for the exhibit and Putins visit was the sumptuous Palace of Versailles, west of Paris. Putin seemed wowed, saying he was very impressed by the grandeur of France, by its history.

The news conference was held in the palaces largest room, the Gallery of Great Battles, which celebrates 14 centuries of French military successes.

Macron, almost lecturing Putin, couldnt resist the opportunity to hammer home a message.

These military victories, he said, should never make us forget that they were always the result of lack of understanding.

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BROOKHAVEN, MISS.It was after midnight when a gunman burst into the living room of a southern Mississippi home where young people were playing video games.

Caleb Edwards, 15, said the man  whom he knows as Corey Godbolt  demanded to know where his cousins parents where. Jordan Blackwell, 18, said they were gone to another town.

At that, Godbolt just started shooting, Caleb said.

As people scrambled to hide inside the Brookhaven home, Blackwell used his own body to shield his cousin Caleb from the gunfire.

With his mother standing by his side Monday, Caleb spoke calmly as he recounted to The Associated Press how he felt the force of the impact as Blackwell was shot Sunday.

Read more:I aint fit to live: Mississippi man in custody after 8 killed in rampage

He loved me enough to take some bullets for me, Caleb said.

Calebs 11-year-old brother, Austin Edwards, was also shot to death in that living room early Sunday. They were among the eight people killed in three houses in a rampage that started late Saturday after law enforcement officers were called about a domestic dispute. A deputy sheriff was among those killed. The other seven were all relatives or acquaintances of the accused shooter.

Investigators said Willie Corey Godbolt, 35, will be charged with one count of capital murder and seven counts of first degree murder. Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman Warren Strain said the charges could change as the investigation continues.

Godbolt was hospitalized for a gunshot wound and was in good condition Monday; it wasnt clear who shot him. He could make an initial court appearance Tuesday.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation identified some of those killed as: Barbara Mitchell, 55; Brenda May, 53; Tocarra May, 35; Ferral Burage, 45; and Shelia Burage, 46; and deputy William Durr, 36. The parents of Austin Edwards and Jordan Blackwell identified their sons as the other victims.

Brookhaven is a south Mississippi city surrounded by pine trees and rolling green pastures. The outbreak of violence has shaken the county of 34,500 residents.

More than a dozen people stood in the driveway of Edwards and Blackwells grandparents Monday afternoon and joined hands for prayer.

We need you, oh God, to be with this family in their grief, said Richard Thomas, pastor of New Home Church of Christ Holiness.

Jordan Blackwell played linebacker for the Brookhaven High football team. As he prepared for his senior year, two universities and a nearby community college had already expressed interest in him, said his mother, Tiffany Blackwell. She and her husband, Shon, described their son as cheerful and unselfish. She said Jordan dreamed of getting a Camaro for high school graduation.

Tears rolled down one cheek Monday as Tiffany Blackwell described coming home and finding her slain son.

When I walked in the house and saw my child lying there, I just thought he was sleeping, she said. I told him to wake up. I told him to get up, but he wouldnt move.

Caleb described his younger brother, Austin, as a happy kid who liked to play and cook.

Caleb said after his brother was shot, I thought I was going to die.

Godbolt showed up at Vincent Mitchells Bogue Chitto home before midnight Saturday to demand that his estranged wife give up their two children. She and the children had been staying with them for about three weeks, Mitchell told AP.

Hed come to get his kids. The deputy was called, and asked him to leave, and it seemed like Godbolt would comply at first, Mitchell said.

He acted like, motioned like, he was fixing to go. Then he reached in his back pocket and grabbed a gun, Mitchell said. He just started shooting everything.

Mitchell said he escaped along with Godbolts wife, but Mitchells wife, her sister and one of the wifes daughters were killed. Authorities said Godbolt fled and killed four more people at two other homes.

At least seven hours elapsed between the first shootings and Godbolts arrest near the final crime scene, in a subdivision of ranch houses.

The deputy, William Durr, had worked in Christian ministry before going into law enforcement, and liked doing puppet shows to deliver uplifting messages to children. Durr was married and had an 11-year-old son. His mother spoke briefly with the AP on Monday, saying that the family is still in distress.

He was a good Christian man, Debbie Durr said at her rural home near Brookhaven. He was a youth minister and a pastor before going into law enforcement.

Godbolt told The Clarion-Ledger that he hadnt planned to be captured alive.

My intentions was to have God kill me. I ran out of bullets, he said. Suicide by cop was my intention.

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Recently, Premier Kathleen Wynne threw down the gauntlet with Matawa First Nations, demanding it decide once and for all on the route of a long-discussed road to access the mineral-rich Ring of Fire region in the provinces northeast.

The problem with the premiers challenge is that it is her government that has failed to come up with a strong direction for this supposed road to riches. The government has left it to various mining companies to propose potential routes while providing some funds to four communities that would be affected by the building of the mining road and subsequent opening up of their traditional territory to development.

The government is willing to put $1 billion on the table to pay for the road and invest more than $6.9 million in negotiations with Matawa First Nations for regional infrastructure among others.

Unfortunately, it has done little to actually assess the broader economic, social, and environmental impacts and opportunities of developing the region. This is a failure that speaks volumes about its weak approach to assessing the pros and cons of major developments in remote regions.

Development of the mineral-rich Ring of Fire has been touted as the next big opportunity to ignite the provinces mining sector since 2009. But as commodity prices tanked and the original project proponent, Cliffs Natural Resources, pulled out in 2013, the government has refused to take up any opportunity to engage in thoughtful regional and strategic planning.

As scientists who have been working in the Far North for more than a decade, weve seen no effort to consider how, at the regional level, we might better ensure that projects result in real, sustainable gains for First Nation communities  and all Ontarians. Weve seen no effort to strategically assess what is at stake ecologically before introducing mines, roads and transmission lines into one of the worlds last intact wild areas.

Weve seen no effort to engage First Nations and other Ontarians in building a vision for this globally unique region that serves as a: source of mineral wealth; a storehouse for carbon crucial to the fight against climate change; a refuge for threatened species such as caribou; and a living foundation for First Nation culture tied to treaty and Indigenous rights in Ontarios Far North.

We are putting the cart before the horse in debating whether roads should be built to serve mines, or communities, or both.

The government has had plenty of notice, and advice, about the inadequacy of its planning processes in the Ring of Fire. Reform of Ontarios outdated Environmental Assessment Act has been recommended by both the Environmental Commissioner for Ontario and the provinces Auditor General. These experts have identified the need for a better process for determining the social, cultural, environmental and economic benefits of any given development project.

Most mining projects in Ontario are not even subject to individual environmental assessments. That means we cant take a closer look at the impacts  let alone merits  of individual mines before the shovels hit the ground. Thats not even considering the additional impacts of transmission corridors or rail lines needed to service them.

The premiers effort to place responsibility for a holdup of the Ring of Fire road on First Nations is unfair and misdirected. It is her governments refusal to develop a comprehensive regional approach that considers the trade-offs of development and protection more carefully that is to blame.

In fact, rather than threatening more piecemeal planning  such as unilateral consultations with communities that want the road  Wynne should take the time to read the recently released advice of the federal expert panel on environmental assessment reform.

The panel has clearly stated that the project-by-project assessment process currently being used in Ontario cannot be relied upon to deliver on sustainable regional outcomes. We need improved project-level assessment as well as more robust processes that help us address cumulative effects, including the growing impacts of climate change.

Just as we cant plan a neighbourhood one road  or house  at a time, we cannot plan for sustainable economies, healthy ecosystems, and First Nations interests one project at a time. Instead, we need a vision of where we want to go and an understanding of how individual projects will or will not help get us there.

Wynne must now demand provincial leadership on the Ring of Fire that provides clear road map for the development and conservation of the region rather than rely on current piecemeal planning efforts and ultimatums that have us headed for the ditch. The road map includes a path toward more far-sighted planning in Ontarios Far North.

Dr. Cheryl Chetkiewicz is a conservation scientist with Wildlife Conservation Society Canada and co-author of Getting It Right in Ontarios Far North. Dr. Justina Ray is president and senior scientist at WCS Canada, a former member of Ontarios Far North Science Advisory Panel.

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The pressure is on for Canada to return to Afghanistan. Can Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resist it?

So far Trudeau seems to be holding firm. We have no troops in Afghanistan at this time, he said last week. But we are happy to be supportive in other ways.

Canadas problem, however, is that it is one of only two NATO countries that does not have troops in Afghanistan (the other is France). This is at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump wants NATO to do more in that country.

Technically, the NATO-led coalition in Afghan no longer engages in combat. Rather its role is to advise, assist and train local troops.

The biggest contributor to the 13,459 member force is the U.S., which has about 8,400 troops (including special forces outside of NATOs command) operating in the country.

The smallest is Luxembourg, with one.

But the problem facing the NATO-led force is that it is losing. The Taliban poses a significant threat in at least 40 per cent of the country. The Afghan army on its own has been unable to defeat the insurgents.

Added to this is the growing presence in Afghanistan of the terrorist group Daesh, also known as the Islamic State.

To meet these problems, the American general in charge of the NATO-led forces wants Washington to send between 3,000 and 5,000 additional military advisers. The Trump White House is said to be split over the request. No matter how this is sorted out, Trump wants other NATO members to share any pain.

Jens Stoltenberg, NATOs secretary-general, said Thursday that a decision on the exact number of troops to be deployed by the alliance will be made later this year.

Oddly enough, Trudeaus rhetoric on NATO may make it more difficult for Canada to avoid contributing troops to any expanded Afghan mission.

Faced with a U.S. president determined to have other NATO members spend more on defence, Trudeau has argued eloquently that money isnt everything.

Canada has always been one of the go-to partners in NATO, he said last week, a country that consistently steps up and steps forward and delivers.

His point is that while Canada may not meet NATOs self-imposed requirement that each member spend two per cent of gross domestic product on defence, it is willing to put its soldiers lives in jeopardy for the alliance.

He shouldnt be surprised if the Trump White House asks him to continue this brave tradition by once again committing Canadian soldiers to the Afghan mission.

Behind all of this is the spectre of the upcoming North American Free Trade Agreement renegotiation.

The Trudeau government is fixated on keeping the trade pact linking Canada, the U.S. and Mexico intact. Ottawa looks at everything, including defence, through a NAFTA lens.

The government strategy to date has been threefold. First, it is waging a public relations blitz to convince American lawmakers that it is in their own national interest to keep NAFTA more or less as is.

Second, it is waging a charm offensive to convince Trump that Trudeau is his, and Americas, best friend.

Third, it is hinting  more in sorrow than in anger  that, if forced, Canada can engage in trade practices of its own to make life difficult for American firms.

But of the three, the charm offensive is key. Faced with a president who takes perceived slights badly, Trudeau is going out of his way to stay on Trumps good side.

He has postponed public release of Canadas new defence strategy in order to give Trump and his aides a sneak peek. He has put off any decision on Canadas role in UN peacekeeping until he can figure on how best to mesh it with Trumps military desires.

Yes, Trudeau is standing up against Trumps demand that Canada, in order to meet the NATO target, double its military spending.

But the prime minister is implicitly saying that Ottawa will meet its NATO obligations in other ways.

Perhaps sending 450 Canadian troops to Latvia to face down the Russians will suffice. Perhaps the roughly 200 Canadian special forces advising the Iraqis engaged in the battle for Mosul will be enough. Perhaps Trumps attention will wander.

If not, prepare for a return to Afghanistan. No combat of course. Stoltenberg has ruled out a return back to combat for any NATO troops sent there.

Just training. And advising. And assisting.

Thomas Walkom appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

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Bank of Montreal provides diversified financial services primarily in North America. The company's personal banking products and services include checking and savings accounts, credit cards, mortgages, and financial and investment advice services; and commercial banking products and services comprise business deposit accounts, commercial credit cards, business loans and commercial mortgages, cash management solutions, foreign exchange, specialized banking programs, treasury and payment solutions, and risk management products for small business and commercial banking customers. It also offers investment and wealth advisory services; digital investing services; financial services and solutions; and investment management, and trust and custody services. In addition, the company provides life insurance, accident and sickness insurance, and annuity products; creditor and travel insurance to bank customers; and reinsurance solutions. Further, it offers client's debt and equity capital-raising services, as well as loan origination and syndication, and treasury management; strategic advice on mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and recapitalizations, as well as valuation and fairness opinions; and trade finance, risk mitigation, and other operating services. Additionally, the company provides research and access to markets for institutional, corporate, and retail clients; trading solutions that include debt, foreign exchange, interest rate, credit, equity, securitization and commodities; new product development and origination services, as well as risk management advice and services to hedge against fluctuations; and funding and liquidity management services to its clients. It operates through approximately 900 bank branches and 3,300 automated banking machines in Canada and the United States. Bank of Montreal was founded in 1817 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.
Pyongyang, May 29 (IBNS) : North Korea has fired another missile off its east coast as part of its efforts to to build nuclear-tipped ICBMs that can reach the US mainland, The Guardian reported.

Quoting South Korean military, the report said the missile landed inside Japans Exclusive Economic Zone, in the Sea of Japan.

Yoshihide Suga, a spokesman for the Japanese government, has been quoted as saying that Japan has strongly protested the launch to Pyongyang. There were no reports of damage, he said.

This ballistic missile launch by North Korea is highly problematic from the perspective of the safety of shipping and air traffic and is a clear violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions, Suga told reporters in televised remarks.

Japan absolutely cannot tolerate North Koreas repeated provocative actions. We have strongly protested to North Korea and condemn its actions in the strongest terms.

A statement by South Koreas Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launch came from around the eastern North Korean coastal town of Wonsan. The military said it was a short-range Scud missilethat flew about 450km (280 miles).
Terex Corporation manufactures and sells aerial work platforms and materials processing machinery worldwide. It operates in two segments, Aerial Work Platforms (AWP) and Materials Processing (MP). The AWP segment designs, manufactures, services, and markets aerial work platform equipment, utility equipment, and telehandlers under the Terex and Genie brands. Its products include portable material lifts, portable aerial work platforms, trailer-mounted articulating booms, self-propelled articulating and telescopic booms, scissor lifts, utility equipment, and telehandlers, as well as related components and replacement parts for construction and maintenance of industrial, commercial, institutional, and residential buildings and facilities, utility and telecommunication lines, construction and foundation drilling applications, and other commercial operations, as well as in tree trimming and various infrastructure projects. The MP segment's materials processing and specialty equipment includes crushers, washing systems, screens, trommels, apron feeders, material handlers, pick and carry cranes, rough terrain cranes, tower cranes, wood processing, biomass and recycling equipment, concrete mixer trucks and concrete pavers, conveyors, and related components and replacement parts under the Terex, Powerscreen, Fuchs, EvoQuip, Canica, Cedarapids, CBI, Simplicity, Franna, Terex Ecotec, Finlay, Terex Washing Systems, Terex MPS, Terex Jaques, Terex Advance, ProStack, Terex Bid-Well, MDS, and Terex Recycling Systems brands and business lines. Its products are used in construction, infrastructure, and recycling projects; quarrying and mining, and material handling applications; maintenance applications to lift equipment or material; and landscaping and biomass production industries. The company offers financing solutions to assist customers in the rental, leasing, and acquisition of its products. Terex Corporation was incorporated in 1986 and is based in Norwalk, Connecticut.
The following companies are subsidiares of Ingersoll Rand: 13125882 Canada Inc., 211 E. Russell Road LLC, 4458664 Canada Inc., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES ASIA PTE. LTD., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES BORROWER S.C.A., ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES LLC, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES MIDDLE EAST FZE, ACCUDYNE INDUSTRIES SERVICES LIMITED, ASTRUM IT GmbH, Accudyne Industries Acquisition S.A r.l, Accudyne Industries Canada Inc., Accudyne Industries S.A r.l., Air Dimensions, Air Dimensions Inc., Albin Pump SAS, BOC Edwards Global Low pressure Air business, CISA S.p.A., Cameron-Centrifugal Compression, Comercial Ingersoll-Rand (Chile) Limitada, Comingersoll-Comercio E Industria De Equipamentos S.A., CompAir, CompAir (Hankook) Korea Co. 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New York, May 30 (Just Earth News): We can't change nature, but we can be prepared if we have the right information a that was the message from a major United Nations conference on risk reduction in Cancun, Mexico, which closed with a call for all countries to systematically measure losses from natural disasters.

We can only prove progress on reducing disaster losses if we know accurately what those losses are, Robert Glasser, the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, said in his closing remarks.

The 2017 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction wrapped up late Friday with a call for facts and figures on economic and human losses in natural disasters. The deadline would be 2020, the same as the date set out in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction for all countries to have in place strategies for disaster loss reduction.

Last year, 445 million people were affected by disasters linked to natural hazards worldwide including floods, storms, earthquakes and drought, 8,000 people lost their lives and direct economic losses from major disaster events were estimated at $138.8 billion.

The World Bank estimates that the real cost to the global economy from disasters is $520 billion per year and that they push 24 million people into poverty annually.

 If you don't measure something  transparently  it's not going to happen, said Glasser, stressing the importance of effective monitoring.

Held every two years since the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami to discuss disaster reduction, the 2017 Global Platform  the fifth such event to date  brought together some 6,000 Heads of State, policy makers, disaster risk managers, civil society and other participants.

This is the first international summit on disaster since the Sendai Framework, which was adopted in 2015 in the northern Japanese city after which it was named, and consists of seven targets and four priorities for action that aim for the substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries.

The first cycle of monitoring progress on implementing the Sendai Framework is scheduled to be launched in early 2018.

Photo: World Bank/Wu Zhiyi

Source: www.justearthnews.com
Eight employees of the Ministry of Social Development and Family Services have been referred
Militants launched 48 attacks on positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in ATO area in Donbas over the past day.

This is reported by the ATO press center.

In Mariupol direction, militants used 82mm mortars to shell Ukrainian positions outside Marinka (35 km south-west of Donetsk) and 122mm to fire at Ukrainian servicemen near Krasnohorivka (29 km west of Donetsk). Illegal armed formations also launched attacks on ATO troops outside Shyrokyne (20km east of Mariupol), Vodiane (16km north-west of Donetsk), Pavlopol (30 km northeast of Mariupol), Hnutove (19km north-west of Mariupol) and Novotroitske (32km south of Donetsk), using grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms.

In Donetsk direction, the tensest situation was again observed near Avdiivka (18km north of Donetsk), where the enemy launched attacks, using 82mm mortars, grenade launchers and small arms. ATO troops also came under grenade launcher fire near Pisky (12km north-west of Donetsk).

In Luhansk direction, Ukrainian positions outside Krymske (42.5km north-west of Luhansk) and Katerynivka (64km west of Luhansk) came under 82mm mortar and grenade launcher fire. Militants also used heavy machine guns and anti-tank grenade launcher to fire at Ukrainian strongholds outside Troitske (69km west of Luhansk).

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An official meeting of Defense Ministers of Ukraine and the Czech Republic will be held in Kyiv on Monday, May 29, the Ukrainian Defense Ministrys press service reports.

On May 29, in the scope of the official visit of the delegation of the Ministry of Defense of the Czech Republic to Ukraine, Defense Minister of Ukraine, Army General of Ukraine Stepan Poltorak will hold a meeting with Defense Minister of the Czech Republic, Mr. Martin Stropnicky," reads a report.

According to the Defense Ministry, delegations of defense departments of Ukraine and the Czech Republic will hold negotiations, and a joint statement is expected to be signed.

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Three local residents were wounded and 42 buildings (40 private residences, a town hospital and a comprehensive school) were damaged as a result of Sunday shelling of town of Krasnohorivka in Donetsk region by militants.

Head of the National Police department in Donetsk region Vyacheslav Abroskin posted this on Facebook.

"Three local residents  two women and one man  were wounded as a result of morning shelling (May 28, 2017). Forty-two buildings were damaged: 40 private houses, one town hospital and one comprehensive school," Abroskin wrote and posted the photos.

In the morning of May 28, Russian-backed militants shelled the town of Krasnohorivka, Donetsk region, for several hours. As a result of shelling, residential buildings and infrastructure facilities were damaged, civilians suffered. Most of the town was left without water supply. A special subdivision of the CORD (Corps of operational and sudden action) of the National Police of Ukraine was sent to secure the order and provide assistance to citizens.

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New York, May 30 (Just Earth News): For the first time since a United Nations-brokered treaty to stop illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing went into force, the countries that endorsed it are meeting in Norway to discuss how to make it a success.

The week-long meeting in Oslo is expected to define the responsibilities of the concerned states as well as Regional Fisheries Management Organizations and other international bodies, according to the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), which helps countries implement the landmark treaty.

Those issues include how a port will notify everyone concerned when a ship violates the treaty, and what resources developing countries might need to do such work.

Participants at the week-long event in Oslo, which began on Monday, are from the more than 46 countries that have endorsed the Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (PSMA).

Adopted as an FAO Agreement in 2009 after a years-long diplomatic effort, the PSMA is the first ever binding international treaty that focuses specifically on illicit fishing.

This treaty signals a real sea change in the international community's commitment to combat IUU fishing in a concerted and joint manner, said Arni M. Mathiesen, FAO's Assistant Director-General for Fisheries and Aquaculture.

Parties to the PSMA currently account for more than two-thirds of the global fish trade and range from Albania, Cuba and Palau, to Indonesia and the United States. Japan  one of the world's largest fish importers  and Montenegro will become full parties next month.

IIU fishing amounts to up to 26 million tonnes worth $23 billion a year, FAO has said, calling it a huge threat to all efforts to bolster sustainable fishing in the world's oceans.

The practice is considered so harmful that is it explicitly listed in the Sustainable Development Goals. The international community aims to end the practice by 2020.

According to FAO, parties to the PSMA are obliged to implement a number of measures while managing ports under their control, with the goals of detecting illegal fishing, stopping ill-caught fish from being offloaded and sold, and ensuring information on unscrupulous vessels is shared globally.

These include requiring foreign fishing vessels wishing to enter ports to request permission in advance, and transmitting detailed information on their identities, activities, and the fish they have onboard.

Ships suspected of being involved in IUU fishing can be denied entry into port outright; permitted to enter for inspection purposes only; or permitted to enter but refused permission to offload fish, refuel, or resupply.

UN Photo/M Guthrie

Source: www.justearthnews.com
Ukrainian confectionery producers received more than ten offers to conclude promising export contracts during a business trip to the Republic of Korea.

This is reported by the Ukrainian Food Export Board, UFEB.

"We visited Korea on May 15-19 to take part in the Seoul Food & Hotel 2017. Each of the confectionery companies received more than ten promising working contacts and now makes efforts to transform them into the trade contracts. The Republic of Korea is one of the most demanding world market in terms of quality and wrapping, so the fact that our companies are of interest speaks of good standing of the Ukrainian confectionery industry in the world," UFEB director Bohdan Shapoval said.

According to him, Korean importers got interested in Ukrainian dairy products as well. However, Shapoval noted that Ukraine had no permit to export dairy products to South Korea.

As of today, Ukraine has a share of about 2% of the total food product imports of the Republic of Korea.

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The representatives of Ukrainian delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly have submitted the analytical report on ties of the Russian Federation to the terrorist organizations in the Middle East and Central Asia to the NATO PA Vice-President.

Head of the Ukrainian delegation to the NATO PA Iryna Friz wrote this on her Facebook page.

"During the NATO PA spring session in Tbilisi, I submitted the analytical report on the ties of the Russian Federation to the terrorist organizations in the Middle East and Central Asia to NATO PA Vice-President Mr. Rasa Jukneviciene and members of national delegations," she wrote.

Friz added that the document contained "the facts and analysis of ways of communication, support and coordination of the Russian Federation's actions with ISIS, Taliban, Hamas, Hezbollah, and so on."

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In Ukraine, all border crossing checkpoints of the State Border Guard Service are equipped with biometric control devices.

The Consular Service of the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine informed this on Twitter.

"The State Border Guard Service has equipped all checkpoints with biometric control devices," the report said.

As reported, on May 26, President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree on additional measures aimed to ensure unhindered implementation by Ukrainian citizens of the right to visa-free travel to the European Union.

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Colombo, Sri Lanka, May 29 (IBNS) : Severe flooding triggered by by monsoon rains across southwestern portions of Sri Lanka has left 169 people dead, CNN reported quoting the country's Ministry of Disaster Management.

As many as 112 people are still missing, and the death toll is expected to rise, as authorities battle to rescue those still stranded and warn of the possibility of crocodile attacks, the report said.

"It was only the next morning that troops arrived in boats, and took us to safe ground," Banakiyanage Gnanawathie, who lives in the badly hit town of Matara, told CNN by phone.
Iraqi armed forces launched an operation Saturday to capture the last Islamic State-held enclave in Mosul, according to a military statement.

The fall of the city would, in effect, mark the end of the Iraqi half of the "caliphate" declared nearly three years ago by IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, which also covers parts of Syria.

The enclave includes the Old City center and three adjacent districts along the western bank of the Tigris river.

The U.S.-backed offensive in Mosul, now in its eighth month, has taken longer than planned as the militants are dug in among civilians.

"The joint forces have began liberating the remaining districts," an Iraqi military statement said.

Another military statement announced the deaths of two Iraqi colonels during the fighting Saturday.

Desperate civilians trapped behind Islamic State lines now face a harrowing situation with little food and water, no electricity and limited access to hospitals.

The Iraqi air force dropped leaflets on Friday urging residents to flee, but humanitarian groups say they fear for the safety of those trying to escape.

Al-Nuri mosque

The push inside the Old City coincided with the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. The offensive's prime target is the medieval al-Nuri mosque with its landmark leaning minaret, where the IS black flag has been flying since mid-2014.

Iraqi armed forces hope to capture the mosque  where Baghdadi announced the "caliphate"  in the next few days. Residents in the Old City sounded desperate in telephone interviews over the past few days.

"We're waiting for death at any moment, either by bombing or starving," one said, asking not to be identified. "Adults eat one meal a day, either flour or lentil soup."

The United Nations expressed deep concern for the hundreds of thousands of civilians behind Islamic State lines, in a statement Saturday from the organization's undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs, Stephen O'Brien.

"Although the U.N. is not present in the areas where fighting is occurring, we have received very disturbing reports of families being shut inside booby-trapped homes and of children being deliberately targeted by snipers," he said.

Residents said millet, usually used as bird feed, is being cooked like rice as food prices increased tenfold. People were seen collecting wild mallow plants in abandoned lots and also eating mulberry leaves and other plants.

About 700,000 people, about a third of the pre-war city's population, have already fled, seeking refuge either with friends and relatives or in camps.

The insurgents are also retreating in Syria, mainly in the face of U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces.

Further fighting

The insurgency is expected to continue in the sparsely populated desert region along the Syrian border even if Mosul is fully captured.

Iranian-backed Shi'ite paramilitary forces are fighting Islamic State in that part of the country where Baghdadi is believed to be, according to U.S. and Iraqi officials.

On Saturday, Iran announced for the first time the death of a senior commander during the operations launched in October to drive the Islamist militants out of Mosul and the surrounding Nineveh province.

Shaaban Nassiri, a senior commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), was killed west of Mosul, near the border with Syria, according to Mashregh, an Iranian news website.

The IRGC is the main backer of the Iraqi Shi'ite paramilitary force known as Popular Mobilization. Iraq's Shi'ite-led government is aiming to control the border in coordination with the Iranian-backed Syrian army.

Linking up the two sides would give Syrian President Bashar al-Assad a significant advantage in the six-year rebellion against his rule.
Bodies of what appeared to be executed civilians were found in a ravine outside a besieged Philippine city Sunday as a six-day occupation by Islamist rebels resisting a military onslaught took a more sinister turn.

The eight dead men, most of them shot in the head and some with hands tied behind their backs, were laborers who were stopped by Islamic State-linked militants on the outskirts of Marawi City while trying to flee clashes, according to police.

Nine spent bullet casings were found on a blood-stained patch of road at the top of the ravine. Attached to one of the bodies was a sign that said Munafik (traitor).

Rebels suspected

The discovery confirms days of speculation that Maute rebels had killed civilians during a bloody takeover of Marawi City, that the military believes is aimed at winning the Maute recognition from the Islamic State group in the Middle East as a Southeast Asian affiliate.

The army deployed additional ground troops over the weekend and dispatched helicopters to carry out rocket strikes on Maute positions as fighters held buildings and a bridge deep inside a predominantly Muslim city where few civilians remained.

At least 41 militants were killed and 13 military as of Saturday, according to the army. The number of civilian dead was unknown.

Determined to stay

The fierce resistance of the Maute gunmen and the apparent executions of civilians will add to growing fears that subscribers to Islamic States radical ideology are determined to establish a presence in the southern Philippines, with the support of extremists from Indonesia and Malaysia.

Marawi police officer Jamail C Mangadang told Reuters the eight men found dead were carpenters who were part of an evacuation convoy stopped by rebels late Saturday.

Recalling information provided by their manager, Mangadang said the victims were pulled off a truck because they were unable to cite verses of the Koran, the Islamic Holy text.

Days-long battle

Fierce battles restarted Sunday as ground troops engaged Maute fighters with heavy gunfire. Plumes of smoke were seen on the horizon and helicopters fired at least eight rockets on rebel positions.

A surveillance drone circled the sky above Marawi City. Some civilians left on foot, others were seen tying white cloths to poles to distinguish themselves from militants as soldiers huddled behind armored vehicles slowly advanced.

An ambulance was seen speeding away from the fighting, and soldiers said a captured militant was inside.

Tens of thousands of people have fled Marawi since Tuesday, when militants went on the rampage seizing a school, a hospital, and a cathedral.

Christians were taken hostage, according to church leaders, and more than 100 inmates, among them militants, were freed when rebels took over two jails.

Zia Alonto Adiong, a local politician who is coordinating efforts to get people out of the city, said there were bodies of civilians in Marawi. He criticized the military for conducting air strikes and for hampering efforts to evacuate civilians.

Some have no food at all. Some fear for their lives, he said. This is a conflict that has gone beyond proportion. The magnitude of the degree of the damage and the people that are affected ... its really massive.

Abu Sayyaf leader escapes

The violence erupted in the moments after a failed attempt by security forces to capture Isnilon Hapilon, a leader of a radical faction of another extremist group, who the government believes is Islamic States point-man in the Philippines.

The military is certain the Maute are protecting Hapilon and had narrowed down his location. Hapilon leads a radical faction of another Mindanao-based group, the Abu Sayyaf.

The little-known Maute group has staged similar, days-long sieges on Mindanao island but none on the scale of Marawi, where witnesses said flags resembling those of Islamic State had been flown and some men were wearing black headbands.

Another concern for the government was the discovery of foreign fighters with the Maute, among them Indonesians and Malaysians, suggesting what was once a domestic problem could mushroom into a larger regional security threat.
A 44-year-old man has been stoned to death by the al-Shabab militant group in Rama Addey town in southern Somalia's Bay region, reports say.

The al-Shabab militant group on its official website said the man was convicted for adultery in Ufurow town, 60 kilometers west of Baidoa. Al-Shabab said the relatives of the woman involved reported the case on May 20.

In an audio posted on the website Sunday, an al-Shabab judge says the man identified as Dhayow Mohamed Hassan confessed to adultery while being married to two women. The militant judge accused the man of impregnating a woman outside of marriage. The judge proclaimed his sentence was stoning to death upon confession. There is no independent confirmation of the confession and al-Shabab has not published any evidence.

Al-Shabab courts are not public and its hard to verify confessions and other allegations against the defendants. It's not the first time the group has carried out this kind of punishment.

Scholar condemnation

Somali religious scholar Sheikh Abdirahman Sharif says the stoning is unlawful and says the group has no authority to carry out such punishment.

First of all, who gave them the authority to carry out this [stoning]? Are they legitimate? They do not have legitimacy, he said. They were born out of aggression, they are unjust group and did not come through the right path. How can an illegal entity claim to be implementing laws? Its contradicting.

Sharif who is the Imam of Darul Hijra mosque in Minneapolis dismissed al-Shababs claim the victim had confessed to the adultery allegations.

If you threaten someone, torture them, that is not a confession; there has to be a transparency. The evidence that shows this man has confessed without intimidation has to be made public, he said.

Only al-Shabab is reporting that he confessed, only they have passed the judgement and only they have executed the punishment ... they have done all that while they are not legitimate. These are religious bandits.

Sharif said those subjected to al-Shabab sentences and punishments do not have the right to contest or argue against accusations made against them.

Shooting at food distribution point

Meanwhile, two people were shot dead and 15 others were wounded after a gunman opened fire on internally displaced people waiting for food distribution at a feeding center in Abudwaq town, Central Somalia. Witnesses said the gunman had an argument with the guards at the feeding center before the shooting.

Community leader Muse Mohamed Ahmed described the incident to VOA Somali.

This morning an Islamic organization brought food for the displaced, they registered the people and have started to distribute the food when a man approached the gate and attempted to get in."

Ahmed said the man was refused entry by the guards because he did not have a registration card. After an argument the man returned to a car, pulled out a gun and started shooting, witnesses said.

VOA Somali reporter in Abudwaq, Abdikafi Yusuf Aden, says most of the wounded are elderly, including women. Children are also among the wounded, he said.

The gunman escaped from the scene after the shooting, witnesses said.

The town is hosting a large number of people displaced by droughts. Some of the displaced crossed the border from Ethiopia in search of food and water.

The director of the towns hospital said those badly wounded in the incident were sent to Mogadishu and Galkayo for treatment.

Mohamed Abdi Hassan contributed to this report.
The Syrian government has asked Iran to take over the supervision and payroll of thousands of Shi'ite militiamen fighting alongside Russian and Syrian troops in support of President Bashar al-Assad, according to a government source and a news report.



The pro-opposition Syrian news website Zaman Al Wasel reported that it obtained a Syrian defense ministry document saying the Assad regime has approved a plan to give Iran responsibility for paying foreign fighters  mostly Shi'ites of varying nationalities. Shi'ite fighters mostly are paid in cash from Iran, the Syrian government and coffers of the Lebanese-based, pro-Iranian Hezbollah, according to analysts.



Iran would foot the bill alone in the future, a Syrian official told VOA on the condition of anonymity, confirming the Al Wasel report.



The number of Shia militia has increased dramatically during the last two months, the official said. While a big part of these militia were recruited by Iran, a relatively big part was recruited by the Syrian government directly. We are speaking about more than 50,000 militants from different nationalities. The Syrian government requested that Iran provide for all of the mentioned militias.



The document from Al Wasel put the number of fighters to be paid at 88,733  a figure analysts say is exaggerated. They estimate that about 10,000 Iranian combat troops are in Syria fighting alongside thousands of fighters from Lebanon's Tehran-affiliated Shiite militia Hezbollah and assorted Shiite militia made up of renegade Pakistanis, central Asians and other nationalities. Since January 2013, more than 1,000 members of Irans elite Quds Force or other elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) units have been killed fighting in Syria.



Tehran says its forces are in Syria to protect the Zeinab Shrine in Damascus, a Shi'ite holy site. But since 2011, Iran has been a major backer of the Syrian regime in its war with rebel groups across the country, at first sending advisers, then forces from the IRGC and expanding far beyond the shrine area.



Iran has long expressed a desire to command a unified army in the region, particularly in Syria, and its growing power in Syria and Iraq is causing unease in Western capitals. In an interview with the Mashregh news agency last August, Mohammad Ali Falaki, an IRGC leader, announced formation of a unified army in Syria which appears to have come to loose fruition.



It would hardly be abnormal for Iran's IRGC to be controlling yet more Shia jihadists, said Talha Abdulrazaq, a researcher at the University of Exeter's Strategy and Security Institute.



In the long run, the formation of a unified army in Syria under Tehran supervision appears very practical, analysts say.



It seems plausible that the Syrian government shift the responsibility for management and organization of the militias, especially where financial burden is concerned, said Rasool Nafisi, a Middle East affairs expert in Washington.



Asserting its military prowess would help Iran push its political agenda in the region, some analysts believe.



The bigger and more advanced army you control, the stronger voice you have, said Daryoush Babak, a Washington-based retired Iranian military adviser.



But unifying Assad supporters under Tehrans umbrella could worsen sectarian conflict in the region between Shi'ites and Sunni, analysts say.



Iran is looking for any chance to increase its influence and gain an upper hand against Saudi Arabia, its strongest rival in the war of minds and hearts, analysts say. Saudi Arabia and Iran support rival groups in Syria's civil war. And In a speech in Saudi Arabia, President Donald Trump accused Tehran of contributing to instability in the region.



"Tehran and Riyadh  keep contradicting each other to prove whose ideology leads the region," said Nafisi.



While Syria has relied on Iran militarily in the fight against rebels and Islamic State, its unlikely to grant Tehran a controlling foothold in the country, analysts say.



In Syria, it is not likely to happen as long as the Assad regime harbors ambitions of regaining sovereignty rather than being reduced to an Iranian protectorate, said Alfoneh.



VOAs Noor Zahid contributed to this report.
With its tidy racks of dress shirts, trousers and sweaters, the Ministry of Supply shop on Newbury Street looks, in many ways, similar to other clothing stores.

That is, except for the 10-foot-long 3-D knitting machine positioned next to the checkout counter: the one that weighs as much as a car, is outfitted with 4,000 needles and can manufacture a customized blazer in about 90 minutes.

The process requires little in the way of human labor. After a customer selects the colors, cuffs and buttons of the garment, an employee programs the device to crank out a jacket to those specifications.

It may sound like a novelty, but make no mistake: It is a symbol of a potentially industry-shaking wave of innovation taking hold in the apparel world.

This is an experiment in the idea of mass customization, in which clothes are made for an individuals preferences or sizes. Its a departure from the model of selling standardized, mass-produced goods that has dominated retailing for more than a century.

Gihan Amarasiriwardena, left, Ministry of Supplys chief design officer, and chief executive Aman Advani talk in their flagship store in Boston. (Jorge Ribas/The Washington Post)

Ministry of Supplys foray into this new territory is in its early days, and 3-D knitting is just one tool that could eventually be used to bring personalized garments to the masses.

But if this and other nascent efforts are successful, they could set off a scramble in the fashion business to radically transform the long-standing supply chains and design methods that are used to make clothes today.

If even a small portion of a retailers goods are made on-demand, it could slash some of their costs, since there would be no risk of getting stuck with inventory that customers didnt like. It could also allow brands to react on the fly to trends, an increasingly powerful weapon at a time when social media is acting as rocket fuel for fashion fads. And it could help retailers meet the expectations of a customer who is increasingly seeking out one-of-a-kind, boutique-like goods.

Its going to be a big change, said Lisa Chapman, a professor at North Carolina State Universitys College of Textiles who studies design and mass customization.

The embrace of personalized goods in apparel is taking a variety of forms. Adidas is soon to open its second Speedfactory, a facility that eventually aims to manufacture sneakers that are customized to the exact shape and size of shoppers feet. Mens apparel start-up Indochino has entered into a strategic partnership with a Chinese manufacturer that allows it to expand production of its made-to-measure suits. Amazon.com, which is rapidly emerging as an apparel juggernaut, has reportedly received a patent for a machine that makes custom garments. (Amazon founder Jeffrey P. Bezos owns The Washington Post.)

No cutting, no sewing

Ministry of Supply, a start-up that began as an e-commerce operation and now has nine stores, says it is possible it will be making one-quarter or even one-third of its merchandise via 3-D knitting within a couple of years.

The machine in its Boston store, made by a Japanese company called Shima Seiki, knits yarn directly into the shape of a complete garment. In other words, there is no cutting and sewing and, therefore, no seams. The machine, known as the Wholegarment Mach2XS, costs about $190,000. Shima Seiki covered the cost of the machine for this experiment; Ministry of Supply footed the bill for its installation and handles maintenance.

Ministry of Supply uses a 3D-knitting machine to make custom blazers on demand. (Jorge Ribas/The Washington Post)

Gihan Amarasiriwardena, Ministry of Supplys chief design officer, said the process has key advantages. For one, the lack of seams makes clothing more durable, because seams are typically the place where wear and tear first appear.

Also, by knitting in the shape of the blazer, there is very little fabric waste, especially compared with traditional knit manufacturing, in which its not uncommon for 30 percent of the textile to be wasted. (A blazer made on the 3-D knitting machine costs $345 if you customize it, or $285 if you buy it off the rack.)

Theres also a potential benefit to the merchandiser. Shoppers are increasingly spending money on what they believe are unique experiences, and they are increasingly curious about the origin of the goods they buy. By putting the technology right in front of them, Ministry of Supply hopes to cater to those preferences.

Were really excited about exposing our creative process and letting the customers see that, Amarasiriwardena said.

The process that shoppers are watching is largely automated, with the machine doing work that in a traditional supply chain would be done by several people.

It seems like its a manufacturing innovation, but it really affects the entire business, from start to finish, said Aman Advani, the chief executive of Ministry of Supply.

For one, the retailer has had to adopt a new design process for garments made via 3-D-knitting. Instead of sketching new pieces on paper, they build them using software on a digital mannequin.

And since they are now makers, not just sellers, the shop must keep enough yarn in the back of the store to crank out 50 or 60 blazers. (Each jacket calls for about 1.5 pounds of fabric.)

Store employees must also master new skills, such as envisioning a garment at the yarn level. They spent a week with Shima Seiki learning how to operate the complex machine and to do maintenance work, such as changing the needles.

When we look at competencies, theres design, make and sell, Amarasiriwardena said. Traditionally our retail staff is just focused on the sales side. For this to work in the future, our team needs to be able to spread across all three of those.

Were betting on it

Still, the technology has its limits. Even though the blazer can be produced by the machine in about an hour and a half, more steps are involved before Ministry of Supply hands it over to the shopper. The garment must be run through a washer and dryer so the material shrinks to the right fit. And the buttons and label have to be sewn on by hand by a store worker.

The retailer hopes to be able one day to turn around a garment during a single visit to the store, but for now, clerks tell customers their garment will be ready in three to five days.

It is hitches such as these that make Felipe Caro, a professor at University of California-Los Angeles who studies operations and technology management, skeptical that mass customization can become ubiquitous in the retail business.

Sure, theres almost no labor involved. But how many of those can you produce in an afternoon? asked Caro, who previously worked on supply chain strategy for fast-fashion powerhouse Zara.

In other words, in mass customization, the retailer is always working in batch sizes of one. So even with the reduced costs associated with less labor and no obsolescence, he finds it hard to see how this can be a cost-effective model at a large scale.

And yet, Chapman of North Carolina State said there is plenty of incentive for companies to keep trying to crack this puzzle.

Theres going to be a demand for more personalized and customized products, Chapman said. And thats where these new technologies have the potential to make an impact.

Indeed, Ministry of Supply sees more avenues for experimentation. In the future, it is looking at customizing the sizing of products made via on-demand manufacturing  particularly if it branches into something like dress shirts, where shoppers tend to be looking for an especially precise fit. The retailer also hopes to offer more style and aesthetic attributes for customers to choose from.

We jokingly but not so jokingly like to mention that we only budgeted for one-way transportation of that machine, Advani said. So were betting on it being the future.


Mitch Hebert and Emily Townley in "Hir." (Scott Suchman/Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company)

R.I.P. the American family.

That might be a useful epitaph for Hir, a bristling social comedy by Taylor Mac that regales us with the story of the end of whatever it was that made America great. An acrid, unforgiving play, receiving a pungently impeccable regional premiere at Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Hir is in many ways a throwback to the desiccated universe of another national Cassandra, Sam Shepard, who in plays like Buried Child and Curse of the Starving Class went to the American moral cupboard and found it bare.

Still, Mac  a Pulitzer Prize finalist this year for a sprawling work, A 24-Decade History of Popular Music, that took 24 hours to tell  has a voice and comic style all his own. And in Hir (pronounced HERE), he adds his gifts memorably to the tradition of the American household play, with a family suffering from what feels like every possible permutation of pain.

Weve landed in the shabby Central California house of Arnold (Mitch Hebert) and Paige (Emily Townley), the cheap starter home of plywood and cement theyve never managed to escape. Paiges preoccupations run to humiliating Arnold, once a wife beater and now an aphasic stroke victim, by dressing him in clown makeup and ladies nighties. Into the ghastly clutter in which they coexist  the house, built on a landfill, is now itself, courtesy of set designer Misha Kachman, a glorious dump  arrives their broken older son Isaac (Joseph J. Parks). I is a dishonorably discharged Marine back from a war where his job in mortuary services involved collecting the blown-apart remains of his comrades.

Paige in particular is an inspired satirical creation, and Townley plays her with the flattening force of an out-of-control steamroller: Imagine Rosie ODonnell trying to dig her way out of a sweltering suburban prison. The plays title, though, is a reference to its fourth character, Max (Malic White), whos gender-transitioning to boyhood and insists on being referred to by new neutral pronouns: ze for he or she; hir for his or her.

One of the pleasures of Hir is that absolutely nothing is sacred. Whether its Isaacs PTSD or Arnolds infirmity or Paiges sad efforts to find herself or even Maxs struggle to claim a new identity, Macs nihilistic perspective reminds you that all in this landscape of eternal sunshine is just a groping in the dark. In a larger sense, its a whole country thats gotten lost in the clutter, a chaotic mess of a place where an ethos of rugged individualism has degenerated into abuse and selfishness. Theres so little civility left in this intemperate domain that even the wasteful air conditioning is a battleground: An extended sequence has Paige and Isaac standing on a dirty couch to reach an even filthier cooling unit, as they fight ridiculously over the on-off button.

Director Shana Cooper, who gave such a satisfyingly sinister aura to Woolly Mammoths creepy The Nether, accomplishes with Hir another smart variation on the sordid. The staging, in particular, of the drag shadow-play the family puts on for Isaac conveys keenly the distorted role-playing that substitutes here for the bedrock comforts of home, such as dependability and love.

From his performance earlier this season as Roy Cohn in a masterly revival of Angels in America, Hebert could not pivot more commendably as Arnold. The hot-air balloon of what is now referred to as white male privilege comes plummeting to earth in the pitiful visage of a once-vigorous breadwinner trotted around like a garish puppet. Parks, too, is a valuable asset as wired Isaac, whos left so damaged by the noise of war that the sound of a blender causes him to vomit.

The comedy of cruelty has its payoffs when its played with the kind of corrosive elan exhibited on the Woolly stage. (Ivania Stacks costumes, particularly in that shadow play, expertly underline the storys romance with vulgarity.) But Hir does have its poignant aspects, too, and the most important of these is embodied by White, whose transgender character does, amid all the emotional carnage, represent a step forward. For maybe, just maybe, this black comedy intentionally overstates the magnitude of societys illness. And the fact that many of us can still laugh at Americas flaws means we all still may be capable of transition.

Hir, by Taylor Mac. Directed by Shana Cooper. Set, Misha Kachman; lighting, Colin K. Bills; costumes, Ivania Stack; sound and music, James Bigbee Garver; fight choreography, Robb Hunter; production stage manager, John Keith Hall. About 2 hours. Tickets, $35-$69. Through June 18 at Woolly Mammoth Theatre, 641 D St. NW. Call 202-393-3939 or visit woollymammoth.net.


Cathy Martin, now a commander with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Corps, sits at the controls of a WP-3D Orion in September 2014. The plane is part of a fleet of aircraft used to track hurricanes. (David Hall/NOAA)

Commander Cathy Martin wears a military-style uniform, flies a plane and works out of an Air Force installation  Hangar 5 of MacDill Air Force Base in Florida, to be precise. But instead of hunting bad guys in one of her units WP-3D Orion propeller planes, she hunts weather. Very bad weather.

As most people whove been on a[n] . . . airline flight know, youll sometimes experience turbulence, she tells KidsPost, speaking from her office in Tampa. The Fasten seat belts sign comes on and the plane may shudder and shake. Theyre going to try to change their altitude to avoid a storm. For us, its not necessarily about comfort.

Martin has served as a hurricane hunter since 2009. (David Hall/NOAA)

Martin, 41, is a hurricane hunter with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a government scientific agency known as NOAA. She studied aviation and meteorology (the science of weather) before joining the NOAA Corps, a uniformed service similar to the Army or Coast Guard, in 2000.

For six months each year, during the hurricane season that begins Thursday and runs through the end of November, she is part of a team that collects what she describes as vital data, to save life and property.

When winds pick up, taking on strength near the equator and spinning toward the Caribbean and U.S. coastline, Martin and a team of pilots, engineers, navigators, technicians and scientists spring into action. About 100 people work alongside her at MacDill, where she is NOAAs chief of operations. The Air Force also has hurricane hunters of its own based in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Were going out there to collect data from the storm that goes into [forecasting] models, which say how strong the storm is going to be and where its going to go, she says. Is it going to make a left turn or a right turn, or go from a Category 1 [the weakest of five hurricane classifications] to a Category 3?

To do this, she and her flight team use instruments that look like Pringles cans with parachutes. Called dropsondes (pronounced drop-sawnds), these small cylinders are released from a tube at the back of the plane. As a dropsonde makes its 10,000-foot descent into the sea, it transmits information about air temperature, pressure, humidity, and the speed and direction of the wind.

On an eight-hour flight, Martins team typically releases 15 to 20 dropsondes while flying from one side of the storm to the other, trying to cover as much ground as possible. They head for the center (or eye) of the storm, where theres no wind, and also search for the strongest winds, to help people on the coast prepare for whats coming. Sometimes, the plane will release an unmanned aircraft, or drone, to gather data closer to the oceans surface.



The WP-3D Orion is used to fly through hurricanes and tropical storms to gather information about air temperature, air pressure, wind speed and other weather indicators. (Alan Diaz/AP)

There are times when youre in the clouds and cant see anything, Martin says, and when the plane passes through the eye wall  the part of the storm nearest its center  the rain can be very loud. Flights through tropical storms, whose winds are less powerful than a hurricanes, can be the most turbulent, because the storm is still developing.

Once she reaches the eye of a major storm, however, Martin says it could be clear all the way up and above you, and you could see blue skies. Looking down, she can sometimes see crashing waves.



The P-3 planes that Martin flies have stickers naming each hurricane the aircraft have flown into. Last season, Martin flew through Hurricane Matthew, a Category 5 storm that killed more than 1,000 people in Haiti and across the Caribbean. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post)

These flights can be long, tiring and often several days in a row, she says. NOAAs planes, nicknamed Kermit and Miss Piggy after the Muppets characters, often take off at 2 a.m. Those are late starts for any pilot, and Martin says it can be difficult to adjust from a daytime to a nighttime schedule.

Still, flying at any hour beats working at a desk.

I wish, she says, I could fly every day.
When Chris Barbuschak filled the glass display cabinet at the City of Fairfax Regional Library with Hot Shoppes memorabilia, a funny thing happened: People stopped to reminisce about the hometown restaurant chain.

We always tried to get there before the rush, said Carol White, 79, of Warrenton, Va., on a recent afternoon after checking out a few books. When their three kids were little, Carol, her husband and her in-laws would eat lunch nearly every Sunday at a Hot Shoppes restaurant or cafeteria, the one at Tysons Corner or on Columbia Pike. (Shed order the liver.)

This brings back a lot of memories, Carol said as she looked at the ephemera that Chris, an archivist-librarian in the Virginia Room, had assembled: photos, menus, a 1940s place mat, a bit of text on which eatery was the first with an orange roof  Hot Shoppes or Howard Johnsons. (Hot Shoppes, apparently.)

Carol remembered the first time she ate at a Hot Shoppes. It was in 1956, on the way back from a trip that her Rockingham County, Va., high schools senior class took to New York. The bus stopped at the Hot Shoppes on the Rosslyn side of the Key Bridge, and Carol became a fan.

Mighty Mo, Teen Twist, Orange Freeze. . . . Car service, where you ordered over a speaker next to your parking space and a uniformed waitress would hustle out to your vehicle.

Chris Barbuschak, an archivist-librarian with the City of Fairfax Regional Library, put together a display about Hot Shoppes to mark the 90th anniversary of the opening of the restaurant chains first location, at 3128 14th St. NW in the District. (John Kelly/The Washington Post)

At the center of the display was a paperback copy of Marriott: The J. Willard Marriott Story. Chris picked up the book on a giveaway pile somewhere and when he read it saw that the first Hot Shoppes opened 90 years ago  on May 20, 1927, to be exact  at 3128 14th St. NW in the District. Thats what inspired the anniversary display.

But Chris, I said, at 26 years old, you strike me as far too young to remember Hot Shoppes. My mother used to take me to the Hot Shoppes in Baileys Crossroads, he said. It brought me back to when I was a kid.

The Baileys Crossroads Hot Shoppes closed in 1998, the very last one  in Marlow Heights, Md.  a year later.

Marguerite Johnson paused at the display. When she and her now-husband were students at Howard University, theyd drive to the Hot Shoppes on Georgia Avenue NW in his 1967 Mustang.

Mr. Johnson was at the Fairfax library, too, holding a tote bag full of books. He declined to give his first name. You see, its quite possible that 50 years ago he took home one of the thick glass mugs that the Hot Shoppes root beer floats came in.

She was the one that led me astray, like Eve, he said with a nod toward his wife.

Marguerite emitted a long-suffering sigh, then said to Chris, Thanks for putting this up.

Chris is hoping to find more photos of Fairfax County Hot Shoppes to add to the Virginia Room collection. The display wont be up much longer, though. It will be down by June 1, replaced most probably by one marking the 275th anniversary of Fairfax County. Oh, that.

Giving back in Reston

Gil Blankespoor always thought that hed help pay the college tuition for his three grandchildren. There was just one complication: My kids are doing very well financially, Gil said. They didnt need his money.

And so Gil and his wife, Liz, decided to use it for something else. They formed a nonprofit foundation to award scholarships at South Lakes High, the Reston, Va., school their children attended. On May 20 (theres that date again!), the Reston Scholarship Fund of the Community Foundation of Northern Virginia awarded $4,000 each to 10 students.

Ive been in business most of my life, and its really rewarding, said Gil, 77, who owns real estate and restaurants in the area, including Fire Works Pizza in Arlington. He plans to donate an additional $1.8 million to the fund and hopes that corporations will come on board.

Reston is an interesting dichotomy: a wealthy suburb with a lot of striving immigrant families that struggle to afford college.

Qianyi Yang, 19, is one of the recipients. As long as I keep my GPA above 2.7, I can automatically renew my scholarship, she said. It is four years. Thats $16,000. Thats a lot of money for us. My family is really grateful.

Qianyi, who also goes by Emma, moved to the United States from China with her mother five years ago. Her father, Yang Hai, remains in China. Hes a human rights activist who has been monitored by the Chinese government since taking part in the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989. Qianyi will attend James Madison University, studying psychology with an eye toward law school after that.

Omer Gorashi , 17, is going to the University of Maryland, where he hopes to major in architecture.

Theyre people that care about the community, Omer said of the Blankespoors. It isnt just the money, he said, but the fact that the couple wanted to meet the recipients and offer them advice.

That shows they really care, which is something I really appreciated, Omer said.

The other scholarship recipients are Daniel Ennis, Amna Kayani, Dounia Lazreq, Emmeline Mejia, Joelle Nkwantchoa Toundji, Razan Salih, Rabiya Sharieff and Aditya Sorot.

A decade off

In my column May 29 , it said that Navy veteran Brad Snyder was injured in 2001. He was injured in 2011.

Twitter: @johnkelly

For previous columns, visit washingtonpost.com/johnkelly.
Ben Jealous, former NAACP president, at the Young Democrats convention, at the IBEW Local 26 in Lanham, Md., on April 1.

Former NAACP president Benjamin Jealous, who served as a surrogate for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) during his 2016 presidential campaign, is expected to formally declare his candidacy for Maryland governor this week, according to a person with direct knowledge of the plans.

Jealous, who has made a name for himself in recent years as a voice for liberal Democratic groups, has been widely expected to enter the race. But over the weekend, members of Our Revolution, the political nonprofit that grew out of Sanderss failed presidential campaign, received emails inviting them to an announcement on Wednesday touted as Bens Big Day.

A spokesman for Jealous declined to comment about the event.

But the person with knowledge of the plans, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak for the campaign, said the announcement is scheduled for Wednesday in Baltimore.

A former journalist and community organizer, Jealous would offer a stark contrast to Gov. Larry Hogan, a moderate Republican with sky-high approval ratings in a blue state, and the other Democrats who have expressed interest in a 2018 bid for governor.

He is expected to be one of the more progressive candidates in what probably will be a crowded field of Democrats.

He is a strong proponent of raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour; ending mass incarceration; making higher education affordable, including providing free tuition to community colleges; and providing affordable, high quality health care to residents and tax credits to growing small businesses.

Jealous, who has never held elected office, would be the second Democrat to officially enter the race. Alec Ross, a technology entrepreneur, announced his candidacy last month. State Sen. Richard S. Madaleno Jr. (Montgomery) said this month that he plans to seek the Democratic nomination, but he has not officially declared.

Other Democrats considering a bid include Prince Georges County Executive Rushern L. Baker III, former Maryland attorney general Douglas F. Gansler, Baltimore County Executive Kevin B. Kamenetz and lawyer James L. Shea.

Many say Jealous, who has been talking to voters across the state over the past three months, has brought a new level of energy to the party, which is still reeling from then-Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Browns (D) loss to Hogan in 2014.

Jealous has not only piqued the interest of several state delegates, who have said they would probably endorse him, but he has also won support from progressives across the state and the country.

Im not of the party establishment, Jealous said during a recent interview. My career has been working in the community with real people, where they live on their own terms to identify and achieve solutions and solve real problems in real time. It is that background as community organizer and president of the NAACP that guides my sense of whats possible, that fuels this campaign. I know we can pull people together into big, robust and sometimes precarious coalitions to get things done in this democracy we call Maryland.

Democracy for America, a national progressive group, endorsed Jealous earlier this month, even without a formal declaration of his candidacy.

Charles Chamberlain, the executive director of the organization, said members of the group, which was founded by former Vermont governor and Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean, have been fired up about a possible Jealous candidacy since February, when word spread that he was seriously considering a run.

The 44-year-old Baltimore resident was an early supporter of Sanderss 2016 presidential campaign and treasurer of Our Revolution, which aims to continue Sanderss political movement by backing progressive candidates.

Jealous is a partner at Kapor Capital, a California-based venture capital investment firm that focuses on socially conscious businesses.

Jealous has said he considered, but decided against, running for U.S. Senate in 2015 after former senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D) announced her retirement.

For his gubernatorial run, Jealous is likely to get support from Our Revolution and other national progressive groups.

Jealous previously said he started weighing a gubernatorial run after Sanders ended his presidential campaign, and received even more encouragement after offering a vigorous endorsement of Hillary Clinton at the Democratic National Convention.

The election of President Trump, Jealous said, further inspired him to seek office.

With his background leading one of the nations largest and most storied civil rights groups, Jealous may also have an advantage with African American voters who have made up more than a third of Democratic primary electorates.

But he and Baker could also end up splitting the black vote. Maryland has never elected a black governor.
With about three weeks to go before Virginia Republicans pick their nominee for governor, front-runner Ed Gillespie is engaged in an awkward two-step as he tries to appeal to Donald Trump voters as well as more mainstream big tent Republicans.

In TV ads, Gillespie sells himself as a twofer  a seasoned government hand and an advocate for change, a Washington insider itching to go to bat for the average Joe.

In Facebook ads targeted to the kinds of voters who swept Trump into the White House, the Republican strikes a harder tone, with images of federal immigration agents taking someone away in handcuffs, a massive border wall and piles of drivers licenses presumably issued to undocumented immigrants.

But even there, Gillespie hedges  his lobbying firm earned more than $1 million helping Tyson Foods with matters including amnesty proposals and criminal charges related to illegal-immigrant employees. Gillespie takes pains to criticize Democrats inclined to shield undocumented immigrants from deportation, not the immigrants themselves.

Hes having to play the hokey pokey a little bit here, one foot in, one foot out, said Benjamin Melusky, a political scientist at Old Dominion University. If he goes too far to the right to pick up the far-right primary electorate, thats going to be a little bit of a chain around his neck going into November.

Gillespie has tried to steer clear of issues roiling Washington and skipped so many candidate forums that his most vocal GOP rival in the June 13 primary has dubbed him No-Show Ed. It is a strategy that has kept Gillespie on message and out of controversy, but also has exposed him to criticism from the left and the right.

Polls suggest that Gillespie, whose campaign declined to comment on its strategy, has little to worry about in the primary, with Prince William County Supervisor Corey Stewart and state Sen. Frank Wagner (Virginia Beach) trailing by double digits.

But if Gillespie wins the nomination, his challenge in the race for the Nov. 7 general election will only get trickier.

A recent Washington Post-Schar School poll found that Trumps widespread unpopularity in Virginia, and voter anger about the Republican plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, threaten to drag down Gillespie behind either of the two Democrats competing for their partys nomination.

In head-to-head matchups, Gillespie trails both Democrats by almost identical margins: former congressman Tom Perriello by 50 percent to 37 percent, and Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam by 49 percent to 38 percent among registered voters.

Gillespie must figure out how to excite his partys conservative base without turning off the moderate Republicans and independents essential to winning the swing state.

[Poll: Democrats have edge over Republican front-runner in Va. governors race]

That has meant doing his best to ignore Trumps most polarizing actions, such as banning travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries in January and firing FBI Director James B. Comey.

The strategy can backfire. Gillespie was mocked for tweeting about a mundane campaign event  .@CathyGillespie & I were at the historic @HanoverTavern today  while the rest of Twitter was on fire about the immigration ban. When he finally released a statement about Comeys ouster, it came down studiously on neither side.

While it is any presidents prerogative to hire or fire an FBI Director, there have been many questions and concerns raised about this decision and I look forward to learning more about its timing and rationale as theyre answered, his statement said.

Asked in a recent TV interview whether he would welcome Trumps help on the trail, Gillespie looked cornered. Obviously, help from President Trump, Vice President Pence  Im happy to have all the help I can get, he said.

Gillespies supporters say the way he is pitching himself  as a pragmatic, business-friendly Republican focused on kitchen-table issues such as a 10 percent income tax cut and government reform  appeals to voters in an increasingly diverse state.

I know firsthand how the system works, and I know when its not working for middle-class families, Gillespie says in his TV ad, which features a photo of him with George W. Bush as well as pictures of his parents, who owned a small New Jersey grocery store. As governor, Ill stand up to special interests, eliminate tax breaks for big businesses, simplify our tax code, and cut taxes for families and small businesses. Ill be a governor for all Virginians.

Gillespies dance might be especially difficult when it comes to immigration, an issue that keeps rearing its head as Trumps travel ban and deportation policies reverberate in the commonwealth.

The most recent instance came Wednesday, when outgoing Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) pardoned Liliana Cruz Mendez of Falls Church who had a 2014 misdemeanor conviction for driving without a license. She came to the United States illegally from El Salvador a decade ago and first drew notice from police with a broken taillight. Two stays of deportation were granted by the Obama administration but have since expired. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained her May 18 after she arrived for a routine check-in. Despite McAuliffes pardon, she still faces deportation.

Taking Liliana away from her kids & husband wont make VA safer, the governor tweeted. Feds need to focus on public safety threats & real immigration reform.

[McAuliffe pardons old driving infraction of Salvadoran woman facing deportation]

One Republican running for governor had a lot to say about McAuliffes action. That Republican was not Gillespie. As Stewart and the state GOP blasted McAuliffes fake pardon and disregard for the rule of law, Gillespie initially declined to comment.

Two days later, campaign spokesman David Abrams offered a statement that suggested McAuliffes pardon was inappropriate without flatly saying so: As governor, Ed would uphold the law and not abuse the pardoning process for political purposes.

Immigration is particularly tricky for Gillespie, given his advocacy in 2013 for a bipartisan immigration bill and work that his lobbying firm did years earlier for Tyson Foods.

Tyson hired Quinn Gillespie & Associates in December 2001, just days before the Justice Department charged the poultry giant with illegally smuggling Mexicans into the country to work at processing plants in Virginia and elsewhere.

Tyson acknowledged some smuggling at the time but maintained that it had been the work of rogue employees and not sanctioned by corporate leaders. The company eventually was acquitted.

Tyson paid Gillespies firm more than $1.1 million from 2001 to 2007 to lobby Bushs White House, the Senate and the House on a range of issues, according to federal lobbying disclosures. Gillespie was listed as a Tyson lobbyist for several of those years. He was registered to handle issues that included amnesty proposals, immigration reform, country of origin labeling, and labor and workforce issues, according to those forms.

In an interview with The Washington Post in early May, Gillespie said he did not recall doing any work for Tyson, one of many clients.

My firm was retained, he said. Im not sure it was even relative to that [criminal] issue, to be honest with you.

Gary Mickelson, a Tyson spokesman, said Friday that the company hired Gillespies firm for public affairs consulting, not lobbying, when our company was facing immigration charges. . . . Most of the work done by Quinn-Gillespie for our company did not involve Mr. Gillespie.

Stewart skewered Gillespie for his ties to Tyson in a Facebook video posted last week. As the chairman of the Prince William board, Stewart led a crackdown on undocumented immigrants a decade ago and has taken a hard-line stance on the issue during this race.

Which candidate for governor helped smuggle illegals from Mexico to take American jobs? Stewarts video begins. Liberal, pro-amnesty lobbyist Ed Gillespie, thats who. Ed was paid $500,000 to make Tysons illegal smuggling problem disappear.

[Do Corey Stewarts Confederate antics help Ed Gillespie or hurt the GOP brand?]

In 2013, Gillespie pushed for the Gang of Eight bill, which called for tighter border security but also a pathway to citizenship for 12 million undocumented immigrants already in the country. Gillespie says he never supported giving citizenship to immigrants, only a pathway to legal status. On television at the time, Gillespie said the measure still needed to be perfected, but he pitched it as a good compromise.

At the end of the day, its good policy and it is good politics, he said.

In the Trump era, the GOP mantra on immigration is much changed. Gillespie, who has kept Trump at a distance, has mostly aimed to soften the edges. He often notes that his father and grandfather were immigrants from Ireland. In the spring, he met with a large group of Indian American professionals in the Richmond suburbs.

At first glance, Gillespies Facebook ads on immigration look like a sharp break from that approach, given the pictures of the border wall, the handcuffed immigrant and the drivers licenses.

But the text paired with the pictures strikes yet another compromise. It avoids any criticism of undocumented immigrants  a contrast with Stewart, who has vowed to hunt them down. Gillespie instead takes aim at McAuliffe, Northam and Perriello.

Enforcing our nations longstanding immigration laws isnt divisive and demonizing, it reads, its common sense.
Marchers representing the Civil Air Patrol walked with a huge American flag along the route of the National Memorial Day Parade in Washington. (Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post)

Amid prayer, tears and the tolling of bells, the Washington region marked Memorial Day on Monday with pomp and parades and solemn tributes to those who have fallen in service to the nation.

On a warm and humid day that left most flags limp at half-staff, quiet crowds thronged the monuments and memorials on the Mall, as well as Arlington National Cemetery, where President Trump left a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns.

At the World War II Memorial, where a prayer vigil was underway, Jacki Culin, the wife of an Operation Desert Storm veteran, wept as she spoke of the sacrifices of her husband, John, and his comrades.

Im so proud of them, she said, wiping away tears. You dont lose sight of why youre here . . . Its very important to these guys. They live it. They breathe it. Theyre retired, but theyre not out.

Nearby, Ray Chavez, 105, the countrys oldest survivor of the Pearl Harbor attack, sat in his wheelchair, wearing a white and blue overseas cap bearing the name of his ship, the USS Condor.

A flower sits on a headstone as people visit in observance of Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post)

The Condor, a minesweeper, spotted and reported an approaching Japanese submarine that heralded the attack.

Chavez said that at first, the Condor sailors thought it might be an American sub, but they realized a U.S. sub would not be in such a restricted area. Then we knew it was a foreign submarine trying to get into the harbor, he said. The sub was later sunk.

As passersby rang a bronze memorial bell, Chavez said he was present to honor veterans who had gone before him.

Not far away, retired New York City Fire Department lieutenant Joe Torrillo stood in his blue uniform and told the story of how he was buried alive in the collapse of the World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, 2001.

Memorial Day, he said, honors those who gave their lives so that each and every day of every single year, we Americans can say that we have a life thats second to no other.

And at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, members of the group Veterans for Peace took turns reading aloud parts of Kings 1967 speech at New Yorks Riverside Church, where he condemned the Vietnam War.

[Filmmaker Ken Burns on the torment of the Vietnam War]

Brittany Jacobs sits with her son, Christian Jacobs, 6, near the grave of Christian's father, U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Christopher James Jacobs as they visit in observance of Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery . Jacobs died during a training exercise in 2011. (Matt McClain/The Washington Post)

We consider [Memorial Day] to be a sacred day, said Doug Rawlings, 70, a Vietnam veteran and member of the group.

We want people to realize theres more than the 58,000 Americans lost in the war whose names appear on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. As much as we recognize those lives, there are many, many people who were killed in that war.

Were trying  to broaden the concept of Memorial Day, to enrich it, deepen it a little bit, with no disrespect, he said.

Across Independence Avenue, at the D.C. War Memorial, which honors Washingtons 499 World War I dead, there was a display of blue and white artificial flowers left by the Scottish American Military Society.

But a century after the U.S. entry into World War I, there were few visitors to read the words etched into the cracked marble: Those who fell and those who survived have given to this and to future generations an example of high idealism, courageous service and gallant achievement.

Later, on Constitution Avenue, thousands of people clad in red, white and blue gathered in the afternoon heat to watch Washingtons annual National Memorial Day Parade.

In front of the National Museum of American History  on a good day for vendors of cold drinks  onlookers maneuvered to find shade beneath trees and lamp posts.

Bearded veterans rumbled by on motorcycles as graying veterans glided by in vintage jeeps. In front of and behind them, small-town high school bands marched, their drums beating and horns booming.

Contingents from Vietnam and South Korea carried messages of thanks for the U.S. soldiers who had fought alongside their troops.

All around, miniature American flags waved.

[Their fathers were enemies, but children of Vietnam War share a strong bond]

The presidents day began as his motorcade left the White House for Arlington Cemetery around 10:40 a.m. Trump was accompanied by Vice President Pence and other officials.

After the ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns, Trump spoke in the adjacent amphitheater.

He offered thanks for the brave warriors who gave their lives for ours, spending their last moments on this earth in defense of this country and of its people.

Words cannot measure the depth of their devotion, the purity of their love, or the totality of their courage, he said. We only hope that every day we can prove worthy.

After the speech, Trump went to the cemeterys Section 60 to visit the grave of the son of Secretary of Homeland Security John F. Kelly, a retired Marine Corps general, according to the White House.

Kellys son, Marine Corps 1st Lt. Robert Kelly, was killed on patrol when he stepped on a land mine in Afghanistan in 2010.

The secretary understands more than most ever could or ever will the wounds and burdens of war, Trump said of him.

About the same time, U.S. Navy Capt. William Carroll, dressed in a white uniform, approached the bottom of the cemeterys Section 36.

He trudged up the hillside, retracing a walk that he first took nearly half a century ago.

My family came up here in the snow one time, he said, motioning across the grass. It was covered in ice.

At last, he arrived at Gravestone 1304. His grandfather, an Army corporal who served in World War I, has been buried there since 1957. At the base of the marble stone lay a yellow rose.

It means a lot to me, this place, he said. Ive been coming here all my life.

He had just visited nearby Section 39, where his father, a veteran of World War II, is buried. Carroll, 54, has visited the cemetery more times than he can count, but Monday was especially meaningful. He plans to retire at the end of this year after 36 years in the Navy.

As he reminisced about his familys three generations of service to the country, the sound of ceremonial gunfire echoed through the oaks and maples, and Carroll went silent, then turned and saluted.

Earlier, at the towering Marine Corps War Memorial, which depicts the iconic flag-raising at Iwo Jima, Alan ODonnell, a gunnery sergeant in the Marine Corps Reserve and combat veteran of the war in Afghanistan, tried to explain the holiday to his 3-year-old son, Nathaniel.

On Sunday, ODonnell showed his boy a photo of Staff Sgt. Jeremy Redding, who committed suicide in 2010 after suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

This was one of daddys best friends who was in the Marine Corps with him, ODonnell, 35, told his son. But Redding was gone now.

Where is he? Nathaniel asked.

Hes in heaven.

On Monday morning, the boy gripped his fathers hand as he peered up at the memorial.

I wanted to bring my son, ODonnell said. Start the conversation about selfless service and sacrifice.

Nearby, a little girl paused as she passed a letter that had been placed over a bouquet of red carnations at the foot of the statue.

Above eight names was a message:

In loving memory of those Marines and one sailor from Fox Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines who died in Vietnam under my command. October 1967  January 1968. From your Skipper  Rest in Peace.

The girl read the note, then returned to her family. On the front of her blue, star-dotted shirt were three words: Happy and Free.

Jenna Johnson contributed to this report.
Mississippi

8 killed after apparent domestic argument

A man who got into an argument with his estranged wife and her family over his children was arrested Sunday after a house-to-house shooting rampage in rural Mississippi that left eight people dead, including his mother-in-law and a sheriffs deputy.

I aint fit to live, not after what I done, a handcuffed Willie Corey Godbolt, 35, told the Jackson Clarion-Ledger.

Gunfire erupted Saturday night at Godbolts in-laws home in Bogue Chitto, a hamlet in southern Mississippi, after Deputy William Durr, 36, arrived in response to a domestic disturbance call. The violence spread to two houses in nearby Brookhaven.

The dead included two boys, investigators said. Godbolt was hospitalized in good condition with a gunshot wound, although it wasnt clear who shot him.

A Mississippi Bureau of Investigation spokesman said prosecutors plan to charge Godbolt with murder.

The slain deputy, Durr, had served two years in the sheriffs department and previously worked as a Brookhaven police officer. Lincoln County Sheriff Steve Rushing said Durr was married and had an 11-year-old son.

 Associated Press

TEXAS

Bathroom bill in limbo in legislature

Texass legislative session was winding down Sunday, with an all-but-dead bathroom bill targeting transgender people caught in a clash between mainstream Republicans and the most conservative wing of the party that dominates politics in the nations second-largest state.

Lawmakers were resolving last-minute issues ahead of Mondays final adjournment  but their focus was already shifting to whether Gov. Greg Abbott (R) would order them to reconvene if a law like the one that caused a national uproar and costly boycotts when it was approved last year in North Carolina doesnt pass in Texas.

 Associated Press

SEAL killed in parachute failure: A Navy SEAL has died after his parachute did not open during a Fleet Week demonstration over the Hudson River. A Navy spokesman said the accident occurred Sunday near Liberty State Park in Jersey City. The parachutist was a member of an elite Navy parachute team called the Leap Frogs. He wasnt identified pending notification of his family. The Navy said he was pulled from the water by the Coast Guard and fire department responders; he was pronounced dead at a hospital at 1:10 p.m. The cause of the malfunction was under investigation.

Five die in S.D. car crash: Authorities say five people, including a pregnant woman, were killed in a car crash on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. It happened Saturday night on Route 44 about five miles west of the town of Wanblee. Pennington County Fire Administrator Jerome Harvey told KNBN-TV that the victims were in a vehicle that crossed the center line and crashed head-on with a semitrailer. The victims were identified as Ashton Standing Bear, 21; Jaceya Cummings, 7; Micah Cummings, 5; Devin Conquering Bear, whose age was unknown; and Tawni Wilcox, 30, who was six months pregnant. A baby in the vehicle survived and was taken to a hospital. The driver of the semi and a passenger were unhurt.

Shark threat closes beach: A section of Southern California coast has been closed again after at least four sharks were spotted close to shore. Officials in San Clemente said the water was off- limits Sunday from one mile north to one mile south of the city beachs pier. Closures were ordered in the same area a week ago after two dozen great whites were seen, including one about 10 feet long.

 From news services
A small Kentucky town gave a formal welcome Monday to a monument to the Confederate soldiers of the Civil War, rededicating the controversial structure after the University of Louisville removed it. The school said it was an unwelcome symbol of slavery.

About 400 people, some dressed in gray replica military uniforms and many holding small Confederate battle flags, gathered for the Memorial Day ceremony on a bluff above the Ohio River in Brandenburg, about 40 miles southwest of Louisville.

The town embraced the tower at a time when Confederate symbols  viewed by many as reminders of a legacy of slavery and the racism that underpinned it  are being removed across the South.

Protesters look on during a dedication ceremony for a Civil War Confederate Soldier Memorial in Brandenburg, Kentucky. (Bryan Woolston/Reuters)

The University of Louisville announced in April 2016 that it would dismantle the monument, which was put up in 1895, in the wake of protests by students and faculty members.
In this file photo from February 2016, state Sens. Dan Soucek and Brent Jackson review historical maps in the Legislative Office Building in Raleigh. (Corey Lowenstein/AP)

 North Carolinas GOP-controlled legislature has worked steadily and forcefully during the past seven years to redraw the states districts and impose voting restrictions and a slew of new policies that Republicans say are aimed at reducing voter fraud.

But at every turn, Democrats and voting rights advocates have stymied their plans, dragging them to court and condemning the GOP actions as discriminatory against the states minorities.

Instead of giving up  even after two major defeats this month in the U.S. Supreme Court  North Carolinas Republican leaders are working to push the battle over the ballot box into a new phase.

Rumors are circulating here about a new Republican voter identification bill, after federal judges struck down a previous version saying it targeted African-Americans with almost surgical precision. Voting rights advocates are convening emergency meetings to plan legal defenses against it. Democrats are trying in sly, casual conversations with Republican colleagues to extract details on its timing and contours, but Republicans leaders have maintained a disciplined silence.

[Inside the Republican creation of the North Carolina voting bill dubbed the monster law]

The Durham County Board of Elections on the first day of early voting in Durham, N.C., in October 2016. The NAACP successfully challenged a North Carolina law that would have required voters to present a photo ID in order to vote. (D.L. Anderson/For The Washington Post)

Their only public comment has been a terse statement vowing to make this second law requiring voter identification law a reality. All North Carolinians can rest assured that Republican legislators will continue fighting to protect the integrity of our elections by implementing the commonsense requirement to show a photo ID when we vote, House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger said in a joint statement.

Beyond the voter identification law, almost every aspect of the states electoral system is now being drawn into this acrimonious political war, from the composition of local election boards and who has the power to appoint them, to rules determining the exact days, hours and operations of voting precincts.

There are now so many lawsuits that even elected officials say they are having trouble keeping track. The most contentious of the court fights have focused on redrawn maps for congressional and state legislative districts, but there have been challenges over redistricted seats as far down as local county commissioners and school boards.

The intensifying nature of North Carolinas ballot box battles echo a nationwide trend. During the past six years, 21 states have passed new voting restrictions, including five so far this year alone.

North Carolina right now is the canary in the coal mine, said Wendy Weiser, an election law expert at NYUs Brennan Center for Justice, a nonpartisan think tank. Its not that the issues at stake in North Carolina are unique, but the attempts there at voter restriction have been bigger and more extreme than anywhere else. It gives us a glimpse of where we as a country may be headed if we dont find a way to apply the brakes on efforts to game the electoral system.

Voting advocates also worry about the possibility of federal actions that could make it more difficult for some U.S. citizens to vote by potentially making it easier to purge voter rolls or requiring voter identification cards nationwide. They point to President Trumps creation this month of a commission to look into his claims of widespread voter fraud in Novembers presidential election as momentum toward broader federal restrictions.

In states like North Carolina, the argument from Republicans  in courts and in public  is that their new laws are aimed at combating voter fraud.

Democrats and voting rights activists cite numerous studies that show such fraud is rare, and they say the new restrictions on voting access and dramatic redistricting of electoral maps disproportionately affect African Americans, other minorities and young voters. Republicans retort that their redistricting moves are purely motivated by politics, not by race, and they note that when Democrats were in control of the state, they similarly reorganized electoral maps to their advantage.

Grier Martin, a Democratic state legislator in Raleigh, actually benefited from how Republicans redrew his district in recent years. Republicans packed his district with Democrats to make surrounding districts easier for Republicans to win. But he says Republicans are now trying to game the system in a way that is eroding democracy.

When my district used to be competitive, I knocked on thousands of doors. Guess how many doors Ive knocked on since redistricting? Zero, Martin said, noting he listens to voters in other ways. But the way Republicans have set it up now, nothing I do will keep me from being reelected. And the losers are the voters who just become pawns in this political game.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that North Carolina relied too heavily on race in redrawing two of its congressional districts, a decision that could make it easier to challenge redistricting plans in other states. That came on the heels of another Supreme Court decision this month not to take up arguments about North Carolinas previous voter identification law, effectively killing it.

[Supreme Court rules race improperly dominated N.C. redistricting efforts]

Theres still more legal drama to come. North Carolina legislators are anxiously awaiting yet another Supreme Court decision that could come this week and would determine whether North Carolina will hold special elections this year for many redistricted legislative seats that federal judges found were racially based and unconstitutional.

The federal court rulings have left Republicans in Raleigh deeply frustrated. They blame the judges for painting their actions as racially motivated.

Its not just the rulings that are wrong, but the language coming from those judges  the lines about Republicans targeting African-Americans with surgical precision, the accusations about why Republicans are doing things. Its an abomination, said Dallas Woodhouse, executive director of North Carolinas Republican Party. There are legitimate, compelling reasons for laws like voter ID that will give people more confidence in the election system.

Jim Burton, former legislative director for the states house GOP caucus, said the issue is becoming a question of state sovereignty, and North Carolina should be able to make its own decisions about its own elections.

For two hundred years, its been up to state legislatures to draw these maps, and now its being determined by a handful of judges, who keep moving the ball and changing the rules, Burton said.

GOP legislative leaders did not respond to for requests for comment, and none contacted was willing talk about the partys strategy moving forward. But Republican operatives confirmed plans among party leaders for a second wave of voting laws.

The main problem with their previous voter identification bill, several said, was that it had included too many other restrictions  such as eliminating early voting and same-day registration  making it more vulnerable to legal challenge. This time around, they said, Republicans will likely split up their restrictions into individual bills, including a simpler, less-restrictive identification law that also allows voters to present student identification cards and other government-issued identifications to vote.

With so much of the ongoing battle being decided in courts, North Carolinas Republican legislators recently pushed forward a series of bills that opponents say is aimed at weakening Democrats ability to challenge them in court. After Democrats won back the governors office in November, Republicans have tried to take away the new governors ability to appoint judges.

The judiciary has been our last line of defense, said Jen Jones, director of communications for Democracy North Carolina, a voting rights group. If we lose the courts, we lose the ability to fight for peoples right to vote.

In April, a Republican judge so objected to his own partys tactics that he resigned just days before GOP lawmakers could enact one of the new laws on court appointments. That allowed the new Democratic governor to appoint the replacement ahead of the law.

The outcome of North Carolinas war over voting rights could have major national ramifications. Because the state is so politically competitive, any advantage heading into the 2018 election could affect the balance of power in Washington. Before Republicans took over the legislature in 2011 and redistricted the electoral maps, Democrats controlled seven of North Carolinas 13 seats in Congress. Now Democrats hold just three.

Thats a four-seat pickup for Republicans in just one state. Thats huge, said State Rep. Darren Jackson, Democratic leader in the state house. But the biggest impact of North Carolinas escalating war over the ballot box goes deeper than the political fortunes of either side, he said.

To make it harder for people to vote, to put up barriers and take away their voice, its wrong on moral grounds, Jackson said. Voting is a constitutional right.
In this file photo from February 2016, State Senators Dan Soucek and Brent Jackson review historical maps in the Legislative Office Building at the N.C. General Assembly, in Raleigh. (Corey Lowenstein/AP)

North Carolinas Republican-controlled legislature has worked steadily and forcefully during the past seven years to tilt the states election system in its favor, using voting restrictions, favorable district maps and a slew of new policies that lawmakers say are aimed at reducing voter fraud.

But at every turn, Democrats and voting rights advocates have stymied their plans, dragging them to court and condemning the GOP actions as discriminatory against the states minorities.

Instead of giving up  even after two major defeats this month in the U.S. Supreme Court  North Carolinas Republican leaders are working to push the battle over the ballot box into a new phase.

Rumors are circulating here about a new Republican voter identification bill, after federal judges struck down a previous version because they said it targeted African Americans with almost surgical precision. Voting rights advocates are convening emergency meetings to plan legal defenses. Democrats are trying in sly, casual conversations with Republican colleagues to extract details on its timing and contours, but Republicans leaders have maintained a disciplined silence.

[Inside the Republican creation of the North Carolina voting bill dubbed the monster law]

The Durham County Board on the first day of early voting in Durham, N.C., in October 2016. The NAACP successfully challenged a North Carolina law that would have required voters to present a photo ID in order to vote. (D.L. Anderson/For The Washington Post)

Their only public comment has been a terse statement vowing to make this second law requiring voter identification law a reality. All North Carolinians can rest assured that Republican legislators will continue fighting to protect the integrity of our elections by implementing the commonsense requirement to show a photo ID when we vote, House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate leader Phil Berger said in a joint statement.

Beyond the voter identification law, almost every aspect of the states electoral system is being drawn into this acrimonious political war, from the composition of local election boards and who has the power to appoint them, to rules determining the exact days, hours and operations of voting precincts.

There are now so many lawsuits that even elected officials say they have trouble keeping track. The most contentious of the court fights have focused on redrawn maps for congressional and state legislative districts, but there have been challenges over redistricted seats as far down as local county commissioners and school boards.

The intensifying nature of North Carolinas ballot-box battles echoes a nationwide trend. During the past six years, 21 states have passed new voting restrictions, including five so far this year.

North Carolina right now is the canary in the coal mine, said Wendy Weiser, an election law expert at New York Universitys Brennan Center for Justice, a nonpartisan think tank. Its not that the issues at stake in North Carolina are unique, but the attempts there at voter restriction have been bigger and more extreme than anywhere else. It gives us a glimpse of where we as a country may be headed if we dont find a way to apply the brakes on efforts to game the electoral system.

Voting rights advocates also worry about the possibility of federal actions that could make it more difficult for some U.S. citizens to vote by potentially making it easier to purge voter rolls or requiring voter identification cards nationwide. They point to President Trumps creation this month of a commission to look into his claims of widespread voter fraud in Novembers presidential election as momentum toward broader federal restrictions.

In states such as North Carolina, the argument from Republicans  in courts and in public  is that their new laws are aimed at combating voter fraud.

Democrats and voting rights activists cite numerous studies that show such fraud is rare, and they say the new restrictions on voting access and dramatic redistricting of electoral maps disproportionately affect African Americans, other minorities and young voters. Republicans retort that their redistricting moves are purely motivated by politics, not by race, and they note that when Democrats were in control of the state, they similarly reorganized electoral maps to their advantage.

Grier Martin, a Democratic state legislator in Raleigh, actually benefited from how Republicans redrew his district in recent years. Republicans packed his district with Democrats to make surrounding districts easier for Republicans to win. But he says Republicans are now trying to game the system in a way that is eroding democracy.

When my district used to be competitive, I knocked on thousands of doors. Guess how many doors Ive knocked on since redistricting? Zero, Martin said.

He said he listens to voters in other ways. But the way Republicans have set it up now, nothing I do will keep me from being reelected, Martin said. And the losers are the voters who just become pawns in this political game.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that North Carolina relied too heavily on race in redrawing two of its congressional districts, a decision that could make it easier to challenge redistricting plans in other states. That came on the heels of a Supreme Court decision this month not to take up arguments about North Carolinas previous voter identification law, effectively killing it.

[Supreme Court rules race improperly dominated N.C. redistricting efforts]

Theres more legal drama to come. North Carolina legislators are anxiously awaiting yet another Supreme Court decision that could come this week and would determine whether North Carolina will hold special elections this year for many redistricted legislative seats that federal judges found were racially based and unconstitutional.

The federal court rulings have left Republicans in Raleigh deeply frustrated. They blame the judges for painting their actions as racially motivated.

Its not just the rulings that are wrong, but the language coming from those judges  the lines about Republicans targeting African Americans with surgical precision, the accusations about why Republicans are doing things. Its an abomination, said Dallas Woodhouse, executive director of North Carolinas Republican Party. There are legitimate, compelling reasons for laws like voter ID that will give people more confidence in the election system.

Jim Burton, former caucus director for the states House GOP, said that the issue is becoming a question of state sovereignty and that North Carolina should be able to make its own decisions about its elections.

For 200 years, its been up to state legislatures to draw these maps, and now its being determined by a handful of judges, who keep moving the ball and changing the rules, Burton said.

GOP legislative leaders did not respond to requests for comment, and none contacted was willing talk about the partys strategy. But Republican operatives confirmed plans among party leaders for a second wave of voting laws.

The main problem with their previous voter identification bill, several said, was that it had included too many other restrictions  such as eliminating early voting and same-day registration  making it more vulnerable to legal challenge. This time around, they said, Republicans will probably split up their restrictions into individual bills, including a simpler, less-restrictive identification law that also allows voters to present student identification cards and other government-issued identification to vote.

With so much of the battle being decided in courts, North Carolinas Republican legislators recently pushed forward bills that opponents say are aimed at weakening Democrats ability to challenge them in court. After Democrats won back the governors office in November, Republicans have tried to take away the new governors ability to appoint judges.

The judiciary has been our last line of defense, said Jen Jones, director of communications for Democracy North Carolina, a voting rights group. If we lose the courts, we lose the ability to fight for peoples right to vote.

In April, a Republican judge so objected to his own partys tactics that he resigned just days before GOP lawmakers could enact one of the new laws on court appointments. That allowed the new Democratic governor to appoint a replacement ahead of the law.

The outcome of North Carolinas war over voting rights could have major national ramifications. Because the state is so politically competitive, any advantage heading into the 2018 election could affect the balance of power in Washington. Before Republicans took over the legislature in 2011 and redrew the electoral maps, Democrats controlled seven of North Carolinas 13 seats in Congress. Now Democrats hold just three.

Thats a four-seat pickup for Republicans in just one state. Thats huge, said state Rep. Darren Jackson, Democratic leader in the state House. But the biggest impact of North Carolinas escalating war over the ballot box goes deeper than the political fortunes of either side, he said.

To make it harder for people to vote, to put up barriers and take away their voice, its wrong on moral grounds, Jackson said. Voting is a constitutional right.
BRITAIN

Airline travel chaos eases, but woes remain

Travelers on British Airways faced a third day of delays and cancellations Monday, though most long-haul services were resumed, after a colossal IT failure over the weekend caused chaos for thousands of passengers.

BA chief executive Alex Cruz said the airline was running a near-full operation at Londons Gatwick Airport and planned to operate all scheduled long-haul services from Heathrow. But he said there would still be delays as well as cancellations of some short-haul flights.

Data from flight tracker FlightAware.com showed that 27 BA flights were canceled and 135 were delayed Monday, a bank holiday in Britain.

Iberia and Air Nostrum, which like BA are part of the broader International Airlines Group and share some data, canceled more than 320 flights Monday.

BA canceled all flights from Heathrow and Gatwick on Saturday after the IT outage, which it blamed on a power-supply problem.

Cruz told Sky News on Monday that there was no evidence that a cyberattack was to blame.

 Associated Press

LIBYA

Egyptian jets continue to pound militants

Egyptian jets carried out airstrikes on the Libyan city of Derna on Monday, continuing days of attacks against Islamist militants who Egypt says were responsible for ambushing and killing Egyptian Christians last week, Libyan commanders said.

Egypts air force began the attacks just hours after masked men boarded vehicles taking people to a monastery in the southern Egyptian province of Minya and opened fire, killing 29 and wounding 24.

The airstrikes are joint ones between the Libyan National Army and the Egyptian army, said a spokesman for the Libyan National Army, an eastern Libyan faction allied with Egypt.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said militant bases in Libya were targeted to limit their ability to threaten Egypts national security.

Egypt has carried out airstrikes in Libya occasionally since the neighboring country descended into factional fighting after the 2011 civil war, which ousted Moammar Gaddafi.

Islamist militant groups have gained ground in the chaos.

 Reuters

IRAN

Hard-line Rouhani foe claims election fraud

Defeated hard-line candidate Ebrahim Raisi has complained of voter fraud in Irans presidential election and called on the judiciary and the election watchdog to investigate, the semiofficial Fars News Agency said Monday.

The allegations were among Raisis strongest since losing the bitterly contested May 19 vote to incumbent Hassan Rouhani.

Tampering with the numbers of peoples participation is inappropriate. Not sending ballots to centers where the governments opponent has a chance of getting votes is very inappropriate, Raisi was quoted as saying. I ask the Guardian Council and the judiciary not to let the peoples rights get trampled.

The Guardian Council vets candidates and supervises elections in Iran. It has approved the election results.

But Raisis comments were a signal that he and his supporters will continue to fight against Rouhani, who won on promises to increase social freedom, improve human rights and open up Iran to Western investment.

During the campaign, Rouhani and Raisi exchanged barbs in debates and speeches using language rarely heard in politics in Iran. Rouhani accused Raisi of abuses while at the judiciary and was in turn accused of corruption and economic mismanagement.

 Reuters

Egypts Sissi ratifies bill restricting rights groups: Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi has ratified legislation that heavily restricts the registration and work of nongovernmental organizations. The law gives security agencies extensive power over the financing and activities of NGOs. International rights groups described the law as draconian, saying it would effectively lead to the shutdown of many rights groups. The law comes as part of Sissis wide crackdown on dissent since he rose to power in 2013.

11 killed in Moscow storms: Thunderstorms and strong winds buffeted Moscow and its surrounding areas, killing 11 people, Russian officials said. Moscows health department said about 50 people, including children, were injured. The gusts destroyed thousands of trees, damaged cars and disrupted train service and electricity supplies in some areas. Flights at Moscows airports were delayed.

 From news services
Fareed Zakarias May 26 Washington Forum essay, Trump got played by Saudi Arabia pointed out just how dangerous the Saudis and their religious practice of the Wahhabi version of Islam really is. The basics of jihadist terrorism are contained in this Saudi Arabian religious practice, including the ideas of violent jihad and takfirism, which authorizes the killing of Muslims considered heretics for not following its interpretation of Islam.

That President Trump met with the leaders of the country whose nationals are responsible for much of the terrorism in the past 20 years is very troubling but not surprising. Mr. Trump does not read full security briefs. He ignores security advisers who get too complex in their briefings. So instead of confronting the Saudis with plain facts, Mr. Trump, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and other officials did a sword dance with them.

Mr. Trumps visit to Saudi Arabia was dangerous. By dancing with the Saudis, Mr. Trump and his party gave them the idea that their support of the Wahhabi version of Islam can continue unchecked.

Jack Shilkret, Arnold
BRAZILS POLITICAL elite is being eaten alive by corruption scandals. The last three presidents have been accused of taking bribes, including incumbent Michel Temer, who took office last year following the impeachment of his predecessor. So have dozens of other senior politicians, including eight government ministers, two dozen senators and 39 members of Congresss lower house. Thats not to mention the senior politicians in other Latin American countries, including Mexico, Colombia and Venezuela, accused of accepting graft from Brazilian companies.

The ever-expanding scandal is a credit to the strength of Brazils judicial institutions, and the housecleaning it is producing could ultimately strengthen the countrys 32-year-old democracy. But that might not happen if the scandal leads to chaos before it can produce desperately needed reforms. The 76-year-old Mr. Temer, an uncharismatic conservative with a 5 percent public approval rating, now stands at the center of that question.

Mr. Temer and a centrist congressional coalition were in the middle of trying to push through a revamping of social security payments and labor laws when the latest wave of scandal broke over them May 19. The Supreme Court released documents and tapes implicating Mr. Temer and former presidents Dilma Rousseff and Lula da Silva in accepting bribes from a meat exporting company; a tape also appeared to show Mr. Temer approving payoffs by the companys president to an already-jailed congressman.

The president defiantly refused to resign and claimed the tapes had been doctored. But tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Brasilia, and Mr. Temer was forced to deploy the army last week after a government ministry was attacked and set on fire.

Whether Mr. Temer now becomes the second Brazilian president to be removed from office in less than a year depends less on the evidence than the intricacies of politics in Congress and the courts. Impeachment resolutions have so far been blocked by a presidential ally who is speaker of the lower house. But lawmakers are aware that the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, which has been considering a case to annul the last presidential election, could effectively remove the president from office early next month. Since Congress would then be charged with choosing a new president, behind-the-scenes bargaining has already begun over a successor.

Regardless of who is president, Brazil will have a government of dubious legitimacy until the next election, which is not until the end of 2018. The best outcome for the country would be for the centrist parties to work with whoever is in office to complete passage of the now-stalled reform bills. Unless the government can revise an unsustainable pension system and remove labor restrictions that choke private employment, Brazils economy will not be able to recover from the crushing recession it has endured for the past several years.

Political reforms, too, could help create a cleaner class of politicians. One obvious fix would be to raise the vote threshold for parties to obtain seats in Congress, where nearly two dozen different factions now are represented. Discredited though they are, Brazils politicians can still help their country if they pave the way for change.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson gestures as he talks to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during their meeting in Moscow on April 12. (Sergei Chirikov/European Pressphoto Agency)

In their Oval Office meeting in March, President Trump told German Chancellor Angela Merkel that the Ukraine crisis was Europes responsibility and that the United States wouldnt get heavily involved, according to two officials briefed on the discussion. Only two months later, the Trump administration is reversing course and planning to re-engage on Ukraine in a significant way.

For Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who is leading the behind-the-scenes effort, Ukraine is where Trumps so-far thwarted plan to improve U.S.-Russian relations can be kick-started. Although still in its early stages, Tillersons idea is to restart a version of the peace negotiations that the Obama administration was engaged in last year, hoping that new circumstances and personalities might produce better results, according to U.S. officials and outside experts.

There are skeptics across the administration who believe pursuing any type of Russia reset in a domestic political environment dominated by investigations of Russias interference in the U.S. political system is a fools errand. But Trump and Tillerson are determined to give it try.

European officials, for their part, are cheering. We very much appreciate that the new administration will be more engaged in the Ukraine issue. In the beginning they seemed not to be so interested in this issue. Thats changed a lot, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel told The Post after meeting with Tillerson on May 17.

Germany and France have been involved in whats called the Normandy Format, an effort to implement the 2015 Minsk agreement, which is stalled due to cease-fire violations on the ground primarily by Russian-backed forces and a lack of Ukrainian political progress. Their hope is that the United States can break the impasse.

We know that Russia will only move if the Americans will be on board and press them to do more for a cease-fire and for a withdrawal of heavy weapons from the region, Gabriel said. The Russians know that the behavior of Russia in Ukraine is a precondition to [U.S.] cooperation with Russia in other fields.

Trumps shift became evident on May 10, when he held a widely reported discussion with Russia Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and a less-noticed meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin.

I said, fellas you got to make peace, you got to get peace, Trump later told Fox News.

Although the White House and State Department declined to comment, U.S. officials and others confirmed that Tillerson has had multiple discussions about the way forward with Lavrov. There is also a robust interagency process to chart the new strategy, and the office of Vice President Pence is also involved.

Tillerson is looking to tap a special envoy at the State Department to manage and lead the new Ukraine effort. That new envoy would reinvigorate the U.S.-Russian diplomatic channel with Vladislav Surkov, known as the Kremlins gray cardinal. President Barack Obamas assistant secretary of state for Europe, Victoria Nuland, was ultimately unable to make progress through that channel last year.

Whats different now, officials say, is that Russian President Vladimir Putin can no longer bide his time waiting for a more favorable U.S. administration, as he did last year. The German and French governments are not getting more Russia-friendly any time soon.

But Trumps domestic problems due to the Russia scandal complicate everything. Congress is chomping at the bit to apply more sanctions to Russia, not lift them. Lawmakers in both parties are going to be hugely skeptical of any deal Trump tries to strike with Moscow.

John Herbst, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, said that Trump could use the threat or even implementation of new sanctions as leverage to give Putin more incentive to make concessions.

Diplomacy without changing the conditions on the ground is less likely to succeed, he said.

The details matter. If the Trump team sets out a principled approach based on offering limited sanctions relief only after Russia enforces a cease-fire and removes heavy weapons from eastern Ukraine, a deal might be possible, said Alexander Vershbow, a former senior Pentagon and NATO official.

Its a long shot, he said. But the best way for Trump to disarm his critics would be to defy expectations and negotiate a good deal that gets the Russians out of eastern Ukraine.

If the Trump team does its best to strike a deal with Moscow and fails, at least Putins true intentions will be laid bare. Then the administration will have little choice but to pursue a path of actively pushing back on Russian aggression, increasing support for Ukraines government and military, and abandoning the idea of yet another Russian reset.

Read more from Josh Rogins archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
When thinking about the abstract foreign policy framework known as the liberal international order, it helps to personalize it by remembering the career of one of its strongest exponents, former national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski.

Brzezinski, who died Friday, devoted most of his career to explaining and enhancing this idea of a robust, supple, U.S.-led architecture for global security and prosperity. He wanted this American order to be open and flexible, ready to engage the forces of what he liked to call a global political awakening of rising nations and cultures. But he also insisted it must be strong militarily at its core.

Brzezinski was deeply troubled in his final months by the evidence that this order  the work of his generation  had been undermined almost capriciously by the rise of the inexperienced President Trump. When Brzezinski received the Pentagons highest civilian award at a ceremony Nov. 10, two days after Trumps election, he warned in his brief remarks of coming turmoil in the nation and the world.

He would have been appalled, but not surprised, by the results of Trumps Group of Seven meeting last week, after which German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that the era when Europe could rely on American leadership was over to a certain extent.

I first encountered Brzezinski in the late 1970s when he was national security adviser for President Jimmy Carter. We talked many times over the next four decades, and in 2008, I engaged him and Brent Scowcroft, national security adviser for the Ford and Bush 41 administrations, in a series of conversations about foreign policy that was published as America and the World. It was a manifesto of bipartisan consensus about how to maintain a forward-leaning U.S. role in global affairs.

As Brzezinskis health weakened this month, I sent him a note suggesting that with the disorder in the world that had accompanied Trumps presidency, perhaps we should resume those conversations. The response was classic Zbig  enthusiastic, oblivious of difficulty and precisely phrased. Please advise me of earliest and most convenient schedule for our group to return, he wrote back. He died four days later.

What made Brzezinski so unusual was that he never rested on his laurels. He was a brilliant analyst who spoke in perfectly punctuated sentences and paragraphs  never in canned sound bites. He considered each question as if for the first time, and he was restless, unsatisfied, willing to consider other arguments.

Brzezinski was a hawk for most of his career. But he became increasingly skeptical that military solutions would produce good results. He was outspoken, for example, in his warnings that the Iraq invasion in 2003 was a mistake. This wasnt after-the-fact massaging of a position, a la Trump. Brzezinski paid a cost in the insular, self-reinforcing world of Washington foreign policy opinion, until it became clear to nearly everyone that he (joined in this Iraq War opposition by Scowcroft) had been right.

Brzezinskis concept of the liberal international order was that it rested on a framework of alliances and global institutions that could adapt as the world evolved. As a Polish refugee, he believed passionately in the freedom and economic interdependence that the United States defended in World War II and preserved in postwar institutions such as NATO, the World Bank and the United Nations. He was convinced that Soviet power wasnt a permanent fact of life in Eastern Europe, even back in the 1970s, when such rollback talk was near heresy among Democrats. He urged that a revived Japan join the Western partnership, and championed the Trilateral Commission to embody this idea.

Brzezinski tilted between hawkish and dovish positions, but he usually got it right. When the Russians invaded Afghanistan, he championed covert opposition. When Islamic revolutionaries hijacked Iran, Brzezinski urged the shah to fight back. Later, when a shattered Russia felt cornered, Brzezinski cautioned against the over-isolation of Moscow. And as Iran rushed toward nuclear-weapons capability, Brzezinski supported negotiations to cap the program. And he was a consistent, fearless advocate of peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

Brzezinskis worries about Trump grew out of his belief in the interdependent world that the United States had made. Having seen Western values and freedoms crushed in Poland, he was protective of them. Having seen allies regain dignity and prosperity under an American umbrella, he wanted to maintain it.

Trumps populism was abhorrent to this son of Polish aristocracy, but it wasnt just that. Brzezinski didnt think Trump understood what a precious creation he was jeopardizing by so recklessly challenging the institutions of the West.

Read more from David Ignatiuss archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
Voters show their ballots, filled in with name of President Hassan Rouhani, at a polling station in Tehran on May 19. (Vahid Salemi/ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Charles Krauthammers May 26 op-ed, Why Middle East peace starts in Saudi Arabia, omitted a crucial detail: the recent elections in Iran. By entrusting President Hassan Rouhani with another four-year term, the Iranian people soundly rejected extremist alternatives. By demonizing the Iranian people in order to take a shot at the Obama administration, Mr. Krauthammer seated himself firmly in the camp known as part of the problem. The elections in Austria, the Netherlands, France and now Iran showed that the people of the world are rejecting Mr. Krauthammers worldview and are instead reaching toward peace, with or without the catastrophe that is todays so-called American foreign policy.

Ben Hayes, Washington

Charles Krauthammers assertion that the Obama administrations policy toward Iran amounted to appeasement was a gross misrepresentation. The policys primary objective was to block Irans nuclear weapons development program. It was Iran that conceded ground on this, not the United States.

Mr. Krauthammer also was wrong to claim that this agreement has failed to encourage more moderate Iranian behavior. In the recent presidential election, the Iranian people overwhelmingly rejected the conservative candidate. And the moderate victor immediately reached out to the West.

Mr. Krauthammer accused Iran of worldwide support for terrorism. However, as Fareed Zakaria reported the same day, Saudi-inspired Sunni jihadists are responsible for more than 94 percent of the deaths caused by Islamic terrorism since 2001.

Robin Broadfield, Washington
We cannot imagine John F. Kennedy on his 100th birthday. For all of us, he will always be a man in his 40s, exuding the vigor that became one of his trademark words, pronounced in his distinctively New England way.

He was a student of history whose rhetoric gloried in the future, challenge and change. He became an icon even though he was an iconoclast. He could be coldly realistic, but he preached idealism. He honored intellectuals but mistrusted abstract thinking and ideology. He promised greater affluence but preached against complacency.

He was a fervent Cold Warrior whose most important triumphs came in the name of peace. He avoided nuclear holocaust during the Cuban missile crisis and negotiated a partial nuclear test-ban treaty with the Soviet Union. He took office with a muscular promise that the United States would pay any price, bear any burden in the battle for freedom. But five months before his death, he became a prophet of what would be called detente, describing peace as the necessary, rational end of rational men.

There was also the contrast between the organizing slogans of his Democratic forebears and his own. Woodrow Wilsons New Freedom and Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal were rooted in broad but specific objectives. Kennedys New Frontier was more journey than goal, more temperament and disposition than program or wish list. He was a restless figure in a restless time.

He was also one very canny politician who revolutionized presidential campaigns, as Thomas Oliphant and Curtis Wilkie describe in The Road to Camelot, their new book on Kennedys five-year quest for the White House. His dads money certainly helped, but so did Kennedys understanding of his need to play a long game outside the lines of convention.

It is fitting that we honor the 100th anniversary of JFKs birth on Memorial Day, which salutes those who died for their country. Kennedy and his moment in history were shaped by the experiences of the Greatest Generation of which he was a part. World War II veterans developed a deep confidence in the capacity of Americans to act in common.

Governments role in pushing back against the Depression and then achieving victory over the Nazis and Imperial Japan bolstered their view of the United States as an inspiring democratic nation that stood on the right side of history. The shared sacrifices of combat strengthened the claims of a civil rights movement that Kennedy at first reluctantly and then wholeheartedly endorsed. We are confronted primarily with a moral issue, Kennedy declared on June 11, 1963. It is as old as the Scriptures and is as clear as the American Constitution.

Later in the 1960s, many Americans came to see post-World War II patriotism as naive and unrealistic. Especially in the eyes of the Vietnam Wars opponents, it could also be dangerously arrogant and self-serving.

Confidence in government was sapped, and a long era of debunking began. Kennedys own reputation came in for some of that. His imperfections, long known to his friends and some of his enemies, became part of his legacy.

Yet Kennedys heroic status has never faded, and not simply because he was taken from us on Nov. 22, 1963. It was an act of violence that presaged a decade that would grow more violent still.

Across our increasingly rigid political divides, we still treasure his cool and ironic perspective on life that coexisted with an infectious sense of public service. He drew thousands to government and tens of thousands to a Peace Corps that was one of his proudest creations.

And he is the president who is forever young.

I think there attaches to him his youthfulness, his hope, his promise, and the country wont let that go, the historian Robert Dallek once told NPR. Dalleks fine Kennedy biography is affectingly titled An Unfinished Life. All these years later, we share a collective sense of an unfinished era, an unfulfilled promise and a lost opportunity.

One of Kennedys most admirable traits was his talent for maintaining a critical distance from himself and who he became. Theodore Sorensen, who was 24 when he first went to work for JFK, noted in 1965 that his old boss was a constant critic of his own myth.

So lets not mythologize Kennedy. But let us remember with respect and gratitude a man who scorned the yearning for the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought. Kennedys self-awareness, his dedication to discovery and his success in marshaling our nations energies in a more hopeful time are a gift to us still.

Read more from E.J. Dionnes archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook.
THEY DIED for you.

That is a stark and powerful truth about lives lost in the nations wars, rarely stated so plainly as it was in an essay that appeared on these pages eight years ago by historian Rick Atkinson. His topic was 10 things Americans ought to know about World War II, on which he has written extensively. Undoubtedly the most striking to many readers was the last, which began with the words quoted above.

The U.S. military sustained almost 300,000 battle deaths during the war, and about 100,000 others from accidents, disease, suicide, Mr. Atkinson wrote. Many of those deaths were horrible, premature, and unspeakably sad. . . . The most critical lesson for every American is to understand, viscerally, that this vast host died one by one by one; to understand in your bones that they died for you.

They didnt die as willing martyrs, and most didnt consider themselves heroes. They simply did what was expected of them, including those who were conscripted. The lives of those who served were disrupted, their futures often diminished  and many never came back. They were mostly ordinary people who accepted it as their duty and obligation to face the dangers of war.

This Memorial Day you might want to read some of the collections of letters home from war fronts that are available on the Internet. They are filled with gripes about food, fears and discomforts, but more importantly with words of reassurance to loved ones and above all a constant longing to be home again, to have this over with. Only occasionally do they deal with the ultimate disturbing realities of the war, as in this letter from a Chicago soldier to his parents in 1944 (complete with a few misspellings):

I recently was able to see some of the dead boys they had just taken off the battlefield. . . . When you look at them you cant help but think--why are they dead! Just a year or so ago they were either going to school-working-married and now their dead. Many among them had ambition--all looked forward to the future--Now their dead. It keeps shooting thru your mind-again and again-why have these men died? I know why we fight-I know of the values were trying to secure. I hope these men have not given their lives for empty words.

The country has lost thousands of men and women in the armed conflicts of this still-new century, and many Americans ask the same questions and harbor the same doubts as did that Chicago soldier. The only certain thing is that they died for us: Individual human beings died in our place when the country called on them. In a time when personal self-aggrandizement seems to be in vogue for far too many, we need to give more thought and attention  and thanks  to those who exemplify selfless service.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer was giddy at the thought of meeting Pope Francis during President Trumps first trip abroad, telling acquaintances that for him, a devout Catholic, the moment would fulfill a bucket-list dream.

But when the White House finalized the lucky list of staff and family members who would accompany Trump into his private audience with the pontiff at the Vatican last week, Spicers name was nowhere to be found.

Enduring public humiliation has become a defining characteristic of Spicers tenure in the White House  from the Saturday Night Live parody in which a woman plays a ranting, red-faced Spicer to the constant rumors of his imminent dismissal. Yet being excluded from the papal visit still stunned his colleagues, many of whom expressed pity for him and were visibly uncomfortable talking about the slight.

In Trumps White House, aides serve a president who demands absolute loyalty  but who doesnt always offer it in return. Trump prefers a management style in which even compliments can come laced with a bite, and where enduring snubs and belittling jokes, even in public, is part of the job.

Allies say the presidents quips are simply good-natured teasing, part of an inclusive strategy meant to make even mid-level staff members feel like family. But others consider Trumps comments pointed reminders to those who work for him that he is in charge  barbs from the boss that keep aides on guard and off kilter, and can corrode staff morale.

1 of 60 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad  Trumps first trip overseas as president View Photos The U.S. president traveled to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Rome, Belgium and Sicily, Italy. Caption The U.S. president traveled to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Rome, Belgium and Sicily, Italy. May 27, 2017 German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, speaks to President Donald Trump as Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi listens during an expanded session at the Group of Seven Summit in Taormina, Italy. Philippe Wojazer/Reuters Wait 1 second to continue.

Trump sometimes refers to his 45-year-old chief of staff, Reince Priebus, as Reince-y, a diminutive nickname that some aides and outside rivals recount with gleeful relish. The president also frequently reminds Priebus that when Access Hollywood tapes emerged during the campaign on which Trump could be heard boasting about groping women without their consent, Priebus urged him to drop out of the race.

The president has described House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.), in theory one of his top allies on Capitol Hill, as a Boy Scout  a dig that the lawmaker joked he chose to take as a compliment even though Im not sure he meant it that way.

And during the transition, Trump would make a point of noting that Vice President-elect Mike Pences crowds paled compared to his, teasing that even his daughter Ivanka and son Eric attracted more attention, said two people familiar with the comments, which they considered demeaning. (Pence offered a similar quip on the campaign trail.)

Even the presidents family is not immune. In a news conference at Trump Tower shortly after he won the White House, Trump announced that he would be putting his companies into a trust that his two older sons would run during his presidency.

I hope at the end of eight years, Ill come back and say, Oh, you did a good job,  Trump said, as his sons looked on. But he couldnt resist a final tweak  half joke, half warning: Otherwise, if they do a bad job, Ill say, Youre fired. 

The White House says that Trump, who came of age professionally running a family business, is simply joking with his staff, part of a warm, familial leadership style that makes everyone feel included.

President Trump has a magnetic personality and exudes positive energy, which is infectious to those around him, Hope Hicks, a White House spokeswoman, said in a statement. He has an unparalleled ability to communicate with people, whether he is speaking to a room of three or an arena of 30,000. He has built great relationships throughout his life and treats everyone with respect. He is brilliant with a great sense of humor . . . and an amazing ability to make people feel special and aspire to be more than even they thought possible.

President-elect Donald Trump, retired Lt. Gen. Michael T. Flynn and White House chief of staff-designate Reince Priebus walk out to speak to the news media at Trumps Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., on Dec. 21. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Many disagree with that assessment. Critics say the president often demeans those in his orbit, a tendency they say reflects a broader fragility beneath his bluster.

Trump is so deeply insecure that not even becoming president of the United States quenched his need to make others feel small to build himself up, said Tim Miller, a former spokesman for an anti-Trump super PAC. Choosing to work for him necessitates a willingness to be demeaned in order to assuage his desire to feel like a big, important person.

Trumps management style  whether good-natured ribbing or withering comments, depending on ones perspective  dates to his days as a Manhattan real estate developer, when he enjoyed operating in an environment of competing factions. Now, he has transplanted that executive philosophy into his White House.

When he decided to fire his FBI director, James B. Comey, the president did so in an especially humiliating way. Like a scene out of The Godfather, Trump first sent Keith Schiller, his former head of security, to deliver the message to Comey at FBI headquarters. His allies maintain that Trump simply wanted the job done well, so he dispatched Schiller, whom he trusts deeply, in a sign of respect for how seriously he took the moment.

But Comey, who was visiting a Los Angeles field office, ultimately found out in embarrassing fashion  in public, from television, in full view of his staff. As Comey was delivering a speech to FBI field employees, he initially laughed as news flashed across the TV screens that he had been fired. Howd you guys do that? he asked, according to someone briefed on the moment.

The FBI director assumed he was being pranked by his underlings  and had to be told by his team that the headlines were no joke. He had been dismissed, effective immediately.

During a February prayer breakfast in Washington, Mark Burnett, the creator of The Apprentice, introduced Trump, who went on to make a few tone-deaf jokes about Arnold Schwarzenegger, who had replaced him as the shows host.

The ratings went down the tubes, the president said. Its been a total disaster and Mark will never, ever bet against Trump again. And I want to just pray for Arnold if we can, for those ratings, okay?

Trumps friends and allies reject the notion that he diminishes those around him, saying the businessman-turned-president is simply trying to bring out the best in his employees.

I think its more New York swagger than hes trying to belittle them, said Christopher Ruddy, the chief executive of Newsmax, a conservative media company, and a longtime friend of Trumps. I always say he makes people feel like a million bucks.

The approach, however, frequently leaves Trumps top team open to some of his more cutting digs.

At a private dinner shortly before he was inaugurated, Trump took aim at his incoming vice president and his incoming secretary of state, Rex Tillerson.

Complimenting his vice presidential choice, Trump also reminded the crowd  and Pence  that he could have just as easily picked someone else. Oh, I had a couple of beauties I could have picked, he said. They were good, too, but maybe they wouldnt have worked out like Mike.

Turning his attention to his secretary of state pick at the same gathering, he hinted that Tillerson  a former chief executive of ExxonMobil  might be in for a steep learning curve in the Trump administration. Wheres our Rex? Trump asked. Wow. What a job. Thank you very much, thanks, Rex. I think its tougher than he thought. Hes led this charmed life. He goes into a country, takes the oil, goes into another country. Its tough dealing with these politicians, right?

Trump also sometimes reminds even his senior advisers, in ways big and small, that he has the power to demote them at any time. During an Oval Office meeting about trouble spots abroad, a relatively junior foreign policy staff member prepared to take a seat on the periphery as the presidents top aides, including chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon, surrounded him in chairs around the Resolute desk. But the president soon ordered up a change, said someone who witnessed the moment, telling Bannon to give up his seat for the junior staff member and relegating his top strategist to the couch.

More recently, during a lunch with ambassadors from countries on the U.N. Security Council, Trump jokingly polled those in the room on whether they thought U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, seated directly to his right, was doing a good job. How do you all like Nikki?  he asked, as she looked on. Otherwise, she can easily be replaced.

Close foreign allies are also targets of Trumps public and private dressing-downs.

During an early call with Australia, one of nations staunchest allies, the president got into a testy exchange with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, blasting him over a refugee deal, bragging about the size of his electoral college win and abruptly ending the call.

When news from the conversation emerged, Trumps team readily confirmed details of the exchange. The president was livid about the leak  but had no problem being viewed as a bully, believing he was simply standing up for his nations best interests.

The pattern continued in his trip overseas last week, when he gushed about the autocratic Saudi royal family even while insulting European allies. At a stop in Brussels, the president chastised NATO members for not meeting their financial responsibilities, shoved aside a Balkan prime minister to get in front for a group photo and needled his allies about the cost of a new building for the alliance.

During his first in-person meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, Trumps typically aggressive greeting became a duel of one-upmanship as the two men clenched their jaws and tightened their faces during an intense, white-knuckled handshake.

Macron, Frances newly elected 39-year-old leader, later said he wanted to show Trump that he would not be pushed around or demeaned.

I dont believe in diplomacy by public abuse, he said.

Greg Jaffe and Paul Kane contributed to this report.
Sometime in the next few weeks, four Democratic lawyers and four Republican ones will file into the ornate Lyndon Baines Johnson Room just steps from the Senate chamber at the Capitol to consider a bill to overhaul the Affordable Care Act.

Theyll sit at a long table before someone unknown to most Americans but with singular power to influence whether Republicans can follow through on their seven-year quest to remake President Barack Obamas signature domestic achievement.

That person is Elizabeth MacDonough  the Senate parliamentarian, who is charged with acting as Congresss version of a referee in the contentious health-care debate. MacDonough and her small staff will decide whether the Republican-crafted bill sent over from the House meets the requirements allowing it to be considered under special budget rules designed to protect it from Democratic defeat.

Before MacDonough, Democrats will argue that the GOP measure known as the American Health Care Act (ACHA) bleeds over the boundaries of what can be accomplished under budget rules known as reconciliation. Republicans will insist that the ACHA complies with those rules by containing only provisions that affect federal spending.

[House Republicans claim a major victory with passage of health-care overhaul]

(Jenny Starrs/The Washington Post)

MacDonough will listen carefully to both sides. Shell ask questions. She wont appear to favor one side. And when she makes a decision, it will be based on her best understanding of Senate rules and precedent  not on whether she approves or disapproves of the Affordable Care Act or the effort to repeal it, multiple friends and former co-workers say.

MacDonoughs rulings on past ACA repeal efforts suggest that she may side with Republicans in some instances. But the new GOP bill is different in that it tackles ACA repeal and attempts to replace portions of it.

MacDonough is in my view completely unbiased and she cares about the institution and she follows the precedent that has been established, said David Schiappa, who for years worked closely with her as secretary for Senate Republicans.

Bill Dauster, a longtime counsel to Senate Democrats, said: Ive always felt I could get a fair hearing.

MacDonough declined a request for an interview.

Washington is filled with people who talk much but affect little. MacDonough is the opposite  she intentionally stays out of the spotlight, but wields enormous influence in proceedings on the Senate floor, where she, her deputy and several assistants continually advise senators on arcane procedure and a complex set of rules that few people really comprehend.

MacDonough, who attended a preparatory high school in Connecticut and holds degrees from George Washington University and Vermont Law School, worked her way up in the Senate, starting as an assistant parliamentarian in 1999 and serving for 13 years before the Senate approved her as parliamentarian in 2012 at the recommendation of then-Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.).

Observers say it is a stressful role, especially as the environment in Congress has grown more partisan and toxic. Although past Senate leaders have ousted parliamentarians for decisions they didnt like  and the Senate majority leader has the ability to do the same to MacDonough  the job is still widely considered nonpartisan. Part of being perceived as fair to both sides means that MacDonough keeps her political views to herself.

My experience with her is that she is fair, said Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who acts as the ranking Democrat on the Budget Committee, which has had extensive interaction with MacDonough and her team. She has a lot of responsibility on her shoulders.

Don Stewart, deputy chief of staff to Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), said the Senate is fortunate to have MacDonoughs guidance.

The parliamentarian is a brilliant lawyer, a thorough and fair referee, and a walking encyclopedia of Senate precedent and procedure, Stewart said.

But the health-care debate into which MacDonough is about to step could challenge even her reputation for fairness.

A budget reconciliation bill needs just a simple majority in the Senate to be approved  not the 60 votes typically required to overcome a filibuster. That permits Republicans to pass their health-care legislation with just 50 of their 52 members, with tiebreaking help from Vice President Pence.

But strings are attached, and MacDonough is the one who can pull them. Each piece of such a bill must be directly related to federal spending, such as a tax or expenditure. Repealing certain parts of the ACA, such as its taxes, for example, fits easily under this standard. But other parts, such as rolling back the laws insurance regulations, dont necessarily qualify.

MacDonoughs primary task over the next few weeks will be to rule on whether the AHCA qualifies as a budget reconciliation bill. If she finds that individual parts of the bill wouldnt have a direct budgetary impact through a process known as a Byrd bath, those parts would be stripped out. That doesnt mean, however, that the House would have to vote again on its measure  just that lawmakers could consider only a pared-back version.

Most health-care experts think MacDonough will strip some parts of the House bill  indeed, many House Republicans are holding their breath regarding some of the AHCAs riskier elements.

The parts most vulnerable to rejection include waivers for states to opt out of protections for people with preexisting conditions, or its provision raising the ratio for how much insurers can charge older people relative to younger ones. Those elements are insurer regulations not directly related to federal spending, but some Republicans have argued an indirect link by noting that premiums would be affected and therefore the amount of subsidies the government must pay out.

Another questionable part of the House bill is its language banning federally subsidized insurance plans from covering abortions. Abortion opponents insisted that such a ban must be included, even though that, too, might raise MacDonoughs eyebrows.

[Planned Parenthood could be first casualty of Obamacare repeal efforts]

Republicans already have a sense of how MacDonough might rule. A year and a half ago, she and her deputies analyzed a measure aimed at repealing some of the ACA but not replacing it. Although Obama ultimately vetoed that bill, House and Senate Republicans passed it partly as a readiness exercise should they eventually win the White House.

Staffers writing that 2015 House measure didnt attempt to repeal large parts of the ACA, fearing a challenge by MacDonough. But under pressure from conservatives, the Senate added provisions to eliminate the insurance subsidies, Medicaid expansion and small- business tax credits. Notably, MacDonough went along with those changes.

Heartening conservatives, MacDonough ruled that a section in that measure banning Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid reimbursements could remain. The measure said Medicaid money couldnt go to certain abortion providers, without explicitly mentioning the group.

But MacDonough didnt give the 2015 legislation an entirely free pass.

Under her guidance, the Senate was forced to tweak language repealing the individual and employer mandates, technically leaving the requirements in place but eliminating the penalties.

There are those preparing preemptive plans should MacDonough disappoint them.

A few of the more conservative senators  including Ted Cruz (Tex.)  have suggested that McConnell could replace MacDonough if she rules against them  or at least allow the Senate president to overrule her.

But that lack of support isnt widespread. Those who know MacDonough say theyre not surprised that she doesnt give interviews or speak publicly because she takes her job as an unbiased adjudicator seriously.

Even some outside conservatives who argue for a more expansive interpretation of budget rules say they are not worried about MacDonough judging health care.

I have complete confidence in her ability to interpret Senate rules, said Michael Cannon, a health-policy expert at the libertarian Cato Institute.

Cannon has argued extensively that virtually every part of the ACA is closely tied to government spending.

Cannon used to live in MacDonoughs neighborhood, and he says theyd run into each other while walking their dogs. They also visited the same dentist  once during an appointment, he saw her photo displayed on the office wall as a testament to great teeth.

Shes got such a great smile, [the dentist] put her picture up in his office, Cannon said.

Read more at PowerPost
French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a blunt greeting to Vladimir Putin on Monday, criticizing the use of chemical weapons by Syrias Russian-backed government and blasting two Russian state-owned media organizations as organs of influence and propaganda.

Macron had invited the Russian leader to France to reset a relationship that has turned increasingly sour. Putin did more than any other foreign leader to undermine Macrons legitimacy in this countrys recent presidential election, meeting with his far-right opponent during the campaign.

His meeting with Putin came just days after Macron made his mark on the world stage, welcoming President Trump with an aggressive handshake that the French leader later said was intended to show that he wouldnt make small concessions.

[The Putin-Macron handshake the world was waiting for]

Macron, 39, who won the May 7 election in a landslide, said he and Putin had extremely frank talks Monday. But Macron also emphasized that Russia and France could work together on issues such as terrorism.

(The Washington Post)

Leading up to the election, Putin had expressly backed Macrons opponent, Marine Le Pen, leader of the staunchly anti-immigrant National Front. On the eve of the vote, Macrons campaign suffered a massive cyberattack that it compared to the hacking of Hillary Clintons presidential campaign last year. U.S. intelligence agencies have blamed that operation on the Russian government.

Cybersecurity analysts quickly detected Russian fingerprints behind the hacking of the Macron campaigns emails and internal communications.

The Kremlin has denied involvement, and Putin on Monday reiterated that Russia never meddled in the French election. He did, however, defend his decision to receive the pro-Russian Le Pen in Moscow in late March, one month before the first vote in the two-round French election.

Putin told reporters that Macron had not broached the subject of the cyberattack in their talks on Monday.

We are quite capable of trying to move forward together in terms of the so-called Russian interference in the elections, Putin said at a news conference in response to a question. The issue has not been raised. The French president did not show any interest, and I even less.

But Macron did show more than a little interest in the topic, especially when asked by a Russian journalist why it had been so difficult for certain reporters to get access to his campaign headquarters during the election.

I have always had an exemplary relationship with foreign journalists, but they have to be journalists. Russia Today and Sputnik were organs of influence and propaganda that spread counterfeit truths about me, he replied, referring to the Russian TV network and news agency.

Both media outlets are owned by the Russian government.

It is not for me to comment on Madame Le Pens visit to Moscow, Macron said, in response to another question about the vote. Elections are the decisions of sovereign people.

The presidents meeting at the 17th-century Chateau de Versailles, one of Europes most opulent palaces, came at a time when relations between Paris and Moscow have reached one of their lowest points in decades, mostly because of the war in Syria.

France has been highly critical of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whom the Kremlin has backed for years. Last fall, Putin abruptly canceled a visit to France after Macrons predecessor, Francois Hollande, decried Russian bombings in the Syrian city of Aleppo as a war crime.

Macron said Monday that the use of chemical weapons in Syria constituted a red line for France and would result in reprisals and an immediate response, at least where France is concerned. Syria has been accused of using chemical weapons, including chlorine gas and much-deadlier nerve agents, during the conflict.

Trump last month ordered a missile attack on a Syrian air base in response to a chemical attack in Idlib province that killed nearly 100 people. Russia protested that the U.S. retaliation violated international law and said it would ruin bilateral relations.

President Barack Obama had also pledged strong action against Syria if it crossed a red line by using chemical weapons. But a year later, in 2013, Obama was widely criticized for holding off on military action against Syria when he failed to get congressional approval for a strike in the wake of a chemical-weapons attack. The U.S. government subsequently worked with Russia on a deal that was supposed to rid Syria of such weapons.

France and Russia are also divided over the Putin administrations support for pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine and Russias annexation of Crimea in 2014, which led to the imposition of sanctions by Europe and the United States.

Macron said France and Russia would pursue further dialogue in the Normandy format  including France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine.

Standing next to his Russian counterpart, Frances new president also pledged to defend all people, all minorities. He explicitly mentioned workers employed at Western-backed nonprofit groups in Russia  who are often tagged foreign agents by the Russian government  and the reported abuse of gay people by authorities in Chechnya.

I will be constantly vigilant on these issues, Macron said.

Read more

Emmanuel Macrons unlikely path to the French presidency

As Cold War turns to Information War, a new fake news police combats disinformation

The dark history at the heart of the French election

Todays coverage from Post correspondents around the world

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It was March 2020, and the world was closing down as the COVID-19 pandemic spread. At first, the news of...
The G7 summit held in Italy over the weekend concluded with an open rift between the United States and the major European powers. German Chancellor Angela Merkel all but declared that the transatlantic alliance, which provided the basis for post-war stability, is over.

Addressing a Munich beer tent rally on Sunday, Merkel said: The times when we could fully rely on others are to some extent overI experienced that in the last few days. We Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands.

Merkel was speaking a day after the conclusion of the summit, which saw open conflicts with the US. The rupture took place in the wake of US President Donald Trumps refusal at a gathering in Brussels to reaffirm a commitment to Article 5 of the NATO treaty, which obligates member states to come to each others assistance when attacked. This was followed by a NATO meeting in which he berated the Europeans for not paying what they should be paying toward the alliance.

At the G7, the most public conflict centred on an endorsement of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change, which the Trump administration considers unjust on the grounds that it restricts economic growth in the US.

The other six membersthe UK, France, Italy, Germany, Canada and Japanrefused to back down. As a result, the summit communique specifically recorded the objections of the US, stating: The United States of America is in the process of reviewing its policies on climate change and on the Paris Agreement and thus is not in a position to join the consensus on these topics.

While there were divergences at previous G7 meetings and varying interpretations offered of decisions reached, the participants were able to paper over their differences in the final communique. That did not take place on this occasion.

The conflicts extended into other areas. Before the summit even got underway, the US blocked a move by Italy, the host nation, to have at least some verbal reference to the rights of refugees.

Trade was another contentious issue. The US had secured the removal of references to the need to resist protectionism from statements issued by the G20, the finance ministers meeting of the G7 and the IMF at gatherings earlier this year.

The G7 communique affirmed a commitment to keep our markets open and to fight protectionism, while standing firm against all unfair trade practices. However any hopes by European politicians that the inclusion of fight protectionism might represent some back down by Washington proved short-lived.

Immediately after the meeting, Trump seized on the reference to unfair trade practices. In a series of tweets, he hailed big results on trade, highlighting phrases about the remove of all trade-distorting practices in order to foster a truly level playing field, without mentioning the need to fight protectionism.

Earlier in the week, Trump described Germany as bad, very bad in a meeting with European officials, according to Spiegel Online. He added: See the millions of cars they are selling in the US? Terrible. We will stop this.

Merkel described the talks on the climate agreement as very unsatisfying, before going to Munich on Sunday, where she summed up the broader implications of the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union (Brexit) and the clash with the US.

Of course, we need to have friendly relations with the US and with the UK and with our other neighbours, including Russia, she said. Even so, she continued, we have to fight for our own future ourselves.

The fact that these words were delivered at a Munich beer rally, recalling the start of Adolf Hitlers political career, added to their significance.

The historic implications of Merkels remarks were recognised in a number of comments.

In a Twitter message, US Council on Foreign Relations President Richard Haass said they were a watershed. The scenario was what the US has sought to avoid since World War II.

Henry Farrell, professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University, noted in the Washington Post that Merkels comments were an enormous change in political rhetoric. While the special relationship between Britain and the US had assumed more public prominence, the German-US relationship has arguably been more important.

One of the purposes of NATO, Farrell wrote, was to embed Germany in an international framework that would prevent it from becoming a threat to European peace as it had been in World War I and World War II. He recalled the words of the first NATO secretary-general, Hastings Ismay, that the alliance aimed to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down. Now, Germany was seeking to play a more independent role than at any time since the end of World War II.

The immediate cause of the rift at the G7 was almost universally described as Trumps boorish behaviour. But his actions are only the latest, and so far most graphic, expression of the deepening tensions between the major imperialist powers.

At the time of the invasion of Iraq in 2003, Germany opposed military actionmotivated by its own economic and strategic interests in the Middle East. In response, Donald Rumsfeld, then US defence secretary, drew a contrast between what he called old Europe, the German area of influence, and new Europe, the eastern European states more inclined toward the US.

While the transatlantic alliance has been maintained, these divisions have intensified over the past decade, with growing criticism from within German political circles about the disruptive international role of the US and the need for Germany to assert itself on the global arena.

The differences encompass the Middle East, where Germany has considerable economic interests; China, where Germany looks to gain advantage from the One Belt, One Road project of President Xi Jinping; and Russia.

In February 2016, in its statement Socialism and the Fight Against War, the International Committee of the Fourth International called for the development of an international movement of the working class against the danger of a new imperialist world war.

It noted that while American imperialism was the cockpit of international war planning, its actions were only the most concentrated expression of the intractable crisis of capitalism as a world system.

European and Japanese imperialism, facing the same internal and external contradictions, were pursuing no less predatory aims, the statement explained. All are attempting to exploit American overreach to secure their stakes into what has degraded into a ferocious battle for the global redivision of world economic and political power.

As the ruptures at the G7 summit reveal, the divisions between the major powers have widened and the heat of that battle is likely to only intensify.
Rome (AFP) - More than 3,400 migrants were rescued off the coast of Libya on Friday, bringing to about 10,000 the total number rescued over four days, according to Libyan and Italian officials.

At least 10 bodies were also found by the Italian coastguard, officials said. No vessels were reported in distress on Saturday.

On Friday, more than 1,200 migrants were rescued by Libyan ships and taken to Tripoli or Zawiya, about 50 kilometres (31 miles) west, while the Italian coastguard and commercial boats rescued 2,200 others and took them to Italy.

Migrants were still disembarking in southern Italy on Saturday.

Another 6,400 were picked up between Tuesday and Thursday, but at least 35 people drowned on Wednesday when a powerful wave struck their vessel, pitching them into the sea as a rescue ship was distributing life jackets.

The unloading of passengers in Sicily was halted all week due to the G7 summit in the eastern hilltop town of Taormina, which lengthened rescue ships' journey by 24 hours and delayed their return to the seas.

In response, they called on commercial boats to help out.

More than 50,000 migrants have reached the Italian coast since the start of the year, not counting those rescued in recent days, while more than 1,400 have drowned or are missing, according to UN figures.

Of the 181,000 migrants who entered Italy last year, some 90 percent arrived via Libya.

The North African country has long been a stepping stone for migrants seeking a better life in Europe.

Libya has urged Europe, and particularly Italy, to supply it with the equipment it needs to monitor its southern borders, through which migrants, mostly from sub-Saharan African, enter the country.
Tripoli (AFP) - Forces loyal to Libya's unity government said Saturday that 52 of its fighters were killed as they repelled rival militias in fierce clashes in the capital Tripoli.

Apart from sporadic gunfire in southern Tripoli, calm returned to the city on Saturday, the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Among the 52 killed in Friday's clashes which centred on the southern district of Abu Slim, said Hashem Bichr, a security official of the Government of National Accord, were 17 members of pro-GNA forces who had been "executed".

There was no immediate confirmation from medical or other independent sources of the death toll, updated from Friday's health ministry figures of 28 dead and more than 100 wounded that did not give a breakdown of the casualties.

UN special envoy Martin Kobler condemned the fighting in which heavy artillery and tanks were used, urging restraint from all sides.

Forces of the UN-backed GNA announced on their Facebook page they had defeated rival militias and taken control of a prison holding key leaders of the ousted regime of Moamer Kadhafi including his last premier, Baghdadi al-Mahmudi, and former intelligence chief Abdullah Senussi.

Al-Hadhba jail had been under the control of the Fajr Libya militia coalition, which had seized Tripoli in 2014 and set up a government headed by Khalifa Ghweil.

The Libyan capital has been gripped by a power struggle ever since a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime dictator Kadhafi in 2011.

The latest fighting started around a complex of luxury villas that until March served as headquarters of militias loyal to Ghweil, who was ousted when the GNA took office last year but refuses to recognise the new administration.

Loyalist forces seized the villas in four days of intense fighting in March that saw them expand their control over the capital.

Tripoli had been relatively calm since, but dozens of armed groups still operate and several parts of Tripoli remain beyond its control.

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Relying on militia support and pitted against a rival administration in eastern Libya, the GNA has struggled to assert its authority across the country.

In a statement on Friday, the GNA blamed Ghweil and Salah Badi, another leader of Fajr Libya, for Friday's violence.

"This is their gift to the people for the month of Ramadan," it said in a statement.

Mattia Toaldo, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said the main figure to benefit from the Tripoli clashes was military strongman Khalifa Haftar, who supports the eastern administration.

"The man standing to gain from these clashes is again Khalifa Haftar who benefits from the increasing sense of chaos in the capital," he told AFP.
Speaker Ryan is one of the most unpopular politicians in the country  and he's polling particularly poorly among one 8th grade class.

Eighth grade students from South Orange Middle School in South Orange, New Jersey were on a school trip to Washington D.C. on Friday when they were given a very special opportunity: a photo-op with Speaker Paul Ryan. Under normal circumstances, many students would leap for the chance to take a photo with the third most powerful politician in the country.

Not these kids.

SEE ALSO: Give Trumpcare a break: Here are all the pre-existing conditions it will cover

Close to 100 8th graders refused to take a photo with the Speaker and instead sat in a parking lot across the street. Speaker Ryan then took a photo with the remaining class and posted it to his Instagram.

Got that #FridayFeeling  A post shared by Speaker Paul Ryan (@speakerryan) on May 26, 2017 at 6:39am PDT

"I cant take a picture with someone who supports a budget that would destroy public education and would leave 23 million people without healthcare, Matthew Malespina, a student at the school, told his local newspaper, The Village Green.

Others grounded their decision in their aversion to Trump.

I didnt want to be in [the picture] because he believes in most of what Trump believes in, a fellow student, Louisa Maynard-Parisi, told The Village Green.

Parents were torn about whether the kids should have sat out on the photo. Ryan was a "legitimately elected official," one parent wrote, and they would have been offended if conservative students had done the same thing to President Obama.

Matthew Malespina's mother, on the other hand, couldn't have been more proud/.

"I am proud of my son and all the other students who chose to respectfully not to participate in the photograph with Speaker Ryan, she told The Village Green.

Middle school #resistance is the best kind of resistance there is.

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Donald Trump talks to Angela Merkel during the G7; differences emerged from the meeting in Sicily when the US President refused to commit to the Paris climate agreement: AFP

Angela Merkels spokesman has defended her comments at the weekend warning that Europe could no longer rely on the US, saying a healthy transatlantic partnership depended on the German Chancellors ability to be honest with her American counterpart.

He said it was important to stress the clear differences in foreign policy but added that Germany remained committed to strengthening ties with the Trump administration.

On Saturday, following fractious G7 and Nato meetings, Ms Merkel suggested the days when Germany could rely on its allies were "over to a certain extent".

She did not mention Donald Trump by name, but the US President's criticism of other Nato members for their chronic underpayments, and his refusal to endorse a global climate change accord, were seen as a likely catalyst for her remarks.

Clarifying Ms Merkels position on Monday, her spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said she was a deeply convinced Atlanticist.

He said German-US relations "are a strong pillar of our foreign and security policy, and Germany will continue working to strengthen these relations.

"[It is] precisely because they are so important, it's right to name differences honestly," he added.

Germanys interior minister also insisted security ties with Washington were "excellent" and said shared threats with Britain meant Brexit should have as little impact as possible on security cooperation.

"I can only say transatlantic cooperation is, especially in the security domain, of paramount significance for our country," Thomas de Maiziere said.

"I am confident that the issue of security cooperation will not be among the most difficult issues in the Brexit negotiations," he added. "A lot unites us here."

Ms Merkel, who is standing for a fourth term in Septembers federal elections, said at the weekend that Germans have to know that we must fight for our future on our own, for our destiny as Europeans.

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"I have experienced this in the last few days," she said. "And that is why I can only say that we Europeans must really take our fate into our own hands - of course in friendship with the United States of America, in friendship with Great Britain and as good neighbours wherever that is possible also with other countries, even with Russia."

Commentators downplayed the significance of her comments, saying they were delivered in the context of the upcoming election and targeted at her electorate rather than foreign leaders.

Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, reacted to Ms Merkels words by emphasising that Britain was seeking a "deep and special partnership" with the rest of Europe after Brexit.

She said the UK would remain a strong partner on trade and defence and, in the wake of the Manchester attack, said boosting security across the continent depended on close ties between the two countries.

A recent poll of German voters showed growing support for Ms Merkels conservative bloc, on 38 per cent, as backing for the Social Democrats continues to wane (25 per cent).
By Heru Asprihanto DENPASAR, Indonesia (Reuters) - Australian drug convict Schapelle Corby is set to be deported from the Indonesian island of Bali on Saturday night after completing a twelve-and-a-half-year sentence for smuggling marijuana, a case that strained ties between the neighboring countries. Corby has always maintained her innocence, saying she was unaware she was carrying more than 4 kg (8.8 lb) of marijuana in a boogie board bag when she arrived on the resort island in late 2004. The case received huge media attention, with many Australians feeling the former beauty therapist had been harshly treated under Indonesia's strict drug laws, even though Corby could have faced the death penalty for trafficking. Adding to the drama and public interest, the court hearings were broadcast live and included emotional outbursts from Corby and her family when she received a 20-year sentence. "Australians became so besotted with the case," said Janine Hosking, who made the documentary "Ganja Queen" about Corby's case. "She doesn't look like how we would imagine a drug trafficker to look; she looks like the girl next door." "People will speculate forever on this case," Hosking told Reuters previously, adding that the media attention had worked against her even if it made her a star. Corby's sentence was later cut after a request for clemency to then president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and she was released on parole in 2014. Under her parole conditions, Corby had to keep in close contact with correctional officers while living at the Bali home of her sister Mercedes, trying to stay out of the public eye as the media tracked her every move. According to the head of the parole office, Surung Pasaribu, Corby had been fearful of the constant media coverage, and he said the Australian government had asked his office to ensure her safety ahead of her departure to Brisbane on Saturday night. "All that's left is to sign some letters," Pasaribu said, after which she will be handed over to immigration officials at Bali's Ngurah Rai airport. "Today, Corby is free." In an Instagram post (@schapelle.corby) on Saturday, Corby told her more than 61 thousand followers, "Good bye to this parole paper work. Approching (sic) parole office for the last time." (Writing by Fergus Jensen; Editing by Ed Davies and Toby Chopra)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two Chinese fighter jets intercepted a U.S. Navy surveillance plane over the South China Sea on Wednesday, with one coming within 200 yards (180 meters) of the American aircraft, U.S. officials told Reuters. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said initial reports showed that the U.S. P-3 Orion surveillance plane was 150 miles (240 km) southeast of Hong Kong in international airspace when the Chinese aircraft carried out the unsafe intercept. One Chinese aircraft flew in front of the American plane, restricting its ability to maneuver. The Pentagon confirmed that two Chinese jets had carried out the intercept, saying it was "unsafe and unprofessional." "We continue to review the facts of this incident and will convey our concerns through appropriate channels with the Chinese government," Pentagon spokesman Navy Commander Gary Ross said in a statement. China's defense ministry said on Sunday that the U.S. account of the interception was inaccurate. The Chinese jets operated in a professional and safe manner, the ministry said on its official account on China's Twitter-like Weibo. The ministry also reiterated that the U.S. military should take steps to avoid similar risky activities, and that China's military is resolved to protect China's sovereignty and security. A U.S. Navy warship sailed within 12 nautical miles (22 km) of an artificial island built up by China in the South China Sea, U.S. officials said on Wednesday, the first such challenge to Beijing in the strategic waterway since U.S. President Donald Trump took office. China is deeply suspicious of any U.S. military activity around its coastline, especially in the resource-rich South China Sea, parts of which are disputed by China and its smaller neighbors, including the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia. Incidents such as Wednesday's interception are not uncommon. Earlier this month, two Chinese SU-30 aircraft intercepted a U.S. aircraft designed to detect radiation while it was flying in international airspace over the East China Sea. (Reporting by Idrees Ali; Additional reporting by Ryan Woo; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Cairo (AFP) - Egypt said Saturday attackers who massacred Christians near a monastery had trained in militant camps in Libya which it targeted with air strikes, after the Islamic State group claimed responsibility.

The air force loyal to Egypt-backed Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar said it had joined the Egyptian air strikes on Friday following the attack on Copts that killed 29 people.

But the only confirmed strikes appear to have hit a pro-Al-Qaeda group in the Libyan city of Derna that has fought against IS.

IS said on Saturday that its fighters had ambushed the Christians as they were travelling to the Saint Samuel monastery in Egypt's southern province of Minya.

The shooting was the latest in a series of attacks by IS that have killed more than 100 Copts since December.

Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told his US counterpart Rex Tillerson that the jihadists who attacked the Christian convoy had trained in Libyan militant camps.

"There was enough information and evidence of the terrorist elements involved in the (attack) having trained in these camps", a foreign ministry statement quoted him as saying.

A spokesman for the pro-Al-Qaeda Majlis Mujahedeen Derna, which controls the city in eastern Libya, said the Egyptian air force carried out eight raids on the city without causing casualties.

A Libyan air force statement said: "The operation was a success and the losses of the Al-Qaeda terrorists were heavy in casualties and equipment."

Majlis Mujahedeen Derna ousted IS from Derna in 2015 and also fights Haftar's forces.

The group has no known connections to IS in Egypt.

Egypt has repeatedly expressed concern over militants crossing from Libya to Egypt to conduct attacks.

In a speech on Friday, Sisi said setbacks to IS in Syria were driving its fighters to try to relocate to Libya and Egypt's Sinai.

In past attacks, Egypt had usually identified local jihadists as the perpetrators.

Friday's attack followed two suicide bombings of churches in April that killed 45 Copts. In December, a suicide bomber struck a church in Cairo, killing 29 Copts.

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IS claimed all the bombings and threatened more attacks on the Copts, who make up about 10 percent of Egypt's population of 90 million.

It has also killed several Christians in North Sinai, forcing dozens of families to flee.

The latest attack drew global condemnation.

"Terrorists are engaged in a war against civilisation, and it is up to all who value life to confront and defeat this evil," US President Donald Trump said in a statement.

Pope Francis, who visited Egypt in April, sent a message to Sisi saying he was "deeply saddened to learn of the barbaric attack".
Donald Trump was like a drunk tourist on his first trip abroad, which saw awkward handshakes with the French President, shoving the Prime Minister of Montenegro and causing German Chancellor Angela Merkel to declare the end of the US alliance with Europe.

A US State Department official blasted the arrogance of the President as he flew from Saudi Arabia and Israel to Europe last week.

When it comes to diplomacy, President Trump is a drunk tourist, the unnamed official told The Daily Beast.

Loud and tacky, shoving his way around the dance floor. He steps on others without realising it. Its ineffectual.

Most concerning was Mr Trumps vow to make a final decision on the Paris climate change agreement next week  a measure which 195 nations have already agreed upon before his election.

He was accused of undermining the international diplomacy when he took a tougher stance on the G7 than on Saudi Arabia, where he made no mention of human rights violations in Yemen and was feted with lavish ceremonies and received the highest civilian honour.

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At a ceremony to celebrate Nato member nations' strength after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Mr Trump said Germany was bad, very bad for its trade surplus and told off the 28 countries for not paying what they should be paying. He also refused to commit to upholding Article 5 of the Nato Treaty, and did not utter the words all for one, one for all.

Mr Trump flew back to the US with a $100 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia and tweeted, Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!

His trip led French leader Emmanuel Macron, with whom Mr Trump was seen gripping hands and gritting teeth, to announce that the handshake with the President was not innocent.

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Ms Merkel declared to a crowd in Bavaria that Europes ability to rely on the US was over, to a certain extent. This is what I have experienced in the last few days.

Europe really must take our fate into our own hands, Ms Merkel added.

He also appeared to push aside Montenegro Prime Minister Dusko Markovic to stand at the front of a group of Nato leaders. Mr Markovic said the move was "inoffensive".

The signalling of the potential end of the US-German alliance could be described as good news for Russia, which has so far been restrained by Nato from provoking further aggressions in other countries like those in Crimea.

Democrats railed against missed opportunities by Mr Trump during his first venture.

Senator Cory Booker told CNN that Mr Trump did not focus on the core issues like climate change, human rights issues or Russian aggression.

Not talking about the real human rights concerns in Saudi Arabia, its almost like reducing America from the light and hope in the world to just a utilitarian kind of transactional relationship, he said.
The event marked Trumps first Memorial holiday as President: AP

Donald Trump used Americas Memorial Day to momentarily remove himself from the controversy surrounding his administration over alleged links to Russia  visiting Arlington National Cemetery and honouring those who had died in war.

It was Mr Trumps first Memorial holiday as President, and at Arlington he laid a wreath and paid special tribute to Robert Kelly, the son of his Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly. The 29-year-old was killed by a roadside bomb in Afghanistans Helmand Province in 2010.

I especially want to extend our gratitude to General Kelly for joining us today  an incredible man  I always call him general, said Mr Trump. He understands more than most ever could, or ever will, the wounds and burdens of war.

Mr Trump, who secured five draft deferments for Vietnam  four for college and one for a bad ankle  will have appreciated the solemnity and the warm response he received at Arlington. Since he returned from a nine-day overseas visit, his first official foreign trip, his administration has been besieged by fresh revelations over his campaign teams contacts with Russia.

The most recent furore focuses on his trusted advisor and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who reportedly sought to establish a communications back channel with Russia, during a meeting last December with Russias Ambassador to Washington, Sergey Kislyak.

It was also reported that the 36-year-old was a focus of the FBIs ongoing probe into possible collusion between Mr Trumps team and the alleged effort by Moscow to influence the 2016 election. Mr Kushner has offered to testify with any official investigations.

Mr Kushner previously volunteered to share with Congress what he knows about these meetings, his lawyer, Jamie Gorelick, said in a statement. He will do the same if he is contacted in connection with any other inquiry.

Mr Trump has been placed in an intensely difficult predicament by the developments. There are few people he trusts more than his son-in-law and would be loathe to lose him from the West Wing. At the same time, amid reports that the President is planning a major shake-up inside the White House, there is said to be mounting talk that Mr Kushner may be obliged to take a leave of absence until the issue is resolved.

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For now, Mr Trump is sticking with the man married to his eldest daughter.

I look forward to paying my respects to our brave men and women on this Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery later this morning.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2017

Jared is doing a great job for the country. I have total confidence in him, he said in a statement to the New York Times.

He is respected by virtually everyone and is working on programmes that will save our country billions of dollars. In addition to that, and perhaps more importantly, he is a very good person.

Mr Trumps Secretary of Homeland Security, who was present at Arlington, has also come to the defence of Mr Kushner. Over the weekend, he said that the suggestion to establish a back channel communication with Moscow was both normal and appropriate.

Anytime you can communicate with people, especially organisations who are not particularly friendly us, its a good thing, he told ABC News. Whatever the communication is, it comes back to the Government and is shared.

Speaking at Arlington, Mr Trump said: To the entire Kelly family, today, 300 million American hearts are joined together with you. We grieve with you. We honour you and we pledge to you that we will always remember Robert and what he did for us.
Fair-weather friend? Chinas Xi Jinping carries the hopes of many beyond his own country when it comes to climate change: Getty

Earlier this year Donald Trump received a personal letter urging him not to withdraw the US from the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.

If the US pulled out, the letter said, it would lose a seat at discussions and could not make a case for the most cost-effective greenhouse gas reduction options.

Another voice in his ear said the US would weaken its own hand by basically uninviting itself from a number of negotiating tables.

If Trump does this, rejects climate change, abandons our commitments, gives up on US leadership, the damage of 2016 will be incomprehensible https://t.co/5TFIRQESkM  Jon Lovett (@jonlovett) May 28, 2017

Those urging Mr Trump to stick with the agreement made by Barack Obama were not long-haired greenies or earnest activists. Rather, they were the chief executives of ExxonMobil, the worlds largest listed oil company, and Royal Dutch Shell. For they see the danger of the worlds most powerful nation not being present. Trump, apparently does not.

During his election campaign, the Republican candidate dismissed climate change science as a hoax and suggested it had been invented by the Chinese.

Having got it in the ear last week from G7 leaders urging him to stick with the accord, Trumps aides said his thinking on the topic was evolving. Then once he was back in Washington, it was reported Trump had told three associates he planned to pull out of the agreement after all.

Trump believes sticking with Obamas emissions targets will hurt business; climate experts say the implications of Trumps decision are of an existential scale.

The Associated Press recently spoke to two dozen climate scientists and consulted a computer model designed to predict the potential impact of climate change. It found that Trumps move would make a bad situation markedly worse and make it harder to stop the world crossing a perilous global temperature threshold.

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The calculations suggested it would result in the release of an additional three billion tons of carbon dioxide every year, melting ice sheets more quickly, raising sea levels and triggering more extreme weather.

If we lag, the noose tightens, said Princeton University climate scientist Michael Oppenheimer.

In another development, Trumps rejection of the Paris Agreement would cede the USs lead on confronting climate change to other nations, most notably China and India.

For many years, the worlds two most populous countries were seen as a block to progress on any global deal, insisting that developing nations should not be held to the same rules as countries in the West which, which had for decades benefited from CO2-emitting industrialisation.

But things have changed. China, which along with the US produces 44 per cent of the worlds carbon dioxide, agreed to talks with Obama that led to the 2015 Paris Agreement. Obama said the US would cut emissions immediately, with a target of 28 per cent by 2025, while Xi Jinping said China would seek to ensure its emissions peaked by 2030 and then fell.

Since then China has stepped up its game. Earlier this year, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Xi said the Paris accord was hard-won. All signatories should stick to it instead of walking away from it, as this is a responsibility we must assume for future generations, he said.

India, the worlds third largest overall producer of carbon dioxide  though not per capita  has also made striking progress. The nation expects to get 40 per cent of its electricity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2022, eight years ahead of schedule.

Indeed, according to data released recently at a UN climate meeting in Germany, China and India should both easily exceed the targets they set for themselves in the 2015 Paris Agreement.

Five years ago, the idea of either China or India stopping  or even slowing  coal use was considered an insurmountable hurdle, as coal-fired power plants were thought by many to be necessary to satisfy the energy demands of these countries, said Bill Hare, of climate science not-for-profit Climate Analytics. Recent observations show they are now on the way toward overcoming this challenge.

European leaders were little short of furious with Trump over his climate change stubbornness. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said discussions had been very difficult, and not to say very unsatisfactory.

French President Emmanuel Macron felt the need to underscore the severity of the situation by shaking Trumps hand with such intensity that his knuckles went white. He later said it was a moment of truth designed to show that he was not a pushover.

None of this appears to have mattered to Trump. He seems set to pull the US out of an agreement most others nations consider essential to the planets survival.

The best hope may now lie with the very people Trump once mocked as hoaxers.
Washington (AFP) - A gunman on a rampage during a domestic dispute in rural Mississippi fatally shot eight people, including a sheriff's deputy, US news reports said on Sunday.

The shootings took place late Saturday in two small hamlets, Brookhaven and Bogue Chitto, both about 60 miles (100 kilometers) from the city of Jackson.

Although details were still murky, the gunman -- Willie Cory Godbolt, 35 -- told The Clarion-Ledger newspaper after his arrest on Sunday that he had gone to a home in Bogue Chitto to talk about getting custody of his children.

After the conflict escalated, neighbors called police, and Godbolt shot the arriving deputy.

"My pain wasn't designed for him. He was just there," Godbolt said of the officer.

"We was talking about me trying to take the children home," he told the newspaper while sitting on the ground at one of the shooting scenes, arms cuffed behind his back.

"Somebody called the officer," he added. "It cost him his life. I'm sorry."

Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant issued a statement Sunday calling the shootings a "tragedy" and hailing law enforcement officers who "sacrifice to protect and serve their communities."
Umuahia (Nigeria) (AFP) - Nigeria on Tuesday marks 50 years since the declaration of an independent Republic of Biafra plunged the country into a civil war, amid renewed tensions and fresh calls for a separate state.

The main pro-independence groups -- the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) -- have called for a day of reflection.

People in the southeast have been urged to stay at home to commemorate the secession, which happened on May 30, 1967.

But many fear an eruption of violence and Nigeria's security forces have said they are on red alert in hotspots in the former republic, such as Aba and Onitsha, where protests last year turned bloody.

In 1970, after nearly three years of fighting, Biafran soldiers who were outnumbered 10 to one by federal troops and under-equipped, laid down their arms.

The conflict caused an estimated million deaths, many of them caused by starvation after the secessionist region was blockaded.

With surrender went their dreams of a separate state for the Igbo people, who are the majority in the southeast.

Half a century later, Biafra remains an extremely sensitive subject in Nigeria.

"Nigeria did nothing for us since the end of the war. We have no roads, no infrastructures, no jobs. It's time to achieve what our fathers started," John Ahaneku, 48, told AFP.

- Turning point -

Igbo frustrations have grown over the decades.

During the long years of military government after the end of the war, they felt excluded from economic and political power.

Both have been dominated by the two other main ethnic groups in the country, the northern Hausa-Fulani and the Yoruba from the southwest.

But it was only after the return to democracy in 1999 that secessionist aspirations began to slowly resurface.

The current main pro-independence groups want a referendum on self-determination.

They accuse the former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari -- a northern Muslim who was elected civilian president in 2015 -- of violently repressing their freedom of expression.

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The arrest and incarceration towards the end of 2015 of IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu on treason charges has been seen as a turning point.

Amnesty International has accused the Nigerian security forces of killing at least 150 IPOB supporters in 2016, a claim Abuja flatly denies.

At least 60 were killed during commemorations for the civil war on May 30 last year, the human rights group alleged.

- Separatist solidarity -

On Thursday, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo -- standing in for the absent Buhari, who is on indefinite medical leave -- warned against the eruption of violence.

Nigeria is made up of some 250 ethnic groups and broadly divided between a largely Muslim north and mainly Christian south.

The 50th anniversary of Biafra was "an opportunity for individual and collective introspection", Osinbajo told a conference on the civil war in Abuja.

"Today some are suggesting that we must go back to the ethnic nationalities from which Nigeria was formed.

"Clearly our strength is in our diversity, that we are greater together than apart."

Abuja currently faces a number of sometimes violent separatist claims that threaten the country's unity, not least Boko Haram's insurgency to create a hardline Islamic state in the northeast.

In the oil-producing Niger delta, some of which was part of independent Biafra at the start of the war, sabotage by armed rebel groups in 2016 led to a slump in production, hitting Nigeria's economy.

Despite their diverging interests, pro-Biafra groups and Niger Delta rebels have publicly expressed mutual solidarity.

- Wrong approach -

On Friday, the federal police denounced "planned protests and order of market closures" on May 30 and said it was "deeply concerned with the security implications".

Police "will not hesitate to deal decisively with any group(s) and their sponsors that attempt to cause disturbance of the peace or carry out any unlawful demonstration", spokesman Jimoh O. Moshood warned.

According to analysts, the suppression of pro-Biafra protests is the wrong response and has only hardened more young people's attitudes in favour of independence.

A study this month by London-based SBM Intelligence suggested there was "rising support for a Biafra" in Nigeria's southeast and south.

"A total of 42.5 percent of all respondents believe that both regions should make up a future Biafran state," it said.

"However, just under half, 49.3 percent, of the total respondents still believe that the way forward for the Nigerian state is as one country, but with 'true federalism' being practised."

Security consultant Don Okereke said: "You can't kill an ideology with a gun."
By Giselda Vagnoni and Steve Scherer TAORMINA, Italy (Reuters) - Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy nations met African heads of state on Saturday, the final day of their annual summit which has been marked by discord over climate change, but unity on tackling terrorism. Italy had hoped to make Africa the major focus of the annual G7 gathering, holding the discussions on the island of Sicily that has taken in hundreds of thousands of migrants over the past four years as they flee war and poverty back home. However, the two-day meeting got overshadowed by a suicide bombing in northern England on Monday that killed 22 people, and also got bogged down by lengthy discussions on the merit of free trade and the 2015 Paris Agreement to tackle climate change. U.S. President Donald Trump has yet to decide whether to honour a U.S. commitment to greenhouse gas emissions and has pushed back against a lattice of international trade accords that he says have hurt American economic interests. "We are having to talk about things settled years ago," said a top level member of one G7 delegation, frustrated by the U.S. position. Diplomats from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States worked late into the night to agree on the final communique, which was expected to be little more than six pages long, against 32 pages last year. A French presidential source said substantial progress had been made on the question of trade, particularly in the area of multilateralism, suggesting Trump may have bowed to pressure for a more collaborative approach to international commerce. Italy had hoped to emphasise the positive impact migration can have and to call on industrialised nations to open up more legal channels for immigration to try to slow the flow of people risking their lives to reach Europe on flimsy boats from Libya. That idea was shot down ahead of the meeting. "There was very strong opposition by the Americans and British who wanted to refocus on security and water down the expansive language on freedom of movement," said a European diplomat, who declined to be named. AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT Security questions dominated initial G7 discussion on Friday and the leaders issued a statement telling internet service providers and social media firms to "substantially increase" their efforts to rein in extremist content. The leaders of Tunisia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Niger and Nigeria's acting president joined the talks on Saturday morning, along with the heads of the African Union, the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. "Perhaps the choice (to be in) Taormina and Sicily says much about how important our relations are with Africa," Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said in opening remarks. "Today our discussion on Africa will focus on the need for a partnership across all sectors ... with innovation and development our core objective," he said, speaking in Italian. Unlike other leaders, Trump, who was sitting between the heads of state of Tunisia and Niger, did not put on headphones to listen to a simultaneous translation. The U.S. president will return to Washington later on Saturday at the end of a nine-day tour of the Middle East and Europe -- his first foreign trip since taking office. Unlike other G7 leaders, he is not due to give a closing press conference before flying out. U.S. officials said he had enjoyed "robust" conversations with his allies in Sicily and had also learnt a lot -- especially in the debate on climate change, which he has previously dismissed as a hoax. "He came here to learn. He came here to get smart. His views are evolving which exactly as they should be," Trump's economic adviser Gary Cohn said on Friday. (Additional reporting by Steve Holland, Giselda Vagnoni, John Irish, and Andrea Rinke; Writing by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Noah Barkin and Toby Chopra)
This happened to Jose Canseco 24 years ago. (MLB)

Lets call this one Jose CansecDOS. A pair of minor league outfielders helped turn a fly ball into a home run Sunday in entertainingly goofy fashion.

[Join a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Baseball contest now]

It didnt bounce off their heads like the famous Jose Canseco play (which, coincidently, celebrated its 24th anniversary Friday) but it was still a play that should make quite a few blooper reels.

The ball came off the bat of Alex Jones of the Greensboro Grasshoppers, the Single-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. The outfield of the Kannapolis Intimidators, who we assure you are a real team, then went into slapstick mode. The ball hit off the glove of center fielder Joel Booker, then bounced off the chest of left fielder Jameson Fisher and over the fence.

Be sure to watch the entire highlight below to get the full effect:

Now here's something you don't see everyday. pic.twitter.com/WaD3yxkMSw  Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) May 29, 2017

Probably the best thing about this is you couldnt duplicate it again if you tried. Perhaps only if you were making a Rube Goldberg machine for dingers.

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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
Mutants like the X-Men might be much more likely to emerge in a human society living on another planet than here are on Earth, because radiation can really mess with evolution.

Space agencies and private companies like Elon Musks SpaceX are trying to make space travel more sustainable, learn about how the human body responds to long-term microgravity conditions and isolation and figure out how to grow crops in outer space, among other exercises  all as people set their sights on places like Mars to explore and colonize. But what will happen to us once we get there? Its possible the first settlers will evolve into a new human species entirely, given enough time.

On Earth, that amount of time is somewhere between thousands and millions of years, according to anthropologist John Hawks, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Read: Humans in a Space Colony Will Create a New Race

The ancient humans who migrated 50,000 years ago to what is now Australia  back when it was still connected to more northern landmasses  and eventually descended into the aboriginal tribes that live there today, didnt have enough time to become a new species. In Tasmania specifically, Hawks points out, they lived in partial isolation before being completely cut off from the rest of humanity for millennia when sea levels rose at the end of the last ice age, about 10,000 years ago, and their land bridge to mainland Australia sunk. Despite this long-term separation, it wasnt long enough; the Tasmanians didnt develop into a new species. The human species on Flores did, however.

When Hawks points to Flores, hes referring to the hobbit species, Homo floresiensis, that spent about 1 million years on the Indonesian island and evolved separately from an ancient human ancestor into a short-statured community that could have been alive as recently as 55,000 years ago. The problem is that its unclear when in their million-year journey on Flores they became this new species.

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space-habitat

Photo: Rick Guidice/NASA

What we dont know is how much of that time was necessary for it to happen, Hawks told International Business Times. But a million years  looks like its enough time.

Thats on Earth. On Mars, which doesnt have as thick of a protective atmosphere Earth does, radiation is beaming down much stronger.

Cancer rates might be higher, but at the same time mutations are the raw material for genetic variation, Scott Solomon said.

Solomon is an evolutionary biologist and science writer who has explored the future of human evolution. He speculated that on Mars, the increased radiation might actually speed of evolution because there would be more genetic mutation.

If we can survive, a higher mutation rate means there will be more variation entering the gene pool with each generation, he told IBT.

It wouldnt take a single generation on Mars to sire people with superhuman abilities, but even doubling the rate of evolution would be significant. Those mutations could be random, but random chance is what separates most species from one another, Hawks explained.

Compounding the effect is the fact that in such a drastically different environment, natural selection would heavily favor genes that gave one person an edge over another.

Read: Early Life on Earth Looked Like Swimming Bathmats

But developing into a separate species of human is not necessarily a bad thing. At least its not as big a problem as inbreeding, which is a possible danger to a human colony on Mars or elsewhere in the universe that doesnt have enough volunteers. For small populations  Hawks estimates the cutoff around 1,000 people  detrimental genes are a serious threat, because they dont cycle out in the same way they do in larger populations.

You have to think about how youre going to avoid inbreeding, he said. If you cant increase the population size, there may have to be a systematic breeding scheme to pair up people with the most genetic variety. You would need to have rigorous rules about who mates with whom.

Alternatively, he recommended bringing along something akin to a giant vat of sperm to broaden the gene pool.

For his part, Solomon suggested a system like on Noahs ark, in which the people organizing a space colony and approving members take one of everybody to make sure all the diversity of human genes is represented.

These sound like problems that can simply be avoided by preventing space settlers from becoming isolated from the rest of humanity, but its possible that we dont have a choice in the matter  living on another planet could destroy their immune systems, making it dangerous for them to mingle with anyone from Earth or ever return to their home planet. More on that coming soon.

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Mosul (Iraq) (AFP) - Iraqi forces pressed forward Monday with an offensive against jihadist-held areas of Mosul as the United Nations warned of grave danger to civilians in the final stages of the battle.

More than seven months into the massive operation to recapture Mosul from the Islamic State group, Iraqi forces have retaken the city's east and large parts of its western side, but the jihadists are putting up tough resistance in areas they still hold.

"Our units are continuing to advance... and entered Al-Saha al-Oula and Al-Zinjili and Al-Shifaa neighbourhoods and the Republican Hospital," said Joint Operations Command spokesman Yahya Rasool.

IS was using "explosives-rigged vehicles and snipers and suicide bombers" to target Iraqi forces, he told AFP.

The areas mentioned by Rasool -- which are located north of Mosul's Old City, where IS also still holds significant territory -- are the main targets of the offensive, which was announced on Saturday.

The Joint Operations Command also said Monday that Iraqi aircraft had dropped leaflets over Mosul urging residents to leave IS-held areas -- the second time this has been done within the past week.

This is the opposite of the strategy Iraqi forces employed in east Mosul, where they urged civilians to stay in their homes, and may encourage even more people to leave.

"In the past several weeks, 160,000 civilians have fled, and our expectation is that, because of this order (from the government), we could be seeing a similar number of civilians flee in coming days," Lise Grande, the UN's humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, told AFP.

"Altogether, since the start of Mosul, 760,000 civilians have left their homes, and we are looking at the possibility of another 200,000 civilians leaving," she said.

Of the 760,000 civilians who have fled, some 150,000 have since returned home, leaving more than 600,000 currently displaced.

"We are deeply concerned that right now, in the last final stages of the campaign to retake Mosul, that the civilians... in (IS) areas are probably at graver risk now than at any other stage of the campaign," said Grande.

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She said that the UN estimates there are between 180,000 and 200,000 civilians in jihadist-held areas of Mosul, the majority of them in the Old City area.

The area -- a warren of closely spaced buildings and narrow streets -- has posed a significant challenge to Iraqi forces, which have surrounded it with a large number of civilians trapped inside.

"The Old City has been blockaded for a while, completely from the south and now our units are present on the north and west," Rasool said. The area's eastern side is bordered by the Tigris River.

According to information received by the UN from families who have managed to flee, conditions in IS-held Mosul are increasingly dire.

"We understand that medicines are very scarce, that there are severe shortages of safe drinking water, that there are very limited stocks of food. We also are aware that families which try to escape are often targeted by snipers," Grande said.

"You have an enclosed area, you have fighters which are determined to hold out, the civilians are in many ways trapped in that area, there haven't been resupplies into the Old City for months," she said.

The battle for Mosul has taken a heavy toll on civilians, pushing hundreds of thousands to flee, while hundreds more have been killed or wounded.

IS overran large areas north and west of Baghdad in 2014, but Iraqi forces backed by US-led air strikes have since regained much of the territory they lost.

The recapture of Mosul will not, however, mark the end of the war against IS: the jihadists hold other territory in three Iraqi provinces and are also able to carry out frequent attacks in government-controlled areas.

Forces from the Hashed al-Shaabi -- an umbrella organisation for pro-government paramilitaries that is dominated by Iran-backed Shiite militias -- are battling the jihadists west of Mosul.

In a video released on Monday, Abu Mahdi al-Mohandis, a senior Hashed leader, said the paramilitary forces had reached the border with Syria.
By Maher Chmaytelli and Isabel Coles BAGHDAD/MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi armed forces launched an operation on Saturday to capture the last Islamic State-held enclave in Mosul, according to a military statement. The fall of the city would, in effect, mark the end of the Iraqi half of the "caliphate" declared nearly three years ago by Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, which also covers parts of Syria. The enclave includes the Old City center and three adjacent districts along the western bank of the Tigris river. The U.S.-backed offensive in Mosul, now in its eighth month, has taken longer than planned as the militants are dug in among civilians. "The joint forces have began liberating the remaining districts," an Iraqi military statement said. Another military statement announced the death of two Iraqi colonels during the fighting on Saturday. Desperate civilians trapped behind Islamic State lines now face a harrowing situation with little food and water, no electricity and limited access to hospitals. The Iraqi air force dropped leaflets on Friday urging residents to flee but humanitarian groups say they fear for the safety of those trying to escape. BLACK FLAG FLYING SINCE 2014 The push inside the Old City coincides with the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. The offensive's prime target is the medieval al-Nuri mosque with its landmark leaning minaret, where Islamic State's black flag has been flying since mid-2014. Iraqi armed forces hope to capture the mosque - where Baghdadi announced the "caliphate" - in the next few days. Residents in the Old City sounded desperate in telephone interviews over the past few days. "We're waiting for death at any moment, either by bombing or starving," one said, asking not to be identified. "Adults eat one meal a day, either flour or lentil soup." The United Nations expressed deep concern for the hundreds of thousands of civilians behind Islamic State lines, in a statement on Saturday from the organization's under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs, Stephen O'Brien. "Although the U.N. is not present in the areas where fighting is occurring, we have received very disturbing reports of families being shut inside booby-trapped homes and of children being deliberately targeted by snipers," he said. Residents said millet, usually used as bird feed, is being cooked like rice as food prices increased ten-fold. People were seen collecting wild mallow plants in abandoned lots and also eating mulberry leaves and other plants. About 700,000 people, about a third of the pre-war city's population, have already fled, seeking refuge either with friends and relatives or in camps. The insurgents are also retreating in Syria, mainly in the face of U.S.-backed Kurdish-led forces. The insurgency is expected to continue in the sparsely populated desert region along the Syrian border even if Mosul is fully captured. Iranian-backed Shi'ite paramilitary forces are fighting Islamic State in that part of the country where Baghdadi is believed to be, according to U.S. and Iraqi officials. On Saturday Iran announced for the first time the death of a senior commander during the operations launched in October to drive the Islamist militants out of Mosul and the surrounding Nineveh province. Shaaban Nassiri, a senior commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), was killed west of Mosul, near the border with Syria, according to Mashregh, an Iranian news website. The IRGC is the main backer of the Iraqi Shi'ite paramilitary force known as Popular Mobilisation. Iraq's Shi'ite-led government is aiming to control the border in coordination with the Iranian-backed Syrian army.. Linking up the two sides would give Syrian President Bashar al-Assad a significant advantage in the six-year rebellion against his rule. (Additional reporting by Ahmed Rasheed in Baghdad; Writing by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Andrew Bolton)
Militants affiliated with the Islamic State (IS) group have been locked in street-to-street battles with the government security forces in Marawi, a southern Philippine city, where 19 civilians were killed, the military said Sunday. This brought the official death toll from nearly a week of fighting to at least 85, reports said.

61 militants, 20 members of the security forces and 19 civilians have been killed in past one week when Maute rebels went on a rampage in Marawi. The rebels did so after a failed attempt by the military to arrest Isnilon Hapilon, who is believed to be a pivotal man for ISIS in the Philippines, reports said.

Read: ISIS Suicide Bombers Target Jakarta Just Days Before Ramadan

Terrorism analysts had warned months ago that ISIS could surge in Southeast Asia as the terror group lost its territory in the Middle East.

ISIS has publicly accepted pledges from various groups in the Philippines and has called on followers in Southeast Asia to go to the Philippines if they cannot travel to Syria, an American intelligence official who spoke with the Washington Times on the condition of anonymity said.

The group harbors global ambitions and seeks to expand its influence in Southeast Asia by cultivating a network of adherents and supporters, the official said adding As it has done in its main battle space of Iraq and Syria, ISIS seeks to exploit ungoverned space.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who is facing the biggest security challenges, responded to the violent situation by declaring martial law across the southern tier of the Philippines. He even warned that he could expand it to the entire island nation of 100 million, CNN reported.

Iligan, 24 miles away from Marawi, was overflowing with evacuees Monday who have fled Marawi over fears of being attacked by Islamist militants. Almost 200,000 people have left Marawi, and some of them have found shelter in Iligan. However, authorities fear Maute fighters were disguising themselves as displaced people to get access to Iligan where they could possibly launch attacks, Reuters reported.

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"We don't want what's happening in Marawi to spill over in Iligan," Colonel Alex Aduca, chief of the Fourth Mechanized Infantry Battalion said.

"We want to ensure the safety of people here, to prevent elements from entering and conducting terroristic activities," he told DZMM radio. He also said some rebels had been caught trying to enter Iligan. However, he did not reveal further details.

The military announced Saturday it would intensify the bombing campaign, reports said. Saturday also marked the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan.

In as much as we would like to avoid collateral damage, these rebels are forcing the hand of government by hiding and holding out inside private homes, government buildings and other facilities, military spokesman Brigadier-General Restituto Padilla said.

Their refusal to surrender is holding the city captive. Hence, it is now increasingly becoming necessary to use more surgical airstrikes to clear the city and to bring this rebellion to a quicker end," Padilla added.

"Black ISIS flags with the words "There is no god but God" were seen in Marawi," Chico Usman, a resident of Saguiaran, a town outside Marawi, told CNN.

While Islamist and criminal groups have been active in the lawless tri-border area between the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia for years, aggressive attacks like the ones that are happening since the past week on government troops by militants loyal to ISIS, have increased fears over the group's expansion into Southeast Asia, reports said.

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Relations between the two leaders appeared cordial in their joint remarks to media in Bethlehem on 23 May 2017: AFP/Getty Images

An Israeli television channel has claimed that US President Donald Trump shouted at Palestinian Authority (PA) Leader Mahmoud Abbas in talks held during Mr Trumps visit to the West Bank last week.

You tricked me in [Washington] DC! You talked there about your commitment to peace, but the Israelis showed me your involvement in incitement [against Israel], Mr Trump is alleged to have shouted at the Palestinian leader, an outburst that was followed by several minutes of shocked silence, said Israels Channel 2, citing an unnamed American official.

The alleged quotes were reported in Hebrew, and then tweeted by reporter Udi Segal in English.

The PA has denied the report, saying that the 23 May meeting went well.

The Channel 2 report certainly does not match up with the warm words exchanged between the two leaders during a televised media conference after the private meeting in Bethlehem.

Meeting you in the White House earlier this month given us hope and optimism of the possibility to make the long-standing dream of lasting peace come true, Mr Abbas said, emphasising the Palestinian leaderships desire for a two-state solution.

For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available on iOS and Android.

Mr Trump and Mr Abbas met in person for the first time at the White House on 3 May, when the US president boldly stated his desire to do whatever is necessary to achieve a lasting peace deal in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict despite the failure of several previous US administrations.

In the meeting earlier this month Mr Trumps administration called on the PA to do more to tackle violence against Israelis and end payments to the families of those killed or imprisoned by Israel.

The day before the alleged argument Mr Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuvin Rivlin in Jerusalem.

Speaking at Israels National Museum just before he left the region, Mr Trump said:

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I had a meeting this morning with [President] Abbas and can tell you that the Palestinians are ready to reach for peace, before turning to gesture towards Mr Netanyahu, seated behind him.

In my meeting with my very good friend Benjamin, I can tell you also, that he is reaching for peace. He wants peace, the US President said.

Mr Trump warned, however, that such a historic undertaking will not be easy.

The presidents visit to Israel and the West Bank was part of his inaugural trip abroad as president, a whistle-stop tour taking in meetings with world leaders in Riyadh, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Rome, Brussels and Sicily.

Mr Trump used a speech in the Saudi Arabian capital to impress upon representatives from Muslim countries that they and Israel faced a common enemy in the form of Islamic terrorism and the possible threat of Iran.
Now that he is ensnared in an FBI investigation, his life in the coming months and maybe years will be a study in misery

Did he think a secret back channel was like a small boys tin-can telephone? Photograph: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

Perhaps Jared Kushner really believed that his New York real-estate skills set him up to bring peace to the Middle East, solve the opioid crisis, run a government SWAT team of business experts and protect his father-in-law from disloyal White House advisers. And that he could do it all while observing the Jewish Sabbath and reserving enough time for family ski vacations with Ivanka and their three children.

Or maybe Kushner just calculated that all the hype surrounding his White House role was a not-to-be-missed family branding opportunity. After all, the Washington Post recently watched as his sister, Nicole Kushner Meyer, hawked American visas in Beijing to would-be Chinese investors in a troubled Kushner New Jersey real-estate development.

But in all his fantasies about conquering Washington at Donald Trumps side, Kushner undoubtedly never imagined being ensnared in an FBI investigation.



All that changed, of course, when news broke late last week that Kushner had discussed opening up a secret back channel to Moscow last December in a Trump Tower meeting with the ubiquitous Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

Lets put the most charitable interpretation possible on the facts that have emerged about Kushner:

The bizarre suggestion to use the Russian communications system to secretly link the Trump transition team and the Kremlin could have came from Michael Flynn, the star-crossed national security adviser who was also at the meeting.

For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available on iOS and Android.

Kushner, in his naivete about government, may also not have remembered that Barack Obama was still president and in charge of all negotiations with Russia. And it was an innocent oversight that Kushner failed to mention his talk with Kislyak on his government security clearance form.

Even under the benign theory that Kushner thought that a secret back channel was like a small boys tin-can telephone, his life in the coming months and maybe years will be a study in misery. He will probably spend more time with his personal lawyer, Clinton Justice Department veteran Jamie Gorelick, than with Ivanka or his children. Whether it is an appearance under oath on Capitol Hill or the inevitable FBI interview, every sentence Kushner utters will bring with it possible legal jeopardy.

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Kushner may have once thought that he established his tough-guy credentials when he stared down angry creditors and impatient bankers over his ill-timed 2007 purchase of a $1.8bn Fifth Avenue office building. But the worst thing that can happen to an over-leveraged real-estate investor (as Trump himself knows well) is bankruptcy. When the FBI and special prosecutor Robert Mueller get involved, the penalties can theoretically involve steel bars locking behind you.

That ominous sound is familiar to Kushner from his weekly visits more than a decade ago to his real-estate mogul father, Charles, in federal prison in Alabama. US Attorney Chris Christie (the ironies of Trump World abound) successfully prosecuted Charles Kushner in 2005 for tax evasion, witness tampering and unlawful campaign contributions. The Jared Kushner coming of age story pivots around a loyal son taking over the New Jersey-based real-estate firm when his father was a guest of the government.

Now the presidential son-in-law may be worrying in his late night moments that family history may be repeating itself. He may put on a brave front in public and encourage the current rumors that he and Ivanka are tiring of Washington, but for Kushner the high adventure of a senior White House post ended abruptly during last weeks European grand tour.

Trump: Russia investigation a witch hunt

If Jared and Ivanka do return to New York  either voluntarily or as part of a White House legal strategy  their departure will accentuate Trumps fate as the loneliest man in Washington. Trapped in the trappings of a White House that he cant demolish to build something grander, Trump is surrounded by aides like Reince Priebus and HR McMaster whom he neither fully trusts nor feels comfortable with.

All White Houses go through a phase when the familiar faces from the campaign and the Inauguration have disappeared from burnout and a desire to cash in. That is when a president looks around at his senior staff and asks himself: Who are these guys? Why am I surrounded by strangers?

Usually that moment comes sometime in a presidents second term. For Trump, the exodus may occur before his first summer in the Oval Office is over.

The Kushner news reminds me of the saddest person I ever saw coming out of the White House. It was a Clinton administration official, shuffling along with his downcast eyes focused on the sidewalk, who had been caught up in the exaggerated first-term scandal known as Whitewater.

There in his familial loyalty to Donald Trump goes Jared Kushner, who is learning a hard lesson about Washington, back channels to the Russians and the FBI.

Walter Shapiro is a Roll Call columnist, a lecturer in political science at Yale and a fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice.
The ever-elusive Jared Kushner was back in the news Sunday after reports emerged that he had attempted to establish a secret communication channel with Russia back in December. The presidents son-in-law and senior adviser allegedly discussed the possibility with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, according to a Washington Post report.

Kushner also allegedly had three Russian contacts that he did not disclose, Reuters reported Saturday, citing seven United States officials.

That Kushner has the presidents ear is unquestionable, and his alleged involvement with Russia further complicated the question of the administrations connection with Russia. As the federal investigation into the campaigns ties to Russia continued, the Washington Post reported Thursday that Kushner was now part of the investigations focus.

Read: Did Jared Kushner Get The Time 100 Writeup From Hell?

Before entering the administration and the Trump family itself, Kushner was already exorbitantly wealthy. Alongside his brother Josh and his parents, Charles and Seryl, the Kushner family was worth at least $1.8 billion, according to Forbes. The majority of the wealth, an estimated $1.15 billion, came from property investments. Some of the Kushner familys most profitable real estate assets included 666 Fifth Avenue in New York City and a Brooklyn waterfront property in redevelopment.

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Photo: Getty Images

The remaining fortune was split between a health insurance venture called Oscar, a startup that Kushners brother Josh cofounded, the online website The New York Observer, which Kushner himself purchased in 2006 and other venture capital investments.

According to financial disclosure forms released by the White House, Kushner and wife Ivanka were worth a combined $740 million at the time they held senior roles in the administration. Kushner pledged to divest himself of his common stock and foreign investments when he took a role in the White House in January and resigned from 260 business entities, sold 58 business and put financial holdings into a trust being overseen by his mother, according to ABC News.

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Read: Kushner And Trump Buildings Are Some Of Worst Polluters In New York City

The president has brought a lot of people into this administration and this White House in particular who have been very blessed and very successful by this country, Sean Spicer said in April after financial disclosure forms were released. It speaks volumes to the desire for a lot of these people to fulfill the presidents vision and move the agenda forward that they are willing to list all of their assets, undergo this public scrutiny, but also set aside a lot.

Indeed, Kushner and Ivanka are among the norm in terms of financials inside the Trump White House. According to the 180 financial disclosure forms of senior officials, chief economic adviser and director of the National Economic Council Gary Cohn had a net worth of up to $611 million, Kellyanne Conway had assets valued at up to $44.2 million and Steve Bannon had assets worth up to $53.8 million.

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Photo: Getty Images

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Reports on Jared Kushner being a focus of the investigation into FBIs Russia probe has bothered the senior adviser to President Donald Trump and he, along with his wife Ivanka Trump, will evaluate whether to return to their private life in New York, according to the New York Times.

On Saturday, the Times noted Kushner and Ivanka left Trumps maiden foreign trip early following reports that said the FBI diverted its attention at Kushners meeting with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak and a Russian banking executive last December. There were signs that Kushner was tired of the damage to his reputation due to the reports, the newspaper reported.

Read: Trump On Kushner Russia Investigation: President Calls Fake News Contact Controversy

On May 26, the Washington Post reported the Russian envoy told his superiors in Moscow that Kushner discussed establishing a secret communications channel between the Trump transition team and the Kremlin.

Kushner told his friends he and Ivanka did not make any long-term commitment to the Trump administration and they would review their stay at Washington, D.C., every six months, the Times reported. However, he does not plan on resigning from the senior adviser's post or reduce his duties, the newspaper added, citing sources close to him.

CNN's senior White House correspondent, Jim Acosta, in a tweet Sunday, said Kushner was not planning on going anywhere and was focusing only on his work.

In the Russia probe, the Senate Intelligence Committee was reportedly keen on interviewing Kushner. "Kushner previously volunteered to share with Congress what he knows about these meetings. He will do the same if he is contacted in connection with any other inquiry," Jamie Gorelick, Kushner's lawyer and a veteran of the Clinton-era Department of Justice, said in a statement, CBS News reported May 25.

Following the reports, Kushners attorney said the Trump aide would cooperate in the investigation.

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Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) has called for the suspension of Kushners security clearance. The FBIs Russia investigation reached Trumps backyard, and now its in his house, DNC deputy communications director Adrienne Watson reportedly said. Kushners security clearance should be suspended until the FBIs findings are complete, she added.

Kushner and Ivanka moved to the capital from New York City earlier this year after Kushner was appointed a senior adviser in the Trump administration. One of the influential advisers in Trumps team, Kushner has been tasked with several responsibilities including leading a task force to reform the federal government and looking into criminal justice reform.

Akin to her husband, Ivanka had her share of criticism during her time in the Trump administration. While promoting womens rights, she supported her fathers attitude towards them. Trump came under scanner during the 2016 presidential campaign for his controversial comments on women.

After Trump was elected president, several retailers pulled out Ivankas eponymous clothing line from their shelves due to poor sales. However, according to a report last month, the clothing line was sold under different name Adrienne Vittadini Studio at retailer Stein Mart.

Ivanka was also criticized earlier this month after she posted a video of herself dancing with her two sons  two days after she launched her book Women Who Work. Social media users accused her of staging the video to promote the book.

Prior to the release of her book, Ivanka said she would not be overly promoting it because of ethics in her role at the capital.

In light of government ethics rules, I want to be clear that this book is a personal project. I wrote it at a different time in my life, from the perspective of an executive and an entrepreneur, and the manuscript was completed before the election last November. Out of an abundance of caution and to avoid the appearance of using my official role to promote the book, I will not publicize the book through a promotional tour or media appearances, Ivanka wrote in a Facebook post April 21.

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Washington (AFP) - John F. Kennedy -- young, heroic, charismatic -- embodied the overflowing promise of possibility of 20th century America, until an assassin's bullet ended his life in November 1963.

One hundred years after his birth, the youngest man ever elected president, who once urged Americans to strive for the "New Frontier," is still a political icon, and the country is celebrating his legacy, which lives on most visibly in his family.

"It's an opportunity to reflect on what president Kennedy stood for, and the belief and commitment he had to solve every challenge in front of him," Congressman Joe Kennedy III, a great-nephew of the president, told AFP.

The lanky, red-haired grandson of slain attorney general Robert F. Kennedy is part of the family's third generation to carry the political torch, entering the House of Representatives in 2013.

For all but two years since 1947 -- nearly a third of the history of the United States -- a Kennedy has served in elective office. They are the quintessential American dynasty, the closest thing the country has to royalty.

JFK's legacy, said the 36-year-old lawmaker from Massachusetts, is "his call for all Americans, regardless of size or shape or background, to serve their country."

"Many of my colleagues from both sides of the aisle have stopped me to say they have been inspired by his call to service."

First lady Jackie Kennedy became a global phenomenon, their White House social sessions were the stuff of legend and lawmakers of all political stripes embraced the comity.

"There was sort of an aura around the Kennedy White House," recalled Senator John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee who was a US Navy pilot during JFK's tenure.

"It was just a magic time," he told AFP.

Kennedy barely served 1,000 days in office before he was assassinated. His brother Robert was killed on the presidential campaign trail in 1968.

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Americans ultimately transcended the tragedies. JFK is seen as the president who, perhaps more than any other, most transformed the way the nation viewed itself. Kennedy was its eternal optimist.

- 'Missed him every day' -

The longest-serving public official in the family, liberal lion Ted Kennedy, died in 2009 after serving 47 years in the US Senate.

Several Kennedy clan members are still in public life, and more may be on the way.

JFK's daughter Caroline Kennedy, who was US ambassador to Japan for three years under president Barack Obama, is considering a run for public office, perhaps for Congress, according to the New York Post.

"I've thought about him and missed him every day of my life," the 59-year-old said of her father.

He "inspired a generation that transformed America," she said in a video released by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum to mark the anniversary, which will be celebrated in a series of events in Washington and Boston.

She added that people have told her that "he inspired them to work and fight and believe in a better world -- to give something back to this country that has given so much to so many."

Robert F. Kennedy Jr, 63, is an environmentalist and a leading proponent of the widely debunked theory that vaccines cause autism.

In February, he said he had met weeks earlier with President-elect Donald Trump to discuss possible formation of a "vaccine safety commission."

Joe Kennedy said there are "plenty" of younger relatives who might enter politics, without getting into specifics.

"The thread running through us is that we're seeking a way to serve," he said.

It was in his 1961 inauguration speech, one of the most famous in US presidential history, that Kennedy issued such a poignant challenge to the nation's younger generations.

"My fellow Americans," Kennedy posed on a frigid January morning: "Ask not what your country can do for you -- ask what you can do for your country."

- Passing the torch -

In the era of Trump, an age of political polarization, making comparisons to Kennedy's Camelot can be jarring.

"This lack of comity and civility would shock John F. Kennedy, because he had friends in the Republican Party who were very close," said James Thurber, founder of the Department of Congressional and Presidential Studies at American University in Washington.

Thurber also said Kennedy likely would have been tougher than Trump on Russia and its President Vladimir Putin.

"He'd be tough with them about what they're doing in Syria and their relationships with Iran. He was a realist," Thurber said.
CAIRO (Reuters) - Libyan Islamist group Ansar al-Sharia, a group linked to Al-Qaeda, is formally dissolving itself, it said in a statement on Saturday. The group, which Washington says was behind the 2012 Benghazi attack that killed the U.S. ambassador Christopher Stevens, had been at war with Khalifa Haftar's eastern-based Libyan National Army. The group said its decision came on the back of heavy losses that have wiped out its leadership and decimated its fighters, according to the statement. Forces aligned with the Libyan National Army have skirmished since late last year with opponents aligned with a U.N.-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli. Groups such as Ansar al-Sharia, which had tried to maintain a stronghold in the country's east, have inserted themselves into the larger war, creating a fractious battleground overlaid by a multitude of militias. The group's statement called on revolutionary forces and shoura councils in Benghazi to unite in order to form a united front. (Reporting by Mostafa Hashem; Writing by Eric Knecht; Editing by James Dalgleish)
Team WE win the 2017 LPL Spring championship (LPL QQ website)

The Chinese League of Legends Pro League introduced the two group league format to LoL in 2016 Spring with a random draw system. Today, the official LPL website has announced that they will modify the group draw format to one where teams choose representatives for the opposing group, similar to that of the EU LCS.

Previously, the LPL divided teams into pools and had broadcast representatives draw teams randomly from each pool to go into a group. According to the new announcement, the LPL will retain the pool setup, but instead of using a random draw, representatives from each team will choose which lower seeded teams go into the opposing group.

For 2017 Summer, the pools are based on playoffs placement:

Pool 1: Team WE, Royal Never Give Up

Pool 2: EDward Gaming, Oh My God, I May, Newbee Gaming

Pool 3: JingDong Gaming, Invictus Gaming, Snake eSports, LGD Gaming

Pool 4: Suning Gaming, DAN Gaming

Because they won the LPL, Team WE will automatically be placed into Group A, and Royal Never Give Up will be in Group B. Team WEs representative will first choose a team from Pool 2 for Group B, and RNG will then choose from the remaining three Pool 2 teams to join WE in Group A.

The next team to choose an opponent is based on which team placed higher in LPL playoffs. For example, if WE choose OMG, and RNG choose Newbee, OMG will get to choose a team for Group A first, as they advanced to semifinals, and Newbee lost in quarterfinals. In this case, OMG can still only choose from Pool 2, and the final Pool 2 team will be placed in their group. Teams then begin choosing from Pool 3 by Playoffs seed.

This draw format is incredibly similar to that of the EU LCS, except that the LPL have retained the pool draw restrictions they had in the past. According to the announcement, the draw will be held live on May 30th at 7:30PM China time at Zhengda Plaza in Shanghai. It will be broadcast online from the official LPL QQ platform.

While most leagues will be resuming for the summer split this week, LPL will start a week later to accommodate the currently ongoing Demacia Cup tournament between LPL, LSPL, and TGA teams.

You can follow Kelsey Moser on Twitter @karonmoser.
The white-knuckled handshake between newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron and President Donald Trump may finally have an explanation. According to Macron, the tense exchange ahead of Thursdays NATO summit was a moment of truth between the two political leaders.

Quoted in the Sunday newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche, Macron said, my handshake with him, it wasn't innocent, the Associated Press reported Sunday. Macron added, One must show that you won't make small concessions, even symbolic ones, but also not over-publicize things, either.

Read: Trump's Handshake With Emmanuel Macron Was 'Aggressive Move,' Expert Says

Macrons comments seem to confirm suspicions raised by social media users, media and body experts alike: that the exchange was more of a battle of the wills than a friendly handshake. According to the Associated Press, both men's jaws seemed to clench during the gesture.

Weighing in on the tense exchange between the two world leaders, body language expert and retired FBI counterintelligence and counterterrorism operative Joe Navarro said that President Trump's behavior may indicate he does not understand the meaning of a handshake  particularly when meeting other political leaders.

Diplomacy is about getting along, Navarro told Mic Thursday. One of the things we do with our handshakes is we establish comfort. We're saying, I'm your friend. I'm the person you're going to be working with. That's what the handshake is supposed to be for, not some sort of sophomoric challenge between two alpha males.

Read: Trump Lies To French President Emmanuel Macron About Backing Him Against Marine Le Pen In Election

Another London-based body language expert, India Ford, called the move aggressive in a Friday interview with Time and said it's an example of Trump showing Macron whos boss.

It's another aggressive move by Trump; he's pulling Macron towards his own face and he's basically saying you will come to me, whether you like it or not, she told Time. You can see Macron trying to get away from the situation  he puts his arms on Trump to stop him pulling him inwards. This handshake makes sense when you see the previous video. Trump's done this because of what Macrons just done. It's as though he's saying, Do you know who I am? You will not be doing that again.

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Reasons behind some of President Trumps behavior during his first trip overseas  including a number of tense handshakes in addition to his shoving the prime minister of Montenegro  remain unclear. However similar handshakes with politicians such as Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe indicate that President Trump has managed to turn an innocuous gesture of camaraderie into a grand display of machismo on more than a single occasion.

Trump and Macron

Photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst

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TAORMINA, Italy (Reuters) - Asked about reports that Donald Trump's son-in-law had tried to set up a secret channel of communication with Russia before the president took office, U.S. National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said that so-called "back-channeling" was normal. McMaster declined to speak specifically about the case of Jared Kushner, who serves as a senior adviser to Trump, but when asked if it would concern him if someone in the administration tried to set up a back channel with the Russian embassy or the Kremlin, he replied "no". "We have back-channel communications with any number of individual (countries). So generally speaking, about back-channel communications, what that allows you to do is communicate in a discreet manner," McMaster said. "So it doesn't pre-expose you to any sort of content or any kind of conversation or anything. So we're not concerned about it." Reuters reported last week that a proposal for a back channel was discussed between McMaster's predecessor Mike Flynn and the Russian ambassador as Trump prepared to take office. The Washington Post reported on Friday that Kushner participated in that conversation. (Reporting by Noah Barkin; Editing by Crispian Balmer)
A Mississippi man was arrested early Sunday morning after going on a multi-town shooting spree that left eight people dead, including two children and a sheriffs deputy. Willie Corey Godbolt, 35, allegedly got in an argument with his estranged wife before the shooting began.

Authorities were originally called to a domestic incident at a home in Bogue Chitto, a rural town in Mississippi, at 11:30 p.m. It was there that Godbolt killed three women and the sheriffs deputy who responded before fleeing the scene, according to the Clarion-Ledger.

Read: Two Teens Allegedly Shoot Girl Over 'Annoying' Snapchats

Godbolt then went on to a second home in Brookhaven, a town about 70 miles south of Jackson, where he killed two young boys. At the last and final crime scene, a separate home also in Brookhaven, Godbolt killed a man and a woman. Authorities finally apprehended him at the third home, seven hours after the incident initially began.

While sitting handcuffed on the ground after being arrested, Godbolt confessed to the killings to a Clarion-Ledger reporter, saying he did it because he loved his wife, children and Bogue Chitto.

I was having a conversation with her stepdaddy and her mama and her, my wife, about me taking my children home, he said. Somebody called the officer, people that didnt even live at the house. Thats what they do, they intervene.

Godbolt said he never intended to kill the deputy and blamed whoever called the police for his death.

My pain wasnt designed for him, he said. He was just there. We was talking about me trying to take the children home somebody called the officer thats what they do, they intervene. It cost him his life. Im sorry.

The shooter also said he did not plan to leave the situation alive.

My intentions was to have God kill me, he told the reporter. I ran out of bullets. Suicide by cop was my intention. I aint fit to live. Not after what I done.

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Godbolts stepfather in law, Vincent Mitchell, told the Associated Press that Godbolts wife and their children had been staying at his house for a few weeks since she had left her husband. He said that when the deputy arrived at the home, Godbolt appeared as though he was going to leave, but instead pulled out a gun and began shooting. Mitchell and Godbolts wife were able to get away, but Mitchells wife, her sister and one of his wifes daughters were killed.

Im devastated, said Mitchell. It doesnt seem like its real.

Read: Teens Who Stole Car And Killed 6-Year-Old Charged With Capital Murder

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant issued a statement regarding the incident Sunday.

Every day, the men and women who wear the badge make some measure of sacrifice to protect and serve their communities, said Bryant. Too often, we lose one of our finest. I thank the law enforcement agencies involved for their hard work.

The sheriffs deputy killed was identified as William Durr, 36, a two-year veteran of the Lincoln County Sheriffs Department and a four-year veteran of the Brookhaven Police Department. Authorities had not identified the remaining persons killed or their relationship to Godbolt and were waiting to notify family members before doing so. The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation said it was too soon to determine the motive for the crime and charges had not yet been filed.

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By Jack Kim and Ju-min Park SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea fired at least one short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast, the latest in a fast-paced series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions. The missile was believed to be a Scud-class ballistic missile and flew about 450 km (280 miles), South Korean officials said. North Korea has a large stockpile of the short-range missiles, originally developed by the Soviet Union. Monday's launch followed two successful tests of medium-to-long-range missiles in as many weeks by the North, which has been conducting such tests at an unprecedented pace in an effort to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of hitting the mainland United States. North Korea was likely showing its determination to push ahead in the face of international pressure to rein in its missile program and "to pressure the (South Korean) government to change its policy on the North," South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesman Roh Jae-cheon said. It was the third ballistic missile test launch since South Korea's liberal President Moon Jae-in took office on May 10 pledging to engage with the reclusive neighbor in dialogue. Moon says sanctions alone have failed to resolve the growing threat from the North's advancing nuclear and missile program. The missile reached an altitude of 120 km (75 miles), Roh said. "The assessment is there was at least one missile but we are analyzing the number of missiles," he said. North Korea, which has conducted dozens of missile tests and tested two nuclear bombs since the beginning of 2016 in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions, says the program is necessary to counter U.S. aggression. The White House said President Donald Trump had been briefed about the launch. The U.S. Pacific Command said it tracked what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile for six minutes and assessed it did not pose a threat to North America. The United States has said it was looking at discussing with China a new U.N. Security Council resolution and that Beijing, North Korea's main diplomatic ally and neighbor, realizes time was limited to rein in its weapons program through negotiations. [nL4N1IS196] Trump portrayed the missile test as an affront to China in a morning post on Twitter. "North Korea has shown great disrespect for their neighbor, China, by shooting off yet another ballistic missile...but China is trying hard!" he wrote. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, asked what a military conflict with North Korea might look like if diplomacy failed, warned on Sunday it would be "probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes". "The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea," Mattis told CBS news program "Face the Nation". "And in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well," he said. TESTING NEW CAPABILITIES China reiterated that U.N. Security Council resolutions had "clear rules" about North Korean missile activities and it urged Pyongyang not to contravene them. "The situation on the Korean peninsula is complex and sensitive, and we hope all relevant sides maintain calm and exercise restraint, ease the tense situation as soon as possible and put the issue back onto the correct track of peaceful dialogue," China's foreign ministry said in a statement. Russia condemned the launch and also called for restraint, "including toward military activity," from the partners it was working with, the RIA news agency quoted a deputy Russian foreign minister as saying. Japan lodged a protest against the test missile, which appeared to have landed in its exclusive economic zone. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed action along with other nations to deter Pyongyang's repeated provocations. "As we agreed at the recent G7, the issue of North Korea is a top priority for the international community," Abe told reporters in brief televised remarks. "Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea." Seoul's new liberal administration has said Pyongyang's repeated test launches were dashing hopes for peace. South Korea's Moon called a meeting of the National Security Council, South Korea's Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. North Korea last test-fired a ballistic missile on May 21 off its east coast and said on Sunday it had tested a new anti-aircraft weapon supervised by leader Kim Jong Un. [nL3N1IU014] It has tested Scud-type short-range missiles many times in the past, most recently in April, according to U.S. officials. However, experts say it may be trying to test new capabilities that may be fed into its efforts to build an ICBM. "There are many possibilities ... It could have been a test for a different type of engine. Or to verify the credibility of the main engine for ICBM's first stage rocket," said Kim Dong-yub, a military expert at Kyungnam University's Far Eastern Studies department in Seoul. Modified versions of the Scud have a range of up to 1,000 km (620 miles). On Tuesday, the United States will test an existing missile defense system to try to intercept an ICBM, the first such test, officials said last week. (Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu Matt Spetalnick in WASHINGTON, Ben Blanchard in BEIJING, William Mallard in TOKYO, Soyoung Kim and Christine Kim in SEOUL, and Denis Pinchuk in MOSCOW; Editing by Robert Birsel and James Dalgleish)
MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has appealed to Muslim separatists and Maoist-led rebels to join his government's fight against Islamic State-linked militants. With fears growing that Islamic State is seeking a presence in the country, Duterte offered to pay and even house fighters from groups that have long opposed the Philippine state if they would work to defeat a common enemy, the Maute group. Duterte said the idea of militias and soldiers fighting together had come from the leader of one of the separatist groups. Maute militants have pledged allegiance to Islamic State and have been battling government troops since laying siege to a southern city six days ago. During a visit on Saturday to an army base on Jolo island, where Philippine forces are fighting another Islamist group, the Abu Sayyaf, Duterte said he would treat communist and separatist guerrillas the same as government troops if they join his fight. "I will hire you as soldiers - same pay, same privileges, and I will build houses for you in some areas," Duterte said, according to a video of his speech made available on Sunday. He made the unconventional offer to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Moro National Liberation Front. He also asked the communist New People's Army (NPA) to abandon its protracted guerrilla war and work with his government. The military was using attack helicopters, artillery and ground troops on Sunday to try to take back Marawi City on Mindanao island, where Maute militants are putting up heavy resistance. Sixty one rebels, 15 security forces and nine civilians have been killed in the violence, while tens of thousands of people have been displaced. The MILF and MNLF have waged a separatist rebellion since the late 1960s and have signed separate peace deals with the government, but those agreements have yet to be fully implemented. Duterte's offer to the Maoists comes after his government cancelled the latest round of peace talks with the NPA's political arm, accusing the rebels of planning more attacks. "If this drags on, and you want to join, take your chance with the Republic," Duterte said. There were no immediate reaction from leaders of the groups to Duterte's offer. Duterte said the founder and leader of the MNLF, Nur Misuari, had sent him a letter volunteering his men to join the battle in Marawi and other parts of Lanao del Sur province. The president said he could create a new army division to accommodate the Muslim and Maoist rebels, which he said had battle experience and mastery of the local terrain. (Reporting by Manuel Mogato; Editing by Martin Petty and David Stamp)
MANILA (Reuters) - Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has sought to reassure soldiers who might be accused of committing abuses under martial law, and jokingly said that if any of them were to rape three women, he would personally claim responsibility for it. Duterte is notorious for comments often deemed offensive and intended the remark as a joke, reiterating that only he would be liable for any backlash over military rule on southern Mindanao island. He has, however, said he will not tolerate abuses. "If you go down, I go down. But for this martial law and the consequences of martial law and the ramifications of martial law, I and I alone would be responsible, just do your job, I will take care of the rest," Duterte said on Friday, according to a president's office transcript. "I'll imprison you myself," he said, referring to any soldiers who commit violations, then he joked: "If you had raped three, I will admit it, that's on me." Duterte made the remark in a speech to soldiers on Mindanao island, where he imposed martial law on Tuesday to try to crush Islamic State-linked rebels, who have been battling the military after laying siege to a southern city. The comment sparked criticism on social media and Chelsea Clinton, daughter of former U.S. president Bill Clinton and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, called Duterte "a murderous thug with no regard for human rights." "It's important to keep pointing that out & that rape is never a joke," Clinton tweeted. It was not the first time Duterte has made a joke about rape. He caused outrage in the lead-up to his presidential election win last year when he recalled a 1989 prison riot in which an Australian missionary was killed, and inmates had lined up to rape her. In what was intended as a joke, Duterte said the victim was beautiful and as mayor of Davao city where the riot took place, he should have been first in line. He later apologized and said he did not intend disrespect to women or rape victims. Duterte is known for his informal, no-nonsense style and his speeches are often loaded with profanity, threats and jokes about taboo subjects, which offend some, but are taken lightly by many Filipinos. He also joked on Friday that he would join soldiers in the fight against extremists if he could, but he had arthritis. Presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella said Duterte was assuring troops of his full support and his comments had included "exaggeratedly describing crimes". Abella did not mention rape specifically. In a statement he said Duterte "is decisively acting, speaking with heightened bravado, that law and order would be brought back in these areas of rebellion". Human rights groups and some lawmakers have criticized his decision to declare martial law as excessive, and say it could lead to abuses by security forces. Duterte urged rebels to disarm and hold talks and said anyone not authorized to carry guns would be killed. "My order to the troops is (that) all people who are not authorized by government to carry arms and they resist, kill them, wipe them out," he said. (Reporting by Martin Petty and Mary Milliken; Editing by Michael Perry and Andrew Bolton)
Angel Sauls, left, helps her stepdaughter Coco Douglas arrange a sign and some painted rocks she made for a memorial in Portland, Oregon, in memory of the two bystanders who were stabbed to death on Friday while trying to stop a man who was yelling anti-Muslim slurs and acting aggressively toward two young women: Gillian Flaccus/AP

President Donald Trump has released his first official statement on the attack in Portland, Oregon, more than 48 hours after the two victims died.

"The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable," Mr Trump tweeted. "The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them."

Three days earlier, an Oregon man was accused of fatally stabbing two men and injuring one on a Portland commuter train. The victims died attempting to stop the man from screaming hate speech at two women who appeared to be Muslim, Portland police report.

The suspect, 35-year-old Jeremy Joseph Christian, has been charged with two counts of aggravated murder  a capital offence in Oregon.

Mr Christian has a history of posting anti-Muslim sentiments on social media, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. He has also been filmed yelling racial slurs at a free-speech march by freelance journalist Mike Bivins.

Calls grew over the weekend for Mr Trump to comment, as even Richard Spencer  a known white nationalist  called the attacks "saddening". But the president did not comment on the attack in the ensuing 48 hours, despite tweeting 14 times from his personal account.

In a highly shared Facebook post, journalist Dan Rather urged Mr Trump to say the names of those who died.

"Two Americans have died leaving family and friends behind," Mr Rather wrote. "They are mourned by millions more who are also deeply worried about what might come next. I hope you can find it worthy of your time to take notice."

Mr Trump has previously tweeted about attacks in the UK and in France. He responded within hours to an April shoot-out in Paris that killed two.

The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable. The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them.  President Trump (@POTUS) May 29, 2017

When the president did issue his statement on the Portland attacks, it came from the official POTUS account, instead of his more popular @realDonaldTrump handle.

As of press time, the tweet had received 3,700 retweets, and almost as many replies.
On Friday, two men, Ricky John Best and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, were brutally murdered while trying to confront someone hurling anti-Muslim epithets on a commuter train in Portland.

The two have been widely hailed as heroes, but not by President Donald Trump  until Monday.

Trump broke his silence with a tweet from the @POTUS handle. Forgive us if this doesn't seem to have come from Trump himself.

The Twitter account of Vice President Mike Pence also jumped in to comment.

The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable. The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them.  President Trump (@POTUS) May 29, 2017

Well said, Mr. President. Our thoughts and prayers are with the heroes in Portland and the loved ones they left behind. https://t.co/M2Zb68ykx5  Vice President Pence (@VP) May 29, 2017

"The violent attacks in Portland on Friday are unacceptable, the President wrote. The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our prayers are w/ them.

The statement was issued to his professional account, not his personal one which most of his alt-right base follows.

Prior to posting the tweet, the president spent days tweeting from his personal account about the issues most important to him, including the fake news media, leaks, false sources and the Montana congressional race.

As of now, the FBI does not yet consider the crime a hate crime. The suspect, Jeremy Joseph Christian, has shared social media posts in the past encouraging political violence and Nazism.

Trump's tweets today...



4 About Fake News

1 Congratulating a man who assaulted a reporter

1 About Europe trip



0 Denouncing Portland attack  Tony Posnanski (@tonyposnanski) May 28, 2017

People couldn't help but notice the president's delay in posting the response, and where he chose to post the apology. His personal twitter account, which boasts 30 million followers, is known for its active alt-right basewho may not be happy to see their President tweeting about an attack some in their community find dubious.

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The significance of the choice to post this one from @potus but not from @realdonaldtrump won't be lost on the fanatics. https://t.co/VqwAS20EIZ  southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) May 29, 2017
Johannesburg (AFP) - South Africa's President Jacob Zuma faced further opposition at a meeting of his party's top leadership Sunday but managed to sidestep a no-confidence vote after a turbulent three-day gathering.

The meeting in Pretoria comes as Zuma faces growing criticism within the ruling African National Congress, which sharpened after a March cabinet reshuffle when he sacked respected finance minister Pravin Gordhan.

But plans to debate a no-confidence motion in Zuma were blocked by the chairman of the meeting of the ANC's executive committee (NEC), state-owned broadcaster SABC said.

Local media reports said several NEC members had tried to force a debate on his future.

Speaking to local media on Saturday, ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe said the leadership was aware of reports that there was going to be blood on the floor.

"We've not seen that blood on the floor -- yet," he said, while stressing that the removal of Zuma was "not an agenda item."

The party leadership was expected to wrap up its talks during the evening.

- 'In his pocket' -

The Sunday Times wrote in its leading article that Zuma has survived a string of scandals "precisely because most of the NEC is in his pocket".

"Although his opponents went to this weekend's NEC meeting saying they had never felt stronger, few would be surprised if he survived the guillotine again," it said.

It also published a graphic of supposed support and opposition to Zuma within the 107-member NEC, with 45 against and 41 in favour and the rest unknown.

And City Press said Zuma's supporters spent Thursday lobbying committee members to back him in the event of a no-confidence motion.

Aside from his woes within the party, which has seen key ANC allies calling for him to stand down, Zuma has faced growing public anger over a series of government graft scandals, record unemployment and a sluggish economy.

The crisis has seen two ratings agencies downgrading South Africa and brought tens of thousands of people onto the streets calling for Zuma's ouster.

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- Till the year's end -

This weekend's meeting of the NEC was the first since the controversial cabinet reshuffle, which triggered unprecedented criticism within the ANC.

A string of ANC allies have also urged Zuma to go, among them the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), the South African Communist Party (SACP) and the South African Council of Churches (SACC).

The opposition has also tabled a new no-confidence motion in parliament, which will be debated in the coming weeks.

But the president retains widespread support from ANC members in some rural areas and has been able to rely on lawmakers to survive previous votes of no confidence.

"The party will still want the ANC to remain in control over the broad issue of leadership. The ANC will not wish to look as though either the press or opposition parties... have sufficient influence to precipitate" his removal, independent political analyst Daniel Silke told AFP.

"This will ramble on until the end of the year when the normal electoral process (to pick a successor) will take place."

The ANC is due to elect Zuma's successor in December, ahead of general elections in 2019.
Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni shakes hands with with US President Donald Trump at the G7 Taormina summit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Donald Trumps handshakes have become something of an international curiosity  and now, psychologists have broken down the "tactical" move.

The president's unique grip raised eyebrows during his visit to a Nato summit last week, where he appeared to painfully twist the arm of French President Emmanuel Macron.

Ahead of the opening of the new Nato headquarters in Brussels, Mr Trump grabbed the French presidents arm hard enough to jerk him to the side. Mr Macron had to place his other hand on Mr Trump in order to spring free.

Florin Dolcos, a psychology professor at the University of Illinois, called it a tactical move.

It goes down to asserting dominance, Mr Dolcos told The Huffington Post. Why he wants to do that? I dont know. It looks, to me, like he is trying too hard.

The President's fierce shake has made headlines in the past, starting with his grasp of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abes hand. The grip lasted 19 seconds.

Later, Mr Trump almost jerked Supreme Court Justice nominee Neil Gorsuch off his feet with a handshake during a ceremony announcing his nomination.

Body language expert Darren Stanton previously told The Independent that the President's grip is "all about the assertion of power and control".

Trump is saying, This is my space, my time, you are the guest, my house rules apply,'" Mr Stanton said.

Some world leaders have started preparing for a handshake-showdown with the President. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attracted attention for his notably strong, extended grip with Mr Trump when the two met in February.

Mr Macron even admitted to purposefully prolonging his grip with the President, as a show of strength.

My handshake with him was not innocent, Mr Macron said. We need to show that we wont make small concessions, even symbolic ones, while not over-hyping things either.

Nothing, however, can prepare world leaders for another signature Trump move: ignoring the handshake altogether.

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Mr Trump failed to heed calls to shake the hand of German Chancellor Angela Merkel when she visited the White House in March. (He says he didnt hear them.)

At a meeting with Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu this month, Mr Trump appeared to miss the presidents outstretched hand.

It is another way of establishing rank, which is that he is the one initiating, Mr Dolcos said of the move. Im not going in when you initiate. Im probably ignoring it and then Ill come back. This is now when we are doing this. Not when you initiate it.
Have you ever watched The Bachelor or The Bachelorette and wondered, How do these people manage to take two months off of work to film a reality show? Well, youre not alone. So when new Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay dropped by Yahoo TVs studios recently, we asked how her fellow lawyers at the Dallas firm Cooper & Scully felt about her foray into reality TV. I dont know if you know this, but my co-workers signed me up for all this, she explains. So they were supportive of me being on Nicks season of The Bachelor, and  they were more than excited when they found out I was chosen as the Bachelorette.

Watch the video above to hear what Rachels boss had to say before she left to film The Bachelor  and how her job helped her get over that nationally televised breakup with Nick after she made it all the way to the final three.

The Bachelorette airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC.

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Chris Harrison Blogs The Bachelorette Season 13 Premiere

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Muslims began observing Ramadan on May 26, a sacred month of fasting that will culminate on June 24, or on Eid al-Fitr. The month of Ramadan is when people belonging to the Islamic faith observe a fast everyday of the month from dawn to dusk, as they believe that through this spiritual discipline they will achieve a deep contemplation of their connection with Allah or God.

During this month, people religiously engross themselves in their holy text, Quran. This is due to their belief that Prophet Muhammad had been handed down the very first verses of Quran during the month of Ramadan.

"When the month of Ramadan starts, the gates of heaven are opened and the gates of Hell are closed and the devils are chained, Mohammad had reportedly said, Vox reported.

Muslims from all across the globe celebrate Ramadan in their own way. The following is a look at how the Ramadan is being celebrated in different parts of the world:

Pakistan

In Pakistan, men visit mosques in late evening to perform a special prayer of 20 Rakaa known as Taraveeh. Since women are prohibited from setting foot inside mosques, they observe the same prayer at home, travel-culture reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/FAROOQ NAEEM

Iraq

Even though markets in Iraq are traditionally flooded with customers buying sweets and pastries to take back home to their starving family members, who would get to eat their fill after dusk, according to the Washington Post the scenario has changed quite a bit after wars and conflict tore the country apart in recent times.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/KARIM SAHIB

Turkey

In Turkey, people put on their best garments, which are called bayramlk, and go off to meet their relatives and friends on the occasion of Ramadan. Children also enjoy watching shadow plays which are organized for entertaining them at various parts of the country, Time and Date reported.

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Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/OZAN KOSE

Saudi Arabia

In the month of Ramadan, supermarkets, cafes and restaurants are closed during daytime in Saudi Arabia, despite the fact that it is not obligatory for non-Muslims to fast during this time, Al Arabiya reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/HUSSAIN RADWAN

Kuwait

People in Kuwait like to observe Ramadan the traditional way, by reading the Quran a record number of times during the holy month and spending the nights praying At-Taraaweeh, which is a vocal night prayer, Islam Web reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/YASSER AL-ZAYYAT

India

Unlike countries with a Muslim majority, people of the Islamic faith are spread out across the length and breadth of India, with some places like Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Hyderabad catering to a larger number of Muslims than others, India reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/NOAH SEELAM

Australia

While densely populated Muslim suburbs across Australia might be quiet during the day, as the night falls, various streets light up in an array of food festivals which cater to Muslims, who have been fasting throughout the day, ABC reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/Cole Bennetts

Indonesia

Annual wage bonuses are traditionally doled out before the month of Ramadan in Indonesia, which also means that shopkeepers experience a huge surge in their profits during this month, Warc reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/JUNI KRISWANTO

Malaysia

Although tourists maybe a little apprehensive about visiting Malaysia during the month of Ramadan, they would not know what they are missing out on unless they do. This is when hotels and large restaurants have their buka puasa or dinner buffets, where one gets to enjoy delicious spread of Malaysian and Western food, Back Home reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/MANAN VATSYAYANA

Palestine

While Palestine traditionally celebrates Ramadan just like other Muslim countries, where families would gather together to offer prayers or just to share their iftar meals after dusk, unending conflicts particularly on the Gaza Strip have limited their celebrations in the recent years, Human Appeal reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/MOHAMMED ABED

Libya

Just like Palestine, Ramadan has become ridden with conflicts and bloodshed in Libya, rather than being a month fo peace and prayer, First Post reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/MAHMUD TURKIA

Syria

Instead of being a time for being with near and dear ones, 7.6 million displaced Syrians might be forced to spend Ramadan of 2017 looking for a shelter above their heads, Islamic-Relief reported.

Ramadan 2017

Photo: Getty Images/ABDULMONAM EASSA

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Why is Ramadan called Ramadan?

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, and lasts either 29 or 30 days, depending on when the new crescent moon is (or should be) visible.

The Arabic term Ramadan connotes intense heat. It seems that in pre-Islamic Arabia, Ramadan was the name of a scorching hot summer month. In the Islamic calendar, however, the timing of Ramadan varies from year to year. This year Ramadan will begin around May 27; next year it will begin around May 16. (An Islamic year is roughly 11 days shorter than a Gregorian year.)

What is the significance of Ramadan?

Ramadan is a period of fasting and spiritual growth, and is one of the five pillars of Islam (the others being the declaration of faith, daily prayer, alms-giving, and the pilgrimage to Mecca). Able-bodied Muslims are expected to abstain from eating, drinking and sexual relations from dawn to sunset each day of the month. Many practicing Muslims also perform additional prayers, especially at night, and attempt to recite the entire Quran (Koran). The prevailing belief among Muslims is that it was in the final 10 nights of Ramadan that the Quran was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad.

What is the connection between soul and body that the observance of Ramadan seeks to explain?

The Quran states that fasting was prescribed for believers so that they may be conscious of God. By abstaining from things that people tend to take for granted (such as water), it is believed, one may be moved to reflect on the purpose of life and grow closer to the creator and sustainer of all existence. As such, engaging in wrongdoing effectively undermines the fast. Many Muslims also maintain that fasting allows them to get a feeling of poverty, and this may foster feelings of empathy.

Can Muslims skip fasting under certain conditions? If so, do they make up missed days?

All those who are physically limited (for example, because of an illness or old age) are exempt from the obligation to fast; the same is true for anyone who is traveling. Those who are able to do so are expected to make up the missed days at a later time. (One could potentially make up all of the missed days in the month immediately following Ramadan, the month of Shawwal.) Those unable to fast at all (if they are financially able) are expected to provide meals to the needy as an alternative course of action.

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What is the significance of 29 or 30 days of fasting?

By fasting over an extended period of time, practicing Muslims aim to foster certain attitudes and values that they would be able to cultivate over the course of an entire year. Ramadan is often likened to a spiritual training camp.

Besides experiencing feelings of hunger and thirst, believers often have to deal with fatigue because of late-night prayers and predawn meals. This is especially true during the final 10 nights of the month. In addition to being the period in which the Quran was believed to have been first revealed, this is a time when divine rewards are believed to be multiplied. Many Muslims will offer additional prayers during this period.

Do Muslims celebrate the completion of Ramadan?

The end of Ramadan marks the beginning of one of two major Islamic holidays Eid al-Fitr, the festival of the breaking of the fast. On this day, many Muslims attend a religious service, visit relatives and friends, and exchange gifts.

Mohammad Hassan Khalil, Associate Professor of Religious Studies and Director of the Muslim Studies Program, Michigan State University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

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Photo: The Conversation

The Conversation

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Quora

Photo: Quora

This question originally appeared on Quora. Answer by James Waldron Hertsch.

I don't think atheists necessarily "just want to sin." Very few people turn atheist, then grow a goatee, crow, "Now I can sin all I want!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!!!!" and then rampage across the countryside. But I think there are a couple open items:

The "sin" of impiety. A polite atheist isn't going to go out of his way to insult a religious person. But at the same time, an atheist is not likely to attend church, pray, honor the name of a god, or participate in any sort of religious ritual. If you define this sort of lack of piety as a "sin," then yes, the atheist sins by omission every minute of every day. While some of us are glad to have Sunday morning free (if you're in a Christian-oriented country), it's not like an atheist sets out to be as impious as he can. It's simply an aspect of who he is ... of who I am.

What is a sin? Atheists and theists, I think, agree that some acts constitute "sins," as it were. Murder, robbery, and rebooting Full House are all awful acts. But religions, especially fundamentalist sects, tack on other "sins." Homosexuality, close proximity to a member of the opposite sex, and refusal to submit to a male's authority have all been classified as "sins." I can't speak completely for other atheists, but I categorically reject the notion that any of these acts are "sins." Rather, they strike me as man-made laws ... and (esp. the rules re: women) rules that are sexist to boot.

Religious leaders' sins. This sort of thing put me on the path to atheism, and I think it turned others there as well. In Christianity, greed is a sin. A huge sin. And it's considered virtuous to give to others. Yet you have people like Jim Bakker, who embezzled money from his ministry, and the aptly named Creflo Dollar, who sought donations so he could buy himself a private jet. Not to mention every instance of a religious leader who preached sexual purity, yet had his own indiscretions, or religious leaders who preach "do not kill," unless it's in service to their interpretation of the deity.

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This kind of hypocrisy turns people off ... and it starts one thinking. If these people act inconsistent with their religions laws -- even laws they putatively believe, then is there any truth to those laws, to those words? It's a powerful question.

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Beirut (AFP) - Fourteen civilians were killed late Monday when Islamic State group jihadists shelled a government-controlled neighbourhood of Syria's eastern Deir Ezzor city, a monitor said.

Three children were among the dead in the regime-held Al-Joura district, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

"The shelling hit just before families were gathering to break the Ramadan fast," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

Besieged by IS since early 2015, the regime-controlled third of Deir Ezzor city is home to an estimated 100,000 people.

Most of the surrounding oil-rich province is also controlled by IS.

"At least six mortar rounds hit the Al-Joura district. Daesh has been regularly hitting this neighbourhood with mortars," said Omar Abu Leila, an activist from Deir Ezzor 24, which publishes news on the city.

He said over 40 people had been wounded, including women and children.

"Some of them are in critical condition, but the health situation in the neighbourhood is deteriorating because of the lack of staff, medicine, and medical equipment," he told AFP.

The World Food Programme has been dropping humanitarian aid into Deir Ezzor since April 2016, and Russian and Syrian government planes have also carried out their own independent air drops.

More than 320,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict broke out in March 2011.
MUNICH (Reuters) - Europe can no longer completely rely on its allies, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Sunday, pointing to bruising meetings of G7 wealthy nations and NATO last week. Merkel did not mention by name U.S. President Donald Trump, who criticized major NATO allies and refused to endorse a global climate change accord, but she told a packed beer tent in Munich that the days when Europe could completely count on others were "over to a certain extent". "I have experienced this in the last few days," she said. "And that is why I can only say that we Europeans must really take our fate into our own hands - of course in friendship with the United States of America, in friendship with Great Britain and as good neighbors wherever that is possible also with other countries, even with Russia." "But we have to know that we must fight for our future on our own, for our destiny as Europeans," Merkel said. The two-day G7 summit in Italy pitted Trump against the leaders of Germany, France, Britain, Italy, Canada and Japan on several issues, with European diplomats frustrated at having to revisit questions they had hoped were long settled. The American tycoon-turned-president backed a pledge to fight protectionism at the end of the G7 summit on Saturday, but refused to endorse the climate pact, saying he needed more time to decide. But EU Council President Donald Tusk said on Sunday he was more optimistic now than after the U.S. election last November after EU leaders held talks with Trump in Brussels. "What I am absolutely sure after this meeting is that despite some extraordinary ... expressions, behaviors, etc, etc, our partners in the G7 are much more responsible than the first impression after the election in the United States," Tusk said in the Slovak capital. At the NATO summit on Thursday, Trump intensified his accusations that allies were not spending enough on defense and warned of more attacks such as this week's Manchester bombing unless the alliance did more to stop militants. Turning to France, Merkel said she wished President Emmanuel Macron success, adding to applause: "Where Germany can help, Germany will help, because Germany can only do well if Europe is doing well." France is Germany's second-biggest trading partner and the presidential election victory of the pro-European centrist reformer Macron over far-right protectionist rival Marine Le Pen in early May has sparked hopes that Berlin will ally with Paris in spearheading a broad-based economic revival in Europe. (Reporting by Joern Poltz, additional reporting by Tatiana Jancarikova in Bratislava; Writing by Michael Nienaber, editing by Susan Thomas)
TAORMINA, Italy (Reuters) - Group of Seven (G7) leaders have still not agreed to joint language on the issues of trade and Russia, a G7 source said, hours before their final communique is due to be published. The source said diplomats had been unable to resolve whether the communique would include a pledge to fight against "protectionism" and a separate threat to take additional action against Russia, if warranted, for its intervention in Ukraine. Language on climate change has been finalised, the source said. The communique will specify that six of the seven countries back the 2015 Paris Agreement and that the United States had been given more time to decide on its stance. G7 leaders were due to finalize the language on trade and Russia on Saturday afternoon, the source said. (Reporting by Noah Barkin; Editing by Crispian Balmer)
Amidst scandal over Jared Kushners alleged links to the Russian ambassador, homeland security secretary plays defense while president complains on Twitter

Donald and Melania Trump walk to the White House on Saturday night after returning from a nine-day trip abroad. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images

The Trump White House is reportedly considering a major personnel shakeup, in response to the latest in a string of Russia-related scandals that have kept the administration on the defensive for weeks.

Donald Trump returned to the US from a relatively successful nine-day international tour on Saturday  a day after the Washington Post reported that Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and senior aide, sought to set up secret back channel communications between Russia and the Trump presidential transition team in December 2016.

The White House did not directly comment on the report although Trump later tweeted that the reports were fabricated.

National security adviser HR McMaster told reporters in Sicily on Saturday he was not concerned and on Sunday homeland security secretary John Kelly told NBC he did not see any big issue here relative to Jared.

Speaking on ABCs This Week, Kelly said back channel communications were both normal, in my opinion, and acceptable. Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organizations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us, is a good thing.

Any such efforts by the Trump transition team would however have been contrary to the accepted practice of one president at a time, in which outgoing administrations remain in charge of foreign affairs until inauguration day.

In office, Trump remains under pressure. The FBI and several congressional committees are currently investigating contacts between Trump aides and Russian officials.



According to press reports citing anonymous sources, the White House is in the process of putting together a new public relations operation, known in DC parlance as a war room, to deal with ongoing revelations. Trump is also reported to be considering retooling the way his administration communicates with the press and public.



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This could include, as the Washington Post reported, a smaller role for press secretary Sean Spicer, more campaign-style rallies  although an event scheduled for Iowa on Thursday was canceled this weekend  and perhaps the return of Corey Lewandowski, who was fired as Trumps campaign manager last year.

It was not initially clear if Kushner stepping down or taking on a reduced role is part of the potential reshuffle. On Sunday Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat on the House intelligence committee, told ABCs This Week that reports about Kushner were obviously very concerning  in the context of an election campaign where the Russians had been intervening to help Donald Trump and to hurt Hillary Clinton.

Congress, Schiff said, needed to get to the bottom of the allegations against Kushner, which if they were true would mean theres no way Kushner should be allowed to keep his security clearance.

Kushner has expressed a willingness to testify about his meetings with Russian officials including the ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak.

Mr Kushner previously volunteered to share with Congress what he knows about these meetings, attorney Jamie Gorelick said on Thursday. He will do the same if he is contacted in connection with any other inquiry.

Earlier this week, before the back channel allegations surfaced, it was reported that the FBI was looking into Kushners contacts with Russia, indicating that its investigation has reached not only the Trumps inner circle but his family. According to the Washington Post, the FBI is looking at a Trump Tower meeting between Kushner and Russian diplomat Kislyak as an item of investigative interest.

In public on Sunday, Trump and senior administration figures sought to deflect the focus onto leakers and the press.

In a string of early morning tweets, of which some were deleted and reposted for spelling errors, Trump said it was his opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media.

Saying it was very possible that those sources dont exist but are made up by fake news writers, Trump also complained about leaks believed to have come from US intelligence sources regarding the suicide bombing in Manchester earlier this week in which 22 people were killed.

British prime minister May was very angry that the info the UK gave to US about Manchester was leaked, he wrote. Gave me full details!

News stories quoting anonymous sources are a staple of US political journalism. Trump himself has frequently cited anonymous sources, notably in his public criticism of the Obama administration, most infamously when announcing in 2012 that an extremely credible source had told him Barack Obamas birth certificate was fraudulent  a demonstrably untrue claim.

Speaking on NBCs Meet the Press, Kelly said it was borderline, if not over the line of treason to leak highly classified information from foreign intelligence.

Its darn close to treason, he added.

The homeland security secretary was specifically talking about information leaked relating to the bombing in Manchester, but the comments had broader implications under a presidency that has been either implicated in or the victim of numerous leaks of sensitive information.

Obama director of national intelligence James Clapper, meanwhile, told NBC Kushners reported attempt to initiate back channel talks with Moscow certainly arouses your concern about what is going on, given [that] Russia, at least for my money, is our primary adversary.

They are not our friends, he said. They are in to do us in.
U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly yelled at Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas during their meeting in Bethlehem last week, accusing Abbas of lying, Israeli television reported Sunday.

You lied to me in Washington when you talked about commitment to peace, but the Israelis showed me you were personally responsible for incitement, Trump reportedly told his Palestinian counterpart.

Abbas met with Trump in Washington May 5. They had their second meeting Tuesday.

Read: Is Kushner Russia Story Fake? Republicans Say Maybe, Dems Say Doubtful

Palestinian sources said, however, the account was wrong and the meeting between the two leaders was calm, the Times of Israel reported.

A poll taken for the Jerusalem Post after Trumps visit indicated 49 percent of Palestinians said they now support restarting peace talks with Israel, which broke down three years ago. The poll of 500 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza by the Arab World for Research and Development, a Ramallah research institute, said the poll indicated a slight increase in support compared to previous surveys. Forty-five percent of those surveyed, however, said they didnt think Trump would be able to forge a deal.

Read: Trump On Kushner Russia Investigation: President Calls Fake News Contact Controversy

After Tuesdays meeting, Trump delivered a speech in which he said terror must not be rewarded, seen as criticism of the Palestinian Authoritys practice of providing support to the families of terrorists who were killed or imprisoned.

The report comes amid controversy over a womens center Palestinians dedicated to Dalal Mughrabi, who headed up a 1978 attack that left 35 Israeli civilians, including 12 children, dead and more than 70 wounded.

The womens center in Burqa was built with money donated by Norway, and when the building was constructed, the Norwegian Foreign Ministrys logo was affixed to it. After the dedication, however, Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende demanded the logo be removed and the money returned, Israel Today reported.

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The glorification of terrorist attacks is completely unacceptable, and I deplore this decision in the strongest possible terms. Norway will not allow itself to be associated with institutions that take the names of terrorists in this way. We will not accept the use of Norwegian aid funding for such purposes, Brende said in a statement Friday.

Israel praised Norway for its move.

Norway took the right step. A firm stance against the commemoration of terrorists is an integral part of the international effort to eradicate terrorism. We recommend that the international community thoroughly check where their money is invested in the Palestinian Authority and we expect all project partners to act as Norway did," the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement Saturday.

The United Nations on Sunday said it had withdrawn its support from the center, calling the dedication offensive.

The glorification of terrorism, or the perpetrators of heinous terrorist acts, is unacceptable under any circumstances, the statement said. The U.N. has repeatedly called for an end to incitement to violence and hatred as they present one of the obstacles to peace.

The U.N. also asked that its logo be removed from the center.

Local Palestinians, however, describe Mughrabi as a martyr. The Times of Israel said the Palestinian Authority has scheduled a number of events at the center, honoring Mughrabi and other terrorists.

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US politicians are seeking to scrutinise the $110bn arms deal he signed with Saudi Arabia: Evan Vucci/AP

Donald Trumps multi-billion dollar arms deal with Saudi Arabia could be held up by US politicians seeking to scrutinise its contents.

Members of both the US presidents Republican Party and rival Democrats in both Congress and the Senate are hoping to block the sale of the weapons and equipment.

Mr Trump signed the $110bn deal during a recent visit to Saudi Arabia.

This package demonstrates, in the clearest terms possible, the United States commitment to our partnership with Saudi Arabia and our Gulf partners, while also expanding opportunities for American companies in the region, and supporting tens of thousands of new jobs in the US defence industrial base, a White House statement said shortly afterwards.

But In a letter to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressmen Ted Lieu, a Democrat and Republican Ted Yoho urged their colleagues to reconsider the sale of precision guided munitions (PGMs) to the oil rich Middle Eastern Kingdom.

They pointed out that former president Barack Obamas administration had halted a planned sale of of PGMs to Saudi Arabia in December, due to concerns over the widespread civilian casualties in Yemen and significant deficiencies in the Royal Saudi Arabian Air Forces (RSAF) targeting capabilities.

They said: This decision was the result of an internal review launched after the United Nations and a number of human rights organisations documented a series of RSAF airstrikes on civilian targets including hospitals, markets, schools and a large funeral.

They added that in March, The State Department had reversed this policy without providing any justification for what had changed in its assessment.

As a result they said it was incumbent of the committee to exercise its oversight powers and to ask tough questions of Mr Trumps administration.

In the Senate meanwhile, Senators Chris Murphy, Al Franken and Rand Paul introduced a joint resolution of disapproval for the deal.

Under a provision of the Arms Export Control Act, they hope to block the sale of weapons and equipment to the Royal Saudi Air Force, a;though it represents only a portion of the total package.

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However, they will have to wait for over a week before bringing their measure to the floor of the Senate.

Other Congressional leaders slammed the deal on account of Saudi Arabiass human rights violations and export of extremist ideologies.

Senator Patrick Leahy, the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, accused Trump of kowtowing to one of the worlds wealthiest and repressive regimes.

Healso accused the Saudi royal family of support for extremism that breeds terrorism and gross mistreatment of its own citizens.

Human rights organisations have also criticised the deal.

Shortly after it was signed Amnesty International accused the President of a glaring omission of human rights on the leaders agenda, and called for the US to stop selling arms to the Saudis to prevent the nations violation of international law via air strikes in Yemen and killing civilians.

Jeff Abramson of the Arms Control Association also cited the numerous cases of Saudi airstrikes against civilians in Yemen, telling Foreign Policy magazine: The Saudis have not proven to be responsible in their use of American weapons."
The battle against Isis has shifted from attrition to 'annihilation' tactics, US Defence Secretary General James Mattis said: Getty

Pentagon chief James Mattis has said that the US is accelerating the tempo of the fight against Isis, and that civilian deaths should be anticipated as a fact of life.

While US forces operating in Syria and Iraq do do everything humanly possible to prevent the loss of innocent life, Civilian casualties are a fact of life in this sort of situation, General Mattis told CBS Face the Nation on Sunday.

The battle has already shifted from attrition to annihilation tactics, he said, designed to prevent foreigners who joined the so-called caliphate from returning home.

The interview comes after new figures from war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights found that the last four-week period was the deadliest for Syrian civilians on record since the US-led coalition bombing campaign began in 2014.

A total of 225 civilians, including 36 women and 44 children, were killed in the period between 23 April to 23 May, the UK-based Observatory said.

For more news videos visit Yahoo View, available on iOS and Android.

The Western coalition strikes are conducted without the consent of the Syrian government, with which the US does not have official diplomatic ties, and have long been criticised by Damascus and Syrias allies in Moscow and Tehran for causing unnecessary loss of life.

However, since US President Donald Trump entered office in January this year there has been a marked uptick in civilian deaths in bombing operations against Isis across both Syria and neighbouring Iraq.

Mr Mattis said on Sunday that Mr Trump had given the Pentagon greater executive control over military operations against Isis, as per his election trail promises to focus his foreign policy on eliminating the group.

Probably the most important thing we're doing now is we're accelerating this fight, he said. We're accelerating the tempo of it....

We are going to squash the enemy's ability to give some indication that they're - that they have invulnerability, that they can exist, that they can send people off to Istanbul, to Belgium, to Great Britain and kill people with impunity, General Mattis added.

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In March, the US was accused of killing around 300 civilians alone after one strike which hit a mosque in Aleppo province and two incidents in the fight for Isis-controlled neighbourhoods of the Iraqi city of Mosul.

Last week the US admitted at least 105 Iraqi civilians were killed in one of the Mosul strikes. Investigations into all three incidents are still underway.

An official US military estimate from earlier this month found that 352 civilians in total have been unintentionally killed since the campaign began - but rights groups have severely criticised the estimate as too low, accusing the US of not taking sufficient precautions to avoid civilian deaths.

Isis now holds onto just a fraction of the territory that was under its control at the height of the groups powers in 2014.

Twin US-backed campaigns to oust fighters from their last urban strongholds - Raqqa in Syria and Mosul in Iraq - are underway, led by local forces on the ground and assisted by US military advisors and aerial campaigns.

The complex Syrian civil war has killed almost 500,000 people, the UN says, and is now in its seventh year.
Why did Jared Kushner seemingly trust Russian officials more than he trusted the U.S. government?

Friday evening, The Washington Post broke the story that, according to an intercepted report by the Russian ambassador in Washington to his superiors in Moscow, Kushner sought to use secure communications facilities at the Russian Embassy to correspond directly with Russian officials. The Russian ambassador, Sergei Kislyak, reported that the proposal was made in December, after Trump won the election but before he had taken office. The conversations reportedly involved Michael Flynn, the former Trump national-security adviser who was fired after it was revealed that he lied to administration officials about the content of his conversations with Russian officials.

Although Kushner never used those facilities, former national-security officials said that for officials with access to classified information, entering foreign embassies is considered a security risk. The White House has not commented directly on the report. Kushners attorney, Jamie Gorelick, a former Justice Department official with extensive national-security experience, has neither confirmed nor denied the report, but she has emphasized Kushners willingness to cooperate with ongoing investigations into the Trump teams contacts with the Russians. If Kushner did in fact make the request, that alone would have put him in a compromising position, since Russian officials could have used it as leverage against him.

Recommended: How Four Stories That Broke on a Single Day Define the Trump Era

But what is also peculiar is the level of trust Kushner would have been placing in Russian officials in asking for such a communications channel. Foreign affairs is often complex, yet Kushner didnt want the U.S. governments helpor supervision.

"What is unusual and borderline disturbing about this is less that it cut out the State Department or cut out the intelligence community; I think there is a precedent for both of those things in back-channels," said Jon Finer, former State Department chief of staff under John Kerry. It shows a level of trust in Russian intelligence, and Russian diplomatic personnel beyond the level of trust afforded to American intelligence and American personnel.

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The White House has obliquely defended Kushners actions while refusing to comment on them specifically. We have back-channel communications with a number of countries. So, generally speaking, about back-channel communications, what that allows you to do is to communicate in a discreet manner, National-Security Adviser H.R. McMaster told reporters on Saturday. Asked whether it would be cause for concern if a National Security Council staffer used such a back-channel to Moscow, he said: "No, I would not be concerned about it."

"What puts this in an entirely different category is that this is a transition; they weren't in the government yet, said Paul Pillar, a former analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency. "That's really a departure. It's normal for an incoming administration to have contacts with foreign leaders, but I can't think of a precedent for this kind of thing."

Recommended: The Lesser Part of Valor

And former national-security officials noted that while back-channel communications are often compartmentalizedmeaning they can only be viewed by a select number of officialsthey usually have some level of involvement from national-security officials. Communicating with Moscow using Russian facilities could have shielded Kushners correspondence from U.S. intelligence agencies, without denying their Russian counterparts the same access.

The only reason you would operate that way is if you were hiding something from your own government. That's it. That's the only plausible explanation," said Nada Bakos, a fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and a former CIA analyst. There's compartmentalized classificationif they wanted to take this to the highest level of classification they could do that. It didn't have to be widely disseminated.

Reports from The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have cited anonymous administration officials claiming that the purpose of the communications would have been to discuss the Syrian civil war. But that explanation raises similar issues: If that was the topic, why would Kushner want to cut out U.S. officials? And why couldnt it wait until after the transition?

Discussing Syria "just doesn't seem tremendously credible or urgent on the timelines they were seeking to operate, said Finer. It begs the question of what this was all about. Until we know that, we don't know if this is a bombshell, or just people who didn't know what they were doing."

Recommended: Report: Jared Kushner Asked the Russians for Use of Their Facilities to Communicate With Moscow

Kushners contacts with the Russian government are reportedly a topic of interest for the FBI, which is investigating whether there was any collusion between the Trump presidential campaign and what intelligence agencies have said was a deliberate Russian influence operation on Trumps behalf in the 2016 presidential election.

Reuters also reported Friday that Kushners contacts with Russian officials were much more extensive than he had previously acknowledged. Gorelick told Reuters that Kushner participated in thousands of calls in this time period and that he had no recollection of the calls as described.

The reasons for the contacts between Trump associates and Russian officialsand the willingness of those associates to conceal those contactsremain an ongoing mystery.

Collusion between the campaign and the Russian government would obviously be devastating for the administration, Finer said. But you don't need to get anywhere near that far to be disturbed by what's been revealed alreadyunprecedented and unexplained contacts between an adversarial government meddling in our election and people in ever-closer proximity to the president himself, after denials that proved false and alibis that don't make sense.

Read more from The Atlantic:

This article was originally published on The Atlantic.
Its hard to sympathise when arch-capitalists such as Bill OReilly, Katie Hopkins and Sean Hannity find themselves at the receiving end of corporate savagery

Lets remember that they are suffering the consequences of a system they so gleefully championed. Photograph: Carolyn Kaster/AP

There is a delicious irony when free market zealots become victims of the very system they celebrate. When those who pontificated about the evils of the nanny state and the genius of consumer choice and the invisible hand suddenly realize that consumers dont like them any more, and that the invisible hand is about to yank them out of their position of power. When the market tells them: You know what? Youre losing us money. We couldnt care less what you did or how much you made for us yesterday. Get lost.

Of course, it is leftists and liberals who are most often accused of not being tough enough to survive in the dog-eat-dog world of capitalism. Lefty snowflakes need the warm embrace of the state to compensate for their inability to cut it in the real world. They need entitlements and welfare. They need laws to protect them.

Yet when arch-capitalists such as Bill OReilly, Katie Hopkins and Sean Hannity find themselves at the receiving end of corporate savagery, their reactions speak volumes. Sermons about the reign of the consumer disappear, replaced by hysterical accusations of conspiracies, political correctness gone wild and cowardly corporate censorship.

In response to OReillys release from Fox after a slew of sexual harassment cases, Alex Marlow, editor in chief at Breitbart News, said that the decision created an America where corporations decide what can and cant be said, and I dont like the idea where the corporations have so much control.

After Fox News put the hammer down on Sean Hannity after his pushing the discredited Seth Rich conspiracy theory, Hannity tweeted: Spoke to many advertisers. They are being inundated with Emails to stop advertising on my show. This is Soros/Clinton/Brock liberal fascism.

When it was announced Katie Hopkins was leaving LBC immediately  after a tweet, later deleted, in which Hopkins called for a final solution for Muslims  chat rooms and websites claimed mob rule and thought-policing. Even Julian Assange weighed in on Hannity, tweeting: On @SeanHannity: regardless of the politics no one should be cheering advertisers controlling the parameters of acceptable debate.

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For critics and scholars who have for decades pointed to the acute dangers connected to corporate control of the media, howling from the far-right over OReilly, Hopkins and Hannity rings hollow for a couple of reasons.

First, an individual who invokes Nazi ethnic cleaning terminology in relation to Muslims, or was involved in so many sexual harassment lawsuits that his employer had to pay $13m in settlement deals, are hardly poster children for journalistic free speech. At the broader level, however, these are people who have served a political ideology that has pushed deregulated markets conducive to the concentration of corporate control  which in the case of media also means excessive advertiser influence.

It is worth remembering that OReilly, Hopkins and Hannity are three individuals. They are not the sum total of the far right, and thus the argument that what we are seeing is tantamount to the eradication of their worldview from the media is a sad joke.

Breitbart, Fox News, the Daily Mail and Daily Express are all alive and well. Bill OReilly wasnt replaced by Noam Chomsky. He was replaced by Tucker Carlson, who provides a very similar brand of far-right vitriol  just without the sexual harassment accusations. And will LBC now be bereft of far-right anti-immigration voices? Fear not. You can always tune in to Nigel Farages show on the same station.

So when senior people at Breitbart and on-air talent at Fox News start saying they are only now realizing the extent of corporate and advertiser power? Cry me a river. They are liars, naive or have been in a coma for the last 50 years.

Ask the other end of the political spectrum about the impact of corporate control. Truly leftist, progressive voices have been essentially frozen out of the US and UK commercial public spheres. And by leftist I dont mean the Wall Street friendly, Coke-sponsored, pseudosocial democracy of Hillary Clinton.

Critiques of consumption are rarities. When wars rage, most media will cheerlead the battles and interview former generals while anti-war protests, sometimes enormous in size, are either ignored or sidelined as nothing more than PC slacker culture. When truly progressive candidates emerge, they are belittled as at best anomalies and at worst pie-in-the-sky dreamers who will destroy the economy.

Unfettered corporate and advertiser control of the media are real and are bad for democracy. But when people like Bill OReilly, Katie Hopkins and Sean Hannity claim victim status after advertiser pressure, lets remember that they are suffering the consequences of a system they so gleefully championed.
Earthquake is a natural disaster that can lead to loss of life and has the ability to destroy cities. The recent Nepal earthquake that also shook Delhi NCR claimed at least six lives in Nepal. Here is a list of the deadliest earthquakes recorded in the recent past.
Experts believe that drop in visas may indicate that more visa applicants are now subject to excessive scrutiny.

By Press Trust of India: Pakistan has had a significant 40 per cent drop in the number of American visas granted to its nationals under the new Trump administration despite not being on the list of the US Presidents travel ban countries.

Interestingly, the number of non-immigrant US visas to Indians has increased by 28 per cent in March and April this year as compared to the monthly average of the previous year, according to the newly-released monthly official data.

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Non-immigrant visas granted to Pakistanis are down by 40 per cent in March and April this year compared to the 2016 monthly average, a Pakistani media report said quoting data released by the US State Department.

Pakistanis were issued 3,925 non-immigrant visas in April and 3,973 visas in March 2017 under the Trump administration.

The Obama administration last year issued a total of 78,637 non-immigrant visas to Pakistanis with a monthly average of 6,553, which was 40 per cent higher than the current average.

Before March this year, the State Department did not release monthly breakdowns of visas and only annual figures were available.

The report compared the March and April 2017 figures with monthly averages for 2016. Even in 2015, monthly average remained 6,179 as a total of 74,150 Pakistanis had been granted visas.

A spokesperson of the State Department told the The News International: "Visa demand is cyclical, not uniform throughout the year and affected by various factors at the local and international level. Visa issuance numbers tend to increase during peak travel seasons, such as during the summer and the winter holidays, though there may be different trends at the country, nationality, or visa-category level".

The data showed that Indian nationals received 87,049 visas in April and 97,925 visas in March this year. Last year, people from India received 72,082 non-immigrant visas each month on average with an annual total of 864,987 visas.

Pakistan is not the only Muslim-majority country experiencing decline in non-immigrant US visas. A similar analysis of 50 Muslim majority countries reveals that number of visas issued to their nationals has also declined by 20 per cent in April as compared to their monthly country average last year, the report said.

The six countries targeted by President Donald Trumps revised travel ban -- Iran, Syria, Sudan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen -- experienced a 55 per cent decline in non-immigrant visas compared with last years monthly average.

Experts believe that drop in visas may indicate that more visa applicants are now subject to excessive scrutiny.

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In January, Trump signed an executive order temporarily barring people from seven Muslim-majority countries -- Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Iran, Somalia, Libya, and Yemen.

In March, he signed the revised travel ban excluding Iraq from the list. The order was challenged in a court and a judge had halted the travel ban.

ALSO READ:

H1-B visa: Donald Trump signs 'buy American, hire American' order, may impact Indian workers

This Pakistani managed an Aadhar card in Haryana after his visa expired

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The suspended MLA supported Kapil Mishra and said he also tried to point out various scams to Kejriwal but he never paid attention to him.

By Shiv Pujan Jha: Col Devinder Sehrawat, an AAP MLA on Monday launched a fresh scathing attack on Arvind Kejriwal in Lucknow. Sehrawat said that the issue of EVM tampering was raised by the party despite opposition from majority of the MLAs within the party. He added that at one point even Kejriwal seemed convinced about the mandate given by the people but the issue was deliberately raised to deflect the attention of the people from the core issue.

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The suspended MLA while supporting Kapil Mishra said,"He has just been reiterating a part of what I have been trying to project at various forums about deviations within the AAP. The party got embroiled in corrupt practises despite having stood for the same cause."

Sehrawat also attacked AAP ministers Gopal Rai and Manish Sisodia.

AAP AND SCAMS

Sehrawat gave details of various scams, which he said he tried to project in the last one-and-half-years to Kejriwal but the same landed on deaf ears and he even pointed that the details of donations were not being updated for the last 9 months.

Sehrawat indicated that that there was a CNG scam in which substandard Chinese kits were fitted in most of the vehicles during odd and even experiment in Delhi. He added that there was another scam in high security number plates where the procurement was at a meager Rs 150 per plate but the charges were above Rs 500.

Sehrawat also highlighted other scams and he alleged that Kejriwal was being guided by a coterie of those with vested interests.

Also read: Harsimrat Kaur blames Arvind Kejriwal for Punjab defeat but also says downfall of AAP has begun

Also read: Kirti Azad to Kapil Mishra: Why parties have become more tolerant of their rebel lawmakers

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Rumours of an early election in Maharashtra have been doing the rounds since the past few months.

By Sahil Joshi: The Devendra Fadnavis-led government in Maharashtra often comes under criticism from its own alliance partner, the Shiv Sena.

Rumours of an early election in Maharashtra have been doing rounds since the past few months.

Now, at a recent meeting of the BJP in New Delhi, party president Amit Shah, while ruling out the possibility, is reported to have expressed confidence that if early elections do happen in Maharashtra, the BJP would register a bigger win than the previous 2014 Assembly election.

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In the BJP corridors, Amit Shah's remark is seen as a warning to Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena.

NOT PLEASED WITH SHIV SENA?

According to sources, the discussion on early election in Maharashtra came up at a meeting with journalists from regional newspapers.

Shah is believed to have told the gathering that the Shiv Sena, in spite of being a part of the government in the state and at the Centre, has opposed the decisions taken by the government.

This could possibly be the first time when BJP president Amit Shah has expressed his displeasure with the Shiv Sena over its anti-government stand on various issues.

SENA's ATTACKS ON GOVERNMENT

Uddhav Thackeray, while praising Yogi Adityanath government for announcing loan waiver for farmers, had asked why Maharashtra should stay behind.

"If the biggest state in the country like Uttar Pradesh can announce loan waiver then why should a state like Maharashtra stay behind? Farmers in Maharashtra are committing suicide not only because of drought, loss of crops but also due to burden of loans," Uddhav Thackeray said.

The Shiv Sena had also joined the Opposition's protests during the budget session over the demand for farm loan waiver.

The party has also raised objections to Devendra Fadnavis' pet project of Mumbai-Nagpur expressway, and also opposed the construction of Metro-3 project.

MAJORITY GOVERNMENT THE SOLUTION

Miffed with the Shiv Sena targeting its own government, the BJP core committee met a month ago and reportedly proposed early election in Maharashtra to the parliamentary board.

The stupendous performance in Uttar Pradesh and the impressive show in Maharashtra civic body elections have boosted the BJP's confidence.

The BJP, according to sources, is of the opinion that getting a majority in Maharashtra will ensure the government does not face the embarrassment of being criticised by alliance partners.

ALSO READ:

Maharashtra: BJP alliance partners threaten to march against government for farm loan waiver

Shiv Sena slams BJP over Amit Shah's panchayat to Parliament remark

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Shiv Sena slams Modi, tells PM to stop bathroom politics

ALSO WATCH: Maharashtra: Shiv Sena and BJP lock horns over farmers' issues

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By India Today Web Desk: Fans queued up outside Jalsa were in for a treat on Sunday, when Amitabh Bachchan got his granddaughter Aaradhya along to greet them. Big B admitted in his blog that the five-year-old was "reluctant" and "a little afraid" but thanked the fans for all their love.

T 2439 - .. the Sunday well wishers .. and an introduction to the little one .. she confessed later : 'I was a little afraid'!! .. pic.twitter.com/85era6zQZL- Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) May 29, 2017

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The actor wrote, "And the reluctant little one finally agrees to come out to greet the well wishers .. but is disturbed by the crowds and admits she was a little afraid to be up there .. her main attraction being her new pet the stray cat whom she has named 'salt pepper' (sic)."

Aaradhya with her new pet, Salt Pepper

He added, "She asked me to pet it and I told her I did not like cats, so she was surprised that I did not .. there is another one she said .. her sister .. the cats sister .. and wondered if I would consider liking the sister .. I said no .. I think I lost out a number of brownie points from her today .. But thank you all at the gates of Jalsa .. you who make me wanted and loved (sic)."

(READ THE ORIGINAL TEXT HERE)

Aaradhya was the cynosure of all eyes at the recently concluded Cannes Film Festival. Being the daughter of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and the granddaughter of Amitabh Bachchan, she is no stranger to the spotlight. Aishwarya told PTI recently, "She has now developed an ease (with media) which you all are seeing... She sees photographers outside our home, airports, everywhere."

PHOTOS: Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Aaradhya celebrate Vrinda Rai's birthday

PHOTOS: Azad Rao Khan meeting Aaradhya Bachchan is all the aww-dorable you need today

ALSO WATCH: Aaradhya Bachchan's day out on her mom Aishwarya's birthday

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By India Today Web Desk: The endeavour started two years ago, as a regular summer project for a 15-year-old student from The Shri Ram School Moulsari in Gurugram. Each year, Ananya Saluja would visit remote villages in Leh, Ladakh to teach the underprivileged children, as part of her community service module.

Today, the seventeen-year-old is being hailed for her noble contribution in setting up libraries in the otherwise-deprived area. So far, she has managed to raise around Rs 10 lakh for her cause.

Picture courrtesy: Facebook/DON't TALK DO IT

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Ananya decided to carry on with her cause, even after her school program ended. It was during her summer sojourns that she came to know about 17,000 ft, a NGO run by Sujata Sahu. Soon, she approached the NGO and landed a volunteering opportunity to help the marginalised people in the inaccessible villages of Ladakh.

Picture courtesy: Twitter/Secondsguru

Also Read:This TV channel is of women, by women and for the women of Afghanistan

Not only did she teach children during her volunteering program but also learnt about the day-to-day challenges that the inhabitants need to overcome. ''Volunteering in Ladakh, staying in homestays, eating the local food, imbibing the local culture and customs, teaching and playing with the children was an absolutely amazing experience, but it also presented many challenges that I had not entirely anticipated,'' wrote Ananya, on her online blog that goes by the name of Ananya Learns to Julley.

Currently, Ananya has funds to set up at least 19 libraries and plans to set up one in the Kargil district too, reported YourStory.

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Congress leader Shashi Tharoor had filed the civil defamation suit against Arnab Goswami and his newly-launched news channel, claiming damages and compensation of Rs 2 crore.

By India Today Web Desk: The Delhi High Court today issued notices to journalist Arnab Goswami and his news channel Republic TV following a defamation suit filed by senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him while airing news related to the mysterious death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar.

"Bring down the rhetoric. You (Goswami and Republic) can show facts, but can't call him (Tharoor) names," the Delhi High Court said.

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On May 26, Tharoor had filed the civil defamation suit against Arnab Goswami and his newly-launched news channel, claiming damages and compensation of Rs 2 crore. The Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram had also sought a direction from the court to restrain Republic TV from broadcasting any show relating to the death of his wife till the investigation is completed by the Delhi Police.

The Congress leader, in his lawsuit, has made Goswami and ARG Outlier Media Asianet News Private Limited, the company which owns Republic TV, as parties. He has referred to the broadcasting of news items from May 8 to 13 when the TV channel claimed to air an expose connected to Pushkar's death.

Tharoor's lawsuit has denounced the news, claiming that the recordings were released in a sensational manner so as to appease the viewers and created a non-existing controversy by maligning his public life and public image.

"It is not out of place to say that defendants (Goswami and Republic TV) broadcast news reports and alleged expose which were intended to lead the viewers to believe that the deceased was murdered either by plaintiff (Tharoor) or at the instance of the plaintiff. Such a broadcast clearly has the potential of adversely impacting the ongoing investigation into the death of the deceased," the plea said.

Responding to the suit, Goswami had alleged that Tharoor wants to stop his channel from finding out the truth in the Sunanda Pushkar case. "My response is that it is a matter of great concern that Tharoor wants to block a TV channel from finding out the truth about who killed his wife," he had said.

Sunanda was found dead in a suite of a five star hotel in south Delhi on the night of January 17, 2014.

Also Read:

BCCL sues Arnab Goswami, Republic TV reporter for 'stealing' Lalu, Sunanda Pushkar tapes

Arnab Goswami's Republic TV uses unethical tactic to push viewership, NBA petitions TRAI

ALSO WATCH | India Today's disclaimer over unethical broadcast tactics

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Though Kejriwal managed to bring all factions of the party on the stage but Sukhpal Singh Khaira gave a clear message that ignoring grassroot workers will only harm the party.

By Manjeet Sehgal: Over confident till the Assembly election results in Punjab were declared, Aam Aadmi Party's National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal has finally realised that his arrogance and the step-motherly treatment to the grassroot workers was killing the organisation.

However, it was too late as as during the past 3 months the party has been disintegrated into three factions. Senior party leaders like Gurpreet Singh Ghuggi bid adieu and other leaders like Sukhpal Singh Khaira quit their posts.

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"We require a strong party network to protest against the wrongdoings of Captain Amarinder Singh government. God who created a miracle in Delhi when we won 68 seats has created another in Pujab, and mandated us to sit in the Opposition. We want to change the politics and would go to the doors of party workers to mollify them," Arvind Kejriwal, who was on a day-long visit to Amritsar to meet party workers said. He also clarified that it was due to the elections that he could not visit Punjab.

Though Kejriwal managed to bring all factions of the party on the stage but one headed by senior party leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira gave a clear message that ignoring grassroot party workers and outrageous ticket distribution will only harm the party.

KEJRIWAL SLAMS PUNJAB GOVERNMENT

Kejriwal slammed Captain Amarinder Singh government on its claims about surplus power and said the sand mines which the AAP had promised for state's unemployed are being showered on the servants of Irrigation and Power Minister Rana Gurjar Singh.

"The Congress has betrayed the people of Punjab. Not even a single promise made during the elections has been fulfilled so far," Kejriwal added.

In a bid to woo the party workers, who were feeling orphaned after Assembly elections, Kejriwal said that he would revamp the party structure and asked the party MLAs to give priority to the party workers while listening to the public grievances.

AAP WORKERS HAPPY

Kejriwal's address left the party workers enthusiastic about AAP's plans to launch statewide protests to expose failures of the Congress government.

"His visit has boosted the moral of party workers. We will contact the party workers to discuss the shortcomings if any and bring them back to party fold," Amritsar based party leader Saravjot Singh said.

Another party volunteer Amardeep Singh, who hails from Jandialaguru area, said the party workers are happy after Kejriwal's visit and will work for the party with same old zeal.

"We were not angry with anybody but Kejriwal's visit has definitely rejuvenated our spirit," Dev Mann, a Nabha, Patiala-based party leader said.

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Also read: Harsimrat Kaur blames Arvind Kejriwal for Punjab defeat but also says downfall of AAP has begun

Also read: Kirti Azad to Kapil Mishra: Why parties have become more tolerant of their rebel lawmakers

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By Press Trust of India: Guwahati, May 29 (PTI) Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal today ordered an inquiry into the death of two students from Mizoram, who were studying at Down Town University in the state capital.

According to an official release, the bodies of the two students were found near railway crossing at Panikhaiti area yesterday morning.

"Ajay Sankar Tiwari, Principal Secretary of the Education Department has been directed to conduct a detailed enquiry to find out the cause of death of the two students," it added.

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Meanwhile, Sonowal talked to his Mizoram counterpart Lal Thanhawla and expressed condolence on the death of the two students from the neighbouring state.

Sonowal assured Thanhawla that a high level enquiry into the death of the students would be carried out and cause of their death would be brought to light.

The two students have been identified as R Lalmalsawna and C Lalhmangaihsanga, hailing from Lunglei in Mizoram. PTI TR RG LNS

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SS Rajamouli's Baahubali franchise isn't just conquering big screens but is also ruling the world of books.

By India Today Web Desk: The success and glory of SS Rajamouli's Baahubali franchise is tough to put in words.

The second part of the fantasy-drama series, Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, that has already raked in Rs 1600 crore worldwide, doesn't show any signs of slowing down anytime soon. But if you think the box-office is the only thing the Baahubali-fever is dominating, we've got some news for you.

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Also Read: What led to the rise of Baahubali? Let this author tell you

Also Read: Burn your wardrobe, Baahubali sarees are here to save the day!

Books based on SS Rajamouli's genius creation have also gained quite a mammoth fan following for themselves. Entirely in sync with the grandeur of Baahubali, these books seem to be serving as perfect companions for their cinematic creation in terms of popularity.

While author Anand Neelakantan's The Rise of Sivagami, is raking in positive reviews from every nook and corner, Graphic India's Bahubali: Battle of the Bold, has reportedly sold over 10,000 copies.

And its right at the top Congratulations @itsanandneel abd team @BaahubaliMovie pic.twitter.com/emuuVAZU4t- Rana Daggubati (@RanaDaggubati) March 24, 2017

Also Read: India's youth feels more inclined towards the new superheroes re-emerging from its rich history

Also Read: Baahubali 2 box-office collection: Prabhas-Rana's epic grosses Rs 1600 crore

Readers have been tweeting pictures and reviews of The Rise of Sivagami that is Baahubali's official prequel. Neelakantan's creation traces the story of a young Sivagami while also giving birth to 40 new characters.

Kattappa, an honest servant who served his best to protect his king & kingdomRead more in The #RiseOfSivagami here: https://t.co/eCY7AIMREy pic.twitter.com/Uj66vH8DGQ- anand neelakantan (@itsanandneel) May 10, 2017

Speaking to Mail Today, the author had previously mentioned, "I have shown the emotional side of the story by going deep inside the characters' minds. I've created almost 40 new characters for this book itself. The biggest advantage I have had over the film is that I've been able to show the inner turmoil of the characters. I can't write a 45-minute worth of battle as shown in the film into a 250-word chapter; people would fall asleep on page two. But I can show why the characters make certain decisions."

The #RiseOfSivagami is declared as the no.1 e-book on @KindleIndia. Explore the story of a fierce Queen here: https://t.co/eCY7AIMREy pic.twitter.com/ax9zwcjuva- anand neelakantan (@itsanandneel) May 15, 2017

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The Rise of Sivagami is the first part in Neelakantan's three-part series that weaves what happened #BeforeBaahubaliTheBeginning. The third week of May also saw the book clinch the number one spot on Kindle's top e-books list.

The fascination around the series doesn't seem to fizzle out anytime soon, and the world seems more than ready for it.

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The court has already refused exemption from personal appearance to Advani and Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti.

By India Today Web Desk: After the Supreme Court ruled that senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders including Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti will face conspiracy charges in the Babri Masjid demolition case, a special CBI court will frame charges against them in Lucknow today.

Special CBI judge S K Yadav had asked them to appear personally before the court on May 30. BJP leader Vinay Katiyar, Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Vishnu Hari Dalmia and firebrand Hindutva preacher Sadhvi Ritambara will also be present in the court.

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The Supreme Court had asked the Lucknow-based special court to conduct day-to-day hearing, frame fresh charges within a month, and wrap up the case within two years.

The court has already refused exemption from personal appearance to Advani and Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti.

The BJP leaders had moved court seeking exemption from personally appearing in court for the hearing of their role in the conspiracy to raze the Babri Masjid on December 6, 1992.

The court, which is hearing two separate cases relating to the demolition of the Babri Masjid, would also frame charges against Mahant Nritya Gopal Das, Mahant Ram Vilas Vedanti, Baikunth Lal Sharma alias Prem Ji, Champat Rai Bansal, Mahant Dharma Das and Satish Pradhan in the second matter.

The Supreme Court had on April 19 ordered prosecution of Advani (89), Joshi (83), 58-year-old Bharti, and other accused for criminal conspiracy in the politically sensitive case. It had also ordered day-to-day trial to be concluded in two years.

The top court had called the destruction of the medieval-era monument a "crime" which shook the "secular fabric of the Constitution" while allowing the CBI's plea seeking restoration of criminal conspiracy charge against the four BJP leaders, including Katiyar (62), and others.

However, the Supreme Court had said BJP leader Kalyan Singh, who is the Rajasthan Governor and during whose tenure as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh the disputed structure was razed, is entitled to immunity under the Constitution as long as he holds the gubernatorial office.

It had transferred the case against Advani, Joshi, Bharti and three other accused from a Raebareli court to Lucknow for a joint trial in the demolition case.

WHAT IS THE CASE

After demolition of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya on December 6, 1992, two FIRs were registered in connection with the incident.

While the case of 28 accused was taken up in Lucknow CBI court, six of them died. Advani and seven other were charge sheeeted in Raebareli court. Two of them - VHP leaders Ashok Singhal and Giriraj Kishore died pending trial.

The Supreme Court had on April 19 directed that former deputy prime minister Advani, Union Minister Uma Bharti and BJP veteran Murli Manohar Joshi will face trial on conspiracy charges. It had also transferred their case from Raebareli to Lucknow.

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Besides the BJP three leaders, the conspiracy charge would now be invoked against Vinay Katiar, Sadhvi Ritambara and Vishnu Hari Dalmia, who were being tried at Raebareli.

It directed the special court to start proceedings in the matter within a month and deliver its verdict within two years.

The apex court had dubbed the demolition of the medieval era monument as a "crime" which shook the "secular fabric of the Constitution" and allowed CBI's plea on restoration of serious offence of criminal conspiracy against the VVIP accused.

In its 40-page verdict, it had termed the Allahabad High Court's February 12, 2001 verdict dropping conspiracy charge against Advani and others as "erroneous".

The matter is likely to have political implications, particularly against 89-year old Advani, reported to be a in the case for the post of the President.

The Supreme Court had also come down heavily on the CBI for the delay of 25 years in the trial.

(PTI inputs)

Also read:

The Babri Masjid case timeline: What happened and when

Uma Bharti on Babri Masjid demolition: I want to know what the conspiracy is all about

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Babri Masjid demolition: LK Advani, MM Joshi, Uma Bharti told to appear before Lucknow court on May 30

Also watch:

Babri Masjid demolition case: LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti in court today

--- ENDS ---
Prohibition was imposed in Bihar in April 2016 and since then, the excise and police officials have been recovering huge consignments of foreign liquor from the state.

The bottles destroyed on Monday were part of the various seizures made by the police.

By Rohit Kumar Singh: The Patna administration on Monday destroyed 30000 bottles of Indian made foreign liquor worth almost Rs. 1.25 crore on the outskirts of the city. Being tipped as Bihar's biggest consignment of liquor destroyed ever since prohibition was imposed in the state in April last year, the bottles were crushed by a road roller under the monitoring of Patna DM Sanjay Agarwal.

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The bottles destroyed on Monday were part of the various seizures made by the police and the excise officials in the last few months from various parts of the state capital.

On May 4, it had been reported how liquor worth crores had gone missing from the "maalkhanas" in police stations in Bihar with the rats being blamed for this by the police officials.

Soon after the report, the Patna administration had flung into action and on May 9, 17000 bottles of foreign liquor were destroyed.

"We had seized the consignment destroyed today from many parts of the state capital which was being brought to be supplied to customers further. Today, 30000 bottles worth Rs. 1.25 crore have been destroyed and we will be destroying the liquors bottles as and when we get court's permission in the future as well", said Sanjay Agarwal.

Prohibition was imposed in Bihar in April 2016 and since then, on a regular basis, the excise and police officials have been recovering huge consignments of foreign liquor from the state which are being smuggled from Jharkhand, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

More than 5 lakh litres of foreign liquor and 3 lakh litres of country made liquor have been seized since April 2016. Out of the seized liquor, almost 1.55 lakh litres of liquor has been destroyed in 20 districts across the state.

Also Read:

Rats drank the missing alcohol, say Bihar cops in all soberness

India Today impact: 10,000 litres of liquor worth crores destroyed in Patna

Also Watch:

Patna: Cops to take breath analyser test after they blamed rats for missing alcohol

--- ENDS ---
"Oh my gosh, the girl is walking. Good gracious!" the nurse dressed in surgical robes with a clinical mask over her mouth, is heard crying out in amazement.

By Press Trust of India: A Facebook video showing a newborn baby girl walking just minutes after her birth in a hospital in Brazil has gone viral on social media.

The video, which has over 50 million views and 1.3 million shares on Facebook, shows a midwife craddling the newborn girl across her chest with one arm and is amazed to see the baby walk on her own.

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"Oh my gosh, the girl is walking. Good gracious!" the nurse dressed in surgical robes with a clinical mask over her mouth, is heard crying out in amazement.

WATCH: Newborn baby walks immediately after birth, takes internet by storm

"I was trying to wash her here and she keeps getting up to walk," said the midwife pointing with one hand to where she initially tried to lay the baby down to give the child her first bath.

The midwife is then seen lifting the baby up and returning the infant back to the original position but in an astounding burst of strength, the little girl refuses to lie down on her front, pushes up onto her legs and resumes her astonishing journey across the neonatal table once again.

"If you told people what has just happened no one would believe it unless they saw it with their own eyes," the midwife holding the baby girl was quoted by The Sun as saying.

The video, which was uploaded to social media on May 26 has stunned viewers who declare the babys attempt to walk nothing short of a miracle.

The logo on the midwifes robes suggest that she works at a Santa Cruz Hospital in south Brazil.

Also read:

Stout baby's day out: World's heaviest baby girl born in Karnataka

Baby on board: Turkish Airlines crew help woman deliver baby at 42,000 feet

Heels for babies: Yes, this is a thing now

--- ENDS ---
All your questions answered regarding the recent government notification by the Environment Ministry that bans the sale of all kinds of cattle for slaughter.

By India Today Web Desk: Amid all the criticism and confusion regarding the recent government notification by the environment ministry that bans the sale of all kinds of cattle for slaughter, here are the answers to all your questions:

1. What exactly does the recent notification on cattle slaughter say?

In a gazette notification last week, the environment ministry banned the sale of all kinds of cattle for slaughter at animal markets nationwide. Restrictions have been introduced on the sale of cattle to prevent their killing.

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2. Which animals come under the term 'cattle'?

Under the new regulation cattle means a bovine animal and includes bulls, bullocks, cows, buffaloes, steers, heifers and calves. It also includes camels in its ambit.

3. Can cattle be sold at all?

Yes, cattle can be sold but only for agricultural use and requires the market authority to collect undertakings from both the parties- buyer and seller- ensuring that they are not being traded for the purpose of slaughter.

4. Is it a country-wide ban?

Yes, the ban is applicable on all the states except Jammu and Kashmir.

5. Is slaughtering of cattle illegal?

No, the government has not made slaughtering of cattle illegal. However, considering the ban and the regulation it will be difficult for slaughterhouse business' to survive.

6. How will the regulations affect farmers?

According to the notification issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change regarding the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017, it is important to have a valid documentation stating that the cattle will be used only for agriculture purposes. However, there are many farmers who do not have any such document to prove that their cattle is involved in agriculture.

7. What extra documents are needed for cow trading now?

To be able to sell/buy a cow, both seller and buyer will have to produce identity and farmland ownership documents. Post-purchase, the trader has to take five copies of proof of sale and submit them at the local revenue office, the local veterinary doctor in the district of the purchaser, animal market committee, and keep one each for seller and buyer.

Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 states, "No person shall bring a cattle to an animal market unless upon arrival he has furnished a written declaration signed by the owner of the cattle - stating the name and address of the owner of the cattle, with a copy of the photo identification proof, giving details of the identification of the cattle and stating that the cattle has not been brought to market for sale for slaughter."

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8. Will it affect any other industry?

Yes. It will affect the 2.5 million people working in the leather industry and create deficiency in our foreign exchange because of the drop in meat export. According to US Department of Agriculture, India is comes second in the list of beef exporters in the world.

After the ban and restrictions, there will be a huge dip in revenues from the animal trade market. In fact, the ban will millions of people who work in the meat industry.

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan wrote a Facebook post after the notification was released. He mentioned in the post that the ban and regulation will affect "several state owned meat processing industries across the country, like Kerala's Meat Products of India Ltd" and will be forced to shut down.

9. Is the rule applicable in states like Kerala and Goa where cow slaughter was earlier not banned?

Yes, the rule is applicable to all the states in the country except Jammu and Kashmir. That's why various state governments are slamming the centre's decision. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan called it draconian and an "an intrusion into the rights of the states in our federal structure".

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"The introduction of such restrictions in a hasty manner would certainly prove to be a challenge in upholding our plurality, the essence of our nation. It would also be against the principles of secularism and federalism enshrined in our constitution", he wrote in the Facebook post .

Even West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee called the decision "unconstitutional" and asked the Modi government to not interfere in the affairs of states. She said it would jeopardise the jobs of millions of people in the leather industry.

Protests were held in many South Indian and North Eastern states as well.

10. What is the Centre's primary goal behind this notification?

The government claims, "the prime focus of the regulation is to protect the animals from cruelty and not to regulate the existing trade in cattle for slaughter houses".

Also read: Government bans sale of cows for slaughter at cattle markets, restricts trade

Also read: Kerala calf slaughter row: How ban on cattle sale turned into a full blown political controversy

Also watch :

--- ENDS ---

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The CBI is likely to put RJD leader Mohammad Shahabuddin in journalist Rajdeo Ranjan murder case. The CBI has taken him in custody for interrogation.

RJD leader Mohammad Shahabuddin may be put to lie detector test in journlist Rajdeo Ranjan murder case. (Photo: PTI)

By Atir Khan: Former RJD MP Mohammad Shahabuddin is likely to be subjected to lie detector test by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

A CBI court made him 10th accused in journalist Rajdeo Ranjan murder case. Ranjan was Siwan-based journalist, who was killed on May 13 last year.

The CBI has taken Mohammad Shahabuddin into custody. He was brought to CBI headquarters, New Delhi for questioning in connection with Rajdeo Ranjan murder case.

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RANJAN MURDER CASE: THINGS TO KNOW Rajdeo Ranjan, the then bureau chief of Hindi daily Hindustan, was killed at Siwan last year. His wife Asha Ranjan named Mohammad Shahabuddin as an accused in the murder case. Police picked up five suspects in connection with the case and recovered firearms from their possession. Based on their interrogation, the police identified one Laddan Mian as sixth suspect. Laddan later surrendered in court. With pressure mounting for fair investigation, the case was transferred to the CBI, which has already filed chargesheets against five accused persons. Two suspects, identified as Mohammad Kaif and Javed Bhatt alias Javed Mian, were granted bail by the CBI court after the probe agency failed to file a formal chargesheet against them within 90 days. Shahabuddin is currently lodged in Tihar Jail of Delhi as his presence in Bihar was considered as influential for fair investigation of several cases pending against him. Shahabuddin is facing more than 45 cases against him. Several cases are in the trial stage while others are being investigated by various agencies.

ALSO READ |

Siwan journalist Rajdeo Ranjan was No. 7 on Shahabuddin's hit list of 23

Mohammad Shahabuddin acquitted in Jamshedpur triple murder caseRJD strongman Shahabuddin's jail-selfie goes viral, sends cops into a tizzy

ALSO WATCH | RJD leader Shahabuddin surrenders after Supreme Court cancels his bail

--- ENDS ---
The CBI has alleged that the merger of the two government-owned airlines caused losses of thousands of crores of rupees.

By Atir Khan: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a preliminary enquiry to probe irregularities in the merger of Air India and Indian Airlines.

The CBI has alleged that the merger of the two government-owned airlines caused losses of thousands of crores of rupees.

Three first information reports (FIRs) to enquire about the purchase of 111 aircrafts, leasing of planes and the giving up of profit-making routes by Air India have also been filed.

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The agency will also probe affairs of the civil aviation ministry during the earlier UPA regime. Issues include purchase of 50 Boeing aircraft for Air India and handing over of lucrative international airline routes to private airlines.

Agency sources said the cases are built around a CAG report submitted to the Parliament in 2011 and later to Parliamentary Accounts Committee.

Both reports pointed out irregularities in the acquisition process which may have led to losses.

Earlier this year the Supreme Court had also asked the CBI to complete the probe by June.

Also read:

Air India books bad; business as usual won't help, says aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju

Is Air India trying too hard to get back in the league?

Promoting PM Modi's Make in India, Jaitley chooses Indian vendor for Rs 18000 crore army missile contract

Maharaja in chains

Also watch:

Facing pressure, Air India lifts ban on Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: (Ed: Adding CBI spokespersons statement)

New Delhi, May 29 (PTI) The CBI today took custody of RJD leader Shahabuddin whose name has cropped up as an accused in the journalist Rajdeo Ranjan murder case.

The CBI said it has brought Shahabuddin to the agency headquarters for custodial interrogation in this case.

Shahabuddin was lodged in Tihar prison.

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"During investigation, certain oral, documentary and circumstantial evidences have emerged. In view of these, the special judge for CBI cases, Muzaffarpur (Bihar) has granted eight days police custody of the said accused, a resident of Siwan (Bihar)," CBI spokesperson R K Gaur said here.

He said the role of Shahabuddin is being looked into the conspiracy behind the murder of Ranjan.

The four-time RJD MP from Siwan is alleged to have been involved in the murder of Ranjan, a journalist of a prominent Hindi daily in Siwan last year.

Shahabuddin is facing trial in more than 45 criminal cases and was moved to Tihar Jail in February on a Supreme Court order on a plea by Siwan native Chandrakeshwar Prasad, whose three sons were killed in two separate incidents.

Ranjan was gunned down on May 13 last year and his wife has accused Shahabuddin of having a role in the killing.

The agency had already filed a charge sheet of criminal conspiracy and murder against one accused on December 23, 2016 and further investigation was kept open, Gaur said. PTI ABS ZMN

--- ENDS ---
The CBSE Class 12 2017 board exams result have been declared on the official website on May 28. We bring before you 8 kinds of parents according to how they react to your results. You decide which one is yours!

By India Today Web Desk: The CBSE Class 12 2017 board exams result have been declared on the official website on May 28. Most of the students who had appeared for the same will have a sleepless night today, some due to nervousness, anxiety and others due to excitement. At this moment, the support of one's parents is most important as somewhere down the line, even they have contributed by helping their ward study and score well.

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Read: CBSE Class 12 Results 2017: Here's how you can check your results

More than what the neighbors would say, students are worried about their parents reaction. Not every parent is the same, as some may be super strict expecting their child to excel in the papers and some may still be partying hard before the result arrives, so as to cheer up and motivate their kids.

Read: CBSE Class 12 Board Results 2017: Meet the top 3 rank holders

We bring before you 8 kinds of parents and it's for you to decide that which one are yours:

1. God-pleasing parent:

They had been keeping all kinds of fasts and visiting every place of worship, praying for you to score really well. From havans to providing free food to the needy, they have left no stone unturned to please the heavenly father.

2. Comparison expert parent:

You are always compared to 'Gupta ji's son' and how he scores better than you. They have asked you to score well in your exams, but more than that you have been asked to get more marks than the neighbor's son or daughter.

3. Gift promising parent:

Be it an iPhone, a new laptop, that new bike and what not, score more than 85 and it shall be yours. It might be a way to lure you so as to good excellent marks, but for parents it is just a motivational technique.

4. Chilled out parents:

These set of parents are uber cool. They believe that marks do not decide your destiny and still have complete faith that whatever score you will fetch, will make them proud.

5. Society fearing parents:

What will the relatives and family friends say if they come to know you haven't score well? This question is what bothers them 24 hours. They even scare you by providing you a bleak picture of your future, in case you don't score very well. Quite a wrong method it is.

6. Over-excited-for-results parents:

Sometimes their too much optimism may freak you out as they have full belief that you will be the topper of your class and have informed every other known person about the same.

7. Over-expecting parents:

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Now these parents have put forward their expectations before anything else. You anyhow have to be among the toppers of your class and make it to the merit list.

8. Dissatisfied parents:

You score 85 and you're gone. You score 95 and you're gone. How much so ever you score, you will still be taunted regarding those unachieved five marks.

India Today Education wishing you all the very best for the results!

Read: CBSE grace marks policy: All you need to know

For more updates, follow India Today Education or you can write to us at education.intoday@gmail.com

--- ENDS ---
Despite a good score, not many class 12th students in Delhi will be able to back a seat in Delhi University. Here's why.

By Arpan Rai: Soaring cut-off lists in Delhi University colleges are causing much heartburn among students and parents in the Capital. For, even a distinction percentage in CBSE Class 12 examination does not guarantee a ticket to the hallowed campus.

According to the figures released by CBSE, of the total 10,091 students who have scored 95 per cent or above marks, only 2,326 students are from Delhi.

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"Since we are looking at students who have secured marks above 95 per cent, to say the least, there are not a lot of seats that students from Delhi can be hopeful about," Maharaj K Pandit, chairperson of the admission committee of University of Delhi, told Mail Today. "The students from other boards have a fair chance of cornering the limited seats that we have."

PARENTS WANT ACTION

Parents' bodies and city politicians complain that students of other states, passing out from "lenient boards", edge past CBSE-affiliated aspirants from Delhi, leaving the latter with less attractive or costlier options for higher studies. "Education in the Capital is a curse for our children," said Madhu Gupta, a parent and teacher. "First you struggle for admission in nursery. Then, after 14 years of education in Delhi, you go through the same rigour for a college seat. All because students from some dubious board score higher."

POLITICIANS UNITE

This is one issue that has brought together bitter political rivals, BJP's Union minister Vijay Goel and AAP's education minister Manish Sisodia, together. Last year, the two pitched for reservation for students from Delhi and higher number of seats in the university.

"Our pitch with HRD ministry did not yield results. We are working on a policy reserving 85 per cent of the seats in Delhi's other central university, Ambedkar University, to provide respite to city students," said Atishi Marlena, education advisor to deputy CM Manish Sisodia. He pointed out that last year, in DU's prestigious Shri Ram College of Commerce, most students admitted under B.Com (Hons) and Economics (Hons) were from Tamil Nadu Board of Secondary Education.

Many parents Mail Today spoke to pointed out media reports where state board toppers had failed to answer even simple questions because they had allegedly scored well either by cheating or imposters. "Such students eat into deserving candidates," said a parent, requesting anonymity.

Parents are also peeved with the CBSE as there is no transparency in marking and called stopping revaluation a retrograde step. "There is no logic in it," Sandhya, a teacher, told Mail Today. Others said they feel cheated.

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What is different from last year is that, from 2017, some subject answer sheets cannot be verified. It is learnt that History is one of them. At the same time, there is verification of marks for Political Science. "Simply put, verification is only like re-totalling. Even if the examiner has goofed up in an answer sheet, there is no course correction," said a south Delhi teacher not willing to be named.

"The CBSE does not have an open house session like top universities before the board exam. In some ways, it's like a lottery," said another south Delhi teacher. "I refuse to believe that moderation has been done. And there is no revaluation from this year onwards. The CBSE is playing with the careers of children," said Usha Khandelwal, a parent.

Students, who gathered outside schools for results on Sunday, were an anxious lot. "We just don't know if we'll get a seat in DU," said Shubham (name changed) from Vasant Valley School. "Besides the high cut-off, the tedious wait for new lists adds to our misery." Ishita Sharma from Ahlcon International School in east Delhi voiced similar concerns. "I have got 82 per cent marks but I am not sure if I will be able to get the course or college of my choice." Meanwhile, top DU officials are waiting to release an accommodating cut-off for students across India and are currently analysing the situation several state boards have presented them with.

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Also read

CBSE class 12 results: Delhi government schools outperform private schools for second year in a row

Success secrets of CBSE toppers: Regular self-study and no social media

--- ENDS ---
Congress leader RPN Singh hit out at the Yogi Adityanath government today saying that the party made tall promises but has not fulfilled any after it came to power.

RNS Singh hit out at Yogi Adityanath government for the current law and order situation in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh.

By Dev Ankur Wadhawan: Congress today hit out at Yogi Adityanath government for the current law and order situation in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh.

Congress leader and former MoS, Home, RPN Singh, while speaking to India Today, claimed that the present dispensation made tall promises while it was in the Opposition but has not fulfilled any after it came to power.

"We saw what happened in the Central government when it was in the Opposition. They made tall claims and false promises. They forgot all about the promises after coming to power," said Singh.

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There have been many instances of molestation, rape and caste-based clashes in the state in the recent past, which has raised a question on the law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh.

ALSO READ | Jewar gangrape-murder case: Death haunted family, 4 members died in last 5 years

ALSO WATCH | Rampur Molestation Case: Police arrests four accused, others still at large

--- ENDS ---
China asked India to be cautious over building infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh, after PM inaugurated India's longest bridge linking Assam with the state claimed by Beijing.

China asked India to be cautious over building infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh. (Photo: Twitter/@25rubybaruah)

By Indo-Asian News Service: China today asked India to be "cautious" and exercise "restrain" over building infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh, days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the country's longest bridge linking Assam with the state claimed by Beijing.

"We hope India adopts a cautious and restrained attitude on the issue before the final settlement of the border issue with China to jointly control disputes, safeguard peace and tranquility in the border areas," the Chinese Foreign Ministry told IANS.

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"China's position on the eastern section of the Sino-Indian border areas is consistent and clear," a statement in Chinese said.

Modi on Friday opened the country's longest bridge over Brahmaputra river that connects Assam's easternmost region with Arunachal Pradesh, claimed and dubbed by China as South Tibet.

"China and India should resolve territorial disputes through negotiations and consultations between the two countries," the Foreign Ministry said.

China and India have a dragging border dispute.

The 9.2 km Dhola-Sadiya bridge will cut the distance and travel time between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh by 165 km and five hours.

Analysts say the bridge will ensure swift movement of Indian troops in Arunachal Pradesh, which, therefore, will bolster India's defence along the China border.

China and India fought a brief war in 1962 when the Chinese entered Arunachal Pradesh and unilaterally declared a ceasefire after withdrawing to the McMahon Line.

Since then Indian and Chinese troops have had several skirmishes.

China has long been building infrastructure along the border unlike India, which, experts say, avoided building roads in the region, fearing a repeat of the 1962 war when the People's Liberation Army troops entered Assam.

ALSO READ | How Dhola-Sadiya, India's longest bridge, will improve Assam, Arunachal Pradesh's transport system

ALSO WATCH | All about Dhola-Sadiya bridge: How it will serve 2 lakh people while being a strategic asset

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: urinating in public

New Delhi, May 28 (PTI) A 32-year-old e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death allegedly by a dozen men after he objected to a few of them urinating outside the GTB Nagar Metro Station.

Police have launched a hunt for the accused.

Two men had bought liquor from a shop near the metro station and consumed it near Gate No. 4 last evening. They also urinated outside the station, to which the e-rickshaw driver, identified as Ravinder, objected, police said.

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The duo told Ravinder that they would get back at him later, and left the place in another e-rickshaw. They got off near Kirori Mal College.

Around 8 PM, the duo, along with 10 others, returned to the metro station and attacked Ravinder.

Another e-rickshaw driver, who tried to intervene, was also assaulted.

Ravinder was rushed to a hospital where he died.

Police sources said that images of the two men have been captured in CCTV cameras installed at the liquor shop and on the North Campus of Delhi University, where Kirori Mal College is located.

It is suspected that the accused had come to Delhi to appear in a competitive examination. It has been learnt that they belong to Haryana and have been staying in Burari.

Ravinder, who lived in a slum near the metro station, got married last year. His wife is seven months pregnant. PTI SLB SMN

--- ENDS ---
Modi's remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel listens to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting at the German government guesthouse Meseberg Palace in Meseberg, Germany. Photo: Reuters

By Press Trust of India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today described terrorism as the "gravest challenge" facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the UN to deal with this menace.

Modi, who arrived here on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France, in an interview to German newspaper Handelsblatt said, "Europe has been hit hard by terrorism".

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"To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace," he said.

Modi's remarks assume significance as they come in the wake of a spate of terror attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently. The latest terror attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.

FREE FLOW OF INVESTMENT

Speaking to the country's leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy "remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people".

"We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti- immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed," Modi said. "We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation," he said.

Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was among the "most open" and "fastest growing major economies in the world".

The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.

"India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time.There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council," he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.

GERMANY AN IMPORTANT PARTNER

On the Indo-German ties, he said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Start-up India, Clean India and Smart Cities.

In reference to the wider European Union (EU) and Britain's impending exit, he said, "The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security.

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"India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach."

On the German side, Merkel had recently said, "The times when we could rely on the other have passed. We Europeans must really take destiny into our own hands."

SLOW DOWN CLIMATE CHANGE

In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, Handelsblatt claimed.

The prime ministers visit to Germany has been described as a "new chapter" in the bilateral relations between the two countries.

"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit. Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation," he said.

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The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine".

Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.

Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to 9.54 billion dollars. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.

Also read: LIVE: PM Modi lands in Germany, discusses bilateral issues with Angela Merkel

Also read: Foreign media on PM Narendra Modi's Europe tour: Germany visit signals Asian pivot for Atlanticist Merkel

WATCH VIDEO HERE

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: New Delhi, May 29 (PTI) The Congress today asked Home Minister Rajnath Singh to explain the contours of a "permanent solution" to solve Kashmir that he talked about and accused the PDP-BJP alliance of driving Jammu and Kashmir to the edge.

The Congress also asked the BJP-led NDA government to open its eyes and realise the extreme damage that the "ideologically incompatible alliance" as well as their continued dithering is doing to the national security of India.

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"The Home Minister of India Rajnath Singh has been making rather curious statements to say the least. Would the Home Minister of India care to explain to the people of this country what are the contours and calculations of the phraseology permanent solution," Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said.

He said anybody who has a nodding acquaintance with history understands that the phrases permanent solution and final solution have had some extremely disturbing implications and history has been witness to the consequences of such an action.

Tewari said historically it has "very disturbing connotations" and if the home minister has chosen to use such a phraseology, he needs to elaborate what it means and what its contours and calculations are.

"What does the government really mean by a permanent solution?" he asked.

The Congress leader said the home minister is a very serious job in India and when he makes a statement "you do not take it lightly, you do believe that there must have been some sort of serious thinking which must have gone into this formulation because the formulation ultimately only articulates or disseminates what is the underlying strategy".

The Congress leader said Kashmir is in an extremely sensitive situation which has been consistently deteriorating since this government came to power and requires careful handling.

"They need to open their eyes and realise extreme damage which both their ideologically incompatible alliance as well as their continued dithering is doing to the national security of India...The manner in which the government is going about, it all appears very cavalier," he said.

Taking on the PDP-BJP government in Kashmir, he said the home minister needs to clarify what he means as a formulation only articulates both intent and the underlying strategy of the government.

Tewari said Singhs statement comes at a time when the PDP-BJP alliance has been "playing Tweedledum and Tweedledee" on an extremely sensitive issue of security in Kashmir.

He said while on one hand Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti has been passionately advocating that the central government needs to engage with both the Hurriyat and with Pakistan and that this is part of the Agenda of Alliance, on the other hand, "the BJP is hellbent upon playing the very jingoistic card".

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"This ideologically incompatible alliance between the PDP on one hand and the BJP on the other hand has driven Jammu & Kashmir absolutely to an edge.

"We would like to ask both these parties that if there is so much of ideologically dissonance, if there is no agreement on the agenda of alliance, if the agenda of alliance is not worth the paper it is written on, then why are they continuing in the government together?" he said.

He asked the BJP why it was not pulling out of the alliance and conversely why the PDP continues to be in government when the central government does not pay heed and is not interested in listening to what the chief minister says?

Tewari alleged that this government last year came out with "Insaaniyat, Kashmiriyat and Jamhooriyat" and this year it is "permanent solution", but it is high time the government wakes up to the security situation in Jammu & Kashmir which continues to deteriorate very rapidly.

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Asked if the government was trying to derive political mileage out of the Kashmir situation, he said, "We fail to understand that something which undermines the nation, something which damages national security, something which pushes Kashmir to the edge, how could it be politically beneficial to anybody?"

He said the objective of governance is to govern and that is the remit which has been given by the people of India and if one is coming up short on that fundamental tenet of governance and things seem to be chaotic and out of control, Kashmir being just one manifestation, then "I fail to understand how they think they can derive political benefit".

He said, "You can fool some of the people sometimes but you cannot fool all the people all the time and if you think that is a strategy, I am afraid you are deluding yourself". PTI SKC KUN

--- ENDS ---
Gaanam, whose father stays in Delhi, left for work on her black Honda Activa on May 26. But didn't return. Police say they are probing the case from every angle.

Model, screenplay writer Gaanam Nair has been missing since last four days. (Photo: Twitter/@ShivAroor)

By Pramod Madhav: A model, screenplay writer has been missing since last four days in Chennai. Gaanam Nair, 28, who works as a screenplay writer for a private television production house, has been missing since May 26.

Gaanam, whose father stays in Delhi, left for work on her black Honda Activa on May 26. She informed her relatives that she would meet a friend at Virugambakkam and return. But went missing.

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Gaanam's relatives filed a missing report with KK Nagar Women's police station. Her mobile phone was switched off, cops said. Police probe has revealed that she left from Virugambakkam to Nungambakkam but didn't return home.

The police said they are probing the case from all possible angles. Her call records are being scanned. Cops are also questioning Gaanam's friends to gather more information about her.

ALSO READ:

Chennai shocker: Man kills girlfriend with hammer wrapped as birthday gift, hangs self with her shawl

Revolver Rani: Woman kidnaps groom from his wedding venue, was furious over betrayal

Chennai horror: 7-year-old molested, suffocated, burnt, dumped on highway

WATCH | Chennai model missing for 4 days, cops probe all angles

--- ENDS ---
Granting bail to Virbhadra Singh the court said he cannot leave India without their permission.

By Anusha Soni: A CBI court today granted bail to Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, his wife and seven others in a disproportionate assets case.

Singh has to furnish a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh and a surety of the same amount. He cannot leave country without the court's permission.

Singh has also been asked to submit his passport. The next hearing is on July 27.

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The CBI had opposed the bail plea citing the fact that Singh enjoyed the status of a 'king' in Himachal Pradesh which may adversely impact the trial.

CBI had also said there are no plausible medical grounds to grant Virbhadra Singh bail. Digvijay Singh, Salman Khurshid and other Congress leaders were also present in the court during the hearing.

DISPROPORTIONATE ASSETS CASE

Singh and his wife Pratibha Singh on May 22 appeared as accused in connection with a nearly Rs 10 crore disproportionate assets case and sought bail.

The CBI has charge sheeted Virbhadra Singh, his wife, Universal Apple Associate owner Chunni Lal Chauhan, stamp paper vendor Joginder Singh Ghalta, Managing Director of Tarani Infrastructure Vakamulla Chandrasekhar and co-accused Lawan Kumar Roach, Prem Raj and Ram Prakash Bhatia for the alleged offences including criminal conspiracy, forgery and corruption.

The chargesheet also names as accused LIC agent Anand Chauhan, who was arrested in the case and is currently in judicial custody.

The court had on May 8 summoned them after taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the CBI.

The CBI chargesheet, running into over 500 pages having the statements of around 225 witnesses and containing 442 documents, has claimed that Singh had amassed assets worth around Rs 10 crore which were disproportionate to his total income during his tenure as a Union minister.

Chauhan was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on July 9 last year in a separate money laundering case related to the DA case.

The matter was transferred by the Supreme Court to the Delhi High Court, which on April 6, 2016 had asked the CBI not to arrest Singh and directed him to join the probe.

On November 5 last year, the apex court had transferred Singh's plea from the Himachal Pradesh High Court to the Delhi High Court, saying it was not expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, but "simply" transferring the petition "in interest of justice and to save the institution (judiciary) from any embarrassment".

(PTI inputs)

Also read:

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DA case: CBI opposes bail plea of Virbhadra Singh, others; says they may influence witnesses

Himachal Pradesh CM Virbhadra Singh, wife appear before Delhi court in disproportionate assets case, seek bail

Also watch:

ED seizes Delhi farmhouse worth Rs 29 crore belonging to Himachal CM Virbhadra Singh's family

--- ENDS ---
The gang was cheating people under the pretext of providing them mobile towers and warehouses on lease.

By Ashish Pandey: The Cyberabad police busted a Delhi-based gang that duped people of several crores of rupees across India.

The gang was cheating people under the pretext of providing mobile towers and warehouses on lease.

The accused were identified as Mohammad Junaid Alam (29), Anupreet Kaur (28), her husband Prem Kishor (33) and Mohammad Musir (27).

According to the police, one of the victims, Swayam Prakasham, from Chandanagar in Cyberabad lodged a complaint stating that he was cheated of Rs 35 lakh.

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During the course of investigation, the accused were tracked through bank accounts, mobile numbers, IP address of emails and ATM withdrawals in New Delhi, Ghaziabad and Noida.

A foreign-make pistol and a Toyota Fortuner were recovered from the main accused Junaid Alam. Police also got details of numerous bank accounts from the main accused.

The gang created several fake websites on mobile tower and warehouse leasing to dupe people. They also gave advertisements in newspapers to promote these fake websites.

Speaking to India Today, Cyberabad Commissioner Sandeep Sandilya said, "We request people to not fall prey to such advertisements in newspapers without verification."

All the accused were brought to Hyderabad from Delhi for further investigations.

FAKE WEBSITES CREATED BY THE GANG:

MOBILE TOWER LEASE SITES:

1. Max Digital India Limited

2. Vista Corporation India Limited

3. Deccan Technologies India Limited

4. Etios Engineering India Limited

5. Radico Infrastructure India Limited

6. World Communications India Ltd

7. World Phone India Limited

8.Century Technology India Limited

9. Deccan Technology India Limited

WAREHOUSE LEASE SITES:

1. Warehouse India Limited

2. Food division India Limited

3. Food Grains India Limited

ALSO WATCH:

7 petrol pumps sealed in UP: How you are cheated at petrol and diesel outlets

ALSO READ:

Delhi Police busts kidney racket that cheated lakhs of money from helpless families

After India Today exposes UP cheating racket, FIR against 359 people, 57 centers debarred

--- ENDS ---
A young woman was found chained and naked in a rehab center in Hyderabad. She claimed that she was touched inappropriately by someone who visits her at night.

By India Today Web Desk: A young woman was found chained and naked in a rehab center, 'Aram Ghar', in Hyderabad. Renuka claimed that a person visits her at night and touches her inappropriately but she has not been able to catch him because there is no light in the room.

However, Basia-Superintendent of 'Aram Ghar'- said that Renuka is suffering from a mental disability because of which her mood changes every hour.

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"She will be good for some time and suddenly in the next moment she will become wild. In December, 2014 the police admitted her here. I have many times said not to chain her but the maid does it," he told ANI.

Also read: Mental Healthcare Bill passed in Parliament: All you need to know in 10 points

After watching all the videos, senior psychiatrist Dr Prasad Rao said that it cannot be even said that she is mentally ill. "How they are claiming that she is mentally retarded, and where is humanity going. We don't even chain the mental patients in the extreme conditions," Rao told ANI.

Renuka told ANI that she wants to live with her parents and wants to go to a place where she can play happily.

Also read: Mentally disabled patients found naked, crawling in Delhi's Asha Kiran House by DCW

The Supreme Court, in April, was willing to create a mechanism for rehabilitation of people discharged from mental asylums whose family have been unwilling to take them after their recovery. The court asked the Centre to frame guidelines for rehabilitation of persons who have been cured of mental illness.

The SC even favoured framing a uniform national policy to deal with this issue. According to the Mental Healthcare Bill passed in 2016, a person with mental illness will have the right to make an advance directive in writing specifying the way the person wishes to be cared for and treated for a mental illness.

In fact, the bill which has a "patient-centric" approach assures free treatment for mentally-ill persons if they are homeless or poor.

--- ENDS ---
Police have recovered about 25 cigarette butts from Anurag's room, where he stayed the night before he was found dead.

By Shiv Pujan Jha: The Uttar Pradesh police are yet to know the cause of death of IAS officer Anurag Tiwari, who was found dead under mysterious circumstances in Lucknow on May 17.

According to police, cigarette butts and viscera reports may provide the vital clues but the process would take time before exact cause of death of IAS can be ascertained.

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The police have not been able to collect circumstantial evidence in the murder case. So, they are relying heavily on scientific investigation to provide in lead in the case.

ANURAG TIWARI WAS DEPRESSED?

According to police, Anurag Tiwari had exhausted his leaves. He had booked a ticket to Bengaluru for May 16 night, but it was cancelled. It is not clear yet as to who got the ticket cancelled.

Anurag was found dead the next morning in Lucknow.

Police have recovered about 25 cigarette butts from his room, where he stayed on the night before he was found dead.

It has been learnt that Anurag Tiwari was suffering from depression. His WhatsApp chat with family members give ample indication of him suffering from depression.

WHY FORENSIC OPINION?

Lucknow SSP Deepak Kumar said that the injury marks found on Anurag Tiwari's body could not have led to his death.

To ascertain the cause of death, a detailed questionnaire pertaining to the postmortem report has been sent to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and also to the Benaras Hindu University (BHU).

Viscera and blood samples have been sent to CFSL Chandigarh. SSP Deepak Kumar said that the UP police have requested the director of the lab to expedite the process of analysis of the Viscera and blood samples.

The reports are bound to take some time, Deepak Kumar said. Meanwhile, police have also sought expert opinion after examination of the cigarette butts.

Meanwhile, the family members of the deceased have expressed their willingness to accompany the SIT when it goes to Bengaluru for investigations. The family suspects foul play in the death of Anurag Tiwari.

ALSO READ:

Could IAS mafia be involved in death of officer Anurag Tiwari? Few bureaucrats think so

Anurag Tiwari death: IAS mafia can derail CBI investigation, says retired officer

--- ENDS ---
The result of ICSE class 10 boards has been declared today on May 29 at 3 pm. Muskan Abdulla Pathan from Pune and Ashwin Rao from Bangalore have obtained the all India first rank with 99.4 per cent.

By India Today Web Desk: The result of ICSE Class 10 boards has been declared today on May 29 at 3 pm. All those students who had appeared for the exam are required to check their respective scores at the official website www.cisce.org

Along with class 10, class 12 board results were also declared at a press conference. Total 2,106 schools participated in the ICSE examination. 96,770 boys and 78,529 girls attempted the paper. The overall pass percentage is 98.53 per cent.

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Muskan Abdulla Pathan from Pune and Ashwin Rao from Bangalore have obtained the all India first rank with 99.4 per cent. All the top three ranks have been shared by two students each.

Top three rank holders

Rank 1

Name: Muskan Abdulla Pathan

School: Hutchings High School, Pune

Percentage: 99.4 per cent

Name: Ashwin Rao

School: St. Paul's English School, J.P. Nagar, Bangalore

Percentage: 99.4 per cent

Rank 2

Name: Farzan Hoshi Bharucha

School: Greenlawns High School, Mumbai

Percentage: 99.2 per cent

Name: Debasree Pal

School: Auxilium Convent School, Barasat, 24 Parganas (N)

Percentage: 99.2 per cent

(Read: ICSE Class 10, ISC Class 12 Exam 2017 results declared: Meet the top three rank holders)

Rank 3

Name: Meenakshi S

School: Holy Angel's I.S.C. School, Thiruvananthapuram

Percentage: 99 per cent

Name: Raghav Singhal

School: St. Mary's School, Pune

Percentage: 99 per cent

Result on mobile

To get ICSE results 2017 on your mobile, SMS ICSE to 09248082883

To get ISC results 2017 on your mobile, SMS ISCE to 09248082883.

The council conducted the ICSE class 10 examination from March 10 till April 21.

Read: Twitter is losing its mind over the 99.6 per cent CBSE topper! Check out the reactions here

Read: CBSE Class 12 Board Results 2017: With 99.2 per cent, Mannat Luthra tops the Commerce stream

For information on more latest news and updates, click here

--- ENDS ---
Students had bread and beef curry and claimed that the event was to passively protest against the Centre's curb over selling cattle for slaughter in the market which would affect beef consumption.

By India Today Web Desk: A group of students at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras conducted a beef festival, showing their agitation against the Centre recent order against selling cattle thus imposing an indirect beef ban.

More than 80 students supported the cause by participating in this fest late on Sunday night calling the Centre's idea as 'Food Fascism'.

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Students had bread and beef curry and claimed that the event was to passively protest against the Centre's curb over selling cattle for slaughter in the market which would affect beef consumption.

Earlier on May 27, Students' Federation of India (SFI) staged similar protest in Kerala by eating beef outside University College, Trivandrum.

Similar fest was also organised at different locations across Kerala.

Beef fest at IIT Madras. (Photo: ANI)

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Harsh Vardhan on Friday ordered that the ministry has notified the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Regulation of Livestock Markets) Rules, 2017 to ensure that the sale of cattle is not meant for slaughter purposes.

He said the seller and buyer both have to ensure that the cattle is not being bought or sold in the market for slaughter purposes.

"An undertaking to this effect has to be given to the member secretary of the animal market committee from the seller as well as the buyer," Vardhan added.

As per the notification, cattle are defined as "bulls, bullocks, cows, buffalos, steers, heifers and calves and camels".

The rules also state that the purchaser shall not sacrifice the animal for any religious purpose or sell it to a person outside the state without permission and must keep in with the state's cattle protection laws.

Also Read:

Kerala cow slaughter: Youth Congress workers suspended from party after Rahul Gandhi condemns incident

Kerala: Case against Youth Congress workers for slaughtering calf, Rahul Gandhi calls it barbaric

Modi government inches closer to national beef ban with Ramzan just few days away

Kerala BJP chief slams cow slaughter 'in broad daylight'

ALSO WATCH | Chennai girl missing for 4 days; IIT-Madras students organise beef fest; and more

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: New Delhi, May 29 (PTI) India and Fiji today signed an agreement that provides for stepping up defence and security ties including in defence production and military training.

The deal was signed after Defence Minister Arun Jaitley held extensive talks with his Fijian counterpart Ratu Inoke Kubuabola during which they also agreed to deepen cooperation in maritime security sphere.

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"The two ministers also discussed expanded defence partnership in maritime security between both the countries, and naval cooperation was identified as an area of promise," the defence ministry said.

It said the MoU on defence cooperation envisages several areas of cooperation including in defence industry, military training and humanitarian assistance and disaster management.

Kubuabola was given a Tri-Services guard of honour at the lawns of South Block.

Earlier, the visiting minister laid a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti.

Earlier in the day, Kubuabola visited the Western Naval Command in Mumbai. PTI MPB ZMN

--- ENDS ---
By India Today Web Desk: Their selfies break the internet, their videos go viral, their Instagram and Twitter accounts are constantly stalked, and the paparazzi go crazy to capture them on the lens. Welcome to the world of star kids. Constantly under the spotlight, this young brigade often finds it hard to run away from the prying eyes. Their personal life hogs more limelight than their film projects.

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More than often, a plain friendship is misconstrued as something more, other times, the pictures of their movie or dinner dates go viral giving way to link-up rumours.

And this year has been no different. From Jhanvi Kapoor to Sara Ali Khan to Harshvardhan Kapoor, Bollywood's new brigade made headlines more often than not for their personal equations. If Sridevi's elder daughter has been linked to Shahid Kapoor's younger brother, Saif's daughter night out with Harshvardhan made many heads turn.

Here are the link-up rumours that sent Bollywood fans into a tizzy.

Ishaan Khatter-Jhanvi Kapoor

Ishaan Khatter and Jhanvi failed to make their Bollywood debut together, but their appearance at the screening of Badrinath Ki Dulhania in March this year did not fail to grab eyeballs. Their movie date gave way to link-up rumours. And a recent report in Mid-Day only confirmed the news when Ishaan was warned by his brother to focus on his career. The report suggests that Ishaan and Jhanvi are secretly dating, and Shahid doesn't want Ishaan's personal life to take away the focus from his debut film Beyond The Clouds.

Sara Ali Khan and Harshvardhan Kapoor

Rumours of Saif Ali Khan's daughter Sara and Harshvardhan being an item started some time ago, when they were reportedly spotted walking hand-in-hand into a restaurant and whispering sweet nothings to each other. Apparently, the two threw caution to the wind and even addressed each other as "baby" in public. But rumours got stronger when the two were clicked on a dinner date recently.

Aryan Khan and Navya Naveli Nanda

Their pictures and videos broke the internet some time ago. They are best of buddies, and have a lot of ties keeping them closer. From family bond to being star kids, their bond is strong, but their closeness was misconstrued as something more.

Ahan Shetty-Tania Shroff

Suniel Shetty's son Ahan's upcoming Bollywood debut is the launch that strugglers dream of. Ahan will be introduced by director-producer Sajid Nadiadwala, and as much as his debut film is in news, his personal life too is busy making headlines. A report in Mumbai Mirror suggests that he is in a long-distance relationship with girlfriend Tania Shroff for a few years now. Tania is currently studying in England, while Ahan is busy prepping up for his Bollywood debut.

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ALSO READ: Is Shahid Kapoor miffed with brother Ishaan over link-up rumours with Jhanvi Kapoor?

ALSO READ: Saif's daughter Sara Ali Khan clicked with Harshvardhan Kapoor on dinner date

ALSO WATCH: Shah Rukh's son Aryan is quite the ladies' man

--- ENDS ---
Srinagar and some parts of Kashmir remain deserted as the governing authorities imposed curfew after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militants.

Curfew in Srinagar and the KAshmir Valley

By Shuja-ul-Haq : Kashmir Valley remains tense on the second day after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen's commander Sabzar Bhat and his associate in Tral area of South Kashmir.

Bhat was killed in a gunbattle with the security forces in a village of Pulwama district along with his fellow associate, Faizan Ahmad.

Widespread protests were observed on the day when the news of the encounter trickled down. Authorities had imposed curfew and restrictions to prevent violence in the aftermath of Hizbul commander's death.

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Curfew and restrictions continued in Srinagar and other places in the Kashmir Valley on Monday as authorities said "these were necessary to maintain law and order".

"Curfew will continue in seven police station areas of Khanyar, Rainawari, Nowhatta, M.R. Gunj, Safa Kadal, Kralkhud and Maisuma," Farooq Ahmad Lone, District Magistrate Srinagar said.

SRINAGAR UNDER RESTRICTIONS

Syed Abid Rashid, District Magistrate, Anantnag also imposed restrictions in Anantnag town to maintain calm.

The government has deployed large contingents of police and paramilitary forces across the Valley.

Major roads in towns leading to district headquarters have also been sealed to control the protests. The train service between Banihal to Baramulla in north Kashmir also remains shutdown.

Similar preventive restrictions have been imposed in Shopian, Kulgam, Pulwama, Badgam, Ganderbal, Bandipora, Kupwara and Baramulla districts.

Both the slain militants belonged to Rathsuna village of Tral where they were buried in the village martyrs graveyard as hundreds attended their burial.

Senior separatist leaders including Syed Ali Geelani and Mirwaiz Umer Farooq have been placed under house arrest while JKLF chief, Muhammad Yasin Malik was arrested and shifted to the central jail on Sunday.

EFFECTS OF THE CURFEW AND CIVIL UNREST

According to the reports, shops, colleges and schools, business establishments and market places remained closed across Kashmir. Public transport was also thrown off the gear.

All educational institutions have been shut by the authorities in addition to postponement of exams scheduled on Monday by the university.

Police said except for six stone pelting incidents on Sunday those were handled with maximum restraint by the security forces, the valley remained peaceful.

High tension and uneasy calm has started affecting the tourist inflow into the Kashmir Valley.

Many hoteliers and others directly associated with the tourism industry are expressing fears of losing their livelihood if things do not normalise quickly.

Kashmir had a devastating tourist season last year in the aftermath of the then Hizbul commander, Burhan Wani's killing on July 8.

The unrest that followed Wani's killing lasted nearly six months during which 94 civilians were killed and hundreds other injured.

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(With Inputs from IANS)

ALSO READ:

'Terrorists in Kashmir will not live to see this winter' Army vows to wipe out militancy

Sabzar Ahmad Bhat killing: Internet services suspended in Kashmir, combing operation underway

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: Srinagar, May 29 (PTI) The situation in Kashmir was peaceful as authorities continued curfew-like restrictions at a number of places in the valley for the second day today, fearing protests over the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Sabzar Bhat.

Meanwhile, the two-day strike call given by the separatists against the militants killing affected normal life in Kashmir for the second day.

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"Situation remained peaceful and under control throughout the Kashmir valley," a police spokesman said here.

He said there was a report about a stray incident of stone-pelting on a CRPF camp in Tahab area of south Kashmirs Pulwama district.

A group of miscreants pelted stones on the camp but police and security forces, using "maximum restraint", chased them away, the spokesman said. No one was injured, he added.

Curfew-like restrictions continued in parts of Kashmir as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order following the killing of Sabzar in an encounter with security forces on Saturday last.

In Srinagar, curfew-like restrictions were in place in seven police station areas - Khanyar, Nowhatta, Safakadal, M R Gunj, Rainawari, Kralkhud and Maisuma.

Similar restrictions continued in Anantnag and Shopian districts and Pulwama town in south Kashmir and in the township of Sopore in north Kashmir.

In central Kashmirs Budgam and Ganderbal districts, restrictions on the assembly of people under Section 144 CrPc also continued for the second day.

The curbs in these areas were imposed as a pre-emptive measure to prevent violence like that witnessed on Saturday, immediately after Bhat was killed along with his associate in the encounter in Soimoh area of Tral in Pulwama district.

The separatist leaders - chairman of hardline Hurriyat Conference Syed Ali Shah Geelani, head of moderate faction of Hurriyat Conference Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and JKLF chief Yasin Malik -- have called for a march to Tral tomorrow to pay tributes to the slain militants.

To prevent them from leading any protest marches, the authorities yesterday arrested Malik from his residence here and put Geelani and Mirwaiz under house detention.

Mobile internet services in the valley have been suspended and the outgoing call facility on prepaid numbers has also been snapped as a precautionary measure.

The Kashmir University has postponed all examinations which were scheduled to be held today and tomorrow.

A spokesman of the university said fresh dates for the deferred examinations shall be notified later.

Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST), Awantipora, also postponed the examination scheduled for today.

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The university also suspended the class work for today in view of the prevailing situation.

Schools and colleges have also been closed for two days in Srinagar and Pulwama. PTI SSB MIJ AKK AKK

--- ENDS ---
Katrina Kaif's latest workout session is for when you can't find a chair to sit--and it seems like a lot of effort.

By India Today Web Desk: Katrina Kaif might be relatively new to the world of Instagram, but her effortless gorgeousness and off-duty posts have already garnered her over two million followers.

The actress who will soon be seen opposite Salman Khan in Tiger Zinda Hai, recently shared a video of her nailing something not all of us have the strength to do.

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The above-mentioned Instagram video features Katrina demonstrate how one can use a no-chair-situation to strengthen his/her knee and thigh muscles.

Also Read: Here's the beastly workout you need to nail for a body like Sushant Singh Rajput

Prep for those days when you can't find a chair . ??please do it at the gym it's very fun ???@yasminkarachiwala @rezaparkview A post shared by Katrina Kaif (@katrinakaif) on May 23, 2017 at 7:12am PDT

"Prep for those days when you can't find a chair. Please do it at the gym it's very fun," wrote Katrina alongside the video that also features popular fitness trainer, Yasmin Karachiwala.

Yasmin reposted the video and shared how this particular exercise is extremely beneficial for one's VMO (vastus medialis oblique).

"This exercise is really good to strengthen your VMO, make sure to do it as slow as shown in the video (this video is in real time)," she wrote.

Also Read: The 8-week-long routine that gave Sushant his enviable 8-pack abs

The VMO is said to be the only muscle attached to your kneecap that regulates the movement of your knee. And while technically you can't strengthen your joints, by making the muscles around it strong, you can provide a cushion for knee injuries.

According to Healthline, other exercises that strengthen your VMO are floor extensions, lateral heel drop, single leg raises among others.

--- ENDS ---
In a letter to state police chief TP Senkumar, the victim's mother said the Swami never harassed her daughter. She, however, accused her of having an affair with a friend.

By Indo-Asian News Service: Ten days after a 54-year-old godman was bobbitised by a young woman, her mother in a letter to Kerala police on Monday said the victim was not keeping in the best of mental health and the Swami had never harassed her as claimed by her daughter.

In her letter to state police chief TP Senkumar, the victim's mother said the Swami never harassed her 23-year-old daughter, however, accused her of having an affair with a friend of hers.

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According to the mother, her daughter has twice in the past attempted suicide by slashing her wrist.

She said the Swami shares good relations with her family and on that morning he advised her daughter to end relation with her male friend.

Senkumar has forwarded the letter to the officials probing the case.

Meanwhile, the Swami is convalescing at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College hospital where he has been remanded in custody.

He will be produced before a court if discharged before June 3.

The police are yet to decide on the course of action, if any, against the young woman.

ALSO READ:

Kerala: Girl chops off rapist sanyasi's genitals

Kerala swami claims he, not girl, chopped off his sexual organ as it was not useful

ALSO WATCH:

Kerala law student chops off genitals of rapist swami

--- ENDS ---
Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said members of Kerala Youth Congress who organised the event in which a cow was slaughtered in Kannur have been suspended.

By India Today Web Desk: Hours after party vice-president Rahul Gandhi strongly condemned party's youth unit workers slaughtering a cow in Kannur, Kerala, the Congress today suspended workers who organised the protest event.

"Such elements have no place in Congress. Youth Congress workers have been suspended," Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said.

Rahul Gandhi had strongly condemned his party workers slaughtering a cow in public to protest against Centre's ban on purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter. The meat was then distributed to onlookers.

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"What happened in Kerala yesterday is thoughtless, barbaric and completely unacceptable to me and the Congress Party. I strongly condemn the incident," Rahul Gandhi said in a tweet.

Kerala Police had booked some Youth Congress activists after the incident drew flak from various quarters.

KERALA GOVT LIKELY TO BRING LAW TO TACKLE BAN

The Kerala government had suggested it could bring in a law to counter the central ban on sale of cattle for slaughter, as the political slugfest over the issue intensified fuelled by a row over a Youth Congress activist butchering a cow in full public view.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who had yesterday shot off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to protest the Centre's decision, hit out at the BJP-led government at the Centre and the RSS, saying there was no need for the people of the state to draw lessons from New Delhi or Nagpur on their food habits.

BEEF PARTY AT IIT-MADRAS

Around 50 students of IIT-Madras organised a beef party inside the campus on Sunday night in protest against Modi government's cattle slaughter ban.

The incident comes after a 'Beef fest' was organised across Kerala by the Congress and the Left on Sunday to protest the Centre's ban.

ALSO READ:

Kerala: Case against Youth Congress workers for slaughtering calf, Rahul Gandhi calls it barbaric

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Konkona Sen Sharma's comfortable dressing sense will make you feel better about the sweaty summer season.

By Shivani Chhabra: The talented and gorgeous star, Konkona Sen Sharma who has won hearts with her thrilling performances in arthouse and mainstream cinema is an actor-director we cannot help but admire.

The dusky beauty, who has displayed her acting prowess in films like Wake Up Sid, Omkara and Life in a Metro, stands out not only for her progressive choice of films, but also her quintessential dressing sense.

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Also Read: Taapsee Pannu is a miracle in pink, and this is not about the movie

The 37-year-old bong stunner is often seen draped in classy cotton sarees or dresses that do perfect justice to the vision that she is.

While we love everything Konkona adorns, these outfits worn by her are beyond perfect to battle the scorching heat with utmost elegance.

Konkona shone bright in her orange Anavila saree, and we were quite awe-struck by the grandeur of this checked creation. She teamed up a gold blouse that matched really well with the gold border of the ensemble. If this isn't simplicity at its best, we don't know what is.

Picture courtesy: Instagram/afashionistadiaries Picture courtesy: Instagram/afashionistadiaries

The actor wore a royal blue, maxi dress by Anita Dogre's Grassroots, which is the most easy-going outfit we've seen in the longest time. The pockets and belt made the attire look super-chic. We want to steal it so bad!

Picture courtesy: Instagram/konkona

Konkona bowled us over in her ethereal, handwoven saree by Kanika Jain. She teamed up her chanderi saree with a lustrous, blue, heart-embroidered blouse which made for a really chic ethnic outfit. The tiny flowers embroidered on the saree beautifully complimented the hearts on the blue blouse.

Picture courtesy: Instagram/who_wore_what_when

Also Read: Ranveer Singh is back in black, so let's just breathe now

Konkona donned a comfortable, black and white maxi dress that made her look like a total boss. The outfit is perfect for those who aim to rule the world in their uber-cool, semi-professional attires.

Picture courtesy: Instagram/konkona

The Mr and Mrs Iyer actor redefined sarees for us in her stylishly donned brown, striped saree. Konkona replaced her blouse with a white shirt, and wore her Raw Mango saree in a fusion avatar. Now, that's called being creative.

Picture courtesy: Instagram/konkona

Konkona has set some serious dressing goals in her simple, often-quirky, fusion outfits while playing with skin-friendly textiles, and we're spell-cast by her innovative instincts.

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At a time when Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar continues to send mixed signals on whose side he is, Mamata Banerjee's anti-government posturing is constant.

By India Today Web Desk: Continuing with her attacks on the Narendra Modi government, Mamata Banerjee on Monday slammed the Centre for the new rule that bans sale of cattle for slaughter at animal markets.

The West Bengal chief minister called the Centre's decision "unconstitutional" and asked the Modi government to not interfere in the affairs of states.

Under the new rule, cattle buyers will now have to give an undertaking that the animals are not for slaughter and the market committees will have to check the buyers' credentials and keep records of sale.

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MAMATA's FIRM GRIP ON WEST BENGAL

While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), under Amit Shah, is keen on increasing its base in the East, it has realised that fighting Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal is not an easy task.

Mamata Banerjee's TMC recently won four of the seven municipalities in the civic polls in West Bengal, even snatching the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) bastion of Mirik.

The municipal polls, which were dubbed as a fight between a resurgent BJP and the TMC, saw the latter winning the seats convincingly and almost eliminating the competition.

The win was particularly sweet for Mamata Banerjee as it came after BJP President Amit Shah visited West Bengal to kick off an expansion drive of the party.

There was further embarrassment for the BJP as the tribals who had lunched with Amit Shah during his visit to Naxalbari joined the Trinamool Congress a week later in the presence of state tourism minister Goutam Deb. The BJP, however, alleged that the two BJP workers were abducted and forcibly made to join the TMC.

REACHING OUT TO OPPOSITION

Beyond West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee is nowadays often seen working with the Opposition to corner the Narendra Modi government on various issues.

She met Congress president Sonia Gandhi twice in a span of weeks to discuss a consensus candidate for the upcoming presidential polls.

Mamata Banerjee even met Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who was reportedly not invited to the Opposition meet at Sonia Gandhi's residence.

At a time when Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar continues to send mixed signals on whose side he is--he skipped the lunch at Sonia's residence only to meet Prime Minister Modi in Delhi the next day--Mamata Banerjee's anti-government posturing is constant.

On issues such as demonetisation, Mamata Banerjee and the TMC have been aligned with the anti-government stand of the Opposition. Nitish Kumar, on the other hand, lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his demonetisation drive.

Mamata's more or less uniform stand on issues also possibly makes her a more agreeable partner to work with for other Opposition parties such as the Congress.

TAKING ON THE MODI GOVERNMENT

In the last three years, Mamata Banerjee has been one of the most vocal critics of the Narendra Modi government.

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Besides verbally attacking the Central government on issues such as demonetisation, the TMC supremo has often devised other ways of taking on the government.

Her government recently changed the names of several Central government schemes in the state. So, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pet project of Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) is now 'Mission Nirmal Bangla', while Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Grameen is now 'Banglar Griha Prakalpa'.

The Trinamool government's logic was that the state government has to now bear 40 per cent of the total cost of the implementation of the schemes as against 10 per cent earlier, and therefore, why should the Central government get the credit.

The decision was slammed by the BJP with one of its leaders Chandra Kumar Bose comparing Mamata Banerjee to Babur.

At a time when Opposition parties are trying to stitch a front to take on the Narendra Modi government, Mamata Banerjee could be the front-runner to lead such an alliance.

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Performing better than last year, the gap between the pass percentage of government and private schools has gone up by 7 per cent.

By Arpan Rai: Outperforming Delhi's private schools for the second year in a row, performance of city's government schools in this CBSE Class 12 examination have again surprised many.

Performing better than last year, the gap between the pass percentage of government and private schools has gone up by 7 per cent. The gap has gone up from last year's 2 per cent to 9 per cent, with the pass percentage of government schools standing at 88.27% and that of private schools at 79.27per cent.

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Congratulating students, teachers and principals for presenting an excellent result, Education minister and Delhi's deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said, "Children studying in government and private schools, are both ours. However, it is a moment of pride that children studying in Delhi's government schools are performing so much better than private ones. A remarkable result has been achieved even after we had kept a big check on cheating."

In order to prevent the malpractice of cheating, Delhi government had deputed state district magistrates and other district officials to keep a close watch on exam centres. In addition to this, the government has been introducing several interventions to improve learning outcomes under their 'Chunauti Mission' to bridge the gaps in schooling and education, currently being imparted in Delhi municipal schools and government schools.

Among the best performing government schools, state government's Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalayas (RPVVs) has outperformed central government's Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs). RPVVs' pass percentage, standing at 99.7 per cent is five per cent ahead of KVs' 94.6 per cent. As many as 33 students have scored as much as 100per cent in one or more subjects. The number of schools which have a pass percentage of more than 90per cent has gone up from 547 to 554 this year.

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Maoists blasted the railway tracks between Chiyanki and Karmabandh railway stations leading to disruption of rail movement

By Indo-Asian News Service: Maoist guerrillas today blew up railway tracks in Bokaro district and torched vehicles in Giridih district during a 24-hour shutdown in Jharkhand to protest changes made in two land acts.

According to the police, the militants blasted the railway tracks between Chiyanki and Karmabandh railway stations leading to the disruption of rail movement. They also torched two vehicles in Giridih's Dumri area.

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Repair work on the railway tracks is on, officials said, adding that movement of more than a dozen trains has been affected.

The shutdown, called by Maoists, has impacted rural parts of Jharkhand as buses on long routes having stopped plying.

The shutdown has been called to protest amendments to the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act (CNT) and the Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act (SPT) that in its revised version allows agricultural land to be used for non-agricultural purposes.

In November, the Jharkhand Assembly had, amid vociferous opposition protests, passed without discussion amendments to the two land Acts which were formulated to protect the rights of tribal and indigenous people.

Enacted in 1908, the CNT Act restricted transfer of land belonging to Scheduled Tribes/Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes. However, a tribal could transfer his land through sale, exchange, gift or will it to a fellow Scheduled Tribe member and residents of his own police station area.

The SPT Act protected the land rights of Jharkhand's Santhal tribe who primarily inhabit six districts: Dumka, Deoghar, Godda, Pakur, Sahibganj and Jamtara.

The opposition has alleged that the government of Raghubar Das, a non-tribal chief minister, amended the two laws to make it easier for "crony industrialists" to acquire land in restricted tribal areas.

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According to reports, Neha has been told by the makers that she will be replaced if she doesn't get in shape soon.

By India Today Web Desk: Popular comedy show May I Come in Madam's female lead, Neha Pendse, who plays an attractive boss on the show, has apparently been given a warning regarding her weight by the makers of the show, according to recent reports.

On the show, Neha plays a boss of a company where an employee who works for her develops a huge crush on her. Neha, who has apparently put on some weight, was asked by the creators of the show to get in shape, failing which she would be replaced, Mid-day reported.

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Also read: May I Come In Madam? set catches fire

"The producers have given her an ultimatum to lose weight soon, otherwise they will not be able to continue working with her. Recently, when a few mediapersons visited our set for her interview, Neha refused to meet them. She knows she has put on weight over the past year and didn't wish to be photographed," Mid-day quoted a source as saying.

However, Neha has rubbished the rumours saying that she has not been asked to do anything about her weight by the makers.

"The producers have said no such thing. People like me the way I am. Whether I am thin or not, no one has an issue," the actress said.

But the aforementioned source said on the subject, "Why else would the makers extend the contract of all the actors by another year and Neha's by just six months?"

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By Press Trust of India: Patna, May 28 (PTI) A light to moderate rainfall occurred in many places in Bihar today, bringing the temperature down by several notches.

As per the Met bulletin, Patna witnessed 10.5 mm of rainfall, while Bhagalpur received the highest amount of rainfall at 11.1 mm in the state.

The Met department has alerted districts, including East Champaran, West Champaran, Gopalganj, Siwan, Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Muzaffarpur Nalanda, Nawada, Sheikhpura, Begusarai, Lakhisarai, Jamui, for thunderstorm accompanied by rain.

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Rains have brought the maximum temperature down across the state.

Gaya recorded the highest maximum temperature at 39.6 degrees celsius followed by Bhagalpur at 36.1, Purnea at 35.5 and Patna at 35.3 degrees celsius respectively. PTI AR MD

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The weather might seem fantastic right now, but it's full of negatives you should be aware of.

By Shreya Goswami: Who among us doesn't look forward to those sudden showers during summers? They bring much-needed relief from the soaring mercury levels, and cool down everything from our bodies to the earth. So yes, most of us welcome sudden, midsummer rains with open arms.

But should we be that happy about unseasonal rains? Yes, the weather looks and feels fantastic, but it isn't completely devoid of pitfalls, is it? Don't get excited about the relief from heat, and find out some of the things that can go wrong due to midsummer rains.

Respiratory and stomach infections are very common during midsummer rains. Picture for representation purpose. Picture courtesy: verywell.com

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1. More infections do the rounds

If the weather is fluctuating from dry to humid to wet within the span of a few days, then you can be sure that viral and bacterial infections will be all around you. And, you'll catch them more easily too--because the changing climate will wreak havoc on your body's ability to acclimatise to temperature differences, to say the least. The result? Fevers, colds, and cough will be as common as mud and slush in this weather.

Also Read: Your naani made you have these 5 drinks in the summer for a reason

2. Vegetables and fruits rot faster

There's nothing as bad for fruits and veggies than a wet summer. The heat and the humidity merge together to make sure that any raw food that you buy will go bad sooner than you expected. To keep this issue at bay, you'll have to buy fresh vegetables every two days--because even refrigerators can only do so much against the onslaught of the weather. Make sure you keep your fridge clean and dry during midsummer rainy days.

Sudden rains can wreak havoc in our lives. Picture courtesy: Pinterest/dontcallmebetty.tumblr.com

3. Increase in mosquitoes

We're already facing the threat of malaria, chikunguniya and (now) zika--all mosquito-borne diseases. Add to that sudden and lasting rains in the middle of summers, and we have a good breeding ground for mosquitoes. With the sun hiding behind clouds, the chances of stagnant water drying up fast are very low. So help yourself out, and stock up on all the mosquito-repellents you can lay your hands on.

4. Restricted social life and loneliness

If you thought health issues were the only considerations during midsummer rains, think again. Incessant and torrential rains can restrict your movements. After all, who wants to go to a hot-and-happening fest or restaurant after trudging in the rain wearing a raincoat or carrying an umbrella? What ends up happening is that we end up staying at home, without company, and end up feeling lonely. The rain just doesn't sound much fun then, does it?

Also Read: 6 reasons dahi is the only superfood you need this summer

5. Fashion confusion

So you thought you'll be prepared for work this morning, and pressed your light-coloured linen trousers last night? Sounds good. But then it rained at dawn, and now the roads are full of slush--and you know for a fact that your trousers will get mud on them. That's just one bit of the fashion confusion this temperamental weather can lead to. Footwear is another issue--should you wear crocs or summery sandals? And it's not just about looking good, but also about what clothes will help you in this weather--because thin fabrics are perfect for summers, but not suitable for the chill that can set in when it rains.

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If you've been feeling like 'singing in the rain', or going 'chak-dhoom-dhoom', stop right there. You might think that midsummer rains are all the relief you needed from the summer heat, but the disadvantages of this weather are many. It's best to not get carried away, and be a little cautious, especially if it rains when it shouldn't.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for a 4-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France today. His meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin will be closely watched.

PM Narendra Modi is scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on May 31. (Photo: Twitter@Ministry of External Affairs))

By India Today Web Desk: "My visits to four nations (Germany, Spain, Russia and France) are aimed at boosting India's economic engagement with them and to invite more investment to India," tweeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi before departing for a six-day tour to four nations today.

Prime Minister Modi will hold talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during the first leg of his tour. But it will be his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin which will be closely watched by the observers both at home and across the world.

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WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW:

PM Modi's tour to the four European nations comes at a time when his government has completed three years in office and the prime minister is expected to hardsell his government's success story when he tours the four nations. His meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin assumes much significance in the wake of trivial issues concerning their stance on global issues. PM Modi will be in Russia for three days - from May 31 to June 2. During the stay at St Petersburg, PM Modi will take part in the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit. "I greatly look forward to my visit to St. Petersburg in this special year for the bilateral relationship as both countries celebrate the 70th Anniversary of our diplomatic relations," PM Modi said. In the first leg of his six-day trip, he will visit Germany, where he will hold talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel under the framework of India-Germany Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC). He will also call on German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Modi said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine." Modi will travel to Spain on Tuesday. Modi's Spain visit will be first by an Indian PM in almost three decades. He will call on King Felipe VI and hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy. "We will discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism," PM Modi. In the last leg of the tour, he will visit France from June 2 to 3 for an official meeting with the newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron. "France is one of our most important Strategic Partners. I look forward to meeting President Macron and have discussions on issues of mutual interest," Modi said.

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By Press Trust of India: New Delhi, May 29 (PTI) The Central Information Commission (CIC) has allowed the Union Home Ministry to withhold information about a 2015 peace accord between the Centre and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland.

RTI activist Venkatesh Nayak had sought details of the "Framework Agreement" between the Government of India and the National Socialist Council of Nagaland Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) on August 3, 2015.

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R N Ravi, Chairman, Joint Intelligence Committee and Interlocutor, told the CIC the ground situation was "sensitive and fragile", and the "premature release" of the information would be "prejudicial to national security".

"The Government does not wish to lose the gains arising out of the Framework Agreement," Chief Information Commissioner R K Mathur quoted Ravi as saying.

The transparency panel took a dig at the ministry, pointing out that it had taken the ministry months to identify that the records related to the agreement were under the Joint Intelligence Committee.

Information seeker Nayak claimed that a press release after the agreement was signed had said the "details and execution plan" would be released shortly. But even after 18 months, the information was still not out.

He said the extension of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in the region last December buttressed the argument that that there was a gap between "official talk" and the situation on the ground. This was why it was necessary to put out "authentic information" on the agreement for the general public, Nayak said.

He said there was growing uncertainty among the neighbouring states about the contents of the framework agreement "which clearly indicates a state of confusion prevalent among the voters of the North-East".

Mathur noted in his order that the complainant stressed the need to disclose the details of the agreement for "public interest".

He said Nayak asserted that what could be disclosed to a legislature or Parliament could not be denied to a citizen under the RTI Act.

"The framework agreement had been discussed by the interlocutor with the legislators of Nagaland and the same is, therefore, liable to be disclosed to the general public," Nayak told the Commission.

Mathur said while Nayak emphasised the immediate need for transparency for peace in the Northeast, Ravi said the framework agreement was in place, but the final agreement was yet to be arrived at.

"In the present case, the sovereignty and integrity of India and the security and strategic interests of the State may be prejudicially affected. The public interest served by non-disclosure has to be weighed against the immediate public interest of disclosure," Mathur said in the order.

He said an immediate disclosure would inform the public and all stakeholders about the current status and "thus help to develop an understanding and trust in the Government and promote peace in the North-East region".

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But between the two "competing public interests", the Commission concluded that withholding information at this stage would help the government solve a long standing issue and bring about peace and prosperity.

"This option is, therefore, more beneficial and is accepted by the Commission," it said. PTI ABS BDS

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi today started a six-day tour of Europe where he will visit Germany, Spain, Russia and France.

By India Today Web Desk: After celebrating completion of three years of governance, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today started his four nation tour of Russia, Germany, Spain and France, to boost India's economic engagement with these nations and invite more investment.

"My visits to these nations are aimed at boosting India's economic engagement with them & to invite more investment to India," the Prime Minister tweeted.

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The prime minister who departed for Berlin today morning where he will hold bilateral meetings with Chancellor Angela Merkel and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Modi said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."

On Tuesday, Modi will travel to Spain for an official visit, the first by an Indian prime minister in almost three decades. He will call on King Felipe VI and hold talks with President Mariano Rajoy.

"We will discuss ways to enhance bilateral engagement, especially in the economic sphere, and cooperation on international issues of common concern, particularly in combating terrorism," he said.

From Spain, the prime minister will travel to St. Petersburg in Russia from May 31 to June 2 for the 18th India-Russia Annual Summit.

"...I will be conducting detailed discussions with President Putin to take forward our dialogue from the last Summit in Goa in October 2016," he said.

In the last leg of the tour, he will visit France from June 2 to 3 for an official meeting with the newly-elected French President Emmanuel Macron.

"France is one of our most important Strategic Partners. I look forward to meeting President Macron and have discussions on issues of mutual interest," Modi said.

(With inputs from PTI)

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Modi's arrival comes a day after German Chancellor Angela Merkel shocked many in Washington and London by saying Europe must take its fate into its own hands, implying that the United States under President Donald Trump and Britain after its Brexit vote were no longer reliable partners.

By Reuters: India is keen to attract more German companies to invest and improve bilateral relations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said ahead of a two-day visit to Europe's leading economic power that begins today.

Modi's arrival comes a day after German Chancellor Angela Merkel shocked many in Washington and London by saying Europe must take its fate into its own hands, implying that the United States under President Donald Trump and Britain after its Brexit vote were no longer reliable partners.

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Chinese Premier Li Keqiang also visits Berlin this week, and the arrival of two leaders of rising Asian powers in the wake of Merkel's speech has prompted talk of an eastern pivot in previously firmly Atlanticist Germany.

"Both (the German and Indian) governments are firmly committed to strengthening economic relations," Modi said in an interview with Handelsblatt newspaper. "I am very optimistic about our future partnership."

Merkel's remarks, made to her Christian Democrat party's Bavarian allies in Munich, were all the more striking since Merkel, a fan of the United States as a teenager in Communist East Germany, has always been known as a convinced Atlanticist.

"The times when we could fully rely on others are somewhat in the past," she said in a Munich beer tent to lasting applause from her Christian Social Union allies, making palpable her disappointment at failing to secure Trump's backing for the Paris climate accord at the G7 summit.

"We Europeans must really take our fate into our own hands," she said. "Of course in friendship with the United States of America, of course in friendship with Great Britain."

In China and India, Merkel saw the possibility of a partnership in favour of action to slow climate change and to promote free trade, noted Handelsblatt, the newspaper of Germany's business elite.

"After the disappointing G7 summit, the German chancellor is turning her hopes for free trade and climate protection to India and China," the paper wrote on its front page on Monday.

But Merkel's own, carefully chosen words, arguing that times of dependency were "somewhat" in the past, indicate that the pro-American chancellor's view is one that could yet be revised.

"One thing is clear," wrote the conservative Bild newspaper, a strong backer of Merkel, in an opinion article. "In the future, America will continue to be our most important partner in economic, foreign and security policy."

Also Read:

Modi in Europe: Boosting economic, bilateral ties top PM's agenda as he begins 6-day tour of 4 countries

PM Narendra Modi leaves for Germany, his first stop in 4-nation trip aimed at boosting India's economic engagement

3 years of PM Narendra Modi: Here's how NDA government performed on economic front

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WATCH: Full speech - PM Narendra Modi's historic address in US Congress

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: By Shirish B Pradhan

Kathmandu, May 29 (PTI) Nepal today celebrated the first conquest of Mount Everest 64 years ago and honoured a 44- year-old Nepalese mountaineer who broke her own world record for the most number of Everest summits by a woman after she scaled the worlds tallest peak for the eighth time this year.

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New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay became became the first persons to climb the 8,848- metre peak on May 29, 1953.

A function was organised at the Nepal Tourism Board here to mark the occasion and the 10th International Everest Day which saw participation from internationally acclaimed mountaineers, including Italian climber Reinhold Messner, who scaled the Everest for the first time without oxygen.

On the occasion, Nepals Deputy Tourism Minister honoured eight Sherpa mountain guides, who were the first persons to scale the Everest this season opening the mountain for other foreign climbers by fixing ropes in the region, which was partly damaged due to the devastating earthquakes of 2015.

Two foreigners, Ken Nubuchi, a Japanese national, and Richard Reagon, a US national, were also honoured for their contribution in distributing relief material in the mountain region that was hit by the earthquakes.

Eight time Mount Everest summitter Lhakpa Sherpa was also honoured on the occasion.

She conquered Mt Everest for the eighth time from the North Col (Tibetan side) this season.

From 1953 to 2016 a total of 4,469 individuals have climbed Mount Everest, according to the Himalaya Database. Everest has been summited 7,646 times, CNN reported. PTI SBP ASK AKJ ASK

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By Press Trust of India: Kathmandu, May 29 (PTI) Nepal today postponed the second phase of local-level election to ensure the participation of agitating Madhes-based parties, days after Madhesis threatened to launch a fresh agitation to block the polls which are being held for the first time in two decades.

The polls would now be held on June 23 instead of June 14, Energy Minister Janardan Sharma said.

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Minister of Information and Communications and governments spokesperson Surendra Kumar Karki said the decision was taken also considering Ramzan.

The proposal would be tabled at the Parliament for discussions, he said.

The announcement came after a cabinet meeting of top leaders of three major parties and agitating Rastriya Janata Party Nepal (RJP-N) in caretaker Prime Minister Prachandas residence in Baluwatar, Kathmandu Post reported.

The parties unanimously agreed to push the date of the second phase of local-level polls.

On May 26, the newly-formed alliance of six Madhes-based parties -- the Sanghiya Gathabandhan led by RJP-N -- announced that it will boycott the second phase of local elections and launch a fresh agitation to block the first local-level polls held in the country in two decades.

Prachanda had proposed to postpone the date to ensure the participation of RJP-N as the alliance was pressing the government to defer the date.

The final phase would now be held on June 23, when the restive southern Terai region which is home to the ethnic Madhesi population, will head to the ballot box.

The second phase of elections to be held in 41 districts of Provinces 1, 2, 5 and 7.

The first phase of the local polls was held on May 14 with a 71 per cent voter turnout.

It was a major step in Nepals difficult transition to democracy as local polls could not be held in the country after 1997 largely as a result of the decade-long Maoist insurgency that claimed more than 16,000 lives in Nepal.

Local bodies remained ignored during the long transitional period even after the signing of a peace deal between the government and the Maoists in November 2006.

The elections should be held in every five years but due to the political instability, they were halted since May 1997.

Political parties representing Madhesi people had been opposing the polls until the Constitution is amended to address their key demands. They seek more political representation in the parliament and redrawing of provincial boundaries. PTI CPS ABP CPS

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By Press Trust of India: By Shirish B Pradhan

Kathmandu, May 29 (PTI) Nepal observed the 10th Republic Day today by organising several programmes with top leaders congratulating the people on the successful conclusion of the first phase of the local-level election, saying it strengthened democracy.

President Bidya Devi Bhandari was the chief guest at a special programme which was also attended by Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun and caretaker Prime Minister Prachanda.

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Pigeons were released from the Army Pavilion ground symbolising peace and harmony.

On the occasion, Prachanda said the first phase of the local-level elections was conducted in a free and fair manner with participation of the people.

He described the local-level polls as a milestone in consolidating the federal democratic republic in the country.

"The federal democratic republic has been institutionalised in the country through the decade-long struggle of the Nepali people," Prachanda said.

The Nepal Army presented a guard of honour to the president at the function. An Army helicopter displayed the Republican Day banner and dropped flower petals from the air.

The function commenced with the playing of the tune of the national anthem which was followed by the observance of silence in memory and honour of the martyrs who laid down their lives in various movements in the past for a political change.

During the function, the Nepalese Army, Nepal Police and the Armed Police Force presented a march-past as well as music and dances evoking patriotism.

Also displayed at the function were the floats related to the republic and with the cultural identity depicting the costumes and lifestyle of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Bhaktapur Municipality, Lalitpur Metropolitan City, Madhyapur Thimi Municipality, Kirtipur Municipality and Madhyapur Municipality.

Nepal was declared a Republic on May 29, 2008 after the 150-year-old monarchy was abolished. PTI SBP CPS AKJ CPS

--- ENDS ---
The Central Industrial Security Force had first initiated this new system at seven airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad from April 1.

By Press Trust of India: Six more airports in the country, including Patna and Chennai, will do away with the practice of tagging and stamping domestic passengers' hand baggage from June 1.

CISF Director General O P Singh told PTI that the new airports include Jaipur, Guwahati, Lucknow and Trivandrum, apart from Patna and Chennai.

"We had run a trial at these six airports for a few weeks. After finding that an enhanced number of new gadgets, CCTVs and security paraphernalia has been put in place, the process of doing away with the tagging and stamping of domestic air passengers' hand baggage will begin from June 1," the DG said.

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The Central Industrial Security Force had first initiated this new system at seven airports of Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad from April 1.

The force is tasked with guarding 59 civil airports in the country.

5 MORE AIRPORTS IN LINE

Singh said five more airports at Varanasi, Pune, Goa, Bhubaneswar and Vishakhapatnam would be next in line where the tagging and stamping of passengers' hand baggage will be done away with in the coming days.

"The trial will now begin at these five airports," he said, adding the force proposes to initiate this people- friendly measure at all the airports under its cover, by the year-end.

By having the stamped tags on the hand baggage, the security personnel used to be assured that no weapon or ammunition-like material enters the aircraft with the passenger and now with the deployment of smart cameras and re-positioning of security paraphernalia at the six new airports, the same objective is being achieved.

The procedure remained a major irritant for passengers and they have made many complaints in this regard to airport authorities saying this system poses hassles for them as it consumes time and in case they forget to get it tagged, security personnel would ask them to go back and get it done.

The output roller trays at the six airports, which will initiate the new drill, have now been extended in order to provide more visual clarity to the security personnel on each and every bag even as they have been instructed to minutely go through the x-ray images before clearing the handbags.

A committee comprising officials of the CISF, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the airport operators has been recently constituted to smoothen the roll-out of this new protocol at all the 59 airports guarded by the paramilitary force.

This was done after a high-level meeting chaired by Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju and his counterpart in the civil aviation ministry, Jayant Sinha, in which the earlier BCAS order about stamping the hand baggage tags was stayed.

HASSLE FREE SECURITY ENVIRONMENT

The meeting while staying an earlier BCAS order had sought a thorough review of the security apparatus before the new measure could be launched.

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The CISF said it had sought modifications in the airport security for doing away with the hand baggage stamping and "to make sure that passengers could not access bags containing restricted items which are segregated by CISF personnel for checking (after X-ray scanning)".

DG Singh had said the new measure will enhance "passenger experience and provide hassle-free security environment to them" while travelling through the airports.

The new protocols are only meant for domestic passengers and those travelling to international destinations will have to get their hand baggage tags stamped as usual.

ALSO READ:

More airports added to handbag tags-free list, trial begins in 6 cities

Good news: Hand baggage stamping not needed at these airports from April 1

ALSO WATCH:

Security increased seven-fold at Chennai airport after bomb threat for Mumbai airport

--- ENDS ---
Chidambaram said in the last two weeks, leaks and insinuations have been "deliberately fed" to a section of the media and "maliciously circulated" in the social media.

By Press Trust of India: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram today said it was "preposterous" to suggest that any member of his family could influence six secretaries of the central government who were part of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

Strongly refuting allegations that his son Karti had influenced the decisions of the now-defunct FIPB when he was the finance minister, Chidambaram said it was a "despicable slur" on the six secretaries of the government.

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The FIPB used to vet FDI proposals requiring government approval.

The former finance minister said any one familiar with the working of the FIPB knows that no single officer could take a decision on any proposal and it was a collective decision of six secretaries.

"Any one who has worked with me knows that no one would dare to influence my decisions. I had never allowed any family member to speak to me or to any officer of my ministry on any official matter," Chidambaram said in a statement.

It was therefore, he said, "preposterous" to suggest that a member of his family, with or without his knowledge, influenced, by corrupt or illegal means, the six secretaries who constituted the FIPB.

"Such an allegation is a despicable slur on the six secretaries of the government who constituted the FIPB at the relevant time," he said.

CBI INVESTIGATING

The CBI last fortnight had filed an FIR against Karti and INX Media founders Indrani and Peter Mukerjea on charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, receiving illegal gratification, influencing public servants and criminal misconduct.

The CBI claims that Karti received money from INX Media through a company "indirectly controlled by him" for using his influence to manipulate a tax probe against it in a case of violation of FIPB conditions to receive investment from Mauritius.

The Congress leader said the subject matter of the FIR was an approval granted by the FIPB and it was clear that he was the target, yet the FIR did not name him.

The former finance minister said as far as FIPB cases were concerned, he had approved only those cases that were recommended by the FIPB and put up to him by the secretary, economic affairs.

Chidambaram said the FIPB was serviced by a secretariat and chaired by the secretary, economic affairs and included four other secretaries--industry, commerce, external affairs and overseas Indian affairs and the secretary of the administrative ministry.

Five of them were among the senior-most IAS officers and the sixth was a senior IFS officer of the Ministry of External Affairs.

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The Congress leader said each one of them had a long and distinguished record of service. The recommendations of the FIPB were submitted to the Ministry of Finance where they were once again examined by the junior officers and then by the additional secretary and the secretary before the file was put up to the minister, he said.

Each file put up to the minister would usually contain a number of cases and the recommendations of the FIPB and the secretary, economic affairs, he said.

"At the relevant time, the FIPB was chaired by D Subba Rao, IAS, who later became the Governor of RBI. He was succeeded by Ashok Chawla, IAS, who later became Chairman of the Competition Commission of India. The other secretaries were equally distinguished civil servants," he said.

Chidambaram said in the last two weeks, leaks and insinuations have been "deliberately fed" to a section of the media and "maliciously circulated" in the social media.

"In fact, I have obtained a copy of the FIR from the social media. The origin of these leaks is Chennai in my home state of Tamil Nadu," he said.

FIR BOOKED

"The FIR alleges that there was a conspiracy involving public officials who were induced by corrupt and illegal means to grant the approval, yet the FIR does not name a single public official," he said.

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Chidambaram said the most "ridiculous allegation" is that the "so-called gratification" was a cheque for Rs 10 lakh.

He said the cheque was in favour of a consulting company that had raised an invoice for work done, accounted for the income, and paid income tax on the amount.

The Congress leader said he can say with absolute certainty that Karti had never met any officer connected with the FIPB. Besides, he had no connection with the applicant company--INX Media and INX News.

Further, he said, Karti was never a director or shareholder of M/s Advantage Strategic Consulting Pvt Ltd (ASCPL).

The promoters and directors of ASCPL have, on more than one occasion, made it clear that ASCPL is their company and they alone are responsible for the business of that company.

They are business friends of Karti and have normal relations that are common among business friends, he said.

"I feel sad that my son and his business friends are being targeted. I am indignant that some of the most distinguished civil servants of the country have been humiliated by the FIR," he said.

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Chidambaram said in the case, it was not one secretary but six secretaries and the FIPB secretariat who were being "humiliated on a ridiculous charge" of being induced by an alleged gratification of Rs 10 lakh.

"I make this statement so that the misinformation emanating from Chennai is exposed. Ultimately, the course of law will expose the mischief makers. I have advised my son to fully cooperate with the investigation and he will do so," he said.

ALSO READ:

CBI raids former finance minister P Chidambaram, son Karti's house in Chennai

ALSO WATCH:

India's growth rate is being over-stated: P Chidambaram

--- ENDS ---
After two successful tests of medium to long range missiles North Korea fired what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast.

By Reuters: North Korea fired what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile on Monday that landed in the sea off its east coast, the latest in a series of missile tests defying world pressure and threats of more sanctions.

The missile was believed to be a Scud-class ballistic missile and flew about 450 km (280 miles), South Korean officials said. North Korea has a large stockpile of the short-range missiles, originally developed by the Soviet Union.

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Monday's launch follows two successful tests of medium to long range missiles in as many weeks by Pyongyang, which has been conducting such tests at an unprecedented pace in an effort to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of hitting the mainland United States.

It is the third test-launch since South Korea's liberal President Moon Jae-in took office on May 10 pledging to engage the reclusive state in dialogue. Moon says sanctions alone have failed to resolve the growing threat from the North's advancing nuclear and missile programme.

IMPORTANT TO COUNTER US AGGRESSION

North Korea, which has conducted dozens of missile tests and tested two nuclear bombs since the start of 2016 in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions, says the programme is necessary to counter U.S. aggression.

The White House said President Donald Trump had been briefed on the launch. The US Pacific Command said it tracked what appeared to be a short-range ballistic missile for six minutes and assessed it did not pose a threat to North America.

The United States has said it was looking at discussing with China a new U.N. Security Council resolution and that Beijing, the main diplomatic ally of Pyongyang, realises time was limited to rein in the North's weapons programme through negotiations.

U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, asked what a military conflict with North Korea might look like if diplomacy failed, warned on Sunday that would be "probably the worst kind of fighting in most people's lifetimes."

"The North Korean regime has hundreds of artillery cannons and rocket launchers within range of one of the most densely populated cities on Earth, which is the capital of South Korea," Mattis told CBS news programme "Face the Nation".

"And in the event of war, they would bring danger to China and to Russia as well."

TESTING NEW CAPABILITIES

Japan lodged a protest against the North's latest missile launch which appeared to have landed in Japan's exclusive economic zone.

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Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed action along with other nations to deter Pyongyang's repeated provocations.

"As we agreed at the recent G7, the issue of North Korea is a top priority for the international community," Abe told reporters in brief televised remarks. "Working with the United States, we will take specific action to deter North Korea."

Seoul's new liberal administration has said Pyongyang's repeated test launches were dashing hopes for peace on the Korean Peninsula.

South Korea's Moon swiftly called a meeting of the National Security Council, South Korea's Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

North Korea last test-fired a ballistic missile on May 21 off its east coast and on Sunday said it had tested a new anti-aircraft weapon supervised by leader Kim Jong Un.

North Korea has tested Scud-type short range missiles many times in the past, most recently in April according to U.S. officials. But experts say it may be trying to test new capabilities that may be fed into its efforts to build an ICBM.

"There are many possibilities. It could have been a test for a different type of engine. Or to verify the credibility of the main engine for ICBM's first stage rocket," said Kim Dong-yub, a military expert at Kyungnam University's Far Eastern Studies in Seoul.

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Modified versions of the Scud have a range of up to 1,000 km (620 miles).

On Tuesday, the United States will test an existing missile defense system to try to intercept an ICBM, the first such test, officials said last week.

Also read

North Korea test-fires ballistic missile in defiance of world pressure

North Korea says intermediate-range ballistic missile test confirms warhead guidance

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: Bhubaneswar, May 29 (PTI) Odisha government has set a target to electrify at least 406 villages through solar power during 2017 after providing similar facilities to 1620 villages so far.

This was revealed by Odishas Science and Technology Minister Badri Narayan Patra while addressing a press conference on completion of the three years in office by the Biju Janata Dal government.

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Claiming that the state run Odisha Renewable Energy Development Agency (OERDA) has played a vital role in providing renewable energy to the people living in forested and hilly areas, the minister said, of the 1620 villages so far electrified with solar energy, 145 villages are located in remote area inhabited by tribal population.

This apart, the minister said the solar power also helped the administration in providing drinking water to the people in remote areas. The tube-wells and pump sets are run through solar power in remote areas where electricity connection could not reach due to geographical difficulties.

The minister said so far 6439 solar pump set projects are established in remote areas where above 15 lakh people get benefits. "This year, we have planned to set up at least 2,000 solar solar pump projects and convert 600 traditional pump centres to solar pump projects," Patra said.

While highlighting his departments activities, Patra said at least 689 solar pump set projects are used for irrigating agricultural fields. Solar pump sets irrigates about 8268 acre of land and the government has planned to set up 1,000 solar pump units to use in agricultural purpose this year.

In its bid to popularise renewable energy among the people, the government has set up solar power units in roof tops of ST, SC Hostels, police stations and other places where about 2 MW of power is generated per day.

The state has distributed about 51,966 solar lanterns among the weavers and other skilled workers so that they are able to work for additional 3-4 hours every day, the minister said adding that these people also get rid of smoke emitting from the kerosene lamps. He claimed that the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has awarded the Odisha government for extensive use of solar lanterns during 2015-16.

As part of the renewable purchase obligation, the state government has set up a 25 MW capacity solar power project in Bolangir district from where power is sold to the Grid Corporation of Odisha (Gridco).

Patra said his department in a bid to popularise science among the people has been setting up the states second planetarium at Burla. Plans have also been made to set up similar planetarium at Rayagada, Mayurbhanj and Ganjam districts, he said. PTI AAM RG LNS

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By Press Trust of India: By Shirish B Pradhan

Kathmandu, May 28 (PTI) A leader of Nepals main opposition party CPN-UML was elected the mayor of Kathmandu today, defeating his nearest rival from Nepali Congress by over 19,000 votes in the first local polls held in 20 years.

Bidya Sundar Shakya, 54, secured 64,913 votes to defeat Nepali Congresss Raju Raj Joshi, who secured 45,269 votes.

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Shakyas Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist? Leninist), which contested the polls held on May 14 on the main plank of nationalism, is known for its anti-India stance.

Its president K P Sharma Oli, who became Nepals prime minister in October 2015, resigned in August last year blaming India for his fall. He had then alleged that India was behind the months-long agitation by the Madhesis, who are of India- origin and were demanding amendments to the new Constitution.

Shakya, talking to reporters at City Hall of Kathmandu where the counting took place, expressed his commitment to bring Metro rail network to the Kathmandu valley. He vowed to take steps to reduce air pollution during his five-year term.

Hariprabhav Shrestha of Nepali Congress, a coalition partner of the ruling alliance, was elected the deputy mayor of the Kathmandu Metropolitan City.

The youngest female candidate for mayoral post, Ranju Darshana, representing the newly-formed Biveksheel Nepali Party, which is being described here as a party similar to Indias Aam Aadmi Party, came third with 23,449 votes - far more than Maoist candidate Sarvottam Dangol, who secured 7,900 votes.

In the tourist spot of Pokhara, CPN-UML defeating the nearest rival from Nepali Congress.

In Lalitpur metropolitan city, Nepali Congress won the posts of mayor and deputy mayor.

Of the four metropolitan cities in Nepal where the elections were held, results of three have been declared and the CPN-UML has won the mayoral post in two of them.

The results for Bharatpur metropolitan city seat has not been declared yet. Renu Dahal, the daughter of caretaker Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda is contesting on her Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist-Centres ticket from the seat.

The election, divided in two phases, is a major step in Nepals difficult transition to democracy as local elections are being held for the first time in 20 years.

The final phase is set for June 14, when the restive southern Terai region which is home to the ethnic Madhesi population, will head to the ballot box.

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Political parties representing Madhesi people have opposed the polls until the Constitution is amended to address their demands. They seek more political representation in the parliament and redrawing of provincial boundaries. PTI SBP ABH

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: By Sajjad Hussain

Islamabad, May 29 (PTI) Pakistan is taking a relook at its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance to be led by its former Army chief Gen Raheel Sharif to avoid further straining its relationship with neighbouring Iran, according to a media report today.

The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan has decided to follow clear redlines in joining the alliance first announced by Saudi Arabia in 2015.

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Its decision comes after statements by Saudi authorities at the Arab Islamic-US summit in Riyadh on May 20-21 suggested that the military alliance was meant primarily to counter Iran - a regional rival of Saudi Arabia.

The Riyadh summit focused on isolating Iran - which was kept out of the summit - and countering terrorism in the Middle East.

Pakistani officials insisted that the Pakistan government in-principle agreed to be a part of the initiative if its sole purpose was to fight terrorism. It was believed that the government had joined the alliance when in April it green- lighted Gen Sharif to leave Pakistan to lead the alliance.

But the officials said a final decision will be made once the terms of reference (ToRs) of the alliance are finalised. The ToRs would be finalised during a meeting of the defence ministers of the participating countries in Saudi Arabia soon.

A senior official familiar with the development told the daily that Pakistan would present its set of proposals during the meeting.

Pakistan, according to the official, would recommend that the military alliance should have clear objective, that is to fight terrorism. Any deviation from this goal, he added, will not only undermine the alliance but lead to more divisions in the Muslim world.

"We are very clear that we will join this alliance only to fight terrorism," the official emphasised.

Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria has also indicated that Pakistan was yet to take a final decision.

"What we need to understand is that the Terms of Reference of the alliance are yet to be finalised. The defence ministers of the participating countries will meet and discuss the modalities of the coalition. We must wait until we have all the information to comment on its outcome. We shouldnt indulge in speculations," Zakaria said in one of his briefings.

The Pakistan government has already given a public commitment that it would not become part of any initiative whose aim is to target any other Islamic country, including Iran.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on the floor of the National Assembly has said that Pakistan would withdraw from the alliance if it turns out to be sectarian in nature.

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Even Gen Sharif had reportedly told the Saudis that he would lead the grouping only if its main purpose was to fight terrorism and not aimed at any other Islamic country.

To avoid any strain in its ties with Iran, Pakistan had pushed for mediation between Tehran and Riyadh. Islamabad even mooted the idea of inclusion of Iran in the military alliance.

However, those efforts could not succeed since Saudi Arabia and Iran have serious differences on regional disputes, particularly the current hotspots in the Middle East.

Pakistans main opposition parties ? Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Peoples Party ? have been calling for maintaining "neutrality" in the Arab-Iran rivalry. But given the longstanding strategic ties with Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is unlikely to completely withdraw from the alliance.

Nonetheless, officials stressed, Pakistans participation would remain confined to counter-terrorism efforts. PTI SH ABH AKJ ABH

--- ENDS ---
After the political criticism in recently concluded Arab-American Islamic Summit in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan is reconsidering its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance.

By Hamza Ameer: The recently concluded Arab-American Islamic Summit in Saudi Arabia resulted in political criticism and embarrassment for Pakistan, whose premier Nawaz Sharif was sidelined from major presence. After the humiliation, Pakistan is reconsidering its position on the Saudi-backed 41-nation Islamic military alliance.

Nawaz Sharif was scheduled to deliver a speech at the summit, which was brushed aside by the Saudi leadership, who were pleasing US President Donald Trump through honorary awards and glorified celebrations followed by a long speech. Trump did not mention Pakistan's name among the ally countries playing vital role in the fight against terrorism. It came as a bolt from the blue for Pakistan because the country has been an ally to the US on the fight against terrorism for over 13 years. Pakistan has also sacrificed thousands of its soldiers and civilians in the ongoing scuffle against terror groups operating on its soil.

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WHY IS PAKISTAN RECONSIDERING ON THE POSITION?

Pakistan has also been a recipient of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) by the US as part of the support it inherits as an ally.

But the prime issue that was witnessed during the summit, which was initially called Islamic Military Alliance against Terrorism (IMAT), was the deliberate push towards countering and declaring Iran as a terror state and using IMAT to operate against Iran in the region.

As Pakistan shares its border with Iran and has maintained bilateral relations, which have been on edgy roads with incidents of cross-border infiltration, it realises that it cannot afford to be part of IMAT with alliance member Muslim countries continue to gather focus on an expected offensive against Iran.

Pakistan is still in the process of finalising its terms of reference (TORs) before taking a final call on becoming part of the IMAT. But after the recent cold-shoulder treatment it received at the summit, Pakistan is reconsidering its position.

WHAT PAKISTAN IS TAKING IRAN'S SIDE AGAINST IMAT

The increased tension on the borders has hampered Pakistan and Iran's relations in the recent times. Iran has been accusing Pakistan of not acting against anti-Shia terror groups, which have been on a killing spree is Shia Muslims inside Pakistan and have been involved in cross-border terror attacks in Iran.

KULBHUSHAN CASE AND IRAN-PAKISTAN SCUFFLE

The case of Kulbashan Yadhav, who is on death-row on charges of spying and espionage in Pakistan, sentenced by the military courts has also been major point of contention between the two countries.

Pakistan maintains that Yadhav was carrying a fake Iranian passport with a Muslim name, when he was arrested from Pakistan's Balochistan province, a claim that has been rejected by India. India claims that Pakistan abducted Yadhav through a cross-border infiltration into Iran, capturing Yadhav from inside Iran's territory.

Iran has already asked Pakistan to give them consular access to Yadhav, echoing the repeated requests from India to Pakistan for the same.

Iran has also said that it will do everything in its power to target terrorists on either sides of the border with Pakistan.

Recently, Iran has been shelling areas inside Pakistan's territorial border, which has further tangled the already irked relations between the two countries.

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ALSO READ | 'Why did Nawaz Sharif even go to Riyadh?': Pakistan humiliated at US-Arab-Islamic Summit

--- ENDS ---
By Press Trust of India: Chennai, May 27 (PTI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami today congratulated the NDA government at the Centre for completing three years in office and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying India has made great strides under his leadership. "Congratulations on the successful completion of three years in office as Prime Minister of India," Palaniswami said in a letter to Modi. "India has made great strides under your able, efficient and dynamic leadership. On this occasion, I would like to thank you for extending all co-operation and support to the government of Tamil Nadu," he said. Palaniswami also wished Modi many more years of good health to continue to serve the nation and people of India. "I pray that the Almighty blesses you with many more years of good health to continue serving the nation and the people of India," he said. The NDA government has lined up a series of events, detailing various developmental schemes, to be held across the country as part of completing three years. On May 24, during his meeting with Modi at Delhi, Palaniswami had invited Modi to be the chief guest at two events to honour late AIADMK stalwarts and former chief ministers M G Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa. PTI VIJ BN RCJ

--- ENDS ---

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A guy who supposedly went to Parineeti Chopra's school has slammed her for her "fabricated sob story" about growing up poor.

By India Today Web Desk: At a recent event, Parineeti Chopra shared a touching story about her childhood struggles. The actor said that growing up, her family was poor and she could not afford a car to go to school. Parineeti talked about being eve-teased as she cycled to school every day, and how she has become a stronger person as a result of facing such struggles very early in her life.

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However, if a guy supposedly from Parineeti's school, is to be believed, the actor's rags-to-riches story is a lie. Kkanoo Gupta took to Facebook to slam Parineeti for "lying through the teeth" about her impoverished background.

"Shame...coming from a privileged background and lying through the teeth in front of camera. I guess this is what being a celebrity means. Create a fabricated sob story of no money no car etc etc (sic)," he wrote.

He added, "Coming from the same school I probably also remember the car her father used to have. And going to school on a cycle was a trend those days and also a privilege not everyone had. My friends from CJM (Convent of Jesus and Mary) would probably understand the lies a bit better (sic)."

Photo: Screenshot

Comments on the post seem to agree that Parineeti came from an influential family in Ambala and even cited her education at the University of Manchester as an example.

Is the actor indeed lying? Only she can answer.

ALSO READ: Is Parineeti Chopra in a relationship with assistant director Charit Desai?

ALSO WATCH: Relationships are so much fun, says Parineeti Chopra

--- ENDS ---
Army, SWAT commandoes have launched a search operation after the bag was found hidden and stuffed in a gunny sack.

By India Today Web Desk: A high alert has been sounded in Punjab's Pathankot district after a suspicious bag was spotted near Mamoon military station last night.

A local resident informed the police about the bag on Sunday.

Five shirts and two trousers were found in a wheat flour bag, with 'Jammu' on written on it, at a secluded place near the Defence Road.

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Army, SWAT commandoes have launched a search operation after the bag was found hidden and stuffed in a gunny sack.

Investigation is on and more details are awaited.

Earlier in May, security alert was sounded in Pathankot after two suspicious bags were found lying unattended just a few yards away from the military base. The police had recovered mobile tower batteries from the bags.

Punjab:High alert in Pathankot, search Op being conducted by police SWAT team & Army after a suspicious bag containing 3 uniforms was found pic.twitter.com/WbeKEq6N6p ANI (@ANI_news) 29 May 2017

In January last year, seven jawans were killed and over 37 people were injured in a terror attack on Pathankot air base.

In 2015, three heavily-armed terrorists wearing Army fatigues, had hijacked a car and stormed a police station in Dinanagar town of Gurdaspur district. They killed seven persons, including a Superintendent of Police, before they were gunned down.

Also Read:

Pathankot: Two suspicious bags found near military base, alert sounded

Punjab Police launch search operation after suspicious men spotted in Pathankot, Gurdaspur

Pakistani intruder shot dead by BSF in Gurdaspur

NSG names new auditorium after braveheart who lost life in Pathankot attack

WATCH | Punjab: High alert in Pathankot after discovery of suspicious bag containing Army uniforms

--- ENDS ---
PM Modi condemned the incident and directed the authorities to bring to punish the culprits for committing such an inhuman act.

By India Today Web Desk: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 1 lakh to next of kin of e-rickshaw driver beaten to death for stopping 2 youths from urinating in public.

PM Modi, who is on a four nation tour, sanctioned Rs one lakh from the Prime Minister's National Relief fund to the next of kin of Ravindra Kumar, who was beaten to death for stopping two people from urinating in the public in Delhi. The prime minister condemned the incident and directed the authorities to bring to book and punish the culprits for committing such an inhuman act.

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Earlier in the day, Urban Development and Information and Broadcasting Minister M Venkaiah Naidu also visited the family of the Kumar at GTB Nagar in Delhi. He also handed over a cheque of Rs 50,000 from his salary to the family terming the act as condemnable.

The Union minister said, "Sad that an e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping two people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting #SwachhBharat."

DELHI GOVERNMENT ALSO ANNOUNCED COMPENSATION

The Delhi government also announced Rs 5 lakh compensation for the family of the e-rickshaw driver. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who announced the compensation for Kumar's kin, said the amount will be provided from the LG-CM's relief fund.

In another development, two students of a prominent college in Delhi University's North Campus have been detained in connection with the murder of the e-rickshaw driver. After going through the CCTV footage of the area where the incident occurred, the two students were detained.

The duo, along with hostellers, allegedly attacked the e-rickshaw driver on Saturday evening.

Also read: Delhi e-rickshaw driver killed: Top DU college students detained, Venkaiah Naidu meets bereaved family

Also read: PM Modi lands in Germany, to meet Angela Merkel

WATCH VIDEO HERE

--- ENDS ---
Modi is to hold a private meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at her country resort of Schloss Meseberg.

By India Today Web Desk: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived today on the first leg of a six-day, four-nation European tour that will also take him to Spain, Russia and France.

His visit to Germany, which he described as a "new chapter" in bilateral relations, commenced with a meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel at her country retreat of Schloss Meseberg.

LIVE UPDATES:

PM Modi says he had a "very good interaction" with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during an informal meet

Modi and Merkel discussed issues of mutual interest in an informal setting over dinner at the 18th-century palace, nearly 80 km northwest of Berlin.

Germany: Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets and interacts with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at Schloss Meseberg pic.twitter.com/teEk7mbyFj ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

"I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership," Modi said in a Facebook post ahead of his visit.

Modi had earlier said he and Merkel will "chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine."

Describing Germany as a valuable partner, the prime minister said, "German competencies fit well with my vision for India's transformation."

Reached Germany. I am sure this visit will lead to beneficial outcomes & deepen India-Germany friendship. pic.twitter.com/RdYLWUYeMn Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 29, 2017

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#WATCH Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at Schloss Meseberg, Germany pic.twitter.com/4WfqZSUm0J ANI (@ANI_news) May 29, 2017

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The owner of the mine Amit Bahadur who outbid 32 others today claimed that he never cooked food and is being defamed by some people.

The owner of the mine Amit Bahadur who outbid 32 others today claimed that he never cooked food and is being defamed by some people.

By Manjeet Sehgal: In a new twist to the Rs 26.51 crore mining bid controversy, the owner of the mine Amit Bahadur who outbid 32 others today claimed that he never cooked food and is being defamed by some people.

"I never worked as a cook. I worked in Rana Gurjit Singh's firm but not as a cook but in the human resources department," Amit Bahadur, 36, a former employee of Rana Sugars Ltd told India Today.

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Clarifying his position, Bahadur said that the money invested in the mining belongs to Captain JS Randhawa. He also claimed that he is one of the partners of the firm which won Rs 26.51 crore mining bid.

"I am both an employee as well as a partner of Captain JS Randhawa-owned firm. I own five per cent share. The money will be invested by Randhawa and I did not pay even a single rupee," Bahadur said.

Bahadur, who allegedly worked as Punjab Irrigation and Power Minister Rana Gurjit Singh's cook, said that he had no relations with the minister after he quit as his employee.

RANA GURJIT SINGH IN THE DOCK

Amit Bhadur, who is of Nepalese origin, is not the only employee of Rana Gurjit Singh who has bagged a mining contract. Three other employees including Kulwinder Paul Singh, Gurinder Singh and Balraj Singh also bagged the mining contracts. While Bahadur bagged Rs 26.51 crore, Kulwinder Paul Singh got Rs 9.21 crore, Gurinder Singh got Rs 4.11 crore and Balraj Singh got a mine contract by paying Rs 10.58 crore.

While only Amit Bahadur has come forward to clarify, the three other employees are yet to reveal how they got the mining contracts.

Interestingly, Captain Randhawa is a close aide of Rana Gurjit Singh and the claims made by Bahadur that he has no relations with the minister have been proven wrong by the Opposition. Captain Randhawa worked as Rana's poll manager during the Assembly elections and is his close aide.

AAP and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) have demanded a probe into the allotment of mining projects to the employees of the Rana Gurjit Singh.

"I am sure that the money trail, if investigated, will be linked to Rana Gurjit," AAP MLA and former chief of Whip Sukhpal Singh Khaira said.

Akali Dal has also demanded action against the mining department officials who ignored the financial status of the bidders. Advocate HC Arora has already served notice on Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, besides others for money laundering in the name of mine auctions.

AAP has demanded resignation of Rana Gurjit Singh, who is in the dock for the controversial mining auctions. The party workers have even threatened to protest outside Captain Amarinder Singh's residence on Tuesday.

Captain Aamrinder Singh has ordered a probe but the Opposition parties have termed it a mere eyewash.

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ALSO READ | How Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh carries forward BJP ideology in his last political inning

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While three men were arrested by Sunday night, the fourth was nabbed today.

By India Today Web Desk: The Uttar Pradesh police has successfully arrested four prime accused in the shocking Rampur molestation case, in which a group of men were seen heckling and harassing two women in a video that went viral on social media, while a massive manhunt is underway to nab the remaining absconding perpetrators.

While three men were arrested by yesterday night, the fourth was nabbed today.

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The main accused in the Rampur molestation case, Shah Nawaz was among the 14 who molested two girls on a city road, filmed the incident and then posted it on social media networks. A Home Department official also said that all the accused have been identified and an FIR has been lodged against them. The others are, however, still at large.

"All the four prime accused have been arrested. Till yesterday night, the police had arrested three. The search is on. Our four teams are out in search of the others accused," Rampur Superintendent of Police (SP) Vipin Tanda told ANI.

Around 14 boys can be seen in the video, molesting the women, even while they pleaded to let them go. Proving the sheer fearlessness of the perpetrators, the boys filmed the entire development and posted it on social media.

Besides manhandling and molesting the girls, the boys were laughing and making jokes the whole time, while the distraught girls kept on begging to be spared.

Surprisingly, it was not much long ago when Yogi Adityanath Government has launched 'Anti-Romeo' squads to check on eve-teasing in public areas, to ensure the safety of girls in the state.

Police officials also said that while no complaint has been filed by the victims, police has taken suo moto cognisance of the matter and lodged the FIR against Farman, Jahan-e-Alam, Saddam and others, all residents of Kuva Kheda village of Rampur.

Rampur SSP Vipin Tanda told IANS that the Rampur police, after noticing two women being harassed by a dozen men in a video uploaded on social media, lodged the complaint.

The incident occurred on May 22.

Meanwhile, former Urban Development Minister Azam Khan, who is also the local legislator, drew outrage after he suggested that to avoid such crimes against them, women should sit at home and remain protected.

He also targeted the media and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath by saying that he was "thankful to them as because of their making light of such crimes, criminals were getting emboldened".

"After the Bulandshahr incident, everyone should try to keep women of the family indoors. Girls should not go to places where there is a brazen dance of shamelessness," said Azam Khan while referring to the July 2016 gang rape of a minor and her mother in Bulandshahr.

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Flaying the Yogi Adityanath government for the alleged rising crime graph in the state, he said the Rampur molestation was not surprising as "so many cases of rape, murder and loot have taken place under the present government".

Khan has a penchant for making controversial statements. He was made to apologise by the Supreme Court for calling the Bulandshahr case a "political conspiracy".

ALSO READ |

Uttar Pradesh horror: 14 boys grope, molest 2 women in broad daylight, upload video

Rampur molestation: Police arrest main accused, others involved still at large

Azam Khan on Rampur incident: UP girls should stay indoors to avoid molestation

WATCH | How 14 men ganged up to molest 2 women in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur

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By Press Trust of India: Summary of observations recorded at 0830 hrs:

Southwest monsoon has further advanced into some parts of south Arabian Sea, Maldives - Comorin area and some more parts of southwest, southeast and east central Bay of Bengal, today. The Northern Limit of Monsoon (NLM) passes through, Lat.7N/Long.60E, Lat.7N/Long.70E, Lat.7N/Long.79E, Lat.11N/Long.86E, Lat.15N/Long.91E and Lat.18N/Long.94.5E. Present meteorological conditions indicate that conditions are favourable for onset of southwest monsoon over Kerala on 30th May 2017.

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Simultaneously, onset is likely over most parts of northeastern states as well. Along with this, conditions are also favourable for further advance of southwest monsoon into most parts of south Arabian Sea, Maldives - Lakshadweep area, Kerala, some parts of Tamil Nadu, some more parts of southwest Bay of Bengal, east central Bay of Bengal, remaining parts of southeast Bay of Bengal and some parts of west central and north Bay of Bengal and most parts of northeast India during next 24 hours.

The Depression over eastcentral Bay of Bengal moved northeastwards, intensified into a Deep Depression and lay centred at 1430 hrs IST of yesterday, the 28th May 2017 over eastcentral Bay of Bengal near Lat.15.4N/ Long.90.5E, about 820 kms south-southeast of Kolkata and 770 kms south-southwest of Chittagong (Bangla Desh). It moved further northeastwards and lay centred at 1730 hrs IST of yesterday, the 28th May 2017 over eastcentral Bay of Bengal near Lat.15.7N/Long.90.7E, about 800 kms south-southeast of Kolkata and 740 kms south-southwest of Chittagong. Moving northeastwards, it further intensified into Cyclonic Storm MORA over eastcentral Bay of Bengal and lay centred at 2030 hrs IST of yesterday, the 28th May 2017 near Lat.16.0N/Long.91.0E, about 770 kms a. s. l. south-southeast of Kolkata and 700 kms south-southwest of Chittagong. It further moved north-northeastwards and lies at 0830 hrs IST of today, the 29th May 2017 over eastcentral Bay of Bengal near Lat.17.3N/Long.91.3E, about 660 kms south-southeast of Kolkata and 550 kms south-southwest of Chittagong. The system is likely to intensify further into a Severe Cyclonic Storm during next 12 hours. (MORE) PTI BAS

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By Press Trust of India: Ahmedabad, May 29 (PTI) Two persons were detained today with scrapped currency notes having a face value of nearly Rs 50 lakh, said police.

Based on a specific tip off, officials of Ahmedabad Rural police kept a watch at Sanathal Circle on the outskirts of the city this morning and nabbed two persons as soon as they get off a car, said a release by the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Ahmedabad district police.

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Though police managed to nab the duo, who was carrying a box, the car driver drove off after spotting law enforcement personnel, said the release.

While checking the box, police found scrapped currency notes in Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denominations having a cumulative face value of Rs 49.93 lakh, said the release.

The detained persons were identified as Shantibhai Chudasama and Habib Sama, both residents of the city.

As they could not gave satisfactory reply about the source of the cash and where they were heading with the money, SOG seized the notes, the release said, adding further investigation was on. PTI PJT PD RSY

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A Saudi court has upheld a 23-year-old disabled man's death sentence despite international criticism. Munir al-Adam was sentenced to death for "attacks on police" and participating in the 2012 demonstrations.

By India Today Web Desk: A 23-year-old disabled man was arrested after he attended a protest in Saudi Arabia in 2012, he was later sentenced to death in a secretive trial last year but despite international criticism a Saudi court has upheld his sentence now.

Munir al-Adam, steel cable worker, will soon be executed since a Saudi court has upheld his sentence.

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In 2016, Munir was sentenced to death for "attacks on police" and other offences during protests in 2012 by country's Specialised Criminal Court but the death sentence was not carried out.

Also read: Despite male guardianship system, Saudi Arabia gets elected to UN women's rights commission

Despite international criticism and human rights activists slamming the decision, demanding US' intervention, an appellate court has said that the death sentence should be carried out.

This gives Munir only one more chance to save himself by appealing the decision once more before King Salman signs his death warrant.

He was tortured by police and forced to sign a false confession, as reported by the Independent. Munir was partially blind and partially deaf at the time of arrest but now he is completely deaf in one ear. He was beaten up badly after his arrest which led to the hearing impairment.

What is shocking for the human right activists is that no evidence was produced at Munir's trial other than the signed confession which according to them was fake.

Also read: Has Islamic preacher Zakir Naik got Saudi Arabian citizenship?

Saudi authorities has accused Munir of sending texts but apparently he is too poor to own a phone. Munir's family had issued a statement rejecting the verdict and claiming that he had been tortured into confessing it.

Many believe that US President Donald Trump's failure to raise the issue of human rights with Saudi leaders during his recent visit has emboldened the state to carry on with such decisions.

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Fajjar Noor, a class nine student was pushed from the rooftop of a school building in Pakistan by senior teachers. She is suffering from multiple fractures and her spinal cord is also broken.

By Press Trust of India: A 14-year-old Pakistani girl was allegedly pushed by two of her teachers from the rooftop of a school building in the Punjab province for refusing to "clean the classroom", a media report said.

Fajjar Noor, a class-IX girl student, is battling for her life at Ghurki Hospital, Lahore. She has got multiple fractures and her spinal cord is also broken.

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"My class teachers Bushra and Rehana ordered me to clean the classroom as today (May 23), was my turn to do so. I told them that I was not feeling well and she would do it some other day. On this they took me to another room and started slapping me. Then they took me to the rooftop and ordered me to clean it (roof). When I argued, they pushed me from the rooftop," Noor was quoted as saying by Dawn news, after she regained consciousness.

The incident took place at the City District Government Girls School, Kot Shahabdin, Shahdara and the teachers, have been booked for attempted murder case.

"Two senior teachers - Rehana Kausar and Bushra Tufail - first inflicted corporal punishment on Fajjar Noor and then took her to top floor of the school building and pushed her down," Punjab Secretary Education (schools) Allah Bakhsh Malik said.

"The incident took place on May 23 but the school administration and some other officials kept it secret from the education department," Malik said.

"We came to know about (the incident) on Saturday evening. A departmental inquiry has been launched and the matter has also been referred to the Chief Minister Inspection Team for a thorough probe," he added.

"The chief minister has immediately placed District Education Authority Chief Executive Officer Ehsan Malik, Deputy DEO Tayyaba Butt and Headmistress Naghmana Irshad under suspension for hiding the incident. Both teachers have also been suspended and they will be proceeded under the Punjab Employees Efficiency and Disciplinary Act," he said.

"Although Malik visited us and tried to allay our concerns. The CM should come and see my daughters condition...she is in extreme pain," said Rukhsana Bibi, Noors mother.

Shahdara Town police have registered FIR against the teachers under section 324 (attempted murder). "Police teams are raiding their residences, however no arrest has been made so far," a police official said.

ALSO READ:

Nightmare on Patna's Streets

Patriarchy, crime, violence forcing more girls to quit schools in Uttar Pradesh

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By India Today Web Desk: Her father is Bollywood's King Khan and Suhana Khan too shares the dream of making it big in the film industry. It is no secret that Suhana is keen to follow her dad's footsteps and join Bollywood. And even before her big screen debut, Suhana has found a fan in none other than Shabana Azmi.

The celebrated actor, who recently saw a clip of Suhana's performance, took to Twitter to praise the teenager. She said that Suhana is going to be a 'seriously good actor'.

@iamsrk Mark my words #Suhanakhan is going to be a seriously good actor.Ive watched a short clip of her acting and it was terrific.Bless her https://t.co/bdqYrEM8S7- Azmi Shabana (@AzmiShabana) May 28, 2017

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Touched by Azmi's words, proud daddy Shah Rukh instantly replied, "How sweet are you to say that. and of course when u say it then its big encouragement for the little one. Thanks. (sic)"

How sweet are you to say that. & of course when u say it then it's big encouragement for the little one. Thanks. https://t.co/hfFW8hx3o2- Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) May 28, 2017

Earlier this year, Suhana's acting skills were lauded when a clip from her school play went viral.

Omg she is so Beautiful And her voice is so cute, and her acting ?????? A post shared by Suhana Khan FC (@suhana.khan) on Feb 8, 2017 at 10:31am PST

Earlier, SRK had revealed that Suhana is keen on joining Bollywood. In an interview to PTI, Shah Rukh had said, "My daughter wants to learn acting, but I don't know which institute in India I should send her to. We don't have any good acting school. One of my dream projects is to be able to create an institute where youngsters can come and learn professional acting, techniques of acting, different styles of acting."

ALSO READ: SRK's daughter Suhana turns Cinderella for a school play, video goes viral

ALSO READ: Shah Rukh Khan's daughter Suhana parties with her gang

ALSO WATCH: Shah Rukh khan speaks about his still-in-progress book 20 Years of a Decade and more

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By Press Trust of India: Colombo, May 29 (PTI) Indian Navy diving and medical teams have been deployed to assist Sri Lanka Navy operations in the flood-hit southwestern region, as the death toll from the disaster today rose to 177 with 104 people still missing in the island nations worst torrential rains in 14 years.

Rescuers pulled out more bodies buried in the mudslides triggered by monsoon rains, taking the death toll to 177. The death toll is expected to rise further as 109 people are still missing, according to the Disaster Management Centre.

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Sri Lankan Naval spokesperson Chaminda Walakauluge said two Indian ships INS Kirch and INS Shardul have arrived and "they joined us (Sri Lanka Navy) in extending relief".

Indian Navy diving and medical teams arrived in INS Shardul yesterday have been deployed to assist Sri Lanka Navy operations at Kalutara, Ratmalana and Galle.

Indian High Commission here tweeted images of "Indian diving and medical teams deployed at Kalutara, Ratmalana (and) Galle with (Sri Lankan) navy relief (operations)."

Indian Naval personnel of INS Kirch that arrived in the island on Saturday are currently engaging in flood relief operations at Udugama and Galapatha in the Kalutara District in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Navy.

"They are here as part of Indias continued commitment to assist in flood relief efforts in Sri Lanka in response to a request from the Government of Sri Lanka," the Indian High Commission said.

INS Shardul has nearly 200 personnel on board, including specialized rescue, diving and medical teams, as well as a large amount of relief material and Gemini inflatable boats.

INS Kirch was carrying 125 personnel. It had diving teams, relief supplies, inflatable gemini boats and a mobile medical teams.

The Indian ships brought in rice, atta (flour), dal, sugar, bed sheets, blankets, durries, rain coats, milk, biscuits etc.

The rescue, diving and medical teams on board were deployed in coordination with the Sri Lanka Navy and other authorities, in the worst affected areas in the south and the Western regions of Ratnapura and Horana, Sri Lankan Navy said.

A third Indian ship, INS Jalashwa, with additional relief material, is also expected to arrive today with more relief.

Lankan Foreign Minister Ravi Karunanayake thanked India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for providing assistance within hours of a request being made.

Karuanayake said Prime Minister Modis gesture demonstrated the new level of Indo-Lanka relations under the current government of the President Maithripala Sirisena.

Meanwhile, the Meteorology Department today warned of more rains followed by strong winds and people residing in low lying areas in the south were advised to evacuate to safer locations as all the major rivers are overflowing.

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More rains are expected in the next two days as the depression in the east central Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm MORA and is now moving away from the island, it said.

The incessant rains experienced since Thursday night have driven nearly half a million people out of their inundated homes in the southern and western regions.

Police said a Sri Lankan Airforce helicopter (SLAF) MI-17 carrying relief aid for flood victims crashed in the southern Galle district, the worst hit of the 14 districts by flash floods and earth slips in the on going monsoonal rains, while carrying out relief operations in the flood-stricken areas.

There were no casualties and Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena telephoned Squadron Leader Bhanuka Delgoda, the pilot of the MI-17, to congratulate him for his bravery.

The pilot lost control of the helicopter due to bad weather and crashed into woods, police said.

On Saturday, a Lanka Air Force airman, Y M S Yaparatne, 37, died while carrying out relief operations in the Galle district as he fell off from the helicopter.

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Flood waters were receding in the worst affected districts of Ratnapura and Kalutara but the authorities said cleaning up operations could take weeks.

Some 412 houses were fully damaged with over 4,200 houses suffering partial damage. Some 471,000 people remain displaced while over 75,000 people are currently being housed in over 330 temporary relief accommodation.

Following Indias lead in sending out emergency relief to Sri Lanka, more countries have started pledging assistance to provide relief to the flood victims.

China is to donate relief items worth of USD 2.2 million.

The relief goods, to be dispatched to Colombo by a chartered flight soon, include tents, blankets, sheets, rain boots and life jackets.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang sent condolence messages to President Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe respectively on the loss of the lives and property in floods and landslides caused by heavy rain.

The flooding is the worst since May 2003 when 250 people were killed and 10,000 homes destroyed after a similarly powerful Southwest monsoon, officials had said.

Sri Lanka, which has been heavily deforested for cash crops, often witnesses landslides during the monsoon season. PTI CORR KJ NSA ZH AKJ ZH

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By Press Trust of India: Hyderabad, May 29 (PTI) The Cyberabad police have arrested a sub-registrar and two directors of different real estate firms for allegedly transferring government land to private companies and causing losses to the state exchequer.

Government land measuring 693 acres was transferred to private companies leading to a loss of Rs 587 crore to the state exchequer.

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R Srinivasa Rao, sub-registrar of Kukatpally besides PS Parthasarathi and PVS Sharma, two directors, were arrested yesterday in connection with the "illegal" transfer of government land in Miyapur village on city outskirts, a release from Cyberabad Police said.

A police complaint said, Trinity Infra Ventures Ltd represented by its authorised signatory PS Parthasarathi (director) registered four documents in favour of Suvishal Power Gen Ltd, represented by its signatory PVS Sharma (director) by transferring the government lands to an extent of 693 acres which were registered at Sub Registrar Office (SRO), Kukatpally.

"During the course of investigation, it was found that the four documents were registered at SRO, Kukatpally, in violation of Registration Act-1908 provisions and thereby causing loss of Rs 587.11 crore to the state," it said.

According to police, PS Parthasarathi and others prepared a general power of attorney (GPA) from one Ameerunnisha Begum and seven others on January 15, 2016 to show that the land belonged to these persons, it said.

Later Parthasarathi executed a deed infavour of Suvishal Power Gen Ltd on January 21, 2016, it said.

"Thus Parthasarathi and Sharma in collusion with Srinivasa Rao, got registered government lands and caused major revenue loss to the government," the release added. PTI VVK RMT

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The Cellular Operators Association of India had moved the apex court challenging Rajasthan government's order on removal of mobile towers near state prisons.

By India Today Web Desk: The Supreme Court today issued a notice to the Rajasthan government putting on hold an order directing mobile phone operators to remove their towers from within 500 metres of jail premises across the state.

The state government has been asked by the top court to reply within four weeks.

The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) had moved the Supreme Court challenging Rajasthan government's order on removal of mobile towers located within 500 metres of state prisons from June 8.

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A bench of Justice A K Sikri and Justice Deepak Gupta stayed the Rajasthan government order as senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the bench that removal of cell towers would affect 80 lakh subscribers.

In 2015, the apex court had stayed the interim order of the Rajasthan High Court to uninstall several ground-based towers and ban new installations by Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited in Jaipur.

(with inputs from agencies)

ALSO READ:

COAI moves SC against Raj govt order on removal of cell towers

Triple talaq: Supreme Court concludes hearing, reserves verdict on constitutional validity

Plea in Delhi HC raises safety concern over Antriksh Bhawan

ALSO WATCH:

Triple talaq: Supreme Court reserves verdict as 6-day hearing ends

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Taapsee Pannu is on a fashion-wonder spree, and we don't want her to stop, ever.

By Shivani Chhabra: Taapsee Pannu is on fire, and it is the kind of fire, we can never be scared of. The chirpy Naam Shabana actor, who is known for her vibrant and flowy outfits is setting new parameters with her flamboyant outfits. And honestly, we're so lovin' it.

Just when we thought that it couldn't get better after her hot pink dress, she burst our bubble and managed to put us in a state of trance.

Picture courtesy: Instagram/afashionistadiaries

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Also Read: Taapsee Pannu is a miracle in pink, and this is not about the movie

Taapsee was spotted in a yellow sleeveless top which saw an appealing amalgamation of peplum-vibes and neat pleats.

The pleats looked jazzy and peppy, while the peplum gave an elegant tinge to the bright outfit. We're kind of crushing over that top a bit too much. Why? Because it has got the best of both worlds!

Picture courtesy: Instagram/bollywoodfashionfiesta

She paired the bumblebee-hued top with a matching pair of trousers that had white-floral embroidery on one side. Doing what it does best, the floral embroidery make everything so much better.

Also Read: 5 times Konkona Sen Sharma redefined the beauty of comfortable, easygoing fashion

The beautiful embroidery lit up the sunny vibe of this chic outfit further, and made us fall in love with the smart blend of multiple clothing aesthetics in just this one ensemble by Divya Reddy.

Picture courtesy: Instagram/vinayaghamurthy77

Taapsee tied her hair in an elegant low bun, and sported a pair of golden, open-toe stilettos and kept it subtle.

The actor was overjoyed in her bright attire, and looked like our own version of Little Miss Sunshine.

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Sources tell India Today that a powerful AIADMK minister was also associated with the lobbyist P Rajaratinam.

The interview of Peter Craig Jones, original owner of Kodanad estate - summer abode of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa - has opened a can of worms. In the interview to India Today he had said that few powerful politicians and another lobbyist P Rajaratinam had coerced his family to give up the property.

Sources tell India Today that a powerful AIADMK minister was also associated with the 57-year-old P Rajaratinam, who hails from Tirupur. His father was working in Dhanalakshmi Mills. An ambitious Rajaratinam launched A to Z Corporation in 1983 to provide government supplies.

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That's when in 1991 he got in close touch with the minister who was the face of AIADMK in Coimbatore region.

Slowly he got into the good books of Jayalalithaa and Sasikala. He was the one who brokered the Kodanad deal and pressurised Peter and his family, according to sources.

Rajaratinam then became a business tycoon. He was called the 'Takeover King'. He also started a financial company and moved to Mumbai. But he got accused in many fraud cases because of which he is now absconding in London.

Meanwhile, in his interview to India Today, Peter Caign Jonnes had mentioned that the late Ramachandra Udaiyar, liquor baron, was the benami. It was on his name the partnership was transferred initially. Later it was transferred to Jayalalithaa and Sasikala.

Also read:

Kodanad estate: Original owner speaks up, says was forced to sell estate to Amma, VK Sasikala

Kodanad murder mystery: 2 accused meet with accidents; property papers of Jayalalithaa worth crores stolen

Also watch:

Kodanad estate row: AIADMK rubbishes allegations by former owner Peter Edward Jones

--- ENDS ---
By Reuters: US President Donald Trump attacked the news media and dismissed leaks from the White House as "fake news" on Sunday, following reports his son-in-law tried to set up a secret channel of communications with Moscow before Trump took office.

Shortly after Trump's remarks on Twitter, Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly made the rounds of Sunday television news shows to praise any so-called back channel communications, especially with Russia, as "a good thing."

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The Republican president returned to the White House after a nine-day trip to the Middle East and Europe that ended on Saturday to face more questions about alleged communications between Jared Kushner and Russia's ambassador to Washington.

"It is my opinion that many of the leaks coming out of the White House are fabricated lies made up by the #FakeNews media," Trump wrote in a series of Twitter posts on Sunday.

WHITE HOUSE FACES QUESTIONS

The White House faces mounting questions about potential ties between Russia and Trump's presidential campaign, which are also the subject of criminal and congressional investigations. Trump officials were preparing to establish a "war room" to address an issue that has begun to dominate his young presidency.

Aides said Trump was expected to meet with lawyers as early as Sunday, the New York Times reported.

Two Republican US senators played down the Kushner reports on Sunday, while the former director of national intelligence, James Clapper, took a darker view of such contacts with representatives of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"My dashboard warning light was clearly on and I think that was the case with all of us in the intelligence community - very concerned about the nature of these approaches to the Russians," Clapper told NBC's "Meet The Press."

Kushner, who is married to Trump's daughter Ivanka, had contacts with Moscow in December about opening a secret back channel of communications, according to news reports published while Trump was away on his trip.

The 36-year-old Kushner, a real estate developer with no previous government experience, had at least three previously undisclosed contacts with the Russian ambassador to the United States during and after the 2016 presidential campaign, seven current and former US officials told Reuters.

"Whenever you see the words 'sources say' in the fake news media, and they don't mention names," Trump wrote, "it is very possible that those sources don't exist but are made up by fake news writers. #FakeNews is the enemy!"

Contacts between Trump associates and Russian officials during the campaign coincided with what US intelligence agencies concluded was a Kremlin effort through computer hacking, fake news and propaganda to boost Trump's chances of winning the White House.

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'A GOOD THING'

White House officials defended the concept of secret communications channels without commenting specifically on the Kushner case. National security adviser H.R. McMaster told reporters on Saturday that so-called back-channeling was not unusual.

Kelly, the homeland security secretary, carried the same message on Sunday.

"It's both normal, in my opinion, and acceptable," he said on ABC's "This Week" program. "Any way that you can communicate with people, particularly organizations that are maybe not particularly friendly to us, is a good thing."

Kelly told "Fox News Sunday" there was nothing wrong with the Trump transition team trying to build relationships with the Russians as they prepared to take over the White House.

US Representative Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said such secret channels may be used in situations including peace talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan or for the release of American hostages.

"But for people associated with the campaign after that campaign has ended and where the Russians during that campaign were helping you, to try to establish a back channel and hide it from your own government, that's a serious allegation," he said.

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Schiff was particularly concerned about a Washington Post report that the back channel would have been conducted at a Russian diplomatic facility to avoid monitoring in US communications systems. "You have to ask, well, who are they hiding the conversation from?" he said on ABC.

Schiff said he expected Kushner, who serves as an unpaid adviser to Trump, to appear before his committee and suggested his security clearance be reviewed.

KUSHNER UNDER SCRUTINY

Kushner initially had come to the attention of FBI investigators last year as they began scrutinizing former national security adviser Michael Flynn's connections with Russian officials, the two sources told Reuters.

Republican USA Senator Lindsey Graham told CNN he doubted the Kushner reports were accurate. Senator Bob Corker, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, noted that Kushner has been willing to answer questions. "They reached out to us yesterday to make sure that we knew that was the case and I'm sure he's willing to do so," Corker said on NBC's "Meet the Press."

Though he had not seen evidence of collusion when he stepped down on Jan. 20, Clapper said all the signs made an FBI investigation not only appropriate but necessary.

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"Russia, at least for my money, is our primary adversary," he told NBC. "They are not our friends. They are in to do us in."

Also Read:

Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner sought back channel with Putin to bypass diplomats: Sources

Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner met executives of US sanctioned Russian bank, will testify

--- ENDS ---
Tundla MLA Dr SP Singh Baghel is under controversy for allegedly using a 'false' caste certificate in his affidavit for the election.

By Siraj Qureshi: Barely two months after being sworn-in as a minister in Uttar Pradesh government, Yogi Adityanath's senior Cabinet senior member and Tundla MLA Dr SP Singh Baghel's has come under fire. The Allahabad High Court has issued notice to Baghel to explain why he used a Scheduled Caste (SC) certificate when he belongs to the Other Backward Castes in his affidavit for the election.

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Baghel had won the election from Tundla Assembly seat of Firozabad district with a huge margin this year. The seat was reserved for SC candidates this time and Baghel had filed a caste certificate claiming that he belonged to the 'Dhangar' community, which comes under SC. However, former MLA of Tundla Rakesh Babu filed a case against Baghel in the high court, claiming that Baghel had lied in his affidavit and he actually belonged to 'Gadariya' community, which was a backward caste according to the UP reservation rules.

Talking to India Today, Babu's lawyer Rakesh Gupta said that Baghel is originally a resident of Umri Village of Auraiya district of UP. "He and his family belong to the 'Garadiya' community which is listed on the 19th place in the Schedule 1 of UP Backward Castes Reservation Rules, 1994. Despite that, Baghel contested the Tundla reserve seat elections on a falsified certificate, getting it made in his Agra address even though he is a native of Auraiya," Rakesh Babu added.

Interestingly, Baghel has also been the national president of BJP's Backward Caste Cell.

BAGHELS'S BROTHERS FROM GARADIYA COMMUNITY

Gupta talking to India Today said that there are very few people belonging to the 'Dhangar' community in Uttar Pradesh and most of them are concentrated around Sonbhadra district of UP, with a total percentage of barely 0.01 per cent.

The court has also been informed that Baghel's elder brother Brajraj Singh and younger brother Virendra Singh are both from the 'Garadiya' community. Baghel's eldest brother Vishambhar Singh's son Hanumant Singh had tried to get a 'Dhangar' community certificate, which had been canceled by the district committee. Gupta has also included documentary evidence along with the petition, requesting that Baghel's election be cancelled on these grounds.

NOTICE ISSUED TO BAGHEL

Acting on this petition, the court, headed by Justice MC Tripathi, has issued a notice to Baghel, seeking his explanation on this issue.

Talking to India Today, Baghel said that he will submit a written reply to the court and said, "I do not think it is good to make any comments in the media on this issue."

A senior district official told India Today that the Samajwadi Party government's ordinance to grant SC/ST status to Garadiya and 16 other backward communities has been stayed by the Allahabad High Court. The SP government had issued this order on December 21-22 in 2016, which was blocked by the high court bench headed by Justice DV Bhonsle and Justice Yashvant Verma on a PIL filed by Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar Granthalay, Gorakhpur.

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Such an order had been issued by the SP government in 2005 too, but it had been retracted before the matter went to the court.

Also read: Lucknow: Yogi Adityanath's security asks Sikh man to remove his turban, CM assures action

Also read: Rampur molestation: 4 accused arrested, hunt on for remaining

WATCH VIDEO HERE

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Venkaiah Naidu met the family members of the e-rickshaw driver who was killed after he tried to stop two youths from urinating in public. Two students of a prominent college in Delhi University's North Campus have been detained in connection with the killing.

By India Today Web Desk: Two days after an e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping two youths from urinating in public in Northwest Delhi, Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu said that he has called for strict against the culprits.

"Spoke to police commissioner and asked him to take strongest action possible against the culprits," Venkaiah Naidu said on Twitter.

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The Union minister said, "Sad that an e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping two people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting #SwachhBharat."

Sad that an e rickshaw driver was beaten to death for stopping 2 people from urinating in public in Delhi. He was promoting #SwachhBharat /1- M Venkaiah Naidu (@MVenkaiahNaidu) May 29, 2017

In another development, two students of a prominent college in Delhi University's North Campus have been detained in connection with the murder of the e-rickshaw driver. After going through the CCTV footage of the area where the incident occurred, the two students were detained.

The duo, along with hostellers, allegedly attacked the e-rickshaw driver on Saturday evening.

Later in the day, Venkaiah Naidu met the family of the e-rickshaw driver and handed them a cheque of Rs 50,000.

Naidu was accompanied by Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari during the visit. The Union minister also offered to help the rickshaw driver's pregnant wife by giving her monthly stipends and temporary employment.

WHAT HAD HAPPENED?

E-rickshaw driver Ravindra Kumar was having lunch near the GTB Metro station on Saturday when he saw two men urinating in public. He raised objection and rebuked them for doing so. The duo was reportedly in an inebriated condition.

The two youths returned to the spot in the evening, bringing along with them 20 more people, and asked for Ravindra. On spotting him, the two men and their group started beating him up. Ravindra was repeatedly hit with stones and bricks.

By the time Ravindra was taken to the hospital, he had already died.

Police have registered a case of murder and are looking for the culprits who attacked Ravindra.

The e-rickshaw driver was beaten to death in Northwest Delhi. Photo: ANI

(Inputs from Tanseem Haider and Ilma Hasan)

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ALSO WATCH | Delhi: DU students who beat e-rickshaw driver to death detained

--- ENDS ---

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Macron clearly conveyed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that France would not tolerate any further chemical attack in Syria, an ABC News report said.

By Santosh Chaubey: French President Emmanuel Macron has clearly conveyed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that France would not tolerate any further chemical attack in Syria inviting serious reprisals from France, an ABC News report said. The presidential talks were held at the Palace of Versailles. "A very clear red line exists on our side, the use of chemical weapons by whomever", a report in The Sun quoted him as saying during his joint press conference with Putin.

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Putin is on a France visit after Macron invited him to inaugurate a major exhibition on France-Russia ties. The exhibition has been organised to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the visit of Peter the Great, the Russian emperor, in 1717.

The relations between France and Russia, two major European as well as global powers, have been strained in past over Syria and Ukraine. Putin had cancelled his France visit in October 2016 after Macron's predecessor Francois Hollande made it clear that Syria was be the only agenda for a France-Russia talks.

Ignoring the global calls for isolating Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Putin has been standing firm to support him, morally and militarily. Russian fighter jets pounding Syrian rebels and Islamic State bases are a regular occurrence. Almost all major western nations are against al-Assad. If he is standing tall even after that, it is only because of Russian support.

CHINA'S SUPPORT TO ASSAD

Assad got another big world power in his favour when China, in August 2016, announced to join Russia in providing humanitarian assistance and military training to Syria. Then Syria has Iran's support. Shiite Iran has a religious connect to defend the Syrian government of Alawites, a Shia offshoot, and strategic interests in defeating Syria's Sunni rebels.

Also, Russia and Putin have always defended Syria even after it has been using chemical weapons against its own citizens. A suspected chemical attack in Syria's Idlib city on April 4 killed around 100 people after which the US had launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles on a Syrian airbase it thought was used to launch the chemical attack. Russia defended Syria saying Syria did not use chemical weapons and the toxic substances released were stored by rebels where the Syrian forces carried an air strike. In February 2017, Russia and China vetoed a United Nations Security Council Resolution aimed to impose more sanctions on Syria for using chemical weapons.

But intelligence reports say otherwise. A BBC report earlier this month, based on intelligence documents, said Syria was still making chemical and biological weapons at three sites. The report further says that both Russia and Iran are aware of it. Also, a Human Rights Watch report published earlier this month, said that there was evidence of use of nerve gas by Syria in multiple chemical attacks.

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Macron has drawn his red line against this belligerence of Syria. Syria could not have escaped the wrath of the global community had it not been for Russian and Chinese interventions.

Macron was a harsh critic of Russia during his campaign days and even if he invited Putin to France, he promised a tough talk with the Russian President and said he would be demanding, a France 24 report said. Macron thinks "dialogue with Russia is vital in tackling a number of international disputes", the report further said.

ALSO READ | Russia warns of serious consequences from US strike in Syria

ALSO READ | US preparing another strike on Syria, plans afoot to 'fake' gas attack to discredit Assad, says Putin

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The cyclonic storm 'MORA' is very likely to move north- north eastwards and cross Bangladesh coast near Chittagong around May 30.

By Ashish Pandey: The cyclonic storm Mora moved north-north eastward in the past six hours with a speed of 12 kmph and lay centred at 0230 hrs ST of today, over east central Bay of Bengal near Latitude 16.6 degree N and Longitude 91.3 degree E, about 720 km nearly south- southeast of Kolkata and 630 km south-southwest of Chittagong.

The system is likely to intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm during the next 24 hours.

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It is very likely to move north- north eastwards and cross Bangladesh coast between longitude 91.0 degree E and 92.0 degree E near Chittagong around May 30, forenoon.

HEAVY RAINFALL WARNING

May 30: Rainfall at most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall at a few places and heavy rainfall at isolated places like Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh. Extremely heavy rainfall very likely over Assam and Meghalaya.

May 31: Rainfall at most places with heavy to very heavy rainfall very likely at isolated places like Assam and Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

WIND WARNING

Squally winds speed reaching 40-50 kmph gusting to 60 kmph would prevail along and off Andaman Islands and adjoining sea areas during next 48 hours. Squally winds speed reaching 45-55 kmph gusting to 65 kmph would prevail over South Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur and Tripura on May 30 and along and off West Bengal coast on May 29 and May 30.

SEA CONDITION

Sea condition would be rough to very rough along and off Andaman Islands during next 48 hours and along and off West Bengal Coast on May 30.

FISHERMEN WARNING

Fishermen are advised not to venture into sea along and off Andaman Islands during next 48 hours. Fishermen along and off West Bengal Coast are advised not to venture into sea on May 29 and May 30 and those out at sea are advised to return to the coast.

WHO NAMED CYCLONE MORA?

Click here to Enlarge Image Credits: Newsflicks.com

The naming of tropical cyclones is a recent phenomenon. The process of naming cyclones involves several countries in the region and is done under the aegis of the World Meteorological Organization.

Eight countries- India,Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Oman, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand take turns naming cyclones in the north Indian Ocean (Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal. Vardah however, is Pakistan's contribution.

The name Cyclone Mora came from Thailand.

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--- ENDS ---
Fed up with the alleged harassment by the woman, the accused decided to kill her.

By Press Trust of India: A 40-year-old woman was axed to death in broad daylight at village Kila Raipur, about 30 km from Ludhiana in Punjab, police said.

The accused Maninder Singh repeatedly attacked Sarbjit Kaur with axe until she died.

He even made a video of himself near the body after committing the crime, police said.

The victim was on her way back home on Sunday, they said.

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Deputy Commissioner Police, Ludhiana, Dhruman Nimbley said, "The accused informed the police control room after the incident."

"He was arrested and a case was registered at police station Dehlon, on the complaint of Lakhwinder Kaur, daughter of the deceased," he added.

During the preliminary investigations, it came to light that the victim knew about the alleged affair of Maninder Singh with another woman of the same village.

Accused claimed that the victim was allegedly blackmailing him and his lover on this issue. Fed up with the alleged harassment, he decided to kill her, police said.

ALSO READ:

Caught on camera: Woman stabbed 22 times in broad daylight in Delhi

ALSO WATCH:

Brutal murder in Delhi's Karol Bagh caught on CCTV cameras

--- ENDS ---
Sikh body, Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee, raised strong objection to the behaviour meted out to Tejpal Singh, but also praised Yogi for his concern and requested him to ensure 'unbiased behaviour' towards Sikhs.

By Rajat Rai: The Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) has raised strong objection to the behaviour meted out to Tejpal Singh when he went to meet Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath Yogi at Goraknath Peeth in Gorakhpur on Friday.

The Sikh body, however, also praised Yogi for his concern and requested him to ensure 'unbiased behaviour' towards Sikhs in the state. It is to be mentioned that during frisking at the venue, an official objected to the kirpaan and tried to take it away from Singh.

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A lady police officer also asked Singh to take off his turban for checking following which an altercation took place. Singh also complained the same to Yogi, who instantly went to the gate to check for the erring officers.

"Yogi ji you are also the CM of Sikhs and the act has hurted not only the sentiments of Tejpal, but the entire Sikh community. We condemn the act, but we also appreciate your kind jesture. It is our humble request to kindly ensure that such incidents do not recur," wrote Kirpal Singh Bandugar, the head of SGPC.

The Gurudwara Singh Guru Sabha in Gorakhpur has also demanded action against the officials involved.

Also Read

Lucknow: Yogi Adityanath's security asks Sikh man to remove his turban, CM assures action

ALSO WATCH | Will UP CM Yogi Adityanath fulfill PM Modi's long list of promises?

--- ENDS ---
President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Hassan Rouhani, has just been re-elected for his second term. He was described by President Obama and his administration as a moderate. It was Obamas way of selling the idea of the nuclear deal to the sceptics. However, it became very clear that Iran did not respect the nuclear deal as it carried on with the same malign activities it was doing before the deal was signed.

And now we are hearing the same rhetoric about Rouhani being a moderate. His rival candidate was a hardliner, but looking at both men it is very hard to use the description moderate.

During his first term, the so-called moderate Rouhani presided over 3,000 executions. There were countless dissidents that were tortured, harassed and / or imprisoned. During his first term, the country had the highest execution rate per capita in the world.

In any case, Rouhani can make as many promises as he wants, but he does not have the power to be able to keep them. The Supreme Leader of Iran has the most control, followed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The Iranian economy is controlled by the IRGC and not the president. Hassan Rouhani is essentially a tool used by the Supreme Leader.

He was used by the Supreme Leader during the negotiations for the nuclear deal. This led to Iran securing the release of dozens of billions of frozen assets and a partial lifting of sanctions. Most of the money went to the IRGC who in turn used it to pay for terrorism abroad. For example, huge sums were spend on thousands of mercenaries that have propped Syrian dictator Assad up on behalf of Iran. It also funded Hezbollah and for military interventions in other countries in the region.

With each day that goes by, we are hearing more information indicating that the elections in Iran were rigged. The regime claimed that there was a huge turnout, but this was not the case  many polling stations were empty, but the regime sent reporters to places where they have ensured there is a huge crowd.

Dissidents in Iran urged people not to vote before the election. The Peoples Mujahedeen of Iran (PMOI) spread posters across cities calling on the people to not vote for any of the corrupt candidates.

In the Nato-style coalition with the US, Israel and Saudi Arabia, the Iranian opposition can play a big part in curbing the regimes activities. The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) knows the Iranian regime inside-out. They all want the same  the regime to be replaced by a democratic government so that the people can deserve the most basic of rights that they have been denied for so long.
The Western media has, once again, spoke about how Rouhani is a moderate and how it was a victory for the people of Iran that it was him and not one of the hardliners that won the election. However, this is nothing but nonsense. Hassan Rouhanis first term is proof that he is anything but a moderate.

During his first term there were more than 3,000 people executed in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In the first few days of his second term there have already been several executions. Irans spread of terrorism has become out of control and there have been several test-firings of ballistic missiles. There is no moderation in these actions.

Several news outlets reported that around 75% of eligible votes were made, but this is false. For one, there is no chance of getting an unbiased review because of the social turmoil in the country. The people are supressed beyond belief and are punished, imprisoned, tortured or even executed for their political beliefs.

The New York Times attributed Rouhanis victory to the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers and his new priorities.

Yet Rouhani has not changed his priorities  he remains focused on the objectives of the Supreme Leader. It is probable that Iran will receive more warnings from international human rights organisations such as Amnesty International. The UN special reporter for human rights said: Moderation ends where the noose begins.

Apologists of the Iranian regime are seemingly very forgiving of Rouhanis record because they believe that he is going to keep the promises he made during the recent election campaign, even though he was far from keeping his first term promises.

During the campaign Rouhani challenged his rival Raisi for his involvement in the 1988 massacre. Raisi was part of the so-called death commission that oversaw the execution of more than 30,000 political prisoners. However, the fact that he directly challenged Raisi on this does not mean that he has suddenly become moderate  he quite simply saw a way to attack his political opponent.

As Rouhanis second term starts, an IRGC commander has confirmed that there are military plans in the pipeline. They are provocative projects that are once again proof that the spirit of the nuclear deal is being disregarded.

So again, where can we find this moderation that many have mentioned?
In further insults to the kingdom, Khamenei said that the Muslim world is now in a lot of danger because of the Saudi government. He called it a group of worthless, inept and villainous people.

He also compared Saudi Arabia to a cow being milked, meaning that the United States is taking advantage of the kingdom. This was in reference to the weapons deal worth $110 billion between the United States and Saudi Arabia. There were also other deals too, including some with the private sector that are worth around $350 billion.

Speaking about the alliance between the two countries, the Supreme Leader said that the government of Saudi Arabia is stupid, claiming it is foolish to think that enemies can form a friendship based on deals and money. He accused Saudi Arabia of giving its wealth to pagans and enemies.

He said that the wealth of Saudi Arabia belongs to the Saudis, but it is being given away to the United States, or disbelievers and their peoples enemies.

Saudi Arabia is predominantly Sunni and is on the opposing side to Shiite Iran in most of the conflicts in the region. Saudi Arabia has been a very open opponent of Iran and has called the country out on numerous occasions for its malign activities across the Middle East.

When President Obama was in office, the relations between the kingdom and the United States deteriorated. The kingdom saw Obama as prioritising the nuclear deal rather than its relations with Saudi Arabia. Obama, after giving many concessions to Iran, despite the danger it was putting other countries in the region in, appeared to abandon its ally.

However, when President Trump took office, it was very clear that he wanted to repair the relationship and he was very much in agreement that the Iran nuclear deal was not respected and that Iran is the biggest exporter of terrorism in the world.

The Iranian opposition has expressed hope that this new alliance is a positive step forward for the oppressed people of Iran who are waiting for regime change.
[Provisional Translation]

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a press occasion at the Prime Minister's Office.

In regard to North Korea's missile launch, the Prime Minister said,

"North Korea's continued acts of provocation, ignoring the repeated warnings of the international community, are absolutely unacceptable. Japan has lodged a strong protest against North Korea.

As agreed at the recent G7 Summit, the issue of North Korea is a top priority of the international community. Together with the United States, we will take concrete actions to deter North Korea.

Furthermore, we will continue to maintain a high level of vigilance, while coordinating with the international community, including the Republic of Korea, and take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of the people."




CHARLESTON -- Remembering the 1917 tornado that hit Coles County can bring stories of relief as well as those of devastation.

On Saturday, Mattoon Mayor Tim Gover spoke of tales his grandparents told of the disaster. He said they lived on Champaign Avenue in Mattoon on "sort of the edge" of the path the tornado took the afternoon of May 26 of that year.

Were it not for the fact that many families in that part of town were at church practicing for their children's first communions, the death toll would have been worse, Gover said.

Still, he also told of hearing that the lawn of his grandparents' home was used to place dead bodies to wait for pick up in bread trucks.

"Those are the kinds of things we don't like to think about," Gover said. "It's something we need to remember."

Memories and more were shared Saturday afternoon at a ceremony that commemorated the tornado's 100th anniversary. About 30 people gathered outside the Lincoln-Douglas Debate Museum at the Coles County Fairgrounds in Charleston to attend the event.

Board members of the Coles County Genealogical Society, the ceremony's sponsor, took turns reading of a list of the names of the 91 people killed in Charleston and Mattoon alone.

The organization also recognized several in attendance who were descendants of people who lived through or died during the tornado.

"We're here today to remember the people involved," genealogical society President David Kent Coy said.

Bill Lovekamp, an Eastern Illinois University sociology professor who worked on the anniversary observation, told the audience that the tornado still ranks as the third-deadliest in Illinois history, 14th in the entire country.

Lovekamp said letters and other written accounts of the tornado were "the driving force" of the anniversary project and also told of "many acts of heroism." He said Saturday's ceremony was to help ensure that "people will never be forgotten."

Cameron Craig, climatologist with the Eastern Illinois University weather center, told those in attendance that the tornado had "actually been born on the west side of the state."

He called the storm system "bizarre" because it traveled in a straight easterly direction and was 600 yards wide when it hit Coles County.

Craig also noted the storm warning systems of today that can give 30 minutes notice of an approaching storm. The only thing on which people in 1917 could rely were changing skies that gave "a very small amount of time" to seek cover, he said.

After the ceremony, there was a showing in the debate museum auditorium of the documentary "Nature's Fury and the Human Spirit," which Lovekamp and Craig produced.
It's not "just a day off work."

The message from Bill Reed of the Charleston American Legion Post 93 on Monday was that Memorial Day is often taken for granted.

Reed, the post's commander, told those who attended a holiday service at Roselawn Cemetery in Charleston that it's the duty of those alive today to help remember the sacrifices of those who are not.

"It is up to us to see that more Americans pay reverence," he said. "Do not ever take this day for granted."

A crowd stood before the veterans memorial and flag pole in the cemetery to attend Monday morning's ceremony, one of several that took place throughout the area Monday.

Also during the ceremony, Charleston VFW Post 1592 commander Butch Jenkins asked "let us not forget" two events that took place 100 years ago.

He noted the anniversary of the United States' entry into World War I in April 1917 and of the devastating tornado that hit Coles County in May of that year.

Flags lined the cemetery's roadways and the flag at the memorial was at half-staff in honor of the day that's meant to remember those killed in the line of military duty.

Meanwhile, ceremonies the Mattoon VFW Post 4325 conducted Monday included one at Peterson Park, with flowers decorating the park's Vietnam War memorial.

"Freedom and peace do not come easy," post commander Ed Davis told those who attended.

The price of freedom comes along with "the patience of a war-torn nation" and that should lead to "deep respect" for Memorial Day, he said.

"We will never forget," Davis said. "We will never fail to honor them."

At both ceremonies, wreaths and flowers were placed at the memorials to represent a variety of messages and themes that went with the day.

At Roselawn, the veterans groups' members placed the flowers to recognize "remembrance," "unselfish courage" and "devotion." The VFW post auxiliary placed flowers in honor of "life everlasting," and Boy Scout Troop 141 placed a wreath in recognition of veterans.

At Peterson Park, the flowers placed at the memorial were meant to be a symbol of eternity.
Lincoln Industries is proud to announce the selection of Paige Baverstock as account sales representative - truck; Ryan Gearhart as team leader; Chad Hixenbaugh as sales representative - Lincoln Chrome; and Jacob Havranek as integration engineer.

Paige Baverstock spent the last four years with Tube Specialties Company in Troutdale, Oregon, as a senior customer planner. She will be responsible for identifying, developing, and closing business opportunities with new and existing truck customers.

Ryan Gearheart will serve as the primary resource for line 37 team members as they work together to achieve line metrics. He joins Lincoln Industries after spending the last ten years with Verizon Wireless as a data tech supervisor.

Chad Hixenbaugh comes from Athens Sport Cycles in Athens, Ohio, where he served as sales manager. He will be responsible for a territory covering the eastern United States and Canada for Lincoln Chrome, a division of Lincoln Industries.

Jacob Havranek is a May, 2017, graduate from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. He will be responsible for part design for manufacture analysis, tooling design, process development, and the integration of products into Lincoln Industries production systems.

We are the largest and most diverse privately held metal finishing company in North America and one of the state's largest manufacturers. We use our expertise in finishing, manufacturing, customer relations, quality, supply chain management, and innovation to make great brands such as Harley-Davidson, Peterbilt, Kenworth, John Deere, Polaris, Navistar, Mercury Marine, Khrome Werks, and Lincoln Chrome better.
John Spilker, assistant professor of music and gender studies at Nebraska Wesleyan University, has been named the 2017 Margaret J. Prouty Teaching Award winner. The annual award recognizes a NWU professor for excellence in teaching and honors a professor who has made a distinct difference in the lives of students. Students, faculty and staff submit nominations.

Spilker has taught at NWU since 2011. Over the past six years, he has revised music course offerings to integrate with the university's new Archway Curriculum and has been elected to leadership positions in national music organizations.

The United Methodist Church Division of Higher Education recognized him as NWU's "Exemplary Teacher" for 2014-2015. Through the university's Student Faculty Collaborative Research Fund, Spilker has collaborated with students on research in New York City and Washington, D.C.

The Prouty Teaching Award recognized his teaching success and his ability to empower students, develop their leadership skills, and keep a safe, open environment for discussion.

Nebraska Wesleyan University is an independent Methodist liberal arts university of approximately 2,000 undergraduate and graduate students in Lincoln. The university's steadfast commitment to putting learning into action through internships, study abroad, service learning and collaborative research has yielded tremendous outcomes for students and alumni.
NeighborWorks Lincoln (NWL) is proud to announce the promotion of Marti Lee , to operating officer. Lee will assist the CEO in all facets of organizational operations, including grant management and establishing a network of funding sources. Prior to being hired in 2015, Lee served 29 years as the executive director of a nonprofit community organization located in southeast Kansas City, Missouri.

NeighborWorks Lincoln is a nonprofit with a mission of keeping Lincoln a safe and prosperous community by revitalizing neighborhoods and promoting homeownership. Lee has stimulated commercial revitalization of the N. 27th Street Business and Civic Association, assisted in the City Council At-Large Candidate Forum, and currently helps manage a Community Impact Measurement Survey taking place in the Clinton Neighborhood. Lee will remain an asset for NWL in her new role by advancing the mission through dynamic partnerships.
If you've picked up a prescription from your local pharmacy recently, you probably don't need me to tell you that prescription drug prices have handily outpaced wage growth and the rate of inflation in the U.S. for some time now.
Several-hundred blocks of residential streets will get a kind of fountain-of-youth application this summer as Lincoln attempts to extend the life of these roads less traveled.

The city will be trying two new products which help asphalt last longer, said Erika Nunes, a city engineer.

Within its first five years, asphalt reacts with the sun, dries out and becomes brittle. Cracks form and pieces chip out, Nunes said.

The city will apply one product, known as GSB-88, on about 125 blocks of residential streets that were rebuilt in 2012 and 2013.

Another product, Reclamite, will be applied on about 150 blocks of residential streets rebuilt in 2014.

The two projects, expected to cost the city about $350,000, will help protect the more than $7 million investment in residential street rehabilitation made over the past five years.

The primary ingredient in GSB-88 is Gilsonite, a naturally occurring ore mined in Utah. Melted down it acts like natural asphalt, Nunes said.

The Gilsonite will penetrate into the asphalt and help seal it up so that water cant get in. That water, when it freezes in the winter, is what causes asphalt to crack, Nunes explained.

The city will seal all cracks first, then apply a thin layer of the product over the top, which will give people a nice, new surface to drive on. It is supposed to last five to seven years. Then that cycle is repeated, Nunes said.

GSB-88 will be applied to streets that are about five years old, she added.

Reclamite is a petroleum-based product that absorbs into the existing asphalt and will seal up any voids, places where water could accumulate.

It looks like chocolate milk when applied but dries clear, like a translucent coating, Nunes said.

The product is mixed with water and applied by a spray truck. It helps maintain the flexibility of the asphalt and minimizes the cracks that occur.

The product can be applied every five years as long as the base of the street, that foundation of concrete, remains solid, she said.

Other cities have used these products for decades. But Lincoln wants to see how well they work to prolong the life of residential streets and test them before using on any arterial streets.

The city will be monitoring these streets and working with experts familiar with the products to see how much time they add to the life of the street.

Just how much time the products buy depends on many factors, including whether a street is tree-lined and protected from the sun, Nunes said.

The GSB-88 project will cost about $200,000. The city spent about $3 million to mill and overlay those streets about five years ago.

The Reclamite project is expected to cost about $150,000. It cost the city about $4.2 million to resurface those streets three years ago.

So for $350,000 the city can add another five years of life, if not more, to about 275 blocks of residential streets, Nunes said.

We just dont have enough funding to get to all the neighborhoods we need to," said Nunes.

Spending a couple-hundred thousand dollars on streets and to keep them from getting worse will be less expensive in the long run.

City staff will provide educational material to residents in areas with streets set for treatment. People whose neighborhood streets were renovated within the last five years and who see equipment in front of their houses again this summer will have questions, Nunes added.

Information has already gone out to people who live in GSB-88 project areas.

The city, which typically spends $2.7 million to $2.8 million a year on residential street rehabilitation, will also undertake two traditional residential street projects this summer. The city will mill and overlay the southeast section of the Briarhust neighborhood at 48th and Old Cheney, and will be doing concrete repair projects in residential neighborhoods around 14th Street and Humphrey Avenue in northwest Lincoln.
Jim Milburn noticed a blotchy, orange-tinted discoloration to his skin shortly after returning from the Vietnam War.

He visited countless dermatologists over the years, but the condition went undiagnosed until he met a doctor who was associated with the Veterans Affairs hospital system. Within minutes, he was diagnosed with chloracne, caused from the chemical weapon Agent Orange.

After 30 or so years that stuff starts coming out.  Those chemicals messed up a lot of people, Milburn said.

It causes painful bumps and lesions on the skin and leaves patients with a blotchy, orange-tinted discoloration.

Drafted in 1966, just one year out of high school, Milburn struggled as many Vietnam veterans did with transitioning to civilian life and finding work.

Decades later, Milburn still suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. He also has Parkinsons disease, and last year was diagnosed with prostate cancer.

He said the "thankless war" still haunts him, and as his health declines, his PTSD has worsened.

He began attending events at Lincolns Miller-Long VFW Post three years ago.

At the Post, Jim found support and guidance through the medical process and men exposed to Agent Orange with extensive firsthand knowledge of its effects.

His wife, TinaMarie, says she is thankful for the sense of brotherhood Jim has found within the VFW and the assistance they received from the VA.

Jim is thankful to have survived the war. Despite his ailments, he remains optimistic.

His cancer is under control right now, but he knows his battles with Parkinsons and chloracne are far from over. But now, he knows there is a community to fall back on.

I shake so bad I cant sign my name, Jim said about his Parkinsons. But I tell you, I look at it this way -- it could be worse.
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RACINE  In this three-part series, The Journal Times is looking back on the last special election in Racine, held in 2009 following the arrest of former Mayor Gary Becker, by talking to many of the key figures during that tumultuous time.

Besides recounting a wild five months for city government, those interviewed reflect on what they learned from the election process and how it can help Racine as a similar election draws near.

Becker resigned, freeing the City Council to appoint a mayor and call for a special election, which the councils Committee of the Whole did on Jan. 22, 2009. The focus then shifted to the Jan. 30 council meeting, when the council would select a mayor to serve until the conclusion of the special election.

David Maack, then council president: One of the things that the council was also adamant about was whoever was going to be appointed as the mayor in the interim between the resignation and the special election was not running in the special election because the council did not want to be seen as a king maker.

Tom Friedel, then 10th District alderman: That bothered me a little bit. On the one hand, they were encouraging me to take the interim role, but were not going to let you run. Theres a real contradiction in that.

Today, theres an ordinance in place that lays out a clear line of succession if the mayor resigns. In 2009, it was a different story.

Rob Weber, then city attorney: Scott Letteney (assistant city attorney) and I were scrambling around to find the appropriate ordinances for succession. I believe we had to redraft some of those.

Maack: While it made sense for the council president to serve as the interim mayor, there was nothing codified at the time. Any of the aldermen could have served as interim mayor. It could have been anyone in the community. There were several people in the community who also stepped up and volunteered to serve as the interim mayor until the election, including former Mayor Jim Smith.

Maack, who had been acting mayor since Beckers resignation, was nominated to continue serving until the special election, but declined partly due to his role running the countys Emergency Management Office.

Maack: I was up for re-election as an alderman. Being appointed interim mayor, youd be vacating your aldermanic seat. The second thing is, Im essentially a one-person office. I had talked with the county executive at the time (Bill McReynolds) about it, he had given me his blessing. I could have taken a leave of absence if I had chosen to go that route, but being a one-person office, it would have been difficult to step away for several months.

The council next turned to Friedel, who had discussed the position with his bosses at Twin Disc and was prepared to take on the role.

Maack: Toms experience both in the public sector, serving on the School Board and as an alderman, and in the private sector, he was able to step in and hit the ground running. There wasnt a learning curve there. As a council and as a city, we werent moving any huge projects forward at the time. It basically was a steady hand on the helm.

Friedel: There was a Committee of the Whole vote that night, followed by a Tuesday meeting a week later to make it official.

Meanwhile, City Hall was holding itself together without Mayor Becker, but took another hit just two weeks after Friedel took office as acting mayor, this one involving City Administrator Ben Hughes.

Weber: The city administrator resigned. That created another very difficult situation.

Friedel: It was a total shock. A total surprise. I didnt see that one coming at all.

City Clerk Janice Johnson-Martin: What we did, as we do in any situation, we pulled together as a team. My assistant and I probably put in 15, 16 hours a day to keep up with deadlines.

While that was going on, Johnson-Martin was receiving and reviewing mayoral candidacy papers.

Johnson-Martin: My staff has to go through and verify that each candidate had a minimum of 200 signatures with City of Racine addresses. That can be a lot.

In total, 11 candidates made it on the ballot for the primary, with two being disqualified through the signature verification process.

Johnson-Martin: Maybe five came in last minute, within two days of the deadline. What I would have to do is close my door and take everything else off my calendar to do that. That becomes my priority, to make sure that they fulfill the requirements.

The ballot included candidates with diverse levels of experience: from current aldermen like Jim Spangenberg, Q.A. Shakoor and Greg Helding; to Kim Plache, a foremr legislator; to Pete Karas, a former alderman and local activist; and two former county supervisors, Lesia Hill-Driver and Raymond Fay. Also among the field was state Rep. Bob Turner, a former alderman who had served Racine in Madison since 1990; and John Dickert, a local real estate professional who had run two unsuccessful campaigns for Turners seat.

But before the votes were cast in the primary, the candidates campaigned in four public forums between March 17 and March 31. Many of them featured the 11 candidates jammed around a long table anxious to get a few words in.

Meg Andrietsch, Democratic party activist: There were two forums that I went to, one at Gateway and one at City Hall. It was huge. Gateway was weird because they had them at the front, you know how the Great Lakes Room slopes down. They filled up that whole front. In City Hall, they had them sitting in the aldermanic seats.

Dickert: It was hilarious, because you came down and there was like this whole bank of people and we all knew each other.

Turner: It was exciting. You really didnt have too much time to expound on your issues and what you want to do.

Dickert: I always laughed, because I thought, if theyre going to get two questions through this whole group, theyre going to be lucky.

Some people felt that a few of the candidates werent running serious campaigns and cluttered the selection process unnecessarily.

Maack: It became a free-for-all. With the number of people that were jumping in, there was no guarantee that the best candidates would necessarily rise to the top.

Andrietsch: There were a few people I had not ever heard of and to this day have not heard from. I get it, everybodys right, but I find it interesting that people who decided they wanted to be mayor werent after that involved in any aspect.

Both Turner and Dickert navigated the debates strategically.

Turner: I just basically relied on my experience in office. Experience means a lot. I knew most things that take place Id already gone through it in one way or another, both good and bad.

Dickert: I sat down with a notepad of paper and I would use it to write down the questions and then jot down some notes on my answers. I think Bob Turner had the same thing. Bob had a little scratch pad. Neither of us brought anything else because you had to answer with your knowledge. You cant create notes for this. Everybody else had notecards and files and stuff like that.

As primary day approached, the strength of the Dickert and Turner campaigns stood out.

Friedel: Winning elections doesnt come down to who the best person is all the time. Winning elections comes down to who has the best organization, who can campaign the best, who can get the message out best.

Andrietsch: It seemed like they would be able to put together the team and the structure to help them win. You have to have some experience in running campaigns if youre going to mount a campaign. You need to know what youre doing. A first-time candidate running for mayor, thats pretty tough.

Dickert: We broke up our campaign into two tiers. We had the regular campaign and the social media campaign. Today, thats common. But we had two different campaigns and we ran those separately.

On April 7, nearly 10,000 votes were cast in the primary. Dickert won by a decisive margin for an 11 candidate field, with 23 percent of the vote, and Turner finished a strong second with 17 percent. They were followed by Plache (13 percent), Spangenberg (12.5 percent) and Helding (11.5 percent).

Dickert: On primary night, we knew we had a shot. Our hope was to get second, because we didnt think we would get first. We were just hoping for second. We figured it was going to be about a three or four-way race.

The Dickert campaign was shocked by the size of his victory.
RACINE  As the end of the school year nears, so does the first year of the community-school model at Knapp Elementary School.

Its concept is simple: Treat the whole child, inside and outside of the classroom.

Aside from the regular curriculum Knapp Elementary, located at 2701 17th St., also focuses on bringing in quality after-school programs to enhance the learning environment along with other programs designed to benefit families.

We cant look at the whole child if we dont look at their family and the community they live in, said Jamie Racine, community schools manager for United Way of Racine County, which works with Knapp on the program. Were looking at all the components and finding out what do those folks need and how can we leverage our resources in our community to help everyone get where they need to go.

This year, Knapp has provided more than 600 hours of after-school programming to more than half of the total student population.

We got some preliminary data back from the district that shows our students that are involved in after-school programs have a higher attendance, higher grades and lower office discipline referrals, Racine said. Eighty-five percent of our students that are engaged in after-school programs actually have zero office referrals.

Community benefits

The school has partnered with the City of Racine and plan to have its mobile medical unit come to the school once its ready. It has also provided free dental screenings and are currently serving 23 students at the New Beginnings Clinic, which treats mental health.

Families have also benefited financially from the community school model.

According to district officials, 24 tax returns were completed at Knapp through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance with a returning total of over $29,000.

The school also brought in parents to Academic Parent Teacher Team meetings multiple times during the year to keep parents up to date on how their children are doing in class, along with keep them informed about other after school and summer programs.

Tameka Abdullah and her husband have two children at Knapp  one in kindergarten and one in first grade  and she says programs like APTT meetings help keep parents involved.

It makes a difference, Abdullah said. I take off half an hour to an hour early (from work) to make it to their programs because I want to be involved.

Abdullah added these events help parents connect with each other. At one of these meetings Abdullah met Cehara Morris  their daughters are friends  and have since gotten to know each other.

Morris said the community-school model helps families find a place for regular activities beyond school, such as filing taxes.

(With) a lot of kids, their parents live in this neighborhood so its easier to come in and go, Morris said. You dont have to go searching for a lot of stuff because they try to provide it here at school.

Possible legislation

The community school model has gotten the attention of state Rep. Cory Mason, D-Racine, who plans on sponsoring legislation that would provide $15 million to the Department of Public Instruction. The money would be distributed in grants from DPI to other school districts looking to establish a community school of their own.

It seeks to set up seed money to get these schools off the ground in high-poverty (and) rural areas, Mason said. However at this point its unclear how much the grant would be worth it would be categorical aid for the districts.

Its more complicated than it should be because its going through the school funding formula, Mason said.

Currently the bill hasnt been assigned a number and has been introduced for co-sponsorship. Mason said state Sen. Chris Larson, D-Milwaukee, is planning to support the legislation in the Senate.

Mason said he introduced the same bill last year but it failed. Hes hoping more of his colleagues understand the impact of community schools.

In 11 years of doing work in the Legislature and really trying to advocate for closing the achievement gap, the community-schools model is the best Ive ever seen, Mason said. It really invites the community to take ownership of their school.
DOVER  Intermittent rain showers outlined a somber ceremony on Sunday remembering the soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines who are buried at Southern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery.

The Memorial Day weekend ceremonial rifle salute by members of Union Groves American Legion Post 171 was just as visceral for visitors as the dozen or so bagpipers from Wisconsin Independent Pipers. The emotional playing of Taps was made poignant by the lone bugler who could not be seen behind the monuments but was heard creating a presence like the headstones that surrounded the ceremony.

U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., said the May 22 suicide bombing in Manchester, England, was a reminder how important our freedoms are as Americans.

They define us as a people. They are worth fighting for. We must never surrender our freedoms to fear and the hateful terrorism that seeks to attack them, Baldwin said.

She said the incident should be a reminder of the American fallen who came before.

Gov. Scott Walker, the keynote speaker, spoke directly to the veterans in the large tents on the cemetery grounds who came to pay their respects to their comrades in arms.

We live in the land of the free because of the brave, Walker said. We can never repay their debt, but well keep trying.

Walker shared his experiences as a Boy Scout growing up in Delavan in the 1970s. His assistant scoutmaster was a veteran of not only World War I but also World War II.

He said that his neighbor, Claire C. Condon, taught him how to recognize service by showing him and his brother how to post flags at a local cemetery.

He told me the story of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice, Walker said.

Walker said the stories of those before us need to be told.

Each of you have great stories like that of people who have had an impact and helped carry on the stories so it wasnt just merely remembering their death but rather their life and legacy, Walker said.

The message was also carried quietly by Racine resident Lisa Bixler, who was grateful for the recognition her son, U.S. Army Pvt. Evan Bixler, who died in the Iraq War on Christmas Eve 2006.

Im more than pleased that they go on with their lives  its what men and woman (in uniform) sacrifice for. We live, we have fun and we enjoy our freedoms, but we dont forget, Bixler said.

She said her son Evan is remembered for how he lived, not just for how he died.

In the Army they referred to him as ton of fun,  Bixler said. He made boot camp bearable and tell the guys, this what its all about! Come on, lets live it. He was strong.

Others, like Vietnam veteran Sgt. Jim Wolter, were quietly resolute. Upon seeing the Army colors pass him, Wolter arose from his mechanized chair and stood in respect.

The Racine resident was overcome by the moment and declined to share his military experience, but beamed with pride before his two young grandsons who were there with him.

I hope you will join me at that neighborhood barbecue or that family activity where you take the time in remembering our fallen heroes and celebrating our freedoms, said Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester.
In 2016, Representative Paul Ryan traveled to a number of Middle Eastern countries that included Israel, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. The Middle East is a dangerous part of the world and the U.S. State Department warns its citizens of threats from terrorist groups in this area and to consider the risks of travel to these countries. Even though he realized the inherent dangers, Ryan confidently completed this Congressional junket.

Although Congressmen Ryan had no hesitation in visiting these explosive locations, the thought of traveling to Racine, Kenosha, Burlington and the Beloit/Janesville area to talk to his constituents about Trump and the swamp-filled debacle taking place in Washington scares the bejeebers out of him.

What does that tell us about one of the most influential persons in America? We realize that he is just another career politician with a pretty smile but no backbone. He cant muster the courage to spend a few afternoons with the people he represents knowing that he might get a little push-back in response to the way our country is currently being run.

The people of the First Congressional District deserve better. Your Racine constituents continue to look forward to a listening session with you. Also, note Ryan, as of May 2017, the U.S. State Department has not listed travel warnings to any location in Southeastern Wisconsin.

Noel Newgord

Mount Pleasant
Q: Does Old Glory fly only when Gov. Walker is working in the Capitol?

A: The two flags over the wing where Gov. Scott Walker works fly at all times, according to Department of Administration spokeswoman Jennifer Grinder.

The East Wing houses the Governors Office, and the U.S. and Wisconsin flags are flown above the wing regardless of if the governor is in the Capitol, Grinder said.

Two of the wings only fly the Stars and Stripes during legislative sessions. The flag is only flown over the South Wing, which houses the Senate Chamber, when the Senate is in session, and over the West Wing, which houses the Assembly, when the Assembly is in session.

Over the North Wing, which is home to the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall, the POW flag is flown at all times.

All the flags are flown at full staff unless a presidential or gubernatorial executive order directs the state otherwise, Grinder said.

 Shelley K. Mesch
EC committee to probe Bharatpur incident, vote count put off till May 31

The Election Commission (EC) has formed a three member committee to probe into the Bharatpur incident where cadres of CPN (Maoist Centre) allegedly tore the ballot papers on Sunday night.
Farm sectors growth rate to hit 9-year high

Nepals farm sector is expected to register a nine-year high growth rate of 5.32 percent this fiscal year, fuelled by good monsoon, after hitting rock bottom last fiscal year, the Economic Survey 2016-17 released on Sunday shows.
Ill make Kathmandu a better place to live

CPN-UMLs Bidhya Sundar Shakya was elected the mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City on Sunday. With Shakyas victory, the KMC has got its new mayor after 15 years.
Impeachment motion withdrawn after UML warning

After warning from the main opposition CPN-UML to obstruct the budget speech, the ruling coalition has agreed to withdraw the impeachment motion registered against Chief Justice Sushila Karki.
Indian climbers body retrieved from Mt Everest following risky operation

A team of high-altitude climbing experts has successfully executed the most complex operation on Mt Everest by pulling out the body of an Indian climber from the perilous zone in the mountain on Saturday evening.
Myadi recruits up in arms against police

The temporary police personnel or Myadi Prahari, who were recruited to provide security during the first phase of local elections in Dhading, are in protest after some of them were reportedly assaulted by Nepal Police officers for refusing to go to the Tarai districts for the second phase of the elections slated for June 14.
NC cadre on protest to fight unfair nomination

A Nepali Congress (NC) activist has been staging fast-unto-death strike in Dhangadhi, Kailali, for the past six days, accusing the party leadership of picking candidates unfairly for the second phase of local level elections.
Parties not to move impeachment motion

The ruling Nepali Congress and CPN (Maoist Centre) have written to the Speaker not to move forward the impeachment motion registered in Parliament against Chief Justice Sushila Karki.
Republic Day marked (In photos)

President Bidya Devi Bhandari attended the special programme organized at the Army Pavilion, Tundikhel on the occasion of the Republic Day on Monday.
Sajha Party thanks its voters

Kathmandu mayoral and deputy mayoral candidates of the Sajha Party, Kishor Thapa and Nirupama Yadav, have thanked their voters.
The agenda setters

ho sets the agenda that encapsulates the principles and practices in contemporary democracy? Pondering over this subject, four principal agenda setters can be identified with objectivity.
UMLs Shakya elected Kathmandu mayor

Bidhya Sundar Shakya of the CPN-UML has been elected the mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City to head the capital city for the next five years.
Victory in defeat

The keenly awaited results of the local level elections finally came out yesterday, exactly two weeks after voting took place on May 14. With 64,913 votes, CPN-UMLs Bidhya Sundar Shakya defeated Nepali Congress Raju Raj Joshi (45,269 votes) to become the new mayor of Kathmandu Metropolis.
Vote counting put off in Bharatpur after Maoist Centre cadres tear ballot papers

Vote counting in Bharatpur Metropolitan City has been put off after the cadres of CPN (Maoist Centre) tore the ballot papers on Sunday night.
We hope the govt will show sincerity in bringing us on board the elections

Amid preparations for the second phase of local level elections in the remaining four provinces, the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal (RJP-N) has announced a series of protests and their decision to boycott polls unless their demands are met.
1. Yes. Taxpayers are funding its operation; they should have a voice in the naming process.

2. Yes. The city should operate with a spirit of inclusivity. Residents will be responsive.

3. No. Public input can be problematic; rejection of suggestions can be divisive for residents.

4. No. Residents elect council members to make decisions on their behalf. No input is needed.

5. Unsure. Its hard to say whether public input would be more of a benefit or a hindrance.

Vote

View Results
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

Some clouds this morning will give way to generally sunny skies for the afternoon. High 72F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy early followed by cloudy skies overnight. Low around 45F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.
GREEN BAY (AP)  A former Green Bay Packers offensive lineman is getting involved with an honor flight group to honor Vietnam veterans.

Jerry Kramer went to Washington, D.C., with Vietnam veterans on a Never Forgotten Honor Flight Trip. The group visited the monuments and memorials in the city while filming a documentary about the trip.

Kramer said he remembers a friend who served in the war who was spit on when he returned home. The trip was an attempt to honor the veterans in a way they werent honor when they returned home from the war, he said.

I saw this as an attempt to ease some of the pain for some of the Vietnam veterans, I thought maybe this could heal things a little bit, Kramer said. I thought if they could see the monuments, memorials, and all the things that have been erected for them . and maybe hear the cheers of a few folks along the way . it might help a little bit.

Russell Iwin of Merrill served with the Marines in Vietnam from 1965-1966. The publics reaction to Vietnam veterans today is vastly different from their attitude decades ago, he said.

When you get off here you get a handshake, you get hugged, cheered on, he said. Not in 66.

The documentary will be released in December.

I saw this as an attempt to ease some of the pain for some of the Vietnam veterans, I thought maybe this could heal things a little bit. Jerry Kramer
EMMONS, Minn.  Of all the questions Gary Iverson had about his uncle Glaydon, the first he asked, upon meeting one of his uncles old friends and one of the few living people who knew him: Did he have a girlfriend?

The answer was no.

At the funeral of a person who died 75 years ago, every scrap of information about the man was precious.

Glaydon Ignatius Clement Iverson died Dec. 7, 1941, in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The 24-year-old fireman 3rd class was aboard the USS Oklahoma when it was hit by multiple torpedoes. The battleship capsized quickly, and Iverson was one of 429 sailors from the Oklahoma to die in the strike.

Iversons body was never identified  until last December. Using DNA technology, scientists were able to make a match, and the Navy notified Iversons family that hed be returning home to Freeborn County, in southern Minnesota, for a Memorial Day weekend funeral with full military honors.

Iversons remains landed at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport last week. On Saturday, he was laid to rest alongside his parents at Oak Lawn Cemetery in his hometown of Emmons. Iverson would have been 99.

Glaydon I.C. Iversons casket was ready to be transported to its burial site on the edge of town Saturday.

Wearing red, white and blue accents rather than funereal black, a nearly packed house of mourners gathered at Emmons Lutheran Church to honor Iverson. Few had known him personally, and yet to Emmons citizens, veterans and extended family at his funeral, he had been an unforgettable symbol for generations.

The American military is known for Dont leave anybody behind  and its working, said Jerry Thompson, commander of the Emmons chapter of the American Legion.

Patriot Guard Riders and other veterans groups lined the paths outside the church and at the cemetery. Members of the U.S. Navy served as pallbearers. In a light rain, alongside a farm where the cattle had red, white and blue stickers stuck on their spots, U.S. Navy Capt. Daniel Pionk gave folded American flags to each of Iversons closest living relatives, his brothers four children.

Its a celebration, but the emotions are catching up to us, said nephew Gary Iverson of Santa Fe, N.M., who wore a tie of swirling stars and stripes.

On Iversons gravestone was an engraving depicting the USS Oklahoma.

U.S. Rep. Tim Walz, who serves on the House Committee on Veterans Affairs and is running for governor of Minnesota, attended the graveside ceremony. Afterward, he said Iversons story serves as a reminder of why resources are needed to continue repatriating the remains of missing soldiers.

Its absolutely critical, he said. You come here today and you see why it matters.

This brings back so much

The Iverson family rarely spoke of Glaydon, except each year on the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, said niece Linda Helgeson of Lake Mills, Iowa. It wasnt until years later that the nieces and nephews sought information about Glaydon, and by then it was too late. Their father and grandparents had died.

With Iversons story getting this unexpected final chapter, Im thinking of Mom and Dad, of our grandparents, and wondering, How would they feel?  said nephew Glaydon Iverson of Lakeville, who was named after the sailor. Thats where it jolts me.

By finding old newspaper articles and letters and talking to everyone alive who remembered him, Gary Iverson was able to piece together a sketch of his uncle as an athlete and an avid roller-skater who was great with horses and was a bit of a ladies man.

Though only 5 feet 4, he was a husky kid. Quick as a cat, said Leo Schmidthuber, 98, who grew up half a mile down the road from the Iversons. Schmidthuber is the one who told Gary that Glaydon was unattached.

Gladys Wogen Biehl, 94, remembered Glaydon as a fun-loving jokester. Her older brother was friends with Iverson. He, too, was at Pearl Harbor, and survived.

We were the lucky ones, she said. This brings back so much more than expected.
In early 2016, I had the opportunity to tour the Sparta School Districts STEM school with Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch to highlight the educational focus of the Rural Wisconsin Initiative.

After the tour, we had a conversation with some of the students and discussed what their futures may hold. One of the students indicated that she was interested in a future in law or political science. As such, I invited the student to visit me at the Capitol in Madison. The idea behind extending the invite was to provide a job shadow experience in state government. A number of weeks went by, and finally the day of the students visit came. Her grandfather drove her to Madison and was able to join us for the days events.

Before we started, we met in my office. I asked the student if she had any questions for me and she asked me what had helped me to prepare for my job serving the people of Wisconsin. I looked across the table at her grandfather, who wore a small American flag on his jacket. Before answering her question about my background, I asked her grandfather to tell me more about his background. I knew her grandfather had to be a patriot from the flag he wore on his lapel.

I was subsequently humbled by the grandfathers response. He talked about his time in the military serving our country. He also recalled his fellow soldiers and friends, some of whom did not return from battle. In addition, he discussed how we can memorialize and continue to remember those who have died in service.

After the grandfather was done speaking about his background, I explained to the young student that the service of men and women like her grandfather is what allows me to represent Wisconsin citizens. It is the protection of our freedoms and our society that preserves our way of life. I encouraged her to hold her grandfathers powerful words close to her heart.

For the wonderful grandfather, every day is Memorial Day as he keeps the memory alive of the soldiers he served with who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country. For other grandfathers and grandmothers, fathers, mothers and children, there is the memory of those who they served with or that made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Those from younger generations have those they remember as well, be it a former classmate, friend, family member or someone else close to them.

On Memorial Day, we must remember those who sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy. We must remember those who allow us to pursue the professional pursuits we desire. We must remember those who allow us to safely spend time with our families and even travel safely with our families on extended weekends. We must remember those who afford us the freedom to express our opinions freely. And we absolutely must remember those who gave their lives to preserve the constitutional republic and sacred institutions of these United States. As the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. states, Freedom Is Not Free.
Bicyclists are invited to celebrate the Elroy-Sparta Bike Trail and the community along its path.

That is what the first annual Bike Me Fun Ride on the Elroy-Sparta Bike Trail is about.

Tim Hyma, executive director for the Sparta Area Chamber of Commerce, said the fun ride has been two years in the making since the 50th anniversary of the trail which drew 50 people from each of the villages (along the trail) in different colored t-shirts for a ride that started at the trail headquarters in Kendall.

Everybody loved that so much that we wanted to put something together, so over the years a committee formed and put this ride together., Hyma said.

The ride takes place on Saturday, June 3 starting at 7 a.m. in Elroy at the trailhead. There will also be a welcome reception June 2 at 6 p.m. in Evans-Bosshard Park in Sparta.

The welcome reception is sponsored by the Sparta Area Chamber of Commerce and Mayo Clinic Health System and will include a burger meal and music by Tony & the Invaders.

The ride is designed to cover the entire 32-mile section of trail from Elroy to Sparta with stops in between to break up riding in Kendall, Wilton, Norwalk before ending in Sparta.

The ride begins with a pancake breakfast in Elroy at 7 a.m., sponsored by the Elroy Ambulance Service, followed by biking to Wilton, where a brat/hot dog lunch is being served, sponsored by Wilton Sportsmens Inc. at around noon.

After lunch participants will head to Kendall, where a celebration party will be held at 7 p.m. Food will be provided by BP Smokehouse of Tomah. The party will also include door prizes, an auction and music by LB & the HiVolts.

Hyma looks forward to seeing the event come to fruition.

Im excited to see it become an annual event to promote the Elroy-Sparta Bike Trail and to bring people from across the (United States) to see what kind of lives we have and what fun we can have, he said. Im looking forward to welcoming all the riders Friday right here in Sparta and hope the public will come and attend also.

In addition to promoting the Elroy-Sparta Bike Trail, proceeds from the event will, go to the Friends of the Elroy-Sparta Bike Trail and Western Wisconsin Wheels, an organization which builds custom bikes for handicapped children.

Registration ends for the ride May 31. To register and learn more about the event go to bikemeride.com.
Memorial Day is an expression of gratitude to men and women in the armed services who have given their lives.

Thats how Jake Leinenkugel, White House senior advisor for the Department of Veterans Affairs, described Memorial Day during a ceremony at the Tomah VA Medical Center Friday.

We honor their service and their sacrifice for making the ultimate commitment, he said.

Victoria Brahm, director of the Tomah VA Medical Center, agrees.

Since our nations founding, more than one million lives have been laid upon the altar of freedom  thats a staggering number and a staggering price, she said. While we can never repay such a debt, we can honor their memory and we can pledge our love and support to their families and their brothers and sisters who returned from war.

The purpose of Memorial Day was instilled in him from a young age, Leinenkugel said. His father was a World War II veteran who marched in every Memorial Day parade in Chippewa Falls.

After each parade Leinenkugel and his family traveled to the grave sites of his fathers friends to pay homage. That sense is what led Leinenkugel to follow in his fathers footsteps and join the United States Marine Corps., where he served for six years.

As I grew older ... I began to understand what the day truly meant, he said. Its a celebration of freedom and our way of life that so many died to protect. Memorial Day is the day for all Americans to honor and memorialize those folks, those young men and women that did the ultimate sacrifice.

Leinenkugel said his sense of duty drove him to accept the position as a senior advisor to Veterans Affairs. He said he ended a two-year retirement after running Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. in Chippewa Falls because he wanted to make a difference.

I received multiple calls from friends back in November asking if I would once again consider coming out of what I was thinking was a great retirement, he said. I said I would at least give it a try because the Veterans Affairs needed some more good leadership.

Leinenkugel was upset about the stories of how badly some veterans were treated at VA hospitals across the country, Tomah included. After receiving an update on the Tomah center and speaking with Brahm, hes pleased with the progress Tomah has made.

Under the leadership of Victoria and her new team and staff that is in place, I think this is going to become without a doubt one of the prime centers in not just the state of Wisconsin, but through the VA, he said. Looking at our most recent scores and projections in Washington, D.C., that we get on a weekly basis; theyve (made) phenomenal strides.

Change is under way for the VA system to increase the access to quality care, Leinenkugel said.

Were spending a lot of taxpayer money to make sure that our veterans receive the best quality of care throughout the United States, he said. Its a monumental task  there are over 168 major facilities like this one in Tomah across the country along with 1,100  clinics. They needed to be staffed with some of the best people, and its finally starting to take shape, and were getting much better at it. Its our commitment to the veterans and in the memory of those that fought so hard for us, (that we) spend that taxpayer money.

He said an initiative is also under way between the Department of Defense and Veteran Affairs in diagnosing PTSD and traumatic brain injuries, two causes of suicide among veterans.

(Its) to make sure that each one of our military people while they are serving, is being looked at for particular markers of having some sort of PTSD or TBI, and theyre marked, he said. They will be looked after while theyre in the military, once they leave and when they go back into civilian life. So there are new policies and procedures starting to take place.

Also at the ceremony Leinenkugel was presented with a certificate of thanks by Brahm for visiting Friday. Following the ceremony Leinenkugel participated in a meet and greet at 1 p.m. in the veterans hall.

Next for Leinenkugel is a trip to Arlington National Cemetery today (Monday), where he will participate in a Memorial Day observance.
Armed Forces Day was set aside to honor those who are serving our country. It was celebrated on May 20th this year, and there was a very special event at Westby Middle School that week to help students make a connection to a service member. Our son, Specialist Zach Shaha who is a Westby High School graduate, worked with Mary Beth Marx who was his former science teacher to put together a Skype experience. Zach is a Crew Chief on UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopters on his first deployment with A Co. 1-147th Aviation Battalion out of Madison. Mary Beth put so much time into this project, coordinating schedules, technology, preparing the students, discussing things in class, and even allowing the students to make signs on their own time to hold up during the Skype call.

I was able to be there to watch this whole experience unfold, and it was amazing to see a whole room full of middle schoolers sitting quietly and attentively, hanging on his every word. Anyone who knows about middle level students knows this is a miracle in itself. They waved flags and held up signs and students asked questions they had prepared ahead of time, asking things about insects and animals he has seen in Iraq, what he loves most about his job, and what is hardest about being away from home. He also shared some funny stories and talked about how the weather is different than at home. Mary Beth has had the students write letters to him and they boxed up several care packages to send over, too, all of which is a lesson in how important it is to think of others and think about how different life is here compared to other places around the world. Zach shared stories about the extreme poverty they have seen in their flyovers, in places where people barely have clothing. It really helped them open their eyes just a bit to how good the kids have it in their safe classrooms here.

Thank you so much to Westby Middle School, especially Mary Beth Marx, for your dedication to making a connection with someone who is serving his country and helping kids become more aware of the human aspect of what is happening around the world. For those who are interested in adding items to care packages or sending your own or even making small donations to send those packages, you can call Tom Sharratt locally at 634-2118 who is a local contact for Operation Homefront, the USO and Westby VFW Post 8021. Leave a message if he doesnt answer and he will get back to you. He knows all of the service members from this area and can help you reach out to our Vernon County service members if you would like to make a difference. It is a great project to do with your children or grandkids this summer, or to do in mid-November so they get packages close to Christmas. As Zach has said time after time, each time they open a care package is like having another Christmas morning, not knowing what amazing treat could be in the box, and they are all so thankful for special food items and messages of appreciation.

The USO Wisconsin and Operation Homefront support currently serving military and their families and will accept donations, corporate sponsorships and volunteers. Find out how you can help at https://www.usowisconsin.org or 414-477-7279. Operation Homefront-Central/Midwest can be reached at http:/www.operationhomefront.org or (800) 390-4643. Thank you to all who are serving or who have served, and to those who lost a service member. We are so proud of all of you and appreciate your service.

Sincerely, Dan Shaha and Karen Solverson
Monday, May 29, 2017

The Nevada Supreme Court recently published two cases relevant to trusts and trust issues. The first case deals with a divorcing couple, Eric and Lynita Nelson, who had set up spendthrift trusts prior to their divorce. In this case, the court confirmed that Nevada does not have exception creditors; the only exclusion being for fraudulent transfers. The court also held that extrinsic evidence may not be used to refute a document that is valid and unambiguous. This applies to trusts and also to agreements transmuting community property into separate property.

In the second court decision, the Nevada Supreme Court held that an investment trust advisor accepting a trust with a situs in the state constitutes sufficient minimum contacts with Nevada to give rise to specific personal jurisdiction.

See Klabacka v. Nelson, 2017 Nev. LEXIS 40 (May, 25, 2017).

See Davis v. Davis, 388 P.3d 964 (Nev. 2017).

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/trusts_estates_prof/2017/05/recent-nevada-supreme-court-decisions.html
Editor's Note: VOA reporters recently traveled to rural areas along the Mississippi River to speak with the "forgotten men and women" who are supporters of President Donald Trump. They spoke to farmers, factory workers, and retirees in largely white, Christian middle class communities. This is one of their stories.

The sound of electric sewing machines fills a room in the Fulton, Illinois community center.

Several women gather there each week to talk and work on sewing and crochet projects. The women do not share the same political beliefs, so they usually avoid talking about politics.

But one of the women, Linda Ebersole, did agree to speak with VOA about the 2016 presidential election.

Ebersole is a retired health care worker. She lives in Rock Falls, in the eastern part of Whiteside County, Illinois.

Ebersole said she tried to look objectively at the two major candidates last year, but she did not like either of them.

We were voting for the lesser of the two evils when it came down to the end, she said.

The retired nurse said Donald Trump was unpredictable, so she had trouble believing much of what he said. And she thought Hillary Clinton had been untruthful numerous times and had shown a lack of respect for voters.

In the end, Ebersole voted for Trump because he seemed to want to bring change. But now she is worried that the nations news media will block his efforts. She said that is unfair. And she says it makes her more supportive of the president.

If ever that man did three positive things one day and one negative thing, the thing that would be stressed by the news media is that negative thing, she said. I do think the news media is biased against Trump.

Ebersole says she watches television news broadcasts and reads her local newspaper. But she says since the election she has been watching Fox News, which usually supports conservative politicians.

Ebersole is worried that many young people she knows do not follow the news. She says young people watch shows that she believes criticize conservatives but rarely target liberals.

Although there are few immigrants in Whiteside County, many people there talk about immigration. Ebersole says immigrants who enter the United States legally -- and are willing to work to become part of the community -- should be welcomed.

But Ebersole experienced a clash of cultures with Muslim immigrants. She said an old woman in a long dress and a headscarf that covered everything except her face stepped in front of her while she was waiting in line at a store. Ebersole said she spoke to the younger people with the woman about her actions, but they did not do anything.

She was the matriarch of the family and she did not think she needed to wait in line, Ebersole said. They came here and they need to fit in as much as possible. They need to assimilate to the country they are in.

Ebersole says the United States should not have to accept people who violate immigration laws by either staying after their visas end or coming across the border without government permission.

They need to do it legally, she said.

Ebersole said she agreed with President Trumps attempts to temporarily ban immigrants from some Muslim-majority nations because of the threat of terrorism. She said refugees need to be investigated and the number the government accepts must be reasonable.

We cannot take in everyone from the whole world, she said.

Ebersole said these beliefs are held by people in rural Illinois who hold different political beliefs.

You have a lot of common core values that you agree about, she said. I think that is the strength of this area -- that you do have those values, like family, a lot of times faith. You do have those basic things that are more important in a way than what the politics are doing.

VOA Correspondent Greg Flakus reported this story from Fulton, Illinois. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted his report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page.

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Words in This Story

sewing machine  n. a machine that is used for sewing things

crochet  n. a method of making cloth or clothing by using a needle with a hook at the end to form and weave loops in a thread

stress  n. a state of mental tension and worry caused by problems in your life, work, etc.

biased  adj. having or showing a bias; having or showing an unfair tendency to believe that some people, ideas, etc., are better than others

head scarf  n. a piece of cloth worn over a womans or girls head

matriarch  n. a woman who controls a family, group or government

fit in  v. to belong in a particular situation, place or group

assimilate  v. to adopt the ways of another culture : to fully become part of a different society, country, etc.

core values  n. strongly held beliefs about what is valuable, important or acceptable
President Donald Trump has condemned the killing in Oregon of two men who tried to stop another man from using anti-Muslim speech against two teenaged girls. A third man was injured in the violence.

Trump tweeted a statement saying:

The victims were standing up to hate and intolerance. Our Prayers are w/ them.

On Friday, a man in the American city of Portland, Oregon, apparently shouted anti-Muslim words at two teenaged girls on a train. He then stabbed two people who tried to defend them.

Those killed were Ricky John Best, aged 53, and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, aged 23. The two died from their wounds. A third person, Micah David-Cole Fletcher, was hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries.

Portland Police said one of the two young women on the train was wearing a hijab, head covering. The suspect, identified as 35 year-old Jeremy Joseph Christian, shouted at them using, in their words, hateful speech.

One of the young women involved, 16-year-old Destinee Mangum, told Portlands KPTV television station: "He told us to go back to Saudi Arabia and he told us we shouldn't be here, to get out of his country."

Mangum thanked those who came to her and her friends defense. Without them, we probably would be dead right now," she said.

The communitys response

Local and state officials, denounced the incident saying attacks of this kind have no place in their communities or the United States.

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said, "Two men lost their lives standing up to somebody spewing hateful words directed at Muslim passengers on an afternoon commuter train."

He continued saying, "Our current political climate allows far too much room for those who spread bigotry. Violent words can lead to violent acts. All elected leaders in America, all people of good conscience, must work deliberately to change our political dialogue."

Oregon Governor Kate Brown said she was "heartbroken" by the attack.

"Safety while traveling through our community is a basic human right that we need to be able to guarantee to everyone, regardless of where they're from, or what they believe," she said.

Jeff Merkley, a U.S. Senator representing Oregon, denounced the incident on Twitter.

We all stand with our Muslim brothers and sisters who've had to face discrimination and fear. This hatred is unacceptable and un-American.

Police are investigating the suspect Christian. They said he appears to have posted extremist ideas on social media.



Thousands of people have given money to an online fundraising effort for the victims and their families. As of Monday, the amount donated reached about $800,000.

Minnesota representative Keith Ellison is the first Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress. He praised those killed in a statement.

"They saw injustice being committed, racism being practiced, and they intervened," said Ellison. He said they showed, the best qualities of American heroes. And they were killed for it."

Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi said that the attack showed an increase in hate-crimes against religious and ethnic groups during the past year.

Im Phil Dierking

This story was originally written for VOA News. Phil Dierking adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

What do you think is the best way to stand up to racism? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

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Words in This Story

bigotry - n. act that are strongly and unfairly against other people, ideas, etc. 

conscience - n. the part of the mind that makes you aware of your actions as being either morally right or wrong

dialogue - n. discussion or series of discussions that two groups or countries have in order to end a disagreement

extremism - n. belief in and support for ideas that are very far from what most people consider correct or reasonable

hijab - n. head covering worn in public by some Muslim women.

ideology - n. the set of ideas and beliefs of a group or political party

spew - v. to flow out of something in a fast and forceful way